《The Legend of Futian》


 1 The Youth of the Presen

    Chapter 1: The Youth of the Present


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Divine Prefecture Calendar, Autumn of Year 9999, East Sea, City of Qingzhou


    Qingzhou Academy was a sacred place in the city of Qingzhou. Over half of the strongest individuals from the wealthiest families and most prominent clans had attended this academy. Thus, citizens of Qingzhou took pride in being able to develop themselves there. If the opportunity presented itself for one to attend the academy, they would undoubtedly study with the utmost diligence.


    However, it seemed that not everyone felt this way. In a classroom in the academy, there was a young man fast asleep at his desk.


    Lecturing at the front of the room was a young woman, clothed in a long teal dress. She took notice of this. A wave of anger flashed across her face as she made her way towards the young man, who was in a deep slumber.


    Qin Yi was seventeen, and an official disciple of the academy, as well as a lecturer for outer sect disciples. She was blessed with a beautiful face and an alluring body. In the classroom, all eyes followed Qin Yi as she moved. Even when she was mad, every move she made was elegant.


    "This guy again! I can''t believe he fell asleep during Senior Sister Qin''s lecture again." It seemed as if the rest of the class had not noticed their sleeping classmate u[ until that point. Many of them did not know what to say. It was obviously not their first time witnessing this.


    "Senior Sister Qin is serious eye candy. I don''t know how that guy could have fallen asleep," whispered a fellow classmate.


    Among all the lecturers, Qin Yi was without a doubt the most popular. The reason as to why was evident as soon as one laid eyes on her. She was considered a goddess by many. Her lectures were always made to a packed classroom. Falling asleep in Qin Yi''s classroom was seemingly impossible.


    Qin Yi''s steps were light. She arrived at the young man''s side without making a sound. Standing in front of the desk as she eyed his face in deep slumber, her beautiful face frosted over.


    "Ye Futian," a soft voice said. The voice was not Qin Yi''s, however; it had come from behind Ye Futian.


    As if he had heard his name called, Ye Futian''s body moved slightly. With his hands holding up his head, he slowly opened his eyes. Through his blurry vision he was able to make out two round peaks.


    "So big," Ye Futian muttered unconsciously. His voice was very soft, and he had only murmured to himself, In a quiet environment like this, however, his unexpected comment was heard loud and clear by the entire class. In an instant, everyone froze, then immediately grew angry again.


    "I can''t believe it! How can he be so openly disrespectful to Senior Sister Qin?!"


    "This shameless bastard." Everyone''s gaze was fixed on Ye Futian, piercing him as sharp swords would, which caused him to shiver. He could feel that something was wrong. He shifted his gaze upward and away from the glorious view in front of him. His eyes landed on a face as exquisite as jade, but also filled with anger.


    "Uh..." Ye Futian was dumbfounded. It was Qin Yi! Had it not been Qingxue calling him?


    Turning around, he saw the glaring eyes of a seemingly innocent 15-year-old girl.


    Ye Futian took a glance at the young girl and immediately cursed under his breath. He had been played; no wonder the cup size had been wrong.


    "Senior Sister Qin, I..." Ye Futian attempted to explain.


    "Ye Futian," Qin Yi coldly interrupted him. She asked, "What is the history behind the establishment of Qingzhou Academy?"


    It was obvious Qin Yi wanted to avoid the awkwardness by changing the subject, but Ye Futian could clearly feel her anger radiating towards him. He could even feel the Will of Sword flowing through her body. It was as sharp as a knife, cutting into every inch of his body.


    "Three hundred years ago, the Great East Phoenix united the Divine Prefectures of the East and commanded all dukes to establish martial arts academies in order to promote martial arts. This was the reason behind the establishment of Qingzhou Academy," Ye Futian answered. Of course, what he had said had come straight out of the history books. In the unofficial history books of his clan, another name was connected to this event. However, this tabooed name must not be brought up.


    "What types of occupations are involved with development?" Qin Yi continued her questioning.


    "Development can be divided into martial arts and the art of divination," Ye Futian replied. "Development in martial arts is associated with occupations such as warriors, knights, swordsmen, and so on. Development in the art of divination involves occupations such as mages, alchemists, armorers, and so on. Mages can also be divided into subcategories. Of course, there are also people who are naturally gifted and choose to work on both arts."


    "It seems like you missed one type of occupation," Qin Yi stated solemnly.


    "I couldn''t have possibly missed anything," the young man said with a radiant look on his face. "The Divine Prefecture acknowledges Mandate Sorcerers as the most powerful occupation of all, as they possess a gift from the Heavens. Most of those who possess rare gifts are Mandate Sorcerers; conjurers, beastmasters, and astrologers, for example. No matter which artform they decide to pursue, they are able to surpass all others."


    Everyone in the classroom was focused on Ye Futian''s words. "Being a Mandate Sorcerer is a legendary occupation. They operate on the will of the heavens and are blessed by the heavens as well. Not only that, but even the most ordinary Mandate Sorcerers possess an innate capability for both martial arts and divination arts."


    Qin Yi glanced at the young man in front of her, impressed. However, she was still angry. She said, "I didn''t expect you to know so much about this."


    "Well of course," said Ye Futian as he looked at Qin Yi. "I am a Mandate Sorcerer."


    Pfft! Not far away, a young man began choking on his water, and was now coughing up a storm. Many pairs of eyes looked at Ye Futian as if he were crazy.


    Everyone began to think that it was possible to be that shameless. Ye Futian was a legendary character at school, and his notoriety was well-deserved. Not only had he disrespected Senior Sister Qin in public, but he was now falsely claiming to be a Mandate Sorcerer. Could it be that he was doing this to attract the attention of Senior Sister Qin?


    Who did he think he was? In his three years developing at the academy, he had been stuck on the Collection Plane of the first level of development, Awakening. His body was weak. It was clear that he had yet to reach the Enhancement Plane. How could this loser claim to be a Mandate Sorcerer? How could he be so blatantly shameless?


    Qin Yi''s chest puffed out again; it was truly a magnificent sight. She looked at Ye Futian angrily. "Since you''re a Mandate Sorcerer, you must have spirit in your Life Palace. Set the spirit of your Life Palace free and prove your words to be true."


    "My Life Spirit is still in a deep slumber, it cannot be summoned. It is also the reason why I fell asleep in class," Ye Futian answered calmly.


    "Ye Futian!" Qin Yi called out abruptly. Her beautiful eyes pierced into those of the young man facing her. "Three years ago, you arrived at the academy as a 12-year-old boy. Back then, I observed the entrance talent inspection as an outer sect disciple. Your ability to perceive Spiritual Qi was at the highest level, shocking the academy. Despite the care of many instructors, you have not made any improvements in surpassing the first level of Awakening for the past three years. Having spent your days lazing around, not paying attention during class, have you developed at all? And now you even dare to falsely claim to be a Mandate Sorcerer, going as far as using it as an excuse for sleeping in class.


    "In these three years, whether it be the Spring Quarter Examinations or the Fall Quarter Examinations, you always drop out of testing, automatically making you last in ranking throughout the entire academy. Ye Futian, do you really not feel ashamed?"


    Following Qin Yi''s enraged outburst was a silent classroom. It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Everyone watched Qin Yi as she fumed; it seemed to be the first time any of them had seen her like this.


    Ye Futian was frozen in shock as well. His dark, black eyes stared at the delicate face in front of him, which was now red with anger.


    Has it already been three years? he thought to himself. Unknowingly, three years had passed, but the commotion in his Life Palace was still the same, unchanging. He was also a bit surprised because Senior Sister Qin, a goddess to many, was usually an ice beauty. However, it appeared that she had been keeping tabs on him, and doing so since the entrance talent inspections at that.


    The room was filled with a dead silence. Qin Yi carefully looked over the young man before her eyes. He had a handsome face with sharp features, with eyes as clear and deep as the night sky. At the young age of fifteen, his only shortcoming was his thin frame. In a few years, he would definitely grow to become an attractive man.


    Qin Yi silently questioned herself: Was her tone too harsh? She noticed the slight sadness in Ye Futian''s eyes. Her anger dissipated slightly.


    "There is still one month before this year''s Fall Quarter Examinations. If you fail or give up again, no one will be able to save you from being expelled. The academy is not going to let you stay, do you understand that?" Qin Yi continued. The class watched. It seemed that the academy had reached its limits with this guy.


    Was he finally going to be expelled? If it did happen, it would be one for the history books. After all, it was not easy to get expelled from Qingzhou Academy.


    "If he goes, I go." From the back of the room, someone spoke up rather indifferently. Many looked over to the young man, who was sitting in a corner. There were looks of envy, jealousy, worship, and worry as well.


    "The academy has already decided that Yu Sheng doesn''t have to participate in next year''s Spring Quarter Examinations," Qin Yi said. "He can choose to develop at the academy Battle House, with the society of knights, or in any of the divination schools. His future can''t be tied to you. You will only hold him back." Qin Yi looked at Ye Futian and sighed. Yu Sheng and he were destined to head in two separate directions.


    "Hold him back?" The corners of Ye Futian''s mouth curled into a soft smile, revealing a hint of cynicism.


    "Shut up," Yu Sheng said from the back of the room. He stood up, his eyes shooting daggers at Qin Yi.


    "Sit down," Ye Futian said lightly, not turning to look at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng''s gaze dulled as he looked at the silhouette in front of him. He then took his seat quietly, as if Ye Futian''s words were absolute orders to him.


    "I''ve decided...", Ye Futian had a frivolous smile on his face. He continued as he looked at Qin Yi, "I am officially participating in this year''s Fall Quarter Examinations."


    In the back, Yu Sheng''s eyes sparkled.


    After three years, was he finally going to take things seriously?


    Over his three years of development at Qingzhou Academy, everyone knew of Yu Sheng''s exceptional talent. His ability to perceive the element of metal was of the highest level. He was also highly gifted in martial arts. He could continue developing in either of the arts. Even though he was an outer sect disciple, his Plane was higher than many lecturers at the academy.


    But even so, who could really understand Ye Futian?


    "Your body is frail, plus you''re still stuck in the first plane of Awakening, the Collection Plane. Even if you were to participate in the Fall Quarter Examinations, how do you expect to pass?" Qin Yi eyed Ye Futian, inwardly releasing a deep sigh. Even if he were to start working hard now, it might already be too late.


    "And what if I pass?" It seemed that Ye Futian did not have a clear understanding of his own abilities. His voice was filled with confidence.


    "If you pass, then you are free to do as you please in the classroom," replied Qin Yi.


    A peculiar light flashed in his eyes as he took in the captivating figure standing in front of him. His eyes unconsciously made their way to a place where he should not have been looking. He asked weakly, "Is it really okay for me to do anything I want?"


    This guy...what does he mean by that? many wondered as they stared at Ye Futian.


    "You shameless *sshole, where do you think you''re looking?" The other students had finally realized what his eyes were trained on. Oh, how they all wanted to hit him. How could he still be saying such disrespectful things to Senior Sister Qin?


    Naturally, Qin Yi was aware of Ye Futian''s gaze as well. The little pity she had for him died in an instant. Her beautiful eyes glared at Ye Futian with rage once again. She bit her lip and answered his question


    "Whatever you want!"

 2 Three Years Had Passed in Collection Plane

    Chapter 2: Three Years Had Passed in Collection Plane


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qin Yi stared at Ye Futian fiercely. Seeing the smile on his face, she was reminded of what had happened three years ago at the Academy Entry Talent Inspection. Ye Futian had only been 12-years-old at the time. In front of all the masters at the Academy, his smile still remained natural and proud, completely different from the nervousness of the other youngsters.


    The test had finally determined his talent to be of the highest level, which meant that his perception of Spirit and Qi was great. This made him a natural at martial arts.


    Now that three years had passed, his perception had not changed, unfortunately, nor had his plane. He had remained casual, lazy, and frequently absent from classes. However, his eyes were still bright and clear.


    "What if you can''t?" Qin Yi asked.


    "It''s your call," Ye Futian said.


    "Please, do not put Mr. Yu Sheng''s future in jeopardy." Qin Yi looked up at the resolute boy sitting behind Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng''s metal-element perception was of the highest level. He was already in the eighth Awakened Plane, the Metamorph Plane, and was even stronger than Qin Yi, who was at the seventh Awakened Plane, the Mystery. His future should not be tampered with.


    "Sure," Ye Futian promised. But was this possible?


    Qin Yi walked back to the podium. Her beautiful eyes looked around at all the students, then she said, "There is only one month before the Fall Quarter Examination. Please use this time wisely. If you wait until next spring, another batch of new students will join and compete. Especially you, Ling Xiao. You are on the sixth Awakened Plane, the Invincible; and Feng Feng Qingxue, you have stayed on the fifth Awakened Plane, the Juggernaut, for too long. I want you guys to make progress on the Spring Quarter Examination next year."


    The first level of development was Awakening, which was then divided into nine planes: Collection, Enhancement, Venation, Adamance, Juggernaut, Invincible, Mystery, Metamorphosis, and Unmaker.


    To become an official student in Qingzhou Academy, one had to reach the seventh Awakened Plane, the Mystery, before the age of eighteen, and perform accordingly in the Spring Quarter Examination.


    "I will, Ms. Qin," Ling Xiao nodded. Feng Qingxue made a fist, feeling more determined to reach his goal.


    "You are dismissed," Qin Yi murmured. She then began to walk outside, her graceful figure followed by the eyes of the boys in the room. Finally, after the figure was gone, they all viciously looked at Ye Futian, the bastard who, in their eyes, had just been disrespectful toward their Goddess.


    "Ye Futian, turn around," a cold voice said in Ye Futian''s ears, attracting a lot of looks. It was Feng Qingxue, who was seated behind Ye Futian.


    Even at just fifteen-years-old, she was already a beauty, with delicate eyes and exquisite facial features. Her body was full of youthfulness, endowing her with a sense of purity and attractiveness. When she stood up, her legs appeared slim and graceful.


    "How could you do this?" Feng Qingxue stared at Ye Futian with anger.


    Ye Futian suddenly realized what had happened and laughed. "You are jealous, aren''t you?"


    Feng Qingxue suddenly froze, speechless. A little while later, she continued, "How will you explain this to your father?"


    "Explain what?" Ye Futian blinked, then remembered his father having spoken about Feng Qingxue and how she would be a good mother because of her childbearing hips. He couldn''t take his eyes off of her curves.


    "Stop thinking of weird stuff. We are still young; it''s not time to be talking about having kids yet."


    Ye Futian''s words suddenly brought silence upon the class. The other boys felt nothing but anger. They believed this bastard was shameless. Just minutes ago he had been flirting with Ms. Qin Yi, and now he was talking dirty to Feng Qingxue, who was so gorgeous and young. What was wrong with this guy?


    Feng Qingxue completely froze. She suddenly remembered that Ye Futian''s dad had made an inappropriate joke to her dad about her and Ye Futian having kids together. She blushed badly, thinking this shameless bastard was intentionally making fun of her.


    "I meant if you were to be expelled from the Academy after the Fall Quarter Examination. How would you explain that to your dad?" Feng Qingxue was breathing hard. Her chest heaved She was confused about what Ye Futian was even thinking about. Apparently she did not believe Ye Futian would pass the Fall Quarter Examination with only the first Awakened Plane.


    "I will pass," Ye Futian said as he looked at her, shaking his head a bit.


    "Come on, you have been stuck on the first Awakened Plane for three years, yet you are still confident? Seriously, Ye Futian, please spell the word ''shame'' for me," another cold voice said from behind him. People looked back and saw that it was Ling Xiao, the boy sitting behind Feng Qingxue.


    Ling Xiao had already reached the sixth Awakened Plane, the Invincible. He was such a talented wind-element mage that he was considered extraordinary in the 15-year-old class of Qingzhou Academy. He would hopefully become an official cultivator after passing the Spring Quarter Examination next year.


    While he was speaking, he did not look at Ye Futian for even a moment. His eyes were drawn to Feng Qingxue. He continued, "Ye Futian, you are the worst in this class, yet you are talking nonsense to a talented girl like Feng Qingxue. You are obviously getting your confidence from nowhere. No wonder people say ''he who knows not, fears not.''"


    Ling Xiao was actually speaking on behalf of the rest of the class, who were now looking at Ye Futian. They believed that he was definitely the most shameless in the class.


    Yu Sheng walked beside Ye Futian without any attention. His mere existence gave him an aura of power, which suddenly demanded the respect of the others'' eyes.


    "Brother Yu," Feng Qingxue mumbled.


    "Hi," Yu Sheng casually nodded, his eyes locked onto Ling Xiao. He was giving him such a powerful look.


    "''He who knows not, fears not?''" Ye Futian did not seem agitated by Ling Xiao''s words. In fact, he had heard so many insults over these last three years that it was no longer a big deal. It was common for people to insult others in an effort to make themselves look superior, especially when someone beautiful was present.


    "You think you are the doctor, don''t you?" Ye Futian said.


    "For development? That''s not even a question, especially compared to you, loser." Ling Xiao was confident because Ye Futian had been stuck on the first Awakened Plane for so long, and he was always absent from class.


    "Okay, then tell me how a warrior could beat a double-element fire/metal mage?" Ye Futian suddenly asked.


    Ling Xiao hesitated for a second, then answered sarcastically, "Are you kidding me? Even a single-element mage would easily defeat a warrior unless the mage were such an idiot that he let the warrior get into melee range. In a one-on-one battle this would be the only way, let alone a double-element mage."


    The spells of a mage could attack a warrior from a far distance, which could cause a clear advantage for the mage over the warrior in battle.


    "You idiot. A warrior wins when he is on a higher level plane," Ye Futian said satirically. Ling Xiao looked gloomy. People looked at Ye Futian and wondered how shameless he really was to have asked such a question.


    "You raised a question about battle between different classes without telling me they were on different planes. Is this question even meaningful at all?" Ling Xiao fired back.


    "Same plane, huh? What if the warrior had increased strength and enhanced agility?" Ye Futian asked again. People suddenly realized that he was making some sense. A warrior that had increased strength would be good at blitzing. With enhanced agility, the warrior would be able to get in close range quickly.


    "Come on, you are talking about a double-element fire/metal mage. He would have a fire shield spell and enhanced armor from metal-element spells. Even in close range combat, there is no chance the mage loses," Ling Xiao sneered.


    "Then what if this warrior knew rampage cleavage? This is a specialized armor-breaking technique. With the power from Strength-concentration, metal-element armor would be nothing more than a piece of paper," Ye Futian continued, "As for the attack from the mage, you know it is nothing."


    Ling Xiao became gloomier. In fact, a Strength-concentration warrior with enhanced agility would surely evade the attacks of a mage. Ye Futian was making a good point.


    "This conversation is nothing but strategy on paper. Just stop it." Ling Xiao was reluctant to admit his loss in the debate.


    "Right, how could a mage ever lose to a warrior?" someone followed.


    "You are just repeating what you know from books, pretending you know everything and that everyone else is ignorant. Okay, then answer this simple one: How do people differ in development over the first Awakened Plane, the Collection?" Ye Futian kept asking.


    "A cultivator feels the Spiritual Qi from the universe and collects them in this plane. A mage possesses better perception over the Qi of a certain element, thus more pure power is gained from the collection. Therefore, if we are talking about collection of a certain Qi element, there is a major difference. However, for general development, there would be little difference. For mage collection, each mage definitely differs in their respective Collection Plane because of their different elements," Ling Xiao answered slowly, confident that he was including every possibility.


    "Idiot." Ye Futian glanced at Ling Xiao with scorn, then turned his back and walked away.


    "What do you mean?" Ling Xiao said, frowning at Ye Futian''s back. "Pretending to have the last word by walking away when you can''t answer? You loser."


    "Ye Futian is a douche," people murmured.


    Suddenly, a piercing glow burst out from Ye Futian''s back. It was a cloud of Qi, spreading all around him like a brilliant rainbow. The students dropped their jaws in amazement, completely shocked.


    Ye Futian was trying to make a statement. Even people in the Collection Plane could be different; some could be superior, like he was.


    Ling Xiao seemed upset about this scene. The glow from Ye Futian was so brilliant that he could not believe he was only on the first Awakened Plane, the Collection. Could it be true?


    Yu Sheng followed Ye Futian and they left. After they had disappeared, the class was still blown away by what they had just seen.


    "I gotta admit, this douche is unique in the Collection Plane."


    "So what? He has been stuck on this plane for three years, of course there is going to be a difference. If we ever got trapped on the first plane we would be the sam."


    "That''s right. He has been stuck for three years already. How the hell does he have the nerve to be so arrogant?"


    "And how dare he talk dirty to Ms. Qin and Feng Qingxue like that? Damn this scumbag."


    "Ling Xiao, take it easy. No matter how much he talks, you would beat him in an instant if he ever dared to challenge you," someone told Ling Xiao. Others mumbled in agreement.


    Ling Xiao hesitated for a while, then felt confident again. The others were right; a low level cultivator like Ye Futian was not going to confuse him.


    "Feng Qingxue, that boy is a prodigy. I know you have known each other since you were very young, but still. Stay away from him," Murong Qing said. She was Feng Qingxue''s friend, and was trying to persuade Feng Qingxue to stay away from Ye Futian. She had always looked down on Ye Futian, mostly because she believed Ye Futian was always showing off when he had no actual ability at all.


    "He is out of line, isn''t he?" Feng Qingxue also seemed mad.


    Murong Qing noticed that Feng Qingxue seemed distracted. She began speaking seriously. "Wake up, girl. You are going to be an official cultivator soon. It''s time for you to seriously think about your future. Even being around him will ruin your reputation, but you don''t seem to care about this at all. Can you imagine what people will think of you in the future? Is it even worth it for a guy like him?"


    Feng Qingxue frowned. She was speechless. She had not thought that far ahead yet.


    "Time to grow up. Stay away from him, forever," Murong Qing said.

 3 Three Planes in a Day

    Chapter 3: Three Planes in a Day


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At Qingzhou Academy, with Mount Tianyao as its background, occupied quite a bit of land. Even an outer sect disciple would be able to have a personal residence on campus.


    Ye Futian returned to where the residences of the outer sect disciples were located. With Yu Sheng trailing quietly behind him, Ye Futian walked into his own residence.


    "Yu Sheng, I want to give up," he said slowly as he stopped in his tracks.


    "Even if the Mandate has yet to awaken, you''re still incredibly gifted." Yu Sheng looked at the youth in front of him. When Ye Futian had identified himself as a Mandate Sorcerer, everyone had laughed at him, but only Yu Sheng knew that it was no laughing matter.


    Ye Futian was indeed a Mandate Sorcerer.


    "I know that. It''s just that I''ve worked so hard." Ye Futian smiled bitterly. "It''s been three years. If this goes on I really will get left behind by you. It looks like I''ll have to work harder."


    "Come on, let''s go train." Ye Futian turned to look at the young man behind him. Yu Sheng was a head taller than him, with a frame larger than most. He naturally had a strong aura about him.


    The two walked into the designated development area inside the residence. Ye Futian sat down cross-legged, instantly closing his eyes. A bright airflow surrounded him. The Spiritual Qi in the small area he occupied was going crazy, and began rushing towards Ye Futian. Yu Sheng watched all of this from behind without a word. At that moment, Ye Futian was like a formidable vortex, engulfing all the Spiritual Qi. If the others were to witness this scene, they would be rendered speechless out of fear.


    The frightful flow of air drifted through his body, his inner mind its destination. This was the location of his Life Palace.


    Possessing a spirit in your Life Palace, also known as the Life Spirit, was an attribute of a Mandate Sorcerer.


    Currently, in Ye Futian''s Life Palace, there was a large ancient tree thick with jade-green leaves. However, the land around the tree was barren. As the Spiritual Qi drifted into the Life Palace, the tree greedily absorbed it all. The crisp green leaves rustled, moving without the help of wind.


    An apparition appeared under the tree. It was Ye Futian. He looked at the magnificent tree in front of him and said quietly, "Three years of absorbing Spiritual Qi, yet it hasn''t made any difference. You only know how to take. If you''re going to be like this, then I''m no longer going to transfer any of the Spiritual Qi I absorb to you."


    He had said everything that he needed to say. The apparition he had created with his consciousness disappeared. The Spiritual Qi that was flowing through his body was no longer headed in the direction of his Life Palace, but travelled to the rest of his body instead.


    A great wave of Spiritual Qi washed over his body. He was ready for the Enhancement Plane. Right at that moment, however, a strong force emerged, pulling all the Spiritual Qi backward. It began rushing straight back into the Life Palace.


    The sudden change caused Ye Futian to shudder. Boy, he was pissed. For the past three years he had sent every last bit of Spiritual Qi he had collected to the Life Palace, but saw no results. Now it was forcefully taking it away, keeping him from developing.


    Just the thought of this made Ye Futian want to fight. The forceful energy ignored his feelings, however, and continued its crazed absorption of all the Spiritual Qi. The force then began to absorb all the energy in Ye Futian''s body. In only a few moments, Ye Futian''s complexion began to turn pale.


    *sshole! Ye Futian cursed. Accompanying the raging rush of Spiritual Qi into the Life Palace, he felt a violent shaking in his head. It seemed as if there was a drastic change going on in the Palace. His consciousness attempted to interrupt it, but was destroyed by a wild force.


    Ah...! A deep growl escaped his lips. Yu Sheng stood up abruptly, witnessing the change in Ye Futian''s body. Not only was his body changing, but all the Spiritual Qi he had previously collected from around him was rushing towards him as well. Even more, the flowers, grass, and trees in the surrounding area all began to wilt at an alarming rate. Yu Sheng''s eyes lit up as he realized what was happening. He stepped closer to Ye Futian and took a seat right behind him. When he placed both of his hands on Ye Futian''s body, he immediately felt an enormous force. It absorbed the Spiritual Qi Yu Sheng had in his own body, just as he thought it would.


    Was it finally awakening?


    ......


    When Ye Futian woke up, all he knew was that his body felt extremely weak. The sunlight pierced his eyes as he opened them. A night had passed.


    "What...happened?" Ye Futian sat up and saw the withered plants. Seated beside him was a weakened Yu Sheng.


    Thinking of the events of the previous day, Ye Futian closed his eyes, his consciousness entering his Life Palace. Ye Futian jumped at the sight of his previously barren Life Palace. There was now a moon in the sky, shining down on the vast land, as well as mountains and streams. The ancient tree the Life Spirit had resided in stood as tall as ever, looking greener than ever before. It was full of Spiritual Qi.


    The World Tree. The apparition of Ye Futian, created by his consciousness, appeared under the ancient tree once more. Could it be that his old man had lied?


    His father had once told him that his ancestors were Mandate Sorcerers who had gone against Heaven''s will. The World Tree could take the spirit from anything on Earth. However, it had failed to be passed on, and Ye Futian was the only one who had inherited their ancestors'' innate abilities.


    Could it be that Freedom Meditation is real? Ye Futian thought of the Freedom Meditation mantras he had repeated over and over as a child. He was excited, With his eyes closed, the mantras flowed from his mouth. He quickly became focused, controlling all his thoughts. It was as if he was galloping between Heaven and Earth.


    Just as quickly, a dense force of Spiritual Qi appeared in his meditative mind. Within that dense force, he was able to see different colored Spiritual Qi. Those were the purest kinds of elemental Spiritual Qi. Each color represented a different type of element.


    Flames. Ye Futian''s thoughts locked onto the blazing red Spiritual Qi. It was the fire-element Spiritual Qi. The World Tree Life Spirit took on the blazing red color; it was truly a dazzling sight. Suddenly, outside the Life Palace, the fire-element Spiritual Qi flowed feverishly into Ye Futian''s body. It wandered into every organ, giving him a strong burning sensation.


    Wood-element. Ye Futian shifted his focus to the green Spiritual Qi using the Freedom Meditation. His body flooded with wood-element Spiritual Qi, instantly replenishing the energy that had been taken from him.


    Metal, Earth, Wind, Water... Ye Futian played around with this for quite a while. Finally, he stopped, opened his eyes, and stared blankly into the space in front of him.


    "Is this...real?" Ye Futian looked down at his hands in disbelief.


    "Of course it''s real! You''re a Full-Attribute Sorcerer." Sitting behind him, Yu Sheng had clenched his fists in excitement, to the point that the veins in his arms were clearly visible. He stared straight ahead at Ye Futian. "Plus, you''re a Full-Attribute Mandate Sorcerer, who is able to develop in both martial and divination arts."


    "Then, isn''t my gift..." Ye Futian''s eyes shimmered.


    "Against the will of Heaven," Yu Sheng finished. "There''s no one else like you in the city of Qingzhou."


    His face cracked into a big smile. So many of the elders in his family had been unable to inherit their ancestors'' great gift, yet he had. Was this the Mandate of Heaven? A Mandate Sorcerer, operating on the will of the Mandate?


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian stood up suddenly, heading outside the residence.


    "Where to?" questioned Yu Sheng.


    "To the back of the mountains," replied Ye Futian. The mountains he was referring to were the Mount Tianyao mountains behind Qingzhou Academy.


    "Demons scour the back mountains. Why do you want to go there?" Yu Sheng asked.


    "We''ll just go near the border. Besides, what do I have to be afraid of with you next to me?" He was out the door before he finished his sentence. Yu Sheng did not have much to say, so he followed after him.


    Mount Tianyao was an extensive chain of mountains. The terrain was steep, and demons walked the land. Not many people knew exactly how deep the mountains were. It was said that the reason for building Qingzhou Academy in front of the mountains was to prevent the demons from coming out and causing harm to the citizens. At the same time, it also provided a place for the academy''s disciples to train.


    At noon, the two youths climbed up Mount Tianyao and stood on a boulder that was resting on top of a cliff at the border of the mountain range. Looking down at the massive academy grounds, Ye Futian exhaled.


    It had been three years. Knowing his identity as a Mandate Sorcerer, how could he have possibly been satisfied developing in only martial arts? There had been no change in his Life Spirit, creating a hint of disappointment under his proud exterior. It had finally come to an end; he was going to keep reaching for his dream of becoming a powerful Mandate Sorcerer.


    The scorching sun beamed on Ye Futian as he looked up at its rays. His squinted eyes gave off a powerful sense of confidence. The Freedom Meditation''s key points were observation and thought. Right now, he was observing and thinking about the sun.


    As Ye Futian observed and thought about the scorching sun, he stood atop the large boulder. The rays of the sun turned into flames and permeated his surroundings. They then pierced Ye Futian''s body. The forceful blaze of fire flowed around him, reaching every internal organ and each of his limbs, filling his entire body.


    Yu Sheng watched as Ye Futian turned into a man on fire in front of his very eyes. Those same firm eyes showed happiness. The sleeping dragon had finally awakened.


    Crackling sounded as Ye Futian''s skin burned red from the blazing flames. Under the incineration of the sun''s flames, his body continued changing.


    After a long while, Ye Futian''s skin glistened like crystals, but also bright, like a fire. Within his body, fiery dragons rushed into every vessel, causing a loud rumble. There was a lot of activity, and many loud, frantic noises. Luckily, there was no one else at the top of the mountains, so Yu Sheng was the only one that heard them.


    It was shocking that entering the Enhancement and Venation Planes could cause such a ruckus.


    In the blink of an eye, it was already dusk. The sun was setting, and Ye Futian''s entire body was engulfed in flames. It felt like a storm was raging inside his body. His bones were crackling continuously. He finally stopped when the sun disappeared below the horizon. Slowly, he opened his eyes. Unexpectedly, a beam of fire shot out from his pupils.


    "You broke through three planes in a day," Yu Sheng stated in shock. After having been suppressed for three years, he had broken out in one day. Borrowing the power of the sun for the calcination of his body, he had powered through both the Enhancement and Venation Planes in one go. He was now in the fourth plane of Awakening, the Adament Plane. He now possessed an impenetrable iron body.


    "This is too cool," Ye Futian muttered. It would have taken at least a few months for an ordinary person to achieve an iron body. To become a Mandate Sorcerer, he had used Freedom Meditation to observe and think about the flames of the sun, and with some help from his Life Spirit, he had been able to achieve it in half a day.


    At that moment, he felt completely energized. He stood up and walked over to an ancient tree at the top of the mountain. With a quick wave of his fist and a loud snap, the large tree that had once stood in front of him split into pieces. The area where his fist had landed on the tree trunk was now burned black.


    "Even those in the Juggernaut Plane wouldn''t be able to handle a punch from you," Yu Sheng gasped, seeing the result of Ye Futian''s work. Those in the Juggernaut Plane had immense strength, but the force of that one punch from Ye Futian definitely surpassed the strength one would normally possess in the Juggernaut Plane.

 4 His Life Spirit Was the Sun

    Chapter 4: His Life Spirit Was the Sun


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was shocked by the power of his punch. Delighted by what he had just accomplished, something suddenly slipped into his mind. He closed his eyes, and his consciousness went into the Life Palace.


    The apparition of Ye Futian appeared under the World Tree. His eyes filled with excitement. At that moment, the jade green tree was faintly covered in flames, looking radiant with fire-element Qi. What shocked Ye Futian even more was the bright, sun-shaped matter that hung in the sky. It exuded a breathtaking flame, though it was far from the dazzling effect of the real sun.


    The mind of an actual cultivator always had some kind of artifact in their Life Palace. For some, it would be a mountain or river. For Ye Futian, it was a bright sun.


    This power felt so strong that it almost absorbed the essence of the universe. Ye Futian was shocked as he stared at the sun in his Life Palace. Suddenly, he felt as if he were the sun himself. The Spiritual Qi of the entire universe had flowed inside him, then into his constellation and the World Tree.


    The World Tree now had flames, and the sun above had grown even brighter.


    Oh my, this scorching feeling. Ye Futian felt like he was in the middle of the sun; his joints, muscles, and bones were continually being forged by the flame of the sun.


    My spirit lies in my Life Palace�� Ye Futian mumbled to himself. Suddenly, he remembered something��something that could possibly be happening. He began to focus, and soon after the glow of the sun had burst out of his head and shone all over the place. It gave his face a sense of holiness.


    "Your spirit in your Life Palace��is it a sun?" Yu Sheng asked, standing beside him.


    Ye Futian suddenly opened his eyes. The glow was now gone. He looked at Yu Sheng, slightly confused, then mumbled, "I seem to be able to make spirit in the palace��"


    He realized the sun in his Life Palace was obviously the spirit. It had boosted his cultivation, and even showed increased improvement on his body.


    Yu Sheng was thrilled; his eyes opened wide. He stared at Ye Futian and asked sincerely, "Then please, create one for me?"


    Ye Futian was speechless. Yu Sheng was so out of line. How could he even think to ask Ye Futian to make him a spirit in his palace after having been thrilled like this?


    "Keep an eye on your imagination, buddy," Ye Futian nodded, turning away.


    Yu Sheng was confused again. "Where to?"


    "Time for cultivation. We have to observe some animals." Ye Futian laughed, seemingly in good spirits. The sun was pushing him through planes so fast that it would be entirely possible to reach the Juggernaut Plane from the Adamant Plane. Though it would require the extreme coordination of strength and spirit, once he arrived at Juggernaut, he would be able to integrate his mind, strength, and spirit. Every technique and move would evolve into a new level of power in the Juggernaut Plane for him. He had to put in the effort.


    Mount Tianyao was surrounded by herds of demons, even on its perimeter. Soon after they marched into the mountain area, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were met with a level four Swift Demon Panther.


    "Yu Sheng, go wait to intercept her; I will chase after her." Ye Futian commanded Yu Sheng. Hearing the order, Yu Sheng flew like an arrow, with a momentum that somehow shook the earth. The Panther sensed the threat, and suddenly tried to run away like a bolt of lightning.


    "Soul generates mind, mind guides strength; creator of the universe, break your limit and unleash all your power..."


    Ye Futian mumbled out the spells of unleashed cultivation power. As he ran, the Panther created a shadow figure, sprinting in his mind. It seemed that almost every single one of Panther''s moves were being repeated and slowed down in his mind.


    Gradually, his body had unconsciously copied the gestures of the Panther. When he lept into the air, his right leg curled a bit to burst harder into the next step. It was almost as if he were the Panther himself. Though he ran fast, he was still not proficient enough for the Panther''s moves, so the Panther was almost able to get away from him. Fortunately, Yu Sheng managed to cut off its escape.


    It''s not just strength; it''s the power of the wind. Ye Futian could perceive the wind-element power surrounding the Panther. He began to feel that his body had also absorbed energy from the wind; his clothes rustled, and his movements became even more fluent. Half an hour later, he merged with the wind, just as the Panther had.


    "Yu Sheng, leave her alone. I''m done." Ye Futian stopped running, and Yu Sheng let go of the Panther.


    "You are such a great imitator," Yu Sheng complimented. He had watched Ye Futian gain the essence of the Panther''s moves in only half an hour.


    "I have a sense of wind-element power. As long as I practice my techniques as the Panther has, I will have her speed. It''s still not enough though. It looks like you have more work to do for me these days," Ye Futian laughed. Yu Sheng did not say anything, but followed him in silence.


    The following few days, Ye Futian developed in Mount Tianyao. He observed and imitated the movement patterns of monkeys, tigers, lions, and even birds. He progressed every single day.


    On the tenth day, he made it to the fifth plane of awakening, the Juggernaut. That day, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng walked deep inside the forest. The earth began to shake lightly, as did the trees around them. A terrible voice came roaring in their ears.


    They looked at each other to make a decision, then walked towards the source of the voice. The shaking became even worse. Finally, they saw a giant, furious monster, which was over five meters tall.


    "Wow, that is a level nine demon; Ape the Furious." Yu Sheng''s eyes looked sharp. The giant demon was a real threat to him. What was surprising, however, was seeing a graceful beauty standing right in front of the Ape.


    The girl was dressed in all white. Her hair danced along with the wind, as did her skirt. Her facial features were so perfect that she would definitely be considered a "Helen of Troy" when she grew older.


    "It''s Hua Jieyu. I know her." This girl was a legend at Qingzhou Academy. Ye Futian marveled at her beauty.


    "Should we help?" Yu Sheng asked.


    "Wait, the Ape is injured." Ye Futian noticed that the Ape had wounds all over, while the girl looked safe.


    "Hua." The Ape suddenly stepped towards the girl with a loud roar. Because of the size difference, it seemed clear that the girl could not withstand one attack. However, Hua Jieyu swiftly flew towards a tree to evade the attack.


    The Ape knocked down the tree, then picked it up as a weapon to swing at Hua Jieyu. The strength of the throw was terrifying.


    The girl remained calm. She bounced all over the air. She also used leaves as her weapon. The leaves charged towards the Ape as if they were blades, and each one made a sound as they flew through the air.


    The Ape tried to block the leaf blades with the tree in hand. The leaves were everywhere, and after a while, the tree had almost been cut into pieces.


    Gravel and boulders flew all around. Hua Jieyu fell behind another tree and closed her eyes. Suddenly, all the flying rubble charged towards the Ape. Each piece of debris was like a small blade; together, they were eroding the defense of the Ape by cutting into his skin bit by bit. Even more horrifying was the extreme razor-like lance of rubble that had been formed by Hua Jieyu''s Qi, and was pointed right at the Ape.


    Such a powerful spell. Ye Futian was completely shocked. A moment later, he witnessed the lance pierce right through the eye of the Ape. The giant monster growled in extreme pain and began to run away. He knocked down every tree on his way.


    The girl did not chase after the Ape. She slowly descended to the ground, as if she were a Goddess gracing the planet with her presence.


    "Enjoyed the show, didn''t you?" Hua Jieyu smiled softly. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng walked out of their hiding spots and looked at the girl, who was their age, in shock.


    "You are a multiple-element mage? Are you serious?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I know you." Hua Jieyu didn''t answer Ye Futian''s question, instead choosing to look at him.


    "Sounds like I am famous." Ye Futian also smiled. He seemed genuinely honored to be known by the legendary beauty of the academy.


    "It was three years ago at the Entry Test of the academy. I overheard what you said when we first met."


    "Huh��." Ye Futian sensed the awkwardness in the air, but he soon calmed down and asked, "What did I say?"


    Hua Jieyu gave him a sweet smile that nearly took his soul away.


    "You asked if I was a fairy." She kept smiling, then turned back into the forest.


    Of course. Ye Futian was paralyzed for a second, then nodded at the figure as she left.


    "Looks like you remember it." Yu Sheng also watched her as she left.


    Ye Futian thought back to three years ago. When he had first met the then 12-year-old Hua Jieyu, he had told Yu Sheng, "She''s too beautiful to be a human. In a few years she''s going to be a fairy, and dangerous for men."


    "People say that she has reached the ninth plane of awakening already, and that she majored in both strength and spells. I cannot imagine how awesome the spells she used were; most people in the ninth plane of awakening cannot do the same things she did. Rumor also has it that she is a Mandate Sorcerer. Some great master in the academy already made her their private disciple. Guys are going after her, but none of them could even remotely match her beauty and talent," Yu Sheng mumbled.


    "She''s caught your heart. Am I right?" Futian mocked him.


    Yu Sheng shook his head, then said in a serious tone, "I think she''s here for you."


    "Come on," Ye Futian said as he patted the top of Yu Sheng''s head, "Just stop thinking, then."


    He turned back and suddenly smiled like a child. "To be honest, though, I do want to marry her. She''s definitely qualified to be a wife candidate," Ye Futian chuckled.


    Yu Sheng stumbled upon hearing this. He stared at Ye Futian from behind. Just a candidate? What a rude joke.

 5 Feng Qingxue’s Decision

    Chapter 5: Feng Qingxue��s Decision


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the blink of an eye, over twenty days had passed. Two silhouettes were seen leaving the back mountains, returning to Qingzhou Academy.


    There had been a significant amount of change to Ye Futian''s body. His eyes had never been filled with such energy, and his physique was better than ever. As he walked on the academy''s cobblestone road, it all felt like a dream, as if he had been gone for a long time.


    "This rascal is finally back after hiding for so long."


    "He probably couldn''t hide any longer; the Fall Quarter Examinations are only eight days away."


    People in the academy whispered amongst themselves upon seeing Ye Futian. The events of Qin Yi''s lecture twenty some days ago had already spread. This "infamous character," who hadn''t broken through a single plane in three years, disrespected their goddess, Senior Sister Qin. Then he turned around to flirt with Feng Qingxue. Ye Futian was now the talk of the academy.


    "Seems like people are looking for trouble." Ye Futian''s hearing had sharpened quite a bit; he could now hear even the lowest of whispers.


    "How do you feel about that?" Yu Sheng eyed him with pity. Qin Yi and Feng Qingxue were both extreme beauties. The two were very popular in Qingzhou Academy and had countless suitors, especially Qin Yi. At the ripe age of seventeen, she had the looks and the body to captivate any man. So, when this guy flirted with both ladies in a day, he irritated many people.


    "It''s nothing. I know you have my back," shrugged Ye Futian.


    "Shouldn''t you be able to handle it by yourself now?" Yu Sheng asked confusedly. Ye Futian was already on the brink of breaking through the Juggernaut Plane; his power might have been able to surpass someone on the sixth Awakening Plane, the Invincible.


    "I have to keep a low profile." Ye Futian walked away arrogantly, with his hands behind his back. Yu Sheng looked at the hateful figure ahead, completely speechless. Was this the same person who had announced his identity as a Mandate Sorcerer to the world, despite being stuck on the first plane? Now that he really was a Mandate Sorcerer, he wanted to keep a low profile? How could he be any more contradictory?


    Not long after, the two returned to the dorm where they resided together. As expected, there were many other people making their way over there as well. What''s more, it was not just one group of people, but two. The two groups met along the way and exchanged wary looks, ready for a fight. Putting their differences aside for the time being, the two crowds became one as they walked towards Ye Futian''s residence.


    "It''s people from the Society of Knights of the School of Martial Arts and people from the School of Divination Arts," said a bystander. Many people were headed in Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s direction. These individuals were all official disciples of Qingzhou Academy. It did not seem like they were there out of jealousy from what had happened with the two girls, things were not that simple.


    The School of Martial Arts within Qingzhou Academy consisted of the Battle House, the House of Swordsmen, and the Society of Knights. The School of Divination Arts was made up of the seven Great Elemental Pavilions. One of the two groups was dressed in silver. These people were from the Society of Knights, where the strongest knights were groomed.


    On the other hand, the second group of visitors was donned in gold. The two metallic colors reflected off one another. This group was from the Metal Pavilion.


    "Senior Brother Mo Lanshan, a three-star Glory Knight, and Senior Brother Han Ye, a Metal Element two-star Glory Sorcerer. I can''t believe they''re here at the same time," someone recognized the leaders of the two groups, their intentions were now clear to everyone.


    Wow, what an honor!


    If both schools were there, then it couldn''t possibly be for Ye Futian.


    Inside the dorm, Ye Futian stood off to the side and looked at Yu Sheng, who was standing in front of the two parties. He smiled lightly. Yu Sheng had always stood behind Ye Futian, but even then, he still shone brightly. His future would only be brighter, Ye Futian believed in him, just as Yu Sheng had for him.


    Senior Sister Qin had previously mentioned that Yu Sheng would be exempt from next year''s Spring Quarter Examinations and that he would be free to choose whether to join the School of Martial Arts or the School of Divination Arts. Back then, Ye Futian thought that there might be a possibility the higher ups would take action first and recruit him instead of waiting for him to pick. Just as predicted, they were here now.


    "You should step outside," Mo Lanshan said. Naturally, Ye Futian understood this was directed at him, so he smiled and stepped outside, not minding too much.


    Outside the dorm, a rather large crowd had gathered. Of the thousands of outer sect disciples attending Qingzhou Academy, only a handful were personally recruited as official disciples each year. For this reason, many people would be jealous.


    "Yu Sheng is about to be an official disciple while he''s about to be expelled, what a joke." The people noticed that Ye Futian was alone and so, they felt no need to lower their voices. There were many others in the academy that did not like him anyway.


    "He only made it this far because of Yu Sheng, without him, Ye Futian would''ve been kicked out of the academy ages ago."


    "I''m really looking forward to seeing his performance during the Fall Quarter Examinations." Everyone around laughed at Ye Futian.


    "Instead of worrying about me, why don''t you worry about yourselves. If you mess up during the exam, it''ll be really embarrassing," Ye Futian replied as he leaned on the wall nonchalantly.


    "How arrogant."


    "Fits his reputation." Everyone stared and discussed Ye Futian. Even though Yu Sheng always followed Ye Futian, he was going to become an official first. Shouldn''t Ye Futian be ashamed?


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and tried to block out the noise. Not long after, the Society of Knights exited the dorm. As they walked past Ye Futian, their leader halted.


    "I heard that Yu Sheng''s father works as a manager for your family clan," Mo Lanshan said, without a single glance at Ye Futian.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded.


    "People are indeed often blinded by others'' family backgrounds; but, as they grow older, they''ll come to understand that people from different worlds should not collide. The more arrogant you are now, the more petty you will be later in life. The people you once knew will soar so high above your head that you won''t even be close enough to reach out and touch them," Mo Lanshan said coldly and walked away.


    From the very beginning, Mo Lanshan never spared a glance at Ye Futian, he was worthless in his eyes.


    Ye Futian was confused, his eyes followed Mo Lanshan as he departed. Ye Futian was sure Yu Sheng would not have made a choice without asking for his opinion first, and Mo Lanshan knew that. So, why did Mo Lanshan say all those things to mock him? Were they not complete strangers?


    The group from the School of Divination Arts also started to leave. Han Ye glanced at Mo Lanshan''s figure ahead of him, his eyes then landed on Ye Futian. "You''ve got some guts, flirting with a senior sister like that."


    "Uh..." Ye Futian was speechless. Had the gossip reached the official disciples?


    "Mo Lanshan is from the Society of Knights of the School of Martial Arts, and even though Qin Yi is from the House of Swordsmen, they''re still from the same school." Han Ye left this for Ye Futian to think about as he walked away. Ye Futian thought about that for a while and his eyes lit up. He finally understood Mo Lanshan''s cold attitude towards him.


    Yu Sheng looked as if he had something to say when he saw Ye Futian re-enter the dorm.


    "Don''t waste your time thinking about this. How can they ask you to just decide like this? Isn''t this a mockery of your abilities? Don''t choose either school; if nothing happens, they''ll be able to see what a genius you are at the Fall Quarter Examinations." Yu Sheng was dumbstruck by what Ye Futian said. It didn''t seem like Ye Futian wanted to discuss this situation, so even though Yu Sheng already had his thoughts on the topic, he simply nodded.


    Yu Sheng trusted Ye Futian more than he trusted himself.


    ......


    It was seven days before the Fall Quarter Examinations. Early in that morning, a bell rang all across the Qingzhou Academy campus.


    People left the dorms and all headed in the same direction.


    Around this time every year, the academy would gather all the outer sect disciples and make announcements regarding the Fall Quarter Examinations. It was also a time for pre-examination inspections.


    The outer sect disciple gymnasium was enormous, able to accommodate tens of thousands of people with ease. Even though the outer sect disciples filed in continuously, the gymnasium remained unfilled.


    The outer sect lecturers had arrived early on. Qin Yi was wearing something tight-fitting that showed off her curvaceous figure and attracted the attention of all those around her.


    "He''s here." The news had come from a small group in the crowd. They were all making a fuss while looking in the same direction. From that direction, came two people.


    "I heard that senior brothers from both schools went to recruit Yu Sheng yesterday. That sort of treatment isn''t for just anyone. How dare that loser walk in front of Yu Sheng like that?" Everyone watched the school''s "infamous character", and they were not too happy with him. Yu Sheng was going to be someone important in the future, but what was Ye Futian going to amount to? Probably nothing.


    None of this bothered Ye Futian though. Others could not possibly understand his relationship with Yu Sheng.


    "Senior Sister Qin," Ye Futian greeted her with twinkling eyes. With a face and a body like that, it was no wonder that a Glory Knight like Mo Lanshan wasted his time getting mad at a nobody like him.


    Qin Yi''s face fell when she saw Ye Futian. "Where have you been these past days?"


    "I went cultivating, of course!" he replied. "Since I made a promise to you, I should give it my all."


    It did not seem like he was lying, so her expression warmed up a bit. As long as it was possible to encourage him to develop, and he did not do too badly during the Fall Quarter Examinations, maybe it would be possible to persuade the academy to give him some time.


    "Have you progressed into the Enhancement Plane?" Qin Yi asked.


    "Senior Sister, I''ve already stepped into the Juggernaut Plane," he said with a serious look on his face.


    After she heard his words, her face fell once again and she glared at Ye Futian. She couldn''t believe that she actually trusted him, and that she was even considering putting in a good word for him.


    "Haha...!" Everyone around began to laugh. Ling Xiao walked close to the two and questioned Qin Yi while staring at Ye Futian, "Senior Sister Qin, what should we do about this guy?"


    "You''re running out of time, Ye Futian! If you want to stay in the academy, you have to pick up the pace and try harder to reach the Enhancement Plane." Qin Yi was a bit disappointed. Thinking back on the entrance talent inspections three years ago, it seemed like such a waste.


    Ye Futian seemed to understand how she felt, his face broke out into a warm smile. Even though she didn''t seem to believe him, he knew she truly cared about his well-being.


    "Don''t worry, Senior Sister. I won''t let you down." His smile was a display of his pride, the morning sun shone off his handsome face.


    Qin Yi''s heart warmed at his words, but just as she began to feel this way, Ye Futian said, "Don''t forget what you promised, Senior Sister."


    "You...!" She stomped her feet and turned to walk away. She was only a young seventeen-year-old, she did not know how to deal with this type of thing.


    Many people were dumbfounded. They glared at Ye Futian furiously, but also with a bit of jealousy. Even though it was quite shameless of him, they were jealous that he could joke with Qin Yi without worry.


    "Why waste your time on a person like him?" A male lecturer stepped beside Qin Yi and asked.


    She spared him a glance and said, "He is actually quite gifted. I still don''t understand why he couldn''t manage to break through the Collection Plane over the span of three years. Maybe a miracle will really happen at this year''s Fall Quarter Examinations."


    "I really don''t understand why you have such high hopes for him." The fellow lecturer beside her shook his head and looked at Ye Futian with disdain.


    At that moment, Ye Futian wondered and questioned Yu Sheng, who was standing beside him, "How come no one believes me when I tell the truth?"


    Yu Sheng had no answer for him. Who would believe that anyone could make it from the Collection Plane to the Juggernaut Plane in less than a month?


    "We''ll become official disciples in the Spring of next year. Should we give Feng Qingxue a hand as well?" Ye Futian asked.


    Yu Sheng took a quick look at Feng Qingxue and nodded. If she was able to develop with Ye Futian, then she could definitely make it to the Mystery Plane by the Spring Quarter Examinations.


    Ye Futian located Feng Qingxue and began to make his way over. The crowd made way for him unwillingly. Of course, this was because he had Yu Sheng behind him.


    Before he could get close enough to her, someone stepped out in front and blocked his way. It was Feng Qingxue''s best friend, Murong Qing.


    "What do you want?" Murong Qing asked emotionlessly.


    "I want to speak with Feng Qingxue." Ye Futian gave out a smile.


    "I know. You can say what you need to from here," she said.


    Ye Futian lifted his head, ignoring Murong Qing, as he looked towards Feng Qingxue and said, "I have to talk to you."


    "It''ll be the same if you said it from over there." Feng Qingxue was avoiding his eyes.


    "Feng Qingxue, what do you mean by all of this?" Ye Futian was confused by this situation.


    "You don''t understand? It means that Qingxue doesn''t want to be near you. So, mind yourself," Murong Qing answered.


    Ye Futian''s gaze sharpened and he turned serious. However, Feng Qingxue continued to avoid meeting his eyes.


    "Forget it." His eyebrows unfurled and he spoke softly.


    "Ye Futian wanted to ask you to train together from now on," Yu Sheng spoke out abruptly from his spot off to the side, his gaze sharp as always.


    Ye Futian was shocked as he turned towards Yu Sheng. He was never a man of many words, but the Yu Sheng that Ye Futian was looking at now looked extremely mad.


    At this point, Feng Qingxue lifted her head and noticed the look in Yu Sheng''s eyes. She then greeted him timidly. "Yu Sheng."


    Their interactions attracted the attention of others. Ye Futian wanted to invite Feng Qingxue to train together? That''s rich. Was he dreaming? However, it was Yu Sheng who brought this up, so no one dared to interfere.


    "I know that Feng Qingxue really looks up to you, but do you really think that Ye Futian is worthy enough to have her train with him?" Murong Qing asked Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng paid her no attention, his eyes were still focused on Feng Qingxue. "I want to know what think."


    Feng Qingxue clenched her small fists. She was shaking. She looked at Yu Sheng, then at Ye Futian. Shaking her head, she replied, "Yu Sheng, we''re all grown up now, I think it would be best for us to keep our distance."


    After saying this, she let go of the breath she had been holding in. A rock had finally been lifted off her shoulders, and she was feeling much more relaxed now. However, she knew that she had just lost something.


    Ye Futian finally got the answer he had been waiting for, although it was not the answer he had hoped to hear. He smiled bitterly and shook his head. She really had grown up.

 6 The Dragon Is Coming

    Chapter 6: The Dragon Is Coming


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Feng Qingxue''s answer met the expectations of her peers. They believed Ye Futian was too bold asking Feng Qingxue to cultivate together, which seemed like poorly disguised flirting. How rude was that?


    Even though people knew they had some history together��mostly friendship over the years since they were young��it still meant nothing, especially when it came to boundaries. When Feng Qingxue had said they were both adults, she had apparently been making her point.


    "Rejected, huh." People mocked Ye Futian seeing him in this position.


    In fact, Ye Futian had been so bold that he had left himself no leeway. Seeing their expressions, Ye Futian soon realized what the others were thinking of him. What a cheap novel show he was creating. He shook his head and left.


    I am such a fool for asking her in public. It was my fault, pushing her into a place where she had no choice, Ye Futian sighed.


    "Can''t you tell that she was obviously making a point when she let Murong Qing stand between you? Come on, man, you''ve known each other for so long. She told you to keep your distance; what does that mean? Cutting off all ties?" Yu Sheng seemed angered by Feng Qingxue''s attitude. He looked like a ferocious lion.


    "It''s okay. She is only fifteen; she is still young, and easily persuaded by others." Ye Futian did not seem ashamed by what had just happened. In fact, he was still trying to stand up for Feng Qingxue.


    "Don''t forget what she just said," Yu Sheng said with authority, "She was throwing those words right in your face. Why can''t you understand your friendship with her is O-V-E-R. She made her choice." Yu Sheng knew Ye Futian better than anyone else. He looked cynical, but deep inside he was warm and understanding, especially towards people he knew well. He knew that Ye Futian was trying to forgive Feng Qingxue and give her another chance.


    However, Yu Sheng was not going to just let it go. He felt that he must protect Ye Futian''s pride and self-esteem for him. He knew what Feng Qingxue had just missed out on.


    He never forgot what his father had told Ye Futian; people saw things the clearest when they were down in their lives. It was not a big deal, because one day, when you became a king, the world would kneel before you.


    ��


    A noise in the crowd came from the battle arena, drawing the attention of the students. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng looked back and saw several people flying over the arena. They had wings that held them suspended in midair.


    "They are seniors from the College of Sorcery; wind-element mages, who can actually condense air to create wings with wind-element spells and fly with them."


    The crowd watched in admiration, as they were still in the Awakening Planes, trying their best to break out of their physical constraints and combine their spirits and bodies in perfection. These mages were in the Glory Plane, which meant they were proficient in all kinds of spells.


    In the Divine Prefectures, mages outranked ordinary cultivators. Only the wind-element mages were able to fly in the Glory Plane.


    "We are here to inform you that a certain area of Mount Tianyao has been cleared," a flying mage said, "In this area, there will only be demons and monsters within the Awakening Plane levels. The following seven days will be the hunting season before the Fall Quarter Examination. You may hunt in this area to test your own gains from the past year, as well as hone your techniques in real combat and imminent danger."


    Another flying mage began speaking, "You''ll leave this place sooner or later. Without being seriously tested by real situations, you will never become a true cultivator. However, safety must be your priority. We suggest you partner up with other people to look out for each other."


    People nodded to show that they understood what was happening. Every hunting season before the Fall Quarter Examination, the academy would clear the area to make sure that it was safer than usual. However, some daredevils would still go into Mount Tianyao, even when it had not been cleared.


    "During the Fall Quarter Examination, the academy will hold a homecoming event. People from the City of Qingzhou will come to watch, possibly even your parents. Make sure you perform well during the event, and do not let them down." The mage continued giving information most students already knew. The Fall and Spring Quarter Examinations were remarkable events for both the Qingzhou Academy and the city as a whole.


    The Fall Quarter Examination was bigger than the Spring Quarter Examination because the latter was for the selection of official students, and focused only on a few people.


    "Okay, now go and prepare yourselves." The mage waved goodbye, then the group flew towards Mount Tianyao.


    The arena buzzed with excitement. People gathered around for the Fall hunt. This was an opportunity no one should miss.


    "Ye Futian, what''s your plan?" Qin Yi asked Ye Futian from a distance.


    "What do you mean by ''plan,'' Ms. Qin?" Ye Futian looked at her.


    "It''s a great opportunity, especially for you. You could go with Yu Sheng. It will be safe. Also, you may reach a new plane during the hunt," Qin Yi said.


    "Nah, not this time," Ye Futian shook his head. After all, he had just come back from the mountain. He figured he should save himself the trouble.


    Qin Yi stared at him and said, "You are still young. Relationships are not everything. Do not give up on yourself after being turned down once."


    Qin Yi was worried about Ye Futian feeling defeated after the apparent rejection he had received from Feng Qingxue.


    Ye Futian blinked, and realized Qin Yi misunderstood what had happened. He scanned the shapely body of Qin Yi and mumbled, "You know, I''m not that young."


    Qin Yi fell speechless for a second. Soon she realized that Ye Futian was hitting on her and became angry. She turned around and said, "You''re hopeless."


    Seeing she was mad, Ye Futian laughed even more. "My pleasure, Ms. Qin."


    Qin Yi stopped, then kept walking.


    "She''s nice, you better consider her," Yu Sheng said. Ye Futian looked at him with confusion. "Consider what?"


    "She could be a wife candidate." Yu Sheng looked serious.


    Ugh, this guy�� Ye Futian rubbed his head. One could really be influenced by his friends.


    ...


    The academy was full of activity these days. Endless groups of people were marching towards Mount Tianyao, most of whom looked high-spirited. It happened every year; but in a few days, they would return frustrated, defeated, and injured.


    During the hunting season, the academy cleared the area for students, making sure the monsters were safe to deal with. However, some level seven, eight, or even level nine monsters would still be a nightmare for some unfortunate students.


    This hunt served as a trial, but also as a purgatory.


    Under the mountain, students entered in groups. Some of them looked familiar.


    "Look, it''s Feng Qingxue." People noticed the girl in this particular group. She was dressed in scarlet. She looked even more attractive and charming than usual in such a beautiful dress.


    "The guy next to her, who''s that?" Some people were surprised to see a charming young man next to Feng Qingxue, in addition to her friend Murong Qing.


    "He''s Murong Qiu, Murong Qing''s cousin. He is the pride of the Murong family. He''s already in the highest plane of awakening, the Unmaker. He''s with Feng Qingxue for the hunt? No wonder she..."


    People thought of that some poor guy who had experienced a harsh rejection at the hands of Feng Qingxue. They shook their heads and sighed with pity.


    Keep their distance? Then why the heck was Murong Qiu here?


    They could not help imagining how frustrated Ye Futian would be if he saw this.


    "He was rejected so badly. I guess he''s going to quit the Fall Exam." After seeing Murong Qiu accompany Feng Qingxue into the mountain, people began to gossip.


    Ye Futian soon heard about this from the others. He was a bit confused as to why he had somehow become the main character. Even though he had never thought about pursuing Feng Qingxue, he still felt slightly pissed off. It was not out of love, but pure agitation.


    Still, he did not mind much, anyway. He had a more important job to do before the Fall Quarter Examination, which was to further cultivate into a new plane.


    Days later, in the dorm, Ye Futian was cultivating quietly. The burning flames of the sun were all over his body. It forged his joints, muscles, and bones. He owned the life spirit of the sun, which indicated that he was supposed to major in fire-element techniques.


    While he was on Mount Tianyao, he had perceived wood-element Qi from plants, and water-element Qi from waterfalls. However, they did not compare to the power from his life spirit, the sun. He wondered whether he was being too greedy. It had only come about by accident.


    Someone was approaching. Ye Futian stopped his work and looked at the approaching figure.


    "Yu Sheng, what happened?"


    He knew that Yu Sheng would not bother to come in unless something terrible had happened.


    "People were evacuating the mountain recently, and some of them brought back terrifying news," Yu Sheng said.


    "What is it?" Ye Futian was caught in curiosity.


    "Some claimed that they saw a dragon in the cleared area." Yu Sheng''s eyes were lit up with excitement.


    "A dragon?" Ye Futian''s eyes also shined brightly. He was shocked that even after being cleared, the hunting grounds still had a dragon.


    The mere presence of a dragon would bring the entire city of Qingzhou into a panic. They only ever seemed to show up in the restricted area. The dragon was a sign of pure power; the emperor of demons and monsters.


    "Do you believe it?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Some swore that it was true. The academy should have evacuated the whole place already. If the academy actually had, it could possibly be true," Yu Sheng said.


    "Let''s go for a walk." Ye Futian stood up and walked towards the yard. By now, many students had returned. Some students refused to go into the mountain, knowing that they were incapable of ensuring their own safety.


    When the two arrived at the mountain, they saw people fleeing in groups, which seemed unusual. They looked at each other, then someone in the crowd asked, "What''s going on?"


    "Some true evil broke out of the restricted area. The masters are now demanding that everyone leave the area as soon as possible," someone answered.


    "A true evil? Is it something that cannot be killed by the masters?" People were shocked.


    "I heard it was a giant Thunder Boa, thousands of years old, with a threatening sense of demonic power. No one can do anything to her for now."


    The crowd bubbled with excitement. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng felt slightly confused. What was it exactly? A Boa, or a Dragon?

 7 The Inscriber

    Chapter 7: The Inscriber


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hordes of people were making their way out of the mountains. Some felt lively, while others were drained of energy; almost all of them, however, had discussed the topic of the demon boa as they traveled.


    The instructors had already made a decision. Those who claimed to have witnessed the demon boa must have been mistaken. After all, demons in cultivation may have a similar appearance as a dragon.


    Ye Futian saw a familiar figure making her way down the mountain road. Although Feng Qingxue''s bright red clothing was covered with a thin layer of dust, her beautiful face remained clean and radiant. She seemed to be in a good mood, chatting with Murong Qiu, who remained at her side.


    After seeing Feng Qingxue and Murong Qiu together, many people peeked unconsciously at Ye Futian. Their actions confused Ye Futian.


    When Feng Qingxue noticed this, she could not help but take a look at him herself. However, when her eyes landed on him, she quickly looked away, not wanting to make eye contact. Her conversation with Murong Qiu halted.


    Beside her, Murong Qiu took notice of her sudden quietness. His eyes followed the descent of road and found Ye Futian a distance ahead of them. Even his side profile oozed with pride; his smiling eyes showed his carefree nature. After a quick glance, Murong Qiu looked away.


    Ye Futian paid little to no attention to his classmates. Turning to Yu Sheng, he asked, "Do you think the academy would keep it from us if it was a dragon?"


    Yu Sheng stayed quiet for a little bit, then nodded slightly. "Yes."


    "Let''s go check it out before they place the entire mountain on lockdown." As soon as the words left his mouth, Ye Futian''s legs carried him up the mountain in a sprint once again.


    Bystanders stopped to take everything in. Feng Qingxue stood in shock. She stared as he made his way up, getting closer to her. Did her actions finally break him?


    She continued to stare as he came closer, her lips twitched. Just as she was about to speak, he breezed right past her. So, he wasn''t coming for her.


    Yu Sheng brushed past Feng Qingxue and Murong Qiu, but not without a chilling glance.


    "What are they doing?" It seemed that everyone else had thought the same as Feng Qingxue, but they were all mistaken. Why were the two of them going back up into the mountains at a time like this?


    "Is he crazy? He didn''t want to go before, but now that a demon boa had been sighted, and everyone had to be evacuated, he wants to go back up?"


    People were unable to understand Ye Futian''s logic, but even Ye Futian did not know what he was doing. However, this was a dragon they were talking about, a creature from the legends. If it was beneficial to observe animals under the Freedom Meditation, what would happen if it was a dragon?


    Yu Sheng wanted to know what dragons looked like, too.


    The main road leading to the top of the mountain was blocked off, senior brothers of the Qingzhou Academy stood guard at the blockade. Only people leaving the mountains were allowed to pass through. It was good that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were prepared for this. They took a small side road far from the main, a shortcut of sorts.


    They passed by several blockades on their way up, but these obstacles only heightened their curiosity and at the same time confirmed their suspicions of a cover-up.


    "We can''t keep wandering blindly, which direction should we head in?" Yu Sheng had enough of sneaking around in the mountain forest.


    "We should go where there the largest amount of people is being evacuated," Ye Futian said with determination. Yu Sheng immediately understood, they began to travel towards the most heavily regulated area.


    Time passed little by little, the sun had descended and the night had come, making it easier for the two to continue unnoticed.


    "There seem to be fewer and fewer people around. We must be in the center of the lockdown zone. Let''s test out our luck and wait here." Ye Futian leaned his back against a nearby tree, resting his tired eyes. The sky got darker; the area had a strange silence. No demon activity was detected.


    Suddenly, a flash of lightning brightened up the night sky, casting a light on the tightly knit forest. Presently, everyone on guard in this area looked up with a solemn look on all their faces.


    Was it here?


    Thunder rumbled, flashes of lightning appeared more and more frequently. Ye Futian felt excited, but also nervous at this strange sight.


    "A Dragon, it''s really a dragon!" a voice rang out from somewhere in the area.


    Ye Futian jumped up from the ground he was sitting on, eyes locked on the sky ahead of him. There, he saw it, a dragon dancing in the night sky. This creature, a couple thousand feet long, disappeared into thin air and reappeared in a different location. The rumblings got louder and louder. The whole area was engulfed in lightning and thunder.


    "Dragon...." Yu Sheng stared at the sky. It was impossible to put into words what he was feeling.


    From above came multiple figures, their aura brighter than anything else. A simple look at their silhouettes was enough to let people know that they were individuals with extreme power. They must be the best of the best.


    Another figure appeared in midair. This person looked to be middle-aged, and was extremely handsome. In his presence, the men from before retreated slightly. It was obvious that this man was greatly respected.


    "That is not a dragon." The middle-aged man watched the creature in the sky with his hands resting behind his back. His first words sent shivers down everyone''s spines.


    "It only looks and acts like a dragon. This creature was purposely released here," the man continued, "to create a creature that replicates a dragon so perfectly, they must have been in contact with a real dragon. How could this be and why have they come to Mount Tianyao?"


    "So that''s why it hasn''t caused any harm since its appearance. If it were a real dragon, we''d all be goners," said one of the men in the group.


    "Even though it''s not real, we still don''t know what its appearance at Qingzhou Academy means." The middle-aged man floated in midair, looked down at the group of youths, all of them had come from a different direction. "You guys have quite some guts."


    Below him, were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. It turned out they were not the only ones who didn''t leave the mountain, others were probably curious about this legendary creature as well.


    "These rascals." Someone in the group of men scolded the youngsters. How dare they break in during a lockdown?


    Ye Futian thought of nothing but the dragon in the sky. He kept recalling the movements of the dragon.


    The Freedom Meditation was in progress, lightning and thunder went off within his Life Palace, a dragon appeared as well.


    Thunder Spiritual Qi rushed to gather around Ye Futian as the lightning coursed through his body, his consciousness was faltering. In his eyes, only the mystical dragon existed.


    Every scene was engraved deep in his mind.


    A flash of lightning abruptly struck him between his eyes. The image of the dragon bored into him.


    The fearful vibrations of thunder took over Ye Futian''s entire body, causing him to growl deeply at the sheer power. He was no longer able to break free from this state, every movement of the dragon was engraved deeply in his mind.


    Upon the sight of the magnificent dragon approaching him, Ye Futian shuddered slightly, but was unable to move away.


    "Watch out!" Yu Sheng shouted when he felt something amiss, but it was too late. The dragon charged at Ye Futian at a crazed speed and entered his body through the spot in between his eyes. Ye Futian let out an ear-splitting scream with the thundering pain, it was as if a real dragon had entered his mind.


    "Boom!" His mind shook and his consciousness scattered.


    "You''ve finally...grown up." A voice sounded in his mind, his body fell straight back. The anomalies in the area disappeared.


    "What''s this?" The group of men wanted to know. Their eyes focused on Ye Futian''s fallen body. "What just happened?"


    "What an unlucky guy. It looks like he was attacked by the fake dragon," someone said.


    "That was so gutsy, let''s check to see if there''s anything wrong with him," said someone else.


    "He''s fine." The handsome, middle-aged man spoke. By Ye Futian''s side, Yu Sheng looked up to the man and heard him say, "Entrust him to me for now, I''ll bring him back and have him examined."


    Everyone nodded in agreement. However, Yu Sheng had something to say about this, "Elder, may I come along?"


    "Don''t worry; nothing will happen to him. I''m just going to be at the academy," said the middle-aged man. There was something strange about his eyes that made people willing to trust him and thus, Yu Sheng nodded. "Please take care of him, Elder."


    ......


    When Ye Futian finally awoke, he did not feel a single shred of pain, which he thought was strange.


    His consciousness slipped into his Life Palace. Just as he thought, above the Word Tree was an area of lightning and thunder. A dragon flew around the sky, a truly majestic sight.


    "I can''t believe it actually came into my Life Palace." He was shaken up. After fainting, he could hear something, but he couldn''t recall what it was.


    He had already fainted twice since officially beginning to develop. When he thought of how unlucky he was, he could only smile bitterly. If he could benefit from it somehow though, he wouldn''t mind fainting a couple more times.


    As if he could feel that something was out of place, he shot up and realized that the clothes he was wearing were not his own. It was also obvious to him that he was not in his own dorm.


    Standing up, Ye Futian pushed open the door, and was able to see that he was in a quiet, elegant residence. Ahead was a pavilion, and quietly seated there was a young lady. It looked like she was drawing, beside her was a middle-aged male, sipping on tea. It was such a peaceful scene.


    With a light foot, Ye Futian made his way to the pavilion. His gaze fell on the young lady''s drawing. She was using a special type of paper, and she wasn''t drawing; she was continuously inscribing lines and streaks. From those inscribings seeped a bit of Spiritual Qi.


    "This, it''s an amulet." Ye Futian was shocked. This young girl in front of him knew how to inscribe scrolls?


    Then wouldn''t that make her an Inscriber? That''s so awesome!


    "Have you seen one before?" The middle-aged man put down his teacup and looked towards Ye Futian.


    "Not in person, I''ve only seen them in books," Ye Futain replied. "A shield is inscribed on the scroll paper with Metal Spiritual Qi. This must be a defense spell."


    "You can see it?" The middle-aged man was surprised.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. Through Freedom Meditation, his ability to perceive Spiritual Qi had improved greatly.


    The man smiled and asked, "Do you want to learn?"


    "Yes!" He nodded again and immediately bowed to pay his respects. "Disciple, Ye Futian, would like to pay formal respects to Master."


    He worked fast.


    Ye Futian understood the importance of being an Inscriber. It was a more rare occupation than being a Sorcerer. It was also a high-status occupation. An Inscriber also had to be a gifted Sorcerer.


    "You''re as shameless as they all say." The young girl put down the pen in her hand and looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futain didn''t care, he just smiled. Seeing her amazing looks, he said, "Hey, beautiful. So we meet again."

 8 The One with All the Attention

    Chapter 8: The One with All the Attention


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The girl who had just showed up was Hua Jieyu, the legend of the academy.


    She had become a legend not only for her unmatched beauty, but for the fact that she had managed to ace every test of the Fall Quarter Exam from the first year she had been admitted.


    "You call her a beauty?" The middle-aged man looked at Ye Futian with confusion as Hua Jieyu stared at him.


    "Professor, she is just too gorgeous to be human," Ye Futian laughed and explained. It was apparent to him that there was some relationship between the professor and Hua Jieyu, which made the compliment necessary.


    "Okay. Sounds like you know how to talk." The professor smiled and sipped his tea, then looked at Ye Futian. "Everyone in this academy could be your master. If you want to learn more in the future, come see me; I would be okay with you calling me master."


    Hua Jieyu was confused by her father. He had stopped accepting students for so long; how talented would Ye Futian have to be to get him to make an exception?


    "Greetings from Ye Futian, your humble student," Ye Futian saluted.


    The professor nodded and said, "I never cared about these unnecessary and over-elaborate formalities. The Fall Quarter Exam is about to start. Go prepare yourself."


    "What? Today?" Ye Futian was shocked. He had not realized how long he had slept.


    Ding, ding, ding. As if responding to him, the academy bell rang, the sound reverberating all over the place. Ye Futian looked off towards the distance. It was finally time.


    "Jieyu, send him out," the professor told her. Hua Jieyu noticed that Ye Futian looked a bit proud.


    "Come on, let''s go." Hua Jieyu began leaving.


    "I haven''t changed yet.," Ye Futian said. The clothes on him had to have belonged to the professor.


    "Then go change." Hua Jieyu was giving him the cold shoulder. Ye Futian caught up to her and asked, "So, what should I call you? Ms. Hua Senior or Ms. Hua Junior?"


    "Neither."


    "Well then, fox it is," Ye Futian shrugged, "What plane are you in now, fox?"


    Hua Jieyu ignored his questions.


    "People say that you are a Mandate Sorcerer, is that true?" Ye Futian kept asking still without a response.


    "Have you ever dated anyone?" Ye Futian would not not let her go. "No comment means yes."


    "No." Hua Jieyu slightly bit her lips as she stared at him with anger.


    "Me neither; what a coincidence." Seeing her angry actually made him smile.


    Hua Jieyu suddenly stopped. When Ye Futian looked back at her, he noticed that her young and delicate face was shining in the rays of the early morning sunlight. This made him forget everything he had had on his mind.


    "You are seriously shameless." Hua Jieyu turned around and left. A smile appeared on Ye Futian''s face when he saw her gradually disappear.


    The academy was busier than ever today. Crowds of people were continually entering the academy.


    Every Fall Quarter Exam, the big local chiefs of Qingzhou would join the event, as would the parents of the current students. They were all qualified for entry. Those who could not enter would wait outside, looking forward to finding out which students had stood out this time.


    Although all the exam participants were kids, the eldest of whom were still under eighteen, the stars of this exam would definitely be prominent chiefs of Qingzhou in the future. Most of the big chiefs that watched this event were also former students of the academy. The exam drew attention from all over the city.


    "The legendary girl of Qingzhou Academy, Hua Jieyu, has aced the written test all three years. I bet she will take our breath away this time."


    "Yang Xiu has been right behind her in second place for the past three years. He might outperform her."


    "Murong Qiu, the son of the remarkable Murong family, is already in the Unmaker Plane; in fact, he has already qualified to be an official student. Rumor has it he wanted to be official along with the unquestioned No.1 of the Fall Quarter Exam, so he refused to be official without the exam. This might be his last try."


    "Don''t forget the son of the chamberlain for the Ye family, Yu Sheng. He would have been an official student last Spring if it weren''t for Ye Futian. Remember, he is only fifteen."


    The crowd outside spoke as if they knew everything about the academy. It showed how influential the academy was around the city.


    Ye Futian returned to his dorm. Yu Sheng was reassured seeing him back, and asked him, "Are you alright?"


    "I''m better than alright," Ye Futian laughed. Suddenly, his body started cracking with the sound of thunder. Thunderbolts ran through his body with absolute control from his mind.


    "Wow, amazing; that is the power of the Invincible Plane." Yu Sheng was surprised that Ye Futian had it made into another plane with the power of thunder. It seemed the interaction with the dragon had made him even stronger.


    "You can try some basic spells now," Yu Sheng said.


    "Not enough time, buddy. The Fall Exam has started," Ye Futian said.


    "Your father is coming to the event to watch you."


    "He''s coming?" Ye Futian was shocked for a moment, then smiled. He realized that this time might be a big surprise for his father.


    Ye Futian changed, then he and Yu Sheng left the dorm for the battle arena.


    The arena was equipped with three thousand desks, all lined up in rows. In the front, over the staircases, there were many official students and professors from the academy. The stands on the sides were filled with people, including the big chiefs of Qingzhou and parents of the students.


    Ye Futian''s presence drew some attention, most of it out of confusion. The story of him being rejected by Feng Qingxue, and Feng Qingxue being accompanied by Murong Qiu during the hunt, had spread all over the city. Then there was the story of his altercation with the demon boa in Mount Tianyao. He was only adding to his notorious reputation; in fact, he looked tough. Few would survive after being attacked by a demon boa.


    "The academy officially announced it was a demon boa that attacked you," Yu Sheng told Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded and scanned the far corner of the stand, then smiled.


    "Come on," he said, running towards the corner.


    There was a small group sitting there. Ye Baichuan was chatting with another middle-aged person. He saw Ye Futian coming and called out, "Listen, I am only here for you, do you understand? If you perform horribly, never tell anyone that you are my son again."


    Ye Futian felt humiliated. "Seriously, dad? Not in public. Can you at least try not to embarrass me?"


    "Now you know you have a reputation to protect?" He was surprised at Ye Futian''s response, as he had heard how shameless his son could be.


    "I feel so sad," Ye Futian said, patting his own forehead.


    "Stop pretending. Did you offend my future daughter-in-law?" Ye Baichuan just would not let him off the hook. Ye Futian soon found that Feng Qingxue was sitting quietly next to Mr. Feng. She avoided making eye contact with him.


    "Ye Baichuan, when the hell did I promise you that my daughter would be your daughter-in-law? Stop that nonsense," Feng Ruhai told Ye Biachuan.


    "Uncle Feng..." Ye Futian was disturbed by what was happening.


    "Boy, how are you doing in your cultivation recently? Any better?" Feng Ruhai asked him.


    "Of course. There has been some progress. Otherwise I would not have shown up for the exam," Ye Futian told him.


    "Good for you. You are still young; you should focus on your cultivation. Do not think and talk about nonsense like your father." Feng Ruhai stared at Ye Baichuan.


    "Roger that," Ye Futian laughed.


    "Yu Sheng, we really have some expectations for you this time," Feng Ruhai said, looking at Yu Sheng.


    "Okay." Yu Sheng seemed indifferent.


    "Go prepare yourselves for the exam," Feng Ruhai said. They nodded, then Ye Futian and Yu Sheng turned around and left. Later, Feng Qingxue left in another direction.


    "What''s wrong with these kids? Do you have any idea?" Ye Baichuan frowned, feeling confused. Ye Futian and Feng Qingxue had quarreled with each other all the time when they were young. Something must have been wrong if they were just staying silent.


    People spoke casually amongst themselves. Even though it was only the written test today, the audience still showed high interest. Knowledge was as crucial as talent, and served as the foundation for their futures. The weaker students with profound experience could beat out those who were stronger than them in the future.


    The students entered and took their seats. There were three thousand of them. How grand it was!


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng entered and sat down in a row. Ye Futian took a deep breath. This was his first time taking the Fall Quarter Exam. It was impossible not to be nervous.


    "It''s her! Hua Jieyu!" A girl entered and suddenly drew all the attention from the crowd.


    She was in a light-colored suit, but she was so beautiful that she seemed to shine over everyone.


    "God, such a beauty." The students were amazed.


    "She is so gorgeous, and she is only fifteen. I bet three years from now she will be a ''Helen of Troy'' for the boys." People believed that with her beauty and talent, she would definitely be a troublemaker in the future. Even some of the big chiefs knew that she had quite a history.


    "People say that Murong Qiu was rejected by her?" In the stands, a member of the Murong family seemed disappointed by these words.


    "It''s okay. With such talent, how can you expect her to accept any boy in this city? It''s a pity for Murong Qiu, though. He would have been an official last year if not for her," someone said to the member of Murong family, trying to comfort them.


    Yep, she is a fox. Ye Futian also noticed her and the fact that she had drawn everyone''s attention. No one else could ever manage to do this except her.


    Hua Jieyu stood for a while, scanning the rows for a spot. Soon she began walking again. All the students that had already sat down were praying to themselves that she would stop next to them.


    However, none of their fantasies came true. She finally stopped and picked a seat. People stopped praying, and began to wonder who was the lucky bastard she had chosen to sit next to.


    Suddenly, they all froze in shock, completely baffled by her choice.

 9 The Written Examinations

    Chapter 9: The Written Examinations


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hua Jieyu sat down beside Ye Futian. This was the same Ye Futian who had opted out of exams for three years, gotten rejected by Feng Qingxue, and was about to be kicked out of Qingzhou Academy.


    "What a lucky dog." Many people were very jealous. How come he got to sit next to Hua Jieyu his first time joining the Fall Quarter Examinations?


    Furthermore, Hua Jieyu was sitting in an aisle seat, which meant that only one person had the privilege of sitting next to her. Seeing this opportunity given to Ye Futian, one could only imagine how the others felt about this.


    Ye Futian could feel the hateful stares directed at him. He took a glance at the girl sitting beside him; she was sitting there silently, elegant and natural. It was as if she had no idea who he was.


    This fox, she definitely did this on purpose, Ye Futian thought to himself. He had originally planned to participate in the exams quietly, but now he had become the center of attention for all the wrong reasons.


    As more and more people gathered around, the area surrounding Hua Jieyu became the most sought-after seats. People glared at Ye Futian as they passed by. Then, a delicate-looking youth approached him and asked, "Can we switch seats?"


    Ye Futian looked up, his eyes meeting with a boy about the same age as himself. His delicate face glowed with pride, his voice natural.


    "It''s Yang Xiu." Many people''s attention was still on where Ye Futian''s was. Yang Xiu had placed second in the written examinations for the past three years. He had always wanted to surpass Hua Jieyu and a lot of people knew he had a crush on her.


    Yang Xiu had not only done extremely well in the written examinations; he was also extremely gifted. He was already on the seventh Awakening Plane, the Mystery Plane, his ability to perceive Fire Spiritual Qi was also at the highest level. He truly was a genius. Losing to Hua Jieyu only in the slightest bit, he was still one of the best outer sect disciples.


    Ye Futian looked at Yang Xiu and thought, Wow, now that''s rude.


    "Of course..." said Ye Futian. The people around him were stunned. Was he really just going to give up that easily?


    "...not," he finished. Hearing these three words, the smile on Yang Xiu''s face was now frozen. He saw Ye Futian''s smile; it looked like he was mocking him.


    "I know you. You gave up on participating in any examinations for three years and are about to get kicked out of the academy. A person like you shouldn''t be wasting time here." Yang Xiu was not mad; he was simply trying to mock Ye Futian back.


    "But I want to." Ye Futian was still smiling.


    "Then I hope that it won''t be too embarrassing for you after the written exam," Yang Xiu laughed lightly. "But then again, it wouldn''t be the first time."


    After mocking Ye Futian, Yang Xiu gave Hua Jieyu a look before he headed back to his seat. He sat back down and got extremely serious, like a warrior before a battle.


    "What a sad life." Ye Futian looked at Yang Xiu''s silhouette with great pity.


    Ye Futian''s rejection did not shock anyone. This was what he really was: a legendary, arrogant loser. However, his legend would come to an end after this year''s Fall Quarter Exam. Ye Futian was going to be expelled.


    As the outer sect disciples entered, the official disciples surrounded the entire gymnasium.


    There were three thousand tables, but only a little over one thousand people were participating in the Fall Quarter Examinations. After all, a lot of the first-year outer sect students lacked the confidence to get a decent grade. They knew it was difficult to do well, so they chose to opt out of the examination and keep a clean slate than to have a bad grade on their permanent record. However, to give up participating in the examination for three years like Ye Futian had done was simply unheard of. This was why he was a legend. Even the academy had had enough of him.


    At the front of the gymnasium, many of the official disciples were present. Qin Yi stood there and glanced in Ye Futian''s direction. After three years, he was finally here. He wasn''t giving up on the exams again. Let''s hope for a miracle.


    "Yang Xiu already made a deal with the School of Divination Arts. After the Fall Quarter Examinations end, he''s going to be admitted into the school as an official disciple. I don''t even know where that useless loser, Ye Futian, got the guts to talk to him like that," said Mo Lanshan. He was chuckling lightly beside Qin Yi.


    Qin Yi''s eyebrows furrowed. Ye Futian did have some problems, but she still wouldn''t call him a useless loser. "Do you have something against him?" she asked Mo Lanshan.


    "Of course, I do!" Mo Lanshan felt no need to hide his feelings. "How dare he say those things to you in class. I really don''t understand why you have such high hopes for him. Why do you waste your time on him?"


    Qin Yi did not know what to say to defend herself. Maybe it was because she could not forget the amazing results he had achieved during the entrance talent inspections three years ago. He should not have ended up like this.


    "It''s time, hand out the test papers," said an elder seated behind the two. Official disciples rose out of their seats and began to distribute the written examinations. This meant that the Fall Quarter Written Examinations had officially begun.


    The enormous crowd was in complete silence. The people who came to observe the examination process consisted of parents and family, as well as many well-known individuals of the city of Qingzhou. They understood that they had to stay quiet too.


    As everyone got their test papers, Feng Qingxue took a deep breath. She hoped to rank well in this year''s Fall Quarter Examinations and gain the privilege to access the second-floor of the Qingzhou Academy library. This way, she would have unlimited access to some of the most powerful spells.


    Ling Xiao glanced at Ye Futian before looking down at his test paper. When he noticed the beautiful Hua Jieyu seated beside Ye Futian, he could not hide the look of jealousy on his face. Ling Xiao had always had a crush on Feng Qingxue, and Hua Jieyu was the girl of his dreams, unreachable. How was Ye Futian worthy of sitting next to her?


    Hua Jieyu remained quiet after receiving her test papers, probably because she was just that confident. Somewhere near the front of the room, Yang Xiu''s fists clenched tight and then relaxed, in preparation for the exam.


    As for Ye Futian, he looked through the test questions once and a smile appeared on his face. He then picked up his pen; his very first Fall Quarter Examination was finally here. He knew many people were waiting for him to make a fool out of himself and looked forward to seeing him be expelled. What a pity; they were about to be disappointed.


    The test questions went from easy to difficult, starting with basic questions about cultivation. Most students were able to answer these questions.


    Ye Futian''s pen danced across the test paper. He answered the questions with ease.


    "Interesting," said Ye Futian as he read one of the test questions. During a battle between a knight and a sorcerer, the sorcerer''s elemental Spiritual Qi runs out. If you were the knight, what would you have done? What if you were the sorcerer?


    He scribbled down his answer quickly.


    Time was passing by quickly. Some students were now sweating. Towards the back of the test packet, the questions got more abstract and more difficult to answer.


    Unknowingly, Ye Futian was already on the last question. This question seemed easy enough.


    The question was: A group of martial arts cultivators and a group of divination arts cultivators on the same plane and level fought. Which side won?


    This was a freebie. In a group battle, the martial arts cultivators would have people from a variety of occupations. Naturally, the divination arts group would also consist of a variety of elemental sorcerers. If the sorcerers worked together, the amount of power they possessed could destroy the opposing group. There wouldn''t be much fighting.


    Ye Futian thought of this and smiled. After writing down his response, he put his pen down.


    Coincidently, Hua Jieyu had also just placed her pen down on her desk beside him.


    The two looked at each other. Ye Futian gave her a provoking smile. All Hua Jieyu did in response was glare at him, but no matter what she did, she remained breathtakingly beautiful.


    Nobody amongst the test-takers noticed their little exchange, but at the front of the room, someone took notice of Hua Jieyu.


    "She''s still the same, always the first one to finish," said an elder at the academy. She was always the focus of the room, even if she just sat quietly, focused on her exam.


    "That''s not true, the young man next to her finished just before her, but his responses are probably rubbish," said another elder. He smiled and shook his head thinking of how hard it must have been for Ye Futian to focus with Hua Jieyu sitting next to him.


    "Wow, look how quickly he finished. You worked so hard to give him a fighting chance, but all he''s thinking of is how to put on a show to attract a girl''s attention." Mo Lanshan''s words were directed at Qin Yi. Her eyes went to Ye Futian and she felt a twinge of disappointment.


    Slowly, more and more people finished up their exams, some excited, some not so excited.


    Finally, an elder stood up on the stage and signaled the end of this year''s Fall Quarter Examinations.


    The official disciples were waiting. Once the elder stood up, they moved forward to collect test papers.


    Even though the test papers had been collected, everyone remained seated in the gymnasium. Qingzhou Academy''s Fall Quarter Written Exams had always been graded on the spot, and the results were announced the same day.


    A group of academy elders and outer sect lecturers graded the exams together with great speed. As they graded, the students looked on nervously, while the audience chatting lightly.


    When the lecturers began to separate the test papers by score, the atmosphere intensified.


    After a while, one of the lecturers walked up to face the students, holding a list. Everyone knew that the list of people who had passed this year''s Fall Quarter Examinations would be announced first.


    "Li Yu, Fang Yun, Mo Hanjiang...." With every name the lecturer announced, students began to relax one by one. Of course, there were also many who looked very disappointed, as they had hoped for better results.


    Other than the list of those who passed, there were also lists of Rank 3, Rank 2, and Rank 1 students yet to be announced.


    After the names on the first list were announced, it was revealed that there were seventy-two people in Rank 3, thirty-six in Rank 2, and only three in Rank 1.


    Qin Yi listened carefully. After the list of rankings was announced, her disappointment heightened. If he could not even pass the written exam, then he was destined to be kicked out of the academy.


    Her eyes drifted toward Ye Futian and she let out a deep sigh.


    Seated in front of Ye Futian, Yang Xiu laughed coldly. "Just as expected. You were going to fail regardless, why embarrass yourself like this?"


    Feng Qingxue also looked at Ye Futian. Her eyes reflected her disappointment, but it disappeared shortly. Wasn''t this what everyone expected?


    "Ye Futian, remember what you said in class last time? Now that you''re about to be expelled, doesn''t it feel like a big slap in the face?" Ling Xiao asked loudly from far away, causing many people to avert their attention towards Ye Futian. Secretly, they were all happy that this shameless bastard was about to be expelled.

 10 The Dark Horse

    Chapter 10: The Dark Horse


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at Ling Xiao, who was laughing at him with irony. However, Ye Futian seemed calm as usual.


    "This list only contains those who merely qualified; why are you laughing like that?" Ye Futian spoke slowly, then glanced around to see that other people were also chuckling.


    "Come on, seriously," Ling Xiao laughed even harder and stared at Ye Futian. "You don''t think you made it onto the List of Excellence, do you? You have been daydreaming for three years, and you are clearly not going to stop now. You know what? You are just hopeless."


    "Look at your face. Stop that outrageous laugh, please. I doubt you will be able to keep it when I make it onto the list of the highest rankings." Ye Futian frowned at him. He knew Ling Xiao had always looked down on him, but how severe was his hatred that Ling Xiao was excited about his failure?


    "Sounds like you will not shed a tear until you see the coffin, right? Then keep waiting." Ling Xiao sounded cold. Ye Futian shook his head and ignored him.


    The lecturers were still busy organizing the test papers and lists. After a while, Qin Yi came onto the stage to announce the names of 72 students who had made it onto the List of Perfection. Of course, a remarkable student like Ling Xiao was on the list. He was now behaving even more arrogantly towards Ye Futian. He was waiting until the end of the list announcement to throw every insult right in Ye Futian''s face.


    Feng Qingxue felt excited because her name had not shown up on the List of Perfection. She had definitely passed the test, which meant that her name was possibly on the List of Brilliance. Once she performed well after the written test, she would have achieved her goal.


    "Feng Qingxue." The List of Brilliance was being announced, and Feng Qingxue was first. Her eyes shined as she smiled with ecstasy. She definitely deserved her spot.


    "Yu Sheng." The announcements continued. Every name on the list really meant something at the academy.


    "Murong Qiu." This was the last name on the list. The announcer lowered their hands.


    Murong Qiu suddenly turned pale, and looked as if he were truly frustrated.


    There were 36 names on the List of Brilliance. For most ordinary people, it would be glorious; but sadly for him, this was not the case. Anything other than the List of Excellence meant failure to him.


    Last time, he had ranked third on the List of Excellence. He had participated in the exam this time to challenge the legendary girl, but he had failed again, and by an even worse margin. In the stands, a member of the Murong family also looked pretty gloomy.


    "Murong Qiu only made the List of Brilliance. There''s not even a rank for this list," the Murong family member mumbled. They were right, as only the top three could be ranked for being on the List of Excellence.


    Other people were also wondering and discussing to themselves. There should be three on the List of Excellence. Common sense said that the legendary girl and Yang Xiu would be the top two. But if that was the case, who had taken Murong Qiu''s place and forced him onto the List of Brilliance?


    It was even more mysterious because the famous students had all already been listed on the List of Brilliance. People could not find anyone that was missing.


    "Looks like we have a dark horse; but who is it?" People started looking around to figure out who they were missing for this possible honor.


    This mystery had nothing to do with Ling Xiao. He watched Ye Futian intently, believing he was just bluffing and pretending to be calm after the first two lists had been announced.


    In the very front, several masters of the academy were having a debate over the ranks of the last three tests. Yang Xiu took a deep breath; he was not sure whether he would beat Hua Jieyu this time. He had already promised the College of Sorcery that after this Fall Quarter Exam that he would join the college and become an official student, which meant that this was his last chance to beat Hua Jieyu.


    Finally, the masters reached a consensus. Someone recorded the decision, and a master went towards the crowd, prepared to give the final announcement. The whole place was suddenly cloaked in silence. Everyone''s ears perked up for the final decision.


    "Yang Xiu, number three on the List of Excellence," the master gave the first name. Everyone immediately began gossiping.


    Yang Xiu was only number three? For real?


    Yang Xiu, someone who had always ranked under Hua Jieyu, was suffering the same tragedy as Murong Qiu? Who had caused that?


    Impossible! Yang Xiu had gotten nothing but disappointment from the wait. He seemed lost. This has to be impossible��.


    His entire mind had been fixated on being ranked over Hua Jieyu. However, this time, it had turned out even worse. How was he supposed to accept this reality?


    "Who is it, for god''s sake?" People were becoming even more curious. They began focusing on the master announcing the list.


    "Number two on the List of Excellence, Hua Jieyu." Another name came out, and it bewildered the entire crowd.


    Hua Jieyu had consecutively ranked number one for three straight Fall Quarter Exams. Now she was number two? How could that have happened?


    What was even more strange was that neither Yang Xiu or Murong Qing had beaten her. There was only one thing on the minds of everyone in the building: who was this John Doe?


    Hua Jieyu was even a bit surprised herself. She subconsciously looked at Ye Futian, and suddenly realized that something unusual might have been happening.


    The tension was at an all-time high. Everyone waited in suspense to find out who it was.


    He made it. Yu Sheng tightened his fists. He was kind of excited. No one knew why he was suddenly behaving like this, or whether there was anything worth being excited about. However, he was the only one who knew what was coming.


    The eyes of the master passed all over the crowd, eventually stopping on a boy. The master seemed astonished and surprised. For three years he had been a nobody at the academy, but now he was going to be the superstar?


    "The number one ranking on the List of Excellence for the Qingzhou Academy Fall Quarter Examination is��" the master paused, then said slowly:


    "Ye��Fu��Tian!"


    The crowd immediately shut down and became silent upon hearing this name. It was as if the entire building was muted.


    Every possible expression was showing on the crowd''s faces. They had considered every possibility, but not Ye Futian. How could their imagination have been that wild? This guy had abandoned the exams for three years, and had been stuck in the Collection Plane. Ye Futian, champion of the written test, sounded like the worst joke ever.


    However, people soon realized that the masters of the academy would never pull a prank like that for this exam. Suddenly, they were even more shocked by the decision.


    "Ye Futian, champion of the test? Tell me I am dreaming, please." Some were doubting whether they had heard the announcement correctly.


    "Ye Futian?" Qin Yi was next to the master. She repeated the name, seemingly dumbfounded. Nobody had thought that his name would show up on the List of Qualification; they thought he wouldn''t have done well enough to even accomplish that. It was incredible that he had performed so well that he had made it onto the List of Excellence.


    Ling Xiao''s face turned to stone. He had believed Ye Futian would be expelled from the academy soon, and had prepared a long, humiliating speech for Ye Futian. Now, Ye Futian was number one. How could that have even happened?


    Feng Qingxue was in such awe that she could not speak. Her eyes moved from the master who had announced the list slowly to where Ye Futian was sitting.


    Ye Futian sat in his spot quietly. The smile on his face was the same as usual; calm and light. It seemed like he knew he deserved this honor, and that nothing was shocking about the outcome to him. What strong confidence he had.


    Could it be possible that the last three missed years had only served to make this moment more glorious?


    Hua Jieyu was sitting next to Ye Futian. She observed this boy with her beautiful eyes. This boy had broken her record, but she did not seem too disappointed; it was not like the bitterness that was on the faces of Yang Xiu and Murong Qiu. Instead, she felt curious and surprised.


    Her father had told her that Ye Futian was as talented as she was. At first she had refused to admit it. Actually, she had looked forward to this Fall Quarter Exam, because Ye Futian would not have been able to conceal his talent anymore. She was eager to know why her father had broken his rule and accepted him as his student. She was quite surprised by the results.


    "Something must be wrong," someone yelled all of a sudden. All the eyes were suddenly drawn to the shouter, Yang Xiu, who was standing in front of Ye Futian.


    It was already disappointing enough to be listed as third place on the List of Excellence, but it was even more humiliating to see that it was Ye Futian who had made this happen. Ye Futian had been humiliated by him moments before the lists were announced. How could this have happened? Had he made himself look like a total fool?


    "What''s the problem, Yang Xiu?" The master looked at him.


    Yang Xiu paused for a second, then glanced at Ye Futian with contempt. "He sat next to Hua Jieyu. He must have cheated off of her to earn that score."


    "Yes, plagiarism, that''s definitely it," Ling Xiao followed. Many others seemed to be in agreement about this reasonable explanation.


    "Who do you guys think we are? Professors, or just a bunch of old blind folks?" It was like cold water was being thrown right in their faces. The test papers of the top three had gone through the strict review of multiple masters. How could plagiarism have gone unnoticed by them?


    Ye Futian slowly tapped on the desk with his fingers. He was casual and relaxed; he believed that all the doubt would be silenced by the truth.


    "You are all honorable masters, but people just have different preferences. I cannot accept the fact that I am listed as number three and that Ye Futian is number one because you preferred his viewpoints." Yang Xiu was completely agitated. He was desperately trying to pull Ye Futian off his throne.


    The master looked at Yang Xiu with disappointment. It seemed that this student had little patience for failure. Without ever enduring failure, even a talented student like Yang Xiu could never make significant achievements in the future.


    Ye Futian looked at Yang Xiu. He was so persistent, even when it only brought shame onto himself.

 11 Set Up by the Fox

    Chapter 11: Set Up by the Fox


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everyone''s eyes were on Ye Futian and Yang Xiu. Another one of Qingzhou Academy''s elders walked up on the stage and asked Yang Xiu, "Could it be that you want to grade the exams yourself?"


    "I would not dare to have such thoughts." Yang Xiu shook his head. "I only want to know why he scored higher than me, what was I lacking?"


    The Qingzhou Academy elders sat in silence. Finally, one of them nodded and said, "Alright. Since you have your doubts, then we will let you know the reason why."


    All of the students and everyone observing from the stands remained quiet. They too were curious, what responses could Ye Futian have given to surpass Yang Xiu?


    "The first question: During a battle between a knight and a sorcerer, the sorcerer''s elemental Spiritual Qi runs out. If you were the knight, what would you do? What if you were the sorcerer? How did you answer this question?" the elder asked Yang Xiu.


    Yang Xiu''s eyes lit up as he said with confidence, "If I were the knight, I would continue my attacks until the sorcerer''s Spiritual Qi ran out, and end them with a final blow. If I were the sorcerer, I would try to find my opponent''s weak point and attack at full force once the opportunity presented itself."


    Many people began to nod. To them, Yang Xiu''s response was well-rounded, many people would have answered the same. So where did he go wrong?


    Even the VIP guests onstage were intrigued. This question was given to test the students'' ability to adapt to an emergency situation. In their eyes, Yang Xiu''s answer was not bad. How would Ye Futian answer this question?


    "Ye Futian, please tell us your response." The elder looked at Ye Futian, who in turn, stood up and looked at Yang Xiu. He then said, "If I were the knight, I wouldn''t give my opponent a chance to retaliate. I would attack continuously until he falls. If I were in the sorcerer''s position and collected the Wind Element, then I would escape. If I was a sorcerer of any other element, I would pretend to be completely drained of power. If needed, I would even take a hit from the offense and then when they''re least prepared, attack with my last remaining power."


    "Why did you respond in this way?" asked the elder.


    "In a battle between the two, if the knight can drain the sorcerer of his power, then that means that his foundation is probably already stronger. Under continuous attack, the only person making any mistakes would be the sorcerer. The bug in Yang Xiu''s response is if the sorcerer was able to find the knight''s weakness, then he would have done so during the previous exchanges. If you want your opponent to trip up, you must pay the price," Ye Futian answered slowly. Upon hearing this seamless response, Yang Xiu paled.


    Everyone on stage began to nod in agreement. In comparison, there truly was a big difference between the two.


    The elder nodded as well, then turned to look at Yang Xiu again. "The last question: In a group battle between martial art cultivators and sorcerers, who would win? How did you answer this question?"


    "It would be difficult to determine the results if everyone was on the first few planes of Awakening. If everyone was in the same higher plane and if both sides were equal in number, of course, the victory would go to the sorcerers." Yang Xiu did not waver in his response. He himself was a sorcerer, so he believed that sorcerers were better than martial art specialists. He was very prideful.


    "Ye Futian, and your answer?" asked the elder.


    "At Awakening, the martial art cultivators have a higher chance of victory, anything above this level, sorcerers would have a higher chance," he replied calmly.


    "Ridiculous. How could martial art cultivators win against sorcerers, even at the Awakening level? Furthermore, sorcerers wouldn''t have a ''higher'' chance at a more advanced level; they would have a complete victory, no questions asked," Yang Xiu said coldly.


    "Explain it to him," the elder made his request to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Yang Xiu and asked, "Between martial art cultivators and sorcerers, who has the better fitness, stamina, and speed?"


    "Indeed, those are a sorcerer''s weaknesses, but martial art cultivators wouldn''t even be able to get close to the sorcerers." Yang Xiu stared at Ye Futian.


    "At the Awakening level, sorcerers cannot cast their spells from a far distance. If the martial arts cultivators choose to surround without attacking, what do you plan to do?"


    "That''s a stupid question. Then I would obviously choose to attack first. Even at the Awakening Plane, sorcerers have more powerful attacks," Yang Xiu retorted.


    "You attack, I recede. You retreat, I surround," said Ye Futian.


    His words gave shivers to many of the honorable guests. He was able to calmly deliver his battle plans. If a person with a lot of battle experience had said this, no one would have been surprised, but these words came from an inexperienced youngster still in the academy. This was what made it so impressive, but chilling at the same time. His battle tactics showed his detailed understanding of strengths and weaknesses of both martial art cultivators and sorcerers and he was able to incorporate this knowledge into his plans.


    His tactics were extremely passive aggressive. Martial art cultivators were stronger, have better stamina, and were faster than sorcerers. Sorcerers in the Awakening Plane cannot attack from afar, so all you had to do was wait for them to deplete themselves of power.


    Yang Xiu did not look well at this point. He stared at Ye Futian and said, "The Awakening Plane leads to overall enhancement, if sorcerers focused on the enhancement of their spiritual powers, then they might not lose to the martial art cultivators in strength, stamina, and speed."


    "You already said to disregard the first couple planes of Awakening. Once sorcerers reach the sixth plane, the Invincible Plane, they would have to focus on learning to control their elemental spiritual powers as well as other spiritual powers between Heaven and Earth. They would have to focus on training in sorcery, as the amount of energy they can exert for enhancement is very limited. Martial art cultivators, on the other hand, don''t have this problem. Your ideal situation right now is edging closer to cultivation in both arts," Ye Futian slowly explained, "Even though the cultivators in the two groups do not have that much of a difference in the Awakening Plane, the comparison is still there. Naturally, it would be most beneficial to cultivate in both martial and divination arts."


    "That''s enough," the elder spoke once again. "As for the reason behind why it would be possible for martial art cultivators to win at higher levels, we''ll leave that for you to think about yourself. Remember, understanding yourself and others is the key to victory. The strong are strong, regardless of which art they cultivate. Yang Xiu, if we placed you against Ye Futian in a fight under fair circumstances, you would be fated to lose."


    Since the start of Qingzhou Academy, the Spring and Fall Quarter Examinations always included a written test. These youngsters have had no actual battle experience, so the most important thing to do is to engrave basic knowledge into their brains.


    "Fated to lose?" Yang Xiu was now in a somber mood. He then lifted his head toward the elder and said, "I acknowledge my defeat."


    The elder looked at Yang Xiu and knew he had yet to accept this reality. It was not easy to change the mind of a youth.


    "The Fall Quarter Written Examinations will end here for today, the most important portion of the test will continue tomorrow," announced the elder. Students began to stand one by one, wanting to go up to the stage and greet the VIP guests.


    This was the end of this quarter''s written exams, however, so students had yet to settle into their feelings. Countless pairs of eyes fell on Ye Futian. For the past three years, he had been ridiculed numerous times for being a legendary loser, but now he had thoroughly shocked everyone. Who would believe that he could be ranked first on his first written test?


    Yang Xiu turned to face Ye Futian. He said coldly, "I take back what I said to you before. I guess you have learned a lot in the three years you wasted. But even if that''s the case, everything written on paper is useless. There is no use in having all of this knowledge if you are physically incapable. With no powers, it would be as easy as stepping on an ant to defeat you."


    "Are you trying to make yourself feel better after all that embarrassment? How disgraceful. Do you want me to step on you like an ant?" Yu Sheng stood up, his large physique shadowing over Yang Xiu. His aura was enough to suffocate the latter. In the blink of an eye, Yang Xiu''s expression looked even worse than before. Of course, he had heard of Yu Sheng. This psycho knocked out all the teeth of a senior brother two years ago just because the brother had insulted Ye Futian. After punching out his teeth, Yu Sheng picked him up by the collar and tossed him outside the academy gates. Since then, no one has dared to insult Ye Futian in his presence.


    Even though many people had forgotten about this incident in the passing years, Yang Xiu remembered. He cowered in front of Yu Sheng.


    "SCRAM!" The thunderous shout from Yu Sheng scared Yang Xiu to no end. He quickly looked at Ye Futian and said, "See you tomorrow."


    Before leaving, he did not forget to take a look at Hua Jieyu, who remained seated beside Ye Futian during all the drama.


    He could not believe that he was made to look like such a fool in front of her. His mood worsened at the thought.


    Ye Futian just smiled, not saying anything. A quick glance at Ling Xiao revealed that he was also looking at Ye Futian. Ye Futian could not help but to give a sarcastic smile, thinking of all the things Ling Xiao had previously said to him.


    Just one smile was enough for Ling Xiao to know that Ye Futian was taunting him.


    Ling Xiao''s fists tightened as he stared at Ye Futian. "Three years, you''re pretty good at hiding secrets. Even though you haven''t developed at all, you gained quite a lot of book smarts. This doesn''t change a thing though. Even if you got first today, you''re going to drop back down to your loser status tomorrow. You might still have a chance of being expelled. Can you imagine how interesting that would that be?"


    "Idiot." One word from Ye Futian was enough to wipe the smirk of Ling Xiao''s face. He was reminded of the last time Ye Futian had insulted him in the classroom. That bastard.


    Ye Futian looked around him. He was full of pride. He had just ranked first after all. There were already a lot of people who looked at him less harshly than before. There were even some people who could not look him in the eyes.


    At this time, Hua Jieyu got up slowly from her seat beside him. As she walked towards the exit, Ye Futian watched her. Hua Jieyu took a couple of steps and suddenly turned back with a smile. Nothing could compare to her beauty in that second.


    "I look forward to your performance tomorrow." She smiled brightly. People''s gazes froze on her smile, their hearts melting at the sight of it. However, this smile was not for them, but for Ye Futian.


    Leaving her smile imprinted in everyone''s minds, Hua Jieyu turned to leave once again. Ye Futian blinked and quickly realized that people were shooting daggers at him with their eyes. Those who did not dare look in his eyes just a minute ago were now looking at him with pure hatred. Everyone seemed like they were out for blood.


    After seeing those looks, Ye Futian could imagine what was waiting for him tomorrow. In that split second, Ye Futian finally understood the purpose of Hua Jieyu''s smile. He could not help himself and cursed her in his mind. "That fox set me up!"

 12 Fellow Brothers

    Chapter 12: Fellow Brothers


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was upset. The others were just jealous.


    Was Hua Jieyu smiling at him? Did they already know each other?


    It was impossible. How could this legendary loser have gotten the chance to know the real legend of the academy? It must have been that his performance on the written test had made her a bit curious about him. People tried to justify why Hua Jieyu knew none of them, yet she knew Ye Futian.


    "Yep, that must be true. Ye Futian will fail tomorrow anyway. What happened today is just another part of his daydream."


    The crowd was dismissed. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng walked towards the stands, where Ye Baichuan was waiting for them. When he saw the boys, he laughed. "Good job boy. You really are my blood."


    "Good job? Who was gloating about having an excellent son minutes ago to everyone? Where are those big words now?" Feng Ruhai was also laughing. "You are impressive; congratulations."


    "Sure, so is Qingxue. She made it to the List of Brilliance," Ye Baichuan said.


    "Come here son, I have to ask you something." Ye Baichuan walked away, his son following him. Ye Baichuan stopped and showed a sly smile to Ye Futian. "Tell me, are you being mean to Qingxue because you are going after someone better? Be honest with me."


    Ye Futian felt so awkward. It seemed that the smile Hua Jieyu had given him had also caused some silly misunderstanding for his father.


    "This is really complicated. Leave me alone; I will deal with it." Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders.


    Ye Baichuan gazed at his eyes and said, "Okay, you take care of this; it''s none of my business anymore. Now that you have aced the written test, what about tomorrow?"


    Ye Futian looked serious, and showed a curious face to Ye Baichuan. "In our family ancestry, were there any great Mandate Sorcerers with cultivation specialized in Freedom Meditation?"


    "Of course. I take it you have awakened already?" Ye Baichuan immediately realized what had happened.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Good!" Ye Baichuan suddenly slapped his son on the shoulder. He was so excited that his palm made a cracking sound when it hit Ye Futian''s head. He retracted his palm when he saw the painful expression on his son''s face.


    "What are you doing, Dad?" Ye Futian stared at his father. "So, if we have great family ancestors, why am I the only one who awakened with that special talent?"


    "That''s definitely because of my efforts."


    Ye Baichuan was taking this for granted. Ye Futian frowned. His father must have been even more shameless than he was at his age.


    "I''ll tell your godfather the good news. He will be so happy for you, son. Maybe he will come and watch tomorrow by himself," Ye Baichuan said. Ye Futian''s eyes suddenly lit up with hope. Ever since he was a child, his godfather had told him that one day he would be awakened, and it had finally happened. He could not wait to see the happiness on his godfather''s face.


    As the two were talking, Feng Ruhai also began to speak with his daughter. He asked, "When did Ye Futian meet Hua Jieyu? Has he been mean to you since then?"


    Apparently both fathers believed that Ye Futian had betrayed Feng Qingxue for another beautiful girl. Feng Qingxue realized the misunderstanding and shook her head to deny it.


    "Then what''s going on? Tell me the truth." Feng Ruhai wanted to know what was going on.


    Feng Qingxue hesitated for a second, then slowly told her father the whole story.


    "That is stupid." Feng Ruhai seemed angry about what she had said. "That''s not how you deal with relationships. You have known Futian for years. You guys have been arguing and joking forever. There should be nothing that you cannot just sit down and talk about. How rude of you to let someone step in between that! It was not a rejection of pursuit, it was a farewell. Not to mention that this boy has always loved to joke. There is a clear difference between asking you to cultivate and asking you out on a date. As for Yu Sheng, how could he not be angry enough to be unfriendly to you in public? You even hung out with Murong Qiu after all this happened. Have you ever stopped to think about Futian? How is he supposed to deal with the aftermath of your inappropriateness?"


    "Nothing is going on between Murong Qiu and me. We only went hunting together because of his cousin, Murong Qing. I needed some extra help from someone powerful." Feng Qingxue began to defend herself stubbornly. "I know he likes to make jokes, but come on dad; we are both grown-ups. He definitely crossed the line with a joke like that. I believe what Murong Qing said about keeping some distance makes sense."


    "I know that nothing is going on between Murong Qiu and you, but hanging out with another guy after turning down Futian? That is humiliating. Can''t you understand that?" Feng Ruhai sounded more serious as he stared at his daughter. "You have known each other since birth, and your Uncle Ye is my best friend. We respect your choices in handling the relationship between yourselves, but you have embarrassed me."


    Feng Qingxue tried to be strong and keep herself from crying because she seldom saw her father being strict like this. She felt uncomfortable. She looked at her father and said, "I hope what I did is not getting in between you and Uncle Ye. We are both grown-ups, and we will never regret our choices."


    "Come on, girl." Feng Ruhai shook his head. "Don''t you realize that all you did was mask your feelings? You rejected him in such a terrible way because you think that you are way out of his league. You believe that you are mature enough to make these decisions, but a pure friendship without interest and calculation is the most beautiful thing in this world. You would not regret it if Futian kept being laid back as he has always been, but what about today? He just became the new star of this academy. Please tell me you don''t regret your actions even a little bit now."


    She reluctantly acknowledged to herself that she did regret what she had done, especially after seeing the new Ye Futian, but she remained silent.


    "I have seen Futian grow up over the years. He looks lazy and casual, but deep inside, a tiger is waking up," Feng Ruhai continued, "He has been bearing the insults from others for three years at this academy. Can you think of anyone else with as much tolerance as he has? He is not just some normal guy that you''d never regret missing, trust me."


    After his speech, Feng Ruhai shook his head and left, leaving Feng Qingxue dumbfounded.


    A tiger��waking up inside. Her eyes turned to a figure in the distance. Soon she turned back and went to the dorm.


    Ye Futian also said goodbye to his father. He looked towards the arena and found that Qin Yi was staring at him from far away.


    He pointed his forefinger towards the sky and smiled at Qin Yi with a strong sense of confidence. This gesture conveyed a simple message: Just wait.


    Qin Yi eyed him, then walked away. She was also disturbed by what he had done. She had never imagined that this guy could ace the written Fall Quarter Exam. She had a faint feeling that another miracle would happen tomorrow. Suddenly, she realized that she had a weird sense of hope and expectation.


    The crowd was finally gone, and the arena became quiet. However, tomorrow this place would be even more busy. The Fall Quarter Exam had always been the annual focus of the city. After the lists had been announced, the crowd waiting outside the academy soon heard about what Ye Futian had done. It was absolutely fantastic for someone to win over Hua Jieyu and Yang Xiu on the written test. Those who knew this infamous boy before felt even more thrilled by this miracle.


    ......


    During lunch, the restaurants of Qingzhou were full of customers. Inside a fancy restaurant next to Qingzhou Academy, a group was hatching a plan.


    Murong Qiu, student of Qingzhou Academy, now sat in a private room. Beside him were the elders of the Murong family. They were led by the current head of this big family, Murong Yunshan, Murong Qiu''s father.


    "The Fall Quarter Exam today reminded me of our past, decades ago. Brother, we were both big shots in the academy, do you remember?" Murong Yunshan looked at the middle-aged man sitting opposite him, feeling a sense of nostalgia.


    "How could I ever forget that you were the champion and I was in second place for so many years," the middle-aged man laughed.


    "I can''t believe you remember. It''s been decades. Sometimes I still want to go back to being careless youth, but it''s impossible now. I have been glued to mundane business, and the passion I once had is gone. Your life looks way easier than mine, I must say." Murong Yunshan laughed.


    "Are you serious? You are the head of an influential family. Why are you so modest when you have so much power? Me? I just hang around in the academy and teach my students some spells to kill time. That''s all." The middle-aged man shook his head. Actually, he did not just hang around. He was Shi Zhong, the director of the Earth Element Hall, which was one of seven branches in the College of Sorcery. He was one of the academy''s true masters.


    "Modest?" Murong Yunshan kept laughing, "Okay, let me be honest. I do have some business that I need your help with."


    Shi Zhong got down to business. "Just lay it out."


    "I am sure you know the situation of our family. Competition is fierce for the leader position. My son has so many of his own cousins and brothers competing against him that he cannot afford to lose the test tomorrow. He may not have performed well today, but I have to help him prepare better for tomorrow. You know that his talents and power are among the top," he continued, "He is already seventeen, and he is taking the exam after reaching the highest Awakening Plane, the Unmaker. Rumors and criticism will surround the family if he does not ace the test tomorrow."


    Shi Zhong did not seem affected by what he said. He knew that Murong Yunshan was making the plea for his son''s sake.


    "You know that those who are in this exam have mostly been stuck under the seventh Awakening Plane. Just make sure Murong Qiu performs well enough in the debate tomorrow to beat the others. If he does, I might have some solid reasoning to persuade the panel to name him the champion."


    "Hua Jieyu is too proud to attend the debate. If she does, she will do so well that she will be the champion and end the rumors anyway. If she does not show up, my son will have his best shot tomorrow. Then it is you who will decide his future." Murong Yunshan then tried to bribe him, saying, "If you need anything in the future for cultivation, and I mean anything, just tell me; I''ll take care."


    "Of course; your business is my business." Shi Zhong definitely understood what was going on.


    "After Qiu enters your Hall, he''s going to need a lot of help from my brother. Cheers! To our friendship!" Murong Yunshan took his cup and drank. A conspiracy was forming harmoniously inside this room.

 13 Success in a Day

    Chapter 13: Success in a Day


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qingzhou Academy was home to the largest library collection in all of Qingzhou.


    After the written exam, Ye Futian returned to his dorm to cultivate. Sometime in the afternoon, he arrived at the academy library alone.


    He only had access to the first floor of the library. On this floor were books and scrolls containing the most basic of martial art exercises, battle strategies, and simple divination spells. These books were perfect for outer sect disciples in the Awakening Plane.


    The second floor of the library was only accessible to official disciples and outer sect disciples who ranked during the Spring or Fall Quarter Examinations. It was every sorcerer''s dream to be able to view all these powerful spell books. Feng Qingxue was one of those dreamers and therefore it was her goal to be ranked at the Fall Exam.


    However, the second level of the library was not the reason why Ye Futian was here today. He had begun properly cultivating. Aside from the Freedom Meditation, he had not done any martial art exercises, nor had he practiced any spells. Tomorrow''s exam might require him to participate in a battle. If he showed up tomorrow with mediocre fighting skills, it would be a huge embarrassment. He could not let that happen; after all, he had ranked first on the written exam. Many people were waiting for him to make a fool out of himself.


    The library was split in half, with a martial arts section and a divination arts section. Ye Futian made his way toward the martial arts section.


    The sixth level of Awakening was a point of division. Before the Invincible Plane, martial and divination art cultivators had essentially trained in the same way. The difference was that one used Worldly Essence to enhance the body in order to break through the different planes and the other used Elemental Spiritual Qi. The planes were all the same until the division of the Invincible Plane.


    When martial art cultivators were able to understand the artistic conception of the exercises, they could break into the Mystery Plane. Sorcerers, however, had to seek out hidden Elemental Spiritual Qi using their abilities to perceive these energies. They had to create harmony between these new energies and the Spiritual Qi they had previously collected in the Collection Plane. Then, and only then, were sorcerers able to break past the Invincible Plane.


    Therefore, Qingzhou Academy had a requirement to become an official disciple. If you could make it into the Mystery Plane before your eighteenth birthday, you had the advantage of joining the school of your choice. Or if you were like Yu Sheng, capable of cultivating in both martial and divination arts, you could pursue both.


    Even though there weren''t many people in the library, there was the still a fair amount of attention on Ye Futian. His results from the written exam put him in the spotlight but in conjunction with the smile he got from Hua Jieyu, the amount of attention this ex-loser got was through the roof.


    Rumor had it that he was stuck on the Collection Plane, so why was he here picking out books on martial arts exercises? Everyone was asking themselves this question as they observed Ye Futian quietly.


    They watched him as he wandered around the library, stopping here and there. It looked like he was trying to find some suitable cultivation exercises for himself.


    A while later, Ye Futian stopped again. He flipped through the book in his hands with great concentration.


    The Release of the Dragon Power, studied by warriors, it was an exercise of immense power. The body of the cultivator became like that of a dragon, uncontrollably powerful and fierce.


    "The exercise may be harsh, but also powerful." Ye Futian was satisfied with what he had found.


    "This is it." He closed the book and was ready to leave.


    "You''re going to cultivate the Release of the Dragon Power?" an observer asked with a face ridden with curiosity.


    "Is there a problem with that?" Ye Futian asked chuckling.


    "No problem, it''s perfect for you," said the observer, trying to hide their laughter.


    Ye Futian could not be bothered. He turned to leave and a round of laughter and gossip ensued behind him.


    "Did he come to the library just to put on a show for us?" people questioned his true intentions for coming to the library.


    "What do you know, the Release of the Dragon Power is so domineering, fit for someone who ranked number 1 on the written test. Oh, how could I forget, that''s Ye Futian!" said another person.


    "That''s right. First place really is different from the rest of us." The mocking comments and laughter came from behind Ye Futian. The Release of the Dragon Power was very well-known amongst the outer sect disciples. Indeed, it was a powerful exercise, but it required the cultivator to mimic the movements of a dragon, how could that be possible? There had been people who tried but none that had succeeded.


    Since Ye Futian came all the way to the library just to take out the Release of the Dragon Power, it was only right to have a little fun.


    Ye Futian did not care about what they said. He headed for the divination arts section of the library when he saw two figures headed in his direction, causing him to stop in his tracks.


    After being scolded by her father, Feng Qingxue was in a sour mood. So, she decided to look around in the library to get her mind off of it. Plus, after the Fall Quarter hunting practice, she had officially stepped into the sixth level of Awakening, the Invincible Plane. She was finally ready to cultivate the divination arts properly, so it would be perfect for her to find something useful at the library. Feng Qingxue had not even thought about the possibility of running into Ye Futian here.


    Her beautiful eyes shone bright, no longer avoiding Ye Futian. She looked right at him and said, "Are you here to pick out some exercise books?"


    "Yeah," Ye Futian smiled and nodded lightly.


    Feng Qingxue did not know what to say. The atmosphere had become awkward.


    "Feng Qingxue, didn''t you want to go look at the spell books?" Beside her, Murong Qing pulled Feng Qingxue into the divination arts section after glancing at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian walked in that direction as well. Seeing him in the same section of the library, Murong Qing furrowed her brows and whispered, "Feng Qingxue, I don''t think he''s given up on you."


    Feng Qingxue froze. She then snuck a peek at Ye Futian, only to see him browsing through book labels.


    "What a fake." Murong Qing could not help but call him out when she saw what Ye Futian was looking at. Even though he ranked first, it was just a written exam. What did he know about actual cultivation?


    Even if he did cultivate, he should be in the martial arts section.


    "Maybe he just wants to get an understanding of the divination arts," Feng Qingxue lowered her voice. Ye Futian''s performance on the Fall Quarter Written Examinations had truly left an impression on her. To rank first on the written exam required a deep knowledge and understanding of every class in both arts.


    "Martial Divination?" Murong Qing saw the book in Ye Futian''s hands. Her sarcastic smile widened and unrelentingly opened her mouth, "If you''re going to be a poser, can you try a little harder? You''re not fooling anyone holding that baby book."


    Everyone around heard her words and looked at Ye Futian. Most of them began to laugh when they realized what she said was true. He was, indeed, holding a book which contained the most basic of spells. Martial Divination were spells that you would only use to trick children.


    Ye Futian closed the book and put it under his arms with the Release of the Dragon Power. He then turned to look at Murong Qing quizzically. "Do I even know you?" Ye Futian asked and walked away, not taking a second look at Murong Qing.


    "You..." Murong Qing pointed her finger at Ye Futian''s back, not knowing what to say, then she finally mustered, "Seems like you got quite cocky after ranking first on the written test. You even have the nerve to come to the library and try to look good in front of us while holding a book like Martial Divination. Forget the fact that you''re a complete loser; even if you were a proper cultivator, a martial art cultivator like you would never be good enough for Feng Qingxue!"


    Feng Qingxue was a sorcerer, as was Murong Qing. Sorcerers all think that they are better than martial art cultivators. After all, in some sense, all sorcerers had the innate ability to cultivate in martial arts. All they had to do was cultivate Elemental Spiritual Qi as they would Worldly Essence, but other than those who were truly gifted in cultivating both arts, no sorcerers would waste their time on martial art development.


    Ye Futian did not want to be bothered with what she said, but nothing could stop Murong Qing as she went on, "Besides, you''ll be back to where you started after tomorrow. First rank? What a joke. Once a loser, always a loser. I can''t wait to see how you''ll make a fool out of yourself tomorrow."


    Ye Futian took his two books to be registered then left the library. Inside the library was overtaken by a wave of gossip. People mostly whispered about the two books he had taken out, the Release of the Dragon Power and Martial Divination. How ridiculous was that?


    Feng Qingxue quietly listened on. She had nothing to say. Even though Ye Futian had smiled at her, she still felt an invisible line separating them. He did as she asked and kept his distance from her but Feng Qingxue did not know why there was discomfort in her heart.


    ......


    "The Release of the Dragon Power and Martial Divination," Yu Sheng was surprised upon seeing the two books. He looked at Ye Futian. "Are you cultivating in both arts and starting with martial arts?"


    "Yeah, Mandate Sorcerers are called sorcerers because we''re innately gifted with the elements. However, Mandate Sorcerers are also extremely suited for the cultivation of the martial arts. Naturally, I can''t put Heaven''s gift to waste!" Ye Futian nodded and continued, "As for my reason for starting in the martial arts, that''s because at my level the sorcery I can cultivate is still not powerful enough. It''s all the basics. I can''t unleash my full potential as a sorcerer yet."


    "Then what about Martial Divination?" Yu Sheng was very curious.


    "It''s better to be prepared for everything." Ye Futian gave him a mysterious smile. "Besides, cultivation of Martial Divination is super easy, it won''t take up much of my time."


    Yu Sheng nodded his head, not having any more questions. Ye Futian spoke again, "That fox probably has no interest in the debate as usual and will not participate. If she doesn''t then I will try to get ranked first in the Fall Quarter Examinations overall."


    "Okay." Yu Sheng nodded, if this was what Ye Futian wanted, then this was what he was going to do. He had already gotten on the List of Brilliance; if he was able to stand out above everyone tomorrow, then he could definitely get first place for the entire exam.


    "I''m going to cultivate," said Ye Futian. He then made his way to the designated cultivation area and flipped through the Release of the Dragon Power. Looking at the words and diagrams in the book, he closed his eyes. Seconds later, a rumbling noise began. He was surrounded by flashes of lightning, which intensified by the second.


    The fearful lightning roamed across his body. Ye Futian observed the dragon in his mind as it roared and danced. Its aura was powerful.


    In his body, the Thunder and Lightning Spiritual Qi slowly shaped itself until it was in the form of a dragon. It looked just like the dragon in his Life Palace, incredibly realistic.


    Others who had tried to cultivate the Release of the Dragon Power failed to replicate the form of a dragon, but to Ye Futian, this was no problem at all.


    Using the exercises from the book, the dragon formed by the thunder and lightning charged recklessly throughout his body. It passed through his nerves, organs, limbs, and bones. It was everywhere. Instantly, Ye Futian''s face turned bright red, then white. It seemed like he was in great pain. A groan slipped out every now and then.


    The Release of the Dragon Power was immensely powerful and took a huge toll on one''s body. It was all to create the image of a dragon within one''s self, allowing your own body to become like that of a dragon.


    This one session went from day to night. When the sun rose the next day, a figure was dancing in the yard of the dorm. It was Ye Futian. He was still cultivating the tactics in the Release of the Dragon Power, his movements big and powerful. His surroundings were brightened with a curtain of light. Circling his body was a faintly formed dragon, at times it almost looked like a real dragon.


    A loud roar sounded with a single punch from Ye Futian. It sounded like a dragon had broken free. Another loud noise sounded from a distance away; a wall had collapsed.


    Someone ran onto the scene. It was Yu Sheng. Upon witnessing the crime scene, his eyes fell on Ye Futian.


    "You''ve achieved the artistic conception of martial arts. You''re in the Mystery Plane of martial art cultivation," stated Yu Sheng.


    "The seventh plane of Awakening." Ye Futian smiled. "Looks like we''ll have to get someone to fix that wall. Tell them you broke it while cultivating."


    "You''re throwing me under the bus?" Yu Sheng stared at him in disbelief.


    "Of course!" Ye Futian laughed and headed back to his room. He was dripping with sweat and needed to shower in preparation for the beginning of today''s Fall Quarter Examinations.

 14 The Debate

    Chapter 14: The Debate


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The morning sun shined on Qingzhou Academy, giving the historic academy a golden glow. Outside the academy, a crowd began forming again. There were even more people today than there had been yesterday.


    The Fall Quarter Examination was separated into two sections; one day for the written test, and the next day for the debate.


    The written test examined the students'' knowledge learned over the past year, while the debate tested their talents and planes. There would also be combat to evaluate their cultivation status. Although knowledge was essential for cultivators, power would be the primary texting criteria. Therefore, people considered the debate more crucial than the written test.


    Boom, Boom�� The ground outside the academy suddenly began to shake as a group of knights began approaching.


    "Look! The Dark Qilin Knighthood!" The news quickly made itself through the crowd when everyone saw the knights. The knights were all riding on monsters, Dark Qilins. The monsters'' bodies were completely dark, which gave them a very ominous vibe. Rumor had it that the Dark Qilins carried blood from the ancient Qilin, the true lord of the monsters in this world.


    "It''s General Qin Shuai!" When people saw the middle-aged general of the knights, they voluntarily cleared the way for the riders with ultimate respect to these knights.


    The knights were the guardians of the city. People in Qingzhou respected the Knighthood even more than the Lord of the city.


    "Did General Qin Shuai come here to see his daughter?" people asked each other. The fact that General Qin Shuai''s daughter was an academy student was not a secret.


    "No, he is here to check out the future talents of this city," someone said. Others nodded agreement. The young students in the academy would become the pillars of the city in the future, and some would even join the Knighthood. General Qin Shuai had actually once been a student here.


    After drawing the attention from the crowd outside, the knights entered the academy. Soon, another group of people arrived with a well-decorated coach in the middle.


    "The lord of the city is coming." Every year, the lord of the city would attend the Fall Quarter Exam in an effort to show how much he valued the school. This year was no exception.


    "Looks like today more than half of the big chiefs in the city are coming."


    "Yep. Today, some of the students will be noticed by them," people outside said to one another.


    Meanwhile, inside the arena, the stands were packed to capacity. There wasn''t a single empty seat. Most of the students were here, but many of them could only watch the debate. It was a strict rule at the academy that only those who had qualified on the written test could join the debate. It was designed to signify the importance of knowledge.


    In the stands, Ye Futian found his father. He looked around and asked, "My godfather didn''t come?"


    Ye Baichuan shook his head. "He isn''t here, but he had some words for you."


    "What are they?"


    "The first thing is that you have to stay calm under any possible circumstance; The second is not to show all your power until you are cornered into desperation," Ye Baichuan told him plainly.


    "Okay, got it." Ye Futian nodded attentively, then looked at Yu Sheng, who was standing next to him. "Did godfather have any words for Yu Sheng?"


    Ye Baichuan smiled at Yu Sheng and said, "After you become an official in the academy, you do not have to be stuck here and study all the time. We welcome you to come home often."


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded again, but he seemed a bit disappointed for a second.


    "Let''s go boys. It''s your time to shine today." Ye Baichuan laughed and let them go. They left together for the arena. Seeing them leave, Ye Baichuan felt happy that they had finally grown up.


    Feng Ruhai was also talking with his daughter. "You made it to the List of Brilliance on the written test, and you have the second highest level of perception over fire-element power. Besides, you are already in the sixth Awakening Plane, the Invincible. Don''t be nervous; just fight for yourself."


    "Okay, Dad." She nodded slightly and looked at Ye Futian from far away. As she started walking, she suddenly got a small feeling that Ye Futian was very different than he had always been. She thought some miracle would happen to him today.


    The Murong family members were also sitting together. Murong Yunshan looked at the host of the debate and told Murong Qiu, "Few people in this debate have reached the Unmaker plane. If Hua Jieyu does not participate, you have to do your best and beat everyone else. Do you understand?"


    "Yes, Father" he nodded. He was confident that he would win.


    There were two hosts for this debate: Leng Qingfeng, the Director of the Hall of Swords at the College of Martial Arts, and Shi Zhong, the Director of the Hall of Earth Element at the College of Sorcery. They walked to the center and glanced around the crowd. Suddenly, Shi Zhong said, "Those who qualified in the written test will take part in the debate today. I believe you guys know the rules clearly enough. Now, all participants, please enter."


    The students began to enter the arena from various directions.


    When Hua Jieyu showed up, she automatically drew the attention of the majority of the crowd. She was so gorgeous and talented at the same time. Unfortunately, she always refused to fight in the Fall Quarter Exam. She only took the test on her talent and level, but never joined the combat.


    "She had aced three straight years of written tests until her first failure yesterday, and she still refused to join the debate?"


    "I guess she just believed she was too good to be challenged by the others. An incredible honor like the champion of the Fall Quarter Exam seemed to draw little interest from her. What arrogance."


    Then many started to look at Ye Futian. Those who were not official students were expecting him to fail this time, believing he had no way of excaping.


    Among those people, of course, were Ling Xiao and Yang Xiu. They both looked forward to his failure.


    Feng Qingxue was standing next to Murong Qing. They also noticed Ye Futian, which made Murong Qing sneer at him. "Yesterday he was the champion with all the glory, but today he will be the failure again. How hilarious would it be if he got expelled from the academy for being stuck in a low plane even after acing the written test."


    Most people were thinking the same thing Murong Qing was. They believed that even though Ye Futian had aced the written test, he was still useless because he had been stuck in the Collection Plane for three years. For a cultivator, their plane was almost everything.


    Feng Qingxue remembered seeing Ye Futian at the library yesterday and how she had felt something strange about him. However, she pushed the thought out of her mind.


    "Ye Futian, a little bird told me that you went to the library yesterday and checked out two books. One for martial arts, The Release of the Dragon Power, and another one for sorcery, Grand Meteor?" Ling Xiao said as he walked towards Ye Futian, laughing. In fact, the news of Ye Futian checking out these books had already spread around the academy.


    "That''s our champion of the written test. His taste is so distinguished." Some began to laugh with Ling Xiao. Students in both the College of Martial Arts and the College of Sorcery all sneered when they heard the names of these books. It would be impossible for Ye Futian to learn such profound material. What a fool!


    "I would like to experience the power of these two books, but I''m afraid you will have to quit before you use them." Ling Xiao was cold because Ye Futian had aced the written test and humiliated him yesterday; but today, Ye Futian would be the one being humiliated.


    Most of them were looking forward to Ye Futian quitting. How humiliating would it be for the champion of the written test to abandon the debate session; but what if he did not quit? It didn''t matter regardless, as he would be defeated and expelled from the academy anyway. This meant that no matter what, this guy who had stolen the thunder yesterday was definitely going to be put to shame today. This ironic contrast would be inevitable.


    "Ye Futian," someone called him with a cold tone. People looked towards the voice, finding that it was Yang Xiu.


    Yang Xiu was also ashamed of what had happened yesterday. He was writhing in anger, and was ready to tear Ye Futian to pieces at any moment.


    "Today people are going to know that you are nothing more than a daydreaming talker." Yang Xiu still sounded bitter about what had happened. In fact, many people were looking at Ye Futian with a combination of jealousy and viciousness.


    Ye Futian knew how complicated his situation was and involuntarily looked towards the "fox." Almost all the hatred for him had come from the smile she had given him yesterday. In the past, people had only made jokes about him. Now, he was public enemy number one, and it felt as if everyone would spit on him if they had the chance.


    "He was the champion of the written test yesterday, Ye Futian. Looks like he has earned all the hatred pointed at him." Some people in the stands were also looking at him with slight smiles.


    "People say that he has been stuck in the Collection Plane for three years. He is talented, but has bad methodology. He skipped the last three Fall Quarter Exams, but suddenly aced the written test this year. How strange is that?"


    "Yeah, he''s good, but he''s also in trouble. Other participants are going to kill him." People were still talking about how bad things would go for him. The pressure was pretty high.


    Right in the middle of the stage, there was a Spiritual Qi testing matrix inscribed by the masters. It would accurately test the talents of the participants and their perceptions of Spiritual Qi. The students had already been put through this process before, but because their ability would change with cultivation, it was necessary to retest at the Fall Quarter Exam.


    A master was standing beside the matrix. He said to the students, "You know the rules. Time for our first challenger."


    "I''m ready," someone shouted, walking towards the matrix. It was Ling Xiao.


    He stepped onto the matrix and closed his eyes. Soon, the matrix began to shine brightly with the wind whistling through his body. It was the intense power of wind-element flowing all over Ling Xiao. His shirt was drifting with the wind, which gave the audience a sense of his youthfulness and authority.


    "Perception of wind-element at the second highest level and sixth Awakening Plane, the Invincible," the master announced, judging his ability. "Who will you challenge?"


    "Ye Futian!" Ling Xiao said, looking directly at Ye Futian. He had only volunteered to be first because he wanted to humiliate Ye Futian!

 15 Too Arrogan

    Chapter 15: Too Arrogant


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Not even Ling Xiao himself knew why he hated Ye Futian so much. Maybe it was because Ye Futian did not seem to know just how much of a loser he was. He even had the nerve to tease the goddess lecturer, Qin Yi, in class and bickered daily with Feng Qingxue. These were all things that Ling Xiao would never be able to do. In addition, Ye Futian got to sit next to Hua Jieyu during the written exam. She even turned back to smile at him afterward.


    All of these things added to Ling Xiao''s hatred of Ye Futian. Just looking at that handsome and confident face of his was enough to start a fire in Ling Xiao''s heart.


    Perhaps this was jealousy. Ling Xiao was jealous that Ye Futian was confident enough to do all these things he never had the guts to do.


    The good news was that the shameless bastard was about to crawl back down to where he came from and go back to being a loser. He was also going to be expelled from the academy.


    Everyone watched with heated eyes as Ye Futian walked to the center of the gymnasium. They anticipated what was to come.


    Ranked first in the written exams? That meant nothing in the world of cultivators.


    "This rascal..." Qin Yi was speechless looking at Ling Xiao. He was purposely trying to make things difficult for Ye Futian by calling him out first. Ling Xiao was not going to show him any mercy.


    She tried to hide her worry for Ye Futian. If Ye Futian was too afraid to accept the challenge and forfeited the exam, then being ranked first on the written exam was useless.


    "I didn''t think anyone was going to make a move for him before I did, but this is good, too. Let''s see how he''s going to try to keep up his fa?ade," Yang Xiu said coldly.


    "Watch closely, Feng Qingxue. You''ll realize soon that your decision was correct. That disgraceful loser is not worthy of standing beside you," Murong Qing said to Feng Qingxue.


    Murong Qiu was also looking ahead. He scowled at the sight of Ye Futian, as if he could not have cared less about him. However, it was also because of Ye Futian that Murong Qiu was pushed down from the List of Excellence, where he once belonged, onto the List of Brilliance.


    The first round of the debate had already stirred up so much tension, but not because of how strong the competitors were; it was because of how "legendary" Ye Futian was.


    Ye Futian walked to the center of the gymnasium step by step, finally stopping in front of Ling Xiao.


    "Ye Futian, do you accept the challenge?" an elder questioned him. Everyone''s eyes were frozen on Ye Futian, awaiting his response.


    A huge smile spread across his face. Under the sun, his youthful face looked exceptionally appealing.


    "I accept," he replied. A look of surprise immediately spread across the faces of many in the audience, but it quickly turned into amusement. Had he finally realized that there was no escape?


    "When I was accepted into the academy, my perception ability was tested to be of the highest level, Sky. I am also about to participate in the debate. I should not have to go through the matrix inspections, then, right?" Ye Futian asked the elder. If he rejected the debate, he would have to go through inspections, and everyone would know what plane he was in; but, if he accepted the challenge, everyone would find out during the battle anyway.


    "That is correct," the elder agreed.


    Out of the blue, Ling Xiao laughed and said while looking at Ye Futian, "You''re about to drop back into reality. How does it feel?"


    "After the written exam, I asked you one thing. What are you going to do if the results turn out differently from how you imagined?" Ye Futian said, shaking his head at Ling Xiao. "If you forfeit now, maybe you won''t have to experience the shock and humiliation that''s to come. Otherwise, with your state of mind, I know you won''t be able to withstand it."


    Everyone was stunned. How could Ye Futian say something so absurd at a moment like this? Has he gone completely insane?


    "How can you still be pretending when everything is about to end for you?" Ling Xiao''s rage was through the roof. The Wind Spiritual Qi in his body was bursting at the seams. One foot landed on the floor ahead. His body was moving as fast as the wind as ran toward Ye Futian.


    Ling Xiao was a Wind Element Sorcerer in the Invincible Plane. He was in front of Ye Futian in the blink of an eye. He could have easily used the Spiritual Qi within himself to cast a simple spell on Ye Futian, but he was not worthy enough for Ling Xiao to use sorcery. A simple punch would suffice.


    "Look out!" shouted Qin Yi from afar. She could not help being nervous after seeing Ling Xiao''s attack toward Ye Futian. If Ye Futian was really still in the Collection Plane, he would not be able to handle this punch. Ling Xiao was too much.


    Even though almost everyone in the vicinity disliked Ye Futian, they could not help but feel pity for him. He was about to get seriously hurt by this single attack.


    Murong Qiu, Murong Qing, and Yang Xiu watched without a worry in the world.


    It was as if they had been waiting for this to happen.


    There was a loud boom. An unexpected scene unfolded. Ling Xiao halted, his fist did not land on Ye Futian''s body. Instead, it was engulfed by Ye Futian''s hand.


    "This...." Everyone''s eyes widened and froze on the scene in the middle of the gymnasium. As Ling Xiao''s fist had gotten close, Ye Futian had lifted his hand and stopped the powerful punch like it was nothing.


    Could a complete loser in the Collection Plane do that?


    Qin Yi, Feng Qingxue, Yang Xiu, Murong Qing, and countless others, all focused on Ye Futian. They were all so surprised and rendered speechless. To easily stop Ling Xiao''s punch, Ye Futian had to, at the very least, be in the same plane as him.


    That would mean that Ye Futian was a martial art cultivator in the Invincible Plane or higher.


    "How...is this possible?" Ling Xiao looked ahead. The only thing he knew was that his fist had been stopped by a powerful force, making it nearly impossible to advance any further.


    "I gave you a chance." Ye Futian looked at Ling Xiao. Afterward, a strong intent for battle emitted from his entire being.


    The artistic conception of martial arts. He''s in the seventh plane of Awakening, the Mystery Plane. Everyone watching Ye Futian shuddered at the sight of him. The infamous loser of the academy was actually a martial arts cultivator in the Mystery Plane.


    Furthermore, his gift of martial art perception was of the Sky level and he also ranked first on yesterday''s written exam.


    He was without a doubt, worthy of being called a ''genius'' at the academy.


    How many people have mocked, laughed at, and insulted this genius in the past?


    "Gosh, this guy really pisses me off!" Qin Yi was conflicted. On the one hand, she could not believe he had kept this from her. Thinking about the bet they made in the classroom, her face flushed red with rage. This rascal had always been shameless. What if he came up with an inappropriate request? Was she really going to have to accept it?


    On the other hand, she felt happy. The boy she had seen at the entrance talent inspections all those years ago was still here; he had not given up on his wonderful gift.


    However, it was still very puzzling When had he reached this plane?


    Feng Qingxue was completely dazed by Ye Futian. She suddenly felt a little lost. A loser? She thought back to what her father had said. After hiding his abilities at the academy for three years, he had emerged from his shell despite all the negativity he had received. Ye Futian really was special.


    Standing beside her, Murong Qing did not look too well. Neither did Yang Xiu. Everyone was completely focused on what was going on. Ye Futian looked at Ling Xiao with the slightest of smiles.


    "What do you think?"


    Ye Futian was repeating Ling Xiao''s words back to him.


    Ling Xiao broke through the shock and instantly retracted his fist, wanting to back away. Fighting close range with a martial arts cultivator really was a poor choice. He had to widen their distance. He still had a chance.


    BOOM! Ling Xiao was not expecting an attack. The powerful force from Ye Futian''s kick to the chest caused Ling Xiao to propel backward. He landed on the ground far away, groaning, with blood in his mouth. It looked like he was injured pretty badly.


    Ling Xiao managed to pull himself up. He was as pale as a ghost. He glared fiercely at Ye Futian.


    "This is what you''ve always wanted to do to me. How does it feel to get a taste of your own medicine?" Ye Futian did not pity him. He had never done anything to Ling Xiao, yet Ling Xiao had always seen him as an enemy. He was constantly looking for ways to insult Ye Futian. Ling Xiao had made it his goal to see Ye Futian be expelled. Plus, the punch he had delivered earlier had showed no mercy for Ye Futian, either.


    Therefore, just as Ye Futian had said, this was simply to give Ling Xiao a taste of his own medicine.


    "I''ll get you back for this!" said Ling Xiao. He stood and walked toward the crowd looking dejected.


    Everyone was still focused on Ye Futian. So, yesterday''s written exam wasn''t just a fluke.


    "Even if you are in the Mystery Plane, do you have to be that arrogant? Aren''t you thinking a little too much of yourself?" asked Yang Xiu. He stared right at Ye Futian and continued, "Plus, since you''re a martial arts cultivator in the Mystery Plane and I''m a sorcerer in the same plane, this is the perfect chance for us to settle our little dispute from yesterday''s written exams. I challenge you to a duel."


    During yesterday''s written exam, Ye Futian and Yang Xiu fought over the power of martial arts and sorcery cultivators in the Awakening Place. Ye Futian thought that martial arts cultivators had a higher chance of victory in a battle between the two and even the academy elder agreed. As Yang Xiu brought up, this would be the perfect chance to test out each of their theories.


    "Do you accept?" Yang Xiu asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took a quick look at Yang Xiu. Calmly, he said, "You lost to me during the written exam, and you''re definitely going to lose to me now. Haven''t you been embarrassed enough?"


    Isn''t this guy being a bit too cocky? Everyone thought Ye Futian was crazy. How could a martial arts cultivator mock a sorcerer like this?


    "Do you accept?" Yang Xiu asked once again.


    "Why don''t you guys ever listen to what I have to say?" Ye Futian was a little dispirited by this. He then shrugged his shoulders and said, "Fine. If you want it so bad, I''ll have to comply."


    "He really is crazy." Everyone in Qingzhou Academy was speechless at the Ye Futian''s carefree attitude. Even if you were a genius, you still couldn''t mock a sorcerer in the same plane! Since when had martial arts cultivators become so arrogant in front of sorcerers?


    This boy is really asking to get beat. Even the special guests and instructors on the stage were speechless.

 16 Young and Frivolous

    Chapter 16: Young and Frivolous


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yang Xiu slowly walked to the matrix in the center of the stage. All of a sudden, he lit it up. Bright flames with strong fire-element power were raging all around him. He was at the highest level of fire-element perception; the seventh Awakening Plane, the Mystery.


    It seemed that the surrounding flame aura was binding with Yang Xiu. The Spiritual Qi wrapped around his body, gradually converging on him. People were thrilled by the scene, as the flames turned into fire serpents. They spat out fire in the direction of Ye Futian.


    Such strong spell power. People were staring at Yang Xiu. For a powerful mage like he was, it would be easy to absorb the elemental power from the universe and combine this power into spells to attack the enemy. In general, the power of spells was stronger than the techniques of a martial arts cultivator.


    "Come on, prove yourself. You said the martial arts cultivators could prolong the fight to exhaust a mage and win. Now it''s time for you to eat your words; I will make you suffer." Yang Xiu''s pride was typical of almost all powerful mages.


    "Yesterday on the written exam, I remember a professor told you that you need to respect the powers of others to become powerful yourself. I guess you just never learned that lesson," Ye Futian said, smiling gently at Yang Xiu. "What I said yesterday was for general situations. But I do not have to waste my time with you."


    While speaking, Ye Futian stepped forward to Yang Xiu. He began to be surrounded by the power of martial arts warriors; the power seemed to combine into one form.


    "He''s going to clash head-on?" People were speechless at what Ye Futian said. This guy was in the Mystery Plane of martial arts, yet he had directly pounced on a mage who already had powerful spells?


    "He is going to regret this ridiculous confidence," someone sneered.


    Yang Xiu was also laughing, finding Ye Futian''s comments amusing. He pounced on Ye Futian. All the fire snakes converged to create their final form, which appeared to be a giant fire python. This fire python was in such a frenzy that the space around Yang Xiu looked contorted, as the python would engulf everything in its way.


    Is he insane? Qin Yi realized how terrifying this spell was and looked nervously at Ye Futian. She knew that this spell could be lethal.


    "If that''s the case, I''ll teach you a lesson today," Yang Xiu said coldly as he began charging faster. Ye Futian also sped up with all the power surrounding his body. They were approaching the middle of the arena like two thunderbolts.


    Right at that moment, the power around Ye Futian turned purple. Suddenly, this purple power formed into a new shape. It was a dragon!


    Ye Futian''s body was now cracking with the roaring sounds of a dragon. The crowd was stunned at what was happening right in front of them. The two finally reached each other and struck at the same time. Yang Xiu shouted with rage. The fire python charged right at Ye Futian.


    With a roaring sound, Ye Futian became the incarnation of a dragon. He stretched out his arms and a purple dragon burst out of them, going straight into the fire python.


    The thunder dragon and fire python crashed. The python could not handle this dragon power. It soon disappeared, but the thunder dragon still charged until it struck Yang Xiu''s body. Yang Xiu was knocked backwards by Ye Futian''s power.


    "This is a technique of martial arts, Release of the Dragon Power! How could he ever manage to do that?" All the students were shocked. They knew Ye Futian had checked out the book yesterday, but they had thought it would mean nothing. They didn''t believe that Ye Futian could ever learn the techniques, especially in just one day.


    Now the joke was on them. Those who had sneered at Ye Futian now felt ashamed. Who had said the Release of the Dragon Power was beyond their abilities? Ye Futian proved to them that just because they couldn''t do it, didn''t mean no one else could.


    "The Release of the Dragon Power, in just one day? What kind of joke this is?" The students still could not accept what was happening.


    "The power of thunder is real. Not only is he a warrior, but he is also dominant in the power of thunder."


    At this point most official students and professors were staring at Ye Futian. Ye Futian had combined the power of martial arts techniques and the thunder element. He had successfully fused the power of thunder into his moves as a warrior in the Mystery Plane.


    "Why didn''t you believe me?" Ye Futian sighed at Yang Xiu, who looked miserable. He stepped into the matrix, looked around the arena, then began to talk, saying, "Have I ever told you that I''m not only in the highest level of martial arts power, but that I''m also in the highest level of thunder-element power?"


    As soon as he stopped talking, the matrix shined with thunder. Thunderbolts surrounded Ye Futian, making him look like Zeus.


    People were staring at him in shock. To them, Ye Futian had been a symbol of youth and frivolousness. He had been the joke of the school for three years. Even though he had kept calm and acted like he was not mistreated, deep down, he had felt upset. Now, in the middle of the stage, he had broken the shackles that had been holding him back for three years.


    Ye Futian was no longer the loser. Now, he was the champion of the written exam, had the highest level of perception in martial arts and thunder-element power, and was in the seventh Awakening Plane, the Mystery.


    Feng Qingxue could not take her eyes off of him. She seemed gloomy. She finally understood that when Ye Futian had asked her to cultivate, he had only been trying to help her. He knew he could help her cultivation. Ye Futian hadn''t been trying to hit on her. But how did she respond? She had let Murong Qing get between them, and told him to keep his distance.


    All of a sudden, the image of Ye Futian leaving and sighing came into her mind. It gave her a feeling of sorrow. She kept asking herself, Have I really grown up? Will I ever regret my decision? She had been lying to herself.


    Maybe she had kept a distance from Ye Futian only because she had thought she was out of his league, just as her father had said


    "What a punk." Murong Qing looked dismal. She was also staring at Ye Futian, refusing to admit that she was wrong. However, these words sounded harsh to Feng Qingxue. She began to remember all the advice Murong Qing had given her, and now doubted why she had believed her unconditionally in the past.


    While Ye Futian was still in the matrix, he turned around. His eyes were drawn to a beautiful girl.


    Hua Jieyu noticed Ye Futian was looking at her. She faintly sensed that something was wrong behind that weird smile Ye Futian was giving her.


    "Hey Fox, I didn''t let you down, did I?" Ye Futian began to laugh again. His eyes seemed to speak to her. Suddenly, the crowd was silenced again.


    Fox? What a flirtatious nickname that was. Plus, he had used the phrase "didn''t let you down." People began wondering if something was going on between these two, especially when they also remembered that yesterday, after the written exam, Hua Jieyue had sat next to Ye Futian and smiled at him when she had left. She had said, "I have some expectations for you tomorrow." Now people were genuinely petrified. They were thinking, Come on, it can''t be how it seems��.


    Being looked at in that way, Hua Jieyu became speechless, again realizing how shameless Ye Futian was.


    The way she had spoken to Ye Futian had apparently made him public enemy number one, and now Ye Futian was getting back at her. He was doing it intentionally, of course; how could he stay silent when this girl had tried to set him up.


    Now almost everyone was looking at Hua Jieyu. They waited to see if she would deny or ignore him.


    Her eyes glittered. With all the attention on her, she suddenly smiled back at Ye Futian. The smile looked like the most beautiful star on a clear night.


    "Yeah, I''m satisfied," she said.


    Her voice was soft and gentle. This, combined with her perfect girlish smile, made the students'' hearts melt. At that moment, they were falling in love. However, their hearts were bleeding, because that smile was not for them, but for another boy.


    Hua Jieyu, the legend and goddess of almost all the students, had never been seen speaking or smiling to someone like this. They felt like Ye Futian was doing something unheard of. Yang Xiu and Murong Qiu had both failed to make her behave like that, yet Ye Futian was able to.


    Looking at what was happening, Feng Qingxue became even more upset. She now knew that even though she was also a 15-year-old beauty of this academy, she had still been overshadowed by Hua Jieyu.


    Ye Futian was also enamored by the smile Hua Jieyu gave him, as it was too perfect a smile for Ye Futian to keep his heart defiant. He was so overwhelmed and befuddled.


    "Ye Futian, accept my challenge!"


    "How dare you do this to my Goddess! Accept my challenge!"


    Angry people were yelling at him from all over the place. It gave Ye Futian chills. Only a few of the participants today were in the eighth or ninth plane of awakening, but all of them were eager to kick his *ss now.


    You are a bad*ss. Ye Futian said to himself as he looked at Hua Jieyu, still speechless. However, she kept smiling at him with that unique softness. This smile was making the crowd even angrier.


    "This is the Fall Quarter Exam, be respectful and silent!" Ye Futian suddenly yelled at the crowd, turning back around to address them. People were shocked for a moment, then became silent, continuing to stare at him.


    "Okay, now, who wants to challenge me?" Ye Futian began asking.


    "I do, I do, and I��." Many people rushed to the stage and answered. Ye Futian looked at them, trying to remember their names.


    Ye Futian began talking again with his hands in his pockets, saying, "I have fought twice in a row. It''s time to rest." He then turned around and left the arena.


    "What, are you kidding?" People began swearing at him.


    "You can run, but you cannot hide," a student in the eighth Awakening Plane started to say.


    "Yu Sheng, it''s your turn. Take care of them." Ye Futian had made the crowd speechless again.


    Seriously, how could someone be that shameless��

 17 I Refuse to Accept This

    Chapter 17: I Refuse to Accept This


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Yu Sheng arrived at the center of the gymnasium, the expansive space was once again filled with silence.


    His fit physique made it easy to forget that he was merely a fifteen-year-old.


    He walked into the matrix. Almost immediately, a bright golden light shone over his body. The intent of battle and his powerful aura embraced his entire being.


    His perception of Metal Spiritual Qi was of the Sky level. He was in the eighth plane of Awakening, the Metamorph Plane, for both arts.


    "Come here." Yu Sheng was pointing at the person who had clamored the loudest. They were now shaking, pale-faced, but he somehow still made his way forward.


    He was gifted. His perception of Worldly Essence was of the second highest level, Earth Level. He was also in the Metamorph Plane, but he had no confidence standing in front of Yu Sheng.


    "Are you ready?" asked Yu Sheng.


    "Yeah...," the challenger''s voice was shaking. Hearing his response, everyone in the gymnasium became riled up. Yu Sheng took a giant step toward his opponent.


    "Let''s go!" yelled the opponent. His jaw was clenched tightly, and he was ready to take on Yu Sheng, but his determination disappeared as soon as he saw the ring of golden light around Yu Sheng. It made Yu Sheng look like the God of War.


    Boom! Everyone saw the challenger sailing through the air after one attack. Yu Sheng did not use any special battle tactics, nor did he use sorcery. He was able to send his opponent flying using the pure force of his body.


    "Next, you," ordered Yu Sheng. The person at the other end of his pointed finger was another individual who had wanted to challenge Ye Futian. He was no longer interested in battle though. "I admit defeat!" he said in fear.


    "You are still required to step into the matrix to show everyone your power ranking even if you forfeit," said an elder. They were not impressed by the cowardice of this student, though they were very impressed by Yu Sheng. He was indeed unique.


    Ye Futian''s challengers were not looking too good. Was Yu Sheng really going to fight all of them? If he did, they would have no chance in today''s debate portion of the Fall Quarter Examinations.


    "Ye Futian." The challengers were not too happy with him at the moment. They only stood up because they wanted to challenge him, but now Ye Futian has handed them all off to Yu Sheng. They felt scammed.


    Ye Futian smiled as he watched the events unfold. His attention shifted to Yu Sheng who was still standing at the center of the gymnasium. He was the true star of this year''s Fall Quarter Examinations.


    Not surprisingly, all of Ye Futian''s challengers were picked off by Yu Sheng one by one. None of them stood a chance against him, despite the fact that many of them were in the Metamorph Plane. There were even some in the ninth plane of Awakening, the Unmaker Plane.


    All of these people could have been official disciples already. They purposely put it off to impress officials at the Fall and Spring Quarter Examinations in hopes that their brilliant performances would make their lives easier as official disciples. Furthermore, rumor had it that the top performing students from the Fall and Spring Quarter Examinations had a chance of being chosen as the disciple of very high ranked academy officials. It was because of this that many people participated in the exams to test their luck.


    It was such a pity. All of their hard work only made Yu Sheng look better and shine brighter.


    "He''s not human," the people on the observation deck shared with one another.


    Even General Qin Shuai of the Dark Qilin Knighthood saw Yu Sheng in a different light. This boy was naturally strong. His gifts in martial arts and sorcery were both of the Sky Level. If he became a knight, he would be a force to reckoned with on the battlefield.


    "Yu Sheng, that''s enough," Ye Futian finally spoke. Yu Sheng returned to his original position beside Ye Futian and a lot of people let out a sigh of relief.


    Now, other people finally had a chance to show off their talents. Many students came forth and put their powers on display. However, no matter how interesting the duels got, nothing possessed the same shock factor as Yu Sheng''s previous displays of power.


    Time passed and it was finally time for Murong Qiu to step up. Things were finally going to get interesting. After he stepped up, Murong Qiu challenged numerous high-level cultivators. When he had defeated all the Unmaker Plane students, he moved down to the Metamorph Plane. He was in the spotlight.


    He even looked over at Yu Sheng but gave up on the thought of fighting him. It seemed that Murong Qiu had no confidence that he would be able to beat Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian recognized the determination in his eyes. Of course, Murong Qiu was also aiming for first place. The only way for him to place first would be to get rid of his biggest obstacle, Yu Sheng. He did not do this, though, because he lacked the confidence.


    Both Yu Sheng and Murong Qiu are on the List of Brilliance, and both have had excellent performances in today''s exam; but in terms of age, Yu Sheng has the upper hand. First place will most likely go to Yu Sheng, Ye Futian thought to himself as he patiently waited for the exam to be over.


    The sun was setting in the sky, but everyone in the gymnasium was still just as energetic as they had been at the beginning of the day. Hundreds of students did their very best to showcase their abilities and shine above all. Even though Hua Jieyu was not participating in the exams, she still stepped forth into the matrix to have her power ranking determined. Seeing her beautiful face, the hearts of her admirers began to ache. Please don''t really be dating that shameless douche!


    Finally, the debates had come to an end and everyone waited for the closing statements.


    Eyes diverted to the front of the gymnasium where the academy''s elders sat. When Cabinet Master Leng Qingfeng of the House of Swordsmen and Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong of the Earth Pavilion came to an agreement on the results of today''s exams, this year''s Fall Quarter Examinations would finally be over.


    Leng Qingfeng and Shi Zhong were in a serious discussion about the results while someone stood beside them and kept a record of what they were saying.


    An elder beside Shi Zhong took the recorded list and walked to the front of the stage. He looked at all the hopeful students and explained, "As usual, the results from both the written exam and the debate will be taken into consideration and the outcome will be the overall rankings for the entire Fall Quarter Examinations."


    At the end of the Fall Exams, there would only be one list, the Ranking List. Similar to the written exam, only the top three would be informed of their placement on the list.


    The top three garnered great glory and honor. In addition, everyone on the Ranking List would have the privilege to access the library''s second floor.


    Everyone waited excitedly for the results. Who were the top three going to be?


    Ye Futian watched the elder with bright eyes. First place belonged to Yu Sheng.


    "In first place, Murong Qiu," announced the elder. Ye Futian''s gaze froze. He could not comprehend what had just been said.


    First place? Murong Qiu?


    Others were just as shocked but the shock dissipated quickly. After all, Murong Qiu was in the ninth plane of Awakening and his performance was quite outstanding as well. However, they still felt that it was a pity for Yu Sheng.


    "Second place, Yu Sheng," the elder continued with his announcement.


    "Why?" Ye Futian interrupted the elder as he prepared to announce third place.


    Everyone waited for a response, feeling mixed emotions. The elder, as well as other academy elders, scowled in disapproval. Interrupting the result announcements was extremely disrespectful towards the elders.


    "Why is Murong Qiu first and Yu Sheng second?" Ye Futian wanted to know.


    "You''re getting out of line here!" the elder scolded. "The results have already been decided and they are this way for a reason."


    "I refuse to accept this," said Ye Futian.


    "Murong Qiu, seventeen, Earth Elemental Sorcerer, Sky Level, cultivating in the ninth plane of Awakening. Yu Sheng, fifteen, cultivating in both arts, Sky Level for both. In comparison, Yu Sheng is obviously more outstanding. In the written exam they were both on the List of Brilliance and did not receive placement, so I can count that as a tie. However, in today''s exam, Yu Sheng defeated cultivators in the ninth plane despite only being in the eighth. No matter how you look at it, Yu Sheng has the upper hand. So, why is Murong Qiu in first place?" reasoned Ye Futian.


    He took a step closer to the elders on stage and bowed down. "Please reevaluate their performances and decide on the results carefully."


    This guy... Qin Yi looked at Ye Futian. Even though, she objected the results as well, how could Ye Futian question the decisions made by the cabinet master and the pavilion lord? He was obviously a smart guy, but why was he acting so dumb now?


    Outer sect disciples standing in the gymnasium were all watching Ye Futian, and began to whisper about him. Murong Qiu''s face frosted over as he glared at Ye Futian.


    The honorable guests sitting on the stage were all speechless as well. They too felt that it was a pity for Yu Sheng, but they would never have thought that a disciple would stand up to question the results.


    "Stop talking! Do you know what you''re doing right now?" asked an elder standing by the matrix. He liked Ye Futian, but it was also because of this, that he could not let him continue his outrageous actions. You may do crazy things in your youth, but you should know your limits.


    Ye Futian knew exactly what he was doing. He also knew that his actions might not change a thing. His actions were not being made logically right now. He only knew that he had to speak up. If he had been in this situation, he would not have cared; but this was Yu Sheng''s honor they were talking about. Why should he let Yu Sheng miss out on first place because of the judges'' mistake?


    The rankings for the Fall Quarter Examinations were based on the grades of both days. Just as he had said before, Yu Sheng did not lose to Murong Qiu in any aspect, so why was he ranked below Murong Qiu?


    There really was not that much of a difference between first and second place, but to Ye Futian, first place could only be Yu Sheng. Why should it be taken away?


    I know that what I''m doing may be disrespectful, but I really cannot accept these results. He was set on his decision, and he could not have been more serious. Ye Futian could handle being insulted by the world, but he could not and would not sit by and do nothing as they took what rightfully belonged to Yu Sheng away.


    "Ye Futian," Yu Sheng called out to him. His hand was on Ye Futian''s shoulder as he shook his head, trying to get Ye Futian to forget about it.


    Ye Futian looked right back at Yu Sheng and he shook his head as well.


    "Continue announcing the results and cross his name off the list," said Shi Zhong coldly. They had anticipated some disagreements with the final results. However, they also thought that there would not be too much of a problem since Murong Qiu''s performance was more than good enough. They never expected that Ye Futian would stand up and question the results in front of everyone.


    The elder announcing the results nodded. He took a look at the name listed for third place and skipped over it. "Third place, Hua Jieyu," he announced.


    Even though Hua Jieyu had not participated in the debates, she had ranked second in the written exam, possessed outstanding talents, and was in the Unmaker Plane. No one questioned the decision to give her third place, but everyone had assumed that third place would have gone to the stubborn youth, Ye Futian.


    "I still refuse to accept these results," Ye Futian repeated himself once again, but his words were ignored as the elder went on to announce the next name on the Ranking List.


    Then, for the first time ever, a great disturbance interrupted the announcements of the Fall Quarter Examinations'' results. Yu Sheng stared at Ye Futian''s small frame, clenching his fists tightly. His determined eyes now shone red.


    BOOM! Yu Sheng took a step forward. No one could diminish Ye Futian''s pride, not even Qingzhou Academy.

 18 General Qin

    Chapter 18: General Qin


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Boom, Boom�� The ground beneath the arena was shaking again. It was Yu Sheng who was stepping forward slowly.


    "What is he doing?" People were looking at Yu Sheng and wondering whether these two young men were going to defy the authority of the academy.


    The final decision of the Fall Quarter Exam was being announced, and the decision had been made by two masters who were Hall Directors. It definitely could not be easily overridden. How insane was it that they were trying to make the masters change their minds?


    "Yu Sheng, get back here." Ye Futian could feel Yu Sheng''s anger, and somewhat believed he was going to do something horrible. He tried to yell and stop him, but this time it did not work.


    The List of Excellence was still being announced, but Yu Sheng entered the middle of the arena and interrupted the announcement. Many of the masters looked mad because of the fuss Ye Futian had already made, which had brought shame to the academy. The masters did not hold him responsible only because they thought he was still young, and that it was a mistake. However, Yu Sheng was now right in the middle of the arena, about to make an even bigger one.


    "Yu Sheng, back off," Leng Qingfeng, the Cabinet Master of the Hall of Swordsmen commanded him. He had planned to list Yu Sheng as the champion of the debate, but Shi Zhong had insisted that Murong Qiu should get first place. He had given in because he had not wanted to make his working relationship with Shi Zhong awkward over such minor issues. But these two young men were just stubborn.


    "I want to challenge Murong Qiu," Yu Sheng said, staring at Leng Qingfeng.


    "How dare you say that. The Fall Quarter Exam is over. There is no way you can change the results, especially in such a rude manner. You better respect the rules of this academy and back off now," Shi Zhong yelled at Yu Sheng as he stood up.


    Yu Sheng looked up to the masters of the academy. There was an aura of fury coming from his body that made the air dense. Ye Futian could feel something dangerous coming from the furious body of Yu Sheng and began yelling at him even louder, "Yu Sheng, seriously; come back here!"


    His godfather had told him that no matter what happened, no one should ever witness the Yu Sheng''s true talent.


    "No!" Yu Sheng shrieked horrifyingly. There was now a scary stream of energy around his body. The power formed a dark golden glow that armored Yu Sheng in a suit that almost looked demonic. Some of the masters began to take this seriously. Their gazes sharpened. They were staring right at Yu Sheng and could foresee the looming danger.


    "No I''m mad. Come back!" Ye Futian also sounded truly angry. He was trying to stop the imminent danger by threatening him. Yu Sheng seemed to wake up hearing his voice. His blood-red pupils trembled, and the dark energy around his body was gone. He looked back at Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng''s father had told him that he should never allow anyone to stomp on Ye Futian''s pride. Whenever a violation happened, he was supposed to stand up for Ye Futian with everything he had.


    "Hey, big boy, you know what? Just forget about it; time will show that we are right." The voice of Ye Futian turned gentle and soft. It was Yu Sheng who had been trying to persuade him before; now, he was trying to talk some sense into Yu Sheng. Even though Yu Sheng was still stubborn, he walked away as he was told. This gesture relieved the tension on the faces of the masters.


    However, the looks on people''s faces in reaction to these two had become even weirder. These guys had a complicated relationship. They looked towards the perfect girl, Hua Jieyu, and began to worry about this girl''s future.


    The masters continued announcing the List of Excellence. Despite expectations, Ye Futian''s name did not get called. Surprisingly, some people began feeling upset about this.


    Before the debate, lots of people had been expecting Ye Futian to make a fool of himself. It had not been personal until it had come to Hua Jieyu, the goddess of their dreams. But no matter what, Ye Futian''s talent was top-notch. He should be at least in the top three.


    Of course, it did not mean that they now felt empathy for Ye Futian. The hatred for him flirting with their goddess was still real and intense. Besides, this guy was so shameless.


    Ye Futian seemed calm about the fact that that he had not made it onto the List of Excellence. He now felt indifferent about the situation. However, he was doubting whether the masters were acting justly by ranking Yu Sheng as second on the List of Excellence.


    As for most of the big chiefs of this city, they were still racking their brains about the darkness around Yu Sheng. They could not figure out what it was exactly. They had a feeling that in the future, the boy who had performed so flawlessly on this exam would be renowned all over the city. They believed it was worth it to come watch, just for him.


    This concluded the Fall Quarter Exam. After Leng Qingfeng and Shi Zhong announced the end of the event, they went into the stands to greet General Qin and the Lord of the City, who had spent their time supporting the event.


    The disturbance inside the hearts of the students did not end with the event, however. Murong Qiu had Ye Futian in his sights. He looked calm but his heart was cold. He was listed as the champion of the Fall Quarter Exam, but Ye Futian had questioned the decision in public so outrageously that Murong Qiu felt ashamed. Now people actually believed that he was not as good as Yu Sheng. Even worse, he felt angry about Hua Jieyu''s reaction. She had never even talked to him, but she had kept smiling at Ye Futian the entire time.


    Something evil quickly flashed in his eyes, then he walked towards the stands. Feng Qingxue was also looking at Ye Futian. She seemed hesitant about something.


    "What did he just do? He was defying the authority of the masters in public!" Murong Qing said.


    Feng Qingxue seemed absent from the conversation. She was still looking at Ye Futian. In fact, Ye Futian sensed that he was being watched. He turned his head to look at Feng Qingxue. Feng Qingxue noticed that there was a moment of confusion in his eyes, then he smiled at her, and looked away.


    There was no grudge in his smile; it was like any regular smile between friends�� natural and peaceful. But it made Feng Qingxue feel even worse. In the past, when Ye Futian had smiled at her, there was a feeling of inappropriateness behind the smile; but not this time. She realized that she had finally gotten the distance she had requested. Friendship was something you lost, and lost forever.


    After turning away, Feng Qingxue was on the verge of tears. She controlled herself and walked toward her dad.


    People were leaving in groups. In fact, most of them were still paying attention to Hua Jieyu, and were surprised to notice that she left alone instead of with Ye Futian. This gave them some hope. They tried to convince themselves that nothing special was going on between them.


    "Ye Futian!" A beauty suddenly showed up in front of Ye Futian and stared at him with anger. "How could you act so stubbornly? You had the chance to be listed in the top three on the List of Excellence and become an official student just like Yu Sheng. You know what? You just ruined that chance."


    Seeing the fuming beauty before him, Ye Futian smiled teasingly. "You still look so beautiful even when you''re angry, Ms. Qin, did you know that?"


    "What, you��" Qin Yi was dumbfounded. How could he transform so fast from that brave person who had stood up for Yu Sheng to a shameless playboy? Was this really the same person?


    "You were in the first plane of awakening for so long. How did you do that?" Qin Yi asked confusedly.


    "Remember our bet? It motivated me so much that I jumped directly over from that low plane." Ye Futian looked at Qin Yi and said, "You do remember your promise, don''t you?"


    Qin Yi rolled her eyes. As for the promise�� Qin Yi asked, "Did I make a promise?"


    "Uh��" It was Ye Futian''s turn to be dumbfounded. Looking at this beauty right in front of him, Ye Futian said with humor, "You told me I can do whatever I want as long as I passed the exam."


    "Really? Did I? I don''t remember that." Qin Yi was suspicious about this. Then she turned to a student who was in that class and asked, "Did I ever make a promise?"


    The person was caught off guard, then looked serious and said, "Nope, definitely not."


    Then he glanced at Ye Futian with a chuckle. This shameless bastard was flirting with Ms. Qin now? No, that was not going to happen.


    "You liar��" Ye Futian realized he was being set up. He then yelled, "Yu Sheng, come here!"


    The student ran away as fast as he could. It had only been a joke. Why was Ye Futian so serious that he would he ask Yu Sheng to beat him up?


    Ye Futian felt wronged. He looked at Qin Yi. "Ms. Qin, seriously, you can''t do this."


    Qin Yi sounded content and smiled, "Shameless, of course; that''s your style."


    She was surprised at how fun it was to act shamelessly once in a while.


    Looks like Ms. Qin misunderstood my point. Ye Futian felt bitter. His reckless plan had gone awry.


    "What are you guys talking about?" someone suddenly interrupted. Both of them turned around, and Ye Futian looked respectfully at the newcomer. "Greetings, General."


    "Dad?" Qin Yi said cutely. It was exactly how you would imagine a seventeen-year-old young beauty like her to act. Ye Futian was surprised that the serious Ms. Qin also had this side to her.


    "Are you bullying him again?" Qin Shuai patted the head of his daughter and then nodded at Ye Futian. "You did well today."


    "Thank you for the compliment, General." Of course Ye Futian knew who he was--everyone in the city knew.


    "You are Yu Sheng, right?" Qin Shuai looked away from Ye Futian. Yu Sheng answered with a nod.


    "You are a talented mage, of course, but deep inside you are a natural born warrior. Do not only focus on becoming a mage and ignore your talent as a warrior." Qin Shuai sounded serious. He really appreciated this boy because he was one of the most talented warriors he had ever seen. Years from now, this boy would be just as powerful as he was.


    Yu Sheng nodded again. He understood this naturally.


    "You are more than welcome to join the Dark Qilin Knighthood. It will be open to you at any time." Qin Shuai was making a serious proposal. Yu Sheng was surprised, as was Ye Futian. He was only fifteen, yet he had been invited by General Qin in person.


    "Sure," Yu Sheng answered.


    "Let''s go home." Qin Shuai left with Qin Yi. She looked back at Ye Futian and smirked.


    "You''ve changed." Ye Futian sighed, feeling upset. She had promised him that he could do anything he wanted!


    Ye Futian walked to the stands. His father was there talking with someone else. "It is such a shame that he did not make it onto the List of Excellence."


    "I know, he is powerful enough," the person answered. In fact, Ye Baichuan had said this about a hundred times already.


    "Can''t be compared to how good I was at that age though," Ye Baichuan said.


    Ye Futian was ashamed. He confronted his father, saying, "Come on, Dad, that was totally unfair to me. Isn''t it time for you to comfort me instead of blame me?"


    Ye Baichuan felt confused. "Does this failure even mean anything to you at all?"


    Ye Futian was speechless. "Just go home. I won''t see you off."


    He turned back to the dorm and sighed the entire way about how unlucky he was to have a father like that.

 19 Aftermath

    Chapter 19: Aftermath


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Fall Quarter Examinations had ended with a little drama. People dispersed, and the gymnasium returned to its usual emptiness.


    However, everyone was still shaken up. Ye Futian''s performance in this year''s exam was too eye-catching. He went from an infamous loser to a genius in martial arts and sorcery. Even more, his gift was of Sky level for both arts; but what had really made everyone jealous was his strange and mysterious relationship with Hua Jieyu. You could say that the entire Fall Quarter Examinations had gone his way, with the exception of his little argument with the elders about Yu Sheng''s final ranking.


    Besides Ye Futian, Yu Sheng also caught everyone off guard. Nobody knew what a monster he could become. All in all, Murong Qiu who was in first place, had nothing on these two.


    The autumn nights brought about a cooling breeze; it seemed like winter was just around the corner.


    In the following days, Qingzhou Academy buzzed with the newest information. Murong Qiu and Hua Jieyu were becoming official disciples and had caught the attention of high-level personnel at the academy. The same was true for Yu Sheng. It had been said that a couple of the elders from the School of Martial Arts as well as the Metal Pavilion Lord had fought over him.


    So many outer sect disciples were jealous of this treatment. As expected, the ones who stood out the most during the Fall Quarter Examinations were being sought after by the best of the best.


    Other than that, many of the other students on the Ranking List had begun to visit the second floor of the library. They now had unlimited access to some of the most powerful martial art exercise books and spell books.


    As for Ye Futian, who had been removed from the Ranking List for disrespecting academy elders, he seemed to be in a bit of a slump. Rumor had it that the elders were extremely unhappy with him, and were preparing to punish him.


    Yu Sheng had stood out during the exams as well, but he was being fought over by the elders. Who would be daring enough to punish him? Besides, all of Yu Sheng''s wrongdoings had been attributed to Ye Futian. That guy was really unlucky.


    However, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had been cultivating for the past few days and paid no attention to the news.


    Senior Sister Qin Yi had another lecture today. Ye Futian was prepared to be a good student, so he arrived in her classroom once again.


    However, as soon as he stepped into the classroom, he received strange stares from his classmates. Ye Futian really had great timing. The final verdict on his punishment had just been announced, and he had come in right on time.


    Qin Yi also noticed Ye Futian''s arrival and stared at him as well. She felt that Ye Futian had been wronged.


    "I know I''m good looking, but you guys don''t have to stare," said Ye Futian. His classmates could not help but roll their eyes. They should have known; once a shameless jerk, always a shameless jerk.


    Qin Yi took a few steps toward Ye Futian and looked upset when she said, "Ye Futian, the academy has decided to temporarily ban you from lectures, but don''t worry; I''m going to talk to them. I believe they''ll lift the ban soon."


    When Qin Yi had found out about this news, she was extremely unhappy. Everyone had seen just how gifted Ye Futian was. Even if he had created a little conflict with the elders, why should he be punished like this? Weren''t the Fall Quarter Examinations supposed to be one hundred percent fair?


    To be honest, Qin Yi had yet to tell Ye Futian the whole story. Not only was the academy banning Ye Futian from the class, but he was also going to be placed on probation, where they were going to keep a close eye on him. This meant that Ye Futian still had a chance of being expelled.


    It was for this reason that everyone stared. Ye Futian had just proven himself not to be a loser but a top-notch genius in the cultivation of both arts. None of that could help him escape the fate of being kicked out of the academy. What a shame. Maybe this was the price you had to pay to be young and stubborn.


    It still made no sense though. According to his performance at the Fall Quarter Examinations, he should still be considered one of the best in the academy.


    The look on Ye Futian''s face fell and his expression told the world that he felt wronged.


    "Senior Sister," his voice was sunken. He walked up to Qin Yi with his head hung low. She could not bear to see him like this. Qin Yi smiled and tried to comfort him, saying, "Don''t worry. Everything''s going to be okay."


    Ye Futian gave a quick hum and nodded his head. He then stepped forward and embraced Qin Yi.


    What is he doing? Everyone around was frozen in shock. What the hell was this *sshole doing? Was he actually hugging her?


    "Thank you, Senior Sister," Ye Futian said softly, as if he was filled with gratitude.


    Qin Yi blinked. Something was not right.


    Hadn''t she only mentioned that he was being banned from class? This guy didn''t come to class often anyway so why was he having such a strong reaction?


    She abruptly backed away from him, her face flushed red. Qin Yi was no longer feeling any pity for Ye Futian, she was furious! She seemed to have finally realized his intentions and glared at him hard. "YE...FU...TIAN!"


    "Senior Sister, I just remembered I have prior commitments. I have to go now!" His words slurred together because of his quick speech. His feet were moving just as fast. You would not have been able to tell that he was "upset" just a second ago.


    "Don''t let me see you again!" Qin Yi yelled at his fleeing figure.


    Some of the male students stood up, finally breaking free from their frozen state.


    "He...he��*sshole!" one of them shouted.


    Ye Futian had actually embraced their goddess.


    "That shameless *sshole! His punishment is too light; the academy should have just expelled him on the spot," said another student.


    "Yeah! He should be expelled and never be allowed to step foot on academy grounds ever again!" Everyone was fuming. Their goddess had been taken advantage of!


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were walking around the campus when Yu Sheng asked, "Did you feel anything?"


    "What are you saying? I just couldn''t help myself; Senior Sister is too good to me," Ye Futian answered. He gave a Yu Sheng a look of disdain for thinking that he had had impure intentions towards Qin Yi. He was not that type of person.


    "Okay," Yu Sheng nodded, looking like he understood. Ye Futian could only sigh. Even Yu Sheng had changed.


    "I can''t believe the academy is really going to punish me," said Ye Futian. The dispute he had started during the Fall Quarter Examinations was all for naught. Yu Sheng''s first place title had been wrongfully stolen, and now the academy was going to punish Ye Futian for standing up against them. Ye Futian was pissed.


    Yu Sheng furrowed his eyebrows and gave his thoughts, "Maybe they''re punishing you because the cabinet master and the pavilion lord felt that you damaged their reputations."


    "I don''t care anymore. It''s not like they can really kick me out," said Ye Futian.


    "Who said they can''t?" Someone had spoken up from behind them. Ye Futian halted and turned to look at the speaker. His eyebrows lifted in recognition.


    It was Murong Qiu. He threw Ye Futian a look of mockery and said, "You''re not actually na?ve enough to believe that your gifts will be able to solve all your problems, are you? If it were so, then why is it that Yu Sheng lost his first-place title?"


    At the sound of his voice, Ye Futian''s eyes shot up. Could it be that Yu Sheng lost his title to Murong Qiu not because of the judges'' bias or misjudgment, but because of a conspiracy?


    "What you''re thinking right now is probably correct. Not only that, the academy''s punishment for you is because of me as well." Murong Qiu stepped toward Ye Futian and lowered his voice, "Are you surprised?"


    Yu Sheng''s knuckles cracked as he clenched his fists. He was fighting a strong urge to fight.


    "You want to hit me? Do you have the guts to do it? Idiot." Murong Qiu glanced at Yu Sheng. He was looking down on him. Ye Futian''s chilling eyes squinted.


    "I heard that you are childhood friends with Feng Qingxue. She''s very beautiful. Fifteen, a tempting age, a budding flower," Murong Qiu continued. Yu Sheng took a step forward.


    "Yu Sheng!" Ye Futian called out. The ice in his gaze disappeared and then he smiled.


    Murong Qiu''s words were getting even more unbearable now. He only had one goal, to trigger Ye Futian.


    If Ye Futian and Yu Sheng actually made a move on him, Murong Qiu might not even defend himself. Then the academy would have one more reason to legitimize their punishment for Ye Futian.


    "Murong Qiu, I''ll remember this," said Ye Futian with a smile. He then turned to leave. "Let''s go, Yu Sheng."


    Yu Sheng glared at Murong Qiu one last time, then walked away to follow behind Ye Futian. Murong Qiu was surprised. He was watching the two of them leave when his demeanor cooled. Weren''t they super arrogant during the exams, why were they acting so cowardly now?


    "Why didn''t you let me make a move on him?" Yu Sheng was very angry.


    "And then have me take the blame for it?" asked Ye Futian. After what happened during the Fall Quarter Examinations, Murong Qiu had his sights set on Ye Futian.


    "You can head back without me. I have business to attend to," Ye Futian said out of the blue.


    "Where are you going?" asked Yu Sheng.


    "The fox''s den." Ye Futian turned away and left Yu Sheng standing there staring at his back. Yu Sheng muttered under his breath, "Meeting the parents already?"


    It seemed like they hadn''t even known each other for a month, weren''t they moving a little too fast? Yu Sheng could not understand, so he shook his head and began to make his way back home alone.


    Hua Jieyu''s place was in a very nice area within Qingzhou Academy. It was a large private residence, separated from other buildings. Ye Futian was not surprised. That day on Mount Tianyao, even the academy elders had to pay respects to the middle-aged man. It was easy to tell that he must have been highly ranked within the academy. Besides that, Hua Jieyu has always been a person of high status and mystery in Qingzhou Academy.


    Outside the residence, Ye Futian saw a young man. The young man saw Ye Futian as well and couldn''t help but be confused. "Ye Futian?"


    "Senior Brother," greeted Ye Futian. He vaguely recalled seeing this young man before. He had been sitting by the elders during the Fall Quarter Examinations. He must have been an official disciple.


    "What are you doing here?" asked the young man. How could Ye Futian have found his way here?


    "I came to look for my master," said Ye Futian.


    "Your master?" the young man asked Ye Futian. "Who is your master?"


    "Not too sure, but he lives here," answered Ye Futian as he pointed to the residence.


    "Senior Hua?" the young man asked weakly.


    "Yeah..." Ye Futian was a bit embarrassed. He did not even know his master''s family name. Then he thought about the master''s relationship to Hua Jieyu and what the young man said seemed to be correct, so he nodded in agreement.


    The young man thought of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu''s interactions during the Fall Quarter Examinations and immediately understood the situation. He grabbed his chest in pain. Then, he turned and walked away bleakly.


    The young man also thought of the academy''s punishment for Ye Futian. There were even some people who wanted to facilitate his expulsion from the academy. The world sure was a messy place. Who would dare to expel Senior Hua''s disciple? The Pavilion Lord of the Earth Pavilion?

 20 A Wolf Invited into the House

    Chapter 20: A Wolf Invited into the House


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian stepped into his professor''s home. He heard someone playing a delightfully moving melody on the guqin. There was a unique softness in the sound, which indicated that the player might be a woman.


    However, Ye Futian was surprised to find that it was Hua Jieyu''s father who was playing the guqin in the pavilion. He looked gentle and peaceful with the instrument. Seeing that face, Ye Futian truly understood why his daughter was such a beauty. His master''s handsomeness was almost comparable to his own...


    Ye Futian stepped gently into the pavilion, trying not to make any noise. However, the sound stopped gradually, the musician apparently noticing his approach. The master looked at Ye Futian and smiled. "You''re here."


    "Greetings, Professor Hua." Ye Futian bowed to him.


    "Come grab a seat," Mr. Hua told him. Ye Futian walked forward and sat down, facing the master.


    "How much do you know about spell scrolls?"


    "A spell scroll is a scroll with a certain spell inscribed on it. Only mages that are extremely talented in power perception can manage to do that, hence why they are called scroll inscribers," Ye Futian said, "The Spirit and Qi that a mage is able to release in a fight is limited, and sometimes the mage has to release the power really fast. In that case, the power of his spell is proportional to his plane. However, in a non-battle status, a mage can actually take a lot more time to inscribe more powerful spells on a scroll so that he can release the power instantly during a fight."


    "You are correct. If you are a good enough scroll inscriber, the spell inscribed can be much more powerful than those you can use during a fight. Therefore, the scroll inscribers can sometimes surprise their enemies with spells way beyond their ability range. In fact, people seldom want to fight against a good scroll inscriber," Mr. Hua continued.


    "There are more benefits to being a good scroll inscriber. Inscribers are generally very wealthy because the scrolls of good quality are expensive. In addition, the status of this profession is very high."


    "I know." Ye Futian smiled.


    "This profession is very talent-oriented. Mages with normal ability can never become scroll inscribers. You do, however, have this talent within you." He looked at Ye Futian, stood up, and began exiting. "This way."


    Ye Futian followed him to a small library. Even though it was a tiny space, there were thousands of books stored inside. He pointed to a shelf and told Ye Futian, "Browse the books on that shelf. They are the introductions to spell scrolls."


    "Sure," Ye Futian nodded without asking any questions. The master was pretty satisfied with this reaction. He left Ye Futian alone to read.


    He roughly scanned the books, then chose one of them to start reading seriously. He understood that the foundation of a knowledge system was critical, and that no matter how talented he was, the basics were still necessary. In fact, he was well-influenced by his godfather, and he thoroughly understood the importance of fundamentals. He was extremely focused on the materials.


    Unknowingly, dusk had already arrived. Hua Jieyu came in from outside and greeted her dad.


    The man smiled at her and asked, "How was your performance today."


    "I took down three level nine demons," Hua Jieyu smiled back at him.


    "Nice job." He nodded and told her, "Go prepare some pens and scrolls for scroll inscribing."


    "Another practice session?" Hua Jieyu was confused.


    "It''s not for you. It''s for Futian," he smiled again.


    Something flashed through her eyes when she heard that name. That guy had come? He was so...driven!


    When Ye Futian came out, he saw Hua Jieyu preparing the desk for him. She was tall and slim, with an elegant aura that could not belong to someone her age. Her mother must also be a pretty woman. What a pity that Ye Futian had never seen her.


    Ye Futian sneaked towards her and smiled. "What a virtuous woman I''m looking at."


    Hua Jieyu stiffened. Virtuous? Was he kidding?


    "This is my house; mind your language." Hua Jieyu looked back and smiled at Ye Futian. The smile was breathtaking, but Ye Futian was could not enjoy it anymore. He knew how calculative and cunning this fox could be.


    "Futian, are you done reading?" The master came out of his room with a book in his hand.


    "Yep, I''m done," Ye Futian slightly nodded.


    "Okay, so which plane are you in now for sorcery?" he asked


    "The sixth Awakening Plane, the Invincible."


    "Have you ever practiced any spells?"


    "No." Ye Futian thought something like The Grand Meteor was not the answer he was looking for.


    "That''s good for you." The master seemed quite satisfied, which made Ye Futian really curious. Never practicing spells before was a good thing?


    "There are major differences between the inscribed spells and the spells you directly cast during a fight. In fact, a lack of experience makes you better at perceiving these differences," Mr. Hua explained to Ye Futian as he gave him a book. "This will teach you some inscribing methods of basic spells. Let''s start with the first one."


    Ye Futian nodded and took the book. The first spell was Thunder Blast, a spell for a basic level of awakening. It induced a thunderstorm used to attack the opponent.


    "I''m done," he said as he closed the book.


    "Now, try to inscribe," the master nodded. Ye Futian picked up the pen, looking really serious about this first try. Suddenly, he was surrounded by the power of thunder flowing from his body to his hand, which finally converged on the end of his pen. At the same time, it looked like the thunder power was being engraved on the scroll. Ye Futian began using the pen slowly and thoughtfully. However, a thunderbolt suddenly cracked, and all the power diffused immediately.


    "I failed." Ye Futian was kind of disappointed.


    "It''s okay. Keep going, try another one," the master told him. Ye Futian picked up a new scroll, feeling sad. He was wasting something very costly.


    His second attempt was a failure, as was his third attempt, and so on with his ninth effort. He still could not do it, but every time he made some progress by hanging on for longer period of time.


    "Jieyu, show him, please," the master asked his daughter. She nodded, and her hands reached out for the pen that Ye Futian was holding. Ye Futian was stunned for a moment, then gave her the pen.


    Hua Jieyu took a scroll and began inscribing. The power of thunder was all over her body.


    Wow, that thunder-element talent of hers is amazing. Ye Futian was awed by this. He had seen her incredible metal- and wind-element talent on Mount Tianyao�� This fox was just as multi-talented as he was.


    She looked focused while she was inscribing, yet somehow still seemed to be at ease. Her entire body was glowing with not only the power, but also her unique beauty from concentrating. She finished the scroll soon, then smiled at Ye Futian. Ye Futian smiled back but felt awkward.


    "Okay now, take your time," the master told him. He then left the pavilion with his daughter. He was leaving intentionally so Ye Futian could focus.


    "Sure," Ye Futian answered. He began genuinely focusing on the inscribing. Even though he continued to fail, he did make some progress after every failure.


    Dusk settled over the academy. Mr. Hua sat on the couch and asked his daughter, "How long did it take for you to make your first scroll?"


    "A day," she answered.


    "He will make it soon, even without my instruction," Mr. Hua told her, "In fact, he is the most powerful mage I have ever seen in perceiving and controlling Spiritual Qi in the Awakening Plane. He is even better than you."


    Hua Jieyu stared at the boy. Suddenly, a shining thunderbolt burst out, the storm striking the pavilion directly.


    "I made it!" Ye Futian was so excited. Hua Jieyu winced. She could not believe that he had made his first success this fast.


    "He used the scroll right after making it. What a waste." Mr. Hua felt a little sad, but he kept smiling at Ye Futian. He had not expected to have someone as talented as Ye Futian in this city. This boy was a mage of all-elemental talent, and a natural born scroll inscriber. This meant that he would be an all-elemental scroll inscriber, which was pretty rare.


    "I made it!" Ye Futian ran to the master. He was so excited that he had not only successfully inscribed a spell, but that he had learned it as well.


    "Nice job. You have a lot more to work on. In fact, you need to be able to inscribe all the spells in that book." The master knew why he was so excited; no matter how talented he was, he was still a fifteen-year-old, an age meant for being simple and naive.


    " Okay," Ye Futian nodded.


    "It''s already night. Are you��?" Hua Jieyu smiled at Ye Futian, implicitly telling their guest that it was time to leave.


    "Ah, time flew by so fast." Ye Futian looked to the sky, then continued, "It''s too dark and dangerous outside. Do you have a spare room here Mr. Hua? Is it okay if I stay for tonight?"


    "What��?" Hua Jieyu was caught off guard. Dark and dangerous? What lame excuses. Ye Futian ignored her, looking to his master with expectancy.


    "Okay, then stay. Jieyu, go prepare the guest room for Ye Futian," Mr. Hua smiled.


    "Uh..." Hua Jieyu blinked. Why was she being asked to prepare the room for this shameless guy? Ye Futian looked at her with a grin. His gaze was full of anticipation. In his eyes, a fox was making a bed for him. What a dream.


    "Nope," Hua Jieyu refused after she saw the expression on Ye Futian''s face.


    "Jieyu, mind your manners," her dad told her. She stood up, feeling wronged, then reluctantly went to the room.


    "I''ll go help her, professor." Ye Futian followed her to the room. Soon, it began to sound like they were bickering. Mr. Hua looked to the sky full of shiny stars and showed a smile of nostalgia. We used to be such a beautiful age.


    Ye Futian had refused to go back to his dorm after his stay. Hua Jieyu believed that her father had just invited a wolf into their house.


    Time passed by, and Ye Futian was able to inscribe even more spells. Some of them were actually of the seventh Awakening Plane.


    One day, Ye Futian was working alone in the pavilion. All of a sudden, he felt something vague and intriguing going on in his mind. Later, he found that his body had resonated with the Spiritual Qi of the universe. The power was all over his body; the feeling was so different from the mere act of collecting.


    Okay, now I am in the seventh Awakening Plane, the Mystery. He smiled. During the inscribing these days, he was making progress on the perception and control of elemental power. In fact, the inscribing was also a form of cultivating!

 21 Heiyan Academy

    Chapter 21: Heiyan Academy


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The cold winds of winter had arrived; the greenery had wilted, and Qingzhou Academy had become rather bleak.


    However, Ye Futian was not affected by the cold at all. His days passed by comfortably and carelessly. Other than inscribing scrolls daily, he treated himself to the eye candy that was Hua Jieyu. He had been so happy that Yu Sheng was almost the last thing on his mind. Two months passed and he had only gone back to their dorm to visit Yu Sheng twice. This had Yu Sheng''s imagination running wild as to what Ye Futian could be doing at the Hua residence.


    The academy''s ban on Ye Futian was still in place. When everyone was looking forward to Ye Futian''s reaction, he completely vanished from their sights. His disappearance had everyone thinking if he would have come to class if there had not been a ban. Maybe if it was Senior Sister Qin Yi''s lecture.


    Without any warning, the first snow arrived. The snow was coming down hard, covering everything in a blanket of white overnight.


    In the morning, Ye Futian stepped out of his room. He looked up at the sky, full of snow flurries, and rubbed his hands together. A hot breath escaped as he smiled.


    The pavilion up ahead looked lonely, standing alone in the white, while everything around it was completely hidden by the snow. One figure stood out in the midst of it all. She seemed to have lost herself in the beautiful view. The snow was too beautiful.


    Ye Futian picked up his feet and headed towards her. Another set of footprints appeared in the snow on the ground.


    Standing next to the young woman, Ye Futian snuck a glance at her, but it seemed she had not taken notice of him. Her eyes were closed as she enjoyed the serenity.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes as well and continued to stand beside her quietly. The white snow fell nonstop until the both of them were covered in a layer of it.


    "What are you doing?" Hua Jieyu had opened her eyes and smiled at Ye Futian when she saw that he was mimicking her.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked at Hua Jieyu tenderly. Smiling, he replied, "Accompanying you until our hairs turn white."


    Hua Jieyu blinked speechlessly. She then looked at Ye Futian''s head, covered in the white snow. Her heart twinged with disappointment. She could never take his words too seriously.


    "It''s already been two months, you don''t really think this is your home now, do you?" Hua Jieyu teased Ye Futian.


    "Master is more than just my teacher; he has become like a father to me. So his home would be like home to me," Ye Futian said. He sounded quite serious.


    "You two little rascals," a voice said, causing the two to turn their heads. They saw a handsome figure smiling at them, and heard him say, "Flirting so early in the morning, you guys really don''t think of me at all."


    Ye Futian sighed to himself. Master knew him too well.


    "Father," Hua Jieyu called out, feeling wronged. She stared at her father. "Am I really your child?"


    He always took Ye Futian''s side. What kind of father did that?


    "Who else but I could have birthed the most beautiful daughter in all of Qingzhou City?" the middle-aged man replied in a joking manner. Hua Jieyu looked at her father. In a mere two months, her father''s tone and manner of speech had already adopted that of Ye Futian''s. This was just...


    "You really are a master." Ye Futian was impressed. Master was on a completely different level than he was in every aspect.


    After spending so much time together, Ye Futian had finally found out his master''s name, Hua Fengliu.


    Even his name was impressive. He could not even hope to compete with Master.


    "Ye Futian, over the past days your cultivation in scroll inscribing has become so well-developed that you no longer need guidance. As your power level increases, you will naturally be able to inscribe more powerful scrolls," said Hua Fengliu. He eyed Ye Futian unwaveringly. Even though Ye Futian was only in the Mystery Plane for sorcery cultivation, he was able to inscribe some of the highest-level Awakening Plane scrolls in the short span of two months.


    "It''s all thanks to your guidance, Master." Ye Futian bowed with gratitude.


    Hua Fengliu waved his hand in denial. "You are naturally talented. You would have yielded the same results even with a different teacher. However, you must remember, you cannot be overly prideful. The outside world is far more complicated than you can imagine. Your journey has only just begun. You can come to me for help when you have any questions, not just for inscribing, but for anything about cultivation as well.


    "I shall keep Master''s words at heart." Ye Futian nodded in response.


    "Alright, go on now," said Hua Fengliu.


    Ye Futian nodded again before dropping down to both knees and gave Hua Fengliu three deep bows. His forehead came into contact with the cold ground.


    "I have been under your guidance for months now and have not yet paid my respects to you properly. Even though I like to joke around, I was serious when I said that you are like a father to me. I will always keep Master''s words in mind," said Ye Futian.


    When he was done, Ye Futian stood up slowly and said, "I shall be on my way now."


    He then turned towards Hua Jieyu for a farewell, "Bye Fox, don''t miss me too much."


    He walked out of the residence before she could reply.


    "That rascal, it''s going to take some time to get used to things without him here," Hua Fengliu laughed as he shook his head.


    "Why do you like him so much?" Hua Jieyu could not understand her father. She could feel that her father genuinely liked Ye Futian, but why? Was it just because of his gift?


    "Initially, it was because of his gift, but after hearing your stories about him and what happened during the Fall Quarter Examinations, I realized that under his playful demeanor was a pure heart. After receiving three years worth of insults, any normal person would have been resentful, but he remained cheerful and bright, like the sun. Furthermore, he was willing to stand up to the academy just for Yu Sheng''s placement, it is easy to determine that he is an extremely loyal person," explained Hua Fengliu. "After these past two months with him, I''m starting to like his personality more and more."


    "So, you would sell-out your own daughter?" Hua Jieyu rolled her eyes at her father. She said, "Even if he does have all those good qualities, you can''t deny that he''s a shameless pervert."


    "Don''t you think his little antics are cute?" laughed Hua Fengliu.


    Hua Jieyu did not know what to say. Her world was in a messy situation. Her respected father had fallen under a certain person''s spell.


    The snow continued to fall until the entirety of Qingzhou Academy was covered in white, adding beauty to this sacred place. However, the students of Qingzhou Academy were not interested in the beautiful sight. Early in the morning, a group of powerful individuals arrived at the academy. When they arrived, all the instructors of Qingzhou Academy prepared for combat, calling upon the most powerful people at the academy. Leaders of the martial arts and sorcery schools readied themselves. The atmosphere across campus was very tense.


    Many outer sect disciples did not understand the situation, but the older official disciples knew exactly where this group of people had come from, and their purpose for coming. They knew that their prestigious academy was about to fall victim to some serious provocation.


    All of Qingzhou Academy was a mess. Disciples rushed toward the same direction in a frenzy.


    Ye Futian witnessed this sight and found it weird, not knowing what had happened. It seemed like something big was about to take place at the academy.


    "Ye Futian!" Ye Futian heard someone call his name before he could reach his dorm. Shifting his gaze in the direction of the voice, he saw a beautiful face and a soft smile spread across his own face.


    "Where are you going?" asked Feng Qingxue.


    "Going back to look for Yu Sheng," answered Ye Futian.


    "The academy is gathering all the students, Yu Sheng should also be there," said Feng Qingxue. Something flashed in Ye Futian''s eyes as if he had just had a thought.


    Feng Qingxue pulled at her sleeve. She looked nervous. She asked, "Why don''t we go check it out...together?"


    Ye Futian stared blankly at the beautiful girl in front of him. The snow was falling on her body. She looked a little nervous and unsettled.


    "Sure," Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    "Okay." Feng Qingxue took the initiative to stand beside him, and the two of them headed towards the crowd.


    Ye Futian was not joking or teasing her like he had used to, but Feng Qingxue knew that things could never go back to the way they were before. Of course, she would have liked everything to be as it had been in the past. However, she had matured, and understood that things did not always go the way you wanted. Despite knowing what had been lost was gone for good, she still did not want to be complete strangers.


    "I''m sorry," said Feng Qingxue suddenly. Ye Futian stared at her blankly once again. He could see that she was trying to be as courageous as she could. She looked at him and smiled. "Ye Futian, I''m sorry."


    Her eyes were getting red. These days, she had been thinking a lot about what her father had said, and she knew that her actions had hurt his pride.


    "I have forgotten about it already," replied Ye Futian. He understood perfectly why she was apologizing.


    "There''s nothing going on between Murong Qiu and I. He came to look for me after the incident, but I ignored him, and I haven''t gone near him since." Feng Qingxue tried to explain herself, even though she knew it wouldn''t make a difference; but it was best to make some things clear.


    "That''s all in the past now," Ye Futian replied. "Oh yeah, what''s going on at the academy?"


    Feng Qingxue could tell that Ye Futian was trying to change the subject and felt slightly disappointed. She replied to his question anyway, "I heard that aces from the City of Heiyan led the people of Heiyan Academy here."


    "The City of Heiyan," muttered Ye Futian as his expression darkened. Heiyan and Qingzhou were both cities of East Sea Island. To Ye Futian, who grew up reading history books, history was something he knew quite a lot about. Before Emperor Ye Qing and Donghuang the Gret united the world three hundred years ago, there was an age of separatism led on by the nobility. During this complicated period, it was very common for cultivators to loot resources. At the time, the City of Heiyan was controlled by the Heiyan Clan. This clan was very aggressive, and repeatedly invaded the other cities of the East Sea Island for resources.


    After the world had been united, Emperor Ye Qing and Donghuang the great set up new laws, and the world became much more peaceful. However, they still lacked control of the East Sea Island cities. The Heiyan Clan became Heiyan Academy, and took complete control of the city. All these years had passed, and they had still not given up on the invasion of Qingzhou City.


    With this background, Heiyan Academy and Qingzhou Academy were natural enemies. Every couple of years, they would lead a group of their most powerful individuals to provoke Qingzhou Academy, as well as to test the power of its students.


    "Looks like Heiyan City is getting overly ambitious once again," said Ye Futian. The peace in Qingzhou was about to be disrupted. However, this matter did not involve Ye Futian, since the city had its own special protectors, the Dark Qilin Knighthood.


    But Qingzhou Academy was still in trouble!

 22 The Arrogant Intruders

    Chapter 22: The Arrogant Intruders


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the lecture area of Qingzhou Academy, a group of people wearing black robes embroidered with three flames were blocking the entrance.


    By the time Ye Futian and Feng Qingxue entered, many people had already gathered around, lecturers and students alike. In fact, some of the big chiefs had also heard about the situation, and were arriving as well.


    They just blocked the entrance to the lecture area. Ye Futian was shocked by how rude these people from Heiyan Academy were.


    The fact that Ye Futian and Feng Qingxue had showed up together surprised a lot of people. Just two months ago, there were rumors this bastard had hugged Qin Yi; now he was hanging around Feng Qingxue. They believed that the academy should absolutely expel him, but not now, as they were facing an imminent external threat.


    They knew why the Heiyan Academy students were here. The intruders had terrible intentions to stir up some trouble.


    "The directors of the halls are here." People made way for the group of big chiefs to let them through. They were from the College of Martial Arts and the College of Sorcery. They looked very serious about the group from Heiyan Academy. They knew these troublemakers had been planning to come to this place days ago when they had first arrived in the city.


    It was snowing heavily now. People were cold, not only from the snow, but from the danger being posed by the intruders.


    "This is the sacred lecture hall of Qingzhou Academy. You have come a long way to be here, so why don''t we pick a quiet space to have a word?" a director said to the Heiyan group.


    "No need for that. This is going to be quick. Just say what you need to here." The leader of the Heiyan group had dark skin, and his face was chiseled. His eyes looked exactly like those of an eagle. He was insulting Qingzhou Academy with the way he spoke. He did not need to be polite, as they were only here to show off their power.


    "Bring it on." Leng Qingfeng, the Director of the Hall of the Sword, understood what was happening. He wanted to get down to business.


    "It''s been years since the last time we came here. Over the years, many young students in our academy have shown their talents. They are always trying to get some new experiences with people from other places. Therefore, I have brought them here to be challenged by your young talents, who have been nurtured in this sacred place," the Heiyan leader said in a cold voice. He then looked back to the young students standing behind him. "You asked for a challenge. Now, come here and accept the challenges."


    All the young students looked to be under eighteen, and the youngest of them looked about thirteen. However, they were staring at the students of Qingzhou Academy with disdain.


    Bastard. The students of Qingzhou Academy were pissed off. They clenched their fists, looking forward to teaching these intruders a lesson.


    A boy stepped forward from the Heiyan group. He appeared to be around sixteen-years-old, and was tall and slim. In fact, he looked like a student from a regular academic school, not a kung fu academy.


    "Mu Jiang, from the Heiyan Academy, in the ninth Awakening Plane, the Unmaker, will accept any challenge." He spoke politely. However, he was so calm that it appeared he was actually very proud, and that he did not take any possible challenges seriously.


    A student stepped forward from the Qingzhou Academy group.


    "Qiu Yan, the Unmaker Plane," he began introducing himself, also peacefully. He had been outstanding in the Spring Quarter Exam this year and had become official. He had always been a powerful and famous mage at this academy.


    "Bring it on," Mu Jiang nodded to accept. Qiu Yan suddenly started charging. He was fast, to tsay the least. The power of martial arts was all around his body, but there was a faint flame bursting out. Apparently, he had double cultivation in martial arts and sorcery, and sorcery was the major.


    Mu Jiang seemed indifferent. He just stood still and waited.


    The masters of Qingzhou Academy saw the danger coming. Mu Jiang was calm, to the point where he seemed to prepared for the attack.


    Qiu Yan was approaching his opponent fast. The fire-element power around him became frenzied, and turned into lotuses. The lotuses burned the air with a sizzling sound. Suddenly, the snow from the ground gathered around the body of Mu Jiang. His body was covered with snow, looking almost as if he was frozen.


    The attack from Qiu Yan landed. The flaming lotuses suddenly burst into an ocean of fire, engulfing Mu Jiang''s body completely. This made the students of Qingzhou Academy really excited, as such a powerful attack from a mage of the highest Awakening Plane could destroy anyone who dared to take them without evading.


    However, the excitement ended in seconds. A freezing breath permeated through the flames and drove them away from Mu Jiang. Soon after, people found that Qiu Yan''s hands were frozen, and that the ice was traveling up his body.


    "What the��."


    "He''s frozen." People in Qingzhou Academy soon realized that Mu Jiang was a water-element mage. He countered Qiu Yan''s element..


    Qiu Yan was now trembling with frostbite. Half of his body was already frozen, and the other half was soon to be as well. In fact, he could be entirely encased in ice in seconds.


    "Stop!" a master of Qingzhou Academy yelled. Mu Jiang listened to the command and stopped. He reached his hand out to pat the head of Qiu Yan. Qiu Yan fell to the ground, entirely immobilized.


    People from the Qingzhou group soon took him to the medical room. His life had been endangered by the frostbite already.


    "He just attacked without a backup plan, not even knowing the elemental attributes of his opponent. Is that what your masters teach you to do, losers?" Mu Jiang was still peaceful and arrogant. He returned back to the group once he finished speaking. People in Qingzhou Academy were chilled by his power, as they seldom saw a mage that was able to freeze another mage at only the Awakening Plane level.


    Once Mu Jiang was back in his group, another young man stepped forward. His eyes were as sharp as the sword on his back. He was apparently a powerful swordsman.


    "Eighth Awakening Plane," he began saying. He was too lazy to say his name; he was more arrogant than Mu Jiang.


    "I''ll accept the challenge," someone responded.


    "Wow, it''s senior Li Qingshan." People held high expectations for the responder. Li Qingshan had ranked third on the List of Excellence for the Spring Quarter Exam this year. He was now cultivating in the Hall of the Sword.


    "I''ll take you down with only three strikes," the young man from Heiyan Academy bragged.


    What a presumptuous bastard. Li Qingshan was angry.


    "Please." Li Qingshan unsheathed his sword; it whistled through the air.


    The power of the sword was a specific martial arts power, and a great one at that. The Spiritual Qi in the universe was condensed into the sword to attack the enemy. This power was not less than the element power of a mage; the attack from a swordsman would be terrifying.


    Li Qingshan had learned his lesson from Qiu Yan. He remained cautious and still. However, the young man began to laugh. He said, "So obedient."


    Right after he spoke, he charged towards Li Qingshan. He was almost as fast as the wind, so fast that the snow covering the ground was disturbed by his speed.


    "Be careful, he''s a wind-element mage." The Qingzhou Academy group was shocked; a wind-element mage with sword cultivation would be dangerous.


    Li Qingshan looked serious about this attack. He was anticipating the attack, and countered it in a moment with a lightning-fast strike. His enemy was faster, however. The sword took a curve around his body with the wind-element power, so fast that Li Qingshan could not even detect its direction.


    Li Qingshan''s sword began shaking to condense its power. Soon, Li Qingshan took his first strike at his enemy. However, his opponent dodged the attack quickly, sidestepping the blade.


    "Senior!" People were really nervous about the situation on the battlefield, as the combat between the two swordsmen could be life-threatening to both of them.


    Li Qingshan directed the power of the sword to his left palm and used its power to block the attack from his side. His enemy used the same tactic again, and rushed behind him for a strike he could never anticipate. The sword was swung, and Li Qingshan fell down with a shriek. His back was severely wounded by the blade; it would not stop bleeding.


    "Third strike it is." His enemy sheathed his sword and went back to his group. The people of Qingzhou Academy now felt even worse because they now knew that Heiyan Academy had sent some compelling figures to cause serious trouble this time.


    "To be honest, it''s a waste of time if the students of Qingzhou Academy keep performing so poorly like this." Another young man came forward from the Heiyan group. His complexion was bright, and his eyes were shining with arrogance. His ego could be sensed by everyone there.


    "Hey, why do you want to waste your time on these losers?" someone behind him asked.


    He shook his head and answered, "I am here to make sure these losers know how horrible they are. I am in the seventh Awakening Plane, the Mystery, and I will accept challenges from students in any Awakening Plane."


    The students of Qingzhou Academy were shocked. This guy was only in the Mystery Plane, yet he was asking for challenges regardless of plane limitation? How arrogant was that?


    "I''ll challenge you," Yang Xiu responded. He had been humiliated during the Fall Quarter Exam. He needed to prove himself again.


    "I''ll challenge you as well." Some other people also responded and stepped forward.


    The young man took a glance at them and said, "Bring it on all at once, you fools."


    Right after he spoke, he stomped hard on the ground, and the snow was removed by the aftershock. A pattern began to show up on the ground. The challengers began their attacks, but the young man seemed to ignore them. He kept stomping, and more complicated patterns appeared on the ground, with ancient letters engraved on them.


    "That''s a matrix." The big chiefs of Qingzhou Academy were in awe of this young man. In fact, he looked like he was not even fifteen yet. He looked too young to build a matrix, let alone build one this fast.


    The Spiritual Qi was now centering on the middle of this matrix. The young man was standing on the powerful matrix, looking at the opponents with contempt. The challengers began to realize something was wrong, but it was already too late. They looked at each other, then launched their attacks together.


    Seeing the incoming attacks, the young man did nothing but laugh. He soon responded to the attacks, another matrix showing up behind his body. His body was now radiant with the glow from this new matrix, surrounded by the power of fire.


    "Go, pythons," he commanded. All of a sudden, giant flaming pythons rushed out of the matrix behind him and began attacking the enemy. In fact, the flame python summoned by Yang Xiu was so small and weak compared to the giant monsters that the challengers could not hold off the attack for even a moment.


    The Director of the Hall of Water Element stepped out and cast a spell. The temperature dropped, and a freezing bite attacked the giant flaming pythons. They quickly dissipated in the snowstorm summoned by the director.


    The challengers were now lying on the ground, injured and in pain. They could have died if not for the snow storm summoned by the director.


    "Oh my gosh, he''s a Mandate Sorcerer!" The Director looked shocked. But it was the truth. This young man who wasn''t even fifteen-years-old was a Mandate Sorcerer!

 23 This Is So Like Ye Futian

    Chapter 23: This Is So Like Ye Futian


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Mandate Sorcerer," the students of Qingzhou Academy discussed in shock. That formation, it was a Life Spirit, no wonder he was able to create the matrix so quickly.


    This young fellow was not even fifteen years old, yet his matrix was so powerful that it could be a threat even to aces in the ninth Awakening Plane, the Unmaker Plane. Qingzhou Academy students were feeling threatened. With the two people before, they could still confidently say that Qingzhou Academy had students who were able to stand up to them but with this fellow, it would be difficult to find someone on his level.


    "I heard that your academy just had Fall Quarter Examinations, who took first place?" the youth asked arrogantly. He did not even spare a glance at the students; they were not good enough to be his opponents. He stared straight at the important figures of Qingzhou Academy.


    "Murong Qiu," someone answered him. Everyone immediately shifted their gaze towards Murong Qiu but his fellow schoolmates did not hold high hopes for him. Even though he came in first during the exams, everyone knew that Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu were both much stronger than him.


    Murong Qiu had no confidence in himself either. Everyone was looking at him, but he just stood there having no intentions of stepping up. Even Qiu Yan, who had been defeated earlier, was more capable than Murong Qiu.


    The important figures of Qingzhou Academy were also watching Murong Qiu but they were quickly disappointed when it became clear that he was not going to participate in the duel.


    "Yu Sheng," Cabinet Master Leng Qingfeng of the House of Swordsmen called out. It was rumored that Yu Sheng had broken into the Unmaker Plane not long ago. Plus, Leng Qingfeng had already witnessed his power at the Fall Quarter Examinations. To have him battle increased their chance of victory.


    Yu Sheng glanced at Leng Qingfeng once and did nothing. He did not move, nor give a response. His expression was as cold as ice; it was like a silent protest.


    "Seems like Yu Sheng is still pissed. I don''t think he plans on fighting," someone said. Everyone shuddered at the expression on Yu Sheng''s face. Not once did they think Yu Sheng was afraid of fighting like they thought Murong Qiu was. They felt that he was unwilling.


    In the past two months, Murong Qiu had become an official disciple. Even Yang Xiu joined the School of Divination Arts but not Yu Sheng. No matter how many times the schools of martial arts and divination arts tried to recruit him, he never once accepted. Qingzhou Academy knew exactly why. It had something to do with the ban they had placed on a certain student. They knew this made Yu Sheng very angry. Some people even hypothesized that as long as the ban existed, Yu Sheng might ever choose to leave the academy altogether.


    The higher ups of Qingzhou Academy had argued over this topic many times but there were still some individuals that refused to give in and lift the ban.


    It was because of this that Yu Sheng refused to battle, even if the academy''s reputation was on the line. In Yu Sheng''s eyes, the academy''s punishment on Ye Futian was incredibly insulting. Until the academy was able to provide him with a satisfying result, Yu Sheng was unwilling to do anything for the academy.


    Leng Qingfeng was furious upon seeing Yu Sheng''s reaction, but his anger was not directed at Yu Sheng. It was directed at Shi Zhong. He was extremely ticked off as he looked over at Shi Zhong. It was Qingzhou Academy that was in the wrong for being unjust; he had no right to punish Ye Futian for the way he had questioned the academy.


    "Yu Sheng is still angry about what happened to you," said Feng Qingxue after witnessing this scene. Ye Futian nodded in agreement. Of course he knew how stubborn Yu Sheng was. If the academy had punished Yu Sheng, Yu Sheng would not have cared one bit; but because it had been Ye Futian, Yu Sheng was bound to hold a grudge. There was no way he would stand up for the academy. Ye Futian would do the same if it had been Yu Sheng who had been punished.


    Feng Qingxue was disappointed. If Yu Sheng was not going to forgive the academy, there was a slim chance of him forgiving her.


    "Is Hua Jieyu here?" asked one of the school''s leaders. Everyone looked around in search of her. One part of the crowd moved to make a path for Hua Jieyu.


    With something big like this happening at Qingzhou Academy, it did not take long for Hua Jieyu to find out. She had to have come.


    "So beautiful," said the fellow from Heiyan Academy. His eyes glistened at the sight of such a beauty.


    "Hua Jieyu, looks like it''s up to you," said the school leader from before. All of Qingzhou Academy anticipated her reaction. In three years, no one had ever seen Hua Jieyu in action. Would she be able to defeat this genius from Heiyan Academy?


    "How can I possibly fight such a beautiful lady?" The prideful youth was smiling as he looked at Hua Jieyu. "We''re not too familiar with the City of Qingzhou, why don''t you keep us company, beautiful? I can let Qingzhou Academy off the hook for today."


    Hearing his words, his companions from Heiyan Academy began to laugh. Someone chimed in, "Junior Brother has a point. Being accompanied by a beauty is a great thing. It could turn into a beautiful story for both academies."


    "How presumptuous," said someone from Qingzhou Academy.


    "This group of *ssholes," everyone from Qingzhou Academy joined together to curse at their rivals. They were furious, Hua Jieyu was the perfect being to all of them and she was now being insulted by these jack*sses from Heiyan Academy.


    "Shut up, you group of losers. If you don''t like the things we say then come stand up to us," said the young fellow. He was dripping with pride. The students of Qingzhou Academy felt deeply insulted but they knew that they could not fight against him.


    On the other hand, Hua Jieyu seemed to be at peace; she did not step up like the elders had hoped she would. She smiled and turned, her gaze falling on a certain someone. It was Ye Futian.


    Not only did she see Ye Futian, she also took notice of Feng Qingxue beside him. She smiled and said softly to Ye Futian, "They''re picking on me!"


    When she turned toward Ye Futian, everyone was confused. The moment she spoke to him, their hearts broke.


    They''re picking on me... It was such a gentle voice. Their perfect goddess was whining so cutely to Ye Futian. It was a cute, flirtatious whine. If she had said this to any of them, they would have fought to their deaths; but her words were sadly not for any of them.


    "My heart hurts," someone said. Everyone saw Feng Qingxue standing beside Ye Futian. First he had teased Senior Sister Qin Yi. Now, he was with Feng Qingxue. He was surrounded by so many beauties. Why him?


    Feng Qingxue was shocked by Hua Jieyu''s words. Feeling the countless pairs of eyes on herself, Feng Qingxue lowered her head and began to pick at the corner of her clothes. This was Hua Jieyu that she was up against.


    Ye Futian could feel all the gazes on him. He rubbed his forehead. It really was impossible for him to keep a low profile.


    Everyone from Heiyan Academy looked at him as well. They were trying to figure out what made Ye Futian so special that a beauty like Hua Jieyu would act that way towards him.


    Ye Futian took a step forward. The people of Qingzhou Academy thought that he was really going to try his best to stand up for Hua Jieyu; but then again, any of them would have done the same had they been in his shoes. However, their results would probably have been much worse.


    The prideful youth watched Ye Futian''s figure. The corners of his lips lifted in a smirk as he said, "I think it would be best for you to rethink your choice. Standing up for a girl; how corny. You better be prepared for the consequences."


    Ye Futian pretended not to hear him and said, "First, slap yourself a couple times and then apologize. Maybe after that I''ll decide to let you guys leave Qingzhou Academy unscathed."


    This.... Everyone''s eyes widened. They couldn''t believe what they had just heard. Even if you were trying to stand up for a girl you liked, you didn''t have to be so arrogant. When he was completely defeated by their rivals, all of Qingzhou Academy was going to look so bad.


    The hearts of the Qingzhou students continued to ache. How could a person like this get a girl like Hua Jieyu? What was wrong with the world?


    Even the important figures of the academy could not bear to listen to Ye Futian. This rascal was exaggerating a little too much. Even though his gifts were not bad, his opponent was a Mandate Sorcerer.


    "And if I refuse?" The prideful youth was looking at Ye Futian as if he were a moron. There was definitely something wrong inside this guy''s head.


    "Well then..." Ye Futian took another step forward. Everyone was still watching him. Just when they thought he was about to make a move, Ye Futian called out loudly, "Yu Sheng!"


    Dead silence.


    Wide-eyed, everyone continued to stare at Ye Futian. This was so like Ye Futian.


    ...


    Even Hua Jieyu was wide-eyed. This was embarrassing for her.


    The ground shook; snow flew around on the ground as Yu Sheng''s large body approached the center of the crowd. His arrival was a threat in itself. It did not matter whether you liked Yu Sheng or not; there was no way you could deny that he was a natural born warrior.


    The expressions on some of the faces from Heiyan Academy darkened upon Yu Sheng''s arrival. Just from his aura one would feel suffocated by his power. He was definitely stronger than any of the other Qingzhou Academy students.


    The important figures of Qingzhou Academy felt embarrassed. They could not get Yu Sheng to budge, yet two simple words from Ye Futian had been enough. It was really a slap in the face for them, but at the same time, they were relieved that he was finally stepping up for battle.


    Yu Sheng looked at Hua Jieyu and said, "Leave it to me, sis-in-law."


    "Huh?" Everyone was confused.


    Smart guy! Ye Futian complimented him in his mind. Yu Sheng had changed; he had become so understanding.


    Yu Sheng pointed at the prideful fellow from Heiyan Academy and said emotionlessly, "Scram. Let someone of a higher level come out. I don''t want people to say that I pick on the weak."


    He''s so cool. Everyone from Qingzhou Academy complimented him. This was crazy.


    Not long ago, someone else had also done something crazy like this, but everyone had thought it was embarrassing. It was the complete opposite with Yu Sheng. A shameless jerk like Ye Futian could never compare to Yu Sheng.

 24 Who Was More Overbearing?

    Chapter 24: Who Was More Overbearing?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yun Tianhao was mad. He was already arrogant enough about being a Mandate Sorcerer that he didn''t expect there to be someone more arrogant than him.


    However, the truth was, these two new challengers were the source of this feeling.


    "Fools," Yun Tianhao spoke in a cold voice. The Spiritual Qi started to surround his body, but Mu Jiang stepped up and stopped him. "Let me take care of him," Mu Jiang said.


    He then moved directly towards Yu Sheng to challenge him. He faintly felt that Yu Sheng was a threat, and he wanted to take matters into his own hands to prevent Yun Tianhao from a sudden failure. Yun Tianhao was the pride of Heiyan Academy, and they couldn''t afford to lose this pride.


    "Sure, take him down for me," Yun Tianhao nodded and stepped back. Mu Jiang started to control the frost energy from his surroundings, and he vibrated with all the power around him.


    "Yu Sheng, make sure he has to be carried out." Ye Futian was mad about being called a fool by Yun Tianhao.


    "Of course," Yu Sheng nodded, then stepped forward firmly. The earth was shaking from his sheer strength. Mu Jiang stared at the huge guy in front of him and started to get concerned. He could feel a horrifying mass of coldness flowing in front him, forming a storm to attack his enemy.


    Yu Sheng stomped the ground and started to attack. Mu Jiang also initiated his spell. All of a sudden, an ice storm appeared out of nowhere, and Yu Sheng''s body was covered with frost. Mu Jiang was trying to confine his enemy by trapping him in a prison of ice.


    That was the spell, Ice Imprisonment.


    "Look how powerful he is." People noticed that the ice on Yu Sheng''s body was growing thicker. Mu Jiang was still in the Plane of Awakening, but he could already convey Ice Imprisonment without physical contact. This ability usually belonged to those in the Glory Plane.


    However, a golden glow burst out of Yu Sheng''s body, and suddenly, the ice shell started to shatter. He now looked like the Almighty in this golden glow, and he was unstoppable as he reached closer to Mu Jiang.


    "Imprison him!" Mu Jiang shouted, and another, stronger, ice storm burst out from his body. Yu Sheng was engulfed by the storm in a second. Qiu Yan had been defeated by the same tactic.


    Yu Sheng was not affected at all. He got rid of the ice on his body by merely shaking his hand. A golden glow flowed down his arm. Mu Jiang tried to retreat. As a mage, when he let a warrior into his melee range and failed to attack, he could do nothing but retreat.


    Unfortunately, he was just not fast enough. Yu Sheng''s hand had already clamped onto his neck, and Mu Jiang''s entire body was lifted into the air. People were in awe to see that Yu Sheng did this with such ease.


    "Let him go," Yu Tianhao shouted at Yu Sheng. However, Yu Sheng ignored his words. He threw Mu Jiang to the ground and smashed his whole body. After a booming noise, Mu Jiang was screaming in extreme pain, and it sounded like his bones had been shattered.


    Futian wanted the guy to be lifted out so he obviously couldn''t be allowed to walk.


    People were awestruck and fell silent. All eyes were drawn to the young man who was just as strong as the Almighty himself.


    "That is some real power." The Qingzhou Academy students felt excited.


    "So hot!" some girls exclaimed.


    Mu Jiang, one of the arrogant intruders from Heiyan Academy who had defeated Qiu Yan in a second and intimidated Murong Qiu, the first place student in the Fall Quarter Exam, had just lost to Yu Sheng in such an embarrassing way. He was smashed with one hand. What an overbearing gesture Yu Sheng had made.


    "Yu Sheng is going to attend my college. Whoever tries to take him away is going to be my enemy, for sure." The Director of the College of Martial Arts glanced at the other directors around him. He liked this young man so much that he believed he was meant to go to his college.


    "So count me as your enemy. I want him." The Director of the Hall of Metal Element ignored his threat. He also believed that Yu Sheng would be a perfect student.


    Ye Futian seemed to be the only one that was not shocked by Yu Sheng''s performance. In fact, Yu Sheng had been able to defeat those who were even in the higher planes of cultivation.


    "Who else?" After seeing the Heiyan Academy medical team take Mu Jiang away, Yu Sheng began to invite challengers again pridefully. Yun Tianhao was going to step up, but right at that moment, a hand landed on his shoulder and stopped him.


    The head of Heiyan Academy group, the man with eagle eyes, had keenly perceived the immeasurable power of Yu Sheng. He had told Mu Jiang to challenge Yu Sheng and test his power. Now he had the answer. He just could not risk the future of Yun Tianhao. Even though Yun Tianhao was a Mandate Sorcerer and able to defeat those in higher planes of cultivation, Yu Sheng was a monster. Even a powerful mage like Yun Tianhao did not have a one hundred percent chance of winning against him.


    "Okay, we concede," the eagle-eyed leader said. Yun Tianhao felt reluctant to concede, but did not say anything.


    "Then get out of here," a director at Qingzhou Academy uttered.


    "We only lost one after you had lost three. You have thousands of students in the planes of awakening in your academy, but only one of them can fight?" the eagle-eyed leader taunted them.


    "At least that one''s enough to sweep you all," Yu Sheng responded.


    "You arrogant fool," Yun Tianhao said angrily. "If I ever reach the ninth plane of awakening, you will bow down to my power."


    "Seriously, who allowed challenges regardless of planes? What now? You want to change your mind?" Ye Futian asked sarcastically.


    Yun Tianhao glanced at Ye Futian and said, "If you want to challenge me, just step up and fight. Otherwise, stay a coward and shut up."


    People were now looking at Ye Futian. They didn''t believe he was as powerful as Yu Sheng, so he was going to humiliate himself.


    Ye Futian frowned a little at the provocation. He laughed at the words "be a coward" and then stepped forward.


    This humiliation would not be tolerated.


    "Yu Sheng!" Ye Futian yelled.


    "Yep," Yu Sheng responded.


    "It''s my turn." Ye Futian stepped forward.


    Suddenly, Yu Sheng started laughing and pointing at Yun Tianhao and said, "This one''s for you."


    Actually, he had let Yun Tianhao stay in the arena intentionally for Ye Futian to show off.


    However, why did he believe that Ye Futian would win?


    Besides, how dare Ye Futian challenge the pride of Heiyan Academy?


    The students had witnessed in person how powerful Yun Tianhao was. He was a Mandate Sorcerer who specialized in matrices, and he had defeated multiple challengers with only one strike from his matrix.


    Ye Futian continued stepping forward until he was standing in the middle of the arena. Feng Qingxue looked at him, and she experienced a moment of d��j�� vu. The exact same thing had happened during the Fall Quarter Exam. He had been the underdog of all the students, but he had ultimately defeated Ling Xiao and Yang Xiu, the top-ranked students.


    However, he was now challenging someone even more powerful, a Mandate Sorcerer from Heiyan Academy and the pride of all the students there.


    Ye Futian made a peaceful introduction. "I am in the seventh plane of awakening, the Mystery."


    "Only Seven?" Yun Tianhao was surprised for a moment, then responded, "You are too weak to challenge me."


    He had a strong enough talent to say that. After all, he was a Mandate Sorcerer who had never lost a challenge from anyone in the same plane or lower.


    "I feel the same way about you, but since you''re asking for it, I''ll give you the humiliation you deserve." Ye Futian peacefully conversed with him. "I don''t mind if you take the challenge or not. All of you can take this challenge. You can take me on one on one, or you can take me on all at once."


    "What the��" The Qingzhou Academy students were shocked. He didn''t have to show off in such a dangerous way, did he?


    Ye Futian had repeated the intruders'' own words.


    But, what if he lost? The students of Qingzhou Academy dared not think further.


    "That''s not funny at all." Yun Tianhao believed that Ye Futian was imitating him to mock him.


    "Words are just words. Now you''re the one acting like a coward," Ye Futian kept speaking, with an odd sense of confidence. He had his hands in his pockets and looked like he despised all of the Heiyan Academy group.


    Yun Tianhao was incredibly mad at this gesture. He had never seen anyone act so arrogantly in front of him. However, he had seen two arrogant fools today, and the one talking now was only in the seventh plane of awakening. How dare he talk like that to a Mandate Sorcerer!


    "I''ll take him on." The swordsman who had defeated Li Qingshan with three strikes stepped up. Yun Tianhao nodded and backed down. "Take him down. Remember, never let him forget this fear."


    "For sure, I will." The swordsman unsheathed his sword and pointed it at Ye Futian. "Three strikes��no more, no less."


    He had made the same statement before while defeating Li Qingshan.


    "I don''t need three. You''ll be down after one strike," Ye Futian said calmly. The students of Qingzhou Academy were already used to his arrogance.


    They were just curious as to how this would eventually end.


    The swordsman started laughing, and wind gathered over his body. He had specialized in both sorcery and martial arts, and was in the eighth plane of awakening, the Metamorph. How could he ever lose to a cultivator in the seventh Plane of Awakening?


    The swordsman took the form of a shadow and disappeared. Snow was raging, and the attack was initiated. At the same time, Ye Futian closed his eyes.


    The students of Qingzhou Academy were dumbfounded. Had he lost his mind? He had just closed his eyes while facing an imminent attack?


    Even though most of the students hated Ye Futian, they didn''t actually want to see him die. They had had a faint hope that this guy would save the pride of their academy, but it seemed that Ye Futian had just given up.


    Thunder started gathering around Ye Futian''s body, and a roaring sound burst out of him. The sound was almost like a dragon. He stayed still and let his power take care of the fight.


    The blade was fast approaching his neck. However, Ye Futian seemed to be ignoring this attack. His eyes were still closed, and his body had not even moved an inch.


    The blade came within inches of Ye Futian without actually hurting him. This attack was a diversionary attempt to draw away his attention, but Ye Futian just didn''t move at all.


    "Die, you fool." The swordsman was agitated by Ye Futian. He had been counting on him to flinch and move to the side so that he could make the second attack, which was solid. However, the arrogance of Ye Futian made him change his mind. Now, the blade was rushing right toward Ye Futian''s throat.


    Right before the blade touched his throat, Ye Futian started moving. He turned a little bit to his left, so subtly that the sword came through the air in front of his face. The audience was holding their breath at this evasion. How had he done that? Was it a reaction or merely luck?


    The swordsman frowned. His attack combo had been changed, and there was no way he could further adjust his attacks. In other words, he could no longer win this fight. However, right after Ye Futian turned away, his hand reached for the neck of his opponent. A thunder dragon was roaring and burst out of Ye Futian''s palm. The dragon wrapped around the neck of swordsman and lifted his body into the air.


    "Seriously��." People were shocked by what they saw. Ye Futian had not touched his opponent at all, but he was in complete control of the thunder dragon that was totally overtaking the swordsman.

 25 Unparalleled Gif

    Chapter 25: Unparalleled Gift


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "The Hand of the Dragon from the Release of the Dragon Power book of battle tactics, formed from the artistic conception of martial arts!" said someone in the crowd.


    The elders shuddered. Having the artistic conception of martial arts meant that sorcery had started blooming outside of his body. Cultivators in the Unmaker Plane were able to do this, but nobody expected Ye Futian, who was two planes behind, in the Mystery Plane, to be able to do this as well. What was even more shocking was the fact that he was using the Hand of the Dragon.


    At that moment, many people were reminded of the Fall Quarter Examinations when Ye Futian defeated Ling Xiao and Yang Xiu with great ease. It seemed now that Ye Futian did not give it his all. He stepped off the battlefield and made Yu Sheng fight. This seemingly shameless move was not because he was afraid, but because he wanted to let Yu Sheng shine. It was also because of this that Ye Futian reacted the way he had when it was announced that Murong Qiu had gotten first place over Yu Sheng.


    Almost everyone had underestimated Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took a look at the young swordsman in training who had fallen into the grasp of the Hand of the Dragon and spoke lightly, "Heiyan Academy came so far to pick a fight but is this all you guys have?"


    All the disciples of Qingzhou Academy looked at Ye Futian. Even though he was still being as pretentious as always, it did not bother them as much as usual.


    After the three previous losses, Qingzhou Academy was utterly humiliated. Now, they were going to gain back some honor with the help of Yu Sheng and Ye Futian.


    The young swordsman gave Ye Futian a dead stare. He still could not understand how Ye Futian managed to have such quick reflexes despite having his eyes closed.


    "Next!" shouted Ye Futian. The loud roar of a dragon accompanied the movement of his arm. With one quick, simple swipe, the young man was thrown back into the group of his peers from Heiyan Academy.


    Nobody in that group looked too good. They had sent out three people and gotten three consecutive wins, but now, two of those three people had been defeated in the blink of an eye. If this was the result they left with after having come such a long way, it would be really embarrassing.


    Yun Tianhao stepped up, looking more serious than before. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "You''re worthy enough for me to step in personally."


    Worthy enough? Ye Futian looked at him in disbelief. Yun Tianhao was more arrogant than Ye Futian.


    "Make your move," said Yun Tianhao.


    "You should make the first move. If I go first you won''t have a chance to do anything." After hearing Ye Futian say this, Yun Tianhao''s expression darkened. He then released his Life Spirit and took a step forward, a matrix forming underneath him. It was a Fire Matrix, able to endlessly absorb the world''s Fire Elemental Spiritual Qi. Frightening fire boas revolved around the matrix. Yun Tianhao stood at the center pompously.


    "How dare you act so presumptuously in front of a Mandate Sorcerer?" asked Yun Tianhao. As he finished speaking, a fire boa broke free from the matrix and raged toward Ye Futian.


    Everyone from Qingzhou Academy had a change in expression. Yun Tianhao was able to control his sorcery outside of his body in the Awakening Plane. What''s more, his spells were very powerful, perhaps even one of the most powerful in the Awakening Plane.


    Despite what everyone thought about Yun Tianhao''s powers, Ye Futian walked up to the fierce fire boa nonchalantly. No matter how strong Ye Futian was, wasn''t he being a little too cocky disregarding its powers?


    The fire boa approached, ready to engulf Ye Futian in flames. There seemed to be something clutched in his hands, and the next moment a force enveloped Ye Futian. Lightning and thunder surrounded him. When it collided with the fire boa, they both dissipated into the air.


    "It''s a spell scroll," said someone in the audience.


    "Shameless, how can he use spell scrolls in a battle?" the people of Heiyan Academy complained. Yun Tianhao continued to control his matrix, more fire boas danced through the air and charged at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian charged head-on at the boas with multiple spell scrolls in his hand. With a sly smile on his face, he threw the scrolls into the air, and more of the boas disappeared in the cloud of lightning.


    Yun Tianhao growled in anger and continued to manipulate the matrix. More and more fire boas appeared in a frenzy. Suddenly, Ye Futian was holding a handful of scrolls on each side. People from both academies were dumbfounded. I guess that''s one way to go about the situation...


    "Stop." Yun Tianhao was not impressed.


    Ye Futian stopped what he was doing and looked at Yun Tianhao who was still standing in the middle of the matrix. "You finally realized that you can''t beat me and want to give up?"


    Yun Tianhao had no words for Ye Futian. He stared at the spell scrolls in Ye Futian''s hands and felt an urge to curse him out. Was this even a battle? How could Ye Futian be so shameless? How were they supposed to have a fair fight when he had fistfuls of top-grade spell scrolls?


    How did Ye Futian even have the nerve to ask if Yun Tianhao wanted to give up because he was unbeatable?


    "As a disciple of Qingzhou Academy don''t you think it''s disgraceful to use spell scrolls in a battle?" asked the eagle-eyed leader from Heiyan Academy. He could no longer stand what Ye Futian was doing.


    Others from Qingzhou Academy felt ashamed of Ye Futian. Their opinion of him had changed not long ago, but now they realized that he truly was just...shameless.


    However, Ye Futian did not seem to notice anything wrong. He remained arrogant as he stared at the eagle-eyed leader. "If he can use a matrix in a battle, why can''t I use spell scrolls? If you guys know that you can''t win, then just leave. Stop throwing a tantrum."


    "He created the matrix himself. It''s one of his abilities, so of course he''s allowed to use it in battle," reasoned the eagle-eyed leader.


    "Well, I also inscribed these spell scrolls myself, so it''s part of my abilities as well. If he can use a matrix, then why can''t I use spell scrolls?" Ye Futian retorted. Eagle-eye''s expression darkened; he was speechless. Ye Futian''s shamelessness was on a different level.


    The people of Qingzhou Academy were dumbfounded. Had he just said that he had inscribed the spell scrolls? How could a seventh plane cultivator in Awakening produce top-grade spell scrolls such as those? Wasn''t Ye Futian exaggerating a little too much? Yun Tianhao had also created a top-grade matrix, but it was because he was a Mandate Sorcerer. His Life Spirit was the matrix.


    "It wouldn''t matter if you did personally inscribe those spell scrolls. I created my matrix during the battle; but you came onto the battlefield with pre-inscribed spell scrolls. How could these be comparable?" said Yun Tianhao. He thought that Ye Futian was simply spewing nonsense.


    "Since you won''t admit defeat, I''ll just have to continue to fight you until you accept it," Ye Futian spoke lightly. He then turned to the elders of Qingzhou Academy. "Will you please ready a pencil and some scroll paper for me?"


    The higher-ups were surprised. Was Ye Futian planning to inscribe spell scrolls during battle?


    "I''ll get them for you," an elder responded and departed quickly. The audience was discussing quietly amongst themselves as they all studied Ye Futian. Could he really be an Inscriber? Did he really inscribe all the spell scrolls he used earlier? If what he said was true, then Ye Futian really was gifted beyond belief.


    A short while later, the elder reappeared and handed a pencil as well as a stack of scroll papers to Ye Futian.


    "Thank you very much," Ye Futian thanked him and began to lay out the papers in front of himself.


    "What is he doing?" Everyone wanted to know. Inscribing spell scrolls was just like creating a matrix, you needed time. Yun Tianhao was a Mandate Sorcerer who possessed a matrix for his Life Spirit, so he was able to create the matrix quickly, and was able to use it immediately in battle. Even if Ye Futian really was an Inscriber, he wouldn''t be able to mimic Yun Tianhao''s speed and efficiency, would he?


    If the opponent attacked with their matrix before you could finish inscribing your spell scroll, you would be as good as dead. However, it seemed that Ye Futian wanted to challenge the impossible.


    Many people turned very serious. Although Ye Futian was shameless, his capabilities were not something people doubted anymore.


    "Is he mocking me?" Yun Tianhao was furious when he saw Ye Futian laying out the papers. Even if he was an Inscriber, to do so while in battle with a Mandate Sorcerer using a matrix was a form of mockery.


    "You may begin," said Ye Futian. He held on to his pencil calmly. He was being serious; it was as if a holy light was emitting from his person. This made people want to believe in him. It seemed like he was born with this aura around him.


    Yun Tianhao took a step forward and released his Life Spirit once again. This time, it was no longer a Fire Matrix, but an Ice Matrix. The Water Elemental Spiritual Qi in the surrounding area began to be absorbed into the matrix. From there, it cooled into ice. A blizzard began where Yun Tianhao stood. He was in a world of ice and snow all by his own doing. One could feel the freezing temperatures from far away.


    "Because his Life Spirit is the matrix, he is able to control all elements. His matrix is able to absorb all the different elements. He''s too powerful," said someone from Qingzhou Academy. Even though the two schools were rivals, the elders of Qingzhou Academy could not help but be envious of Yun Tianhao''s gift. He was truly a genius. No wonder Heiyan Academy had brought him here to gloat.


    Even so, the young man whom Qingzhou Academy placed a ban on was facing Yun Tianhao fearlessly.


    Ye Futian sat on the ground, covered in snow, and inscribed his scrolls quietly. He created his strokes at the speed of lightning. The pencil danced across the paper like a dragon in the sky. Lightning Spiritual Qi flooded into the pencil in his hand.


    The bright lightning shone from the pencil. At that moment, Yun Tianhao made his move. A long icicle broke free from the matrix.


    "Watch out!" screamed out many concerned onlookers. Despite their warnings, Ye Futian kept his head now and continued inscribing the scrolls. With every stroke, lightning flashed. In just a moment, a curtain of lightning appeared in front of him, stopping the icicle headed his way. The icicle fell to the ground and shattered.


    "A defense spell, Lightning Shield," said someone in the crowd. Many people knew what spell Ye Futian had used. He was able to use this spell to defend against his opponent''s attacks.


    The ice on the ground cracked loudly. The Spiritual Qi continued to flow into the matrix, upon the completion of the matrix, Yun Tianhao raised both of his hands, controlling the icy world around him.


    "GO!" yelled Yun Tianhao. At his command, countless icicles flew towards Ye Futian relentlessly.


    "Finished!" Ye Futian completed his final stroke and lifted his pencil. The scroll followed the pencil and was lifted into the air. Once again, the Lightning Shield appeared and destroyed the attacking icicles.


    Ye Futian had still not lifted his head. He was inscribing another scroll. The movements of his arms were extremely fluid. Coupled with his good looks, he had the female disciples swooning. Who knew he was this powerful?


    Feng Qingxue kept her eyes on the young man sitting in the snow. She felt a slight sadness in her heart. She did not know why she felt this way. Ye Futian had just started to showcase his talents, yet it was already obvious that his gifts were unparalleled by that of any other.

 26 The Stubborn Young Man

    Chapter 26: The Stubborn Young Man


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The big chiefs of Qingzhou Academy were staring at Ye Futian, almost as if they were looking at a monster.


    He could inscribe the scrolls so quickly that it was definitely important. It meant that this boy possessed an insane control over the perception of Spiritual Qi. Therefore, even without the scrolls, he was still able to initiate spells that were


    above his level and plane.


    "Looks like we missed someone on the List of Excellence for the Fall Quarter Exam, and this guy is now on probation. Anyone mind explaining that?" The Director of the Hall of Thunder Element questioned these decisions, giving Shi Zhong a cold glance.


    Shi Zhong looked really awkward. Yu Sheng had been so powerful in the previous battles, while Murong Qiu had been wholly intimidated by the enemies. Ye Futian just made Shi Zhong''s situation worse with this talents.


    Ye Futian kept inscribing with absolute focus. Yun Tianhao, however, was mad. His matrix had no advantage against the inscriptions and it was humiliating.


    Yun Tianhao initiated spell attacks continuously. In fact, a lot of them were actually over the Plane of Awakening level. Ye Futian seemed to be unaffected by the attacks. He blocked every attack from Yun Tianhao with a swing of his inscribing pen and kept working on the scrolls. Soon, another scroll was coming into form.


    He finally finished the scroll and laughed slightly. At the moment he dropped his pen, a horrifying thunderstorm burst out of the scroll, roaring towards Yun Tianhao.


    "Frost Barrier!" Yun Tianhao sealed his body with the frost he had summoned. He almost looked like an ice sculpture. Frost Barrier was the top-level water-element defense spell in the Planes of Awakening.


    The thunderstorm was raging down from the sky. However, rather than attacking the frost barrier, it was the matrix under Yun Tianhao that was the focus of this attack. The patterns of the matrix were being scraped and destroyed.


    "Be careful! He''s aiming for your matrix!" someone from Heiyan Academy tried to alert Yun Tianhao.


    At the same time, Ye Futian stood up. He charged toward Yun Tianhao like the wind. He was so fast that Yun Tianhao had no time to defend himself with his matrix.


    Yun Tianhao stood up straight. Coldness flowed around him, absorbing the power of the universe, and he was turning his own body into a matrix to generate spells.


    All the space around him began to freeze. His hair began to turn gray and white, along with his eyebrows. He looked directly at Ye Futian as frost condensed into sharp lances right in front of his body.


    "Die!" Yun Tianhao had lost his mind. He had decided to kill his opponent, and the frost lances were aimed at Ye Futian''s heart.


    However, at the same time, a flame burst in front of Ye Futian. Soon, countless flames suddenly started to appear.


    "Grand Meteor?" The people of Qingzhou Academy were confused. The Grand Meteor was, in fact, the most basic spell of all attacks and its power was truly limited.


    The question was, where did it come from?


    Had Ye Futian controlled the fire-element power in the same space to initiate that? It was impossible, because it required the level of elemental power perception that did not belong to a cultivator in the Plane of Awakening level.


    "He was at the highest level of martial arts power perception and thunder-element power perception."


    People were now reminded of his talents in power perception. In fact, they now believed that he also possessed talent in fire-element power perception, which could be at the highest level as well.


    Of course, the Grand Meteor did not serve as an attack. Yun Tianhao briefly lifted his hand, and his frost engulfed all of the flames in front of him. However, more flames were flying around his field of view. He suddenly realized that Ye Futian was blocking his sight with the flames and approaching him.


    Yun Tianhao considered this distraction useless. He was ready for any possible attacks.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian bolted to his side. At that moment, Yun Tianhao shouted with extreme anger. All of the frost lances floating in front of his body rushed at Ye Futian without any hesitation.


    While he attacked, Ye Futian''s entire body was bathed in fire, and he almost looked as if he was glowing like the sun. All of the frost lances melted and vaporized the moment they reached his body.


    Ye Futian''s body was more than a furnace that evaporated all coldness.


    Water-elements could counter fire-elements in a fight. However, when the flame was hot enough, it worked the other way.


    "No! Tianhao, go back!" the eagle-eyed leader yelled at Yun Tianhao. However, Ye Futian was just too fast. His body pounced into the air. Then he rushed at Yun Tianhao with all the flames around him, like a roaring fire dragon. A fire dragon seemed to posess Ye Futian''s body during this attack.


    All the frost defense was gone. Yun Tianhao realized that there was nowhere he could escape to. The matrix on his body started to absorb any surviving frost power around the area to cushion the inevitable attack.


    A dragon roar shattered through the space and the frost barrier. Yun Tianhao was thrown into the air by this attack. The flame even penetrated his skin, and his whole body was scorched.


    An influential member of Heiyan Academy rushed forward and caught Yun Tianhao''s body. Soon, many others gathered around this boy. They all looked incredibly nervous.


    A flow of blood gushed from his mouth. He felt a bit better and mumbled to the people surrounding him, "I won''t die."


    His arrogant eyes looked toward Ye Futian coldly. He had actually lost to someone in the same Plane of Awakening.


    Ye Futian was also looking at him. He started talking calmly, "Someone once told me, a Mandate Sorcerer never loses, right?"


    Another gush of blood flowed out. Yun Tianhao had been considered the pride of Heiyan Academy since he was a kid and had never been humiliated like this.


    However, he had lost anyway. He could not deny this fact.


    "Who are you?" He stared at Ye Futian with all the strength left in his body, as if trying to etch this boy into his memory forever.


    "I am Ye Futian."


    The eagle-eyed leader frowned and asked, "I knew all the names that were listed on the Lists of Excellence for the Spring and Fall Quarter Exams during recent years. Why were you not one of them?"


    He believed that something must be wrong for a powerful mage like Ye Futian to be a nobody in Qingzhou Academy.


    The big chiefs of Qingzhou Academy felt uncomfortable about this question. Something was going on behind the scenes that had caused Ye Futian to be excluded from the List of Excellence. However, they could not answer the question with the truth.


    Ye Futian took this opportunity to mock the big chiefs of Qingzhou Academy. "You know what? Not only am I not on the List of Excellence, but I am actually on a probation list now."


    "You''re the winner, but you don''t have to humiliate me in such a manner." Yun Tianhao stared at Ye Futian. He thought Ye Futian was joking to make fun of him.


    "He''s telling the truth," Yu Sheng said, although it seemed like he was not satisfied by this truth.


    The people of Heiyan Academy were confused, but soon the eagle-eyed leader began laughing and looking at the big chiefs of Qingzhou Academy with contempt. "Seriously, you put such a genius on probation? Boy, just quit your school and come with us. I promise you that you''ll be the star over here."


    The people of Qingzhou Academy felt ashamed by this invitation, especially the big chiefs. Their enemy was now inviting a student that they had decided to put on probation. What irony was that?


    "Thanks for your consideration, but no," Ye Futian rejected them directly.


    "Sure. Next time we see each other, it''s going to be a real fight." The eagle-eyed leader sounded like he was threatening and warning him, then he turned back. "Let''s go."


    The group from Heiyan Academy glanced at the Qingzhou Academy group, then turned around and left. Even though they had lost, their pride seemed unharmed by the defeat.


    Actually, the people of Qingzhou Academy weren''t relieved either.


    Their "top students" had lost all three fights. Without Yu Sheng and Ye Futian, their arena would have witnessed the worst humiliation in the history of the academy.


    How exciting that one of the saviors of the academy''s honor was currently on probation, and the other one had lost his first place on the List of Excellence.


    They were standing together, and all eyes were drawn to these boys. Only moments ago, people had finally realized how powerful they were.


    Before the fights, people believed they were just bad students with inappropriate arrogance.


    However, they now believed that their "arrogance" was, in fact, well-deserved.


    "Ye Futian, I apologize on behalf of the academy. We have mistreated you. I am glad that we have seen our mistake. Now, since we know that you have the highest level of talent in thunder-element, fire-element, and martial arts power, do you have any preference in the selection of a college?" Leng Qingfeng, the Director of the Hall of Swords, was now asking for Ye Futian''s decision. The big chiefs had realized that with all of these talents and his scroll inscribing ability, Ye Futian would be the star of any hall he chose to attend.


    Both the College of Martial Arts and College of Sorcery were waiting for his choice.


    "And Yu Sheng, you are more than welcome to join the Hall of Martial Arts. I will accept you as my own disciple if you choose to join, I promise," the Director of the Hall of Martial Arts invited Yu Sheng.


    "Consider the Hall of Metal-element, Yu Sheng, you would be a great addition for us," the Director of the Hall of Metal-element was also competing for the prized students.


    Yu Sheng said nothing but looked toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian would make the final decision for both of them.


    The big chiefs realized what Yu Sheng meant by this gesture. They understood that Ye Futian would decide their futures.


    Everyone was watching Ye Futian, waiting for him to make the final call.


    Ye Futian perceived the expectations that all of the big chiefs had of him. He started speaking slowly. "Are we done with what happened during the Fall Quarter Exam yet?"


    This question indeed made a lot of big chiefs feel awkward and the students wondered how stubborn this boy was to stay fixated on the topic even at this point.


    "This boy��" Qin Yi mumbled. Of course, he felt happy for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, because their abilities had been confirmed to everyone at the school. There was no doubt that their futures would be splendid. However, why he did he continue to misbehave and bring up the topic of the Fall Quarter Exam again?


    Leng Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian, and he was even more dissatisfied about the conspiracy from Shi Zhong. He said, "Ye Futian, we admit that we somehow made a misjudgement during the Fall Quarter Exam. However, you guys have totally proven to us how powerful you are. Let''s just leave it in the past, please."


    "Misjudgement, that''s it?" Ye Futian was laughing because he was still not satisfied. He knew that something must have been going on behind the scenes during the Fall Quarter Exam that made Murong Qiu rank first place. What Leng Qingfeng said was only to appease him.


    "What do you want?" Leng Qingfeng asked again.


    Ye Futian bowed slightly and said, "To be honest, I am not even an official student at the academy. It is definitely not proper for me to say whether it was truly just a ''misjudgement.'' We defeated Heiyan Academy only as a favor for the three years of education we received from Qingzhou Academy. As for becoming an official student, there is no need."


    People were shocked by his decision. The whole arena was in silence. Nothing moved other than the falling snowflakes through the air. People finally understood how stubborn this young man could be.

 27 We’re in This Together

    Chapter 27: We��re in This Together


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    He had actually rejected their offer!


    Countless people had their eyes on Ye Futian. Just a while ago, Yu Sheng and Ye Futian defeated the people of Heiyan Academy and saved the honor of Qingzhou Academy. In combination with his astonishing gift, everyone knew that the ban was as good as gone. These two young men were definitely going to be well-favored by the higher-ups of Qingzhou Academy.


    The reality was exactly as had been expected. Many of the school leaders extended a welcoming hand to the two, and it seemed as if this whole fiasco was coming to an end. They would have never expected such an ending. Everyone had obviously underestimated Ye Futian''s stubbornness and pride.


    If he were still the Ye Futian of the past, no one would have cared about him; now he was now a genius prodigy, He was able to inscribe top-notch spell scrolls in the blink of the eye and defeat a same-plane Mandate Sorcerer. He had every right to be prideful. Everyone fell into a deep silence, even the authoritative figures of Qingzhou Academy.


    At Qingzhou Academy, outer sect disciples received guidance and basic knowledge on cultivation from instructors, however, they had to put in a lot of work themselves for cultivation. Even at the library, they were only allowed on the ground floor. They did not have the privilege to make use of many other resources at the academy. The battle also now involved the honor of the entire academy, so when Ye Futian had said that this victory was a sign of gratitude for being able to cultivate at the academy for the past three years, no one could blame him for anything.


    From the looks of it, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng stepped up to battle together not only for Hua Jieyu, but they had everything thought out in advance.


    At the thought of this, none of the authorities had a thing to say. Ye Futian had studied at the academy for three years and not a single person was able to see his immense potential.


    "In the Fall Quarter Examinations, Yu Sheng should have been ranked first and you third. This will be written down in the academy''s records," Leng Qingfeng said to Ye Futian. In the crowd, Murong Qiu''s expression darkened immediately. This was so embarrassing. Two months ago, it had been announced that Murong Qiu ranked first in the Fall Exams; now the academy was going to break tradition and alter its records by taking him off the ranks. This was sure to cause a huge ruckus. If the news got out, how was he going to look to the world? He would be a giant laughing stock.


    There was not a word from any of the other students. They could not help but look over at Murong Qiu. It was true; he had had no right to be ranked first. When Heiyan Academy attacked, he had not even had the courage to step up and fight. Yu Sheng, on the other hand, had been able to do everything Murong Qiu could not.


    "I object," Shi Zhong spoke up, he was not pleased. He stared at Ye Futian and said, "The results have already been announced, how can we change them so easily? Even though Ye Futian''s performance today was impressive, we cannot ignore the fact that he used his victory in today''s battle as a bargaining chip and threatened the academy. What''s the use of having a student like this, even if he is immensely gifted?"


    "Threatening the academy?" Ye Futian stared at Shi Zhong. It looked like it was Earth Elemental Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong who put Murong Qiu in the first rank position. It was most likely his idea to place the ban on Ye Futian as well.


    As for Cabinet Master Leng Qingfeng of the House of the Swordsmen, he had always been friendly to Ye Futian. He probably had nothing to do with any of this.


    Looking at Shi Zhong, Ye Futian could not hold in his smile, "I''m just an outer sect disciple, what ability do I have to threaten Qingzhou Academy? On the contrary, I would like to ask Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong, what have I done to offend you?"


    "What do you mean?" asked Shi Zhong.


    "During the Fall Quarter Examinations, Yu Sheng obviously had the upper hand in terms of both gifts and capabilities. Today''s battle was proof of that. When you gave first place to Murong Qiu, I was being reasonable to object your decision. Even if you thought I was purposely going up against you, I was already punished when you removed me from the ranks and banned me from class. I cannot understand why removing the ban on me is the only thing you are willing to offer after all the work Yu Sheng and I put in today to protect the academy. Does the honor of Qingzhou Academy mean that little to you?"


    Ye Futian looked at Shi Zhong and continued, "Or should I ask what exactly have I done for you to dislike me so much and what about Murong Qiu is so great that you had to give him first place? You even placed a ban on me under his influence, is that not true?"


    "How presumptuous!" shouted Shi Zhong. His eyes shot daggers at Ye Futian, "Utter nonsense! Is this the attitude you use when speaking with your elders? Even if we groom you into the best of the best, a treacherous student like you will only bring disaster in the future."


    Treacherous. Everyone could obviously tell that there was something deeper going on behind the results of the Fall Exams. Every word Shi Zhong said was an attempt to get Ye Futian expelled.


    Besides, just like Ye Futian had said, Shi Zhong''s ban on Ye Futian was influenced by Murong Qiu. Thinking about what might have been going on behind the scenes gave the students of Qingzhou Academy shivers.


    "Shi Zhong, that''s enough," said the Pavilion Lord of the Thunder Elemental Pavilion. The seven Pavilion Lords of the School of Divination Arts were all acquainted with each other. There were some unspoken rules between them, and a blind eye was turned as long as it did not interfere with the interest of Qingzhou Academy.


    However, none of them expected the two young men, who were unfairly judged during the Fall Exams, to be this talented, as well as stubborn and prideful.


    "Ye Futian, in today''s battle you did a really big favor for the academy, so the academy will not mistreat you. There will surely be Pavilion Lords interested in accepting you two as official disciples. You guys will be able to focus on cultivations and in the future, the two of you will definitely make a name for yourselves and achieve great things. You shouldn''t be too stubborn regarding other things," Pavilion Lord Li Jiang of the Wind Elemental Pavilion tried to persuade Ye Futian.


    Hearing these words, Ye Futian began to laugh at himself. It looked like he was still too young and too confident in himself. No matter how exceptional his gifts were or how much work he put in to protect the academy, it did not change anything. All it had done was help him gain the attention of a couple authoritative figures and speed up the process for him to become an official disciple.


    But was this really enough?


    Pavilion Lord Li Jiang wanted Ye Futian to stop being so stubborn. It was obvious that he wanted Ye Futian to stop while he was ahead. Li Jiang most likely shared Shi Zhong''s opinion that Ye Futian was simply trying to threaten the academy. He was not really going to drop out of the academy. After all, Qingzhou Academy was the holy land for cultivators in the city of Qingzhou.


    Should Ye Futian really just forget about the events of the Fall Quarter Examinations? Was there really going to be no explanation for his punishment and the ban on him?


    As for the secrets behind the exam results, it seemed to be forbidden to expose. Maybe he was just too young, too na?ve.


    But there was one advantage of being young��you had the right to be stubborn.


    At the thought of this, Ye Futian smiled and lightly bowed to the academy elders. Everyone watched him. What was the meaning behind his actions?


    "I will remember everything Qingzhou Academy has taught me in these past three years. I will take my leave now," Ye Futian said with a smile. "Yu Sheng!" he shouted after.


    Beside him, Yu Sheng hummed in response. His eyes stared coldly at the elders, evidently unhappy.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian as he turned to leave, stepping into the white snow. Yu Sheng stopped his staring and followed closely behind Ye Futian.


    In that instant, their backs looked lonely but their footsteps determined. From this, it was possible to feel the pride they had.


    They were really leaving!


    The elders were all dumbfounded. They did not expect Ye Futian to take this so seriously.


    The House Master of the Battle House, the Cabinet Master of the House of the Swordsmen, and multiple Pavilion Lords stared coldly at Shi Zhong. The looks on their faces said it all. This caused Shi Zhong''s expression to darken and he called out reluctantly, "Wait."


    Ye Futian''s steps halted and he turned around to look at the person speaking to him. "Is there anything else you need from me, Pavilion Master Shi Zhong?"


    "What kind of place do you think Qingzhou Academy is, coming and going as you please," said Shi Zhong. Ye Futian squinted his eyes in confusion and asked, "What exactly are you trying to say?"


    "You''re rebellious by nature and hold a grudge against Qingzhou Academy. Now that you''re leaving the academy, do you plan to join Heiyan Academy to get revenge on Qingzhou Academy?" Shi Zhong asked.


    The temperature dropped at his words. Everyone could feel the iciness in his voice. Was Shi Zhong trying to give Ye Futian the death sentence by saying this?


    Heiyan Academy and Qingzhou Academy were rivals; therefore, as soon as Shi Zhong instilled the thought in everyone''s heads that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could betray Qingzhou Academy, what awaited them was not a pretty ending.


    "Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong, Ye Futian had already rejected Heiyan Academy''s offer, it''s impossible that he would go join them," Qin Yi said with worry. Ye Futian''s performance today really surprised her, but his stubbornness left her speechless. However, she felt that she must speak up against Shi Zhong right now.


    "Of course, he wouldn''t accept the offer in front of all of us but how about when he steps outside?" asked Shi Zhong. Beside him, Leng Qingfeng observed him. Shi Zhong was trying to force Ye Futian into a dead end. Even if Ye Futian had no such thoughts, the consequences of Shi Zhong''s words had already been placed into action.


    "What do you want?" asked Yu Sheng. The rage he felt radiated off of him.


    "Rid yourself of all the powers you gained in the past three years," Shi Zhong said. It was dead silent once again.


    Everyone was stupefied; no one was able to make a sound. It was a long while before soft steps could be heard. A perfect silhouette appeared like a goddess descending from heaven. It was Hua Jieyu.


    She stopped beside Ye Futian and took a look at him. This made Ye Futian lose his train of thought. She really was a fox.


    Hua Jieyu then shifted her gaze toward Shi Zhong and smiled lightly, "I think it would be best if you took back the words you just said."


    Her voice was so soft and peaceful; it was almost able to put everyone under her spell. Was she threatening the Pavilion Lord of the Earth Elemental Pavilion?


    A while ago, it was Ye Futian who had stepped up to protect her. Now, it was her turn to protect him. Many people in the audience were envious and jealous of Ye Futian right now.


    In the snow, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu stood side by side. The holy Qingzhou Academy did not seem so impressive anymore.

 28 Bad Temper

    Chapter 28: Bad Temper


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The snowflakes still flew around Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    No one had anticipated that Hua Jieyu would stand up for Ye Futian this time, not to mention the fact that she had protected Ye Futian by directly threatening a director in the academy.


    So many hearts broke. Were they already dating?


    However, their viewpoints had changed slightly. They didn''t feel pity for Hua Jieyu. In fact, they understood that Ye Futian was the only boy qualified enough to become her partner.


    Subconsciously, their views about Ye Futian had transformed entirely after the fight. He now symbolized dedication and talent in their minds.


    Even Yang Xiu and Ling Xiao, who used to look down upon Ye Futian, had changed. The one they once ridiculed was the only one able to defeat a Mandate Sorcerer, challenge the rules of the academy and utterly reject the idea of becoming the disciple of a Hall Director. He had never taken them seriously before.


    Feng Qingxue was also staring at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. It looked like she had tears welling up. She thought maybe the Goddess of this academy was the only one that deserved a boy as great as Ye Futian. She had used to believe she was out of his league, but now, she knew that it was the other way around.


    Shi Zhong had not expected to see Hua Jieyu stand up for Ye Futian. She had even threatened him for this boy''s sake. He couldn''t help swearing to himself. Undoubtedly, love among young people was so consuming that even a girl as wise as Hua Jieyu could get lost in her feelings.


    "Hua Jieyu, this is none of your business. Step away," Shi Zhong spoke gently to her. He knew how powerful this girl was and how influential her family was, so he didn''t dare act harshly to her, even after being obviously threatened.


    "You don''t get my point, do you?" She was still smiling in such a beautiful manner that it totally contradicted her cold tone of voice. She was utterly humiliating Shi Zhong in public.


    Shi Zhong became even more upset and stopped trying to hide it. No matter how remarkable this girl was, he was still a director at the academy, and he was the elder in this conversation. How frustrating it was to be threatened twice by a young girl, in front of the students no less.


    "Listen, this should be taken care of by the academy. Even your father wouldn''t interfere," Shi Zhong''s tone turned rigid.


    Hua Jieyu looked him in the eye and kept talking. "So you''re telling me that you''ll never regret the decision you just made, right?"


    "Of course," Shi Zhong responded. "Ye Futian betrayed this academy with all the powerful talents he gained there. If he ever attended Heiyan Academy and turned his back on us, the damage could be tremendous. His abilities must be taken to prevent this treachery."


    Hua Jieyu was laughing at Shi Zhong''s statement. She did not even try to hide her contempt. Was he being serious?


    "I gave you a chance to redeem yourself, but it''s gone," Hua Jieyu mumbled as if talking to herself. The moment she stopped, the snowflakes surrounding them turned into a frenzy. The wind blew harder in the area, and everyone was feeling frostbitten. A general sense of threat was impending. Even though people had tried to attribute this to the snow, they believed it was actually anger from the beautiful girl.


    "Whose power are you going to strip?"


    A cold voice sounded on the far side of the space. There was a path between the rows of trees, already white due to the massive snowfall, and someone was walking down the road toward them.


    The man was wearing a white fur coat and had long black hair that casually covered his shoulders.


    He was middle-aged and truly handsome, like a melancholy scholar. He was walking slowly, but his pace was magically attracting the attention of all the bystanders.


    In fact, he was walking faster than his pace seemed to allow. In a short while, he was approaching the crowd, and people had the chance to look clearly at his face.


    "This gentleman is unparalleled by the rest of the world." People were amazed by this incredibly handsome man. Both his appearance and temperament were just perfect. People believed that when he was young, he must have been a real lady''s man.


    "Mr. Hua," the big chiefs of the academy, even the directors, greeted him. Shi Zhong, however, looked upset at the fact that he had arrived.


    The students of Qingzhou Academy were shocked to suddenly see someone that was called "Mr." by all the big chiefs, even the directors. Who was he?


    "Father?" Hua Jieyu greeted. The students finally realized why Hua Jieyu had such superior power at this academy, even strong enough for her to confront a director. It was no wonder anymore, when even the directors had to greet her father respectfully.


    Plus, his face definitely explained where Hua Jieyu''s beauty had come from.


    Hua Fengliu nodded, then turned to look at Shi Zhong, "Answer me, now."


    "Mr. Hua, excuse me for the misunderstanding. I would never dare to strip the abilities of your daughter. I did not mean any harm to Ms. Hua." Shi Zhong said politely.


    "I know." Hua Fengliu understood that Shi Zhong didn''t have the guts to threaten his daughter. He turned back and looked at Ye Futian. "Then he is your target, right?"


    Shi Zhong nodded and pointed to Ye Futian. "Mr. Hua, this boy is a student of Qingzhou Academy. He was committing treachery by trying to quit the academy and join our enemy. To prevent further treachery, his abilities and talents must be removed. Jieyu was trying to stop me for a reason I do not understand."


    "Is he telling the truth?" Hua Fengliu asked the boy.


    "Professor, how could this be true?" Ye Futian shook his head with a wry smile. He knew that Mr. Hua should have been informed of what really happened.


    "Professor?" Shi Zhong was shocked by this form of address. His face suddenly became pale.


    He could not believe that Ye Futian had been a disciple of Hua Fengliu and that Hua Fengliu had come here not to stand up for his daughter, but for this boy.


    Shi Zhong now felt cold, his back dripping with sweat. He felt the temperature around his body drop. Even with his Plane, he felt true coldness.


    "My disciple just fought for the honor of Qingzhou Academy, but now you''re trying to deprive him of all his power?" Hua Fengliu sounded peaceful, but everyone realized that he was concealing his anger. He stepped forward a bit toward Shi Zhong. People noticed that Shi Zhong was actually trembling.


    Hua Fengliu gave his ultimatum."Looks like you have been the Director of the Hall of Earth Element long enough."


    His beautiful eyes suddenly turned white and glowed. Horrifying lights shot out of his eyes. His hair flew around his shoulder from the storm wind he had caused. The storm took a moment to form, then suddenly rushed toward Shi Zhong.


    Shi Zhong had no choice but to defend himself. He summoned the earth-element Spiritual Qi of the universe to form a wall to protect against Hua Fengliu''s attack.


    However, it didn''t work at all. The wall was shattered in a moment, and Hua Fengliu reached his hand out toward Shi Zhong. The wind around his body formed an invisible hand that clamped around his neck and lifted his body into the air.


    "Mr. Hua, forgive me. I did not know he was your disciple!" Shi Zhong was yelling for mercy, but his voice was hoarse from his throat being clamped.


    "Now you know." Hua Fengliu became frenzied. The white lights from his eyes were horrifying. He smashed Shi Zhong''s body to the ground so hard that a fissure appeared.


    The big chiefs could not do anything but watch as Shi Zhong was being smashed to the ground and lifted into the air repeatedly. Two sounds were resonating around the space��the sound of Shi Zhong hitting the ground and his screams. People could only feel pity for Shi Zhong, because even as a director, he shouldn''t have pissed off someone as powerful as Mr. Hua.


    After a while, the torture finally stopped. The earth wasn''t shaking anymore. Hua Fengliu put his hand down, and his eyes became peaceful again. He explained to those who were still shocked by what had happened, "Sorry, I have bad temper."


    Ye Futian''s eyes widened, and he couldn''t stop looking at Mr. Hua. He had never imagined that a gentleman like his professor could be as violent as this. However, he believed it was cool for a real man to switch between being calm and collected to as violent as Mr. Hua was.


    Other directors of Qingzhou Academy could only smile wryly. Leng Qingfeng started speaking, "Mr. Hua, I feel so sorry for our mistakes. We will definitely make compensation to Ye Futian for our errors in the future."


    "Future? There is no future. This academy does not deserve him," Mr. Hua sounded peaceful again. Leng Qingfeng stopped talking because he understood that as long as Mr. Hua had already accepted Ye Futian, it would be unnecessary for Ye Futian to become an official student at the academy. But in this case, there was also no way Ye Futian would betray this academy.


    They just wondered when Ye Futian had become his disciple.


    Soon, Leng Qingfeng was reminded of a past occurrence. Before the Fall Quarter Exam, there was a dragon wandering in Mount Tianyao. They heard that a daredevil boy had gone deep into the mountain and was attacked by the dragon. Later the boy was taken away by Hua Fengliu. People were focused on dealing with the dragon since it was so late at night, and didn''t pay attention to who was attacked. When they finally tried to find the boy, he was already gone.


    It had been months, and people had forgotten about this. Now they finally realized that Ye Futian was the boy who was attacked by the dragon.


    "Let''s go," Hua Fengliu said.


    "Okay," Ye Futian nodded, then Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng and him left with Hua Fengliu.


    "That was just awesome, Professor. What was that? A spell or a martial arts technique? Why have I never seen that before?" Ye Futian kept asking.


    "You will know, in the future." Hua Fengliu smiled at him.


    Ye Futian could not stop his curiosity. He looked at Hua Jieyu and asked her, "Fox, mind telling me?"


    Hua Jieyu smiled back at him, "Sorry, no comment."


    "Phew��" Ye Futian sighed and mumbled, "I thought you were in love with me when you stood up for me. Am I wrong?"


    The smile on her face was suddenly gone. She gave Ye Futian a malevolent look then ran to her father.


    However, Yu Sheng was looking at Ye Futian with admiration. This guy had just flirted with the daughter of his professor. He believed the professor would become Ye Futian''s father-in-law someday in the future.

 29 The Guqin Spiri

    Chapter 29: The Guqin Spirit


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Even after Ye Futian departed with Hua Fengliu, the people of Qingzhou Academy were still unable to calm down.


    It was going to be difficult to forget the image of a determined Ye Futian. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng did not say much about being treated unfairly during the Fall Quarter Examinations, nor did they say anything when the academy decided to punish Ye Futian. Despite receiving unfair treatment from the academy, it was the two of them who still stepped in to protect the honor of Qingzhou Academy. However, they were resolute in their decision to leave after gaining the attention of the most influential people at the academy.


    Finally, the relationship between Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian was clear and the hatred that everyone felt for Ye Futian in the past disappeared. Everyone used to think that Ye Futian was unworthy of a goddess like Hua Jieyu, but now, he was the only person of the outer sect disciples that was worthy of standing by her side.


    Naturally, this only made the hate Murong Qiu felt for Ye Futian grow stronger.


    Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong of the Earth Elemental Pavilion was badly hurt, but only one of his colleagues went over to help him up. The others just left, obviously unhappy with him. As a result of his actions, Qingzhou Academy might lose three of their most gifted students. If the three of them made a name for themselves, would Qingzhou Academy be able to tell the world that they made any contributions to their success?


    ....


    Ye Futian returned to his master''s residence, where he had left just a little while ago. It felt weird to be here again.


    "Ye Futian," called out Hua Fengliu as he took his seat.


    "Master," replied Ye Futian. He was still trying to figure out his Master''s true identity.


    "This was most likely the doing of Shi Zhong alone, as he harbors bad intentions. I will have Qingzhou Academy deal with him. Qingzhou Academy has contributed so much to the city of Qingzhou; there''s no need to harbor vengeance against them for the doings of one person," Hua Fengliu reasoned.


    "Yes, Master. I understand," nodded Ye Futian.


    "I am confused as to why you''re so adamant about leaving the academy. If you choose to stay, then it would only be a matter of time before one of the Pavilion Lords set their sights on you. You would be highly valued," Hua Fengliu asked puzzled.


    "I know the other Pavilion Lords are different from Shi Zhong, but still, none of them prevented his actions toward me even though they knew what he did was wrong. It''s obvious that they were not willing to make an enemy of Shi Zhong for a mere outer sect disciple like myself. One might say that it was because I was not worth fighting for back then, but even after today''s battle, they were still unwilling to help Yu Sheng and me. I can''t tolerate this, so naturally I made the decision to leave the academy. Besides, now that Shi Zhong has a bone to pick with me, staying will only make things harder for myself. Should I have to fight against a Pavilion Lord while in the Awakening Plane?" explained Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian continued, a bit confused himself, "As for being valued by the Pavilion Lords, none of them can surpass you. Under Master''s guidance, would I even need them?"


    "This..." Yu Sheng listened from behind Ye Futian. He was impressed. With this level of brown-nosing, no wonder Ye Futian was able to turn his master into his father-in-law.


    Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian with disdain. At the same time, she could see that her father was nodding in agreement with Ye Futian. Hua Fengliu looked very satisfied at his response and replied, "You have a very good point."


    Yu Sheng widened his eyes. Hua Fengliu was definitely not the modest type.


    "Master, the outside world is too dangerous. A small issue is enough to warrant a request to rid me of my powers. I think I should just stay here by your side and cultivate from now on," Ye Futian saw an opportunity and took it.


    "No!" Hua Jieyu opened her mouth before her father could say anything. What did he mean the outside world was too dangerous? Did he plan on just staying indoors for the rest of his life?


    "Father, you said that cultivation isn''t simply about putting work into training and practice; you must also have actual battle experience. If I have to regularly go to Mount Tianyao for battle training, then he should definitely have to as well. Since his gift is so great, he needs to go out and gain actual experience to aid his cultivation," said Hua Jieyu.


    "Master, what she said is correct. So, from now on, besides cultivating here, I should go out regularly with Hua Jieyu. Under her care, Master shouldn''t have to worry about me," said Ye Futian.


    "You...," Hua Jieyu was completely speechless. She felt wronged as she looked toward her father. "Father, are you really not worried he might do something to me?"


    "Of course I''m not worried! You''ve been cultivating longer than he has and you have more experience. Would he even be able to bully you?" asked Hua Fengliu jokingly.


    "But," Hua Jieyu had more to say but was cut off by Ye Futian. "Thank you, Master!"


    "Am I the third wheel?" Yu Sheng asked quietly. He scratched his head in confusion. Ye Futian looked back at him and thought that Yu Sheng was getting smarter and more observant by the day.


    Hua Fengliu smiled at Yu Sheng and said, "Yu Sheng, you''re a natural warrior and need to continuously refine your skills through battle. I will give you a spell scroll for defense later. You should also pick out some books on battle tactics and some spell books for cultivation from my library. Then, head to Mount Tianyao to train. You should keep challenging higher level demons to help yourself improve."


    "Okay," nodded Yu Sheng. It seemed like he really was the extra wheel.


    "Master, what about me?" asked Ye Futian with anticipation. He had already learned to inscribe spell scrolls and could not wait to see what Hua Fengliu had in store for him next.


    "Since you''re cultivating in martial and divination arts, you''ll need to break through the planes for both at the same time. You''ve got tons to do," said Hua Fengliu. Ye Futian nodded and headed towards the study. Hua Fengliu had a large collection of books in his library, including books from all categories. It was a smaller version of Qingzhou Academy''s library.


    "Awakening level Thunder Elemental Sorcery, Thunder Lash, and Fire Elemental Sorcery, the Burning of Silence," Ye Futian picked these two spellbooks to study. As he continued to study the spells, night fell.


    The snow was still falling and a crescent moon hung in the night sky.


    The sound of a string instrument resonated throughout the residence. It was a guqin. The song was peaceful and brought serenity.


    Ye Futian was drawn in by the sound of the guqin. He left the library and walked toward the main residence. There, he saw Hua Fengliu plucking away at the strings of the guqin. Basking in the moonlight, he looked so graceful.


    Freedom Meditation kicked in by itself. Ye Futian could almost see the music notes floating through the air like tiny fairies.


    His eyes closed, Ye Futian sat down in the snow and emptied his mind. He could feel the moonlight washing down on him, the cool light cleansing his body. The music flowed into his body, into his Life Palace. There, the World Tree began to rustle. Each leaf danced as the music notes wafted. The notes floated around, and eventually formed a picture. It was a guqin.


    The guqin continued to play. Ye Futian entered a state of oblivion. Only the music continued to enter his mind, relaxing his entire being. His worries were all tossed into the back of his mind.


    The song ended. Ye Futian still had his eyes closed. In his Life Palace, a third type of Life Spirit appeared in addition to the Natal Spirit and the World Tree Spirit. It was the Guqin Spirit.


    Ye Futian was shocked. He knew that even by using the Freedom Meditation, Life Spirits could only be created in very special conditions. However, all it had taken for him to create the Guqin Spirit was one piece by Hua Fengliu.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes slowly and asked Hua Fengliu, "Master, what piece was that?"


    "Purification of the Night Moon," replied Hua Fengliu.


    "I felt something change within me after listening to Master play. My ability to perceive energy has strengthened. I want to learn to play the guqin," said Ye Futian with great determination. Energy determined the level of a sorcerer, so if pieces played on the guqin could help improve that, then it would definitely aid in cultivation.


    "Okay," said Hua Fengliu with a smile. Hua Jieyu watched everything unfold off to the side. She looked at her father and knew that he purposely played the guqin to test Ye Futian. Hua Fengliu wanted to pass down this skill to Ye Futian.


    "Let''s start by learning some basic pieces. Hua Jieyu, bring the sheet music. You will teach Ye Futian," ordered Hua Fengliu.


    "Me?" Hua Jieyu blinked in disbelief and looked at her father in distress. Ye Futian felt touched, Master was too good to him.


    "Be a good girl," Hua Fengliu tried to persuade Hua Jieyu. She glared at her father and left to get the sheet music.


    Moments later, the moonlight was shining down on Hua Jieyu as she sat elegantly in front of the guqin. She unwillingly explained something to Ye Futian.


    "Hey Fox, how do I play this note?" Ye Futian pointed at the music score and accidentally touched Hua Jieyu''s hand.


    Hua Jieyu immediately turned to look at him. In response, he said, "Sorry. It was an accident. I can''t see clearly since it''s dark out here."


    "How many accidents have you had already?" Hua Jieyu asked with a smile on her face. Her hand touched Ye Futian''s waist. Her fingers grabbed hold of him and she began to pinch down hard. He gasped and looked at the beauty in front of him. At least he could enjoy the view while in pain.


    Ye Futian learned quickly, acquiring all the basic knowledge. He then began to play sheet music. Slowly, his skills matured, until he was able to play smoothly.


    It got deeper into the night. Hua Fengliu had already gone to bed but Hua Jieyu was still by Ye Futian''s side, teaching him the ropes.


    At that moment, Ye Futian had his hands on the instrument and a bright aura emitted from him. When his fingers plucked at the strings, the music flowed and sent shivers down Hua Jieyu''s spine.


    She watched as Ye Futian kept his eyes closed. His Guqin Spirit harmonized with the guqin, giving life to every note that resulted from a stroke of his fingers.


    Under the moonlight, his handsome face looked peaceful. His hands were like magic; they had the ability to get the listener moving with their every stroke. Hua Jieyu became more and more relaxed, her eyes closing as well. She was immersed in the music, and eventually fell asleep sitting in the snow.


    "A prodigy," remarked Hua Fengliu, who was listening from his bedroom. He was very pleased. He too closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep with the music.


    Ye Futian was spellbound by the music, unable to pull himself out of the state. He continued to play throughout the night, but felt no fatigue. On the contrary, he felt clear-minded.


    The next morning, he opened his eyes and felt a change within himself. Using the Freedom Meditation to perceive the Spiritual Qi of the Heavens and the Earth, he knew that he had broken into the eighth plane of Awakening for sorcerers. He could not help but smile.


    Ye Futian looked ahead and saw Hua Jieyu laying in the snow, her body covered in a layer of white snow. The jacket laid out on top of her was now drenched. He walked up to her and carefully removed the jacket. At that moment, Hua Jieyu opened her eyes and looked up at Ye Futian. He smiled at her and retracted his hand. "The jacket''s wet, I didn''t want you to get sick so I took it off for you," he explained.


    "Really? You didn''t have any other intentions?" she asked with a faint smile.


    "Am I that type of person?" Ye Futian saw her smile and took a step back.


    "What do you think?" laughed Hua Jieyu.


    Suddenly, they heard something. It was the door to Yu Sheng''s room. He stepped out and saw Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian. He then gave them a strange look.


    "I''m going to leave now. Please feel free to continue whatever you guys were doing," Yu Sheng said as he took giant steps to bring himself away from the two. They were flirting in front of him so early in the morning. How inconsiderate! How was he supposed to feel about this?

 30 The Guqin Devil and The Art Sain

    Chapter 30: The Guqin Devil and The Art Saint


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was living in the guest room at Hua Fengliu''s house. His days consisted of playing the guqin, practicing his inscribing, and enjoying the company of a beautiful girl. With this comfortable life, time flew and the new year was fast approaching.


    One day, a giant monster flew into Guqingzhou Academy, a huge black condor. Even though the guards of the academy had tried to stop her, she flapped her wings so vigorously that the wind prevented anyone from approaching her.


    There were several people mounted on the condor. The leaders of this group were an old man and a young man.


    "That way." The older man pointed toward the academy. The huge black condor flew as directed, and on the way, the Director of the Hall of Earth Element, Shi Zhong, showed up, trying to stop this monster. "Stop, right now!"


    However, the condor just ignored the warning, and so did the people on top of her. The wind from her wings was so intense that the fierce power knocked Shi Zhong yards away in a second. The people on her back didn''t seem to be affected by his interruption.


    The condor was heading to Hua Fengliu''s house. The gentleman in white came out of his house and walked to the black condor without making much noise.


    "Hua Fengliu," the old man started speaking with a sneer. "It''s been three years since our deal. Where is Ms. Hua Jieyu?"


    "It has not been three years yet. You promised me that you would not interfere with her," Hua Fengliu responded coldly.


    "The new year is coming in a few days, so it has, in fact, practically been three years. She''s too talented to waste so much time with you. This is just enough for our deal," The old man said.


    "Time is time, I insist it has not been three years yet." Hua Fengliu did not give in.


    "Mr. Hua, the Guqin Devil, I am Zhou Mu" the young man who bowed slightly to Hua Fengliu and greeted him. It was just general courtesy. In reality, the smile on his face showed that he was too young to be genuinely humble and had a faint sense of disdain.


    Hua Fengliu glanced at him and asked, "Who are you?"


    "My master, the Art Saint, has been feeling somewhat guilty over the years since he destroyed your natal spirit. He sent me here to see if you were doing well," Zhou Mu smiled as he spoke. Hua Fengliu''s eyes soon turned sharply to this young man, but he was not going to attribute this humiliation to Zhou Mu. He turned to the older man and asked, "Why did you bring his disciple to my home?"


    "I did not bring him here. The Art Saint actually sent him. Zhou Mu, sixteen years old, a Glory Plane invoker," the old man told Hua Fengliu.


    Suddenly, Hua Fengliu understood what the Art Saint was trying to do. He started laughing so hard that his hair flew around him, then he said, "He lost to me in the past, and he wants his disciple to win in the present? Is that correct?"


    "My master destroyed your natal spirit and banned you from entering the City of Donghai forever. How did he lose?" Zhou Mu rejected.


    "A win or loss is not judged by you, young man Hua Fengliu said with a smile. "Just go back, I do not have time for this."


    "Then I will come back for Hua Jieyu after the new year. If you try to stop me at that time, my family will not make it easy for you," the old man sneered, and suddenly the black condor swayed upwards and flew away. Hua Fengliu looked at the shrinking image of that black spot and laughed, "You already lost in the past, and now you''re putting your hope onto your disciple? That''s not going to work,"


    ...


    In the guest room, Ye Futian had finished a song. He opened his eyes, but the feelings from that song were not gone. Mr. Hua had not taught him any songs other than the Purification of the Night Moon. Ye Futian''s activities these days were just cultivation and music practice. In fact, his Plane of Martial Arts had reached Metamorph, the eighth plane. His Plane of Sorcery had broken through two planes directly, and now he was in the ninth Plane of Awakening, the Unmaker. Ye Futian understood that the Purification of the Night Moon played an essential role in this fast improvement.


    At this time, Hua Jieyu was inscribing. Ye Futian went to her side and asked her gently, "Fox, do you want me to keep playing?"


    "No." Hua Jieyu did not even look at him.


    "Then I guess it''s time for us to have a couple''s talk." Ye Futian kept teasing her. Hua Jieyu put down the pen and started smiling at Ye Futian. However, the Spiritual Qi around her gathered, almost like she was going to attack. Ye Futian stepped away and said, "Gentlemen fight with words rather than actions."


    "I am a gentlewoman, thank you." Hua Jieyu condensed the power into a wind-element spell and sent it toward Ye Futian.


    "Don''t kill your boyfriend!" Ye Futian ran away quickly. Hua Jieyu was already a mage in the Glory Plane. There was no chance he could take that damage.


    Hua Fengliu came in from outside and saw the scene. "Jieyu, stop it."


    Hua Jieyu stopped according to his demand. She glared at Ye Futian and complained, "Dad, this guy keeps picking on me every day."


    Hua Fengliu ignored the complaint and asked them to come with him. "Just follow me." Ye Futian understood that there was something serious going on for Mr. Hua, and he stopped his joking attitude at once. Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian followed Mr. Hua to a room. Hua Fengliu led them to his own book collection room.


    There were shelves in his book collection room and a chamber that was concealed in the wall behind them. Ye Futian was surprised when Mr. Hua opened the chamber and took out something that seemed to be very important.


    There were some books in the hidden chamber. Hua Fengliu took them out and handed them to Ye Futian. "Futian, they are all yours now."


    Ye Futian knew that these books were the true treasures. He took the books and read the names on them: Dragon Roar in the Mountain, The Fiend''s Carnival, The Dance in Flamboyant Feathers�� These books were actually guqin music sheets.


    "Professor, these are all music spells, am I right?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Okay, so you do know what they are. I used to be good at this specific kind of spell and, in fact, when I was young, people gave me the title of the Guqin Devil because my natal spirit was a guqin. Someone destroyed my natal spirit and totally prevented me from making any progress on my cultivation since then. Now, it''s your turn to take over," Hua Fengliu said and sighed. Ye Futian was surprised. He had already known that the professor was a Mandate Sorcerer, but he never knew that his natal spirit had been destroyed.


    "Don''t ask me why, or try to avenge me. I just hope you cultivate hard enough to not to waste all the talents you have been granted." Hua Fengliu looked him in the eye and kept talking, "This city is too small for you in the long term. Next year I believe you will reach the Glory Plane. Do you want to sail through the East Sea and go inland?"


    "My godfather asked me to leave here after I turn eighteen, but I still need to consult with my father and my godfather about this," Ye Futian responded.


    "The new year is coming soon. You should get home. I''ll tell Yu Sheng to go home when he gets back," Hua Fengliu told him.


    Ye Futian nodded a little reluctantly. He looked at Hua Jieyu and said, "Fox, take care of your father after I''m gone."


    Hua Jieyu, however, felt angry. In fact, during the whole time this boy was living at their house she had done all the household work. Now he was just telling her to "take care"?


    "Oh my, you''re finally leaving." Hua Jieyu seemed excited.


    "Hey, what''s with the attitude?" Ye Futian felt heart-broken.


    "What do you think?" Hua Jieyu laughed at him.


    "I''m leaving now," Ye Futian told her.


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu smiled.


    Ye Futian walked to the door and looked back at her. "Seriously, I''m leaving."


    "Just go." She was still smiling.


    Ye Futian sighed and waved to Mr. Hua. "See you next year, Professor."


    Then he left for home.


    After he left, the room became quiet suddenly.


    Hua Fengliu shook his head with a wry smile and said, "He made this place so lively, and now that he''s gone, this silence almost feels unfamiliar."


    "You''re too into this boy, dad," Hua Jieyu joked to her dad.


    "Then what about you?" Hua Fengliu smiled at his daughter.


    "Me?" Hua Jieyu blinked her eyes and said, "I''m happy that he left."


    "The three years is up. Someone already came here from the City of Donghai to inform me. Actually, you might also have to leave after the new year." Hua Fengliu turned his eyes to the snow outside. He felt lost.


    Hua Jieyu was shocked. She was reluctant to leave her father. She looked at the lonely figure of her father and said, "I don''t want to leave. I want to stay here with you, dad."


    "Silly girl, your mom is also missing you. Your family is not going to let you stay with me anymore. I am happy to have enjoyed your company over these three years." He patted his daughter on the head and kept speaking gently, "You may never see Ye Futian again. Moments ago may have actually been the final farewell for you guys, and you were just making fun of him."


    Hua Jieyu was tremendously shocked. Several minutes ago the boy had left, and they were joking with each other. Now, it was their farewell?


    "Jieyu, tell me, do you like this boy?" Hua Fengliu suddenly asked her.


    "What are you talking about, dad?" Hua Jieyu was surprised again. She looked at her father, and it seemed that she was shy about answering this question, "That''s just impossible."


    "Really?" Hua Fengliu smiled at his daughter, "You''re turning sixteen this year. You do have the right to decide your future, including whom to be with. You have not experienced much, so you don''t understand that there are things and people in this world that once you miss, you miss them forever. I do like that boy. He''s smart and talented. It seems to me that he''s not going to waste his talents. More importantly, he looks like a playboy, but he is truly devoted to love. I''m pretty sure he is the same as I was at his age. Make your own decisions. Don''t miss someone you really love forever. Think about my words these days. Remember, life is short. Do not have any regrets."


    Hua Jieyu was dumbfounded by what her father had just said. She hadn''t realized that she might miss someone forever!


    "The boy has been spending so much of his time with you, and you just take it for granted. But if you disappear from each others'' lives, another beautiful girl will appear in his. You are not a couple yet, so do not just think that you are the only one for him in this world." Hua Fengliu smiled and left his daughter alone. Hua Jieyu started to think about this seriously for the first time. The feeling was intense, but the concept of love seemed to be pretty faint and unfamiliar to her.


    She always felt annoyed when Ye Futian was around in the house. However, when he was suddenly gone, she actually felt as if something was lost and even needed time to adapt. Her father had told her that she could miss someone forever, and thinking about this indeed gave her a sense of fear. Fear of the thought that she had just lost something precious.

 31 Godfather

    Chapter 31: Godfather


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The City of Qingzhou was an island city, located in the East Sea, surrounded by the water.


    On the vast ocean waters sailed a big ship, headed in the direction of Qingzhou City.


    On the deck stood multiple people suited in armor. They were a group of knights. There were three figures; a middle-aged man, one young man, and a young lady stood on the edge of the deck.


    The man looked dignified and imposing; the young man beside him was handsome, his eyes giving off a hint of evilness; and the young lady on his side looked cold and arrogant. However, her sex appeal was off the charts.


    "So, this is the City of Qingzhou?" the young man spoke while looking straight ahead.


    "That''s right. Qingzhou City is an island city in the East Sea, but because there are many similar island cities in the East Sea, it doesn''t stand out. So, you''ve probably never heard of it before," explained the man.


    "That''s true. If it weren''t for you, I never would have found out about this island city. Did someone like him really come from this small place?" asked the young man, unable to believe this. Even though the young man has always been haughty, when they spoke of "him" he could not stop the fear-induced palpitations of his heart.


    "The information we have should be accurate. We were able to find some traces from the history books found in the East Sea Prefecture. The only thing we don''t know is if "he" left anything behind in Qingzhou City," said the man.


    "Hopefully this won''t be a wasted trip," said the young man, his lips curling into a smile. It was hard to imagine that the most legendary character in the Divine Prefectures of the East originated from this little island city.


    Emperor Ye Qing, a legend in the divine prefectures, along with the Great East Phoenix, ruled the divine prefectures for over three hundred years. He died suddenly fifteen years ago. His death is a mystery to this day. Nobody was brave enough to investigate the cause of his death, and his name had since become a taboo. However, traces he left behind in the East Sea Prefecture pointed to him leaving the prefecture and ending up in the City of Qingzhou.


    The ship sailed quickly, and as they got closer to shore, their view of Qingzhou City became clearer. On the shore stood many high authority figures. The City Lord and authoritative figures of the Murong Chamber of Commerce waited deferentially.


    ....


    The people of Qingzhou City had no idea some very important people had arrived. Ye Futian was also oblivious to this.


    Walking down the familiar streets, the Ye House came into view. Ye Futian''s steps relaxed. He had missed his family.


    "Ye Futian is back!" shouted a street vendor selling bing, a type of flat cake.


    "Hello, Auntie She," greeted Ye Futian. Then, he turned to two older males playing chess not far away and called out, "Uncle Wang, Grandpa Yun."


    "Oh, you sweet boy. The Lin family''s daughter is home. After the new year she''ll be fifteen. She''s looking prettier every day!" laughed Uncle Wang.


    "Uncle Lin, is Xiao Qing here?" Ye Futian asked the shopkeeper of the restaurant next to where Uncle Wang and Grandpa Yun were playing chess.


    "No, she''s not here. You haven''t been home in a while, hurry home!" ushered Uncle Lin with a quick smile. He then turned to Uncle Wang with a glare.


    "Ye Futian is home?" a crisp voice rang throughout the restaurant.


    "Go back to work, you brat," the shopkeeper reprimanded lowly. Ye Futian smiled and was on his way. He waved as he left, "Xiao Qing, I''ll come hang out another day!"


    After he left, Uncle Wang said to Shopkeeper Lin, "Hey Lin, Ye Futian is the young master of the Ye family. Shouldn''t you be glad that he wants to hang out with your daughter?"


    "Excuse me, that little devil has never taken anything seriously. How many girls around here have fallen for his words already? How can I let my daughter be around him?" Shopkeeper Lin looked worn. He pitied the man whose daughter would fall in love with that little devil.


    Ye Futian weaved through the streets and came upon a private residence, separate from other buildings. ''Ye'' was engraved on the plaque above the main entrance.


    Two people stood guard on either side of the entrance. By the door was a white-haired, hunched figure. He looked out on to the streets and when he saw Ye Futian, his eyes lit up.


    "Godfather," Ye Futian greeted the man. He made his way to the entrance of the residence in a light jog. "What are you doing here, Godfather?"


    Although his face did not look old, his white hair and hunched body made Ye Futian''s godfather look oddly aged. He smiled at Ye Futian and said, "It''s already December. I thought it was about time you came up, so I was waiting here for you. By the way, why don''t I see Yu Sheng with you?"


    "Yu Sheng is training on Mount Tianyao," explained Ye Futian. He walked closer to hold the older male by his arm. "Godfather, your white hair has grown out even more."


    "That''s fine. I''m just happy and honored to see that you have grown up," smiled the old man.


    "Godfather, you''re talking nonsense again," Ye Futian did not know what to say when his godfather used the term ''honored.''


    "What do you mean ''nonsense?'' A day will come when you understand what I mean," said the old man. He smiled and continued, "Come, now, let''s go home."


    "Okay, let''s go!" answered Ye Futian. With a skip in his step, he arrived at the courtyard. His father, Ye Baichan, said, "You brat, you have finally come home? Is it already the end of the year? Where have you been? Picking on girls?"


    Ye Futian was speechless. "Pops, I just got back. Can''t I get some fatherly love?"


    "Ye Futian, don''t mind your father. Let me take a good look at you." A beautiful and elegant woman walked out. It was Ye Futian''s mother, Ye Rou. It was said that Ye Rou was not originally from Qingzhou City. She had met Ye Baichuan when he was traveling around to gain experience. Later, when she had gotten pregnant with Ye Futian, they came back to Qingzhou City together.


    "I don''t know how you lucked out and ended up with such a beautiful, genial woman," sighed Ye Futian as he looked at his father.


    "Do you want to get beaten? Let''s see if you''re capable of bringing home a woman as great as your mother," Ye Baichuan said as he walked up to stand next to his wife.


    "That''s an easy enough task for me, it''s just that I don''t want to do it," said Ye Futian without shame.


    "Ye Futian, you''re boasting again," a beautiful girl said from outside. She looked to be a little younger than Ye Futian. She walked towards Ye Futian and his parents. She was an equally beautiful woman. It was Ye Baichuan''s younger sister, Ye Rong, and her daughter, Ye Xiaoqin, who had taken her mother''s surname.


    Behind the two females were two more people. A middle-aged man was leading a young boy around the age of thirteen. They were Ye Baichuan''s younger brother, Ye Dongliu, and his son, Ye Mo.


    "Uncle; Auntie," greeted Ye Futian. Then he looked at the smiling girl and said, "Are you itching to get hit, Ye Xiaoqin?"


    Ye Xiaoqin hid behind her mother, "You''re bullying me again! Don''t forget, your dad is watching you."


    The whole lot began to laugh. Ye Mo stepped up and said, "Ye Futian, your dad said that you''re really powerful now. Is that true?"


    "Of course it''s true! I''ve been cultivating in martial and divination arts. I''m approaching the Glory Plane, and countless people at the academy look up to me!" Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Ye Mo looked at Ye Futian with distaste as he said, "I almost believed you."


    "Same," Ye Xiaoqin chimed in.


    "Ye Futian, enough with your lies. When are you going to bring a girl home? You better keep an eye on Feng Qingxue. She''s pretty and talented; you might lose her to someone else," teased Ye Rong.


    "Feng Qingxue..." Ye Futian shook his head with a bitter smile. Seeing his reaction, everyone seemed to have everything figured out. It seemed like Ye Futian couldn''t get her to be his.


    "Alright now, it''s rare to have the family gathered together like this, so let''s go catch up while we eat," Ye Rou suggested. Everyone nodded in agreement, and they all headed for the dinner table. They chatted happily over a delicious meal that night.


    After dinner, people made their way back to their own homes. Ye Futian asked his father for a guqin and headed back to where he was staying. Not long after, the sounds of the instrument filled his room. Under the moonlight, everything seemed at peace.


    The next day, Yu Sheng returned. He was now officially in the Glory Plane of martial art cultivation. Ye Futian was very happy for him.


    In the blink of an eye it was the last day of the year. The night came, but Qingzhou City was illuminated with lights. The streets were buzzing, and the skies were decorated with fireworks.


    At the Ye House, there was an area occupied with the sounds of the guqin. One person was elegantly playing the guqin while another person at his side sat cultivating on the ground. However, at this moment, Yu Sheng opened his eyes to look at Ye Futian.


    Something did not seem right. The music stopped and Ye Futian lifted his head to stare at the moon, his mind was not at ease.


    "Ye Futian," A white-haired elder walked in from the outside and looked at Ye Futian. "This piece can put the mind at ease, yet you are restless. A messy mind results in a messy performance."


    "I don''t know what''s going on either," said Ye Futian with a bitter smile.


    "From your music, I could feel happiness, longing, and melancholy. You have truly grown up now," the elder said lightly. "Who''s the girl?"


    "Godfather!" Ye Futian was shocked. He looked to Yu Sheng, only to see him shake his head in denial. He had not told his father about Ye Futian.


    "So, there really was longing?" questioned his godfather. Ye Futian shook his head with a bitter smile, "Godfather, did I let you down by not focusing on what I was supposed to?"


    "Silly child, this is the journey to adulthood. Who in history hasn''t been troubled with matters of love?" asked the white-haired elder. He approached Ye Futian''s side and continued, "I''m not opposed to you dating but she should be worthy of your love. You must remember, your other half will become a motherly model to the nation in the future."


    Ye Futian lifted his head to look at the elder. Naturally, Ye Futian knew that his godfather held high hopes for him since childhood. His hopes for Ye Futian were so high that they exceeded his own expectations.


    "Godfather, I''m afraid of letting you down," Ye Futian said quietly.


    "Believe in yourself, just like I believe in you," the elder said as he patted Ye Futian''s shoulder. "Let''s go, your family is waiting for you. The guests from the Feng family have also arrived."


    "Okay. Yu Sheng, let''s go together," Ye Futian said to Yu Sheng.


    "Yu Sheng, you stay. I have something I want to talk to you about," said the elder.


    "Alright," Ye Futian nodded and left the quarters. After his departure, a gust of wind shut the doors of Ye Futian''s living quarters. The elder looked at Yu Sheng, "Show me your Life Spirit."


    Yu Sheng stood and focused. His eyes glowed fearfully with a bright light and a course of energy radiated from his body fiercely. The Spiritual Qi in the surrounding area began to flow crazily. A suit of armor appeared on his body and his Life Spirit appeared. Right now, Yu Sheng was godlike.


    "That''s good enough," nodded the elder. Yu Sheng withdrew his Life Spirit, the look in his eyes returned to normal.


    "Yu Sheng, you must remember, you will forever be Ye Futian''s deadliest weapon and his sturdiest shield. There will come a day when your name will be written down in the history books," urged the elder. Yu Sheng was not sure he completely understood his father''s words. All he knew was that he would forever protect Ye Futian and it was not only because his father told him to do so.

 32 The First Awakening of Love

    Chapter 32: The First Awakening of Love


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Ye family gathered to spend New Year''s Eve together with a feast. Feng Ruhai''s family came to visit as well. Even though the two families had been good friends for decades, it was the first time Feng Ruhai had come to visit on New Year''s Eve.


    "Uncle Feng," Ye Futian greeted Feng Ruhai, then sat in between Ye Xiaoqin and Ye Mo.


    "You will officially be sixteen years old after tonight, Ye Futian. You look more and more handsome," Feng Ruhai complimented. As a result of the constant cultivation that Ye Futian was going through, he now looked more charming than ever. He had become a thin young man with a handsome face, like a model.


    Feng Qingxue kept looking at Ye Futian from afar. She still couldn''t forget what had happened at the academy one month before, when the young man had been standing with another beautiful girl in the snow, and they fought against the authority together. Ye Futian had used to make fun of her all the time, and she had believed that this boy would be around her forever. But now, there was a certain distance between them.


    What if�� she had never talked to Ye Futian in that horrible manner?


    "This boy has only inherited about thirty percent of my looks," Ye Baichuan said. "But Qingxue is growing ever more beautiful, she''s just too gorgeous to be your blood," Ye Baichuan joked. Feng Ruhai was speechless, so he gave Ye Baichuan a stare.


    "Stop boasting. Why have these kids not gotten engaged?" Ye Rong, Ye Futian''s aunt, smiled and cut into the conversation.


    Ye Futian was shocked by this while panic flashed across Feng Qingxue''s eyes. She lowered her head to avoid the glances cast on her.


    Feng Ruhai looked at Ye Futian, and Ye Rong kept talking, "Brother, why are you looking at him? I know this boy so well. Really, he would be laughing all night if Qingxue said yes to this engagement."


    "Yes, yes, Ye Futian loves beautiful girls." Ye Xiaoqin was speaking for her mother.


    "Looks like you''re getting lucky, bro." Ye Mo mumbled to Ye Futian. Ye Futian felt awkward that no one had even bothered to ask what his opinion was.


    "Qingxue, my girl, what do you say?" Ye Rong looked at Feng Qingxue. Feng Qingxue''s face turned red from all the attention. She snuck a look at Ye Futian and soon was reminded of the time when another girl was standing up for Ye Futian. She suddenly felt disappointed and shook her head, "He''s too good for me, Aunt Ye."


    She had just rejected the suggestion.


    Ye Rong was a bit embarrassed but she smiled and said, "It''s fine. You''re still young, and there is enough time for you to foster your relationship."


    "Nah, it''s not happening." Ye Xiaoqin was trying to relieve her cousin.


    "That''s too bad, bro." Ye Mo mumbled to his cousin.


    "Futian, you need to work harder, and I believe Qingxue will finally accept you someday," Ye Dongliu, Ye Futian''s uncle, also said. They all thought that Ye Futian had just been rejected by the girl. Ye Futian remained silent and nodded. Actually, he didn''t care about what the others were thinking.


    Soon, someone approached the Ye home. A guard from the house came in with a message. "Someone is looking for Mr. Ye Futian outside the door."


    "For me?" Ye Futian had no idea who it was.


    "Go ahead," Ye Baichuan told him.


    "Sure," Ye Futian nodded and followed the guard.


    After he left, Ye Rong started talking with Feng Qingxue again, "Qingxue, you guys have grown up together for so many years. Just give him some time and a chance to prove himself."


    Feng Qingxue was now even more embarrassed. Still, she was curious about who was waiting outside.


    Right at that moment, Ye Futian stepped out of the door, he recognized the gorgeous figure waiting outside quietly. He was so surprised that suddenly a bright smile showed up on his face: "Wow, you missed me?"


    Hua Jieyu glared at him and said, "Dad told me that the city would be lively tonight, so I thought I should go out for a walk. I noticed that this is the Ye''s place, so I was wondering if it was your home. It looks like I guessed right."


    "Wow, such a coincidence." Ye Futian fluttered his lashes, and he looked at the girl with a weird expression like he was concealing his laughter. Deep inside, he felt really surprised by this unexpected visit.


    "Mind if I join you for the walk?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''m right outside your home. Why don''t you be a friendly host and invite me inside?" The cute manner in which Hua Jieyu asked the question almost melted Ye Futian''s heart.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian was surprised by this offer. Bringing a girl home on New Year''s Eve was like...meeting the parents for an engagement?


    "You''re not willing to?" Hua Jieyu asked with a smile, sensing the boy''s embarrassment.


    "How could I say no? Even if you''re ugly, I would still be willing to bring you to meet my family." Ye Futian was picking on her, and Hua Jieyu pretended that she was mad about the joke.


    She smiled at Ye Futian and condensed the power around her again: "Ugly? Huh?"


    "Gentlemen never fight!" Ye Futian felt the threat in her gesture. He turned back and ran.


    "Am I a ugly? Tell me!" Hua Jieyu chased after him, laughing.


    "Fine, what if I call you my pretty wife?" Ye Futian responded.


    "Ye Futian!"


    They ran away.


    The guards exchanged glances. One said with awe, "Jesus, he''s so good with girls."


    "Too good," another guy agreed.


    This fairy-like girl just asked to meet the parents? They realized that being shameless was somehow attractive to girls, even beautiful ones like Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian walked into the feast together. Hua Jieyu asked him, "Is your whole family here for New Years?"


    "Yes, it''s our tradition." Ye Futian nodded, and soon they were beside the table. People in the room were quite shocked that Ye Futian had brought a gorgeous girl to the table at this specific moment.


    "What a beautiful girl!" Ye Mo was shocked by his cousin.


    Ye Rong blinked. She looked at Hua Jieyu, then Feng Qingxue. She had to admit that the newcomer was so much more beautiful.


    Feng Qingxue had never imagined that Hua Jieyu would just show up at the Ye family''s home at that particular moment, in such a meaningful situation. She felt extremely disappointed. She lowered her head and clenched the hem of her skirt in her hands.


    "Futian, introduce the girl please," Ye Rong said.


    "This is Hua Jieyu," Ye Futian started introducing, "She is�� Uh�� My professor''s daughter."


    "Professor''s daughter?"


    The people smiled and some type of ''understanding'' showed in their eyes. Hua Jieyu''s cheeks turned a bit hot and even felt a little panic but she did not reject this feeling. In fact, she even felt happy about it.


    "Why are you still standing there? Come have a seat." Ye Baichuan soon recognized who she was. He had a feeling that something was going on between this girl and his son when they had met after the Fall Quarter Exam. However, he never anticipated that his son was good enough to successfully bring her back home in such a short time.


    Ye Mo gave his spot to Hua Jieyu so that she could sit next to Ye Futian. After the introduction, Hua Jieyu started greeting the family members one by one in a sweet manner.


    Ye Futian was surprised. She had never treated him in such a manner before.


    "Hey, Ye Futian, how did you manage to trick her into coming here?" Ye Xiaoqin asked her cousin.


    "My amazing looks, obviously." Ye Futian smiled at his cousin. Ye Xiaoqin looked at her cousin with contempt. No matter how handsome he was, the girl sitting next to him had no match. In fact, Ye Xiaoqin never imagined that there could be a girl as beautiful as Hua Jieyu.


    After sitting down, Hua Jieyu did nothing but sit there quietly. However, the whole atmosphere had changed since her arrival. Soon after, Feng Qingxue mumbled to her father, "Dad, I''m full now. Let''s just go home."


    "Okay," Feng Ruhai nodded. Then the Feng family said goodbye and left. Ye Rong noticed that Feng Qingxue''s eyes avoided the boy and girl sitting together. She suddenly realized that what Feng Qingxue had said was right, rather than an excuse for rejection.


    "Dad, Mom, I''m going to take Jieyu out for a walk," Ye Futian said.


    "Sure, go ahead. Take care of her," Ye Baichuan responded.


    "Sure, we will," Ye Futian answered, then they left the house together.


    Colorful fireworks were everywhere above the city, and the area of Qingzhou Lake had the best view of them all. People were rafting in the lake, some of them families, and others couples. The restaurants on the shore were full of people. All of them were enjoying the beautiful scenery while drinking.


    "It''s beautiful here." Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian had come to a stop. While looking at the scenery around them, the happiness could be read in the girl''s eyes.


    "It is not as beautiful as you are," Ye Futian said. Hua Jieyu gave him a spiteful glance, but deep inside she was happy from being complimented like this. She had never felt this unique happiness before.


    This was apparently the first awakening of love for the sixteen-year-old girl.


    Hua Jieyu walked all around the place. There was a lot of entertainment going on. Lantern riddles, magic tricks�� Ye Futian kept following her. The cute smile on her face suddenly melted all the depression he had had these days. He finally realized that he could not be at peace without her. They had only spent three months together, but it was such a joyful time that they were already attached to each other without realizing it.


    On the shore of the lake, Hua Jieyu saw many tourists placing wish lanterns onto the water. She bought one, put it on the lake, closed her eyes, and made her wish.


    "I''m done," she opened her eyes and told Ye Futian.


    "What was your wish?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''m not telling you," Hua Jieyu smiled at him. Then she looked at the sky, where the bright fireworks show was going on, and mumbled to Ye Futian, "Are we in a relationship now?


    "Uh��" Ye Futian hesitated. He had not expected to be asked like this. "What kind of relationship?" Ye Futian blinked his eyes.


    Hua Jieyu looked up at the sky rather than at Ye Futian. But in the next moment, Ye Futian felt a tender hand touch his arm as if looking for something.


    Ye Futian reached over and grabbed the hand. A smile appeared on his lips. Feeling the softness of the hand, he squeezed it a little.


    Hua Jieyu blushed. She mumbled, "That kind of relationship ."


    Ye Futian closed his eyes, then opened them again. Together, they enjoyed the bright fireworks together, holding hands, like all happy couples would do.


    It was the first time Ye Futian realized that a fox could be so cute and silly!


    It seemed like time had stopped and everything had fallen silent. Neither of them spoke to the other. However, Ye Futian believed that the smile on Hua Jieyu''s face was even brighter than the fireworks.

 33 Parting

    Chapter 33: Parting


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The two coasts of Lake Qinghai were where the best restaurants in the city were. All of them had a picturesque view of the water.


    There was a group of people seated at the best table in one of those restaurants, enjoying the beautiful sight.


    Murong Qiu sat amongst this group. However, he was just a side character. Seated at the same table were people of a higher position than him.


    At the head of the table was a young man, Xia Fan. He was a big character from the East Sea Prefecture and beside him sat the son of the City Lord, Wei Feng.


    "Murong Qiu, any news from Mount Tianyao?" asked Xia Fan.


    "Our people are still clearing the mountains. We got some news this afternoon saying that they found a mysterious area. It''s possible that something could be hidden there," Murong Qiu reported.


    "If this goes on, my people will have to be buried on Mount Tianyao. Shouldn''t both of our groups send some more people over?" suggested Xia Fan.


    "I will bring it up with my father when I return," said Murong Qiu. Wei Feng also nodded in agreement.


    "Okay," said Xia Fan. He then added, "I hope you were not mistaken."


    "The Pavilion Lord of the Earth Elemental Pavilion is my father''s. My younger brother and I took care of everything personally. There''s no way I could have been mistaken; there was definitely something that looked like a dragon at Mount Tianyao," Murong Qiu reassured him.


    "Alright." Xia Fan turned his attention to outside the window. As fireworks filled the sky, two figures by the lake stood out to him. He was captivated by the girl''s beauty. He pointed in their direction and asked, "Who are they?"


    Murong Qiu looked over. His face frowned when he saw who Xia Fan was pointing at.


    "Hua Jieyu, the daughter of Qingzhou City''s ace, Hua Fengliu, and Ye Futian. He used to be a disciple of Qingzhou Academy, but left after rebelling against the academy. He is now Hua Fengliu''s disciple," Murong Qiu explained.


    "Hua Fengliu? As in the Qin Devil Hua Fengliu?" asked the man sitting beside Xia Fan.


    "My father did some research on him. He really is known as the Qin Devil in the City of Donghai," Murong Qiu replied.


    "If this is true, then that must be the daughter of Hua Fengliu and ''her,''" the man went into deep thought.


    "He''s the one who had his powers disabled by the Art Saint?" Xia Fan began to show interest. He would never have expected to meet such a legendary character from Donghai City here.


    "That''s right," confirmed the man. "That girl is a member of ''that family,'' so it''s best if you don''t try anything with her. It''ll only be trouble."


    He knew exactly what type of person Xia Fan was and felt the need to warn him.


    "I know my limits. Let''s go say hello," said Xia Fan. He smiled, then got up and began walking out of the restaurant. The man followed behind him, as did the rest of the group. They all left the restaurant and headed toward Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    At this moment, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were enjoying the view but something felt amiss. They turned their heads and saw the lot headed in their direction. Ye Futian noticed Murong Qiu amongst them and was curious as to what he was up to.


    "Miss Hua Jieyu, I am Xia Fan of the East Sea Prefecture," Xia Fan stopped in front of Hua Jieyu, his devilish eyes could not hide his admiration for her. No female he had ever met could compare to her beauty.


    "Can I help you with something?" Hua Jieyu''s tone was cold and aloof.


    "I''ve always admired the Qin Devil''s skills but have not had the honor of meeting him in person. To be able to run into you here is such an honor. Sorry to have disturbed you but if you are willing, please come join us at the restaurant for a meal," said Xia Fan. His smile was warm and inviting. Ye Futian furrowed his brows, he was completely invisible to this guy.


    "No," said Hua Jieyu. Even though she was smiling, one could feel that she was trying to distance herself.


    Besides Xia Fan, everyone had a strange look on their faces. Was she really going to be so blunt with him?


    "I shall be excused then." It took a minute for Xia Fan to speak again. As soon as he turned his back, the smile on his face disappeared, replaced with a stone-cold demeanor.


    "Mood ruined," complained Ye Futian. His hand reached out to try and grab Hua Jieyu''s.


    "What are you trying to do?" asked Hua Jieyu. She laughed and pulled her hand away.


    "I thought our relationship was now confirmed," said Ye Futian innocently.


    "Yeah, hasn''t our relationship already been confirmed?" teased Hua Jieyu.


    "Fox, how can you do this to me?" Ye Futian felt wronged. So, he couldn''t touch her now that they''re dating?


    "Doing what to you?" laughed Hua Jieyu. "Now that we''re dating, you are forbidden from flirting with other girls. Also, you have to come to me, no matter where I am."


    "No, our relationship hasn''t reached that point yet," Ye Futian felt like he was being scammed.


    "Just you try! Father said that you''re not trustworthy, and told me to hurry home. I have to go back," Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian. She did not want to leave him. They were going to have to part tomorrow. Would he be upset at her for leaving?


    Ye Futian looked sad. Hua Jieyu could not bear to see him like this. She reached her hand out to him.


    However, Ye Futian did not take her hand. He continued to look at her, "Do you really have to leave?"


    Hua Jieyu knew when Ye Futian said "leave," he did not simply mean their parting right now.


    "Parting ways after falling in love with one another, followed by a long journey to reunite. I never imagined my love life to be so melodramatic. Don''t you think you''re being a little unfair to me?" Ye Futian searched for something in her eyes. He obviously knew the kind of person she was after having spent months together. Even after realizing her feelings for him, there was no way she would pursue him actively. Plus, after what she had said before, Ye Futian knew exactly what was going on.


    Hua Jieyu had a sad look in her eyes. She looked down when she felt her eyes begin to water. She did not know how to explain it to him.


    "What do you want me to do?" she whispered, lifting her head to meet his eyes once again.


    Looking down at her flawless face and puppy dog eyes, Ye Futian felt his heart melt. "If it''s going to be melodramatic, so be it. Who told me to fall for a fox?"


    The power of beauty was so great.


    Hearing his words, she smiled, and her mood picked up. She looked at Ye Futian and said softly, "Okay, I''ll make it up to you. What if I don''t leave tonight and stay with you?"


    "Umm... Aren''t we going a little too fast?" asked Ye Futian, bright-eyed. Tonight? Stay with him?


    Upon seeing the perverted look on his face, Hua Jieyu lifted her foot to stomp on Ye Futian. "What kind of dirty thoughts are you having? I didn''t mean it like that."


    "Like what?" Ye Futian blinked at her innocently.


    "You...I regret everything I just said," she said. Before she could turn to leave, Ye Futian grabbed her by the arm and said, "I''ll walk you back."


    "Okay," Hua Jieyu nodded quietly, not trying to fight him on the subject. She let Ye Futian take her hand as they walked.


    "Let''s go take a boat," said Ye Futian. She nodded again, and they walked to the dock. After boarding the boat, they sailed down Lake Qinghai.


    On the lake were many other boats. The surface of the water reflected the sky, lit up with fireworks. The couple sat next to each other at the front of the boat, leaning on one another like a picture, which attracedg looks of admiration from passengers on passing boats.


    From across the water, a boat occupied by several people approached them. Two of them were shocked to see Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "General Qin; Senior Sister Qin Yi," Ye Futian called out to greet them.


    General Qin was dressed casually. He looked like any ordinary person, spending New Year''s Eve with his family. Seeing who Ye Futian was with, General Qin gave him a thumbs-up.


    "How romantic," teased Qin Yi.


    Ye Futian chuckled as if he was caught doing something wrong. Another boat floated past them and they heard someone say, "Senior Sister, you have a really nice figure!"


    By reflex, Ye Futian nodded and he hummed in agreement. He realized what he had just done immediately and turned towards Hua Jieyu, only to see her smiling wryly at him.


    "But I still like you better," he blurted out quickly.


    She huffed and turned away from him to stare ahead. Next, she felt an arm wrap around her waist. At first, she froze but then her body relaxed, tilting toward him and she laid her head on his shoulder. At that moment, everything was peaceful and beautiful. They felt closer than they ever had.


    By the time Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu made their way back to her residence at Qingzhou Academy, it was already late at night. Compared to the busy city streets, the campus was dead silent. Hua Fengliu had already gone to sleep.


    Stepping into her room, Hua Jieyu realized Ye Futian was still following behind her and her face flushed red.


    "You''re not going to kick me out this late at night, are you? It''s dangerous out there," Ye Futian got his words in before Hua Jieyu could say anything. When he saw how hard she was glaring at him, he added, "Do you have the heart to do that?"


    "You have your own room," she said to the shameless young man.


    "You''re leaving tomorrow. I just want to spend a little more time with you. I don''t even know when I''m going to be able to see you again," he told her in a soft voice. Even though Hua Jieyu knew he was just trying to sweet talk her, her heart still softened. She''d allow this as compensation.


    Walking next to the bed, she took off her outerwear, revealing her curvaceous figure. Ye Futian''s eyes lit up. Hua Jieyu chuckled as she watched him. "How''s my figure?"


    "Perfect," answered Ye Futian, feeling a bit warm.


    Hua Jieyu felt proud. She then climbed in between her sheets and had her back facing him as she blushed hard.


    What a tease! complained Ye Futian. Women really did hold grudges...


    "I can''t see you this way," said Ye Futian but Hua Jieyu ignored him. However, she turned around to face him moments later and said, "Stay there, don''t come any closer."


    After that, she closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep.


    Ye Futian sat there quietly and admired her beauty. Looking at her brought him warmth.


    It seemed like a long time had passed when Hua Jieyu opened her eyes again to find that Ye Futian was still watching her. Gently, she whispered, "I can''t fall asleep."


    "Let me play a song for you," he said lovingly. He left his seat, and seconds later the sound of the guqin floated into her room.


    It was peaceful and serene. The song flowed beautifully, full of love, but also with a hint of sadness. Hua Jieyu closed her eyes once again and drifted off to sleep. Quietly, two streams of tears rolled off her smiling face.


    So, this was love. The warmth of a first love, the fluttering of your heart when he held your hand, and the sadness of parting.


    ...


    Divine Prefecture Calendar, Year 10000. The morning of the first day of the new year.


    A large black eagle descended upon Qingzhou Academy. It waited outside of Hua Fengliu''s residence. Inside, Hua Jieyu was getting ready. Dressed in a long green dress, she lived up to her name as a goddess. Her beautiful smile never left her face.


    As she approached the entrance of the residence, she looked back at Ye Futian. He was still playing the guqin. However, his eyes were fixed on her. They looked into each other''s eyes and shared a smile. The look they shared bore a million unsaid words.


    There was no promise to be together forever; no promises of "till death do us part;" just one smile. After that, Hua Jieyu left. She settled atop the black eagle and then was off into the sky. Very quickly, they disappeared into the clouds.


    Ye Futian continued to play his instrument. Beside him, a handsome figure dressed in white stood silently and watched Ye Futian.

 34 The Crisis of Qingzhou City

    Chapter 34: The Crisis of Qingzhou City


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian played the guqin for a long while before he stopped. He sighed with a particular sadness. He felt empty deep inside after his fox was gone.


    "Stop your fake sadness. The City of Qingzhou belongs to East Sea Prefecture, and the City of Donghai is the capital. You can get there simply by sailing through the East Sea, and I don''t believe that you don''t know this." Hua Fengliu looked at Ye Futian and said, "I know you''ll leave once you reach the Glory Plane. With your talent and effort, it would be several months at most. Don''t tell me you have no interest in this."


    "Uh��" Ye Futian blinked his eyes and looked at Hua Fengliu. "As much as you already know, could you please just save me some honor? To reveal my plan like this makes me sound like a horrible person."


    "How far did you go last night?" Hua Fengliu asked Ye Futian with a smirk.


    Ye Futian felt really embarrassed and stressed. He had finally realized there was a difference between a professor and a father-in-law. Apparently, Mr. Hua was transitioning between the two roles smoothly.


    His embarrassment actually made Hua Fengliu laugh. He told Ye Futian, "Just stay here until you reach the Glory Plane. You''ll make it soon."


    "Sure, Pro�� father-in-law." Ye Futian understood Mr. Hua''s plan. Now his professor was supervising him on behalf of his girlfriend, and the only way to regain freedom was to reach the Glory Plane.


    "You glib-tongued boy," Hua Fengliu smiled at him and said, "I will teach you the songs I gave you before."


    "Yes, sir." Ye Futian nodded. Since this man was going to be his father-in-law, there was no reason not to obey his orders.


    Time passed by and the students of Qingzhou Academy came back to school after the break. Yu Sheng went to Mr. Hua''s place to look for Ye Futian. Sometimes they went to Mount Tianyao for cultivation, sometimes they practiced songs in the yard.


    One day, Ye Futian was sitting in the pavilion with his eyes closed. Suddenly, he felt that something was happening in his soul. He focused and all the fire-element Spiritual Qi of the universe gathered into a scarlet form around his body.


    It was dusk, and the orange sunlight fell on his body. Ye Futian started freedom meditation to perceive the vast essence of the universe. Soon after, constant flames concentrated over his body. It was not merely just Spiritual Qi at all. In fact, it had taken solid form, and the space around Ye Futian was turned into flaming territory.


    "Now his Spiritual Qi comes into form." Hua Fengliu happened to pass by and noticed the new progress made by Ye Futian. He smiled, genuinely pleased and proud.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes. He laughed and mumbled, "That''s the Glory Plane of Sorcery for me."


    "Professor," he greeted Hua Fengliu.


    "Since you have reached a new level of sorcery, the next step should be to break through in your martial arts," Hua Fengliu smiled and told him, then gave Ye Futian a letter. "Hua Jieyu sent it."


    "Fox sent me a letter?" Ye Futian''s eyes twinkled. He snatched the letter and could not wait to open it.


    The letter said, "You lecherous boy, I dare you not to flirt, or even talk, with other girls while I am away. I know it''s just unfair to you that I had to leave. But I promise you that when you come to Donghai city, I will compensate you for everything, big time."


    "Compensate me for everything?" Ye Futian felt excited about this "everything." He could not stop thinking about Hua Jieyu''s beautiful face and her curvy body that he saw the night before she left. In fact, he almost wanted to leave now.


    This girl knew him so well that she was throwing him a daring temptation.


    "How do you want to reply?" Hua Fengliu smiled at Ye Futian.


    "Professor, you peeked at the letter before giving it to me, didn''t you?" Ye Futian demanded when he saw Hua Fengliu''s eyes. On the envelope of the letter was written: "Ye Futian''s eyes only."


    "Huh, why do you think that I would do that?" Hua Fengliu tried to sound harsh.


    However, it didn''t work at all. The way Ye Futian looked at him indicated that he didn''t believe him at all.


    "The messenger bird is still here. Reply soon, or I''ll let her go," Hua Fengliu changed the topic. Ye Futian was frustrated. His professor was shameless too.


    "Help me reply and just say ''Fox, wait for me,''" Ye Futian told Hua Fengliu because he didn''t dare add anything else to the reply, since it was apparently being monitored by his father-in-law.


    "Okay." Hua Fengliu smiled and left. This snooping had severely damaged the image of his greatness in Ye Futian''s mind.


    Bang, bang�� Someone was stomping on the ground outside. Ye Futian felt like it was almost as strong as an earthquake. Soon, he saw it was Yu Sheng who was charging into the place. He was running so fast that his harsh steps actually cracked the ground.


    "What''s going on?" Ye Futian knew that there must be a reason for him to be in such a rush.


    "A monster tide is coming." Yu Sheng was serious.


    Ye Futian was shocked by this news. According to the historical profile, there had been several monster tides over the course of the city''s history, and every one of them had been considered catastrophic. Countless people died because of these disasters. The tide stopped three hundred years ago when the nation was unified. In fact, the main reason that Qingzhou Academy was built near Mount Tianyao was to prevent the monster tide. Fortunately, a monster tide had not come once during the last three hundred years. It had been such a long time that people had almost forgotten how horrifying it was.


    Hua Fengliu heard what he said, and he suddenly rushed to Yu Sheng''s side. "Yu Sheng, are you sure that this is a monster tide?"


    "Definitely," Yu Sheng nodded, "And it was possibly manmade. I actually saw some powerful sorcerers driving the monster herd."


    "Man-made?" Ye Futian and Hua Fengliu felt terrible about this. The people who had started this monster tide were committing such a serious felony. If the monster herd in Mount Tianyao broke out of the restricted area, thousands of people would die.


    "I will inform the academy. Ye Futian, go find General Qin and his daughter," Hua Fengliu commanded.


    Ye Futian nodded. He knew that the Dark Kylin Knighthood under the command of General Qin was the most reliable force to help guard the city. If there was indeed a monster tide coming to the city, the force of Dark Kylin Knighthood needed to be activated.


    They didn''t even think about seeking any help from the City Lord. He had been nominated by the provincial government and was not a native of the city. It was possible he would be the first one to leave when such a crisis came.


    Hua Fengliu hurried to the academy right after he made the command.


    "Let''s move," Ye Futian told Yu Sheng. They left the house, then ran to the location of the Dark Kylin Knighthood.


    The official students and general students of Qingzhou Academy were located in different regions. The areas for the cultivation of martial arts and divination arts were also separate.


    The School of Martial Arts was located on the mountainside. The arrival of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng quickly raised a lot of attention. They had become quite famous even among the official students. In fact, most of the students had witnessed the fight when Heiyan Academy intruded and challenged them.


    "Why are you here?" someone asked.


    "I''m here for Ms. Qin. Do you know where she is?" Ye Futian said.


    "Looks like it''s an emergency." The student looked at Ye Futian, "However, since you have quit the academy, you are not allowed to enter according to the rules."


    "This is urgent," Ye Futian insisted.


    The student realized that Ye Futian was here to warn of something serious, then he said, "I saw Ms. Qin go to the place of the Dark Kylin. I guess she was going to hone her riding and archery skills. Go ahead and find her."


    "Thanks," Ye Futian responded, then ran to the practice area of the Dark Kylin Knighthood. However, on his way there, some people blocked him. Mo Lanshan looked at Ye Futian with contempt and said, "This is the School of Martial Arts. You are not allowed to enter this place. Leave now."


    "I have an emergency for Ms. Qin. A monster tide is coming to the city." Ye Futian remembered this guy. The first time his natal spirit awakened, Mo Lanshan had invited Yu Sheng to join the Dark Kylin, and then tried to humiliate Ye Futian badly. A student from the School of Sorcery had once told Ye Futian that Mo Lanshan had feelings for Ms. Qin. It looked like he was jealous now.


    "A monster tide hasn''t occurred for more than three hundred years in this city. How could this be true without even a slight sign? Even if it was true, how are you the first one to see it coming? Stop trying to look for Qin Yi with such a lame excuse, boy," Mo Lanshan responded in a cold voice. When he was with Qin Yi, he had always talked maliciously about Ye Futian, but what Ye Futian had done just made him look like a total fool. Qin Yi had a bone to pick with him because of his contempt for Ye Futian.


    What was intolerable for him was that Ye Futian used to flirt with Qin Yi so often. They had even hugged��


    "I have no time for games with you. Back off." Ye Futian meant it. He knew that Yu Sheng would not give a false alarm for such an emergency. If the city were unprepared for the monster tide, buildings would be wiped out, and thousands would die.


    Mo Lanshan was humiliated by Ye Futian''s attitude. He believed that Ye Futian was embarrassing him only because of his contempt in the past.


    "People say that Hua Jieyu has left the city. No wonder you''re so desperate. Even someone as talented as you can''t be matched with a perfect beauty like her, am I right? And you just changed your target?" Mo Lanshan started to humiliate Ye Futian, believing that Ye Futian was after Qin Yi because he had failed to pursue Hua Jieyu.


    Bang! Yu Sheng stomped on the ground, a frenzy of energy all around his body. The group around Mo Lanshan frowned at Yu Sheng, and they prepared to fight. Someone said, "This is our place. You better not try to fight us here."


    Ye Futian stared at Mo Lanshan. He was determined, knowing that it was the only way to solve this meaningless quarrel.


    "Yu Sheng, are you ready?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Sure," Yu Sheng nodded.


    Ye Futian gave a simple order. "Go!"


    As soon as he finished the command, Yu Sheng charged right toward the group to attack them.

 35 Emperor Ye Qing

    Chapter 35: Emperor Ye Qing


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As Yu Sheng took a few steps forward, a golden force field surrounded him, just like golden armor.


    Mo Lanshan and his people looked very serious. Everyone charged at Yu Sheng with long spears gripped tightly in their hands.


    A loud explosion erupted from a single punch from Yu Sheng. Even his fist that he used to enclose the tip of an attacking spear was golden. The point of the weapon was enveloped by his fist when a cracking sound was heard. The point had been broken off by the enormous amount of strength exerted by Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian continued to charge forward. He had no time to waste on these people.


    However, Mo Lanshan had no intentions of letting him pass. Avoiding Yu Sheng, Mo Lanshan aimed his ice-frosted spear at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian did not slow down his steps. While in a light sprint, he reached out both of his hands. In a second, bursts of lightning flashed around him.


    With the movement of his hands, a storm of lightning and thunder was projected toward Mo Lanshan.


    "Excursive Sorcery. You''re a Glory Plane sorcerer," knights observing the battle were shocked. The speed in which Ye Futian was cultivating was unbelievable.


    Sorcerers had a natural advantage in battles with knights. Even though Mo Lanshan was a three-starred Glory Plane knight, he still did not dare underestimate his opponents, especially if it was Ye Futian.


    The intent of battle flowed through the spear, forming a white light around the weapon. Mo Lanshan waved his spear around, and the white light enlarged to cascade around his body; but it was no use against Ye Futian''s storm attacks. However, his defensive spear spell was able to create an impenetrable force field around him.


    Ye Futian still did not stop proceeding. He was closing in on Mo Lanshan. As a sorcerer, he was supposed to keep his distance while battling with a knight but he chose to ignore this rule. It was easy to tell how confident he was.


    "How presumptuous!" Mo Lanshan looked a bit embarrassed. Then, he saw Ye Futian swipe downwards. Almost simultaneously, the thunderous force formed into a flash of lightning, cutting straight through his force field.


    A spell, the Thunder Lash. Even though it was only an Awakening level spell, when used by Ye Futian, it was different. It collected an enormous amount of thunderous force and contained the powers of the Glory Plane. To add to this, Ye Futian was a Mandate Sorcerer. His ability to perceive these spells was naturally stronger than others. When he applied these things to his spells, every attack he made would be more powerful than that of others in the same plane.


    The lash continued cutting down, the spear in Mo Lanshan''s hand shook and was ready to take on the lash.


    However, at that same moment, Ye Futian''s body became engulfed in flames. Raging flames were radiating off his body and made their way towards Mo Lanshan. Another spell, the Burning of Silence. Although it exhausted a large amount of Fire Elemental Spiritual Qi, it''s destructiveness was frightening. It was considered a close-range spell.


    The look on Mo Lanshan''s face changed drastically. He quickly summoned all the Spiritual Qi in his body and created a force field. It acted as an armor to protect him against the attack of the Burning of Silence. Ye Futian''s attacks were so quick that it made it difficult for Mo Lanshan to retaliate. The Burning of Silence was a spell feared by bi-elemental sorcerers because it was able to continuously release spells of different elements for a short period of time.


    BOOM! A fist came down on Mo Lanshan''s poorly defended head. He was propelled directly to the ground, blood gushing violently from his wound.


    Ye Futian simply stepped over Mo Lanshan''s body, not even bothering to spare him a glance. Onlookers felt bad for Mo Lanshan. Though Ye Futian had not said a single insulting word, his disregard for Mo Lanshan was even more insulting.


    Sorcerers were, indeed, stronger than cultivators of martial arts; but Ye Futian was not exactly an ordinary sorcerer.


    When the bystanders looked back to the other battle going on, they saw that Yu Sheng had defeated multiple high-leveled martial arts cultivators. They were confused. Yu Sheng was not using any sorcery, just the pure power of martial arts.


    These two were monsters!


    When Ye Futian made it to the training grounds, he saw Qin Yi sitting on top of a black qilin, practicing archery. Qin Yi gave off an air of valiance with her hair tied up. Her figure looked extraordinary in the tightly fitted clothing she wore but Ye Futian was in no mood to stop and admire this view. He called out to her, "Senior Sister Qin."


    She followed his voice and was confused to see him. She dismounted the black qilin and jogged towards Ye Futian. Still a distance away from him she asked, "What are you doing here?"


    "There may be a monster tide erupting on Mount Tianyao. You should inform General Qin as soon as possible," said Ye Futian.


    Her gaze froze and her face fell. She then sprinted towards the black qilin and mounted the creature. As they were about to pass by Ye Futian, she said, "Hop on, we''ll talk as we go."


    Something sparked in his eyes and he got on behind Qin Yi without hesitation.


    "What happened?" asked Qin Yi, worried. A monster tide could only mean calamity.


    "Yu Sheng has been training on Mount Tianyao and noticed it," replied Ye Futian.


    Qin Yi looked serious and said, "Hold onto me."


    "Ugh..." Ye Futian hesitated but eventually grabbed onto her when he lost his balance as the black qilin rose into the air. He smiled bitterly and thought to himself, Fox, I''m not doing this on purpose...


    On the ground, the people of the School of Martial Arts were speechless as they looked up at the sky to witness this scene. Why was his shameless jerk so popular with beautiful girls? First, it was Hua Jieyu and now that she was gone he was trying to make a move on the goddess Qin Yi.


    "You bastard!" Mo Lanshan had just gotten his senses back when he witnessed the scene as well.


    BOOM! He did not notice when Yu Sheng came back. A punch landed on his face and Mo Lanshan was thrown on the ground once again.


    After hitting Mo Lanshan, Yu Sheng looked up to see Ye Futian leaving with Qin Yi and quietly made his way back home alone. He was mentally cursing Ye Futian as well. He really was a bastard.


    In the sky above the City of Qingzhou, the black qilin soared in one specific direction. It was going fast and the wind was whipping against their faces. The situation that Ye Futian and Qin Yi were in was rather questionable, but he had no time to think about that. His only thought was that they had to reach their destination quickly.


    However, before they could get there, they noticed a whole flock of black qilins up ahead soaring through the sky. Seeing this, Ye Futian thought, Could it be that word had already reached General Qin?


    They caught up with the group very quickly. The person leading the group looked surprised to see Qin Yi. "Young Miss."


    "What are you guys doing here?" Qin Yi was equally surprised.


    "A monster tide is about to wash through the City of Qingzhou," the leader answered.


    "I came for the same reason. Looks like father already knows. Where is he?" asked Qin Yi.


    "He''s taking care of some business by Lake Qinghai. We rushed here first," explained the leader.


    "Okay then. You guys head there first; I''ll go to father," suggested Qin Yi. The two parties separated once again. The knights of the Dark qilin Knighthood turned to take a quick glance at the young man sitting behind Qin Yi.


    At that moment, outside a restaurant on the lake shore, stood a group of people from the Knighthood. Their gathering attracted a lot of attention. General Qin was having his people surround the restaurant, what was going on?


    Naturally, when Ye Futian and Qin Yi arrived, they were met with this scene. They stood behind Qin Shuai, trying not to disturb him. He must be busy with something.


    In the restaurant, a group of people appeared. Leading them was a young man. Upon seeing this group, Ye Futian furrowed his brows. He had seen these people before. It was on the night of New Year''s Eve and the person leading them was Xia Fan.


    "Would General Qin like to join me for a drink upstairs?" asked Xia Fan frivolously.


    "Is this the doing of your people?" Qin Shuai asked coldly.


    "I don''t seem to understand what General Qin is saying." Xia Fan played with his cup and did not look at Qin Shuai.


    "The monster tide on Mount Tianyao. Are you really going to put the whole City of Qingzhou in danger for your greed?" questioned Qin Shuai.


    "I already said I don''t know what you''re talking about and please be aware of the tone you use when speaking to me," Xia Fan smiled with his eyes but his attitude was still as arrogant as before. He did not give a crap about the protector of Qingzhou City.


    When he finished speaking, the people beside him took a step forward and the tension intensified.


    "I can''t believe that the City Lord''s office and the Murong Chamber of Commerce had something to do with it too," said General Qin as he looked at Wei Feng and Murong Qiu. His sharp gaze caused them to lower their heads, not daring to look him in the eyes.


    Finally, his gaze fell back to Xia Fan and told him chillingly, "You want to use Qingzhou City to satisfy your ambitions? I already sent people to spread the news to all of the East Sea Prefecture, that traces of ''him'' were found here."


    Finishing his words, Qin Shuai turned to leave. Xia Fan''s expression darkened, and he glared at Qin Shuai''s back, wanting to kill him so badly.


    How dare Qin Shuai try to ruin his plans? When Xia Fan had found out about the secret of Qingzhou city, he sent someone to deliver the news back to the East Sea Prefecture. His father then sent a professional. The purpose of that was to keep things under wraps but if Qin Shuai really spread the news, then it was bound to attract attention.


    Did Qin Shuai know about this secret early on?


    Qin Shuai led the group of knights up into the sky. Quickly, Qin Yi, who was accompanied by Ye Futian followed right behind them. Then, she was beside her father.


    "Father, what exactly is going on? Who are those people?" asked Qin Yi.


    "Sweetie, the City of Qingzhou is in danger and we don''t know what is going to happen next," answered Qin Shuai. "The City of Qingzhou is under the jurisdiction of the East Sea Prefecture and that person before was the son of the prefecture chief. I''ve been keeping an eye on him since he arrived in Qingzhou City, so I knew that he sent people to Mount Tianyao to search for hidden secrets. I just can''t believe he actually found it."


    "Mount Tianyao? Secrets?" Qin Yi was even more confused now.


    "Long before you were born, my master wanted to obliterate the big demon of Mount Tianyao to save ourselves from future problems. He sent people into the mountains but realized that it was an impossible mission after paying a heavy price. However, he did find something important on Mount Tianyao," Qin Shuai reminisced. His mind seemed to be miles away. To this day, he could never forget the shocking scene he witnessed all those years ago.


    "What did you guys find there?" Qin Yi asked.


    Qin Shuai looked at his daughter and spoke the forbidden name, "Emperor Ye Qing."

 36 The Crisis of Qingzhou City Has Doubled

    Chapter 36: The Crisis of Qingzhou City Has Doubled


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The ground of Qingzhou Academy kept shaking like an earthquake.


    The bell sounded in the academy to call all the disciples. At the same time, along the perimeter of Mount Tianyao, the army of Dark Kylin spread out for the approaching enemy.


    The words "Monster Tide" were being spread throughout the whole academy. Now the Dark Kylin Knighthood knew that Ye Futian was not joking. A monster tide was seriously approaching this place.


    Mount Tianyao was such a vast place that no one knew exactly how many monsters were inside. If it was a minor tide, they could still hold it, but if it was a huge tide, the whole city could be destroyed.


    When Ye Futian and the others arrived, they saw that the battle against the monsters had already begun. Countless monsters were gushing out of the mountain. People from the School of Martial Arts were standing at the frontlines, while the School of Sorcery released spells behind them. The whole mountain was neary engulfed in fire and the earth was fissured from the battle. The guards were just trying to lock down the entire place.


    However, there were not only monsters running around on Mount Tianyao. A herd of demons was flying to the battleground as well, and they were about to launch an attack.


    The big chiefs of the academy saw this from a distance, and they now looked extremely nervous. They realized that once the monsters broke through the front lines and attacked the city, they would be unstoppable.


    "The whole city has now entered a state of siege. Inform the major families to protect the city together. Soldiers of Dark Kylin, I command you to spread out and secure the perimeter of Mount Tianyao," Qin Shuai commanded, then the black Kylin under him flew to the herd of monsters that were flying toward the army.


    "Dad!" Qin Yi was worried about her father.


    "Girl, stay away from Mount Tianyao," Qin Shuai told his daughter. Qin Yi was still worried about her father, and she was trying to follow him. Ye Futian yelled at her from behind, "Stay here! If you go with your father, you will just distract him!"


    Qin Yi knew that he was right. She was only in the eighth Plane of Awakening of Martial Arts, and she was not strong enough to fight against the monsters.


    "Ye Futian, what should we do now?" Qin Yi looked back at Ye Futian. She looked really flustered. They were practically pressed against each other.


    Ye Futian felt Qin Yi''s nervousness. He blinked his eyes and asked, "Is there anything I can do to help?"


    "��" Qin Yi realized that they were too close and suddenly blushed. She punched Ye Futian''s chest with her fist and cursed him, "You shameless bastard."


    She turned around to avoid further body contact. Ye Futian smiled and tried to comfort her. "Don''t worry. It''ll be fine, and so will your father."


    "I know." Qin Yi nodded. She understood Ye Futian was just trying to soothe her feelings. "Just get off my side." Her face was still red.


    Ye Futian actually listened to her order this time. He looked into the distance, and he did not feel as assured as he seemed. This was a dangerous monster tide. The most he could do was comfort Ms. Qin, but he couldn''t help much besides that.


    All the people in the city had been informed of the monster tide outburst. All the significant families were now deploying their military forces. This fight was related to the survival of the entire city, and no one would survive if they lost. The cultivators were also rushing to Mount Tianyao to help secure the perimeter. If they didn''t, once the monsters broke through the guards, their homes would be destroyed.


    Inside the city, a remarkable troop was marching towards Qingzhou Academy. The troop was made up of foot soldiers and knights. The ground was shaking from the force of their marching, and the people who saw them were shocked.


    Some of them are the Municipal Guard of this city, some are the soldiers of the Murong Family. But who are the other guys? People were curious about this mysterious army.


    Some people noticed the symbols on their robes, and suddenly they sensed the danger.


    "They are the powerful warriors and mages from the Heiyan Academy!"


    "How could that happen? The City of Heiyan is our nemesis. Why are the Municipal Guard soldiers with the army from the City of Heiyan?"


    "I don''t know." People were now extremely nervous about this army. The monster tide was going to attack the city soon, but the Qingzhou Municipal Guard was not protecting the city with the Dark Kylin Knighthood. In fact, they were marching with soldiers from the City of Heiyan. The City of Qingzhou truly was in danger.


    This mighty troop was directly approaching Qingzhou Academy. When they arrived, the people of Qingzhou Academy were still fighting against the monsters with the Dark Kylin Knighthood.


    Such a huge army soon attracted the attention from all the people who were fighting. A lot of students froze when they saw the newcomers on the battleground.


    "Wei Meng." Qin Shuai stepped out and stared at Wei Meng, the Lord of the City of Qingzhou. His face was ghastly pale. "You released the monsters from Mount Tianyao, and are now working along with the people from City of Heiyan. This is your territory!"


    "I don''t understand you. What I''m doing now is completely under orders," Wei Meng said in a cold voice.


    "Xia Fan, what are you doing exactly?" Qin Shuai noticed that Xia Fan was in the crowd. An evil light flickered across Xia Fan''s eyes. He was looking at Qin Shuai with contempt. He believed that Qin Shuai was only the commander of a private troop of a small city and shouldn''t be allowed to talk to him in such a rude manner.


    "Where is the Headmaster of Qingzhou Academy?" Xia Fan ignored Qin Shuai''s question. He looked over the Qingzhou Academy group for the Headmaster. The Headmaster stepped out of the crowd. His hair was all white and gray, and it was apparent that he was over the age of seventy. However, he still looked graceful. He was the Headmaster of Qingzhou Academy, Gu Mu. He had left the school business for others long ago and focused on his cultivation. In fact, without the monster tide, he would not have even shown up in this place.


    "Mr. Xia, the Lord of East Sea Prefecture, why are you here?" Gu Mu asked Xia Fan.


    "Mount Tianyao has been a potential danger for the City of Qingzhou for many years. As the Lord of Donghai Province, I have come here as soon as possible to consult with the City Lord about how to defuse the situation. Therefore, I have summoned the army of the Municipal Guard, the Murong Family, and the City of Heiyan. We are going to break into Mount Tianyao, and we need your cooperation." Xia Fan laughed.


    Gu Mu didn''t believe his explanation. However, the crisis of this city had doubled. They were now surrounded by the monsters and the army. If he said no to Xia Fan, they might all be wiped out.


    "Okay, we will cooperate," Gu Mu answered.


    "I believe Mr. Gu is making this decision for the good of the city. General Qin is the ultimate guard of this city, and I believe you agree with Mr. Gu, right?" Xia Fan looked at Qin Shuai again.


    "You are shameless." All the people of Qingzhou Academy were cursing Xia Fan in their hearts. They looked at him with contempt.


    "You have summoned quite a lot of powerful people from the City of Heiyan. What promise did you make to them?" Qin Shuai asked Xia Fan.


    "General, they''re merely here to help. There are absolutely no conditions involved. Now, I know you''re on edge, but I hope you can settle your attitude," Xia Fan said arrogantly. He had summoned a lot of influential people from the East Sea Prefecture and the City of Heiyan, so he had the advantage now.


    "Okay," Qin Shuai agreed reluctantly. He knew that there must be some conspiracy occurring under the table. However, with reinforcements breaking into Mount Tianyao, they could actually push the frontline and minimize the damage to the City of Qingzhou. In fact, if he didn''t agree and the two groups fought against each other right here, the result would be even worse.


    "Then, let''s go now." Xia Fan smiled.


    "Mr. Xia, I want someone from Qingzhou Academy," a man from Heiyan asked Xia Fan.


    "Who is it?" Xia Fan smiled.


    The middle-aged man looked through the crowd of Qingzhou Academy and his eyes targeted Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian suddenly had a bad feeling about it. This middle-aged man was the same man with eagle''s eyes who had led the intruders to Qingzhou Academy last time.


    "Ye Futian, have you quit the academy yet?" The eagle-eyed man asked him.


    "What do you mean?" Ye Futian responded with a smile.


    "Last time I invited you to Heiyan Academy, you turned me down. I believe you won''t mind if I raise this question again."


    "I did quit the academy, but I already have my own master, so I''m sorry that I still have to turn you down this time," Ye Futian answered.


    "Who is so lucky to be your master?" He kept asking.


    "I am," Hua Fengliu responded from the crowd.


    "It''s okay. In fact, Heiyan Academy is still willing to accept you even though you already have a master." The eagle-eyed man would not let him go easily.


    "Heiyan Academy is making a really generous gesture, and I believe Mr. Hua, the Guqin Devil, would not prevent this, right?" Xia Fan also tried to persuade Hua Fengliu. He had not anticipated that Heiyan Academy would be looking for Ye Futian.


    "He''s too good for your academy," Hua Fengliu said peacefully.


    In the Heiyan Academy crowd, an old man whose eyes had been closed for a long time suddenly opened his eyes and asked, "Hua Fengliu, you want to fight?"


    "Mr. Hua, you''re just causing me trouble." Xia Fan laughed, and the army around him stepped forward. They definitely had not dared to mess with Hua Fengliu when he was young. But now, since his natal spirit had been destroyed, they didn''t fear him anymore.


    Hua Fengliu began condensing power and preparing to attack. However, Ye Futian suddenly started laughing, "You know what? I feel so honored you keep inviting me to your academy. I''ve changed my mind, and I believe Mr. Hua will not stop me, right?"


    Hua Fengliu glanced at him. He knew that this boy was really shrewd and there must have been a reason he suddenly changed his mind. He agreed and said, "Okay, I don''t mind, but your academy must make sure he is safe. Otherwise, you will taste my rage."


    "Don''t worry, Mr. Hua." The eagle-eyed man was happy. Ye Futian had defeated someone as talented as Yun Tianhao. There were only two options for Heiyan Academy: either accept him or kill him.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward. Ye Futian knew that he was trying to stop this decision. He shook his head, and Yu Sheng stopped. However, Yu Sheng was still angry and confused.


    A young girl and a young man came out of the Heiyan Group. The girl smiled and greeted Ye Futian, "Now that you have been accepted by our academy, come over here!"


    Ye Futian nodded and walked toward the Heiyan group. He ogled the body of the young girl and said, "If I knew there was a girl so beautiful in your academy, I would have said yes the last time."


    "You''re a smooth talker, boy." The sexy girl laughed.


    "Please take good care of me in the future." Ye Futian naturally held the girl in his arms, and the girl also seemed to feel comfortable. She laughed even harder, "Of course I will, you cute boy."


    "You shameless bastard." The people of Qingzhou Academy were swearing at Ye Futian.


    "Traitor."


    "How could a student of our academy be so off color?" People kept cursing him. Qin Yi looked sad about what had just happened.


    Xia Fan was jeering at all of this. He believed Hua Fengliu must be extremely embarrassed now, seeing the boyfriend of his daughter betray the academy and flirt with another girl.


    However, he was surprised that Hua Fengliu was still calm. It almost seemed like Hua Fengliu had no idea about the relationship between Ye Futian and his daughter. Xia Fan believed it was possible. Otherwise, Hua Fengliu would have been furious.


    Still, he wondered how such a lame boy could get Hua Jieyu to fall in love with him.


    What he did not know was that Hua Fengliu was calm because he knew Ye Futian all too well.


    "Okay, let''s head in there," Xia Fan made the command. He seemed to be pretty satisfied with all that had happened.

 37 The Statue and the Coiling Dragon

    Chapter 37: The Statue and the Coiling Dragon


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The army of people headed into Mount Tianyao together. The City of Qingzhou had never had an expedition of this level before.


    Mount Tianyao covered a large area of terrain, far larger than that of the main urban areas of Qingzhou City. It was difficult to imagine how many demons and monsters lurked in these mountains. Many people had attempted to clear Mount Tianyao of demons and monsters but to no avail.


    Now, because of Xia Fan, Qingzhou Academy and the city''s first line of defense, the Dark Qilin Knighthood, were forced to send troops of people into the mountains. In addition, the Qingzhou Guards and Heiyan City''s army were following behind them. The sheer number of people there was seemingly more impactful than the monster tide.


    The Dark Qilin Knighthood charged forward on the path that Qingzhou Academy''s School of Divination Arts had cleared for them using sorcery. Their advance forced the demons and monsters deeper into the mountains, but Qin Shuai was not excited about this at all. The troop was attacking at full-force, but there were still demons and monsters slipping past them left and right into the main city. All they could do now was try their best to eliminate as many demons and monsters as possible.


    "Lead the way," Xia Fan ordered the middle-aged man ahead of him. His people had left markers in the mountains the last time they were here looking for the historical remains of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Ye Futian and the people of Heiyan Academy were walking at the back of the group. He had already made some inquiries. Ye Futian found out that the girl beside him was named Tang Yue, twenty years old. She was definitely a flirtatious beauty. Ye Futian and Tang Yue got familiar with each other fairly quickly.


    "Senior Sister, a beauty like you must have many suitors, right?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Why do you ask?" laughed Tang Yue.


    "Do I have a chance?" he asked her. She looked at Ye Futian and chuckled, "You do look pretty handsome but it''s a shame that you''re a little too young for my liking."


    "Senior Sister, I''m already an adult. Sixteen is not too young," said Ye Futian. When Tang Yue saw how serious he was, she could not help but burst out in laughter. The young men of Heiyan Academy glared at Ye Futian when they heard Tang Yue laughing.


    "Senior Sister, do you know why we''re here?" asked Ye Futian.


    "The elders say that there are historical remains in Mount Tianyao," explained Tang Yue.


    Ye Futian shook his head. "Senior Sister, let me tell you a secret."


    He then leaned in close to whisper softly in her ear, "In Mount Tianyao, there is a secret methods index left behind by Emperor Ye Qing.


    Tang Yue''s expression turned serious and she looked at Ye Futian. "Is what you said true?"


    It looked like Xia Yan had, indeed, kept this information to himself. It was hard to blame him though because this had to do with Emperor Ye Qing so, of course, he would keep quiet about it.


    "Of course! My master is ''THE'' Hua Fengliu and I also know General Qin. It''s only natural that I know this secret. Why else would they have made such a big fuss?" said Ye Futian.


    "Wait for me here," Tang Yue finished her sentence and left. Ye Futian watched as she walked up to speak with the elder that had wanted to challenge Hua Fengliu and made her way back. "Come with me," she said to Ye Futian.


    He followed her to stand in front of the elder who had his eyes closed. "Where did you hear this information?" the elder asked Ye Futian.


    "May I ask what your position is at Heiyan Academy?" questioned Ye Futian.


    The elder opened his eyes, his gaze sharp, "Why do you ask?"


    "Since I''m going to pursue an education at Heiyan Academy, it''s only common sense to want to learn from the best of the best," explained Ye Futian.


    "I am Tang Mo, the Headmaster of Heiyan Academy. If you do well maybe I will think about teaching you myself," said the elder. Beside them, Tang Yue smiled and explained, "He''s my grandfather."


    Ye Futian bowed down and began to blabber baseless information. "Since you''re the headmaster and Senior Sister Tang Yue''s grandfather I would not dare withhold information from you. There has always been a rumor in the City of Qingzhou that our city was where Emperor Ye Qing originated and that he had left an heirloom here. To obtain the heirloom was to obtain the right to inherit his position and his secret methods index. A lot of people think it''s just a legend but it''s all true. The heirloom is up in Mount Tianyao; General Qin has personally seen it in the past."


    "Why didn''t he take it then?" Tang Mo was skeptical.


    "Headmaster, do you really think Emperor Ye Qing''s heirloom is that easy to obtain? If it were, why would Xia Fan do all of this?" asked Ye Futian.


    Tang Mo squinted his eyes in suspicion. "Do you know what happens if you lie to me?"


    "I didn''t know that Headmaster was kept in the dark about this. I was simply making conversation with Senior Sister Tang Yue, why would I purposely lie to her? It''s just that Xia Fan has already gathered professionals from the East Sea Prefecture but he''s using people from both academies to fend off the demons and monsters instead. I think he''s up to no good," answered Ye Futian.


    "Are you trying to turn us against each other?" Tang Mo was extremely sharp. His great aura was suffocating Ye Futian.


    "When you reach the site of the remains you''ll know whether or not Xia Fan has been lying to you. If what I said was false, then my life is in your hands but if what I said was true, then you should start being wary," said Ye Futian.


    "Why?" asked Tang Mo.


    "I don''t know what Xia Fan promised you but I''m sure you know what the inheritance of Emperor Ye Qing signifies. When the troops are done dealing with the demons and monsters, it would be easy to get his hands on the heirloom. After he accomplishes his goal, it would be a piece of cake for him to kill off all the witnesses. Headmaster, you must take caution," Ye Futian spoke solemnly. Up ahead, it was loud as the troops advanced and the boundaries of the mountain were on lockdown by the aces of Heiyan Academy. There would be no need to worry about a leak of information if worst comes to worst.


    "Do you hate the Vice Chief?" Tang Mo asked suddenly.


    Ye Futian lifted his head to look at Tang Mo. After a short silence, he nodded, "Of course! Xia Fan will do anything to get his way. He even started the monster tide to get us all on the mountain. The City of Qingzhou is my home, I can''t allow him to bring harm to our city. If his plans succeed, it would be difficult for even me to make it out alive. If you don''t believe me, then forget it; but if you choose to believe me then please join hands with us. My master is Hua Fengliu, and I''m acquainted with General Qin. Even if the two schools have always been rivals, it''s not impossible to work together just this once. If we can get our hands on Emperor Ye Qing''s heirloom, wouldn''t it all be worth it? You would be able to do anything you want, without fearing repercussions from a prefecture chief.


    "Tang Yue, take him away," Tang Mo ordered abruptly with a sullen look. Tang Yue walked towards Ye Futian.


    He bowed once more to Tang Mo and left with Tang Yue, not saying another word.


    "What do you think?" Tang Mo asked the eagle-eyed man at his side.


    "That guy has got quite a mouth on him. We can''t trust him completely. The key now is to wait and see if what we find is truly the historical remains of Emperor Ye Qing," reasoned Eagle Eyes.


    "And if they really are his remains?" Tang Mo continued to question.


    "Father, if it is actually the heirloom of Emperor Ye Qing, then what would a city like Qingzhou be to us? If we got our hands on the heirloom, not even the entire East Sea area would be able to stop us," said Eagle Eyes. Tang Mo went into deep thought. Even though Ye Futian''s words were evidently trying to make the groups question one another, he had a point. With the heirloom in his hands, he would be unstoppable.


    "Do you think he''ll be of use to us?" Tang Mo asked.


    Eagle Eyes thought for a while then shook his head. "Whether it be his gift or his personality, he''s too hard to control."


    "That''s true. Yun Tianhao is naturally prideful and thinks only of cultivation but this young man is different," Tang Mo agreed with his son.


    "Even though Yun Tianhao lost to this fellow, he is still a Mandate Sorcerer. Yun Tianhao will only get stronger and more powerful. He has already left for the City of Donghai to seek more knowledge. He will definitely make a glorious return. Ye Futian on the other hand, if we don''t get him under control...," Eagle Eyes looked at Tang Mo and then shared an unspoken understanding.


    The large group was advancing very quickly. Along the way, they stepped over countless carcasses of different types of demons and monsters but they had also suffered many attacks. Both Qingzhou Academy and the Dark Qilin Knighthood made many sacrifices, some dead, some hurt.


    The fog on Mount Tianyao grew thicker. It would be impossible to locate anything in the mountains from up in the air. This was the only reason Xia Fan chose to advance on foot.


    During their long expedition, Headmaster Gu Mu of Qingzhou Academy and Qin Shuai went looking for Xia Fan. When they found him, they made their intentions clear, "If everyone else continues to take a back seat while our people from the academy and the knighthood clear the way, we will leave the way we came."


    "Are you threatening me?" Xia Fan stared at Qin Shuai who had just listed his terms.


    "Think what you will," said Qin Shuai calmly. They were no longer in the City of Qingzhou. They had initially agreed to Xia Fan''s forceful request because of the monster tide but now that they were deep into Mount Tianyao, things were different.


    Xia Fan did not dare to push his luck.


    "Fine," Xia Fan gave in and called out, "Headmaster Tang Mo."


    "I understand," Tang Mo nodded and ordered his people to take the place of the people of Qingzhou Academy and the Dark Qilin Knighthood at the front line. Ye Futian stepped up with them. This area with the deeper fog housed more powerful demons and monsters. Sometimes, there were even high-leveled Dharma rank demons and monsters. To defeat these creatures, the elders would have to step in.


    Time passed, and day by day, there were fewer and fewer people in their expedition, and a large number of those who were hurt were actually their most powerful people in the group. The weaker people were being protected in the back of the group. Nobody would send the weak out to die, so they were the safest.


    Whenever Ye Futian was met with danger, he ran to hide amongst the Heiyan Academy aces so he would be safe as well. He was not about to risk his life for the Heiyan Academy. A lot of people scorned him when he did this, but he did not care at all.


    Finally, when they had gotten far enough within the mountains, the fog began to clear. This area was bright, maybe even brighter than it had been off the mountains. Spiritual Qi was gathered here.


    "This area is heavy with Spiritual Qi, but the surrounding areas are layered in fog. Could it be...," someone in the group spoke up.


    "That''s right. We''re here," said an ace beside Xia Fan. He was excited. The lot continued to advance, and they started to realize that there was not a single demon or monster in this area.


    "What is that?" someone pointed ahead and screamed. As they got closer, the view became clearer, and everyone''s hearts began to pound. What they saw was an enormous statue. It rose from the valley below and stood in the middle of the mountains.


    Everyone was shaking, but they continued to advance until they were all standing on a cliff above the valley, looking out at the statue. Spiritual Qi was flowing like crazy through the entire area.


    "Look down." Someone pointed with a shaking finger down at the base of the statue. There, they saw a dragon coiled around the statue. It was an actual dragon! Right now, it had its eyes closed shut, seemingly asleep.


    "That''s the dragon," someone from Qingzhou Academy said. Everyone, including Ye Futian, was surprised. This dragon was the same one they saw last fall.


    Around the statue and dragon, the valley was swarmed by powerful demons. They were revolving around the statue, greedily absorbing it''s Spiritual Qi.


    This was a valley of a million beasts.


    "Emperor Ye Qing," someone said in shock as they stared at the giant statue.


    Sixteen years ago, the death of Emperor Ye Qing became tabooed and it became forbidden for anything in his image to exist but right in front of their eyes was this magnificent statue of Emperor Ye Qing!

 38 Bad Fate

    Chapter 38: Bad Fate


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The monumental statue in front of them was vivid and dignified. Black hair casually spread across the shoulders. The eyes were so bright that they seemed to be looking through people. The statue had already demonstrated the unsurpassed charm of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Emperor Ye Qing was the legend of the Divine Prefectures of the East. Even though his name became a taboo after he died, it was still mentioned privately.


    The name had come as a shock. They had never expected that in Mount Tianyao there was such a lifelike statue of Emperor Ye Qing.


    And they were wondering whether the dragon was his mount.


    "Wow, look at this, the relics of Emperor Ye Qing." Tang Mo, the Headmaster of Heiyan Academy, narrowed his eyes. He realized that Xia Fan had concealed his true intentions about coming in here.


    Qin Shuai gazed at the coiled dragon in the canyon below. He frowned with doubt. Several years ago, when he had come here with his master, he hadn''t seen the coiled dragon. There were only the statue and monsters at that time. The dragon must have come later.


    "Everyone, these are the relics of Emperor Ye Qing. There''s an entrance behind the statue, and I believe the treasure of Emperor Ye Qing is hidden inside. Even without the relics of Emperor Ye Qing, the corpse of this dead dragon is a valuable treasure itself." Xia Fan pointed below. He looked so greedy that he would have started the exploration already if not for the monsters lurking below.


    Tang Fei went to tell Xia Fan that the monsters below were entirely different from the ones in the monster tide. "Mr. Xia, these monsters are different." These monsters were just being lazy. They didn''t even care about the people and kept laying there.


    "So, we all need to work together," Xia Fan said.


    "I didn''t know Emperor Ye Qing was a native of the City of Qingzhou, and that there were relics in this place. How much longer were you going to hide this from me?" Tang Mo asked Xia Fan tentatively.


    Xia Fan looked at Tang Mo and then smiled. "In fact, I didn''t know that Emperor Ye Qing lived in this city until recently. However, it''s still unknown whether the relics are behind the entrance of that statue or not. I didn''t tell Mr. Tang because I wanted to keep it confidential information."


    "Okay." Tang Mo nodded. Ye Futian was telling the truth. Emperor Ye Qing had been a native of the City of Qingzhou.


    However, what he didn''t know was that Ye Futian also felt shocked about this fact. He had totally made it up, and he had no evidence to support it. To his surprise, Xia Fan admitted that Emperor Ye Qing had lived in the City of Qingzhou.


    "Time to get to work," Xia Fan commanded.


    Awkwardly, no one started moving. None of them were going to risk their lives for Xia Fan at this time.


    "General Qin, Mr. Gu?" Xia Fan looked at Qin Shuai and asked.


    "We have already finished our job. I am not going to let people of the Dark Kylin Knighthood and Qingzhou Academy die for your interests," Qin Shuai said coldly. Due to the huge amount of monsters below, Xia Fan would basically be sending them in as bait to distract these monsters from guarding the entrance.


    "Mr. Xia, there are so many monsters and, to be honest, some of us will die if we fight them. If you get the treasure from Emperor Ye Qing, what will we get? I don''t want my people to die for nothing," Tang Mo protested. Xia Fan was caught off guard, then smiled. He realized that Ye Futian had talked with Tang Mo about his plan.


    "Uncle." Xia Fan looked at the man in black next to him. Then he went silent. The next moment, a fierce storm of sword power burst out of his body. This storm became so intense that it enveloped all the people.


    People were nervous. The power of this sword storm was so overwhelming that it could destroy everything, monsters and people alike.


    "He''s in the Arcana Plane, that''s incredible." Hua Fengliu realized Xia Fan was serious this time. He had summoned his uncle from the City of Donghai who was, in fact, a powerful swordsman. The treasure of Emperor Ye Qing was so precious that it was hard for Xia Fan to fully trust his army.


    Tang Mo also looked uncomfortable and shot Ye Futian a despising glance.


    "Do you have other questions?" Xia Fan laughed out loud. He had gained control over the situation now.


    "The Dark Kylin soldiers will fight for you. Let the young students of Qingzhou Academy go," Qin Shuai responded.


    "You''re asking for death." Xia Fan was impatient. His uncle suddenly launched a powerful strike. The strike was too fast to evade. The dark Kylin under Qin Shuai was killed by this strike, and one of Qin Shuai''s arms was cut off.


    "General!" The Dark Kylin soldiers gathered around Qin Shuai. They were terrified of what had just happened.


    "Dad!" Qin Yi screamed in horror.


    The man in black hurried into the air. He could have launched another strike at any moment.


    "Any more questions?" Xia Fan sounded indifferent.


    "I insist that only the Dark Kylin soldiers join the fight, and the young students of Qingzhou Academy should leave," Qin Shuai was persistent. Blood gushed out of his missing arm, but he was still peaceful.


    Xia Fan was mad. He needed Qin Shuai''s army to fight against the monsters, but he knew they would not do so without their commander.


    "Okay, let the young students go." Xia Fan then looked at Tang Mo, "Mr. Tang, do you have anything to add?"


    "I obey your orders." Tang Mo had to comply. He didn''t have the same courage as Qin Shuai.


    "So, let''s move," Xia Fan commanded. The army began to attack the monsters below. The Dark Kylin soldiers were the vanguards of this troop, and those powerful people beyond the Dharma Plane level were following them. Xia Fan observed the fight. He wanted to test the power of these monsters with the bait he had just sent.


    "Go away, or die!" A heavy voice came out of the canyon, which stiffened the members of the army. Soon, they saw a white-skinned monster standing apart from the herd. She soon started to grow huge, and she looked almost as big as a hill. The rest of the herd were awakened by this voice. Suddenly, the whole herd became active.


    "What the��" Xia Fan was frightened. He didn''t know there was a Monster Lord in this herd.


    How could that be possible?


    He looked at the statue of Emperor Ye Qing. Was the Monster Lord the guardian of this statue?


    People were shocked. The Monster Lord was a Snow Ape. When it stood up, it was so giant that it seemed invincible.


    "Die, you intruders!" the Snow Ape roared. The mountain began to shake from this roar.


    "Sorry for the intrusion," Xia Fan said. He knew that this was an inevitable failure.


    They had lost quite a lot soldiers from their army and all of that for just a tour of this place?


    All of the armies retreated back to the top. Tang Mo started speaking, "I''m sorry, Mr. Xia, we can''t do anything about it."


    Xia Fan''s face was gloomy. It seemed that he needed to release his anger desperately.


    "Go fight the monsters and die there," Xia Fan told Tang Mo. Tang Mo was caught off guard.


    "Mr. Xia, please forgive him. Mr. Tang was encouraged by the others." Murong Qiu approached.


    Ye Futian knew that the conspiracy had been revealed now. He had tried to cause a crack between Xia Fan and Tang Mo, but he had not expected that Tang Mo would surrender to the power of Xia Fan.


    "Yes, Ye Futian tried to turn me against you! He told me that he was planning to mess with Xia Fan with help from the students of Qingzhou Academy and the soldiers of the Dark Kylin Knighthood!" Tang Mo sold Ye Futian out. Tang Yue was embarrassed by her grandfather. She had already started to consider Ye Futian as a friend.


    "So, Qingzhou Academy sent Ye Futian to Heiyan Academy to mess up my plans, am I right?" Xia Fan''s voice was gloomy and cold.


    "Mr. Xia, Ye Futian was expelled from Qingzhou Academy long ago. His activity had nothing to do with this academy. I will kill him for you to prove that," Shi Zhong explained.


    "Is that true?" Xia Fan looked at Gu Mu for confirmation.


    Gu Mu gave Hua Fengliu a glance, then nodded. "This has nothing to do with Qingzhou Academy."


    "So, I will believe whoever kills him first." Xia Fan was laughing out loud.


    "I''ll do it!" Shi Zhong rushed toward Ye Futian.


    Tang Lin also rushed toward Ye Futian. They had already had plans to kill Ye Futian, so even without being interrogated by Xia Fan, he would have been killed anyway.


    Hua Fengliu appeared next to Ye Futian to protect his disciple. He glanced at Shi Zhong and Tang Lin. "Do I not exist?"


    "Mr. Guqin Devil, this is none of your business." Xia Fan was complacent.


    "Even your father didn''t dare talk to me like that." Hua Fengliu stared at Xia Fan.


    "That was in the past, Mr. Hua," Xia Fan sneered at him, "I am in a bad mood. Stay out of this, now."


    The moment he stopped talking, the man in black stepped forward. He soon started to attack Hua Fengliu with the sword-storm.


    "I am also in a bad mood. You better stay away from me before you get in trouble." Hua Fengliu sounded peaceful.


    "Your natal spirit has been destroyed, and I''m kind of curious how bad your temper could be." He urged his power toward Hua Fengliu, and it looked like he was going to tear Hua Fengliu into pieces.


    "Professor!" Ye Futian was worried about Hua Fengliu. This man in black was in the Arcana Plane, he was even more powerful than the people from Heiyan Academy who were in the Dharma Plane. Qingzhou City had never seen someone as powerful as he was. He had no idea what plane Hua Fengliu was in, but the confidence of that man worried him.


    "He has fallen under the Arcana Plane since his natal spirit was destroyed." The middle-aged man next to Xia Fan confirmed Ye Futian''s fear.


    "You don''t have to die for me, Professor," Ye Futian ran away and yelled, "Just tell Fox I love her and tell my godfather I have to let him down."


    The second half was to Yu Sheng.


    Shockingly, Ye Futian began running into the canyon with the endless monsters!


    Ye Futian was upset that he had to end his short life in such a way. He was not prepared to die yet.


    "Go after him!" Xia Fan commanded. Suddenly, some powerful mages rushed out of the group to pursue Ye Futian.

 39 You Are Not the One I Have Been Waiting For

    Chapter 39: You Are Not the One I Have Been Waiting For


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hua Fengliu did not expect Ye Futian to be so determined. He even left his last words.


    He tried to run toward Ye Futian''s direction but was blocked by the sword-storm, cutting off his advance.


    "Ye Futian! You get back here right now!" screamed Hua Fengliu.


    "You should worry about yourself," suggested the Arcana Plane cultivator dressed in black. His body was surrounded by the endless sword-storm. When he swiped his arms forward, a row of swords appeared, all charging at Hua Fengliu.


    "Get lost!" raged Hua Fengliu. An invisible force descended upon him, and the row of swords stopped right before they were able to pierce him. The swords shook violently in mid-air.


    While the two were in this deadlock, Hua Fengliu saw Shi Zhong, Eagle Eyes, and Tang Lin jump down into the canyon to chase after Ye Futian. His heart convulsed.


    His long, black hair flowed without the wind blowing, the dust beneath his feet blew like a weird storm.


    "I told you I have a bad temper, why did you have to provoke me?" Hua Fengliu''s voice was shaking. He felt extremely guilty. His life was just beginning; he couldn''t die.


    A bright light emanated from Hua Fengliu. Then, the light gathered and formed the strings of a qin. From there, the entire instrument appeared in front of Hua Fengliu. At that moment, his aura began to grow, breaking Dharma into the Arcana Plane.


    "Life Spirit. That''s impossible!" said the Arcana Plane swordsman. He quickly realized what was going on, and his expression changed. "Hua Fengliu, this is suicide!"


    Hua Fengliu disregarded him, and began to strum the instrument with both hands. Music began to play. An abstract wave was released that pierced eardrums with a dragon-like roar. The swords formed with Spiritual Qi dissipated.


    The Cangshan Dragon Chant. The swordsman could only stare at Hua Fengliu. The Cangshan Dragon Chant was a musical spell that the Qin Devil, Hua Fengliu, specialized in.


    The swordsman watched as Hua Fengliu''s pace quickened; his music spread into his surroundings, and the sound waves created a force field, encapsulating everyone around. The force field made its way to the swordsman and Xia Fan.


    BOOM! Xia Fan received a harsh attack and moaned in pain. His face was now pale.


    "Be careful, this is his musical spell. Retreat!" shouted the swordsman. His sword raced toward Hua Fengliu once more.


    Hua Fengliu''s fingers moved even faster. The sound of his instrument was magical, spreading far and wide.


    "Kill him!" ordered Xia Fan, blood in his mouth. He felt as if he were about to explode. His people came to protect him in their retreat.


    Everyone began to retreat, even Shi Zhong and Tang Lin, who were chasing Ye Futian.


    "Kill," muttered Hua Fengliu. His music continued, and an even stronger wave attacked Xia Fan. His people tried to use their Spiritual Qi to create a force field for his protection, but the wave was too strong. The force field was broken, and Xia Fan was hit once again. His face was now even more pale than before.


    Shi Zhong, on the other hand, was not so lucky. Under the power of the music, he screamed in pain. He was killed by the power of Hua Fengliu''s instrument, bleeding from every orifice.


    "The Qin Devil," someone said. Many people had heard of this name, but seeing him in action made them realize how truly extraordinary Hua Fengliu was.


    "Let''s go," said the swordsman. Protecting himself with a force field, he went to Xia Fan''s side to retreat together.


    Seeing this, Tang Mo and Gu Mu also ordered an evacuation. Qing Shuai led the Dark Qilin Knighthood away from this place of trouble. Hua Fengliu attempted to chase after his enemies, but stopped after taking a single step. He began to cough up blood. This was going to be the end of the legendary Qin Devil. He could no longer chase after them.


    Even so, the sound of his instrument never ceased.


    ...


    Ye Futian jumped down the canyon and felt the wind around him. Just as he was about to land he was swept up in the wind but not even the wind could defy gravity. He began to fall once more and Ye Futian felt no strength in his legs. Would he die like this?


    He did not die but he did see the demons and monsters gather around him. They looked as if they wanted to swallow him alive.


    "Are you trying to get yourself killed?" asked the Snow Ape. Just as he spoke, Ye Futian''s Thunder Dragon Spirit was released.


    "Senior Dragon and I are linked by fate. I have my Life Spirit thanks to him, so I came to express my gratitude," said Ye Futian loudly. He was not going to give up a chance to live even at a dead end like this.


    Demons and monsters stormed towards him, not paying attention to anything he said. Ye Futian could smell blood. It came from the mouth of a demon boa. He was out of hope now.


    PANG! A large hand smacked the demon boa far away. The Snow Ape stood in front of Ye Futian like a large mountain. It looked down on Ye Futian and asked "This Life Spirit. It was given to you by the old dragon?"


    Ye Futian''s eyes twinkled and he spoke, "Last year when I was training on Mount Tianyao, Senior Dragon''s image appeared. After observing it, my Life Spirit was created."


    "You created the Life Spirit by observation?" The Snow Ape stared at Ye Futian. "Show me your Natal Spirit."


    Ye Futian nodded. The World Tree appeared. The ancient tree swayed in the wind, just like a real tree.


    The Snow Ape shuddered, his eyes suddenly turning red. His large body fell to the ground, his head landing in front of Ye Futian.


    "What''s wrong?" asked Ye Futian, withdrawing his Life Spirit. The Snow Ape looked extremely sad.


    "Child," the Snow Ape stuck out its finger to caress Ye Futian''s face. Tears formed in his large red eyes, and he began to cry. This was enough for Ye Futian to share his deep sadness.


    "Why is it you?" the Snow Ape''s body shook as he continued to cry.


    "Do you know me?" Ye Futian''s voice lowered, seemingly affected by the Snow Ape''s emotions.


    "You poor child." The Snow Ape was unable to pull himself out of his melancholic state. Slowly, he stood up, lifted his head, and let out an earth-shattering scream. His fists pounded down on his chest repeatedly. The Snow Ape''s scream resonated throughout the mountain, and the demons and monsters bowed down as they shook in fear. The Snow Ape then got down on his knees and gave Ye Futian a deep bow, one fit for royalty.


    "Senior," Ye Futian was dumbfounded. The demons and monsters of the canyon were bowing down to him.


    "May you bring me back up there?" asked Ye Futian. He was worried about Hua Fengliu.


    "Of course," answered the Snow Ape. He lifted his head and held on to Ye Futian with his huge hands. His feet stomped down on the ground, shattering it, and in a second they were catapulted back to the peak of the mountain. The whole mountain shook along with their movements.


    Letting go of Ye Futian, the Snow Ape placed him on the ground.


    "Master!" Ye Futian''s heart squeezed at the sight of Hua Fengliu. He was still strumming away at his instrument, the strings now tainted with blood.


    "Ye Futian," called out Hua Fengliu. He could not believe his eyes; Ye Futian was safe and sound.


    A chord snapped, and his instrument disappeared. Hua Fengliu spit out blood once again and fell to the ground.


    "Master!" Ye Futian sprinted to his side and held Hua Fengliu in his arms.


    "There''s someone over there," the Snow Ape looked ahead. Ye Futian raised his head to see that the swordsman had returned. When he saw Ye Futian and the Snow Ape together, the swordsman''s heart pounded. How could it be?


    "Kill him," Ye Futian said coldly. The Snow Ape took big steps toward the swordsman, who began to run, but his speed was no match for the Snow Ape.


    The Snow Ape gave out a loud growl and stomped down on the swordsman. Before his demise, he managed to shout out a warning to his companions, "RUN!"


    Three roars came from the Snow Ape, and from a distance the swordsman''s companions shook in fear. What was the demon king doing outside the canyon?


    ...


    Hua Fengliu''s life was hanging on by a thread, but he still smiled at Ye Futian. "Don''t worry, this isn''t enough to kill me. My powers were disabled once, doesn''t matter if it happens a second time."


    "I told you to leave me be, why did you do this? If I was already dead, then you would have died in vain," shouted Ye Futian. His eyes were red.


    "As your Master, I couldn''t just let you be driven to your death and do nothing about it. That''s humiliating," laughed Hua Fengliu. "Besides, you know I have a bad temper."


    "So, you feel good about yourself now? Well, I''m pissed. If something had happened to you, what would I do about Fox?" asked Ye Futian.


    "You would marry her," chuckled Hua Fengliu. Ye Futian lowered his head, tears streaming down his face as he closed his eyes, in pain.


    "Why are you crying? My daughter is beautiful! Are you not willing to marry her?" Hua Fengliu was acting as if nothing had happened.


    "I''m crying because you messed up my life. If you die, then I don''t even get the chance to kick you to the curb when I''m successful," said Ye Futian as he placed Hua Fengliu on his back, carrying him into the canyon.


    "You make it sound like you got the short end of the stick here," Hua Fengliu said from behind.


    "Of course! If I become emperor, then you''re the emperor''s father-in-law," Ye Futian answered nonchalantly. Hua Fengliu lifted his head to watch the sunset and smiled.


    Yu Sheng approached them from the edge of the canyon. Ye Futian stared at him. "What are you trying to do now? Are you also trying to die with me by jumping off?"


    "No," replied Yu Sheng, shaking his head.


    Ye Futian was even madder now. "What happened to being loyal to friends?"


    "If you had died then I would have avenged you." Yu Sheng lifted his head, finally looking Ye Futian in the eyes. His eyes were also red.


    "Fine, I forgive you," said Ye Futian. He looked over at the Snow Ape who had just returned. "Can you bring me to the statue?"


    "Okay, but anyone who sees us together has to die," said the Snow Ape seriously.


    Ye Futian was shocked at his words and looked over at Yu Sheng. "They are some of my closest friends and family. Don''t even think about it. As for the others, leave it to me."


    The Snow Ape nodded and brought the three to the entrance of the statue.


    Ye Futian pushed open the door and entered alone.


    The inside was empty. All that was there was another statue of Emperor Ye Qing but this one was life-sized.


    The Spiritual Qi inside was packed as if there was a matrix somewhere. When Ye Futian took a step inside, the matrix lit up by itself. It got brighter as endless amounts of Spiritual Qi rushed into the life-size statue. This caused the statue to break apart, releasing a virtual image. It was Emperor Ye Qing!


    The two met eyes and Emperor Ye Qing spoke softly to ask, "What is your name, child?"


    "Senior, my name is Ye Futian," he answered. He was not sure why he felt so at peace even though the most legendary character in history was standing in front of him.


    "We share a surname. Release your Life Spirit for me," requested Emperor Ye Qing. Ye Futian did exactly that, as requested.


    Upon seeing his Life Spirit, Emperor Ye Qing froze. Then, he let out a pained expression. It was the same reaction that the Snow Ape had, it seemed like he was about to cry.


    His virtual image approached Ye Futian and embraced him. He then said, "My dear child. Why is it you? Why must it be you?"


    His voice cracked as he cried. Ye Futian wanted to cry with him. Softly, he spoke, "Senior, haven''t you been waiting for me? Who exactly am I?"


    "You are not the one I have been waiting for. I didn''t think it would be you." His voice was filled with sadness. His virtual image returned to its original place. Emperor Ye Qing looked at Ye Futian with gentle eyes and told him, "Child, you are the future emperor of the Divine Prefectures. The ruler of the world."

 40 Out the Mountain

    Chapter 40: Out the Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was looking at Emperor Ye Qing with confusion. His godfather had used to tell him the same thing. He was curious why they had such high expectations for him.


    His father had told him that he inherited his natal spirit from his ancestors. However, it was apparent that Emperor Ye Qing and the Snow Ape recognized his natal spirit.


    "I would not even dare to think about becoming emperor. Could you please just tell me who I am?" Ye Futian asked in a lowered voice.


    "Child, you have to trust yourself. You are destined to be the emperor because of your natal spirit," Emperor Ye Qing said patiently. However, Ye Futian was dejected because he had not received a clear answer. "As you''re not waiting for me, I believe it''s time for me to leave now."


    "You are wrong." Emperor Ye Qing now looked at Ye Futian, full of kindness. "I feel sad about meeting you in such a situation. However, no one would be more appropriate than you to inherit my power."


    "Your treasures�� You are giving me all of them?" Ye Futian was surprised.


    "Yes, my natal spirit, my original spells, and everything else." Emperor Ye Qing nodded.


    "Could you please teach my friend your martial arts techniques? He was born to be a warrior." Ye Futian was thinking about Yu Sheng. He believed that Yu Sheng would be perfect for those techniques.


    "Is his surname Yu?" Emperor Ye Qing asked.


    "How did you know that?" Ye Futian was surprised.


    "If you had not been born into this world, he would have carried my inheritance. However, since you are here, you deserve all of them. He was born into this world only to help you," Emperor Ye Qing rejected his suggestion. Ye Futian felt sad about this. He believed it was unfair to Yu Sheng.


    "Child, there''s not much time left for me, even though I want to see you grow up." Emperor Ye Qing''s voice was low and sad.


    Ye Futian looked at him and asked, "Could you please tell me what the relation is between you and me?"


    Emperor Ye Qing shook his head. He now looked at Ye Futian with kindness and a trace of sadness. Soon, the illusory figure of Emperor Ye Qing turned into a bright light, which shot toward Ye Futian''s forehead. At that moment, Ye Futian felt a piercing mental power enter his head. His body was trembling because of the anguishing pain.


    "This is already the third time." Ye Futian was disappointed, then lost consciousness.


    When he woke up again, Yu Sheng and Hua Fengliu were sitting beside him. They had both entered the statue. The Snow Ape and the monsters were guarding the outside.


    "You are so lucky." Hua Fengliu looked at Ye Futian. Xia Fan had summoned someone so powerful, an Arcana Plane swordsman, to seize the treasures of Emperor Ye Qing. They had even released the monster tide to attack the guardians of Qingzhou City. However, all that they had done had just helped Ye Futian in the end.


    Ye Futian smiled wryly, yet he was still confused and depressed about what had happened.


    He closed his eyes and entered his life palace. There was another natal spirit now in his life palace, the Storm of Eyes. The eyes were made up of total darkness, almost like a black hole. There was horrifying mental power inside the natal spirit. This new natal spirit came as a gift rather than a result of cultivation. Ye Futian had to admit that he was lucky.


    Soon after, he opened his eyes. The next moment, his eyes became as dark as the Storm of Eyes. A robust mental power was filling his eyes. Hua Fengliu was surprised by this new power granted to Ye Futian. He vaguely felt the sense of an emperor.


    His eyes then turned back to normal. Hua Fengliu asked him, "Spirit elemental?"


    "Yes, it''s beast mastery." Ye Futian nodded. Besides the sorcerers of the seven elements, there were some special Mandate Sorcerers. For example, Hua Fengliu specialized in music spells. There were also some beastmasters. In fact, all these special sorcerers were categorized as mind controllers, who attacked their opponents with the mental power of the spirit elemental.


    "So, Emperor Ye Qing was a beastmaster," Hua Fengliu mumbled.


    "And he was a powerful cultivator in martial arts," Ye Futian remembered and added.


    "Sorcerers specializing in mental power were powerful offensively. However, they had weak defenses. I guess that was why he enhanced his techniques with martial arts cultivation. That just made him perfect." Hua Fengliu nodded. Emperor Ye Qing was the legend who had unified the whole continent, so his talents must have been incredible, incomparable.


    "Take your time to look through the treasures you have received. Just ignore us." Hua Fengliu was happy with Ye Futian''s situation.


    "Okay." Ye Futian closed his eyes, and then pieces of memories were swarming in his mind. He saw the Dragon riding on the cloud, the Bird flying over the sky, and the Giant Ape stomping on the earth. They were so real that Ye Futian almost felt like he could reach out and touch them.


    "The Dragon serves for my strength, the Ape serves for my power, and the Bird serves for my speed. I can make use of them and form my body to perfection."


    Ye Futian was shocked deep inside. He had already possessed the soul of the Dragon, and now he was using Freedom Meditation to extract the souls of the Ape and the Bird. Gradually, the wind, earth and metal element powers raged around in his body, and new natal spirits began to show up in his life palace.


    Ye Futian finally understood why Emperor Ye Qing had let him inherit all the treasures rather than Yu Sheng. He had the rarest of talents; he could actually create new natal spirits on his own.


    Before long, he had two new natal spirits in his life palace.


    In his life palace, he already had many natal spirits other than the original World Tree, the Sun, the Thunder Dragon, the Guqin, the Storm of Eyes, the Bird, and the Ape. It was even more impressive that the natal spirit of the Bird had two elements, which were wind and metal.


    After he opened his eyes, he looked at Hua Fengliu and Yu Sheng with confusion.


    "What are you looking at?" Hua Fengliu looked back curiously. He noticed that a weird smile had shown up on Ye Futian''s face.


    "Professor, I just�� have too many natal spirits in my life palace now. The treasures I received from Emperor Ye Qing were too powerful for me." Ye Futian blinked his eyes.


    Hua Fengliu was embarrassed. He only had one natal spirit, and it was destroyed a long time ago. He pretended to be mad at Ye Futian. "Get out of here."


    Ye Futian also started to laugh. He took a deep breath and said, "You are also lucky, professor, to have such a lucky son-in-law."


    Yu Sheng''s notion about how shameless Ye Futian could be was reaffirmed entirely at that moment.


    As for Hua Fengliu, he almost wanted to kick Ye Futian''s *ss right now.


    ...


    During the next month, Ye Futian kept cultivating in the canyon of Mount Tianyao. The relentless monsters led by the Snow Ape locked down this area to make sure no one could approach Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was practicing his skills on a bunch of demon beasts.


    A Demon Bull pounced toward Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian didn''t even try to evade the attack. He headed straight on to the Demon Bull to counter the attack. While he was charging, the roar of the Dragon came out of his body. He made a fist and punched the Demon Bull hard. That punch looked as if it was landed by the Giant Ape.


    With a loud thump, the Demon Bull was knocked away by that punch.


    Ye Futian didn''t let the Demon Bull go that easily. His hands reached out to clamp down on the throat of the Demon Bull.


    The attack this time changed into another form. Ye Futian almost looked like he had wings and began flying with the movement of a Bird.


    A Demon Panther also started to attack, but she missed Ye Futian because he was too fast. She saw the counterattack coming, but it was already too late to dodge it. Ye Futian''s arms were like the wings of a Bird, and his thunder-like strike left the Demon Panther with a deep wound on her body.


    The other monsters kept growling. They had been intimidated by Ye Futian.


    "Now your body moves like a Dragon, you are strong as an Ape, and your speed is like the Bird. You have made impressive progress during the last month." Hua Fengliu felt satisfied with his work.


    "I am still so far away from the abilities of those true divine creatures." Ye Futian remembered the images in his mind.


    Hua Fengliu understood and tried to comfort him, "Your level is not high enough to fully develop the power inside your body. You are only in Two-star Glory Plane, and you''re trying to fully seize power from those divine creatures?"


    Ye Futian was still sad about this fact. He looked at the Snow Ape and said, "I need to leave now."


    "Okay. Have you decided on which beasts to take away with you? Your mental power is not strong enough for those giant creatures yet. However, you can control some beasts and monsters that are in the Dharma Plane," the Snow Ape told him.


    "You''re not coming with me?" Ye Futian tried to gain her sympathy. He believed that if the Snow Ape agreed to follow him, he would be the most powerful mage in East Sea Prefecture.


    "Sorry boy, I have to stay here. As long as I am here, no one will know that the treasures have been taken. Remember, don''t let anyone know that you have inherited the treasures. Otherwise, those greedy people would��" the Snow Ape stopped. Ye Futian was upset, even though he understood what the Snow Ape meant.


    Ye Futian looked at the monsters around him. He needed to stay under the radar so no one would know that he inherited the treasures by picking a monster that wasn''t too flashy.


    "Could you please call a Dark Wind Eagle to my side?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Sure," the Snow Ape agreed, then called on a Dark Wind Eagle that was in the Dharma Plane.


    Ye Futian walked toward the Dark Wind Eagle. He started to release the power from his eyes, which was generated by his natal spirit, the Storm of Eyes.


    The Snow Ape stared at the Dark Wind Eagle to prevent the eagle from resisting. The Dark Wind Eagle was a wind-element creature, and her mental power was also of the Dharma Plane level. Therefore, without assistance from the Snow Ape, Ye Futian would not be able to mentally control the eagle.


    This was the first time he had initiated the beast mastery ability with the Storm of Eyes. He felt as if the figure of the Dark Wind Eagle was imprinted on his pupils. His ruthless mental power was planting his will inside the eagle to control her, and the body of that eagle was shaking in the process.


    Suddenly, the Dark Wind Eagle reached her limit. She finally surrendered to the power of Ye Futian, and their souls started to resonate.


    "Phew��" Ye Futian took a deep breath. The Dark Wind Eagle finally bowed down to him.


    Hua Fengliu actually knew the reason why Ye Futian had picked the Dark Wind Eagle as his first subject. Ye Futian was still upset that Hua Jieyu had left with the black eagle.


    "Goodbye, Snow Ape." Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Fengliu finally left. They looked at the statue of Emperor Ye Qing with a sense of attachment and gratitude.


    "Go now." The Snow Ape nodded.


    The Dark Wind Eagle flew into the air, the sight of Ye Futian, the Snow Ape, the statue, and the monsters becoming smaller until they were tiny dots. Finally, they were gone.


    "Go escort them," the Snow Ape commanded. The monsters obeyed her orders. People around Mount Tianyao were frightened by this herd of monsters. They were shocked and wondered why another monster tide was coming.

 41 Everything You Guys Said Is Correc

    Chapter 41: Everything You Guys Said Is Correct


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The City of Qingzhou was a mess because of the monster tide. Buildings had fallen, and many people had died. The whole city looked grey and pitiful.


    Luckily, the monster tide did not last very long. Towards the end of the monster tide, aces from the East Sea Prefecture had come to help kill off demons and monsters. Thanks to them, the damage was not as bad as it could have been. Despite this, it would take a very long time for things to return to what it once was. There had also been consistent earthquakes in Qingzhou City since the monster tide had ended.


    After the people of Qingzhou Academy returned with General Qin''s Dark Qilin Knighthood, it was rumored that the vice chief of the East Sea Prefecture was very unhappy. Then, in a fit of rage, he removed General Qin from his position as leader of the Dark Qilin Knighthood. This angered the knights, but they were suppressed by the aces from the prefecture the Qingzhou Guards who were under the orders of the City Lord, and the people of the Murong Chamber of Commerce. After a bloody battle, many of the knights had been met with a sad end, and the Qingzhou City protectors, the Dark Qilin Knighthood, had become a thing of the past.


    Then, City Lord Wei Meng was transferred out of Qingzhou City, and his place was taken by the leader of the Murong Chamber of Commerce, Murong Yunshan.


    Many people were displeased with this decision. Rumors were spreading throughout the city. They said that historical remains of Emperor Ye Qing had been found on Mount Tianyao, and that the continuous arrival of the East Sea Prefecture aces had proved this rumor to be true. However, no one ever made it back from Mount Tianyao with viable information. Some people only make it halfway, some people make it near the remains but get surrounded by demons and monsters. The rumors also say that it was because of these remains that the East Sea Prefecture''s Vice Chief Xia Fan started the monster tide and aligned with the City Lord and the people of the Murong Chamber of Commerce to force Qingzhou Academy and Qin Shuai on to Mount Tianyao.


    When these rumors spread, the citizens were even more upset.


    However, it did not matter, because the Murong Chamber of Commerce held a lot of power in the city to begin with; now that their leader was also the City Lord, no one dared to speak out against them. To make things worse, they also have the East Sea Prefecture to back them up. The most that citizens of Qingzhou City could do was to complain secretly.


    At the Ye family house, a black wind eagle landed to drop off three people and then flew up to circle in the sky.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Fengliu had left the mountains after a short while because they were worried about their families.


    Upon their arrival, Ye Futian''s heart sank at the sight of his home. The residence was torn apart with bits and pieces of the house scattered on the ground. Looking around, they could not find a single person.


    "Father! Mother!" Ye Futian ran through his home as he called out to his parents. The roof was caving in and the house was empty.


    "Godfather!" Ye Futian called again with sadness in his voice. Still, no one answered.


    Yu Sheng was also running around the residence with red eyes, looking for a trace of the family.


    What happened? What on earth happened to them?


    Ye Futian was scared, more scared than when he had jumped into the canyon.


    "Ye Futian!" At that moment, someone screamed out his name. Ye Futian whipped around to see a beautiful young woman run toward him. Her body flew into his arms and held on to him tightly.


    "You''re alive, you''re still alive!" said the young woman. Her eyes were red as she cried into his shirt.


    "Feng Qingxue, where is my family? Do you know what happened to them?" asked Ye Futian while he tried to support her. Feng Qingxue dried her tears, her face flushed red and said with her head lowered, "Your dad and everyone else is fine. My father told me to let you know that they moved away from Qingzhou City. They wanted to tell you not to worry about them."


    "They didn''t say where they were going?" asked Ye Futian, now relieved. Thank God nothing had happened to them.


    Feng Qingxue shook her head and replied, "My father also told me not to tell anyone. Your family left secretly, but they didn''t want you to worry, so they asked my father to relay the message."


    Ye Futian was stunned. Then he looked up at the sky and cursed, "Ye Baichuan, you jerk."


    His eyes were red from crying. Being as intelligent as he was, Ye Futian knew there was something wrong with his background. Both he and his godfather carried secrets about their pasts. Now, his family had taken advantage of the distraction of the monster tide to leave in secret. He knew it was to hide a secret that no one would ever find out.


    From this day on, the Ye family did not exist in the City of Qingzhou.


    The East Sea was huge. Where was he supposed to begin the search for his family? They obviously did not want him to find them.


    "Feng Qingxue, how is the city doing? Have the people from the East Sea Prefecture left yet?" asked Ye Futian. If Xia Fan was still here he would have to be extra careful.


    "They left and so have those from Heiyan City. Qingzhou Academy took a really big blow. General Qin has been removed from his position, and the Dark Qilin Knighthood has been dismantled. All of that is thanks to Xia Fan, the City Lord Office, and the Murong Chamber of Commerce. Murong Yunshan is now the City Lord. Recently, more and more outsiders have arrived at Qingzhou City in hopes of finding Emperor Ye Qing''s heirloom but have all left empty-handed," explained Feng Qingxue all at once.


    "General Qin has been removed?" Ye Futian was shocked.


    "Yeah," she nodded. Ye Futian stood frozen. The protector of the city and leader of the Dark Qilin Knighthood has been thrown out by the vice chief of the East Sea Prefecture. Who would have imagined that?


    Those high authority figures held absolute power and played with the lives of others. Had he not gotten lucky, he would have died on Mount Tianyao.


    "What do you have planned for the future? Why don''t you come stay at my place?" asked Feng Qingxue with anticipation.


    Ye Futian did a once-over of Feng Qingxue. At his piercing gaze, her face reddened.


    "That''s okay. I might actually leave Qingzhou City as well," answered Ye Futian. Feng Qingxue was dazed. Her heart skipped a beat upon hearing his reply. She asked, "Where are you going?"


    "To do what I have to," Ye Futian said with a smile, "Feng Qingxue, I should get going now. You should head home, too. Say goodbye to your father for me. Take care of yourselves."


    Ye Futian returned to Hua Fengliu''s side. He placed him on his back and they headed outside with Yu Sheng beside him.


    Feng Qingxue remained frozen in place. As she watched him leave, she shouted, "Ye Futian!"


    He turned back to face her.


    "I like you," she shouted at the top of her lungs after mustering up the courage to do so.


    He looked at her and a smile appeared on his face. "I know. Who wouldn''t like a person like me? Don''t miss me too much."


    Finishing his words, he turned around once again and continued on his way. Feng Qingxue''s tears fell and she crouched down to the ground.


    Ye Futian did not stop. He was afraid that if he gave in, he wouldn''t be able to leave. Feng Qingxue was a beauty after all.


    "If I wasn''t here, would you go with her?" asked Hua Fengliu, who was on Ye Futian''s back.


    "Why would I? I only need one fish from the sea. Fox is the only one for me," Ye Futian answered his question matter-of-factly. At this, Hua Fengliu rolled his eyes. "How did a shameless person like you get my daughter to fall for you?"


    "Looks," was all Ye Futian said.


    Hua Fengliu had words for him.


    "Master, when are you going to get better? If I keep carrying you like this people might misunderstand," asked Ye Futian in a low voice.


    "If you don''t want to carry me then just throw me on a corner somewhere," retorted Hua Fengliu. In that battle, it took all the power he had to rekindle his Qin Spirit. It also caused irreversible damage. At that time, he barely managed to keep standing.


    "I''m sorry, father-in-law," Ye Futian apologized quickly. Only then did Hua Fengliu smile again.


    "Where are we going now?" asked Hua Fengliu.


    "To kill a person," answered Ye Futian.


    ...


    In the air above Qingzhou Academy, a black wind eagle was circling. Its sharp eyes were trained on the Earth Elemental Pavilion below.


    It could not seem to find its target and continued to circle. Then, when a group of people exited the pavilion and headed for a restaurant off campus, the black wind eagle flew off after them. It did not attract the attention of the people below.


    As of late, things had been going great for Murong Qiu. Even though the expedition to Mount Tianyao failed, he was still able to establish a good relationship with the vice chief of the East Sea Prefecture. This aided his climb up the ladder at the Murong Chamber of Commerce. He had already been unanimously chosen as the successor of the chairman seat and his father was now the City Lord. The whole city was under his family''s control.


    Although he understood that a lot of people disliked him, including most of his classmates, he did not care. They had no choice but to treat him with respect.


    The lobby of the restaurant was packed with people, many of whom were disciples of Qingzhou Academy. When Murong Qiu and his people arrived, almost everyone bowed their heads with respect. This was very satisfying to Murong Qiu. He proceeded to look for a place to sit with a smile on his face.


    After the food arrived at the table, his whole group began to converse.


    "Junior Brother Murong Qiu possesses such a rare gift. You were able to reach the Glory Plane so quickly. You''ll be in the Dharma Plane in no time, and then the Arcana Plane," said a disciple of the Earth Elemental Pavilion.


    The first four planes of cultivation were: Awakening, Glory, Dharma, and Arcana.


    To reach the Dharma Plane would mean you were sufficient to rise into the presbyter level and become an elder. If one were able to get a bit stronger than that, they would be able to become a Pavilion Lord. After all, the highest level anyone in the City of Qingzhou had reached was the Dharma Plane. In the past, Hua Fengliu was known as the city''s number one ace because he was once in the Arcana Plane. He was considered a top ace in all of the East Sea Prefecture.


    "Well, of course! Murong Qiu will take control of all of Qingzhou City in the future. Naturally, he will be the most powerful person in the city," Murong Qing boasted about her older cousin.


    "That''s right. Don''t forget about us when you have the city in the palm of your hands, Junior Brother," someone said as they held their cup up to toast. Murong Qiu smiled elegantly and lifted his cup as well. He looked ahead as if he were in deep thought.


    "Seems like I''m a bit of a failure when it comes to the ladies," he said. His utterance put the table in an awkward silence.


    It was not a secret that Murong Qiu liked Hua Jieyu but she ended up with Ye Futian. Then, when Murong Qing introduced him to Feng Qingxue, everyone thought he had it in the bag. In the end, it seemed like Feng Qingxue still had feelings for Ye Futian.


    "That b*tch. Feng Qingxue is just ungrateful. She''s not good enough for you. You shouldn''t feel bad about it," said one of Murong Qiu''s junior brothers.


    "That''s right, Junior Brother. Look at you now; the ladies won''t be able to get enough of you," consoled a senior brother.


    "Feng Qingxue is blind. I already told her to stay away from Ye Futian but she went back to him in the end. Now that he has been killed by the demons and monsters, she must be regretting her decision. She really missed out on you, with all that power in your hands," said Murong Qing.


    "I actually hope that he''s not dead. Things will be more interesting that way," Murong Qiu said with a cold demeanor.


    "You''re right. If he''s not already dead, then he will be shaking in his boots when he sees you," laughed Murong Qing. She then realized that the restaurant was suddenly very quiet. Many eyes were watching their little group. She furrowed her brow in confusion and looked out the door. At the lobby entrance of the restaurant stood a handsome but arrogant figure.


    "Everything you guys said is correct!" Ye Futian''s voice resonated. A frivolous smile was on his face.

 42 I Am a Mandate Sorcerer

    Chapter 42: I Am a Mandate Sorcerer


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Ye Futian!" Murong Qiu''s eyes became gloomy. He could not believe that Ye Futian had survived after jumping into the canyon full of monsters. How could the Monster Lord have let him go?


    Even the powerful swordsman, Xia Fan''s uncle, who was in the Arcana Plane had died at the hands of the Snow Ape. In fact, many powerful mages had tried to sneak into the canyon to find Emperor Ye Qing''s relics. None of them had been successful, and most of them had died.


    In the restaurant, other students of Qingzhou Academy were also looking at Ye Futian with confusion. The entire restaurant was in extreme silence as they watched the confrontation unfold.


    "How did you survive?" someone next to Murong Qiu asked him.


    Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders and said, "I share the same first name as Emperor Ye Qing. His soul told me that I was destined to inherit his treasures. I just got back from the canyon after accepting his powers." People around him thought he was insane. They believed he was acting shamelessly to show off. Treasures? Inheritance? Destiny? What was he talking about? If he actually had these treasures, why wouldn''t he try to keep a low profile?


    Yep, Ye Futian hadn''t changed his style at all. He was still the lucky boy that loved to bullsh*t.


    "You''re alive, and you dared to come back to the City of Qingzhou." Murong Qiu still wanted him dead. "It looks like I have to kill you, again."


    "Students of Qingzhou Academy, listen to me. This guy, Ye Futian, betrayed our academy. I cannot believe he has survived all that happened. Please help me execute him as soon as possible." Murong Qiu sounded cold. He now knew that Ye Futian was much more powerful than he was and he would definitely not fight against him alone. Around him, however, there were some powerful disciples from the College of Earth Element, including several mages in the Glory Plane. He believed that Ye Futian would die for sure this time.


    Some students came forward and prepared to attack. They were looking at Ye Futian with hatred in their eyes. Their director, Shi Zhong, had been humiliated entirely by Ye Futian and his master, Hua Fengliu. They felt so ashamed by this that they wanted to kill Ye Futian right then.


    "This is the second time that Murong Qiu has wanted to kill me. If you help him, I will consider you guys his accomplices," Ye Futian said peacefully to those who stood in front of Murong Qiu. "I will not show you any mercy."


    "Shut up, you arrogant fool!" A mage from the Four-star Glory Plane stepped out. The earth element power around him was covering his body. Soon, the power formed into armor. He knew Ye Futian was both a mage and a warrior, so it was important to formulate a defense system. Otherwise, he would be in trouble once Ye Futian approached him in melee range.


    Bang! Ye Futian stomped on the ground, then his body suddenly sprang to his opponent. He realized this guy was determined to kill him, so he had to skip the formalities and get down to business.


    The mage in the Four-star Glory Plane was forced to react. The earth-element power around his body formed into sharp lances, and with a swing of his arm, all the lances rushed toward Ye Futian. There was a piercing sound that rang through the air.


    Ye Futian actually sped up while facing the lances. When the lances had almost reached him, he suddenly leaned his body backward. His body slid through the lances without even a scratch. Moments later, there was a blast behind him. That was the sound of the restaurant wall being destroyed by the lances.


    The mage was starting to become nervous. He then urged the Spiritual Qi in his body to resonate with the power of the universe. A shadow in the shape of a giant rhinoceros showed up on his body.


    "Go!" He initiated his spell. The giant rhino charged toward Ye Futian. The earth began to crack under this beast. It seemed like the rhino was going tear Ye Futian''s body into pieces.


    "You cannot run from this," The mage started speaking in a cold voice. He believed that at such a close range, Ye Futian was definitely going to die.


    However, to his surprise, Ye Futian didn''t even try to run away from the attack. His body made a sound like the roar of a dragon. With thunder surrounding him, he made a fist and readied his attack.


    He landed his fist on the rhino when the beast reached his body. At that moment, people had the illusion that it was not Ye Futian, but a giant ape who landed that fist. The attack was so powerful and fierce that it exceeded their knowledge of power.


    A clamor burst out. The giant rhino was killed by the attack instantly. Now, people''s minds were blown, much like the rhino. They had never witnessed a warrior who could kill a creature formed by the spell of a mage in a higher plane. This completely changed their understanding of the differences between a warrior and a sorcerer. It was too shocking to be real.


    However, Ye Futian didn''t stop there. His fist kept moving with authority toward the mage. It was too late for the mage to defend himself against the attack with any spells other than the armor he had formed before the fight.


    With a snapping sound, the earth-element armor shattered. The onlookers realized it was not only the armor that shattered though. His bones were also broken from the attack. He was knocked feet away, and his body smashed into the tables behind him.


    "Murong Qiu, just go!" Shen Yue yelled. He was driving the earth-element power of the universe with the perceiving ability of a Five-star Glory Plane mage. The earth element formed into walls. He had tried to lock Ye Futian''s body within these walls to confine his movement into a tiny space.


    Murong Qiu ran outside the restaurant as fast as he could. He was shocked by the power Ye Futian had just shown. Ye Futian had defeated a mage in the Four-star Glory Plane with his martial arts techniques, and it was apparent that Murong Qiu must run for his life.


    Murong Qing was even weaker than her cousin. She had no choice but to run away with him in panic.


    Bang. With another booming sound, Ye Futian broke down the walls. He saw Murong Qiu running away, so he tried to chase after him.


    However, another wall suddenly formed in front of him, blocking the exit of the restaurant.


    Ye Futian turned around. He gave Shen Yue a cold glance and said, "You are really pissing me off."


    "What are you going to do about it?" Shen Yue did not dare look down on Ye Futian anymore. He had covered his body with earth-element armor and prepared for the fight. He realized Ye Futian was much stronger than a warrior who was merely in the Two-star Glory Plane.


    "You''re done." Ye Futian''s hands started to glow with a golden light after he spoke. He released his mental power, and a storm of the metal element was around his arms. It almost felt like his arms turned into the golden wings of a bird.


    "What? How are you using that metal-element power?" Shen Yue was so shocked. In fact, it was not just Shen Yue who was shocked. The students of Qingzhou Academy standing in the corners also could not believe it. Ye Futian had shown so many talents in various elements, including martial arts, thunder, and fire. Now there was metal element, too? Exactly how much power was he hiding?


    Actually, the metal-element storm around his body was entirely beyond the ability of a mage in Two-star Glory Plane.


    Even for the mages in the same Two-star Glory Plane, there was a significant difference in the strength of power they were able to use. Moreover, Ye Futian was a Mandate Sorcerer.


    There was no time to waste. Ye Futian''s body formed into a bolt of golden thunder that broke through the air.


    Soon, another wall blocked Ye Futian''s way. It didn''t work at all because his arms had become razor sharp wings that easily cut the wall into pieces.


    Shen Yue''s face looked gloomy. He was driving the power in that space like crazy. All the remaining lances and walls were rushing at Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian was so fast that his body had become a golden shadow. Every attack from Shen Yue totally missed its target.


    When a martial arts cultivator was this overwhelming and fast, he would be lethal for a mage, because once the mage''s attacks missed their opponent and the mage was forced to fight in melee range, he was already defeated.


    Shen Yue could do nothing more but run away, but Ye Futian didn''t give him a second chance. His body flew toward Shen Yue as fast as a bird, and suddenly a horrifying wound appeared on Shen Yue''s chest. His face turned ghastly pale from blood loss.


    Ye Futian left him alone. Murong Qiu was still his primary target. He saw Murong Qiu running in the direction of Qingzhou Academy and kept chasing.


    "We''re getting a show." The students of Qingzhou Academy in the restaurant rushed out. They believed Ye Futian was going to kill Murong Qiu.


    Murong Qiu was surprised that Ye Futian was so fast, and the distance between them was disappearing. He was running so hard that he felt like his lungs were about to explode.


    There were a lot of students coming in and out the academy. Murong Qiu was screaming with desperation, "Help!"


    People were curious as to why Murong Qiu was in such a panic. They realized that Murong Qiu was being chased by someone, and was that��Ye Futian? How could he be alive after jumping into the canyon?


    "What''s going on?" Someone came out of the academy and tried to control the scene. It was the Director of the College of Thunder Element.


    "Help me, Professor! He''s going to kill me!" Murong clutched at his last life-saving straw. He quickly hid behind the director.


    "Ye Futian?" The Director was surprised to see the student chasing after Murong Qiu.


    Ye Futian stopped charging forward. He was still staring at Murong Qiu and said, "Sorry Professor, you may want to stay out of this. It''s totally personal."


    "Ye Futian, listen, you are lucky to have survived. Remember, this academy is a sacred place. Don''t do anything stupid." The director was commanding him to stop.


    "On my way here, I saw the whole city was destroyed by the monsters. People are crying in their houses, and this academy has been severely damaged. I believe, Professor, you know who is behind all of this," Ye Futian started saying. "And what about General Qin Shuai and the Dark Kylin Knighthood? They do not deserve this! If you still believe this place is sacred, leave me alone."


    The director was ashamed. Xia Fan was the Lord of East Sea Prefecture, and even the Headmaster of Qingzhou Academy wouldn''t dare question his ideas, not to mention the directors. However, now Ye Futian was accusing him in public.


    "In fact, I believe we are not at the academy yet," Ye Futian said. The director was stirred from his resolve. Murong Qiu knew that the director might not be protecting him anymore. At that moment, someone else came to his side and told him, "Just follow me."


    Suddenly, the student who talked to Murong Qiu flew into the air, bringing Murong Qiu along with him. A lot of students lifted their heads to look at them.


    "That is Yang Yao, a student from the College of Earth Element. He is a mage of earth and wind double elements," people whispered to each other.


    "Ye Futian," Murong Qiu was now floating in the air and taunting Ye Futian, "How are you going to kill me now?"


    "Director, why don''t you take him down?" Murong Qiu then asked the director.


    "Just leave." The director did not want to hurt Ye Futian. In fact, he actually appreciated this boy.


    "I must kill Murong Qiu today." Ye Futian was stubborn. This attitude reminded the director of the time this young boy had stood in the snow, confronting the authority of the academy.


    "I know you are good at wind-element power. Even so, you cannot outrun him." The director kept trying to persuade him, "Yang Yao is in the Four-star Glory Plane."


    "This is a personal matter," Ye Futian insisted.


    The director kept staring at Ye Futian. He could not believe that this boy was so stubborn and persistent.


    Could that be the arrogance of knowing nothing? Ye Futian had proven his power twice.


    "I guess you have to show me your real power to persuade me." The director started talking again after a few moments of silence. Students were surprised by this demand.


    "You are going to see something brilliant." Ye Futian laughed. Suddenly, a bright golden glow burst out of his body. As the crowd watched in admiration, two wings appeared on his back. He had transformed his body into the shape of a giant bird!


    All of a sudden, the place was silent.


    "I am a Mandate Sorcerer!" Ye Futian announced his power to the audience with pride.

 43 Farewell

    Chapter 43: Farewell


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless pairs of eyes fell onto Ye Futian. They watched as his bright, shining Life Spirit was released. The Roc Spirit.


    Was this who Ye Futian really was? A frivolous, stubborn, and prideful young man?


    Everyone thought they understood him well enough, but now they realized that they were still underestimating him.


    He has already displayed his skills in both martial and divination art cultivation, plus his gifts in the thunder and fire elements. Now he was surrounded by a crazy storm of Spiritual Qi. Evidently, they were Wind and Metal Elemental. By the looks of it, he was a Mandate Sorcerer in at least four elements and cultivating in both arts.


    He had been so casual about possessing such a great gift. His behavior had once been considered presumptuous and arrogant, but now it was actually understated. If it weren''t for Ye Futian''s intent of killing Murong Qiu, the people of Qingzhou Academy would have never found out how truly gifted he was.


    Qin Yi arrived, running. Upon witnessing this scene, she had the urge to cry. Ever since returning from Mount Tianyao, her father had been decommissioned, and the Dark Qilin Knighthood was suppressed to the point of being abolished. After all, the enemy, Xia Fan, had returned to the East Sea Prefecture, and the city had fallen into the hands of Murong Yunshan. Murong Qiu was having his way.


    Her father had once been the protector of the city, the one citizens put their faith in; now who was going to get justice for him? Even the prestigious Qingzhou Academy had chosen to stay quiet. All she could do was continue to cultivate in hopes of becoming stronger and more powerful. However, there was a stubborn young man who had come to get revenge on Murong Qiu all on his own.


    "I am a Mandate Sorcerer," said Ye Futian. Qin Yi suddenly thought back to the scene in her classroom. She remembered everything he had said. Those words had sounded so shameless before, but with what she saw now, Qin Yi could only laugh. Although she was laughing, tears began to fall from her eyes.


    At that moment, the wings behind Ye Futian flapped, and he rose into the air.


    Ye Futian did not cultivate Wind Aviation, but he possessed the Life Spirit. The Wind Elemental Roc Spirit was going to help him fly.


    "Tell me, how should I kill you?" Ye Futian asked Murong Qiu as he watched him mercilessly. Murong Qiu had once asked Ye Futian arrogantly, "How are you going to kill me now?"


    Murong Qiu paled and he shouted, "Yang Yao, go!"


    Yang Yao failed to react immediately but was still able to use a wind spell to carry the two of them away.


    However, Ye Futian''s figure was gone in a flash. He soared in the skies just like a roc. His wings spread out majestically. Very quickly, he was able to catch up to Yang Yao. Ye Futian''s speed was even faster than that of Yang Yao.


    "Wind Blade!" Wind Elemental Spiritual Qi gathered around Yang Yao and formed into a sharp blade. Cutting through the air, it made its way in the direction of Ye Futian.


    A sharp, piercing sound resonated. Ye Futian''s golden wings cut through the Wind Blade, destroying it. His beautiful golden wings carried him toward Murong Qiu gracefully, just like a real roc.


    "Hurry!" Murong Qiu shouted in a craze after turning to see that Ye Futian was closing in on them.


    With one flap of his golden wings, blood was spilled. A bloody cut appeared on Murong Qiu''s neck.


    Murong Qiu''s eyes widened at the sight of Ye Futian. Then, in great fear, his shaking hands reached around his own neck. He lost all his energy, and his body began to convulse. He was only eighteen. These were supposed to be his best years. How could he die like this?


    The next moment, all the life slipped out of his body, and his limp body fell to the ground.


    Yang Yao was scared out of his mind. He let go of Murong Qiu. He tried to make a quick escape by himself. This was not the time to talk about loyalty amongst senior and junior brothers.


    BANG! Murong Qiu''s body hit the ground. Everyone, inside and outside of the campus, were shocked beyond words. They could only continue to stare at the young man in the air.


    Ye Futian looked down at the Pavilion Lord of the Thunder Elemental Pavilion. "Thank you, Senior."


    "Hurry, go," the Pavilion Lord looked up at Ye Futian. He nodded and began to fly away.


    From a distance away, several people rushed over. Leading the group was the new Pavilion Lord of the Earth Elemental Pavilion. He did not know what to do. He wanted to chase after Ye Futian, but was stopped by the Thunder Elemental Pavilion Lord. Thunder and lightning suddenly appeared and blocked their path.


    "He has not been a disciple of Qingzhou Academy for a while now. Even if his gift is like no other, you can''t just let him get away with this," the Earth Elemental Pavilion Lord stated coldly.


    More people started to arrive. They all stared at Ye Futian''s quickly disappearing figure and could not do anything about it. They all had mixed feelings about letting him go so easily.


    "As the most prestigious place in all of Qingzhou City, Qingzhou Academy can''t even compete with a teenager," said the Thunder Pavilion Lord. His tone was peaceful but it also contained disappointment and sadness. His beliefs had been shattered. Ye Futian had taught him something new today.


    To be young and reckless, sometimes he was very envious of teenagers. They could do whatever they wanted without fear because, in their eyes, there were no rules and no limitations.


    The people who had just arrived did not know what to do. In some of their hearts, they felt guilt.


    "Personal benefits, power, rigid regulations," the Thunder Pavilion Lord busted out in laughter suddenly. It was as if he was laughing at himself. He looked ahead at Qingzhou Academy and bowed to the place of rich history. Lifting his head, he spoke once again, "This place is no longer what it used to be. There is no use in staying."


    Finally, he turned and walked away. With his back to everyone else, he lifted his hand to wave. "When that young man''s name spreads all over the world, you guys will understand what Qingzhou Academy missed out on."


    Not too long ago, he had said that he wanted to see what Ye Futian was capable of, and he was not disappointed. A Mandate Sorcerer of four elements cultivating in martial and divination arts; a one in a million gift. Even so, the Thunder Pavilion Lord still felt like he had yet to witness Ye Futian''s true potential.


    The people of the academy just stood there, watching him as he walked away. His back was bleak but at the same time unrestrained.


    Meanwhile, a black qilin departed from within the academy and began chasing in the direction of where Ye Futian left.


    In the faraway skies, Ye Futian soared in the clouds. Not long after, a black wind eagle emerged from the clouds and began to fly beside Ye Futian. Seated on top of it were Hua Fengliu and Yu Sheng. Ye Futian came to kill Murong Qiu alone, but of course, he would have a backup plan.


    His form changed back to normal and he landed on top of the black wind eagle as well. Hua Fengliu and Yu Sheng did not ask any questions. Ye Futian returned safely, that meant that he accomplished what he set out to do.


    "Ye Futian!" a voice called out behind them. Ye Futian looked back and saw a black qilin flying towards them. Seeing that it was just a black qilin, he did not feel the need to escape.


    "Senior Sister," Ye Futian smiled and greeted Qin Yi on the black qilin.


    "Are you leaving already?" she asked. After killing Murong Qiu, Ye Futian could not continue to stay in the city of Qingzhou. The only way he would be able to stay was if Hua Fengliu was not injured, but obviously that was not the case. If it were, then Ye Futian would not have had to kill Murong Qiu in such a manner.


    "Yeah, I have to leave the city now. Take care, Senior Sister," said Ye Futian. He felt bad for Qin Yi. Her father protected Qingzhou City but was decommissioned and no one was willing to help her. One could only imagine how she felt right now.


    "Let me send you off," she said with a gentle smile.


    "Okay!" Ye Futian nodded. The black wind eagle and the black qilin flew side by side, getting far away from Qingzhou Academy.


    ...


    The Qingzhou coast had many large vessels headed in all different directions.


    Right now, many people were boarding a large ship by the coast. This ship was one headed for the City of Donghai.


    The distance between Qingzhou City and Donghai City was quite long. Naturally, Ye Futian couldn''t fly the black wind eagle all the way there. Plus, Hua Fengliu was not in good condition, and couldn''t handle flying for long periods of time.


    Yu Sheng piggybacked Hua Fengliu and waited in front of the ship.


    Ye Futian was having his last farewell with Qin Yi.


    "Senior Sister, I really have to go now," he said softly.


    "Alright. Remember to come back to visit me when you grow up," Qin Yi nodded. Even though she was sad, she kept a smile on her face.


    "Okay, but you have to make sure not to forget me!" said Ye Futian.


    "How could I forget you?" asked Qin Yi.


    "I''m afraid that I''ll grow to be too handsome and you won''t be able to recognize me," he said with a sly smile. She stared at him. This rascal was still so mischievous.


    "Goodbye!" Ye Futian turned around and waved.


    "Ye Futian!" she called out to him. Ye Futian turned to look at Qin Yi again. Her arms were open and she had a big smile on her face. "I''ll let you leave with a treat."


    "Senior Sister, you''re putting me in a tight spot here," Ye Futian sighed and walked up in between her arms, holding her curvaceous figure with his arms.


    Qin Yi leaned into him lightly, her smile still bright. Sometime later she spoke again, "Are you not going to let go?"


    "Oh," he loosened his grip on her and smiled at her. "I''m going to miss you."


    Qin Yi looked at him without a word and then turned around. "I''m going now."


    She made her way to where the back qilin was.


    "Senior Sister, you have to take care of yourself!" Ye Futian shouted. With her back to him, Qin Yi began to tear up. As her tears fell, she mounted the black qilin and flew away not looking back.


    Ye Futian watched her as she departed and let out a sigh. He could not help her with much. He only hoped that she would be strong enough to handle everything alone.


    He turned around a walked towards the ship. Both Hua Fengliu and Yu Sheng watched him.


    "Master, we should board the ship now," Ye Futian said to them.


    "Okay," Hua Fengliu nodded. On their way there he asked, "How was the hug? Comfy?"


    Ye Futian tripped over his own two feet. He looked over at Hua Fengliu and attempted to explain, "Master, Senor Sister Qin Yi was feeling upset about what happened with General Qin. I was only trying to console her."


    "Okay, I understand," nodded Hua Fengliu. "You have to hug someone that long to console them?"


    "Master, you have deeply misunderstood me." He finished his words and walked ahead of Yu Sheng. Then, he crouched down and said, "Yu Sheng, let me carry Master,"


    "Yu Sheng, let''s go," said Hua Fengliu.


    "Okay." This time, Yu Sheng did not listen to Ye Futian and carried Hua Fengliu onto the ship. Ye Futian watched their backs and tried to catch up. Nice guys always end up getting hurt.

 44 The Royal Family

    Chapter 44: The Royal Family


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On the coast of City of Qingzhou, a giant ship sailed away and finally disappeared from people''s sight.


    An old man was standing quietly there, watching the giant ship leave. Waves continued crashing on the rocks, while the wind shrieked. The sea breeze kept whistling and whipped around the old man''s body. His gray hair was swinging, and so was his body. It almost looked like he would be blown away by the wind. However, he stayed immobile.


    Behind him, in the City of Qingzhou, some powerful sorcerers and knights mounted on beasts were heading that way. They looked at the ocean, and someone commanded, "Lock down this coast! The Lord of the City ordered that Ye Futian shall not leave this city!"


    "A ship just left for the City of Donghai. Should we check the ship?" someone asked.


    "Old man, did you see a sixteen-year-old boy board that ship?" a sorcerer saw the old man standing on the coast and asked him.


    The old man was still standing there quietly. He just stared ahead and stayed silent as if he wasn''t listening.


    "Answer him!" A knight came forward and pointed his lance at the old man.


    The old man also ignored him. The sorcerer frowned at him, and the knight continued to threaten the old man. "Are you looking for trouble?"


    The wind was still shrieking, and sand was flying. The sorcerer mounted on the monster realized something terrifying was approaching. He suddenly noticed that the old man was condensing the power of the universe. Soon, he saw a terrible whirlpool of sand forming. It only took a moment for the vortex to descend upon them and ultimately engulf them all. The old man was still standing there quietly as if he wasn''t doing anything.


    "Please, don''t kill us!" All those powerful people were now begging for mercy. However, they had already lost their chance. The sandstorm had taken them all and lifted their bodies into the air. The old man also started to float with them.


    "Please, we regret what we said!" They were totally desperate.


    "You have never seen the power of the Holy Bird. You should feel lucky that you can witness this power before you die," the old man said peacefully. His body soon disappeared. As soon as he left, the storm intensified and all the people trapped inside were torn apart.


    ......


    Ye Futian was not worried about the people chasing after him. He knew that the Prefectural Administration Mansion would only be informed that he left after a long while. Even if they reacted as soon as possible and locked down the coasts, they would still have no idea where he was going. Furthermore, since the people chasing after him were scattered, the resistance he encountered would not be too harsh. Meanwhile, the Black Wind Eagle was flying next to the ship, prepared to attack anyone in Ye Futian''s way.


    The ship he was on was enormous. There were a lot of private rooms on the ship that could house four people inside comfortably.


    "Be careful, Professor." Ye Futian helped Hua Fengliu sit down. He and Yu Sheng then sat across from Hua Fengliu.


    "Professor, do you have any plans for after we get to the City of Donghai?" Ye Futian asked. It had been Hua Fengliu''s idea to go to this city, so he believed Hua Fengliu must have had a plan.


    "I don''t want to talk right now." Hua Fengliu was in a grim mood.


    "Sorry, I''m just kind of excited about seeing my fairy soon." Ye Futian was smiling.


    "The City of Donghai is the capital of the East Sea Prefecture. You will run into many beauties there." Hua Fengliu was making fun of Ye Futian.


    "Professor, please, I''m not that bad." Ye Futian believed Hua Fengliu was doing this intentionally.


    "Okay, I''ll trust you." Hua Fengliu nodded.


    "Yu Sheng, how about you?" Ye Futian turned toward Yu Sheng.


    "I trust you, too," Yu Sheng said mockingly.


    "I need some air." Ye Futian was embarrassed and left the room.


    After going up on the deck of the ship, Ye Futian started to enjoy the sea breeze. The City of Qingzhou started to fade away from his sight. His mind was now filled with emotions. He had no idea when he would be able to come back to the city he had lived in for sixteen years.


    Yu Sheng also followed him onto the deck. They gazed at the city together. That city had held so many memories for them.


    "Yu Sheng, do you think your father is watching us now?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Even if he is, he''s only looking at you." Yu Sheng sounded a bit sad.


    Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng and realized that he wasn''t very happy. However, he didn''t know how to comfort him. Ever since they were born, Yu Sheng''s father had always treated Ye Futian better than Yu Sheng. Even though he respected his father, Yu Sheng was somewhat resentful.


    Gazing at the sea, Ye Futian started to laugh. "Yu Sheng, remember, even if someday I become the emperor of this continent as godfather expects, I would give that crown to you if you asked me. I promise you that I will share everything with you except my cute fairy."


    Yu Sheng nodded to show that he understood. When he was being punished by his father as a child, Ye Futian would confront his father and secretly share snacks with Yu Sheng. At that time, he swore to himself that he would stand by Ye Futian''s side no matter where they were.


    The sea breeze was still shrieking and whipped at the boys. No one had any idea how legendary their future would be.


    There were footsteps behind them. Ye Futian turned around and saw two beautiful girls coming towards them. The two girls were the same age. Both of them were very attractive, especially the girl on the left who was wearing green. She was extremely charming.


    They realized that Ye Futian was staring at them. The girl in green naturally nodded back at him.


    "What''s wrong with your eye? Getting fixed on beautiful girls?" The girl on the right started to chuckle with a wicked sense of humor. Ye Futian also started smiling. "Why would I take my eyes away off of beautiful girls like you? Don''t be mad, please."


    "Don''t listen to her." The girl in green began introductions, "I''m Lin Xiyue, and this is Xiao He, my friend. Who are you guys?"


    "I''m Ye Futian, and this is my best friend, Yu Sheng." Ye Futian didn''t stop smiling. "Are you also from the City of Qingzhou? I don''t believe we have met before."


    "No, we come from the City of Donghai," Lin Xiyue said. "We heard that relics of Emperor Ye Qing showed up in the City of Qingzhou. We asked our masters to bring us here to broaden our horizons. However, people told us that the place couldn''t be approached at all, so we gave up. You guys are from City of Qingzhou, so have you been there?"


    "Yes, we have," Ye Futian nodded.


    "You''re bragging." Xiao He kept chuckling, "Admit it. You''re just trying to attract Lin Xiyue''s attention."


    Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders. Lin Xiyue then asked, "Why are you going to the City of Donghai?"


    "We''re following our professor," Ye Futian responded.


    "Good luck to you. The best academy in this province is there," Lin Xiyue encouraged them.


    "What''s your class and plane? I can guess your chances." Xiao He asked Ye Futian.


    "A mage, in the Two-star Glory Plane."


    "Good for you. I believe you will go to a decent academy." Lin Xiyue smiled and said, "Now we need to go for a walk."


    "See you later." Ye Futian then told Yu Sheng, "Let''s go back."


    Soon, they headed back to their room. After seeing them leave, Xiao He started chuckling again. "Why did you hit on these strangers, Lin Xiyue?"


    Lin Xiyue gave her a stare.


    "That boy is a bad one, isn''t he? But he''s pretty handsome. The other one is a stud. So, Lin Xiyue, which one do you like?"


    "You''re talking nonsense. Come on, girl, we just met."


    "Even though we just met, it''s okay for you to tell me your preference, right?"


    Lin Xiyue gave up. She thought for a while, then smiled. "I like Ye Futian better. He''s cute."


    Xiao He sighed in disapproval and looked at her with mockery. Lin Xiyue tried to stop her. "Stop thinking of crazy stuff. It was just a casual conversation. I know he is talented, but he is definitely not the very best in the City of Donghai."


    "Of course you''re looking for the greatest." They left and kept chatting.


    Several days later, the ship finally arrived at the City of Donghai. When Ye Futian disembarked, he was awed by the prosperity of the city. Countless ships were docked at the commercial capital of the East Sea Prefecture. Due to the geographic importance of this city, it had become the gateway of the whole province.


    "Goodbye, Ye Futian." Xiao He waved at Ye Futian and Lin Xiyue was looking at them with a smile.


    "I believe we will meet again." Ye Futian waved back. Later, he saw the girls leave with an old man.


    Ye Futian raised his head. He explained to Hua Fengliu, "Professor, it was just some casual talk with the girls, I promise. Yu Sheng can testify for me."


    "I''m used to it." Hua Fengliu did not take it seriously. Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian with sympathy. The Black Wind Eagle landed in front of them. They got on her back, and soon the eagle flew to the City of Donghai.


    Compared with the City of Qingzhou, this ancient city was so much more prosperous. Monsters were flying in the air all over the city, and they served as mounts for powerful cultivators. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng suddenly believed that they had made an absolutely great choice to come to this city.


    "Lead the way please, Professor," Ye Futian asked Hua Fengliu. Hua Fengliu took command of the Black Wind Eagle, and Ye Futian noticed that he looked earnest now, which was rare. Apparently, getting back to the City of Donghai stirred his mind.


    Eventually, they arrived at their destination. From afar, they saw an immensely spectacular mansion in their sight. It was almost as grand as a royal palace.


    The Black Wind Eagle landed in front of the building. Ye Futian had never seen such a majestic building. He asked Hua Fengliu, "Professor, where are we? It almost looks like a royal palace."


    "It used to be a royal palace," Hua Fengliu told him. "About three hundred years ago, before Emperor Ye Qing and Donghuang the Great unified the continent. This continent was torn apart by warlords that controlled separate regions. The nation of Nandou was ruled by the Nandou family. After the continent was unified, the ruler gave a new order to this world. The Nandou family toppled and were seized from the throne. This was the mansion of the Nandou family."


    "So, why did you bring us here?" Ye Futian was curious.


    "Because your future wife is living here." Hua Fengliu started laughing.


    Ye Futian blinked his eyes. He was surprised. "So, your wife is the daughter of this royal family? How did you manage to pursue her?"


    "I was handsome, boy." Hua Fengliu was confident. Ye Futian believed he was boasting again.


    "Professor, if I told the guards that I want to go to this place to see my girlfriend, would they kill me?" Ye Futian was joking.


    "You can try that," Hua Fengliu said. "I have been prohibited from entering the City of Donghai. They told me that if I did, they would destroy my natal spirit. However, it has been already destroyed."


    Ye Futian was silent. He started laughing again and said, "Don''t worry, Professor. Someday they will beg you to come back."

 45 Abjection

    Chapter 45: Abjection


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hua Fengliu stared at the magnificent palace. Ye Futian''s words went straight to his heart. Would there be a day that they would beg him to enter?


    His handsome face lit up with a bright smile. He said in all seriousness, "I believe you."


    Hua Fengliu had no confidence in himself, but he had the utmost confidence in Ye Futian.


    "Let''s go," Hua Fengliu said lowly. No one wanted to enter that palace more than he did. The two women he loved most were in there.


    "Master, you did this on purpose didn''t you?" asked Ye Futian. Obviously he was not really trying to run into the palace to look for his girlfriend. Hua Fengliu was handsome, talented, and known as the Qin Devil. Even if he was not welcomed into the palace, Ye Futian was definitely not welcomed either. Even though he knew that he was handsome, to walk in and say that the sixteen-year-old princess was his girlfriend as a Glory Plane cultivator would probably get his legs broken, and then he''d be thrown out of the palace.


    "I wanted to give you a little motivation," chuckled Hua Fengliu.


    The three of them returned to sit on the black wind eagle. They were up in the air once again. Their clothes shook violently in the wind. Ye Futian looked down at the palace as the view got blurrier. This was going to be his number one goal, whether it was for Hua Jieyu or Hua Fengliu.


    When the black wind eagle touched land again, they were outside of another residence. This one was not as intimidating as the Nandou family, but it was obviously still the residence of nobility.


    After landing, they were able to see the entrance of the residence. Guards stood on watch outside and above the doors was a plaque: "The Mu House."


    "Let''s go," said Hua Fengliu. Ye Futian carried him towards the entrance, but was blocked by the guards. "Is there something I can help you guys with?" asked one of the guards.


    "Please relay a message to your master, Mu Hong. Tell him Hua Fengliu is here to see him," Hua Fengliu told the guard. The guard looked over at his colleague and nodded. One of them headed into the residence.


    Not long after, a young man looking to be about seventeen years old arrived. He saw Hua Fengliu on Ye Futian''s back and gave a look of interest. He bowed lightly and said, "Greetings, Senior. I am Mu Yunqing."


    "I can''t believe Mu Hong''s child is already all grown up," smiled Hua Fengliu. "Is your father not home?"


    "My father is inside, preparing the house to receive your presence. If you''ll please follow me," said Mu Yunqing. His arm was outstretched, inviting the trio inside, so Ye Futian carried Hua Fengliu into the home.


    The Mu family house was huge. Their group arrived at one of the buildings within the residence. A stern looking middle-aged man stood there. When he saw Hua Fengliu, a look of confusion crossed his eyes. "Hua Fengliu, what has happened to you?" he asked.


    "My old sport, Mu Hong. It''s a long story," sighed Hua Fengliu.


    "Come have a seat," Mu Hong said and a servant girl walked up with tea for everyone. A young girl beside Mu Hong sized up their little group.


    After everyone took their seats, Mu Hong spoke again, "Hua Fengliu, you''ve already met Mu Yunqing. This is my daughter, Mu Yunni."


    "This is Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Ye Futian is my disciple and it is because of him that I have come to you," Hua Fengliu said.


    "What do you mean?" asked Mu Hong.


    "You know that I have enemies in Donghai City, I don''t want to drag Ye Futian into it. So, if you are willing, I was hoping he could stay here with you. You can treat him like a nephew, or even take him in as your disciple," explained Hua Fengliu. His intentions were now clear to Ye Futian.


    Hua Fengliu wanted to find support for Ye Futian, even if he had to beg.


    "My father won''t take just anyone under his wing," Mu Yunni glared coldly at Ye Futian.


    "Yunni, watch what you say," reprimanded Mu Hong.


    "You don''t have to worry about his talent, old sport," Hua Fengliu reassured him.


    "You had your powers disabled by the Art Saint. How powerful can your disciple be? Now that you''re like this, you want to drag my father down as well?" said Mu Yunni unwelcomingly.


    "Be quiet!" shouted Mu Hong sternly. Then, to Hua Fengliu he said, "My daughter is undisciplined. Please do not mind her."


    Mu Hong picked up his cup and sipped on his tea. The room was quiet and he did not answer to Hua Fengliu''s request.


    Of course, Hua Fengliu knew what this meant. At that moment, Ye Futian spoke up, "Master, let''s be on our way now."


    "Okay," nodded Hua Fengliu. "Please excuse us now, old sport," he said to Mu Hong.


    "Aren''t you going to finish your tea first?" asked Mu Hong casually. He had no intentions of asking them to stay.


    Ye Futian already had Hua Fengliu on his back. Hua Fengliu smiled and shook his head. "There''s no need."


    "Very well then. Mu Yunqing, Mu Yunni, go send off Uncle Hua Fengliu," said Mu Hong. The Mu siblings nodded and followed behind Ye Futian as they made their way out. After they left, Mu Hong let out a sinister look. Disciple? If he was willing? He had no lack of disciples.


    Hua Fengliu''s powers had already been disabled. Plus, he has made enemies of the Art Saint and the Nandou family. Did he really think it would be easy to find someone to back him up?


    Ye Futian''s trio stepped out of the residence and Mu Yunqing spoke, "Take care now, Senior."


    The trio continued on their way but from behind they could hear Mu Yunni. "Shouldn''t they have known better? How shameless."


    "They have it tough," laughed Mu Yunqing, no longer keeping up with his previous proper image.


    They made no attempts to hide their conversation. The words stung as they reached Ye Futian''s ears. Yu Sheng had his fists clenched. Hua Fengliu felt guilty and said, "I''m sorry, Ye Futian. You''ve suffered because of me."


    "No, I haven''t. Mu Hong is ignorant and blind. He just gave up a chance to be the master of the future emperor," Ye Futian said nonchalantly.


    "You rascal," laughed Hua Fengliu. It looked like he was worried for no reason. "With a handicapped man like me, people will only look down on you. They won''t see your true potential. When you are able to control the world, they''ll regret everything."


    "Master, don''t say that about yourself," Ye Futian felt terrible. He knew well and clear it was for him, and that Hua Fengliu had gone to beg Mu Hong.


    As the legendary Qin Devil, Hua Fengliu was extremely prideful. Now that his powers had been disabled, he did not care about his enemies. If it weren''t for Ye Futian, Hua Fengliu would have never returned to the City of Donghai.


    "It''s okay; I still have some friends here. Let''s go find them," said Hua Fengliu.


    "Master, I don''t want you begging others for me," said Ye Futian.


    "Coming to Donghai City was my idea. Xia Fan wanted to kill you back on Mount Tianyao. Even though this city is huge, there''s no way to say that we won''t run into him. I can''t protect you in my disabled state. I can''t just let you be on your own," explained Hua Fengliu. "Don''t worry, this is just the plan for now. We won''t have to do this after a while."


    "Master, don''t you understand? All those years ago, when your Life Spirit was destroyed and you were kicked out of Donghai City, none of your friends stood up for you. Now that you''ve returned abjected, who do you think is willing to help you?" asked Ye Futian. "I''ll be careful and take care of myself. Don''t worry about me. I didn''t even die on Mount Tianyao, I won''t die so easily."


    Hua Fengliu sighed and said, "Alright then. Let''s go take a look around the Qin Gardens."


    "Is that where you used to live?" Ye Futian guessed.


    "Yeah, but it''s probably deserted now," nodded Hua Fengliu. They set off on the black wind eagle once again.


    Hua Fengliu and Ye Futian stood in front of the Qin Gardens, shocked. The residence in front of them looked lively. They noticed this even from up in the air. It was definitely not deserted.


    "Yu Sheng, go find out who the new owner of the Qin Gardens is," said Hua Fengliu.


    "Okay," answered Yu Sheng. He walked up to ask the guard but did not get a name. All the guard told him was that the new owner''s surname was Tang.


    "Let''s leave," Hua Fengliu said. His expression changed. Ye Futian thought this was peculiar but turned to follow.


    "What''s so scary about my last name?" a voice rang out behind them. Ye Futian stopped in his tracks and looked back. A woman had walked out from the Qin Gardens. She looked to be in her thirties. She was very beautiful. One could only imagine how much more beautiful she was in her youth.


    Hua Fengliu saw the woman and smiled bitterly. "I didn''t think you would be living in the Qin Gardens."


    The woman looked at Hua Fengliu and began to give off an icy aura. She looked like she was about to erupt in anger. Ye Futian shuddered. She couldn''t be an enemy of Hua Fengliu, could she?


    "Who did it?" she asked in a cold demeanor. She was referring to Hua Fengliu''s disability. Maybe she wasn''t an enemy after all.


    "Forget about that. How have you been?" Hua Fengliu asked.


    "How do you think I''ve been?" she asked him in return. Ye Futian was confused. Could she be Hua Fengliu''s wife? Didn''t she live in the Nandou Family Palace though?


    "Who''s he?" the woman asked looking at Ye Futian.


    "Senior, I''m Master''s disciple," Ye Futian answered.


    "Who caused his disability?" she continued to inquire.


    "Vice Chief Xia Fan of the East Sea Prefecture wanted to kill me. Master is like this now because he tried to protect me," said Ye Futian.


    "That useless son of the Xia family? He dared to lay a hand on you? I''m going to kill him," said the woman.


    "Stop acting crazy," Hua Fengliu stared at her. "It''s been so long. Can''t you control your temper a little?


    "If I hadn''t been abandoned by a certain someone, would I have become like this?" she asked. Ye Futian felt weak in the legs. So, it was an old lover.


    "You still haven''t married?" Hua Fengliu''s tone became gentler.


    "Do you want me to marry that badly?" Tang Lan retorted. Hua Fengliu did not know what to say.


    "Come in. This used to be your home. Now, that you''re back, it should be returned to its rightful owner. You can live here from now on," Tang Lan''s tone also lightened.


    "No," Hua Fengliu rejected, shaking his head.


    "Why? Afraid I''ll swallow you alive?" She was furious. "If you had married me all those years ago things wouldn''t have turned out like this. Don''t you feel like you were dragged down by that woman?" asked Tang Lan.


    Ye Futian burst out in cold sweat. This....


    "Let''s not talk about the past," Hua Fengliu tried to brush it off. "Who else lives in the Qin Gardens?"


    "I took in two female disciples," she answered.


    "Young and pretty?" asked Hua Fengliu.


    "There is one," replied Tang Lan. "Why? You like them young now?"


    Hua Fengliu was dumbstruck. "Stop with the nonsense. I just don''t want your disciples to follow in your footsteps. So, it''s best if I don''t go in."


    "Follow in my footsteps?" At first, she seemed confused. Then, she glanced at Ye Futian and finally understood what he meant. Ye Futian was young and handsome. In a couple of years there would be another Hua Fengliu.


    "Even the disciple you took in resembles you; but don''t worry, my disciples have higher standards than I did," said Tang Lan. "Come inside."


    Hua Fengliu smiled bitterly. He thought to himself, With a guy like Ye Futian, it wouldn''t matter how high their standards were.


    "Don''t regret it," Hua Fengliu sighed. Then, he turned to look at Ye Futian. "Hey kid, behave yourself."


    "Master, I''m really not the person you think I am!" Ye Futian was completely speechless. Who was that defensive against their own disciple?

 46 The Girl Was in Love

    Chapter 46: The Girl Was in Love


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Guqin Gardens had an elegant environment with pavilions, bamboo, and rocks. It was quiet and comfortable.


    A group of people arrived in front of one of the pavilions. They saw a girl, about twenty-years-old, come out of the pavilion. She greeted Tang Lan, "Hi, Professor Tang."


    "Nie Bing, this is Mr. Hua and his disciple," Tang Lan made the introductions. "This is my first disciple, Nie Bing. The younger ones are now cultivating in Donghai Academy. Don''t worry, I won''t let Ye Futian see them."


    Ye Futian smiled wryly. His reputation had been ruined by Hua Fengliu.


    "Mr. Hua," Nie Bing greeted Hua Fengliu.


    "The place you used to live in has been kept vacant, but it''s clean, so you can stay there," Tang Lan told Hua Fengliu.


    "Thank you." Hua Fengliu nodded.


    "If you had gratitude, you would not have left me." Tang Lan still resented him because of their past. Hua Fengliu did not refute this. He responded with nothing but silence.


    "Ms. Tang, my Professor has been missing you all this time. He told me many times that he had failed someone and he played the guqin every time this memory came back," Ye Futian spoke for Hua Fengliu. Tang Lan looked at Ye Futian with suspicion. "Is that true?"


    "Of course." Ye Futian looked serious. "I did not know who that person was but today after meeting you, Ms. Tang, I totally understand that feeling."


    Tang Lan looked into the crystal bright eyes of the boy, and she started to believe he was telling the truth. She turned toward Hua Fengliu, and he was shaking his head, sighing. "It''s all just in the past."


    "Okay, you do have some last shreds of a conscience." Tang Lan finally believed him. Yu Sheng was surprised that Ye Futian was able to help Hua Fengliu gain forgiveness from his old flame.


    "Nie Bing, go get my guqin," Tang Lan told her. Nie Bing left and soon returned with a guqin in her arms. Hua Fengliu was overcome with emotion. "Thank you for repairing Duyou for me."


    "Duyou used to be your favorite guqin. Now it''s time to return it to you." Nie Bing gave it to Hua Fengliu.


    Hua Fengliu took the guqin and strummed the strings with his fingers. They heard a unique sound coming out of the guqin, which brought the audience into an empty and secluded world, as if it had magical powers.


    "Wow, an artifact." Ye Futian was awed. Objects enhanced with spells were called artifacts.


    "Ye Futian, come here. It belongs to you now." Hua Fengliu handed the guqin over to Ye Futian. Tang Lan was confused about this. She had realized that Hua Fengliu would give this disciple everything. For the Guqin Devil, this guqin was almost as important as his life.


    Ye Futian took it carefully with both hands and replied with a smile. "Professor, I will not let you down."


    "I believe you," Hua Fengliu laughed. He knew Ye Futian was genuinely talented. He just needed time to hone his power.


    "What''s your plan now? Don''t think about revenge. I always wanted to destroy his natal spirit because of what he did to you, but he was just too powerful," Tang Lan said. Hua Fengliu knew who she was talking about. It was his long-time nemesis, the Art Saint.


    "I did not come here for revenge. I brought Ye Futian here to attend Donghai Academy. However, since the Spring Term Admission Test has ended, I''m afraid that he will have to wait until next year. You''ve stayed in this city all these years, do you know if there is anything I can do to get Ye Futian into that academy?" Hua Fengliu asked Tang Lan.


    Tang Lan shook her head and answered, "Unless someone of high authority at the academy asked for him personally."


    Hua Fengliu frowned, looking like he was thinking hard.


    "Professor, why do I have to attend Donghai Academy?" Ye Futian asked.


    "In The City of Qingzhou, Qingzhou Academy is a sacred place, and the official students of Qingzhou Academy have a high social status in the city. Most of the important people of that city graduated from that academy. Even the Lord of the City is supposed to show respect to Qingzhou Academy." Hua Fengliu answered his question. "It''s the same for Donghai Academy. However, Donghai Academy is even more remarkable. Donghai Academy is not the only academy in this city, but it is the oldest one, founded more than three hundred years ago, when this continent was in severe conflict. The initial founding of this academy was intended to serve the major families in this city, and this purpose has not changed."


    "So, you mean Donghai Academy is more than just a school?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "Correct. Donghai Academy is far more powerful and complex than you''d think. If you attend Donghai Academy, your safety will be better ensured," Hua Fengliu explained. Ye Futian nodded, realizing that Hua Fengliu had a more significant plan in mind. Otherwise, they would not have come here.


    "I met your professor at Donghai Academy." Tang Lan sounded sad as if some past memory had just popped into her mind.


    "In fact, we were about your age." Hua Fengliu was smiling.


    "What a beautiful time it was. I was willing to devote my most precious youth to you, but soon after you met her," Tang Lan kept speaking.


    "I made a mistake." Hua Fengliu was embarrassed.


    "You feel guilty?" Tang Lan was mad, and she being sarcastic with Hua Fengliu, "To be honest, I was not as beautiful as that girl, but as far as talents and power, I was considered to be the top of my class. Why did I devote myself to the wrong man?"


    "I''m tired, Ye Futian, help me go back to my room." Hua Fengliu tried to close his eyes. "Yes," Ye Futian responded.


    He lifted Hua Fengliu onto his back and carried him to his room. Tang Lan still looked like she was mad at what had happened in the past but since Hua Fengliu had lost his ability to walk, she began to sympathize and warm up to him.


    Ye Futian carried Hua Fengliu into the room and asked, "Professor, Jieyu''s mother was the princess of the Nandou family, just like my Jieyu. Is she also studying at Donghai Academy now?"


    "You need to find out for yourself." Hua Fengliu smiled.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and left Hua Fengliu to rest. He went back to Tang Lan, and she said to Ye Futian, "Looks like you guys are getting along with each other."


    "Professor was injured because of me," Ye Futian said. "He was trying to protect me, reactivated his natal spirit, and suffered this irreversible injury as a result. Is there any possibility that he could be cured by someone in this city?"


    "That is nuts." Tang Lan was shocked by what Hua Fengliu had done for Ye Futian. "To cure him, we would need a special Mandate Sorcerer who is a healing sorcerer with mental power. Besides, he would have to be more powerful than your professor. It would be almost impossible to find someone like that."


    "There is not a single person in the City of Donghai?" Ye Futian''s hope was rebuilt. He would do anything he could to cure Hua Fengliu.


    "In fact, there is." Tang Lan had thought of someone. She realized Ye Futian was looking at her with expectation, so she told him, "Just give up. Your professor would be happy enough that you are even thinking about how to cure him."


    "Please Ms. Tang, tell me." Ye Futian looked stubborn.


    "He''s not going to do it," Tang Lan shook her head.


    Ye Futian was disappointed. He understood that Tang Lan had her reasons for not telling him.


    "Goodbye, boy. Take care of your professor and get a good rest," Tang Lan said.


    "Thanks, Ms. Tang." Ye Futian knew that Ms. Tang had helped them a lot by letting them stay there, and he was grateful. "Professor is so lucky to have you."


    "This is life," Tang Lan sighed.


    "Which part of Professor attracted you to him in the first place?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Boy, he was handsome," Tang Lan answered and left, leaving Ye Futian standing there, surprised.


    Yu Sheng looked him in the face, then mumbled, "No wonder why so many girls like you. You do have a pretty face."


    Ye Futian pretended to be mad and stared at Yu Sheng. However, when he turned around, he couldn''t stop laughing.


    ...


    He was so eager to cultivate at Donghai Academy. This academy was apparently the best in all of the East Sea Prefecture.


    In fact, countless people came to this academy every year and tried their best to be admitted. However, only those with extraordinary talents could become students. The rest just gave up their first choice and went to the academies that were not as excellent. This was why everyone in Donghai Academy could be considered geniuses, and a virtuous cycle was formed that let this academy become even more powerful over time.


    The powerful sorcerers such as the Guqin Devil, Art Saint, and Tang Lan had all attended Donghai Academy. For a powerful family like Nandou, Donghai Academy had become the first and only choice for their offspring.


    Meanwhile, at Donghai Academy, a beautiful girl was inscribing. She was about sixteen-years-old, and she was focused entirely on her work. This concentration shed a holy glow on her body.


    "Hua Jieyu," someone called her. Another pretty girl had entered. She was not as gorgeous as the one inscribing though.


    "What''s going on?" Hua Jieyu paused her work and looked at the girl.


    "Someone is inviting you to dinner." She smiled at Hua Jieyu.


    "A guy?" Hua Jieyu asked peacefully.


    "No, it''s a girl, and all she wants is to be overshadowed by your beauty at the dinner," the girl said jokingly.


    "I''m sorry, I can''t go." Hua Jieyu picked up her pen.


    The girl looked awkward. "Why don''t you even ask who he is?"


    "I can''t go," Hua Jieyu insisted. The girl almost gave up.


    "Can''t you at least try this time? I promise you this is one of the greatest boys at this academy," the girl tried for the last time.


    "I have a boyfriend," Hua Jieyu explained. The girl was surprised and asked, "You''re not making this up, are you?"


    Hua Jieyu shook her head. The girl realized she was serious. She sighed. "Oh my, so many boys at this academy are going to have broken hearts. Is this boy at the academy?"


    "No," Hua Jieyu answered.


    "Is he an amazing boy? It must be really difficult to get you to fall in love," the girl said.


    The image of Ye Futian came into her mind, then she suddenly started smiling. That smile was soul-capturing. It was utterly irresistible, even for the girl next to her.


    "He''s a bad boy." Hua Jieyu didn''t stop smiling. That smile was so sweet!


    The girl could see that Hua Jieyu was definitely not lying. She looked like she was in love!

 47 Donghai Academy

    Chapter 47: Donghai Academy


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The moon hung high in the night sky and the sound of guqin resonated in the Qin Gardens. The music seemed to be able to bring its listeners peace.


    From the music, one could feel happiness and a longing for love.


    In front of one of the buildings at the Qin Gardens, Tang Lan laid silently in a hammock, listening to the music. It brought her back to her youth and elicited memories from the past. She could not help but smile while she reminisced.


    "Master," a gentle voice sounded. Tang Lan opened her eyes and was met with the sight of a sweet-looking young woman underneath the moonlight.


    The young woman''s eyes were clear and pure, but carried curiosity when she looked at Tang Lan. She had approached Tang Lan without being noticed, and what was more, she saw a smile on her master''s face. Her smile was beautiful, but the young woman had never seen it before. Was it because of the music?


    "Tang Wan, why are you back?" Tang Lan asked.


    "I wanted to come back to see you, Master," Tang Wan answered softly. "Master, who is playing the guqin? It sounds like they are trying to convey a certain feeling."


    "He is back. The person playing is his disciple," Tang Lan answered. She never expected Ye Futian to be on par with Hua Fengliu at such a young age. His music was able to pluck a person from reality, pulling them into the mood of the piece.


    "He?" Tang Wan was puzzled at first but then remembered the person Tang Lan kept in her heart all these years. Her eyes twinkled. "The Qin Devil?"


    "Yes. Since you''re back anyway, you can show his disciple around Donghai Academy tomorrow, help him get familiar with the environment. When he enters the academy next year, you''ll be schoolmates." Tang Lan chuckled and continued, "But that rascal is good with words. Don''t be tricked by his sweet-talk."


    Tang Wan blushed. Tang Lan said the guy playing the guqin was a sweet-talker. What could he have said to Tang Lan for her to say that?


    "Go now. Get some more rest. From now on, you don''t have to worry so much about me, focus on cultivation," Tang Lan said gently. Of her two female disciples, she favored this younger disciple more. Tang Wan was young and beautiful, sweet and enchanting. She was very much like Tang Lan when she was a young girl. Tang Lan hoped that her beloved disciple would not end up like herself.


    "I understand, Master," Tang Wan replied. She turned and left the area but did not head back to her own living space. She followed the sound of the music and arrived at the building in which Hua Fengliu and Ye Futian were staying.


    In front of the building, she saw a young man quietly strumming at the chords of the guqin. He seemed to have fallen deep into the music; a smile adorned his face, which made him seem much more attractive.


    Tang Wan did not walk up to disturb him. Instead, she listened wordlessly from where she stood until the piece ended. The young man lifted his head and Tang Wan gave him a warm smile. "That was beautiful."


    "Thank you. My name is Ye Futian. Are you Ms. Tang Lan''s disciple?" asked Ye Futian with a smile.


    "Yes. My name is Tang Wan. My Master wants me to take you around Donghai Academy tomorrow. Do you want to go?" asked Tang Wan.


    "That sounds great!" he nodded.


    "Then, I''ll come find you tomorrow." Tang Wan smiled and was on her merry way. Ye Futain stood up, grabbed his guqin and entered the bamboo forest behind the building.


    A rustling noise came from the bamboo forest; there also seemed to be a low hum. Up ahead, Ye Futian could see the stalks of bamboo shaking from a gust of strong wind. When he walked closer to the area, he could see Yu Sheng seated on the ground. His body was surrounded by a dim golden light, making his already intimidating physique even scarier. At the same time, his face seemed to be slightly contorted, as if he were suffering from great pain. The low hum from before was coming from within Yu Sheng. It was as if a ferocious force was attacking his body from the inside.


    Ye Futian sat down on the ground and placed his guqin down in front of him; he began to play again. Under the sound of music, the suffering young man seemed to have calmed down but the scary force continued to attack. It growled and roared, almost like it was ready to devour Yu Sheng.


    After a long while, the force finally calmed down. Yu Sheng opened his eyes but the look on his face was icy cold. However, when he looked over and saw Ye Futian, his gaze started to warm up.


    "Yu Sheng, how long did your father say you had to cultivate this technique?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Forever," answered Yu Sheng.


    "Can''t you stop?" Ye Futian felt terrible.


    "It''s fine," Ye Sheng scratched his head and smiled. "This way, I can become stronger."


    "You dummy. Rest well," said Ye Futian. He left after picking up his guqin. However, Yu Sheng did not go rest. After Ye Futian left, he started to cultivate again. Ye Futian had almost been hounded to death on Mount Tianyao. Now that they were in the City of Donghai, there were even more powerful cultivators here. He had not cultivated long enough. At the plane he was in now, he was not capable of protecting Ye Futian. He had to become stronger and more powerful as quickly as possible.


    ...


    The next morning, Donghai City was basked in the warmth of the bright sunlight.


    In the Qin Gardens, Tang Lan sent people to take care of Hua Fengliu bright and early. Ye Futian felt bad for him, though, because everyone Tang Lan sent, was male. Hua Fengliu tried to protest in a roundabout way. He said that there were some things that females do in better detail. To this Tang Lan replied, "There''s me." Hua Fengliu could only cry on the inside. He should have known better than to come back to the Qin Gardens. This was pure revenge.


    Ye Futian was still laughing as he stepped out of the residence. He, along with Yu Sheng and Tang Wan departed on the black wind eagle.


    In the air, Ye Futian looked down at the large city. His feelings about the city down below were complicated. He was afraid of it, but at the same time he wanted to conquer it.


    "Tang Wang, are there a lot of geniuses at Donghai Academy?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yeah. All the geniuses from well-known families all across the East Sea Prefecture are usually sent to Donghai City to further their education and, of course, Donghai Academy is the first choice. For example, people say that over half of all the young Mandate Sorcerers in the East Sea Prefecture are gathered at Donghai Academy," Tang Wan explained.


    Ye Futian slowly nodded. He could understand this. It was only natural for families of Mandate Sorcerers to want to send their children to study at the best academy.


    "Are you feeling stressed?" Tang Wan smiled at Ye Futian. Her smile was sweet and beautiful.


    "Stress?" Ye Futian wanted to smile. "Doesn''t exist."


    "Looks like you''re pretty confident," chuckled Tang Wan.


    Ye Futian did not reply but, instead, threw her a question, "By the way, have you heard of a person named Hua Jieyu at the academy? She''s about your age."


    With Fox''s looks, it would be impossible for people at the academy not to know her.


    At the mention of this name, Tang Wan gave Ye Futian a strange look. "You aren''t planning to try anything with Donghai Academy''s number one beauty, are you?


    "Donghai Academy''s number one beauty?" Ye Futian was dumbfounded. Almost immediately a huge smile spread across his face. She was actually here!


    Furthermore, she was more well-known than he thought. She really was a fox.


    "Didn''t she just get into Donghai Academy?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "Yeah, but her performance at the Spring Quarter Entrance Exams was incredible. All the higher-ups were shocked. Plus, I heard she comes from an impressive background. So, her popularity skyrocketed as soon as she entered the academy. She was the talk of the town. Also, with her looks it''s only natural that she was crowned the academy''s number one beauty," Tang Wan explained. "Do you have a crush on her? I think you should just forget about it."


    Ye Futian looked at Tang Wan. It looked like she didn''t know about Hua Jieyu''s background. If she did, then she would have been able to guess that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu knew each other.


    "Why?" he asked.


    "Hua Jieyu has countless suitors at the academy but even the most popular guys have all been turned down. So, I don''t think you have a chance." Tang Wan gave him a light smile.


    "I get it," Ye Futian''s smile got even bigger. "Do you know why she turns all of them down?"


    "Probably because she''s too prideful," said Tang Wan.


    "It''s because she already has someone she likes," he said.


    "Who?" Tang Wan was curious.


    "Me," answered Ye Futian, smiling at Tang Wan.


    She smirked. "Master said you were good with words, turns out they were for bluffing."


    Ye Futian was speechless in response to her comment. Then, thinking about Tang Lan, said he felt a bit upset.


    After dropping off the trio, the black wind eagle was off again.


    Donghai Academy was majestic. The main doors were open allowing access to anyone and everyone. In all of the East Sea Prefecture, no one dared to cause trouble at Donghai Academy, so the academy never had to worry about preventing intrusions.


    Students came and went. The youngest was around the age of thirteen or fourteen, and the oldest was not over twenty. Everyone looked upbeat; the campus was vibrant.


    "There are so many pretty girls here," said Ye Futian as they entered. Hearing his very first comment about Donghai Academy, Tang Wan felt many pairs of judging eyes on them. It was embarrassing.


    As people walked past them, they could not help but stare. Ye Futian was handsome, Tang Wan was beautiful, and Yu Sheng looked strong and intimidating. Naturally, this trio would attract a lot of attention.


    At this time, a pair of eyes landed on Ye Futian and his friends. The corners of her mouth lifted into a smug smile.


    "It''s him," said a young woman around the age of sixteen.


    "Mu Yunni, is he someone you know?" asked a classmate of hers.


    Ye Futian was heading in their direction. His eyes did a quick sweep and saw the Mu siblings from yesterday amongst a group of people. It was hard to tell whether or not they were smiling at him.


    "Can I help you with something?" asked Ye Futian. The siblings had walked up to him.


    When Mu Yunni saw how confident Ye Futian looked, she was reminded of how pitiful he had looked to her the day before. She snickered at him, "Found someone else to back you up?"


    "What''s it to you?" he asked with a smile.


    "Nothing, I''m just asking," she laughed. Then the group brushed past Ye Futian and continued on their way. Right after walking past Ye Futian, Mu Yunni told the person next to her, "That guy is the Qin Devil''s disciple but the Qin Devil is now handicapped. He even had the nerve to come to my house and beg my father to take in his disciple. Isn''t that such a joke?"


    Ye Futian heard her words and stopped in his tracks once again. He turned to Tang Wan and jostled his shoulders. "What happens if I beat someone up at Donghai Academy?"

 48 I Won’t Leave Because I Need to Find My Girlfriend

    Chapter 48: I Won��t Leave Because I Need to Find My Girlfriend


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Tang Wan looked at Ye Futian with curiosity. Why would he pick a fight even before being admitted to the academy?


    However, Mu Yunni was very rude. If it had been her own master who was insulted, she wouldn''t have taken it either.


    "Students are not allowed to bully each other at Donghai Academy, but friendly competition is encouraged. Therefore, any fight voluntarily initiated by both parties of students will not be interfered with by the academy administrators. However, the parties in competition must make sure they have full control of their violence, which means no casualties allowed," Tang Wan mumbled to Ye Futian. "Since you''re not a student of this academy, if you insult the students here you will probably get your *ss kicked."


    Ye Futian felt awkward. Why didn''t Tang Wan believe in him?


    The group of people around Mu Yunni stopped walking when they overheard Ye Futian and Tang Wan''s conversation. Mu Yunni gave Ye Futian a glance in confusion. Someone started telling her, "Mu Yunni, this guy wants to kick your *ss."


    Mu Yunni mocked Ye Futian. "Why are you agitated? Am I wrong? Who was there at my house, begging my dad to accept him? Why don''t you just beg me, and maybe I''ll be nice and persuade my dad to give you a place."


    Ye Futian looked at Mu Yunni and said, "I''m mad now."


    "So what?" Mu Yunni was still smiling at him. People around her were also laughing. Mad? Did it mean anything?


    "So��" Ye Futian yelled, "Yu Sheng!"


    "I''m ready." Yu Sheng clenched his fists and stepped forward. At that moment, Tang Wan felt that this big guy had become a beast. His body exuded a sense of danger.


    "You are a Three-star Glory Plane warrior. Don''t tell me you''re afraid to fight," Ye Futian said to Mu Yunni.


    "Yunni, I''ll take him," a guy next to her said.


    "I will challenge you all," Yu Sheng announced. Tang Wan was shocked. Even she knew that Yu Sheng was definitely stronger, but he was still a bit overconfident. He was challenging six Donghai Academy students who were elite amongst their peers. Some of them might even be Mandate Sorcerers.


    Ye Futian wasn''t worried at all. Yu Sheng had been practicing techniques inherited from his father since he reached the seventh plane of awakening. Additionally, he had exceptional talent. Therefore, his power could not be measured merely by plane.


    He knew what Yu Sheng was trying to do. If he challenged only one student and other people got involved, then it was no longer a friendly competition. They were new to this place, so they still had to comply with the rules. Yu Sheng was very smart by challenging all those students.


    Mu Yunni and her brother looked embarrassed. The people who came to their house begging their father to accept them were now challenging all of them?


    "How can I reject you, since you''re asking for it?" Mu Yunqing didn''t take Yu Sheng seriously. However, he still had absolute confidence. He was only seventeen years old but already a Four-star Glory Plane Mandate Sorcerer. He was indeed one of the top students at Donghai Academy.


    The moment he agreed to fight, Yu Sheng stomped on the ground, and his body shot toward Mu Yunqing. He had endured this family long enough, since Hua Fengliu was rejected and humiliated yesterday. He believed it was now time to teach them a lesson.


    The ground fissured and Yu Sheng''s body was covered with a dark golden glow, as if he was wearing solid armor. He was much taller than the average person, and with the armor, he almost looked like a knight sent by God.


    "This boy is so��" Tang Wan was shocked. Yu Sheng had not even reached Mu Yunqing yet, and Tang Wan had already perceived the real power in his body.


    Not only Tang Wan, but other people being challenged obviously sensed Yu Sheng''s power. Two people stepped forward, and both of them started to condense elemental power into spells. One of them created a chain that appeared from the ground to shackle Yu Sheng''s body, and another one shot a sharp golden arrow in his eyes.


    Yu Sheng blocked the attacks by merely putting his arms in front of his body. The golden arrow broke into pieces the moment it reached his arms, and the chain was easily torn apart.


    Yu Sheng had almost reached their bodies when they started to flee from Yu Sheng''s range of melee attack. Their speed was breakneck, because both of them were powerful mages who also cultivated martial arts techniques.


    Unfortunately for them, Yu Sheng was faster. They saw a golden giant blocking their way. They were frightened because they had never seen anyone who could corner them in a fight like Yu Sheng did. He was so fast that they were defeated before they had fully employed the power of their attacks.


    Bang. Yu Sheng''s arms swept onto them. They were knocked back to the ground, and their bodies were smashed.


    Yu Sheng kept charging forward towards Mu Yunni. The ground was shaking with his steps. At that moment, Mu Yunni''s face turned deadly pale. She apparently had just realized this strong guy was way more powerful than she was.


    "Just go, I''ll take him," Mu Yunqing told his sister. Mu Yunni had to obey. She ran as Mu Yunqing started to attack Yu Sheng. She made sure she was in a safe place and started watching them fight. She believed her brother could take care of that crazy big guy, and then they could beat up Ye Futian together.


    Other students of Donghai Academy were attracted to this place by the fight. The moment they saw Yu Sheng, they wondered why they had never met this guy before. They believed he was also a student of Donghai Academy, because he was mighty.


    Mu Yunqing unleashed the natal spirit he had inherited from his father. The natal spirit was a Golden Eagle.


    A Golden Eagle was a powerful monster that consisted of both gold and wind elements of power. It was similar to the Ye Futian''s Divine Bird. However, it was weaker.


    After the natal spirit was unleashed, wings appeared behind his body. His whole body was now floating in the air, and the horrifying power of gold and wind elements were condensing around him. The power then formed into sharp lances that were pointed at Yu Sheng.


    "Go!" Mu Yunqing''s wings shook, and the lances suddenly started rushing at Yu Sheng, piercing the air. With enhancement from his wind element, the lances were much faster than expected.


    Yu Sheng didn''t try to dodge the attacks at all. He directly swung his arms toward the lances. People were shocked at how it was possible for a warrior to destroy the spells with martial arts techniques.


    The moment Yu Sheng''s arms made contact with the lances, a golden shadow enveloped his body. The golden shadow soon turned into whirlpools and began to engulf all the Spiritual Qi of the universe. The lances were quickly absorbed by the whirlpools, and after the lances were gone, barbs grew out of Yu Sheng''s arms.


    Mu Yunqing didn''t give up on his attacks. He held the sharpest lance by himself and charged toward Yu Sheng. His body was as fast as thunder, and people started to worry about Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng swung his arms again. However, this times the barbs detached from his arms and shot toward Mu Yunqing. Mu Yunqing blocked the barbs by closing his wings to entirely cover his body. However, this movement also blocked his own sight. When he opened up the arms again, Yu Sheng was almost in melee range.


    Mu Yunqing could do nothing but run away from the momentum of Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng definitely would not let him go that easily. He stomped hard on the ground, and it began to crack under him. His body suddenly rushed toward Mu Yunqing. People witnessed Mu Yunqing being approached by a golden light.


    "Be careful!" Mu Yunni tried to alert her brother. It was too late. Mu Yunqing was shocked to find himself caught by Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng''s arms were clamping on his foot. He couldn''t fight against what happened next. With a sudden pull, he was smashed to the ground.


    With a loud thump, Mu Yunqing''s body hit the ground. He laid there, entirely immobilized.


    "What a beast." The audience was shocked by this absolute power. Was he really a warrior? Yu Sheng''s power had transformed their attitudes toward martial arts cultivators. They had never seen a warrior who could trounce a Mandate Sorcerer.


    Yu Sheng kept stepping forward. People around Mu Yunni moved out of his way because they were too frightened to fight against this guy. Mu Yunqing had already shown them that Yu Sheng was overwhelming.


    "What are you doing?" Mu Yunni was overcome with fear when she saw Yu Sheng walking toward her. She was trying to run away by unleashing her natal spirit, which was also a Golden Eagle.


    That little resistance did not cause any trouble for Yu Sheng. He easily grabbed Mu Yunni by the arm. She did not dare attack him since he was now as ferocious as a beast.


    The next moment she was being pulled to her brother.


    "Let me go!" She screamed.


    Yu Sheng smashed her to the ground next to her brother. They were both now lying on the ground, severely injured.


    "Now you know that your father does not deserve to be his professor." Yu Sheng was humiliating them to return the humiliation they had suffered yesterday. Hua Fengliu had brought them to their house, and this family had rejected them. They had been destined to taste revenge because of Yu Sheng''s bad temper.


    Yu Sheng''s fury was gone. He was no longer a beast, just a big boy. He quietly walked back to Ye Futian.


    It took a long while for Mu Yunqing and his sister to stand up again. They were staring at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng with resentment.


    "I''ll remember you." Mu Yunni gnashed his teeth in anger.


    "Go ahead, tell your father that you''ve been beaten by us," Ye Futian kept humiliating them. Mu Yunni was so angry. However, there was nothing she could do. It would be a shame if they had to go back and tell their father about the fight.


    Mu Yunqing and his sister were crestfallen. Tang Wan looked at Ye Futian and believed he was talking like that intentionally. There were a lot of people watching, so these guys would definitely not tell their father what had happened.


    "Looks like you have to go." Tang Wan forced out a smile. These guys had beat up students on the first day they came to the school. It was impossible for them to stay here any longer.


    "You told me that professors at Donghai Academy don''t care whether we fight." Ye Futian was confused.


    "They won''t, but those you just beat have classmates, who do care," Tang Wan said.


    "It''s okay. I still need to find my girlfriend," Ye Futian ignored her warning. Tang Wan followed him and asked in a lowered voice, "Who is your girlfriend? Don''t tell me it''s Hua Jieyu."


    "How did you know that?" Ye Futian responded. Tang Wan was surprised and stopped talking.

 49 Violence

    Chapter 49: Violence


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Donghai Academy was enormous. After exploring more of the academy, the architecture on campus really opened Ye Futian''s eyes. The buildings were erected on ascending stairs. To see the building at the very top of the stairs, one would have to tilt their head toward the sky. A magnificent view indeed.


    "Donghai Academy consists of seven schools: the schools of the Emperor Star, Ruinous Star, Power Star, Flirting Star, Treasury Star, Finance Star, and Minister Star. That group from before was from School of the Flirting Star, and your ''girlfriend'' is from the School of the Emperor Star," explained Tang Wan. Her eyes were full of distrust when she used the word ''girlfriend.''


    "Back in Qingzhou Academy, the schools were divided by occupation. Does Donghai Academy do that?" asked Ye Futian.


    "No, each of the seven schools consists of cultivators from different classes. Each school has their own powerful figures backing them up. It''s all really complicated. While they help develop the schools, these powerful figures are also trying to increase their own powers," Tang Wan lowered her voice and explained to Ye Futian.


    "So complicated," said Ye Futian.


    "Yeah," nodded Tang Wan. "Because things are this way, the competition between the schools is very rigorous, and they pick fights with each other all the time; but within the schools, everyone is very united. So, when Yu Sheng picked that fight with the group from the School of the Flirting Star, it was the equivalent of picking a fight with their whole school. I personally think it''s best for you both to leave for the time being."


    Ye Futian smiled but did not say anything. Tang Wan continued, "Plus, Hua Jieyu was handpicked by the officials of the Emperor Star school as soon as she entered the academy. So, she''s not among the ordinary student pool anymore. She cultivates up at the Emperor Star building. You wouldn''t be able to go up there even if she was your girlfriend."


    "She certainly is incredible," Ye Futian muttered to himself. He turned around and saw the crowd following from afar. Everyone saw what had happened between them and the students from the Flirting Star school and knew that group would never let them go so easily. So, now they followed Ye Futian and his friends in anticipation of what would happen next.


    "If I leave now, would I lose face?" Ye Futian asked for Tang Wan''s opinion.


    She stared at him. How was he still in the mood to joke around? She had no idea what he was thinking.


    Just as they were speaking, a group of people approached looking almighty. Mu Yunqing and Mu Yunni, who had just been defeated by Yu Sheng, were also among them. The way they looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng was not friendly at all.


    They could not believe that he really chose to stick around. He really was not afraid to die.


    Ye Futian realized that his opponents had him and his friends surrounded. He looked to Mu Yunni and said, "And here I was, wondering how arrogant you guys were. Is this all you''ve got?"


    Mu Yunni could not say anything to that but no matter what they had to have their revenge.


    The group moved in closer to Ye Futian, determined and ferocious. Ye Futian asked Tang Wan, "Can I reject their challenge?"


    Tang Wan rolled her eyes. He would not leave when she told him to and now that he has beaten these people up, he wanted to turn down their challenge? There was no way they were going to let him go.


    "Take care of yourself," Tang Wan said weakly. She then took several steps back without a word. Ye Futian stared at her, eyes wide, jaw open. Where was the loyalty?


    Different types of Spiritual Qi flowed crazily. The group of these people closed in on Yu Sheng carefully.


    "Yu Sheng, make a move," said Ye Futian. As soon as he spoke, Yu Sheng charged forward wildly.


    Several of the more powerful cultivators surrounded Yu Sheng. Their sorcery erupted all at once.


    Vines thicker than his arm curled around Yu Sheng''s body, entangling his arms and legs. This was Earth Elemental sorcery. Soon, his entire body was buried beneath the vines.


    "Ice Seal!" A gush of cold air rolled in and further buried Yu Sheng and the vines in a layer of ice.


    BOOM! The loud sound had come from Yu Sheng''s right foot. His ice-covered foot took a large step forward, and the spell was broken. Above his violent figure appeared a dim golden light, and he continued to charge forward at the opposing group.


    "Disperse!" ordered the leader of the group. Immediately, a wind spell was cast over the whole group, aiding them in a speedy getaway. Then, the spell formed a bubble and encapsulated Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian squinted his eyes at the scene. It was very obvious that the group benefited from having cultivators of different elements work together. This made them stronger in battle.


    The Mu siblings led a few people in Ye Futian''s direction. Their hatred of him surpassed that of Yu Sheng, who was the one who had actually defeated them in battle.


    Two people charged at Ye Futian as their Spiritual Qi went haywire.


    From one of their bodies, the roar of a tiger was emitted, and his Spiritual Qi created a golden tiger. The person''s speed also increased to that of a tiger. He pounced on Ye Futian with an outstretched hand. The hand as slightly curved, as if to mimic a tiger''s paw. This person was a Metal Elemental cultivator of martial and divination arts. He was using Metal Elemental Spiritual Qi to fight in close-range.


    "Third level of the Glory Plane," said Ye Futian. He could feel his opponent''s aura. Ye Futian remained unmoved as a ferocious Earth Elemental force erupted from his body. Faintly, people were able to see a giant ape appear on Ye Futian''s body. Born from the collection of Spiritual Qi, the ape possessed an inhumane amount of strength.


    Even though both animals had been formed from Spiritual Qi, Ye Futian''s giant ape was obviously more intimidating than the tiger demon.


    As his opponent got closer, Ye Futian stuck out his arm. With one loud growl of the giant ape, the image of the tiger exploded. Following that, the giant hand of the ape demon wrapped around the opponent''s neck and picked him up off the ground. A second later, he was smashed into the ground.


    The loud crash mimicked that of the Mu sibling''s hearts. Ye Futian smiled at the two and proceeded to race towards them. At the same time, the second person had also approached Ye Futian without hesitation was knocked out by a single punch.


    Mu Yunqing and Mu Yunni released their Life Spirits and were lifted into the air. Even though they had been injured during the previous fight, they were still capable of battle. At this moment, a bright light shone from Ye Futian''s back as he ran. The wings of the Roc carried him up into the air as well. At the speed of lightning, he flashed before the siblings. The body of a dragon, strength of an ape, and the agility of a Roc.


    "A Mandate Sorcerer with a Roc Spirit!" People were amazed as they witnessed this scene. It was rare to meet a Mandate Sorcerer, but even more rare to meet a Mandate Sorcerer with a Roc Spirit. Different Life Spirits were able to bring the Mandate Sorcerer different levels of power. For example, both the Roc and the Golden Eagle were Wind and Metal bi-elemental Life Spirits, but the power from the Roc brought Ye Futian more power, making it super easy to defeat the Golden Eagle. Furthermore, Life Spirits grew along with the Mandate Sorcerers. Strong Life Spirits would only get stronger with time.


    Tang Wan was dumbfounded. No wonder Ye Futian was so arrogant, turns out he had every right to be.


    "Watch out!" warned Mu Yunqing. By the time he completed his warning Ye Futian had already arrived in front of him.


    Mu Yunqing did not look too good. He proceeded to rush toward Ye Futian even though he knew his Life Spirit could not compare to that of Ye Futian but he was in a higher plane. He did not believe he would lose to Ye Futian.


    The two orbs of golden light clashed in the air. The people below watched as the two continued their close-range combat.


    "How can he be so strong?" People questioned Ye Futian''s powers as they watched him fight a cultivator of a higher level than himself. He even had the upper hand. Soon, Mu Yunqing was struck by Ye Futian''s fist and lost his balance. In the next second, Ye Futian had already placed his foot on his body, slamming Mu Yunqing directly into the ground. This was too violent.


    Mu Yunni began to run away again when she noticed Ye Futian''s attention shifted to her. This time was no different from her battle with Yu Sheng. The only exception was that this time was more direct than the last. One punch and she was off. The Mu siblings were cruelly defeated twice in a day. This may leave a deep emotional scar on the both of them.


    Many people could not bear to look at Mu Yunni. She was a pretty girl, after all, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng should have taken it easy on her!


    Back on Yu Sheng''s side, there were also multiple people lying on the ground. Yu Sheng was too wild, just like the God of War. Had it not been for the alliance of different elemental sorcerers, no one would have been able to compete with Yu Sheng, not even the two five-starred Glory Plane cultivators.


    In a flash, Ye Futian attacked a Wind Elemental sorcerer in the air. Very quickly, the sorcerer was pushed far away. It was pitiful.


    The School of the Flirting Star is screwed, everyone thought to themselves. They had obviously underestimated Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s powers. The only ones standing now were the two five-starred Glory Plane cultivators. However, after Ye Futian joined Yu Sheng, Yu Sheng was like a beast who had just broken free. In one quick sweep, the whole lot was lying on the ground. They all looked so ferocious when they arrived but now "pitiful" was the only word to describe them. Many people pitied the School of the Flirting Star. This was incredibly humiliating for them.


    Who were these two anyway? They were way too violent.


    A black wind eagle swooped down from the skies and landed by Ye Futian. "Let''s go, Yu Sheng!"


    The two walked to the eagle. Tang Wan rolled her eyes at Ye Futian. He did know when to make an escape.


    "My girlfriend will come looking for you. When she does, bring her to the Qin Gardens," Ye Futian whispered in Tang Wan''s ear. Then, they mounted the black wind eagle and ascended into the vast sky. He wasn''t really dumb enough to walk into the School of the Emperor Star screaming for his girlfriend.


    "Remember, my name is Ye Futian!" Ye Futian screamed. His words were heard by everyone down below. To the students of the Flirting Star school, his words were a form of mockery.


    Tang Wan thought of the words Ye Futian had left her with. A strange look crossed her eyes. Could this have been his true intention?


    Hua Jie will come looking for me? She mumbled to herself. At the thought of the beautiful girl, she shook her head lightly. She must have been overthinking. Ye Futian is always joking around. Maybe this was also a joke.


    In the air, Ye Futian watched as Donghai Academy got smaller and smaller. He then muttered under his breath, "Fox, this was the only way I could think of to let you know. I''m here!"

 50 They Finally Meet Again

    Chapter 50: They Finally Meet Again


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The news that students from the School of the Flirting Star were defeated soon spread around the Donghai Academy like wildfire. If it had merely been friendly competition within the academy, people wouldn''t have reacted so strongly. However, in this fight, two students who were known as geniuses at this academy were entirely crushed by two unknown boys below their planes. This was huge news.


    Besides, the audience may have somewhat embellished the details of the fight. They had told other students that one boy was a stud with explosive power like a monster. They claimed that it was impossible to find someone more talented than this strong guy in Donghai Academy, and in the future, he was going to be a legend. Still, a lot of prodigies at this academy didn''t buy it.


    They considered the other boy a freak. He was a Mandate Sorcerer, specializing in both sorcery and martial arts. His natal spirit was a Divine Bird. What was even more impressive was that both his speed and his strength were at the top level. He had easily toppled Mu Yunqing, who was actually two planes higher than him.


    Plus, this boy was really arrogant. When he left, he had announced that people should remember his name, Ye Futian.


    People started to discuss their origin, and some of them came to Tang Wan because she knew these boys.


    Students in the School of the Emperor Star were also discussing. In fact, those truly powerful students didn''t care at all. They had always believed that they were too talented to be compared to others. They had considered the friendly competition that had happened at the academy small. However, there were some among them who enjoyed gossiping about these "small-time fights."


    Shu Yuyan was one of them. She was a lively girl who enjoyed making fun of people.


    On the top floor of the School of the Emperor Star, Shu Yuyan entered the room, and she saw another beautiful girl standing beside the window, looking down at the scenery below. That was one of the spots where people were able to enjoy the full view of Donghai Academy.


    "Hua Jieyu, my heart trembles even when I just see you standing there," Shu Yuyan started with a compliment. Hua Jieyu turned to her, smiled and said, "No more party invitations. I''m not going anywhere."


    "I know, I know, my goddess. Can''t we just chat?" Shu Yuyan knew she had been misunderstood.


    "Did you know that something funny happened yesterday? Some students from the School of the Flirting Star were beaten up by outsiders, and more amazingly, the outsiders were in lower planes. Is it possible that some other academy in the City of Donghai sent these guys to intentionally provoke us?" Shu Yuyan started to talk about the exciting fight yesterday.


    "I don''t know," Hua Jieyu answered. She seemed not to be interested at all.


    "People said both of them were really cute. One was strong and wild as a beast, and the other one was particularly handsome. It was also said that a lot of girls witnessing the fight were hopelessly attracted to the boys. They fought over who was more handsome and charming," Shu Yuyan went on.


    "So, which one do you prefer?" Hua Jieyu smiled and asked.


    "I wasn''t there. The handsome boy seemed to be really arrogant. He claimed that we should remember his name when he left." Shu Yuyan laughed, "Did he truly believe that he was more talented than all the geniuses at this academy?"


    "You seem to be curious enough about it," Hua Jieyu made fun of her.


    "And you''re not curious at all. You know nothing but cultivation," Shu Yuyan refuted. "Okay, okay, I know you''re not interested at all. See you."


    When she turned around to leave, she was mumbling, "Ye Futian, this name is arrogant enough to be remembered."


    Hua Jieyu heard the name, and her body trembled with shock. She stopped Shu Yuyan and asked, "What was that name again?"


    Shu Yuyan looked at her and said, "Ye Futian. It''s the name of the handsome one."


    She was confused when Hua Jieyu heard the name and suddenly started laughing. This was the first time Shu Yuyan had seen such bright laughter on her face. She asked, "What''s wrong with you?"


    Hua Jieyu was laughing too hard to stop at that moment. She didn''t answer the question.


    "Come on, don''t tell me you''re attracted to him just because of his name." Shu Yuyan was really curious.


    "No, I''m not." Hua Jieyu finally stopped laughing. She then asked, "Were there only two boys in the fight?"


    "They came with a student from the School of the Minister Star, Tang Wan," Shu Yuyan told her.


    "Okay, girl, thanks," Hua Jieyu responded.


    "See you later." After Shu Yuyan left, Hua Jieyu was still smiling. She looked so cute now and mumbled, "No wonder people said he was a bad boy."


    Then she summoned the wind to carry her and jumped out the window. The way she landed was almost like an angel had descended to the world.


    ...


    Tang Wan was busy after Ye Futian left, because quite a lot of people had asked her about Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. These boys entirely lit up the curiosity of students at this academy.


    What made it even more awkward for her was that some girls who were attracted to these boys came to her and asked her to invite the boys on dates. She didn''t take these jobs because she couldn''t just go to the Guqin Garden and tell the boys to go on a date. It would be so embarrassing.


    "Tang Wan, someone''s looking for you." Tang Wan was upset. It was so troublesome to have to answer questions about the boys again and again.


    "Could you please just ignore your curiosity?" Tang Wan complained. However, the person calling her said this time was not only about curiosity.


    "Who is it?" Tang Wan asked.


    "Just go and check." Tang Wan peeked outside. She saw a gorgeous girl waiting for her quietly outside the door.


    Tang Wan was suddenly reminded of what Ye Futian had said the day before. She now had a weird feeling that this girl was special.


    Come on, he wasn''t joking?


    "Hello, I''m Hua Jieyu," she smiled and introduced herself. Tang Wan was absolutely confident in her own beauty. However, she still felt a bit overshadowed when she saw the girl standing outside.


    "I''m Tang Wan."


    "Could you please bring me to the boy?" Hua Jieyu asked politely. Tang Wan definitely understood who she was talking about. She nodded and said, "Follow me."


    "Thanks." Hua Jieyu followed Tang Wan. People wondered why these girls were walking together because they didn''t know each other before today.


    "Do you know that guy?" Tang Wan was so curious that she finally asked.


    "Yep." The image of Ye Futian came into Hua Jieyu''s mind, and she started smiling again.


    "So he wasn''t lying to me yesterday," Tang Wan mumbled.


    "What did he say?" Hua Jieyu asked her.


    Tang Wan looked at her for a while and said, "He told me that you''re his girlfriend."


    "Uh, this guy��" Hua Jieyu flushed. She was shy.


    Tang Wan finally realized that Ye Futian made such a scene yesterday only to let Hua Jieyu know that he was already at the academy looking for her.


    What a sly boy.


    In fact, she wondered if the students of Donghai Academy knew what had happened here, how many hearts would be totally broken.


    "Nope, I do not admit that," Hua Jieyu tried to deny. However, her face was so red. How could Tang Wan believe her?


    When they entered the garden, they ran into Tang Lan.


    "Greetings, Professor," Tang Wan said.


    Tang Lan was staring at Hua Jieyu. Naturally, Hua Jieyu reminded her of someone that had meant a lot in her life.


    "Greetings, Ms. Tang," Hua Jieyu also greeted.


    "Girl, you look exactly like her when she was young." Tang Lan was amazed. Hua Jieyu knew that she was talking about her mother. She had spoken a lot with Tang Wan on the way here, and she knew who Tang Lan was.


    Tang Wan also knew that Hua Jieyu was the daughter of Hua Fengliu, whose wife was her rival for the affections of Hua Fengliu. She had doubted whether she should bring Hua Jieyu to this place. She felt as if she had made a mistake.


    "Professor, I��" Tang Wan faltered.


    "It''s not your fault, girl. Hua Jieyu, go to your father," Tang Lan sighed.


    "Thanks, Ms. Tang." Hua Jieyu walked into the garden with Tang Wan and Tang Lan following her.


    In front of the door, Hua Fengliu was sunbathing, and Ye Futian was playing the guqin. When they saw Hua Jieyu, Ye Futian stopped playing, and Hua Fengliu started to smile with kindness.


    "Dad," Hua Jieyu couldn''t help crying. Tang Wan had told her that her father was severely injured. The sadness of seeing her father like this entirely drove away the happiness of their reunion.


    "Hey, girl, don''t cry." Hua Jieyu hugged his daughter. However, he had even started crying himself.


    Ye Futian stood by their side quietly, watching the scene of the reunion.


    Tang Lan asked Tang Wan, "How did she know they were here?"


    Tang Wan briefly explained what had happened. Tang Lan was surprised by the crazy thing Ye Futian had done. She then turned to Tang Wan and warned her, "This boy is such a troublemaker. No wonder Hua Fengliu told me to keep an eye on him. Stay away from him, girl."


    "What are you talking about, Professor?" Tang Wan was confused.


    "Beautiful girls are just dangerous. Both of these girls are gorgeous. Hopefully, this boy will not make the same mistake as his professor did." Tang Lan sighed. She believed that Hua Fengliu had fallen into such a situation because of that woman. Now, Hua Jieyu looked exactly like that woman when she was young, but somehow even more beautiful. Tang Lan was afraid that several years later, when she became an adult, Ye Futian would run into troubles because of this beautiful girl, just like his professor had.


    No matter what, there was such a substantial coincidence between these two generations!

 51 You Will Remember His Name

    Chapter 51: You Will Remember His Name


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After crying for quite a while, Hua Jieyu finally looked up at her father. Her eyes were red and bloodshot as she asked, "Father, what on earth happened after I left? How did things end up like this?"


    "Silly girl, it''s all over now. Look, I''m sitting here safe and sound," Hua Fengliu consoled her gently.


    Hua Jieyu stood up and turned to look at Ye Futian. "What happened?"


    "Fox, it''s my fault for not taking good care of Master. After you left, a monster tide washed over the city of Qingzhou. There were people who wanted to kill me, and Master ended up like this because he was trying to protect me," said Ye Futian. He still blamed himself for what had happened. Then, he remembered that Xia Fan was right here in Donghai City, and reminded himself that he had to get his revenge.


    "It''s not Ye Futian''s fault. At the time, if he weren''t so lucky, he would have been forced to his death on Mount Tianyao. You know I have a bad temper. Obviously I wanted to get revenge for him, but I was useless. I didn''t manage to kill the enemy, but instead harmed myself in the process," smiled as he spoke. He was seemingly unbothered by it all.


    "Is this true?" Hua Jieyu asked Ye Futian. He nodded lightly.


    Her tears fell once again. She walked up to Ye Futian with her arms outstretched and pulled him into her arms. Hua Jieyu rested her head on Ye Futian and said, "Who allowed you to put yourself in danger? What would I do if you had died?


    Hua Jieyu''s voice shook as she cried. The thought of her father being handicapped and Ye Futian almost dying after she had left them made her even more frightened.


    Ye Futian felt the warmth flood his body as she gently embraced him. He reached out his hands and wrapped them around her as well. He swore to himself to never let her cry like this again.


    Tang Wan stood not too far away. She shuddered as she witnessed the scene in front of her. It was true. The goddess of Donghai Academy had already given her heart to someone. If the students of Donghai Academy found out, many of them would impulsively want to kill Ye Futian. Tang Wan knew there were quite a few of the "geniuses" at school who failed in their attempts to get closer to Hua Jieyu.


    "At that time, I didn''t get to see you again yet. Of course, I couldn''t die! You promised to compensate me," Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu with a gentle voice. She lifted her head at him. She stared for a while then left his embrace. "I already did."


    "What?" Ye Futian blinked in disbelief. "That was it?"


    "What else were you expecting?" Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian.


    "Then, just let me hold you for a little longer," Ye Futian requested as he took a step forward. Hua Jieyu stepped away from his advance and replied, "Don''t try to change the subject. Who did this to my father?"


    Hua Jieyu knew Ye Futian was trying to cheer her up. He seemed to have a natural ability to do so. She was always happy when he was by her side. During the three months in which they spent every day together, the days went by in endless bickering. However, at the same time, he unknowingly made his way into her heart.


    "Can you trust me to handle it? I will get revenge. As for Master''s condition, I will most definitely find a way to heal him," said Ye Futian. This was something he had to take care of personally. He did not want Hua Jieyu to get involved.


    "Hua Jieyu, just let Ye Futian handle it. It''s perfect motivation for him," Hua Fengliu agreed with what Ye Futian had said.


    Hua Jieyu looked at both men and said, "Then, you have to promise me that you''ll succeed."


    "If I don''t succeed in this, how would I be able to marry you?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Who says that I will marry you?" Hua Jieyu blushed as she stared shyly at Ye Futian.


    "Can you lovebirds tone it down a little? It would be fine if it was just me, but there are other people here," said Hua Fengliu.


    Hua Jieyu turned around and realized that Tang Lan and Tang Wan were still in the room. Her red cheeks got even redder. Ye Futian, on the other hand, did not seem to mind. "They''ll get used to it," he said.


    "Master, should we leave?" whispered Tang Wan. Ye Futian was too shameless.


    "He''s worse than his master," Tang Lan said weakly. Afterward, the two of them left not wanting to disturb the group.


    "Father, I want to stay here and take care of you," said Hua Jieyu. Sure, she felt better after crying and joking around with Ye Futian but it would be impossible for her to recover from this sadness completely.


    "Silly girl, you still have to cultivate. I will be fine here. Ye Futian and Ms. Tang Lan are here to take care of me. After seeing you, I feel so much better already," chuckled Hua Fengliu.


    "Then I''ll stay for today. You can''t make me leave," said Hua Jieyu.


    "Alright, alright. Stay. I know you haven''t seen Ye Futian in a while," laughed Hua Fengliu.


    "I don''t want to see him," said Hua Jieyu.


    "Really now?" Hua Fengliu looked at his daughter and could only laugh.


    "Of course!" Hua Jieyu nodded.


    "How sad," sighed Ye Futian, "And to think that I''ve been thinking of you every day and turning down advances from different girls. Looks like I''ll have to rethink those opportunities now."


    "You wouldn''t dare," Hua Jieyu whipped around to glare at Ye Futian.


    "Then, did you miss me?" Ye Futian chuckled at her.


    "Father, has he been flirting with other girls?" she asked her father. Ye Futian blinked.


    Hua Fengliu wanted to laugh as he glanced at Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked so desperate that Hua Fengliu could only laugh. "He kept to himself," Hua Fengliu answered.


    Ye Futian let out a sigh of relief.


    "Then, yeah. I missed you every now and then," whispered Hua Jieyu ever so lightly, but Ye Futian heard her anyway. Seeing the timid expression on Hua Jieyu''s face, Ye Futian felt that she was someone worth giving up others for.


    "I''m going to go cultivate," said Yu Sheng. He could no longer listen to this. He walked towards the bamboo forest behind the building. Did they really have to act all lovey-dovey every time they saw each other?


    Hua Fengliu and the couple chuckled at Yu Sheng''s words. Ye Futian called out to him, "Yu Sheng! There are so many beautiful girls in Donghai City. If you find someone you like, I wouldn''t mind being your wingman."


    "Father said I can''t be in a relationship," Yu Sheng said, not even turning his head to answer Ye Futian.


    "But your father isn''t here, so whatever I say, goes!" Ye Futian shouted. Yu Sheng had already disappeared around the corner.


    Only three people remained standing in front of the building. Under the sunlight, the sadness melted away, replaced with warmth.


    At this moment, an elderly man approached from the outside of the Qin Gardens. The powerful, icy force he gave off seemed to cause the temperature within the Qin Gardens to drop a couple degrees as he stepped inside.


    A figure appeared and stood in front of the elder. It was Tang Lan. Realizing who was standing in front of her, Tang Lan froze for a moment. Then, with a cold demeanor, she asked, "What are you doing here?"


    "Our Young Miss has been in there for quite some time now. Who did you guys bring her here to see?" asked the elder with an equally cold demeanor.


    "You were stalking her?" asked Tang Lan.


    "This isn''t stalking," the elder said. He took a step forward and he was gone, his speed faster than the speed of light


    "Presumptuous!" yelled Tang Lan. The whole Qin Gardens was able to hear her. Hua Fengliu and Ye Futian were alerted by the noise. They looked up and saw two figures descending from the skies, quick and forceful as lightning.


    "Hua Fengliu." The elder''s gaze fell on Hua Fengliu. "You dare to step foot in the City of Donghai?"


    "Nandou Ku," Hua Fengliu looked at the elder.


    "You were following me?" asked Hua Jieyu.


    "Young Miss, you are a person of utmost importance. The family would never feel at ease if you were to step out alone. Within Donghai Academy, I would not dare to meddle in your activities. However, as soon as you step off the academy premises, I will be there to protect your safety," explained Nandou Ku.


    "Nandou Ku, I am now a powerless person. I just wanted to come back to Donghai City for a visit, can''t you guys let me be?" asked Hua Fengliu. Nandou Ku looked puzzled. The Qin Devil was now powerless?


    "Since you''re already powerless, then I can let you go about your business. The family already gave in and allowed Young Miss to accompany you for three years. However, now that she has made it past the initial process of cultivation and has stepped into the critical period, the family doesn''t wish for anyone or anything to distract her," said Nandou Ku.


    "I''m just going to spend a little time with my father, then head back to Donghai Academy," said Hua Jieyu coldly.


    "Young Miss, please don''t put me in a difficult position. All those years ago, the family already agreed to your stubborn requests. If you keep acting this way, then your father will definitely not be allowed to stay in the City of Donghai," said Nandou.


    "You guys wouldn''t dare!" Hua Jieyu was furious.


    "Hua Jieyu, you should go back," Hua Fengliu opened his mouth to speak.


    "Father." The strong aura around Hua Jieyu dissipated as she turned to speak to her father. Hua Fengliu gave a warm and gentle smile. "Sweety, I''m fine here. Go back to cultivate at the academy and don''t worry about me."


    Hua Jieyu felt terrible. She gave Nandou Ku another cold glare. "You guys dare to treat my father this way, aren''t you afraid that I''ll retaliate once I complete my cultivation?"


    "Young Miss, these things were decided by the family. I am not clear on the details. If you can recover the Nandou Family''s glory, I''m sure that they will be willing to grant your every wish," said Nandou Ku.


    "Fine. That day WILL come!" replied Hua Jieyu. She then turned to Hua Fengliu and said, "Father, I''m going now."


    "Go," said Hua Fengliu, still smiling.


    Then, Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian. Their eyes met with longing and without a word, Hua Jieyu turned to leave the Qin Gardens.


    Nandou Ku did not leave with her. After she left, he looked at Hua Fengliu and gave him a warning. "You are clear that the family was not unwilling to accept you all those years ago but it was you thatcould not become part of the family. But yet, you choose to reach for the stars and caused things to end up like this. You''re lucky that Young Miss is extremely gifted. Her gift is a perfect combination of you and her mother. Therefore, the family will not allow anyone to get in the way of her cultivation."


    Hua Fengliu did not spare Nandou Ku a glance. The elder then turned to Ye Futian, who was standing beside Hua Fengliu and asked, "And who is he?"


    "My disciple, Ye Futian," answered Hua Fengliu.


    "You brought your disciple with you? Are you setting all your hopes on him?" Nandou Ku laughed at Hua Fengliu. "That''s some fantasy. You lost to ''him'' in the past. I bet now even his disciples are stronger than yours."


    When he was finally done, Nandou Ku turned to leave.


    Watching his departing figure, Hua Fengliu said, "One day, you will remember his name."


    "I look forward to that day." Nandou Ku left after his last words, disappearing from the Qin Gardens.

 52 Just So-So

    Chapter 52: Just So-So


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian kept silent while watching all this happen, but deep inside, he was not as calm as he looked.


    It took so much effort to meet his fairy again, and she had to leave soon after this reunion. It was understandable that he felt sad.


    "You don''t like this feeling, do you?" Hua Fengliu perceived his gloom and asked him.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Why shouldn''t I be sad?"


    "Then just keep training and grow stronger." Hua Fengliu closed his eyes. He was also pissed off because Nandou Ku had told him that his life was hopeless. He could do nothing but put all his hope in Ye Futian.


    Although, he wasn''t desperate, because he knew how talented Ye Futian was. With the inheritance from Emperor Ye Qing, as long as he kept cultivating, people in the City of Donghai and the Nandou family would eventually bow down to his power.


    Therefore, he was trying to get Ye Futian accepted into Donghai Academy, and it would be even better if one of the higher-ups of the academy picked him as a disciple personally. He needed a safe and promising environment for him to grow in.


    Ye Futian didn''t respond to Hua Fengliu, but he felt hot-blooded. He needed to be strong enough to protect his professor and girlfriend.


    ��


    The only time Ye Futian went out was to buy inscribing pens and scrolls. Both scroll inscribing and guqin practice served as cultivation for him. They enhanced his mental power and ability in Spiritual Qi perception, which was critical for the development of a mage. As for martial arts techniques, he kept improving on the treasures Emperor Ye Qing had given him. With enough time, his body would be as invincible as the Divine Dragon and the Snow Ape.


    One day, Tang Wan came to their place.


    "I have good news for you guys," Tang Wan smiled.


    "What is it?" Ye Futian was curious.


    "Someone from the School of the Finance Star told me that you have been admitted," Tang Wan said.


    Ye Futian was confused and didn''t believe it.


    "I guess some supervisor in that school heard about the fight. I think he must have heard about it from a student. Otherwise, they would have been looking for you guys even sooner," Tang Wan elaborated. The talents Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had demonstrated during that fight were obviously more than enough for them to be admitted. Unfortunately, there was no professor or supervisor in the audience.


    "Wow, we just benefited from kicking someone''s *ss," Yu Sheng mumbled. Ye Futian was also smiling. He was so happy that once he was admitted into Donghai Academy, it would be much easier to spend time with Hua Jieyu.


    "What are you talking about?" Hua Fengliu was doubtful about this admission. "It is uncommon for a school in Donghai Academy to make an exception for applicants. What did they do?"


    "Mr. Hua, you don''t know what happened? The first time I brought them to Donghai Academy, they messed with some students from the School of the Flirting Star, because one of them, Mu Yunni, was being rude. These boys totally kicked their *sses. This is how your daughter knew Ye Futian was here and asked me to bring her to you," Tang Wan explained. Hua Fengliu finally understood what had happened. The last time Hua Jieyu had come here, they were in such a rush that he didn''t have time to ask for the details.


    Hua Fengliu gave Ye Futian a glance. He was a little bit mad that this boy had not told him about the fight.


    "Just go. Remember to take care of yourself," Hua Fengliu said.


    "Alright, Professor, enjoy your private time with Ms. Tang after we are gone," Ye Futian teased him.


    "Screw you." Hua Fengliu was embarrassed.


    "Bye, Professor." Ye Futian was still somewhat worried about Hua Fengliu. He was too injured to live alone.


    "Don''t worry, I''ll take care of him." Tang Lan came in at this time. She knew that Ye Futian was worried, so she was trying to comfort him.


    "Thank you so much," Ye Futian said. Now he was settled.


    The Black Wind Eagle arrived and landed next to them. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Tang Wan got on her back, then she soon took off into the air. Ye Futian waved to Hua Fengliu, apparently reluctant to leave.


    "Good luck, boy. Your new journey has just begun." Hua Fengliu was smiling.


    "Looks like he''s almost like a son to you. Why do you believe in him so much?" Tang Lan was curious.


    "Trust me, someday Donghai Academy will be proud of having such a student." Hua Fengliu was confident. Tang Lan was surprised and a bit confused. She believed that the confidence Hua Fengliu held for Ye Futian was much stronger than she could have imagined.


    ...


    Within each of the seven schools at Donghai Academy, there were students of various classes for the purpose of diversity. However, there were also specific characteristics for each of them. It was all about the people who were supporting the schools.


    Students from the School of the Finance Star were known for great martial arts techniques. This was why the supervisor of this school had made an exception to admit Ye Futian and Yu Sheng without a test.


    According to those who had witnessed the fight, both of them were incredibly talented at martial arts, especially Yu Sheng.


    The admission of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng didn''t quite cause a sensation at Donghai Academy, because only a few students had witnessed the fight, not to mention that most students just knew their names, but had never seen them. Besides, it had been a while since the fight took place.


    Tang Wan led them to the School of the Finance Star. They were well accommodated and brought around to tour the school. However, the supervisor who accepted them had not arranged a meeting with the boys. It was possible that he still wanted to give them some time to prove themselves first.


    Students in the School of the Finance Star lived in a separate area that consisted of dorms specifically assigned to them. In fact, the environment seemed to be better than that of Qingzhou Academy.


    "Who are you?" Someone passing by was curious about these new students. They had never met Ye Futian and Yu Sheng before.


    "I''m Ye Futian, and this is my best friend, Yu Sheng." Ye Futian was smiling.


    "Ye Futian. This name sounds familiar," the boy mumbled, and soon he remembered who they were. He quickly disappeared, and word started to spread in the School of the Finance Star that the students who kicked the *sses of the students from the School of the Flirting Star had been admitted to this school.


    The word spread so quickly that suddenly, a lot of people were gathered around them.


    "Is this guy Ye Futian? Really, a Two-Star Glory Plane student?"


    "Yu Sheng looks exactly how people said. He''s such a big guy. Is he merely a martial arts cultivator, or he is actually hiding some powerful natal spirit?"


    "Wow, they''re so cute," some girls were also gossiping.


    The students were curious about everything since they were so young.


    "Is there a library at this school?" Ye Futian asked Tang Wan.


    Tang Wan shook her head, "There is only one library at Donghai Academy, and it''s located right in the center of the campus. The entry is free to every student, but no checkouts are allowed. You may only browse the books and scrolls inside."


    Ye Futian understood why checkout was prohibited. There were just so many students at this academy that books might be lost once checked out.


    "Let''s go there," Ye Futian said. He had already reached the Two-star Glory Plane, but the spells he could initiate were still mostly basic. It was a huge waste of his talents. He believed that he was not supposed to give up sorcery cultivation even though his martial arts inheritance from Emperor Ye Qing was so powerful. A combination of both would definitely make him stronger.


    "Sure," Tang Wan nodded. She was surprised that he was not just a pretty boy like he looked and was in fact, quite diligent. The first place he had wanted to go to was the library.


    The scale of the library at Donghai Academy was much larger than that of the one at Qingzhou Academy. Besides, there was no limit for the students. Any student at this academy would be allowed to browse all the collections in this library. Donghai Academy was very generous about this.


    When Ye Futian entered the library, he was shocked by the comprehensiveness of the collection. There were books on general subjects like martial arts techniques, swords techniques, elemental spells, and even some very rare books on mental spells.


    He even found books about music spells, matrices, and scroll inscription. He totally understood why Hua Fengliu had insisted he study at this academy.


    During the following several days Ye Futian spent all his time making his way through the entire collection.


    Meanwhile, the news that Ye Futian had been admitted to the School of the Finance Star finally spread all around the academy, including the School of the Flirting Star. They started looking for him everywhere and finally, they found him in the library.


    Ye Futian was reading books quietly when a group of angry people came up to him. Mu Yunqing spoke to him in rage, "Long time no see, Ye Futian."


    "What''s up?" Ye Futian didn''t even raise his head.


    "Since you''re now admitted into this academy, I guess it''s time for us to get even about what happened last time." Mu Yunqing sounded really mad.


    "Are you challenging me?" Ye Futian looked at him with contempt.


    However, Mu Yunqing was not planning to fight by himself: "Someone from the School of the Flirting Star will represent me."


    "Who is it, and what plane is he in?" Ye Futian asked. Mu Yunqing realized that other people were looking at him and he faltered.


    "Are you still going to fight me together like you did last time?" Ye Futian was laughing. He was now a student at this academy, so people who fought him had to abide by the rules, which was one on one.


    Mu Yunqing was extremely embarrassed. He didn''t say anything, and the group left crestfallen again.


    This incident soon spread around the academy. Students started to make fun of Mu Yunqing. They now considered him to be a total coward.


    Several days later, it was announced that Jing Yang, a student from the School of the Flirting Star, had openly issued a letter of challenge to Ye Futian. It caused a sensation at the academy.


    He was a Three-star Glory Plane Mandate Sorcerer, a true prodigy. He had been personally admitted directly by the supervisor of the School of the Flirting Star as a disciple. Usually, he didn''t care about "friendly competition," but now to save the reputation of his school, he challenged Ye Futian publicly.


    However, the response from Ye Futian left people totally speechless. "Sorry, I have no time for this."


    This was such a lame excuse to turn down the challenge. Students in the School of the Flirting Star accused him of being a real coward.


    Jing Yang, however, was not surprised. He told people that Ye Futian was "just so-so."


    Ye Futian wasn''t disturbed by these comments at all. He still spent all his time on reading and cultivating, as usual.

 53 The Luo Palace

    Chapter 53: The Luo Palace


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    There hadn''t been many opportunities for Ye Futian to cultivate in peace. So naturally, he did not want to bother with the thought of the challenge. He did not know who Jing Yang was and it did not matter if he was a prodigy. None of this had anything to do with Ye Futian. Defeating Jing Yang would only draw more attention to himself and would have no benefit for him. It might even bring about more problems.


    The students of the School of the Flirting Star continued to throw insults at Ye Futian, but he paid them no attention. He was not listening to any of their comments. Unbeknownst to him, Ye Futian broke through another plane while he cultivated silently. He was now a three-starred Glory Plane in both martial and divination arts. During his silent cultivation, he was also able to learn a large number of new spells.


    Ye Futian was attempting a battle tactic which was a combination of martial and divination arts in his dorm. He specialized in the sorcery of different elements, so if he was able to incorporate his powerful martial arts abilities into his sorcery, his combat would be able to reach new levels.


    Yu Sheng watched him from the side. He said to Ye Futian, "Of the seven elements, you have cultivated in all of them with corresponding spells��all except for the element of water."


    Although Ye Futian could perceive all elements, he did not have a Water Elemental Life Spirit, so his gift in this element was on the weaker side. For the time being, he did not have the ability to cultivate the element of water.


    Other than that, he was at the highest level of cultivation in all of the other elements. His Natal Spirit was the World Tree, which was Wood Elemental. He had already begun to cultivate in this element even though he knew that there was a chance that the Natal Spirit would never be released in front of others.


    "These are all spells chosen by me. There''s no harm in learning more." Ye Futian smiled and said, "I have to step out and take care of some things so I might not make it back tonight. Work hard on cultivating and quickly make it to the four-starred Glory Plane."


    "Okay. I should be getting there," nodded Yu Sheng. His journey in cultivation was no easier than that of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian mounted the black wind eagle and was out of Donghai Academy.


    ...


    The Luo Palace was a palace in the city of Donghai.


    It was rumored that the master of the palace, Lord Luo, was a distant relative of the king of the Nandou nation. Other rumors had it that he was in the good graces of the imperial family, and was therefore named a lord.


    Regardless of the reason, he was the only person in all of the City of Donghai to be given such a title. Naturally, his status was everything but that of the ordinary.


    The Luo Palace was extremely dignified, and was a true family of power.


    There was a young man standing in front of the Luo Palace. It was Ye Futian.


    Outside the doors of the palace, people were busily scurrying around. The building was well-decorated and there was a festive atmosphere in the air. Ye Futian knew that the master of the palace was having a birthday celebration.


    However, none of that mattered to Ye Futian.


    The only thing he cared about was Lord Luo. He was the only Arcana Plane healing sorcerer of the Spirit element in all of Donghai City. He was the person that Tang Lan had refused to tell him about.


    Investigating this was the only thing Ye Futian did outside of cultivation. He was always thinking about Hua Fengliu''s injuries.


    Ye Futian did not understand why Tang Lan had been so sure Lord Luo would refuse to help. He was not completely confident that he could get Lord Luo to agree to help heal Hua Fengliu, but he knew that he couldn''t just sit around and do nothing. He found out that Lord Luo lived an isolated life and cared a lot about his reputation. Every year on his birthday he would hold an extravagant celebration. Ye Futian wanted to find out exactly what kind of person he was, and see if there was a chance to persuade him to help Hua Fengliu.


    Ye Futian owed this to Hua Fengliu. This was also what he had promised Hua Jieyu. It did not matter if he succeeded; he had to give it all he had.


    The steward noticed Ye Futian. A handsome young man, he thought. With a smile, he asked, "Is there something I can help you with, Young Master?"


    "May I ask if there will be dancing and music entertainment at Lord Luo''s birthday celebration? I specialize in performing the guqin. If possible, I would like to play for Lord Luo at his birthday celebration," said Ye Futian.


    The steward smiled and replied, "The palace does not lack a guqin player."


    "I am sure that I am more capable than your present personnel," Ye Futian continued, "If it''s really not possible, then are you guys lacking in the errand boy department?"


    The steward looked at Ye Futian confused. The young man had an aura of elegance, and was obviously not an errand boy.


    "Young Master, why are you so adamant on entering the palace?" asked the steward. His eyes squinted with suspicion. The steward was a clever man.


    "I just want to witness the extravagance for myself," Ye Futian said calmly, keeping his composure.


    "The palace has no shortage of guqin players or errand boys," the steward said, rejecting Ye Futian. Although one teenager couldn''t do much harm, he could not simply grant him access to the palace.


    "Hey!" At that moment, someone from behind them called out in surprise. Ye Futian turned around and was met with two beautiful girls. The girl walking in front was especially beautiful.


    Ye Futian had met both of these girls aboard the ship on his way to the city of Donghai.


    "It''s you?" the girl in front asked in surprise. She had thought that they were passing strangers, never to meet again. She would never have expected to run into him again much less at a place like this.


    "Young Miss Lin Xiyue, is he a friend of yours?" asked the steward. Could the young man have come for the Young Miss? It couldn''t be. She arrived only yesterday as a guest of the palace.


    "Yes," Lin Xiyue nodded. She smiled at Ye Futian. "What are you doing here?"


    "The Young Master says he is a guqin player and wants to perform during Lord Luo''s celebration," said the steward. Since he was a friend of Lin Xiyue, there was no way he could say that Ye Futian came to be an errand boy.


    "Yeah," Ye Futian agreed.


    "Why don''t we give him a chance?" Lin Xiyue asked the steward. The steward smiled helplessly but nodded anyway. "Since Young Miss has spoken, then I guess we can give him a chance. Young Master, this way please."


    The group walked into the palace. Lin Xiyue and Xiao He were on either side of Ye Futian. Lin Xiyue asked, "Didn''t you say you were coming to Donghai City to attend school? Why do you want to be a guqin player at the palace?"


    "That''s right! I''m attending Donghai Academy now. I just wanted to come explore the palace and see what it''s like," replied Ye Futian with a smile.


    "You''re lying!" Xiao He snickered, "When you arrived in Donghai City, the Spring Quarter Exams were already over, how could you have gotten into the academy already. Are you making things up to attract Lin Xiyue''s attention?"


    "Stop with the nonsense, Xiao He," said Lin Xiyue while trying to suppress a smile. While this was going on, they failed to notice Ye Futian shrugging his shoulders in defeat. He felt helpless. Every time he told the truth, nobody was willing to believe him.


    "Oh right. What are you doing here? Do you live in the Luo Palace?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    Lin Xiyue shook her head. "The elders of my family know Lord Luo, so the younger generation of the family is also familiar with him. I came this time to visit him. I can introduce some people to you!"


    "I see," Ye Futian nodded slightly. It looked like Lin Xiyue was the young miss of a noble family. It was no wonder that her every gesture and way of speech flowed with such elegance.


    "What kind of person is Lord Luo?" Ye Futian asked her in a low voice. Tang Lan had said that it was impossible for Lord Luo to agree to help. If it was simply because of his proud and aloof personality, then it was not a problem; but if it was because Lord Luo and Hua Fengliu had some sort of rivalry going on, then maybe it really was impossible to persuade him to help.


    "Stern, but kind. It really depends on the situation," smiled Lin Xiyue.


    The group arrived in the garden area. There was a person playing on the guqin, as well as dancers. They seemed to be rehearsing for tonight''s performance. It was obvious that they would not want to make any mistakes at Lord Luo''s birthday celebration. It was best to prepare beforehand.


    The steward went to whisper to the guqin player, then turned to Ye Futian. "Would you like to give it a go?"


    "Sure," nodded Ye Futian. The guqin player got up and gave his seat to Ye Futian. When Ye Futian''s fingers finally met with the chords of the guqin, the aura around him shifted. It was now quiet and peaceful. A touch of elegance added on to his already outstanding looks.


    His long fingers flew over the chords, strumming them as he moved. The sound of the guqin played and the original guqin player''s expression darkened. The music played softly, and everyone was being drawn in.


    "That''s enough. I admit defeat," the guqin player smiled bitterly and shook his head. Being able to create a certain mood was an important part of playing the instrument. Even though Ye Futian was young, he was able to play as if he had years of experience. Ye Futian played at a level that he could not reach. However, the guqin player had no idea that Ye Futian was a Musical Sorcerer, and was able to surpass ordinary guqin players like himself even without musical spells.


    "If it''s like this, then Young Master, you should stay here today and learn the pieces you need to play tomorrow. How does that sound?" asked the steward.


    "Alright. Thank you!" Ye Futian smiled.


    "Lin Xiyue, what are you doing here?" At that moment, a group of youths approached from afar.


    "We were just looking for you. What brings you here to observe the rehearsal?" asked one of the youths in the group.


    The group Ye Futian was standing in all turned their heads towards the voices. All of them had a magnificent aura around them. They must all either be from prominent families or the Luo Palace.


    "My friend is playing the guqin here, so I came to check it out," explained Lin Xiyue.


    "Your friend?" one of them looked at Ye Futian.


    "Yeah, he''s a guqin player. He wants to play at tomorrow''s birthday celebration," nodded Lin Xiyue.


    "Oh, I see," one of the youths lost interest as soon as he heard ''guqin player.'' He continued, "Lin Xiyue, let''s go. Someone is coming."


    "Okay," nodded Lin Xiyue. She turned to give Ye Futian a quick wave goodbye. Ye Futian returned the gesture with a smile.


    "Who is it?" Lin Xiyue asked the group of youths as they walked away from Ye Futian.


    "Zhou Mu," replied one of them. Lin Xiyue''s eyes lit up. She heard that Zhou Mu was already a five-starred Glory Plane conjurer. He was highly gifted just as his master had been years ago.


    "Oh right, Lin Xiyue. How did you end up making friends with a guqin player?" asked a young woman in the group.


    "We met once by chance," she answered.


    "Is it because of his good looks?" teased the young woman.


    Lin Xiyue smiled but did not reply. Ye Futian was handsome, even more so when he was playing his instrument but it was unfortunate that he was a mere guqin player. In addition, he seemed to be boastful and a liar, but Lin Xiyue thought that it might be because he was too prideful.


    Lin Xiyue did not invite Ye Futian to join the group nor did she introduce him to them. Ye Futian knew that a ''guqin player'' like himself did not belong in a group with the nobles. However, they had only been strangers to begin with, so Ye Futian really did not mind. Besides, he had not entered the palace to get to know that group of youths anyway.

 54 Banquet in the Luo Palace

    Chapter 54: Banquet in the Luo Palace


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    All the music and dances for the birthday banquet of Lord Luo had been settled, and the musician left after he had taught Ye Futian the songs he was assigned to play. The steward also repeatedly told him some dos and don''ts for the next day.


    Ye Futian was left in the palace to rehearse with a group of girls. Their figures and facial features were all top-notch, especially the leader. She was about eighteen-years-old, extraordinarily sexy, but with a face full of the youthfulness of a younger girl. When she was dancing in that dress made of chiffon, it was possible for any man to fall in love with her.


    Ye Futian kept his head low while playing the song. A sweet and charming voice suddenly spoke. "Why don''t you raise your head?"


    A gorgeous face soon appeared in front of him. He smiled and replied, "You are so charming that once I see you, I feel distracted."


    "You do know how to compliment girls," she chuckled. Her skirt swung onto the guqin.


    "Just come and join us." She started dancing again and seemed to be luring him intentionally. Most of the musicians were just old men, so she was surprised that the assigned musician this time was such a young and pretty boy.


    "Sorry Miss, I have a girlfriend," Ye Futian smiled at her. The girl was dumbfounded for a moment, then started chuckling again along with the girls around her.


    "What are you talking about? Remember, my name is Yun Rou, and in the future, I will marry a very powerful cultivator. You are too young to pique my interest," Yun Rou made fun of him.


    "Nice to meet you. I''m Ye Futian," he replied, and then the rehearsal continued. They told Ye Futian that tomorrow, at the birthday banquet of Lord Luo, there would be many influential people of the City of Donghai attending.


    However, these girls didn''t have any further information. In this continent, the talents of cultivation determined everything. Even a gorgeous girl who was born to a mundane family could not gain much advantage from her beauty. She might marry a powerful cultivator, but most likely, she''d end up a concubine rather than a wife. Even worse, since powerful cultivators tended to look for younger women, affairs would become an inevitable fate on the man''s side of the marriage as time went by.


    ...


    The next day, the Luo Palace became boisterous in the morning. A lot of servants were busy preparing for the banquet and hosting the visitors.


    The rehearsals kept going. After lunch, there started to be more and more visitors crowding into the banquet room.


    Ye Futian and the girls were already in place.


    The banquet was opulent. The center spot was reserved for Lord Luo, the guest of honor, as he was the one being celebrated. Then, there were seats arranged in rows on both sides of Lord Luo''s spot. Apparently, the people who were seated closer to Lord Luo were of higher status in this city.


    There was a broad space between these two rows, and behind the seats, there was a stage with a golden carpet. That was where Ye Futian and the girls were to perform. It was designed to liven up the banquet without distracting the guests.


    Before the guests were seated, the show had already started. The whole room was filled with laughter. Lin Xiyue and Xiao He were among the first group of people entering the room. While they were getting ushered into their seats, Lin Xiyue noticed Ye Futian and smiled at him.


    "Such a pity that you''re rarely attracted to a boy, and the one you pick is only a musician," Xiao He joked. Lin Xiyue gave her a stare. "Stop that."


    A pretty handsome boy came to them and asked with a smile, "What are you talking about?"


    "Nothing, Mr. Luo," Lin Xiyue shook her head.


    "Xiyue, people told me that you brought that musician to this place. Is he your friend?" the boy asked.


    "We''ve met twice. He told me that he wanted to come here and broaden his horizons, so I did him a favor. You''re fine with that, aren''t you?" Lin Xiyue answered.


    "It''s okay. In fact, if he wants, to, he can stay here as long as he wants." The boy was still laughing.


    "Okay, I''ll ask him after the banquet is over," Lin Xiyue said.


    "Sure. See you later." The boy left. Xiao He whispered to Xiyue: "Young Lord Luo seemed to be attracted to you, girl."


    "I already told you to stop." Lin Xiyue felt awkward.


    "I''m serious. I know he doesn''t look as cute as Ye Futian, but what about his status?" Xiao He didn''t want to stop. Lin Xiyue gave up; she knew that this girl liked to joke.


    Young girls had all kinds of fantasies. Apparently, Ye Futian did not understand what they were thinking at all.


    Suddenly, someone entered the room, walking with majestic steps. He was apparently of high status in this place. People stopped chatting and greeted him, "Happy birthday, Lord Luo."


    Ye Futian also raised his head and looked at Lord Luo. He had an absolutely commanding and dignified appearance.


    "Long time no see, Lord Luo. You actually look younger than the last time we met," someone walked up to him and said.


    "Lord Luo, happy birthday from the Lin Family."


    People started to queue up to send birthday congratulations.


    "Lord Luo, happy birthday from the Xia Family," a bright and clear voice sounded.


    "I appreciate it, Lord Xia," Lord Luo replied with a smile. The title of Lord Luo was merely conferred without substantial authority. In fact, Xia Feng, the head of the Xia family, was the most powerful man in this city. Still, there were some other people almost equally dignified in this city, such as the head of the Nandou Family, the supervisors of schools at Donghai Academy, and a few others.


    Behind Xia Feng, there was a young man who bowed slightly to Lord Luo. "Greetings, Lord Luo. I''m Xia Fan."


    "Mr. Xia Fan, you have grown up!" Lord Luo complimented.


    "Don''t praise him, Lord Luo. He''s been dawdling all the time. With your compliment, I''m afraid it''s going to be worse," Xia Feng joked.


    Coincidently, Ye Futian raised his head at this moment, and soon noticed Xia Fan. The moment he saw Xia Fan, he gave him an icy glare.


    After Xia Feng and Xia Fan were seated, Xia Fan started enjoying the show. When he saw Yun Rou, he felt very attracted to this beautiful girl. However, soon he noticed that Ye Futian was sitting behind her, playing. He frowned and felt very confused.


    How could Ye Futian be here?


    How had he survived after jumping into the canyon? Had the ferocious Snow Ape just let him go?


    Ye Futian was also looking at Xia Fan. They stared at each other, and Ye Futian perceived the contempt in Xia Fan''s eyes. Xia Fan had believed Ye Futian was just a nobody, someone that Xia Fan did not care was alive or dead.


    Xia Fan was the young Lord of Donghai Province. He could entirely ignore Ye Futian due to their vast gap in status. He knew that Hua Fengliu, the only patron of Ye Futian, was now crippled. The only thing he felt frustrated about was that his uncle had died at the hands of the Snow Ape in that fight.


    "Who are you looking at?" Xia Feng asked.


    "Nothing. I just saw someone interesting," Xia Fan responded. It was extremely interesting that the disciple of the Guqin Devil was now serving in this room as a musician.


    Ye Futian became peaceful and kept playing. He wasn''t worried about running into Xia Fan at this place. He was already a student of Donghai Academy, so no one would be allowed to try to kill him this time, no matter how powerful they were.


    "Happy birthday from the Nandou family," another congratulation came. Lord Luo looked at the person approaching and started laughing. "Long time no see, Mr. Nandou."


    There were two men from the Nandou family. One was middle-aged, and one was young. They were Nandou Wenshan and his son, Nandou Kai. They had come here on behalf of the Nandou family. Since they were the leaders of the Nandou family, attending this banquet represented the respect they held for Lord Luo.


    "Long time no see, Lord Luo," Nandou Wenshan replied. Lord Luo ushered these two into the seats closest to himself.


    "So, Wenshan, you do come here," another voice said, and Nandou Wenshan stood up from his seat to greet the new group of people that had just entered the room.


    "Why did you come here together?" Nandou Wenshan laughed.


    "We met each other on the way here." One of them had a complexion as clear as jade. He was casually dressed for this banquet, but it was obvious that he was not someone common. The other one was an old man, but still in good shape. He laughed at Lord Luo and greeted him. "I am here on behalf of Donghai Academy."


    "Thanks so much," Lord Luo replied with his body slightly bowed down. He then ushered these two men into their seats, also the ones closest to him.


    This group of people was now having a conversation. They were among the most influential people in the city.


    "Mr. Art Saint has been friends with Lord Luo for a long time. He''s attended his birthday banquet every year."


    "It''s said that Mr. Art Saint has reached a higher plane than he was in last year. The person who is with him actually runs the School of the Emperor Star at Donghai Academy."


    "I believe the young man behind him must be Zhou Mu. He is already a Five-star Glory Plane invoker, a true genius. People say that Art Saint is trying to form a political marriage between Zhou Mu and the daughter of the Nandou Family."


    "I think Art Saint is trying to make up for his mistakes of the past. I''m afraid that this job is not going to be easy. The princess of the Nandou family is supremely gorgeous, talented, and so treasured by the Nandou family that they don''t want to trade her for political interest," people were whispering to each other.


    They lowered their voices to avoid being heard, but Ye Futian still learned a lot of information from all the talk. He looked at the middle-aged man with the bright complexion and realized that this man was Art Saint, who had destroyed Hua Fengliu''s natal spirit.


    He soon understood why Tang Lan had told him it would be impossible to ask for help from Lord Luo. Lord Luo was long-time friends with Hua Fengliu''s nemesis.


    He felt upset, as it seemed that his attempt to get help was all in vain.


    However, he had obtained a lot of information about the political situation in the City of Donghai.


    He was still curious about the relationship between Hua Jieyu and the representative of the Nandou family.

 55 White Feather Garments

    Chapter 55: White Feather Garments


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Upon the arrival of the guests, the celebration began. Drinks were exchanged and the sound of laughter and conversation filled the air. The older party-goers formed their own small circle while the younger party-goers did the same. Other than presenting their gifts and exchanging words of common courtesy, everyone was discussing interesting new happenings within the City of Donghai. Somewhere along the line someone brought up the topic of Qingzhou City.


    "I heard that the historical remains of ''that person'' were discovered in the City of Qingzhou, and that you even went to investigate personally. Is that true, Xia Fan?" someone asked with their sight set on Xia Fan.


    By ''that person'' they obviously meant Emperor Ye Qing but because he was a taboo character in the Divine Prefectures of the East Sea, it would be inappropriate to use his name in a public place such as this.


    "It is true indeed. However, a demon king, or perhaps even higher leveled Snow Ape demon stood guard there and we were unable to enter. My younger brother even lost his life at the hands of that monster," said Xia Feng.


    "What Chief Xia Feng said is true. I wanted to take part in it like every else and traveled to Qingzhou City. Indeed, no one was able to get close to the historical site. I heard that the path was blocked by demons and monsters," said Lin Xiyue''s father. Many people nodded in agreement. Many powerful individuals have sent their people to Qingzhou, but they all returned with no results.


    "If really was a demon of higher level than a demon king, then forget about us. Probably even the Nandou Nation wouldn''t be able to do anything about it," someone sighed.


    Hearing their words, Ye Futian felt a twinge of sadness. If the Snow Ape had not refused to leave the mountains, then Ye Futian would not have to beware of his every move in Donghai City. He would have been able to do whatever he pleased, even in the Nandou Nation. Ye Futian debated whether or not he should find time to head back to Mount Tianyao to persuade the Snow Ape to leave with him.


    "Brother Lin, your daughter, Lin Xiyue should be about 16-years-old now, right? She''s getting more beautiful by the day," said Lord Luo. His eyes drifted to Lin Xiyue in the crowd. Her beautiful eyes contained a hint of timidness.


    "Thank you for your compliment, Lord Luo," said Lin Xiyue''s father.


    "Has she been betrothed?" asked Lord Luo.


    "Not yet, but she is still young. She is still focusing all her attention on cultivation. There''s no hurry," answered her father.


    "That is true, but looking around this venue, there are many worthy young men. It couldn''t hurt to meet them," chuckled Lord Luo.


    "Speaking of worthy young men, I heard that the Art Saint''s disciple, Zhou Mu, is already in the five-starred Glory Plane," Lin Xiyue''s father said. He looked over at Zhou Mu, who stood behind the Art Saint.


    "It''s all thanks to Master''s guidance." Zhou Mu smiled lightly in response.


    "Nandou Kai beside Nandou Wenshan does not pale in comparison to Zhou Mu," the Art Saint said modestly as he looked at Nandou Wenshan.


    "Nandou Kai is slightly older and his gift is not half bad, but in comparison with Zhou Mu, he is still lacking. He will need to work harder," said Nandou Wenshan.


    "How is she doing?" the Art Saint asked suddenly. Nandou Wenshan was stunned, but then shook his head with a bitter smile and said, "My younger sister is still the same."


    "I heard that her daughter is back and is an exceptional person. Zhou Mu keeps pestering me to let them meet," the Art Saint continued to speak. Everyone exchanged a look. Indeed, the Art Saint was trying to set up his disciple with the young miss of the Nandou family. Shockingly, he did not seem to care that she was the Guqin Devil''s daughter. It was probably a "love someone and love everything about them" type of situation. After all, the Art Saint had always been madly in love with ''that'' person.


    "It is true, Hua Jieyu is exceptional. She is now practising cultivation at the School of the Emperor Star within Donghai Academy." Nandou Wenshan smiled.


    Upon hearing this exchange, his heart was no longer calm. The Art Saint wanted to set up his disciple with Hua Jieyu? In addition, it seemed that Nandou Wenshan was the older brother of Master''s wife, which would make him Hua Jieyu''s uncle.


    "Hua Jieyu''s gifts are top-notch within the Emperor Star school. It would be hard to find a person who could compare with her in all of Donghai Academy," said an elder of the School of the Emperor Star. Since Hua Jieyu was a student of his school, he knew quite a bit about her.


    "You guys are all complimenting her. It makes me want to meet the young miss of the Nandou family." Lord Luo laughed.


    "Hua Jieyu?" Xia Fan''s lips twitched into a wicked smile. His eyes landed on Ye Futian, who was playing the guqin. In the City of Qingzhou, he had seen Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian together by the lake. The relationship between the two did not seem like that of ordinary friends. Xia Fan wondered, what would happen if the Nandou family found out the ambiguous relationship between Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian?


    Just the thought of this brought a smile to Xia Fan''s face. Of course, there were other ways to crush Ye Futian. He did not have to do it this way. If he were to expose their relationship in a setting like this, he might offend the Nandou family. After all, they were a big, powerful family, and cared a lot about their reputation. Hua Jieyu was also the apple of their eyes. They would not permit anyone to try to drag her through the mud.


    Ye Futian felt that something was amiss and lifted his head to look at Xia Fan. Right now, everyone was talking about Hua Jieyu, so Ye Futian knew immediately what Xia Fan might have been thinking. He could not help but raise his eyebrows at Xia Fan. As a person, Xia Fan was sinister and treacherous, a truly despicable person. Ye Futian had gotten a taste of this back in the City of Qingzhou.


    "When the chance comes, I shall have Hua Jieyu come to pay respect to you, Lord Luo." Nandou Wenshan smiled at Lord Luo''s words. "You should stop talking about Hua Jieyu now. Since we have so many talented young people gathered here today, and since Lord Luo is in such a good mood, why don''t we have the youngster perform?"


    "That''s right! This would be the perfect opportunity to catch a glimpse at all the young talent in the City of Donghai," someone chimed in.


    This piqued Lord Luo''s interest as well. Thus, he went on to say, "Then, let''s have any youngsters willing to perform show off their skills in front of us elders. There shall be hefty rewards for the best performances."


    "Lin Xiyue, how about you go first?" Lord Luo set his sight on Lin Xiyue.


    She blinked a couple times then nodded with a smile. With light steps, she carried herself to the middle of the crowd. "Lord Luo, I hope you will enjoy my lacking performance." After she spoke, Water Spiritual Qi began to gather around her. Her hands danced in the air, carrying the Spiritual Qi with her every movement. Slowly, the character for ''longevity'' formed in midair and floated towards Lord Luo. It only disappeared once it had reached him.


    "Lin Xiyue, you''re already a three-starred Glory Plane sorcerer! How fast. That was very interesting," complimented Lord Luo.


    "Thank you for your compliments," said Lin Xiyue. She bowed to him and retreated into the crowd.


    A young man stepped up. "I will perform a sword dance for you, Lord Luo." He drew out the sword he carried on his person, and it began to dance through the air. With every slash of the sword a stroke was left in the air. When the young man finished his performance, five words were left in midair: May you achieve boundless eternity."


    "Nice!" Many people applauded him. Following that, other youths continued to put on their performances to present their blessings and best wishes to Lord Luo. At the same time, they were able to put their talents on display. Their performances brightened up the atmosphere of the party venue.


    "Brother Hua, does your disciple not wish to perform?" someone asked the Art Saint. The Art Saint''s surname was Hua, a different Hua from Hua Fengliu.


    "Go," commanded the Art Saint.


    "Yes, Master," answered Zhou Mu. Stepping up, he held a pencil in his hand. Then, he laid out a large piece of paper on the bright golden yellow carpet. Zhou Mu bent down and began to draw.


    "It''s rare to see Zhou Mu in action. We are all so lucky to be able to witness the Art Saint''s disciple in action," said one of the youths in the crowd. All the youngsters at the venue admired Zhou Mu.


    "I''ve never seen a conjurer in action before, so I don''t know what it''s like," said a young girl. Her eyes glowed in interest as she observed Zhou Mu.


    Zhou Mu drew with great speed. His movements were natural and graceful. Lord Luo complimented, "Brother Hua, your disciple has such a grand aura for a person of his age."


    "That''s true," everyone else agreed. Even Yun Rou and her group of dancers tried to look on as they danced. Ye Futian was also aware of all the happenings, despite playing with his head down.


    He was thinking to himself. Hua Fengliu and the Art Saint were old rivals, not only in power, but also in love. To be able to take Mistress away from someone like the Art Saint, Ye Futian could only imagine how charming Hua Fengliu must have been in the past. If Hua Fengliu did not have his powers disabled, then he probably could have been like admired and respected like the Art Saint. To have ended up in his situation, Ye Futian felt really bad for Hua Fengliu.


    Zhou Mu drew as Ye Futian played the guqin. One was the disciple of the Art Saint, one was the disciple of the Guqin Devil. However, everyone''s focus was on Zhou Mu. Finally, Zhou Mu''s work was complete. A Fire Phoenix escaped from the artwork and circled the skies above. Covered in the flames, it let out a screech. Then, it landed by Lord Luo''s side and began to dance for him.


    "Bravo!"


    "Wonderful!"


    "The phoenix is a symbol of success. What a wonderful omen. We wouldn''t have expected anything less of the Young Art Saint." Everyone was full of praise for Zhou Mu. Even Lord Luo gave him a look and smile of approval. He said, "You shall be rewarded,"


    "Thank you, my lord," Zhou Mu bowed and then returned to his spot by his master.


    "Watching Zhou Mu, I was reminded of a person. A couple days ago, Nandou Ku paid a visit to the Guqin Gardens and saw Hua Fengliu," said Nandou Wenshan. In a split second, he had captured everyone''s attention. The Guqin Devil was back in the City of Donghai?


    "However, he''s handicapped now and is being protected by Tang Lan. He even took in a disciple," Nandou Wenshan elaborated.


    "Handicapped?" Everyone was shocked.


    Even the Art Saint was surprised. "What a shame."


    "Why is it a shame? Even if he weren''t handicapped, he wouldn''t dare show his face in front of you, Art Saint." Someone laughed.


    "That''s right! In the past, Hua Fengliu had no understanding of his own capabilities and brought the humiliation on to himself. Who would''ve thought he would still have the nerve to come back after becoming disabled? Would he even be able to groom the disciple he took in? If his disciple met with Zhou Mu, he would probably have to walk in the other direction," another person mocked Hua Fengliu.


    "He can only live under someone else''s protection now. Why is he even thinking about anything else?" People began to speak up against Hua Fengliu. All their words were meant to suck up to the Art Saint.


    Xia Fan watched Ye Futian. He could not wait to see how long it would take for Ye Futian to explode in anger.


    Just as everyone was enjoying their time making fun of Hua Fengliu, they were interrupted by the sounds of the guqin. The style has shifted. The once soft notes were getting louder and faster as well. Slowly, Yun Rou and the other dancers became influenced by the music. The women began to dance their hearts away, their long dresses flowed with their movements. They all looked like goddesses.


    Under the influence of the music, the youngsters got more excited and the elders were in an even better mood now. The atmosphere of the entire party venue was pushed to the highest point.


    "What piece is this?" asked the Art Saint. His eyes drifted toward Ye Futian. Not only him, but the other high authority figures as well felt something amiss. Their emotions were being controlled by the music.


    The youths at the party were getting agitated and the dancers on stage looked like they were unable to pull themselves away from the music.


    Behind the stage, a young man was playing his instrument silently. He seemed to be in a world of his own. His looks could be said to be one of the best amongst the younger party-goers. When he played, he released a mystical force that was incorporated into his music.


    "The Melody of the White Feathers Garment. Who are you?" The Art Saint''s gaze sharpened and his utterance interrupted the music. Many people began to wake up from their previous trance. The all stared at the young guqin player in shock.


    They watched as the young man lifted his head slowly. His eyes were clear and clean with no sense of lowliness. Looking towards Lord Luo, he spoke. "I am the Guqin Devil''s disciple, Ye Futian. I am here to convey blessings in place of my Master with a single piece. The Melody of the White Feathers Garment."

 56 Please, Bring It on

    Chapter 56: Please, Bring It on


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The boy was not talking loudly, but his voice was still rather firm. Suddenly, the banquet was silenced.


    "Ye Futian, disciple of the Qin Devil, hereby delivers happy birthday to Lord Luo with White Feather Garments, on behalf of my master."


    People were surprised that this young musician was the disciple of the Qin Devil. The White Feather Garments had totally taken over their mind, which indicated that there was strong mental power contained in that music spell.


    The power was especially demonstrated by the young men and women who started dancing along. If not for the interruption from the Art Saint, they would still be possessed by the mental power in that song.


    Yun Rou now looked at Ye Futian with absolute surprise. This seemingly careless boy was actually quite powerful. The song he just played, the Melody of White Feather Garments, was one of the most renowned royal waltzes. It was said that if this song was played by a powerful sorcerer that specialized in music spells, people listening to it would soon be trapped into a world of illusion.


    Lin Xiyue and Xiao He were also looking at him. They felt shocked that this "ordinary" young musician was in fact the disciple of the famous Qin Devil.


    So, was he a musical sorcerer?


    "Ye Futian, where did I hear this name before��" Some students of Donghai Academy were mumbling, because this name rang a bell for them. Soon, they realized who he was, and wondered if this boy was the same person who recently became famous in Donghai Academy.


    Art Saint and Lord Luo were both staring at Ye Futian, feeling confused. They never anticipated that the disciple of the Qin Devil would show up in this banquet as the musician. If Nandou Wenshan had not mentioned the Qin Devil, or people had not satirized him, this boy would still be playing peacefully.


    Nandou Wenshan heard from Nandou Ku that the Qin Devil had high expectations for this disciple. He realized the reason. According to the vibe of this boy, he was almost the younger version of Qin Devil.


    Now, silence haunted the place. It was just too dramatic for the disciple of the Qin Devil to show up in this situation.


    Xia Fan was sneering at Ye Futian. He did not believe that Ye Futian actually dared to announce his identity under these circumstances.


    Meanwhile, Ye Futian stood up, and bowed slightly to the person running the School of Emperor Star in Donghai Academy. "Greetings, Professor, from Ye Futian, the School of Finance Star."


    "You are a student of that school?" The supervisor was surprised about the fact that the disciple of the Qin Devil was currently studying at the School of Finance Star. Obviously, he did not pay much attention to this boy, who had recently become rather famous in Donghai Academy.


    "I was admitted recently." Ye Futian took out the name tag from his pocket. The supervisor from the School of Emperor Star nodded slightly, without saying anything.


    At that moment, Xia Fan''s face turned very pale. He could not believe that Ye Futian had been admitted to Donghai Academy.


    With his identity as a Donghai Academy student, and that this was a public birthday banquet, it would be difficult to do anything to him. Even though the supervisor from the School of Emperor Star seemed not to like Ye Futian, as long as he was a student in Donghai Academy, people could hardly be harsh to him.


    Lin Xiyue was looking at Ye Futian, totally distracted. She remembered that Ye Futian used to tell her that he was studying at Donghai Academy. At that time, she believed that he was bragging, but it seemed that he was actually telling the truth.


    In fact, she should not be blamed. She met Ye Futian on a ship to this city, and at that time, the Spring Term Entry Test had ended. That was why she and Xiao He both believed Ye Futian was bragging.


    So, there remained only one possibility for Ye Futian to enter Donghai Academy��Ye Futian was well appreciated by someone running the School of Finance Star, so a rare exception was made for him. She totally realized what it meant. Ye Futian was possibly much more talented than other students in Donghai Academy.


    Other people were also confused about this admission. Donghai Academy was the best school in this province, and Ye Futian was given an exception soon after he arrived. Zhou Mu, the disciple of Art Saint, was well-known for his extraordinary talents. However, now, the disciple of the Qin Devil stepped out, and shocked the whole audience with White Feather Garments, which indicated that he was also unusual. Things were getting interesting.


    "That''s a good song. How''s your master doing?" Lord Luo asked him, his voice monotone. Ye Futian played that song as a birthday gift, so he must not lose his politeness in this situation.


    "My professor was set up by a villain, and has been crippled for a while. Now he is peacefully living in his own garden, unbothered by the mess happening outside." Ye Futian sounded peaceful. However, Xia Fan felt mad. He had just been referred to as a "villain".


    People looked at him. This youth said only what was necessary. He told them that Qin Devil was now living on his own, crippled, and did not care about that what was going on outside. This speech successfully prevented further trouble for his professor.


    "Today, I was going to play the song peacefully to entertain the guests here, and did not intend to interrupt the fun going on. However, so many people started to insult Mr. Hua Fengliu." He glanced at the audience and kept talking, "I am not a great student, but still, I have dignity, so does my professor. I cannot act like nothing is going on when people are insulting my professor. I know there are a lot of talented young men in this place who have some negative impressions of him. I will accept any challenge if you believe I am not being appropriate."


    He paused for a second, then stared at those who insulted Hua Fengliu. "Please, bring it on."


    He was only 16-years-old, and now there were so many big chiefs of this city sitting in the room. However, the way he talked was neither humble nor pushy. Every word from his mouth was firm and solid.


    The talented young men were showing off their achievements and complimenting each other. However, suddenly, someone who had been silent announced that he would challenge any one of them. How dramatic was this?


    The Qin Devil definitely deserved a disciple with such guts.


    People did not know what to say. The girls who used to talk with him felt that, in the past, they did not know him at all. The true self he hid was so different.


    Those who insulted the Qin Devil now looked embarrassed. This boy was acting polite, yet had a firm will. They were totally overshadowed by his personality, not to mention being challenged.


    "What plane are you on, boy?" Lord Luo asked to err on the side of caution. If he was too powerful, it would be better for the people challenged to just ignore him rather than having their *ss kicked.


    "Three-star Glory Plane it is," Ye Futian replied peacefully. Lord Luo did not say anything, but started looking at the young men in this room. Three-star Glory Plane was impressive for a boy his age, but not too rare for other young men attending the banquet.


    "I accept your challenge." Someone stood up from his seat. It was the swordsman who responded. He was in the same plane as Ye Futian, a Three-star Glory Plane Swordsman.


    "Okay, just show us your best. You don''t have to worry about damaging this place at all," Lord Luo told them. There were so many powerful people in this place that the audience would be well protected from the fight.


    "Understood." The swordsman unsheathed his weapon, and stepped toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian went back to his guqin, and slowly sat down. The girls already evacuated the place for him.


    Since someone was insulting the Qin Devil, he should absolutely defeat those people with the techniques he inherited from Hua Fengliu, which were the music spells.


    He started playing, and suddenly the room was full of a feeling of desolation. Some of the people soon felt as if they were brought to a state of illusion, where they were left alone in a deep woods in a mountain.


    "That is a music spell." Some powerful people soon recognized what it was. The Rainbow and Feather Garments he played were not injected with much mental power, so the effect was not truly strong. But since Ye Futian was being serious this time, the song was played with immense power of mental control.


    The swordsman also initiated his attack. He charged as fast as thunder toward Ye Futian. However, there was a continuous sound. It pierced through his eardrum with a magical power, and he was also drawn into the illusion. Now, he saw himself charging toward Ye Futian, but in the background was a cliff.


    He realized he had been mentally attacked. He soon ignited his blade with the fire-element power he possessed. He jumped off into the air and came down with authority. His hands were holding the sword firmly, and the blade was pointed exactly at Ye Futian''s forehead.


    Ye Futian suddenly sped up his fingers. His fingers were now insanely fast, and there was a dragon vaguely roaring in the song. Soon, he swung his hand towards his opponent, and the swordsman saw a dragon flying right at him. The dragon was not hurt by the blade at all, and totally engulfed his body in a second.


    In reality, people saw the swordsman suddenly stop his attack. He looked painful and desperate, and soon after, he fell onto the ground, severely injured.


    Ye Futian finished the last note of his song, and said peacefully, "You all insult my professor but can only train disciples at this level?"

 57 The Battle of the Disciples

    Chapter 57: The Battle of the Disciples


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s words acted as a slap to the face. The people who had previously insulted Hua Fengliu were now fuming, their expressions dark.


    It was a palace celebration and the Art Saint was present. They had simply wanted to get on his good side by badmouthing his rival. They had never expected for the Qin Devil''s exceptionally gifted disciple to appear with a challenge.


    The young man sitting behind the qin had clean, carefree eyes.


    Yun Rou and the other dancers stared at his back with infatuation. It turned out that the young qin player was capable of shining so bright.


    Lin Xiyue and Xiao He could also feel Ye Futian''s excellence. They were acquainted with the young man he had just defeated. The young man''s skills were not lacking at all, but he was still defeated instantly by Ye Futian''s musical spells. It was easy to see just how powerful Ye Futian was. Lin Xiyue thought, if it had been her up against him, the results would probably be the same.


    The venue fell into silence once again. Even though it was a simple challenge and did not seem to symbolize anything, the other youths knew better than to step up on a whim.


    Musical Spells attacked the spirit and were extremely forceful. The young swordsman Ye Futian had just defeated was also a three-starred Glory Plane sorcerer, so his spirit was pretty strong, but he was injured by Ye Futian''s musical spell even though he had yet to put in full force. This meant that any martial or divination art cultivators below the three-starred Glory Plane should not even think about going up against Ye Futian. If your spirit was not strong enough, you would be immediately defeated by his musical spells.


    "It seems like the Qin Devil has a successor. Who else is willing to give it a go?" asked Lord Luo. His tone was still calm, but in his heart, he was very unhappy. Today was his birthday celebration, but his spotlight had been stolen by the Qin Devil''s disciple. If Ye Futian had been the disciple of a friend, it would have been better, but he was the disciple of the Qin Devil. Since Lord Luo was good friends with the Art Saint, it was only natural that he did not like Hua Fengliu very much. Plus, what Ye Futian said before had offended many people, and all of these people were his guests.


    However, Ye Futian had been frank about his intentions from the beginning, which made it hard to pick any problems with him. After all, the group of elders could not blatantly pick on a youngster. Therefore, the best solution was to have Ye Futian be defeated by one of the young people present.


    "I''ll go," someone uttered. From the crowd, an excited young man dressed in extravagant golden clothing came forth. His aura was remarkable.


    "That''s Xu Qing. He''s a Thunder and Fire bi-elemental sorcerer in the four-starred Glory Plane," said someone in the crowd. Everyone looked at him with anticipation, especially the youngsters from the Luo Palace. The spirit of four-starred Glory Plane cultivators was slightly stronger and should be able to withstand Ye Futian''s musical attacks. As long as the musical spells had no effect, Ye Futian was defeated.


    "Xu Qing, four-starred Glory Plane sorcerer," Xu Qing introduced himself to Ye Futian.


    "Please," answered Ye Futian, not losing his patience. As he invited Xu Qing onto the makeshift battlefield, Ye Futian lowered his head and his fingers began to stroke the chords once again, blocking out everyone else in his surroundings.


    The people frowned as they listened to him play. This time around, his music lacked the feeling from before. The notes seemed to be random, unable to form into a distinguishable piece.


    "The Demon Flurry," a look of recognition was on the Art Saint''s face. He was old rivals with Hua Fengliu and was therefore familiar with his attack pieces. The piece that Ye Futian played before was the Cangshan Dragon Chant, and this was the Demon Flurry. What seemed to be a disorganized piece was actually very powerful to deal with.


    Thunder and Fire Elemental Spiritual Qi erupted from Xu Qing and it flowed around him as it harmonized with his spirit.


    The notes of Ye Futian''s qin continued to enter his ears. Xu Qing grew increasingly agitated. He was unable to focus his spirit and he felt himself lose control of the Spiritual Qi as he attempted to gather it for a spell.


    In sorcery, it was essential for one''s spirit to accurately and efficiently gather Spiritual Qi, or else the spells would never succeed. The crowd began to take notice of the strange scene. Xu Qing continued to gather large amounts of Spiritual Qi but had yet to be able to form a spell. The Spirital Qi continued to revolve around Xu Qing in a violent manner.


    "What''s happening?" The people were curious. Ye Futian''s musical spell seemed to only be affecting one person. The invisible sound waves were all focused in Xu Qing''s direction. The onlookers could only hear random chords being played, but Xu Qing was able to hear the spirit-attacking piece of the Demon Flurry clearly.


    Xu Qing remained in one spot. He looked terrible as the sweat ran down his face. Something was wrong with the atmosphere around him. The Demon Flurry did not attack directly, as the Cangchan Dragon Chant did. Instead, it obstructed the release of the subject''s sorcery. This piece was a sorcerer''s kryptonite.


    As Ye Futian continued to played, it became increasingly difficult for Xu Qing to focus his spirit. His will was weakening. This battle took such a large toll on him, like nothing he had ever experienced before, but at the same time, this was his first time going against a musical sorcerer.


    "The results are clear. That''s enough," said the Art Saint. His calm voice managed to carry great force, interrupting the music once again.


    Ye Futian took his hands off the qin, looking as calm as ever. It was as if he had just played any ol'' piece. On the other hand, Xu Qing, who was still standing, looked as pale as a ghost. His body was shaking lightly, and he glared at Ye Futian with burning rage. Xu Qing had never been so humiliated before.


    Was that really a battle? From beginning to end, Xu Qing did not get a single opportunity to make his move. He was trapped by the music. If they had continued, his spirit would have been depleted.


    The Art Saint looked at Ye Futian. Hua Fengliu did not come back to Donghai City with his disciple as retirement plan.


    "Step down," ordered Lord Luo when he saw that Xu Qing had no intention of moving from his position. Xu Qing was unwilling, but because Lord Luo said so, he backed down. His legs shook weakly beneath him as he walked away. He began to wonder, what would have happened if he gave up on gathering Spiritual Qi for a spell and chose to attack at close-range instead? Xu Qing regretted not trying.


    Ye Futian remained seated and only stood when no one else came forward. To Lord Luo he said, "My deepest apologies for interrupting your birthday celebration. I only wished to punish these people for their disrespectful words towards my master. I will excuse myself now."


    "You already started your tantrum. Do you think you can just leave like this?" someone voiced coldly. Everyone turned their attention to the young man beside the Art Saint. Zhou Mu was shooting daggers at Ye Futian with his eyes.


    The Art Saint disabled the Qin Devil years ago. Now, were their disciples going to recreate history?


    The youngsters in the crowd were excited. Only Zhou Mu could avenge them now. Ye Futian''s musical sorcery was able to restrain both martial and divination art cultivators.


    "You want to duel?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Zhou Mu, five-starred Glory Plane. I''m on a higher level than you and initially had no plans of challenging you, but seeing how arrogant you are, I can only step up to the plate. Don''t say that I''m bullying you," warned Zhou Mu. Then he stepped up and stood opposite of Ye Futian.


    Everyone had their eyes glued on the two young men. They sneered at Ye Futian. If they had simply let him go, not only the people who badmouthed Hua Fengliu, but all the youngsters present as well, would have felt utterly humiliated. Now that Zhou Mu was going to make his move, the results were set.


    Lin Xiyue was also looking at the two young men. Ye Futian''s performance was very surprising, but his opponent this time was Zhou Mu. She really hoped that he would reject the challenge. Zhou Mu was at a higher level than Ye Futian and so, it would not be embarrassing for him to reject.


    "Then, let''s fight!" Just as Lin Xiyue was thinking, Ye Futian had already spoken. He returned to his seat once more. Hua Fengliu had his powers disabled by the Art Saint all those years ago, but Ye Futian was still not powerful enough to get revenge. However, fighting the Art Saint''s disciple was something he could manage.


    Ye Futian sat down and the music started again. Zhou Mu bent down on the ground and drew with his hands. Spiritual Qi gathered at his fingertips and was released to form a picture. It was a life-like goshawk. He heard the notes that Ye Futian played but remained unaffected because he was a powerful five-starred Glory Plane cultivator. His spirit was strong and therefore unaffected. Xu Qing continued to draw. Not long after, he completed the goshawk and it soared through the sky and headed to attack Ye Futian.


    Bystanders were shocked, Xu Qing''s skills as a conjurer were too powerful.


    The pace at which Ye Futian played sped up. His fingers flew rapidly across the instruments, every note attacked the goshawk. This caused the goshawk''s body to break down piece by piece, but because it felt no pain, the goshawk did not halt its attacks on Ye Futian. After a while, only half of the goshawk''s body was left, but it still descended with talons ready to attack Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian continued to stroke at the chords and finally, the goshawk''s body broke apart completely. Simultaneously, Ye Futian''s qin broke apart as well. A gust of wind swept past. Ye Futian''s clothes and hair danced in the wind.


    "Vulnerable." The people were stunned by what happened and began commenting on Ye Futian''s defeat. Zhou Mu was powerful indeed. Ye Futian was defeated as soon as he stepped in.


    Ye Futian was a musical sorcerer. How was he going to battle without a qin?


    Lin Xiyue sighed. Ye Futian was strong, but his opponent was the Art Saint''s genius disciple.


    However, Ye Futian was unfazed. He had a silent epiphany. He finally understood why Hua Fengliu lost to the Art Saint. The creature created by Zhou Mu was unaffected by the sounds of the qin. After receiving multiple blows to its body, it continued to attack. It was all because it was lifeless, only controlled by the conjurer. Musical spells were able to restrained ordinary martial and divination art cultivators but were restrained by conjurers.


    It was also because of this that one blow from Zhou Mu, who was two levels higher than himself, destroyed his qin.


    "Is this all you''ve got?" Zhou Mu was throwing Ye Futian''s words back at him. Zhou Mu stood in place with great pride.


    "Although I have Master''s guidance, I lack the gift and am still unable to learn the main points of musical sorcery," said Ye Futian. "And that''s why musical sorcery is only my weakest link."

 58 I’m a Mage, But Also a Warrior

    Chapter 58: I��m a Mage, But Also a Warrior


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As soon as Ye Futian stopped talking, the people in the banquet room stopped smiling. Moments before, Zhou Mu, the disciple of the Art Saint, had accepted Ye Futian''s challenge and even broke his guqin. People were about to latch onto this chance and chastise Ye Futian in order to retrieve their dignity. However, even before they began, Ye Futian shocked them again with his overbearing statement.


    Musical sorcery was his worst talent?


    They had seen many people who were reluctant to admit defeat, but they now considered Ye Futian even worse, almost shameless.


    Ye Futian defeated two young geniuses with music spells, and successfully intimidated a lot of others. However, now he claimed that musical sorcery was his weakest skill. He was intentionally humiliating the young men at the banquet, suggesting that they were too lame to even compete with his worst skill. It almost seemed that he forgot the fact that his guqin had been broken within a second.


    The big chiefs in the room did not believe him either. He acted like his defeat had not happened.


    This was intolerable.


    "Your instrument has been broken. How dare you keep talking like this! Show me what you got without your guqin, now." Xu Qing was still mad that he did not get to beat up Ye Futian. He was a Four-star Glory Plane mage with double-element talent, but he did not even get the chance to fight. This was something he felt very angry about.


    "You are not good enough for me," Ye Futian said peacefully while walking toward Zhou Mu but Xu Qing was not done. He stood up from his seat, and the Spiritual Qi around his body started to gather in a frenzy.


    Ye Futian stopped walking, and gave Xu Qing a glance. He noticed that thunder bolts clashed around Xu Qing, and rage was burning in his eyes. Xu Qing believed his previous defeat only happened because his spell channeling had been interfered with by the music spell. Otherwise, Ye Futian would have been doomed.


    "Thunder spell, the Thunder Vortex." All the thunderbolts converged over his body, and Xu Qing almost looked like Thor''s incarnate. Piercing lights were centered in his palm, and its power would be tremendous.


    Ye Futian was forced to act. He also reached out his hands, and suddenly, there were also thunderbolts converging into his palm. Soon, there was a whirl of thunder that formed a sphere in his right hand.


    "I can do that too." Ye Futian sounded peaceful. People were so shocked that two boys were channeling the same spell. Even though Ye Futian was in the lower plane, the thunder bolts in his palm were actually more converged than those Xu Qing''s palm. It actually indicated that Ye Futian possessed a higher level of control over this spell than Xu Qing did.


    Xu Qing was extremely embarrassed. It was considered an utter humiliation to counter the attack of one''s opponent with the same spell.


    "Charge!" The vortex was casted. The thunderbolts were so fast that they would pierce through Ye Futian''s body in a second. Xu Qing did not stop there. He started converging the fire element to initiate the following spell. As a double-element mage, he was good at spell combos.


    However, Ye Futian easily dodged the thunder vortex. He started charging toward Xu Qing, carrying his own thunder vortex in his palm. This spell was supposed to be a ranged attack, but Ye Futian transformed it into melee range. Ye Futian almost teleported across the space between them, and he appeared right in front of Xu Qing without leaving him any time to react. Xu Qing''s body was frozen.


    Ye Futian was looking at Xu Qing directly in the eye. His palm was so close to his body that Xu Qing was just several centimeters away from death. He realized that Ye Futian was showering him with mercy.


    "Are we done?" Ye Futian dispelled his attack, then turned around and kept walking to Zhou Mu, leaving Xu Qing behind him, dumbfounded. He walked and talked in such a peaceful manner that people even somehow started to respect him.


    He defeated Xu Qing, a powerful mage, with the exact same spell. How incredible was that? Was it true that musical sorcery was his weakest ability? As a disciple of the Qin Devil, was he still hiding more unknown power from everybody?


    Ye Futian stopped in front of Zhou Mu. He laughed and challenged Zhou Mu, "Ye Futian, Three-star Glory Plane. Please show me your ways."


    People knew he was doing this intentionally. They already knew his plane. He made this introduction only to agitate Zhou Mu.


    Zhou Mu ignored this provocation. The Spirit and Qi started converging in his body. He drew something in the air with his hand, and people noticed it was a sharp sword. The sword was made of gold-element Qi in the universe.


    "Zhou Mu is serious." The audience was curious about how Ye Futian would finally be defeated by a real genius.


    Zhou Mu suddenly launched his attack. The sword aimed right at Ye Futian''s throat, and it was flying really fast. Ye Futian also made a quick reaction. He leaned to his left, and the sword missed him by such a narrow margin that it actually cut off several of his hairs.


    "What?" Ye Futian sensed danger coming from behind. After missing the first strike, the sword turned around and flew back at him. However, meanwhile, another sword was approaching from the opposite direction. With a single stroke, swords were created endlessly.


    "Controlling the swords with mental power?" Ye Futian was shocked at this ability. Invoker and musical sorcerer had the similar abilities in mental control.


    Ye Futian summoned a terrifying gold-element storm around his body to protect himself. The barrier was a dark gold, almost like a solid armor. When the swords connected with the barrier, rather than breaking through, they were absorbed by the armor.


    Since Zhou Mu was summoning hundreds of swords, each individual sword did not contain power strong enough to break through the barrier. But the quantity was just so immense. The swords Zhou Mu summoned were arranged into rows. Hundreds of swords hung all around the barrier Ye Futian summoned, not attacking. Zhou Mu was obviously looking for a weak spot to concentrate his attack. Meanwhile, he kept summoning more and more swords into the fight.


    Ye Futian believed he must act now to grab the upperhand. He suddenly came out of the barrier and appeared before Zhou Mu with wind-element power. He realized that as the disciple of the Art Saint, Zhou Mu was a perfect invoker. However, he seemed to be really weak at martial arts. Melee ranged attack might provide a good opportunity for Ye Futian.


    Countless swords suddenly started moving and chasing after him again. Several of them were deployed around Zhou Mu''s body as defense mechanism. They were forming an array to intercept Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian slid through the defense, and kept approaching Zhou Mu.


    Zhou Mu also knew melee range was his weak spot. He initiated a wind-element spell to drive his body away from Ye Futian. The array of swords moved with him. As Ye Futian approached, the swords kept attacking him continuously. Zhou Mu was trying to block every possible route for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian finally became impatient. He stopped dodging, and formed the golden armor around his body again. With the swords continuously crushing the armor, cracks started to show, and the armor finally shattered into pieces. However, a pair of wings appeared on his back. The golden wings covered his body from the swords, and he almost reached the melee range of Zhou Mu.


    Meanwhile, Zhou Mu had also finished his final summoning. He summoned a Demon Lion with wings on its back. In fact, people had never seen a Demon Lion like this. This monster was only made real because Zhou Mu was such a powerful invoker that he was able to inject his creation into form without being limited by reality.


    The Demon Lion pounced on Ye Futian. People were shocked at how Zhou Mu kept summoning different forms of monsters by drawing. His incomparable mental power made it possible for a sorcerer to block a warrior outside his melee range.


    When the Demon Lion almost reached his body, Ye Futian finally released his natal spirit��the Divine Roc. He decided not to hide this ability anymore because he had already released the roc in Donghai Academy.


    "A Mandate Sorcerer." People were surprised and awed.


    The Divine Roc was made of wind and gold element powers. However, Ye Futian was also a musical sorcerer. People were curious where that power of mental control came from. It obviously did not belong to the Divine Roc.


    A gold and gray storm consisting of both gold and wind elements converged around his body. Soon, he jumped into the air, and the speed he showed obviously came from the wind-element spell.


    Ye Futian became the incarnate of Divine Roc himself. The Divine Roc crashed with the Demon Lion in the air, and it generated a strong shock wave, knocking over many desks.


    While people opened their eyes again after the shock wave, they noticed that the Demon Lion failed. The momentum of Divine Roc tore the lion into pieces of Spirit and Qi, which soon disappeared in the space.


    The audience lost any previous estimation of how powerful Ye Futian was supposed to be. He was a musical sorcerer, a multi-element, a Mandate Sorcerer, and a warrior. He even had such a powerful natal spirit. It seemed as if he had no weak spots at all. No wonder he said musical sorcery was his weak link.


    He had not been lying.


    Lin Xiyue was astonished. She never imagined that the pretty boy she met would soon unveil his disguise and show how powerful he was.


    Nandou Wenshan felt a little bit frustrated. Now it was apparent that the disciple of the Qin Devil was more talented than the disciple of the Art Saint. The only reason Zhou Mu did not lose the fight in an embarrassing way was because he was still in the higher plane.


    "That''s all you got? You are in the higher plane than I am." Ye Futian laughed at Zhou Mu. Zhou Mu was seriously pissed off, and decided to release his own natal spirit. The natal spirit was a shadow with the eyes of Satan. Evil mental power was permeating around Zhou Mu.


    Ye Futian recognized this natal spirit. It was a mind controlling natal spirit, and Ye Futian believed there was quite a lot of similarities between this one and the Eyes of Storm he possessed.


    Ye Futian was about to turn to the audience and announce that the fight was over. However, he suddenly perceived Zhou Mu''s natal spirit. But it was too late. The mental power pierced into his mind, and somehow started warning him.

 59 I Will Be Waiting for Him Here

    Chapter 59: I Will Be Waiting for Him Here


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian froze, conscious of the force of spiritual energy. Spiritual Energy was an invisible force. If a powerful cultivator in the Arcana Plane made a move with the energy, it was definitely possible for it to go unnoticed by others.


    "That''s enough. Go home," a low voice resonated in his mind. It was hard to tell who the voice belonged to, but it did not seem to mean any harm. The voice only wanted to persuade him to stop here.


    In reality, Ye Futian had already announced his leave after defeating Xu Qing, but Zhou Mu stepped up, so he could only continue to fight. Hua Fengliu once lost to the Art Saint and even had his Life Spirit disabled. Then today, people insulted him. The Art Saint''s disciple made the first move and went as far as destroying the guqin that Ye Futian played, he could not just walk away after defeat. How would that reflect on Hua Fengliu?


    That was the reason for his attacks on Zhou Mu.


    Just as Ye Futian was deep in thought, Zhou Mu had completed yet another drawing. This time, it was a large golden dragon, ferocious and arrogant. The Golden Dragon revolved around Zhou Mu''s being, the energy from his Life Spirit rushed out in a crazed manner and descended on the dragon. It was as if a real dragon was present. Those that were shocked by Ye Futian were now in awe because of Zhou Mu. He was even more intimidating since he was going all in.


    Ye Futian showed no expression. A wild force of Spiritual Qi gathered in his body and formed a golden roc. He flew into the sky and shined brighter than anything else. At this point, Ye Futian''s only option was to fight until the end. However, he still appreciated the voice for warning him.


    Zhou Mu and Ye Futian moved at the same time. The Golden Dragon and the Golden Roc were about to collide. The Spiritual Qi in the atmosphere went wild and the skies began to change color. High level cultivators at the venue joined hands to create a force field to block out the powerful energy given off by Ye Futian and Zhou Mu''s attacks.


    Just then, Ye Futian felt another force of spiritual energy invade his mind. This time, there were no warnings, but a direct attack. Ye Futian felt a stabbing pain, then his nerves began to grow numb, almost like he was about to lose all his senses. Just as he was approaching Zhou Mu, Ye Futian lost control of the flow of Spiritual Qi.


    BOOM! A loud crash. Ye Futian had no idea where the attack came from, but after he was attacked, his own attack on Zhou Mu was weakened by a significant amount. The Golden Dragon imploded, Zhou Mu and Ye Futian retreated at the same time. All of these events happened in the span of minutes. When Ye Futian landed on the ground, he felt no anger, but smiled instead.


    There were a lot of important people present at today''s celebration. It was only natural that they could not put down their pride to intrude in a battle between two youngsters, but if they couldn''t do it blatantly, they could do it in secret. Looks like the first voice that warned him knew that this would happen.


    Who was it that warned him? And who was it that attacked him?


    Obviously, Ye Futian was not dumb enough to reveal that he had been attacked. His attacker was most likely looking for an excuse to put him in his place. If he were to come out and accuse of the high authority figures, then they would have a legitimate reason to get rid of Ye Futian.


    "Thank you for this experience." Ye Futian smiled. However, he was not looking at Zhou Mu when he said this, but to the group of VIPs. His attacker would understand what he meant.


    "I have unwillingly disturbed your celebration, Lord Luo. I am grateful for your understanding. If you''ll excuse me, I shall be on my way now." Ye Futian smiled as he bowed and turned to leave. He didn''t not want to fight any longer. His attack had already resorted to this method. If Ye Futian did not stop the battle, he would only be at a disadvantage.


    "The battle isn''t over. Are you really leaving?" Zhou Mu shouted at Ye Futian''s back. He seemed to have gained quite a bit of confidence.


    "Zhou Mu, that''s enough," said the Art Saint. Zhou Mu was stunned, but when he recovered, he spoke again, "If the opportunity ever comes again, we shall finish where we left off. At that time, I will be sure to give it my all."


    "Sure. Today is Lord Luo''s celebration, so I didn''t want to cause too much of a ruckus. Therefore, I only used about fifty percent of my power. When we battle again, you''ll see what I''m talking about," said Ye Futian as he continued on his way out of the palace.


    His words piqued Zhou Mu''s interest. Ye Futian was able to drive him to a breaking point, but now he said that he was only using half of his powers?


    "Shameless!"


    "Maniac." Everyone began voicing their opinions of Ye Futian. Somebody tried to brown-nose the Art Saint once again. "The Art Saint was nice enough to let him go without making him look bad after being defeated by Zhou Mu, how dare he say such ridiculous things? Absolutely preposterous!"


    "That shameless b*stard." The insults continued around the venue.


    "Zhou Mu''s performance was fascinating! He is definitely fitting as your disciple, Brother Hua," complimented Lord Luo. Many people agreed with him, but the high-powered people present knew even though Zhou Mu was able to fend off Ye Futian''s attack towards the end, there was no telling how things would have ended had they continued their battle. Plus, Zhou Mu was two levels above Ye Futian. His victory in this battle was nothing to brag about.


    Xia Fan did not look too good. He realized that he never got to truly get to know Ye Futian. His extraordinary gifts would explain why Hua Fengliu was willing to take him in as a disciple and even went crazy to try to save him. Ye Futian had to be rid of as soon as possible. He could not be allowed to keep growing stronger.


    At the party venue, besides the rivalry between the Art Saint and Ye Futian''s master, the Guqin Devil, nobody had anything against Ye Futian himself. Even if they had been humiliated by him today, it could not be considered a bloody feud. Therefore, they had no need to be wary of Ye Futian. However, it was different for Xia Yan. If he allowed Ye Futian to keep getting stronger, Ye Futian would definitely try to kill him.


    "I never expected Ye Futian to be able to withstand a battle with Zhou Mu. He is pretty gifted. No wonder the Guqin Devil took him as a disciple. When I was in the City of Qingzhou, I even saw him flirting with Hua Jieyu. The two of them seemed to have an extraordinary relationship. I''m afraid she has fallen victim to his lies. Ye Futian harbors bad intentions," said Xia Fan. His words drew everyone''s attention. It was obvious that Xia Fan had something against Ye Futian.


    "Hua Jieyu is the little princess of the Nandou family, and from what everyone said, has an excellent gift. Brother Nandou, you should keep an eye out," said Lord Luo. Nandou Wenshan looked at Lord Luo and said, "Thank you for your advice, but Hua Jieyu was in Qingzhou City cultivating under her father''s guidance and Ye Futian is his disciple. It''s only natural that they will be in good relations with one another. However, I will still remember to have a talk with her."


    "I''m sure that you will come to your own conclusions," nodded Lord Luo. Beside him, the Art Saint was in deep thought. After a while, he spoke up, "Ye Futian did not come to convey his blessings. If my predictions are correct, he came because Lord Luo could heal Hua Fengliu''s injury."


    Lord Luo was stunned. "You''re saying that he originally wanted to come and ask me to heal his master?"


    "That''s right," nodded the Art Saint. He thought back at home Ye Futian stood up to the people who insulted Hua Fengliu and could not help but say, "Hua Fengliu choose a good disciple."


    The Art Saint personally complimented Ye Futian. Nobody knew what to say to that.


    "Zhou Mu, head to Donghai Academy''s School of the Emperor Star tomorrow," the Art Daint said suddenly. His voice was calm, as if he knew that just one word could get Zhou Mu into the school without testing. In addition, none of the high-powered authorities thought that this was strange. On the contrary, it seemed like such a normal thing. Even the elder from the Emperor Star school did not seem to have a problem with this. Ye Futian would have never seen this coming.


    "Okay," Zhou Mu nodded. Hua Jieyu of the Nanou family was also in the Emperor Star school. Also, Ye Futian attended Donghai Academy as well.


    "A big congratulation to the School of the Emperor Star for gaining yet another spectacular student." Lord Luo smiled at the elder.


    Lin Xiyue observed everything in silence. Ye Futian''s handsome figure appeared in her mind. That reckless fellow had no idea of the relationship between the Emperor Star school, the Art Saint, and Lord Luo. It was a good thing that he was clever. Although he was reckless, he was also careful. He did not do or say anything that could be used to threaten him in the future. Although a public setting such as this could not be considered dangerous, it seemed like Ye Futian had already made some enemies.


    The celebration continued but could not return to the atmosphere at the beginning of the event. Lord Luo was supposed to be the only star of the night. However, his spotlight was stolen by Ye Futian.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was headed back to Donghai Academy mounted on the black wind eagle. The wind blowing on him cleared his mind as well. He knew clearly that his actions today were reckless, but he could not bear to watch as the Art Saint received everyone''s respect, and his disciple flooded with compliments, while Hua Fengliu was disabled and insulted to make the Art Saint look better.


    "I''m afraid I''ve offended some people today," Ye Futian muttered. He must be careful from now on. Especially around Xia Fan. Ye Futian knew that after the battle, Xia Fan was definitely going to try to kill him. As for the others, they may worry about their reputation and therefore not be able to take care of Ye Futian personally, but that did not mean they wouldn''t try to operate in the shadows. This point was evident when he was attacked during the battle against Zhou Mu.


    The person who attacked me is either the Art Saint or Lord Luo, Ye Futian thought to himself. They were both sorcerers of the Spirit Element.


    And the person who gave me that warning was most likely the elder from the School of the Emperor Star, Ye Futian analyzed.


    ...


    When Ye Futian got back to Donghai Academy, many people stared at him. He was becoming more and more well-known around campus. However, Ye Futian paid them no attention and continued on his way. It was then that several people came up and blocked his path.


    "Ye Futian," said the leader of the pack.


    "Yes?" Ye Futian had never seen this person before.


    "Jing Yang of the School of the Flirting Star wishes to challenge you. Why do you keep avoiding it?" asked the person.


    Ye Futian looked at the person in front of him and thought of how stupid this was. He did not want to acknowledge them and so, he chose to escape from the side.


    "When you said you didn''t have time, it was just a poor excuse, wasn''t it? You only got accepted into the School of the Finance Star because you defeated students from our school. Are you scared now that you got into the academy? Is this who you really are? Don''t you think you''re disgracing your school?" the person continued to pester Ye Futian.


    There were many onlookers at this point. Ye Futian stopped in place. With his back still facing the students of the Flirting Star school, he said, "I''m not in a good mood right now, so you better shut up and stop trying to pick a fight with me, or else you''ll regret it."


    Finishing what he had to said, Ye Futian was ready to walk away again, but the person would not take no for an answer. He laughed and said, "You''re really opening my eyes to something new. I''ve never met a person who can be so thick-skinned after being too chicken to battle."


    The foot that Ye Futian picked up to leave was placed on the ground once again. Everyone watched as he turned around with a bright big smile and said, "Tell Jing Yang, I will be waiting for him here."

 60 My Brother, My Shackle

    Chapter 60: My Brother, My Shackle


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The news that Ye Futian finally accepted Jing Yang''s challenge soon spread around all the academy, causing a great sensation. People were now swarming toward the dorm where Ye Futian lived.


    Several weeks before, when Ye Futian was first accepted to the School of Finance Star, Jing Yan issued him a letter formally challenging him, and Ye Futian rejected it with the excuse that "he did not have time", which made people confused. Jing Yang commented arrogantly on the response from Ye Futian, saying he was "just so-so". The whole story was rather dramatic.


    One of them was the genius who just got admitted, and the other one was the top student from the School of Flirting Star. This challenge was really important to students in the School of Flirting Star, because they hungered for the revenge. Ye Futian''s attitude truly made them upset. Now, Ye Futian was agitated, and agreed to fight.


    There was already a large audience watching Ye Futian. He stood peacefully, with his hands in his pockets. He acted almost like a master in this school. Tang Wan was looking at him, and believed he was using this manner as a bluff.


    Most students in the School of Flirting Star gradually arrived. They were all staring at Ye Futian with hatred. They believed Jing Yang would definitely win this fight, because he was the private disciple of someone powerful who ran this school.


    There were also many students from the School of Finance Star. Some of them did not like Ye Futian much, but still, they hoped that Ye Futian would win. At least Ye Futian was attending the same school, so this fight was obviously about dignity. Mu Yunqing and Mu Yunni also came. They had been badly anticipating the fight, because there was finally someone able to get revenge for them.


    Since Jing Yang was not studying in the same place with others, he arrived a little bit late. When he arrived, he was surrounded by students from the School of Flirting Star. They were loud and imposing.


    The audience moved and formed a path for Jing Yang. The group with him also stopped, and let him enter the field where Ye Futian was waiting.


    "Finally, you agree to fight, coward?" Jing Yang sneered at him. In fact, it was unexpected that Ye Futian accepted the challenge.


    "Stop spouting nonsense. You have wasted so much of my time, so just shut up and prepare to get your *ss kicked." Ye Futian looked at Jing Yang for the very first time. Jing Yang was confused about his attitude, and wondered how crazy this boy was to say something like that.


    The audience was also shocked. They could not understand this contempt from Ye Futian at all. Jing Yang was the superstar in the School of Flirting Star, the private disciple of someone truly powerful who ran the school. However, Ye Futian acted so arrogantly, as if it was a waste of his time to wait for Jing Yang.


    People soon remembered his "no time for this" comment about challenge, and became speechless about this boy. They realized he had never taken this fight seriously from the beginning. People from the School of Flirting Star looked extremely embarrassed. Never had there been a student who disrespected their school in such a way.


    Jing Yang sneered at Ye Futian, "You are the first guy I��"


    Ye Futian did not let him finish. He initiated his attack, shooting his body at Jing Yang like a thunder. Jing Yang swallowed the second half of his sentence. He started driving the Spirit and Qi in the universe to react.


    "Silk Imprisonment!" Jing Yang cast his spell. The gold-element power formed countless silk threads that flew towards Ye Futian. They were blocking the space around him, confining his movement.


    "He is a genius, is he not?" People were in awed by Jing Yang. There are different levels of difficulty for spells, and Silk Imprisonment was definitely among the top level of all spells. It required extremely strong mental control to run thousands of silk threads at the same time. This spell was really mighty because it could confine the freedom of opponent, or directly kill him, depending on the will of the spell caster.


    A pair of golden wings made of Spirit and Qi appeared on Ye Futian''s back, and the wings were so sharp that they slashed the countless silk threads into pieces. The attack from Jing Yang was not effective at all facing the absolute power of Ye Futian.


    Jing Yang was caught by surprise for a moment. He did not anticipate that Ye Futian could survive his previous attack. He changed his spell a little, and suddenly, all the silk threads straightened and rained down as needles. Ye Futian wrapped his wings around his body to protect himself from the needles, and charged at lightning speed at Jing Yang, leaving only his shadow behind.


    The next moment, Jing Yang saw a fist coming at him. Instead of fancy techniques, it was just a simple punch.


    Without any time for a reaction, Jing Yang''s body fell to the ground, blood covering his face. He was the same plane as Ye Futian and the latter didn''t want to waste his time.


    However, he was finally forced to accept because so many students in the academy started considering him a coward. He had to fight for his own reputation.


    This punch made the audience feel as if their hearts were shaking. It was truly nasty and rough.


    Soon, all they witnessed as Ye Futian endlessly punched Jing Yang with his bare fists. Bang, bang, bang�� With every sound of the solid punches, the audience was becoming more shocked by this fight.


    "Satisfied?" Ye Futian said coldly.


    People were totally speechless. Ye Futian asked Jing Yang if "he was ready to get his *ass kicked" before the fight, and now he was restating his point. What an arrogant attitude!


    People were confused by how quickly and easily Jing Yang had been defeated. He was the private disciple of the School of the Flirting Star''s supervisor, and had said that Ye Futian was "so-so" before the fight. However, he had been totally humiliated by this fight.


    Just so-so? That was Jing Yang, not Ye Futian.


    "Stop!" Students from the School of Flirting Star felt angry, and yelled at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stood up and looked at those students. He laughed and said, "Is this what you were asking for?" He let go of Jing Yang and left. People even forgot to check on Jing Yang after he left. Ye Futian could feel hundreds of eyes following him. This feeling of being the center of attention gave him a weird feeling of pride.


    "It''s not my fault. They asked for it." It seemed that as long as Ye Futian was still a student of Donghai Academy, this humiliation of the School of Flirting Star would never be erased.


    ...��


    Ye Futian''s mind was eased slightly after he let out his rage on Jing Yang. Staying in the Lord Palace was a good life for him, but somehow he felt depressed, especially now that it was impossible to find some help for Hua Fengliu.


    When he returned to the room, he noticed that there was one more person. Yu Sheng had lived with him for a long time. However, there was someone standing next to Yu Sheng in their room. Ye Futian was surprised when the he clearly saw the person. He kept blinking to make sure it was true.


    It was a girl, about sixteen-years-old, standing next to Yu Sheng. She was petite and cute, with a gorgeous face. Ye Futian confirmed with a quick glance that this girl was definitely a sweetheart.


    Yu Sheng and the girl noticed that Ye Futian was back. The girl looked at Ye Futian and started smiling. Yu Sheng opened his mouth, as if he was trying to explain.


    "Keep going. Just ignore me." Ye Futian turned around.


    "Wait," a soft voice said. Ye Futian stopped, and saw the girl smiling at him. When she was smiling, the beauty from her unique youthfulness was even more attractive.


    "It''s not what it looks like," Yu Sheng tried to explain.


    Ye Futian laughed and asked, "What does it look like?"


    "Uh..." Yu Sheng was silent, not sure what to say. He had always been awkward compared to Ye Futian. "Qingxuan came here for us," Yu Sheng said.


    "Wow, you''re using just her first name already. Sounds like there''s been great progress between you guys, right?" Ye Futian was still making fun of him. Yu Sheng did not know how to respond at all.


    "I told him to call me by my first name." The girl smiled and said, "I''m Yi Qingxuan, so just call me Qingxuan."


    "Ye Futian." He also introduced himself.


    "I know you." Yi Qingxuan nodded, "I was there watching your first fight with the School of Flirting Star. I saw every bit of the fight. You were so good."


    "Yu Sheng is better." Ye Futian was still laughing. It was almost like he was trying to make Yu Sheng more embarrassed.


    "You are both really good." She kept smiling.


    "He''s not only good. You know what? He''s single and available too."


    Yu Sheng wanted to run out the room.


    Yi Qingxuan fluttered her beautiful lashes and smiled. "You guys are interesting. I guess I will see you next time."


    She soon stood up and left. As she passed by Ye Futian, he whispered to her, "What do think about my buddy? Like him?"


    Yi Qingxuan blushed and answered in lowered voice, "He''s nice." Then she just ran out of the room.


    Ye Futian started to laugh even harder. He looked at Yu Sheng with a wicked smile and asked, "Tell me, Yu Sheng, how far did you go with her when I was not here?"


    Yu Sheng said, "She came to ask whether we would be willing to get tested and go to the upper level of cultivation in the School of Finance Star."


    "She was sent here by the supervisor?" Ye Futian was curious.


    "I guess so. I did not ask," Yu Sheng said.


    "She must be someone special in this school. Not to mention, she is so beautiful and sweet. I think she''s good for you. What do you think?" Ye Futian asked Yu Sheng.


    "I have no idea what you are talking about." Yu Sheng was numb.


    "Boy, she blushed when I asked her about you. I guess she''s got a crush on you. Do you have the same feeling?" Ye Futian kept nagging him.


    "My father told me to stay away from girls, you know that. He told me my lifelong task is to help you build your kingdom." Yu Sheng was serious.


    Ye Futian had to stop joking when he realized Yu Sheng meant what he said. Then he started talking again, "Yu Sheng, I know my godfather has really high expectations for me, but I believe the future is still far away for us. Life is so long that neither you nor I knows where we will end up. I know he believes I was born to be the king, but there''s a long journey ahead of us. So, I hope we can enjoy this journey together. We are brothers, not master and servant. The future belongs to both of us."


    "It''s his will that I should live for you. It''s meant to be this way," Yu Sheng insisted.


    "I told you, he''s not here, so forget about what he said. My word is the law now." Ye Futian had suddenly started to yell. Yu Sheng was shocked seeing him angry. He lowered his head, but still looked stubborn.


    The guilty look on Yu Sheng''s face made Ye Futian somewhat regret yelling at him. He lowered his voice and said, "Yu Sheng, forget the shackles he has put on you. You should have your own life, a really happy one. If you do, I will also feel happy for you even you leave me alone someday."


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian, and found that he was smiling again. He almost cried, and swore to himself that he would never leave Ye Futian alone, ever.

 61 You’re Not a Man

    Chapter 61: You��re Not a Man


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian of the School of the Finance Star had brutally defeated Jing Yang from the School of the Flirting Star. This news spread like wildfire through the academy the following day. Everyone gossiped amongst themselves after hearing the details.


    Jing Yang had wanted to salvage his school''s reputation but had been ruthlessly defeated by Ye Futian. He did not even get a chance to defend himself. All of these details made Jing Yang the laughing stock of the school. He had previously called out Ye Futian for being gutless and running away from his challenge. This time around, it was impossible to recover from the humiliation. Not only for Jing Yang, but for the School of the Flirting Star as well.


    The students of the Flirting Star school felt judged by their fellow schoolmates as they walked around the campus. They were so humiliated. It was because they had been humiliated that they wanted to retaliate against Ye Futian, but by the looks of things now, it was mission impossible. Ye Futian was a freak.


    It was not only the students of the Flirting Star school who thought this way. Everyone in Donghai Academy felt this way. Ye Futian was the devil in disguise.


    Within the School of the Emperor Star, Hua Jieyu was sitting in her dorm. Shu Yuyan was also with her. They were in the middle talking about Ye Futian''s battle with Jing Yang. Hua Jieyu smiled as she asked, "So you mean they served themselves up on a silver platter?"


    "Yeah. I heard that Ye Futian was not interested in their challenge, but they were being shameless. They blocked his way and threw insults at him. Only then did Ye Futian give in, and waited for Jing Yang. His first words when Jing Yang arrived were: ''Are you ready for a good beating?'' Isn''t he wild?" laughed Shu Yuyan.


    Hua Jieyu smiled and replied, "Yeah. He''s awful."


    Shu Yuyan was a little suspicious of Hua Jieyu. She never used to be interested in such gossip, but after the first time Shu Yuyan mentioned Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu began to show interest. Now, she listened to every story with ears wide open.


    "Last time you said that the person you liked was an awful guy, now you''re showing so much interest in Ye Futian. You haven''t had a change in heart, have you?" Shu Yuyan asked Hua Jieyu.


    "Uh..." Hua Jieyu was dumbfounded. She went on to say, "What are you talking about? I just think that punk is interesting."


    "That''s good. I really thought you had a change of heart. I would have felt so bad for the guy you liked," Shu Yuyan said. "Oh, that''s right! I heard teacher say that the Art Saint''s disciple, Zhou Mu, will be coming to cultivate at the Emperor Star school. He doesn''t even have to be tested. Rumors say that he is genius conjurer."


    "Okay," Hua Jieyu replied nonchalantly. From her expression, Shu Yuyan knew that she was uninterested. Smiling, Shu Yuyan said, "Looks like you don''t have a single ounce of interest in the Art Saint''s disciple. This makes me curious about what kind of person the guy you like is. How bad could he be?"


    "You''ll find out in the future," Hua Jieyu gave her a sweet smile. Shu Yuyan was dazed by her smile. It seemed like Hua Jieyu was already in too deep.


    ...


    At the School of the Finance Star, Yi Qingxuan was back at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s shared dormitory. When Ye Futian saw that she was present, he smiled. "Should I excuse myself?"


    "What are you talking about?" Yi Qingxuan looked a bit embarrassed. She shyly took a peek at Yu Sheng, before asking Ye Futian, "You hit Jing Yang yesterday?"


    "He deserved it." Ye Futian shrugged. The other students from the Flirting Star school had forced him to, so he had no choice but to oblige.


    "Jing Yang studies in the main building of the Flirting Star school, and the news that you brutally beat him up has already spread around the entire academy. You''ve made an enemy of their school," she told him weakly.


    Ye Futian was a little upset by this. He previously chose to ignore Jing Yang''s challenge because one, he was not interested in humiliating Jing Yang, and two, he did not want any trouble. However, right now all the blame had fallen on Ye Futian, despite the fact that it was the School of the Flirting Star who initiated everything.


    It would have been fine if Donghai Academy was not separated into seven different schools, but Ye Futian already knew that the relationships between the schools were complicated. Each school existed as an individual entity. Now that he did what he did to the Flirting Star school, there was no way they would forgive him.


    Seeing how upset Ye Futian looked, Yi Qingxuan gave him a weak smile and asked, "Do you want me to bring you guys up there?"


    Ye Futian blinked a couple of times, then pointed at the large main building of the School of the Finance Star located on large stairway above. "There?"


    "Yeah, but we might have to test your abilities first. Do you guys mind?" asked Yi Qingxuan after she nodded.


    "Not at all!" Ye Futian gave her a big smile. He patted Yu Sheng on the shoulder and said, "We''re getting this opportunity thanks to you, man."


    "What does this have to do with me? Wasn''t it you who hit someone?" Yu Sheng looked confused.


    "You don''t get it," Ye Futian said earnestly.


    "You guys head out first. I''ll follow," Ye Futian smiled and pushed Yu Sheng forward. Yu Sheng gave him a look of confusion and walked off.


    Yi Qingxuan caught up to Yu Sheng and whispered, "How are you guys so good? How do you cultivate?"


    "I don''t know either." Yu Sheng shook his head.


    "When I saw you battle last time, you used powers from Metal Spiritual Qi. Which means that you probably have the gifts of a sorcerer, but you did not use any sorcery. You fought purely with martial art tactics. I don''t even know where you get all that strength from," Yi Qingxuan complimented him.


    "Isn''t he the coolest?" Ye Futian butted in abruptly.


    Yi Qingxuan turned to glare at Ye Futian. He shuddered and then gave her a smile. "You guys continue, I promise not to eavesdrop anymore," he said.


    Yi Qingxuan turned her head and continued her conversation with Yu Sheng. As promised, Ye Futian walked behind them, not bothering the two. Yu Sheng was dominating and handsome while Yi Qingxuan was gentle and beautiful. They made a good match.


    The main building of the School of the Finance Star was a magnificent piece of architecture. The feeling it gave Ye Futian was not that of a school, but a sacred site. Many people greeted Yi Qingxuan with respect as they walked in. This made Yu Sheng and Ye Futian extremely curious. Also, she was able to bring the two of them into the main building. Who was she?


    Ye Futian observed his friends. He noticed looks of jealousy from a couple of the male students when they saw Yi Qingxuan chatting with Yu Sheng. To Ye Futian, it seemed like Yu Sheng had some love rivals.


    In the end, Yi Qingxuan led Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to a large hall. There were already people present: two elders stood at the front while eight younger individuals stood by them. Yi Qingxuan left Yu Sheng''s side to stand beside the two elders.


    Ye Futian looked at her and wondered about her identity again. From the set-up, it was evident these people were prepared for their arrival.


    "Yi Qingxuan told me that the two of you are extremely powerful. A while ago, there were rumors floating around that you two have been accepted into our school. But now we want to see your powers with our own eyes. These people here are all gifted students of the Finance Star school. They are all four-starred Glory Plane cultivators. You guys can take your pick of opponents, and we shall see if your powers are truly as strong as Yi Qingxuan told us," said one of the elders. Ye Futian finally understood. Their acceptance into the School of the Finance Star was thanks to Yi Qingxuan.


    This made much more sense. Even though their first battle had caused a ruckus at Donghai Academy, the higher ups of each school usually did not pay attention to the happenings in the academy. Thus, it made sense for them to be accepted under recommendation.


    "Four-starred Glory Plane?" Ye Futian chuckled. "We can save the trouble then. Let''s have them all go at once. No offense." He knew that this was not a time to be modest. If he did not bring out his full potential, there was no way he was going to be valued by the higher ups of the Finance Star school.


    "You are just as arrogant as they say," chucked one of the eight students.


    "I heard you defeated Jing Yang yesterday with a single punch. I''m curious, just how good are you? Don''t let us down," said a young lady dressed in tight clothing, carrying a sword on her back.


    "You''ll find out soon." Ye Futian smiled and made formal introductions, "Ye Futian. Yu Sheng. Nice to meet you all."


    "We will have everyone go at once then," said the elder. The eight students got into formation, surrounding Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. The four of them faced forward, and the other four stayed in their original positions. In a split second, the Spiritual Qi in the room was off the charts.


    Vines shot out at the two of them. It was a Wood Elemental spell. The Spiritual Qi around Ye Futian erupted. Golden wings appeared, shaking violently, breaking the vines headed in his direction into pieces. Yu Sheng, on the other hand, stayed still where he stood, allowing the vines to wrap around his body.


    WHOOSH! Flames erupted, setting the vines ablaze. Yu Sheng''s body seemed to be burning, but on the outside, golden armor protected his body. He continued to stand in place. On Ye Futian''s body, a golden armor plate appeared. Two students charged towards Yu Sheng and two towards Ye Futian.


    BOOM! The vines wrapped around Yu Sheng''s body burst open. He took one step forward and the ground began to shake. Two fists came towards Yu Sheng from different directions. With a loud collision, the two students landed their fists on Yu Sheng''s body, one in the chest and one on his back. However, they were the ones who felt the pain. A second later, Yu Sheng reached out his arms to catch the two students by their forearms, and flung them into the air. They landed quite a distance away.


    At the same moment, the young lady began her attack on Ye Futian with a sword. Another student moved like a ghost and revolved around Ye Futian in a blur.


    Ye Futian stood still, but suddenly began to move his wings. He threw a punch, and the ghost-like blur was propelled into the air. Without skipping a beat, Ye Futian avoided the young lady''s sword at the speed of lightning. His wings flapped in a crazed manner, throwing the young lady into the air as well. Eventually, she landed on the ground, face first.


    The battle had just started, and four of the students had already been defeated, laying on the ground. The other four students were dumbfounded. Were these two even human?


    "Do you still want to continue?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "That''s enough." The two elders could not continue to watch their students like this. They had always thought that their students had a spectacular gift, but the students were defeated before they could even display their full potential.


    "Let''s go." The two elders turned to leave, obviously upset.


    Watching the two elders leave, the students felt embarrassed. The two students thrown out by Yu Sheng came running back, injured from head to toe. They took one look at Yu Sheng, and turned to leave as well. Amongst themselves, they whispered, "This guy is a complete lunatic!"


    "Such bullies," said another student, also upset. He never would have thought that his first experience soaring through the skies would be like this.


    The girl with the sword crawled up off the floor and stood in front of Ye Futian with a face dirtied from being on the ground. She glared at him and said, "You''re not a man!" She then left, feeling wronged. She was a beautiful, blossoming young lady, and she was gifted. In previous battles, even if she could not win, her opponents always went easy on her and would not attack her too ruthlessly. How could Ye Futian do this to her?


    Ye Futian stood there looking innocent of any wrongdoing. At the front of the hall, Yi Qingxuan laughed. These two were too much!

 62 Yu Sheng, Meet Your Master

    Chapter 62: Yu Sheng, Meet Your Master


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Is that even my fault?" Ye Futian noticed Yi Qingxuan was laughing at him, and felt upset that he had been made fun of by a woman.


    "Sure, it''s not your fault." Yi Qingxuan kept laughing, looking even cuter.


    Someone came out of the hall. He looked powerful, and soon fixed his eyes on Yu Sheng.


    "Dad, I didn''t lie, right?" Yi Qingxuan was smiling at the man who just came out.


    He did not respond but kept looking at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng was somehow confused.


    "You were born to be a martial arts cultivator. Would you like to be my disciple?" Yi Qingxuan''s father asked Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. This girl seemed to have a powerful background in this school. Those two old men who tested them must also be powerful in this school, but they were only doing the pre-test for Ye Qingxuan''s father, who was in fact, the decision maker.


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian, seemingly indecisive.


    "I''m sorry but you are...?" Ye Futian asked politely. Yu Sheng needed to know his identity before becoming his disciple.


    "I am the director of this school," the middle-aged man answered him. Ye Futian was surprised for a moment, then started smiling. He gave Yi Qingxuan a glance. Surprisingly, the reason why they were admitted into the School of Finance Star was actually because the daughter of Director had witnessed their fight. Now, she introduced him and Yu Sheng to her father again.


    "My dad has been looking for a genius in martial arts to inherit his power, but none could be found. That''s why I told him about you guys right after the fight," Yi Qingxuan told them.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He said, "Yu Sheng, hurry and bow down to your master." This man was the director in School of Finance Star, which was one of the seven schools in this academy. Ye Futian believed that he was most likely one of the most powerful people in this school as well.


    Yu Sheng nodded, and bowed reverently to the Director. "Greetings, Professor, from Yu Sheng."


    "Okay." The Director stopped looking so serious. He smiled at Yu Sheng and said, "You will be cultivating with me from now on." Then he looked at Ye Futian again, and asked, "What is your major? Sorcery or martial arts?"


    "Both," Ye Futian answered.


    "I am looking for a disciple to inherit my martial arts techniques. Are you willing to also acknowledge me as your master?" he asked.


    "I already have a master. Mr. Director, do you know the Qin Devil?" Ye Futian asked.


    The Director''s eyes sparkled with surprise, then he asked Ye Futian, "You are the disciple of Hua Fengliu?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. It sounded like the Qin Devil used to be so famous that even the director in this place knew him.


    "How is he doing? Where is he living now?" the Director asked.


    "He has been severely injured. Now he is living in the Qin Garden to recuperate," Ye Futian answered.


    "So, you have also been to the Qin Garden? How is Ms. Tang Lan doing?" The Director had so many questions. Ye Futian was quite confused. Why did there seem to be something between him and Tang Lan?


    "She''s doing well. In fact, she is the one taking care of my professor," Ye Futian responded.


    "I know it. She will never let it go. I used to try to persuade her many times that she should stay away from that guy. Hua Fengliu was no good at all, but a lone wolf who had no guilt about cheating. I just cannot understand why she likes him so badly." The Director suddenly became mad. Ye Futian was shocked. It seemed that a strong hatred existed between the Director and Ye Futian''s professor.


    "Mr. Director, so, it sounds like you have a history with my professor and Ms. Tang?" Ye Futian asked in a lowered voice.


    "History? Tang Lan used to be my disciple, and she just broke away from this school because of Hua Fengliu."


    Ye Futian did not know how to respond. He stood there, vividly embarrassed about asking this question.


    "Whatever. It happened so many years ago. I just cannot believe how stubborn she is. She really did forget me, her first master. Next time you see her, just tell her that the past is the past, so if she finds some spare time, she''s welcome to come visit," the Director told him.


    Ye Futian nodded, and said, "Mr. Director, I can tell that Ms. Tang cares heavily about relations. Since you are her first master, I believe she definitely has not forgotten you. I guess she does not visit maybe because she feels guilty about what happened."


    "I know. Otherwise, why would she take care of Hua Fengliu now?" The Director sighed, then looked at Ye Futian. "You are well-spoken and have good looks. I know Hua Fengliu accepted you as his disciple for a reason."


    Ye Futian was thinking, Mr. Hua, why does everyone think of you as a playboy, and just project it onto me?


    "Qingxuan, stay away from this boy. Stay with Yu Sheng," The Director told his daughter.


    This demand tickled Ye Futian. He laughed and told the Director, "I guess you are right."


    "Okay, come with me." The Director turned around, and started walking. Yi Qingxuan, Yu Sheng and Ye Futian followed him. Yi Qingxuan looked back at the boys and winked, as if she was being complacent.


    The Director''s name was Yi Xiang. He brought Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to a garden. The garden was pretty spacious, but there was only a pavilion and a giant tree inside, giving the garden a sense of isolation.


    "How much do you know about Donghai Academy?" Yi Xiang sat down under the tree, so did the young people.


    "There are seven schools here, and in fact, each school is an individual clan. The supervisors of these schools run Donghai Academy collaboratively," Ye Futian answered.


    "You are right. The seven schools grew out of the top level clans in Donghai City. 300 years ago, when Emperor Ye Qing and Donghuang the Great unified this world, they advocated cultivation, demanding that the local governors found academies for this purpose. With this as its background, Donghai Academy became the official site for cultivation in this city. Therefore, to be officially endorsed, neither of the top clans in Donghai City at the time gave up control over this academy. Because this academy was initially run by seven clans, the seven schools were finally formed."


    Yi Xiang started to tell them the history of Donghai Academy. "Now, each school of Donghai Academy has its own style, which has actually been determined by those clans in the olden times. For example, in the School of Emperor Star, all the elites are mental control sorcerers. In fact, the Art Saint and your master, the Qin Devil, went to that school. It is now considered the most powerful school among the seven. The School of Treasury Star is considered second."


    "How about this school?" Ye Futian was curious.


    "Martial arts are not valued in this world." Yi Xiang looked at Ye Futian and told him, "In this world, most people believe that sorcerers are more powerful than martial arts practitioners, so cultivators accept sorcery more than our techniques. Even for those who are talented in both, they would major in sorcery. However, in fact, as the cultivators reach certain planes, the power of martial arts will definitely be the same as sorcery, or even stronger. Unfortunately, this is not common knowledge, so this school has been declining for a while. It is really hard for me to find someone with extraordinary martial arts talent in this place. I''m glad Yu Sheng is here. I believe he will make people understand my point in the future."


    "I''ve always believed these two classes are equal," Ye Futian said. His godfather had told him long ago that hard work differentiated the cultivators, not the class.


    "Good." Yi Xiang nodded. "However, Yu Sheng, don''t stop improving your mental power. Otherwise, when you are put against those mental control sorcerers from the School of Emperor Star, it will be impossible for you to unleash your power."


    "I understand," Yu Sheng said. He knew that a pure martial arts cultivator could be countered by powerful mental control sorcerers.


    "Yu Sheng, your strength and burst are in the top level, but you lack in speed. This garden is where I used to cultivate. You see the rooms over there? That''s the bedroom and book collection room. This is where you will live from now on," Yi Xiang told them.


    "Roger that." The boys nodded.


    "Look around, and make yourselves feel at home. We need to go, Qingxuan." Yi Xiang then left with his daughter. Before the girl left, she showed her fists to the guys as if to say Come on, you can make it!


    After they left, Ye Futian patted Yu Sheng''s shoulder, and said, "Yu Sheng, you are just one step away from becoming his son-in-law. Do you know that?"


    "Empirically speaking, huh?" Yu Sheng tried to joke.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian did not know what to say. Soon, he said, "At least this was a successful experience." Then, Ye Futian walked toward one room in the garden. However, moments later, he flew from the room pathetically. He yelled, "What the heck is this place?"


    ...��


    It was a major news that Yu Sheng had been accepted by the Director in the School of Finance Star as a private disciple. People heard that the Director had stopped accepting private disciples for many years, so this exception for Yu Sheng indicated the Director believed Yu Sheng was very talented. Ye Futian would also go there for cultivation.


    These two troublemakers who had just entered Donghai Academy a short while ago had finally became superstars in the academy.


    There was also more major news about Zhou Mu, the disciple of the Art Saint. He was admitted into Donghai Academy, and accepted by someone running the School of Emperor Star. Students in Donghai Academy now started to discuss and compare the boys a lot. They believed that even though Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were talented, their background was not as strong as Zhou Mu''s. He used to be the disciple of the Art Saint.


    Soon, it was said that Ye Futian was the disciple of the Qin Devil��the nemesis of Art Saint whose natal spirit had been destroyed.


    The news also spoke of Ye Futian making a scene in the Luo Palace during the Lord Luo''s birthday banquet. He defeated some geniuses from the academy there, but finally got his ass kicked by Zhou Mu.

 63 Driving a Wedge Between Them

    Chapter 63: Driving a Wedge Between Them


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The news of Ye Futian being defeated by Zhou Mu spread throughout Donghai Academy. Many students of the Finance Star school were not happy about this. Now that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were cultivating under the headmaster, and Zhou Mu had entered the School of the Emperor Star, it seemed like the Finance Star school was lacking in comparison to the Emperor Star school. However, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had no knowledge of any of this. For the past few days, they had been cultivating in the courtyard.


    At this time, a loud noise sounded. Ye Futian was thrown out of the training room. The wings on his back fluttered, and even though it looked awkward, it allowed him to land safely on his feet rather than on his butt.


    "You''re able to withstand it for a longer period of time now," said someone from behind. Ye Futian turned his head and saw Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan chatting under the ancient tree.


    "Do you guys even care about how I feel?" asked Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng took one look at him and shook his head. "No."


    "This is payback, isn''t it?" Ye Futian glared at Yu Sheng. He walked towards the ancient tree and asked, "Yi Qingxuan, who created that matrix in the room? My movements have improved a lot over the past couple of days, but the attack from the matrix is still too fast and too strong for me."


    "I''m not sure either," Yi Qingxuan shook her head. "The purpose of the matrix is to refine your martial arts abilities. The stronger you are, the more Spiritual Qi you can utilize and the stronger the matrix gets. As long as you are able to withstand being in the matrix for a longer period of time every time, it means you''re improving."


    "I''m faster than Yu Sheng, so how come he can withstand it longer than I can?" Ye Futian asked, a little upset.


    "Because he is physically stronger. You rely on the movement of your body more, so the gravity within the matrix has a stronger effect on you," explained Yi Qingxuan. Ye Futian nodded, and said, "After Yu Sheng cultivates in the matrix for a while, he''ll be able to swiftly avoid attacks while overcoming the gravity problem. Then, he''ll be ever more fearsome than he is now."


    These past days, Ye Futian had been working on refining his movements. In actuality,


    Ye Futian was not lacking in strength at all. The body refinement methods that Emperor


    Ye Qing passed on to him enabled Ye Futian to refine his body to a monster''s level, and


    this place was very suitable for him to do so. Furthermore, there was a library containing


    many books on battle tactics. He could take a look at those and cultivate accordingly.


    According to Emperor Ye Qing''s body refinement methods, the dragon refined the body,


    the ape refined strength, and the roc refined speed. These were his personal findings from when he trained demons and monsters. His attack tactics were also learned from the demons and monsters he controlled. Based on Emperor Ye Qing''s abilities, he must have been able to exert combat powers on par with a real dragon or a real golden roc. However, Ye Futian had not reached that level yet, and there was a limit to what he could comprehend. All he could do was to speed up the process by cultivating more powerful combat tactics.


    "That reminds me! There are some rumors spreading about you at the academy," Yi Qingxuan said to Ye Futian.


    "What kind of rumors?" he asked.


    "Zhou Mu has been accepted into the School of the Emperor Star. After that, rumors started spreading at Donghai Academy that said we were really arrogant at the Luo Palace, but were eventually defeated by Zhou Mu." Yi Qingxuan spoke carefully. She seemed worried for Ye Futian. If the rumors were true, would they hurt his pride?


    Ye Futian was shocked. "Did Zhou Mu say this personally?"


    "I think the rumors came from a couple of students at Donghai Academy," Yi Qingxuan said gently.


    Ye Futian shrugged and smiled. "Looks like someone doesn''t really like me."


    "So, the rumors aren''t true?" Her eyes lit up. Zhou Mu was a five-starred Glory Plane cultivator. Even though Ye Futian was really good, he was still at a lower level than Zhou Mu. Therefore, when Yi Qingxuan heard the rumors, she was not completely sure they were false.


    "It couldn''t have been Zhou Mu," said Ye Futian. It did not seem like he had heard a single word Yi Qingxuan said. "Are people using this as an opening to bring up the battle between the Art Saint and my master?" Ye Futian asked her. He already seemed to know the answer to that question.


    Yi Qingxuan saw how confident he was and smiled. "Yeah, there were some people talking about that. I''m thinking it''s the people from the Flirting Star school who are spreading the topic around, just to piss you off. There are also people who were questioning my father''s choice of choosing Yu Sheng as his disciple. Should we try to clear up these misunderstandings? We should let the people of Donghai Academy know that those are all rumors so they will stop misunderstanding you."


    "If the people are willing to believe that the rumors are true, do you really think they''ll change your mind just because you say otherwise?" Ye Futian laughed and continued, "You can never stop the mouths of others. Just let them be. One day, they''ll know to shut their own mouths."


    "You seem so nonchalant about this, but if you''re so confident, then we''ll wait to see all these people eat their words when you defeat Zhou Mu," said Yi Qingxuan with a smile.


    "Rather than paying attention to these things, I''m more interested in the progress of your relationship with Yu Sheng," said Ye Futian. He gave Yin Qingxuan a look and watched as her face grew red. She glared at him and said, "I don''t know what nonsense you''re spouting. I''m leaving!" Afterwards, she took a peek at Yu Sheng before jogging off.


    "Oh, Yu Sheng. You have to take initiative!" laughed Ye Futian.


    "I''m going to cultivate now." Yu Sheng walked away, headed for the training room.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng immersed themselves in cultivation. Yi Qingxuan would come to visit them often. Once in a while, Yi Qiang would stop by to give Yu Sheng pointers. As for Ye Futian, he was ignored. There was an obvious difference in the way the two were being treated, just like how Hua Fengliu treated Ye Futian and Yu Sheng differently back then. Ye Futian was hurt.


    One day, Yi Qingxuan came to visit again. "Ye Futian, Yu Sheng. My father wants me to bring you guys to him," she said.


    "Okay. Is something wrong?" asked Ye Futian.


    "There are people visiting from the schools of the Emperor Star and the Treasury Star. They said they wanted to congratulate my father on taking on a new disciple." Yi Qingxue continued, "It''s proper etiquette to have you guys go greet them."


    The two young men nodded and followed wherever Yi Qingxuan led them to. The trio arrived at the guest hall of the School of the Finance Star. Seated in front of Yi Xiang were two people. They exuded such grace. These two people were from the schools of the Emperor Star and the Treasury Star. Behind each person stood two more people, presumably their students. Ye Futian had met the person from the School of the Emperor Star before. It was the elder he met at the Luo Palace.


    "Greetings from Student Ye Futian." Ye Futian paid his respects to the two elders with a bow.


    "We meet again," the elder said. "I never expected for you to come cultivate under Headmaster Yi Xiang after the events at the Luo Palace. Indeed, you are young and promising."


    "Thank you, Senior," said Ye Futian.


    "All those years ago, your master cultivated at the Emperor Star school, how could you go to the Finance Star school? Should I try to demand Headmaster Yi Xiang to pass you on to me?" the elder laughed.


    "You''re too funny, Senior." Ye Futian smiled weakly.


    The elder laughed aloud and said, "Hua Jieyu cultivates at our school. Since you two know each other, you should come visit her when you get a chance."


    Ye Futian was shocked. Since the elder already knew that Ye Futian was the Guqin Devil''s disciple, then there was no hiding the fact that he knew Hua Jieyu. If things had come to this, then all he could do was admit it. "I''ve been wanting to go visit her, but since she studies up at the main building of the Emperor Star school, I did not want to intrude. But since Senior has extended the offer, I will gladly visit her when I get the chance. I hope it will not be of an inconvenience to you, Senior."


    "Very good." The elder gave Ye Futian a meaningful look.


    "Alright now, you youngsters go talk amongst yourselves. I have some things to discuss with Headmaster Yi Xiang." The elder smiled. The students standing left the hall along with Ye Futian''s little trio.


    Shu Yuyan was watching Ye Futian the whole time. When the elder told them to leave, she quickly ran to catch up with Ye Futian. "Wait up!" she shouted.


    "Is there something I can help you with?" Ye Futian smiled at Shu Yuyan.


    "My name is Shu Yuyan. I am Hua Jieyu''s best friend," she told him. She felt as if she had just uncovered a secret. In the past, Hua Jieyu mentioned that she had someone she liked, but that was before Ye Futian came to Donghai Academy. Hua Jieyu probably had no idea that Ye Futian was going to show up a few days after what she had told Shu Yuyan.


    After that, Hua Jieyu showed special interest in all things regarding Ye Futian. Shu Yuyan had never cared about the details. It was only when Zhou Mu entered the School of the Emperor Star that she found Hua Jieyu was the daughter of the Guqin Devil, Hua Fengliu. Then, she found out that Ye Futian was the Guqin Devil''s disciple. It was obvious that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were previously acquainted. When all these findings were added up, Shu Yuyan was able to easily take a guess as to what was going on between the two.


    She eyed the handsome young man in front of her. This guy who stirred up trouble right after being admitted should be the guy in Hua Jieyu''s heart.


    "My name is Ye Futian." He smiled and continued, "Is Hua Jieyu doing well?"


    "Yeah," Shu Yuyan nodded. She was very curious about Ye Futian. What type of person was this guy who Hua Jieyu was so crazy about? There were so many things she wanted to say right now, but there were others around. Shu Yuyan could tell that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu wanted to keep their relationship under wraps. So, this was not a good setting to talk about it.


    "Are Junior Brother Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu close?" asked a smiling young man behind Shu Yuyan.


    "Hua Jieyu is the beloved daughter of my master, of course we''re close." Ye Futian took a look at the young man. He was maybe about 18. His sharp eyes made him look extremely menacing.


    "Is that so?" laughed the young man. "I cultivate with Hua Jieyu at school and talk to her often, but I''ve never heard her speak about you. In the future, when you get a chance to visit our school, be sure to come look for me," the young man said to Ye Futian.


    "From Senior Brother Mu Yunxuan''s tone, it sounds like he''s about to get the girl," chuckled another student from the Treasury Star school.


    "A girl like Hua Jieyu won''t be so easy to get. I still need time, but��" Mu Yunxuan laughed. "Forget it, forget it."


    Ye Futian frowned, and Yu Sheng gave Mu Yunxuan a once over.


    "Oh! Junior Brother Ye Futian, I heard that you had some conflict with Junior Brother Zhou Mu at the Luo Palace, and now the whole academy knows. You shouldn''t care too much though, it just a silly fight. It''s not that big of a deal. You''ll be able to get over it if you guys get a chance to talk it out," continued Mu Yunxuan.


    "Alright. I''ll definitely ''talk it out'' with Zhou Mu when I get a chance." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Now then, we don''t want to keep you for too long. Junior Brother, you guys should head out first, we''ll wait here for our teachers," said Mu Yunxuan.


    "Alright." Ye Futian felt no need to be courteous and walked right out with Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan. Mu Yunxuan watched as Ye Futian and his friends walked away. The smile gradually disappeared from his face.


    "Senior Brother Mu Yunxuan, what was your purpose for saying all that?" Shu Yuyan asked him. Naturally, she knew he was lying about his relationship with Hua Jieyu. It would not have mattered if Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu did not have any special relationship, but if they did, then Mu Yunxuan''s words were meant to drive a wedge between them.


    "Shu Yuyan, what was your purpose of catching up with Ye Futian. Has Hua Jieyu mentioned him to you?" Mu Yunxuan asked.


    "I just wanted to say hello since he is an acquaintance of Hua Jieyu. I had no other intentions," she said.


    "Really now?" Mu Yunxuan smiled and picked up his feet to walk away.

 64 The Rumors

    Chapter 64: The Rumors


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and the two others walked back to where he lived. All along the way, his eyebrows were knitted.


    "Who is he, Qingxuan?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Mu Yunxuan, someone now cultivating separately with the supervisor in the School of Emperor Star, a true genius, currently in Eight-star Glory Plane, and he is a great mental control sorcerer," Yi Qingxuan told him. She felt awkward that Mu Yunxuan spoke to Ye Futian like that.


    "Mu Yunxuan." Ye Futian repeated and remembered this name.


    Yu Sheng noticed Ye Futian was upset. He looked at Yi Qingxuan, then tried to comfort Ye Futian. "I believe my sister-in-law is not that kind of girl."


    "Of course I know my fox is not like that." Ye Futian nodded. "But don''t you think Mu Yunxuan is weird? Why did he tell me that intentionally?"


    "Yeah, it is truly weird," Yu Sheng agreed.


    "It almost feels like he was testing me. He must know something." Ye Futian was still mumbling.


    "Sister-in-law? Fox?" Yi Qingxuan''s eyes twinkled with a little bit confusion. She could sense that they were talking about Hua Jieyu.


    "Qingxuan, remember, this is a secret. Do not tell anyone," Yu Sheng told her. They had known each other for a long time, so obviously Yu Sheng considered this girl as one of his best friends, which was why he was discussing these personal issues in her presence.


    "Hua Jieyu is my girlfriend," Ye Futian explained to Yi Qingxuan.


    Yi Qingxuan was surprised, then asked doubtfully, "Really?"


    "Why don''t you believe me?" Ye Futian was upset about Yi Qingxuan''s reaction. "I am such a talented and handsome boy, so why can''t my girlfriend be the most gorgeous girl in this academy?"


    "��" Yi Qingxuan was speechless. After a short silence, she asked Yu Sheng, "Has he always been such a narcissist?"


    "Yeah," Yu Sheng answered.


    "Damn." Ye Futian heard they were talking about him. "Come on, bros before h*es. Why would you give me up for a girl?"


    The other two were speechless again.


    "I do not care if it''s a test or not. I''ll remember this guy, Mu Yunxuan." Thinking of Yunxuan''s words, Ye Futian smiled. The smile indicated something, and Yu Sheng knew that some serious revenge on that name was on its way.


    After they went back to the garden, Yi Xiang was already waiting for them. He looked at Ye Futian and told him, "Come see me." Ye Futian did not know what happened. He nodded and followed Yi Xiang into the room.


    "You caused some trouble at Luo Palace, didn''t you?" Yi Xiang asked.


    "That was even before I came here. In fact, I met Qingxuan right after I came back from Luo Palace," Ye Futian explained. "And I was not there to make trouble."


    "You were going to ask Lord Luo to cure your professor?" Yi Xiang asked. Ye Futian nodded.


    "That was really unwise. Do you have any idea what you did?" Yi Xiang sounded cold. "You should feel lucky that you are someone insignificant, so that people in that place did not kill you since they had to save their reputation. Otherwise, you would have been dead by now. Do you know the relationship between the Art Saint, Lord Luo, and the School of Emperor Star?"


    Ye Futian was shocked and confused. He said, "I only knew the Art Saint also used to attend the School of Emperor Star after meeting you, Mr. Yi."


    "No wonder you are the disciple of Hua Fengliu. You just share the exact same self-righteousness." Yi Xiang seemed angry. "Do you know why your professor''s natal spirit was destroyed and why he was banished?"


    "I only know that Mr. Hua was defeated by the Art Saint, and was evicted from Donghai City by the Art Saint and the Nandou family," Ye Futian said.


    "What if he beat the Art Saint? Would it have been any better? No. His tragedy was destined since the moment he decided to pursue the princess of Nandou Family," Yi Xiang told him. "Both the School of Emperor Star and the Nandou family tactically planned the political marriage between the Art Saint and the daughter of the Nandou family. All the powerful people in these clans would benefit from this marriage. Your professor just cut in and ruined everything for them. What was he thinking? That a pretty face was everything?"


    The Director stared at Ye Futian as he spoke. Ye Futian felt somewhat awkward. He believed that no matter how badly the Director did not like his professor, it was not Futian''s fault that he was handsome.


    "He even knocked up that girl, and they had a child. He was lucky to get out of this city alive."


    Ye Futian believed Yi Xiang was still lingering on this. He did not understand why the hatred was so serious. Was it because of Ms. Tang?


    "Is there anything else between the Art Saint and the School of Emperor Star?" Ye Futian kept asking.


    "There is something that people rarely know, and I know only some details about it. The Art Saint might have some relation to Prime Minister Hua," Yi Xiang answered. "He is one of the two Prime Ministers in the Nation of Nandou in charge of military force. Now, he is definitely the most powerful person in this nation. He had graduated from the School of Emperor Star and is now considered a strong backer of this school now."


    "So, the parties that would benefit from this political marriage were the Nandou family and Prime Minister Hua?" Ye Futian gradually understood.


    "I''m afraid Hua Fengliu did not know the seriousness involved in this marriage, nor did he have any idea the School of Emperor Star had a role in this play. So, do you understand now, that your professor brought this upon himself?" Yi Xiang kept saying, "As for you, you went to the Luo Palace alone. You know what? Almost all the people there wanted to kill you at that time."


    Ye Futian''s mind was running fast, and he started to think about many things. Soon, he asked, "Then, why is Hua Jieyu cultivating in the School of Emperor Star?"


    "Because Prime Minister Hua is so powerful now, I guess the Nandou family is trying to rebuild their relationship with the School of Emperor Star, so they sent Hua Jieyu to this school. As for why she agreed to come, I believe, besides the Nandou family''s intentions, the other reason would be your grandmaster. She is now cultivating with your grandmaster. He is a respected old man, however��" Yi Xiang sighed.


    "My grandmaster?" Ye Futian was surprised.


    "She is a true beauty, and I guess she''s your girlfriend, am I right? You sly boy." Yi Xiang saw through him. Ye Futian did not know how he could guess so accurately.


    "You are doing the exact same thing your professor did in the past. So, just to be kind, mind your manners with others, especially when you are outside the academy. I don''t want you to be the next Hua Fengliu, and do not jeopardize the future of my disciple." Yi Xiang left after he finished. Ye Futian finally realized that he told him all that just to protect Yu Sheng. He turned around, then looked at Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan. Somehow, he suddenly felt sad.


    However, Yi Xiang''s eyebrows knitted, as if he was really preoccupied. The visit from the School of Emperor Star and the School of Treasury Star made him feel like something unusual was going to happen. Since Prime Minister Hua gained power, the School of Emperor Star was becoming more and more greedy over the controlling position of Donghai Academy. The peace of this academy would be broken soon.


    ...��


    Several days later, students in the School of Emperor Star were spreading the word that Hua Jieyu became Mu Yunxuan''s girlfriend. The news was a serious sensation. As the number one beauty of this academy, Hua Jieyu naturally attracted the attention of many boys there. They could not believe that she was someone else''s girlfriend. Even though it was Mu Yunxuan, the genius of the School of Emperor Star, the boys still felt hurt.


    Ye Futian also heard the word, and became even more confused. What was Mu Yunxuan trying to do, and why was the School of Emperor Star trying so hard to circulate this rumor?


    Even though he did not take the news seriously, as time went by, the rumors spread further, and he started to feel so upset that even Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan could clearly feel it.


    Hua Jieyu also heard. When Shu Yuyan went back that day, she told Hua Jieyu exactly how Mu Yunxuan tried to agitate Ye Futian. To avoid any possible controversy about her relationship with Ye Futian, she did not say a word to stop the rumor. She was worried that after the Nandou family found out they were together, Ye Futian would be in trouble.


    However, as the rumors became worse, she finally decided to do something. She went to find Mu Yunxuan, but this boy had disappeared from campus. She tried to leave the School of Emperor Star to find Ye Futian and explain, but she found herself being stalked when she was not in the room. She felt as if someone was plotting against her.


    In her dorm, Hua Jieyu was standing in front of the window, overlooking the entire campus. She asked, "Yuyan, will he misunderstand me?"


    "If he really knows you, he will not," Shu Yuyan said.


    "Rumors can kill, especially when so many people are spreading them. It almost sounds like the truth. Even if he believes me, as far as I know, his personality will make him seriously depressed. Plus, I cannot go to him and explain." Hua Jieyu sighed. "I truly don''t want him to get hurt."


    "The School of Emperor Star is obviously spreading the rumor intentionally. I think they are already suspicious about your relationship, so we cannot explain anything now. Otherwise, you would admit that something is going on between you two," Shu Yuyan told her.


    "That is why I''m conflicted," Hua Jieyu mumbled. Shu Yuyan stood next to her silently. She could clearly feel Hua Jieyu''s agony.


    Meanwhile, in another place, two men were talking. They were the old man from the School of Emperor Star that Ye Futian met in the banquet, and Nandou Ku.


    "Nandou family promised that Hua Jieyu would not be used for any political marriage. However, with the rumors going on, I''m afraid what Xia Fan said should be true," the old man told Nandou Ku.


    "We have not confirmed anything yet. That boy is the disciple of the Qin Devil, so it is natural that he and Hua Jieyu have a good relationship," Nandouku said.


    "Details tell more than words. I think this princess of your family is going to replay history, especially since the boy in this story is the disciple of the Qin Devil. How ironic," the old man jeered.


    "I will inform my family to take care of this. Besides, Jieyu is still young. Even if there is really something going on between those two, they will forget about it shortly," Nandou Ku said.


    "Then tell your family to mind their own business, and do not let history repeat itself. Ye Futian is now cultivating with Yi Xiang. Even though only few people know the truth of that fight, Yi Xiang might be one of them. He knows so many secrets about the School of Emperor Star. It would be intolerable if the geniuses from Donghai Academy actually go against our school in the future. You better take care of it." He left right after he finished talking, looking obviously pissed off.


    Nandou Ku, however, felt nervous. What was happening now truly resembled the pat so much. Previously, Nandou family had noticed that something was going on, but had been hesitant to take action. They finally made a huge mistake, which they could never compensate for.

 65 Don’t Mess with Women

    Chapter 65: Don��t Mess with Women


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Recently, Ye Futian had been in a consistently bad mood. He cultivated his martial arts skills like crazy, and was now able to withstand the matrix in the training room for longer periods of time. Thus, breaking past the four-starred Glory Plane in martial arts. However, he had yet to break through for sorcery. To cultivate Spiritual Energy, a sorcerer needs a tranquil mind. However, his mind was anything but tranquil at that time.


    Rumors were still flooding Donghai Academy as usual. On this day, a group of people mounted on different creatures stepped into the academy. This caused a large ruckus on campus. The leader of the group was actually a young woman, dressed in a long red dress, the color of fire. She stood on a majestic creature, the same color as her dress. She was a blooming beauty, unparalleled by anybody else. Just standing there, she looked elegant, her eyes bright and piercing.


    "I heard Donghai Academy is the best place for cultivation in all of the East Sea Prefecture. There should be a lot of students here on the same level as me, so I came to check it out," said the young woman. Her tone was menacing as she looked around at the students of Donghai Academy.


    After that, her group continued to travel deeper into the academy. More and more people gathered and wondered who these people might be. How come the authorities of the academy hadn''t come out to stop them?


    In a flash, the young woman hopped off the creature she was riding on. As she stood in the crowd, she asked in a cold demeanor, "Is there no one at Donghai Academy?"


    "What level are you at?" asked a student.


    "Five-starred Glory Plane," replied the young woman.


    "I''ll oblige," said a young man about 17. He looked at the young woman and introduced himself, "Li Yan, five-starred Glory Plane Sorcerer. Please enlighten me." As he finished speaking, a large force of Metal Spiritual Qi was released. A bright, big, golden bird took shape and came for the girl like a flash of lightning.


    Around the girl, Fire Spiritual Qi gathered crazily. It also formed a big bird, but this was a mystical phoenix. It carried an outrageous burst of flame, and collided with the big golden bird, causing the golden bird to disappear into the flames. The phoenix did not stop there.


    The look on Li Yan''s face changed as he stepped back. He saw the phoenix head straight for him. He shut his eyes tight, and felt the heat of the flames radiate onto his body. But then, the phoenix stopped. It stood right in front of Li Yan, and the Fire Spiritual Qi which had formed the phoenix disappeared.


    "Too weak," said the young woman. "Is this what the best of the East Sea Prefecture has got?"


    The students of Donghai Academy felt humiliated. Another person stepped up, but the results were about the same��one attack from her and her opponent was defeated.


    Students continued to step forward, but it always ended in the same way.


    "Mu Yunqing, five-starred Glory Plane, Mandate Sorcerer." Mu Yunqing of the School of the Flirting Star stepped out. He released his Natal spirit, a golden eagle. He leveled up planes a short while ago and was now more powerful. Observing the young woman''s beautiful face and her outstanding gifts, Mu Yunqing could not help but fantasize.


    The wind enveloped him, and Mu Yunqing turned into a creature. With extreme speed, he charged at the young woman. When his sorcery kicked in, a bright golden light was emitted from his body, and dissolved the wild flames. He chuckled to himself with new-found confidence. However, the young woman moved her body and also became enveloped in a gust of wind. Her movements were elegant, but also extremely fast, faster than Mu Yunqing. In a split second, the distance between the two drew closer. Bystanders could only see a fire red blur flash by. A loud noise sounded, and Mu Yunqing flew through the air, and landed on the floor.


    The young woman''s feet met the ground once again. The already astounding young woman seemed so carefree. She had a pair of fire red wings on her back. Even her fists were the color of fire. After touching ground, the tinge of red disappeared.


    "What a weak Mandate Sorcerer," said the young woman. Mu Yunqing looked pale as he crawled up off the ground. He realized the young woman did not even bother to spare him a glance. His heart cooled. After Ye Futian entered Donghai Academy, this was already his third consecutive loss.


    When word spread that there was a battle going on, more and more people arrived to watch. While wondering about her identity, people were also shocked at her power.


    Students of the seven schools were also participating in the battle now, but they were all cultivators of the five-starred Glory Plane. They did not want to bully the beautiful girl as they were cultivators of higher levels, but slowly they realized that people on the same level as the young woman were all losing. It seemed like no one was able to even bring out her full potential.


    That was until a very well-known young man from the School of the Ruinous Star made his move. This time, the young woman took it seriously. A shield of flames surrounded her, and a Flame Phoenix appeared. It was her Life Spirit. At this moment, the young woman seemed even more impressive. Mandate Sorcerer with a Flame Phoenix Spirit. A Wind and Fire bi-elemental cultivator in both martial arts and sorcery.


    "She''s so beautiful." Someone couldn''t help but stare in awe. The only girl that would be able to compete with her was Hua Jieyu of the School of the Emperor Star. Hua Jieyu was also extremely gifted. But she was introverted and kept a low profile. She might not be willing to fight. Plus, there were a lot of rumors revolving around her. She seemed to be in love.


    The young cultivator of the Ruinous Star school was also defeated. After that, more people took up the young woman''s challenge, but none of them were victorious. Regardless of natural talent, sorcery or battle tactics, she was very strong.


    "A Flame Phoenix Spirit. I wonder who is stronger, the Flame Phoenix Spirit or Ye Futian''s Roc Spirit," someone whispered in the crowd. The phoenix and the roc were both mystical birds. The former was Wind and Fire bi-elemental, the latter was Wing and Metal bi-elemental.


    Something sparked in the young woman''s eyes. She found the person whispering in the crowd and asked, "There''s someone at Donghai Academy who possesses a Roc Spirit?"


    That person was shocked. The young woman''s ears were so sharp that she had overheard them whisper?


    "Yeah, a genius from the School of the Finance Star, Ye Futian."


    "How are his abilities?" the young woman continued questioning.


    "A while ago, he was in the three-starred Glory Plane. I don''t know about now, but his combat abilities are very strong. He can even defeat a five-starred Glory Plane cultivator," the person explained. Since Ye Futian was able to battle with Zhou Mu, he had to be very capable.


    "He level is too low, but I want to see the Roc Spirit. Go get him from the School of the Finance Star!" she ordered her people. The people behind her nodded and immediately set off to do her bidding.


    This scene surprised a lot of people. She was so bossy and arrogant. She was just going to send her people to the Finance Star school and grab Ye Futian? What they did not know was that they really managed to find Ye Futian at the school, and what''s more, the person who found him was Headmaster Yi Xiang.


    "Someone wants to challenge me?" Ye Futian was in a foul mood to begin with. After a sigh, he said, "Not interested."


    Yi Xiang glared at him, "Even if you''re not interested you must go. Do you really think that I would come to you personally if any ordinary person challenged you?"


    Ye Futian froze, then asked, "Who challenged me?"


    "Go see for yourself," said Yi Xiang. With no way out, Ye Futian answered, "Fine."


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Yi Qingxuan followed Yi Xiang as he walked to the place where the young woman was waiting. When they arrived, the area was already packed with people. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Yi Qingxuan pushed through the crowd and were finally able to see the young woman in red. She was currently fighting someone. The Flame Phoenix behind her was very eye-catching. Very quickly, she defeated her opponent.


    "Ye Futian." When the people noticed Ye Futian, they began whispering amongst themselves. The young woman turned her attention to him.


    "Your Life Spirit is a roc?" she asked him. Ye Futian looked at her strangely and simply said, "A woman."


    The young woman frowned and asked, "What do you mean by that?"


    "I don''t want to hit a woman," Ye Futian said and turned to leave. What happened last time with the sword-wielding young lady had traumatized him.


    "Hold it!" she yelled. "Did I say you could leave?"


    Ye Futian stood frozen in place. This young woman seemed very arrogant, and it was Yi Xiang who told him to come. What was this young woman''s identity?


    He turned to speak with her again. "Anything is fair game in combat. You have such a pretty face, I wouldn''t want to accidentally hurt you. Let''s not fight."


    The crowd was dripping in cold sweat by now. Ye Futian would always be Ye Futian��arrogant.


    "Nonsense!" The young woman laughed. "Hurt me? Can you even manage?"


    "Uh..." Ye Futian was speechless. Did all females talk like this? He could not take it anymore.


    "Yu Sheng!" shouted Ye Futian. After a short while, he realized that no one was answering to him. When he turned around, he saw Yu Sheng chatting with Yi Qingxuan.


    Ye Futian had no words. "Best friends," he muttered under his breath. He could only count on himself now. He walked forward and saw the young woman smiling at him in a cold demeanor.


    "Release your Life Spirit, or else you won''t get a chance to later on," she said arrogantly.


    Ye Futian let out a sigh and released the bright Roc Spirit. She also released her Flame Phoenix Spirit. The bright light emitted from both of the Life Spirits was blinding. Would Ye Futian be able to win against this insanely gifted young woman?


    BOOM! A force of fire sorcery gathered and formed a fire phoenix, charging at Ye Futian.


    A golden light surrounded Ye Futian, an endless amount of Metal Spiritual Qi gathered on his wings. His wings joined together and created a shield in front of Ye Futian''s body, allowing the fire phoenix to attack as it pleased.


    WHOOSH! His wings opened abruptly, and the wild flames dissipated. In the blink of an eye, Ye Futian was gone, leaving a flash of lightning behind. The young woman could see a blurred figure rushing towards her. The Flame Phoenix and the Golden Roc kept getting closer to one another.


    Both Ye Futian and the young woman were lifted into the sky and brought closer together. The young woman threw a fiery punch accompanied by what sounded like the cry of a phoenix. Ye Futian also reached out his palm, accompanied by a dragon''s roar.


    In the next moment, the people watched as the two of them battled in the sky. Cries and roars filled the skies, the Fire and Metal Spiritual Qi flowed wildly.


    BOOM! BOOM! Two loud noises sounded. Then the people saw the young woman fall from the sky and land harshly on the ground. Her guards ran to her side.


    A lean and handsome middle-aged man also descended from the sky. After this person''s appearance, many of the authoritative figures of Donghai Academy stepped forward. Even Yi Xiang was there. All of them bowed to this man.


    "Greetings, Minister Zuo," all of them greeted the man. The students of Donghai Academy looked confused. Minister Zuo?


    At this moment, the young woman got up from the ground with a hand on her chest. This immediately attracted everyone''s attention. All they saw was the young woman looking up at the sky where Ye Futian was floating and screamed, "You shameless jerk!"


    "I..." Ye Futian was completely speechless. How did things turn out like this again?

 66 Kiss Me

    Chapter 66: Kiss Me


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was hurt. Last time he beat a girl, he was insulted for not being a man. Now, he was being a shameless jerk? Why couldn''t they just challenge normally?


    Beside Yu Sheng, Yi Qingxuan thought of what happened last time and snorted. Glancing at where the girl''s hand was and then looking at Ye Futian, she said, "You''ve crossed the line."


    "I said anything is fair in combat and didn''t want to fight but you insisted," Ye Futian explained logically.


    The girl glared at him. Obviously, it was useless to talk about logic with women.


    "Professor, I want him," the girl said to the scholarly middle-aged man.


    "Huh?" Ye Futian was confused. He looked at the girl strangely and said, "I have a girlfriend."


    The girl was confused as well. Then understanding what Ye Futian meant, her expression changed drastically. "You��are so shameless."


    Minister Zuo, referred to as "Professor" by the girl cleared his throat. "You used the wrong words."


    The girl froze. Thinking back to how she said "I want him," she realized it really was easy to misunderstand but she didn''t care. She whined, "Professor, you know what I mean."


    "Stubborn." Minister Zuo gave her a look, then turned back to Ye Futian. "What''s your name?"


    "Minister, I am Ye Futian," he bowed and said. "Minister, your disciple challenged me."


    "I know." Minister Zuo nodded. "Very good, your spells and strength are both extremely strong. You didn''t even use battle techniques. She isn''t at your level."


    "How can you say that?" The girl looked at her professor, wounded.


    "It''s the truth," Minister Zuo said. "He''s in a lower plane than you. Now you know there are many talented people out there. This is just one school in East Sea Prefecture. Don''t be so arrogant in the future."


    At this time, Xia Fan walked out of the crowd to Minister Zuo''s side. He looked at Ye Futian coldly and murmured something into the Minister''s ears.


    Minister Zuo was taken aback and glanced at Ye Futian in shock.


    Ye Futian was suspicious. Xia Fan''s eyes were cold and he was probably plotting against him.


    "Ye Futian, come here," Minister Zuo said. The boy nodded and walked over.


    "I came this time about Qingzhou City''s relics," Minister Zuo said to him. "I heard from Xia Fan that someone in Donghai Academy had come out of it alive so I wanted to take a look. I didn''t expect to run into you. Are you willing to come with me? Don''t worry, I will do everything to protect your safety."


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. It was about Emperor Ye Qing''s relics again. Qingzhou City was subordinate to the East Sea Prefecture. Since the appearance of Emperor Ye Qing''s relics was such big news, the East Sea Prefecture obviously had to report to the Nandou Nation. It was natural for them to send someone over too. However, if Xia Fan did this voluntarily, he probably wanted to kill Ye Futian. After all, he knew what Mount Tianyao had. But Xia Fan''s plan would most likely fail. How would the Snow Ape treat him in Mount Tianyao?


    "Minister, a demon lord protects Emperor Ye Qing''s statue on Mount Tianyao. It is really powerful. Even if you are skilled, it would still be dangerous. It''s pure luck that I survived," Ye Futian warned.


    "I understand but the emperor commanded this. I have to go take a look." Minister Zuo nodded. "I''ve already sent someone to scope out the path. When he returns, we will leave. I will have you stay with me."


    Ye Futian pretended to be uncomfortable. Then he very unwillingly nodded. "If there''s any danger, please remember to retreat."


    "Don''t worry." Minister Zuo patted Ye Futian''s shoulder. Ye Futian sighed inwardly. He didn''t expect to return to Qingzhou City so soon. He could only go ask the Snow Ape if she would come out or not.


    "What are you talking about?" the girl came up and asked.


    "I was convincing him to accept your request. He accepted now," Minister Zuo said.


    The girl smirked and looked at Ye Futian proudly. "Good, you know your place. You''re mine now."


    Ye Futian was upset. Looking at her, he said, "You''re pretty but I really do have a girlfriend, and she''s prettier than you."


    "Jerk." The girl was pissed.


    The Minister said, "Okay, princess, we should go." Then he said to the people of Donghai Academy, "Thank you for your time."


    "You''re welcome, Minister. Won''t you stay a few more days?" the big chiefs tried to keep him longer.


    "No, I''m living in the Xia House." Minister Zuo shook his head. He was the minister of Nandou Nation and the East Sea Prefecture was under him. He naturally lived at the Xia House.


    "I will come get you when we leave," he said to Ye Futian. Then he led the people away. While leaving, the girl glared at Ye Futian. The boy shrugged helplessly. Was she trying to scare him? Well, the tides would turn at Mount Tianyao.


    After Minister Zuo left, many people of Donghai Academy glanced at Ye Futian. This guy was such a pervert. Multiple disciples had failed against the girl but he squashed her so quickly and was praised by the Minister. The big chiefs stared at Ye Futian deeply. Would he be favored by Minister Zuo?


    The crowd scattered gradually. Yi Qingxuan walked over and smiled at him. "You''re doomed. People will remember you now."


    "It''s hard to have such good looks," Ye Futian sighed.


    Qingxuan glared at him and said, "You clearly hit somewhere you shouldn''t have. You crossed the line."


    "It''s a battle. How would I know?" Ye Futian said innocently.


    "Who knows if you did that on purpose or not," Yi Qingxuan teased with a smile.


    "You know too much," Yu Sheng said from the side.


    Ye Futian stared at them and sighed. "Yu Sheng, you''ve changed."


    "Learned from you," Yu Sheng said. Ye Futian could only heave a sigh.


    "Let''s go," Yi Xiang called.


    Ye Futian ran up and said, "Headmaster, I remember you mentioned before that Minister Hua and Minister Zuo are rivals. Is it this Minister Zuo?"


    "Yes," Yi Xiang nodded. "Now you know why I couldn''t reject him."


    "Aren''t you unethical to sell me out like this?" Ye Futian was frustrated. "What if something happens to me?"


    "You aren''t my disciple. You have nothing to do with me." Yi Xiang glanced at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian blinked, speechless.


    "You said that you have a girlfriend. Is it Hua Jieyu?" Yi Xiang asked.


    "How did you know?" Ye Futian looked at him.


    "Huh, you think you''re the only smart one? The School of Emperor Star aren''t idiots either. Mu Yunxuan and Hua Jieyu''s rumors were to test you two. They probably guessed your relationship already," Yi Xiang said.


    "So what?" Ye Futian said nonchalantly. He had been annoyed these days and he was thinking about when to announce this news. The rumors pissed him off.


    "You seem easy and free. Where do you get the confidence?" Yi Xiang asked.


    "I have you," Ye Futian looked up and said.


    Yi Xiang glanced at him. He could not refute it. "Minister Zuo has power and His Majesty trusts him greatly. If you can become acquainted with him, the Nandou family might consider you."


    Ye Futian was frustrated. Emperor Ye Qing and his godfather both said that he would become an emperor but now he needed Nandou to consider him? What a tragedy.


    "I''ll take you to the School of the Emperor Star as compensation," Yi Xiang suddenly said.


    Ye Futian was shocked. He quickly smiled. "You''re the best."


    "Get out." Yi Xiang rolled his eyes. "I''m taking you to see the senior of the School, your grandmaster, not your girlfriend."


    "I know." Ye Futian''s expression was understanding. Yi Xiang did not want to talk to him anymore.


    ...��


    The next day, Yi Xiang took Ye Futian to meet a senior of the School of the Emperor Star. Yi Xiang was the headmaster of the School of the Finance Star. He was equal status to the headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star so he could not be stopped. Yi Xiang and Ye Futian entered and walked toward a pavilion.


    Inside the School, Hua Jieyu heard from Shu Yuyan about what happened yesterday. She looked wronged and said, "He really agreed, that jerk, jerk��"


    "He probably agreed because of Minister Zuo. He couldn''t reject him," Shu Yuyan said softly.


    "Is she pretty?" Hua Jieyu asked.


    "Yes." Shu Yuyan nodded. "But not as pretty as you."


    "That guy likes pretty girls. He must''ve done it on purpose." Hearing that the girl was pretty, Hua Jieyu felt even worse. She said quietly, "There are so many rumors about me but I didn''t go see him. Did he get angry and fall for someone else?"


    "Stop thinking nonsense." Shu Yuyan looked at Hua Jieyu and sighed inwardly. Even goddesses could panic like this. She was in too deep.


    "You don''t know him. If he promised to leave with that girl, she definitely likes him. He''s so lustful that he won''t be able to resist her charms." Hua Jieyu was worried.


    "Is he that charismatic?" Shu Yuyan was speechless but Hua Jieyu nodded seriously.


    "Is Elder Qin here?" A voice traveled over. Hua Jieyu and Shu Yuyan looked up and saw two figures standing outside the yard.


    The speaker was Yi Xiang. Hua Jieyu''s eyes landed on the handsome youth behind Yi Xiang. Her eyes focused there and saw the boy blink at her.


    "Greeting, Headmaster Yi. Grandmaster is here," Hua Jieyu said.


    Shu Yuyan also bowed. She smiled at Hua Jieyu and left.


    "I am here to see Elder Qin," Yi Xiang said. Hua Jieyu nodded and led the way. Ye Futian followed.


    "Stop pretending. Go say what you want to say and then come find me," Yi Xiang said. He then walked away. Ye Futian looked at his back, realizing the man was pretty loving.


    "Why are you looking at me like that?" Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu with a smile. He saw that her eyes were slightly red. Jieyu dragged Ye Futian into a room.


    Closing the door, Hua Jieyu studied him. "You went to the Luo palace?"


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Don''t believe the rumors. I have nothing to do with Mu Yunxuan," Hua Jieyu said, feeling wronged.


    "I know." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    Hua Jieyu stepped forward. She extended her slim arms and lightly hugged Ye Futian. She raised her head. Ye Futian looked at the shocking beauty before him. Those eyes were filled with emotions. He could faintly see a teardrop in the glittering eyes. She was so beautiful he lost his breath.


    "Kiss me!" a dreamy voice said, almost melting Ye Futian''s heart!

 67 Mu Yunxuan is Not Worthy

    Chapter 67: Mu Yunxuan is Not Worthy


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked down at Hua Jieyu''s delicate features, especially her luscious red lips. His heart was beating like crazy. To reciprocate her gesture, he reached out his arms around her waist. Then, he lowered his lips until they met hers. They were both a little awkward at this. Some time later, they separated.


    Hua Jieyu bit her lip, her crystal-clear eyes were enchanting. "I''m yours now, so you have to take responsibility for me," Hua Jieyu said to Ye Futian as she gazed into his eyes.


    "Uh..." Ye Futian blinked.


    "What do you mean by that? Are you trying to refuse?" she glared at him.


    Ye Futian''s heart skipped a beat looking at her angry face. He said, "Since you''re mine, then let''s have another go at it." After he finished his words, he pulled Hua Jieyu close and they were immersed in each other once again. Hua Jieyu''s eyes closed, her face redder than before, but she felt warm in her heart. This time as well, they took a while to separate from each other.


    Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian with a bit of resentment. Suddenly, she asked, "Can you not go?"


    "Not go?" Ye Futian was confused.


    "That girl from yesterday," said Hua Jieyu. Ye Futian froze for a moment, then chuckled as he looked at his girlfriend. She was jealous.


    "Minister Zuo''s orders. I can''t reject," he said.


    "Then you have to promise not to fall for her, even if she tries to seduce you," Hua Jieyu told him. Ye Futian was speechless. He never knew women could be so jealous. But it warmed his heart.


    "She looks nowhere as good as good as my Fox. Why would I fall for her?" he asked.


    Hua Jieyu felt proud, but continued to say, "Even if she did look better than me you can''t fall for her!"


    "Alright, I only like you," Ye Futian nodded.


    Only then did Hua Jieyu let out a satisfied smile. Her smile was so bright and beautiful. Ye Futian fell for her all over again. After being seduced today, he has lost all his will-power against her.


    "I know you''re always thinking of father, but can''t you save revenge for after you become stronger and more powerful? I don''t want to see you in danger," she said.


    "I''m fine now, aren''t I?" Ye Futian knew she was talking about what happened at the Luo Palace.


    "I think they know about our relationship," Hua Jieyu sounded very down. She was worried that they would try to harm Ye Futian.


    "They were going to find out sooner or later, but how dare they create all those false rumors. I just want to tell the whole world that you''re mine," said Ye Futian.


    "Gloater." Hua Jieyu stared charmingly at Ye Futian. "Will you marry me in the future?"


    "Of course! I already said, you belong to me," answered Ye Futian.


    "Then I''ll wait for you." Hua Jieyu smiled gently and said, "Promise that you''ll never give up no matter how hard it gets."


    "I promise." He nodded. "Why don''t we do want Master and Mistress did? Let''s jump the gun and do what can''t be undone."


    Hua Jieyu''s face paled then reddened. She stared at Ye Futian timidly, and laughed lightly. "You wish."


    "With you acting like this, it''s hard to resist." Ye Futian sighed. The two of them were still in a tight embrace. Hua Jieyu blinked a couple of times then let go. "You got lucky today. Headmaster Yi Xiang is still waiting for you. Let''s go meet the grandmaster."


    "Okay." Ye Futian looked at the captivating young woman in front of his eyes and thought to himself, There''s tons of time in the future.


    The couple stepped out of the room and were walking shoulder to shoulder when Hua Jieyu warned him again. "Don''t forget, no flirting with other girls!"


    "I got it," replied Ye Futian. How worried was she?


    "And also, be careful for your safety. If something happens to you, I''m marrying someone else. You have to think about this carefully," she said.


    "How can you do this to me?" Ye Futian was speechless. He never thought she would threaten him like this.


    "Why can''t I?" Hua Jieyu looked smug. She then said, "This way, you''ll know to cherish yourself."


    "I got it, I got it. Before we do the deed that can''t be undone, I won''t let myself die," said Ye Futian. Hua Jieyu reached for his waist and pinched down hard.


    The two of them reached a courtyard. In the courtyard, Yi Xiang was chatting with an elderly man. The elder had a full head of white hair, which made him look very old, but while he chatted with Yi Xiang, one could tell from his smile and his eyes that he was kind.


    Ye Futian approached the elder and bowed. "Greetings, Grandmaster."


    The elderly man looked up at Ye Futian, and said in a friendly tone, "Hua Jieyu has told me about you. Here, come sit."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and sat down next to the elderly man.


    "Hua Jieyu told me that she didn''t manage to learn any of her father''s guqin skills because they were all passed down to you. Is that true?" the elder asked Ye Futian.


    "Yes. Master has taught me many musical spells," said Ye Futian.


    "Come and play a random song for me," said the elder. Next to him was a guqin.


    Ye Futian walked over to sit down behind the guqin, and the aura around him changed as soon as he laid his fingers on the instrument. The peaceful sounds of the guqin flooded the courtyard. It was quiet and peaceful, seemingly able to calm one''s heart. There were no other sounds in the courtyard aside from the guqin. The mood that it set up enabled all worries to be tossed to the back of one''s mind.


    Ye Futian finished the piece and the courtyard remained quiet. The elder gave Ye Futian a smile as he reminisced about the past. The way he looked at Ye Futian was even friendlier than before.


    "Hua Jieyu told me that it hasn''t even been a full year since you learned to play the guqin from Hua Fengliu. You are even more gifted than he was. However, Yi Xiang says that your Life Spirit is a Golden Roc, but at the Luo Palace you used musical sorcery. Could it be that the Spirit element is hidden within this Life Spirit?"


    Ye Futian looked at Yi Xiang and Hua Jieyu. Yi Xiang seemed to understand what Ye Futian''s gaze meant, and said, "Elder Qin sacrificed a lot for your master in the past. He spent all his time exploring the way of the guqin and is a true master of the guqin. He gave everything he had to teach your master, but in the end..." Yi Xiang did not continue but Ye Futian understood.


    "Grandmaster is not like the other people in the School of the Emperor Star," said Hua Jieyu.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly. Looking into the elder''s kind eyes, a bright light radiated from Ye Futian''s body, and a guqin appeared in the air behind him, then slowly disappeared.


    "Twin spirits," said Yi Xiang. He shuddered. When he heard that Ye Futian had crashed the celebration at the Luo Palace and fought with musical sorcery, he knew immediately that Ye Futian had an extraordinary gift. He seemed to be good at everything, regardless it be Spirit Elemental or martial arts and sorcery, but seeing the twin spirits, he still could not help but feel shocked.


    "Good, very good! Hua Fengliu picked a good disciple." The elder''s voice deepened and he said, "I can''t believe that at my old age, just before I die, I am able to pass down the torch. Yi Xiang, I would like to keep Ye Futian here with me for a few days. You wouldn''t mind, right?"


    "Not at all," answered Yi Xiang. He turned to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, "I''m afraid if I leave alone, the people of the School of the Emperor Star will take notice. They''re already suspicious of your relationship. This will only strengthen their suspicions."


    "If you guessed it, then they probably have as well. They''re not stupid. They even spread false rumors to test us. They''re going to find out anyway, so just let it be." Ye Futian looked to Hua Jieyu and told her, "One day, I''ll make sure all of Donghai Academy knows."


    "If you''re willing to take the risk, then I don''t have anything to say. Elder Qin, I am just disturbing you guys," said Yi Xiang.


    Ye Futian watched as he left and said, "Headmaster Yi knew that I specialized in musical sorcery and purposely brought me here to you, Grandmaster."


    "Yi Xiang is honest and loyal, unlike the School of the Emperor Star. They''ve changed." The elder shook his head and said to Hua Jieyu, "Child, go bring me all my music score books."


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu nodded and left for a little while. When she returned, she had an armful of score books.


    "Give them all to Ye Futian, so he can familiarize himself with them," said the elder. Hua Jieyu nodded again and handed the books over to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked really serious when he took over the books. He knew what this meant. Hua Fengliu''s powers had been rid of. Grandmaster was now handing down everything he was supposed to hand down to Hua Fengliu to him instead.


    "You stay here and learn from Grandmaster, I''m leaving first," said Hua Jieyu. Ye Futian lightly nodded and began to look through the score books.


    Hua Jieyu returned to her own dorm, and not long after, the people of the Emperor Star school came for her. An elder asked her, "Headmaster Yi Xiang left alone, did Ye Futian stay here with you?"


    "Grandmaster wanted him to stay and learn to play the guqin. If you guys need anything, go ask Grandmaster," said Hua Jieyu coldly. The people from the school shared a look and headed to Elder Qin''s residence.


    Hua Jieyu watched as they left, her expression peaceful as ever. Now that the secret was out, she felt so calm. It was about time to get this thing straightened out. Walking to the edge of the residence, a gust of wind enveloped her, carrying her down from the Emperor Star school.


    At Donghai Academy, there were tons of students walking around the campus. Right at this moment, someone looked up at the sky and shouted, "Hua Jieyu!"


    Gradually, more people began to look up. They saw Hua Jieyu being carried through the sky by a force of Spiritual Qi, like a goddess strolling in the air.


    "So beautiful. Not even the girl with Minister Zuo can compare to her. Hua Jieyu really is Donghai Academy''s number one beauty," said one of the students. Many hearts skipped a beat as they looked at the goddess in the sky. They could only watch her from afar because she was already dating someone. Even goddesses have people they like.


    Mu Yunxuan. That name made many people envious, and even jealous.


    Hua Jieyu stopped and descended from the skies. When she saw that she had the attention of a good amount of people, she began to speak, "Recently, there have been some rumors about me being spread around Donghai Academy."


    Everyone looked at her. There seemed to be something different about Hua Jieyu.


    "They are untrue," she said calmly. This stirred up some feelings instantly. For a while now, the rumors about Hua Jieyu dating Mu Yunxuan spread to every corner of the academy. Now, Hua Jieyu had actually spoken up. The rumors were false. Hua Jieyu came all the way down from the School of the Emperor Star just to set things straight.


    Saying all she had to say, she turned to leave.


    "So, does this mean you don''t have anyone you like?" someone gathered the courage to yell out at Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu slowed down. In her mind, a certain young man appeared, which brought a smile to her face. "I do have someone I like."


    Hua Jieyu''s smile had many people in a daze. But at the same time, their hopes and dreams were destroyed once again. Hua Jieyu already had someone she liked. It''s just that it was the rumored Mu Yunxuan.


    "Who is he? Is he better than Mu Yunxuan?" someone asked.


    Hua Jieyu thought of the spectacular young man again and smiled even brighter. "Mu Yunxuan is not worthy to be compared to him." After that, she was up in the skies again, dancing through the clouds like a goddess.


    Everyone was shocked, frozen in place. Along with hearing Hua Jieyu''s words, they were able to hear the sound of their hearts break.

 68 Murderous

    Chapter 68: Murderous


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hua Jieyu''s appearance instantly created a gust of wind in Donghai Academy. Rumors about her relationship with Mu Yunxuan had abounded recently. They even said that Mu Yunxuan had said it himself, and no one from the School of the Emperor Star refuted it so everyone thought it was real.But today, this world-class beauty personally walked from the School of the Emperor Star to announce to everyone in Donghai Academy that this wasn''t real. She had someone she liked but it wasn''t Mu Yunxuan. Mu Yunxuan couldn''t be compared to the person she liked.


    You can imagine the uproar to Hua Jieyu''s words, the most beautiful girl of Donghai Academy. It was like a slap to Mu Yunxuan, the talent of the School of the Emperor Star. There was no dignity left for him. Perhaps Hua Jieyu really was mad because these rumors could hurt the person she truly liked.


    The people of Donghai Academy could imagine Mu Yunxuan''s feelings now. But compared to that, they were more curious about the one Hua Jieyu liked.


    Who was the one that could make Hua Jieyu so beautiful when talking about him? Who was the one that Mu Yunxuan wasn''t even good enough to be compared to? Did someone like this really exist in Donghai Academy? After all, Mu Yunxuan was the genius prodigy of the School of the Emperor Star.


    At that moment, the one Hua Jieyu spoke of was practicing his guqin in the School. He was immersed in it from day to night. His grandmaster was definitely a master of the guqin arts. His attainment was at the peak. Even Hua Fengliu couldn''t be compared to him. He could use music notes to cast spells from other schools, resonating musical spells with others. It could create even more explosive power and was clearly deeper than what he had taught Hua Fengliu. The man hadn''t learned these.


    The night sky was as dark as ink. Under the bright moon, the School of the Emperor Star looked even more majestic. Music streamed from a pavilion. The youth sat on a stone bench and played the qin. A beautiful girl sat beside him, listening to the melody. Under the moonlit sky, this scene was so beautiful and peaceful.


    After a while, the music came to a stop. The youth gazed at the girl and said gently, "Fox, time to rest."


    "No, I want to stay here with you." Hua Jieyu''s eyes were as gentle as water. She smiled and shook her head.


    "Then I''ll go rest with you," Ye Futian said.


    "No way." Hua Jieyu smiled. What was this bad guy thinking now?


    "Huh, you''re still not my girl," Ye Futian said, hurt.


    "That trick doesn''t work." Hua Jieyu smiled. He always pretended to be pitiful.


    Despite her words, she leaned against Ye Futian and slowly lied down into his lap. The arrogant and fairy-like girl at the Donghai Academy during the day had now become a girl in love. She was so gentle.


    "It seems to work." Ye Futian looked at the pretty girl in his lap. He caressed her hair and dipped his head. He pecked her forehead. His eyes were filled with softness. Hua Jieyu smiled sweetly. With her head on Ye Futian''s thighs, she murmured, "Don''t mess around. Keep practicing and I''ll rest here."


    Ye Futian gave Hua Jieyu puppy eyes. "Fox, do you think I can practice with you here?"


    "I don''t care. Let me sleep for a bit." Hua Jieyu looked smug as she closed her eyes.


    "Oh, you sly fox." Ye Futian felt tragic but he started practicing again.


    If anyone in Donghai Academy knew that Ye Futian felt sad now, they''d probably slap him to death.


    The music was peaceful and Hua Jieyu actually fell asleep quickly. Ye Futian looked down at the girl. Her eyelashes were long and pretty. A smile still hung on her face as she slept. It was sweet and beautiful. Seeing the sleeping beauty, Ye Futian smiled too. He murmured, "Fox, you suck." Then he raised his head and kept playing.


    The music continued from night to day. During the night, Ye Futian felt his energy changing. A slight smile appeared on his face. He had been frustrated all these days due to the rumors but last night, he had felt more peaceful than ever before. With the music notes, he had a mental breakthrough without realizing. This way, he was at the Four-star Glory Plane for both martial arts and sorcery.


    A cough broke the early morning peace. Ye Futian saw the old man walk over. He smiled trembled. Hua Jieyu''s eyes opened and she got up, pink tinging her cheeks.


    "Grandmaster," Hua Jieyu called with her head lowered. There was some embarrassment in her voice.


    "Must be nice to be young." The old man smiled at the two before him. They were like a perfect pair. He could feel the pure feelings just seeing them. "I hope you will be in love like this forever." He gave his blessing with a smile.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu exchanged glances. Both of them had smiling eyes.


    "Grandmaster, we will," Ye Futian said.


    "You can''t slack on your cultivation though," the elder said. Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He continued practicing. Hua Jieyu stayed there and cultivated too.


    "Han Mo is here to greet his senior." A voice came from outside.


    The elder''s smile faded. He said indifferently, "Come in." As soon as he finished, a few figures walked in. The first was the Emperor Star elder Ye Futian had seen before.


    "How have you been?" Han Mo asked with a smile.


    "Can I help you?" Elder Qin asked.


    "There is nothing much but I heard that Ye Futian was practicing here, so I came to take a look," Han Mo said. His gaze fell on Ye Futian. "I told you last time that you can come to the School of the Emperor Star. Why didn''t you tell me after you came?"


    "I came with Headmaster Yi. I am sorry for not notifying you," Ye Futian said politely.


    "It is alright. Since you are practicing with my senior, why don''t you join this school?" Han Mo''s smile remained.


    Ye Futian shook his head wryly. "You are joking again. I have already joined the School of the Finance Star. If I join the Emperor Star, I would be betraying the Finance Star. Do you accept disciples like that?"


    "That is true." The old man nodded and said, "Since you are not joining then, according to the rules, you cannot stay here for long."


    Hearing his words, something flashed through Ye Futian''s eyes. He looked at the man''s smile and Mu Yunxuan behind him. He obviously knew that Han Mo was planning something. The one who reminded him at the Luo palace was obviously not Han Mo.


    "You have problems with the fact that I am keeping him here to practice?" Elder Qin''s muddled eyes grew sharp. His entire aura seemed to change. His robe fluttered and his white hair flew in the wind.


    Han Mo bowed. "Senior, please do not be angry. I was just saying but I will leave now." With that, he really turned to leave. At the same time, he said, "Yunxuan, apologize to Jieyu."


    "Yes." Mu Yunxuan walked up and said to Hua Jieyu, "The rumors affected you negatively. Please do not mind them."


    "Get out," Hua Jieyu uttered, staring at Mu Yunxuan coldly.


    Mu Yunxuan''s face stiffened. His handsome face became embarrassed. It was one thing for Hua Jieyu to declare the rumors unfounded yesterday at Donghai Academy. It did not affect Mu Yunxuan too much. But Hua Jieyu did not spare any dignity for him. She told everyone that he could not even be compared to who she liked. Everyone was discussing him as if he was a clown. And now, Hua Jieyu also told him to get out so mercilessly.


    Seeing Ye Futian beside her, Mu Yunxuan realized that this boy was the one she liked.


    "Yesterday, Jieyu said that I can''t be compared to you. I cannot disturb your master today but in the future, I hope we can have some exchanges," Mu Yunxuan said to Ye Futian, still polite.


    Ye Futian did not know what had happened yesterday but he could guess from Mu Yunxuan''s words. After deciding to stay in this school and Hua Jieyu no longer had to avoid him, she probably personally revealed the truth. Thinking of this, Ye Futian smiled gently at Hua Jieyu. He took her hands and glanced at Mu Yunxuan, giving a strong response to what Mu Yunxuan had said earlier.


    Seeing this, Mu Yunxuan''s expression grew more uncomfortable.


    "Get out," Ye Futian said the same two words as Hua Jieyu. Even though he was told to do so by the School of the Emperor Star, Ye Futian could not tolerate Mu Yunxuan saying he was dating Hua Jieyu.


    Sensing Hua Jieyu''s reliance on him, Ye Futian knew that this event had hurt her. She had become sensitive and weak. He needed to make Mu Yunxuan pay.


    "Sorry for the disturbance." Mu Yunxuan bowed toward Elder Qin and glanced at Ye Futian coldly. His fists clenched loosely. He turned and walked out to catch up with Han Mo.


    Han Mo''s face was dark too. He said coldly, "Nandou brought her here to cultivate but it seems like nothing will come out of it. If that''s the case, what use does she have regardless of her talents?"


    "Professor, that Ye Futian will be troublesome in the future too," Mu Yunxuan said.


    "Him?" Han Mo sneered. "Youths who don''t know how to lie low will die easily. The School of the Finance Star can''t protect him for long."


    Hearing those words, a cold murderous glint flashed past Mu Yunxuan''s eyes!


    ...��


    Days later, Yi Xiang came to the School of the Emperor Star to pick him up. Minister Zuo had sent people over and was preparing to travel to Qingzhou City.


    In the yard, Yi Xiang walked forward. He floated in the air and his hands were behind his back. Behind him, Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu, "Qingzhou isn''t far from Donghai. With Minister Zuo''s demon, it''ll only take one day. I''ll be back soon. Don''t worry."


    "Okay, I''ll wait for you," Hua Jieyu said gently. She would wait no matter how long it took.


    "Fox, I''m leaving." Ye Futian''s eyes were unwilling but he left with Yi Xiang. Hua Jieyu watched his back. She did not turn to go cultivate until he was completely gone!

 69 My Family Name Is Donghuang

    Chapter 69: My Family Name Is Donghuang


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Ye Futian at the entrance of Donghai Academy, Minister Zuo was already waiting for him.


    When the young woman saw Ye Futian, she said, "Let''s have another battle."


    Ye Futian was speechless. He wondered it this girl liked being defeated.


    "No," he answered. Ye Futian glanced at the young woman.


    "What is that look supposed to mean?" Seeing the way Ye Futian looked at her made her mad.


    "If we fight again, I''m afraid you might cry," said Ye Futian. He was determined never to battle with a female ever again.


    "You��" the young woman pointed at him.


    "Alright, missy. Let''s go, weren''t you the one who begged to tag along?" Minister Zuo did not know what to do with the little princess.


    "Just you wait, Ye Futian." She then turned to the Minister Zuo. "Master, I want him to be my guard."


    "I..." Ye Futian was dumbfounded. He looked to Minister Zuo. "Senior." She couldn''t do this, could she?


    "Stop fooling around." The Minister Zuo looked at the young woman once and then gave out his order, "Let''s go!" The large group riding on creatures began their journey, heading in the direction of the East Sea.


    "I don''t care. Master, didn''t you say his innate powers were good and that he was gifted? Then he would be perfect as my guard. He can also battle me time to time to help me gain combat experience," the young woman whined to the Minister Zuo. Ye Futian stared in shock. What did she take him for?


    "Then you''ll have to ask Ye Futian to see if he''ll agree," said Minister Zuo. Ye Futian thanked the Minister Zuo silently.


    The young woman looked towards Ye Futian and said, "You''re better off by my side than you are at Donghai Academy."


    "No." Ye Futian remembered what Hua Jieyu made him promise and rejected her firmly. "I really do have a girlfriend."


    "You!" The young woman seemed to be adjusting to Ye Futian''s shameless antics because she suddenly smiled. With a beautiful smile, she faced Ye Futian and asked, "Is your girlfriend really as pretty as I am?"


    Ye Futian saw her smile and did not know what to say. How could her expression change so abruptly? She was trying to get her way through the means of seduction. However, Ye Futian thought it was wasted effort because he was an honest man.


    However, he couldn''t believe that she remembered what he said yesterday. When it came to appearances, women were indeed...


    "You are very beautiful, but my girlfriend is even more so," Ye Futian said with a serious look on his face. The young woman''s smile disappeared in an instant and she snickered at Ye Futian, "Who would believe you?" She seemed to know that there was no hope and refused to look at Ye Futian.


    That self-confidence, Ye Futian thought to himself, if this girl met Hua Jieyu, then she would not be so confident.


    At the thought of Hua Jieyu, a smile crept on his face. Ye Futian closed his eyes and enjoyed the gentle blowing of the wind in silence.


    Quickly, the group made it past the city and arrived at the East Sea. In the vast sea, the wind blew and ships sailed. The group did not stall for too long before they were on their way again, this time headed for Qingzhou Academy. Several hours later, from the skies over the East Sea, an island came into view.


    Ye Futian stood on top of the beast he was previously riding on and looked at the nearing island. He had no idea he would be back so soon. It did not seem like that long ago that he left the island city. So many thoughts floated through his mind. Was Senior Sister Qin Yi doing alright? Was General Qin Shuai doing better? Did Feng Qingxue miss him? Probably. He smiled at the thought of being back home.


    Finally, the beasts were flying right above the island. They did not stop but continued in the direction of Qingzhou Academy.


    BOOM! At this very moment, a loud sound came from the ground. Ye Futian and everyone were concerned as they looked down. They saw the ground shake, as if an earthquake or a tsunami was about to dawn upon the city.


    "What''s going on?" Minister Zuo''s eyes flickered and the beasts continued to advance. A moment later, the loud rumbling resumed and the ground was shaking once again. The citizens of Qingzhou City were in a frenzy. The stronger people ascended into mid-air while the weaker people were running on the streets. Everyone was in shock.


    BOOM! The ground was still shaking without a pattern. As they got deeper into the city, the shaking got more violent. Even when the monster tide occurred, it did not affect the areas this far way. Right not, it seemed like the entire island was being affected. It was originating from the direction of Qingzhou Academy.


    What on earth was going on? Ye Futian''s heart was pounding. Even though he was not able to become an official disciple of Qingzhou Academy, he still had a sentimental attachment to this place. He did not wish for anything to happen to the academy.


    The beasts sped up and charged forward. Not long after, they arrived at Qingzhou Academy.


    Right now, the whole area was shaking non-stop. Some buildings had already fallen. The teachers and students were all looking in the direction of Mount Tianyao. Their hearts in a frenzy. There seemed to be an ultimate battle taking place in Mount Tianyao.


    Mount Tianyao. It''s Senior Snow Ape! thought Ye Futian. His expression changed. The shaking was coming from Mount Tianyao. There could only be one thing that would lead to such strong vibrations through the ground, and that was a huge battle between the Snow Ape and some unknown people.


    The Snow Ape''s powers were unimaginably strong. He may very well be second in power after Emperor Ye Qing. Ye Futian was unsure of exactly how powerful he was, but to be able to battle with the Snow Ape, it was most likely a fearsome opponent. It was hard for Ye Futian not to worry.


    "Seems like someone got here before I could," said Minister Zuo. The group stood between area between Qingzhou Academy and Mount Tianyao. People who went ahead to test the waters came back to report their findings. They greeted the minister with a bow. "Minister Zuo, things are not good!"


    "Do you know who it is?" Minister Zuo asked.


    "It''s not possible for a person so powerful to exist in Nandou Nation." The reporting person shook his head. Minister Zuo contemplated for a while and said, "All of you stay here, I''ll go take a look."


    Obviously, everything they had previously prepared was now useless. The plans had been spoiled. An extremely powerful individual got wind of the news and came to Qingzhou City.


    "Senior, can you take me with you?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Your abilities are still too weak. It will be dangerous," said Minister Zuo.


    "That''s okay. I want to take a look at what''s going on." Ye Futian was determined.


    "I cannot promise your absolute safety," Minister Zuo spoke again. Ye Futian nodded and the two of them made their way into Mount Tianyao.


    The vibrations of the ground were even stronger now that they were closer to the mountains. Demons and monsters ran frantically in every direction. With Minister Zuo''s powers, none of the demons or monsters dared to stand in his way. Finally, they reached the epicenter of the vibrations. One look at the scene ahead and the powerful minister began to shudder, not able to calm down.


    "Senior." Ye Futian clenched his fist. His body was shaking. His eyes were filled with a wild flame and all the veins on his arms were visible.


    Up ahead, was an enormous Snow Ape, taller than the mountains. Compared to when Ye Futian had met him before, the Snow Ape was much larger now. His head was in the clouds. His enormous body stood in the midst of a storm, but he remained standing steadily like the mountains. A golden chain was locked around the Snow Ape''s body. The light coming from the chain was shining brighter than the sun. The chain seemed to have come from the heavens, creating a link between Heaven and Earth.


    The Snow Ape reached out his hands, filled with immense power. However, the Snow Ape''s snow-white fur was covered in blood. He was bleeding from wounds all over his body. He looked up at the figures in the sky unyieldingly. Ye Futian also looked up at the sky with his blood-shot eyes.


    Up in the skies, stood a group of people. They were spread out in the air. A light shone from each of their bodies. This light enveloped them like a divine armor and the people looked domineering, like the gods in Heaven. Standing above them, were two more people. They were quiet.


    One of the two was dressed in a robe of sorts. She was dazzling, elegant, and holy like a celestial fairy. She did not look too old, maybe about Ye Futian''s age. Even though she was young, her aura was outstanding. It was almost as if she was born superior to others.


    She looked very content. Beside her stood a figure that seemed like a divine general. His force field covered her as if to protect her. Compared with Minister Zuo''s disciple, the girl won in regards of elegance and looks.


    Perhaps, even if the goddess-like Hua Jieyu were here, she would not be able to overshadow this girl. The two girls were on a similar level in terms of looks, but when it came to elegance, not even Hua Jieyu could beat her. If Hua Jieyu was compared to a descended goddess, then this girl was a celestial fairy straight from the heavens.


    It was almost as if the Snow Ape could sense Ye Futian''s arrival. He looked over in Ye Futian''s direction and seemed to have mistaken the situation. The Snow Ape looked at Minister Zuo with blood-red eyes, conveying his intent to kill.


    A loud growl sounded. The world seemed to have become frozen and covered in snow. Along with the clanging of chains, the Snow Ape charged at Minister Zuo, lifting his arms, preparing to attack. Minister Zuo''s face paled. He could feel his body slowly being sealed by the ice.


    "Senior!" Ye Futian jumped in front of Minister Zuo. He realized that the Snow Ape must have mistakenly thought that Minister Zuo was holding him against his will.


    The Snow Ape struck the two with his hand causing Minister Zuo and Ye Futian to land far away with a loud crash. The chain rattled again, but this time, to pull him back.


    Minister Zuo and Ye Futian picked themselves up off the ground. At this moment, they noticed that the group in the sky were looking down at them. The divine general-like figure spoke to them, "Kneel." His voice was domineering, superior, and arrogant.


    "Greetings, I am a prime minister of Nandou Nation. May I ask who you guys are?" asked Minister Zuo. He joined his hands together in a salute.


    The fairy-like female looked down at them and replied, "My family name is Donghuang."


    Minister Zuo''s knees hit the ground and he bowed his head to the floor. This was not only because the opposing side was power, but also because of their identity.


    Her surname was Donghuang.


    The prophecy has been fulfilled, Minister Zuo thought to himself. A shiver ran down his back. The reason he was willing to risk coming here was because he told his own fortune. The prophecy said that this journey will not be dangerous. On the contrary, he would meet a person fated to become emperor. Never would Minister Zuo have imagined, by being fated to become emperor, it did not mean the emperor of the Nandou Nation��it meant the emperor of the Divine Prefectures.


    Ye Futian did not kneel down. In the storm, he looked up to the sky. He stood up straight and, in this moment, he was calmer than ever before. He met eyes with the air in the sky. The look they shared was a look of destiny.

 70 Nine Heavenly Attacks

    Chapter 70: Nine Heavenly Attacks


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at the girl up above. She looked back at him.


    My name is Donghuang. Ye Futian even felt like that sentence was spoken to him instead of Minister Zuo.


    Boundless icy winds blew through, causing flurries of snow that fell from the sky. An indescribable coldness descended into the world. Everyone looked over at the towering mountain''s vastness. They saw the Snow Ape look up the vault of heaven. It was sealed in ice with him as the center. The entire world was frozen.


    "Child, look carefully." A voice floated into Ye Futian''s ear. Then he saw a shadow appear inside the Snow Ape''s body. It came straight out of the flesh. The endless ice and snow converged into a giant snow staff that the Snow Ape grasped.


    "Nine Heavenly Attacks." The Snow Ape stood up, almost becoming one with the sky and earth. That moment, incredible power converged above the shadow. His body was so stable. Finally, the Snow Ape''s large shadow moved. The first hit gathered the power of the world and slammed against the atrium. The air seemed to be sliced apart and the frozen world was cut into two.


    Endless wind and snow blocked everyone''s vision except Ye Futian. The Snow Ape did not hit anyone. He was just teaching Ye Futian. It was the Freedom Meditation. Even though Ye Futian was sad, he knew that the Snow Ape was using his life to teach. This staff technique was the evolved by Emperor Ye Qing when he created war techniques. Now, the Snow Ape was demonstrating it personally.


    After the first hit, the power intensified rather than weakening. When the snow staff was swung again, the power of the first hit seemed to meld into the second and sweep everything. Then the third hit, the fourth�� Every hit''s power seemed to be multiplying. By the eighth hit, the world was shaking, the mountains were trembling, and the earth had cracked open. The Snow Ape''s location had turned into the world''s most terrifying windstorm.


    "The ninth hit," a voice said in Ye Futian''s ear. Then he saw the Snow Ape go toward the atrium. The snow staff swung and countless shadows of the staff appeared, flattening the sky.


    After that, Ye Futian could not see clearly anymore. Blinding light shone from above the atrium. It covered everything. The entire Mount Tianyao shook. The demons all knelt on the ground.


    An invisible power crashed into Minister Zuo and Ye Futian. They flew backward but something was protecting Ye Futian. He was not fatally hurt but there was pain everywhere.


    This windstorm lasted a long time because calming down. It began to snow in Mount Tianyao. White snow continued to float down. Ye Futian stood there, gaping. The Snow Ape''s shadow had disappeared. All that remained was the giant flesh body standing there. It was lifeless but it still stood up straight and tall.


    He was standing even in death.


    In the canyon behind him, Emperor Ye Qing''s statue was still undamaged. It was as if the Snow Ape had defended the statue to his death. Ye Futian reached out. A snowflake landed in his palm.


    "Child, do not be sad. This was destined. I should have gone with my master long ago but I had to wait for someone. Thankfully, I met you all. I am just sad I cannot see you rule the world with my own eyes." There seemed to be a shred of consciousness remaining in the air. It transformed into a voice that floated into Ye Futian''s ear. At the corner of his eye was a tear.


    Was this really all fate? The Snow Ape knew the ending but he still remained here, guarding it.


    The divine general went toward Emperor Ye Qing''s statue to find something but they could not find anything.


    A figure radiated and the girl in the air said, "Let his last statue remain."


    The divine general still shone. The terrible light fell upon the statue, flattening it to the ground. The statue that the Snow Ape had protected with his life had still fallen.


    "Princess, you should not have sympathy," the general said, retracting his light.


    The girl looked at him coldly and turned around. The people left with her. When she left, she looked down. Her gaze fell on Ye Futian and then moved away. Her figure disappeared in the horizon.


    When they left, Ye Futian collapsed too. Something had been supporting him before but those violent shakes had even hurt Minister Zuo, let alone him. Before, he had forced himself to stand up and witness it all. Minister Zuo coughed out blood. He could not recover quickly. Everything that had happened was indescribable. He did not even see clearly how the Snow Ape had died.


    Walking to Ye Futian, he looked at the youth''s calm face with a bit of gratitude. If not for Ye Futian, the Snow Ape would have killed him. He could feel the murderous intent. But Ye Futian was only a boy. How could he be so calm when faced with all this? He did not even kneel down.


    The girl from the sky had the surname Donghuang. Even the emperor of Nandou would have to kneel. Their statuses were too different. However, the youth had still been standing up straight. It was not because he was dumb from shock but arrogance from his bones.


    At that moment, Minister Zuo had the illusion that the boy before him was as high and mighty as the girl from the sky. His eyes flashed. Then he sat down beside Ye Futian. His life spirit appeared. It was a life chart.


    The Minister of Nandou was a rarely-seen astrologer. Few people knew this secret. Astrologers usually did not live long because they knew too much. The light of the life chart enveloped Ye Futian. The gears moved without stop and sped up.


    "What''s going on?" Minister Zuo''s expression changed. He stared at the uncontrollable life chart in shock. It spun crazily with noise until it finally slowed down.


    Minister Zuo stared at the chart. The needle spun until it pointed upward. It seemed to point at the sky. The Minister collapsed onto the ground. Looking at the life chart, his heart twitched.


    This was impossible. How was this possible?


    Shouldn''t it be the girl in the sky? Her surname was Donghuang.


    Why did Ye Futian have this fate? The fortune showed that he would meet someone, but who was it?


    In disbelief, Minister Zuo continued to activate the life chart. After several attempts, he was sweating. He sat beside Ye Futian and stared at the sleeping youth.


    Would Nandou Nation''s fate change because of him?


    ...��


    When Ye Futian woke up, he saw Minister Zuo beside him. The man smiled. "You''re awake."


    "Senior," Ye Futian greeted. He sat up.


    "You saved my life so you shouldn''t call me ''senior'' anymore. If you don''t mind, you can call me Uncle Zuo," Minister Zuo said with a smile. He felt guilty inside. As the minister, he had taken advantage of the boy without him realizing.


    "Uncle Zuo." Ye Futian was not very straightforward. Becoming close to the minister of Nandou would be good for him when he returned to Donghai City.


    "Yes." Minister Zuo nodded. "How are your injuries?"


    "No big deal." Ye Futian looked back. He was sad when he saw the statue-like body. "Uncle Zuo," he said, "I want to stay here for a while. You can go back first."


    Minister Zuo shook his head. "The demons have been chased away but they might come back. It''s too dangerous. Why don''t I stay here with you?"


    "But��" Ye Futian wanted to continue but Minister Zuo interrupted, "You''re calling me uncle already. We''re not strangers. Go do what you want to do. I''ll just cultivate here."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and stopped talking. He got up and walked toward the Snow Ape''s body. There, he kept standing but he looked up to the heavens.


    "Senior, I can''t take revenge for you now so I''ll just accompany you for a while." Ye Futian''s voice was sad. He sat by the Snow Ape''s body. The Guqin Spirit appeared and descended before him. Ye Futian started playing right there. A gloomy melody sounded as if in farewell.


    After the tune, Ye Futian started cultivating. The Snow Ape had taught him the Nine Heavenly Attacks before dying. Cultivating here was like the last comfort to the Snow Ape''s spirit.


    The days passed. Without realizing, months had passed.


    Nine Heavenly Attacks was extremely difficult. When Ye Futian learned the third hit, both his martial arts and sorcery cultivation had reached the Five-star Glory Plane. That day, Ye Futian knelt before the Snow Ape''s body. He kowtowed three times before standing up and turning around. He never looked back.


    "Uncle Zuo, let''s go back," Ye Futian said to Minister Zuo, who was cultivating with his eyes closed.


    The man opened his eyes and nodded. "Okay." With that, he and Ye Futian flew into the sky. They left Mount Tianyao. Ye Futian''s recent actions had been odd but he did not ask.


    Once out of Mount Tianyao, they were close to Qingzhou Academy. Minister Zuo''s men were waiting there. Seeing Minister Zuo return, they let out sighs of relief and went to greet him.


    "Where''s the princess?" Minister Zuo asked.


    "They were living in Qingzhou Academy while you weren''t here," someone said.


    "That girl has probably caused a ruckus," Minister Zuo said. He walked forward and they all went toward Qingzhou Academy.


    The red-clothed girl was the princess of Nandou. She was now living in the School of Martial Arts. Many people where there right now. When Ye Futian walked in, he saw Qin Yi. Surprised, he called, "Ms. Qin."


    "Futian!" Qin Yi was surprised when she saw Ye Futian.


    "I wanted to go find you. Why are you here?" Ye Futian asked. Hearing this, Qin Yi lowered her head slightly.


    "Professor, you''re back. The servants here don''t know how to take care of people. I can finally go back now." The girl walked by. Many big figures of the School of Martial Arts were present.


    They all froze when they saw Ye Futian but Ye Futian''s eyes turned cold.


    Servant?

 71 Beheaded

    Chapter 71: Beheaded


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The people of the School of Martial Arts walked up and greeted him with bow. "Greetings, Minister Zuo."


    Minister Zuo nodded his head. Leng Qingfeng, the Cabinet Master of the House of Swordsmen looked at Ye Futian and asked, "What are you doing here?"


    "What is my Senior Sister doing here?" Ye Futian did not answer his question. Leng Qingfeng took a look around at everyone.


    "This..." he did not know how to explain the situation.


    "She''s your Senior Sister?" the young woman snickered. Then to Ye Futian, she said, "She''s been my servant these past couple days, but it''s such a pity that she doesn''t know how to take care of other people. If you promise to be my underling, I''ll let her go. How about it?"


    "You did this?" Ye Futian glared at her coldly.


    "Ye Futian, I''m fine," Qin Yi said, pulling at his sleeve.


    "But I''m not fine, Senior Sister." Ye Futian looked at Qin Yi. He moved her hands away and walked towards the young woman. His demeanor was cold, but at the same time, he looked furious. Seeing him like this slightly frightened the young woman. She asked, "What do you want?"


    "Didn''t you say that you wanted to battle again? I''ll fulfill your wish," he said. His pace quickened, racing straight towards the young woman.


    "You''re crazy!" She saw Ye Futian charging at her, but because he was going too fast, he reached her before she was able to defend herself. A punch was thrown at her. The young women gathered energy to defend herself, but his fist broke through her defense and landed on her chest. The young woman flew through the air and was thrown through two closed doors. After breaking the doors, she landed on the ground.


    Everyone watching was dumbfounded at the scene they just witnessed. Qin Yi looked pale because she knew that this young woman was the princess of the Nandou Nation. Even Xia Fan, the Vice Chief of the East Sea Prefecture and the person who destroyed Qin Yi''s family, had to kneel down in her presence. Ye Futian actually threw her in the air with a single punch.


    "Princess!" someone shouted.


    "Ye Futian, that was out of line," said someone from the School of Martial Arts, as a group of them went up to help the princess.


    The young woman walked out of the room she had just been thrown into, with a hand on her chest. Her eyes were red, as it she was really going to cry. She had never been hit before. What''s more, this was already the second time.


    "Master, he''s bullying me. Kill him!" the young woman ordered as she looked at Minister Zuo. The powerful cultivators of Nandou Nation surrounded Ye Futian.


    "Minister Zuo, please have mercy!" Leng Qingfeng pleaded.


    "Ye Futian." Qin Yi''s face was pale and she placed herself in front of him.


    "Step down!" order Minister Zuo. The people surrounding Ye Futian retreated.


    "Master..." said the young woman. She was shocked and did not understand what her master was doing.


    "Have you had enough?" In a stern tone, Minister Zuo said to the young woman, "Apologize to Ye Futian."


    "Me? Apologize to him?" The young woman''s eyes were about to pop out of her head as she stared at her master. She was a princess and she was the one who had to apologize after getting hit by Ye Futian?


    "Are you not going to listen to me?" Minister Zuo looked at the young woman with a serious look on his face. He could not believe that this child actually ordered to have Ye Futian killed. She would know that this was for her own good some time in the future.


    "Uncle Zuo, forget about the apology. I can''t bear it," said Ye Futian. "All I want to know is who made my Senior Sister a servant?" General Qin Shuai, the protector of the City of Qingzhou, was disabled by Xia Fan when he offended him for the well-being of the city. Now, his daughter, who was cultivating at Qingzhou Academy, was being treated as a servant? Witnessing this with his own two eyes, it was clear that Ye Futian was beyond furious. If it was the young woman''s fault, he would hold this against her, even if she was the princess.


    "Hurry up and tell him," Minister Zuo ordered the young woman.


    She felt wronged seeing her master side with Ye Futian. Her eyes were filled with tears. She looked at Ye Futian and told him, "It was the City Lord who sent her to take care of me. Why are you blaming me?"


    "Murong Yunshan?" Ye Futian''s eyes grew cold. He asked the people of the School of Martial Arts, "Is this how you treat the daughter of General Qin?"


    Everyone lowered their heads in shame. They knew that City Lord Murong Yunshan was purposely picking on Qin Yi, but what could they do? Now, it was Ye Futian who would stand up against the Murong family again. Last time as well, he executed Murong Qiu in front of students of Qingzhou Academy all by himself. It was just as the Thunder Pavilion Lord had said when he left, the prestigious Qingzhou Academy was nothing compared to this one young man.


    Not even a year had passed, and this young man was back in Qingzhou Academy. He was actually able to defeat a five-starred Glory Plane Mandate Sorcerer with one punch. To add to that, the person he hit was the princess of the Nandou Nation and afterwards, Minister Zuo even had the princess apologize to Ye Futian.


    The world had changed so quickly. When the Pavilion Lord of the Thunder Pavilion left, he said that Qingzhou Academy would know what they missed out on when Ye Futian became known to the world. It seemed like what he said was slowly coming true. Ye Futian''s growth was truly shocking.


    "General Qin?" Minister Zuo looked at Ye Futian and asked, "Ye Futian, is there a story behind this?"


    "General Qin is the protector of our city," answered Ye Futian. He turned to Minister Zuo and summarized the story of General Qin, and Xia Fan, Murong Yunshan and the others. When he finished retelling the story, Minister Zuo became extra cold. He said, "Those b*stards! Murong Yunshan plunged the people into misery and suffering, but has become the City Lord?"


    "Uncle Zuo, I want him dead," said Ye Futian. He was out for blood.


    "Go, bring him here," ordered Minister Zuo.


    "Understood!" someone answered his order and flew to find Murong Yunshan. The people of Qingzhou Academy shuddered at this scene. Was the Murong family done for? One word from the prime minister of the Nandou Nation was enough to have a whole family killed off, even if it was the City Lord.


    "Ye Futian," called out Qin Yi. She looked at the young man standing in front of her. It hadn''t even been a year since she last saw him, what on earth had he been through? For her, he attacked the princess.


    "Senior Sister, everything is okay now." Ye Futian smiled at Qin Yi.


    She nodded, eyes red. In this time, she learned the truth about human nature. Many people treated her poorly. Even the people who courted her before changed their attitude towards her. As if it was not enough that Xia Fan and Murong Yunshan caused her father''s disability, Murong Shan used the arrival of the princess as an excuse to suppress her growth in cultivation.


    "Don''t you still owe me an apology?" the young woman asked Ye Futan. She still felt wronged.


    "Senior Sister, did she give you a hard time?" Ye Futian asked Qin Yi.


    "No," she said as she shook her head.


    "Then I''ll forgive you," he said to the young woman.


    "You..." The young woman pointed a finger at Ye Futian, not knowing what to say. Then she turned to look at Minister Zuo with puppy dog eyes.


    "That''s enough. No matter what, you were in the wrong first. Why do you need a servant when traveling? Treat this as a lesson learned," said Minister Zuo gently. He then turned to Ye Futian. "Ye Futian, I watched her grow up. Other than being a little obstinate, she doesn''t mean any harm. Please don''t take what she does to heart, and take care of her if possible."


    "I need him to take care of me?" The young girl felt that Minister Zuo was a little strange since coming down from the mountains. What on earth happened?


    "Uncle Zuo, that''s too much. I was a little rash. This situation had nothing to do with the princess, so I am at fault," said Ye Futian. Minister Zuo showed much respect for Ye Futian. Even though he saved Minister Zuo on Mount Tianyao, Ye Futian knew that there was a limit to what he could do. After all, the young woman was the princess and her master was Minister Zuo.


    "Is this the attitude you use in an apology?" the young woman chewed on her own lip.


    "Fine, then I''ll promise to battle you the next time you ask," he said.


    "Who wants to fight you?" The young woman scratched her head. After that one punch, she finally realized, she could not defeat him.


    Minister Zuo saw her expression and could not help but smile. It looked like her temper had dissolved. Ye Futian and the princess should have made up by now, right?"


    After a little while, Murong Yunshan was escorted to them. He still had no idea what was going on. When he saw Ye Futian, Murong Yunshan saw red. His son, Murong Qiu, had died at the hands of Ye Futian.


    "Greetings to Minister Zuo and the princess from Qingzhou City''s City Lord, Murong Yunshan," he bowed.


    "Ye Futian, what do you want to do with him?" asked Minister Zuo.


    "I want him beheaded," Ye Futian answered without hesitation.


    Murong Yunshan was in complete shock. He lifted his head to look at Ye Futian. What was going on?


    "Off with his head!" One word from Minister Zuo and the people standing behind Murong Yunshan restrained him. In this moment, Murong Yunshan finally realized the predicament he was in.


    "Please spare me, Minister Zuo! What did I do wrong?" Murong Yunshan''s expression was completely different. However, Minister Zuo did not bother with him. The minister looked at Ye Futian and felt a cold shiver when he saw Ye Futian''s cold eyes.


    It was then that Murong Yunshan understood, the person who wanted to kill him wasn''t Minister Zuo, but was the young man in front of him. He was once an outer-sect disciple of Qingzhou Academy. Murong Yunshan thought of the Fall Quarter Examinations. That was the first time Ye Futian stood up in the middle of the stage, stubborn and unwavering. Murong Yunshan never expected that the lives of both him and his son would end in the hands of Ye Futian.


    "I cannot accept this!" Murong Yunshan screamed furiously. A moment later, Qingzhou City''s City Lord was dead in Qingzhou Academy.


    "Have the Murong family property confiscated," Minister Zuo ordered. Immediately, his people left to get things taken care of.


    "What do you think of making General Qin the new City Lord of Qingzhou City?" Minister Zuo asked Ye Futian.


    "Thank you, Uncle Zuo!" Naturally, Ye Futian had the same thought, but he did not feel right asking this of Minister Zuo. He was so shocked at this treatment he was receiving from Minister Zuo. Ye Futian was being treated so well, it was getting suspicious.


    The casual words exchanged in this courtyard flipped the whole city upside down. First, the powerful Murong Chamber of Commerce was destroyed. Originally, the Municipal Guards tried to resist, but when they found out the prime minister of the Nandou Nation ordered the destruction, they gave up the thought of defending it. There were also many guards in the Municipal Guards who actually volunteered to clean out the Murong family house. They did not want to be suspected of siding with the Murong family. Then, out of nowhere, General Qin was invited to fill the spot of City Lord. All of this happened in such a short period of time. Very quickly the news spread all through the City of Qingzhou.


    Qingzhou Academy was the first to get the news. All the students were extremely shocked. They heard that the leader of all these events was actually Ye Futian!

 72 Hua Jieyu’s Fate

    Chapter 72: Hua Jieyu��s Fate


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In Qingzhou Academy, two figures strolled through the forested path in the academy like a couple. The girl was 18-years-old. It was the prime of one''s youth. She was pure yet sexy. The boy was a bit younger but had an outstanding aura and was very handsome.


    "Do you have to leave today?" Qin Yi lowered her head. She walked quickly and her voice was sad.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded.


    "You brat. You want to leave as soon as you see your senior? Am I that unappreciated?" Qin Yi gave Ye Futian a look.


    "Senior, you know that Donghai City has a lot of things that need someone so successful to do," Ye Futian said jokingly with a smile.


    "I trust you." Qin Yi glared in mocking anger and then smiled. "Back then, you said you were a mandate sorcerer and I didn''t believe you. Now, I''ll believe whatever you say."


    "My charisma is getting stronger," Ye Qingxuan said proudly. "Are you falling for me?"


    Qin Yi was taken by surprise. She smiled and continued walking forward as she said, "Yeah, I am."


    "Well, it doesn''t matter. Too many people are pursuing me. Senior, you''re too slow." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Go die." Qin Yi raised a slim leg and kicked Ye Futian while rolling her eyes. Qin Yi looked especially attractive now.


    The students who passed by saw the two play-fighting. They were all envious, thinking that Ye Futian was still the same powerful Ye Futian. But now, they were no longer looking at him with jealousy and hatred. Instead, there was some respect. They all knew what had happened in Qingzhou City. The Ye Futian now had become someone they needed to look up to. In the future, he might even become a legend of Qingzhou Academy.


    There was a pretty girl standing in the near distance. She was beautiful and tall. After half a year, her beauty had increased.


    "Senior, look, I didn''t lie," Ye Futian said to Qin Yi after seeing the girl.


    "Look how cocky you are." Qin Yi sighed inwardly and they walked forward.


    "Why didn''t you come see me?" Feng Qingxue asked as she forced herself to smile.


    "I''m here now, aren''t I?" Ye Futian smiled. "The little girl from before has become more beautiful. Do you miss me?"


    "This brat." Qin Yi looked at him, speechless from his narcissism.


    "Yeah," Feng Qingxue nodded with a smile. Qin Yi was shocked.


    "That sucks. You''ll have to keep missing me." Ye Futian shrugged.


    Feng Qingxue studied him. "I want to see the outside world too."


    "It''s dangerous out there and you''re so pretty. It''ll be more dangerous for you," Ye Futian said.


    "But you''re there, right?" Feng Qingxue seemed to have gathered all her courage to say that.


    "Don''t, Uncle Feng will think I stole you away." Ye Futian reached out and petted Feng Qingxue''s head. She froze, allowing Ye Futian to mess up her hair. This felt so familiar. But sadly, everything was different and they could not go back.


    "How is Yu Sheng?" Feng Qingxue asked.


    "Oh, Yu Sheng," Ye Futian muttered. He was angry thinking about the guy. "He''s dating and doesn''t want me anymore."


    Feng Qingxue was shocked. Even Yu Sheng was dating? Thinking of this, she suddenly felt bitter. It seemed that time had really changed a lot.


    "What about you and Hua Jieyu? Are you dating?" Feng Qingxue studied him.


    "She can''t escape from me. She didn''t want me to come here." Thinking of the fox, Ye Futian''s eyes twinkled. He was still smiling casually but it made Feng Qingxue jealous. They were the perfect pair.


    "I wish you two well." Feng Qingxue smiled gently.


    "We will." Ye Futian smiled as well. "I''m leaving. I don''t want you two to miss me too much, so I''ll hug you two."


    "Okay." Feng Qingxue nodded. She walked forward and hugged Ye Futian. She leaned her head against his chest as if wanting to enjoy that feeling. For a moment, her heart was besieged. Tears rolled down instantly. She pushed Ye Futian away and ran off with a tear-streaked face. So that was how it felt to hug him.


    Looking at Feng Qingxue''s back, Ye Futian sighed inside. Qin Yi rolled her eyes. She walked forward to hug him lightly and then separated.


    "Senior, I''m leaving." Ye Futian smiled and turned confidently.


    Minister Zuo and the others were waiting in the distance. Seeing Ye Futian come, the girl beside Minister Zuo was unhappy. She said, "This is someone with a girlfriend, shameless jerk."


    Minister Zuo felt awkward. This girl was full of resentment.


    "Uncle Zuo, let''s go," Ye Futian said when he got close.


    Minister Zuo nodded. The people climbed on their demons.


    Sensing something, Ye Futian glanced at the girl. "I''m attractive but you don''t have to keep staring at me, right?"


    "Shameless," the girl spat. Then she turned away.


    "I��" Ye Futian was speechless.


    The demons leaped into the sky. The people of Qingzhou Academy watched them leave. Many of the big figures still had not calmed down.


    In the sky, Minister Zuo asked Ye Futian from his demon, "Futian, what are your plans when you return to Donghai City? Will you keep studying at the academy? Would you like to go to Nandou''s Royal City?"


    "Are there many talented men in the Royal City?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Of course," Minister Zuo answered. "The best of Nandou go to the Royal City, including the most talented from Donghai City."


    "Really?" Ye Futian chuckled. "Of course I will but not now."


    "Oh, I''m sure you have many things you still need to do in Donghai City. I won''t pressure you but next spring, something big will happen in Nandou Nation. You must come." Minister Zuo smiled.


    "What big thing?" Ye Futian was confused.


    "Do you know about Nandou Nation''s history?" Minister Zuo asked.


    "I heard from my professor that Nandou was once ruled by the Nandou family," Ye Futian answered. "Then, Emperor Donghuang and Emperor Ye ruled over the Divine Prefectures of the East. The powers of the world were reordered. Nandou was weak and walked down from the throne, replaced by the current king."


    "Yes, the current royal family is named Luo. In order to remind themselves, they have not changed the name of the country. In addition, they hold a Tingfeng Banquet every ten years. Next year will be the next full decade. At this time, not only will the East Sea Prefecture come, people from all prefectures and cities of Nandou will come. The heroes will aggregate and meet each other. You can''t miss it."


    "If all the strong men of Nandou are there, why should I go?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The stars of the banquet are your generation. The goal is to see the future of Nandou nation. The outstanding figures of Donghai Academy would definitely be included," Minister Zuo answered.


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded. He first thought of his professor''s ailment. Since the Tingfeng Banquet was important, if the king noticed and liked him, it would be easier to heal Hua Fengliu, right?


    "Oh, Xia Fan is the young master of the East Sea Prefecture. With his father there, I cannot deal with him directly. After returning, I must take care of some matters. To protect you from danger, I''ll keep the Decree of the Minister with you. People will treat it as if I''m there." Minister Zuo gave Ye Futian his badge and said, "You still have to be careful about assassinations."


    Ye Futian looked at the badge. He needed it but he did not accept it. "Uncle Zuo," he said. He was still suspicious. Was Minister Zuo treating him so well really because he helped block the blow from the Snow Ape? He had defeated the princess with one blow because he was brash, but instead of blaming him, the minister had made the princess apologize too.


    "Take it. This is useless for me. Just don''t do bad things under my name," Minister Zuo said jokingly.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and took it. He would remember this gift. The badge was truly useful to him.


    "Professor." The princess of Nandou looked at Ye Futian with jealousy. Who was the minister''s true disciple?


    The group advanced forward and finally reached Donghai City. Minister Zuo personally saw Ye Futian to the academy.


    "Futian, remember, don''t miss out next spring. Your stage shouldn''t be in Donghai City," Minister Zuo advised.


    "Okay, Uncle Zuo. I''m going back now," Ye Futian said. Minister Zuo nodded and watched as Ye Futian entered Donghai Academy.


    "Let''s go back too," Minister Zuo said.


    But then, a figure walked out. He said before Minister Zuo, "Greetings, Minister Zuo. I am Nandou Ku."


    "You are from the Nandou clan?"


    "Yes, Minister Zuo. I have waited here for many days. My clan leader wishes for your help." Nandou Ku bowed.


    After pondering, Minister Zuo nodded. "Since Nandou is inviting me, I will go with you."


    "After you, Minister," Nandou Ku said politely. The group once again set off and soon arrived at the Nandou clan''s home.


    Hearing that Minister Zuo had arrived, the clan leader personally welcomed him to the courtyard. Other than the two, there was also a beautiful girl. It was Hua Jieyu.


    "Minister Zuo, this is a descendant of the Nandou clan. Could you please tell me her fate and fortune?" the clan leader asked. Not many knew that Minister Zuo was an astrologer but he did.


    "Okay." Minister Zuo nodded.


    "Jieyu, please cooperate," the clan leader said. He had once asked Minister Zuo to calculate his but was rejected. Some things were better left unknown. However, Minister Zuo thought that Hua Jieyu was unimportant.


    Hua Jieyu looked at him. Since Minister Zuo was back safely, that guy should be back too. He had lied saying he would be back in one or two days.


    Minister Zuo walked to Hua Jieyu and cast his life chart. The light enveloped Hua Jieyu. After a count, Minister Zuo collected his life spirit. He was shocked. Staring at Hua Jieyu, he thought it was unbelievable. What kind of people were they? Why were their fates all so crazy?

 73 Yu Sheng Got Hur

    Chapter 73: Yu Sheng Got Hurt


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When the leader of the Nandou clan saw the serious look on Minister Zuo''s face, he could not help but ask, "How is it, Minister Zuo?"


    "I have some questions. May I speak with her alone?" Minister Zuo asked.


    The Nandou clan leader nodded and left them alone.


    Minister Zuo looked at Hua Jieyu, a great beauty at the age of about 16, 17. She would not lose by too much in comparison with the goddess-like girl from Mount Tianyao days ago.


    "Are you betrothed to anyone?" he asked her.


    Hua Jieyu froze, then shook her head.


    Minister Zuo was silent, seeming to be deep in thought, but then he saw Hua Jieyu looking at him intently. "Senior, the person you brought to the City of Qingzhou, is he back?"


    "Huh?" Minister Zuo was confused. The person he brought to the City of Qingzhou?


    "From Donghai Academy," she explained. Minister Zuo stopped to think for a moment and then his eyes brighten in realization. In his mind, he thought of the words a certain young man said, "I already have a girlfriend and she''s more beautiful than you."


    "He''s already returned to the academy." Minister Zuo smiled and nodded. She smiled as well, feeling the worry in her heart disappear.


    "Brother Nandou!" Minister Zuo called out. The Nandou clan leader returned upon being summoned and looked at the two people in the room in confusion.


    "Goodbye," Minister Zuo said to the clan leader. Then, he turned with his hands joined to salute Hua Jieyu. This was not a gesture to a junior, but a gesture of respect and honor.


    The Nandou clan leader was shocked and asked, "Minister Zuo, what does this mean?"


    Minister Zuo just laughed loudly and with every step, he ascended in the sky. The head of the clan leader yelled out to him, "Minister Zuo!"


    "The fate of an empress, the mother of the world!" Minister Zuo''s stern voiced traveled. The family head was frozen in place and watched Minister Zuo get further and further away.


    The fate of an empress!


    His mind was anything but calm. At that moment, he thought of many things. Hua Jieyu was naturally gifted, that was why he had wanted Minister Zuo to tell her fortune. The clan leader wanted to know if she was going to be able to restore the Nandou clan''s glory. But now, it seemed like she was destined for a different path��the road to become an empress.


    Hua Jieyu was also shocked. She saw the family head looking at her, so she told him, "I don''t believe in fate and I also don''t want to become Empress. I''m going back to the academy." When she finished, she turned and left.


    ...


    When Ye Futian got back to Donghai Academy, he could feel something different in the atmosphere. Everyone was whispering and discussing amongst themselves. And once he stepped onto campus, this atmosphere became more obvious.


    "Ye Futian is back," said the students of the School of the Finance Star.


    "He''s finally back," said someone else. Many people seemed to have been anticipating Ye Futian''s return. They all looked so happy to see him. This type of treatment was something new to Ye Futian. While he walked to his destination, people were greeting him.


    "Hey!" a beautiful girl called out to Ye Futian from the building of the Finance School above.


    Ye Futian turned his attention to the graceful girl. He knew her. She had made a lasting impression on him. Afterall, she was the first female to tell him that he wasn''t a man. It was going to be difficult to forget someone like her.


    "I have a name." Ye Futian smiled.


    She just stared at him and asked, "What level are you now?"


    "Five-starred Glory Plane. You''re not trying to fight me again, are you?" Ye Futian was feeling uncertain. Were all girls crazy about fighting? One just left, now there was another.


    "I won''t fight you. The ones you have to fight are the people of the Emperor Star school and the Treasury Star school," the girl said. Ye Futian looked confused. More people came up to them.


    "What happened?" Ye Futian asked. He had just returned and the atmosphere at the academy felt strange.


    "Junior Brother Ye Futian, the Finance Star school hasn''t been doing too hot as of late," said a young man.


    "Why is that?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Recently, the students of those two schools have been very arrogant. From time to time, they''ll pick fights with the students of other schools, and our school is the most pitiful because they seem to be picking on us in particular," the young man explained.


    "The students of the School of the Emperor Star and the School of the Treasury Star are stronger to begin with, so naturally the students of our school can''t compete with them," said someone else. Ye Futian had gotten famous around Donghai Academy for fighting, so everyone from the Finance Star school was excited for him to be back.


    Ye Futian frowned. Both of those schools had previously paid a visit to Yi Xiang to congratulate him on taking on a disciple, now they were joining hands to torment the School of the Finance Star. There was definitely a secret involved in all of this. What did the two elders of those schools talk about with Yi Xiang that day?


    Ye Futian remembered that Yi Xiang came to reprimand him that day after their little chat. He seemed to be in a bad mood. Based on how things were going now, something definitely happened that day.


    "Where''s Yu Sheng?" Ye Futian knew, with Yu Sheng''s bad temper, he would not have just stood by and watched all of this happen.


    "It gets me angry just talking about what happened," someone spoke. "Because of this situation, Junior Brother Yu Sheng went to block off the entrance of the School of the Treasury Star. He beat up a ton of people, but those shameless jerks had two eight-starred Glory Plane cultivators gang up on him. One of those guys is the second strongest Glory Plane cultivator in their whole school. As a five-starred Glory Plane cultivator, Junior Brother Yu Sheng battled to his best ability, but was defeated in the end."


    Ye Futian had a fairly good understanding of Yu Sheng''s powers. The three-level difference should not have been a problem, but his opponents were from the Treasury Star school; one of them was even known as the second strongest Glory Plane cultivator, so they were probably also naturally gifted to begin with. Yu Sheng was still not able to release his Life Spirit and show his true potential, so if they ganged up on him, it was understandable that he was defeated.


    "Okay, I got it," said Ye Futian. He then began to walk back to his dorm.


    In the courtyard, Ye Futian could see Yu Sheng. He was topless, showing off his copper-toned skin, while Yi Qingxuan was applying medication to his wounds.


    "You guys have already progressed to this stage while I was gone?" Ye Futian blinked his eyes in disbelief and approached the two. Yi Qingxuan blushed and glared at Ye Futian. "Stop joking around."


    "Good going, Yu Sheng. You got the nerve to go pick a fight at the School of the Treasury Star as a five-starred Glory Plane cultivator? Why don''t you go fight every student? You feel good about yourself?" Ye Futian stared at Yu Sheng. "How are your injuries?"


    "Nothing too bad. I''ll be better in a couple of days. It''s Yi Qingxuan who insisted on applying medication," said Yu Sheng, holding back a smile.


    "Doesn''t this kind of treatment make you want to go get hurt again?" Ye Futian laughed. Yi Qingxuan rolled her eyes at his comment. "If you want to get hurt, then go alone."


    "You''re so protective of him already?" Ye Futian was speechless. Then, he asked her, "Yi Qingxuan, what the hell is going on with the schools of the Emperor Star and Treasury Star?"


    She turned serious at his question. "I heard from Father that they''re getting greedier for power and want to change the way the seven schools are run at Donghai Academy."


    "How do they plan on doing that?" He squinted his eyes in confusion.


    "They want to be the top powers of Donghai Academy and for the seven schools to be joined together," said Yi Qingxuan.


    "So, that''s why they''re sending their students out to pick fights?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Yeah, I think it''s their way of making their wishes clear to the academy," nodded Yi Qingxuan. "Their two schools have always been the strongest of the seven, and so most of the best students are gathered in those schools. Right now, there aren''t many students from the other schools who can defeat them."


    Ye Futian nodded his head and turned to leave. "I''m going out for a while."


    "Where are you going?" asked Yi Qingxuan. Ye Futian had just returned, where could he be off to again?


    "I''m being a third-wheel here, don''t want to disturb your time together," said Ye Futian. He waved and continued, "I''m going to go see my girlfriend."


    Yi Qingxuan laughed. This guy was always joking around.


    Ye Futian headed to the School of the Emperor Star. When he left, he told Hua Jieyu that he would be back soon, but now, it had already been a couple of months. She must be worried sick.


    He walked up all the stairs to reach the School of the Emperor Star all the way at the top. The students there began to discuss amongst each other as soon as they saw Ye Futian at their school.


    "What was he doing here now after leaving with Minister Zuo months ago?" someone asked.


    "I don''t know. His powers are really strong. He was even able to defeat the disciple of Minister Zuo, but he still can''t compare to our school''s genius, Zhou Mu. I heard Zhou Mu has already gotten to the six-starred Glory Plane. If Ye Futian and Zhou Mu met then Ye Futian would be done for," Someone remarked.


    Ye Futian ignored all these comments. He was going to get revenge on the two schools later. Right now, his priority was to go see Hua Jieyu.


    He continued on his way up, and what was weird was, he actually ran into Zhou Mu.


    Zhou Mu looked at Ye Futian coldly. Next to him, was another young man.


    "Ye Futian, it seems like you''ve come to a place you have no business being in," said Zhou Mu in a cold demeanor.


    "I''m here to see the Grandmaster." Ye Futian smiled in return.


    "So, what? The School of the Emperor Star is not a place that you can come and go as you please," Zhou Mu sneered.


    Ye Futian looked at Zhou Mu, he did not want to waste his breath with him. Ye Futian tried to walk past him, but the young man standing next to Zhou Mu shifted to the side to prevent Ye Futian from moving forward. The young man laughed, "I''ve heard many good things about you, Junior Brother Ye Futian, but I never imagined you to be so rude."


    Ye Futian stared at him and was on his way again. His clothes blew in the wind, his aura domineering.


    The young man smiled weakly and the look in his eyes made a drastic change. The next moment, Ye Futian felt like he could not control his own spirit and was in pain. He stood in place and lifted his head. He stared at the young man next to Zhou Mu.


    "Emperor Star disciple, Zhuo Qing." the young man introduced himself. "Although Junior Brother Ye Futian''s natural gifts are impressive, you should know that not everyone in Donghai Academy is like Jing Yang. I''m sure you''ve had a taste of Junior Brother Zhou Mu''s powers at the Luo Palace. There are multiple students like Zhou Mu at the Emperor Star school, so if you continue to be so arrogant, you''ll be the only one at a disadvantage."


    Zhuo Mu spoke with pride and he had the right to be. As a nine-starred Glory Plane cultivator, he was the most powerful person of the Glory Plane in the whole Emperor Star school. Some people even call him the number one sorcerer of Donghai Academy. His natural gifts were unbeatable.


    "You''re right," Ye Futian said with a smile. As he turned to leave, he spoke again, "I hope the students of the School of the Emperor Star are truly as powerful as you said."


    Ye Futian was in such a rush to get to the school because he was afraid Hua Jieyu was worried about him, but since he was stopped on the way, then he could only use a different way to let her know he was back.

 74 Previous General Decree of School of the Emperor Star

    Chapter 74: Previous General Decree of School of the Emperor Star


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Ye Futian returned to the School of the Finance Star, Yi Qingxuan was still there.


    "Didn''t you go to see your girlfriend? Why are you back?" Yi Qingxuan asked with a smile.


    Ye Futian furrowed his brows. It was too shameful to say. "Qingxuan, how is Zhuo Qing''s skill?" he asked.


    "You met Zhuo Qing?" Yi Qingxuan''s pretty eyes went blank. Seeing Ye Futian''s gloominess, she guessed what happened.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded.


    "He''s personally taught by the headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star," Yi Qingxuan answered. "He''s heavily valued and is already at the Nine-star Glory Plane. He''s known as number one of Donghai Academy''s dharma."


    "His main abilities?" Ye Futian asked.


    "He''s a spirit elemental mandate sorcerer with a strange life spirit. He has an eerie ability too. He can use the spirit element to control others. He''s also good at the wood element and is extremely dangerous," Yi Qingxuan said.


    "A controlling mandate sorcerer. No wonder." Something flickered past Ye Futian''s expression. According to Yi Qingxuan, the other was a spirit elemental mandate sorcerer specializing in attack and control. Wood elemental sorcery was also known for being strong in controlling. With these two together, he could totally take control of someone.


    "There should be some powerful figures in the Glory plane if the School of the Finance Star specializes in battle, right?" Ye Futian asked.


    Yi Qingxuan looked at him and said, "There are naturally those with extraordinary talents. There is a Nine-star Glory plane mandate sorcerer specializing in both martial arts and sorcery but it is still hard to defeat Zhuo Qing. There''s a reason why he is number one of the Dharma rank."


    "I understand, Qingxuan. Help me spread news that," Ye Futian smiled and said, "even if I ''lost'' last time at the Luo Palace, I''ve had a breakthrough in my planes. I will challenge Zhou Mu again tomorrow to continue the battle between my master, the Qin Devil, and the Art Saint. I hope the students of Donghai Academy will come witness it."


    Hearing this, Yi Qingxuan was confused. She asked, "Didn''t you say you didn''t lose last time?"


    "Since they''re saying I lost, then just play along." Ye Futian smiled confidently.


    Yi Qingxuan seemed to understand something. She glanced at the boy. "You''re so mean." Zhou Mu''s reputation would be destroyed if he was defeated yesterday!


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian called. The other glanced at him. "How''s your injury? Can you still fight?" he asked.


    Yu Sheng grinned. "No problem."


    Yi Qingxuan looked at them with sparkling eyes. She wondered what Ye Futian was planning. "I''ll go now," she said.


    Soon, the School of the Finance Star released news that Ye Futian would challenge Zhou Mu again tomorrow and invited everyone to watch. This time, Ye Futian said he would continue the past battle between the Qin Devil and Art Saint. It was clear that Ye Futian was extremely confident this time.


    The location was before the School of the Emperor Star.


    Zhou Mu''s plane was higher than Ye Futian and this time was to continue an old battle. The reputations of their masters were involved too. It was impossible for Zhou Mu to turn him down.


    Donghai Academy was bustling. The news naturally traveled to the School of the Emperor Star. This time, everyone paid attention to the battle. Even the big figures were paying attention in the background.


    ...


    The next morning, sunlight fell onto Donghai Academy. The buildings were majestic under the glow. The School of the Emperor Star seemed like the strongest of Donghai Academy and dominated the other six schools. With this background, it naturally seemed more imposing. Today, many people gathered before it early in the morning. They were waiting for news and anticipating something.


    Many years ago, two legendary figures appeared from the School of the Emperor Star. They were the summoning artist, Art Saint, and guqin musician, the Qin Devil. The two were rare geniuses who fell for the same woman. The Qin Devil won the girl''s heart but had his natal spirit destroyed and was forced away from the city.


    Many years later, their disciples were both cultivating in Donghai Academy.


    The disciple of the Art Saint who had won was still studying in the School of the Emperor Star and was cultivating with the headmaster. On the other hand, the Qin Devil''s disciple was cultivating with the headmaster of the School of the Finance Star.


    As if this was destined, the Qin Devil''s disciple challenged the Art Saint''s disciple in his master''s name. He seemed to want to reverse the past humiliation. However, Ye Futian had apparently already lost months ago at the Luo Palace. There was word that he had improved now but Zhou Mu had improved as well. Where did Ye Futian''s confidence come from?


    Finally, someone strolled down from the School of the Finance Star.


    These days, the Finance Star students had been targeted by the Emperor Star and Treasury Star but could not fight back. Now, Ye Futian had returned and challenged Zhou Mu. The Finance Star students naturally had to come support him. They began waiting since the morning. When they saw Ye Futian come down, they went to him, creating a powerful group.


    Ye Futian walked in the front. He wore all white and carried a guqin. He was easy on the eyes.


    Tang Wan had been keeping an eye on this battle. Seeing Ye Futian come out like this, she was speechless. This guy��


    Challenges happened occasionally in the academy but the attention on this duel between two Glory plane disciples was unprecedented. Tang Wan was impressed. But if the Qin Devil knew about this, he would definitely want to come watch.


    The spectators followed the group and even passersby joined in. The crowd grew bigger and bigger. The commotion was shocking. People who didn''t know about it thought that it was a fight between all seven schools.


    Finally, the giant group arrived at the School of the Emperor Star. There was a similar crowd there waiting. Many of them looked at Ye Futian coldly.


    Someone said, "A few months ago, Zhou Mu defeated him. Today, Zhou Mu can defeat him a second time. Let''s see how he''ll handle it after making such a commotion."


    The other students were all discussing this. Did Zhou Mu have the advantage or did Ye Futian have a better grasp on the battle?


    Ye Futian sat down before the school and placed his guqin before him. Soon, there was a graceful melody. Ye Futian was playing without regard to anyone else.


    In the pavilion, many big figures looked down coldly at the giant crowd. Ye Futian was just here to stir trouble.


    At this time, a group walked down from the school. Zhou Mu was one of them. His eyes were frigid. He approached Ye Futian step by step.


    The music stopped suddenly. Ye Futian looked up with clear and clean eyes at Zhou Mu. He smiled and said, "I am Ye Futian, disciple of the Qin Devil, Five-star Glory plane." Ye Futian was fighting under the name of the Qin Devil''s disciple. He had a guqin before him. The location was where the Qin Devil had once studied at. The significance went without saying. He was fighting for his professor.


    "Zhou Mu, disciple of the Art Saint, Six-star Glory plane," Zhou Mu replied coldly.


    "Please," Ye Futian said nonchalantly. Lowering his head, he thrummed the instrument strings. Music notes sounded. The strings and hearts all trembled. Since this was a fight for his professor, he would use musical spells.


    "This piece is the Decree of the General." As soon as he finished, notes streamed out of the instrument endlessly. At this moment, a beautiful image appeared in everyone''s minds. They seemed to have been transported to a battlefield. The war drums shook the sky as the soldiers went to war.


    Spiritual qi grouped around Zhou Mu. He used his finger as a brush to paint in the air.


    An invisible sound wave descended. It hit Zhou Mu in the front and knocked his painting down. At the same time, the sound wave pierced into his brain. His mind shook. Ye Futian''s music spells were able to affect him now. Compared to last time, Ye Futian''s skills seemed to have increased greatly.


    Zhou Mu''s expression grew more serious. The spiritual qi grew more terrifying. He reached out and began multitasking. Both hands painted at the same time. He created a sword with a single stroke. It whistled through the air toward Ye Futian.


    However, an invisible strength gathered around Ye Futian now. The music notes transformed into a beating war drum. It was powerful like thousands of galloping horses. The sword flew here and shattered.


    Zhou Mu endlessly created swords that flew crazily to where Ye Futian was sitting. However, as soon as they got close, they would turn to dust. The area had turned into a battlefield. Ye Futian was like the general commanding the entire army.


    As the music intensified, a shocking music note storm gathered around Ye Futian. They did not dissipate and had a terrifying power. Swords whistled and clanged. Endless swords flew toward Ye Futian. However, the people only heard the war drums shaking the earth. The ground quaked and shattered the swords.


    "Such terrifying musical spells. I don''t know if Zhou Mu''s demons will be able to resist it if Ye Futian keeps playing," someone said. The spectators could feel that Ye Futian''s music notes were still gathering and strengthening. He seemed to be gathering a military with thousands of soldiers and horses; they would shatter everything with the general''s decree.


    Finally, Zhou Mu finished. He had drawn a Golden Ape made completely out of gold. It ran toward Ye Futian. The earth shook with its steps.


    "What a strong summoned beast. Ye Futian had given Zhou Mu time for him to wildly use his spiritual qi to draw." The spectators were nervous.


    The Golden Ape stepped into the storm around Ye Futian. There were giant booms. At that moment in the battlefield made of music notes, the war drums shattered everything. Thousands of horses galloped out. Everything in the path of the music storm turned to dust. The Golden Ape cracked endlessly but, just like last time, it still kept going toward Ye Futian.


    The ending, though, was different this time.


    Ye Futian kept playing. The endless power rolled past. With a boom, the Golden Ape''s body was pulverized, turning into spiritual qi. Zhou Mu''s expression changed drastically. His life spirit appeared behind him as he continued drawing.


    "You really think you won last time?" Ye Futian said nonchalantly. His fingers moved gracefully and he stood up. The moment he strummed the strings, the boundless music storm destroyed everything as if following the general''s decree. It arrived before Zhou Mu, making it impossible for him to keep painting.

 75 The Battle of Successors, Ended with One Rod

    Chapter 75: The Battle of Successors, Ended with One Rod


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The sound of Ye Futian''s voice and the sound of guqin started simultaneously. The hearts of its listeners vibrated along with it.


    Zhou Mu, who was in the midst of drawing, lifted his head to see the storm created by the music dawning upon him. His Life Spirit roared and a wave of Spiritual Energy was released, but it was no use. The storm descended and destroyed everything in its path.


    His drawing was completely absorbed into the eye of the storm, and the Spiritual Qi in the atmosphere was flowing wildly. Then, the storm washed over Zhou Mu, which caused him extreme pain. It was as if he was a lone soldier, fighting against thousands. He spat fresh blood as his whole being was thrown back and made a harsh landing on the ground.


    Everything happened extremely quickly. Ye Futian stood up as if he was confident that the battle was already over. Only then did people break free of their dazed state and look at Ye Futian. The handsome young man stood there, his clothes blowing in the wind. The quiet, elegant young man playing the guqin just a moment ago was now unrestrained and ready to show his true potentials.


    The battle between the successors of the Guqin Devil and the Art Saint had come to an end. All those years ago, the Art Saint disabled the Guqin Devil''s powers. Now, his disciple was crushed by the powers of the Guqin Devil''s disciple. This was not a battle between equals, as the people had previously expected. What''s more, Ye Futian was at a lower level than Zhou Mu. To be able to do so, Ye Futian has surpassed so many limitations placed upon him. And also, what was the meaning behind his previous utterance?


    Among the rumors spread in Donghai Academy, there was one that claimed after acting extremely arrogant at the Luo Palace, the Guqin Devil''s disciple��Ye Futian��was defeated by the Art Saint''s disciple, Zhou Mu. This rumor was the hottest talk in town at one point. If Ye Futian had come out to try to explain at an earlier time, probably no one would have believed him, but after seeing the results of this battle, it was hard not to question its validity. This was just like the rumors regarding Hua Jieyu months ago.


    Zhou Mu''s face was as pale as a ghost. After getting himself together, he stood up. He looked at Ye Futian with an icy glare before saying, "It''s just one loss. This doesn''t determine anything. You can''t reject the results of the previous battle just because of the results of today''s battle."


    Everyone was looking at Zhou Mu. It was evident that he did not want to admit defeat.


    "How laughable," Ye Futian mocked him. "After the rumors, you really thought that you were victorious over me at the Luo Palace? Did you know that an elder specializing in Spiritual Energy attacked me from the shadows just when I was about to finish you off? It was only because of this that you were not humiliated by me right then and there."


    The crowd became rowdy upon hearing Ye Futian''s claim. An elder attacked Ye Futian at the Luo Palace and led to Zhou Mu''s ''victory''? That was a low blow.


    Rumors said that day the Art Saint, Lord Luo, and the Vice Headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star were all present. If what Ye Futian said was true, then wouldn''t that make these elders the three main suspects? If it were true, Ye Futian would have had no choice but to forfeit and leave.


    "You''re lying!" Zhou Mu did not look too good after hearing what Ye Futian had to say. He refused to believe this.


    "Preposterous!" Just then, a voice sound from behind. It was the very elder from that day at the Luo Palace. He was Vice Headmaster Han Mo of the Emperor Star school.


    "Ye Futian, even though you were victorious today, you have slandered your elders with utter disrespect," said Han Mo.


    Ye Futian lifted his head toward Han Mo. This old geezer was finally revealing his true colors.


    "Of course, I knew that it could not possibly have been you who attacked me, but just because you won''t doesn''t mean others won''t. How can this be considered slander?" Ye Futian said, holding back a smile. The bystander''s expressions all changed. There must have been a deeper meaning behind what Ye Futian said.


    Han Mo shot daggers at Ye Futian with his eyes. Ye Futian returned a calm gaze. Ye Futian was very unhappy with the School of the Emperor Star right now. He felt that this school was fake, hypocritical, overbearing, and cold.


    From allowing Mu Yunxuan to spread fake rumors regarding Hua Jieyu, to not allowing Ye Futian to enter the Emperor Star school. From siding with the Art Saint years ago in order to develop a beneficial alliance through marriage, leading to the demise of Hua Fengliu, to wanting to control all of Donghai Academy, which led to Yu Sheng being hurt.


    Although Ye Futian did not say anything, a burning rage started to grow in his heart. He was going to let it all go today. Now, he stood in front of the School of the Emperor Star, challenged Zhou Mu, and played the Decree of the General. All of this was to express his anger.


    "Lord Luo and the Art Saint are both honorable seniors, and everyone there that day was of high social status. Would it even make sense for them to make a sneak attack on a junior like you?" asked Han Mo mockingly.


    "There were many people present at the time, so I cannot pinpoint the exact identity of the culprit. However, it was possible for two eight-starred Glory Plane cultivators from the Treasury Star school to gang up on a five-starred Glory Plane cultivator from the Finance Star school, so a sneak attack from respected elders is definitely possible, isn''t it?"


    "This guy..." stated a bystander. Everyone was looking at Ye Futian. By dragging the School of the Treasury Star into the conversation, Ye Futian was really trying to pick a fight.


    "It was a student of your school who came to instigate the fight. Our students were simply giving him a well-deserved lesson. There''s nothing strange about that," said Han Mo. "You, on the other hand, have slandered your elders. If you do not give me a proper explanation, you won''t be able to get off the hook that easily."


    "Since when have my students needed to report anything to you?" a voice came from within the crowd. Pushing through, Yi Xiang looked at Han Mo and said, "Han Mo, you''re the vice headmaster of the Emperor Star school, and you''re here reprimanding a student from the School of the Finance Star? Now, that''s impressive."


    The arrival of Han Mo and Yi Xiang frightened bystanders. It seemed that things had gotten out of hand.


    "Headmaster Yi Xiang, did you not hear your student slandering his elders?" asked Han Mo. He did not seem to be afraid of Yi Xiang at all.


    "Is this true?" Yi Xiang asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "It would be easy to determine whether it is slander or not. During that fight between Zhou Mu and I, I was defeated by a conjured beast. Even though I was at a bit of a disadvantage, we can try again today."


    He looked at Zhou Mu. "Although I have made quite a bit of improvement over the past couple of months, I''m still going to draw up some conjured beasts. I won''t release my Life Spirit and will use pure martial arts tactics. If I can''t defeat you with one stack, then you can consider my words slander."


    "He''s so crazy!" Everyone was watching Ye Futian. He was going to give Zhou Mu to conjure the strongest beasts, only use martial arts tactics, and try to defeat Zhou Mu with one attack. Ye Futian was beyond crazy. If Zhou Mu lost despite all this, he wouldn''t be able to show his face around Donghai Academy. Especially since Zhou Mu never denied the rumors of him defeating Ye Futian. People took his silence as agreement.


    "Do you have any opinions about this?" Yi Xiang asked Han Mo.


    Han Mo''s expression was dark. Ye Futian has already elevated the situation to this level, he couldn''t say much about it. Han Mo looked towards Zhou Mu. Zhou Mu''s expression was even darker. Everything Ye Futian had said was an insult to him.


    "Fine." Zhou Mu took a step forward until he was directly facing Ye Futian. He released his Life Spirit and began to draw.


    Yi Qingxuan went up to collect Ye Futian''s guqin. Ye Futian silently watched as Zhou Mu drew.


    Seeing how calm Ye Futian was, it was hard to imagine exactly where he got his confidence from. He was so confident that he was going to fight with just martial arts and was going to let Zhou Mu draw freely.


    Spiritual Qi gathered at the tip of Zhou Mu''s pen. Right now, he looked so serious as he focused all his attention on his work. Gradually, it became clear to the people that Zhou Mu was drawing an extremely life-like golden dragon. It looked like it was about to fly into the skies at any moment.


    The giant golden dragon contained a frightening amount of Spiritual Qi. Zhou Mu even drew out the detailed scales of the dragon. It was so life-like and seemed to be so powerful. Onlookers began to worry for Ye Futian. Was he really going to be able to withstand Zhou Mu''s attacks by using only martial arts?


    Zhou Mu ignored everything around him and focused on his drawing. He perfected every little detail. As the disciple of the Art Saint, his natural gift was not a question. It was only because his opponent was Ye Futian that he seemed weak.


    Finally, Zhou Mu added his last stroke. An enormous golden dragon revolved around his body. The light from Zhou Mu''s Life Spirit doubled as a force field around the dragon. This made the dragon look even more menacing. It stared at Ye Futian.


    "So powerful!" Everyone was looking at the dragon and just one look was enough to give them a fright.


    Ye Futian looked calm as ever and reached out his hand. A golden orb of Spiritual Qi gathered in the palm of his hand. Slowly, the Spiritual Qi formed into a large golden rod. This was not considered sorcery, it was forming weapons from Spiritual Qi and belonged to the martial arts category.


    As soon as Ye Futian gripped the rod, a force of powerful rushed from his body. His intent of battle was shocking. An invisible force of power gathered in his body, growing stronger and stronger. Everyone could feel that the atmosphere around Ye Futian was now a little different. He was insufferably arrogant like a young war god.


    Zhou Mu made his move. He took steps forward and as if a part of his body, the giant golden dragon moved with him. A loud roar from Zhou Mu, and the mystical dragon was sent charging at Ye Futian.


    BOOM! Ye Futian also stepped forward. The ground vibrated under his feet. A frightening force gathered in his body.


    "Die!" yelled Zhou Mu in rage. The dragon was headed toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian waved the golden rod in his hand around. The Spiritual Energy became one with nature and was aimed for the golden dragon.


    The first attack of the Nine Heavenly Attacks, Genesis.


    The golden rod smashed down on the head of the golden dragon. Functioning like the sharpest weapon on Earth, the rod cut the body of the dragon in half. This scene sent a shiver down the spines of the people in the audience. The young war god was powerful as always and was going to destroy everything in his path. Even if it were a real dragon, he was going to split it in half.


    BOOM! The giant dragon exploded and the golden rod disappeared along with it. However, Ye Futian''s hand was now wrapped around Zhou Mu''s neck, lifting him off the ground.


    At this moment, Zhou Mu had a helpless expression on his face. Ye Futian lifted his head slightly and looked Zhou Mu in the eyes. "How did you defeat me last time?"


    Zhou Mu did not reply, because he couldn''t reply.


    Ye Futian turned to face Han Mo. Peacefully, he said, "This is the extent of the Emperor Star school''s genius. From this day on, there will be no more battles of the Qin Devil and the Art Saint''s successor because he, Zhou Mu, is not worthy." Finishing what he had to say, Ye Futian swung his arms and tossed Zhou Mu in the direction of the School of the Emperor Star.

 76 Block the Door

    Chapter 76: Block the Door


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everyone watched as Ye Futian tossed Zhou Mu before the School of the Emperor Star pavilion. Seeing such a talent fall to the ground, they felt unsettled. Zhou Mu, disciple of the Art Saint, was currently cultivating with the headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star. But today, he was first defeated by Ye Futian''s guqin and then wiped out by a stick. After this, there would no longer be any fights between the successors of the Qin Devil and Art Saint. Zhou Mu no longer qualified.


    The results could not be described using ''winner'' and ''loser.'' They were not even at the same level with Zhou Mu at a higher plane. Any battles in the future would be meaningless. Of course, this did not mean that Zhou Mu was not powerful. Ye Futian was just abnormal.


    At the top of the pavilion, a beautiful figure stood quietly. There was a smile in her eyes and it was breathtaking. If her father saw this, he must be very proud. However, the others'' expressions were uncomfortable and even somber. Ye Futian had said that the School of the Emperor Star''s prodigy was nothing much. The prodigy that cultivated with the headmaster of the school had been squashed.


    Ye Futian looked up to Han Mo and said, "Senior, you witnessed the battle at the Luo Palace. Do you still think Zhou Mu has the ability to defeat me?"


    Han Mo looked at Ye Futian. There was a cold glint in his sharp eyes.


    This guy doesn''t leave any dignity for others, the spectators thought. He had used his powerful talent to prove that someone had attacked him secretly at the Luo Palace.


    Han Mo, who had accused Ye Futian of slander, now looked awkward. Some people were even wondering if this event had something to do with Han Mo.


    "Perhaps you had purposely hidden your true ability that day," someone said in the group of Emperor Star students. It was Zhuo Qing��the one Ye Futian had met yesterday. He had stopped Ye Futian from going to find Hua Jieyu at the school, thus resulting in this battle.


    "Yes, perhaps I was too lowly and purposely hid my true ability and then spread rumors that I am not as good as Zhou Mu so I could slander him," Ye Futian said with a smile. Everyone became speechless. This guy was good at sarcasm.


    "Junior Ye, you are acting so arrogantly before the School of the Emperor Star and even insulted my school. What do you want?" Zhuo Qing glared at Ye Futian with burning eyes.


    Looking at him, Ye Futian smiled brightly. He said, "According to the news, disciples of the Emperor Star and Treasury Star are constantly challenging the disciples of the School of the Finance Star recently. As a member of Finance Star, I, Ye Futian, wished to see how impressive the talents of the other two schools are."


    With that, the area fell silent. Ye Futian did not come today only to defeat Zhou Mu. After clearing the Qin Devil''s reputation, he declared that he wanted to challenge the two strongest schools of Donghai Academy. He would block the door and challenge them!


    First, Yu Sheng had blocked the gate of the School of the Treasury Star. Now, Ye Futian would make camp outside the Emperor Star. He was mad!


    Han Mo''s expression darkened and he sneered. He could not believe someone would do this to the Emperor Star. He asked coldly, "How would you like to challenge us?"


    "Yu Sheng!" Ye Futian called.


    Yu Sheng was prepared. He strode out and was beside Ye Futian quickly. When the two stood side by side, the others of Donghai Academy finally realized just how outstanding these two youths were. They had just entered this year and made a name for themselves through battles.


    "I heard that a few days ago, two Eight-star Glory Planes from the School of the Treasury Star had teamed up to defeat my brother. So powerful, huh? Is there no one good enough to come out from the Treasury Star?" Ye Futian said nonchalantly. He dragged the Treasury Star in. He needed to take revenge for Yu Sheng.


    "Since he wanted to challenge us, he should have been prepared. Is he a sore loser?" a powerful student from Treasury Star replied coldly after hearing the question.


    Ye Futian glanced at the other and smirked. "If that''s the case, I''d like to witness the power of the Eight-star Glory Plane prodigies. We are Five-star Glory Planes. I''m sure the Treasury Star won''t reject our request, right?"


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were both at the Five-star Glory Plane. Those who had defeated Yu Sheng were at the Eight-star Glory Plane. They had no excuse to reject Ye Futian.


    Two figures walked out of the Treasury Star crowd. They had just come to watch and did not expect to be involved by Yu Futian. Since this was the case, they could only humor Ye Futian.


    "Leng Qiufeng from the Treasury Star."


    "Jiang Kun from the Treasure Star."


    The two stood quietly and calmly. They were both at the Eight-star Glory Plane. Leng Qiufeng was also a mandate sorcery and extremely powerful. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were powerful but they were at a much lower plane. The two from the Treasury Star were confident that if they worked together, they would definitely win.


    "I hope you will be satisfied with the loss this time." Leng Qiufeng smiled as if mocking Ye Futian. As soon as he finished, Leng Qiufeng stood behind Jiang Kun. A terrible wind appeared on him. Not only did it descend onto his body, it also fell onto Jiang Kun. Then Leng Qiufeng shot into the sky. Jiang Kun was still on the ground, shrouded in wind.


    Seeing this, Ye Futian realized that Yu Sheng''s defeat was understandable. Yu Sheng had not entered the dharma rank yet and could not fly.


    "Yu Sheng, I''ll support while you take revenge yourself," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay." Yu Sheng nodded and stood before Ye Futian. Strong wind spirit gathered around Yu Sheng, wrapping around him. A dark gold armor appeared, covering his entire body. This was the strength of his element. The wind element was Ye Futian''s.


    Aggressive power burst from Yu Sheng. He stepped forward to Jiang Kun over the shaking ground. Ye Futian followed closely. Beautiful golden wings appeared. Whish��whish�� The scary windstorm transformed into circular blades. They sliced down from Leng Qiufeng, whistling through the air.


    BOOM! Yu Sheng''s footsteps thudded on the ground. He was filled with endless power. He punched and a gold fist broke through the air, shattering the flying circular blades.


    At the same time, a terrifying thunderstorm burst from Jiang Kun at the front. The shadow of a thunderbolt appeared on his body. It transformed into a humanoid shape. The brewing thunderbolt was full of pressure.


    Feeling the pressure of the spell, Ye Futian contacted with the metal element spirit, adding another layer of armor on Yu Sheng. The next moment, the thunderbolt''s shadow descended. It fell onto Yu Sheng with destructive power. The thunder spell was able to slice someone apart with the thunderbolt''s power.


    When the spell descended, Yu Sheng''s armor was torn apart. Then it attacked Yu Sheng''s dark gold body. Electricity ran through his body. His powerful muscles trembled but his steps did not falter.


    In the air, Leng Qiufeng scoffed. The next moment, Jiang Kun was wrapped in the wind spell and flew up too.


    "Yu Sheng!" Ye Futian called. The two worked together with tacit agreement. Yu Sheng jumped and sprang into the air. The powerful momentum was paired with Ye Futian''s wind spell, helping him rush toward Jiang Kun like the wind.


    "What a joke." Leng Qiufeng looked disdainful. With his supportive control, Yu Sheng would be unable to touch Jiang Kun. Even if he was extremely strong, he would not be able to use his skills.


    Ye Futian was spiraling up as his wings flapped. At this moment, the wings began glowing green and flapped crazily in the air. With a sound like a waterfall, Jiang Kun suddenly stopped in the air. He was stunned. Looking down, he saw vines on his body. Starting at his legs, they wrapped around him.


    "It''s the wood element!" The spectators below were shaken. Since when was Ye Futian good at this?


    Leng Qiufeng''s expression changed as well. This sudden change had interrupted his rhythm. He wanted to react but saw that Yu Sheng had already arrived and sent a fist at Jiang Kun.


    Jiang Kun was not a wind elemental sorcerer and was not good at flying. He needed Leng Qiufeng''s control. How could he dodge this blow?


    There was a thud and one could faintly hear the sound of bones cracking. Yu Sheng was so strong that Jiang Kun spat out blood. Ye Futian used the vines to drag Jiang Kun back. He dropped to the ground and flung the vines. Jiang Kun smashed onto the ground, blood spurting out of his mouth. He shook uncontrollably.


    The people of Treasury Star looked at this with dark faces. They were so embarrassed.


    So violent, many people thought. Ye Futian was helping Yu Sheng vent his anger. The two Eight-star Glory Planes had worked together to beat Yu Sheng. Ye Futian was obviously pissed.


    Leng Qiufeng was stunned by this scene. He glanced at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng on the ground, his eyes turning frigid. He had never expected that Ye Futian would be a wood elemental sorcerer who specialized in control.


    "An Eight-star Glory Plane talent of the School of the Treasury Star?" Ye Futian mocked. Then he tossed Jiang Kun into the direction of his school''s crowd without looking. Instead, he looked up into the air and said coldly, "There''s another one."


    BOOM! Chaotic power burst from Leng Qiufeng''s body. A shadow appeared behind him. It was an extremely burly demon lion. It was entirely white and seemed to be made from stone. This was Leng Qiufeng''s life spirit, the Stone Lion. It contained Leng Qiufeng''s strong earth-elemental talent. It also provided him with terrible strength. Therefore, he also cultivated with martial arts. Other than that, he also had the wind-elemental talent. Thus, Leng Qiufeng was a wind and earth bi-elemental mandate sorcerer and martial artist.


    "You will pay for this." Leng Qiufeng looked down at the two. The earth element spirit gathered around him, covering his body with stone armor. A stone spear appeared in his hands.


    "He''s a lot stronger than Jiang Kun," Yu Sheng said quietly.


    "The ending will be the same," Ye Futian uttered. The Roc life spirit appeared behind him. The golden feathers had become so brilliant.

 77 Even the Score

    Chapter 77: Even the Score


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Leng Qiufeng glared at the arrogant Ye Futian. Then, Wind and Earth bi-elemental Spiritual Qi gathered in front of him. A row of stone-tipped spears appeared, encapsulating the power of the wind.


    "Attack!" Leng Qiufeng commanded the spears. In a split second, the sorceries of Wind and Earth joined together within the spears and charged towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng stood in front of Ye Futian, radiating a dim golden light. With a loud roar, Yu Sheng threw out his fists, and in the blink of an eye, the spears were destroyed.


    "Go," said Ye Futian from behind. The sorcery of Wind descended upon Yu Sheng and he raced forward. With a single step on the solid ground, his body was launched into the air at the speed of light. In the same moment, because of the aid from Ye Futian''s Wind Sorcery, Yu Sheng was able to ascend even higher into the sky and charged at Leng Qiufeng with full force. The shadows of a thousand fists approached Leng Qiufeng, ready to destroy everything in its way.


    "This power..." Everyone was speechless. A person''s gift was truly dependent on fate. If Ye Sheng specialized in Wind Sorcery, he would never have lost against his two opponents the last time.


    Yi Xiang was very pleased to see Yu Sheng attack with the battle tactics he had learned. Yu Sheng seemed to be innately suitable for cultivation in all sorts of explosive tactics.


    "Protection of Rock!" said Leng Qiufeng. A large boulder appeared in front of him. This was an extremely powerful defense spell. However, after a loud explosion, the boulder was in pieces and Yu Sheng appeared in the air above him. However, Leng Qiufeng did not retreat. Even though Yu Sheng was like a monster, Leng Qiufeng was still of a higher level than him. Plus, Leng Qiufeng''s Life Spirit was able to give him immense power.


    The image of a large Stone Lion overlapped on top of Leng Qiufeng''s figure. The spear in his hand shot towards Yu Sheng. Around the tip of the spear, collected both Wind and Earth Spiritual Qi. The shadows of the thousand fists turned into stone and dissipated into ashes upon meeting with the tip of the spear.


    Yu Sheng descended with the force of a war god. His body emanated a forceful aura, golden thorns appeared on his arms and his fist was thrown out to meet the spear. However, before the two could even meet, Yu Sheng''s arms froze. Then, the stone that had just formed on his arms were absorbed by the golden thorns. His body had turned into a sort of fearsome blackhole. Finally, as everyone watched in shock, Yu Sheng''s fist finally met with the stone-tipped spear. His fist was seemingly even more powerful and stronger than the weapon.


    BOOM! After the loud commotion, Yu Sheng, who was previously protected by the shadows of a thousand fists, was now defenseless and bleeding. Though, Leng Qiufeng''s spear was now destroyed as well. Both of the young men fell back in mid-air. Yu Sheng''s arms shook. Ling Qiufeng was not doing too well either. The force of the thousand fists transmitted through the spear on to his arms, which were now numb.


    Just then, Leng Qiufeng felt something amiss. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of gold. The audience on the ground watched, wide-eyed. They saw a figure appear behind Leng Qiufeng. Vines appeared, blocking off Leng Qiufeng''s exit. Then they began to wrap around his body rapidly.


    "Wood Sorcery, the Lock of a Thousand Vines. How could a five-starred Glory Plane cultivator create such a fearsome effect?" Onlookers watched as the vines appeared endlessly like frightening tentacles.


    Leng Qiufeng was then swept up in hurricane winds and brought higher into the sky. The powerful Wind Sorcery cut straight through the vines like a sharp blade. A sharp sound was emitted, and the jade-green vines now shone with a dim golden light. This made the vines stronger than before, but it was still no match for Leng Qiufeng''s Wind Sorcery. Many of the vines were cut through with ease. However, the relentless vines were endless and continued to creep up Leng Qiufeng''s body, wrapping him up tightly.


    Again, with the aid of Ye Futian''s Wind Sorcery, Yu Sheng was carried up to where Leng Qiufeng was. Leng Qiufeng''s expression changed and let out a scream. He struggled to get out of the vines. Yu Sheng threw his fist at Leng Qiufeng. The sloppy defense Leng Qiufeng put up was broken easily, and the punch landed on his chest.


    The vines disappeared. Yu Sheng now had Leng Qiufeng in his grasp. The two of them began to descend from the skies. Yu Sheng ruthlessly threw Leng Qiufeng into the ground. Another loud noise erupted, and the surface of the ground split open. Leng Qiufeng laid there, twitching, becoming one with the dirt on the ground.


    Ye Futian landed on the ground softly and stared at Leng Qiufeng coldly. To him, Ye Futian asked, "Does it feel good fighting two on one?"


    Last time at the School of the Treasury Star, Yu Sheng was defeated by Leng Qiufeng and Jiang Kun. Just now, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng joined hands to hand Leng Qiufeng a brutal defeat. Of course, Jiang Kun had already been defeated prior to this. Two five-starred Glory Plane cultivators challenged two eight-starred Glory Plane cultivators from the School of the Treasury Star and came out victorious.


    "Two monsters," the people commented about Yu Sheng and Ye Futian. They shook in their shoes. The strength Yu Sheng possessed was inhuman. A lot of people had disagreed when others claimed Yu Sheng may be the most gifted martial arts student in all of Donghai Academy. But after the previous battle at the Treasury Star school and today''s battle, there would not be a single person who could deny this fact any longer. Who else would possessive such explosive powers? It was not a question as to why Headmaster Yi Xiang of the School of the Finance Star, who specialized in combat, choose Yu Sheng to be his discipline.


    Ye Futian was equally as monstrous. A bi-elemental Mandate Sorcerer of Metal and Wind with a Roc Spirit. He was also a Musical Sorcerer. Furthermore, he had just revealed his gifts in the Wood element and also cultivated in martial arts. He was simply good at everything.


    Some people thought, could it be possible that Ye Futian is hiding his gifts in other elements as well? It was possible that the only person who was able to beat him in terms of elemental gifts was the girl genius from the School of the Emperor Star, Hua Jieyu. However, she would most likely be unwilling to make a move. Other than the time she was trying to get into the academy, she had not used her powers. Hua Jieyu also rarely stepped out of the Emperor Star school. The last time she came out on to the main campus was when she personally spoke up regarding the rumors about her and Mu Yunxuan.


    The School of the Treasury Star really lost all face this time, thought everyone in the crowd. They watched as Yu Sheng picked up Leng Qiufeng and threw him in the direction of the Treasury Star school. It was a direct, domineering, and slightly insulting action. It was obvious that Yu Sheng was unhappy with what had happened during their previous battle. His opponents were able to soar through the skies, while he was stuck on the ground, not even able to make contact with them.


    He was finally able to get payback today.


    "This is the capability of eight-starred Glory Plane cultivators in the School of the Treasury Star? Stop making fools of yourselves at Donghai Academy," Ye Futian said calmly. The expressions on the faces of students of the Treasury Star turned more and more sour.


    Everyone was speechless upon hearing Ye Futian''s words. He came today with revenge on his mind and was not going easy on them, whether it be the students of the Treasury Star school or the Emperor Star school. First, Ye Futian defeated Zhou Mu. Then, he assisted Yu Sheng in defeating Leng Qiufeng and Jiang Kun. What was he going to do next?


    At this moment, everyone saw Ye Futian walk to the side. He looked towards the School of the Emperor Star and said with a smile, "I came here yesterday seeking my girlfriend but Senior Brother Zhuo Qing did not allow me to enter. He told me the Emperor Star school was full of genius cultivators and that I was no match for Zhou Mu. It was because of this that I came today. Sadly, I am disappointed by Zhou Mu abilities. Now that I have proved myself to be more capable than Zhou Mu, I am curious about the abilities of these other ''geniuses''. Both Yu Sheng and myself are five-starred Glory Plane students of the Finance Star school. Would any students of the self-proclaimed top school at Donghai Academy, the School of the Emperor Star, be willing to challenge us? If any students of the same plane are willing, you may choose to challenge either one of us."


    The students of the Emperor Star school did not know what to do. Same level cultivators to fight against these two freaks? It was possible that Hua Jieyu could give it try, but her schoolmates knew things that everyone else did not. So, they knew that she would never battle Ye Futian.


    The onlooking crowd was speechless. They all shared a thought about how shameless Ye Futian was. Two eight-starred Glory Plane cultivators had already lost to Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Now, he was asking students of the same plane to challenge them. Wouldn''t that be digging their own grave? However, there was nothing that the students of the School of the Emperor Star could complain about. They were the ones who bragged about housing many genius cultivators and claimed to be the top school of Donghai Academy. Asking to challenge students of the same plane should not be considered too out of line. Also, Ye Futian''s girlfriend was in the Emperor Star school? What was going on?


    "If that''s not possible, I''ll also accept six-starred Glory Plane cultivators," Ye Futian said with a smile when he noticed that no one was willing to answer him.


    Han Mo''s expression darkened. Six-starred Glory Plane cultivator? Zhou Mu already tried. Defeated with one rod.


    "Then what about seven-starred?" Ye Futian continued, "Yesterday, Senior Brother Zhuo Qing said that the Emperor Star school was packed full with geniuses. What''s going on today?"


    Everyone turned their attention towards Zhuo Qing, only to see the normally gentlemanly Zhuo Qing with a dark face. He forced a smile and said, "Junior Brother Ye, since you''re trying to provoke my fellow schoolmates into a challenge, what''s the need to bring up planes?"


    "So, what Senior Brother Zhuo is trying to say is that I should ignore planes and fight against students four, five planes above me? Maybe even those in the Dharma Plane?" Ye Futian laughed. "Is this what the students of your school have been doing to my fellow schoolmates these past days? Why don''t you try to challenge Dharma Plane students in my school, Senior Brother?"


    Zhuo Qing had nothing to say once again. The students of the Emperor Star school all stared coldly at Ye Futian. They were getting anxious under his questioning.


    "If nobody has the guts to come out and challenge us, then I hope that the students of the Emperor Star school will stop being so brazen, coming to pick on the weaker students of my school," warned Ye Futian when he saw that nobody was going to speak up. Only when he said this, onlookers realized his true intentions: to stop the School of the Emperor Star from attacking the students of the Finance Star school.


    "I know that Junior Brother Ye possesses extraordinary gifts, and has once said that I would like to see them for myself. So, I am willing to be thick-skinned and step out to challenge you as an eight-starred Glory Plane cultivator, but if you are here simply to give empty threats, then please leave," said a figure as it stepped out. A handsome young man, one of the "geniuses" in the Emperor Star school, walked towards Ye Futian and introduced himself, "Student of the School of the Emperor Star, Mu Yunxuan. Eight-starred Glory Plane."


    As soon as he heard this name, Yu Sheng took a large step forward. His body radiated a powerful force.


    "Yu Sheng," called Ye Futian. Yu Sheng halted.


    "Let me," said Ye Futian. Yu Sheng nodded and retreated.


    Ye Futian looked at Mu Yunxuan. A sarcastic smile spread across his face and he continued, "You''re not just thick-skinned. I feel ashamed simply attending the same academy as you."


    "You!" Mu Yunxuan broke his fa?ade immediately. His expression darkened.


    Ye Futian stood quietly and a powerful aura emanated from him. His clothes moved without wind. "Since you have the guts to step up, then I''ll also settle the incident of you spreading rumors about my girlfriend. Let''s even the score today," said Ye Futian calmly. After he spoke, there was silence.

 78 Face It Holding Hands

    Chapter 78: Face It Holding Hands


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Mu Yunxuan had hurt Ye Futian''s girlfriend while spreading rumors? Earlier, Ye Futian had also said that his girlfriend was from the School of the Emperor Star. Thinking of the rumors that had spread around Donghai Academy earlier, everyone stared at Ye Futian.


    Months ago, that fairy-like figure had walked down from the School of the Emperor Star and announced to the entire academy that there was nothing between her and Mu Yunxuan. She had said that Mu Yunxuan could not even be compared to the one she liked.


    They had thought about whether someone that talented really existed in the academy. Today, Ye Futian had blocked the gate and challenged the School of the Emperor Star. He was so mad. With what he just said to Mu Yunxuan, it was easy to link the two events.


    Everyone''s hearts trembled. They slowly looked over toward the School of the Emperor Star. Behind all the students, they saw a beautiful figure standing quietly at the high point. She stood alone, and it seemed that wherever she was, everything else would lose color.


    Now, the beautiful figure moved. She slowly walked down. The other students quickly moved aside and watched her. There was some yearning in their hearts but they knew it would be an impossible dream.


    Hua Jieyu walked down the steps and entered the battlefield. She walked past Mu Yunxuan. The boy looked to the side at the scene. There was lust deep in his eyes. Every time he saw this beauty, his heart would be shaken but he did not exist in her eyes. She had even embarrassed him in front of the entire academy. Hua Jieyu stood before Ye Futian. Her eyes gazed at him without blinking.


    "Jieyu, fight with him," Han Mo said behind them. His expression was so dark and gloomy. However, Hua Jieyu completely ignored him. She kept staring at the youth''s figure, thinking how impulsive he was.


    "Why are you looking at me like that?" Ye Futian stared back at Hua Jieyu and shrugged.


    "Why do you think?" Hua Jieyu said sharply. She sounded angry but was also whining. Though she was glaring at Ye Futian, there were rich emotions inside her beautiful eyes.


    Many people felt their hearts breaking. There had been rumors before but they were only rumors. Now, they personally witnessed the fairy of Donghai Academy talk and look at Ye Futian like a little girl. It was a peculiar feeling. With just one sentence and one glance, they experienced the feeling of dating. Many felt moved but sadly, the voice and eyes were for Ye Futian, not them.


    "Didn''t I say that I''ll announce it to Donghai Academy?" Ye Futian said with a smile. "You''re so pretty and everyone keeps thinking about you. It pisses me off. Today''s the best chance to tell them that you''re mine and they can just be jealous."


    Many faces became long at this. Hearing Ye Futian''s words, they suddenly wanted to beat him up. This b*stard was doing it on purpose. Hua Jieyu was the girl of their dreams!


    "Idiot," Hua Jieyu reprimanded, still glaring. After that, she continued forward. When she was beside Ye Futian, she reached out gently. Then, under everyone''s eyes, she grabbed Ye Futian''s hand to announce their relationship publicly.


    Hua Jieyu turned to the side and tilted her head up to look at Ye Futian. A smile bloomed on her face; it was so intoxicatingly beautiful.


    "Are you satisfied now?" Hua Jieyu smiled gently. Since Ye Futian chose not to keep it a secret, she was willing to face it with him. No matter what would happen in the future, they would face it together, hand in hand, just like now. Minister Zuo had said that she had the fate of an empress. She did not believe in fate. Even if she had this fate, she would change it, she believed.


    Seeing the smile on the girl''s face and those gentle words, Ye Futian''s smile was also warm. The most beautiful promise was no better than that. The most beautiful girl was no better than the Fox''s smile. So what if he had seen a girl even more beautiful at Mount Tianyao? His godfather had said that his woman would be the empress of the world. If that really happened, his fox''s temperament was enough to rule and impress the world.


    "Yes, very satisfied." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. This feeling was amazing.


    "Hey, are you guys done?" someone finally called out, feeling tortured by the public display of affection.


    "I feel like I just got dumped. My heart hurts," someone muttered, a hand to his chest.


    "Psh." In the Finance Star crowd, Yi Qingxuan, who was standing beside Yu Sheng, laughed out loud. Ye Futian was seriously going full out with his affection. However, it was beautiful. Yi Qingxuan knew that even though they were smiling and holding hands, there was a heavy burden on this relationship. But despite it, they would face it together.


    Thinking of this, Yi Qingxuan also reached out and touched the arm beside her.


    Yu Sheng glanced at her and asked, "What''s wrong?"


    Yi Qingxuan looked up him with her pretty eyes. Yu Sheng scratched his head. He did not understand the girl, making her so angry she stomped on Yu Sheng''s feet. The boy blinked and looked away. Just as Yi Qingxuan fumed, a big muscular hand wrapped around her small hand. In an instant, her heart seemed to melt and she smiled like a flower. It seemed that this guy was not so insensitive. He had learned a lot from Ye Futian.


    In the direction of the School of the Emperor Star, a beautiful figure was watching the two holding hands with smiling eyes. It was Shu Yuyan. She was the one who understood Hua Jieyu the most in the school. Only she knew how much Hua Jieyu really cared about the boy. Jieyu had overlooked all the talents in the School of the Emperor Star and become nervous because of the boy''s every action. She was practically a fairy but would become an ignorant little girl once Ye Futian was mentioned.


    However, the others were not so happy. Ye Futian had become to disgrace them. He had defeated Zhou Mu and humiliated the school. Now, he had snatched away their goddess��the top beauty of Donghai Academy. Their hatred toward Ye Futian was obvious.


    "B*tch," a dissonant voice rang out. Mu Yunxuan''s face had darkened to the extreme. He looked menacing. His love for Hua Jieyu was no secret because he had not rejected it when Han Mo wanted to use him for the rumors. The relationships between people were strange. When enough people spread the rumors, the other would take notice. Maybe it would become true. However, he never expected that Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian would have been dating already and be so in love.


    Hua Jieyu had felt disgusted from the rumors, thus leading to everything else.


    When the goddess he adored publicly humiliated him, telling him to scram, he had endured it. But now, seeing Hua Jieyu act affectionately to Ye Futian with his own eyes, he finally could not take it anymore. Evil thoughts burst within him and he uttered a word he should not have.


    Even if Ye Futian had come to mess with the School of the Emperor Star, it was a just fight. However, when Mu Yunxuan, star of the school, said that word to Hua Jieyu, the starlet, it was grating to the ear.


    Many cold stares turned toward Mu Yunxuan. They were filled with hatred. Though they were envious of Ye Futian, they could feel the true love between the two as they stood together, so the people still felt happy for them deep down. However, Mu Yunxuan''s curse had revealed his personality. Just as Ye Futian had said, cultivating with someone like Mu Yunxuan was a disgrace.


    Hua Jieyu''s expression changed. No woman could take being insulted with that word, let alone someone like Hua Jieyu. Ye Futian''s heart twinged and felt a chill. However, he repressed his anger and said gently, "Leave it to me."


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu nodded and stepped back.


    When Ye Futian glanced at Mu Yunxuan, his eyes were filled with a terrifying coldness and murderous intent.


    "Ye Futian, disciple of the School of the Finance Star, Five-star Glory Plane, now challenges Mu Yunxuan. Life and death, will you accept the challenge?" Ye Futian said coldly. Everyone''s hearts shuddered. Ye Futian had challenged him to a fight of life and death.


    Crazy, everyone thought. However, if they had a lover like Hua Jieyu, they would not allow anyone to insult her either. No wonder Ye Futian was furious.


    Mu Yunxuan clenched his fists with a sneer. Ye Futian, a Five-star Glory Plane, dared to start a life and death challenge with him? Earlier, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had worked together to defeat two Eight-star Glory Plane students. In his opinion, Ye Futian was the reinforcement while Yu Sheng was the most powerful. If a Five-star was willing to fight, what could an Eight-star Glory Plane like Mu Yunxuan fear?


    "Prepare to die." Mu Yunxuan''s expression was so cold. As soon as he finished speaking, a gust of violent wind gathered around him. Then his eyes turned gold; they were extremely sharp.


    Ye Futian cast his life spirit. The Golden Roc appeared and it was beautiful. At the same time, there was a terrifying spiritual Qi windstorm. It transformed into a golden cane in his hand. Seeing it, many people shivered with fear. It was the one that had defeated Zhou Mu with a pure martial arts attack.


    Now, Ye Futian was going to fight for life or death. He would obviously fight at a different level from before.


    His wings flapped powerfully and he instantly shot to the sky. The spiritual Qi of wind was on him, transforming into a spell. He could fly with the golden Roc alone but now, he added the wind spell to it. His speed was terrifying.

 79 I Will Take His Life Now

    Chapter 79: I Will Take His Life Now


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless eyes landed on Ye Futian who was up in the air. At this moment, he looked magnificent. He was a handsome young man to begin with. Now that the Golden Roc has been released and wings had appeared on his back, Ye Futian seemed to be basking in a divine light. In his hand was a golden rod, and he was bursting with power. Perhaps, if he gave it all he got, Ye Futian would really be capable of fighting against Mu Yunxuan, despite the three-plane difference between the two. Everyone around shared this thought as they watched Ye Futian challenge one of the School of Emperor Star''s genius cultivators.


    Mu Yunxuan''s golden pupils narrowed on Ye Futian. Then, his Life Spirit was released. A golden Demon Cat appeared. Its eyes were even more demon-like than those of Mu Yunxuan. Those eyes had the ability to make people feel uncomfortable when looked at.


    A golden storm gathered in front of Mu Yunxuan and formed sharp golden swords, long and thin. As the swords circled Mu Yunxuan, a low whistling of the wind was heard. This was no ordinary Metal Elemental Sorcery, but an extreme control of the Metal Spiritual Qi.


    Mu Yunxuan was mainly a Mandate Sorcerer of the Spirit element. His spiritual energy had a much stronger control over Metal Spiritual Qi than most people. Even a common nine-starred Metal Sorcerer would not be able to control Metal Spiritual Qi like Mu Yunxuan could. With this extraordinary ability, Mu Yunxuan did not even need to cultivate in martial arts. His powers in the element of metal were sufficient enough to attack and defend.


    "Mu Yunxuan is definitely more powerful than Leng Qiufeng. Will Ye Futian really be able to withstand this battle?" asked someone in the crowd. Witnessing the release of Mu Yunxuan''s powers had many people lose the confidence they previously had on Ye Futian. The golden storm surrounding Mu Yunxuan was too frightful. The sharp swords revolved around him, controlled as if they were toys.


    Han Mo stood quietly in the School of the Emperor Star and observed. Obviously, he could see just how gifted Ye Futian was, but the young man now stood against the school, so they must get rid of him. Since Ye Futian personally proposed a life or death battle, it saved the school a lot of trouble.


    "Since you''re asking for it, I''ll let you die," Mu Yunxuan said with a cold demeanor. Just as he finished his sentence, the swords around him whistled through the wind and shot towards Ye Futian. In perfect unison, these swords were much more powerful than those drawn by Zhou Mu. After all, there was a huge difference in regards to the planes Zhou Mu and Mu Yunxuan were in.


    The golden rod danced in Ye Futian''s hand. He tried to take a step forward when a large force erupted, and the wings appeared on his back. Just like a flash of lightning, Ye Futian shot up into the sky.


    Mu Yunxuan hmphed and directed his attention up above. The swords immediately altered their route to continue in their attack on Ye Futian. Even though Mu Yunxuan did not specialize in the element of wind, he was not afraid to face a sorcerer who could fly.


    Ye Futian moved at an incredibly fast speed. His every movement was graceful like a real roc. He zipped through the clouds in the sky but the swords followed relentlessly.


    At this moment, the force building up in Ye Futian''s body was growing stronger. An equally strong force from the golden storm chased after him. The golden rod he held grew thicker.


    "Until when do you plan to keep running away from me?" Mu Yunxuan asked coldly. Immediately after he spoke, Ye Futian appeared in the air right above him. Ye Futian was no longer dodging the attacks. He held the enormous golden rod and struck downward. Just then, the atmosphere around and even the world seemed to be shaken up. Onlookers almost could not see Ye Futian''s figure. To them, there was only the shadow of a rod coming down from the heavens to wipe out everything below.


    The ferocious swords were no more, turned into ashes by the rod. Mu Yunxuan lifted his head and saw Ye Futian coming for him. After this quick glance, the Demon Cat behind him had a fierce look in its eye. The crazed golden storm recollected into a giant sword. With a scary glint in his eyes. Mu Yunxuan screamed, "KILL HIM!" The giant golden sword shot upward into the sky.


    BOOM! The rod and the sword collided. The golden sword had been destroyed. A powerful force pushed Mu Yunxuan back, but he managed to stop Ye Futian''s attack. It halted in mid-air. The force was still there. Ye Futian''s golden wings flapped and he flew in the skies. Suddenly, the force within began to build up once again, exceeding the prior.


    Mu Yunxuan sensed what was happening, and the look on his face changed. He put out both of his hands. The golden storm started once more and formed a pattern, shielding him. At the same time, strains of golden silk sliced through the air, attacking Ye Futian. This spell was protecting and attacking all at once.


    Ye Futian remained emotionless. He soared through the air and then formed into lightning, hitting down on Mu Yunxuan again. Mu Yunxuan''s spell, Winding of a Thousand Silk Strains, advanced towards Ye Futian, but a golden light barricaded him, not leaving space for anything to get past.


    Finally, Ye Futian descended upon Mu Yunxuan. Ye Futian attacked with the second attack of the Nine Heavenly, ready to destroy everything in his way.


    BOOM! Mu Yunxuan''s golden pattern exploded and a powerful force forced him to slide backward on his own two feet.


    Right now, the expression on everyone''s face has changed. They were utterly shocked.


    What kind of battle technique was this? It was so domineering, wiping out everything in its way. It was as if one attack could kill any enemy you pleased, not leaving any survivors.


    Ye Futian was truly a young war god at this moment. Not only did his powers not diminish after two attacks from Mu Yunxuan, but he got even stronger. Upon sensing the crazed energy gathering within Ye Futian, everyone from the School of the Emperor Star had a change in expression. Even Vice Headmaster Han Mo did not look too well. Ye Futian''s second attack with the rod was obviously stronger than the first. If there was another even stronger attack, there was no way Mu Yunxuan would be able to withstand it.


    A prepared Ye Futian advanced. He unleashed his power, which caused Mu Yunxuan to blanch. With a loud scream, My Yunxuan used Metal Spiritual Qi in a spell which summoned a large ancient bell to encapsulate himself. He had given up on attacking and focused solely on his defense.


    Ye Futian charged ahead at full speed and delivered his third blow. Without any hesitation, the golden rod struck the ancient bell. The bell rang and then cracked. What followed were the blood-curdling screams of Mu Yunxuan. After the rod broke through the bell, it landed on Mu Yunxuan, throwing him onto the ground. His body slid across the ground, and blood flowed from his mouth. In an instant, the color in his face was gone. It was obviously, Mu Yunxuan could no longer battle.


    "This..." the people did not know what to say. Their hearts pounded in their chest. Ye Futian was too violent. Looking at his figure, Ye Futian looked majestic and furious. The aura around him made it clear that anyone who tried to stop would only have one result��death.


    "He''s so powerful." Many people were excited by this scene. Ye Futian was a great example of how a true man should act.


    Just then, many people remembered Hua Jieyu''s words. She had said that Mu Yunxuan was not worthy of being compared to the person she liked. A lot of people doubted her words. Was there really someone like that at Donghai Academy? Maybe she was simply blinded by love. However, when the person she liked faced Mu Yunxuan in battle and completed destroyed him despite being three planes lower, everyone finally understood that Hua Jieyu had not been exaggerating. Whether it be giftedness or actual ability, Mu Yunxuan was truly unworthy of being compared to Ye Futian. Perhaps only a person like Ye Futian was suited to stand beside the goddess Hua Jieyu.


    As Ye Futian approached Mu Yunxuan, one step at a time, many from the School of the Emperor Star had a change in expressions. This battle was a matter of life or death. Mu Yunxuan had already agreed to these terms.


    Mu Yunxuan held himself up with his hands on the ground as he looked up at Ye Futian. Blood dripped from the corners of his mouth. With a crazed look in his eyes, he stared at Ye Futian and said, "This is the School of the Emperor Star, you dare to commit such a sin here?"


    "Get down on your knees and apologize. I will spare your worthless life then," Ye Futian said to Mu Yunxuan coldly.


    Mu Yunxuan looked even more crazed now. Ye Futian wanted him to kneel down and apologize?


    "Are you done with this nonsense?" Han Mo approached. His aura was forceful as he stared at Ye Futian.


    "This is a battle to the death. Have you been watching, Senior?" Ye Futian lifted his head to look at Han Mo.


    "You are standing on the Emperor Star school''s territory," said Han Mo. Suddenly, Ye Futian began to laugh. Mockingly, he said, "If it were Mu Yunxuan who was victorious today, you probably would not hesitate to kill me."


    Naturally, Han Mo had nothing to say to that.


    Seeing the Vice Headmaster step in, Mu Yunxuan let out a laugh. "You can''t kill me now, Ye Futian. Do you really think that you and that b*tch will have a happy ending?"


    Ye Futian looked down at him. Mu Yunxuan was laughing like a madman. He had obviously been deeply affected by his defeat today. He deepened his voice and said, "With those looks, that b*tch will definitely end up as someone else''s plaything in the future."


    "You''re calling out for death." Ye Futian clenched his fist around the golden rod. Then, he lifted his arm, ready to strike down at any moment.


    "Vice Headmaster," Mu Yunxuan called to Han Mo as he turned to look at the elder. Han Mo took another step forward. The headmaster spoke, "Ye Futian, do you want to die?"


    Ye Futian reached his left hand into his shirt and pulled out a badge. He tossed it to Han Mo. Han Mo scrunched his face as he caught the object. Upon realizing what he had in his hands, his expression fell. He mustered in a low voice, "The Decree of the Minister."


    "Minister Zuo has said, seeing the badge is the same as seeing him. People from the seven schools of Donghai Academy have witnessed our battle to the death today. So, I will take his life now." The golden rod Ye Futian held in struck down. Mu Yunxuan was horror-stricken. As he watched the rod come down, several thoughts crossed his mind. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but never got the chance to.


    BANG! The golden rod came down directly through Mu Yunxuan''s head.

 80 Plan

    Chapter 80: Plan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was dead silent in the School of the Emperor Star. Countless gazes fell on Ye Futian and the figure who was unmoving on the ground beside him��Mu Yunxuan.


    That strike had not only hit Mu Yunxuan''s body. It seemed to have hit everyone''s hearts, making all of them shudder. Mu Yunxuan, top student of the School of the Emperor Star, the disciple of Han Mo, had just been killed before the school.


    Ye Futian had really dared to strike.


    Han Mo looked up and glared at Ye Futian. When he received the minister''s degree, his heart had wavered and he had hesitated but then his disciple was killed.


    "With Minister Zuo supporting you, you committed murder in Donghai Academy. Good job, Ye Futian," Han Mo said coldly, tossing the minister''s decree to him.


    "Senior, you can ask your own conscience who wants to kill whom?" Ye Futian replied indifferently. He was very sensitive and could sense how Han Mo and Mu Yunxuan wanted to kill him. Even so, he had never planned on doing this. Mu Yunxuan should not have angered him so many times.


    Hua Jieyu had confessed to him before leaving Qingzhou City that she would wait patiently for him in Donghai Academy, worry over his every move, and face everything with him. But Mu Yunxuan had insulted her like that and Ye Futian could not allow it.


    "Clean it up," Han Mo said coldly. He turned and walked toward the School of the Emperor Star. The others quickly carried Mu Yunxuan away. Many glared at Ye Futian before scurrying away.


    Today, the School of the Emperor Star had lost all dignity. In this fight of life and death, prodigy Mu Yunxuan was killed on the spot by Ye Futian.


    The students of the other schools studied Ye Futian. He was too crazy. His talent was intimidating and after he left with Minister Zuo, he had received the man''s favor. He even had the minister decree; it was obvious how highly the minister thought of him.


    In Donghai Academy, barely anyone''s talent could be compared to him. There was Yu Sheng, a natural-born warrior, and Hua Jieyu, the starlet of the School of the Emperor Star. The former was Ye Futian''s best friend who had entered the school with him and seemed to be very obedient; the latter was his girlfriend.


    Now, Hua Jieyu walked to Ye Futian''s side. She lightly pulled on his hand. Ye Futian glanced over and saw her.


    She asked quietly, "Why were you so brash?" She obviously understood that Ye Futian had done so because he was angry for her. She hated Mu Yunxuan but she also knew that Ye Futian would become the enemy of the Emperor Star because of this.


    "If anyone says that to you again, I''ll act the same way," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Hua Jieyu lowered her head. She felt warm and fuzzy inside. "I''ll go bid farewell to my grandmaster. I won''t cultivate here anymore."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. "What about the future?"


    "I have you, don''t I?" Hua Jieyu looked at him with a smile.


    "Okay." Ye Futian returned the smile.


    "I''ll go now," Hua Jieyu said quietly. Ye Futian nodded and let go. Hua Jieyu walked toward to the school to bid farewell with her teacher. Since her lover was now against the Emperor Star, she naturally could not remain there.


    Ye Futian turned and walked toward the School of the Finance Star. His fellow disciples all looked at him with some respect. Today, Ye Futian had helped them vent their anger.


    "Headmaster, I caused trouble for you," Ye Futian said to Yi Xiang.


    "You already killed him. There''s not much to think now," Han Mo said nonchalantly. "If you didn''t kill him, he would kill you. Just as you said, if you had lost before, Han Mo would definitely want you dead and I wouldn''t be able to save you either. So, instead of letting them think about how to deal with you, challenging them straightforwardly isn''t that bad."


    Ye Futian eyed Yi Xiang. His headmaster was so agreeable this time.


    "Let''s go." Yi Xiang began walking away. Ye Futian walked beside him and the other students followed behind. Seeing them leave, the spectators dispersed as well though they still had not calmed down. They had a feeling something would happen in Donghai Academy soon. It was not just a sudden conflict between the School of the Emperor Star and Ye Futian but a long-time rivalry. However, they finally realized just how strong the youth was. If he could survive, he would definitely become something impressive.


    On the way back to their school, Yi Xiang, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Yi Qingxuan walked in the front. Yi Xiang said lightly, "Your reason of challenging the Emperor Star wasn''t so simple today."


    Ye Futian looked up. Yi Xiang continued, "Forcefully defeating the disciple of the Art Saint, blocking their gate, revealing your talent, and expressing your attitude toward Hua Jieyu�� Are you trying to prove something to the Nandou clan?"


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. Yi Xiang said, "With the talent you showed off today and the minister''s decree, the Nandou clan will definitely pay attention now."


    "Headmaster, I don''t want that either." Ye Futian shook his head and smiled wryly. Since the School of the Emperor Star had suspected his relationship with Hua Jieyu, the Nandou clan obviously did too. It was better to make things clear now since it would come out sooner or later.


    Ye Futian looked forward and said, "I don''t expect to be accepted by the Nandou clan but I do hope I can win some time for Fox. After a few years, it won''t matter if they agree or not."


    "Well, you''re confident," Yi Xiang said lightly. "What about your other motives? Just confess."


    "Uh��" Ye Futian looked at Yi Xiang. Was this man really so sensitive?


    Yi Xiang sneered and said, "Since Minister Zuo gave you the minister decree, his attitude toward you is obvious. He must have told you to go to the royal city. That''s why you''re not scared about making trouble here. You can just leave, after all. Thus, you decided to make it even bigger and help the Finance Star. Is it to thank me?"


    Ye Futian looked at him, speechless. The man really knew his stuff.


    "When are you leaving?" Yi Xiang asked.


    "Minister Zuo wants me to attend next spring''s Tingfeng Banquet," Ye Futian said.


    "Stay in the School of the Finance Star and cultivate obediently. Don''t go out anymore and I''ll take you there personally next year," Yi Xiang said, facing forward.


    Ye Futian looked at the serious side profile and smiled. This old guy always had a stern face but after interacting more, Ye Futian realized he was pretty lovable too.


    However, they did not know that things were never as one expected.


    ...


    A while after Ye Futian returned to the School of the Finance Star, Hua Jieyu went over as well. Seeing the figure that appeared in the yard, Ye Futian smiled gently.


    Hua Jieyu seemed down. She walked over to Ye Futian and looked at him with her pretty eyes.


    "What''s wrong?" Ye Futian asked quietly.


    Hua Jieyu reached out a slender arm and grabbed Ye Futian''s hand. Her voice was low. "After I leave, Grandmaster will be alone again."


    "Silly girl, Grandmaster will be fine," Ye Futian said softly. Thinking of the old man at the School of the Emperor Star, he felt bittersweet.


    The old man''s smile was so benevolent. He could feel his grandmaster''s love towards him and Hua Jieyu in his gaze. Though he was old, he still had a scholarly and refined aura. He did not seem to like how the School of the Emperor Star had become. Staying there by himself must be lonely.


    "Okay," Hua Jieyu said with reddening eyes. "Let''s go visit him whenever we can, alright?"


    "Of course. I still have to learn to play the guqin from him," Ye Futian said with a smile. However, he knew that there would be fewer and fewer chances. With Grandmaster''s age, no one knew how many more years he could live. But it was this old man who had taught him pieces such as the Decree of the General.


    "Also, you''re not allowed to leave me anymore." Hua Jieyu stared deeply at Ye Futian.


    "Weren''t you the one who left me? When did I ever leave you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You did." Hua Jieyu glared at him.


    Ye Futian sighed. He couldn''t argue with Jieyu''s logic. "Does that mean you''re planning on being with me now?" Ye Futian''s eyes brightened.


    "You still want to shake me away?" Hua Jieyu whined.


    "Oh no, seems like I won''t be able to talk to pretty girls anymore," Ye Futian muttered.


    "You��" Hua Jieyu stomped her feet and kicked Ye Futian lightly.


    "Why do girls always like to do that?" Ye Futian mumbled but realized it sounded wrong so he quickly shut his mouth.


    Then he discovered that Hua Jieyu was smiling at him. "Really? Who else does that?"


    "No, I''ve seen Qingxuan kick Yu Sheng like that." Ye Futian pointed at the two figures in the near distance.


    "I''ve never done that." Seeing Hua Jieyu look at her, Yi Qingxuan glanced over with a smile. She was not going to take responsibility for this.


    Ye Futian''s face darkened. Yi Qingxuan was such a bad friend!


    Looking back, he realized Hua Jieyu was still looking at him. Helpless, he looked up to the sky and said quietly, "The weather is so nice today. We should take a nap."


    With that, he walked toward his room. Hua Jieyu blinked and followed. Ye Futian turned around and asked her, "Together?"


    Hua Jieyu halted. When Ye Futian smiled proudly, she suddenly grinned. "Sure."


    As she spoke, she caught up to him. It was Ye Futian''s turn to blink in shock. Happiness had come so suddenly!

 81 Masteress

    Chapter 81: Masteress


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the room, Ye Futian followed behind Hua Jieyu as he watched her with a glint in his eye.


    "Pretty nice environment," said Hua Jieyu with a smile after checking out the room.


    "Yeah, perfect for resting," Ye Futian said, nodding.


    Hua Jieyu walked to the bed and took off her outerwear, revealing her curvaceous figure. She then turned to look at Ye Futian. Smiling, she asked him, "Do I look good?"


    Ye Futian blinked. Why did this feel like d��j�� vu? Ye Futian had a bad feeling about what was about to happen but nodded anyway. "Very good," he said.


    "Then I''ll rest and you can keep looking," Hua Jieyu chuckled mischievously. She took off her shoes by the bed and laid down, hands behind her head. She continued to chuckle at Ye Futian.


    "That''s my bed, I should be able to sleep on it too, right?" Ye Futian watched the beautiful girl in front of his very eyes. How could she tease him like this?


    "Just you try," said Hua Jieyu. She was still smiling but Ye Futian looked sad and pitiful. "Fox, what you''re doing is wrong."


    Hua Jieyu stretched her captivating body out on the bed. Her every movement was torture for Ye Futian.


    "I''m sleeping," she said. Hua Jieyu turned away from Ye Futian and pulled the blanket over her body. This time around, Ye Futian had nothing to look at, just a hint of her curvy figure under the blanket.


    Ye Futian did not know whether to laugh or to cry. He was definitely going to get payback on this tempting vixen.


    With light steps, Ye Futian walked to the side of the bed and sat down on the floor. Softly, he spoke, "Fox, do you feel extra warm sleeping here with me?"


    Hua Jieyu did not reply.


    "I used too much energy in battle today. I want to lie down and rest but the floor is too cold. Why don''t I get in bed?" Ye Futian said, full of confidence. Still no reply.


    "Don''t worry. I won''t touch you, I''ll just lay next to you," he continued.


    "Okay, since you''re not answering I''ll take that as silent consent," said Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian kept talking to himself. He got up off the ground and sat on the bed. Hua Jieyu made no movements to stop him. He had finally succeeded in getting onto the bed next to her. "So comfy," he said.


    A moment later, he spoke again, his eyes were twinkling. "Wow, it''s so fragrant. Fox, you smell so nice.


    "Darn it, it feels kind of cold. It would be so nice to have a blanket." Ye Futian was still talking to himself. As he spoke, he tugged lightly at the covers and gently pulled it on himself. The two of them were not under the same covers.


    Right now, Hua Jieyu, who still had her back to Ye Futian, was already flushed red. Her beautiful eyes kept blinking. She could feel the warmth radiating from his body.


    "How is it still cold under the covers. Are you cold, Fox? I should just hold you," he said. Hua Jieyu felt his arm wrap around her waist gently, sending a shiver down her back. Didn''t he say that he was just going to lay down next to her and not touch her? He was cold?


    "Fox, why are you shaking? Is it because you''re too cold? I should hold you tighter then," Ye Futian said. Hua Jieyu felt the arm around her waist pulling her in further. The red in her face spread to her ears, her neck. She was so shy.


    "Stop bullying me," she spoke softly.


    Hua Jieyu''s soft voice reached Ye Futian''s ears and he smiled. He held on to the girl in his arms tightly, taking in her sweet scent. His nose was in her hair. He closed his eyes to savor this moment. Quietly, he said, "I wouldn''t have the heart to bully you. Wait for me to marry you."


    "Okay, I''ll wait for you," Hua Jieyu responded, nodding slowly. Her shaking body calmed and she slipped into a deep sleep with a smile on her face. She felt safe in his arms.


    Fox, I will definitely marry you, Ye Futian thought to himself while he held her warm body against his own.


    While the loving couple shared this sweet moment, the happenings at the School of Emperor Star spread wildly. In a short while, all of Donghai Academy knew of the story.


    Ye Futian, the disciple of the Guqin Devil, brutally defeated the disciple of the Art Saint, Zhou Mu. Then he crashed the School of the Emperor Star and joined hands with Yu Sheng to defeat two eight-starred Glory Plane cultivators from the School of the Treasury Star. After all that, Ye Futian announced to everyone that Donghai Academy''s top beauty, Hua Jieyu, was his girlfriend. The couple revealed their relationship hand in hand.


    Mu Yunxuan, an eight-starred Glory Plane cultivator in the School of the Emperor Star, got jealous and insulted Hua Jieyu, angering Ye Futian. Thus, Ye Futian challenged Mu Yunxuan to a battle to the death, and eventually defeated him with ease. Finally, with the Decree of the Minister in hand, Ye Futian slaughtered Mu Yunxuan right in front of the headmaster of the Emperor Star school.


    The seven schools of Donghai Academy were stirred up in absolute shock. Everyone was in disbelief. They had no idea that boy-genius Ye Futian, who made a name in Donghai Academy for himself by fighting, was this powerful. In a couple of years, he may even be more powerful than the Guqin Devil was in the past.


    ...


    It was now dusk. Ye Futian''s room was quiet and warm.


    In her sleep, Hua Jieyu had unknowingly turned over to face Ye Futian. Her soft body laid quietly in his arms. At this time, she opened her eyes. Her long eyelashes fluttered as she observed Ye Futian. "Aren''t you going to get up?


    "No, I''m going to continue sleeping until the sun rises tomorrow," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "You wish! You rested during the day, so you have to cultivate during the night," said Hua Jieyu, escaping his embrace. She got out from under the covers and sat up on the bed. Her hair was messy but it only made her more enchanting. She was so beautiful that it hurt to look at her.


    "Fox, I could just eat you up," Ye Futian muttered. Hua Jieyu blinked and flushed red. Smiling, she said, "You can try."


    "I''m really going to do it," said Ye Futian. He tried to make a move. His hands ready to grab Hua Jieyu.


    A slender leg swept toward him and Ye Futian flipped off the bed.


    "Are you trying to murder your husband?" Ye Futian sat up on the ground and asked her sadly. Hua Jieyu got off the bed and chuckled at him. She seemed proud of her actions.


    "Ye Futian," called a voice from outside. It was Yi Qingxuan. Ye Futian was upset to be interrupted at this moment.


    "I''m sleeping!" he replied.


    "Ye Futian, hurry out!" she continued to shout from outside his room. Ye Futian reluctantly stood up. What did this girl want from him?


    "Hua Jieyu, are you here?" another voice rang out from outside. Hua Jieyu froze. Then, she began to panic. She looked at Ye Futian and began to straighten out her hair and put on her outerwear.


    "Who is that?" Ye Futian whispered to Hua Jieyu.


    "My mother," Hua Jieyu replied in the softest manner.


    Ye Futian turned to stone and jumped when he processed what she had just said.


    Oh no, this was bad.


    Moments later, the two of them left the room. Outside, they saw a few people. Headmaster Yi Xiang was also here. He stood not far away from the rest.


    Standing in front of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu was a beautiful woman. She looked to be around 30-years-old. Her whole being radiated elegance. One look at her and Ye Futian knew who she was. No wonder Hua Jieyu looked the way she did. This women in front of him must have been an extreme beauty in her youth. Her beauty plus Hua Fengliu''s good looks, it was no surprise that their daughter was such a beauty.


    To this day, Ye Futian had not found a man whose looks could compare to that of Hua Fengliu, other than himself.


    "Mother," Hua Jieyu spoke softly. Ye Futian glared at Yi Qingxuan. Why hadn''t she notified him earlier?


    "Masteress," Ye Futian greeted the beautiful woman in front of him.


    Nandou Wenyin eyed her daughter''s messy hair then looked at Ye Futian. It was difficult to determine her thoughts through her eyes because they remained emotionless. To Ye Futian, it was like waiting to be sentenced.


    To his master''s wife, Fox''s mother, Ye Futian could not act out no matter how arrogant he was.


    "Qingxuan, let''s go," Yi Xiang called out to his daughter. Yi Qingxuan and Yu Sheng bother nodded and left with the headmaster. The only people left standing outside were Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Nandou Wenyin, and Nandou Wenshan, who stood behind his sister.


    "How is your master doing?" Nandou Wenyin suddenly opened her mouth to speak. She didn''t question Ye Futian about what happened in the room but instead asked about Hua Fengliu. Her voice was crisp and comfortable.


    "Master is doing well in the Guqin Gardens. He just misses you, Masteress," answered Ye Futian.


    "He has Tang Lan to take care of him. So of course, he''s doing well," said Nandou Wenyin. She sounded so calm. Ye Futian could feel sweat drip down his forehead. Was this how all jealous women acted?


    "Master initially had no intentions of staying, but now that it is inconvenient for him to move around by himself, he needs someone to take care of him. Plus, Ms. Tang Lan was very adamant about him staying, so he had no choice but to accept her offer. The first day we arrived in the City of Donghai, Master brought me to the Nandou Palace. He pointed at the inside and told me that Masteress lived there and that he wanted to go in to see you," Ye Futian explained. Nandou Wenyin observed Ye Futian for a while, and from the look in his eyes, she decided that he did not seem to be lying.


    After that, Ye Futian noticed that the look in her eyes had softened.


    Nandou Wenyin looked at Hua Jieyu and asked her, "You like him?"


    "Yes," nodded Hua Jieyu.


    "Your father and I were the same in our youth, but you know how that ended. If something happens in the future, will you regret this?" Nandou Wenyin asked her daughter.


    The young woman shook her head.


    "Silly child," Nandou Wenyin''s voice was soft and gentle. She sighed and turned to Ye Futian. "You took advantage of the challenge against the School of the Emperor Star to announce your relationship with Hua Jieyu. Did you do it on purpose so the Nandou family would see?"


    "Masteress, I had no other choice. Even if I didn''t admit it, the Nandou family probably already guessed as much," Ye Futian answered.


    "You''re even more arrogant than your master," said Nandou Wenyin. "I''m taking Jieyu home."


    "Mother." Hua Jieyu looked at her mother.


    Nandou Wenyin ignored her and continued to look at Ye Futian. "Come to our place for a visit tomorrow."


    Ye Futian was frozen in shock upon hearing her words. Quickly, he broke out into a smile. "Thank you, Masteress!"


    Hua Jieyu was just as surprised. It seemed like her mother did not object to their relationship.


    "Hey kid, you''re pretty gifted," Nandou Wenshan said suddenly. He walked closer to the three and smiled at Ye Futian.


    "Senior, was it you who tried to warn me that day at the Luo Palace?" asked Ye Futian. After eliminating the chance that it was Vice Headmaster Han Mo of the Emperor Star school, Ye Futian always wondered who could have possibly warned him that day. Seeing Nandou Wenshan now, he had a realization.


    "Why? Have you antagonized everyone in the Nandou family? I''m Hua Jieyu''s blood uncle," Nandou Wenshan said while staring at Ye Futian.


    "Oh." Ye Futian held in a smile and nodded his head. Then, he said rather loudly, "Greetings, Uncle!"


    "Shameless," Nandou Wenshan reprimanded him jokingly. Afterward, the Nandou siblings led Hua Jieyu away.


    As they were leaving, Hua Jieyu kept looking back at Ye Futian. She did not want to leave him.

 82 Betrothal

    Chapter 82: Betrothal


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Hua Jieyu left, Yi Xiang and the others returned to the yard.


    "Going to Nandou tomorrow?" Yi Xiang asked.


    "Were you eavesdropping?" Ye Futian looked up in shock and asked.


    "You were speaking so loudly. There was no need to eavesdrop," Yi Xiang said indifferently. Ye Futian made a face at this. "I''ll take you there tomorrow," Yi Xiang said.


    Ye Futian finally smiled. "Headmaster, you really do see me as a disciple."


    "Don''t overthink. Your master stole one of my students who still won''t return to the right path. Yu Sheng listens to you too so you have to live well for now," Yi Xiang said and then left.


    Ye Futian was speechless. He knew that Yi Xiang thought highly of him but refused to admit it. He had a bad temper as well. Thankfully, Ye Futian was not his son-in-law.


    "You''re really going?" Yi Qingxuan asked, looking at him. She felt like it would lead to trouble.


    "Even Masteress told me to go. She won''t try to hurt me. Anyway, I have Minister Zuo''s decree too. Even if the Nandou clan wants to kill me, they won''t do it inside their home and your father will protect me on the way. Nothing bad will happen."


    Ye Futian was very clear. Minister Zuo had said that he was favored by the ruler of Nandou nation. Minister Hua controlled the military but was equal to him. Even though he was kind to Ye Futian, someone so powerful was definitely intimidating. When he came to Donghai Academy last time, the big figures of the seven schools all had to bow down to him.


    "Then, be careful," Yi Qingxuan told him.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded.


    Yu Sheng said, "I''m going with you."


    "I''m going to go see my girl. What are you going for? Stay here and look after your own girl." Ye Futian glared at him.


    Yu Sheng glanced at Yi Qingxuan. He scratched his head and said, "Oh."


    When Ye Futian said ''girl,'' Yi Qingxuan saw that Yu Sheng glanced at her. She blushed and ran away."


    "Yu Sheng, it seems like you''ve got everything down. Nice." Ye Futian looked at his friend, laughing.


    "No." Yu Sheng smiled a little and turned away. Looking at his backside, Ye Futian smiled. He couldn''t believe this guy knew how to be shy.


    ...


    The next day, he arrived at the Nandou clan. This was a lord mansion with centuries of history. It felt somber.


    Centuries ago, the pioneer of Nandou nation had walked out of here. He was a true king but after him, none of the Nandou descendants could rival him in glory and they finally lost the throne.


    Two figures appeared outside. Yi Xiang personally saw Ye Futian to the gate and he said, "I will wait for you outside.


    As the headmaster of the School of the Finance Star, he had nothing to do with the Nandou clan so he clearly could not go in. He only came because he was worried Ye Futian would run into danger on the way. He no longer had to worry after Ye Futian stepped into Nandou''s territory.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly and walked forward. He gazed at the mansion, feeling butterflies in his stomach. The first day he arrived at Donghai City, his teacher had brought him here and told him he must conquer it in the future. He had to help Hua Fengliu enter confidently to bring his wife out. However, neither of them expected that he would become involved with the clan so early due to his relationship with Hua Jieyu.


    Smiling, Ye Futian lifted his feet and walked toward the mansion. The guards seemed to know who he was. They let him enter without stopping him.


    The path led straight into the mansion. Ye Futian advanced forward. Figures flashed in the mansion, seemingly to go report his entrance. After a short while, Ye Futian realized that there were many people around him. They were all young and glared at Ye Futian with animosity. Some were also curious.


    They all knew that this guy before them was the disciple of the Qin Devil. His teacher had snatched Nandou Wenyin; now, he had snatched Hua Jieyu��the most skilled woman of the Nandou clan, unmatchable in both talent and beauty.


    Under this situation, even if they knew how brilliant Ye Futian was, many of the Nandou clan still hated him.


    Of course, some girls also thought deep down that he truly was handsome. Hua Jieyu probably didn''t like him just for his talent.


    In the mansion, a beautiful figure ran over. Seeing Ye Futian, her eyes brightened. She stopped before Ye Futian and said softly, "You''re here."


    "Yeah." Ye Futian smiled. Hua Jieyu smiled sweetly as well. She reached out and took Ye Futian''s hand. She was telling the Nandou clan her attitude and determination.


    Ye Futian was touched. He knew how much courage the action required. He grasped the hand tightly and they walked forward together.


    This scene made many uncomfortable and unhappy. This b*stard, they thought, he''s holding hands with our most talented woman.


    It was not just the younger generation either. As they walked forward, many seniors looked unhappy as well. However, no one stopped them. Apparently, they had already walked hand in hand at the School of the Emperor Star. Stopping them now was meaningless. They would let the clan leader decide.


    Hua Jieyu brought Ye Futian to a courtyard. Nandou Wenyin and Nandou Wenshan were both there. They had prepared a meal. It was clear that inviting Ye Futian today was Nandou Wenyin''s idea.


    "Masteress, uncle," Ye Futian greeted them.


    "Come sit down," Nandou Wenshan said with a smile. Ye Futian nodded; he and Hua Jieyu sat before the table.


    "I heard that they all know now?" Nandou Wenyin asked Hua Jieyu.


    "Yes. The way here was filled with people." Hua Jieyu nodded lightly.


    "Let''s eat," Nandou Wenyin said. Her motive was just that: invite Ye Futian here to express her attitude. In the past, she had been forcefully separate from Hua Fengliu. Now, her daughter was about to step onto the same path but she hoped the ending would be different.


    Hua Jieyu put some food onto Ye Futian''s plate. Ye Futian smiled warmly and tasted the food. Then he looked up at Nandou Wenyin and said, "Your cooking is so good."


    Nandou Wenyin glanced at Ye Futian. She said, "I heard from Jieyu that her father really likes you. After seeing you, I understand why. You two are the same type of person. Perhaps he sees himself in you."


    Nandou Wenshan smiled too. He said, "Indeed, he and Fengliu both have faces that women can''t reject. No wonder both Jieyu and her mother have fallen so hard."


    "Professor is much better than me," Ye Futian said, lying against his conscience. He had to preserve Hua Fengliu''s ego before his wife.


    "No, you''re wilder than he was," Nandou Wenyin said. The boy was not even 17-years-old and yet, he had already announced to the entire academy that Hua Jieyu was his. This was not something an average person would do. Wenyin knew how talented her daughter was. The average person would be intimidated but instead, Ye Futian had called her his. He had even killed the prodigy of the School of the Emperor Star in front of everyone."


    "His talent is better too," Nandou Wenshan added. "Ye Futian, thank you."


    Ye Futian glanced up in shock.


    "You don''t know how Wenyin had been living these years," Wenshan said with a smile. "She''s like a zombie every day. When she heard that Hua Fengliu had returned to Donghai City, she finally came back to life. After seeing you at the Luo Palace, I guessed that you have a special relationship with Jieyu. I told her and she started paying attention to you. Yesterday was the first time she stepped out of the mansion all these years."


    Ye Futian gazed at Nandou Wenyin. He could guess how deep her relationship with Hua Fengliu was.


    "Masteress, I''ll treat Fox well in the future. I''ll have my master come get you too," Ye Futian said.


    "Where did you get the nickname ''Fox'' from?" Nandou Wenyin glared.


    Ye Futian chuckled awkwardly. Hua Jieyu also glared at him and said, "Mother, the first time this mean guy saw me was when I first entered Qingzhou Academy. He said that this doll looked so sinful at 12-years-old that I''ll definitely become a fox in a few years."


    The two Nandou siblings were taken aback. Nandou Wenshan smiled after a while and said, "You were already so inappropriate at 12. You truly are better than your professor."


    "I wasn''t wrong," Ye Futian muttered awkwardly. He gave Hua Jieyu a look; the girl smiled at him mischievously.


    "Wenyin, I heard you''re better now," a voice traveled from outside the courtyard. Then they could hear various footsteps walk toward here.


    Nandou Wenyin looked in that direction. After a bit, a group of people came in. At the head was the clan leader, Nandou Tai. Nandou Ku stood beside him. He studied Ye Futian with a sharp expression.


    "Uncle," Nandou Wenshan rose and greeted him.


    Nandou Tai nodded. He scanned Ye Futian and said with a smile, "You must be Ye Futian, Hua Fengliu''s disciple."


    "Greetings, senior," Ye Futian stood up and said. No matter what, he could not be impolite.


    "The heroes come from the youths. I heard that you are unrivaled at the School of the Emperor Star and are even favored by Minister Zuo. You have surpassed your master," Nandou Tai said with a smile. "Do not mind the grudges of the past generation. I heard that Hua Fengliu isn''t well these days. If there''s the chance, please tell him to come visit. You and Jieyu are good friends so you can come visit in the future as well. I''m sure Wenyin will like it."


    Ye Futian was a little shocked. How could the Nandou clan be so agreeable? But also, what did he mean by saying Ye Futian and Jieyu were ''good friends''?


    "Uncle," Nandou Wenyin stood up and said to Nandou Tai, "Jieyu is almost 17 now and has someone she likes. They are both in love. I am planning on betrothing Jieyu to Futian and arranging this marriage. Uncle, what do you think?"

 83 They Have Arrived

    Chapter 83: They Have Arrived


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Upon hearing these words, Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian both looked at Nandou Wenyin in surprise.


    Masteress wants to betroth Hua Jieyu to me. Ye Futian''s heart warmed at the thought of this. Today was only his second encounter with Nandou Wenyin, but he also understood that the main reasons behind her decision were because of Hua Fengliu as well as Hua Jieyu''s feelings for himself. Ye Futian''s gifts did not play an important role in Nandou Wenyin''s decision making.


    Nandou Wenshan was also shocked but recovered quickly because he understood that his sister had been living with the regrets of her past and did not wish for her daughter to go down the same path. Now that Ye Futian revealed that he was highly capable and even had Minister Zuo on his side, the Nandou clan would definitely take Ye Futian into consideration for Hua Jieyu. Nandou Wenyin wanted to take this opportunity to get their betrothal settled in case anything changed in the future. When she extended her invitation to Ye Futian the day before, she had already made up her mind.


    Nandou Tai and the rest stared at Nandou Wenyin collectively. Someone spoke, "Wenyin, don''t you think you''re making a rash decision?"


    "It''s true that he presented his capabilities at Donghai Academy, but what of it? It could simply mean that the people of the School of the Emperor Star are too weak. There are tons of highly gifted young men within the Nandou clan. Why should we allow Hue Jieyu to be betrothed to him?" asked another person.


    Everyone took their turn in making comments on the subject. Many people had a thing or two to say in disapproval of betrothing the most outstanding young woman of the Nandou clan to the disciple of the Guqin Devil.


    "Wenyin, you heard the people. Jieyu is still young, there is no rush to make such a decision," said Nandou Tai.


    "I''m simply saying they should be engaged. I wasn''t suggesting that they should be married right away," replied Nandou Wenyin. She stood firm on her decision. To be honest, it would not be strange for a girl of Hua Jieyu''s age to be married anyway.


    "This is still too hasty," said Nandou Tai, shaking his head.


    "Jieyu''s father is Futian''s master, so obviously he would not object. I am Jieyu''s mother and I also support this. Jieyu and Futian are dedicated to each other and are deeply in love. So, why is this a hasty decision?" questioned Nandou Wenyin. She did not sound too happy.


    Nandou Tai''s expression darkened. He stared at Nandou Wenyin and said, "So, what you''re saying is, Hua Jieyu''s marriage has nothing to do with the Nandou clan?"


    Nandou Wenyin retorted, "And what Uncle is insinuating is that Jieyu''s marriage should be decided by the Nandou clan and has nothing to do with me, her own mother? In the past, because my parents have already passed, Uncle made decisions for me. Now, even though I''m still well and alive, Uncle wants to make decisions for my daughter?"


    Nandou Wenyin knew a thing or two about the clan''s plan on setting her up in a marriage of convenience all those years ago. She was not going to allow them to do the same to her daughter.


    "Wenyin, you''re out of line," an elder reprimanded. "Is this the attitude you use when speaking to the clan leader?"


    "Miss Wenyin, is it simply because he is the disciple of the Guqin Devil?" asked Nandou Ku. "Are you trying to have your daughter fulfill the dreams you were unable to?"


    Ye Futian looked at Nandou Ku. This was the man who stalked Hua Jieyu to the Guqin Gardens. He had also told Ye Futian that he could not be compared to the Art Saint''s disciple, Zhou Mu.


    "Watch your mouth! This is not a place for you to speak," Nandou Wenyin said to Nandou Ku.


    "I understand that Miss Wenyin is of nobility. You carry the blood of your ancestors. You have inherited the royal bloodline. The same can be said for Miss Jieyu. It is because of this that her marriage cannot be determined so hastily. Even though the Guqin Devil''s disciple is incredibly gifted, it doesn''t mean anything. There are tons of genius cultivators out there. There are many just in the Nandou clan, but it seems that Miss Wenyin never took that into consideration," said Nandou Ku.


    Realization flashed through Ye Futian''s eyes. From Nandou Ku''s words, Ye Futian predicted that Nandou Wenyin was the direct descendant of the person who established the Nandou Nation. To say that they have inherited the royal bloodline meant that Nandou Wenyin and Hua Jieyu were actually the princesses of the Nandou clan.


    "What you said is correct. The battle at Donghai Academy doesn''t mean anything. I am willing to test his true abilities." At this moment, a member of the Nandou clan stepped forward. The young man looked at Ye Futian. "How does a battle sound?"


    Ye Futian glanced at the young man and chose to ignore him.


    "What do you mean by this?" the young man glared at Ye Futian.


    "Step down," ordered Nandou Tai. The young man retreated into the group. Nandou Tai spoke again, "Wenyin, it is exactly because your parents left you at an early age that I was forced to take over as the clan leader. I have the responsibility to take care of you guys. I know that you hold a grudge against me for what happened in the past, but we can''t change what has already happened. I am willing to let go of the past and might even think about allowing you to reunite with Hua Fengliu in a couple of years, but regarding Jieyu''s marriage, will you allow me to make the decision?"


    "You''re only now considering Hua Fengliu?" asked Nandou Wenyin. Her demeanor was cold. Hua Jieyu was incredibly gifted and carried the hopes and dreams of the entire Nandou clan. Plus, Ye Futian who was the Guqin Devil''s disciple, also possessed incredible gifts. He also had Minister Zuo to back him up. Nandou Tai had to know that some things could not be changed. Some things are inevitable. The only way future events could be altered is if Nandou Tai broke off relations with Hua Jieyu and at the same time, had Ye Futian killed. However, it was obvious that Nandou Tai could not do either of these things.


    "I will make the decisions regarding Hua Jieyu''s marriage." Nandou Wenyin was not going to give up. She was not going to let the clan sacrifice her daughter as they had done to her.


    "How presumptuous!" yelled Nandou Tai. More and more people of the Nandou clan gathered behind their leader. At this moment, Ye Futian realized how lonely Hua Jieyu and her family were among the huge Nandou clan. Their family used to be the most distinguished bloodline but was now the most isolated.


    "Masteress, maybe we should give the clan leader a little more time to think about this matter. Jieyu and I aren''t in a rush," Ye Futian spoke. In this situation, it was not a good idea for Nandou Wenyin to go against the entire clan. What Ye Futian needed was time.


    Nandou Wenyin averted her attention to Ye Futian. He bowed to her and said, "Masteress, Jieyu, I''m going to leave now. I''ll come visit again when I get the chance." He then turned to Nandou Tai and the rest of the group. "Excuse me."


    Ye Futian began to make his way out. The clan made way for him. One of the younger clan members mocked Ye Futian. "He''s probably just afraid to lose. He won''t live up to his reputation."


    "I heard that he does what he wants at the academy, but looking at him now, he doesn''t look all that mighty," someone else chimed in.


    Ye Futian smiled but chose to ignore them. Fighting someone from the Nandou clan would only add fuel to the fire.


    After Ye Futian left, Nandou Wenyin and Nandou Tai were still in a stand-off.


    "Wenyin, I think you should take some time to cool your head," said Nandou Tai.


    "There''s no need. This is my final decision, I''m not going to have a change of heart," she replied calmly.


    "Talk some sense into your younger sister," Nandou Tai said to Nandou Wenshan. Then, he turned to leave.


    The crowd dispersed. As Ye Futian made his way to the exit of the Nandou Palace, people either challenged him to battle or insulted him. Everyone had an opinion about Ye Futian. He ignored all of them and left with Yi Xiang.


    After Nandou Tai led the crowd away, Nandou Wenyin frowned and said quietly, "In the past, he tried to use me to get close to Minister Hua, but now even though Ye Futian is in Minister Zuo''s good graces, he won''t let Hua Jieyu marry him. Is it purely because he is Hua Fengliu''s disciple?"


    Nandou Wenshan also frowned. There did seem to be some contradicting points in Nandou Tai''s decision.


    "Mother, there is something that I forgot to tell you," said Hua Jieyu. "The other day, the clan leader invited Minister Zuo over to tell me my fortune. The minister agreed to his request and said that I was destined to be an empress."


    "Tell your fortune?" Nandou Wenshan was shocked. "Minister Zuo is an astrologer?"


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded her head. Nandou Wenyin stood frozen in place. She then turned to her brother and asked, "What do you think of this?"


    "So, this was the reason why his Majesty has such great trust in Minister Zuo," Nandou Wenshan murmured to himself. "I once read an ancient text about astrologers. They are extremely rare and possess the ability to tell a person''s fortune. However, this ability is highly dependent on the astrologer''s own powers. Based on Minister Zuo''s powers, by empress, he could have meant a title of courtesy or a queen. Besides, astrologers can tell fortunes but cannot see the future. A told fortune can be changed."


    What Nandou Wenshan did not know was that Minister Zuo did have doubts on the day he told Hua Jieyu''s fortune. However, he only told her that she was destined to be an empress after she had asked about Ye Futian. In reality, the fortune Hua Jieyu was told consisted of a biased prediction from Minister Zuo.


    Hua Jieyu nodded. She also believed that her fortune could be changed.


    ...


    After Ye Futian returned to Donghai Academy, he put himself on lockdown to focus on cultivating. Even after he had demonstrated his gifts and also brought out the Decree of the Minister, the Nandou family clan was still conflicted on allowing him to be with Hua Jieyu. Since things have come to this, the only thing Ye Futian could do was to become even stronger. He was going to become so powerful that he wouldn''t even need to seek the clan''s approval. When spring arrived next year, he would head to Nandou Nation''s Imperial City and attend the Tingfeng Banquet with Hua Jieyu. They were going to heal Hua Fengliu.


    The days passed but Ye Futian has not set foot outside of the School of the Finance Star. His powers were increasing day by day.


    Meanwhile, Donghai Academy had actually become more peaceful since Ye Futian''s battle. The schools of the Emperor Star and the Treasury Star stopped picking fights with the School of the Finance Star. That day, the two schools were completely humiliated by Ye Futian. They did not have the nerve to look for trouble at the Finance Star school anymore.


    However, everyone in Donghai Academy already knew that the School of the Emperor Star was not going to let this go so easily. Perhaps this was the peace before the storm.


    Countless rumors circulated around the campus. They said that the School of the Emperor Star wanted to control all of Donghai Academy and that the seven schools were no longer going to stand together.


    In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the year. It has almost been one year since Ye Futian arrived in the City of Donghai. He has already broken into the six-starred Glory Plane in both martial arts and the art of sorcery. But Ye Futian did not slow down his pace in cultivation. The Glory Plane was still too weak for the Nandou Nation standards. He hoped that he would be able to reach the Dharma Plane quickly and be able to find his place in the Nandou Nation.


    While Ye Futian cultivated quietly, all officials from the schools of the Emperor Star and the Finance Star arrived at the entrance of Donghai Academy, including the two headmasters. Everyone at the academy was frantically trying to guess who they were welcoming. What kind of people would warrant such a big welcome?


    Finally, a group of people traveling on beasts arrived. This scene was even more powerful and shocking than the time Minister Zuo arrived!

 84 Gathering of Heroes

    Chapter 84: Gathering of Heroes


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The group of figures who descended in Donghai Academy had a strong presence. At the front were a middle-aged man and a young man. The middle-aged man wore a silvery white robe that dazzled. His eyes were spirited and filled with an imposing manner when he scanned the crowd. He was like an important figure who could sentence others to death at a whim. He was awe-inspiring just standing there. The youth had an even more impressive aura. His eyes were like stars and there was a sharpness to him as if no one could get in his way.


    "Minister Hua," everyone greeted and bowed. Even the headmasters of the School of the Emperor Star and School of the Treasury Star bowed.


    The middle-aged man was Minister Hua of the Nandou Kingdom. He looked at everyone with his imposing gaze. Then he pointed at the youth and said, "This is His Highness, the Crown Prince."


    Everyone''s heart shuddered. They had felt something when they saw how extraordinary the youth was. Hearing Minister Hua, they realized that this was the legendary Crown Prince of Nandou Kingdom.


    The Emperor had many children but he had chosen his heir early on. No prince could fight with Luo Junlin for the throne.


    His name was Junlin. It meant that the king would rule over the world. This seemed like a disrespectful name but it had been given by the Emperor personally. One could see how much the Emperor liked this prince. Everyone in Nandou Kingdom knew that Luo Junlin would be the next ruler. No one doubted this.


    "Crown Prince," everyone greeted and bowed reverently. No one expected that the Crown Prince would come with Minister Hua. If that was the case, everything was determined already.


    Luo Junlin nodded casually. He strode forward and the men of the two schools made way for him.


    "Junior, let''s go," Minister Hua walked up and said to the headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star.


    "Senior, after you," the headmaster said politely. Then the group entered Donghai Academy.


    News of Crown Prince Luo Junlin''s arrival quickly spread throughout the academy. The powerful students of all seven schools went to meet him. The School of the Finance Star had conflicts with the Emperor Star but Yi Xiang went too. He was only a headmaster, after all, and had to greet the Crown Prince and Minister Hua.


    It caused a ripple through Donghai Academy. After the peace and quiet of the past days, had the storm finally come? The School of the Emperor Star and School of the Treasury Star had been low-key these past months. It seemed that they''d been waiting for this step and had planned this early on.


    All the headmasters left the School of the Emperor Star after bowing to the Crown Prince and returned to their own schools. Then another news spread throughout the academy.


    Minister Hua had said that he wanted to see the cultivation progress of the students. He ordered Donghai Academy to hold an Assembly of the Seven Schools three days later. He and the Crown Prince would observe it.


    This news caused an uproar in Donghai Academy. Everyone could feel that there was an ulterior motive behind the assembly. It might have something to do with the recent rumors.


    The School of the Emperor Star was unsatisfied with all seven schools being equals.


    . . . . . .


    In the School of the Finance Star, Ye Futian was practicing his instrument in his courtyard. Not only would the piece help his musicality, it also cultivated his mind. He had locked himself up these past months to cultivate without disturbances. Now, Yi Xiang came over. When Ye Futian finished the piece, he looked up and saw that Yi Xiang had furrowed brows. He asked, "Headmaster, did something happen?"


    "Yes." Yi Xiang nodded. "The School of the Finance Star might not exist anymore."


    Ye Futian stared but the man continued, "Minister Hua and the Crown Prince came to Donghai Academy earlier. They went directly to the School of the Emperor Star and ordered that we hold an assembly in three days. With Minister Hua and Luo Junlin''s support, no one can stop the changes in the academy."


    "What do you plan to do?" Ye Futian didn''t try comforting him. Since Yi Xiang said this, it meant that he was powerless.


    "Donghai Academy''s seven schools were created to be different clans," Yi Xiang said. "However, this is less and less clear. Now, they are all becoming like true schools. The School of the Finance Star is especially like this but the School of the Emperor Star seems to want to return to clans. If this is the case, I naturally will not stay. I''m telling you this because if the Emperor Star takes control, you would be unable to stay as well. But if you leave, Han Mo might deal with you."


    Ye Futian understood this. He''d wanted to cultivate quietly and go to the Imperial City next spring. He didn''t expect this sudden change of Donghai Academy.


    "It''s okay. I have you and Minister Zuo''s minister decree. There''s nothing to be scared of. As long as I don''t look for trouble, Minister Hua can''t hurt me himself, right?" Ye Futian chuckled. Minister Hua wouldn''t ruin the relationship with Minister Zuo without a reason.


    "You''re clever. Cultivate here and do not worry about the assembly. Don''t participate either," Yi Xiang advised. Ye Futian nodded. He knew that the assembly was not the time for him to show off.


    News of the Assembly of the Seven Schools spread throughout Donghai Academy using the shortest time possible. Then it even spread towards Donghai City with terrifying speed. Even many big figures of Donghai City were invited. The School of the Emperor Star stated that they welcomed everyone to come as spectators. This showed the citizens that something big would happen in Donghai Academy. Excitement bubbled through the city. Countless people discussed the event on the streets and in taverns, talking about the legendary Crown Prince.


    Many wanted to see with their own eyes how amazing the Crown Prince was. Apparently, he had already reached the pinnacle of Dharma and had unparalleled talent. There were also rumors that he had twin spirits and no one in Nandou could beat him. He was born to be king, destined to be king. None of the other princes even had the courage to compete with him. They could only try to become close to him and be a Lord in the future. No one dared to have any other thoughts unless they wanted to die.


    One could imagine the furor if someone like him came to Donghai City.


    The three days passed in a blink. That day, the sun shone brightly. Countless people from Donghai City gathered outside the academy to watch the assembly. The big figures had all arrived. Many of them had brought their children too, especially daughters. The reason went without saying. Though the possibility was low, they could become the empress in the future if they caught the Crown Prince''s eyes. He didn''t have a wife yet.


    Lin Xiyue came too with her father. Stepping into Donghai Academy, she studied the place. He was cultivating here and she wondered how he was doing.


    Lin Xiyue didn''t know about all the things that had happened. Ye Futian was now infamous in Donghai Academy but his fame was restricted to the academy. Unless they were like the Nandou clan who knew from paying attention to Hua Jieyu, no one knew what had happened.


    The important figures of Donghai City wouldn''t care about a youth of the academy.


    "Are you thinking of him?" Xiao He smiled and asked.


    "Shut up." Lin Xiyue glared with her pretty eyes.


    "He was so handsome at the Luo Palace." Xiao He chuckled while Lin Xiyue just smiled and nodded. The youth''s performance at the Luo Palace was truly eye-catching.


    "Zhou Mu is also cultivating here. I wonder if they''ll run into each other," Xiao He said.


    "Zhou Mu?" Lin Xiyue murmured. She wondered if he could defeat Zhou Mu now.


    "But no matter how they are, they can''t be compared to the Crown Prince. You''re so pretty. Do you think he''ll notice you?" Xiao He continued.


    Lin Xiyue ignored her. She hurried to catch up with her father and continued into the academy.


    In the other direction, Mu Yunqing and Mu Yunni were with their father Mu Hong. The man smiled and said, "No wonder Donghai Academy is the home of geniuses and talents. It''s filled with vitality. How have you two been performing?"


    "Pretty good. We''re still working hard," Mu Yunqing answered.


    "Good." Mu Hong nodded. "The Crown Prince himself is here today. If you have the chance, you two must perform well."


    "Yes," Mu Yunni said. However, the two siblings looked uncomfortable. Their experiences that year had actually been horrible. It was all due to someone but they were too embarrassed to tell their father.


    "Back in the day, this academy had many impressive figures. The Art Saint, the Qin Devil, and I all came from here." Feeling nostalgic, Mu Hong smiled, saying, "The Art Saint is now renowned in Donghai City while the Qin Devil is disabled. I wonder where he is now and how his disciple is."


    Thinking of how the Qin Devil had wanted to bring his disciple to him, he smirked. Today was the gathering of the heroes. People like the Art Saint were high above while the Qin Devil was nowhere to be seen.


    . . . . . .


    It was a different scene in the School of the Emperor Star.


    Chief of the East Sea Prefecture, Xia Feng, knelt on the floor while Minister Hua and the Crown Prince sat before him. Usually, Xia Feng would not be like this. However, he was in trouble now and only Minister Hua could save him.


    "Why does Minister Zuo want to kill your son?" Minister Hua asked.


    "Because of the Qin Devil''s disciple," Xia Feng cried. "Back in the day, the Art Saint had powerfully destroyed the Qin Devil''s life spirit. Now, his disciple has returned. He is violent and aggressive, looking down on everyone. Minister Zuo wishes to punish and kill my son, Xia Fan, because he has a conflict with Ye Futian." He vaguely knew the relationship between the Art Saint and Minister Hua so he knew what to say.


    "Valued by Minister Zuo, possesses the minister decree, and killed a student of the School of the Emperor Star�� I''d like to see him," Crown Prince Luo Junlin said.


    Minister Hua said, "You will see him at the assembly."


    "Yes." Luo Junlin nodded. He stood up and said, "Let''s go."

 85 The Assembly of Seven Schools

    Chapter 85: The Assembly of Seven Schools


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The halls of the seven schools emptied as everyone gathered at the central square of the main Donghai Academy campus. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were not among them. They remained in their dorm.


    Just then, Headmaster Yi Xiang arrived. He was not alone. Behind him, several people followed. Ye Futian was surprised at the sight but quickly recovered. He walked up to the group with a smile. "Master, Ms. Tang Lan, what are you guys doing here?"


    "Tang Wan relayed your message to me. Things are about to change drastically at Donghai Academy. We came because we were curious what will become of the academy," answered Tang Lan. Ye Futian had asked Tang Wan to help relay Headmaster Yi Xiang''s message to Tang Lan.


    Tang Lan looked over at Yu Sheng. "So, you''re my Junior Brother now."


    Yu Sheng smiled shyly and greeted her, "Senior Sister."


    "Umm..." something felt wrong to Ye Futian. "Our relationship has gotten so complicated. Doesn''t this mean that Yu Sheng is technically my senior? This won''t do!"


    "Forget about that." Tang Lan stared at Ye Futian. "I heard you''ve been really cocky since you started attending the academy. You crashed the party at the Luo Palace, beat up Zhou Mu as well as students from the Emperor Star school. You even went to the Nandou Palace. Daring fellow."


    Ye Futian chuckled. It was only a given that Hua Fengliu and Tang Lan kept tabs on everything that happened at Donghai Academy.


    "Did you see your masteress?" Hua Fengliu asked.


    "Yes, I did, Master. Masteress hasn''t forgotten about you," said Ye Futian. After he replied, he felt a chill. He turned to see Tang Lan smiling at him. He shut his mouth immediately. Life was so hard.


    "I''m going to go see your grandmaster," said Hua Fengliu. Ye Futian glanced at Yi Xiang and heard him say, "The Assembly of the Seven Schools is about to begin. I have to head over now, but I''m sure the School of the Emperor Star is already empty. You can take your master there."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. He stepped forward to put Hua Fengliu on his back. Wind Sorcery surrounded and carried them into the sky.


    In the air, Hua Fengliu questioned Ye Futian again, "Your masteress, is she doing well?"


    "Yeah, she just misses you. After meeting me, she said that you have a good eye to pick such an outstanding disciple," Ye Futian replied with a smile. He did not tell Hua Fengliu what Nandou Wenshan had told him. If Hua Fengliu knew that Nandou Wenyin spent the past years like a living corpse he would definitely be very upset.


    "You''ve become more thick-skinned in our time apart. Your masteress didn''t kick you out the door for acting this way?" Hua Fengliu made a lighthearted joke. He was already used to Ye Futian''s shamelessness.


    "Something like that could never happen! Before I left, Masteress even said she would betroth Hua Jieyu to me," said Ye Futian.


    "Really?" asked Hua Fengliu.


    "Master, do you think I would joke about this matter?"


    Hua Fengliu laughed. "I believe you. Love me love my dog. It seems that her feelings for me have remained unchanged."


    "What do you mean, "love me love my dog"? Masteress'' fondness for me has nothing to do with you. It''s because I''m such an outstanding man. What a narcissist you are." Ye Futian had no words for how thick-skinned Hua Fengliu was. "Love me love my dog." Oh please.


    "Shouldn''t you already know how narcissistic I can get?" asked Hua Fengliu. Ye Futian could only admit defeat. He said, "Master, I don''t think I can ever surpass you in this aspect."


    By ''this aspect'' Ye Futian meant narcissism.


    "Don''t underestimate yourself like this. You were able to defeat Zhou Mu, which means that I made the right choice to take you on as my disciple. I do have a good eye." Hua Fengliu laughed softly.


    "It''s not easy to get a compliment out of you. So, does this mean you''re happy I beat up Zhou Mu?" chuckled Ye Futian.


    "Very happy," answered Hua Fengliu. A huge smile broke out on Ye Futian''s face. Although he has yet to make any progress on healing Hua Fengliu, Ye Futian was happy to do at least this much for his master.


    When Ye Futian and Hua Fengliu reached Elder Qin''s residence within the School of the Emperor Star, they could hear the sound of a guqin. He was playing the guqin by himself. Although all ten of his fingers were calloused, his movements were accurate and clean. The white-haired elder exuded an elegance. Elder Qin did not seem to have noticed them. He continued to play peacefully, completely immersed in the music.


    The sound of the guqin was gentle and peaceful. Elder Qin stopped stroking the chords and ended his performance. Only then did he turn his attention over to his visitors. He smiled when he saw Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "Fengliu, you''re here!" he said. His smile was kind. With Ye Futian supporting him, Hua Fengliu bent his knees and kneeled down on the ground. His began to bow to Elder Qin. His head met the ground harshly.


    When Hua Fengliu lifted his head, his eyes were red. In a raspy voice, he said, "I have been unfilial to you, Master. It has taken me too long to come see you."


    Hua Fengliu thought back to when he first met his master. Elder Qin used to be so full of life and energy. Even when he had left, the older male did not look as worn as he did now. Hua Fengliu would never have thought that his master would have aged so much when they met again. It seemed that Elder Qin was closing in on the end of his life.


    "Hua Fengliu, get up!" Elder Qin sounded very stern. Hua Fengliu bowed once more before allowing Ye Futian to help him up. Following that, Hua Fengliu said, "Master, I have let you down."


    "I am already satisfied to be able to see my disciple again before I die. There is no need to speak of such things," said Elder Qin. He was smiling again. "Besides, I am very fond of Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian. These two youngsters are both very good. Ye Futian is even more gifted than you."


    Hua Fengliu laughed. "This rascal''s gifts are alright but he is too mischievous. I hope he didn''t do anything to offend you, Master."


    "There''s no way! His personality is better than yours," replied Elder Qin. He looked at Ye Futian and smiled. He continued, "He and Hua Jieyu are well-matched. You and Nandou Wenyin have to support them. Don''t let them walk down the same path as you two."


    "I understand, Master," Hua Fengliu nodded. He eyed Ye Futian who stood off to the side. When Ye Futian sent a proud smile his way, Hua Fengliu gave him an icy glare in return.


    "Futian," called Elder Qin, "I am so old now. There are many things I am now unable to do. Regarding your master''s injury, I can only count on you."


    "Don''t worry, Grandmaster. As long as I''m alive, I will find a way to heal Master," said Ye Futian seriously.


    "Silly child, don''t talk about the negative things. You''ll live a long, happy life," Elder Qin said to Ye Futian.


    "Whatever you say, Grandmaster," said Ye Futian with a smile. "You also have to take good care of yourself so you can be a witness for the wedding ceremony when Jieyu and I get married."


    "Yes, yes..." He could not stop nodding his head. Elder Qin looked extra happy.


    "Master, you''ve probably suffered here at the School of the Emperor Star all these years. Why don''t you leave with me?" Hua Fengliu asked.


    "Oh, Fengliu. I''ve spent more than half my life here. No matter how this place changes, I will always be a part of this school. I already have one leg in the coffin, where else would I go?" Elder Qin shook his head with a soft smile on his face.


    "Grandmaster, things at Donghai Academy won''t be the same after today. Do you really not want to consider leaving?" Ye Futian tried to persuade the elder as well.


    Hearing his words, Elder Qin looked into the distance. Even though he has not stepped foot outside of the School of the Emperor Star, he knew what was going on in Donghai Academy. He could not help but sigh.


    ...


    At the same time that the three chatted at the School of the Emperor Star, everyone was gathered at the central square of the Donghai Academy campus. It was extremely packed as the surrounding observation decks filled up with people. Officials from the seven schools sat at the center in front of their respective groups, where they stood out the most. Besides them, representatives from the clans of the City of Donghai were also present.


    Anyone qualified to sit up front with them definitely had an extraordinary background. But it did not matter who they were because at this moment, almost everyone''s attention was focused elsewhere.


    In the direction where the officials of the Emperor Star school were seated, a figure walked up to the main seat of the assembly. He stood there nonchalantly but exuded the gracefulness of royalty. He took one look into the crowd as if he were overlooking the world. Beside him stood Minister Hua, the headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, and Chief Xia Feng of the East Sea Prefectures.


    "Is that the Crown Prince? He looks like an exceptional young man, born to be emperor." Everyone whispered about Luo Junlin. He possessed an extraordinary aura. An aura so strong, it would feel burdensome to get close to him.


    The people got up one after another and bowed in his direction. "Greetings, Crown Prince. Greetings, Minister Zuo."


    Luo Junlin watched this scene calmly and spoke, "Sit." He then turned to take his own seat and only when was he seated everyone took their seats as well.


    Everyone knew the young man seated at the center of the square was to become the emperor of the Nandou Nation. He was going to control the world. Not only was Luo Junlin a person of great importance, his aura, his looks, and his gifts were also outstanding. Many of the young women watched him closely, seeming to all be expecting something outrageous.


    "The Crown Prince''s aura is so much stronger than that of Zhou Mu''s," muttered Xiao He. She stood beside Lin Xiyue and the rest of the Lin family. The Art Saint''s disciple, Zhou Mu had been the most outstanding young man she had ever seen.


    "The Art Saint is over there and so is Zhou Mu," Xiao He continued. She was looking in the direction of Vice Headmaster Han Mo. Standing beside him was the Art Saint and Zhou Mu stood behind his master.


    However, Lin Xiyue was looking into the crowd, seemingly in search of something. She could not find the young man she was hoping to see. He was a student of the School of the Finance Star but was not amongst the students seated here.


    At this moment, seated amongst the officials of the School of the Emperor Star, Vice Headmaster Han Mo stood up. He walked to a spot up ahead and held both of his arms up to the sky. In a split second, everything went quiet.


    "The Crown Prince and Minister Hua have blessed the academy with their presence today. Donghai Academy has not experienced such great honor in its 300 some years of history. I am sure that what happens here today will be recorded in the history books for the people even a thousand years from now," Han Mo said loudly. "The Crown Prince and Minister Hua have high hoped for our academy. So, we would like to take this chance and have students of each school demonstrate their abilities for them here today, during the Assembly of the Seven Schools.


    A light flashed through everyone''s eyes. They were all conflicted. All those days ago, before Ye Futian defeated the students from the schools of the Emperor Star and the Treasury Star, they constantly picked fights with students of other schools to exert their dominance. But they never thought that their plans could be ruined by Ye Futian.


    Presently, the School of the Emperor School used the Crown Prince and Minister Hua as an excuse to hold this assembly. Their intentions were no secret to everyone.


    However, to be able to prove one self''s worth in front of the Crown Prince was a one in a lifetime chance. Some people began to explore the idea. After all, it didn''t really matter to ordinary students whether or not the seven schools of Donghai Academy were separated or united.

 86 Such Big Hatred

    Chapter 86: Such Big Hatred


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Han Mo gazed at everyone with a smile. After today, he would control Donghai Academy by himself.


    He continued, "Of course, because there are many disciples of the academy, everyone will have a chance to demonstrate their abilities. I hope that in the future, the accomplished students will grasp this chance to express their talents.


    "Also, since we wish to show the prince and Minister Hua our true bearing, there is no need to hold back. Being hurt in battle is inevitable. If you wish to show off your talents today, you must be willing to take on the risks."


    Han Mo''s words caused many expressions to slack. In the past, the duels in Donghai Academy would all end before it went too far. Dying or becoming fatally wounded was never allowed to happen. According to Han Mo, the disciples would go all out today. This way, uncontrollable situations may happen.


    "I won''t say more. Next, let''s give our time to the disciples of the seven schools of Donghai Academy." Han Mo smiled and returned to his seat.


    The place instantly became quiet. There was an empty area in the center of the square. It would be the stage where the Donghai disciples showed off their talents; it was also a battlefield.


    All were quiet. Then, everyone saw a figure walk out from the School of the Emperor Star. Seeing him, everyone grew serious. It was Zhuo Qing, number one of the dharma rank in Donghai Academy.


    He slowly walked to the center and halted. He looked up in the direction of the School of the Finance Star.


    "Zhuo Qing, School of the Emperor Star, Nine-star Glory Plane, challenges any willing Glory Plane disciple of the School of the Finance Star," Zhuo Qing said. Many outsiders did not understand the situation but the people of Donghai Academy understood immediately. He was taking revenge for what Ye Futian had done. However, Ye Futian was not in the School of the Finance Star crowd. He didn''t come today.


    The others looked uncomfortable. Zhuo Qing was at the highest level of the Glory Plane. There was nothing brag-worthy of challenging other Glory Plane disciples. However, he''d used the word ''any willing,'' which was a blow to their pride. But barely anyone could beat him at this level.


    Yu Sheng moved, wanting to go out. He was now in the Six-star Glory Plane and could fight Zhuo Qing.


    However, Yi Xiang stopped him. Yu Sheng''s attacks and strength were no competition for anyone in the Glory Plane but he still had flaws. Unlike Ye Futian, who learned all sorts of abilities, Zhuo Qing specialized in mind spells and was good at controlling. He could also fly. This was fatal to Yu Sheng. No matter how strong he was, he might not be able to hit the opponent.


    Once Yu Sheng reached the dharma state, his abilities would evolve. At that time, he would be able to fly and also cultivate sorcery.


    "Is no one taking the challenge?" Seeing how there was no action, Zhuo Qing smiled.


    At this time, someone walked out of the crowd and came before him. "Yang Teng, Nine-star Glory Plane," the disciple said. "After you."


    "Please." Zhuo Qing smirked. He instantly hovered in the air. His eyes became extremely demonic and he flew toward Yang Teng.


    Yang Teng stomped on the ground and stepped forward. He rushed toward Zhuo Qing like lightning and sprang into the air. Zhuo Qing''s eyes radiated with horrible sharpness. An invisible mind storm fell upon Yang Teng''s body, rushing into his brain. Then, he was unable to control himself. His hovering body dropped to the ground. The spectators realized that Zhuo Qing could use extremely powerful mind spells to control others'' bodies. They shuddered. However, Yang Teng was also powerful. He roared and forcefully shook the mind control away. He landed on the ground gracefully.


    But then, Zhuo Qing landed in the air above him. His demonic eyes stared at Yang Teng. At the same time, endless vines fell toward Yang Teng. This was the wood element spell Ye Futian had used before the School of the Emperor Star��Lock of a Thousand Vines. The spiritual qi on Yang Teng burst forward. He wanted to gather his spell but the mind storm attacked. He discovered that he could not control the spiritual qi around him and his spell would not form. With a whoosh, the vines locked down around him, immobilizing him.


    Zhuo Qing descended slowly. He kept his demonic eyes on the struggling Yang Teng. Then, Yang Teng felt the vines'' sharp thorns dig into his body. He cried out from the intense pain.


    With a snap, the vines stiffened. They snapped his joints and Yang Teng''s body became deformed. Now he was regretting taking up this challenge. Zhuo Qing was more powerful than what the rumors said.


    Thud! Zhuo Qing''s foot fell before him. The next moment, there was a string of noise and the vines tossed Yang Teng in the direction of the School of the Finance Star. The people there caught his body but saw that his limbs were all deformed. He was curled up in extreme pain.


    "Take him to get medical treatment," Yi Xiang said. He studied Zhuo Qing, whose eyes had returned to normal.


    Zhuo Qing smiled and said, "Sorry." With that, he returned to the School of the Emperor Star crowd.


    Many people could feel the coldness. Zhuo Qing had directly disabled a disciple of the School of the Finance Star. He was so cruel.


    "The student of the Emperor Star headmaster is as expected," a clan member praised. They had seen situations like this many times before and were used to it.


    "In the future, he will definitely be an important figure of Donghai City," many praised.


    The headmaster of Emperor Star smiled and said, "Zhuo Qing is not just this. Next year, he will attend His Majesty''s Tingfeng Banquet."


    "Yes, with Zhuo Qing''s talent, he will definitely make a show at the Tingfeng Banquet," someone said with a laugh. Everyone was praising Zhuo Qing. No one ever asked about the defeated one.


    While everyone was talking, Yu Sheng stepped onto the battlefield. He gazed at the School of the Emperor Star and said coldly, "Yu Sheng, Six-star Glory Plane, challenges everyone from Emperor Star under the Seven-star Glory Plane."


    The chattering stopped. Countless eyes studied this burly figure. A Six-star Glory Plane was challenging everyone from Emperor Star under Seven-star? Was he crazy?


    "It''s him." Lin Xiyue''s eyes brightened. Yu Sheng was so wild but Ye Futian had not appeared.


    "Isn''t that the kid who came to our home with the Qin Devil before? Is his brain okay?" Mu Hong from the School of the Flirting Star asked his children, the Mu Yunqing siblings.


    Mu Yunqing and Mu Yunni''s eyes flashed. They thought this guy was so messed up. Back when he was a Five-star Glory Plane, not even those in the Eight-star dared to fight directly with him. Now that he was in the Six-star Glory Plane, those under Seven-star probably wouldn''t even be able to break through his defenses. He could sweep the battlefield.


    "Father, he is pretty strong," Mu Yunqing said weakly. Mu Hong nodded and looked back at Yu Sheng. If that was the case, he would just watch.


    "Presumptuous. One of our students is enough for you," an elder from the School of the Emperor Star said. Then he ordered a student beside him to fight. That student forced himself forward. His eyes were a bit fearful when he looked at Yu Sheng. Many understood that the school had sent the student to be destroyed.


    Reality proved them right. When Yu Sheng applied his power, his fist sent the boy flying. Then he tossed the boy in the direction of the School of the Emperor Star. With a menacing cold stare, he glared and said, "Despicable."


    With that, he returned to his school.


    "He does have some skills." Mu Hong was shocked. The scene seemed odd to him. He asked Mu Yunqing, "Is the Qin Devil''s disciple also cultivating here?"


    "Yes." Mu Yunqing nodded.


    "How is he?" Mu Hong asked.


    "His cultivation should be equal to me." Mu Yunqing answered, speaking only of cultivation instead of ability.


    The battles continued. The outstanding students of all seven schools came out to display their abilities. However, the spectators all realized that the School of the Finance Star had grudges with many people. The schools of Emperor Star, Treasury Star, and Flirting Star all seemed to target them. It was difficult for the students of the Finance Star. They were constantly challenged and constantly lost. They rarely won and many were treated cruelly.


    When Zhou Mu, the disciple of the Art Saint, came up, the atmosphere was pushed to the peak. Zhou Mu''s cultivation had improved. He was now in the Seven-star Glory Plane and challenged the Eight-star students of the School of the Finance Star.


    "Good," someone praised. "As expected of the Art Saint inheritor. He can summon beasts through his paintings that are stronger than real demons."


    "He does have the style of the past Art Saint. There is no other like him," many big figures said.


    But at this time, two figures walked into the crowd. Ye Futian carried the Qin Devil and found his school. He pushed through the crowd. Ye Futian was not planning on coming but his teacher wanted to have a look. After this, Donghai Academy would no longer be the academy of the past. Many familiar people would be present today too.


    Cheers exploded. Ye Futian looked up and saw Zhou Mu had summoned a beast to defeat his opponent. Many spectators glanced at the School of the Finance Star. Their disciples had lost horribly today.


    "Brother Fengliu?" At this time, someone saw Ye Futian carrying Hua Fengliu toward their school and immediately called out.


    "Hua Fengliu, the Qin Devil, has appeared."


    "Is that his disciple?" many asked.


    Ye Futian was speechless. He muttered, "Professor, you''re too out there."


    "I have a reputation," Hua Fengliu replied nonchalantly. Ye Futian could not argue.


    "Haha, today the Art Saint''s disciple had shown his talents. Coincidentally, Brother Fengliu has appeared with his disciple. They should duel so we can see if Brother Fengliu''s disciple can be compared to the Art Saint''s." A bright voice sounded. It was Mu Hong.


    As soon as he finished, many eyes from Donghai Academy turned toward him. They were all shocked and stared at him as if looking at an idiot.


    How much did he hate the Art Saint that he wanted to humiliate the man this badly?

 87 Called Ou

    Chapter 87: Called Out


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The events at the School of the Emperor Star shocked all of Donghai Academy. There wasn''t a single person who did not know about it.


    Zhou Mu was defeated by Ye Futian in such a humiliating way. His defeat was an equivalent to a slap in the face for the Art Saint and became a taboo topic amongst the Art Saint''s acquaintances. They were all extremely cautious of their words around him.


    But now, this Mu Hong character dared to bring up the subject in front of all these people. It was obvious how the people of Donghai Academy felt about this. Especially when he said: ''Let''s see if Brother Fengliu''s disciple is a fraction as gifted as the Art Saint''s disciple.'' How was the Art Saint supposed to feel about this?


    Many people were afraid to look at him. They were all afraid that they might catch the Art Saint''s eyes.


    "This idiot!" The officials of the Emperor Star school all glared at Mu Hong.


    The officials of the School of the Flirting Star were also looking at him. This sucker''s son and daughter had been beaten up by Ye Futian. Did he not know of this?


    Mu Hong noticed all the attention he was getting. He thought to himself, who would have thought that the battle between the Art Saint and the Guqin Devil still had this much influence on people? There should be a lot of people who look forward to a battle between their disciples.


    It was a pity that Hua Fengliu was so inferior now, going around begging others like a stray dog. It was only natural that his disciple would not amount to the brilliant Zhou Mu.


    "Father," his children called to him. Standing behind Mu Hong, Mu Yunqing, and Mu Yunni were going to be sick. They never expected Ye Futian to show up out of the blue and never in a million years did they think their father would say such things. There was no way that the Art Saint and the School of the Emperor Star were not offended by Mu Hong''s words.


    Even Ye Futian was stunned by Mu Hong. Ye Futian remembered this man vividly. After all, he was the first person that Hua Fengliu introduced him to upon their arrival in the City of Donghai. He could not believe that Mu Hong would say these things in this setting.


    Looking to the Mu siblings who stood behind their father, he gave them a meaningful smile. Just as he thought, the siblings did not have the guts to complain to Mu Hong. It was probably because they were too embarrassed.


    "Greetings, Senior," Ye Futian suddenly greeted Mu Hong with a smile. He continued, "When I met you I thought that you were a brilliant man and that your children were destined to become the best of the best. I only found out that they were students of the Flirting Star school when I entered the academy. Under your guidance, your children must be very talented."


    Hua Fengliu blinked a couple of times. He looked at his disciple, speechless. Could Ye Futian be more brazen? But why did he anticipate what would happen next?


    Hua Fengliu was not the only one who was shocked by Ye Futian. The students of Donghai Academy all looked dumbfoundedly at Ye Futian. Weren''t the Mu siblings the very first people that Ye Futian beat up on his first day at the academy? How deep was this rivalry that Ye Futian had to play with Mu Hong in this way?


    "Although Yunqing and Yunni can''t claim to be geniuses, they are still pretty gifted. ''Very talented'' would be right," Mu Hong said confidently. Mu Yunni pulled at her father''s clothes from behind and whispered, "Father, stop talking already."


    "Hmm?" Mu Hong furrowed his eyebrows. His head tilted in confusion.


    "Very talented indeed. I have witnessed this first-hand on my first day at the academy. The two of them have inherited your Life Spirit and possess extraordinary gifts. A chip off the old block if you will," laughed Ye Futian. Everyone''s expression darkened. This rascal...


    The Mu siblings looked extremely awkward. They were so embarrassed. Mu Yunni glared at Ye Futian. This jerk was doing this on purpose!


    Observing the looks on his children''s faces, Mu Hong began to realize that something wasn''t right. He asked, "How did the battle go that day?"


    Mu Yunqing and Mu Yunni lowered their heads. Their hatred for Ye Futian strengthened.


    There was no chance Mu Hong could stay oblivious at this point. His expression fell immediately when he finally realized that he had fallen into Ye Futian''s trap.


    Turning his attention away from his children, Mu Hong looked at Ye Futian once again. He forced a smile on his face and said, "You are indeed the Guqin Devil''s disciple. It seems that you are extremely gifted. It is fortunate that these two incompetent rascals know to be embarrassed. They didn''t dare to mention the battle to me. Since I''ve already witnessed the abilities of the Art Saint''s disciple, I am now more interested to know just how outstanding the Guqin Devil''s disciple is."


    Ye Futian snickered at the sight of Mu Hong. This guy couldn''t seem to get enough of offending others.


    "Father!" Mu Yunqing called out to Mu Hong again. Simultaneously, a voice rang out from the direction of the group from the Emperor Star school, "Have you had enough?"


    Mu Hong froze. His gaze shifted in the direction of the voice and saw the icy gazes on himself. Zhou Mu has also been glaring at him coldly from his spot on the battle platform. Even as he returned to his seat with the others from the School of the Emperor Star, Zhou Mu continued to glare at Mu Hong. His battle with Ye Futian was also the most humiliating for him. What was Mu Hong trying to do, bringing it up again?


    Mu Hong suddenly felt like the public enemy. He thought to himself, what on earth happened?


    "I admit that my disciple is not on par with Hua Fengliu''s disciple. After his defeat last time, I already told Zhou Mu to focus all his energy on cultivation. I don''t think that it is necessary for Brother Mu to bring up this topic again, right?" someone said softly. Everyone shivered.


    It was the Art Saint who spoke.


    Mu Hong froze with his eyes on the Art Saint. His heart pounded rapidly. He finally understood why everyone was looking at him, and why Ye Futian looked at him funny.


    So, the Art Saint''s disciple, Zhou Mu, already had an exchange with the Guqin Devil''s disciple. What''s more was that he was defeated.


    His eyes twitched. He turned to glare at his own children. Oh, how he wanted to give them each a slap across the face. These two brats didn''t bring him any intel on Ye Futian.


    Upon having another look at the Art Saint and the officials of the School of the Emperor Star, Mu Hong knew exactly what kind of effects his words had.


    "Please forgive me, Brother Hua. I had no idea of any of this. I had no intentions of offending anyone," Mu Hong apologized.


    The Art Saint turned his gaze away, not looking at Mu Hong. At this Mu Hong''s lips twitched. His piercing eyes turned to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian felt wronged. He was completely clueless when he first arrived at the assembly. Mu Hong was the one who offended everyone with a single sentence. All he could do was to go along with him.


    At this time, many clueless outsiders observed Ye Futian. The Guqin Devil''s disciple actually defeated the Art Saint''s disciple?


    Lin Xiyue, who had her eyes trained on Ye Futian the whole time, smiled and said, "I didn''t expect that he would become so powerful after getting into Donghai Academy."


    "He was still slightly inferior back at the Luo Palace, but then he actually defeated Zhou Mu." Xiao He was also shocked.


    "Let''s continue," said Han Mo. He did not want to dwell on this topic any longer. Today was the Emperor Star school''s day to shine but Ye Futian has stolen the spotlight. His mere existence was an annoyance. And then, that idiot Mu Hong just had to start a fight with him. Mu Hong''s actions just now inadvertently humiliated the School of the Emperor Star.


    More disciples from the school stepped out and the Assembly of the Seven Schools continued.


    Ye Futian and the Guqin Devil sat with the School of the Finance Star. They quietly watched the assembly progress. They deduced that the Emperor Star school was targeting the Finance Star school. Ye Futian was fuming inwardly. At the same time, he could only sigh because he knew how sly the School of the Emperor Star was. Even if he stepped up, he could only fight. It would not help the situation at all.


    As a whole, the School of the Finance Star could not compare to the School of the Emperor Star. They were completely overpowered.


    Watching the students of the Emperor Star school fight, Hua Fengliu reminisced about his days of cultivation there. It was a pity that things were so different now. Everybody has changed. Sitting amongst the group from the Emperor Star school were many familiar faces, but none of them would even look him in the eye anymore. Their attitude towards him and their attitude towards the person who used to be equally as famous as himself, the Art Saint, were completely different.


    "Thinking about the past?" Tang Wan observed Hua Fengliu''s expression from beside him and asked.


    "Don''t make fun of me." He smiled bitterly at her.


    "You used to be so famous at the academy. It''s normal to think about the past," Tang Wan replied. She turned to look ahead. She also thought of her cultivation days. Hua Fengliu wasn''t the only one who was famous at Donghai Academy back then. So was the Art Saint, Nandou Wenyin, and herself. They were all extremely gifted.


    "I''ve always had a regret. Master is a person of such high-caliber, but as his disciple, I didn''t even get the chance to demonstrate my powers as a Musical Sorcerer before getting kicked out of the academy," sighed Hua Fengliu. Tang Wan nodded. "Elder Qin is indeed very respectable, but Ye Futian was able to prove himself in front of the School of the Emperor Star with one musical piece, the ''Decree of the General''. That should make up for at least a part of your regrets, right?" she asked.


    "Yeah," Hua Fengliu nodded.


    Time passed little by little. It was dusk. The sky turned a beautiful red. People from Donghai Academy looked up at the beautiful night sky from time to time. It was almost like the end of an era.


    "Is he really not going to fight?" asked Lin Xiyue. Her beautiful eyes never left Ye Futian. How could he not fight on a day like this? It was the Assembly of the Seven Schools for crying aloud. Since he was able to defeat Zhou Mu, it was obvious that he was really capable.


    Slowly, people stopped stepping on to the battle platform. Everyone began to whisper left and right. Someone laughed as they said, "Today is Donghai Academy''s Assembly of the even Schools. The School of the Emperor Star put on such an impressive performance. They have overshadowed the other six schools."


    "The School of the Treasury Star wasn''t bad either. They only lacked a little in comparison to the Emperor Star school. They can be considered the second-best school of Donghai Academy," someone else commented.


    From these comments, everyone knew that the agenda of the assembly was just getting started.


    Amongst the group from the Emperor Star school, Han Mo smiled lightly. He turned to look at the Crown Prince and heard Luo Junlin say to Minister Hua, "The person that Minister Zuo favors has not made his move yet."


    Minister Hua nodded. He then whispered in the ear of the headmaster of the Emperor Star school. The headmaster wore a strange look on his face but nodded anyway. The headmaster stood up and called out, "Hua Fengliu."


    Hua Fengliu lifted his head in confusion. He looked at the headmaster and smiled. "Greetings, Uncle-Master."


    The headmaster nodded in response and said, "You used to be a student of our school, so why are you sitting with the School of the Finance Star today?"


    "I am here with my disciple today. He is a student of the Finance Star school, so I sat here with him," Hua Fengliu answered calmly.


    "Then I have nothing better to say regarding that. The Crown Prince and Minister Hua have graced us with their presence today and would like to witness the powers of the best students of Donghai Academy. Your disciple is extremely gifted but has not stepped up. What is the meaning of that?" the headmaster reprimanded. This was peculiar to everyone watching. Why was the headmaster asking for Ye Futian? However, there were a lot of people who looked forward to witnessing the "outstanding" gifts of the person who defeated the Art Saint''s disciple.


    Hua Fengliu and Ye Futian felt something was amiss. Was there no other choice but to fight?


    At this moment, Ye Futian saw Tang Wan walk to the front with a guqin in her hands.


    "Duyou. I purposely carry it with me. The Guqin Devil''s disciple can''t do without a guqin," she said. Ye Futian gave her a smile. She came prepared in hopes that they could take advantage of this event to make sure the Guqin Devil''s name wouldn''t be forgotten by the citizens of the City of Donghai.


    Ye Futian nodded with a smile and took over the guqin, named Duyou. Let''s play a piece for Master today!

 88 The World

    Chapter 88: The World


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian slowly walked out to the center of the square. Countless gazes fell upon him. The younger generation went without saying. Ye Futian had already proved how powerful he was. The older generation was also paying attention. The Qin Devil had returned to Donghai City as a disabled man. How talented could his disciple be?


    Ye Futian put the guqin before him and sat down slowly. Clad in a white robe, he looked extremely handsome and regal.


    Seeing him, Lin Xiyue gasped and was shocked. She had once thought that he was just an average musician who went to the Luo Palace to learn more about the world. Then, Ye Futian displayed his talent during the battle. Today, she heard that he had defeated Zhou Mu at Donghai Academy. Just how outstanding was this handsome boy?


    Her father glanced at her. To be honest, he knew about Ye Futian defeating Zhou Mu but he didn''t tell Lin Xiyue. This girl was interested in the boy but Ye Futian was the Qin Devil''s disciple. He had conflicts with the Art Saint and the School of the Emperor Star. His future would have many obstacles. Plus, he already had a girlfriend��that one from the Nandou clan. He didn''t want his daughter to get involved and have her heart broken.


    Mu Hong studied Ye Futian but his eyes darkened.


    Ye Futian looked up at the setting sun. There was a smile in his clear eyes. She said slowly, "This song was composed by myself. It is called ''Hero''." With that, he began playing. His fingers slid over the strings and a graceful melody came out.


    "He did not challenge anyone. He''s just playing music," someone said. The spectators were impressed. Today''s motive was to see the accomplished students display their talents. They did not necessarily have to challenge others. For the Qin Devil''s disciple, music playing was naturally a way to do that.


    People quickly stopped mulling. The moment the music sounded, they fell into a pleasantly strange artistic conception.


    At first, the melody was cheerful and fresh. As the music entered their ears, a picture appeared in the audiences'' minds. They seemed to see a handsome youth earnestly bow to his teacher for the first time. The youth had extraordinary talent. He was well-liked by his teacher and was taught true skills, growing even more powerful.


    The melody gradually became graceful and moving. It made one feel as if they were falling in love. They involuntarily entered this mindset. The student grew up, met a girl, and fell in love. His heartbeat seemed to be audible in the music.


    The moving melody changed again. It became heavy and dark. The relationship was judged and opposed. A few big figures furrowed their brows. Was the meaning behind this song his own story or Hua Fengliu''s?


    The music changed again. The youth had matured and become successful but he still wanted to be with his loved one��even if everyone opposed it, even if it was beyond redemption.


    The music intensified. The main character of the melody seemed to be fighting against fate. He faced everything alone but in the end, he failed. The music grew dreary like a hero past his prime.


    Just as everyone thought the song was over, the dreary melody suddenly recovered its vitality. Rather than being spirited again, it was as calm as water like a change in mindset. Everyone could see that the main character had gone through many hardships and cultivated. But he still could not forget his home and lover. He decided to return and face the changes in the world. Even if he was defeated, he was still a hero.


    The melody stopped. The music faded slowly. Everyone seemed to be unwilling to return to reality. The young people were especially affected by the attractive force of the music.


    In the School of the Finance Star crowd, Tang Lan''s eyes welled with tears. She gazed at Hua Fengliu, who was now disabled. There was a faint smile on his handsome face. His disciple was able to compose now and had performed his entire life.


    Many big figures glanced at Ye Futian. They naturally understood the meaning behind the song. This was a composition for the Qin Devil. Ye Futian used his music to express his teacher''s life. Though he didn''t fight anyone, this melody was better than the Qin Devil in the past. No one dared to look down on him.


    Mu Hong narrowed his eyes at Ye Futian. No wonder Hua Fengliu had begged him for this student. He was a second Hua Fengliu.


    "Who did you play this for?" Luo Junlin, the crown prince, asked from the direction of the School of the Emperor Star.


    "Your Highness, I played for my master." Ye Futian set his hands down and looked up at Luo Junlin.


    "You have enough artistic conception but not enough ��lan. You did not reveal a true musical spell. Since you are such a good musician, why don''t you perform something for me today as well?" Luo Junlin said.


    Ye Futian gazed at the crown prince. Since he requested it, Ye Futian could not deny him. He nodded and said, "Okay. I am still unable to compose my own musical spell so I can only perform someone else''s."


    "Sure." Luo Junlin nodded.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and began playing again. His fingers strummed and the instrument strings vibrated. A note broke through the air like powerful running thunder. "This piece is ''The World''."


    As he spoke, the music notes danced. The audience instantly felt an extreme power. Many people''s eyes flashed. Ye Futian truly was a prodigy. They instantly understood that this melody was created for the crown prince.


    A terrifying music storm gathered around Ye Futian. It was as powerful as crashing tidal waves. Now, different images flashed past the audience''s mind as the music played. Signal smoke rose and the emperor rode onto the battlefield to conquer the lands. Some also saw the king ride a dragon and survey the world. Everyone he passed bowed down.


    In this melody, the world was like a painting.


    "Send some men up," Luo Junlin said indifferently.


    Minister Hua glanced at the School of the Emperor Star headmaster and uttered a command. Several disciples then walked toward Ye Futian. However, their steps were very difficult. The music constantly entered their ears, making them scared to fight back.


    Spiritual Qi gathered around them and they stepped forward. However, the music was still rising. It seemed to want to break through the clouds.


    Now, Ye Futian was shrouded in a halo of light. He was like a young king. He represented the world.


    Everyone saw a shocking image. There was a blurry figure up above. He had an emperor''s long robe and a crown. He walked toward them, commanding the world, making them voluntarily want to bow down to him.


    The weaker Emperor Star students going toward Ye Futian had prostrated themselves to the ground, not daring to raise their heads. They seemed to be revering Ye Futian. More and more people knelt down under the music''s influence. As if controlled by the musical spell, they worshipped the emperor.


    BOOM! A terrible sharpness flashed past the eyes of the big figures. They felt the youth''s talent and shuddered. Something felt wrong.


    This song was called ''The World''. It was performed for the crown prince but Ye Futian was the performer. At this moment, he had become the high and mighty emperor and Luo Junlin was before him, face to face. The elegance and grace of the white-clothed youth truly was like an emperor now. Did the musical spell give it to him or was he born with it?


    Lin Xiyue gaped. The present Ye Futian was even more brilliant than that day at the Luo Palace. He was unmatchable. He could even be compared to someone like the crown prince, let alone Zhou Mu.


    Mu Hong shuddered as well. Hua Fengliu had such a student and had once come to him but he rejected the man.


    "Can''t this guy keep a low profile?" Yi Xiang cursed. He didn''t want Ye Futian to attend this event. Being too bright was not a good thing. Nowadays, Minister Hua and the crown prince were very close. He hoped Ye Futian would stay low and attend the Tingfeng Banquet with Minister Zuo.


    "Some people are born like this," Hua Fengliu said calmly. Not many knew about Ye Futian''s secret but he and Yu Sheng knew. The inheritor of Emperor Ye Qing was definitely not an average man. His aura would appear when playing music, which he probably didn''t even know himself.


    When Luo Junlin told Ye Futian to perform something, The World should be the most suitable piece. However, this piece caused Ye Futian to reveal his emperor-like aura. This was neither on purpose nor brought about by the musical spell. It was something he was born with.


    Hua Fengliu could guess that Ye Futian had a shocking background.


    At this moment, at the highest seat in the School of the Emperor Star, Luo Junlin slowly stood up. Then, to the surprise of all, he walked down toward the center of the square, toward Ye Futian.


    People could feel those who were the same. Luo Junlin was destined to be king. Everyone in Nandou knew that he ruled over the world. He could feel something similar coming from Ye Futian. It was the aura of an emperor.


    The music reached the climax. Then it descended and stopped. Luo Junlin also stopped before Ye Futian. Countless eyes were on them. Yi Xiang and Hua Fengliu were even a bit nervous as they watched. As the crown prince, Luo Junlin shouldn''t kill Ye Futian just for a song. He had told the youth to play it, after all.


    "Follow me. When I become king, you will be minister," Luo Junlin said, staring at Ye Futian.


    With that, the world fell into silence.


    When I become king, you will be minister!

 89 Go with the Flow, Go Against the Flow

    Chapter 89: Go with the Flow, Go Against the Flow


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Luo Junlin was the Crown Prince. What did that mean? It meant that he was going to become the emperor in the future.


    The words of an emperor were to be taken seriously. Since Luo Junlin had spoken, it meant that he was serious. So, at the nod of Ye Futian''s head, he would be bestowed a title of nobility and become a prime minister. Then, as soon as the throne was passed down to the Crown Prince, Ye Futian will be a prime minister of the nation. It was an utmost honor for a mere sixteen-year-old student to be bestowed such a title. This unbelievable ordeal was something you had to see for yourself to believe.


    Some people were in utter disbelief. This couldn''t be real. Had the Crown Prince gone mad? No matter how gifted Ye Futian was, he was still very young. The future was filled with uncertainty. How could the Crown Prince promise him the title of prime minister so easily?


    Minister Hua was frozen in his seat. His eyes sharpened but he remained silent, not stopping Luo Junlin. Who was he to stop the Crown Prince?


    Xia Feng was feeling helpless and miserable at this point. He had just begged Minister Hua and the Crown Prince to save his son earlier today but now, the Crown Prince was recruiting Ye Futian to be the future prime minister. By the looks of this, if Ye Futian was smart, there was no way he would reject this offer. If things proceeded, then his son, Xia Fan was good as gone.


    Mu Hong, Lin Xiyue, powerful cultivators of the Emperor Star school, and officials of Donghai academy, all failed to comprehend the situation as well. It was true that Ye Futian possessed outstanding gifts but weren''t the Crown Prince''s words too rash?


    Obviously, Luo Junlin hadn''t gone mad, nor was he dumb. He felt a familiar aura from Ye Futian. This young man was a person favored by Minister Zuo and even held the Decree of the Minister in his hands. Putting the pieces together, Luo Junlin was able to think of a lot of things. Plus, he understood Minister Zuo a little too well and was well aware of his way of style of doing things.


    Ye Futian was also very shocked. He did not understand why one piece would cause such a strong reaction from the Crown Prince. Did he want to bestow him the title of prime minister?


    "Your Highness, I have too many ties here and is not able to drop everything to leave with you. Can we reconsider this in the future?" Ye Futian asked Luo Junlin. Even though he had no intentions of taking the offer, he could not offend royalty in front of everyone.


    Luo Junlin shook his head. Seeing his expression, Ye Futian bowed. "Please forgive me, Your Highness."


    "He rejected..." Countless pairs of eyes looked at Ye Futian in immense shock. Ye Futian actually turned down the chance to become minister.


    The Nandou Nation controlled 36 prefectures and every prefecture contained many cities. Just prefecture chiefs held a lot of power and were big-shots in their respective prefectures already, so just imagine the power a minister would have. The Nandou Nation had two ministers. Minister Zuo, the left minister, controlled the inner workings of the nation while Minister Hua, the right minister, controlled the army. The power of a prime minister was second only to the emperor himself.


    Such a great opportunity had been placed in front of Ye Futian''s eyes but he chose to reject.


    Luo Junlin stared at Ye Futian. He said, "Do you know the consequences of going against an imperial order? Even though I am not the emperor yet, I will be in the future."


    At his domineering words, everybody''s expressions changed. As the Crown Prince, Luo Junlin already exuded the intimidating emperor of an emperor.


    "If it was an imperial order, I would have no way to reject, Your Highness," answered Ye Futian.


    Luo Junlin was quiet as he looked into Ye Futian''s eyes. A wave of pressure washed over Ye Futian.


    Suddenly, Luo Junlin smiled. He said, "If so, then I won''t force it on you. You may be excused."


    "Thank you, Your Highness," Ye Futian said as he bowed, ready to retreat back to his seat.


    As Ye Futian walked back to his place beside Hua Fengliu, Luo Junlin stood still, watching his retreating figure. He gave off a murderous vibe as he walked to his seat as well. When their backs turned to each other, Ye Futian and Luo Junlin walked off the battle platform to return to their own seats.


    Everyone''s eyes followed the two figures. One was the powerful young Crown Prince, who already possessed the attitude of an emperor, and one was a young man, gifted by the heavens. He possessed extraordinary gifts and his future was unpredictable.


    Luo Junlin sat down in his seat and then with a stern look around, he said, "I am very disappointed. Today is Donghai Academy''s Assembly of the Seven Schools, but from what I have seen, not too many of its students possess extraordinary gifts. Amongst the seven schools, only the schools of the Emperor Star and the Treasury Star can be considered competent. If so, why do you need seven schools? From this day on Donghai Academy shall fall under the jurisdiction of the School of the Emperor Star, and the School of the Treasury Star will assist."


    Silence. These words did not come from the headmaster of the Emperor Star school. Neither did it come from Minister Hua. These words came from the Crown Prince, Luo Junlin. He had already been rejected by Ye Futian today. By the stern look on his face, everyone knew that if any single person dared to object against Luo Junlin''s decision, they would meet with a frightening ending.


    The inevitable changes in Donghai Academy had finally come.


    "Yes, Your Highness." The headmasters of the Emperor Star and the Treasure Star school stood and bowed to receive the order of the Crown Prince. The other five headmasters did not say a single word as they too, stood up. Looking at the powerful crowned price, they bowed and said, "As you wish, Your Highness."


    When the Crown Prince and Minister Hua arrived at Donghai Academy, many people had already predicted something like this would happen. The School of the Emperor Star had gotten too powerful. There was no way to stop them. And now, the inevitable had come.


    "You may all be dismissed," Luo Junlin said with a wave of his hand. He then turned to leave. His every word was absolute.


    Minister Hua got up from his seat to look at everyone once more before following behind Luo Junlin. A whole group of people followed not too closely behind Luo Junlin and Minister Hua as they walked towards the School of the Emperor Star.


    "What do you think of what happened just now?" Luo Junlin asked Minister Hua. Naturally, Minister Hua understood that Luo Junlin was not speaking of the ordeal with the Emperor Star school but about Ye Futian.


    "Your Highness must have had a reason for doing so," answered Minister Hua.


    "When he was playing the guqin, he exuded the aura of an emperor," said Luo Junlin. Minister Hua looked shocked but said nothing. These words could only be said by the Crown Prince. He could not repeat them as a minister.


    "When I said that I would give him the title of prime minister, he was not moved. He had no greed. It seemed like he had no interest in the position of minister," Luo Junlin laughed with a cold demeanor. "He is indeed a person worthy of being favored by Minister Zuo."


    "Minister Zuo does have a very good eye," said Minister Hua.


    "Many of our nation''s officials were discovered by Minister Zuo," said Luo Junlin. Minister Hua''s gaze sharpened. He knew what Luo Junlin said was true. Astrologers were a scary bunch.


    "But Minister Zuo had never given out the Decree of the Minister to anyone. This is my reason for coming to the City of Donghai. Ye Futian might be different from the others that Minister Zuo had previously discovered," said Luo Junlin. His gaze sharpened as well.


    "What do you mean by this, Your Highness?" asked Minister Hua.


    "Even though I am the future emperor, the person with the most influence in the Imperial City, beside my father, is Minister Zuo," Luo Junlin said.


    "Your Highness, you will step up to the throne one day. Plus, with your gifts, you will definitely not be any inferior to His Majesty. Power is always in your reach," replied Minister Zuo.


    Luo Junlin snickered and said, "That''s a given. The throne is not my final goal, but if Minister Zuo does anything to get in the way, I will not let him off so easily."


    Minister Hua was shocked by the Crown Prince.


    "Your Highness, I don''t think Minister Zuo will try anything," said Minister Hua.


    "On his trip to the City of Qingzhou, besides bestowing the Decree of the Minister upon Ye Futian, Minister Zuo also accepted a request from the Nandou clan. Why else would they invite Minister Zuo to the Nando Palace? Of course, it was to get a fortune told. Minister Zuo would not have told the fortune of the elders in the clan. The most outstanding person in the Nandou clan right now is a young lady named Hua Jieyu. The day Ye Futian crashed the School of the Emperor Star, he went there looking for her. They''re a couple," explained Luo Junlin.


    After a while, he spoke again, "After returning to the Imperial City, Minister Zuo began to plan for next year''s Tingfeng Banquet. He also tried to convince Father to put the people of Nandou clan in important positions. Who do you think he''s paving a road for?"


    "Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu?" Minister Hua made a realization. He felt a shiver run down his back. The Crown Prince was way scarier than he had anticipated.


    "That''s right. Minister Zuo is making the bold move of paving the way for this young couple. Plus, Ye Futian exuded the aura of an emperor today. Do you still think that Minister Zuo isn''t trying anything?" asked Luo Junlin. Minister Hua was dumbfounded. He knew that everything the Crown Prince said was true. Minister Zuo was an astrologer. He must have told Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu''s fortune. Furthermore, Ye Futian exuded the aura of an emperor. What were they fated to be?


    It was a scary thought.


    "Send people to keep an eye on Ye Futian and the Nandou clan. Then, we''ll head back to the Imperial City to see Father," said Luo Junlin. There were still some things that he did not tell Minister Hua. In the City of Qingzhou, Minister Zuo yelled at Luo Junlin''s younger sister for Ye Futian. He made his sister, the princess, apologize to Ye Futian. Did princesses need to apologize to commoners? What was Ye Futian''s true identity? What kind of person was worthy enough for Minister Zuo to do all this?


    There was also another thing he held a grudge on. As the Crown Prince, Luo Junlin had requested for Minister Zuo to become his master multiple times but was always rejected. Minister Zuo said he didn''t dare to be the master of the future emperor. This also meant that Minister Zuo was unwilling to be his aid. Not only that, Minister Zuo has also refused to tell Luo Junlin''s fortune. His reason was an emperor''s fortune must not be told. Luo Junlin wasn''t going to believe his b*llshit reasons.


    There was only one reason for Minister Zuo, an astrologer, to refuse to aid the Crown Prince. And that was, the Crown Prince was not fated to an emperor. It''s just that Minister Zuo didn''t dare to say these words.


    Minister Zuo had once said the fortunes told by astrologers were the general flow of events. To go against the flow would only bring harm. But Luo Junlin refused to believe this. He was going to change his own fate. He was born to become emperor. Luo Junlin was going to take life into his own hands.


    ...


    At Donghai Academy, the crowd had yet to depart from the central square. What were they supposed to do now that the seven schools were to be united?


    In the direction of the School of the Finance Star, a large group formed around Yi Xiang. He was explaining something to the crowd and they looked at him, not willing to part.


    Headmaster Yi Xiang of the School of the Finance Star was stepping down and turning over his position to someone else. He was planning to leave the academy.


    "I''m so tired after all these years. From now on, all of you should continue to work hard. I''m only in charge of my daughter and my disciple now," joked Yi Xiang.


    "Headmaster, don''t you mean daughter and son-in-law?" teased Ye Futian. Yi Qingxuan glared at him but Yi Xiang laughed and looked at Yu Sheng. "That''s right! ''Son-in-law'' works too."


    "Ugh...." Yu Sheng blinked then looked at Ye Futian, only to see Ye Futian slip him a sly smile. He seemed to be waiting for words of gratitude from Ye Sheng.


    "Master, it''s almost the end of the year. The Guqin Garden is so big, Hua Fengliu and I feel so lonely there. Why don''t you move there to live with us?" Tang Wan asked Yi Xiang.


    Yi Xiang looked at her. He couldn''t help but smile when he saw how nervous she looked. "Alright!" he replied.


    Tang Wan''s face lit up with a bright smile. "Okay, let''s be on our way now."


    "Let''s go." Yi Xiang took large steps and walked forward. Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan followed after him. Ye Futian, carrying Hua Fengliu, and Tang Wan followed at the back of the group. Ye Futian smiled while watching the group of people ahead of him. This felt like a huge family reunion. It was such a pleasant feeling. If only Fox and Masteress were here too, then it would be perfect. He was going to work hard to make it happen.


    As the sun set, the group walked out of Donghai Academy. There was no looking back now.

 90 Public Displays of Affection

    Chapter 90: Public Displays of Affection


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Guqin Gardens, a group walked down slowly. It was Tang Lan, Yi Xiang, and the others.


    "Master, this is where Fengliu used to live. It''ll be our home in the future," Tang Lan said to Yi Xiang.


    "Yes." Yi Xiang nodded. He looked back at Ye Futian who was carrying Hua Fengliu and said coolly, "Don''t know where you got the luck."


    Hua Fengliu smiled wryly. It had been so many years but the grudge was still there.


    "Master, did Senior Yi used to treat you as a son-in-law?" Ye Futian mumbled. Hua Fengliu and Tang Lan had feelings for each other before. Yi Xiang clearly really liked Tang Lan and treated her as a daughter. Ye Futian could imagine his attitude toward Hua Fengliu before.


    "I''m not clear. I just know that if you don''t shut up, you won''t be my son-in-law," Hua Fengliu said with a smile. Blanching, Ye Futian shut his mouth.


    Beside them, Tang Wan smiled and looked at Ye Futian, amused at his words.


    Entering the Guqin Gardens, a breeze welcomed them. The garden had a nice environment. The sun was setting, basking the fallen leaves in a golden glow. It was beautiful. A white-haired old man was sweeping the leaves with a broom. Ye Futian looked at him. The head of white hair and stooped body made him halt his steps.


    "What''s wrong?" Hua Fengliu asked, confused by the scene. Tang Wan stopped as well.


    "Tang Wan, who is he?" Ye Futian asked. The people ahead of them stopped too.


    Tang Lan followed his eyes and saw the old man. She said, "He has ailing health but wanted a job so I arranged for him to clean up the garden. Is something wrong?"


    "Aunt Tang, when was this? Why didn''t I know about it?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You''re always out. How would you know? It should''ve been after you and your teacher came," Tang Lan answered casually.


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded and smiled. "I was just wondering." With that, he continued forward. The others glanced at him in confusion but let it go quickly.


    Tang Lan helped Yi Xiang and Yi Qingxuan settle in. Yi Xiang''s wife had left him long ago, either because of different viewpoints or Yi Xiang''s temper. Yi Xiang had raised Yi Qingxuan alone in the School of the Finance Star. That was why Tang Lan invited them to treat the Guqin Gardens as their own home. She knew that her teacher lacked the feeling of a family.


    Afterward, Tang Lan ordered the servants to prepare dinner. Ye Futian helped his teacher into a chair. Seeing Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan stuck together, he was forced to say, "Qingxuan, can I borrow Yu Sheng for a moment?"


    Yi Qingxuan glared at Ye Futian. Yu Sheng asked uncertainly, "What''s wrong?"


    "Come with me," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng followed him in confusion and was brought to the entrance of the garden to look at the old man sweeping.


    "Don''t you think he looks familiar?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You probably miss him." Yu Sheng naturally understood what Ye Futian meant by familiar.


    "Maybe." Ye Futian nodded. "I always feel like Godfather is watching us."


    "Would he?" Yu Sheng seemed to mutter to himself.


    "Probably." Ye Futian chuckled and walked over.


    Seeing them, the old man lowered his head and greeted them, "Young masters."


    "What is your name?" Ye Futian asked.


    "My surname is Yu. My name is too lowly to mention," the old man said.


    "Yu?" Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He ordered, "Raise your head."


    The old man slowly looked up. His cloudy eyes had no spirit in them. He seemed extremely old with white hair and a white beard. Like lightning, Ye Futian tugged his beard. The man cried out in pain. "Young master, have mercy. What did I do wrong?"


    "It''s real?" Ye Futian muttered. Then he said, "Grandpa Yu, I''m sorry. I thought you were someone I know."


    "It''s alright." The man waved.


    "Grandpa Yu, can I come chat with you often in the future?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I am honored." He nodded with a smile.


    "Then it''s a deal." Ye Futian smiled as well and said, "Then I won''t disturb you anymore."


    He and Yu Sheng left afterward.


    "Were my senses wrong?" Ye Futian muttered. He was usually very sensitive and sharp.


    "Are you overthinking?" Yu Sheng asked. They had similar body shape and stature but their appearances were completely different. How could they be the same man? Ye Futian had even tugged the old man''s beard. He clearly suspected something.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. Had he really been overthinking?


    The two returned to the garden. The dishes were gradually being brought to the table. The people all sat down.


    "Senior Yi, when is Yu Sheng and Qingxuan''s wedding?" Ye Futian asked at the table.


    Yu Sheng gaped at him. Yi Qingxuan''s eyes flashed too, wondering what that guy was worried about.


    "Stop thinking about them and think about yourself." Yi Xiang gave him a look.


    "It''s just a matter of time for me," Ye Futian said confidently. Then he looked at Hua Fengliu and said, "Master, Father-in-law, don''t you agree?"


    "I''ll consider it," Hua Fengliu answered indifferently.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian looked at Hua Fengliu. "Master, where do you get an in-law as good as me? You still need to consider?"


    "Where''s your shame?" Tang Lan asked coldly. Everyone stared at this guy, speechless.


    "Huh, my masteress is better," Ye Futian said.


    "Then go to your masteress." Tang Lan glared at him.


    "Ah, Aunt Tang, I''m just kidding. You''re just like my masteress," Ye Futian said weakly.


    The others were still speechless. He was honestly so shameless. However, with his shamelessness, the group started enjoying the meal like a family. No one discussed what happened at the Donghai Academy. The past was like smoke. Once passed, there was no need to bring up again.


    In the cheery atmosphere, the banquet gradually ended. Everyone went back to their rooms. Ye Futian went to the garden to play his guqin. There were some impurities in his timbre. He was clearly distracted.


    "It''s almost the end of the year again." Ye Futian looked up at the full moon. He remembered how the Fox had gone to the Ye mansion to find him after the New Year dinner, shocking the entire family. Then they held hands awkwardly by the lake. Without realizing, another year had almost passed. So much had happened in this year.


    As he reminisced, a smile appeared on his face and there was more emotion in his music. He had pushed the frustrations aside.


    Under the moon, he hid his longing in his music.


    ...


    The second day, a beautiful figure came to the Guqin Gardens. When Ye Futian saw her, he made a face. Did this fox know that he was missing her? He thought of her last night and now she was here.


    "Why are you looking at me like that?" Hua Jieyu raised an eyebrow at Ye Futian''s weird expression and stared.


    Ye Futian smiled. "Because my fox is so pretty."


    "I''m not yours." Hua Jieyu turned away arrogantly.


    "Masteress already betrothed you to me. You can''t run now. All we''re missing is a wedding," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Don''t even think about it." Hua Jieyu smiled and then ran to the Qin Devil behind him, calling, "Dad!"


    "Jieyu, why are you here?" the Qin Devil asked.


    "Uncle told me about what happened at Donghai Academy. I knew you''d be back here so I came to look," Hua Jieyu said.


    "That guy''s become agreeable?" Ye Futian asked, walking forward.


    "I came to tell you all good news." Hua Jieyu smiled sweetly.


    Ye Futian looked at her with suspicion. "The old Nandou guy knows that I''m super talented and unmatchable so he agreed to our wedding?"


    Hua Jieyu pinched Ye Futian''s waist hard because he was so shameless. She said, "My mom and I wanted you two to come for New Years and he agreed."


    A strange glint flashed past the Qin Devil''s eyes but seeing the two before him, he understood. Nandou Tai knew that his disciple and daughter would be more accomplished than him so now they were trying to resolve grudges. Back in the day, it would be hard to step into Donghai City, let alone the Nandou mansion.


    Ye Futian understood this too. The Nandou clan had high expectations and wishes for Jieyu. If they didn''t want Jieyu to hold grudges after she grew up, they couldn''t be too cruel for some things. As for him, they couldn''t offend him even if they didn''t agree on the wedding.


    "Happy?" Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian with a smile.


    "I thought they would agree to our marriage," Ye Futian said, pouting.


    "Say you''re happy," Hua Jieyu said with a grin.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian looked at her smile and nodded. "Of course I''m happy I can spend the New Year with Fox."


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes were pleased.


    "Then can I not leave at night?" Ye Futian fluttered his lashes.


    Hua Jieyu''s smile froze. Looking at him, she raised a slender leg and kicked him for his unhealthy thoughts.


    "I''m thinking of my master. He hasn''t seen Masteress in years. You should go discuss this with that old guy," Ye Futian said seriously.


    "That makes sense." Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded. "Dad can stay but you can''t."


    "My wife doesn''t listen to me," Ye Futian muttered.


    "What did you say?" Hua Jieyu glared again.


    "Nothing. I was thinking if we should go to the Imperial City together afterward," Ye Futian said.


    "I''ll consider it," Hua Jieyu said.


    "Master''s health is bad. I''m worried I can''t care for him," Ye Futian threatened.


    Hua Jieyu glared. At the side, Hua Fengliu complained, "If you want to act lovey-dovey in public, then do it but stop dragging me in!"


    "Dad, what are you saying?" Hua Jieyu blushed.


    "Master, you are so wise," Ye Futian praised. At least his master understood them!

 91 Emperor Luo

    Chapter 91: Emperor Luo


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the City of Donghai, Donghai Academy had been turned upside down. The academy was no longer what it once was. Many people left the academy. With their families and their own disciples, even many of the official personnel left. However, there were still those who chose to stay.


    Year 10000 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was a year of rebirth. The School of the Emperor Star held the power and the School of the Treasury Star assisted. The time when the seven schools stood equal was a time of the past now. But no one knew whether this rebirth was going to lead the academy to become more powerful or to its demise.


    In this year, Donghai Academy was the home of a student who arrived suddenly like a shooting star in the sky. He managed to make himself known to the entire academy in an extremely short time. However, he left the academy along with the headmaster of the Finance Star school and his master, Hua Fengliu, before he spent a full year at the academy.


    Presently, no one at Donghai Academy could imagine what lied in the future of this young man, who shined so brightly at the academy. However, anyone in the audience during the Assembly of the Seven Schools would have realized that if the young man had continued at the academy, he would have become someone of extreme importance in the Nandou Nation. There was no question about this.


    The new year was nearing, and the Nandou Nation was filled with a festive air. Many people returned home for the first time in a long time. Every prefecture and every city became lively as they prepared for the new year.


    Things were no different in the Imperial City. Many people already began to celebrate. Every house was decked out in new year''s decorations. Inside the most magnificent building in the Imperial City, the Imperial Palace, a festive air also existed. Though, in comparison with the outside, the palace still felt cold and uninviting. The aura in the Imperial Palace matched that of the royal family.


    At this moment, a figure was seated on the throne in a large hall within the Imperial Palace. He wore a crown on his head and a purple and gold robe on his body. He radiated a domineering aura from head to toe. This person was the most powerful man in all of the Nandou Nation. He was the emperor, Emperor Luo. Standing in front of him was Minister Zuo.


    "Do you know why I have summoned you today?" Emperor Luo asked Minister Zuo.


    "No, Your Majesty." Minister Zuo shook his head.


    "The Crown Prince heard that you bestowed the Decree of the Minister upon a young man and wanted to see this young man for himself. He even personally went to Donghai City. You really do have a sharp eye. Like always, this young man you found is incredibly gifted, the best of the best," said Emperor Luo.


    Minister Zuo knew that something was wrong. The Crown Prince personally went all the way to Donghai City just because he found out about a young man that he favored?


    "Indeed, he is a brilliant young man, but isn''t it too much for the His Highness to go all the way to the City of Donghai for such a thing? Your Majesty should persuade the Crown Prince to not to waste his time on this matter," suggested Minister Zuo. He was trying to alleviate the situation.


    "It seems that he has learned some things from this trip. Maybe it''s not so bad for him to travel outside. By the way, how is that young man''s fortune?" Emperor Luo asked nonchalantly.


    "Your Majesty, you should know that I no longer tell the fortune of others casually. Letting people know of their fortunes may influence their actions and in turn, change their fates. That would be going against the will of the heavens and I will be punished for doing so." Minister Zuo bowed apologetically. What he said was not a complete lie. He did not dare to tell the emperor that he had indeed told Ye Futian''s fortune. If his fortune was exposed, it would affect Ye Futian''s fate and could result in his fate being changed. That would definitely not be good. This was also the reason why astrologers tended not to live long lives.


    "You rascal have so many excuses. Didn''t you say before that it''ll be fine as long as we go with the flow?" Emperor Luo stood and laughed. "Then, what about the young miss of the Nandou clan? What does her fortune say? After you returned to the Imperial City, you seemed to be very busy. I know I shouldn''t ask but I can''t help my curiosity."


    Minister Zuo''s heart clenched. He never thought that his every move was being monitored by the emperor and the Crown Prince. At the thought of this, he began to regret agreeing to Nandou Tai''s request of telling Hua Jieyu''s fortune. Of course, when he agreed, he never expected her fortune to be so shocking, and he would never have guessed she was related to Ye Futian in any way.


    "Your Majesty," Minister Zuo put his hands together in front of himself and bowed to the emperor, "I am grateful to have met you and been allowed to follow under your leadership for all these years. I never dared to slack off and have always done my very best to discover new talent for our nation."


    "Of course, I know all of this, you rascal." Watching Minister Zuo, Emperor Luo couldn''t help but shake his head and let out a laugh. At this moment, he did not seem like an emperor but an older brother.


    "Over the years, I have been increasingly cautious in the use of my powers as an astrologer and have explained my reasons for doing so many times. On my most recent trip to the City of Qingzhou, I passed by the East Sea Prefecture and met an interesting young man and also told a fortune for someone. Both of these people are very lucky people and will influence the luck of the nation. This is why I''ve been busy paving the road for the two, wanting to do something for them," explained Minister Zuo.


    Emperor Luo lightly nodded his head and smiled. "I appreciate your thoughtfulness and have no worries about you. Also, that girl is too naughty, so please be tolerant of her. If she does anything to offend you, don''t be afraid to teach her a lesson. There is no need to take it easy on her for my sake."


    "Although the princess is a little willful, her gift and personality are both very good," said Minister Zuo.


    "Alright, go on now," said Emperor Luo. He patted Minister Zuo on the shoulder. Minister Zuo put his hands together and started to back out of the hall. Only when he was completely outside did he turn his back to the emperor.


    Beads of sweat rolled down Minister Zuo''s forehead. As an astrologer, he had to act with caution. There were many things he could not say. If he were to expose anything, it would be his demise. For example, Nandou Nation''s fate or the Crown Prince''s fortune.


    Minister Zuo hoped that his efforts would bring good results.


    What Minister Zuo didn''t know was, after his departure, two people entered the hall. It was Luo Junlin and Minister Hua.


    Emperor Luo was writing something at his table. While writing, he spoke, "Minister Zuo said those two were people of great luck and can change the fate of Nandou Nation. If so, then I plan on following his wishes."


    Minister Hua and the Crown Prince did not say anything. They waited quietly. They knew that Emperor Luo was writing an imperial order.


    Moments later, he put down his pen. At the wave of his hand, the golden scroll floated towards Minister Hua.


    "Take this," Emperor Luo ordered. Minister Hua reached out to receive the scroll. He took one look at the order and was shocked. His Majesty was indeed the emperor of an entire nation. His order was to allow Minister Zuo to keep his pride but at the same time, get rid of any worries.


    "Even though I believe in astrology, it can''t be fully trusted. Fates can be change but one thing I''m sure cannot be. Under this sky and in the Nandou Nation, my will is the will of the heavens," said Emperor Luo. "Minister Hua, go take care of this personally. I know that it''s already the end of the year but I''m still going to have to ask you to take this trip. And the Crown Prince, you should stay in the palace and focus on cultivation. One thing that Minister Zuo said was correct. To you, besides the throne, nothing is of importance to you."


    "Yes, Father," nodded Luo Junlin.


    "I will hurry to Donghai City, but Your Majesty, what should I do if someone refuses the imperial order?" asked Minister Hua.


    "I have already asked you to do this personally, is there any need to question further?" asked Emperor Luo. A wave of realization hit Minister Hua. He finally understood what the emperor meant. If it was simply to relay the imperial order, he could have sent anyone. That was the emperor''s reason for asking Minister Hua to personally take this trip to Donghai City��to prevent anyone from objecting. Who would dare object the imperial order in the presence of a minister?


    ''Under this sky and in the Nandou Nation, my will is the will of the heavens.'' The attitude behind these words was already very clear.


    "I will be excused now," said Minister Hua as he bowed to leave.


    ...


    Ye Futian had no idea what was going on in the Imperial Palace thousands of miles away. There were only to two days until the end of the year. He still had no idea where his parents were. Were his aunt and uncle doing well? What about Ye Xiaoqin and Ye Mo, were they okay? After the year ended, he would be leaving the City of Donghai and headed for the Imperial City. His days wandering the world with Hua Jieyu were going to be very interesting.


    In the courtyard, Ye Futian watched as Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan stuck to each other like glue. He was hurt.


    "Yu Sheng," he called. Yu Sheng lifted his head with a look of confusion.


    "Cultivate properly! Stop sticking with your girlfriend everyday." Ye Futian sounded very serious.


    Yu Sheng was dumbfounded. Yi Qingxuan laughed and said to him, "Yu Sheng, someone is being envious because Hua Jieyu isn''t here."


    "Yeah. Back in Qingzhou City, I cultivated while he and Hua Jieyu were attached at the hip every single day and then they became a couple." Yu Sheng nodded.


    On the side, Ye Futian stood up after being ignored. "You two are awful people." He spun around and left. He arrived at another part of the residence. Not far ahead was a white-haired elder, sweeping the courtyard.


    "Grandpa Yu!" Ye Futian stepped forward. The elder lifted his head and smiled. "Young Master Ye."


    "Grandpa Yu, it''s almost the end of the year, aren''t you going home to celebrate?" Ye Futian asked. These days he often came to chat with the older male.


    "I don''t have a home to return to." The elder shook his head, looking very sad.


    "What do you mean you have no home to return to? Where are you from?" Ye Futian continued to ask.


    "I spent some time on an island of the East Sea. You''ve probably never heard of it before. Then, I ended up here in the City of Donghai. I can''t go back there anymore," the elder said, feeling melancholy.


    "Grandpa Yu, at your age you must have experienced a lot. Would you mind sharing some of your stories with me?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "What kinds of stories would a person like me have? I spent my life serving others. I used to have a master who treated me very well, then trouble came knocking. But of course, Young Master Ye, you treat me very good as well," the elder said to Ye Futian, full of gratitude.


    "Don''t mention that. Grandpa Yu, you have to take extra good care of yourself at your age," said Ye Futian.


    "Okay, okay. Young Master Ye, you should go about your own business now. You don''t have to stay here with this old man," laughed the elder.


    "Alright, then I''ll leave now. I will come see you when I have time," Ye Futian said. He turned to leave and his eyes were shifting back and forth as if he were in deep thought.


    Could it really be his imagination? How come he felt distant but at the same time so familiar every time he got close to the elder? It was so difficult to comprehend these feelings!

 92 A Bolt from the Blue

    Chapter 92: A Bolt from the Blue


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    There were only two days left of the Divine Calendar''s first millennium. Donghai City grew more and more festive.


    Many people were in the Guqin Gardens where Hua Fengliu stayed��Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Yi Qingxuan, Yi Xiang, Tang Lan, and Tang Wan.


    "Tomorrow is the last day of the year. After tomorrow, I''ll see you all off," Yi Xiang said.


    "Why the hurry?" Yi Qingxuan asked.


    "Haven''t you realized that people are watching the Guqin Gardens these days?" Yi Xiang said. "They haven''t done anything so I ignored them but it''s better to be safe than sorry. As the saying goes, the longer the night, the more nightmares you may receive."


    The School of the Emperor Star definitely held grudges against him and Ye Futian but hadn''t made any moves. Perhaps they had their own concerns but Yi Xiang didn''t care. The sooner he got Ye Futian to the Imperial City the less he worried.


    "Senior Yi, you are right." Sitting on the side, Hua Fengliu nodded.


    "You get to see her tomorrow. Are you excited?" Tang Lan smiled at Hua Fengliu. Last time, Hua Jieyu had said that Nandou agreed to let Ye Futian and Hua Fengliu spend the New Year with Nandou Wenyin. It was a concession on the Nandou clan''s part.


    "No way. I want to be with you all," Hua Fengliu said, laughing.


    "Really? Then let Futian go by himself," Tang Lan smiled and said.


    Hua Fengliu''s expression was a bit awkward. He shot a glance at Ye Futian, seeming to want Ye Futian to help him out.


    "Master, you decide." Ye Futian looked away. He couldn''t help his master now. There was no loyalty at times like this.


    Hua Fengliu glared at Ye Futian. How could his disciple and future son-in-law be like this?


    "Tang Lan, I do want to spend it with Jieyu," Hua Fengliu finally said with a wavering smile.


    Tang Lan smiled thinly and said, "Fake." With that, she turned around. As she left, she said, "I''ll have the servants prepare the New Year dinner. We''ll celebrate beforehand."


    "We can do that?" Ye Futian looked at Tang Lan''s back, impressed at her decisive actions.


    "Come here," said a cool voice. Ye Futian turned to see Hua Fengliu smiling at him. He shuddered at the strange smile and walked over to massage Hua Fengliu. "Master, how may I help you?"


    "How can I ask you for help?" Hua Fengliu said coldly.


    "It''s my duty to help my master," Ye Futian said earnestly. "Oh right, I recognized Masteress as soon as I saw her last time. Only you can win the heart of someone as beautiful as her."


    "Of course." Hua Fengliu smiled proudly. Back in the day, he had so many competitors. The Art Saint was the strongest one but he still won.


    "Masteress is so beautiful now; I can''t imagine what she looked like before. I''m sure your looks were comparable to mine," Ye Futian continued.


    Hua Fengliu was honestly impressed at how his student had successfully changed the topic.


    After a while, the banquet was ready. Everyone chatted and enjoyed the atmosphere. While they were gathered like a family, a group of powerful men descended from the sky outside the Guqin Garden''s gate.


    The leader was the chief of the East Sea Prefecture, Xia Feng. Xia Fan was beside him. They had come with powerful men and a powerful aura. Xia Fan''s eyes flashed dangerously.


    "Enter." Xia Feng waved. The group instantly shot into the sky like heavenly soldiers and stepped into the garden.


    Inside, Yi Xiang first felt something wrong. He frowned slightly and looked towards the outside of the garden. Then everyone else followed his gaze. A moment later, they saw the malevolent group appear in the air.


    "Xia Feng, what are you doing?" Tang Lan scanned Xia Feng coldly and asked.


    Xia Feng''s eyes glinted coldly. The group landed and walked toward the people enjoying the banquet. Beside him, Xia Fan glared coldly at Ye Futian. This was the lowly figure he once thought of as an ant he could play with but Ye Futian had almost killed him. Now, the tides had finally turned a bit.


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Fan with similar coldness, murderous intent flashing past his eyes.


    "Sorry to disturb everyone. I am here today under an order. It is good news, so let me congratulate you first." Xia Feng smiled but everyone at the banquet frowned. What order was he talking about? He did not interact with the royalty of Nandou. How could he receive an order? A bad premonition grew within them.


    "Ye Futian." Xia Feng''s gaze fell on Ye Futian. Everyone''s eyes turned towards him. Had the emperor given Ye Futian an order?


    "The emperor proclaims that due to the extraordinary talent of Ye Futian of the East Sea Prefecture, he is given the title of Study Attendant of the Crown Prince. From now on, he will accompany the Crown Prince in his studies and cultivation."


    Xia Feng smiled at Ye Futian while speaking. That day at Donghai Academy, Ye Futian had rejected the Crown Prince''s invitation to be the minister. He could have gone straight to the top but he did not know what was good for himself. Now, the Crown Prince was probably angered. He had the Emperor pass the decree and sent Minister Hua to collect him from Donghai City. What this implied went without saying.


    Ye Futian had to go.


    "It is not the end of the year yet," Xia Feng continued. "His Majesty allows him to wait until the year passes. We will embark on the first day of the new year."


    Everyone at the banquet stared at him. The Study Attendant of the Crown Prince was an opportunity that many dreamed of. There was a chance of extreme success. However, it was not a good thing for Ye Futian, especially since he''d just politely rejected the prince. Now, the Emperor had sent this direct order without giving any way to back out of it.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed; he was angry inside. At the Assembly of the Seven Schools, the Crown Prince had asked if he knew the consequences of disobeying the crown''s orders. He was not the Emperor but he was the Crown Prince.


    The Emperor''s order was here.


    For the first time, Ye Futian experienced the power, aggressiveness, and coldness of the crown. There was no respect for him��there was no need to respect him. Minister Zuo had wanted him to attend the Tingfeng Banquet in the Imperial City. He''d planned on leaving after the New Year but he never thought that a decree would order him to go.


    "The Study Attendant?" Ye Futian asked coldly. They wanted him to accompany the prince? Right now, he was even wondering if there was still a need to attend the Tingfeng Banquet. Minister Zuo had thought so highly of him but had probably not thought of this result.


    Ye Futian could feel that this was not Minister Zuo''s idea. Minister Zuo had been very friendly toward him and would definitely respect his opinion. He would not force him to the Imperial City in this way and would definitely not have Xia Feng do it.


    "Got it," Ye Futian said coolly.


    Xia Feng''s eyes sharpened and focused on Ye Futian.


    "This is the Emperor''s decree. Ye Futian, watch your attitude," Xia Fan said in a frigid tone.


    "The Emperor gave me the title of the Crown Prince''s Study Attendant. He''s not punishing me so what''s with your attitude?" Ye Futian sat there, staring at Xia Fan. These men had broken into the Guqin Gardens to announce this as if he was a criminal.


    Xia Feng sneered inwardly. He realized that Ye Futian knew he had angered the Crown Prince and was being taken forcefully. Minister Hua was the one in charge and Ye Futian obviously knew what this meant.


    Xia Fan narrowed his eyes and then laughed. He said, "Very good. I''d like to see how much longer you smile for. I forgot to tell you that Minister Hua is going to the Nandou clan today with another decree."


    The moment he finished, Ye Futian rose. He stared daggers at Xia Fan. "What decree?"


    "Guess." Xia Fan smiled and said, "It''s related to your girlfriend."


    "Okay, is this your business?" Xia Feng said indifferently. Faced with a group of cold glares, he said, "Sorry for the disruption. I''ll be waiting outside and we''ll go as soon as New Years is over."


    With that, Xia Feng waved and they sauntered off.


    Ye Futian and the others stared at the backs of Xia Feng''s group. They still had not recovered. The happy atmosphere was completely gone with gray clouds over their heads.


    Ye Futian and Hua Fengliu were especially unsettled.


    . . . . . .


    At the same time that Xia Feng announced the decree, Minister Hua had arrived at the Nandou clan. Nandou Tai, the clan leader, welcomed him personally.


    Seeing him, Minister Hua smiled and said, "Brother Nandou, congratulations."


    "What do you mean?" Nandou Tai was confused.


    "It is great news. His Majesty has a decree. Is Hua Jieyu here?"


    Nandou Tai''s eyes flashed. He didn''t understand why Minister Hua would need Hua Jieyu. Was the Emperor''s decree related to Jieyu?


    Had Minister Zuo said something to the Emperor? But then why would Minister Hua be here?


    "I''ll call her over now," Nandou Tai said.


    "No need. I''ll go personally so please bring me to her," Minister Hua said with a smile.


    Nandou Tai was even more confused but he nodded and said, "Alright. After you."


    With that, the group started off and arrived in Nandou Wenyin''s residence. After hearing the news, she and Hua Jieyu came out and stared at the newcomer in confusion.


    Minister Hua gazed at Hua Jieyu and smiled. "As expected, you are a beauty. No wonder you have an extraordinary fate."


    "Minister Hua, please enlighten us," Nandou Tai said. Had Minister Zuo really said something about her fate? But an astrologer always kept fates a secret, especially one like Jieyu''s. Nandou Tai did not dare publicize it and not even anyone in the clan knew. He was worried that revealing it would affect Jieyu''s fate.


    "The Emperor has proclaimed Hua Jieyu as the Crown Princess. She will travel the palace in the year 10001 of the Divine Calendar for the title ceremony," Minister Hua said. He thought, No wonder the emperor is the emperor. With these two decrees, Minister Zuo isn''t put in a difficult position but the fatal problems are solved. Since these two will influence the nation, then give them riches and keep them where they can be easily controlled.


    If anyone had any objections, he could make a prompt decision. Fates could be changed but the royal order could not be disobeyed!


    To Hua Jieyu, this order was like a bolt from the blue!

 93 I Am Fated to Be Emperor

    Chapter 93: I Am Fated to Be Emperor


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In a split second, Hua Jieyu felt completely lifeless. Her face was as pale as a ghost.


    His Majesty had bestowed the title of the Crown Princess upon her. She was to leave on the first day of the new year. Just a moment ago, she was chatting with her mother about the events of tomorrow, when her father and Ye Futian was to come. Then, without warning, she was hit with this news.


    Nandou Wenyin, Nandou Tai and the rest were all in shock, unable to recover.


    This...is this fate? Nandou Tai asked himself. To be honest, he did not fully comprehend what Minister Zuo meant when he said that Hua Jieyu was fated to be an empress, mother of the world. But now he knew. Minister Zuo meant empress to an emperor, emperor of the Nandou Nation.


    "No..." said Hua Jieyu. She had finally pulled herself out of her daze. Her eyes showed determination as she said to Minister Hua, "I refuse."


    Minister Hua frowned. "Nonsense, this is an imperial order from His Majesty."


    "I refuse," Hua Jieyu repeated with a cold demeanor. She was still looking at him. Minister Hua''s gaze was sharp as a knife but the girl standing in front of him showed no fear.


    "Brother Nandou, does the Nandou clan plan on going against the imperial order?" Minister Hua asked.


    "Please forgive her Minister Hua. She''s just being stubborn. Please allow me to talk some sense into her," said Nandou Tai. He had a change in expression. The Nandou clan was no longer royal; they were in no position to fight against the imperial power.


    "Fine, I''ll give you guys two days. During these two days, I will be staying here and on the first day of the new year, we will be on our way back to the Imperial City," said Minister Hua. As he turned to leave, he sneered. Disobeying the imperial order? Who dared to do so in front of Minister Hua?


    After Nandou Tai watched Minister Hua leave, his attention fell on Hua Jieyu. He said, "Jieyu, the Crown Prince was born to become emperor. He is an outstanding young man. He is in his twenties and still unmarried. This tells you a lot about his personality. A chance like this only falls to one person in all of the Nandou Nation and now fate has chosen one. You are to become the mother of the world."


    "I don''t need fate like this," Hua Jieyu said to Nandou Tai.


    He saw the determination in her eyes and continued to try to persuade her, "Jieyu, you''re only 17, this thing you have with Ye Futian is only temporary. One day, when you guys are standing at two different levels, you''ll forget about all this. As long as you agree to this, I''ll send people to bring your father into the Nandou Palace and your family will be united again."


    Hua Jieyu looked at Nandou Tai with ice cold eyes. "I''m not going to agree and neither will my father."


    "Wenyin, talk some sense into her." Nandou Tai looked at Nandou Wenyin who stood behind her daughter.


    "Now that there are bigger benefits for you, you''re willing to let him come back?" Nandou Wenyin sneered at Nandou Tai. "Do you really think we''ll be happy with a family reunion brought by the sacrifice of our daughter? I won''t agree to this."


    Nandou Tai''s expression did not look good. Coldy, he said, "Even if you guys object, this is an imperial order. Who can disobey an imperial order? There is still one day for you guys to think this over." After that, Nandou Tai left with a sunken face.


    Following immediately after his departure, Hua Jieyu''s eyes filled with tears as she turned to look at her mother. "Mother!" In her voice was a deep melancholy. She seemed so weak at this moment. The usual air that surrounded her was no longer there.


    "My poor child," said Nandou Wenyin. She walked up to her daughter and held Hua Jieyu''s tear-stained face in her own hands. Her heart hurt to see her child like this.


    How could both of their lives turn out this way? Why couldn''t they be with the person they loved?


    Nandou Wenyin was the one person who could truly understand what Hua Jieyu was feeling at the moment because she had also been through this. They didn''t care for nobility. All they wanted was to be with the one they loved.


    Just then, a figure came running. It was Nandou Wenshan who had just received the news. Seeing the mother and daughter, his heart was in pain. Hua Jieyu was even more outstanding than her mother. She was destined to be different. Now, she had been given the title of Crown Princess. Was this what Minister Zuo saw in her fortune? Was this her destiny?


    "Mother, I miss him. I want to go see him," Hua Jieyu said while crying.


    "Silly girl, they''re not going to let you step outside." Nandou Wenyin shook her head. She had been through all of this before. But Hua Jieyu did not seem to have heard her mother''s words. She turned around and attempted to leave. However, at this moment, multiple figures appeared in the courtyard. They were all powerful cultivators of the Nandou clan. His Majesty''s imperial order has fallen upon the Nandou clan but Hua Jieyu objected. In a situation like this, how could they let her leave? Even if the people of the clan didn''t stop her, Minister Hua would have. There was no way she was stepping foot outside of Nandou Palace.


    Hua Jieyu looked at the figures in the courtyard and her gaze cooled. She then turned and returned to her residence.


    "Jieyu, sometimes people just can''t fight fate," sighed Nandou Wenshan. He was also sad. In this situation, there was no solution and no way to fight it.


    This time, it was even harder to fight than with Nandou Wenyin''s situation all those years ago. The rival back then was just the Art Saint. Even though the Nandou clan wanted to create a connection to Minister Hua, who was related to the Art Saint, the clan still held the power of nobilities due to their background and there was not an absolute need to set Nandou Wenyin up with the Art Saint to acquire power. And because of this, the Art Saint had no right to come and demand Nandou Wenyin to marry him. But things were different now. Now, it was the title of Crown Princess. His Majesty wrote the imperial order himself. Nobody, in all of the Nandou Nation, could deny the order.


    "No, I''ve said before, I don''t believe in fate." Hua Jieyu looked at her uncle and shook her head. "I''m not going to the Imperial Palace and I''m not going to be the Crown Princess. Not now, not ever."


    "Jieyu, don''t think that way." Nandou Wenshan''s expression changed. Hue Jieyu was way too determined, to the point that Nandou Wenshan was afraid. If Hua Jieyu wanted to deny the imperial order, there was only one way. He was not willing to see her go down that road.


    "Uncle, can you stop by the Guqin Gardens for me?" Hua Jieyu did not respond to her uncle''s previous utterance. Instead, she made a request, tears streaming down her face.


    "What do you want?" asked Nandou Wenshan.


    "Can you tell him not to come tomorrow? Just tell him that the clan won''t allow it." Her voice was filled with sadness. Her tears could not be stopped as she spoke. Of course, she wished for him to come but she knew, deep down, there was no way of denying the imperial order. If he came, it would only put him in danger. She did not wish for anything to happen to Ye Futian.


    "What if he finds out what happened?" asked Nandou Wenshan.


    "Then tell him that I have no feelings for him anymore and that I want to be the Crown Princess. Tell him to forget about me and never look for me again," said Hua Jieyu. The tears continued to stream down her face and her own words cut into her heart like knives.


    Hearing her words, Nandou Wenshan also felt pained. His heart clenched for his niece.


    "Are you sure that''s what you want to tell him?" he asked.


    Hua Jieyu nodded her head in response.


    "Okay." Nandou Wenshan nodded as well. "I''ll head over now." He then turned to leave.


    Watching him leave, Hua Jieyu crouched down on the ground. Her arms hugged her knees as she cried her eyes out.


    Nandou Wenyin did not know when it happened but her tears were filled with tears as well. She walked beside Hua Jieyu and hugged her lightly.


    "Mother, I don''t know why but my heart really hurts," Hua Jieyu said. Her tone was heartbreaking to listen to.


    "Mother''s heart is also in pain." Nandou Wenyin hated herself for being so useless.


    "Mother, if anything happens to me, you have to take care of yourself," said Hua Jieyu.


    "Silly girl," Nandou Wenyin''s heart squeezed at Hua Jieyu''s words but she had no idea how to comfort her daughter. She herself has had this type of thought countless times, but she had Hua Jieyu; she had a child with the man she loved.


    ...


    At the Guqin Gardens, Ye Futian was feeling confused after hearing Xia Fan''s words. The happy atmosphere at the residence had been ruined. They were no longer worried about Ye Futian becoming the Crown Prince''s study attendant. They were more worried about what type of order had fallen upon the Nandou clan.


    Ye Futian had initially wanted to go check things out at the Nandou Palace but was stopped by Yi Xiang and Tang Wan. They had yet to straighten things out and Xia Feng was still watching from the outside. If Ye Futian stepped outside, it could be dangerous for him. Tang Wan ordered her first disciple, Nie Bing, to check outside while they waited inside. But before Nie Bing returned, Nandou Wenshan arrived at the Guqin Gardens.


    Ye Futian rushed to Nandou Wenshan immediately. His eyes were frozen on the elder male.


    "What happened here?" asked Nandou Wenshan. He had seen the obvious group of people outside.


    "His Majesty gave an imperial order. He wants me to be the Crown Prince''s study attendant," answered Ye Futian.


    Nandou Wenshan''s face fell. This young couple, Ye Futian was bestowed with the title of the Crown Prince''s study attendant while Hua Jieyu was going to be the Crown Princess. To outsiders, this might have seemed like a good thing, but anyone who knew of Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian''s relationship knew that this was a calamity.


    "Where''s Jieyu?" Ye Futian was looking straight at Nandou Wenshan.


    "Jieyu wanted me to bring you a message," said Nandou Wenshan.


    "What is it?" asked Ye Futian.


    "She says she no longer has feelings for you and that she wants to be the Crown Princess, so you should forget about her and never look for her again," Nandou Wenshan said while staring into the young man''s eyes. He felt so cruel, but he understood why Hua Jieyu would say such hurtful things to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian felt like he was hit by lightning. He was frozen in place, not because of the cruel words but because of the meaning behind them. In an instant, he figured out what the imperial order for the Nandou clan was.


    "Dummy," Ye Futian opened his mouth after a long while. Nandou Wenshan was dumbfounded. Then, he watched as the young man lifted his head towards himself. With red eyes, Ye Futian said, "Did she really think that I would believe those words? Does that dummy think I''m an idiot?"


    Nandou Wenshan was speechless.


    "Uncle, tell me. How is she doing now?" asked Ye Futian.


    Nandou Wenshan''s heart clench when Ye Futian called him that. He said, "I''m really worried about her. She said that she will never step foot in the Imperial Palace and will never become the Crown Princess. Never."


    "Of course not. She''s mine!" Ye Futian continued, "Why would that idiot of an emperor give such an order?"


    "I don''t know the specifics, but there is one thing I can tell you," said Nandou Wenshan. "Minister Zuo once told Jieyu''s fortune. He said she was fated to be an empress. Maybe he told the emperor. This must be her destiny."


    "Minister Zuo? Empress?" Ye Futian looked at Nandou Wenshan. "Minister Zuo is an astrologer?"


    "Yeah," nodded Nandou Wenshan. At this moment, a lot of things suddenly became clear to Ye Futian.


    "You''re wrong, Minister Zuo won''t tell the emperor," said Ye Futian. Nandou Wenshan lifted his head to look at Ye Futian, confused.


    "If Fox is fated to be empress, then that means Minister Zuo must have looked at my fortune as well," Ye Futian said in all seriousness. "If she is fated to be empress, then I am fated to be emperor!"

 94 A Group of Idiots

    Chapter 94: A Group of Idiots


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Nandou Wenshan looked at Ye Futian. This guy was talented but saying he was fated to be an emperor was a bit too much. However, he didn''t doubt it. Minister Zuo had given Ye Futian the minister decree and probably had really tested Ye Futian''s fate. It meant that he couldn''t have an average fate.


    Looking at the handsome figure before him, Nandou Wenshan said, "No matter what, do not go to the Nandou clan tomorrow. If it''s truly as you said, that Minister Zuo didn''t tell the Emperor, then there''s more to the fact that he sent Minister Hua. If you object, he will definitely not treat you nicely."


    "Uncle, if I have the fate of an emperor and don''t mind what happened before, will Nandou support me?" Ye Futian asked instead of replying to what Nandou Wenshan said.


    The Nandou clan was the previous royalty after all. They had strong foundations and were established in Donghai City. If they could abandon everything of Nandou Kingdom, they might be able to change the situation and fight with Minister Hua.


    "This guy��" Nandou Wenshan looked at Ye Futian. It seemed that the youth had lost his cool.


    It was the Emperor''s decree for Minister Hua to come and give the title of Crown Princess. Ye Futian was only seventeen. No matter how talented he was, it didn''t mean anything. The Crown Prince was more talented; there wasn''t even a need to choose. How could Ye Futian prove that he had an emperor''s fate?


    "You have to think clearly and not muddle your mind. Would you like me to pass a word on to Jieyu? I''m afraid she''ll do something silly," Nandou Wenshan said.


    "Uncle, tell that silly girl to not do anything silly and wait for me. Minister Zuo was right. She has the fate of an empress and is destined to be the mother of the world," Ye Futian said. He trusted Minister Zuo''s prediction because his godfather and Emperor Ye Qing had said similar things before.


    "Okay." Nandou Wenshan sighed inwardly. He glanced at Hua Fengliu again but left without saying anything more. It had seemed that everything was improving. The clan leader had agreed for Nandou Wenyin and Hua Jieyu to come to the Guqin Gardens but the decree had changed everything.


    In the garden, everyone stood behind Ye Futian. They didn''t know what to say and couldn''t comfort him. The mood was repressive.


    Ye Futian turned. Seeing all the eyes on him, he forced a smile and said, "What are you all looking at me for? It''s getting late. Go rest." To Hua Fengliu, he said, "Master, let''s go back." He carried Hua Fengliu toward his own yard. Yi Xiang looked at their receding backs and sighed inwardly. He had planned on taking this group of extremely talented youths to the Imperial City tomorrow for the Tingfeng Banquet. With Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s skills, they could definitely surpass the others. They also had Minister Zuo''s help and would have a smooth path to becoming the best of the kingdom. But this decree had destroyed everything��Minister Zuo''s anticipations and their plans. Ye Futian had just called His Majesty of Nandou the idiot king. His mood was clear. Even though he was only 17, the man was not the king in his eyes.


    The Study Attendant of the Crown Prince? In a few years, he might become more impressive than the prince. Now, he was only worried that he would die young.


    Just as Ye Futian had guessed, even though Yi Xiang had accepted Yu Sheng as his disciple, he also saw Ye Futian as a disciple but treated them differently. Otherwise, he wouldn''t help Ye Futian so much.


    . . . . . .


    At night, there was music in the garden. Ye Futian sat there, playing his guqin. There was a breeze and it was quite cold but Ye Futian''s heart was even colder. He played with his eyes closed. At this moment, he thought of many happy memories. A beautiful face appeared in his mind. She was so beautiful but also playful.


    They had met for the first time when they were 12. The 12-year-old girl already had shocking looks. He said that if she was like this at 12, she''d become a fox when she grew up.


    At 15, they met again in the Qingzhou Academy. The girl purposely lied to everyone so they would have misunderstandings, making him gain a bunch of enemies. Later, he cultivated with his master. They had months of interactions and play��almost like flirting in hindsight. A warm smile appeared on his face.


    Later, the girl went to the Ye mansion, shocking everyone there. The two then joined hands by the Qingzhou Lake to announce their relationship. Then, they separated.


    After that, something happened in Qingzhou City. He crossed the East Sea and caused a commotion in Donghai Academy so she would know he was there. They met again in the Guqin Gardens and the girl hugged him gently.


    The two were in love but didn''t dare to publicize it until the School of the Emperor Star started suspecting it. When Mu Yunxuan spread the rumors, he walked into the School of the Emperor Star. He marked their relationship with a kiss, leading to the battle at the gate of the school. They held hands and smiled, facing the future fearlessly.


    In the School of the Finance Star, the two slept in each other''s arms. The girl was shy but did not stop him. He knew that she was willing to give him everything. He swore in his heart that he would marry her. However, no one expected that fate was a joke. The Imperial City''s order was so aggressive and merciless; it destroyed everything.


    The music went from heartwarming to sweet. It seemed to contain deep emotions and gradually grew depressed, furious, and hateful, wishing to cut apart the world.


    With a clang, the string snapped and the music cut off. Ye Futian opened his eyes. He looked at the broken string; his eyes were still sharp. When he looked up, he saw the old man with a broom under the moonlight. The violence in his eyes disappeared.


    He asked, "Grandpa Yu, why aren''t you resting?"


    "I was attracted by your music," the old man said with a smile. "Young Master, your music is a bit chaotic today. Did something happen?"


    Ye Futian glanced at him and felt something affectionate. He said, "Grandpa Yu, someone wants to steal the girl I love."


    "How can someone dare to steal Young Master Ye''s girl?" the man asked in confusion.


    "The emperor of Nandou. He ordered my girl to become the Crown Princess," Ye Futian said. "Grandpa Yu, what should I do?"


    "If she''s your girl, steal her back. So what if he''s the emperor?" Yu said naturally. Hearing his calm voice, Ye Futian''s eyes narrowed. The old man''s eyes were cloudy but he seemed to feel nothing wrong with the logic.


    Ye Futian smiled brightly. "Grandpa Yu, you''re right. If she''s my girl, so what if he''s the emperor?"


    "Young Master Ye, please rest early. I''ll go now." The old man stooped low and left. Looking at his back, Ye Futian''s smile grew determined.


    The night was as still as water. Ye Futian didn''t sleep the entire night. Later, a Black Wind Eagle landed soundlessly in the garden. Ye Futian climbed onto it and wind appeared. The eagle flapped its wings and flew. However, the moment the Black Wind Eagle shot into the sky, a figure appeared out of thin air and blocked him. It was Yi Xiang.


    "Where are you sneaking off to at night? Are you a thief?" a cold voice sounded behind him. Ye Futian turned to see Tang Lan there.


    "Senior Yi, Aunt Tang." Ye Futian smiled wryly. It seemed that everyone was guarding him instead of sleeping. People appeared one after another down below. Yu Sheng, Yi Qingxuan, and Tang Wan were all there, looking up at him. They had guessed he would run away alone.


    "Whatever you want to do, talk about it after tonight," Yi Xiang said coldly.


    Ye Futian knew he couldn''t leave now. He just nodded and had the eagle land on the ground. Then he went to his room to rest. The others watched him without leaving. They sat in the garden, guarding him.


    . . . . . .


    It was the last day of year 10000 of the Divine Calendar.


    In the morning, Ye Futian walked out of his room and saw the people sitting in the courtyard. It made him feel warm inside. These people were all part of his family.


    "Master, you''re up so early too," Ye Futian said, walking to Hua Fengliu who was on the bench.


    "Aren''t we going to see your Masteress and Jieyu today? I''m excited so I woke up early," Hua Fengliu said with a smile.


    "You''re not allowed to go," Tang Lan said, glaring at Hua Fengliu.


    "She''s right. Master, you shouldn''t go because of your body. I''ll bring Masteress and Jieyu here," Ye Futian said.


    "If you dare leave me behind, you can go find another teacher," Hua Fengliu said with a glare.


    "Fine, as if I need you," Ye Futian replied.


    Everyone listened as they argued but it felt bittersweet.


    Hua Fengliu stared at Ye Futian and said, "Try me."


    "Aunt Tang, please help me look after him. He''s already like this but he''s still conceited," Ye Futian said to Tang Lan, almost harshly.


    "You''re really going?" Yi Xiang asked Ye Futian.


    The youth nodded. He had no choice��if he didn''t go, there was no saying what that silly girl would do. No matter what the ending was like, he had to go try. Otherwise, he wouldn''t admit defeat.


    "What are you looking at me like that for?" Ye Futian said, smiling as he looked at everyone. "I have an emperor''s fate. I won''t die so easily and I''m going to bring Masteress and Fox here."


    Yu Sheng followed him and Yi Qingxuan followed Yu Sheng.


    "What are you doing?" Ye Futian asked Yu Sheng.


    "Going with you," he replied.


    "I''m going to see my wife. What are you going for? Your wife is behind you," Ye Futian said but Yu Sheng didn''t move. "Get the f*ck back!" Ye Futian yelled.


    Yu Sheng didn''t move.


    "Yu Sheng, come back," Yi Xiang said to his disciple. Yu Sheng looked back. "I''m going with him," Yi Xiang said.


    Yu Sheng''s eyes were red and his fists were clenched tightly.


    Ye Futian looked up at Yi Xiang, saying, "I''m not your disciple. What are you going for?"


    "You''re an idiot," Yi Xiang replied coldly.


    Ye Futian froze. Looking at the man, he finally smiled and said, "You''re the real idiot."


    As he spoke, he started walking out. Yi Xiang followed behind him, but not without glaring at Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan. "Be obedient. Tang Lan, watch them for me."


    Tang Lan''s eyes were red too. Seeing the two leave, she muttered, "You''re all idiots!"

 95 Stir Up Some Trouble

    Chapter 95: Stir Up Some Trouble


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The last day of the Divine Prefecture Calendar Year 10000 did not seem like it was going to be a peaceful day. The news of Ye Futian being ordered to become the Crown Prince''s study attendant and Hua Jieyu to be the Crown Princess hit Donghai Academy like a storm. Everybody was in shock.


    Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian were once the most well-known couple on campus, as well as the most gifted. They were a match made in heaven, but with one imperial order from the Imperial City, the young couple was destined for a sad ending. Nobody thought that they could go against the imperial order. The only thing left to do was to go where fate takes you.


    Ye Futian had once rejected the Crown Prince''s offer but now, there was no way out. This was the power of royalty. But of course, if Ye Futian just gave in, he would have the opportunity to climb up the power ladder. However, according to what the people of Donghai Academy knew about Ye Futian, there was no way he would give in. Otherwise, he would not have rejected the Crown Prince''s offer during the Assembly of the Seven Schools.


    At the School of the Emperor Star, many people were gathered. Headmaster Yan Shao, his disciple, Zhuo Qing, Vice Headmaster Han Mo, as well as other officials, were all present.


    "Where are Headmaster and the rest going?" asked a student watching the group from afar.


    "I heard they''re going to the Nandou Palace to congratulate Hua Jieyu for being chosen as the Crown Princess," said a knowledgeable student.


    At the mention of Hua Jieyu''s name, many people were feeling conflicted. The young woman once cultivated at the School of the Emperor Star. She was a goddess to many, the girl of their dreams. She was outstanding and beautiful but, in the end, she betrayed their school. And now, she was going to be the Crown Princess and the empress in the future. From now on, they were only worthy of looking up at her. Perhaps only a perfect girl like her was worthy of all this.


    As for Ye Futian, it was bound to be a tragedy.


    The large group from the School of the Emperor Star set off for the Nandou Palace.


    The people of Donghai Academy were not the only ones who knew of these new developments. The news has spread like wildfire all through the City of Donghai. Many powerful people who found out about the news all headed over to the palace to congratulate the Nandou clan on this last day before the new year.


    The clan was already powerful because they had a royal background, but now, one of their younger members had been bestowed the title of the Crown Princess. This was the perfect chance to establish a great relationship with the clan. Plus, Minister Hua was also at the palace.


    The Nandou clan, the used-to-be royal family, had become the main focus of everyone once again. Today was definitely not going to be a quiet day.


    Just as Yi Xiang and Ye Futian stepped out of the Guqin Gardens, Xia Feng, Xia Fan, and their people surrounded the two of them. Xia Feng asked Ye Futian, "Where are you going?"


    "Does His Majesty''s imperial order also include restricting my freedom?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Obviously not but we''re heading to the Imperial City tomorrow, so it''s best for you not to go running about." Xia Feng smiled.


    Ye Futian gave him an icy glance then picked up his feet to leave. Xia Fan smiled and asked, "Can''t keep yourself from seeing your lover?"


    Ye Futian stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Xia Fan. Xia Fan was giving him an evil smile and said, "That''s all in the past now. She''s going to be the Crown Princess. You better keep yourself in check and know your place. If you keep having these thoughts, I''m afraid...." Xia Fan laughed but did not continue. The mocking look in his eyes became more obvious. He was provoking Ye Futian on purpose. He actually hoped that Ye Futian would cause a ruckus by disobeying the imperial order. This way, it would be a dead end for him. Literally. No one was going to be able to save him.


    Ye Futian suddenly gave Xia Fan a smile before walking towards him. Xia Fan watched Ye Futian as he neared. The smug look on his face grew. Did Ye Futian think he was still the genius cultivator that Minister Zuo favored? Things were different now. Only bad things were waiting for Ye Futian. The Crown Prince obviously had it out for him.


    Ye Futian stopped in front of Xia Fan with a charming, bright smile. He then took out the Decree of the Minister and showed it to Xia Fan. "Do you know what this is?"


    The look on Xia Fan''s face changed a little. Was Ye Futian really threatening him with the Decree of the Minister at a time like this?


    Just then, Ye Futian acted at the speed of light. His fist landed right on Xia Fan''s face. Because Xia Fan had no time to react, to defend himself, he was knocked down to the ground, face first.


    "How presumptuous!" yelled Xia Feng. The powerful cultivators came in closer. Yi Xiang also came closer behind Ye Futian. His aura was domineering and his long robe blew in the wind.


    "Even if he doesn''t know what this is, you should know, right?" Ye Futian held the Decree of the Minister up for Xia Feng to see. "I was bestowed the title of the Crown Prince''s study attendant by His Majesty and give this decree by Minister Zuo. To insult me in public, is that dissatisfaction with the Emperor or is he looking down on Minister Zuo?"


    Xia Feng''s expression darkened at Ye Futian''s words. However, he did not dare to lay a hand on Ye Futian. Even though Ye Futian was most likely going to end up being very pitiful, there was nothing wrong with what he said.


    Xia Fan crawled off the ground, blood in the corners of his mouth. A bruise had already formed on his face. He threw Ye Futian a murderous look as he continued to stare. However, he made no moves to get revenge. Instead, he smiled a creepy smile and said, "You''re right, my actions were too rash. I apologize." Xia Fan believed that Ye Futian would be dead soon. He''ll allow him to be arrogant for a little longer. He would take the punch.


    Ye Futian saw the creepy smile on Xia Fan''s face and returned it with a cold, icy glare. He did nothing to hide his murderous intentions. Turning around, Ye Futian was on his way again.


    "Follow," ordered Xia Feng when he saw Yi Xiang and Ye Futian leaving. A large group following obnoxiously after the two and the headed in the direction of the Nandou Palace all together.


    This day was not a quiet one for the Nandou clan. People kept arriving with congratulatory words. The guests were all powerful people of Donghai City. The large palace was filled with guests for the first time in a long time. At this scene, the people of the clan felt as if they have recovered their glory. Many people were very excited at this and imagined the clan''s bright future.


    The only thing giving the clan a headache was Hua Jieyu''s attitude. She still seemed to be very put off by this situation. Many people in the clan could not understand. Was this because of Ye Futian? Everyone knew who to choose between a gifted young man and a gifted Crown Prince? Why was she still stuck on Ye Futian? It was all because she was still too young. Hua Jieyu was still at the age that her imaginations were more important than reality.


    At this moment, outside the palace, a black wind eagle landed on the ground. Two figures got off of the eagle. It was Yi Xiang and Ye Futian. When Ye Futian saw how lively the palace was, his heart clenched. The two of them stepped to the entrance of the palace. There stood two powerful members of the Nandou clan. They had been welcoming guests. Their face fell as soon as they saw Ye Futian. Coldly, they asked, "What are you doing here?" Presently, he was the one person that the whole clan dreaded seeing the most.


    "I came to look for my Masteress and my girlfriend. Didn''t the clan already agree to it?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Nonsense. There is no one here that can be your girlfriend," a middle-aged man reprimanded. How dare Ye Futian called Hua Jieyu his girlfriend now that she was given the title of the Crown Princess?


    "You''ll see whether or not my girlfriend is here if you let me in," Ye Futian tried to take a step forward but was blocked by multiple bodies.


    Yi Xiang stood behind Ye Futian, exuding a powerful aura. The powerful cultivators of the Nandou clan looked at him with different expressions from before.


    "I think you guys should go and announce his arrival," said Yi Xiang.


    The leader of the group blocking Ye Futian looked at Yin Xiang. Then he gave a command to someone behind him, and that person ran into the palace.


    Ye Futian and Yi Xiang stood quietly outside the entrance of the palace. Inside the palace, Nandou Tai had set up a huge celebration to receive Minister Hua and the guests. At the party, every table was full and laughter filled the air. Everyone was getting along well and more and more arrived. Just then, a person came running and whispered in Nandou Tai''s ear. Whatever this person told him caused a change in his facial expression.


    "What''s wrong, Brother Nandou?" Beside Nandou Tai, Minister Hua quickly picked up the vibe that something was wrong.


    "It''s nothing, Brother Hua. I will take care of it," Nandou Tai answered with a smile. It was as if truly there was nothing wrong.


    "If he''s here, then let him in," said Minister Hua. Ye Futian came at the perfect time.


    Something flashed through Nandou Tai''s eyes and he nodded as he told his subordinate what to do, "Let him in."


    "Yes, Clan Leader," said the messenger. Minister Hua picked up his cup for a quick drink, his eyes cold. To dare to show up at a setting like this today, Ye Futian most not be able to let things go. If so, he was going to learn the consequences of being young and stubborn. Death was the only result of defying an imperial order. This was probably part of the reason why Emperor Luo sent Minister Hua. Very quickly, everyone in the clan knew of Ye Futian''s arrival.


    Outside the palace, Ye Futian received his reply. The members of the clan led the way. Ye Futian looked into the spacious palace and turned to Yi Xiang beside him. "Senior, if anything happens, just leave. Forget about me."


    "Can you shut up?" reprimanded Yi Xiang.


    Ye Futian did not know what to say and shut his mouth. Taking a step forward, Ye Futian stepped into the Nandou Palace for the second time.


    Following the main road in the middle, people kept appearing on the sides. They were all glaring at Ye Futian with rage. There were even those who spoke up to tell him off. "Jieyu is already the Crown Princess, how dare you still come here?"


    "You didn''t even dare to fight last time. How can you be so thick-skinned and show up here again?"


    Similar insults were continuously thrown at Ye Futian. Suddenly, Ye Futian stopped in his tracks. Staring straight ahead, he said, "A family of fallen royals, kicked off the throne. To be proud of marrying into the new royal family instead of being ashamed. I can''t believe the Nandou family clan has fallen so low. How pitiful."


    "What did you say?" At Ye Futian''s words, a lot of people stepped up, giving off a murderous vibe.


    "I said that Nandou family clan doesn''t know what pride is. I didn''t want to battle last time because I wanted to leave you guys with your pride but since you guys are all so shameless anyway, then today I will let the Nandou clan know just how inferior you guys are," said Ye Futian.


    Afterward, a pair of beautiful golden wings appeared. The bright Roc Spirit was released behind Ye Futian. Then, he was lifted into the sky. An immensely bright light formed by the gathering of Spiritual Qi shined all over his body.


    "Ye Futian, six-starred Glory Plane cultivator, challenges everyone in the Nandou clan who is in or below the Dharma Plane," he said.


    The Ye Futian at this moment possessed such a powerful aura. He was going to release his full potential!

 96 Tragic Melting Palm

    Chapter 96: Tragic Melting Palm


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s words were like a bolt of lightning. It transformed into a terrifying sound wave that swept through the Nandou clan. Various seniors stepped out, glaring furiously at Ye Futian as if they had been utterly humiliated.


    "Presumptuous."


    "You don''t know your place. You''re looking for death."


    The voices kept coming. Ye Futian, Six-star Glory Plane, dared to challenge everyone in the Nandou clan under the Dharma Plane? What did he take the Nandou clan for? They had once been the royal clan. Though they had fallen now, they still had a strong base and were at least the tip of the pyramid in Donghai City. But Ye Futian had spoken as if they were nothing. This was unacceptable.


    The older generation all stared daggers at him. This kid was too wild. Did he think that no one dared to touch him because he had the minister''s decree? If Ye Futian dared to do anything today, he could be counted as dead already. If not for some concerns, some wanted to wipe him out of existence but they would leave that to Minister Hua. Jieyu already hated the Nandou clan. If they killed Ye Futian too, there would be no reconciliation between them.


    Though they couldn''t kill him, they would still make life difficult for him since he said something so blasphemous.


    "I am a Seven-star Glory Plane. I''m enough to exterminate you." A younger member of the Nandou clan jumped out. A wind element robe was wrapped around his body and he flashed with golden light. He held a golden spear in his hands. As soon as he spoke, he sprang towards Ye Futian like lightning. The golden spear spun, releasing a golden glow. Unstoppable power brewed in it and it was about to reach Ye Futian.


    Green Spiritual Qi glowed around Ye Futian. The wood element Lock of a Thousand Vines was released with rustles. They covered the sky and went to enclose the opponent.


    The Nandou clan member roared but he didn''t dodge it. He had a higher cultivation than Ye Futian and also had the extremely powerful metal element battle techniques. He would not fear Ye Futian.


    The spinning golden spear cut through everything. Many vines were destroyed but Ye Futian''s Lock of a Thousand Vines was too sturdy. The man quickly realized that his spear couldn''t keep up with the speed of the vines coming. The vines quickly wrapped around him. Then, the thick vines tied him down. His legs, arms, and neck were all tied tightly. The vines cut into his wrist and his spear fell from his hands. His neck was strangled, turning his face beet red. He couldn''t move at all, immobilized in midair.


    Ye Futian stood before him. His wings flapped with a gold halo around him. His eyes were so sharp. "I don''t want to fight any more failures like this." Ye Futian flashed and his wings swept over, slapping the man to the ground. Then Ye Futian continued forward arrogantly.


    A Seven-star Glory Plane man had been defeated by one blow. He couldn''t even break through Ye Futian''s one spell.


    Ye Futian continued forward, reducing the Nandou clan to nothing in his eyes.


    In the near distance, Yi Xiang strolled behind him. Of course, he understood that Ye Futian barely had any chances of surviving here today but the youth didn''t want to give up. What would he do to win a shred of hope for himself?


    More and more powerful members of the Nandou clan gathered around him. Another figure sprang into the air. It was Nandou Mu, another genius of the clan. He was at the Eighth-star Glory Plane and was extremely strong.


    Nandou Mu had heard of Ye Futian''s records in Donghai Academy. He knew that the youth had defeated those over the Eighth-star Glory Plane. Therefore, he didn''t underestimate Ye Futian. He released his life spirit��a dazzling sword. With a sword as his life spirit, he was covered in horribly strong intent of the sword. He could slice through anything before him and nothing could stop him.


    Nandou Mu was a powerful swordsman in training. Sorcery was his supplement. When he grasped the sword, it seemed that he was the only one left in the world.


    He flashed, and countless afterimages appeared in the sky. It was as if he was everywhere. Ye Futian couldn''t distinguish between them at all. The Lock of a Thousand Vines swept toward one direction.


    Nandou Mu''s pupils constricted. The afterimages disappeared and his true body appeared. Was his enhanced agility ineffective before Ye Futian? He had been seen through so easily.


    Seeing the vines come at him, he pulled his sword out. There was only one sword, but there seemed to be countless ones in the air. There were various snicks and snaps; the vines were cut apart crazily.


    Nandou Mu''s attacks and speed were both much faster than the first opponent. When the endless vines swept toward him, the sword life spirit seemed to hum. As if he was surrounded by a ring of sharp swords, the intent of the sword flew out and cut the vines.


    After that, the thousands of swords became one and seemed to become a truly sharp blade behind Nandou Mu. It shot out directly towards Ye Futian. In that instant, everything else melted away. The sword''s radiance was enough to destroy everything.


    "As expected of Nandou Mu." All members of the Nandou clan stared sharply at the battleground in the sky. Nandou Mu was one of the top younger members of the clan and he lived up to expectations. This sword would definitely defeat Ye Futian.


    Countless gazes fell on Ye Futian. He stood there without moving, watching the dazzling sword come at him.


    BOOM!


    Everyone saw a blinding fireball explode around Ye Futian. For that moment, his already-brilliant golden body was covered by flames. They burned his body, releasing a scalding fiery red glow like the sun.


    "The fire element!" When the crowd saw this, their pupils constricted. Then they saw Ye Futian reach out. There seemed to be a furnace in his hands that could melt everything in the world.


    "It''s the Tragic Melting Palm." Behind Ye Futian, something flashed through Yi Xiang''s eyes. This was a battle technique from his practice room. It was a fire-element technique with extreme explosive force. The cultivation requirements were very strict. The basic requirement was cultivation of both martial arts and sorcery. One also needed enough fire element power. If only semi-cultivated, it was very weak but once one fully cultivated this technique, it was terrifying. It was also developmental and wasn''t restricted to a certain plane.


    Yi Xiang didn''t know Ye Futian had learned this technique. It was his first time seeing Ye Futian use it. Now, he was thinking how many secrets this guy really had. Perhaps he could see a glimpse today. He''d already guessed what Ye Futian wanted to do.


    Now, Ye Futian shone like the sun. His body had turned into a furnace too. When Nandou Mu approached him, he could feel the destructive force that wanted to burn his body to ashes.


    His sword life spirit screamed. The intent of the sword was shocking. With one strike, he could defeat thousands of spells. Now, it stabbed towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian reached out his hands. It was like a scary furnace had appeared. He grasped the sword directly. Under Nandou Mu''s shocked stare, his sword melted bit by bit until it disappeared. A gust of shocking heat appeared. If Nandou Mu continued forward, his body would end up like his sword. How could flesh be compared to a sharp blade?


    As a skilled man, he was able to stop his charging body. He abandoned his sword and retreated but it was too late. Ye Futian''s wings flashed and his body turned into lightning. Reaching out, he clasped his palms of fire on Nandou Mu''s neck. Then his wings flapped and Ye Futian descended quickly. He raised his hand and slammed Nandou Mu to the ground while he shot into the sky again like a golden streak of lightning.


    The powerful figures of Nandou clan watched as Nandou Mu writhed on the ground. He was covered in burns and had been injured gravely. Someone covered with light took him away. More people stared up at Ye Futian with uncomfortable expressions.


    Ye Futian was so powerful that even someone like Nandou Mu was crushed, completely not at his level. If this was the case, the Nandou clan would have a hard time finding someone in the Eighth-star Glory Plane to fight with him one-on-one. It may work with a Nine-star Glory Plane genius.


    "Where do you get your arrogance from as a fallen clan?" Ye Futian said coldly as he advanced. The Nandou clan was so humiliated but they couldn''t refute him.


    Seeing Ye Futian advance step by step toward the location of their banquet, a senior said, "Take him down. I don''t want to see him take another step."


    They hadn''t expected Ye Futian would be so powerful. If he was allowed to reach the banquet, it would be a disgrace to the clan. Today, there were many big figures of Donghai City at the banquet, including Minister Hua. Hua Jieyu, a member of the clan, was now the Crown Princess. It was a moment of glory with no time for disturbances.


    Countless figures came out. Some shot to the sky. Others gathered their spells on the ground. The Spiritual Qi went crazy in the air. Since Ye Futian wanted to fight everyone under the Dharma Plane of the Nandou clan, they would satisfy him. After they take Ye Futian down, it would still be embarrassing but it was better than being defeated by him one by one.


    Ye Futian was now surrounded by powerful figures. However, he continued forward as if he didn''t see anything. Countless spells were released at once, exploding with shocking might. Spells of various schools swept towards Ye Futian as one. In an instant, the youth was attacked by all these spells but he continued strolling in the air, seeming even more elegant.

 97 Shock

    Chapter 97: Shock


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian floated arrogantly in the air. His body was illuminated by both a golden light and the light given off by the flames. Ye Futian shined bright like the sun.


    The attack spells continued to charge at Ye Futian, but every time they got close, they were destroyed by the flames. His body acted as a giant furnace. This was the frightening point of the Palm of Melting Sadness.


    In order to cultivate the Palm of Melting Sadness, one needed to cultivate both martial arts and sorcery. They must gather endless amounts of Fire Spiritual Qi to join with the Fire Spiritual Qi within themselves. This would cultivate the body in a fearsome burning furnace, ready to incinerate all in its way. And when the powers erupted, the flames would gather in the palm. If others were struck by the palm, they would be directly cremated into ashes. If Ye Futian hadn''t gone easy on Nandou Mu, he would have been dead, ceasing to exist.


    When the members of the Nandou clan saw the attacks thrown at Ye Futian being destroyed, the expressions on their faces darkened. What type of battle technique was this? It was just too powerful. They knew ordinary spells were no use on Ye Futian. Whether it be martial arts cultivators or sorcerers, anyone within the eight-starred Glory Plane was a piece of cake to Ye Futian.


    More clan members gathered. They all knew of the insulting words Ye Futian said but all they could do was watch as other members fell victim to his wrath.


    Just then, a golden rod, formed by Spiritual Qi, appeared in Ye Futian''s hand. The wings on his back fluttered and carried him off like a giant roc at an incredible speed.


    A sorcerer was casting a spell in the direction Ye Futian was headed in. Upon seeing Ye Futian, who was charging straight for him, the sorcerer turned away hurriedly. However, with the help of Wind Sorcery, the Roc Spirit, and his roc form, Ye Futian was unbelievably fast. His rod smashed down on the sorcerer''s shoulder. A loud, crisp sound was heard. It sounded like the crushing of bones. Following that, the sorcerer''s body began to fall from the skies, smashing harshly onto the ground.


    A giant thunder bird flew towards Ye Futian. The giant bird enveloped by the lightning was ready to attack Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s golden rod danced in the air around him, nothing could get through to him. The rod then slipped past the curtain of lightning surrounding the giant thunder bird then destroyed it. In the next moment, Ye Futian descended on the sorcerer who had cast the spell and with one smash, this sorcerer ended like the last. He let out a loud scream and his body was thrown off to the side.


    Another three figures charged at Ye Futian simultaneously. Their bodies were surrounded by Wind Sorcery. They used the power of the wind to get close to Ye Futian and barricade him between the three of them. Then, the three cultivators all released their powers to attack Ye Futian at the same time. There was a sharp halberd aimed for his heart. There was a storm of punches of beast-like strength. Every punch thrown was accompanied by a beastly growl, like that of a lion or tiger. There was also an attack of frost, ready to encapsulate everything in a thick layer of ice. The frightening ice storm moved towards Ye Futian as if it was prepared to bury him in ice.


    All three of these men were either just martial arts cultivators or cultivators of both martial arts and sorcery. Two of them were in the eight-starred Glory Plane and one in the seven-starred Glory Plane. This group of power cultivators ganged up against Ye Futian.


    The golden rod danced in the air while the aura around Ye Futian became stronger. The wings on his back carried him around. In the blink of an eye and without any hesitation, Ye Futian attacked with the rod quickly. BANG! BANG! BANG! Three bodies were struck by the rod and thrown back. The three cultivators spat up blood in mid-air. Ye Futian did not stop moving. The Golden Roc moved quickly and landed on the floor. Two more people screamed out in pain as the golden rod landed on their bodies.


    In a flash, Ye Futian charged at another person. Before Ye Futian could even get close, the person attempted to make a run for it but with a single swipe of the rod, his body was thrown into the air. Following this, the body surrounded by golden light continued to attack. Inside the Nandou Palace, people were being thrown left and right or were smashed into the ground. The whole palace was filled with blood-curdling screams. Countless members of the clan had fallen. It was complete chaos.


    A strange sight was happening at the Nandou Palace. A six-starred Glory Plane cultivator was walking through the palace and following on both sides of this young man were powerful cultivators in higher planes. However, they could only follow. No one dared to fight him. Even sorcerers were reluctant to cast attack spells on him from afar because people had tried to do so earlier and were all defeated by the golden rod.


    Ye Futian continued to advance as members of the Nandou clan followed beside him. The looks on their faces were serious but also filled with embarrassment. They finally knew just how scary Ye Futian was.


    The elders of the clan had darkened expressions. They couldn''t believe that they were going to allow Ye Futian to continue into the palace. No one was able to stop him.


    One of the elders tried to make a move for Ye Futian but stopped when Yi Xiang spoke up from behind Ye Futian. He said, "The Nandou clan used to be royalty, you guys should stop now and save your pride." It would be truly humiliating if an elder made a move in this situation. Ye Futian had only challenged members of the clan within the Dharma Plane.


    More of the younger clan members had gathered after hearing about the news. Many of them were outstanding cultivators but they were all shocked by the scene in front of them. Ye Futian had challenged everyone within the Dharma Plane but defeated everyone with such ease. This was too humiliating. Furthermore, if they did not stop him now, Ye Futian would soon make his way to the party venue.


    Just then, a figure blocked Ye Futian''s path. He was strong and powerful, a nine-starred Glory Plane cultivator. "Stop right there," he said. Immediately after he had spoken, Ye Futian charged forward. He did not want to waste his breath on this guy.


    Unfaltering, the cultivator let out a scream. Spiritual Qi collected for a spell. A golden rounded gear spun quickly, cutting into the air, headed towards Ye Futian. The sharp gear was able to attack from all directions. It was able to block the light of the sun with its large size. If struck with the gear, the body would definitely be cut up into pieces.


    BOOM! Ye Futian put one foot forward, his power building up from within. He swung the golden rod down once, and the large gear in his way was destroyed. Ye Futian charged toward his opponent at the speed of light only to see that he had formed an even bigger gear with Spiritual Qi. An ear-splitting sound rang out as the gear spun. It was as if the gear could cut through thin air.


    Seeing that Ye Futian was racing toward himself at full speed, the cultivator sent the giant gear spinning towards Ye Futian with a wave of his hand.


    BOOM! Another swing. The golden rod struck down on the gear, splitting it apart just as it had to the last. Ye Futian continued to advance. The nine-starred Glory Plane had a completely different expression on his face now. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something as he looked at Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian had no time to waste on him. He swung the rod and threw the cultivator to the side. It was as easy as stepping on an ant. A nine-starred Glory Plane cultivator was no different from the rest. One swing from the golden rod and they were all defeated.


    Many members of the Nandou clan were shaking in their shoes. The nine-starred Glory Plane cultivator who was just defeated was a rather well-known member of the Nandou clan but even he was unable to stop Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian sped up, his golden wings spread out to carry him away.


    "Stop him!" someone screamed in rage. However, Ye Futian was no longer going to stay and fight. As he advanced, the golden rod never stopped moving. People were sent flying all along the way.


    Finally, the party venue could be seen just up ahead. Many partygoers shifted their attention to Ye Futian. Nandou Tai and a group of the most powerful cultivators of the Nandou clan did not know what to do. However, the guests seemed excited to see Ye Futian. He truly was powerful. During Donghai Academy''s Assembly of the Seven Schools, everyone was left with a deep impression of Ye Futian. They were so taken with that one piece he played, The World. Now, he has broken into the Nandou Palace, destroying all that got in his way, just like a young war god.


    Such a pity, many of the guests thought to themselves. This brilliant young man was going to end up dead because he chose to break into the Nandou Palace and defy the imperial order.


    Minister Hua held his wine glass and murderous look filled his eyes. It seemed like someone was seeking death but this was all within his expectations.


    At this time, two people appeared amongst the group of Nandou clan members. It was Hua Jieyu and Nandou Wenyin. Hua Jieyu''s eyes were trained on the young man headed her way. Tears rolled down her face, her heart in pain.


    Ye Futian floated in the air in front of the main stage of the venue. He looked towards the person seated up in the main seat and then turned to look at Hua Jieyu. The iciness in his eyes melted again and he smiled. "Fox, I''m here."


    "Dummy," said Hua Jieyu as she cried. Minister Hua had come all this way with the imperial order from the emperor. It was obviously ill-intended. If they tried to defy the order, Minister Hua would definitely not hesitate to kill the both of them.


    "Restrain him," ordered Nandou Tai. Many of the most capable younger clan members rushed out and headed for Ye Futian. Then, the regular young clan members also followed suit. They did not look impressed. How could the others allow Ye Futian to make his way all the way here to the venue?


    BOOM! There was an explosion of Spiritual Qi in the vicinity. The humiliated members of the Nandou clan all released their powers, flooding the venue with an overwhelming storm of Spiritual Qi. Right now, all cultivators in the Dharma Plane and below were prepared to gang up on Ye Futian. They were fully enraged now.


    Noises sounded as a Wood Elemental spell was cast on Ye Futian, the Lock of a Thousand Vines. Vines came from all directions while other attacks from different elemental sorcery rushed toward Ye Futian as well.


    BOOM! A flash of lightning hit Ye Futian. In an instant, his body was bathed in the bright light. Meanwhile, his surrounding turned dark and stormy.


    "Thunder Raid," said Ye Futian. The world around him was full of lightning and thunder. Then, Thunder Sorcery descended from the sky, striking the crowd down below.


    "The element of Thunder." Everyone was shocked as they watched Ye Futian intently.


    WHOOSH! Ye Futian was now covered in flames. Fire dragons appeared and revolved around Ye Futian. Next, they all roared loudly and came rushing down.


    "The elemental of Fire." This was another surprise for onlookers.


    "Winding of a Thousand Silk Strains." Metal Sorcery was released formed into unless strains of golden silk strains, cutting through the air.


    "Weight of Earth," Ye Futian spoke once again. The area began to fill with Earth Spiritual Qi. A heavy force pushed down on everyone. This type of gravity spell was too scary. It restrained everyone''s movements.


    Those high-level officials were frozen with the wine glasses still in their hands as they stared at Ye Futian.


    He was a Full Attribute Sorcerer!

 98 Reappearance of the Emperor

    Chapter 98: Reappearance of the Emperor


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The people at the banquet were all the big figures of Donghai City but they were unsettled by a youth. Countless days ago, they had gone to watch the Assembly of the Seven Schools, attended by the Crown Prince and Minister Hua. Ye Futian, the disciple of the Qin Devil, had cleared the name of his master. He had dedicated the song Hero to his master and used The World to display his emperor''s intent. The students from the School of the Emperor Star who stepped onto the battleground all knelt down to him. He was so brilliant that the Crown Prince wanted to make him minister, but Ye Futian refused.


    Countless days later, a decree had fallen upon Donghai City, cutting off the youth''s future. They all understood the meaning behind this. There seemed to be only one path waiting for the youth who refused to obey. Even if he agreed to go to the Imperial City, the ending would still be the same.


    Today, Ye Futian forced his way into the Nandou clan. He shone brightly, brighter than he had in Donghai Academy. Right now, Spiritual Qi of various elements wrapped around him. Spells of different schools exploded, instantly defeating countless younger members of the Nandou clan.


    He was also a Musical Sorcerer with the elemental talent he revealed now. He was clearly a one-in-a-century Full Attribute Sorcerer.


    Minister Hua narrowed his eyes, his murderous intent intensifying. It seemed that the Crown Prince''s guess was logical. Minister Zuo had seen something early on, which meant that he must kill Ye Futian today to remove the threat.


    Nandou Tai''s shuddered inwardly too. Ye Futian''s talent was the same as Hua Jieyu. In fact, Jieyu''s talent relied more on Spirit Elemental to guide the other elements but Ye Futian was different. His full attribute nature was balanced and powerful. The various elemental spells he cast were the best evidence. The power of each spell was way above what was typical of his plane. This meant his elemental strength was very strong and this applied to every element.


    The strong of Donghai Academy shuddered too. Han Mo and Zhuo Qing all stared at Ye Futian. It seemed that they still didn''t witness Ye Futian''s full power at the earlier battle. Was this all of his talent now? Even Zhuo Qing was a bit jealous.


    Yi Xiang still stood quietly behind Ye Futian. His heart trembled too. Was this really Ye Futian? The shameless and playful guy had hidden such world-shaking talent. He should''ve risen to the top but now he was stuck in the shallow water, struggling in Donghai City. An order from the king forced him into a state of despair.


    Hua Jieyu kept looking at Ye Futian. Her teary eyes were unblinking and her gaze grew more and more resolute. She took a step, wanting to go to Ye Futian, but Nandou Ku stopped her. "Miss," he said, "don''t make it hard for me."


    Hua Jieyu looked coldly at the figure. She no longer had any feelings for this family the moment the Nandou clan accepted the decree. She looked away from Nandou Ku to Ye Futian. Her eyes were so gentle. If they were not fated to be together in this life, they would go to the afterlife together.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was in the eye of the storm. As he cast his spells, those with weak cultivation could not withstand the wildness. Many were hit and it was chaos.


    Ye Futian raised the golden staff again. He twirled it in the air and a tremendous power descended, seeming to break apart the sky. When attacks came, afterimages of the staff appeared all around him. It blocked all attacks outside.


    Finally, he moved, rushing at a Nine-star Glory Plane sorcerer. He moved and performed the first of the Nine Heavenly Attacks��Genesis. It swept everything down. The spells coming at him were destroyed directly. The sorcerer was shocked and then he was swept by the staff, crashing into the others.


    Ye Futian didn''t stop at all. His wings flapped and he appeared elsewhere. The Winding of a Thousand Silk Strains and the Lock of a Thousand Vines unfurled. Next was the second of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. It swept everything before him. Countless bodies were sent flying in all directions. The Nandou clan watched all this, their insides clenching. The younger generation of their family was defeated so easily by Ye Futian.


    Were they really that weak? Ye Futian had been this wild at the Donghai Academy but at that time, he didn''t release the terrifying talent like today. Of course, some powerful Nine-star Glory Plane figures continued to pursue Ye Futian. Many spells broke through the attacks and defenses, falling upon Ye Futian. He shook as well, but it seemed as if he was invincible and kept fighting crazily.


    "Zhuo Qing, go," Yan Shao, headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, said. Zhuo Qing''s eyes flashed. He nodded and rose, heading toward the battlefield. He''d wanted to teach Ye Futian a lesson and was once confident he could defeat the youth. But now, Ye Futian had become so strong. He wasn''t that confident anymore. Now, Ye Futian''s abilities were too shocking.


    Zhuo Qing stepped toward the battleground. Seeming to notice him, Ye Futian''s wildly fighting body suddenly stopped. Defeated figures were scattered on the ground around him. He welcomed Zhuo Qing with a cold gaze. Hoisting his staff, he walked toward the other. At that moment, a shocking aura appeared around Zhuo Qing. His eyes became demonic and a spiritual wave pierced into Ye Futian''s eyes. Ye Futian felt like he was taken over by a demon. His steps faltered as if it was hard to continue. His hand even twitched involuntarily. It was like Zhuo Qing was about to control his body. His ability was very strange.


    "You guys go," Zhuo Qing said. Countless men at the pinnacle of the Glory Plane acted at once, attacking Ye Futian.


    At the same time, Ye Futian radiated with similarly powerful spiritual strength. He stepped forward and his power intensified again. He twirled his golden staff and it flew out, spinning around him. It defeated the spells coming at him and stopped the incoming enemies. However, the golden staff also extinguished.


    Zhuo Qing continued forward. His power intensified again, his spiritual power becoming more terrifying.


    "Earlier, I performed The World at the School of the Emperor Star. Today, I will perform it again for the Nandou clan," Ye Futian said nonchalantly. As he finished speaking, a dazzling light appeared behind him. Countless music notes danced in the air. The shadow of a guqin appeared behind him.


    "His life spirit!" Everyone''s heart trembled. They saw how beautiful the Golden Roc was behind Ye Futian. The guqin life spirit hovered above him.


    Crack! Nandou Tai''s hand clenched and broke the cup in his hand. He was clearly shaken. He had two life spirits! He was a Full Attribute genius with twin spirits.


    Luo Junlin, Crown Prince of Nandou Kingdom, was known to be born to become king. His talent was twin spirits but he didn''t have the full attribute. Now, Ye Futian showed that he had this talent and no one could beat him in the Nandou Kingdom.


    The gazes of the big figures were fixated on him. Their insides twisted and they felt numb. It was shocking that there was someone as accomplished as him in Donghai City.


    The people of Donghai Academy were even more shaken. They stared at Ye Futian; this person had once cultivated in the academy but sadly, he chose the School of the Finance Star.


    Nandou Wenshan stood with his sister Nandou Wenyin, behind Hua Jieyu. Seeing Ye Futian like this, he suddenly remembered how Ye Futian once said, "She''s the empress and I''m the emperor. Will this be true?"


    Nandou Wenyin watched the boy''s extreme talent with teary eyes. This scene was so similar to Hua Fengliu''s struggle years ago. Today, it was the man Jieyu loved and he was so much more impressive than his master. He was fighting against the ruler of the Nandou Kingdom as if fighting against destiny.


    Ye Futian ignored the shaken people. He sat down with crossed legs. His guqin life spirit floated before him. It seemed intangible but when he strummed the strings, music was produced. That moment, it felt like he was at the peak of his life. He was alone, above the world like an emperor. The civilians could not meet his eyes; they could only bow down to him.


    This time, Ye Futian''s performance was even wilder than at Donghai Academy. His shocking spiritual storm enveloped him under the support of his life spirit, shattering Zhuo Qing''s attack.


    Zhuo Qing was livid. His spiritual strength was unable to pass through the storm. Even more terrifying, Ye Futian''s music kept streaming into his ears. The spiritual storm was spreading too. As if the emperor''s intent had descended, it wanted to plant the emperor''s mark in his mind to make him submit to Ye Futian.


    The strong men around Ye Futian all saw many scenes in their minds. When they looked at Ye Futian, they no longer saw an ordinary boy. Instead, he was a young emperor. He sat there, waiting for them to bow down.


    "The emperor''s intent." Everyone focused on Ye Futian because the emperor''s intent had appeared in Ye Futian again. He wanted the whole world under him.


    Last time at Donghai Academy, he had played The World for the Crown Prince. Today, he was playing for himself. Who was the emperor? Who ruled the world? The weaker ones of the Nandou clan really prostrated themselves. They were influenced by the music and couldn''t fight back. The stronger ones retreated, fleeing the battleground. Zhuo Qing''s face darkened and retreated as well. Only the youth remained in the area, unmatched.


    Minister Hua set his wine glass down. The will to kill burned in his eyes. This boy must be killed.


    The music stopped gradually. Ye Futian raised his head and looked in the direction of Nandou Tai. "You know Hua Jieyu''s fate," he said. "Then what is my fate?"

 99 Nandou Tai’s Decision

    Chapter 99: Nandou Tai��s Decision


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Nandou Tai''s heart pounded loudly at Ye Futian''s question. If Hua Jieyu was fated to be empress, then what was Ye Futian fated to be? He had twin spirits and was a Full Attribute Sorcerer. His power in both martial arts and sorcery were also invincible. Don''t even mention same plane cultivators. As a six-starred Glory Plane cultivator, Ye Futian was even able to defeat those in the Dharma Plane. There was probably no one else in all of Nandou Nation that would be able to do what Ye Futian could.


    Minister Zuo had looked into Ye Futian''s fortune, so what was his fate?


    Nandou Tai had previously questioned why Minister Zuo would give Ye Futian the Decree of the Minister but after the shocking scene he witnessed today, Nandou Tai knew there was a meaningful story behind this.


    "If you''re willing to believe me, I am willing to let go of the past. When the day comes that I take over the throne, the Nandou clan will regain its glory and be granted royal authority once again," said Ye Futian. After hearing his speech, Minister Zuo jumped up from his seat. His murderous intent stronger than ever before.


    Ye Futian talked about the day he would take over the throne. His words were arrogant and an act of treason. Not only did he want to defy the imperial order, Ye Futian also planned on overthrowing the royal family.


    The citizens of the City of Donghai were dumbfounded. The 17-year-old young man had said such a preposterous thing. However, with the gifts he demonstrated, what he said was definitely possible. That is if he wasn''t killed before that day came.


    Ye Futian revealed his gifts, his identity as a Full Attribute Sorcerer, his twin spirits, and his determination to be emperor through his piece, The World, all to prove a point to Nandou Tai.


    Ye Futian knew that as he was now, he had no power to go against the will of the emperor. He could only accept what fate had in store for him. He also knew that once he arrived at the Imperial City, only death awaited him. He could not accept this and decided to fight against it to the best of his abilities. The result of that was everything that had happened today. All he wanted was for Nandou Tai to see him, for the clan to see him.


    When Ye Futian had spoken, Yi Xiang was standing next to him. He knew that what Ye Futian said was no longer a simple defiance of the will of the emperor. There was no way that Minister Hua would let him go. Ye Futian''s words caused Nandou Tai to waver. It was hard to imagine that the man who controlled the whole Nandou clan would be rendered speechless twice by a single young man.


    "The Nandou family has already fallen, and the younger generation is only mediocre. The clan gets by solely on the title of ''used-to-be royals'' and are overjoyed because of a marriage ordered by the emperor. If people didn''t know, they would have thought that you guys were so happy because you regained royal authority. In reality, the clan is weak like ants. How do you plan on regaining your glory? By relying on Jieyu? Even if she did as you said, don''t you think she''ll hate the clan for it?" asked Ye Futian when he saw Nandou Tai wavering. Nandou Tai couldn''t help but turn his attention to Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu looked cold and aloof. Naturally, Nandou Tai knew that everything Ye Futian had said was true. But he also knew that if he acknowledged Ye Futian''s words, it would only mean one thing: treason.


    Ever since the Nandou family clan stepped down from the throne, they had always acted with caution. They were afraid to do anything that may cause suspicion from the new royal family. They did not want to be wiped from history by the Luo family. When they received the news that Hua Jieyu was bestowed the title of Crown Princess, the clan saw a glimmer of hope. The clan would no longer need to live walking on eggshells. If they were to commit treason for Ye Futian, they would need to be one hundred percent sure of their decision. Even though it was possible for them to regain royal power through Ye Futian, if anything were to go wrong along the way, their entire clan would be doomed.


    "I don''t know about your fate, neither do I want to know. Minister Zuo bestowed you with the Decree of the Minister and so the emperor put trust in you and gave you the honor of becoming the Crown Prince''s subordinate but you are being ungrateful. You are publicly defying the imperial order and even have these treacherous thoughts. If so, then your life should come to an end today," said Minister Hua. He was ready to rid the world of Ye Futian. This was Ye Futian''s death sentence.


    Minister Hua turned his attention to Nandou Tai and said, "Brother Nandou, don''t waste any more time on him. Since this is your palace, your jurisdiction, you should be in charge of ending his life. His Majesty will be able to see your resolution from your actions."


    It was obvious that Minister Hua also had no idea of Ye Futian''s gifts. His purpose of telling Nandou Tai to let Ye Futian in was to see him defy the imperial order. This way, there was no need to bring him back to the Imperial City, they could kill him on the spot. Even though his fate would be the same even in the Imperial City, Minister Zuo was there. So, it was because to get things taken care of here to prevent any change in plans.


    But today, Ye Futian has actually swayed Nandou Tai. From this point, it was easy to tell just how gifted Ye Futian was. Nandou Tai had probably already guessed the fortune that Minister told for Ye Futian. He was fated to do extraordinary things.


    Nandou Tai saw Minister Hua staring and knew that he was forcing him to make a decision. The Nandou clan was rooted in the City of Donghai and was deeply-rooted in society, but this time, Minister Hua had brought his people with him. The Emperor Star school officials who now controlled all of Donghai Academy were also here. Plus, Xia Feng and his people were waiting outside the palace as well. Even if they really wanted to revolt, their chances at victory weren''t big. Many people of the Nandou clan would have to die for the cause and they might have to be on the run from the royal family in the future. Was all of this worth it for the words of one teenager? Even if Nandou Tai agreed to revolt with Ye Futian, what would happen if Ye Futian got killed in the end anyway?"


    "Uncle, with Futian and Jieyu''s gifts, we definitely have a lot to look forward to in the future. All we have to do is ensure their safe escape from the Nandou Nation today. Or else, even if we send Jieyu into the Imperial Palace, she''ll continue to hate the clan and we will never regain our glory," said a voice in Nandou Tai''s head. It was Nandou Wenshan using Spiritual Energy to communicate with him. This way, no one could listen in on their conversation.


    The people of Emperor Star school put down their wine glasses, seemingly preparing for battle. If Nandou Tai really decided to revolt, then they would kill Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu first. Getting rid of these two would spare future troubles. If Nandou decided not to revolt, then things would be much easier. They wouldn''t even have to make a move.


    "Brother Nandou, are you wavering?" asked Minister Hua in a cold demeanor. He was putting pressure on Nandou Tai. Nandou Tai observed Minister Hua and his people. He knew that if he had any strange actions, those people who attack immediately.


    "Ye Futian has gone against the will of the emperor and deserves to die," Nandou Tai said, looking resolute. "Kill him."


    Finally, Nandou Tai has made his decision. He could not afford to place the entire Nandou clan on the line for Ye Futian.


    Nandou Tai knew that after he gave this order, he was going to lose a lot, but he has already run out of choices. Minister Hua was pressuring him. The only other option was to revolt. Ye Futian has demonstrated just how powerful he was today, so killing him would be sparing future troubles. Nandou Tai had to make this choice even if Hua Jieyu was going to hate him for it.


    All of this was Ye Futian''s fault. If he knew what was good for him, then he shouldn''t have come today. Then, Nandou Tai wouldn''t have to be the one to order his death. That responsibility would have fallen on Minister Hua.


    Everyone present let out a sigh for Ye Futian. In the end, he had lost. Nandou Tai had decided to kill Ye Futian and not bet the future of the Nandou clan on him.


    Hua Jieyu, Nandou Wenyin, and Nandou Wenshan gave a look of disappointment. They were very disappointed. Hatred filled Hua Jieyu''s beautiful eyes.


    However, Ye Futian let out a sudden laugh while looking at Nandou Tai. He had really failed in the end. He couldn''t get Nandou Tai on his side.


    "You idiot. Are you happy now that you''ve lost?" Yi Xiang reprimanded Ye Futian in a lower voice.


    "The planning lies with the man and the outcome with the Heavens. How would I know if I don''t try," said Ye Futian. He was very calm. To Yi Xiang he said, "If you already know that I''m an idiot, why aren''t you leaving?"


    "Maybe I''m also an idiot," answered Yi Xiang. He stepped up to stand in front of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Yi Xiang''s back and felt a warm feeling in his heart.


    Just then, a group of powerful cultivators from the Nandou clan stepped up, all giving off a murderous aura. This time around, it wasn''t only younger members of the Dharma Plane.


    "Do you want to revolt as well?" Minister Hua eyed Yi Xiang with a murderous look.


    Just as Yi Xiang was about to speak, Ye Futian stepped out in front of him. Ye Futian pulled on his arm and said, "It''s enough that you stayed with me until now. I will take care of my own business. I don''t need you butting in. I want you to leave."


    "Since you guys are already here, then you should all stay," said Minister Hua. "Brother Nandou, I''ll leave them both to you."


    Nandou Tai nodded and stepped up personally. A forceful aura was released as he charged toward Yi Xiang and Ye Futian.


    BOOM! Every step Nandou Tai took shook the ground beneath. To be able to control the entire Nandou clan, one could only imagine just how powerful he was. A single step was sufficient to scare people away.


    "Looks like you''ll have to wish yourself the best of luck," said Yi Xiang. Then, he raced forward. His entire body exuded a wild force of power.


    Nandou Tai came at Yi Xiang with his palm. From his palm, radiated a large golden handprint, prepared to crush everything.


    Yi Xiang sped up and held out his fist. His fist landed on the large golden handprint and a large gust of wind washed over the entire venue. All the tables were flipped while the plates and cups crashed onto the ground. A storm started in between the two.


    "Headmaster Yi Xiang of the School of the Finance Star is actually able to go against Nandou Tai?" Many people were surprised. However, the ending was probably going to be just as they expected.


    In front of Ye Futian, the group of cultivators came closer. He glanced over at Yi Xiang. He knew that even though Yi Xiang could manage to battle with Nandou Tai, Yi Xiang was probably going to lose in the end.


    Ye Futian lifted his head to look at the sky. Still looking up, he said, "I know you hoped that I could take care of everything by myself. I''ve tried my best, but I''m afraid I''ve let you down."


    Ye Futian knew that his godfather was watching over him. The conversation from last night, ''So what if he''s the emperor, of course, you have to take her back'', as well as the elder''s tone. It brought him back to the Ye family house back in the City of Qingzhou. His godfather had spoken to him just like that before. Ye Futian''s senses were very sensitive. There was no mistake, Grandpa Yu was his godfather. Since his godfather told him to come, then he was definitely watching from somewhere.


    But Ye Futian understood that his godfather could not reveal himself just yet. Senior Snow Ape was a great example. Since Ye Futian was related to Emperor Ye Qing somehow, then his godfather must be linked to him as well. He could not casually expose himself. Therefore, Ye Futian had revealed all his powers in hopes of getting the Nandou clan on his side, so he would have someone to help him, but it was no use. They had chosen to kill him. But now, he didn''t know what to do anymore. If his godfather did not appear now, then both Ye Futian and Yi Xiang would be in great danger!

 100 The Last Song

    Chapter 100: The Last Song


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many people looked at Ye Futian with shock. Who was he talking to? Was someone secretly helping Ye Futian?


    Minister Hua frowned as well. He looked into the sky but there were no changes. The strong men before Ye Futian were confused as well. Was this guy scaring them? Did he think he could still live?


    Looking up, Ye Futian saw that nothing was happening but he still didn''t doubt anything. He believed his gut feeling and judgment. Would his godfather not come out if he didn''t die?


    Rustles sounded and vines snaked towards Ye Futian. It was the Lock of a Thousand Vines at the Dharma rank. It covered the sky and was much stronger than his own spell.


    Ye Futian''s wings flashed, dodging like a streak of gold lightning. However, the terribly thick vines hurled at him. With a smack, he was hit and fell directly toward the ground. Not only was the opponent at the Dharma rank, he was also at an extremely high plane. How could Ye Futian fight against him?


    "No��" Hua Jieyu cried. She and Nandou Wenyin, behind her, tried to go forward but were blocked by all the strong fighters.


    "You''ll regret this." Eyes filled with tears, Hua Jieyu glared at the Nandou clan resolutely.


    "Jieyu, we don''t want to do this either." The Nandou members sighed inwardly, thinking of how much of a b*stard Minister Hua was. He made them do the dirty work.


    Ye Futian climbed up but a demon charged at him. With a boom, he was forced down again. Even though his physical body was strong, he still spat out blood instantly.


    The rustles sounded again. The Lock of a Thousand Vines wrapped around Ye Futian, rolling him up. At the same time in another direction, a terrifying spiritual storm surrounded Hua Jieyu. Her long black hair flew in the wind and her clothes fluttered. Her Spiritual Qi was released and slowly solidified.


    Ye Futian was immobilized in the air. The dagger-like thorns were aimed at him. There seemed to be only one path waiting for him.


    "Stop," a frigid voice said.


    "Jieyu, no!" someone cried. Many looked over and saw the same wood elemental Spiritual Qi gather into a wooden thorn. Controlling them, Hua Jieyu stabbed it into her heart. Blood stained her clothing instantly. The attendees of the banquet had already stood up. When they saw this, their hearts clenched. This beautiful girl was so resolute.


    The Nandou clan looked at Hua Jieyu, their insides twisting. She had just been made the Crown Princess and their clan had found a shred of their glory from yesteryear. If Hua Jieyu died, everything would fall apart.


    "I will die." Hua Jieyu stared at the strong fighter who had captured Ye Futian. The dagger-like thorn moved in her body but she didn''t seem to feel anything. She just let the blood stream out.


    The Nandou member was forced to set Ye Futian down. Now, Ye Futian was dazed. His heart twisted painfully as if the dagger was stabbed into his own heart.


    Hua Jieyu started walking toward Ye Futian, step by step. The Nandou clan tried to stop her but Hua Jieyu glared at them. "Get out." Seeing the blade still buried in her heart, the Nandou clan trembled inwardly. No one stopped her.


    Ye Futian, also shaking, walked toward Hua Jieyu. The two lovers walked toward each other step by step as if no one could stop them.


    Hua Jieyu gazed at Ye Futian. Her eyes no longer had any sadness or pain. Now, they were brilliant as if she was at her most beautiful age, blooming with the most perfect smile. But seeing this beauty, Ye Futian only felt pain.


    "Idiot, why did you do this?" Ye Futian''s trembling body walked to Hua Jieyu. He reached out and wiped away her tears.


    The dagger in her heart transformed into Spiritual Qi and disappeared. She gazed at Ye Futian and smiled. "You''re an idiot too." With that, she leaned against Ye Futian''s body lightly. "You still haven''t hugged me like a bride," she said gently.


    Hearing her voice, tears pricked at Ye Futian''s eyes. He murmured, "I''ll do it now like you''re my bride." He lifted Hua Jieyu bridal-style. She smiled so brightly. "If I really die, I want to die in your arms." Her voice was still gentle.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. Hua Jieyu smiled and closed her eyes. Embraced by him so quietly was soothing.


    Ye Futian looked at the serene beauty in his arms with extremely gentle eyes. Then, the moment he raised his head, his eyes turned red. "Why?!" he roared at the heavens. Everyone thought he was roaring at fate. Seeing the two figures, many felt it was tragic. They were only 17 and loved each other so much they would rather die than surrender to fate.


    Nandou Wenyin''s tears rolled down without stop, like a kite with a broken string. Her heart hurt but she didn''t disturb Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Nandou Wenshan was in pain too but he couldn''t change anything. He was powerless and he had a family.


    Ye Futian looked at Nandou Tai and asked coldly, "Are you satisfied?"


    Nandou Tai was chilled. He had underestimated Ye Futian''s determination, as well as Hua Jieyu''s. However, not everything in the world could be predicted. If he could turn back time, he would make the same decision. As the leader of the Nandou clan, everything was done in the best interest of the clan. He didn''t regret it but he was still sad. There was no more hope for a Crown Princess. Their most successful younger member would be lost forever.


    "Since they want to die, just let them," Minister Hua said coldly. He saw Hua Jieyu''s attitude and it was not only him. Everyone here had seen it. Despite being Crown Princess, she wanted to be with Ye Futian even in death. Therefore, there was no reason to bring her to the Imperial City.


    Nandou Tai gazed at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Decisiveness flashed past his eyes. He knew that things could never be fixed from the moment Hua Jieyu stabbed herself.


    "If I were you, I would object," Yi Xiang said coolly, retreating to Ye Futian''s side. "Even if Hua Jieyu becomes empress, do you think the Luo Royalty will allow the Nandou clan to rise? You see a chance for timely help but dream of returning to your past glory without any sacrifices. All you can do is dream. No wonder the Nandou clan is falling. Nandou Tai, you have no boldness at all."


    Ignoring him, Nandou Tai walked forward and ordered coldly, "Kill."


    With that utterance, every member of the Nandou clan shook inwardly. This time, not only Ye Futian would be killed. It also included Hua Jieyu, the most talented woman of their clan. Their hope had been on her so their feelings now went without saying.


    At this time, there was a long cry in the sky. Everyone looked up and saw a beast had appeared. It was a crane, diving downward. An elder clad in white sat atop the crane. He was covered in white and extremely old. He sat peacefully on the crane until it landed in within the Nandou clan.


    Seeing the old man, Ye Futian was shocked. "Grandmaster," he called out, "why are you here?"


    "While in the School of the Emperor Star, I heard some sounds and was worried so I came to take a look. I didn''t expect it to be like this. I came too late." Seeing how Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were now, he was sad. Back in the day, his disciple Hua Fengliu had gone through something similar. Now, his two grand-disciples were the same.


    "Grandmaster." Hua Jieyu opened her eyes. Seeing the elder, her eyes reddened. He was so old and yet had come personally because he was worried.


    "Senior, long time no see," Minister Hua said, squinting at the elder.


    Elder Qin looked at him and sighed. "Do you have to make such a big deal over two youngsters?"


    "Senior, this is the emperor''s order," Minister Hua said. "What is the meaning behind your arrival?"


    "To take them away, of course," Elder Qin said calmly.


    Minister Hua scoffed. "Senior, you couldn''t win against me before. Why do you think you can take them away today?"


    Elder Qin, Minister Hua, and the headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star all had the same master. Elder Qin was the eldest but Minister Hua was the most talented. That was why he could become minister and be trusted by Emperor Luo.


    "Yes, you are more talented than I but you are obsessed with power," Elder Qin said. "Every gain comes with a loss. Since you pursue power, your cultivation will take a blow."


    "Senior, would you like to try? At your age, you should be resting peacefully. I think it would be better if you don''t try." Minister Hua stepped forward. Elder Qin didn''t like to compete with others and Minister Hua didn''t like that. Before, he had invited Elder Qin to come out of his hermit lifestyle but was rejected. If he had been willing to ally with Yan Shao, Donghai Academy would have long been controlled by the School of the Emperor Star. That was why Minister Hua never liked this senior, even though he had higher status and always stayed in the school. But if he still didn''t know his place today, Minister Hua would kill him without any concern.


    "Come," Elder Qin said. Ye Futian knew he was speaking to him. Holding Hua Jieyu, he jumped onto the crane.


    "Wenyin." Elder Qin gazed at Nandou Wenyin. Her body flashed and she was on the crane as well, beside Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Glowing, Yi Xiang hovered in the sky beside the crane.


    Minister Hua waved his hand. Instantly, headmaster Yan Shao and vice headmaster Han Mo of the School of the Emperor Star all moved, surrounding the crane. Nandou Tai moved as well. Today, there was no way back. He couldn''t let Ye Futian and the others leave alive.


    "Futian," Elder Qin said slowly, sitting atop the crane, "I will teach you one last song today."

 101 A Chaotic Nation

    Chapter 101: A Chaotic Nation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Listening to Elder Qin''s words, Ye Futian felt a wave of sorrow. He made it sound like a farewell. He knew that Elder Qin was already really old and that Minister Hua was right. At this age, he would not be able to withstand a battle of this caliber. But because of him and Hua Jieyu, Elder Qin came running to their aid just because he was worried for them after hearing news from the School of the Emperor Star.


    "Grandmaster," called Hua Jieyu. In Ye Futian''s arms, Hua Jieyu still had tears in her eyes. Deep down, she felt that something bad was going to happen. She never wanted to drag anyone into this situation. She even had her uncle tell Ye Futian not to come to the Nandou Palace today but he came anyway. Now, even Elder Qin was getting dragged in, Hua Jieyu felt awful.


    "Senior Brother, why are you doing this to yourself?" asked Headmaster Yan Shao of the Emperor Star school. He sighed inwardly. He did not think that Elder Qin could change the situation in any way. Even with Yi Xiang, it was impossible. The difference in power between the two parties was too great.


    Minister Hua came as ordered by the emperor. Everything was already set in stone. There were only two options for Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian: have their lives be controlled by the royal family or die. There was not a third option.


    But Elder Qin did not seem to have heard his words. Gently, he said, "Futian, this is a piece that I wrote but have yet to name. Today, I''ll let you name it for me."


    "Okay," answered Ye Futian. He felt awful but still nodded in agreement.


    Receiving a reply, Elder Qin smiled. Following that, his Life Spirit appeared. The Guqin Spirit did not seem to be just an image, but a real guqin. It descended in front of Elder Qin. Lifting both hands, he placed his fingers of the chords elegantly.


    "Kill them," Minister Hua spat. Yan Shao and Han Mo both jumped into action. A frightening storm blew past everything in its way and headed straight for the people on the crane.


    At the same time, the crane called loudly while Elder Qin began to stroke the chords. The two sounds combined, shaking the earth and destroyed the oncoming storm. The sound had everyone shaking. Yan Shao looked at Elder Qin. It seemed that despite his old age, Elder Qin had realized the true essence of Musical Sorcery after many years of quiet cultivation. He had become more fearsome. However, Musical Sorcery needed to be boosted by Spiritual Energy, particularly with the stronger spells. At Elder Qin''s age and in his condition, how was he going to withstand this battle?


    Minister Hua''s expression remained cold. He reached his hand out into the air and with a single swipe of his palm, a straight line appeared and shot forward, cutting through the air.


    Elder Qin played the guqin with both hands as the crane flapped its wings to the rhythm. Slowly, the crane was lifted up into mid-air. Its head pointed upward as it called out, again and again, harmonizing with the sound of the guqin. The two sounds traveled far and wide. Elder Qin was always a hermit but today, his music was going to be known by all of the East Sea.


    A loud wave of music crept deep into people''s ears, piercing their eardrums. In a single moment, they were able to feel the power hidden in the sonorous sounds of the guqin. Every attack aimed at Elder Qin was completely destroyed. With the crane as an epicenter, a crazy storm of music exploded and swept over everything.


    A storm of ice hit and froze the area over. At the same time, a mystical tree appeared in the sky. Its branches grew in a wild manner and created a canopy cover the area. The branches continued to grow, creeping closer to the crane. All the cultivators around were releasing their powers as they tried everything to prevent the crane from leaving the area.


    Elder Qin was oblivious to all this. He was still focused on his piece. His fingers moved so fast, it was just a blur, but he movements only got quicker. As the music escalated, Elder Qin''s frail body released a shocking aura. His white hair blew back and his long robe fluttered in the wind. He now seemed to have returned to his youth. His aura was frightful and reached higher than the sky.


    The sound of the guqin traveled through the air, another storm struck and cracked the ice covering the earth below. The vines headed for them were also disturbed. Once this piece was played, there wasn''t any that could be done to stop its force.


    Ye Futian stood behind Elder Qin. He listened and observed quietly. The ever-escalating sounds of the guqin were getting increasingly powerful. It caused his blood to pump in excitement.


    "Chaos," said someone from below. Every cultivator from the Nandou clan lifted their head to look up at the sky. Their hearts pounded wildly. It was unbelievable that a frail old man could play so swiftly and fiercely. It was an earth-shattering sound. Chaotic. This musical piece was able to destroy any spell and could throw the Spiritual Qi into a frenzy. Spells couldn''t be formed from Spiritual Qi, unless the piece was interrupted.


    "Have you gone mad?" asked Minister Hua. He was now in the air and followed the crane. Naturally, he was also afraid of what Elder Qin could do. Elder Qin kept getting stronger and the sounds of the guqin kept escalating, its effects more powerful. However, Elder Qin did not have Spiritual Energy strong enough to upkeep this type of musical spell. That was unless he had a death wish.


    Elder Qin was too immersed in the music, not hearing a thing Minister Hua said. The crane rose higher and higher into the sky. After breaking through the canopy formed by the branches of the mystical tree, the crane headed out of the Nandou Palace. The elder was set on bringing the young couple away from this place.


    "Chase after them!" ordered Minister Hua. The cultivators stepped into the sky and followed after the crane. Did Elder Qin and Yi Xiang really think they could escape with the couple with a line-up like this?


    Nandou Tai was also chasing after them. He was shocked to see every attack thrown at Elder Qin repelled by the wave of music.


    Headmaster Yi Xiang of the Finance Star school and Elder Qin of the Emperor Star school were two people of the highest status and they actually put themselves in danger for Ye Futian. If Ye Futian was able to promise Nandou Tai the throne of the Nandou Nation, what could he have promised Yi Xiang and Elder Qin? Perhaps nothing at all. Perhaps they simply believed in him. But why did Ye Futian deserve this? Were his extraordinary gifts a good enough reason for these two big shots to risk their lives for him?


    Nandou Tai tossed these thoughts to the back of his mind. He did not want to think of this right now. His first priority was to keep Ye Futian and the others from leaving. Nandou Tai had already made the decision to kill him. If they let Ye Futian go today, it would only mean trouble in the future.


    The large group headed out of the Nandou Palace. The guests of the party also followed. They wanted to know how this battle was going to end and what the fate of these young lovers was.


    The sound of the guqin was still escalating. Yi Xiang stood beside Elder Qin and looked at him with great respect. Any person of his level was able to see through this situation. This was probably the last piece Elder Qin would ever play.


    Ye Futian turned around, his back now towards Elder Qin. He shifted his attention to those chasing after them and saw every attack being destroyed by the music. He felt calm and at peace.


    "Grandmaster, the name of this piece is ''A Chaotic World''," said Ye Futian. Yi Xiang eyes blazed with emotion. Ye Futian named the piece ''A Chaotic World''. The meaning behind the name needed no explanation. If Ye Futian didn''t die today, then it was going to get chaotic in the Nandou Nation.


    As the elder continued to play, he smiled and nodded. "''A Chaotic Nation''. What a fitting name."


    The crane has finally flown out of the palace property. They watched as another group of people rushed into the skies. It was Xia Feng and his people who had been waiting outside the palace. They didn''t think that Ye Futan and the others would make it out alive. This came as a surprise to Xia Feng and the people of the East Sea Prefecture.


    With a sharp sword in his hand, Xia Feng waved it around in the air. Spiritual Qi began to flow around him and formed the intent of sword. As the crane headed in his direction, Xia Feng raced forward. Following him, was the intent of sword. A stream of swords appeared, prepared for mass destruction.


    The stream of swords swept toward the crane. It seemed that Elder Qin had not yet noticed this. He focused solely on playing the guqin. The music continued to escalate, wanting to break through into the heavens. The scary wave of music cut through the stream of swords and pierced into Xia Feng''s head. His movements ceased and after a moan of pain, he spat blood. His face paled. However, his sword did not stop advancing. The stream of swords was also still on the move.


    Yi Xiang took a step closer to the front of the crane. He threw out both fists at an incredible speed. His punches were so quick that it looked like a thousand punches were being thrown at once. The punches broke through the stream of swords, destroying everything. The crane moved with the punches and flew right through the stream with no problem. They continued on their way.


    Xia Feng fell to the ground. He lifted his head to watch the figures above. His expression was not so good. He did not have much Spiritual Energy to begin with, and Musical Sorcery was able to attack Spiritual Energy. With this piece that Elder Qin was playing, if Xia Feng tried to challenge it head-on, he would die of Spiritual Energy exhaustion.


    When he saw Minister Hua, Nandou Tai and the two headmasters of the Emperor Star school chasing behind the group, Xia Feng knew that they too were unwilling to face the power of the music head-on.


    "Senior Brother, this piece is indeed very powerful but for how long do you think you''ll be able to last?" said Minister Hua. "There is no escape for you guys."


    The music continued. Elder Qin had no intentions of stopping. Slowly, he lifted his head with a smile. "Yi Xiang, take Futian and Jieyu and leave."


    Yi Xiang looked at the elder. He made no objections and nodded. "Alright."


    "Grandmaster." Ye Futian''s heart clenched. He knew what was going to happen next.


    "Child, don''t be sad. I didn''t have much time left anyway. If I am able to help you guys escape today, then I can die happy," said Elder Qin. He seemed so at peace.


    "Grandmaster, didn''t you say that you had to see us get married?" Hua Jieyu had tears in her eyes.


    "Child, I have lived a long life and don''t have much time left. Promise me that you two will live a happy life, and like I said before, always love each other," said the elder. He smiled and he turned around abruptly. "Xiao Gao, take them away from here and don''t come back." Finishing what he had to say, the elder stepped off the crane and headed towards the group chasing them from behind.


    Tears fell from the crane''s big eyes. It flapped its wings quickly and continued to advance, never once stopping.


    "Grandmaster!" called Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    Yi Xiang watched in silence and told them, "Don''t let Elder Qin die in vain. You both must live on."

 102 A Heroic Death

    Chapter 102: A Heroic Death


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As Elder Qin played the guqin in the air, a terrible music storm enveloped the vast space, soaring toward the coming army. Seeing him so, Minister Hua sneered. His senior was walking toward a dead end.


    "You keep chasing. I''ll deal with him," said Minister Hua. He moved towards Elder Qin, walking into the horrible music storm step-by-step. It was difficult for Elder Qin''s music to continue rising. It had probably reached the limit.


    Elder Qin didn''t care and continued to play. The music storm swept the sky. Soon, the guqin transformed from the life spirit flew out of Elder Qin''s hand.


    However, something amazing happened. The guqin that floated in the air was still being played as if it was playing by itself. Beams of illusory light projected from Elder Qin. Each beam seemed to be his phantom, constantly blending in with the Guqin Spirit.


    That spirit was suspended in the sky. The strings jumped freely. The high-pitched music vibrated between the heaven and earth. The shocking sonic energy enveloped the whole space so that no one could escape from it.


    Yan Shao, the headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, and Han Mo were supposed to keep chasing but they halted. Looking up to the Elder Qin, they saw the old man with closed eyes. He looked serene while the guqin above was still ringing. The sharp sound constantly beat the eardrum. The music, which shouldn''t be able to rise further, rose again, growing more and more frightening. They couldn''t continue the chase and had to concentrate on defending themselves. Otherwise, the consequences would be miserable.


    Even Minister Hua, strong as he was, stopped at this moment. Looking at the spirit of the guqin playing automatically, he finally figured out what the Elder Qin was doing. Between benevolence and survival, he chose to play this last song with his life.


    Hearing the higher and higher pitched music, some people held their heads in hands in agony. Someone even vomited blood, their faces pale. Those who were not strong enough even fell to the ground, convulsing in pain. Only those strongest could resist the storm.


    The musical notes created by the Spiritual Qi were still beating, constantly destroying the strong below, making them unable to fight.


    Above the Guqin Spirit, the beating notes shaped the illusory figure of an old man. The man walked towards Minister Hua and Nadou Tai step by step. Many copies of Elder Qin appeared between the Guqin Spirit and the two people. Accompanied by notes, those figures moved directly toward Minister Hua and Nandou Tai.


    Minister Hua closed his eyes. A terrible spiritual storm transformed into an indomitable sword aiming to wipe away those illusory figures. However, those images, seemingly embracing the spirit of Elder Qin''s whole life, continued to step towards Minister Hua and Nandou Tai.


    Finally, those figures approached Minister Hua and Nandou Tan. The two''s long hair danced crazily. The next moment, those illusory figures walked directly toward their bodies, into their minds. The strings were still jumping violently while Minister Hua and Nandou Tai closed their eyes tightly as if they were resisting something.


    After what felt like a long time, Nandou Tai vomited a mouthful of blood. He felt powerless and fell to the ground.


    Soon, Minister Hua groaned and vomited blood. His face was pale like paper and he stooped slightly. Although better than Nandou Tai, he was still badly hurt.


    Bang! Another explosion came. Minister Hua stumbled back and vomited a mouthful of blood again, barely stopping himself from falling.


    Boom... As if prepared just for Minister Hua, the final sound of the guqin echoed in his brain. His propped body finally sat down on the ground, his clothes dyed red with blood. Despite being minister, he didn''t even have the time to display his strength before being forced into such a pathetic state. Elder Qin was playing the guqin with his life.


    Finally, the jumping strings gradually ceased. The people saw that the Guqin Spirit disintegrated into beams of light, dispersing between heaven and earth as if it had never existed. The music completely disappeared.


    Elder Qin was quietly sitting like a statue, calmness and serenity on his face.


    "He is dead. Keep chasing," Minister Hua ordered coldly. Yan Shao and Han Mo were slightly wounded but Elder Qin''s final attack wasn''t aimed at them. They continued chasing forward. Behind them, Xia Feng arrived with his men but was stunned when seeing the scene.


    "Go!" Minister Hua ordered directly.


    "Yes, Minister." Xia Feng nodded and continued their chase.


    After they left, Minister Hua gazed at the elderly figure with a complex expression.


    "Senior, I do not like you because there seemed to be nothing that you cared about, but I didn''t expect you to die so heroically. I will remember the music you played today forever." Minister Hua looked at the old man''s figure and said, "Unfortunately, your death won''t make them survive. They still can''t escape from my grasp."


    Minster Hua sat down to heal. Nandou Tai sat beside him, his face still pale. The reason why Elder Qin chose to use all the power to attack them before dying was probably because he wanted to buy some time by stopping the two strongest people. But Yan Shao and Han Mo were not common people, while the regiment led by Xia Feng wasn''t hurt either.


    As Minister Hua thought, since the School of Emperor Star could overwhelm the other six schools of Donghai Academy, the headmasters Yan Shao and Han Mo were definitely very strong. With wind sorcery wrapped around their bodies, the two chased with the fastest speed. They were even faster than the crane. Its cultivation was lower than Yan Shao''s.


    Standing on the back of the crane and seeing Yan Shao and Han Mo chasing behind, Yi Xiang vaguely guessed something. He said, "Go quickly. Do not think about me."


    "Senior��" Ye Futian looked at Yi Xiang.


    "Don''t be so romantic. I won''t die for you. If I can''t win, I will run. Take care of yourself," Yi Xiang said. He took a step back directly.


    Hearing this, Ye Futian was relieved. Though having a bad temper, Yi Xiang was an extremely intelligent person. He always knew how to make the most advantageous choice.


    Seeing Yi Xiang coming, Yan Shao and Han Mo separated. They obviously learned from the previous battle with Elder Qin. They walked apart so that Yi Xiang could only stop one person.


    Yi Xiang cursed at the two cunning guys in his mind.


    Without hesitating, Yi Xiang walked toward Yan Shao, the headmaster of the School of Emperor Star. Yan Shao was stronger and good at the wind element, with which he could improve the speed of both him and Han Mo. Therefore, Yi Xiang chose to fight with Yan Shao so that it would be more possible for Ye Futian to escape.


    "Yi Xiang, we haven''t had a fight for years, right?" asked Yan Shao, seeing Yi Xiang walking toward him.


    "There is a chance today." Yi Xiang stepped toward Yan Shao and issued the challenge without any hesitation.


    As for Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, they could only depend on themselves. If they were intercepted by the two, it would only be more dangerous. Han Mo continued chasing while Xia Feng''s group also came. They only glanced at Yan Shao and Yi Xiang but didn''t stop. Who they were heading for was still at the front.


    "I''ll go ahead," said Xia Feng. He rode his sword with extreme speed, chasing toward the front. Soon, he met up with Han Mo and chased the crane together.


    The flying crane stopped and turned its head. Seeing Ye Futian and the other two, the crane tweeted. Ye Futian seemed to know what it meant, and asked, "You want us to leave?"


    The crane nodded. Ye Futian glanced at Nandou Wenyin, who nodded back at him.


    "Take care," Ye Futian said. Then, Nadou Wenyin, Ye Futian, and Hua Jieyu continued to move forward. As they stepped down, the crane immediately flew toward Han Mo and Xia Feng. The crane''s loud voice turned into sonic waves attacking the eardrums of Han Mo and Xia Feng.


    "You go after them," Han Mo said and ran toward the crane. Xia Feng nodded and tried to bypass the crane from the side. However, the crane flapped its wings and the sound was heard again. Flapping the wings, the crane pounced toward them with sharp claws.


    "You evil creature!" Xia Feng swung his sword but saw the crane avoid his attack directly and pounced on Han Mo. The crane was trying to stop both of them.


    Han Mo and Xia Feng both frowned. At this moment, Xia Feng''s men caught up with them. Xia Feng ordered, "Go catch the three." He and Han Mo surrounded the crane, not letting it rescue Ye Futian and the others.


    The army moved past. Since only Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Nandou Wenyin were left, this elite army from the East Sea prefecture was enough to deal with them easily. Even the slightly threatening Nandou Wenyin couldn''t resist them, so Xia Feng had no worries.


    As they had expected, the three were soon blocked.


    They stopped and Nandou Wenyin looked at Ye Futian. "Take Jieyu away."


    "No use." Holding Hua Jieyu, Ye Futian shook his head. They had escaped all this way but they were too weak. The enemy hadn''t given up and had finally caught up with them. It was impossible to escape now.


    Nandou Wenyin also understood the situation. Would they really die here today? Poor Elder Qin had fought for the last opportunity for them and even sacrificed his life but still, nothing could be changed.

 103 The Light of an Emperor

    Chapter 103: The Light of an Emperor


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Minister Hua was sent by Emperor Luo to keep watch at the Nandou Palace and Chief Xia Feng of the East Prefecture and his army at the Guqin Gardens. They were prepared for Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian''s defiance. When it did happen, they were going to kill them on the spot.


    Then, Minister Hua waited for Ye Futian at the Nandou Palace. He ordered Nandou Tai to let Ye Futian enter the palace because he was waiting for Ye Futian fall into his trap.


    The imperial order was a death sentence for Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian. Minister Hua was confident that he had everything under his control and he did. Even if Elder Qin sacrificed himself while playing ''A Chaotic Nation'', the result would be the same. The only thing Minister Hua never expected was Ye Futian trying to talk Nandou Tai into revolting after demonstrating his extraordinary gifts, and that Nandou Tai would actually be wavered by Ye Futian''s words.


    At this time, the East Sea Prefecture''s army arrived. They were all staring at the three figures in front of them. Obviously, Xia Fan was amongst the group. He wanted to watch Ye Futian die.


    "Kill them but leave the girl for now," ordered Xia Fan with a wicked smile. The army acted immediately, heading for the three of them. Nandou Wenyin stood in front of the two youths. A strong force of Spiritual Energy was released. Her long hair danced wildly. The spears in the hands of the army began to shake as if trying to break free of their grasp. Some of the weaker cultivators were unable to control the spears and let go of their weapons. The spears then stabbed themselves.


    "Fight it!" yelled a cultivator in the Arcana Plane. He cast a spell, aimed at the three.


    In the air, not far behind the three, came a figure. She witnessed the scene in front of her and rushed forward like a flash of lightning. The spell had reached Nandou Wenyin and the others but was destroyed when the figure came crashing down from the skies with a loud bang. A beautiful silhouette appeared next to Nandou Wenyin. The strong figure was actually a woman.


    "Thank you," said Nandou Wenyin.


    "I didn''t do it to save you," said Tang Wan. "Let''s fight."


    Nandou Wenyin nodded. Even though the two women used to be love rivals, they were going to fight side by side right now. Both of their Life Spirits were released. Nandou Wenyin''s Life Spirit was glamorous but peculiar. It was a crown. When the crown was on her head, she looked majestic, like a queen. A powerful of Spiritual Energy was released, and everyone below the Arcana Plane felt their weapons begin to vibrate in their hands.


    Tang Wan took one look at Nandou Wenyin. In her eyes, there was jealousy and melancholy. Nandou Wenyin was the descendant of royalty and was definitely more elegant than herself. Tang Wan''s Life Spirit was much more violent. It was a white Demon Tiger. What was special about her Life Spirit was that the Demon Tiger had wings. It was the king of all tigers.


    "Tang Wan, do you know why Hua Fengliu picked her and not you? Just take a look at your Life Spirits," mocked an Arcana Plane cultivator.


    "Do you have a death wish?" asked Tang Wan. The one thing she hated most was when people insulted her Life Spirit.


    "Is the tigress mad?" laughed the same person. He was provoking Tang Wan on purpose.


    ROAR! The tiger called out loudly. Following that, illusory images of tigers pounced at the Arcana Plane cultivator. Tang Wan took one step forward, and her body was taken over by the image of a tiger. Her wings glistened in the light, and in a flash, she joined the other images of the tigers into the crowd. In a split second, blood was spilled and many of the people in the prefecture army were sent flying.


    At the same time, Nandou Wenyin controlled from behind. She was a powerful Spirit Sorcerer and had the gift of telekinesis. She could even control the body of others.


    Hua Jieyu inherited both her and Hua Fengliu''s gifts, and thus had powers that were slightly different.


    "Surround them," ordered Xia Fan as he hid at the back of the group. The army moved forward. Spells were cast left and right but kept getting destroyed. They were unable to control both of the women at once so they chose to surround the group instead.


    Ye Futian watched the scene unfold, and the wings of his back appeared. Turning around, his wings carried him and Hua Jieyu away. He knew that if they stayed, they would only become a burden to the two women. They wouldn''t be able to help at all.


    Xia Fan led a group around those who were surrounding Tang Wan and Nandou Wenyin to follow after Ye Futian. Nandou Wenyin and Tang Wan were trapped in the middle of the crowd. They wanted to clear an escape route by killing the soldiers surrounding them, but their opponents saw through their plan and attacked my vigorously, restraining the women.


    Xia Fan watched Ye Futian''s fleeting back as he chased after the couple. The wicked smile on his face grew wider. Who would have thought, after so many big shots tried to kill Ye Futian, he had been able to escape until now, just to die in Xia Fan''s hands.


    "Still trying to escape?" Xia Fan was toying with Ye Futian. The Dharma Plane cultivators beside Xia Fan sped up and blocked Ye Futian off.


    As of now, whether it be Elder Qin or the people from the Guqin Gardens, most of them had been pulled into the battle. Only some of the younger members had yet to participate. Who was going to save Ye Futian now?


    Ye Futian turned around to look at Xia Fan coldly. Back in Qingzhou City, Ye Futian almost died because of Xia Fan. Now, even in the City of Donghai, they had fallen into a similar situation.


    "So beautiful," said Xia Fan as he stared at the beautiful girl in Ye Futian''s arms. Hua Jieyu looked at him coldly then quickly turned her attention away.


    "Kill Ye Futian," ordered Xia Fan. Many Arcana Plane cultivators charged forwards Ye Futian.


    A rustling sound emerged. The World Tree Spirit appeared, shining brightly in the sky. Immediately after, the Life Spirit began to absorb Spiritual Qi greedily. Back at the Nandou Palace, he did not release this Life Spirit because he did not want to expose too much. Also, he believed that his godfather would come out to save him but he was wrong. His godfather did not show up and Ye Futian did not understand why. Now, he was really at a dead-end. There was no use in hiding anymore. He wished for a chance to live.


    Xia Fan was shocked at the appearance of the World Tree Spirit. He had yet another Life Spirit?


    "No wonder Minister Zuo bestowed you with the Decree of the Minister. You really are a genius cultivator. Pity that you won''t be able to fulfill your destiny," said Xia Fan. From Ye Futian''s body, Wood Spiritual Qi flowed crazily, and the Lock of a Thousand Vines shot towards the Dharma Plane cultivators.


    One of the cultivator''s realizations of Dharma was a sea of fire, burning everything. The vines released by the Lock of a Thousand Vines was burnt to a crisp by the high temperatures. The opponent''s palm came towards Ye Futian. Not only was this person a Dharma Plane cultivator, but he was one of the strongest in the Dharma Plane. He and Ye Futian were too many levels apart. They was no way for Ye Futian to defend himself.


    The burning palm closed in on Ye Futian, but he used a Wind spell to retreat quickly. However, he was not quick enough because he was struck on the shoulder. The clothes covering his shoulder turned to ash, revealing bloody flesh. At the same time, Ye Futian was also thrown back. He managed to stabilize himself, not falling to the ground. He endured the pain as he kept holding Hua Jieyu.


    "I''m sorry, Fox. I wasn''t able to marry you." Ye Futian lowered his head to look at Hua Jieyu.


    "I''m happy just being here with you." Hua Jieyu smiled brightly. From the day the imperial order arrived at the Nandou Palace, Hua Jieyu had been prepared. And because of this, even though her fears had come true, she felt calm. Besides, she had Ye Futian by her side.


    "Okay," nodded Ye Futian.


    He looked up at the Dharma Plane cultivators and released all of his Life Spirits with a smile. The world around them became so magnificent all of a sudden.


    Upon witnessing this, the Dharma Plane cultivators couldn''t help but stop in their tracks. They felt shivers run down their back as the stared at Ye Futian.


    Was��was he really human? What kind of freak was this person they were sent to kill today?


    "Let''s make a deal. You guys let me off the hook and leave with me. I bet it would be better than staying with Xia Fan," said Ye Futian. He looked at the stunned cultivators and chuckled. There was no way back; he had to try everything he could think of. Even though the chances were slim, he still had to give it a shot.


    In the back, Xia Fan was also frozen in shock. His heart pounded. How could someone like Ye Futian exist?


    Suddenly, he thought of something. Back then, on Mount Tianyao, Ye Futain fell into the Canyon of Ten Thousand Beasts and was still able to make it out alive. Now that he had seen all of Ye Futian''s Life Spirits, Xia Fan had a wild thought.


    "Did you survive the fall on Mount Tianyao because you received Emperor Ye Qing''s inheritance?" asked Xia Fan. The cultivators who were listening were shocked. The inheritance of Emperor Ye Qing?


    "Yeah," said Ye Futian matter-of-factly. He smiled and looked at the others. "Do you guys think you''ll be better off with the successor of Emperor Ye Qing or with Xia Fan?"


    "Don''t listen to him. Do you guys really think that he would kill you guys for revenge if you leave with him today?" asked Xia Fan. "Kill him immediately, and you guys will be rewarded when we return."


    The Dharma Plane cultivators'' eyes lit up in realization. They thought of the rest of the army and the Arcana Plane cultivators coming behind them and knew that leaving with Ye Futian was unrealistic. They would never get away.


    Two figures charged at Ye Futian simultaneously. Even though they were not completely willing now, they knew that they had to kill him if they wanted to live. To have the blood of such an important person on their hands was also something to be proud of.


    Feeling the two figures getting closer, Ye Futian tried to release his sorcery, but it was no use. His attacks were ignored by his opponents and they continued to come towards him. A spear was headed his way, and Ye Futian spun around abruptly, putting his back to the spear. He looked down and smiled at Hua Jieyu in his arms.


    He tried, he tried really hard, but he couldn''t defy the imperial order. Emperor Luo wanted him dead so that was the only thing he could do in the Nandou Nation. He had never even met Emperor Luo. If he had the chance, Ye Futian really wanted to meet him.


    "Dummy." Hua Jieyu reached out her slender fingers and caressed Ye Futian''s handsome face. She returned his smile. She knew that even at the last moment, Ye Futian wanted to protect her, taking the blow for her. He really was a dummy.


    A stabbing sound was heard, and the long spear pierced Ye Futian''s body. At this moment, evilness spread across Xia Fan''s face.


    Was he finally dead? What was the use of being so gifted?


    The cultivator who had stabbed Ye Futian let out a sigh. This unbelievably talented young man had died in his hands. He used force to try to pull the spear out of Ye Futian but the weapon would not budge.


    A noise sounded. It sounded like blood pumping. At that moment, the cultivator was astonished to find out that the spear he had stabbed Ye Futian had been reduced to nothing.


    "What''s going on?" asked the cultivator. He lifted his head to look at Ye Futian''s back. It was as if something had been broken in Ye Futian''s body.


    A blinding light erupted from his body. Then, there were two rays of light. Two became three and three became four. Countless rays of light were emitted from Ye Futian''s body. It was like the light of an emperor.


    Ten feet, 20 feet, a hundred feet. The rays of light shone into the sky like a fairytale.


    Another look at Ye Futian''s World Tree Spirit revealed that it was giving off a golden sheen and had become a mystical tree. Spiritual Qi gathered crazily around the tree.


    The silhouette was no longer that of a teenager, but that of a majestic emperor.

 104 Execution

    Chapter 104: Execution


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Standing there in the glory, Ye Futian had no idea what happened. Inside his body, the rumbling blood turned into gold. There seemed to be the golden figure of an emperor. This figure was very vague. He was unable to see his face clearly and only sensed his unique temperament, noble and mighty. The endless light of the emperor broke out from here to envelop his body. That figure seemed to be moving in his body, coming closer and closer to his mind. The temperament grew stronger and stronger. Ye Futian wanted to see his face clearly but still couldn''t. He wondered who had left the emperor''s intent in his body.


    Did this have anything to do with his birth?


    But he had no time to think as the king-like figure was moving. Every punch, strike, and movement the figure made revealed an emperor''s imposing manner. Accompanied by the movement of the figure, Ye Futian felt the blood in his body roaring as well as the soul. His whole momentum was in a steep rise. It did not seem like his own power.


    His spirit devoured the Spiritual Qi of the world like a sacred tree. With his aura changing, he felt full of endless power. Every action that the figure made in his body seemed to be engraved in his mind.


    Being held in Ye Futian''s arms, Hua Jieyu could naturally sense his transformations. She had been prepared to die but was stunned by the gorgeous light projected from Ye Futian''s body. She had never seen Emperor Luo but she felt that the emperor would never have such temperament. It was as if Ye Futian was an emperor by nature.


    She suddenly thought of her fate predicted by Minister Zuo and Ye Futian''s query to Nandou Tai. At this moment, she finally understood what the empress''s fate meant and why Minister Zuo had laughed when she asked whether Ye Futian would come back from the city of Qingzhou.


    This was her destiny. They were meant to be together.


    Thinking of this, Hua Jieyu''s eyes grew red. A translucent teardrop slipped down her face. The fate did not cheat her. Her beautiful eyes became more resolved. Since fate was so, what else in the world could prevent them from being together?


    Her beloved was fated to be a true emperor.


    Xia Fan was shocked at the sight of all. His hideous smile was frozen. The strange situation completely overturned his thinking.


    What was this? Why didn''t the spear that pierced Ye Futian''s body kill him but instead turn him into an emperor bathed in dazzling emperor''s brilliance? Who could tell him what was going on?


    He had never seen or even heard of such a scene before. This did not make any sense. Cultivations should be done step by step and a sudden rise in cultivation was impossible. If someone had left something in Ye Futian''s body, how strong must that person be?


    Xia Fan didn''t know. With a menacing face, Xia Fan roared at two in the Dharma Plane near Ye Futian. "Kill him!"


    The two in the Dharma Plane were also dazed by the shock at the sight of Ye Futian''s changes. Xia Fan''s roar triggered their murderous intent. Spears made from Spiritual Qi and horrible handprints of flames were thrown toward Ye Futian viciously.


    This time, however, they were not able to hit Ye Futian. The emperor''s halo surrounding Ye Futian seemed to be transformed into a blurry figure. The emperor''s glory around him blocked the spears and handprints, making them unable to get close to Ye Futian''s body.


    Seeing this, the two fighters, Xia Fan, and the surrounding people all grew pale. They had a bad feeling.


    Many life spirits disappeared, leaving only the Ancient World Tree life spirit swaying in the wind like something sacred. Leaves rustling, new vines lashed out from the sacred tree toward the two strong figures behind Ye Futian.


    The two were shocked. They used spears and flames at the same time, wanting to destroy the vines, but the vines snaking towards their bodies seemed indestructible. They were lifted up in the air in few seconds. Some subtle sounds were heard and the small leaves pierced through their body. Blood rain poured down.


    Ye Futian slowly turned around. He looked up to Xia Fan with the emperor''s gold eyes.


    "You are not Ye Futian. Who are you?" Xia Fan felt great panic. It was too strange that every part of Ye Futian''s body had the emperor''s intent. This did not belong to him at all.


    "What do you think?" Ye Futian asked coldly. Gorgeous wings appeared behind him. As the wings flapped, he rose into the air with Hua Jieyu in his arms and flew toward Xia Fan. In his body, the emperor-like figure was still dancing. Every action kept being branded in the mind while urging the power around him, making him more powerful. Ye Futian also understood that this force was not his but at least at the moment, it belonged to him.


    "Kill��kill him." Xia Fan stepped backward but ordered the people next to him. Those people trembled unceasingly, not daring to move forward.


    "Go!" Xia Fan thundered while he retreated. He turned and fled toward the battlefield at the back where there were the strong fighters of the Arcana Plane.


    The wings behind Ye Futian unfolded. The terrifying wings seemed to be cutting through the air with shrill sounds. Ye Futian was near the strong figures in an instant. Without stopping, he crossed them like a flash of lightning. Continuous whooshes were heard. Blood kept blooming in the air along constant screams.


    "Uncle!" Xia Fan seemed to figure out what had happened behind him. Howling, he ran forward. "Help me!"


    A powerful person of the Arcana Plane noticed the situation here. He left the battlefield, coming toward Xia Fan. He passed over Xia Fan and pounced toward Ye Futian. This was Xia Feng''s junior, a swordsman in training. His sharp sword, with dazzling brilliance, pierced toward Ye Futian. He had no idea why Ye Futian had such a transformation but there was no time for him to figure out the reason. What he needed to do was to kill Ye Futian.


    "Rest for a bit," Ye Futian said softly to Hua Jieyu. The vines rolled over to carry Hua Jieyu. Endless vines made a wooden bed as comfortable as possible for her.


    Then Ye Futian raised his fist and punched the sword coming toward him. This punch was not the battle skill he had practiced but with the movement in his mind in sync. He just punched naturally and the momentum of the emperor surrounding him was thrown forward too. A terrible storm formed immediately, wiping out the sword''s viciousness.


    The swordsman in training paled. Ye Futian moved in the air and the second blow was thrown out. The punch seemed simple but contained the momentum of the universe and the emperor. An illusory figure of emperor attached to him. They hurled their fists together.


    Facing the Emperor''s power, everyone shall surrender. No one could fight back.


    That swordsman was frightened. The great momentum contained in the emperor''s fist rolled over his body, and then there seemed to be a thunderous exploding. This swordsman in training of the Arcana Plane was shattered and nothing was left.


    "No..." Xia Fan was terrified and full of despair that his uncle, a swordsman of the Arcana Plane, was killed by just one of Ye Futian''s punches. The man''s body had collapsed into nothingness. Xia Fan trembled. The viciousness in his eyes from before was replaced by deep fear.


    However, Ye Futian felt the emperor''s intent reached its pinnacle. The moving figure gradually slowed down as if it was about to end. Ye Futian had a feeling that the emperor''s intent was temporary. There was not much time left for him. Moreover, the intent might have appeared to teach him a set of battle methods.


    Thinking of this, the wings flashed again. With incredible speed, he joined Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan in the battlefield. With wings cutting through the air, continuous pops were heard. The strong men of the Arcana plane became powerless, slaughtered by Ye Futian.


    Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan were also shocked by the changes in Ye Futian, but knew what to do at the moment. They cooperated with Ye Futian to fight.


    Ye Futian punched continuously. Each fist and handprint contained the powerful momentum of the emperor. The strong were constantly killed and defeated. More and more corpses were piled on the ground.


    In few minutes, only two strong figures of the Arcana Plane were left and they turned to escape. Ye Futian was too strong that they simply couldn''t overcome him.


    Ye Futian flashed, dodged, and punched like lightning. His fist tore through the air and smashed someone. The emperor''s intent grew stronger. Looking at the last escaping man, Ye Futian threw out a palm. A handprint of the emperor destroyed everything. It pursued the escaping man and shattered his body.


    Other than Xia Fan, all were killed.


    Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan looked at Ye Futian with great shock. The emperor''s intent soared to the extreme at this moment. Hundreds of meters of the emperor''s bright light shone.


    Ye Futian didn''t notice their eyes and walked toward Xia Fan. Xia Fan retreated step by step with great fear in his eyes.


    "Let me go. I can promise you whatever you want," Xia Fan begged, staring imploringly at Ye Futian. The subtle sounds came again. The vines rolled over Xia Fan''s body; his limbs and neck were tied and he was suspended in the air.


    "No..." Xia Fan seemed to figure out what was about to happen. He roared in horror and struggled in vain. The vines curled around his body pulled in different directions. It was like an execution!

 105 One Who Wants the Crown, Bears the Crown

    Chapter 105: One Who Wants the Crown, Bears the Crown


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the air, Xia Fan''s body has been stretched out. His arms, his legs, and his head were wrapped with vines coming from different directions. He had already wet himself, the color drained from his face. With his eyes shut, he cried and he begged, "I''m sorry! I was wrong!"


    Xia Fan had first seen Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu by the lake in the City of Qingzhou. Back then, the young Ye Futian was just an insignificant plaything to Xia Fan. On Mount Tianyao, he had played with Ye Futian''s life and now, he was receiving his punishment.


    Ye Futian remained emotionless at Xia Fan''s miserable condition.


    The vines exerted strength and began to pull.


    "AHHH...!" Xia Fan screamed in pain. There was only one scream. The blood rained down from the sky but Ye Futian did not stay to watch. He turned to pick up Hua Jieyu, who had been carried to him by the vines, and walked towards Nandou Wenyin and Tang Wan. To them, he said, "Let''s return to the Guqin Gardens."


    The vibrations within his body had stopped. The emperor-like silhouette had faded into just a shadow. The light that radiated from him had also dimmed. Ye Futian withdrew his Life Spirits. He did not want to think of anything else. There was only one thing on his mind: he must live on. Grandmaster had traded his life for Ye Futian''s. Yi Xiang and the crane fought to keep him alive. He had to stay alive.


    "Let''s go," nodded Tang Wan. She had so many questions right now but knew that this was not the time to ask. Their little group rose into the sky and headed in the direction of the Guqin Gardens at top speed.


    Not long after Ye Futian and the others left, another group of people arrived at the empty field. Leading the group were Chief Xia Feng of the East Sea Prefecture and Vice Headmaster Han Mo of the School of the Emperor Star. Following behind them were powerful cultivators from the Nandou clan. When Xia Feng saw the corpses of his people scattered on the ground, his expression darkened. How did things turn out this way? How was Nandou Wenyin capable of this? Where was his son?


    Xia Feng looked through the sea of bodies but could not find Xia Fan. Finally, his eyes fell on the sight before him. His heart squeezed violently. Shaking with every step he took, he walked over to the head. On its face was a look of indescribable fear. The intent of sword erupted from Xia Feng.


    Han Mo and members of Nandou clan were frozen with shock. What had happened? There shouldn''t have been any problems in taking down Nandou Wenyin and Ye Futian with such a powerful line-up. Could someone have come to their aid?


    "My condolences, Brother Xia. What''s important now is to find the person who did this and avenge your son," said Han Mo. Xia Feng tried to contain his pain. With a blood-thirsty look on his face, he felt the fluctuations in the air and said, "The fluctuations of Spiritual Qi have yet to dissipate. They couldn''t have gotten far. They must have gone back to the Guqin Gardens. Let''s go after them."


    Han Mo blinked and realized that Xia Feng had a point. "Alright, we will definitely make them pay for this. An eye for an eye," he said.


    "When I catch him, I''ll definitely kill him and his whole family, everyone related to him," said Xia Feng. His voice was demon-like and sent shivers down the back of others. Afterward, he was lifted into the air and in the blink of an eye, he transformed into the shadow of a sword.


    BOOM! An explosion sounded from afar. In the skies, a golden light approached at an incredible speed. It was impossible to tell what it was. It was just too fast, faster than their perception.


    "Be careful!" screamed Han Mo. The golden light descended from the skies above.


    BOOM! Another loud noise sounded. The ground cracked open. Han Mo and the others looked down onto the ground, only to see Xia Fan. The man that had just been in the air seconds ago, now had a long golden spear stuck in his body. The spear had pierced directly through his body, nailing Xia Feng into the ground. The powerful Xia Feng have no idea who had attacked him.


    Xia Feng''s eyes rounded as he continued to spit up blood. He couldn''t move, being nailed into the ground. His hands were still shaking. In the moment, he was no longer thinking of revenge. All he felt was pain and hopelessness.


    Han Mo and the members of the Nandou clan were shaking in their shoes. What was going on?


    Not far ahead, there seemed to be a figure coming closer. The figure seemed to be moving very slowly but in the blink of an eye, he had gotten much closer to the group. It was a white-haired elder. His hunched body made him look very old. He came closer with his hands behind his back. Upon seeing the elder, everyone shook with fear. Did the elder do this?


    "Whose family are you guys trying to kill?" asked the elder. His eyes fell towards Xia Feng and the group led by Han Mo.


    "Senior, who are you?" asked Han Mo with a tremor in his voice.


    "Me?" The elder looked at Han Mo and a scary wind storm hit. A dim golden light was hidden in the eye of the storm, moving towards Han Mo and the rest.


    "Run!" shouted Han Mo. He tried to escape by flying but stopped when he saw the storm form into an all-consuming black hole. It pulled them into the storm. Everything in the area was a mess. The black hole storm kept pulling people in.


    "Senior, who on earth are you? Why are you doing this?" asked a member of the Nandou clan.


    The elder stood quietly. He made no movements and just looked at the clan member and said, "The person you are trying is my Young Master."


    The clan member was shocked. He shook his head, "That''s not possible." If Ye Futian came from such a strong background, why did he come to Donghai City without his family? Why did he want to study at Donghai Academy? Why did he study music from the Guqin Devil?


    Han Mo suddenly thought back to when Ye Futian spoke into thin air at the Nandou Palace. At that time, everyone thought his actions were peculiar but now, everything made sense. What the elder said might actually be true. Han Mo''s heart was pounding.


    "Senior, we''re just following the emperor''s orders. We don''t really want to cause any harm to Ye Futian. Please forgive us," begged Han Mo. He felt desperate. If he had known that such a scary character was protecting Ye Futian, he never would have taken part in any of this.


    "The emperor''s order? What''s that?" asked the elder. He looked at Han Mo. Han Mo had a feeling that the almighty emperor amounted to nothing in the eyes of the elder.


    "You said that my Young Master is being chased down and sentenced to death because he defied the emperor''s imperial order. So, what should be the punishment for killing my Young Master?" the elder continued to ask. Han Mo''s face paled. Defying the imperial order was a capital offense but if Ye Futian was of a higher power than the emperor of the Nandou Nation, then what would the punishment for trying to kill Ye Futian be?


    There could only be death!


    "Can you explain this situation to me before I die?" Han Mo had lost all hope.


    "Alright," nodded the elder. "My Young Master is��"


    When the elder finished what he had to say, Xia Feng, Han Mo, and the members of the Nandou clan were all in deep shock. They had just received some inconceivable news.


    "That''s impossible!" shouted a clan member. How was this possible? How on earth was this even possible? Who had the Nandou clan rejected?


    "You shall all die now," said the elder. The fearsome storm continued to pull everyone in, consuming the group of people from the East Sea Prefecture. They had no way of withstanding its power. The bodies were crushed into ashes. The same went for Xia Feng who was still pinned to the ground. The long spear returned to its original form of Spiritual Qi and disappeared.


    "If things were like this, then why didn''t you make your move back at the Nandou Palace?" screamed Han Mo.


    The elder slowly lifted his head to look at the sky, then he sighed heavily.


    "The one who wants the crown, bears the crown!"


    After these words, the storm washed over everything in the area. Han Mo, Xia Feng, and the group of Nandou clan members were no more. The only thing that remained was their ashes, becoming one with the dust.


    The elder spun around and kneeled down facing the direction Ye Futian had departed in. He bowed, his forehead meeting with the ground. Indeed, it was he who told Ye Futian to go to the Nandou Palace. How could Ye Futian allow anyone to touch his woman? But the elder never came out to help Ye Futian. Even when Xia Feng caught up to him he did not reveal himself. Unless Ye Futian was actually going to die, he had no plans in doing so. He knew that this resulted in injuries and deaths, but what was a little sacrifice?


    On the road to greatness, Ye Futian needed to learn what the meaning of courage, responsibility, hardship, pain, and even hopelessness was. He had to understand that he could rely on no one but himself. In order to control everything, he needed the ultimate power.


    Even if Ye Futian were to hate him for his ruthlessness, the elder would have no regrets. He was willing to be the bad guy and carry the sin.


    He did all of this because this was his duty.


    Year 10000 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was about to end, Ye Futian should have grown up by now. The elder believed that there would be a day that Ye Futian would become the brightest, most outstanding existence in all of the Divine Prefectures of the East. There would be no other like him because he was "their" child.


    Slowly, he rose from the ground and in a flash, the elder disappeared from where he once stood. So quick, as if he was never there.


    Not long after his departure, a group of people arrived. Confusion filled their faces as they looked around at the bodies on the ground. They saw people headed in this direction and then witnessed fog emitting from this area. The fog was so thick, they were unable to see what went on.


    What on earth had happened here and who were these corpses on the ground?


    ...


    A group of powerful cultivators arrived at the Nandou Palace. And their leader, Minister Zuo.


    When Minister Zuo saw the condition the celebration venue was in, his expression darkened. To the small group of people who had remained at the venue Minister Zuo asked, "What happened here? Where are Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu?"


    The members of the Nandou clan already knew who he was. They bowed and replied, "Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu disobeyed the order of the emperor, so Minister Hua and the members of our clan are hunting them down."


    Minister Zuo''s heart pounded. Was he really too late?


    "Are they hurt?" Minister Zuo asked.


    "Ye Futian''s injuries were minor but Hua Jieyu threatened suicide, so her condition can''t be too good," answered a clan member. Hearing these words, Minister Zuo knew that things had gotten to the point of no return. He lifted his head to look up at the sky and suddenly burst into laughter. "I attempted to change fate but, in the end, it was all for nothing."


    He did his best to aid Emperor Luo but it was difficult to know what the emperor was truly thinking. Minister Zuo had previously told the fortune of the nation and it was determined that the nation was destined for failure and the emperor''s position was unstable. Then, after he found out about the emperor''s imperial order, he told another fortune and knew that blood would be spilled.


    Emperor Luo''s imperial order had not changed the fate of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, but the fate of Nandou Nation instead!

 106 Goal

    Chapter 106: Goal


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Guqin Gardens, Yu Sheng and the others waited anxiously. Right now, the car was ready with demons to pull it. Tang Lan had prepared it. After arranging everything here, she went to aid them and coincidentally ran into the three being pursued.


    Several figures dropped from the sky. It was Nandou Wenyin, Ye Futian, and Hua Jieyu. When Hua Fengliu saw that his wife and daughter were there, his heart trembled. Holding onto Yu Sheng, he tried to get up and walk to them.


    "Jieyu, what''s wrong?" Hua Fengliu asked when he saw Ye Futian holding her.


    "Dad, I''m okay." Hua Jieyu smiled at Hua Fengliu.


    "Where''s my father?" Yi Qingxuan asked Ye Futian. She didn''t see Yi Xiang anywhere. Other than him, everyone else was back.


    "Senior Yi helped me stop the pursuers. He has high cultivation and won''t have any problems," Ye Futian said to Yi Qingxuan, seeming to comfort himself while comforting her.


    "How can Headmaster Yi stop Minister Hua and the others? How did you all come back?" Hua Fengliu asked. Yi Xiang and Ye Futian couldn''t bring the women back by themselves.


    "Master, Grandmaster��" Ye Futian''s eyes were red and he felt depressed.


    Hua Fengliu''s insides trembled. Understanding instantly, he thought of the past and looked up to the heavens, tears in his eyes. His master had used his life to save Hua Fengliu''s disciple, wife, and daughter.


    "There''s no time for tears. Let''s go," Tang Lan said.


    They all knew she was speaking the truth. Hua Fengliu nodded. Pushing aside Yu Sheng, he knelt onto the ground and kowtowed to the distance. He hated that he was powerless and that his master had died for him.


    Ye Futian walked up. He handed Hua Jieyu to Nandou Wenyin and knelt down as well, kowtowing toward where his grandmaster had last been.


    "Grandmaster, I will go to the School of the Emperor Star to find you in the future," Ye Futian said. Then he helped Hua Fengliu up and walked toward the car.


    After everyone climbed onto the demon and car, Tang Lan asked, "Where to now?"


    "To the East Sea first," Ye Futian said. The East Sea was boundless and going there was definitely the best choice.


    "What about my father?" Yi Qingxuan''s eyes were red. She was extremely worried.


    "It''s actually easier for Senior Yi to escape alone. He''ll be okay," Ye Futian assured her again.


    Yi Qingxuan nodded. She knew they couldn''t remain any longer. At this time, Yu Sheng grasped her hand with his big hand, giving her strength. Then the demon jumped into the air and pulled the car through the clouds.


    After they left, Minister Hua and Nantou Tai arrived at the Guqin Gardens with their men. Seeing the empty garden, Minister Hua''s face darkened. "Where''s Xia Feng and Han Mo?" he asked coldly.


    "They probably continued chasing. Earlier, Yi Xiang had stopped me but Han Mo and Xia Feng continued on. I don''t think there should be any problems," School of the Emperor Star headmaster Yan Shao said.


    "Then what''s with all those bodies beside the road?" Minister Hua''s voice was frigid. He had seen Xia Fan''s body and Xia Feng''s men. There were even people at the Arcana plane who had died. According to Yan Shao, Yi Xiang was busy with him. Of those who had continued fleeing, only Nandou Wenyin was at the Arcana plane. How could they have killed all those men? Furthermore, Han Mo, Xia Feng, and the Nandou clan had all been chasing after them. Unless someone was helping them in the background��


    "We can only wait for Han Mo and Xia Feng''s news now," Nandou Tai said. He looked unwell too. If the youth survived, he would definitely take revenge for everything that happened today.


    In addition, only he knew what Minister Zuo''s prediction of Hua Jieyu''s fate was. Earlier, when the decree had come, he had mistakenly thought that the empress fate meant becoming the queen. When he saw Ye Futian''s brilliance, he thought of the minister''s decree given to Ye Futian and realized he was wrong.


    "Go, instate citywide control and plant men at all the exits, especially in the sky," Minister Hua ordered. However, he knew deep down that if Xia Feng and Han Mo couldn''t keep up, it would be very hard to capture them.


    If they''d really escaped, he wouldn''t be able to answer to Emperor Luo. Minister Hua had come to deal with two youths himself but they''d escaped. He would be too ashamed to report this.


    They waited for a long time but Han Mo and Xia Feng didn''t return. The Nandou clan members were gone too as if they''d vanished.


    When night fell, Nandou Tai returned to his home, Yan Shao returned to the Donghai Academy, while Minister Hua went to Xia Feng''s house. Still, there was no news of him.


    Nandou Tai learned from his clan members that Minister Zuo had visited. After hearing what happened, he had left while laughing wildly. He''d sighed that fate couldn''t be changed and took his men back to the Imperial City. This made Nandou Tai feel as if a huge boulder was weighing down on his heart.


    Not only would there be no crown princess, but the Nandou clan had also lost Hua Jieyu. Because of Hua Jieyu''s refusal, Emperor Luo would probably be angered by the Nandou clan too. This was why Minister Hua forced him to make a prompt decision. He must do the immoral thing of killing his family so the emperor wouldn''t find him disloyal.


    The big figures who had come to congratulate them had already returned to their houses. They''d also heard that Minister Hua hadn''t caught the three and found it odd. How could Ye Futian escape from a group as formidable as Minister Hua''s? This was not something that followed logic.


    On the last day of year 10000 of the Divine calendar, unpredictable events happened in Donghai City.


    Minister Hua had come with the emperor''s decree to the Nandou clan to make Hua Jieyu the Crown Princess. Everyone had gone to congratulate them. They all thought that the Nandou clan would return to the stage of the Nandou Kingdom, rather than being stuck in Donghai City. However, there was a change. A seventeen-year-old youth broke in, displayed ultimate glory with twin spirits and full elemental talent. Not only did he go against the royal order, he tried to convince the Nandou clan to do the same. The Nandou clan decided to kill him once and for all. He should have died but he left with his life. Minister Hua couldn''t catch him.


    Finally, he took away Hua Jieyu, who should''ve become Crown Princess. No one knew where he would go but everyone knew that one day, he would return.


    ...


    Year 10001 came. The first day of the new year, countless rumors spread throughout Donghai Academy.


    Apparently, Crown Princess Hua Jieyu almost committed suicide for Ye Futian.


    Apparently, the genius who had fought before the School of the Emperor Star had twin spirits and cultivated all elements. He had defeated all the strong figures under the Dharma rank and even Zhuo Qing couldn''t fight him. He''d always been hiding his true abilities in Donghai Academy.


    They also heard that Elder Qin of the School of the Emperor Star had played his last song to save Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. The Emperor Star would no longer Elder Qin. Yi Xiang had gone against the royal order for Ye Futian too.


    Xia Fan, son of East Sea prefecture chief Xia Feng, had been killed by execution. Xia Feng was gone, as well as School of the Emperor Star vice-headmaster Han Mo and countless strong men of the Nandou clan.


    Yesterday, it was as if a terrifying storm had swept through Donghai City. This storm ended with Ye Futian and others disappearing.


    Outside Donghai Academy, two beautiful figures stood there, gazing at the academy. It was Lin Xiyue and Xiao He. Yesterday, Lin Xiyue''s father had been at the Nandou clan too and witnessed everything.


    "I can''t believe his talent is that high." Xiao He sighed. After hearing what had happened, the two girls were all shaken.


    "I plan on attending Donghai Academy''s Spring Quarter Examinations and enter to cultivate," Lin Xiyue said.


    "Why do you suddenly want to go to Donghai Academy?" Xiao He asked in confusion.


    "After the Spring Quarter Examinations, the Imperial City will hold the Tingfeng Banquet," Lin Xiyue said calmly. "The students of Donghai Academy will attend, and I want to go see too." There was another reason she didn''t say aloud��if she cultivated at the academy and he returned one day, she would see him.


    "Oh, the Tingfeng Banquet. Wouldn''t all the geniuses of the 36 academies of Nandou Kingdom go? I wonder how many there will be." Anticipation filled Xiao He''s eyes. "But if he didn''t leave, he would definitely shine the most brilliantly at the banquet."


    "Of course." Lin Xiyue nodded lightly. Based off of his talent displayed yesterday, it would be hard to find someone who could beat him in the Nandou Kingdom. He had twin spirits, a full elemental talent that included the spiritual element, extremely powerful martial arts cultivation, and was a strong music sorcerer. Lin Xiyue never thought that the sunshine boy she met on a ship would be so amazing.


    At the same time, there was another ship in the East Sea. A group stood at the bow. Their clothing fluttered in the sea breeze. This group with an extraordinary presence was Ye Futian and the others.


    A demon descended from the sky. The Black Wind Eagle landed before Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian walked forward and said to Yi Qingxuan who was at the front, "I sent the Black Wind Eagle to investigate the situation in Donghai City. I''m sure Senior Yi is okay. Don''t worry."


    "Okay." Yi Qingxuan nodded, though she was still worried.


    "Futian, where do you plan on going to?" Tang Lan came up and asked.


    Ye Futian gazed at the endless sea. "Does Nandou have any neighboring rivals?" he asked.


    "If you go north from the East Sea, you''ll arrive at the border of the East Sea Prefecture," Tang Lan said. "That is the border with Cangye Kingdom. The two kingdoms are rivals with war at year 300.


    "Then let''s go north." Ye Futian gazed in that direction and said, "We''ll go to the Imperial City of Cangye Kingdom." He had planned on attending the Tingfeng Banquet of Nandou but Emperor Luo''s decree had ruined everything. Since he could not stay in Nandou Kingdom, he would go to the Imperial City of Cangye Kingdom.


    "Okay." Tang Lan nodded. With the shocking talent Ye Futian had displayed yesterday, there were no worries of finding a place to establish himself. It would be easy to find support if he searched for it.


    Choosing Cangye Kingdom, he was obviously going in order to take revenge on Nandou Kingdom!

 107 Cangye College

    Chapter 107: Cangye College


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    One month later in the imperial city of the Cangye Kingdom, the City of Cangye.


    The City of Cangye had no city walls. It centered around the imperial palace and spread out wide and far in all directions. Thus, the city was expansive. Presently, on the outskirts of the city, many large beasts soared through the skies. There were also powerful cultivators riding on their swords, and some even had wings on their backs.


    The sky above Cangye City was an incredible sight. Countless cultivators had gathered in the city from all over the Cangye Kingdom.


    Among the beasts in the skies, was a winged demon tiger pulling a carriage. On this white tiger''s back stood several figures. The two people at the front were around 17 years of age. One was unbelievably handsome and one was exceedingly beautiful.


    These two youngsters were Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu who had traveled a long way. Behind them were Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan. Inside the carriage sat Hua Fengliu, Nandou Wenyin, Tang Lan and Tang Wan. Tang Lan''s eldest disciple, Nie Bing, had her own home. That day in Donghai City, she left the Guqin Gardens.


    After all that had happened in the City of Donghai, Ye Futian was no longer the happy-go-lucky young man he once was. And after that day the light of an emperor dawned upon him, his aura had experienced a slight change. Different from before, he had gotten even more handsome and more charismatic.


    "We''re finally here," muttered Ye Futian. Cangye Kingdom''s imperial city was massive in comparison to Donghai City. This ancient city had a rich history and majestic architecture. From the exterior of the buildings, you could not tell that it had been around for ages. They were ancient but dignified which made the mood throughout the entire city more solemn.


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded in agreement.


    "Once upon a time, when Master, Yu Sheng, and I first arrived at Donghai City standing atop the Black Wind Eagle, I had wanted to conquer the city. But in return, that city has life me with memories I shall never forget," Ye Futian smiled lightly and said in a self-ridiculing way as he observed the vast imperial city ahead.


    In the time it took the group to arrive in Cangye City, Hua Jieyu''s injuries had healed but their wounded hearts would never heal from the events in Donghai City; especially for Ye Futian. Emperor Luo''s imperial order, being hunted down by Minister Hua and the School of the Emperor Star, the Nandou Clan''s choice, and Grandmaster. All of it was deeply engraved into his memory, unable to forget even if he tried.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Hua Jieyu reached out her hand and held tightly onto Ye Futian''s. Her eyes remained up ahead and filled with determination. She was not going to forget about anything that happened in Donghai City either. They were able to make it here today because of Grandmaster''s sacrifice.


    Ye Futian could feel the warmth that radiated from Hua Jieyu''s hand and tightened his grip on it. He had originally planned to go to the Nandou Nation''s imperial city but now, they had arrived at Cangye Kingdom''s imperial city. Ye Futian was not going to allow history to replay itself here. The sharp sword that Hua Jieyu pierced through her own body, Grandmaster''s selfless sacrifice, brought him pain to this day.


    Tang Wan stepped out of the carriage and took a look at the majestic city below. The skies were still crowded. She asked, "Futian, where are you planning to go?"


    "Cangye College," Ye Futian said without a hint of hesitation. It was evident that he came with a plan in mind.


    Cangye College was similar to the academies in the Nandou Nation. Its status was equivalent to Nandou Academy located in the Nandou Nation''s imperial city. The college was backed by the royal family. Many genius cultivators attended this school. Even disciples of the royal family cultivated at the college. However, Ye Futian was not going there to attend school but for the grand event being held soon in the imperial city. The Fenghua Banquet.


    The Fenghua Banquet was an imperial banquet. The emperor of the Cangye Kingdom would come personally to examine the abilities of younger generation cultivators. If it had not been for Emperor Luo''s imperial order, Ye Futian should have been preparing to attend the Tingfeng Banquet in the Nandou Nation''s imperial city. But life was unpredictable. He was now in the Nandou Nation''s rival country, the Cangye Kingdom, preparing to attend the Fenghua Banquet.


    Cangye College was the place to sign up for the Fenghua Banquet. Many of the people in the skies right now had younger cultivators with them. They had most definitely came for the same reason as Ye Futian.


    Hearing that Ye Futian was headed for Cangye College, Tang Lan understood his intentions. She said, "Are you guys planning on participating? The Fenghua Banquet has an age limitation. Participants must be under the age of 20. This means that quite a few young genius cultivators in the Dharma Plane may show up."


    To travel all the way from Donghai City to the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial city, it was obvious that the group knew something.


    "I know," answered Ye Futian. He continued, "Those picked by the emperor at the banquet will be put on the Fenghua Rank. The top ten people on the list will all be rewarded and the top three can request one thing from the emperor. As long as the request is within reason, he usually grants it."


    "What request do you want to make?" asked Tang Lan.


    Ye Futian turned back to take a look at Hua Fengliu in the carriage and said, "I want him to restore Master''s powers."


    A spark reached Tang Lan''s eyes. If Ye Futian was able to make this request, with the Cangye emperor''s abilities, he would definitely be able to find a way to do it.


    "Even though the list is determined purely based on the emperor''s liking, and has nothing to do with how strong and powerful you are, you won''t be able to stand out in the crowd if you don''t have extraordinary abilities. It will be difficult to rank in the top three unless you''re prepared to expose all of your gifts," said Tang Lan.


    "I must make it into the top three," Ye Futian said with determination in his eyes. The emperor of the Nandou Nation wanted to kill him without reason, but now in the Cangye Kingdom, even if Ye Futian revealed his gifts, the Cangye emperor would only praise him. Besides, the Fenghua Banquet was a place to test the skills of junior cultivators. Elder Qin had already passed and Hua Fengliu was not yet healed. This was a chance he could not give up.


    "Okay," nodded Tang Lan. Ye Futian looked determined enough to succeed.


    "I will also participate with you," Hua Jieyu said softly.


    "Fox, you''re too pretty. Isn''t it flaunting too much?" Ye Futian examined Hua Jieyu''s beauty. At 17, her beauty was in full bloom.


    "Screw you." Hua Jieyu glared at him. The conversation was so serious before but Ye Futian turned it into a joke in the span of seconds.


    However, deep down, Hua Jieyu was glad. On the entire trip, Ye Futian looked so solemn, not like the happy jokester he used to be. It was obvious that he was deeply affected by the things in the City of Donghai. She wanted to see him go back to his true self. Even though he acted shameless at times, she liked him that way.


    "I want to participate too," standing in the back, Yu Sheng finally opened his mouth.


    "Of course," said Ye Futian.


    The White Tiger Demon continued forward. Ye Futian did not land to ask for directions. He simply followed the group in the skies. The direction in which the most people were traveling must be the direction where Cangye College was located. There was no question about it.


    Cangye College was located in the center of the city, near the imperial palace. It could be said to be a true school of nobility. Even princes and princesses cultivated at the college. To be able to attend this school, students had to have gifts out of the ordinary or else, even if you were a noble, you were not allowed to attend Cangye College. The school had the royal family backing it and had no reason to care about what others thought.


    In the skies outside of the Cangye College, beasts, cultivators riding their swords, and those flying with the help of their own wings were all gathered together. There were so many people. The Fenghua Banquet would begin in three days but people were still coming to sign up at Cangye College.


    Finally, Ye Futian and his group had also arrived. It was just as he had imagined. A variety of cultivators were present. He had never seen many of the beasts in the sky. They looked fearsome. There were even beasts of the Arcana Plane. Ye Futian wanted to wait until he had higher cultivation and use his ability as a beastmaster to control some powerful beasts.


    The beasts and cultivators finally landed when they had reached Cangye College. There was no one who dared to enter the school premises by air.


    Ye Futian and the others also landed. He noticed the thin chiffon Hua Jieyu used to cover her face, hiding her beauty.


    "Looks like you know just how distracting your looks are," laughed Ye Futian.


    Hua Jieyu ignored him.


    Ye Futian turned back to look at Yi Qingxuan and Tang Wan. "Qingxuan, Wan, do you guys want to attend the Fenghua Banquet as well?"


    "No," Yi Qingxuan shook her head.


    "Me neither." Tang Wan smiled.


    Both girls knew that they were still lacking and nothing would come of attending the banquet.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, "Then you guys should first find some place to stay nearby. I''ll have the Black Wind Eagle go with you guys."


    "Okay. Be careful, Futian," ordered Nandou Wenyin.


    "I''ll be fine, Masteress." Ye Futian smiled. After, he, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng walked towards Cangye College. As soon as they set foot on the campus, they saw many people headed in the same direction. In that direction, sat a line of elders making records. There were many people in line ahead of the trio waiting to sign up for the banquet. They stepped closer to the lines in front of the tables where the elders sat and a little while later, it was their turn. They walked up to the empty table.


    The elder sat at the table. He was still writing. Moments later, he lifted his head and said, "Name, age, level of cultivation, occupation class."


    "Ye Futian, 17, Seven-Starred Glory Plane, Musical Sorcerer," said Ye Futian. On the day of the battle, he stepped into a new plane.


    "Hua Jieyu, 17, Seven-Starred Glory Plane, Spiritual Sorcerer," said Hua Jieyu.


    "Yu Sheng, 17, Seven-Starred Glory Plane, martial arts cultivator."


    The three of them were all on the same plane now.


    The elder looked up at the three of them. He was amazed that their age and level of cultivation were all the same. He then handed them each a wooden bookmark. On the bookmark was the information they had just given.


    From the side, came a young lady. She smiled and said, "Come with me." The young lady was wearing a school uniform. Before the Fenghua Banquet, the students of Cangye College were in charge of taking care of everything.


    "Thank you," said Ye Futian. The trio followed the young lady. She looked to be about 18-years-old. She was very pretty.


    "My name is Cen Xia," the girl said. She took a couple of extra glances at Ye Futian. She had seen many handsome males at the college but it was rare to find someone who looked like Ye Futian.


    A woman''s sixth sense was very accurate. Beside Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu took Ye Futian''s hand. Cen Xia took a quick look and smiled at Hua Jieyu. This girl is interesting, thought Cen Xia.


    Even though Ye Futian was attractive, as a student of Cangye College she was not going to fangirl over him. Besides, as a Seven-Starred Glory Plane Musical Sorcerer, Ye Futian could not compare to Bai Qiu of the Qin Clan who had entered Cangye College a short while ago.

 108 Bai Qiu of the Qin Clan

    Chapter 108: Bai Qiu of the Qin Clan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In Cangye Kingdom, other than Cangye College, there were also a few powerful clans who trained accomplished disciples as well. They definitely would not miss out on the Fenghua Banquet.


    The Qin Clan was a force of Cangye Kingdom known for their studies of the guqin. There were not many disciples because only musical sorcerers could be accepted. This was also why the strongest musical sorcerers of the kingdom were grouped in the Qin Clan.


    Bai Qiu was the most talented of the Qin Clan''s younger generation. Apparently, he had already entered the Dharma Plane and had an unbeatable talent. Not long ago, Bai Qiu had led the disciples of the Qin Clan to the Cangye College. Cen Xia had seen Bai Qiu with her own eyes and saw the youth was extremely handsome.


    Therefore, someone who was only a Seven-star Glory Plane musical sorcerer and not from the Qin Clan would only be there to enhance the others at the Fenghua Banquet by contrast��even if he could pass the pretest. Even the other disciples of the Qin Clan seemed better than this youth beside him, let alone Bai Qiu.


    Of course, Cen Xia wouldn''t say all this. She just smiled and led the way, saying, "The pretest of the Fenghua Banquet will be administrated by the Cangye College. I am taking you all to the exam site now."


    Ye Futian nodded. Since they knew about the Fenghua Banquet, they had naturally done some research. The Fenghua Banquet was the Imperial Examination and it was not open to everyone. After applying, they had to pass the pretest held by the Cangye College to truly be qualified to attend the Fenghua Banquet.


    The Cangye College checked the credentials for the emperor.


    The Leaf Court of the Cangye College was now filled with all sorts of talent. They had all applied for the Fenghua Banquet. Many were gathered here for the pretest as it was one of the exam sites. In the center, there was a podium. There were two figures fighting on it now, both applicants of the banquet. Three elders of the Cangye College sat before the podium.


    "I''ll help you hand the bookmark in," Cen Xia said to Ye Futian with a smile. Ye Futian nodded and gave the bookmark to him. Then, Ye Futian saw Cen Xia take one out too and put them together.


    "Cen Xia, Nine-star Glory Plane, sorcerer. I will attend the Fenghua Banquet too," Cen Xia said. She introduced herself again while eyeing Hua Jieyu, and then walked towards the elders.


    Hua Jieyu''s gaze was calm. She knew Cen Xia told her for a reason but she didn''t care. She had held Ye Futian''s hand earlier not because she wasn''t confident in herself but because she knew how attractive Ye Futian was to girls.


    The two fighting on the podium were both of the Eight-star Glory Plane. One was a sorcerer while the other was a martial artist.


    However, Ye Futian discovered something strange. Right now, most of the audience''s attention was not on the fighters. Instead, they focused on the other side. There was a group of people dressed in white. They seemed untainted by the world.


    "That''s the Qin Clan. The strongest musical sorcerers of Cangye Kingdom are from that clan."


    "Is the middle one Bai Qiu? He truly is handsome."


    The people around them all discussed the clan. Ye Futian was intrigued that the Cangye Kingdom had a Qin Clan and apparently produced the best musical sorcerers. He looked over at the handsome and slender young man in the center of the group. He looked around 18 or 19. His aura was extraordinary and he stood out like a stork amongst chickens.


    At this time, someone walked to Bai Qiu. He wore the uniform of the college. The two smiled and chatted, seemingly ignoring the fight on the podium.


    After handing in the bookmark, Cen Xia returned to Ye Futian''s group. She saw Ye Futian looking in Bai Qiu''s direction and smiled. "That''s the Qin Clan. Bai Qiu is the most accomplished of their younger generation. He''s apparently in the Dharma Plane now. He''s a musical sorcerer like you and the one beside him is my senior from the college, Yu Jiang. He''s also in the Dharma Plane. The two of them are the most popular candidates for the Fenghua Rank."


    "Who else is included?" Ye Futian asked.


    Cen Xia glanced at Ye Futian. She thought that he was probably not from the Imperial City. Otherwise, he would definitely know about these things.


    "There are some others. If you can pass the pretest and attend the Fenghua Banquet, you''ll meet them," Cen Xia smiled and said without going into detail.


    Ye Futian was only at the Seven-star Glory Plane. Knowing all that was meaningless because he was nowhere near their level.


    "Oh." Ye Futian knew that Cen Xia wasn''t willing to say more. He nodded and stopped talking, watching the fight quietly.


    People went up continuously. After a long while, Yu Sheng was finally called up.


    Yu Sheng walked to the podium. Another figure stood before him. He was also a Seven-star Glory Plane but he was a sorcerer. The fight would display their true abilities clearly.


    "Attack me with your best efforts first," Yu Sheng said. He knew the other was a Seven-star Glory Plane sorcerer. If the opponent was defeated before performing, he would be disqualified no matter how great his talent was.


    "You can go first." The opponent smiled confidently.


    Hearing this, Yu Sheng didn''t hold back. He took a step and the podium shook. His composure changed in an instant, stunning the sorcerer. The sorcerer''s Spiritual Qi began to gather crazily and the apparition of a golden tiger appeared behind him. Then it roared and ripped toward Yu Sheng with shocking power.


    Yu Sheng punched forward. There were countless shadows that tore apart the golden tiger''s image. The powerful force ripped through everything and landed on the opponent, sending him flying.


    Seeing this, the Cangye College elders made a checkmark on Yu Sheng''s bookmark and put it to the side. At the same time, one said, "Yu Sheng, passed."


    Yu Sheng stepped down.


    The one who had been forced off the podium climbed up and glared at Yu Sheng. He left with resentment. Clearly, he had lost the ability to attend the Fenghua Banquet.


    "Your friend is quite strong," Cen Xiao said to Ye Futian with a smile.


    Ye Futian didn''t reply. Yu Sheng was way beyond quite strong. This was just the pretest so there was no need to show off everything.


    After that, Hua Jieyu was called up. Her opponent was a warrior of the same plane. Though her face was veiled, her eyes were beautiful, and she had a perfect figure and presence. Many people were attracted immediately, thinking that she was definitely a beauty.


    "After you," Hua Jieyu said to the youth.


    She didn''t say much but a burst of powerful spiritual energy bloomed. The opponent felt something and moved toward Hua Jieyu quickly. However, at the same time, an invisible power was blocking him. Then, wood element Spiritual Qi gathered into a spell and wrapped around him.


    Boom. Powerful strength burst forth. The opponent burst free from the entanglement like a wild demon.


    At this time, spears appeared before Hua Jieyu. They kept stabbing toward the opponent, who roared and stopped. His battle intent burst and attacked the spears coming at him. Simultaneously, he stepped forward and flew into the sky. He soared at Hua Jieyu like an eagle.


    Seriousness flashed past Hua Jieyu''s eyes. She stepped forward. It was only one step but the opponent seemed to stop in mid-air. Vines curled up toward him and slammed him to the ground.


    "Okay, both pass." The Cangye College elder nodded and put away their bookmarks, meaning both had passed the pretest. The defeated one was upset because he had been confident he could win in the pretest. He hadn''t expected to meet someone so extraordinary.


    "May I see your true appearance?" he stood up and asked politely.


    Hua Jieyu glanced at him and turned to leave the podium. She returned to Ye Futian''s side. Many looked at Hua Jieyu in shock. She was so arrogant.


    "Ye Futian, Mo Gu." It was Ye Futian''s turn now. He walked up to the podium. The one opposite him was clad in white. He was from the Qin Clan. Clearly, the Cangye College elder thought that if Ye Futian couldn''t even beat a random Qin Clan disciple, he had no need to attend the Fenghua Banquet.


    The two sat down with crossed legs and released their Guqin Spirits. This attracted many gazes. In the near distance, the Qin Clan members looked over with interest.


    Music sounded at the same time. Gu Mo''s music was wild like a tide of ten thousand beasts. The sound of galloping in the air was terrifying. It was like a wave of demons was charging at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s music was calm, graceful, and lovely. It seemed to be reminiscing someone from the past. As his music flowed out, the formless demons charging at him were gradually tamed. Then Ye Futian''s music changed abruptly. It turned sharp like an unsheathed sword. It cut everything and the beasts wailed. Gu Mo''s music was in disarray, no longer strong and wild. His spiritual energy was in a mess and his music was disordered too. With a huff, the Qin Spirit disappeared.


    "Ye Futian, pass," the elder announced.


    "Gu Mo was defeated just like that." The Qin Clan members were surprised. Their fellow disciple was disqualified from the banquet.


    "Such pure music and extraordinary mindset. This boy is talented," Bai Qiu praised. Then he asked from across the arena, "Where do you cultivate? Do you have a clan?"


    Ye Futian looked up at Bai Qiu. He smiled and said, "I cultivate with my master and have not entered a clan."


    "The Qin Clan is the most prestigious for musical sorcery in Cangye Kingdom. Are you willing to join us?" Bai Qiu smiled at Ye Futian. "If you are willing, I can recommend you. I am lacking a guqin student."


    Everyone present was shocked. It seemed that Bai Qiu thought highly of this musical sorcerer and had invited him directly into the Qin Clan. He was even willing to let the youth study with him.


    A guqin student was someone who would follow him and could learn from him at any time. If Ye Futian could follow Bai Qiu, this would be a great advantage for him as a musical sorcerer!

 109 Lin Yueyao

    Chapter 109: Lin Yueyao


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Bai Qiu''s words immediately made Ye Futian the center of attention. Even though, the two young men were the same, they both came in hopes of attending the Fenghua Banquet. However, despite this, many people only signed up to attend the banquet for the experience. How many people could actually display outstanding skills?


    The Cangye Kingdom had no shortage of genius cultivators and now, they were all gathered here in the imperial city, the City of Cangye. But in the end, only ten people would be chosen by the emperor to be on the Fenghua Rank.


    Bai Qiu of the Qin Clan, Zuo Qianfan and Yu Jiang of the Cangye College, the incredibly skilled Young Lord Ye Wuchen from the Ye Palace, the Hua family''s daughter, and Yun Di of the Demon Clan. These people were the ones who would stand out the most at the Fenghua Banquet.


    Of course, Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty could not be forgotten. She was known as the one of peerless beauty.


    Because of this when Bai Qiu asked Ye Futian to be his musical attendant, no one thought of it as demeaning. As the Cangye Kingdom''s most outstanding young man, Bai Qiu was destined for a bright future. Even his musical attendant would have a chance to be a big shot in the future. This was an opportunity not everyone had. To offer Ye Futian such a position, it was evident that Bai Qiu was impressed by his gifts.


    Even Cen Xia looked at Ye Futian in surprise. Ye Futian and his friends were all Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivators. They came to sign up for the Fenghua Banquet and each showed their impeccable gifts. If Ye Futian was able to follow Bai Qiu into the Qin Clan, it would only do him good.


    However, standing beside Cen Xia, Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu did not think this way. They stared at Bai Qiu, shocked. To them, who knew Ye Futian, Bai Qiu''s words were nothing but a joke. He wanted Ye Futian to be his musical attendant?


    "Where did he get that confidence from?" Yu Sheng could not help himself.


    Cen Xia glanced at Yu Sheng but did not say anything.


    On the battle platform, Ye Futian was taken aback. Cen Xia had said that Bai Qiu was a prodigy from the Qin Clan, a Dharma Plane Musical Sorcerer. It was no wonder that he was so confident.


    Since the Qin Clan is so well-known in the Cangye Kingdom, then their musical sorcery should not be any less inferior to that of Elder Qin, but this did not mean that he would be willing to join the clan. He had only signed up for the Fenghua Banquet as a musical sorcerer because of Elder Qin. He was not going to let the elder down. However, to become Bai Qiu''s music attendant�� The meaning of these two words should be similar to that of a study attendant: a servant who takes care of others.


    "I don''t have such a habit," Ye Futian smiled at Bai Qiu and calmly answered.


    "Your music is pure and you possess an extraordinary mindset but your music is still not perfect. It is obvious that you don''t have a good teacher. Why not try it out?" said Bai Qiu. His gaze was calm. In Bai Qiu''s opinion, if Ye Futian could cultivate under his guidance for a couple of years, he was bound to improve. This was his reason for extending such an offer.


    "No need," chuckled Ye Futian. As a prodigy from the Qin Clan, Bai Qiu was indeed exceptional. What Ye Futian played on the guqin was not any specific musical piece but something he came up with on the spot. So, of course, it was not perfect.


    Bai Qiu did not say much else. To him, this was only a small episode before the Fenghua Banquet.


    Many of the females present looked toward Bai Qiu and thought he was indeed a gentleman, just as the rumors had it.


    Ye Futian returned to stand beside his friends. Just then, Cen Xia''s name was called. The trio was not in a rush to leave, so they decided to stay behind and watch Cen Xia''s performance. It was an interesting duel.


    When Cen Xia stepped off the battle platform, Ye Futian gave her a compliment, "You''re very powerful."


    "You guys are not so bad yourselves," smiled Cen Xia.


    "All we have to do now is to show up outside of the imperial palace in three days to attend the Fenghua Banquet, correct?" asked Ye Futian.


    "That''s right. In three days, everyone will gather for the banquet and the emperor will grace us with his presence," nodded Cen Xia.


    "See you in three days," Ye Futian said his goodbye and left.


    Watching them leave, Cen Xia smiled. Three days later, young cultivators from all over the kingdom would gather outside of the imperial palace. Even though Cen Xia had incredible gifts, she only wanted to participate in the banquet. She had no hopes of stealing the spotlight. Those three were mere Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivators, so even if they had great gifts, they would only be heads in a crowd.


    Ye Futian followed the main road out of the Cangye College campus. Along the way, many more young cultivators arrived. He knew well and clear those who had the courage to sign up for the Fenghua Banquet would not be too weak.


    Stepping out of Cangye College, there were many elders waiting outside. They had come from all over the kingdom with their juniors. Even if the younger cultivators were unable to become the star of the banquet, it would be a once in a lifetime experience.


    From the skies, a Black Wind Eagle headed down for landing and stopped in front of Ye Futian and his friends. The three of them stepped on to the eagle and the creature lifted them away. Just as they took off, many others did so as well. They were all headed in one direction. There, a group of figures was approaching. They all seemed to be surrounding a single person. That person seemed to steal everyone''s attention. Very quickly, the trio also had their attention stolen, looking over to the crowd in the skies.


    Far away, a magnificent Purple Gold Roc soared through the sky. It was an Arcana Plane beast. Its entire body was enveloped in a purple golden light, its wings spread out wide, creating great winds every time it flapped its wings.


    "Purple Gold Roc��" Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. It was an extremely rare beast. The roc possessed powers of three elements: thunder and lightning, metal, and wind. The beast had great growth potential and fearsome speed as well as extremely powerful attack abilities. Rumors said that the Purple Gold Roc was a distant relative to the Golden Roc and had the blood of the Golden Roc running through its veins.


    On the Purple Gold Roc stood a beautiful young woman. She had an alluring body and beautiful skin. A sweet scent radiated from her person, and her eyes were captivating. In addition to the red dot in between her eyebrows, drawn on with cinnabar, she was a beauty only seen in drawings.


    "So beautiful. Who is she?" asked someone in the skies.


    "Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty, Lin Yueyao," answered another, gaze never leaving the young woman.


    Lin Yueyao, also known as the Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty, was at the most beautiful age of 18.


    "Such a beautiful girl," Ye Futian complimented the nearing figure.


    "Yeah, you like?" asked a voice beside him. Ye Futian turned his attention over to Hua Jieyu who was smiling at him.


    "But she''s still nowhere as beautiful as my Fox." Ye Futian smiled. Hua Jieyu glared at him shyly, feeling satisfied with his answer. Although, she had to admit the young woman was indeed very beautiful.


    The Purple Gold Roc called as it approached. The figure on its back looked towards Ye Futian and as if she could hear what he had said, she smiled. It was as if her eyes could speak. One look was enough to get one''s heart beating. Fortunately, Ye Futian was used to this type of teasing from Hua Jieyu. Lin Yueyao''s look had no effect on him.


    With countless eyes glued on her, Lin Yueyao landed and walked into Cangye College. Many people followed after her.


    "I want that girl as my wife," said a young man. Everyone around him looked at him as if he were an idiot. He wanted to chase Lin Yueyao? What a dreamer. Maybe if he got on the Fenghua Rank, Lin Yueyao would spare him a glance.


    "Haven''t gotten enough?" Hua Jieyu laughed at Ye Futian whose gaze had followed Lin Yueyao.


    "Fox, why don''t you remove the veil. I wonder what kinds of expressions they will make when they find out that my girlfriend is way more beautiful in comparison to their number one beauty." Ye Futian smiled. Hua Jieyu gave him a light pinch but, on the inside, she was melting at his words. He was such a sweet-talker.


    Standing behind the couple, Yu Sheng averted his gaze. Ye Futian was still the same, shameless.


    The Black Wind Eagle flapped its wings and flew away.


    Not long after, they arrived at a lodging nearby.


    In a court within the lodging, Hua Fengliu was basking in the sun. Nandou Wenyin was with him. The two of them together was a beautiful sight.


    "You guys came back so quickly. Did it go well?" asked Hua Fengliu.


    "Yes. Now we just have to wait three days for the start of the Fenghua Banquet," nodded Ye Futian. Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin were not surprised. With Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng''s gifts, any one of them would be able to make it past the preliminary round without any problems.


    "Master, Masteress, doesn''t it feel like we''re a family out on vacation? Parents, daughter, and son-in-law," smiled Ye Futian.


    Hua Fengliu laughed. It actually did feel that way.


    "Then what am I?" just then, Tang Lan appeared and asked coldly.


    Ye Futian stood frozen. "Uhm��"


    "A concubine?" Tang Lan asked Ye Futian.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian did not know what to say. Beside him, Yu Sheng threw him a look of pity, and walked over to Yi Qingxuan. There was no right answer to her question.


    "Tang Lan, if you''re willing, I don''t mind," said Nandou Wenyin. Ye Futian blinked. Nandou Wenyin was actually willing to agree to it?


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Fengliu and thought, Master''s charisma is so much stronger than mine.


    "Do you really think that''s what I''m after?" Tang Lan asked in a cold demeanor.


    Hua Fengliu coughed and glared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian chuckled and looked at Hua Jieyu. She smiled and asked him, "If I also don''t mind you taking a concubine, would you want to?"


    "No, I only like you," answered Ye Futian. He wasn''t stupid. If he had said yes, that would be the end of him.


    "Hmph." Hua Jieyu smiled lightly. "That''s more like it."


    Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin watched the young couple as they bickered, and a soft smile spread across their faces. After all that had happened in the City of Donghai, they knew how difficult it was for Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu to be together. As parents, they only wished that the young couple could continue to stay by each other''s side.


    "Alright, go cultivate now. The Fenghua Banquet is only three days away. It will be gathering of the best of the best in all of the Cangye Kingdom. It won''t be like how it was at Donghai Academy," said Hua Fengliu. Donghai Academy was only a prefecture academy in the Nandou Nation.


    "Okay," Ye Futian nodded his head lightly. Naturally, he also understood that even though both his natural gifts and combat skills were very strong, amongst the people attending the Fenghua Banquet, there would be many Dharma Plane cultivators. He had to go above and beyond to get the emperor''s attention. It was his only way of getting on the Fenghua Rank!

 110 Fenghua Banque

    Chapter 110: Fenghua Banquet


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Three days later, early morning.


    Ye Futian was practicing a fist form in the courtyard of the inn. His moves were slow, each punch seeming to contain an intriguing charm. His blood was bubbling through his body. One could faintly hear the rumbles, and amongst the rumbling blood, strands of the emperor''s mark lit up. It transformed into an air current of the emperor, making his every move contain the emperor''s intent.


    Currently, he was cultivating a set of methods. It was the one given to him by the emperor''s will when he was forced into desperation that day. Ye Futian didn''t know who created this set of methods or what it was called. Therefore, he named it himself��Imperial Tactics.


    It was a clich�� name but very suitable. When he used this method, his blood would change and spread to every part of his body. It even affected his aura, making him imperial.


    In addition, every time he practiced this set, he would achieve something. Cultivating with Emperor Ye Qing''s enhancement method, he could continuously strengthen his body. Even if he didn''t use any spells, he would still be an extremely talented warrior.


    After training for a bit longer, Ye Futian stopped and looked at the sky.


    "When do you plan on setting out?" Tang Lan walked over and asked him.


    "I''m going now. Aunt Tang, are you all going?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''m not interested but your master wants to go. If I''m free, I''ll go too," Tang Lan said indifferently. Ye Futian smiled without saying anything. This was how Tang Lan was.


    "Then I''ll call Master and Masteress to get going," Ye Futian said. After a short while, they grouped in the courtyard. Then they got onto the demon, soared into the sky, and left the inn. At the same time of their departure, demons and figures all over Cangye City shot into the sky. They were all going toward the same place��the palace. It seemed that all of the strong ones in the Imperial City were in the sky at once. It was a shocking sight.


    As Ye Futian''s group continued advancing, they could vaguely see the various glamorous buildings. It was the palace of Cangye Kingdom. They continued, getting closer and closer to the palace. Many others were around them and they all looked excited.


    "Is this the Fenghua Banquet? All the young talents of the kingdom are gathered here."


    "I will definitely display my skills at the banquet and have the emperor notice me."


    "I wonder how powerful the talents of the Imperial City are like. I really anticipate it."


    Voices streamed from all directions. Countless people came, some from the Imperial City, others from the various cities of the Cangye Kingdom. They were all the cream of the crop. Otherwise, they wouldn''t travel thousands of miles to attend the Fenghua Banquet.


    Ye Futian followed the huge crowd forward. The Fenghua Platform outside the palace was already in view. This was where the Fenghua Banquet would be held.


    At this time, a line of figures clad in white floated across the air. They were so handsome.


    "It''s the Qin Clan. Bai Qiu is there." Many looked over at the Qin Clan. They had to see Bai Qiu, who was the most popular contender for the Fenghua Rank in the Imperial City.


    "The powerful ones of the Demon Clan are also here." Many others looked to the back. There, they saw countless demons striding forward. In the center of the crowd was a youth. He was not yet seventeen-years-old but his face was filled with arrogance and aggressiveness. This was Yun Di, the most talented of the Demon Clan''s younger generation.


    "Lin Yueyao." At this time, a Purple Gold Roc flew past with a beautiful figure atop it, attracting many gazes instantly. She was extremely talented and was also known as the number one beauty of the Cangye Kingdom. Probably no one was as attractive as her. Even Bai Qiu of the Qin Clan and many members of the Demon Clan couldn''t help but look over at Lin Yueyao.


    Hua Fengliu and the others observed quietly. At the moment, Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng were not eye-catching. No one noticed them but Hua Fengliu knew that at the end of the banquet, they would shine the brightest. They would overwhelm the pride of the Cangye City.


    Finally, they arrived at the Fenghua Platform. Many guards stood around the majestic platform, keeping the order.


    This battle platform had a long history. It was where the emperor commanded the generals. It was also where the emperor tested the princes and officials.


    The emperor''s royal seat was at an extremely high place directly before the Fenghua Platform. It was very majestic. Nobody who came, whether it be those who rode demons or flew on their swords, dared to be higher than that position. It was where the emperor sat. Who dared to be higher than the emperor?


    Only the nobles and the most powerful talents of Cangye City were qualified to sit on either side of the royal seat. They had to be personally given the ability by the emperor to observe the Fenghua Banquet with him.


    There were many outstanding men close to the royal seat. One of them was a youth. He gazed at the swarming crowd around the Fenghua Platform. His cool gaze had a slight tinge of arrogance. Many attendees saw him too.


    "Is that the young lord Ye Wuchen?" many people murmured.


    Ye Wuchen was one of the most popular contenders for this year''s Fenghua Banquet. He had already entered the second level of the Dharma Plane. It was difficult to find an opponent for him under the age of 20.


    "Wuchen, you are a lord but you still must display your strongest abilities today. His Majesty will not help you cheat," His father Lord Ye said beside him.


    "I must win," Ye Wuchen said.


    "Very resolute." Lord Ye smiled and nodded.


    As more and more people arrived, the sky and ground were all filled with people. The Fenghua Banquet was the most important banquet of the Cangye Kingdom. The entire kingdom paid attention to it. The skies outside the palace were not off limits on this day so more people would witness the banquet.


    The sun rose and sunlight shone down, falling onto the royal seat. A line of carriages rode out from the palace. The emperor and empress sat in the center. Everyone stared as soon as they appeared.


    All the nobles besides the royal seat stood up. The figures sitting on their demons in the sky stood up too. They all looked in the direction of the carriage.


    The emperor, empress, princes, and princesses descended from the carriage and walked forward. The emperor sat in the royal seat; the empress, princes, and princesses sat behind him.


    "Greetings, Your Majesty and Your Highness," the nobles all rose and greeted with a bow. After that, everyone else bowed down as well. The sound seemed to shake the world and was extremely spectacular.


    The emperor of Cangye Kingdom seemed to be around thirty years old. He was not handsome but he had the aura of an emperor. Even when he smiled, he still looked distinguished. The empress was extremely beautiful. She was dressed glamorously but looked composed. She seemed to be around 25-years-old but was much older than that. Her looks were comparable to Nandou Wenyin.


    The emperor smiled and waved at everyone. "Today is the Fenghua Banquet. The stars are the young talents of our Cangye Kingdom. There is no need for the formalities. Let us be relaxed."


    "Thank you, Your Majesty." The people bowed once more. When the emperor took his seat, the others sat down as well.


    "The Fenghua Banquet is where all the pride of the younger generation is gathered. Here, I hope everyone will forget their concerns. No matter who you are, please display your skills to the fullest. I hope to see the most brilliant of the younger generation. If anyone runs into trouble in the Imperial City due to their performance here, I will execute the culprit, even if he is a noble or a clan."


    The emperor spoke coolly but his words were powerful. There would definitely be many who would display extraordinary talents at the Fenghua Banquet. There would also definitely be those who earn hatred due to defeating a genius of a clan. Similarly, others would be invited to join a group because of their amazing ability but reject the invitation, resulting in some consequences. The emperor could not tolerate these. This was the banquet he held personally. Anyone who dared to make trouble would be offending the emperor and must be punished accordingly.


    All the people from outside the Imperial City were reassured by these words. They could display their talents to their fullest at the Fenghua Banquet without any concern. The emperor was supporting them.


    "In addition, I will name ten people for the Fenghua Rank. All will be rewarded. The top three can request something from me. Unless it is too harsh, I will fulfill your wishes," the emperor continued. Then he laughed and said, "If you like any of the princes or princesses and wish to marry them, I might agree."


    With that, all the nobles laughed. Many looked to the princes and princesses beside the emperor. They were all extraordinary figures, especially the two beautiful princesses. Many felt ready to try. Maybe they really could become the princess''s husband. But remembering that only the top three of the Fenghua Rank were qualified, they could only smile bitterly. Indeed, those who could enter the top three were the best of the best. The emperor would not lose anything if they could marry the princesses.


    "Should I try marrying a princess?" Ye Futian looked at a princess. She was so beautiful.


    "Even if I don''t make top three, I can still marry a prince, right?" Hua Jieyu grinned at Ye Futian.


    "I''m joking." Ye Futian surrendered immediately. Even without looking at her talent, Hua Jieyu was more beautiful than the number one beauty of Cangye Kingdom. There was no competition.


    "Alright, those attending the Fenghua Banquet, please step forward. Everyone else, please step back. Prepare to start," the emperor said. Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng quickly got onto the Black Wind Eagle and went forward. Every other attendee also approached the Fenghua Platform. The others retreated, making a clear division.


    The Fenghua Banquet was about to start!

 111 Talents Displayed

    Chapter 111: Talents Displayed


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On the Fenghua Platform, a group of elders clad in Cangye College uniforms stepped up. They gathered at the front of the platform and split into different sections. After, they placed the stacks of bookmarks in their hands on the platform and organized them.


    The names on the bookmarks were those of this year''s Fenghua Banquet participants. Over 10,000 bookmarks meant that there were over 10,000 attendees. One could only imagine how difficult it would be to get picked by the emperor and make it on the Fenghua Rank.


    These elders were all cultivators in the Arcana Plane and had extremely high cultivation. Most of them had photographic memory.


    "Wang Teng, Zhuo Fei, Li Yun��" At this time, the elders began to call out names. People who had their names flew down to land on the stage. There were those who could fly, those who were dropped off by beasts, or even those who jumped off their beasts'' backs. All of this commotion caused the platform to shake.


    100 bookmarks were withdrawn from the piles which meant that 100 people had their names called. Very quickly, all these people gathered on the platform. The Fenghua Platform was massive and could easily accommodate a hundred people. Everyone was able to stand comfortably in a different area.


    All of these people were in the Six-Starred Glory Plane, which was the minimum allowed to attend the Fenghua Banquet. If one was in any plane lower than such, it was unnecessary to participate in the banquet.


    "Amongst these 100 people, only three of you will make it to the next round. Of course, it is also completely possible that not a single person makes it. So, you may begin to demonstrate your talents now. Remember, you may choose to forfeit. Once someone forfeits, everyone else is forbidden from making further attacks on that participant. Also, no life-threatening injuries are allowed," said an elder from Cangye College.


    Choosing one out of a hundred. There were too many people participating in the Fenghua Banquet and thus, it was necessary to quickly filter out the most outstanding people from the beginning. Starting from those of the same plane was the fairest. It was a way for the best talents to stand out from the rest. At least then, they wouldn''t be eliminated right off the bat.


    In a split second, Spiritual Qi exploded on the platform. It became extremely hectic. Sorcerers immediately put distance between themselves and the rest, while martial arts cultivators were looking for the perfect opportunity. Quickly, someone began to attack those around them. With this one attack, the battle began.


    In the air and on the ground, countless pairs of eyes focused on the Fenghua Platform. Ye Futian was also watching seriously. Only qualified people could participate in the Fenghua Banquet; there were no weaklings. Many participants had already revealed their gifts in both martial arts and sorcery. There were also those who were multi-element sorcerers and of course, there were many Mandate Sorcerers.


    The battle was fierce. In this messy battle, there were those who were powerful but got surrounded and attacked by multiple people. This type of chaotic battle was truly testing. Just because one was powerful did not mean that they would make it to the end. Unless they had an absolute advantage over the rest. However, it was only a battle of Six-Starred Glory Plane cultivators. Many spectators were interested. Those who got the most applause was usually above the Eight-Starred Glory Plane. Anyone below that almost never got picked by the emperor.


    After the first group of talents concluded their battle, an elder from the Cangye College announced that no one had passed. All of them were eliminated. Even the person who had won the battle.


    The lower the level, the stronger your gifts have to be. It''s the only way to move forward, everyone thought to themselves.


    Following that, another hundred people were called and another round of chaotic battle ensued. There were not many Six-Starred Glory Plane participants, not even a thousand. After they were all done, the elders began to call on the Seven-Starred Glory Plane participants. More people were interested in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane battles. It was bound to be fiercer.


    Finally, Yu Sheng''s name was called out. Ye Futian sent him down to the platform. But at the Fenghua Banquet, Yu Sheng''s name did not pique anyone''s interest. No one knew who he was or how strong he was. All they knew was that he had an imposing stature.


    Among the people called on along with Yu Sheng, everyone was only interested in one��Yun Di of the Demon Clan. He was a young man gifted by the heavens. Not even 17 yet, he had already made it into the Seven-Starred Glory Plane. He was also a beast tamer. Yun Di was naturally close with the beasts and had the ability to tame them. On top of that, he was also a Mandate Sorcerer.


    Yun Di''s skin was dark, and he had a small stature but exuded a wild aura. As soon as he stepped on to the battle platform, he was the star of the show.


    This young man who was only in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane was said to be qualified to get picked by the emperor. From this, it was easy to see just how outstanding he was.


    "These people have the worst luck to be grouped with Yun Di."


    "They would have been alright had they been grouped with anyone else in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane but it just had to be Yun Di," many people began to discuss.


    Ye Futian listened in on the discussions going on around him and was able to figure out what kind of person Yun Di was. He looked at Yu Sheng and let out a smile. Yu Sheng was able to run into a strong candidate for the Fenghua Banquet in his first battle. Yun Di was going to make sure Yu Sheng stood out. They were getting lucky.


    Besides Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, Cen Xia from Cangye College was probably the only other person who knew Yu Sheng. She quietly shook her head. To be in the same battle as Yun Di, it looked like Yu Sheng was going to get eliminated in this first round.


    On the Fenghua Platform, everyone focused their attention on Yun Di. They watched as he placed a leaf between his lips and music sounded. The sounds were piercing to the ears. In the skies, many of the beasts became irritable. They were the beasts people were riding on.


    WHOOSH! A Glory Plane beast abandoned its master and rushed toward Yun Di. Its master was another participant of the Fenghua Banquet. He fell helplessly from the skies. He did not cultivate in the element of wind and that was why he had to ride a beast, but now, his beast was being controlled by someone else. This person was not alone. Quickly, more people ended up in a similar situation. All the flying beasts below the Dharma Plane had abandoned their masters and headed toward Yun Di.


    "Make your move!" Many young cultivators charged at Yun Di. They were ready to gang up on him. Even though there was still a chance that they might not pass this round, at least their chances would increase if they defeated Yun Di.


    But in this moment, a fearsome monster tide erupted on the Fenghua Platform. A hoard of beasts attacked. Even, many of participants with higher cultivation could not withstand the attack of the united beasts and were all thrown on to the ground.


    "This��" Spectators were speechless upon witnessing this scene. The emperor''s gaze fell on Yun Di, and he let out a look of admiration.


    Not long after, almost everyone on the platform had fallen. Those who had not fallen chose to forfeit. How were they supposed to battle when Yun Di summoned that many demon beasts?


    "No surprise here," laughed bystanders. They pitied those grouped with Yun Di.


    Yun Di stopped blowing on the leaf but the beasts continued to revolve around him. A strange sight indeed.


    Just then, Yun Di noticed there was still one person standing. It looked as if he had not moved an inch from the beginning.


    "Aren''t you going to forfeit?" Yun Di looked at the young man with the large stature and questioned.


    "Thank you for clearing those people out for me," said Yu Sheng. His words shocked everyone in the audience. Did he just thank Yun Di for clearing the way for him?


    "Uh��" Ye Futian blinked. Yu Sheng had changed a lot since coming with Ye Futian. The things he said were��well said.


    Yun Di was dumbfounded at first, but a smile spread quickly on his face. He placed the leaf back between his lips and began to blow. Along with the melody, the beasts around Yun Di were once again placed in a wild trance and immediately charged towards Yu Sheng.


    A fierce golden light enveloped Yu Sheng''s body like the armor of a war god. As a wild falcon rushed toward him, Yu Sheng reached out his large hand and meet with the falcon''s talons. In a split second, his hand clasp down and grabbed on to the falcon''s sharp talons. Next, Yu Sheng swung the falcon around with one arm. He flung the beast forward and with a loud crash, he had downed several beasts with the sheer force of his throw.


    "This��" The people were dumbfounded. After that, the beasts became more crazed. However, Yu Sheng took one step forward and the whole Fenghua Platform began to shake.


    In this moment, people mistook this young man of imposing stature for a beast in human form. They watched as Yu Sheng threw a punch toward a beast and it was thrown through the air.


    BOOM! BOOM! Yu Sheng took a couple more steps on the platform and reached out both hands. With his bare hands, he caught a Red Winged Tiger. The beast had tried to charge at Yu Sheng''s neck but he managed to hold its mouth open with both hands and then ripped the beast open from the mouth.


    "Is he really human?" Everyone''s heart was pounding. They realized that the beasts were no longer listening to Yun Di''s orders. They no longer dared to attack. Yun Di was a beast tamer and not a beastmaster. He did not have total control over the beasts. Under extreme fear, the beasts would no longer listen to him.


    Yun Di''s expression darkened. He removed the leaf from his mouth and released his Life Spirit. It was a ferocious Demon Lion. Just the king of the beasts, Yun Di''s body moved quickly. Just like most demon beasts, he was swift and violent. His movements agile as a monkey. As Yun Di got closer to Yu Sheng, he flew into the air, nimble as a leopard. Like a flash of lightning, he appeared in the air above Yu Sheng and the apparition of a lion appeared on his body. His hand morphed into a large paw with sharp claws, ready to claw at Yu Sheng''s head at full force.


    Yu Sheng''s reflexes were extremely quick and his body moved swiftly like a ghost. His hand reached out towards the sky and met with Yun Di''s sharp claws. A strong force threw Yun Di back. Just as Yun Di tried to take this opportunity to leave, Yu Sheng took one step into the air and flew towards to grab Yun Di by the arm.


    In the next moment, everyone watched as Yu Sheng picked Yun Di up and then smashed him into the ground. The Fenghua Platform shook once again.


    Around the platform, everyone was in complete silence. When Yu Sheng stood up straight and looked toward the emperor, everyone was shaking in their boots. It seemed that at today''s Fenghua Banquet, the prodigies that everyone put their money on weren''t undefeatable after all. Yun Di had already been defeated in battle with someone in the same plane!

 112 Fight While Holding Hands

    Chapter 112: Fight While Holding Hands


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yu Sheng became the center of attention with one battle. Of the most popular contenders for the Fenghua Rank, Yun Di was the only one in the Seven-star Glory Plane because he had very high demon-training talents. He could control all demons under the Dharma Plane, and even demons of the Dharma Plane would be affected. He was also a Mandate Sorcerer with high combat abilities. With his first battle, he summoned countless beasts and was brilliant. However, this was all done to make someone else look better in comparison. Everyone thought of the thanks Yu Sheng had said. He was such a jerk!


    Cen Xia''s heart trembled. It seemed that Yu Sheng had only shown the tip of the iceberg at the pretest in the Cangye College. Was this his true power? This was crazy.


    The people of the Demon Clan in the air looked aghast. They had put so much hope in Yun Di but he was defeated in the first round. The opponent was even on the same plane. With this, they knew that Yun Di''s name would not appear in the Fenghua Rank. Someone of the same plane was more outstanding than him.


    At this moment, the emperor sat in the royal seat. He noticed Yu Sheng look over as if observing him. There was no reverence at all. Yu Sheng seemed to just want to see what the emperor was like.


    "As expected, different from everyone else," the emperor said with a chuckle. He naturally would not be angry at Yu Sheng for a look. He was the emperor and had the tolerance of an emperor.


    The point of the Fenghua Banquet was to find the most impressive of the younger generation in Cangye Kingdom. This was why he ordered that anyone who hurt the attendees of the Fenghua Banquet would be executed. He would not do so either, of course. Otherwise, how would he be able to continue the banquet?


    The nearby nobles heard the emperor''s words and realized that he thought highly of Yu Sheng. From the youth''s aggressive performance, they could see that he was practically born for battle. Only Ye Futian was not surprised. How could anyone of the same plane defeat Yu Sheng?


    "Yu Sheng, Yun Di, pass," the elder from Cangye College announced. He kept the bookmarks with their names and put away all the rest. This was expected. Yun Di had lost but he wouldn''t end here.


    Yu Sheng started back. He looked up into the sky and then pushed off from the Fenghua Platform. He shot up into the sky like a sword.


    "Wind." Ye Futian reached out. Wind blew past and wrapped around Yu Sheng. Using this gust of wind, Yu Sheng landed onto the Black Wind Eagle. Many people looked in the direction of the Eagle. This way, they also saw Ye Futian and the veiled Hua Jieyu. The three all looked familiar. No one knew who they were or where they came from.


    The dean continued to name people and the battles went on. Outstanding figures continued to appear but there were no collisions like Yu Sheng and Yun Di.


    As the battles continued, Ye Futian finally heard his name. However, the name after his was Hua Jieyu. He was stunned. They had been put into the same round.


    The two met eyes and smiled. Then the wind wrapped around them and took them downward. They descended upon the Fenghua Platform like a pair of ethereal lovers, instantly attracting the gazes of many. They were with Yu Sheng and Yu Sheng''s battle had been too amazing.


    In the air, Bai Qiu from the Qin Clan looked at Ye Futian. They had met three days ago. He had invited Ye Futian to be his musical attendant but was rejected. Now, he realized that Ye Futian had a reason for the confidence. If Yu Sheng was this powerful, Ye Futian couldn''t be much worse.


    Lin Yueyao, known as the number one beauty of Cangye, also looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. She was also curious because she had heard what Ye Futian had said to Hua Jieyu that day. Though the girl was veiled, her figure and aura were both amazing. Her facial features must be beautiful as well. However, Lin Yueyao didn''t believe Hua Jieyu could be prettier than her.


    The Demon Clan though did not look friendly. It was clearly because of Yu Sheng. Coincidentally, there were two disciples of the Demon Clan in this round. The emperor had ordered that conflicts from the Fenghua Banquet could not be avenged for in private. However, there was no problem in doing so during the banquet.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu walked to a place and Ye Futian sat down. His Guqin Spirit appeared and fell behind him. Hua Jieyu stood quietly beside him as if she didn''t care for the battle.


    Music rose. The graceful melody traveled from the Guqin Spirit behind Ye Futian. It made one feel comfortable as if it wasn''t a musical spell for battle.


    The two Demon Clan disciples walked towards them. One held a flute, which he brought to his lips and played. There was instantly an eerie sound. Glory Plane demons rustled in the air again, making all the masters of the demons upset. Did they bring their beasts here just so the Demon Clan could use them?


    However, though the demons seemed to riot, they didn''t leave. Spiritual Qi gathered before the flutist and transformed into a vague demon. It charged toward Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. His tactics were similar to a conjurer''s but were not as powerful as the demon a conjurer could draw.


    Hua Jieyu reached out. An invisible spiritual storm appeared instantly, stopping the demon created by Spiritual Qi. Then she clenched a fist and the demon scattered into the Spiritual Qi again.


    "You fight and I''ll support," Ye Futian murmured. One needed to show their talents to pass the Fenghua Banquet, so avoiding the fight was unrealistic. Ye Futian couldn''t perform by himself either. That way, Hua Jieyu would be unnecessary.


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu nodded lightly. Music flowed into her ears endlessly but they were not offensive spells. They were supplementary spells. Hua Jieyu felt her spiritual energy increase at that moment. She walked before Ye Futian, a glint appearing in her pretty eyes. Following that, there was a shocking amount of Spiritual Qi around her.


    Boom! The two Demon Clan members felt their bodies stiffen. A gust of huge power dropped directly onto them, forcing their bodies to fly up involuntarily.


    "This��" The others preparing to fight on the platform were shocked. They all looked at the Demon Clan members. Then they saw wood elemental Spiritual Qi turn into vines that swept toward the two, hurling them into the air.


    "Deal with these two first," someone on the Fenghua Platform murmured. Everyone looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Then, aggressive auras exploded towards the two. The strong figures of the Fenghua Platform vaguely surrounded them. But Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu didn''t seem to notice. Ye Futian continued to play his guqin; the wood elemental Spiritual Qi around Hua Jieyu grew more violent until it was about to turn into a storm.


    The next moment, she released the Lock of a Thousand Vines. Endless vines swept in all directions from Hua Jieyu''s side. The Lock of a Thousand Vines was a pretty powerful controlling spell of the wood elemental sorcery. Many people would cultivate it but different people had different power.


    Hua Jieyu''s spiritual energy was terrifying. With this, she was able to control the Spiritual Qi of all elements. Thus, she could naturally release spells of any type of element.


    Many of those who saw the incoming vines flashed or used spells and martial arts techniques to hack at the vines. However, with Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu''s teamwork, the Lock of a Thousand Vines became extremely strong. Many people were curled up and thrown into the distance. However, some powerful figures also used extremely strong momentum to rush up for close-range fighting. Long-distance fighting was definitely a disaster when faced with two spiritual sorcerers.


    When two figures approached, Hua Jieyu reached out her slender hands and they were instantly immobilized. She slowly floated up, shining like a fairy. The two powerful cultivators were unable to break free from the invisible strength. With rustles, the vines snaked toward them and tossed them out.


    "I don''t want to hurt anyone. Just surrender," Hua Jieyu said softly. Still hovering in the air, another sharp metal elemental storm burst around her. It gathered into swords and spears, dancing around her. Everyone understood that Hua Jieyu had not shown her true powers yet. If she used an offensive spell after releasing the Lock of a Thousand Vines, it would be a catastrophe for many. They all felt despair. The power of a musical sorcerer and an offensive spiritual sorcerer working together was terrifying.


    "Her spiritual energy seems powerful," many murmured as they gazed at Hua Jieyu. Ye Futian''s musical spell had also increased her power, resulting in the current situation.


    Many people began to give up and leave, depressed. They used to say they were geniuses and were the strong ones in their planes. Now, they knew they were just a big fish in a small pond.


    "Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, pass," the Cangye College elder announced. Ye Futian did not fight but it was clear from how he helped Hua Jieyu that he could do much more.


    Ye Futian bowed slightly to the emperor and prepared to leave with Hua Jieyu.


    "You should join the Qin Clan," someone in the air said. Ye Futian looked up and saw Bai Qiu. "I had misunderstood you before and wanted you to be my musical attendant. I realize you''re more talented than I had imagined. I doubt you would be satisfied with being a musical attendant. With your current attainments, you might be equal to me after one or two years in the Qin Clan," Bai Qiu said.


    Many people looked over at him. It seemed that Ye Futian''s musical sorcery had impressed Bai Qiu and made him want to have Ye Futian for himself. He even said that Ye Futian might be equal to him in one or two years. That was an extremely high praise for Ye Futian!

 113 The Dinner

    Chapter 113: The Dinner


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Bai Qiu was already a musical sorcerer in the Dharma Plane and Ye Futian was only in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane. It would be difficult enough to just catch up to Bai Qiu''s current level in the span of one or two years. Musical sorcerers should indeed enter the Qin clan for cultivation.


    Ye Futian looked at Bai Qiu with a peculiar expression. This was his second offer to Ye Futian. The first was to offer him a position as his musical attendant. This second time, even though he now had a better impression of Ye Futian, one could still hear from his tone of voice that Bai Qiu still felt superior to Ye Futian. ''With your current attainments, you might be equal to me after one or two years in the Qin Clan''? Did Ye Futian need one or two years? And must he enter the Qin Clan in order to do so?


    Just as he was about to reject the offer, a rough, irritated voice said, "Will you shut up?"


    Everyone turned their eyes over to the origin of the voice and saw Yu Sheng standing atop the Black Wind Eagle in the skies. He looked at Bai Qiu with an icy expression. Last time when Bai Qiu had asked Ye Futian to be his musical attendant, Yu Sheng was already pissed. Now, that Bai Qiu was showing his superiority over Ye Futian once again, Yu Sheng could not hold back anymore.


    To others, Bai Qiu''s offer might have been a sign of his approval towards Ye Futian. The basis of that assumption was that even they thought Bai Qiu was better than Ye Futian. However, Yu Sheng had the exact opposite opinion. To Yu Sheng, Bai Qiu''s offer was a blatant insult to Ye Futian, and the reason why he was so irritated.


    Many people gave Yu Sheng strange looks. On the other hand, members of the Qin Clan did not have a good expression on their faces. Bai Qiu was a representative of the younger generation members of the Qin Clan. Outside of the clan, Bai Qiu was a representative of the clan''s reputation. In their eyes, Bai Qiu admired Ye Futian''s abilities and thus invited him to join the Qin Clan, but was berated by Yu Sheng.


    "Even though your talents are impressive and is incredibly strong, to speak like that is still a little out of line." Bai Qiu did not say anything in reply to Yu Sheng''s outburst. It was another member of the Qin Clan who spoke.


    "Scram!" Yu Sheng said nothing else. He did not want to waste his breath.


    "You��" The young clan member glared at Yu Sheng. How could he be so rude?


    "The things he says are just as crazy as the way he fights." Everyone looked at Yu Sheng. He was talking to members of the Qin Clan and particularly, at the clan''s Dharma Plane prodigy, Bai Qiu. He really did not show them any respect.


    Bai Qiu did a once over of Yu Sheng and smiled. Then, he turned to say to Ye Futian, "I extended an offer to you out of the kindness of my heart. If you were not interested then so be it. However, we are at the Fenghua Banquet, in the presence of the emperor. Your friend is truly lacking proper etiquette."


    Ye Futian''s pupils contracted slightly. Bai Qiu was insinuating that Yu Sheng had no respect for the emperor.


    Lifting his head to look at Bai Qiu, Ye Futian smiled and said, "Will you shut up?" The same question Yu Sheng asked.


    Yu Sheng was only enraged because it regarded Ye Futian. Even if he was in the wrong, Ye Futian would not take any other side in front of outsiders. Besides, Ye Futian also did not like Bai Qiu much.


    In the huge venue, many people watched Ye Futian. These people were really interesting.


    Bai Qiu and the members of the Qin Clan were rendered speechless by Ye Futian utterance. Although Bai Qiu still had a smile on his face, everyone could tell that it was an awkward smile.


    "I''ll see you on the Fenghua Platform," said Bai Qiu coldly. He said nothing more after that.


    Ye Futian did not care. A gust of wind brushed over Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. The two of them were lifted into the air and onto the back of the Black Wind Eagle. Ye Futian glared quickly at Yu Sheng. Does this guy know how to keep a low profile?


    Yu Sheng gave him a carefree smile. It was a good-natured smile, unlike his ferocious self a while ago.


    The battles continued and participants joined nonstop. There were indeed many prodigies in the crowd. After the Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivators were done, it was time for the higher-level cultivators. Eight-Starred Glory Plane, Nine-Starred Glory Plane, the battles were getting more and more intense. More and more extremely talented people emerged. Disregarding natural gifts and talents, if one was in a higher plane, it would be easier to get noticed by the emperor.


    Ye Futian and the rest stayed on the Black Wind Eagle''s back as they continued to observe the battles. Inwardly they thought, The Fenghua Banquet is indeed a gathering of talents in the Cangye Kingdom. Some participants were indeed very outstanding.


    Ye Futian took notice of an Eight-Starred Glory Plane participant. It was a girl, beautiful and pure. She was not lacking in comparison to Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty, Lin Yueyao. The reason why she stood out to Ye Futian was her occupation class. She was a conjurer but also an inscriber. During the battle, she was able to simultaneously display her talents in both classes through drawing.


    Her name was Hua Zhixin. As soon as she appeared on the battle platform, she was the center of attention. Spectators began to discuss about. It seemed that she was pretty well-known. Of course, the Cangye Kingdom''s number beauty, Lin Yueyao, received more attention when she appeared because she was more attractive.


    Besides these two participants, there were others in the Glory Plane who stood out from the rest but none that attracted as much attention as the two beauties.


    After everyone in the Glory Plane was finished, it was already almost dusk. Next, it was time for the Dharma Plane cultivators. There was nowhere as many Dharma Plane participants as there was in the Glory Plane. There were only a couple hundred people, and most of them were first level Dharma Plane cultivators.


    The battle between Dharma Plane cultivators was far more ferocious than that of the Glory Plane cultivators. When all participants began to release their realization of Dharma, everything became a blur for the audience. Especially because it was a chaotic battle between so many people. It was a truly thrilling scene. Every individual battle was enough to get people''s hearts racing.


    Ye Futian paid close attention to the Dharma Plane battles. He also took notice of Bai Qiu''s battle.


    Bai Qiu was arrogant and rightfully so, because he did possess the gifts and talents. During the battle, he stayed to one side and played a piece. No one was able to even get close to him and this was what made him stand out amongst everyone else.


    Besides Bai Qiu, several of the Dharma Plane students from Cangye College were also very powerful. There was also a young man, who people called Young Lord. His sword skills were eye-opening. Ye Futian had his name memorized: Ye Wuchen. They shared a surname.


    Finally, after all battles had ceased, only a little over 200 of the initial 10,000 plus participants had passed. They were allowed to continue competing in this year''s Fenghua Banquet.


    The night had fallen and the skies were now pitch black but outside the imperial palace, the lights illuminated the Fenghua Platform.


    The emperor stood from his throne and everyone followed suit immediately. A figure walked out from beside the emperor and said with a smile, "His Majesty has set up a feast in the imperial palace. All participants who have passed today may follow His Majesty into the palace."


    Everyone nodded lightly. It was a banquet after all, there must be a feast. Besides during the battles, those of true talent were able to share a meal with the emperor. It would be a formal and official meeting with the emperor. That was why, they must filter out only the best of the best in this first round and why there were only 200 some people left from over 10,000 participants.


    Ye Futian and his friends traveled to the back of the crowd and arrived in front of Hua Fengliu and the rest. He said, "Master, we''re going to head into the imperial palace. Once the dinner is over, we''ll head back to the inn."


    "Go," smiled Hua Fengliu. There was no need to worry. The emperor of the Cangye Kingdom seemed to be an open-minded person. His reason for holding the Fenghua Banquet was to search for talented cultivators. Naturally, there was no need for Hua Fengliu to worry about anything happening to the trio in the palace.


    Ye Futian turned back and the three youngsters walked towards the imperial palace. The emperor left first in his carriage. The participants had others to lead the way.


    Passing the Fenghua Platform was the Fenghua Gate. After that, was a straight road to the imperial palace. The palace architecture had its own unique style. The large group was led into the royal garden. The environment was extremely beautiful, extravagant but not lacking elegance.


    The emperor and empress were already waiting in the garden. Everyone approached to bow and make their greetings.


    "No need to be too formal, just treat this as a regular family dinner. Sit as you please," smiled the emperor. Then, he took his own seat with the empress. Only then did everyone take a seat. Everyone had their own small table. Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng all sat at their own tables.


    "Today was the beginning of the Fenghua Banquet. Everyone present now is the pride of the younger generation in the Cangye Kingdom. You guys are the future of our country. The empress and I toast to you all." The emperor lifted his wine glass and everyone followed right after.


    "When the Fenghua Banquet comes to an end, I know that not everyone will be pleased with the results. However, to have reached this point, you already proved your talent. Even if you are unable to advance after tomorrow, please do not be discouraged," said the emperor. Everyone seated below was of the younger generation and not suited to have conversation with the emperor, so they just sat and listened.


    The emperor continued with a smile, "I know that you guys won''t be able to let loose with me here. I will let these youngsters stay to socialize with you guys and I''ll take my leave now. No one is allowed to leave too early today or else it will hurt my pride." After he finished, the emperor left with a smile, the empress following alongside him. However, the two princes and the two princesses stayed behind.


    The people present today could very well become important people in the Cangye Kingdom. It would not hurt for the princes and princesses to become acquainted with them early on. This was another purpose of tonight''s feast.


    "Alright, now that Father has left, you guys can let loose," laughed a prince. Everyone laughed as well, and there was a change in the atmosphere. The princes and princesses were of a similar age as everyone seated at the dinner. There was no need to be overly formal amongst a group of all youths. After all, they were all cultivators with outstanding gifts and talents, so compared to ordinary people, they were not as awestruck by royalty.


    "This is my first time to see Goddess Lin Yueyao at such close proximity. You are indeed a beauty previously only seen in paintings," the prince complimented Lin Yueyao.


    "She is indeed the number one beauty of Cangye Kingdom. It''s not just rumors," said a person in the crowd.


    "It''s simply a title others have given me as a joke. Your Highness had over praised me," Lin Yueyao replied with a hint of a smile.


    "In a moment like this, how can we not have some music?" asked a gentle voice. It was one of the princesses. She looked towards Bai Qiu and Ye Futian. Both musical sorcerers were extremely handsome, gentlemanly, and talented.


    "The music of the Qin Clan is not suited for this atmosphere. I''m afraid I will have to disappoint you, Princess," smiled Bai Qiu. "However, during today''s Fenghua Banquet, Ye Futian played and Hua Jieyu danced. They complemented each other so well, truly a match made in heaven. Why don''t you guys take this chance to impress everyone with your performance?"


    Everyone at the venue smiled at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Earlier today, the trio really did steal the show with their abilities. Furthermore, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were obviously a couple. Their collaborative performance during the Fenghua Banquet was just too pleasing!

 114 Dancer

    Chapter 114: Dancer


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Bai Qiu smiled while looking in Ye Futian''s direction but it faded quickly. Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng were enjoying the food and hadn''t even glanced at him.


    "The emperor''s banquet is so nice with great food and wine. Fox, eat your fill," Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu with a smile.


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu smiled back while Yu Sheng stared at them in annoyance.


    Bai Qiu''s smile froze on his face. Was he ignored just like this?


    Princess Ye Lingxi was around the same age as Ye Futian. She gazed at Ye Futian''s handsome side profile, her lips seeming to curl into a smile. This guy is too bad, she thought. She obviously knew that Bai Qiu was trying to make things difficult for Ye Futian but what was more embarrassing than being ignored? It was even worse for someone of Bai Qiu''s status.


    Everyone else looked over. Some were looking for the drama; others thought that Bai Qiu was looking for trouble for himself. After all, they had already had conflicts at today''s Fenghua Banquet. If he targeted Ye Futian now, the youth obviously would not treat him with respect. However, Ye Futian''s response was a bit special. Or rather, he didn''t respond at all.


    Of course, some others thought that Ye Futian was too conceited. After all, Bai Qiu was at the Dharma Plane and was the representative of the Qin Clan. He had been taunted by Yu Sheng and Ye Futian for his invitation earlier. Now, he spoke but was ignored. Furthermore, it was the princess who spoke first.


    "If someone asks a question, you should reply no matter what your answer is," a voice said. The speaker was one of the Cangye College students.


    There were many talented students of Cangye College; eight were present at the banquet. Cen Xia, whom Ye Futian knew, was here too but she wasn''t the one who spoke. Instead, it was the even more talented Yu Jiang. He was one of those who didn''t like Ye Futian. After all, Bai Qiu was someone at his level.


    Ye Futian put down his wine and looked around. His gaze landed in the direction of the Cangye College. He had met Yu Jiang at the college. The day of the pretest, Cen Xia had pointed out Yu Jiang and Bai Qiu, saying that they were popular contenders of the Fenghua Banquet.


    Ye Futian looked directly at Yu Jiang. He watched as the other lifted his glass and sipped it without breaking the eye contact. In Yu Jiang''s eyes, Ye Futian''s group was talented but they were too arrogant.


    "Are we close?" Ye Futian''s smile was more like a smirk.


    "Of course not and I don''t wish to be either." Yu Jiang set down his wine. "But since the princess invited you, shouldn''t you respond?"


    "It''s alright. It was just the spur of the moment," Ye Lingxi said, seeing that the mood was off. Her beautiful smile was like a spring breeze that blew away a bit of the awkwardness.


    "Princess, your tolerance is impressive but some people think too highly of themselves," Yu Jiang continued. "This is the banquet held by the emperor but some come with veiled faces. This is too self-conceited. Even Lin Yueyao, the top beauty of Cangye, is not like this." He was obviously targeting Hua Jieyu.


    "My father said earlier that this is just like a family banquet. There is no need to feel restricted and there is no need to push others," Prince Ye Danchen said, seeing that Yu Jiang still wouldn''t let the matter go.


    They were all proud people and rivals at the Fenghua Banquet. It was natural that there would be some conflicts. This further tested their reactions and processing abilities.


    Seeing that both a princess and prince had spoken, Ye Futian couldn''t be too disrespectful. He smiled at Princess Ye Lingxi and said, "Indeed, I know a court dance and I am willing to play it for you."


    With that, Ye Futian walked out alone. He came to the peach trees behind the banquet and sat down with crossed legs. As for Bai Qiu''s suggestion of having Hua Jieyu dance and what Yu Jiang said about the veil, he ignored both of them. He respected the princess but not those two.


    His Guqin Spirit appeared. A graceful melody traveled into everyone''s ears, pulling everyone into the artistic conception of the song. The Melody of the White Feathers Garment was a superb court dance song and suited the current atmosphere. As the music played, the mood became more natural. Drinking under the festive atmosphere, many people were involuntarily influenced.


    "This piece makes me feel that all the court dance songs from the past were nothing," Ye Danchen praised. "However, it feels like something is missing."


    "This is a dance song. It is naturally missing a beauty," Bai Qiu said with a smile as he glanced at Hua Jieyu again. "But the beauty refuses to entertain us."


    Yu Sheng stood up, his expression extremely cold. Bai Qiu was stirring trouble.


    The music was affected as well, growing cooler. Seeing this situation, Princess Ye Lingxi smiled and said, "If there are no complaints, I can embarrass myself a little."


    Shock flashed past everyone''s eyes at these words. Would the princess dance personally?


    "Princess, no," Yu Jiang said. How could a princess dance for Ye Futian?


    "I was just joking. The princess mustn''t take it seriously," Bai Qiu said.


    "I am suddenly in the mood to do so. The music is so beautiful that someone must dance for it. Why can''t I?" As Ye Lingxi spoke, she walked up to Ye Futian. Her long dress fluttered as she danced.


    "Beautiful," Ye Danchen praised while everyone was still shocked.


    Everyone''s gazes were attracted by the dancing Princess Ye Lingxi and the music performer Ye Futian. Under the moonlight, peach blossoms covered the ground around them like a painting.


    "If news of today''s banquet spreads, it will become a beautiful legend," someone said. Many nodded in agreement. Before, they''d thought that the princess would be lowering herself by dancing. Now, they realized that it was a type of grace and this performance was indeed beautiful.


    "Miss Zhixin, would you be able to add some color to this scene?" Ye Danchen asked Hua Zhixin.


    Hua Zhixin smiled and walked to the peach trees. Using her hand as a brush, she gathered the Spiritual Qi into various spiritual birds. Cuckoos, cranes, and phoenixes flew in the air. They circled Ye Futian and Ye Lingxi, instantly making one feel that they were looking at a painting of fairies. This should not exist in the human world.


    "So beautiful." Lin Yueyao could not help but praise this either. Ye Futian was extremely handsome and seemed to glow while playing the guqin. With the princess dancing for him and Zhixin''s painting, the sight was mesmerizing.


    At this moment, Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang looked uncomfortable. They didn''t like Ye Futian so they had him perform. They didn''t expect for this to become something beautiful. Bai Qiu especially was thinking that if he were the one playing right now, it would be a gorgeous sight.


    When the song ended, everyone was still intoxicated by the melody. Ye Futian''s Guqin Spirit disappeared. Ye Lingxi looked at him, her eyes sparkling. "The music was stunning."


    "Princess, your dancing was beautiful as well," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "I must have you teach me this song in the future," Ye Lingxi replied and then walked into the crowd. Hua Zhixin nodded lightly at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled in reply and returned to his spot. He gazed at the crowd and saw Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang staring at him coldly. His lips curled into a smirk. He had performed well at the Fenghua Banquet and both Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu were outstanding. But Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang still wanted to trouble him. They probably thought that the trio was in a lower plane and still looked down on them. Hopefully, this sense of superiority would survive until after the Fenghua Banquet.


    "Your Highness," Ye Futian called. Everyone looked over at him and he smiled. "There are seniors at home waiting for us to return. I have played a piece so now I must excuse myself."


    "Alright." Ye Danchen smiled and nodded rather than stopping him. If Ye Futian stayed, there might be more conflicts. It would be better if he left.


    "See you tomorrow," Ye Lingxi added.


    Ye Futian nodded subtly and said, "See you at the Fenghua Platform." No one knew if he said this to the princess or someone else.


    After that, the three rose and left. Someone helped them out of the palace. Under the moonlight, the three climbed onto the Black Wind Eagle to return.


    "Was it nice to have the princess dance for you?" Hua Jieyu smiled at Ye Futian.


    "When we get back, I''ll play a piece and you dance for me. It''ll be prettier," Ye Futian said, laughing.


    "Sure." Hua Jieyu smiled but Ye Futian got a bad feeling from her smile.


    ...


    The next morning, countless people gathered around the Fenghua Platform. Yesterday, the Fenghua Banquet had started. Thousands upon thousands of strong talents came from all over the Cangye Kingdom. Now, only 200-some were left but they made the spectators much more excited.


    When Ye Futian''s group arrived, many people were already there��the Qin Clan, the Cangye College students, the Demon Clan, and various forces and nobles were all present.


    As if sensing something, Ye Futian glanced over and saw Bai Qiu smiling at him. He knew what the smile meant.


    Ye Futian looked away, ignoring Bai Qiu. The three continued forward, approaching the Fenghua Platform to prepare for the battles.


    Carriages came from the direction of the palace. The emperor and empress came with the princes and princesses. They all sat in their seats. Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi were there too, naturally. Ye Lingxi scanned the crowd and smiled at Ye Futian when she saw him.


    Ye Futian returned the smile and glanced at Hua Jieyu nervously. "I''m being polite��"


    What happened after they returned to the inn last night was unforgettable.


    "I don''t mind," Hua Jieyu said with a smile.


    "Yes, I know," Ye Futian answered. Seeing Hua Jieyu''s gentle smile, he almost believed her.


    At this time, many people rose to bow to the emperor but he waved his hand. "No need for the customs. Please continue."


    The elder from the Cangye College walked onto the Fenghua Platform. He put the remaining bookmarks into a line. Next, a minority of these names would shine on the Fenghua Platform and be known throughout the kingdom.

 115 I Look Forward to I

    Chapter 115: I Look Forward to It


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    An elder from Cangye College organized the bookmarks and pushed a line of them forward. Then, he looked up at the participants waiting in the skies above. "Today''s portion of the Fenghua Banquet will be slightly different from yesterday''s. The names I call now will be all those majoring in martial arts cultivation within the Glory Plane. When you step on to the Fenghua Platform, you will do your best to demonstrate your true abilities. Even if you lose, there is still a chance that you might make it into the next round."


    Naturally, everyone understood what he meant. They were trying to filter out the best martial arts cultivator using gifts and true abilities as determining factors.


    After that, the elder because to read names off of the bookmarks. One by one, participants headed for the platform. Of course, Yu Sheng''s name was also within the ones called. Ye Futian used wind sorcery to send Yu Sheng on to the platform.


    In the group of over 200 people, there were 40 who were Glory Plane martial arts cultivators and amongst them, a majority of them were either Eight-Starred or Nine-Starred Glory Plane cultivators. This was a large disadvantage for those in the Six-Starred and Seven-Starred Glory Plane.


    After Yu Sheng stepped on to the battle platform, many participants turned to look at him. It was obvious that they saw Yu Sheng as a dangerous character.


    "You guys fight first," said Yu Sheng. He then turned and walked to stand quietly at a side of the platform. The air of superiority he gave off rendered everyone speechless. He was too arrogant.


    To make it to the second day, everyone must possess extraordinary talents. Even though Yu Sheng had an explosive amount of strength, there were still some powerful Nine-Starred Glory Plane cultivators present. How dare he be so conceited?


    Ye Futian blinked and smacked himself in the head. "It''s my fault," he grumbled.


    In the air surrounding the Fenghua Platform, everyone watched Yu Sheng speechlessly. On the throne, even Emperor Ye could not help but chuckle as he looked at Yu Sheng. This young man was indeed a little reckless, but then again, with abilities like Yu Sheng''s, what he did should not be considered reckless. The emperor looked forward to his performance.


    Yun Zuo was a student of Cangye College. He was actually a Mandate Sorcerer but instead, he chose to major in martial arts cultivation. It was because his Life Spirit was a bit peculiar. It was a pair of golden wings. His Life Spirit gave him powers in two elements: metal and wind. He was prepared to gather Dharma realization of the wings because he couldn''t take the sorcerer route. He was going to focus on martial arts and use sorcery as a supplement.


    Yun Zuo of Cangye College was also a strong contender for the Fenghua Rank. However, there were still two of his senior brothers from Cangye College present. They were both in the Dharma Plane which caused the spotlight on Yun Zuo to dim considerably.


    Besides Yun Zuo, Wu Kuangren of the Demon Clan was also present. He was also a Mandate Sorcerer but because his Life Spirit was a demon ape, it had immense strength. So, he chose to major in martial arts cultivation.


    Both Yun Zuo and Wu Kuangren were in the Nine-Starred Glory Plane. With them present, no matter how explosive Yu Sheng''s performance was yesterday, as a mere Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator, it seemed that he had no right to be so arrogant. After all, the opponents he faced the previous day were all in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane.


    BOOM! Wu Kuangren took a step forward, headed straight for Yu Sheng. Everyone concentrated on this scene.


    In yesterday''s battle Yu Sheng beat up the Demon Clan''s young prodigy, Yun Di. Was Wu Kuangren going to get revenge on Yu Sheng today?


    Wu Kuangren released his Life Spirit and a fearsome silhouette of a demon ape appeared behind him. He clenched his fists and his body was immediately encapsulated by stone. With every step he took, it gave off a feeling of great pressure.


    Is Wu Kuangren going to directly challenge Yu Sheng? Everyone thought and stared at the large figure headed toward Yu Sheng. Some of them shifted their attention to Yu Sheng. What was his Life Spirit? With such explosive strength, it was only natural that people did not suspect that Yu Sheng had no Life Spirit.


    To their disappointment, Yu Sheng did not release a Life Spirit. He watched as Wu Kuangren approached and a golden light surrounded his body like a deity. A roar came from the platform. Wu Kuangren acted as if he were possessed by the Demon Ape. He lifted his large hand to slap down at Yu Sheng. Wu Kuangren wanted to see for himself just how strong Yu Sheng was.


    Yu Sheng''s hand formed into a golden fist which seemed to have grown sharp thorns. The platform shook as he took a step and threw a punch at Wu Kuangren. There was nothing flashy about their movements as they attacked. Everything was simple, direct, and violent.


    With a loud bang, the two crashed into each other. In that moment, a frightening flow of air appeared around them accompanied by the sound of whistling.


    The two young men stopped moving momentarily while the Demon Ape roared. Suddenly, Yu Sheng threw is fists forward and broke past his opponent''s palm, landing a punch on Wu Kuangren''s chest. With a crackle, Wu Kuangren''s defense was destroyed. He groaned in pain, backing up slightly but not letting himself fall.


    BOOM! Yu Sheng''s foot stomped down on the ground. Both of his hands reached out to grab his opponent. At the same time, Wu Kuangren also threw both fists at Yu Sheng. However, everyone witnessed Yu Sheng stop his advance by grabbing his arm with one hand while the other hand pushed down on Wu Kuangren''s shoulder. Yu Sheng had perfectly blocked his attack.


    In the next moment, spectators watched as Yu Sheng lifted Wu Kuangren into mid-air. He was swung around then flung off the Fenghua Platform.


    "This!" Everyone was dumbfounded. It''s true that Yu Sheng was arrogant because he was impossibly strong, but what of it?


    The battles that ensued after that were strange in comparison. Yu Sheng stood to one side, resting his eyes. The other participants fought their individual battles, not disturbing Yu Sheng. That was until only Yun Zuo of Cangye College was left standing on the Fenghua Platform.


    Behind Yun Zuo, his golden wings appeared. The majestic wings carried him off the ground, into the air overlooking Yu Sheng.


    Yun Zuo had noticed that every time Yu Sheng stepped on to the platform, he was sent down with the aid of Ye Futian''s wind sorcery. This meant that Yu Sheng did have a weakness. His strength could overpower everything. Even Wu Kuangren, a Nine-Starred Glory Plane cultivator, was brutally defeated by Yu Sheng in a battle of strength.


    This guy was born with superhuman strength.


    A row of golden spears formed in the air and charged toward Yu Sheng on the platform. With one swipe of his arm, a flash of golden light appeared and blocked off the spears. Yun Zuo raced toward Yu Sheng like a flash of lightning. Yu Sheng had hunched down and charged forward at an incredible speed. Everyone was frozen. Has he gone mad? Why was he running across the Fenghua Platform so crazily?


    Just then, they saw Yu Sheng''s right foot stomp down on the platform and at the speed of light, he was propelled upward at Yun Zuo, who was headed for him.


    Yun Zuo is done for, was the only thing that crossed everyone''s minds. Everything happened too quickly. A second later, the sound of an explosion erupted in mid-air. Even though Yun Zuo''s wings were good for speed, there was no way he could avoid Yu Sheng''s attack. The audience watched as Yun Zuo was thrown backwards by a single punch from Yu Sheng. He was thrown so high into the air, his body was at a height greater than the emperor''s throne.


    BOOM! Yu Sheng landed heavily on the platform. Countless pairs of eyes fell on him. Speechless. This freak!


    Cen Xia witnessed the brutal defeat of Yun Zuo, a talented senior brother from Cangye College and stared at Yu Sheng in utter confusion. How can a human body be capable of exerting such strength?


    The elder from Cangye College were also speechless. After a slight delay, he said, "Yu Sheng. Pass." Only Yu Sheng. There were no other names announced. Not even Yun Zuo of Cangye College.


    With an outstanding martial arts cultivator like Yu Sheng, the emperor would not need to consider any other martial arts cultivators in the Glory Plane. No one could compete with him. Everyone already had a feeling that Yu Sheng had a very high chance of being picked by the emperor to enter the Fenghua Rank.


    Yu Sheng stepped off the platform. Next, was the competition between Glory Plane sorcerers. Sorcerers of the seven elements, as well as some Spiritual Sorcerers were called to the platform. Hua Jieyu was one of them. However, Ye Futian was not called. Even though Musical Sorcerers were a type of Spiritual Sorcerer, they were still different. Ye Futian noticed that several Musical Sorcerers from the Qin Clan as well as beast tamer Yun Di, were not called either. There must a third category of cultivators for the next round.


    Similar to the first, this second round consisted of some extremely talented people. Among them, two young women stole the spotlight��Lin Yueyao and Hua Jieyu.


    On the Fenghua Platform, the two beauties stood opposite of each other. Although Hua Jieyu''s full appearance had not yet been revealed, her aura and her eyes could not hide her beauty.


    "Hua Jieyu and Hua Zhixin are probably the only two who can compare to Lin Yueyao," said someone in the crowd of onlookers.


    "Yes, Hua Jieyu''s talents are truly impressive. It must be a reflection of her looks. She must be a beauty," another person agreed with him. "It''s a shame that we already have Lin Yueyao in the Cangye Kingdom. No one can steal her spotlight."


    "You are very gifted," Lin Yueyao said to Hua Jieyu with a smile. "It would be better if your level of cultivation was a little higher."


    Hua Jieyu looked at her calmly, Spiritual Qi whistling in the wind around her.


    "Lin Yueyao. Hua Jieyu. Pass," shouted the Cangye College elder. Everyone was shocked. They had both passed. It was as if the elders wanted to prevent the two ladies from a duel.


    Hua Jieyu was gifted but had a disadvantage in terms of cultivation level. Perhaps the elders wanted to give her a chance to prove herself, so they kept her from battling Lin Yueyao for now.


    Lin Yueyao smiled and said, "I''m really curious what you look like." As soon as she was done speaking, she lifted into the air and departed. Hua Jieyu did the same.


    Now, it was time for the final battle of Glory Plane cultivators. The Cangye College elder called out the names one by one. Musical sorcerers of the Qin Clan, beast tamer Yun Di of the Demon Clan, Ye Futian, and conjurer Hua Zhixin stepped on to the Fenghua Platform. They were all cultivators with specialties. Thus, they were placed in battle with each other.


    As Ye Futian stepped onto the platform, he immediately noticed the looks of malice he received from the Musical Sorcerers of the Qin Clan. After his little clash with Bai Qiu at last night''s dinner, it was only natural that the clan members would not take it easy on Ye Futian on the Fenghua Platform.


    "Musical Sorcerer in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane?" snickered a Qin Clan member. He looked at Ye Futian and continued, "Musical Sorcerers are very knowledgeable, especially those of the Qin Clan. Even though we already know how this battle will end, as a Musical Sorcerer yourself, it would be an honor for you to get a taste of the Qin Clan''s musical sorcery. You won''t have wasted the trip here."


    Ye Futian dumbfounded. He looked up at the clan member and smiled. "I look forward to getting a taste of the Qin Clan''s musical sorcery and to make an exchange with prodigy Musical Sorcerers as well!"

 116 Advice Taken

    Chapter 116: Advice Taken


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian wasn''t lying. He truly was anticipating but as to what he was anticipating, only he knew.


    "He''s still smiling," many people murmured. Seeing his smile, they all thought he was confident.


    This time, Hua Jieyu couldn''t fight with him. Ye Futian needed to face the opponent alone. As a musical sorcerer facing another musical sorcerer from the Qin Clan, no one knew where Ye Futian''s confidence came from.


    Earlier, Bai Qiu had thought highly of Ye Futian''s talent in the Guqin studies and invited him into the Qin Clan but it was only due to his talent. With the difference in planes, even if one''s talent wasn''t as high as Ye Futian, one could still defeat him easily. After all, the Qin Clan''s musical sorcery was the most orthodox in the Cangye Kingdom.


    There were not many people on the Fenghua Platform. The earlier fight between the martial artists and sorcerers had ended, leaving only the ones with exceptional cultivation. There were seven musical sorcerers from the Qin Clan, three members of the Demon Clan, the conjurer Hua Zhixin, and Ye Futian. The last battle had the biggest number of people. After all, sorcerers from the seven elements, as well as the Spirit Elemental, were all there.


    The 12 strong figures stood in the four corners of the Fenghua Platform. They were respectively the Qin Clan, the Demon Clan, Hua Zhixin, and Ye Futian. When they stood in their positions, everyone realized that the Qin Clan was not the only ones who felt animosity towards Ye Futian��the Demon Clan also did. Yesterday, Yu Sheng had defeated Yun Di and today, he threw Wu Kuangren off the Fenghua Platform. They would have Ye Futian pay for this because they couldn''t fight Yu Sheng.


    Hua Zhixin felt this subtle feeling. She slowly walked over to Ye Futian and said softly, "Shall we team up?"


    Ye Futian looked at the beautiful girl beside him. They had worked together yesterday but that time, Ye Futian was playing the guqin, Princess Ye Lingxi was dancing, and Hua Zhixin was painting. Today, they would have to fight.


    "Sure." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. Seeming to feel something, he looked up at the Black Wing Eagle in the air. As expected, he saw a pair of smiling eyes. He felt wronged. This beauty had come to him. It wasn''t his fault.


    Thinking of what happened last night, Ye Futian instantly felt unsettled. How could she leave halfway through? Thinking of Fox''s sexy moves yesterday, Ye Futian was very depressed. Hua Jieyu was so cruel and he must not fall for that trick again.


    "Miss Zhixin, this is not needed. We don''t want to fight against you," the Qin Clan youth from before said. His name was Su Mu and was a Nine-star Glory Plane musical sorcerer. He was very talented; other than Bai Qiu, no other Qin Clan youth had a higher talent than him.


    "It''s alright. We are here to fight so there''s no need for politeness." Hua Zhixin''s voice was so soft and she felt so weak that no one could bear fighting her.


    "If that''s the case, then I''m sorry." Su Mu didn''t say anything more. Hua Zhixin was in the Eight-star Glory Plane. She looked weak but she was one of the popular contestants of the Fenghua Banquet. How could she be weak? If they fought one-on-one, Su Mu didn''t have the confidence to easily win against Hua Zhixin, despite being in a higher plane.


    Guqin Spirits appeared with a flash. The various musical sorcerers began playing at the same time. Two types of melodies streamed out instantly��Ye Futian playing one, the Qin Clan playing another song.


    Hua Zhixin knelt on the ground and used her hand as a brush. She began drawing on the ground with great focus. There was a unique charm to her when she was focused on it.


    At the same time, Yun Di of the Demon Clan took out a leaf and blew with it. Some of the others whistled or played the flute. The sounds were very strange and demons began rustling in the air again.


    Hua Zhixin drew very quickly, much faster than Zhou Mu, whom Ye Futian had dealt with before. Her drawings were more realistic too, with heavier Spiritual Qi. Very soon, countless birds flew out of the ground. Some circled around her while others flew to Ye Futian, seeming to protect him.


    This made Ye Futian want to laugh and cry. Since when did he need a girl''s protection?


    "I don''t need it." Ye Futian smiled and glanced at Hua Zhixin. The cacophonous sounds came out of his Guqin Spirit. It was like a battlefield.


    "Aren''t we working together?" Hua Zhixin looked up and smiled too. Then she lowered her head and continued drawing. At the same time, a continuous stream of demons flew to the Fenghua Platform, charging toward Hua Zhixin and Ye Futian.


    The birds circling Hua Zhixin went to attack the demons while she continued drawing as if these things had nothing to do with her.


    A strange light shone in Ye Futian''s eyes. His head was lowered so no one could see the terrifying storm brewing in his eyes. A strange spiritual energy poured into his music. When the wild demons attacked, the strange spiritual mark accompanied the music and rushed into the demons'' minds.


    Something odd happened. When the demons approached Ye Futian, they just stopped. The violent demons became tame and sprawled on the ground quietly as if listening to his music.


    Many people froze. Ye Futian''s music was so powerful and aggressive like a battlefield. How could it tame the demons? Of course, they had no way of knowing that Ye Futian had two spiritual elemental life spirits. Other than being a musical sorcerer, he was also a beastmaster, rather than a beast tamer.


    Hua Zhixin''s gaze went slack too but then she continued drawing. Knowing that Ye Futian was okay, she summoned the birds back to her side and focused on the Demon Clan.


    Su Mu and the Qin Clan were playing quietly. What had just happened was a bit odd but this didn''t disrupt their playing. Their music gradually intensified. The artistic conception was similar to Ye Futian''s and could bring people into a battlefield. Following that, there seemed to be arrows whizzing across the battlefield. They shot toward Ye Futian with amazing power as if it could pierce one''s mind.


    This time, only Su Mu attacked. Though the others were playing, they didn''t seem to want to attack Ye Futian together. Ye Futian played by himself. On the battlefield, soldiers with shields blocked the arrows.


    The spectators around the Fenghua Platform listened to the music and had an extraordinary feeling. They seemed to be on a battlefield while two armies faced each other before them.


    Ye Futian''s melody was the Decree of the General. The melody played by Su Mu''s group was Kill the Wolf. This song radiated with the intent to kill.


    Su Mu''s song was highly aggressive. Thousands of arrows shot out at once to tear through everything. On the other hand, Ye Futian''s song was like a general holding his ground. It was stable as a mountain. No matter how the enemy attacked, he would not move.


    Su Mu''s song intensified. After the thousands of arrows, the soldiers began marching. Their spears pierced everything. Ye Futian''s song was still on the defensive. If soldiers came, his would block them; he had a reaction for every action. The general was level-headed and the military was organized. No matter how Su Mu''s song attacked, it could not break through Ye Futian''s spiritual barrier.


    The two were at a stalemate. Su Mu''s melody became a bit chaotic. In the artistic conception, the thousands of soldiers fought wildly, attacking without order. Ye Futian was still unmoved.


    When Su Mu''s song became more and more chaotic, Ye Futian''s song finally changed. It went from steady to resounding in an instant. The song of bloodshed shook the earth. Thousands of soldiers and horses charged like a flood. Everyone was immersed in the artistic conception instantly. Su Mu''s presence was completely covered and he seemed to be defeated.


    On the Fenghua Platform, a terrifying gust of musical storm swept through, pressing toward Su Mu. It was about to sweep his body away. But at that moment, the other Qin Clan disciples acted. Their music seemed to resonate with Su Mu''s and erupted instantly. At that moment, the song Kill the Wolf exploded with shocking power. The restrained presence suddenly seemed to turn the tide.


    Many people''s expressions changed. They could clearly see that Su Mu was not fighting Ye Futian alone anymore. The Qin Clan was now working together.


    Su Mu was a musical sorcerer at such a high plane but he was defeated by Ye Futian.


    "Is there an advantage in numbers?" Ye Futian smirked slightly and he stood up slowly. The Guqin Spirit followed and floated before him. Ye Futian began walking forward. The music still grew stronger, wildly pressing forward.


    Everyone watched in shock as Ye Futian began walking toward the Qin Clan. With each step, his imposing manner strengthened a bit more. The general had given the decree and now he would face the enemy.


    The Qin Clan strummed the instrument strings wildly to resist the storm-like strength but Ye Futian had gathered his strength.


    The Decree of the General grew more powerful as it progressed. He had gathered his strength for so long, always on the defense. When the general gave the decree, everything was already set and could not be turned back. On the contrary, Su Mu had been attacking for so long to no success and his power weakened. Ye Futian obviously wouldn''t give him the chance for a breather.


    Everyone watched as Ye Futian walked toward the Qin Clan. He was so wildly arrogant, seeing no one at his level.


    One Eight-star Glory Plane disciple of the Qin Clan couldn''t stand it anymore. He spat out blood and collapsed. With one down, the music grew more chaotic. After that, a second person, a third�� They continued to collapse until only Su Mu was still holding on.


    Finally, Ye Futian waved his arm like the general giving the last decree to wrap up the tragedy. A storm swept by, injuring Su Mu''s spiritual mind. He spat out mouthfuls of blood and his power instantly weakened.


    The music stopped instantly. Ye Futian''s Guqin Spirit disappeared. He stood before the Qin Clan disciples with a smile. "The Qin Clan''s musical sorcery and disciples are just as the rumors say," he said lightly. "Advice taken."

 117 Looked Down On

    Chapter 117: Looked Down On


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After hearing Ye Futian''s words, everyone from the Qin Clan had a darkened expression on their face. They were utterly humiliated.


    The spectators in the air looked at the handsome young man in shock. Ye Futian only had to play one piece to wipe out seven powerful cultivators from the Qin Clan. It was already humiliating enough that the highest-level cultivator was in the Nine-Starred Glory Plane. ''The Qin Clan''s musical sorcery and disciples are just as the rumors say''. How were the Qin Clan members supposed to feel after Ye Futian said that?


    The worst thing was the way he said it. Ye Futian''s tone was calm and peaceful. A smile was spread across his face. He made it look like he really meant what he said. A silent killer.


    Crawling up from the ground, Su Mu just wanted to dig a hole and bury himself in it. He knew everyone was staring at him. From this point on, whenever anybody would look at him, they would probably think of this battle. It was not hard to tell how Su Mu felt at this moment.


    "Although you have won, there is no need to insult others. I admit that I still have a lot to learn but you''re not going to make it past this round either," said Su Mu, not forgetting to jinx Ye Futian.


    "That''s alright. To have been able to get a taste of the Qin Clan''s musical sorcery, I haven''t wasted the trip here," smiled Ye Futian. Su Mu wanted to find a hole and hide. His expression darkened. This was a direct quote of what he had said to Ye Futian before the battle.


    "A final jab��" No one in the audience had anything to say, neither did Su Mu and the others. Actually, they were too humiliated to say anything else. In a gray mood, they all clumsily scattered off the Fenghua Platform.


    To be honest, Su Mu had it coming. When they had first set foot on the platform, he first provoked Ye Futian. Ye Futian had not yet opened his mouth before Su Mu ran his. Su Mu was so sure that he would win. No one expected the battle to end this way.


    It was all because Su Mu was overly confident. As an occupation class, Musical Sorcery was different from the rest. It was much harder to make up for a difference in the level of cultivation. Plus, the Qin Clan''s musical sorcery was the most orthodox in the Cangye Kingdom. Su Mu was very confident that his musical sorcery was stronger than that of Ye Futian. Unfortunately, it was all a delusion.


    From in the air, Bai Qiu kept his eyes on Ye Futian. Ye Futian had defeated seven of the Qin Clan''s best in this battle, hurting the clan''s pride.


    Everyone else was thinking back at yesterday''s conversation between Bai Qiu and Ye Futian. So, this was the reason why Ye Futian rejected the offer to enter the Qin Clan. If he was already able to defeat the members of the Qin Clan, what was there to learn from them? At the thought of this, many people turned to look at Bai Qiu.


    If Ye Futian got the chance to battle against him, Bai Qiu would definitely try violently to get revenge on Ye Futian to reclaim the pride lost in this battle.


    Not far from Ye Futian, the battle between Hua Zhixin and the Demon Clan had also come to an end. The delicate figure remained quietly standing while the three cultivators from the Demon Clan, Yun Di included, had been defeated.


    Hua Zhixin and Yun Di were both named as strong contenders for the Fenghua Rank. Both of them were extremely gifted. However, Hua Zhixin was of a higher cultivation level than Yun Di. Thus, the audience was not too surprised at this result, but it did give them a strange feeling that Yun Di had lost in both battles.


    In the first round of battles, he met the freak, Yu Sheng, and now, Hua Zhixin. All they could say was that this young prodigy from the Demon Clan was simply too unlucky.


    "Ye Futian. Hua Zhixin. Pass," the elder announced the results. Prodigy, Yun Di, had been eliminated quicker than anticipated. To this, spectators could only let out a sigh. Yun Di had not even gotten the chance to be considered by the emperor.


    Ye Futian and Hua Zhixin met eyes and shared a smile. Then, they left the Fenghua Platform separately. The battle between those in the Glory Plane had concluded. Only five people had passed and received candidacy to be considered by the emperor for the Fenghua Rank. These five were: Yu Sheng, Lin Yueyao, Hua Jieyu, Hua Zhixin, and Ye Futian.


    Unexpectedly, there were three beauties among them!


    People had also noticed that Yu Sheng, Ye Futian, and Hua Jieyu were a group. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu seemed to be a couple, while Yu Sheng and Ye Futian seemed to be extremely close as well. They were just like brothers. Yu Sheng had previously yelled at Bai Qiu in anger for Ye Futian, telling him to shut up.


    Now, all three of them have become a candidate for the Fenghua Rank. It was pretty difficult not to take notice of them. It did not seem like they were from the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial city because otherwise, they would have received lots of attention early on. So, which prefecture of the Cangye Kingdom were they from?


    Quickly, the people threw their questions aside. The battles between the Dharma Plane participants had begun. Only five people in the Glory Plane had passed but there should be more to do so in the Dharma Plane. After all, they were in a higher plane, so they should higher cultivation.


    The battle between the Dharma Plane cultivators was extra thrilling. They more heated the battle got, the more certain people began to stand out.


    For example, Young Lord Ye Wuchen. With an arrogant, cold demeanor, no one could get past the sword in his hand. What''s more, he had not yet released his Life Spirit. Otherwise, he would have been even more frightening. Not even the prodigy level Dharma Plane cultivators could withstand his sword.


    Besides Ye Wuchen, there was also Zuo Qianfan and Yu Jiang from Cangye College, as well has Bai Qiu from the Qin Clan. All of them were strong contenders for the Fenghua Rank. Naturally, their performance would not be too shabby. They were all very outstanding and all passed, receiving candidacy for the Fenghua Rank.


    In addition to these participants, others that had passed included: one person from the Demon Clan, two nobles, and three people who have come a long way outside of Cangye City. All of them had put on a show-stealing performance.


    Five from the Glory Plane and ten from the Dharma Plane. The candidates for the Fenghua Rank consists of a total of 15 cultivators. Among this group, ten of them would enter the actual rank. The chances were high for everyone now but it was also more difficult now.


    In this group of 15, Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng had the lowest level of cultivation. They were all Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivators. People were amazed at this. If they weren''t incredibly gifted, this would not have been possible.


    Out of the three, Yu Sheng was the strongest contender for the Fenghua Rank. The emperor picked people not solely based on abilities but also gifts. From the group of fifteen people, Yu Sheng''s gifts in martial arts stood out the most because it was different from the rest. People with special gifts like him were usually favored.


    On the other hand, people did not have high hopes for Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian. Hua Jieyu''s opponent might end up being Lin Yueyao. As the Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty, Lin Yueyao was the best, regardless of looks or gifts and talents. With her shining so brightly, it was going to be difficult for Hua Jieyu to outdo her.


    The reason why Ye Futian wasn''t favored was simple. Although he had outstanding gifts, he was a Musical Sorcerer. Amongst the cultivators in the same occupation class, there was Dharma Plane Musical Sorcerer, Bai Qiu, present. Ye Futian may very well be suppressed by him. There was no way the emperor would pick two Musical Sorcerers for the Fenghua Rank. Because of this, the possibility that Ye Futian would be eliminated instead of Bai Qiu was very high.


    Besides, Ye Futian had previously insulted members of the Qin Clan. Bai Qiu was going to pick on him for sure.


    After six battles, not too much time had passed. Emperor Ye looked up at the sky and then at the crowd. With a smile, he said, "After all that bustling, why don''t we all take a rest. You guys can take this time to think about what request you want to make. Some of you need to be prepared when the time comes later today."


    Many people began to laugh. The top three on the Fenghua Rank would get to make a request to the emperor. There was no way anyone would let go of an opportunity like this. They must try their best to fight for it! However, the chances of getting into top three would be much harder than getting into the top ten out of the 15. Although these 15 were all the best of the best, not too many of them had absolute confidence they would make it to the top.


    After Emperor Ye finished speaking, he left in his carriage. The crowd remained outside of the imperial palace. It was not too long before noon, they were willing to wait where they were.


    Who would be picked by the emperor? Who would make it into the top three, the place above all? Everyone started discussing. The skies about the platform became extra loud.


    Ye Futian and his friends arrived to join Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin.


    "Master, you will be healed very soon!" Ye Futian smiled at Hua Fengliu. It seemed like he was sure that had top three in the bag.


    To heal Hua Fengliu had been Ye Futian''s biggest wish. After the death of Elder Qin, his will to accomplish this wish became stronger. So, when he heard that the Cangye Kingdom was holding the Fenghua Banquet, Ye Futian did not hesitate in his decision to participate.


    "With a chance to request something from the emperor, it would be a waste to ask for my injuries to be healed," Hua Fengliu looked at his disciple. He obviously had no doubts about Ye Futian''s abilities. If he really wanted to get into the top three, he was for sure going to get in. The question was, how much of his gifts was going to be exposed?


    Simply revealing his gifts as a Musical Sorcerer was enough to get him candidacy for the Fenghua Rank. If Ye Futian revealed any more gifts, he would be a shoo-in for the rank. Top three would depend on the circumstances when the time comes.


    "Yeah, it would be a waste but it''s because you''re lucky enough to have a good disciple like me," said Ye Futian.


    "Where are your limits?" Hua Fengliu asked with a darkened expression. He was just having a touching moment but hearing Ye Futian''s words rendered him speechless.


    "I only speak the truth," Ye Futian said nonchalantly.


    "Futian is right. You should be happy to have such a disciple," Nandou Wenyin said with a smile.


    "Masteress, you''re the best!" Ye Futian gave her a big, charming smile.


    "...." Hua Fengliu looked at his wife, then at Hua Jieyu who was standing beside Hua Jieyu. A wave of sadness washed over him.


    Just then, a large crowd headed in their direction. Ye Futian turned to look at them and heard what one of them said. "Ye Futian, have you thought about joining a clan for cultivation?"


    Ye Futian looked at the people who had approached. They were separate groups and have seemingly come to recruit new members.


    "No need. I haven''t thought about it," Ye Futian shook his head and smiled. He continued, "Thank you for asking."


    Ye Futian thought it was strange. Why did they only invite him and not Yu Sheng?


    "Alright." Everyone smiled and nodded. Then, they looked to Yu Sheng. A person in the crowd said with a smile, "Yu Sheng, I would like to say congratulations in advance. If you get picked by the emperor please don''t let the opportunity go to waste."


    Yu Sheng looked at him calmly and made no attempts to reply, so the people said their goodbyes and left.


    Ye Futian finally understood. They reason why they did not invite Yu Sheng was that they knew they weren''t worthy. So, did that mean that Ye Futian was looked down on?


    He suddenly felt very depressed. They had just come to extend an invitation to him but who would have thought it was because in their opinion, Ye Futian would not make it into the Fenghua Rank?


    Everyone chit-chatted away. Many of them discussed the candidates of the Fenghua Rank. Yu Sheng was a popular choice. However, Ye Futian''s name was rarely mentioned.


    Ye Futian glared at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng looked back at him feeling wronged. It''s not my fault!

 118 First Battle

    Chapter 118: First Battle


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Time went by bit by bit. It was getting close to noon. There were countless people in the vast space surrounding the Fenghua Platform. They were all discussing the Fenghua Rank. Soon, the Fenghua Banquet would enter the most critical moment��when the emperor decided the candidates of the Fenghua Rank. Everyone was waiting for this to happen.


    Young Lord Ye Wuchen was the cream of the crop with amazing swordsmanship. Zuo Qianfan of the Cangye College was incontestably talented. They were both in the Second Dharma Plane. How amazing would their fight be?


    Wang Yu, the pride of the Wang family, had always been pursuing Lin Yueyao, the number one beauty of Cangye Kingdom. Would he be able to display his brilliance today and win the lady''s heart?


    Yu Sheng seemed undefeatable in the Glory Plane. Would he or Lin Yueyao be stronger?


    How would the three beauties of the Glory Plane��Lin Yueyao, Hua Zhixin, and Hua Jieyu��fare against each other?


    Ye Futian had defeated seven strong opponents of the Qin Clan. Next, there was a high possibility that he would face Bai Qiu''s revenge. With Ye Futian''s skills in the Seven-star Glory Plane, would he be a threat to Bai Qiu or would he be humiliated?


    Would the talents from outside the Imperial City be able to shake the brilliant geniuses of the city?


    All of this would be revealed shortly after.


    As time passed, the 15 people came to the Fenghua Platform. Ye Futian gazed at the crowd, eyes sweeping past Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang, the genius of Cangye College. He hadn''t forgotten about what happened at the banquet last night. The nobles and lords returned to their seats beside the emperor''s seat. They looked to the 15 figures, also anticipating what was to come.


    "Lord, Wuchen''s talent is unparalleled. He will definitely be part of the top three of the Fenghua Rank," a clan member said to Lord Ye.


    "Your Wang Yu is highly talented as well. He may have a chance." Lord Ye chuckled.


    The Wang clan elder smiled. Glancing at a youth beside the Fenghua Platform, he said, "That boy''s cultivation is unorganized. I don''t know what he''s thinking every day and he''s chatting even now."


    At the moment, Wang Yu was standing next to the beautiful Lin Yueyao while saying something. They seemed to be chatting and attracted many jealous gazes. Perhaps only someone like Wang Yu was qualified to approach Lin Yueyao.


    "Clan Leader Wang, you must be lying. If he gets the Lin family girl, you''ll probably dislocate your jaw from laughing," someone else said. The Wang elder laughed as well. If Wang Yu really could win Lin Yueyao, it would definitely be a great thing.


    While they were conversing, the royals arrived and sat in their seats. Looking at the sun, the emperor announced, "Let us begin."


    The Cangye College elder walked onto the Fenghua Platform. There were no bookmarks this time. Instead, the elder gazed at the 15 stars in the air and said, "Listen carefully."


    The people nodded. 15 gazes fell upon the elder.


    "There are no rules in the final round," the elder said. "Anyone who wishes to perform can step onto the Fenghua Platform. You can display your talents however you wish. Everything will end when no one else wishes to continue. In the end, the emperor will personally name who will enter the Fenghua Rank, depending on your performance."


    After the elder finished, he stepped off the platform. Everything hereafter was for the 15. They could do whatever they wanted without any restrictions. Many looked to the five in the Glory Plane. Of them, Ye Futian''s trio wouldn''t fight against each other. This way, there was no more leeway. Would they challenge those of the Dharma Plane?


    Those who remained until now were all abnormally talented. Even Lin Yueyao probably had no confidence against the Dharma Plane.


    Lin Yueyao''s gaze fell upon Hua Zhixin and Ye Futian''s group. She was the highest of the Glory Plane but challenging those below her was not as impressive.


    The atmosphere was strange and no one stepped onto the Fenghua Platform.


    "I''ll fight the first battle," Hua Jieyu whispered to Ye Futian.


    "Okay." Ye Futian smiled gently. He and Hua Jieyu were both unpopular but he believed in Hua Jieyu. As a full elemental spiritual sorcerer, her talent was much better than what other''s imagined. Otherwise, the Nandou clan wouldn''t have put all their hope on her. Minister Zuo hadn''t predicted her fate yet at that time; they had chosen her purely for her talent.


    Hua Jieyu''s body flashed. She descended onto the Fenghua Platform like a fairy. She looked up into the air and everyone''s gazes sharpened. She was looking at the number one beauty of Cangye, Lin Yueyao.


    Everyone thought that the emperor didn''t name Hua Jieyu because she was overshadowed by Lin Yueyao. However, the one she wanted to challenge first happened to be Lin Yueyao.


    Hua Jieyu didn''t speak but Lin Yueyao seemed to understand. Her clothes fluttering, she flew down and landed on the platform. The two beauties wanted to complete the battle they didn''t have the chance to before.


    "Your plane is a disadvantage," Lin Yueyao murmured. She was at the Nine-star Glory Plane while Hua Jieyu was two planes lower.


    "Let''s start," Hua Jieyu said softly. After that, light flashed behind her. She had released her life spirit.


    This was Hua Jieyu''s first time releasing her life spirit. She had inherited her mother''s but it was even more beautiful. It was a crown, elegant and holy. It radiated with dazzling light. When the crown rested on Hua Jieyu''s head, there seemed to be invisible spiritual ripples all around her. Even Lin Yueyao, standing far away from her, could feel her own spiritual strength tremble.


    The Spiritual Qi around Hua Jieyu seemed to erupt. Wind wrapped around her and the wood elemental Spiritual Qi transformed into the Lock of a Thousand Vines. It covered the sky and extended forward. She instantly glowed with holy light like a fairy.


    When they saw this, everyone realized that they''d underestimated Hua Jieyu''s talent. She was stronger than what they''d thought.


    Lin Yueyao felt threatened too. A similarly beautiful glow appeared behind her. She released her life spirit. It was a beautiful demon��the Purple Gold Roc.


    Lin Yueyao''s mount was a Purple Gold Roc as well. The elders of her clan had captured an Arcana level Purple Gold Roc for her so she could understand her life spirit better. That was how powerful a big clan was.


    Beautiful golden feathers appeared on Lin Yueyao''s body. A similar wind wrapped around her body. She also knew wind sorcery.


    Two beautiful figures shot into the air. They hovered above the Fenghua Platform, captivating everyone.


    The Lock of a Thousand Vines curled toward Lin Yueyao. Her golden wings flashed sharply like daggers. They flapped, continuously slicing the vines curling at her.


    Boom. The wings shook and Lin Yueyao flew toward Hua Jieyu at an extreme speed. She also cultivated martial arts; her life spirit gave her amazing power and speed. Hua Jiayu mainly cultivated spiritual sorcery and didn''t study martial arts. Fighting Hua Jieyu from the distance was not a smart choice.


    Seeing Lin Yueyao approach, Hua Jieyu remained calm. Water elemental Spiritual Qi gathered around her.


    Poof, poof�� Golden blades continuously popped out of Lin Yueyao''s wings. With the wind spell''s help, she charged at Hua Jieyu.


    A dazzling light flashed past Hua Jieyu''s eyes. An invisible spiritual strength burst forth. The golden daggers slowed down and exploded into Spiritual Qi before Hua Jieyu.


    At the same time, Lin Yueyao used the attack''s protection to approach Hua Jieyu. Her wings really transformed into blades now. Once she got close, Hua Jieyu would be in trouble.


    Hua Jieyu reached forward. A terrifying spiritual wave rippled out like a storm sweeping forward. Lin Yueyao''s terrible speed reduced too and even paused temporarily in the sky.


    Her life spirit seemed to shake violently. Golden lightning tore through everything. The Purple Gold Roc''s shadow appeared on her body. She broke free from the restraint and continued forward.


    There was rumbling, and a water spell suddenly erupted before Lin Yueyao. It instantly swept toward her body. This spell wasn''t offensive but it seemed to stick to her, making it impossible for her to advance. Powerful attacks were useless against water spells. Her wings and lightning beat upon the watery prison and just passed right through.


    "Ice Seal." Hua Jieyu''s powerful spiritual strength erupted again and the watery prison turned into ice. Lin Yueyao was instantly frozen inside.


    There were rustles again. The Lock of a Thousand Vines swept toward Lin Yueyao''s ice-sealed body and buried her within. But things didn''t stop here. Countless golden swords appeared in the air. Supported by the wind spell, they hovered quietly in the air, aimed at Lin Yueyao.


    With a loud boom, the Ice Seal and Lock of a Thousand Vines all exploded. Lin Yueyao burst free with a beautiful flash. But at the same time, a gust of strong spiritual strength fell onto her, making her stop again. The golden blades transformed into real lightning. They descended in an instant, landing before Lin Yueyao''s beautiful figure. But then they stopped without stabbing down.


    Lin Yueyao''s eyes went blank. The countless hovering daggers right before her eyes felt unreal. Then she looked up at Hua Jieyu.


    "You lost," Hua Jieyu said softly. Her voice was still calm and indifferent but all the strong talents around the Fenghua Platform were frozen on her. She had used the spiritual power to guide all the elements. As a spiritual sorcerer, Hua Jieyu had made everyone overlook her terrifying talent of the other elements. Now, she displayed her talent in wind, metal, water, and wood.


    The first battle of the Fenghua Banquet''s last round had shaken everyone.


    Lin Yueyao, number one beauty of the Cangye Kingdom, was defeated!

 119 Anger

    Chapter 119: Anger


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was yet another battle full of surprises. Number one beauty of the Cangye Kingdom, Lin Yueyao, was thought to be a shoo-in for the Fenghua Rank. When she entered battle with Hua Jieyu who was at a lower level, everyone thought it was going to be a no-brainer.


    But things never turn out as expected. Hua Jieyu revealed her outstanding gift. As a Spiritual Sorcerer, she incorporated the use of sorcery of various elements and defeated Lin Yueyao, blow by blow. She was so quick, Lin Yueyao did not even have time to demonstrate her powers.


    Just like that, the person who was a shoo-in for the Fenghua Rank was now Hua Jieyu, not Lin Yueyao.


    Ye Futian watched the beautiful figure on the Fenghua Platform. A smile reached his eyes. At age 12, the young girl entered Qingzhou Academy and revealed her shocking talents. Three years later, she became a female legend at the academy. After arriving in the City of Donghai, she entered Donghai Academy and became a legend there as well. Today, she was finally able to shine at her brightest. Although, it was not in the Nandou Nation but at the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet.


    Many important figures gave Hua Jieyu a look of admiration. Under the calm and collected use of sorcery, Hua Jieyu was able to defeat Lin Yueyao without giving her a chance to prove her worth. Appearance aside, this girl was way more cultivated in terms of combat than Lin Yueyao.


    The sharp golden swords turned into Spiritual Qi and dissipated. Lin Yueyao blinked a couple of times. It seemed that she had only just broken out of her daze. She actually lost to Hua Jieyu, a lower-level cultivator.


    "I have been defeated," Lin Yueyao smiled bitterly and flew away from the battle platform. Taking a deep breath, Lin Yueyao calmed herself. This defeat made her more clear-headed. She had always been the center of attention with countless people praising her into the skies. She had finally been defeated. However, the Fenghua Banquet had not yet ended. She still had a chance to redeem herself.


    This round was a free for all. No rules. Even if you lost a battle, you still had a chance to prove yourself.


    "Yueyao, you were just a little careless. Don''t take this defeat to heart," Wang Yu yelled from the skies above. His voice was anything but quiet, everyone heard him. Many of thought that Wang Yu was only saying that because he was chasing Lin Yueyao. Although it was true that Lin Yueyao had underestimated her opponent but the reason for her defeat was far more complicated than simple underestimation.


    Lin Yueyao did not reply. Wang Yu saw that he had been ignored and turned his attention below to Hua Jieyu who was getting ready to depart.


    "Wait," a voice said coldly. Wang Yu began to descend on to the Fenghua Platform.


    Hua Jieyu lifted her head to look at Wang Yu with her beautiful eyes.


    Still in the air, Wang Yu''s body became enveloped in flames. He looked extremely domineering. The high temperatures radiating off of him seemed to be able to turn his surroundings into ash. Step by step, he made his way down from the skies.


    Everyone looked at Wang Yu strangely. At his level of cultivation as a first level Dharma Plane cultivator, he was not supposed to make a move on a mere Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator like Hua Jieyu. However, it was obvious that he was not doing so to prove his worth. He was doing so purely because he wanted to get even for what happened to Lin Yueyao.


    First level Dharma Plane cultivator, Wang Yu. Even if he was victorious in his battle with Hua Jieyu, it would not be representative of his talents.


    He was fighting for the damsel.


    Lin Yueyao''s was dumbfounded. She took a glance at Wang Yu. She did not have any special relationship with him. Neither had she accepted his feelings. However, she also did not do anything to stop Wang Yu.


    On the other side, Ye Futian was frowning. A cold expression washed over his face. His attention turned toward Hua Jieyu once again. Although there were no rules in this round, it was still possible to forfeit. At Hua Jieyu''s level of cultivation, no one would think any less of her if she rejected this battle. But Hua Jieyu did not want to admit defeat before trying. She looked at the approaching figure. He was like a god of fire.


    Wang Yu was still slowly making his way down. Before he even landed, Hua Jieyu already felt the burning heat on her body. Her Life Spirit appeared once again. A wave of Spiritual Qi erupted around Hua Jieyu. Even though he was in the Dharma Plane, she wanted to give it a try.


    The Lock of a Thousand Vines shot towards Wang Yu. With one step forward, the flames spread through the air and turned all the attacking vines into ash.


    WHOOSH! A majestic image appeared in the skies. A pair of Flame Wings appeared on Wang Yu''s back. Every flap was accompanied by a gust of hot air. The temperature was extremely high. Hua Jieyu was located right under the flames and felt like she was about to be set ablaze.


    "Realization of Dharma." Everyone was entranced by the large pair of Flame Wings. It was Wang Yu''s realization of Dharma.


    He continued to descended, getting closer and closer to Hua Jieyu. It was was as if he were doing this on purpose. In order to get even for Lin Yueyao, he was going to make things difficult from Hua Jieyu.


    "Fox, forfeit!" Ye Futian took a step forward and screamed to Hua Jieyu standing in the Fenghua Platform below.


    Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian. She knew that there was no way she could win this battle. It was pointless to continue.


    Just as Hua Jieyu was about to open her mouth, Wang Yu flapped his enormous wings and he was carried straight towards Hua Jieyu, getting extremely close to her body.


    "I admit defeat," Hua Jieyu said calmly.


    WHOOSH! The frightening Flame Wings brushed right above her head. The hot air rushed across her face, burning the chiffon veil, dissipating into nothing.


    Right away, her beautiful face filled everyone''s vision.


    Everyone focused in on her face. Seeing her beauty, their eyes were frozen on Hua Jieyu. No one knew how to describe this face. Her face that was once veiled was perfect, flawless.


    Even Wang Yu was dumbfounded. This was obviously not what he had expected. Even though everyone already knew that Hua Jieyu was a beauty, no one expected it to be of this caliber. She was breathtakingly beautiful.


    Many people turned to look at Lin Yueyao and they realized that even the Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty was lacking in comparison to Hua Jieyu. This meant that Hua Jieyu had defeated Lin Yueyao in terms of talents and looks.


    Then, could Lin Yueyao still be considered the number one beauty?


    Lin Yueyao was also looking at Hua Jieyu. For the first time, she realized that even she could be inferior to another female. Even she had to admit that there was nothing to be said about Hua Jieyu''s beauty.


    Lin Yueyao suddenly remembered what she overheard Ye Futian say to Hua Jieyu as they brushed shoulders outside Cangye College. At the time, she thought it was simply something Ye Futian said to make his girlfriend happy. It was not until now that she realized that he was serious about what he had said.


    Princess Ye Lingxi and Hua Zhixin were feeling troubled. They could not believe that another girl more beautiful than themselves had appeared. On top of that, her talents were outstanding.


    "Sorry about that," Wang Yu said. Withdrawing his proud attitude, he gave Hua Jieyu a quick nod.


    Hua Jieyu stared at him with a cold demeanor. Her gaze was cold and icy.


    "Fox, come back." A voice called out to her. Hua Jieyu turned to looked at Ye Futian.


    Nodding her head lightly, her body lifted into the skies in a flash.


    Back on the Black Wind Eagle''s back, Hua Jieyu walked up to Ye Futian. Disappointment filled her beautiful eyes. Her head hung low as if she had done something wrong.


    "It''s fine." Ye Futian petted her head lightly. Hua Jieyu looked up at Ye Futian with puppy dog eyes.


    Seeing how close the two were, dozens of jealous gazes were immediately directed at Ye Futian. Even Bai Qiu''s cold eyes carried a bit of jealousy. Who was Ye Futian to deserve this?


    Such a brilliant young woman listened to every word he said and acted like a little girl in front of him. That look that she gave Ye Futian could melt the hearts of everyone present.


    In the Cangye Kingdom, many talented young men had pursued the number one beauty, Lin Yueyao, but none of them were successful. Now, someone who outshined Lin Yueyao had appeared, but she was already Ye Futian''s girlfriend. On top of that, they were being all lovey-dovey in front of everyone. It was clear how everyone felt about this.


    Naturally, Ye Futian did not care about how the others were feeling. All he knew was that he wasn''t feeling to swell. He was in an extremely bad mood.


    Hua Jieyu defeated Lin Yueyao and someone actually tried to make a move on Hua Jieyu to get even for Lin Yueyao. Even her veil was burned. Obviously, Ye Futian was in a horrible mood.


    After consoling Hua Jieyu, Ye Futian stepped forward with his fists clenched. A loud sound was emitted. His attention turned to Wang Yu who had returned into the skies. Ye Futian''s gaze was cold.


    "You have a death wish," said Ye Futian. Without using wind sorcery, Ye Futian descended straight down from the sky on to the Fenghua Platform in a flash. The platform shook as he landed.


    "Another one in anger for a damsel?" Everyone looked at Ye Futian. Trying to mimic Wang Yu? Did Ye Futian had the abilities to do so?


    They watched as Ye Futian''s gaze focused on someone in the sky. His eyes shot daggers at Wang Yu. With a cold demeanor, he ordered, "Get your ass down here. Now."


    Everyone was shocked. This guy really was crazy. Ye Futian was only in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane. Wang Yu was a cultivator in the Dharma Plane. No matter how you looked at it, they were people of different levels.


    Wang Yu frowned, his eyes cold as well. Then, he let out a smirk. Trying to mimic him? Was Ye Futian even worthy of doing so?


    Wang Yu walked forward, ready to head down when a figure stepped out in front of him. It was the Musical Sorcerer prodigy of the Qin Clan, Bai Qiu.


    "Our problems have yet to be settled," said Bai Qiu. He was afraid that once Ye Futian and Wang Yu battled, Ye Futian wouldn''t have the guts to step on to the Fenghua Platform again. If so, how was he supposed to get revenge for what Ye Futian did to the members of the clan yesterday?


    Ye Futian looked at Wang Yu, then at Bai Qiu. "Then, let''s go. One at a time."

 120 Beg Forgiveness from the Emperor

    Chapter 120: Beg Forgiveness from the Emperor


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Around the Fenghua Platform, everyone''s eyes were on Ye Futian, a bit shocked at his confidence.


    Wang Yu, the pride of the kingdom, and in the Dharma Plane.


    Bai Qiu, the most talented of the Qin Clan''s younger generation and a musical sorcerer in the Dharma Plane.


    Ye Futian, a musical sorcerer in the Seven-star Glory Plane.


    Compared like this, there was no way for Ye Futian to sway the other two. No matter how talented he was, the difference in plane was too much. He had to cross into the Dharma Plane. Those in the Dharma Plane could realize the dharma, and were frighteningly powerful. Their abilities had a qualitative change from the Glory Plane.


    Just then, Bai Qiu descended slowly onto the Fenghua Platform. There was still a cool smile on his handsome face. "Even though it''s not impressive for me to defeat you, we have to settle the matter from before," Bai Qiu said to Ye Futian.


    "Of course." Ye Futian smiled; he completely agreed.


    "Then let us begin." Bai Qiu sat down with crossed legs, extremely charismatic. His Guqin Spirit appeared and hovered before him. It was considerably more realistic than Ye Futian''s Guqin Spirit. It was like a real guqin. The life spirit developed as the cultivator grew stronger.


    Ye Futian sat across from Bai Qiu and his Guqin Spirit also appeared. His aura had changed from before as well. His handsome face was calm and solemn; it was as if only the guqin was in his eyes at the moment.


    Some girls looked at Ye Futian, and they had to admit that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu matched in terms of looks. Even the handsome and charismatic Bai Qiu wasn''t as attractive as him.


    A string of notes sounded. Bai Qiu played first. It was just a note but everyone could feel a shocking boom on the Fenghua Platform. They all looked over.


    Bai Qiu''s movements were graceful. His fingers flitted over the instrument strings gently. As the music entered the audience''s ears, they were brought into the artistic conception. It was as if the sky was about to change.


    Wind rose on the Fenghua Platform.


    Ye Futian was solemn. He also strummed the strings and there was another boom. His music was resonant like thunder. He closed his eyes and his memories went back to the Nandou clan. He was on the crane and his grandmaster played the guqin. The pair of callused hands flew wildly over the strings and the song shook one''s heart.


    Another musical spell sounded on the Fenghua Platform. It accompanied Bai Qiu''s playing like screaming wind and booming thunder. The crowd discovered with a shock that lightning continuously flashed in the sky above the platform. The sunny day had changed under the music, turning into bad weather.


    Even the talented ones spectating were dragged into the artistic conception of the storm. There was no more sunlight; dark clouds covered the sky.


    "No wonder he is the best of the Qin Clan''s younger generation." Everyone gazed at Bai Qiu, playing his guqin on the Fenghua Platform. He hadn''t displayed his true ability in the earlier fights. Now, he didn''t play casually when faced with Ye Futian, who was in a lower plane. Instead, he used his absolute power to obliterate the opponent, letting everyone see the true musical sorcery of the Qin Clan to redeem his honor.


    The Qin Clan members all smirked when they saw this scene. There was no place for Ye Futian if Bai Qiu was there.


    Above Ye Futian, dark clouds covered the sky and the wind howled. The lightning was terrifying.


    Crack! A dazzling bolt of lightning streaked directly toward Ye Futian. Everyone''s hearts trembled. Could Ye Futian, playing his guqin with his eyes closed, withstand this attack?


    His fingers quickly strummed the strings. The music intensified continuously like a sharp sword in the thunderstorm, wanting to slice through all restraints.


    Then there was a terrifying streak of purple light. The lightning above Ye Futian''s head disappeared as if shattered by the invisible power in Ye Futian''s melody. Many people now gazed at him, a bit impressed. For Ye Futian, a Seven-star Glory Plane sorcerer, it was good enough to be able to withstand Bai Qiu''s violent musical spell like this.


    However, this didn''t seem enough to change the result.


    The air currents went wild above Ye Futian''s head. His Spiritual Qi erupted and lightning kept flashing as if a terrible storm was brewing. It felt as if Ye Futian was a small boat in the thunderstorm. He could run into danger at any time and be crushed to bits.


    Ye Futian didn''t seem to feel this. His eyes were still closed, unaffected by the opponent''s music. His melody continued to rise and a storm rose around him, going against the current. When lightning struck, it would be swallowed by this windstorm.


    However, Ye Futian knew that there was still a big difference between his Spiritual Energy and Bai Qiu''s. In his Life Palace, the life spirit Eye of the Storm released terrifying Spiritual Energy. This power slowly seeped into Ye Futian''s mind, transforming into his own Spiritual Energy. This allowed his music to carry a terrifying artistic conception.


    The Eye of the Storm was the life spirit given by Emperor Ye Qing. The spiritual storm it contained was very frightening but he couldn''t use much of the power.


    At this moment, a destructive windstorm erupted from the void to shatter Ye Futian. His hands moved even faster. The Spiritual Energy kept blooming, rising with the intensifying melody. His own Spiritual Energy seemed to want to empty itself into the music.


    Thus, a frightening sight appeared above Ye Futian. There was a burst of music that seemed ready to destroy the world but another gust of power swept through. The two powers clashed and the entire Fenghua Platform was enveloped by the destructive windstorm.


    Many people shuddered inwardly. They stared at the seated Ye Futian in shock. How could he withstand this strength?


    Another burst of resonant music sounded, It wanted to pierce through the storm, not bowing down to fate.


    "This music��" Many people trembled when hearing Ye Futian''s music. He was far from Bai Qiu''s plane and was repressed but the power his music displayed and his past determination gave many an indescribable feeling.


    Bai Qiu''s brows knitted. He''d wanted to use his absolute advantage to crush Ye Futian but it wasn''t working. His fingers flew across the strings and the storm grew even more terrifying. It seemed to want to flatten the world. Attacks swept through continuously, destroying everything and out to kill Ye Futian.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was completely immersed in his music. This scene was reminiscent of what happened at the Nandou clan. He thought of his grandmaster''s tragic but powerful performance.


    In his Life Palace, the Spiritual Energy of the Eye of the Storm continuously transformed into Ye Futian''s consciousness. It increased his Spiritual Energy and there seemed to be no limit for his song. It kept rising. The unparalleled power destroyed everything. The crowd realized with a shock that the increasingly wild thunderstorm in the sky wasn''t defeating Ye Futian. Instead, it showed signs of breaking down.


    Above Ye Futian, a corner of the chaotic music windstorm scattered. As if sunlight shone down, there was light.


    "Is this why he was confident?" The spectators were shocked. Earlier, they had thought that there was no way for Ye Futian to be named by the emperor. Now, they weren''t so sure. The emperor might take note of him just for this melody and add him to the Fenghua Rank.


    However, this was unbearable for Bai Qiu.


    Countless guqins hovered around him. They seemed to be playing in unison, and the light of the musical spells endlessly fell upon his Guqin Spirit. In an instant, an even more terrifying musical windstorm pressed toward Ye Futian. At the same time, he rose to the air and floated toward Ye Futian. In a moment, he was above Ye Futian. He sat in the air as if he was high and mighty.


    Bai Qiu''s hands flew furiously over the strings. The windstorm covered the sun and endless lightning bolted toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s fingers moved just as fast, almost at his limit. A bright sound pierced through everything and went toward Bai Qiu, hovering above him. The two faced each other directly and clashed violently.


    The audience only felt that both of them were swallowed by the windstorm. The unstoppable power swept toward Ye Futian''s body. With a boom, Ye Futian''s music stopped. His body continued to be forced backward. However, at the same time, another beam of music charged into Bai Qiu''s mind. He shook and his music stopped abruptly too.


    The windstorm above the Fenghua Platform disappeared. Sunlight shone down and everything went back to normal but the results were clear. Ye Futian had still lost though no one could blame him. This battle was impressive enough.


    Many gazes fell upon Ye Futian''s handsome face. His eyes opened slowly. The black eyes were clear and bright, not frustrated at all by his defeat. His bright smile was like sunlight, nothing like the repressiveness and chaos from earlier.


    This Ye Futian was a completely different person from before.


    He had wanted to try with his grandmaster''s piece, but the difference in plane was still too much. They were both musical sorcerers and it was difficult to cross such a wide gap. However, he wasn''t disappointed. In his last battle with Zhou Mu, his musical spell wasn''t enough to defeat him. Now, he could use his music to cross three planes into the Dharma Plane and still force Bai Qiu to this extent. He had improved a lot.


    "You should be proud that I treat you so," Bai Qiu said nonchalantly, though his heart was pounding.


    Ye Futian smiled subtly at Bai Qiu. Then he stood up and smirked. He turned around and gazed in the emperor''s direction. Bowing, he said, "Your Majesty, when I registered at the Cangye College, I wrote that my occupation is a musical sorcerer. In actuality, I only cultivate musical sorcery to better myself. It is not my expertise. Please forgive me."

 121 Something to Remember For the Rest of His Life

    Chapter 121: Something to Remember For the Rest of His Life


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Ye Futian had spoken, many people were dumbfounded. Their gazes were frozen on the handsome young man.


    He only cultivated musical sorcery to better himself?


    In the battle just now, Ye Futian''s musical sorcery was able to push the Qin Clan''s brightest pupil, Dharma Plane prodigy��Bai Qiu��to such limits. Now, he was telling the emperor that he only cultivated musical sorcery to better himself and that it was not his expertise. This...


    Bai Qiu''s expression darkened. Up to this point in the battle, there was nothing he could say he was proud of. He wanted to get sweet revenge on Ye Futian for what he had done, but by the looks of it, his efforts were nowhere near good enough. What was the meaning of what Ye Futian had just said?


    From far up in the skies, Hua Fengliu dry coughed.


    On the Black Wind Eagle, Hua Jieyu sat there just blinking her eyes, while Yu Sheng sat wide-eyed. He looked at Bai Qiu with pity.


    But forget about everyone else, even the emperor was not prepared for Ye Futian''s utterance. He faltered momentarily and then looked at the handsome young man on the Fenghua Platform. With a smile, he said, "That''s fine. Then you may battle with a skill of your expertise."


    "Thank you, Your Majesty." Ye Futian bowed to the emperor. After that, he turned to look at Bai Qiu with a smile.


    "I would also like to see what your expertise is," said Bai Qiu said with a darkened expression. He placed his hands on the guqin and the music started once again. If he couldn''t defeat Ye Futian, then all pride would be lost.


    The moment Bai Qiu''s fingertips met the guqin, thunder and lightning filled the sky. The winds and the clouds shifted. He was playing the same piece as before.


    Ye Futian stepped forward, a majestic bright light accompanied the release of his Golden Roc Spirit. In a split second, everyone''s eyes were drawn back on to Ye Futian as they watched in shock while the Life Spirit appeared behind him.


    Twin spirits. A shiver went down everyone''s spine.


    Ye Futian previously battled as a Musical Sorcerer and revealed his Guqin Spirit. Now, his Golden Roc Spirit has also been unveiled. Twin spirits.


    The audience finally understood, not only had they underestimated Hua Jieyu. They had also underestimated Ye Futian. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Jieyu. The Seven-Starred Glory Plane trio were mysterious newcomers. It seemed like they were destined to stir up trouble at the Fenghua Banquet.


    Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu had already revealed their true talents. Now, it was Ye Futian''s turn. His musical sorcery was able to force Bai Qiu to attack at full power but he told the emperor that he only cultivated musical sorcery to better himself. He wasn''t solely a Musical Sorcerer.


    After that, he released a second Life Spirit.


    Bai Qiu, who had already begun to play, was also shocked. His cold eyes swept over to Ye Futian. Bai Qiu was supposed to have the advantage, fighting Ye Futian as a Dharma Plane cultivator, but Ye Futian had stolen his spotlight from the very start.


    Thinking about this, Bai Qiu released his realization of Dharma. Guqins appeared in the air and when he played, all the guqins harmonized. A wave of frightening energy washed over the platform. The airflow became wild. The sound of the guqins metamorphosed into sorcery. Lightning struck down on where Ye Futian was but he ducked quickly and it struck on to empty space.


    "He''s so fast." Everyone looked towards the figure in the sky. Ye Futian''s wings fluttered behind him. Wind Sorcery wrapped around his body making he even faster. He reached out his hand and the Metal Spiritual Qi immediately formed into a golden rod which Ye Futian wrapped his hand around.


    Ye Futian took one step forward, and a force of invisible energy erupted from him. More flashes of lightning struck at him but this time, Ye Futian did not duck to avoid it. Instead, he waved the rod forward and the bolts of lightning disappeared with a loud bang. Ye Futian stood stable like a mountain, his aura growing stronger by the moment.


    The music continued frantically. The storm was taking form. At the same time, the sound of the guqin continuously crept into Ye Futian''s ear, wanting to drag him into the mood of the music. The sky was dark but lightning lit it up intermittently. Bai Qiu''s music contained the double attack abilities of spirit and sorcery.


    With a peculiar look in his eyes, Ye Futian took advantage of the large force of spiritual energy from the Eye of the Storm to reject the influence of the music. In a flash, he turned into a bolt of golden lightning and struck toward his opponent. As a Musical Sorcerer, it was only natural for Ye Futian to understand the weakness of Musical Sorcerers.


    Musical Sorcerers were able to completely overpower powerful cultivators who cultivated only martial arts and not the element of spirit. More powerful Musical Sorcerers were also able to utilize their music to release attacks with sorcery. However, their weakness was very obvious: close-range combat. What would happen if someone got too close to a Musical Sorcerer during battle?


    But of course, it was not an easy task to get close to a Musical Sorcerer.


    Seeing that Ye Futian was closing in, Bai Qiu continued to play. The music formed a storm and headed for Ye Futian, wanting to destroyed everything in its target location. However, Ye Futian moved in a curved line, perfectly dodging the attack. He did not try to meet the storm head on.


    Bai Qiu''s fingers moved unbelievably fast. They moved across the guqin wildly. The attack of sorcery formed by the music suddenly changed directions. Attacks of the spirit element were able to cover all directions, but those of sorcery were not.


    Everyone watched as the attack continuously changed directions. Ye Futian, who was zipping through the air with the help of his large golden roc wings, kept waving the long, golden rod around. There was an odd rhythm to his movements. Around him, a large force of power seemed to be gathering slowly.


    "He is collecting power." The spectators watched Ye Futian''s every action. While dodging Bai Qiu''s attacks, he was simultaneously collecting power. His shining figure in the skies gave off a mystical feel. The force around him was getting stronger by the minute.


    Naturally, Bai Qiu had also taken notice. But what of it? Under the continuous spiritual attacks from his music, how much longer was Ye Futian going to last?


    Just then, Ye Futian''s soaring body halted. The storm charging at him was destroyed stricken by the rod.


    Ye Futian floated over Bai Qiu arrogantly. The frightening force of power revolve above Ye Futian, causing him to look majestic and imposing despite his not quite large physique. Clouds filled the skies while thunder and lightning harmonized. Crazy winds turned into sharp blades that cut through the air and flew towards Ye Futian.


    The rod in his hand danced. The incredible force of power destroyed the incoming storms without rest. His wings fluttered and with a step forward, the rod swung down hard, splitting the storm in two.


    "The power in his attacks��" This scene sent shivers down everyone''s back. The storm had been destroyed by single swing of the rod. It was as if all the power in the world belonged to Ye Futian.


    His golden body shined bright. Instead of moving forward, Ye Futian traveled downward towards Bai Qiu, following the way created by the rod. This time, there was no more dodging, no more changing directions. Ye Futian was going to face Bai Qiu''s attacks head on. He had gathered enough power for Genesis of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. Anyone who got in his way would die.


    Wild winds roared in the skies as the Thunder Dragon Spirit growled. Its power was shocking and powerful that it would be enough to collapse the sky.


    The long rod danced and the force got stronger. Everything on Earth was at the mercy of Ye Futian. Using the force of power, the second attack of the Nine Heavenly Attacks was administered. The skies were undisturbed as Ye Futian wiped out the storm. Once again, he descended, getting closer to Bai Qiu.


    The look in Ye Futian''s eyes was extremely odd. The spiritual energy in his mind kept getting disturbed. However, with the help of the strong spiritual energy and will, he was able to control the force. When he attacked with the Nine Heavenly Attacks, there was an explosion of spiritual energy. His spiritual will had also leveled up.


    Bai Qiu''s expression changed. His music revealed a hint of distress. How was it that such powerful musical sorcery still could not stop Ye Futian''s advance? Bai Qiu watched the figure approaching himself slowly. His expression did not look too good.


    The force of power gathered around Ye Futian grew stronger. In fact, it was so strong that it could crush everything in its way.


    Bai Qiu''s fingers danced across the guqin and a wave of Spiritual Qi exploded. But at the same time, Ye Futian moved. With the help of the incredible force, the rod swung down once again, wiping out everything. The air was about to explode. The long rod struck down towards Bai Qiu''s attack spell without any obstacles.


    Wind sorcery enveloped Bai Qiu and carried him away in retreat. His music lost its flow. As Bai Qiu retreated, the golden rod escaped from Ye Futian''s hands and bolted towards him in a flash.


    Seeing this, Bai Qiu withdrew his Guqin Spirit immediately and sped up his retreat with wind sorcery. At the same time, he had to create a defense spell. The golden flash zipped through the air, and though its power was slightly diminished by Bai Qiu''s defense, the rod still landed an attack on him. With a scream, Bai Qiu spat a mouthful of fresh blood. He lost color in his face in an instant. His body was thrown back and landed at the edge of the Fenghua Platform.


    The crazy storms dissipated slowly. On the battle platform, Ye Futian stood arrogantly. His gifts were like no other. Right now, everything was silent but deep down, everyone was shaking in disbelief. Ye Futian, a Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator, had defeated Dharma Plane prodigy, Bai Qiu. His ferocious silhouette and domineering aura had been imprinted in everyone''s mind.


    The members of the Qin Clan looked pale. Bai Qiu was the representative of the Qin Clan''s young generation, but he was just defeated by Ye Futian who was in a plane three levels lower than himself. Oh, the humiliation.


    Prodigy? Number one of the younger generation Qin Clan members? Candidate for the Fenghua Rank?


    Cen Xia from Cangye College watched everything unfold from up in the skies. Her heart was anything but at ease. She thought back to when she had guided Ye Futian to the pretest site. At the time, she had pointed to Bai Qiu and told Ye Futian that he was a Dharma Plane prodigy from the Qin Clan and one of the top contenders for the Fenghua Rank. When Bai Qiu had asked for Ye Futian to be his musical attendant, her opinion was that Ye Futian was extremely lucky to be thought of so highly by him. She had even purposely revealed her own level of cultivation with hidden pride. It was hilarious to think back at everything in the past now. Cen Xia had already been eliminated while the three of them shined the brightest.


    No one felt at peace.


    Just then, everyone saw Ye Futian watch Bai Qiu as he climbed up from the side of the Fenghua Platform. Ye Futian smiled and asked, "Do you still want me to be your musical attendant?"


    Hearing his question, many people looked over at Bai Qiu. Had he actually asked for Ye Futian to be his musical attendant? This was just too...


    Bai Qiu stared at Ye Futian coldly, only to see Ye Futian''s carefree smile. To Bai Qiu, he said, "There''s no need to look at me like that. Even if you continue to cultivate in the Qin Clan for another one or two years, you won''t be able to surpass me."


    Spectators were reminded of what Bai Qiu had said after Ye Futian''s battle yesterday and the arrogance in his eyes when he said it. Looking at him now, all they felt for him was pity. The happenings of this year''s Fenghua Banquet was probably going to be something Bai Qiu would remember for the rest of his life.

 122 One at a Time

    Chapter 122: One at a Time


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was indeed unforgettable. Bai Qiu was the most popular contender for the Fenghua Rank. He was proud and confident. Seeing that Ye Futian was talented, he wanted the youth to become his musical attendant. In his opinion, Ye Futian should have taken this chance. Later, they continuously clashed and he wanted to solve it all at the Fenghua Platform. He stopped Wang Yu from going against Ye Futian because he wanted to personally humiliate him. In the end, Bai Qiu was defeated.


    The Dharma Plane genius of the Qin Clan, the most popular contender for the Fenghua Rank, had lost to someone in the Seven-star Glory Plane. "Tragic" wasn''t even enough to describe it.


    Can Bai Qiu still enter the Fenghua Rank? many of the spectators thought. Then they looked towards Ye Futian. They''d all underestimated him but he had his eyes on the Fenghua Rank. They even felt that it was very possible for Ye Futian to ender the top three of the Fenghua Rank. This battle had been too shocking.


    "This guy is crazy," Princess Ye Lingxi said beside the throne. She smiled at Ye Futian. She couldn''t believe that the youth who had played the guqin with her that night was actually so powerful.


    "This is confidence." Emperor Ye chuckled, a pleased look flashing past his eyes. Everyone knew that Ye Futian had been right. If nothing extraordinary happened, Bai Qiu would never be able to surpass Ye Futian, let alone in one or two years. He''d never be able to erase this humiliation.


    Dragging his injured body, Bai Qiu took a step toward the sky. His entire presence felt decadent. The pride of the kingdom, so arrogant and confident before, had lost all spirit after this fight.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky to Wang Yu. His eyes glinted and he said coldly, "Get down here."


    Wang Yu from the Dharma Plane dared to take revenge on Hua Jieyu because she defeated Lin Yueyao? He was flirting with death!


    "He wants to challenge Wang Yu after defeating Bai Qiu?" The spectators shuddered. He really was taking them on one by one. He was at the Seven-star Glory Plane but he looked down on all these geniuses from the Dharma Plane.


    Wang Yu''s brows furrowed. He had seen Ye Futian and Bai Qiu''s fight and he was surprised by how strong Ye Futian was. If Bai Qiu hadn''t stopped him, he would have been the one down there. He would have underestimated Ye Futian. Now, he had witnessed Ye Futian''s aggression and he became more serious.


    Blazing wings spread open, filled with the wild aura of fire. Wang Yu sped down and hovered in the air before Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian opened his arms. The metal elemental Spiritual Qi gathered once again, transforming into a golden staff. He stepped forward, instantly creating an explosive burst of power.


    Boom! Fire ignited in Wang Yu''s body. He was bathed in the firelight and the Dharma wings flapped. Wild wind blew as he pounced at Ye Futian, not giving him time to gather his power. He''d witnessed the earlier fight so he knew that Ye Futian''s battle technique grew stronger as time went on. He must defeat Ye Futian before he gathered his power.


    The golden wings of the Roc glowed behind Ye Futian. With the help of the wind spell, he rose up and spun in the air. Wind kept beating down as invisible power gathered and strengthened around him.


    Below him, countless Flame Dragons snapped at Ye Futian, wanting to seal off the air. They curled toward Ye Futian''s flying body, the blazing heat burning him. Ye Futian''s spinning body sped up. His power was shocking and everyone watched as the two kept rising upward.


    Just as the Flame Dragons were about to catch up to Ye Futian, a beautiful arc streaked past. Rather than rising, he smashed downward with his staff��Genesis. With one hit, the Flame Dragons were all destroyed. The staff also continued rumbling toward Wang Yu.


    The man didn''t dodge. He released his life spirit��a terrifying Flamebird. His body seemed to burn. Countless Flamebird apparitions charged at Ye Futian with horribly hot flames.


    The golden staff swept through everything and crashed into Wang Yu''s body. Wang Yu transformed into a frightening Flamebird. His hands were like sharp claws, breaking the staff directly. There was a burst of horrifying power. The fire swept up and burned towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian used the powerful reverberations to bounce back and soar in the air. Everyone watched as a shocking strength coursed through him and he dove down again. However, Wang Yu was the pride of the Dharma Plane, and he was skilled in close-contact fighting. He didn''t fear this at all. His giant wings flashed and countless Flamebird circled around him. The rich flames swept through the air. His wings flapped and all the Flamebird seemed to charge at Ye Futian.


    They collided again. Everyone watched the two figures in the air with terror. Flames filled the void and Ye Futian''s body seemed to burn. Wang Yu was skilled at close-contact combat and didn''t fear Ye Futian''s power. The spectators shuddered. Ye Futian might not win this fight.


    At this moment, Ye Futian grew stronger. He cast down the third strike of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. The moment the two collided, a terrifying gust of air currents spread in all directions. The two came to a deadlock and then separated.


    Ye Futian was still higher up. He stabilized himself and the strong power around him was still terrifying.


    This power is too much, the spectators thought. They stared at the two figures in the air, their hearts trembling. Ye Futian was too powerful to be able to fight in close contact with a Dharma Plane Mandate Sorcerer skilled in combat.


    Wang Yu stared at Ye Futian. "What other tricks do you have?" he asked coldly.


    Ye Futian looked down on him. Inside, his blood began rumbling as the Imperial Tactics was activated. Rays of dazzling light streamed out of every part of his body. Then the majestic power grew stronger. It even showed signs of an emperor''s power.


    The frightening intent burst out. Then his staff began spinning again. He went through each of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. Each one required extreme cooperation of his spiritual intent to display the true power of Nine Heavenly Attacks. Ye Futian used to only be able to perform the first three. But after the fight in Donghai City, the mysterious emperor''s intent passed a special technique to him, changing his body. With the cooperation of the Imperial Tactics, the Nine Heavenly Attacks could shine even brighter.


    Everyone witnessed as his grandeur intensified. The power of the three earlier hits was amplified on his body. A gust of animosity burst forth and Wang Yu''s expression changed.


    Boom! Brilliant fiery wings flapped. Wang Yu moved up, charging at Ye Futian. He had felt danger. However, the moment he charged, Ye Futian looked over. His wings flapped and there was a burst of sound. Ye Futian rushed toward Wang Yu in a shockingly imposing manner. The fourth strike of Nine Heavenly Attacks swept through, creating a flurry of afterimages in the air and flattening everything.


    The Flamebird charging at Ye Futian was all shattered. Wang Yu''s expression turned more uncomfortable but his eyes shone with terrifying sharpness. He continued charging at Ye Futian. The various afterimages of the staff transformed into one. It became a staff that struck down.


    Wang Yu felt the unstoppable strength come down on him and his face paled. Then the spectators heard a pained cry. The golden staff had broken through everything and crashed against Wang Yu, smashing him to the ground.


    However, it was not over. Ye Futian''s wings flapped and he followed. The golden staff continued striking, each one beating Wang Yu''s body. He cried out continuously as he was forced down from the sky.


    After suffering countless hits, Wang Yu crashed onto the Fenghua Platform with a loud boom. Blood spurted from his mouth and his face had lost all color. There wasn''t an ounce of strength in his body.


    Everyone was dazed. They looked from Wang Yu''s fallen body to Ye Futian, still standing in the air above him.


    This�� They could sense that Wang Yu would be unable to participate in the later fights. Ye Futian couldn''t truly disable him but, at the very least, he was unqualified for the Fenghua Rank now.


    "Does it feel good to take revenge for others?" Ye Futian asked coldly. Wang Yu had bullied Fox because of Lin Yueyao. Since this was the case, Ye Futian would follow his lead.


    Everyone was speechless. Wang Yu had used his Dharma Plane to bully Hua Jieyu for Lin Yueyao. They couldn''t say anything against Ye Futian, who challenged him for his girlfriend Hua Jieyu. Plus, Ye Futian had used his Seven-star Glory Plane abilities to challenge a Dharma Plane and make him lose completely.


    In the air, Lin Yueyao looked down at Ye Futian, feeling unsettled. Ye Futian had already defeated the two strong cultivators of the Dharma Plane. He was practically unmatched and unbeatable, even overshadowing Yu Sheng''s earlier performance.


    Everyone could practically see his name in the top three of the Fenghua Rank. They looked toward the emperor and saw that he was smiling. The emperor''s eyes were calm and no one knew what he was thinking, but he must appreciate this kind of talent.


    "Take him away." The strong cultivators of the Wang family looked uncomfortable. One waved his hand and people walked onto the Fenghua Platform to help Wang Yu down. They''d thought that he would shine brightly today but unexpectedly, he''d disgraced them. There was nothing wrong with pursuing girls or being furious about love. However, it was embarrassing to lose to the boyfriend of the one he bullied.


    Many looked to Ye Futian. He didn''t seem ready to back down. At this time, he raised his head slowly and looked toward the Cangye College students. His gaze fell upon Yu Jiang.


    Smiling brightly, Ye Futian said, "Your turn."


    As soon as he spoke, Yu Jiang''s gaze hardened but it was not only him. All the strong cultivators in the air focused their gazes there. Was he going to challenge all the strong ones in the Dharma Plane?

 123 Cultivating During Battle

    Chapter 123: Cultivating During Battle


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Of course, Ye Futian had no intentions of fighting every single Dharma Plane participant but if he wanted to get into the top three, he had to demonstrate the best of his talents for the emperor. In all honesty, revealing his twin spirits and defeating two Dharma Plane cultivators was already enough but Ye Futian did not want to risk anything. Because of this, it was better to defeat one more person in the Dharma Plane as a safety measure. If he must defeat one more person, then Yu Jiang was naturally the best target. Yu Jiang did not look too good. He watched as Ye Futian stood in the air, looking at him with a smile.


    At last night''s dinner, Yu Jiang had stepped in with a couple words of his own when Ye Futian ignored Bai Qiu''s suggestion of a collaborative performance from Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. This must have been Ye Futian''s revenge. At the time, Yu Jiang thought that a mere Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator had no right to be pretentious and arrogant in front of Bai Qiu. But after the two battles just now, Ye Futian''s power and strength made Yu Jiang realize how right it was for him to be arrogant. If Bai Qiu did not want to perform, what gave him the right to request that Ye Futian played and for Hua Jieyu to dance along?


    Stepping forward, Yu Jiang''s eyes did not display much confidence. Neither Bai Qiu nor Wang Yu was any weaker than Yu Jiang but they had both been defeated. The difference between the three was that Bai Qiu majored in musical sorcery, Wang Yu in martial arts, and Yu Jiang in sorcery.


    Walking up to Ye Futian, Yu Jiang did not say anything. His Life Spirit released the realization of Dharma. Both of them were released at the same time, forming a tree. The tree grew taller and taller, seeming to have been formed by Spiritual Qi. The branches and leaves extended outward nonstop and Yu Jiang stood at the center of the tree.


    Yu Jiang was a Wood Elemental Sorcerer. He only cultivated in one element but because he was a Mandate Sorcerer, he was able to cultivate this one element to its greatest potential. His powers were just as frightening as the rest. The giant tree''s branches rustled toward Ye Futian. Gathering the Spiritual Qi around him, he was able to release the Lock of a Thousand Vines. In a split second, the vines blocked the sky and tried to encapsulate Ye Futian.


    Because of his Life Spirit and the realization of Dharma, the wood elemental sorcery that Yu Jiang used was much more powerful than that of other Wood Sorcerers. In a flash, Ye Futian moved backwards. At the same time, a fire dragon appeared. Growling, it raced towards the vines ahead. Fire Sorcery was able to affect Wood Sorcery to a certain extent. But this was also true vice versa. Yu Jiang''s sorcery was far more powerful than Ye Futian''s. The vines brushed over the fire dragon and continued to travel towards Ye Futian.


    "He can also use Fire Sorcery. He cultivates in sorcery." Everyone watching Ye Futian was speechless. Once again, they thought back to what he said, ''I only cultivated musical sorcery to better myself.''


    BOOM! A wild flame erupted from Ye Futian. Unless amounts of Fire Spiritual Qi rushed into his body. Very quickly, Ye Futian was bathing in the burning flames. His body was like an incinerator, ready to turn everything into ash. Even the long golden rod in his hand was enveloped in flames. The colors of the gold and the flames together were captivating.


    Of course, Ye Futian knew that he couldn''t go up against a powerful cultivator in the Dharma Plane with just sorcery. Although his sorcery was pretty powerful, it was visibly much weaker than his abilities in martial arts. He cultivated the enhancement methods passed down from Emperor Ye Qing, and then later acquired the Imperial Tactics. Every fiber of his body incredibly powerful. With just pure strength, he would have been able to defeat everyone below the Dharma Plane. However, those in the Dharma Plane were able to release the realization of Dharma. It was necessary to use tactics never seen before, like the Nine Heavenly Attacks, to bridge the gap in planes. It was the only way to defeat an opponent in a much higher plane. Even though it was true that Ye Futian was a Full Attribute Mandate Sorcerer and was highly gifted, because he cultivated in battle tactics, he was still stronger in martial arts under comparison with sorcery.


    When the vines came closer, his body soared through the air. His rod danced and a great force of power collected. The vines kept chasing after Ye Futian like there was no limit to where they could go.


    Ye Futian ignored the vines and continued to fly in the sky. He then swung his rod downward and a fearsome burst of flames rushed to engulf the vines. An apparition of the rod appeared and attacked Yu Jiang.


    Yu Jiang face was emotionless. Countless vines appeared in front of him and blocked off the attack. However, that could not be considered a real attack. Ye Futian''s rod swung down once again. His movements in the sky were not those of a battle. It looked more like he was practicing using the rod.


    This guy... Many people watched Ye Futian as he waved the golden rod enveloped in flames around in the sky. They began to realize that he was indeed practicing. To practice while in combat with Yu Jiang. What did Ye Futian take him for?


    Yu Jiang had realized as well. His expression was not too good. He moved up along the tree and straight for Ye Futian. The tree rustled loudly as Wood Spiritual Qi exploded in the air.


    Behind Yu Jiang, the giant tree shined brightly and began to grow outward continuously. It blocked the sky like a mystical tree. The giant tree vine curling toward Ye Futian looked like a coiling black dragon. The Binding of the Black Dragon was a wood elemental spell and needed to be initiated with a strong force of Wood Spiritual Qi.


    Ye Futian continued to mess with the rod. It was as if he could not see what was going on. When the vine got closer, he struck down for the third time and the wood elemental black dragon was destroyed. Yu Jiang''s expression fell. Watching Ye Futian wave the rod around, collecting more power, he knew that things were taking a turn for the worst. Ye Futian destroyed Wang Yu with four strikes during the previous battle. Now, he was collecting power in preparation for his fourth strike at Yu Jiang.


    Just as everyone thought, Ye Futian was indeed cultivating. Previously, he made it to the fourth attack of the Nine Heavenly Attacks because of the Imperial Tactics. Now, he wanted to accomplish the same thing with his own powers. His will was strong. Right now, Ye Futian had no other thoughts. Everything around him had nothing to do with him. A large force of power gathered around him. It felt heavy. The Nine Heavenly Attacks were aggressive but hard to control. Strong willpower was needed to initiate it. Ye Futian''s movements seemed to have slowed.


    Just then, the Binding of the Black Dragon descended upon him once again. The vines came with frighteningly sharp thorns. They moved toward Ye Futain.


    BOOM! Ye Futian emitted a shocking force of power. Next, the rod swung down and the black dragon exploded into pieces. Flames lit up the sky. Ye Futian followed the motion of the rod and descended like a Burning Man. Everything he passed turned into ash. This continued until the rod finally met with Yu Jiang''s body. The hit smashed Yu Jiang down on to the Fenghua Platform.


    Everywhere around the platform was extremely quiet. Their eyes went to the handsome figure in the sky. Ye Futian had defeated three Dharma Plane cultivators in a row. He was good at musical sorcery, martial arts, sorcery, and was gifted in multiple elements, such as the element of spirit, metal, wind, and fire. Just as Ye Futian had predicted, with his gifts, he was most definitely going to be in the top three on the Fenghua Rank. He was only in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane but was already one of the best among the group of fifteen just in terms of combat skills. Besides the couple people in the second level Dharma Plane, who would be able to touch him?


    Ye Futian did not spare a second glance at Yu Jiang who had fallen to the ground. His wild aura disappeared and, in a flash, he was back on the Black Wind Eagle.


    Many people continued to stare at Ye Futian. He was handsome and had a bright personality. He always had a light smile on his face, giving others a very comfortable feeling. But this handsome young man who didn''t look like could hurt a fly, had just brutally defeated three extremely talented Dharma Plane cultivators.


    Then, their attention shifted to Hua Jieyu, who was beside him. Presently, there was no one else who thought it was unfitting for the two to be together. They were the perfect couple, a match made in heaven. They were both unbelievably gifted and incredibly good looking. When they stood together, Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty, Lin Yueyao, as well as the pride of all clans could not hold a candle to them. Furthermore, there was still Yu Sheng, standing behind the couple. He was also so talented, it was unnatural. People thought, what kind of group is this?


    After the shock had passed, the battles continued. Participants in the Dharma Plane made exchanges on the platform. Young Lord Ye Wuchen and Cangye College''s Zuo Qianfan could be described as invincible. There was no one who could lay a hand on them. Without incident, these two would be the two most powerful people at the Fenghua Banquet. Besides them, there was a prodigy-level person who was not from the Cangye Kingdom. He was also very powerful.


    After they were defeated by Ye Futian, Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang continued to battle. However, they had lost their air of arrogance. They had been taught a lesson by a Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator and no longer had the right to be arrogant. But to be honest, they were not weak at all. They were victorious battle after battle against those in the same plane. This helped everyone understand. The two of them weren''t weak. Ye Futian was simply way too powerful. Even if it had been someone else in the first level Dharma Plane who fought against Ye Futian, the results would be the same.


    If that''s how it was, Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang still had a chance to enter the Fenghua Rank. Wang Yu was the most pitiful. He was beat until he lost his power to battle. He didn''t even get a chance to demonstrate his talents. There was no reason for the emperor to pick him.


    In the Glory Plane, Lin Yueyao and Hua Zhixin battled. Both beauties were talented but with the advantage of being in a higher plane, Lin Yueyao won. Despite that, Hua Zhixin perfectly displayed her combat skills in this battle. In terms of gifts and talents, Hua Zhixin wouldn''t have lost to Lin Yueyao. After the two of them fought, there was no one else to compete. In the Glory Plane, there was also Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Jieyu but who would they fight? They might as well challenge those in the Dharma Plane.


    This saddened the two young women. Today on the Fenghua Platform, the one who shined the brightest would have, without a doubt, been Hua Jieyu. She stole Lin Yueyao''s spotlight.


    Yu Sheng fought another battle with someone in the Dharma Plane. However, he did not win. The reason for that was simple. The opponent could fly and Yu Sheng couldn''t, so he could endure take the attacks. This pissed off Yu Sheng big time. In the end, even though Yu Sheng hadn''t been beat into the ground, he still stepped off the Fenghua Platform feeling very melancholic.


    Although he did not win, no one dared to underestimate Yu Sheng''s gifts. This guy was also able to fight Dharma Plane cultivators. If only he could fly, then he would have had a chance of defeating those in the Dharma Plane.


    As the battles came and went, the Fenghua Banquet was getting closer to the end. No one would have ever expected for three Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivators to come out of nowhere and display such talents at the Fenghua Banquet!

 124 The Emperor’s Ranking

    Chapter 124: The Emperor��s Ranking


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was a little bit quiet since there were fewer people went to battle on the Fenghua Platform.


    Only the strongest were left.


    They were the young Lord Ye Wuchen, Zuo Qianfan from Cangye College, and Li Yi. Other than Ye Futian''s trio, Li Yi was the other dark horse. No one knew him before and he was not from this kingdom either. Among the talents from the other nations, Li Yi would be the most outstanding if Ye Futian''s trio wasn''t there.


    His life spirit was the Sun Bird, a three-foot golden bird with the attributes of both wind and fire. He cultivated both sorcery and martial arts at the same time and his martial arts techniques were peculiar. When fighting, the fire inside him seemed to come not only from the Spiritual Qi of the world. It was more frightening than it.


    At this moment, Li Yi came out and looked at Ye Wuchen. Ye Wuchen had shone so brightly on the Fenghua Platform but he still wanted to try.


    Ye Wuchen landed on the platform quickly. He looked calm as usual, his body standing there like a sword. Such temperament became especially obvious when he was about to fight. It was as if the intent of the sword surrounded him.


    Li Yi also reached the realization of Dharma through his life spirit. He turned into a huge golden bird. The flames could burn everything, and were far stronger than Wang Yu''s.


    "You still won''t release the Dharma?" Li Yi asked.


    "No need." Ye Wuchen was still calm, his tone full of confidence.


    The illusions of golden birds pounced toward Ye Wuchen with monstrous flames. For a moment, Ye Wuchen''s body was set on fire, but he stood still with sword''s light swirling around in a storm. They slashed through the illusions of the golden birds.


    "What strong sword intent." People felt their hearts fluttering. The sword intent around Ye Wuchen seemed to turn into a substantive sword moving around his body. It was amazing. Before the Fenghua Banquet started, Ye Wuchen had been cheered the most. Everyone took him as the strongest and Ye Wuchen didn''t disappoint them.


    Li Yi moved quickly toward Ye Wuchen. Ye Wuchen stepped forward only one step and the sword intent swept as if it gathered an endless amount into one sword. He was that one sword. Li Yi halted. Ye Wuchen seemed to be a real sword to him instead of a man. The flames went out. Li Yi turned and flew away.


    "I was defeated." Hearing Li Yi''s voice, the people felt somewhat confused. In the beginning, Li Yi chose to challenge Ye Wuchen even when knowing his mightiness. Why did he concede before the fight? They didn''t understand, but for Li Yi, he knew he was defeated as soon as Ye Wuchen stepped forward. He hadn''t reached the other''s state, not only technically but also spiritually.


    Ye Wuchen drew back his foot and returned to the air. Many eyes fell upon Zuo Qianfan who was the only one left who was considered a threat to Ye Wuchen. However, Zuo Qianfan was not going to fight. Perhaps he was not confident enough. Of course, as long as he didn''t fight, no one would know who was stronger.


    Ye Wuchen didn''t have the desire to challenge him. He was confident enough to believe that there were no rivals on the Fenghua Banquet and there was no need to challenge anyone.


    The Fenghua Platform became quiet again. It seemed that no one continued to fight. An elder of Cangye College went on the platform and said, "Anyone else? Otherwise, this is the end."


    No one responded. The elder looked at the Emperor. Emperor Ye nodded slightly. The disciples from the Cangye College bowed and departed.


    People all looked at those young people in the void. Ten of them would be called out by the emperor and shine brightly. There were many guesses about the ranking.


    "Go up to the platform," the Emperor said, smiling. Everyone went to the stage, including Ye Futian''s trio. Only Wang Yu was lifted up pathetically. The pitiful Wang Yu glared at Ye Futian. He didn''t want to come since it was impossible for him to be on the list. However, this is the rule of the Fenghua Banquet. His father ordered some people to carry him to the platform.


    Ye Futian didn''t look at Wang Yu. Wang Yu definitely hadn''t expected to have such consequences when he was fighting for Lin Yueyao.


    The 15 people all appeared on the platform.


    Ye Wuchen still looked calm as if he didn''t care about anything while Zuo Qianfan smiled handsomely.


    Lin Yueyao looked around with a complex expression. Her beautiful eyes flitted between Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. She had never thought that there could be another woman who shone brighter than her.


    Yu Jiang and Bai Qiu had lost their previous arrogance because of that man on the platform��Ye Futian. Although they performed well in the later rounds, people would only remember the round with Ye Futian. The youth was too talented that they could only serve to make him look better in comparison.


    Gradually, they looked up at the throne in front. The Emperor smiled at them and said, "Number ten on the Fenghua list, Lin Yueyao." The Emperor''s voice made people''s hearts tremble.


    Lin Yueyao, the first beauty of Cangye Kingdom, was very talented. She had been renowned even before the Fenghua Banquet. Now, she was indeed on the Fenghua list but in last place. To appear on the list was unattainable for most people. However, there was nothing to be proud of for Lin Yueyao. In her two fights, she was defeated by Hua Jieyu and won Hua Zhixin slightly. No one could complain about the Emperor''s ranking. It was reasonable.


    "Number nine, Yu Jiang," the Emperor continued to announce. The hero of the Cangye College was ninth. Although he was defeated by Ye Futian, he still performed outstandingly. He deserved the ninth place.


    "Number eight, Bai Qiu," the Emperor went on. Many people also guessed this outcome. Yu Jiang, Bai Qiu, and Wang Yu were the three talents in realization of Dharma but they were all defeated by Ye Futian. However, it was proved later that Yu Jiang and Bai Qiu were not weaker than the others in the Dharma Plane. It was just because Ye Futian was too monstrous. Therefore, Ye Futian must be one of the top three.


    It was absolutely a miracle that a man from the Seven-star Glory Plane could be one of the top three.


    "Number seven, Hua Zhixin."


    Hua Zhixin, another beauty, was the seventh.


    Hua Zhixin herself felt a little bit surprised. She looked at the Emperor with puzzlement. She had only fought with Lin Yueyao and she was defeated. Why would the Emperor put her in seventh place?


    It was unexpected not only for Hua Zhixin but also for many other people. However, they knew that it couldn''t call a defeat since Hua Zhixin had used the Eight-star Glory Plane to fight with Lin Yueyao to that extent. If she was on the same plane as Lin Yueyao, it was quite possible for her to win.


    Lin Yueyao was also stunned. She had battled twice��defeated by Hua Jieyu but victorious over Hua Zhixin. However, the Emperor ranked her at the last and set Hua Zhixin at the seventh place. It was natural to be upset.


    "Number six, Li Yi," the Emperor continued. Li Yi, a strong cultivator in the Dharma Plane, was sixth.


    There were five people left. Ye Futian''s trio were all in the top five. Other than them, there was also Ye Wuchen and Zuo Qianfan. These two hadn''t been defeated yet. In fact, Yu Sheng was just like Hua Zhixin. He had only fought once and was defeated.


    So what? Who was Yu Sheng''s competitor? It was the genius in the Dharma Plane and it shouldn''t be counted as a defeat. He had left because he couldn''t hit the other. As for Hua Zhixin and Lin Yueyao, Yu Sheng just didn''t want to fight with them, which made sense to everyone. No one was surprised by the result.


    There was another man who was defeated in his only fight but was also strong. It was Wang Yu, but he was different. His rival was Ye Futian who was only at the Seven-star Glory Plane. They were on the same plane but different levels. However, he was defeated to a miserable extent as everyone could see. After that, he had no chance to prove himself as Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang did. He could blame no one. It was destined that his name couldn''t appear on the list.


    Next was the top five. Everyone was looking forward to the result.


    Emperor Ye looked at those people on the platform. Everyone tensed. The remaining people were really difficult to rank. Of Zuo Qianfan, Hua Jieyu and Yu Sheng, who would be the fifth?


    Zuo Qianfan hadn''t been defeated yet, while what he had showed was just as powerful as Ye Wuchen. Therefore, Zuo Qianfan and Ye Wuchen must be the two strongest. Some people wondered whether Zuo Qianfan didn''t challenge Ye Wuchen to deliberately avoid him. As for Hua Jieyu, she had only fought once and defeated Lin Yueyao, crossing two planes. Yu Sheng was also strong. There would be dispute no matter who was the fifth.


    "Do you have anything to say?" the Emperor smiled and asked.


    Everyone''s expressions grew complex. Zuo Qianfan smiled and said, "Your Highness, though I haven''t fought with Ye Wuchen, there is a greater possibility for me to be defeated if we battle. From Ye Wuchen''s matchless demeanor, he must be the top one. As for me, just take me as I was defeated."


    Many people looked at Zuo Qianfan in surprise. He seemed to be uninterested in the ranking. Many people admired his attitude for he took the initiative to admit that he would be defeated and recommended Ye Wuchen to be the top one.


    But Yu Sheng glanced at Zuo Qianfan coolly. For him, the first place should be Ye Futian. Zuo Qianfan didn''t have the right to judge and disturb the Emperor''s decision.


    Yu Sheng knew that Ye Futian might not be so interested in the rank either. He didn''t challenge anyone else after defeating the three talents in the Dharma Plane. This meant his goal was only the top three. He attended the Fenghua Banquet only for his teacher''s injury. Whether it was first or third place was not so important to him. However, Yu Sheng cared about this. Zuo Qianfan was from the Cangye College while Ye Futian had humiliated Yu Jiang who was from Cangye College too.

 125 A Pretty Nice Guy

    Chapter 125: A Pretty Nice Guy


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Although Yu Sheng had a bad temper, he was definitely not dumb. On the contrary, he was very smart in certain aspects. Zuo Qianfan''s words made him some generous but in reality, they carried a hidden meaning. He said it on purpose. Any place in the top three was honorable and could make a request to the emperor but first place and the two places afterward were still different. Many times, people only ever remembered those in first place. Plus, if Ye Wuchen was first, that meant the determining factor was ability, then it would be only fair to give Zuo Qianfan second place.


    "I only had one battle and was defeated, I should be in fifth place," said Yu Sheng. He suddenly looked in the emperor''s direction and said, "Zuo Qianfan and Ye Wuchen are both second level Dharma Plane cultivators. Ye Wuchen being the stronger of the two. Although Zuo Qianfan was not actually defeated in battle, he did not battle with Ye Wuchen and has admitted that he is lacking in comparison. Zuo Qianfan did not fully prove his worth. He should be fourth place."


    Zuo Qianfan and Yu Jiang were dumbfounded by Yu Sheng''s words. Especially Zuo Qianfan. His gaze turned sharp as a knife. Yu Sheng had pointed out in front of everyone that Zuo Qianfan had not proved his worth.


    "That makes sense," the Emperor smiled and nodded. "Even though you only fought one battle, it was with a Dharma Plane cultivator. Had it been anyone in planes lower than the Dharma Plane, you would have easily won," he said to Yu Sheng.


    "As for Zuo Qianfan, you have incredible abilities and is obviously very generous. You are indeed a student of Cangye College." Emperor Ye announced with a smile on his face, "Fifth place on Fenghua Rank goes to Zuo Qianfan."


    Hearing Emperor Ye''s compliment, Zuo Qianfan let out a small smile but that smile froze on his face when he heard the second half of the sentence. However, he recovered quickly.


    In the air above the Fenghua Platform, many people had their attention trained in their direction. The conversation between Yu Sheng, Zuo Qianfan, and the emperor was full of hidden meanings.


    In the end, Emperor Ye had placed Zuo Qianfan in fifth. Cangye College was the most well-known place of cultivation in the imperial city but although they had two students on the Fenghua Rank, none of them made it to top three.


    "Hua Jieyu, fourth." The audience did not think much of it. Emperor Ye continued to announce the results and in fourth place, was Hua Jieyu, not Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng had asked to be placed fifth but now, the emperor had left him for the top three. Yu Sheng actually made it into the top three despite his loss in the only battle he fought. This seemed senseless but right at the same time.


    The Fenghua Rank did not only look at wins or losses, but combat power and abilities as well. When making a decision, it was only natural that the emperor also took gifts, talents, and potential into consideration. For example, even though it was Hua Jieyu who defeated Lin Yueyao, Yu Sheng would have been able to as well.


    Hua Jieyu also battled with Wang Yu but was unable to contend against him. Yu Sheng, on the other hand, was able to face his opponent''s realization of Dharma. The ranking between the two was clear. And that was why Yu Sheng placed before Hua Jieyu.


    Yu Sheng felt surprised himself and looked strangely at the emperor. It seemed Emperor Ye felt his gaze because he chuckled before saying, "Yu Sheng, third."


    Hearing that Yu Sheng was placed third in the end, many people looked at the emperor in admiration. The rankings from third to tenth place looked simple but was actually very complicated.


    Ye Wuchen was the most powerful cultivator at the Fenghua Banquet and Ye Futian was the most fearsome. He was able to defeat people in planes much higher. The two of them were rightfully in the top two. Next, it was time to see who got first place.


    At this moment, everyone stared closely at Emperor Ye, awaiting his answer. However, what he did was turn his gaze over to the last two participants. He smiled and asked them, "What do you guys think about this?


    Ye Wuchen''s gaze fell on Ye Futian. He said, "I am a second level Dharma Plane cultivator and you, a Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator. In the battles before, I didn''t challenge you to a battle because it would put you at too much of a disadvantage. But since His Majesty has asked, I really want to experience the tactics you used with the rod. I''ll only defend, no attacks. How does that sound?" The Nine Heavenly Attacks was truly a majestic sight, but at Ye Wuchen''s level of cultivation, it would be too much for him to initiate a challenge with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian gave him an odd look but nodded anyway. "Alright." Having arrived at an agreement, the two stepped on to the center of the Fenghua Platform. They stood opposite of each other.


    Ye Wuchen stood there exuding the intention of sword. He seemed sharp as a sword.


    In Ye Futian''s hand, the long rod appeared.


    BOOM! Ye Futian took a step forward. An invisible force suddenly exploded.


    BOOM! He took another step, this time stronger than the last.


    Step by step, Ye Futian walked closer to Ye Wuchen. With every step the force of power escalated until a powerful storm began to revolve around Ye Futian''s body.


    Ye Wuchen remained standing quietly. No matter what Ye Futian did, he remained stationary.


    When the force escalated all the way to the top, Ye Futian''s wings appeared and took him up in the air. Like a bolt of lightning, the long golden rod struck down and, in the air, a bright light flashed by.


    Just then, Ye Wuchen took a small step forward. Only one step. A wave of sword intent charged towards the rod striking down at him. A loud crash. He was not able to destroyed the golden rod. Instead, the intent of sword was repelled back at Ye Wuchen. Ye Futian used the force of repulsion to his advantage. He soared through the sky, his force even stronger now. The rod struck down a second time, stronger than the first.


    Ye Wuchen reached out his hand to point into the air. The intent of sword filled the air and raced into the sky. Ye Futian could feel an invisible storm of swords hitting the long rod. Even though Ye Futian had a great force behind him, he was still unable to advance forward. He soared through the air once again and administered the third attack of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. Ye Wuchen lifted his head to look up at the sky and the intent of a thousand swords gathered by him. All of them rushed towards the rod coming down at him. The third attack had also been blocked.


    Having been fended off once again, Ye Futian stood arrogantly in the air. The force of power flowed around his body. His gaze sharpened and fell on Ye Wuchen below. Unknowingly, an intent to battle brewed in Ye Futian. Compared to Wang Yu, Bai Qiu, and the rest, Ye Wuchen''s abilities were much, much stronger. He was on a different level from everyone else.


    The long rod danced in the air and its apparitions appeared. A large wave of intent of battle washed downward and an explosion sounded. With the great force of power pushing forward, the rod struck for the fourth time. The tens of thousands of apparitions combined into one. The intent of sword rushed towards the rod once again but this time, it was destroyed. At this sight, Ye Wuchen moved quickly. With a step, he lifted into the air. His body morphed into a sword, the intent of sword joined his body and charged at the long rod.


    Finally, when the rod struck again, the endless amount of sword intent filled the finger that Ye Wuchen pointed out with and a large sword appeared. When the two weapons meet, they were both destroyed, dissipating into nothing.


    Ye Futian stood in the air and looked at Ye Wuchen. With a smile, he complimented, "Incredible." Ye Futian did not care too much about wins and losses. Although Ye Wuchen was in the second level Dharma Plane, he was incredibly gifted to begin with. So, even though he was in the same plane as Bai Qiu and others, they could not be compared. This gap between Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen was too large for Ye Futian to overcome.


    Ye Wuchen nodded and returned to his original position. Ye Futian also returned to stand beside Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu.


    The results of this round were not as surprising to everyone. The gap was too great.


    Emperor Ye looked at the two of them and then his gaze settled on Ye Wuchen. "Wuchen, how would you feel if I placed you first?


    Everyone''s heart began to race. Had the emperor already decided who was going to be first place on the Fenghua Rank?


    Ye Wuchen was invincible during this year''s Fenghua Banquet and was definitely qualified to be first.


    Ye Wuchen lifted his head to look at Emperor Ye. Under the gaze of all spectators, he opened his mouth slowly and said, "Ye Futian is more qualified than I am."


    His words dumbfounded everyone. They all looked at him in shock. But Emperor Ye only smiled, seemingly very satisfied at Ye Wuchen''s reply.


    He looked at Ye Wuchen and smiled, "Then as you wish. Second on the Fenghua Rank, Ye Wuchen."


    At this announcement, everyone was shaken. They were surprised by the Emperor''s decision. The Emperor had asked Ye Wuchen what he thought of being first. This made everyone think that he was going to be in first place. But now, countless pairs of eyes landed on the Fenghua Platform, right at the handsome figure standing between Hua Jieyu and Yu Sheng. They all knew that after today, Ye Futian would be famous throughout the entire Cangye Kingdom.


    Beside Emperor Ye, Ye Lingxi smiled at Ye Futian. He was finally receiving the honor he deserved for his gifts. He defeated three Dharma Plane cultivators in a row and was destined to shine brighter than others.


    "First place on the Fenghua Rank, Ye Futian!" said Emperor Ye with a smile. Everyone was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop. All eyes were focused on a single person, truly the center of attention.


    Zuo Qianfan and Yu Jiang of the Cangye College stood frozen. Ye Futian? First place? While Zuo Qianfan was placed fifth?


    Bai Qiu and Wang Yu looked coldly at Ye Futian.


    Hua Zhixin hid a smile. She was happy for him.


    Lin Yueyao looked conflicted.


    Hua Jieyu smiled at Ye Futian. He had been chased from the Nandou Nation. Carrying rage and hate, he had come a long way to arrive at the Cangye Kingdom. He never expected to stand out so much in this country. This was the kind of person Ye Futian was. No matter where he went, he would always be the most outstanding, the brightest existence. No one could go above him.


    Yu Sheng burst into laughter. His smile was silly, making him look like a completely different person than the wild fighter from before. He was so happy, it was like he had gotten first place. It was possible that Yu Sheng wouldn''t even be this happy had he actually gotten first place himself.


    Far away, Hua Fengliu, Nandou Wenyin, Tang Wan, Tang Lan, and Yi Qingxuan were all looking at Ye Futian. A great big smile met all of their eyes. The young man already stood out from the rest in the City of Donghai. It was Emperor Luo''s imperial order that ended his journey in the Nandou Nation abruptly. It was fortunate that the emperor of the Cangye Kingdom appreciated Ye Futian''s gifts and gave him the honor he deserved. Out of all the gifted and talented young cultivators in the Cangye Kingdom who had gathered for the Fenghua Banquet, Ye Futian was first.


    Emperor Ye smiled at Yu Sheng and asked, "Yu Sheng, have you thought about what request you would like to make?"


    Yu Sheng lifted his head, and his eyes met with Emperor Ye. He scratched his head. He actually hadn''t thought of any request he would like to make because he never thought he would make it into the top three.


    "Your Majesty, you seem like a pretty nice guy, so I won''t ask you for anything," Yu Sheng said with an honest smile. To him, Ye Futian''s honor was more important than everything else. The sight of Emperor Ye was a lot more pleasing to Yu Sheng now.


    Everyone was shocked by Yu Sheng''s utterance?


    "A pretty nice guy?" Even Emperor Ye was dumbfounded. He then let out a light-hearted laugh. To Yu Sheng, he said, "No one has ever said that to me before. I''ll remember what you said."

 126 Confer

    Chapter 126: Confer


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The nobles around Emperor Ye also laughed. His Majesty seemed to really appreciate Yu Sheng. But everyone was surprised to find him, a humanoid monster when fighting, so simple and honest. No one expected that Yu Sheng would give up such an opportunity which many people longed for. Emperor Ye even joked that he had the chance to marry the princess with this opportunity.


    "You idiot," Ye Futian scolded under his breath while still smiling. He looked toward the Emperor. "Yu Sheng, there is no jesting in His Majesty''s words. Since you get the top three, you should ask for something or you are looking down upon His Majesty."


    Hearing Ye Futian''s voice, everyone looked at him, startled. That handsome figure, standing there quietly, looked to the Emperor straightforwardly and sincerely as if he was really thinking for the Emperor''s good. Even Emperor Ye was astonished. His words seemed to be quite reasonable?


    "That''s right. Yu Sheng, if you don''t ask for a reward, you are looking down upon me. Think about it again." The Emperor smiled at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. These two little kids are really interesting.


    Yu Sheng was bewildered. He looked at the Emperor and then looked at Ye Futian��


    Hua Jieyu chuckled. He was the same as before.


    "Wuchen, what''s your request?" The Emperor looked at Ye Wuchen, smiling.


    "Your Highness, I would like to pay a visit to the palace''s library," Ye Wuchen answered.


    The Emperor''s eyes flashed. He smiled and said, "You make some good requests. Okay, I promise you."


    "Thank you, Your Highness," Ye Wuchen said.


    The Emperor finally looked to Ye Futian and asked, "Ye Futian, what do you want?"


    "Your Highness, I want to have my teacher cured," Ye Futian said with anticipation in his eyes. This was the reason why he attended the Fenghua Banquet.


    Many people were somewhat surprised. Since Ye Futian was so talented, who would his teacher be? And this person seemed to have been injured, so Ye Futian asked for the Emperor''s help.


    "Where is your teacher and how was he injured?" the Emperor asked.


    Ye Futian looked back to the crowd''s direction and shouted, "Masteress!"


    Hearing Ye Futian, Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan walked out from the crowd. They helped Hua Fengliu to the Fenghua Platform. Many people were shocked at the trio. Without mentioning their talent, this group was just too good-looking. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu''s good looks went without saying. Now among these three people, Hua Fengliu was handsome with a gentle demeanor while Nandou Wenyin next to him was so elegant, noble, and as beautiful as the queen beside the Emperor. Tang Lan was also very attractive.


    "Father, Mother." Hua Jieyu went forward. People suddenly understood their relationships. No wonder Hua Jieyu had such charming features. Then people looked at Ye Futian. This guy had snatched his teacher''s daughter; amazing. At the same time, they also vaguely guessed the reason why Ye Futian attended Fenghua Banquet to show his talent. He attended it for his teacher.


    "My teacher''s life spirit has been destroyed. Later he forced his life spirit to fight, which caused great trauma to his spiritual force," Ye Futian explained. "I heard that only sorcerers from Spiritual Elemental can cure my teacher''s injury. Please help me, Your Majesty."


    "Can you still release your life spirit?" the Emperor asked, looking at Hua Fengliu.


    Hua Fengliu nodded slightly. Then a light shone as if his life spirit appeared but instead of it, the people saw broken fragments of a guqin. People inferred that Hua Fengliu must be a music sorcerer from Ye Futian''s music spell.


    Emperor Ye also figured out this fact and nodded. "No problem. His injury can be cured."


    Ye Futian expected this but was still very comforted to hear this from the Emperor. He bowed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."


    "Weren''t you the one who said that a man would never go against his words? Since I''ve promised you, I will definitely meet my words," the Emperor said, smiling. Ye Futian smiled too. The Emperor had seen through him.


    "Thank you, Your Majesty." Hua Jieyu expressed her thanks too. Would her father''s injury finally be cured? Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan looked at Hua Fengliu and smiled. They then looked at Ye Futian, gratified.


    Hua Fengliu was very calm but felt warm inside too. Although this disciple was sometimes shameless, he was still fond of the youth since Ye Futian was very like him.


    "Yu Sheng, are you ready?" the Emperor once again asked Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian and said, "I want to find my teacher."


    Ye Futian immediately understood him. Thinking of Yi Xiang, Ye Futian also missed him. That old man must be safe.


    "Let me explain," Ye Futian said. From the Emperor''s attitude today, Ye Futian thought it would be proper to tell their true identity since the two countries were rivals.


    "Okay." Yu Sheng nodded.


    Ye Futian looked to the Emperor and said, "I want to ask Your Majesty''s forgiveness first."


    The Emperor looked at him in puzzlement. Another forgiveness? These guys seemed to have some secrets.


    "Say it. I will not punish you," the Emperor said.


    "We are not from the Cangye Kingdom," Ye Futian said. Hearing this, many cheery people became silent and studied Ye Futian''s group. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Jieyu had displayed amazing talent at this banquet. Now they said they were not the people of this kingdom. They took two of the top three places. This was a slap to the talents of Cangye Kingdom.


    The Emperor was slightly stunned but recovered instantly. They were so gifted but not the people of this kingdom. They must have attended the Fenghua Banquet for an ulterior motive.


    "Go on," the Emperor said.


    "We come from East Sea Prefecture of the Nandou Nation." Ye Futian''s words raised an uproar in the surrounding crowd. The Nandou Nation was the enemy of Cangye Kingdom. People from the enemy nation came to their Fenghua Banquet and shone so brightly.


    "I cultivated in Donghai Academy, but on the last day of the Divine calendar," Ye Futian continued, "Emperor Luo suddenly ordered to execute us. Thanks to the elders'' fight to the death to protect us, we escaped safely to the Cangye Kingdom."


    Emperor Ye nodded lightly. He looked at Hua Jieyu, smiled and said, "No wonder I am familiar with her life spirit. She must have an uncommon identity, right?"


    "My masteress comes from the Nandou clan, the past noble family of Nandou Nation, but the Nandou family was also ordered to kill us." Ye Futian did not conceal anything since the Emperor had guessed it. The East Sea Prefecture was in such unrest. If Emperor Ye wanted to investigate, it was very easy to find out. It would be better for him to tell everything straightforwardly.


    "The past royal family��so she was a former princess." Emperor Ye smiled and continued, "What does this have to do with Yu Sheng''s request?"


    "Yu Sheng''s teacher was also one of the elders, Yi Xiang, the former headmaster of the School of Finance Star in East Sea Prefecture," Ye Futian answered. "In order to help us escape, he left to fight the pursuers. Yu Sheng naturally worries about him. He wants to ask whether Your Majesty could help find his teacher."


    Emperor Ye looked at Yu Sheng and the youth nodded.


    In the distance, Yi Qingxuan''s eyes reddened. She had been worried about her father all these days. She hoped Emperor Ye could agree.


    Countless eyes fell upon Emperor Ye, including Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Although they were from Nandou Nation, they were being chased by the killers from Nandou. Therefore, Emperor Ye could not blame them. Ye Futian guessed that the emperor might agree but before the emperor did so, he was still unsure about it.


    Emperor Ye looked at the people in front of him: geniuses from Nandou and members of the old royal family. Why did Emperor Luo want to kill them? Emperor Ye could guess a few reasons why an emperor would order to kill these young people. They threatened the royal power.


    "A cultivator''s nationality should not restrict them. Though you are from the Nandou Nation, now that you have come to my kingdom, you are my citizen." Emperor Ye said, "It''s their loss to expel you."


    Hearing the emperor''s words, Ye Futian and the others felt reassured


    Emperor Ye looked to Ye Futian again and smiled. "What you and Yu Sheng asked is not a big deal. I promise you. In addition, the three of you are in the top five. You deserve the reward. You and Yu Sheng made requests so I will give Hua Jieyu the reward. She is the descendant of the old royal family, a former princess. Now that she has come to the Cangye Kingdom, I shall confer her the title of a non-family princess and give her the freedom to enter the palace. What say you?"


    Emperor Ye had figured out Ye Futian''s importance in this group. Hua Jieyu was his girlfriend while Yu Sheng was willing to listen to him. Even his master and masteress trusted him very much. This was why Emperor Ye was talking to Ye Futian.


    The surrounding people were shocked that the Emperor wanted to make Hua Jieyu a princess. According to the emperor, Hue Jieyu was rewarded for the three of them. The reward of the title of princess was reasonable as a combination of the first, third, and fourth place rewards.


    After a while, many people recovered from the shock. They immediately understood the emperor''s intention and their eyes were full of admiration. The group was wanted for death in the Nandou Nation but Cangye Kingdom''s emperor rewarded them heavily, even conferring Hua Jieyu the title of princess. Not only did he strengthen ties, this action also represented Emperor Ye''s generosity.


    Ye Futian naturally understood this. He wasn''t hung up on Nandou Nation''s status. Hua Jieyu''s title of princess was just a title but it represented Emperor Ye''s attitude and required a response.


    "Thank you, Your Majesty," Ye Futian said without any hesitation.


    Everyone was stunned by this. What a surprise for today''s Fenghua Banquet. Hua Jieyu was conferred the title of non-family princess!

 127 The Imperial Advisor

    Chapter 127: The Imperial Advisor


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hua Jieyu was still in a daze. How did she suddenly become a princess of the Cangye Kingdom?


    Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin also froze momentarily. Then, they broke out into a smile. This way, it could be said that they had gained a footing in the Cangye Kingdom. This would solve many of the worries they had.


    Many nobles stood to bow at Hue Jieyu. "Greetings, Princess Jieyu." Even though Hua Jieyu was an outsider given the title of princess and did not equal a real princess, everyone understood the emperor''s intentions. From now on, Ye Futian''s trio was definitely going to be of an extraordinary status. The people must show respect to the emperor''s decisions. Besides, it was very logical for Emperor Ye to confer the title upon Hua Jieyu. Conferring her was equal to conferring Ye Futian. The man a princess was in love with would naturally become a prince in the future.


    "What should Jieyu call Your Majesty?" Ye Futian asked the emperor.


    "It''s just a title, not of importance. For now, she can call me however she pleases. When she gets used to this title, she may even call me Godfather if she is willing," smiled Emperor Ye.


    Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian and then at her parents. She was not perfect without proper etiquette. Emperor Ye was so nice to her and had agreed to heal her father. How could she be casual with what she called him? She looked at Emperor and bowed, "Greetings to Godfather from Jieyu."


    Emperor Ye smiled brightly. He went on to say, "Talented young men and women have demonstrated their gifts at the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet. Hua Jieyu has proven herself to be beautiful and capable like no other. I am very happy to have her as my goddaughter."


    "Congratulations, Father," said the princes and princesses beside him.


    "Congratulations, Your Majesty," the nobles congratulated once again. They stood and held out both hands while they bowed to the emperor. Some people in the crowd looked toward Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty, Lin Yueyao, who was still standing on the Fenghua Platform.


    Emperor Ye had said that Hua Jieyu was ''beautiful like no other''. There was no need for explanation. Hua Jieyu was indeed more beautiful than Lin Yueyao. Now, Hua Jieyu had been bestowed the title of princess and was the recipient of everyone''s unless praises. It seemed like the title of Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty was going to have to transfer over to someone else.


    "Jieyu, I don''t have a welcoming gift prepared at hand, but I will personally make a request to the imperial advisor for him to help your father," Emperor Ye said, smiling. Many people looked at Hua Fengliu enviously. He must have been so proud to have such a disciple and such a daughter.


    "Thank you, Godfather." The smile on Hua Jieyu''s face was big and bright. The imperial advisor must have been a person of great power, seeing how the emperor said he would "make a request''.


    "As for everyone else''s rewards, I have already prepared them in the Cangye Kingdom library. According to your placing on the Fenghua Rank, you may choose one out of three things: a treasure, a spell book, or battle tactic book. You may all follow me into the imperial palace." Emperor Ye stood up and continued, "The Fenghua Banquet is now officially over." After he was done speaking, he turned to guide the empress on to the carriage. The princes and princesses followed after them.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu looked at each other and smiled. The Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet had finally come to an end with great results. They hadn''t wasted a trip.


    "Master, let''s head into the palace," Ye Futian said to Hua Fengliu.


    "Let''s go." Nandou Wenyin sighed loudly and said, "Do you think there''s a chance they could repair your Life Spirit as well?"


    "My Life Spirit was shattered into pieces. It''s not that easy," said Hua Fengliu. He did not have high hopes. As long as they were able to heal his injuries so that he could live like a normal person, he was happy.


    A large group of people followed the emperor into the imperial palace. However, there were still some people who remained standing around the Fenghua Platform, not wanting to leave. The Fenghua Banquet was a gathering of cultivators in the Cangye Kingdom but instead, the spotlight had been stolen by the trio from the Nandou Nation. The three of them did not seem to be of any special background but they were all incredibly powerful.


    At the Fenghua Banquet, Ye Futian got first place, Hua Jieyu was given the title of princess, and Yu Sheng received high regards from the emperor. They three of them were destined for greatness. Besides that, everyone witnessed just how powerful Ye Wuchen was. He was invincible on the Fenghua platform.


    However, Lin Yueyao who was the center of attention and the most outstanding female in Cangye Kingdom before the Fenghua Banquet, was completely outshined by Hua Jieyu. She had received a mere last place on the Fenghua Rank. Even Hua Zhixin had placed higher than her.


    Only when they saw the large group of figures disappear slowly, did the people around the platform go their separate ways. Afterward, the news spread rapidly all over the imperial Cangye City.


    In the imperial palace, the carriage was moving forward. Just then, an imperial bodyguard beside the carriage came to Ye Futian, "His Majesty has requested you."


    Ye Futian nodded and headed for the carriage ahead. Lin Yueyao, Bai Qiu, Zuo Qianfan, and the others watched Ye Futian''s silhouette with a mix of emotions. They were all thinking something different.


    Ye Futian arrived next to the carriage. "Your Majesty," he greeted the emperor seated in the carriage.


    "There are still many things you have yet to explain. As talented as you are, what is the Royal Luo family''s reason for wanting you dead?" asked Emperor Luo.


    "Your Majesty, it might have had something to do with a prophecy told by the Nandou Nation''s left minister, Minister Zuo," answered Ye Futian.


    "I know that Minister Zuo is an astrologer. Explain," said Emperor Luo.


    "I once traveled with Minister Zuo. It was then that he might have told my fortune. He bestowed the Decree of the Minister upon me afterward. Then by chance, he also told Jieyu''s fortune. Because of this, the Crown Prince became aware of us. He went all the way to Donghai Academy to see me. He asked for me to follow under his leadership and told me that he would make me his minister once he became the emperor but I rejected. Then came an imperial order from Emperor Luo. He made me the Crown Prince''s study attendant and Jieyu the Crown Princess. Our only choice was to defy the order and flee for our lives," Ye Futian did not keep anything from Emperor Ye because he could easily find out the truth by sending someone to Donghai City.


    The emperor''s eyes brightened. Based on what Ye Futian had said, many things became clear. It was obvious that Emperor Luo gave such an order on purpose as an excuse to get rid of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "Looks like you and Jieyu were destined to become emperor and empress," Emperor Ye laughed at Ye Futian.


    "But I''ve never even thought about becoming emperor. I had no intentions of stealing the Nandou Nation throne," said Ye Futian. He did not mention that he indeed was fated to be emperor but not the emperor of a country.


    "You didn''t think of it before but after what happened, there''s a chance of it happening. This is probably what they call fate," smiled Emperor Ye. Ye Futian did not say anything. He was not going to become the emperor of a country, those were not his intentions, but the royal family of the Nandou Nation must be eliminated. He was willing to do anything to make sure this happened.


    "The Luo''s found an excuse to kill you and yet you were able to escape?" Emperor Luo was curious. If Emperor Luo gave out such an order, then it would only make sense that he would have made sure that there was no way Ye Futian could make it out alive.


    "We barely made it," said Ye Futian. "My grandmaster sacrificed his life to make sure we survived and Yu Sheng''s master, Senior Yi Xiang, is still missing." He did not tell the emperor that even though such grave sacrifices were made, they never would have made it out of Donghai City alive if it hadn''t been for the emperor''s will in his body. What Ye Futian didn''t know, was that even with the emperor''s will, he almost didn''t make it out of Donghai City.


    "Your grandmaster is very respectable. As for Yi Xiang, I will send people to find him, but since he is on the run, he may be in hiding. It won''t be easy to find him. Unless you are able to let him know that you''re here," said Emperor Ye. Ye Futian nodded. He understood what the emperor was trying to say.


    They continued through the imperial palace. The empress and others left first. Emperor Ye ordered someone to lead Ye Wuchen and others on the Fenghua Rank to the imperial library while he personally led Ye Futian''s group to another place in the palace. Accompanying them was Princess Ye Lingxi.


    Deep within the imperial palace was a mountain. It was quiet on the mountain. The only things on the mountain were the ancient trees and a single residence. Everything was peaceful and quiet. Emperor Ye personally guided Ye Futian and the rest on to the mountain. As soon as they entered the residence, an elder came out to welcome them. The elder had white hair and a white beard. He looked wise, like a sage. However, his eyes were shut tight, even in the presence of the emperor.


    On the way up, Ye Lingxi had told them that the imperial advisor could not see.


    "You''re here, Your Majesty," greeted the imperial advisor. Even though he was blind, it was like he could see who had arrived. He walked directly towards the emperor.


    "Teacher, it''s been a while since I came to bother you," said Emperor Ye. Ye Futian and the others had a look of surprise on their faces. The imperial advisor was Emperor Ye''s teacher.


    "Your Majesty, have you come because of him?" the imperial advisor turned in Hua Fengliu''s direction.


    "That''s correct. Teacher, the Fenghua Banquet ended today. This is Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng. The three of them are unbelievably gifted and have a lot of potential. They may even surpass me in the future. Ye Futian ranked first and his request was for his master''s injuries to be healed. Originally, I did not want to disturb you but then I took Jieyu as my goddaughter. So, the only thing I could do was to ask you to help heal her father," explained Emperor Ye.


    "They are extraordinary indeed," nodded the imperial advisor. He turned to Hua Fengliu and asked, "How are your injuries?"


    Hua Fengliu released his broken Life Spirit once again. Then leaned against Nandou Wenyin fatigued. He didn''t even have energy to speak. Ye Futian spoke for him. "Master forcefully summoned his Life Spirit in a battle after it was disabled."


    "I can heal him but it''s not something I can do in a day. Especially since his Life Spirit is shattered. It will take a long time to recover fully," said the imperial advisor.


    "You can repair his Life Spirit?" asked Ye Futian with a shaking voice. Even Hua Fengliu''s heart skipped a beat. He had never even dared to dream of it.


    "There''s nothing surprising about Teacher being able to do what others can''t," chuckled Emperor Ye. Hearing this, everyone was surprised and happy. All of them bowed to Emperor again. "Thank you, Your Highness."


    "You guys should be thanking my teacher," laughed Emperor Ye.


    The imperial advisor waved his hand. "Since His Majesty has requested, it is only right for me to oblige. He will need to stay here for treatment. As for the rest of you, if you don''t mind that there isn''t much to offer here, you guys can stay here as well."


    "Thank you, Senior," Ye Futian put his hands together and bowed at the elder with great gratitude. Hua Jieyu was excited. Her father''s Life Spirit could actually be healed!


    Nandou Wenyin''s eyes were getting red. All these years, she''d never had any high hopes.


    "Then you guys shall stay here with Teacher. If anything happens, you go down the mountains and find someone to report directly to me," Emperor Ye instructed the group and then departed with Princess Ye Lingxi.


    ...


    Just when the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet ended, in the Nandou Nation''s imperial city, cultivators gathered for their country-wide event.


    The Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet was about to begin!

 128 Emperor Luo Against Fate

    Chapter 128: Emperor Luo Against Fate


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless strong cultivators gathered here in the magnificent Imperial City of Nandou nation. There were 36 prefectures in the Nandou nation, with many cities in each prefecture and academies in each city. At this time, the younger generation of talents from all the cities gathered here in Nandou City for the Tingfeng Banquet held by the Nandou nation. Different from the Fenghua Banquet of Cangye Kingdom, the Tingfeng Banquet had no preliminary test. Any young person could participate and show their talents.


    The Fenghua Banquet was held every three years in Cangye Kingdom, so efficiency was highlighted and it was fast-paced. As for the Tingfeng Banquet, held every ten years, it was grander.


    People from the East Sea Prefecture gradually arrived at the Imperial City. Not only young participants came but also those strong cultivators who wanted to witness the grand banquet.


    The strong cultivators from Donghai Academy of the East Sea Prefecture definitely would not miss such a grand banquet. Yan Shao, the headmaster of the School of Emperor Star, led his excellent disciples together with the other headmasters. Stepping into the city, a group of demon beasts flew in the sky. The disciples looked over the magnificent ancient city below, feeling slight butterflies. They wondered whether they would stand out in this Tingfeng Banquet.


    Amongst the crowd was Zhuo Qing, who was thought the most highly by Yan Shao, the headmaster. Standing on a beast, Zhuo Qing looked over at the capital, full of ambition. Talented as he was, there was a big possibility for him to win a place for himself even though there were countless talents gathered at this banquet. However, Zhuo Qing was not completely confident. No one knew how many powerful figures were born during the past ten years. Nobody dared claim that he could stand out.


    At this time, a figure appeared in Zhuo Qing''s mind. If that talented youth was here, he must be the winner. However, it had been only about one month since the Donghai City event. He was probably still on the run.


    Zhou Mu was also with the group of people, as well as his teacher, the Art Saint.


    Lin Xiyue was also here. She had matured from when she met Ye Futian on the ship in the East Sea. 17-year-old Lin Xiyue was now more beautiful and her body more curved.


    At the beginning of this year, she attended the spring quarter examination held by the Donghai Academy and passed. Hearing that the Tingfeng Banquet was to be held, she wanted to have a look too.


    In the distance, another line of figures descended. Someone called out, "Headmaster Yan."


    Yan Shao turned to look and smiled. "The disciples from the Nandou clan are going to attend this banquet too?" These people arriving were from the Nandou clan.


    "Yes." One of the strong cultivators from the Nandou clan nodded slightly with complex feelings. What happened to the Nandou clan on the last day of the Divine calendar changed a lot of things. They had to show more reliance on the royal authority in order to survive. Therefore, they came to the Tingfeng Banquet.


    The two lines moved on silently. Above them were countless other strong cultivators. As they advanced, they could make out the grand palace before them. It was even more solemn and sacred under the sunlight.


    At this time, Emperor Luo stood in the main hall of the palace, reading a message from his guard. The message was about the Fenghua Banquet held in Cangye Kingdom. It was held every three years and many outstanding persons would emerge. Nandou nation would naturally pay attention to such news. However, Emperor Luo generally wouldn''t care about such things. Countless talents emerged every three years. How could he, the Emperor of the Nandou nation, have enough energy to care about these trivial matters? But this message was sent to his hands because several names that should not have appeared were on the Fenghua Rank.


    First place was Ye Futian.


    What a familiar name!


    As the Emperor, he should not pay attention to a youth. However, Minister Zuo, Minister Hua, and the prince all showed a great interest in him. Therefore, one month ago, the Emperor Luo had sent a decree that everybody in Nandou nation shall listen to him for he stood for God. However, Ye Futian still escaped from Nandou nation. The Emperor didn''t expect that he would next see Ye Futian''s name on the Fenghua Rank of the Cangye Kingdom.


    "Joining the Fenghua Banquet as a full-attribute genius with twin spirits. Of course he would win." Emperor Luo laughed. Ye Futian had displayed his horrible talent at the Nandou clan so the emperor was not surprised that Ye Futian was the winner. Once he attended, he would definitely win the first place.


    The fourth was Hua Jieyu. This name was also quite familiar to him. She should have been the crown princess of Nandou nation.


    "Declare my will��" Emperor Luo raised his head and delivered an order again. Just like last month, it was still about Ye Futian. He knew this decree was even more impossible to complete, but he still sent it.


    .....


    In the Cangye Kingdom''s palace, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were cultivating in tranquility on a hill while waiting for their teacher to recover. They didn''t go out. Ye Futian knew that since he had won the first place on the Banquet and revealed the Nandou event in public, he must be more careful.


    "Master." When practicing the music, Ye Futian saw a figure coming. He stopped playing and smiled. It was Hua Fengliu. He walked alone and looked more energetic than before. He would recover completely soon.


    Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan had been by his side all these days. Sometimes, Ye Futian knew that Aunt Tang still wanted to be with Hua Fengliu, despite her words. Even the masteress had accepted her dedication to Hua Fengliu. When Hua Fengliu first returned to Donghai City, it was Tang Lan who took care of him.


    "How do you feel?" At this time, a wise imperial advisor came near and asked Hua Fengliu.


    "I feel much better. Thank you for these past few days," Hua Fengliu responded.


    "Take a good rest. Don''t use your strength over the next few days. You still have to wait for a long time before the life spirit''s complete recovery. You''d better not leave the mountain these days," the imperial advisor told him.


    "I know." Hua Fengliu nodded.


    The imperial advisor looked at Hua Jieyu and asked, "I sensed your cultivation yesterday. Can I have a look at your life spirit?"


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu nodded slightly and moved forward a step. She released her gorgeous life spirit like a noble queen with a crown.


    The imperial advisor stood still but his body shivered involuntarily. He turned to Nandou Wenyin and asked, "How about yours?"


    Nandou Wenyin felt puzzled but still released her life spirit. Her life spirit was not as gorgeous as Hua Jieyu''s but it was still extraordinary.


    The imperial advisor trembled. He slowly knelt and prostrated on the ground to pay his respect. "Greetings, my princess!"


    "This��" The group''s expression changed. Ye Futian stood up and looked at this scene with some astonishment.


    "I was the imperial sorcerer of Nandou nation, Mo He," the old man said with a trembling voice. "I never thought there would be a day where I could see His Majesty''s descendants."


    "Senior, please rise." Nandou Wenyin was shocked. No one here had expected that the imperial advisor of Cangye Kingdom used to be the imperial sorcerer of the Nandou nation. Of course, he was from the previous Nandou nation, not the present one��


    "Are you the descendant of the Emperor Jue?" the old man stood up slowly and asked with a trembling voice.


    "Yes, he is my grandfather. It is said that he escaped to the Nandou clan in the Donghai City after the Luo''s took the power." Nadou Wenyin nodded.


    "His Highness did the right thing. If he did not leave, he would only die in the end. Luo Tianyin would not let him go." The old man''s voice was tinged with hatred.


    "What happened in those years? Why did my grandfather and parents leave Nandou clan and never come back? What does this have to do with Emperor Luo?" Nandou Wenyin asked. Luo Tianyin was Emperor Luo''s real name. She only knew that 300 years ago, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing unified the divine prefectures of the East. Forces in the world were in unrest. The emperor of the Nandou nation ran into an accident and the whole nation was in a chaos. Countless forces fought for the throne. The Nandou clan had lost too many strong cultivators for this. And at that time, Luo Tianyin turned out to win with his Noble Plane and ascended the throne. Since then, the Luos replaced Nandou royalty.


    After Emperor Luo took power, panic rose through the nation. In order to show the emperor''s bearing, Emperor Luo ordered a nationwide amnesty. He forgave his rivals. Soon, the whole nation bowed down to him and the Nandou nation was stabilized. The Nandou clan returned to Donghai City and survived this crisis.


    "Luo Tianyin, that b*stard, used to be His Majesty''s personal bodyguard. Because of his great talent, His Majesty treated him as a disciple. During a turbulent time, His Majesty left the nation for the pursuit of stronger power. Luo Tianyin and I followed. However, Luo Tianyin was wildly ambitious. Taking advantage of His Majesty''s crisis, he made his move when His Majesty let down his guard. His Majesty''s fate was taken and I lost my eyes. Perhaps even Luo Tianyin thinks that I''d died."


    The old man shook and said, "Luo Tianyin went against the heavens and changed fate to ascend the throne and replace Nandou''s royalty. In order not to be despised by the world, he did not hurt the Nandou clan but still had dirty underhand tricks. Princess, you said His Majesty and your father disappeared. I am afraid they were investigating the things of that year and had misfortunes."


    "Why don''t you announce his evil deeds to the world?" Hearing about the past events, Nandou Wenyin was furious.


    "If I do so, the Nandou clan will perish completely." The old man sighed. "I settled in Cangye Kingdom with a disguised identity for so many years. I taught the emperor how to cultivate so the Cangye Kingdom can become stronger and one day overthrow the Luo reign."


    Ye Futian didn''t expect this secret and suddenly understood many things. The reason why Emperor Luo declared in Donghai City to confer Hua Jieyu with the title of crown princess was not only because of Minister Zuo''s augury. The poor Nandou clan didn''t know that the emperor would definitely not let Hua Jieyu rise unless she became subordinate to him and became the crown princess. Moreover, Emperor Luo had once gone against fate. He was not afraid of fate at all. Now he''d become stronger. As the emperor, how would he fear the two fated youths?


    When they were discussing this issue, a messenger from the Nandou nation came to visit the emperor of the Cangye Kingdom!

 129 Attending the Banque

    Chapter 129: Attending the Banquet


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the main hall of the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial palace, an ambassador from the Nandou Nation had arrived. Emperor Ye met him seated on his throne.


    "Greetings, Emperor Ye," said the ambassador. He knelt down on the floor in a deep bow.


    "Rise," said Emperor Ye.


    "Thank you, Your Majesty." The ambassador rose from the ground and looked at Emperor Ye. "I have come under the order of His Majesty of the Nandou Nation. We heard that traitors of our country, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, were here at the Cangye Palace. His Majesty has sent me in a request that they be returned to the Nandou Nation for punishment."


    "They are already citizens of the Cangye Kingdom. Furthermore, I have already conferred the title of princess upon Hua Jieyu and she is now my goddaughter. Relay the message to your emperor, they no longer have anything to do with your country. Do not use the term ''traitor'' in reference to them anymore," Emperor Ye said with a cold demeanor. He was dignified and stern.


    "They were once citizens of the Nandou Nation''s East Sea Prefecture and have defied the orders of the emperor. They are traitors and deserve capital punishment. Is it really proper for Emperor Ye to handle things this way?" the ambassador asked the emperor without fear.


    "How preposterous!" said someone on the sideline. They stared at the ambassador with cold eyes but he only lifted his head to look at Emperor Ye calmly, neither haughty nor humble.


    "I will repeat myself once more. They are now part of the Cangye Kingdom. Hua Jieyu is a princess and, in the future, Ye Futian will be a prince. Did you hear me clearly?" said with a natural sternness. Noble will befell the ambassador and he could feel an invisible force pushing down on his head.


    "Our country is willing to trade a city for each of them," the ambassador bowed his head.


    "If I want one your cities, I will fight for it myself. You may head back to answer to your emperor now," said Emperor Ye. Battles always happened at the borders of the two countries. One day, the border cities belonged to the Nandou Nation, the next, to the Cangye Kingdom. It changed hands every couple of days. To an emperor of an entire country, of what use was one city?


    The ambassador reached both hands out, bowed down, and said "The Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet is about to begin. We are inviting emperors of each country to attend. Our emperor has sent me here with an invitation, inviting Emperor Ye to attend." He fished out an invitation and submitted it with both hands. Someone took the invitation and then handed it to Emperor Ye. He read it over and smiled. "Very well. Tell your emperor that I will be attending the banquet."


    "The Nandou Nation awaits Emperor Ye''s presence. I will excuse myself now," the ambassador bowed his head and retreated backward. He continued out of the hall before bowing once again and only then, did he turn his back to leave.


    After he left, Emperor Ye put down the invitation in his hand and went into deep thought. Emperor Luo is actually inviting emperors of different countries to attend the Tingfeng Banquet. Was he that confident in this year''s banquet?


    Standing up, Emperor Ye walked out of the main hall.


    Ye Futian had no idea of this. Although he knew that the results of the Fenghua Banquet might attract attention from the Nandou Nation, he never thought they would send someone so quickly.


    On the mountain, Imperial Advisor Mo He, said to Hua Jieyu, "Princess Jieyu''s Life Spirit seems to have evolved. Back in the old Nandou Nation, I used to follow His Majesty around and have a pretty good understanding of this Life Spirit. Princess Jieyu, you can continue to cultivate here and I can teach you what I know."


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes sparkled and she quickly nodded. "Thank you, Senior."


    "I have hidden my name for so long, not even His Majesty, Emperor Ye, knows my true identity. In public, you can continue to call me Imperial Advisor," said Mo He.


    "Okay." everyone nodded. Ye Futian was moved. Who would have thought that in a foreign land, they would be able to meet the imperial sorcerer of the Nandou Nation''s previous royal family? Years ago, the royal Nandou family was stripped of their title and moved out of the East Sea Prefecture to avoid danger. They did not dare to even think of revolting because they were afraid that Emperor Luo might try to kill them. Once an imperial bodyguard, Luo Tianyin, had become emperor. One imperial order from him was able to scare the wits out of the entire clan. What a joke.


    "Someone''s here," said the imperial advisor. He walked outside and moments later, Prince Ye Danchen and Princess Ye Lingxi arrived.


    "Greetings, Imperial Advisor." The two of them bowed at the elder in respect.


    "No need for formalities, Your Highness," said Mo He.


    "Imperial Advisor, we are here for Ye Futian and the others," said Ye Danchen.


    Mo He nodded. Ye Futian walked over and asked, "What is it, Your Highness?"


    "Not long ago, an ambassador of the Nandou Nation came to see Father, asking him to hand you two over," Ye Danchen explained. Ye Futian''s eyes faltered. That was quick.


    "Father rejected, of course. However, the ambassador then brought out an invitation, inviting Father to the Tingfeng Banquet. Father wants to bring all ten of the cultivators on the Fenghua Rank along with him and wants to know if you guys would be willing to do so," Ye Danchen asked Ye Futian.


    "The Tingfeng Banquet." Ye Futian was frozen. It was a familiar name. Once upon a time, back in the Nandou Nation, Minister Zuo had wanted him to head to the imperial city in the Spring to attend the Tingfeng Banquet. Ye Futian had the same idea himself and prepared to make the trip. But in the span of a mere month, which seemed like such a long time, hearing about the banquet, it seemed so foreign.


    Was the Tingfeng Banquet about to begin?


    "We''ll go," Ye Futian nodded without hesitation. He wanted to see Emperor Luo for himself, the man who ruined his life with one imperial order. As for his safety, Ye Futian was not worried. Even though the Cangye Kingdom and the Nandou nation had been rivals for hundreds of years, there had never been any battles significant enough to ruin either country. Even when there were more serious battles, both countries knew their limits. There was a strange equilibrium in the relationship between both countries. It was something that no one would destroy.


    The reason was simple. Both emperors were powerful cultivators in the Noble Plane. Neither person had an advantage over the other. What truly determined the fate of a country was not the strength of its army but the ability of its leader, the ability of the emperor. For example, in the old Nandou Nation, the emperor had fallen and led to the entire family being overthrown, becoming history.


    If Ye Futian attended the banquet with Emperor Ye, Emperor Luo wouldn''t kill him even if he wanted to because what would happen if Emperor Ye charged into the Nandou Nation''s imperial palace in a fit of rage? Fighting with a person in the Noble Plane would only mean death. Even between rival countries, there was a mutual understanding. No one was allowed to cross the line and break equilibrium. Or else, there would be heavy consequences. That was, unless, one of the emperors was already strong enough to kill the other on the spot.


    In the world of cultivation, personal abilities were more important than anything else. Even royal power was the result of a person''s abilities.


    Since Emperor Ye had Ye Danchen come to ask Ye Futian to attend, it was obvious that he had also realized this point. Emperor Luo wouldn''t dare to touch Ye Futian, especially not in his own country.


    "Are you all going?" Ye Lingxi asked, looking at Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu.


    "Jieyu shouldn''t go. She should stay to take care of Master," said Ye Futian. In reality, Hua Fengliu was fine under the care of Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan. Besides, his injuries had already gotten a lot better, but Hua Jieyu had to stay and cultivate with the imperial advisor. It had to do with her future in cultivation.


    "Alright," nodded Ye Danchen. "I''ll go ask the others now. I''ll come find you again when it''s time to go."


    "Thank you, Your Highness." Ye Futian nodded in response. Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi left afterward.


    "Are you really going to the Nandou Nation''s imperial city?" Hua Fengliu asked Ye Futian.


    "Yeah. I had already planned to do so. This is the perfect opportunity." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Be careful," warned Hua Fengliu.


    "Master, don''t worry and focus on your treatment. You have to repair your Life Spirit, or else it''ll be really embarrassing for you when I surpass you in a couple of years," laughed Ye Futian.


    "Okay. When I''m fully healed, I can guide your cultivation properly." Hua Fengliu smiled at his disciple.


    Ye Futian shivered at the fake smile on his face. "Master, your gifts are peerless. When you''re fully healed, you''ll definitely do great things. I cannot compare."


    Only then did Hua Fengliu nod in satisfaction. Deep down, Ye Futian was cursing him for being so shameless. He''s such a bully to his disciple!


    ...


    The next morning, a group had gathered outside the imperial palace. They were the brilliant cultivators from the Fenghua Banquet. Their attention fell on Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Danchen when the stepped out. Everyone had a different look on their faces.


    Wasn''t Ye Futian from the Nandou Nation? Going to attend the Tingfeng Banquet was the perfect chance for them to check out just how powerful the cultivators in the Nandou Nation were.


    "Where''s Hua Jieyu?" Lin Yueyao could not help but ask when she noticed that Hue Jieyu was missing.


    "She has other business to attend to and won''t be coming with us," Ye Futian answered. He was quite surprised. He didn''t expect that Lin Yueyao would ask about Jieyu.


    Lin Yueyao nodded her head lightly and didn''t say anything else.


    Moments later, a group of people came out from the palace. It was Emperor Ye and his people. Besides the emperor, there were a few very dignified looking individuals. They must have been people of very high cultivation.


    A loud roar came from within the imperial palace. Everyone looked up and saw a fearsome creature headed toward them. The scary beast was a flood dragon. The Flood Dragon approached and moved to stay near Emperor Ye.


    "Let''s head out since we''re all here. I wanted to bring you guys on this trip to show you guys cultivators of other countries. Do not limit yourselves to the Cangye Kingdom. There may be a day when you will leave here." Emperor Ye smiled and walked to the Flood Dragon. Everyone followed the emperor on to the dragon''s back.


    With a loud roar and a huge gust of wind, the Flood Dragon lifted into the air, rising higher and higher. It broke through the clouds at an alarming speed, headed in the direction of the Nandou Nation.


    The Cangye Kingdom was over a hundred kilometers away from the Nandou Nation. However, because of the Flood Dragon''s high cultivation, it moved with the wind and they arrived in the Nandou Nation''s imperial city in a single day.


    Presently, powerful cultivators from all around the country had gathered in the imperial city. Emperor Luo had also invited emperors from other countries to attend the banquet. Countless beasts soared through the skies, filling the air with their cries. But when the Flood Dragon flew by, everyone stared from far away. They looked at the line of people mounted on the dragon as they tried to guess their identity.


    The Flood Dragon was a ferocious beast like no other. It must be a powerful demon beast. What kind of person would be able to control such a beast?


    Emperor Ye stood on the dragon''s back quietly, allowing the wind to blow freely on him. His long hair blew in the wind. Beside him stood Ye Futian, who was looking down on the imperial city.


    "What are you thinking?" asked Emperor Ye with a smile. Ye Futian must have been experiencing a wave of emotions, coming back here.


    "I was thinking about when I can finally wipe out the imperial Nandou Palace," Ye Futian replied as he looked out far ahead. A light smile crossed his face, his tone calm.

 130 Take Ye Futian Down

    Chapter 130: Take Ye Futian Down


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As the dragon came closer to the palace of the Nandou Nation, a line of figures flew over. The dragon roared ferociously.


    "Stop!" Emperor Ye said. Then the dragon halted.


    Those comers bowed and said, "Your Majesty!"


    "What''s the matter?" the emperor asked.


    "We were ordered by our emperor to welcome you. The accommodation has been arranged for you," the man said.


    "Lead the way," Emperor Ye said lightly. The other nodded and walked in front, leading the way. Soon, they arrived at a giant palace near the imperial palace. Though the two nations were rivals, courtesy was necessary since the emperor was invited here. Everything in the palace for the stay had been arranged well for them. Since Emperor Ye was the emperor of the Cangye Kingdom, only people from the Cangye Kingdom could share the palace with him.


    "Ye Futian, come with me. Emperor Luo won''t hurt you but don''t leave the palace for safety reasons. If you really have to go out for some reason, let Jing Yu go with you," Emperor Ye warned Ye Futian. Jing Yu was the emperor''s bodyguard. The emperor had assigned Jing Yu many things in his daily life.


    "I''ll be careful." Ye Futian nodded. Although Emperor Luo wouldn''t hurt him in public, there was still the possibility for him to arrange an assassination or kill him by another''s hand without any evidence left. Emperor Ye couldn''t blame it on him then.


    The group settled down in the palace while the outside world was stirred up. The Tingfeng Banquet was to be held the next day. The decennial banquet was more magnificent than the Fenghua Banquet of the Cangye Kingdom. The whole nation paid great attention to it and all the heroes would attend. A sensation was inevitable. Everyone was looking forward to the opening of the Tingfeng Banquet the next day.


    One hour later outside the palace, a row of figures strode over and went directly into the palace. The leader was a beautiful woman. She seemed like an unordinary person. Following behind her were her strong bodyguards.


    Jing Yu stood before her and said, "This is the Emperor Ye''s palace. Any intruders will be killed without pardon."


    "I''m looking for Ye Futian." The woman looked up to Jing Yu and Jing Yu suddenly grew hesitant. "Since this is Emperor Ye''s palace, what do you think we can do?" the woman continued.


    Jing Yu thought for a while then said, "Follow me." He led the way and the woman''s people followed behind. They came to a place in the palace where Ye Futian''s group lived.


    Seeing many people coming over, Lin Yueyao and the others went to Ye Futian''s room out of curiosity. Ye Futian sat in the courtyard. When he saw the newcomer, he was stunned.


    "Ye Futian, why did you join the Cangye Kingdom?" the woman asked angrily. She seemed to come here for an explanation.


    Ye Futian looked up to this beautiful but capricious woman and said indifferently, "Are you talking to me?"


    This woman turned out to be the princess of the Nandou Nation, the daughter of Emperor Luo and the sister of the crown prince.


    "My teacher gave you the minister''s decree and my brother let you be minister but you rejected him," Luo Mengyan said. "My father even conferred you with the study attendant of the crown prince. What did we do to you? Is it just because of Hua Jieyu? Is Hua Jieyu the reason why you joined the Cangye Kingdom?"


    "Get out." Ye Futian looked at her coldly. Was this girl stupid? What did they do to him?


    You��" Luo Menyan pointed at Ye Futian and shouted, "You are a jerk. I''ll kill you!" She pounced forward. Ye Futian stood up and stepped forward too. As if remembering something bad, Luo Mengyan froze in place.


    "I''m here to accompany His Majesty, not for recalling past days. Princess, please leave," Ye Futian responded nonchalantly. Only then did people know that this woman was the princess of the Nandou Nation.


    Many people looked at Ye Futian curiously. What did this guy do to the princess?


    "It''s your own choice to betray Nandou Nation, but you shouldn''t trouble my teacher. Because of you, my teacher doesn''t pay attention to the outside world anymore and even neglects me. It''s all because of you!" Luo Mengyan''s eyes grew red. Ye Futian was surprised. He didn''t mean to trouble Minister Zuo. It could be said that this whole thing was triggered by Minister Zuo but he knew that Minister Zuo was thinking for his good. The emperor''s decree should have nothing to do with Minister Zuo. Did the astrologist minister not care about anything anymore?


    Ye Futian took out the Decree of the Minister and threw it to Luo Mengyan. "Return it to Minister Zuo and tell him that I won''t blame him."


    "You won''t blame him?" Luo Mengyan took the token and asked indignantly in return.


    "You can leave now." Ye Futian was kicking them out.


    Luo Mengyan looked at Ye Futian coldly and turned away.


    People around the court moved aside but Luo Mengyan stopped and turned around. She asked, "You said that your girlfriend is more beautiful than me? How beautiful is she that you could betray the Nandou Nation for her?"


    "You don''t deserve to be compared with her," Ye Futian answered indifferently. Luo Mengyan is so na?ve. Does she really think that Emperor Luo and the crown prince were thinking for his good? Or maybe it''s just hard for her to think of her father and brother as bad people.


    Luo Mengyan looked coldly at Ye Futian and left.


    After she left, Lin Yueyao asked Ye Futian in confusion, "What have you done to the princess of the Nandou Nation?"


    Ye Futian looked at Lin Yueyao and smiled slightly. "Do you want to try?"


    Seeing Ye Futian''s mean smirk, Lin Yueyao said, "No, thank you."


    With that, she left. Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang watched the whole thing silently. As the top beauty of the Cangye Kingdom, Lin Yueyao was always very aloof but she had struck up a conversation with Ye Futian several times. However, Ye Futian just directly ignored this beauty, which annoyed the onlookers very much. The difference between them�� But Ye Futian''s girlfriend was indeed more beautiful than Lin Yueyao.


    "Let''s go out for a walk," Zuo Qianfan suggested. All the strong cultivators gathered here in the Nandou Nation. They could go take a look. Since the emperor of the Nandou Nation invited them, he wouldn''t stoop so low as to play tricks on them.


    "Good idea." Yu Jiang nodded and went out.


    Ye Futian didn''t go with them but continued his cultivation.


    The next morning, people from the Nandou Nation came to the palace and visited Emperor Ye. He went to greet them and Ye Futian''s group also showed up. The people from Nandou Nation bowed and said, "My majesty ordered me to invite Your Highness to the imperial palace so that all their majesties can attend the Tingfeng Banquet together."


    "What about them?" Emperor Ye asked, looking to Ye Futian''s and others.


    "Only the emperors have been invited. The rest shall go separately. They can meet Your Majesty in the imperial palace," the man answered and smiled.


    Emperor Ye didn''t respond but turned to Jing Yu. "You take them there."


    "Yes, Your Majesty." Jing Yu nodded. Emperor Ye followed the people and left.


    "Let''s go," Jing Yu said. Other than him, there were many other strong cultivators of the Cangye Kingdom. The group of people went out and walked directly toward the imperial palace.


    Outside the palace, there were people from other kingdoms also moving toward the imperial palace. The Tingfeng Banquet was held outside the north gate of the imperial palace where there was already a sea of people. The number of the attendees of the Tingfeng Banquet was bigger than that of the Fenghua Banquet.


    When Ye Futian''s people arrived, they were almost submerged by the sea of people. Outside the north gate, there were nine tall platforms erected in a row which was surrounded by a vast open space. The throne and the stands were set opposite the platforms. Ordinary people would not be allowed to enter that area. People from all over the Nandou Nation were gathered here, naturally including the people from the East Sea Prefecture.


    The Nandou clan stood in the crowd and watched the throne and the stands in front of platforms where the royal families sat. The Nandou clan could sit there before but at this time, they could only stand in the crowd.


    "One month ago, if that thing did not happen, Jieyu would be the crown princess now," a Nandou youth said. "Then we could also sit over there." All of this was destroyed by Ye Futian.


    "Don''t think about it anymore and don''t mention Hua Jieyu again," an elder reprimanded. Hua Jieyu was a sinner of the Nandou Nation. They had to cut all ties with Her.


    "Okay." That youth nodded and looked at the crowd. The youth would participate in this banquet so every strong cultivator here might be his opponent. He continued to observe and stopped when somewhere. He frowned, looked backward, and found a line of figures.


    "Ye Futian?" the youth called. People from the Nandou clan all turned to him.


    An elder said, "Nonsense!" How could Ye Futian appear at the Tingfeng Banquet?


    "He is there." The youth pointed somewhere with great shock in his eyes. He didn''t believe it either but he definitely had seen Ye Futian.


    The Nandou clan all looked toward the direction he pointed in and their eyes fell on a handsome figure. Every cultivator of the Nandou clan was stunned and their eyes flashed. Ye Futian dared to attend the Tingfeng Banquet? Did he want to die?


    "Go take him down." The strong cultivators from the Nandou clan immediately bolted in that direction. They had never forgotten what had taken place in Donghai City a while ago. Hua Jieyu was taken away and a group of strong cultivators of Nandou clan also disappeared. And Ye Futian was the reason.


    "Don''t let him go!" a youth shouted, worrying that Ye Futian would mingle within the crowd. This guy is really bold. How dare he come back to where the Tingfeng Banquet is held?


    "Take him and give him to the emperor," someone said. He''d even planned how to execute Ye Futian. Ye Futian went against Emperor''s order. He was a criminal and must be handed over to Emperor Luo!

 131 The Tingfeng Banquet Begins

    Chapter 131: The Tingfeng Banquet Begins


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s group headed closer to the battle platforms. Just then, a harsh voice shouted, "Ye Futian!" The surrounding area was crowded and in disarray. Because of this, Ye Futian did not notice the members of the Nandou Clan. It was not until he heard the shout that he turned his attention over and saw them. Nandou Ku was among the group. The look in his eyes was ice cold, ready for blood.


    WHOOSH! The members of the Nandou Clan did not waste any words and released all types of spells at Ye Futian.


    A figure stepped out from beside Ye Futian. With a slight step forward��just one step��the wood sorcery targeted at Ye Futian was destroyed. At the same time, a fearsome force of sword intent filled the air. The temperature dropped and every member of the Nandou Clan was encapsulated by the force. They could not help but shiver at the drop in temperature.


    The small area in which they occupied seemed to have been frozen. The members of the clan stared at the figure that appeared in front of Ye Futian. Shock filled their eyes. They could not believe there was such a powerful individual by Ye Futian''s side, protecting him. Did the disappearance of their fellow clan members in Donghai City have something to do with this person?


    When Ye Futian had appeared in front of their very eyes just a moment ago, they had no other thoughts but to capture him. But seeing this powerful individual, the clan members seemed to have broken out of their daze. Why had Ye Futian shown up at the Tingfeng Banquet?


    "There''s no need for you guys to be in such a rush. I will pay a visit to the Nandou Clan in Donghai City sooner or later." Ye Futian quickly glanced at the clan members and continued on his way. He did not want to get pulled into this situation with them right now and obviously, Jing Yu could not start a massacre at the Tingfeng Banquet.


    Jing Yu and the others moved forward together leaving the members of the Nandou Clan to stand in place, watching Ye Futian as he walked away. No one chased after him. They were all intimidated by the powerful feel Jing Yu gave off.


    What on earth was going on? It was true, everyone thought it was odd that Ye Futian had the guts to show up at the Tingfeng Banquet, an imperial event held by the emperor. Jing Yu was strong, but no matter how strong he was, he could not go up against the emperor of the Nandou Nation. Emperor Luo was a cultivator in the Noble Plane. He was the only one in all of the Nandou Nation. The Nandou Clan could not even take care of themselves as of late, so of course, they did not know what had happened in the Cangye Kingdom. To be honest, only the royal Luo family would care about what happened in the neighboring countries. Thus, never in a million years, would the Nandou Clan members guess that Ye Futian came with the emperor of another country.


    Many imperial bodyguards appeared to maintain order. They stood around the nine battle platforms. Up ahead, a crowd of powerful cultivators had arrived. Some of the guards cleared the road for them while royals, nobles, and clans stood on the sides to welcome them. From the imperial palace, a group of figures headed their way. The four people at the front of the group seemed to be chatting happily, as if they were the best of friends. The four of them had a certain aura around them. In the blink of an eye, the noisy area quieted down and everyone paid undivided attention to the group approaching. They knew that Emperor Luo was in the group but who were the other three?


    The four figures arrived at the platforms and sat down in their own respective seats. Their status seemed to higher than people expected.


    "Today is the beginning of the Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet. I have specially invited the emperors of the Cangye Kingdom, the Yunchu Nation, and the Yan Kingdom to come watch the competitions. We shall enjoy the performances put on by the youths of the Nandou Nation. They are our future and I hope that our younger generation cultivators will not disappoint our three guests from afar," smiled Emperor Luo as he introduced his fellow emperors.


    Immediately, the area was filled with discussion. Besides the one side of the country that was bordered by the sea, the other three sides were joined with bordering countries. Today, the emperors of those three countries had come to attend the Tingfeng Banquet. This year''s Tingfeng Banquet was graced with the presence of four emperors, the four strongest cultivators in the Noble Plane.


    Below where the four emperors sat, everyone began to sit down. Beside Emperor Luo, Crown Prince Luo Junlin as well as other princes and princesses had arrived but only Luo Junlin could sit next to the emperor. This was the obvious difference in status among the children of the emperor.


    Below the throne were the left and right ministers. Minister Zuo no longer had the same energy in his eyes as he once did. It seemed like he was no longer interested in anything. On the other hand, Minister Hua looked fresh and energetic. Even though things in Donghai City were not a success as planned, to see Minister Zuo fail, was the best thing for him.


    Jing Yu, Ye Futian, and the others headed to where Emperor Ye was. As citizens of the Cangye Kingdom, it was only natural that they stayed by the emperor''s side.


    The Nandou Clan members kept eyes on Ye Futian. When they saw that not only was Ye Futian not avoiding being seen by Emperor Luo and was even headed in his direction, some of them had already made predictions. They shivered at the thought.


    "Isn''t that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng?" Among the large audience, there were some people who came from Donghai City. They froze at the sight of Ye Futian.


    Naturally, the people of Donghai Academy also took notice. Yan Shao frowned. What''s going on? His gaze shifted to Emperor Luo and Minister Hua. They did not seem to care at all, as if they already knew Ye Futian would be here.


    Zhuo Qing and other students of Donghai Academy were all confused at the sight of Ye Futian. Lin Xiyue had obviously seen him as well. Her beautiful eyes froze on him. She never imagined she would see Ye Futian at the Tingfeng Banquet.


    One step at a time, Ye Futian''s group arrived at the very front of the area, right below where Emperor Ye was seated. The members of the Nandou Clan felt their hearts skip a beat. It seemed they finally understood. The reason why Ye Futian dared to show up in the Nandou Nation was because he had royalty backing him. The emperor of the Cangye Kingdom. Those from Donghai Academy looked very interested. Their mouths hung open as they watched Ye Futian take his seat slowly.


    Ye Futian went to the Cangye Kingdom?


    In a little over a month, Ye Futian had escaped from the Nandou Nation to its rival country, the Cangye Kingdom. Furthermore, he had been recognized for his talents by Emperor Ye. Now, he had returned on the day the Tingfeng Banquet began. However, he was not a participant of the banquet but one of the audience.


    Zhuo Qing felt disheartened immediately after seeing Ye Futian. Zhuo Qing was here to participate in the banquet and did not even know if he would even be able to impress with his performance but then, there was Ye Futian. He was already seated by the emperor, though not Emperor Luo.


    Yan Shao glanced at Zhuo Qing who was beside him. Then, he turned to another person and said, "Tianhao, that''s the person you''ve always wanted to meet. Full Attribute genius with twin spirits, Ye Futian. Do you think you can defeat him?"


    Yun Tianhao stared at Ye Futian. In reality, he had taken notice of Ye Futian very early on. It was because they knew each other, but that was when they were younger. They battled once at Qingzhou Academy. As a top student of Heiyan Academy, Yun Tianhao lost to Ye Futian. After that, Yun Tianhao left Qingzhou City in pursuit of experience and better education. So, at the beginning of this year, he was admitted into Donghai Academy. His arrival shook up the whole school.


    Then, he heard of another person who left a deep impression on the students of Donghai Academy. Ye Futian��a name that he kept engraved in his brain.


    "I will defeat him," said Yun Tianhao. Full Attribute and twin spirits? So, this was his true gift.


    Seated below Emperor Luo, Minister Zuo first stared at Ye Futian and then at Emperor Ye. He felt disappointed.


    After their trip to Qingzhou City together, Minister Zuo showed great interest in Ye Futian. It was not only for himself but for the royal Luo family as well. However, it was impossible to know what the emperor was thinking. The royal family actually got the idea that Minister Zuo wanted to revolt against them. They believed that Ye Futian was fated to become emperor of the country and was a threat to their family. Thus, an imperial order was sent to Donghai City. None of these events could be undone. As for Minister Zuo himself, the emperor lost trust in him because he insisted on rushing to help Ye Futian in Donghai City. If Minister Zuo was Emperor Luo, he would do anything to kill Ye Futian right now. Even if Emperor Ye would get mad and kill a lot of people, it would still be better than the downfall of the royal family. But Emperor Luo would never do that. Although Emperor Luo believed in fate and Minister Zuo''s prophecies, he would not trust them fully. Emperor Luo was very headstrong and believed that as an emperor and a powerful cultivator in the Noble Plane, he could easily change fate.


    Obviously, Minister Zuo was not going to attempt to persuade Emperor Luo. He wouldn''t do it even if he could. He was not going to come up with anymore plans for Emperor Luo. Despite this, Minister Zuo knew, he would never be able to leave. Even if the emperor was not going to give him anything to do anymore, he would also never let him go. The reason the emperor has not yet killed Minister Zuo was because he did not have a crime to accuse him of. The minister had recruited and bred many talented officers for Emperor Luo. If he killed Minister Zuo without reason, it would be poorly received by the emperor''s subordinates.


    "I heard that the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet ended not too long ago. These should be the ones from the Fenghua Rank, correct?" Emperor Chu of the Yunchu Nation asked with a smile as he looked at Ye Futian and the group.


    "They are the top ten. My goddaughter had other business and could not join us," answered Emperor Ye. He returned a smile.


    "In my Yan Kingdom, all those with outstanding gifts and high cultivation have the chance of being recognized by me. Some are even made lords or ministers. It has been like that for generations now. This is a policy that everyone agrees on. My people have the utmost trust in our royal family. To this day, as long as there is a brilliant person, they would make themselves known to me. There is no need for us to hold some boring banquet. I''ve always been curious. Your countries hold these events once every couple of years. Does it actually help to pick out brilliant individuals?" said the emperor of the Yan Kingdom. He looked at the group of people seated below Emperor Ye.


    His words also included Emperor Luo who was holding the Tingfeng Banquet, but it did not seem like Emperor Luo minded. He smiled lightly and replied, "Every country has their own way of doing things. What matters is that we all do it for the same reason. I invited you all here today, so we''ll just have to wait and see if some outstanding young cultivators will appear today. And, all of you have brought some younger generation cultivators along. If interested, you can tell them to give it a try as well. I don''t mind," Emperor Luo continued.


    The people that the emperors of the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom brought along were indeed younger generation cultivators. They were all people their country had high hopes in. They had been brought to attend the Tingfeng Banquet to check out the genius cultivators of other countries.


    As of now, the Tingfeng Banquet had not begun. Nobody knew what kinds of outstanding individuals would appear. But Ye Futian and the others had already piqued the interest of the cultivators from the two other foreign countries. From time to time, they would turn their gazes over to the group from the Cangye Kingdom.


    Just then, Emperor Luo stood up. To everyone in the large area, he said, "Today is the start of the Tingfeng Banquet. Four emperors have gathered to observe the event. Starting from now the stage is yours. I look forward to all your performances!"

 132 Tit for Ta

    Chapter 132: Tit for Tat


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Emperor Luo spoke, people walked onto the nine battle platforms to organize the matters of the banquet. The Tingfeng Banquet was different from the Fenghua Banquet. The nine battle platforms would have fights at the same time. Because it was only held once per decade, the requirements of the Tingfeng Banquet were looser. Divided by plane, each of the eight planes from the five Glory planes and three Dharma ranks had a battle platform. They could only fight within the plane to find the strongest of each plane.


    The center platform was for those of even higher planes. Those under 25 years of age and higher than the Third-level Dharma rank could go there to display their radiance. This way, the age range was ten years from 16 to 25. The Tingfeng Banquet was held once every ten years so all the talents created during that time could have this opportunity. The rules were simple and straightforward. It wasn''t as efficient as the Fenghua Banquet but it was easier to see what level the talents were at.


    Ye Futian sat quietly in the stands. He obviously wouldn''t demand anything from Emperor Luo right outside the Nandou Palace. In fact, he hadn''t even looked at Emperor Luo. The emperor and crown prince hadn''t looked at him either. Both parties had forgotten about the Donghai City event in mutual agreement. No one would bring it up. Today was the Tingfeng Banquet and Ye Futian was a guest who had come with Emperor Ye.


    Seeing the people walk to and fro, and the endless crowds before the nine battle platforms, Ye Futian realized that the Tingfeng Banquet was on a much larger scale than the Fenghua Banquet. It spanned ten years and he was sure there were many monstrously talented people born in those years. However, this didn''t make him feel anything. Monstrous? So what?


    Battles erupted on the platforms and the atmosphere rose instantly. Countless eyes stared at the nine platforms. The young talents'' eyes all burned with competitiveness. They were ready to go up and perform at any time.


    "Emperor Ye, how do you think our Tingfeng Banquet is compared to your Fenghua Banquet?" Emperor Luo gazed over at Emperor Ye and smiled while asking.


    "It''s much larger and there are more participants; however, the efficiency is too low. The final winner, the pride of the kingdom, might not be comparable to my Fenghua Banquet," Emperor Ye said, smiling.


    "You are confident." Emperor Luo laughed. "Nandou nation''s Tingfeng Banquet is held once per decade. You think that the talents from a decade can''t be compared to the three years of your kingdom?"


    "You must understand that the top talents can''t be discussed with time as the basis. Regardless of Nandou or Cangye, how many years must pass before there is a Noble Plane cultivator?" Emperor Ye said calmly. The emperors of the four nations all nodded at that. Someone of the Noble Plane could become an emperor and was difficult to come by. Those who had a noble talent were too rare. In addition, it wasn''t enough to only have the talent. Too many talents died before they matured. They also needed to have a noble fate.


    This type of person had definitely appeared in the four nations'' hundreds of years of history. It wasn''t just one person either. However, the emperors might not be able to discover and use them.


    "Emperor Luo, your fate isn''t enough." Emperor Ye smiled while Emperor Luo''s eyes flashed. There was a hidden meaning behind these words. Since Emperor Ye had adopted Hua Jieyu, this meant he would protect Ye Futian. Naturally, he knew many things.


    There was someone with a noble talent had appeared in Nandou��more than one, in fact. Minister Zuo had personally tested his fate. Since he was fated to be emperor, he would definitely have the talent of a noble. It was undeniable that one must be a noble to become emperor. Unfortunately, this person with the aura of an emperor had fallen for Hua Jieyu, the descendant of the former Nandou royalty. Their fates were possibly emperor and empress. This way, even if they had the noble talent, Emperor Luo couldn''t use them for himself or keep them. If Hua Jieyu had agreed to become crown princess, her fate could be used for Luo Junlin but it was just a pity now.


    "Oh?" Emperor Luo smiled thinly. "The noble talent is rare but it appears occasionally. Most die during the process of strengthening though. How many can truly become a noble?" There was murderous intent in those words.


    "Emperor Luo is right," Emperor Ye said. "I heard that your crown prince, Luo Junlin, is also believed to have the noble talent, right? I wonder if he''ll have to chance to grow into someone of the Noble Plane." He smiled. Their conversation was tit-for-tat.


    Emperor Luo had said that someone with the noble talent could also die, hinting that he wanted to kill Ye Futian. Emperor Ye had counterattacked. Luo Junlin also had the noble talent. Would he die as well? In actuality, he was warning Emperor Luo, try and harm my people.


    Emperor Luo''s lips curled into a sneer sharper than a blade.


    Ye Futian naturally overheard their conversation. There were hidden meanings behind their words. He understood that Emperor Ye would protect him. Otherwise, he wouldn''t have been brought here.


    "Are you two speaking in riddles?" the emperor of the Yunchu Nation said. They seemed to be fighting with their words but he didn''t understand.


    The nations all paid attention to the important events of their neighbors, such as the Tingfeng Banquet and Fenghua Banquet. They would also know who the most brilliant figures of the Fenghua Banquet were. However, Donghai City was just a small city of Nandou Nation. They wouldn''t pay much attention to it. Especially for emperors, they didn''t have the time to care about that. It was already a feat if they glanced at the names of the talents at the Fenghua Banquet.


    In the world of the cultivators, the most important thing for an emperor was just cultivating and becoming stronger. Therefore, the emperor of the Yunchu Nation only slightly understood their conversation. He guessed that it had something to do with the Fenghua Banquet participant who called himself the talent of the Nandou Nation.


    "The Yunchu Nation also brought some younger talents this time. There were some very talented people earlier from Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet. If there''s a chance, you all can mingle," Emperor Luo said with a smile.


    The Yunchu Nation emperor also smiled. He glanced at the talents of his nation and asked, "Did you hear that?"


    They smiled and looked over at Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen''s group. One of them, dressed in glamorous clothing, asked, "I heard some news from the Fenghua Banquet. Apparently, the winner is from the Seven-star Glory Plane. It''s quite interesting."


    "A Seven-star Glory Plane genius who defeated the Dharma rank might really have a superpower," someone joked.


    "Then what kind of Dharma cultivator can be defeated?"


    "Apparently he entered the Fenghua Rank too."


    As the Yunchu Nation talents chatted, Yu Jiang and Bai Qiu''s faces darkened. They obviously understood the jabs in those words.


    "Naturally, it''s a Dharma cultivator who can defeat you," a voice said indifferently. Unlike the Yunchu youths who had hidden meanings, he responded straightforwardly. The speaker was Ye Wuchen. He acted just as he fought��he didn''t often make actions but they always hit their mark.


    "Really? I hope I''ll have to chance to experience it," the Yunchu youth said with a smile. He wasn''t angered. As the pride of their kingdoms, they were rivals. Some remarks couldn''t affect his mood.


    "I''ll take you all around the Imperial City after today''s event. Now, let us watch quietly," Crown Prince Luo Junlin said. Many looked over at him. He was popular. He was known as the future emperor of the Nandou Nation at such a young age and no one could move him. One must enter the Noble Plane to become the emperor. Therefore, Luo Junlin was a future Noble cultivator.


    "I''m sure today''s Tingfeng Banquet will be boring," a youth from the Yan Kingdom said. He wasn''t very excited. The Tingfeng Banquet had such a large scale and all the talents would come to battle. Many were just here for fun and to test their skills; they were easily defeated. Occasionally, someone would be eye-catching but it wasn''t enough. Unless the genius talents were chosen today, the current battles were uninteresting to them.


    "Really? What do you think about that one?" Luo Junlin smiled and pointed at a battle platform. It was where the Seven-star Glory Plane cultivators were. At the moment, there was a battle. A very young talent stood there, having won many rounds continuously. He was skilled in matrices. He could create one per step and use these arrays to fight without using up any time.


    He''d been fighting and continuously defeated strong cultivators from everywhere. No one was his match. In fact, they were defeated instantly. The matrices he carved could collect Spiritual Qi from every element and transform into an impossibly strong spell. The power was horrible.


    "I''m afraid no one in the Glory Plane can defeat him," Minister Hua said. This must be Yun Tianhao, the talent that Yan Shao had told him to keep note of. Yan Shao had said that his life spirit was the matrix. He could use full-elemental Spiritual Qi to carve matrices and had limitless potential. If he had a good teacher, he could wow the world.


    Ye Futian also gazed at the battle platform. He was shocked when he saw the youth because he knew him. It was the one Ye Futian had fought with when the Heiyan Academy came to challenge the Qingzhou Academy. He''d used tactics of the Inscriber to defeat others.


    Compared to then, Yun Tianhao was much more mature now. He won many more rounds before stopping. His gaze moved to the emperor''s stand. Ye Futian realized that Yun Tianhao was looking at him. It seemed that Yun Tianhao still hadn''t moved on from that fight.


    Ye Futian smiled and watched Yun Tianhao walk toward somewhere in the crowd. Following his direction, Ye Futian saw Yan Shao and the strong cultivators of Donghai Academy. He even saw Lin Xiyue, looking at him with her pretty eyes.


    The Donghai Academy! Ye Futian''s eyes scanned Yan Shao and they flashed coldly. The place he had once cultivated at was very memorable.

 133 Do What You See Fi

    Chapter 133: Do What You See Fit


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many students from Donghai Academy were participating in the Tingfeng Banquet. After seeing Yun Tianhao, Ye Futian also saw Zhuo Qing and Zhou Mu arrive at the platform to defeat their opponents. Zhuo Qing and Zhou Mu were in the same plane and can both be considered geniuses. Zhou Mu was the disciple of the Art Saint and Zhuo Qing was known as best of everyone below the Dharma Plane. However, during the battle at the School of the Emperor Star, while Ye Futian and Yu Sheng shined above the rest, many of the school''s "best" lost their confidence. There was even less to be said after the battle at the Nandou Clan palace on the last day of Divine Calendar Year 10000. After that day, no one in Donghai City dared to claim to have unparalleled gifts.


    Time passed little by little. The Tingfeng Banquet continued battle after battle. So many things happened at once, it was impossible for the audience to take in everything. The four emperors chatted about nothing in particular, but each word from their mouths carried hidden meanings. It was their own secret battle. Ye Futian was looking at the battle platforms, but he was not watching. His heart was elsewhere.


    Emperor Ye had already sent people to look from Yi Xiang but since he had defied the emperor''s order for Ye Futian, it was not safe for him to easily reveal himself. How was Ye Futian going to let Yi Xiang know that he was now following under the emperor of the Cangye Kingdom?


    A burst of cheers would come from the audience every once in a while. As the Tingfeng Banquet proceeded, many cultivators began to stand out from the rest. But Ye Futian did not seem to be interested.


    Slowly, the first day was coming to an end, but the audience did not seem to have gotten enough. They were still just as enthusiastic as before. At dawn, the sky was turning red. The emcees of the banquet exchanged a look, nodded, and waited for the current round of battles to end before announcing that the first day of the Tingfeng Banquet was officially over and battles would continue the following day.


    Many audience members had not gotten enough, but they knew that this was only the beginning to the multi-day event only held once every ten years. It was only going to get more interesting. The thought of this had them anticipating the events to come.


    Many people looked towards where the emperors were seated. Four emperors had gathered here today. To everyone, it was hard enough to catch a glimpse of one emperor on a normal day. It was only possible during special events, like the Tingfeng Banquet. Now that they were able to see four emperors at once, many people were going to be bragging about it for a long time.


    Where the emperors sat, Emperor Yan spoke up, "Is the Tingfeng Banquet the only reason you have invited us to the Nandou Nation, Emperor Luo?"


    Emperor Chu and Emperor Ye''s eyes fell on Emperor Luo. They saw him smile before saying, "Brother Yan, are you getting impatient already? What''s so bad about watching the battles between younger generation cultivators in our free time? Besides, it''s rare for all of us to be gathered like this. Later, we can talk about cultivation and check up on each other to see what we can improve on. It''ll be better than cultivating on our own, right?"


    "Well, he isn''t wrong," chuckled Emperor Chu.


    "Then let''s go," said Emperor Luo.


    "What about them?" Emperor Ye asked, looking at the people behind him.


    "Crown Prince Luo Junlin will show them around. Just let the youngsters wander freely. They won''t be comfortable with us around," Emperor Luo said. Emperor Ye did not say anything else. The four of them walked away alone, not bringing anyone with them. After all, they were the strongest, most powerful cultivators across four countries. There was no need for them to bring bodyguards.


    After the four emperors left, Crown Prince Luo Junlin smiled at the others. He said, "Everyone has come a long way. I have set up a dinner at the Qixing Lake to welcome you all. We''ll be able to walk around the city and I can show you the beautiful sites of the Nandou Nation''s imperial city. This way please." He led the young people from the three countries forward. Ye Futian followed along as well. Yu Sheng stared coldly at Luo Junlin''s back. It was after his visit to Donghai Academy that the imperial order was given. On the other hand, nothing seemed to have affected Ye Futian. It was almost as if he didn''t know Luo Junlin. Ye Futian walked quietly.


    Behind the two, many powerful cultivators followed. There were some from each country. Among the people walking up in the front, were not only the top talents of the different countries but princes and princesses as well. More powerful cultivators, such as Jing Yu from the Cangye Kingdom, followed behind the group. They stayed far away as to not disturb the group.


    The Qixing Lake was not far from the imperial palace. It was located at the center of the imperial city. Night had come, and the waters of the lake looked extra beautiful in the moonlight. The moonlight reflecting off the surface of the lake made it look like there were many lights floating on the water, providing an indescribable mood.


    Presently, there were quite a few people visiting the lake. In the Qixing Lake, were seven eyots. These islands weren''t big and there wasn''t much to see. The seven eyots lined up like the Big Dipper. And it was on this strip of small islands that the famous Qixing Restaurant was located.


    On the island at the very center, a feast had already been set up. Many beautiful servants were waiting there. This dinner was obviously prepared far in advance. The venue was set up along four sides. The people of the four countries sat in their own sections. The Nandou Nation''s crown prince, Luo Junlin walked over to the main section and said, "Please sit everyone."


    Ye Futian''s group walked over to one of the sides and took their seats. Everyone else in the venue did the same. In the center of the room was an empty space. It seemed to be a stage. A young woman with a veiled face played the guqin. The beautiful, moving sound of the music started and provided an incredible atmosphere under the moonlight. Then, a line of dancers entered, dancing around the young lady playing her instrument.


    In Qixing Lake, people traveling past the restaurant by boat looked in on this scene. Knowing who these people were, many boats came this way, but no one dared to get too close. They all just watched from afar. It was the first night of the Tingfeng Banquet. Crown Prince Luo Junlin had set up a feast to welcome the cultivators of the three neighboring countries. The onlookers were secretly anticipating for something to happen.


    "Everyone has traveled from far away. Please forgive me if something is not to your liking. I do apologize for not being a good host," said Luo Junlin.


    "Beautiful people, beautiful view, and this moving music. There is nothing not to our liking," said the extravagantly dressed young man from the Yunchu Nation. And he wasn''t saying so brown nose the Crown Prince. This setting was truly perfect.


    "Whether it be music or beauties, there are better among our guests from the Cangye Kingdom," chuckled Luo Junlin. Many people turned their attention over to look at the three beauties from the Cangye Kingdom: Lin Yueyao, Hua Zhixin, and Ye Lingxi. There were all beautiful, especially Lin Yueyao. Her looks were too outstanding. Many people had taken notice of her very early on. There were also females amongst the cultivators from the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom, but their appearance could not hold a candle to the three Cangye beauties.


    "In the past, the one piece you played for me at Donghai Academy is still fresh in my mind. ''The World''," Luo Junlin smiled and then turned to look in Ye Futian''s direction.


    Ye Futian put down the wine glass in his hand and lifted his head to look at the crown prince. Luo Junlin was still as he used to be. A face of arrogance. Even today, he still gave Ye Futian looks of superiority. He still thought Ye Futian was inferior and a joke.


    "I take back what I said in the past. The piece is not suitable for you." Ye Futian smiled.


    "It doesn''t matter to me. The world known as the Nandou Nation is too small for me," said Luo Junlin. It seemed that this was not where his heart was. His target was a world larger than just the Nandou Nation. "But let''s talk about you. I offered you a great opportunity. If you had taken it and aided me, the things that followed would have never happened."


    "Perhaps that''s just your fate," Ye Futian replied calmly. They both spoke sharp words. Luo Junlin thought that Ye Futian should regret the things that happened but Ye Futian said perhaps that was Luo Junlin''s fate, insinuating he should be the one who regrets what happened.


    The people from the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom all looked extremely interested in the exchange between the two young men. Who would have thought things would get so interesting right from the beginning?


    Luo Junlin stared at Ye Futian. He then smiled and asked, "How about you play another piece today?"


    Ye Futian glanced at him once and picked up his wine glass for a drink. Ignored.


    Just then, several figures approached. Luo Junlin looked over and saw Minister Hua, who greeted, "Your Highness."


    "Minister Hua, is something wrong?" asked Luo Junlin.


    "No. We saw Your Highness here so I came to greet you on their behalf," said Minister Hua as he pointed in the direction of the neighboring eyot. Luo Junlin looked over to see Yan Shao leading a group from Donghai Academy, as well as members of the Nandou Clan. They all stood there and bowed to him.


    Yan Shao and Minister Hua were senior and junior brothers, so there was nothing to say about that. But the Nandou Clan was just trying to get on Minister Hua''s good side.


    "Alright, I understand. Minister Hua should go attend to your own business. No need to worry about what happens here," said Luo Junlin. Minister Hua excused himself and took a look at Ye Futian before leaving.


    Ye Futian returned the gesture and his eyes followed Minister Hua all the way to the next eyot. There was something Ye Futian wanted to ask those people.


    "So, you''re the one Emperor Ye picked for first place at the Fenghua Banquet?" asked a young man from the Yan Kingdom.


    Ye Futian looked at him and smiled casually.


    "I''m very curious as to how a Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator got first place at the Fenghua Banquet," said a powerful cultivator from the Yan Kingdom.


    "Guess I was lucky and looked pleasing to the emperor''s eyes," said Ye Futian.


    "Do you guys believe him?" the young man from the Yan Kingdom asked the Yunchu group.


    The extravagantly dressed young man from the Yunchu Nation smiled. "Can''t we just battle him to find out?"


    "Yan Zhan, didn''t you want to test out the abilities of first place on the Fenghua Rank?'' asked the Yan cultivator.


    Yan Zhan stood up. Luo Junlin waved his hands and the dancers stepped down.


    "I am also a Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator," said Yan Zhan. He stood there, his large body exuding an invisible force, staring at Ye Futian.


    "I have stuff to do, so count me out," Ye Futian said. He put down his wine glass and stood up. He stepped out, away from his table, but he did not walk towards Yan Zhan. Instead, he headed out of the dinner venue.


    "What do you mean by this?" a person from the Yan Kingdom asked.


    "Not interested." Ye Futian did not turn back to answer.


    "Is this how bad Emperor Ye''s judgment is?" Yan Zhan asked.


    Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi were enraged. How dare he question their father''s judgment?


    Ye Futian did not stop, he continued on his way out. It was as if nothing here, had anything to do with him.


    Many people narrowed their eyes at his silhouette. Was he hiding from battle or did he feel he was too good to battle? He was first place on the Fenghua Ranks, so there should be no need for him to hide from battle. But to say he felt that he was too good to battle��wouldn''t that make him really conceited?


    "Yu Sheng!" from far away, Ye Futian called out. "Do what you see fit!"


    "Okay!" Yu Sheng replied.

 134 Can’t Live for Long

    Chapter 134: Can��t Live for Long


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yu Sheng walked out from the Cangye Kingdom group. Everyone instantly looked away from Ye Futian. Yan Zhan from the Yan Kingdom was very burly and filled with explosive strength but when Yu Sheng walked out, Yan Zhan seemed to shrink instantly. His presence was overshadowed. Many people were shocked. Were these two blokes going to fight?


    "Emperor Ye is a nice person with a nice eye to match," Yu Sheng said, looking at Yan Zhan.


    Yan Zhan looked at this guy and smirked. There was a crack. He''d made a sound when clenching his fist so it was obvious how strong he was.


    There was a low roar. A terrifying demon ox appeared on Yan Zhan. It was enormous, and his life spirit appeared behind him. It was a huge Black Ox. Yan Zhan was confident but he wouldn''t underestimate his opponent.


    "Where''s your life spirit?" he asked.


    "For you?" Yu Sheng scanned Yan Zhan. He hadn''t released his life spirit for anyone yet, let alone Yan Zhan who was on the same plane.


    Feeling the disdain in the word "you," Yan Zhan stepped forward. The entire eyot seemed to tremble. Everyone felt something like a herd of demon oxen stampeding.


    Pound, pound, pound�� The earth shook. Everyone''s wine glasses trembled violently. The powerful aura shocked everyone. This level of strength made one think that even if there was a mountain before him, he could still smash through it.


    Yu Sheng stood there without moving. Then a gust of wild aura erupted from his body. He saw Yan Zhan advance and punch; it felt like a herd of demon oxen crashing into his body.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward. There was a loud boom and then he punched forward too. There was nothing frivolous. Their strengths collided directly because they could feel that they were the same type of person.


    Boom! With the crash, there was no more suspense. Yu Sheng''s fist smashed into Yan Zhan and crushed in his chest. The next instant, everyone saw Yan Zhan''s burly body fly back, crashing into the crowd of people from the Yan Kingdom. Yu Sheng took a step. He crossed the space and grabbed Yan Zhan back. Hooking onto his chest, he raised Yan Zhan up with one hand.


    "This��" Everyone who saw this was shocked. His power was on another level.


    "Don''t overestimate yourself. You''re all nothing." Yu Sheng scanned the Yan Kingdom''s group and then hurled Yan Zhan into them. Yan Zhan flew and crashed into the banquet table. Some powerful cultivators tried to catch him and they all toppled over together. They were a bit dumbfounded. They were familiar with Yan Zhan''s power but he''d been defeated so badly now. It was humiliating. They could sense the Seven-star Glory Plane aura from Yu Sheng. This was a battle of the same plane.


    "Too weak," Yu Sheng said, a bit disappointed. Then he returned to his spot. The strong cultivators of the Yan Kingdom had dark expressions. It was the first time someone mocked Yan Zhan for being weak but they couldn''t say anything back.


    The people of the Cangye Kingdom didn''t find anything strange. They''d witnessed Yu Sheng''s strength at the Fenghua Banquet. Even people of the Dharma rank had to avoid him, let alone someone in the same plane. He could shake the Dharma but couldn''t fly, and this was all done without releasing his life spirit. They didn''t believe that someone as crazy as Yu Sheng wouldn''t have a life spirit. He was just hiding his true abilities.


    As for Ye Futian, he didn''t look back once he left. No matter if it was the Yan Kingdom or the Yunchu Nation, no one on the same plane could beat Yu Sheng. It was impossible!


    On another eyot, Ye Futian walked toward the table in the front. The people there were chatting happily. The atmosphere was much merrier than the strong cultivators of the four nations. After all, this group was different. Everyone was here to appeal to Minister Hua. However, once Ye Futian approached, the atmosphere froze and silence came. Their gazes fell on Ye Futian; they all knew who he was.


    They were Minister Hua, some people from Donghai Academy''s School of the Emperor Star, and the Nandou clan. Not only did they know Ye Futian, but they were enemies. If possible, they would definitely want to wipe Ye Futian out of existence. However, he''d come with the emperor of the Cangye Kingdom. If he could be killed, Emperor Luo would''ve done so long ago. It wasn''t up to them. Furthermore, the strong cultivators of the Cangye Kingdom were watching them.


    "We haven''t seen each other in one month. Seniors, you all look great," Ye Futian suddenly said, seeing everyone looking at him. The people all froze. He really had a high tolerance.


    "No, because you''re not dead," Minister Hua said straightforwardly without holding back. When Ye Futian escaped, he''d been terrified to report to the emperor. He was given a hard time, despite being the minister of the nation.


    "Oh, I''m sorry," Ye Futian said, smiling. Then he looked toward the Nandou clan and Yan Shao''s group.


    "Where is Jieyu?" a Nandou clan member suddenly asked.


    "Didn''t Minister Hua tell you all?" Ye Futian asked curiously. Other people might not know but Minister Hua should know. He was always by the emperor''s side and interacted with the crown prince often. He was an insider.


    The Nandou clan looked to Minister Hua, who looked back coldly. "What, you still care about that genius descendant of yours?"


    "Minister Hua, of course not. We wish she could be arrested immediately," the Nandou clan member quickly said.


    "Arrested? Hua Jieyu is in the Cangye Kingdom''s palace now, given the title of princess by Emperor Ye," Minister Hua said. The Nandou clan''s expressions changed fascinatingly. Hua Jieyu had become a princess of the Cangye Kingdom?


    One month ago, the emperor had sent the decree to the Nandou clan, and they wished Hua Jieyu would enter the palace as the crown princess. However, Hua Jieyu was in love with Ye Futian and escaped with him. To the Nandou clan, Hua Jieyu was obsessed with an immature relationship. But one short month later, Hua Jieyu had become the princess of Cangye instead of the crown princess of Nandou. The Nandou clan''s position in the Nandou Nation had become even more awkward. They were still jittery and timid to this day. How they felt went without saying.


    "You''re not here to chat, right?" Minister Hua asked coldly.


    Ye Futian obviously wasn''t here to chat. He studied Minister Hua and asked, "Where is my grandmaster buried?"


    Minister Hua looked at Ye Futian in shock. He didn''t expect Ye Futian to come to ask him about a dead man.


    "I guess my senior didn''t waste his life in exchange for yours," Minister Hua said indifferently. He glanced at Yan Shao; this task had been given to him.


    "There''s no need for you to know," Yan Shao answered coldly.


    Ye Futian looked at him and then said, "Grandmaster liked the School of the Emperor Star. He said that that''s his home even after death. He should be buried there."


    "Blasphemy," Yan Shao said coldly. The School of the Emperor Star wasn''t a cemetery.


    "It''s okay even if you didn''t do it. I''ll settle the score for Grandmaster later and let him return to the School of the Emperor Star. If I can''t find him, I''ll just have to let the School of the Emperor Star accompany him," Ye Futian said. With that, he turned and left.


    Yan Shao stared at his back, extreme murderous intent in his eyes. He just wanted to kill Ye Futian then and there. Ye Futian knew this because the feeling was mutual. However, they couldn''t kill each other now.


    "Wait," a voice suddenly said. Ye Futian stopped and turned to see someone looking at him. It was Yun Tianhao.


    "I want to see your true abilities," Yun Tianhao said coolly. Yan Shao didn''t say anything. Ever since Yun Tianhao entered the Donghai Academy, he knew that the youth would become the most talented one of the academy. He was a talent blessed by the gods. He would definitely snatch the spotlight during this Tingfeng Banquet. Ye Futian looked toward Yan Shao and the School of the Emperor Star. They seemed to anticipate their battle.


    "Ye Futian, Tianhao''s talent is at your level," Yan Shao said, somewhat proudly.


    His eyes smiling slightly, Ye Futian looked at Yan Shao and said, "Oh? Ask him how much of my true abilities he saw when he lost to me back then." Back then, he''d only revealed his talent as an Inscriber. He didn''t even reveal his Mandate Sorcerer talent.


    Yan Shao gazed blankly at Yun Tianhao. He didn''t know about this because the youth hadn''t told him.


    "That was before. The present is different." Yun Tianhao''s eyes were cold.


    "I don''t have time to play. If you want to fight, then are you ready to die?" Ye Futian asked coldly. Yun Tianhao''s eyes sharpened. The strong cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star glared at Ye Futian as well. He was way too arrogant.


    "Seems like you''re not as confident as you thought." Ye Futian smirked and turned to leave.


    Countless eyes watched his receding figure, their eyes frigid. Yun Tianhao clenched his fists tightly. He''d lost to Ye Futian once at the Qingzhou Academy. Then, he thought that he could surpass the other. When he came to Donghai City, he realized that Ye Futian''s name was known throughout the city. He had twin life spirits and was full-elemental. Though Yun Tianhao was proud, he wasn''t completely confident.


    "Don''t mind him. He won''t live for long," Minister Hua said, raising his wine. Yan Shao and the others looked at him and nodded lightly. However, they knew that if an emperor wanted to protect Ye Futian, it would be difficult to kill him. Even if he was outside like today, there were many powerful figures protecting him. A sneak attack was difficult.

 135 Indifferen

    Chapter 135: Indifferent


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian returned to the venue. The people from the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom were all looking at him. They had wanted to test out the abilities of the Fenghua Rank''s first place. However, Ye Futian did not want to. It was Yu Sheng who stepped out and threw a punch. This made it clear to them: Ye Futian was not hiding from battle��he thought he was too good for a battle.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were on the same plane, but in first place was Ye Futian, not Yu Sheng. If Yan Zhan was defeated by Yu Sheng, what level was Ye Futian on? It was safe to say that it would be difficult for anyone in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane to win against him.


    "At today''s event, the emperor of the Yan Kingdom said boring events like the Fenghua Banquet could not help pick out truly brilliant people. But that doesn''t seem to be true. What just happened is a perfect example. Do the others from the Yan Kingdom want to give it a try?" the extravagantly dressed young man from the Yunchu Nation opened his mouth again.


    "Well, of course. Not only that, we also want to know how strong Chu Kuangren of the Yunchu Nation is," said a young man from the Yan Kingdom, looking at the person who had just spoken. The young man was Yan Qi, and the extravagantly dressed young man he was speaking to was Chu Kuangren.


    "Even back in the Yunchu Nation, I have heard of Yan Qi''s knives. In the second level Dharma Plane, Yan Qi''s knives were able to execute a person in the fourth level Dharma Plane. He even became the godson of Emperor Yan, and was given the family name, ''Yan''," said Chu Kuangren with a smile. The two young men were attacking each other with their words.


    Chu Kuangren and Yan Qi were both the leaders of the young cultivators from their respective countries. One was an actual prince and one was bestowed the title of prince. Just as Emperor Yan had said, the Yan Kingdom was in need of talent, so anyone with extraordinary gifts had a chance at high status positions. It was even possible to become a prince.


    Chu Kuangren and Yan Qi met eyes. Both of their gazes were sharp like knives. An invisible force spread throughout the venue. Just then, Chu Kuangren laughed and the force disappeared immediately.


    "The Tingfeng Banquet has only just begun. Brother Yan, there is no need to rush. The time will come," said Chu Kuangren. "It is such a shame that the cultivation of the Fenghua Rank''s first place is so low. That''s no fun at all. If he were in the Dharma Plane, then things would be so much more interesting." Even though they had all heard that Ye Futian defeated Dharma Plane cultivators during the Fenghua Banquet, they would not accept this as proof of Ye Futian''s powers. Realization of Dharma that could be defeated by a mere Seven-Starred Glory Plane cultivator was definitely looked down upon. Chu Kuangren and Yan Qi''s gifts were able to overpower every one of the younger generation cultivators in their respective countries, so there was no need to question just how strong and powerful their gifts were.


    "But it''s a relief that Ye Wuchen is also on the Fenghua Rank," said Chu Kuangren. A moment later, he looked at the figure seated quietly across from him and said, "Ye Wuchen, you were the most powerful participant of the Fenghua Banquet and is second place on the Fenghua Rank. If Ye Futian did not defeat people levels above him, you would have been in first place."


    "You know quite a lot," said Ye Wuchen. He put down his wine glass and finally looked up a Chu Kuangren, breaking his silence.


    "It''s not hard to find out about these things. After all, the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet isn''t exactly a small event," answered Chu Kuangren. News circulated in the imperial palace and as a prince, it was not difficult for him to find out about every battle that went on during the banquet. Even though Chu Kuangren was not present at the event, two people made an impression on him purely based of the reports he received. One was Ye Futian who battled across planes, and the other was the invincible Ye Wuchen. Between these two people, Ye Futian''s level of cultivation was much too low to peak his interest. Chu Kuangren was very obviously more interested in Ye Wuchen.


    "But I don''t know anything about you," Ye Wuchen said nonchalantly. An awkward smile was frozen on Chu Kuangren''s face.


    Ye Futian chuckled. Ye Wuchen was indeed an interesting person.


    "Chu Kuangren, it seems you''re not as popular as you had thought," laughed Yan Qi.


    "You''re just the same," Ye Wuchen opened his mouth once again. Yan Qi gave him a strange look. Yan Qi knew that Chu Kuangren was extremely insolent, but he would never have imagined that he would meet someone even more arrogant today.


    Ye Wuchen was not being arrogant. In his opinion, cultivation was not an easy task. Swordsmanship required a lot of time for exploration and refinement. Where would he find the time to inquire about cultivators of the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom? To Ye Wuchen, if he wanted to find out about someone''s abilities, one duel was all it took. Why complicate something that could be taken care of so easily?


    "That''s okay. You''ll get to know us eventually." Chu Kuangren smiled at Ye Wuchen. Then, to the people seated beside him, he said, "Didn''t you guys want to see what kind of realization of Dharma the Dharma Plane cultivators defeated by a Glory Plane cultivator possessed? This is your time."


    As soon as he finished speaking, a person from the Yunchu Nation walked out, looking toward the group from the Cangye Kingdom. He said, "Would you guys mind enlightening me with your skills through a battle?"


    Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang''s expression darkened. They knew when they lost to Ye Futian that the news would spread all over the Cangye Kingdom and become history that could never be erased, but they never thought the news would travel so far that even neighboring countries would know about their defeat. Now, they were even being taunted about it.


    Bai Qiu walked out. Although he was defeated by Ye Futian, he was still the number one student of the Qin Clan. His abilities were definitely not weak, or else he would not have made it on the Fenghua Rank at all. After his defeat by Ye Futian, Bai Qiu defeated many other opponents and was picked by the emperor to enter the rank.


    The two cultivators walked to the side. The area in the center of the venue was obviously not spacious enough. Very quickly, a guqin sounded. As a Musical Sorcerer prodigy of the Qin Clan, Bai Qiu''s musical sorcery was very powerful. The Qin Clan was the guqin orthodoxy of the Cangye Kingdom. They were definitely deserving of this reputation.


    However, in the end, Bai Qiu was defeated.


    Everyone present from the Yunchu Nation was also the best of the younger generation cultivators. The Yan Kingdom was humiliated a while ago when they were immediately defeated in battle with Yu Sheng. There was no way the Yunchu Nation would make the same mistake. So, the person who fought Bai Qiu was actually extremely powerful. Amongst the younger generation cultivators from their country, he was one of the most gifted. But Bai Qiu had no prior knowledge of this. All he knew was that he was insulted and then was defeated once again. The high-spirited prodigy of the Qin Clan had lost his ��lan.


    Afterwards, the people of the Yan Kingdom joined in on the "fun" and challenged Yu Jiang. Just the same, Yu Jiang was also defeated. The Yan Kingdom''s victory made up for the humiliation they received after the previous battle. The defeat of Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang answered the Yunchu Nation''s question: What kind of realization of Dharma could be defeated by a Glory Plane cultivator?


    "By the looks of it, it''s not as difficult as we thought to rank first on the Fenghua Rank," Chu Kuangren laughed and looked at Ye Futian.


    Prince Ye Danchen, Princess Ye Lingxi, and others looked to Ye Futian. They couldn''t just sit and swallow the insults. The Cangye Kingdom had already lost twice. Even Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang had turned their eyes to Ye Futian. If he made a move, then maybe they could prove themselves to the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom.


    Ye Futian acted as if he did not hear anything Chu Kuangren had said. "Yu Sheng," he called.


    "..." No one said a thing. Was he going to make Yu Sheng fight again?


    "Here," answered Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian looked towards him and stood. Smiling, he said, "I''m full. Let''s go."


    "..."


    Yu Sheng blinked and replied, "Okay." Just like that, the two of them disregarded everyone at the venue and walked out.


    The people of the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom watched them, dumbfounded. How can they be so arrogant and disrespectful?


    Chu Kuangren was very arrogant, as was Yan Qi. Ye Wuchen did not lose to them in this department either, but there was no one like Ye Futian. He did not say anything insulting nor was he presumptuous or sarcastic��he simply ignored your existence.


    Wine glass in hand, Luo Junlin stared at Ye Futian''s back. It was impossible to hide the intent to kill in his eyes.


    Twin Spirits and gifts in all elements��Ye Futian was freakishly talented, but these talents still needed time to mature. Luo Junlin was not going to give him the chance to do so.


    "I''m also full," said Ye Wuchen and rose from his seat.


    "If so, then we will take our leave now," Ye Danchen said to Luo Junlin. The group from the Cangye Kingdom stood one by one and exited the venue. Everyone from the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom watched coldly as they departed.


    "Powerful cultivators from our three countries have gathered for the Tingfeng Banquet. By the end of this event, we will know who''s the strongest," Chu Kuangren said with a cold demeanor. Following that, he continued to drink. He had no intentions of leaving.


    Luo Junlin heard what he had said and smiled meaningfully. He had other thoughts in mind.


    As Ye Futian and the others walked further away from the venue, Lin Yueyao chased after him and arrived by his side.


    "Do you really not care?" she asked as she stared at Ye Futian. She was getting more and more curious about this guy.


    Ye Futian looked over at Lin Yueyao. She was indeed the Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty. Even though she could not compare to Hua Jieyu, Lin Yueyao was still captivatingly beautiful up close.


    "Why don''t you take a guess?" Ye Futian chuckled.


    "I''m very curious as to what goes on in that head of yours." Lin Yueyao gave him a beautiful smile. She continued, "Why don''t you just tell me?"


    Seeing her enchanting smile, Ye Futian smiled. "Your beauty has no affect me. After all, your looks cannot compare to my Fox."


    "..." Lin Yueyao slowed down and looked dumbfounded as Ye Futian walked past her. She glared at him. Passing by, Bai Qiu and others saw the anger in her eyes. They felt a twinge of jealousy in their hearts.


    Was this the same cold and indifferent girl? Between her and Ye Futian, who was more indifferent?


    The group headed back to the palace and split up. Upon arriving at the palace, Ye Futian saw a familiar silhouette waiting outside. When she saw Ye Futian, she headed for him with sparkling eyes. "You''re back!" she said loudly. Ye Futian walked toward the smiling girl. The people behind Ye Futian gave strange looks when they saw the beautiful girl. They remembered when they had arrived at the palace yesterday, a beautiful had come by. What''s more, she was the princess of the Nandou Nation. Tonight was their second night, and yet another beautiful girl had come for Ye Futian. Had he really escaped to the Cangye Kingdom from the Nandou Nation as a fugitive?


    Lin Yueyao looked at the two figures and was speechless. Isn''t his luck with women too ridiculously good?


    Ye Danchen, on the other hand, looked at Ye Futian with worship in his eyes. "Impressive," he muttered. Everyone returned to within the palace. Only Yu Sheng remained, waiting for Ye Futian on the side.


    "Lin Xiyue, didn''t you come with the people from Donghai Academy? What are you doing here?" Ye Futian asked. In the day, he saw her amongst the Donghai Academy crowd. His guess was that Lin Xiyue was cultivating at Donghai

 136 Much Better-behaved

    Chapter 136: Much Better-behaved


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Lin Xiyue''s pretty eyes focused on Ye Futian. From the close distance, she could see that he''d matured a lot since their first meeting on the ship in the East Sea. He''d become even more handsome and was no longer the youth from before.


    "Yes, I''m cultivating at Donghai Academy. You aren''t mad, are you?" Lin Xiyue asked with a smile.


    "Why would I be mad?" Ye Futian shook his head. He wasn''t that close-minded. He would remember the people from the School of the Emperor Star but the conflict had nothing to do with Donghai Academy, let alone a regular disciple from that academy.


    "You still didn''t tell me why you''re here. Is there something wrong?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Can''t I come to see a friend?" Lin Xiyue smiled gently.


    Seeing her like that, Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "Of course."


    "There''s nothing much," Lin Xiyue said. "I just saw you at the Tingfeng Banquet and wanted to come see you. I was worried for you after what happened at Donghai City. I can''t believe you found your place in the Cangye Kingdom so quickly and are even appreciated by the emperor. I worried for nothing." She was natural and poised.


    "Thanks," Ye Futian said, chuckling. "Did you hear about Yi Xiang, headmaster of the School of the Finance Star, in Donghai City?"


    Lin Xiyue smiled. "Don''t worry, Senior Yi should be fine. I asked my father about him. He was hurt after helping you delay the strong cultivators that day but retreated safely. He wasn''t Minister Hua''s main target and there wasn''t any news afterward so I''m sure he''s fine."


    Ye Futian was reassured. He knew the old fox wouldn''t run into trouble so easily.


    "Alright, I said hi to you and now I''m leaving." Lin Xiyue gave a small smile.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Go back safely."


    "Okay." Lin Xiyue nodded lightly and turned to leave. Ye Futian watched her receding backside and then walked toward the pavilion.


    Yu Sheng walked beside him and muttered, "How many girls are you gonna ruin?"


    "It''s not my fault I''m attractive." Ye Futian laughed and glanced at his friend with a smug expression as if saying, Do you see the difference between us?


    Yu Sheng rolled his eyes and strode off. He didn''t want to give Ye Futian the chance to be cocky.


    Ye Futian blinked and stared at Yu Sheng''s back. This wasn''t right. Shouldn''t he be the one to walk away proudly?


    "You''ve turned bad," Ye Futian muttered. When he returned to the courtyard, he practiced the guqin to raise his spiritual power rather than rest. Ever since he began cultivating, his experiences and changes in his mind made him desire more and more to advance in planes. Back in Qingzhou City, his godfather''s expectations for him to become emperor had seemed like a fantasy. Now, he was truly working toward it.


    Time passed bit by bit. Late at night, Ye Futian was still playing. Many emotions seemed to be hidden in the song. Returning to the Nandou Nation, his home country, this time, his identity had changed. He had come with Emperor Ye to attend the banquet. Everything was like a dream.


    As the music streamed into the silent air, there was a violent surge of Spiritual Qi in the air. They rushed into Ye Futian''s body but he didn''t seem to feel anything. He continued playing and the melody gradually rose from the low tone. There was a feeling of throwing the past behind. The Spiritual Qi grew more furious, dancing with the song. This persisted for a long while. When the last note sounded, there was sudden silence and the Spiritual Qi was sucked into his body.


    His eyes flew open, sparkling. Then Ye Futian smiled. He''d had a breakthrough and entered the Eight-star Glory Plane. After the breakthrough, he still didn''t rest and continued to cultivate his martial arts. The strengthening of his Spiritual Energy could raise his tenacity and was also helpful in cultivating martial arts.


    Wind came from his punches. Ye Futian activated the Imperial Tactics and the blood inside him seemed to rumble. He seemed to have the emperor''s intent; after the Spiritual Energy breakthrough, his martial arts cultivation was smoother too. His body was constantly changing.


    When the first sliver of light appeared at the horizon, shining onto Ye Futian, he raised his head and roared. He punched forward and there was an explosion. The air seemed to tremble. An incomparable power burst from his body. Shadows of dragons and rocs were released from his fist. A terrifying apparition of the Ape seemed to appear on him. He was covered entirely with the will of the martial arts. His strength was to the extreme.


    "Martial arts breakthrough." Ye Futian smiled. He had broken through in both sorcery and martial arts in one night.


    Ye Futian gathered his aura and stopped cultivating. Afterward, he went to wash up and the sky lightened gradually. Today would be the second day of the Tingfeng Banquet. Countless people gathered toward the South Gate of the palace in the Imperial City.


    Ye Futian traveled with Emperor Ye''s group today. On the way there, Emperor Ye called Ye Futian over.


    "Yesterday in the palace, Emperor Luo asked me for you again," Emperor Ye said. Hearing this, Ye Futian was very calm. If Emperor Ye wanted to hand him over, he would''ve done so long ago. Even if Emperor Ye didn''t think highly of him, the two nations were rivals. If Emperor Luo asked him for Ye Futian, he definitely wouldn''t agree. How would the world see him then?


    "He knew it was impossible but he still mentioned it. In addition, I could feel his confidence in his voice. It''s as if something will happen at the Tingfeng Banquet," Emperor Ye continued.


    Ye Futian furrowed his brows. Even without him, it was a bit odd that Emperor Luo would invite the emperors of the three nations to watch.


    "Are there possibilities that Emperor Luo forged alliances with Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom?" Ye Futian asked softly.


    "Impossible." Emperor Ye shook his head. "The four nations have a profound relationship. There''s no reason for them to ally with him." Though they had constant conflicts, the countries still had their bottom lines. The emperors wouldn''t take action against each other for no reason unless something truly big caused a war. A war between the emperors was not a trivial matter. Once it went full-out, no one could withstand it.


    "Guessing is probably useless. Let''s wait and see just how emboldened Emperor Luo is." Emperor Ye smiled and shook his head.


    The group gradually arrived at the location of the Tingfeng Banquet. At the moment, it had already been drowned by the endless crowd. However, when they saw Emperor Ye''s group, the people in the sky all opened up a path.


    Many studied Emperor Ye from the close distance. They didn''t know how strong the ruler of the Cangye Kingdom was. If the four emperors fought, it would definitely be spectacular but they knew this was quite impossible.


    "Those girls are so pretty." Someone saw Lin Yueyao and the others behind the emperor. They looked like fairies and many people gasped involuntarily.


    "That''s Ye Futian. He''s from the East Prefecture of our country but he betrayed us and went to the Cangye Kingdom. I heard he''s extremely talented," someone whispered, pointing at Ye Futian. Yesterday, the three emperors had come to watch and many people asked about the people they brought. They''d also heard some news.


    The people from the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom had already arrived. When Emperor Ye''s group came, Chu Kuangren, Yan Qi, and many others gazed at Ye Futian. Yesterday, the number one talent of Cangye''s Fenghua Rank had stayed away from battle but was still memorable.


    Emperor Luo had come too. The four emperors were all present and the Tingfeng Banquet began again.


    "Yesterday, Junlin invited everyone. Did the prides of all the nations interact with each other?" Emperor Luo asked with a smile. The other emperors looked a bit curious. They didn''t specifically ask about what happened yesterday.


    "We battled with some from the Fenghua Rank," Chu Kuangren said. "Just as we''d predicted, those in the Dharma Rank who can be defeated by the Glory Plane really aren''t much. After all, the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet is once every three years. It''s already impressive like this." Anyone could tell the arrogance in his calm voice.


    Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang''s faces darkened again. They cursed him mentally for bringing this up.


    "The Yan Kingdom seemed to have lost too," Bai Qiu said coldly.


    "All I can say is that the top three of the Fenghua Rank have some skills," Yan Qi said coolly. Yan Zhan had lost to Yu Sheng, who was number three of the Fenghua Rank.


    "Ye Wuchen is the strongest of the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Rank but we don''t have to rush the duel with him. Let''s watch and see what kind of talent can be born from this year''s Tingfeng Banquet," Chu Kuangren said.


    "What about the first place of the Fenghua Rank?" Emperor Luo asked with a smile. He seemed to not know Ye Futian. Of course, he really didn''t know Ye Futian. Their first meeting was at this Tingfeng Banquet.


    "The first place of the Fenghua Rank?" Chu Kuangren chuckled dryly. "I don''t know if he''s really arrogant or is just using it as an excuse to avoid fighting and hide something."


    Chu Kuangren hinted that Ye Futian was pretending to be arrogant in order to avoid fighting. If he didn''t fight, no one would know what his abilities really were like. He had proved himself at the Fenghua Banquet but only the Cangye Kingdom had witnessed that. There were top talents from every nation here. Who would think that they weren''t as good as the others?


    Many gazes fell upon Ye Futian, including Lin Yueyao and Bai Qiu. Chu Kuangren seemed to have been provoking him since last night. Would he still be unmoving?


    Ye Futian continued to sit there, gazing at the battles on the nine battle platforms. He ignored Chu Kuangren''s provocation.


    Everyone was speechless. This guy��


    "Don''t you have anything to say?" Chu Kuangren asked, looking at Ye Futian.


    Seeing how insistent he was, Ye Futian finally spared him a glance��just one glance. Then he continued watching the battles, unbothered.


    Everyone blanched. Were the battles really that interesting?


    Many followed his gaze and saw that Zhou Mu from Donghai Academy was fighting on the Seven-star Glory Plane platform.


    "His name is Zhou Mu. He used to be really arrogant," Ye Futian suddenly said as he watched him. Hearing this, everyone looked back. Ye Futian smiled and continued, "He became much better-behaved after getting wiped out by a staff."

 137 The Royal Xuan Temple

    Chapter 137: The Royal Xuan Temple


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "..."


    After Ye Futian had spoken, everyone around could only stare at him wide-eyed and dumbfounded.


    "This��" Even his fellow cultivators on the Fenghua Rank were speechless. Ye Futian was just too arrogant. But at the same time, hearing him insult others was a great feeling.


    Even Bai Qiu was feeling better about Ye Futian. Good thing Ye Futian didn''t use my defeat as an example. Would Zhou Mu spit blood in anger if he heard what Ye Futian said?


    Emperor Ye blinked a couple of times. The young man he picked for first place on the Fenghua Rank was one with personality.


    Everyone from the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom were frozen in shock. They watched as Ye Futian continued to focus on the battle platform. Although it was not specified that Ye Futian was speaking to Chu Kuangren, the latter could not stand what Ye Futian was saying.


    The emperors could not help but turn their attention to Ye Futian, especially the emperor of the Yunchu Nation. Chu Kuangren was his son, so he knew well of his abilities. Where did this Glory Plane nobody get the courage to speak in such a manner? However, he was an emperor. So naturally, he was not going to involve himself in a conflict between those of the younger generation. But still, listening to what Ye Futian was saying, he was asking for a beating.


    Chu Kuangren was dazed for a moment. Then, he sneered and said, "All geniuses are arrogant. There is no need for surprise. But to hear a mere Glory Plane cultivator like yourself speaking out so wildly is a first. It''s a bit absurd. If you were in the Dharma Plane, I wouldn''t have minded personally teaching you how to conduct yourself properly."


    Ye Futian turned to Chu Kuangren with a slight smile on his face. "Alright, if I get the chance, I''ll definitely ask for your advice."


    "Let''s wait until you enter the Dharma Plane." Chu Kuangren turned his head away from Ye Futian, no longer looking at him. Chu Kuangren was not his real name, but this name was much more well-known than his original name. After a while, people had forgotten his real name. This went to show just how wild Chu Kuangren was. But now, Chu Kuangren had met his match.


    "We''ll just wait to test him out after the results of the Tingfeng Banquet are announced," said Yan Qi. After listening to Ye Futian''s words, even he wanted to beat him up. How could Ye Futian compare Chu Kuangren to an opponent he once defeated, and go as far as to say he''d be much better-behaved later? The young man on the battle platform, Zhou Mu, was indeed talented, but how could he be compared to Chu Kuangren? Chu Kuangren was the most powerful cultivator of the younger generation in all of Yunchu Nation!


    Ye Futian shook his head lightly. He was not very interested in what they were talking about. The only thing he would gain from defeating the prodigies of the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom was praise. It would also make him more enemies. There was no need for Ye Futian to prove himself to the others. Even last night, when Chu Kuangren tried to provoke him, Ye Futian just left, not wanting to deal with him.


    How fitting of a person who once defied my order, thought Emperor Luo. He then called out, "Ye Futian!"


    Ye Futian''s eyes brightened and he turned his body around, his eyes falling on Emperor Luo. Emperor Luo had eyes filled with arrogance and pressing air of royalty surrounding him. One would not have been able to guess that he had usurped the throne to become emperor. In these 300 plus years, he had already gotten used to this identity. He was the emperor of the Nandou Nation, the one and only. It was because of this that he was so domineering and had no respect for others. This was also why he was able to make those two unreasonable orders.


    "Had you followed my order and come to the imperial city, perhaps I would have given you another chance. Why did you have to try so hard to escape? Now, your ending will remain the same. Do you ever regret your decision?" Emperor Luo suddenly asked bluntly. There was no beating around the bush.


    Ye Futian looked at Emperor Luo. Just as Emperor Ye had said, he was very confident that he would get Ye Futian. Where did Emperor Luo get this confidence from?


    "What''s done is done. Why would I regret it?" Ye Futian said nonchalantly.


    "You''re right," chuckled Emperor Luo. "People usually don''t have regrets until they reach a dead end. Nandou Nation is my world. My order is the order of the heavens. If you defy my order, then you are going against the mandate of heaven. Even if what Minister Zuo foretold is true, that you really are fated to become emperor, it wouldn''t change a thing."


    The other emperors looked strangely at Emperor Luo, then at Ye Futian. This young man who was first place on the Fenghua Rank had the fate of an emperor?


    Hearing these words, Ye Futian remained calm. He was simply curious as to why Emperor Luo would say these things here and now. His every word dripped with arrogance. Only Ye Futian knew, if Minister Zuo truly had told his fortune, he was not just fated to become emperor.


    Ye Futian looked to Minister Zuo who was seated right below Emperor Luo. He sat there quietly, as if he truly no longer cared for such things.


    "If it makes Your Majesty happy, you are welcome to say anything you want," smiled Ye Futian. He did not try to go against Emperor Luo. Right now, Ye Futian still lacked the ability to challenge him.


    "Even if you possess the fate of an emperor, you should consider yourself lucky to be able to become my son''s study attendant," said Emperor Luo. "Unfortunately, you did not know to cherish such an opportunity."


    Ye Futian did not reply. Everyone in the Nandou Nation knew that out of all of Emperor Luo''s children, he doted on Crown Prince Luo Junlin the most. He was made Crown Prince from a very young age, and was going to inherit the throne in the future. His gifts were like no other, and he was thought of as peerless throughout the whole Nandou Nation. He was truly extraordinary. Since he possessed such spectacular gifts, as his father, Emperor Luo had the utmost confidence in Luo Junlin.


    "Crown Prince Luo Junlin was born a couple of years too early. Otherwise, this rascal would have been able to exchange a few moves and learn a thing or two from him," the emperor of the Yunchu Nation said while looking ahead at Chu Kuangren. He also had the same confidence in his own son.


    "Is that so?" laughed Emperor Luo. His words carried a hint of disdain. Emperor Chu did not argue further.


    The Tingfeng Banquet continued. Young cultivators continued to emerge to the audience. Among them were those with extraordinary talents. At noon, it seemed as if no one had left. The atmosphere in the Tingfeng Banquet was still roaring despite the hot, beaming sun.


    Just then, the emperors turned in the direction of the Nandou Nation''s imperial palace, their expressions strange. There was actually someone who dared to fly in the air above the imperial palace? Especially during the Tingfeng Banquet? They truly had no respect for the emperor of the Nandou Nation.


    Emperor Ye and the two other emperors looked toward Emperor Luo. They saw a glimmer in his eyes as he stared toward the imperial palace. It was as if he were anticipating something. Rays of light, strong like the sun''s rays, shined in their direction. The light moved closer until it was directly above them. A roar erupted through the air and the audience of the Tingfeng Banquet looked up to the sky in shock. Who dares to be so disrespectful in the audience of the four emperors?


    "The Tingfeng Banquet will stop for the time being. Everyone, step down from the battle platform," Emperor Luo stood and announced. His voice reached the nine platforms, sending chills down the backs of all participants. Even those in the midst of a heated duel did not dare to go against the emperor''s order and halted immediately. Everyone scampered off the platforms.


    In mid-air, three figures stood loftily. They were basked in the sun''s rays and reflected an even brighter light. The three of them floated above the four emperors as if that was how it was meant to be. The haughty expressions on their faces said that they thought nothing of the emperors or the Tingfeng Banquet.


    Noble Plane. Emperor Luo, Emperor Chu, and Emperor Yan''s eyes sparkled. Three Noble Plane cultivators had arrived in the Nandou Nation. No wonder they had no regard for anything and even flew over the imperial palace. This was a truly frightening situation. The aura of the three guests combined was stronger than that of the three emperors. While they were shocked, they were also confused. In the Hundred Lands of the Eastern Barren Territory, which country could have sent out this terrifying line-up.


    The large crowd present at the banquet were even more curious. To them, the Noble Plane meant the emperors. A once in a lifetime occurrence, these three people seemed to have powers above the emperors. Who were these people who dared to disregard the emperors?


    "Where is Luo Junlin?" the leader of the group asked. Emperor Luo''s eyes widened. Has the time finally come? It was quicker than he anticipated.


    Luo Junlin stood, fists clenched. There was a hint of excitement in his eyes. With steady steps, he headed toward the trio. Looking up at them, he said, "My most humble greetings, seniors."


    "Let us take a look," said the leader. Luo Junlin nodded and released a frightening force of energy in front of everyone''s eyes. A golden light washed over the skies. Luo Junlin was enveloped in an air of royalty, projecting the aura of a young noble. He was insufferably arrogant.


    Noble will. Emperor Ye and the two other visiting emperors were shocked. The stood from their seats, looking up at the sky, they seemed to have a few things figured out.


    In this moment, Emperor Ye finally understood why Emperor Luo was so confident��he actually sent Luo Junlin into that place. And Luo Junlin succeeded. This meant that he possessed a scary gift.


    "During your trial in the Ancient Barren World, you acquired the noble fate. We come from the Eastern Barren Territory''s Royal Xuan Temple. Are you willing to join us?" asked the leader.


    Luo Junlin bowed in respected and replied, "I am!"


    "Alright. Are you going to leave with us now or will you come alone a little later?" the leader asked.


    "I still have some business to take care of and will head over at a later time," answered Luo Junlin.


    "Very good then," nodded the leader. He handed a badge to Luo Junlin and said, "This is the Royal Xuan Emblem. Infuse your spiritual energy into the emblem and we will know whether you are alive or dead. From now on, you are a student of the Royal Xuan Temple. Come within three months."


    "Yes, Senior," bowed Luo Junlin.


    "Goodbye," nodded the leader. Then, the three of them flew away, turning in rays of light. From beginning to end, they did not look at the four emperors even once.


    It was as if in their eyes, the emperors, who were above all, were not worthy of even a single glance.


    "Take care, Senior," said Luo Junlin, still bowing.


    Emperor Ye and the other two emperors stared at Luo Junlin. Their inner thoughts were all stirred up. The Royal Xuan Temple was an extremely powerful force from faraway in the center of the Eastern Barren Territory!

 138 Barren Ancient World

    Chapter 138: Barren Ancient World


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Around the battle platform, countless eyes watched Luo Junlin in the air. They didn''t know how powerful the Royal Xuan Temple was but it was clear from Emperor Luo and Luo Junlin''s attitude.


    The Royal Xuan Temple was a force far above the Nandou Nation.


    Crown Prince Luo Junlin was favored by the Royal Xuan Temple and was accepted as a disciple. He was definitely an unparalleled talent of the Nandou Nation now.


    "Congratulations, Your Highness, congratulations, Crown Prince." Minister Hua stood up now and bowed to the emperor and Luo Junlin. Many other Nandou nobles also stood up to bow. Gradually, the attendees of the Tingfeng Banquet all followed. The sight was as majestic as tidal waves crashing.


    Amongst the crowd, the people from the Donghai Academy''s School of the Emperor Star and Nandou clan were stunned, especially the latter. They knew more about the Eastern Barren Territory and knew what this meant. Their ancestor had died in the Barren Ancient World.


    Many of the younger generation looked to the crown prince with envy and respect. However, Lin Xiyue looked at Ye Futian instead. The crown prince seemed to have joined the powerful clan from the outside world. Its power was above a kingdom''s. Would the brilliant and handsome youth be able to counter him?


    The emperors of the three nations and the other talents watched this scene quietly. The emperors finally realized the true reason why Emperor Luo invited them.


    Emperor Luo waved at them all. He smiled and said, "Receiving this news during the Tingfeng Banquet is truly a celebratory matter. I will greatly reward the most talented of this year''s banquet. Let''s continue now."


    "Thank you, Your Majesty." Everyone smiled. The Tingfeng Banquet continued.


    "The crown prince will cultivate in the Royal Xuan Temple and has the noble will. He must become a Noble in a few years," Minister Hua said, smiling. Emperor Luo was happy to hear this but the other emperors knew that Minister Hua was just kissing up to him. Luo Junlin was already at the peak of the Dharma Plane but there was still the Arcana Plane after that. Entering the Noble Plane in a few years was a fool''s dream.


    However, he had received the noble will in the Barren Ancient World and would cultivate in the Royal Xuan Temple. Becoming a Noble figure was just a matter of time.


    "Congratulations, Brother Luo," the emperors of Yunchu and Yan commended. They were jealous but they still had to say something. Once Luo Junlin became a Noble, there would be two figures of the Noble Plane in the Nandou Nation. In addition, Luo Junlin could reach a higher plane in the Royal Xuan Temple. They couldn''t become rivals with the Nandou Nation''s royal family.


    "Thank you." Emperor Luo chuckled and looked over at Emperor Ye. "Emperor Ye, what do you think?" he asked with a smile.


    "You''re quite lucky." Emperor Ye smiled casually. He was thinking that if Ye Futian was also at the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane, he would sacrifice his own chance to send Ye Futian into the Barren Ancient World. He might be able to win an opportunity for the youth. However, Ye Futian''s cultivation was too weak. It would be hard to establish himself in the Barren Ancient World, no matter how talented he was.


    "Lucky?" Emperor Luo sneered and said, "I suggest Emperor Ye reconsider his actions. Perhaps I can overlook the rejection from before." As he spoke, he glanced at Ye Futian. He obviously wanted to force Emperor Ye to hand him over.


    "If you believe in Luo Junlin so much, why must you always ask me for the boy?" Emperor Ye asked, looking at Luo Junlin. "Or are you unconfident in him, thinking that he''s not comparable to Ye Futian?"


    "Nonsense." Emperor Luo scoffed. "If you insist, then just wait and see."


    Luo Junlin glanced at Emperor Ye. Then his gaze fell upon Ye Futian, disdain filling his eyes. Ye Futian didn''t care about Luo Junlin''s gaze. He wasn''t familiar with the Royal Xuan Temple. Whether Luo Junlin joined them or not, he wasn''t a threat to Ye Futian yet so why did it matter? It would just be harder to kill him in the future.


    Right now, Ye Futian was thinking of something else. It had been so familiar when Luo Junlin released his noble will earlier.


    That day at the brink between life and death in the Donghai City, the emperor''s will had appeared in him, giving him the Imperial Tactics. When he used to Imperial Tactics afterward, the emperor will would appear. Was this similar to the noble will that Luo Junlin had?


    "Unbelievable," Zuo Qianfan said from beside Ye Futian. "The Nandou Nation will most likely have two Nobles."


    "There''s still a while," Hua Zhixin said softly.


    "Better to be safe than sorry. If that day really comes, Cangye will be in trouble." Zuo Qianfan glanced at Ye Futian and asked, "Don''t you all have any thoughts?"


    No one replied but many looked at Ye Futian. All they received was Yu Sheng''s indifferent reply. "It''s just in the future. At that time, wouldn''t we have improved as well? You think someone like you can be a genius?"


    "Presumptuous," Zuo Qianfan replied coldly. "Don''t you know what the noble will signifies?"


    "It''s just a plane in cultivation. Is it very powerful?" Yu Sheng stared at him.


    The people of the Fenghua Rank all looked at him and saw that there was no fear in his eyes. They seemed to become re-acquainted with Yu Sheng through this. Was the Noble Plane just another plane for this guy? To many, a noble represented the emperor��an unmatchable talent.


    Zuo Qianfan studied Yu Sheng and then laughed. He was foolishly arrogant.


    Emperor Ye was attracted by their argument. He gazed at Yu Sheng''s unrelenting eyes and chuckled. "Yu Sheng is right. The Noble Plane is just another plane in cultivation. You are all on the Fenghua Rank. Don''t you have the intention of entering the Noble Plane?"


    Seeing that Emperor Ye was speaking up for Yu Sheng, Zuo Qianfan had no way of replying. Though Emperor Ye wasn''t wrong, Zuo Qianfan knew that it wasn''t that easy to enter the Noble Plane. Not only did it require high talent, one also needed the noble fate and noble will. This was impossible for the majority of people.


    "Your Majesty, where did those people come from? What is the Barren Ancient World?" Hua Zhixin asked now. Her father hadn''t told her about this before.


    "Since you''ve seen them today, I shall tell you," Emperor Ye said after hearing Hua Zhixin''s question. Everyone from the Cangye Kingdom looked at him full of curiosity.


    "Both the Cangye Kingdom and Nandou Nation are part of the Eastern Barren Territory but that is not all. The territory is boundless. Even as an emperor, I still don''t know just how vast the territory is. Apparently, there are hundreds of nations in the region we live in. It is known as the Hundred Lands of the Eastern Barren Territory, stretching an immense amount of land. However, this is not the center of the territory."


    Emperor Ye continued slowly, "The center of the Eastern Barren Territory contains countless extremely powerful forces. Those of the Noble Plane can become kings and emperors in the Hundred Lands. However, in the central region, there may be countless Nobles in the stronger forces. There are even more top forces. The Royal Xuan Temple that came earlier is a very famous one in the Eastern Barren Territory."


    Everyone was stunned. The outside world was far larger than they''d imagined. The Hundred Lands was just a small part of the Eastern Barren Territory. They finally understood the hidden meaning behind Luo Junlin''s words yesterday.


    "Is the Barren Ancient World a secret place for trials?" Lin Yueyao asked.


    "No." Emperor Ye shook his head. "It''s the so-called trial for the people of the Hundred Lands. In actuality, the Barren Ancient World is the true arupavacara. It is the place of fate and the birthplace of Nobles. Since the beginning of history, the people of the Hundred Lands must enter the Barren Ancient World to take the noble fate in order to enter the Noble Plane. This allows the noble will to be born in one''s body for the breakthrough.


    "The fate that goes against destiny has created countless rare objects, even rare demons. Many of the top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory establish clans in the Barren Ancient World. After countless years, it has become just like the outside world. There are clans and kingdoms with the cityscape."


    "Why have we never heard of this type of place?" Lin Yueyao asked softly.


    "The people of the Hundred Lands can''t enter the Barren Ancient World freely. Only Nobles have the chance. Furthermore, the Barren Ancient World has an upper and lower realm. The upper realm is known as the Noble Path for people of the Hundred Lands. The lower realm can only be entered by people under the Arcana Plane. To us, entering the Barren Ancient World is very difficult but Emperor Luo gave his chance to Luo Junlin. He brought his son into the lower realm and Luo Junlin returned with the fate."


    Everyone listened earnestly. They had a general idea about the Barren Ancient World and was a bit shocked.


    Ye Futian listened quietly too. He suddenly remembered something. In the Cangye Kingdom''s palace, the imperial advisor had said that he went out for the trial with the Nandou emperor. The current Emperor Luo had attacked the emperor of the Nandou Nation and stole his fate. Had they gone to the Barren Ancient World?


    He had a feeling it was very possible. Emperor Luo had changed his fate in the Barren Ancient World. Thus, he tried to send his son there to do the same.


    Now, Luo Junlin had succeeded. He entered the Barren Ancient World and received the noble fate. He was valued highly by the strong cultivators of the Royal Xuan Temple and was accepted as a disciple.


    "Other than that, there is another path in the Barren Ancient World," Emperor Ye said. "It leads to all directions in the Eastern Barren Territory. The big clans guard these critical entrances. Cultivate well and when you all reach the peak of the Dharma Plane, I may consider sending you to the Barren Ancient World. All the top talents and various forces are there. Though I''ve never been there, I''m sure it''s an incredible little world." Emperor Ye chuckled.


    The Tingfeng Banquet continued. The Nandou Nation''s citizens were excited. As more and more geniuses appeared, cheers sounded frequently. However, the prides of the Cangye Kingdom seemed distracted.


    They''d always thought that they were the prides living in the center of the kingdom. Now, they suddenly discovered that there was an even more incredible world out there. They were shaken and really wanted to witness the small world filled with the talents of the Eastern Barren Territory!

 139 The Birth of Wings

    Chapter 139: The Birth of Wings


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the end of the Tingfeng Banquet''s second day, Emperor Luo did not extend an invitation to Emperor Ye as he did the day before. Right now, whether it was Emperor Luo or Luo Junlin, they were immersed in this triumphant moment.


    Immediately after the banquet ended for the day, Minister Hua and others rushed over to congratulate the Crown Prince. The nobles of the Nandou Nation chimed in agreement with the flattering remarks thrown at Luo Junlin. They all understood, after Crown Prince Luo Junlin entered the Royal Xuan Temple, there was a chance that he would not inherit the throne to the Nandou Nation. He was going to be in an even more fearsome position. If Luo Junlin managed to become a big shot in the Royal Xuan Temple, then forget about the Nandou Nation, he would be able to do whatever he pleased in the Hundred Lands. He could even build a stronger country of his own.


    In the Hundred Lands, some of the most powerful nations were started in this way, all because of the appearances of more than one Noble Plane cultivator. Naturally, the people of the Cangye Kingdom did not join the crowd. They had already figured out that this was the true reason behind Emperor Luo''s invitation. This was the moment he had been waiting for. This put Ye Danchen in such a bad mood that he wanted to return to the Cangye Kingdom. However, Emperor Ye was against it. Since they were already here, they must wait until the Tingfeng Banquet ended, or else people might think that he��an emperor��was jealous of Luo Junlin.


    After returning to the palace, Ye Futian noticed that Yu Sheng kept his head lowered. He could not help but ask, "What''s wrong?"


    "I''m in a bad mood," Yu Sheng lifted his head to reply.


    "Because Luo Junlin entered the Royal Xuan Palace?" chuckled Ye Futian.


    "It''s not just that. That father and son duo purposely invited the people of three neighboring nations to this event, but it was all so they could gloat. Do they really think that Luo Junlin is all that?" Yu Sheng seemed really pissed off.


    "He''s able to enter the Royal Xuan Temple, so he must be gifted." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Who cares about the Royal Xuan Temple? They better not interfere when we kill Luo Junlin in the future. If they do, then we''ll just have to get rid of them too," Yu Sheng said in a fit of rage. Sweat dripped down Ye Futian''s face.


    This rascal is only in the Glory Plane and he''s talking about annihilating the top power of the Eastern Barren Territory? Ye Futian thought. When Yu Sheng was angry, he was indeed illogical��


    "Stop thinking about it. Do you want to go cultivate? Let''s not attend tomorrow''s Tingfeng Banquet," Ye Futian said to Yu Sheng.


    "Not go?" asked Yu Sheng.


    "Yeah. Don''t you think it''s really boring?" Ye Futian smiled at Yu Sheng. "We can just go on the last day," he continued.


    Yu Sheng''s eyes brightened at Ye Futian''s words. He seemed to have understood something. He smiled. His mood had been greatly improved. Ye Futian stared at him for a while and then turned to go cultivate.


    The night passed and the next morning, Ye Lingxi came to get them. Ye Futian told her they did not plan to attend today''s event. When word got back to Emperor Ye, he ordered some people to stay at the palace to protect Ye Futian and then led the others to the banquet.


    News that the Nandou Nation''s Crown Prince was admitted into the Royal Xuan Temple as a disciple and was going to become the Nandou Nation''s second Noble Plane cultivator spread during the night. Thus, there was an obvious increase in the amount of people at today''s banquet. There was such an impressive crowd of people. Obviously, Emperor Luo was in a merry mood. The Tingfeng Banquet continued and he noticed that Ye Futian was not present. The people of the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom had also taken notice.


    "Not only did the first-place winner of the Fenghua Rank avoid battle before, he''s even going into hiding now?" Chu Kuangren let out a mocking statement when he noticed Ye Futian was absent.


    "You''re wrong." Out of nowhere, Ye Wuchen said, "He probably just thought it was boring. The banquet is boring and so are the people. If I had known, I wouldn''t have come today either."


    "Definitely a good reason. You and Ye Futian are very alike," said Chu Kuangren.


    "Perhaps he was deeply affected by what happened yesterday," laughed someone from the Yan Kingdom. Although this was the Tingfeng Banquet but the one who stole the show yesterday was definitely Luo Junlin. Many people were stirred and when they returned home, many of them went to seek information on the Eastern Barren Territory and the Ancient Barren World.


    "Your Majesty, I''m not coming tomorrow either," Ye Wuchen said to Emperor Ye.


    "Alright," nodded Emperor Ye.


    "What are you trying to run away from?" Chu Kuangren smiled at Ye Wuchen.


    "Don''t worry. I''ll be present on the last day of the Tingfeng Banquet," replied Ye Wuchen. Chu Kuangren looked at him, still smiling, and said, "Good. I''m looking forward to it."


    ...


    Just as Ye Wuchen said, he did not show up for the fourth day of the Tingfeng Banquet.


    Neither did Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Not just on the fourth day, but as the Tingfeng Banquet continued, geniuses kept appearing. The atmosphere was lifted to another level. However, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were still nowhere to be seen among the group seated by Emperor Ye. Even the people from Donghai Academy and the Nandou Clan noticed. They thought that Ye Futian was probably triggered by the fact that the Crown Prince attracted the attention of such a powerful group. Although Ye Futian possessed terrifying gifts that did not lose to that of Luo Junlin''s, cultivation was not only based on gifts. It was also about fate. It seemed that Ye Futian simply was not destined to be compared with the Crown Prince. After Luo Junlin entered the Royal Xuan Temple, he was most definitely not going to allow Ye Futian a chance to mature.


    These past days, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng stayed in the palace and cultivated. Yu Sheng, who was still in a sour mood, was especially focused. Every time Ye Futian went looking for him, he was focused on cultivating, and so, Ye Futian decided not to disturb him.


    Within the palace, Ye Futian practiced his punches in the courtyard where he stayed. The will of the emperor flowed within him, causing his every punch to contain a mysterious aura. As he cultivated, this feeling became more and more obvious. He was able to control it more fluently in his attacks.


    "AHH!" A deep roar broke Ye Futian''s concentration. It was Yu Sheng''s voice. Ye Futian felt his heart tense, and he ran towards the noise. Very quickly, he arrived at the location where Yu Sheng was cultivating. Seeing Yu Sheng''s current state, Ye Futian''s heart clenched tightly. Every time he saw Yu Sheng cultivating in this way, his heart hurt with a needle-stabbing pain.


    Presently, Yu Sheng was surrounded by a frightening force. A fearsome dim golden light enveloped his being. It was like a giant explosion, burying his whole body in the light. The image of what seemed like a devil overlapped on Yu Sheng''s body. The golden apparition morphed into a terrifying vortex and began to absorb all the Spiritual Qi in the surrounding area causing aggressive barbs appeared all over Yu Sheng. After that, Ye Futian witnessed as something began to raise from Yu Sheng''s back. The bump continued growing outward.


    It was because of this that Yu Sheng could not contain his screams of pain. He had his eyes shut tight and was also biting down hard on his lip to try to keep in his screams. Yu Sheng bit down so hard, his lips were now bleeding. It was truly a shocking sight


    Ye Futian had his fists clenched tightly, so tightly his knuckles cracked in the process. Why did Godfather make Yu Sheng cultivate in this cruel method? The apparition of the devil kept fading in and out, the bump on his back was also still growing.


    "AHH!" There was another pitiful scream. He seemed to be in the most extreme pain.


    BOOM! A loud noise and a large gust of wind. Something seemed to have been broken. The protrusion on Yu Sheng''s back finally broke, and out came a pair of fearsome wings. The light golden wings glistened. Every feather seemed to have contained inverted thorns. The wings were very large, matching well with Yu Sheng''s large body.


    If Ye Futian''s Golden Roc wings were said to be the wings of God, then Yu Sheng''s wings should be the wings of the Devil. They were a terrifying sight.


    "Did the realization of Dharma grow from the method you were cultivating?" Ye Futian was shocked. With the birth of these wings, flying would no longer be Yu Sheng''s weakness. Spiritual Qi from all around surged into Yu Sheng''s body. In this moment, Ye Futian noticed that it was not only Metal Spiritual Qi, but Wind Spiritual Qi as well. With the birth of the wings, Yu Sheng had also acquired wind elemental gifts.


    Just then, Yu Sheng opened his eyes. A ray of golden light shot out from his pupils, giving off a violent aura. However, it immediately disappeared when he saw Ye Futian. The wild force that coursed through his body also started to calm down.


    Yu Sheng smiled brightly, like a child, at Ye Futian. There was not a single hint of the violent aura from before.


    "Does it hurt?" Ye Futian asked softly.


    "It''s no big deal. I can still handle it. I''m also in the Eight-Starred Glory Plane now," Yu Sheng said, scratching his head.


    "You idiot. No more cultivating for you today. Get some rest." Ye Futian stared at Yu Sheng, not allowing him to reject his words.


    "Alright," nodded Yu Sheng. He had leveled up and was in a better mood now.


    Ye Futian did not say much more and turned to leave. Yu Sheng said it didn''t hurt but Ye Futian''s heart still hurt. He knew as long as Yu Sheng continued to cultivate, he was going to have to keep enduring this pain. Behind extreme power, was not just extraordinary gifts. There was also pain intolerable to ordinary people.


    ...


    The days passed one by one, and soon, it was close to the end of the Tingfeng Banquet. The final competition between the strongest contenders began. The imperial city of the Nandou Nation was boiling with excitement. The best of the best had finally appeared on the platform in front of the audience. They were ready to show their talents and fight to the end.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng still had no clue about what was happening at the banquet.


    Some time in the evening, Emperor Luo led the group from the Cangye Kingdom back to the palace. Ye Lingxi arrived at the courtyard where Ye Futian stayed.


    "Ye Futian!" shouted a smiling Ye Lingxi.


    "Princess." Ye Futian looked in her direction.


    "Don''t call me princess; Lingxi is fine," she chuckled. "I came to let you know that tomorrow is the last day of the Tingfeng Banquet."


    "It''s finally ending?" laughed Ye Futian. It had been a while since the Tingfeng Banquet began.


    "Father said we might head straight back to the Cangye Kingdom tomorrow. Since there''s nothing to do tonight, do you want to go for a stroll? The night view of the Nandou Nation''s imperial city is quite nice. We won''t get a chance to enjoy it after tonight," said Ye Lingxi.


    "Okay," nodded Ye Futian. He had been cultivating in the palace for the past few days. He was bored to death. It would be perfect to take a stroll in the imperial city. The same went for Yu Sheng. Tomorrow was going to be the final battle of the Tingfeng Banquet. The Nandou Nation''s imperial city must be very lively right now!

 140 The Decisive Battle

    Chapter 140: The Decisive Battle


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Lingxi, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng walked out of the courtyard. Ye Danchen was waiting outside for them.


    "We also invited Wuchen," Ye Danchen said. "That guy has been cultivating in the palace these days. Give him a second."


    "All right." Ye Futian nodded.


    At this time, two beautiful figures walked by. They were Lin Yueyao and Hua Zhixin. Seeing them out there, Lin Yueyao smiled and asked, "What are you doing here?"


    "We want to have a walk in the imperial palace before leaving," Ye Lingxi replied with a smile. "Would you like to go?"


    Lin Yueyao glanced at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. It had been a long time since she last saw them. She nodded and said, "Sure." The two beauties walked to them. Lin Yueyao smiled at Ye Futian, "Finally coming out?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian smiled too.


    "The Tingfeng Banquet will end tomorrow. The people from Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom have said many ugly things these days. Are you going tomorrow?" Lin Yueyao asked out of curiosity.


    "Is that so?" Ye Futian shrugged and smiled. "I didn''t expect that I have so many fans. I guess I should go meet them tomorrow."


    "Overconfident, aren''t you?" Lin Yueyao rolled her eyes. This guy is really shameless.


    After a while, Ye Wuchen came and they left the palace. Jing Yu followed behind, protecting them secretly.


    As what Ye Futian and Ye Lingxi had thought before, the Imperial City of Nandou Nation was very busy this day. The whole city was brightly lit. People thronged restaurants, inns, and streets, talking about talents at the banquet.


    The most beautiful place of the Imperial City was definitely the Qixing Lake. There were many boats nearby. They rented one and floated on the lake. Sitting at the prow, Ye Futian''s group felt the breeze blowing their faces comfortably. Ye Futian was reminded of his sweet days with Hua Jieyu. They had held hands at the bank of the Qingzhou River and it still felt sweet when he thought of the moment. What a pity that she didn''t come.


    "What are you smiling about?" Lin Yueyao looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    Ye Futian looked at Lin Yueyao in astonishment and replied, "Why are you so concerned about me? Don''t think too much. You don''t have a chance."


    Ye Danchen choked on his wine when he heard Ye Futian''s words. No chance? How can he refuse the first beauty of Cangye Kingdom in such a way?


    "Shameless guy." Lin Yueyao glared at Ye Futian with some resentment. She had never been rejected like this. She was so popular in Cangye Kingdom. Only Ye Futian was this indifferent to her.


    "Tomorrow comes the final round. Who do you think will eventually dominate the nine platforms?" There was a boat nearby and the people on it were discussing.


    "Xi Lou, Second level Dharma Plane; Su Mu, First level Dharma Plane; and Yun Tianhao who had upgraded to the Eight-star Glory Plane in the battle are all extremely strong cultivators while the rest on the platform are also top talents," someone commented.


    Ye Futian''s group heard the comments too. They had never heard of Xi Lou and Su Mu but it was not surprising to know Yun Tianhao became a shining star. Since his life spirit could summon Spiritual Qi of any attribute to form matrices, Yun Tianhao was undoubtedly very powerful. He had few counterparts in the same plane. It was unexpected but interesting that he leveled up during battle. Yun Tianhao''s proceeding in cultivation was no slower than Ye Futian''s.


    It was rare for Heiyan City to have someone like Yun Tianhao although he still wasn''t strong enough to be Ye Futian''s match.


    "Indeed, the Tingfeng Banquet is held every ten years while there are so many talented people. Even among those who have been eliminated, there are bunches of strong cultivators. Those losers just happened to encounter a stronger one. What a pity!"


    "I agree with you. But compared with the crown prince, those strong cultivators were all eclipsed."


    The boat moved on and the sound faded. Ye Futian''s group were continued enjoying the scenery while drinking.


    Ye Wuchen looked up to Ye Futian and said, "If we attend the Tingfeng Banquet tomorrow, there must be many sarcastic comments about us. Moreover, according to Yan Kingdom and Yunchu Nation, they might attend the final too."


    "You want to see those talents'' strength?" Ye Futian asked Ye Wuchen.


    "Some are just too noisy," Ye Wuchen murmured.


    "Then make them shut up." Ye Futian smirked. Hearing their conversation, Lin Yueyao and Hua Zhixin just thought that the two were really good at pretending to be cool.


    The boat kept moving forward on the Qixing Lake. People in the boats were all talking about the strong cultivators on the banquet with great interest. There were more boats near the eyot. People were all attracted by one of the islands where a banquet was being held.


    Ye Futian''s group looked up and found that was exactly where the crown prince had treated them. At this time, Luo Junlin was there again to treat the talents of the Tingfeng Banquet.


    "Aren''t they from the Cangye Kingdom?" Someone noticed Ye Futian''s group.


    "Indeed. Apparently, that girl is the top beauty of the Cangye Kingdom. She really is charming," someone looked at Lin Yueyao and said. Three beauties were very noticeable, especially beauties like Lin Yueyao, Hua Zhixin, and Ye Linxi.


    "That man is called Ye Futian who comes from the Donghai City of Nandou Nation. After violating His Majesty''s will, he went to the Cangye Kingdom and is valued by Emperor Ye. He accompanied the emperor to the Tingfeng Banquet. It''s said that he has twin spirits with great talent."


    "He''s Ye Futian? With such a handsome face, he must be popular with the girls," someone said.


    "But after the people of the Royal Xuan Temple came and the crown prince shone so radiantly, Ye Futian didn''t appear again."


    Many people on the lake noticed Ye Futian and his friends. They continuously made comments so that even people at the eyot looked over and saw Ye Futian. People, including Crown Prince Luo Junlin, all looked to Ye Futian''s boat in the lake.


    "Ye Futian." Among the people on the island, Yun Tianhao stood up and walked to the edge of the island, looking toward the boat on the water. His sharp eyes fell on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was drinking with head lowered. Seemly not hearing Yun Tianhao, he didn''t respond.


    "Will you come tomorrow?" Yun Tianhao didn''t mind Ye Futian''s indifference. Though they had only met a few times, he knew what kind of person Ye Futian was.


    Ye Futian still didn''t answer his question. Yu Sheng stood up, looked to Yun Tianaho coldly, and then walked closer to Crown Prince Luo Junlin.


    At this time, Luo Junlin was drinking too. Beside him sat a sexy beauty. Possibly due to the wine, her face was charming and enchanting. She was the daughter of a rich family in the Imperial City. Both her looks and talent was very outstanding. The reason why she would drink with the crown prince at the expense of losing her dignity was that she wished that Luo Junlin could take her with him to the Royal Xuan Temple.


    The sexy woman looked to the boat and saw Yu Sheng. She chuckled and said, "This man is so muscular he''s ugly."


    Many people laughed with her. Cultivators always had good ears and the woman didn''t lower her voice, so people on the boat also heard her words.


    Ye Futian looked up to the eyot and saw the crown prince as well as the woman beside him. He smiled and said, "Your Highness must be in a pretty good mood with a prostitute accompanying you."


    The seductive woman''s expression changed, instantly feeling embarrassed but Crown Prince Luo Junlin looked quite calm. These things didn''t disturb him anymore.


    Some people landed on the eyot. One looked to the boat and a strong temperament spread toward the boat following his eyes.


    "It''s Xi Lou," someone exclaimed. Xi Lou''s talent had been proved at the Tingfeng Banquet. No one at the Second level Dharma Plane could defeat him.


    Ye Wuchen looked up with eyes sharp as swords. He stood up and walked to the bow. His horrible sword intent turned into a storm to confront Xi Lou''s aura.


    "Is a fight starting?" People around them grew excited. Who was the winner between the genius of the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet and the peerless talent of the Tingfeng Banquet?


    "Let''s go back," Ye Futian said. The boat instantly started going against the current. The two auras were dispersed. Giant waves were lifted between the eyot and the boat projected.


    Seeing that the Cangye Kingdom''s boat return, the other side thought they were too scared to fight with the Nandou Nation''s peerless talent since the crown prince was still on the island.


    This night was doomed to be a sleepless night.


    ...


    It was the day of the decisive battle. Countless people gathered here in the Imperial City for the Tingfeng Banquet. Some people even came at midnight to keep a seat so that they could see the banquet clear in the daytime. Those finalists all came in advance, gathering around the platforms and being admired.


    People of Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom arrived too. So far, they had to admit that after rounds and rounds of battles, those left were great talents, many of which weren''t any weaker than them.


    Emperor Luo arrived as well. Seeing such a grand occasion, he smiled. He was quite satisfied with this year''s Tingfeng Banquet. Moreover, his son, Luo Junlin was thought highly by the Royal Xuan Temple. Of course he was in a very delighted mood.


    Even on the last day, some came to congratulate him. This was his second time to feel so happy since he became the emperor. Last time, he saw his own bright future when he ascended to the throne. This time, he saw the future of his son, Luo Junlin, as well as the whole Nandou Nation.


    Emperor Ye walked out of the crowd with Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen. The Cangye Kingdom''s people all appeared today.


    Looking at the frenetic people, Ye Futian smiled slightly. The most prominent cultivators would be born today at the decennial Tingfeng Banquet. If Ye Futian and Yu Sheng weren''t here, of course!

 141 I’ve Got Your Back

    Chapter 141: I��ve Got Your Back


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As Emperor Ye''s group arrived at the observation deck, Emperor Luo and others looked over at them. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen had finally appeared. Chu Kuangren looked over at the three. His gaze and his light smile were slightly cold. Yan Qi looked sharp. He was anticipating what would happen soon. Luo Junlin also turned his attention to the three of them. Things were about to get interesting today.


    Beside Luo Junlin sat a beautiful girl. It was the girl who drank with Luo Junlin on the island last night. Her name was Shen Ruoshuang. Her makeup was light, unlike last night. She looked soft and gentle and had the aura of a wealthy family''s daughter. Last night, she gave herself to Crown Prince Luo Junlin and because of that, there was a seat for her next to him today.


    Many nobles looked over at her. They knew exactly what was going on. They thought, this girl really has a few tricks up her sleeve. Seems like there''s no hope for the position of first wife. Maybe a second or third wife? Crown Prince Luo Junlin was only steps away from being a big shot at the Royal Xuan Temple. Even if he didn''t manage to do that, he could still be emperor of the Nandou Nation. A second or third wife wouldn''t be so bad. They wouldn''t even mind being a concubine.


    Many people on the battle platform also recognized Shen Ruoshuang. She had also participated in the Tingfeng Banquet. Plus, she was a well-known beauty in the imperial city. She was disqualified during yesterday''s banquet, but who would have thought that she would receive the Crown Prince''s sympathy.


    Shen Ruoshuang glanced coldly at Ye Futian but did not say anything. However, Ye Futian paid no attention to the gazes that fell upon him. He took his seat and looked out on to the nine battle platforms ahead. He also observed the crowd quietly.


    Just then, a few bursts of light shined from a distance in the skies above. Multiple figures appeared in mid-air. The leader of the group had a majestic aura, just like a mighty emperor.


    "Brother Luo, how come you didn''t invite me for a drink to celebrate this big news?" asked the leader. Based on the way he greeted Emperor Luo, it was easy to guess his status. To be on the same level as Emperor Luo, this person must be an emperor as well.


    "The emperor of the Mo Kingdom has graced us with his presence. What an honor." Emperor Luo stood to welcome his guests. "Please join us and have a seat."


    "I have also come to join the fun," laughed another person. In the sky above the crowd, a bright light erupted and a figure bathed in a red light stepped forward.


    "Congratulations to the Nandou Nation''s Crown Prince for entering the Royal Xuan Temple. There will be yet another Noble Plane cultivator in the future," said the newcomer. His voice was clear and his aura powerful.


    "What a surprise! The emperor of the Hongye Kingdom is also here. Please, have a seat," said Emperor Luo.


    "The Donglin Kingdom has come to congratulate the Nandou Nation for the Tingfeng Banquet." Another group appeared in mid-air.


    "The Tianluo Kingdom would like to congratulate Luo Junlin for entering the Royal Xuan Temple." More people arrived in the opposite direction the emperor of the Donglin Kingdom came from.


    Seeing the majestic figures in the skies made many people from the Nandou Nation nervous. The atmosphere was raging. No one expected the arrivals of yet another four emperors. Now, there were eight emperors present at the Tingfeng Banquet. This was a grand occasion unseen in the last three hundred years. The last time something similar happened was during Emperor Luo''s coronation.


    Without being told, many people understood that this was not simply because of the Tingfeng Banquet. If it had been so, then there was no need for them to show up uninvited and unannounced. It was good enough that the three emperors Emperor Luo personally invited came to attend the banquet.


    Obviously, they had gotten the news that Crown Prince Luo Junlin was accepted by the Royal Xuan Temple. They did not show up during any of the other days of the Tingfeng Banquet but all chose to appear on the last day, as if they had planned it together.


    Emperor Luo smiled happily. The four emperors were all from close-by nations. The Yunchu Nation''s neighboring country was present, as was the neighbor of the Yan Kingdom. Now that they were all gathered to congratulate him, even though he was already an emperor, Emperor Luo still felt proud. This was a big boost to his ego.


    "Everyone, please have a seat," Emperor Luo said as he toned down the smile on his face. Immediately, the four newly arrived emperors descended on to the observation deck, landing in different directions.


    Emperor Ye and the three other emperors watched them quietly. They felt slightly conflicted on the inside. Had the emperors of these four large nations really come to attend the Tingfeng Banquet personally? It seemed like they were keeping close tabs on the banquet, or else they would not have been able to make it here so quickly.


    From this scene, it was possible to foretell the future rise of the Nandou Nation.


    Ye Futian also observed quietly. He watched the proud Emperor Luo and the lively audience. All of this was brought about by Luo Junlin''s admission to the Royal Xuan Temple. Today seemed to be an unprecedented day, worthy of celebration. Unfortunately, the people of the Nandou Nation were probably going to be highly disappointed.


    "Let''s begin!" Emperor Luo smiled. Immediately, a loud whistle came from the crowd and 18 genius cultivators stepped on to the nine battle platforms, welcoming their final battle. On every platform were the best cultivators of each plane.


    "Xi Lou!"


    "Yun Tianhao!"


    Supporters called out to them from the lively audience. With their spectacular gifts, many of the contenders on the platforms had impressed the people and were worshipped by them. Yun Tianhao was an example of this. He broke through the Seven-Starred Glory Plane and made his way on to the Eight-Starred Glory Plane platform. He remained peerless as always. As soon as his matrix appeared, no one was able to counter the force. The results would remain the same even if his opponent was in the Nine-Starred Glory Plane.


    The most outstanding contender from the Glory Plane was definitely Yun Tianhao. If it wasn''t him, then it had to be Nine-Starred Glory Plane cultivator, Jing Xuan. His abilities were terrifying. He was most likely able to battle against common realizations of Dharma.


    The battles of the nine platforms began. The platforms shook with the force. The sounds resonated beyond the platforms and washed over the area. The most powerful contenders fought with full force for their final battle. Every battle was nerve wracking to watch.


    "My friends, what do you think of the geniuses of our Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet?" asked Emperor Luo. He smiled brightly from his seat on the observation deck.


    "In due time, they will become the pillars of the nation," said a fellow emperor.


    "They are indeed outstanding. At the very least, they''re much better than those on the Fenghua Rank," said the emperor of the Yan Kingdom. Ye Futian glanced coldly at him. It was evident that the emperors had a bias. None of them wanted to get on Emperor Luo''s bad side. However, Emperor Ye did not seem to care. He continued to watch quietly. To be completely honest, he had to admit that the contenders of the platforms were indeed very gifted. Their combat abilities were very strong. Had it not been for Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen, the Fenghua Banquet may have truly lost in comparison to the Tingfeng Banquet.


    Emperor Ye had a sudden thought. What would the Tingfeng Banquet have been like if Emperor Luo hadn''t chased out Ye Futian and Yu Sheng?


    Finally, the battles ended one by one. The victors of each battle did not leave the platform, for they were the stars of the Tingfeng Banquet, the center of attention. They waited for the rewards from the emperor.


    In the crowd, the people from Donghai Academy looked to the figure standing proudly on the Eight-Starred Glory Plane platform. All of them had a satisfied smile on their faces. Although Zhuo Qing was disqualified, Yun Tianhao was able to make it to the end. On top of that, he used his great powers to completely destroy his opponent, gaining his victory. He fought hard to be the last one standing on that platform. As a student of Donghai Academy, Yun Tianhao had brought them great honor.


    Among the crowd from Donghai Academy, Headmaster Tang of Heiyan City''s Heiyan Academy was also present. Beside him was Tang Yue. She still had some unresolved conflict with Ye Futian from way back on Mount Tianyao. Seeing that the young Yun Tianhao was able to make it to this stage, they also felt proud and happy for him.


    They had also spotted Ye Futian. Rumors had it that he was freakishly powerful. He had once fought against Yun Tianhao. It was unforeseen that he would become the best of a nation. However, the Yun Tianhao in the present was not any weaker than Ye Futian.


    In the end, nine figures stood on the battle platforms with the utmost glory. The Tingfeng Banquet''s best of each plane had finally revealed themselves.


    A smile spread across Emperor Luo''s face. He was very satisfied with these nine people. They all possessed extraordinary gifts. Perhaps with proper guidance, they could become great aids for his son, Luo Junlin.


    "The strongest nine have been born. The prodigy cultivators from our four nations are now gathered here. Would it be alright if we verified each other''s abilities?" asked Chu Kuangren. Emperor Luo smiled at the nine figures on the platforms in front of him and said, "The best of the Yunchu Nation, Cangye Kingdom, and Yan Kingdom would like to test your abilities. Do you guys accept their challenge?"


    "Pleased to."


    "Let''s go." The nine figures were ready to fight.


    "Very good." Emperor Luo nodded in satisfaction. He then turned to look at the cultivators of the three visiting nations and said, "I leave them to you now."


    Chu Kuangren nodded and shifted his gaze in the direction of the Cangye group. "You''ve avoided it for so many days and will finally show your face. Today marks the end of the Tingfeng Banquet, you should have no more excuses." He stared straight at Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen as he spoke.


    On a platform, Yun Tianhao also had his eyes on Ye Futian. Speaking out loud and clear, he asked, "Ye Futian, do you dare battle with me?" His voice vibrated through the air. The best of the Eight-Starred Glory Plane cultivators at the Tingfeng Banquet had challenged Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked as calm as ever. Whether it be the people from the Yunchu Nation or Yun Tianhao, their provocations were unable to shake him. He lifted his head and looked at Chu Kuangren as well as Yun Tianhao. He replied with a smile, "It''s okay that you guys pick a fight with us, but are you willing to pay the price?" Ye Futian sounded so calm, far from how resonant Chu Kuangren and Yun Tianhao sounded. However, this calm voice also bore extreme arrogance.


    Ye Futian did not seem to give a damn about these genius cultivators from the Yunchu Nation nor did he care about those from the Tingfeng Banquet.


    "It''s okay that you guys pick a fight with us, but are you willing to pay the price?"


    "I''m willing to pay whatever price it takes," Chu Kuangren answered with a cold demeanor.


    "Let''s fight." This was all Yun Tianhao said. His intent to battle was in overload.


    Ye Futian turned back to look at Emperor Ye who was seated behind him. Eight emperors had gathered today, a day of glory and pride for Emperor Luo. All the other emperors were friends of Emperor Ye, so if he didn''t want Ye Futian to fight, then he wouldn''t. But when their eyes met, Ye Futian saw Emperor Ye break out into a huge smile, and listened as he said casually, "I''ve got your back!"

 142 My Name Is Yu Sheng

    Chapter 142: My Name Is Yu Sheng


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Okay." Ye Futian smiled after hearing Emperor Ye''s words.


    He stood up and looked towards the battle platform. Countless gazes fell upon him. Was the battle between the prides of the four kingdoms starting?


    Yun Tianhao stared at Ye Futian. His battle intent was rumbling and the people of Nandou became even more enthusiastic after feeling it around him.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian called softly just then. Yu Sheng looked over to see Ye Futian scanning the mass of people from the Nandou Nation. Ye Futian smiled and said, "Everyone''s eyes are on this battle. News of the Tingfeng Banquet will be spread throughout the Nandou Nation."


    Yu Sheng understood what Ye Futian was implying. If his master was still in the country, he would know about today''s battle.


    "Yu Sheng, this is your battle," Ye Futian continued. "Let them know who you are."


    "Okay." Yu Sheng nodded and stepped onto the platform. The surrounding people all looked at them with shock. Their conversation seemed to have some deep meaning.


    Would Yu Sheng fight in this battle?


    He walked down the platform and stared in the direction of Yun Tianhao. "Yu Sheng, Eight-star Glory Plane."


    "Yun Tianhao, Eight-star Glory Plane," Yun Tianhao said coldly, seeing that Ye Futian still wasn''t fighting. "Since you want to battle, I''ll defeat you first." As soon as he finished, his life spirit appeared. The formation flashed and he walked forward. There was a matrix with each step. The Spiritual Qi gathered around him furiously.


    Yun Tianhao had witnessed Yu Sheng''s fighting before. He was extremely confident in himself but he would never go easy on his opponent. As if sensing the powerful battle intent and strength from Yun Tianhao, there were the screams of a storm from the heavens.


    Yun Tianhao had taken the first place of the battle platform with an excellent performance. He was also peerless amongst those who passed this round. Today, he would defeat the prides of the other three nations to prove himself.


    The pride of the Nandou Nation, Yun Tianhao, would declare his name to the world with this battle.


    Countless people from the Donghai Academy and Heiyan Academy all looked at Yun Tianhao. They knew how powerful Yu Sheng was while this battle would be Yun Tianhao''s.


    Thud! At that moment, there was a heavy thud on the ground. Everyone saw Yu Sheng take a heavy step. His body transformed into a bow and began sprinting toward the battle platform.


    Thud, thud, thud�� The ground shook with Yu Sheng''s every step. There seemed to be a strange melody. The shaking earth sounded heavier than usual compared to the sound waves of the storm.


    Yun Tianhao watched Yu Sheng racing to the platform. A matrix formed with each of Yun Tianhao''s steps. Various altars appeared around him. Mysterious light rushed out from the four directions. Countless fire dragons spiraled up, the flames about to swallow everything. More terrifyingly, there seemed to be frost filling the air above the scalding space. Ice and fire shouldn''t mix but now, they appeared at the same time. The destructive power was horrible.


    Seeing the shocking matrix, the Nandou crowd came to life, extremely roused up. Was this the ability of Yun Tianhao, the pride of the Tingfeng Banquet? Many girls were attracted. He was a true genius.


    Boom. With a loud sound, Yu Sheng came below the battle platform. With a step, he shot up and appeared in the sky above the platform. Then he descended towards where Yun Tianhao was.


    Countless eyes looked up at Yu Sheng''s descending body. For a moment, he looked like a god coming to the mortal world. His muscular body was covered in a dazzling dark gold armor. There was a faint yet terrifying shadow on him, like a demon.


    The descending body had unstoppable power. Yun Tianhao roared and the world was covered by ice. Yu Sheng seemed to be sealed with ice as well. The fire dragons spiraled up, melting into Yu Sheng''s frozen body. The combined power of fire and ice was painful enough to make one wish to die. But everyone realized that the godlike figure didn''t stop. The ice seal shattered. Bathing in the power of the ice and fire, Yu Sheng allowed the fire dragons to roar and bite without being affected. At that moment, he really looked like a god.


    "How is this possible?" Yun Tianhao stared at the descending godlike figure in shock. Without any time to react, Yu Sheng had arrived.


    Crack�� There was a crisp sound. The Spiritual Qi within the formation danced wildly. Everyone watched with shock as the godlike figure stepped onto Yun Tianhao''s shoulder. The bone cracked and Yun Tianhao fell to his knees with a pained cry. The horrible power forced him down.


    The matrix formation extinguished. Everyone in the endless Nandou crowd had their eyes focused. The storm instantly stopped.


    The skies and earth fell silent.


    Time seemed to stop flowing.


    The entire world seemed to quiet down.


    Yun Tianhao; the one who had shone so brightly at the Tingfeng Banquet, catching everyone''s eyes; the genius worshipped by countless; had been squashed under the foot of the descending figure. Without any extra movements, without any pauses, Yun Tianhao had knelt directly.


    Genius? Peerless? Unmatchable in the Nandou Nation?


    At this moment, Yu Sheng faced the endless crowd from the Nandou Nation. Looking at that cold and hard face, the Nandou citizens felt that they would never forget that merciless step. Not only had he stepped on Yun Tianhao, he''d also stepped on the faces of all Nandou citizens. Yun Tianhao was the most dazzling genius they''d chosen within the decade.


    Yu Sheng took a step forward and knelt down. Grabbing Yun Tianhao''s neck, he tossed the other into the Nandou crowd. He didn''t look at the other again as if Yun Tianhao, a talented figure, didn''t deserve another glance.


    Turning around, Yu Sheng gazed at the people from the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom. He asked indifferently, "Next?"


    Neither the prides of Yunchu nor Yan came out. They all trained their eyes on the figure. Was Yun Tianhao really weak? They''d witnessed his entire path and his talent was indisputable. However, Yu Sheng had descended like a god and Yun Tianhao couldn''t even fight back. How could anyone battle with someone like that?


    All was silent. Yu Wuchen gazed at Chu Kuangren and said coldly, "Are you mute now?"


    The prides of the two kingdoms looked uncomfortable but Yu Sheng didn''t bother with them anymore. He didn''t even show any expression. Instead, he started towards the Nine-star Glory Plane battle platform nearby.


    Then he started running again. When he reached the side, he jumped again. With a boom, he soared like a god and appeared in the air above the battle platform.


    Jing Xuan was the strongest of the Nine-star Glory Plane. When he looked up at Yu Sheng, his eyes showed fear. The godlike figure was unstoppable.


    He gathered all his strength. The surrounding Spiritual Qi went wild. Then he attacked first, the wild power booming into the sky.


    With a huge thud, Yu Sheng landed before Jing Xuan. The battle platform shook and the aggressive power just roared past without even touching him.


    As one of the best of the Tingfeng Banquet, this shouldn''t have happened. However, Jing Xuan''s fear turned this into an embarrassment.


    Yu Sheng punched. Jing Xuan flew off the platform towards the crowd. This battle couldn''t even be described as a battle.


    Yu Sheng continued walking toward the battle platform of the Dharma Plane.


    "Will he challenge Su Mu?" some muttered.


    Was he crazy? Su Mu was at the first level Dharma Plane. He was one of the most talented of this year''s Tingfeng Banquet. Other than Xi Lou and Yun Tianhao, he was the most popular. Was Yu Sheng going to challenge Su Mu?


    There was another thud. Yu Sheng flew up again, shooting toward the platform for the first level Dharma Plane.


    Su Mu raised his head. Seeing the figure in the air, he sneered. Flashing, he shot into the sky too. He was Su Mu��not Yun Tianhao and definitely not Jing Xuan.


    Countless heads were raised to look at Yu Sheng. How would he attack this time?


    The wind roared. A pair of giant wings appeared behind Yu Sheng with a flash. Dark gold light flowed through them. Every feather had a menacing point as if they were the wings of a demon.


    This moment, Yu Sheng seemed to have turned into a demon.


    The wings flapped and Yu Sheng moved towards Su Mu. Rather than dodging, a terrifying dragon appeared behind Su Mu. When Yu Sheng charged over, there was an earth-shaking roar. Countless dragons dove at Yu Sheng.


    The feathers on Yu Sheng''s wings continuously overlapped, transforming into an extremely sharp dark gold vortex. It opened and closed, slicing up the incoming dragons.


    The dragon above Su Mu was as enormous as a true dragon. It moved to swallow Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng''s wings opened and he looked forward. He streaked toward the dragon like a bolt of lightning. Under everyone''s shocked eyes, he rushed into the dragon''s mouth.


    With a boom, the dragon exploded and Yu Sheng rushed out. Su Mu''s expression was uncomfortable. An extremely aggressive aura erupted. He transformed into a dragon and charged at Yu Sheng.


    His Dharma and body had become one.


    The dragon came, engulfing Yu Sheng. He reached out and grabbed the dragon''s mouth. With a loud roar, he put endless strength into his arms and ripped the dragon apart with his bare hands. Su Mu screamed in pain and the realization of Dharma shattered.


    Yu Sheng''s wings changed. The feathers dislocated and unbelievably turned into tentacles that grabbed Su Mu''s body, hoisting it into the air.


    Seeing this scene, the endless crowd focused on the demonic figure, their hearts trembling.


    Hovering in the air, Yu Sheng gazed at the mass of people with wild eyes. He roared, "My name is Yu Sheng. I am Yu Sheng, the disciple of Yi Xiang, headmaster of Donghai Academy''s School of the Finance Star of Donghai City, Nandou Nation!"


    The violent sound waves swept through the sky and earth, resounding in the ears of everyone in the Nandou Nation.


    He was Yu Sheng, the disciple of Yi Xiang, headmaster of Donghai Academy''s School of the Finance Star of Donghai City, Nandou Nation!

 143 Top Pride of the Cangye Kingdom

    Chapter 143: Top Pride of the Cangye Kingdom


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yu Sheng!


    From this moment on, it was the name no one in the Nandou Nation would ever forget.


    His name was Yu Sheng. He was from the Nandou Nation''s Donghai City, disciple of Yi Xiang.


    The people had many questions. Who is Yi Xiang? Why is such an outstanding student from Donghai Academy fighting for the Cangye Kingdom?


    As for, Yun Tianhao, he seemed to be Donghai''s Academy best student. Then what about Yu Sheng? Presently, the people from Donghai Academy were shocked into silence. There was a bitter taste in their mouths. Yun Tianhao, who the Heiyan Academy had high hopes in, had captured the attention of everyone. But what of it now? The three hotshots had all faded into the background while Yu Sheng stood out among them.


    Ye Futian smiled at that figure. Of course, he knew the reason behind Yu Sheng''s outburst. After this battle, Yu Sheng''s name was going to circulate all over the Nandou Nation. He was going to become a legend. And because he came from Donghai City, from Donghai Academy, it was only natural that the news would reach the city. As long as Yi Xiang was still there, he was definitely going to hear his disciple''s call from the Tingfeng Banquet.


    Senior Yi, you really hit the jackpot with this disciple/son-in-law, thought Ye Futian. He smiled brightly as he wondered what kind of expression that sly old fox would have when he heard the news. He would definitely be very proud.


    Beside Ye Futian, the people of the Cangye Kingdom were also in shock at the sight of the wings on Yu Sheng''s back. Did Yu Sheng hide his true abilities during the Fenghua Banquet? Or are these devil-like wings the result of his cultivation in the Nandou Nation? Back when Yu Sheng was in the Seven-Starred Glory Plane, his inability to fly was the reason why he could not win against his opponent''s realization of Dharma. Now, he was in the Eight-Starred Glory Plane and with these wings, he had brutally defeated Su Mu who was in the Dharma Plane.


    Not only them, but even the eight emperors present were in shock. Yu Sheng''s combat skills were too violent. He was able to destroy his opponents with pure and absolute strength. His powers disregarded all else. Who cared if you had shocking sorcery skills or if you had a million tricks up your sleeves? His strength was able to destroy it all.


    The intent to kill in Emperor Luo''s eyes grew stronger. He had only focused on killing Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu but now he realized, he missed one person.


    ''The disciple of the Finance Star school''s Headmaster Yi Xiang'', was this meant for Yi Xiang? How preposterous! He used this battle platform and stepped all over the pride of the Tingfeng Banquet just to tell his master, Yi Xiang, that he was here.


    Beside Emperor Luo, Luo Junlin and Minister Hua had similar looks in their eyes. Shen Ruoshuang sat next to Luo Junlin and stared at Yu Sheng, stupefied. She had mocked Yu Sheng last night, calling him ugly, but after tonight, who would dare to use the word ''ugly'' to describe this devil-like being.


    Even Minister Zuo, who sat without a single word, lifted his head to look at Yu Sheng. He took a good look at his devil-like silhouette and then turned to look at Ye Futian among the Cangye group.


    Minister Zuo had only told the fortunes of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, but he had just now realized this terrifying existence by Ye Futian''s side. How could a person with such a special fate as Ye Futian not have a protector? It seemed like everything had already been arranged by fate. His empress was here, as was his protector.


    The Royal Xuan Temple set their sights on Crown Prince Luo Junlin and the eight emperors of different nations had gathered in own place in celebration. Everyone had thought that the Nandou Nation was going to grow stronger in the Hundred Lands, but no one thought that this was just the beginning of the end.


    Whom the gods would destroy they first make mad!


    Standing on the battle platform, Yu Sheng''s eyes swept over the wave of people. His outburst from before seemed to have relieved him of the stress built up over the past days. Afterward, he flapped his wings, and they carried him towards the observation deck. Yu Sheng did not continue to battle. What he had done was enough to carry his message to his master. All Yi Xiang had to do was ask around a bit and he would know that that Yu Sheng fought for Emperor Ye of the Cangye Kingdom. After that, it was only a matter of time until he would join them in the Cangye Kingdom.


    Upon returning to the observation deck, Yu Sheng retracted his wings. His fellow Fenghua Rank cultivators saw him in a different light. Some looked at him in admiration, some in jealousy. Yu Sheng''s scream from before had them all shaken up. They thought of Yu Sheng''s previous exchange with Zuo Qianfan. ''Isn''t the Noble Plane just another plane in cultivation? Is it very powerful?'' Perhaps it was very powerful to Yu Sheng now but what about in ten years? 20 years? One day, when he acquired the noble fate, he would definitely be one of the most domineering Noble Plane cultivators.


    Emperor Ye looked at Yu Sheng with even more admiration. Not only because of his gifts, but also because of the meaning behind his outburst. After ranking in the top three on the Fenghua Rank, his request was to find his master. Now, at the Tingfeng Banquet, his reason behind this shocking battle was still the same. Even though he was an emperor, the one above all, he was envious of Yi Xiang. Emperor Ye was very curious what kind of person Yu Sheng''s master was.


    Although Yu Sheng had already stepped off the battle platform, the venue was still filled with silence. The rowdy and loud atmosphere was no more. In the past, the Tingfeng Banquet was something that excited the people of the Nandou Nation. It was an event that pushed everyone''s emotion to its limit. It was a time for them to witness their nation reach new heights. But that energy was broken upon Yu Sheng''s appearance. Looking back now, the Tingfeng Banquet seemed like such a joke.


    Once every ten years? Just one battle was able to wipe away everything in the past. This was the true definition of "peerless". A single person who was able to outshine all others, defeating every one of the so-called "prides" of the Tingfeng Banquet.


    "Do you still want to fight?" Emperor Ye broke the silence with his question. With a smile on his face, his every word conveyed his confidence. Yu Sheng''s battle had lifted his mood. He felt so refreshed.


    "This was just one battle in the battle of the four nations. Of course, we have to continue," said Chu Kuangren. When Yu Sheng had asked for new opponents earlier, no one from the Yunchu Nation or the Yan Kingdom answered. It was truly embarrassing, but Yu Sheng''s performance was just too violent. He was so much stronger than the reports they received about the third place of the Fenghua Rank had stated. He had surprised them. However, they were the prides of their nations. They could not be weak.


    "No need for the trouble," someone said coldly. Ye Wuchen stood and continued, "After so many days of blabbering, you guys don''t even have the guts to step up for a challenge. I would have shut my mouth early on if I were you."


    Chu Kuangren looked at Ye Wuchen with a darkened expression. No one had any retorts for not answering to Yu Sheng''s challenge.


    "You guys can step up as you please," said Ye Wuchen. His sword intent released and his body shot forward like a blade. In the blink of an eye, he had already arrived on the platform where Yun Tianhao stood.


    Everyone''s eyes fell on Ye Wuchen. He stood there casually with his hands behind his back. He gave off a carefree feeling, very unlike a person who was about to be confronted in an intense battle.


    "Brother Yan, are you going, or shall I?" Chu Kuangren asked Yan Qi. They were both in the second level Dharma Plane, just like Ye Wuchen.


    "You guys can come together," Ye Wuchen said nonchalantly.


    "Preposterous!" said Yan Qi. "He specializes in swords and I specialize in knives. Let me go," Yan Qi said to Chu Kuangren.


    "Alright," replied Chu Kuangren as he continued his icy stare at Ye Wuchen.


    Yan Qi stood and in a single step, he lifted into the air. From his being, a force of knife intent was released, wanting to cut through everything in its way. Yan Qi was peerless in the Yan Kingdom and was bestowed the title of a prince. His knife once cut through a cultivator in the fourth level Dharma Plane.


    One step at a time, Yan Qi made his way into the skies above the battle platform. His knife intent permeated through the skies and like an invisible knife, it aimed to cut through Ye Wuchen''s body.


    Ye Wuchen lifted his head. Looking ahead, his sword intent released destroying the knife intent. The two powerful forces crashed into each other in mid-air.


    A large knife appeared in Yan Qi''s hand. He suddenly sped up, and like a flash of lightning, his knife was thrown forward. The wind enveloped the knife and the images of thousands of knives cut down at the same time.


    Ye Wuchen lifted a finger and from it, came a seemingly endless force of sword intent. It was under the sword intent that the thousands of knives were destroyed one after another. Yan Qi circled the skies above and released an even stronger force of knife intent. This second knife swung downward more powerful than the first. Ye Wuchen still looked incredibly calm. He lifted slowly into the air and the sword intent traveled with him. Countless swords appeared around him, real swords.


    "Go." Ye Wuchen pointed his finger and the swords shot forward with a whistle, all charging crazily at Yan Qi.


    Yan Qi saw this and changed his tactic immediately. In front of him, the swords separated and got into a circle formation, surrounding him and raced toward him in all directions. Behind him appeared a black knife. A terrifying force of knife intent came from the weapon and endless images of the knife revolved around him so quickly, no wind or rain could make its way through this makeshift force field. There was still a change in Ye Wuchen''s expression. Around him, sword intent was release yet again and more swords attacked Yan Qi at the point of Ye Wuchen''s finger.


    The swords came endlessly. The people watched as Yan Qi continued to wave his knife around. His knife skills were very strong. Both his attacks and defenses were fearsome. However, there seemed to be no end to Ye Wuchen''s swords. Just when Yan Qi thought he could let down his defense to attack, his swords charged at Yan Qi''s weak point as if they had eyes of their own.


    At this, Yan Qi realized that it was hopeless. There was nothing he could do besides defend himself.


    "Forfeit or death?" Ye Wuchen spoke unfeelingly. He reached out both hands and the sword intent circling Yan Qi turned into a storm, completely burying his body in a storm of swords. In the air, there were only swords. There was no Yan Qi.


    "I forfeit!" Yan Qi''s voice rang in the midst of the storm. In the next moment, the storm of swords disappeared, and Yan Qi was seen once again.


    The scene just now kept replaying in everyone''s minds. After witnessing this battle, the Cangye group realized that Ye Wuchen did not reveal his true abilities during the Fenghua Banquet. There was no need for him to give it his all because even without doing so, he was already invincible. Emperor Ye should be the one who knew best about Ye Wuchen''s abilities. He was his nephew after all. Had it not been for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s appearance, first place on the Fenghua Rank would have been Ye Wuchen, no questions asked.


    It was all because Ye Futian was able to defeat a Dharma Plane cultivator. During the Fenghua Banquet, there was actually no one fit to be Ye Wuchen''s opponent. Not counting Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen was truly the top pride of the younger generation in the Cangye Kingdom!

 144 Low-key Ye Futian

    Chapter 144: Low-key Ye Futian


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Wuchen''s power once again shocked everyone present. The prides of the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom all looked uncomfortable. There had been so many challenges but this was the result. Yu Sheng went without saying. They didn''t even dare challenge him. Now, Ye Wuchen had defeated Yan Qi.


    The Cangye Kingdom had completely overshadowed the Tingfeng Banquet through these two rounds. At the same time, the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom were fully humiliated. There had only been two battles between the four nations but it was more like the Cangye Kingdom''s solos how. It seemed to prove Yu Wuchen''s words from before. He didn''t like trouble.


    "Who else?" Ye Wuchen asked indifferently. He didn''t name anyone because he was too lazy to challenge anyone. He didn''t care who wanted to fight him. If no one dared to, this battle of the four nations would be meaningless and could end.


    Chu Kuangren''s eyes were extremely cold. Even someone as strong as Yan Qi had lost to Ye Wuchen so badly. Ye Wuchen hadn''t even released his life spirit yet. Even now, they didn''t know what kind of cultivator Ye Wuchen was. He was clearly a swordsman but what else? Was he only a swordsman? If so, he was a terrifying swordsman who could fight creating a storm of swords that wrapped around Yan Qi, each sword seeming to have its own life that searched for Yan Qi''s flaws.


    "Me," a voice said. It came from above the battle platform rather than below. It was Xi Lou, one of the most excellent figures of this year''s Tingfeng Banquet, at the Second level Dharma Plane platform.


    Ye Wuchen looked over. They stared at each other like at the Qixing Lake last night. Two artistic conceptions were released at once. One was sharp; the other was cold.


    Without a word, Ye Wuchen stepped forward. Instantly, endless sword intent came out of him and flew towards Xi Lou, two platforms away.


    Xi Lou''s eyes were indifferent. A frightening artistic conception bloomed from him. The world became frigid as endless double elemental Spiritual Qi of water and earth danced in the air. The sword intent grew heavy and seemed to be frozen by ice. They slowed down and stopped before arriving at Xi Lou. The entire area seemed to stop.


    "So cold." Someone close to the platform shivered. It felt like the entire world slowed down, even the blood flowing in their veins.


    Ye Wuchen and Xi Lou walked towards each other at once, moving to the platform beside them. This way, the two occupied one platform and became even closer. The sword intent on Ye Wuchen strengthened. He reached out and the swords whistled. They sliced through the air towards Xi Lou''s body.


    Xi Lou''s aura grew colder. The surrounding environment grew heavier. Everyone knew that this was the terrifying effect of combining the earth elemental''s gravity spell and water elemental''s ice spell.


    Countless straight ice sculptures in the shape of swords appeared in the sky. They slowed down bit by bit and then exploded. Xi Lou continued walking forward. At the edge of the platform, he hovered in the air.


    No wonder he''s one of the Tingfeng Banquet''s monsters, the people of the Nandou Nation thought. Xi Lou and Yun Tianhao were probably the most popular contenders of the banquet''s winner.


    It was clear that Xi Lou''s abilities were stronger than Yan Qi.


    As Xi Lou hovered in the air, the Dharma appeared behind him. It looked like two half circles. One was water and the other was earth. They fused together, transforming into a full moon. The moment the moon was released, the double elemental Spiritual Qi went wild. It gathered furiously as if it wanted to cover the entire world. After that, light shot out from the moon. White and earthy-yellow light alternated like moonlight. Everything in its path seemed to slow down until they exploded from the ice.


    The sword intent flowing across Ye Wuchen''s body was destroyed crazily. The moon''s radiance showered onto Ye Wuchen. The spell was released with the Dharma''s light, making the power shocking.


    This is true Dharma, many thought, stunned. Xi Lou was only at the Second level Dharma Plane but he already had the essence of Dharma. His talent was peerless and his spells were extraordinary. There was no limit for him in the future.


    Feeling the incoming aura, Ye Wuchen''s eyes grew serious. A beam of silver light shone behind him. Everyone watched as silver filled the sky. A small silver sword floated behind Ye Wuchen as if it was his life spirit.


    Boundless sword intent gathered around the small sword, transforming into a sword river that flowed forward. It clashed against the glow of the two half-moons. Time seemed to stop. The two different forces were both being destroyed.


    A terrifying ice seal spell descended from the surrounding sky. Bit by bit, the air turned into frost, burying Ye Wuchen inside. However, silver light flashed through his eyes. The small sword sliced through the air, rushing into the moonlight and destroying everything.


    Xi Lou reached out to freeze the small sword but there was a boom and the spell shattered. The sword continued forward without any obstructions. Spells continued to descend but the small sword shone like a spirit. It continuously broke through the spells, so fast the naked eye couldn''t keep track of its path. Finally, with a terrifying rumble, the sword appeared between Xi Lou''s brows with terrifying sword intent.


    Xi Lou didn''t doge. He stared down at the small silver sword as if he could see Ye Wuchen''s eyes. At that moment, he finally knew what kind of cultivator Ye Wuchen was.


    "You lost," Ye Wuchen said. The aura around Xi Lou scattered and he collected his Dharma. He was defeated.


    After the sword returned, Ye Wuchen looked at Xi Lou and said calmly, "Not bad."


    Countless people were shocked. Ye Wuchen was the victor but said this to Xi Lou. It was a bit�� However, his voice sounded so natural as if he really thought that. He was truly an arrogant guy without any ingenuity.


    After that, Ye Wuchen scanned the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom. Finally, he went back to the Cangye Kingdom''s spot.


    The teeming crowd was silent. All the prides of the Tingfeng Banquet had been defeated with no wins. Emperor Luo''s expression was dark while the other emperors watched quietly. They''d come to show their support and unexpectedly witnessed this show.


    Luo Junlin, crown prince of the Nandou Nation, was seen highly by the Royal Xuan Temple and the Tingfeng Banquet was held smoothly. It should have been great news but Emperor Luo couldn''t feel happy now.


    "The Fenghua Banquet of the Cangye Kingdom is held once every three years. The people that come from it aren''t bad, right?" Emperor Ye said with a smile. His mood was getting better and better. Emperor Luo had invited him just to gloat but now, it''ll be impressive if the man could still smile.


    The Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom finally shut up. They couldn''t say anything anymore.


    "Two battles are enough for the battle between us. You all can continue but we''ll be leaving," Emperor Ye said proudly.


    "The battle between the four nations can''t end with only two challenges. It''s too early," Emperor Luo said coolly. Four of the most brilliant of this year''s Tingfeng Banquet had been defeated. Since they were already at this state, they couldn''t just give up now.


    "What do you mean?" Emperor Ye asked coldly.


    Emperor Luo looked over at the prides of the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom and said, "You''ve seen the second and third place of the Fenghua Rank. Don''t you want to witness how strong the first place is?"


    Ye Futian frowned. Emperor Luo was trying to force him to fight but why?


    "The first place of the Fenghua Rank has been avoiding the fight this entire time. He''s probably all talk and no substance," Chu Kuangren said.


    Many of the Cangye Kingdom frowned. Chu Kuangren was the prince of the Yunchu Nation but he spoke with no tact. Or rather, was he purposely cooperating with Emperor Luo after seeing that he wanted to force Ye Futian out?


    "Can you shut up?" Ye Wuchen''s eyes were sharp. He really despised Chu Kuangren. Who was the one that had no substance?


    Emperor Ye didn''t look at Chu Kuangren. Instead, he looked at Emperor Luo and smiled. Then he said to Ye Futian, "Since everyone wants to see your ability, you mustn''t be impolite as a guest."


    Seeing his gaze, Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He walked towards the battle platforms. He also went towards the one Yun Tianhao had been at. When he stood atop it, countless gazes fell on him.


    According to gossip, Ye Futian was from the Donghai City and the emperor had wanted to confer a title upon him but he refused and turned towards the Cangye Kingdom. Yu Sheng, the rare talent from before, was his friend. Yu Sheng was third on the Fenghua Rank while he was first.


    The people of the Donghai Academy and Nandou clan looked at Ye Futian too. They inhaled sharply. At the last day of the previous year, Ye Futian had displayed unparalleled talent. How much more powerful was he now?


    "Ye Futian, Eight-star Glory Plane." Standing on the battle platform, Ye Futian gazed at the spectators and smiled. "I am unskilled with an ordinary talent. I was made first of the Fenghua Rank due to luck. Now, I''m terrified because all the prides of the four nations are gathered here. Faced with the brilliant figures of the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom, I don''t dare to come out to fight. However, Emperor Luo requested me so I must come out and challenge the geniuses of the same plane."


    "Uh��" Emperor Ye coughed, a bit shocked. Was this still the arrogant Ye Futian from the Fenghua Banquet? When did he become so low-key? And same plane? How could he say that with his talent?


    The others of the Cangye Kingdom also grew annoyed. Lin Yueyao blinked her pretty eyes while Bai Qiu and Yu Jiang were dumbfounded. They''d never seen someone so shameless��


    Not only them, the people of the other nations were stunned as well. Ye Futian said that he was unskilled with an ordinary talent while the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom were brilliant. How could they respond to such shameless words? Same plane? Did Ye Futian take them as idiots?!

 145 One Swing of the Rod, One Dharma

    Chapter 145: One Swing of the Rod, One Dharma


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Although the Yunchu and the Yan groups had insulted Ye Futian, there was no way they would actually believe that the person picked by Emperor Ye to be in first place on the Fenghua Rank had actually gotten there by pure luck. To be able to defeat a Dharma Plane cultivator, even one with an ordinary realization of Dharma, he was definitely a monster. What''s more, the people he defeated were also on the Fenghua Rank. So according to their original plan, they were going to have Ye Futian fight against someone in the Dharma Plane.


    But��this shameless jerk was just too unpredictable.


    They could not argue back with a thing Ye Futian said. He spoke politely, made himself sound weak and modest, and complimented the prides of the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom. What could they say to that? Was there anything wrong with him wanting to fight against someone in the same plane in a battle of the four nations? There was nothing they could say��


    "Brother Ye, you must be joking. How could the person in the first place on the Fenghua Rank be ordinary?" Chu Kuangren wracked his brain for something to say. Deep down, he was cursing Ye Futian for being so shameless. He knew clearly that Ye Futian''s opponent would lose; no questions asked if it was someone in the same level.


    "Brother Ye? Are we close?" Ye Futian chuckled at Chu Kuangren. "Besides, didn''t you say I was all talk? Now you''re saying that I''m no ordinary person? What is it that you want? Do you want to fight or not?"


    Chu Kuangren''s face fell. Seated with the others from the Cangye Kingdom, Hua Zhixin couldn''t hold in her laugh at the sight of his expression. She thought to herself, Ye Futian is really bad, the way he bullies others.


    Emperor Ye had wanted to leave, but Chu Kuangren wanted to continue the battle of the four nations. Without an excuse, how would he be so thick-skinned as to request that Ye Futian battle with a Dharma Plane cultivator?


    "Ye Futian, during the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Banquet, you defeated multiple cultivators in the Dharma Plane. You are truly gifted. Why are you insulting yourself by putting on this fa?ade? Since you have set impressive records, let''s have each of the other three nations send out one person in the Dharma Plane. We''ll settle things on the battle platform," said Emperor Luo.


    Many people gave him a strange look. It was true that Ye Futian had set some impressive records but it was slightly out of place for an emperor to request a battle between a Glory Plane cultivator and those in the Dharma Plane.


    Ye Futian looked at Emperor Luo. When Emperor Ye planned to leave earlier, Emperor Luo refused to let them go and tried to force Ye Futian into battle. He was still not willing to give up. If so, then Ye Futian was going to make his wish come true.


    "So, the battle of four nations means that our Cangye Kingdom has to fight, Glory Plane to Dharma Plane. Emperor Luo is truly brilliant," Ye Futian said sarcastically. He then turned to the cultivators of the three nations and said, "Since it has already been spoken, what''s the point of lying to yourselves and calling this the ''battle of four nations''? Each nation, choose one person in the Dharma Plane. Come at me all together." In this moment, Ye Futian lost the playful attitude. His voice was low and everyone could see the change in his eyes. This should be the real him.


    Ye Futian, an Eight-star Glory Plane, said to powerful cultivators from three other nations, "Each nation, choose one person in the Dharma Plane. Come at me all together." Not only did he have to fight against their Dharma, he also had to fight three people who were going to gang up on him. Even Yu Sheng, who was extremely domineering, was not as arrogant as Ye Futian.


    Emperor Ye looked to the figure on the battle platform. He did not say any. Since Ye Futian had already spoken, then he believed that he could do it.


    Emperor Luo let out a smile. The Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom sent out one person. They were both the strongest of their first level Dharma Plane cultivators.


    "Who is willing to fight for our Nandou Nation?" Emperor Luo looked out at the crowd. Their best first level Dharma Plane cultivator, Su Mu, had already been destroyed by Yu Sheng. It was a given that they had to pick another person.


    "I am willing to fight for Your Majesty." A figure emerged from the crowd.


    "It''s Zong Yan." Everyone''s eyes brightened. This person was the one who fought with Su Mu to be number one among the first level Dharma Plane cultivators. He was also very capable. Despite not being as good as Su Mu, he was not too far off.


    "Alright," nodded Emperor Luo. At the same time, the cultivators from the other two nations made their way to join Ye Futian on the battle platform. Zong Yan lifted into the air and looked down from the skies at Ye Futian on the platform.


    Countless pairs of eyes fell on the handsome young man on the platform. An Eight-star Glory Plane fighting three Dharmas? This was about to get crazy.


    The individual from the Yunchu Nation wore an armor of flames and his body was bathed in the red glow. Behind him, a fearsome realization of Dharma appeared. It was a large area of flames, like an ocean of magma. It looked like a river of liquid fire. The flames made the surrounding area look red.


    He''s already this powerful in the first level Dharma Plane? Everyone watching shook in fear.


    The cultivator sent out by the Yan Kingdom also possessed a terrifying Dharma. A large demon ape appeared behind him, causing his entire body to fill with an indescribable strength. He became wild and ferocious, prepared for destruction.


    The two of them reached the sides of the battle platform very quickly and stood there staring at Ye Futian. They wanted to know how Ye Futian would defeat a realization of Dharma.


    Zong Yan floated above the platform. A long spear appeared in his hand, a strong energy seeped out from the weapon.


    Ye Futian stood at the center of the battle platform, his aura was ready to ready. A long golden rod appeared in this hand.


    The Yunchu cultivator took a step forward and immediately, a wave of flames headed for Ye Futian in the form of a fire dragon. The golden rod danced in Ye Futian''s hand. A large force of energy descended upon him and on his back, sprung his Golden Roc wings. With a flap of his wings, Ye Futian was lifted into the air. The fire dragon charged forward. Apparitions of the rod revolved around Ye Futian, collecting energy. Slowly, a great force of energy permeated from his being.


    BOOM! His wings spread, and Ye Futian transformed into a giant roc, soaring through the skies. The other three looked up at him to see he fly even higher. It was a magnificent sight. All the while, the force continued to grow stronger. After that, they watched as Ye Futian charged towards the cultivator from the Yunchu Nation. He was unbelievably fast.


    The flames formed by the cultivator''s Dharma raged and flowed like magma toward Ye Futian. A massive hand formed by the flames reached out to grab Ye Futian who was floating in mid-air.


    Ye Futian turned into a ray of golden light and did not stop for even a split second. The rod swung down in single swipe. Genesis. The large palm of flame split apart from the middle. This one swipe was headed straight for the Yunchu cultivator with a force so strong, it was possible to split the sky in half.


    The cultivator''s Fire Sorcery exploded wildly. Just like flowing magma, the hellfire headed for Ye Futian, but with one swing of the rod, a magnificent golden light blocked the cultivator''s body from advance. The path separated the wave of flames. There was nothing strong enough for the rod.


    BOOM! This loud noise could mean nothing else. The Yunchu cultivator had been struck by the golden rod and was now lying face down on the battle platform.


    Was the Dharma Plane this weak? The audience was shocked. He was hand-picked by the people of the Yunchu Nation, so he must have an impressive Dharma, but he could not even withstand one attack. Down with one swing of the rod.


    The people of the Yunchu Nation sat in their seats with darkened expressions. They had previously mocked the Dharmas defeated by a Glory Plane cultivator. "What kind of Dharma was that", they asked. Now, the Yunchu Nation''s Dharma Plane cultivator had also been defeated by Ye Futian in the Glory Plane. In one strike, one might add. After this one attack, not only did Ye Futain''s energy not weaken, it actually got stronger.


    At the sight of this, the cultivator from the Yan Kingdom, who had refused to gang up on Ye Futian for the sake of his reputation, could feel his heart speed up. With a growl from the Demon Ape, an apparition of the ape overlapped on the cultivator''s body. He was filled with immense strength. But when he saw Ye Futian fly his way like a giant roc, the cultivator could feel the descent of his aura even before he got to him. His aura was strong enough to suppress everything.


    BOOM! The Yan cultivator stepped forward and the atmosphere became heavy. The Demon Ape roared in a fury, loud enough to shake the mountains. He lifted his hand to throw a fist, prepared for destruction. It was during this wild fit that Ye Futian swung his rod for the second time


    As the long golden rod came closer, it looked bigger and bigger in the cultivator''s eyes. The rod came down with such strength, everything was destroyed. The enormous Demon Ape was ready to charge forward but was struck by the attack of the rod.


    BOOM! Another crash. The Yan Kingdom''s Dharma Plane cultivator was thrown backwards, faster than the speed of the wind.


    This�� Everyone was simply speechless. There were no words fit to describe this situation.


    Ye Futian did not slow down one bit. He headed straight for his third opponent. Once again, with a swing of the rod. The aura around Zong Yan was shocking. His long spear shot out and of course, it was destroyed by the rod. His body was sent flying. However, Ye Futian saw Zong Yan''s body exploding as he was thrown through the air. A residual image could be seen, descending like a shadow at an incredible speed. What seemed to be a dagger pierced toward Ye Futian. The blade glimmered in the sky.


    This sudden scene caused everyone in the audience to feel a clench in their hearts. Especially for the Cangye group. Their eyes were frozen on Ye Futian.


    There was the slight noise. The dagger seemed to have broken skin, piercing into Ye Futian''s body. It looked like his heart. However, the dagger never made it in. Ye Futian had caught it in his left hand, but he was still hurt. Fresh blood gushed from the wound.


    Zong Yan lifted his head to look at Ye Futian. He had a peculiar look in his eyes. Was Ye Futian physically that strong? He was able to stop Zong Yan''s critical strike.


    Zong Yan. Everyone was dumbfounded by this sight. He never displayed these abilities in battle with Su Mu. That attack was too strange. A determining strike. He almost killed Ye Futian. But Ye Futian was actually able to stop this critical attack. It was easy to see just how scary fast his reflexes were.


    A dragon roar sounded. Ye Futian threw his arms out, throwing Zong Yan to the side. Then, his roc wings fluttered, carrying him upwards while his rod swung downwards. A loud crash resonated through the area as Zong Yan crashed into the ground. However, this was not the end. At an incredible speed, Ye Futian picked up Zong Yan by the waist with his rod and tossed him up into the air.


    WHOOSH! His wings brought he into the air above Zong Yan''s body. Ye Futian''s eyes were ice cold and filled with the intent to kill.


    "I forf��" Zong Yan tried to scream out with blood in his mouth, but before he could finish the word ''forfeit'', his utterance was disrupted by a loud noise.


    BOOM! Zong Yan''s body shook in mid-air and then fell to the ground. His arms were limp as if he was no longer able to raise them. But of course, a dead person would never be able to raise their arms again.

 146 Emperor Ye’s Attitude

    Chapter 146: Emperor Ye��s Attitude


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    With a slight sound, Zong Yan''s body fell down on the platform, not moving anymore. The boundless void was so quiet. Yu Sheng defeated Su Mu of Second-level Dharma Plane with wild attacks while Ye Futian killed Zong Yan directly with his staff. Even the talents of the Dharma Plane from the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom couldn''t resist his staff. It was unprecedented that a man of the Glory Plane could be so strong.


    The people of Donghai Academy and the Nandou clan felt complicated about Ye Futian''s change. He was even strong enough to defeat people of the First-level Dharma Plane. Once he upgraded to the Dharma Plane, he would be able to defeat people of the Third-level Dharma Plane very easily. But at this moment, Ye Futian didn''t feel the pleasure of victory. He looked at the blood on his chest with cold eyes and then gazed at Emperor Luo in the stands.


    Ye Futian watched the final battle too. He witnessed the battle between Su Mu and Zong Yan. Zong Yan didn''t play such a trick before. He seemed to save this just to fight with Ye Futian as the fatal attack. And before, the emperor had egged him on to fight. The talents of the Tingfeng Banquet had been defeated so with Emperor Luo''s status, it should have been unnecessary to do.


    All this seemed premeditated.


    But he couldn''t accuse Emperor Luo. Everything happened within the rules. No one could be blamed even if he was killed on the platform. It was he who promised to fight and no one forced him. The man who fought with him was of the First-level Dharma Plane. Nothing was beyond the rule. If he died, even Emperor Ye would be unable to say anything.


    If Ye Futian could figure out this conspiracy, so could Emperor Ye. Emperor Ye looked at Emperor Luo coldly but didn''t say anything. The battle was fair enough. What could he say?


    "I learned a lot, thank you." Ye Futian said to people on the stands. Hearing this, people of the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom looked troubled.


    The Cangye Kingdom had won all three rounds. Yu Sheng had defeated many talents. The Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom dared not to fight anymore. Ye Wuchen defeated Yan Qi and Xi Lou very easily. Ye Futian defeated three talents in the Dharma Plane just with his staff. The last cultivator was directly killed on the spot. No one could blame Ye Futian. Everyone knew that it was Zong Yan who wanted to kill Ye Futian at first. That was why Ye Futian had to kill him. Even Emperor Luo couldn''t accuse him of anything.


    "The battles of the four kingdoms are over now," Emperor Ye said coldly and turned to Ye Futian. "Come back."


    "Wait," Emperor Luo spoke at this moment. Many people then descended onto the platform, surrounding Ye Futian. These people were the best of the imperial guards. Seeing this, many people were shocked. Yu Sheng was even furious.


    "What''s the intention, Your Majesty?" Emperor Ye looked at Emperor Luo with extremely cold eyes.


    "Don''t you know that Ye Futian betrayed my Nandou Nation?" Emperor said slowly, "He rebelled and killed my subordinate. The head of the East Sea Prefecture, Xia Feng, died because of him. Now he dares return to the Nandou Nation. Thus, he shall die. I hope you will understand."


    "Let me repeat that Ye Futian is my citizen now. He is also my foster daughter''s lover, the future bridegroom of the Cangye Kingdom''s princess," Emperor Ye said coldly, staring at Emperor Luo.


    The two men locked their eyes on each other, commanding a powerful presence. Seeing this, the six other emperors felt complicated. It seemed that Emperor Luo really wanted Ye Futian to die. But clearly, Emperor Luo couldn''t easily do so because Ye Futian was brought here by Emperor Ye.


    "What if I insist on killing him?" Emperor Luo pointed at Ye Futian. Suddenly, all the imperial bodyguards rushed to Ye Futian, putting him in great danger.


    Ye Futian stood still and remained silent. He knew that Emperor Luo could kill him easily but didn''t dare do so.


    "Are you testing my resolution?" Emperor Ye sneered and then a great sword intent rolled over. Clouds gathered above the sky. Sharp swords whistled and gathered wildly, enveloping Emperor Luo and the noble families of the Nandou Nation.


    At the same time, endless sword intent roared past, going straight to the imperial palace. Many people looked up to the sky, seeing the streaks going straight to the palace without returning. The sword intent could be sensed even far away.


    "Let me tell you, I brought him here and I will certainly bring him back. I can''t stop you if you really want to kill him but it won''t be difficult for me to turn your imperial palace into a bloodbath!" Emperor Ye didn''t look at Ye Futian. Both of them knew that Emperor Luo could kill Ye Futian at any time but he didn''t dare to.


    The reason he didn''t dare to was Emperor Ye. No one could imagine what crazy actions he would make if Ye Futian was killed. Once the emperor was enraged, it was not an exaggeration that the whole city would be bathed by blood.


    Countless eyes fell on them. The relations between the two emperors were strained because of Ye Futian. The other emperors watched the two emperors'' confrontation quietly. The relations between nations could be very subtle. Any dispute needed to be controlled within the rules that everyone was acquiescent to. For instance, if any one of the two died on the platform, there could be no complaints since the two had had a promised.


    Even if Emperor Luo really wanted to kill Ye Futian, he couldn''t kill him in public. Since Emperor Ye had claimed that Ye Futian was his man, Emperor Luo couldn''t kill Ye Futian at this time or he would disobey the rules. Disobedience was intolerable. If Emperor Luo killed Ye Futian now, who could guarantee that he wouldn''t kill the prince or princess of the Cangye Kingdom? Once one side broke the rules, the other side would not let it go and the consequences could be disastrous.


    Even though Emperor Luo wanted Ye Futian to die, no one believed that he would kill him before test Emperor Ye''s attitude. At this moment, he just wanted to figure out how strong Emperor Ye''s resolution was to protect Ye Futian. Once Emperor Ye showed the slightest concession and Emperor Luo felt it, Ye Futian would be killed on the spot. Clearly, Emperor Luo was disappointed.


    In the sky, all the sword intents heading to the imperial place signified Emperor Ye''s attitude.


    "What do Emperor Chu and Emperor Yan think?" Emperor Luo suddenly turned to the other two emperors and asked.


    The two emperors looked at each other, silently cursing Emperor Luo for dragging them into this.


    "When disobeying the emperor''s will, Ye Futian still belonged to the Nandou Nation. I think there should be an explanation." said the emperor of Yunchu Nation.


    "Emperor Ye overacted a little bit," said Emperor Yan.


    The two emperors were all on Emperor Luo''s side. However, Emperor Ye didn''t care. As neighboring countries, wouldn''t they be threatened by the Nandou Nation''s rise? They were just pretending to be friendly but didn''t truly support Nandou Nation.


    "You have heard what the two emperors just said. Now I promise, as emperor, that as long as you leave him here, the Nandou Nation will forgive all offenses and leave Cangye alone. Emperor Luo gazed at Emperor Ye and suggested.


    Emperor Ye knew the promising future Luo Junlin would have after he entered the Royal Xuan Temple.


    The other emperors hesitated. Will Emperor Ye take this into consideration?


    Though Ye Futian was very gifted, he was only a hero who had not grown up yet while Luo Junlin''s future was promising.


    Giving up Ye Futian meant when the Nandou Nation rose, the Cangye Kingdom would have no worries. Protecting Ye Futian meant the Cangye Kingdom could be in great danger once there were two kings in the Nandou Nation.


    "If I can''t even protect a man, how can I protect the whole kingdom?" asked Emperor Ye. "Emperor Luo, you don''t need to waste your energy on this. I must take him away."


    Emperor Ye was determined that he must take Ye Futian away. It was silent and awkward. If Emperor Ye didn''t concede then Emperor Luo couldn''t kill Ye Futian.


    "Do you have to do this, just for him? Despite whatever the consequences will be?" Emperor Luo asked coldly.


    "I was invited here but didn''t expect that this banquet would be so tragic. Since it is so, we shall go now." Emperor Ye looked at Ye Futian and said, "Come over here."


    Ye Futian nodded and walked toward Emperor Ye. The strong cultivators remained around Ye Futian. They looked at Emperor Luo, waiting for his order. Once Emperor Luo gave the order, they would kill him. But in the end, the emperor''s order didn''t come.


    Ye Futian returned to Emperor Ye. A dragon roared in the distance and descended from the sky.


    "From now on, I will start a war against the Cangye Kingdom until it is totally destroyed," Emperor Luo said coldly.


    "I''ll play this game with you," Emperor Ye responded indifferently and said to his men, "Let''s go!" As soon as he spoke, the people of Cangye all climbed onto the dragon. Emperor Ye was the last to embark. With a growl, the dragon soared into the air. The sword intents between the heaven and land disappeared.


    Emperor Luo looked up to the sky, gazing at those people coldly. Ye Futian was staring at him too without any evasion.


    The dragon flew into the distance, ready to leave. Yu Sheng was also on the back of the dragon, gazing at Emperor Luo''s group with great murderous intent. Countless eyes gazed at the dragon as well as the figures on its back. Everything that happened in the Tingfeng Banquet was like a dream.


    This banquet of the Nandou Nation seemed to be held for Ye Futian''s group. This 17-year-old youth became the reason of the two emperors'' conflict.


    At this moment, countless beams of dazzling light shot over from the distance. The dragon stopped and Ye Futian''s group looked at the light.


    "Another emperor has arrived?" Emperor Ye was confused. Above the dragon, a few figures flashed by without even glancing at them. When Emperor Ye''s group looked toward that direction, the lights stopped in the air above the platforms. Countless figures looked up to the sky. The several figures looked dazzling under the sunshine. Did they come to congratulate too?


    These people seemed to be more powerful than of the strong cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple, shining brightly like gods. Emperor Luo also looked up to the sky. His eyes shone, full of excitement.


    "After three months, the gate to the Ancient Barren World will open to the Hundred Lands forever. Everyone can enter the gate freely." A voice was heard from above the sky. Hearing this, the eight emperors became extremely excited.


    This voice claimed that a new era was coming!

 147 Influence

    Chapter 147: Influence


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Ancient Barren World: a land of fate, the road to become a Noble Plane cultivator, the link to the Eastern Barren Territory. For countless years, the Ancient Barren World had no relations with the Hundred Lands. There weren''t many here in the Hundred Lands that knew of the Ancient Barren World''s Existence. Despite how much the Hundred Lands grew, the distance between it and the center of the Eastern Barren Territory was still enormous.


    The Hundred Lands were the areas forgotten by the Eastern Barren Territory. But now, the Ancient Barren World was to be forever open to the Hundred Lands. This meant that from now on, the genius cultivators of the Hundred Lands had a chance to prove their worth in the Eastern Barren Territory. There probably wouldn''t be any immediate effect, but through the hard work of generations of people, the Hundred Lands would surely flourish. This voice marked a revolutionary moment for the Hundred Lands.


    Emperor Luo''s excitement dissipated in the blink of eye, replacing it was a darkened expression. Why had he invited the emperors of other nations to the banquet? Why had other emperors come forth to congratulate him? It was all because his son, Luo Junlin, acquired the noble fate from the Ancient Barren World and was viewed highly by the Royal Xuan Temple. These accomplishments required not only strong talent but also a chance of luck. The other emperors probably wouldn''t have been willing to pass the chance to enter the Ancient Barren World to the younger generation.


    But now, the Ancient Barren World was going to be open to the Hundred Lands forever. This meant that all the powerful cultivators of Hundred Lands would flood to the Ancient Barren World. There was bound to be some of them who would acquire the noble fate and be deemed a valuable asset. All this meant that Luo Junlin no longer had an advantage over others. What''s more, based on how gifted Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were, what on earth would happen once they reached the highest level of the Dharma Plane and stepped into the Ancient Barren World? It was all so unpredictable.


    And so, to Emperor Luo, it was good news that he and the prodigies of his nation could enter the Ancient Barren World freely, but now he no longer had an advantage over the other nations. Now, others would have the same chances as Luo Junlin. However, this was such exciting news to the other seven emperors. One by one, they rose from their seats, their eyes sparkling.


    Those who had already heard of the Ancient Barren World were all incredibly excited. Their chances for entering the Noble Plane had greatly increased. Also, it was going to be extremely interesting to be in the same world as genius cultivators from the Eastern Barren Territory. Their stage was no longer limited to a nation or to the Hundred Lands.


    "We still have to notify other nations. Please excuse us," the figure continued without pause. Then, it morphed into rays of bright light and disappeared.


    Emperor Ye''s eyes swept over the ill-looking Emperor Luo and mounted the dragon. Rising into the skies, they headed far away.


    "Goodbye, Emperor Luo."


    "Since the Tingfeng Banquet has ended, we will also take our leave now." The emperors took turns saying their goodbyes to Emperor Luo. The Ancient Barren World would open forever in three months. They had to return to their own kingdoms to make preparations. Although there was still plenty of time, the emperors could not wait any longer. Very quickly, all seven emperors had left with their people.


    Emperor Luo stood there with a dark expression on his face. The Tingfeng Banquet had ended and the crowd was still present, but all the banquet left behind was a mess. The "geniuses" picked out from the Tingfeng Banquet were all defeated in three rounds of battle. Someone was even murdered at the event.


    The Tingfeng Banquet was the Nandou Nation''s imperial event, but there was nothing to be proud of anymore. There were only reminders of their failure. It seemed that their proud nation fell in just the span of a day,


    Emperor Luo did not speak. The vast space was filled with many people, but it was also filled with silence. The atmosphere was suffocating.


    Minister Zuo took in everything calmly. Seeing the reminders of their failure today was like a sneak peek into the Nandou Nation''s future.


    "Minister Hua," Emperor Luo called out suddenly.


    "I''m here," Minister Hua stood up to reply.


    "Prepare for war with the Cangye Kingdom," ordered Emperor Luo.


    "Yes, Your Majesty." Minister Hua bowed in acknowledgment of the order.


    "The nine victors of the Tingfeng Banquet will enter the imperial palace for their rewards," Emperor Luo announced to the crowd. Although the "geniuses" completely embarrassed him today, he could not ignore his promise. An emperor must never go back on his words. He could not lose the support of his people. Now that the Ancient Barren World was about to open, Emperor Luo needed to strengthen his relationship with all types of powerful cultivators in the Nandou Nation. Perhaps there would be another person who would be able to a lucky break like Luo Junlin did. However, the chances were very slim.


    "Since prodigies from all over Nandou Nation have gathered here in the imperial city, I will hold another event sometime in the following days. There, I will pick out the best of Dharma Plane cultivators," announced Emperor Luo. "And this event will be held once a year from now on. The time will be set for the beginning of the Tingfeng Banquet." It was obvious, Emperor Luo was already preparing for the opening of the Ancient Barren World. The Ancient Barren World was divided into an upper and lower world. Only those in the Dharma Plane and below could enter the lower Ancient Barren World.


    "This year''s Tingfeng Banquet is now officially over," said Emperor Luo. The countless figures below had lost their excitement long before. The final battle of the Tingfeng Banquet just a while ago had been so spectacular. However, three battles were all it took to completely ruin the Tingfeng Banquet.


    In the first battle, the disciple of Donghai Academy''s Yi Xiang from the Nandou Nation''s Donghai City, Yu Sheng, imprinted the image of his large figure and his name into the brains of everyone in the audience with his roaring outburst.


    In the second battle, the peerless Ye Wuchen defeated Yan Qi and held a sword at Xi Lou.


    In the third battle, Ye Futian defeated realizations of Dharma with a single swing of his rod and killed Zong Yan on the battle platform.


    It was almost as if the Tingfeng Banquet was held for the Cangye Kingdom.


    The ironic part was that now everyone knew that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were from the Nandou Nation. They had once studied in the Donghai Academy''s School of the Finance Star. Emperor Luo''s imperial order drove them away from their homes and into the Cangye Kingdom. It was there that they received high praise from the Cangye Kingdom''s emperor. This was the reason why the Tingfeng Banquet ended the way it did. Everything thought, Would Ye Futian and Yu Sheng have been the ones standing victoriously on the Tingfeng Banquet''s battle platforms had they not left the Nandou Nation? But there were no "what ifs".


    What the people didn''t know was that right before the imperial order arrived in Donghai City, Ye Futian had just begun to prepare to set off for the imperial city to attend the Tingfeng Banquet.


    Among the crowd, those from Donghai City felt the most unsettled. They were the people from Donghai Academy and members of the Nandou Clan. Presently seated with the others from Donghai Academy, Yun Tianhao had lost his prideful expression. He looked so dispirited. The devil-like figure that descended from the skies had scarred him, probably for life. He had thought that his gifts were unbeatable and that there was no one else like him present at the Tingfeng Banquet. Yun Tianhao thought he had what it took to challenge Ye Futian. But that single ruthless stomp from Yu Sheng took away his honor and his pride. After that, seeing Ye Futian defeat the Dharma Plane cultivators made Yun Tianhao understand that Ye Futian would never bother to fight him.


    The crowd began to disperse. After a little while, the area around Tingfeng Banquet''s nine battle platforms were completely empty. The area looked extra bleak. People who had traveled for afar began their journey back home, but there were also many high-leveled Dharma Plane cultivators who stayed in the imperial city. They were prepared to attend this other event Emperor Luo spoke of. However, there was no way this event would be as extravagant as the Tingfeng Banquet.


    As everyone traveled in all different directions, the happenings of the Tingfeng Banquet spread quickly through the nation. The names of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng traveled quickly to places all over the Nandou Nation. Not only because of their eye-catching appearances but also because of their history in the Nandou Nation. The news spread most wildly in Donghai City because that was where Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had started.


    The imperial order given out in the last two days of Divine Prefecture Calendar Year 10000, and the battle the Nandou Clan''s palace were still fresh in many people''s minds. It was something brought up as small talk after a meal. In just a little over a month, Ye Futian had returned stronger than ever before and ruined the Tingfeng Banquet. Plus, Yu Sheng''s outburst, how could this not cause an uproar?


    At the moment, many people were discussing the events of the Tingfeng Banquet in one of Donghai City''s many restaurants.


    "I heard that everything was started by the Crown Prince. Back in Donghai Academy some time ago, he had asked Ye Futian to work under him but was rejected. That was the starting point of everything that followed."


    "His Highness was accepted into the Royal Xuan Palace and Ye Futian displayed such extraordinary gifts. They were both shining stars. The Nandou Nation has no space for the both of them. Perhaps they were destined to be rivals."


    "Both of them? Aren''t you forgetting about Yu Sheng? My teacher witnessed the battle at the Tingfeng Banquet with his own two eyes. He told me that when Yu Sheng stepped up for battle, he was invincible like the devil."


    "Is he really that fierce?"


    "Of course! Do you guys know of Yun Tianhao? He''s the star pupil of Donghai Academy and was deemed the future of the academy. His performance at the Tingfeng Banquet was simply breathtaking. He was unbeatable. Then, he challenged Ye Futian but Yu Sheng stepped up for the battle instead. Yu Sheng descended like a deity from the heavens and had Yun Tianhao under his feet. After being forced to his knees, Yu Sheng picked him up by the neck and tossed him to the side. Yu Sheng didn''t even spare him a glance."


    "After that, Yu Sheng defeated the star of the Nine-star Glory Plane cultivators with a single punch. Then after that, he released a pair of devil-like wings and fought against a realization of Dharma. He tore apart a dragon with his bare hands and had the audience shaking in their seats after his roaring outburst. Some of them were shaking in excitement. You guys should know what he screamed out, right?"


    Everyone grew serious and someone repeated Yu Sheng''s words in a deep voice.


    "My name is Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng, the disciple of Yi Xiang, headmaster of Donghai Academy''s School of the Finance Star located in Donghai City of the Nandou Nation!"


    "How domineering! It''s just as exciting listening to it now. Headmaster Yi Xiang of the School of the Finance Star should be very happy to have a disciple like him." Everyone in the restaurant agreed.


    "That''s right! It''s said that Yi Xiang left Donghai Academy. I really want to meet him."


    "I saw Yi Xiang once at Donghai Academy''s Assembly of Seven Schools. It was that very day that he left the academy with Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. He truly was a character," said a young man.


    In this moment, seated quietly in a corner of the restaurant, was a figure wearing a wide-brimmed bamboo hat. Hearing what everyone had to say, he eyes watered but a smile spread across his face. "I''ve been alive for so many years and I''m only now feeling sentimental," said the figure. He removed his hat and continued, "My disciple would have never thought of something like this, this should be one of your many rotten ideas. Isn''t that right, you little punk?"


    Many people turned to look at the man who was talking to himself. There was a twinkle in the eyes of a young man who had previously spoken. "Senior Yi Xiang?"


    Yi Xiang lifted his head to look at him. He smiled freely and replied, "Yes, it''s me."


    The entire restaurant was thrown into a wild frenzy. Many people stared at him in shock. So, he was Yi Xiang? There were also many people who were feeling very conflicted. He was a wanted man in the Nandou Nation.


    "Senior, for you to reveal yourself here, I''m afraid��" the young man tried to warn him.


    Hearing his words, Yi Xiang laughed out loud. He then turned around to leave the restaurant. Wanted? How many people in Donghai City could hold him down?


    "Where are you going, Senior?" the young man asked.


    "To the Cangye Kingdom, to find my disciple," Yi Xiang answered loudly as he walked away with his head held high.

 148 Marriage

    Chapter 148: Marriage


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Emperor Ye brought them back to the Imperial City of the Cangye Kingdom, everyone went back to their own places. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng followed Emperor Ye into the palace.


    "The Hundred Lands will probably get busy. What are your plans?" Emperor Ye asked while walking in the palace. After the trip to the Nandou Nation, the two parties had become much closer and were like a senior with juniors.


    "Your Majesty, you''ve been to the Ancient Barren World. What''s in there?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''ve only been to the upper Ancient Barren World and not the lower one," Emperor Ye said. "Other than the fate, chance, and secret realms, everything is the same to the outer world. They have clans, forces, and cities. There are people there from all over the Eastern Barren Territory. You can see it as a microcosm of the Eastern Barren Territory. However, it''s more dangerous and competition is fiercer. Murder is an everyday thing, so I suggest you wait until you''re in a high plane before visiting it."


    "There''s no time," Ye Futian said quietly. "Emperor Luo said he will declare war against the Cangye Kingdom. I don''t think he''s bluffing. Luo Junlin will go cultivate at the Royal Xuan Temple too."


    "My kingdom is not weaker than the Nandou Nation," Emperor Ye said. If he wants to declare war, I''ll cooperate. Even without you, it''ll come to this sooner or later. As for Luo Junlin, he''s troublesome indeed. Because of him, the other emperors will side with Emperor Luo."


    Ye Futian thought of the attitude from the Yunchu Nation and Yan Kingdom emperors earlier and chuckled. "If they support Emperor Luo because of Luo Junlin, they''re caring for the Nandou Nation''s reputation but aren''t they scared of pissing me off?"


    "You��" Emperor Ye gave Ye Futian a look. This guy was very talented but he was still in the Glory Plane with a long road ahead. Luo Junlin was different though. He''d snatched the Noble fate and entered the Royal Xuan Temple. He already had one foot in the Noble Plane. Did they still have to choose? They still didn''t have any news of the Ancient Barren World being opened up.


    "I''m looked down on." Ye Futian was a bit sad.


    "They''ll regret it," Yu Sheng said seriously from the side. Emperor Ye glanced at him. He realized that Yu Sheng would become serious whenever something had to do with Ye Futian. He wondered what exactly their relationship was.


    "Yeah, I believe they''ll regret it too," Emperor Ye said, nodding. "Alright, you two can go. They bid farewell and walked toward the mountain the imperial advisor stayed at. Hearing that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were back, everyone walked out and gathered together.


    Ye Futian''s eyes fell upon Hua Fengliu. He asked with anticipation, "Master, has your life spirit recovered?"


    "Yes, we can make them pay for everything they did recently. Last time, who was the one that didn''t want to be my disciple in the Guqin Gardens?" Hua Fengliu looked at Ye Futian with a knowing smile.


    Ye Futian cursed inwardly, Like father, like daughter. That smile��


    "Master, don''t you know that I was doing it with you in mind? Plus, I helped get Masteress back for you," Ye Futian said, looking at Nandou Wenyin. "Oh right, where''s my wife?" Hua Fengliu was still looking at Ye Futian so he changed the topic.


    "Did I agree to that?" Hua Fengliu laughed.


    "Are you going to bully your disciple as soon as your health recovers? Aren''t you satisfied with such a great disciple? Plus, I already betrothed Jieyu to Futian. Don''t you agree?" Nandou Wenyin said from the side.


    Hua Fengliu glanced at her and muttered, "Whatever you say."


    Ye Futian blinked and moved to Nandou Wenyin. "Masteress is the best." It seemed that he would have to stick to his masteress from now on.


    "Futian, Jieyu is cultivating in isolation. After the imperial advisor cured your master, he busied himself with Jieyu''s cultivation," Nandou Wenyin said gently. Hua Fengliu was still looking at Ye Futian dispiritedly. Their attitudes were way too different.


    Ye Futian gazed at Imperial Advisor Mo He. He seemed to have aged considerably so Ye Futian asked, "What happened to Senior?"


    "It''s all because of Jieyu. He wasn''t even like this when healing your master," Nandou Wenyin said, a little ashamed.


    "Princess, no need to worry. The royal family''s life spirit is very strong. If Jieyu is evolving again, I will do whatever I can for her unique talent," Mo He said with a sigh. "If only I could''ve met her earlier."


    "No one in Donghai City of Nandou Nation understood the royal life spirit, let alone Jieyu''s life spirit. We are fortunate to meet you," Hua Fengliu also said. Mo He was the imperial mage of the Nandou Nation''s previous dynasty and went into war with the emperor. He was undoubtedly the one who understood the royal life spirit the most. His cultivated ability was special as well.


    Ye Futian smiled at their words. It appeared that Fox was more talented than he''d thought. It was a good thing that she met the right teacher.


    "How was the Nandou Nation? Did you stir up a commotion at the Tingfeng Banquet?" Hua Fengliu asked Ye Futian.


    "I only fought one battle." Ye Futian shrugged. He wasn''t that sort of high-key person.


    "No news of Headmaster Yi?" Hua Fengliu asked again.


    "Senior Yi left safely after the Donghai City fight. If he''s still in the country, he should hear about us," Ye Futian said. He was sure that Yu Sheng''s exclamation would travel throughout the country.


    "Really?" Yi Qingxuan gazed at him.


    "There was one winner from the nine battle platforms of the Tingfeng Banquet and all nine are regarded highly. But your man went up and stepped on one, punched another guy down, and then ripped apart a guy in the First level Dharma Plane. Then he yelled to everyone that he was Yu Sheng, a disciple of Yi Xiang, so what do you think?" Ye Futian said to Yi Qingxuan.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, everyone gaped at Yu Sheng. He was too crazy! Yi Qingxuan looked at him with reddening eyes while he just scratched his head boyishly.


    Yi Qingxuan walked up and hit Yu Sheng''s chest with her small fists.


    "Can you go somewhere else with your public displays of affection?" Ye Futian asked with a laugh.


    "Sure." Yi Qingxuan smiled and pulled Yu Sheng away.


    The others talked about what happened at the Nandou Nation and then Ye Futian went to cultivate.


    The Ancient Barren World was about to open up, Luo Junlin was going to the Royal Xuan Temple to cultivate, and war was about to erupt between the Nandou Nation and Cangye Kingdom. Time was running out.


    ...


    Soon after, violence broke out at the border between the two nations and the Nandou Nation invaded the Cangye Kingdom. Of course, the Cangye Kingdom was well-prepared. They had an eye on the Nandou Nation so a big war erupted. After countless days, someone came from the Cangye palace, saying he was Yu Sheng''s master. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Yi Qingxuan, Tang Lan, Hua Fengliu, and the others all came out to welcome the guest and saw Yi Xiang.


    "Father!" Yi Qingxuan ran into Yi Xiang''s arms, tears flowing instantly.


    "What are you crying for? You should be happy," Yi Xiang said gently, patting his daughter''s hair.


    "Master." Yu Sheng and Tang Lan walked up.


    "Senior Yi," Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin called. Yi Xiang had entered the Nandou clan because of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. He''d risked his own life to fight off the School of the Emperor Star headmaster to help all of them escape.


    Yi Xiang looked at everyone and then said to Tang Lan, "They''re all family so what are you doing here?"


    "Master," Tang Lan replied a bit awkwardly.


    "Senior Yi," Nandou Wenyin said, walking up. "I''ve been thinking about Fengliu and Tang Lan''s wedding. Since you''re here now, you can host it personally."


    Everyone gaped at Nandou Wenyin. Even Hua Fengliu didn''t know about this.


    "Wenyin, you��" Hua Fengliu said.


    "You let Tang Lang down years ago. Do you want to do it again?" Nandou Wenyin asked while Hua Fengliu smiled wryly.


    "You''re talking nonsense." Tang Lan stared at Nandou Wenyin.


    "Don''t be stubborn. You went through so much these years. What''s there to be insistent and reserved for? If you could move on, why did you buy the Guqin Gardens, take him in, and do so much for him?" Nandou Wenyin said. Tang Lan didn''t know what to say.


    Ye Futian watched all this, dumbfounded. His masteress was helping his master find another woman. He wondered if he should tell Jieyu to learn from her mother.


    Seeing that Tang Lan didn''t refute Nandou Wenyin''s words, Yi Xiang glanced at Hua Fengliu and said, "This can do."


    "Master��" Tang Lan looked at Yi Xiang.


    "You went against me for him back in the day. Where''s your courage now?" Yi Xiang said, looking hard at her. "Don''t worry. With me here, no one can mistreat you. I''ll take charge of this. This can do." He obviously understood his disciple. If she didn''t feel strongly for him, she wouldn''t keep Hua Fengliu by her side. However, without a title, she would have to leave sooner or later and live alone miserably.


    "I think it can do too. Aunt Tang, I''ll have to call you Second Masteress from now on," Ye Futian said. He was the clearest about this relationship. Since Masteress was willing to urge it on, there was no reason why it couldn''t work out.


    Yi Xiang looked at Ye Futian, his eyes approving the youth grudgingly.


    Ye Lingxi walked over at this moment.


    "Princess, what are you here for?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I heard that Senior Yi was here so I wanted to meet him," Ye Lingxi said with a smile.


    Yi Xiang was a bit confused. "You''re too polite."


    "No, it''s just that Senior Yi is a legend nowadays. My father would like to meet you too. In order to not disturb your reunion, my father prepared a dinner banquet to welcome Senior Yi," Ye Lingxi said.


    "Okay, I will go." Yi Xiang nodded.


    "Then I''ll leave now," Ye Lingxi said with a warm smile and left.


    "Not bad." Yi Xiang eyed Ye Futian. Being invited personally by the princess and welcomed with a feast by the emperor was clearly not because of him. He also heard that Emperor Ye was even willing to go to war with Emperor Luo to protect Ye Futian.


    "Of course. I''m the disciple of the School of the Finance Star. I can''t embarrass you, Headmaster," Ye Futian replied, chuckling.


    "That''s logical. Let''s go." Yi Xiang nodded and the group headed into the palace. Everyone smiled brightly because they were finally all here.


    Emperor Ye''s dinner banquet would definitely have a great atmosphere.

 149 Arrival

    Chapter 149: Arrival


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Time went by very quickly. In the blink of an eye, it had already been about three months since the Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet. The Ancient Barren World was about to open. The Hundred Lands were shaken up. Only God knows just how many cultivators from each nation were headed for the doors of the Ancient Barren World. Large armies set out and young prodigies were headed there as well.


    Things were the same in the Cangye Kingdom. Prodigies and cultivators of all kinds gathered in the imperial city. They were ready to head out with the emperor. Emperor Ye was going to personally see them off. He wanted to make sure all of his people made it to the Ancient Barren World, safe and sound.


    In the imperial palace; on the mountain.


    These past few days, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had been focused on closed-door cultivation. Their level of cultivation had seen improvement. They had both stepped into the Nine-star Glory Plane. They were only one step away from the Dharma Plane. On this day, Ye Futian ended his closed-door cultivation


    "You''re finally willing to come out?" From a corner of the courtyard, Tang Lan saw Ye Futian and gave him a smile. It''s been a while since I last saw this rascal.


    "Second Masteress, you''re getting more and more beautiful." He smiled at her teasingly. A couple days after Nandou Wenyin proposed the marriage, Hua Fengliu and Tang Lan held a simple ceremony on the mountain and tied the knot with Yi Xiang as their witness. They were truly one big family now.


    "Are you itching to get beat?" Tang Lan laughed at Ye Futian. This punk really shows no respect for his elders. However, she had also noticed herself become more beautiful. Perhaps it was because of her good mood.


    "Second Masteress, I''m only stating facts. After you got together with Master, you have indeed become more beautiful," Ye Futian explained "sincerely".


    Tang Lan glared at him for a while and then turned away. Her face flushed red like a little girl.


    I''m so envious of Master, Ye Futian thought to himself. "I''m heading out of the mountains for a bit." After that, he left the courtyard and made his way down to the imperial palace. He went looking for Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi. Then, they went to see Emperor Ye altogether.


    "I heard you''ve been conducting closed-door cultivation sessions. Why did you stop?" asked Emperor Ye.


    "We have to head for the Ancient Barren World in a couple of days. I''ve thought it over, I want to go with you guys," answered Ye Futian.


    "You want to enter the Ancient Barren World while still in the Glory Plane?" Emperor Ye stared at him. "Do you know how big of a deal this is? All of the Hundred Lands are shaken up. Even I can''t predict just how many people will show up. Besides, this is just the cultivators from the Hundred Lands. Not counting those in the Ancient Barren World, your current level of cultivation is truly a little too low."


    "Your Majesty, didn''t you say that aside from fate and chance the Ancient Barren World is no different from the outside world? We can just think of it as outdoor training. Don''t worry, Your Majesty, I''ll keep a low profile," said Ye Futian.


    "If you go, Emperor Luo will definitely send people after you," said Emperor Ye.


    "Hmm�� This will actually be a hassle. Your Majesty, then why don''t you lend me some magical items? Attack, defense, and escape. How about a couple items for each?" Ye Futian asked with a genuine smile.


    Emperor Ye smiled at Ye Futian. He finally realized that he couldn''t get too friendly with this rascal. Emperor Ye refused to believe that Ye Futian had not considered the Nandou Nation. Ye Futian was obviously scamming him. Borrow some magical items? Would he really return what he borrowed?


    Ye Futian continued when Emperor Ye didn''t speak, "Your Majesty, prodigies from all throughout the Hundred Lands are headed for the Ancient Barren World. I can''t let you be embarrassed as the future groom of a princess."


    "Good point." Emperor Ye smiled at him. "Are you the only one going?"


    "Yu Sheng should be coming along," answered Ye Futian.


    "You two, bring him and Yu Sheng to the treasury to pick their magical items," Emperor Ye said to Ye Danchen and his sister.


    "Thank you, Your Majesty!" Ye Futian smiled. Emperor Ye was even willing to start a war with Emperor Luo for his sake. Ye Futian knew that he wouldn''t be stingy with a just a couple magical items. Ye Futian kept note of everything he owed to Emperor Ye in his heart.


    "The door to the lower Ancient Barren World can not hold the energy of the Arcana Plane. So, even for magical items, you can only bring those of the highest-level Dharma Plane. Also, magical items are only supplementary. It does not directly give you the power of the Dharma Plane. The use of magical items is also not beneficial to cultivation. Only use the items when you are in dire need to do so," warned Emperor Ye.


    "Don''t worry, Your Majesty. I know this very well," said Ye Futian. He wouldn''t have thought to use magical items if his level wasn''t so low.


    ...


    Days later. A cool morning on the mountains. Quite a lot of people were gathered in the courtyard. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were about to head out for the Ancient Barren World. Yi Xiang would be joining them on this journey. He also wanted to train in the upper Ancient Barren World.


    "Futian, be very careful when you get there," reminded Nandou Wenyin.


    "Don''t worry, Masteress. I''ll be fine," nodded Ye Futian. "I''m going to see Jieyu now."


    "Alright." Nandou Wenyin nodded her head, and Ye Futian headed for the back mountains. Hua Jieyu was sitting cross-legged. With her eyes closed, an invisible force field of spiritual energy encapsulated her. There were rocks floating in the air, revolving around her at a steady pace. It seemed as though the Spiritual Qi revolved around her in a set orbit. It was as if it were possible to communicate with and control everything on Earth with spiritual energy.


    Ye Futian became curious. When he had stepped into this area which was filled with spiritual energy, he could fell himself being wrapped in the energy. He had experienced this same feeling only once better. It was during that battle in front of the School of the Emperor Star. Except, this time, the feeling was much stronger.


    "I''m leaving now. Next time, we''ll go together," Ye Futian spoke to the goddess-like Hua Jieyu quietly sitting there. His eyes were gentle and a warm smile spread across his face. Then, he turned around and left.


    A group of people left the mountains and walked out of the imperial palace. Outside the palace, crowds of people were already gathered. Some of them were already well-acquainted with Ye Futian. The pride of the Fenghua Rank, Ye Wuchen, had also decided to head to the Ancient Barren World. He was now in the third-level Dharma Plane, so obviously, he was not going to wait any longer. There were also many students of Cangye College who wanted to enter the Ancient Barren World. Their uniforms made them stick out like a sore thumb. Zuo Qianfan and Yu Jiang were also among the crowd. They obviously wanted to tag along with some senior brothers from the college to do the trial.


    Cultivators from the Qin Clan and Demon Clan had gathered as well. Bai Qiu was also present. Even Lin Yueyao was going. The Fenghua Banquet and the Tingfeng Banquet had greatly affected her. After three months of cultivation, she had made her way into the Dharma Plane. Now, she was able to enter the Ancient Barren World with the rest of her clan. There were also many other clans Ye Futian did not know of. Imagine all that power gathered in one place.


    Looks like nobody could stand the wait, thought Ye Futian. The mysterious Ancient Barren World was just too tempting. Many lower-leveled Dharma Plane cultivators could not wait to step into this new world. And of course, besides those in the Dharma Plane, there were many powerful elders present as well. Powerful Arcana Plane cultivators wanted to head into the upper Ancient Barren World.


    Just then, Emperor Ye arrived with his people following behind as the trailed out of the palace.


    "Your Majesty, Your Highness." Everyone bowed to greet Emperor Ye and the young man beside him. His features were sharp and he had a strong aura. He was Emperor Ye''s eldest son, Ye Xiao. He was in the highest-level Dharma Plane.


    Ye Futian had seen Ye Xiao at the Fenghua Banquet but there were no exchanges between them. He was only close with Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi because they were close in age. Ye Xiao would be the only one of the emperor''s children entering the Ancient Barren World. Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi''s level of cultivation was still too low.


    Besides Ye Xiao, there were many more high-leveled Dharma Plane cultivators following behind Emperor Ye. They were well-trained imperial guards and would be accompanying the group on their journey.


    "Are you all ready?" Emperor Ye asked everyone in the crowd. Sweeping his eyes across each face, he saw many of them nod. "Let''s go then."


    At this, everyone lifted up into the skies and headed in the same direction.


    Mounted on the dragon in the sky were Emperor Ye and his people. Everyone else had their own form of transportation. The Demon Clan had an array of beasts, a truly impressive line-up indeed.


    Just then, a black wind eagle landed on the back of the dragon and settled beside Ye Futian. The people around looked over at Ye Futian in confusion. This guy is now super famous in the imperial city. Is this thing his beast companion? Seems quite unfitting.


    But Ye Futian did not care what they thought. He simply petted the eagle''s head. This beast was gifted to him by the Snow Ape, but regardless of that reason, they had built a deep relationship over time. The Black Wind Eagle''s powers were nothing out of the ordinary, but what of it? Who says they couldn''t improve?


    There was only one entrance to the Ancient Barren World in the Hundred Lands. It was located at the border of the Hundred Lands. Starting in the Cangye Kingdom, Emperor Ye and the rest passed over multiple nations before arriving many days later. It was an extremely mountainous area. Upon arrival, Ye Futian and the others discovered palaces built all around. They seemed like clan residences. This was nothing like the barren lands that Emperor Ye had told them about.


    They sure do get things done quickly. Looking down from the sky, Emperor Ye saw that the once barren land had been transformed into a city. Many buildings had been erected. It was obvious to him, the other countries had already begun to claim their land.


    "Rumors say that the great powers of the Eastern Barren territory settle at the entrance of the Ancient Barren World. They dominate the entrance, allowing clan members to enter the Ancient Barren World as they pleased. Seems like our friends from the Hundred Lands learn quite quickly. But there doesn''t seem to be a single person who has been able to completely monopolize the entrance," said Emperor Ye.


    Everyone listened as the emperor spoke and they reached an understanding. This was the difference between regular people and those of great power. Powerful people treated the Ancient Barren World as their personal resource for cultivation. Meanwhile, the people of the Hundred Lands had only just been granted access to the Ancient Barren World. They were so far behind.


    Everyone looked straight ahead and saw a mystical space in the sky. This area was warped around an enormous door. Below it was a massive matrix. In the center of the terrifying matrix formation was a beam of light radiating with the Noble power. The beam struck on to the door in the sky, causing this door leading to the Ancient Barren World to become distorted, as if it were about to open at any moment. This matrix was most likely created by the powerful cultivators of the Eastern Barren Territory. It was placed here to activate the door to the Ancient Barren World.


    Right now, there were hordes of people gathered in the area around the door. Emperors of every country in the Hundred Lands had led the people here. Each of their line-ups seemed extremely strong.


    Emperor Ye and his people slowed down as they approached the large group. The emperors already gathered turned their attention to the newcomers and smiled. Another kingdom has arrived.

 150 Living a Good Life

    Chapter 150: Living a Good Life


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Emperor Ye," an emperor in the Noble Plane called from the near distance. They clearly knew each other.


    Emperor Ye smiled at the other. "Emperor Han, you came so quickly."


    "I''m actually quite late. When I arrived, the palaces were already built," Emperor Han said, smiling.


    "It''s a waste of time," another emperor said from the side. He stood on a mountain peak, his hands behind his back with an arrogant aura.


    "Indeed. There is no use in snatching territories when the Barren Ancient World opens. The most important thing is to take the noble fate and create Noble figures. Of course, if a young talent becomes noticed by a strong force while doing so, it''s the same."


    "The noble fate is not so easy to receive. This time, the line-up is very big and powerful but how many can actually become Nobles?" One emperor was not optimistic.


    "With so many prides here, there must be some monstrously talented ones," Emperor Han said. "As long as they can create the noble fate, they''ll catch the attention of the Eastern Barren Territority''s forces. I heard that this was so for the Nandou Nation''s crown prince, resulting in the Royal Xuan Temple accepting him as a disciple. I heard that Emperor Ye had caused a commotion in the Nandou Nation earlier too."


    "I was only invited to attend by Emperor Luo," Emperor Ye replied with a light chuckle.


    "Emperor Ye, no need to be modest. I heard that the Cangye Kingdom has three new monstrous figures and displayed amazing talent at the Tingfeng Banquet. Unfortunately, their planes are quite low. Otherwise, they would definitely steal the show in the Barren Ancient World." Emperor Han laughed.


    "Judging from your good mood, you must be very confident in the prides of your kingdom," Emperor Ye replied.


    The emperors conversed mindlessly while the youths behind them all looked at each other with sharp eyes. Coming to the Barren Ancient World this time, they must get the noble fate. If they could catch the attention of the strong forces, they could rise to the top like Luo Junlin and be congratulated by all the emperors. And that was only due to becoming a disciple of the Royal Xuan Temple. If they could really become a Noble, it would be even better.


    "Emperor Ye, you haven''t changed." A group of figures strode over from the side. Emperor Ye looked and saw Emperor Chu with the people of the Yunchu Nation. Chu Kuangren was amongst that crowd. His sharp eyes scanned the group behind Emperor Ye and fell upon Ye Futian, Ye Wuchen, and the others. His eyes turned cold.


    Ye Futian seemed to sense it. Seeing Chu Kuangren looking at him, he smiled. To Chu Kuangren, the smile was mocking and his eyes turned frigid.


    The people of the Yan Kingdom and Nandou Nation had arrived too. Seeing the Cangye citizens, their eyes all shot over to Ye Futian. Emperor Luo even uttered some orders to the people beside him. He couldn''t believe Ye Futian really had the guts to come.


    As time passed, more and more strong cultivators arrived. Around the matrix, the Spiritual Qi went wild. They gathered within the matrix and shot above the Barren Ancient World''s floating door, distorting it. Countless eyes looked at the door in the air, full of anticipation.


    A terrifying sound rang out from the air. The distorted gate opened and transformed into two halves. Black vortexes appeared, spinning in turn. Like black holes trying to swallow everything, a powerful force tried to close again but was blocked by the power shooting from the matrix.


    What a strong matrix. No wonder the Barren Ancient World is separated from the Hundred Lands, everyone thought. With the abilities of the people of the Hundred Lands, they couldn''t create this matrix at all.


    All the powerful cultivators gathered. Looking up to the air, it was like a terrifying army going out to war.


    "Remember," an emperor reminded his people, "those under the Arcana Plane can''t take weapons of the Arcana Plane. The doors to the upper and lower Ancient Barren Worlds are one entity and the lower world can''t take the Arcana aura. It will take you to the upper world." He was worried someone would secretly take a valuable item of the Arcana Plane.


    "Go now."


    "I must return with the noble fate during this expedition into the Barren Ancient World."


    Countless voices rang out. The army surged into the vortex in the air and disappeared.


    "Go," Emperor Ye said as well. Ye Xiao instantly led the strong cultivators of the Cangye Kingdom. Ye Futian followed the group into the vortex. A terrifying engulfing power descended. He felt the air distort and he was swallowed into the unknown space.


    ��


    Boom! Landing, Ye Futian stabilized himself and looked up at the world. The blue sky, white clouds, and vast land stretched as far as he could see. This legendary world looked just like the outside world.


    The people of the Cangye Kingdom gradually descended around them. They''d gone through the vortex and landed together. The people of other countries were in the distance. Looking back, the black hole was still in the sky. Ye Futian''s eyes fell on Ye Xiao in the near distance.


    "Your Highness, let''s go."


    The Nandou people had been staring at Ye Futian, probably wanting to cause trouble. He didn''t want that.


    "We''re here to challenge ourselves. My father said to not rely on others. Ye Futian, we won''t travel together," Ye Xiao said.


    Ye Futian was taken aback. Many people moved towards Ye Xiao. They were from the Cangye College, which caused him to make a face. Chuckling indifferently, Ye Futian said, "Goodbye." Then he called, "Yu Sheng." He climbed onto the Black Wind Eagle. Yu Sheng followed and glared at Ye Xiao.


    Ye Futian pulled out a spell scroll. Instantly, a strong wind spell fell upon the Black Wind Eagle. They transformed into a gust of wind and left.


    A moment later, the strong cultivators of the Nandou Nation landed in another part of the Barren Ancient World. They all scanned the Cangye group but were taken aback when they couldn''t find Ye Futian. Where did he go?


    They walked toward the Cangye group and asked coolly, "Where''s Ye Futian?"


    Ye Xiao gazed coldly and ignored him.


    "Go catch him yourself," Zuo Qianfan said from the Cangye College group.


    The man from the Nandou Nation''s eyes flashed and he waved. "Go."


    Ye Futian would sometimes go to the side while advancing, avoiding a straight line. He also continuously used the spell scroll to travel at top speed. Wind beat down on them from atop the Black Wind Eagle.


    "Why did Ye Xiao do that?" Yu Sheng asked. Everyone knew that Emperor Ye thought highly of them and their brilliant talent.


    "I heard that the Cangye College is backed by the royalty. Some princes cultivate there." Ye Futian chuckled nonchalantly. He''d offended the Cangye College at the Fenghua Banquet.


    "Of course, that''s not the main reason." Ye Futian glanced at Yu Sheng. "The emperor treats us well, and we have a good relationship with Ye Danchen."


    Yu Sheng''s eyes were cold. "We don''t want to be involved in their family matters."


    "That''s not what others think," Ye Futian said, chuckling. "Don''t overthink the small things. Isn''t it great like this?" Ye Futian looked at the vast land up ahead and felt his entire heart opening up. He''d been restricted ever since he started cultivating and felt quite repressed. The Ancient Barren World was like a free land and he was like a bird that could fly as he high as he wanted.


    Yu Sheng looked forward, feeling the same kind of freedom. "The lower Ancient Barren World can only contain those in the Dharma Plane. We''ll take over it within five years."


    "Can you be a bit more subtle?" Ye Futian gave him a look. He was only in the Glory Plane but he already wanted to control the lower Ancient Barren World. The strongest cultivators of the entire Eastern Barren Territory were gathered here.


    Yu Sheng looked at him. Does this guy know what "subtle" means?


    Ye Futian looked forward and smiled. "Isn''t five years too long?"


    Yu Sheng blinked.


    The two continued forward without seeing anyone. The Barren Ancient World was a microcosm of the Eastern Barren Territory but for people under the Arcana Plane, it was still extremely vast. After countless days, Ye Futian could only see the occasional demon flying in the sky or beasts on the ground. Sometimes, they were even in the Dharma Plane. When the demons watched them, Ye Futian ignored them and forged on. However, there was a demon hovering above and following them now. It was a wind roc at the Dharma Plane and it was extremely fast.


    Ye Futian stared at the roc. He could feel a strange melody coming from it as it flew. He observed it with the Freedom Meditation and realized that it would sometimes become one with the wind and ride the wind.


    "Yu Sheng," he called. Yu Sheng took a step back on the Black Wind Eagle. He carried a huge hammer and the Nine-star Glory Plane aura was released. As if sensing his weak aura, menace flashed past the wind roc''s eyes. It transformed into wind and caught up with the Black Wind Eagle, clawing at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng flashed and jumped down. Wings sprouted and his hammer radiated with a frightening aura. It flashed with dazzling gold light and he brought it down on the wind roc.


    Sensing danger, the wind roc actually sped up when Yu Sheng''s hammer came down. It transformed into an afterimage that moved with the wind and charged out of Yu Sheng''s range, coming directly for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had been watching the wind roc''s moves. He grasped a wand that glowed with green light. The wood elemental Spiritual Qi surged and the Lock of a Thousand Vines was released. It loomed towards the wind roc.


    The strange rhythmic strength appeared on the wind roc again. However, the Lock of a Thousand Vines spell seemed to predict its path. It locked onto the wind roc and wrapped around it.


    Yu Sheng landed and swung his hammer. The wind roc cried and dropped to the ground.


    "We can eat roc for dinner," Ye Futian said. The Black Wind Eagle landed. After a while, there was a delicious smell. The two humans and one demon enjoyed the delicious roasted wind roc.


    "Oh?" Ye Futian arched his eyebrow. His body released an ephemeral aura. "Is this fate?"


    Ye Futian had an odd expression. The same kind of aura came from Yu Sheng as well.


    Ye Futian glanced at the Black Wind Eagle, and then the bird shot into the sky. It flew with a pleasantly strange rhythm. Seeming to understand something instantly, a smile appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes.


    "So that''s what fate is," he murmured. The Black Wind Eagle landed before him with a pitiful look.


    "Want more?" Seeing the Black Wind Eagle''s gaze, Ye Futian petted its head and chuckled. "Don''t worry. I''ll let you live a good life from now on."

 151 Qianmeng City

    Chapter 151: Qianmeng City


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng continued on their merry way. They traveled through a barren area where demon beasts roamed from time to time. However, there was not another person to be seen.


    On the Black Wind Eagle, Yu Sheng asked, "Do you know what ''fate'' is?"


    Ye Futian nodded his head. "Fate is similar to the power of ''will''. That beast was able to assimilate into the wind. It probably has a strong will of the wind that it acquired in some hidden ancient plane within the Ancient Barren World. Or maybe he ate something special to gain this power and in the Ancient Barren World, this type of power transformed into fate. Once this fate grows to a certain point, it might be able to go through some changes, resulting in noble fate. A person who acquires noble fate had the potential to become a strong Noble Plane cultivator. This process probably depends on how well you can grasp the concepts." Ye Futian hypothesized as such because he had once felt the power of will. This felt similar.


    "You can see the fate of that beast?" asked Yu Sheng.


    "As long as it reveals these types of powers, it''s easy to tell.." Ye Futian smiled. The Black Wind Eagle continued forward. Every now and then, they would leave behind fire and the sweet smells of barbequed meat.


    On their journey, the good food never stopped. The fate within their bodies was collecting and growing. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng discovered that it was possible to incorporate this fate into their own powers, increasing their abilities.


    Half a month later, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng finally saw other human beings. They were hunting on these barren lands. Not too far ahead, the ground was shaking. Ye Futian looked over and saw a crazed Demon Bear running around. The beast was completely white. The ground it walked across frosted over.


    "Yu Sheng!" called Ye Futian. Yu Sheng understood right away. He bolted toward the Demon Bear with the hammer in his hand. The demon beast lifted its head. Its eyes blazed with anger. It roared loudly and Yu Sheng was covered in a layer of frost. He was going to be sealed in ice. An icy cold force of will exploded from the Demon Bear.


    Golden armor appeared on Yu Sheng''s body and with both hands, he waved around a giant hammer. The power from this action broke through the ice seal and the force charged at the beast. It was as if the demon beast could feel that Yu Sheng did not have much energy because it lifted into the air abruptly and tried to attack him with full force.


    There was a loud noise followed by a heart-wrenching scream from the Demon Bear. Its large body then fell from the skies and crashed into the ground.


    "That''s going to be another big meal," said Ye Futian with shining eyes. The power of fire in his body gathered and a moment later, dinner was served.


    A line of figures approached from afar and stopped in the air above Ye Futian


    Among the group, there were three males and two females. They were all fairly young. The two females looked very similar and although they each gave off an different vibe, they were both extremely beautiful.


    "Pardon me but we have been chasing after that Ice Bear for quite a while and were also the ones who incapacitated the beast," said a young man.


    Yu Sheng looked over him emotionlessly.


    "Within the four seas, all men are brothers. Come eat with us." Ye Futian nonchalantly invited the group to join in on their meal.


    The five exchanged looks of concern. They were unclear of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s abilities. They all nodded and seated themselves on the ground.


    "Are the two of you also from Qianmeng City?" asked the young man.


    "Qianmeng City?" Ye Futian''s eyes lit up. It seemed like they were nearing the city. The two of them had spent these past days in barren land and were bored out of their minds.


    "You guys don''t know?" asked one girl on the side.


    Ye Futian looked over at her and replied, "No, we don''t. We entered the Ancient Barren Land not too long ago and have been traveling through the deserted land. We have yet to reach a city. Is Qianmeng a city nearby?"


    "Are you guys from the Hundred Lands?" the other girl asked.


    "Yeah," Ye Futian nodded. It seemed these people had reached the city before they could, but that was normal. After all, the Black Wind Eagle was not very fast and they made many detours. The two of them had also stopped to hunt demon beasts along the way. It was only natural that their speed was slower than others.


    Seeing Ye Futian nod his head, the three youths finally let down their guard. So, they''re natives of the Hundred Lands.


    The Hundred Lands was located at the border of the Eastern Barren Territory. The youths had heard that the door to the Ancient Barren World had just opened to them not too long ago.


    "Since you guys are from the Hundred Lands, you must not know much about the Ancient Barren World," said one of the young men. He then bent down to chow down on the barbequed meat. There was no need to hold back anymore. There was a hint of arrogance in his tone of voice.


    "That''s true. So, please take care of us in the future," Ye Futian chuckled. "My name is Ye Futian and this is my brother from another mother, Yu Sheng," he introduced


    Ye Futian''s smile made him look as harmless as a baby. Although the17n-year-old was now much more mature, he had yet to evolve completely. He was still partly that same immature, happy-go-lucky boy he used to be.


    "My name is Ruo Yu and this is my older sister, Ruo Qiu," said one of the girls. Her sweet smile gave her a gentle, loving vibe while her sister looked to be more on the cold and distant side.


    "Very nice," said a young man. He smiled lightly but did not introduce himself. One of his friends followed, "You both look so young. To be able into the Ancient Barren World from the Hundred Lands, you guys must have some outstanding gifts."


    "Our gifts are nothing out of the ordinary. We''re only in the Nine-Star Glory Plane," Ye Futian answered matter-of-factly.


    "Brother Ye, you must be joking. The highest level of cultivation among our group is a fourth level Dharma Plane and we were still unable to stop that beast."


    "We had our own beast to help in its capture. Besides, the Demon Bear was already hurt. We were barely able to defeat it ourselves," replied Ye Futian.


    The group looked over at the Black Wind Eagle and nodded. All of them continued to feast as they chatted and very quickly, Ye Futian was able to gather information as well as get a feel for each of them.


    Wang Jue, fourth level Dharma Plane, had the highest level of cultivation among the group


    Gu Cheng was in the third level Dharma Plane


    Gu Jiang, second level Dharma Plane, was Gu Cheng''s younger brother


    Ruo Qiu was also second level, while Ruo Yu was in the first level


    The five of them had the same powerful force backing them. Wang Jue was steady, the Gu brothers were a little arrogant, Ruo Qiu was aloof, and Ruo Yu was very friendly and uncalculating. Most of the information Ye Futian acquired was thanks to her


    They all came from a city not far from where they were: Qianmeng City.


    The Demon Bear was devoured and settled nicely in the stomachs of the seven youths. As the group of five was preparing to depart, Ruo Yu asked, "Are you guys going to Qianmeng City? Want to go together?"


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded in agreement. There was still a lot he wanted to find out.


    "Have a lot of people from the Hundred Lands arrived at Qianmeng City?" asked Ye Futian, mounted on the Black Wind Eagle. The group had made their way into the skies.


    "Quite a few. There has been quite some commotion in the city," answered Gu Jiang. "Ye Futian, the people from the Hundred Lands all arrived in Qianmeng City in large groups. You guys didn''t ally with great powers?"


    "It''s embarrassing to talk about it. We were abandoned by our group because of our low levels of cultivation," Ye Futian answered sadly.


    "So that''s why. Well, you guys were able to travel so far without becoming a meal for demon beasts, you should already count yourselves lucky," laughed Gu Jiang.


    "You guys sure have guts, entering the Ancient Barren World in the Glory Plane," Ruo Yu chuckled and flew closer to land on the Black Wind Eagle.


    "The Ancient Barren World opened and many people came. It was only natural that we would also want to give it a try ourselves. We''re not fighting for anything with anyone, so it shouldn''t be too dangerous, right?" said Ye Futian.


    Ruo Yu nodded lightly, "There are a couple ways to acquire fate: demon beasts, some rare plants have hidden fate, and the many relics in the Ancient Barren World. You can acquire fate in these ways, but the most direct way would be to steal it. You guys are of such a low level of cultivation, plus you guys don''t possess much fate within, so naturally, no one would try to steal from you two."


    "Stealing is also a way?" asked Ye Futian.


    The rest of the Qianmeng group looked at Ye Futian and had a laugh. They were indeed natives from the Hundred Lands. They didn''t even know how to acquire fate.


    "Of course! Use your own fate to swallow that of others. With the aid of fate, powerful cultivators can defeat others and order them to release their own fates to be absorbed by the stronger force. People who are truly cruel will simply kill their opponents to take their fate," explained Ruo Yu. She looked at Ye Futian. "You don''t even know this?"


    There was now a sparkle in Ye Futian''s eyes. It seemed he finally understood how Emperor Luo stole the fate of the original Nandou emperor all those years ago. He was sly, stealing all of the emperor''s fate


    It was no longer a mystery why Emperor Ye tried to persuade Ye Futian not to enter the Ancient Barren World at a low level of cultivation. In here, people at the lower level of cultivation were prey for the others. They were at the mercy of everyone else. Even if they managed to acquire fate, in the end, it was only going to benefit those who were more powerful.


    They continued forward until finally, Ye Futian was able to catch his first glimpse of the city. More and more people came into view


    The city ahead was not very big. It could not even compare with the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial city, but the beauty was in its simplicity. It was a city of the Ancient Barren World after all. The people who came here were after fate. Everything they did was for the sake of cultivation.


    "This is Qianmeng City," said Ruo Yu as she looked ahead. "This city was made by our fellow Qianmeng citizens as a meeting point in the Ancient Barren World. Entering the Ancient Barren World from the Qianmeng area, we are able to arrive directly in this historic city."


    Ye Futian already knew this, even on the way here. The Qianmeng area was similar to the Hundred Lands in the sense that they also had many family clans, but the difference was, their clans were stronger and more powerful. All their clans had a common leader who controlled all of Qianmeng as well as their entrance to the Ancient Barren World.


    In the outside world, in order to get from the Hundred Lands to the center of the Eastern Barren Territory, you must pass through the Qianmeng area


    The group entered the city. In the air with them were demon beasts all around. Among them were some very rare powerful demons. Compared to them, the Black Wind Eagle did indeed look very ordinary.


    The ancient Qianmeng City consisted of people in all different planes. People of power from the Qianmeng area would enter the Ancient Barren World for practice even if they were not in the upper-level Dharma Planes


    After some time, the group of youths arrived at an inn. Many people were gathered in the lobby, drinking, and chatting.


    "You''re back," a young man said to Ruo Qiu and the others.


    "Senior Brother Yan," greeted Ruo Qiu. The others followed suit. The young man nodded in acknowledgment. Then, his eyes fell on Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. "Who are they?" he asked.


    "They''re from the Hundred Lands. We met them on the way and since we were all headed here, we served as their guide," answered Ruo Qiu.


    "The Hundred Lands?" The young man lifted his brows and followed by saying, "Don''t just bring any back here in the future."


    "Then, I''ll make them leave," said Ruo Qiu.


    "No need. I''ll let it go this time." The young man shook his head then said, "We''ll head to the Cang Mountain Relic together tomorrow."


    A look crossed Ruo Qiu''s face but she only nodded her head. The young man walked away from the group.


    Ye Futian stood quietly in the back and observed the whole scene. He had a weird expression in his eyes. Seems like we treated them to a meal of bear meat for no reason. Ruo Qiu''s words made things very obvious. There was not a single hint of gratitude!

 152 Poetry on the Wall

    Chapter 152: Poetry on the Wall


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ruo Yu looked at Ye Futian apologetically and said softly, "Don''t be angry. Senior Yan is like that. He''s strict but his cultivation talent is extraordinarily high."


    "I''m not angry at him." Ye Futian shrugged. Senior Yan didn''t know him so it was logical to not want to bring him with. However, Ruo Qiu''s words weren''t that nice.


    "Is this inn part of your clan?" Ye Futian asked.


    "No." Ruo Yu shook her head.


    "I see. Then I won''t have to worry about getting kicked out." Ye Futian walked away with a smile. Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Eagle followed behind him. They found a worker and prepared to stay here.


    "Brother Ye''s temper is quite big." Gu Jiang smiled faintly after hearing Ye Futian''s words.


    "Let''s go," Wang Jue said.


    Ruo Yu''s eyes sparkled; she finally knew why Ye Futian was angry. Thinking for a bit, she walked up to her sister and said, "They invited us to eat the demon bear''s meat and we could travel together because we were going to the same place. Why did you have to say that?"


    "What do you know?" Ruo Qiu glared at her. "You''re inexperienced. In that situation, those two Nine-star Glory Plane cultivators had to invite us but did you see how he tried to get close? I think he has an ulterior motive."


    "I think Ye Futian isn''t that bad," Ruo Yu said nonchalantly. "Even if he has another motive, it''ll just be to explore the lower Ancient Barren World deeper. It''s not that big of a deal."


    "Ruo Yu, you trust people too easily," Gu Cheng said. "You should be a bit more cautious for these chance meetings."


    "I know," Ruo Yu replied, still not caring. "You all go first." With that, she waited in place. A few moments later, the worker brought Ye Futian over.


    "Waiting for me?" Ye Futian asked her.


    "Yeah." Ruo Yu nodded. "My sister has a bad temper. Please don''t mind her. She might have misjudged you."


    "Your sister probably thinks I have an ulterior motive, which isn''t wrong. I know nothing about the Ancient Barren World. I really do want to learn some things from you all," Ye Futian admitted honestly.


    "That doesn''t count," Ruo Yu said, shaking her head. "I can tell you whatever you want to know."


    "What is the Cang Mountain Relic that your senior was talking about? Are there other relics around Qianmeng City?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Cang Mountain Relic has some stone walls carved with words and paintings. It''s a mysterious place but it contains fate," Ruo Yu said. "Many people go there every day and a good many of talented people reach enlightenment there. However, no one has ever been able to completely solve the mystery. Perhaps they aren''t high enough in plane. Other relics definitely exist but tomorrow, let''s go to the Cang Mountain Relic. You can see a lot of powerful figures from the Qianmeng City. Many people from your Hundred Lands should be there too."


    "I''ll go by myself," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "I''ll take you there without them. You don''t know the way," Ruo Yu said after pondering for a moment.


    "Okay, let''s go together. I don''t want your senior and sister to be unhappy." Ye Futian saw how stubborn Ruo Yu was and didn''t want to make it hard for her.


    "Okay, I''ll go find you tomorrow when we set out," Ruo Yu said.


    ��


    The next day, Ruo Yu really did come to find Ye Futian and they left soon after.


    Ruo Qiu''s group was already outside the inn. Seeing Ruo Yu with Ye Futian, Ruo Qiu glared while Gu Jiang smiled. "Brother Ye, are you going to the Cang Mountain Relic too?"


    "Yes, I want to take a look." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Since we''re going to the same place, let''s go together," Gu Jiang said, slightly smiling. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were still going to follow them. Two Glory Plane cultivators had to find some support in the Ancient Barren World.


    "Let''s go," Yan Lu said, and the group instantly soared into the sky. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng followed behind on the Black Wind Eagle. Ruo Yu also rode with them, chatting mindlessly.


    As the name implied, the Cang Mountain Relic was in the Cang Mountain, south of the Qianmeng City. It was beside the sea, standing right where the mountains and sea met. Strange rocks were everywhere and many were smooth as if people sat on them a lot.


    The Cang Mountain Relic was here. The strange rocks faced various stone walls in different directions. The walls were all carved with writing and images.


    When Ye Futian''s group arrived, there were already many people there. This was one of the places where fate could be born so strong cultivators came for enlightenment throughout the year.


    Yan Lu and the others weren''t so eye-catching anymore. Everyone here was the cream of the crop of Qianmeng City, and there were more than enough famous figures.


    "It''s Senior Sister Yun," Ruo Qiu said, looking somewhere. Yan Lu and the others followed her gaze. A beautiful figure stood atop a large rock in the middle of the stone walls. The sea wind blew in from the sea, fluttering her clothing. Her clothes and hair flew in the breeze while she focused calmly on a wall. Her brows were curved like crescent moons. She was extremely dazzling and many eyes fell on her. She was obviously an extraordinary figure and stood out from the crowd.


    Yan Lu''s group approached her and bowed in greeting. "Senior Yun."


    Yun Qianmo glanced at Yan Lu. She nodded and then focused back on the stone wall.


    "Didn''t you all enter the Ancient Barren World together?" Ye Futian asked Ruo Yu curiously.


    Ruo Yu rolled her eyes. "The Ancient Barren World has always been open. Whoever wants to train can come with whoever they want. Clans don''t all come at once unless something big happened. Plus, our clan is big while Senior Sister Yun is an upper disciple. We rarely see each other, let alone come together."


    Ye Futian started to understand this. The Qianmeng City must have many powerful clans and the Ancient Barren World had been open for years. He couldn''t see things from the point of the Hundred Lands.


    "Yun Qianmo, how are you feeling?" a voice suddenly rang out. It was a figure standing on another large stone. He wore a long dark robe and was extraordinarily handsome. Yun Qianmo glanced at him indifferently and didn''t reply.


    The youth smiled, not minding. Continuing to look at the stone wall before him, he smiled and said, "I received some inspiration but I still need some time to understand this wall."


    "Liu Yuan," Ruo Yu said softly, "he''s one of the top geniuses of the Qianmeng area. He''s extremely talented."


    Ye Futian nodded. Those two had taken great spots. There were geniuses from other places studying around them.


    At this moment, Yan Lu''s group all walked toward a wall��the one Yun Qianmo was studying. Ye Futian also looked over and saw a line of words.


    "Thousand threads of rain, hundred meters of mountain; a sword''s cold flash cuts the sadness of farewell��" Ye Futian murmured as he looked at the wall. It seemed to be a poem. He wondered who would carve such poetic words. He could also feel a sharp sword aura from the words. It seemed as if the words would jump out and transform into sword intent.


    "It''s sword techniques," Ye Futian said.


    "Brother Ye, do you think we don''t know?" Gu Jiang asked, turning around and chuckling.


    "Indeed, it is a set of sword techniques but no one has been able to completely decipher its artistic conception," Ruo Yu said. "Many copied it down and took it back to their elders but they still couldn''t be enlightened. However, the talented ones can feel a shred of the artistic conception and receive fate of varying levels."


    Ye Futian chuckled. His Freedom Meditation spun and the world instantly changed before his eyes. All details became extremely clear. He looked at the stone wall and the words seemed to jump into his mind, becoming three-dimensional. They changed, subtly becoming some sort of shape, no longer ordinary words. They were more like the shape of a sword. At that moment, Ye Futian clearly felt a powerful sword intent rush into his mind as if he could begin practicing swordsmanship if he wanted.


    With the will, Ye Futian felt a shred of sword fate in his body. He gathered his thoughts and looked at Ruo Yu with an odd expression.


    "What''s wrong?" Ruo Yu had to ask after seeing Ye Futian''s strange look.


    "Nothing," he replied quietly. The so-called artistic conception of the poem seemed to be pretty easy.


    "Thousand threads of rain. The sword is like a thousand threads, splashing like rain," Yan Lu mumbled as he looked at the wall.


    Ruo Qiu''s eyes brightened and she smiled, saying, "Such a great artistic conception. This set of sword techniques must be shockingly strong."


    "But what does the hundred meters of mountain mean? If the first sentence is saying that the sword is as fast as rain, is the second describing the sword''s weight?" Yan Lu was uncertain.


    "Senior Brother, you are so wise. There seems to be a way to decipher the artistic conception of the poem," Gu Jiang said.


    Ye Futian couldn''t help but chuckle. He knew that this wasn''t a poem so there obviously wasn''t an artistic conception of the poem.


    "What are you laughing about?" Ruo Qiu turned around and asked.


    "No one could decipher the poem''s artistic conception all these years. Isn''t it a waste of time to go down the same path?" Ye Futian asked in return.


    "So you understand?" Ruo Qiu replied coldly. "Then tell me the true meaning of this poem."


    "Perhaps it isn''t a poem and it doesn''t have an artistic conception. Perhaps they''re just words," Ye Futian said.


    "Nonsense." Ruo Qiu heard Ye Futian''s words and said coolly, "For countless years, talents have found the artistic conception and received their fates. They just couldn''t decipher it completely and yet you think they''re only words? Do you think they''re all wrong?"


    "Maybe," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Ruo Qiu froze and then scoffed. "You''re only in the Glory Plane and yet you speak so brazenly. Are you trying to seem unique to attract our attention?"


    Ye Futian looked at Ruo Qiu. This woman was even more conceited than him. Why would he want to attract her attention?


    "You got me." Ye Futian sighed and shrugged at Yu Sheng. "Let''s go."


    Ruo Qiu smirked. I knew it.


    Yu Sheng glanced at her coolly. With her looks? Where did she get the confidence?

 153 An Unordinary Guy

    Chapter 153: An Unordinary Guy


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were walking away, Ruo Yu glared at Ruo Qiu and said, "Sis, can you stop talking with such a nasty attitude?"


    "Didn''t you hear him admit it himself?" Ruo Qiu asked calmly.


    "Ruo Yu, don''t get too close to that kind of people," said Yan Lu. Ruo Yu looked at her senior brother. Even though she disagreed with what her senior brother had said, she did not say anything. She looked up ahead. She watched as Ye Futian and Yu Sheng walked towards a large rock. There, a graceful young man stood silently. When they reached him, he spoke, "Got hated on?"


    "Like watching me suffer?" Ye Futian looked at the young man in front of him, slightly upset.


    Ye Wuchen took a quick look at Ruo Qiu who was not too far away and then back at the dispirited Ye Futian. He couldn''t hide the smile on his face. This guy is such a hotshot in both the Cangye Kingdom and the Nandou Nation. He even rejected when a beauty like Lin Yueyao tried to get acquainted. Who would''ve thought that there would be a day when Ye Futian would be despised by a girl?


    "Where''s Ye Xiao?" asked Ye Futian.


    "We split up a long while ago," answered Ye Wuchen. "Ye Xiao cultivates at the Cangye College. If he plans on inheriting the throne in the future, it would be useful to have the support of the school."


    Ye Futian nodded. Of course, he understood what Ye Wuchen was trying to say. The students of Cangye College who entered the Ancient Barren World now would be the future leaders of Cangye College.


    "What did you get from this?" asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Wuchen looked at the stone wall. His brows furrowed. "I can only feel some sword intent, but I don''t know how to approach it. Perhaps it''s still not the right time. Maybe we need to give it more time."


    Ye Futian walked up next to him and squatted down. Ye Wuchen looked down at him. He watched as Ye Futian used Spiritual Qi to carve something into the stone. It looked like a word. It was the first word of the poem: thousand.


    After the word was carved, it actually began to change. It looked like it was moving and morphed into the shape of a sword. Ye Wuchen''s eyes brightened at this sight. His gaze was glued to the stone wall ahead.


    "Don''t try to decipher its artistic conception or whatever. Break up the words," said Ye Futian.


    "Alright," nodded Ye Wuchen. When he looked at the stone wall again, it seemed as if the words had changed again.


    Just then, the Black Wind Eagle, who was standing off to the side, gently flapped its wings. Its eyes twinkled as it looked at Ye Futian with anticipation.


    "You want to learn as well?" asked Ye Futian.


    The Black Wind Eagle nodded.


    "You really are becoming too smart for your own good," muttered Ye Futian. It seemed that the beast had reaped some benefits from acquiring fate. Their spirits were linked so it should be easy to teach it.


    "Let me get a feel for it first." Ye Futian sat down on the large boulder, once again focusing on the stone wall. Every word carved into that wall seemed to be morphing into swords. The will of sword kept rushing into his mind.


    Even though he saw the sword forms and felt the sword intent, if Ye Futian wanted to cultivate this sword technique, he would first need to understand it. He was not a swordsman, so he was not going to waste his time to do so. It was enough for him to get a feel for the fate. Ye Futian was going to leave the cultivation of this sword technique to Ye Wuchen. Following that, Ye Futian continued to observe. At the same time, he would tell Ye Wuchen the form of the swords. Slowly, Ye Wuchen fell into the rhythm as well and became able to see for himself. There was no longer need for pointers from Ye Futian.


    The strange thing was, the Black Wind Eagle, standing next to Ye Futian, continued to stare at the stone wall. It did not even blink. It seemed as if the beast was beginning to comprehend it as well.


    Standing off to the side, Yu Sheng witnessed this scene and was shocked. He couldn''t even do what a demon beast could.


    After a while, Ye Futian collected himself and looked over at Ye Wuchen. His eyes were closed shut and a faint hint of sword intent flowed around him. By the looks of it, Ye Wuchen had comprehended the sword techniques hidden in the lines of poetry.


    "Let''s take a look at the other walls," said Ye Futian. The Black Wind Eagle''s eyes brightened and flapped its wings, carrying itself in another direction. It landed on a large boulder in front of a wall with engraved art. This engraving depicted a large Golden Roc charging into the Heavens. Its apparitions were also shown, serving as an indicator of the beast''s soaring through the skies.


    Ye Futian glanced at the Black Wind Eagle. Looks like this guy had its eyes set on this wall beforehand. But Ye Futian felt like this depiction also suited himself. The Black Wing Eagle and Yu Sheng could cultivate it too.


    His Freedom Meditation began to spin in his mind again. An image appeared in his mind. It was the very scene engraved on the wall. A Golden Roc spread its wings to soar through the skies. It roared loudly. It moved faster than the wind, not leaving an afterimage. Its movements were swift and natural like the flow of the wind. The scene and his memories overlapped slightly making the image clearer. Unknowingly, Ye Futian''s thoughts fell into a mystical state where he felt like he had transformed into the roc, breaking through the clouds into the heavens.


    Using the Freedom Meditation, he was able to decipher the true meanings behind the poem and the image on the stone walls. However, it was completely up to his own comprehension abilities to find out what they truly meant.


    Slowly, Ye Futian''s eyes closed. To him, it no longer felt like he was standing on the boulder in front of the wall. He felt as if he was zooming through the clouds in the sky.


    A strong force of will came from the stone wall and rushed into his mind endlessly. The more he was able to decipher and understand from the image on the wall, the more powerful the fate and will would get.


    The Black Wind Eagle and Yu Sheng were both doing their best as well. However, the artistic conception they had was more on the simple side. The beast was affected by its natural gifts while Yu Sheng''s gifts did not belong in this category.


    Around them, many cultivators who specialized in the element of wind were doing the same. From time to time, a light would shine from their bodies as these people attempted to incorporate their perceptions with their original abilities.


    After a long time, Ye Futian opened his eyes to see the Black Wind Eagle looking at himself with a pitiful expression. Using his spiritual energy, Ye Futian transferred the results of his meditation his beast companion. Following this, the Black Wind Eagle also began its own cultivation with the deciphered messages.


    "Yu Sheng, that wall really suits you," said Ye Futian. He was pointing to a stone wall in another direction. This wall was close to the ocean and on it, were engravings of large, roaring waves. With one simple look, you could almost feel the artistic conception of the imaged rushing at you like a terrifying force.


    The two friends headed for that wall. Standing in front of it, the ocean waves rolled in and smacked against the side of Cang Mountain. The great tides seemed to match with the artistic conception given off by the image on the wall.


    "What do you feel?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Ferocity and power," said Yu Sheng.


    "That''s right," nodded Ye Futian. Because he was able to use the Freedom Meditation, he could see things more clearly. It was as if the image was moving, each wave was higher than the last. Its power was destructive. This image was not a sword nor was it wind. It was pure ferocity and power.


    The two studied it in silence and after a long while, Ye Futian left alone. He walked over to another stone wall by the ocean. This was the last Cang Mountain wall with engravings. There was no one standing in front of this wall. The other three walls were somewhat comprehensible but this one, no one understood. They couldn''t feel any fate from this wall


    The image on the stone wall depicted a figure clad in white seated with both hands on a guqin. There was no artistic conception.


    Ye Futian used the Freedom Meditation, but he could only see the person in the image playing the guqin. He was not able to feel any will from the image. However, this made the image even more extraordinary.


    If even the Freedom Meditation didn''t work, it only proved that Ye Futian''s level of cultivation was not yet high enough.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly, simply looking at the stone wall. There was only him.


    Ye Wuchen was in front of the sword wall, the Black Wind Eagle at the Golden Roc wall, and Yu Sheng at the wave wall. The four of them each had a wall that enlightened them.


    Ye Futian''s world became very quiet, but in reality, there were people everywhere at the Cang Mountain Relic.


    Ruo Qiu''s eyes wandered in Ye Futian''s direction. He stood out too much. He was the only one in front of that wall.


    "No one has ever deciphered the message behind that image, but look at him, pretending he knows what he''s doing. You should know the type of person he is now," she said to Ruo Yu.


    They hadn''t even been here for long, but Ye Futian had already stopped in front of every wall. He was purely wasting time here.


    Ruo Yu looked over at him briefly. She could not understand his actions.


    "Senior Brother Yan was able to get a bit of sword intent from studying the stone wall," said Ruo Qiu. She had a smile on her face as she watched Yan Lu who stood not too far away in front of her. Sword intent came from the stone wall and revolved around him.


    Yan Lu took a deep breath before saying, "This poem is indeed hiding a powerful artistic conception. By the studying its form, it is possible to feel the will of the sword. If I want to understand it completely, I''m afraid it will take a fairly long time."


    "Senior Brother Yan, you''re so talented! Normal people can''t even compare to you," smiled Ruo Qiu.


    "I''m still lacking quite a bit in comparison to Senior Sister Yun," Yan Lu lifted his head to look at Yun Qianmo. She was perched on top of a tall boulder. Yun Qianmo had a wave of sword intent revolving around her. It was obvious that her understanding of the image on the stone wall was greater than that of Yan Lu.


    More and more people arrived at the Cang Mountain Relic, making the environment crowded and lively. Just then, a figure had grasped the attention of a large group of people


    This person had looks that made them stand out. In terms of looks, even Yun Qianmo didn''t shine as brightly anymore in comparison. There were many powerful guards next to this newcomer.


    This person was the Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty, Lin Yueyao. In the matter of outer appearance, it was only natural not a lot of people could compare to her


    Her eyes drifted off to a certain direction and immediately saw Ye Wuchen. Her glamorous body sauntered over next to him.


    Gu Cheng, Ruo Qiu, and the others looked over in their direction. A little while ago, Ye Futian seemed to be acquainted with Ye Wuchen. Now, this girl had also headed over to him. Who was this Ye Wuchen?


    Was this shockingly beautiful girl also from the Hundred Lands?


    Ye Wuchen suddenly opened his eyes and looked at Lin Yueyao. She screamed and snapped her eyes shut. It felt as if a sword had pierced into her eyes.


    "Are you okay?" asked Ye Wuchen.


    Lin Yueyao opened her eyes slowly. They were slightly red. She looked at him and replied, "Are you trying to kill me?"


    "I was cultivating, didn''t know it was you," he explained.


    She was speechless. Then, she turned to look at the stone wall and muttered lowly, "So this is the stone wall of the Cang Mountain Relic? How come I can''t feel anything from it? How did you get the artistic conception?"


    "I actually didn''t get much from it originally, but an unordinary guy showed up," he said.


    "An unordinary guy?" Lin Yueyao asked with a questioning look. Her eyes shifted elsewhere and she saw a lonely figure standing in front of a stone wall. He looked as if he was the only person on earth.


    A strange look crossed her face. Can this guy stop living in his own solitude world? Ye Wuchen was right. He definitely was an unordinary guy!

 154 Stone Wall Sword Techniques

    Chapter 154: Stone Wall Sword Techniques


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Lin Yueyao looked at Ye Futian''s backside. From Ye Wuchen''s words, she guessed that he was only enlightened with Ye Futian''s help. This guy was only in the Glory Plane. Why was he so scary? But from his performance at the Fenghua Banquet and Tingfeng Banquet, he truly couldn''t be treated like a regular person.


    "What''s he doing?" Lin Yueyao asked quietly.


    "He''s probably getting inspired. This is the last stone wall," Ye Wuchen said calmly. Lin Yueyao''s gaze moved to the other walls. She saw Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Eagle.


    Was the Black Wind Eagle cultivating too? Being enlightened and inspired by the Cang Mountain Relic? It was one thing for the ones beside Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Jieyu, to be so scarily talented but now was his ordinary demon beast cultivating too? Ye Futian didn''t know what Lin Yueyao was thinking. He didn''t even know she was there.


    He was still quietly sensing the stone wall. Closing his eyes, he emptied everything. The mountains on all sides of him were imprinted in his mind. Waves crashed, one tide higher than the last. Gradually, a picture appeared in his mind. It was of a white-robed figure playing guqin on the Cang Mountain. Someone was practicing the sword on the beach. The sword technique seemed desolate. The waves came and fell into the sword intent, transforming into a thousand threads of rain. On the mountain, hundreds of meters tall, the blade flashed coldly and cut the pain of separation. He realized that the poem truly did have an artistic conception.


    A Golden Roc soared into the sky, wanting to bid farewell to the man. It cried beside the sea and transformed into countless afterimages, sweeping up the tides. All of this seemed to become a painting. The walls on all sides were not separate entities; their artistic conceptions were one.


    There was a flash and Ye Futian''s Guqin Spirit appeared. He sat, crossing his legs, and began playing his guqin alone. The graceful melody streamed out, attracting much attention. Many people gazed at him with an odd expression.


    A Nine-star Glory Plane musical sorcerer was playing his instrument before the stone wall that no one could decipher. Had he really sensed the artistic conception?


    Lin Yueyao''s eyes sparkled. This guy��really acted as if the others didn''t exist.


    "Interesting." Liu Yuan glanced at Ye Futian and smiled lightly. Shock also flashed past Yun Qianmo''s pretty eyes.


    There was some otherworldliness in the melody as if it was being played from space. In the melody''s artistic conception, waves crashed onto the empty mountain, rocs soared in the air, and people cut the pain of separation with their swords. The emotion and scene went with the music perfectly.


    As Ye Futian played, the will inside the stone wall went together with his music, resonating. Shortly after, a burst of music intent landed inside Ye Futian''s mind, strengthening the artistic conception. It was as if Ye Futian was playing the artistic conception directly.


    That was not all. In that moment, he seemed to be resonating with the other three walls as well. The sword intent, Golden Roc intent, and sea wave intent all rushed into his mind, coming back out as music. An image appeared with the music. It snuck into Yu Sheng''s mind and he shook violently. He instantly felt the artistic conceptions of the sea wave wall and Golden Roc wall appear clearly in his mind, allowing him to directly sense them. The same artistic conception entered the Black Wind Eagle''s mind. It flapped its wings, appearing to be excited.


    After that, Ye Wuchen, standing to the side, suddenly felt sword intent enter his ear with the music. His eyes flashed and he turned to look at the sword wall. It was as if he could feel an extremely clear picture. An illusory figure was practicing a set of sword techniques.


    Ruo Yu had the same treatment as Ye Wuchen but she didn''t understand it at first. When the artistic conception in the music became stronger and stronger, she looked at Ye Futian in shock and finally understood. Then she looked to the sword wall and started sensing.


    However, the others didn''t know about the changes in their bodies. They continued to sense quietly but their savviness seemed to improve under the music. They could sense deeper things and they rejoiced inwardly, continuing to cultivate quietly. A strange sight appeared. There was no other sound in this area except for the soothing guqin.


    Seemingly after a long time, the music finally stopped. Ye Futian felt the changes in his body and smiled faintly. It appeared that he didn''t have to worry about not receiving a fate in the Ancient Barren World.


    Luo Junlin received the noble fate in the Ancient Barren World and caught the attention of the Royal Xuan Temple. Which force would notice Ye Futian?


    As the music stopped, people smiled one after another. They had all improved but they didn''t know it was the effect brought upon by the music''s artistic conception. They thought they were enlightened by themselves. Only a small minority felt that the music had done something and that the music''s artistic conception matched the scene.


    A string of sword intent flowed up and down Ye Wuchen''s body and then disappeared. He opened his eyes and took a deep breath. He felt that Ye Futian wasn''t normal. This wasn''t something a normal person could do.


    Ye Wuchen understood that Ye Futian had most likely understood the entire Cang Mountain Relic. No one had ever done this before but he did it.


    "What happened?" Lin Yueyao asked.


    "That guy taught me how to cultivate swordsmanship," Ye Wuchen said softly.


    "He taught you?" Lin Yueyao was surprised. When Ye Wuchen nodded seriously, she understood immediately and shot a resentful gaze at Ye Futian. She was part of the Fenghua Rank too. Why couldn''t he help her too?


    Sword intent flowed across Yan Lu''s body. Eyes sharp, he looked at his group. "How do you feel?"


    "Senior brother, I have some enlightenment," Gu Jiang said.


    "Me too." Ruo Qiu was a bit excited.


    "Not bad. Ruo Yu, what about you?" Yan Lu nodded and turned to Ruo Yu to see her eyes wide open, still in shock.


    Had she really cultivated the sword technique from the wall? She felt crazy. How did she receive enlightenment just like that? The music had brought the artistic conception right into her mind and then she looked at the wall and saw the sword technique.


    "Okay." Ruo Yu was still out of it.


    "What do you even think about all day?" Ruo Qiu couldn''t help but say, seeing her sister so dazed.


    "Yun Qianmo," Liu Yuan said, looking at her again. "Want to fight and see how enlightened you are?"


    "Don''t have time," Yun Qianmo replied coolly.


    Liu Yuan smiled. Wind whistled around him and everyone looked over. A strong wind intent appeared on him, causing a violent wind to scream around him. The fate bloomed and actually fused into the wind intent. A shocking black wind storm swept toward Yun Qianmo. Every strand of wind in the terrifying tornado transformed into sharp blades. They were extremely sharp and converged into a storm that could rip apart everything. It was frightening. Melding fate into the wind intent and casting a spell, he attacked without caring if Yun Qianmo agreed or not.


    Such strong intent. As expected of the Liu family of the Qianmeng area. Everyone looked at Liu Yuan. It was obvious that he had comprehended quite a bit.


    Yun Qianmo turned around. Her robes fluttered in the wild wind and a sword appeared in her hand. Her fate also bloomed and fused into the sword intent. Then it whistled as she waved her sword and a curtain of swords appeared around her.


    The tornado ripped towards her and collided with the sword intent. The world changed and the boulders were pulverized. Yun Qianmo soared into the air, her long hair flying. The sword intent strengthened and cut the tornado up bit by bit.


    When the storm disappeared, Yun Qianmo hovered in the air alone.


    "As expected of Senior Sister Yun," Ruo Qiu gasped. "I seemed to feel the artistic conception of the wall in those sword techniques."


    Ruo Yu''s eyes flashed and she mumbled, "Her techniques were wrong."


    "What nonsense." Ruo Qiu glared at her.


    "Let''s only test the strength that we comprehended here," Liu Yuan said. As soon as he spoke, he rushed into the air, charging at Yun Qianmo like a roc. For a moment, he seemed to have transformed into a roc.


    Wielding her sword, it seemed that the sword''s artistic conception descended around Yun Qianmo. Seeing the roc cut through the air, she swung her sword and the blade transformed into a light that sliced the sky. Various afterimages came out of the roc. The two moved instantaneously and were too fast for the naked eye to keep up.


    Boom! Liu Yuan''s body had already left but Yun Qianmo''s beautiful body continued to descend.


    On the other hand, Liu Yuan was hovering arrogantly in the air. He smiled thinly. "Yun Qianmo, it appears that you didn''t comprehend enough. The senior disciple of your clan is just so-so."


    Everyone looked at them. Even though Liu Yuan had the upper hand, it didn''t mean that Yun Qianmo''s enlightenment wasn''t as good as his. Other than the tablet that no one could understand, the sword stone was the most difficult one. Its artistic conception was hidden inside the poem and thus it was unfair. Liu Yuan had taken advantage of this. It was as if he did that before Yun Qianmo on purpose.


    The disciples of the Qianmeng area''s Sword Clan were all enraged. Ruo Yu was upset as well and she said, "Senior Sister Yun, your sword technique can be improved."


    Yun Qianmo gazed at her. Yan Lu and the others did so as well, wondering what nonsense this girl was saying.


    Ignoring all their looks, Ruo Yu produced a sword filled with the sword intent. She swung the blade, and at that moment, countless shadows appeared. The sword transformed into threads of rain and each drop was filled with the power to cut through the air. Paired with the sword intent in her body, it was clearly more advanced than Yun Qianmo''s artistic conception. Many people were surprised at this. Ruo Qiu also looked at her sister in shock.


    Ruo Yu''s talent couldn''t be compared to Yun Qianmo''s but her technique was clearly more powerful. If Yun Qianmo had used this, Liu Yuan would have been completely obliterated.


    "Junior Sister, how did you comprehend this?" Yan Lu and the others all came over to scrutinize Ruo Yu.


    Yun Qianmo looked at her too and asked, "How did you do it?"


    Everyone''s gazes fell upon her. How could a young disciple of the Sword Clan in the First level Dharma Plane decipher the swordsmanship technique of the sword wall?

 155 Do You Have a Death Wish?

    Chapter 155: Do You Have a Death Wish?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing that almost everyone was looking at herself, Ruo Yu immediately felt a great wave of pressure. Her eyes drifted over to Ye Futian but she instantly withdrew her gaze. If she told the truth, it was bound to bring him trouble. She was in her own clan. The Sword Clan of the Qianmeng area was a great power and not many people dared to start trouble with them.


    "I don''t know either. I was just suddenly enlightened," said Ruo Yu in a low voice.


    Ruo Qiu looked at Ruo Yu strangely. Enlightened? As twins, Ruo Qiu was very clear about Ruo Yu''s abilities. How would she be suddenly enlightened? However, Ruo Yu was by her side the whole time and did not come into contact with anyone else. Other than enlightenment, there was no other explanation.


    Lin Yueyao looked over at Ruo Yu and then back at Ye Futian. Could it be that she was able taught by the sound of Ye Futian''s guqin?


    "It is a good thing to get such a rare opportunity," said Yun Qianmo. She did not question Ruo Yu any further. If Ruo Yu did, in fact, know the secret to deciphering the meaning behind the stone walls, this was not the place to question her.


    Yun Qianmo glanced at Liu Yuan, having no intentions to continue their fight. Her attention shifted back to the sword wall. Even Ruo Yu had been enlightened. Yet she had achieved nothing.


    Yan Lu and the others all had strange looks on their faces as they continued their cultivation.


    "You know, you guys should actually reconsider what Ye Futian said earlier," Ruo Yu mumbled lowly. Ruo Qiu and the rest of their group furrowed their brows and all turned their attention to Ye Futian.


    At that same moment, Ye Futian had descended from the large boulder in front of the stone wall and was headed their way. Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Eagle were also by his side. They had both already been enlightened on the true meanings behind the images on the walls with the help of Ye Futian.


    "Hello, my little friend." Gu Jiang smiled at Ye Futian. "Done with all four walls?"


    "Yeah," Ye Futian nodded with a smile on his face.


    Seeing that Ye Futian had actually nodded, Gu Jiang could not help but let out a look of interest. This guy is really thick-skinned!


    "How much information did you get?" Gu Jiang continued to ask.


    "A little bit from each of the walls, I guess," Ye Futian answered nonchalantly. He looked at Ruo Yu and said, "Ruo Yu, I''m heading back first. Good luck with your cultivation."


    "I''m done as well. I''ll head back with you," she said as she stepped up closer to him. Ye Futian transferred the knowledge of the sword techniques to her today. It was definitely a great favor.


    This guy. Not far away, Lin Yueyao watched this scene and everything was now crystal clear. Ruo Yu was indeed taught by Ye Futian.


    Ruo Qiu frowned at her sister''s words. Had her younger sister gone crazy?


    "Have you had enough?" Ruo Qiu asked Ye Futian coldly. He looked at her with no words to say. How did I piss her off now?


    "Sis, what are you doing?" Ruo Yu was angry with the way her older sister acted.


    Ruo Qiu looked at Ruo Yu and said, "Did he really put some spell over you? I just want you to see how fake he really is."


    "Ye Futian, since you said that you were enlightened by the stone walls, all we have to do in order to know if you''re telling the truth is to fight. Gu Jiang, give it a go," said Ruo Qiu.


    Gu Jiang chuckled with his reply, "Alright."


    "I also want to know what type of enlightenment you had, my little friend," Gu Jiang smiled at Ye Futian.


    "What''s going on?" Lin Yueyao saw what was going on and asked Ye Wuchen who was standing beside her.


    Ye Wuchen could not hold in his smile. He said some things to Lin Yueyao and after she heard what he had to say, a strange expression crossed her face. She looked at Ruo Qiu and busted out in laughter.


    Lin Yueyao looked at Ye Futian. Who would''ve thought this day would come for that rascal?


    Ye Futian glanced at Gu Jiang and then at Ruo Qiu. A smile spread across his face before that word slipped out of his mouth, "Idiots." He turned around and walked towards Ye Wuchen.


    Gu Jiang frowned. Ruo Qiu had an icy look in her eyes. Did Ye Futian just call them idiots? A sharp ray of sword intent released from Gu Jiang as he took one step in Ye Futian''s direction. With the sword intent revolving his body, he warned Ye Futian, "Watch out, my little friend." He finished what he had to say, and released his sword techniques. At the same time, a black shadow whisked by at an unbelievable speed. It was a demon beast. Maybe a roc?


    "Huh?" Ruo Qiu and her friends furrowed their brows in confusion. A storm seemed to have started in the area around them. Gu Jiang hadn''t even released his sword when the shadow descended from the sky with its claws charging straight down. It struck Gu Jiang in the chest, propelling him backward. He now had blood streaming down the front of his chest.


    WHOOSH! A strong wind blew past and the shadow of the roc had returned. It floated in the air behind Ye Futian. It was a demon beast alright, but it was not a roc. It was a Black Wind Eagle.


    "The artistic conception of the stone wall." The members of the Sword Clan lifted their heads to look at the wall where Liu Yuan was. The image of a large Golden Roc. The beast behind Ye Futian had released that artistic conception! How could an ordinary Black Wind Eagle have such an understanding?


    "Gu Jiang." Gu Cheng and the others walked over next to Gu Jiang. He climbed up from the ground and looked at Ye Futian''s silhouette with cold eyes.


    "This Black Wind Eagle is strange. It has such strong comprehension skills to understand the artistic conception," said Gu Jiang. Yan Lu nodded in agreement. He had also noticed this fact.


    The group headed towards Ye Futian.


    Ruo Yu did not look too good in this current situation. Are the members of the Sword Clan going to start a conflict with Ye Futian?


    They watched as Ye Futian stopped in place. He did not spare them a glance, but instead, looked at Ye Wuchen and asked, "Together?"


    "Sure," Ye Wuchen nodded. He was obviously not going to turn down Ye Futian''s invitation. He was also thinking the same thing.


    "Hey, I heard someone have you the cold shoulder." Lin Yueyao chuckled at Ye Futian.


    "Taking pleasure in my misfortune?" Ye Futian smiled at her.


    "Is it her?" Lin Yueyao looked at Ruo Qiu.


    Ruo Qiu saw Lin Yueyao looking over and frowned. What does she mean?


    "Since when has your taste gotten so bad?" Lin Yueyao teased. She had finally gotten her revenge. This rascal is always ignoring me. Now he''ll know what it''s like to get the cold shoulder.


    The group of Sword Clan members witnessed everything. Was she insulting Ruo Qiu? However, in comparison to this girl in front of them, Ruo Qiu''s looks were a far cry from her beauty.


    "Is it funny?" Ye Futian never thought Lin Yueyao had this side to her. It seemed like this girl had held quite a grudge.


    "It''s pretty funny." She nodded seriously. She then asked, "Can you bring me along too?"


    Ye Futian looked at her with a strange look in his eyes. What goes on in this girl''s brain?


    To be honest, the Lin Yueyao before would have never made such a request, but seeing Ye Futian help Ye Wuchen become enlightened with his guqin, and even a girl he met in the Ancient Barren World, it did not make her feel great. Did she really lack the appeal? She was always getting ignored by this jerk.


    Seeing the look in Ye Futian''s eyes, Lin Yueyao gave him a glare. "Don''t worry. I know I''m not as pretty as your girlfriend. I won''t have any crazy thoughts about you. I just want to train with you in the Ancient Barren World."


    Ye Futian glanced at Ye Wuchen. Ye Wuchen said nothing and stared at him, almost as if he were saying, "Do what you want." Only then, did Ye Futian nod his head. "Fine."


    "Can you not say it so reluctantly?" Lin Yueyao said as she bites her lip, upset.


    Ye Futian shrugged, "Whatever."


    "You..." Lin Yueyao did not know what to say to him. The anger on her face gave her a unique look. The Sword Clan members standing on the side were stupefied just looking at her. Ruo Qiu was also frozen. A strange expression fell on the faces of Yan Lu and his group.


    Ye Futian did not seem to give a crap about Lin Yueyao''s looks. It also seemed like this beautiful girl had been previously rejected by Ye Futian. She even said that Ye Futian''s girlfriend was more beautiful than she was, and that she wouldn''t have any crazy thoughts about him.


    Would Ye Futian really try something with Ruo Qiu and her sister?


    It was obvious now. Ruo Qiu was thinking too much. Especially when Lin Yueyao had looked at her with the smile that wasn''t really a smile. Ruo Qiu felt insulted.


    "Are you happy now?" Ruo Yu asked her sister. It was obvious that Ye Futian had no ulterior motives being with them. All he wanted were travel companions. He even taught her the sword technique from the stone wall.


    "Ye Futian." Just then, Gu Cheng walked up and spoke to him with a cold demeanor. "How could you allow that demon beast to attack Gu Jiang?"


    "Scram." Ye Futian gave him a quick, emotionless glance. He did not want to waste his breath on these people. If it weren''t for Ruo Yu, he wouldn''t have bothered to say a single word to these people after the inn incident.


    At the sight of how arrogant Ye Futian was acting, the Sword Clan members were enraged. Where did this Nine-star Glory Plane get such courage?


    "That demon beast, leave it with us," said Wang Jue. He didn''t want to discuss any further either. Stepping up, sword intent was released from his body. Feeling the power of the fourth level Dharma Plane, Ye Wuchen frowned. With one step forward, a strong force of sword will erupted from his body. In an instant, the whole area was enveloped by the powerful force. This force of will was like that of the sword wall.


    "Do you have a death wish?" asked Ye Wuchen. His tone was sharp like the blade of a sword. The will dominated Wang Jue. He was using the will of sword to repress Wang Jue''d sword intent.


    Yan Lu and the others looked at Ye Wuchen in great shock. How was he also enlightened by the stonewall''s sword will?


    This attracted many people to look over. Yun Qianmo also made her way over.


    Seeing that the conflict was growing, Ruo Yu grew worried.


    "You have also been enlightened by the stonewall''s sword will?" asked Yan Lu. In just one day, two people have been enlightened.


    There was also the Black Wind Eagle. It was enlightened by the artistic conception hidden in the Golden Roc wall.


    Yan Lu stepped forward and a stronger force of sword intent was release. The destructive power of the sixth level Dharma Plane rolled towards Ye Futian''s group.


    Everything that happened today could only be described as strange. Since things had already come to this, they could not let Ye Futian get away so easily. Yan Lu needed answers now.


    Ye Futian felt Yan Lu''s sword intent coming in their direction, as if he wanted to encapsulate them, forcing them to stay. Seems like I was being too nice.


    Ye Futian''s gaze sharpened and he looked over at Yan Lu to say, "Do you have a death wish?"

 156 Shocked

    Chapter 156: Shocked


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Ye Futian spoke, the surrounding gazes all fell on him. A Nine-star Glory Plane cultivator had asked a Level six Dharma Plane cultivator if he wanted to die! However, Ye Futian''s eyes were sharp. His aura really made one feel a slight pressure as if it wasn''t just a threat. Where did he get the confidence from? At least, where did he get the qualifications to say those words?


    Yan Lu arched an eyebrow. The sword intent was still present on his body. He gazed behind Lin Yueyao and a few guards walked forward. This was probably the source of Ye Futian''s confidence.


    "You can try," Yan Lu uttered coldly, staring at Ye Futian. As he spoke, the air around him seemed to turn solid. The people on the stone walls watched the fight quietly. Cold animosity bloomed on Ye Futian''s face.


    "Enough." Ruo Yu walked forward at this moment and stood before Ye Futian. "Senior Brother Yan, you''ve crossed the line."


    "Come back," Ruo Qiu reprimanded when she saw Ruo Yu run out.


    "Shut up," Ruo Yu said to Ruo Qiu. "This all started because of you. Ye Futian invited us to a meal at our first meeting. Instead of being grateful, you said those ugly words at the inn. What ulterior motive would he have? Didn''t you want to know how I comprehended my swordsmanship technique? Ye Futian taught me."


    Everyone was fixated. Ye Futian taught Ruo Yu to comprehend the techniques from the stone wall? How was this possible?


    "You''re joking," Ruo Qiu said coldly.


    "You think I''m joking?" Ruo Yu shot back. Ruo Qiu and everyone else was in disbelief. Did Ye Futian really teach it to Ruo Yu?


    "Are you speaking the truth?" Yun Qianmo asked. She walked forward and looked down from her position in the air.


    "Absolutely. Otherwise, how can I do it?" Ruo Yu said to her. "Senior Sister Yun, this is all my sister''s fault. Ye Futian never did anything to us. Please tell Senior Brother Yan to stop."


    Yun Qianmo gazed at Ye Futian and saw him standing there quietly. Sensing her eyes, he looked up at her.


    "Was it the musical sorcery?" Yun Qianmo looked at him and subtly guessed that the music from before was unordinary.


    "Do you want to learn?" Ye Futian looked at her with a smile.


    Yun Qianmo met his eyes and said, "If you''re willing, you''ll be the Sword Clan''s friend. We will protect your safety in the Qianmeng City."


    If they became friends, today''s scuffle would end and there''d be no need for more words.


    Ye Futian looked up at Yun Qianmo. She was very pretty with some coldness. As the top disciple of the Sword Clan, she was qualified to say those words.


    "If you want to learn, then sure." Ye Futian smiled and walked toward the music wall near the sea. Ye Wuchen, Lin Yueyo, and the others followed him.


    The guqin wall was in the highest spot. Ye Futian sat down, crossing his legs, and released his Guqin Spirit. He strummed the strings and music streamed out, creating an artistic conception. Then, there seemed to be unique artistic conception strength on the guqin wall. It resonated with YeFutian''s music. It was of a figure clothed in white, playing his guqin. Sword intent was born and a roc appeared. Waves crashed against land. When this artistic conception descended, the walls on each side seemed to resonate with the music.


    The sword intent and music went from the sword wall to Yan Lu, digging into his ears. At that moment, he felt himself in that special artistic conception. He saw the sword in the stone wall''s artistic conception.


    The sword transformed into thousands of threads of rain, cutting everything apart.


    "No��" That moment, everyone heard Yan Lu cry out. Their hearts trembled and they looked over.


    The next moment, a shocking scene appeared. They saw Yan Lu''s body spiral up as the sword aura shot crazily out of him. However, endless rain-like sword intent appeared, tearing out of him. His clothing ripped apart and cuts appeared on his body. There was even blood on his neck. With a pained cry, he dropped to the ground. He grasped his wrist with blood flowing out. He trembled violently, fear filling his eyes. In the artistic conception in his mind, endless threads of sword intent were about to drown him. The sword created by the sword intent was unstoppable.


    Everyone was shocked. They looked at the sword wall. They realized with astonishment that terrifying sword intent radiated from the poem. It bloomed and fused with the music. There was the faint shine of a dazzling sword.


    Ye Futian used the music to guide the stone wall''s intent and attacked Yan Lu.


    "Would you like to try?" The music stopped. Ye Futian looked down on Yan Lu and everyone trembled inwardly. Earlier, Yan Lu had told him to try and now, he really did.


    Ruo Qiu, Ruo Yu, Wang Jue, and the others were all shaking inside too. They looked at Yan Lu''s pathetic state then back at Ye Futian. The boy who was still smiling and seemed easy to talk to completely changed when he began playing the guqin. His handsome features radiated coldness and once-in-a-century talent. Behind him, Yu Sheng, Yu Wuchen, and Lin Yueyao stood quietly.


    For a moment, everyone understood why Lin Yueyao said that to Ye Futian. Probably only those who were willing to cultivate with him knew just how amazing Ye Futian was. He used his music to transmit the artistic conception and even helped Ruo Yu learn the sword technique that Yun Qianmo couldn''t comprehend. He had comprehended the stone wall that no one had ever been able to and communicated with it. He even resonated with the walls on all sides.


    Only he completely understood the Cang Mountain Relic. He was an unparalleled talent. For so many years, countless people from the Qianmeng territory entered the Ancient Barren World and studied the Cang Mountain Relic but no one could do what he did today. It was only one relic in the Ancient Barren World but it proved how monstrously talented this handsome boy was.


    Ghastly pale, Yan Lu felt chilled. Everyone looked at him but he kept his mouth shut.


    "Did you think I was joking? I''ll give you another chance. Do you want to die?" Ye Futian asked indifferently. Earlier, he had asked if Yan Lu wanted to die and Yan Lu told him to try. Did he have the courage to reply that again?


    Ye Futian placed his hands on the strings again as if he could start again at any time. Face pale, Yan Lu lowered his head and replied, "No."


    Ye Futian looked at him mockingly and then looked away as if Yan Lu didn''t deserve his attention. Yan Lu was livid and extremely humiliated. Behind him, Ruo Qiu and the others watched this without a word.


    Yun Qianmo, Liu Yuan, and everyone else in the Cang Mountain Relic looked at Ye Futian.


    "You comprehended all four walls. Does that mean that you found the artistic conception of the Golden Roc?" someone asked. It was Liu Yuan. He could only find the powerful wind intent from the wall. If he could comprehend it, it would be very helpful to him. It wouldn''t only increase his fate.


    "What do you think?"


    "How strong are you with the wall''s intent?" Liu Yuan asked, staring at him.


    "Do you want to try?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I just want to be friends," Liu Yuan suddenly said with a smile.


    "Friends?" Ye Futian sneered. They had to be friends for him to transmit the wall''s intent? Would they be enemies otherwise?


    Ye Futian lowered his head and played the instrument, creating another melody. As the music streamed out, the walls'' intent descended again. Light glowed from the walls at once.


    Waves of artistic conception descended. They snaked into ears of Ye Wuchen and Lin Yueyao''s group. Even the guards behind Lin Yueyao could sense the artistic conception. Hearts trembling, they glanced at the walls and started studying with no regard for the outside world.


    Seeing this, everyone furrowed their brows. Was he teaching the artistic conception with music in front of everyone?


    Many people were envious and jealous. If they could comprehend the Cang Mountain Relic, they could receive a lot of fate. The intent was suitable for cultivation as well and could increase their combat ability. It was beneficial to their future cultivation too.


    In addition, many present were suitable for cultivating the intent of these walls. For example, the Sword Clan was great for the sword wall. Ironically though, the Sword Clan could have become his friend but chose to be his enemy.


    Since Ye Futian had taught it to Ruo Yu, it showed that he didn''t really care. He could help anyone who was his friend.


    This was only one relic site in the Ancient Barren World. With Ye Futian''s talent, he wouldn''t have to steal the fate. He could use his savviness to figure out the Noble fate himself.


    "Happy now?" Ruo Yu looked at her sister coldly. "What did Ye Futian want from you?"


    Ruo Qiu was embarrassed. Yan Lu, whom they''d thought was extremely talented, had been easily defeated by Ye Futian and humiliated. A beauty like Lin Yueyao willingly followed Ye Futian. What would he want from her? What did she have that Ye Futian could want?


    Thinking of this now, she realized that she had just been petty. She could have comprehended all of the Cang Mountain Relic and even cultivate with Ye Futian.


    Looking around, she saw countless figures who wanted to learn but no one dared to move. Someone from the Glory Plane had played his guqin alone and stunned everyone.


    "What are your requirements?" Yun Qianmo suddenly asked.


    Ye Futian looked up from his guqin and smiled. He said, "Earlier, you gave me a choice so I''ll give you a choice too. I''m unfamiliar with the Ancient Barren World and need a maid. I can consider you."


    With his words, Yun Qianmo, Ruo Qiu, and the others all hardened their eyes. Everyone stared at him, speechless.


    He wanted the top disciple of the Sword Clan, the pride of the world, Yun Qianmo, to be his maid?

 157 To Take Your Life

    Chapter 157: To Take Your Life


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    This guy�� Everyone froze as they stared at Ye Futian. A Nine-star Glory Plane wanted Yun Qianmo to be his maid. This was too crazy. Even though Ye Futian had outstanding gifts, his level of cultivation was still too low. Plus, he was younger. It was too much for him to say such a thing. Despite what Yun Qianmo had previously said, she had merely offered the thought that he would be a friend of the Sword Clan and receive their protection if he was willing to teach a member of the call the sword technique from the stonewall. But Ye Futian? He jumped about a million steps ahead and asked their top disciple to be his maid.


    Ruo Qiu, Wang Jue, and others of the Sword Clan looked at Ye Futian. Was this the same person who had traveled alongside them?


    Yun Qianmo stared at Ye Futian. She was the female prodigy of the Sword Clan, no one had ever dared to disrespect her in such a way. He wanted her to be a maid! However, the handsome figure at the guqin acted as if it was a given. His innocent eyes smiled at her. Of course, Yun Qianmo could feel the arrogance in his eyes. Otherwise, he wouldn''t have dared to make such a disrespectful, preposterous request. In his eyes, her identity as a female prodigy made her no different from a regular person. Was this the confidence he had in his own gifts?


    Although the Cang Mountain Relic was only one of the relics in the Ancient Barren World, there was no one else in history who had been able to understand the artistic conception of all four walls in one day. He was even able to harmonize every image. From this, he definitely had the right to be arrogant.


    Over the years, many prodigies from the Qianmeng area had stepped into Qianmeng City. They had all come to the Cang Mountain Relic in hopes of understanding the artistic conception of the stonewalls, but none of them had been able to do what Ye Futian had done today. Not only so, but he was able to use the sound of his guqin to teach the will of the walls to others. Even a nobody from the Sword Clan like Ruo Yu was able to cultivate the sword technique of the wall because of him. It was far better than Yun Qianmo, who tried so hard to comprehend. This meant that if Ye Futian was willing to help her, Yun Qianmo would be able to achieve so much more. She would reach a level incomparable by Ruo Yu. However, it was also impossible for her to sacrifice herself to become a maid just to learn the sword technique. But what if he would also teach her to understand the will of the other three walls as well? If that wasn''t enough, then what about all the other things the other relics of the Ancient Barren World could bring her in the future?


    Thinking of these things was the only way Yun Qianmo managed to keep calm in a situation where she should be angry. Her gaze shifted to the people behind Ye Futian. Their gifts may not compare to hers, they may also not be as capable, but with Ye Futian, she would be able to achieve everything they would. She may even acquire noble fate in the end.


    "You really are out of line here," Liu Yuan said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian didn''t think too much of it. After all, the person he made a request to was Yun Qianmo and not Liu Yuan.


    In Liu Yuan''s opinion, Yun Qianmo was a prodigy. She was beautiful and talented. So, Ye Futian''s words were a joke.


    "Don''t worry, you won''t get the chance to be my maid even if you wanted to. I won''t be able to get used to it," Ye Futian replied to Liu Yuan with a smile. Females could be maids. What could males do?


    Liu Yuan was dumbfounded by what he said. He snorted and looked to Yun Qianmo, "We should just team up and break the flow of his music then take him down. Isn''t that much easier?"


    "I will take your offer." Yun Qianmo had spoken. Immediately, everyone''s attention shifted to her.


    She actually said yes?


    Has she gone mad? Female prodigy of the Qianmeng area''s Sword Clan actually agreed to be someone else''s maid? Moreover, this person was at a cultivation level too much lower than herself. A mere Glory Plane cultivator. This was definitely not something to be proud of. Especially for someone of Yun Qianmo''s status.


    Senior Sister Yun. Ruo Qiu, Yan Lu, and the others stared at her in shock. They were dazed by everything that just happened. In their hearts, Yun Qianmo was an existence they could not reach out to touch. Was she actually going to be a maid? And for someone they had previously not wanted to associate with��Ye Futian. This was truly a 180-degree change. They could not wrap their heads around this immediately. They could not understand.


    Even Ye Futian was shocked. He was unfamiliar with the Ancient Barren World and indeed wanted a person to help guide him through, but he was just joking when he said what he did. He did not think that Yun Qianmo would actually agree to do it. He was completely taken by surprise. But to have a female prodigy as a maid should save him a lot of trouble. At the very least, he wouldn''t have to have people roll their eyes at him in contempt when he tried to get information. The past experience with Ruo Qiu''s group was not a happy one.


    Ruo Yu was very kind, but she was also too weak. Plus, there were many things she could not decide for herself. To have Yun Qianmo serve as their guide would actually be quite fitting.


    Ye Futian smiled and began to play his instrument. A wave of artistic conception accompanied the music as it crept into Yun Qianmo''s mind. She could feel the force. She looked over at the sword wall immediately and in that split second, the words on the wall seemed to have transformed into words. They continuously flowed into her mind. In Yun Qianmo''s mind, the sword technique had appeared.


    "Such a strong artistic conception." Swords could be seen in her beautiful eyes. She was shocked. No wonder Ruo Yu was able to succeed in cultivation of this sword technique.


    Liu Yuan''s expression darkened. He had just offered to join hands with Yun Qianmo, but she turned around and agreed to Ye Futian''s request. What''s more, she was immediately able to be enlightened. What did that make him?


    In mere moments, Yun Qianmo was taken over by fate. Sword will circled her petite body. She had a better understanding of the way of the sword to begin with, and was also of a higher cultivation level than Ruo Yu. With the help of Ye Futian''s guqin, her road to enlightenment was naturally smooth.


    "Try out your new skills on him," said Ye Futian. Yun Qianmo knew what he meant. She turned to Liu Yuan. The sword will was still flowing into her ears along with the music. A sword appeared in her hand and in the blink of an eye, sword will swept over the entire area around them.


    At the sight of this, Liu Yuan turned green. The wind will he acquired through enlightenment released and a storm brewed around him. It formed into a destructive force of hurricane sorcery and rolled towards Yun Qianmo. She advanced toward him as endless amounts of sword intent collected around her. The sword flew out of her hand and the qi from it turned into a light rain, falling to the ground from the skies above. The hurricane storm was actually torn to pieces.


    Liu Yuan seemed to have transformed into a roc, appearing in front of Yun Qianmo abruptly. He threw out a terrifying attack but it was stopped by an impenetrable force field created by the rain.


    Liu Yuan replicated himself and the different images surrounded Yun Qianmo. He released a teleportation spell using the wind will, making the different versions of himself move around her even faster. This did not seem to have any effect on Yun Qianmo. She did not attack him. Instead, she waved her sword around and in combination with the incredible force of sword will, every drop of rain came down sharp, like a sword. Each drop contained the power of sword will.


    The replicated images of Li Yuan danced around Yun Qianmo''s body but could never find the right time to attack. Meanwhile, her sword will was getting stronger as the sword-like rain storm grew.


    "Yun Qianmo, you''re degrading yourself! Goodbye." Liu Yuan took the shape of a roc and turned to leave. The sword in Yun Qianmo''s hand flew out after him. In an instant, the rain formed into a line. The gleam of a sword''s blade shot towards Liu Yuan at a speed greater than his own.


    WHOOSH! A low sound was heard. Liu Yuan''s body was still advancing forward at an unbelievable speed. After he had gotten a decent distance away, he stopped in mid-air. He turned around with cold eyes and looked down on to a spot on his chest. There, he was pierced by the sword will. The blood gushed from his wound continuously. This was actually the result on a Yun Qianmo who was holding back. If she had attacked at full force, he would have been done with.


    In a flash, Liu Yuan scurried away. His voice resonated through the air as he disappeared. "Until next time."


    Seeing that her opponent had disappeared, she felt chills. Under the influence of the guqin, she had tested her newly acquired sword techniques perfectly. She had perfected the sword technique of the stonewall.


    "Continue with the other two walls," said Ye Futian. Once again, he used the sound of his guqin to transmit the artistic conceptions of the stone walls into her mind. Yun Qianmo immediately looked over at another wall.


    Everyone around had their eyes fixated on her. When she had made her decision earlier, everyone was confused by her choice. But by the looks of the battle just now, they slowly began to understand why she agreed to Ye Futian''s request.


    Ye Futian could make her stronger.


    In the pursuit of power, she decided to give up certain things. Things such as her pride as a prodigy. Although it was difficult, this was the choice she made. Also, Ye Futian did not let her down. That battle proved his worth.


    Watching Yun Qianmo continue to her path to enlightenment with the two other walls, many people shared the same though. Is this really worth it?


    Only time would tell.


    Noticing that everyone around Ye Futian was working hard to comprehend the hidden messages the stonewalls through meditation, everyone else began to so as well. At this moment, they could faintly feel that the sound of the guqin was helpful to their comprehension of the walls. The music was gentle. As more people arrived at the Cang Mountain Relic, they were met with this strange scene. The atmosphere at this location was strange as well.


    Just then, a group of people arrived loudly. The formation consisted of tens of people, all of high cultivation. These people had also come to see the Cang Mountain Relic. Immediately, they saw the figure seated on top of the tallest wall, playing on his guqin.


    "Ye Futian?" A smile escaped on the face of the group leader. Their efforts had not been in vain. Let''s see how he''ll try to escape this time.


    "Several other people from the Cangye Kingdom are here as well," chuckled another person. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen were the ones who ruined the Tingfeng Banquet''s reputation. Now, they were all here. The Cangye Kingdom''s number one beauty was here as well.


    These newcomers were powerful cultivators of the Nandou Nation. They were also the Dharma Plan prodigies chosen from the second event held by Emperor Luo after the Tingfeng Banquet. Emperor Luo had spoken, whoever killed Ye Futian would receive a heavy reward upon their return to the Nandou Nation. This was an opportunity they could not miss out on.


    The group headed upward. Ye Futian looked toward them and recognized some faces. Among the group was Xi Lou from the Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet.


    "What do you guys want?" chuckled Ye Futian.


    "To take your life," someone said coldly. They charged forward suddenly, not wanting to give Ye Futian any opportunity to escape.


    Around the stonewalls, everyone''s attention was drawn to the Nandou group. They looked at the group with questioning eyes. It wasn''t going to be easy to take Ye Futian''s life at the Cang Mountain Relics!

 158 Fate Level

    Chapter 158: Fate Level


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Ye Futian heard the other''s words, cold murderous intent flashed past his eyes. It seemed that Emperor Luo''s desire to kill him was still as strong as before. He''d tried once at the Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet. He had tested Emperor Ye''s bottom line. If Emperor Ye hadn''t done everything he could to protect Ye Futian, Emperor Luo probably would have acted.


    These people before Ye Futian were strangers but wanted to kill him. It was obvious they were sent by Emperor Luo.


    If that was the case, then��


    "Yun Qianmo," Ye Futian called. Yun Qianmo was standing on a boulder not too far from Ye Futian. She faced the group charging at them, her sword intent growing. In a moment, a frightening sword intent loomed in the sky.


    "Kill them all!" Ye Futian uttered but his fingers didn''t stop strumming the instrument strings. While he played, the intent of the sword wall seemed to meld into his music. It rushed wildly into Yun Qianmo''s mind, strengthening her sword intent.


    A sword came down, obstructing all the charging people. Then Yun Qianmo flashed. Her clothing fluttered and she descended like a gust of wind.


    The swords were like threads of rain, splashing at the others. The strong cultivator''s expression changed slightly. He pushed his palms forward and a burst of terrifying fire swept through. A fire elemental dragon followed.


    The swords came down like raining, piercing everything. They extinguished the fire and spell and went through the man''s body. In a moment, blood flowed endlessly from the figure. His body shook violently and he looked down, discovering that his body was riddled with thousands of holes.


    "No��" Terror rose and despair appeared in his eyes. Then he fell down from the sky.


    This scene made the charging people halt, all looking up to the beautiful figure. Yun Qianmo didn''t stop though. Her sword intent surged, filling the vast sky.


    The threads of rain turned into strings. Yun Qianmo swung her sword again. Her movements were light and agile. Another strong cultivator was stabbed between his eyes.


    Yun Qianmo was already in the Level eight Dharma Plane. Paired with the sword intent given by Ye Futian through the music and the sword technique she''d comprehended by herself, her abilities evolved. She was so much stronger than the pride of the Sword Clan from before. Thus, despite appearing weak, every move from her was fatal when she rushed into the crowd.


    The prides of the Nandou Nation cast spells crazily to stop her but her sword was like rain. It covered the entire space and was both strong in attack and defense. No one would overcome her.


    "Kill Ye Futian first." The expressions of all the Nandou people changed. They looked to Ye Futian. His music could strengthen Yun Qianmo.


    Sorcerers skilled in wind spells rushed to Ye Futian. Yun Qianmo leapt and brought her sword down continuously but couldn''t stop everyone. Two figures charged at Ye Futian.


    He glanced at them and said indifferently, "Is it worth it to die for Luo?" As soon as he spoke, his fingers strummed the instrument strings. In an instant, the two enemies sank into the artistic conception of the music. Violent waves swept at them. Their faces turned aghast and they stumbled back. But at that instant, sword light seemed to come out of the words on the sword wall. It transformed into a tangible sword intent that burst from the stone. It cut through everything, sweeping at the two figures. Rain fell down. The two scrambled back but couldn''t escape from the rain. When the raindrops fell onto them, they went through the body. The men dropped from the sky.


    He''s that powerful? Everyone looked at Ye Futian in shock. The power of the stone wall''s intent was a known fact but they didn''t expect Ye Futian to wield it so powerfully. It seemed that even if Yun Qianmo hadn''t acted earlier, Liu Yuan still wouldn''t be Ye Futian''s match.


    The Nandou people shook inwardly. They didn''t know what had happened when they first arrived. After seeing Ye Futian, they immediately thought of Emperor Luo''s words and wanted to kill him for the achievement. They didn''t expect to be forced into this dead end.


    "Let''s go." The figures all retreated. They clearly understood the situation.


    "Why leave after coming? Why don''t you all stay?" As Ye Futian spoke, his sword intent grew stronger until it enveloped the entire Cang Mountain Relic. It crisscrossed and Yun Qianmo flashed continuously. The surrounding people kept seeing people drop down until everyone who went to kill Ye Futian had fallen.


    The air was dead silent. Under Ye Futian and Yun Qianmo''s cooperation, the dozens of strong cultivators in the Dharma Plane had all been killed. There were even those at the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane within them.


    This was done by relying on the stone wall''s intent but it was still terrifying. The others were thankful they didn''t go against Ye Futian. Otherwise, it would be tragic.


    At this time, Ye Futian''s eyes fell upon someone in the distance��Xi Lou. He was the only one who didn''t act so he was still alive.


    "Why didn''t you do anything?" Ye Futian asked.


    Even when we''re out of here, I promise I''ll never work for Emperor Luo." Xi Lou didn''t seem to answer the question but was speaking for survival.


    "Okay. If I see you work for the Luo family in the future, I will take your life. Go now," Ye Futian said with a smile. Xi Lou retreated immediately; he didn''t stop at all. He had a lower plane so he didn''t try. He didn''t expect this to save his life. Naturally, he could tell that either Ye Futian or Emperor Luo could kill each other so he knew what to say if he wanted to live.


    After Xi Lou left, Yun Qianmo floated into the distance. Ye Futian looked at her and asked, "Did you comprehend everything?"


    Yun Qianmo nodded lightly. Her gaze at Ye Futian was very calm��neither arrogant nor lowly. She had agreed to be Ye Futian''s maid but this didn''t mean she would be under him. Ye Futian had given her the stone wall''s intent so she fulfilled her responsibility. When Ye Futian gave her an order, she acted without any hesitation.


    "Good." Ye Futian stopped playing and the Guqin Spirit disappeared. "Let''s return to the Qianmeng City," he said.


    Everyone had comprehended the Cang Mountain Relic and received some fate. It was meaningless to stay there.


    Yun Qianmo stepped forward and quietly went behind Ye Futian as if she wanted to play the role of a maid well.


    "Ruo Yu, what do you plan on doing?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "I plan on leaving the Ancient Barren World. I feel that I''m not suited for here," Ruo Yu replied, smiling. She had some feelings after experiencing all this.


    "Okay. Let''s meet again if we have the chance," Ye Futian said. Then his group climbed onto the Black Wind Eagle. Wind came and it flapped its wings, going forward at a much faster speed than before.


    Seeing the figure in the air, Ruo Yu smiled and waved. This short experience was quite unforgettable. She didn''t know if they would have the chance to meet again.


    Beside her, the anger of Ruo Qiu, Wang Jue, and the others had faded. They felt numb inside. Earlier, Ye Futian and Yun Qianmo had worked together and killed so many Dharma cultivators in the snap of a finger. They were so shocked. The amazing figure that sat before the stone wall was so foreign. It seemed that he was born to look down from the top despite not being in a high plane.


    The Black Wind Eagle rode the wind in the air.


    "Aren''t you afraid I''ll turn back on you?" Yun Qianmo asked curiously, looking at Ye Futian from behind.


    "You agreed to be my maid, sacrificing your reputation. If it''s just for the Cang Mountain Relic, then do whatever you want," Ye Futian said to Yun Qianmo with a smile.


    Yun Qianmo studied the handsome face and said, "I agreed but there are some things I won''t do."


    "Such as?" Ye Futian''s expression grew strange as he looked at her.


    "You know what I''m saying." Yun Qianmo looked away. "As for anything else, I''ll do my best."


    Ye Futian blinked. Glancing at Lin Yueyao, he muttered, "Do I seem like that kind of person?"


    "Yes." Lin Yueyao smiled and nodded.


    Ye Futian frowned. "Don''t worry. You won''t have the chance even if you want to," he muttered. "Oh, Yun Qianmo, what exactly is the noble fate?" Ye Futian''s fate bloomed. It was dazzling and towered from miles high.


    Yun Qianmo looked at it with shock. How did he receive so much fate so quickly? "Didn''t Ruo Yu tell you?" she asked.


    "She only told me how to receive the fate," Ye Futian answered.


    Yun Qianmo nodded lightly. "When the fate becomes strong enough, it''ll change in quality and become the noble fate with noble intent. This is the power belonging to those in the Noble Plane. Receiving the noble intent in the Dharma Plane means that you can at least be a Noble in the future. Therefore, the most powerful in the Eastern Barren Territory choose those who receive the noble fate in the lower Ancient Barren World as their disciples."


    Those in the upper Ancient Barren World were already above the Arcana Plane and entered to break into the Noble Plane. They didn''t have as much potential as those talents who could receive the noble will in the lower Ancient Barren World.


    "The noble fate has different levels too. You probably felt that the intent from the stone walls can be at the noble level. Therefore, once you accumulate enough, it can transform into true noble will. This type of noble fate is a lower level."


    Yun Qianmo continued, "Some even stronger geniuses can use the fate that they received to figure out the noble fate by themselves. For example, I''m a swordsman in training. I only perceive sword fate or use all fates to cultivate the sword intent until I create sword intent at the noble level. This is pure noble fate and is the middle level.


    "Even more monstrous figures can perceive different types of noble will in the Dharma Plane. These terrifying people will have the upper level noble fate. If someone can have this fate, all the top forces will fight for him but this is too rare. I heard that even if someone like that exists, he''ll be someone already trained by the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory."

 159 I Hope You Can Take I

    Chapter 159: I Hope You Can Take It


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian listened quietly. He only spoke when he was sure that Yun Qianmo was finished with what she had to say. "Is there anything higher than the upper-level noble fate?"


    Yun Qianmo froze. Looking at Ye Futian, she said in what was almost a whisper, "Higher?"


    "Yeah," nodded Ye Futian. He looked right at her as he said, "How am I supposed to differentiate myself from the others otherwise? Only upper-level noble fate can help me do that."


    "..." Yun Qianmo blinked at the young man in front of her. Seeing the look in his eye, she really wanted to ask him if he was serious. Although Ye Futian''s gifts were extraordinary and he did what no one else had been able to do ever before at the Cang Mountain Relic, the location was merely a historical site outside of Qianmeng City. The people in this city were all from the Qianmeng area. The most powerful cultivators here were still obviously weaker than those groomed in the Eastern Barren Territory. On the other hand, Yu Sheng was undisturbed by what Ye Futian had said. He was used to it.


    "I''ve never heard of it," said Yun Qianmo.


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded and continued, "After we get back to Qianmeng City can you get your hands on a map of the Ancient Barren World?"


    "I can, but it won''t be absolutely accurate," nodded Yun Qianmo.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded as well and turned his attention away. He was looking into the distance as if he were in deep thought. The battle between the Nandou Nation and the Cangye Kingdom should have begun by now. Luo Junlin should also already be cultivating at the Royal Xuan Temple. Once Luo Junlin made a name for himself there and acquainted himself with people with any power at the Royal Xuan Temple, it would be disastrous for the Cangye Kingdom.


    These powerful groups had many Noble Plane cultivators. If Luo Junlin''s talents were outstanding enough, it was possible that these powerful cultivators would step up to help him. Although this was the worst-case scenario, it was not something to be ignored. In the Ancient Barren World, Ye Futian must stand out against the others. At the very least, he had to exceed Luo Junlin. This was the only way he could take control of the narrative. Ye Futian would not be the passive party again. The events of that day in Donghai City were not going to happen again.


    In the past, Emperor Luo''s imperial order was a force of power he could not go against. If the Royal Xuan Temple was anything like Emperor Luo, then the results would be the same. Ye Futian refused to let such things happen to himself once again. However, all these pessimistic thoughts were only hypothetical at this point. Normally, the higher-ups of a great powerful force like the Royal Xuan Temple would not meddle with wars between countries in the Hundred Lands.


    After arriving back in Qianmeng City, Ye Futian did not return to the inn from before. Yun Qianmo found a private residence for him. It was very grand. Ye Futian secretly praised his maid for a job well-done. It was indeed very convenient to have the top disciple of a powerful clan of the Qianmeng area as a maid.


    Ye Futian cultivated by himself in the court of the residence. He was practicing his sparring skills. There was an explosion of fate, climbing to new levels. His body was enveloped in a strong force of will which carried into every punch he threw forward. However, the power of the will was very mixed because they had different origins. There was the guqin will, the sword will, wind will, and will from different demon beasts. The power of these wills joined to form fate. With the fate, Ye Futian was much more powerful than before. Will was a true form of ability. It could be used in combat. If he was able to acquire enough fate to form noble fate and noble level willpower, it would increase his powers to a terrifying new level.


    The Ancient Barren World was indeed a mystical world.


    After cultivation martial arts for a while, Ye Futian began to practice on the guqin. The melodious sound carried guqin will, strengthening the artistic conception created by the song. Just then, a beautiful figure was headed towards Ye Futian. It was Yun Qianmo who had just returned. She stopped in front of Ye Futian and quietly watched him play. When he played the guqin, he was a completely different person.


    The music slowed until it came to stop. Ye Futian lifted his head to see Yun Qianmo.


    "This is a map of the Ancient Barren World," said Yun Qianmo as she handed the object over to Ye Futian. His Guqin Spirit disappeared. Ye Futian laid out the map on the table in front of him.


    "This is where we are now, Qianmeng City." Yun Qianmo pointed to a spot on the map. Ye Futian''s eyes followed her finger. It was already labeled on the map, the words "Qianmeng City" were marked down.


    Ye Futian continued looking downward from their location on the map and saw a large piece of barren land. The end of the barren land was the border of the Ancient Barren World. That should be where he entered. The entrance to the Hundred Lands. The entrance to the Hundred Lands had just opened, so it was not yet marked on the map. There were also no other cities. Just a piece of barren land. Qianmeng City was the closest city to the Hundred Lands.


    Looking north on the map, there were a couple of cities near Qianmeng City. Ye Futian asked, "Do these cities also correspond to the outside world?"


    "Yes." Yun Qianmo nodded and began to explain, "The places which these cities correspond to are similar to the Qianmeng area. Among these cities, this city here, Loulan City, is central. It was built by the Ancient Loulan in the outside world. Ancient Loulan governs many countries. In the outside world, it is a territory of extreme power and is also located at the center of those countries."


    Ye Futian nodded at her explanation. His eyes continued north on the map and he pointed at a spot at the center of the map. "To Qianmeng City, Loulan City is the center, but to this city here, Loulan City is merely an outlying city." The city Ye Futian pointed at was surrounded by cities, all at close proximity. If the cities around Loulan City formed a district, then there were many districts around this city.


    Yun Qianmo''s finger circled around that city as she said, "Look here. These cities are all entrances for powerful groups of the Eastern Barren Territory. They have dominated a majority of the land and exist independently from each other. These cities form the central district of the Ancient Barren World and correspond to the center of the Eastern Barren Territory in the outside world. That city you were pointing at is the absolute center of the Ancient Barren World, the Barren City. Not a lot of people from the Qianmeng area have been there."


    Yun Qianmo was the disciple of a powerful clan in the Qianmeng area. Someone like her was safer in Qianmeng City. Even someone in a lower level of cultivation like Ruo Yu would be able to get by because no one dared to mess with a disciple of these powerful clans, but things would be completely different once they stepped out of Qianmeng City. No one could predict what would happen. Therefore, only those who were confident enough in their own abilities would travel to other cities in the Ancient Barren World. Powerful cultivators from the Qianmeng area would travel to the district center, Loulan City. However, no one dared to step into a place like Barren City carelessly. Even the best of the best from the Qianmeng area could only keep a low-profile once they stepped into Barren City.


    Ye Futian nodded his head lightly. No wonder people said the Ancient Barren World was not only the road to the Noble Plane but also an access way. In theory, you have access to anywhere in the Eastern Barren Territory from the Ancient Barren World. It was a huge shortcut. It was almost impossible for Dharma Plane cultivators to reach the Eastern Barren Territory in the outside world.


    "If we get the chance, I''ll bring you to Barren City," said Ye Futian. He lifted his head to smile at Yun Qianmo.


    She took one look at him. He wants to go to Barren City in the Glory Plane? They had not known each other for long but she felt that this guy in front of her had a train of thought that ran on a different track than the mass majority.


    "What historical site around Qianmeng City has the strongest fate?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Just let me know when you want to go," Yun Qianmo said instead of answering his question. Ye Futian gave her a curious look. It seemed like she had everything planned out already. Perhaps, she was looking forward to this location as well.


    "Alright. I have to cultivate for a while. I''ll call for you when I need you," nodded Ye Futian. The fate in his body took over once again. He wanted to familiarize himself with its power. He also wanted to stabilize his level of cultivation. After all, he had finally stepped into the peak of the Glory Plane. He could break into the Dharma Plane at any time.


    ...


    The happenings of Qianmeng City''s Cang Mountain Relic spread to many. It was said that a mere Glory Plane cultivator was able to comprehend the true meanings of all four stone walls and was even able to us the will of the stone walls to fight after his enlightenment. He also took down multiple upper-level Dharma Plane cultivators in battle. Furthermore, female prodigy Yun Qianmo of Qianmeng City''s Sword Clan had agreed to be his maid. When the news got out, other prodigies gained interest on the topic. The Yun Qianmo had actually become the maid of another person. And a Glory Plane cultivator at that. Countless people used this opportunity to mock the members of the Sword Clan. The Sword Clan members in Qianmeng City were embarrassed and helpless. Many of them tried to find out where Yun Qianmo had gone.


    On this day, many people arrived outside the residence where Ye Futian and his friends were staying. A group of them were having an exchange with Yun Qianmo.


    "Can I help you, Senior Brother Yang?" Yun Qianmo asked coldly. It seemed that she was speaking to a senior brother from the Sword Clan. He was another top disciple, prodigy Yang Ziqi.


    "Didn''t you know that your decision would affect the clan''s reputation?" Yang Ziqi asked her.


    "This is personal and has nothing to do with the clan," said Yun Qianmo.


    "You''re a member of the clan, of course it has to do with the clan! Gossip is a fearful thing. Don''t you understand that?" Yang Ziqi was becoming angry.


    "I don''t care," she answered calmly.


    "I care," he said.


    "So what?" Yun Qianmo replied.


    Just then, Ye Futian and others walked out from the residence.


    "What''s going on?" asked Ye Futian.


    "It''s nothing," Yun Qianmo answered. Yang Ziqi looked over at Ye Futian. His gaze was sharp and hints of sword intent flew towards Ye Futian.


    "Is this him?" asked Yang Ziqi.


    "It has nothing to do with you," Yun Qianmo''s frown grew.


    "His looks are not too shabby," Yang Ziqi sneered. Ye Futian''s expression turned into a strange one. He knew that he was handsome, but to hear something of the sorts come from the lips of a man was just plain weird.


    "So, that''s why you''re willing to be a maid, to be at his every beck and call?" Yang Ziqi asked with a look of disgust.


    Naturally, Yun Qianmo understood what he was hinting at. Her expression turned ice cold and sword intent threatened to explode as it radiated from her.


    Yang Ziqi''s gave her a stern look before giving Ye Futian a once over. With a cold demeanor, he asked, "How does it feel having the female prodigy of the Sword Clan serving at your feet?"


    "Leave," said Yun Qianmo.


    "Are you protecting him already?" Yang Ziqi asked with a fierce look in his eyes. He glared at Ye Futian before saying, "I hope you can take it."


    After these words, he turned to leave with a murderous look in his eyes.


    He had pursued Yun Qianmo but was rejected. Now, she had become the maid of another man. It was not hard to take a guess as to how Yang Ziqi felt.


    The people around watched with interest. They were all thinking, had Yun Qianmo "served" Ye Futian?

 160 Head Hunting in Public

    Chapter 160: Head Hunting in Public


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yun Qianmo saw everyone looking at her and her expression grew colder. When she turned to look at Ye Futian, the coldness disappeared and became calm. Since she made her decision, she knew others would talk. She had considered all of this beforehand. If she cared, she wouldn''t have agreed.


    "Has he pursued you before?" Ye Fuian asked, chuckling. Yang Ziqi''s reaction had been too dramatic.


    Yun Qianmo looked at him and nodded lightly.


    "He''ll be even more too low for you in the future," Ye Futian said. "Tomorrow, let''s go to the place you mentioned."


    "Okay." Yun Qianmo nodded and they returned to the pavilion.


    Yu Sheng walked up to Ye Futian and said, "While cultivating these days, I realized that not only does fate increase your abilities, it also helps with cultivation."


    "If you perceive the same elemental fate, it''ll definitely help," Ye Futian said with a nod. Fate was the power of intent and the strength those of the Noble Plane had. It would obviously aid cultivation. For example, the sword wall would help those of the Sword Clan in future cultivation.


    "We''re almost in the Dharma Plane. I have an idea." Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian.


    "Add the strength of the intent when agglomerating the Dharma?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes." Yu Sheng nodded. "I don''t know if it''ll work."


    "We can try." Ye Futian had had the same idea when cultivating earlier.


    The group returned to the pavilion and continued to cultivate. The second day, Ye Futian had Yun Qianmo gather everyone and they departed on the Black Wind Eagle. In the air, the eagle rode the wind and was unbelievably fast. It flew more smoothly than before as if it had melded into the wind. This made it more comfortable as well and it was excited about the future. Before, Ye Futian had controlled it forcefully. With the Snow Ape there, it couldn''t fight back. Now that Ye Futian developed, it finally saw a way to evolve. The other demon beasts probably wouldn''t have this chance. It could only pray that Ye Futian wouldn''t look down on it and change to another demon. Yun Qianmo pointed out the direction. This time, they were going into the Qianmeng City rather than out.


    "Where are we going?" Ye Futian asked. He''d only told Yun Qianmo he wanted to go to the place with the strongest fate but she didn''t tell him the specific location.


    "The Noble Grotto," Yun Qianmo said. "It''s inside the city and like you said, it''s the place in the Qianmeng City with the strongest fate. It''s much stronger than the Cang Mountain Relic."


    Ye Futian''s eyes brightened. "Why did Yan Lu go to the Cang Mountain rather than here?"


    "The fate is strong but it''s not easy to attain. The Noble Grotto gathers the true creams of the crop. With Yan Lu''s talent cultivation, he wouldn''t receive anything even if he went," Yun Qianmo said. "I went before but didn''t accomplish anything."


    Ye Futian nodded. He was excited to see what the Noble Grotto was like. As the Black Wind Eagle flew, Ye Futian saw many people also riding demon beasts toward the same direction.


    "We''re almost there. Most go just for fun," Yun Qianmo said, eyeing all the people in the sky.


    Ye Futian chuckled. After a while, the crowd became denser. Some in the front went down. An extremely large grotto appeared in his vision. It took up a large expanse of land. The air around it glowed faintly like fate. It filled the sky, making the grotto seem mysterious. As they neared it, the Black Wind Eagle started going downward and landed on the ground.


    At that moment, Ye Futian looked up at the large grotto. He actually felt a faint pressure. It was the noble intent pushing down.


    There were various carved head sculptures on top of the grotto. The strong noble intent seemed to come from them. The closer he got to the grotto, the stronger the pressure was. If he was walking on the corridor above the grotto, it would probably be too strong to bear.


    "It''s indeed much more powerful than the Cang Mountain Relic," Ye Futian said. He could feel just by standing here that the fate contained in the Noble Grotto was incomparable to the four walls of the Cang Mountain Relic. There were more people here too and they all had unique auras. Many seemed to be perceiving the intent hidden inside the grotto from the top as well.


    In the near distance, a figure walked towards them. Coldness flashed past his eyes and he laughed. "Oh, it''s Yun Qianmo." It was Liu Yuan, the one wounded by Yun Qianmo at the Cang Mountain Relic. His voice attracted many people''s attention. Mostly everyone here was from the strong forces of the Qianmeng area. They were familiar with Yun Qianmo from the Sword Clan.


    Many people looked over in interest. Liu Yuan continued with a smile, "How does it feel being a servant?"


    Coldness flashed past Yun Qianmo''s eyes. Her sword intent grew more obvious. Liu Yuan wasn''t intimidated. This wasn''t the Cang Mountain Relic. Without Ye Futian and the intent of the sword wall, he didn''t think he would be defeated like before. The battle from days ago was honestly humiliating.


    "Yun Qianmo." Another voice rang out at that moment. A youth with an impressive presence stood in the distance and smiled at her. "Yun Qianmo, you are the pride of the Sword Clan. Don''t you feel undignified to be someone''s servant?" This was Mo Fan, another powerful clansman of the Qianmeng area.


    "I''m more curious about who took you in as a maid. I heard it''s someone in the Glory Plane," someone else mocked and looked at their group.


    "Who are they?" someone asked.


    Ye Futian was annoyed. Was Yun Qianmo really that well-known? News of what happened at the Cang Mountain Relic had spread.


    "Do you have any problems?" Ye Futian asked. Countless eyes fell on him instantly, sizing him up. Some were curious; others were mocking.


    "I heard that you''re in the Glory Plane but drove the intent of the four walls in the Cang Mountain Relic?" someone asked.


    "I was lucky," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "This modesty is different from the rumors. I heard that you were really arrogant there," a girl said, smiling at him. The rumors had said that Ye Futian was arrogant and domineering at the Cang Mountain Relic and made someone like Yun Qianmo become his servant.


    "Do I look arrogant?" Ye Futian smiled at the girl. He was handsome and his eyes were clear. He was easy on the eye and the girl chuckled, shaking her head.


    "No." She glanced at Yun Qianmo and asked, "Yun Qianmo, I''m curious as to why you made that choice."


    "It has nothing to do with you," she replied coldly. The girl was the pride of another clan. Her name was Li Lianyi.


    "I''m just curious," Li Lianyi said with a smile.


    "Let''s go," Yun Qianmo said to Ye Futian. The youth nodded and their group continued forward. Many people looked at them in amusement. Shortly after, many people followed them. Ye Futian could comprehend the walls of the Cang Mountain Relic so what about here? They wanted to see if he was truly talented or if luck also came into play.


    After a few steps, Ye Futian stopped again. There were familiar people up ahead.


    Chu Kuangren, prince of the Yunchu Nation, stared coldly at Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen''s group. It was unexpected to meet them here.


    Chu Kuangren looked in another direction. Ye Futian followed his eyes and saw more people looking at him. Zuo Qianfan and Yu Jiang of the Cangye College, as well as some other students, were present. If they were here, Ye Xiao, eldest prince of the Cangye Kingdom, would also be there.


    Ye Xiao stood with his hands behind his back. He looked forward into the grotto, appearing to be focused. A moment later, he turned around slowly and looked toward Ye Futian.


    He also saw Ye Wuchen and Lin Yueyao and found it odd. Was Ye Wuchen and Lin Yueyao really following Ye Futian?


    "Your Highness." Seeing Ye Xiao look over, Ye Futian nodded with a smile. No matter what his attitude was, Ye Futian had to follow the rules. After all, he was the prince of the Cangye Kingdom.


    Ye Xiao looked at him coolly. He was surprised Ye Futian could arrive at Qianmeng City so quickly and still be alive. He hadn''t heard about the Cang Mountain Relic event. Even though many people knew about it, they focused more on Yun Qianmo. Ye Futian''s name was rarely mentioned. Ye Xiao didn''t know Yun Qianmo so he didn''t pay attention.


    "Wuchen, Lin Yueyao, how have you been?" Ye Xiao didn''t look at Ye Futian again. He asked about the others instead.


    "I''m fine," Ye Wuchen answered coolly.


    "Me too." Lin Yueyao nodded and smiled. She felt that the atmosphere was off. She obviously knew about what Ye Xiao had done after entering the Ancient Barren World. One was the prince while the other was highly valued by Emperor Ye and this prince didn''t like Ye Futian.


    "Follow me from now on," Ye Xiao said to them. Ye Wuchen was his cousin and extremely talented. He deserved to be roped in. If he got too close to Ye Futian, he would probably turn into someone like Ye Danchen.


    As for Lin Yueyao, she was the daughter of the Lin family. With her beautiful face, she deserved to be asked personally by Ye Xiao. He had considered having her become the future queen with her talent and beauty.


    Ye Futian was a bit shocked when he heard Ye Xiao''s words. Was he head-hunting right in front of Ye Futian? There was no dignity left for him at all.


    As for Zuo Qianfan and Yu Jiang behind Ye Xiao, they laughed. Since the prince asked personally, Ye Wuchen and Lin Yueyao should know to make the right decision. Ye Xiao would most likely become the future crown prince of the Cangye Kingdom. If he received the noble fate in the Ancient Barren World, there would be no competition!

 161 Then Die

    Chapter 161: Then Die


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Wuchen arched an eyebrow. Determination flashed past his eyes. Ye Xiao was his cousin but they actually rarely interacted. Ye Wuchen focused on cultivation. Power meant nothing to him. Especially after the Ancient Barren World opened, the Hundred Lands would change soon too. If they still held the old views that royal power was above all else, there would be danger.


    If the Ancient Barren World was permanently open, it would create more Nobles.


    Ye Xiao was heavily influenced by royal power. This was probably related to his status as the most possible heir to the throne.


    "Thank you, Your Highness, but I''m used to being alone. I won''t travel with you," Ye Wuchen said. Saying that he wanted to be alone was to save Ye Xiao some embarrassment. However, Ye Xiao and the people of the Cangye Kingdom were shocked. They stared at Ye Wuchen. He was obviously with Ye Futian''s group. Why did he say he was used to being alone?


    Ye Xiao''s eyes glinted. Was Ye Wuchen joking with him?


    "Alright." Ye Xiao smiled thinly. Since Ye Wuchen had made his choice, he wouldn''t say anything else.


    "Yueyao, what about you?" Ye Xiao glanced at Lin Yueyao. He''d removed her surname, making them feel closer as if it was some type of hint.


    Lin Yueyao''s eyes glimmered. She felt a bit awkward but still smiled gently and said, "Your Highness, it''s hard for me to say."


    With that, Lin Yueyao looked at Ye Futian again. This answer didn''t say anything but it was undoubtedly still a rejection. Her eyes made people think of many things too. Hard for her to say?


    Ye Xiao''s smile disappeared completely. Seeing Ye Futian and Lin Yueyao, the people of the Cangye College sharpened their gazes. Many glared at Ye Futian. Was the top beauty of the Cangye Kingdom��?


    Seeing Lin Yueyao look at him, Ye Futian was surprised too. Why did it feel like he was thrown under the bus? Hard to say? What did that mean?


    "Good." Ye Xiao''s tone was cold. Whether it was an excuse or something else, Ye Wuchen and Lin Yuyao had both undoubtedly rejected him. His confident words from before were even more like a joke.


    As the Cangye Kingdom prince, he didn''t have more of a right to speak than a 17-year-old genius? No matter how talented Ye Futian was, Ye Xiao was the future owner of the kingdom. He left, walking to the Noble Grotto without looking at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian didn''t really mind Ye Xiao''s attitude. Emperor Ye had saved him and he would remember that. If Ye Xiao was willing to be friends, he would do so willingly. But Ye Xiao and Ye Danchen were all the same to him. They were both Emperor Ye''s children and he didn''t want to get into the fight for the throne.


    But Ye Xiao had made the boundaries clear since the start, seeing Ye Futian as an enemy and part of Ye Danchen''s group. He was too calculative, probably due to being born into royalty. This backfired on him.


    "What do you mean?" Ye Futian stared at Lin Yueyao. What does this have to do with me?


    Lin Yueyao looked wronged and innocent. She whispered, "Then what do you want me to say?"


    Right now, Lin Yueyao''s eyes are so powerful, Ye Futian thought as he looked at her. Was she conquered by his charm?


    "It''s not good to be so talented," Ye Futian sighed as he looked away. Lin Yueyao stared at him unblinkingly. This guy was so conceited.


    "What''s so special about the Noble Grotto?" Ye Futian asked Yun Xiaomo. He didn''t mention Ye Xiao. It was a small thing to him.


    "The powerful intent contained in the Noble Grotto will press down on anyone that gets close. It gets stronger and stronger as you go. If you cast some power to resist it, the grotto will retaliate with the same element," Yun Qianmo said, looking at the majestic Noble Grotto. "You can only receive the chance to transform the power attacking you into fate if you can endure the powerful pressure. Then you can walk to the corridor and sense the artistic conception at a close distance."


    Hearing that, Ye Futian looked up at the corridor. Two figures sat there cross-legged and cultivated with their eyes closed. Only two people were in the huge grotto. They were extremely brilliant. The two shone brightly and their fate shook violently.


    At this moment, Ye Futian saw Ye Xiao walk towards the Noble Grotto. Instantly, the shimmering light of the grotto turned into formless power that rushed towards Ye Xiao. Extremely powerful sword intent burst from Ye Xiao. It wrapped around him and he forced himself forward. At that moment, Ye Futian could clearly feel a mysterious pressure come from the grotto. It was like a god''s power. It rushed at Ye Xiao, transforming into sword intent as well.


    Ye Futian couldn''t help but operate Freedom Meditation. He discovered that the pressure came from several statues in the grotto. The statues contained sword intent��the same elemental intent that Yun Qianmo had said.


    As the elder prince of the Cangye Kingdom, he was naturally more talented than others. Not only was he a swordsman in training, he was also a Spiritual Elemental sorcerer. All royalty, even Ye Wuchen, actually focused on the Spiritual Elemental and minored in swordsmanship. They were extremely powerful.


    He continued forward, resisting the sword pressure. Ye Xiao continuously approached the grotto, not stopping until he was 13 steps away.


    "These are known as the 13 Steps of Death," Yun Qianmo said. "The intent attacks multiply and will even truly injure the person. The geniuses are all stopped within these thirteen steps. In fact, you can gain something from each step."


    Ye Futian nodded. The Freedom Meditation was operating at top speed. The grotto''s intent slowed down in his eyes as it attacked Ye Xiao.


    Boom! Ye Xiao stepped forward forcefully. His sword aura cut through everything. There seemed to be a violent windstorm. Powerful waves swirled like tidal waves. The first waves were forced back. It grew stronger and screamed as it came for Ye Xiao.


    It''s not enough to only cultivate martial arts and not Spiritual power because pure martial artists can''t enter this grotto, Ye Futian thought. As Ye Xiao made his second step, the aura grew stronger.


    At the third step, the sword aura filled the sky. Ye Xiao stopped. He brandished his sword again. Sword intent blanketed him, enveloping his body, transforming into an extremely strong shield. He stepped again but similar pressure transformed into a sword, sweeping towards him. It destroyed everything and fell upon Ye Xiao. There were sizzling sounds. Ye Xiao flew out and kept retreating. He looked pathetic and was even bleeding.


    "Prince!" The Cangye Kingdom''s people walked over but Ye Xiao waved his hand. He looked embarrassed; he only made three steps.


    "Every step is like a limit. You have to keep overcoming your limits," Ye Futian muttered.


    "Genius, are you going to try?" Someone giggled. Li Lianyi looked at Ye Futian from the near distance.


    "The Noble Grotto is different from the Cang Mountain Relic," Liu Yuan said.


    Many talents had come to the grotto and tried but only those two could reach the corridor. They''d spent a lot of time trying too.


    "The Cang Mountain Relic is enlightenment but the Noble Grotto relies more on your own intent power and strong cultivation talent," Mo Fan, the pride of the Qianmeng area. He also walked over.


    The two sitting in the corridor after the 13 Steps of Death were the top talents of the Qianmeng area. At this time, two more figures appeared in the air and descended.


    "Yun Qianmo," one called. She looked over and saw Yang Ziqi, the senior brother who''d humiliated her yesterday.


    The one beside Yang Ziqi had his hair tied up. He had a sharp aura. Seeing him, Yun Qianmo called, "Senior Brother Zhao."


    Zhao Han. Everyone looked up at him. Zhao Han was the top disciple of the Sword Clan. He was extremely talented and had once made ten of the Thirteen Steps of Death. He only had three more steps left so it was obvious how powerful he was.


    Zhao Han looked at Yun Qianmo and said, "Junior Sister Yun, I''m very disappointed."


    No matter what, Yun Qianmo''s actions had disgraced the Sword Clan. After all, she was a top disciple.


    "Senior Brother, I��" Yun Qianmo wasn''t as cold as she was to Yang Ziqi. Zhao Han was respected and extraordinarily talented. He was the leader of their generation. Everyone respected him.


    Zhao Han didn''t reply. He looked to Ye Futian.


    "You have high comprehension abilities to be able to comprehend all four sides of the Cang Mountain Relic. I heard that the Sword Clan offended you first so you made Yun Qianmo your servant," Zhao Han said.


    He continued, "Since she agreed, I''ll give you a chance. If you can beat me at the Noble Grotto today, I''ll let Yun Qianmo cultivate with you. The Sword Clan won''t bother you anymore. If you can''t beat me but still dared to take our disciple as a servant," Zhao Han said coldly, "then die."


    The cold words revealed an undeniable message. Beside them, Yang Ziqi sneered. Zhao Han was so talented. He''d once made ten of the Thirteen Steps of Death. Barely any of their generation could do that.


    Ye Futian would definitely die today.


    So domineering. Everyone chuckled after hearing Zhao Han''s words. With his abilities, he was qualified to say that. He gave Ye Futian a chance. If Ye Futian won, he would have the right to take the Sword Clan''s pride as a servant. If not, he would die.

 162 Trio

    Chapter 162: Trio


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at Zhao Han. He had handsome and clear features. Just standing there gave him an extraordinary aura. Ye Futian had naturally noticed that Yun Qianmo''s attitude towards Zhao Han was different from hers to Yang Ziqi. It was obvious that Zhao Han had a higher status in the Sword Clan. That was why he had a cold expression and arrogant words. He said that if Ye Futian could defeat him, he wouldn''t care about Yun Qianmo again. If Ye Futian lost, he would die. However, what did Yun Qianmo being a servant have anything to do with him? This meant that if Ye Futian won, he would win. If he lost, he would die. How tyrannical.


    "Would you like to consider taking your words back?" Ye Futian asked Zhao Han.


    Zhao Han gazed at Ye Futian. His eyes were sharp as if sword intent was flowing from them. He said coldly, "I never take back my words. If you don''t accept it, you''ll also die." No one in the Glory Plane was qualified to negotiate with him, especially not one from the Hundred Lands.


    Ye Futian smiled. Instead of arguing, he walked towards the Noble Grotto. Yu Sheng glared coldly at Zhao Han and followed Ye Futian. The group walked towards the grotto.


    Zhao Han''s eyes were indifferent. He moved towards the grotto with Yang Ziqi. Everyone around them started walking towards the grotto as well. Zhao Han had once walked ten steps into the grotto. Could he break the record this time? Of the 13 Steps of Death, apparently, the last three were the most terrifying and could really kill someone.


    They were all a bit sympathetic of Ye Futian. This genius from the Hundred Lands had extraordinary comprehension but would most likely die here.


    The Noble Grotto was vast and wide. The people scattered in all directions, ready to try with Zhao Han and Ye Futian. They were secretly competitive. Motivation came with competition and made them want to go forward even more strongly.


    Many extraordinary figures stood before the grotto. An invisible burst of majesty traveled over. The people in the back looked forward with an odd brightness in their eyes. These geniuses were going forward together. It was rare and interesting.


    Zhao Han was the best of the Sword Clan this generation. He was extremely talented and had already taken ten steps. No one else could top him. All the talents of the Qianmeng area were eclipsed by him.


    Li Lianyi was a girl but she was extremely talented as well and would probably have a great performance.


    Yun Qianmo had agreed to be Ye Futian''s servant but she wasn''t weak either. According to rumors, she had defeated Liu Yuan at the Cang Mountain Relic. However, she''d relied on the stone wall''s sword intent at the time. The people wondered who would be stronger now. And how would Yang Ziqi and the prides of the Hundred Lands perform?


    Of course, they were excited to see how Ye Futian would fare as well. He was a genius who had once comprehended all four walls of the Cang Mountain Relic. The end was already determined but they still wanted to see how many steps he could take. Seven steps? If he could take seven out of the 13, it would be more than half and he would be astonishingly talented. Those of the Qianmeng area who could take seven steps were all renowned figures.


    Ye Xiao studied Ye Futian''s group and stepped forward. He prepared to continue trying. Last time, he''d only taken three steps which wasn''t a good result.


    Chu Kuangren and the people of the Yunchu Nation all walked to the grotto. At the Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet, he didn''t even have a chance to fight. At that time, Ye Wuchen''s power had made him want to avoid him. Now, he had the chance to quietly compete with Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Futian didn''t know what everyone else was thinking. At this moment, he stood before the grotto, feeling the mysterious majesty. He silently praised the Noble Grotto''s miraculous feeling. This pressure was like heavenly might. It made one revere it. But at this moment, he was going to challenge this reverent strength.


    Picking up his feet, Ye Futian walked forward. He didn''t use any elemental power and merely walked forward with his body. The statues carved into the grotto glowed faintly. A mysterious pressure surged from them, transforming into tangible power pushing down on him. However, it wasn''t strong enough and couldn''t stop him. He continued forward as if strolling in the garden. He quickly came to the 13 Steps of Death. The next 13 steps were the true trial.


    The formless pressure continued pouring out, transforming into intent that rushed into his mind.


    Zhao Han from the Sword Clan was left of Ye Futian. To his right was Yu Sheng and Yun Qianmo''s group. Everyone had come to this point.


    Thud. Beside him, Zhao Han stepped forward. He made three continuous steps and was extremely powerful. After the third step, he paused and glanced at Ye Futian. Then he said to Yun Qianmo, "I hope he won''t be too disappointing. Otherwise, you''d seem too cheap." With that, he took another step. Wild sword intent swept into a storm around him. Taking four continuous steps, he was extremely powerful and threw everyone far behind him.


    Ye Futian didn''t mind. He calmly made his first step. An invisible aura radiated from him. This step was extremely stable. His body didn''t even shake at all. Countless statues lit up and countless waves of pressure came down on him. They transformed into powerful intent, attacking his tenacity wildly. The strong cultivators around him all stepped forward. The first step was nothing for the geniuses present.


    Ye Futian quietly felt the power. Instead of looking at the others, he focused on the grotto up ahead and walked forward. As he continued, he still didn''t release any elemental power.


    The mighty grotto had a mysterious power. It came again like a tide and was even stronger, crashing heavily against his body. Strong intent rushed into his mind. It was terrifyingly powerful, almost enough to break down his will.


    The strong power transformed into a windstorm but Ye Futian was still unmoved. He was extremely stable and soon took his third step. An even stronger power and intent came, even causing his body to whistle. That was how powerful it was.


    Yu Sheng was beside him. He took the same steps and also didn''t release any elemental power. He used his pure strength. He naturally had god-like strength and was the best at this. Therefore, the grotto responded with similarly strong power.


    "It''s the third step." The people before the grotto watched the group. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Yun Qianmo, and the others had all taken their third step. From the looks of things, many could continue. At least, the fourth step would be no problem.


    Ye Xiao was at the third step as well. Earlier, he had stopped here. This time, he must break through. Closing his eyes, the sword intent wrapping around him was shocking. The spiritual intent had transformed into a sharp sword going forward. He stepped and the terrifying sword intent came rushing into his mind. He didn''t move, allowing the two forces to clash. Finally, he succeeded. In this moment, Ye Xiao felt his intent strengthening.


    He opened his eyes. The light of a sword flashed past. He smiled and successfully made his fourth step.


    Before the grotto, some figures had stopped. The power of the mighty grotto was too much and they couldn''t overcome it. Right now, the strongest was still Zhao Han. He had taken his seventh step and stopped again to look back at Ye Futian and the others.


    Is Zhao Han waiting for Ye Futian? many people thought. He didn''t even struggle with the seventh step. No wonder he was number one of the Sword Clan.


    "You''re too slow," he called to Ye Futian. "Where''s the talent you showed at the Cang Mountain Relic?"


    Ye Futian glanced at Zhao Han in the near distance and looked away. He continued looking forward and raised his foot. He made his fourth step. Everyone''s eyes flashed. Before they could react, Ye Futian raised his foot again and took his fifth step. Many people trained their eyes on him. Soon after, they saw him take his sixth step. When he stopped, everyone felt an unbelievable power. It swept past everything. Even when the crushing weight came, it was still unmoved.


    This�� Everyone was shocked��not due to Ye Futian taking six steps but because of how stable he was despite making three continuous steps. This meant that he could continue. His aura was getting stronger as he walked as if it could compete with the grotto''s power.


    Boom. There was a loud sound. Everyone looked over and saw that beside Ye Futian, Yu Sheng had made continuous steps like a wild demon. He also made his sixth step and his body was filled to the brim with wild power.


    Ye Wuchen''s sword intent was like a storm, wrapping around him. He pointed forward fearlessly, facing the mighty pressure directly as if he wanted to cut a path with his sword. As he pointed, he also took three steps in a row and came to the sixth step.


    The three had all taken six steps. Many people looked at them, hearts shuddering slightly.


    Ye Xiao took this in with some humiliation. They had taken six steps��such powerful six steps��while he''d only taken four. He was so far behind Ye Wuchen and the others. There was no comparison usually, but now, it was obvious. Even Lin Yueyao had taken her fourth step and was on her fifth.


    Chu Kuangren wasn''t willing to admit defeat either. He took his sixth step but was struggling. He felt like he''d used up all his strength and energy, and was extremely tense.


    At this time, Ye Futian moved again at the front of the grotto. He took his seventh step, allowing the extreme power to attack him without showing any sign of struggle.


    Thud. The loud noise was Yu Sheng''s footstep. He''d taken his seventh step as well and looked coldly at Zhao Han, stopped at the seventh step.


    Ye Wuchen pushed his hands forward and it was as if endless sharp swords poured out of him. His body moved with the swords. There seemed to be a sword spirit storm around him, destroying everything, but he made his seventh step steadily.


    Boom. With the loud boom, Chu Kuangren was thrown into the air when he tried for the seventh step and crashed onto the ground. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his face pale.


    Ye Xiao looked at the trio who had taken their seventh step and didn''t have the courage to make his fifth. Even if he did, so what?

 163 Like a Hot Knife Through Butter

    Chapter 163: Like a Hot Knife Through Butter


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Zhao Han saw that Ye Futian''s trio made seven steps, just like him. His expression changed slightly. Huffing coldly, he continued forward. On the eighth step, the sword intent destroyed everything but couldn''t stop Zhao Han. Not stopping, he made his ninth step. When his foot fell, everyone heard a sword scream through the air. The grotto''s wild intent charged towards Zhao Han''s direction. He stopped, preparing for the next step. The tenth step was his previous limit.


    So powerful. Everyone looked at Zhao Han and then to the others. Ye Futian had taken seven steps but each step afterward was impossible. The other talents, such as Mo Fan, were only at the sixth step. Li Lianyi, Yun Qianmo, Yang Ziqi, and Liu Yuan had stopped at the fifth step. They already felt the horrible pressure.


    Yang Ziqi and Liu Yuan looked upset. They were reputable figures of the Qianmeng area, after all, but were surpassed by three in lower planes. Trying for the Noble Grotto at the same time, the difference between weak and strong was obvious.


    The Noble Grotto was different from the Cang Mountain Relic. The latter depended more on comprehension but the grotto required powerful spiritual intent, unprecedented aura, extraordinary endurance, and the ability to breakthrough limits.


    Ye Futian didn''t care about the others. Actually, he''d never thought of those people. He only came to the Ancient Barren World to become stronger and fight against the Nandou Nation and Luo Junlin. He only came to the Noble Grotto for the fate. As for Zhao Han, he wouldn''t know the man if he didn''t come to make trouble. Right now, Ye Futian didn''t even notice Zhao Han or Yang Ziqi and the others. He only saw the grotto.


    Unifying his Spiritual Qi, his aura rose up. As if performing the Nine Heavenly Attacks, he stepped forward again. With the eighth step, the power swept towards him. Intent rushed into his mind, almost destroying his will. However, his spiritual intent strengthened instead. He took another step; the void shook. Ye Futian had taken a ninth step.


    He was once again equal to Zhao Han.


    Now, Zhao Han''s expression changed slightly. He''d already taken nine steps and his previous limit was ten. Ye Futian had actually caught up. There was one more step and it would be his previous limit.


    So powerful. Everyone''s hearts trembled as they stared at Ye Futian. The majority had been left in the dust already. Ye Xiao had been forced back at the fifth step. Yang Ziqi and Liu Yuan were stuck at the fifth step too, studying the two figures in the front.


    Boom! However, someone seemed unwilling to let Ye Futian and Zhao Han get all the attention. He took another step and the air shook.


    Yu Sheng had taken his eighth step. He didn''t stop. Roaring, he made his ninth step. The burly body was filled with explosive strength. The power seemed unstoppable.


    Zhao Han, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng were at the same point.


    Ye Wuchen seemed to see Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. He also moved. His body seemed to transform into a sword. He melded into the endless sword intent. Closing his eyes, he was entirely focused. He took his eighth and then ninth step. He was entirely in his own world. In this world, he was alone with his sword.


    Now, the four were together.


    Seeing this, the Black Wind Eagle in the back grew excited too, flapping its wings. As for the others, they trembled inwardly. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen had come together. Now, they all made their ninth step. The spectators'' shock was imaginable. If they took another step, it would be ten. Zhao Han''s limit was ten. This would mean that the trio was equal to Zhao Han.


    That was shocking.


    Zhao Han was the top disciple of the Sword Clan. He was extremely talented and was one of the best of the clan''s younger generation.


    As if sensing danger, Zhao Han gathered himself and took his tenth step. He yelled and his sword aura turned into a river. His entire body drowned in the sword but he still stood firmly and made his tenth step. Only the last three steps remained. Then he could step onto the corridor and feel the grotto''s intent at a close distance to add the fate to himself. However, before Zhao Han could relax, Ye Futian moved too. He made his tenth step. His aura grew stronger and stronger. It combined with his intent. Right now, he seemed to be fighting the grotto''s intent.


    Boom! With the tenth step, wild wind rose up like tidal waves. His long hair flew and his clothing fluttered. Even more terrifying was the attack on his spiritual intent. It was powerful enough to destroy everything.


    He''s standing. Everyone stared at him, insides trembling. This was the tenth step��this was Zhao Han''s limit. Just like him, Ye Futian had reached this step. If they tied, what would Zhao Han do?


    Zhao Han obviously couldn''t accept a tie. His eyes sharpened to a point. He looked forward and closed his eyes, feeling all the power. Then he took his eleventh step.


    The last three steps��the most terrifying three��had caused many top talents to stop. Some were even heavily wounded by the backlash. In fact, some very terrifying talents had died during these three steps. It was known as the 13 Steps of Death but the truly fatal ones were the last three. Now, Zhao Han was forced by Ye Futian to take the first of the last three steps.


    Sword intent seemed to bite into his body. The grotto''s intent rushed into his mind. That moment, no one knew what kind of attack Zhao Han bore. They only saw his body shake violently. Countless eyes fell on him, staring at his body. Would Zhao Han be injured by the backlash?


    This step was too dangerous. Even with Zhao Han''s top talent, the people still felt that his steps were unsteady. He seemed to sway, about to die at any moment.


    The space muted. Even Yun Qianmo had stopped to look at Zhao Han. Mo Fan, Li Lianyi, Yang Ziqi, and the others all looked at Zhao Han''s eleventh step.


    The air seemed to coagulate. After a long while, Zhao Han''s body steadied. He yelled and opened his eyes. Sword intent shot out.


    The eleventh step. Many people''s hearts shook. Zhao Han had started with the three fatal steps and surpassed his limits.


    "How will you take this step?" Zhao Han asked. His tone was wildly arrogant. Ye Futian had taken ten steps and was good enough. But unfortunately, Zhao Han had surpassed himself and taken the first of the three fatal steps. Only personally experiencing it would one know how terrifying this step was. Ye Futian couldn''t do it. If he tried, he would die.


    "Shut up." Ye Futian gazed at Zhao Han coolly. Without any hesitation, he took the first of the fatal three.


    That moment, Ye Futian felt the grotto shine brilliantly. He had the hallucination that this mighty grotto only targeted him. Even worse, the carved statues magnified in his eyes. They filled his vision, rushing into his mind. He no longer felt pure intent attacks. The statues'' intent transformed into tangible shadows. They appeared in his mind like true Noble figures. An unmatchable pressure swept through. It transformed into an impossible power that worked to destroy his will. He finally understood how horrifying this step was. It was completely different from the earlier ten steps. No wonder Zhao Han''s limit had been ten before.


    Now, Ye Futian closed his eyes. In his mind, his will confronted the Noble statues. The impossible pressure weighed down on him. A terrifying figure appeared in his mind. It was a humongous demon ape. It was extremely powerful and waved its staff, moving the clouds and wind.


    The Nine Heavenly Attacks could shatter the world. Before, the Snow Ape had destroyed heavenly soldiers with a staff. The noble intent couldn''t defeat him now. The intent power seemed to recreate a past scene. The demon ape split the skies and earth. It was attacking rather than defending. An extremely resilient intent sliced down at the statues.


    A rumble came from his mind. The stone statue shattered but Ye Futian remained standing straight and tall. He took the eleventh step steadily. That moment, countless eyes stared at Ye Futian''s backside. His figure was still standing so tall as if he was looking down on the world.


    "How is this possible?" Yang Ziqi and Liu Yuan stared at Ye Futian in shock. He''d actually taken the eleventh step.


    Beside Ye Futian, Zhao Han stared at him coldly. He''d already surpassed his own limits and taken the eleventh step. He couldn''t continue. The last two were impossible to challenge; he was at his true limit. But Ye Futian was still tied with him, coming to this step together.


    "I can''t believe you can be equal to me." Zhao Han''s voice was tinged with shock. He seemed to have overthought. Ignoring him, Ye Futian raised his foot again. Everyone''s hearts shook.


    Was he going to advance again? Was he crazy?!


    This was Ye Futian''s first time here. He''d already taken eleven steps and could still continue.


    Under their shocked eyes, Ye Futian stepped again. When the noble intent descended, he still didn''t hide. He took the offensive and destroyed it with horrible intent. At this moment, he was like a god. No intent was impossible to destroy.


    The twelfth step. The people couldn''t stop shaking inside. Ye Futian had taken the twelfth step. Only one remained.


    This was�� Before the spectators could process this, they discovered that Ye Futian didn''t stop. He raised his foot again. Countless eyes were fixated on that steady figure. Was he going to take the last step?


    Boom! As Ye Futian brought his foot down, the air before the grotto shook. Similarly, everyone''s hearts shook as well.

 164 How Presumptuous

    Chapter 164: How Presumptuous


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Ye Futian made his last step, it felt as if the entire grotto was imprinted in his mind. Of the various statues, each one emanated with powerful intent as if a Noble had come himself to squash his will. Earlier, Ye Futian had pushed aside the intents of the statues and now, it was as if he was making his strongest counterattack. Simultaneously, he bore the unbelievable aura that continuously attacked his body. The double attack on the body and mind were enough to crush someone. However, defeating it was like being baptized.


    The blood inside Ye Futian rumbled and impossible strength burst from his body. The Nine Heavenly Attacks gathered the power of the world. Though he stood there, his aura was evolving and strengthening. In his mind, the noble statues became extremely menacing. They wanted to wipe his existence from the world.


    At that moment, Ye Futian thought of many things. He thought of the high and mighty Xia Fan, the emperor''s decree that he couldn''t fight back against, and that emperor who had once thought he could control Ye Futian''s destiny��they could all go die now.


    A terrible intent was born. It drowned the statues, eradicating them from his mind. Ye Futian opened his eyes. There was arrogance in his gaze. He took another step forward and stood steadily and upright. At this moment, his white clothing fluttered and his long hair danced in the wind. He was like a young emperor.


    Countless eyes focused on the proud backside, their hearts shaking. Ye Futian had made his way through the Thirteen Steps of Death. If he continued forward, he could step into the grotto''s corridor and perceive the grotto''s intent at a close distance. He would be as brilliant as the two up above.


    Looking back at Zhao Han, he was still at the eleventh step. Thinking of his arrogant words from before, "If you lose, then die," it was so ironic.


    Ye Futian was in the Glory Plane and walked the steps of death for the first time. He had passed while amongst the geniuses of the Qianmeng area, only Zhao Han could surpass ten steps. Mockery and doubt? They all fell apart now.


    With Ye Futian''s talent, he definitely would be qualified to make Yun Qianmo his servant later. She had just chosen earlier to follow he who was in the Glory Plane. Many felt this was strange because Yun Qianmo was the pride of her clan while Ye Futian was from the Hundred Lands and had an extremely low plane.


    Yang Ziqi looked from his senior brother to Ye Futian. His expression was ugly. On the other hand, Yun Qianmo stared at Ye Futian in shock. She was at the seventh step which was her limit. She couldn''t go on.


    Ye Futian had succeeded in one go.


    Boom. An explosion pulled everyone out of their thoughts. The earth shook and it was as if the world was roaring. At that moment, everyone''s gazes turned to a spot not far from Ye Futian. While everyone''s eyes were on him, Yu Sheng had made his tenth step. Now, he was challenging the fatal three steps. He made his eleventh step. At this moment, Yu Sheng''s burly body seemed to hold up the sky and earth. He was indestructible. He roared at the stone statues; no one could bend his spine. His foot fell steadily. Allowing the thunderstorm to hit him, he stood upright like the god of war.


    It was not only him. Ye Wuchen was also challenging the eleventh step. Sword intent grew between his brows and soon, there was a beam of silver light. A tiny silver sword shot out. It shattered everything and in the next moment, became endless sword intent.


    He''s crazy. Many people shook inwardly at this sight. Today, four people had challenged the fatal three steps and all succeeded.


    Ye Futian had even completed all 13. This was the first try for all three of them, and Zhao Han had lost to all of them.


    Yu Sheng''s arrogant gaze turned and looked at Zhao Han in the near distance. He said coldly, "Who do you think you are? You aren''t even good enough to wipe his shoes." There was nothing to be won while only death awaited the loser. Did Zhao Han think he was very powerful?


    Hearing Yu Sheng''s imposing words, everyone hushed. The top disciple of the Sword Clan, the extremely talented Zhao Han had been humiliated in public. Reality was right before his eyes.


    Zhao Han''s face turned livid when he heard Yu Sheng''s words. Faced with someone who had made thirteen steps on his first try, Zhao Han had neither the ability nor the talent to prove anything. Even now, he couldn''t make his thirteenth step.


    Now, Zhao Han was still wondering if he should attempt the twelfth.


    Just as he was pondering, Yu Sheng had looked away and made his twelfth step. His strength was extremely wild and burst through everything. He opened his eyes wide and stared domineeringly at the statue up ahead. He didn''t fear the Noble and roared as if he wanted to destroy the statue''s intent. So what if this was the Noble Grotto? It couldn''t crush him.


    With a thud, there was a violent wind that lifted a tidal wave. After Ye Futian, Yu Sheng made his twelfth step and surpassed Zhao Han. Was Zhao Han powerful? Was he extraordinarily talented? Two cultivators of the Glory Plane beside him had surpassed him on the first try, leaving in him in the dust.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s thirteenth step and Yu Sheng''s twelfth step, sharpness flashed past Ye Wuchen''s eyes like a sword. He grew more determined. A man would only feel motivated when he was with the strong. He would be even more determined and challenge himself with the will of the strong. This was why Ye Wuchen followed Ye Futian''s group. With an extraordinary person beside him, he would also challenge what had once been his limit.


    And rather than one extraordinary person beside him, he had two. So he couldn''t fall behind. Thus, he also made his twelfth step, with no regard to the consequences or anything. Just like his sword, he forged on fearlessly.


    He was crazy.


    Everyone''s hearts trembled without stop. Had they gone berserk? And not only one of them, but all three? This was honestly unheard of. No one knew if something so shocking had ever happened before the Noble Grotto before. But now, they couldn''t control their pounding hearts. This was crazy.


    Ye Wuchen had also taken his twelfth step. The trio had tossed Zhao Han behind. Zhao Han, who had been unbeatable before, now stood behind them alone. It was so mocking. He didn''t deserve to be arrogant.


    Three people in lower planes from the Hundred Lands had surpassed him, the top disciple of the Sword Clan, the pride of Qianmeng. Did he have the right to say that the loser would die? He had thought that he would win but realized that he wasn''t even as good as the two beside Ye Futian. Such mockery.


    Behind them, Lin Yueyao watched the three unblinkingly. There was an odd look in her eyes; she felt hopeless. Couldn''t they think about her feelings? Remembering that they were the top three of the Fenghua Rank, she couldn''t help but think that Emperor Ye foresight was great. They were brilliant even in the Ancient Barren World and defeated so many prides of the Qianmeng area.


    Yun Qianmo was speechless too. Earlier, she''d only thought that Ye Futian was extremely talented. She didn''t expect that Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen would be like this too. Now, she vaguely understood why Ye Futian dared to make her be his servant.


    It was silent. All that seemed to remain was the trio that had stolen the light from the world. Everyone stopped to feel the strength within the grotto. But just then, there was a sound. They all watched as Ye Futian slid backward, pushed back by the aggressive power.


    Is he finally unable to withstand it? Everyone''s eyes flashed. Why didn''t he step directly onto the grotto''s corridor? Many people didn''t understand why Ye Futian had stopped at the thirteenth step.


    He raised his head and gazed at the Noble Grotto. He uttered, "Again."


    Everyone was shocked. Again? What did he mean?


    Amidst their confusion, Ye Futian stepped forward again. This time, he released his elemental power. A gust of wild aura erupted from his body. They could faintly see aggressive lightning, the heavy intent of the earth, and a sharp metallic aura.


    At that moment, more statues in the grotto lit up. The bursts of wild power charged at Ye Futian. Simultaneously, an even more terrifying intent cut into his will.


    Boom, boom, boom�� The wild power pounded against him but he just strolled forward casually. One step, two steps�� He quickly got to step seven. The steps that many were unable to attempt were so easy for him.


    At that moment, they finally understood what Ye Futian had meant. He chose not to step into the corridor and perceive the grotto''s intent. He chose to walk the steps again. Without any hesitation, he chose to restart the thing that many people couldn''t challenge and put all their effort in. It was as if he could restart the 13 Steps of Death whenever he wanted.


    His eighth step, Ye Futian''s body was like a dragon. The power of lightning and thunder danced on him.


    His ninth step, his shadow was like a roc. It was unbelievably sharp.


    His tenth step, Ye Futian was like the majestic Ape, shaking the world.


    The unparalleled intent transformed into tangible attacks that rushed violently into him, causing there to be an endless string of explosions inside him.


    He made the three fatal steps again. At the eleventh step, his blood boiled and rumbled. The intent of martial arts was released. When the shocking intent rushed into him, he bore it rather than fighting back. He withstood the incredible attack and the cracking sounds continued. His body seemed to be evolving.


    Boom�� An even wilder aura burst from Ye Futian''s body. The intent of martial arts transformed into a solid light and broke out of him like a true dragon. Endless power poured out of him violently and he was covered in a brilliant glow.


    His physical body had a breakthrough and his martial arts evolved.


    He had broken into Dharma Plane!


    He had done it again, not to prove how amazing he was, but to use the power of the grotto to test his body and try for another plane!

 165 Did I Allow You to Leave?

    Chapter 165: Did I Allow You to Leave?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    He''d actually advanced to the next level! Countless eyes studied Ye Futian. Everyone knew that the Noble Grotto could test cultivators. Many were able to break through their limits after enduring the grotto''s intent. But no one had ever been like Ye Futian and choose not to enter the corridor after completing the thirteen steps, choosing instead to do it again without hesitation. He released the elemental power within him and used the grotto''s intent power''s attack to test his body, thus having a breakthrough into the Dharma Plane. After his martial arts broke into the Dharma Plane, the martial intent grew stronger and formed a dharma.


    Ye Xiao and the people of the Cangye College stared at Ye Futian''s backside. They looked embarrassed. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen made the Cangye College students seem unaccomplished. The strongest had only taken five steps.


    Five steps actually wasn''t weak but with Ye Futian''s trio present, they looked horrible. Even worse, Ye Futian didn''t show any signs of stopping yet. Right now, he was under extreme pressure but could also feel his power changing. In his mind, an even stronger intent attacked. Intent of different elements swept up a chaotic storm. It destroyed everything and more statues imprinted in his mind. Ye Futian fought against this power; he didn''t fear the noble intent.


    Was a noble intent enough to destroy him?


    Arrogance emanated from him. His blood bubbled as the Imperial Tactics operated subconsciously. A strand of emperor''s intent appeared in his mind. That moment, the noble intent from the statue seemed to be shocked. It tried to fight back but Ye Futian destroyed it with the emperor''s intent. If he was stopped by the grotto today, he wouldn''t be able to kill a true Noble in the future.


    Without hesitation, Ye Futian took the twelfth step for the second time. His arrogance didn''t reduce; he was still like an emperor.


    Even stronger intent from the statue rushed into his mind. This time, Ye Futian didn''t destroy it. He allowed it to attack his spiritual intent. He was like an emperor; no matter what came, it would all submit to him in the end. As soon as he made his twelfth step, Ye Futian made his thirteenth without any fear. This time, his steps were steadier than before. There wasn''t any faltering. Instead of going through the trial, it was as if he was going to conquer.


    After the thirteenth step, the entire grotto imprinted in his mind. It seemed to feel his arrogance. The various statues all appeared in his mind to eliminate this brash man.


    Ye Futian didn''t fear anything. The emperor''s intent was extremely powerful. It didn''t move no matter what the noble intent tried. He enveloped the noble intent with the emperor''s intent. The powerful noble intent seemed to meld into his intent, submitting to the emperor. At this moment, something seemed to break open. His spiritual power was evolving. A powerful spiritual windstorm carried the surrounding power and swallowed it. All types of Spiritual Qi and the strong intent all turned into food for Ye Futian.


    Breakthrough in Spiritual power. Everyone''s hearts trembled again. Ye Futian cultivated both martial arts and sorcery. After a breakthrough in martial arts, he still wasn''t satisfied and continued using the grotto''s power to have a breakthrough in spiritual sorcery. Now, he had advanced in both spiritual and martial arts power. He entered the Dharma Plane completely.


    Many people felt numb. All the prides of the Qianmeng area had been subdued at the Noble Grotto by someone in the Glory Plane from the Hundred Lands. They were forced to surrender. Compared to him, Zhao Han of the Sword Clan was so unimpressive. If he was a pride, then what was Ye Futian?


    At this time, fate bloomed from Ye Futian. It rose up several meters and was still strengthening. The intent of the stone statues flowed in endlessly, transforming into fate and making it stronger. It soon became dozens of meters tall and was terrifying. They''d never seen someone create such powerful fate just from the Noble Grotto.


    There were many types of fate. To the people of the Ancient Barren World, it took a long time to comprehend the relics. The easiest way was to steal. However, Ye Futian had reversed that thought. He approached the Noble fate with just comprehension. This was frightening. If the others of the Qianmeng area could be like him, it would be so easy to become a Noble.


    "Great!" Yu Sheng was so excited seeing this as if he''d also had a breakthrough. Then he lifted his foot and went for the last step. That moment, his entire body tensed. The fabric on his arms tore apart. His veins bulged and the frightening muscles made one feel immense strength. His physical body was strong to the extreme. There was a shocking roar. Yu Sheng bellowed at the stone statues. His body seemed to glow like a demon; he was unstoppable.


    Boom�� His foot fell like a demon shattering the sky. His body made a huge sound and each body part seemed to be evolving. A gust of martial intent burst forth, making him even stronger. With another roar, he shattered the noble intent. Yu Sheng''s eyes burned with golden flames like a demon.


    Another one with a breakthrough. Everyone stared at the demonic backside, shuddering inwardly. This was too crazy. Others had had breakthroughs before the Noble Grotto before but it was never as impressive as Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. They were two beasts!


    Ye Wuchen looked at the two before him. Right now, he was extremely calm. He''d never been so determined before. His heart was a sword; his intent and body transformed into a sword. His entirely had become a sword��an indestructible sword. He moved towards the last step.


    That moment, endless sword intent came ripping past. The horrible windstorm tore past his body, opening up countless wounds. His sword intent was about to extinguish any time. The small silver sword that shot out whistled. It could collapse with any mistake. No matter what collapsed, he would be destroyed. But he didn''t fear anything.


    When Ye Futian and Yu Sheng stepped forward, he could sense that his talent wasn''t as good as either. He had to be extremely determined to do the same as them. He must be fearless as well.


    A swordsman must go forward without looking back. If he completed that step, the skies would clear. If he retreated, his sword heart should shatter. He''d never be able to surpass his limits. A swordsman must have the courage and determination to face death. He couldn''t be defeated like this.


    Many people stared at Ye Wuchen in shock. He''d taken the last step with an entirely tensed body. Many were nervous. Lin Yuyao stared. She knew that if anything happened, Ye Wuchen might die here.


    This guy was too crazy. He''d already made 12 steps. Why must he keep going? Was it worth it to risk his life for?


    Whish, whish�� Sharp sounds appeared. Ye Wuchen''s foot stepped down entirely. That moment, endless sword intent flowed on his body. It shot towards the statues. The sword intent flowed through him as if he was the body of the sword. He''d obviously succeeded; Ye Wuchen had taken the thirteenth step.


    Of those who came from the Qianmeng area, only two were cultivating in the corridor. But today, Ye Futian''s trio arrived and all successfully made thirteen steps. This was so shocking. Throughout the history of the Qianmeng area, there''d never been a force that created three figures like them at the same time. Now, they all stopped at the last step.


    Ye Futian''s gaze fell calmly on the statues. He continuously sensed the intent contained in the statues carved in the grotto. His Freedom Meditation operated and he could feel each intent power clearly. The more he felt it, the more he experienced the strength. He attempted to release the emperor''s intent. It surged into a statue and slowly, he realized that it resonated with the noble intent as if trying to make it surrender.


    Just as he''d guessed, the emperor''s intent born at Donghai City that day was even more advanced than noble intent. He just didn''t know how to use it yet. His abilities under the emperor''s intent had once shocked everyone, killing someone in the Arcana Plane.


    Seems like I can cultivate here for a long while, Ye Futian thought. The Noble Grotto was an optimal place for cultivation.


    He looked left and right. Seeing Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen there, he smiled. Then he looked at Yun Qianmo and Lin Yueyao. The Freedom Meditation showed him the statues releasing pressure on them.


    His emperor''s intent communicated with the power within those statues. Then he called, "Yun Qianmo."


    "Yes?" Yun Qianmo looked over at him.


    "Comprehend well and try advancing again," Ye Futian said.


    Beside Yun Qianmo, Lin Yueyao saw this and couldn''t help but call, "Hey!"


    Ye Futian looked at Lin Yueyao in confusion. He saw her resentful gaze and angry eyes as if she felt he was biased. Ye Futian was speechless. Was this girl jealous?


    Stupid. Overlooking her, Ye Futian said, "One by one." With that, he guided power into Yun Qianmo''s mind. This wasn''t an attack though. It was for Yun Qianmo to feel.


    Beside Ye Futian, Zhao Han looked at this coolly. Ye Futian had clearly overlooked his existence.


    "Yun Qianmo," Zhao Han called. The girl looked over and he said, "Come back within a month."


    He''d said that if Ye Futian could beat him, he wouldn''t care anymore. He couldn''t go back on his words. He still wasn''t willing though so he only gave Yun Qianmo one month''s time.


    Yun Qianmo''s eyes hardened. Then Zhao Han stepped back, getting ready to leave.


    "Did I allow you to leave?" a cold and arrogant voice said. Zhao Han''s steps froze!

 166 Someone of the Noble Fate

    Chapter 166: Someone of the Noble Fate


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    This voice naturally came from Ye Futian. Everyone''s gazes focused on Ye Futian''s direction. Was he crazy? He had defeated Zhao Han and the latter had taken a step back, only telling Yun Qianmo to return to the clan after one month. This was still domineering but even though Ye Futian had shown his extreme talent, he was still lower in plane. Zhao Han not going back on his words was already good enough but now Ye Futian was challenging him again. Wasn''t this giving Zhao Han an excuse to mess with him?


    "Are you talking to me?" Zhao Han gazed at Ye Futian with some mockery in his eyes.


    "Don''t take a single step before my mood turns better," Ye Futian said coldly instead of answering the question. "Move then die."


    Zhao Han''s expression turned odd. Move then die? He looked at Ye Futian and sneered. If the youth wanted to die, then he''d let him.


    "How would you like to die?" Zhao Han asked coldly. As soon as he said that, something extremely sharp flashed past Ye Futian''s eyes. In a blink, an extremely terrifying intent power shot to Zhao Han. This time, it wasn''t gentle like the intent that had entered Yun Qianmo''s mind. Instead, it was filled with the thirst for killing.


    In a moment, Zhao Han felt that it wasn''t Ye Futian before him but the strong intent power in the stone statues that came at him. Accompanied by a sharp sound, shocking sword intent burst from Zhao Han''s body. However, the other intent pierced directly through everything, coming from the sword intent of the stone statues.


    Sizzle�� Everyone heard a pained cry mixed into the piercing sharp sound. Zhao Han trembled as blood flowed out from his body. Even his eyes were bleeding.


    At that moment, everyone''s eyes were trained there, staring at the two figures.


    "The statue lit up." Someone looked to the kendo statues in the grotto. They were glowing.


    "Just like in the Cang Mountain Relic." Watching this scene, Liu Yuan''s expression was dark. Ye Futian had used his musical sorcery to activate the intent within the stone walls at the Cang Mountain Relic. Now, he didn''t even need the musical sorcery to activate the even stronger intent of the grotto. Was he even human?


    When the attacking strength disappeared, Zhao Han couldn''t help but tremble. At that moment, he had felt death.


    "Do you think I''m joking?" Ye Futian smiled at Zhao Han. He was handsome and had a nice smile. He looked harmless but in Zhao Han''s eyes right now, he was like a demon. Everyone could feel shudders from the coldness. Earlier, Zhao Han had been extremely domineering. He''d set the rule that if Ye Futian lost, he would die. Without saying anything, Ye Futian had walked quietly towards the grotto. At that time, he couldn''t fight against Zhao Han.


    Next, he walked towards the grotto and showed his talent.


    Now, he could use the intent of the grotto to crush Zhao Han. His entire presence had changed. If Zhao Han moved, he would die.


    There was no reason. Now, Ye Futian set the rules.


    Zhao Han''s features twisted. He was the top disciple of the Sword Clan and an extremely talented cultivator. His arrogant words from before were still fresh but now he was in such a position. It was so embarrassing. If he moved, he would die. So should he stay here for everyone to gawk at? Did he, Zhao Han, still have a place in the Qianmeng area now? He was forced to the point of not even daring to move. It was such a humiliation.


    "If you don''t believe me, you can try." Ye Futian no longer looked at Zhao Han; his eyes turned to Yun Qianmo.


    Right now, Yun Qianmo''s expression was a bit uncomfortable. Zhao Han was a top disciple. If Ye Futian treated him so, what would he do after leaving the grotto? And what should she do? She had given up on some things when she agreed to become Ye Futian''s servant but it was difficult to betray her clan and become Zhao Han''s enemy.


    "Yun Qianmo, continue perceiving." Ye Futian guided the intent contained inside the statues into Yun Qianmo''s mind so she could perceive and comprehend it. Then he looked to Lin Yueyao and did the same thing.


    At this time, everyone saw that the Black Wind Eagle had walked before the stone statues and was making its way to the Thirteen Steps of Death. It had even made four steps. Next, it began perceiving as well under Ye Futian''s help.


    "I''m going up to cultivate," Yu Sheng said to Ye Futian.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. Yu Sheng walked up to the grotto''s corridor, walking under the statues. He felt the mighty intent emanating from them. He found a quiet place to sit and began perceiving quietly.


    Ye Wuchen did the same. He had forcefully made the thirteen steps and some changes had occurred to his body. Now, he needed to relax and perceive for a while. The grotto deserved for him to take his time.


    Only Ye Futian and Zhao Han remained standing there. Ye Futian looked at all the statues, feeling the powerful intent within them and increasing his fate.


    Zhao Han was in a bad position. He was forced to stand there, not allowed to take a step. Now, he looked to Ye Futian with dark eyes but not daring to risk it. Behind him were the prides of the Qianmeng area. Mo Fan, Li Lianyi, and the others were all unsettled. Today''s performance of Ye Futian''s trio was too overbearing.


    Ye Xiao, Chu Kuangren, and the others were even more speechless.


    Ye Xiao especially looked at them with a complex expression.


    Time passed bit by bit. After a long while, everyone saw Yun Qianmo move. She had started attempting to move forward. Under their shocked gazes, she walked to the tenth step. Then she tried her eleventh and succeeded as well. Many people couldn''t help but look to Ye Futian. It seemed that Yun Qianmo could only do this with his help. He had guided the stone statues'' intent so Yun Qianmo could sense it.


    After a short pause, Yun Qianmo tried the twelfth and then the thirteenth. Succeeding all the steps, she walked into the corridor. This made Zhao Han even more uncomfortable, as well as Yang Ziqi and Liu Yuan.


    It was not only Yun Qianmo. Next, Lin Yueyao, her guards, and even the Black Wind Eagle tried to step forward with Ye Futian''s help. They approached the corridor and finally walked onto it.


    Of course, because they relied on Ye Futian, the intent they had were far from Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen''s because they had relied on themselves. Still, they received a lot of fate. Next, they could slowly study it in the corridor. Seeing the many bodies in the corridor, everyone else was speechless. Was this possible?


    Ye Xiao looked to Ye Futian with a bit of hesitation. Looking at Lin Yueyao and the others cultivating in the corridor, he seemed to make a decision. Ye Xiao finally called out, "Ye Futian."


    Ye Futian looked away from the statues and turned to Ye Xiao. "Yes, Your Highness?"


    "Take us to the corridor," he said with a straight face.


    He said "us" instead of "me." He''d included the people of the Cangye College. Obviously, just saying himself would be very embarrassing so he added the others as well.


    Ye Xiao knew that begging Ye Futian wasn''t too glorious but he''d only taken four steps. If he had to use that rate for accumulating fate, it would be hard to receive the noble fate. He needed the noble fate. If he had it, the throne would be his. He may also have a chance similar to Luo Junlin too. Then Cangye Kingdom''s throne would just be a backup plan. Thus, he lowered himself like this. Even so, his voice was still cold as if he was ordering Ye Futian instead of begging him.


    Hearing Ye Xiao''s voice, Ye Futian smiled. "Since the emperor ordered that we shouldn''t rely on others, I''m sure you will understand him and rely on yourself." This was what Ye Xiao had said when they entered the Ancient Barren World. Now, Ye Futian returned it to him.


    Ye Futian hadn''t forgotten Emperor Ye''s kindness to him. If Ye Xiao hadn''t done those things, they would still be friends and he would help. But since Ye Xiao wanted to keep the boundaries clear, Ye Futian could only go with the flow.


    Hearing these words, Ye Xiao''s expression grew uglier. He''d already lowered his pride but he was still rejected. Ye Futian had humiliated him completely. He stared coldly at Ye Futian and didn''t say anything else. Ye Futian continued to cultivate. He prepared to study the statues and agglomerate his dharma.


    At that time, of those in the corridor, one of the two who had been cultivating first had started moving. In a second, multiple gazes moved onto him. They all knew him.


    The figure walked down from the corridor and towards where Zhao Han was. His features were as defined as if they were carved by a knife and he was abnormally handsome. His entire body radiated a mighty presence as if he was extraordinary from birth. His sharp gaze was deep and his face was emotionless though he gave off an invisible pressure.


    When Zhao Han saw him, he couldn''t help but call out, "Young Master Qian."


    "There are mountains past the mountains and skies past the skies. Do you understand the phrase now?" the young man said calmly. Zhao Han nodded. He could admit that his talent was far from Ye Futian''s but he still couldn''t accept it.


    "Go," the young man said. Zhao Han glanced at Ye Futian but still nodded and retreated. It was as if the young man''s words were like an order, even more powerful than Ye Futian''s threat.


    Ye Futian, who was cultivating, frowned. He looked over and an invisible intent power surged towards Zhao Han.


    At the same time, a terrifying gust of power came out of the young man. It transformed into a dragon that wrapped around Zhao Han, protecting him. He hurried backward and retreated from the grotto.


    The dragon returned to the young man. At that moment, he was dazzling as if he was a dragon among the people.


    Noble fate. Everyone''s hearts trembled. He was a legendary figure, a monstrously talented figure of the Qianmeng area, and had absolute authority.


    "It''s just a small matter. End it now," the young man said to Ye Futian. There seemed too absolute authority hidden inside the monotonous voice.


    Amongst the younger generation of the Qianmeng area, his words were the command!

 167 Realization of Dharma

    Chapter 167: Realization of Dharma


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian studied the youth before him. He already knew Zhao Han''s identity as the son of the Sword Clan''s clan master. But he became respectful the moment the youth appeared. Zhao Han retreated as soon as he was told so who must this be? Of course, Ye Futian was only curious.


    "He wants my life and you think it''s a small matter?" Ye Futian said, smiling. "You better convince me."


    The people of the Qianmeng area all stared at Ye Futian. This guy probably dared to speak like this because he didn''t know who this person was. What would he do if the man couldn''t convince him? Fight? Even if he won, if he fought this young man, Ye Futian would definitely be dead. He wouldn''t be able to leave this city alive unless he hid in the grotto forever.


    "Compared to why you entered the Ancient Barren World, of course it is a small matter." The youth smiled nonchalantly and said, "It''s only a grudge. Even if you kill him, no one can touch you if you use the grotto''s power. But are you never going to leave? Why do that just for a grudge? In the Ancient Barren World, compared to getting the noble fate and strengthening, nothing else is important."


    Ye Futian didn''t speak. He continued gazing at the youth quietly, waiting for the other to keep talking.


    "With your talent, it shouldn''t be hard to receive the noble fate. It''s only a matter of time. But in the Ancient Barren World, there are things beneficial to cultivation other than noble fate. For example, there is the Loulan Relic in Loulan City. There are relics that have disappeared in the outside world. For countless years, many talents go to the Loulan City to see the relic but few can go in. Even if they go in, it''s hard to receive anything. I believe you''ll be interested." The youth smiled as if confident in his judgment.


    Indeed, Ye Futian was interested. Qianmeng City was the city closest to the entrance to the Hundred Lands. They''d come directly after entering the Ancient Barren World. After learning about the map, Ye Futian had wanted to go out. He couldn''t stay in Qianmeng forever. That was why he didn''t fear becoming enemies with Zhao Han. Loulan City was the heart of this region. It meant there must be stronger fate there.


    "What''s in the relic?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Many things. For example, ritual implements that contain noble intent. These items can''t be brought in from the outer world. Therefore, you can''t find ritual implements in the outer world. That''s not all. The relic won''t disappoint you," the young man said.


    "Why are you telling me?" Ye Futian studied the other. The youth had come for a reason, seemingly not only to resolve tensions between him and Zhao Han but to say these things. But if that was the case, why didn''t he just come and directly tell Ye Futian?


    "Of course it''s because of your talent," the youth said, smiling. "If you wish to go, we can go together. He will also go." With that, he pointed at the other one cultivating in the corridor. Before Ye Futian''s group, only they were in the corridor.


    "I might cultivate here for a while," Ye Futian said.


    "No problem. How about I come to find you in three months?" the youth asked.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and didn''t say anything else.


    "Goodbye." The youth smiled and left. Walking past Zhao Han, he said, "This is over."


    "Yes, Young Master Qian." Zhao Han nodded, not daring to make any objections. Then the youth walked away. The people involuntarily made way for him. He was obviously highly respected. When he left, Zhao Han glared at Ye Futian. He''d completely embarrassed himself today but he couldn''t even take revenge. "Let''s go," he uttered and left with Yang Ziqi.


    Yang Ziqi looked unwilling. He still couldn''t help but look at the beautiful figure in the corridor. He couldn''t accept that the girl he liked would become someone else''s servant. Thinking that she would serve a man, he felt furious. But he couldn''t do anything. Even Zhao Han was powerless now; he could only leave as well.


    The spectators whispered amongst themselves. Ye Futian was valued highly by Young Master Qian and was invited to Loulan City. With Ye Futian''s talent, he would be terrifying in the future. Perhaps Young Master Qian wanted to pull Ye Futian under him. If he agreed, he might become a top figure of the Qianmeng area.


    Young Master Qian was the young leader of the Qianmeng area.


    Ye Futian didn''t think about Zhao Han. Just as the young man had said, this truly was a small matter. He anticipated more interesting things from the Ancient Barren World.


    Of course, he knew why the man had invited him. There was definitely a use for him. Maybe the man wanted to use him but he didn''t mind. This was mutual and he''d see after arriving at Loulan City.


    He stepped out and onto the corridor. Faint intent weighed down on him. He walked down the corridor. Whenever he walked past a statue, he could feel the intent coming from it. It was very clear and it was easy to sense under the statue.


    There were also many caves in the grotto that seemed natural. Ye Futian walked into one. The outside pressure was gone. If he didn''t want to endure the pressure, he could go into a cave.


    After familiarizing himself, Ye Futian walked down the corridor. He returned to outside the Thirteen Steps of Death. He walked through it again without using the emperor''s intent. Instead, he used pure elemental power, such as fire, water�� He continued using the Noble Grotto to test himself. This made many speechless. The Noble Grotto, the place with the strongest fate in Qianmeng City, had become Ye Futian''s toy. He could cultivate however he wanted.


    In the following days, the people who remained saw Ye Futian cultivate in various ways. Sometimes, he used comprehension; sometimes, he communicated with the statues'' intent. Sometimes he walked before the grotto as if relaxing. The poor "geniuses" couldn''t even take seven steps. Seeing Ye Futian''s active figure, they really wanted to beat him up. Even worse, the Black Wind Eagle would sometimes get up and caw. Every time it flapped its wings excitedly, the others wanted to roast it�� This beast was too much of a bully.


    After a few days, Ye Futian finally quieted down. He walked into a cave inside the grotto. The grotto was deep and dark; they couldn''t see him. What made them speechless was that he made Yun Qianmo guard the cave so the others couldn''t peek at him. He was really ordering the beauty around like a servant!


    Time flew by. Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and the others were also cultivating quietly. One day, a terrifying aura filled the air outside Ye Futian''s cave. His body produced a huge rumbling sound. His blood bubbled and roared.


    Three life spirits appeared behind Ye Futian��the majestic Thunder Dragon, the dazzling Golden Roc, and the aggressively powerful Ape. The three released four elements��thunder, wind, metal, and earth.


    Outside the cave, horrible Spiritual Qi flowed wildly into the cave. The Spiritual Qi in the grotto seemed to be sucked dry as it grouped towards Ye Futian. It used the life spirits as the original shape and covered them to create dharmas.


    Cultivators in the Dharma Plane could create dharmas. Martial artists could create dharma with the martial arts intent and sorcerers used Spiritual Qi and spells. The dharma could greatly increase combat power and endlessly cast spell attacks. Mandate Sorcerers usually used life spirits to solidify dharma and fuse the life spirit into the dharma.


    Ye Futian had more than one life spirit. Theoretically, he could create many dharmas. Now, the three life spirits behind him were going to create three different dharma. However, Ye Futian didn''t do that. His emperor''s intent came to life and enveloped the life spirits and dharma. At the same time, he released noble intent and fused it in.


    There was a whoosh and the World Tree was released. The three dharmas were swept into the tree, turning into a terrifying vortex. The various elements intertwined and screamed. The cave seemed to turn into a black hole, crazily swallowing the Spiritual Qi from the outside. Rumbling continued, reverberating in Yun Qianmo''s ears outside the cave. She really wanted to go see what was happening that could make such a commotion but she didn''t. Ye Futian had ordered her seriously. She didn''t know what Ye Futian would do if she intruded. The guy looked harmless but was nothing nice.


    The commotion lasted for a long time. Inside the cave, only one dharma was behind Ye Futian. It looked quite strange. It had the terrifying body of the Ape and flashed with gold and dirt-yellow glow. Thunder and lightning flowed past it. Every part of this ape was like a dragon. Its hands were filled with power but were sharp as if it could transform into the Golden Roc''s claws at any moment. Behind the ape, there was also a pair of domineering wings.


    At a glance, the ape seemed to push up against the heavens. Like the Snow Ape at the Mount Tianyao, it could stir the world.


    Ye Futian cultivated the practice techniques Emperor Ye Qing gave him. The dharma he created today was dedicated to Emperor Ye Qing and the Snow Ape. Ye Futian''s three main life spirits were included in this dharma. Covered by the dharma, no one could be able to tell what it was. However, Ye Futian didn''t stop. The dharma disappeared and he closed his eyes to continue. He had many life spirits. Since he combined his three main life spirits into one dharma, he could continue making other dharmas!

 168 You Can’t Take I

    Chapter 168: You Can��t Take It


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the grotto''s cave, Ye Futian was still cultivating quietly. After countless days, Yun Qianmo sat outside the cave. She felt a shocking fire elemental Spiritual Qi charge towards the cave. She could feel the heat even sitting outside the cave.


    "He''s doing it again." Yun Qianmo''s eyes flashed. What exactly was that guy cultivating? The commotion a few days ago was huge. Was he going to do it again now? If he was agglomerating dharma, he''d already succeeded days ago. Was he agglomerating double dharma?


    After a while, Yun Qianmo felt the terrifying wood elemental Spiritual Qi go wild again. She quivered inside. From what she knew, Ye Futian had already released six of the seven elements. Add that to the fact that he was a musical sorcerer, this meant that he was probably a Full Attribute Sorcerer including spiritual sorcery.


    Ye Futian had only performed twice in the Qianmeng City��once at the Cang Mountain Relic and once at the Noble Grotto. Both times, he was groundbreaking and earth-shattering. No one could match him. However, Yun Qianmo vaguely felt that Ye Futian hadn''t truly fought yet. His plane was too low. Earlier he was in the Glory Plane and had only just entered the Dharma Plane now. No one paid attention to his true skills or his elemental talent. But Yun Qianmo could feel that Ye Futian''s cultivation talent was terrifyingly high. His combat abilities would be shocking as well.


    Terrifying Spiritual Qi around her surged into the cave and a gust of heat came out. She could feel the currents of the heat waves. This persisted for a long time. The cave brightened and people in the distance could vaguely see firelight appear in the cave.


    Deep inside the cave, Ye Futian sat with crossed legs. Behind him, another frightening dharma appeared. It was a gigantic tree of flames, a sun hanging above it. Below the sun, it was like a furnace. Flames tossed and turned and roared. After that, the tree slowly melted into the sun, seeping in bit by bit. Finally, the sun hung there with the shadow of a tree within. Below it was a sea of fire like a furnace, rumbling and roaring.


    This persisted for a long time. The dharma disappeared but Ye Futian still didn''t go out. He continued to cultivate in the cave. This lasted for a long while. Now, he''d entered the Dharma Plane and created his dharma. Next, he had to stabilize this state and feel the intent that he''d received.


    Time passed quickly. People continued to come to the Noble Grotto and step forward. When they saw the many figures and demon in the corridor, many felt helpless.


    Three months finally ended. This day, a group of strong cultivators arrived before the Noble Grotto. The young man at the head was respectfully called "Young Master Qian" by many. This was the young man who had made the promise with Ye Futian earlier. When he arrived, he saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng talking about something in the corridor.


    As if seeing him, Ye Futian''s group walked down. There was a qualitative change to their auras. Ye Wuchen had broken into the Fourth level Dharma Plane while cultivating in the grotto. His understanding of the sword intent had increased as well. Forcefully walking the 13 Steps of Death was a transformation for him.


    There were three people behind Young Master Qian. Ye Futian saw Zhao Han and a strong man with a huge ax standing quietly behind.


    The people from the Qianmeng area looked at him with some shock. Shi Tong, the monstrous talent of the True Martial Clan was now following Young Master Qian. According to rumors, it had already been decided that he would become the head of the True Martial Clan and protect Young Master Qian''s Qianmeng area.


    Other than Shi Tong and Zhao Han, there was also a girl. She wore a thin long dress and had beautiful figures. Her body was thin and soft as if she had no bones. A certain part was extremely full and her skin was almost translucent. Her mesmerizing eyes had some sort of invisible attractive power. She was definitely a rarity. Her looks were comparable to Yun Qianmo but under Lin Yueyao. However, she was fatally attractive to men. Was she with Young Master Qian now?


    At this time, the other youth who had been cultivating on the corridor walked down too. This was Du Guleng, the pride of the Qianmeng area. Apparently, he was an orphan and used his extraordinary intent to make a name for himself in Qianmeng. Now, he cultivated with the chief and was accepted as a disciple. His talent was frightening.


    With Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen, everyone else shuddered inwardly.


    Young Master Qian had four people with him��Du Guleng, Shi Tong, Zhao Han, and Yue Linglong. Zhao Han, the top disciple of the Sword Clan, was probably the least talented. The others had all surpassed him in the Noble Grotto.


    Ye Futian''s group was much lower in plane but their talent was undeniable. Maybe the two girls, Lin Yueyao and Yun Qianmo, were weaker but Young Master Qian mainly invited Ye Futian''s trio. Those three were who he valued.


    "Let me introduce myself. My name is Qian Yang. This is Dugu Leng, Shi Tong, and Yue Linglong. You already know Zhao Han. Let''s put past feelings to the side. Everyone here is a top cultivator of the Dharma Plane in the Qianmeng area," Qian Yang said with a smile.


    "Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Lin Yueyao, Yun Qianmo," Ye Futian said, introducing them all.


    "Since you''re ready, let''s go," Qian Yang said, smiling, and walked out.


    The Black Wind Eagle unfurled its wings. Ye Futian''s group all climbed up and got ready to soar.


    "Ye Futian," a voice suddenly called. Ye Futian turned and saw Chu Kuangren looking over. His eyes were trained on the group on the Black Wind Eagle. He had been extremely arrogant at the Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet, looking down at everything. He provoked Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen many times but they''d never fought before. After everything else happened, both Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen had left him in the dust. This made him unhappy. Was he, the pride of the Yunchu Nation, that bad?


    "You''ve entered the Dharma Plane and have agglomerated your dharma these months, right?" Chu Kuangren asked. "Let me see your dharma." He asked to see it but really, it was an invitation to fight. He wanted to see if he was truly surpassed by the one who used to be in the Glory Plane.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed and he said, "You can''t take it."


    Boom. A gust of strong power bloomed from Chu Kuangren, sweeping to Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng walked forward. He was about to fight but Ye Futian stopped him and said, "In that case, lose all hope." As soon as he spoke, a sun appeared behind him. His body seemed to be bathed in endless fire. The terrifying sun shone down directly, appearing to contain the endless strength of fire. When Chu Kuangren looked at Ye Futian''s dharma, beams of sunlight pierced downward. His eyes started burning instantly. The sun''s mark appeared in his eyes.


    "Ah!" With a cry, Chu Kuangren shut his eyes painfully.


    Figures from the Yunchu Nation rushed up but the Black Wing Eagle flapped its wings and flew. Ye Futian''s dharma disappeared.


    Chu Kuangren didn''t open his eyes until they soared into the air. Blood flowed from his eyes and the sight was disturbing. Chu Kuangren looked at the disappearing figure. Just as Ye Futian had said, his red eyes were filled with despair.


    He was once the man who said he''d teach Ye Futian a lesson.


    His nickname was Kuangren, meaning "wild man" so his personality was obvious. But now, he realized that some people weren''t that eye-catching in a lower plane but one day would suddenly become someone who couldn''t be surpassed. He was definitely a bit hopeless. The talent he''d been proud of for so long was now like nothing. He wanted to see Ye Futian''s dharma and Ye Futian said he wouldn''t be able to take it. He really couldn''t��he couldn''t even glance at it.


    Qian Yang''s group of five sat on another demon in the air. It was a wind roc. When the Black Wind Eagle caught up, Qian Yang chuckled and said, "Your dharma is pretty good. Was it created with a spell and Spiritual Qi?"


    "It''s alright," Ye Futian said casually. He obviously wouldn''t tell Qian Yang that he''d included his life spirit in his dharma, as well as spiritual intent. Otherwise, why would Chu Kuangren get hurt just from a glance?


    "You''re being modest. We''re headed towards Loulan City now though. Perhaps you''ll see even more talented people," Qian Yang said with a smile. Ye Futian nodded and didn''t speak further.


    "Yun Qianmo," Qian Yang called the girl behind Ye Futian. Yun Qianmo looked over. "It was very difficult for you to make the decision. You have guts. On the other hand, Zhao Han is a bit too arrogant and I told him to move on from it. Don''t worry about it," Qian Yang said.


    "Thank you, Young Master Qian." Yun Qianmo was a bit reassured.


    The group continued forward. The wind roc sparkled and was extremely fast. The Black Wind Eagle didn''t want to appear weak. It rode with the wind as if trying to compete with the wind roc. Its eyes were more arrogant now and occasionally glanced at the wind roc with pride. It had eaten wind roc meat before, after all, and it was tasty. It wondered when this wind roc could be cook too.


    After countless days, a city even grander and more ancient than Qianmeng City appeared in Ye Futian''s sight.


    They''d arrived at the Loulan City.


    "The Ancient Loulan has an extremely long city. This city was built inside the Ancient Barren World by the Ancient Loulan countless years ago. Inside this ancient city, the Ancient Loulan has absolute power," Yun Qianmo said behind Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded. The Black Wind Eagle sped up and caught up with the wind roc. Ye Futian asked, "Where are we going now?"


    Qian Yang turned to look at Ye Futian and answered with a smile, "We''re going to visit the Loulan Palace inside the Ancient Barren World!"

 169 Loulan Relic

    Chapter 169: Loulan Relic


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ancient Loulan was inside the Loulan City of the Ancient Barren World. For countless years, Ancient Loulan controlled this old city. They even built a palace inside. Apparently, it connected the outer world to the true Loulan palace. Even the top forces from the Barren City couldn''t shake Ancient Loulan''s status in this city. According to rumors, Ancient Loulan only had one reason for controlling the Loulan palace, forbidding anyone from looking into it��the Loulan Relic.


    The Loulan Relic was the most well-known relic of Loulan City. Apparently, even Ancient Loulan didn''t have some of the items inside. Thus, for many years, Ancient Loulan had been sending strong cultivators into the relic to dig everything out. To enter the relic, one must receive permission from the Loulan royalty. Therefore, Qian Yang went straight to the Loulan palace after arriving at the city. Clearly, he was prepared and had planned this early on.


    The palace was the most majestic building in the Loulan City. It had an ancient aura about it. When Ye Futian''s group arrived, the Black Wind Eagle and Wind Roc descended. Many people were outside the palace, gazing at the steps before the palace and the majestic arched gate. There were also many guards.


    "Qian Yang, the young master of the Qianmeng area is here to visit," Shi Tong called in the palace''s direction as he stepped forward.


    "Welcome," a guard declared, raising his spear. He seemed to know about their group''s visit and let them through.


    Qian Yang walked forward. The others followed and entered the Loulan palace. Many people in the palace looked at them with a strange expression. They seemed to come from Qianmeng City. The junior leader had come personally with his group. It was obvious they were here for the Loulan Relic but many top figures from all over the Ancient Barren World had come. Things were going to get interesting.


    The group was brought to a peaceful place. There were various independent pavilions and they chose one each.


    "Ye Futian, go rest in your pavilions first. I''ll find you if anything happens," Qian Yang said.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. Along the way, he''d asked Yun Qianmo some questions but she didn''t know much. She only knew that this trip was for the Loulan Relic and didn''t know anything else.


    "Young master, can you explain this trip to us?" Ye Futian asked.


    "What are you in a hurry for?" Beside Qian Yang, Yue Linglong smiled at Ye Futian. Her sexy body was alluring and so were her eyes. "Since Young Master Qian brought you to the palace, he''ll naturally take you into the relic. Just wait for news."


    "But I''m still unsure about some things," Ye Futian replied. He didn''t believe that Qian Yang had brought him out of the good of his heart. There must be another reason.


    "You don''t need to know," Shi Tong said indifferently.


    "Ye Futian." Qian Yang reached out to stop Shi Tong and said, "I know your suspicions. The relic is a magical place. You won''t receive anything just because you''re in a high plane. I need your talent so I teamed up with you. If we receive anything in the relic, we can discuss how to split it. You don''t need to worry over anything else."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. He walked away towards the pavilion he would reside in.


    After entering the pavilion, Lin Yueyao''s pretty eyes flashed. "I don''t know how genuine he is," she said. "There shouldn''t be a problem in trying to ally with you. It must be because of the talent you displayed in the grotto. But if we really receive anything, how do we split it?"


    Qian Yang only had five people but they were all at the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane. Qian Yang, especially, had the noble fate which could greatly increase combat ability. The abilities of the two sides were totally unequal. At that time, it wouldn''t be up to Ye Futian to decide.


    "I feel like he''s just tricking us step by step," Yu Sheng said, furrowing his brows.


    "But we still came, despite knowing there may be problems," Ye Futian said, chuckling. "Since we came, we''ll do it. Even without Qian Yang, we''ll still be up against others if we charge into the relic. From the looks of things, we aren''t the only group here."


    "Oh." Yu Sheng nodded and didn''t say anything else. They would come to the Loulan Relic sooner or later.


    In the following days, Loulan palace was filled with activity but Ye Futian''s group just stayed inside to cultivate. They didn''t even know what Qian Yang''s group was doing. Finally, Yue Linglong came to Ye Futian''s pavilion and found him.


    "Get ready, Ancient Loulan prepared a feast for everyone. The Virgin of the country will be there too," Yue Linglong said with a smile.


    "The Virgin of Ancient Loulan?" Ye Futian glanced at her. "Why not the princess?"


    "Didn''t your servant tell you? Ancient Loulan doesn''t have a princess, only a Virgin. Young Master Qian is waiting outside. Hurry up." Yue Linglong left, smiling.


    Ye Futian didn''t think too much. He called his group and left the pavilion to see Qian Yang''s group there already.


    "Let''s go," Qian Yang said, smiling. They started towards somewhere. They arrived at the steps before a palace. The feast was already prepared and many people were there. The atmosphere was extraordinary. They''d all come from different places.


    Qian Yang found a seat and sat down. Ye Futian''s group all sat down in the area. Here, it seemed that the people of each force sat in one area. There were many groups. When they sat down, many people looked over, sizing them up. At that time, a group strode over from the palace and came to the top of the steps. Everyone''s eyes were instantly attracted.


    Loulan Xue, the Virgin of Ancient Loulan, was as rumored. Her long hair was like snow, shining with silver light, and spilled down her shoulders. She was ethereal and holy and her aura was like frost. She seemed like a fairy. Her eyes shimmered with silver light. They were unordinary and were breathtakingly beautiful.


    "What, you can''t move your eyes away?" Lin Yueyao smiled as she looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked away and smiled at her. "Someone beat you again. Are you unhappy?"


    "Is she as pretty as your girlfriend?" Lin Yueyao asked, chuckling.


    "Nope," Ye Futian replied. "She''s too cold and nowhere near Jieyu."


    "Is a cold beauty with a different temperament bad?" Lin Yueyao smiled subtly. They spoke very quietly and the steps were far away. Their subject couldn''t hear.


    "I''m not like that," Ye Futian said seriously.


    Lin Yueyao gave him a look. She didn''t know if he was telling the truth or not.


    Many people present were attracted by Loulan Xue. Actually, Lin Yueyao was extremely pretty too. Her features were equal to Loulan Xue but the latter''s temperament was too extraordinary.


    A young man stood beside Loulan Xue. His eyes were extremely sharp as he scanned everyone and said, "You all have traveled far, thus the Virgin personally prepared this welcoming banquet. In addition, there are some words that must be said about the Loulan Relic."


    Everyone listened quietly. The young man continued, "You are not from Ancient Loulan but we invited you. Naturally, we wish to use the abilities of talents from all over. Everyone present has an extraordinary identity so there will not be another test. You all can enter the relic with the talents of Ancient Loulan.


    "However, the Loulan Relic belongs to our country. Many of the rare items belong to our country. Therefore, if you receive anything in the relic, you may take the ritual implements. As for anything special, if Ancient Loulan requires it, we will exchange it with an item of equal value. If you agree, you may enter. If not, please leave at your own discretion. We will not force you."


    When Ye Futian heard this, his eyes flashed. Ancient Loulan seemed to really want the items in the Loulan Relic and even invited foreigners to enter the relic. What exactly was in it?


    He was excited now. According to Qian Yang, the ritual implements of the Loulan Relic contained noble fate. It would be difficult for any country in the Hundred Lands to produce ritual implements of this level.


    The people were still quiet. They knew about this already.


    "If you do not speak, I''ll take it as acquiescence. As for the dangers in the relic, I''m sure you all have thought about it. I will not waste any more time," the youth said. "Let us begin the banquet."


    Everyone''s expressions flickered. They all had different thoughts but still looked at Loulan Xue. Just then, she stood up and faced them all. "Please eat your fill. I have other matters to attend and must excuse myself."


    "Virgin, are you going to test the people of Ancient Loulan?" someone asked her.


    Loulan Xue paused. She looked over and nodded.


    "The banquet is unnecessary. Can I go along with you to see the talents of Loulan?" the person asked with a smile.


    Loulan Xue gazed at the youth. She muttered something and left. The youth turned to everyone and asked, "Are you all interested in going?"


    "It''s boring eating here. Why don''t we go observe?" someone else said.


    "Alright. Those who wish to go may follow me. The others may dine or leave as you wish," the youth said calmly. Many stood up instantly and walked over to him.


    "Let''s go too," Qian Yang said. He stood up and walked towards the youth.


    However, one group left quietly. They didn''t follow the others and seemed to be disinterested.


    Qian Yang knitted his brows at them. They seemed to come from there. If people from there were also interested in the Loulan Relic, the consequences would be unimaginable!

 170 Entering the Relic

    Chapter 170: Entering the Relic


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless people were gathered around the palace''s military drill ground. There was a matrix inside the large military drill ground. It was covered in fog and battle drums were on all sides of it. Armored soldiers beat the drums, causing the matrix to be like a scary battlefield. The people of the Ancient Loulan had their assessments here. If they could move past the entire battlefield, they would pass.


    The moment the Virgin Loulan Xue arrived, she attracted many eyes. Her silver hair, silver eyes, and extraordinary aura were all shocking. They''d never seen such a beautiful lady with such a unique aura before. However, she was too cold, as if no one could approach her.


    The Virgin stood before the military drill ground and looked downward. Instantly, many people stepped onto the grounds as if they wanted to show off.


    "This seems to be a fantasy battlefield," Ye Futian said, looking at the grounds.


    "Apparently, the Loulan Relic is a battlefield. Maybe this is to get us accustomed," Yun Qianmo said from beside him.


    "Will you go try?" Lin Yueyao asked with a smile.


    "We can go directly into the relic. There''s no point in wasting time," Ye Futian said.


    "You can perform in front of the Virgin," Lin Yueyao said, smiling.


    Ye Futian glared at her, not bothering to reply.


    Beside them were people from other areas who''d come for the banquet. At this time, someone said, "I heard that the relic is a battlefield and this assessment might be a drill. Would anyone like to try?"


    The speaker came from the Yan City of the Ancient Barren World. The Yan Clan was a terrifyingly powerful force with an extremely high attainment in fire. The Yan Clan was the top of these comers. The other two parties came from Yunxiao City and Jiutian City.


    Yunxiao City''s head force was the Yunxiao Mountain Clan. They had absolute authority in that city. In the outside world, the Yunxiao Mountain was a renowned sacred mountain. Countless clans pledged loyalty to it.


    The Jiutian City''s top force was the Jiutian Pavilion. In the outside world, the Jiutian Pavilion ruled over many kingdoms. In those places, the kings didn''t dare disobey them. These cities all represented powerful regions in the outside world; the Hundred Lands couldn''t be compared.


    "The Yan Clan cultivates fire and the Ancient Loulan cultivates water. Fire and water do not mix. I''m afraid the Yan Clan will find it difficult during this trip into the relic," someone from Yunxiao City joked.


    "Shouldn''t fire and water be complementary?" A Yan Clan member chuckled nonchalantly.


    "This matrix is a Battle Matrix that tests the will. If you all are interested, you can try," the sharp-eyed youth beside the Virgin Loulan Xue said to the group from the podium.


    Everyone''s eyes flashed, seeming to be a bit interested. The head of the Jiutian City said, "Why don''t each of us send three people forward to try?"


    "Alright," people of the Yan City and Yunxiao City agreed.


    "Sure." Qian Yang nodded too. He looked to Ye Futian and said, "You three performed brilliantly at the grotto. This matrix is like a different melody that utilizes the same playing techniques. It is quite similar so how about you all take this chance?"


    "No need. We''re not interested." Ye Futian smiled and shook his head.


    Qian Yang glanced at them. He quickly smiled and nodded. "No problem. If that''s the case, then you go try. Behind him, Shi Tong, Yue Linglong, and Zhao Han all nodded and walked to the other end of the grounds.


    "You''re willing to miss such a good opportunity?" Qian Yang asked Ye Futian with a chuckle.


    "Aren''t you the same?" Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    Qian Yang''s eyes flashed and didn''t say anything.


    Not too long after, the four parties entered the drilling ground at the same time. Shi Tong was extremely domineering. He cut open a path with his ax. Yue Linglong was agile while Zhao Han opened a path with his sword. The Yan Clan had terrifying flames, the Yunxiao Mountain Clan was bathed in thunder, and the Jiutian Pavillian''s cultivators all had different tricks. They were all extraordinary and forced their way through the matrix. When they reached the end, they looked up at the Virgin Loulan.


    Loulan Xue nodded lightly but her expression was still as cold as ever. She didn''t say anything either as if she was born with this personality.


    Everyone returned to their positions. Yue Linglong smiled and said, "The Virgin is so cold but also so beautiful."


    "Indeed," Shi Tong nodded.


    Qian Yang''s eyes flashed. He studied the woman as cold as ice with something deep in his eyes.


    "Wait for me," Ye Futian suddenly said to Yu Sheng and the others. Then he started walking towards the side.


    "Where''s he going?" Lin Yueyao looked at him. Everyone watched as Ye Futian walked towards the podium with an odd expression. Even Qian Yang''s group stared at his backside, wondering where he was going.


    "Who is he?" someone from the Yan Clan asked. Many looked at him curiously. Ye Futian was dressed in all white and looked like a rich noble. He was extremely handsome and one had to admit that his temperament stood out from the crowd. He walked slowly to the podium the Virgin Loulan was at.


    Lin Yueyao blinked. Could he do this?


    At this moment, the sharp youth beside the Virgin looked to Ye Futian as well and saw that he was calm as if he was someone extremely important.


    "May I help you?" he asked.


    "I have some questions for the Virgin," Ye Futian said calmly. The sharp youth furrowed his brows but the Virgin Loulan Xue looked over to Ye Futian.


    She said, "Let him come."


    Thus the youth let him pass. Ye Futian walked to Loulan Xue and asked with a smile, "You cultivate the power of ice, focusing on Spiritual Sorcery, correct?"


    Loulan Xue looked at him in shock and asked coolly, "How do you know?"


    "You can see one''s cultivation from their temperament. Virgin, you are so cold that you naturally cultivate ice. As for Spiritual Sorcery, it can be seen through the eyes," Ye Futian said calmly. He walked to the Virgin''s side and looked down at the drilling ground.


    The people from the four forces all stared at Ye Futian, dumbfounded. Right now, he stood side by side with the Virgin. His temperament was unsurpassed as if he was someone extraordinary.


    "Who is he?" the people of the Yan Clan and Yunxiao Mountain Clan all asked. They looked to Qian Yang, wondering who exactly was the leader of the Qianmeng City. From the looks of Ye Futian''s aura besides the Virgin, he seemed to be the one in charge of things.


    Qian Yang''s expression was twisted while Lin Yueyao looked at Ye Futian speechlessly. "So shameless."


    "She''s just the Virgin Loulan," Yu Sheng said coolly. What was so special about her? Nowadays, those with high status might not be able to stand beside Ye Futian in the future.


    Lin Yueyao glanced at Yu Sheng, speechless again. Did these two not even care about the Virgin of the Ancient Loulan?


    Now, Loulan Xue also looked at Ye Futian with some shock. The people of different forces always tried to show off before her, and the people from the four parties had done the same when entering the drilling ground. She''d never expected someone to walk to her so shamelessly.


    "Earlier in the banquet, I heard your guard say that there''s something that Ancient Loulan wants in the relic," Ye Futian said to her. "If you say what specifically it is, it''ll be easier to find."


    Loulan Xue looked at him with her silver eyes. "If there are treasurable books in the relic, you can pay special attention to them."


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded and said, "I am in a low plane while I don''t fully trust the people with me. If I receive the treasure that the Ancient Loulan wants, I''ll hand it over. But will the Virgin protect me once I leave the relic? After all, people will try to forcefully take it from me."


    Loulan Xue looked at him. He was in a slightly lower plane but he was still so confident. Still, she nodded. "I will also enter the relic. If you find anything, you can come to me."


    "Much thanks." Ye Futian smiled and went back to the crowd.


    "What did you say to the Virgin?" Qian Yang came up to ask.


    "I asked her what kind of man she likes," Ye Futian replied with a grin. "Young Master, let''s go back."


    Watching Ye Futian leave, Qian Yang frowned. Was this guy joking? How could he say something like that to the Virgin?


    Zhao Han looked at Ye Futian darkly. This bastard never took the normal path. The others all tried to show off to the Virgin while he just walked up and started chatting with her.


    Ye Futian was too lazy to worry about what they were thinking. He truly didn''t trust Qian Yang. The other hadn''t mentioned the relic''s situation at all but Ye Futian bet that Qian Yang hadn''t investigated it. It would be okay if he couldn''t find anything in the relic. If he really did find the treasure, then anything could happen. It was better safe than sorry.


    Three days later, many people were grouped deep inside the palace.


    Ye Futian''s group from the Qianmeng City; the people chosen from the Yan City, Yunxiao City, Jiutian City, and Loulan City; and those who hadn''t gone to the drilling ground after the banquet were all present.


    Loulan Xue was there as well. She''d personally brought people here. Behind her, there were many guards, all with extraordinary auras. They were clearly trained well and were now elites in the Dharma Plane.


    Ye Futian studied them all and then looked to the mysterious group from an unknown place. There were four of them��all quiet but with a dangerous aura. They were probably extremely powerful.


    There was a gate up ahead. Behind it was a fog zone. One could vaguely see an extremely ancient city wall and gate. That was where the relic was located.


    The Loulan Palace was built before the Loulan Relic to guard it.


    "Let us set off," the youth beside Loulan Xue said now. Everyone nodded and walked forward.


    "Let''s go," Qian Yang said. Ye Futian''s group stepped out, walking past the gate and into the foggy area.


    A strange feeling filled the air. They passed through the fog and the old city wall became clearer.


    "The relic is past the city gate. Be careful," the man beside Loulan Xue said. Everyone grew more guarded as they walked towards the old city gate.


    Ye Futian activated his Freedom Meditation and looked forward to see through the fog.

 171 The Soldiers’ Mound

    Chapter 171: The Soldiers�� Mound


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s gaze seemed to penetrate through the heavy fog. Looking beyond the fog, Ye Futian finally laid eyes on the scene that was unfolding. His expression changed drastically before yelling, "Look out!" He had only just spoken when tens of thousands of arrows whisked through the air straight toward them like a meteor shower, covering the entirety of the sky above. In an instant, figures lifted into the air one by one.


    Next to Qian Yang, Zhao Han, Shi Tong, and others stepped forward. Sword intent cut through the air as a huge ax flew forward destroying the wave of arrows headed for them.


    "Let''s go," Qian Yang called out before he ran ahead. The cultivators from the other groups also sped up, moving at the speed of light.


    In front of Ye Futian, the Black Wind Eagle shook its large wings, creating a gust of wind that pushed away the attacking arrows. At the same time, the beast led Ye Futian and the others towards the gates ahead. They made it through the fog and into the relic. They were met with a large armored army which seemed to have no end from where they were looking.


    "Let''s go to the Soldiers'' Mound," a voice spoke out suddenly. It came from the sharp-looking young man next to the Virgin. Ye Futian''s eyes lit up and he ordered the Black Wind Eagle to follow behind the Virgin and her group. It was definitely not their first time in this relic.


    What was the Soldiers'' Mound? The endless army they had just seen was not made up of real people, but it was as if they were alive because they initiated an attack.


    BOOM! A fearsome force of energy blanketed the area. The army below was actually using sorcery. Their attack charged directly at the group up in the air. Virgin Loulan Xue looked down with her silver eyes. A terrifying glow emitted from her eyes sealed all the charging arrows in ice as they made their way into the skies.


    On Ye Futian''s side, the Black Wind Eagle kept spitting out Wind Blades down at the army. However, the army seemed to have an unlimited supply of arrows. Yun Qianmo descended from the skies to release a shower of swords. Light gleamed off of the blades as the swords rained down, creating a protective field in the surrounding area to aid the Black Wind Eagle''s advance.


    "An ancient city." Ye Futian lifted his head to look up ahead. The Loulan Relic was actually a mysterious ancient city. Furthermore, it seemed as if the entire city was set up to form a powerful matrix. Traveling straight ahead, Ye Futian noticed that the city below was packed full of people. There were powerful cultivators everywhere.


    "This is a matrix," said Ye Futian, a very powerful one at that. The matrix covered the entire city. Entering the city, they had also made their way into the matrix.


    Ye Futian observed the crowd below. The armies suited in silver armor radiated the aura of the lower-level Dharma Planes. However, among those clad in silver, there were generals suited in golden armors. The aura they emitted was that of the mid-level Dharma Planes. The huge matrix had separated the armies in the ancient city by planes of cultivation.


    Loulan Xue led the way as everyone else followed behind. They were moving very fast but that did not stop the armies from below who would charge into the skies at them every now and then. However, among the people entering the relic, only Ye Futian and his friends were in the lower-level Dharma Planes. All the others were top-level Dharma Plane cultivators. Naturally, the people below were not able to stop them from moving forward. Despite this, Ye Futian predicted there would be an existence of greater power at this historical site.


    After some time, they arrived at a location guarded by generals in gold armors. There were even some people donning rose-gold armors. Their aura let others know that they were of the higher-level Dharma Planes.


    "Kill them." Beside Loulan Xue, the sharp-looking young man led his people forward. His Dharma appeared behind him and a windstorm brewed. From the storm, shot out countless spears, killing the armor-clad generals. The others joined in on the action and in the blink of an eye, the whole area was in disarray. Very quickly, they had killed everyone guarding the location.


    Up ahead, a solemn tower appeared. It radiated an aura of mystery. Ritual implements of all sorts floated in the air around the tower.


    Soldiers'' Mound. Ye Futian''s eyes brightened. Was this tower the Soldiers'' Mound?


    "As long you can manage to take the ritual implements with you, they belong to you," said Loulan Xue. It was an expansive area that the implements were spread out in. Everyone looked around at the glowing objects, ready to make their picks. Rumors said it was extremely difficult to take the implements away from the Loulan Relic. Even if they were right in front of your very eyes, you couldn''t take them with you.


    Noble will circulated in these implements, so it would require an individual to have enough willpower of their own.


    Zhao Han headed in the direction of a certain sword. It glowed with a golden light, making its blade seem extremely sharp. One could even see their own reflection on the blade of the sword.


    "Mine," said Zhao Han. Releasing a fearsome force of sword intent, he walked up to the sword. He extended his arm to reach for the sword. But just then, the sword exploded with a shocking and destructive force of sword intent itself. Within seconds, the strong force had launched Zhao Han''s body backward with a low groan of pain. He spat blood and the color washed from his face.


    Everyone''s eyes fell on him. The ritual implements of the Loulan Relic were not that easy to obtain. If it were that simple, the implements at the historical relic would have been long gone.


    "What happened?" Qian Yang asked Zhao Han. Although he had already done prior research, this was also his first time in the Loulan Relic.


    "The sword seems to have a mind of its own. It repelled me," said a pale-faced Zhao Han.


    Behind them, Ye Futian''s eyes browsed through each ritual implement. With the Freedom Meditation in motion, he was able to see the terrifying willpower in each implement. It almost looked as if the power was locked within the objects. This force of will was most likely noble will.


    Another figure moved forward. It was a cultivator from Yunxiao Mountain Clan. As he stepped forward, his entire body was bathed in the glow of lightning. Reaching out his hand, even his hand carried the terrifying power of lightning. His palm wrapped around a thunder hammer basking in a rosy gold gleam of dominance.


    A thundering force of power erupted in the air. The power of lightning in the palm of the cultivator''s palm suppressed the force from the ritual implement.


    Just then, the force followed the curvature of the cultivator''s arm and rushed crazily into his body. The horrific willpower from the implement clashed with the will in his body. Following this was a groan from this cultivator who cultivated in the element of lightning. He had been struck by lightning and was fried pitch black. The cultivator from the Yunxiao Mountain Clan was met with this pitiful result and fell to the ground from the skies.


    People stepped up for their own attempts one by one but not one succeeded.


    The ancient historical site had been around of ages but all the ritual implements were still there. This meant that not a single person had been able to take an implement away from the Loulan Relic. It was an impossible task.


    Loulan Xue watched everything unfold quietly. Were the sealed noble will ritual implements still unable to find their successors?


    "Ye Futian, aren''t you going to give it a try?" Qian Yang asked with his eyes trained on Ye Futian.


    "After you, Young Master." Qian Yang stepped out. Fate from his body exploded, reaching the air ten feet above him. The noble fate attracted the attention of everyone around.


    "Young Master Qian will definitely be able to claim one of the implements," said Zhao Han.


    "I''ll try it out first." Qian Yang had spoken. He moved towards the golden sword Zhao Han had attempted to claim just before. Noble fate formed into a dragon, revolving around his body and its sharp claws reached for the hilt of the sword.


    A fearsome force of sword intent burst from the sword, disregarding the power of the fate. It rushed directly into Qian Yang''s mind. His fate returned to his body. The will that made up his noble fate was terrifyingly powerful. Closing his eyes, his will fought against the sword intent in his mind.


    The two parties engaged in a formless battle. Sword intent flowed outside of Qian Yang''s body, creating a sharp screeching sound as it battled against his willpower.


    Zhao Han and the others had their eyes glued on Qian Yang. Just a little while later, Qian Yang''s forehead was already drenched in sweat. Perspiration ran down his face like an endless waterfall.


    WHOOSH! A force of sword intent whisked by. Qian Yang was pushed back and the sword intent dissipated, returning back into the sword. A voice spoke out right after, "Still lacking a little something."


    Hearing the voice, everyone''s eyes widened and looked towards the sword. Could it even make noises like that? Who was speaking?


    Qian Yang''s face was drenched in sweat and he had turned pale as a ghost. He had actually failed. "I couldn''t win against the noble will in the sword. The ritual implements of the Soldiers'' Mound choose their successors," said Qian Yang with a heavy expression. The implements had life, the life of their original owners. Their noble will was not destroyed and was sealed in this historical site, to live on in the implements they possessed when they were living.


    The sword and the noble will came as a package deal. The will would never be destroyed. Thus, one must obtain the acknowledgment of the noble will within before being able to take control of the ritual implement.


    Ye Futian observed in silence. He had also deduced that the implements of the Soldiers'' Mound choose their own successors, just as Qian Yang had said.


    "I''ll give it a go," said Ye Futian. He walked forward and laid eyes on a flame scepter. Getting up close, a burning flame was ignited in the palm of his hand as he reached out for the scepter.


    A first level Dharma Plane cultivator? Everyone looked at Ye Futian in shock. This was the guy who walked up to stand side by side with the Virgin the other day. No one expected his level of cultivation to be so low.


    The moment Ye Futian''s palm wrapped around the flame scepter, a wild force of fire will rushed into his mind. It was almost as if the power from the terrifying force wanted to burn him down to nothing. Ye Futian immediately let go and took steps back. He stared at the flame scepter in front of him.


    "Where is the Virgin Loulan?" asked a voice that suddenly appeared. Loulan Xue stepped forward and finally spoke, "Here." Just then, an apparition formed by will appeared next to the flame scepter. The figure was engulfed in flames. Everyone''s gaze was frozen at his sudden appearance.


    "This is getting out of hand. You''re even allowing first level Dharma Plane cultivators into the relic as a contender of the ritual implements?" the fiery apparition asked the Virgin Loulan. He was very obviously discontented.


    Loulan Xue glanced over at Ye Futian quickly. She had not known that he was in such a low level of cultivation.


    "Are things really going downhill with every passing generation? Is there anyone else who wants to try?" The figure looked around the room at the others. A mere first level Dharma Plane cultivator''s will would never be able to intake his will. Even top-level Dharma Plane cultivators could barely manage!

 172 Nosy

    Chapter 172: Nosy


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at that figure, a bit depressed. He was looked down on by the remnants of an intent.


    "If that''s the case, I won''t bother you," Ye Futian said with a smile and walked away.


    "I''ll do it," a voice said then. Someone walked forward. It was a strong cultivator from the Yan Clan who specialized in fire. He was currently bathed in flames, and the mark of a flame lit up between his eyes. He grabbed at the flame scepter up ahead. The flame figure was embedded inside the scepter. At that moment, a terrifying gust of fire intent exploded.


    The mark between the Yan Clan cultivator''s brows seemed to light up and transform into powerful fire intent. It was at the Noble level. The surrounding Spiritual Qi surged into the mark. It glowed brighter and brighter like a fire zone.


    The two came to a stalemate. After a long while, a lazy voice drawled, "I''ll just settle with you. I''m not willing to wait anymore. I hope you won''t bring disgrace to my ritual implement. I will accompany your last few days in the relic. How much fire intent you can inherit is entirely up to you. Once out of the relic, you can only use your own abilities to activate the power inside the instrument."


    "Thank you, senior." The Yan Clan cultivator looked excited. He was the first to receive a ritual implement that contained noble intent. With this, he would have the chance to turn the noble intent into the purest and strongest fire intent, creating a mid-level noble intent. With its help, he would also have extremely explosive abilities, especially inside the relic because the other could aid him.


    Many people glanced at Ye Futian. How could a First level Dharma Plane cultivator think so highly of himself and enter the relic? At the same time, many people made attempts after seeing the Yan Clan member succeed but they all failed.


    But just then, there was a shocked cry. In one area, a few people received recognition from the ritual implement at almost the same time.


    It''s them. Everyone else''s eyes flashed. It was the four mysterious people. Now, three of them had received ritual implements with the noble intent. Even the Virgin Loulan Xue was a bit stunned.


    When the last person received his ritual implement, the four of them flew into the air and left without glancing at anyone else.


    "Virgin," the sharp youth beside Loulan Xue said, "these people come from the Barren City. They''re interested in the relic as well and there might be a variable."


    Loulan Xue''s eyes flashed. She could obviously tell that the four from the Barren City were frightening. They were probably at the top level. If they really were interested in the Loulan Relic and received something, they most likely wouldn''t exchange with Ancient Loulan.


    At this time, Ye Wuchen walked to somewhere in the air. There was a sword before him. It was silver, gleaming with sharpness within the silver light. Ye Wuchen''s gaze was like a sword and he was instantly surrounded by sword intent. It radiated from him, enveloping towards the silver sword.


    In an instant, the silver sword burst with dazzling light. Shocking sword intent pierced into Ye Wuchen''s mind as if trying to kill him. Ye Wuchen''s eyes were extremely sharp. Sword intent went flying from between his eyes, fighting against the other sword intent and trying to rush into the sword.


    Crackle�� A burst of terrifying sword intent instantly swept through the air, wrapping Ye Wuchen within. It was out for the kill and wanted to shatter Ye Wuchen''s will.


    He seemed to not feel anything. His body appeared to transform into a sword. Endless sword intent flew past him. He seemed not to be of flesh anymore; rather, he had the body of a sword. Instead of retreating, he forged onwards.


    Crack! There was a sharp sound, and blood appeared at the corner of Ye Wuchen''s lips. It was like the final warning to him.


    Ye Wuchen closed his eyes. He could feel the sword pointed at him as if it could end his life at any time. At that moment, in his senses, Ye Wuchen also transformed into a sword. He went towards the sword in front, trying to resonate with it.


    The two swords clashed and the one that Ye Wuchen transformed into cracked. It broke apart bit by bit but the broken sword melded into the other one. It couldn''t be killed.


    The sword clanged and shone brightly. Then it was grasped in Ye Wuchen''s hand; the sword intent fused with Ye Wuchen''s will.


    "He succeeded." Everyone''s eyes flashed, trained on Ye Wuchen.


    Qian Yang''s eyes were also odd. He invited Ye Futian''s group because he saw the trio''s performance at the Noble Grotto. They could triumph over the Noble Grotto; could they triumph over the noble ritual implements?


    Reality proved that they could. Ye Wuchen had received one while he and Zhao Han had failed. It was a different sword but it showed that Ye Wuchen''s will was strong and was recognized by the sword.


    Ye Futian saw Ye Wuchen with the sword in the air. A smile appeared in his eyes. He couldn''t be left behind. Picking up his feet, Ye Futian arrived at a place further back. There was a dragon-shaped guqin before him. He stood before it and strummed the strings. In that instant, terrifying musical sorcery rushed into Ye Futian''s mind. It shook in everyone else''s eardrums at the same time but the attack on Ye Futian was stronger.


    The music created when the strings were played was like a dragon''s cry.


    The guqin contains dragon charm. Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He played the strings again and the dragon cry once again shook the sky and earth. This time, the intent shaking inside Ye Futian''s mind was even stronger, like a type of backlash.


    "Stop," an ice-cold voice said. Ye Futian looked up and saw that flame scepter in the hands of the Yan Clan cultivator. The illusory intent appeared again. The flame figure stared at Ye Futian and said coldly, "You are not allowed to touch that instrument."


    "Why?" Ye Futian glanced over. It was one thing for the figure to not let Ye Futian touch it since it was the physical incarnate of the scepter''s intent. But why did it care if Ye Futian wanted to choose another ritual implement?


    "No reason. If I tell you to stop, then stop," the flame figure replied indifferently. It appeared extremely overbearing.


    Ye Futian glanced at it and then lowered his head. He played the instrument again. True dragon roar sounded, shaking the world. His mind suffered from the backlash again. He realized that the guqin only had pure intent and no consciousness. The intent was completely melded into the guqin.


    "I want this," Ye Futian said coolly to the flame figure, looking up.


    "You can''t withstand it," the flame figure said coldly. It seemed to care for the guqin and didn''t want Ye Futian to disgrace it.


    "Oh?" Ye Futian sneered. He strummed the instrument strings and music streamed out continuously. Like a dragon roaring from a mountain, a burst of extremely powerful intent charged endlessly into Ye Futian''s mind.


    The flame figure glared at him. A First level Dharma Plane dares to touch this guqin? He''s looking for death.


    Ye Futian didn''t know what it was thinking. He continued playing while his mind continued to suffer the melody''s backlash. It transformed into a shocking intent attack, the dragon''s roar shattered everything.


    This instrument seemed to not allow anyone to play it. But Ye Futian wouldn''t give up. He continued. The dragon''s roar intensified, almost tearing apart his will. The emperor''s intent descended, protecting his will. Playing the instrument, he overlooked everything. Ignoring everything, he plucked the strings and an extraordinary aura radiated from him.


    The dragon cried and the music continued without break. The surrounding people stared at Ye Futian, listening to his melody.


    The flame figure furrowed its brows. The music grew higher and more domineering but Ye Futian was still unmoved. A strange look flashed past its eyes. Could Ye Futian really stimulate the guqin? But how could he withstand the backlash with his plane?


    The old and simple guqin slowly started glowing as Ye Futian played. The music grew more and more terrifying while the light became brighter and brighter. Following an extremely loud dragon roar that shook the sky, the music became bright. It cut across the sky and many ritual implements rattled, seemingly affected by the music.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt something break in the guqin. It was dazzling bright and his intent finally melded directly into the guqin, no longer feeling any backlash. In fact, he felt the extremely powerful intent contained within the guqin. It seemed to lie on the instrument just as how the flame figure had been on the scepter.


    Seeing this, the flame figure''s expression grew uncomfortable. Ye Futian had actually awakened the guqin. Terrifying flame intent burst from its eyes, going to brand Ye Futian. It was so frightening.


    Ye Futian''s emperor''s intent seeped into the guqin. He plucked the strings and a shockingly resonant music seemed to explode. It was like a true dragon coming to life. It collided with the incoming fire intent, shattering it. The surrounding ritual implements shook even more violently, seemingly guided by the music.


    The flame figure''s eyes were extremely cold. It attacked once again but Ye Futian, immersed in the guqin, didn''t even look. He played the strings again and an even more powerful note tore through everything, wiping towards the flame figure''s intent.


    Seeing this, everyone''s eyes were on Ye Futian. He had received the ritual implement and it seemed to be really powerful. Ye Futian used its strength to fight directly against the flame scepter''s intent.


    What they didn''t understand was why this flame figure wanted to stop Ye Futian. What was the story behind this guqin?


    Finally, the flame figure stopped. It looked at Ye Futian and said coldly, "You are able to receive this instrument by serendipity. If I see you disgrace this guqin in the relic, I will kill you."


    Ye Futian glanced coldly at it. He''d tried to communicate with it but was rejected directly because of his low plane. Now that he''d received the guqin, it was still being nosy.

 173 You Actually Think You’re Worthy?

    Chapter 173: You Actually Think You��re Worthy?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian continued to play. He could feel the remaining bit of will within the guqin and wanted to awaken it. Yu Sheng threw a cold glance at the fiery figure before it disappeared. Then, he made his way toward a ritual implement.


    It was a giant ax. The golden ax was filled with a sharp intent and a thick feeling. The implement seemed like it would destroy just about anything. Previously, Shi Tong from the Qianmeng area wanted this giant ax but failed.


    Yu Sheng reached out, grabbing the handle of the ax. In an instant, a fearsome force of sharp intent rushed into his mind. He could faintly see the gleaming of the ax''s blade as it cut down on his will. He growled. Yu Sheng released his will in a frenzy. However, all he got in return was a voice in his mind that told him, "You''re too weak." His level of cultivation was the same as Ye Futian''s, at the first level Dharma Plane. He was far from Shi Tong''s level.


    In his mind, his will formed into what seemed like a demon god with a fierce aura. The demon god stood opposite of the will of the ax. Coldly, Yu Sheng asked, "Are you going to come with me?"


    Everyone around froze and stared at Yu Sheng. Was there something wrong with this guy? The ritual implements picked their owners and needed to go through the test of will. But here he was, asking the will directly, "Are you going to come with me?" Who did he think he was?


    Yu Sheng did not care about all that. Naturally, his will was nowhere near as strong as the will of the ax. Its will was at the noble level. How could he compare? But Yu Sheng didn''t care. So what if its will was at the noble level. If this noble will wouldn''t acknowledge him, then he would move on to the next implement. The words that the will of the flame scepter said to Ye Futian had ignited a flame of rage in Yu Sheng. How dare it look down on Ye Futian when he was willing to choose that instrument?


    The will of this ritual implement was the same. If this was how it would act, then Yu Sheng would simply ask if it would go with him. If the answer was no, then he would simply switch over to another instrument. He was not going to waste his time seeking acknowledgment from the other party. Yu Sheng was the one picking a ritual implement, not the other way around.


    The will of the giant ax felt the willpower of the apparition in Yu Sheng''s mind. Then, the glow on the instrument slowly dimmed, lying peacefully in the palm of Yu Sheng''s hand.


    Yu Sheng retracted his extended arm, taking the ax with him as he turned around.


    Spectators were completely dumbfounded by the scene that unfolded. Was that even possible?


    Shi Tong''s expression did not look too good. He had his sights on the giant ax but was rejected by its will. Now, the will of the ax had no objections after one simple question from Yu Sheng. Shi Tong felt so humiliated.


    Zhao Han had a fairly similar expression on his face. He stepped out once more to walk toward the sharp golden sword. Clasping his hand around the hilt of the sword, he released a powerful force of will before asking fiercely, "Are you coming with me?"


    Everyone stopped what they were doing to watch Zhao Han. It seemed that even the sword faltered momentarily as the glow from the instrument froze. In the next moment, an even more terrifying force of will exploded along with a voice that spoke coldly, "Do you have a death wish?" Following this question, Zhao Han let out a petrifying scream. He was propelled backward. The pain on his face made it obvious that he was deeply injured by the sword intent.


    Yu Sheng threw a cold glance at Zhao Han while others gave the injured young man strange looks. Lin Yueyao could not help but laugh. Even the Black Wind Eagle let out an odd laughter, slapping its wings. Did that idiot think he was Yu Sheng?


    Zhao Han recovered slowly. His expression was even sourer than before. How did Yu Sheng do it? Could it be that Yu Sheng had a more forceful aura? But his level was higher than Yu Sheng and his willpower was more powerful.


    Standing beside Zhao Han, Qian Yang was not smiling. He had invited Ye Futian''s trio to join them into the relic because he could see just how tough their will was. Now, the three of them had actually received recognition from the ritual implements and gotten their own noble level instruments. All the while, as the young master of the Qianmeng area, Qian Yang had yet to be acknowledged by any of the ritual implements.


    Ye Futian, who was in the midst of acquainting himself with the guqin, also stared slack-jawed at Yu Sheng. He sighed inwardly, realizing that he was one-upped by Yu Sheng. Within the guqin, that bit of will seemed to have been awakened but did not make a sound. Ye Futian did not have anything to say to it either.


    Both Lin Yueyao and Yun Qianmo made attempts but also failed to be acknowledged by any ritual implement.


    Ye Futian thought to himself, what would happen if I tried to take another ritual implement? Would it reject me? However, he did not make any attempts to do so. Otherwise, if he actually succeeded, he would be public enemy number one. These people could not even get one ritual implement. If he took two, did that mean that he could take even more? Ye Futian would probably be cornered by people asking him for implements.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian. He mounted the Black Wind Eagle and others followed right after him.


    Everyone turned their attention to the group. "Follow them," said Qian Yang. The five cultivators from the Qianmeng area got on the wind roc and trailed after Ye Futian and his friends. Everything that happened was the perfect proof that Qian Yang made the right choice inviting Ye Futian and the others into the relic. He wanted to see what further advantages Ye Futian would get following this.


    "Let''s go," said the Yan Clan member who had obtained the flame scepter. He was the head of Yan City, a prodigy of the Yan Clan��Xiao Mu. He was extremely gifted in the element of fire. Everyone in Yan City listened to his orders. His position was equal to that of Qian Yang in the Qianmeng area.


    The others also tried to communicate with the ritual implements but quickly realized that they would not be acknowledged. Accepting their failure, they joined their leader in the skies to chase after the two groups that had previously departed.


    Only the Virgin Loulan Xue''s people were left at the site. Something flashed through Loulan Xue''s silver eyes. This situation was different from before. This time, everyone chose to follow closely after Ye Futian. It was probably because they witnessed three low-level cultivators obtain ritual implements. This might have sparked something in their minds.


    Those from the Barren City were also very outstanding. All four of them had acquired implements, but no one chase after them. Most likely because the four were much too terrifying. They were a group of their own and did not acquaint themselves with others.


    In a flash, Loulan Xue was also following after Ye Futian. There were more people who had acquired implements today than there ever was in the history of the site. No one knew how this would affect the site of the Loulan Relic.


    Atop the Black Wind Eagle, Ye Futian and the others could clearly see the trail of people chasing behind them, but they did not care. Ye Futian was still getting acquainted with the guqin. How would he be able to release its power if he was not well-acquainted with the instrument?


    "This is the imperial palace of the old Loulan Kingdom," Ye Wuchen suddenly said.


    Ye Futian gave him a strange look before asking, "Another palace?" He looked at Ye Wuchen''s sword. The sword contained will, just like the flame scepter. It might know some things about the ancient past.


    "Ancient Loulan is called ''ancient'' because the Loulan Kingdom had once fallen. The imperial palace was taken over and all the powerful cultivators in the palace were brutally murdered. The Loulan Kingdom was utterly destroyed and the nation collapsed. Later, a woman unlike any other arrived out of the blue with half a treasurable book in her possession. She revived the kingdom and was dubbed ''celestial empress''. After that, the Loulan Kingdom became Ancient Loulan and only virgin saints were chosen. There are no princes or princesses. The virgin saints would be the ones inherited the place of the celestial empress," said Ye Wuchen.


    "Then why is the old imperial palace in the Ancient Barren World and what is that below?" Ye Futian looked down. There, armor-clad soldiers were everywhere.


    "The old Loulan Kingdom had two treasurable books. The emperor used one of the books to kill invaders and prepared to go down with his enemies. Knowing that the end was near, he used the power of the book to seal the imperial palace in a matrix, allowing the will within the matrix to be preserved forever. At the same time, he hid all the treasures of the royal Loulan family in the palace. He then created the Soldiers'' Mound, allowing the soldiers who had passed to pick the successors of their will. The matrix sealed in the book was then sent into the Ancient Barren World and managed to slip through the cracks of the well-regulated world, allowing Loulan descendants to enter for trials," Ye Wuchen explained.


    "So that would mean that the celestial empress who revived the old Loulan Kingdom got her hands on half of the book here." Ye Futian thought back to the treasurable book that Loulan Xue had mentioned before and could not help but to be filled with curiosity. Furthermore, the treasures of the old Loulan Palace were all sealed in the relic. No wonder why the people of Ancient Loulan all rushed to the relic. They had total control of the Loulan Relic.


    "Ask the will in the sword who my guqin belonged to," Ye Futian said to Ye Wuchen. He wanted to know why the will of the flame scepter cared so much about it.


    Ye Wuchen looked at him and replied, "The prince of the old Loulan Kingdom."


    Ye Futian''s eyes widened. His will traveled into the guqin and asked, "You''re the prince?"


    "Yes," replied a voice that seemed very far away.


    "Will you disappear after leaving this historical site?" asked Ye Futian.


    There was a slight pause before the voice answered, "Yes. After I disappear, it is up to you to activate the willpower contained in this guqin."


    "That''s a such a shame," sighed Ye Futian.


    "I will do my best to aid you while we''re still in the relic," said the prince. He thought Ye Futian''s comment meant it was a shame that he could not help with increasing his powers.


    "Your guqin is more well-known than you," said Ye Futian. What he meant was that it was a shame the prince could not watch his kingdom flourish.


    "Since you''re the prince, you must be very familiar with this place. Take me to find the treasures," said Ye Futian. The Black Wind Eagle continued moving forward.


    Up ahead, a thundering noise came from below. Ye Futian looked down to see a battle platform. Many soldiers stood in a straight line in front of war drums. They were suited in armors of flame. Heat radiated off their bodies, permeating the entirety of the ancient platform. In the center of the line of drums was a long, narrow table. On top of the table was a furnace and on top of the furnace, floated a majestic-looking Book of Flames.


    BOOM! A thundering noise spread through the air. The Black Wind Eagle screeched loudly as it began its descent after losing stability. Ye Futian and the others felt vibrations in their minds. The sounds of the drums were too terrifying.


    They descended in front of the platform and looked straight ahead. Was the treasure really going to be placed out in the open like this? It wasn''t hidden at all. Was this how the emperor of the old Loulan Kingdom hid all his treasures?


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian and his friends stepped forward. He had the guqin in his hands, and was prepared to head over and grab the Book of Flames.


    "Get out of here! You actually think you''re worthy?" a voice rang out coldly through the air. The people who followed Ye Futian saw what was going on below and descended immediately. Still in the air, it was the will of the flame scepter in Xiao Mu''s hand that had spoken. The fiery apparition appeared once again and looked to the book. It was a treasure he could not even lay hands on while living. Now, it was simply placed out in the open.


    "Go get it. It''ll help you greatly in cultivation. I''ll be at your aid," the apparition said to Xiao Mu.

 174 You’ve Received My Recognition

    Chapter 174: You��ve Received My Recognition


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Okay." Xiao Mu nodded and walked forward with the flame scepter in hand. He could obviously see that the Book of Flames was necessary for his cultivation of the flame. Even though the Virgin Loulan had said that non-ritual implement treasures must be exchanged with the Ancient Loulan, they obviously had other ideas. They could at least cultivate a bit within the relic.


    Ye Futian''s group glanced at the flame figure. How many times had it been now? Rather than acting, he watched Xiao Mu walk towards the battle podium. The armored soldiers started beating the battle drums again. In an instant, a terrifying aura burst forth. The drumbeats shook the air. Fire intent seemed to meld into the drum, charging towards Xiao Mu.


    Xiao Mu''s intent fused into the scepter and he placed it before him. In a second, terrifying firelight wrapped around him. Shocking intent burst and clashed with the intent within the pounding drumbeats. Xiao Mu charged forward, wanting to take the Book of Flames. No one behind him dared to move recklessly. They could feel the mightiness of the battle drum. It was frightening.


    When Xiao Mu took a step, the drum started shaking again. This time was even more frightening than the first time. Xiao Mu furrowed his brows. The noble-level fate burst from his body and activated the power of the scepter. At that moment, he was like someone from the Noble Plane. He was bathed in fire and seemed indomitable. As a leading figure from the Yan City, Xiao Mu had come to the relic after receiving the noble intent. He had terrifying abilities; otherwise, he couldn''t receive the ritual implement''s recognition.


    Wild waves of fire tossed on the battle platform. Xiao Mu almost drowned in them but he used the scepter''s power to walk forward steadily. This was a battle of will. He used his noble intent to urge the noble scepter. The intent that burst forth was definitely close to that of the Noble Plane. There was no reason he couldn''t receive the Book of Flames.


    As he walked forward, the drumbeats pounded the sky. The people behind him couldn''t stop retreating. Their intent kept shaking, especially those who didn''t have the noble fate. They just felt that they couldn''t withstand this power. They probably wouldn''t be able to receive anything in this relic.


    Without a noble fate, they would need a ritual implement to make up for it but most people didn''t have either.


    Bathed in endless fire, Xiao Mu walked forward like a noble. The soldiers beat the drums again. The drumbeats connected, seeming to resonate with the entire world. The skies and earth became one and transformed into undefeatable power that swept towards Xiao Mu.


    Xiao Mu paused. The terrifying heat wave blew onto him and the hand holding the scepter trembled. He was close to the Book of Flames; he could get it after seven steps. However, he had a feeling that he probably wouldn''t have the chance to take these seven steps.


    He forced his feet forward. With a boom, the drumbeats started up again. In an instant, gales of fire swept through. Terrifying intent went alongside the drumbeats, attacking the scepter and Xiao Mu.


    Boom! With a loud boom, Xiao Mu was forced back. He frantically urged the power within the scepter. The mark between his eyes burned brightly but the scepter cracked. It almost broke but he held on. The crack healed and he panted heavily, his pallor slightly pale.


    He failed. Many people''s eyes flashed. The powerful Xiao Mu had failed, even with the help of the noble ritual implement. This meant that they had no chance.


    In the back, the sharp youth besides Loulan Xue said, "It seems difficult for anyone to receive it. I wonder if those in the Barren City would be able to do it."


    For many years, generation after generation of strong cultivators walked into the relic. The ritual implements that could be taken were all taken already. The ones that still remained were extremely difficult to take.


    The sharp man had tried for the Book of Flames before but had failed, though he''d gone further than Xiao Mu. Virgin Loulan Xue had obviously tried before too. She''d almost succeeded but failed at the last step.


    The flame figure appeared once again where Xiao Mu was. Its expression was not pretty.


    "Senior, I tried my best," Xiao Mu said.


    "I know." The flame figure nodded. "It seems that no one can take it. What a pity." Were the treasures in the palace so hard to take nowadays? If so, there would probably be no other gains.


    People started whispering amongst each other when they heard its words. Could no one take it? Since the noble intent''s physical incarnate said so, it must be so.


    But just then, a figure clad in white walked out towards the battle platform, stealing everyone''s attention. Everyone looked at him with some shock. Ye Futian''s talent was unparalleled and was recognized by a ritual implement but his plane was low. He didn''t have the noble fate either. How would he utilize all the power of the ritual implement? Would he try something that even Xiao Mu couldn''t accomplish?


    The flame figure was stunned when Ye Futian walked past it. It looked at him in shock and asked coolly, "What are you doing?"


    "Trying, of course." Ye Futian smiled at it.


    "Are you stupid?" the flame figure asked coldly. Xiao Mu had failed even with its help but Ye Futian still wanted to try? Was he qualified to try? He totally didn''t know his place.


    "Maybe I''m lucky?" Ye Futian smiled.


    "You overestimate yourself," the flame figure said coldly. Ye Futian didn''t reply and continued forward. Drumbeats sounded continuously, shaking in his ears. He could faintly feel the heat.


    Placing the guqin before him, Ye Futian carried it with one hand and plucked the strings with the other. Music streamed out. The scene was like a battlefield so the Decree of the General was obviously the most suitable song.


    In an instant, everyone was pulled into the artistic conception as if they were truly in a battlefield. Ye Futian really didn''t have a completed noble fate but he had the emperor''s intent. Fusing it into the guqin could influence the Ancient Loulan prince''s intent to the max and activate the guqin''s power.


    The music streamed out. A powerful feeling seeped from it and there seemed to be a stampede of horses on the battlefield. On the other side, the drumbeats pounded. They transformed into a terrifying presence as well. The two auras collided and extinguished together.


    Ye Futian walked steadily. He had a peculiar pattern and advanced with the music''s rhythm. The music continued strengthening; each time it strengthened, he took a step.


    Activating the noble intent and ritual implement with the emperor''s intent caused the Decree of the General to be much more powerful than he''d ever imagined.


    The drumbeats and music continued to overlap. The two forces were all terrifying. They went from weak to strong and became scarier and scarier until everyone present felt that they were on a battlefield, watching two armies clash. They seemed to have underestimated Ye Futian again.


    With this grandeur, he could most likely catch up to Xiao Mu''s progress. But they couldn''t figure out how Ye Futian accomplished this with his abilities. How could he activate the ritual implement to this degree?


    At this time, Ye Futian''s surroundings were all filled with flames. The terrifying flames seemed to bury his body but a music storm wrapped around him. It destroyed everything as if it was made of intent. The flames couldn''t break through.


    He continued advancing, nearing where Xiao Mu had been. This made Xiao Mu uncomfortable. The flame figure stared deeply at Ye Futian. It looked down on Ye Futian because the youth''s plane was too low and didn''t have the noble fate. With this ability, he couldn''t do anything in the relic. However, Ye Futian first received a ritual implement and then made the same progress as Xiao Mu. This shocked the flame figure. Had it judged incorrectly?


    He can''t go further. It didn''t believe that it could be wrong. It watched as the drumbeats grew stronger and the mightiness multiplied. It tore through everything and that music storm was no match.


    Ye Futian''s fingers seemed to transform into shadows. He strummed the strings violently and a music storm swept out. He sent out the decree of the general. Rather than continuing to defend, he started an offensive attack.


    "You''re looking to die," the flame figure said coldly at this. If he continued forward steadily, he might get closer to the Book of Flames but right now, he was going to die. But Ye Futian obviously wouldn''t search for death. He took many steps and the music swept up with the far-reaching intent. It clashed with the drumbeats. The space was in chaos. The abominable intent seemed to want to tear everything apart.


    The Decree of the General had arrived. At this moment, beams of emperor''s intent music seemed to bypass the attack and snake into the drums. With another boom, the drums shook the sky and destroyed everything. The music storm before Ye Futian had already disappeared. He''d used up everything in that attack.


    "This is suicide," the flame figure uttered. In its eyes, Ye Futian was already dead. The others saw this as well. That intent attack really could kill Ye Futian.


    But at that moment, Ye Futian raised his hand to play the guqin. The drumbeats resonated with the music. Gusts of destructive wind burst from the battle drums, destroying everything. The next moment, under everyone''s shocked scrutiny, the armored soldiers crumbled to dust.


    This�� Everyone''s pupils contracted at this. What was this? How did Ye Futian do this?


    The flame figure trained its eyes on him too. Ye Futian had really succeeded and killed the soldiers. The Book of Flames hovered there without any other obstacles.


    Xiao Mu flashed and charged forward, ready to steal it. Ye Futian glanced back and played his guqin again. The music once again resonated with the drumbeats and produced a tumultuous intent. Xiao Mu''s expression changed drastically. When it swept over with the terrifying intent, he grunted and paled. He stopped and blood spewed from his mouth.


    The flame figure appeared beside the scepter, its eyes unsettled. Clearly, it had misjudged. Ye Futian was stronger than Xiao Mu.


    "The resonance between the musical sorcery and drums was very powerful. You''ve received my recognition. Come take the scepter," the flame figure said, ready to abandon Xiao Mu!

 175 Great Power

    Chapter 175: Great Power


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Xiao Mu paled at the fiery figure''s words. To be acknowledged by a noble level ritual implement was supposed to be something he could be proud of, but now, the implement was actually abandoning him. It was not difficult to take a guess as to how Xiao Mu felt.


    Everyone standing behind him was also surprised. Ye Futian''s gifts actually received recognition from a noble implement. As long as he agreed, Ye Futian would be in control of two noble implements. It was undoubtedly going to elevate his abilities. Although the apparition of the flame will was not too nice to Ye Futian before, he was still a noble level existence. There was no reason for Ye Futian to reject now that he was willing to help him. This was an opportunity extremely hard to come by.


    The apparition stared at Ye Futian. He knew that he had not been the friendliest being to Ye Futian, but he was a Noble Plane cultivator after all. He was now willing to help Ye Futian and bless him with a noble implement. Why would Ye Futian reject?


    This was not what Yu Sheng thought though. This flame scepter had previously insulted Ye Futian. How could he sound so righteous while practically begging Ye Futian to take him in? To be honest, after he rejected Ye Futian the first time, Yu Sheng was already pissed off. It was a miracle that he was able to keep his temper under control until now.


    "You actually think you''re worthy?" asked Yu Sheng in a cold demeanor. He was throwing the words the will in the scepter used with Ye Futian right back at him.


    The fiery figure frowned at Yu Sheng. "What did you say?" he asked, his tone just as cold.


    "You said yourself that you would rather be with someone at the top-level Dharma Plane than someone at the first level Dharma Plane. Now, you actually have the audacity to ask for a change in owners? What would he need you for?" said Yu Sheng. He stepped closer and continued, "Where did you get the confidence to be sound so righteous while asking to be taken in? You think someone like you is worthy of being used by him?"


    "How preposterous!" scolded the figure. He was formed by noble will. How dare a junior in the mere first level Dharma Plane speak to him in such an insulting manner?


    "Yu Sheng, you''re at fault here." Ye Futian spoke up suddenly. Both Yu Sheng and the apparition looked to Ye Futian. Everyone else followed suit. His eyes were glued on the fiery figure with a smile on his face. Yu Sheng was hot-tempered, but Ye Futian knew what to do in his own advantage.


    The fiery apparition of will looked satisfied at Ye Futian''s words. "Don''t worry. If you''re already this capable, you''ll only get stronger with my help."


    Ye Futian looked at him with a smile. "Pardon. Art thou worthy?"


    The figure shot Ye Futian a glare. Everyone else also looked over at him, some not understand the meaning behind his words. "Are you playing me?" the fiery will asked coldly.


    Ye Futian did not look at him. Instead, he said to Yu Sheng, "What were you thinking? Although this guy is a bit of an idiot, we can just get rid of him. It is a noble implement after all. Even if I don''t use it, I can still sell it, right?"


    Yu Sheng was dumbfounded by Ye Futian''s utterance. A smile then spread across his face. His rage dissipated and he scratched the back of his head, "I guess you''re right."


    Jaws dropped all around as the bystanders stared at Ye Futian. This�� Forget about whether or not Ye Futian would actually be able to get rid of the flame will of the scepter. If it really was possible, it would greatly reduce the power of the ritual implement while still in the Loulan Relic. Was Ye Futian really not planning on using the implement?


    The apparition''s expression fell as he stared dead at Ye Futian. In a cold demeanor, he spoke, "You dare to insult me?"


    "You''re too noisy, so you can disappear now." Finished with what he had to say, Ye Futian''s emperor will surged into the guqin. However, the will of the prince in the guqin was unwilling to cooperate this time. The fiery apparition used to be a lord in the Loulan Kingdom.


    Ye Futian''s eyes grew cold. So what if he refused to cooperate?


    The emperor will pushed on forcefully. Ye Futian''s fingers danced across the strings of the instrument. The music instantly rushed into the war drums, striking down on them. The drumbeats shook the air, creating a terrifying battlefield. The sounds of the guqin and the drums intertwined to form a ferocious force of willpower. A terrifying windstorm washed towards the fiery figure.


    "You''re acting out of line!" reprimanded the apparition. He was formed by will and the flames around him blazed wildly to withstand the incoming windstorm.


    "Kill him!" Ye Futian shouted. As soon as the words left his mouth, the sounds of the guqin started once again. The energy was through the roof. The drumbeats vibrated through the air in the melody of "A Chaotic Nation". The music was a destructive force.


    The windstorm swept past and the fiery figure shouted, "You psycho!" After his outburst, two gusts of wind came together and washed over the figure with great force. The power from the combined forces wiped out the apparition formed by flame will.


    The spectators shook in fear as their eyes remained on the young man clad in white. This was crazy. He actually destroyed the will of a noble implement others couldn''t obtain. The reason being it was unworthy of him. What an arrogant guy.


    "Yu Sheng, hold on to this for now," chuckled Ye Futian. Yu Sheng nodded and walked forward to take the scepter. Xiao Mu watched from the sidelines but could do nothing to stop him. He was injured by Ye Futian even when he had the ritual implement in his possession. Now without the instrument, Xiao Mu was definitely no match for Ye Futian. So, of course, he wouldn''t want to go ahead and get in Yu Sheng''s way.


    Ye Futian walked over to the Book of Flames and reached out for it. In an instant, the Book of Flames turned into nothing. The Chinese characters seemed to have escaped the pages of the book and were floating in mid-air. Each character contained a powerful will.


    Ye Futian released his own will. Afterward, he felt a rush of fire intent assimilate into his own will. At this moment, Ye Futian glowed in a strange light. The Book of Flames was truly mystical. The characters from the Book of Flames were incorporated into his released Sun Dharma under the guidance of willpower, becoming the power of the dharma. At the same time, every character became ingrained in his mind.


    He acquired more fate and the Book of Flame will probably enhance the power of his dharma. Everyone around stared at Ye Futian. Xiao Mu''s expression was far from happy. He couldn''t do anything about Ye Futian now. All he could do now was to wait until they left the relic so he could steal Ye Futian''s fate.


    The Book of Flame might have been able to aid his noble fate into becoming mid-level noble fate, but now, it had been taken by Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned his head to look in the Virgin Loulan Xue''s direction. He gave her an apologetic smile. He couldn''t possibly be blamed for this, right? The Book of Flame had been absorbed into his Dharma. There was no way he could exchange it with Ancient Loulan even if he wanted to.


    "I''m off," said Ye Futian. The Black Wind Eagle came forward immediately. The group stepped on to the back of the demon beast and they continued to travel ahead.


    When everyone else saw Ye Futian leave, they immediately moved to follow behind them. Who cared if they weren''t able to take down Ye Futian now? They could at least witness how far he could go.


    They finally understood. It was not their fault that they could not receive recognition from the implements. They should not even think about getting something from the relics based on their abilities. The Loulan Relic existed for so many years. Who knew how many powerful cultivators from Ancient Loulan had already set foot in the relic? Although Ancient Loulan was inviting people from all different places to enter the relic now, the reality was, anything that could be taken was already taken by Ancient Loulan.


    To Ancient Loulan, the most important thing now should have been to get their hands on the treasures they could not obtain previously. That was the real truth behind the invitations to the cultivators of other cities.


    Looking ahead at the figures on the Black Wind Eagle, nobody would have expected for a first level Dharma Plane cultivator to have the most outstanding performance in the relic. Qian Yang, Zhao Han, and the others were in even greater disbelief. Qian Yang thought that even though Ye Futian had extraordinary gifts, everything would still be easily controlled since his level of cultivation was so low.


    On the Black Wind Eagle, Ye Futian''s will entered the guqin. He asked, "Do you know where the treasurable books of the Loulan Kingdom are located?"


    "No," answered the prince. He sounded very aloof. The prince had not wanted to destroy the fiery apparition before, but Ye Futian used his powers by force. Although the power was greatly weakened because of his resistance, Ye Futian was still able to activate the will in the war drums with the power of his own will, creating a harmony with the guqin to wipe out the flame will.


    "Despite it all, he was a noble will. You were too arrogant." The prince''s will in the guqin was not happy.


    "Is noble will really that powerful?" Ye Futian asked nonchalantly. "Can''t you feel the difference in my class of will?"


    "What class?" asked the prince after a brief silence. Although he could feel that it was powerful, he could not really tell of what class Ye Futian''s will belonged.


    "Emperor will," Ye Futian answered.


    Ye Futian''s godfather had instilled many ideologies in him since he was young. He had witnessed the Snow Ape''s demeanor and he had met the Donghuang general. His body once exploded with the true power of emperor will. Because of all of this, cultivators of the Noble Plane meant nothing to him. They weren''t an unreachable existence. The Noble Plane was simply another plane in cultivation.


    The day would soon come when Ye Futian would slay a cultivator of the Noble Plane. The Nandou Nation''s Emperor Luo was someone he must kill. It was also because of this that he chose to wipe out the fiery apparition even though many others thought he might forgive him.


    "Are you joking?" asked the prince.


    "It''s a shame that I cannot release its power in all its glory just yet. I can only activate simple uses of this power. And to think you won''t even be able to witness it in the future." Ye Futian did not try to argue with the prince. "Lead the way."


    The Black Wind Eagle continued moving forward, ignoring the many armies on the ground below.


    Somewhere far ahead, large buildings could be seen faintly. The simple but classic architecture seemed to be the emperor''s living quarters. Despite this new discovery, Ye Futian currently had his brows tightly knit. A terrifying aura radiated from the area ahead. A loud cry carried through the air. It sounded like a horrific battle had erupted.


    Seems like someone broke into the emperor''s quarters. Ye Futian focused his attention up ahead. The prince had led them into the center of the ancient historical site. This should also be the most dangerous area. If it was true that someone broke in, then it should be the four from the Barren City. They had left right after acquiring their ritual implements. Did they come here directly?


    Continuing forward, they could see the large group of people on the stairs down below. Many of them were donning armors. They seemed to be a fearsome army. This army even consisted of many high-level Dharma Plane cultivators. There were many generals in the rose-gold armors. However, all of them were now clustered around a single figure.


    This domineering figure stood at the very center of the crowd. He wore a simple long robe with no armor. From this figure came an indescribable aura, one of a true Noble Plane cultivator. His gaze closed in on Ye Futian''s group. His stern eyes were ice cold. Had more people come to deliver themselves to death''s door?


    All those years ago, the emperor of the Loulan Kingdom met his demise bringing down this army. But not before he managed to set up a huge matrix to train the descendants of his kingdom. He even hid the kingdom''s treasures in the matrix. Since things had already come to this, then they would kill anyone and everyone who approached!

 176 Encircle and Annihilate

    Chapter 176: Encircle and Annihilate


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian focused his gaze on that figure like a true Noble figure. It was most likely that the will of a Noble cultivator who entered the Ancient Loulan Palace wouldn''t extinguish. This noble''s abilities would appear in the figure created by the flame''s intent.


    "Die," the noble uttered coldly. As soon as he spoke, the military stepped forward at once. A burst of destructive intent agglomerated and hurled towards Ye Futian''s group in the sky, wanting to destroy them all.


    Ye Wuchen took a step forward. He waved his sword and sword rain instantly poured from the sky, falling towards the incoming attack. Everything in its path was pulverized. However, the intimidating figures continued. The army didn''t fear death.


    Yu Sheng also stepped forward. He brought his ax down. Its shadow cut through the air, shattering all the armored soldiers in its path.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged on the Black Wind Eagle. He placed the guqin on his knees and stared forward at the Noble. He now knew what level his combat ability was in the relic but he was unclear how powerful the Noble was.


    The people following Ye Futian also saw this scene but no one went forward to fight. Ye Futian''s trio had all received ritual implements of the Noble level. Of the others, only those with noble fate would have any combat ability. The others would die a certain death if they were hit by Noble-level cultivators. This wasn''t a true Noble but it was created by noble intent.


    The Virgin Loulan Xue''s group stood in the back and watched quietly. Ye Futian was going straight to the relic''s core where the emperor had once been.


    Other than Ye Futian, there was also chaos up ahead. Loulan Xue knew that a battle must have erupted. The strong cultivators of the Barren City must have arrived and fought into it. It was highly possible that the geniuses from the Barren City were at the peak of the Eastern Barren Territory. They used the Loulan Relic as a trial ground and were terrifyingly strong.


    Seeing that the army continued to be destroyed, the Noble stepped forward. A terrifying aura instantly spread from him. His body seemed to transform into an illusory shadow. He walked in the air, directly going towards Ye Futian''s group. His intent was horribly strong��he was the physical incarnate of a complete noble intent.


    Ye Wuchen''s figure flashed. He walked forward and an indestructible intent radiated from him. It was about to upend every existence; the surrounding air shook horrifyingly. Yu Sheng also walked up and brought his ax down. They could all feel how powerful the other party was.


    The Noble''s figure walked towards the combat range of Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng. Extremely wild intent burst from his body. At that moment, it was as if a huge hand came slapping down for the kill. It swept past and the sword intent extinguished under the palm. The light of Yu Sheng''s ax went out as well. After all, Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng were in a lower plane and didn''t even have noble fate. They couldn''t activate true Noble-level intent attack from the ritual implement.


    Music sounded. Ye Futian sat on the Black Wind Eagle and played his guqin. In an instant, strings of music intent rushed into the Noble''s body. Musical sorcery was best at attacks to the spiritual intent. It would definitely have a countering effect. However, the figure''s body was like an illusory light. Terrifying earthy light wrapped around it while extreme pressure enveloped the Black Wind Eagle and the people. In an instant, the Black Wind Eagle couldn''t withstand the power and dropped down.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. Even just the intent of a Noble cultivator was frightening. He continued to play the guqin, urging it on with the emperor''s intent. The melody, a Chaotic Nation, ripped through everything with the resounding notes. It tore apart the palm coming down on him.


    The Noble huffed. He transformed into an afterimage and was fast to the extreme. Endless palms overlapped towards Ye Futian, Ye Wuchen, and Yu Sheng. He stood with his hands behind his back, displaying his noble aura. A sword storm swept up around Ye Wuchen, and Yu Sheng''s ax continued hacking downward. However, they could barely manage to stop the opponent''s attacks.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and continued to play. The music continued rising stronger and stronger. It continuously ripped apart the palm. Around him, a shocking music storm appeared, destroying all intent.


    The Noble overlooked everything. He walked straight towards the music storm. Did a First level Dharma Plane cultivator want to fight against him with a Noble-level ritual implement? He was only an intent rather than a true Noble but he was more than enough to squash Ye Futian.


    The Noble stepped directly into Ye Futian''s sword storm. In an instant, Ye Futian felt the horrible intent press down on him. He couldn''t counter the mightiness at all. Though he could use the emperor''s intent to urge the ritual implement, it was still far from true noble intent.


    At that moment, he activated the Imperial Tactics. An unusual glow seemed to appear around him, as insufferable as an emperor. Even stronger imperial intent rushed into the guqin. At that moment, the prince seemed to be stunned. The intent''s power was pushed to the max, playing the guqin with the emperor''s intent. Once again, the rising music caused the storm around Ye Futian to glow brilliantly and hit the Noble.


    The Noble seemed to feel threatened. He dared to kill Ye Futian directly because he had felt that Ye Futian couldn''t defeat him with the musical sorcery. But at that moment, the music storm had become so terrifying. His body shook and became more illusory. However, he still didn''t retreat. At this point, there was no way back. As a Noble, he was still proud even though only his intent remained.


    Boom. Even stronger intent charged at Ye Futian to crush him. The Black Wind Eagle and the others had fallen down long ago. Only Ye Futian remained, fighting him in the air. Ye Futian used the emperor''s intent to protect himself while his fingers didn''t pause at all. A more terrifying gust of music burst forth, going directly through the other''s body.


    The Noble looked down with an ugly expression but his feet didn''t falter. He continued pressing towards Ye Futian.


    "Die!" Ye Futian uttered coldly. His song was still rising. He finally understood the terrifying pressure that his grandmaster had withstood when playing the Chaotic Nation. Fighting with this, he was destined to die.


    The music storm destroyed everything. It pierced through the Noble figure, tearing it apart bit by bit. The illusory figure was unwilling but finally transformed into nothing. When the wild current dissipated, the people behind looked forward in shock. Ye Futian had actually killed that Noble. Noble intent couldn''t be compared to a true Noble but this was still shocking.


    Loulan Xue was surprised. Ye Futian''s accomplishments were beyond her expectations.


    The army below was still charging forward but they weren''t a threat anymore. Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng worked together and killed them one by one.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. The Emperor''s Pavilion was up ahead and seemed to be in unrest. The prides from the Barren City had entered it and he wanted to see what it was like.


    The Black Wind Eagle landed by Ye Futian''s feet and flew forward. The group moved on while the others followed close behind.


    "They''re so annoying," Yu Sheng said coldly. They followed without fighting at all. Were they really the prides of their cities? Were they all planning on stealing the treasures after they found them?


    Finally, Ye Futian came to the site of chaos. Screams shook the sky from all directions. "Be careful," Ye Futian said. The Black Wind Eagle slowed down. They were at some steps now. The majestic Emperor''s Pavilion was right in front but there was unrest left and right.


    At that time, a horrible aura came from behind. Ye Futian looked back and saw countless terrifying armies rush in from all direction. They seemed to know they''d broken in and were encircling them. The people behind Ye Futian were aghast. These armies all had generals in the Noble Plane and they couldn''t fight at all. With a flash, they moved aside, escaping quickly.


    "We''re entering the pavilion," Ye Futian said. At this point, there was no reason to retreat. But here, two figures flashed quickly from both left and right. Behind them, countless Noble figures chased after like lightning. These four were the strong cultivators from the Barren City. They''d arrived here first and had been surrounded.


    "He''s leading them here." Ye Wuchen frowned, his eyes sharp.


    The four cultivators saw Ye Futian''s group arrive and came running here. The Nobles and armies from either side, as well as the people behind them, vaguely surrounded them.


    "Go forward," Ye Futian said instantly. The Black Wind Eagle shot forward like a streak of lightning.


    Wild wind swept left and right. The four figures came to Ye Futian''s side, sandwiching his group. They ran towards the pavilion, side by side. Ye Futian placed the guqin in his lap. He sat on the Black Wind Eagle and music streamed out. He was ready to fight at any time.


    "Go back." A Barren City cultivator rushed before Ye Futian''s group and withdrew his sword. It burst and sword light submerged everything, enveloping everyone on the Black Wind Eagle. Not only that, but the other three acted at the same time. Using the power of the ritual implements, the four worked together, forcing the Black Wind Eagle back. After forcing them back, their spells disappeared. They didn''t really want to kill Ye Futian''s group; instead, they just wanted them to block the pursuers. Streaks of Noble figures descended and rushed to Ye Futian, coldly glancing at the four who had entered the pavilion. Cold murderous intent flashed past the eyes of these Nobles. In their eyes, Ye Futian''s group was already dead!

 177 The Ultimate Battle

    Chapter 177: The Ultimate Battle


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Those beside Ye Futian did not have pleasant expressions on their faces. The pursuit of the four cultivators had actually pushed their group back to block the army chasing after the four while they escaped scot-free into the pavilion.


    Just then, multiple figures formed by noble will appeared in front of them. It was terrifying enough to that one figure at the beginning. Now, it was basically mission impossible. They were not going to stop until Ye Futian''s whole group was dead.


    "Respectable seniors, please carry on. I''m simply passing by," smiled Ye Futian. The Black Wind Eagle retreated into the sky above the pavilion, clearing the entrance to the building. But the noble beings just stood there, disregarding Ye Futian''s words. An enormous army rushed towards them from behind. It seemed like all the cultivators in this area of the palace were gathering here. Looking out at the ocean of soldiers, there seemed to be no end. A truly terrifying sight to witness.


    At the wave of a noble being''s hand, the armored soldiers began to advance from all directions in the sky. They had the whole area on lockdown and had no intentions of letting any "intruders" leave unscathed.


    Away from where Ye Futian was, the people who were chasing him were now trying to get away from where he was. They were being chased as well. Had they turned around just a bit later, they might have been caught in the same situation as Ye Futian and his friends. Luckily, it did not seem like the noble beings noticed them. But even so, the army chasing after them had their hearts pounding.


    After getting far away, they looked back at the pavilion. The entire area had been completely filled by the army. A shiver ran up their spines every time they laid eyes on the enormous army.


    The pavilion was at the very center of the relic and also where the most powerful cultivators were gathered. It was difficult for anyone who set foot in the area to make it out alive.


    From the corners of their eyes, they were faintly able to see the blurred figures of Ye Futian and his friends. They were still hovering above the pavilion, completely surrounded by the army. There was no escape. This was probably going to be the end of Ye Futian and the others.


    The group watching from a distance had witnessed the fight between Ye Futian and the Noble from before. The opponent was just too powerful. Ye Futian used all he had to kill the Noble. But in this situation now, it did not seem like he had a chance.


    "Can they escape?" asked the sharp youth beside the Virgin Loulan. It was said that Ancient Loulan had sent numerous cultivators into this area over the year but none had succeeded. Those who entered, never exit.


    However, some extraordinary beings have been discovered during this expedition into the relic. Monster cultivator, Ye Futian, as well as the four prodigies from the Barren City. That group had already made their way into the pavilion. Perhaps they would be able to find half of a treasurable book.


    "Keep moving." Loulan Xue did not answer his question because she did not know the answer either, but things were not looking good.


    Seeing that the army was still chasing after them, they could only continue to run. It would be easy enough for them to kill these ordinary soldiers, but they could not risk attracting attention from the Nobles. Things would be tough if that happened. Although the royals of Ancient Loulan were prepared for all types of situations, they did not have to get involved just yet. It was better to just observe for the time being.


    Above the pavilion, Ye Futian and the others were surrounded. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were on either side of Ye Futian, prepared for combat.


    "We already cleared the way for you. Seniors, can''t you guys go after them first?" Ye Futian asked, feeling slightly defeated.


    "You''re all going to die anyway, the order doesn''t matter," said one of the Nobles.


    "Why do you guys have to be this way? I don''t want things to end badly for both sides.


    "How preposterous," said another Noble. End badly for both sides? Did Ye Futian really have what it took to say something like that?


    Just then, one of the Nobles waved his hand, signaling for the army to move in closer. The armored soldiers all charged toward Ye Futian''s group.


    "You guys take care of this," said Ye Futian. Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng nodded. They might not be able to go against the Nobles, but the soldiers were not a problem at all.


    The two of them attacked from either side. When the enemy approached, Ye Wuchen''s sword and Yu Sheng''s battle axe swung out at the same time. Blood was shed immediately.


    Ye Futian sat down in the air above the pavilion and began to play his guqin. The crisp sound of the instrument filled the air, disturbing the atmosphere.


    The Imperial Tactics were activated and, in an instant, Ye Futian''s body was surrounded by an invisible force field. He sat there with a majestic vibe around him.


    As he played, the notes elevated, vibrating through the air. The sound created a force that was able to disturb all consciousness.


    The soldiers charged forward one by one but were stopped when the sounds of the guqin reached their airs. Crackling noises filled the area, and the soldiers were destroyed with nothing left of their bodies. After all, they weren''t really living beings.


    At this time, another battle had started inside the pavilion. Shocking forces of energy were given off of five figures. The four Barren City cultivators had one person surrounded.


    This person was another Noble but had a majestic vibe. His noble will was extremely powerful and domineering. He was like an emperor and exuded superiority in a single glance.


    This person was the one who led his army in the invasion of the Loulan Kingdom. He was the emperor of another powerful kingdom. He stood guard in the imperial palace and no one could make it past him.


    The Barren City cultivators did not come from the same group. They were sent by four different powerful groups in the Eastern Barren Territory. Groups from there treated the Loulan Relic as a training ground and a test. The test was to see who could acquire the most treasures from the Loulan Relic.


    The all had noble fate and mid-level noble fate at that. In addition to their powers as top-level Dharma Plane cultivators and their ritual implements, they were extremely capable. However, they were still no match for one Noble even after joining forces. The Noble''s abilities were incredible. He wielded his sword, also formed from noble will, ready to kill.


    The Barren City cultivators kept retreating. They only managed to defend themselves against the opponent''s attacks when working together.


    "Let''s go," said one of the cultivators. It seemed that it would be impossible to get any treasures from this building. Under the watch of such a fearsome being as well as the ones outside, they were overpowered and had no chance of finding anything remotely valuable.


    The four fought back as they retreat. Even though the Noble was very powerful, there was no way he could kill all four of them. The group of cultivators continued to escape from one side. Finally, the four ritual implements released a significant force at the same time, giving them a chance to turn and make a quick escape. The soldiers outside could not even stop them.


    The Noble wanted to chase after them, but even if he managed to catch up, he wouldn''t be able to stop all four of them. He turned his attention to what was going on outside of the pavilion. A terrifying musical storm had erupted. He could faintly see a gleam of light glowing in the distance. He thought to himself, Had the younger generation of the Loulan Kingdom already gotten so powerful?


    The Noble headed outside. Ye Futian activated his ritual implement using the Imperial Tactics. The air exploded as he played his piece, "A Chaotic Nation." Even the Nobles stepping toward Ye Futian could feel the fearsome power of his music. The sound from his guqin could be threatening to them.


    It was then that the Noble arrived, wielding his sword. Ye Wuchen noticed him approach from behind and formed a sword filled with intent to shot towards the Noble.


    The Noble huffed. Did he want a competition of sword intent?


    The Emperor''s sword swung out and the area immediately filled with sword intent. The gleam of a blade shot through the air toward Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen gathered all his power and released it at the incoming sword. His attack was destroyed. His silver sword vibrated, threatening to escape his grip as his body flew backward.


    The Noble made his way to Ye Futian. All the soldiers bowed at the sight of their emperor.


    "Are you a Loulan royal?" the emperor asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian continued to play as he looked up at the person speaking to him. "No, I''m not from the Loulan Kingdom. I''m just a person who came for a trial. How about we call it a day?"


    "Call it a day?" The emperor''s expression was ice cold. Four people had already escaped. There was no way they could let these people get away as well.


    "Since you''re already here, then stay," said the emperor.


    "Don''t force my hand." Ye Futian stared at the emperor, his eyes just as cold.


    "Oh, really?" sneered the emperor. "Kill them."


    Ye Futian continued to stare as he spoke, "Yu Sheng, take the others into the pavilion to search for the treasures. Wuchen, you watch my back. I''ll take care of these people."


    Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and the others widened their eyes. Ye Futian spoke so nonchalantly, but how was he going to "take care of" such powerful beings?


    "Go. Trust me," said Ye Futian. As if he could feel the self-confidence exuding from Ye Futian, Yu Sheng nodded and guided the others into the pavilion.


    The emperor and the other Nobles looked at Ye Futian as if he were insane. Was he going to take care of them?


    Where did this arrogant bastard come from?


    Ye Wuchen took a step back to stand behind Ye Futian. He was also curious where Ye Futian got all that confidence from. What made him so sure he could take care of the Nobles?


    After Yu Sheng and the others were out of sight, Ye Futian looked to the emperor and said, "Senior, you''re a swordsman and is formed by will. If I am victorious today, then you shouldn''t let your sword will go to waste. My friend is an extremely talented swordsman and definitely will not disgrace you. Will you consider allowing him to be the successor of your will?"


    The emperor had on a look of disbelief. Not only was Ye Futian super confident, but he also wanted his will? Preposterous indeed.


    Ye Wuchen had a similar look on his face. So, this was why Ye Futian wanted him to say? He was being too gutsy. If it was really able to obtain the will of a single Noble, he might be able to get noble-level will.


    The emperor took one look at Ye Futian but did not give him an answer. At the wave of his hand, the Nobles made their way toward Ye Futian. A terrifying force of will was released into the area, ready for destruction.


    "Please reconsider what I said, Senior. Isn''t having a successor to your sword techniques a form of living on?" said Ye Futian.


    He then lowered his head, activating the Imperial Tactics from within. His blood flowed wildly through his veins, and the emperor''s mark appeared within.


    Right now, Ye Futian''s body was ignited. All the Spiritual Qi around rushed into his body. The glow around him grew brighter and brighter. The Spiritual Qi mixed with noble fate. It was unbelievable.


    At this moment, Ye Futian, who sat crossed-legged, looked like a majestic emperor!

 178 Sun and Moon

    Chapter 178: Sun and Moon


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    During the Donghai City battle, the mysterious emperor''s intent appeared within Ye Futian. It helped him kill someone of the Arcana Plane but this power didn''t belong to him. However, that emperor''s intent gave him the Imperial Tactics. After that, he was able to use the Imperial Tactics to activate the emperor''s intent hidden within him. Ye Futian knew that the Imperial Tactics could raise his fighting to another level but he never fully used it before or push the Imperial Tactics to the extreme.


    Today though, faced with the bombardment of all the noble intents, he knew that he couldn''t succeed even with the emperor''s intent. Thus, he broke out all the power within him. He urged the Imperial Tactics to the limit without holding back at all.


    The familiar feeling from the Donghai City was back. Last time, the mysterious intent was controlling and guiding him. This time, it was completely his power though it was far less powerful than at the Donghai City.


    If the opponent was a true Noble figure, Ye Futian would die without a doubt. He would die even if the opponent was in the Arcana Plane, let alone the Noble Plane. Intent power could greatly magnify a cultivator''s combat ability but he still couldn''t overlook the difference in plane.


    It was different in the Loulan Relic though. The opponent wasn''t a true Noble and was just the physical incarnate of the intent. In the lower Ancient Barren World, even the strongest intent was restricted to the Dharma Plane. Since the opponent''s body was formed by intent, Ye Futian only had to repress it from that aspect to defeat it. That was why Ye Futian was so confident. He didn''t perceive a true noble intent yet but by fully activating the emperor''s intent, fusing it into his guqin to attack, he believed he could surpass the opponent with his strong intent.


    The emperor''s mark burst inside him. Ye Futian''s body seemed to morph. Behind him, Ye Wuchen watched his changes in shock. He could sense that perhaps, this was the true undisguised Ye Futian. He was like a natural-born emperor. The Nobles before him were stunned as well. Thye stared hard at Ye Futian''s body. What level of intent was this?


    At this moment, a handsome figure stood before them. He was too beautiful. Even as Nobles, they wanted to worship him. He was high and mighty and should be loved by all. This kind of temperament and intent was not learned��it was something he was born with.


    "It seems that you really aren''t from Loulan," the emperor sighed as he studied Ye Futian. Ancient Loulan wouldn''t have someone like him.


    "Senior, are you planning on giving up now?" Ye Futian asked, studying the other.


    The emperor gazed at him and then into the distance. His eyes seemed tired. He was obviously discontent to exist in this relic for so many years as intent, turned into a chess piece for testing the descendants of Ancient Loulan for his opponent. Thus, he would kill anyone who stepped foot in here. If he had to be a chess piece, he would kill all Loulan descendants. He was long tired of this and survived through persistence.


    "No." He looked away and said to Ye Futian, "If you lose, you die. If you win, you can have anything you want."


    "Alright." Ye Futian lowered his head and didn''t say anything else. His music continued to rise. In a moment, a burst of violent intent accompanied the music and swept out. The armored soldiers in its path were all pulverized.


    The emperor waved his hand. Various Noble shadows charged forward with extremely terrifying noble intent, pressing towards Ye Futian. But Ye Futian, playing his instrument, was still calm as ever. There was a tinge of heroic tragedy in the music, just like grandmaster before the Nandou Clan before. However, this tragic feeling was for the opponent rather than himself.


    He would fully restrict the Nobles existing as intent. They weren''t even as threatening as the prides of the Barren City. After all, they were at the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane and possessed noble intent, rather than being created by pure intent.


    Just as Ye Futian had predicted, the music seemed to be branded by the emperor''s mark. It passed through the Nobles'' bodies, instantly marking them with destruction. The charging Nobles looked down dazedly at their bodies.


    Boom, boom�� Various holes appeared in their bodies. There wasn''t any blood but they could feel death approaching. Of course, they''d already died once but this time, they might disappear completely.


    The emperor watched all this quietly. His expression was extremely calm. Was the heroically tragic music played for them?


    He walked forward, standing before the Nobles. He surrounded himself and whistling swords appeared. They seemed real. As he walked, the tens of thousands of swords followed. At that moment, he was like a Noble of swords.


    The countless swords flew to Ye Futian at once. In a straight line, they destroyed everything in their way. Ye Futian continued playing his instrument quietly. The music was like heavenly cranes crying. The music storm swept out; the swords in its path were obliterated and turned to dust.


    At the same time, rays of music ignored everything and bombarded the emperor. The most terrifying thing about musical sorcery was that it was difficult to defend against. The dazzling emperor''s marks seemed to burn on his body. Like golden flames, they were beautiful.


    "Intent restraint?" he muttered. He didn''t expect that someone in the relic could restrain his intent but anything was possible. Someone in the First level Dharma Plane could restrict his intent.


    As the physical form of intent, he was suffering from intent restraint. How could he continue fighting? He wasn''t even as strong as a slightly more powerful Dharma Plane cultivator.


    The solemn music continued. The storm blew past, submerging everything. The various Nobles all burned from the emperor''s intent. After that, their bodies grew illusory until they finally turned to dust and disappeared. It was as if they''d never existed before.


    Ye Futian didn''t continue. His music slowed and he looked up. His clear eyes gazed at the figure in the sky.


    "Is his talent really as powerful as you say?" the emperor asked. His tone was calm, no sign that they had been intent on killing each other earlier.


    "He received recognition by a noble ritual implement while in the Fourth level Dharma Plane," Ye Futian said. "He would definitely not stop at the Noble Plane in the future."


    "Well, you''re confident," the emperor said. He was a powerful Noble and knew how difficult it was to advance further.


    "Then senior, do you believe me?" Ye Futian asked.


    The figure in the air fell silent. He looked at Ye Futian, understanding what he meant. Looking to Ye Wuchen, he said, "Do not fight back."


    Ye Wuchen looked at the figure in the air and nodded. After that, the figure slowly turned transparent as if transforming into a boundless yet illusory sword shadow. It shot toward Ye Wuchen and dug into the spot between his brows. At that moment, Ye Wuchen closed his eyes tightly. Terrifying sword intent flowed across his body, strengthening by the second.


    Ye Futian watched this scene with a smile. His emperor''s intent disappeared. He felt extremely weak, devoid of any strength. By fulling using the Imperial Tactics, he''d used all his strength. Earlier, he''d supported himself with pure will. The figure in the air grew more and more insubstantial. The emperor''s figure could disappear at any moment.


    "What is that?" At that moment, Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. When the emperor grew less substantial, a beam of light appeared from his body. Within it, there was a thread of coldness.


    "I said earlier that if you defeat me, you will receive what you want," the emperor said to Ye Futian. As soon as he finished, the apparition scattered in the sky, all going towards Ye Wuchen. A voice sounded in the air. "Dying with Loulan back then was not due to war." With that, he disappeared completely. Half a scroll of a valuable book hovered in the air. It radiated with shocking coldness.


    Ye Futian now understood what those words meant. The book was inside the emperor''s body. He could only receive it if the emperor died.


    "Such strong intent." Ye Futian couldn''t help but shudder at the coldness. He used Freedom Meditation and instantly, Ye Futian felt even stronger intent seep from the book. With his emperor''s intent, he could faintly feel that this scroll might contain intent above the Noble level. It was for cultivators above the Noble level.


    The coldness spread and frost appeared, covering the world. Soon, Ye Futian''s long hair and eyebrows were all covered in white. He saw a beautiful and mighty picture in the book. It was of a boundless snowy peak. Snowflakes floated in the sky, falling down. It gave one the feeling of absolute coldness at a glance. In the sky, an icy moon hung in the air. It was even colder than the snowy mountain.


    This was a picture of loneliness and coldness.


    It snowed around Ye Futian as well. The snowflakes melted into his body and endless water elemental Spiritual Qi flooded towards his body, streaming in. In his Life Palace, the World Tree rustled. It seemed to be covered in a layer of frost as well. Above it, a cool moon formed gradually, hanging in the sky. On the other side, the sun life spirit hung high.


    The sun and moon shone in turn; the sun was yang and the moon was yin. Fire and water, yin and yang, they represented life.


    In the outside world, Ye Wuchen accepted the intent''s inheritance. When he opened his eyes, he was covered frost. He looked around and saw that the army up ahead was was all sealed in ice, looking like various ice sculptures. The entire world seemed to be about to turn into a world of ice.


    Even the faraway Virgin Loulan could feel the iciness spreading to them. She reached out and a snowflake floated down. She trembled inwardly.


    "Let''s go." She flashed and charged forward hurriedly. The half scroll might have been found!

 179 Danger

    Chapter 179: Danger


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The will of ice seal spread to cover the whole relic. The immeasurable armored soldiers had all become sculptures of ice. Crackling and crumbling into nothing, destroyed. Not only this, but some of the architecture had begun to collapse as well, vanishing from view. It was as if the entire site of the imperial palace was just a figment of the imagination. However, there were still some parts that were real. Like the ritual implements containing noble will and the treasures within the relic. The noble wills in the implements could feel that they were about to disappear.


    The matrix was disintegrating. Buildings collapsed all around Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen, disappearing right in front of their very eyes. Half of the treasurable book floated in the air above and its strong will rushed into Ye Futian, causing the air around him to grow cold.


    "I''m about to disappear," said the voice from the guqin. "What''s left of my will shall be left to you." After that, the will escaped the guqin and headed for Ye Futian. The will was just as shocked as everyone else at the power of the piece that he had previously played, A Chaotic Nation. Perhaps it was just as Ye Futian had said, he had the emperor''s will.


    Two types of will entered Ye Futian''s body. Suddenly, Ye Futian''s eyes snapped open, sweeping the environment he was in. The Emperor''s Pavilion was collapsing and vanishing from his sight. He said to Ye Wuchen, "Get out of here quickly."


    A gust of wind brought the half of the treasurable book to Ye Futian. He received it and used his will to order the Black Wind Eagle to come to him immediately.


    "Wuchen, give me a hand," said Ye Futian.


    Ye Wuchen looked curiously at Ye Futian before helping him onto the Black Wind Eagle. "Have you overexerted yourself?" asked Ye Wuchen. He had witnessed every second of Ye Futian''s battle. The power of his will was so scary. It seemed like the pure force of the power would burn Ye Futian up from the inside out. Whether it was will or Spiritual Qi and Energy, all his powers were ignited and used to fight the Nobles.


    "There''s no such thing as a free lunch. Let''s go," said Ye Futian. Yu Sheng, Yun Qianmo, and the others were in shock when they joined the two. Ye Futian had really succeeded. He killed all the Nobles and even destroyed the area. Now, everything the entire Loulan Relic was going to collapse.


    Yu Sheng and the others felt the drop in temperature even while they were inside the pavilion. They knew that the object Ye Futian acquired was special and was also what led to these results.


    The Black Wind Eagle lifted off and traveled with great speed.


    They could no longer stay here. Especially when Ye Futian''s combat abilities were diminished. The battle took up all the power he had. If he hadn''t even it his all, it would not have been possible to defeat the Nobles. However, they did not get too far before getting stopped. Four figures approached them and cut off the Black Wind Eagle''s path from all different directions. They were the Barren City cultivators who had previously escaped the relic.


    After they were forced by the Noble to retreat, they had given up on this area, knowing they had no chance there. However, they were able to feel the chilling temperatures of the ice will come from the Loulan Relic and made some predictions about what was going on. And so, they decided to head back to the site immediately.


    Presently, the gazes of the four cultivators fell on Ye Futian. They were immensely shocked. When they had pushed Ye Futian and his friends to block the Nobles and the army, they did not think it would be possible for them to destroy the Nobles and the relic site. Although they were not clear as to how they accomplished such a task, they knew it must not have been easy.


    "How did you guys do it?" one of the Barren City cultivators asked. How did these low leveled cultivators make the Nobles disappear?


    The cultivators had experienced the power of the Noble emperor first-hand. He was extremely powerful. There was no way Ye Futian and the others could beat them. Unless, they had some others methods to destroy the relic, which then led to the demise of the Nobles.


    Nobody answered their question.


    The Barren City cultivators were not bothered by the lack of a reply. "It doesn''t really matter how you did it. Hand over all the treasures you acquired." Since Ye Futian''s group had taken care of the group of Nobles for them, the Barren City cultivators were now the strongest beings in the relic.


    From the other direction, Virgin Loulan and the others rushed over. The Barren City cultivators were surprised to see them but chose not to care. It''s only the Virgin Loulan. She might have been an all-powerful being to the people of the cities around Loulan City but to them, she was simply a pretty girl with an okay gift. They were more interested in her beauty than in her abilities. With her silver hair and bright eyes, she was graceful beyond words.


    Behind Loulan Xue, powerful cultivators from other groups joined. They had a feeling that the collapse of the relic was due to the appearance of the most important treasure.


    What''s more, the wills in the Noble ritual instruments all disappeared following the collapse of the relic. Without the help of the wills in the implements, it would be difficult for anyone to activate the power of the implements with their own spiritual will. The implements definitely were not as powerful as before. If so, they now had a chance against Ye Futian, though those chances were not too high.


    There were also those who were smart and decided not to chase after Ye Futian. Instead, they immediately rushed in the opposite direction. Qian Yang was one of those people. He knew the cultivators from the Barren City were there and there was more to Loulan Xue than she let on. Even if he tried to go fight for the treasures, his chances of victory were slim. And so, he decided it was best to first go and get his hands on the ritual implements at the Soldiers'' Mound.


    Ye Futian was now the passive party. He saw all the powerful cultivators around him. He had no power for another fight while Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng''s level of cultivation were still too low. They would not be able to withstand an attack from all these people.


    "Hand it over," a voice rang out coldly. It was the sharp young man beside Loulan Xue. His eyes glowed gold as he stared at Ye Futian and his friends.


    If the treasurable book had indeed appeared, the royals of the old Loulan Kingdom must get their hands on it. It was a treasure the celestial empress wanted.


    In the past, the empress borrowed the power of half a treasurable book to rebuild Loulan. She had always wanted to have a completed book. Many people predicted that once the two books were joined, it would give the empress a chance to reach a level higher than the Noble Plane. If that was true, then Ancient Loulan would be able to take control of the entire Eastern Barren Territory.


    Ye Futian frowned and looked over at the sharp youth coldly. He then turned to Loulan Xue and said, "I will fulfill my promise to you, but what about what you promised me?"


    He had agreed to make the exchange with Loulan Xue. The treasurable book appeared and from that, he was able to gain a Life Spirit using the Freedom Meditation. He was also able to obtain willpower. The exchange would be worth it to him. Especially in a situation like this, he had no choice.


    But there was no way he would hand over the book first. As soon as he did so, he would lose his leverage against her.


    Loulan Xue took one look at Ye Futian before giving her orders. "Protect their safety."


    "Understood." Her people came out from behind. The Virgin Loulan, as well as the young man beside her, moved to stand between Ye Futian''s group and the group from the Barren City. She said, "Ancient Loulan has no need for the things you guys acquired from the relic. We will allow you all to keep them. You guys may leave now."


    "You think you can stop us?" one of the four cultivators asked. They all held their ritual implements in their hands, noble level fate rushed up causing their auras to grow terrifyingly.


    "You guys are stepping out of line here," said the sharp youth. "This is the imperial palace of Loulan."


    "So what?" asked the cultivator holding the thunderwood. He took a step forward bathed in the glow of lightning. The thunderwood in his hand began to absorb Thunder Spiritual Qi from all around. His figure looked like that of a thunder god.


    "Get in formation!" shouted the sharp youth. Immediately, a group of Dharma Plane cultivators stepped out from behind. All with ritual implements in hand, though not all of them were noble level implements. Still, the group gave off an impressive aura. It seemed they were all metal elemental cultivators.


    They got into formation, perhaps setting up a matrix. A great light of the metal element shined towards the same direction. The light gathered there and a golden pattern appeared spitting out an immense energy.


    The cultivator holding the thunderwood huffed before moving closer. His Dharma appeared behind him. It was a large, thunderous apparition, comparable to a majestic thunder god.


    A ferocious wave of thunder sorcery was released, coloring the world in a hue of purple, like the sky of a stormy night. He charged forward.


    The cultivators in formation let out a loud roar, releasing more energy which caused the matrix they had formed to glow even brighter. The curtain of golden light blocked of a thunderous attack from their opponent. It was easy to imagine just how powerful a matrix formed by a group of top-level Dharma Plane cultivators would be. They were the very cultivators groomed by the Ancient Loulan for the specific purpose of protecting the relic. It had been the same, generation after generation.


    The other three from the Barren City finally made their moves as well. The energy they exuded was terrifying. The sharp youth beside Loulan Xue stepped up followed by two other people. The trio held ritual implements they had obtained from the relic some time ago and went against one person.


    Loulan Xue had an ice scepter in hand, another ritual implement from the relic site. Her silver hair blew in the wind. The world frosted over as she stared at her opponents. A storm of frost blew toward them, ready to seal it all in ice.


    At this time, however, there was still the other Barren City cultivator. He was a swordsman. A smile spread across his face even though his eyes were ice cold. In a flash, his body shot forward like a sword, headed straight for Ye Futian and the others shielded behind the line up from the Ancient Loulan.


    Loulan Xue frowned. The four cultivators from the Barren City were too strong. Any one of them could fight against the top-level Dharma Plane cultivators alone, while the lot of them could only stop three of the four.


    "More people are coming from the palace. Just hold on a little longer," said Loulan Xue. Her voice was completely overpowered by the noises of every attack. She wanted to comfort Ye Futian and his friends.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian. Spell scrolls appeared in his hand and he threw them in the direction ahead. The scrolls released powerful attack spells at the cultivator headed for them. The Barren City cultivator simply smiled. Did they really think spell scrolls could stop him?


    Sword intent flowed from his body, slicing through the attacks. But he could see that Ye Futian continued to activate spell scrolls. However, he did not use them to attack, he covered the Black Wind Eagle with them. They were wind elemental spell scrolls.


    A gust of wind blew past and the Black Wind Eagle flew away quickly. A light flashed past the swordsman''s eyes. The spell scrolls were probably top-level Dharma Plane spells. They were indeed well-prepared for escape, but when he was the opponent, they amounted to nothing.


    The sword he acquired from the relic floated in front of him. He stepped onto the blade of the sword and was carried away at the speed of light to chase after the demon beast.


    The figures mounted on the Black Wind Eagle did not look too good. Just then, Ye Wuchen stepped off the Black Wind Eagle to head for the cultivator chasing them. He screamed out, "You guys leave first!"

 180 Chopped Arm

    Chapter 180: Chopped Arm


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Wuchen." Ye Futian''s expression changed drastically. Ye Wuchen was at the Fourth-level Dharma Plane while the other was the pinnacle. They both had ritual implements of swords. Even if Ye Wuchen had received noble intent, the other also had noble fate. In comparison, Ye Wuchen could only be defeated. There was no chance of victory. However, he still walked out without hesitation. He could truly die here.


    "Stop," Ye Futian ordered the Black Wind Eagle.


    "Don''t stop. Go!" Yu Sheng yelled. His eyes were red as he stared at Ye Wuchen''s leaving figure. To him, Ye Futian''s life was above all else. He wouldn''t hesitate to use his own life in exchange either. The top figures of the Barren City had noble fate and top level ritual implements. They really couldn''t put up a fight.


    The Black Wind Eagle screamed and continued flying forward, disobeying Ye Futian for the first time. Ye Futian''s eyes were bloodshot. This scene was so familiar. He continued to take out spell scrolls, stacking them wildly around the Black Wind Eagle so they could hurry to the Loulan palace. The relic had collapsed already. Loulan Xue said strong cultivators from the palace would come. He had to find them quickly.


    The moment Ye Wuchen stepped down from the Black Wind Eagle, his noble intent exploded. It was filled with omnipresent sword intent that surged into the ritual implement. Then his body seemed to transform into a sword. He became one with the ritual implement. That moment, his determined strength seemed ready to kill anyone blocking his way.


    Li Daoyun looked at the incoming Ye Wuchen. Irony flashed past his eyes. Was a Fourth-level Dharma Plane going to challenge him? It was suicide.


    The sword was like wind, fast as a shadow, and sharp to the max. He seemed to transform into the apparition of a sword and went straight towards the sword intent Ye Wuchen released. All sword intent in his path moved aside; it couldn''t stop him at all. He was before Ye Wuchen in an instant. They were both going forward with no sign of retreating. The power seemed to contain true sword intent.


    In an instant, two ritual implement swords clashed. The sword tips collided and clanged. Waves of terrifying sword intent burst in all directions. Ye Wuchen was far below Li Daoyun but the gap between them had reduced because they both used noble intent to activate their ritual implements. To Ye Wuchen, the increase was even bigger. If he didn''t have the noble intent or ritual implement, he wouldn''t be able to withstand the hit. Despite that, he still couldn''t be equal to Li Daoyun.


    The moment the swords touched, Ye Wuchen retreated hurriedly. They seemed to have turned into straight lines. Li Daoyun''s sword aura pressed towards Ye Wuchen wildly. He was so fast he was like an afterimage in the air.


    Amongst the rising sword intent, Ye Wuchen grouped endless sword intent. His left hand reached out. Endless sword intent seemed to be between his five fingers. Noble intent burst out, stabbing towards the figure before him.


    "You want to die?" Li Daoyun said coldly. His sword sliced past Ye Wuchen''s face like water. It was extremely cold and came down on Ye Wuchen''s outstretched arm. It was too fast. Swords were fast on their own but this was Li Daoyun''s sword. With a squelch, the sword''s flash swept past the arm and it fell off. Blood splattered. But Ye Wuchen seemed to feel nothing. In fact, the moment his arm was chopped off, a small silver sword shot out from between his brows. Endless sword intent was included in that sword. Faster than lightning, it streaked towards Li Daoyun. It was as if the sword from his now-broken arm was a trick. He seemed to have predicted that his arm would be chopped off.


    A battle between swordsmen was naturally dangerous. Victory and defeat was a matter of seconds. Li Daoyun''s sword was fast but Ye Wuchen wasn''t slow either, especially at such a close distance.


    When Li Daoyun chopped off his arm, he even stopped retreating. The silver sword was like a beam of light that flew directly to the point between Li Daoyun''s brows.


    Li Daoyun was powerful. The moment he chopped Ye Wuchen''s arm, he felt the danger. Horrible sword intent burst from between his brows, protecting him. When the sword stabbed in, endless sword intent seemed to explode from him. The two seemed to be frozen in space; even time seemed to stop.


    Blood seeped from between Li Daoyun''s brows. He roared and swords appeared behind him. The silver sword between his brows was forced out. The endless swords behind him went flying at Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen waved his sword. Like rain, the sword blocked all the sword flashes. He flew back.


    "You used your arm as bait." Li Daoyun''s expression was ugly. Sword aura wrapped around his brows. He''d been hurt by someone in the Fourth-level Dharma Plane. This was humiliating.


    Ye Wuchen didn''t reply. He turned and left decisively. He knew his abilities weren''t enough so he baited the enemy with his arm and lost it. But it was better than losing his life.


    Li Daoyun closed his eyes. The sword aura remained, healing the injuries. After a while, he opened his eyes. He shot into the sky again, fast to the extreme like lightning. The murderous intent in his eyes was so harsh. He wanted Ye Wuchen dead��not just Ye Wuchen, but all of them.


    Ye Futian now approached the palace. The relic had collapsed and this place wasn''t big. In the distance, a group of people flashed. Their auras were extraordinary and were clad in Loulan armor. The leader was very powerful. They saw Ye Futian''s group rush over.


    "I have the book," Ye Futian said straightforwardly. The people stopped and Ye Futian continued, "I already agreed to exchange with the Virgin but someone is trying to steal it from me. Follow me." As soon as he finished, the Black Wind Eagle immediately turned around. The group didn''t know what was the truth but they still followed to check.


    Now, Ye Wuchen also came in this direction but his left arm was empty. Blood dyed his clothing red; it was a shocking sight.


    "Ye Wuchen." Lin Yueyao paled. Did Ye Wuchen, the most talented figure of the Cangye Kingdom, lose his arm? But Ye Wuchen climbed onto the Black Wind Eagle expressionlessly. Seeing the Loulan royalty, he said, "The people after us are extremely powerful and may be equal to your Virgin. Can you fight them?"


    The leader''s eyes flashed. "I must determine if this is true."


    Ye Futian took out the book and coldness filled the air. "The book is right here. You can ask the Virgin if it''s true later. The people are from the Barren City. Think about the consequences if they take it."


    The leader had a heavy expression. "More people will come. I''ll bring some men to stop the pursuers. Go to the palace first." With that, he ordered some men to protect them. Of course, this was also to ensure that Ye Futian wouldn''t escape.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. He advanced with the people from the palace. Behind them, horrible sword intent came rushing over. It was Li Daoyun after them.


    The people of Ancient Loulan grew serious. He truly was powerful. The leader waved his hand and led his men forward.


    "Whoever blocks me, dies," Li Daoyun said coldly. He released his dharma and endless sword light burst forth. The figures pursuing him were stabbed between the brows and died immediately.


    Ye Futian looked over coldly and continued using spell scrolls to go forward. Before entering the Ancient Barren World, he''d taken many spell scrolls from the Cangye Kingdom. The wind spell scroll was specifically for this type of situation. He looked at Ye Wuchen''s arm and murderous intent flashed past his eyes. "Why did you do this?" he asked. Even though Ye Wuchen losing his arm angered him, he knew that it was already difficult for Ye Wuchen to stop the other and escape. The moment he walked off could have been his last step.


    "Having one person die is better than many dying." Ye Wuchen''s answer was simple and sounded logical. But who would choose to sacrifice himself for another? When he''d stepped off the Black Wind Eagle, he was as straightforward and decisive as his sword. It was so rare to see someone with that determination. Perhaps this was why he could complete the Thirteen Steps of Death and receive a ritual implement at the Fourth-level Dharma Plane.


    "Your arm��" Ye Futian looked at Ye Wuchen''s shoulder.


    "It doesn''t affect my swordsmanship." Ye Wuchen was calm so Ye Futian didn''t say anything else. He made a silent decision though.


    "We''re brothers from now on," Yu Sheng said from the side. "He''ll use his life to repay your arm."


    Lin Yueyao and Yun Qianmo looked at this quietly without saying anything. Lin Yueyao understood clearly that there was a difference between her and Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, despite being the top beauty of the Cangye Kingdom. At first, she''d been unhappy and thought that Ye Futian was too arrogant. But as Ye Futian and Yu Sheng displayed astonishing talent time and time again, she finally realized where the distance came from��they weren''t from the same world.


    She could even feel that to Yu Sheng, only Ye Futian existed. The latter was his religion and an existence he must protect. There was even distance between Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen. But with what Yu Sheng had just said after this event, she understood that the distance didn''t exist anymore.


    She suddenly thought about a lot. The top three of the Cangye Kingdom''s Fenghua Rank, the three top figures who had stolen the spotlight at the Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet, had stirred up a storm in the Ancient Barren World too. They made all the top talents in the outer world lose color. What miracles would be made if they were together?


    She might never be able to imagine what would happen.


    The palace appeared before them. Even more strong cultivators flooded out. After understanding the situation, they all went over there. The danger was temporarily dissolved. Li Daoyun couldn''t attack the Loulan palace!

 181 Making a Decision

    Chapter 181: Making a Decision


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Near the Loulan palace, Ye Futian and the others stood on top of the Black Wind Eagle and watched the battle unfold in the distance. Li Daoyun was even more powerful than they had imagined. He made his way near the palace. Many people had died under his sword. Ancient Loulan had absolute control over Loulan City, but their control was limited to the areas surrounding Loulan City.


    Li Daoyun, who came from a powerful group of the Barren City, he did not care about Ancient Loulan. So, what if he killed many of their people? It wasn''t like they would send people to his clan and try to even the score. He cared even less about them while in the Ancient Barren World.


    Corpses laid all over the ground, but Li Daoyun still couldn''t advance to the Loulan palace was right there in front of him. Everyone knew what would happen if he made it there. Just then, those fighting Li Daoyun got into formation, attacking him and blocked his way.


    Li Daoyun stood there and looked over at Ye Futian standing far away. His cutting gaze also held a hint of ridicule. "You guys got lucky this time." If the Loulan palace hadn''t been here, Ye Futian and his friends would have never made it out alive. It was a pity that he could not get his hands on the treasure.


    Li Daoyun turned and was prepared to leave, still as arrogant as ever.


    "What''s your name? Where are you from?" Ye Futian suddenly asked.


    Li Daoyun stopped in his track. Turning around, his eyes fell on Ye Futian. The ridicule in his eyes grew. What could he have wanted? Revenge? This was the way everyone lived. They always dreamt of getting revenge after being humiliated. What they did not know was, there was never a happy ending to revenge. Just death.


    "Li Daoyun of the Fuyun Sword Clan. Remember that," he replied. Everyone heard what he said. From his tone, it was easy to tell that he looked down on Ye Futian. Li Daoyun did not deem Ye Futian a worthy opponent.


    Of those from Ancient Loulan, the ones who had heard of the Fuyun Sword Clan felt a shiver. They were left speechless. Although Li Daoyun had killed many of their people, it seemed like it would be impossible to get revenge.


    Li Daoyun left those words before leaving. He obviously didn''t care about what Ye Futian thought. He was just a little disappointed that he could not steal the treasure from Ye Futian. However, this also did not bother him too much. This was the pride he had from being from one of the most powerful clans in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Li Daoyun of the Fuyun Sword Clan," mumbled Ye Futian, repeating his name. He was also unbothered by Li Daoyun. They shared similar thoughts. In Li Daoyun''s opinion, Ye Futian would only end up dead if he tried to get revenge. But in Ye Futian''s opinion, Li Daoyun was dead as soon as he introduced himself.


    Cultivators of Ancient Loulan left to bring back Virgin Loulan Xue.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian. He turned around and headed for the palace. Many of the cultivators of Ancient Loulan stayed behind them to ensure their safety.


    Mounted on the Black Wind Eagle, Ye Futian seemed to be in deep thought. He remained that way for a while before whispering, "What would have happened if I handed the book over to them?"


    Would Ye Wuchen''s arm still be chopped off if he had released the book to the Barren City cultivators?


    "Don''t think too much about it," said Ye Wuchen. He did not dwell on the situation at all. "Had you given the book away right in front of the Virgin, could you have ensured that the people of Ancient Loulan wouldn''t come after you?"


    Ye Futian made no further remarks.


    Returning to the same residence in the palace, Ye Futian took out the treasurable book. A chilling energy was still coming from the object. The picture in the book was just as icy cold as before, bone-chillingly cold. However, besides the terrifying will and the chilling artistic conception, there did not seem to be anything special about the treasurable book. Could it be that the existence of this half of the book was for the sheer purpose of carrying on the energy of this ice will? If so, then what was contained in the other half?


    He was very curious. The book would only be complete with both halves but rumors had it the empress of Ancient Loulan rebuilt the kingdom with the power of just half a book. Although these rumors could not be fully trusted, Ye Futian refused to believe that a person with no gifts could become the empress of Ancient Loulan by relying solely on the power of a treasure. This was not to say that the power of treasurable book should be looked down on.


    There was obviously something special about it for the people of Ancient Loulan to hold it in such esteem.


    Not long after, Loulan Xue returned with her people and arrived at Ye Futian''s residence. "What are your conditions?" Loulan Xue stood in front of Ye Futian and asked in her usual cold demeanor. She definitely did not beat around the bush.


    "I want to take a look at the other half of the book," he said to Loulan Xue. "Of course, if the Virgin doesn''t agree to it, I can consider changing my conditions."


    Ancient Loulan had previously stated that they wanted to do an exchange of equal value. To be honest, Ye Futian was the disadvantaged party when it came to trading his half of the book for a glimpse of the other half. However, Ancient Loulan still might not agree with his request and he was not going to force them to comply. After all, he did not have the right to bargain after their people provided him with protection to keep him alive.


    "I''ll have to ask the celestial empress," said Loulan Xue. When it came to the other half of the book, she could not make a decision.


    "Alright, then you can take this half first." Ye Futian handed the book over to the Virgin. She looked at him in confusion but took the book anyway.


    Ye Futian did this to make his attitude known. Otherwise, the empress might think that he was using the book as leverage. That might put them in danger once again. In the best case scenario would be that they get a chance to see the other half of the book. If not, then he''ll just have to change his conditions.


    "Wait here for my news," Loulan Xue said before turning to leave.


    Not long after the departure of the Virgin, another group of people arrived. It was Qian Yang and his posse. They had previously stayed in the pavilion across.


    "Ye Futian." Qian Yang walked up to him with a seemingly friendly smile. "You sure got a lot from Loulan Relic trip I invited you on."


    "I had some gains but also lost a lot," said Ye Futian.


    Qian Yang looked over at Ye Wuchen''s dismembered arm and continued, "I heard you got your hands on the treasurable book Ancient Loulan wanted most. I bet you made set some conditions for an exchange with the Virgin, right? Before bringing you guys here, I said that we''ll split anything we got from the relic site. What do you plan to do now?"


    Qian Yang stared at Ye Futian. When everyone had rushed to fight over the book, Qian Yang had headed to the Soldiers'' Mound. But when he got there, all the ritual implements had already been taken. In other words, he did not get a single thing from this trip to the Loulan Relic. Unlike him, Ye Futian and his friends gained so much. Right from the beginning, they each acquired a ritual implement from the Soldiers'' Mound. Then, they even obtained the most important treasure at the relic site. There was also the Book of Flames and probably even more they did not know of. With his bad mood, Qian Yang was bound to have certain opinions of Ye Futian.


    "Split?" Ye Futian''s group looked at Qian Yang''s group. Yu Sheng''s eyes were ice cold when he asked, "Where did you get the audacity to ask such a question?"


    Qian Yang did not tell them a thing about the relic site before they entered. Neither did he warn them of potential dangers. It was obvious that Qian Yang was just using them. In Qian Yang''s eyes, it did not matter if Ye Futian and his friends got a hold of the treasures because everything they got belonged to him. So, why would it have mattered to him if they died during the collapse of the relic site?


    "Watch your mouth," Shi Tong said coldly. His eyes fell on Yu Sheng''s battle ax. He wanted it for himself.


    "Did you ever chip in when we were fighting the Nobles for the treasures?" Ye Futian asked with a sarcastic smile.


    Qian Yang looked uncomfortable at the question. It was Zhao Han beside him who spoke up. "If it hadn''t been for Young Master Qian, you guys wouldn''t have even been allowed to enter the relic. Now you guys want to keep all the treasures for yourselves?"


    He wanted the sword in Ye Wuchen''s hand.


    Now that the wills in the implements had disappeared, there was no need to get acknowledgment. As long as they could get their hands on the implements, it was theirs.


    Ye Futian looked at Zhao Han and knew there was no need to argue. He chuckled, "That''s right."


    If he said they were keeping everything for themselves, then that was exactly what they were going to do.


    "Have you thought this through?" asked Qian Yang. He still had a smile on his face.


    "Absolutely," replied Ye Futian. The two met eyes. Although they had gained a lot from this trip, Ye Wuchen had lost his arm. How dare these people come at them with talks of splitting the treasures?


    What a joke.


    "I''m going to stay at the residence just across. Thinking it over a little more. Perhaps you''ll change your mind," chuckled Qian Yang before leaving. Zhao Han and Shi Tong glared at Ye Futian and the others while Yue Linglong smiled charmingly at them. "Things are different here, outside of the relic. How strong can you be even with a noble implement if there''s no noble will to help you?" she asked softly.


    Within every ritual implement in the relic, existed a noble level will that used their powers to help activate the powers of the implements they once used. In that situation, the powers of the implements were not to be doubted, but now, an implement was just an implement. It was only powerful it the person wielding it was powerful and at the level of Ye Futian and his friends, the implements wouldn''t be too powerful.


    "Yun Qianmo." Qian Yang suddenly spoke up again with his back still turned to everyone else. "You should also think things over."


    Yun Qianmo was shaken up by his words. Zhao Han turned his head to look back at her. His cold eyes pierced into her before he finally left.


    Right now, it was possible to see the conflict within Yun Qianmo from her eyes.


    She knew how powerful Ye Futian could be and was able to say that everyone in his circle was more powerful than Qian Yang and his posse. If she continued to cultivate with him, it would really help her.


    But now, it was possible that Ye Futian and Qian Yang might come face to face for a battle. Qian Yang was the young leader of the Qianmeng area and Zhao Han was the son of her master. She could not stand on their opposing side.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian and the others were powerful, but how would they go against Qian Yang''s group outside of the relic?


    Ye Futian turned to Yun Qianmo. It was almost as if he could see the conflict in her eyes because he said, "If you want to leave, I''ll let you go."


    Yun Qianmo''s gaze froze on Ye Futian. Making a final decision, she said, "I can''t stand against them."


    Ye Futian observed her calmly. Although Yun Qianmo''s gifts were not too strong, she was a fairly resolute person. It was obvious when she had made the decision to become his maid. It was the same this time around. Once again, she was firm with the choice she made.


    Yu Sheng watched Yun Qianmo with his cold eyes. It was then that Ye Futian brushed past Yun Qianmo. He said, "Yu Sheng, take her fate and let her leave."

 182 Sage Inten

    Chapter 182: Sage Intent


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Stealing of fate was a cruel thing. Using one''s intent to tear the other''s intent away, the latter would decrease in plane.


    But Ye Futian still made Yu Sheng do it, ignoring Yun Qianmo''s hateful eyes.


    People had to pay for their choices. If Yun Qianmo hadn''t agreed to be his servant, he couldn''t have forced her to do so. This was a voluntary matter. Later, Yun Qianmo had fulfilled her duties, and so he helped her when possible. Yun Qianmo had gained much at the Cang Mountain Relic and Noble Grotto.


    Now, Qian Yang and Zhao Han had made it obvious they were enemies. Yun Qianmo was prepared to leave with just one sentence. How could it be so easy? When she went back, she would be part of the Sword Clan again��Zhao Han''s junior sister. What would she do to them?


    If Yun Qianmo chose to leave after things settled, Ye Futian wouldn''t snatch her fate. But she had to leave in this dangerous time after Ye Wuchen lost his arm. Ye Futian''s mood went without saying.


    Yun Qianmo left after her fate was taken. She didn''t fight.


    Ye Wuchen''s ability to escape from Li Daoyun proved his abilities. Even though he lost his arm, she still wasn''t his match. Only Qian Yang with his noble fate could restrict Ye Wuchen.


    Yun Qianmo didn''t know that not only had Ye Wuchen escaped, but he''d also injured Li Daoyun.


    She also didn''t know that Ye Futian hadn''t used the intent contained in the ritual implement to receive the book, Punish the King. He didn''t use fate either and instead had an even stronger intent. Only Ye Wuchen saw this secret. Ye Futian had had Yu Sheng take them to the pavilion because he didn''t them to see the secret. Yu Sheng had understood this.


    After Yun Qianmo left, Ye Futian cultivated peacefully while waiting for Loulan Xue''s news.


    ��


    Ancient Loulan, palace.


    The true Loulan palace was not in the Ancient Barren World. The majestic palace was simple and clean, not opulent at all.


    A middle-aged woman clad in a white robe sat quietly in the Ice Matrix. She stared forward. There, a gust of terrifying coldness seeped out. It was the two scrolls; right now, they were being combined gradually.


    She focused entirely on the books. She felt coldness bite into her bones from the books. It was like the intent of a sage and was extremely frightening.


    "Sage?" At that moment, her expression suddenly changed. As the empress of Ancient Loulan, she''d never been so serious before.


    "Yes." A voice rang out in her mind. It was from the book.


    The empress''s heart quivered. The rumors were true. The scrolls of Loulan''s ancestors contained and preserved sage intent. The one who had the scroll would win the world.


    "Are you the empress of Loulan?" the intent''s voice said.


    "Sage, I am the descendant of Loulan''s first empress," the empress said. Very few people knew this. They only knew that the talented girl had recovered Loulan''s glory with a precious book and was given the title of "empress." But in reality, she was the descendant of Ancient Loulan. Every Virgin after that was actually all the Empress'' daughter. They inherited the position and continued Ancient Loulan''s bloodline.


    The book was silent for a while. Then a voice sounded, and the Empress listened quietly. After a long while, she closed the book and looked outside. "Loulan Xue," she called.


    Outside, a beautiful figure walked over. She had silver hair and white eyes. Bowing, she called, "Empress."


    The person before her was not only Ancient Loulan''s empress; she was her mother.


    "Bring him here," the empress said. "I will lend the book to him to read."


    "Yes." Loulan Xue left.


    The palace of Loulan Xue was connected to the Ancient Barren World. The entrance was right in the palace, so Loulan Xue quickly entered the palace in the Ancient Barren World and found Ye Futian.


    "The empress wants to see you in the Loulan palace. She agreed to your request," she said.


    Ye Futian''s eyes brightened. The Empress wanted to see him? "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and said to Yu Sheng beside him, "I''m going. Wait for me here."


    With that, he left with Loulan Xue. The sharp man and a group of guards were beside them too. They were curious why the empress wanted to see Ye Futian.


    He stepped into the passageway with Loulan Xue and found that he''d arrived before an immensely majestic palace. This was the true Loulan palace. The strong force was truly confident in itself. It controlled the passageway alone. Anyone from the Ancient World who wished to enter the Ancient Barren World needed Loulan''s permission.


    The true Loulan palace was obviously more imposing than the one in the Ancient Barren World. It was bold and simple. Ye Futian and the others arrived before a large pavilion. He looked left and right and saw guards everywhere. A beautiful figure stood on the steps. She was extremely elegant and felt like a king despite being a woman.


    "Empress," everyone greeted and bowed. Her eyes instantly fell on Ye Futian. She turned and walked towards the pavilion while saying, "Loulan Xue, bring him in."


    "Yes." Loulan Xue nodded. She brought Ye Futian up the steps and into the pavilion.


    The pavilion was open and clean. There was an Ice Matrix in the front; coldness seeped from it. The book hovered above the Ice Matrix, releasing powerful coldness.


    "I heard that you received the book with only the First-level Dharma Plane. You killed many noble intents too. How did you accomplish this?" the Empress asked. She stood before the matrix, back to Ye Futian.


    "It was luck. I almost lost my life," Ye Futian said.


    The empress obviously knew he didn''t say everything. She didn''t continue asking and just said, "This is where I cultivate. The book is here. You can cultivate here for a period of time."


    "Thank you, Empress," Ye Futian said.


    "You deserve it," she replied coolly and turned around. Her eyes were silvery as well. They seemed to see through Ye Futian. Then she started walking out. "Let us go."


    Loulan Xue obviously knew the empress was talking to her. She glanced at Ye Futian and followed the empress away.


    "If I cultivate for too long, please notify my friends," Ye Futian spoke out.


    "Okay," Loulan Xue replied.


    The empress and Loulan Xue left. Ye Futian said amongst the Ice Matrix that the empress was cultivating from. The powerful frozen water elements surrounded him. With a thought, the freezing power surged into his body.


    Behind him, the ice dharma appeared. It began absorbing the coldness. The matrix spun, and his body was buried in the foggy coldness.


    The Freedom Meditation was activated. Ye Futian gazed at the hovering book. The artistic conception of the moon, snowy peaks, and frozen world remained on it. Above the snowy peaks, he could faintly see a snowy figure sitting quietly at the top.


    This�� Ye Futian''s heart shuddered. This wasn''t there before. Now, the book was complete and more objects appeared in the picture.


    The Freedom Meditation was pushed to the max. Ye Futian felt another attractive force. His mind was pulled into the book and arrived at the top of the snowy mountain.


    It''s so cold. Ye Futian shivered. The cold moon hung high while the figure at the mountaintop sat quietly. Ye Futian''s mind walked over.


    The figure turned slowly. Seeing Ye Futian, he smiled. "I didn''t think you really could enter."


    "Senior, is this the space created by your intent?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "You can say that. Unfortunately, you are not a descendant of Loulan. This book must remain in Loulan. Since you can come here, I won''t let you go empty-handed." The figure rose slowly. His eyes had turned white, terrifyingly so. At that moment, Ye Futian felt various ancient words float into his mind. He absorbed them wildly, but every word contained extreme coldness, sealing his mind in ice.


    "It''s like the Book of Flames. Is that book of a similar level?" Ye Futian asked, heart trembling.


    "It was long ago, but the flame technique lost its spirit and sage intent," the figure replied. Endless icy words entered Ye Futian''s mind. After a long while, his mind was transformed into an ice sculpture and shattered.


    In the outer world, Ye Futian remained sitting quietly in the matrix. There was a layer of ice over him. He didn''t move.


    The days passed by but nothing happened inside the Ice Matrix. Loulan Xue came many times, but it was always the same.


    Today, she came again with the Empress. The Empress sat quietly outside the matrix. Seeing Ye Futian, she was shocked inwardly.


    The sage was correct. Ye Futian could dig up more of the book''s potential than the Loulan royalty. Unfortunately, he wasn''t from Loulan.


    "Let us go." The empress left after a short while.


    After a few more days, something terrifying came from within the matrix. Scalding hot currents flowed out. The ice on Ye Futian melted bit by bit. Then a terrible aura burst out.


    Behind Ye Futian, a strange sight appeared. The sun and moon hung high. Coldness and heat overlapped, transforming into a horrible whirlpool. All the surrounding Spiritual Qi sizzled.


    There was a sea of fire below the sun. Below the moon, icy glaciers appeared. This was dharma.


    Now, Ye Futian created yet another dharma. This was the artistic conception of the Ice Matrix. It was even stronger than the sun dharma from before.


    "Sun, moon, water, fire," Ye Futian murmured.


    Not only did the Loulan sage have the ability to cultivate ice, but he also cultivated fire. However, the sage intent in the Book of Flames disappeared later. The flame talent disappeared gradually, and only the ice ability was passed down.

 183 The Empress’ Anger

    Chapter 183: The Empress�� Anger


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Loulan palace, the Empress'' pavilion. Presently, the empress sat quietly in a gazebo. Beside her, Loulan Xue stood still like a statue.


    "What do you think of him?" the Empress asked out of the blue.


    Loulan Xue looked at the Empress in confusion.


    "Ye Futian," she clarified.


    "He is very talented," answered Loulan Xue.


    "Besides talented?" the Empress continued to ask.


    Loulan Xue blinked a couple of times, still not understanding the meaning behind her mother''s questions. Seeing how confused Loulan Xue was, the Empress realized just how clueless her daughter was to these things. Her eyes drifted toward the pond by the gazebo. She said softly, "He''s got the look. It''s hard to find someone so handsome in the palace. Plus, he is also gifted. Although he is a little young, age has never been a problem when it comes to the world of cultivation. What do you think?"


    Loulan Xue''s beautiful silver eyes widened. The expression on her face meant she finally understood her mother''s meaning.


    "I never thought about it," said Loulan Xue.


    "It''s not too late to start thinking now," the Empress said, turning her gaze back to her daughter. "You''ll have to start thinking about this topic sooner or later. Now the perfect match has arrived. If you let him go, it''ll find hard to find a better guy."


    Loulan Xue looked into her mother''s eyes, realizing she had a point. Ye Futian was able to acquire ritual implements and the book at the first level Dharma Plane. Her mother also told her that Ye Futian was able to communicate with the sage''s will in the book. There was no doubt that he was extremely gifted. He was also very handsome, which indeed make him the perfect candidate.


    The Empress noticed that Loulan Xue was thinking about what she had just said. "If you don''t choose him now, you''ll still have to pick someone in the future. Think carefully."


    Loulan Xue hesitated briefly before nodding. "Alright." Her reply was simple, as if she hadn''t just made one of the most important decisions in her life. It was simply a mission to be accomplished by her.


    Just as the Empress had said, she was going to have to find a man sooner or later and she did indeed have a great impression of Ye Futian. He was easy on the eyes.


    "Then it''s settled," smiled the Empress. She had a clear understanding of her daughter''s personality. Loulan Xue was disinterested in most things, just like the vibe she gave off to others. This also applied to her love life. She had not known Ye Futian for long so naturally, she had no special feelings for him, but she did know how to make the best choice for herself. Ye Futian was definitely not a bad choice.


    "Empress," a servant girl stepped in to report, "he has emerged."


    "Perfect timing." The Empress smiled. "Have him come over."


    The girl was shocked. The Empress was inviting Ye Futian into her pavilion? No other man had ever had the privilege of doing so. Although she was shocked, she had to suppress her emotions. The servant girl bowed and was off to carry out the Empress'' order.


    Not long after, Ye Futian was brought to the Empress. In his eyes, the Empress and Loulan Xue looked like sisters, both cold yet beautiful. Except, the Empress was more of a dignified beauty. No one would dare to disrespect her. With silver hair and eyes, Loulan Xue''s beauty was bewitching.


    "Greetings to the honorable Empress." Ye Futian bowed.


    The Empress nodded in acknowledgment and looked straight at him. "How did the cultivation go?"


    "I have made some progress thanks to you, Empress," said Ye Futian, expressing his gratitude. He was worried about why the empress had summoned him. The pavilion where the Empress and the Virgin resided hardly seemed like a place where he should be entering.


    "You earned it," the Empress replied nonchalantly. "What do you think of the Virgin''s looks?"


    Ye Futian froze. All he managed to do was blink. What was going on? He looked over to Loulan Xue. She simply stood there, cold and silent, like a statue.


    "She''s beautiful, of course," Ye Futian answered with a nod. This was the truth. He was a truthful man.


    "In Ancient Loulan, whether it be the Virgin''s appearance or her gifts, she is truly outstanding. Peerless if I may say so," the Empress rambled on, complimenting her daughter.


    The wheels turned in his head as Ye Futian tried to figure out why the Empress was saying all this to him.


    "And so, it''s difficult to find a man worthy of the Virgin in Ancient Loulan," she said. "The topic of her future is a big headache."


    Ye Futian did not dare to follow up with any comment. A ridiculous thought popped into his mind, Have my good looks brought me trouble once again?


    "Do you have any thoughts about this?" the Empress asked Ye Futian with a smile.


    "I wouldn''t dare to express any opinions on such an important subject." Ye Futian lowered his head. He had a bad feeling about all this.


    The Empress chuckled. Was he playing dumb? Her intentions were already very clear but he was still not giving a proper reply. Did she really have to spell it out for him? This boy was too sly.


    "How would you feel if I betrothed the Virgin to you?" asked the Empress. Her tone was extremely casual.


    Ye Futian''s entire body tensed up. He was even more nervous now than he had been fighting the Nobles and the army in the relic. Right now, he was in the pavilion of another kingdom''s Empress and she was trying to marry her daughter to him. No words were needed to explain just how stressed he was.


    "How could I be worth on the Virgin?" Ye Futian said politely. As sound as he was finished, an invisible force descended upon him. He felt cold. It was the Empress'' aura.


    "If I say you''re worthy, then there''s no problem," said the Empress. How dare this boy say no?


    "..." Ye Futian was completely dumbfounded.


    The wheels in his head turned faster. "The Virgin and I have not known each other for long and have barely communicated. It''s hardly fair to the Virgin to make such a rash decision."


    Loulan Xue looked at him calmly and said, "I have no objections."


    "..." Ye Futian was rendered speechless. I know I''m good looking but how can they be so direct?


    "If you''re already standing here, it means that I''ve already asked for her opinion. There''s no need for you to consider anything else," the Empress said. "I''m going to pick a good date and announce it to the people. Let''s get you guys married as soon as possible. How about it?"


    "Empress, you can''t do this." There was a change in his expression. Hua Jieyu was still waiting for him in the Cangye Kingdom. There was no way he could just marry another girl.


    The Empress frowned. Another force of majestic energy was released from her and pushed down on Ye Futian.


    "I already have a woman I love." Ye Futian knew there was no other way around this. All he could do was tell the truth.


    "How can she be better than the Virgin?" asked the Empress after pausing briefly in shock. She was trying to betroth Loulan Xue to Ye Futian and he was actually unwilling. Now, he was doing everything he could to get out of this situation. She was the empress, so of course, this put her in a foul mood.


    "Empress, this isn''t a matter of who is better or more gifted," said Ye Futian. In his heart, Hua Jieyu was obviously better but he couldn''t come out and say that to the Empress.


    The Empress stared at Ye Futian. She could see the determination in his eyes. He was looking her straight in the eyes, unwilling to back down. The force of energy disappeared and she spoke again, "If so, then you can take that girl as a concubine."


    Make Hua Jieyu a concubine? Ye Futian shook his head at the Empress.


    The Empress'' frown grew and she continued to stare at him. "Don''t tell me you''re planning to make the Virgin be a concubine?" She was already being very polite to him. If it wasn''t because the sage favored Ye Futian, she wouldn''t be here bartering with a junior. She was the empress for crying out loud! But here he was, not appreciating her kindness.


    "Then, I''ll just have to kill her," said the empress coldly.


    As soon as he heard this, the look in Ye Futian''s eyes sharpened, shooting daggers at the Empress. His fists clenched tight. He was trying to control his boiling anger.


    Seemingly sensing the change in Ye Futian, the Empress'' aura grew colder. Everything in the surrounding looked about ready to freeze over. The atmosphere in the room was ice cold. Loulan Xue also did not anticipate for things to end this way. She looked at the two people in front of her and said, "If he doesn''t want to, then forget it."


    Not only did the Empress'' anger not die down after these words, her aura grew even colder. She had brought up marriage for her daughter and offered to betroth Loulan Xue to Ye Futian. Then, he actually rejected. Hearing her daughter''s words now, only made her feel that Loulan Xue had been wronged.


    The Empress called out to summon someone and multiple females appeared. "Capture that b*stard and keep a close eye on him," ordered the Empress.


    "Yes!" The females stepped closer to him.


    "I can show myself out," said Ye Futian. He turned around and began to walk away with the females following behind him.


    "How preposterous!" said the Empress in anger. This b*stard!


    "You wanted me to marry him because you valued his talent and wanted him to become a citizen on Ancient Loulan but by doing this, you are offending him." Loulan Xue remained calm all throughout. Although, she did feel strange. Her mother had made an offer to marry her to Ye Futian and she had even agreed to it herself. Now, they had both been rejected.


    "Then kill him," said the Empress in a cold demeanor. So what if he was extremely gifted? She had already made her compromise, allowing him to marry both females. It was that jackass who chose to reject. Did he really plan to make Loulan Xue his concubine? Or did he think that Loulan Xue was not worthy to be his wife?


    "Why do you have to do this? Didn''t you say that the sage holds him in high esteem?" Loulan Xue attempted to dissuade her mother from killing Ye Futian.


    The Empress'' anger began to die down. She was just pissed. After all, this was her only daughter. As the empress, of course, she would be upset after getting rejected by Ye Futian after she had been the one to offer her daughter''s hand in marriage.


    "I shall go speak with the sage." In a flash, the Empress disappeared and showed up at the hall for cultivation. She sat down at the center of the ice matrix. The book was still floating in the air. The Empress'' consciousness slipped into the book. Not long after, she opened her eyes with a strange expression on her face. Lifting her feet, she walked outside. She then arrived at the place where Ye Futian was being put on lockdown. He was being watched. Seeing the Empress approach really pissed him off. Indeed, Loulan Xue was beautiful, but so what? Did that mean he had to marry her?


    "What were you thinking?" The empress stopped right in front of Ye Futian. Her tone was much calmer now. The anger from before was no longer there.


    "I don''t understand what you mean," said Ye Futian.


    "When you tried to leave before, I really wanted to kill you but the Virgin begged for me to have mercy on you," she answered.


    "Then, please thank her for me," Ye Futian replied coldly.


    "I''ll make another compromise. What if you just take both of them as your wives?"


    "I''m not marrying her," Ye Futian answered calmly.

 184 One Sword per Person

    Chapter 184: One Sword per Person


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s decisive rejection changed the Empress'' calm expression. This was blasphemous! She was the empress and her daughter, Loulan Xue, was extremely talented and her beauty was unbeatable. She was willing to marry below her status but was rejected. Now, she was even willing to have her daughter share with another woman but was still rejected.


    "The Virgin isn''t qualified enough for you?" the Empress asked coldly. If not for the sage''s words, she would slap this boy to death.


    "Empress, you must know that the Virgin doesn''t have any feelings for me. How can something like this be so casual?" Ye Futian asked. "Just because she is pretty? Does that mean I should marry every pretty girl?"


    "Feelings can develop slowly. After being together, you will naturally fall for her," the Empress said. Was this b*stard pretending to be pure? Didn''t all men only care about looks?


    After getting used to Loulan Xue beside him, the Empress believed he would change heart. In her opinion, the girl Ye Futian liked couldn''t be prettier than her daughter.


    "Empress, I do not know the reason why you wish the Virgin to marry me but I really do have a girlfriend already. Our relationship is very good as well. If you have your eyes on my talent, I''ve received some things in the Loulan Relic and met the sage in the book. I can be friends with Loulan. You do not need to force me to marry the Virgin." Ye Futian knew that he was attractive but the Empress was obviously doing this for his talent rather than his looks. She wanted to tie him in. Because he was in her territory, Ye Futian must bow down and first get through this.


    The Empress stared at Ye Futian. This b*stard was truly sensitive. She knew that Ye Futian''s words were logical too but Ye Futian would soon enter the Ancient Barren World to cultivate. He wasn''t from Loulan either. How tight would their friendship be? It would just be a favor at most. This wasn''t what she wanted. The sage wished for Ye Futian to become a Loulan citizen. That was why she had the idea to marry her daughter. Only this relationship could tie Ye Futian tightly. He couldn''t run if Loulan Xue had his child in the future. The Loulan bloodline could be passed down well too. But she didn''t expect that Ye Futian would refuse.


    Looking at him, the Empress pondered. Her voice became slow and calm as she said, "In that case, I won''t force you. I was too extreme earlier but it is your fault too. The Virgin does have good feelings toward you. Maybe you will change your mind after some more interactions. Follow me." With that, she walked towards her own pavilion.


    "Thank you, Empress." Ye Futian followed her.


    The Empress'' expression was cold as she cursed Ye Futian inwardly. She really wanted to beat Ye Futian up.


    Ye Futian also looked at the Empress'' backside, cursing her inwardly for changing so quickly. He wished he was strong enough to beat this old hag up.


    When Ye Futian saw Loulan Xue at the Empress'' pavilion, she was quiet and cold as before. It was as if nothing had happened. Perhaps this was her personality. Seeing the Empress and Ye Futian, she understood that they must have resolved things.


    "You''ll return to the Ancient Barren World to cultivate soon," the Empress said. "Ye Futian, how long do you plan to stay there?"


    "I''m not sure. I might go to the Barren City," Ye Futian said. Ye Wuchen couldn''t lose his arm for nothing. He still couldn''t take revenge but he wanted to learn about some things. This could help with entering the Eastern Barren Territory as well.


    "Your plane is still too low," the Empress said. "Ancient Loulan has placed many noble ritual implements in the Ancient Barren World. They''re from the relic and have never been taken out. I heard that you received a Guqin but it won''t be enough. I''ll have the Virgin help you choose back in the Ancient Barren World."


    Ye Futian blinked. No wonder she was the empress. Her tactics�� Earlier, she seemed to want to kill him. Now, she was like a senior caring for her junior. So powerful.


    "Thank you, Empress," Ye Futian said.


    "Go out first. I must speak with the Virgin," the Empress then said. Ye Futian nodded and went outside.


    Loulan Xue looked up at the Empress. It seemed that she still hadn''t given up.


    "That b*stard is very fake. With your features, I don''t believe he won''t change his mind. He''ll forget his girlfriend within the month," the Empress said. "At that time, I''ll make him beg me to marry you." As if imagining that scene, a cold sneer appeared in the Empress''s eyes. Loulan Xue studied her without saying anything.


    "Alright, you may go," the Empress said.


    Loulan Xue nodded. She left the pavilion and found Ye Futian. "Let''s return to the Ancient Barren World," she said.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. They returned together. Loulan Xue was still as calm as ever as if nothing had happened.


    After returning to Ye Futian''s pavilion, the Black Wind Eagle came up. Yu Sheng also walked over. Ye Futian asked him, "Have those people bothered you guys?"


    "They''re very arrogant. They often come over to check as if they''re guarding us and waiting for us to leave the Loulan palace," Yu Sheng replied coldly.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. Were they waiting to fight?


    "Where''s Wuchen?" Ye Futian saw Lin Yueyao but not Ye Wuchen.


    "He''s cultivating in private," Yu Sheng said. "He improved greatly while you were gone. I''ve entered the Second-level Dharma Plane too."


    "Not bad," Ye Futian said, smiling. "Me too."


    Lin Yueyao pouted. This group was crazy. She was only in the Second-level Dharma Plane right now. When she was in the Nine-star Glory Plane, they were only in the Seven-star. Now they had already caught up. That was only for planes. Their combat abilities were much higher than hers.


    "Then we''ll continue cultivating for a while and wait for Wuchen to finish," Ye Futian said. Ye Wuchen had been nourished by noble intent in the relic, lost his arm, and received a ritual implement. He must have many thoughts and would need to spend some time on raising his plane, solidifying his intent. After that, Ye Futian began cultivating peacefully.


    One day, he was playing his guqin, a beautiful figure walked over. It was Yue Linglong. Zhao Han and Shi Tong were behind her. They looked at Ye Futian coldly. Yue Linglong moved lightly and came before Ye Futian who was playing his instrument. Smiling, she said, "You''re finally back. I actually missed you." Her smile was too beautiful and mesmerizing.


    "Sadly, I''m not interested in older women," Ye Futian said, raising his head.


    Yue Linglong''s eyes hardened. Looking at Ye Futian, she said, "Young Master Qian wanted me to ask you if you''ve thought it through yet."


    "Think what through?" Ye Futian asked, not understanding.


    Shi Tong huffed. "I''ve heard that you went out of the Ancient Barren World and exchanged the book for some treasure these days."


    "Yeah. You want it?" Ye Futian looked at Shi Tong.


    "Ye Futian, are you planning on hiding in here forever?" Zhao Han asked straightforwardly. His voice was frigid. As long as Ye Futian stayed in the palace, they couldn''t do anything. It would disrespect the Loulan royalty.


    "Are you done?" Ye Futian looked at them and said, "If you''re done, scram."


    The three all stared at Ye Futian, expressions cold. This guy was as arrogant as before.


    "I''ll see how long you can hide," Zhao Han said as they left.


    "Hide?" Ye Futian smirked. These guys really were waiting.


    After a few more days, Ye Wuchen finally came out. His temperament had changed, becoming purer. Even if he didn''t release any aura, he gave one the impression of being a sword.


    "How''s the cultivation?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''m at the Fifth-level now. My sword intent is more complete too." Ye Wuchen''s voice was calm.


    "I see." Ye Futian nodded. He left and found Loulan Xue, requesting her to seal all news about the palace.


    That day, Qian Yang''s group was still waiting for Ye Futian. He was in a bad mood. Ye Futian was really good at hiding. He didn''t show any sign of leaving the palace, even after all these days. However, Qian Yang took the time to cultivate too. The Loulan royalty hadn''t kicked them out.


    Just then, a figure walked into the pavilion quietly. His steps weren''t fast; they had some sort of rhythm, entering the pavilion step by step. Before long, he stood before Qian Yang''s group.


    Qian Yang, Zhao Han, Shi Tong, and the other two were together, discussing something. Now, they all looked forward. There was a one-armed figure. He walked quietly, his right hand holding a sword pointed downward. He made his way over to Qian Yang''s group. They were bewildered. What did Ye Wuchen want? He''d really forced his way into the pavilion, killing someone with each strike. He was so brazen!

 185 Qian Yang’s Death

    Chapter 185: Qian Yang��s Death


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Wuchen stood there looking sharp as a sword. He eyed the five people in front of him. "Leave or die." These past days, Qian Yang had made his attitude very clear. They were waiting for Ye Futian''s group to leave the palace so they could steal the treasures they acquired from the relic. They had even come out and admitted to it. Qian Yang had nothing to hide. In the time that Ye Futian left for the outside world, Qian Yang kept a close eye on them. They were his prey.


    If so, then there was no need for discussion. If Qian Yang and his people left, then it would be a happy ending for both parties. If they didn''t, then they were the enemy and one party had to die.


    As always, Ye Wuchen was not much of a talker. In a few simple words, he had already made his point clear.


    Qian Yang and the others were surprised by Ye Wuchen''s words. They were all top-level Dharma Plane cultivators. Even if Ye Wuchen had a ritual implement, how was he going to close the gap between himself and Qian Yang''s group?


    Ye Wuchen probably wouldn''t even be able to take down just Zhao Han. Furthermore, Qian Yang''s powers were boosted by the noble fate he possessed. It was enough for him to kill any ordinary top-level Dharma Plane cultivator instantly.


    "Is your brain failing after losing your arm?" Shi Tong asked coldly.


    "Young Master Qian, he''s the one picking a fight, so if he dies here the Virgin can''t blame us, right?" chuckled Yue Linglong.


    "Zhao Han, kill him and the sword is yours," said Qian Yang.


    "Thank you, Young Master Qian," nodded Zhao Han. He was thinking the same thing. He and Ye Wuchen were both swordsmen. Ye Wuchen''s sword was going to be his. Stepping forward, Zhao Han released a dominating force of sword intent. Behind him, swords appeared. All of them unsheathed loudly and floated in the air behind Zhao Han.


    "Since you''re asking for death, I''ll give it to you." Zhao Han''s eyes were cold. Everyone could feel his murderous intent. Zhao Han was the son of the clan master of the Fuyun Sword Clan. Although he was gifted, he was completely defeated by Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen at the grotto. That event made him feel utterly humiliated.


    Ye Wuchen was a swordsman just like him but was more gifted. However, it was a shame because no matter how gifted he was, he still had to die.


    The sword dharmas behind Zhao Han shot out like flashes of lightning. The blades reflected in the daylight. The gleams of light from the swords were blinding. A deafening noise erupted, and in the blink of an eye, all the swords whistled through the wind headed straight for Ye Wuchen.


    Almost at the exact same time, sword intent exploded from Ye Wuchen''s body. A formless flow of air wrapped around his body. With him at the center, a terrifying sword storm brewed. It was frightening to hear the sound the swords made as they cut through the air. When Zhao Han''s swords approached, they were all destroyed by the air created by Ye Wuchen''s swords.


    Zhao Han walked forward and with every step he took, his sword intent grew stronger. The swords came endlessly from behind him. It was as if they wanted to drown Ye Wuchen in an ocean of swords.


    The sword in Ye Wuchen''s hand twirled slightly before charging forward. Any swords that came his way was destroyed.


    Zhao Han was still on the move. A sword also appeared in his hand. His body was guided by the sword, moving quickly.


    Suddenly, there was a gleam of light. The gleaming of a sword. The bright light caused Ye Wuchen to close his eyes. In the next moment, the light grew brighter. Not only was it bright, it was also cold. It cut through the air and towards Ye Wuchen.


    "That''s a quick sword," Yue Linglong exclaimed. Zhao Han was indeed the clan master''s son. His abilities were not to be doubted. With the appearance of this sword, Ye Wuchen was bound to get hurt. It was a dead end for him.


    He released a force of sword intent which rushed into the sword in his hand. He waved the sword into the air. Swords fell like the rain. The light reflected off the blades resembled stars in the night sky. It was as if a meteor shower had struck the area.


    The chillingly bright light from Zhao Han''s sword was drowned out by the meteor shower of swords. Ye Wuchen''s sword cut through the light of Zhao Han''s sword, destroying it.


    When the two swords met, everything stopped. Zhao Han stopped moving as well. He stood not far from Ye Wuchen. He lifted his head to look at Ye Wuchen with wide eyes. In his eyes were looks of shock, despair, and regret. In the following moment, he was bleeding from every orifice. His entire body was quickly covered in blood.


    When Qian Yang and the others saw Zhao Han hit the ground, they finally lost the relaxed expressions on their faces. Their carefree smiles had disappeared long ago. Dumbfounded and scared, all they could do was stare at Zhao Han''s body on the ground. And then, there was the one-armed figure who stood silently, releasing noble fate.


    Noble fate. Shi Tong stared at Ye Wuchen. When had he accomplished this? Furthermore, it was mid-level noble fate along with the pure sword will. Bathed in this force of will, Ye Wuchen was lethal like the sharpest sword in the world. Ye Wuchen''s level of cultivation had increased, he was now a fifth level Dharma Plane cultivator.


    Before, this level of cultivation was nothing in their eyes, but having a pure noble level sword will on top of that was something to be afraid of. It was enough to allow Ye Wuchen to fight those in higher planes. The noble level will would boost his powers greatly. What''s more, Ye Wuchen also possessed a ritual implement. An implement that once contained a noble will.


    Ye Wuchen''s own noble will had been activated. He was going to be able to unleash the full power of the ritual implement. With two forces of noble will, his sword was going to be the most powerful sword in all of the Dharma Plane. If he wasn''t powerful, then he never would have made it out alive from the fight with Li Daoyun, though he did lose an arm. But with Li Daoyun''s abilities, losing an arm was a light price to pay for his life.


    Now, Ye Wuchen was much stronger than he was when he fought Li Daoyun. He had made it into the next level with a pure will. Both of these things greatly improved his abilities.


    WHOOSH! Ye Wuchen was on the move. As he moved, the entire area seemed to have been covered by a force of will. Qian Yang and the three others released their dharmas.


    Seeing that Ye Wuchen was getting close, Shi Tong of the True Martial Clan stepped out. A giant ax appeared in his hand followed by a loud noise. A fearsome energy pushed down on the surrounding area. An enormous figure appeared behind Shi Tong. In his hand was also a big ax. The figure swung the weapon down at Ye Wuchen wanting to kill him with a single swing.


    The glimmer of a blade shot past and along with it, was a cold breeze. Following that, a crack had actually formed on Shi Tong''s ax. A low sound was heard before blood spilled from the cut on his neck. There was no stop to the blood flow.


    Ye Wuchen''s body turned into an afterimage and headed straight for Yue Linglong right after killing Shi Tong.


    Yue Linglong''s facial expression changed immediately after she realized that Shi Tong could not even withstand one attack from Ye Wuchen. Her eyes became seductive. She looked at Ye Wuchen and an illusory figure appeared in his mind instantly.


    There, Yue Linglong walked toward him. The clothes on her body fell to the ground one by one. She was bewitching and flirtatious. In a seductive tone, she asked, "Can you really bear to kill me?" She specialized in illusions and was a spirit elemental illusionary sorcerer. The mirages she created were strong. Her specialty was in male and female relations. It was difficult for those under her spell to pull themselves out.


    In Ye Wuchen''s mind, all that was left on her body was a see-through piece of clothing. He could very faintly see what was underneath. She was so captivating, enough to make anyone lose focus. However, the Ye Wuchen now, had a strong will, a noble level will. Countless swords appear in his mind and raced towards the sexy body. The illusionary figure had been destroyed.


    Some noise sounded and Yue Linglong''s beautiful eyes were frozen in place. all the color drained from her face. She was an illusionary sorcerer but her defense skills couldn''t even catch up to that of Shi Tong''s. So, if Shi Tong was killed, then she was not going to end up any better.


    Ye Wuchen had killed two people in one go. Presently, only two people remained from the group of five: Qian Yang and Dugu Leng.


    Qian Yang did not look too good. His noble fate built up inside as he stared directly at Ye Wuchen, whose noble level sword will had released. Ye Wuchen did not seem like a fifth level Dharma Plane cultivator at all. He was most definitely not any weaker than Qian Yang. Qian Yang''s noble fate was of the lower level and was mixed. It had yet to form any type of pure will.


    Ye Wuchen moved closer to the two with his sword in hand. A powerful force of noble will was released making Ye Wuchen looked even scarier. A terrifying force of energy also released from Qian Yang. Lightning, fire, sword, and powers of other elements were released. In addition to the noble fate, Qian Yang was definitely not someone Zhao Han and Shi Tong could be compared to.


    Behind Qian Yang, Dugu Leng had a chilling energy revolving around him. He held a scimitar in his hand and was bursting with an incredible energy.


    Ye Wuchen flew into the air and lifted his sword. An endless amount of will erupted. Right now, Ye Wuchen seemed to have transformed into a true Noble and even had the majestic feel of an emperor. This was because his will was inherited from a powerful emperor.


    Just then, all the air flow seemed to have gathered by his sword. Everything seemed to be at his mercy. Ye Wuchen''s aura was getting stronger and stronger. The sword in his hand turned into the emperor''s sword.


    Qian Yang also had noble fate, though it was of the lower level. But with his own abilities, he was going to be just as strong. Ye Wuchen was going to have to give it his all.


    Finally, Ye Wuchen''s sword swung down. The emperor''s sword controlled everything around. Air gathered around the sword, moving along to its every movement and swung down on Qian Yang below.


    From Qian Yang, swords of both thunder and fire elements shot into the sky and instantly, a thunder dragon and a fire dragon roared loudly. Sorcery and swordsman skills were combined together.


    Two forces clashed together and Qian Yang shouted, "Dugu Leng!"


    At his call, Dugu Leng bound into action. A force of energy erupted was followed by cracking noises.


    Qian Yang shook violently and his complexion paled. His aura was withdrawn. His swords fell straight out of the skies.


    Dugu Leng retreated right away. A shocking gash appeared on Qian Yang''s back.


    He shivered in pain and turned around. Looking at Dugu Leng, he asked, "Why?"


    Dugu Leng did not look at him. Instead, he lifted his head to speak to Ye Wuchen. "His father is my teacher. When I get back to Qianmeng, I will report to him that Qian Yang and Zhao Han were killed by those from the Barren City."


    Ye Wuchen looked at him but did not say anything.


    "If you kill me as well, Ancient Loulan will help keep all this a secret but my teacher will still investigate. He''s bound to find clues to lead him to the truth." Dugu Leng continued, "That injury on his back is evidence that I also had a hand in his death. Naturally, I will keep this secret for the rest of my life."


    Qian Yang glared at Dugu Leng and fell to the ground with despair and anger in his eyes. He was definitely not going to be resting in peace.

 186 Very Likeable

    Chapter 186: Very Likeable


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Wuchen stood in the air. Sword intent flowed across his body; his eyes stared at Du Guleng.


    Qian Yang possessed noble fate and was at the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane. Even without a ritual implement, he could still fight Ye Wuchen. However, because of Du Guleng, Qian Yang died before he could even release his true abilities. He''d died unjustly and unwillingly. Of course, Ye Wuchen didn''t pity him. He only felt that Du Guleng was extremely cold-blooded. He''d stabbed Qian Yang while he was fighting Ye Wuchen without any hesitation.


    And Ye Wuchen must admit that his words had been logical. After the relic, everyone else left. No one knew that Ye Futian and Qian Yang''s groups remained in the palace. As long as the people of Ancient Loulan helped keep it a secret, no one outside would know. Ye Futian had the Virgin keep news in as well. News wouldn''t spread, which was why he did it.


    But if Qian Yang''s group vanished, the Qianmeng area would definitely investigate and find some things out. If Du Guleng could cooperate and blame it on the Barren City, it would be even more perfect. As to how to keep it a secret, Du Guleng definitely had his own tactics if he''d decided to do this.


    "Yun Qianmo is a flaw," Ye Wuchen said. She knew about the rivalry.


    Actually, if he killed Qian Yang, he didn''t fear the Ancient Barren World''s revenge. The Qianmeng area wasn''t capable of it. He only feared that they would take out their anger on the Cangye Kingdom.


    "Since Yun Qianmo agreed to be your servant, it''s clear she''s ambitious. My master only has one son. After Qian Yang''s death, it''s most possible that I''ll inherit the position of lord. With Zhao Han''s death, if she''s willing to ally with me, she may inherit the top position of the Sword Clan," Du Guleng said. "She''s smart, and I''m more convincing of the two."


    Du Guleng was able to complete the Thirteen Steps of Death in the Noble Grotto. His talent was undeniable.


    Ye Wuchen fell silent, and the sword intent disappeared. "You better do what you said."


    "I naturally know what to do," Du Guleng said. "With the talent of you three, I don''t wish to become your enemy even if I become the lord of the Qianmeng area."


    He''d witnessed their talent in the Noble Grotto. He couldn''t kill them; he''d be the one to die. Qian Yang and the others'' deaths today were the best proof.


    Qian Yang had wanted to use Ye Futian but look at his demise.


    As an orphan, Du Guleng had had it much harder than Qian Yang. He knew to observe and was more cold-blooded. Otherwise, he wouldn''t survive until now.


    "Go," Ye Wuchen said. He must admit that he''d been persuaded and Yun Qianmo truly was a flaw. It would be most suitable for Du Guleng to take care of her.


    "Goodbye." Du Guleng turned and left. No one stopped him.


    After he left, Loulan Xue appeared. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng also came. Ye Futian hadn''t come out because he believed that Ye Wuchen would perform well.


    "He didn''t say anything before," Yu Sheng said. Of the five, Du Guleng had the least sense of existence. Even though his talent was equal to Qian Yang, it was easy to overlook him.


    "That kind is the most dangerous," Ye Futian said. "Virgin, can you help me?" he asked Loulan Xue.


    "With what?" Loulan Xue looked at him.


    "Help me send men to Qianmeng City and keep an eye on them," Ye Futian said. He was involved with Du Guleng now, but he still must be careful. He had to see if Du Guleng could successfully keep things a secret. Qian Yang''s death would spread to Qianmeng City sooner or later. Then they''d know the situation.


    "Okay." Loulan Xue understood Ye Futian''s motive. She nodded.


    "We''ll cultivate for a while and wait for their news. Then we''ll head towards the Barren City," Ye Futian said to the others. Naturally, no one opposed.


    The Barren City was the center of the Eastern Barren Territory. The surrounding area was the entrance to the various forces of the Eastern Barren Territory. They all ruled over one part and fought inside the Barren City. There would be many strong cultivators there, such as those equal to Ancient Loulan.


    This may be there last stop in the Ancient Barren World. After traveling to the Barren City, they would leave. There, Ye Futian would try to get rid of the threat of Luo Junlin joining the Royal Xuan Temple.


    ��


    Months later, Ye Xiao returned to the Cangye palace with strong cultivators protecting him.


    When Emperor Ye had brought them to the Ancient Barren World, we''d sent strong cultivators to wait for them. Everyone knew about Emperor Luo''s desire to kill Ye Futian. He''d expressed his determination at the Tingfeng Banquet. If Emperor Luo didn''t want to go all out, he wouldn''t act personally. However, Emperor Ye still had to be careful. Thus, he posted strong cultivators at the gate to the Ancient Barren World.


    In addition, the war between Cangye and Nandou had intensified to the extreme. Emperor Ye always had his eyes on Emperor Luo.


    Since Ye Xiao was back, Emperor Ye obviously went to meet him. Now, the talents of the Cangye College also entered the palace with Ye Xiao.


    "How was the trip?" Emperor Ye asked, looking at the group.


    "The Ancient Barren World is filled with talents and prides. Now I know how big the world is. The Cangye Kingdom has many talents as well, but they''re nothing there." Ye Xiao sighed. "Father, I must work harder."


    "It''s good that you know it." Emperor Ye nodded. It seemed that he had not received noble fate. Luo Junlin truly was talented to receive it. "What about Futian and Wuchen? Did they not come back?" he asked.


    Hearing the question, Ye Xiao furrowed his brows. He started to speak but then stopped. Seeing his expression, Emperor Ye asked, "Speak straightforwardly."


    "Father, Ye Futian is an outsider, after all. No matter how talented he is, aren''t you leading trouble in?" Ye Xiao asked Emperor Ye. "In the Ancient Barren World, he disrespected me just because of his talent and wouldn''t travel with me. Ye Wuchen is also a pride of the Fenghua Banquet, and they became closer while I became the outsider."


    Emperor Ye''s eyes flashed. He glanced at the others. They all kept quiet as if silently agreeing with Ye Xiao''s words.


    "I see. Go rest now," Emperor Ye said indifferently.


    "Yes." Ye Xiao nodded and retreated.


    "Summon Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi," Emperor Ye said to his guard after Ye Xiao left. After a while, they arrived.


    Emperor Ye saw them and repeated what Ye Xiao had said. Then he asked, "What do you think?"


    "Ye Futian is proud, but he''s not like that. Regardless of whether Brother is a prince, he owes you and wouldn''t do that," Ye Danchen said.


    "I agree. At the Fenghua Banquet, Ye Futian requested to heal his master while Yu Sheng requested to find his master. Later, they all worked hard for this at the Nandou Nation''s Tingfeng Banquet," Ye Lingxi said. "Father, you wouldn''t treat him so well if not for his disposition, right?"


    Emperor Ye''s treatment towards Ye Futian was practically perfect. He''d accepted Hua Jieyu as goddaughter and practically declared war with Emperor Luo because of Ye Futian, leading to a true war, despite Luo Junlin being accepted by a force from the Eastern Barren Territory.


    If Emperor Ye only valued Ye Futian for his talent and he turned out to be heartless, what could he do if the Cangye Kingdom was at risk?


    "So you two think Ye Xiao is lying?" Emperor Ye asked.


    Ye Danchen lowered his head. Ye Lingxi fell silent too. This was a sensitive matter, after all.


    "If that is the case, Ye Xiao must have done something extremely antagonizing to Ye Futian," Emperor Ye said quietly. If not, Ye Xiao had no need to report and offend Ye Futian. Ye Xiao wouldn''t act as the tattletale unless something happened between them.


    In addition, Ye Xiao cultivated at the Cangye College. It was normal for them to be close but if they lied to the crown together��


    At that time, someone outside called, "Your Majesty, Princess Jieyu requests admittance."


    "Let Jieyu in," Emperor Ye said. He looked outside and saw Hua Jieyu walk in.


    Hua Jieyu was as beautiful and elegant as before. Her demeanor had become more extraordinary as well. Emperor Ye knew that Hua Jieyu had been cultivating with the imperial advisor and she''d had many physical changes. She also improved quite a lot.


    "Godfather," Hua Jieyu greeted, bowing.


    "Jieyu, I''ve said that you don''t need to bow like an outsider. Futian isn''t even as polite as you," Emperor Ye said with a smile.


    "Godfather, I heard that the eldest prince has returned," Hua Jieyu said.


    Emperor chuckled. "Are you here for news about Futian?"


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded.


    "Ye Futian didn''t return with Ye Xiao. He must still be in the Ancient Barren World. Ye Xiao isn''t good at cultivation, so he returned early," Emperor Ye said.


    "Godfather, I wish to go to the Ancient Barren World." Hua Jieyu gazed at Emperor Ye with her pretty eyes.


    "No. Even though you''ve improved greatly, you''re still only in the Second-level Dharma Plane."


    "He went before even entering the Dharma Plane," Hua Jieyu said. "Plus, I just can''t enter the Third-level. I wish to test myself in the Ancient Barren World too."


    Emperor Ye looked at Hua Jieyu''s eyes and nodded. "Alright. Danchen and Lingxi will go with you. In addition, I''ll have men protect you. Don''t cause trouble in the Ancient Barren World."


    "Thanks, godfather." Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded. She left soon.


    After knowing that she would enter the Ancient Barren World, Hua Fengliu immediately refused. "Jieyu, Futian is really smart. You shouldn''t be worried."


    "I really am worried," Hua Jieyu said. "It''s been so long, but he won''t come back to see me."


    Seeing Hua Jieyu''s expression, Hua Fengliu suddenly understood. He said, "Jieyu, Futian looks like a playboy, but he won''t do anything. Don''t be worried."


    "I trust him but not other girls," Hua Jieyu muttered. "That boy is so bad. He''s really likable."


    Hua Fengliu couldn''t reply.

 187 Barren City, Mirror Mountain

    Chapter 187: Barren City, Mirror Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Barren City was the heart of the Ancient Barren World. It was also the most majestic ancient city with a very long history. All the top talents from all over the Eastern Barren Territory were grouped in the Barren City. No matter how talented a foreigner was, they didn''t dare go wild here. The slightest mistake could insult a disciple of a top force and then they wouldn''t even know how they died. Thus, the disciples of the top forces were the absolute stars in this glamorous city. The others were just the sidekicks. The disciples of top forces would often fight each other in the city.


    At this time, a group walked down the cobblestone road. They stood out from the crowd. The one in the center was around 17 or 18-years-old. He was extremely handsome with a perpetual smile on his face. The smile was extremely effective on girls.


    On his left was a muscular man. He looked intimidating and was very burly. He seemed to be filled with endless power. On his right was a one-armed youth. He had a sword slung across his back. His eyes were sharp; he was definitely a powerful swordsman-in-training.


    Behind the three were two girls. They were both extremely beautiful, especially the girl on the right. Her silver hair was like snow, and she was as beautiful as a fairy. Her aura was cold. Behind them followed a group of men, seemingly guards.


    Passersby would definitely take a second glance at a group like these, wondering if they were disciples of some top force in the Eastern Barren Territory. The only thing that stood out was the Black Wind Eagle. How could such a powerful group ride such a common demon? It wasn''t good enough. Naturally, this group was Ye Futian and the others.


    Loulan Xue had followed them, as per the Empress'' orders. She didn''t even have her people with her. Ye Futian found it strange but he couldn''t say anything.


    "Did you find out?" Ye Futian asked Lin Yueyao now.


    "Yes." Lin Yueyao nodded while glaring at Ye Futian. After arriving in the Barren City, he''d told her to find out information whenever something happened. It seemed that she''d taken Yun Qianmo''s role as the maid after Yun Qianmo left. It was annoying.


    "Lead the way," Ye Futian said nonchalantly, seeming to not see Lin Yueyao''s resentful eyes. The group climbed onto the Black Wind Eagle. It rode with the wind and traveled through the air.


    There were many demons above the Barren City. They all went to different places and didn''t disturb each other. Lin Yueyao and Loulan Xue''s beauty occasionally attracted some gazes but no one bothered them.


    After some time, they arrived at the heart of the city. The buildings here were even more magnificent. There were more demons too, as well as strong cultivators. Lin Yueyao held a map and pointed towards somewhere. Gradually, an extremely tall mountain appeared in their vision. This mountain stood in the heart of the city but it didn''t seem awkward at all. Instead, there was a sacred aura about it. Many people were heading towards it.


    As the Black Wind Eagle continued, they approached the mountain. They could see a huge stone monument before the mountain. It was very eye-catching with three giant words carved on it: Ancient Barren World. These words were carved in the stone monument. This was where the name of this place came from.


    "We''re here," Ye Futian mumbled to himself.


    The Black Wind Eagle continued to the top of the mountain and landed before the stone monument. There were countless people before the monument more than 100 meters tall. The three words, Ancient Barren World, seemed to have some attractive force, making one stare at it involuntarily. Not far from the monument, there were steps leading up the mountain. Many people were climbing like a pilgrimage.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. Then he followed the many others and climbed the stone steps. He followed the steps to the end where he was even with the stone monument. The mountaintop was very flat as if the peak had been sliced off. It was a hugely vast area filled with activity and people. When Ye Futian and the others stepped onto it, a gust of fate hit their faces.


    Ye Futian gazed around and his heart jumped. Just as he''d found out, Mirror Mountain had everything a cultivator would want. There were many different regions in this vast space. Each region seemed to contain a relic.


    Some people were playing chess. The game was extremely deep as if it contained sophisticated matrices.


    Some people were painting. Their paintings could communicate with the skies and earth.


    Some people were playing instruments, others were transcribing.


    Everyone in each region was cultivating and communicating with the noble intent to build a fate.


    Thud. At that time, there was a huge sound. Ye Futian felt a terrible force. He looked over towards the source and saw a line of drums. Someone was hitting the battle drums powerfully. As the booms sounded without stop, more drums sounded as well. It created an even more terrifying force.


    There was another thunderous boom. Ye Futian looked elsewhere. There was a region of thunder. Other than that, there were some Noble statues on the mountain. They contained terrible intent power. Many people were cultivating before them. People were cultivating and studying in each region of this vast space. They all came from the various top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The mountaintop was a flourishing scene.


    "As expected of the Barren City''s heart," Ye Futian muttered. Cultivators of any type could accomplish something here. He slowly turned his gaze and looked forward. In the distance, there was a side of the mountain that was smooth like a mirror. This was the famous Mirror Mountain Stone Wall of the Barren City. Its mysteries were endless and could even test a cultivator''s talent.


    In addition, the various top forces had all left powerful spells on the wall. When a strong cultivator went there and awakened the wall with their noble intent, the forces would be able to see what happened here.


    Ye Futian didn''t know if Luo Junlin had come but here, he could get rid of the threat Luo Junlin posed.


    "Not only does that stone wall let people of the Eastern Barren Territory see noble fate, it also contains many mysteries," Lin Yueyao said. "It can test talent. Other than noble fate, strange phenomena appear when a cultivator senses the power within. Phantom noble images appear on the wall. The more talented someone is, the more images will appear."


    Lin Yueyao had been the one to get the information after arriving in the Barren City so she was the most knowledgeable about it. She''d been upset about this for a long while. How could Ye Futian order her around like a servant? But when she said those words, she was slightly anticipatory inside. When Luo Junlin had received noble fate, he''d been accepted by the Royal Xuan Temple.


    Now, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen were at least equal to Luo Junlin. Ye Wuchen had already been at the mid-level noble fate during the battle in the Loulan Palace months ago.


    If the trio went to display their talent at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall and was seen by the top forces, she couldn''t even imagine what the Cangye Kingdom would be like then. The three would all be accepted by top forces. That much was indisputable.


    Thinking of how all emperors went to congratulate Luo Junlin when he was accepted by the Royal Xuan Temple, she started anticipating what may happen at the Cangye Kingdom. What would Emperor Luo''s expression be like at that time?


    Emperor Ye of the Cangye Kingdom had done much for Ye Futian. He was even willing to go to war with Emperor Luo. He must be very proud of his foresight.


    Thinking of this, Lin Yueyao''s eyes fell upon Ye Futian. Grinning, she urged, "Won''t you go show off?"


    "You have to be low-key, you know?" Ye Futian replied nonchalantly.


    Lin Yueyao pouted. Since when was this guy low-key?


    "There is so much noble fate on this mountain. We can''t waste it." Ye Futian looked around and smiled brightly. To him, all these relics were giving away noble fate for free.


    Lin Yueyao''s eyes flashed. She was speechless. She didn''t know what level Ye Futian''s noble fate was now but if Ye Wuchen was at mid-level, Ye Futian shouldn''t be any lower. He had received two precious books in the Loulan Relic. He''d also taken the most treasured book in the entire Ancient Loulan. He probably received very powerful fate.


    "Alright, everyone choose the place most suitable for you." Ye Futian smiled, and everyone nodded.


    Ye Wuchen walked towards somewhere. A moment later, he arrived before a sword matrix. The sword matrix was extremely frightening and contained endless sword intent. No one dared to enter brashly. However, there was someone sitting inside quietly. He let the endless sword intent pass through him. He guided the sword into him and cultivated. Shocking sword intent flowed across his body.


    "Apparently," someone beside him said, "All disciples of the Fuyun Sword Clan that enter the Ancient Barren World to train would come here to make the sword test their bodies. No one has ever failed. Li Daoqing is one of the prides of the clan. He obviously won''t fail. Apparently, his brother Li Daoyun is just as accomplished."


    Ye Wuchen''s eyes glinted instantly and looked at the youth inside the sword matrix.

 188 Liu Chenyu

    Chapter 188: Liu Chenyu


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Li Daoyun''s brother?


    Ye Wuchen''s arm had been chopped off by Li Daoyun. He didn''t expect such a coincidence, but he quickly composed himself. He walked quietly into the sword matrix as if he didn''t know the other. In an instant, many sword marks lit up inside the matrix and surged towards him.


    He sat cross-legged. Sword intent wrapped around him. When endless sword intent from the matrix came at him, he didn''t fight back. Instead, he guided it into him. There was faint emperor''s intent about him. The sword intent within him was like the king of swords. It guided the murderous intent into itself and flowed throughout his body.


    The weak would be destroyed by sword intent; the strong could use it. This was the difference.


    Yu Sheng walked before the battle drums. There were nine sides and booms came endlessly. Someone stood before the drums and beat them. The first hit, one side sounded. The second hit, the power could extend from the back and make two sides sound. The third could make three sides sound.


    Each time, a horrible power would reverberate back and become stronger, multiplying. After the third time, it was already very frightening. Yu Sheng watched and saw that most people could only make five sides sound.


    He walked up before the battle drum and pounded with his fist. There was a boom, and the drum shook. However, it didn''t stop. Yu Sheng punched it again, and the booms sounded. A burst of power and reverberations rushed at Yu Sheng, but he seemed not to feel it. He punched a third time.


    The booms were endless. The drums seemed to go wild in an instant. A horrible power exploded with the strength. Hearing the densely packed sounds, many looked over. Ye Futian, who had walked elsewhere, looked over too and rolled his eyes. Couldn''t he be more low-key?


    Who beat drums like this?


    The fourth side sounded. It practically created shockwaves, and many were speechless. Compared to Yu Sheng, the others had been too gentle.


    A burst of aggressive power and strength converged into a horrible storm. It beat crazily on Yu Sheng''s body, but he just roared and punched again. His burly body stood upright like the god of war. The moment of his fifth punch, there seemed to be a storm surrounding him. All the intent power rushed into his body, putting it through a trial.


    There were continuous cracking sounds. A dark golden armor appeared. Endless strength surged inside Yu Sheng''s body. He punched again. It was like thunder, and everyone looked over. Very few people could make such a commotion with the battle drums.


    Lin Yueyao was speechless too. Did he have to do this so soon?


    Boom. Noble fate rose up in Yu Sheng. Now, he seemed to be covered in a demon''s armor. He punched a seventh time. Power rolled in the air domineeringly. Even Yu Sheng''s powerful body was forced back. He grunted, blood coming out of his mouth.


    But he didn''t give up. He stepped forward again like a wild demon. He punched again. This time, the people cultivating in the area were all shocked awake. Their eardrums vibrated. As for Yu Sheng, his body cracked. The power seemed to want to destroy him. He opened his mouth and roared. Veins bulged all over him. A terrible power poured into him.


    Yu Sheng was forced back, and he spat out fresh blood. However, his fate was changing as if there was a storm of fate. Gradually, it became purer and more terrifying.


    The drum was still going, unable to stop reverberating. There was another boom. Yu Sheng actually continued forward. Before the drum stopped, he beat it for the ninth time.


    With this boom, the drum shook nine times, and the nine sides resonated at once. Many people shook inwardly. Then, a burst of destructive power rushed into Yu Sheng''s body. There was no suspense. Yu Sheng flew out, and his dark gold armor cracked. Blood flowed from his lips, and he crashed onto the ground.


    He didn''t seem to feel anything. He quickly climbed up and sat there, cultivating.


    "This idiot," Ye Futian muttered. He understood Yu Sheng''s intent, of course. Yu Sheng had seen the immense power in the battle drums. To quickly create mid-level noble fate, he forced himself forward. He used the drum''s intent to challenge his body, even willing to destroy it.


    How crazy, many people thought. Ye Futian didn''t cultivate. He walked to Yu Sheng to help him.


    Many people looked over. Some even walked over and studied Yu Sheng curiously.


    After a long while, Yu Sheng finished cultivating. Opening his eyes, he saw Ye Futian and grinned. Ye Futian glared at him.


    At this time, Ye Wuchen also walked over. He asked Yu Sheng, "How are you?"


    "Same as you now," Yu Sheng said, laughing. The intent within the drum was very pure. He used this power to challenge his body and fate. Now, he''d comprehended pure noble intent and power. It was mid-level noble fate.


    With his natural talent in strength, he''d used the drum''s strength and was successful within a short period.


    Now, Lin Yueyao walked over. She gazed at Ye Wuchen with a strange look as if she was stopping herself from speaking.


    "What''s wrong?" Ye Futian asked, seeing Lin Yueyao''s expression.


    "I heard people discuss that Li Daoyun''s brother is here," Lin Yueyao said quietly. Ye Futian''s eyes flashed and stared at her.


    "I know." Ye Wuchen nodded calmly.


    "You know?" Ye Futian looked at him.


    "Yes, I cultivated with him in the sword matrix," Ye Wuchen said calmly. "I''m not in a hurry for some things. Plus, the one who took my arm is Li Daoyun."


    "You are a man of principle." Ye Futian looked at him and then looked around. He found where Li Daoqing was. He''d naturally saw who Ye Wuchen had cultivated with earlier.


    "I''m going to see what''s in the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall," Ye Wuchen said. He started walking towards the Stone Wall. Ye Futian and the others followed. He was curious how the Stone Wall would test talent.


    Arriving at the Stone Wall, Ye Wuchen sat down cross-legged. His noble intent rushed directly onto the wall. Instantly, the wall flashed brilliantly. A powerful aura enveloped him. The Stone Wall seemed to turn illusory. It was like a mirror that emanated with a strange aura.


    Ye Wuchen closed his eyes. Ye Futian could see sword intent bloom crazily from him. His noble fate was released to the extreme too as if he was fighting. Soon, a noble figure appeared on the Stone Wall, like a picture printed on it.


    After this appeared, Ye Wuchen''s aura grew even more terrifying. He was sitting there but sword aura went crazy around him. After a while, a huge battle seemed to have ended. A second noble figure appeared on the Stone Wall.


    "So powerful," many people had to say. It was very difficult to make two figures appear. The requirements for that to happen were very strict.


    Many people walked over and looked at Ye Wuchen. Who was this group? Earlier, Yu Sheng had pounded the drums. Now, Ye Wuchen was testing his talent at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. He had mid-level noble fate and could make two figures appear.


    Ye Wuchen was still persevering. Sword intent rose up around him terrifyingly. After a while, he grunted. The sword intent flowing through him disappeared, and he opened his eyes. The Mirror Mountain Stone Wall returned to normal.


    No one mocked him. Instead, they were impressed. His talent was definitely powerful if he could receive mid-level noble fate and make two figures appear on the Stone Wall at only the Fifth-level Dharma Plane.


    "Are you from the Fuyun Sword Clan?" someone came up and asked. The speaker was a girl with average features. She looked at Ye Wuchen curiously.


    "No," he replied nonchalantly.


    "Someone with such powerful sword intent isn''t from the Fuyun Sword Clan? Then what clan are you from?" the girl asked.


    "Why?" Ye Wuchen looked at her.


    "If you haven''t joined a powerful clan, our princess would like to invite you to join the Liu Kingdom," the girl said. Then she looked back at someone.


    A beautiful figure in a long green dress stood there. Her temperament was extraordinary, and she was beautiful. There was something elegant about her.


    Liu Chenyu, princess of the Liu Kingdom. Everyone''s hearts shuddered. It was also their first time seeing Liu Chenyu in person. They didn''t know this beautiful person was the princess of the Liu Kingdom.


    She nodded lightly at Ye Wuchen. Other than being a place for top talents to cultivate, the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall was also a place for those without clans to display their talent. Many of the Eastern Barren Territory would come here after receiving noble fate.


    That was why Liu Chenyu invited him. Ye Wuchen''s talent was uncommon, and he already had mid-level noble fate.


    Ye Futian''s eyes brightened. He didn''t expect that they would get an invitation without even leaving the Ancient Barren World.


    Ye Wuchen seemed to be considering whether he should make the decision beforehand.


    "We''ll consider it," Ye Futian said. They weren''t in a hurry. They could decide after becoming familiar with the entire Eastern Barren Territory.


    Liu Chenyu nodded lightly and didn''t say anything. At that time, Li Daoqing walked over to Liu Chenyu. He said, "I am Li Daoqing of the Fuyun Sword Clan. Let me greet the princess in place of my brother."


    Many saw this and were shocked. It was rumored that Li Daoyun of the Fuyun Sword Clan was pursuing Liu Chenyu. Now it seemed to be true. Becoming the princess''s groom would be hard!

 189 Slave?

    Chapter 189: Slave?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing Li Daoqing walk up, Ye Futian made a face. What was the relationship between the Fuyun Sword Clan and the Liu Kingdom? And Li Daoqing was greeting her on behalf of his brother. Did Li Daoyun know the Liu princess?


    Ye Futian walked to Ye Wuchen''s side and muttered, "Wuchen, we''re not familiar with the forces of the Eastern Barren Territory. That''s why I rejected her proposal." With Ye Wuchen''s abilities, there was no need to worry about getting accepted.


    "No need to explain," Ye Wuchen whispered. He knew that Ye Futian was explaining why he acted for him.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly. He walked up to the girl who invited Ye Wuchen. She must be the Liu princess'' servant. "Does your princess know Li Daoyun of the Fuyun Sword Clan?" he asked.


    "You haven''t heard?" The servant looked Ye Futian, slightly shocked.


    "Heard what?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Our princess has many pursuers. Li Daoyun is one of them." The servant was a bit proud. This news wasn''t any secret. Li Daoyun publicly pursued her princess.


    "Your princess didn''t accept him?" Ye Futian continued asking.


    The servant studied him. "You have too many questions."


    "The princess is such an extraordinary figure. I naturally grew curious." Ye Futian smiled brightly. His handsome face looked better with a smile.


    Seeing this handsome face, the servant murmured, "Li Daoyun is talented but he''s not undefeated in the Fuyun Sword Clan. He is not number one there. My princess is so precious. She can''t accept so easily."


    "Is the Fuyun Sword Clan or the Liu Kingdom more powerful?" Ye Futian continued. Seeing the servant''s weird expression, he chuckled awkwardly. "We''re not from here and look up to the forces of the Ancient Barren World. Can you tell me?"


    "They''re both top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory," the servant said.


    "Oh?" Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He glanced at Liu Chenyu, princess of the Liu Kingdom, and smiled. "I didn''t know how powerful the Liu Kingdom was but now I''ve thought about it. Can you ask your princess if we can cultivate with you all? If we''re suitable, we can join the Liu Kingdom."


    "We didn''t invite you." The servant pursed her lips and looked to Ye Wuchen. "Who is he to you?"


    "He''s my young master. He''s really talented," Ye Futian said.


    "He is indeed talented if he can possess mid-level noble fate. I will report to my princess," the servant said.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Thank you." With that, he returned to Ye Wuchen''s side. Smiling, he said, "I sacrificed myself for you." Thankfully he was handsome. Otherwise, he wouldn''t be able to use a beauty trap to get information.


    Ye Wuchen looked at him strangely. "What did you two talk about?"


    "I helped you accept the Liu princess but just to follow her temporarily," Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    "What are you planning?" Ye Wuchen didn''t understand.


    "Do you find the princess pretty?" Ye Futian asked. Ye Wuchen nodded seriously. "Yeah, the more you look at her, the prettier she gets. It helps with your eyes to have a beauty beside you. If you interact with her more, you may develop feelings," Ye Futian said meaningfully. Beside them, Loulan Xue blinked her silver eyes. Wasn''t this what the empress had told them?


    Lin Yueyao pursed her lips. If feelings could be developed, why was she still treated like a servant? Was she not pretty? But what did that guy mean? Did he want to take action on the Liu Kingdom''s princess?


    Yu Sheng gaped at Ye Futian. Without Hua Jieyu here, Ye Futian was going wild.


    At this time, Liu Chenyu received her servant''s report. She looked over at Ye Wuchen and walked over. Her body was sexy, delicate, and also elegant. When she reached Ye Wuchen, she said, "Liu Chenyu."


    Looking at the girl, Ye Wuchen couldn''t act impolitely. He said, "Ye Wuchen."


    "Who are they?" Liu Chenyu glanced at the others.


    "We''re his servant and guard," Ye Futian said. Then he looked at Lin Yueyao and Loulan Xue. "And maids."


    Lin Yueyao glared at Ye Futian. When did she really become a maid? However, Ye Futian had also become a servant this time.


    "In that case, you can all cultivate with me in the Ancient Barren World from now on," Liu Chenyu said. "You are talented but seem to be in a low plane. I can aid you if you follow me. If you wish to join the Liu Kingdom someday, you can tell me." With Ye Wuchen''s talent, it would be great if he was willing to join the Liu Kingdom.


    Ye Wuchen felt that he''d been tricked badly by Ye Futian. Looking at Liu Chenyu''s eyes, he could only nod.


    "Congratulations, Your Highness, for receiving more subordinates," Li Daoqing, who hadn''t left, said now. He was congratulating her but actually, he was insulting Ye Futian''s group as if they were only subordinates. In reality, Liu Chenyu hadn''t said anything like that. But to Li Daoqing, his brother was pursuing Liu Chenyu. If she brought Ye Wuchen''s group with, they would definitely be subordinates. What else could they be?


    Ye Futian studied Li Daoqing. He was indeed similar to Li Daoyun.


    Seeing that Liu Chenyu still wouldn''t talk, Li Daoqing glanced at the others and said, "From now on, you must serve the princess wholeheartedly. If you have any needs, you may come to my brother or I as well."


    Liu Chenyu frowned. Li Daoqing''s words were exceeding his authority. Regardless of how she''d sent the invitation because she saw Ye Wuchen''s talent, even if they were her subordinates, Li Daoqing didn''t qualify to order them around. It was as if she and Li Daoyun had some close relationship.


    Ye Futian looked intrigued at Li Daoqing''s words. He was looking for an excuse and now it was given to him. Li Daoyun wanted to pursue Liu Chenyu? If that was the case, he''d like to see how Li Daoyun did it.


    "Princess, who is he?" Ye Futian asked, despite knowing the answer already.


    "Li Daoqing of the Fuyun Sword Clan," Liu Chenyu said.


    "Princess, this man''s words have other meanings and destroy your reputation. It''s as if you''re already theirs," Ye Futian said. "Would you like us to teach him a lesson for speaking so impolitely?"


    Hearing that, Li Daoqing stared at Ye Futian. His words indeed could have another meaning and might not have been that proper. But it was just a slip. He didn''t mean to be impolite but after Ye Futian said that��


    "Shut up. I am speaking with the princess. There''s no place for a slave like you," Li Daoqing growled. His eyes were sharp. He had heard Ye Futian say he was Ye Wuchen''s guard. How could a guard be so brash as to ruin the relationship between him and the princess?


    "Li Daoqing, you are presumptuous," Liu Chenyu said coldly.


    "Your Highness, that slave doesn''t know his place. He dares to instigate us. I don''t mean any offense to you, Your Highness," Li Daoqing said.


    Liu Chenyu scoffed. His words truly were easy to be misunderstood. There was no problem in saying he was impolite.


    "Princess, you heard it too. We can''t bear this tone," Ye Futian said.


    Liu Chenyu looked at him and said, "Li Daoqing is in the Fifth-level Dharma Plane." He was from the Fuyun Sword Clan, was at the Fifth-level Dharma Plane, and had noble fate. He was definitely a powerful fighter. Ye Futian was only Ye Wuchen''s servant. How could he fight Li Daoqing? Unless Ye Wuchen fought��


    "Only the Fifth-level Dharma Plane," Ye Futian said confidently. Liu Chenyu studied his expression. Did he really think he could defeat Li Daoqing at that young age?


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian called just as Liu Chenyu thought he would fight personally. "Take revenge for the princess."


    "Okay." Yu Sheng stepped forward and took off his battle ax. He walked up.


    Li Daoqing flashed and shot into the air. Sword intent snaked all around him as he stared coldly at Yu Sheng and Ye Futian. Did they dare look down on him?


    The terrifying sword intent flowed, rushing towards Yu Sheng. The next moment, Yu Sheng stepped forward. There was a thud and he shot into the sky. His aggressive body flew at Li Daoqing with terrifying speed.


    "You''re looking to die!" Li Daoqing pointed in the air. Endless sword intent instantly swept towards Yu Sheng. It flowed, destroying everything.


    However, Yu Sheng hacked down with his battle ax. It seemed to cut the void apart. No matter how powerful the sword intent or swordsmanship was, it was all cut apart. The sword intent flowed wildly to the side, forcefully halved. Yu Sheng descended before Li Daoqing and there was no more suspense. Under Li Daoqing''s shocked gaze, Yu Sheng didn''t bring his ax down. Instead, he swept to the side. There was a crack and then a huge boom.


    Li Daoqing had been smashed to the ground with just one strike. Yu Sheng hadn''t used all of his power either. Otherwise, he could kill Li Daoqing easily.


    Just as Li Daoqing tried to get up, there was another muffled thud. He was on the ground again. Yu Sheng had him under his feet.


    Slave? Li Daoqing''s so-called "slave" was stepping on him. The surrounding people all stared at this scene in shock. Li Daoqing was from the Fuyun Sword Clan; he was Li Daoyun''s brother. How could he be treated like this? The rivalry had been set and the princess was involved as well. She most likely could not escape from it.


    Ye Futian watched this calmly. He didn''t pity Li Daoqing at all. This was just collecting some interest from what Li Daoyun owed. Li Daoqing had come up by himself too!

 190 I Am the Least Competen

    Chapter 190: I Am the Least Competent


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Li Daoqing was shocked. He felt pain all over his body but what he couldn''t bear was the humiliation. The Fuyun Sword Clan was respected by all. They enjoyed keeping to themselves and acting as they wished without any concerns. However, he was humiliated at this moment. The ax was a powerful ritual implement. How could Yu Sheng defeat him relying on the ritual implement?


    Liu Chenyu was shocked too. Yu Sheng fought too violently with Li Daoqing and was rude to Li Daoyun as well.


    "Princess, how could this kind of clown dare harass you? From now on, we will deal with them." Ye Futian took the credit immediately as if he was taking revenge for Liu Chenyu.


    Liu Chenyu glanced at Ye Futian with a strange look.


    "You will die very miserably." Li Daoqing stared at Ye Futian from the ground.


    "Haven''t figured out the situation?" Ye Futian looked at him strangely.


    "Kill me if you have the guts." Li Daoqing''s eyes were very fierce.


    Ye Futian didn''t respond. Yu Sheng grabbed Li Daoqing''s arm and yanked him up. He swung his strong arm and with a bang, Li Daoqing was smashed onto the ground, vomiting blood.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Continuous explosions sounded. Everyone was stunned by the sight of the scene. In Yu Sheng''s hands, Li Daoqing was smashed to the ground again and again. Every smash shook the spectators'' hearts. When Yu Sheng stopped, Li Daoqing was already numb but his eyes were still staring at Yu Sheng coldly with strong murderous intent. He climbed up with difficulty, his body trembling. For him, Yu Sheng''s group was dead meat already.


    "Go back and complain." Li Daoqing had stood up but Yu Sheng sent him flying out with a kick. Li Daoqing''s face turned livid and everyone was terrified. Yu Sheng''s kick and words were definitely a great humiliation to Li Daoqing.


    Go back and complain. What a disgrace!


    Li Daoqing once again climbed up. He dragged his injured body away pathetically.


    "Do you know the background of Fuyun Sword Clan?" Liu Chenyu asked Ye Futian beside her.


    "Yes," Ye Futian said. Sooner or later, they would offend the clan. Of course, they would not really kill Li Daoqing at this moment. Yu Sheng knew his limits. Fighting was quite a normal thing. Even the humiliation was not worthy for the entire clan to act. But if they really killed Li Daoqing, the Fuyun Sword Clan would definitely take action.


    Why did Ye Futian come to the Ancient Barren World? It was to remove the threat posed by Luo Junlin which mainly came from Royal Xuan Temple. They didn''t have the confidence to kill Li Daoqing yet. The reason why they came to the Barren City Mirror Hills Stone Wall was to prepare for this.


    "Li Daoqing''s senior brother, Li Daoyun, is the top talent of Fuyun Sword Clan with great achievement in Dharma. He is very strong," said Liu Chenyu.


    "Well, it seems that I have to enhance my ability too." Ye Futian laughed and said, "Your Highness, you can have a talk with my young master now." Saying so, Ye Futian left.


    In the Ancient Barren World, one could borrow the power of many relics. There should be no problem with so many relics here. Moreover, this vast area was enough for them to practice for a long time. Seeing Ye Futian leave, Liu Chenyu walked to Ye Wuchen and said with a smile, "Servant, bodyguard, and maid?"


    His servant didn''t look like a servant; his bodyguard was not like a bodyguard; his maids were even less like maids.


    Their appearances could easily be compared with her. Who would believe they were maids?


    "That guy likes to monkey around. Don''t be bothered, Your Highness," Ye Wuchen said.


    "So my guess is correct?" Liu Chenyu looked into his eyes.


    "We are all brothers."


    "What about them?" Liu Chenyu looked at Lou Lanxue and Lin Yueyao. Where were those two beautiful women from?


    "You''ll have to ask him." Ye Wuchen looked at Ye Futian.


    Liu Chenyu''s face changed. She immediately smiled and said, "Your brother is really naughty."


    "Naughty?" Ye Wuchen murmured and then nodded. He indeed was naughty.


    "So which clan do you all belong to?" Liu Chenyu gazed at Ye Wuchen. Since they dared to fight with Li Daoqing and were really gifted, they might be top talents from some top power that kept a low profile so she didn''t know them.


    The answer was quite important. The reason she admired Ye Wuchen''s ability was his noble fate and talent. If Ye Wuchen really wanted to join the top cultivation, she would like to accept him.


    Meeting Liu Chenyu''s eyes, Ye Wuchen said, "We have nothing to hide about this. We do come from small powers, which is why we came here. We want to join top powers."


    Hearing this, Liu Chenyu''s expression changed a little.


    "However, there is one thing I want to tell you, princess. Actually, there are some grudges between Li Daoqing and I. My arm was chopped off by his brother, Li Daoyun," Ye Wuchen said in a quite calm tone as if he was talking about something very normal.


    If Ye Futian heard what Ye Wuchen had said, he would complain that Ye Wuchen was too honest but swordsmen were probably all like this. No matter from the aspect of talent or personality, Ye Wuchen was very suitable for swordsman''s training.


    Liu Chenyu''s beautiful eyes flashed for the first time. She looked at Ye Wuchen with surprise.


    "A few months ago, the four top powers in the Eastern Barren Territory went to Loulan City. Li Daoyun was among them. You all come from Loulan City?" Liu Chenyu knew of this event.


    "No, we come from a farther place but we were also trained in the ancient ruins of Loulan," Ye Wuchen responded.


    "Li Daoyun''s group of four went there for a bet with the relic of Loulan as their battlefield but it ended in a draw. I heard that Li Daoyun was quite unsatisfied by the result. The relic treasure was found by someone else. Was it your group?"


    "Yes." Ye Wuchen nodded.


    Li Daoyun was at the peak of the Dharma Rank and also had a ritual implement but he only chopped down one of Ye Wuchen''s arms. He didn''t kill Ye Wuchen or even take the ritual implement.


    Now, these guys even came to the Barren City and beat up Li Daoqing when they met. They were really bold.


    "So, it actually had nothing to do with Your Highness." Ye Wuchen was very frank.


    Liu Chenyu observed Ye Wuchen. He and the swordsman from the Fuyun Sword Clan gave her different feelings.


    "That guy said he would consider it and then agreed. Now I see it is because of Li Daoqing." Liu Chenyu smiled and said, "So you actually haven''t decided which power you want to join?"


    "We know little about the situation of Eastern Barren Territory," Ye Wuchen answered.


    "Then my country, the Liu Kingdom, would like to join the competition." Liu Chenyu smiled, showing her breathtaking charm. "Moreover, it seems that I have some advantages now."


    In the distance, Ye Futian looked back and happened to catch Liu Chenyu''s smile. Chenyu meant the charm of a great beauty and she lived up to her name. Ye Futian looked at Ye Wuchen, smiling. He didn''t expect that Ye Wuchen was a flirting master. He had been underestimating Ye Wuchen.


    Recomposing himself, Ye Futian looked at those statues before him. Using others'' power was unreliable. Only by enhancing himself could he become strong enough to handle all. He believed that this relic was his battlefield. He had ensured himself about that many times in the Ancient Barren World.


    Many people were gathered here. Every statue here was special. The statue Ye Futian was observing at this moment was like the god of flame, emanating a flaming red breath from which a surging powerful intent could be felt. The statue beside it was the opposite. It contained a very strong icy aura and approaching it would make one feel cold. In addition, there were statues of other attributes. Among them was a statue which was cast with swords, emanating a sharp aura.


    Everyone in this area was powerful. They looked at Ye Futian with interest. Does this man want to perceive those statues? Few people could actually do that.


    Liu Chenyu noticed Ye Futian too. She said to Ye Wuchen, "Those statues are dangerous, shall we warn him about that?"


    "How dangerous?" Ye Wuchen asked curiously.


    "People without noble fate may not view them or the consequence might be miserable." Liu Chenyu looked at Ye Wuchen.


    "That''s alright." Ye Wuchen was quite calm. Liu Chenyu was amazed. Could it be that the "servant" had noble fate too?


    "Actually, of us three, I am the least competent from every aspect of us three," Ye Wuchen said to Liu Chenyu.


    Liu Chenyu was silent for a moment.


    Ye Wuchen was able to receive the noble fate at just the Fifth Level Dharma Plane. There were two noble statues at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    According to Ye Wuchen, he was the least competent among the three. Then what was the talent of that "servant" and so-called bodyguard?


    "I have seen many swordsmen in training from Fuyun Sword Clan. They are all very arrogant. It''s rare to meet such a humble swordsman like you." Liu Chenyu laughed.


    "I am not being humble." Ye Wuchen shook his head. He looked into her eyes and said seriously, "It''s not just me. I haven''t encountered many top talents of the Eastern Barren Territory yet but I believe few of them could be compared with my friends."


    Hearing Ye Wuchen''s serious tone, Liu Chenyu gazed into his eyes.


    Even the top talents of Eastern Barren Territory couldn''t be compared with Ye Futian and Yu Sheng? Ye Wuchen was somewhat too overconfident and arrogant. However, though their conversation, she believed that Ye Wuchen was not arrogant at all. So how could he say those words? Was he that confident in Ye Futian and Yu Sheng?


    "Li Daoyun from the Fuyun Sword Clan can''t actually be counted as the top talent of Eastern Barren Territory," said Liu Chenyun. Ye Wuchen had fought with Li Daoyun once.


    "I know. Otherwise, he wouldn''t have been hurt by me," Ye Wuchen said calmly. "Li Daoyun doesn''t deserve to be compared with them from the aspect of talent."


    The figure in the distance stirred Liu Chenyu''s heart for the first time.


    Was he really as gifted as Ye Wuchen described?

 191 There Is Wind

    Chapter 191: There Is Wind


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Liu Chenyu''s pretty eyes flashed. She could tell his nature from their conversation. He wasn''t a braggart. Since he had complimented Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s talent, it was clear that they were extraordinary. However, Ye Wuchen said that the prides of the Eastern Barren Territory couldn''t compare with them. Liu Chenyu still didn''t believe that.


    After all, she was one of those people. It wasn''t that she was confident. She was just more familiar with the top forces than Ye Wuchen. He hadn''t seen them before so he might underestimate them. However, she was now curious about how strong Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were.


    "I''ll wait and see," Liu Chenyu smiled. She was a bit excited. Ye Wuchen knew that Liu Chenyu didn''t believe him but he told her because she left a good impression. She didn''t seem upset after knowing the truth. Instead, she had even joined the competition. This made him think well of her.


    Whether they joined the Liu Kingdom or not, Liu Chenyu could still be their friend. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, on the other hand, all wished to take revenge for his lost arm and kill Li Daoyun. It was highly likely they would become enemies with the Fuyun Sword Clan. Today, Li Daoqing had been angered. Under these circumstances, it would be great to receive Liu Chenyu''s help. Of course, he didn''t want to take advantage of her. He just told the truth.


    "He''s starting." Liu Chenyu looked to Ye Futian and continued, "Pretend we never talked. I''d like to see how long he can keep pretending."


    Servant? She wanted to see how this handsome young servant would perform in this area.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was staring at the huge flame statue before him. When his mind entered the statue, the flames instantly swallowed him up. It was even burning at his spiritual intent. It was terrible.


    Sensing something wrong, Ye Futian''s noble intent rushed wildly into the statue. His intent transformed into a phantom, fending off the incoming flames.


    This was a world of fire. The figure formed by his intent stood in the fire. Both the ground and the sky was fiery-red. Endless waves of fire hit him, trying to burn his intent to ashes.


    If Ye Futian''s body wasn''t formed by noble intent, he would probably be wiped out instantly and get swallowed. The intent contained by the flame statue was so terrifying. No wonder the people cultivating around here looked so powerful.


    Now, a red maple leaf seemed to appear in the sea of fire. It seemed to be burning with extreme fire, formed by the flame intent. The maple leaf floated towards Ye Futian and fell upon the body created by his intent.


    At that moment, Ye Futian clearly felt an extremely terrifying burning sensation. A maple leaf imprint appeared on his body. The mark contained extremely bright firelight and burned with a golden glow that spread to the rest of his body.


    Ye Futian fought with the flame intent but he quickly discovered that in this world of endless flames, countless maple leaves fluttered in the air. They kept appearing, quickly covering the sky and sweeping towards him. Soon, his body was covered in maple leaf marks, burning at him. He actually felt pain.


    At this time, maple leaf imprints seemed to appear on his body in the outside world. It was frightening. Is this a spell? Ye Futian thought. A burst of icy intent bloomed on his body, covering him with a layer of frost. The maple imprints were also covered.


    Inside the statue, Ye Futian''s body changed as well. Fire and ice mixed and the two different intents complemented each other, stopping the other from swallowing him. After that, he began quietly studying the intent in this world of fire. A long time later, he started fighting back against the statue''s intent. Instead of defending passively, he was attacking.


    A stream of fire flowed towards Ye Futian from the statue. It transformed into endless threads of fire that was about to wrap around him. Many people looked over at Ye Futian in shock.


    How did he do this? What step would he get to?


    The statue and his body''s intent combined and became one. Only the top geniuses that specialized in the flame intent could become enlightened inside the statue. However, Ye Futian''s aura was clearly at the top of the Second-level Dharma Plane. He was still a step away from the Third-level.


    At that time, the flame current turned around and returned to the statue, disappearing from Ye Futian''s body.


    "Did he fail?" Everyone looked to Ye Futian. It was normal to fail at the Second-level Dharma Plane.


    At that time, Ye Futian opened his eyes. The aura slowly faded and a bright smile appeared in his eyes. It was just as how he''d guessed.


    "He''s unharmed." Many people were shocked at Ye Futian. Someone of such a low plane had studied the statue for so long but was unharmed. Ye Futian''s talent must be extraordinary.


    Liu Chenyu had been studying him. Seeing Ye Futian open his eyes, she said to Ye Wuchen, "He indeed is very powerful. It seems that he has noble intent already. It''s mid-level noble fate as well."


    Otherwise, he wouldn''t be able to handle it. But even so, it wasn''t to the extent that Ye Wuchen had said. Ye Futian had failed to become one with the statue. Perhaps he could do it after he reached the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian called. Then he gazed at Ye Wuchen who was beside Liu Chenyu and said, "Young Master."


    Ye Wuchen felt awkward. Liu Chenyu already knew but Ye Futian was still calling him that.


    "Continue." Liu Chenyu seemed to smile at Ye Futian. She wanted to know how much longer he could keep up the act.


    Seeing Liu Chenyu''s smile, Ye Futian thought something was wrong. What expression was that? However, Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng arrived beside him.


    "This statue is strange. You can try communicating with it," Ye Futian said to them.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen nodded. Since Ye Futian said that, he must have discovered something.


    The two walked to the statue best for them and sat down to sense with their eyes closed. Ye Futian moved. Instead of staying to cultivate before the flame statue, he went to another powerful statue. He sat down and continued studying that one. Loulan Xue also walked over and found an ice statue. Lin Yueyao tried too. She was almost wiped out but thankfully, she reacted quickly.


    "Princess, you seem interested in them." Liu Chenyu''s servant was curious. The princess rarely became so close to men.


    "Half a year ago, someone who said he was from the Hundred Lands received the noble fate and was accepted by the Royal Xuan Temple. Later, the Ancient Barren World opened. Apparently many people from the place no one cares about came here," Liu Chenyu said.


    "Do you think they''re from there?"


    Liu Chenyu didn''t reply. Even if she didn''t think Ye Futian was as impressive as Ye Wuchen said, he was still at the level of the prides of some top forces. If he really did come from the Hundred Lands, then he was honestly shocking.


    At that time, many people looked at the stairs. A group of people had arrived. The leader was a girl dressed in a long white dress. She was so beautiful, her steps were so light, and her figure was so wonderful that she looked like a fairy. She had many followers behind her, both men and women.


    Seeing her appearance, someone exclaimed, "It''s the Witch, Gu Biyue."


    "It''s her?" Hearing the words "the Witch," many people looked over. They were all shocked by the newcomer. She seemed to radiate a magnetic force as she walked, making everyone fall for her.


    She was Gu Biyue from the Witch Mountain. The names Chenyu and Biyue both came from poetry about beauties so many people would compare her with Liu Chenyu. They were both extremely beautiful girls.


    Gu Biyue smiled brilliantly, making many people fall for her without even trying. She walked to Liu Chenyu. "I heard that you got some subordinates that hurt Li Daoyun''s brother?"


    Something flashed past Liu Chenyu''s eyes. Did news really spread that fast? This meant that the Fuyun Sword Clan would get here soon too.


    "What is it to you?"


    "I just pity Li Daoyun. He''s been pursuing you for this long but was rejected in such a cruel way," Gu Biyue said delicately.


    "Does that mean I have a bigger chance?" someone else said. Another group arrived on the steps. The man in the front wore a golden robe. He was very elegant.


    It''s the Ji Family. Everyone''s eyes flashed again. The Ji Family was a top noble family and had been passed down many generations in the Eastern Barren Territory. They weren''t just a simple family anymore. Many other clans were subordinate to them. They controlled a portion of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Ji Zimo, are you pursuing the princess now?" the Witch teased.


    "If I can marry either of you two, it''ll be great. Of course, if you both are willing, it''ll be perfect." Ji Zimo smiled at the beauties.


    "I don''t think you can take it." The Witch''s pretty eyes rolled and her gentle voice was disarming.


    "I need to try to know," Ji Zimo chuckled.


    "The star is here." The Witch looked behind him.


    There were several glowing figures there with swords on their backs. It was the Fuyun Sword Clan! Li Daoqing was amongst them!

 192 The Body of the Sword

    Chapter 192: The Body of the Sword


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Li Daoqing''s group arrived. The eyes of the people at the top of the mountain were all fixed on them. The two beside Li Daoqing were all from the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    "Mu Yunhe, Xiao Teng." Ji Zimo smiled when he saw the two. Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng were all extraordinary cultivators of the Fuyun Sword Clan. Mu Yunhe especially was at the Eighth Level Dharma Plane. He had the noble fate in swordsmanship.


    The three took a look around and then noticed Liu Chenyu. They walked to her. Mu Yunhe called, "Princess Chenyu!"


    Li Daoyun was pursuing Liu Chenyu. They didn''t want the relationship to become too awkward since Liu Chenyu wasn''t the one that hurt Li Daoqing. It was one of her subordinates. In this case, Liu Chenyu had nothing to do with Li Daoqing''s being defeated.


    Liu Chenyu looked at Mu Yunhe''s trio without emotions. "What''s the matter?"


    "Don''t you know?" the witch Gu Biyue said with a smile. It seemed that Liu Chenyu wanted to protect her subordinates.


    "I''ve heard that Daoqing made rude remarks about the princess and caused some misunderstandings. I''m here to apologize," Mu Yunhe said. Liu Chenyu looked at the man before her. Mu Yunhe was indeed Mu Yunhe��very considerate.


    "No need to apologize. He has been taught a lesson," Liu Chenyu said indifferently. The spectators were amazed. Liu Chenyu took Yu Sheng''s cruel beating Li Daoqing as a lesson for his rudeness to her. This meant that she would take responsibility for it. In this case, people were quite curious about how Mu Yunhe would react. Would he turn against Liu Chenyu? If so, that would be very interesting.


    "He deserved it." Mu Yunhe nodded. The people were shocked but Mu Yunhe continued, "However, Daoqing is quite reluctant to accept being defeated with a ritual implement. This time, he comes for a fair fight. It has nothing to do with Your Highness. He just wants to save the dignity of the Fuyun Sword Clan. I hope you won''t take any offense."


    Liu Chenyu gazed deeply at Mu Yunhe and responded coldly, "Li Daoqing is at the Fifth Level Dharma Plane while the one that defeated him is at the Second Level Dharma Plane. Where is the fairness?"


    "Level is a part of one''s strength. Since you think so highly of that man, there must be something special about him. If you think it''s unfair, Daoqing will suppress his ability while fighting," Mu Yunhe said calmly.


    Liu Chenyu stared at Mu Yunhe while he continued, "The men of the Fuyun Sword Clan could be defeated, but not in this way. If Daoqing is defeated again but in a fairer way, we''ll let it go."


    Mu Yunhe spoke calmly but he still sounded aggressive, despite speaking to the princess of the Liu Kingdom. It was not only about Li Daoqing who was humiliated in public, but also about the reputation of the Fuyun Sword Clan. If Liu Chenu stuck to what she had said before, Mu Yunhe couldn''t blame her. However, the clan would not just let it go this way.


    Liu Chenyu could tell Mu Yunhe''s resolution from his words. She walked toward Ye Futian''s group. Everyone followed her. Gu Biyue grew curious. Did Liu Chenyu really plan to have her people fight with Li Daoqing again?


    Many eyes followed Liu Chenyu. People came up to the top of the hill constantly from the stairs. They were all not nearby and hearing that Li Daoqing was beaten up by Liu Chenyu''s subordinate, they all gathered to watch the show.


    At this time, Ye Futian''s group was cultivating quietly. Appearing to notice something, they opened their eyes to see everyone looking over. Then they saw Li Daoqing and Liu Chenyu''s group and immediately figured out what was happening.


    Ye Futian''s group gathered together. Liu Chenyu told them what had just happened and said, "If you don''t want to fight, just ignore them."


    Hearing this, Ye Futian grew interested. Did they want to fight without using any ritual implements? Someone was beaten up but wanted to talk about fairness?


    Li Daoyun intended to kill them with his peak achievement in Dharma and he chopped off one of Ye Wuchen''s arms. Was this fair too? If the one who was defeated was not Li Daoqing but Yu Sheng, the clan would say nothing about it. But the fact was contrary and now they wanted a fair fight?


    "So you really went back to complain." Yu Sheng glanced at Li Daoqing.


    "Do you want to die?" Li Daoqing''s face was livid. He had been beaten violently by Yu Sheng. At this moment, he just felt pain all over his body. If not for the special recovery methods, he would not be able to fight at this moment.


    "What a ridiculous fairness!" Yu Sheng stepped forward.


    "Since he wants fairness, I''ll fight again." Ye Wuchen said calmly. He was at the same level as Li Daoqing��the Fifth Level Dharma Plane. If Li Daoqing wanted to talk about fairness, Ye Wuchen would like to fight with him.


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Wuchen and said, "Okay."


    Ye Wuchen''s arm had been damaged by Li Daoqing''s senior brother, Li Daoyun. He was more suitable for this fight.


    Ye Wuchen stood out but didn''t pull out his sword. Since Li Daoqing wanted a fair fight, he would fulfill that wish.


    Li Daoqing stepped out. In a second, great murderous sword intent could be sensed. A terrible storm of sword aura rolled over. Great sword intent swept towards Ye Wuchen''s body.


    Li Daoqing was considered to be just as talented as his senior brother Li Daoyun. He had great achievement in swordsmanship with a mid-level noble fate. His sword intent was extremely strong too. However, Ye Wuchen was just like him.


    When the two''s sword intents appeared, people including Gu Biyue were all stunned. No wonder Liu Chenyun wished to protect this group. They were all great talents. It appeared that Liu Chenyu wanted them to join Liu Kingdom. But even with great talent, it would still be hard for Ye Wuchen to win against Li Daoqing.


    Ye Wuchen stood there quietly, emanating horrible sword intent as if he was a statue cast by swords


    The moment Li Daoqing moved, countless beams of light filled this space. They were the reflections of the swords. He moved very quickly like lightning. People could only see his blurred figure. Then they saw Li Daoqing descend from above Ye Wuchen. Countless swords appeared and swept over the air. At this moment, people saw horrible sword streaks cut the void. If Ye Wuchen was hit by those lights, his body would be cut into countless pieces.


    "It''s the Split Light Sword Technique." People all saw the brilliant sword which was like a godly technique. They could practically see Ye Wuchen be engulfed by the endless sword light.


    As an extraordinary cultivator of the Fuyun Sword Clan, Li Daoqing showed his absolute advantage with only one move.


    Ye Wuchen still stood there. Everyone was watching, wondering whether he just couldn''t figure out how to resist this. If he couldn''t, he would most likely die.


    Ye Futian looked coldly at the sword. The opponent had started with a fatal move.


    Liu Chenyu only stared at Ye Wuchen. Surprisingly, he didn''t even move. Shocking sword intent flowed through him at this time but it was still hard to block Li Daoqing''s attack.


    Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng looked satisfied. There were no flaws in Li Daoqing''s attack.


    Endless swords tearing through the air were about to hit Ye Wuchen. Everyone mourned for him. Would he lose with just one move? Sure enough, there was still a big gap between him and the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Just as the sword came down, Ye Wuchen''s body, bathed in the light of sword, turned transparent. It was as if he was a sword rather than a man. When cutting down, Li Daoqing''s sword was influenced. It spun around as if it was to be integrated with his body and become a part of that sword.


    "It is the sword body!" The people of the Fuyun Sword clan were surprised. Ye Wuchen was not Ye Wuchen anymore; he was the incarnation of the sword.


    The sword body was the ultimate pursuit of all swordsmen. It could not be attained merely relying on talent. One also needed an incomparable faith and a sincere heart in swordsmanship. The sword and the self must be one. People who could form the sword body were all top talents of swordsmanship.


    "It''s not the sword body yet but just an immature form." Mu Yunhe was shocked by this sight. Even now, it was still very destructive. It was very possible for Ye Wuchen to succeed.


    Seeing this scene, Li Daoqing felt embarrassed. His fatal kill was integrated into Ye Wuchen''s body. His body like a sword, he streaked past. Another sword struck out as if all blades were one. A horrible light sliced through the air.


    At this moment, Ye Wuchen''s body moved. He looked like the king of swordsmanship. As he moved, all swords followed him. His body seemed to be turned into a real sword and descended on Li Daoqing. Li Daoqing felt great murderous sword intent approaching. He stepped back but a bunch of cold light swept past his neck. Li Daoqing stopped, his eyes fixed on the figure.


    Ye Wuchen had caught up to him with the sword and sliced the throat. Blood flowed down Li Daoqing''s neck. He would die if Ye Wuchen made the slightest move.


    Everything was silent. Many people shuddered inwardly at the sight of that sword. The Fuyun Sword Clan was famous for its swordsmanship. The clan was known as the strongest sword clan in the Eastern Barren Territory. However, Li Daoqing, one of the top talents from the Fuyun Sword Clan, was defeated by just one move.


    Though Ye Wuchen only made one move, everyone could tell how strong he was. It was enough for him to be compared with those top talents of the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Liu Chenyu was shocked too. She had heard Ye Wuchen had lost one arm when fighting with Li Daoyun but still wounded Li Daoyun. However, she didn''t realize how excellent Ye Wuchen was until now. He was stronger than she had imagined before. However, Ye Wuchen once said that he was the least competent of the three. Was it really so?


    Liu Chenyu doubted that. She didn''t train in swordsmanship but she knew that what Ye Wuchen had performed was an indication of the sword body. A swordsman that learned the sword body was so terrifying.


    She looked at Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng and said, "This is the fairness you asked for before. Satisfied?"


    Mu Yunhe looked at Ye Wuchen deeply and said, "We are indeed defeated. We will let this go."


    The eyes of the Witch Clan and Ji Family grew sharp. Other spectators were a little disappointed. The Fuyun Sword Clan would not take further action?


    "That''s it?" At this time, an untimely voice sounded.


    People turned around and saw Ye Futian stepping forward. He was gazing coolly at the Fuyun Sword Clan!

 193 Pull Close

    Chapter 193: Pull Close


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Li Daoqing was hurt by Yu Sheng, he called the Fuyun Sword Clan over for a fair fight? Li Daoqing''s strikes were fatal. Could Ye Wuchen kill him? After being defeated, he just said that it was over and left. Instead of being defeated, it felt like he was forgiving them.


    Everyone''s eyes flashed as they stared at Ye Futian. What did he mean?


    Mu Yunhe furrowed his brows and asked, "What do you mean?"


    "Wuchen also has sword intent," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Ye Wuchen naturally understood what Ye Futian meant. "Release your fate."


    One must pay the cost of losing a battle.


    Hearing their words, everyone became amazed. Was Ye Wuchen about to steal Li Daoqing''s noble fate?


    Li Daoqing''s expression grew uncomfortable. He was already extremely humiliated to be defeated by the same plane. He was the pride of the Fuyun Sword Clan, after all. Now, Ye Wuchen even wanted to take his fate.


    "Interesting." Gu Biyue grinned as she watched this. It seemed that Liu Chenyu had taken in some very interesting people. Judging from the talent Ye Wuchen had just displayed, it was no wonder Liu Chenyu didn''t care about Li Daoyun''s attitude.


    Mu Yunhe looked between Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen. "This is over," he said.


    "We just had Li Daoqing fight a battle with you," Xiao Teng said coldly. They''d already taken Princess Liu Chenyu into consideration and didn''t use their status to press down on them. But now Ye Futian wanted to take Li Daoqing''s fate. It was presumptuous.


    "You won''t dare!" a furious voice said. It was Li Daoqing. However, Ye Wuchen''s noble fate transformed into emperor''s fate and swept towards him. At the same time, Ye Wuchen''s sword poked into Li Daoqing''s throat. The icy feeling was too much. Blood suddenly dripped from Li Daoqing''s neck. His entire body was numb and he didn''t dare move.


    "Do you know how I lost this arm?" Ye Wuchen''s eyes were extremely sharp as he stared at Li Daoqing.


    Li Daoqing glanced at Ye Wuchen''s shoulder. What did it have to do with him?


    "He said his name is Li Daoyun from the Fuyun Sword Clan," Ye Wuchen continued. Li Daoyun didn''t care about fairness when he took Ye Wuchen''s arm with peak Dharma power. It was one thing if Li Daoqing didn''t bother them. However, he''d instigated it and then lost. Did he really think he could leave like this?


    Hearing this, Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng''s expressions all changed. So, was this an old rivalry? There was a reason why Li Daoqing was beaten like that. The surrounding people were surprised as well. Ye Wuchen''s arm was lost because of Li Daoyun. The pride of the Fuyun Sword Clan at the peak of the Dharma Plane and a super swordsman in the Fifth-level Dharma Plane had created such a rivalry.


    Gu Biyue glanced at Liu Chenyu. "Did you know?"


    Liu Chenyu didn''t look at her. Her eyes were still on Ye Wuchen and Li Daoqing.


    Since Ye Wuchen revealed it and wanted to take Li Daoqing''s fate, this was a public challenge. Did he not fear Li Daoyun anymore? Or was it for her? Liu Chenyu wondered if Ye Wuchen really trusted her or if he was confident in something else.


    As Ye Wuchen pressed his sword further, Li Daoqing finally felt fear. He released his fate. Ye Wuchen''s emperor''s fate was extremely aggressive. It quickly swallowed Li Daoyun''s fate clean. Ye Wuchen''s sword fate quickly turned terrifying while Li Daoqing had nothing. All his effort in the Ancient Barren World was gone.


    Ye Wuchen let go of Li Daoqing. Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng just watched quietly from the side. Even the extremely cold Mu Yunhe was aghast now. As disciples of the Fuyun Sword Clan, they''d always been the orthodox swordsmanship. But today, Li Daoqing lost to a swordsman-in-training of the same plane. He was restricted and had his fate taken. For disciples of a top force, this was extremely humiliating.


    "Princess, what do you think?" Mu Yunhe gazed at Liu Chenyu, still holding back his anger. Even though Ye Wuchen was very talented, the Fuyun Sword Clan couldn''t let him go for taking Li Daoqing''s fate in public. If Liu Chenyu wanted to protect Ye Futian''s group, they could leave for now but this wasn''t over.


    "Isn''t this the fairness you wanted?" Liu Chenyu was indifferent.


    "I understand," Mu Yunhe muttered. "In that case, we will leave now." With that, he glanced at Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen. "We will meet again."


    "Meet again?" Ye Futian looked at him and asked, "Did I allow you to leave?"


    He looked at the Fuyun Sword Clan. They wanted to leave? That was funny.


    Everyone''s eyes narrowed and looked at Ye Futian strangely. It wasn''t over yet? What did he want to do after taking Li Daoqing''s fate?


    Liu Chenyu also looked at him. The previous judgment on him had been very suitable but where did he get the confidence?


    Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng''s fury were uncontrollable now. They stared darkly at Ye Futian.


    "How may I help you?" Mu Yunhe asked coldly. His voice was sharp.


    "Are you going to hand your fate over or do we have to do it?" Ye Futian smiled at Mu Yunhe. You came so powerfully but want to leave after getting defeated? And go find the Fuyun Sword Clan to take revenge?


    They had to leave something behind.


    "Reckless." Xiao Teng walked up. He was at the Seventh-level Dharma Plane and his aura was extremely powerful.


    At that time, Ye Wuchen had walked before Ye Futian. Then he unsheathed his noble sword.


    Reckless? Ye Wuchen was at the Fifth-level Dharma Plane and had a noble sword. Would there be any problems to deal with two men? He hadn''t been this powerful when he''d injured Li Daoyun back then.


    Disregarding him, Loulan Xue was behind Ye Futian too. She''d been quiet but Ye Futian had seen her abilities. She could easily defeat someone like Li Daoyun. Of course, this wasn''t why he was confident.


    Without any nonsense, Ye Wuchen brandished his sword and walked to Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng. He wielded the sword with one arm but couldn''t hide his glory. Sword intent flowed through his body. His body seemed to have transformed into the body of a sword as well and dazzled brightly. With a flash, his body disappeared. An instant later, a sword stabbed forward. It transformed into a rain of swords, engulfing Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng.


    A curtain of swords appeared around the two. They waved their swords, cutting the countless swords that had appeared. However, Ye Wuchen''s swords were much simpler. When he descended again, he struck down on Xiao Teng. Endless sword intent flowed with his movement. The sword curtain was cut and Xiao Teng''s expression changed. Rays of light flashed and he felt a coldness. His shirt was shredded and cuts appeared on his arm. He froze in place, not daring to move.


    So fast. Everyone stared at the battlefield. Ye Wuchen didn''t stop; he started after Mu Yunhe. No matter how Mu Yunhe''s sword intent flared, Ye Wuchen just stabbed and the sword rain turned into one point. A beam of sword light appeared before Mu Yunhe''s body and went through his neck. It was only a bit away from being fatal.


    Sword intent wrapped around Ye Wuchen. He walked to Mu Yunhe and pointed at the throat. Mu Yunhe''s expression was heavy and dark. He looked furious but still released his fate. He was robbed.


    Xiao Teng was next.


    The three powerful cultivators of the Fuyun Sword Clan had come and thought that they could easily take revenge for Li Daoqing if Liu Chenyu didn''t stop them. They didn''t expect that they would humiliate their clan like never before.


    They lost to someone on the same plane. They still lost when they were in a higher plane with a ritual implement. The three had their fates robbed. It was such a big difference compared to their confidence when they first came.


    "Tell Li Daoyun that I am Ye Wuchen," the man said.


    Back then, Li Daoyun had killed all along the way. When he had gone, he reported that he was Li Daoyun of the Fuyun Sword Clan. He''d been so arrogant.


    Mu Yunhe''s group didn''t say anything. They left pathetically.


    Countless gazes at the mountaintop fell upon Ye Wuchen. With the talent he''d displayed today, he could join any top force. Liu Chenyu of the Liu Kingdom had gotten there early. Apparently, they''d already agreed to cultivate with her.


    "Amazing," Ji Zimo walked over now. He smiled at Ye Wuchen. "You''re very talented. If you''re here to join a top force, you can consider the Ji Family. We are a noble clan in the Eastern Barren territory. If you come with us, you can create a clan in the future. The people behind me are all from the clans of the Eastern Barren Territory."


    Ye Wuchen glanced at him and then at Ye Futian. He wasn''t good at this stuff. Ye Futian should decide.


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian in shock. It seemed that Ye Wuchen wanted him to decide.


    "Don''t worry. They can also come with me. I won''t treat them badly," Ji Zimo said with a smile. If Ye Wuchen could join him, it would be a great help to him. As for Ye Futian''s group, it didn''t matter even if they weren''t as talented.


    "They like pretty girls." Gu Biyue walked over and said to Ye Futian, "Would you like to be my subordinate? I can definitely treat you better than Liu Chenyu." Her eyes and smile were mesmerizing.


    Ye Futian''s eyes brightened. Chuckling, he asked, "How much better?"


    "How much do you want?" Gu Biyue was intrigued.


    "I had a servant before but she left. How about you come with me?" Ye Futian smiled brightly at Gu Biyue.


    "Shameless." Behind him, Lin Yueyao blinked. Did he want another pretty servant?

 194 A Be

    Chapter 194: A Bet


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the top of the hill, people all looked at Ye Futian when they heard what he had said. Ye Futian wanted Gu Biyue to be his maid?


    What an arrogant guy!


    The witch Gu Biyue from the Witch Clan exceeded others both in talent and appearance. Gu Biyue''s status in the Witch Clan could be compared with Princess Liu''s in the Lui Kingdom.


    Ye Futian chose to follow Liu Chenyu but wanted Gu Biyue to be his maid? Was this Ye Futian''s response to Gu Biyue''s offer of letting them be her subordinates? Most of the people behind Gu Biyue were confused while some of them were looking at Ye Futian indignantly. Was Ye Futian serious? Ji Zimo was also surprised. Where did this guy''s courage and confidence come from?


    Liu Chenyu smiled at this scene. She was curious about how Gu Biyue would react. However, Gu Biyue was just a bit stunned. Then her smile grew more brilliant, full of charm. She stared at Ye Futian and said, "You want me to serve you?" Her tone sounded quite flirtatious and evocative of people''s imagination. Witches always did whatever they wanted. However, anyone who wanted to take advantage of them would suffer a lot.


    "It is a wonderful thing to be served by a beauty." Ye Futian smiled at Gu Biyue. Seeing his smile, people were wordless. This guy was too bold. As the weaker one, how did he dare to ask Gu Biyue to be his maid? Wasn''t he too na?ve? In the Eastern Barren Territory, even the top talents from top powers dared not to let Gu Biyue serve them.


    "But I would rather you to be my subordinate." Gu Biyue laughed. "So, are you to be my subordinate or I, your maid?"


    "Well, a problem." Ye Futian looked at her. "What do you think?"


    "How about a bet?" Gu Biyue smiled and said, "If you lose the bet, not only you but he will all be my subordinates." She looked at Ye Wuchen and smiled at Liu Chenyu. It was very fun to take people from Liu Chenyu''s hand.


    "What if you lose?" Ye Futian smirked.


    "Serve you, as you said before." Gu Biyue giggled. Her eyes were overwhelmingly beautiful and mesmerizing. In Loulan City, Yue Linglong, who followed Qian Yang, was fascinating too. But Gu Biyue was different from her. Yue Linglong''s appearance and temperament couldn''t be compared with Gu Biyue. She was fascinating from the inside out. Her every move and smile exuded exotic charm. Her elegant temperament made her a strong attraction to those top talents. Actually, she had more pursuers than Liu Chenyu did, including many top talents from Eastern Barren Territory.


    "What kind of bet?" Ye Futian smiled. She had dug the pit, waiting for him to jump in.


    "The peaks of Mirror Mountain are all relics. Since we are here, let''s take the relics as the bet and make them our battlefields. We''ll send three people per side and choose three relics. The outcome will be known after three rounds. What do you think?" Gu Biyue said with a smile. Many people''s eyes fixated on people behind Gu Biyue. Those people were all extraordinary cultivators.


    Hearing Gu Biyue''s words, Ye Futian looked strange. Take the relics here as the bet? It was not challenging for him at all.


    "Good idea," Ye Futian responded with a big smile. Will Gu Biyue be a better maid than Yun Qianmo? Hope that she won''t run away too.


    Seeing Ye Futian agree so readily, Gu Biyue also smiled. This group of people were definitely going to be her subordinates.


    "Can I participate too? If you lose, be my maid?" Ji Zimo smiled at Gu Biyue.


    "But I''m not interested in you." Gu Biyue looked at Ji Zimo and then glanced at Ye Futian. "You''re not as good-looking."


    Ji Zimo''s face turned livid. People were speechless too.


    Gu Biyue smiled at Ye Futian and said, "You pick the relics first."


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian called. Yu Sheng knew what he meant and walked towards the war-drum zone. Those who had heard Yu Sheng beating the drums had a strange expression.


    Gu Biyue deliberately set the trap for Ye Futian but she might lose the first round.


    Accompanied by a boom, the drum''s sound vibrated the space. Yu Sheng''s aura burst from him and began to go wild. After a while, the nine drums were beaten at the same time. A violent storm rolled over the top of the mountain. People''s hearts were stirred by the sounds. Gu Biyue''s beautiful eyes flashed slightly. The nine drums rang simultaneously without stopping. It was incomparably destructive. No one among the people behind Gu Biyue could do this. That was to say, Gu Biyue lost the first round.


    "I concede." Gu Biyue recovered and showed a bigger smile. She didn''t expect that Yu Sheng had a great talent too as Ye Wuchen did. In this case, if this group of people could be her subordinates, they would help her a lot. Her status would be further stabled and might even ascend.


    The competition within the Witch Clan was very intense. Being able to be assisted by the strong was naturally wonderful. She had confidence in controlling people of any personalities. Since Ye Futian''s group were willing to follow Liu Chenyu, she was confident that she could handle them too.


    "Second round, which of you will fight?" Gu Biyue smiled and asked.


    Ye Futian looked at Lou Lanxue. She could have a try.


    Lou Lanxue stepped forward quietly. Many eyes fell on her. All were slightly surprised at her appearance and temperament. A figure behind Gu Biyue walked out. This man in a black robe was slender and quiet. He had been standing behind Gu Biyue quietly but emanated a dangerous aura.


    "Leng Feng." People shuddered at the sight of him, the great talent of the Witch Clan. He had great talent but was obsessed with Gu Biyue. He was willing to do anything for her, even subordinating himself. However, his talent wasn''t any lower.


    "Since they chose the drum area, you just choose the same." Gu Biyue smiled at him. Leng Feng nodded. He walked toward that area and started beating the drums.


    The reason why Gu Biyue conceded when Yu Sheng beat the drums was that Yu Sheng had done the extreme. No one could surpass him. But actually, Leng Feng was strong too. His every beat was stable as if there was a fantastic rhythm in his beating. He beat the drum again and again. The drums gradually turned into a horrible storm, but Leng Feng stood there still and continued his beating until the nine drums rang at the same time,


    Ye Futian took a glance at Leng Feng. As expected, Gu Biyue did prepare for this.


    Lou Lanxue walked forward and beat the drum too. This was her first time doing so but she had a strong talent too. She managed to make eight drums ring but failed at the last drum.


    "Now, it''s back to the beginning." Gu Biyue smiled at Ye Futian and said, "Which of you will fight in the last round? Him?" Gu Biyue looked at Ye Wuchen.


    "You set the rule first. Which relics will you pick?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Are you sure?" Gu Biyue smiled at Ye Futian. At the previous two rounds, they all had selected the battlefield once. Unexpectedly, Ye Futian let her decide the final round which was supposed be discussed by two sides.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    Gu Biyue smiled at him. He was pretty cute, letting her choose.


    "Then I choose there." Gu Biyue pointed to an elegant place. There was chess, paintings, guqins, and flutes.


    "She may take the final round into her own hands. You can''t promise her like this," Liu Chenyu walked to Ye Futian and whispered. Ye Futian was overconfident about himself. How could he let Gu Biyue select the final battlefield?


    "Her own hands?" Ye Futian looked at Gu Biyue. The witch seemed to attach great importance to this match.


    "It''s alright." Ye Futian smiled at Liu Chenyu.


    "Gu Biyue is good at playing the flute. She is proficient in music, especially the Witch Requiem of Witch Clan. Even Ye Wuchen won''t be able to resist it. Even without the spiritual attack, the music transferred from spirit is destructive enough." Liu Chenyu couldn''t help to say after seeing Ye Futian was so confident.


    "Witch Requiem?" Ye Futian grew more interested in this. He said with a smile, "Then I would like to have a try." Saying this, he walked toward that area with Gu Biyue. His group followed behind.


    Liu Chenyu was stunned. She looked at Ye Futian meaningfully. He said he would like to have a try?


    Rather than Ye Wuchen, Ye Futian would participate in the final battle? Didn''t this guy say that he was just a servant before? A servant wanted to have the witch of the Witch Clan to be his maid?


    Liu Chenyu was speechless but followed them. The witch did have some means. If Ye Futian failed in this battle, then this group of people would really have to join her.


    The group of people came to the relic that was a great place for musical competition. There were guqins, drums, and flutes there. However, everything seemed to be shapeless as if they were illusions transferred from spirits. Those instruments floated in the air, diffusing the power of fate. It seemed that many great masters had fought here once.


    "Decided who will fight?" Gu Biyue asked.


    "I will fight," Ye Futian smiled and responded. Gu Biyue looked at him deeply and smiled gently.


    "Since I want you to follow me, I hope you will be truly convinced. I am pretty good at the xiao so I will play a song for you. This song contains no spiritual attacks but only spiritual interference. If you can resist it, I will concede." Gu Biyue smiled at Ye Futian.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded lightly. Then Gu Biyue moved toward that musical aura where there seemed to be countless invisible notes pulsing. Those miraculous notes were all transformed from intent.


    Gu Biyue murmured in her mind. The notes fluctuated and formed a shape of xiao. Many people were surprised that Gu Biyue would attend the final round personally.

 195 Witch Requiem

    Chapter 195: Witch Requiem


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Gu Biyue placed her xiao to her red lips and blew slowly. A mysterious sound came out of the xiao. In an instant, it brought everyone into a beautiful artistic conception.


    So beautiful.


    Gu Biyue was known as the Witch because of how she acted. But actually, she was extremely elegant as she played the xiao right now. The music was beautiful and her long hair flew in the wind, her white dress fluttering. Like a fairy, she was otherworldly and mesmerizing.


    This was the first time for many to see her. Looking at her right now, their eyes almost fell out. They couldn''t pull themselves out. Only she existed in their eyes.


    A witch indeed. Enthusiasm flashed past Ji Zimo''s eyes. Liu Chenyu and Gu Biyue were different types of beauties but were both lovely. They had high status too. It would be great if he could have either of them.


    The Witch was more attractive right now but Ji Zimo knew that it was because everyone was affected by the xiao''s artistic conception. The Witch Requiem was created from the Witch Clan''s spiritual sorcery. It could transform, and was extremely powerful. The Witch Requiem was the foundation of the Witch Clan. Only the core members could cultivate it. Gu Biyue was of high status so she could cultivate it.


    There seemed to be no sound other than the xiao at the top of the mountain. Countless eyes looked over. So many people were mesmerized by the Witch now. She was beautiful and so was her music. Everyone was affected by it, even Ye Futian.


    Right now, he stood across from Gu Biyue. Music notes flowed endlessly into his mind with intent power. However, it was different from what he''d imagined. It didn''t attack him. Instead, it engraved an image in his mind. It was the image of Gu Biyue. Her fairy-like image was planted in his mind and consciousness.


    The beautiful music was intoxicating and the fairy-like figure was even more so. At that moment, his mind was completely taken over by Gu Biyue''s image. She seemed to want to be ingrained in his mind until he couldn''t pull himself out.


    He involuntarily started admiring her, wanting to love her. He purely wanted to make that figure the most important part of his life.


    Is it the Witch Requiem? Ye Futian thought. It was an advanced tactic and much more powerful than usual alluring techniques. Gu Biyue claimed that if Ye Futian could withstand it, she would admit defeat. It seemed that the so-called withstanding was a bit different from what he''d thought. It was possible he would surrender with one song. This was similar to the beastmaster life spirit that Emperor Ye Qing had blessed him with. It was different but one of the same. The Witch had really set up a trap for him.


    Unfortunately, her target was him. No one in the Ancient Barren World could surpass him in will and intent. Gu Biyue couldn''t affect him either.


    The song grew more and more beautiful. It was the first time for many to hear such a beautiful xiao. Even though the Witch only targeted Ye Futian, everyone was still affected. Some weaker ones were about to be taken over. They stared at her with endless admiration as if gazing at an angel.


    As the music streamed into his ears, Ye Futian seemed close to falling for Gu Biyue. However, he was resolute. Another image appeared in his mind. He hadn''t seen Fox in a long time. Thinking of the one he loved, a smile appeared on his face. He erased the marks Gu Biyue left.


    Gu Biyue, while playing the xiao, stared at Ye Futian and saw a brilliant smile on the handsome face. It was as if he had seen his beloved girl. However, she didn''t feel proud. Ye Futian didn''t smile like this because of her xiao or because of seeing her.


    While she played, he actually thought of someone else. Was it one of the two beauties standing behind him?


    Thinking of this, Gu Biyue furiously added her intent to the music notes, making the song even prettier. However, Ye Futian was still unmoved. Gradually, the song changed. Instead of being beautiful, it turned aggressive. This change seemed to be shapeless. The pulsing and aggressive notes rushed directly into Ye Futian''s mind. It cut apart his fantasies. Hua Jieyu''s image kept disappearing from his mind, forcefully wiped away.


    Gu Biyue no longer looked like a fairy. Instead, she was a domineering goddess. She was brilliant and horrible. She forcefully entered Ye Futian''s mind to plant her image until he couldn''t get rid of her. She would force Ye Futian to submit before her.


    In the fantasy, Ye Futian looked up at Gu Biyue in the air. She was as powerful as a goddess. Her music tried to make him surrender. In his mind, Hua Jieyu''s image gradually faded away as if being wiped. Only Gu Biyue''s image was allowed to stay.


    Outside, the spectators'' feelings changed. They were also influenced by the song. However, Ye Futian''s clothes and black hair fluttered as if bearing horrible intent pressure.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sharpened. Want to make me submit? Want to wipe away Jieyu''s image? He grew even more resolute. Walking forward, he arrived at an instrument created by music notes and said, "I must return a gift to you out of courtesy."


    Ye Futian played the guqin. His will entered the music notes as he strummed the strings. His music instantly accompanied the xiao. Everyone felt a powerful force at once. The two types of music notes collided in the air, creating a shapeless windstorm. The xiao was extremely violent. It wanted to wipe away everything in Ye Futian''s mind and plant Gu Biyue''s image.


    The guqin was magnanimous. Like an emperor, it protected the image in his mind. His territory was like a painting. The terrifying guqin music seeped into the Witch''s ears. It wiped away the aggressive goddess, trying to make her bow down.


    Ye Futian used his own enlightenment and understanding of the musical piece The World to make it perfect. A great artistic conception was born.


    He''s fighting back. Everyone was shocked at this scene. Gu Biyue''s Witch Requiem couldn''t take Ye Futian down. Neither the fairy-like gentleness nor the aggressive goddess could destroy Ye Futian''s will. Now, he was fighting back.


    Ye Futian''s aura changed instantly. An emperor-like power emanated from him. He seemed to have become a powerful king.


    The guqin and xiao collided; the emperor and goddess clashed. Endless music notes fought crazily in that area as their auras grew stronger.


    The Witch Requiem made the goddess become indomitable. Endless images of her appeared in Ye Futian''s mind.


    The World was equally domineering. Right now, Ye Futian was like a true emperor. His musical piece''s will descended upon Gu Biyue to make her surrender.


    Such powerful intent. Everyone stared at the terrifying storm of music. They were up neck-to-neck. Neither was willing to step back. Would this turn into a tie? However, Gu Biyue had said that if Ye Futian could survive one song, she would admit defeat. Their bet had been that if she lost, she would become his servant.


    Ye Futian couldn''t do anything if she didn''t keep her word but there was an audience here. It would be embarrassing.


    Just then, Gu Biyue''s xiao transformed into an endless river of notes that poured into Ye Futian''s mind. She used her intent to communicate with the music notes and asked, "Who is in your mind?"


    With her body, aura, and the Witch Requiem, even the strongest person would surrender, let alone someone in a lower plane like Ye Futian. But he seemed to be protecting someone this entire time.


    Ye Futian grinned. "Do you surrender?"


    "Surrender?" Gu Biyue repeated. "I just can''t defeat you with my will." She''d said that if Ye Futian would bear it, she would lose.


    "Oh?" Ye Futian chuckled. "What if I tell you that I haven''t even tried yet?"


    His words surprised Gu Biyue but then she smiled. "You''re so arrogant." With that, the xiao returned and the Witch Requiem attacked again.


    Ye Futian also smiled. He continued playing the guqin but his aura had changed again. Now, he was like an emperor. He instantly blasted away Gu Biyue''s image in his mind. At the same time, an undefeatable intent descended in Gu Biyue''s mind, forcefully cutting off her Witch Requiem. Her powerful spiritual power burst forth to restrict that will. Her xiao stopped and she gazed at Ye Futian. The emperor-like figure stopped playing and smiled. He stood as if only he existed in the world.


    Everyone''s eyes were fixated on those two figures. This wasn''t a tie. Gu Biyue had lost. In this battle of will, the Witch Requiem had lost.


    Liu Chenyu stared at Ye Futian''s figure. She thought of what Ye Wuchen had said. Now, it seemed that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were definitely amazing and not below Ye Wuchen at all. They all specialized in different things.


    Ye Futian could actually face the Witch Requiem and defeat Gu Biyue. Even more shocking, he was only in the Second-level Dharma Plane but his will was already so powerful. When he played the piece earlier, his aura was like an emperor. Someone like this wouldn''t follow others so easily.


    Gu Biyue and Ji Zimo wanted Ye Futian to be their subordinate. No wonder he would fight back and make Gu Biyue his servant.


    Ye Futian smiled at the dazed Gu Biyue. "You''re mine now."

 196 Bear It or No

    Chapter 196: Bear It or Not


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Gu Biyue was stunned a little. She looked at Ye Futian. She didn''t expect that she would lose the bet. From the beginning, she had been preparing this trap for Ye Futian to jump in so that he could be her subordinate. Unexpectedly, she was defeated. She didn''t think that the horrible intent contained in Ye Futian''s music could suppress her Witch Requiem. But soon, she recovered, and her eyes, looking at Ye Futian, turned bright again.


    Ye Futian was only at Second Dharma Plane. If he could be so gifted, then so were Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng. The trio definitely had the potential to be top young cultivators in Eastern Barren Territory.


    The witch smiled charmingly. She looked at Ye Futian and said flirtatiously, "What do you want from your maid?"


    Ye Futian had said, "Now, you''re mine." How bold he was!


    The surrounding people all gasped. The witch was very alluring at this moment. Their hearts were stirred by her deliberate bashfulness. Seeing the witch''s performance, Liu Chenyu turned to Ye Futian. Though Ye Futian defeated Gu Biyue, the witch had many vicious means and lived up to her name. Liu Chenyu was a great beauty too, but she was also enchanted a little bit when seeing Gu Biyue''s posture. This was because Gu Biyue blended her Witch Methods into every move she made, making her extremely attractive. No one could forget her. Even those top talents would be attracted by her means.


    Ye Futian looked at the witch calmly. He admitted that she was very attractive. But trying to seduce him? It was impossible. He had experienced the Fox before.


    "You are my maid. That''s why you are mine. Don''t over-interpret it," Ye Futian responded indifferently.


    Hearing his response, people were all astonished by his calmness. How can he be so calm facing the witch''s temptation? He must be pretending. Looking at Ye Futian''s calmness, many dared him in their minds to keep pretending.


    Gu Biyue giggled and looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. "Do you really want me to serve you?"


    "You don''t want to deny it, do you?" Ye Futian looked at Gu Biyue.


    "Of course I don''t. It''s just��" The witch said with a smile, "I''m afraid you can''t bear it."


    "Can''t bear it?" Ye Futian looked at the witch and said, "Just do what you are supposed to do as a maid. Do not have any wild thoughts."


    Gu Biyue was speechless.


    The people around them looked at Ye Futian with great admiration. He was really impressive.


    "Okay." Gu Biyue moved slightly to stand behind Ye Futian and quipped, "My lord, what are your wishes?"


    Ye Futian nodded in satisfaction. She was really adaptable.


    "Follow me," said Ye Futian. He left this area and headed to the statues where he had been cultivating at previously. The witch followed beside him. Leng Feng and other strong cultivators who had arrived with her came up with cold faces.


    How could Ye Futian dare to follow through? Gu Biyue just fulfilled her commitment but how could Ye Futian not know how to be modest? Was he really treating Gu Biyue as a maid?


    Gu Biyue glanced at her group and smiled. Her eyes seemed to be telling people something. The group of people halted and looked at Gu Biyue confusedly. It would indeed be embarrassing not to fulfill the promise but so what? What qualified Ye Futian to let the top witch of the Witch Clan be his maid? Everyone would understand and wouldn''t reprimand him if he didn''t.


    Lin Yueyao looked at Ye Futian''s back indignantly. This shameless guy enrolled another maid.


    Liu Chenyu smiled at Ye Futian. This guy really had guts. However, he might not know that he would be in danger soon with this witch by his side.


    Ye Futian came to those statues. Gu Biyue smiled gently at him and asked, "How did you do that? Why did the intent in your music suddenly strengthen? It seemed to slightly restrain my flute?"


    "My shoulders are a little stiff after playing the music," Ye Futian said. He sat onto the ground. Such an unprofessional maid wanted to dig out his secrets? She was thinking too much.


    Gu Biyue blinked. His shoulders are a little stiff? What does that mean?


    "Then let me massage your shoulders." Gu Biyue suddenly smiled and stood behind Ye Futian.


    The surrounding people were instantly stunned. Shameless guy! How could his shoulders be stiff after playing when he was at such a high plane? Looking at the fairy-like woman in a white dress, people could not imagine her massaging shoulders for others. However, Gu Biyue just smiled gently. Standing behind Ye Futian, she reached out her slender fingers and began to massage Ye Futian''s shoulders. People were overwhelmed at the sight of this scene.


    Shameless! B*stard! Many people glared at Ye Futian in hatred.


    Ji Zimo''s face became exceptionally complex too. Ye Futian could enjoy such a treatment?


    "Comfortable?" Gu Biyue smiled gently.


    "Not bad." Ye Futian nodded and closed his eyes with enjoyment. Yu Sheng behind them was stunned by this scene too. Without Hua Jieyu here, Ye Futian was really bold.


    Liu Chenyu walked over and was speechless when seeing Ye Futian''s satisfied face.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and smiled at Liu Chenyu, "Princess, may I help you?"


    Seeing Ye Futian was so casual, Liu Chenyu had no idea how he could be so calm. "Aren''t you a servant?" Liu Chenyu asked with a smile.


    "Can''t a servant have a maid?" Ye Futian smiled too. Since Ye Wuchen had told people that his arm was cut by Li Daoyun, he must have told Liu Chenyu the truth. She was just making fun of him.


    "Of course you can. Just take care you don''t get tricked." Liu Chenyu glanced at the witch behind Ye Futian. Gu Biyue was looking at her too. The two beauties looked into each other''s eyes. The atmosphere became a little weird.


    After a short while, Liu Chenyu drew back her sight and looked at Ye Futian. This guy was enjoying himself now but had he ever thought about the consequence? The witch''s pursuers were strong enough killed him, let alone the Witch Clan.


    Ye Futian was a little confused. Why did those people always think too much?


    "Princess, what top powers are there in the Eastern Barren Territory?" Ye Futian suddenly asked. The relics here were enough for him to continue his cultivation for a period of time. Moreover, he could meet many people of top powers here. When everything here settled down, he would join one of those top powers and begin to solve the concerns brought by Luo Junlin.


    It was the time for him to get familiar with everything.


    "The Eastern Barren Territory is extremely vast. There are many top powers in the central region. My Liu Kingdom, her Witch Clan, Fuyun Sword Clan whose people you have encountered with before, as well as the Ji''s family which Ji Zimo belongs to are all top powers," Liu Chenyu explained. Seeing the great talent of Ye Futian''s trio, she realized that it was not easy for Liu Kingdom to enroll them. However, she met them earlier than the other powers so she had some advantages.


    Even if they chose the others, it was not a big deal. They could still be friends.


    "What about the Royal Xuan Temple?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It''s a powerful force but not at the uppermost level," Liu Chenyu answered. "If you want to join a power, I think Eastern Barren College might be a good choice. The college is the force with the longest history in the Eastern Barren Territory. It has been passed down countless generations. The resources for cultivation there are probably the most outstanding in the whole Eastern Barren Territory. From this aspect, no other forces can be compared with it." Liu Chenyu slowly introduced the other powers to Ye Futian.


    "How is the Eastern Barren College when compared with Liu Kingdom?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "They are different. The Liu Kingdom is a kingdom while the Eastern Barren College is a college. Colleges put more emphasis on the cultivation of its disciples. The teachers are all at the Noble Plane. It has cultivated a lot of very outstanding disciples," Liu Chenyu answered him honestly.


    Ye Futian nodded. The Liu Kingdom was a kingdom so it focused on the cultivation of the royalty.


    "Of course I will be delighted if you come to Liu Kingdom." Liu Chenyu smiled.


    Ye Futian smiled. "Your highness, actually, it doesn''t matter if we join Liu Kingdom or not."


    "How?" Liu Chenyu looked at Ye Futian confusedly.


    "If one of us is princess''s bridegroom, we don''t need to join the Liu Kingdom to get close to each other." Ye Futian smirked at Liu Chenyu. The princess was stunned for a while. Then she rolled her eyes towards Ye Futian and left. She naturally knew what Ye Futian meant.


    "Are you flirting with Liu Chenyu?" Gu Biyue asked behind him with a smile. She figured out now that Ye Futian''s group was not going to join the Liu Kingdom. They''d just met each other in advance. She thought the bridegroom Ye Futian mentioned was himself. Ye Futian ignored her and continued his cultivation.


    More and more people gathered at the peak of Mirror Mountain. Li Daoqing of the Fuyun Sword Clan had been defeated twice. Mu Yunhe and Xiao Teng were defeated by someone at a lower level than them. The fates of the three people were all seized. Gu Biyue''s Witch Requiem was suppressed by the music of someone at a lower level. And then the witch became his maid to serve him. Such news would definitely cause a sensation.


    After the news spread, an endless stream of people set foot on the top of the hill. All parties, even people of top powers, arrived. This place quickly became full of people. Although there were many relics on the hill, strong cultivators used to come here separately instead of converging here at the same time. This grand occasion was absolutely rare.


    Gathering around the statues, many eyes fell on Ye Futian. They kept pointing and commenting. Ye Futian chose to ignore them. The witch Gu Biyue sat beside him. She was waiting for everything that would happen with some anticipation. She would like to see whether Ye Futian could bear it or not.

 197 Fanatic

    Chapter 197: Fanatic


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    These days, other than cultivating, Ye Futian also learned a lot about the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory. There were three most powerful forces in the center of the region: the Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and the Eastern Barren College. The Qin Dynasty was also called the Eastern Qin. It had once ruled over the Eastern Barren Territory but then dissolved. The other forces rose up, creating the current situation.


    Even so, the other kingdoms still made obeisance to the Qin Dynasty. It ruled over various kings and was extremely powerful. It was above the other kingdom in the Eastern Barren Territory��the Liu Kingdom��and resided in the best location.


    The Donghua Clan showed signs of becoming the number one clan in the Eastern Barren Territory. The signs were getting stronger in the recent years too.


    The Eastern Barren College was the number one college in the area. It had nurtured countless monstrously talented people. In the aspect of training disciples, the College was unsurpassed.


    These three had the longest heritage. The Qin Dynasty was a nation. Though the Donghua Clan was powerful, it wasn''t as good as the Eastern Barren College in training disciples. That was why Liu Chenyu recommended Ye Futian to join the College. It was undoubtedly the best choice. There had always been many rumors that many of the Noble figures in the top forces had all cultivated in the Eastern Barren College.


    Other than these top three heritage forces, the Fuyun Sword Clan was the best for swordsmanship. It was known as the orthodox. The Sword Saint Mountain was the best for the broadsword.


    The Fuyun Sword Clan and Sword Saint Mountain had been rivals for many years. When their disciples met, they would battle it out.


    Of course, the Liu Kingdom, Witch Clan, Royal Xuan Temple, Qianqiu Temple and others were powerful as well.


    Ye Futian had a general impression of these forces now.


    As the number of people on the Mirror Mountain increased, more people began discussing Ye Futian. Of course, many of them were just here for the show, some wanted drama, and a few were angry at Ye Futian for treating someone like Gu Biyue as a servant. Of course, there were still a tiny number who admired the Witch. People from some top forces also came but Ye Futian didn''t know them.


    "How can someone from a low plane take Gu Biyue as a servant? Where does he get the courage?" someone not far from Ye Futian said coldly. He was from a noble clan.


    "Apparently, it was because of a bet. Gu Biyue kept her word but he didn''t know his place and actually took her. He was so arrogant. He probably forgot his place," someone else said, mocking Ye Futian. In reality, they all knew that Ye Futian naturally better than the others if he could defeat Gu Biyue with music. However, they mocked him because they were jealous but also to stir up drama.


    "He has a noble ritual implement and earlier stole the fate of three powerful cultivators of the Fuyun Sword Clan, including Eighth-level Mu Yunhe," someone said.


    "Ritual implements are just outside strength. People of the top forces do not need it. Plus, even if with a ritual implement, would he be able to defeat the true strong cultivators of the Witch Clan and Fuyun Sword Clan?"


    Hearing this, many people nodded. Ye Futian was talented, especially in music and spiritual will, but he was still too shameless. He had robbed Fuyun cultivators of their fates and made Gu Biyue his servant. Just as Gu Biyue had said, could he handle it?


    As more and more people started talking, Ye Futian grew annoyed. Couldn''t they let him cultivate in peace?


    "Gu Biyue," he called. The girl looked at him and he said, "Get rid of all those people discussing me. I don''t want to see them."


    Gu Biyue blinked in shock. These people were mostly feeling angry for her but Ye Futian told her to chase them away�� She stood up sadly. Her white dress swaying, she walked over to the crowd. Everyone was surprised and glanced at Ye Futian. How could he be so shameless?


    "Please leave," Gu Biyue muttered. Being a servant was so sad.


    Everyone looked at the fairy-like figure before them and was speechless. They wouldn''t get angry at her, of course. Someone said, "Fairy Gu, why are you like this? He doesn''t qualify to treat you like this."


    "Since I agreed, I must fulfill my duties," Gu Biyue said pitifully.


    Seeing her like this, many people were dazed. They felt even more furious and glared at Ye Futian. Someone said coldly, "Do you dare fight me?"


    "Hurry up," Ye Futian chastised Gu Biyue, ignoring them. This servant was out of line and even tried tempting men. He should teach her a lesson.


    "Okay." Gu Biyue nodded while feeling wronged. She released her powerful aura and the people before her became even more furious. They couldn''t resent Gu Biyue; they just hated Ye Futian more and left angrily. They didn''t forget to insult Ye Futian for being so shameless and hide behind a woman while still making her his servant.


    Liu Chenyu watched him from afar. She didn''t know what Ye Futian was thinking. The Witch was doing her job but still setting traps for him. Many people were already angry and now it was building up. It would explode someday.


    He really didn''t worry about getting into a mess.


    What made Liu Chenyu speechless was that he could still cultivate peacefully. He didn''t care at all.


    The people of the top forces arrived gradually. The Fuyun Sword Clan was the most eye-catching. As soon as she saw them, Liu Chenyu got closer to Ye Futian''s group. However, the Fuyun Sword Clan seemed very nonchalant. They waited quietly and didn''t hurry to deal with Ye Futian. They clearly knew Ye Wuchen was difficult; Mu Yunhe was the example. Liu Chenyu was present too.


    The Royal Xuan Temple and Sword Saint Mountain arrived too. Some of them knew Ye Futian''s group and Loulan Xue. Earlier, they were there when the prides of the four top forces had gone to the Loulan Relic for the trial. They''d used the relic as a battleground to test their skills.


    It was in that relic where Li Daoyun took Ye Wuchen''s arm and started the rivalry. No one expected that they would come to Mirror Mountain and challenge the Fuyun Sword Clan so daringly.


    They were surprised to see the Virgin Loulan Xue of Ancient Loulan here too.


    At that moment, a few monks walked to the peak of the mountain, attracting much attention. They were from the Qianqiu Temple. There was another group beside them. They had extraordinary auras and were extremely confident.


    The Donghua Clan. Many people were surprised. They didn''t think the Mirror Mountain would be so lively that even the Donghua Clan was attracted.


    They were close to the number one clan in the Eastern Barren Territory. They were very powerful and all their disciples were talented. The leader scanned the crowd as if trying to size them up. Then his gaze fell upon Gu Biyue. They had met several times before. This attractive and powerful woman was now someone''s servant. Then he looked beside her to Ye Futian. He walked straight over there. The monks of the Qianqiu Temple also walked towards the crowd.


    "Hua Qingchi of the Donghua Clan." Everyone looked at him. He was well-known amongst the younger generation of the Eastern Barren Territory. Plus, he was from the Donghua Clan. A few moments later, he walked over to the battle drums. Gazing at Ye Futian, he asked, "I heard that some fanatics arrived at the Mirror Mountain. Is it you all?"


    Ye Futian looked up at Hua Qingchi and then to Gu Biyue.


    "I can''t handle the Donghua Clan," Gu Biyue replied with a smile. It wasn''t that she didn''t want to fulfill her duties.


    Ye Futian had heard that the Donghua Clan seemed to be the number one clan. He glanced at Hua Qingchi and asked, "Yes?"


    "I don''t mind if people are arrogant but you must be skilled," Hua Qingchi said. "You defeated Gu Biyue in the relic and made her your servant. Now, there are people from more forces present. Your plane is too low, and you clearly lack true ability. Why don''t we challenge each other here? If you are talented enough, the Donghua Clan can consider accepting you." He had a high status in the Donghua Clan and could say something like that. Many people were shocked. If Ye Futian joined them, even the Fuyun Sword Clan would be powerless.


    Of course, there were people from many top forces here. It wouldn''t be easy to win in this fight.


    "Do you really think that you are number one in the Eastern Barren Territory?" a mocking voice said at this time. Everyone looked to see another person walk over.


    He was alone and was very handsome. He wore all white and his long hair was swept up under a crown. He walked with his hands behind his back and stood out from the crowd.


    The College has come too. Everyone was shocked.


    He had come.


    Hua Qingchi had proposed for everyone to challenge Ye Futian and test his talent so he could consider accepting Ye Futian as a disciple. He was proud as if the Donghua Clan really was number one.


    "What, the College is interested too?" Hua Qingchi smiled at the newcomer. He obviously knew who it was; he was very famous.


    The man from the College glanced at Ye Futian. "I heard that he''s quite talented but is too overconfident. He doesn''t have high cultivation but is so shameless. I don''t like people who act above their level. The College doesn''t lack fanatics and also doesn''t accept idiots."


    The man spoke straightforwardly. The College didn''t lack fanatics because he was one!

 198 Choosing Clans

    Chapter 198: Choosing Clans


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Eastern Barren College was the college with the longest history in Eastern Barren Territory. It was undoubtedly the representative of all colleges in Eastern Barren Territory. The college taught all kinds of students, including both proud and low-profile cultivators as well as fanatics. Certainly, one must be capable enough to gain the title of fanatic. Otherwise, even those top talents could barely be called fanatics in the college.


    Tang Ye was a famous fanatic among the juniors in the college. He would do whatever he wanted without concerns. He didn''t know Ye Futian but had heard his stories along the way. He didn''t care about what he said so he even said some rude words. However, Tang Ye didn''t mind that. It was Ye Futian''s ability to win over Gu Biyue but it was stupid for him to take Gu Biyue as his maid. That was not something he could afford.


    Among the peers from the Eastern Barren Territory, he didn''t admire many but that witch from the Witch Clan was one of them. Tang Ye was so capricious and wild that there few people could be compared with him. But as fate would have it, Tang Ye saw Gu Biyue as his sister.


    If he was in the Ancient Barren World and knew Ye Futian had taken Gu Biyue as his maid, he would have killed him immediately. In his mind, Ye Futian was just a clown who knew nothing about the situation but thought himself mighty.


    There had never been a shortage of geniuses in the Eastern Barren Territory. He came here today for a true genius. Not only he, but Donghua Clan and Qianqiu Temple all came for this guy. As for Ye Futian, Tang Ye just happened to hear about him on the way.


    The people looked at Tang Ye. What he had said was very straightforward but that was just what he was like. Yu Sheng cracked his knuckles and looked at Tang Ye coldly. Looking at Tang Ye, Liu Chenyu frowned. How did the conflict become so intense?


    The college was seldom interested in such trifles. From his attitude, it could be inferred that Tang Ye was not here for Ye Futian. It was impossible for him to be here just for humiliating Ye Futian, wasn''t it? This was clearly not Tang Ye''s style.


    Seeing the coldness in Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen''s eyes, Liu Chenyu walked to them and whispered, "He is Tang Ye from the Eastern Barren College. You can''t deal with him."


    "He''s from the Eastern Barren College?" Ye Futian murmured. "He is right. The mad and the stupid are very close. Many people think they are fanatics, but they are just some self-righteous idiots."


    "Oh?" Beside him, Gu Biyue smiled. Then was Tang Ye of the Eastern Barren College the fanatic or Ye Futian?


    Liu Chenyu rolled her eyes. This was the woman''s trap for Ye Futian. Ye Futian was in trouble but it was his fault. He was too impulsive.


    At this time, some people walked here from the stairs. They were from two powers and all emanated a special temperament with a confrontational intention. Moreover, the two leaders both had faint noble fate.


    "Brother." Liu Chenyu was a little shocked at the sight of the man at the left side. That man was her brother, Liu Feiyang. Her brother should be in the outside world but why was he here in the Eastern Barren Territory? She also recognized the man on the right side of her brother. That man was from the Qin Dynasty. Seeing them appear, the people at the top of the mountain seemed to realize something was wrong.


    The news that Ye Futian had taken the witch as his maid indeed caused a sensation but not to this extent. Were all the top forces coming? Ye Futian wasn''t that influential. Something else must be coming.


    Liu Feiyang saw Liu Chenyu too. He walked to her.


    "What happened?" Liu Chenyu asked. Apparently, she had guessed that there was something important happening or there would not be so many strong people gathered here.


    "He is about to pick the clan," Liu Feiyang responded. He was very curious whether he would choose the College or the Donghua Clan.


    "He?" Liu Chenyu blinked and thought of someone. The guess stunned her.


    Liu Feiyang said that man was going to pick the clan, not that the clans would pick him. This meant that this man''s gift was strong enough to select the top forces.


    Liu Chenyu instantly knew who her brother was referring to. Among those young top talents in the Eastern Barren Territory, only one legendary person had not joined any force yet. Xiao Wuji was a legendary junior in the Eastern Barren Territory who didn''t belong to any clans but could be compared with those strongest cultivators. In the Ancient Barren World, he defeated many top talents and achieved achievements that many people didn''t. His records were still kept in many relics.


    That was why he was so famous even though he hadn''t come to the Mirror Mountain and shown his gift in front of the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. No elder had even seen him before but he was already known to all in the Eastern Barren Territory. All top powers sent invitations to him but he still hadn''t announced which clan he was going to join. But now, was he going to make the decision?


    "Who are you talking about?" asked Ye Wuchen.


    "We are talking about Xiao Wuji, who had left his deeds in the Ancient Barren World. The Mirror Mountain is the only place he hasn''t been to and now he will come here to pick clans." Liu Chenyu looked at Ye Wuchen meaningfully. She didn''t believe it when Ye Wuchen said there was no one stronger than Ye Futian and Yu Sheng though they were very outstanding. But in the Eastern Barren Territory, there were even stronger cultivators in the top powers, such as the College, the Donghua Clan, and the Witch Clan. Xiao Wuji was among them. Not many were qualified to pick clans here but Xiao Wuji could.


    Moreover, he had competed with people of all powers when he was in the Ancient Barren World. He had conflicts with all the powers but they still all came, wanting him to join them.


    Liu Feiyang looked up to Ye Futian''s group He had heard about the news. Liu Chenyu still introduced them to her brother. Liu Feiyang nodded to them and said, "If interested, join us."


    Ye Futian could tell that Liu Feiyang was not so interested in them. What he said was just a casual offer. Though Ye Futian''s group was very strong, they were not so outstanding when compared with Xiao Wuji. Naturally, Liu Feiyang was not very interested.


    "Even the Moon Clan''s here. Are they going to enroll a male disciple?" Liu Feiyang saw a group of women appear at the top of the mountain. These women were all beautiful, like fairies. They were the disciples of the only female clan among the top powers of the Eastern Barren Territory. The Moon Clan only accepted female disciples. Xiao Wuji''s choice had nothing to do with Moon Clan but they still came.


    Accompanied by the arrival of the top forces, people on the mountaintop began to realize that Ye Futian and the Witch were not the reason for those strong cultivators'' arrival. It was Xiao Wuji. Many people were guessing which clan Xiao Wuji would pick. As for Ye Futian and Gu Biyue, their news was forgotten by people at this moment


    "All powers are here now." Hua Qingchi of Donghua Clan smiled then looked at Ye Futian, "What do you think of my suggestion? Would you like to challenge people of all powers? You might get the chance to join the Donghua Clan."


    Hua Qingchi thought that it would also be a good idea to enroll several talents before Xiao Wuji arrived. When Xiao Wuji came, then he would fight with all his might.


    "No," Ye Futian said with a smile. Make him challenge people so that he could have the chance to join the Donghua Clan while Xiao Wuji could pick any clan he wanted? There was such a big difference. If he agreed with Hua Qingchi, he''d have no dignity left. After the Barren City, he''d come straight to the Mirror Mountain to pick clans. Today, he would witness someone else make the same choice. It was interesting to him.


    "If you miss the chance, you might never get another chance." Hua Qingchi smiled. Ye Futian''s refusal was not something shameful to him. The Donghua clan was becoming the top clan of the Eastern Barren Territory. They didn''t accept anyone, even if others wanted him.


    "It''s alright." Ye Futian smiled lightly. If the chance was missed, he might never get another chance? Ye Futian agreed with that.


    Countless people arrived at the top of the Mirror Mountain after hearing the news. At this time, some other people of the Fuyun Sword Clan also arrived. One in the group glared directly at Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian as he arrived. Step after step, he walked over to somewhere near Ye Futian''s group. His eyes were like sharp swords.


    It was Li Daoyun of the Fuyun Sword Clan, the man they met in the Loulan Relic. The man looked at Ye Wuchen''s lost arm and said coldly, "It seems that losing one arm is not enough."


    When rushing into the imperial palace of Loulan Kingdom, Li Daoyun was very arrogant and aggressive. Obviously, he didn''t expect that Ye Wuchen''s group dared to come here so soon.


    "Li Daoyun from the Fuyun Sword Clan," Ye Futian said. This was how Li Daoyun responded when he asked Li Daoyun at the Loulan Relic.


    Hearing his words, Li Daoyun looked at him with eyes sharp as daggers.


    "You finally came." Ye Futian smiled brilliantly as if he had been waiting for Li Daoyun to come here.


    Li Daoyun halted and then smiled too, coldly. "Yes, I came. So, are you ready?"


    He glanced at Liu Chenyu and Liu Feiyang and went back to the Fuyun Sword Clan. He wasn''t in a hurry.


    So many people of top powers gathered here not to see how he would deal with Ye Futian but to wait for someone. He would only kill Ye Futian after that!

 199 Xiao Wuji

    Chapter 199: Xiao Wuji


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The disciples of all the top forces were grouped at the top of Mirror Mountain. While this scene wasn''t unprecedented, it was still rare. Many people were excited. They didn''t expect to see so many top talents today. Quite a few they''d only heard about before. It was the first time seeing them in person. They would see Xiao Wuji later too. That was the one who was equal to the truly monstrously talented ones in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The various forces had spells on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall so they could see what was happening. Xiao Wuji chose this place because it was probably his last time coming to the Ancient Barren World. He probably would not come anymore.


    Ye Futian''s group also waited. They were curious about what kind of person could cause such a commotion.


    Countless eyes looked at the stairs. Lin Yueyao looked and then glanced at Ye Futian. Ever since knowing him, he was always the most eye-catching one. It was rare to see him like this��overlooked by others while someone else was in the spotlight.


    Would Ye Futian still show his brilliant talent this time?


    ��


    Finally, someone climbed the steps. He looked average but as soon as he appeared, he became the star. Everyone''s gazes were fixed on him. He walked slowly but each step was at a different time. His rhythm was very strange. His black hair hung carelessly over his shoulders and there was no expression on those chiseled features. However, on his average face, his eyes were extremely deep. He could swallow everyone''s gazes.


    Xiao Wuji. The people all looked over at him but no one invited him.


    Since Xiao Wuji would choose a clan at the mountaintop, he would definitely do something. The people could only wait and see. Thus, the vast region on the mountaintop quieted down. Only Xiao Wuji''s footsteps sounded.


    He gazed around��not at the crowd but at the various relics. Then he started walking somewhere. The direction he chose was where Ye Futian was. He obviously wasn''t going for Ye Futian but for the statues. Many people moved aside subconsciously, emptying the area. However, Ye Futian''s group didn''t move.


    "Move," a cold and domineering voice said. It was Tang Ye from the College. He gazed at Ye Futian''s group with undisguised disdain. Just as he''d said before, he really didn''t like Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng looked coldly at Tang Ye but Ye Futian didn''t seem to mind. He gestured at them to move and walked voluntarily to the side. Yu Sheng looked at him in confusion.


    "Just watch," Ye Futian said nonchalantly. He watched the man walking to the flame statue. He was curious how powerful this man could be if all the top forces were waiting.


    Would he be qualified to compete?


    It was not only Ye Futian. Everyone looked quietly at Xiao Wuji. He seemed to want to test the relics here.


    Terrifying flame intent seemed to shoot out of Xiao Wuji''s deep eyes, falling on the statue. Then he closed his eyes and felt for it quietly. After some time, strands of fire stretched from the statue to Xiao Wuji, gradually enveloping him.


    Is he going to get to that point? Everyone''s hearts trembled, especially those who had tried the statue. They knew how difficult it was to get to this point but Xiao Wuji did it so quickly.


    Xiao Wuji''s body seemed to burn. Various maple leaf prints appeared and then swallowed his entire body. Endless flame intent swept over him, bathing him in firelight. His body flashed and walked directly into the flame statue. His entire body seemed to fuse into it. He sat inside, sensing the statue''s intent strength.


    As expected of Xiao Wuji. The audience''s heart trembled. As expected, he used an extremely short time to reach this step even though it was his first try.


    Ye Futian was calm and he watched quietly. Xiao Wuji was so reputable and his talent was undeniable. Very few present could perform this well. Of course, Ye Futian was an exception. He wanted to see how far Xiao Wuji could go.


    Xiao Wuji studied inside for a long time and everyone waited quietly with no complaints. He was destined to become one of the top cultivators in the Eastern Barren Territory. They might be able to see him now but after some years, most of them would only be able to look up at him.


    After a long while, Xiao Wuji separated from the statue. There were faint maple marks on him. He''d finished with this statue. He moved towards the ice statue beside the flame one. He radiated with an icy aura and his eyes seemed covered in frost. A similar scene unfolded. He felt for the statue and then went in to cultivate. After a while, he walked to the golden statue beside it. It looked like a statue made of gold. To Xiao Wuji, it made no difference.


    "Is he a Full-Attribute?" Ye Futian murmured.


    "Yes," Liu Chenyu nodded. "Xiao Wuji is a Full-Attribute Mandate Sorcerer, including spiritual sorcery."


    "Not many in the Eastern Barren Territory are like this," Liu Feiyang murmured. "Sadly, he probably won''t choose our kingdom." The Liu Kingdom had no advantages compared to the other forces. In power, they weren''t as strong as the Qin Dynasty. In other aspects, they weren''t as attractive as the Donghua Clan or College. Thus, Liu Feiyang didn''t have much hope. He predicted that Xiao Wuji would choose between the Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, or the College.


    "You''ve comprehended before these statues for quite some time. It seems that there''s a big difference," Gu Biyue said with a smile.


    Ye Futian gazed her indifferently. He didn''t feel anything towards her smile and beauty. "Servants shouldn''t speak so much. If you keep doing this, I''ll sell you," he said coolly.


    The Witch''s smile froze and she stared at Ye Futian in resentment. Could she be sold?


    Ye Futian ignored her. He continued watching quietly. After the three statues, Xiao Wuji seemed to lose interest and left the region.


    Everyone''s eyes moved with him.


    Xiao Wuji walked to a big boulder. The stone was very strange; it glowed faintly. The entire stone was like a huge mirror with illusory light. Many figures were carved on the surface. They were all engraved into the stone with different depths.


    It was the Image on the Wall.


    Standing before the stone, you could feel the powerful intent power within it. The more talented someone was, the deeper one''s image could be. The images on the stone had all been left by others. The deepest one was seven inches. It seemed ingrained in the stone.


    Xiao Wuji stood before the stone. A strange power engulfed them. Then they saw him walk forward. He seemed to walk into the stone with every step. An image was branded onto the stone and kept deepening.


    One inch, two inches��Xiao Wuji''s movement gradually slowed. A terrifying power pressed down on him but he continued forward. The image grew even deeper. Finally, the image was eight inches deep and Xiao Wuji finally stopped.


    Eight inches. Another record.


    Everyone stared at Xiao Wuji in shock. He''d left an eight-inch deep image. He seemed to be a miracle created just to break all records.


    Next, Xiao Wuji walked to the battle drum area. He raised his hand and beat the drum. There was a boom that shook the world.


    That moment, Xiao Wuji seemed to understand it. His hands kept banging on the drum. The booms sounded continuously, lifting a shocking wave.


    The drum beat seven times before finally stopping. Then there was an eighth and ninth boom. A windstorm swept through the sky and the drum beat in everyone''s ears. This was something many people couldn''t do no matter how they tried. But to Xiao Wuji, it was insignificant.


    So scary. Many hearts trembled. They had to take a long time with any of these relics here but it seemed so easy for Xiao Wuji.


    He seemed to lose interest again. Leaving this relic, he walked to the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    This was the final point.


    How many noble images could Xiao Wuji create on the wall?


    The crowd watched as he closed his eyes. The next moment, a horrible fate rose up behind him. It transformed into various colors and bloomed wildly. At that moment, everyone stared, fixated on the image and the brilliant fate.


    Xiao Wuji had comprehended many noble intents. They were all independent and this noble fate was of the upper level.


    "Unparalleled in the Ancient Barren World," Tang Ye said as he looked at Xiao Wuji''s noble fate. Even many with upper-level noble fate couldn''t comprehend so many different intents like him.


    If he could choose the College, those old guys would definitely fight for him.


    To Tang Ye, it was highly possible Xiao Wuji would choose him. That was because he was from the College.


    At that moment, many noble figures of the Eastern Barren Territory used a magical mirror to show one figure.


    That figure was Xiao Wuji. At the same time, they also saw the scene at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. They were all interested!

 200 Surpassed by None?

    Chapter 200: Surpassed by None?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    All cultivators of the Noble Plane in the Eastern Barren Territory had heard of Xiao Wuji''s name. The disciples had told them many times about this man who''d broken many records in the Ancient Barren World.


    But the first time they met Xiao Wuji was at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    Naturally, all forces were interested in someone who was known as the most talented of the young cultivators in the Eastern Barren Territory. No one knew who he would choose.


    Now, all eyes were on Xiao Wuji at the top of Mirror Mountain. The horrible fate, hundreds of meters high, rushed into the Stone Wall. Then the wall turned transparent. A strange glow covered Xiao Wuji.


    "What''s inside the Stone Wall?" Ye Futian asked Ye Wuchen out of curiosity. He''d heard that only Ye Wuchen had tried the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall before.


    "There''s a figure created by noble intent. It clashes and fights with your own intent," Ye Wuchen said. "And it gets stronger. Whenever it defeats a Noble, a new one will appear on the wall."


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. Ye Wuchen had defeated two Nobles and failed with the third one. This meant that two Nobles appeared on the Stone Wall. How many Nobles could Xiao Wuji put onto the wall?


    Soon, a Noble appeared on the smooth mirror-like wall, representing Xiao Wuji''s accomplishments.


    So fast, everyone thought. Clearly, Xiao Wuji had defeated the opponent with extreme speed.


    After a while, a second Noble gradually appeared. Everyone grew anticipatory. With the Nobles of the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, it grew more difficult as it progressed. It was already difficult to make two appear. Only the top figures could make a third appear. As for four, only the most crazily talented ones of the Eastern Barren Territory could do it.


    How many could Xiao Wuji make appear?


    Gradually, a third Noble flickered onto the Stone Wall. It glowed but wasn''t solid yet before a terrifying glow enveloped Xiao Wuji. His black hair fluttered and he stood up straight. The Noble figure on the Stone Wall trembled before finally solidifying. The moment that happened, a horrible light rushed into Xiao Wuji''s body.


    According to rumors, when the third Noble was imprinted onto the Stone Wall, the challenger could receive great benefits. It was the feedback from the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. Xiao Wuji must have received it.


    After that, an even more terrifying light enveloped Xiao Wuji. He seemed to be trying again. A fourth Noble figure flickered in and out. It was about to be carved onto the wall and something frightening appeared. At that moment, Xiao Wuji seemed to be enduring horrible pressure. His body started trembling. One could guess as to how terrifying the Stone Wall was.


    There were many people present but few had completed three Noble figures. They''d experienced this scene before and understood what Xiao Wuji was going through.


    Finally, under that horrible sight, a fourth statue appeared. It was branded onto the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. An even more dazzling light washed over Xiao Wuji. His entire body shone brightly and brilliantly.


    The fourth Noble. Everyone''s hearts trembled. This was the record of the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. Only the best of the best had done this before and no one had surpassed them.


    So powerful. The people were shaken but Xiao Wuji continued to challenge. The situation at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall couldn''t be described as only "frightening" now. The strange phenomenon filled the sky, drowning everything. Xiao Wuji''s mind was bearing incomprehensible pressure. Finally, there was a muffled sound and he retreated. He couldn''t continue challenging.


    The Mirror Mountain Stone Wall shone brilliantly and gradually dimmed. The Noble figures also disappeared gradually. Even though he had failed, no one looked down on him. They were all impressed.


    He''d beat nine drums, left an eight-inch Image on the Wall, and easily comprehended three statues. If he continued, he could do even more. At the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, he''d tied the record, making four Noble images appear on the wall. This record was so amazing. He could be compared to any top figure without seeming weaker. In fact, he seemed even better.


    "Wow," Ye Futian praised as well. Xiao Wuji was incredible. He didn''t know about the others but Ye Wuchen could only make two images appear on the wall. Xiao Wuji had done four. It was obvious how powerful he was. This was possibly also related to cultivation. Ye Wuchen was skilled with the sword but Xiao Wuji was a Full Attribute Sorcerer. He had various types of noble intent and would naturally hold advantages while challenging. Even so, the talent Xiao Wuji displayed was already impressive enough. No wonder the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory all came for him.


    The Witch Gu Biyue grinned at Ye Futian. Her senior brother was no weaker than Xiao Wuji. He was the type of talent that could command the skies and earth.


    "The fifth Noble will probably never appear on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall," Xiao Wuji sighed. He turned slowly and looked at everyone. This was both his first and last visit to the top of the mountain. After this, he would choose a clan to join and try for the Arcana Plane.


    Will he choose a clan now? Everyone''s eyes flashed in anticipation.


    "Xiao Wuji, would you like to join the Royal Xuan Temple? We will definitely give you the best treatment," a cultivator from the Royal Xuan Temple said. Even though they weren''t the most powerful, Xiao Wuji would be the center of attention if he joined. This was beneficial to him.


    The other groups all started speaking. However, the Fuyun Sword Clan, the Sword Saint Mountain, and Qianqiu Temple were Buddhist clans. The Moon Clan was female-only. Many guessed that Xiao Wuji most likely would only choose between the Donghua Clan and College. However, these two forces didn''t hurriedly invite him.


    "Xiao Wuji, if you join the Qin Dynasty, we will allow a princess to marry you," a prince of the Qin Dynasty said. Many hearts shook. The Qin Dynasty was so aggressive. In order to get this talent, they were willing to make a princess marry below her class.


    This way, Xiao Wuji wouldn''t have to worry about his status in the Qin Dynasty. He would be part of the royalty. This was to remove his concerns.


    "The Donghua Clan is most suitable for your cultivation," Hua Qingchi said.


    "I am from the College," Tang Ye said now. He spoke slowly. "The College extends an invitation to you."


    Everyone was shaken. Was this the College''s confidence?


    I am from the College. What kind of confidence was this?


    Countless eyes fell upon Xiao Wuji. What would he choose?


    Xiao Wuji gazed at everyone and slowly said, "I choose the College." There was no hesitation in his voice. He chose the College. Clearly, he''d already decided beforehand. This was why the College was confident. They didn''t have to say much. Tang Ye only said that he was from the College and invited Xiao Wuji.


    Now, Xiao Wuji agreed. Another top cultivator belonged to the College.


    A smile appeared in Tang Ye''s eyes. He said, "Welcome." Today, he came for Xiao Wuji and the visit was not wasted. Being able to witness this scene was indeed something to be happy about.


    The other forces all looked disappointed. Of course, the Donghua Clan was the most disappointed. After all, they were the top contenders with the College. But this was Xiao Wuji''s own choice. No one had forced him so they could only accept it.


    "Shall we go straight to the College?" Tang Ye asked.


    "Okay." Xiao Wuji nodded. He''d already prepared when he came.


    "Then, let''s go." Smiling brightly, Tang Ye said, "After you."


    Xiao Wuji strode forward. Everyone subconsciously moved aside. They watched Xiao Wuji and Tang Ye leave together. The two walked to the edge of the Mirror Mountain and down the steps. Tang Ye had come for Xiao Wuji. Now, he left in satisfaction and there were no other problems.


    Hua Qingchi of Donghua Clan looked disappointed. He glanced at Ye Futian''s group and left too. They''d given Ye Futian a chance before. Since Ye Futian didn''t want them, then whatever.


    The Sword Saint Mountain, Qianqiu Temple, and Moon Clan all left as well, disinterested.


    They''d all come for Xiao Wuji today.


    However, the Fuyun Sword Clan didn''t leave. Li Doayun''s expression was sharp as he looked to Ye Futian''s group. He wasn''t in a hurry. He''d wait for everyone to leave. In his eyes, Ye Futian was already dead.


    As if a banquet had ended, many people looked dazed and at a loss.


    "It was so great," Gu Biyue said cheerily.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian smiled. Then he started walking somewhere. Gu Biyue was confused. Where was he going?


    Ye Futian wordlessly walked to the battle drums, standing before the nine drums.


    Boom. The first beat was soft. Everyone''s eyes flashed at the sound and looked to Ye Futian. With Xiao Wuji''s performance, did someone else want to try? It would be so boring in comparison.


    Boom�� The second beat came. Even though everyone heard it, there was still no feeling.


    Boom, boom, boom! The third, fourth, and fifth beat came. The air started shaking as the beats became louder.


    Many people of the top forces were going down the steps beside Mirror Mountain. Hearing the drumbeats coming from the mountaintop, they were all shocked. Was someone still beating the drums?


    They paid no heed and continued descending.


    Boom, boom! Then the sixth and seventh beats came like thunder.


    On the stairs, Tang Ye smiled at Xiao Wuji. "I wonder who is trying to compete with you?"


    Boom. With the eighth beat, the air shook crazily as if struck with lightning.


    At the mountaintop, many people looked at Ye Futian. At the moment, his white robes fluttered and his long hair flew. Without stopping, he punched like a dragon. His fist beat onto the drum; the drumbeat was like a dragon''s cry.


    Boom! The skies and earth shook together as the drum sounded for the ninth time. The scenery changed. Everyone at the mountaintop looked at Ye Futian, impressed. He was indeed talented.


    Tang Ye and the others on the steps heard this too. They paused slightly but smiled and continued down.


    Nine drumbeats were nice but not amazing.


    Standing before the battle drum, Ye Futian''s clothing and hair flew in the wind. He raised his arm once again!

 201 Those Who Know Me Understand My Arrogance

    Chapter 201: Those Who Know Me Understand My Arrogance


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the top of the Mirror Mountain, countless eyes looked at Ye Futian, watching as he raised his arm once again. The nine battle drums had sounded at once, shaking the skies and earth. What was he doing now? This time, Ye Futian''s heart was as calm as still water. Powerful strength swept from the drums, rushing into his body. The intent power was terrifying.


    He could cultivate with this.


    Yu Sheng''s noble intent had changed here, turning into mid-level noble fate.


    Ye Futian raised his arm again. Purple lightning cracked terrifyingly above and melded into the intent fate. A dragon''s roar streamed faintly from his arm.


    Under everyone''s eyes, Ye Futian''s arm went to the drum. The drum sounded again.


    Boom! With that thunderous crack, the battle drum became one with the intent. In the sky, a dragon roared and lightning danced. It turned into a horrible thunderstorm that swept through the sky.


    The sky turned into a world of lightning and thunder dragons danced. Under this terrifying phenomenon, frightening lightning charged into Ye Futian''s body. It bathed him, turning him into a god of thunder. The drums had sounded ten times. Thunder and lightning had appeared.


    On the steps, those that were descending stopped. They looked up and saw a crack of lightning flash in the sky.


    Tang Ye stopped again. Seeing the phenomenon, he finally lost his cool. Who could make the drums beat ten times? In addition to Tang Ye, many people stopped, trembling inwardly. Even Xiao Wuji was shocked by this scene. The tenth boom was louder than the previous nine.


    The lightning faded slowly but the drum''s boom still resounded throughout. At the mountaintop, everyone''s expressions grew heavy. They gazed in the direction of the battle drums, staring at the white-clothed figure. Lightning washed over him and he seemed to be withstanding horrible pressure. His body was about to explode, his consciousness extinguishing.


    But he stood up straight as if he would never fall down.


    The drums quieted. But once the sound dissipated, it would begin again.


    Under everyone''s eyes, Ye Futian raised his arm once again. This was the eleventh time.


    Many hearts trembled at this moment.


    There was no longer lightning on Ye Futian''s arms. Instead, it glowed brilliantly with golden light. He seemed to transform into a Golden Roc. Horrible intent rushed in and then his arm went to the battle drum.


    Boom!


    The nine sides sounded at once. It was like a tidal wave crashing. Golden light shot up into the clouds. Another phenomenon was created; there seemed to be a Golden Roc spiral up.


    This sound beat directly in the hearts of many.


    The eleventh time.


    Princess Liu Chenyu and Gu Biyue stared at the proud figure standing there. At that moment, he seemed to have become someone else. Just like when he played his guqin, he was like a powerful emperor.


    Which was the true him��the him right now or the flirtatious one?


    Liu Chenyu thought of what Ye Wuchen had said and had a strange feeling. Mayhap�� She still couldn''t believe it but the battle drums had really been beaten before her eyes.


    Lin Yueyao gazed at Ye Futian. Was this guy finally starting? As expected, those who had looked down on him would finally see what he was truly like.


    In the Fuyun crowd, Li Daoyun''s eyes instantly sharpened. What was Ye Futian doing? Was he copying Xiao Wuji to join a top force?


    On the steps, Tang Ye looked to Xiao Wuji, who looked back at him.


    "Go look?" Tang Ye asked.


    Xiao Wuji nodded. They turned and strode upwards quickly. Not only them, many others also returned to the mountaintop. When they reached the top and stood at the edge of the Mirror Mountain, they saw the figure clearly. He was bathed in endless golden light and his body was about to be ripped apart and drowned in the windstorm. However, they could see who he was.


    It was Ye Futian��the one who didn''t value the opportunity Hua Qingchi gave him. The one Tang Ye had said was a fanatic and idiot.


    Hua Qingchi and Tang Ye were both shocked. How could it be him?


    The people from the Qin Dynasty and Royal Xuan Temple were shocked and stunned as well. They''d vaguely heard about this person before. He''d robbed the Fuyun Sword Clan cultivators of their fates and defeated Gu Biyue in musical sorcery, taking her in as a servant. His talent was stronger than expected. Could they have an unexpected result?


    At that time, they saw Ye Futian raise his arm again. He was going to hit the drum again. Even with the horrible attack earlier, he still didn''t give up.


    At that time, Ye Futian clearly felt the terrifying feeling of his intent pouring out. At the same time, he realized how frightening it was to be bathed in this intent power.


    The nine drums could sound nine times but after that was the true essence.


    At the peak of the Mirror Mountain, very few people could beat the battle drums nine times. Those were the rare talents. Those who can hit more were extreme talents who had to endure unimaginable pressure, including Yu Sheng. Everyone also believed that nine strikes were perfection.


    With this misunderstanding, who would continue with the tenth strike? Who could complete the tenth strike?


    As strong as he was, he could clearly feel the ripping feeling. He had to bear unbelievable pressure with the tenth strike. The eleventh strike was about to destroy his intent. However, he still didn''t give up. He couldn''t give up. He had felt the great benefit and felt his intent transform.


    After the ninth strike, each boom was a storm of spiritual qi. Thus, he beat it a twelfth time. There was another boom of thunder. The skies and earth shook as one; everyone''s hearts trembled with the drums. This time, it was the flame intent.


    Thunder, gold, and fire. Everyone was shocked at how Ye Futian had already displayed so many elements. With each strike, he released a different element.


    Xiao Wuji was a Full-Attribute sorcerer. Was Ye Futian one too?


    The raging flame intent charged into Ye Futian''s body, trying to burn him. He protected himself with the emperor''s intent but was still under extreme pain. However, he remained standing.


    This was not only for cultivation. Why had he come to the Ancient Barren World? It was because his plane had been too low and he''d been too weak. Emperor Luo made him despair with just a command.


    He went to the Cangye Kingdom and was number one on the Fenghua Rank. Afterward, he performed brilliantly in the Tingfeng Banquet but Emperor Luo still wanted to kill him. Luo Junlin entered the Royal Xuan Temple and became so powerful. Coincidentally, the Ancient Barren World opened at that time. Thus, he came.


    He couldn''t wait.


    He stepped into the Ancient Barren World and kept advancing until he finally came to the Barren City and to the top of the Mirror Mountain. He wanted to prove himself here; he wanted to choose a top force to join.


    Only this way would Emperor Luo lose all qualifications to be arrogant. Luo Junlin would never be able to act proudly before him.


    At the mountaintop, he was absolutely confident in himself. He was only waiting for the right time. And now, with all the top forces present, was the right time. However, Hua Qingchi had told him that he would not have another chance after that. Tang Ye of the College had called him an idiot who didn''t know his place.


    In contrast, Xiao Wuji had shone and all the top forces had waited for him to choose a clan. He could choose any of the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Since that was the case, Ye Futian would tell them all who he was. He wanted them to see his brilliance. Who could break Xiao Wuji''s records? He could.


    He knew that everyone was watching him at this moment. Right now, his white robes fluttered and his long hair flew, complementing him.


    He raised his arm again and uttered, "Those who know me, understand my arrogance!" As soon as the words were spoken, the drums began to beat. The skies and earth shuddered and his sound waves swept through the heavens.


    Those who know me understand my arrogance!


    His voice swept through, reverberating in everyone''s ears, almost ingrained in their minds with the drumbeats. But this was still not the end.


    Ye Futian raised his arm again. "It is not a waste to abandon those who do not!"


    Boom! The atrium shook and a horrible windstorm blew on everyone''s bodies. It was so aggressive. Their clothes flapped while their hearts shook.


    That voice was too impressive.


    Those who know me understand my arrogance. It is not a waste to abandon those who do not.


    He was so arrogant and powerful. He was Ye Futian.


    Was it over? No. Under his raised arm, the drumbeats filled the sky. The entire world shook and the figure seemed to be eternal.


    Finally, as the sixteenth drumbeat sounded, a horrifying intent storm charged at Ye Futian. The nine drums trembled at the same time and some horrible intent poured into Ye Futian''s mind.


    Boom! With a huge sound, the first drum shattered.


    Boom, boom, boom��


    There were continuous explosions. Under their shocked gazes, the nine drums shattered one after another. Each explosion was heart-stopping. Finally, they shattered and turned to dust.


    Only that powerful figure remained standing. Light enveloped his body. At that moment, even Ye Futian''s backside was so magnificent.

 202 You Are Not Qualified to Understand My World

    Chapter 202: You Are Not Qualified to Understand My World


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The drums were cracked but the drumbeats continued reverberating throughout the air. Ye Futian''s crazy sound still echoed through the minds of many.


    At the top of Mirror Mountain, Xiao Wuji had chosen his clan. He stepped onto the mountain for the first time today and revealed unsurpassable talent. He could easily communicate with statues of various elements, leave an Image on the Wall, beat the nine drums, and make the Noble images appear.


    Ye Futian beat the drums after Xiao Wuji. To many, he was overestimating his own ability. With Xiao Wuji''s example, everyone would seem nondescript. They all thought that no one in the Ancient Barren World could have Xiao Wuji''s talent. The glory he created could not be broken in a long while.


    Was it true? Before Xiao Wuji even left, Ye Futian used his actions to tell everyone that Xiao Wuji was not unmatchable. He had beaten the drums 16 times and created an abnormal phenomenon, causing the drum''s intent to pour out and explode. The drums were now broken but the record was for eternity.


    This was a true record. Xiao Wuji''s record was able to be broken. Countless eyes looked at the silhouette. Ye Futian seemed to still be feeling the intent power pouring into him. His white robe fluttered without wind.


    Liu Chenyu had a strange look in her eyes. Servant? She glanced at Ye Wuchen beside her. He looked calm as if he didn''t find anything strange��as if this should happen. He must be completely confident, Liu Chenyu thought. Ye Wuchen believed that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s talent was above the top talent of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Ye Futian seemed to have proved Ye Wuchen''s words from before. At least now, he''d definitely surpassed Xiao Wuji.


    Liu Chenyu looked over slowly towards where Tang Ye and Xiao Wuji were at. Tang Ye, the wild student of the College, had a strange look in his eyes. Hua Qingche was the same.


    Those who understand me will understand my arrogance. What is wrong with abandoning those who do not understand me?


    Was this the reply to them? It was indeed wild enough.


    "You can continue after nine drumbeats. If you knew this, I''m sure you would do the same," Tang Ye said to Xiao Wuji beside him.


    Xiao Wuji glanced at the shattered battle drums. This was his first time to the Mirror Mountain and first time beating the drums. After the ninth sound, the drums on the nine sides sounded together. The intent poured out and everything seemed complete. He didn''t know one could continue. If he knew, he would have done so. How could he not do what the others could do?


    "Of course." Xiao Wuji nodded. This was confidence in his own abilities but the drums were broken so he couldn''t prove it. Everyone heard him and nodded. Ye Futian had impressed them but with Xiao Wuji''s talent, he could probably do it too. Finally, Ye Futian moved. He rose slowly and walked in another direction. Seeing him, many eyes flashed. He was walking towards the Image on the Wall. Xiao Wuji had broken the record here. Was he��


    Many people felt strange. Was this guy repeating Xiao Wuji''s steps? Was he serious? Did Ye Futian want to challenge Xiao Wuji? But that wasn''t his intention. He''d come to Mirror Mountain to choose a clan. Xiao Wuji had set the precedent so the easiest way for Ye Futian to reach his goal was to break Xiao Wuji''s records. If he did so, no one could doubt him.


    Of course, perhaps this was just Ye Futian''s excuse. His true reason was that he was pissed. He was pissed at Tang Ye''s attitude as well as Hua Qingche. Earlier, he didn''t refute the other. A vocal refutation meant nothing. What was stronger and simpler than actions?


    The Donghua Clan and College had ignored him because they were fighting for Xiao Wuji. If that was the case, then he had something to show them!


    The Image on the Wall shone faintly. The stone was like a mirror. At this moment, Ye Futian stood before a huge boulder. At the mountaintop, everyone stared at him. He became the sole focal point.


    In reality, he''d taken the Witch as a servant so many people came for him. However, Xiao Wuji came to choose a clan and instantly stole the spotlight. In everyone''s eyes, only Xiao Wuji existed. There was no room for anyone else. But now, Ye Futian once again was the center of attention.


    Could he break Xiao Wuji''s record at the Image on the Wall?


    The stone glowed dimly and enveloped Ye Futian''s body. At that moment, Ye Futian felt his intent get swallowed by the stone. That instant, Ye Futian felt countless intent, all from different strong cultivators. He picked up his feet and walked over. Instantly, countless intent flooded at him. He couldn''t endure the extreme pressure for a moment.


    One inch for the Image on the Wall. Outside, many people saw Ye Futian''s image appear, branded onto the stone.


    Ye Futian continued walking. Soon, the figure sank in two inches, three inches�� At that moment, Ye Futian seemed to understand something. With every step forward, the pressure grew stronger. Not only did the pressure come from the stone''s own intent, it also included the intent from people before.


    The stone tablet was very strange. If you wanted to leave an inch, you needed to face the intent of those who left an inch before. The further you went, the stronger the pressure. If you wanted to break the record, you had to overcome the intent everyone left in the Image on the Wall. That was why everyone who said that the deeper one''s image was, the more terrifying the talent. Breaking the record was like surpassing the power of everyone''s intent before him.


    Not too long later, Ye Futian''s image was seven inches.


    Many people''s hearts trembled and grew nervous involuntarily. The Witch Gu Biyue stared at Ye Futian without blinking. Seven inches was the record before Xiao Wuji. Now, Ye Futian had reached this step. How could he be so talented? It seemed that it wasn''t embarrassing to lose to him.


    This guy was indeed terrifying.


    Seven inches. One more step and he''ll be tied to Xiao Wuji. Everyone stared at Ye Futian. At this moment, he took another step. The stone tablet shone with frightening light as if endless intent flew violently at Ye Futian. But he didn''t budge at all. Gradually, his image on the wall was eight inches.


    He''d tied the record. He had once again done what Xiao Wuji had done.


    Tang Ye earlier said that Xiao Wuji was unparalleled in the Ancient Barren World. Was he really? Then what was the Ye Futian that he had embarrassed?


    Ye Futian didn''t show any sign of leaving either. He lifted his foot again and stepped forward. He was about to carve his body into the stone.


    Ye Futian''s image became nine inches.


    Xiao Wuji''s record was broken by Ye Futin within two hours. Everyone was speechless; they didn''t know what to say.


    Even Xiao Wuji''s eyes changed. He hadn''t tried his hardest with the Image on the Wall but Ye Futian had broken his record twice. It was already extremely frightening. Ye Futian was qualified to be seen at the same level as Xiao Wuji. He didn''t think that someone else could be so powerful and not belong to any top force.


    "Who is he?" Xiao Wuji asked Tang Ye. He rarely cared about others but he was interested in Ye Futian.


    "Ye Futian," Tang Ye replied.


    After the nine inches, Ye Futian stopped. It was enough to break the record. The stone tablet couldn''t help him gain anything substantial. So this was enough.


    Ye Futian walked away from the stone tablet. He returned to the statues area he''d been cultivating at. At this time, strands of sharp intent descended. The Fuyun Sword Clan walked over with Li Daoyun amongst them.


    They couldn''t let Ye Futian continue. He''d already broken two records. The other forces were all interested. However, the only force that Ye Futian wouldn''t join was the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Li Daoyun had chopped off Ye Wuchen''s arm. How could this hatred be dissolved?


    Seeing Li Daoyun walk over, Ye Wuchen and Loulan Xue walked before Ye Futian, blocking the Fuyun Sword Clan''s path. Liu Chenyu and Liu Feiyang also stepped forward, stopping the clan.


    Seeing that the Fuyun Sword Clan was about to act, the various forces all walked over, approaching the statues area.


    Tang Ye and Xiao Wuji walked closer too. Seeing Ye Futian stand before a flame statue, Tang Ye said, "Xiao Wuji already reached the limit in this area. It''s meaningless to communicate further. If you really want to compete, go prove yourself at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall."


    Tang Ye was clearly interested as well. He didn''t feel disdain like before.


    Ye Futian looked over with a strange expression. "Earlier, you said you don''t like how I act," he said. "But that''s your business. Now, I really don''t like you so please shut up about my business."


    Everyone''s eyes hardened. Ye Futian was replying to Tang Ye''s aggressive words from before.


    Tang Ye''s gaze hardened. He stared at Ye Futian and replied with a sneer, "Even if you''re truly talented, the College is still the most suitable place for cultivation. What is the point of cutting off your own path because of your personal feelings? As a Second-plane Dharma, you made enemies with the Fuyun Sword Clan and took Gu Biyue in as a servant. Have you ever thought of the consequences? Is this not stupidity?" He still didn''t think he had said anything wrong. If Ye Futian didn''t enter the College, it was his own loss. It had nothing to do with Tang Ye.


    "Stupidity?"


    Ye Futian ignored Tang Ye. He looked at the huge flame statue. Then powerful firelight came from the statue, quickly engulfing him. Then, just like Xiao Wuji earlier, Ye Futian melded into the flame statue''s body to feel the sentiment inside the statue. He seemed to be proving that he could do what Xiao Wuji could do. But was that all?


    The flame statue grew wilder. The Spiritual Qi in the surrounding environment rushed violently into the statue. Ye Futian''s body was completely melded into the statue as if he was part of it.


    A shocking flame aura flowed. The next moment, a pair of huge eyes flew open. Firelight shot out from those eyes��they were the statue''s eyes.


    That moment, the statue''s eyes were filled with vitality. They turned slowly to Xiao Wuji. The next moment, under everyone''s shocked gazes, the huge statue actually moved. The enormous flame statue turned around and moved before Tang Ye.


    Then an extremely overbearing voice came out of the statue.


    "You are not qualified to understand my world!"

 203 Burning Arm

    Chapter 203: Burning Arm


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A domineering yet impressive voice came out of the statue. It was Ye Futian''s voice.


    At that moment, Tang Ye''s expression grew uglier. He''d said that Xiao Wuji had gone to the limit and it was meaningless for Ye Futian to continue. However, had Xiao Wuji really gone to the limit? Then what was Ye Futian doing now? Xiao Wuji could comprehend the statue but Ye Futian could control it.


    Tang Ye had called Ye Futian an idiot twice, but why? Ye Futian was in the Second-level Dharma Plane but had done things outside of his ability. He couldn''t handle the Fuyun Sword Clan and couldn''t anger the Witch Clan. These two forces could both kill him in the Ancient Barren World. So in his opinion, Ye Futian was an idiot. No one could refute him. Even though Ye Futian had displayed absolute brilliance, he still didn''t think he said anything wrong. Ye Futian was an idiot.


    But now? Ye Futian had controlled the statue. Who could say that the Fuyun Sword Clan and Witch Clan could definitely kill him? Ye Futian''s "you are not qualified to understand my world" was a slap to his face. Was Ye Futian an idiot or was he ignorant?


    Liu Chenyu and Gu Biyue were shocked, their hearts beating madly. Earlier, Xiao Wuji had quickly comprehended three statues consecutively and entered the statues to cultivate. They''d naturally thought that Xiao Wuji was better than Ye Futian. It was because Ye Futian had stayed longer in the area but didn''t reach Xiao Wuji''s level. Now, they finally understood why Ye Futian stayed in that area, studying each statue. He''d already tried quietly to control the statues, doing something no one had ever done without anyone realizing. They''d doubted his talent but he already had ideas.


    He''d struck the battle drums 16 times and then they exploded.


    He''d left a nine-inch image on the Image on the Wall, breaking the record.


    He could control the statues.


    Ye Futian had completely defeated Xiao Wuji in the three relics.


    Earlier, everyone was still shaken by Xiao Wuji''s talent and thought that no one could surpass him. But after such a short period, someone walked out and was even more brilliant.


    The battle drums had shattered; his record was for eternity.


    He could directly control the statues. Who could surpass that?


    This was a true record��an unbeatable record.


    Countless eyes stared at the giant body of flames, their hearts shaking. Had someone more talented than Xiao Wuji truly appeared? And it was someone who''d been overlooked all this time, humiliated by Tang Ye.


    It was so ironic.


    The statue was still facing Tang Ye. It uttered, "Do not use your scale to measure me. You do not qualify."


    Tang Ye''s expression grew uglier. He couldn''t refute it. The things he''d said earlier were truly based off of his own mindset and level. It shouldn''t be a problem but the man before him now was an outlier.


    "Also, you said I had cut off my own path. Are you sure you can represent the College?" Ye Futian continued.


    Tang Ye paled considerably. Ye Futian''s words had gone straight into his gut. His talent had surpassed Tang Ye and even Xiao Wuji. At this time, could Tang Ye really represent the College?


    Obviously not.


    If Ye Futian''s performance at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall was as impressive as in these three relics, if he would beat Xiao Wuji''s record again, all the top forces would fight for him. What did it matter if Tang Ye disliked him at that time?


    Could Tang Ye represent the College?


    He had no right to choose Ye Futian. At that time, Ye Futian would be the one choosing, just like Xiao Wuji.


    In addition to Tang Ye, Li Daoyun also looked aghast.


    Back then in the Ancient Loulan Relic, he''d been so arrogant. He''d been so powerful and looked down at Ye Futian. But now, he saw the true Ye Futian.


    He definitely did not imagine that Ye Futian would be so powerful. None of the four strong cultivators at the Loulan Relic had expected this. However, the other three forces only wanted to fight over the treasures and didn''t have any deep rivalries. Li Daoyun, on the other hand, had taken Ye Wuchen''s arm.


    With Ye Futian''s talent, once he joined a top force, Li Daoyun would become his mortal enemy. Plus, Liu Chenyu had already sided with Ye Futian against him. He had pursued Liu Chenyu before. Even though she didn''t answer him, there was still hope. Now, when he wanted to fight Ye Futian, Liu Chenyu had walked up and was full of cold animosity.


    Looking at that beautiful face, he sighed inwardly. When he gazed at Ye Futian, the murderous intent in his eyes intensified.


    "Let him come," Ye Futian said. Liu Chenyu and Loulan Xue glanced at the statue and moved aside.


    Li Daoyun''s gaze shot towards the statue and stepped forward. With one step, he shot into the air and landed before Ye Futian.


    "You told me you''re waiting for me. So it seems that this is your confidence," Li Daoyun said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian didn''t speak. The flame intent was to the extreme on the statue.


    "In the lower Ancient Barren World, the Dharma Plane is the limit," Li Daoyun said. "Even if you can control the statue, your actual cultivation will only be the Dharma Plane but the power of the will isn''t restricted. I have noble intent. I''ve fought against a true noble in the Ancient Loulan Relic. I''d like to see what you can do with this statue."


    "Enough," Ye Futian said. He understood what Li Daoyun was doing. There was a limit to the lower Ancient Barren World. No matter how powerful the statue was, it was the flame intent that was actually powerful. His statue''s body could swallow the flame Spiritual Qi in the world but would still be restricted to the Dharma Plane. But wasn''t it enough for him to be at the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane?


    Li Daoyun stood atop his sword in the air. The sword Qi filled the air. He was holding the ritual implement sword that he''d received in the Loulan Relic. His sword started dancing and the skies changed. Powerful sword intent burst in his body. All the Spiritual Qi in the world converged, transforming into sword Qi.


    Li Daoyun was very serious. His personality was wild but seeing Ye Futian''s talent, he didn''t dare underestimate him. He used all his power. If he could, he would kill Ye Futian on the spot. He hadn''t joined any force yet. If Ye Futian was killed, no one would be able to say anything.


    Various afterimages formed. Countless images of Li Daoyun appeared in the sword Qi. It was like his Dharma''s ability. The countless figures all wielded their swords at once and the sword Qi strengthened. The windstorm was about to destroy everything. It seemed that only swords remained in that sky.


    Ye Futian''s statue burst with horrible fire. It clenched its fists and its body burned furiously. It was like a furnace, able to melt the entire world.


    Li Daoyun finally moved. The countless afterimages moved together. At that moment, there seemed to be rivers of swords in the sky, flowing to Ye Futian. Li Daoyun guided the sword river forward. He floated lightly like a cloud but left behind the fatal swords.


    Boom! In the sky, horrible flames exploded, and wind blew through the sky. Countless flaming maple leaves appeared. They danced with the wind and swept towards Li Daoyun. With rustles, the horrible flaming maple leaves glowed with golden light. Like inextinguishable fire, they burned away Li Daoyun''s afterimages to nothing.


    In the distance, the sky actually burned with golden fire. The world of fire created by the maple leaves engulfed the sword river, destroying it all.


    The statue''s sorcery. Xiao Wuji''s eyes flashed as he looked at the maple leaves.


    Many afterimages were burned but one was able to slice apart the sky. The maple leaves all died away under his sword. That was the true Li Daoyun, fighting his way over to Ye Futian''s statue. A swordsman''s close-combat ability was honestly terrifying. But just then, Ye Futian closed his palms. The giant hands of his statues were extremely quick as if predicting the path of Li Daoyun''s sword. The statue''s hands closed around the sword.


    "You''re gonna die," Li Daoyun uttered coldly. His sword was a ritual implement. How could Ye Futian capture it with his hands?


    Sword Qi erupted, destroying everything. The furnace-like hands were about to shatter as well. His sword was the sharpest weapon in the world and it stabbed towards the statue.


    The palm crumbled bit by bit. At the same time, horrible fire crept onto Li Daoyun''s arm. It kept going, about to seep into Li Daoyun''s body.


    "Break!" Li Daoyun roared. The sword Qi shattered the statue''s arms and then angled up to the head. But almost simultaneously, his body suddenly lit up with countless fire prints. They were like holy fire and pain arrived. His body was about to burn up. His sword-wielding hand trembled and his arm shone with golden flames.


    His face paled. Instead of continuing the attack, he chose to retreat decisively.


    In this battle, he would kill if he could; if he couldn''t he would retreat. There was no reason to fight to the death.


    "Give me an arm," Ye Futian said coldly. The statue''s eyes were just like his own. Horrible fire intent shot out from those strange fiery pupils. Then Li Daoyun''s arm seemed to set on fire. An ancient fire rune appeared.


    "Ah!" There was a horrible pained cry. The sword in Li Daoyun''s hands fell shakily. He stared at his right arm. It was burning without stop!

 204 Arrived

    Chapter 204: Arrived


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The arm burned to nothing in the fire. Li Daoyun screamed endlessly. If it was a sword, it would only be an instant of pain but his arm was burning down bit by bit. The pain was unimaginable. When the flame extinguished, Li Daoyun''s sword intent went wild. His eyes were crazed. The people of the Fuyun Sword Clan all came up to him. Sword intent swept over, crushing towards Ye Futian.


    The spectators were all shocked, their hearts trembling. No wonder Ye Futian was reckless. After melding into the statue, he''d already possessed the top ability of the Dharma Plane. Li Daoyun wasn''t the strongest of the Fuyun Sword Clan but he was still reputable. Only a few clan members of the same age could surpass him. His talent was undeniable but he was forced to burn his arm.


    The statue''s eyes seemed to be Ye Futian''s. It glanced at Li Daoyun and said coldly, "You are so weak. How dare you act so manic?"


    Li Daoyun looked up. Sword intent shot out from his eyes. He glared at the figure before him. Back then in the Loulan relic, he''d been so domineering and would never have thought of this scene.


    The Fuyun Sword Clan''s disciples went forward. Sword intent filled the sky.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept past everyone and he said coldly, "Li Daoyun damaged my brother''s arm in the Ancient Barren World so I took my revenge. If you want to kill me, then try. If you can''t, don''t blame me." As soon as he finished, terrifying fire Spiritual Qi converged on that arm. The statue''s hands that had been chopped off by the sword aura were reborn, created by pure fire Spiritual Qi.


    Feeling the terrifying flame intent, the Fuyun Sword Clan all looked uncomfortable. Amongst those who had come, Li Daoyun was the strongest but his arm was burned easily. The others were even weaker than Ye Futian.


    "Let''s go," Li Daoyun uttered. He lifted the sword with his right and turned to leave. The other clansmen stared deeply at Ye Futian and then left with Li Daoyun.


    Li Daoqing looked the worse. He''d definitely never imagined that the one he called a slave would humiliate the Fuyun Clan and burn his brother''s arm. If Ye Futian chose to join a strong force, this revenge would be difficult.


    Seeing the Fuyun Sword Clan leave, Ye Futian returned to the statue. Then he walked out. Everyone looked at his handsome features and extraordinary temperament a bit differently now.


    Before, Ye Futian was an extremely talented but overconfident genius. Now, he was a top genius, equal to Xiao Wuji. After a few years, he would enter a higher plane and could compete with the top geniuses of all the top forces.


    No one spoke. Ye Futian had gone through Xiao Wuji''s three main relics and had surpassed him in all. Now, only the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall remained.


    Everyone waited quietly. They wanted to see just how many Noble figures Ye Futian could display at the wall. At this time, all the important figures of the various forces could witness his talent. However, after a while, they discovered that Ye Futian actually sat down before another figure and started cultivating. There was no sign of him going to the Stone Wall.


    Uh�� Everyone had a strange expression. All of the people on the mountain were waiting for him to display his talent but now he was cultivating?


    Gu Biyue blinked and gaped at Ye Futian. Yu Sheng was embarrassed. This guy was doing it again. Even Yu Sheng couldn''t stand it. He was too shameless.


    Everyone waited but Ye Futian continued his cultivation as if he didn''t know. Many grew impatient. This guy was breaking Xiao Wuji''s record. Halfway through, only the Stone Wall��the most important part��was left but he stopped to cultivate. What did this mean?


    "What''s going on?" Liu Feiyang, prince of the Liu Kingdom, asked his sister.


    Liu Chenyu''s eyes flashed. "I don''t know." With that, she glanced at Ye Wuchen in confusion.


    "Don''t look at me," Ye Wuchen said, walking forward. "Just get used to it."


    The Liu siblings blanched. Liu Chenyu glanced at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Now, she was wondering if Ye Wuchen''s words from before were true.


    "Chenyu," Liu Feiyang whispered. "How is your relationship with them?"


    A strange look flashed past Liu Chenyu''s eyes. "Actually, we''ve just met but the impression is good." Thinking of the talent Ye Futian had displayed, she said, "But what you''re thinking might be difficult. We can at least be friends." She naturally understood Liu Feiyang. He wanted to bring Ye Futian into the kingdom.


    With Ye Futian''s current talent, even if he couldn''t surpass Xiao Wuji on the Stone Wall, it would be enough if he could make three figures appear. It was highly possible he could make four appear. After that, he could choose any of the forces.


    Hua Qingchi of the Donghua Clan and Tang Ye of the College had all looked down on him. But just as what Ye Futian had told Tang Ye, if he was talented enough, Hua Qingchi and Tang Ye wouldn''t be able to represent the two forces.


    "Didn''t you say one of them can become the princess''s bride?" Liu Chenyu''s servant muttered. Liu Feiyang gaped at his sister.


    Liu Cheny glared at her servant, making the girl retreat in fear. "Don''t overthink." Liu Chenyu stared at her brother. What was he thinking?


    "I think we can consider it." Liu Feiyang laughed. "Which one do you like?"


    Liu Chenyu blushed and glared at Liu Feiyang.


    "Won''t you try the Stone Wall? Is it fun to make everyone wait for you?" Xiao Wuji suddenly said. He''d been waiting for a long while now but Ye Futian hadn''t done anything.


    Ye Futian had beaten him on all three relic areas. He wanted to see just what Ye Futian could do at the Stone Wall. However, Ye Futian had started cultivating without showing any sign of wanting to go to the wall.


    Everyone gazed towards Ye Futian. They''d been asking this too.


    Ye Futian glanced over at Xiao Wuji a bit strangely. "Did I tell you to wait?"


    Xiao Wuji blanched. He stared at Ye Futian but couldn''t reply. Many people looked between them. They all had an arrogant tone. The simple phrase felt like a challenge. But Ye Futian''s actions were clearly obvious. How come his words were irrefutable? He really didn''t make anyone wait. In fact, he didn''t even say he was going to the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. But after beating Xiao Wuji''s records at the three relics, everyone thought he would naturally go to the Stone Wall.


    But now it seemed that Ye Futian didn''t think that way.


    Did he not want to challenge Xiao Wuji? Or was he not confident enough to beat Xiao Wuji at the Stone Wall so he wanted to cultivate and improve first?


    "Let''s go," Xiao Wuji said indifferently. He turned to leave. He had no interest in playing with Ye Futian.


    Tang Ye stared deeply at Ye Futian and left too. Everyone''s eyes flashed. All geniuses were proud and Xiao Wuji obviously didn''t feel like being used to make Ye Futian look better in comparison. What right did Ye Futian have to make him wait?


    "It seems that I''ve underestimated you. Are you interested in joining the Donghua Clan?" Hua Qingchi invited. Even if Ye Futian didn''t pass the Stone Wall test, the talent he''d displayed was enough.


    "I haven''t thought about it," Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    "Okay." Hua Qingchi nodded without saying more.


    Everyone thought that Ye Futian hadn''t decided to choose a clan today. They started cultivating throughout the relic and stopped looking at Ye Futian. Some people left but people from each force remained.


    As for Ye Futian''s group, they cultivated without distractions. There were so many relics on the mountaintop. It was enough for them to cultivate for a while and improve themselves.


    Other than Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were able to improve too.


    The days passed. Ye Futian''s group improved bit by bit. Countless months later, they''d all risen in stage. Ye Wuchen had crossed into the Sixth-level Dharma Plane. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had entered the Third-level.


    The mountaintop was always busy during these days. People kept coming to see the legendary figures who endlessly broke records.


    "You''ve studied all the relics here. Are you still not planning on going to the Stone Wall?" Gu Biyue asked Ye Futian now.


    "What are you in a hurry for?" Ye Futian asked, looking at her. The Witch had been very obedient these past days and always stayed by his side. When people from the Witch Clan came, she would make them leave.


    "I want to bring you into the Witch Clan," Gu Biyue said, smiling. Her eyes were mesmerizing.


    "What''s so good about the Witch Clan?" Ye Futian asked. Both the Donghua Clan and College were better than the Witch Clan. In fact, even the Liu Kingdom was more promising.


    "Me." Gu Biyue smiled gorgeously and said, "If you join, I''ll serve you forever. How about that?"


    Ye Futian looked at her mesmerizing eyes and said indifferently, "Fulfil your duties as a servant and don''t overthink."


    Beauty traps weren''t effective on him.


    Gu Biyue looked at him with resentment. She looked hurt and pitiful.


    At that time, a group came to the Mirror Mountain from the Barren City. The people in the front weren''t too powerful but had an extraordinary temperament. One of the girls, especially, covered her face but everyone could tell from her aura and figure that she was definitely a beauty. There was a small smile in her eyes. She''d finally found information on that guy. He''d made such a big commotion in the Barren City!

 205 Lethality

    Chapter 205: Lethality


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    This group of newcomers consisted of Hua Jieyu and others from the Cangye Kingdom. After setting foot into the Ancient Barren World from the Hundred Lands, they had experienced quite a lot on their journey. Sometimes they asked around for information on Ye Futian, sometimes they cultivated. They had come across many relic sites on their way and had managed to keep a low profile while becoming enlightened. After all, they were in a place like the Ancient Barren World and though their group wasn''t small, they couldn''t be too confident when being compared to the prodigies from all over the Eastern Barren Territory. However, Ye Futian was as high-profile as ever, causing a commotion everywhere he went. He had even made quite a name for himself in a place like the heart of the Ancient Barren World��the Barren City.


    "Ye Futian sure is a remarkable fellow. Barren City is where all the powerful cultivators from the central district of the Eastern Barren Territory are gathered, and he actually managed to stir up a storm on Mirror Mountain. His talents are wasted in a place like the Hundred Lands," Ye Danchen said as he smiled bitterly thinking of the information they acquired earlier. They knew Ye Futian was powerful but they had no idea he was this freakishly powerful.


    "Jieyu, your worries have been for nothing. He''s doing just fine." Ye Lingxi smiled.


    Hua Jieyu nodded her head lightly with smiling eyes. "I heard he took in the Witch as his servant, so of course, he''s doing good. Everyone says she''s extremely beautiful."


    "She''s just a servant. Don''t think too much about it, Jieyu." Ye Lingxi felt something was off; like Hua Jieyu had a deeper meaning behind her words.


    At this time, Ye Danchen kept his mouth shut and silently prayed for Ye Futian. There''s no helping him. Who told him to have so much fun out there?


    "I''m not thinking too much," Hua Jieyu replied with a smile. Ye Lingxi''s eyes flickered and she thought to herself, this is the best I can do. Ye Futian better wish for the best.


    The group continued forward, getting closer to Mirror Mountain. They could already faintly see the ancient mountain in the Barren City. Meanwhile, Ye Futian had absolutely no idea. He was still cultivating quietly with beautiful girls around him. Loulan Xue was also cultivating. Lin Yueyao would look over at him every now and then. And then, there was the Witch who stuck to him, flirting from time to time. Ye Futian was not tempted by her at all. A person as pure as Ye Futian would definitely not be thinking about other girls. Although, he did enjoy the special treatment. After all, it was part of her job as his servant.


    At the top of Mirror Mountain, many people would turn their attention over to Ye Futian occasionally. It had been days and still nothing from him. Was he really not planning on heading over to the mountain''s stone wall to show off his powers? What on earth could be going on inside this guy''s head?


    Presently, there were disciples of many top powers who had decided to stay and cultivate with him. All of them were inwardly cursing Ye Futian for being a jerk.


    Just then, a figure arrived beside Ye Futian. It was Loulan Xue. Gu Biyue looked at the silver-haired ice beauty. She already knew that she was the Virgin of Ancient Loulan. Despite her identity, Loulan Xue was still willing to follow beside Ye Futian.


    "Do you need something?" Ye Futian asked when he noticed the girl next to him.


    Loulan Xue nodded. "I''ve been observing that water elemental statue over there for the past days but can never manage to control it. How did you do it?"


    Ye Futian was surprised by her question. How eager to learn.


    "If it''s an inconvenience to you then forget it," said Loulan Xue.


    "Have you tried to guide and control the will within?" asked Ye Futian. What he was talking about was not an easy task. Aside from himself, there may not have been anyone else in the Ancient Barren World who could do so.


    Loulan Xue looked stunned. Of course, she had tried, but how was it actually possible?


    The will contained within every statue was incredibly powerful. They were all pure noble wills. Although she had also acquired noble will through enlightenment, to suppress and even control the statue''s own will was close to impossible.


    "You can control the statue''s will?" Gu Biyue walked closer to join their conversation.


    "Aren''t you being a little nosy?" glared Ye Futian. This servant was such a headache.


    "Can''t you learn to be nicer to women?" asked Gu Biyue, looking oh-so-pitiful. She made it look as if she had been wronged but Ye Futian simply ignored her. He was used to her antics.


    Just then, a group of people made their way up the steps of Mirror Mountain. They immediately attracted tons of attention. The ones in the front of the group had a special aura around them. Could they be from a great power?


    "Over there," a young man in the front of the group said after his attention fell on a certain location. The entire group turned in that direction��Ye Futian''s direction.


    Right now, Ye Futian had two beautiful girls on either side of him. Loulan Xue was cold like ice and the Witch, Gu Biyue, was passionate and warm. Two completely different auras but both equally beautiful.


    Ye Futian had yet to see the situation on the stairs. There were always people coming up Mirror Mountain, he did not pay it any attention.


    Ye Lingxi noticed the scene ahead and a look crossed her face. She snuck a peek at the veiled female beside her.


    Trouble''s coming thought Ye Danchen as he prayed for Ye Futian.


    Big trouble.


    Hua Jieyu lifted her feet and headed toward Ye Futian. Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi exchanged glances and scurried after her. Seeing that the group was headed in Ye Futian''s direction, many people went into discussion. Had they come for Ye Futian?


    The female leading the group had a veil hiding her face. Her eyes were beautiful and her body was curvaceous. Could they have been sent by some great power to recruit Ye Futian?


    Yu Sheng''s eyes drifted in their direction and noticed the group. He saw Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi, then, Hua Jieyu. He took huge steps to arrive next to Ye Futian and stood. He cleared his throat. Ye Futian looked over at Yu Sheng and asked, "What''s wrong?"


    Yu Sheng tried to send him a signal through his eyes. Ye Futian looked confused. What the hell was wrong with this guy? Who could have arrived to make him act like this? What was the big deal?


    His eyes drifted over slowly and finally saw the group coming their way. He shivered and then jumped up in surprise. On the inside, he was cursing at Yu Sheng. That jerk. Couldn''t he have given him a heads up?


    He then turned to eye Loulan Xue and the Witch, Gu Biyue. They were still standing next to him. He was screwed. Was this really his fault though? It was purely a coincidence.


    The Witch was a smart girl, so she picked up on Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s odd reactions immediately. Something was up. If these were people from some great power, there was no way Ye Futian would react like this. He had actually jumped. Really quickly too.


    Everyone thought that this was abnormal. Who were these people? Whether it had been Xiao Wuji or Tang Ye of the College, the arrogant Ye Futian never cared. He even burned one of Li Daoyun''s arms. What kind of person would scare him so much that he would jump up in the air like that?


    Hua Jieyu finally stopped at a spot not too far from Ye Futian. Her beautiful eyes glanced over at Loulan Xue and Gu Biyue. There seemed to be a hint of bitterness in her eyes, which then landed on Ye Futian.


    Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi stood behind Hua Jieyu. They stood quietly and looked over at Ye Futian. They thought we can''t help you now.


    The way Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu was like a criminal waiting for judgment. However, he stopped and thought a little more. It didn''t seem like he had done anything wrong. Shouldn''t he be happy to see Fox again? Why was he feeling guilty?


    "What brings you here?" Ye Futian asked in a gentle tone and a smile after giving the situation some thought. She had traveled so far to enter the Ancient Barren World and stand here in front of him. It could not have been easy.


    Hua Jieyu continued to stare at him without a word. Ye Futain immediately felt guilty again.


    "Sis-in-law, this is a misunderstanding. They were the ones who wanted to follow Futian," said Yu Sheng.


    Everyone at the top of the mountain was silent. They finally understood why the atmosphere had gotten so weird.


    So, this was why.


    Caught red-handed.


    Many people looked happy to see Ye Futian like this. Wasn''t he an arrogant guy? So, even knows what fear is. But what did Yu Sheng mean? They wanted to follow Ye Futian? He was completely throwing Loulan Xue and Gu Biyue under the bus. Who would have thought the Witch of the Witch Clan would end up in such a sad situation? To throw herself at a man.


    Both Gu Biyue and Loulan Xue had strange looks in their eyes. Back in Ancient Loulan, Loulan Xue''s mother had tried to give Ye Futian her hand in marriage and he said there was someone he was in love with. Was this her?


    Lin Yueyao was standing in the back, so she was okay, but Yu Sheng''s words had her feeling like a mess. He didn''t count her into the equation, did he?


    So pitiful.


    "So, you already have a girlfriend? Why didn''t you tell me?" Right at that moment, the Witch, Gu Biyue, opened her mouth. She looked at Ye Futian with puppy dog eyes, making her look like an innocent, young girl who had been deceived.


    "I...." Hearing Gu Biyue''s words, Ye Futian really had the urge to punch her.


    Everyone around was already praying for Ye Futian. A beauty like Gu Biyue had revealed such an expression. It had everyone wrapped around her finger. They couldn''t withstand her charm. How was Ye Futian going to explain himself?


    Hua Jieyu glanced at Gu Biyue and then lifted her hand to remove the veil, revealing the perfection that was her face. As soon as everyone saw that face, they were dazed.


    Beautiful. Unspeakable beauty. A priceless jade with no flaws.


    Around Ye Futian, whether it was Gu Biyue or Loulan Xue, even Lin Yueyao, were all top-level beauties, but the moment Hua Jieyu unveiled her face, she became the one and only female lead.


    After seeing that face, everyone turned to look at Ye Futian with envy. Not only did he have all these beautiful girls around him, he had a girl whose beauty could cause the downfall of a nation waiting for him back home. What a��monster!


    Gu Biyue and Loulan Xue were also dazed. Was this the reason why it never worked to use their beauty against him?


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes looked so delicate. She looked at Ye Futian and stepped toward him. Arriving by his side, she continued to look him in the eyes. There was no storm like everyone had anticipated. She spoke to him with a soft, gentle voice.


    "I missed you."


    This one sentence trumped all the words in the world. Her voice was so gentle, it could break the hearts of all men. She was plucking at everyone''s heartstrings.


    Hearing her gentle voice and seeing those love-filled eyes so close, Ye Futian''s heart had already melted. He actually began to feel ashamed, despite not doing anything bad.


    I missed you. This simple phrase was more lethal than all the words in the world.

 206 Murderous Intent of the Royal Xuan Temple

    Chapter 206: Murderous Intent of the Royal Xuan Temple


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the mountaintop, countless eyes looked to that horribly beautiful figure. That gentle voice even softened their hearts. How could Ye Futian get with other girls when he had someone like her?


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian in jealousy and envy. But seeing Ye Futian''s handsome face and his talent, they actually seemed to fit each other. It was as if they were born to be together.


    When Loulan Xue saw this, she lowered her head slightly. Her mother had said that the feelings would develop over time. Men were disloyal and she was so amazing. Ye Futian would quickly forget about the girl he loved. She didn''t think anything at the time but vaguely felt that her mother was right.


    But now, Loulan Xue realized her mother was wrong. The girl that he loved was much, much better than her mother had imagined. No wonder he refused no matter how she forced him to marry Loulan Xue.


    Behind Hua Jieyu, Ye Lingxi and Ye Danchen exchanged glances. The scene they''d imagined didn''t happen. Instead, Hua Jieyu''s gentle voice melted everyone.


    Ye Lingxi smiled faintly. Perhaps only someone like Hua Jieyu could control Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian gazed at the pretty eyes right before him. His heart had melted. Reaching out, he cupped Hua Jieyu''s face in his hands. "I missed you too." He was speaking the truth. He''d prepared to finish everything before the end of the year and return to Cangye but didn''t expect that Jieyu would take the risk and come to find him in the Ancient Barren World.


    Hua Jieyu smiled sweetly and glowed brilliantly. She looked to the side at Gu Biyue and Loulan Xue. Then she lowered her head as if feeling bad. "Did I do something wrong?" She raised her head slowly and gazed imploringly.


    "No��" Ye Futian felt tenderness from the bottom of his heart at Hua Jieyu''s appearance.


    "Oh." Hua Jieyu seemed to get over it. Smiling brightly, she said, "Then tell me whatever you want to do and I''ll agree."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and looked to Gu Biyue. "She''s Gu Biyue. She lost to me in a challenge and agreed to be my servant but she''s not obedient. Don''t mind what she just said. She did it on purpose."


    "Oh, you don''t have to explain. I trust you," Hua Jieyu said gently.


    Gu Biyue looked at Hua Jieyu. She suddenly understood why her beauty trap always failed. It wasn''t that she wasn''t attractive enough but that someone else was too foxy.


    "You''re not needed anymore. Forget about the challenge. You may leave," Ye Futian said to her.


    Gu Biyue looked at him pitifully. "You''re going to abandon me just like this?"


    "Get out." Ye Futian''s face darkened. Was she causing trouble purposefully?


    Gu Biyue smirked and said to him, "Fine. You win." Then she walked away, but not before glancing at Hua Jieyu.


    "I met Loulan Xue at Loulan City. We partnered up while in the relic. I met Lin Yueyao long ago at the Qianmeng City and trained together in the Ancient Barren World," Ye Futian explained everything honestly.


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu smiled gently and said, "I heard that there are a lot of noble relics here. I saw many on the road these days and improved a bit. Teach me."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded and said, "These statues contain intent of various elements. Each one represents a different element. Do you have noble fate yet? If not, we can go somewhere else to take it."


    "Almost. I went through the Noble Grotto in the Qianmeng area. I heard you three caused quite a stir there." Hua Jieyu grinned.


    "Did you go onto the corridor?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded.


    "My Fox is so talented." Ye Futian chuckled. "Let''s go somewhere else to get the fate and then return here."


    "Whatever you say," Hua Jieyu replied. They held hands and walked away to cultivate at another relic.


    Everyone stared at them, speechless. Were they in their own world? Yu Sheng looked at all of them. He was quite calm since he was used to it.


    Liu Chenyu had an odd look. Was this one thing against another? Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu really went to cultivate somewhere. Ye Futian guided and helped Hua Jieyu comprehend. Gu Biyue and Lin Yueyao watched this with resentment. The difference was so big�� No one had ever been treated like this before.


    "Did he see us?" Ye Danchen asked Ye Lingxi.


    "Of course," Ye Lingxi said, chuckling. "But he doesn''t have time to talk to us."


    Ye Danchen was annoyed. They''d come so far. It wasn''t easy! But then he was overlooked. Ye Futian didn''t even greet them�� Ye Danchen was so sad.


    "Ugh, let''s go cultivate too. There are many relics here," he said, sighing. He couldn''t expect to be treated like Hua Jieyu. He could only cultivate alone.


    Many people had been watching Ye Futian cultivate alone and waited quietly. In the following days, they started watching him cultivate with Ye Futian.


    Hua Jieyu''s life spirit had evolved and become stronger with the imperial advisor''s help. Her talent had upgraded as well. As a Full-Attribute Mandate Sorcerer that focused on Spiritual Sorcery, she could comprehend all sorts of relics. With Ye Futian''s help, she quickly created noble fate. Of course, this was because she also accumulated much fate before. But to Ye Futian, this wasn''t enough. He continued to help Hua Jieyu, bringing her to various statues. She could comprehend all types of intent and improved every day. In addition, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and everyone else were all improving and getting stronger.


    Time continued to pass by. The commotion created by Ye Futian and Xiao Wuji gradually calmed down. Fewer and fewer people mentioned it. Ye Futian was busy with his girlfriend and didn''t think about the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. When did he plan on choosing a clan?


    ��


    The majestic Royal Xuan Temple in the Eastern Barren Territory seemed to be in the clouds. At the moment, a young man stood at the edge of a pavilion with his hands behind his back. He watched the rolling clouds. One could see far if one stood up high. Standing in the Royal Xuan Temple and looking down, one''s heart would feel more open. One would feel mighty.


    "Junlin, what are you doing?" a gentle voice said. The young man looked over and saw a beautiful girl walk towards him. She looked at the man gently.


    "Thinking of something," the man said.


    "You''ve just come out of seclusion and broke into a new plane. What is there to be worried about?" The girl smiled tenderly.


    The young man was Luo Junlin, crown prince of the Nandou Nation. After coming to cultivate at the Royal Xuan Temple, he grew uninterested in his position as prince. Even though the position belonged to him and everyone in Nandou knew, he could give it away.


    The outside world was so incredible. In this mighty era, all forces in the Eastern Barren Territory were fighting each other. Talents were everywhere. Being the emperor didn''t satisfy him anymore. As an emperor, he would be in a high position and could do whatever he wanted. However, it was meaningless to enjoy that authority and glory. He didn''t want it. Now, he''d already entered the Arcana Plane and would soon enter the Noble Plane. The Nandou Nation was nothing to him.


    Luo Junlin embraced the girl while still looking at the sea of clouds. He murmured, "I wish to return at the end of the year. I can''t be assured unless some things are taken care of."


    "Is it still that matter?" The girl gazed at him and said, "What about someone in the Glory Plane can worry you? Just kill him."


    "He''s quite talented. Now that the Ancient Barren World is open, he may possibly cultivate and snatch the noble fate. He''ll be taken in by some top force," Luo Junlin said. This was why he came to the Royal Xuan Temple.


    "No matter how talented he is, you don''t have to worry even if he''s lucky to enter a top force." The girl smiled. "If you really are worried, I can ask my father to let me bring some men with me on a trip. How can a small country''s emperor stop me?"


    "Don''t disturb him because of my personal matters. I''ll go back myself this time," Luo Junlin said.


    "Then I''ll tell my father that I''ll go with and have a senior go too. We can help you," she said gently.


    "Will Master agree?" Luo Junlin was unsure.


    "Father loves you. He''ll definitely agree. When you enter the Noble Plane, we''ll be married. I''ll go see your family this time. Father won''t refuse." The girl grinned and Luo Junlin nodded.


    "Thank you but if he doesn''t agree, then just forget it."


    "He won''t." The girl leaned into Luo Junlin''s arms. He continued staring at the clouds, sharpness flashing past his eyes. He thought of the arrogant figures at the Tingfeng Banquet. How were they now? Were they in the Ancient Barren World now? With their talents, they could become powerful after cultivating a bit more.


    Sadly, they wouldn''t have the chance to mature. This time, he would end this matter before anything could happen. He would kill the threat before it could be born.


    Ever since he entered the Royal Xuan Temple, he moved forward furiously. He cultivated madly and even won over his master''s daughter. There were too many powerful cultivators at the Royal Xuan Temple. If he wanted to climb higher than the others, he must work harder.


    After countless months of secluded cultivation, he''d entered the Arcana Plane. He was one step closer to becoming a Noble!

 207 In the Name of Cangye

    Chapter 207: In the Name of Cangye


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was only natural that Ye Futian had no clue about Luo Junlin''s murderous intent all the way at the Royal Xuan Temple. But then again, taking care of him was the main reason why Ye Futian wanted to join a powerful force in the Ancient Barren World.


    Having Luo Junlin in the Royal Xuan Palace was a threat, after all. Especially to the Cangye Kingdom. Ye Futian owed Emperor Ye so much, he would not allow the kingdom to fall into danger.


    On the top of Mirror Mountain were many relics. These past days were spent accompanying Hua Jieyu. With Ye Futian guiding her enlightenment by the relic statues, her fate strengthened tremendously.


    Then again, she was highly gifted to begin with. She was also a Full-Attribute sorcerer and could comprehend all the different elemental statues. Otherwise, she would not have had any improvements even with Ye Futian helping her.


    During these past days, more people had left. They could not keep waiting. They thought Ye Futian would probably do what Xiao Wuji did and make an announcement before choosing a force. That way, at least the different powers could prepare and head for Mirror Mountain.


    Presently, things were quiet on the mountain. The wind blew and the sunlight was warm. Many people cultivated by themselves. Just then, a figure headed for the stone wall quietly. Someone noticed the figure and widened their eyes in surprise. It''s him? Did he want to try the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall again?


    Liu Chenyu had a glint in her eyes as they followed the figure. It was Ye Wuchen. Others had not taken notice, but just a while ago, she saw Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen speaking. And right after that, Ye Wuchen headed for the stone wall. What did it mean?


    Liu Chenyu''s eyes were trained in the direction of the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. She watched as Ye Wuchen sat down on the ground in front of the wall and released his fate.


    Why does his sword will feel so different from that of others? So terrifying. At this point, everyone was dazed by Ye Wuchen as the area around his released fate seemingly filled with a force of formless swords, giving off a dangerous feel.


    Ye Futian was not surprised by this. Ye Wuchen was not only a swordsman, he was also a spiritual sorcerer. His Life Spirit was a small silver sword, a natural-born swordsman.


    Cultivating with comprehended will was associated with the element of spirit. Ye Wuchen was enlightened with sword will and was able to combine his will, fate, and spiritual energy. The noble will which he possessed was different from that of others. It was more powerful. Even his formless spiritual sword intent had extreme attack powers. If his opponent did not have noble will, Ye Wuchen would easily be able to destroy them even if they were in higher levels.


    Although Ye Wuchen only had mid-level noble will, he was definitely no weaker than a cultivator with upper-level noble will. After Ye Wuchen acquired the fate of the Noble from his ritual implement, he also absorbed the fates of multiple powerful cultivators from the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Right now, the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall looked almost transparent once again. A formless force encapsulated Ye Wuchen''s body. Gradually, more and more people took notice and turned their attention to him.


    Ye Wuchen was going to challenge the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi were also looking over. This cousin of theirs had been cultivating alongside Ye Futian in the Ancient Barren World and they had no idea what level he was at now.


    Slowly, one Noble figure appeared on the stone wall. Nobody was surprised by this. When Ye Wuchen had come in front of the stone wall months ago, two Noble figures had already appeared. And then, just as everyone expected, the second Noble figure appeared.


    Can he challenge three? Everyone''s eyes sparkled as they watched on. Liu Chenyu''s eyes were glued in Ye Wuchen''s direction, full of anticipation. Although it seemed like the chances for a third figure to appear were slim, Ye Wuchen had already improved greatly since his last attempt. He was in a higher level of cultivation so it would not be completely impossible.


    The force field remained over Ye Wuchen. The stone wall released a bright shining light. There was a faint figure of another Noble which caused all spectators to become extremely nervous. Their eyes were stuck on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    A crazy force of will erupted from Ye Wuchen and filled the entire area with sword qi. The figure on the wall become clearer and clearer until it was completely opaque, so real that it was as if the figure was imprinted on the stone wall.


    The third Noble figure had appeared.


    So powerful. The onlookers stared at Ye Wuchen. Everyone had previously focused solely on Ye Futian and seemed to have neglected those around him. This one-armed swordsman was terrifyingly gifted.


    In the Ancient Barren World, only those who were freakishly powerful had been able to make four Noble figures appear on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. However, there were also very few people who were able to make three figures appear, so to do so was already an impressive feat. And now, Ye Wuchen had done it.


    An invisible force was emitted from the wall and entered into Ye Wuchen. He remained unmoved, still wanting to challenge the fourth Noble figure. As all the spectators focused on the wall, the faint image of the fourth figure came and went. Finally, Ye Wuchen sighed when that faint image of the Noble figure never showed itself completely. But that did not change the looks of amazement people had when they looked at Ye Wuchen.


    "Chenyu, it seems like you two have a pretty good relationship," Liu Feiyang teased his sister beside him.


    "Don''t think too much of it." Liu Chenyu did not feel like humoring her brother.


    "He just made it to the sixth level Dharma Plane. There''s still so much potential," said Liu Fengyang. "Plus, his looks and the aura around him are also outstanding."


    Liu Chenyu was speechless. Were there really older brothers like him? What was the meaning behind his words?


    The light still shone on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. Ye Wuchen stood there looking at it. A little while later, he spoke, "The Hundred Lands, Cangye Kingdom, Ye Wuchen." After introducing himself, he turned and left the stone wall.


    The Cangye Kingdom, Ye Wuchen. Everyone one committed this information to memory. He actually came from that place on the border of the Eastern Barren Territory. The Hundred Lands was a place that people from the Eastern Barren Territory did not head for often. It was too out of the way for them. What was Ye Wuchen''s purpose for making his information known?


    Those from great powers stepped forward, seeming to want to extend an invitation to Ye Wuchen. But just then, they saw Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu walk toward the stone wall.


    "Go," Ye Futian said softly.


    Hua Jieyu nodded and stepped in front of the wall. By this time, everyone was already looking over at her. Deep down, they felt as if the thing they had long anticipated was about to come true.


    In front of the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, Hua Jieyu released her fate. Noble fate of all elements rushed out and climbed high into the sky. Hearts pounded and everyone looked dumbstruck at the scene ahead. The multi-elemental noble fate that radiated off of Hua Jieyu''s beautiful figure was upper-level fate.


    The Witch, Gu Biyue, never left Mirror Mountain. Also watching Hua Jieyu was Loulan Xue. This was when both females realized that Hua Jieyu''s beauty was not the only reason Ye Futian was wrapped around her fingers. This powerful female was the reason Ye Futian never paid other women any attention.


    Lin Yueyao was dazed. Was the gap between her and Hua Jieyu really that big? If that jerk, Ye Futian, would have helped her like he did with Hua Jieyu, Lin Yueyao could very likely have acquired noble fate already.


    Very quickly, the first Noble figure appeared.


    Then, the second.


    Everyone could feel the heavy pounding of their hearts. They felt it deep down. Something big was about to happen.


    "Hurry and notified the people of the clan," ordered someone from a great power. Many of his fellow clan members scurried. Their status was not enough to persuade Ye Futian and the others to join their clan.


    "It''s too late," said someone else. Nobody expected Ye Futian''s group to make their move so suddenly. There was no hint and they definitely did not give out a specific time beforehand as Xiao Wuji did.


    The Mirror Mountain Stone Wall glowed with a bright light. The light grew brighter and brighter until the third Noble appeared, sending a shiver down everyone''s back. Another genius cultivator who was able to make three Nobles appear. She also possessed upper-level fate. On top of that, she also seemed to be a Full-Attribute Sorcerer!


    Hua Jieyu challenged a fourth figure, but just like Ye Wuchen, she failed in the end.


    Looking up at the stone wall, she spoke softly, "Cangye Kingdom, Hua Jieyu."


    Another one from the Cangye Kingdom. Everyone was shocked.


    Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi felt a squeeze in their hearts. The siblings exchanged a glance filled with shock. They shared a realization, the Cangye Kingdom was about to become famous.


    Hua Jieyu returned beside Ye Futian and was met with a bright smile.


    Then, Yu Sheng stepped out from Ye Futian''s side. He also stopped in front of the stone wall.


    Do they plan to keep going? Spectator''s had their gazes frozen on the large figure. Yu Sheng released his fate, the will of strength, metal, and wind were released. All of the noble level.


    Another person with upper-level fate.


    The people were now desensitized to this. Both Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu were only in the third-level Noble Plane but were both in possession of upper-level noble fate.


    When had it become so easy to acquire noble fate?


    The Mirror Mountain Stone Wall glowed again, its light blanketing over Yu Sheng. Mere moments later, the first Noble figure appeared.


    Will he also make three figures appear? Everyone''s thoughts were running wild. Was there going to be four freakishly powerful people from one batch of visitors who were able to make three Noble figures appear?


    Not too long after, a second figure appeared. Bystanders took a deep breath. He should have no problem with a third figure.


    Just as they expected, a third figure appeared on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall a while after. Yu Sheng basked in the strong, bright light emitted off the wall.


    What''s going on today?


    All the people on the mountaintop were rendered speechless. Gu Biyue''s eyes sparkled in amazement while Liu Chenyu''s heart pounded loudly. This whole group of people was freakishly gifted.


    On the stone wall, the faint image of the fourth figure flickered. But nobody cared too much this time around seeing that Ye Wuchen and Hua Jieyu had been able to do the same before and had both ended in failure. It was most likely going to end the same for this person. Even so, everything these three people had accomplished had already shocked everyone around.


    Slowly, the fourth Noble figure''s image became clearer. The flickering of the image became shorter, seemingly stabilizing.


    "Look!" shouted a spectator.


    This is not possible.


    Everyone stared at the stone wall. The image of the fourth figure was becoming more and more opaque. And just like that, in front of their very eyes, the fourth Noble figure appeared, imprinted on the stone wall.


    This...


    Many people were extremely surprised. Making four Noble figures appear on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall was something only top-level geniuses could do. And now, Yu Sheng had also accomplished this. Furthermore, he was only at the third-level Dharma Plane.


    "Cangye Kingdom, Yu Sheng," he shouted loudly. Everyone jumped at his volume.


    Cangye Kingdom, Ye Wuchen.


    Cangye Kingdom, Hua Jieyu.


    Cangye Kingdom, Yu Sheng.


    In the name of Cangye!

 208 Waves

    Chapter 208: Waves


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    With Yu Sheng''s roar, everyone''s heart shuddered too.


    What exactly was the Cangye Kingdom like? The top three prides had tested their talents at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. They were all extremely brilliant, equal to the top figures of the Eastern Barren Territory. Yu Sheng especially had made four noble figures appear. Xiao Wuji had stopped at that point.


    His was a record and Yu Sheng had tied with him as a Third-level Dharma Plane. Since Ye Wuchen, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng were all from the Cangye Kingdom, then what about Ye Futian?


    The Hundred Lands was a barbaric land but how did such a small country nurture such talented people? Were they doing this for the name and dignity of the Cangye Kingdom?


    At that time, countless eyes looked somewhere��obviously in Ye Futian''s direction. Ye Wuchen, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng had all displayed their talents. Now, the one they''d all been waiting for should go now.


    Yu Sheng walked over. He stood to the side and also looked at Ye Futian. Under everyone''s scrutiny, he stepped forward and walked to the Stone Wall.


    This guy�� Countless eyes stared at him. After waiting for so long, was he finally going to do it? Since Yu Sheng could make four noble figures appear, he must be able to do it too.


    Ye Futian made his way to the Stone Wall. Facing it, he released his fate. At that moment, dazzling noble fates of all elements rose up. They wove together beautifully.


    He''s Full Attribute. Everyone''s hearts shuddered. Ye Futian surpassed Xiao Wuji in aspect of fate. All that remained was the test of the Stone Wall. If he could tie with Xiao Wuji''s record and make four noble figures appear, and judging from his Full Attribute talent and his other performance at the mountaintop, he could surpass Xiao Wuji.


    That moment, everyone felt that they were witnessing the birth of another top talent of the Ancient Barren World.


    Ye Futian''s fate charged into the Stone Wall. The wall flashed instantly. Like a mirror, it enveloped Ye Futian. At that moment, Ye Futian felt his mind enter the wall. It was a void, like inside the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    A terrible will pressed down on him. It was noble intent. Then it transformed into a figure and came down on Ye Futian. But Ye Futian''s own will was so powerful now. Fiery noble intent burst forth and danced, branding onto the noble intent, destroying it. A noble figure instantly appeared on the Stone Wall.


    "So fast," the people muttered, seeing the figure that appeared instantaneously. He was too fast. The first noble figure seemed to pose no threat to him.


    In the void, the second noble figure appeared. It was made from pure flame intent and burned towards Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s figure, also created by intent, was extremely cold. Icy intent was released, sealing everything. The flame intent was covered by frost. Then thunder intent exploded and destroyed everything. The flame intent disappeared.


    On the Stone Wall, a second noble figure appeared. Many advanced cultivators in the Eastern Barren Territory could do that. But the third noble figure was a huge challenge. Many were defeated here. Those that could succeed were all the top figures of each force.


    The third noble figure appeared before Ye Futian. It was created by flame intent and was very pure. It felt like the emperor noble he''d met at the Loulan Relic. Ye Futian had to use his emperor''s intent to defeat him.


    Ye Wuchen had lost to the third figure on his first try.


    This figure was covered in horrible fire that flowed across him like lava. He was like a demon ruling over hellfire. He walked towards Ye Futian''s intent. The powerful heat rushed over to burn Ye Futian to nothing. His will transformed into a furnace. It also bathed in endless fire and seemed to shine like a sun. He was like a sun god. Ancient runes of fire flashed around him like godly flames.


    The limit of noble fire intent? He wanted to see if his own could defeat the extreme.


    The two flame bodies walked towards each other with shocking firelight. The body of the demon king and the body of the sun furnace crashed. Fire flowed wildly.


    At that moment, Ye Futian understood something. The first intent he''d released after entering was flame intent so the flame intent here grew stronger. Now, such a terrifying king appeared. It contained noble level flame techniques and clashed against his intent. Now wonder Ye Wuchen had been defeated the first time.


    The second time, he''d clearly surpassed his limits with his sword and made the third figure appear on the Stone Wall.


    Since Ye Wuchen could do it, Ye Futian wouldn''t use his emperor''s intent either. He used his own abilities to battle against the flame intent. He didn''t even use other elements. He knew that having noble intents of various elements would give him an advantage here.


    Various flame runes gradually appeared on the demon king. They stacked atop each other and glowed faintly. They gradually began burning on his body and grew even brighter. They were dazzling. Gradually, the entire demon king burned. The huge body transformed into three ancient runes. Finally, it turned into formless power and rushed into Ye Futian''s body.


    That moment, the third figure appeared on the Stone Wall outside. At the same time, the formless power surged into his body. Starting from the third figure, he could gain something from each one that appeared.


    It''s the third one. Countless eyes stared at the one standing before the Stone Wall. With only one more figure, he''d be tied with Xiao Wuji, the record-holder. That step was difficult but once he did so, everything would be different.


    Yu Sheng had done so but he wasn''t more brilliant than Xiao Wuji before. Thus, the people just thought that Yu Sheng was talented but wasn''t as powerful as Xiao Wuji. However, they''d all seen Ye Futian''s performance at the other three relics. If he could tie with Xiao Wuji''s record here, it would mean something more.


    At this moment, another figure transformed by intent appeared before Ye Futian in the void. It shattered immediately and then various flame figures appeared around him. Each one contained extreme noble intent.


    Ye Futian trembled inwardly. No wonder so many prides were stuck here, unable to go on. If he could succeed, he could be the best of the best. These figures attacked directly at once. In an instant, the entire world turned into a world of fire. It destroyed everything and drowned the void. Ye Futian saw this and felt his will drown into nothingness.


    Ye Futian looked up. His eyes flashed sharply and in an instant, a strong Ice Seal bloomed. It turned everything into a world of ice and fought against the fire. The terrifying fire broke apart the ice and continued towards Ye Futian. A cold moon appeared behind Ye Futian. It emanated shocking eerie coldness. All fire in its path was extinguished. A horrible icy storm was swept up. Everything froze where the moon shone down on.


    But the fire nobles were so terrifying. The fire transformed into rivers of lava that flowed on the ice, continuing to sweep towards Ye Futian. More terrifying flame figures charged into the ice world, slapping down on Ye Futian with palms of fire.


    Boom! Ye Futian strode through the world of ice. A staff of ice and snow appeared in his hands. It shone with gold light. Not only did it contain ice intent, it also had the strength of metal and earth. He waved his hands and the staff twirled. It created a windstorm that swept through.


    He stepped forward. Like a demon ape, he swept his staff and instantly shattered the noble intent, destroying it. An even more terrifying power burst from him. He charged forward, waving his staff. The Nine Heavenly Attacks swept past everything, continuing to strengthen.


    Booms sounded endlessly. Soon, the flame figures all shattered and finally turned into nothing. The world returned to peace.


    Another gust of formless power surged into Ye Futian from the Stone Wall as if giving him some benefits. At the same time, a fourth noble figure flickered onto the Stone Wall.


    The fourth figure appeared. At that moment, countless hearts shuddered. Ye Futian had done it. With his Full Attribute talent, he''d made four noble figures appear on the Stone Wall and he''d surpassed Xiao Wuji in three areas.


    Another future top figure of the Eastern Barren Territory was born in the Ancient Barren World.


    Is it too late? People from the top forces trembled inwardly. They didn''t have people from their clan here. Ye Futian had acted suddenly and no one was prepared. Could they make Ye Futian choose them now?


    What they didn''t know was that some noble figures from each top force were also watching this, feeling shaken.


    What was with today? Four strong cultivators had come to the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall today, one after another. Two had made three noble figures appear; two had made four. They''d all come from the Cangye Kingdom.


    At this moment, everyone in the top level was asking what was with these people from the Cangye Kingdom. They were wondering, can they join us?

 209 What Are You Looking At?

    Chapter 209: What Are You Looking At?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everything would have been fine if one genius showed up at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, but now there were four. It was pretty hard for something like this to go unnoticed by seniors in the Noble Plane. Furthermore, all of these people had come from the same place, the Cangye Kingdom.


    Based on the gifts they displayed, it would be difficult to find four people like them even in the great powers of the Eastern Barren Territory. After all, it wasn''t an easy task to make four Noble figures appear of the stone wall. Not to mention, two people who were able to do so appeared at the same time.


    The seniors had already prepared to send people into the Ancient Barren World with invitations to join their own clans.


    Of course, the people at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall had no idea of this. What they did know was that these four people would the talk of the town for quite a while after what happened today. Many of the great powers in the Eastern Barren Territory will know of their existence. And also, the name of the Cangye Kingdom.


    He''s still going. Just then, the people noticed that Ye Futian remained in his spot in front of the stone wall. Just like Xiao Wuji, Ye Futian was going to keep trying even after the appearance of the fourth Noble figure. But this was a record that no one had ever broken, not even Ye Futian was likely to do so.


    All throughout history, the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall was a place to test the gifts of cultivators. All the geniuses from great powers in the Eastern Barren Territory had come here and even the top-level geniuses were only ever able to make four figures appear of this stone wall. No one had ever reached five.


    Supposedly, one of these top-level geniuses had said that it was impossible because they were still only in the Dharma Plane. They had yet to truly enter the Noble Plane. Even Xiao Wuji had said that day after he gave it a try that he was afraid the fifth Noble figure may never appear.


    For someone like him to think so, it was obviously an extremely difficult task to accomplish. Perhaps this was a record that would truly never be broken.


    Just then, another figure formed by will appeared in front of Ye Futian at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. Standing there, the figure looked like a majestic king and strong energy radiated off from head to toe. Ye Futian could feel a threatening force from him, a very strong threat.


    All that anyone could see following that was the release of a terrifying force of will from Ye Futian. With a long rod in his hand, he looked as if he could wipe out the heavens. He made his way forward one step at a time. His aura was strong. Ye Futian struck out with his rod with enough power to split the skies.


    The figure exploded with a ferocious force of will power. A blinding ray of golden light radiated from him and formed in golden rings of light. The rings then gathered to form an enormous ancient bell.


    A loud noise rang throughout the air. The ancient bell cracked but had not been split open completely. It was obvious that this golden bell was another powerful defense spell.


    After this strike, the powerful Noble figure reached out one hand. This hand kept extending until it was outside of the ancient bell and morphed into a long vine that unraveled at Ye Futian wildly.


    Ye Futian backed up quickly. However, his opponent moved as fluid as the wind and as fast as lightning. WHOOSH! The vines wanted to take over Ye Futian''s body.


    Are they formed by absolute noble will of all elements? Ye Futian thought to himself. He finally understood why Xiao Wuji failed at the fifth figure and why no one had ever broken the record of four Noble figures. After all, those in the Dharma Plane were not true Nobles. When encountering anything formed by an absolute noble will of all elements it was almost impossible to challenge its power. If so, then five Noble figures could be the limit.


    It was entirely possible that five Noble figures was the maximum at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    Ye Futian also had the wind of will around his body. He could move around very quickly. At the same time, in the skies behind him, the sun and the moon hung high. The flames and the ice alternated. A terrifying force of flame will was released, forming ancient characters that floated in the air. A golden divine flame attacked and meet the incoming vines, burning them to a crisp.


    Ye Futian''s opponent was formed from full-attributed noble will, and he was the same.


    The moonlight shined down and cooled the temperature down to the point of freezing, wanted to seal the approaching figure in ice. The cold and the heat alternated. The flames and the ice were like yin and yang, working together to strangle the opponent.


    BOOM! The figure took a step forward. A frightening force of spiritual will exploded and a terrifying force could be felt pushing down onto Ye Futian. All he knew was that his body felt extremely heavy. Above the figure, there seemed to be a flow of water. The running sounds of the water were endless. The powerful spell that Ye Futian targeted at the figure followed the flow of the water back to himself.


    The look in his opponent''s eyes became terrifying. A spiritual spell descended upon Ye Futian and at that moment, he felt as if his body was trapped in a cage of spiritual energy.


    Just then, the same terrifying look was seen in Ye Futian''s eyes. A horrifying spiritual storm seemed to have washed over his opponent''s spiritual will and absorbed all the spiritual energy. The entire area filled with an endless golden light. The rays of light were like fragments of gold. With the wind, these fragments shot towards the figure. The golden light was like a metal storm that wanted to crush Ye Futian''s opponent into pieces. Just like maple flames, this was a spell he got from enlightenment by the statues.


    Another loud thump was heard when the figure took another step forward. An even scarier force of power erupted and the world seemed to have been put on pause. The metal storm that circled wildly actually stopped moving in the air. Ye Futian also seemed to be frozen in place.


    Had the figure perfectly merged noble will and sorcery? It was no wonder why no one was able to beat the record of four Noble figures. To make a fifth figure appear was an obstacle set by the heavens. These were the true limits, a boundary not to be passed.


    But Ye Futian refused to believe so. There were no limits. Limits were meant to be broken.


    Behind him, golden roc wings appeared. His body was fluid and majestic like a dragon. He grew big and tall like a divine ape, ready to amaze the world. The sun and the moon hung high in the sky, destroying what was below. Ye Futian''s spiritual will exploded and he was like a young emperor.


    With the long rod in hand, he struck directly in the air ahead. A dull noise sounded and a force gathered in the surrounding area. He continued to step forward looking fiercer than ever before. He must break through the gravity spell weighing down on him.


    Witnessing this scene, the figure released the light of lightning which spread throughout the sky. The lightning attacked right away, striking down on Ye Futian. Infused with noble will, the lightning wanted to destroy Ye Futian''s will. However, his will was firm right now. He allowed the lightning to strike down on him. In his hand, the long rod danced and the power of the lightning was attracted onto the rod. When he swung his weapon again, the air around him seemed to have split.


    The sun and the moon, yin and yang, descended on the figure. Ye Futian continued to advance. Another attack. He was making a path for himself by cutting through the air. The force of power from the figure grew even more horrifying. It was as if it was ready to eliminate everything on earth and wipe out the universe.


    BOOM! With a loud noise, Ye Futian lifted into the air. In the air, he looked like a god. The long rod struck downward. The roar of the divine ape, the growl of the divine dragon, and the arrival of the divine roc.


    The figure lifted his head and then transformed into a ray of light. All types of will revolved around him like he was the ultimate Noble. Up him went, headed straight for Ye Futian.


    When the two bodies collided, a blinding light shined over the world.


    Away from this scene, countless pairs of eyes were focused on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall and the figure in front of it. They saw a terrifying force release from Ye Futian. His noble fate rushed crazily into the stone wall and his mental state seemed to be pushed to the limits. He was still challenging the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall''s fifth Noble figure. However, it seemed like the figure would never make an appearance.


    The faint image of it came and went and showed no signs of stabilizing.


    "He''s still fighting. He hasn''t given up," someone murmured.


    "Looks like he''s not willing to admit defeat. He wants the challenge. Xiao Wuji had done the same before but in the end, he thought it was impossible for a fifth Noble figure to ever appear."


    Everyone was in discussion. Some were even trying to determine which clan Ye Futian would choose to join. The Donghua Clan? The College? Or was it going to the Qin Dynasty or the Liu Kingdom?


    Just as they were deep in discussion the world around suddenly grew brighter. There was actually an extremely bright light coming from the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    What''s going on? Everyone looked over to the stone wall in surprise. They then watched as the stone wall emitted a never before seen light that glowed over Ye Futian''s body.


    A fifth Noble figure had not appeared on the wall. However, the four original figures had actually moved. The circled on the stone wall and moved in four directions. Then, they all headed toward the faint image of the fifth figure in the center and at the very end, they formed a single Noble.


    A bright light exploded from this new figure. The stone seemed to be taking shape. Following that, the light gathered into a single ray that shined out of the stone wall.


    A small stone figure floated in front of Ye Futian. Within this small stone figure seemed to be the purest noble will.


    This�� Everyone was surprised and then shocked when they realized that the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall had dulled and its shine was no more. It was not just because the Noble figures had disappeared. It was more like the entire stone wall was different. It could not go back to the way it used to be. The stone wall no longer contained powerful noble will.


    What did he do? Everyone stared dead at Ye Futian. Indeed, the fifth Noble figure had not appeared but Ye Futian somehow managed to dull the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    Just then, Nobles from the great powers of the Eastern Barren Territory suddenly lost their view of the Ancient Barren World''s Mirror Mountain. Their spell seemed to have diminished. Many people shared the same question: what is happening?


    Ye Futian froze for a moment before taking the stone figure into his hands. He turned around and walked over to Hua Jieyu. Countless pairs of eyes were glued on him, watching like he was some kind of freak.


    Who could tell them exactly what was going on? Had this guy swallowed up the stone wall''s will?


    Looking at the dull stone wall, it just looked like any ordinary stone wall. Many people felt a squeeze in their hearts. Did this guy come to challenge the relics or to ruin them?


    What was the small stone figure in his hands? Was it formed by the will from the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall?


    "What are you looking at?" Yu Sheng shouted at the people when he noticed all of them giving Ye Futian strange looks. Did they still have a problem with him now?

 210 Escor

    Chapter 210: Escort


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many people looked at Yu Sheng, speechless. They then looked at Ye Futian, feeling unsettled. They didn''t know why the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall was like this but one fact was undeniable. Ye Futian had done something no one from the Eastern Barren Territory had ever done before. All these years, countless talents had come to the Stone Wall to undergo the test but no one had done what Ye Futian did today.


    They remembered how Tang Ye had come and arrogantly humiliated Ye Futian. Xiao Wuji had wanted to comprehend the statue so Tang Ye told Ye Futian to move.


    Hua Qingchi of the Donghua Clan had told Ye Futian that he''d have no more chances if he missed this. He''d told Ye Futian to take this chance to join the Donghua Clan as if it was charity.


    Everyone was competing for Xiao Wuji.


    Looking at Ye Futian now, no one could compose themselves. Liu Chenyu was the same. She stared at that handsome figure. That day, he''d become furious, beating the drums sixteen times and shattering them. Then he''d left an eight-inch Image on the Wall and controlled the flame statue to burn off Li Daoyun''s arm. He was impossibly wild but just as everyone was expecting him to go to the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, he stopped. Many thought he''d lost confidence but what about now?


    No one knew what he was thinking.


    She then looked at Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and Ye Wuchen. These four had shaken the Ancient Barren World in the name of Cangye. Their names would appear in all the forces of the Eastern Barren Territory. Perhaps Ye Wuchen really didn''t underestimate the Eastern Barren Territory but he was confident that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could sweep through with their talent. No one could surpass them. And everything that Ye Futian had done seemed to prove this.


    What will these people from the Cangye Kingdom accomplish in the future? Liu Chenyu thought, looking at them.


    Gu Biyue also looked at the group. She felt regret. Ye Futian''s group was more talented than she''d imagined. If she''d known this, she would have used a different method. With her tactics, she could at least be equal with Liu Chenyu.


    "We''ve completed our goal here. We should head back," Ye Futian suddenly said. Everyone''s eyes constricted. Head back? Was he not going to choose a clan?


    Yu Sheng and the others understood what Ye Futian meant.


    "Are you going back to Cangye?" Liu Chenyu came up and asked.


    "Yeah," Ye Futian said, smiling. "The year is ending. I must go back to see the elders."


    "Why don''t you come to the Liu Kingdom? I can send strong cultivators to help you back," Liu Feiyang said, walking up. He didn''t ask Ye Futian to join his kingdom. Since Ye Futian said he would return to Cangye, it meant that he didn''t want to choose a clan. If he hounded Ye Futian to choose, it would be worse.


    "I can''t take rewards without doing anything." Smirking, Ye Futian said to Liu Chenyu, "Of course, if you want to find a husband, we can be a family."


    Liu Chenyu was speechless. She glanced at Ye Wuchen, who was also looking embarrassed.


    "I''m fine with that." Liu Feiyang smiled at Ye Futian and the two men exchanged glances, eyes shining.


    Liu Chenyu was even more speechless. They were fine but did they ever ask her opinion?


    "Wuchen, decide if we should leave from the Liu Kingdom." Ye Futian grinned at Ye Wuchen while Liu Chenyu glared at him. He was doing it on purpose.


    "Ye Wuchen," Liu Feiyang said. "Since you all have decided to return, even if you don''t go from the Liu Kingdom, we also wish to see what Cangye is like. It''s just on the way. There are no feelings in it." His words intrigued many. He seemed to be hinting at something.


    "Okay, we''ll go from the Liu Kingdom." Ye Wuchen nodded.


    After shocking the Eastern Barren Territory with the name of Cangye and Ye Futian wanted to go back, Ye Wuchen obviously knew what he was planning. He wanted to get rid of Cangye''s potential threat. After this, no one in the Hundred Lands would dare to provoke Cangye. But they weren''t entirely safe on the road before choosing a clan. Considering this, they could depart from the Liu Kingdom with a convoy from them. Whether people from the Ancient Barren World or Emperor Luo wanted to attack them, it would be meaningless.


    Even if they owed the Liu Kingdom and didn''t choose them, it was still good to have a friend. Judging from Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu''s attitudes, they''d be happy if they could join. If not, they could still be friends.


    Hearing Ye Wuchen''s answer, Ye Futian smiled and said to Liu Chenyu, "Princess, our Wuchen agreed."


    Liu Chenyu didn''t know what to say. "Agreed" could also be interpreted in terms of becoming her husband. Of course, she knew that Ye Wuchen didn''t think that way. He only agreed to depart from the Liu Kingdom.


    Glancing at Ye Wuchen, a tinge of shyness appeared in Liu Chenyu''s beautiful features. Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian in reverence. It had been like this before him and Qingxuan, right?


    "If that''s the case, let''s not waste any more time. Let''s depart immediately," Liu Feiyang said, smiling. Ye Futian nodded. The Black Wind Eagle flapped its wings and flew into the air. It had had fun in the Ancient Barren World and it didn''t really want to leave.


    "Virgin, what are your plans?" Ye Futian asked Loulan Xue.


    "I''ll remain here," Loulan Xue said. Her mother only told her to train with Ye Futian in the Ancient Barren World, not following him home. Since his lover was here, she naturally wouldn''t follow.


    "Alright. Let''s meet again if fate allows it." Ye Futian nodded and the group embarked.


    In the air, Ye Futian looked at Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi. "How is the Cangye Kingdom?"


    Ye Lingxi rolled her eyes. So this guy still recognized them? Of course, they weren''t angry. That was just how he was. Everything that had happened moved them as well. They could feel that the Cangye Kingdom was about to change.


    Back then, Luo Junlin had returned to the Nandou Nation and strong cultivators of the Royal Xuan Temple had come to tell him to go. Now, Cangye had shocked the Ancient Barren World at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    What was awaiting the Cangye Kingdom if they returned now? Both Ye Lingxi and Ye Danchen were excited.


    "When we came, everything was alright but Nandou really seems ready for an all-out war. Of course, we aren''t afraid," Ye Danchen said.


    "Ah." Ye Futian nodded. After going back, Cangye''s position would be stabilized in the Hundred Lands. No one would go up against them anymore.


    The Liu Kingdom had an independent exit from the Ancient Barren World situated in a region of the Barren City. After exiting from it, Ye Futian''s group appeared in the Liu Kingdom''s imperial city. Many strong cultivators were positioned there. The royal family controlled it directly and was close to the palace.


    All the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory had their own passageways. The group went straight to the palace. Seeing the majestic building up ahead, Ye Futian smiled and said, "It''ll definitely be nice to be the husband of the Liu Kingdom''s princess."


    Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu were used to it now.


    "Are you regretting it now?" Hua Jieyu asked Ye Futian with a smile.


    "Regret what?" Ye Futian blinked.


    "Regretting not marrying a princess." Hua Jieyu smiled meaningfully.


    "No way. There''s only one person in my heart," Ye Futian said earnestly.


    Hua Jieyu was satisfied.


    Liu Chenyu looked at Ye Futian. This guy was arrogant but he had someone above him too. Before, he was surrounded by beauties, including the Virgin and Witch. Now��


    "What are you looking at me for? I''m not interested in becoming the princess''s husband." Ye Futian gave Liu Chenyu a look. What was she looking at? Has she never seen a handsome guy?


    "Yeah, I know you like servants more. After all, they''ll serve you and massage your shoulders," Liu Chenyu said.


    "I��" Ye Futian was shook. Seeing Hua Jieyu look at him, he said, "Jieyu, how are Master and Masteress? I miss them."


    Hua Jieyu smiled but didn''t reply.


    "The weather''s nice today." Ye Futian looked up at the sky.


    Everyone smiled. They''d never seen someone so shameless.


    They soon arrived outside the palace and Ye Futian told them to stop. "Let''s just wait here."


    "Won''t you like to see our father?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "There''ll be a chance in the future. We must hurry now," Ye Futian said, shaking his head. If they met with the king and he invited them to join, what should he do?


    "I see. You all stay here, Chenyu as well." Then Liu Feiyang entered the palace.


    After a while, a group came out. The leader was an extremely powerful Noble figure with natural mightiness.


    "This is my uncle," Liu Feiyang explained from the side."


    "Lord," Ye Futian greeted, bowing.


    "No need." The newcomer waved his hand and studied them. "As expected, you are all cream of the crop. Even I want to see what the Cangye Kingdom is like but unfortunately, I have other matters. You can come visit any time."


    He didn''t invite them to join either. Liu Feiyang clearly said something to him.


    "Of course." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Feiyang and Chenyu will accompany you all there and bring some of the good stuff from Cangye," the lord joked. Other than Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu, he also had many Noble figures behind him. They would escort Ye Futian''s group back to the Cangye Kingdom.


    Clouds rolled in the sky and a demon appeared, rushing down. It was huge and looked both like a fish and roc. The feathery wings unfurled like a huge cloud. It was a Kunpeng, a whale roc demon.


    "Thank you, Brother Kun," the lord said to the demon.


    "It is fine," the Kunpeng said in the human tongue. It then landed in the empty space beside Ye Futian''s group.


    A Noble-level demon. Ye Futian''s group all focused on it.


    "Let''s go," Liu Feiyang said. Ye Futian nodded and they all climbed onto the Kunpeng.


    The wind whistled and the Kunpeng spread its wings. It charged up and instantly entered the clouds and disappeared!

 211 Enemy at the Gates

    Chapter 211: Enemy at the Gates


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    While Ye Futian was on his way back to the Cangye Kingdom from the Liu Kingdom, many Nobles listened as the younger generation members of their clans told them about what happened that day in the Ancient Barren World.


    One person in the sixth level Noble plane and three in the third. Out of the four youths, two were able to draw out three Noble figures, one made four, and the last person actually took the light of the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. They came from the Cangye Kingdom in the Hundred Lands and may very well be heading back there from the Liu Kingdom.


    The Fuyun Sword Clan of the Eastern Barren Territory was located on a mountain range consisting of seven summits that reached above the clouds. These were the Seven Summits the Fuyun Sword Clan were famous for.


    Just then, at the cliff of the Seventh Summit stood an elder with his hands behind his back. He stood there and looked out at the clouds as they floated by. Light reflected off the blades of swords flashed by as some people descended behind the elder.


    "Go to the Cangye Kingdom and invite Ye Wuchen," said the elder. The people bowed and answered, "Yes." Then, they became a blade of light and disappeared.


    Moments later, another figure descended. He looked at the elder and shouted, "Senior Brother, you want Ye Wuchen to join the Seventh Summit? I''m afraid the First Summit would have thoughts about that."


    Li Daoyun was of the Fuyun Sword Clan''s First Summit.


    "What can they say if he was the one that lacked the skill to defeat his opponent?" the elder said nonchalantly. "He was able to cut off the arm of another person. It is obvious others would be able to do the same to him. So, what if the First Summit has an opinion about it?"


    The newly arrived man shook his head with a bitter smile. "But Ye Wuchen has something against the Fuyun Sword Clan. I''m afraid he won''t trust the clan."


    "He''s a swordsman. The Fuyun Sword Clan is the best-suited place for his cultivation. If he thinks the clan will come up with schemes against him simply because of his rivalry with a younger generation clan member, then he is not suited to be a swordsman." the elder said slowly.


    ...


    Central district of the Eastern Barren Territory, Eastern Barren College.


    This was the most ancient college in all of the Eastern Barren Territory. All of its 3,000 students were extraordinary cultivators. Presently, many of the students were discussing something in the college.


    Months ago, Xiao Wuji had entered the college and that caused a huge ruckus. But now, there was a genius cultivator who could be even more outstanding than Xiao Wuji.


    Rumors had it that the college was contemplating whether or not to send people to the Cangye Kingdom.


    Tang Ye was also among the crowd. From time to time, someone else in the crowd around would look over at him, causing his expression to become unnatural. What happened in the Ancient Barren World all those months ago was a stain on his record. He never in a million years would have imagined that Ye Futian would be able to surpass Xiao Wuji''s performance at the three big relics. He even broke the record at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. And because of this, he was the joke of the entire school.


    Everyone seemed to be waiting for something. Their eyes were trained somewhere ahead. In that very direction stood a young man. One step at a time, he approached the crowd.


    Tang Ye''s eyes widened as someone in the front of the group asked, "Senior Brother, has the college made a decision?"


    The young man who had just joined the crowd nodded, "Yes."


    His reply got everyone''s attention immediately. They all looked at the young man intently.


    The young man lifted his head to look at the crowd and smiled, "Stop worrying about things outside the college and focus on cultivation. The college decided not to go."


    Hearing his words, the crowd burst into an uproar. That person from the Cangye Kingdom had beat a record in the Ancient Barren World. He even caused the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall to dim and dull. Had the college really decided not to pursue such a genius?


    But then, they thought in the college''s perspective and many began to understand the reasoning behind this decision. The college was a school, not a great, powerful clan. It had always been others who came begging to study at the college. When had they ever begged others to come to cultivate at the school?


    The college was a place to pass on knowledge. After many of the students became strong and powerful, they left the college. The college has never forced anyone to do anything against their will. It was because of this, it did not really matter to the college whether or not an individual was extremely gifted. If someone came to the college, then they would be taught. If they didn''t, it wouldn''t be thought of as a pity.


    Back when Xiao Wuji announced that he would be choosing a clan in the Ancient Barren World, an elder from the college who valued talent asked Tang Ye to head over and ask Xiao Wuji if he would be willing to cultivate at the school. However, there were no conditions brought up to purposely lure him in. When Tang Ye met Xiao Wuji, only a few words were spoken. "I come from the college and would like to invite you to join."


    Without hesitation, Xiao Wuji chose the college.


    This was the charm of the college.


    Ye Futian did not choose a clan. If he had stayed after breaking the record at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, he would have been welcome to cultivate at the college if he wanted to. But he didn''t. He chose to leave the Ancient Barren World and headed back to the Cangye Kingdom.


    Ye Futian wanted the clans of the Eastern Barren Territory to go all the way to the Cangye Kingdom to invite him to join them. For a younger generation low-level Dharma Plane cultivator to do something like that showed just how untamed and arrogant he was. Then again, he had the right to be. He broke many records and even accomplished what had never been done before. Therefore, it was definite that the great powers of the Eastern Barren Territory would go to him. But the college was different from the other great powers. The college was a school and had its own reputation and honor to uphold.


    A glow reached Tang Ye''s eyes, and he thought to himself, even though you''re really gifted, you''ve missed the chance to enter the college.


    Ye Futian was too arrogant, and arrogance came with a price.


    Just then, not too far away from the crowd, a figure approached. This figure was clad in a long scholarly robe. It was simple and clean, untouched by all that is unclean. He wore a headpiece and looked like a scholar.


    This figure seemed to have lacked presence and went unnoticed. Very quietly, he walked closer to the group.


    The young man who brought the news that the college wouldn''t be heading for the Cangye Kingdom was surprised after taking one look at the figure. What is he doing here?


    "Those who understand me will understand my arrogance," murmured the scholar.


    Tang Ye froze and sharpened his gaze as he turned over to look at the scholar.


    He spoke again, "What is wrong with abandoning those who do not understand me?"


    All the student disciples around turned to look at him strangely. What was this guy doing muttering the words Ye Futian left in the Ancient Barren World?


    The scholar smiled and shook his head. Then, he continued on his way, leaving the crowd.


    The young man in front of the group froze and seemed to have gotten something from the words the scholar repeated.


    Those who understand me will understand my arrogance.


    What is wrong with abandoning those who do not understand me.


    So, Ye Futian had already stated his attitude through his words.


    Those who understood his arrogance would naturally go to him.


    Was the scholar going for Ye Futian?


    At the thought of this, the young man shivered before turning to leave.


    ...


    The end of the year was nearing and Year 10001 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was about to pass. In the Cangye Kingdom, there was not a hint of celebratory air. On the contrary, great trouble was headed their way.


    Some time ago, Crown Prince Luo Junlin of the Nandou Nation returned to his country.


    With him, came a Noble from the Royal Xuan Temple, along with many of the temple''s disciples.


    In the group of disciples was a girl. She was of superior status at the Royal Xuan Temple and now, she was Luo Junlin''s girlfriend. She was also the daughter of his master.


    From the top power of the Eastern Barren Territory, these powerful cultivators of the Royal Xuan Temple had arrived in the Nandou Nation. Emperors from kingdoms all around came to pay their respects. At the same time, they were wishing deep down that this might pave the way for the young cultivators to enter the Royal Xuan Temple in the future. Even if they didn''t become core disciples, simply getting in was going to be an important first step.


    Big countries such as the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom had sent their prodigies into the Ancient Barren World for trials and many had already returned, but none of them yielded any positive results. None of them were able to acquire noble fate. So now, they had to come up with a different way for them to succeed.


    It was said that Luo Junlin''s girlfriend promised some things to them.


    At the same time, Emperor Luo claimed the emperor of the Cangye Kingdom went against rules and harbored fugitives of the Nandou Nation. Now, Emperor Luo had started a war with them and hoped that the emperors of these other countries would team up with him to force the Cangye Kingdom to hand over the fugitives.


    Rumor had it that the Yunchu Nation, the Yan Kingdom, and many other countries had already agreed. They were going to head to the Cangye Kingdom together under the leadership of Emperor Luo of the Nandou Nation to get these people back.


    Chu Kuangren of the Yunchu Nation personally witnessed what Ye Futian and his friends accomplished at the Noble Grotto and hypothesized that he would be able to acquire noble fate and become a member of a great noble power.


    However, now that Luo Junlin was back and had the Royal Xuan Temple backing him, it didn''t seem like he was going to give Ye Futian the slightest chance. He wanted to get rid of him once and for all.


    Under these circumstances, Ye Futian was destined for death upon his return.


    Neither Emperor Luo or Crown Prince Luo Junlin of the Nandou Nation was going to give Ye Futian the chance to mature his powers.


    It was the end of the year, and it was very possible that Ye Futian might return. This journey back home was going to be his very last.


    Finally, on this day, all the emperors set off and arrived at the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial city. Emperor Luo even brought many of his country''s most powerful cultivators. An entire army arrived in the city and surrounded the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial palace.


    Just like that, the Cangye Kingdom was in big trouble.


    Many people gathered around the imperial palace and watched these newly arrived figures in fear. Emperor Luo had actually gathered the emperors of other countries and led them here. Were they planning on destroying the Cangye Kingdom?


    On top of the palace door, Emperor Luo stood with his clothes fluttering in the wind. He looked domineering as he overlooked the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial palace.


    Emperor Ye came from inside the palace then looked at Emperor Luo. With a cold demeanor, he asked, "What is the meaning of this, Emperor Luo?"


    "You are harboring fugitives of my country and you want to ask me what I mean?" Emperor Luo''s tone was cold as ice. "Hand over the traitors of Nandou Nation immediately."


    "They are now citizens of my Cangye Kingdom," replied Emperor Ye.


    "Emperor Ye, we all heard the story of what happened. You''re protecting the Nandou Nation''s traitors. It is only right that you hand them over," said Emperor Chu.


    "Emperor Ye, you''re in the wrong in this situation. If you hand them over, perhaps Brother Luo will be generous enough to spare you," said another emperor. Now that they wanted something from either Emperor Luo or Luo Junlin, the emperors were all on their side.


    It could only be said that Emperor Ye was unlucky.


    Luo Junlin came back too quickly. The Ancient Barren World was now open and he did not want to give Ye Futian a chance to prepare to fight back.


    "Are you all going to gang up on me like that?" Emperor Ye asked coldly.


    "I''m already being very nice. Do you really want war?" Emperor Luo asked, slightly threateningly. Emperor Luo knew that his abilities were similar to that of Emperor Ye and if a war started, Emperor Ye might be able to get away. Otherwise, he would have saved his breath and just killed his way into the palace. He wouldn''t be here negotiating.


    If Emperor Ye escaped, there would be other troubles. First, they had to capture Ye Futian''s family and friends who were in the Cangye palace. This way, they would have leverage against Ye Futian no matter when he returned. As long as they got rid of Ye Futian''s threat, Emperor Luo''s rivalry with Emperor Ye could be taken care of slowly. There was no rush for that.


    His son, Luo Junlin, was now doing well at the Royal Xuan Temple and his girlfriend was the daughter of a high official at the temple. Sooner or later, little ole Emperor Ye would be taken care of.

 212 Return

    Chapter 212: Return


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Far from the Cangye Kingdom''s palace, a group of figures sat at the top level of a restaurant, enjoying a feast. The restaurant was in a good position. Eating and chatting at the top level, they could see the Cangye palace. Luo Junlin was here at the moment. He sat across from a girl and was in a good mood.


    "Will they hand them over?" the girl asked.


    "They should. They wouldn''t risk their lives just for some outsiders," Luo Junlin replied calmly. With the current situation, it was impossible for Emperor Ye to refuse.


    "Oh." The girl smiled. "If they refuse, I''ll send the message."


    "Thank you, Xirou," Luo Junlin said gently. He knew that even though he was in the Arcana Plane, he still didn''t have the ability to make the Nobles of the Royal Xuan Temple work for him. Nobles were proud and would never help a disciple take care of a small country''s matters. Thus, he could only rely on the situation.


    He wouldn''t act so early if the Ancient Barren World didn''t open. He''d entered it and he''d witnessed Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s talent. Once they reached the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane, it was highly possible they would be accepted by a top force. By that time, it would be very difficult to kill them.


    He slowly looked over at the palace in the distance. A cold sneer appeared on his face. So what if Ye Futian had Minister Zuo''s prediction? Even if Luo Junlin didn''t want to be Nandou Nation''s emperor, the position belonged to the Luo Family. No one else could take it.


    Once he became a Noble and truly entered the upper level of the Royal Xuan Temple, he would have the Luo Family rule over the Hundred Lands. All other countries would bow before him.


    At that time, he wouldn''t be so kind to the Cangye Kingdom. When he had enough power, he could naturally be able to destroy them without the Royal Xuan Temple''s help.


    ��


    At the Cangye Kingdom, Emperor Ye was currently staring at Emperor Luo and the other emperors coldly. Emperor Luo had asked him if he was preparing to declare war if he didn''t hand them over. If war began now, he could escape but the others in the Cangye palace would meet tragedy.


    Before, he only faced Emperor Luo and guessed that the man wouldn''t really declare war. Otherwise, they would both be destroyed in the process. It was different now. He''d come with other emperors to pressure him.


    Emperor Ye scanned the others and said coldly, "You''re doing this because Luo Junlin entered the Royal Xuan Temple and want to ally with him. But have you thought about Ye Futian''s talent? He will definitely join a force in the Eastern Barren Territory. At that time, would you be able to withstand his revenge?"


    Emperor Chu and the others frowned slightly. They''d considered this before but right now, Emperor Luo and Luo Junlin wouldn''t let Ye Futian live. After capturing his relatives in Cangye and surrounding the palace, they would have people guard the entrances from the Ancient Barren World. They would capture Ye Futian as soon as he came out.


    This way, it would be impossible for Ye Futian to escape. He would die��unless he stayed in the Ancient Barren World for decades without returning to Cangye. But there was a low possibility of this happening. After all, a youth who was not even 18 yet wouldn''t have that much patience. Furthermore, there were so many strong cultivators in the Ancient Barren World. It was possible for Ye Futian to die there but not for him to enter a top talent. To them, the opportunity before their eyes was more important.


    "You''re still fantasizing that Ye Futian can live?" Emperor Luo said coldly. "The day he leaves the Ancient Barren World is the day of his death.


    Emperor Ye looked up. Staring at the other, he laughed. "An emperor, someone of the Noble Plane, fears a youth to this extent. This is laughable. If you knew this, why would you send that letter in the first place?"


    Emperor Luo frowned. There was a reason why he sent that order to the Donghai City. He''d ordered Minister Hua to personally capture Ye Futian but who would''ve guessed that he could escape? His talent was beyond expectation too. But Emperor Luo didn''t regret anything. All of this was fated. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were destined to become his enemy.


    He was just overly confident back then. He didn''t think that he could send out an order as an emperor but still have Ye Futian escape. Thankfully, that was impossible now.


    Ignoring Emperor Ye, Emperor Luo strode forward coldly, walking to the palace.


    "Presumptuous!" Sword intent flowed. The palace was instantly enveloped by an extremely strong sword aura. Emperor Ye shot into the air and blocked Emperor Luo''s path. They were at a stalemate with swords unsheathed.


    At that moment, someone walked over from the distance. It was a young man in the Arcana Plane. When he appeared, there was faint arrogance in his eyes, even when faced with people of the Noble Plane. They were only kings of small lands and he looked down on them.


    "The Royal Xuan Temple orders the Cangye Kingdom to immediately hand them over. Otherwise, you will pay for your actions," the man said arrogantly to Emperor Ye. The other emperors'' eyes immediately hardened. With support from the Royal Xuan Temple, there was nothing to fear.


    The young man gazed at them coolly and turned to leave. He didn''t care about these things. If not for his junior sister, he wouldn''t even come to such a barbaric place. His words might seem arrogant and almighty but he didn''t feel that great. There was nothing to be proud of for the Royal Xuan Temple to threaten a small country.


    "Did you hear clearly?" Emperor Luo threatened coldly. "I don''t care if you''re hiding Nandou''s traitors. But now, I personally came to your palace to take them away. If you still stop me, you are treating all of us as enemies. Think clearly."


    With that, Emperor Luo walked out. The other emperors followed behind Emperor Luo. One said, "Emperor Ye, why do you do this for outsiders? If we go to war, this palace will be the first to be destroyed. Is it worth it?"


    "Can you fight against the Royal Xuan Temple''s order?" another emperor said as they all stepped into the palace.


    Emperor Ye''s expression was uncomfortable. At the Tingfeng Banquet last time, he only faced Emperor Luo by himself. If Emperor Luo didn''t care, then he didn''t care either. But now, he faced pressure from all the emperors and even the Royal Xuan Temple. He either had to give in or declare war.


    If war was declared, the first to be destroyed was the palace and the people inside. It was unclear if even he could survive.


    "Halt." A group came from the distance. Everyone turned to see the group. Ye Xiao was at the front and he was the one who spoke. Behind him were some strong cultivators of the palace. Hua Fengliu, Yi Xiang, and the others were there too.


    "We''ll hand them over," Ye Xiao said to Emperor Luo.


    Emperor Ye looked over, his eyes sharp. "What did you do?" he demanded.


    "Father, they followed me voluntarily," Ye Xiao said.


    In his opinion, it was unavoidable. They had to hand Ye Futian over but his father was too benevolent. Since he couldn''t do it, Ye Xiao would.


    He said some things while going to the palace and these people cooperated, coming voluntarily with him.


    "Your Majesty, we will go with them," Yi Xiang said. Emperor Ye had already been kind enough to them. Now, he was faced with the Royal Xuan Temple''s pressure and couldn''t fight back. Since that was so, Yi Xiang couldn''t let him take risks.


    Since the end couldn''t be chanced, they could only accept it. He just wished Ye Futian wouldn''t come back.


    "No." Emperor Ye looked at Yi Xiang.


    "Your Majesty," Hua Fengliu said, looking at him. "No need to try and dissuade us."


    At the same time, Hua Fengliu used Spiritual Sorcery to tell Emperor Ye, Futian and Jieyu are in the Ancient Barren World. Emperor Luo will put guards around the entrance. There are many things you must do still.


    Emperor Ye heard Hua Fengliu''s words and sighed inwardly. He knew that Hua Fengliu was right. Since Emperor Luo had come, they would definitely be guarding the Ancient Barren World''s exit too. He had to stay alive to help Ye Futian.


    ��


    At the same time, a huge demon descended from the clouds outside the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial city. The Kunpeng spread its wings, covering the sky and sun.


    The people below all looked up. Seeing the huge demon, their hearts shuddered.


    "The Kunpeng! It''s the legendary Kunpeng!" someone yelled in shock. It was their first time seeing a real Kunpeng.


    Who''s coming now? they thought as the Kunpeng landed.


    Many emperors had arrived in the imperial city today and went directly to the palace. Apparently, the top force Royal Xuan Temple had come too, to make the Cangye Kingdom hand over the family of Ye Futian, the first on the Fenghua Rank. But now, a huge Kunpeng came from the clouds. There seemed to be many figures on its back but were blocked. Who were these people? Why did they come?


    The Cangye Kingdom had suddenly become so lively.


    "We''re finally here," Ye Futian said, smiling at the palace. It had been almost one year. He missed his master and the others.


    "This is the imperial city?" Liu Feiyang looked down and joked, "It''s the birthplace of so many geniuses. Can I stay a few days?"


    It was indeed rare for one country to have four prides.


    Ye Futian chuckled. In reality, he wasn''t from Cangye Kingdom. He was from Nandou.


    "Brother Liu, you can stay as long as you wish. I''m just afraid you won''t feel used to things," Ye Danchen said, smiling.


    The Kunpeng continued forward at an extreme speed. Everyone under it looked up at the huge beast, their hearts trembling. Was it another strong cultivator from the Royal Xuan Temple?


    After a while, the palace was close. Ye Futian looked over and vaguely saw some figures in the air. It seemed to be a confrontation.

 213 Does Your Father Know?

    Chapter 213: Does Your Father Know?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Kunpeng zipped through the air and was now even closer to the palace. Ye Futian''s eyebrows furrowed. "What''s going on?"


    "It''s a confrontation. Looks like the beginning of a fight," said a Noble from the side.


    Ye Lingxi and Ye Danchen also furrowed their brows in confusion. A fight at the Cangye palace? If it had to do with the palace, then it had to be something big.


    At this time, both sides had already pulled swords at the palace. Emperor Ye had also been persuaded by Yi Xiang and Hua Fengliu. In their current situation, resistance would only get them all killed. Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and the others were in the Ancient Barren World and would end up without anyone to help them.


    Many people from various great powers of the Cangye Kingdom were also gathered around the palace. Powers like the Cangye College, the Qin Clan, as well as other clans, stood witness to everything that happened. They were flooded with emotion as they never thought their country would end up in such a situation.


    Ye Futian was indeed a rare genius in the Hundred Lands but what had he brought to the Cangye Kingdom? Was his arrival a blessing or a curse? At the moment, it was a curse in the eyes of many. Ye Futian himself was in a lot of trouble.


    Students of the Cangye College such as Zuo Qianfan and Yu Jiang, as well as Bai Qiu and others from the Qin Clan were all participants of the Fenghua Banquet alongside Ye Futian. Not only them, but many others had personally witnessed Ye Futian''s performance at the banquet. He was a Glory Plane cultivator who defeated those in the Dharma Plane. He was powerful. But Luo Junlin was able to enter the Royal Xuan Temple. How domineering. No matter how gifted Ye Futian was, this seemed to be the end for him. There was no chance for him to keep growing.


    Yi Xiang, Hua Fengliu, and the others walked forward. Beside Hua Fengliu was Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan. He looked over at them and smiled, "I''m sorry that both of you have suffered by being with me."


    "We went through tough times like this all those years ago. It doesn''t bother me anymore. As long as Jieyu and Futian are well, I am content," Nandou Wenyin said as she held Hua Fengliu''s hand.


    "I''m jealous," Tang Lan said with a teasing smile. Hua Fengliu smiled and held her with his other hand. Tang Lan resisted a little but quickly gave up and allowed Hua Fengliu to hold her hand. They didn''t bring any of their juniors as this was basically giving their lives away. Just them was sufficient.


    Emperor Luo and his people smiled coldly at this sight. In the end, they had complied.


    A chilling breeze blew over from afar.


    "What is that?" asked one of the emperors as he lifted his head to look into the sky. His utterance caused many people to look in the same direction. The wind was blowing stronger and more intensely. However, the winds were not due to a change in the weather. It was a large demon beast, flying over in their direction.


    The weird winds blew over the people. Even Emperor Ye looked over at the large beast in the sky. The beast was enormous. It was a top-level demon beast��the Kunpeng.


    Yi Xiang, Hua Fengliu, and the others stopped in their tracks. When they noticed that everyone else was focused on the skies above, they turned their attention in that direction as well. Above the imperial palace was the Kunpeng. With every flap of its giant winds, the sea of clouds seemed to part, making way for the ferocious beast. The aura of this beast was also extremely terrifying.


    A Noble beast. Everyone felt a shiver down their backs. A Noble Kunpeng had appeared in the Cangye Kingdom. Who else had arrived?


    Faraway, at the top floor of a restaurant, Luo Junlin and Xirou were drinking wine happily. However, their expressions changed as soon as they took notice of the Kunpeng''s appearance in the distance.


    "Does the Royal Xuan Temple have a Kunpeng?" Luo Junlin asked Xirou.


    "No." She shook her head in response. "That isn''t a beast from the Royal Xuan Temple." She frowned and her eyebrows knit together. The Kunpeng was an incredibly powerful demon beast. A Noble level Kunpeng would most definitely only belong to a great power and was definitely not from a place like the Hundred Lands.


    Anyway, she did not care too much about it. Even if it was from a great power, the Royal Xuan Temple was also one of the top powers in the Eastern Barren Territory. How many top powers out there could pique the interest of the Royal Xuan Temple? Which one of those top powers was bored enough to come to this aboriginal land?


    Very quickly, they realized that the Kunpeng had stopped. It seemed to have come in relation to what was going on at the palace. Luo Junlin stood and Xirou followed.


    "I''m a little worried," he said.


    "Then let''s go check it out," she answered. Luo Junlin nodded and led their group in the direction of the imperial palace.


    The Kunpeng stopped in the air above the palace. Its gargantuan body blocked everyone''s view as it descended slowly.


    Who is it? Emperor Luo and everyone else stared at the Kunpeng, specifically at its back as its body lowered. At the front, a couple of people stepped into view. Their eyes sharp and their auras stood out. They seemed to be Nobles.


    Emperor Ye watched these people. Had the powerful cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple arrived? If so, he feared that Emperor Luo would come after him as well. Naturally, he understood that Emperor Luo would take this opportunity to get rid of himself and tie up loose ends.


    As the Kunpeng continued to lower itself, the view became clearer and they were able to see the people on its back. Just then, the figure of a young man came into view. A handsome face with an ice-cold expression. The coldness reached his eyes as well.


    As soon as he saw this figure, Emperor Luo''s heart squeezed as if it had been struck by something, and his expression changed immediately. How was this possible? How was it him?


    The emperors of the Yunchu Nation and the Yan Kingdom also saw the figure and felt the same sensation as Emperor Luo. A bad feeling brewed in the pits of their stomachs.


    Just a while ago, they were feeling extremely relaxed. Now, their hearts felt like it was crushed by a boulder in the blink of an eye.


    A breeze blew by and the young man''s white clothes moved with the wind. At first, Emperor Ye froze in shock at the sight of the young man''s face. Then, his eyes lit up and his fists tightened. Right now, his thoughts ran wild and were filled with a hint of excitement.


    The Kunpeng continued to descend and the figures on its back were now clear. Spectators were met with the faces of the youths and the entire palace went silent. Tension was in the air.


    This... From afar, the cultivators from the Cangye College, the Qin Clan, as well as other clans saw the faces of the newly arrived. Their hearts skipped a beat. Especially those who knew Ye Futian from their time together at the Fenghua Banquet. Their breathing became uneven.


    He''s back.


    Not only did he come back safe and sound, he came back on a top-level beast, a Kunpeng.


    People thought he would be killed as soon as he exited the Ancient Barren World but he wasn''t.


    He wasn''t the only one who came back. Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Ye Danchen, Ye Lingxi, and the others were also back. Beside them seemed to be some very powerful people. They had escorted the group back to Cangye.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were extremely cold. Previously, the people couldn''t see him but he could see everything from up above. His eyes swept over to Emperor Luo, then to Emperor Chu and Emperor Yan.


    Ye Futian had entered the Ancient Barren World in hopes of taking care of Emperor Luo''s threat but he did not think it would happen so fast. The results would have been unimaginable had he arrived even a little later.


    Emperor Luo was actually making a move. Was it because of the Royal Xuan Temple?


    "Father, Mother," Hua Jieyu called out as she looked at Hua Fengliu below.


    "Master," Yu Sheng also called out.


    Ye Futian averted his gaze slowly. Their group descended on the ground and arrived in front of Hua Fengliu and the others. He greeted, "Master, Masteress."


    "You''re back," Nandou Wenyin said with a gentle smile. Her eyes were now a bit red. She did not think that Ye Futian would come back at a time like this, and on a Kunpeng at that. It was obvious to her, Ye Futian must have had some interesting encounters in the Ancient Barren World. However, it was still unknown whether they would be able to resolve the issue at hand.


    "Yes, Masteress. Everything is okay now," Ye Futian said softly.


    "Can it be resolved?" Yi Xiang stepped up and asked Ye Futian. This was his personality, simple and direct.


    Ye Futian lifted his head and looked at Yi Xiang. "That depends on how it''s taken care of."


    Seeing the look in his eyes, Yi Xiang knew that things would be okay. He couldn''t help but turn to Yu Sheng and ask, "How was the Ancient Barren World?"


    "Master, I''m fine and in the third level Dharma Plane now," Yu Sheng replied.


    "Not bad," said Yi Xiang, nodding his head. He had improved very quickly. They had entered the Ancient Barren World in the Glory Plane.


    Ye Futian then turned to Emperor Ye. "Your Majesty, you were almost put in harm''s way because of me."


    "You came back right on time," smiled Emperor Ye. "If you had come a little later, I wouldn''t have been able to save your teacher and the others."


    "We''ll talk about this a little later," said Ye Futian. He then turned his attention over to Emperor Luo and his people. Emperor Luo gave the Nobles who had come back with Ye Futian a once over. He didn''t dare to be rash. The identities of these people were still unknown. Had Ye Futian also joined a great power during his trial in the Ancient Barren World? Hopefully, it wasn''t one of the top powers from the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Ye Futian moved his gaze away from Emperor Luo. Looking at Emperor Chu and the others, he said, "How do you guys plan to settle this?"


    The emperors of Yunchu, Yan, and other countries froze. They were confused by this situation. Ye Futian was actually speaking to them like this. Where did he get the confidence?


    They looked over at Emperor Luo, not knowing how to answer Ye Futian. He had arrived on the Kunpeng with Nobles as escorts. This was power they didn''t dare go against.


    "We''ll settle this with your life." Just then, another group had arrived. Emperor Luo''s people parted to make way. Luo Junlin and Xirou had arrived. The person who had just spoken was He Xirou. She already knew that Ye Futian was the one Luo Junlin wanted dead. He was the very reason for their trip here to the Hundred Lands.


    Ye Futian looked over. He didn''t know this woman, but seeing how she arrived with Luo Junlin, Ye Futian knew exactly where she came from. She obviously came from the Royal Xuan Temple. Only people from there would speak so rashly even at the sight of Nobles. It was their confidence as part of the Eastern Barren Territory''s top powers.


    The emperors of Yunchu and Yan relaxed a bit when they saw He Xirou step in. What was there to be afraid of when they had the Royal Xuan Temple backing them up? One word from He Xirou could end Ye Futian''s life.


    At that moment, He Xirou lifted her head and saw the Nobles of the Liu Kingdom. She then introduced herself, "Royal Xuan Temple, He Xirou." There was no way to say for sure that these people were from the Eastern Barren Territory''s top powers, even if they were, they would have to retreat with her status.


    Her family name was He and she came from the Royal Xuan Temple. If they were from the Eastern Barren Territory, they would definitely know what this meant.


    Liu Feiyang looked at He Xirou with confusion and surprise. "You''re the daughter of the Royal Xuan Temple''s fifth lord?"


    "If you know this then you should hand him over and leave," He Xirou said proudly after seeing the look in Liu Feiyang''s eyes. Behind her, the looks in the eyes of Emperor Luo and his people became heated and sharp.


    "Of course, I know," nodded Liu Feiyang. "But does your father know that you''re this arrogant?"

 214 Watch and See

    Chapter 214: Watch and See


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    With Liu Feiyang''s words, Xirou''s confident smile froze. Other than her, the emperors of Yun and Yan suddenly grew nervous again. They looked up in shock at the speaker. Then they saw the mockery in Liu Feiyang''s eyes. He seemed to know Xirou but didn''t care. If he knew that Xirou was the daughter of the Royal Xuan Temple''s fifth lord and could still say such humiliating mockery, this meant something��he didn''t care at all.


    Things were a bit troublesome now.


    Ye Futian had returned on the Kunpeng with Nobles accompanying him. However, the one in charge was not those Nobles. It was this young man. This complicated things. What did it mean if a youth''s status was above the Nobles? It meant that his background was far stronger than what they could see. It was just like how Xirou had come with those Nobles.


    Xirou''s eyes turned cold as she stared at Liu Feiyang. "Who are you?"


    The Royal Xuan Temple had five lords. Each one was in charge of a temple. Her father was last place in fifth but he was still a lord. And yet someone dared to speak to her like this��provocative and with disdain. Was he from a top force of the Eastern Barren Territory?


    "Liu Feiyang from the Liu Kingdom." Xirou''s eyes instantly sharpened.


    The Liu Kingdom was a top force. He was the prince of the Liu Kingdom. They were both from top forces but his father was the king of the Liu Kingdom while Xirou''s father was only the fifth lord.


    Luo Junlin''s expression turned ugly too. Was he that fast? He''d been hurrying to get rid of Ye Futian, worried that he would get the noble fate after entering the pinnacle of the Dharma Plane. He worried Ye Futian would be accepted by a top force so he borrowed the Royal Xuan Temple''s power and came to Cangye.


    It hadn''t even been a year but Ye Futian was back. He seemed to have joined a top force and was escorted back by the Liu Kingdom''s prince. This treatment was so much better than what Luo Junlin''s when he first joined the Royal Xuan Temple.


    The other emperors all paled. Being in the Noble Plane, they''d naturally heard of the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory. The two strongest kingdoms were the Qin Dynasty in the center and the Liu Kingdom in the east.


    His surname was Liu and he was from the Liu Kingdom. His identity went without saying. They seemed to have gotten involved in a battle between the top forces.


    Luo Junlin had joined the Royal Xuan Temple and returned to the Nandou Nation with the daughter of the temple''s big figure. He made such a scene. Because of this, they wanted to use the Royal Xuan Temple''s relationship and came to Cangye with Emperor Luo. But now, it seemed that Ye Futian had joined the Liu Kingdom, another top force.


    Emperor Luo was distraught. He''d tried many times to kill Ye Futian and had failed each time. Now, he thought his plan was again seamless but Ye Futian had returned with a top force of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Since when did the Royal Xuan Temple become so powerful and decide to come to the Hundred Lands to show off?" Liu Feiyang scoffed at Xirou. "Does your dad know?"


    "You��" Xirou glared at him.


    "Don''t look at me like that. Your dad will know soon." Liu Feiyang suddenly smiled. Ye Futian''s group had made such a big commotion at the Mirror Mountain. Someone from the Royal Xuan Temple must have been present.


    The Royal Xuan Temple had come but Xirou wanted to kill Ye Futian. This was quite interesting.


    "You did this?" Ye Futian gazed at Xirou now, faint murderous intent in his eyes. He''d come too late. He didn''t know whether his master and the others were alive or not.


    "Yes. What can you do about it?" Xirou looked down at Ye Futian. Liu Feiyang speaking disrespectfully to her was one thing. But who was Ye Futian? He was from the barbaric Cangye Kingdom. No matter how talented he was, he''d only joined the Liu Kingdom. He didn''t qualify to talk to her like that.


    Even though Liu Feiyang was a prince, she didn''t fear him. They were both from top forces. The Liu Kingdom wouldn''t declare war on the Royal Xuan Temple for an outsider.


    Ye Futian looked at Xirou and then at Luo Junlin beside her. "In Donghai, you were the prince and told me to cultivate with you. But after returning to the palace, you still tried to kill. Now that you''ve joined the Royal Xuan Temple, you still think about me. Do you fear me that much?"


    Luo Junlin''s face darkened. Fear?


    He truly did have some fears. Otherwise, he wouldn''t join the Royal Xuan Temple and use their power to kill Ye Futian.


    "And you even take advantage of a woman to use their power," Ye Futian scoffed. "And that woman is just as egotistical as you once were. You two really do match."


    Take advantage?


    Xirou''s heart trembled. She thought back to the moments with Luo Junlin. Even when Luo Junlin wanted her to do something, she would do it voluntarily. Just like coming here, she''d brought it up first.


    Ye Futian didn''t look at them. Instead, he looked up at the other emperors and sneered. "Are you really not going to settle this today?"


    The emperors all stiffened. The Liu Kingdom and Royal Xuan Temple were at the same level. Emperor Luo had the Royal Xuan Temple behind him so Ye Futian couldn''t mess with him. But what about them? If Ye Futian used the Liu Kingdom to fight them, what would be the consequence?


    Xirou looked at Ye Futian. He may be talented enough to join the Liu Kingdom but as a junior, was he able to be so arrogant? He even looked down on the Royal Xuan Temple.


    She said coldly, "From now on, you will all be protected by the Royal Xuan Temple. Each one can choose someone to cultivate there." When Xirou said that, she looked directly at Ye Futian. There were many talents in the Eastern Barren Territory but none dared to overlook her like that. Liu Feiyang could but who did Ye Futian think he was?


    "Thank you, miss." The emperors bowed in reply. They were reassured now; they were worried that they would be abandoned. Since the Royal Xuan Temple would protect them, Ye Futian wouldn''t do too much even with the Liu Kingdom''s help.


    "So you don''t plan on settling this?" Ye Futian didn''t look at Xirou. He still gazed at the emperors. They fell silent. If they settled it, they didn''t know what kind of consequence they would suffer. Now that the Royal Xuan Temple would protect them, they''d obviously follow the temple.


    "I see." Ye Futian smirked and turned towards Xirou. "I hope you can represent the Royal Xuan Temple." With that, he turned around the Hua Fengliu and the others. "Master, let''s go back first."


    "Alright." Everyone nodded. They gazed at Emperor Luo''s group and turned to leave.


    Ye Futian had now joined a top force. Emperor Luo couldn''t do anything to him.


    This crisis was dissolved just like that.


    Everyone returned to the palace. Liu Feiyang smiled at Xirou and said, "I hope you ask your dad before you make any decisions in the future."


    Liu Chenyu also looked coolly at Xirou.


    The group left as if nothing had happened. Earlier, they''d been about to fight but now, everything was calm again.


    Xirou''s features were twisted. Liu Feiyang mocked her multiple times. He didn''t take her seriously at all. As the daughter of the Royal Xuan Temple''s fifth lord, why would she ask her father about something like this?


    "Would there be problems?" Luo Junlin asked quietly.


    "Don''t worry. I''m here." Xirou gazed at Luo Junlin. The intimidating girl suddenly seemed so gentle.


    "Thank you." Luo Junlin''s eyes were apologetic as he took her hand.


    The other emperors saw this and their eyes brightened. Xirou and Luo Junlin''s relationship was better than they''d expected.


    Now that they''d wronged Ye Futian, they had no choice but to follow Luo Junlin.


    "Let''s go back," Luo Junlin murmured.


    "No, go back to the hotel," Xirou said. "I''d like to see what the Liu Kingdom can do for them."


    Luo Junlin''s eyes flashed and he nodded. They would live in the hotel and see whether the Liu Kingdom would leave.


    Since Ye Futian joined the Liu Kingdom, Xirou wouldn''t do anything to the Cangye Kingdom. Otherwise, they might do the same to the Nandou Nation. She couldn''t do that.


    But she could at least give some pressure.


    After Ye Futian and the others entered the palace, Emperor Ye was still unsettled. The Liu Kingdom and Royal Xuan Temple were all top forces. If they really clashed directly, they wouldn''t have any problem but the Cangye Kingdom might be hurt in the process.


    This was also why Ye Futian didn''t cause too much problem. After all, Liu Feiyang was just escorting him back. He didn''t join the Liu Kingdom and wasn''t anything to them. He had to right to make them fight another top force.


    Even Liu Feiyang couldn''t make that kind of decision.


    "Thank you all for resolving this crisis," Emperor Ye said to Liu Feiyang.


    "You''re welcome," Liu Feiyang said. "Thank you for not minding our disturbance."


    "I shall order a banquet right this moment," Emperor Ye said.


    "There''s no hurry. There might be more people coming later. You won''t have time to show your hospitality to us," Liu Feiyang said, chuckling. When they departed, the other top forces should have started departing too. The Kunpeng was fast but the others weren''t much slower.


    They would arrive in the Cangye Kingdom soon.


    "More people will come?" Emperor looked at them in doubt.


    "Father, Cangye might get busy," Ye Lingxi whispered.


    "What do you mean?" Emperor Ye didn''t understand.


    "You''ll see later." Ye Lingxi smiled, raising the suspense. Emperor Ye gave his daughter a look. This girl was rarely like this.


    Was something else about to happen?


    "Aren''t you going to say something?" Yi Xiang asked Ye Futian. He seemed to have sensed something odd.


    "I don''t know either." Ye Futian shrugged. He really didn''t know what would happen next.


    He''d entered the Ancient Barren World and did what he could for this. He didn''t know who else would come.


    He could only wait and see!

 215 Paying a Formal Visi

    Chapter 215: Paying a Formal Visit


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Very quickly, everything that happened at the Cangye palace spread all over the imperial city. In a single day, two top powers from the Eastern Barren Territory had gathered in their city. With them, came many Nobles, a truly shocking sight.


    Now, there were many people in the area surrounding the palace. It was said these people from the Royal Xuan Temple and the Nandou Nation had yet to leave. They were staying at the hotel not too far away from the palace, making it convenient for them to get there quickly at any time.


    Gradually, the story of Ye Futian''s mutual resentment with the Nandou Nation spread all over the Cangye Kingdom''s imperial city. Rumors said that Ye Futian studied at the Nandou Nation''s Donghai Academy years ago and fell at the schemes of Emperor Luo. He almost lost his life because of it, and thus, fled to the Cangye Kingdom. He participated in the Fenghua Banquet and ranked first thanks to his peerless talents. At that time, he shocked the entire imperial city and everyone knew his name. And now, Luo Junlin from the Nandou Nation was in the Royal Xuan Temple.


    It also seemed like Ye Futian had joined the Liu Kingdom. This looked to be a continuing feud. Were they going to take this from the Cangye Kingdom and the Nandou Nation all the way to the center of the Eastern Barren Territory?


    Those who participated in the Fenghua Banquet alongside Ye Futian were filled with great emotion. It hadn''t even been a full year and Ye Futian had already joined one of the Eastern Barren Territory''s top powers. Their statuses were going to be worlds apart from here on out.


    Many people had arrived at the palace, most of them were imperial officials. Family members of Ye Wuchen and Lin Yueyao were also present. All of a sudden, the palace seemed extra lively. Although Liu Feiyang had told Emperor Ye there was no need to prepare a feast, the emperor still made the necessary preparations to welcome his guest.


    "Please have a seat, Prince and Princess," Emperor Ye said politely. Especially because Liu Feiyang was a prince of Liu Kingdom, he should be seated at the front in the main seat. There were also the Nobles they came with. Even though he was the emperor of the Cangye Kingdom, he did not dare mistreat them.


    "I would not dare to do so, Senior. Please, sit," Liu Feiyang said respectfully. To him, it was a good thing that they made it in time for what had happened today. He had personally escorted Ye Futian and the others back to the Cangye Kingdom because he wanted to befriend them. By the looks of their gifts now, they would definitely make a name for themselves in the Eastern Barren Territory sometime in the future. And because of this, Liu Feiyang could not seem too arrogant to Ye Futian''s seniors.


    Emperor Ye wavered at his request. "Please sit, Your Majesty," said Ye Futian. The emperor looked at him once and nodded before taking the main seat.


    After Emperor Ye was seated, everyone else waited for Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu to be seated. However, Liu Fengyu remained standing while he spoke to Hua Fengliu, Yi Xiang, and the others. "At the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen made themselves as well as the name of Cangye known to all of the Ancient Barren World. Now, the Eastern Barren Territory is extremely curious about the Cangye Kingdom. It is an honor to be able to meet all of you, Seniors. I definitely have much to learn from everyone."


    Hua Fengliu and Yi Xiang had no idea what Ye Futian had experienced in the Ancient Barren World, but seeing Liu Feiyang''s attitude, they were able to make a couple of guesses.


    "Master, Masteress, Senior Yi Xiang, you guys should sit," chuckled Ye Futian. It was amusing to see how the elders were being so stiff even though it was only a younger generation member of an Eastern Barren Territory top power. But Hua Fengliu would get used to it eventually. He was going to be the master of an emperor after all.


    Hua Fengliu, Yi Xiang, and the others sat down. Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and the rest of that group sat beside them. Yi Qingxuan was also here now, seated with Yu Sheng.


    "Wuchen, what happened to your arm?" Emperor Luo asked suddenly after everyone was settled in a seat. Ye Wuchen''s father also stared at him. There hadn''t been a chance for questions before, but now that Emperor Ye had brought up the topic, everyone looked towards Ye Wuchen.


    "It''s no big deal. It was cut off by someone during our trial in the Ancient Barren World, but Futian has already taken one from him in return," Ye Wuchen answered calmly. His voice was able to send shivers down everyone''s spine. They could imagine the danger behind his story and wondered how he could be so nonchalant while talking about the subject. Nobody knew what had happened to Ye Futian and the others in the Ancient Barren World for them to be escorted back by the prince and princess of the Liu Kingdom.


    "Can''t you at least try to stay out of trouble?" asked Yi Xiang as he glared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian returned a look at his elder and thought, this old guy still has such a bad temper. What else could he have done when Li Daoyun tried to kill them at the Loulan Relic? But he felt responsible for what had happened then, so he chose not to talk back.


    "Yu Sheng, are you okay?" asked Yi Xiang.


    "I..." Ye Futian wanted to scream when he saw Yi Xiang''s concern for his own disciple.


    "''I'' what? Not coming back for so long and letting Jieyu and Qingxuan worry. Jieyu even went to look for you herself. Do you know how dangerous that is? Is there more you want to say for yourself?"


    "Senior Yi is right. You probably got in tons of trouble running off into the Ancient Barren World in just the Glory Plane, right?" Hua Fengliu asked softly.


    Ye Futian lowered his head, slightly upset. He felt wronged. It wasn''t easy for him to travel so far just to come home, alright? How could they treat him like this?


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu were dumbfounded by this sight. Hints of a smile reached Liu Chenyu''s eyes before she wasn''t able to hold it any longer and let out a soft chuckle. This guy was so arrogant in the Ancient Barren World, but as it turned out, his status at home was so low.


    How pitiful.


    "What are you laughing at? Wuchen''s father is here, aren''t you going to pay your respects?" Ye Futian glared at Liu Chenyu. How dare this girl laugh at him? She was just asking for it. Once she became family with Ye Wuchen, Ye Futian was definitely going to have him discipline her.


    "You..." Liu Chenyu''s gaze froze and her beautiful face was now a different color. This jerk.


    Ye Wuchen was listening on and his face darkened.


    Everyone around was dumbfounded. What was going on?


    Why did Liu Chenyu have to pay respects to Ye Wuchen''s father?


    Countless eyes fell on the two. What was the situation with Ye Wuchen and this beautiful princess from the Liu Kingdom?


    "I would''ve forgotten had you not brought it up," laughed Liu Feiyang. He then turned to Lord Ye beside Ye Wuchen and bowed his head in respect. "Greetings to Uncle Ye."


    Lord Ye was dazed. Was the prince of Liu bowing to him?


    "Chenyu, aren''t you going to greet your elders?" Liu Feiyang looked to his younger sister beside him.


    "I..." Liu Chenyu felt so wronged, but there were also many people looking at her. She couldn''t be the one to dampen the atmosphere. Thus, she had no choice but to bow respectfully and say to Lord Ye, "Greetings to Uncle Ye."


    "..." Lord Ye could not stop blinking. He was still in a stupor.


    "Lord Ye, wouldn''t it be better to have some sort of welcome gift at a moment like this?" asked Ye Futian, contributing to the chaos.


    "That''s enough from you," Liu Chenyu said through her tightly clenched teeth. She glared at Ye Futian with rage in her eyes.


    Ye Futian''s lips curled into a big smile. This was what she got for laughing at him.


    "You are too polite," Lord Ye said with his hands joined together in front of him. His eyes drifted onto Ye Wuchen beside him. He thought, so, my son lost his arm but is now in some sort of relationship with the Liu princess?


    Spectators did not want to watch any longer. This was just Ye Futian teasing Liu Chenyu, but could there actually be something going on here? Regardless of all this, the prince and princess of the Liu Kingdom seemed to have a better relationship with Ye Futian than anyone anticipated. If Ye Futian had simply joined the Liu Kingdom, he wouldn''t have such high status. They were playing around like friends.


    "Futian, you must have been through quite a lot in these past months. You''ve gotten so thin," Nandou Wenyin said softly.


    "Yeah, there''s something around every corner in the Ancient Barren World. I''ve faced many challenges," Ye Futian nodded immediately. Indeed, Masteress is the only one who cares.


    "It''s almost the end of the year, stay until after the New Year''s." Nandou Wenyin knew that Ye Futian probably was not going to stay here with them.


    "Alright," he nodded. "And then after New Year''s, Master and Masteress can come with us to the Eastern Barren Territory."


    "Together?" murmured Nandou Wenyin. Ye Futian had just gone to the center of the Eastern Barren Territory and was not yet established. It wouldn''t be easy.


    "Yeah, Jieyu and I still have to take care of you guys," nodded Ye Futian.


    Shameless, thought Liu Chenyu. This jerk was such a brown-noser. No wonder he was able to trick his master and masteress into giving him the hand of their daughter.


    Nandou Wenyin glanced at Hua Fengliu, who said, "You should take care of yourself first, don''t worry about us."


    "If you guys are willing to come to the Liu Kingdom, then you will be my family as well." Liu Feiyang picked just the right time to throw in his bait. Although he wasn''t going to force Ye Futian and the others into anything, it wouldn''t hurt to try since they were already here in Cangye.


    "I still think it would be better to find the princess a husband from our group," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    This confused everyone even more. So, Ye Futian and the others hadn''t agreed to join the Liu Kingdom? If so, then why did the powerful Liu cultivators escort them back to Cangye?


    Just as they were chatting, a few forces of incredibly strong sword intent appeared in the skies a distance away from the imperial palace. So quickly, they seemed to be whistling in the clouds.


    In an instant, everyone around the palace could feel the sword intent in the sky and couldn''t help but look up. Such strong sword intent, everyone thought in shock.


    At the hotel where Emperor Luo and his people stayed, He Xirou and everyone else looked up as well. What was going on?


    "Noble sword intent," said a Noble standing behind He Xirou. "And not just one."


    After he had spoken, a few rays of immensely bright lights from a sword split through the clouds and drifted down. Multiple figures appeared, riding on their swords. Their eyes swept down and into the direction of the Cangye palace.


    At the feast in the palace, Emperor Ye, who was also a swordsman, could feel it too. His head lifted to the sky and his heart skipped a beat. So strong, even stronger than his own sword intent. Who was coming this time?


    Liu Feiyang looked into the direction of the newcomers and thought, they''re here. He was a little surprised. It had actually been the Fuyun Sword Clan who had arrived first.


    The blades of light arrived outside the palace. The members of the Fuyun Sword Clan remained in the air as they spoke, "The Fuyun Sword Clan has come to pay the Cangye Kingdom a formal visit."


    The voices pierced through the air like a sword and spread all around, sending shivers down everyone''s spine.


    Seated at the top level of the hotel, He Xirou stood abruptly, heart pounding. Luo Junlin, as well as Emperor Luo and his people, felt the same way.


    In the past, the Royal Xuan Temple had arrived in the Nandou Nation and that was the turning point of Luo Junlin''s life. Oh, the glory. But how was the attitude of the Royal Xuan Temple back then? And how was the attitude of the Fuyun Sword Clan now? The clan had come to pay the Cangye Kingdom a formal visit. The feeling that something bad was going to happen grew stronger and stronger in the emperors of the various countries seated around.


    Emperor Ye stood. His sharp eyes looked outside the palace. The Fuyun Sword Clan had come to visit.


    "Let''s go." Emperor Ye prepared to go welcome them.


    "Your Majesty," Ye Futian called out. Emperor Ye looked at him, confused.


    "Ask them why they have come from here," Ye Futian said calmly. Had it been any other top power, he wouldn''t have stopped Emperor Ye, but because it was the Fuyun Sword Clan, it was better to ask first.


    "Ask from here?" Emperor Ye looked at Ye Futian in surprise.


    Everyone at the feast looked at him as well. What on earth did this guy do in the Ancient Barren World?

 216 Each Party Arriving

    Chapter 216: Each Party Arriving


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian saw Emperor Ye''s suspicious expression and nodded. "Your Majesty, please believe me."


    "Alright." Emperor Ye nodded. He gazed outside the palace and declared, "For what reason did you come to my Cangye?"


    The Fuyun Sword Clan stood outside the palace. Hearing Emperor Ye''s voice, one of them said, "The seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan is here to invite Ye Wuchen to cultivate with us." His voice rolled through the vast space. So many hearts trembled at that moment.


    At the seats in the palace, the lord beside Ye Wuchen trembled, his face turning red. The Fuyun Sword Clan, a top force from the Eastern Barren Territory came for his son? The leader of the seventh summit had personally sent out the invitation for Ye Wuchen.


    Luo Junlin had been so mighty in the Hundred Lands. Back then, the Royal Xuan Temple had arrived and stayed in the air to call for Luo Junlin to go there.


    All of Cangye was shocked too. Emperor Ye looked at Ye Wuchen. His left arm was missing but he was still quiet. However, his eyes had changed. Before, Ye Wuchen was only a top talent of the Cangye Kingdom. No one expected the Fuyun Sword Clan''s leader could invite him.


    Not only there, at the hotel, Xirou''s eyes hardened and Luo Junlin shuddered. As for the others, they heard a boom inside their minds as if the sky was cracking.


    The Liu Kingdom had escorted Ye Futian''s group here. Their relationship went without saying. Now, the leader of the Fuyun Sword Clan invited Ye Wuchen to cultivate with them. If Ye Wuchen agreed, another disciple of a top force would be born in the Cangye Kingdom.


    There were many people gathered around the palace at the moment. All the strong cultivators and civilians of the Cangye Kingdom were shaken. Many eyes at the banquet area were trained on Ye Wuchen. Right now, he seemed like the star.


    "What do you think?" Ye Wuchen looked to Ye Futian, wanting to know what he thought.


    "The seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan." Ye Futian''s eyes flashed and he looked to Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu. He was quite surprised that the first to arrive would be the Fuyun Sword Clan��and for Ye Wuchen, at that.


    He wasn''t too familiar with them but Liu Feiyang must know.


    "The Fuyun Sword Clan has seven summits with a leader for each," Liu Feiyang said. "The Royal Xuan Temple''s leaders are ordered by ability but in the Fuyun Sword Clan, each summit is different. The seventh summit specializes in killing, especially in the killing sword techniques. According to rumors, the seventh summit leader is second only to the clan leader, the leader of the first summit. Li Daoyun is from the first summit."


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He stood up and said, "Let''s go out."


    Emperor Ye felt this way too. No one wanted to feast anymore. They all walked towards the lights outside the palace.


    The Nobles of the Fuyun Sword Clan were still hovering on the swords in the sky outside the palace. A short while later, they saw the comers. Many people were gathered there, all looking at the palace. In fact, Xirou and Emperor Luo''s groups had come too. They wanted to witness this with their own eyes.


    "I am Ye Futian. Greetings, seniors," Ye Futian bowed. The seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword had come as guests. He must be respectful. "I am sure you know about the conflicts between Ye Wuchen and Li Daoyun. How will you settle this?" he asked, looking up.


    "Li Daoyun is the disciple of the first summit. We are from the seventh summit," one man said. "Our leader wishes to invite Ye Wuchen to cultivate. As for the conflicts, those are their private matters. The Fuyun Sword Clan will not get involved. Ye Wuchen is talented with the sword. We are the most suitable for him."


    "Thank you for your answer." Ye Futian nodded and smiled at Ye Wuchen. He said, "Wuchen, I''m sure you''ve made a decision."


    Ye Wuchen''s eyes flashed. He was a pure swordsman and was obviously interested in swordsmanship. He hadn''t considered them because of Li Daoyun but now that a summit leader personally invited him, he was obviously tempted.


    The Fuyun Sword Clan was paradise for swordsmen.


    "I accept." Ye Wuchen nodded, showing his decision.


    "Great. When will you depart?" the swordsman asked straightforwardly.


    "I will go at the beginning of the year," Ye Wuchen answered.


    "Alright." The man waved his hand and a sword started flashing. "You can fuse your Spiritual Energy into here. This sword will now represent you."


    Ye Wuchen accepted it and the swordsman continued, "We will report back now. Farewell."


    "Thank you." Ye Wuchen nodded. Several beams of sword light instantly cut past. They went into the distance and disappeared.


    Lord Ye was extremely excited. His son had joined the Fuyun Sword Clan, a top force of the Eastern Barren Territory! Furthermore, the second top figure of the clan had sent the invitation personally. This was such an honor.


    "I didn''t think Wuchen would be the first of the Ye family to leave Cangye," Emperor Ye said. He was happy but also disappointed. His children were not as talented.


    "Thanks to you, Your Majesty." Lord Ye was overjoyed.


    "Let us return," Emperor Ye said cheerily. The group returned to their seats. But before long, the clouds turned in the sky above the palace. There was a long whistle and everyone looked up. A moment later, a beautiful demon broke through from the clouds.


    A Blue Phoenix. Everyone was shocked as they looked up.


    What''s going on? The people around the palace trembled inwardly. The Blue Phoenix descended and countless angelic figures were atop it.


    "Such beautiful angels."


    What was going on with the Cangye Kingdom today? Were these people from a top force too?


    "The Moon Clan of the Eastern Barren Territory is here to invite Hua Jieyu of the Cangye Kingdom to cultivate," the angel on the Blue Phoenix said.


    Xirou''s expression grew even more uncomfortable.


    "Hua Jieyu." Luo Junlin''s face was chalky white. Before, Emperor Luo had wanted Hua Jieyu to marry him. Now, she would also join a top force.


    "Welcome," a voice said in the palace. The angels of the Moon Clan entered the palace with the Blue Phoenix.


    "How can this be?" Emperor Luo couldn''t accept it. Ye Wuchen and Hua Jieyu had all been invited by top forces. The other emperors beside him were even paler.


    Three top forces had landed in the Cangye palace now.


    There was another terrifying gust of power in the air. Another demon flew in from the distance and appeared above the palace. There was an extremely beautiful girl at the front. She was clad in all white and her smile was mesmerizing.


    The group gazed at the banquet below. Smiling, the girl said, "Young Master Ye, your servant is here to see you, representing the Witch Clan."


    "The Witch Clan��"


    "Who''s Young Master Ye?"


    In the palace, Ye Futian''s face darkened. Hua Jieyu grinned at him, saying, "Your servant''s here to see you." As soon as she spoke, everyone turned to look at Ye Futian.


    "So classy," Yi Xiang said in disdain. "Yu Sheng, don''t be like him."


    "Oh." Yu Sheng nodded obediently.


    Ye Futian glared at the girl in white. What was she doing here? "You''re not welcome," he said, face dark.


    "How can you refuse your servant?" The Witch Clan landed from the sky. Many strong cultivators had come too. The Cangye people were numb at this sight.


    There was another dazzling light in the sky. A group came in majestic chariots. The strong cultivators wore elegant robes and their noble aura was obvious.


    When they came to the sky above, they walked out of the chariots. One stood and said, "The Qin Dynasty from the center of the Eastern Barren Territory is here to visit the Cangye Kingdom."


    "The Qin Dynasty." Xirou''s delicate frame shuddered. What was happening?


    "You''re all so fast." At that time, another voice rang out. A group of figures clad in white robes sped over from the distance. When they arrived, one man said, "The Donghua Clan is here to visit the Cangye Kingdom."


    Luo Junlin''s face was ghastly pale and bloodless. Emperor Luo. Were all the top forces grouping here? Could someone tell him what was happening?


    The people around the palace rustled with excitement. They didn''t know how powerful these forces were but they seemed to be the most powerful of the Eastern Barren Territory. They''d all come to visit Cangye.


    "Welcome, welcome," Emperor Ye kept saying. His voice was pleasantly surprised.


    This was crazy.


    Every force that arrived was a top force. What was with the world? They all entered the palace but soon after, someone else came.


    "The Royal Xuan Temple is here to visit the Cangye Kingdom." With that voice, a group arrived in the sky above. Inside the palace, many people were confused.


    The Royal Xuan Temple was here too?


    Xirou and Luo Junlin stared at the descending group.


    "It''s the headmaster," someone said behind Xirou. With that, he shot into the sky.


    The newcomers looked over and saw Xirou. He couldn''t help but ask, "Why are you all here?"


    Xirou didn''t know how to reply. She suddenly remembered how Liu Feiyang told her to ask for her father''s opinion before making any decisions��


    "Luo Junlin, you are from the Hundred Lands and know the Cangye Kingdom''s emperor, correct? Are you familiar with Ye Futian and Yu Sheng?"


    Luo Junlin''s heart shuddered as his face paled even more.


    The Royal Xuan Temple was here for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng!

 217 Speaking Humbly

    Chapter 217: Speaking Humbly


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When the cultivator from the Royal Xuan Temple saw Luo Junlin and the rest of his people at the Cangye palace, the first thought he had was that he might be acquainted with Emperor Ye. It was said that he was also the son of an emperor in the Hundred Lands. This was why they asked if he knew Ye Futian and his friends. However, the cultivator frowned at the sight of a pale-faced Luo Junlin. There seemed to be something amiss. "What''s wrong?"


    Luo Junlin lifted his head to look at the Noble Plane cultivator in front of him. He didn''t know what to say. It wasn''t like he could tell the Noble that he was here to kill Ye Futian.


    He Xirou had the same helpless look on her face when she asked, "What did Ye Futian and Yu Sheng do? Why have so many people from the Eastern Barren Territory come here?"


    One Noble looked at He Xirou. They were the headmaster''s people and also Nobles. So, even though He Xirou was the daughter of the fifth lord, they needn''t be especially respectful.


    "Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s noble fate is of the upper-level. Yu Sheng made four Noble figures appear on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall and Ye Futian took the light of the wall," answered the Noble. He Xirou''s heart pounded heavily and her face paled. The same went for Luo Junlin; he could feel a suffocating pain in his heart.


    They were disciples of the Royal Xuan Temple so naturally, they knew what the Noble figures on the Ancient Barren World''s Mirror Mountain Stone Wall stood for. Four Noble figures. That was something only top-tier geniuses of the Eastern Barren Territory could accomplish.


    And Yu Sheng had done it.


    The Noble also mentioned that Ye Futian took the light of the stone wall. This�� Did he become famous overnight? The top powers of the Eastern Barren Territory sent people to fight over the two of them.


    "What is it?" the Noble continued to ask. There was a strange look in the eyes of He Xirou and Luo Junlin.


    Upon hearing the Noble''s continued questioning, the couple kept their mouth shut. Behind them, Emperor Luo, the emperor of Yunchu, as well as the rest of their group all had a stuffy feeling in their hearts. This was especially so for Emperor Chu and the other emperors. They had originally thought that even though they were making an enemy out of Ye Futian, they would still manage to acquaint themselves with the Royal Xuan Temple, but now, it seemed like Liu Feiyang was right. Could He Xirou really represent the Royal Xuan Temple?


    So, he saw this coming.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had not joined the Liu Kingdom. They were simply escorting the group of youths back. Now, various top powers of the Eastern Barren Territory had come for them.


    It''s all over. Everyone shared this same thought. Although they were Noble Plane cultivators, they understood what everything that happened today added up to. Was it even a question that the people fought over by top powers of the Eastern Barren Territory would become Nobles? And there wasn''t just one person. It was four.


    In the future, there would be multiple Nobles in the Cangye Kingdom. They were also going to be Nobles from different top powers. Even if the emperors could escape unscathed now, would they be able to run from them later? They were the emperors of entire countries. The only thing they could do to save themselves was to abandon their countries and run.


    "The daughter of a Royal Xuan Temple lord and other disciples surrounded by palace today in attempts to kill Ye Futian. How are we worthy of a "formal visit" from the temple?" A voice rang out from within the palace. It was Emperor Ye. The Noble from temple had already guessed that something was wrong by the looks in He Xirou and Luo Junlin''s eyes but when he heard what Emperor Ye had said, his expression darkened even more.


    The Royal Xuan Temple''s chances of winning the fight over Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were slim to begin with; however, they still wanted to give it a shot and that was the purpose of this trip. But now, since the daughter of the Royal Xuan Temple''s fifth lord had come and tried to kill Ye Futian, what was the point of trying to fight for him? They had already greatly offended him.


    Many Nobles turned to stare at He Xirou and then at Luo Junlin. To him, one of the Nobles asked, "It''s because of you?"


    He Xirou had been cultivating at the center of the Eastern Barren Territory, so how was it possible to start a rivalry with Ye Futian? They probably didn''t even know each other.


    Luo Junlin was from the Hundred Lands. He Xirou had come here with him and to kill Ye Futian of all things. It was obvious, Luo Junlin was taking advantage of her.


    Luo Junlin was pale as a ghost. Although he was the disciple of the fifth lord, his status was nothing compared to the powerful Nobles under the headmaster. How was he going to react to the Noble''s questioning?


    "This had nothing to do with him. It was my decision," He Xirou said protectively.


    The Noble looked at He Xirou with his cold eyes. In the world of cultivation, men had an innate advantage over females. Why? Because men were more logical and stronger emotionally. Women, on the other hand, were emotional and easily blinded by their emotions. It was obvious that He Xirou had already fallen deep. Perhaps she knew what Luo Junlin was using her powers for, but women in love often refused to admit the bad things even if they already knew.


    It was clear to everyone around though.


    But they couldn''t do anything to her. He Xirou was the daughter of the fifth lord.


    "You shall report back to your father personally," said the Noble. As he finished what he had to say, he led the others into the sky, leaving the palace. Their chances were already slim, now with what He Xirou and Luo Junlin had done, was there really a point in staying?


    "Xirou," Luo Junlin called out to his girlfriend. She didn''t look like the strong girl who had stood up to protect him anymore. He Xirou looked like a gentle and frail, pretending to be calm. "It''s nothing, Junlin. Let''s go back."


    "Okay," he nodded. What was the point in staying here now? What was he going to do? Terrorize and put pressure on Emperor Ye? Who was putting pressure on who?


    Cultivators from top powers kept arriving. Every clan that showed up added to the stress weighing down on them.


    "Miss He, what about what you promised before?" Emperor Chu and the others looked to He Xirou who had just turned around, preparing to leave.


    "You guys are on your own now. Take care," said He Xirou. She had to return and answer to her father now. How could she possibly bring people back to the temple with her? What was she going to say? These people were the ones who helped me attempt to take down Ye Futian?


    The color drained from all their faces. They felt a deep regret. Was this really the end?


    That b*tch. She was just going to go back on her words so easily? Why did they come with Emperor Luo to threaten Emperor Ye? Why did they try to hurt Ye Futian''s family?


    With tightly clenched fists, they all glared at Emperor Luo.


    He was in a daze right now. Emperor Luo no longer had the same imposing manner as he did when he gave the imperial order some time ago. He once said that in this big, big world, the fate of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu was not decided by the heavens, but by him. What about now? Could this emperor from the Nandou Nation still decide Ye Futian''s fate?


    Everything had happened so fast. He was not prepared. It had only been about a year. A year that seemed like a dream now.


    Even if he is a genius that top powers fight over, his powers are not yet mature. He can still die, Emperor Luo thought to himself. He refused to believe this. All of this would be over as long as Ye Futian and the others died.


    "Since things have already gotten to this point, how about you all follow me back to Nandou and we can figure out how to deal with this. How does that sound everyone?" asked Emperor Luo.


    "You still want to drag us into this with you?" Emperor Chu questioned in anger. They still had a way out. They hadn''t actually lifted a hand to hurt any of Ye Futian''s family. There was still hope for them to be spared. But if they left with Emperor Luo at a time like this, it was going to be like tying themselves down on a sinking ship with him.


    Emperor Luo stared at his fellow emperors. His expression did not look good when he huffed loudly and left. After he left, Emperor Chu looked around at the other emperors. "Now what?"


    The looks on their face were not good. Had the opposing party only had one person join a top power, they wouldn''t be like this. But now, as shocking and unbelievable as it was, all the top powers of the Eastern Barren Territory have gathered. Four of the opposing party was going to join a top power. If the emperors didn''t find a way to resolve this situation, their emperor statuses wouldn''t even be enough to change their fate.


    One, they could abandon their countries and run off somewhere far away. Or two, wait for Ye Futian and the others to come for them.


    Of course, there was another option��to leave with Emperor Luo and find a way to kill Ye Futian and his friends. However, it was too risky. If they decided to do that and anything went wrong with their plans, then they would truly be dead meat. These emperors had not gotten to Emperor Luo''s level yet. He had long since created this unresolvable rivalry with Ye Futian.


    "We''ll apologize," said the emperor of the Yan Kingdom. It wasn''t easy for an emperor to apologize to a youngster but they had no other choice right now. Not only did they have to apologize, they were probably going to have to accept any conditions or requests he had.


    Many of the emperors sighed. This was their best bet. They all walked in the direction of the Cangye palace. The royal guards looked at them coldly.


    "Please relay my message, I would like to see Emperor Ye and Ye Futian."


    The guards snickered sarcastically before saying in a cold tone, "When Young Master Ye asked you guys to resolve the situation, no one stepped out. Now, you guys want to take care of it? Young Master Ye is very busy now. You think you can just see him whenever you please?"


    "You..." Emperor Chu was a bit embarrassed. How dare a mere palace guard talk to him like this?


    "I what?" The guard had a large physique. His eyes widened as he stared at Emperor Chu coldly. What was he doing, acting all mighty? Things were different now.


    When these emperors of different countries arrived, they looked so imposing. Their aura was strong enough to crush everything in the palace. Now, they were ready to speak humbly and ask for forgiveness. Did they still think they were high and mighty emperors? If so, then they could scram and wait for Ye Futian to come knocking.


    The events of today had taken a complete one-eighty. No one cared about minor characters such as the palace guards but they too were shaken up. The future was so unpredictable. Emperors who were all high and mighty just a while ago were now only able to act humbly. These people wouldn''t even dare do anything to the guards.


    "We want to give our most sincere apologies. Please relay our message," said Emperor Chu with his hands clasped. He had to just put up with it.


    "Wait here," said the guard. He felt pride. So, what if that was an emperor. He still had to lower his head to me. This was such an exhilarating feeling.


    But the guard knew, all this was possible because of Ye Futian''s return. Otherwise, the Cangye Kingdom would be in a dangerous situation. However, from here on out, the Cangye Kingdom''s status in the Hundred Lands was going to be like no other. No other country could possibly compare. This was what real power was.


    Far away, the gathered crowd heard the conversation between the emperors and the guards. It took a while for them to recover from their shock. When one person succeeded, all those around them would benefit. Luo Junlin was the best example of this. Now, Cangye had not just one, but four extreme geniuses. Furthermore, three of them were actually from the Nandou Nation. How ironic.

 218 Right?

    Chapter 218: Right?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was a different scene at the banquet in the Cangye Kingdom''s palace! People from all the top forces arrived gradually and Emperor Ye rose to welcome them all. It was extremely busy. Of course, it seemed a bit chaotic too.


    The strong cultivators of the Cangye Kingdom were a bit dazed. Their hearts were in turmoil seeing this situation. Even Yi Xiang and Hua Fengliu were shaken. What exactly did Ye Futian and the others do in the Ancient Barren World?


    "Why are you here?" Ye Futian saw the Witch walk over. Her body was curvaceous and her features were extremely mesmerizing.


    "I took care of you for so long in the Ancient Barren World and traveled for so long to come here, yet you are still so heartless." Gu Biyue looked hurt and pitiful. Those who didn''t know the details thought something had truly happened between them. Many from the Cangye Kingdom looked at Ye Futian, thinking about how powerful he was. Even such a beauty was loyal to him. They couldn''t help but be impressed.


    "Yeah, why don''t you keep her by your side?" Hua Jieyu whispered to Ye Futian. The others mourned for Ye Futian. She seemed jealous.


    "No way. Jieyu, don''t you understand me?" Ye Futian asked, feeling wronged.


    "Of course I do. That''s why I said that," Hua Jieyu replied, grinning. Ye Futian''s face darkened. The Witch had ruined him.


    Seeing Ye Futian glare at her, the Witch smiled like a blooming flower. "I come today to invite Young Master Ye to join the Witch Clan. No matter what you wish for, I can fulfill it."


    Hua Jieyu was still smiling at Ye Futian but he just blinked. The treatment sounded nice but he wasn''t like that. Beautiful girls were nothing to him. He wasn''t a pervert.


    "Thanks but no thanks," Ye Futian said, rejecting the temptation.


    Hearing his serious refusal, Hua Jieyu''s smile grew dazzling.


    "Young Master Ye, you are so cruel," Gu Biyue said, hurt. Then she turned to Yu Sheng. "Would you like to join the Witch Clan?"


    Yi Qingxuan immediately walked up and grabbed Yu Sheng''s hand, staring at the Witch menacingly.


    "No," Yu Sheng said. The Witch didn''t mind. She just smiled at Yi Qingxuan. She didn''t have high hopes and just came to see the drama. Which clan would Ye Futian and the others choose?


    "Hua Jieyu, are you willing to join the Moon Clan?" an angelic figure asked at that moment.


    Hua Jieyu looked over, deep in thought.


    "The Moon Clan is best for women to cultivate in. Our cultivation techniques are unique as well. Even the College cannot surpass us in this aspect." The Moon Clan member''s voice had a womanly charm and gentleness.


    "The Moon Clan truly is the paradise for girls," Liu Feiyang said from the side.


    Being a top force of the Eastern Barren Territory, their abilities were undeniable. There were countless angelic figures from the Moon Clan who were extremely renowned.


    Hua Jieyu turned to look at Ye Futian and saw that he was looking at her. There was some unwillingness to leave in her eyes. She lowered her head slightly.


    Ye Futian smiled. Immediately understanding her, he reached out to pat Hua Jieyu''s head. "I''ll support whatever decision you make."


    Hua Jieyu let Ye Futian mess up her hair. She nodded gently and looked to the Moon Clan representative. "I am willing to cultivate with the Moon Clan." She wanted to cultivate with Ye Futian but there was no time for personal feelings in the world of cultivation. They''d experienced the despair of Donghai City together and knew how important power was. She didn''t want to keep Ye Futian down. Furthermore, this guy was so talented. There would be more and more girls like the Witch beside him. As they grew, there would be even better girls. She believed in Ye Futian''s feelings for her but she wished to improve too. She wanted to be better than all the girls around him. That way, he could feel proud too.


    "Alright." The angel smiled. She also gave Hua Jieyu a decree. This meant she was now a member of the Moon Clan. Like Ye Wuchen, Hua Jieyu would depart at the beginning of the year.


    The Moon Clan departed. Ye Wuchen and Hua Jieyu had all chosen clans.


    "You were with them too. How come no one came for you?" Lin Yueyao''s father asked from the back of the crowd. They were an important family of Cangye but now, he was jealous.


    "I''m not his girlfriend." Lin Yueyao thought of how Ye Futian had gently taught Hua Jieyu at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall and glared in their direction with resentment.


    "Don''t get involved," her father cautioned. Her words were a little strange.


    Even though his daughter was the number one beauty of the Cangye Kingdom, she couldn''t keep someone like Ye Futian. Putting Hua Jieyu to the side, even the Witch of the Witch Clan couldn''t do it so how could Lin Yueyao? The Witch''s features were equal to Lin Yueyao and had made many men fall for her charms.


    "Ye Futian." At that time, the cultivators who came in chariots walked over. The leader was dressed elegantly. He said, "I come from the Qin Dynasty to invite you and Yu Sheng to join us. If you accept, your status will be equal to that of a prince. Unfortunately, you have a lover. Otherwise, we can also choose a princess to marry below her rank."


    Ye Futian''s eyes brightened. There were so many temptations today.


    Hua Jieyu smiled at him. Was he tempted again?


    "Of course, if you have any other requests, please say them. Anyway, do not be worried of restrictions in the Qin Dynasty," the man continued.


    The top talents of the Eastern Barren Territory were unwilling to join kingdoms because of the restrictions. They could never be equal to the royalty and it was difficult to forge closer relationships. Thus, this man tried to dissolve Ye Futian''s worries in that aspect.


    The Qin Dyansty once ruled the Eastern Barren Territory. They kept their downfall close to heart. They absorbed talented people each generation to continue improving.


    "A kingdom is a kingdom nevertheless. No matter what treatment he receives, he''ll never have the surname of Qin," someone said. The Qin Dynasty cultivator frowned and glared at the speaker��someone from the Donghua Clan.


    "Ye Futian, the Donghua Clan is close to the number one force in the Eastern Barren Territory. Different from the kingdom, once you join the Donghua Clan, you''ll be one of the core members," the Donghua Clan member said. "In the Ancient Barren World, our junior disrespected you but with your talent, you mustn''t hold grudges with someone of the same generation. Rather, you should surpass them."


    Ye Futian glanced at him. He''d once asked Tang Ye from the College whether he could represent the College. Hua Qingchi was the same, of course. He couldn''t represent the Donghua Clan so Ye Futian didn''t mind.


    The Donghua Clan''s words were still meaningful.


    "Of course, you can also make any requests you''d like," the man said.


    "Number one clan? With your foundation, you''re still lacking," the Qin Dynasty cultivator mocked.


    "We are at least the most suitable for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng." The Donghua Clan member chuckled.


    Everyone watched as the two top forces fought. They all understood that Ye Futian would most likely join one of the top three��the College, Donghua Clan, and the Qin Dynasty.


    The other groups understood this too. They didn''t even come or just came for the fun.


    "Stop arguing," a faint voice said. Everyone''s eyes narrowed. Another voice said, "No matter how you argue, he won''t go with you."


    "Nonsense."


    "Who are you?"


    The Donghua Clan and Qin Dynasty all looked in the direction of the voice. There, a figure walked over quietly. It was a scholarly young man. He walked casually, not too fast and not too slow. Without any announcement, he appeared before their eyes.


    The other forces all looked at him. Some knew him; some had never seen him before. Those who knew him all narrowed their eyes, thinking, he came too? I thought they don''t care about other business but he came for Ye Futian too?


    "Because he will go with me," the scholar said with ease. It seemed that everything was decided the moment he arrived.


    Such an arrogant guy, those who didn''t know him thought. How could he overlook the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan like that?


    Even if he was from the College, how could he be like this?


    "Is he from the College?" Gu Biyue asked her clan member. The Noble member''s expression changed, clearly in shock.


    "Yes." He nodded. Gu Biyue guessed correctly.


    The scholar was indeed from the College. He walked over to somewhere near Ye Futian, a faint smile on his face. Just as he''d imagined, Ye Futian was very attractive.


    Ye Futian had noticed everyone''s expressions, of course. When the scholar arrived, many people fell silent. The Donghua Clan and Qin Dynasty members looked uncomfortable but didn''t refute the newcomer. This was very strange.


    "Are you from the College?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes and no." The scholar nodded and then shook his head.


    Ye Futian didn''t understand. So was it yes or no?


    "Senior, why are you sure that I''ll go with you?" Ye Futian asked curiously. This guy seemed even more arrogant than him.


    Hearing his words, the scholar laughed. His laugh was gentle but the words he uttered afterward were not gentle at all. "With me here, who dares to take you away?" He looked at the Donghua Clan and Qin Dynasty. "Right?"

 219 Cangye Dynasty

    Chapter 219: Cangye Dynasty


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The people from the Donghua Clan and the Qin Dynasty looked frustrated. Clearly, they already knew the identity of this person. As members of the top three forces in the Eastern Barren Territory, they were actually questioned in such a manner. Someone from the Donghua Clan said, "Gu Dongliu, this is too much."


    "Since the College Cottage wants you, the Qin Dynasty will contest no more," the people from the Qin Dynasty said, after which they left in displeasure. Obviously, they were somewhat unhappy.


    Very soon, the carriage ascended into the sky and the people from the Qin Dynasty departed directly. Originally, the Donghua Clan could contest, even if they were against the College. However, since he had arrived, and the Cottage wanted Ye Futian, their attempt to contest would surely be futile. Furthermore, what kind of person was Gu Dongliu? He would not even give them the chance to contest.


    "You are not leaving yet?" Gu Dongliu looked at the people from the Donghua Clan as he asked tonelessly. The faces of the people from the Donghua Clan darkened further. Although they were powerful nobles, they were indeed not confident in front of this person.


    "Goodbye," the people from the Donghua Clan said. Then, they turned around and left in anger, appearing to be extremely displeased.


    The scholar turned his head slowly and looked at Ye Futian, after which he smiled gently. His smile was very mild and looked just like a typical scholar. Then, he said, "Look, they''re all gone."


    Ye Futian looked at the scene in front of him, stunned. The nobles from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan left simply because of his words?


    This seemingly harmless scholar is such a powerful deterrent?


    The people from the Qin Dynasty said that he is from the College Cottage. What place is that?


    The people from the Liu Kingdom, Witch Clan and the like looked at the scholar, and then glanced at Ye Futian again. They did not expect him to become a disciple of the College Cottage.


    Nevertheless, a smile quickly appeared on Liu Feiyang''s face. When he escorted Ye Futian and his team back to Cangye, he was not expecting him to join the Liu Kingdom in the first place. Therefore, when the Fuyun Sword Clan and the Moon Clan were inviting Ye Wuchen and Hua Jieyu, he was also objectively speaking for the two clans.


    At the moment, someone from the Cottage had come. The Eastern Barren Territory was already destined to have another towering figure in the future. He could not refrain from anticipating Ye Futian''s future.


    The scholar Gu Dongliu was also a disciple from the College Cottage. When he arrived, even the nobles from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan had to back away. Was it because of his identity?


    Of course not. It was because of his powers.


    If they really ended up in a fight, the nobles from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan would probably lose to him badly. In addition, if he was not from the College Cottage, he would most likely not dare to fight the rest. However, since he was from the Cottage, there would be nothing which he would not dare to do.


    From their knowledge, there were only eight people in the College Cottage at the moment. One was the teacher and the rest students.


    Now, Ye Futian would become the eighth student of the Cottage.


    "Senior, can you give me a reason why I should follow you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I am from the Cottage," the scholar said as he smiled. "After you enter the Cottage, no force in the Eastern Barren Territory will dare to touch you openly, unless they want to die."


    This was the confidence a person from the Cottage would have.


    Nobody would dare to touch the people from the Cottage, not even any forces, unless they wanted to die. Of course, the forces which hid themselves to carry out assassinations were not included.


    It sounded very powerful.


    From the look of it, once he entered the Cottage, he would be able to do whatever he wanted in the Eastern Barren Territory in the future.


    It was indeed an extremely good reason. At least, the events in the Donghai City would definitely not happen to him.


    "Enter," Liu Feiyang, who was beside Ye Futian, reminded him with only one word.


    Nobody would reject the invitation from the Cottage. However, such an invitation was a wild wish for countless people in the first place. But now, Ye Futian had such a chance. How could he miss it?


    "I accept." Ye Futian smiled at the scholar. Even though the introduction of the place was short, it seemed to suit him a lot. Such an outstanding person like him would naturally go to the best places.


    The College Cottage seemed to be such a place.


    "Can Yu Sheng follow me to the Cottage to learn?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes." The Scholar nodded. "He left four Nobles on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, so he also has a chance. When will you leave for the Cottage?"


    "The beginning of next year," Ye Futian replied.


    "Alright," the scholar said as he smiled. "See you at the Cottage."


    "See you at the Cottage." Ye Futian nodded. The scholar turned around and walked away with his hands behind his back. His speed was still unhurried and he soon disappeared.


    Since then, Ye Futian and the other three all had places to go to.


    Ye Futian entered the Cottage, Ye Wuchen entered the Fuyun Sword Clan and Hua Jieyu entered the Moon Clan.


    Yu Sheng would follow Ye Futian into the Cottage to cultivate. Although Yu Sheng was not invited by the Cottage, Ye Futian believed that with Yu Sheng''s talents and strength, after entering the Cottage, the people there would know what to do.


    In the Ancient Barren World, Yu Sheng did not show how outstanding he really was. The four Nobles on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall could not prove much.


    Liu Chenyu stared at Ye Futian and the rest. In the Ancient Barren World, they had displayed absolute charm and now, they were also starting to get their rewards, especially Ye Futian, who was able to turn the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall dim and receive a personal invitation from Gu Dongliu from the Cottage. In the future, they would perhaps leave a legend in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "It seems like I have wasted my trip." Witch Gu Biyue stared at Ye Futian with some resentment as she said slowly, "In the future, if we meet in the Eastern Barren Territory again, I hope that you will still remember me."


    Ye Futian gave a black look. Then, witch Gu Biyue and the people from the Witch Clan also left. In the first place, she did not expect too much. Her major intention was to see for herself what would happen at the place and which force Ye Futian would join. The ending was beyond her expectation. He actually joined the Cottage. The College Cottage had not been admitting disciples for many years.


    As the different forces left one after the other, only people from the Liu Kingdom and the Cangye Kingdom remained in the Imperial Palace, just like how it was originally. However, everyone knew that at the moment, as compared to before, everything was different, whether it was the people here or the Cangye Kingdom.


    "Your Majesty, Young Master Ye, the emperors from the Yunchu Nation and the other kingdoms requested to see you in order to apologize." After the people from the various forces left, the imperial bodyguard who had come with the message stepped forward and reported so.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. Do you want to apologize now?


    Previously, when they were asked to settle the issue, no one paid any attention. Furthermore, they stood firmly alongside He Xirou from the Royal Xuan Temple. This change in attitude was indeed very fast.


    After pondering for a while, Ye Futian said, "Let them in."


    "Yes." The guard nodded, after which he backed and left. Ye Futian looked at Emperor Ye and asked, "Your Majesty, do you have any opinions?"


    Emperor Ye stared at Ye Futian and then said, "They came here with Emperor Luo in order to threaten me to hand over your teacher and the rest. Now, they come here to apologize similarly because of you. Naturally, you can decide on this matter."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. After a while, the emperors from the Yunchu Nation, the Yan Kingdom, and the other kingdoms came over. In total, there were six emperors.


    At the moment, their expressions were very perplexed. As noble figures, it was really embarrassing for them to apologize to a Dharma Plane junior. However, they were relieved after thinking about the status Ye Futian and his team would have in the future. Ye Futian and the other three all managed to enter the top forces, and they would only become more powerful than He Xirou.


    They had to bow down in front of even He Xirou, so it would be fine to do the same in front of Ye Futian. Moreover, they did not have a choice.


    If the issue that had happened in the day was not settled, and Ye Futian kept bearing the grudge, even if he did not use the forces in the Eastern Barren Territory to deal with them at the moment, what would happen when they themselves grew up in the future?


    "Just now, we were deluded by Emperor Luo and did something very foolish. We hope that Young Master Ye can forgive us," the emperor from the Yunchu Nation said. He even bowed slightly and swallowed his pride: he took Ye Futian as someone with the same status as He Xirou.


    "Not long ago, all of you were very unyielding. Now, why do you apologize? I can''t afford that. Emperors, please leave," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    All the emperors cursed Ye Futian in their minds. Since they were allowed to enter, the problem could clearly be alleviated. However, at the moment he said so deliberately to give them some pressure.


    "Young Master Ye, whatever you want from us, please say," the emperor from the Yan Kingdom joined his hands together and said submissively. Now, whatever Ye Futian wanted, they had to agree.


    "You will accept anything?" Ye Futian asked.


    The few emperors could feel their hearts bleeding as they already started to guess what Ye Futian would put forward. However, at this point, they could only do so.


    "Young Master Ye, since you have let us in, you obviously will not ask us to die. Whatever other conditions you have, please say."


    "Submit to Cangye."


    Ye Futian''s voice suddenly turned cold. His few words caused all the emperors to tremble.


    The sentence was short but relentless.


    Submit to Cangye.


    Ye Futian stared at the few emperors with his emotionless face. They had followed Emperor Luo to force Emperor Ye to hand over the people, wanted to kill him and bring away his master and masteress. Previously he asked them to settle the problem but nobody agreed and they still followed the Royal Xuan Temple. Now, they wanted to resolve the matter in a simple way.


    Impossible!


    "This is the first condition. If you don''t agree, you can leave," Ye Futian said tonelessly.


    It was only the first condition.


    The emperors struggled within their hearts.


    However, thinking of following the footsteps of the Royal Xuan Temple just now, their mood calmed down slowly. At the moment, the Cangye Kingdom and Ye Futian were connected. Submitting to Cangye was equivalent to submitting to Ye Futian, and this was not unacceptable.


    In a few years'' time, the Cangye Kingdom would definitely become the king of all the kingdoms.


    "Alright, I agree." Thinking about this, Emperor Chu gritted his teeth and agreed.


    "I agree as well." The various emperors sighed in their hearts. But under such a circumstance, what else could they possibly do?


    "The second condition, your families shall move and stay in the Cangye Imperial City. The Cangye Kingdom will become the Cangye Dynasty, and all of your kingdoms will be attached to the Cangye Dynasty," Ye Futian continued. The hearts of the few emperors trembled again. Ye Futian was trying to bind them to the Cangye Kingdom completely.


    "The third condition, you will no longer control your kingdoms directly. From now on, you will listen to the orders from the Cangye Imperial Palace, for ten years. After ten years, I will return you your freedom," Ye Futian said slowly. "Of course, maybe ten years later, you will not want to leave this place."


    Ten years was enough for him to grow.


    "I agree."


    "I agree..." The emperors from the various kingdoms gritted their teeth and nodded. Ten years was not very long for them, so they would rather use the ten years to exchange for solving all the future troubles.


    Emperor Ye and the people from the Cangye Kingdom witnessed everything and their hearts could not remain calm. They knew that from the moment onwards, the Cangye Kingdom would become the strongest kingdom in the Hundred Lands.


    The Cangye Dynasty!

 220 Ye Xiao’s End

    Chapter 220: Ye Xiao��s End


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The six emperors all left. Ye Futian gave them some time to process everything and announce their submission to Cangye.


    Now, Cangye Kingdom''s threat no longer existed. Ye Futian had also accomplished his goal for going to the Ancient Barren World. He didn''t plan on dealing with Emperor Luo just now. Even if Liu Feiyang was willing to help, Xirou, with her feelings for Luo Junlin, would definitely get involved. Angering her would be a risk for Cangye. Emperor Luo was no longer a threat to Ye Futian and Cangye so Emperor Luo and Luo Junlin would just have to wait. The following days must be torture for them.


    The lords and high officials that had come gradually left. Even after leaving, it took a long while before they were calm again. Everything that had happened today was like a dream. It was too shocking. The Cangye Kingdom had grouped all the strongest of the Eastern Barren Territory in one day. The people felt that their kingdom had created a miracle.


    Countless years later, these young men and women would probably become people they worshipped.


    The banquet was no longer as lively as before; they were all still shocked. Even Emperor Ye felt like he''d been dreaming.


    "Futian," he suddenly said, "you gave me a lot of pressure."


    The Cangye Kingdom was now the hero. The power brought by everything that had happened today was mainly because Ye Futian''s group had joined the Eastern Barren Territory. He personally could not intimidate any of the emperors. Though happy about Cangye''s status, he was also anxious.


    "Your Majesty, you covered the Nandou palace with sword aura for me. This should be nothing to you." Ye Futian chuckled and called the Black Wind Eagle over. It had a bag on it. Ye Futian opened the bag and dumped out swords, staffs, guqins, and powerful ritual implements.


    "Your Majesty, this sword is for you," Ye Futian said, pulling out a sword. Then he gave Hua Fengliu a small stone statue. "Master, please hold onto this. Your Majesty and senior Yi Xiang, if you''d like to comprehend noble fate, you can cultivate with my master.


    "This ritual implement clothing is for Masteress.


    "This is for senior Yi, this is for Aunt Tang��"


    Everyone watched with wide eyes as Ye Futian gave away all the precious items. They felt the items and were deeply shocked.


    Noble ritual implements.


    "This stone statue��" Hua Fengliu was even more shocked. He could feel that the small statue contained incredible noble intent. Thinking of how Ye Futian had put casually put all these things on the Black Wind Eagle''s back, their hearts all convulsed. This guy was such a b*stard.


    "Futian, where are these from?" Emperor Ye asked.


    "Some I got by myself and others were given by people." Ye Futian smiled sweetly and scratched his head. When the Empress told him to choose some treasures from the Loulan palace in the Ancient Barren World, he''d only chosen some to give as gifts. He''d even left the flame scepter behind and chose something else. He was a good guy��


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu were speechless at this. They didn''t care about the noble ritual implements but Ye Futian had gotten the statue at the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. He''d given it so easily to his teacher. What did this mean? It was priceless and attractive even to top forces. But for Ye Futian, he seemed to feel nothing.


    It made sense though. He had a Full Attribute noble fate. He didn''t need to worry about comprehending noble intent. He didn''t need it��


    Capricious! Too capricious!


    "Wait until I learn some cool techniques after cultivating in the Eastern Barren Territory. Your Majesty, you''ll be so powerful you can sweep all of the Hundred Lands. You don''t need to feel stressed." Ye Futian grinned brightly at Emperor Ye.


    Seeing that bright and pure smile, Emperor Ye felt warm inside. For some reason, the image of their first meeting at the Fenghua Banquet suddenly arose in his mind. At that time, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had been extremely confident and powerful.


    He remembered how, after it ended, Yu Sheng said that he was a nice guy. Emperor Ye had been so tickled. Afterward, he felt from their requests that they valued relationships. That was why he was willing to declare war on Emperor Luo for Ye Futian.


    Now, this guy was only in the Dharma Plane, but he already worked to help rid Cangye of threats. The joking and frivolous guy was actually so pure inside.


    A strange thought flashed past Emperor Ye''s mind. It would be so perfect if Ye Futian was his son. Thinking of his own children, his mood dropped. He gazed around and asked coldly, "Where''s Ye Xiao?"


    The people looked around but couldn''t find him.


    "Find him," Emperor Ye ordered. The guards left instantly. Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi met eyes. When their brother had returned to Cangye, he''d said bad things about Ye Futian to their father. Emperor Ye would definitely have thoughts after seeing how Ye Futian treated Cangye.


    "Futian, did Ye Xiao do anything to you in the Ancient Barren World?" Emperor Ye asked. Back then, Ye Xiao had reported something but he didn''t know the specifics.


    "Your Majesty, they''re just small things. It''s already in the past," Ye Futian said, not minding. He would help Emperor Ye improve and Cangye would always be Emperor Ye''s. He didn''t care about Ye Xiao. He didn''t have to do anything to Ye Xiao regarding those things since he was Emperor Ye''s son, after all.


    "There''s something else. When Emperor Luo came to force me to hand the people over, Ye Xiao went to the imperial advisor''s mountain and brought them over," Emperor Ye said. He didn''t keep it a secret. Ye Xiao''s matter must be resolved.


    Ye Futian''s pupils constricted. He looked at Hua Fengliu and Yi Xiang.


    "Your Majesty, we came voluntarily. Please don''t worry about it," Hua Fengliu said to Emperor Ye. He didn''t want to make a scene. Not only did Emperor Ye help Ye Futian, he''d also accepted Hua Jieyu as his goddaughter and protected them all.


    "Since you''re all protecting him, I''ll punish him myself." Emperor Ye sighed inwardly. Both Ye Futian and Hua Fengliu felt indebted to him and were unwilling to punish Ye Xiao. However, his son''s actions chilled him.


    After a while, Ye Xiao came over, trembling. He''d realized something was wrong when the various forces of the Eastern Barren Territory arrived and didn''t dare to stay. He was worried Ye Futian''s group would notice him. But unexpectedly, he couldn''t escape. They''d thought of him so quickly.


    "Father." Ye Xiao saw Emperor Ye''s dark face and got a bad feeling.


    "Kneel," Emperor Ye ordered coldly. Ye Xiao''s face turned white as he knelt down. "Is there anything you''d like to say?"


    "Father." Hearing Emperor Ye''s words, Ye Xiao''s heart quivered. "I don''t understand."


    "In that case, there''s no need for you to understand. From now on, Ye Xiao shall be reduced to a commoner and never step foot in the palace again." Emperor Ye''s eyes were cold. Everyone''s hearts trembled. Ye Xiao had had his status revoked. He wasn''t even a prince anymore, let alone anywhere close to the throne.


    Ye Xiao''s face was ghastly pale. Glaring at Ye Futian, he said, "Father, you''d rather trust an outsider than me. I can''t accept it."


    "Idiotic and stubborn." Emperor Ye waved his hand. A terrifying current blasted against Ye Xiao, making him fly back. Emperor Ye uttered coldly, "Get out."


    Ye Futian had tried to help Ye Xiao but he thought that Ye Futian had complained about him.


    Ye Xiao coughed, blood trickling from his lips. Dazed, he walked out with strong resentment in his eyes. He''d been the closest to the throne but now, he would lose everything.


    "Find everyone who returned to the palace with Ye Xiao," Emperor Ye ordered. Ye Xiao was only a prince but they were willing to lie to the crown with him. It was unacceptable.


    "Yes." The guard bowed and left. Ye Futian watched this without doing anything. He didn''t mind what happened at the Ancient Barren World but since this involved his teacher, he couldn''t allow it.


    Ye Xiao had his mind set on the crown but now, he would lose everything.


    "Futian, if you think this isn''t enough, you can do whatever you want," Emperor Ye said.


    "Your Majesty, this has already passed," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright. It has passed." Emperor Ye nodded.


    "Thank you for this," Ye Futian said to Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu. He really owed them this time.


    "It''s nothing. I plan on staying for a few days. Is that alright?" Liu Feiyang chuckled.


    "It''s almost the end of the year. You''re not going back?" Ye Futian asked, a bit shocked.


    "The others will but Chenyu and I plan on spending the New Years here. At the start of the next year, we can have the Kunpeng escort you all to the Eastern Barren Territory," Liu Feiyang said with a smile. Since he''d already escorted them here, he would take them back too.


    "What about the Liu Kingdom?"


    "It''s no problem. After all, this involves Chenyu''s future," Liu Feiyang said teasingly.


    Beside them, Liu Chenyu was speechless. It felt like she''d been sold out.


    "Yes, relationships must be nurtured." Ye Futian totally agreed with Liu Feiyang and nodded seriously. "You must stay."


    "I''m leaving." Ye Wuchen was done.


    "Wuchen, the princess is staying. How can you leave?" Ye Futian asked. "Lord Ye, what do you think?"


    "Yes," Lord Ye said, nodding. "Wuchen, why don''t you stay in the palace? Take the princess around when you have time."


    "Correct." Emperor Ye nodded too. Thus, Ye Wuchen was forced to stay.


    Now, Cangye Kingdom''s crisis was finally over. However, the shockwaves created by the event were still festering. What had happened would first spread throughout the imperial city. Then it would spread throughout the Cangye Kingdom to the Nandou Nation''s imperial city and out. Then there would be another huge news in the Hundred Lands. Yunchu, Yan, and the other major kingdoms would submit to Cangye!

 221 The Sky of an 18-Year-Old

    Chapter 221: The Sky of an 18-Year-Old


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Days passed by one after another. Over these days, the Imperial Palace of the Cangye Kingdom had been very lively and occasionally, the emperors in the Hundred Lands would come to pay a visit.


    The six kingdoms had announced that they would submit and the formation of the Cangye Dynasty was already inevitable. Moreover, nobody dared to team up and deal with the Cangye Kingdom: Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and the other two were already disciples of the top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory at the moment. Under this general trend, the rise of the Cangye Kingdom was already unstoppable and everyone could only adapt to the trend.


    Before anyone realized it, the end of the 10001st year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar had approached and the year was almost over.


    In the last night of the year, the Imperial Palace of the Cangye Kingdom was ablaze with lights. An annual banquet had been arranged in the Emperor''s Palace.


    Emperor Ye, the queen, the princes, and princesses, as well as Ye Futian and his team, Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu, were all present, making the place seem particularly lively.


    "Come, let us drink together." At the moment, Emperor Ye proposed a toast. Everyone else smiled and raised their glasses, after which they drank the alcohol in their glasses together.


    "I do not know why but I always feel that many things have happened this year. It''s almost like many years have passed and the year seems pretty long," Emperor Ye smiled as he said. "Maybe it''s because I am getting old and hence sentimental."


    "I feel the same as well," Hua Fengliu nodded and said. "Although I didn''t do much this year, I seem to have gone through a lot."


    "Master, you have recovered from your injury, and also married Aunt Tang. How can you say that you have not done much," Ye Futian chipped in as he smiled.


    "Right. Mainly, I have seen you undergo a lot." Hua Fengliu sighed.


    "Maybe that''s true." Ye Futian smiled. Indeed, he had such a feeling.


    In the year, he had experienced many major events. He escaped from the Donghai City to the Cangye Kingdom, participated in the Fenghua Banquet and then visited the Tingfeng Banquet. Next, Luo Junlin entered the Royal Xuan Temple and the Ancient Barren World opened. He fought in the Ancient Barren World and finally returned.


    Everything had happened in merely one year. He felt like he had experienced too much.


    "The things in the world are really unpredictable," Yi Xiang also said emotionally. "Just before the end of last year, I was still planning to send Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and the rest to the Nandou Nation Imperial City to take part in the Tingfeng Banquet once the year passed. However, everything changed after that. Luckily, it''s all over now. Futian has not let us down."


    Hua Fengliu nodded. Near the end of the previous year, they were caught in a disaster and were almost doomed eternally.


    "It''s so rare to get a compliment from you," Ye Futian said, smiling. It was indeed not easy to receive praise from Yi Xiang.


    "Don''t be complacent. Emperor Luo is still alive, and Luo Junlin will also continue to cultivate in the Royal Xuan Temple. It''s not all over yet. Don''t forget what Elder Qin had done for you. You have to get revenge yourself in the future," Yi Xiang said suddenly with a serious tone. He had to give Ye Futian a heavy blow as young people tend to get complacent easily. He clearly knew that Ye Futian''s talents were unparalleled, but precisely because he was so gifted, he must not be impetuous.


    Ye Futian would always need a strong motivation to work.


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded in a serious manner. Thinking about his grandmaster, his happy demeanor also disappeared.


    Emperor Luo, Minister Hua, the Nandou Clan and the Donghai Academy were all responsible for killing his grandmaster. He had not taken his revenge yet but would remember them for the moment.


    The news about the Cangye Kingdom would probably be passed to the Donghai City. I wonder how the "important people" in the Nandou Clan and the Donghai Academy will feel now? Can they still feel as superior as they have in the past?


    "Father, let''s not talk about this today," Yi Qingxuan said.


    "Alright, let''s not." Yi Xiang nodded. "How about we talk about you and Yu Sheng."


    "What nonsense are you talking about." Yi Qingxuan blushed slightly. Yi Xiang started to laugh immediately.


    "Time really passes fast. In the blink of an eye, you are already eighteen." Smiling, Hua Fengliu looked at the young man in front of him. He could still vividly recall the events in the Qingzhou Academy in those days. In such a short period of time, they had already grown up.


    An 18-year-old is no longer considered a juvenile. They would embark on a whole new part of their lives.


    "I''m already 18. Father-in-law, when can I marry Jieyu?" Ye Futian said, smiling.


    Everyone looked at him with a laugh. Nandou Wenyin said softly, "At that time, in the Nandou Clan, I have promised to betroth her to you. She''s already yours, so why the hurry?"


    "Err..." Ye Futian blinked. Then smiling, he looked at Hua Jieyu and nodded in a serious manner. "Masteress, you are right."


    "Mother." Seeing Ye Futian''s sly smile, Hua Jieyu looked at her mother uncontrollably. Which mother would betray her daughter like this?


    Everyone at the banquet stared at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. The 18-year-old Ye Futian was already extraordinarily handsome and looked distinguished and suave, while Hua Jieyu was slim and graceful. As compared to the immature her in the city of Qingzhou when she was fifteen or sixteen, the 18-year-old Hua Jieyu was already a disastrously charming lady. She had perfectly inherited the looks of Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin, and her body was overflowing with the purity and beauty of youth.


    The scene of the two sitting together was like a drawing presented in front of everyone. They all blessed the two silently and hoped that the two could remain so throughout their lives.


    The annual banquet ended in warmth and harmony. Ye Futian and the other young people planned to go out for a walk. The year-end Cangye Kingdom Imperial City was extremely bustling and even more lively than the city of Qingzhou they had been to.


    "Danchen, Lingxi, where shall we go and play?" Ye Futian asked Ye Danchen and the rest as they walked along the bustling streets of the Cangye City.


    "Do you want to take a tour around the lake?" Ye Lingxi smiled and asked back.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded.


    "I will bring you to the Cangye Lake." Ye Lingxi smiled and then led the way. After a while, they arrived in front of the Cangye Lake.


    Under the night sky, the lights were luminous and the fireworks brilliant. Cruise ships sailed in the lake in an endless stream, making the scene extremely magnificent.


    "Should I go and find a cruise ship?" Ye Danchen asked.


    "You can go and help them find one. I want to appreciate the lake scenery with Jieyu here," Ye Futian said as he smiled.


    "You want to enjoy each other''s company." Liu Feiyang smiled. "Seems like I am somewhat unnecessary here. Wuchen, help me to take care of Chenyu. I will go back first." After speaking, he actually turned around and really left.


    "Then you just play here. I will take a walk around with Lingxi." Ye Danchen looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu with a smile on his face. Then, the two left the place together.


    "We will take a tour around the lake." Yi Qingxuan pulled Yu Sheng along and left.


    Ye Futian looked at Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu with a smile. He just kept staring at the two in silence.


    "We will just take a walk around?" Liu Chenyu opened her eyes wide at Ye Futian and then spoke to Ye Wuchen.


    "Alright." Ye Wuchen nodded and the two also left.


    Only Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were left beside the Cangye Lake. Of course, there were many visitors around them. Occasionally, some people would stare at the two, as the qualities and looks of the two were indeed extraordinary.


    There were also a few people who could recognize Ye Futian, which caused them to be shocked. This is the person who changed the situation of the Hundred Lands and gathered the people from all the top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Why do I feel that you have a conspiracy?" Hua Jieyu stared at Ye Futian.


    "Isn''t this scene familiar?" Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded. During that time in the city of Qingzhou, the scene was somewhat similar. It was just that the Cangye Kingdom was even more lively.


    Ye Futian extended his arm and grabbed Hua Jieyu''s hand. Gazing at the scenery in front, he smiled brightly. "I miss it so much. Do you want to reveal your feelings to me again?"


    Hua Jieyu blinked. Then, she blushed slightly and wanted to withdraw her hand from Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian did not let her go. He grabbed her hand firmly and turned his head, looking at the beautiful face in front.


    Hua Jieyu opened her eyes wide at him in anger, after which she turned her head away and gave a soft humph. Her face was, however, filled with shyness. The blush on her face was very captivating.


    Ye Futian was flirting with her on purpose.


    That time at the Qingzhou Lake, she held Ye Futian''s hand actively and confirmed her love relationship with him.


    "Why is my fox always so attractive? Whenever I see you, my heartbeat will accelerate uncontrollably," Ye Futian said in a gentle voice. Hua Jieyu stared at him without blinking as her face turned even redder. What''s wrong with this guy today?


    "Did you do something bad?" Hua Jieyu blinked and asked in a suspicious tone.


    Ye Futian''s face turned black and he said, "What bad things can I do?"


    "In the Eastern Barren Territory when I am not beside you, do you plan to do bad things?" Hua Jieyu asked as she smiled.


    "You are the only one in my eyes," Ye Futian said in all seriousness.


    "Humph." Hua Jieyu gave a lovable humph and turned her head away, but some happiness appeared in her eyes and her heart was filled with sweetness. Even if Ye Futian was only speaking honeyed words, she would still be willing to be deceived.


    "Close your eyes," Ye Futian said again. Hua Jieyu looked at him and said in a shy tone, "What do you want?"


    Ye Futian extended his hands and embraced her slim waist gently while his head moved closer to her gradually.


    Hua Jieyu''s heart pulsed and a charming blush appeared on her face. She closed her eyes slowly and raised her head slightly. The lights shone upon her gorgeous face and even time itself seemed to be stunned.


    Ye Futian''s heart raced. Hugging Hua Jieyu in his arms, he kissed on her rosy lips. Even time seemed to have stopped at the moment.


    At this instant, above the Cangye Lake, countless fireworks ascended into the air and bloomed in the sky.


    Everyone lifted their heads and stared into the sky, gazing at the gorgeously blooming fireworks which filled the entire sky, producing a magnificent sight.


    "So beautiful!" Countless people exclaimed as they asked themselves why the blooming of the fireworks was so neat and brilliant.


    On a small road beside the lake, Liu Chenyu and Ye Wuchen were strolling. Suddenly, they raised their heads to look at the sky and their footsteps stopped uncontrollably.


    "So nice," Liu Chenyu muttered to herself. Even her heart trembled because of this.


    Ye Wuchen looked at the fireworks, and then lowered his head to gaze at Liu Chenyu. Under the fireworks, Liu Chenyu was actually so charming at the moment.


    Having felt something, Liu Chenyu withdrew her gaze and realized that Ye Wuchen was looking at her. Her heartbeat actually started to accelerate helplessly.


    In the Cangye Lake, Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan who were on a cruise ship raised their heads to look at the dazzling fireworks in the sky. Yi Qingxuan leaned into Yu Sheng''s arms gently and wished that time could remain at this instant forever.


    Hua Jieyu opened her eyes slowly, and Ye Futian was still kissing her lips. The stunning fireworks all over the sky seemed to have bloomed just for her.


    In this situation, she actually closed her eyes once again. A charmingly bright smile appeared on her face.


    Time seemed to have paused.


    The scene turned into eternity at the moment!

 222 College

    Chapter 222: College


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was the first day of year 10002 at the Cangye Kingdom''s palace. Many people were grouped here. Ye Futian''s group would head towards the Eastern Barren Territory. The Kunpeng spread its wings, ready to fly at any moment. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu stood atop it, waiting for the others to finish their farewells.


    "Uncle Ye, we''re leaving now," Ye Futian said to Emperor Ye, no longer calling him "Your Majesty."


    "There are many strong cultivators there. Don''t force yourself when there are problems," Emperor Ye advised.


    "I know." Ye Futian nodded. "Danchen, Lingxi, cultivate well and aid your father soon."


    Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi nodded with smiles on their faces.


    "Your Majesty, take care," Hua Fengliu, Yi Xiang, and the others also said to Emperor Ye.


    "Take care," Emperor Ye replied. "I''ll visit the Eastern Barren Territory when I have time."


    "Yes. When things stabilize, you can come at any time." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Imperial Advisor, take care." Hua Fengliu looked at the old man.


    He was blind and just nodded, saying, "Jieyu, take care of yourself."


    "I will. You too." Hua Jieyu felt a bit down. She didn''t know when she could return after leaving this time.


    "I anticipate your return to your position in Nandou," he said. Now that Emperor Ye knew his identity, he didn''t have to hide it anymore.


    "Go. When you return, you will be a legend," Emperor Ye said, smiling. Last time, Ye Futian had gone to the Ancient Barren World for a bit more than half a year and returned to shake the entire Hundred Lands. What would he be like after going to truly cultivate in the Eastern Barren Territory?


    Ye Futian''s group nodded and climbed onto the Kunpeng. Other than the Liu siblings, there was Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Hua Jieyu, Yi Qingxuan, Yi Xiang, Huang Fengliu, Nandou Wenyin, Tang Lan, and Tang Wan. And of course the Black Wind Eagle.


    "Senior Kun, let''s go," Liu Feiyang said. The Kunpeng spread its wings and flew up.


    Emperor Ye and the others looked up, feeling complicated while watching the Kunpeng in the air. What awaited them in the Eastern Barren Territory?


    The Kunpeng flew over the imperial city. Gales of wind blew past and countless people in the city looked up. They knew that the legendary youths of the kingdom had left. They were going to a place or true heroes to start their lives. The Hundred Lands wasn''t enough for them.


    In the imperial city, Lin Yueyao looked up, feeling a sense of loss. As the top beauty of the Cangye Kingdom, she was loved by many. Only he was so uncontrollable and never thought highly of her. And yet she loved a man like that but he was out of her league.


    That was how life was. She had so many pursuers that she thought weren''t qualified; the one she liked didn''t think she was qualified. She never even brought it up because she knew it was meaningless.


    Suddenly, she smiled and murmured, "I hope you will be free and unrestrained your entire life." With that, she turned, no longer thinking about it. It was already enough to be able to meet someone like that and have those memories. She still had to happily live on.


    ��


    The Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and College were all situated in the center of the Eastern Barren Territory. The Liu Kingdom and Fuyun Sword Clan were in the east. The Ji Family and Royal Xuan Temple were in the south. The Sacred Sword Mountain and Qianqiu Temple were in the west. The Witch Clan and Moon Clan ruled over the north.


    Ye Futian''s group came from the east and were closest to the Liu Kingdom and Fuyun Sword Clan. These two forces were close, which was why Li Daoyun of the Fuyun Sword Clan pursued Liu Chenyu. However, the Kunpeng went further to the north, bringing Hua Jieyu to the Moon Clan first. After seeing her enter, the others continued to the College.


    The Divine Capital was one of the three most flourishing cities of the Eastern Barren Territory. In this ancient city, there were many different clans and families. The forces that could be known as a family here were all those with strong cultivators in the Noble Plane.


    The city bordered many other cities. The other cities formed the most influential region of the Eastern Barren Territory with the Divine Capital as the heart.


    It wasn''t this influential only because of the Divine Capital. Instead, it was because the Book Mountain was situated outside the city and it contained the College.


    It was extremely spacious at the foot of the Book Mountain. There were no buildings within a ten-kilometer radius. However, many people were grouped there now. A huge demon descended from the air. It was a Demon Lion with the aura of a demon king. It was terrifying.


    The beast descended and landed at the foot of the Book Mountain. Even a demon king didn''t dare fly into the College, the holy land for cultivators.


    A middle-aged man and a youth around 17 years old were on the Demon Lion. The youth wore a long robe and had a demonic look in his eyes. He looked a bit frivolous too.


    "Tuoba Yun," the surrounding people all whispered. He was from the Tuoba Family, a Noble clan. The youth was Tuoba Yun who had recently tested into the College after passing the 18 trials.


    Today was the entrance day. All students who passed the grand examinations of the College at the beginning of the year would enter officially on this day.


    More figures landed from the air. Some men wore elegant clothing and escorted a beautiful lady forward.


    "Nangong Jiao from the Nangong Family." Everyone looked at the lady. Her beautiful eyes were cool and proud. Also a genius who had passed the examinations, she was the daughter of the Divine Capital''s Nangong Family.


    Another figure came from the road. His physique was stranger. He was extremely burly but wore common clothes. In fact, they were like rags. However, his eyes were very bright and he gazed at Tuoba Yun and Nangong Jiao.


    "Kua Shan." The others didn''t dare overlook him at all. He was from the Kua Family, a barbaric and violent tribe.


    When Tuoba Yun saw Kua Shan, his eyes flashed dangerously. They''d fought during the examination and this barbarian had left an impression.


    More people arrived afterward.


    Three figures walked slowly down the road leading to the foot of the Book Mountain. There seemed to be seniors bringing their juniors to school and attracted much attention. The two youths seemed extremely extraordinary. One was very handsome. Only judging by his looks, hardly anyone could surpass him. The other was very muscular. His entire body seemed to be filled with wild power. He could even be compared to Kua Shan.


    They were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, escorted by Yi Xiang.


    After bringing them to the Divine Capital, Liu Feiyang had continued to take Ye Wuchen to the Fuyun Sword Clan and return to the Liu Kingdom. Rather than going directly to the College, Ye Futian''s group had settled in the Divine Capital before going.


    "We''re here." Yi Xiang gazed at the Book Mountain, feeling shocked inside.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng made their way to the foot of the mountain. Looking up, they saw the two peaks on either side made of huge boulders. The center seemed to have been hacked open. There was a heavenly step, and faint sunlight shone down from the end of it, landing on the grave and solemn buildings.


    That was the holy land of cultivation in the Eastern Barren Territory��the Eastern Barren College.


    "Go and cultivate well," Yi Xiang said to the two.


    "We''ll visit when there''s time," Ye Futian said.


    "Don''t worry about us," Yi Xiang said.


    "I''m going." Ye Futian turned around.


    "Teacher, I''m going up," Yu Sheng said as well. Yi Xiang nodded.


    The two walked to the foot of the steps and started climbing up the Book Mountain.


    "Are they students too?" someone asked. He didn''t know them.


    From their conversation, it was clear they were here to learn.


    Tuoba Yun, Nangong Jiao, and the others were already at the top of the steps. They glanced at Ye Futian and were confused. They didn''t see these two at the grand examinations so they couldn''t be this year''s students.


    Then why were they here?


    "Are you here to study?" a youth asked Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Everyone knew each other but had never seen these two before.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded and smiled.


    "You can''t enter the College without passing the examinations," the youth said, chuckling. These two guys didn''t know the rules.


    "Oh?" Ye Futian replied. "Someone from the College invited us."


    "The College invited you?"


    Everyone turned to look at Ye Futian, studying him. Not many in the Eastern Barren Territory could get an invitation from the College. It had always been talents from all over coming to learn. The College practically never invited anyone except for some exceptional figures.


    "You think you''re Xiao Wuji?" Tuoba Yun side-eyed Ye Futian. Did the College really invite the two of them together?


    Judging from the one who escorted them, they weren''t anyone important either.


    As far as they knew, the only one that the College had invited these days was the genius Xiao Wuji. It was rumored that Ye Futian didn''t choose a clan so no one in the College went.


    As for what happened in the Cangye Kingdom, only those in the top levels knew and they wouldn''t spread the news for no reason. Thus, no one knew that other than Xiao Wuji, someone else was invited into the College.


    Not even the students of the College knew, let alone the outside world, because the College had announced that they wouldn''t go to Cangye. Those who went were from the Cottage.


    When Ye Futian heard Xiao Wuji''s name, he thought of the man in the Ancient Barren World. He was indeed talented and should be one of the top talents of the Eastern Barren Territory. But of course, he couldn''t be compared to Ye Futian.


    Nangong Jiao glanced at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng and ignored them. She continued forward. Since she was here to learn, she would cultivate with the prides of the College and meet the legendary figures. She wouldn''t waste her time on these insignificant people.


    Kua Shan glanced at Yu Sheng and continued climbing up.


    Ye Futian also ignored Tuoba Yun and continued advancing.


    The group of youths climbed up to the College, stepping onto the road of education!

 223 Disciple of the Cottage

    Chapter 223: Disciple of the Cottage


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the end of the stairs on the Book Mountain was the College.


    Entering an arched door, a square appeared in front of everyone. The square was still surrounded by mountain walls and there were many meandering stairs around, leading to the different parts of the Book Mountain. In all places, there were ancient palaces and courtyards which seemed to be towering into the clouds, producing a spectacular view.


    It was the day on which new disciples would be admitted into the College. Obviously, there were people there to welcome them.


    At the moment, there were many people in the square. Looking at the figures stepping into the College, smiles appeared on the faces of many. They had heard that the current batch of disciples entering the College was very outstanding, especially a few of them, who were extremely gifted and indeed rare geniuses.


    "Is Kua Shan here?" someone shouted.


    "Yes." Kua Shan took a step forward.


    "Are you willing to cultivate under Mountain Elder Zong Xu?" the person asked.


    The eyes of all the disciples in the place sparkled, and many stared at Kua Shan with some envy. There were seven mountain elders in the College. The strength of Zong Xu was definitely among the top three, and there were many excellent geniuses under him.


    "Yes, I will." Kua Shan nodded.


    "Nangong Jiao," the person shouted again.


    "Yes." Some anticipation flashed across the eyes of Nangong Jiao.


    "Are you willing to cultivate under Mountain Elder Zhu Qing?"


    "As expected." Joy appeared in the eyes of Nangong Jiao as she nodded and said, "Yes, I will."


    "Tuoba Yun, are you willing to cultivate under Mountain Elder Qin Mu?"


    "Yes, I will." Tuoba Yun nodded.


    The names of the young people who were being admitted were called out one by one, and they were allocated to the seven mountain elders of the College for cultivation. However, nobody was entitled to cultivate under the College Chief. Of course, they also knew that this was almost impossible. Every disciple under the College Chief was really extraordinary. As for the Cottage, nobody even thought about it. However, the names of a few people were not called at all.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had been standing at the side quietly all along. At first, they wanted to ask something, but before they could do so, the roll call had already begun. Thus, they could only stand silently at the side and wait. Fortunately, not too many disciples were being admitted and the session ended very soon.


    All the mountain elders had sent someone over to welcome the new disciples who had just been admitted. Clearly, the College had already made the decisions beforehand and the different factions had the information.


    Actually, during their admission examination, everything had already been confirmed. They would only be entitled to cultivate in the College if a mountain elder was willing to accept them. Otherwise, it would be really awkward if someone entered the College but nobody was willing to teach him.


    The disciple looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Smiling, he said, "If you have come here to seek knowledge, please wait till next year and take the College Examination."


    Tuoba Yun, Nangong Jiao and the rest glanced at Ye Futian. These two guys are indeed trying to sneak into the place. They are asking for contempt. However, the disciple from the College was very polite. He only smiled and asked them to leave.


    "May I ask where is the Cottage?" Ye Futian looked at the disciple and asked.


    "The Cottage..." The person''s eyes sparkled. Around them, the other disciples of the College turned around one after another and looked at Ye Futian in surprise.


    Even Kua Shan who was unconcerned about these things looked at Ye Futian. Is he actually asking about the Cottage?


    "Why are you asking about the Cottage?" After being stunned momentarily, the disciple asked so.


    "I am going to the Cottage to cultivate," Ye Futian replied.


    The disciple was puzzled once again and said, "The Cottage should not be admitting any disciples. Please go back."


    The people around Ye Futian looked at him as if he was an idiot. He actually wants to go to the Cottage to cultivate?


    "I am Ye Futian." Ye Futian said this doubting in his heart if the people in the College even knew him.


    Just as he finished speaking, the surrounding immediately went into complete silence. All the disciples from the College turned their eyes and gazed firmly at the handsome figure.


    Ye Futian was a very familiar name to them. At the end of the previous year, this name was frequently mentioned in the College, until the College announced that it would not go to Cangye. Only then, the name slowly faded away from everyone''s minds.


    Nevertheless, the disciples of the College had obviously heard this name before. At the moment, not only did this name appear again, but Ye Futian himself was standing in the College.


    Since he was Ye Futian, he, of course, had the rights to appear in the College. Even if he did not participate in the College Examination, since he had come, he was entitled to be admitted into the College. The mountain elders of the College would try their best to grab him. Regarding this, the disciples of the College had no doubts at all: after all, he had broken the records in the Ancient Barren World.


    However, Ye Futian had come for the Cottage.


    Tuoba Yun''s sight froze at the spot. As a member of a noble family, he had, of course, heard about Ye Futian, Even though he did not experience the events in the Ancient Barren World, Ye Futian''s name had been mentioned by many at the end of the previous year.


    Just now when they were climbing the mountain, he mocked Ye Futian, asking him if he thought he was Xiao Wuji.


    He was not Xiao Wuji. He was Ye Futian.


    On the peak of the Mirror Mountain, he broke all the records of Xiao Wuji.


    Nangong Jiao also looked at Ye Futian with some surprise. On the stairs during the climb, she did not at all expect such a handsome young man to actually be Ye Futian who had fully displayed his abilities in the Ancient Barren World.


    He was the arrogant person who broke the war drums on the Mirror Mountain and said the line "Those who understand me will understand my arrogance". It was hard to imagine that such a person would look so handsome and also harmless when he smiled. Not even the slightest arrogance could be felt from him. Instead, he appeared to be humble and bright.


    After the silence was a commotion.


    Ye Futian actually came to the College. Does he want to cultivate in the College Cottage?


    However, even though he had broken many records in the Ancient Barren World, everyone was unsure whether the Cottage would allow him to be admitted as a disciple.


    "Why, why are you asking about the Cottage?" The disciple was stunned for a while, after which he asked Ye Futian. His look was much more solemn: just Ye Futian''s name alone was enough to make him pay attention.


    "Someone from the Cottage asked me to come and cultivate there. Oh yeah, I think his name is Gu Dongliu," Ye Futian said as he smiled. Seems like my name is really useful.


    "Gu Dongliu." Everyone around them gasped and all the disciples of the College looked at Ye Futian in envy. The College had announced that it would not go to Cangye. But someone from the Cottage went there and did not inform the College. Moreover, the person who went was Gu Dongliu.


    As always, the Cottage acted as it wished.


    Why was Gu Dongliu so famous? Because many people believed that he would be the next Sword Saint.


    Why was the Cottage so famous?


    During that time, the Sword Saint walked down from the Book Mountain and became highly reputed in just one battle. From then on, everyone in the world knew about the Cottage.


    The College disciples around them heard that it was Gu Dongliu who asked Ye Futian to come to the Cottage. For a moment, they actually did not know what to say.


    In the distance, a group of people was walking over. Tang Ye was in the group. His look passed through the crowd and landed onto Ye Futian directly. After a while, the group appeared in front of Ye Futian.


    Tang Ye''s expression was very awkward. At that time, he humiliated Ye Futian in front of the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall and was very arrogant. Later, he became the laughing stock because of this, which caused him to lose all his face. Luckily, the College announced that it would not go to Cangye and he thought that Ye Futian had missed the opportunity to enter the College. However, while the College announced that it would not go to the Cangye Kingdom, the Cottage did go.


    Gu Dongliu went there.


    Many elders in the College only knew about this after a while. The Cottage did not inform the College at all about their action and this caused the College to feel somewhat disrespected. Therefore, the College did not announce this incident openly.


    Seeing Tang Ye, Ye Futian''s look was very calm. That day, Tang Ye dishonored him, so the events that happened after that would definitely cause Tang Ye to feel awkward.


    Another person was beside Tang Ye. The person had an outstanding temperament and a graceful bearing. His name was Su Muge, and he was a disciple directly taught by the College Chief. Among the junior disciples in the College, his talents could be ranked among the top ten.


    At the moment, Su Muge stared at Ye Futian and said, "Welcome to the College."


    "Thank you. Seniors, please advise me in the future," Ye Futian joined his hands together and said. The atmosphere at the moment was rather subtle. However, since the other person welcomed him, he naturally could not be rude.


    "I have heard about all the things you have done in the Ancient Barren World. I did not see them for myself, but since you could break so many records and take away the light from the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall, your talents in certain areas must have been unparalleled," Su Muge said slowly. It sounded as if he was praising Ye Futian.


    "However, cultivation does not only depend on talents; character is equally important. In the Ancient Barren World, Tang Ye had criticized you, and you had proven him wrong with facts. But even so, in the Ancient Barren World, your performance was still too unrestrained. Even if you can unleash strong powers by relying on external factors, that power does not belong to you after all. If one day, you realize that you are not as strong as your talents, it will really be embarrassing, and your mental state will be negatively affected."


    Su Muge said slowly, "After all, talent is not equivalent to strength."


    Ye Futian was stunned. Is he complimenting or educating me?


    Why do his words feel so strange?


    Liu Feiyang had once told him that even though the Cottage belonged to the College, the relationship between the two at the moment was somewhat subtle. From the look of it, it was indeed so.


    Apart from Ye Futian, the College disciples around him also realized this. Su Muge was a disciple of the College Chief, while Ye Futian was about to enter the Cottage.


    He had just arrived at the College. Su Muge seemed to be welcoming him but was actually educating him. The attitude the College had towards the Cottage was already evident. However, everyone could understand why that was the case: when the College announced that it would not go to Cangye, the Cottage immediately went there. The Cottage did not give the College any face as well.


    "How many Nobles did you leave on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall?" At the moment, someone''s voice spread across. Su Muge turned around and saw a somewhat inflated fat man walking over. Squinting and smiling at Su Muge, the fat man soon reached before him.


    Su Muge frowned, but the fat man said again, "How many inches of the image did you leave on the wall?"


    Su Muge frowned even more tightly.


    "Have you managed to control the statue and move it?" the fat man asked again.


    Su Muge''s face darkened slightly.


    "You have done nothing. Without even any talents, what nonsense are you talking about here?" The fat man did not give any face to this disciple of the College Chief as he spoke in a cold tone. Then, ignoring him totally, the fat man looked at Ye Futian. Squinting and smiling, he said, "My name is Yi Xiaoshi. Younger brother, I have been waiting for you for very long."


    A smile appeared gradually on Ye Futian''s face. As expected, the Cottage suits my taste.


    "Hello, brother," Ye Futian said.


    "You don''t have to be so polite. Come, let''s go to the Cottage." Yi Xiaoshi did not bother about the rest. Bringing along Ye Futian, he turned and left the place.


    "Brother, what''s your seniority?" Ye Futian walked beside Yi Xiaoshi and asked.


    "Seven." Yi Xiaoshi smiled bashfully. In the past, he had been the most junior.


    "How about brother Gu Dongliu?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "That''s the third brother."


    "The third brother is already so strong?" Ye Futian''s eyes brightened. Thinking about the imposing nature of Gu Dongliu in the Cangye Kingdom, Ye Futian was confident that he would be protected in the future!


    Then, what kind of person will the big brother and the second brother be?

 224 What a Close Call

    Chapter 224: What a Close Call


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Cottage, as a part of the College, was on the Book Mountain too. Up above the winding road was the most remote hill. This was where the Cottage was.


    On the way there, Ye Futian asked curiously, "Who are our eldest and second senior brother?" Gu Dongliu could scare off the people of Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan with a look. Then, what about the two senior brothers?


    "I have never seen the eldest brother. He left years before I was born," Yi Xiaoshi answered, "but you should have heard of his. He might be enjoying his life on the Sword Saint Mountain."


    "Sword Saint Mountain?" Ye Futian''s eyes flickered. He remembered that Liu Chenyu had told him that the College taught all kinds of students, even students from other clans. Many talents of the Eastern Barren Territory were the graduates of the College. However, he didn''t expect that someone of the top power Sword Saint Mountain would have cultivated in the Cottage.


    "Well, he is probably the most famous disciple of the College throughout the centuries," Yi Xiaoshi nodded.


    "Who?" Ye Futian blinked.


    "Sword Saint." Yi Xiaoshi smiled and looked at Ye Futian with crinkled eyes.


    Ye Futian was shocked. Though he had presumed that the eldest brother would be very strong, he didn''t expect that it would be to this extent.


    Sword Saint Mountain, as one of the top powers, was located in the west of Eastern Barren Territory. The leader of the top power was the eldest brother, a disciple of the Cottage? Why didn''t Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu tell him about this? No wonder when the Cottage invited him, Liu Feiyang just responded with one word��yes.


    If possible, Ye Futian wanted to go to the Sword Saint Mountain to visit the boss. From this aspect, were the many strong cultivators of the Sword Saint Mountain his juniors? He was a man with status now.


    Yi Xiaoshi was a little bit proud when seeing Ye Futian''s amazement.


    "The eldest brother is a man with a story," Ye Futian exclaimed.


    "Of course. Senior Sister once told me that ten years ago, the Cottage was not as famous as it is now. The leader of the Fuyun Sword Clan once said something disgraceful about our teacher. Then the eldest brother went downhill and defeated all the top sword cultivators of Fuyun Sword Clan. He challenged the leader of Fuyun Sword Clan too and ended with a draw. That battle made him famous and known as the Sword Saint. With this reputation gained from this battle, the eldest brother went to the west of the Eastern Barren Territory to establish his own clan. Many strong cultivators gathered there, wanting to join this clan which is the present Sword Saint Mountain."


    Hearing Yi Xiaoshi''s introduction, Ye Futian could imagine the legend. The eldest brother was a true legend. No wonder Liu Chenyu said that the people of the Sword Saint Mountain and Fuyun Sword Clan didn''t get along well with each other.


    "Why does the College have conflicts with the Cottage?" Ye Futian kept asking.


    "Don''t let those guys bother you. They''re not capable enough to join the Cottage so they''re jealous of you," Yi Xiaoshi said. "I''m not very clear about the relation between the College and the Cottage either. It''s said that the eldest brother once asked the teacher''s advice about whether he should stay in the College or not. Our teacher recommended him to build up a new clan down the mountain. The College seemed unhappy with that."


    If a man who had the ability to set up a new clan, whose fight with the leader of Fuyun Sword Clan was a draw, was willing to stay in the College, it would definitely add to the College''s reputation. However, the teacher told him to go establish his own clan.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He asked, "How strong is our teacher?"


    "I have no idea." Yi Xiaoshi shrugged and said, "He says he''s not good at cultivating."


    "Do you believe that?" Ye Futian looked at Yi Xiaoshi.


    "No." Yi Xiaoshi shook his head, "But indeed, no one has ever seen him fight."


    "What about the second brother? Does he have a story too?" Ye Futian asked.


    Yi Xiaoshi was startled and said, "There is no second senior brother but a second senior sister. As for her story, you will know it one day."


    Ye Futain''s eyes brightened. He nodded, and said, "How are you, sister?"


    Yu Sheng followed behind deferentially. Hearing Ye Futian''s voice, he rolled his eyes. They''d only just separated but he had already grown independent?


    At the end of the winding stairs was the top of the Book Mountain. Mist shrouded it faintly and the air was fresh. Under the cool air were rows of huts which were not like the other grand buildings along the way at all. They looked humble and simple. Were they the origin of the name of the Cottage?


    There was a river in front and on the stairs along the river was a woman washing clothes. Hearing the sounds, the woman turned around and showed her beautiful face. She was a maiden, younger than Yi Xiaoshi. Her charming eyes fell upon Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Smiling, she asked, "Are you the junior brothers?"


    "How can our senior sister be so young?" Ye Futian was stunned. Was she the second senior sister? But she looked even younger than him.


    "This is the sixth senior sister," Yi Xiaoshi introduced.


    "Hello, senior sister." Ye Futian smiled brightly and said, "You''re really beautiful."


    "Again��" Yu Sheng was speechless.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s compliment, the girl smiled sweetly and responded, "You''re also good-looking."


    "Is the second senior sister here?" Yi Xiaoshi asked.


    "Yes." The girl smiled.


    "I''m bringing them to see her," Yi Xiaoshi said.


    "Okay, you go first. I will come after washing her clothes," the girl said gently.


    Ye Futian was confused. Was she washing clothes for the second senior sister?


    Yi Xiaoshi walked away without minding the girl''s words. It seemed that he was used to it.


    Ye Futian followed him and asked curiously, "How can the sixth senior sister be so young?"


    "She''s an orphan brought back by the teacher during his trip. She started cultivation earlier than me. Though she''s young, she is still our senior sister. She is learning from the second senior sister now," Yi Xiaoshi said and Ye Futian nodded lightly.


    The trio walked along the way and came to a few clean huts. There were three people here��one woman and two young men. The woman was tall, wearing a white skirt. She looked gentle and weak but her eyes brimmed with radiating vigor. With a pair of beautiful eyes and a slender figure, she was a rare beauty. At this time she stood under an old tree like a fairy. The other two young men were busier. One was transcribing books while the other was making a fire.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s arrival, the three all looked up, eyes falling on Ye Futian.


    The woman looked over Ye Futian and smiled. "Our junior brother is here?" the woman asked. Her voice was quiet and gentle.


    "Hello, senior sister." Ye Futian smiled brightly and said, "I thought I met a fairy."


    Beside him, Yi Xiaoshi rolled his eyes. Not only was the junior brother talented, he also had a silver tongue.


    "Good boy." The second sister smiled more radiantly and said, "I have heard that the little brother is very gifted but haven''t expected that your taste is also good."


    "Sister, you are as good-looking as a fairy. I am not blind. Everyone can see that," Ye Futian responded very sincerely. The second sister smiled even more radiantly.


    "Brother, come and sit." In the front, the brother who was transcribing books smiled at Ye Futian.


    "Do your thing."


    Hearing the light laughter from the second sister''s mouth, that brother became disappointed and deferentially walked back to transcribe his books. The cooking brother wanted to say something but after glancing at the second sister, he went back to his work.


    Ye Futian blinked. What was going on?


    "That is fourth brother and that is fifth brother," Yi Xiaoshi introduced the transcriber and chef to Ye Futian respectively. However, this was a little different from what Ye Futian had presumed. Shouldn''t the two brothers be the same as the third brother? Were they too weak or was the second sister too strong?


    "That girl has not finished washing clothes? My shoulder is a little bit stiff. Little brother, come massage my shoulders, please." The second sister turned to Ye Futian.


    "Huh?" Ye Futian blinked. Was this appropriate? But helping his senior sister was within his duties. Moreover, this was his first day. He should listen to her. Thinking of this, Ye Futian walked to the sister. Yi Xiaoshi was sacred and wanted to escape.


    "Where are you going?" The second sister looked at Yi Xiaoshi.


    "To cultivate." Yi Xiaoshi smiled sheepishly.


    "Cultivate here," the second sister ordered.


    "Yes, Sister." Yi Xiaoshi nodded. Ye Futian walked to the sister while the fourth and fifth brother looked at him. Though they were laboring, they didn''t envy Ye Futian but only mourned for him in the mind.


    The second sister sat in front of the tree. Ye Futian walked over, stood behind her, and reached out his hands. Yi Xiaoshi looked at him with sympathy. He regretted that he didn''t remind Ye Futian before coming here.


    "Our junior brother is here?" someone said at this moment. Ye Futian turned and saw a figure coming speedily from afar. It was Gu Dongliu. He had seen him before.


    So far, he''d met all the senior sisters and brothers but not the teacher.


    "Third senior brother," Ye Futian called.


    "Yes." Gu Dongliu nodded and looked at Ye Futian. "You don''t have to do that. Go walk around the Cottage."


    Hearing this, Ye Futian looked at the second sister. She just smiled. "Ignore him. Help massage my shoulders."


    Something is wrong...


    Ye Futian looked around. The fourth, fifth and seventh brothers were all looking at him now. The third brother was looking at the second sister. Something was wrong.


    Ye Futian blinked and said, "Brother Yi, I haven''t visited the teacher yet. Can you bring me to see him?"


    Then he was ready to run away. It was dangerous here.


    "Your third brother lost the teacher. Where are you going to see him?" the second sister smiled and said.


    Ye Futian was totally confused. How could the third brother lose the teacher?


    "Xiaoshi, go and show our junior around," said Gu Dongliu.


    Yi Xiaoshi nodded, "Okay, senior. Junior, come with me."


    Ye Futian followed Yi Xiaoshi while Gu Dongliu was still looking at the second sister. The second sister sat there without concern, quiet and beautiful.


    If Ye Futian still couldn''t figure out what was going on, he must be an idiot.


    What a close call!

 225 Life Is So Wonderful

    Chapter 225: Life Is So Wonderful


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian followed Yi Xiaoshi and left. While walking, Ye Futian asked, "Third brother and second sister?"


    Yi Xiaoshi patted on Ye Futian''s shoulder and said, "In the Cottage, the master does not manage anything. The second sister manages internal affairs, while the third brother manages external affairs. Do you understand?"


    "I got it." Ye Futian nodded. Couple working together? The scene just now was indeed very strange.


    "What''s with the master getting lost?" Ye Futian said speechlessly.


    "A long story," Yi Xiaoshi said. "The third brother brought the master out on a journey. On the way, the third brother saw an unjust act and showed up to save a beauty. The beauty was saved and followed him to the Book Mountain, but the master went missing. Thereafter, the third brother started to have a miserable time. Do you understand?"


    Ye Futian thought about the second sister and then nodded. Of course he understood.


    "The master followed the third brother on a journey?" Ye Futian was puzzled.


    "In the future when you see the master, you will get it. He''s too lazy." Yi Xiaoshi shook his head resignedly. How lazy is the master exactly? Ye Futian thought.


    "How about the beauty that he saved?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Third brother chased her away," Yi Xiaoshi said. Ye Futian was totally speechless.


    "The master is missing, so who will teach me cultivation?" Ye Futian was somewhat depressed.


    "Teach you cultivation?" Yi Xiaoshi''s expression was rather weird.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded in a serious manner.


    "I used to be so naive as well." Yi Xiaoshi gave a long sigh. "Later, the master said that all the people who come to the Cottage to cultivate have the best talents. Why do we need someone to teach?"


    "Makes perfect sense." Ye Futian nodded in a humorless manner.


    "I feel that it makes sense as well," Yi Xiaoshi sighed and said.


    "Is it too late for me to leave the mountain now?" Ye Futian looked at Yi Xiaoshi, feeling that he had been deceived.


    Yi Xiaoshi patted on Ye Futian''s shoulder again. "The environment is not bad. And we also have pretty senior sisters.


    "The food is good as well," seeming to have recalled something, Yi Xiaoshi added.


    Sigh... Ye Futian heaved a long sigh.


    Not far away, the girl finished washing the clothes and walked towards them. She smiled and said to Ye Futian, "Younger brother, why are you sighing?"


    "Sister, I am just sighing about why I didn''t come to such a great place earlier," Ye Futian said as he smiled brightly.


    "Okay, but aren''t you already in the Cottage now?" The girl gave a sweet smile.


    "Sister Xing''er, go on with your work. I will bring him to where we stay," Yi Xiaoshi said. Beitang Xing''er nodded gently and then walked towards the second sister.


    "This sister is called Xing''er?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes. The sixth sister is called Beitang Xing''er, the second sister Zhuge Hui, the fourth brother Xue Ye and the fifth brother Luo Fan. You should already know the name of the third brother."


    Ye Futian nodded and memorized these names in his heart.


    Yi Xiaoshi brought Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to two huts and said, "In the future, you will stay here."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. He was unconcerned about staying in a shabby place. After all, he was not a pampered young master.


    "When the meal starts I will come and call you. Although cultivators absorb Spiritual Qi in the world, in the Cottage, we eat the three meals whenever we can. The food is really good," Yi Xiaoshi said.


    "Got it." Ye Futian nodded. Yi Xiaoshi also left the place.


    Ye Futian sat down in front of the hut and looked at Yu Sheng.


    "Why are you staring at me?" Yu Sheng asked.


    "I can''t even look at you?" Ye Futian opened his eyes wide at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng looked as if he was wronged. Why do you vent your anger on me when you are in a bad mood? he thought.


    "Take the guqin here," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng took down the guqin from his back and placed it before Ye Futian. Then, Ye Futian stroked on the guqin and started playing alone. The melodious music was gentle and peaceful, and actually suited the environment in the Cottage. The music spread into the distance continuously.


    Shortly afterward, Yi Xiaoshi returned again, as it was lunchtime. Ye Futian and Yusheng went to the residence of the second sister. The fifth brother Luo Fan was busy serving the dishes. The second sister was sitting in the first position, and Beitang Xing''er was sitting beside serving her. The third brother was sitting directly opposite them, while the fourth brother Xue Ye was still copying the book.


    "The little brother is here." Seeing Ye Futian enter, the second sister smiled warmly.


    "Hello, sister," Ye Futian smiled as he shouted. "Hello, third brother." At the moment, he already knew the positions of the two in the Cottage. He, therefore, had to serve them well and could not even offend one of them.


    "Younger brother, sit beside me," Gu Dongliu said. Ye Futian nodded and sat down beside Gu Dongliu.


    "Yu Sheng, sit as well. Since you have come to the Cottage, we''re one family," Gu Dongliu smiled and said.


    Yu Sheng nodded and sat down beside Ye Futian. The fourth brother glanced at them secretly and felt somewhat depressed. Why is the little brother treated so well?


    "Xiaoshi, go and fill the bowls with rice," the second sister said to Yi Xiaoshi.


    "Why is it still me?" Yi Xiaoshi muttered to himself resignedly and glanced at Ye Futian. When he just entered, didn''t we agree that the most junior one shall do this?


    The second sister looked at him, smiling.


    "I will go." Immediately, Yi Xiaoshi''s face was filled with smile and his round body trotted forward to fill the rice.


    "Smells nice." Ye Futian looked at the dishes in front of him. They were all meat, and the fragrance reached everyone''s nose. Beauties like second sister and sixth sister eat so much meat every day and yet they are still so slim.


    "Fifth brother, your cooking skills are really amazing," Ye Futian looked at and said to the fifth brother who was serving the dishes.


    "It''s all through practice," the fifth brother muttered resignedly.


    "Alright, let''s eat," the second sister smiled and said. Immediately, everyone started to eat.


    Ye Futian tried out a piece of meat. It was fragrant and tender, and extremely delicious. In addition, when the meat entered his body, he could actually vaguely feel a mysterious current.


    "Is it good?" the second sister asked, smiling.


    "It''s very tasty." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Then eat more," the second sister said, helping Ye Futian to fill his bowl with meat. At that instant, the looks from everyone else froze as they stared at the scene, stunned. Yi Xiaoshi rolled his eyes. Is this the benefit of sweet talking? Should I learn it? Glancing at the third brother secretly, he quickly gave up on the plan.


    "Thank you, sister," Ye Futian said. He did not dare to look at the third brother who was just beside him and he felt extremely awkward.


    "You should eat more as well." Gu Dongliu helped to refill the bowl of the second sister, who lowered her head and ignored him but also did not reject him.


    "Little brother," Gu Dongliu shouted.


    "Brother," Ye Futian responded.


    "Your sister likes to joke. Don''t take it seriously. Since I have brought you here, whatever issues you encounter on the mountain, you can come and find me," Gu Dongliu said with some hidden meaning.


    "Alright, I understand." Ye Futian nodded.


    "You are good at music?" Gu Dongliu said again. Even though Ye Futian broke many records in the Ancient Barren World, apart from knowing that he was a full attribute Mandate Sorcerer, they were unsure about what exactly Ye Futian was skilled in.


    "I know a bit of that." Ye Futian nodded.


    "The sound from the strings was not clear enough. They should be too old. Xing''er, later come with me. We will help the little brother to change the strings," Gu Dongliu said.


    "Okay." Beitang Xing''er nodded gently.


    "Thank you, brother and sister," Ye Futian said, smiling. Why do the second sister and the third brother look like a couple bickering with each other? he thought.


    After finishing their meals, Gu Dongliu said, "Let''s go."


    "I will go and take a look as well." Zhuge Hui smiled and stood up.


    Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng with a strange expression and said softly, "Do you feel anything?"


    "Yes, I am filled with strength." Yu Sheng nodded. After finishing the meal, he actually felt that he had an endless amount of power and wanted very much to release them.


    Yi Xiaoshi said that the food was good. It indeed seemed to be amazing.


    The group walked towards a certain direction. Ye Futian realized that the second sister did not speak to the third brother throughout the journey. They reached a somewhat remote place on the mountain. Before them, there was a huge stone cave. Gu Dongliu stepped into the stone cave first, and Ye Futian followed quietly.


    Roar... A loud voice spread. Ye Futian felt that the blood in his body was rolling and gave a stuffy hum, almost spitting out blood.


    "Dragon roar." Ye Futian could feel his heart tremble. His legs were weak but he continued moving forward. Entering the cave, he realized that it was a different world inside altogether. There were many smaller stone caves, and one of them was flashing with terrifying light runes which were carved all over the stone walls and lighted up the cave. They seemed to contain the formidable powers of matrix.


    In the stone cave, a ferocious black dragon was coiled up. Its furious and cold eyes stared at Gu Dongliu. At the moment, there was a large wound on the black dragon which was filled with blood.


    "I will eat you all," the black dragon said in a cold tone.


    "If your tendon is pulled out, you won''t die right?" Gu Dongliu said tonelessly.


    The black dragon widened its eyes, after which it started to roar violently, causing the cave to vibrate wildly. The runes around it became bright and turned into countless terrifying beams of matrix light which enveloped the black dragon. Its huge body struggled madly, and it felt as if there was an earthquake.


    "You dare to do this to me," the black dragon roared in anger.


    "Why didn''t you think about this when you were eating people?" Gu Dongliu said emotionlessly.


    "It''s a growing black dragon which actually eats cultivators. The third brother captured it and brought it back," Beitang Xing''er said softly to Ye Futian.


    "What did we eat just now?" Ye Futian looked at Beitang Xing''er.


    "Obviously it''s dragon meat. Next to it, there are also a few very evil demon kings. Their recovery abilities are all very strong. If we cut off a bit of flesh every day, it will grow back very soon." Beitang Xing''er smiled gently.


    "I''ve gained much knowledge." Ye Futian had always thought that he was very capable, but now that he was at the Cottage, he had to admit defeat. They had been eating the meat from demon kings every day. The food was more than just good!


    "Why did the third brother say that he would pull out the dragon''s tendons?" Ye Futian blinked his eyes.


    "To make the strings for your guqin," Beitang Xing''er said as she smiled sweetly.


    Ye Futian was very touched, even to the point of crying out loud. He would never want to leave the mountain again, even if someone was chasing him away.


    Next, the stone cave seemed to have started cracking apart. Ye Futian quickly ran out of the stone cave, unable to tolerate the scene. The miserable and angry roars of the black dragon spread out from the cave.


    Pulling the dragon tendons.


    After an hour, in front of Zhuge Hui''s hut, Ye Futian watched as the second sister and the sixth sister attentively helped him to change the strings on the guqin. His heart felt somewhat warm.


    "Third brother." At the moment, Yi Xiaoshi ran over from the distance.


    "Yes?" Gu Dongliu, who was standing beside Zhuge Hui and watching her actions, raised his head and asked.


    "Someone from the College came and said that there is a trial for all the newly admitted disciples. They invited the little brother to take part," Yi Xiaoshi said. "According to them, Xiao Wuji will participate in it, so the little brother naturally should as well."


    Xiao Wuji and Ye Futian were both invited to attend the College.


    "Tell them, next time, don''t find the Cottage for such trivial matters. We''re not free," Gu Dongliu said.


    "Alright." Yi Xiaoshi nodded.

 226 The Qin Dynasty’s Invitation

    Chapter 226: The Qin Dynasty��s Invitation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Wow." Ye Futian was a bit impressed by his third senior brother who could eat demon kings and use dragon tendons as instrument strings. As for the invitation from the College to participate in the trial, they didn''t have time.


    "The Cottage is so busy. We don''t have time to participate in those boring things. Right, junior?" Third Brother smiled at Ye Futian.


    "Yeah, you''re right." Ye Futian nodded, thinking, whatever you say, brother.


    As for whether the Cottage was busy or not, it didn''t matter. Outsiders would not know.


    "Xue Ye," Gu Dongliu called.


    "Yes?" Xue Ye replied while transcribing.


    "Stop for now," Gu Dongliu said. "Bring the junior to the Book Cave. Yu Sheng, stay here."


    "Okay." Feeling saved, Xue Ye put down his pen and walked to Ye Futian''s side. "Junior, come with me."


    Ye Futian nodded, wondering what the Book Cave was.


    Xue Ye brought Ye Futian to another cave in the Cottage and entered it. The cave was very deep. The path went straight inside and suddenly became spacious. There seemed to be dazzling light in the distance.


    A golden path appeared on the ground. Countless runes pulsed.


    "Follow my steps carefully and don''t take the wrong step," Xue Ye warned. There was a flash under his feet. Ye Futian followed his every step cautiously.


    After that path, they arrived at the center of the cavern. Endless dazzling light fell upon them. Ye Futian looked up and was deeply shocked.


    As if they were in the middle of the mountain, the cavern was hundreds of meters tall. The sides had been carved into bookshelves. Innumerable books were pressed against each other in the walls. The library from the Donghai Academy that Ye Futian had once studied in was nothing compared to this. The Book Cave was practically a sea of books. How did the Cottage collect all these books?


    "Junior, there are all types of books here. The teacher doesn''t teach and you have to learn by yourself. Do what you must," Xue Ye said.


    "How do you read all this?" Ye Futian mumbled.


    Hearing this, Xue Ye almost cried. He looked at the books and sighed. "You''d need hundreds of years to transcribe all of these!"


    Ye Futian froze. He looked at Xue Ye and asked, "Fourth Brother, are you transcribing the books here?"


    "Don''t talk about it." Xue Ye sighed tragically.


    "Second Sister seems really powerful. Does she have a high plane?" Ye Futian was curious. With her one look, the fourth and fifth brothers instantly grew obedient.


    "I don''t what her plane is but I know Third Brother''s plane is really high. If you say no to Second Sister��" Xue Ye said sadly. He glanced at Ye Futian, eyes saying, Do you get it?


    Ye Futian nodded. He understood.


    Third Brother could make the Nobles of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan scurry away with a sentence. Ye Futian could only pity his fourth brother.


    "What about you? What plane are you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''m really low, only mid-level Noble Plane," Xue Ye said with low self-esteem.


    "I��" Ye Futian broke off. He wouldn''t finish his sentence.


    It was impossible to imagine a Noble obediently copying books and acting submissive before Second Sister. He felt sick.


    "Is Fifth Brother a Noble too?" he asked weakly.


    "Of course." Xue Ye nodded. Ye Futian felt even sicker as he imagined Fifth Brother cooking. Was he really a Noble?


    "Don''t give up. You''ll be a Noble soon. Take a look around. I''m leaving now." Xue Ye patted Ye Futian comfortingly and walked out.


    "Fourth Brother, you, uh��don''t give up. You''ll finish copying the books sooner or later," Ye Futian called to Xue Ye''s back. The poor guy tripped and almost fell.


    "You''re right." He didn''t turn around and seemed to have squeezed these words out his mouth, telling himself to not mind what a kid says.


    After Xue Ye left, Ye Futian looked around the Book Cave and muttered to himself, "How many years would it take to read it all?"


    Let alone copy it all.


    Ye Futian gazed at the sea of books. The countless books seemed to have been organized into detailed groups. Every genre was available.


    He saw that one place was carved with the word "guqin" so he went over and started looking from the bottom.


    First were the basics of the guqin. It included every note, key, and then from simple to advanced pieces. Ye Futian jumped around and saw many powerful techniques at the back.


    He read for a long while. Outside, night fell and a beautiful figure walked in. It was Beitang Xing''er.


    "Sister Xing''er," Ye Futian called. He put his book down with a smile.


    "Your guqin is done and I brought dinner. Second Sister told me to bring it," Beitang Xing''er said, smiling.


    "Thank you." Ye Futian felt warm inside. His two senior sisters treated him so well. Seeing how nice Second Sister was, he was sure there must be some misunderstanding that caused the brothers to be so scared.


    "No problem. I''ll read too," Beitang Xing''er replied gently. Ye Futian nodded and started shoveling food into his mouth. This was demon king and dragon meat, after all.


    "Slow down and drink some soup. It''s made from a king python." Beitang Xing''er giggled at Ye Futian''s actions.


    "Okay." While eating, Ye Futian said, "Sister Xing''er, not only are you beautiful, your heart is beautiful too."


    "Shut up." Beitang Xing''er blushed. She was younger than Ye Futian, after all, and couldn''t stand his teasing.


    "I''m serious. I don''t know who''ll be lucky enough to marry you in the future. I''m even getting jealous," Ye Futian kept saying.


    Beitang Xing''er grew redder and said, "I''m ignoring you now."


    With that, she ran to the other to read.


    Ye Futian chuckled. He quickly finished the meal and started reading again.


    He didn''t step out the cavern for the following few days. Every day, Beitang Xing''er would promptly bring the meal over, making Ye Futian feel a bit bad. However, she didn''t seem to mind and always smiled innocently.


    Without realizing, countless months passed. Ye Futian spent all those months in the Book Cave.


    One day, Ye Futian was practicing martial arts at the Ancient Peak Cliff. His body contained boundless power. He''d been eating dragon meat and drinking python soup every day and accumulated much strength. He wanted to release it all.


    When he practiced the techniques inherited from Emperor Ye Qing, his body was like a dragon. His blood bubbled and roars sounded continuously. At the moment, he was practicing a fist routine. Each punch seemed to contain a dragon''s roar. Power swept through the sky with extreme power reverberating.


    After a long while, there was a huge boom in his body. Endless power broke out, transforming into a terrifying martial arts conception.


    He''d entered the Fourth-level Dharma Plane.


    Ye Futian practiced the routine again and walked to the edge of the cliff. There was a guqin there. He faced the cliff and sat down cross-legged. Graceful music soon streamed out.


    The notes that sounded were quiet and peaceful. They seemed to blend with nature and transform into a breeze that blew past his clothes and grass. They also transformed into sunlight, shining down and warming the earth.


    Instead of playing a piece he''d learned, he just improvised according to his mood. Music that matched the artistic conception was the best.


    His Spiritual Energy pulsed with the music and spread outward, farther and farther. He felt the breeze, the sunlight, and the peaceful warmth.


    Without realizing, his Spiritual Energy also broke past the limit and plane.


    In reality, Ye Futian could have leveled up much earlier if he hadn''t spent all his time reading. Today was just a natural process.


    The music stopped gradually and there was a chuckle. "I didn''t think that our junior''s attainment in musical sorcery is so high."


    Ye Futian looked up and saw two fairy-like figures. "Second Sister, Sister Xing''er, when did you come?" he asked, standing up.


    "I was attracted by your music," Zhuge Hui said. "They''re only simple notes but they fit the artistic conception so well they became one. It seems that the Cottage will produce another musical grandmaster."


    "You flatter me," Ye Futian smiled shyly.


    "Let''s go," Zhuge Hui said.


    Ye Futian picked up his guqin and walked over. "How''s Yu Sheng?" he asked.


    "Don''t worry, he''s very talented. Your third brother is helping him cultivate," Zhuge Hui said.


    Ye Futian nodded. Yu Sheng''s talent went without saying.


    When they returned to Second Sister''s home, they saw Yi Xiaoshi who said, "Second Sister, the Qin Dynasty visits. Will you meet them?"


    "The Qin Dynasty?" Zhuge Hui arched an eyebrow and asked, "Did they say why?"


    "Yes." Yi Xiaoshi nodded. "They claim that the Qin Dynasty will soon confer the title of crown prince and invites all forces to attend. They invited the College but also came just to visit the Cottage. They hope the Cottage can attend too."


    Zhuge Hui''s eyes glinted. The Qin Dynasty was one of the Eastern Barren Territory''s top three forces. In addition, it was a kingdom and had very strong central power. The College was powerful but it was different from a kingdom.


    If the Qin Dynasty chose their crown prince, this would decide the future structure of the Eastern Barren Territory. It was indeed something significant. Inviting the Cottage after inviting the College was also showing respect to the Cottage.


    "Who wishes to go?" Zhuge Hui glanced at them.


    "Me." Fourth Brother raised his hand.


    "Sister, I''ll go." Fifth Brother didn''t want to lose.


    "I want to go too," Yi Xiaoshi said weakly.


    Ye Futian made a face while Zhuge Hui grinned. "What, you all want to escape from me?"


    "No, that''s not what we mean. It''s just that they invited us but you and Third Brother definitely won''t go. Since we can''t lose face, only I can go," Xue Ye said shamelessly.


    "That makes sense." Zhuge Hui smiled and nodded. "Luofan, bring the junior with."


    Luofan froze and quickly became overjoyed. "Thank you, Senior Sister."

 227 Down the Mountain With the Fifth Brother

    Chapter 227: Down the Mountain With the Fifth Brother


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Luo Fan was overjoyed, but Ye Futian was not happy at all. The food in the Cottage was so good and the sisters were also beautiful. He did not even want to leave for a single day.


    "Sister, how about you let the seventh brother go instead?" Ye Futian said to the second sister. Yi Xiaoshi looked at Ye Futian, touched. Little brother is a good person, he thought.


    "The master once said that reading thousands of books is not as good as traveling thousands of miles. The seventh brother has gone out many times. You have just come to the Eastern Barren Territory and should go outside more often," the second sister said, smiling.


    Xue Ye and Yi Xiaoshi looked at the second sister''s gentle smile. Why is the little brother treated so well?


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Yu Sheng, go as well. As for cutting the wood and cooking, fourth and seventh brothers, I''ll leave them to you," the second sister smiled and said. Xue Ye and Yi Xiaoshi could feel their hearts bleeding, but did not dare to reject her order.


    The next day, when Yu Sheng returned, Luo Fan, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng departed together.


    While walking on the mountain, Ye Futian asked Yu Sheng, "Where have you been cultivating during this period?"


    "Cutting wood on the mountain," Yu Sheng replied.


    "Cutting wood?" Ye Futian blinked his eyes.


    "Yes." Yu Sheng nodded.


    Ye Futian was speechless. The second sister said that the third brother has brought Yu Sheng to cultivate. Is that even cultivation?!


    "How is it?" Yu Futian asked.


    "It''s great. I feel that I have improved a lot," Yu Sheng said in a serious tone. Ye Futian looked at him and said, "Yu Sheng, are you being serious?"


    "Yes. The third brother said that everyone''s situations are different, so they naturally need to cultivate in different ways. The fourth brother copying the books is cultivation, and the fifth brother cooking is also cultivation. Similarly, I cultivate through cutting wood. I feel that my improvement is quite big, and I have also broken through into the Fourth-level Dharma Plane," Yu Sheng said.


    Ye Futian''s admiration towards the third brother grew even more. He could make wood-cutting, cooking and copying books sound so noble. He''s actually a genius.


    "Wait, you call him the third brother as well?" Ye Futian said.


    "Yes, the third brother said that in the future, I can just call the rest like you do," Yu Sheng nodded and said.


    Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng with a strange expression and asked, "How do you feel about the third brother?"


    "Knowledgeable, powerful, and has a unique opinion about cultivation," Yu Sheng said in a serious manner.


    Ha! Luo Fan who was walking in front laughed out uncontrollably. Ye Futian asked, "Fifth brother, is cooking also a kind of cultivation?"


    "Of course," Luo Fan said in a humorless manner. Ye Futian asked again, "Then why did the few brothers all want to go down the mountain?"


    Cough. Luo Fan gave a dry cough. Then, he copied the second sister''s tone and said in a serious way, "The master once said that reading thousands of books is not as good as traveling thousands of miles."


    "..." Ye Futian actually did not know how to reply.


    On the square located on the mountainside of the Book Mountain, many people were already gathered at the moment. In the College, there was a College Chief and seven mountain elders. Below them, there were also many trainers who were in charge of teaching the disciples of the College together with the College Chief and the mountain elders.


    The Cottage had a special status in the College and was somewhat unique.


    Since the big brother of the Cottage went down the mountain that time and became famous in just one battle, the people in the world no longer took the Cottage as merely part of the College. Since then, the relationship between the College and the Cottage also seemed to have become subtle.


    The Qin Dynasty invited the Cottage, and naturally invited the College as well. All the mountains in the College would send someone to go.


    When Luo Fan and his team walked down, many people stared at them immediately, especially at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    A few months ago, Ye Futian climbed the Book Mountain and entered the Cottage, causing a furor in the College. Even the people from all the top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory already knew that Ye Futian had officially entered the Cottage to cultivate, not to mention the College.


    The Cottage was different from all the other forces, as it only had seven disciples. The eldest disciple already formed a clan himself and became a towering figure in his generation. Among the other six, the third disciple also became famous in the world a long time ago. Therefore, all of the other disciples had been attracting much attention.


    "The Cottage will go this time as well?" At the moment, a toneless voice was heard. It was from a dignified-looking, middle-aged person from the College.


    Luo Fan looked at him. Putting his hands together, he saluted and said, "Greetings, uncle-master." At the moment, Luo Fan was graceful, polite and had an extraordinary temperament. He looked just like a scholar, and not the chef of the Cottage at all.


    "Such a huge change," Ye Futian sighed.


    "A few months ago, there was an assessment for new disciples in the College. Why did the Cottage not take part?" Situ Wu said tonelessly. He was in the same family as the College Chief and was quite senior. Naturally, he was qualified to question a disciple of the Cottage.


    Luo Fan did not bother as well. He smiled calmly and said, "The master always believes that the assessment in the College is not very meaningful. The newly admitted disciples are all at different levels, so it''s hard to determine who is really stronger. If talent is assessed only, the Cottage has more reasons not to participate. Among the new disciples, who can have better talents than the little brother? If the Cottage takes part, the existence of the first place will become meaningless."


    "Arrogant," another elder scolded with a cold tone. The people from the Cottage are arrogant like always. Now, Luo Fan has grown up and actually does not even pay respect to the elders here.


    The College disciples also stared at Luo Fan angrily. If the Cottage was to participate, the first place would become meaningless? Too arrogant. Does he think that we are this weak?


    "I am just telling the truth. Do you think that the assessment in the College is more convincing than the relics in the Ancient Barren World?" Luo Fan said, smiling. In the Ancient Barren World, Ye Futian did what nobody had done before. If talent was compared only and the specific levels were ignored, it was certain that Ye Futian would obtain first place.


    This was unless the College did not approve the detection of talents by the relics in the Ancient Barren World. But even in that case, it was unreasonable to claim that the assessment by the College would be more accurate. Thus, in the opinion of the Cottage, the so-called assessment was a boring thing.


    "In this case, we can find someone on the same level and have a battle. I am on the Fifth-level Dharma Plane." A voice was heard. The person who spoke was Tuoba Yun who was a new disciple. A few months ago, when climbing the Book Mountain, he mocked Ye Futian, saying that he was not Xiao Wuji, but in the end, he was only slapping himself in the face.


    After entering the College, in the first assessment of the new disciples, he was hoping that he could fight Ye Futian to see how outstanding this reputed but weak Cottage disciple really was. However, Ye Futian did not attend the assessment at all. When he was cultivating in the College, Ye Futian''s name was also often mentioned by junior disciples. As one of the brightest newly admitted disciples, he naturally wanted to compare with Ye Futian. Therefore, he said so at the moment to challenge Ye Futian.


    Luo Fan looked at Ye Futian, but Ye Futian glanced at Tuoba Yun and smiling, he said, "You think you''re Xiao Wuji?"


    Tuoba Yun was stunned for a moment and his expression turned somewhat awkward. During that time on their way up the Book Mountain, he mocked Ye Futian in the same way, indicating that he was not even qualified to be invited to the College. At the moment, Ye Futian returned him with the exact same words. Of course, he was saying that Tuoba Yun was not qualified to challenge him.


    "Now, Xiao Wuji has already entered the Arcana Plane. Although your performance in the Ancient Barren World is outstanding, it is really not appropriate that with your current level, you place yourself at the same height as Xiao Wuji." Su Muge was also among the crowd. He was precisely the person who was mocked by Yi Xiaoshi on that day.


    Tang Ye was also beside him.


    "Since when did the disciples taught by the College become so idiotic like you?" Luo Fan looked at Su Muge with much contempt.


    "You..." Even though Su Muge was mocking Ye Futian indirectly, he did not use straightforward humiliation like what Luo Fan did. Anyhow, he was a genius in the College and a disciple under the College Chief directly.


    "You what? Let''s use our levels to determine the status. I am in the Noble Plane, how about you?" Luo Fan''s eyes were filled with disdain.


    "Domineering." Ye Futian muttered to himself. Is this still the same fifth brother who cooks?


    Indeed, a person could not be judged by his appearance.


    Thinking about the attitude of the fifth brother at the moment, and also his appearance when he was beside the second sister in the Cottage, Ye Futian finally understood why all the brothers were fighting to go down the mountain.


    After going down the mountain, they could be much more imposing!


    The difference was too large.


    The faces of the elders from the College were all cold and they looked slightly frustrated. This was why the College did not like the Cottage: the people were too supercilious. Moreover, the College could not do anything about the Cottage. If they tried to reason with the Cottage, they would realize that the Cottage disciples were all rather eloquent.


    If they wanted to talk about strength, in the College, even the few mountain elders would not dare to say that they could certainly win the third disciple from the Cottage. Furthermore, it was only the third disciple from the Cottage. Even the elders might not win him, not to say his peers. In the Cottage, there was still the eldest disciple who was like a king in the Western Region. Therefore, it was really very difficult for the College not to hate the Cottage.


    "Let''s go," Situ Wu said tonelessly. Then, a few huge demons whizzed over and landed on the square. The College disciples stepped onto the demons one after another, and they ascended into the air.


    "How do we go there?" Ye Futian looked at brother Luo Fan. If we can take one or two of the demons closed in the Cottage and travel on them, it will definitely look impressive, he thought.


    Luo Fan took down the package from his back and untied it. Ye Futian then saw a stick which was totally black, as if it had been charred.


    "Fire stick?" Ye Futian blinked.


    "It should be able to fit three people on top." Luo Fan smiled, slightly embarrassed.


    "Err..." Seeing that many people from the College were looking in their direction, Ye Futian felt somewhat humiliated. However, Luo Fan did not mind it at all. He held his head high and walked onto the fire stick. Putting his hands behind his back, he looked like an expert who had withdrawn from the outside world.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Futian walked onto the stick. Then, the fire stick flew into the air and left the Book Mountain.


    ...


    As the former king of the Eastern Barren Territory, the Qin Dynasty occupied the most central position in the Eastern Barren Territory. The Qin Imperial City, the imperial city of the Qin Dynasty, the Donghua City where the Donghua Clan was located at, and the Divine Capital where the College was situated were honored as the three most bustling cities in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    At the moment, the Qin Imperial City was extremely lively. Countless people from different places had come to the Qin Imperial City to send their congratulations. The king of the Qin Dynasty was about to confer someone as the crown prince. This was a major event that would affect the whole Eastern Barren Territory. Maybe in the near future, the king would be changed.


    The king of Qin could be said to be the most influential person in the Eastern Barren Territory. It was not hard to imagine how many things would be affected when the person on the throne might change.


    At the moment, in the sky, powerful cultivators flew over in the air continuously. Some even had to cross many regions to reach the place. All the top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory had received the invitation from the Qin Imperial City, and they had also sent people here to visit and congratulate the Qin Dynasty.

 228 Crown Prince and His Son

    Chapter 228: Crown Prince and His Son


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Qin palace was a majestic place. It had gone through the years of wear and tear, had once faced a risk of collapse, but it still stood in the Eastern Barren Territory. However, the Qin Dynasty wasn''t satisfied with being one of the strongest three. After all, it had once been the true king of the Eastern Barren Territory. Each generation of kings worked hard to try and recover their lost glory.


    There was a huge square outside the palace, guarded by armored soldiers. Below that, there were steps leading down. Right now, there was a crowd down there staring up at the solemn place. At that time, strong cultivators descended from the air and landed before the steps.


    The crown prince crowning ceremony must be a grand event.


    Other than here, the regions surrounding the Qin Dynasty were all bustling. Strong cultivators landed every now and then. There were even rumors that the strong from every top force had arrived. They stayed in the inns and would attend the crowning ceremony.


    At that moment, a group of white-clothed figures descended from the sky and landed inside a pavilion. Everyone looked at them with shining eyes and discussed them.


    "The Donghua Clan is here."


    "Yes, they''re situated the closest from here."


    Many people whispered amongst themselves. The pavilion that the Donghua Clan landed in was their property in the Qin imperial city. Of course, there was nobody from the Donghua Clan there and only some servants took care of it. In addition to the Donghua Clan, all top forces had properties in places such as the Qin imperial city. This wasn''t significant.


    A group of fairy-like people appeared in another part of the sky. Many of them were rare beauties. Another piece of news quickly spread through the city. The fairies of the Moon Clan had arrived and gone to the Moon House. Similarly, this was their property.


    After that, another piece of news said that the Fuyun Sword Clan had gone to the Sword Pavilion.


    The strong of the Sword Saint Mountain had arrived too. They stayed in the Knife Pavilion, not too far from the Sword Pavilion. Tensions rose. No one knew if these two forces would get into a scuffle.


    The College arrived as well. They went to the Book Tower of the Qin imperial city. It was peaceful and sophisticated, just like how a scholar''s residence should be like. Ye Futian, Luo Fan, and Yu Sheng picked a courtyard, and a servant cleaned it up for them.


    "Brother, you said that all top forces have their own properties here. If the Moon Clan come, where will they stay?" Ye Futian asked Luo Fan in the courtyard. He wondered if Jieyu would come. One day without her was like three years.


    "The Moon House. Are you going to try for the disciples of the Moon Clan?" Luo Fan laughed at Ye Futian. He didn''t know about Hua Jieyu. The Cottage didn''t pay attention to the Ancient Barren World. If Gu Dongliu who''d accepted Ye Futian hadn''t told them about him, they wouldn''t even know what Ye Futian had done in the Ancient Barren World.


    "I''ll go if I have time," Ye Futian said, chuckling.


    "It seems like you have high aspirations." Luo Fan patted Ye Futian''s shoulder. "I hope you can marry the Moon Clan''s Virgin."


    "There''s a Virgin in the Moon Clan?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Of course. The current Virgin is one of the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory." Luo Fan chuckled. "Are you interested?"


    Ye Futian had a strange expression. If the Moon Clan had a Virgin who was known as one of the top three beauties, what would happen after Jieyu went?


    "Brother, I''m not like that," Ye Futian defended himself. How could he be misunderstood like that? Luo Fan smiled while Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. He asked, "Who are the other two?"


    Luo Fan''s smile widened. He almost believed Ye Futian��


    "Princess Mengruo of the Qin Dynasty and Hua Qingqing of the Donghua Clan. But don''t think about Hua Qingqing. She''s already taken," Luo Fan chuckled.


    "Brother, I didn''t think anything. I was just asking," Ye Futian said.


    "Yeah, I trust you." Luo Fan nodded with a subtle smile.


    Ye Futian just sighed inwardly. He was used to being misunderstood.


    ��


    The top forces had all arrived in the Qin imperial city, making the city much livelier. Everyone in restaurants and even storytellers discussed interesting facts about the top forces, attracting much attention. Of course, the one discussed most was none other than Prince Qin Yu of the Qin Dynasty.


    Everyone knew who the king would crown as the crown prince��Qin Yu. He was an extraordinary prince and had been the brightest existence in his generation since he was young. He entered the Noble Plane before 30 years old and had developed extremely fast. His cultivation was even more impressive. Apparently, he wasn''t far from King Qin''s plane. It was highly possible that Qin Yu may become the new king within the decade. Thus, many people discussed him. Not only was he extremely talented, he was also polite and was held in high prestige in the kingdom. Apparently, he had gone to personally greet the Donghua Clan after they''d arrived. Other than him, Xiao Wuji and Ye Futian were also mentioned often.


    Before Ye Futian''s appearance, Xiao Wuji had been the most legendary figure of the Ancient Barren World in recent years. He''d received the College''s invitation and had entered as the dean''s personal student. How could someone like that not be discussed?


    As for Ye Futian, his performance had been even more extraordinary than Xiao Wuji''s. In addition, he''d officially entered the Cottage and naturally created much buzz.


    Currently, a group of strong cultivators was visiting the Book Tower of the bustling imperial city. The leader stood out of the crowd in an elegant royal robe. Situ Wu of the College came to welcome him personally as he was Qin Yu, the one who would soon become the crown prince. After he chatted with the College, he came to where Luo and Ye Futian were residing.


    Seeing the soon-to-be crown prince, Ye Futian was surprised. He''d thought that Qin Yu would be busy with all the affairs and didn''t expect him to come to visit.


    Qin Yu greeted them and smiled, saying, "It is my honor to meet the disciples of the Cottage."


    "Your Majesty, you are too polite," Luo Fan replied.


    "It has always been my dream to cultivate in the Cottage but sadly, it will never happen. However, it''s a pity I will not see Gu Dongliu this time. I wanted to compete with him," Qin Yu said. His tone wasn''t annoying at all. He controlled it well.


    "Third Brother is a bit busier and could not make it," Luo Fan replied good-naturedly.


    As for whether it was true or not, only the Cottage knew.


    "No problem. I am equally honored to see you. Further, I can meet the one who broke many records in the Ancient Barren World too." Qin Yu''s eyes fell upon Ye Futian and seemed very friendly.


    "You flatter me, Your Majesty." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    Qin Yu nodded at him and said, "Brother Luo, can we talk?"


    "Please," Luo Fan said.


    Qin Yu glanced at a youth beside him. He wore an elegant robe and looked similar to Qin Yu. He was around 20 years old and had a royal aura about him. He''d been studying Ye Futian curiously since he had arrived.


    "Brother Ye, would you mind going elsewhere?" he suddenly said now.


    "No need. Ye Futian is the Cottage''s junior. He can stay." Luo Fan understood them.


    "In that case, I will be straightforward," Qin Yu said. "Brother Luo, can you represent the Cottage?"


    Luo Fan shot a surprised look at Qin Yu. Then he smiled and nodded. "Of course. Any disciple of the Cottage can represent it. Our opinion is the Cottage''s opinion. Junior, keep in mind that you now represent the Cottage when outside."


    Ye Futian eyed his senior brother, thinking, It''s hard not to feel a sense of belonging in this kind of place.


    Even though he''d just entered and was only in the Dharma Plane, he could still represent the Cottage outside. They were one unit and any one person could represent them all.


    "Yes, brother." Ye Futian nodded.


    Qin Yu smiled. "So bold. Is the Cottage willing to become the orthodox of the East Barren Territory College?"


    "What do you mean?" Luo Fan asked.


    "All scholars will see the Cottage as the highest, above the College," Qin Yu said.


    Luo Fan smiled and shook his head. "Thank you for your consideration."


    Qin Yu looked at him oddly. Why did Luo Fan reject him before he even finished?


    He studied the other, only to hear Luo Fan continue, "The Cottage has our own aspirations. What Your Majesty said is not our aspiration."


    "I see." Qin Yu nodded. A faint smile still on his face, he bowed slightly. "Farewell."


    With that, Qin Yu really brought his men away. While leaving, the youth beside him glanced at Ye Futian. Watching Qin Yu leave, Luo Fan arched an eyebrow. This trip was not so simple.


    Qin Yu, soon to be crown prince, seemed to be very ambitious.


    After the royalty left, they walked on the streets and heard something. At this time, Ye Futian''s name seemed to stream out of an open-roof restaurant.


    "Everyone saw Xiao Wuji as unparalleled in the Ancient Barren World. No one could surpass him. But that day, Ye Futian continuously broke the records. Months later, he snatched all the glory on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall. Perhaps no one can be compared to this youth in terms of talent."


    The speaker was a storyteller. He was very into the story.


    The youth beside Qin Yu chuckled and said, "People always forget about past glory. No matter what people do later, they can be turned into legends."


    Many people looked over. When they saw Qin Yu''s group, they were all shocked. Looking to the one who spoke, they guessed at his identity and their eyes couldn''t help but gleam.


    It was him��the prince''s legendary son.


    "All records are made to be broken. The later ones have more advantages than the previous. Every generation is like that. However, how many of the record-breakers can really stand at the peak of the Eastern Barren Territory?" the youth continued. "I''m sure you all have forgotten about what the two monsters of the Donghua Clan have done. If you have time, please think back. What they''ve accomplished cannot only be summarized by the word ''talent''!"

 229 History of Fame of the Cottage

    Chapter 229: History of Fame of the Cottage


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The grandson of the king of Qin was called Qin Li. He was one of the most talented young people in the Eastern Barren Territory. At the moment, his father was about to be conferred as the crown prince of the Qin Imperial City and become one of the most influential people in the Eastern Barren Territory. Therefore, every move of Qin Li would undoubtedly be magnified. Thus, when Qin Yu was about to be conferred, the words from Qin Li immediately stirred up the people in the Qin Imperial City.


    Qin Li''s words did not seem to be inappropriate, and he did not even mention Ye Futian''s name, but when he said so at this moment, it would easily cause people to misunderstand. Of course, maybe there was no misunderstanding at all: this might be his attitude in the first place.


    Ye Futian was a disciple of the College Cottage, but the grandson of the king of Qin was praising the disciples from the Donghua Clan. The meaning behind it was really intriguing.


    Of course, from another perspective, what the grandson of the king of Qin said seemed to be reasonable as well. Records were indeed meant to be broken by later generations. It was only that Ye Futian broke the records in a very powerful way. That was why he could cause such an intense furor and let the entire Eastern Barren Territory know his name when he was only in the lower levels of the Dharma Plane.


    Nobody knew how strong Ye Futian would be in the future. However, at least currently, he was still only a low-level cultivator.


    As for the two absolute geniuses from the Donghua Clan, both of them were very outstanding, especially the one who was already standing among the top of the Eastern Barren Territory. Perhaps, only people like the crown prince Qin Yu and Gu Dongliu from the Cottage could be compared to him.


    Qin Li''s words quickly spread into the ears of the people from the different forces which were entering the Qin Imperial City.


    It was said that someone met a disciple from the Donghua Clan, and asked the disciple for his opinion on the words of Qin Li, the king''s grandson. The disciple from the Donghua Clan smiled and commented that even though Ye Futian performed well in the Ancient Barren World and had proven his own talents, he was still too weak to compare with the real geniuses in the Eastern Barren Territory. At least, he had yet to prove himself in terms of combat powers.


    The disciple from the Donghua Clan said that maybe a few years later when Ye Futian''s level was higher, he would then be qualified to be compared with the absolute geniuses.


    Many people agreed in their hearts, feeling that the words from Qin Li and the disciple of the Donghua Clan were reasonable. On one hand, Ye Futian''s talents were indeed outstanding, but on the other hand, when they carefully recalled Ye Futian''s performance in the Ancient Barren World, they realized that he indeed did not prove his combat abilities. Maybe his willpower was also genius.


    Of course, in any case, they were comparing Ye Futian to the best geniuses in the Eastern Barren Territory in the first place.


    Apart from that, some people also noticed something unusual.


    Qin Li, the grandson of the king of Qin, was about to become the son of the crown prince. Why would he comment on the disciple of the Cottage and the people from the Donghua Clan publicly?


    Ye Futian did not know about the words from Qin Li and the disciple from the Donghua Clan until the people from the Liu Kingdom came and visited them.


    "Greetings, Senior Luo." The people from the Liu Kingdom who came were naturally Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu. When they saw Luo Fan, they bowed slightly and saluted. Ye Futian was gradually becoming used to this as well: even when the prince of the Qin Dynasty came here, he also viewed Luo Fan as someone with a similar status as himself.


    Of course, this was also because Ye Futian had a strong first impression. When he first saw the fifth brother, he was conscientiously cooking. Therefore, he felt strange about what happened outside.


    A Cottage disciple on the Book Mountain and one outside the Book Mountain were completely different.


    "Your friends?" Luo Fan asked Ye Futian.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "You talk," Luo Fan said. He then walked to the side and sat down.


    "Where''s your Wuchen?" Ye Futian looked at Liu Chenyu and smiling, he said so.


    Liu Chenyu opened her eyes wide at Ye Futian. "I have asked around, and Wuchen probably did not come. Among all of you, only you and Yu Sheng are here," Liu Feiyang said at the moment.


    "Jieyu did not come as well?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Nope." Liu Feiyang shook his head, and Ye Futian was somewhat disappointed. Maybe Jieyu did not know that I would come.


    "Have you heard about the king''s grandson and the Donghua Clan?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head. "What happened?"


    Liu Feiyang told Ye Futian about the things that had happened. Not far away, Luo Fan glanced in their direction and a strange look flashed across his eyes. However, he quickly returned to normal and did not seem to be bothered.


    A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face and he said, "Why did Qin Li say this?"


    "I heard that Qin Yu, the prince-to-be, has been visiting all the top forces that have come here. He has a wild ambition," Liu Feiyang said.


    "Qin Yu wants the Qin Dynasty to be revived in his hands, but it''s not as easy as he thinks. Even if he teams up with the Donghua Clan, to rebuild the king of the Eastern Barren Territory it once was..." Before Luo Fan finished the sentence, he smiled and shook his head.


    A fool''s talk.


    "Senior Luo, you are saying that the Qin Imperial City has teamed up with the Donghua Clan?" Liu Feiyang''s eyes sparkled.


    "One wants to revive the dynasty, and the other only wants to become the strongest clan in the region. The two do not contradict each other." Luo Fan smiled. "Maybe, one more force can be included. For example, a college which teaches the world."


    Liu Feiyang felt somewhat shocked. It seemed to him that Qin Yu had already spoken to Luo Fan. If the top three forces in the Eastern Barren Territory were to join hands, their combined capability would definitely be terrifying. Furthermore, the three indeed did not contradict one another.


    A dynasty, a clan, and a college could actually complement each other.


    Ye Futian looked at brother Luo Fan in surprise. He did not expect the fifth brother to be able to speculate so many things just from a simple meet-up and the words from the king''s grandson and the Donghua Clan.


    "Did the College reject it?" Liu Feiyang asked. If the College also agreed, with its influence, and the Qin Imperial City and the Donghua Clan, it would be somewhat terrifying.


    "Now, the College is already orthodox in the Eastern Barren Territory. Why does it have to become a cat''s paw? Those guys are not stupid." Luo Fan smiled. "Then, they thought of the Cottage. However, the Qin Dynasty is really looking down on the Cottage. Although the master is lazy, he is ambitious."


    Ye Futian blinked his eyes. Just now, the fifth brother told Qin Yu that the Cottage had its own aspirations. He asked curiously, "What''s the master''s ambition?"


    "I forgot. Next time when you see the master, you can ask him yourself," Luo Fan said, smiling. Ye Futian was somewhat speechless.


    "So, the king''s grandson said that deliberately to devalue Ye Futian and apprise the Donghua Clan?" Liu Feiyang''s eyes sparkled. He was not very surprised by Luo Fan''s words. The Qin Dynasty had always wanted to revive itself, and the Donghua Clan also worked hard to become the first clan in the Eastern Barren Territory. These were not secrets.


    "Perhaps," Luo Fan smiled and said.


    "Should we use a counterattack?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "The Cottage does not care about the opinions of others. That time, before the big brother went down the mountain, he was questioned by many. After the battle that made him famous, everyone in the world knows about him. Some people think that the existence of the big brother is merely a coincidence. Later, the third brother went down the mountain, and all the voices vanished. Those who were supposed to shut up did so," Luo Fan said tonelessly. The history of fame of the Cottage was simple: it was only a story about two disciples going down the mountain.


    However, the simple story was stirring. The eldest disciple of the Cottage went down the mountain and challenged the clan leader of the Fuyun Sword Clan. He became reputed in just one battle and formed his own clan.


    The story of the third brother becoming famous was even simpler. The master of the Cottage was roaming around when he encountered a tragic case. A junior young man from a top-tier Noble-level force liked a girl from a certain family. After being rejected, the family was actually exterminated. When the master of the Cottage reached there, only an orphan was left in the family.


    According to many rumors, the Cottage master was bad at cultivating himself and knew only how to teach others to cultivate. The young man from the force was disrespectful, but because of the influence of the eldest disciple in the Cottage, he did not dare to do anything and could only allow the Cottage master to bring the orphan back.


    The latter part of the story was much simpler. The third disciple from the Cottage went down the mountain, and the top-tier Noble-level force disappeared from the Eastern Barren Territory since then.


    Because of these two incidents only, the Cottage became reputed in the entire world and a holy place where countless young people longed to cultivate in. From then on, even though the Cottage disciples did not appear often, whenever a disciple went down the mountain, no force would dare to neglect him. Nobody would know whether he would start another bloodshed!


    Thinking of this, Luo Fan smiled and said, "Actually, what the king''s grandson said is true. The people in the world always tend to forget the brilliance of the previous generations. Habitual forgetfulness, they just don''t learn."


    Hearing Luo Fan''s words, Liu Feiyang was speechless. It''s indeed the Cottage: the people there are overly arrogant. Also, the arrogance seemed to be able to spread, and every single Cottage disciple would be like this. He had already seen the situation when Gu Dongliu went to Cangye. Now, the fifth disciple of the Cottage was equally arrogant.


    Ye Futian is a proud person in the first place. Now, he has entered such a place. I wonder what he will become.

 230 Accomplished Beauty

    Chapter 230: Accomplished Beauty


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu left. The outside world was shocked by Emperor Qin''s grandson''s words but the Cottage seemed not to care. What could they say? Time would prove everything. They anticipated the brilliance Ye Futian would display in the Ancient Barren World.


    Even though his current plane was low, Liu Feiyang and the others believed that, judging from his earlier performance, he might become as Luo Fan had predicted after entering a truly high plane. Then those people would shut up naturally. However, the outside world didn''t see it that way. The more people talked, the truer it became.


    Especially when the speakers were those like the Emperor Qin''s grandson and the strong cultivators of the Donghua Clan. Not everyone could see things clearly like Luo Fan. Most people accepted this view. Ye Futian indeed attracted too much attention recently and his plane wasn''t enough to support his reputation. After all, he hadn''t truly displayed his combat ability yet. Perhaps, after a few years and Ye Futian rose in plane, he would truly qualify for the attention. It was still too early now.


    Days passed in the blink of an eye. There was only one more day before the crowning ceremony of the crown prince. That day, someone from the Qin imperial city came to the Book Tower, inviting the College and Cottage to reside in the palace and observe the ceremony in the morning.


    All top forces received the invitation.


    The Qin Dynasty invited the top forces into the palace the day before. This way, they wouldn''t disturb the top forces but would also display enough respect.


    That day, many people waited in the large square before the Qin palace. They wanted to see the top forces. At that time, a group descended from the sky. They had powerful auras and were unparalleled. They were the Donghua Clan. Landing directly in the square, they strode to the palace.


    Not long after, the fairies of the Moon Clan arrived. The leader of the group was an extremely beautiful lady. She looked otherworldly. Her eyes were clear as water and her skin was unblemished. She had a thin waist and her beauty was like an angel. However, she also seemed pitiful and gentle. She was like a fairy in the mortal world, making people want to approach her.


    "Chu Yaoyao, the Virgin of the Moon Clan." Seeing her beauty, many people''s hearts quivered. They wanted to protect her��they seemed to forget that her status. She didn''t need their protection but that was her charm.


    The top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory were often mentioned together. Apparently, Princess Qin Mengruo was elegant and graceful. Her beauty made her a goddess in many people''s eyes. Hua Qingqing of the Donghua Clan was, according to rumors, pure and sweet. Nobody who saw her could think of anything dirty.


    As for Chu Yaoyao, they all saw her today. She made one want to protect her and feel pity.


    Now, Chu Yaoyao entered the Qin palace. She probably would soon see the other great beauty. What would that scene be like? It was a pity that Hua Qingqing hadn''t come. Otherwise, the three beauties together would make for beautiful stories.


    Another group of strong cultivators descended. It was the Liu Kingdom. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu had obviously seen the Moon Clan and saw Chu Yaoyao.


    "As expected of one of the top three beauties. She''s even prettier than you," Liu Feiyang said to his sister. Liu Chenyu''s eyes flashed but she didn''t mind. "However, the title of the three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory might disappear soon and be replaced with the four beauties." Liu Feiyang thought of someone else.


    Liu Chenyu nodded in agreement. Hua Jieyu''s features were at the same level as Chu Yaoyao. She''d also joined the Moon Clan.


    "Let''s go." The people of the Liu Kingdom also walked towards the Qin palace. They had invited all top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory and the Qin palace grouped everyone.


    Of course, only representatives of the top forces came. The true leaders weren''t present. It was just a ceremony for the crown prince and wasn''t important enough for them. The leaders might come if it was the crowning of the emperor.


    The other forces arrived gradually. The College arrived too, as well as the Cottage. Though the College didn''t like the Cottage and the Cottage looked down on the College, those were private matters.


    The College''s arrival attracted much attention. The three from the Cottage snatched even more attention.


    Is that Luo Fan, the fifth disciple of the Cottage? I heard he''s already in the Noble Plane.


    Ye Futian was also surprising. He was more handsome and charismatic-looking than the others had imagined.


    The group ignored the spectators and walked straight into the palace. People welcomed them outside the palace and guided them to where the other forces were. They walked down the road and met many people from the other forces. Coincidentally, they ran into Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu.


    Seeing Ye Futian, Liu Feiyang walked up with a smile and said, "I''m not going to the pavilion first. I''m going to look around." With that, he walked over and grabbed Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was embarrassed. He said to Luo Fan, "Senior Brother, I''ll walk around."


    "Alright." Luo Fan nodded lightly. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng left with the Liu siblings.


    "What''s so interesting about the palace?" Ye Futian asked Liu Feiyang. That guy was really dragging him around.


    "Don''t you want to see the three top beauties?" Liu Feiyang asked, grinning.


    Ye Futian blinked. "Beauties are nothing to me. I''m actually not interested."


    "Really?"


    "But since I''m already here and there''s nothing to do, there''s no harm in looking," Ye Futian said.


    Behind him, Liu Chenyu gave him a look. Then she looked away as if disgusted by the two guys in front of her. Men were lustful indeed and were always interested by beauties.


    They went to a garden. There were many pagodas and the environment was peaceful. There were already many people there. They were all the young members of each top force. They all looked at the same place.


    At the front of the crowd was a pagoda. A girl sat inside quietly with a guqin before her. She seemed to be preparing to play a melody.


    So pretty, Ye Futian couldn''t help but think. Of course, he was just appreciating her. As a loyal man, he wouldn''t think about anything else.


    The girl in the pagoda was elegant and graceful. A single glance at her was like a hit to the heart. Every man fantasized about a dreamy, fairy-like girl like her.


    Ye Futian''s arrival didn''t attract much attention. It wasn''t that they didn''t notice but that everyone was distracted by the girl. They didn''t have time to pay attention to him. Some also purposely ignored him. After all, many of the crowd were extraordinary figures of the top forces.


    "Qin Mengruo, princess of the Qin Dynasty," Liu Feiyang whispered. Ye Futian nodded.


    "Chu Yaoyao over there." Liu Feiyang pointed elsewhere. There was a group of beautiful girls. One of them was just as beautiful as Qin Mengruo. "Who do you think is pretty?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "My girlfriend is the prettiest."


    "Just between the two of us." Liu Feiyang smiled at Ye Futian with a knowing look.


    "I''m different from you," Ye Futian said seriously, looking at him with disdain.


    "Seems like you''re taught well." Liu Feiyang patted Ye Futian''s shoulder, making his expression darken.


    He looked around and saw many familiar figures, such as Gu Biyue of the Witch Clan.


    Li Daoyun and Li Daoqing of the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Hua Qingchi of the Donghua Clan was present as well.


    "Why aren''t we starting?" Ye Futian was confused. Qin Mengruo was already before the guqin, ready to play, but she didn''t move.


    "Waiting for someone," Liu Feiyang said.


    "Who?" Ye Futian found it strange. So many prides were here, even the Virgin of the Moon Clan. Who could make everyone wait like this?


    "Qian Shanmu of the Donghua Clan," Liu Feiyang said. "Yesterday, Qin Li spoke of two monsters of the Donghua Clan. Qian Shanmu is one of them."


    Countless days ago, Qin Li had used the two monsters of the Donghua Clan to pressure Ye Futian.


    Of these two, one was someone equal to Gu Dongliu, third disciple of the Cottage, and Qin Yu, soon-to-be crown prince of Qin. The other was Qian Shanmu.


    Ye Futian was a bit surprised. Even Qian Shanmu shouldn''t be this important. Merely looking at the beauties Qin Mengruo and Chu Yaoyao, one was a princess while the other was a Virgin. They were both equal in status to Qian Shanmu.


    "Qian Shanmu is skilled in music," Liu Feiyang said. "You can say he''s the best at musical sorcery in the younger generation. Qin Mengruo invited everyone here so they could hear it. Therefore, we must wait for Qian Shanmu. Earlier, you fought with Gu Biyue with musical sorcery. You''re also skilled in the guqin so you can enjoy this well today."


    As they spoke, a figure walked over slowly. He was extremely handsome and had a free and easy feeling about him. He was dressed in all white. Looking forward, he seemed not to see anyone present. No one seemed worthy of his gaze.


    "He''s here." Everyone looked over to Qian Shanmu. Known as the most powerful musical sorcerer of the younger generation, he''d arrived at the Qin palace.


    Though talents from all over were here, not many were equally reputable as Qian Shanmu. Even the beauties Qin Mengruo and Chu Yaoyao were slightly lower. It was only because of their extreme beauty that they could be as well-known as Qian Shanmu.


    His talent was evident!

 231 Dating?

    Chapter 231: Dating?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Qian Shanmu arrived, he walked to where the people from the Donghua Clan were at. Standing quietly in the crowd, he looked at the beautiful lady in the pavilion. At the moment, Qin Mengruo, who was in the pavilion, looked elegant. Her slender fingers stroked the guqin, and its strings started to move. The music was melodious and sweet.


    The music had an extraordinary artistic conception, which seemed to shed a strand of colored light onto Qin Mengruo, granting her a sacred and noble temperament. As she played the guqin, her body seemed to be filled with a wonderful hue, like the sunlight and the breeze, bright and graceful.


    It was a very easy piece of music. The beating notes depicted a peaceful and beautiful scene. The music, just like her own temperament, was noble and elegant, peaceful and glorious.


    There seemed to be nothing special about the music. It was simple yet pleasant.


    At the moment, in the Donghua Clan zone, a green object appeared in Qian Shanmu''s hands. It was a bamboo flute. Qian Shanmu put the bamboo flute near his lips and then started to play it slowly.


    The sound of the flute accompanied the music from the guqin, but did not destroy the artistic conception of the music at all. Instead, it complemented the music. The gentle breeze blew and the leaves of the trees swayed, and yet another artistic conception appeared which seemed to be describing a natural scenery. On the picture in everyone''s minds, there were not only sunlight and breeze, but they could also vaguely see flying butterflies and running fawns.


    Suddenly, the music of the guqin changed and was no longer peaceful and happy; it became rapid and sharp. Only at this moment, Qin Mengruo was like a noble princess who was holding a sword, one that could fight on a battlefield and command thousands of horses and soldiers. She was the female general of the battlefield who was holy, noble and inviolable.


    The sound of the flute similarly changed; it became sharp but without losing grace. He was like a knight on the battlefield who was invincible.


    The style of the guqin''s music and the flute''s music changed continuously, and the artistic conception they were revealing also continued to blur. At the start, everyone could clearly feel the artistic conception expressed by the music, but later, no pictures could appear in their minds. Naturally, they would not doubt the musical attainments of Qin Mengruo and Qian Shanmu. Maybe they were too accomplished, so much so that they could not feel that artistic conception in the music.


    From the beginning to the end, Ye Futian had been listening quietly, as if he was enjoying the music. It was indeed pleasurable to hear the two cooperating to perform the music. It was only that there was a fly in the ointment��


    Finally, the music from the guqin and from the flute stopped gradually. The entire place still seemed to be silent: nobody made any sound, as if they were still immersed in the artistic conception before.


    Everyone raised their heads and looked at Qin Mengruo. Someone marveled uncontrollably, "The music from the princess is really engaging."


    "The music contains so many different artistic conceptions which were switched so easily and perfectly."


    "Qian Shanmu could fit the sound of the flute so perfectly into the music of the guqin. He deserves to be called the most skilled musician in the young generation of the Eastern Barren Territory," a monk marveled. He was from the Qianqiu Temple. He was not flattering Qian Shanmu. Even though Qian Shanmu was one of the brightest geniuses among the young generation, nobody in the place would need to flatter him. Everyone present was from top forces, so they did not need to please Qian Shanmu. Nevertheless, his play was indeed good and deserved compliments.


    Ye Futian similarly felt that it was good. The words of the monk from the Qianqiu Temple were true. It was not difficult to play a good piece of music; the difficult part was that Qian Shanmu had always been following the rhythm of Qin Mengruo''s music and was never detached. The sound of the flute and the music of the guqin merged with each other perfectly, as if they were just one in the first place. This was the most difficult thing.


    Although Ye Futian was adept at playing the guqin, he knew that he still could not cooperate with another person. This would require an extremely accomplished musician.


    He who is famous definitely has the abilities. Since Qian Shanmu was reputed to be the best musician among the young generation in the Eastern Barren Territory, he undoubtedly had the skills.


    Qin Mengruo raised her head and nodded lightly at Qian Shanmu. Her eyes were filled with a gentle smile, causing even the scenery around to be paled into insignificance.


    "It''s my pleasure to be able to play with the princess." Qian Shanmu nodded to return the salute. His voice was very mild, like a modest gentleman.


    "Maybe the event today can become a favorite tale in the future," someone from the Donghua Clan said with laughter.


    Everyone''s eyes sparkled, and they all had a special feeling. Indeed, just like what the person from the Donghua Clan had said, all the people from the various top forces witnessed the event on that day: the princess from the Qin Dynasty was absolutely beautiful and unparalleled at playing music, while Qian Shanmu from the Donghua Clan, being the best musician, was glorious and played the flute with Qin Mengruo''s guqin. This could indeed become a nice story.


    "Please don''t laugh at me if I have performed poorly. If there are any flaws, I hope that you will point out to me." Qin Mengruo smiled and looked at everyone. She was noble and elegant but without losing her humbleness.


    "How do you feel about it?" Liu Feiyang asked Ye Futian. He was not good at music, so he was unable to comment on anything. He only knew that Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo were very skilled at playing music, but did not know specifically how good they were. After all, it was only a normal piece of music, and not released in the form of a musical spell. If it was a spell, their abilities could be judged by the powers of the spell.


    "Very strong. It is extremely hard for Qian Shanmu to continuously complement Qin Mengruo''s music. If he plays his own music, he can easily cause people to be absorbed into his artistic conception," Ye Futian said. Qian Shanmu was indeed strong. Although he had a poor impression of the Donghua Clan, he would not deliberately belittle the people there.


    Liu Feiyang smiled and glanced at Ye Futian. This arrogant guy also knows how to praise others. However, this was normal, as Qian Shanmu was the best musician among the young generation in the Eastern Barren Territory after all. How could such an outstanding person be weak?


    "Qian Shanmu is not only good at the bamboo flute. He is proficient in any type of music, and is very adept at playing the guqin as well," Liu Feiyang said softly. Ye Futian nodded gently.


    "Princess, your music is impeccable," Qian Shanmu said. As the best musician, he naturally had the authority to say so.


    "I''m flattered," Qin Mengruo smiled and said. "I heard that Gu Biyue from the Witch Clan and the Cottage disciple, Ye Futian, are also experts in music. They must be very outstanding as well."


    "I am but Mr. Ye''s defeated opponent," the witch Gu Biyue said as she smiled gently. She looked at Ye Futian as if she did not mind the defeat at all.


    Everyone turned their heads and looked at Ye Futian. At that time in the Ancient Barren World, Ye Futian was already famous and attracted the attention of many before Xiao Wuji even appeared. That was precisely because he had made the witch Gu Biyue from the Witch Clan his servant. The reason was that Gu Biyue lost to Ye Futian in terms of music. Subsequently, when Ye Futian became famous in the Ancient Barren World, many people knew about this. Naturally, they also knew that Ye Futian was good at music.


    Just now, many people might have purposely or unintentionally ignored Ye Futian, but the words from Qin Mengruo and Gu Biyue drew everyone''s gaze towards him.


    The looks of the people from the different forces were not the same. The people from the Fuyun Sword Clan came from the first summit, and the expressions of Li Daoyun and Li Daoqing were clearly unhappy, especially Li Daoyun. One of his arms was broken by Ye Futian, forcing him to change to a left-hand sword. Furthermore, Liu Chenyu, the lady that he liked, was also beside Ye Futian at the moment. It would then be easy to imagine Li Daoyun''s hatred towards Ye Futian.


    Qin Mengruo looked at Ye Futian with her charming eyes.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "I only have some knowledge about music, and am not very skilled at it. Princess, your music is excellent. You don''t need my advice."


    "Mr. Ye, you are being too humble. In the Ancient Barren World, you displayed outstanding talent, and the world knew about you in just one day. Many different forces went and wanted you to join as their disciple. In the end, you entered the Cottage," Qin Mengruo smiled and said. "The Cottage only has seven disciples. Including you, there are only eight. Now, many people in the Ancient Barren World say that after you cultivate for a few more years, you will probably become unparalleled among your peers."


    A strange look appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes. The king''s grandson, Qin Li, devalued him openly, but Qin Mengruo praised him like this in public. What did that mean?


    Many people turned and looked at Ye Futian one after another. Many people did not fully agree that Ye Futian would become unparalleled among his peers.


    How many geniuses are there in the Eastern Barren Territory? Who can say that he is unparalleled? People like Qian Shanmu only dared to call himself unparalleled in terms of music.


    "The people in the world claim that the Cottage only takes in unparalleled figures. In the Ancient Barren World, Ye Futian has displayed excellent talents, but we do not know how strong he is. Now that we have the chance, our Donghua Clan would like to know more," someone in the Donghua Clan zone said slowly. It seemed that he wanted to challenge Ye Futian publicly.


    The people from the other forces all seemed to be interested. Qin Mengruo praised Ye Futian, saying that he would be unparalleled. Then, the Donghua Clan wanted to challenge him. Did they want to prove themselves? Did they want to flatter Ye Futian and then defeat him?


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. The fifth brother had said that the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan had teamed up. Now, Qin Mengruo had played guqin at this location. He had also realized something.


    The scene at the moment seemed like they were trying to flatter and then defeat him.


    The words from Qin Mengruo had lifted him to such a high position. If he was defeated in the fight, the legend of the Cottage would also be crushed from then on. If he won, that would just be expected, and it would not have any effects on the Donghua Clan, because he was a Cottage disciple.


    "Today, I have come here to enjoy the play from the princess. Wouldn''t a battle be inelegant?" Ye Futian smiled and did not bother about the challenge.


    He actually rejected it. A weird expression appeared on the face of everyone. He should have heard the words from Qin Li, the king''s grandson. Doesn''t he want to prove his own strength?


    "Are you too afraid to fight?" Li Daoqing said in a cold voice.


    "You still have the face to speak?" Yu Sheng glanced at Li Daoqing. Seeing Yu Sheng, Li Daoqing''s face darkened. He still vividly recalled Yu Sheng beating him violently in the Ancient Barren World on that day.


    "The people in the world are already comparing you to the best geniuses in the Ancient Barren World. Today, right here, Qian Shanmu from the Donghua Clan has already displayed his musical attainments. As a Cottage disciple, if you avoid the battle, wouldn''t it attract much criticism from others?"


    Qin Mengruo''s voice was gentle and her face was filled with a smile, appearing to be extremely polite. However, when her words fell in Ye Futian''s ears, it sounded very aggressive. Was she alluding that if he avoided the battle and did not perform, he would not be qualified to compare with Qian Shanmu from the Donghua Clan?


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "Princess, today you have played the guqin here, and the people from the different forces have come here to enjoy. At first, it is a pleasurable event. However, because something else has been added to it, the event is no longer that nice anymore."


    A doubtful expression appeared on everyone''s face. What does this mean?


    "Mr. Ye, what do you mean?" Qin Mengruo asked.


    "Princess, just now, you asked me to advise you on your music?" Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "If there are any inadequacies, please advise," Qin Mengruo smiled and said.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded, after which he smiled and said, "If the two of you want to use music to date each other, go ahead. Don''t drag me into it." After speaking, he turned around and left.


    One of the top three beauties in the Eastern Barren Territory? So what? It''s none of my business!

 232 You Don’t Know About Music

    Chapter 232: You Don��t Know About Music


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Today, Qin Mengruo had played her guqin at this place and invited the people from the various forces to come and enjoy.


    Qian Shanmu from the Donghua Clan came and used his flute to follow the music. The guqin and the flute were played together, and the music was very pleasant. Previously, Liu Feiyang had asked Ye Futian how he felt about the music. Liu Feiyang did not know much about music, but Ye Futian could feel the artistic conception within the music. The sound of Qian Shanmu''s flute had always changed according to the changes in Qin Mengruo''s music. The artistic conception there seemed to say that a gentleman would be a good match for a beautiful and graceful lady.


    Later, the music turned increasingly harmonious, as if the husband and the wife were becoming reconciled. Therefore, Ye Futian would feel that although the music was good, there was still a fly in the ointment.


    Along with what the fifth brother, Luo Fan, had said earlier, Ye Futian guessed that the so-called guqin recital on the day was actually a meet-up between the two forces which were trying to be allied through marriage. It was the marriage between the little princess from the Qin Dynasty and the genius from the Donghua Clan.


    One of them was one of the top three beauties in the Eastern Barren Territory and liked music, while the other was the best musician among the young generation in the Eastern Barren Territory. Indeed, they were a match made in heaven.


    If the two forces did team up, arranging such a marriage would naturally be very meaningful. However, the two were not ordinary people either, and the seniors would definitely not be able to decide on their marriage with just a sentence. Perhaps, that was why the guqin recital was held. It all seemed to be elegant and delightful.


    In fact, not just Ye Futian had guessed it, but people from many forces also had a similar feeling. Maybe it was only a meet-up between the princess Qin Mengruo and Qian Shanmu on that day. All the rest were mere decorations for the two to stand out.


    They used music to understand each other and played together. Just like what the person from the Donghua Clan had said earlier, perhaps this would become a nice story. In the future, it would be natural for such an outstanding pair to be together, so the event on that day would also become a favorite tale.


    However, all of this was disrupted by one sentence from Ye Futian. Just that one line destroyed the entire atmosphere. Ye Futian said bluntly that if they were trying to date each other, they should not drag him into it... Such a happy event sounded exceptionally vulgar from his mouth.


    After he finished that sentence, everyone''s look stagnated and they all felt speechless. Every Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu were too surprised to react. They looked in astonishment at Ye Futian who was leaving.


    The witch Gu Biyue smiled and looked in Ye Futian''s direction. This guy really doesn''t give anybody face.


    The looks from Qin Mengruo and Qian Shanmu were also stunned, and a strange expression appeared on both of their faces. Today, they felt quite comfortable about the meeting and had a favorable impression about each other. However, Ye Futian''s words immediately caused their happy mood to turn somewhat terrible.


    "Stop."


    A cold voice was heard. The person who spoke was a cultivator from the Donghua Clan.


    Ye Futian stopped and then turned around slowly. Looking at the person from the Donghua Clan, he asked, "What?"


    Today, he was asked by Liu Feiyang to come and join in the fun. The Cottage did not bother much about external affairs; this could be seen from the attitude of the fifth brother. Whether the Qin Dynasty teamed up with the Donghua Clan or not, the Cottage was unconcerned, and naturally, Ye Futian would be unconcerned as well. He also did not care about the marriage between the two forces. Whether Qin Mengruo would be together with Qian Shanmu or not, what did it have to do with him? However, they deliberately wanted to drag him in. He could not tolerate this.


    The Qin Dynasty, the Donghua Clan, and the College were the three most influential forces in the Eastern Barren Territory. Now, two of them teamed up. Did they want to purposely suppress the College? Although the Cottage was not on good terms with the College, it was a symbol of the College after all. If they could defeat the Cottage, that would be equivalent to defeating the College. Therefore, did they want to begin by defeating Ye Futian? Since this was the case, he would no longer need to give them any face.


    "Even if you are a Cottage disciple, isn''t it inappropriate for you to speak in such a manner?" someone from the Donghua Clan said emotionlessly. Ye Futian was not wrong; today''s event was indeed a meeting between Qin Mengruo and Qian Shanmu. However, the atmosphere of such a glorious meet-up was totally destroyed by one sentence from Ye Futian. The feeling of the people from the Donghua Clan could then be well imagined.


    The marriage was rather important for both forces. If the important people from both forces were married, there would naturally be less deceive and distrust when the two forces were trying to cooperate. It was particularly important for the Donghua Clan. After all, if they were married, Qian Shanmu from the Donghua Clan would bring the Qin Dynasty princess back to the Donghua Clan. This would help to increase their reputation, whether it was for Qian Shanmu himself or all of the Donghua Clan. Moreover, from then on the Donghua Clan would have two of the top three beauties in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    To the Donghua Clan, which wanted to become the top clan in the Eastern Barren Territory, they naturally would not want to miss out on such an opportunity and all hoped that Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo could be together.


    "Where have I been inappropriate? Please advise," Ye Futian smiled and said. Since he had already done so, he would not be afraid of what the others would say.


    "The princess and my Donghua Clan disciple, Qian Shanmu, played their instruments together. It is supposed to be a very nice event, but in your mouth, it appears to be so vulgar and unbearable. Is this how the people from the Cottage behave?" the young man from the Donghua Clan asked.


    Ye Futian glanced at the person with a cold look. Do the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan want to step on the Cottage so badly?


    The College was not a clan, and the Cottage also did not participate in external disputes. Even if the Qin Dynasty teamed up with the Donghua Clan, why did they want to suppress the College so much? Was it because they wanted to become the two most influential forces in the Eastern Barren Territory?


    If they really surpassed the Cottage and the College, whenever people in the world were to mention about the best forces in the Eastern Barren Territory, they would indeed only think about the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan. Furthermore, since the two forces had teamed up, they would surely be able to gather many talents in the world in just a single call.


    "I think that certainly everyone knows about how the Cottage behaves. Actually, I should ask your Donghua Clan. Since you have done it, why do you not dare to admit it? It is indeed a nice story for the young geniuses of the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan to be married, so why do you bother to cover it? Or, does the Donghua Clan think that this is a very embarrassing thing?"


    Ye Futian asked back, and the people from the Donghua Clan were actually rendered speechless. Definitely, they could not say that the meeting between Qian Shanmu and the princess was embarrassing.


    In addition, they could not even deny Ye Futian''s words. If on this day they denied the fact that Qian Shanmu and the princess were using music to know each other, they would be slapping themselves again when the two were to marry in the future.


    In short, after Ye Futian said that sentence, the entire atmosphere was destroyed and everything seemed to be different.


    The people from the Donghua Clan went into silence and actually did not know how to reply.


    "I have heard before that the Cottage disciples are not only capable in terms of talent and strength, but are also highly skilled in speaking. Today, after seeing you, I have learned that this is indeed true." At that moment, a voice spread out slowly. The person who spoke was the genius Qian Shanmu from the Donghua Clan.


    Obviously, Qian Shanmu was mocking the Cottage disciples for only being able to talk their way out. However, his words appeared to be much more elegant, so Ye Futian seemed somewhat vulgar in contrast.


    "Indeed, I have long wished to meet with the princess today. Hearing her music, I have learned a lot about her, as many things can be expressed through music. Because I was interested, I played the music together with her. However, you have actually described this as such a terrible event." Qian Shanmu''s voice was still very calm and he was not angry. He said slowly, "I have heard before that you are an expert in music. Now it seems that you don''t know about music at all."


    His words sounded casual, but they seemed to determine Ye Futian''s status at once. As the best musician among the young generation in the Eastern Barren Territory, since he said openly that Ye Futian did not know about music, then, it must be true that Ye Futian indeed did not.


    Ye Futian similarly looked at Qian Shanmu calmly. The two forces were trying to be allied through marriage and use this opportunity to suppress him. From Qian Shanmu''s words, it sounded like everything was Ye Futian''s fault, as if the happiness on that day was all destroyed because of Ye Futian. Precisely because of this, he was appraised as not knowing any music.


    Because of Qian Shanmu''s identity��the best musician among the young generation in the Eastern Barren Territory��his judgment towards Ye Futian would surely spread quickly in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Ye Futian stared at Qian Shanmu with a somewhat unhappy look.


    "If you think that my words are inappropriate, you can challenge me." Qian Shanmu seemed to have noticed Ye Futian''s unhappiness and continued to say so. In terms of music, his words were like the rules.


    Ye Futian suddenly smiled. As the best musician in the Eastern Barren Territory, the ability Qian Shanmu had been cultivating was music, and this was his strongest part. Furthermore, he was at the peak of the Dharma Plane. With his strong talent, his music could even deal with those who had just entered the Arcana Plane. How could Ye Futian challenge him? He was really bullying Ye Futian.


    However, what could Ye Futian do, when he was suppressed in such a way? The people in the world did not care about their levels, but only the scene when the two were confronting each other.


    "You''re right," Ye Futian suddenly smiled and said. "Indeed, I do not know about music."


    Is he admitting defeat? The people from the Donghua Clan sneered.


    Qian Shanmu''s expression was still calm. It was not an honorable thing for him to use music to suppress Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian''s words were very aggressive and he had to do something. Otherwise, the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan would really lose face.


    "Just now, which person from the Donghua Clan wanted to challenge me?" just as the people from the Donghua Clan were sneering, Ye Futian said.


    Seeing this scene, the eyes of many sparkled. Finally, he cannot bear it anymore?


    From the Donghua Clan direction, a young person stepped out.


    "Gu Ming." Everyone saw the person and many knew him. He was a very gifted junior in the Donghua Clan and it was said that his combat abilities were very strong.


    "Gu Ming, Fifth-level Dharma Plane," he said to Ye Futian, indicating his name and level. His age was similar to Ye Futian''s, so if he could win, Ye Futian would no longer be a legend.


    It seemed that the Donghua Clan and the Qin Dynasty indeed wanted to deliberately suppress the Cottage, and would start this from Ye Futian.


    "Ye Futian, Fourth-level Dharma Plane," Ye Futian said slowly. Then, he sat down alone on the ground. Some light flashed and the Guqin Spirit appeared. In front of Ye Futian, an illusory guqin emerged on which musical notes seemed to be beating.


    Seeing the scene, a strange expression appeared on everyone''s face. Against Gu Ming, Ye Futian chose to sit down directly and release the Guqin Spirit. Clearly, Ye Futian was planning to battle with musical spells.


    Just a while ago, Qian Shanmu said that Ye Futian did not know about music, and he himself also admitted so. Then, he released the Guqin Spirit and would use music to deal with the person from the Donghua Clan...


    Yu Sheng glanced at Qian Shanmu and the people from the Donghua Clan with a cold look. At first, Ye Futian was not interested in fighting at all, but the people from the Donghua Clan kept forcing him. Since this was the case, he wanted to see what expressions the people from the Donghua Clan would have after he, whom the Donghua Clan genius Qian Shanmu claimed to not know music, used music to defeat a person from the Donghua Clan!

 233 Overpowered

    Chapter 233: Overpowered


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The music from the guqin spread out. Sitting down cross-legged, Ye Futian started to play the guqin. When his slender fingers stroked on the strings, he seemed to be the only person left in the entire place. The guqin and his senses merged together. In just an instant, Ye Futian entered the state to battle.


    With a cold expression on his face, Gu Ming stepped forward. His body was immediately filled with purple lightning which was extremely violent. A very potent force seemed to be penetrating across the entire space and in an instant, a sky-blotting power erupted. In this terrifying lightning storm, many frightening lightning swords gradually emerged, and the scene was absolutely shocking.


    Everyone around gazed at Gu Ming. Although he was only in the Fifth-level Dharma Plane, he was somewhat famous in the Donghua Clan and was a very powerful cultivator. In particular, he was outstanding in terms of combat powers. Otherwise, the Donghua Clan would not select him to fight against Ye Futian. After all, even if Ye Futian had not displayed his combat abilities, based on his overpowering performance in the Ancient Barren World, he would definitely not be weak.


    There were vague signs that the Donghua Clan would become the top clan in the Eastern Barren Territory, and it could then be well imagined how strong their spells were. A vast and invincible might engulfed the whole garden, making Ye Futian, who was sitting down cross-legged, appear to be particularly small. Behind Gu Ming, a realization of Dharma appeared: it was a shocking lightning storm which contained many sharp swords.


    Accompanying an incredibly fierce roar, the might of the lightning seemed to have surpassed the music from the guqin and a spell bloomed out. The Purple Lightning Divine Sword fell from the sky and shot towards Ye Futian directly.


    When the appalling spell attack fell, Ye Futian''s right hand slid very smoothly across the strings of the guqin. Immediately, the sound of thunder blasted out and a terrifying musical storm collided directly into the incoming spell. Both the lightning power and the sword actually crushed and exploded simultaneously, turning into Spiritual Qi which vanished into the air.


    Everyone''s eyes sparkled. Ye Futian''s music seemed to be totally suppressed by the might enveloping the region, but his attack was actually like the lightning from the highest heavens, crushing Gu Ming''s spell attack directly in an overbearing manner.


    After his attack, Ye Futian started to play slowly again. The music was melodious and the musical storm permeated the entire region, slowly spreading out into the surrounding.


    Gu Ming frowned and then the Purple Lightning Divine Sword in the sky burst out again. This time, it was more fierce. The horrifying, sky-blotting attack annihilated space itself and pressed down on the seemingly tiny figure.


    Ye Futian did not lift his head. The strings of the guqin vibrated and the musical notes pulsated. At the instant when the opponent''s attack landed, another frightful piece of music bloomed. The invisible music seemed to be mixed with noble will, and cut open the sharp sword directly, extinguishing all the lightning.


    Everyone discovered that Ye Futian''s temperament was changing slowly. As the music spread out, he seemed to have turned into a noble figure. The previously small him had become an unshakable noble at the moment. He was as steady as a mountain which nobody could move at all. Meanwhile, the musical storm also became increasingly powerful, and it gradually enveloped Gu Ming completely.


    "Such a strong spiritual will." Everyone seemed to feel something. At the moment, the entire space which Gu Ming was in was already engulfed by the growing spiritual storm.


    Qin Mengruo walked out of the pavilion; she was graceful and charming. At the moment, she was gazing at Ye Futian. His music was so pure, as if nobody could disrupt his rhythm and music when he was playing, not even Gu Ming''s violent attacks.


    At the instant when he touched the guqin, he seemed to have fused with the music. Gu Ming also seemed to have felt the terrifying spiritual storm that filled the entire place. Music from the guqin was contained in the storm, as if it could burst out a shocking power at any moment.


    The Musical Sorcerer class belonged to the Spiritual Sorcerer, and they were very strong at spiritual attacks. Naturally, Gu Ming knew that the longer this battle was dragged on, the more disadvantageous his situation would be.


    A powerful noble will erupted from his body, which seemed to have become more burly and all-powerful. Since the Donghua Clan had asked him to fight, he definitely had obtained the noble fate. Ye Futian had the superior noble fate. Thus, even if someone without noble fate was at a higher level than Ye Futian, he would still be easily defeated by Ye Futian.


    At this moment, Gu Ming''s might became even stronger. In his Dharma storm, the purple sword bloomed like a noble lightning sword. At this instant, it flashed out like lightning and penetrated across space directly, shooting towards Ye Futian at an incredible speed.


    Ye Futian did not seem to have noticed the sword. He stroked on the strings of the guqin and as the musical storm flew out, the lightning sword which was flying towards him was eradicated immediately.


    Gu Ming''s expression changed again, and his realization of Dharma spewed out a stronger lightning sword. However, at the instant when the sword appeared, a horrifying musical storm landed and crushed it directly. Hence, a very weird scene appeared. Whenever Gu Ming''s spell just managed to form, it would be destroyed right away.


    Even more terrifyingly, the music was becoming more and more lively and charged into Gu Ming''s realization of Dharma, destroying everything in its way. Gu Ming felt that even his Dharma was going to collapse and his Life Spirit was trembling.


    The music spread into everyone''s ears. They only felt that at the moment, Ye Futian was not only a noble but also an emperor, a young king. When he sat there, he could overlook everyone else.


    An amazing scene appeared in front of their eyes. They seemed to have seen a young emperor sitting high up, looking down at the sky, overlooking all of them, making them want to surrender to him.


    The artistic conception that Gu Ming felt was the most intense. Apart from the scary artistic conception, there were also aggressive musical spells which would crush all spiritual powers. Whenever he tried to gather Spiritual Energy to resist, it would be eliminated directly.


    Everyone saw that the Spiritual Qi around Gu Ming was becoming weaker and weaker, and that his spells could no longer form. Even his realization of Dharma was pressured and weakened.


    A muffled humph was heard. Without notice, everyone discovered to their astonishment that the previously all-powerful and mighty Gu Ming was actually slowly losing the ability to resist at the moment, as his powers were nibbled away bit by bit.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian was still playing his music. He was sitting cross-legged and was calm and placid, as if he was just playing quietly. He did not even look like he was fighting.


    The music continued, and the young man who was playing was like an emperor who alarmed the world with just a piece of music and caused everyone to submit to him.


    Sweat seeped out from Gu Ming''s forehead, who was engulfed in the musical will, and his whole body was wet. He tried wildly to resist the pressure exerted on him by the overpowering spiritual will and was not willing to surrender, but his Spiritual Energy was continuously attacked. He only felt that his own willpower was also collapsing.


    "He lost." Everyone''s eyes sparkled.


    Clearly, Gu Ming was defeated, and he was defeated badly. From the beginning to the end, Ye Futian never once launched any other attack. He was merely playing music.


    However, Gu Ming had already lost all his strength at the moment. His body was trembling, as if he was struggling, and his legs were bent slightly, as if he would kneel on the ground at any moment.


    The grandson of the king of Qin claimed that Ye Futian had never displayed his combat abilities. However, based on his performance in the Ancient Barren World, how could his combat powers be weak?


    The Donghua Clan wanted to test that. Gu Ming fought with Ye Futian, but how much of Ye Futian''s true strength did they see? Nobody knew; he only displayed his musical skills.


    A deep roar came from Gu Ming''s mouth, "Stop." His legs were slightly curved, as if he was going to kneel down or lie on the ground. The willpower was too strong and about to cause him to collapse. He knew that even if Ye Futian wanted to kill him at the moment, it could be done. However, Ye Futian obviously would not kill a disciple from the Donghua Clan. Thus, he would use such a way to humiliate Gu Ming.


    How could Gu Ming tolerate such embarrassment?


    "I do not know about music. Why do you want me to stop?" Ye Futian did not stop and said so in a toneless voice, after which he lowered his head and continued to play. At first, he was not interested in fighting, but the opposite party kept forcing him. Such being the case, he agreed to the fight. Now Gu Ming lost but did not even admit defeat. Did he expect Ye Futian to stop just by asking?


    Since Gu Ming wanted to disgrace the Cottage by humiliating Ye Futian, naturally he would need to be prepared to be humiliated as well.


    Everyone around seemed to be interested. At the moment, Ye Futian said again that he did not know about music, and this was like slapping on the faces of the people from the Donghua Clan.


    The best musician from the Donghua Clan, Qian Shanmu, said openly that Ye Futian did not know anything about music. Now, a disciple from the Donghua Clan was humiliated by Ye Futian''s music. This was somewhat ironic.


    "How dare you." Seeing that Gu Ming was about to be humiliated, someone from the Donghua Clan stepped out. He, a friend of Gu Ming, was in the Sixth-level Dharma Plane and felt very strong. If Gu Ming was forced to kneel today, the Donghua Clan would be in shame in the future.


    His body flashed, and he seemed to be extremely imposing. Golden light bloomed out and it was as if his body was made from gold and filled with invincible powers. Then, he ran straight towards Ye Futian.


    Liu Feiyang frowned. Since it was a challenge, and Gu Ming had also not admitted defeat, why should Ye Futian stop? Another person from the Donghua Clan actually meddled in to attack. In addition, the people from the Donghua Clan showed no signs of stopping him.


    A strange expression appeared on the face of everyone. The Donghua Clan has caused this fight in the first place. Now, are they losing control?


    Dong. A deep sound was heard. Beside Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu, Yu Sheng stepped out, and devil-like wings appeared behind his back. Dark golden light glittered on his body and converged into a golden ax, landing before Ye Futian directly and charging towards the incoming Donghua Clan disciple.


    At this very moment, his burly body seemed to have turned into a devil.


    The cultivator from the Donghua Clan gave a cold humph and his fists punched into the air. He was good at martial arts and his attack power was shocking. The terrifying golden auroras from his fists penetrated across space as he punched out one blow after another. His momentum increased madly, as if he would crush any attacks in his way.


    Against the incoming attack, Yu Sheng did not dodge at all. An incredibly wild power burst out from his body, and his battle ax struck out directly, all the way forward with an indomitable will. There were no martial arts techniques at all, only a pure slash. His move, in the eyes of everyone else, was like cutting a piece of wood��he chopped the opponent''s powerful boxing technique as if it was a mere piece of wood.


    As his ax struck down, the auroras from the opponent''s fists were split apart continuously. It was as if he was just breaking a piece of bamboo and his attack was unstoppable.


    The expression of the cultivator from the Donghua Clan changed slightly and his realization of Dharma bloomed out from his body. Immediately, a terrifying might erupted fiercely. Thousands of auroras from his fists destroyed the space and struck towards the incoming Yu Sheng as if they were going to eliminate everything.


    A monstrous light flashed on Yu Sheng''s devil-like wings which spanned across the air, while the battle-ax in his hand swung continuously at an incredible speed. In the sky, only images from the ax could be seen as they crushed the auroras from the fist steadily.


    "Is he battling or cutting wood?" When the rest saw Yu Sheng''s attack, a strange expression appeared on their faces.


    The wood was all cut, and Yu Sheng''s battle ax struck towards the person from the Donghua Clan. Thud! A stream of blood erupted and the cultivator from the Donghua Clan backed off quickly. On his chest, a strip of blood appeared, and he was almost cut into two like a piece of wood!

 234 Fury

    Chapter 234: Fury


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Bang! A loud sound was heard as Yu Sheng landed on the ground and stood steadily in front of Ye Futian. Even the ground seemed to have trembled. His devil-like wings flapped and the golden ax in his hands had yet to dissipate. He glanced at the people from the Donghua Clan in disdain.


    The cultivators from the Donghua Clan walked forward one after another. The bloodstain on the person who had fought with Yu Sheng previously was shocking, as if he would be cut into two by the ax had he been only slightly slower. However, Yu Sheng''s level was only the Fourth-level Dharma Plane, while the cultivator from the Donghua Clan was in the Sixth-level Dharma Plane.


    "Who is he?" Some people felt very shocked, after which they recalled a person. They recalled the genius who once followed Ye Futian and made four Nobles appear on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall in the Ancient Barren World. His name was Yu Sheng.


    Only the best geniuses could display four Nobles in the Ancient Barren World. However, Yu Sheng''s existence could hardly be remembered, because Ye Futian was present as well. He caused the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall to dim, and later entered the Cottage as a disciple. Therefore, Yu Sheng was instead ignored by the rest. However, at the moment, everyone just seemed to realize that apart from Ye Futian, there was another person in the Cottage called Yu Sheng.


    This young man called Yu Sheng almost killed the Sixth-level Dharma Plane cultivator from the Donghua Clan by swinging his ax randomly.


    "I am but the wood-cutter in the Cottage. You can''t even win against me. Do you still have the face to challenge a Cottage disciple?" Yu Sheng glanced at the opposite party with a wild look and said in a cold tone, "The challenge is fine. Now that you can''t win, you want to attack us together?"


    Everyone around felt speechless. Yu Sheng claimed that he was the wood-cutter of the Cottage. Then the genius from the Donghua Clan was even lesser than a wood-cutter. Also, the way that Yu Sheng used his ax just now was indeed without any technique; he clearly looked like he was cutting a piece of wood, as if he had really only been cutting wood in the Cottage.


    On the other side of the battlefield, the crazily struggling Gu Ming was extremely unwilling to be defeated. He used his strong willpower to resist the musical pressure from Ye Futian, but his spirit was finally going to collapse. Following a muffled humph, he spat out a mouthful of blood, and his face turned completely pale.


    He wanted to admit defeat, but after losing his momentum, his willpower was crushed directly. The emperor pressure within the music caused his will to surrender and he knelt down right away without managing to admit defeat. Although the sound of him kneeling down was not loud, everyone''s heart trembled because of it.


    On this day, the Donghua Clan had lost all its face.


    In both battles, the people from the Donghua Clan were at a higher level. However, one was injured by a randomly striking ax, while the other knelt down and submitted to his opponent.


    "Stand up." A sound seemed to have interrupted all the music and erupted in Gu Ming''s ears directly, causing his body to tremble vigorously. Looking at the ground and noticing that he was kneeling down, Gu Ming could only feel his face turning red as an endless feeling of humiliation surged in his mind.


    As a genius from the Donghua Clan, he actually knelt down during the guqin recital in front of so many people from the various top forces. This meant that from then on, he would never be able to wash away the shame.


    No matter where Gu Ming would go in the future, the others would recall him kneeling down on this day. The Donghua Clan would also probably stop training him from the moment on. For the Donghua Clan which wanted to become the best clan in the Eastern Barren Territory, their aim would be to surpass the College and the Cottage. Therefore, they would not allow a person who had knelt down in front of a Cottage disciple to represent the Donghua Clan.


    The musical storm dissipated and vanished in an instant, while Ye Futian''s Guqin Spirit also disappeared. Qian Shanmu claimed that he did not know about music, but at the moment, how would Qian Shanmu feel?


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Qian Shanmu who was opposite him. The music could be interrupted, but Qian Shanmu would not be able to take back his previous words after all.


    With Qian Shanmu''s identity��the best musician among the young generation in the Eastern Barren Territory��when he dismissed someone as not knowing any music, then the person naturally knew little about music. However, Ye Futian deliberately used music and easily overpowered another genius in the Donghua Clan.


    Qian Shanmu also looked at Ye Futian. Even at this moment, still, not much emotion could be seen in his eyes. Qian Shanmu could keep calm, but Gu Ming could not. Following a loud bang, lightning flooded the sky, and sword auroras whizzed in anger. His speed was extremely fast and he flashed out as violently as a bolt of lightning. At the moment, even his eyes turned purple, and they were filled with an endless amount of humiliation and hatred.


    This battle would very likely cause him to lose everything that he had.


    Lifting his head, Ye Futian saw the hatred-filled eyes, from which he could understand a lot. He also knew what this battle would cost Gu Ming, but when Gu Ming walked out, wanting to become famous by defeating a Cottage disciple, was he not prepared for such an outcome?


    Bang. A loud noise was heard and a very wild power erupted. Everyone saw Gu Ming charge towards Ye Futian and hit him with an all-powerful lightning might.


    At this instant, it was as if Ye Futian could not react in time, or did not expect Gu Ming to attack all of a sudden. The lightning swept onto Ye Futian''s body and the lightning sword stabbed towards him. It was as if the sharp sword with the lightning would kill Ye Futian.


    At this moment, everyone''s heart trembled, even including the onlookers from the different forces. It was alright to battle and learn from each other. Even if Gu Ming was humiliated, that was also because he was less skilled than his opponent. However, if he really killed a Cottage disciple, it would be a much more serious matter.


    Gu Ming, of course, did not manage to kill Ye Futian. In fact, the moment he moved, Ye Futian was already aware. When Gu Ming''s attack landed on him, his body no longer seemed to be made from blood and flesh, but instead, he was like a real divine ape.


    Ye Futian was skilled at many abilities, but apart from the Freedom Meditation and the multi-elemental Life Spirit, his most fundamental ability was the body-enhancing technique that Emperor Ye Qing had passed to him. The body-enhancing technique was meant to build an extremely strong physical body.


    How strong was Ye Futian''s physical body at the moment? Gu Ming''s attack would not be able to damage his body.


    In the eyes of everyone else, the purple lightning was flashing on Ye Futian, and the sharp sword was about to penetrate through his body. However, at this moment, Gu Ming, who was close to Ye Futian, lifted his head in horror, as if he could believe something. Apart from hatred, his eyes were also filled with intense fear.


    Ye Futian''s look was still emotionless, as if he was unconcerned about everything. His eyes caused Gu Ming to feel chilly throughout his body. Only at this moment, he truly realized that Ye Futian had never viewed him as an opponent; in Ye Futian''s eyes, Gu Ming was totally non-existent. His hatred and humiliation only came from his own confidence and trying to bite off more than he could chew.


    He was very strong in his attack abilities. However, when his attack landed directly onto Ye Futian''s body, it could not even break Ye Futian''s defense. Gu Ming''s feelings could then be well imagined.


    A wave of coldness swept across Gu Ming''s body as he just realized what he had done��he was trying to surprise attack and kill a Cottage disciple. Losing that battle would probably cause him to lose a lot, but if he really killed a Cottage disciple, what would he end up in?


    Would the Cottage let him off?


    Maybe, he already would not be able to wait until the Cottage found him.


    An extremely strong aura enveloped Ye Futian. Gu Ming only started to back away at the moment, but Ye Futian already punched out. Bang... Accompanying a loud noise, Gu Ming lay on the ground and blood bloomed out.


    Seeing the scene, everyone felt shocked. Ye Futian is actually not injured at all? Such a powerful attack from Gu Ming landed on his body at such a close range. He actually has no reaction? What defense spells or abilities did Ye Futian cultivate?


    Now, this is a tragedy for Gu Ming.


    Gu Ming was easily defeated by music and knelt on the ground to submit. Then, he tried a surprise attack, which was actually totally useless. He was overpowered again.


    Dong. At that moment, Yu Sheng stepped forward in large steps. His look was wild and extremely cold as he stared firmly at Gu Ming who was lying on the ground. A moment ago, Gu Ming''s lightning sword stabbed Ye Futian''s chest where his heart was. Did he want to catch Ye Futian by surprise and kill him?


    Although Gu Ming failed, his attack was still sufficient to enrage Yu Sheng. At the moment, he was like a violent beast, and a wild breath was released fiercely from his body. Everyone around was able to feel how strong Yu Sheng''s fury was.


    Very soon, Yu Sheng appeared in front of Gu Ming. A terrifying golden light appeared on his hand, as if in the next instant, the shattering power would crush down.


    "What do you want to do?" Gu Ming lifted his head. He seemed to have felt the wildness within Yu Sheng''s eyes at the moment and was horrified.


    What did Yu Sheng want to do to him?


    The people from the Donghua Clan were also stunned. They frowned and all looked at Yu Sheng. Then, someone said in a cold voice, "What do you want to do?"


    Yu Sheng ignored the person and raised his own arm.


    "Stop."


    "How dare you."


    The people from the Donghua Clan roared in anger. With Yu Sheng''s strength, if he landed the blow, Gu Ming''s outcome could clearly be imagined.


    Yu Sheng did not seem to have heard them and punched his fist down, smashing Gu Ming''s chest. Following a loud bang, Gu Ming''s miserable cry erupted, as well as the clear sound of bones cracking apart wildly!

 235 A Disturbance Triggered by a Guqin Recital

    Chapter 235: A Disturbance Triggered by a Guqin Recital


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Complete silence.


    At the moment, apart from Gu Ming''s low and miserable cry, there were no other sounds. Everyone stared at the figure who was curled up on the ground in pain.


    Gu Ming had no more strength left in his body; it was as if he was going to be paralyzed. His bones had been broken and his meridians were broken, and the Spiritual Qi in his body was leaking out. Everyone naturally knew what a terrifying consequence this blow had caused.


    Gu Ming''s powers were permanently destroyed by the blow.


    "Ah..." The sharp cry of pain appeared to be particularly ear-piercing in the quietness. There was already no more hatred in Gu Ming''s eyes, only an endless amount of sorrow and regret. Just now, when he thought that he was done for, it was only that he would no longer be considered as a genius and his prospect might be bleak. However, as long as he had the cultivation foundation, he still had the chance to climb back up. But now, he was thoroughly done for, as his powers were permanently destroyed. Even if he could get some sympathy, his future was already foreseeable.


    Sympathy? No. The surrounding people from the many top forces did not even sympathize with Gu Ming. They glanced at him emotionlessly and only felt sorry for him. Since he wanted to challenge a Cottage disciple, naturally he should be prepared to be defeated badly. Who dared to look down on the Cottage? After being defeated, he actually wanted to kill Ye Futian with a surprise attack. Even if he succeeded and really killed Ye Futian, he would have probably died anyway. Since he was so impetuous, he certainly had to pay a price for it. Gu Ming''s action was too foolish.


    It was only that nobody had expected Yu Sheng to be so irritable and decisive. He walked over directly, and without any hesitation, he permanently disabled Gu Ming with one punch. He did so in front of everyone from the Donghua Clan.


    At the moment, the people from the Donghua Clan looked as bitter as possible. The breath spreading from their bodies were extremely cold. Today, they wanted to disgrace the Cottage. In the end, Gu Ming knelt on the ground first, after which he was permanently disabled. The other person was also injured by the ax.


    The Donghua Clan had lost all its face.


    It was, of course, wrong for Gu Ming to surprise attack Ye Futian, but Ye Futian was unscratched, while Gu Ming was permanently disabled. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian directly ignored the existence of the Donghua Clan. How overbearing was that? Did the Cottage attach any importance to the Donghua Clan?


    Qin Mengruo''s expression also changed irregularly and appeared to be somewhat unhappy. Today, she was the one who invited everyone else to come and appreciate the music; she was the host of this guqin recital. Similarly, she also represented the Qin Dynasty. Ye Futian first did not give her any face and described the guqin recital in a vulgar way. Then, he and Yu Sheng were even more out of line. Where had they placed the Qin Dynasty?


    "Isn''t it too much for you two to do this?" Qin Mengruo''s voice was still very pleasant, but the pleasant voice vaguely contained some coldness.


    Yu Sheng lifted his head and glanced at Qin Mengruo, after which he said in a cold tone, "Shut up." Yu Sheng was extremely unhappy with Qin Mengruo as she was the person who stirred up the trouble. It was alright for her to meet her lover from the Donghua Clan. However, she had to put on an air of being cultured and drag the Cottage and Ye Futian into trouble. Even if she did so, it was still alright. However, the Donghua Clan was a sore loser and launched two unexpected attacks, and now Qin Mengruo was blaming them. Just now when Gu Ming launched the surprise attack, everyone could tell how much he wanted to kill Ye Futian. Luckily, Ye Futian was strong enough. What if he really had died from Gu Ming''s sneak attack?


    "This guy��" Everyone looked at Yu Sheng. He was really bad-tempered and did not even give the princess Qin Mengruo any face, as he asked her to shut up directly. He did not have any compassion for this lady. Perhaps this word never even existed to his knowledge.


    A strange look appeared in the eyes of Qin Mengruo. Nobody had dared to berate her in such a manner. Even her brother who was about to become the crown prince also petted her. Many people from the Qin Dynasty appeared, and the people from the Donghua Clan also walked forward. The coldness from them started to spread out towards Yu Sheng.


    "Is it that the Donghua Clan cannot afford to lose?" Liu Feiyang frowned. The Donghua Clan stirred up trouble in the first place, and after being defeated, they could not take it and launched two unexpected attacks. Should they not pay a price for this?


    Did they want to simply fight?


    "My Donghua Clan disciple is permanently disabled. Do you think we will just let it go?" a person from the Donghua Clan said in a cold voice. The Donghua Clan was a force which was as famous as the College. If they just let the issue go, how would people all over the world view the Donghua Clan?


    They would think that the Donghua Clan was afraid of the Cottage.


    The Cottage was only a part of the College. If the Donghua Clan was even afraid of the Cottage, how could it become the top clan in the Eastern Barren Territory? Therefore, they would naturally not give up easily.


    "What do you want?" Ye Futian walked forward and asked emotionlessly.


    Yu Sheng was somewhat bad-tempered, but it was all because of him. Furthermore, Gu Ming not only wanted to kill him but actually launched a sneak attack in an attempt to kill him. Did they expect Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to let Gu Ming return to the Donghua Clan in one piece?


    "Since the Cottage disciples are so strong, we will have to challenge you."


    A frenzy breath was released from the Donghua Clan disciples. In an instant, the Spiritual Qi in the entire region went completely wild. A few Donghua Clan disciples stepped forward. An odd expression appeared on the faces of the people from the different top forces. At first, it was a simple guqin recital but now the event seemed to be getting out of hand.


    If the Donghua Clan disciples really started to attack Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, then since there were only two people from the Cottage here, they would definitely be at a disadvantage.


    "Take him down." The people from the Donghua Clan stared at Yu Sheng coldly. Since he had disabled a Donghua Clan disciple, how could they let this go easily? Yu Sheng��the wood-cutter of the Cottage��would naturally need to provide justification.


    Wood-elemental spells swept towards Yu Sheng. They blotted out the sky and enveloped his body in an instant. Yu Sheng raised his head and looked at the vines which were gushing towards him in the sky. Then, devil-like wings bloomed out again and Spiritual Qi turned into a huge golden ax. Stomping on the ground, his body ascended into the air directly and the battle ax struck out. His actions were extremely quick and the light from his ax flooded the sky, cutting the vines into pieces continuously.


    Dong. A loud sound was heard and a large ancient clock appeared in the sky. When Yu Sheng chopped all the vines apart, the enormous ancient clock fell from the sky; it was the realization of Dharma of a cultivator. The astonishing gravity spreading from it pressured Yu Sheng''s body and the power released from it was enough to make Yu Sheng collapse.


    Feeling the might of the ancient clock, noble will burst out from Yu Sheng''s body and fused into the battle-ax in his hand. Then, he hacked towards the ancient clock in the air. Following a loud bang, a crack appeared on the ancient clock as it was blown backward.


    Almost at the same moment, a golden rope swept towards that area like a thin snake and started to wind around Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng struck out his battle ax continuously onto the rope, but the rope did not seem to have experienced any force. When the battle ax hit, the rope would bounce back directly as if it was very soft.


    Yu Sheng started to spin gently in the sky, and the battle ax turned into many afterimages as if he was a real wood-cutter. When the rope was hit, it snapped immediately and did not have the chance to be bounced off at all. However, the rope seemed to be infinitely long and gushed towards Yu Sheng constantly, blotting out the entire sky. The spells flew towards him endlessly, as if he would never be able to smash them all.


    The ancient clock vibrated again and pressed down on Yu Sheng. Not only that, other spells were attacking Yu Sheng as well. The people from the Donghua Clan stood proudly in the air and surrounded Yu Sheng, wanting to take him down. Below them, Gu Ming was also brought back by some people from the Donghua Clan.


    "Such a strong guy." Everyone gazed at Yu Sheng who was in the sky. Yu Sheng''s wild combat abilities were clear to them as he could deal with a few cultivators from the Donghua Clan whose levels were higher than him. If he was to fight someone of his level, nobody from the Donghua Clan would be able to face him. Indeed, someone who could display four Nobles on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall had to be extraordinary.


    Ye Futian looked extremely unhappy. The Donghua Clan actually jointly attacked Yu Sheng. They wanted to deal with Yu Sheng by using the permanently disabled Gu Ming as an excuse.


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu each took a step forward. Qin Mengruo looked at them and said emotionlessly, "This issue is between the Donghua Clan and the Cottage. Does the Liu Kingdom also want to participate?"


    It was not just Qin Mengruo; the top-tier Dharma Plane cultivators from the Donghua Clan who were not participating in the fight also glanced at Liu Feiyang and his team.


    Ye Futian stared at Qin Mengruo and his look turned increasingly cold. Previously, he was unhappy with her only because she dragged him into the trouble. But at the moment, he was not merely unhappy.


    "Go and find the fifth brother," Ye Futian said to Liu Feiyang. If the Donghua Clan wanted to use this as an excuse and deal with them, he and Yu Sheng naturally could not resolve the conflict.


    At the side, there were still many top-tier Dharma Plane cultivators holding the line. Furthermore, there was also the best musician among the young generation besides them.


    "Okay." Liu Feiyang nodded, after which his body flashed and he left the place. He knew well what kind of people Cottage disciples were like. Since the Donghua Clan wanted to do this, the entire matter was already not as simple as the juniors merely fighting and learning from each other.


    The people from the Sword Saint Mountain looked at each other. They had some relationships with the Cottage, but all the people present at the place were juniors, and nobody dared to get involved in the matter easily.


    Even the College did not step up. The people from the College in this place were led by Su Muge and Tang Ye. However, both of them had always disliked the Cottage and were unhappy with Ye Futian as well. Therefore, the College which was supposed to take actions also stood at the side.


    As for the other forces, they naturally would not care. The conflict involved three major forces: the Qin Dynasty, the Donghua Clan, and the Cottage. Under such a circumstance, who would dare to get involved in this disturbance easily?


    Seeing that they could not win after a long time, another Seventh-level Dharma Plane cultivator from the Donghua Clan walked out and started to attack Yu Sheng. Clearly, the Donghua Clan was determined to take Yu Sheng down.


    Ye Futian stomped on the ground and walked towards the sky. In an instant, a terrifying flame surged on his body. The violent flame wrapped around his body. At this moment, Ye Futian seemed to have turned into a purgatory fire demon which was wildly devouring the fire-elemental Spiritual Qi in the surrounding.


    Meanwhile, a dazzling Sun Dharma appeared in the sky behind Ye Futian. Before he even moved, many flame maple leaves appeared and danced in the wind. The spell Maple Dance contained a strong flame intent and swept towards the Donghua Clan cultivators who were jointly attacking Yu Sheng.


    In an instant, countless maple leaves flew towards the people from the Donghua Clan, trying to drown them in the leaves. The attacks launched at Yu Sheng were weakened. They looked at Ye Futian and a cold expression. Since you have attacked, we will fight both of you.


    Everyone looked at the sky. Ye Futian''s flame-like body stood proudly in the air, alongside Yu Sheng. Just now, the Donghua Clan kept forcing Ye Futian to fight in order to see his combat abilities. Now, they could finally see it!

 236 Growing Intensity

    Chapter 236: Growing Intensity


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo raised their heads and looked at Ye Futian.


    Everyone else also stared at the figure immersed in flame.


    This was the young man who created a miracle in the Ancient Barren World. Most of the young generation in the Eastern Barren Territory were somewhat curious about his combat powers.


    "Such a strong flame intent."


    Feeling the powers of fire contained in that flame-filled body, everyone muttered to themselves. Li Daoyun''s look was cold: in the Ancient Barren World, one of his arms was burnt by Ye Futian with the help of the flame statue. Ye Futian''s musical spells were very strong. However, was fire his most skilled ability?


    Perhaps.


    "Attack," someone from the Donghua Clan said in a cold tone. Many spells bloomed directly and swept towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. However, at that moment, an extremely shocking firelight was radiated from the Sun Dharma behind Ye Futian, as if the light from the Sun itself was shining down directly. Many spells were burnt away in the void right away. Even more terrifyingly, several ancient characters seemed to bloom in the Dharma.


    Fire, Flare, Blaze!


    In the eyes of some low-level cultivators from the Donghua Clan, flame intent seemed to appear and the ancient characters turned into willpower, charging directly into them. They gave out a miserable scream and closed their eyes in pain as blood erupted from their eyes.


    In the meantime, some people started to burn. The terrifying ancient characters, with the help of the willpower, charged directly into their bodies.


    Some splashing sounds were heard. A few Donghua Clan cultivators skilled in water-elemental abilities cast water spells which enveloped everyone''s body. Ice fell onto them to extinguish the fire, but a few people were still injured.


    "Err..."


    Everyone''s heart trembled. The people who were injured even included one who was in the Sixth-level Dharma Plane. He actually could not even bear the light from Ye Futian''s Dharma?


    Bang! An even more violent flame breath was released. Magma seemed to have appeared in the sky and turned into a sea of fire. Golden divine flames started to burn on Ye Futian''s body which was showering in an endless amount of fire. The light from his Dharma was similarly like divine flames; his Dharma had been fused with the Book of Flames from the Ancient Luolan relic in the Ancient Barren World.


    All the ice seals in the place were lit with the light from the divine flames. Then, the power of the ice dissipated and turned into a sea of fire.


    Ye Futian''s body flashed and turned into an afterimage. He was skilled at using the noble will of different elements, including wind intent. Since he was able to travel with the wind, he was extremely fast.


    A cultivator from the Donghua Clan felt the threat and backed away quickly. Then, the light of Dharma enveloped his body and the flames seemed to be engulfing him. Ye Futian slapped out with his palm, and the other person raised his hands in an attempt to resist. Following a loud bang, the cultivator was blown backward and a horrifying firelight glittered on his body. As the flaming ancient characters appeared faintly, his body began to burn.


    "Be careful." A cultivator who was skilled in water-elemental powers instantly landed before him and used a water spell to seal his body with ice. Otherwise, he would be burnt to death instantly.


    The Sixth-level Dharma Plane cultivator, who was two levels above Ye Futian, could not even withstand a blow from him.


    Dong. Accompanying a loud bang, the huge clock struck towards Ye Futian and an incredibly heavy power pressured his body. Yu Sheng stepped forward, but other spells started to sweep towards him; there were other people who were attacking him.


    Ye Futian looked at the ancient clock which was flying over, and a moon appeared behind him. The sun and the moon alternated, while coldness and hotness spread out simultaneously, turning into an appalling yin and yang vortex.


    The ancient clock which was dashing over was sometimes filled with ice and sometimes with flames. The two different wills flew on the surface of the ancient clock and ancient characters seemed to appear vaguely on it. The expression of the cultivator who had released the ancient clock Dharma changed as he felt an extremely horrifying aura. He controlled his will and wanted to take his Dharma back.


    The light from the sun and the moon poured down continuously and landed on the ancient clock Dharma. Gradually, the ancient clock froze and stopped. Clear cracking sounds could be heard as cracks started to appear on the clock.


    "No..." a Seventh-level Dharma Plane cultivator from the Donghua Clan screamed. Just as his voice died away, cracking sounds started to spread out continuously. His Dharma crushed into pieces, and his Life Spirit which had been fused with the Dharma was also destroyed along with it. The Donghua Clan cultivator gave a miserable cry and spat out a mouthful of blood. His face turned completely pale as he fell down from the sky.


    "So strong?" Everyone around could only feel their hearts trembling. Ye Futian crossed over three levels and used his Dharma to permanently destroy the Dharma of a Seventh-level Dharma Plane cultivator from the Donghua Clan. How overpowering�� He had directly eliminated his opponent in an overwhelming way and was so decisive that the other people from the Donghua Clan did not even have time to react.


    The grandson of the king of Qin, Qin Li, questioned Ye Futian''s combat powers, and Qin Mengruo also incited him to fight. Now, Qin Mengruo and the people from the Donghua Clan had seen it for themselves.


    This was Ye Futian''s combat powers.


    The looks of the people from the Donghua Clan were as bitter as it could possibly be. They had sent so many people jointly attack Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, but another person was actually permanently disabled by Ye Futian again. How embarrassing that was.


    Many cultivators stepped out. Finally, the higher level Dharma Plane cultivators from the Donghua Clan stopped observing and decided to attack together.


    Seeing so, Yu Sheng directly reached out his hand and took the battle ax, his ritual implement, from his back. He had been carrying his noble ritual implement all along. Noble will gushed into the ritual implement. Giving an angry roar, Yu Sheng struck towards the incoming cultivators from the Donghua Clan. His ax seemed to be cutting the void itself into two and the cultivators from the Donghua Clan all dodged the attack.


    Then, Yu Sheng moved. He charged forward like a devil and swung his battle ax continuously. Each strike was as strong as the attacks cast by top-tier Dharma Plane cultivators. Noble will had been fused into the ritual implement, in addition to Yu Sheng''s own strength. The power unleashed could thus be well imagined.


    Ye Futian did not look at Yu Sheng as he had brought his noble ritual implement and he was very confident in Yu Sheng.


    The twin Dharma��the sun and the moon��continued to release terrifying powers and strike at the few Donghua Clan cultivators who had previously fought.


    Everyone around gazed at the battlefield and was shocked in their hearts. The Donghua Clan could not even defeat the two who were both in the Fourth-level Dharma Plane.


    The Cottage was still the Cottage. It would probably be very difficult for the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan to crush the legend of the Cottage.


    Qian Shanmu frowned gently and a tinge of disappointment appeared on his face. Then, he took out the bamboo flute and played it near his lips.


    The music of the flute spread out and traces of invisible spiritual powers moved towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng directly. In that instant, Ye Futian only felt traces of sharp noises piercing into his ears, disrupting his Spiritual Energy directly. He could not even form the spells that he wanted to cast.


    He frowned tightly and glanced at Qian Shanmu, his look extremely cold.


    Qian Shanmu was one of the two best geniuses in the Donghua Clan and was honored as the best musician among the young generation in the Eastern Barren Territory. He actually chose to attack at this moment.


    An even more violent aura bloomed from Ye Futian''s body as his Spiritual Energy resisted Qian Shanmu''s musical attack. Stomping his foot, he did not use any spells but instead slapped his palm out at a cultivator from the Donghua Clan. The radiance of the ancient characters flashed on his palm which seemed to be able to melt everything. His palm collided with the fist of the Donghua Clan cultivator, after which the cultivator cried in pain as his arms started to burn.


    Seeing the scene, the pupils of everyone contracted slightly. Was this his response towards Qian Shanmu''s intervention?


    The flute''s music turned rapid. At this instant, Ye Futian felt like many green snakes had appeared and were biting him. His spirit felt a wave of numbness and pain which was extremely uncomfortable, while his head felt like it was going to explode.


    He used his strong spiritual will to resist the music, but the musical attack was everywhere and undefendable, continuing to enter his ears. Even the flames around Ye Futian were dissipating and he stood stiffly in the air, as if he was suppressed by the musical attack.


    At the moment, an attack spell from a Donghua Clan cultivator flew over. Following a loud bang, Ye Futian gave a muffled humph. Even though his physical body was strong, he still spat out a mouthful of blood uncontrollably as his body was blown backward.


    Ye Futian was enduring both physical and spiritual attacks.


    Yu Sheng gave an angry roar; he had similarly felt Qian Shanmu''s musical attack. At the moment, an extremely terrifying light appeared around his body, as if it was the light from a devil. A set of barbed armor emerged from his body and slowly wrapped around him, covering his body and turning into real devil''s armor. The pair of horrifying devil wings was attached to the armor as if they fit inside perfectly.


    "This is..." Everyone looked at Yu Sheng in astonishment. Even his eyes were glittering with gloomy golden light as if they were the monstrous eyes of the devil. An incredibly appalling current flew on his body. At this moment, the noble battle-ax in his hand seemed to be totally activated and a shocking power spread from it.


    Ignoring Qian Shanmu''s music, Yu Sheng struck out with his ax. Immediately, a sky-severing beam of light appeared in the space before him. In just an instant, blood bloomed out in the sky. Several cultivators screamed in pain as they backed away hurriedly. Some got their arms cut off, while others had their Dharma destroyed.


    Everyone was shocked by the attack. Even though Yu Sheng had used the noble ritual implement, he was in the Fourth-level Dharma Plane after all and actually managed to burst out such an incredible attack. The way he struck his ax out was still like he was cutting a piece of wood, but the cultivators from the Donghua Clan seemed to have become his wood and were easily cut apart.


    Was he mad because Ye Futian was injured?


    Qian Shanmu''s look was finally no longer calm. Although he had participated in the fight, a few people from the Donghua Clan were actually still injured. As a top genius in the Donghua Clan, this was quite embarrassing for him.


    At the moment, many figures were whizzing over from afar. The battle here had only gone on for a short period of time, but its effects were rather devastating. The people who arrived first were from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan. Today Qin Mengruo and Qian Shanmu were meeting at the place and they were all paying close attention to it. Therefore, they were the first to reach. However, after they arrived they realized that this was not like a guqin recital. More than half of the people from the Donghua Clan were actually injured; a few were permanently disabled and some lost their arms.


    Seeing such a scene, the anger of the cultivator from the Donghua Clan who had just reached could be easily imagined. His look was extremely cold as he glanced at Yu Sheng who was in the air holding the noble ritual implement. A terrifying light was still being emitted from the battle ax.


    He actually dares to act so wildly here!


    Bang! A Noble Plane cultivator stepped out. In an instant, a terrifying might enveloped Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng lifted his head and stared at the figure; his look was still very cold.


    The noble was filled with rage at the moment. Raising his hand, he slapped out directly and the frightening palm print seemed to be crushing everything. Yu Sheng roared in anger and lifted the battle ax in his hand, striking it out.


    However, how could he block a real noble?


    The palm print crushed everything and eliminated the light from the ax. Falling down, it hit Yu Sheng. In just an instant, Yu Sheng was blown directly towards the ground and could not resist the attack at all!

 237 Getting Serious

    Chapter 237: Getting Serious


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Bang! Following a loud bang, Yu Sheng''s violent body was slapped down by the palm print, and even the ground cracked directly. It was clear what a powerful attack he had just endured.


    Spit. He spat out some blood. Everyone noticed that even the armor on Yu Sheng''s body had split apart. The Noble Plane cultivator had attacked in anger. The power of his attack could thus be well imagined.


    When a Noble Plane cultivator fights a Dharma Plane cultivator, there is no suspense at all. The fact that Yu Sheng could take a hit without dying already showed that his defense was outstanding.


    "Yu Sheng." Ye Futian dashed out and appeared in front of Yu Sheng. At the moment, Yu Sheng was lying on the ground. He stood up with some difficulty and said in a low tone, "I''m alright." Just as he finished speaking, he spat out another mouthful of blood uncontrollably and his body fell onto the ground. He took a hit from a noble. It was already fortunate that he did not die.


    Even Ye Futian''s body was trembling gently as he used his shaking hands to support Yu Sheng. Lifting his head, he stared at the noble who was in the air. His eyes were extremely icy.


    In the sky, the noble looked at Ye Futian''s eyes and actually could not help but have a strange feeling. From those eyes, he saw a coldness that would disregard everything. He felt that if the young man was to grow up, the young man would definitely try to kill him at all costs.


    A cold killing intent spread out from him. He also seemed to have realized what he had done��he had almost killed someone from the Cottage.


    However, he did not regret this. When he reached the place, he saw the people from the Cottage showing off their powers, while many disciples from the Donghua Clan were either crippled or permanently disabled. Even if they were Cottage disciples, how could they dare to act so arrogantly?


    The Donghua Clan was similarly one of the top three forces in the Eastern Barren Territory. On the other hand, the Cottage was only part of the College, and the people from it actually dared to be so savage.


    Feeling the killing intent spreading out from the noble in the air, everyone from the various forces realized that this guqin recital disturbance seemed to be getting out of hand. Several people from the Donghua Clan were permanently disabled, and several were severely injured. However, it was the Donghua Clan which kept forcing the Cottage to fight. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were merely counterattacking.


    Now, not only did the Donghua Clan cultivators jointly attack the Cottage disciples, but even a noble had attacked. He suppressed Yu Sheng with one palm and almost killed him with the slap. At the moment, he even displayed his intent to kill them. How could the Cottage let this go easily?


    Qin Mengruo and Qian Shanmu both did not expect such a situation. The Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan only wanted to pressure the Cottage, and it would be best if they could break the legend of the Cottage. However, the powers of the Cottage disciples were beyond everyone''s imagination. Therefore, the Donghua Clan could not clean up the mess, resulting in such a situation.


    Bang. A violent aura pressured on the space: the noble indeed had the intention to kill them. However, at the moment, a few figures blinked and appeared in front of Ye Futian. They were actually disciples from the Sword Saint Mountain.One of them looked up in the sky and said, "Senior, have you thought clearly before you attack?"


    The noble''s eyes sparkled. He glanced at the person emotionlessly and said in an overbearing manner, "Are you threatening me?"


    "That I do not dare." The disciple bowed and said, "However, Ye Futian is a newly admitted disciples of the Cottage, and also the little junior of my master. Senior, if you really want to kill him, not to say the Cottage, my master would probably also not let this go easily.


    "Furthermore, I believe that you are still unclear about the cause of today''s incident. Senior, you should find out about it first."


    The noble frowned. Although the disciple said that he did not dare, the words were actually already somewhat threatening. Of course, he himself was not qualified to threaten the noble, but that person on the Sword Saint Mountain was.


    His words were correct. If the noble really killed Ye Futian, the eldest brother from the Cottage on the Sword Saint Mountain would not let him off, not to mention the Cottage.


    There were not many disciples in the Cottage. Including Ye Futian, there were also only eight at the moment. This was very different from the other clans. Therefore, every disciple in the Cottage was more important to the clan than the individual disciples in the Donghua Clan. Only people like Qian Shanmu could be compared with a single Cottage disciple.


    The sound of people whizzing over from afar could be heard. The battle here had attracted the seniors from various forces. When they saw the situation at the place, a weird expression appeared on their faces. Was there a conflict between the Donghua Clan and the Cottage?


    Another few people flew towards the place. The looks of everyone on the spot became more serious.


    The people from the College had arrived.


    The fifth disciple of the Cottage, Luo Fan, had also come.


    The College senior, Situ Wu, went beside Su Muge and Tang Ye, while Luo Fan appeared beside Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Behind them, Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu had also come. They explained to Luo Fan what happened in the simplest way.


    Luo Fan and Situ Wu both saw the injured Yu Sheng. Ye Futian had also suffered minor injuries which were not obvious, but Yu Sheng was severely injured, and his injuries could be noticed in just one look.


    "You have been watching here all the time?" Situ Wu glanced at the College disciples including Su Muge and Tang Ye. All the people from the College looked rather awkward. Although the Cottage was kind of isolated, it was part of the College after all. There was a conflict between the Cottage and the Donghua Clan, but the College disciples did not intervene. it was indeed disgraceful.


    "You did it?" At the other side, Luo Fan saw Ye Futian staring coldly at the noble in the sky and vaguely knew what had happened.


    Did a noble from the Donghua Clan attack Yu Sheng?


    "Your Cottage disciples are too unbridled," the noble in the sky said coldly. Luo Fan''s look was very calm, but from the calmness, he could faintly feel that a terrifying storm was brewing, as if it could erupt at any moment.


    "Look after them," Luo Fan turned back and said to Situ Wu.


    "Okay." Situ Wu nodded and Luo Fan stepped forward.


    Bang. An incredibly violent flame intent instantly swept across the vast space. In an instant, everyone present felt an increasing temperature, as if the entire world was turning extremely hot. They actually started to sweat.


    Everyone saw that on Luo Fan''s body, an illusory flaming radiance was flowing. It did not look like real flames, but it seemed even more terrifying than real flames. The illusory flames soared into the sky, and even the space around it seemed to have merged with them. Fire-elemental Spiritual Qi turned into the illusory flames which burned in the sky.


    Hot. At this moment, everyone could only feel extremely hot and somewhat manic, as if they were placed on a stove.


    At the moment, a noble stepped out. He was from the Qin Dynasty, and he said, "Today, both parties have been injured. How about we stop for now and discuss?"


    "There is no room for discussion." A cold voice spread from Luo Fan''s mouth. If the Cottage disciples lost in a fair fight, they would accept it as they were less skilled than their opponents. If they lost in a scuffle, they naturally could not say anything, but the Cottage had never lost before. However, at the moment, it was the noble from the Donghua Clan who was bullying the people from the Cottage. What was there to discuss?


    Just as Luo Fan finished speaking, he raised his head and looked at the noble. In just an instant, the countless illusory flaming currents in the sky exploded simultaneously. Immediately, a wave of catastrophic flames enveloped the space directly, centered at the noble in the sky. The endless power of fire seemed to have turned into a stove.


    The noble in the sky seemed to be burning. Everyone saw a strange scene��an illusory stove had engulfed the noble in the sky and was burning his body.


    This was a noble level spell, and its powers were devastating.


    The expression of the noble changed drastically as he felt traces of flames seeping into his body directly. The terrifying illusory stove seemed to have formed from the purest flames in the world and wanted to burn him to ashes.


    A shocking aura was released from his body as he wanted to put out the fire, but the flame spell seemed to be inextinguishable and continued to burn. A sizzling sound spread out. The noble''s body was almost moistureless and his skin turned dry and lifeless. He appeared to be in great pain.


    The scene caused the looks of many to change. The fifth disciple of the Cottage, Luo Fan, is actually so strong?


    A splashing sound was heard as many water currents flew over, charging into the inferno and sweeping towards the noble''s body.


    A few cultivators from the Donghua Clan walked out. They all released their noble aura and stared coldly at Luo Fan below. Luo Fan held his fire stick. Then, the black fire stick immediately turned into a monstrous blood-red. He ascended into the air. In an instant, an appalling flame storm appeared in the sky. An endless amount of fire-elemental Spiritual Qi gushed towards the fire stick wildly and turned into many flame dragons attaching onto the fire stick. The flame dragons danced and continuously condensed into an even more frightening flame. Eventually, they turned into many dragon whips.


    Seeing the flaming dragon whips which were soaring in the sky and continuously being formed, everyone around felt shocked. Every dragon whip seemed to contain the most ultimate fire.


    Luo Fan waved his hand. The fire stick moved and the dragon whips danced in the sky, sweeping towards the Noble Plane cultivators from the Donghua Clan.


    The looks of the nobles were solemn. Then, there was a sharp sword piercing through the air, some ice sealing the sky and a violent golden palm print trying to destroy everything. However, when the dragon whips crossed, the frozen space was split apart, the sharp sword broke and the palm print was cut into two at the center. In those crushed powers, there was still flame intent left behind.


    The flaming dragon whips danced in the air and enveloped the entire space.


    Slap�� A clear sound spread. Someone was hit by the dragon whip and almost broke into two pieces instantly. The wound on his body was shocking; it was as if he was cut by a sharp sword. Flames burned in his body, causing the noble to give a painful, muffled humph.


    Slap. Slap. Slap! Many clear slapping sounds spread as several nobles were hit. A horrified expression appeared on the face of the noble who had injured Yu Sheng. He could only fell countless dragon whips sweeping towards him and could not fight back at all.


    "You have crossed the line," a cold voice erupted at that moment. An extremely terrifying aura bloomed and a shocking trace of sword intent burst out behind the noble. Then, everyone saw the flaming dragon whips being cut apart and turning into countless flames which danced in the sky.


    An elderly figure held a sword and stood proudly in the air. He looked at Luo Fan and said, "Luo Fan, this is the Qin Imperial Palace." This person was a strong noble from the Qin Dynasty.


    At the moment, the stronger nobles from the Donghua Clan also walked over and stared coldly at Luo Fan. Everyone knew that even though Luo Fan was extremely strong, there was also not much that he could do.


    "The Qin Imperial Palace right?" Luo Fan glanced at the many nobles in the sky and said, "Today, this issue is really serious."

 238 Attending the Ceremony

    Chapter 238: Attending the Ceremony


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan were two top forces. They had sent a Noble Plane cultivator and many Dharma Plane cultivators to deal with Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, both of whom were in the Fourth-level Dharma Plane.


    The Cottage had never been bullied in such a way.


    The issue was serious.


    Hearing Luo Fan''s words, the people around also realized that the matter was really going to get out of hand. The fight between juniors could perhaps still be controlled, but a noble overpowered the people from the Cottage directly and almost killed Yu Sheng with a slap. How could the Cottage let this go?


    A fight between juniors had turned into a fight between nobles. After that, it would probably be a fight between the two forces.


    The many nobles in the sky looked at Luo Fan and their looks turned serious. The elderly person said, "Today, I think that both of the parties have made mistakes. How about you give the Qin Dynasty a face, sit down and let us mediate the issue?"


    "Today, nobody gave the Cottage any face," Luo Fan sneered then looked at the people in the sky. He pointed at the noble who had attacked Yu Sheng and said, "I only ask this: are you going to give him to us?"


    The elder from the Qin Dynasty frowned. Luo Fan was somewhat supercilious.


    The people from the Cottage indeed have the same character��supercilious and arrogant.


    "I have not asked you yet. So many of my Donghua Clan disciples are injured. How do you pay for this?" A strong noble from the Donghua Clan stepped forward. He glanced at the horrible sight of the Donghua Clan disciples and asked in a cold tone.


    "They were bullied by two Fourth-level Dharma Plane juniors to such an extent. You actually still have the face to ask?" Luo Fan smiled and said. "You really deserve the name of the top clan in the Eastern Barren Territory. Terrific." His words were somewhat grating. A group of Dharma Plane cultivators from the top clan in the Eastern Barren Territory lost so badly to two Fourth-level Dharma Plane cultivators. If this news spread out, it would be embarrassing. Moreover, it was the people of the Donghua Clan who started this fight.


    "Our Qin Dynasty invited everyone to come and observe the ceremony. Tomorrow is the day when the crown prince will be conferred. Does the Cottage really want to cause trouble at this point?" the elder from the Qin Dynasty looked at Luo Fan and said. It would be impossible for the Donghua Clan to hand over their member just because of Luo Fan''s words, especially when the person was a noble.


    "Oh, so I am the one causing trouble." Luo Fan smiled and turned around. He knew that it would be pointless to discuss further. Even if the previous events were ignored, it was the noble from the Donghua Clan who had attacked Yu Sheng. Now, he said that the Cottage was causing all the trouble.


    "Whether the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan team up or not, it''s not the Cottage''s business, and we also do not care. However, if you want to bully the Cottage��" Facing everyone with his back, Luo Fan smiled. He approached Ye Futian and Yu Sheng and said, "I will bring Yu Sheng back. Since the Qin Dynasty has invited the Cottage to attend the ceremony, you will stay here to represent the Cottage."


    "Alright," Ye Futian nodded.


    Just like that, Luo Fan brought Yu Sheng away. He had only left one sentence, asking Ye Futian to stay. Nobody had expected such an abrupt departure. Furthermore, he just left Ye Futian at the Qin Dynasty and actually did not worry that the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan might attack Ye Futian at all.


    Of course, the people from the many forces knew that under such a situation, the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan definitely would not dare to attack Ye Futian again. The College was present, not to mention the Cottage eldest disciple and the third disciple. Although the College had had some conflicts with the Cottage, if there was really a major battle, the College would naturally side with the Cottage. Furthermore, rumors in the Eastern Barren Territory all claimed that Mr. Du from the Cottage did not know how to cultivate. But did he really not know that?


    God knows!


    Therefore, the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan would not really touch Ye Futian, unless they would like to stay at their places and not go out in the future.


    Ye Futian stared at Luo Fan as he brought Yu Sheng away. Then, he turned to look at the many nobles in the sky, and then at Qian Shanmu, the best musician in the young generation of the Eastern Barren Territory, and Qin Mengruo.


    His look was very calm, and there was not even hatred. However, this calmness made people feel somewhat frightened instead. Many people looked at him, including many nobles. Then, they saw Ye Futian turn around and leave, walking towards the palace he was staying in.


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu followed behind him closely.


    "Let''s go." Situ Wu also glanced at the many people in the sky coldly and followed Ye Futian. The people from the Sword Saint Mountain left as well, and the people from the various top forces left one from another. Luo Fan had left, but they knew that the matter was not over yet; it was far from being over. Otherwise, Luo Fan would not leave Ye Futian at the Qin Imperial Palace.


    They realized that some conflicts may happen in the Eastern Barren Territory. As to what extent the conflict would reach, nobody could predict it at the moment. However, judging from the situation when the Cottage eldest disciple and third disciples went down the mountain, it was definitely going to be serious.


    Of course, it would certainly not be like the two disturbances during that time. The Donghua Clan and the Qin Dynasty were not just very strong forces, but the very top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory. The Cottage alone would not be able to do much to them.


    The people from the other forces left the place. Only people from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan remained at the area. The atmosphere at the moment was somewhat tense. A noble from the Donghua Clan looked at everyone below and asked, "What actually happened today?"


    The cultivators from the Qin Dynasty also wanted to ask the same question. Even though the two forces had teamed up, and it was indeed a meet-up between the princess Qin Mengruo from the Qin Dynasty and Qian Shanmu, what happened during the guqin recital was not arranged by them.


    The event that happened was somewhat out of control.


    Below, a strange look flashed in Qin Mengruo''s eyes; the incident on that day was caused by her.


    "It''s meaningless to look into this now." At the moment, a figure walked over. It was the grandson of the king of Qin, Qin Li. He looked at the nobles in the sky and said, "Today, the people from the Donghua Clan are defeated so miserably, but you are instead threatened by the Cottage. This does not look like the top clan in the Eastern Barren Territory."


    The people from the Donghua Clan all felt very embarrassed. Just like what the king''s grandson had said, the Donghua Clan was even more tragic than the Cottage today. A few of their nobles were overpoweringly injured by Luo Fan, not to mention their Dharma Plane cultivators. Under such a circumstance, their momentum seemed to be totally suppressed, and they had been threatened by Luo Fan.


    "I want to see, what can the Cottage do?" a noble from the Donghua Clan said coldly. They did not continue to investigate the cause, because that was no longer important.


    "I believe that the Donghua Clan will show the imposing manner which the top clan in the Eastern Barren Territory should," the king''s grandson smiled and said. Then, the people from both parties also started to leave separately.


    The people from Donghua nodded and left the place. Qin Li looked at Qin Mengruo and said, "Little aunt, how is Qian Shanmu?"


    Although Qin Mengruo was one generation older than Qin Li, their ages were actually quite similar. Qin Mengruo was the princess, while Qin Li was the son of Qin Yu, the elder brother of Qin Mengruo.


    Qin Mengruo''s eyes sparkled as she thought of Qian Shanmu. She nodded lightly and said, "Not bad."


    "That''s great." Qin Li smiled gently. "Qian Shanmu is one of the two most gifted geniuses in the Donghua Clan. Now, the other person is already a towering figure in the Eastern Barren Territory, and Qian Shanmu is the only key training target of the Donghua Clan. In the future, he will definitely become one of the most accomplished people in the Eastern Barren Territory. Little aunt, you will not suffer because of this."


    Qin Mengruo nodded lightly. In fact, because of her identity, she did not have many choices when selecting her partner: she could only choose among the brightest people in the various forces. Although there was a disturbance during the guqin recital today, she was quite fond of Qian Shanmu. In particular, both of them had a common hobby��music.


    ...


    The people from various forces returned to their individual palaces where they cultivated. People and demons soared into the air, leaving the Qin Imperial Palace. The guqin recital disturbance in the Qin Imperial Palace had already involved the three strongest forces in the Eastern Barren Territory. They had to inform their clans about this event.


    The news spread to various top forces rapidly. On the other hand, in the Qin Dynasty, it was already the day when the crown prince would be conferred.


    This day, outside of the Qin Dynasty, people had fully filled the space below the stairs. Countless cultivators had come to send their congratulation. However, apart from the various top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory which were invited and could enter the Qin Imperial Palace, only the very strong forces in the Qin Dynasty were entitled to enter the palace and observe the ceremony. In addition, only the leaders of the forces could enter.


    The gates of the Qin Imperial Palace were open. Many cultivators with outstanding temperaments stepped in one after another. They followed the path in the palace and walked towards a hall in the deeper part of the palace.


    Here, many people had already arrived. The people from the various top forces were sitting on the viewing platforms on the two sides. In the middle, many dignified and burly armored warriors were standing in a neat row, looking frightening. Behind them were the lords and nobles of the Qin Dynasty who had come to observe the ceremony.


    Moving further forward, there was a throne.


    The prince Qin Yu had already arrived. He stood in front of all the lords and nobles below the throne, waiting to be conferred.


    Many people looked at Qin Yu. This former genius had already grown up to become one of the strongest cultivators in the Eastern Barren Territory. He was one of the best in his generation and was as famous as the genius from the Donghua Clan and the third disciple from the Cottage. Today, he would be conferred as the crown prince of the Qin Dynasty. In the future, he would control the Qin Dynasty and become the most powerful person in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The people from the various top forces had all reached and they sat on the viewing platforms.


    Ye Futian had also arrived. He was with the College, and he represented the Cottage. As the eighth disciple of the Cottage, he was naturally qualified to represent the Cottage. The cultivators from the Liu Kingdom and the Sword Saint Mountain were sitting beside him to observe the ceremony.


    At the moment, the thoughts of the people from the various forces were different. If the event on the previous day did not happen, the ceremony today would surely be a ceremony. There would be no twists and turns. However, because of the disturbance on the previous day, a shadow had been cast over the conferment of the Qin Dynasty crown prince today. Nobody knew what Luo Fan would do after going back, and nobody knew what the Cottage would do either. According to the style of the Cottage, they would surely do something.


    The Donghua Clan was closest to the seats in front and was very close to the Qin Dynasty. From their positions, their relationship with the Qin Dynasty could vaguely be felt.


    The king''s grandson, Qin Li, and the princess Qin Mengruo were naturally here as well. They both stood behind Qin Yu who was the first person in front. Qin Mengruo looked at the crowd and then Qian Shanmu, and both of them glanced at each other. Then, Qin Mengruo nodded gently and Qian Shanmu similarly smiled in return. They withdrew their stares very quickly. It was not rude and appeared to be just nice.


    Qin Mengruo glanced at the College and the Cottage again and her eyes were uncontrollably locked onto Ye Futian, who had left a deep impression in her mind during the battle on the previous day.


    She saw that at the moment, Ye Futian was extremely quiet and just sat there in silence, as if he was really just an ordinary guest who had come to observe the ceremony!

 239 Coming for Someone

    Chapter 239: Coming for Someone


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Sunlight bathed the Qin palace, filling the sacred ancient palace with majesty.


    In the main hall, a figure walked to the throne step by step. He was an old but majestic man wearing the royal robe. His eyes were full of stateliness too. He went to the throne and looked to the crowd. People didn''t dare to look into his eyes.


    He was the king of the Qin Dynasty.


    As soon as the king sat in the throne, the armored soldiers and nobles all knelt on one knee before him. "Your Majesty."


    The people in the seats all stood up and slightly bowed to show their respect to the king.


    The king of the Qin Dynasty was one of the most powerful men of the Eastern Barren Territory. Therefore even the other top forces needed to salute him.


    "Welcome you all," said the king. "Please take a seat." Everybody looked up and saw his smiling face. The king continued, "It is my honor to have you coming here from afar."


    "Your Majesty." A strong cultivator of the Donghua Clan smiled and bowed politely. "It is our honor to witness this grand ceremony."


    "No need for polite small talk." The king laughed. "Declare my words."


    A strong cultivator beside walked out with the edict in his hands. He declared loudly, "As per the king of the Qin Dynasty''s orders, it shall be known to all that Qin Yu is now the crown prince of the Qin Dynasty."


    His voice transformed into powerful sound waves that echoed throughout the whole palace.


    As per the king of the Qin Dynasty''s orders, it shall be known to all that Qin Yu is now the crown prince of the Qin Dynasty.


    The voice could even be heard outside the palace. The people under the steps all looked up, their eyes brightened.


    Qin Yu was declared to be the crown prince. They knew this was a transition. In the future, the Qin Dynasty would belong to Qin Yu.


    The most dazzling genius of the Eastern Barren Territory, Qin Yu, was finally at the forefront of the Qin Dynasty. He was going to dominate the future of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Those armored soldiers and nobles knelt again, together with countless people in the palace complex, faced towards the king.


    Crown Prince Qin Yu climbed the steps and accepted the edict. He stood beside the king and looked at the crowd, bathing in the attention and worship of the entire world.


    "Congratulations to Your Majesty and Your Highness," everyone said. Similar voices rang out throughout the palace.


    For a time, the words sounded everywhere as if the whole majestic Qin palace was shaking. Even people outside the palace were enthusiastic and felt their blood boiling.


    The sound lasted for a very long while.


    Standing in the front of everyone in the hall, the king smiled while Qin Yu looked very calm.


    On the other hand, the eyes of Qin Li, the king''s grandson, flashed. He smiled proudly. From now on, his father would go down in history. The father and the son would fulfill their ambitions and bring the past glory back to the dynasty.


    The top forces all sent congratulations. It was a bustling scene in the palace.


    The people outside the palace were also excited about this news. Qin Yu gained a good reputation in this kingdom. His talent was known to all since he was young. People all placed great expectations on him. That was why they were so happy for him to become the crown prince.


    Suddenly, a dragon''s roar was heard from the distance.


    Everyone looked up to the sky with shock and saw a black dragon rushing toward the palace.


    "It''s a dragon!"


    People were shocked that someone had come on the dragon. The dragon was huge and had a horrible aura. Just looking into its eyes would make people''s heart shaking.


    "Is it the Demon King?"


    "Who is coming?"


    "It should be one of the guests."


    Many people whispered. The comer should be here to send congratulations. But with a dragon as the mount, he must be a strong cultivator from one of the top forces.


    "Look, there are two people."


    Many people looked at the dragon''s head and saw two figures standing there calmly.


    The leading person was in white, standing with his hands folded behind. His spotless clothes made him look like a scholar.


    Though scholarly, his eyes were proud and he stood out from the crowd. He looked toward the Qin palace emotionlessly as if the sacred palace was just a normal building. The other person behind him was proud too, looking at the palace contemptuously.


    Seeing the two, people began to doubt whether they came for congratulations. They didn''t show much respect.


    When the black dragon flew over their heads, its roars filled the sky. It stopped outside the palace and hovered in the sky. The soldiers guarding the palace were confused.


    Seeing the two newcomers entering the palace, a soldier asked, "Who are you?"


    No one responded. The two figures didn''t even look at him. Being overlooked made the soldier frown��not because of being ignored but because it showed that the newcomers were powerful enough to do so. However, they were guards for the palace. If the newcomers ignored them, it meant that they did not come with friendly intentions.


    But why would they come to the ceremony for Qin Yu to be conferred as the crown prince, if not to give congratulations?


    The soldiers couldn''t figure out the reason. No one dared to make trouble on this occasion. Even those top forces of Eastern Barren Territory didn''t dare to do so.


    The figure in white stood on the dragon, facing the Qin palace, and said loudly, "I am Gu Dongliu from the Cottage, coming to visit your Majesty."


    Hearing the voice, everyone trembled. They kept looking up to the figure in the sky silently.


    Gu Dongliu was the third disciple of the Cottage, one of the talents from Eastern Barren Territory. He was at the same level as Qin Yu, the new crown prince.


    If somebody else came in this way, he would be thought of as a rude visitor. But this man could absolutely be this way because he was Gu Dongliu.


    Just like the edict, his voice filled the sky. It traveled into the palace and was heard by everyone, including the king and the strong cultivators. The people of top forces were all stunned.


    The Cottage had come.


    Gu Dongliu had come.


    Just as they had predicted, the Cottage wouldn''t rest as they had supposed. They just didn''t expect that Gu Dongliu would come so soon.


    The people of Qin Dynasty frowned, especially those who had been present, including the king''s grandson and Qin Mengruo. Why did the Cottage come at this moment and cause such a sensation? Didn''t they know that this was a big day for the crown prince?


    Or did Gu Dongliu know about the ceremony but not care at all?


    The cultivators from Donghua Clan were uncomfortable as well. They knew what Gu Dongliu came for.


    The king, sitting at the throne, was shocked. He was told what happened yesterday but he still didn''t expect the Cottage to come so aggressively.


    "Welcome."


    The king of Qin Dynasty spoke loudly. His voice resounded through the palace. Even with a long distance between each other, the two could still have a conversation.


    Gu Dongliu walked straight into the palace but the black dragon and the other person waited outside.


    Soon, Gu Dongliu arrived at the location of the ceremony. He walked through the crowd to the king. He didn''t even look at people of Donghua Clan around him.


    "Your Majesty." Gu Dongliu stood before the throne and bowed. He was polite like a scholar but his innate haughtiness was still undisguised to the king.


    "Why are you late?" The king smiled.


    "Our Cottage was invited to the ceremony so my two juniors came. However, my junior was attacked by someone. Your Majesty, do you know about this?"


    People were all stunned. Gu Dongliu was really direct and went straight to the point.


    "I heard about that. I apologize for being a bad host and allowing the young people from the Donghua Clan and from the Cottage to have conflicts," the king responded lightly.


    "Was the Qin Dynasty involved?" Gu Dongliu asked directly and sharply. This was his style.


    The king looked at Gu Dongliu while Gu Dongliu looked back at him. Beside the king, Qin Yu also looked at the one at the same level as him.


    "Gu Dongliu, what are you implying?"


    "Nothing. However, my junior was mistreated in the Qin palace so I must ask. If this has nothing to do with your Qin Dynasty, then you won''t mind if I take someone today, right?" Gu Dongliu was still looking at the king.


    Hearing this, people of Donghua Clan all looked uncomfortable.


    Gu Dongliu directly said to the king that he came to take someone. Everyone knew who the one in question was. Gu Dongliu truly did not respect the Donghua Clan.


    All the top forces were speechless after hearing that he came for taking someone. Even the king''s face changed a little. This was the day of the crown prince but Gu Dongliu came not for congratulating but taking someone. Was he joking?


    But Gu Dongliu never joked. He just didn''t respect the king at all!

 240 Questioning

    Chapter 240: Questioning


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The atmosphere was slightly awkward. People all looked at Gu Dongliu.


    There were few people who dared to ask the king of Qin to hand over somebody like Gu Dongliu did. Two battles made the Cottage as well as its spirit known to all. Everyone knew how arrogant those people from the Cottage were. They witnessed it again at this moment. But this time, Gu Dongliu was confronted with the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan.


    "Today, everybody here is my guest." The king looked at Gu Dongliu. He didn''t respond directly but replaced his gentle smile with a serious look.


    Since Gu Dongliu was so bold, the king was not going to play kind. What the king just said was already a response. His attitude was very clear.


    Since everybody here was the king''s guest, Gu Dongliu was not allowed to take anybody away.


    Gu Dongliu bowed to the king. Though he was proud, he behaved in a very proper manner.


    "It seems that even guests have differences," Gu Dongliu said calmly. People soon knew what he meant. People from the Cottage were also guests here but were mistreated by the nobles of the Qin Dynasty.


    During the guqin concert, people of the Donghua Clan bullied people from the Cottage and nobody stopped them. But at this moment, Gu Dongliu was stopped. Apparently, there were differences between guests.


    The king frowned. Gu Dongliu continued saying, "Since it is so, I won''t disturb the ceremony anymore. Goodbye" Gu Dongliu turned around, looked at the stand and called, "Junior, let''s go."


    "Okay." Ye Futian stood up and walked to Gu Dongliu. Together they stepped away. The two''s backs looked lonely but proud. Gu Dongliu was arrogant but acted appropriately. No matter how tough he was, he couldn''t disrespect the king. However, would the Cottage call it an end?


    The king''s grandson, Qin Li, sneered. The Qin Dynasty was not the top power of Eastern Barren Territory but was even stronger than the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    If the Cottage could take anything they wanted, it would be a joke.


    People from the Donghua Clan looked indifferent but were actually very indignant. Gu Dongliu was so outstanding. Compared with him, the Donghua Clan seemed too ordinary. They couldn''t bear this.


    He Jiang stared at Gu Dongliu''s back coldly. He was the one who had hurt Yu Sheng badly. He was the one that Gu Dongliu was looking for.


    Gu Dongliu was wild. How did he dare to take someone at the ceremony right before the king? Of course he would fail.


    "The ceremony is over. We shall leave as well," Situ Wu from the College stood up and said to the king at this moment. Then the people of the College departed.


    The king wanted to suppress the Cottage but actually, the College was also his goal. Situ Wu knew that no matter what, the Cottage belonged to the College though sometimes the Cottage was so famous that it seemed an independent clan. Since Gu Dongliu left, the College would naturally leave as well.


    "We shall also leave," people from the Sword Saint Mountain also said, bowing.


    The Sword Saint was a god for the people of the Sword Saint Mountain. He established this clan and turned it into a top power. It wasn''t easy but he succeeded. He was also the first disciple of the Cottage. Therefore, the Cottage was also a sacred place for them. Their god came from the Cottage and became known to all.


    People from the Sword Saint Mountain knew few disciples from the Cottage, but they knew Gu Dongliu very well. Gu Dongliu had been to the Sword Saint Mountain a few times and had good talks with the Sword Saint. The two were very close.


    Gu Dongliu made his stance clear. The Sword Saint Mountain would naturally support him.


    The king frowned. Just then, the people from the Liu Kingdom also rose to depart and the king''s eyes turned cold.


    The Liu Kingdom was also on his side?


    As the three top powers all left, the atmosphere became a little weird.


    But the king recovered quickly and commented, "Young people are really proud. I could see that from the Cottage''s disciples. Qin Yu is the next king of the Qin Dynasty. Young people are the leaders of the future."


    People smiled and nodded. They had their own thoughts but no one else left. It was unnecessary to offend the king on this occasion.


    After a while, someone came and bowed, "Your Majesty."


    "What''s the matter?" The king glanced at the comer.


    "Gu Dongliu didn''t leave," the man reported while bowing.


    The king''s expression changed and the others were confused. "Where is he?" he asked.


    "He is standing outside the palace, looking in this direction."


    The king''s grandson, Qin Li''s smile disappeared. He looked uncomfortable. Qin Yu frowned and looked outside with sharp eyes. Was Gu Donliu challenging the Qin Dynasty?


    Everyone''s eyes flashed. This was what the Cottage''s disciples should be like��resorting to force after peaceful means. He had tried peaceful means and made his stance clear that he was not going to disturb the ceremony so he waited outside of the Qin Palace. He wasn''t breaking any rule.


    ��


    At this time, a black dragon flew outside the palace with two people on its back. They were Ye Futian and Xue Ye.


    There were two disciples from the Cottage��Gu Dongliu and Xue Ye. Luo Fan didn''t come this time. Because Yu Sheng was badly wounded, he needed to cook for Yu Sheng and help him recover. Before the black dragon was a figure in white standing in the air. It was Gu Dongliu.


    Outside the palace, people downstairs were looking up to Gu Dongliu with a strange look.


    Not long ago when Gu Dongliu stepped into the palace, people thought he was invited here to the ceremony. But soon he left and took a person with. This person was very handsome and young. He seemed to be just 18-years-old. People seemed to have guessed who he was. He was Ye Futian, who became famous in the Barren Ancient World and then was enrolled into the Cottage.


    Recently, he was in the spotlight. Everyone was talking about him, especially after Qin Li made that comment about him. But they didn''t know what had happened in the palace last night. Only those top powers knew. Even so, they still guessed something from the present scene.


    Instead of attending this ceremony, the Cottage''s people were coming here for other reasons. Following behind the Cottage, the College, Sword Saint Mountain, and Liu Kingdom all walked out.


    The disciples of the Sword Saint Mountain bowed to Gu Dongliu and said, "We have informed the Mountain but before getting the response, we can do nothing right now."


    "I understand. Just watch," Gu Dongliu said.


    The people of Sword Saint Mountain nodded and stood to the side. The College and Liu Kingdom also stood to the side. The Liu Kingdom''s prince and princess were close to Ye Futian but they couldn''t intervene either. Their departure was already enough to make their attitude clear.


    After another while, a line of strong cultivators came out from the Qin Palace led by, not the king, but Qin Yu.


    Qin Yu was now the Qin Dynasty''s crown prince and was equal to Gu Dongliu. He was the most appropriate one to deal with this. It would be better for the king to stay in the palace.


    People of the Donghua Clan and other clans stood behind Qin Yu, looking at the figure in white. They seemed to see the Sword Saint standing above the Fuyun Sword Clan so many years ago.


    "Gu Dongliu, what are you doing?" Qin Yu asked coldly, raising his head and looking at the other.


    Gu Dongliu arched an eyebrow and asked, "What do you mean?"


    The two pairs of eyes were both sharp as if they were colliding with each other.


    "The king is inside, so I walked out. Now, why are you here? Or is it because the Qin Dynasty has indeed something to do with this issue?" Gu Dongliu questioned coldly.


    This question was hard to answer.


    Qin Yu couldn''t say that the Qin Dynasty was involved in this and admit that two top powers joined hands to fight against a young disciple from the Cottage, could he?


    It was worth mentioning that the Cottage was also the king''s guest. If he did admit it, it would affect the Qin Dynasty''s image. However, if he said they didn''t take part in this thing, he was turning back to the Donghua Clan.


    "We are outside of the palace," Qin Yu responded without answering his question.


    "It''s funny. Our Cottage''s disciple was bullied by the Donghua Clan''s noble but nobody stood out to stop it. My fifth brother told me that your people even stopped him from fighting back." Gu Dongliu''s tone grew sharper.


    He continued his accusation, "Now, I am just waiting outside the palace and you are going to protect the Donghua Clan? Your Highness, please explain."


    Hearing Gu Dongliu''s words, people outside were shocked. Had this really happened inside the palace? Did the Donghua Clan''s noble attack the Cottage''s disciple?


    Gu Dongliu from the Cottage was coming to fight back but the Qin Dynasty intended to protect the Donghua Clan.


    All forces looked at Gu Dongliu. They found that this disciple of the Cottage was not only gifted but also eloquent. There was no fault in Gu Dongliu''s words. This was indeed the Qin Dynasty''s wrong.


    The Qin Dynasty didn''t stop the Donghua Clan from attacking the Cottage''s disciple. And this time, the Cottage''s people were waiting outside to fight back; there was no excuse for the Qin Dynasty to get involved.


    Gu Dongliu looked at Qin Yu coldly and continued, "If Your Highness insists to help the Donghua Clan and refuses to explain, then could I understand that as you helping the Donghua Clan to bully my Cottage''s disciple?

 241 The Fourth Disciple of the Cottage

    Chapter 241: The Fourth Disciple of the Cottage


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Gu Dongliu''s words froze the atmosphere.


    Everybody looked up at that figure in white. Even knowing it was the Donghua Clan and Qin Dynasty who bullied the disciple of the Cottage, Gu Dongliu still came for revenge. If the Qin Dynasty intercepted to protect the Donghua Clan, it would mean that the Qin Dynasty admitted to being involved.


    Gu Dongliu was pressing the Qin Dynasty to make choice. People were curious about what Gu Dongliu would do if the Qin Dynasty admitted it. Both the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan were among the top three powers in the Eastern Barren Territory. If they joined hands, even the Cottage could resist them. Therefore, would the Cottage directly declare the war? The other forces did not dare to do that but people never knew what the Cottage''s next step was.


    Qin Yu kept staring at Gu Dongliu who threatened him, the new crown prince, with only one sentence.


    This was the third disciple of the Cottage, Gu Dongliu.


    "When our disciple was bullied in the palace, the Qin Dynasty didn''t intervene. Therefore, I hope that you will also stay clear of what I am going to do or you must be the accomplice," Gu Dongliu said lightly. "The Cottage came to the ceremony with sincerity. If Qin Dynasty is really the accomplice, we won''t just let it go."


    Saying this, Gu Dongliu walked toward the Donghua Clan. Suddenly, an invisible power broke out from his body and covered the whole space.


    Did Gu Dongliu really dare to attack? The strong cultivators of Donghua Clan stared at Gu Dongliu coldly.


    Whoosh. Countless people stared at that man in white, their hearts clenching. Confronted with two top powers, he showed no fear but acted directly.


    Was this who Gu Dongliu was?


    He didn''t care whether the Qin Dynasty would help the Donghua Clan. As long as they offered help, they were the accomplice. Then, he had enough reason to fight them. As for the Donghua Clan, he didn''t even need to talk to them before fighting since the fact was very obvious to all.


    He just needed to take that person.


    The Nobles of the Donghua Clan stepped out. Many of them were very strong. They wanted to see what kind of ability Gu Dongliu had.


    "It is said that the third disciple of the Cottage is excellent but not many people have experienced it. It seems that we have the chance now to find out how strong you can be." A strong upper-level Noble walked out with a shocking noble intent. Spiritual Qi went wild around him and the space became incomparably intense. An invisible force rushed toward Gu Dongliu.


    Even people standing afar could sense that horrible pressure. A Noble cultivator was indeed terrifying. However, Gu Dongliu seemed to be unaware. He looked up indifferently as if there was nothing there. His eyes seemed to release a beam of the demon light which made his eyes more profound. At the same time, an invisible spiritual power appeared.


    That Noble felt an invisible pressure against him and the figure of Gu Dongliu was magnified indefinitely in his mind.


    The scholarly man in white floated in the air like a god.


    It was not only him. The other Nobles of the Donghua Clan behind him felt the same. There was a long distance between them and Gu Dongliu but they felt as if he was standing before them, face to face.


    "See what I have?" Gu Dongliu sneered. "Do you qualify?"


    Gu Dongliu''s voice sounded so mighty to those strong nobles.


    Do you qualify? Qualify�� The sound kept repeating in their minds. Gu Dongliu''s figure would not leave their vision.


    "Leave," Gu Dongliu uttered.


    As the word "leave" resounded in the Noble''s mind, an invisible force pierced into him. The voice of Gu Dongliu hit him like lighting and he grunted in pain. Blood burst from his mouth and he was forced back to the rest of the nobles.


    "This��" People were all shocked by what they had seen. Just like the Noble once said, Gu Dongliu was famous but few people had seen him fight.


    They were fortunate to witness it now.


    Most people involuntarily looked at Qian Shanmu behind the strong cultivators of Donghua Clan. He was claimed to be the best at Rhythmic Sorcery among the young generation. At this moment, Gu Dongliu''s voice was transformed into rhythm attacks, which was really incomparable.


    It was clear that Gu Dongliu was an extremely powerful Spiritual Mandate Sorcerer.


    "Who is the bully? Will the Dognhua Clan give the bully to me or should I find him by myself?" Gu Dongliu asked indifferently, ignoring the nobles of the Donghua Clan. Up to now, he still had no idea who was the bully. But no matter whom it was, he would find out and take him away.


    He Jiang looked extremely embarrassed. He was part of the Donghua Clan, one of the top powers. He didn''t expect that Gu Dongliu could be so bold. Moreover, he was afraid that nobody in the Donghua clan could stop Gu Dongliu.


    Scanning them, Gu Dongliu fixed his eyes on He Jiang as if he could find the bully only by judging their eyes and looks.


    "You?" Gu Dongliu asked. He Jiang was so embarrassed that he dared not respond directly.


    Seeing this, Qin Yu frowned. He didn''t expect that the Donghua Clan could be so vulnerable. However, Gu Dongliu''s sharp words made it impossible for him to stop this.


    Gu Dongliu continued walking forward. The Donghua Clan seemed to be frozen. Every step the man in white made was like a beat to their hearts.


    At this moment, a line of figures came appeared the sky and looked downward.


    "Gu Dongliu." A cold voice was heard. Gu Dongliu looked up to the sky behind him.


    "How dare you?" an old Noble said. His voice resounded through the air like thunder. An invisible pressure rushed to Gu Dongliu like a hand pushing down.


    Seeing this, Gu Dongliu shot into that hand like lightning. Accompanied by a loud bang, that handprint was shattered and destroyed. Gu Dongliu rushed directly towards the strong cultivators of the Donghua Clan in the sky. The members of the Donghua Clan here were all strong Nobles. All kinds of horrible attacks were issued at once, blocking the sun.


    Seeing this scene, Qin Yu was relieved. Before this day, Qin Yu had warned the Donghua Clan that since they should have the mightiness the top power of the Eastern Barren Territory should have. The people here at this time were indeed very strong.


    He Jiang was relieved too. That old man was his master uncle who had monstrous strength. Moreover, many people here were top nobles in the Eastern Barren Territory. They should be strong enough to deal with Gu Dongliu. However, facing such strong attacks, Gu Dongliu didn''t escape. Instead, he moved straight forward. Every attack heading toward that white figure was dispelled and transformed into violent Spiritual Qi.


    People were all shocked by this scene. The strong cultivators of the Donghua Clan attacked again while Gu Dongliu still made no resistance. He continued walking in the sky as if his figure was transformed into an illusory shadow.


    Boom. When he took another step forward, those figures in the sky stopped. The Nobles who had arrived stiffened and lost their fierce momentum. Their faces were purple as if they were suffering from very strong pressure.


    Seeing this, the strong cultivators of the Donghua Clan below stepped out, wanting to join hands with people in the sky to fight against Gu Dongliu. He was too strong.


    "Stop!" someone called coolly. The strong cultivators of the Donghua Clan looked up to the sky and saw a proud figure walk out above the black dragon.


    Xue Ye also looked like a scholar. Looking at the Donghua Clan, his expression turned strange and he asked, "Is this how you bullied my brother yesterday?"


    An ancient book appeared behind Xue Ye as soon as he spoke. Brilliant light radiated from the book. Like a treasured scroll, it was dazzling. This could be his Dharma.


    The book opened automatically and pages rushed out one by one. For a moment, the pages flew around Xue Ye, surrounding him like a sea of paper.


    "Thousands of Books to Read," Xue Ye said slowly. The pages of the ancient book flew directly toward the strong cultivators of the Donghua Clan.


    Suddenly, one of the pages was set aflame. It turned into a fire dragon, soaring toward the enemy. Another page turned into a mountain, crushing down to the enemy. Yet another page turned to ice and froze everything.


    In an instant, all kinds of images and attacks rushed to the people of the Donghua Clan. Countless people were frozen in shock, their hearts trembling.


    Two battles made the Cottage known to all. One was First Disciple Sword Saint''s battle with the Fuyun Sword Clan. The second was Third Disciple Gu Dongliu''s defeat of one of the top powers in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The two disciples of the Cottage were very famous in the Eastern Barren Territory. Everyone knew them. However, people knew that the fourth disciple of the Cottage was called Xue Ye but had never seen him fight.


    This seemed to be Xue Ye''s first battle down the mountain.


    At that moment, everyone seemed to see the birth of another man who would shake the world!

 242 Who Dares to Bully?

    Chapter 242: Who Dares to Bully?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Dharma book transformed into ten thousand scrolls and flew out. Every page transformed into a powerful spell. One attack was like a thousand spells. How powerful was this talent? How exactly did the disciples of the Cottage cultivate?


    Even Ye Futian, standing on the black dragon, was shocked by his fourth senior brother and his eyes flashed.


    Second Senior Sister had told Fourth Senior Brother to transcribe the books and Ye Futian had laughed that he would never finish. But now he wondered if he''d really only been transcribing.


    He thought of Yu Sheng''s words. Third Senior Brother had said that transcribing, cooking, and chopping firewood was all cultivation.


    Thinking of how Fifth Senior Brother''s power was fire, Ye Futian felt speechless. Who said that the Cottage didn''t teach their disciples how to cultivate?


    They were taught according to their needs. They seemed to have started cultivating as soon as they entered the Cottage. Even eating was a type of cultivation.


    There were ten thousand spells in the scrolls. Countless spells came to life at once; many of them were powerful. They all swept towards the Donghua Clan. Some of them were like spell scrolls where each page was a different one.


    Though there were many people from the Donghua Clan and fought at once, they were still surrounded by spells.


    "The thing the Cottage is least afraid of is facing a large enemy," Xue Yue said nonchalantly. He still stood in place. All the Spiritual Qi seemed to have turned into a windstorm. The book pages were like a vortex, violently swallowing Spiritual Qi to turn into spells.


    Everyone was speechless. There were only eight disciples from the Cottage but each showed that they were the best of the best. Many of the pages flew towards one direction��towards He Jiang.


    Seeing all the pages coming, He Jiang retreated furiously. He was only a low-level Noble. Luo Fan, the fifth disciple of the Cottage, had easily defeated him. The fourth disciple was even stronger. He definitely was no match.


    Xue Ye stood in the air. Powerful spiritual energy engulfed the space, and he cast many spells. Spiritual energy was the basis of sorcery. If Xue Ye could instantaneously cast so many spells, his spiritual energy was definitely extraordinary. His control of spells was definitely strong.


    Xue Ye was a pure sorcerer. He didn''t study martial arts and didn''t need to waste energy on that. His spells could fill in for all weaknesses.


    The Donghua Clan members were all trapped in the spells, struggling furiously. Some powerful Nobles stepped out to charge towards Xue Ye. However, he just smiled. Waving a hand, more book pages flew out.


    One transformed into a horrible tornado. The sky became dark, collapsing onto everything. At the same time, countless pages melted into the tornado. Fire, lightning, and golden swords instantly appeared in the windstorm.


    This terrifying tornado went forward like the end of the world.


    Powerful sorcerers could combine spells of different elements and cast them together. With Xue Ye''s talent, he could do this well. Now, the combined spell was terrifying even for Nobles.


    "Retreat!" All lower level Nobles retreated quickly when seeing the incoming windstorm. However, it swept past at a shocking speed. There were pathetic cries.


    One Noble was stabbed in the gut by a golden sword released by the windstorm. Blood flowed out. Some people were struck by lightning, their entire body turning black and their hair standing up. They felt numb all over.


    He Jiang hid at the back of the crowd and tried to escape. However, the pages followed him directly. They transformed into a weight that made the sky and earth sink down. He Jiang''s speed slowed too. At the same time, golden ropes swept towards him, circling in the air. It sealed off all escape routes.


    "You still want to escape?" Xue Ye asked indifferently. He was enveloped in the spell made from the pages. He stepped out and appeared inside the windstorm he''d cast. He walked with the storm through the crowd of Donghua Clan Nobles.


    Everyone retreated; no one dared to block him.


    In only a moment, Xue Ye was before He Jiang. The golden rope wrapped around He Jiang tightly. His face paled considerably.


    "Let go of him." The Donghua Clan''s cultivators grouped again. Their auras were furious as they surrounded Xue Ye.


    "Are you kidding?" Xue Ye scanned them and mockery filled his eyes. "Mistreating my juniors when you''re only in the Noble Plane. Did you forget the Cottage exists?"


    The people in the distance were shaken. The fourth disciple of the Cottage had come and he was another powerful figure. His personality was different from Gu Dongliu. While Gu Dongliu was sharp, Xue Ye was indifferent but arrogant. He didn''t seem to care about anyone. Though they were different, they had the same proudness. It seemed to be the Cottage''s temperament.


    "Gu Dongliu, is the Cottage trying to make a scene?" a Donghua Clan cultivator in the air said to him.


    Gu Dongliu didn''t attack them. Merely standing there was able to put terror in everyone. No one dared to act recklessly.


    There was no need for fighting. Just him standing there was enough.


    Gu Dongliu gazed at him coolly, not feeling the need to reply. His arrogant eyes were filled with disdain.


    Did the Donghua Clan expect this would happen when they bullied Yu Sheng and Ye Futian? Since they hurt the two, they would have to pay. Since they already committed the crime, there was no more need for small talk.


    Xue Ye had He Jiang''s body tied and he walked forward casually. The book remained in the air. Thousands of pages danced with the wind, releasing shocking spells at any time.


    His steps were as light as him. He didn''t care about the strong cultivators of the Donghua Clan around him at all.


    He Jiang''s expression was as horrible as it could be. As a Noble in the Donghua Clan, he obviously had his own pride. Who in the Eastern Barren Territory, other than the Qin Dynasty and College, would dare to look down on him? He was high up wherever he went. But now, he was tied up by the Cottage''s disciple like a criminal. There were so many people from the Donghua Clan here but no one could save him. It was depressing.


    "Third Brother, how should we punish him?" Xue Ye asked, looking up at the white-clad figure in the air.


    Countless eyes looked up at once. Punish? Was the Cottage prepared to punish a Donghua Clan Noble here?


    "Gu Dongliu, do not destroy the harmony too much," Qin Yu looked up and said.


    "Crown Prince, you should say that to the Donghua Clan," Gu Dongliu said indifferently. Then he uttered coldly, "Disable him."


    Countless hearts shook in the vast space. A Noble figure from the Donghua Clan was extremely respected no matter where in the Eastern Barren Territory. Who dared to disrespect him? But today, outside the Qin palace, Gu Dongliu''s punishment to him was only two words��disable him.


    He would disable a Donghua Noble on the spot.


    "Gu��Dong��liu��" In the air, the elder''s voice was so heavy. Only Gu Dongliu dared to do this. Only he would disable a Donghua Noble before everyone.


    "Okay." Xue Ye nodded and then gazed at He Jiang.


    At this moment, He Jiang just felt cold. He looked at Xue Ye''s look of disdain and knew that he dared to do so.


    The frightening ropes transformed into the sharpest blades and dug straight into He Jiang''s body. In an instant, He Jiang grunted and his face was ashen.


    Xue Ye didn''t just dare to do so. He did it without any delay. He Jiang''s body was icy and he couldn''t help but shiver. In addition to pain, there was terror. For a cultivator to have his fate taken away, it was worse than death. He would rather die.


    A Noble needed courage to live after being disabled.


    The horrible power went wild inside his body, destroying all his veins.


    "No!" He Jiang roared. He was a Noble of the Donghua Clan. He was high and mighty, looking down on countless people. But now he would be disabled just because he had slapped Yu Sheng?


    He couldn''t accept this. Golden light went crazy on him. He roared in pain and yelled in anger.


    Everyone watched him with pounding hearts. This was the Cottage��the proud Cottage. No one could mistreat the Cottage, not even the Donghua Clan. So what if the Donghua Clan was the number one clan? Even the cultivators of the top forces were shocked. They would never forget this scene.


    Who would dare to bully the Cottage after this?


    The Cottage had shown their style with two battles in the past. Today was the third battle. News of it would spread throughout the Donghua Clan just like the previous two.


    The Donghua Clan watched powerlessly as their Noble was disabled. They rose up and down in anger, clenching their fists. However, Gu Dongliu and Xue Yue were like a thousand-man army.


    If the Cottage were like the other clans, how could they gain their reputation with just the few of them?


    Qin Yu and the others from the Qin Dynasty were aghast as well. They weren''t directly involved but anyone could notice some things. He Jiang was disabled right outside the Qin palace. This made things difficult for the Qin Dynasty.


    Gu Dongliu was equal to Qin Yu but was even more arrogant and cruel. As for his words, Gu Dongliu completely ignored him.


    Time would tell. This event wasn''t over yet.


    Ye Futian quietly watched all this from the back of the black dragon.


    Gu Dongliu had gone to the Cangye Kingdom to invite him into the Cottage. At that time, he''d said that no one in the Eastern Barren Territory would dare to mistreat the Cottage''s disciple. He had been very proud.


    Now, Gu Dongliu and Xue Ye had used their actions to prove these words. No one dared to bully the Cottage��not even the top clan, the Donghua Clan, or the Qin Dynasty!

 243 The Junior Is More Thoughtful

    Chapter 243: The Junior Is More Thoughtful


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    He Jiang fell to the ground. With his cultivation gone, his expression was like dead ashes. He knew what this meant for him.


    The people of the Donghua Clan looked at Gu Dongliu and Xue Ye. Someone said coldly, "Gu Dongliu, have you thought of the consequences?"


    Gu Dongliu walked out and returned to the dragon. Xue Ye gazed at the Donghua disciple coolly with disdain.


    Consequence? Did the Donghua Clan not think of consequences when they attacked the Cottage?


    "Declare war as you wish," Gu Dongliu said. Then the black dragon roared and its body shook. It turned and shot into the clouds, flying towards the distance.


    Countless eyes stared at the figure in white. As it disappeared, they still couldn''t calm down.


    Only the Cottage could act like this in the Eastern Barren Territory. Only they could disrespect the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan like this.


    Declare war as you wish.


    They didn''t fear war even if they were alone.


    The people from the College glanced at the Donghua Clan. Situ Wu said, "Let''s go." Then they left immediately.


    The Sword Saint Mountain and Liu Kingdom departed as well. The people of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan remained in their spots. Many of the members of top forces had odd expressions. Was this really the titling ceremony for the Qin Dynasty''s crown prince? Qin Yu''s name should be the one spreading throughout on a day like this. However, people will only remember that the Cottage had come from afar and disabled a Donghua Noble.


    They would only remember Gu Dongliu, the third disciple of the Cottage, and the arrogant scholar Xue Ye.


    Someone would be remembered today. However, it was not Qin Yu who had become crown prince. The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan were only the supporting characters.


    Qian Shanmu stared at the figures that had long disappeared. The things that had happened made him feel many things. It had started because of him and Qin Mengruo. The gradually evolving clash between two large forces ended with the Donghua Clan''s temporary defeat.


    Of course, what really moved him wasn''t the Donghua Clan''s humiliation. Rather, it was the Cottage''s disciples.


    No matter if it was Gu Dongliu, Xue Yue, or even Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, they were all so extraordinary. Was this what the Cottage was��the sacred and inextinguishable legend of the Eastern Barren Territory?


    He had seen Gu Dongliu''s arrogance today. Compared to his senior brother, Gu Dongliu''s aura was sharper. They often cultivated together so he obviously was very familiar. Now, he wanted to know if the legendary senior brother or Gu Dongliu was stronger.


    The Donghua Clan''s Noble was disabled today and planted the seed for the future. He had a feeling that the two would definitely have a battle.


    Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian obviously didn''t know what he was thinking. Even if they did, they wouldn''t care. The Cottage acted as they pleased.


    On the dragon''s back, Gu Dongliu stood beside Ye Futian and said, "This isn''t over."


    Ye Futian was surprised and looked at him. Gu Dongliu faced forward with his hands behind his back and said nonchalantly, "The Qin Dynasty won''t admit it but they were definitely involved. Luo Fan told me that they must have allied with the Donghua Clan to repress the Cottage, which is why they started with you. However, I am not strong enough to defeat the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. Thus, I can only disable the one who hurt Yu Sheng. I''m sorry."


    "Third Brother." Ye Futian felt warm inside. His third and fourth senior brothers had traveled such great lengths today to the Qin palace. They helped take revenge for him and Yu Sheng, even disabling a Noble, but still felt they didn''t do enough.


    "Junior." Gu Dongliu turned to gaze at him and said, "The teacher once said something to all the disciples. I will now repeat it to you."


    Ye Futian nodded.


    "He said that, when walking in the world, the most important thing is to respect your teacher," Gu Dongliu said.


    Ye Futian was surprised and then shocked. As expected of the Cottage''s teacher��impressive.


    Gu Dongliu didn''t think anything was wrong with it, as if it was a fact. He then said, "Other than that, you must use reason. What is reason? Reason is the rules of the world. If the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan declared war, you have to bear any consequences if you agree. The Cottage will not take revenge for you. That is the way. However, they didn''t follow the rules, so reason is on the side of the Cottage. Thus, the Cottage has nothing to fear. If there is anything more powerful than ''reason,'' then it is your fist. If your fist isn''t strong enough, you have no right to talk about reason. Therefore, the most basic thing of life is cultivation."


    Ye Futian was utterly impressed. They were simple phrases but sounded like truths of the universe. He grew even more curious about his teacher.


    The Cottage had fought many times, showing their demeanor and this demeanor must have been created by the teacher he had not yet met. But thinking of the first sentence, he felt awkward. What kind of person was the teacher?


    "I''ll keep it in mind." Ye Futian nodded.


    "There''s something else," Gu Dongliu said. "Before coming, I''d wanted Yu Sheng to become the ninth disciple of the Cottage."


    Ye Futian was shocked but quickly smiled. The moment Yu Sheng entered the Cottage, he understood that Yu Sheng would become a true disciple there as well. Of course, his feelings towards the Cottage weren''t the same as now.


    At that time, the Cottage was mysterious and powerful to him. Now, it was warm, like a home. He was definitely happy if Yu Sheng could be part of it.


    "But Yu Sheng rejected me," Gu Dongliu continued. Ye Futian''s smile froze and stared at the other in shock. "He said that if you''re here, he''s here," Gu Dongliu said slowly.


    Ye Futian muttered, "That idiot."


    "Indeed." Gu Dongliu chuckled. "However, I like him. Even if he''s not the ninth disciple, he''s still a part of us."


    "Thank you, Third Senior Brother." Ye Futian chuckled too.


    "Why don''t you thank me?" Xue Ye asked sadly, moving closer to them.


    "Fourth Senior Brother, I think that you should transcribe more books when you get back," Ye Futian said with a smile. These words were genuine. To Fourth Senior Brother, transcribing books must be very useful.


    "We''re done," Xue Ye said in mock anger. Then he looked to Gu Dongliu and grinned. "Third Senior Brother, I kind of miss our teacher. I want to go find him."


    Looking at him, Gu Dongliu smiled and patted Xue Ye''s shoulder. "Junior, he must be very touched but there''s no need to go look for him. If he doesn''t want to come back, no one can find him."


    "Then I want to go into the society to experience the love and hate of the world," Xue Ye continued.


    "What about me is not enough for you?" Gu Dongliu asked with his hands behind his back.


    Xue Ye froze. He quickly smiled and said, "No, Senior, you''re so talented and wise."


    "Okay." Gu Dongliu nodded. "Then what about Second Senior Sister isn''t enough for you?"


    Xue Ye flinched and quickly said, "Senior, I''ll go back to the Cottage. I still need to get advice from Second Senior Sister."


    "You still know your manners." Gu Dongliu nodded but Xue Ye felt dispirited.


    Ye Futian gaped at this, his expression a bit dramatic. This was too impressive. Xue Ye seemed to sense something. He glanced at Ye Futian and glared.


    Ye Futian looked away as if he saw nothing.


    ��


    When they returned to the Cottage, Yu Sheng''s injury was much better. Fifth Senior Brother must have given him many nutrients.


    Second Senior Sister glanced at them. She didn''t ask what had happened. Since Gu Dongliu had gone personally, they wouldn''t have returned if the crisis wasn''t solved. Therefore, she didn''t need to ask.


    Her pretty eyes falling on Ye Futian, she said, "Junior, come over."


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded and walked before her. "Senior Sister," he greeted.


    "Did you get hurt?" Zhuge Hui studied him.


    "No, I''m great," Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    "That''s good. Did your Fifth Senior Brother not take good care of you this time?" Zhuge Hui asked.


    Hearing this, Luo Fan looked up from his cooking and shook his head furiously.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian saw Luo Fan''s movements and quickly chuckled. "He took care of me well. What happened was pure accident."


    Luo Fan let out a relieved sigh but quickly looked jealous and hurt. "Senior Sister," he said pitifully. "Why are you so biased?"


    Life was so hard on the mountain.


    "I finally have a junior brother to take care of," the Second Senior Sister said, grinning. Beside her, Yi Xiaoshi made a face, feeling extremely frustrated. He had been the youngest before Ye Futian came but he didn''t get this treatment.


    Why was the difference so obvious?


    Ye Futian shook his head. "Of the eight disciples in the Cottage, only Second and Sixth Senior Sister are girls. You two are like fairies. I should be the one protecting you and lessening your worries."


    Luo Fan and Yi Xiaoshi gaped at Ye Futian. They finally knew why there was a difference.


    As expected, Second Senior Sister smiled brilliantly. "Junior, you''re more thoughtful than the others."


    Depressed, Luo Fan lowered his head and continued feeding the fire. He missed the days off the mountain. He didn''t know when he could go out again.


    ��


    Many days later, the Qin palace event spread through the Eastern Barren Territory. It caused a huge splash and countless people discussed it.


    They didn''t really know what had happened previously inside the palace. Only those top forces knew the details. However, the Cottage disabling a Donghua Noble outside the palace was enough to shake the entire region.


    Countless eyes focused on the Donghua Clan. As a group that wanted to become the top clan, would the Donghua Clan let this go?


    No matter what happened earlier, this had nothing to do with right or wrong anymore. It was a fight for power between these two forces.


    Just as everyone was focused on them, countless people walked out of the Donghua Clan one day!

 244 A Great Disturbance

    Chapter 244: A Great Disturbance


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Eastern Barren Territory''s eyes were all focused on the countless people who walked out of the Donghua Clan. However, instead of the College, they went towards the Qin Dynasty imperial city. After that, there was news that Qian Shanmu, the genius talent of the Donghua Clan, had gone to the imperial city to propose to Princess Qin Mengruo. The Qin Dynasty agreed.


    All of the Eastern Barren Territory was shaken by this news. Even though the top forces had felt this day would come when they were at the palace, they didn''t expect it would come so quickly.


    The Donghua Clan had proposed before the fiasco with the Noble was solved. Everyone obviously knew what this meant��an even more powerful force was about to be born.


    The Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and College made up the three points of the heart of the Eastern Barren Territory. Now, the first two were united and the spear was pointed towards the College now.


    This was not all. More important news spread afterward.


    Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo''s wedding was set to be the first day of the next year. To celebrate the marriage, the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan would build a holy land together. It would be located in the Chaoge City in the heart of the Eastern Barren Territory. It would be a college. In this college, the teachers would be the strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. The students could choose freely to enter either or neither of the forces.


    This news really shook everyone. They vaguely felt that a storm was about to sweep across the Eastern Barren Territory. There were many colleges but the first that everyone thought of when hearing that word was the Eastern Barren College. It was a sacred land for cultivation.


    Now, the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan would build a new college together. The significance went without saying.


    It finally dawned on the forces. They vaguely understood everything that had happened in the Qin Imperial City.


    The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan had purposely repressed the College and tried to destroy the legendary reputation of the Cottage. It was foreshadowing this. Unfortunately, it didn''t succeed. Otherwise, the Cottage getting humiliated would definitely create more excitement for this announcement and cause even bigger waves. Even so, the news still shook up the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan announced that the college would be constructed within three months. After that, it would start enrolling students. The opening ceremony would be held on the first day of the next year. It was the same day as Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo''s wedding, which would also be held in Chaoge City.


    There was even more. The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan continued on to announce that all top forces could participate. They invited the forces to establish the college together and make it the unrivaled holy land for cultivation. Their disciples could also study in the college and have friendly competitions.


    This stirred up the various top forces. They all wondered if they should join.


    If the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan were successful, they may truly threaten the Eastern Barren College''s status. They may even replace it.


    All the headlines threw the Eastern Barren Territory into a frenzy. For so many years, all the top talents would choose the College as their first choice. Furthermore, something like the Cottage existed.


    Last year, many great geniuses had appeared in the Ancient Barren World��Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Xiao Wuji. The first two joined the Cottage while Xiao Wuji joined the College. The Cottage was part of the College.


    The three of them had all become disciples of the College. Clearly, the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan didn''t like this. If this trend continued and the College had the ambition to take over, they could call up all their disciples and it would be terrifying.


    The only reason why the College hadn''t instilled any such fear now was because it wasn''t like a clan. However, the Sword Saint and the Sword Saint Mountain existed. It acted like a warning bell. If something happened to the Cottage, the Sword Saint would definitely get involved. If more people like him existed and were called upon by the College, they could possibly take over the entire Eastern Barren Territory.


    Many disciples of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan walked towards all directions, seemingly headed to the various top forces. Not long ago, a similar scene had happened when at the ceremony for the Qin Dynasty''s crown prince. What was it for now? Many people already had premonitions.


    ��


    While the world was being shaken up, the Cottage was like in another world. It didn''t care about the mundane matters. Inside the small hut in the bamboo forest, a group sat on the ground. There was a clean piece of cloth on the ground. A fragrant odor came from it, making one drool. Cultivators didn''t need to eat every day. Meals were unimportant. However, it was important in the Cottage. Eating was also cultivation.


    "I''m so hungry," Yi Xiaoshi muttered. "Second Sister, can we eat now?"


    "Xiaoshi, you''re so fat. Don''t eat that much," Second Senior Sister advised. Yi Xiaoshi nodded. It seemed that she still cared about him and didn''t want him to get fat.


    "Junior, eat more." Second Senior Sister moved her chopsticks first and got meat for Ye Futian.


    Yi Xiaoshi blinked. He''d been happy for nothing��


    "Thank you, Senior Sister. You should eat more too," Ye Futian said, his eyes bright.


    "No, I''m fat and can''t eat too much." Second Senior Sister smiled.


    "No way. Your figure is flawless. If you go down the mountain, so many girls will be jealous," Ye Futian said. "During the trip, I heard that the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory are Qin Mengruo, Chu Yaoyao, and Hua Qingqing. I saw two of them but they''re not as pretty as you. If you go down the mountain, you''ll definitely steal their spotlight."


    Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and Yi Xiaoshi were dumbfounded at these words. They looked side to side and then started eating quietly. You had to be born with this talent. They could only worship him.


    Zhuge Hui''s smile grew even more brilliant. At this time, Gu Dongliu got some food for her. "You like eating this so stop talking."


    Zhuge Hui glanced at him, her smile still there, but she ignored him. The other disciples were used to this.


    "Senior Sister Xing''er, you eat more too." Ye Futian got some food for Beitang Xing''er.


    Beitang Xing''er smiled sweetly. "Thank you, Junior."


    Xue Ye and the others had a feeling that their status would get even lower, completely destroyed by their junior.


    "Second Senior Sister, Third Senior Brother, did you hear what happened down there?" Yi Xiaoshi asked.


    "What?" Gu Dongliu asked.


    "The marriage between the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan," Yi Xiaoshi replied. "They''ll also build a college in Chaoge City."


    "I know." Gu Dongliu nodded lightly and didn''t continue. Yi Xiaoshi was speechless. Perhaps to Gu Dongliu, only Zhuge Hui was important.


    Apparently, this news had stirred up waves in the outside world. It caused a commotion even in the other mountains of the College. Only the Cottage was like in their own world.


    "Earlier, Qin Yu said some things to me, basically wanting to ally with the Cottage or College," Luo Fan said. "I rejected him. They''d probably been planning this already."


    "Big ambitions but small scale," Gu Dongliu commented.


    "Yes. After all, not everyone is as idealistic as our teacher." Luo Fan chuckled. Ye Futian glanced at him. Luo Fan had mentioned the teacher''s ideal.


    What ideal could he have?


    Third Senior Brother had said that the other''s scale was too small. Then what was the teacher''s like?


    As they were chatting, a group arrived below Book Mountain. They looked up the steps that led to the mountain. The College and Cottage were situated there. One of the people walked up to the steps and called, "The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan are here to visit the College."


    The voice traveled up the steps and landed on the Book Mountain, inside the College. All the students were shaken. The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan had come to visit. The alliance between these two top forces had caused such an uproar and now, they''d come to visit personally.


    No one on the Book Mountain replied. The group waited quietly below the steps. They could vaguely see many students on the other end of the steps, looking down.


    Then a voice said, "Welcome."


    "We are here for two things and will leave as soon as we finish. We won''t go up to disturb you all," the strong cultivator said. His voice resounded in the air and echoed through the mountain.


    "First," the man began, "Princess Qin Mengruo of the Qin Dynasty will hold her wedding in Chaoge City on the first day of year 10002. On that day, the Dongqin College will also hold its opening ceremony. We will invite all top forces to attend that day and witness the start of a glorious era. We are here now to invite the Eastern Barren College."


    The new college would be named the Dongqin College, with "dong" meaning "eastern." The name seemed to come from the Donghua Clan and Qin Dynasty but was also a jab at the Eastern Barren College''s name.


    "Okay, we will attend," the voice up above said.


    "Secondly, Lu Nantian of the Donghua Clan will challenge Gu Dongliu of the Cottage on that day in the Chaoge City," the man spoke again.


    This time, countless hearts trembled. This was even more newsworthy than the wedding. Lu Nantian of the Donghua Clan would challenge Gu Dongliu of the Cottage. They were both definite talents of the Eastern Barren Territory, respected and worshipped by many. They were both top figures now and stood where many looked up to.


    They would soon fight each other.


    Merely this news was enough to shake up the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Will Gu Dongliu of the Cottage accept this challenge?" The soundwaves rolled and swept through the sky towards the top of Book Mountain.


    Even the disciples of the College shuddered inwardly. Countless eyes turned to the Cottage. That part of the mountain seemed extremely serene. But then, a voice cut through the serenity and traveled down.


    "Okay."


    The voice only uttered one word. The Cottage accepted!

 245 No Status

    Chapter 245: No Status


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Every generation of the Eastern Barren Territory produced great talents. Strong cultivators abounded. However, there were only three most legendary figures in Gu Dongliu''s generation. They had all produced brilliant histories.


    Gu Dongliu, the third disciple of the Cottage.


    Lu Nantian of the Donghua Clan.


    Crown Prince Qin Yu of the Qin Dynasty.


    These three of equal status were now at the top level of the Eastern Barren Territory. With Qin Yu becoming crown prince, it was obvious their generation would begin to rule the Territory. These three were the leaders of the generation.


    Lu Nantian was the most famous of the Donghua Clan. He was unrivaled. He had once defeated top figures of the same generation from other forces. Even people from previous generations had lost to him. He fought fewer and fewer these years because fewer people were qualified. There were only two in the vast Eastern Barren Territory��Gu Dongliu and Qin Yu.


    Now, Lu Nantian had challenged Gu Dongliu, third disciple of the Cottage. This news quickly spread throughout the Eastern Barren Territory, causing fervor. A legendary battle would naturally be watched by all. Was this the Donghua Clan''s response? If Lu Nantian had challenged publicly, did it mean that he had the confidence to win? Even though he had a brilliant record and had never lost, no one doubted that this fight would be his most difficult one.


    After the Donghua Clan and Qin Dynasty left, the College was in a fervor. Not only did the two team up to establish the Dongqin College to compete with them, now Lu Nantian came to challenge Gu Dongliu. This was all building up to something. They knew that Gu Dongliu couldn''t lose this fight.


    This was not only a fight involving Gu Dongliu. It affected the entire College. One could imagine the consequence if the Cottage''s Gu Dongliu lost to Lu Nantian on the opening ceremony of the Dongqin Ceremony. However, the Cottage was still quiet. After that voice traveled down from it, everything went back to normal. They returned to their own duties.


    It was still a long while before the next year. Cultivating was the most important task.


    Ye Futian began cultivating as well. The trip down the mountain had motivated him greatly. The Dharma Plane was way too weak in the Eastern Barren Territory. If not for his status as part of the Cottage, he probably wouldn''t even be able to walk out there. Any random strong cultivator would be able to kill him.


    That was the main reason why the top talents all joined different forces. If they cultivated alone, it would be dangerous no matter how talented they were.


    The Book Cave of the Cottage contained tens of thousands of books. Second Senior Sister and Third Senior Brother didn''t ask about Ye Futian''s cultivation. They just told him to read more.


    The books spanned every topic. He was a Full-Attribute Sorcerer so reading was definitely good. He could cultivate different elements as well as elemental martial arts. He could even learn to be like Fourth Senior Brother and cast spells of different elements together to be even more powerful. This was the advantage of Full-Attribute Sorcerers.


    After a few days, the Black Wind Eagle came to the Cottage too. With Ye Futian''s rising status, Second Senior Sister obviously wouldn''t care about this. The Black Wind Eagle had meat every meal and was overjoyed. It was so nourishing.


    What made Ye Futian speechless was that it would often go to the cave that trapped many Noble demons to show off. So what if they were demon kings? They still had to work every day. Only the Black Wind Eagle could go freely in the Cottage. Whenever the demon kings saw its annoying gaze, they would get the urge to eat it. It was a bastard.


    The days of cultivation passed extremely quickly. Without realizing, months passed and Ye Futian reached the Fifth-level Dharma Plane.


    The shocking news from months ago was still affecting the Eastern Barren Territory. This storm was destined to continue.


    In the Chaoge City, the Dongqin College was already completed and had started enrolling students. Anyone who was talented enough could study there. Entering the college meant that they could freely choose between the Donghua Clan and Qin Dynasty. With this attractiveness, one could imagine the commotion it caused. Countless people headed towards Chaoge City. However, this seemed to have nothing to do with Ye Futian. That day, the Black Wind Eagle flew to the distance from the Book Mountain. There were two people on its back��Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    They''d been busy with cultivating and hadn''t gone to see Master and Masteress.


    The Divine Capital Ancient City was extremely vast and hundreds of miles away from the Book Mountain. There was a neighborhood there and the Black Wind Eagle landed in a certain mansion. This place was still named the Guqin Gardens. There were too many memories in the Donghai City so they used the same name to commemorate it.


    "Master, Masteress, we''re here!" Ye Futian jumped off the Black Wind Eagle and went to one courtyard.


    Hua Fengliu was playing his guqin. Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan were beside him. This scene was beautiful. Seeing this, Ye Futian smiled brightly. He was obviously happy to see them all.


    The music stopped and Hua Fengliu looked up. He seemed to have aged backward since his time at the Qingzhou City and Donghai City. He was extremely handsome. Ye Futian felt that only his master''s looks were close to his.


    "Master, you''re living in paradise," Ye Futian said while smiling at Masteress and Tang Lan.


    "Stop your smart mouth. I heard you made trouble in the Qin palace." Tang Lan glared at him. He was so improper and teased them as soon as he arrived.


    "Aunt Tang, you already know?" Ye Futian smiled timidly.


    "I''m afraid everyone here knows." Tang Lan gave him a look.


    Book Mountain was in the suburbs of the Divine Capital. The Cottage''s Gu Dongliu had descended into the Qin Dynasty with mightiness. Such shocking news had spread all over the Eastern Barren Territory, let alone the Divine Capital.


    "Aunt Tang, you know me. I never look for trouble," Ye Futian said pitifully.


    "Futian, were you mistreated in the Qin Dynasty?" Nandou Wenyin asked gently.


    "Masteress, you''re the best." Touched, Ye Futian said, "Don''t worry. Third Senior Brother already took revenge for me."


    "Of course you weren''t mistreated. You''re not the one who was hurt," a cold voice said. Yi Xiang and Yi Qingxuan walked over. Yi Xiang glared at Ye Futian and asked, "Why do you always involve my student when you make trouble?"


    Ye Futian was speechless. "You always think I''m the one who caused trouble."


    The old man was too biased.


    "Yu Sheng is an honest man. Of course it''s you," Yi Xiang said.


    "Teacher, it has nothing to do with Futian," Yu Sheng said.


    Yi Xiang gave his student a look. He felt helpless. This kid always sided with Yu Sheng and Yi Xiang couldn''t do anything about it.


    Yi Qingxuan walked to Yu Sheng and looked up lovingly. "Were you hurt badly?"


    Yu Sheng smiled broadly. "Don''t worry. The food at the Cottage is great. Not only am I okay, I''m stronger than before."


    "That''s good." Yi Qingxuan smiled sweetly and took Yu Sheng''s hand.


    "Ah, I miss my Fox," Ye Futian muttered as he watched their public displays of affection. He wondered how Jieyu was doing at the Moon Clan and if she was mistreated. However, Jieyu was so clever. She was definitely doing fine.


    "All you think about is your fox," Tang Lan said. "Now that you and Yu Sheng are so famous in the College, you''re probably settled. When will you help get my student in too?"


    Behind her, Tang Wan''s eyes flashed. Her gentle eyes fell upon Ye Futian. She still vaguely remembered bringing Ye Futian into the Donghai Academy back then. Ye Futian had fought all the way in. It was not even two years later but Ye Futian''s name was known all over the Eastern Barren Territory. He developed so quickly that she felt powerless.


    Ye Futian gaped at Tang Lan. The guys at the College didn''t like him that much. It was no easy task to bring Tang Wan in. As for the Cottage��how could he even bring it up?


    He''d witnessed the talents of those at the Cottage. They didn''t even invite someone like Xiao Wuji.


    "Aunt Tang, that''s��" Ye Futian didn''t know how to respond.


    "Look at your student. He''s not reliable at all," Tang Lan said to Hua Fengliu.


    Ye Futian felt wronged. "It''s hard for me to come down. Why do you keep bullying me?"


    Why did the other disciples all want to go down the mountain but he liked being up there more? His status was too low in this family. Second Senior Sister loved him more.


    "Brother Yi, Brother Fengliu," a bright voice suddenly said. Yi Xiang and Hua Fengliu looked outside and saw two figures walk in. They strode over directly.


    Ye Futian glanced at them. One was middle-aged and the other was a young man around 20 years old. The younger was quite handsome and had a nice temperament. When his gaze fell on Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, his eyebrow arched. His eyes contained slight animosity. Though it was just a flash, Ye Futian was sensitive and caught it.


    It was their first meeting. Why did he treat them like enemies?


    "Brother Nangong, how come you came over?" Yi Xiang asked.


    "It''s embarrassing but this kid missed a beautiful girl. I came over with him." The newcomer chuckled. The young man beside him glanced at Yi Qingxuan beside Yu Sheng. Then his eyes fell on Tang Wan.


    "Wan''er, there''s a gathering tomorrow. I want to invite you," he said to Tang Wan.


    Tang Wan glanced at him and shook her head immediately. "I won''t go."


    "It''s a gathering within my family. Many people will go. It''s the birthday of an elder so a lot of people will go. Nangong Jiao has returned from the College too and they''ll attend tomorrow. At that time, there''ll be many talented people from our generation. You can go take a look."


    The young man spoke with a smile as if flirting with Tang Wan.


    Ye Futian blinked. Someone was pursuing Tang Wan!

 246 Letter

    Chapter 246: Letter


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Tang Wan was warm and gentle like water. It was very normal for her to have pursuers. If she could find someone suitable, Ye Futian would naturally be happy for him. As for the Nangong Jiao that the young man had mentioned, he seemed to have heard of her before. The girl he''d climbed Book Mountain with was named Nangong Jiao, right? She hadn''t left a strong impression. Ye Futian just remembered that she was a bit proud.


    "No, it''s not suitable for me to go to a family gathering," Tang Wan said gently. She smiled and shook her head. She seemed to be uninterested in this young man.


    "No worries. Qingxuan can go too," the young man continued. "We''re all in the same clan and Nangong Jiao had also brought her fellow disciples from the College to celebrate together. This is a very rare chance. Not only will you see geniuses, you''ll also see some Nobles."


    "I''m not going," Yi Qingxuan said and leaned into Yu Sheng. What did this have to do with her?


    "Same clan?" Ye Futian was confused and glanced at Hua Fengliu and Tang Lan.


    Tang Lan glared at him. She hadn''t given him a nice look yet, which frustrated Ye Futian. Why did she hate him? What did he do wrong?


    "There are many academies in the Divine Capital. We are now teaching at the Zhen Wu Academy. Tang Wan and Qingxuan are also studying there," Tang Lan said to Ye Futian. "Brother Nangong is also a teacher there."


    "I see." Ye Futian nodded. His master obviously wouldn''t stay at home all the time. The Divine Capital was one of the three major cities in the Eastern Barren Territory. It was very busy and naturally had many academies. Though they couldn''t be compared with the top forces, they were still skilled. His master could teach there without any problems. While teaching, he could learn as well.


    "Brother Fengliu, why have I never seen these two before?" Nangong Cheng asked.


    "This is my student. That is Yi Xiang''s student," Hua Fengliu answered with a smile. "Since Wan''er doesn''t want to go, then she won''t go. Thank you for your invitation."


    The young man''s eyes flashed. He scanned Ye Futian, the animosity growing.


    Yi Qingxuan and Yu Sheng''s relationship was already clear. Yi Xiang''s student was with his daughter. Then if Tang Wan was Tang Lan''s student and Ye Futian was Hua Fengliu''s student, perhaps��


    Ye Futian was also extremely attractive.


    "I see." Nangong Cheng smiled and nodded. He didn''t mind. Hua Fengliu''s cultivation was extraordinary while those who studied in the Zhen Wu Academy were mostly lower. His student wouldn''t be that important either, though his outer appearance was nice. He looked like a ladies'' man, just like Hua Fengliu.


    The two beauties besides Hua Fengliu were very pretty, especially Nandou Wenyin.


    "Brother Fengliu, you don''t have to reject me so quickly," Nangong Cheng said cheerily. "You can bring your family to the Nangong Family''s gathering and gain some experiences. You can see what our family is like and the younger ones can learn some things."


    Nangong Cheng''s tone was calm but there was an undertone of superiority. After all, he was from the Nangong Family. Even if he wasn''t from the heir''s line, he was still better than Hua Fengliu. If not for the fact that he seemed to have a treasure, Nangong Cheng wouldn''t try so hard.


    "It''s rare for my student to come back so we want to spend more time together. We won''t go disturb the Nangong Family." Hua Fengliu shook his head. His student didn''t need to go to the Nangong Family to learn. This guy had made a mess in the Qin Dynasty earlier. It was rare for someone in the Eastern Barren Territory who didn''t know him.


    "Brother Fengliu, you''re really embarrassing me." Nangong Cheng was clearly unhappy. Hua Fengliu was giving him a hard time. His son had feelings for Tang Wan and he''d planned to have his son marry her after succeeding with this event. If Tang Wan had the honor to marry into the Nangong Family, Hua Fengliu and the others would naturally rely on them. At that time, it would be much easier to get that treasure.


    It would take some time but no one could say anything about it. It was killing two birds with one stone. However, Hua Fengliu and Tang Wan seemed to not know their place.


    Ye Futian frowned. Their attitude completely changed once they were rejected. "Are you really important?" Ye Futian glanced at Nangong Cheng.


    Nangong Cheng scanned him and smiled thinly. "I am speaking with your teacher. You''re in no place to speak. Where are your manners?"


    "You''re not qualified to talk about manners." Nandou Wenyin''s expression turned cold too.


    Nangong Cheng glanced at Nandou Wenyin and smirked. They really were so proud. "Since we are cultivating in the same place, I won''t take offense in this. It is Tang Wan''s luck to be noticed by my son. You can decide what you should do. Goodbye," Nangong Cheng said indifferently. Then he turned and walked away. His eyes glinted.


    If they were that arrogant, they would have to wait and see.


    Ye Futian watched the receding backsides. His eyes turned cold. Was the Nangong Family that arrogant? Not even the Cottage would act like this outside.


    "Master, why are you friends with these people?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You think everyone''s like you, cultivating happily in the Cottage and not needing to care about anything in the outside world?" Tang Lan said. "The Nangong Family is a Noble family in the Divine Capital. They''re very powerful. Even if we don''t want to be friends, we can''t offend them either."


    "Aunt Tang, you can tell them I''m Master''s student. Then they won''t bother you all," Ye Futian said.


    "Don''t you know that your master likes his dignity?" Tang Lan glanced at Hua Fengliu and Ye Futian was embarrassed. He obviously knew his master''s personality.


    It was normal to brag about your teacher. However, bragging about your student�� Hua Fengliu probably felt it was humiliating. Furthermore, Ye Futian was now a famous person in the Eastern Barren Territory. If his master bragged about him outside, it could cause negativity. Thinking of this, Ye Futian felt bad. It seemed that he wasn''t being a very good student.


    "We must solve this," Yi Xiang said now. "Nangong Cheng keeps bothering us because he discovered accidentally that your master has a cultivating treasure. It''s the stone statue you gave him. Nangong Cheng had asked about it curiously and acted really close to us. He also had his son pursue Tang Wan for this. You saw earlier. He''ll try other tactics."


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He saw that the other didn''t have good intentions but this was easy to solve.


    "How about I go back and ask if you all can cultivate in the mountain," he said to Hua Fengliu.


    "Nonsense," Hua Fengliu uttered. Looking at him, he said, "You only have one teacher in the Cottage. What will we do up there?"


    What was the Cottage? It was a holy land for cultivation. There weren''t even ten people in it now but Ye Futian wanted them all to go? What was that for? He wouldn''t go even if the Cottage agreed.


    "Even though you have a bad temper, you''re still my master. No matter how many people teach me, your status won''t go down." Seeing Hua Fengliu look at him, Ye Futian chuckled. "Are you touched?"


    "There''s nothing to be touched about," Hua Fengliu said. "Even if I''m not your master, I''m still your father-in-law."


    With that, Hua Fengliu gave Ye Futian a look. Status? A father-in-law''s status was quite high, right?


    Ye Futian stared at Hua Fengliu. He had to admit defeat. However, he smiled brightly and went to massage Hua Fengliu''s shoulders. "Father-in-law, you''re right. When can I get married to Jieyu?"


    "Depends on my mood," Hua Fengliu said while enjoying the massage. Let''s see if this guy dares to act proud in front of me.


    "Then how do you feel now?"


    "Not that great," Hua Fengliu answered lazily. Ye Futian felt depressed. They all said that mothers-in-law were difficult but his Masteress loved him. His Master-plus-father-in-law was impossible.


    Ye Futian didn''t leave. He planned on spending a few days with Master and Masteress. Jieyu wasn''t here while he was always at the Cottage. He wasn''t doing his duties as a student.


    Yu Sheng hadn''t seen Qingxuan in a long while either.


    ��


    The next day was the birthday celebration of a Nangong elder. There were many guests. Countless people came to congratulate him. As a Noble family, the Nangong Family had a rich heritage and many connections.


    Many people wanted to take part in the birthday celebration. Furthermore, they''d heard that the daughter had come back. It seemed to be her grandfather''s birthday. A lot of people wanted to see how talented she was for entering the College.


    Apparently, not only was Nangong Jiao talented, she was also very pretty. Many boys were excited to see her true appearance.


    People were outside the mansion, busily welcoming the guests. Just then, a Black Wind Eagle flew down and landed outside. It walked towards the girl welcoming guests.


    "Sir, what is your name?" the servant asked with a smile. The guests had to report their titles. Not everyone could enter the Nangong Family.


    "Help me pass this letter to Nangong Jiao." The man was Ye Futian. He took out a letter and gave it to the servant.


    The servant''s eyes flashed and looked up at Ye Futian. "Uh��"


    Nangong Jiao was so high-up that the servant could rarely see her, let alone pass a stranger''s letter.


    "This letter is from the Book Mountain. Just do what I said," Ye Futian said nonchalantly. After giving the letter, he flew away on the Black Wind Eagle.


    He didn''t want to waste time with someone from the Nangong Family. A letter was enough.


    The servant watched Ye Futian''s figure with sparkling eyes. The man was so handsome and didn''t seem to have been joking. Thinking of this, she turned and entered the Nangong Family!

 247 The Name of Ye Futian

    Chapter 247: The Name of Ye Futian


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Today, it was the birthday of an elder whose position was very high in the Nangong Family. At the place where the birthday banquet was held, all the seats were filled with guests and the cultivators from various places had come to send their wishes.


    At the moment, all the people from the older generation were gathered in one place while the people from the younger generation were at another place. At the place where the younger people were at, a few were clustered by their admirers. The person who sat in the best spot was the princess of the Nangong Family��Nangong Jiao.


    Apart from Nangong Jiao, there were a few others present. They were her friends in the College and were invited to her grandfather''s birthday banquet to complement the joyful atmosphere. After all, College disciples had a very high reputation outside. Even if they were only juniors, nobody would dare to look down on them.


    Nangong Jiao was chatting casually with the others, and a faint arrogance could always be felt from her. In the past, she was already the genius of the Nangong Family. After she entered the College, her status rose even higher.


    Not far away from them, Nangong Li looked at that charming face and was somewhat envious. That was his cousin, but her position was far higher than him.


    "This is the genius lady. Do you see for yourself? In the future, cultivate harder. Although you are only at the Zhen Wu Academy, even if you are weaker than Nangong Jiao, your performance still cannot be too bad in the family," his father, Nangong Cheng, said. "Hua Fengliu seems to have a cultivation treasure. Last time, I felt a strong noble will. After I get it, it will definitely help you to cultivate."


    Nangong Li nodded and said, "Then Tang Wan..."


    "It''s only a woman. If you really want, after we get rid of Hua Fengliu and the rest, you have more than enough chances. However, don''t spend too much time and effort on women," Nangong Cheng said in a serious tone. He also liked beautiful ladies. For example, Hua Fengliu''s wife was very pretty and coveted by many. However, he understood well that in the cultivation world, one''s own strength was the key to one''s status all the time. If he had the powers and status, he would be able to get all kinds of women. Therefore, it was not worth it to deliberately spend too much time on this, although it was alright to just play for fun.


    Thinking of Nandou Wenyin, an evil light sparkled in his eyes. If there is a chance...


    Withdrawing from his thoughts, he said to Nangong Li, "Go there. Try to have a good relationship with Nangong Jiao."


    "Understood." Nangong Li nodded and then walked towards the place where Nangong Jiao was at. Approaching Nangong Jiao, he smiled and said, "Cousin, after these few months, you look more and more lively. You are indeed a model for the young generation in the Nangong Family."


    Nangong Jiao raised her head to glance at Nangong Li, and nodded gently. She turned her eyes away and did not reply. The Nangong Family was very big and there were many people around; she was not familiar with everyone.


    "The grandfather is here," Nangong Jiao said softly. Nangong Li looked rather awkward, but then he was relieved. With Nangong Jiao''s status, he did not have to feel embarrassed.


    "Let''s go there," Nangong Jiao said. Immediately, the group walked towards the elder.


    "Jiao Jiao, you are here." Seeing Nangong Jiao walking over, the elder smiled.


    "Grandfather, these are all my friends. They cultivate in the College," Nangong Jiao introduced.


    "Great. All of you are young talents. Today, it''s my pleasure to meet all of you at my birthday banquet," the elder said politely.


    "Senior, you are too polite." The few people folded their hands to salute. At the moment, many elders started to gather around. Smiling, they said, "The disciples of the College indeed have a different temperament."


    "Right. All of them are very graceful and elegant." Many people said praises one after another. The few College disciples looked very calm and were not emotionally affected by the praises, causing people to appreciate them even further in their hearts.


    At this moment, a guard walked over from the distance and said, "Master, a maidservant outside said that a person had sent a letter to us. The person said that he is from the Book Mountain and the letter is for Ms. Jiao."


    Nangong Jiao''s eyes sparkled and she said, "Ask her to come here."


    There was only the College on the Book Mountain. The letter is from the Book Mountain? She felt somewhat strange.


    After a while, a maidservant walked over and handed her the letter. Nangong Jiao asked, "Who sent the letter here?"


    "A young man who is about 18 years old. His temperament seems unusual," the maidservant said. If it was not for his outstanding temperament, she would not deliver the letter in the first place.


    Nangong Jiao was even more puzzled, after which she opened the letter. The contents of the letter were very short and only had a few lines. When she saw the name of the sender, a strange look instantly flashed across her eyes.


    Raising her head, she looked at the maidservant and asked, "What does the person look like?"


    The maidservant replied softly, "Very nice. I seldom see such a handsome man."


    Nangong Jiao nodded. Seems like I can''t be wrong.


    Thinking about the event at the Qin Dynasty a few months ago, Nangong Jiao''s expression immediately turned cold.


    "What happened?" the elder beside her asked.


    "Grandfather, take a look." Nangong Jiao passed the letter to the elder.


    The elder scanned the letter and an eye-catching light was released suddenly from his eyes. He asked, "Are you sure it''s him?"


    "Should be correct." Nangong Jiao nodded.


    In an instant, the elder''s look became extremely cold.


    B*stard.


    The event that happened in the Qin Imperial City a few months ago was already long known by everyone. Because the Donghua Clan bullied some Cottage disciples, the Cottage third disciple, Gu Dongliu, and the fourth disciple went to the Qin Dynasty directly and permanently disabled a noble from the Donghua Clan.


    Now, that blind b*stard actually offended him. Does he want to drag the Nangong Family into this? Thinking of this, he suppressed the anger in his heart and said, "Where are Nangong Cheng and his son?"


    In the distance, Nangong Cheng was stunned. He walked over to the elder with Nangong Li and saluted. "Uncle, what is it?"


    "I heard that your son is chasing a lady recently?" The elder''s voice was very calm as if nothing had happened.


    Nangong Cheng was stunned. How did he know about this? he thought.


    "Indeed he is. Uncle, why do you suddenly ask about such a small thing?" Nangong Cheng asked tentatively.


    "Did he succeed?" the elder asked again.


    "No." Nangong Cheng shook his head and was even more puzzled.


    "Humph. What woman actually dares to reject a person from the Nangong Family? Don''t you have any plans?" the elder gave a cold humph and said.


    Nangong was stunned momentarily. He did not know how his uncle knew about this, but it seemed to be great as he had saved himself a lot of trouble.


    "It''s a young lady in the Zhen Wu Academy. Her family was very unyielding and did not care about the Nangong Family at all. I am just planning to solve this issue," Nangong Cheng replied.


    "Oh? How do you plan to solve it?" the elder asked.


    "Uncle, don''t worry. I will handle everything properly." Today, there were many outsiders present. Naturally, he could not say everything directly as it would appear that the Nangong Family was just bullying the rest.


    "Then how about the lady?" the elder asked again.


    "Err..." Nangong Cheng looked around him and did not speak. The elder understood everything at once and only felt very chilly.


    So close. If Nangong Cheng really allowed Nangong Li to do something to the lady forcefully, what would the consequences be?


    It would be unimaginable.


    He did not forget about how the Cottage third disciple became famous. That time, a top-tier family, much stronger than the Nangong Family, was eliminated from the Eastern Barren Territory precisely because of such a seemingly insignificant thing.


    Today, the Nangong Family almost followed in their footsteps.


    "Very good." The concealed anger of the elder finally erupted at the moment. Some coldness was released from his body as he said, "Come. Take down these two and disable them."


    This abrupt voice was like a bolt out of the blue. Nangong Cheng and Nangong Li stood blankly in their spots, feeling flabbergasted. They did not even understand what had happened.


    Disable both of them?


    The people around them were also stunned. What is happening?


    "Uncle..." Nangong Cheng trembled and did not understand what was happening. However, seeing the killing intent flashing in the elder''s cold eyes, he knew that the elder was not joking.


    "Didn''t you hear me?" the elder roared. Not long ago, even the noble from the Donghua Clan was disabled. If he did not do something actively, he would be waiting for the Cottage disciples to come themselves.


    The letter only explained briefly the situation, and was already very polite. However, he did not dare to hesitate at all and had to handle the situation properly.


    "Cancel today''s birthday banquet," the elder continued with a fierce anger.


    A few cultivators from the Nangong Family walked towards Nangong Cheng and Nangong Li. At the moment, the two still did not understand what had happened. However, they did not dare to resist and were taken down very quickly.


    "Uncle, why?" Nangong Cheng shouted.


    "No..." Nangong Li was caught and could not move. Seeming to have realized what was about to happen, his face turned totally pale.


    The guests gathered around them one after another and did not know what had exactly happened. The host of the birthday banquet actually burst into anger suddenly and furthermore, the banquet was also canceled.


    Very soon, miserable screams erupted. Nangong Cheng and Nangong Li were lying weakly on the ground as they were permanently disabled.


    Even at that moment, they still had no clue why they were disabled.


    "Bring them and follow me. Jiao Jiao, you come as well," the elder said. Nangong Jiao nodded. She was a disciple of the College; since Ye Futian had sent the letter to her, it would be better for her to show up and try to remove the dissatisfaction he had towards the Nangong Family.


    Just now, her grandfather deliberately suppressed his anger and asked the questions in order to sound out the precise attitude of Nangong Cheng and Nangong Li. Now they managed to know everything, and she also broke into a sweat with fear. Even though she was a College disciple, she naturally knew what position Ye Futian had at the moment.


    Every Cottage disciple was far more superior than an ordinary College disciple. When a Cottage disciple was bullied, they disabled a noble from the Donghua Clan directly. Apart from the Cottage, who else could do this?


    "This..."


    "Senior, where are you going?" The guests around walked up and asked. The elder had suddenly become angry and canceled the birthday banquet. Obviously, it was because the two who had been disabled had brought a disaster to the family by offending someone. Many people from the Nangong Family also came forward to ask.


    "These two b*stards want to deal with Ye Futian from the Cottage," the elder said in anger. All the people around him were shocked.


    Deal with the Cottage disciple Ye Futian?


    A similar event had happened in the Qin Dynasty not long ago. Everyone in the world had seen the outcome. In addition, that time it was the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan. Now, it was only the Nangong Family.


    "Ye Futian..." Nangong Cheng who had been disabled still could not understand. Then, he thought of one person��the disciple of Hua Fengliu. In this instant, his face turned completely pale!

 248 Apology

    Chapter 248: Apology


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Guqin Gardens, a group of cultivators landed mightily. They were the people from the Nangong Family. Today, the Nangong Family was supposed to hold a birthday banquet. However, because of a letter, the banquet was canceled directly. Many cultivators from the Nangong Family forced Nangong Cheng and his son to come to the Guqin Gardens to apologize. However, they did not see Ye Futian and the rest. There were only two maidservants cleaning the courtyard of the Guqin Gardens.


    According to the maidservants, the people from the Guqin Gardens had gone to the academy. The people from the Nangong Family could only change their route and head to the Zhen Wu Academy.


    The Zhen Wu Academy was in the Divine Capital Ancient City. Although it was inferior to the College, as a cultivation organization in the Divine Capital, it was naturally very powerful as well.


    The academy was expansive and majestic. Strolling in the academy, Ye Futian and his team seemed very leisurely.


    "Although I have grown up, I still feel somewhat familiar with this place. I miss the past," Ye Futian smiled and said. There were many schools and academies in the Divine Prefectures of the East, and almost all the larger cities would have them. He had once cultivated in the academies in the city of Qingzhou and the city of Donghai. Therefore, the scene caused him to recall his memories, as if he had returned to the past.


    "Do you miss your sister Qin Yi or Feng Qingxue?" Hua Fengliu smiled and said. He clearly knew what Ye Futian did in the Qingzhou Academy.


    Hearing Hua Fengliu''s words, Ye Futian looked speechless, then said, "Master, I am only purely a good friend with sister Qin Yi and Feng Qingxue. The thing that I miss the most in the Qingzhou Academy is, of course, getting to know Jieyu and you. Otherwise, I wouldn''t have the achievements I have now."


    Everyone glanced at Ye Futian as if they were already used to it and did not feel strange.


    "Makes sense." Hua Fengliu smiled and nodded.


    "Trainer Hua." Occasionally on their way, young people would pass by and greet Hua Fengliu and the rest. They were the trainers in the academy and naturally many disciples knew them. It was only that in the Zhen Wu Academy, there was not much respect in the eyes of the disciples. After all, Hua Fengliu and the rest were not very famous. In the Zhen Wu Academy, only the very strong trainers were highly respected. Even Yi Xiang, who was previously the head of the School of the Finance Star in Donghai Academy, was only an ordinary trainer here. Instead, Nandou Wenyin and Tang Lan were more popular.


    The group strolled casually in the academy, and Hua Fengliu brought Ye Futian to the academy grounds. There was a large gymnasium where one could cultivate and carry out friendly fights. After that, they went to the lecture zone. The lecture halls in the Zhen Wu Academy were very huge. Some lecture halls were filled with disciples, while others were mostly empty. It depended on whether the trainer was powerful and famous.


    "In the Zhen Wu Academy, apart from opening lectures which academy disciples can attend freely, trainers may also take on some personal disciples to teach. Of course, there are also disciples who want to actively follow the good trainers," Hua Fengliu said.


    "Master, don''t you plan to take on a few more disciples?" Ye Futian asked.


    Hua Fengliu shook his head gently. At the moment, he no longer had such a thought. In the first place, those outstanding geniuses would not look up to him and worship him as a master. Even if they were willing to, he also did not have such a thought. Although he would bicker with Ye Futian frequently, he had taken this particular disciple as his son-in-law.


    "Trainer Hua." At the moment, a teenage girl ran over and looked at Hua Fengliu nervously.


    "Yes?" Hua Fengliu asked.


    Clenching her fist anxiously and looking at Hua Fengliu, she said, "Trainer Hua, I want to worship you as my master."


    Hua Fengliu smiled and replied, "If you want to hear my lectures in the future, you can come anytime."


    "No, I am referring to you becoming my actual master. Last time, I mentioned it to you. You should know," the girl said again.


    "I don''t take on disciples." Hua Fengliu smiled and shook his head. A tinge of disappointed appeared on the face of the girl.


    Ye Futian looked at the girl, and then at his master, and blinked his eyes. It seems that the master is still very attractive.


    "Holier-than-thou." In the distance, a cold voice spread out. A lady said to the girl before Hua Fengliu, "Yuqing, I am willing to take you as my disciple."


    The girl looked at the lady and said softly, "Thank you, Trainer Han, but that won''t be necessary."


    "I really don''t know what you are thinking about." The lady''s age was similar to Nandou Wenyin, and her appearance was quite outstanding as well, although clearly not as good as Nandou Wenyin''s. However, there seemed to be an aura from her body as she glanced at Hua Fengliu and said, "There are many excellent trainers in the academy. Yuqing, why do you need to have such a one-track mind."


    Yuqing smiled bitterly. She always felt that Hua Fengliu was uniquely charming. Although his level was not very high, it felt very comfortable to listen to his lectures.


    Trainer Han took a deep look at Hua Fengliu and said monotonously, "Can you stop being so holier-than-thou? In the whole academy, maybe only you few do not take on disciples."


    "I''m afraid that I will mislead them." Hua Fengliu also did not mind her attitude and smiled.


    Trainer Han did not say anything. Hua Fengliu had spoken so nicely. What could she blame him for?


    "Girl, there are so many trainers in the academy. Why do you need to be so stubborn?" at that moment, a middle-aged man walked over and said to Yuqing.


    "Trainer Mo," Yuqing called.


    "Not many people even go to his lectures, but you want him to become your master? I really don''t know what you are thinking. Isn''t Trainer Han better than him?" Trainer Mo did not look at Hua Fengliu and only said to Yuqing, "Trainer Han really appreciates you. If you become her disciple, I will also teach you when I have time in the future."


    Yuqing''s eyes sparkled as she glanced at Hua Fengliu and then looked at Trainer Han and Trainer Mo. The latter was a rather famous trainer in Zhen Wu Academy and was very strong.


    "Since you have advised me, I am willing to learn under Trainer Han," Yuqing said. Trainer Han smiled and nodded. "Alright. Since you have made your decision, come with me." After she finished speaking, the few walked past Hua Fengliu. Yuqing looked at Hua Fengliu again with some nostalgia in her eyes.


    "Master, why don''t you take any disciples? I feel that it''s not bad," Ye Futian said softly. Hua Fengliu widened his eyes at Ye Futian and said, "You want me to find a junior sister for you?"


    "I..." Ye Futian was speechless.


    Trainer Mo and Trainer Han walked on the path in the academy. At the moment, a faint arrogance could still be seen on the face of Trainer Mo. He disliked Hua Fengliu and his team because their levels were not high, yet they thought that they were morally superior.


    Trainer Mo said, "Such a hypocritical guy."


    "Even though Hua Fengliu is somewhat arrogant, I don''t think he is hypocritical." Trainer Han shook her head and did not agree with his opinion.


    "With such a level, what does he have to be arrogant about? Do you think he can teach any outstanding disciples? It was only because it was Yuqing. Otherwise, who would want to become his disciple?" Trainer Mo gave a cold humph.


    Just as they were speaking, a group of people in front flashed towards them mightily. Seeing the figure who was pale and severely injured, Trainer Han and Trainer Mo''s expressions both changed slightly. Is that Nangong Cheng? Also, he knew the elder at the front. He was an elder in the Nangong Family and had a very high position.


    Walking forward, Trainer Mo bowed and said, "Greeting, senior Nangong. What has happened? What happened to brother Nangong?"


    "Have you seen Hua Fengliu and his group?" the elder asked.


    "I just saw them." Trainer Mo nodded and felt somewhat strange.


    "Where? Can you lead the way?" the elder asked.


    "Sure. I am willing to serve you, senior," Trainer Mo said politely. The Nangong Family was a noble family nearby and had a very huge influence on the academy. However, he did not understand why they were looking for Hua Fengliu. Could it be that Hua Fengliu broke into a conflict with Nangong Cheng and injured him?


    Trainer Han was also puzzled. The three turned around and walked back towards the place where Hua Fengliu was at. At the moment, many people from the Zhen Wu Academy gathered and followed them. Many cultivators from the Nangong Family had come mightily and were looking for Hua Fengliu. Why?


    Ye Futian, Hua Fengliu, and the rest were still strolling around casually and chatting. It was quite rare that they could be so comfortable, apart from the small episode that occurred a while ago which they did not really mind.


    "There." At the moment, a group of strong cultivators was talking at them from the back. Seemed to have felt something, Ye Futian and the rest turned around and saw the people from the Nangong Family walking over.


    "What''s happening?" Seeing Nangong Cheng''s miserable status, Hua Fengliu was somewhat stunned. Just now, Ye Futian had gone out and he did not know what Ye Futian had done.


    Very quickly, the people from the Nangong Family approached them and stopped a short distance away. The elder in front glanced at everyone and then looked at Ye Futian.


    At the moment, another cultivator came over; it was a senior in the academy who heard that the Nangong Family had come and hurried to the place. Seeing Nangong Cheng, the person from the academy frowned and walked forward to take a look at Nangong Cheng, after which he said, "Who did this?"


    "Me," the elder said.


    "Brother Nangong..." The senior from the academy was stunned.


    The elder walked forward and said, "Make them kneel."


    "Yes." The people from the Nangong Family forced Nangong Cheng and his son to walk forward and kneel down on the ground. The two looked at Ye Futian and their faces were as pale as ash. They could not stop feeling regret. How could Hua Fengliu actually have such a disciple?


    If they had known earlier, they would not have dared to plan and think about such ideas.


    "Err..." The people around were all shocked by the actions of the Nangong Family. The elder from the Nangong Family had forced Nangong Cheng and his son to kneel down before Hua Fengliu. What was happening? Hua Fengliu and the rest were merely ordinary trainers.


    Trainer Han and Trainer Mo also looked at the scene, dumbfounded. They felt very confused.


    At the moment, the elder from the Nangong Family walked in front of Ye Futian. He folded his hands and said, "I am Nangong Teng. The people in my family are not well disciplined, and these two have been doing much evil outside. Now, their powers have already been permanently destroyed. Mr. Ye, you can punish them as you wish."


    "Nangong Teng?" Some younger people felt astonished. The second most powerful person from the Nangong Family��Nangong Teng��a strong noble, was actually apologizing to an 18-year-old teenager. Moreover, he was allowing Ye Futian to punish Nangong Cheng freely.


    Who is this young man? Trainer Han and Trainer Mo froze as they stared at Ye Futian. Does this young man beside Hua Fengliu have any identity? Mr. Ye? There should be no families with the surname of ''Ye'' in the Divine Capital.


    Ye Futian had sent the letter and naturally knew that the Nangong Family would help him settle the issue; however, the fact that the Nangong Family paid such close attention was also unexpected.


    "You can just ask my master." Ye Futian took a step back and stood behind Hua Fengliu.


    Nangong Teng''s eyes sparkled and he looked at Hua Fengliu. He had just heard from Nangong Cheng that Ye Futian, whose name had shocked the Eastern Barren Territory, actually had a master who was a trainer in the Zhen Wu Academy.


    Nangong Teng folded his hands at Hua Fengliu to salute and said, "I already know what this b*stard wanted to do. He really cannot be forgiven. Mister, how do you want to handle him? I will surely give you a satisfactory answer."


    The people in the academy all looked at Hua Fengliu in shock. Even if Nangong Teng from the Nangong Family was to face the head of the academy, he would also not need to salute him like this. Hua Fengliu is��


    Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin glanced at Ye Futian. Did this guy do this on purpose? Now, everyone in the Zhen Wu Academy will probably know about this.


    "Nangong Cheng, I know that you had evil intentions and wanted to take something from me. Now, you suffer because of yourself. Why?" Hua Fengliu looked at Nangong Cheng and shook his head. Nangong Cheng''s heart was filled with hatred at the moment.


    "Since he''s your disciple, why didn''t you say it?" Nangong Cheng stared at Hua Fengliu in anger.


    Hearing his words, Hua Fengliu shook his head. Nangong Cheng meant that if Ye Futian was not his disciple, he would be able to do whatever he wished. Although this kind of person was miserable, he did not deserve sympathy.


    "Bring him away," Hua Fengliu waved his hand and said.


    "Chase the both of them out of the Nangong Family. Bring them away." Nangong Teng glanced at Nangong Cheng coldly. This b*stard actually still does not feel regret. Does he want to drag the family into this?


    Someone walked forward and dragged Nangong Cheng and his son away. Everyone was shocked.


    Who exactly is Hua Fengliu''s disciple? Trainer Han and Trainer Mo were both not calm. It turned out that Hua Fengliu did have a personal disciple. Furthermore, it was a person whom even the Nangong Family did not dare to offend.


    The girl Yuqing looked at Hua Fengliu and then at Ye Futian, feeling very disappointed. Actually, is it because I am too weak?


    At the moment, Nangong Jiao walked out from the group and said to Ye Futian, "I am Nangong Jiao. Since you have asked someone to pass the letter to me, you should remember me, right?" She was the star of the Nangong Family, the genius who had entered the College��Nangong Jiao.


    She had also come.


    "Yeah. I do have some impression." Ye Futian nodded gently.


    "After I received the letter, grandfather started to handle this issue immediately. This had indeed been caused by Nangong Cheng and his son, and the Nangong Family absolutely did not even think about dealing with your master and your sister Tang Wan. I hope that you will believe me," Nangong Jiao said. Tang Wan glanced at Ye Futian. Since when did I become his sister?


    As for the people around, they were absolutely shocked. Not only did the second most powerful person from the Nangong Family come to apologize, but Nangong Jiao, a College disciple, came here personally and apologized for the issue as well.


    "This matter will end here," Ye Futian said to Nangong Jiao.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, a smile appeared on the face of Nangong Jiao. Her cold and arrogant demeanor was actually very nice when she smiled. Then, she said, "Thank you."


    "Mr. Ye, I am really grateful that you can understand this. If you have any requests, please tell us. The Nangong Family will surely fulfill it," Nangong Teng folded his hands and said.


    "That won''t be necessary. I said that the matter is already over," Ye Futian said. Only then did the people from the Nangong Family heave a sigh of relief.


    Nangong Teng saluted at Ye Futian again and said, "Today, I am really fortunate to be able to see the young genius who shocked the entire Eastern Barren Territory. I believe that in the future, Mr. Ye, you will also become reputed in the entire world just like the eldest and third disciples from the Cottage. I will leave first." After he finished speaking, he backed away slowly. He turned around, and the people from the Nangong Family left.


    However, everyone''s heart trembled as they looked at Ye Futian in astonishment. The person had shocked the Eastern Barren Territory, was a Cottage disciple, and his surname was Ye. Did they even need to guess who the person was?


    Ye Futian from the Cottage!

 249 Swordmaster

    Chapter 249: Swordmaster


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing the extremely deferential behavior from the Nangong Family, Ye Futian muttered uncontrollably, "Is the Cottage that scary?"


    The second sister is so good, and sister Xing''er is gentle as well. The few brothers are all honest scholars.


    Hearing his words, everyone felt somewhat speechless. The Cottage was obviously not scary, and it was instead a holy land for cultivation where countless people in the Eastern Barren Territory dreamed of going. However, the Cottage would not take in any students at all.


    The deterrent force of the Cottage came from its history of fame. In the past, it became famous because of two battles, and now the battle outside the Qin Imperial Palace would need to be included as well. The people from the Nangong Family offended Ye Futian, so how could they dare not to come and apologize? There were so many warnings from the overturned carts in front of them.


    "Don''t you know it for yourself?" Yi Xiang widened his eyes at Ye Futian. This guy caused the trouble, and now he is acting innocent?


    Thinking about the words that Ye Futian had said in the morning, that he wanted to take a look around the academy, they finally understood that he had clearly planned everything beforehand. It seemed that in the future, they would not be able to stay unnoticed in the academy. Of course, people like Nangong Cheng would also not appear again.


    "Your disciple Yu Sheng is in the Cottage as well. So in the future, wouldn''t everyone be scared of you?" Ye Futian smiled and said.


    At that moment, someone walked over to them. It was an elder of the academy. He looked at Ye Futian, and then glanced at Yu Sheng who was beside Yi Xiang, after which he said, "I heard that during that time, the Cottage juniors Ye Futian and Yu Sheng battled many Dharma Plane cultivators from the Donghua Clan, and this caused all the following events. I did not expect to see you two in the academy today."


    "Senior, you are flattering me." Ye Futian bowed slightly, appearing to be very polite. Then he said, "Even if I have some achievements, it''s all because the two masters have taught me well. Otherwise, I would not be who I am today. This time, I came down from the Book Mountain and know that my master has been cultivating in the academy. Therefore, I came here to take a walk, which caused the subsequent disturbance. I hope that, senior, you will not blame me."


    "It''s only a small matter. Don''t mention it." The elder smiled and waved his hands. Then, he looked at Hua Fengliu and Yi Xiang. "You two have taught such outstanding disciples. However, in the academy, you have only taken on the role of a trainer and do not take in disciples. This is too much."


    Many disciples of the academy who had come looked at Yi Xiang and Hua Fengliu, and their eyes seemed to be sparkling with fire. Hua Fengliu and Yi Xiang always had a low profile in the academy and would not take in disciples. Now it seemed that they just thought the other students were not talented enough.


    "I am used to being quiet and no longer have such a desire." Hua Fengliu smiled and shook his head.


    "Alright, it''s all up to you. I will disturb you no longer. You can continue to take a good stroll in the academy," the elder smiled and said. Then, he left the area.


    The two genius juniors of the Cottage were both disciples taught by the trainers in their academy. It would definitely help the Zhen Wu Academy to gain some reputation outside.


    After the elder left, Trainer Han and Train Mo still looked at Hua Fengliu. Holier-than-thou? They were the masters of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Even if they behaved in a holier-than-thou manner, what could anyone else say?


    Beside them, the look of the girl Yuqing was somewhat dim. Trainer Hua''s disciple was Ye Futian. It was no wonder that he was unwilling to take her on as a disciple.


    "Let''s go," Hua Fengliu said softly. The group turned around and left, continuing to stroll in the academy. Hua Fengliu said to Ye Futian, "Are you pleased now?"


    "No. Master, sometimes I am really envious of you," Ye Futian said, as if he was deep in thought.


    "Envious of me?" Hua Fengliu looked at him.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and smiled at Hua Fengliu. "I am envious that you have such an outstanding disciple."


    Hua Fengliu looked at Ye Futian and said, "Did you come back because you could no longer muddle along on the mountain?"


    "How could that be? The brothers and sisters have been very nice to me," Ye Futian said.


    "It''s alright. Even if you are chased away from the mountain, I will keep you here," Hua Fengliu said earnestly. Ye Futian''s face turned black.


    "Master, I know that you love me the most." Ye Futian could feel his face wet with tears. Was I muddling along that badly?


    ...


    Ye Futian spent a few days with his master. Then, he left the academy and returned to the Cottage to cultivate. There would be a great fight at the start of the next year which would stir up the entire Eastern Barren Territory. Although with his current level there was nothing that he could decide, he still wanted to do something. He had already entered the Fifth-level Dharma Plane at the moment, but it was still too low. Apart from raising his level, there were also a lot of things he needed to learn. Therefore, he should really quieten down and focus for a period of time.


    The days in the Cottage were always so peaceful and harmonious, and there were no disputes here. The second sister could decide on everything, so who dared to quarrel? Of course, Ye Futian''s status in the Cottage was making the rest of the brothers more and more jealous of him. The second sister was really too good to him. As for the third brother, the second sister was still cold and indifferent towards him. This was the business between the second sister and the third brother, and nobody dared to say anything about it, unless they wanted to get a beating.


    Days passed by one by one just like this. Without realizing it, it was already close to the end of the year. The atmosphere of the entire vast Eastern Barren Territory seemed to change. A major event that would stir up the Eastern Barren Territory was about to happen.


    All the top forces were preparing for it.


    At the eastern region of the Eastern Barren Territory, where the mountains pierced into the sky, there were seven summits towering into the clouds, as if they wanted to connect with the heaven. This was where the Fuyun Sword Clan was located at.


    On the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan, a one-armed figure stood above the cloud sea, his eyes closed firmly.


    On top of the cloud sea, nine powerful cultivators were standing in various directions, each holding a sword. Sword wills flew all over the place and even the cloud sea seemed to be splitting apart as ear-piercing noises spread continuously.


    Before a cliff, an elder stood quietly and looked at the many figures above the cloud sea in front of him. An eagle seemed to whizz over in the sky and give a long twitch. At the same moment, sword wills erupted suddenly and fiercely. In just an instant, the terrifying sword wills flooded everything. It was as if countless beams of sword light struck towards the figure who was standing quietly above the cloud sea. The nine figures moved simultaneously and cast various sword techniques from nine different directions.


    The afterimages of sword filled the sky, as if they had turned into a frightening sword matrix. There were no loopholes and no way out. It seemed that just this one strike would kill the person in the middle.


    They struck out their swords at an incredible speed, and their sword wills were extremely fierce. Clearly, they showed no mercy at all. Even though the one-armed swordsman was a personal disciple of the summit lord, since he had chosen to challenge the Nine Execution Sword Matrix, he would still die if he lost.


    This was the cruelest challenge on the seventh summit. In the past, many exceptionally talented swordsmen had died in the Nine Execution Sword Matrix. Therefore, the seventh summit always had the least disciples in the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    The Nine Execution Sword Matrix was undefeatable.


    The one-armed figure finally moved. He raised his head slightly and opened his eyes, glancing at everyone. At the same time, the sword held by his only arm also moved. In an instant, the nine people seemed to notice nine beams of sword light striking towards all of them. The nine people changed their moves immediately in one go, sealing the nine beams of light directly. The Nine Execution Sword Matrix was the strongest battle sword matrix of the seventh summit. It could attack and defend, and there was no way out.


    However, just as they changed their actions, the nine beams of light that they had seen seemed to disappear at once, as if they never existed in the first place. At the same moment, an extremely appalling sword appeared in their minds. Meanwhile, at weak points of their sword techniques, nine beams of light seemed to strike out right beside their swords.


    Thud, thud, thud... Nine noises were heard. Streams of blood bloomed out one after another, and the swords slipped out of the nine cultivators'' hands directly. A blood mark appeared on the sword-yielding hand of each of them.


    The blood marks on the nine people''s hands were exactly the same, as if they were injured by the same beam of sword qi.


    The strongest sword matrix of the seventh summit was destroyed, but no frustration could be seen on their faces at all. Instead, their eyes sparkled as they said to the one-armed young man, "Congratulations, junior."


    "Your sword eyes have already opened. Apart from the summit lord of our seventh summit, finally another person managed to successfully cultivate the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique," someone folded his hand and congratulated.


    Ye Wuchen had only been a part of the Fuyun Sword Clan for less than a year. It was a miracle that he could cultivate the sword eyes. However, according to the summit lord, Wuchen''s talents were actually not that good. There were even people on the seventh summit itself who were more talented swordsmen than Ye Wuchen. Still, the person who managed to cultivate the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique was Ye Wuchen. They knew that apart from cultivation talent, there was another kind of talent called faith and determination. In order to learn the technique, Ye Wuchen had almost become blind, but in the end, he succeeded.


    Just like what the summit lord had said, he was not the most talented swordsman, but he was the kind of person who was most suited to yield a sword. He was a swordsman at birth.


    "Thank you." Ye Wuchen nodded and then turned, walking towards the cliff. The elder stared at Ye Wuchen and said, "I have nothing else to teach you. From today onwards, you can do anything you want. Whatever you do will represent the will of the seventh summit."


    The hearts of the nine people above the cloud sea trembled. They knew what the elder meant by that��from that day on, Ye Wuchen would become the Swordmaster of the seven summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    The position of the Swordmaster, which countless people dreamed of obtaining, was given to Ye Wuchen who had only entered the seventh summit for less than a year just like this.


    "Yes, master," Ye Wuchen responded directly without being modest at all. Then, he said, "Send a sword post to the first summit: Ye Wuchen from the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan, in the name of sword, invites Li Daoyun for a fight."


    The looks of the nine people froze as they were somewhat shocked. Then, they glanced at the elder standing near the cliff. However, at that moment, the elder turned around directly and left, as if he did not hear what Ye Wuchen had said.


    This scene caused the eyes of the nine people to flash; they had truly realized the meaning of the elder''s words previously.


    From that day on, Ye Wuchen could do anything he wanted to.


    His will would be the will of the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    This was the Swordmaster!

 250 Slayed

    Chapter 250: Slayed


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Wuchen, a disciple of the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan, sent a sword post to the first summit, inviting Li Daoyun for a fight. The news immediately shocked the entire Fuyun Sword Clan.


    One year ago, several extremely talented people appeared in the Ancient Barren World. Four people, in the name of Cangye, each displayed at least three Nobles on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall.


    The various top forces of the Ancient Barren World went to the Cangye Kingdom in an attempt to take them in as disciples. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng entered the Cottage, Hua Jieyu entered the Moon Clan, while Ye Wuchen entered the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Over the year, Ye Wuchen seldom appeared before the disciples from the other summits of the Fuyun Sword Clan. There were only rumors claiming that he was exceptionally talented in sword skills and highly regarded by the summit lord of the seventh summit. Therefore, he had been cultivating with the summit lord all the time. The summit lord of the seventh summit had even brought him to many places in the year.


    Now, he announced something in the Fuyun Sword Clan for the first time, which was to challenge Li Daoyun. Li Daoyun had already entered the Arcana Plane a few months ago.


    That time in the Ancient Barren World, one of his arms was burnt away. Due to this bitter experience, Li Daoyun cultivated even harder, and his left-hand sword was still extremely strong. Moreover, he had already entered the Arcana Plane. How could Ye Wuchen fight him?


    At the center of the seven summits of the Fuyun Sword Clan, there was a lower summit. At the top of it, there was a huge battle platform around which there were seven swords, each symbolizing one of the seven sword summits.


    At the moment, a figure was standing in front of one of the swords��it was Li Daoyun. He stood there as if he was the sharpest sword in the world. His look was similarly extremely sharp, as if it was going to eliminate everything.


    Around the battle platform, there were many people, especially the ones from the first summit. Of course, there were also people from the other places who had come to watch the fight. Sending a sword post was a very serious way of challenging someone in the Fuyun Sword Clan. The person who received the sword post could choose not to answer to the battle. But Li Daoyun did. He sent the sword post back to the seventh summit. This meant that the two would fight in the name of sword, even if one of them might get killed.


    This battle would very likely be a life-and-death one.


    The people around the battle platform looked at Li Daoyun. Does Ye Wuchen not know that Li Daoyun has entered the Arcana Plane? they thought. Otherwise, why would he send the sword post so hastily? Even though there was some resentment between the two, he still has time in the future, so why does he need to be so impatient?


    Li Daoyun''s younger brother, Li Daoqing, was also among the crowd. His eyes were sparkling with coldness��he could not forget the events in the Ancient Barren World.


    Today, his brother Li Daoyun would offer Ye Wuchen''s life to his sword.


    "Here he comes." Suddenly, everyone raised their heads and looked into the distance. In the direction where the seventh summit was, a group of people was flying over on their swords. The person in front was Ye Wuchen.


    Sword qi whizzed over as the swords flew through the air. The disciples of the seventh summit stopped outside the battle platform, while Ye Wuchen walked onto the platform and stood in front of the sword symbolizing the seventh summit. The way he looked at Li Daoyun appeared to be very calm. There were no anger, no killing intent, and it was not even fierce; it was as if he was looking at a mere stranger.


    "I don''t understand why you would send this sword post," Li Daoyun looked at Ye Wuchen and said. "Are you so impatient to take your revenge?"


    Ye Wuchen similarly stared at Li Daoyun. His look was still very calm.


    "What a pity," Li Daoyun suddenly smiled and said. "From the moment you sent the sword post, your fate has already been decided. That day in the old Luolan Kingdom, I cut off your arm and you escaped by luck. Today, where can you escape to?" Just as he finished speaking, a terrifying sword will erupted from his body. In this instant, sword qi whizzed in the sky and turned into a current which flew like the clouds. However, a frightening might could be felt from it. At this moment, it appeared as if even the entire space was going to be crushed by the sword will.


    This was the might of the Arcana Plane.


    Li Daoyun looked coldly at Ye Wuchen, waiting for him to show signs of fear. However, he did not see it. Ye Wuchen was calm as always, but being calm did not mean that he did not want to kill his opponent.


    That day in the old Luolan Kingdom, Li Daoyun cut off one of his arms. He did not reveal any emotions, not because there was no hatred, but because he knew that no matter what he did at that time, it would be totally useless.


    Li Daoyun shouted at them that he was Li Daoyun from the Fuyun Sword Clan. His tone was extremely arrogant, as if he looked down on everything. That time, there was indeed nothing they could do against Li Daoyun. However, not talking about it did not mean that he had forgotten about it.


    The first thing that Ye Wuchen did after becoming the Swordmaster of the seventh summit was sending a sword post and challenging Li Daoyun.


    A gust of sword will abruptly bloomed from Ye Wuchen''s body and ascended into the sky. In just an instant, Ye Wuchen seemed to have turned into a sword himself. At the moment he released his aura, Li Daoyun moved. The sword will flowing in the sky turned into many sword rivers. In the void, many afterimages of Li Daoyun appeared, each merging into a sword river. The place where Ye Wuchen was at was the destination of all the sword rivers.


    Ye Wuchen glanced at the area before him. Immediately, an appalling sword will appeared in the eyes of all the afterimages. Accompanied by multiple popping sounds, the afterimages were all destroyed directly and only the real Li Daoyun was left, stepping in the air. He gave a cold roar and instantly, the sword will flowing wildly in the sky started to strike towards Ye Wuchen. Its powers seemed to be far beyond what a Dharma Plane cultivator could resist.


    Ye Wuchen was enveloped in sword will. In this instant, he stepped towards the sword will flowing before him, as if he was a real sword himself. Immediately, he burst through the flowing sword rivers directly like a beam of light and struck towards the incoming Li Daoyun.


    Li Daoyun held the sword with his left hand. The endless sword will in the world surged wildly on his body, as if his sword had merged with the heaven and earth to form a single body. This was a qualitative change. The attack from an Arcana Plane cultivator was way stronger than one from a Dharma Plane cultivator.


    Swish�� Ye Wuchen struck out his sword before Li Daoyun did. He could naturally feel the difference between the levels of the two. There was a qualitative difference between the Dharma Plane and the Arcana Plane. Therefore, it would be difficult for him to win should he choose to fight Li Daoyun head-on. However, it did not mean that a person with a higher level and attack power would certainly beat his opponent.


    At the moment when Ye Wuchen struck his sword out, a sword appeared in the pupils of Li Daoyun. The sword was so sharp and direct.


    "Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique." Suddenly, Li Daoyun felt his body tighten. Previously, he was already somewhat puzzled when his afterimages were destroyed immediately. However, when the sword appeared in his pupils, he knew that Ye Wuchen had cultivated the sword eyes. Although Li Daoyun could recognize the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique, he had never really fought with someone who had the sword eyes; this was his first time.


    Before Li Daoyun had any time to think, he struck out his sword towards the sword skill that had appeared in his pupils. Since he could recognize the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique, he knew that it was a real fatal blow and not an illusory one.


    "Not good." Li Daoyun''s body tightened. The fatal blow from the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique may be completely different from the one he could see: it could come from a totally different direction.


    Thinking about this, Li Daoyun gathered all the sword will and swang his sword in all directions around his body without hesitation.


    The sword finally came.


    Li Daoyun appeared and blocked Ye Wuchen''s sword.


    However, at the same moment, a beam of sword light flashed out from Ye Wuchen''s forehead and charged directly towards Li Daoyun''s forehead at an incredible speed. The scene looked exactly the same as the fight in the old Luolan Kingdom. During that time, Li Daoyun was injured by Ye Wuchen in this way, which therefore allowed Ye Wuchen to escape. Did Ye Wuchen think that he would lose to this again?


    The frightening sword will condensed into a sword and emerged from Li Daoyun''s forehead, blocking the incoming small sword. However, the dazzling small sword was not even going for his forehead in the first place. At the same moment, it passed by Li Daoyun''s sword and made a turn. Then, it penetrated Li Daoyun, charging into his temple above one of his ears and coming out the other side in the next moment.


    In this instant, the whole space seemed to turn quiet. The sword will was still there, but it was no longer violent. Instead, it suddenly turned silent and peaceful, and then gradually dissipated.


    Li Daoyun and Ye Wuchen stood face-to-face; they were so close to each other.


    Li Daoyun widened his eyes, as if he wanted to see the world clearly again. He indeed did not fail twice at the same spot. However, he seemed to forget that this time, Ye Wuchen had cultivated the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique. The seemingly familiar attack was now more refined and unstoppable.


    "From now on, Li Daoyun will no longer exist in the world," Ye Wuchen said. He turned around and left.


    Blood flew out from the two sides of Li Daoyun''s head down his ears. He stood in the spot like a statue and stared at Ye Wuchen''s back.


    Back then, he shouted arrogantly at the Ancient Luolan palace that he was Li Daoyun from the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Today, Ye Wuchen returned a sentence back to him, that from then on, Li Daoyun would no longer exist in the world.


    Accompanied by a soft noise, Li Daoyun''s body fell onto the battle platform. The genius from the first summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan was instantly killed by a lower-level disciple from the seventh summit just like this.


    "The winner is Ye Wuchen, the Swordmaster of the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan." A voice spread out. Many people around the battle platform trembled because of this. Ye Wuchen was already the Swordmaster of the seventh summit. He had cultivated the sword eyes and slayed the Arcana Plane Li Daoyun!

 251 Moon Clan

    Chapter 251: Moon Clan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was only less than a month away from the end of the year. Many people in the Eastern Barren Territory had already departed for Chaoge City.


    At the end of this particular year, Chaoge City would be the most lively place in the Eastern Barren Territory. Nobody doubted this, because all the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory would gather at the Chaoge City for the new year. The various top forces had yet to depart. However, they were also doing some preparation for it.


    The Moon Clan was situated at the northern region of the Eastern Barren Territory. The clan was the top female clan in the Eastern Barren Territory; it had the techniques which were the most suitable ones for females to cultivate.


    At the moment, the Moon Clan was holding a grand event. In the Moon Clan, such an event would be held at the end of every year. Its purpose was to inspect how well the juniors had cultivated. And at the same time, to choose the Virgin.


    The Virgin of the Moon Clan was not fixed. Instead, it may be changed every year.


    Precisely because of this, even the person who had become the Virgin had to remain alert at all times and cultivate particularly hard. Otherwise, she would be defeated and the honor of being the Virgin would be taken away. Even though it was a female clan, there was still a very intense competition.


    Furthermore, in the Eastern Barren Territory, the Moon Clan was especially known for its beauties. During cultivation, cultivators absorb the Spiritual Qi in the world. In the Moon Clan, the cultivation methods would allow its female members to become even prettier in terms of appearance and temperament.


    The Moon Clan was enveloped in fairyism, as if it was a real fairyland.


    At the moment, many beauties were gathered around the Moon Platform. On the platform, some people were having friendly fights. On the viewing platforms around the Moon Platform, apart from the many beautiful ladies, there was also a group of men. Furthermore, they were sitting close to the center. A young man was sitting beside the Virgin Chu Yaoyao. The man was Qin Li, the grandson of the king of the Qin Dynasty.


    "Now, it is already the last round of the current trial. With your previous performance, nobody will be able to shake your position as the Virgin still." Qin Li looked at Chu Yaoyao and smiled.


    A gentle smile appeared on Chu Yaoyao''s face. On her charming face, there was still a lovely expression which would attract kindness from anyone. She was extremely feminine.


    "In the Moon Clan, many outstanding disciples appear each year. This year is no exception. Before the final moment, nobody will know to whom the position of the Virgin will go to," Chu Yaoyao replied.


    Qin Li said softly, "You have such talent and such a beautiful appearance, and yet you are so humble. You are the most touching and unique lady I have seen."


    "Your Highness, I am flattered by your praise," Chu Yaoyao said softly.


    "Yaoyao, why are you treating me like an outsider. We are already friends; you can call me Qin Li." Qin Li gazed at Chu Yaoyao, while Chu Yaoyao also looked at him. Seeming to have felt the heat from Qin Li''s eyes, she turned her eyes slightly away, but her expression did not change much.


    "You know my purpose of coming to the Moon Clan. Next year, I will enter the Dongqin College to cultivate. If possible, I hope that I can cultivate with you. If we can chat and discuss cultivation frequently, I will have no regrets in life." Qin Li''s voice was very soft and gentle. The people around them were all looking at the Moon Platform and nobody was paying attention to their conversation. Even if they did, they would not have any thoughts either.


    The fact that Qin Li visited the Moon Clan already revealed his thoughts��he wanted to chase Chu Yaoyao, the Virgin of the Moon Clan. Many people knew this.


    However, the seniors in the Moon Clan needed to consider it more thoroughly. The Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan were allied through marriage. The two top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory teamed up and established the Dongqin College. Their intention was self-evident: to defeat the College.


    Now, Qin Li, the grandson of the king of Qin, came to the Moon Clan. They wanted to team up with the Moon Clan through marriage again. However, in case the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan really succeed and ruled the Eastern Barren Territory in the future, they would need to think carefully about what position the Moon Clan would be in by then.


    Right at that moment, an exclamation erupted from the crowd. Countless people stared at the battle platform. There was a stunningly charming figure. She was wearing a green, long dress, as if she was a fairy from heaven. Releasing her aura, she raised her hand and suppressed the person opposite her, defeating her opponent easily.


    "Senior, thank you," the lady stood on the Moon Platform and said, smiling. The pretty lady opposite her sighed. "Junior, your spiritual control abilities are becoming stronger and stronger. It''s so hard to resist against it. In a few years time, I think you will have the chance to compete for the position of the Virgin."


    Qin Li and Chu Yaoyao, who had been chatting, raised their heads and looked at the figure dressed in green on the Moon Platform. The elf-like lady was like a fairy who had come to the mortal world. Even though Chu Yaoyao was honored as one of the top three beauties in the Eastern Barren Territory, she did not dare to say that her appearance was more outstanding than the lady on the Moon Platform.


    "Hua Jieyu," Qin Li similarly stared at the figure and said to himself. That time, the various top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory went to Cangye. Ye Futian entered the Cottage, and there were rumors that his girlfriend, Hua Jieyu, entered the Moon Clan. She was the shockingly beautiful lady in front.


    Hua Jieyu stood at her spot. Having cultivated in the Moon Clan for nearly a year, her temperament had changed slightly and was now more outstanding. The already pretty girl became even more feminine at that moment. If the beauties in the Eastern Barren Territory were ranked again, she would probably win the top three beauties.


    "Senior Chu, you are much stronger than me," Hua Jieyu said softly. The other lady did not say anything else. She folded her hands and left the Moon Platform. Hua Jieyu bowed slightly in the direction where the elders and seniors were at, after which she left the platform.


    "Jieyu is indeed a distinguished talent. In the future, her achievements will be unmeasurable," an elder complimented.


    "Yaoyao, you need to work hard to cultivate. Otherwise, after a few years, you will really be surpassed by your junior," someone looked at Chu Yaoyao and said. Chu Yaoyao turned her head and looked at the person. Smiling, she said, "It''s naturally a good thing that junior Jieyu can have such talents. Even if she can surpass me, it only means that the Moon Clan is becoming stronger."


    "That''s right." That lady smiled and nodded. Chu Yaoyao stared at the charming figure who was walking down the Moon Platform. In the previous year, there was nobody in the Moon Clan who could threaten her position as the Virgin. However, at the moment, she had to admit that Hua Jieyu was indeed already qualified to do so.


    Hua Jieyu was no weaker than her in terms of talent. Even in terms of appearance, she, one of the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory, could not beat Hua Jieyu. If one day, Hua Jieyu did surpass her, she could similarly represent the Moon Clan and roam in the Eastern Barren Territory. Moreover, the man whom Hua Jieyu liked was in the Cottage. Now, he was already famous in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    She even saw for herself how arrogant Ye Futian was in the Qin Dynasty. He even made little of Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo. Also, a Donghua Clan noble was disabled by the Cottage for bullying him and Yu Sheng.


    After a while, it was Chu Yaoyao''s turn to fight. She displayed her strong cultivation talents as the Virgin, crushing her opponent. She was still elegant and gifted. Many people had the vague feeling that Hua Jieyu and Chu Yaoyao, the two absolute beauties, would definitely have a real battle in the future��the battle for the position of the Virgin.


    The event of the Moon Clan was over. With her particularly outstanding performance, Chu Yaoyao was still the Virgin of the Moon Clan; nobody was able to shake her position.


    After this was announced, Qin Li walked up and folded his hands at the elders of the Moon Clan, after which he said, "The Dongqin College will be holding its open house soon. I have come to the Moon Clan just to send my invitation again. I hope that the people of the Moon Clan will join the event."


    "You are too polite. Last time you have already invited us. Even if you do not come today, we will also go there," a pretty lady said. "However, since you have come here personally, I will ask the disciples of the Moon Clan to go together."


    "Thank you, senior." Qin Li folded his hands and smiled, not forgetting to glance in Chu Yaoyao''s direction. He did not do so secretly, as if it was deliberate.


    "Who is willing to go?" The lady looked at the many disciples of the Moon Clan. Immediately, many people walked forward and bowed slightly. "I am willing to go."


    This event had stirred up the Eastern Barren Territory and all the top forces would gather at the Chaoge City. Who would not want to go there and watch it?


    "Do all of you want the entire Moon Clan to go there?" the lady smiled and said. "Yaoyao, among the Dharma Plane disciples who are willing to go there, choose some to go with you."


    "Alright." Chu Yaoyao smiled and nodded. Then, she chose a group of people whose talents and levels were rather high to go with her. Hua Jieyu was also in the crowd, but Chu Yaoyao did not choose her. She walked forward gently and said softly, "Senior, I would like to go to the Chaoge City as well."


    Chu Yaoyao turned and looked at Hua Jieyu. Smiling, she said, "Junior, you are very talented, but your level is still too low. You should spend more time to cultivate and should not waste time because of this. I am still waiting for you to challenge me for the position of the Virgin in the future."


    "I have no intention to compete with you for the position of the Virgin. However, I hope that you can agree to me going to Chaoge City this time," Hua Jieyu said.


    A strange look flashed across Chu Yaoyao''s eyes. No intention to compete for the position of the Virgin? Then why is she going against my decision now?


    "Junior, you have only been in the Moon Clan for a short period of time. Cultivation is the most important thing to you. You should not get distracted." Chu Yaoyao''s voice was still soft and gentle. Hua Jieyu stared at Chu Yaoyao and was somewhat puzzled. She did not understand why Chu Yaoyao did not allow her to go. However, she had not seen Ye Futian for nearly a year already. The Donghua Clan challenged Gu Dongliu from the Cottage, so Ye Futian would surely head for Chaoge City. Furthermore, they would cross into the new year in Chaoge City. Of course she had to go. In addition, Ye Futian would certainly know her thoughts and would want to meet her in Chaoge City.


    Thinking about this, Hua Jieyu turned and walked towards the elders of the Moon Clan. She bowed and said, "Seniors, I would like to go to Chaoge City."


    This scene caused a strange expression to appear on the faces of all the disciples around her. Even the eyes of the elders sparkled with a weird look. Just not long ago, both Chu Yaoyao and Hua Jieyu had been speaking very appropriately and politely. However, in the blink of an eye, they disagreed with each other because of such a minor issue. The two both seemed to be very stubborn about their decisions. Such a scene caused many to have some additional thoughts.


    Chu Yaoyao was the Virgin. Since the elders asked her to choose the people, she was naturally entitled to do so. However, Hua Jieyu requested to go, and it would only be reasonable for Chu Yaoyao to agree to her request, but she rejected it twice. Therefore, Hua Jieyu bypassed her and requested the elders directly!

 252 Chapter 252 – Set Off

    Chapter 252: Chapter 252 �C Set Off


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The elder of the Moon Clan was quiet too. Chu Yaoyao and Hua Jieyu were both rare geniuses of the clan. Chu Yaoyao was the Virgin while Hua Jieyu was the one who could possibly challenge her position in the future.


    Having a conflict over something small like this, it was hard to say who was in the wrong. Perhaps they both had their own reason. But no matter who she sided with, the other would be upset.


    Besides Chu Yaoyao, Qin Li watched this, eyes falling onto Hua Jieyu. "Yaoyao," he said softly. "How about you give in to your junior sister? Don''t make it hard for the elders."


    As soon as he spoke, many of the Moon Clan looked to him. He seemed to be speaking up for Hua Jieyu but there was another meaning. It was as if Hua Jieyu wasn''t following the rules, making it hard for the elders, so he wanted Chu Yaoyao to take a step back.


    "Junior Sister, what do you think?" a beautiful woman asked the one beside her. It was Hua Jieyu''s teacher.


    Hua Jieyu''s teacher gazed at Hua Jieyu and smiled. "Jieyu, your senior sister is right too. Right now, cultivation is the most important for you and Yaoyao is thinking for you too. You won''t go this time."


    Hua Jieyu looked to her teacher. Her teacher was extremely nice to her so she naturally said this for a reason. Hua Jieyu felt down but still nodded. "Okay."


    With that, the atmosphere recovered. Chu Yaoyao smiled and said, "I wanted you to stay because I wish you will cultivate well but didn''t consider your feelings. I hope you will forgive my faults."


    "It''s okay," Hua Jieyu said, shaking her head. Then she walked towards the woman on the other side of her teacher. "Senior Sister," she called softly.


    "Yes?" The girl nodded.


    "If Ye Futian comes to look for me at Chaoge City," Hua Jieyu said with a faint smile, "tell him that I''m doing well in the clan and improved a lot. I didn''t go this time so I can cultivate. Tell him not to worry."


    The senior sister nodded and smiled. "Alright. Anything else?"


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes sparkled. A shy expression emerged on her face. She lowered her voice and said, "And tell him to remember that someone will always wait for him. Don''t do anything bad."


    The woman''s eyes flickered and she grinned at Hua Jieyu. These words were ambiguous. Hua Jieyu blushed. She was so beautiful that all the girls were jealous.


    "Junior Sister, don''t worry. I''ll definitely send the message without missing any word," the woman said, chuckling.


    Hua Jieyu nodded shyly and murmured, "I''ll go cultivate now." With that, she left.


    "This girl��" Hua Jieyu''s teacher shook her head with mirth.


    "Teacher, it seems that she''s deeply in love. Why won''t you let her go?" the woman asked quietly.


    "Give her some motivation to cultivate," Hua Jieyu''s teacher said. The woman was thoughtful. She looked to Chu Yaoyao and vaguely understood the teacher


    Her junior sister had a very chill personality. Other than working hard in cultivation, she didn''t bother with anything else. She was really like a fairy from heaven who didn''t have any wishes. She didn''t even seem interested in the Virgin''s position. This kind of personality was likeable, of course, but sometimes, not competing for anything was bad too.


    Furthermore, even if she didn''t compete, others still might have thoughts.


    ��


    People from the top forces and upper forces from all over the Eastern Barren Territory traveled towards Chaoge City.


    It had been a long time since the Eastern Barren Territory had such a grand occasion. Whether it was the opening of the Dongqin College or the wedding between the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan, they were both big events. More importantly, the top talents would challenge each other in the Chaoge City. How could anyone miss this?


    On the Book Mountain, the College had already chosen who would attend.


    The opening of the Dongqin College and Lu Nantian''s challenge towards Gu Dongliu were all targeted at the College. The other forces might not care but the College had to place higher importance on this than the others.


    This time, the College sent the best of the best from the strong cultivators of the Noble Plane to the younger ones in the Dharma Plane.


    All the disciples of the Cottage grouped together. The College had come to urge them to leave. The Cottage and College would be together this time. They couldn''t show any divisions when faced with the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan.


    The College actually wanted to leave a few days ago but the Cottage didn''t seem to be in a hurry. The College couldn''t do anything. They could just keep pressing them.


    "Who wants to go?" Gu Dongliu asked everyone.


    "Senior Brother, my excitement from the last time hasn''t ended and I hope to teach the Dongqin College a lesson this time. I''ll go with you," Xue Ye said.


    "Senior Brother, I feel that the juniors want to go too. Should we go together?" Luo Fan asked. He saw Yi Xiaoshi look at him with bright eyes as if wanting to try something.


    Ye Futian sighed at this. They all felt cooped up on the mountain but he didn''t want to leave. His two senior sisters were so gentle and nice. But seeing as Jieyu might go to Chaoge City, he had to go too. Further, he naturally wanted to witness the fight between Gu Dongliu and Donghua Clan''s Lu Nantian.


    "You all don''t want to stay on the mountain?" Zhuge Hui smiled at everyone and they all shrunk back.


    Xue Ye stood up straight and said righteously, "The Donghua Clan overestimated themselves and dared to challenge our Third Senior Brother. I naturally have to see with my own eyes how he is defeated. If we miss this, it''ll be a regret for life."


    "Yes, how can we not go to Third Senior Brother''s battle? Even though we want to stay here, we also want to witness how he displays his mightiness," Luo Fan added.


    Shameless, Ye Futian thought. He didn''t want to be associated with them. Giving them a look, he said, "Fourth and Fifth Senior Brothers are right. Last time, Third Senior Brother''s fighting was extraordinary but it''s still not enough for us. We must go support him in the Chaoge City and witness his glory."


    Gu Dongliu looked at them all and nodded lightly. "That all makes sense. Since that is so, let us all go."


    "Thank you, Senior Brother." Everyone looked excited. Yi Xiaoshi was so touched that he almost cried. He could finally leave the mountain��


    "Will you and Xing''er go?" Gu Dongliu asked Zhuge Hui.


    "You all go have fun. Xing''er and I will remain at the Cottage," Zhuge Hui said calmly before leaving.


    Beitang Xing''er gazed at Gu Dongliu and smiled. "Third Senior Brother, I wish to see your fight with Lu Nantian but since Second Senior Sister won''t go, I must accompany her."


    "Oh, then accompany her well." Gu Dongliu nodded.


    Zhuge Hui had pretty much raised Beitang Xing''er. The teacher was so lazy that he tossed the girl to Zhuge Hui after bringing her back. Therefore, their relationship was very close. Though Zhuge Hui was the senior sister, she was more like a parent.


    "I''ll wait for your good news," Beitang Xing''er said with a smile.


    Gu Dongliu nodded. Then he told Yi Xiaoshi, "Tell the College to get ready. We''ll leave now."


    "Okay." Yi Xiaoshi ran away, extremely excited.


    After a while, the square above Book Mountain''s steps was filled with the people. The College was ready.


    At that time, a group appeared in the sky, traveling towards them. It was the Cottage��Gu Dongliu, Xue Ye, Luo Fan, Yi Xiaoshi, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng.


    The Cottage had eight people and six came out. This was probably the most Cottage disciples who had left the mountain at once.


    The College''s group was also very powerful. They had 3000 disciples and this time, around 100 were prepared to leave. Other than some elders, it also contained some of the most talented in each plane.


    Ye Futian didn''t know many people but he''d seen some in the Dharma Plane before. They included Xiao Wuji, Tang Ye, Su Muge, Tuoba Yun, Nangong Jiao, and Kua Shan.


    The College also studied the disciples from the Cottage. The line-up this time was very powerful. The two mountain elders, Zong Xu and Zhu Qing, a man and a woman, both had high planes. Other than them, there was also Bai Lishu, the first disciple of the College Chief. He was one of the best in the College. His cultivation was equal to the mountain elders. His status in the College was like Gu Dongliu''s in the Cottage.


    One could see from this line-up that the College placed high importance in this event.


    "Gu Dongliu and the Cottage greets the mountain elders." Gu Dongliu bowed to Zong Xu and Zhu Qing. He was proud but that didn''t mean he had no manners.


    The mountain elders had the same status as his teacher. As someone in a younger generation, he obviously had to be polite. Seeing him bow, the other disciples also bowed.


    "Please rise. Gu Dongliu, are you confident?" Zhu Qing gazed at Gu Dongliu. This battle was extremely important to the College.


    "I''ve never met Lu Nantian," Gu Dongliu replied.


    Zhu Qing nodded and didn''t ask anything else. Gu Dongliu had never even seen the man before. If he said he was confident, he was also being arrogant. It was too early to say anything before being clear what the opponent''s abilities were like.


    "Let''s go," Zong Xu said. The group immediately started departing.


    At the foot of the mountain, the people who saw the strong cultivators in the sky were all shaken. The College''s line-up was terrifying this time!

 253 Tit-for-Ta

    Chapter 253: Tit-for-Tat


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Chaoge City had been the capital of the Qian Dynasty. After the Qin Dynasty took over the Eastern Barren Territory, the Qian Dynasty submitted to them. The former top city never recovered its glory. Even so, the ancient and majestic Chaoge City was still one of the top ten cities in the Eastern Barren Territory and flourished. There were many powerful forces there. Amongst them, the Yin Family was the most powerful. They had been the royal family of the Qian Dynasty. After submitting to the Qin Dynasty, they stayed out of the spotlight.


    Other than that, the Chaoge City also had many ancient relics. For thousands of years, the marks left by the ancient people were still being discovered. Chaoge City was situated in the center of the Eastern Barren Territory, between the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. It still belonged to the Qin Dynasty. It was a very good choice for the Dongqin College to be located there.


    Today, this ancient city was filled with strong cultivators. Even Noble figures were everywhere. It had been years since the city was this busy. It seemed to have recovered its past glory where everyone came to visit. Strong cultivators continuously arrived outside the city or landed with their demons.


    In the air amongst the crowd, a group of strong figures arrived. Everyone turned to look at them. Seeing them, someone yelped, "The College is here."


    Just like the other forces, the College had also come early. The people looked to the ones leading the group. They saw Zong Xu, Zhu Qing, Bai Lishu, and Gu Dongliu. They had extraordinary temperaments and were top figures of the Noble Plane. They had unique auras. Ye Futian stood behind Gu Dongliu. He studied the surrounding crowd and the ancient city below him.


    Chaoge was the place for talents now.


    He didn''t know what would happen in this ancient city. He also wondered if the Moon Clan had arrived. Jieyu should be here. Thinking of her, Ye Futian smiled. He hadn''t seen Jieyu since coming to the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The group advanced. Someone had gone forward to explore the route and returned to guide them. After a while, they could make out a cluster of elegant buildings on the ground. The style was magnificent and sacred. Some of the buildings rose into the clouds as if trying to rule over the other buildings.


    That was the Dongqin College that the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan had built together.


    The College descended and chose an inn near the Dongqin College. Soon, news started spreading wildly throughout the city.


    The College was here, along with the disciples of the Cottage.


    Gu Dongliu had arrived early too.


    The inn that the College stayed in quickly became the focal point of Chaoge City. Everyone knew that the event of the first day of the next year was mainly targeted towards the College. Furthermore, there was that highly anticipated battle.


    After arriving, the College seemed very quiet. The few who ventured out were all young. No one saw Gu Dongliu. With the battle approaching, even Gu Dongliu was probably stressed. After all, his opponent this time was Lu Nantian, one of the most renowned figures of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The next day, Ye Futian left the inn.


    As a student of the Cottage, Ye Futian had become famous after the event in the Qin Dynasty. All of his actions were seen by the people of the Chaoge City, attracting attention.


    News quickly spread that Ye Futian headed towards where the Moon Clan was staying. He seemed to have gone to see one of those beauties. Many people were speechless. How could this guy still be in the mood for that? However, many also knew that Ye Futian''s girlfriend had been invited to join the Moon Clan. He must have gone to find his girlfriend. Other than him, there was also Yu Sheng, the aggressive youth who had caused a commotion in the Qin Dynasty.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng arrived where the Moon Clan was staying. Seeing a woman, Ye Futian bowed. "I am Ye Futian from the Cottage. Greetings."


    The woman studied the two and smiled. "Greetings, Mr. Ye." She had heard before that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were a couple. Hua Jieyu was extremely beautiful so they were all curious what kind of person Ye Futian was. Now, she saw that he was attractive and charismatic. He was also very polite. His looks matched Jieyu.


    "Are you here to find Junior Sister Jieyu?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. It seemed that the Moon Clan all knew. Jieyu was probably quite famous in the clan. He didn''t find it strange. Disregarding talent, merely her looks would definitely make her well-known.


    "I''m sorry to disappoint you. Junior Sister Jieyu didn''t come," the woman replied softly.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. The Donghua Clan''s Lu Nantian challenged Gu Dongliu. The source of this conflict was Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Jieyu should know that he would come and should have come too.


    "However, she had her senior sister send a message to you. I will take you there now," the woman continued.


    "Alright. Thank you, fairy." Ye Futian nodded. The Moon Clan fairy brought Ye Futian to a courtyard where a beautiful woman studied Ye Futian curiously after seeing him.


    Jieyu had guessed that Ye Futian would come to find her and she was right.


    "Greetings, I am Ye Futian."


    "Junior Sister Jieyu has great taste," the woman said with a smile. "She said that you would come to find her and had me send a message to you. She is doing well in the clan and has improved greatly. She didn''t come because of her cultivation. There is no need to worry. She also said that she will always wait for you and told you to not do bad things." With that, she seemed to smile.


    What did "bad things" mean? Ye Futian made a face. That girl was so annoying. "Thank you, fairy," he replied. He could sense that she wasn''t lying. Jieyu was fine. As for the specific reason, he wouldn''t know.


    "You''re so sweet. No wonder Junior Sister is worried." The woman grinned at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled shyly. "Fairy, can you help send a message for me?"


    "Yes." The woman nodded.


    "Help me tell Jieyu that I miss her. After I finish this, I''ll go find her at the Moon Clan," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    The woman gave a knowing smile. Did these two care about the messenger''s feeling when showing off their love?


    "Alright." The woman nodded.


    "Thank you, fairy. I''ll leave now." Ye Futian bowed and left.


    Leaving the yard, there was a small trail in the verdure. Yu Sheng followed him quietly. Two figures were taking a walk before them. Seeing them, Ye Futian made a strange face. It was Qin Li, grandson of the king of Qin, and Chu Yaoyao of the Moon Clan. It was hard to have thoughts when seeing them together.


    Did the Moon Clan want to ally with the Qin Dynasty? Ye Futian hoped this wasn''t true since Hua Jieyu was cultivating there.


    Qin Li and Chu Yaoyao naturally saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng as well. They stopped and Qin Li''s eyes sharpened, falling on them. Ye Futian gazed at them and looked away. He planned to walk past them. He didn''t like Qin Li but he didn''t know Chu Yaoyao and wasn''t part of the Moon Clan. He had no right to get involved in anything.


    "Wait," Qin Li suddenly said. Ye Futian walked past him and then stopped, back to the man.


    "I heard that many people from the College came. The male disciples of the Cottage all came," Qin Li said. His tone was strange. It seemed to be intentional with some faint disdain.


    Ye Futian began walking again. He ignored the meaningless words.


    "Have you thought about what it would be like if you joined the Qin Dynasty?" Qin Li continued.


    "No. I''m not interested," Ye Futian replied without stopping.


    "There are no true second chances in the world," Qin Li seemed to mumble to himself. "These years, the Cottage has already had a halo around it but that''s just exaggerated. The College created the most famous talents in the Eastern Barren Territory and the Cottage contains the essence and elites. It''s normal to have some glorious achievements. Who of those famous figures hasn''t had glory before?


    "This time, the College faces the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. It is also where the most successful are. I wonder if the College or Cottage can bear all the gossip when the myth is proven wrong," Qin Li continued to say to himself. "The higher you are raised, the harder you fall, unless the Cottage never loses. Otherwise, it would be a disaster. There has never been an undying legend in this world."


    There had been so many legendary people throughout history but no one was immortal. Even the powerful Qian Dynasty was now under the Qin Dynasty and had to submit to them. The once-undefeatable Qin Dynasty had also fallen.


    The College and Cottage would be the same.


    This time, the fight between Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu was not all they''ve prepared for the College.


    Ye Futian stopped. Qin Li''s words made sense, just like his judgment from before. However, it didn''t mean anything.


    Thinking of his senior brothers and sisters, Ye Futian smiled brilliantly. If one place in the Eastern Barren Territory could become a legend, it would be the Cottage.


    "A legend that can be proven wrong isn''t a legend. It is called a legend because it will never die," Ye Futian said slowly. "The Cottage will become an undying legend."


    "Really?" Qin Li heard Ye Futian''s arrogant words. "I''ll wait and see."


    "Wait and see," Ye Futian replied and walked away.

 254 Warlock Gu Zhiqiu

    Chapter 254: Warlock Gu Zhiqiu


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Walking out of the inn, Ye Futian looked up. He could see the towering building in the distance. It was the Dongqin College. The top forces all resided in the region near the Dongqin College. Going past them, he walked down the road. Many people seemed to be grouped there now, looking at something.


    Ye Futian glanced to the side. Two groups were facing each other. Faint sharpness radiated from them��the sword aura.


    "The Fuyun Sword Clan?" Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He walked over there, entering the crowd of spectators. He saw many familiar faces. There were people from the Fuyun Sword Clan, the Sword Saint Mountain, and Witch Clan. Other than the College, all top forces had sent their disciples here. The seven peaks of the Fuyun Sword Clan were independent of each other. All seven had their own disciples here but Ye Futian didn''t see Ye Wuchen amongst them.


    The people facing off were from the Fuyun Sword Clan and Sword Saint Mountain. They had always been rivals. Ye Futian didn''t know what had happened between them this time. More strong cultivators were hurrying over at this time.


    A pair of pretty eyes from the Witch Clan fell on Ye Futian. The girl smiled. "Young Master Ye, long time no see. Your charisma is even stronger now. I truly miss you."


    It was the Witch, Gu Biyue. Her voice was soft and her eyes were alluring. She seemed to want to ingrain herself into the others'' minds. She was so mesmerizing.


    "If that''s so, why don''t you come serve me?" Ye Futian said, smiling at the Witch.


    Gu Biyue smiled sweetly. "I wish I could but I''m here with my senior brother this time. He''s very strict. I can''t trouble you."


    Their conversation attracted much attention. Many gazes fell upon Ye Futian. People had heard some things about how Ye Futian had taken Gu Biyue as his servant in the Ancient Barren World.


    "Trouble?" Ye Futian remembered what Tang Ye had said back then. He knew that there was a powerful figure in the Witch Clan��the Witch''s senior brother. He must have come to Chaoge City too.


    Li Daoqing was amongst the Fuyun Sword Clan group. He stared chillingly at Ye Futian, his eyes full of murderous intent. His brother, Li Daoyun, had first had his arm burned and then was killed in a challenge because of his conflicts with Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen''s group. Li Daoqing would never forget this.


    At this time, another group arrived. Someone called, "Ye Futian."


    He turned around. Seeing Ye Wuchen, Liu Feiyang, and Liu Chenyu, he had an odd look. Smiling without really smiling, he looked at Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu. "Seems like I''m not needed anymore."


    Liu Chenyu glared at him but she was used to his teasing.


    "We met on the road," Ye Wuchen said. Ye Futian noticed that many swordsmen-in-training from the Fuyun Sword Clan followed him. Ye Wuchen seemed to be the leader. Seeing this, Ye Futian understood that Ye Wuchen had some status in his clan.


    "Ye Wuchen, remember your position," a cool voice said. It came from the people of the Fuyun Sword Clan''s first summit that were facing off with the Sword Saint Mountain. The speaker was Luo Xiao. He was the leader of the younger generation of that summit and was extremely powerful.


    The Sword Saint had used the Fuyun Sword Clan to make a name for himself. He was absolute glory for the Sword Saint Mountain and Cottage. But to the Fuyun Sword Clan, it was an unforgettable humiliation. Because of this, the Fuyun Sword Clan hated the Cottage. Their attitude towards the Sword Saint Mountain went without saying.


    Ye Wuchen glanced at Luo Xiao. "You should know that we were at Cangye together before joining the Fuyun Sword Clan."


    "Since you joined the clan, you must forget about the past," Luo Xiao said. His voice was calm but his eyes were extremely sharp. Ye Wuchen had killed Li Daoyun in a test battle. This had already the First Summit but the battle had been hair. Li Daoyun had accepted it and was killed with the Arcana Plane. The First Summit could say nothing. But now, Ye Wuchen was talking with someone from the Cottage.


    "I do not need your permission to act," Ye Wuchen said indifferently.


    Luo Xiao''s gaze hardened. His eyes glinted and then he looked away. The surrounding people were shocked. The most famous of the Fuyun Sword Clan was the first and seventh summits. Now, the disciples from those two summits had clashed in public. It was interesting.


    As they spoke, another group appeared. The people from the Royal Xuan Temple walked into the crowd.


    One gaze stared straight at Ye Futian. It was extremely cold and murderous. It was Luo Junlin. Beside him, Xirou''s gaze was also cold. After returning from the Cangye Kingdom, she had been punished by her father. Luo Junlin had been punished too. Because of the event, her father had been humiliated as well.


    Xirou never cared about the barbaric Cangye Kingdom. But now, Ye Futian joined the Cottage and quickly became known throughout the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Ye Futian naturally saw them too. His eyes turned cold. This crown prince of the Nandou Kingdom had once wanted him to be a servant. He wondered what Luo Junlin felt after meeting again here.


    The two met eyes. Luo Junlin didn''t disguise his murderous intent at all. Now, Ye Futian was truly a threat to him and the Nandou Kingdom. If Ye Futian was allowed to progress into the Noble Plane, it would be the end of the Nandou Kingdom. With the Cottage there, not even the Royal Xuan Temple could help him.


    "It''s so lively here," someone said at this time. Qin Li, grandson of King Qin, had come too. He seemed to have hurried over because he heard of the commotion. Chu Yaoyao of the Moon Clan came with him. This scene made many people wonder. According to rumors, Qin Li had gone to the Moon Clan earlier. The fairies had come to Chaoge with him.


    "In a few days, it will be the wedding between my aunt and Qian Shanmu of the Donghua Clan," Qin Li said cheerily. "It is also the opening ceremony of the Dongqin College. Everyone present is a success of the Eastern Barren Territory. Why don''t you all show off your talents on that day?"


    The Dongqin College was a joint creation of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. Many of their prides would also announce that they would cultivate at the college on that day. Other than the challenge between Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu, there must be other events too. Otherwise, how could they show off how extraordinary the college was?


    Seems like they won''t fight now, many spectators thought. The relationships between the clans were very complicated. However, Qin Li seemed to want them all to take care of everything during the opening ceremony and use it to make news for their college.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. He didn''t want to be here. For some reason, he really didn''t like Qin Li. He wanted to beat the guy up. However, Gu Dongliu said that the Cottage was a place of reason. He couldn''t pick fights. Thus, he would just walk away. His group turned to leave but Luo Junlin''s eyes were still on Ye Futian. In his eyes, only Ye Futian existed.


    Ye Futian''s group stopped not too far away. In the near distance, there was a figure clad in black. His inky black hair fell down his shoulders. He was indescribably attractive. His eyes were extremely deep and black. People could drown in them. Though he didn''t release his aura, he still gave off a threatening feeling just standing there.


    Ye Futian''s group couldn''t help but pause.


    Ye Wuchen''s brows knitted. Sword intent snaked around him. He could sense extreme power from the man.


    Liu Feiyang and Lui Chenyu studied him. Liu Feiyang''s eyes flickered. A figure appeared in his mind but he wasn''t sure.


    The figure clad in black looked up, gaze falling upon Ye Futian. His eyes seemed to suck one into them. "You''re Ye Futian?" he asked indifferently.


    "What do you want?" Ye Futian glanced at him. He didn''t know the man. As soon as he spoke, he seemed to see demonic fire flash through those black eyes and burn into his mind. At this moment, it felt like Ye Futian''s Spiritual Energy was burning. It was as if he was on fire and the flames of darkness wrapped around him, trying to burn him down.


    "Be careful," Liu Feiyang warned Ye Futian, seemingly knowing the man''s identity. When he saw dark fire rise in Ye Futian''s eyes, his heart trembled.


    "Gu Zhiqiu, stop it," Liu Feiyang roared. Ye Futian closed his eyes and rushed backward. The man''s eyes had a terrifying power. His Spiritual Energy was in pain. When he retreated, the attack disappeared into the void and he stopped. His eyes opened and flashed as he focused on the man.


    It was Gu Zhiqiu, the Warlock of the Witch Clan. He viewed Gu Biyue as his true sister.


    "In the future, I hope to never hear the word ''maid'' or ''servant'' from your mouth again, even if you are from the Cottage," Gu Zhiqiu said calmly. Then he walked away. He seemed peaceful as if nothing had happened. Clearly, he was warning Ye Futian, disallowing him from calling Gu Biyue those names.


    Gu Biyue was like his sister. How could he let someone use those words to insult Gu Biyue? If Ye Futian hadn''t joined the Cottage, he would have done much more.


    Staring at the man''s back, a strange look passed through Ye Futian''s eyes.


    He''d heard of the Witch Clan''s Witch Requiem. During that one glance, Gu Zhiqiu seemed to plant demon fire in Ye Futian''s mind. This man''s plane was much higher than his. His reputation as Warlock of the Witch Clan was not unfounded!

 255 Demonic Tripod

    Chapter 255: Demonic Tripod


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Was that a threat?" Ye Futian mumbled. If Gu Zhiqiu dared to threaten him after what happened to the Donghua Clan, he must be very powerful.


    "This guy is just as domineering as rumored." Liu Feiyang watched as the man walked away. The Witch Clan always acted strangely without any rules. They''d all experienced the Witch''s personality. She was honestly a witch. The Warlock was different��he was cold and direct.


    "Is the Witch Clan all good at Spiritual Sorcery?" Ye Futian asked. The attack from before had been activated by spiritual sorcery.


    "The Witch Requiem is most suitable for spiritual sorcerers. They can plant their own print into someone''s Spiritual Energy. It''s terrifying," Liu Feiyang said. "The cultivators of the Witch Clan are the rarest amongst the top forces, equal only to the Qianqiu Temple. Of course, the Cottage isn''t included in this. But most of the Witch Clan have such strange powers. From the aspect of personal combat abilities, they aren''t any weaker than the top three in the center of the Eastern Barren Territory."


    Spiritual sorcerers were always the most dangerous. And if a spiritual sorcerer with eerie powers could merge other methods, he would become even more frightening.


    "What plane is he now?" Ye Futian asked. It was hard to determine the specific plane he was from the previous attack.


    "Probably the Arcana Plane." Liu Feiyang glanced at Ye Futian. "Your plane is lower. There will most likely be more unrest after the Dongqin College opens. You might not be able to participate because of your plane. It''s unfortunate." With Ye Futian''s talent, this should be his stage. However, he was restricted by his plane. It was hard to fight with the truly most powerful. These people had almost all reached the Arcana Plane.


    Ye Futian was upset. He had been cultivating in isolation for all this time. Now, he''d entered the Sixth-level Dharma Plane but in the Eastern Barren Territory, it was still not enough. Even the younger generation was higher than him. Many were in the Arcana Plane.


    It seemed that he had to work harder.


    "Should we go back now?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "Do you have any ideas?" Ye Futian looked at him.


    "Chaoge was the capital of the Qian Dynasty. The former royal family, the Yin Family, was forced to become vassals and the dynasty shattered. During a battle, the ancient palace was destroyed, as well as many precious lands. However, some relics are still preserved. The most famous is Tripod Tower. Are you interested?"


    "What is that?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It''s the sacred land of the Qian Dynasty," Liu Feiyang said. "The Demonic Tripod is outside the Tripod Tower. It''s rumored that this is a very powerful ritual implement. It''s a national treasure that can anchor the country''s fate."


    "If it can anchor the country''s fate, why was their dynasty defeated?" Ye Wuchen asked. He clearly didn''t believe in the rumors. A country''s fate depended on their cultivators.


    "In the era that the Qian Dynasty was defeated, no one could lift up the tripod," Liu Feiyang said, chuckling. "Of course, no one knows if it''s true but the tripod can definitely help you cultivate by training your body physically. I''m sure many have already gone."


    "Let''s go look." Ye Futian''s eyes glimmered. Liu Feiyang nodded.


    The group changed direction and started walking.


    ��


    The Tripod Tower was not far from the Dongqin College. It was near the Yin Family. Back then, the Qian Dynasty had submitted to the Qin Dynasty. The Tripod Tower was a relic from the Qian Dynasty, and it still belonged to the Yin Family. Of course, things were different now.


    The Tripod Tower had been a sacred land during the Qian Dynasty. No one was allowed to approach it. But it had also been destroyed by the Qin Dynasty. Adding the fact that the Tripod had become a legend, it wasn''t as guarded as before. Anyone could go to experience it.


    Right now, there were many strong cultivators around the Tripod Tower. People from the top forces were at the forefront. Since they came to Chaoge City, they naturally had to visit the Tripod Tower.


    When Ye Futian arrived, he saw a huge tripod stand before the Tripod Tower. There were images on the tripod, seeming to jump into his eyes like godly images. It was terrifying.


    The tripod was copper and green, seemingly made of bronze. The air seemed to be filled with a powerful force. It could almost absorb the endless Spiritual Qi from the world. Sitting there, no one could move it. There seemed to be a powerful matrix around the tripod. Streams of mysterious aura wrapped around it. The golden lights looked extremely sacred.


    "What a treasure," Ye Futian uttered when he saw it. "Since the Qin Dynasty defeated the Qian Dynasty, why is the tripod here? Why didn''t they take it?"


    "There''s a rumor that this was the most important ritual implement of the Qian Dynasty. It can anchor the country''s fate. Some call it the King Tripod. Others call it the Supreme Tripod," Liu Feiyang.


    "Look at the carvings," he continued. "They''re all demons. Of course, the name Demonic Tripod doesn''t merely come from these images. Instead, it''s because when the Qin Dynasty defeated the Qian Dynasty, an extremely talented crown prince came to take the tripod. However, the formerly undefeated crown prince was crushed by the tripod. He died while lifting it. Thus, Demonic Tripod became its name. The Qin Dynasty thinks it is bad luck. Maybe it still anchors the Qian Dynasty''s last fate.


    "After that, the Qin Dynasty didn''t touch it for years. Now, many of the younger generation no longer believe the superstition but still, no one can lift it. The Yin Family has completely submitted to the Qin Dynasty too, so the strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty won''t come to take it away." He continued casually, "Furthermore, even if they want to, they might not be able to. The elders of the Qin Dynasty naturally won''t do something like this."


    Ye Futian nodded. So, despite its powerful reputation, no one had actually used the Demonic Tripod. It had just guarded this place.


    At this place, a figure clad in black walked towards the Demonic Tripod.


    It''s the Witch Clan. Many people looked at the man. It was a strong cultivator from the Witch Clan. Would he be able to lift the tripod?


    The man walked below the huge tripod. It stood on three legs. He grabbed two with his hands and bent forward. With a roar, his veins bulged and witch aura snaked around him. Frightening strength exploded from his arms. The matrix around the Demonic Tripod flashed. The demonic images were also moving. Golden light flashed around it and horrible power pressed down.


    The Demonic Tripod moved. The entire sky seemed to be shaking.


    With another roar, the strong cultivator lifted the tripod above the ground. But then he grunted and with a huge boom, the Demonic Tripod hit the ground. The strong cultivator sprawled on the ground. He spat out blood; his face was pale.


    "It''s that powerful?" Ye Futian''s eyes flashed.


    "How can an ordinary member of the Witch Clan lift the Qian Dynasty''s national treasure?" Liu Feiyang said. "If someone can lift it, they might be killed instantly like the crown prince of the Qin Dynasty. It has happened a few times in history."


    "A demonic tripod indeed," Ye Futian said. This name really suited it. No wonder people used it.


    At that time, someone walked over and said, "Many people have tried it before you arrived. They all failed. At most, the tripod would be lifted a few inches. No one could raise it more than one foot."


    The speaker was Nangong Jiao. She had come with the people of the College. Behind her were the young disciples, such as Tuoba Yun, Kua Shan, and Tang Ye. They''d come due to the tripod''s reputation too.


    "Have you all tried?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Not yet. Kua Shan wants to try though," Nangong Jiao said. Behind her, Kua Shan''s burly figure walked towards the Demonic Tripod.


    Ye Futian looked to him. Kua Shan had entered the College with him at the beginning of the year. He was the most talented of the new students. Mountain Elder Zong Xu had accepted him as his own disciple.


    Kua Shan walked to the Demonic Tripod. With a huge roar, his bones cracked and his body seemed to expand. He had to lower his head to stand there. Back to the tripod, he gripped its legs. With a roar and a burst of power, the air shook and the Demonic Tripod left the ground.


    All the muscles on his body were shaking. The tripod was lifted one inch, two inches�� Gradually, under everyone''s shocked scrutiny, it was one foot away from the ground.


    Even more terrifying pressure fell on him. The images on the Demonic Tripod seemed to come to life. Horrible demonic light shone. Kua Shan roared again and he slowly set the tripod down. Finally, it landed steadily and he walked from under the tripod, his body still trembling. No one knew what he had experienced.


    "Wow, the College is indeed extraordinary. He doesn''t seem famous but he''s still so powerful." Many people looked to Kua Shan in respect. One foot was the best achievement yet today but it was created by an unknown disciple of the College. This was how powerful the College was.


    Kua Shan returned to the group. Tuoba Yun said to him, "Seems that your crude power is useful."


    Kua Shan gazed at him coolly. Then Tuoba Yun''s eyes moved to Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. "Will you all try too?"


    Tuoba Yun always thought highly of himself but the Cottage''s reputation was far above the College. He wanted to see just how talented the legendary Cottage disciples were.


    Ye Futian looked at him indifferently. He could see some competition in the other''s eyes. Ignoring him, Ye Futian continued studying the Demonic Tripod.


    The Demonic Tripod was a national treasure. He wasn''t that interested in lifting it. If he or Yu Sheng tried, they would obviously be better than Kua Shan. However, his curiosity about the Demonic Tripod was more than just lifting it.


    With Freedom Meditation operating, he looked at the images. He wanted to see through them!

 256 Lifting the Tripod

    Chapter 256: Lifting the Tripod


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As the Freedom Meditation operated, Ye Futian no longer saw simple images. Instead, he saw shocking demonic intent. The images seemed to come to life like various demons. They enveloped him and the horrible power descended. His mind was surrounded by demons.


    Boom! An extremely frightening demonic intent descended. It seemed that the stronger his intent was, the stronger the demonic intent released would be.


    Ye Futian grunted and retracted the Freedom Meditation. He couldn''t continue.


    Everything went back to normal. The Demonic Tripod was still just the Demonic Tripod. What he had seen was like a hallucination��nonexistent. But now he understood that no matter what plane someone was in, they would be unable to take the Demonic Tripod away. This demonic intent could overwhelm any strong cultivator.


    "What''s wrong?" Ye Wuchen asked. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu looked at Ye Futian too. The grunt had been soft but they still heard it.


    "This Demonic Tripod truly is a precious and powerful treasure," Ye Futian said. He wanted to try himself but just then, another person walked out of the crowd. He moved towards the tripod, attracting shocked cries.


    He was a monk. He wore clothes of plain cloth and cloth shoes, seemingly poor. However, his temperament was extraordinary. Looking at him made one feel at peace as if he was from another world.


    This monk was from the Qianqiu Temple. He had a string of Buddhist beads around his neck and in his hands. He chanted the name of the Buddha as well.


    Everyone already knew his identity. He was the Arhat of the Qianqiu Temple.


    In the Eastern Barren Territory, extraordinary figures in the younger generation had titles. Kingdoms had the Crown Prince and Princes. The Witch Clan had the Warlock and the Fuyun Sword Clan had the Swordmaster. These were all symbols of status. The Qianqiu Temple, then, had the Arhat.


    The title of Arhat had a mysterious history too. It was especially scary.


    Whether you were from the College or Donghua Clan, anyone who saw the Arhat would be unable to say they were better than him. Even the Cottage was the same. The Arhat was mysterious and his power was undeniable. Now, the Arhat walked from the Qianqiu Temple group towards the Demonic Tripod.


    "Arhat, you wish to lift the tripod too?" someone walked to the Arhat and asked. This man wore an elegant robe and spoke politely. Everyone had to respect the Qianqiu Temple''s Arhat. The speaker was a youth from the Yin Family. This region belonged to them.


    The Arhat nodded lightly.


    "The tripod has an evil reputation. Arhat, please be careful," the youth said before retreating.


    The Arhat walked to the tripod. Unlike the others, he didn''t go under it. Instead, he stood before it. His eyes turned gold and a vertical light flashed between his eyebrows. It was like the eye of the Buddha. At that moment, gold light encased the Demonic Tripod.


    He chanted in Sanskrit, and the syllables spiraled up, floating to the Demonic Tripod. They transformed into various words that formed the Buddhist symbol of spirituality, Buddhist swastika. The words converged and enveloped the Demonic Tripod.


    He continued speaking. Gradually, more and more Buddhist swastikas appeared, practically covering the entire tripod. They released horrible power from above the tripod that swept through. A windstorm of the Buddha and demon appeared in the sky.


    So powerful. Everyone''s hearts trembled. This power wasn''t because of how high his plane was. Instead, it was the power of Buddhist sorcery.


    At this time, Sanskrit words snaked into people''s ears. The entire world seemed to be resonating with him, transforming into the power of Buddha. People kept coming from the distance. They were curious after hearing that the Arhat was lifting the tripod.


    Could the Arhat lift the Demonic Tripod?


    Many people from top figures appeared, staring at him.


    The Buddha''s name resonated with the skies and land. Gold Spiritual Qi went wild. Buddhist swastika covered the entire tripod. Apparitions of Buddhas appeared around the tripod, towering over. The Buddhist swastikas flashed horribly. Then they lifted the Demonic Tripod. It rose bit by bit above the ground. The Arhat raised it with his sorcery rather than his physical power.


    One inch, two inches��one foot. Soon, the Demonic Tripod had surpassed what Kua Shan had done and it was still going.


    Then horrible power fell upon the Arhat. Not only his own body, the Buddha apparitions around him also suffered the power from the tripod. The tripod spun as it rose, releasing shocking light that suppressed everything.


    It was now two feet in the air. Many people were impressed. As expected of the Arhat; he was so powerful. Even more terrifying, this didn''t seem to be the limit. The Demonic Tripod was still rising.


    Even the strong cultivators of the Yin Family were shaken. Many strong cultivators had come in the past, including those of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. Three feet had been the limit.


    Now, the Arhat was about to go past that.


    Apparently, that powerful crown prince of Qin years back had been at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane when lifting the tripod eight feet high. He had shaken the entire world and the skies changed but he still didn''t give up. He called himself the descendant of the heavens. When he lifted this national treasure, many had been impressed by his will. His abilities were also extremely powerful too. It was such a pity that he was killed.


    The Demonic Tripod rose three feet and the demonic images could no longer be repressed. They were about to burst free. The Arhat tried to use the Buddhist swastikas to seal the images but then, one broke. It melted into gold light and disappeared.


    Sanskrit words filled the air. The tripod was still rotating and rising, however, Buddhist swastikas kept shattering. Gradually, they all disappeared. Beams of horrible light pressed down on those Buddha apparitions, killing them. At the same time, the horrible light charged towards the Arhat. He kept chanting the Buddha''s name and a huge Buddhist swastika appeared behind him. It spun wildly, forming a shield.


    Crack! The Buddhist swastika shattered and the Arhat was forced back. The Demonic Tripod landed heavily with a huge boom. Even the ground shook. Even so, everyone still looked to him in respect. For many of them, it was a miracle to raise the tripod more than three feet. It was practically impossible.


    The youth from the Yin Family bowed. "Arhat, you opened my eyes today. I''m afraid no one will be able to break this record in the near future." Strong cultivators from the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan had all tried. Three feet had been the limit. It was difficult to break the record. The Arhat, though, had lifted it more than three feet.


    "How high can it be lifted?" Ye Futian asked curiously. Yin Mo''s gaze landed on him. Looking at Liu Feiyang, Liu Chenyu, and Yu Sheng beside him, Yin Mo had a vague guess as to who he was. If he was this close to the prince and princess of the Liu Kingdom, it must be him.


    "Why are you asking?" Yin Mo asked. There was none of the respect shown to the Arhat. Ye Futian was from the Cottage but everyone knew the relationship between the Cottage and the Qin Dynasty. Since the Yin Family was under the Qin Dynasty, there was no need to be polite to Ye Futian.


    "I''m just curious. How high do you have to raise it before you can take it away?" Ye Futian asked. It was a waste to leave it here.


    Yin Mo was confused. No one could do it through all these years. Why did he have such a laughable idea? Even if he was from the Cottage, he had a low plane. He''d clearly overestimated himself if he spoke like that.


    "I do not know. I heard that Ye Futian of the Cottage broke many records at the Ancient Barren World. Why don''t you try to break through the limit and take the Demonic Tripod away?" Yin Mo said, chuckling. His tone was slightly mocking. His family''s treasured tripod couldn''t be compared with those relics in the Ancient Barren World.


    "I can take it?" Ye Futian was surprised.


    "If you can, then do it." Yin Mo reached out in a welcoming gesture. He smiled happily as if he could give the tripod away at any time. No one in all these years could do it but Ye Futian thought he could succeed in the Dharma Plane? He wanted Ye Futian to try and have a very resilient intent. That way, he would die on the spot from the tripod''s backlash. The crown prince of the Qin Dynasty had been killed by it. It would be interesting if a Cottage disciple died too. Even the Cottage wouldn''t be able to blame anyone.


    "The Yin Family is so generous but I was just saying. I guess I can try too," Ye Futian said, pretending he couldn''t tell the mockery. With that, he started walking towards the Demonic Tripod.


    Countless gazes from the surroundings fell on him. Other than those in the top forces, many didn''t know his status. They only knew that he was Ye Futian from the Cottage after Yin Mo said so. He had come to lift the tripod too.


    Ye Futian walked under the Demonic Tripod. He didn''t plan on using sorcery to lift the tripod like the Arhat. Buddhism was its own sect. It was mysterious and had endless power. He couldn''t do it.


    Thus, he did what most people did. Activating his techniques, his body roared like a dragon. His body was like a true dragon. At the same time, a horrible apparition was released, transforming into a Divine Ape.


    "Up!" Ye Futian roared. The Divine Ape instantly released horrible power and lifted the Demonic Tripod. In a moment, terrible power fell upon his body!

 257 Resonance

    Chapter 257: Resonance


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Spiritual Qi went crazy around the Demonic Tripod. A gust of powerful weight fell upon Ye Futian''s body. At that moment, Ye Futian''s body was like a demon��a dragon or golden Roc. He withstood the horrible weight.


    The Divine Ape straightened its back and pushed the Demonic Tripod up bit by bit. The higher it raised the tripod, the heavier the weight. After a moment, the tripod was one foot in the air. Many people stared at Ye Futian. He was indeed a disciple of the Cottage. He could raise the Demonic Tripod to one foot at once. His body didn''t even directly touch the Demonic Tripod. Instead, he used his Dharma to create a demon that did it.


    Images on the tripod shone. Those demonic pictures flowed with horrible light and formless power descended upon it, making it thousands of pounds heavy. It was about to collapse everything. At the same time, horrible demonic will rushed into Ye Futian''s mind, transforming into invisible pressure. The pressure went from invisible to visible. The stronger he fought back, the stronger the pressure became. There was no limit to its pressure.


    Ye Futian''s movements were slow but they didn''t stop. The Demonic Tripod continued rising. He didn''t dare lift it all up at once. The fiercer his moves, the stronger the backlash was. If he suddenly hit the limit he could withstand, he would be dead.


    This tripod had an evil reputation and really had killed people.


    When the Demonic Tripod reached two feet, the pressure was even stronger. Various demonic images appeared in Ye Futian''s mind. A burst of power pressed down on him uncontrollably. The national treasure of the Qian Dynasty really could repress anything.


    Ye Futian felt this pressure. The strong will inside his mind fought against the demonic will that entered. He used the emperor''s intent to protect his mind and light flowed through his body. He was practically undefeatable. However, the Demonic Tripod stopped. Ye Futian didn''t continue lifting it. The power coming from the tripod was already powerful enough. Even though he could continue raising it, he didn''t.


    The powerful intent protected his own from extinguishing. At the same time, his spiritual intent bore the Demonic Tripod''s power. The intent accidentally entered the Demonic Tripod. He seemed to enter a magical image. It was the devil''s world.


    A moment later, Ye Futian''s intent retreated. He couldn''t borrow the power from the emperor''s intent. He couldn''t fight against the devil''s intent but he could protect himself from extinguishing.


    Endless light fell upon his body; powerful intent rushed into his mind. He actually activated the body-enhancing technique. Dragons seemed to crash around his body and a Roc appeared. A Divine Ape roared. He used the outside force to challenge his body.


    Liu Feiyang was right. He could indeed use the Demonic Tripod to exercise his physical body. However, the average man would not do this. After all, who could survive for this long under the Demonic Tripod?


    Only the best of the best could do so.


    Ye Futian maintained that posture without moving. The Demonic Tripod stayed at two feet in the air. He closed his eyes, letting the endless power wash over him. To outsiders, Ye Futian was using a technique to resist the Demonic Tripod.


    "He can only do two feet?" someone muttered while looking at this scene. It would be impressive for someone else to do this but this was Ye Futian. Two feet wasn''t much to brag about. But upon more thought, Ye Futian didn''t have a high plane of cultivation. Two feet was already very impressive. Their expectations for the Cottage disciples were probably too high.


    But then they saw Ye Futian stay there without moving. He seemed to be at a stalemate with the Demonic Tripod. He bore the pressure endlessly.


    "What is he doing?"


    "Does he wish to continue trying?"


    Just as people were discussing amongst themselves, Ye Futian started moving. The Demonic Tripod rose a bit again. His body rumbled as if his blood was roaring. He was under such extreme pressure.


    "It seems that he isn''t satisfied," someone from the Donghua Clan said, chuckling.


    So what if he wasn''t satisfied? It will only get more and more difficult. It was hard for Ye Futian to advance further. After another while, the Divine Ape above Ye Futian rose up another inch. The pressure was even stronger. Ye Futian squeezed his eyes shut. Sweat beaded on his body.


    "Are disciples of the Cottage this cautious?" Yin Mo said indifferently as he watched. He wished Ye Futian would try more fiercely. It would be hard to get killed if he was so cautious and tried bit by bit. Of course, if Ye Futian wouldn''t give up and suddenly couldn''t withstand it, he could still die.


    Everyone had different thoughts and ideas but Ye Futian was completely focused. He was submerged in his own cultivation. Using the body-enhancing technique, he continuously exercised his body with the Demonic Tripod''s pressure. Every now and then, he would push the tripod up a bit higher. This was adding more weight so his cultivation was at the optimal state.


    Finally, when the tripod was 2.5 feet high, Ye Futian''s body seemed ready to burst. A horrible windstorm whipped against him and his body pulled taut. His muscles were at their limits. Invisible power rushed in reverse. Spiritual Qi formed a terrible windstorm. Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked up. The Divine Ape roared and raised its hands as if to lift up the sky. Endless physical strength exploded on Ye Futian''s body. The power hit against the tripod, making it shoot up.


    Seeing this, Yin Mo''s eyes flashed scarily. He really anticipated a scene like this. However, the moment Ye Futian''s body erupted with boundless power, he flashed and walked out from the tripod like a Roc.


    The horrible power from the Demonic Tripod almost crushed the air. The tripod fell heavily to the ground, shaking the ground like an earthquake.


    "Three feet." Everyone saw the distance of the last movement. Had Ye Futian used all his power to lift it to this limit? In a way, Ye Futian hadn''t even done three feet because he''d escaped the moment he erupted with power.


    "Previously, the top talents of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan only lifted three feet as well," Yin Mo said. Hearing this, many people''s eyes flashed. Ye Futian''s plane was low but he was close to those people.


    And the Arhat was the most formidable.


    Ye Futian glanced at Yin Mo and chuckled. He didn''t say anything. At that moment, his body had reached its limit. He made a breakthrough in the technique and leveled up in martial arts cultivation. Right now, he felt so good. As for lifting the tripod�� was there any meaning if he couldn''t cultivate with it? So what if it three feet or four? Someone as modest as him wouldn''t care what the others thought of him.


    Right now, he stared at the Demonic Tripod with burning eyes. This was such a precious item. It was unfortunate he couldn''t take it away.


    "Do you all want to try?" Ye Futian asked when he returned to his group.


    Ye Wuchen shook his head. He was a pure swordsman-in-training. There were no benefits in lifting the tripod.


    "Yu Sheng." Ye Futian''s eyes fell on him. Yu Sheng nodded; he clearly understood what Ye Futian meant. He walked towards the Demonic Tripod. This tripod also suited him. He could exercise his physical body.


    "Yu Sheng from the Cottage."


    Many gazes fell upon him. Even though Yu Sheng wasn''t an official disciple, he''d called himself the firewood-chopper of the Cottage at the Qin Dynasty. No one dared to overlook him.


    He walked under the Demonic Tripod. He was as muscular as Kua Shan and grabbed the two legs of the tripod. With a burst of strength, he lifted the tripod.


    Horrible pressure came from the Demonic Tripod. Yu Sheng roared but the tripod kept rising. It quickly reached one foot.


    Kua Shan''s eyes hardened, feeling speechless. This guy was more powerful than him. Tuoba Yun also shut his mouth. He''d already shut his mouth when Ye Futian started lifting the tripod because he couldn''t do it.


    When the pressure weighed down, Yu Sheng''s body glowed dark gold. He seemed to be covered in armor. Endless power crushed down. When the formless demonic intent descended, Yu Sheng''s eyes turned eerie and demonic. The powerful intent feared nothing and he continued raising the tripod.


    Slowly, the tripod reached two feet.


    "So terrifyingly powerful." Everyone watched Yu Sheng. He glowed with demonic dark gold light. His body was about to explode. It was scary but the tripod was still rising.


    Horrible demonic intent flooded into Yu Sheng''s intent. His own intent was frightening too. His eyes seemed to turn into demonic orbs and whirlpools seemed to appear in his skin that swallowed the power pressing down. At the same time, his intent was absorbing the demonic intent and exercising himself. He pushed the tripod up. It reached two feet one inch, two inches�� It approached three feet.


    Many people''s hearts trembled. He was close to three feet and was stronger than Ye Futian.


    "Oh?" Ye Futian''s eyes flashed and there was a strange glint. He sensed something different. Using the Freedom Meditation, he saw something shocking. The demonic strength flowing through Yu Sheng was resonating with the power produced by the Demonic Tripod.


    "This��" Ye Futian knew that Yu Sheng''s technique was suitable for lifting the tripod but he didn''t expect this. What kind of power did his godfather give Yu Sheng to cultivate? He was even swallowing the power of the Demonic Tripod.


    Yu Sheng''s body was still rising. The Demonic Tripod had passed three feet and was still going. There wasn''t any sign of slowing down.


    "What''s going on?" The strong cultivators nearby were all shocked.


    Just then, there was a terrible flash behind Yu Sheng. Then, huge wings appeared like the wings of a devil. They flapped powerfully as Yu Sheng continued up. The Demonic Tripod became higher and higher.


    Three feet, four feet��it didn''t stop. He had already surpassed the Arhat but didn''t seem to have reached his limit yet. It also seemed that he had no limit.


    Ye Futian was intrigued. Could they take the Demonic Tripod away today? If so, he really had to thank the Yin Family!

 258 Joke?

    Chapter 258: Joke?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A gust of dark power flowed from the Demonic Tripod to Yu Sheng''s body. The tripod spun without stop as if resonating with Yu Sheng''s intent. The surroundings were affected too. He truly did cultivate the extremely domineering demonic method. It could activate the demonic images and in turn activate his techniques. Covered in armor, he was formidable and powerful now, like an ancient devil.


    Even so, the Demonic Tripod was still filled with powerful pressure. As it continued rising, there was strong power pressing down, even as it resonated with him. The two forces clashed against each other.


    Under the clashing, the Demonic Tripod continued rising.


    Yu Sheng is so powerful. Everyone''s hearts trembled. He had surpassed the Arhat. The power he displayed now was like a devil. The Demonic Tripod was now five feet high. His demonic wings were still flapping. This scene was extremely impressive. He was like a devil lifting the tripod��it was a powerful sight.


    Yin Mo''s eyes were frozen on him. Earlier, he had said that no one could surpass the Arhat''s record in the near future but Yu Sheng had done so. He had even surpassed him by so much. Even more frightening, this wasn''t the end. Yu Sheng could continue. Where was his limit?


    Finally, Yu Sheng stopped at five feet. The Demonic Tripod was in the air.


    Strands of dark gold light flowed through Yu Sheng''s body. Many people were intrigued by this sight. Was he absorbing the Demonic Tripod''s power for cultivation? Ye Futian hadn''t been obvious but Yu Sheng was different. Other than repressing his power, the dark gold light seemed to get absorbed by his armor. Strands appeared between him and the Demonic Tripod.


    More and more people came over and were shocked by what they saw.


    "This tripod is evil and contains demonic strength. Even the Buddhist techniques couldn''t purify it. I felt strong backlash earlier," the Arhat said at that time. Many people turned to look at him. He continued, "But he is cultivating with the tripod. His technique must be the powerful demonic method that resonates with the tripod."


    Hearing this, everyone nodded. They had felt something strange. The Arhat had the dharma-caksu and could see more things clearly. Since he said so, he must be right.


    "If he receives the tripod, it will be inauspicious," the Arhat said with his palms together in prayer. Everyone''s eyes flashed and glinted. What did he mean? Was he saying that Yu Sheng was inauspicious?


    "Arhat, what do you mean?" someone from the Donghua Clan asked.


    "An inauspicious man will have bloody hands. He will be a sinner that brings retributions." The Arhat seemed to be a compassionate man. Ye Futian''s eyes flashed and he looked over coldly.


    "It is not like a Buddhist to come to brash conclusions," Ye Futian said coolly. How could the Arhat decide Yu Sheng would definitely bring retribution?


    The Arhat gazed at him. "Since I said so, I definitely did not decide brashly."


    "If you are so compassionate, why are you here instead of saving the world?" Ye Futian said sarcastically. He had come to lift the tripod but was now preaching to the audience. Yu Sheng had a bad temper but he wasn''t a murderer. His anger was only created because of Ye Futian.


    The Arhat shook his head but didn''t continue.


    Yu Sheng continued cultivating. The Demonic Tripod rose bit by bit. After a while, it was already six feet in the air. Yin Mo stared at this in shock. To him, this was like a miracle.


    The Yin Family guarded the Tripod Tower but no one had ever done this. Even the disciples of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan could only reach three feet. The Arhat hadn''t gone past four feet. Now, Yu Sheng had completely broken the records.


    The crown prince of Qin had reached eight feet. Could Yu Sheng surpass that? He thought of the myths left behind by the ancestors. Thinking of how Yu Sheng might surpass eight feet, Yin Mo''s expression changed.


    As the Demonic Tripod rose, the Spiritual Qi around it went wild. They seemed to be covered in dark light. Strands of air current flowed to a terrifying extreme. The sky changed color and the pressure even went towards the surroundings.


    This wasn''t the limit either. As Yu Sheng cultivated, the Demonic Tripod continued rising. In the darkness, everyone felt a frightening aura. Even if they weren''t the one lifting the tripod, they still felt the pressure. It seemed to come down from thin air.


    Some people retreated. The pressure was so strong. It felt that they were all lifting the tripod instead of just Yu Sheng.


    The tripod was now at seven feet. The sky and ground were completely black. Everyone kept retreating and even people from far away could see this phenomenon. Some people hurried over.


    Yin Mo looked more and more uncomfortable. What would happen if Yu Sheng really could reach nine feet? Was he supposed to let Yu Sheng take the tripod? The Demonic Tripod was his family''s treasure. Even if no one in the Yin Family could use it now, it had still been there since the Qian Dynasty. His family always hoped that a later descendant could accomplish it. If Yu Sheng from the Cottage took it, it wouldn''t belong to them anymore. Thinking of his earlier words, he started regretting. How could anyone imagine this?


    This was something not even the elders of the Yin Family could accomplish. Who would have thought that someone in the Dharma Plane could do it?


    Right now, he was praying Yu Sheng would get killed.


    Back then, the Qin crown prince had lifted the tripod eight feet and wanted to continue to take the tripod away. That was when he was killed by the backlash. Yin Mo had never seen the scene but Yu Sheng couldn''t be more powerful than a crown prince, right?


    Behind Yin Mo, there was a tower that stood there, facing Yu Sheng. The Tripod Tower wasn''t just the Demonic Tripod. There was also this tower. It was also a relic from the Qian Dynasty.


    A group walked out of the tower now. They seemed to sense some change and looked over. The leader was very extraordinary and stood out from the crowd. However, his expression was cold and proud. He was Yin Zhen, the youngest representative of the Yin Family. Now, he walked over and gazed at Yu Sheng. "What is going on?" he asked Yin Mo. "Who is this?"


    Seeing Yin Zhen''s arrival, Yin Mo''s expression changed. "Yu Sheng from the Cottage."


    "Yu Sheng." Yin Zhen''s eyes flashed. He quickly thought of someone. Apparently, Gu Dongliu had gone to the Qin Dynasty because Yu Sheng had been hurt by one of Donghua Clan''s Nobles.


    He looked up towards Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng was using the Demonic Tripod to cultivate and the tripod rose up bit by bit. It gradually approached the eight feet mark. This was what the crown prince had done many years ago.


    The matrices around him kept getting activated. The Demonic Tripod released power crazily. It was like the end of the world.


    Finally, Yu Sheng reached eight feet. There were countless figures in the vast sky. They had all come from afar to watch Yu Sheng. The scene before their eyes was extremely shocking. A devil was raising the tripod.


    Yin Mo opened his mouth to speak but then stopped. His eyes fell upon Ye Futian and said, "During the Qian Dynasty, the Qin crown prince raised the tripod to eight feet and wanted to continue. However, he suffered from the backlash and was killed. He is now at eight feet. If he continues, it will be too dangerous. You should tell him to stop."


    Ye Futian gazed at Yin Mo. Yu Sheng was now at eight feet and was still cultivating. He was working steadily and rising bit by bit. He could resonate with the Demonic Tripod and fight back against the repressive force.


    Why should he stop?


    Yu Sheng really wanted to take it away. Earlier, he''d asked Yin Mo how to take the tripod but Yin Mo said he didn''t know.


    Yin Mo''s attitude hadn''t been like this before. He''d hoped that they would raise the tripod and wished they would get killed. Now, he was worrying for Yu Sheng''s safety. Ye Futian didn''t believe him.


    There was only one reason for him to say this: it was possible for Yu Sheng to take the tripod and Yin Mo knew the limit.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian chuckled. "Yu Sheng knows his limits. If he really is lucky enough to take the Demonic Tripod, I''ll have to thank the Yin Family."


    "Take it?" Yin Zhen''s eyes flashed at this. He said, "The Demonic Tripod is our family''s but is open to the public. Anyone can try to lift it but who said you could take it?"


    Ye Futian frowned at this. Were they eating their words now?


    "I only know that someone from the Yin Family said that if you can take it, then do as you please. Everyone here heard it," Ye Futian said indifferently. They had risked their lives to lift the tripod but now the Yin Family was joking with him?


    Impossible.


    It dawned on Yin Zhen. He gazed coldly at Yin Mo.


    The latter looked uncomfortable. Looking at Ye Futian, he said, "That was just a joke. Did you take it for real?"


    "Who''s joking with you?" Ye Futian gazed coolly at him. Did Yin Mo really think he couldn''t understand his attitude from before? Yin Mo had hoped the Demonic Tripod would kill them and egged them on. But now, he said he had been joking?


    The people who heard this conversation were shocked. Would Yu Sheng really be able to take the tripod?


    The Yin Family seemed to regret it.


    Of course, they could see that when Yin Mo agreed earlier, he had been gleeful. He definitely didn''t expect this result, so now, he was panicking.


    Yin Zhen''s expression was extremely cold. He looked from Yin Mo to Ye Futian and said, "Yin Mo cannot represent the Yin Family. Do not take those words seriously."


    While he spoke, Yu Sheng was still rising. He had gone past eight feet, surpassing the Qin crown prince!

 259 Just Learned Nothing

    Chapter 259: Just Learned Nothing


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hearing Yin Zhen''s words, Ye Futian looked up ar Yu Sheng in the sky. He knew it from the eyes of the Yin Family��there was a great possibility for Yu Sheng to take the Demonic Tripod. At this moment, both Yin Zhen and Yin Mo were a little bit nervous, especially Yin Mo who had spoken carelessly because he never predicted this situation.


    Were they going to take their words back?


    "Since you belong to the Yin Family and you have been the keeper of the Demonic Tripod for so many years, you can represent the Yin Family. Your words count." Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng instead of Yin Zhen. At this moment, the scene was strange. The sky was dark and frightening. Since Yin Mo had said they could do whatever they wanted, they would definitely take this treasure away. Moreover, this Demonic Tripod was perfect for Yu Sheng.


    Standing in the center of the storm, Yu Sheng''s life seemed to be at stake. Therefore, it was impossible for Yin Zhen to end things by saying that Yin Mo could not stand for the Yin Family.


    Yin Zhen stepped forward to under the Demonic Tripod, followed by his other family members. He glanced at Ye Futian. He did not have much fear when facing a disciple of the Cottage.


    The Yin Family was low-key but that didn''t mean they were weak. As the former lord, they still dominated Chaoge City even though they had declined. Moreover, they were attached to the Qin Dynasty. There was already a conflict between the Qin Dynasty and the Cottage, so he didn''t have to fear the disciples of the Cottage.


    "Yin Mo didn''t speak properly. He will get punished. However, if you, as a disciple of the Cottage, purport to seize our treasure that has been passed down through generations, intending to bully us, the Yin Family will not let you go." Yin Zhen stared at Ye Futian coldly. "Now that the Demonic Tripod is lifted high enough, it''s time for him to stop or he will be hurt. We don''t wish to see someone from the Cottage get hurt."


    "He has never had such a worry." Ye Futian glanced at Yin Zhen and said, "Therefore, don''t bother yourselves."


    People in the distance sensed the hostility growing between the two. They realized that it was very possible for Yu Sheng to take the Demonic Tripod away. Obviously, the Yin Family couldn''t allow that.


    Yin Zhen stared at Ye Futian but Ye Futian didn''t look at him. He still looked at the figure in the sky.


    The pressure on Yu Sheng''s body had reached a dreadful level. Endless dark lights flowed through him. The Demonic Tripod rose extremely slowly but it was still rising. Every inch higher was enough to make the Yin Family tense up. They desperately looked forward to seeing Yu Sheng be killed just like the former crown prince.


    A terrible storm was coming. The patterns on the Demonic Tripod seemed to be alive like devils. Just then, Yu Sheng roared. The magic lights were still flowing in him. His body continued ascending fiercely inch by inch, gradually approaching nine feet. The sky changed. Those devils seemed to come to life. Beams of lights projected straight into the sky. The magic lights here were so dazzling, even going to the tower behind the tripod. Beams of light burst from the Tripod Tower like lights of the five elements and descended onto the Demonic Tripod.


    A voice was heard from the tower. "Put it down." This voice fell on the Demonic Tripod like thunder. More pressure descended on it like a tyrannical will accompanying the lights of five elements.


    With a loud bang, the Demonic Tripod shook. Yu Sheng spat out a mouthful of blood and fell down. The weight above the tripod pressed down to crush him. Yu Sheng was going to be killed!


    There was a shocking roar and a devilish apparition appeared above Yu Sheng. It pushed against the Demonic Tripod so that it couldn''t kill Yu Sheng on the spot.


    Everyone looked up to the tower. Who could it be? Acting at this critical time, the speaker intended to kill Yu Sheng.


    The scene was too thrilling. Yu Sheng had been pushed down to three feet. If he wasn''t strong enough, he would have been killed. Though the power contained in that voice was not very strong, any slight force could be fatal to Yu Sheng when he was fighting against the power from the Demonic Tripod.


    Was it the Yin Family''s act? But by common sense, they should not be so bold.


    After all, Donghua Clan had done a similar thing not long ago and the result was that the Noble was disabled. The Yin Family was indeed attached to the Qin Dynasty but they did not belong to the top forces. They wouldn''t dare bully the Cottage or the consequences could be disastrous.


    Ye Futian''s expression changed. He looked up to the tower with extremely cold eyes. How could someone dare to intervene at this time? Yu Sheng had almost been killed. His extremely cold eyes fell on Yin Zhen. Even Yin Zhen''s expression had changed a little. He knew what was going on but that was not what he wanted to see.


    Ye Futian stepped out but he was stopped by Yin Zhen. Yin Zhen persuaded, "Let him stop. We are sorry for what happened in the tower but we didn''t mean to do it."


    "Move." Ye Futian looked at Yin Zhen coldly. They just denied what Yin Mo had promised. Now they wanted to shirk responsibility too?


    He would like to see who was in the tower. Ye Futian walked toward the tower, followed by Ye Wuchen. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu were left to watch Yin Zhen''s people.


    Ye Futian flew straight to the sky above the tower. He suddenly saw two figures standing in the corridor of the tower. The man''s handsomeness was peerless while the woman''s beauty was matchless.


    People were all amazed at the sight of the two.


    They were Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo.


    Qian Shanmu was known as number one in Rhythmic Sorcery among the young generations. Qin Mengruo was the princess of the Qin Dynasty. They were the bride and bridegroom who should be preparing for their wedding in Chaoge City. Why were they here? Clearly, the Yin Family invited them here. However, Qian Shanmu shouldn''t be the one who had spoken. There was something still unknown in that tower.


    Ye Futian stood before it. He was stopped by Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo. The entrance was behind them.


    "Move." Ye Futian glanced at the two.


    Qin Mengruo frowned. Her eyes were proud. She didn''t expect that Ye Futian would talk to her in such a rude way.


    "This is the Yin Family''s land," Qian Shanmu said. "It''s inappropriate for you to come here."


    Ye Futian didn''t care about them and just released his Dharma. The moon and sun appeared at the same time.


    Qian Shanmu frowned. "You aren''t my match yet."


    Sunlight and moonlight from Ye Futian''s Dharma came down at the same time, shooting toward Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo. Qian Shanmu took out his flute and began to play. Suddenly, a frenzied storm came and shrouded the area. The flute was sharp and harsh. When the Dharma met the sound, it turned into Spiritual Qi and dissipated.


    Ye Futian stepped forward with an amazing speed. His body seemed to have transformed into flames. He released ancient words that burned towards Qian Shanmu. He also raised his hands and sent out a handprint that destroyed everything.


    Qian Shanmu''s music turned into sharp swords and ripped Ye Futian''s Dharma apart. That terrible spirit contained in the sound seemed to turn into arrows. Spiritual Qi went wild and the golden arrows, guided by the Rhythmic Sorcery, shot toward Ye Futian.


    Boom, boom, boom. Frantic power broke out. Arrows were burnt but the handprint broke too. Ye Futian backed off but the icy intent released by the Dharma kept blooming. Countless arrows froze and fell down.


    "So powerful. Ye Futian deserves to be a disciple of the Cottage. But there is still a distance between him and Qian Shanmu," people commented. However, Ye Futian didn''t intend to give up. He kept moving forward while his aura was growing more furious.


    Almost at the same time, a sword appeared. Ye Wuchen had acted. The sword went directly toward Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo.


    "Go inside," Ye Wuchen told Ye Futian. His sword was stopped by Qian Shanmu. But the next moment, both Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo fell into his sword world. They saw countless fierce swords rushing toward them.


    Qian Shanmu''s flute grew harsher. It was as if numerous spiritual arrows penetrated into Ye Wuchen''s brain. However, his spiritual swords also penetrated into Qian Shanmu''s brain. With countless swords sweeping over, Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo were forced to retreat.


    "Who is he?" someone saw Ye Wuchen and asked.


    "He is Ye Wuchen from the Cangye Kingdom," another answered. "He and Ye Futian became famous in the Barren Ancient World at the same time. He is now the disciple of the Fuyun Sword Clan." They didn''t expect that Ye Wuchen to be strong enough to beat back Qian Shanmu.


    Ye Futian rushed into the tower with an extreme speed.


    There was another door in the tower. There were strong cultivators guarding outside the door of the Yin Family. They stared at Ye Futian indifferently, blocking his path.


    Ye Futian looked inside coldly.


    "Tell him to give up," one of them said indifferently. Judging from their auras, they were at the Noble level. The guards were actually Nobles!


    "You''ve learned nothing, have you?" a voice said from the outside. Then a figure rushed into the tower. It was Luo Fan. He looked at the two nobles beside the door and asked, "Do you remember what happened at the Qin Palace?"


    The two nobles frowned. They knew what happened outside though they were always guarding here. They had heard about what happened in the Qin Dynasty too.


    "But we won''t let the Cottage rob the Yin Family''s treasure," one of the Nobles responded coldly.


    Luo Fan stepped forward. The fire stick in his hand instantly turned red. Suddenly, Flame Dragon Whip appeared, dancing in the tower.

 260 Chapter 260 — Obliteration

    Chapter 260: Chapter 260 �� Obliteration


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Luo Fan did not say anything unnecessary. This was the second time. Previously, the Donghua Clan had already done something similar. Now, even the dying dynasty dared to bully the Cottage like this.


    The dragon whip charged out. Many fire dragons seemed to appear in the sky and swept towards the two nobles directly. The two emitted a violent aura. They retreated to the side and did not dare to release too much power in case it would cause the entire tower to collapse.


    Seeing an opening, Ye Futian flashed forward, stepping into the door.


    "How dare you." The two nobles wanted to stop him, but the dragon whip lashed onto the space. Even the space seemed to be cut into two pieces by the flaming dragon whip, and they did not dare to resist it head-on.


    At the moment, many cultivators had arrived outside the tower. The people from the Qin Dynasty, the Donghua Clan, and the Yin Family reached gradually, all wanting to enter the tower. However, on the eaves of the tower, a figure was standing quietly. It was Xue Ye, the fourth disciple of the Cottage. Thousands of pages danced around him and flooded the entire space, blocking everyone outside.


    "Does the Cottage intend to cross the line?" a cultivator from the Yin Family said coldly, staring at Xue Ye.


    "I have something to announce. Although Yu Sheng is not officially a Cottage disciple yet, his status is equivalent to one. The Yin Family should pray that he is fine at the moment. Otherwise, there will be no more Yin Family in the Eastern Barren Territory," Xue Ye said calmly and looked at the cultivator from the Yin Family as if it was something very ordinary.


    "Are you joking?" a cultivator from the Qin Dynasty said emotionlessly. The Yin Family was a subsidiary force of the Qin Dynasty.


    "Scholars are all honest people. We don''t joke," Xue Ye said.


    The faces of the people from the Yin Family turned extremely pale. The disciples of the Cottage would always do what they had said. Even a noble from the Donghua Clan was disabled by them just like that.


    Actually, the people from the Yin Family naturally did not dare to deal with Yu Sheng like that. Otherwise, if he really died, it would also be a disaster for the Yin Family. However, the person who just shouted was not a current member of the Yin Family, but a being in the tower.


    "Do scholars like to snatch what they like by force as well?" a cultivator from the Donghua Clan questioned.


    "I can testify for this. Someone from the Yin Family said himself that Cottage disciples can take the demonic tripod away if they have the ability to do so," Liu Feiyang smiled and said. "It''s not just me. Many people here should have heard this as well."


    The looks from the cultivators of the Yin Family were extremely cold as they stared at Yin Mo who was below them. At the moment, Yin Mo''s body was trembling. Clearly, he knew that his unintentional words had gotten them into much trouble.


    "The people of my Yin Family are not disciplined enough," an elder of the Yin Family said.


    "That''s it? Not disciplined enough?" Xue Ye smiled. "Furthermore, you almost killed my Cottage disciple."


    "The Cottage wants to snatch the treasure of my Yin Family, and yet you sound so righteous. This is way too much." In the sky, another cultivator had arrived. It was the master of the Yin Family. He had a terrifying aura around his body as if he was a ferocious beast. His burly body was filled with an extremely violent strength.


    "The third brother once said that Cottage disciples are reasonable; however, since we have met unreasonable people, we can only speak with our fists." Xue Ye looked at the master of the Yin Family, and his voice suddenly turned dominating. "We are bullying your Yin Family. So what?"


    Dong. The master of the Yin Family took a step forward, and his might crushed everything beside him.


    "Try it if you dare." Suddenly, a cold voice spread out. Many people looked in that direction and saw a lady standing proudly.


    The lady had a proud temperament and was standing with her body straight. Behind her, there were many other cultivators.


    "A mountain elder from the College." Some people knew her identity: Zhu Qing, a mountain elder in the College. This time, it was not only the Cottage which came from the College. Two mountain elders went down the mountain as well. The mountain elders were preceded only by the College Chief. Unlike the ordinary College disciples, they naturally knew what to do in this kind of situation.


    At the moment, another cultivator arrived at the place. He had a very sharp temperament and was carrying a blade behind his back; he was from the Sword Saint Mountain.


    "After the event at the Qin Dynasty, my master said that anyone who bullies his junior at the Cottage will do so at his own risk," the person said emotionlessly. Immediately, the whole atmosphere became tense.


    When the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan teamed up, they were naturally a superpower in the Eastern Barren Territory. However, the Cottage, the College, and the Sword Saint Mountain were no weaker when they joined up either. If a war really was to break out, the entire Eastern Barren Territory would be covered in blood. As for the Yin Family, although it had a strong power in Chaoge City, it was really too weak when compared to such a force.


    The master of the Yin Family stopped in his spot. The atmosphere immediately became extremely tense. The people from the all the major forces had already arrived. Seeing the scene, a strange expression appeared on their faces. The event at the moment looked somewhat similar to the one at the Qin Dynasty. However, in the last time, the Cottage disciples appeared to be isolated and helpless. The issue was only solved after Gu Dongliu went down the mountain.


    This time was different. After the last event, the Sword Saint had made his position directly and instructed his disciples on what to do. Therefore, today the Sword Saint Mountain stood out at once. Furthermore, there was also the College this time.


    The College had nine mountains. Apart from the first mountain where the College Chief resided and the Cottage, there were still seven mountains. All the seven mountain elders were not simple.


    The situation went into a stalemate at this instant. Yu Sheng was trying to lift the tripod again and he was still as violent as before. The demonic tripod was emitting a whizzing sound and even caused the sky to darken. Along with the two parties facing each other in a stalemate, the atmosphere appeared to be extremely repressed.


    At the moment, Ye Futian stepped into the hall in the tower. The magnificent hall was emitting an ancient feeling. Ye Futian stared at the space in front of him directly. There, there was a matrix which was crafted from many brilliant symbols. Inside the matrix, there was an illusory figure formed by willpower which looked like an elder.


    Previously when Yu Sheng was attacked, Ye Futian already knew that it was a will attack. Now when he saw the scene, he realized that the illusory figure was a person from the previous generation in the Yin Family. His will did not dissipate and was kept by the matrix so that he could be worshiped at this place.


    Around the matrix, there were five rods. On each rod, a light of different color was flowing, and they represented the five elements respectively. The matrix was connected by the five illusory rods. It rotated continuously and repeatedly to absorb the power of the five elements in the world.


    The elder stared coldly at Ye Futian. He had clearly sensed the situation outside. His action of interrupting the person who was trying to lift the tripod seemed to have brought much trouble to the Yin Family, which he did not expect to happen.


    He was worshiped at this place. Although he did know some of the things happening outside, his knowledge was very limited. Obviously, he did not know what happened in the Qin Dynasty.


    Today, the younger generation of the Yin Family had brought the two geniuses from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan to the place in order to learn from him. He gave the two a lecture, before the event regarding Yu Sheng happened.


    "Ancestor of the Yin Family?" Ye Futian glanced coldly at the figure. His roar almost caused the demonic tripod to kill Yu Sheng on the spot. He walked forward and approached the matrix.


    "Youngster, this is not where you are supposed to enter. Go out," the illusory figure said emotionlessly.


    "The rods are not bad. Can you give them to me for free?" Ye Futian neared the matrix and reached out his hand. Holding one of the rods installed in the place, he applied a gentle force and wanted to pull it out.


    Bang. A violent, invisible gust of Spiritual Qi erupted and enveloped him, pressuring his body. The illusory figure said coldly, "You think that I do not dare to kill you?"


    "You have already seen the situation outside. If anything happens to me, the Yin Family will die with me." Ye Futian smiled as if he was not worried at all. He continued to exert force, attempting to take the rod away.


    The illusory figure looked frustrated. If the rods were taken away, the matrix would collapse and his existence could no longer be maintained.


    "Are all the young people today so presumptuous?" He stared at Ye Futian. In an instant, he turned into a frightening willpower and started to pressure Ye Futian. At this moment, Ye Futian only felt like he was standing against a top noble. The might wanted to crush his will.


    "Do you want to leave yourself, or do you need me to send you away?" An emotionless voice erupted in Ye Futian''s mind as if the illusory figure had charged into his mind directly. He sounded extremely arrogant.


    "Idiot." A mocking smile appeared on Ye Futian''s face. Then, water and flame intents exploded simultaneously and enveloped the illusory will directly. Ye Futian was actually waiting for him to launch a willpower attack. If it was a real top-level noble will, he would lose. However, the opposite party was trying to pressure him with a residue willpower only.


    "You are overconfident," the elder said coldly and allowed the water and flame intents to approach himself.


    "Is it?"


    The two communicated through their wills. On Ye Futian''s body, an extremely dazzling light was flowing, as if it was emperor''s light. The water and flame intents charged into the illusory will. A divine flame seemed to appear on the flame intent and turned into several ancient characters.


    Fire, Flare, Blaze.


    Every ancient character seemed to contain an emperor''s imprint. The illusory figure gasped in horror as he could only feel his will starting to burn. At the same moment, the icy intent engulfed him as well. It was sufficient to freeze any willpower to death.


    Under the water and flame intents, the illusory figure cried in pain and roared angrily, "Go away." The illusory figure turned extremely violent as he tried to break free and escape.


    "You can go and really die now." Ye Futian''s voice was very cold. The will of the elder was slowly eaten away. At the center of the matrix, the elderly figure trembled wildly and turned lighter and lighter.


    "Help!" he shouted loudly. Outside the tower, many people were astonished, especially those from the Yin Family.


    "Get out of the way," the master of the Yin Family roared in anger and stepped forward, causing Xue Ye''s spells to erupt totally. At the same time, a dragon whip struck out and actually caused two nobles to be blown away. Then, Luo Fan appeared at the place as well.


    Seeing Luo Fan''s emergence, many people were momentarily stunned. Even Xue Ye had a strange expression on his face as he said, "It''s not you?"


    "I think the little brother can settle it himself," Luo Fan said.


    "Quick." The figure in the tower called for help again. In the matrix, the figure became more and more illusory. Gradually, it turned into nothingness and totally disappeared.


    Ye Futian looked in front of him coldly. The matrix stopped slowly and the five illusory rods around it actually turned into five beams of light which flew towards the same spot. They converged together and turned into a single body.

 261 Small Tricks?

    Chapter 261: Small Tricks?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The rod was glittering with the light of five different colors. Ye Futian was stunned for a while. It seemed that apart from the matrix, the power of the ritual implement was also used to seal the willpower of the ancestor of the Yin Family at this place.


    He released his will and entered the rod. Immediately, a link was formed between Ye Futian and the rod. Extending his arm, the rod flew into his hand. The Spiritual Qi of the five elements circled around the rod which could change its color depending on the element.


    "Five Element Rod." Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled and he controlled his willpower. Immediately, the rod turned flame red, as if it could burn everything in the world. Then, he controlled his will again and the rod turned green and extremely soft. He swung his hand and the rod started to extend. It could even bend like vines.


    "Err��" Ye Futian blinked his eyes. The Five Element Rod could actually change its form. It was indeed a treasure. It seemed that he really had to thank the Yin Family.


    Raising his legs, Ye Futian began to walk outside. At the moment, the atmosphere outside the tower was already extremely tense. The master of the Yin Family wanted to enter by force, but Zhu Qing appeared before him.


    The master of the Yin Family knew that although the Yin Family was a subsidiary force under the Qin Dynasty, if a war really was to break out, the Yin Family would suffer the most. Furthermore, it was still unknown whether the Qin Dynasty would really start a war because of the Yin Family in the first place.


    Ye Futian walked out of the tower. At once, he was greeted by countless stares. Seeing the rod in Ye Futian''s hand, the face of the master of the Yin Family instantly turned extremely cold as he stared firmly at Ye Futian. "You destroyed the matrix?"


    "Yup." Ye Futian nodded and was very calm.


    "You wanted to take away the demonic tripod of my Yin Family, and now you have destroyed the will of my ancestor. This is really too much," the master of the Yin Family roared in anger.


    "Don''t pretend like you have been wronged." Zhu Qing glanced at the master of the Yin Family emotionlessly. "I already know what happened. You said that the words from the person who guards the demonic tripod cannot represent the attitude of the entire Yin Family. Do you think the people from the College are all idiots? If it''s just like that, we can ignore it. But when Yu Sheng was about to break the binding and lift the tripod, you suppressed him by force directly. If Yu Sheng is not a member of the College, I think that even if he was killed, you all would not even frown and hesitate a bit. Now, you want to act as if you are the pitiful person here?"


    The people around were all speechless. This was, in fact, the reality: power is above everything. If Yu Sheng was not from the Cottage, he would not dare to think about taking the demonic tripod away. Otherwise, he would not even know what killed him.


    The Yin Family felt wronged because they could not do anything, and that in turn was because of their strength, because they were against the College.


    Just as they were talking, an extremely violent aura was released near the demonic tripod. Yu Sheng seemed to have turned into a devil completely and broke the binding continuously. He lifted the tripod to nine feet high and even the sky seemed to discolor. Following a loud roar, the endless power of the matrix dissipated and the repressive force vanished. Lifting the tripod, Yu Sheng ascended into the air like an overpowering demon king.


    "He did it." Everyone was shocked. Yu Sheng caused the demonic tripod to break free from the binding of the matrix. The demonic tripod was still filled with a shocking demonic will, but the patterns and light on the tripod were disappearing slowly. In the next moment, the huge demonic tripod turned into a small tripod and landed in Yu Sheng''s palm.


    The demonic forces in the sky dissipated. Yu Sheng had done what nobody could in thousands of years. The demonic tripod finally found its master.


    "Amitabha." The Arhat put his hands together and said softly, "Ominous sign."


    Everyone around looked at the Arhat. Previously, the Arhat already said that if Yu Sheng was to get the demonic tripod, something very evil would happen. Now Yu Sheng did it. Did it mean that in the future, he would really kill a lot of people just like what the Arhat had said?


    "The tripod was left by the ancestors of my Yin Family." The expression of the master of the Yin Family froze. The demonic tripod was really lifted by Yu Sheng. Clearly, he was planning to bring the tripod away.


    "The demonic tripod has found its master and can finally release its radiance. The Yin Family should be happy instead." Zhu Qing glanced at Yu Sheng.


    The master of the Yin Family looked extremely annoyed. In the Tripod Tower, both the demonic tripod and the will of their ancestor were actually indeed quite useless to the Yin Family. However, they were the only remains from the previous generations. They were the proofs that the Yin Family had once been glorious. The Tripod Tower zone was open to the public and anyone could come and try to lift the tripod. The purpose of this was so that other people in the world would not forget that the Yin Family was once grand. However, because of the events today, the remains were all taken away. Furthermore, the Yin Family had also lost all its face.


    As for the death of his ancestor, he was actually not very bothered. The ancestor had been worshiped for so many years and was already valueless long ago. Now, he even brought a disaster to the Yin Family. The master of the Yin Family also knew that if the ancestor did not attack and almost kill Yu Sheng, the issue might still be alleviated. However, after he launched the attack, the conflict broke up completely. The Yin Family was wrong in the first place. Since the Cottage had all the reasons on their side, they would certainly be domineering.


    Everyone knew what kind of place the College Cottage was.


    The atmosphere froze at this instant. The College and the Cottage would not actively start a dispute. However, if they were provoked, they were not afraid to start a war. The others could choose whether to offend them or not. In fact, this kind of attitude would usually be the most difficult one to deal with.


    They were all major forces standing at the top of the pyramid in the Eastern Barren Territory. Who would dare to start a war so easily?


    Even if they did and one of the forces won, the force would also just barely win and suffer a huge loss. Those forces watching the war in safety would then reap the spoils without any effort.


    "I heard that you were threatened by Gu Zhiqiu not long ago?" At the moment, among the people from the Qin Dynasty, Qin Li suddenly looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled, and he stared at Qin Li.


    The people from the College and the Cottage frowned.


    "You disgraced his junior sister as a servant and were threatened. Then, you came to the Yin Family and bullied them by taking advantage of your background. Only able to do those small tricks. Is that you, Ye Futian?" Qin Li smiled mockingly. "Since this is the case, Senior Yin, we will just give the treasure to the Cottage for free. A few days later, we will have some friendly fights with the College disciples. How is that?"


    Hearing Qin Li''s words, the master of the Yin Family knew that he could not do anything else. Clearly, the Qin Dynasty was not willing to start a war because of the issue. As the grandson of the king of Qin, Qin Li''s words were naturally impactful. What did the Yin Family have to deal with the College?


    "Alright. We''ll give it to the College for free," the master of the Yin Family gritted his teeth and said. Many of the onlookers around felt somewhat disappointed. Do they not dare to start a war in the end?


    Onlookers who are watching for fun will never be afraid that the matter may get out of hand. Of course, they also knew that it was not easy for these kinds of forces to start a war.


    "Please." Qin Li signaled everyone to give way. Immediately, all the people stepped aside to allow the people from the College to leave. He appeared to be very polite. He smiled and looked at Ye Futian, as if he was not the loser.


    "Let''s go," Zhu Qing said. The group stepped out and passed through the crowd. When Ye Futian passed by Qin Li, he stopped for a moment. Looking at Qin Li, he smiled, and then he left the place.


    Qin Li''s eyes sparkled. The smile Ye Futian had before he left was very weird. What did he mean?


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian shouted. Yu Sheng followed the group and they walked away.


    On the way, Luo Fan walked beside Ye Futian and asked, "What did Gu Zhiqiu do to you?"


    "He warned me, but it''s no big deal. Qin Li incited us deliberately. He probably hopes that we will fall out with the Witch Clan." Ye Futian smiled. He knew exactly what Qin Li was thinking.


    The Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan had teamed up. The two superpowers then established a college. Also, Qin Li went to the Moon Clan to chase the Virgin Chu Yaoyao. Obviously, they wanted to ally with various forces and give the College a blow first by pulling it down from its sacred position.


    "Since when did you have such a low profile?" Luo Fan smiled and did not say anything else.


    Ye Futian and his team went back to their individual residences. The news quickly spread in Chaoge City��a Cottage disciple actually snatched the treasure of the Yin Family by force. Ye Futian was even described by Qin Li as someone who could only do small tricks. Furthermore, according to Qin Li, the Warlock Gu Zhiqiu from the Witch Clan threatened Ye Futian because of his junior Gu Biyue. Both the Cottage and Ye Futian did not reply anything. Was it because they knew they were in the wrong?


    Anyhow, Ye Futian''s own level was not high, but he had been creating trouble in many places by relying on the name of the Cottage. It seemed that he was indeed a troublemaker and unworthy of his name.


    Ye Futian''s reputation was ruined in such an odd way. However, he did not bother to pay attention to the rumors outside. Common people were always like this. Their thoughts were easily changed by the words of others. They believed that whatever everyone else was saying must be true. However, if one was really that outstanding, there would eventually be a day when everyone would know one''s name, and what kind of person one was.


    There was no need to explain, or to deliberately prove anything.


    In the next few days, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng both kept a low profile. In the inn, Yu Sheng was quietly cultivating. At the moment, he was sitting inside the demonic tripod. The tripod had restored to its original size and was standing on the ground.


    Yu Sheng released his demonic art and drew the power of the demonic tripod. In an instant, the demon patterns on the tripod seemed to have come alive. A terrifying demonic light flew and gushed into Yu Sheng''s body wildly. The entire scene was very appalling. A rumbling sound erupted forcefully from the demonic tripod. There seemed to be an extremely violent power that was perfecting Yu Sheng''s physical body.


    After cultivating for quite a while, a fierce bang was suddenly heard. A beam of dark demonic light charged up towards the roof and crushed the room. Yu Sheng emerged on the spot. The demonic tripod turned into a small tripod which he held in his hand. A monstrous demonic light was flowing on his body.


    Ye Futian came to the place. Glancing at the room which had largely disappeared, he rolled his eyes. Can this guy not make such an exaggerated impact when he cultivates?


    "You managed to break through?" Ye Futian asked Yu Sheng.


    "Yup," Yu Sheng nodded, "I have entered the Seventh-level Dharma Plane."


    "Can''t you be quieter?" Ye Futian widened his eyes at Yu Sheng.


    "I can''t control it." Yu Sheng was somewhat innocent.


    "Apart from enhancing the body and cultivating, what else can the demonic tripod do?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It''s all demonic powers. Not suitable for you." Yu Sheng simpered at Ye Futian.


    "You should use it to help you to cultivate," Ye Futian said. In these few days, the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan had been spreading malicious remarks about him, but they were still considered to have had a low profile. However, on the opening day of the Dongqin College, the two forces would probably not keep to such a low profile anymore.


    They had made the event so grand. The marriage between Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo was also meant to give publicity to the event. Furthermore, in the Tripod Tower, Qin Li tolerated his anger as well.


    How could it be that the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan did not plan anything special?


    It was just that at the moment, nobody knew exactly what kind of surprise they had planned for the College!

 262 Arrival

    Chapter 262: Arrival


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was the last day of the year 10002 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, the end of yet another year. The last day of every year was quite extraordinary and meaningful to the Divine Prefecture of the East. To the people of the Divine Prefecture, it was a day of reunion. The year was almost over and the next one was about to come.


    On the last day of this year, Chaoge City was particularly lively. At the moment, all the top forces had gathered in Chaoge. Apart from that, countless people had also come from the central area of the Eastern Barren Territory, waiting to see the grand occasion on the next day. Many people would spend the year-end in Chaoge City.


    At night, the crescent moon hung high in the sky, embellished by many tiny stars. In the sky above Chaoge City, fireworks bloomed every now and then. The entire place looked very prosperous and spectacular.


    At the place where the cultivators from the Donghua Clan were staying, there was a courtyard. At the moment, a lady was sitting there and playing her guqin. Under the night sky, she seemed extremely ethereal. Her elegant appearance and jasper-like purity made her look like a beauty who was not even from this world.


    She was Hua Qingqing, one of the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory and the fairy in the minds of all the Donghua Clan disciples. However, nobody in the Donghua Clan dared to have any evil thoughts about her.


    A person would not think about disrespecting Hua Qingqing after merely seeing her face. Furthermore, everyone in the Donghua Clan knew that only he was the Mr. Right for Hua Qingqing.


    Only he deserved a lady like Hua Qingqing.


    He was obviously the person who was honored by the leader of the Donghua Clan as a genius that would only appear in the clan once every hundred years. He was also the future of the Donghua Clan, one who could bring the Donghua Clan to its peak.


    He was Lu Nantian, the most talented person in the Donghua Clan. The phrase "one of" could be omitted.


    Even though Qian Shanmu was known as the best musician among the young generation, both his level and martial talents were weaker than Lu Nantian. Everyone in the Donghua Clan knew clearly that Lu Nantian would be their next leader. It was even said that the current leader was already preparing to let him take over the Donghua Clan and might give the clan to him at any time. Moreover, Hua Qingqing, the most beloved daughter of the leader, was also betrothed to Lu Nantian.


    Previously, Gu Donghua went to the Qin Dynasty and disabled the noble from the Donghua Clan. After the news spread to the Donghua Clan, a challenge was sent to the Cottage. It was said that Lu Nantian wanted to send the letter himself.


    He had already not battled for many years. To date, he had not lost any fight. In the upcoming battle, his opponent would be the third disciples of the Cottage. To the people of the Donghua Clan, it would be the last challenge Lu Nantian would have before becoming the leader. He would shock the world with his name by stepping on Gu Dongliu, and then slowly take over the Donghua Clan.


    At the moment, Lu Nantian stood quietly beside Hua Qingqing and looked at her in silence. He enjoyed looking at her and listening to her music. She was so pure and innocent, just like a clear stream in the muddy world, never contaminated.


    As long as a person lived in the world, he would face constant conflicts and struggles. Even in the Donghua Clan, people had mutual suspicion and deception. Only she had always been beautiful and innocent. Whenever Lu Nantian saw her, he would feel a rare sense of peace in his heart. He really liked her, without any desire. He felt good just by seeing her.


    The melodious music slowly came to a stop. Hua Qingqing had beautifully tender hands and slender fingers. She put down her hands and then raised her head slightly with a clear look in her eyes. Staring at the figure standing before her, she said softly, "Tomorrow will be the day of the battle. Are you confident?"


    Smiling, Lu Nantian shook his head.


    "If you change my opponent to a person from another force, I will naturally be confident. However, my opponent is Gu Dongliu, the third disciple of the Cottage. Who dares to say that he would definitely win against Gu Dongliu?" Lu Nantian smiled and said in a calm tone. There were not many people in the Eastern Barren Territory whom he would respect and view as worthy opponents. The first disciple and the third disciple of the Cottage were, of course, such people. In addition, the Cottage was indeed an honorable force as well.


    "Be careful then," Hua Qingqing said softly, and she was similarly very calm. It was as if the battle which had attracted much attention was not very important to them, or at least, they were not bothered by it that much.


    "Okay." Lu Nantian smiled. Then, he raised his head and gazed at the many stars in the sky.


    The countless stars in the sky were just like the cultivators in the world. However, there were only a few which could remain as the brightest ones. Most people, albeit talented, were only like a meteor. They would flash across the sky and then disappear, only being able to release a short-lived radiance.


    ...


    The Cottage disciples were gathered together at the moment, enjoying the annual banquet. Ye Futian said, "Fifth brother, your cooking skills are amazing."


    "It''s all through practice." Although Luo Fan was praised, he did not seem to be proud at all.


    "I really envy you. You can become so skilled in cooking by practice." Ye Futian smiled gently.


    "The second sister is not here and nobody will protect you. Be careful of what you say," Luo Fan glanced at Ye Futian and warned. Does this guy still think that he is on the mountain and protected by the sister?


    "It''s not like we''re not going back." Hearing Luo Fan''s threat, Ye Futian smiled and looked at him. Immediately, Luo Fan''s face darkened and he widened his eyes fiercely at Ye Futian. If Ye Futian really was to complain about him after going back, he would have a hard time in the future.


    Sigh. As a senior, I was actually bullied by the little brother.


    "It feels really weird without the second sister and sister Xing''er this year," Xue Ye said softly. As he spoke, he even glanced at Gu Dongliu.


    "Just eat. There are still things to do tomorrow," Gu Dongliu said emotionlessly.


    "Third brother, how confident are you about the fight with Lu Nantian tomorrow?" Luo Fan asked curiously. Nobody knew exactly what the third brother was thinking.


    "I don''t know," Gu Dongliu replied. Lu Nantian became famous before he did and had many glorious victories. Subsequently, he seldom battled at all, and nobody knew how strong he was now. However, nobody dared to doubt his power either. Even the Cottage would not look down on a person like Lu Nantian.


    "Is Lu Nantian very strong?" Ye Futian asked. Even a person as strong as the third brother was actually not confident about defeating Lu Nantian.


    "He is the most talented person in the Donghua Clan. Clearly, he is not ordinary," Gu Dongliu said.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly. The Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan were both the very top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory. Since Lu Nantian could be honored as the most talented person in the Donghua Clan, he was undoubtedly very strong. Nevertheless, Ye Futian obviously hoped that the third brother would win.


    The fight was very important to both the Donghua Clan and the College.


    "After you all finish eating, get an early rest." Gu Dongliu stood up and left. Everyone stared at the back of the leaving Gu Dongliu. Luo Fan then said softly, "It seems like there will really be a tough fight tomorrow."


    "Have a good sleep today and be energized for tomorrow," Xue Ye muttered.


    "I wonder where the master is now," Yi Xiaoshi mumbled.


    "He is certainly trying to deceive a child somewhere," Luo Fan whispered. Then, he secretly peeked in the direction where the third brother left.


    "If the third brother hears that, you will be in serious trouble," Yi Xiaoshi said, smiling. Ye Futian looked at the other few in doubt.


    Seeing his puzzled look, Luo Fan patted on his shoulder and said sincerely, "Little brother, you need to remember that as a Cottage disciple, the most important thing is to respect the master, just like me." After speaking, he stood up and left. Ye Futian was somewhat stunned.


    "Do not say anything bad about the master in front of the third brother," Yi Xiaoshi reminded Ye Futian. Then, he left as well.


    Ye Futian blinked his eyes and understood everything instantly. However, he was also not very bothered by the words. There were not many disciples in the world who were as respectful towards their master as him, so he did not need to worry about this kind of problem at all. This was clear by looking at his father-in-law who had always been very proud of him.


    The few brothers went to their individual rooms and Yu Sheng also went back to cultivate. Ye Futian went to the roof alone and lied down, staring at the crescent moon and countless stars in the sky. Under the moonlight, a charming, elf-like figure seemed to appear faintly before him.


    It had yet been another year. Since that particular year, he had spent every year-end with Jieyu. This year, however, Jieyu was not beside him and he really missed her.


    She actually dares to stay in the Moon Clan and did not come and see me. Next time I see her, I must teach her a good lesson to raise my position. This is ridiculous. As Ye Futian was thinking, the image of his father also came to his mind. I wonder where that old b*stard is hiding right now. And mother, aunt, and Ye Qin. I wonder how they are doing now. Where exactly did the godfather bring them to? Where is the godfather himself?


    Thinking about this, Ye Futian closed his eyes and actually fell asleep without knowing it. He just slept on the roof of the building.


    In his dream, he seemed to have returned to the year when he was 15, when he just got to know Jieyu and they fell in love.


    In his dream, he also saw a picture in his memory. On Mount Tianyao, the Snow Ape shattered the sky with the Nine Heavenly Attacks and died bravely. He saw those divine generals and the all-powerful princess Donghuang.


    In his dream, he seemed to have another dream, in which he saw an extremely burly and majestic figure who looked like a real emperor of the world. However, his face was somewhat blurred and could not be seen clearly.


    When the sky finally turned slightly bright and the year 10003 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar had arrived, Ye Futian opened his eyes. Bathed in the cool wind, his look was clear and focused.


    Another year was gone. Time really flies.


    Chaoge City started to turn lively. Just as the sky turned bright, countless people started to head for the Dongqin College. Today was destined to be a day which would be recorded in history.


    Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo were going to be married, and the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan would ally through this. The Dongqin College would officially open, and Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu were going to have a battle.


    Anyone of these things was already sufficient to attract the attention of everyone in the world!

 263 Martial Arts Platform

    Chapter 263: Martial Arts Platform


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The marriage between Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo was scheduled to take place at the Dongqin College.


    On the first day of the new year, countless cultivators in Chaoge City headed towards the same place at the same time, forming an endless stream of people which filled the entire sky and all the streets.


    The people from various top forces had been staying near the Dongqin College. When they left their places, the whole region was already filled with people who were all going to the college.


    Outside the Dongqin College, there was already a sea of people at the moment. However, there was a path at the center of the crowd. Only members of the top-tier forces of the Eastern Barren Territory were allowed to enter.


    Ye Futian arrived at the place with the others from the Cottage and the people from the College. However, the third brother Gu Dongliu and the two mountain elders from the College were nowhere to be seen. Due to their status, there was no need for them to observe the marriage between the two juniors. Similarly, they did not need to give the opposite party any face.


    It was not just the College. The leaders of all the top forces did not come personally. Instead, they had only sent someone to represent their force.


    When Ye Futian and his team arrived, many other cultivators had similarly just reached the place. He saw the members of the Moon Clan who were led by a few seniors. Chu Yaoyao was also among the crowd. The group of charming beauties attracted much attention.


    "Fairy sister, hello," Ye Futian shouted at one of the ladies in the crowd. She was the lady whom he met when he went to find Jieyu. The lady smiled at him, and many disciples of the Moon Clan stared curiously at Ye Futian one after another.


    Is this Ye Futian, the man whom Hua Jieyu loves? Recently, there have been malicious rumors about him in Chaoge City. From the look of it, his behavior does seem to be somewhat frivolous.


    Many people glanced at Chu Yaoyao. Lately, she had been very close to Qin Li. On the previous day, which was the last day of the previous year, they had even gone out on a date. It was still unclear whether they would be together in the future.


    On the other hand, the relationship between Qin Li and Ye Futian was somewhat subtle. Together with the conflict between Hua Jieyu and Chu Yaoyao in the Moon Clan, many disciples of the Moon Clan developed an intriguing thought.


    Entering the Dongqin College, they were guided along the way, which eventually led them to a ceremony platform. Whenever the members of various top forces arrived, they would occupy the positions around the ceremony platform and start to look at the platform before them. Qin Li, the grandson of the king of Qin, was there commanding the various matters.


    Noticing the arrival of the Moon Clan disciples, Qin Li stopped what he was doing and walked towards Chu Yaoyao. This scene caused a strange expression to appear on the faces of many.


    Below the ceremony platform, many major forces from the Eastern Barren Territory and Chaoge City arrived. They looked at the many figures around the platform and were somewhat fascinated.


    Today, every single top force in the Eastern Barren Territory was here. Such a grand event was indeed extremely rare.


    "Gu Dongliu is not here." Someone noticed the arrival of the College, and Gu Dongliu was not among the group. Of course, Lu Nantian did not show up so quickly either.


    "The Arhat and the Warlock are both here." Someone looked in the direction where the people from the Qianqiu Temple and the Witch Clan were at. Fewer people had come from these two forces as compared to the others because there were fewer disciples in the Qianqiu Temple and the Witch Clan in the first place. However, precisely because of this, everyone else did not dare to look down on the disciples of these two forces. It was just like the Cottage; it only had eight disciples but was still famous in the whole world.


    The Arhat and the Warlock were two legendary geniuses. They naturally attracted the attention of many.


    It was said that the Arhat lifted the demonic tripod four feet high before Yu Sheng''s attempt, surpassing many. When Yu Sheng was lifting the tripod, he claimed that Yu Sheng would become a person that would bring ill fortune. On the other hand, the Warlock Gu Zhiqiu spoke out for the witch Gu Biyue and warned Ye Futian.


    Apart from them, Zhe Song and Qi Ao from the Fuyun Sword Clan, Ji Kong from the Ji Family and a few people from the Royal Xuan Temple and the Sword Saint Mountain had also attracted much attention.


    Today, there were too many outstanding cultivators here whom one would hardly see on an ordinary occasion. Just looking at the College, there were people like the leader Bai Lishu and the junior Xiao Wuji who were very famous, not to mention the Cottage.


    At the sides of the ceremony platform, people from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan appeared one after another. Seeing the emergence of the people from these two forces, everyone knew clearly what was going on.


    The marriage between Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo actually carried a special meaning. It was not held at the Qin Dynasty or the Donghua Clan, but rather at the Dongqin College.


    The marriage would signify that the two top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory were allied officially. Together, they established the Dongqin College.


    Time passed by slowly. As people arrived gradually, ceremonial music and the roars of various demons started to spread in the Dongqin College. In the sky above the college, phoenixes appeared and danced in the air. Many beams of light sprinkled down, forming an auspicious scene.


    Just at this moment, two figures descended from the sky. They held the hand of the other and then landed on the divine birds, moving down slowly. The two were elegant in their formal attire and looked stunningly bright. They were obviously Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo.


    "So beautiful." Countless people stared at Qin Mengruo who was in the sky. Wearing a red ceremonial robe, she looked extremely charming, as if she was a goddess. Many people looked at Qian Shanmu in envy. Even if he was a top genius in the Donghua Clan, he would surely be satisfied with such a wife.


    The two descended from the sky and landed at the center of the ceremonial platform. They had been holding the hand of the other all the time and faced the crowd. The king of Qin was not here, and the leader of the Donghua Clan also did not come. There seemed to be something missing in the wedding ceremony. However, everyone knew that this wedding held at the Dongqin College was merely symbolic.


    The cultivators from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan walked behind the two one after another, their faces filled with smiles.


    Qin Yu took a step forward and stood beside Qian Shanmu. Looking at the people before him, he said, "Today is a grand event between the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan. The best forces of the Eastern Barren Territory have all sent someone here as a representative, and we are indeed very honored. The new couple shall use this opportunity to announce the opening of the Dongqin College." After speaking, he backed away.


    A mighty aura was emitted from Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo. Immediately, their clothes started to dance in the air and a violent aura surrounded the ceremonial platform. Even the ceremonial platform was vibrating.


    The eyes of all the people around the ceremonial platform sparkled as they looked at the two, puzzled. Then, a terrifying storm slowly tore the ceremonial platform apart. Following a loud bang, the ceremonial platform collapsed.


    Red light filled the entire place. Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo started to descend. It was not just them; behind them, the people from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan also started to descend.


    Everyone''s eyes sparkled and they looked behind those people. There, a huge stone monument appeared. A few large characters were engraved on the stone monument: Dongqin College.


    Seeing the people from the two forces standing together before the stone monument, everyone knew clearly what this meant. The disciples of the College stared at the stone monument and their eyes were glittering with sharpness.


    The establishment of the Dongqin College was obviously against the Eastern Barren College.


    From this moment on, whenever the word "College" was mentioned in the Eastern Barren Territory, people would no longer just think of the Eastern Barren College.


    "Today the Dongqin College opens officially. We invite all the nobles of the top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory to come here and teach. The people from various forces can also come here and cultivate. Apart from that, we already have almost a thousand disciples in the Dongqin College. Furthermore, in the next three months, the college will be selecting outstanding cultivators to come here and cultivate."


    Qin Yu looked at the massive crowd in front of him and said, "Next, I will bring all of you to visit a place." After he finished speaking, he turned around and walked into the Dongqin College.


    The people from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan beside him followed him one after another. The people from the various forces also stepped forward and followed him. Where was Qin Yu bringing them?


    After a while, the crowd came to an open space. Before them, there was a huge battle platform. Many enormous stone pillars stood at various places around the battle platform, while the ground was carved with symbols which connected the stone pillars. Suddenly, an endless amount of Spiritual Qi sparkled and converged into a frightening light curtain, enveloping the entire battle platform.


    This was a huge battle platform covered by a matrix.


    "This is the martial arts platform of the Dongqin College. From today on, every battle that happens on the martial arts platform will be recorded into the history of the Dongqin College," Qin Yu pointed in front and said. "The wedding between Qian Shanmu and Mengruo has unveiled the opening of the Dongqin College. And now, the first battle on the martial arts platform will be unveiled by the two of them." Just as he finished speaking, everyone could feel their hearts tremble.


    They clearly knew whom Qin Yu was referring to.


    Building such a special martial arts platform could indeed encourage the disciples of the Dongqin College to cultivate harder. Furthermore, the battle that was about to happen would make the martial arts platform even more sacred.


    At the moment, a figure suddenly appeared in the sky. He seemed to have appeared out of thin air in the sky above the martial arts platform and landed on a towering stone pillar. There was no aura released from the figure at all. He just stood there quietly. The wind blew on his robe and his black long hair was similarly blown up, revealing a delicate and handsome face. He gave everyone a feeling that he was very calm and cool-headed. No arrogance could be felt from him, and there were not even many emotions on his calm face. However, when he stood there, he gave everyone a feeling that he was superior.


    Lu Nantian, who was honored as the most talented genius in the Donghua Clan in hundreds of years, had arrived. He appeared on the martial arts platform silently. He did not say anything, and only stood there quietly, waiting. Everyone knew that since he had reached, his opponent would be here very quickly as well.


    Indeed, before long, a path was split among the crowd.


    Countless people looked in that direction. There, a figure in white clothing was walking over slowly, and he was similarly very calm as if he was a simple scholar. He walked towards the martial arts platform step by step. Although he looked like a scholar, unlike Lu Nantian, there was a sense of determination from the scholar. It was the determination of a student.


    "Gu Dongliu is here."


    Looking at the figure who was walking towards the martial arts platform, everyone actually could not help holding their breaths.


    On the stone pillar of the martial arts platform, Lu Nantian looked below him. Gu Dongliu raised his head and their looks collided with each other.


    In this instant, an invisible intent of battle filled the entire sky!

 264 River Sunse

    Chapter 264: River Sunset


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    He is finally here.


    Among the three major events in Chaoge City, this battle was the most anticipated one, because nobody could predict the outcome. These two people would represent the Donghua Clan and the College in this top-level battle.


    It had an extraordinary meaning.


    At this moment, many people appeared among the crowd one after another. The leaders of various forces had also arrived quietly to watch the battle.


    Gu Dongliu walked onto the martial arts platform. Around the enormous battle platform, the light curtain started to flow and the matrix was activated, covering the platform. Clearly, it was to prevent the two from injuring the spectators should the battle become too violent.


    Lu Nantian was still standing on the stone pillar. The two stood at different heights and stared at each other as if their opponent was the only thing left in their eyes. Everything outside had nothing to do with them at all.


    Everyone held their breaths and gazed at the martial arts platform. There was no sound at all, and the whole place was extremely quiet.


    The disciples of the Donghua Clan clenched their fists tightly as they stared at the legendary figure of the Donghua Clan. He will certainly win this fight, even if his opponent is Gu Dongliu.


    Even the Cottage disciples did not seem to be relaxed. On the previous day, the third brother had already said that he was not certain if he would win.


    Apart from the top forces, the people from the other major forces were also very nervous as they gazed at the two figures on the martial arts platform. The battle between the two would really be a top-level duel in their generation.


    Suddenly, on the martial arts platform, Lu Nantian stepped forward from the stone pillar and stood in the air. A trace of flame current spread from his body. In an instant, the flame burnt the sky and his surrounding became completely red as if it had turned into a world of flames. In the flame-filled sky, an enormous bird appeared. It was a divine bird, the Three-legged Golden Raven.


    This was Lu Nantian''s Life Spirit.


    With his Life Spirit as the center, an endless stream of scorching flames converged wildly behind him, forming many suns which hung in the sky. Gradually, a total of nine suns were formed. In every sun, there was an illusory Golden Raven. The nine scorching suns hung high in the sky.


    This was Lu Nantian''s Dharma: nine suns in the sky. As a top-tier noble, both his Life Spirit and Dharma had already evolved to a shocking degree. The sky above the martial arts platform was filled with flowing flame currents. Even the light curtain surrounding the martial arts platform turned red.


    Lu Nantian was a grade one noble.


    The Noble Plane was divided into nine grades, with grade one being the highest. He was literally a top-level noble. His entire body was filled with noble will.


    An extremely dazzling stream of flame charged towards Gu Dongliu. On its way, it condensed and turned into a Three-legged Golden Raven which crashed down towards him directly. There was no elemental Spiritual Qi flowing around Gu Dongliu. However, there seemed to be an invisible aura around him. When he stood there, he looked like an invincible king.


    Noticing the incoming divine bird, Gu Dongliu glanced at it with a very sharp look. From his pupils, an extremely frightening eye sorcery seemed to be cast and penetrated through the illusory Three-legged Golden Raven directly. In the next instant, the illusory divine bird was crushed and turned into Spiritual Qi which soon dissipated.


    Everyone watched attentively. Any random attack from Lu Nantian was already very powerful, but his opponent was Gu Dongliu. It was obviously not possible for him to defeat Gu Dongliu so easily.


    The battle had just begun.


    The sky above the martial arts platform had turned into a flaming world completely. Flames blotted out the sky and the entire place was carved with the imprint of fire. In the nine suns, many solar divine birds appeared and hovered at various spots. Then, they started to engulf the fire-elemental Spiritual Qi in the world wildly. Their bodies became increasingly real and large, and they soon enveloped the battle platform.


    "Is Lu Nantian purely a fire-elemental sorcerer?" Ye Futian asked softly. He had the Sun Spirit and the Sun Dharma himself. However, Lu Nantian''s Life Spirit was the divine bird, while his Dharma was the nine suns. Clearly, his Dharma had evolved.


    "Of course not," Luo Fan said. Having the divine bird, the Three-legged Golden Raven, as his Life Spirit, Lu Nantian would certainly not become a pure fire-elemental sorcerer. Apart from the element of fire, the Three-legged Golden Raven Life Spirit had also given Lu Nantian the elements of metal and wind. At the same time, it had given him a strong martial arts talent. After all, it was an extremely violent divine bird. Of course, apart from those abilities, Lu Nantian was still very powerful just with his flame spells. For example, at the moment, the martial arts platform was already totally controlled by his flame.


    "Where''s the brother?" Ye Futian asked, looking at the martial arts platform. Previously, Gu Dongliu had only displayed a small fraction of his abilities outside the Qin Imperial Palace. Ye Futian could only tell that Gu Dongliu was a very strong spirit-elemental Mandate Sorcerer. He did not even really use all his powers during that battle.


    "Just watch. Lu Nantian is a grade one noble, and is also very famous. He should be able to force the brother to use all his powers." Luo Fan''s eyes sparkled as he stared at the martial arts platform. This battle was worth watching and learning from even for nobles.


    Ye Futian nodded gently. On the martial arts platform, many illusory Golden Ravens were born from the flaming world, and they all charged towards Gu Dongliu. At this instant, it seemed as if the battle was in Lu Nantian''s total control. He wanted to burn Gu Dongliu to death.


    Gu Dongliu''s hands formed a seal. Immediately, a terrifying might erupted from his body. Even the space around him seemed to resonate with his body. His pupils looked extremely frightening and vaguely, the outline of a monstrous figure appeared in his eyes. The outlined figure actually started to condense wildly from Spiritual Qi in front of him. Soon, a blurry figure slowly turned real. That was a war god-like figure. He stood in front of Gu Dongliu with the shocking elan of a soldier.


    When the huge Golden Raven arrived, the war god-like figure punched out directly and crushed the Golden Raven.


    "Conjurer." Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. The third brother was actually a powerful conjurer and summoned an illusory war god to fight for him. Furthermore, his conjuring ability was far superior to Zhou Mu, the disciple of the Art Saint. He completed the conjuring with eye sorcery and used his imagination to form the war god. Then, he finished summoning the war god which started to protect him. He did not need to draw anything.


    The conjured war god stood in front of Gu Dongliu. Many faint characters and ancient seals appeared on his body. As they erupted, the aura around him became extremely appalling. He slapped out with his palms and the illusory divine birds were eliminated directly. However, in the sky, countless divine birds charged towards Gu Dongliu from different directions.


    Gu Dongliu was not bothered by the attack at all. He looked at another direction, and one more illusory war god formed and started to battle directly. Then, under the astonished stare of everyone, Gu Dongliu summoned nine different war gods. They guarded around him and no attacks could even go near him.


    The ancient characters and seals that appeared on the nine terrifying war gods were all different, and their attacks were different as well. However, all of them were extremely powerful.


    Countless divine birds charged towards Gu Dongliu like moths flying into fire. They were killed quickly by the war gods.


    Lu Nantian watched the scene calmly. Although they had not talked at all, he would be very disappointed if Gu Dongliu was too weak.


    The nine suns hung high in the sky and their radiance shot towards Gu Dongliu. Then, a river of fire appeared in the sky, connecting the space between Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu.


    "River Sunset."


    The eyes of the people from the Donghua Clan sparkled. They felt lucky that they could see Lu Nantian cast the River Sunset themselves.


    One of the suns fell and descended along the long river, charging towards Gu Dongliu. At the same time, countless Golden Ravens flew out from it. Apart from containing a terrifying flame breath, they also had an extremely sharp metallic aura that would tear everything apart.


    Gu Dongliu raised his head and saw the River Sunset pressing towards him. A sun was hanging above him. Standing there, he felt that even his body was going to burn into nothingness.


    Gu Dongliu''s hands continued to form seals, and many handprints flew into the nine war gods. Then, the nine war gods resonated and roared simultaneously. The sound tore the sky apart and the incoming Golden Ravens were actually crushed in the horrifying vocal storm.


    However, the sun continued to fall and its power became stronger and stronger. A war god dashed out and stepped into the river of fire directly. He raised his palms into the sky and held the falling sun with his hands directly, covering the entire sky.


    The terrifying light from the sun and the illusory Golden Ravens collided onto him, but he did not move at all. A very bright radiance erupted from his body and it was as if he would never be defeated.


    Another sun fell down and charged towards Gu Dongliu along the river.


    During the River Sunset, the nine suns would descend continuously and their powers would keep increasing. When the nine suns fell together, they would be powerful enough to burn everything in the world. In the past, Lu Nantian had used this spell to defeat a very strong noble who was two grades above him. Now, he was already a grade one noble and cast the River Sunset. Its frightening powers could thus be well imagined.


    There were probably not many people in the Eastern Barren Territory who could block this spell. Even among all the top forces, there were also only a few people who could deal with the spell.


    Could Gu Dongliu take the spell?


    The disciples of the Donghua Clan held their breaths and gazed at the battlefield. Their eyes were glittering with fanaticism. This was the most talented person of the Donghua Clan, Lu Nantian.


    Everyone from the College stared at the martial arts platform as well. Many disciples were even worried about Gu Dongliu, as Lu Nantian seemed way too overpowering. Although the martial arts platform was sealed and they could not feel how strong the attack was exactly, they could already feel how violent it was just by looking at the scene.


    "Gu Dongliu is a grade two noble. His level is slightly lower," Zhu Qing said.


    "But his combat ability is definitely among the top. The River Sunset is very famous, but if Gu Dongliu cannot even take this spell, then he would not be Gu Dongliu anymore," the other mountain elder Zong Xu said. Although the College had opinions towards the Cottage, they still recognized how strong the Cottage disciples were.


    "Bai Lishu, if you are in the battlefield instead, can you take the spell?" Zhu Qing looked at and asked Bai Lishu, the first disciple of the College Chief.


    "I did not feel its true power, so I can''t say for sure," Bai Lishu replied.


    Zhu Qing nodded. She was even thinking that if she was the one fighting, what the outcome would be.

 265 My Turn

    Chapter 265: My Turn


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian stared at the two battling. The River Sunset was a long river of fire that connected the sky with the ground. The sun fell down and Golden Ravens continuously poured out. The entire martial arts podium turned into a world of flames.


    This was the ability of a top Noble. If it wasn''t for the matrix that sealed the martial arts podium, a Noble that wanted to kill could destroy everything. He couldn''t be defeated by number. Ye Futian vaguely remembered the worries that Emperor Ye and Emperor Luo had. They were afraid of truly going to war.


    "This spell matches the abilities of Lu Nantian. He probably didn''t get it merely from cultivation," Ye Futian murmured.


    "Of course," Luo Fan said, nodding. "It''s clear this is a modified spell. It matches Lu Nantian''s talent, which is why he can release such mighty power. He created it. There are thousands upon thousands of spells in the world. However, they were all created by our predecessors. They can be used directly for cultivation but they might not suit everyone. A genius can create their own spells and martial arts methods that suit themselves."


    Ye Futian nodded. His senior brother was teaching him without meaning to.


    On the martial arts podium, a second sun fell. It was even more powerful.


    Gu Dongliu still stood calmly. Before him, nine summoned war gods stood before him in a formation. After that, Gu Dongliu created a mudra. Nine large ancient words burst from his hands and fell upon the nine war gods. Horrible power came from them.


    These nine words were the Kuji-in, the Nine Seals of Spiritual Power. Together, they meant: may the presiders over warriors be my vanguard.


    Horrible power swept through. The Kuji-in continuously appeared within the nine war gods. They created the mudras together and resonated with the sky and earth. Spiritual Qi went wild. Every mudra was different.


    Various suns pressed down. The pressure kept building but couldn''t break through the defense of the nine war gods.


    "Third Senior Brother must have cultivated many martial arts mudras," Ye Futian murmured. The nine war gods formed different mudras and were clearly controlled by Gu Dongliu. He was using his cultivation through the war gods to fight against the Sunset River.


    "It''s still early. I don''t even know how many abilities he has," Luo Fan said, chuckling. Who in the Cottage could rival the third senior brother?


    The ones who had tried before had all been beaten up and became obedient. As for his abilities, probably only First Senior Brother knew.


    Apparently, Gu Dongliu had gone to the Sword Saint Mountain many times for friendly challenges with First Senior Brother and to practice martial arts. This was probably what "the experts are lonely" meant. He rarely had any competitors.


    Now, Lu Nantian of the Donghua Clan was one.


    Of course, the one who could restrict Gu Dongliu was also in the Cottage. It was Second Senior Sister.


    Nine suns descended along the flaming river. At this moment, the nine suns of the Sunset River were about to burn the heavens. They wrapped the entire sky in the flames. Gu Dongliu and the nine war gods were at the heart of the storm.


    Nine Golden Ravens flew out. The deep and dark red was shocking.


    At almost the same time, the nine words on the nine war gods burst violently. The mudra shot forward. The nine war gods each pounced towards a sun. Simultaneously, they seemed to transform into one body. The sky and earth resonated and a burst of invisible power shattered everything.


    Everyone saw that area go wild. It was like a lawless battle. The nine war gods walked towards the sun, tearing apart the Golden Ravens and charging at the sun.


    The nine suns and war gods shone with horrible light at the same time and shot out in all directions. The horribly powerful light shot into the light screen above the martial arts platform. It shook and the entire platform shook. The matrix was very unstable and was about to collapse.


    The matrix had been created by the top talents of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. It was practically unmovable. However, the battle between these two could shake even the matrix. One could imagine how mighty the fighting was.


    Next. Everyone''s hearts shook as they focused on the platform.


    The Sunset River had disappeared, the sun extinguishing. The war gods summoned by Gu Dongliu had disappeared too. In the fiery world, Gu Dongliu stood steadfast as if nothing could move him.


    Even Lu Nantian''s world-breaking Sunset River couldn''t humiliate him at all.


    Lu Nantian rose in the air arrogantly. He was like a sun god. His Sunset River had been blocked but he didn''t look taken aback. The third disciple of the Cottage lived up to his reputation.


    Behind him, blades made of golden fire shot out from the Sun Dharma. They transformed into sun rain that poured down to Gu Dongliu. It was so fast it looked like a rain of sun swords. If it was a group of Nobles facing him instead of Gu Dongliu, Lu Nantian could probably kill them all.


    Gu Dongliu stood calmly. A frightening aura burst from his body and ancient words glowed faintly on him. Shocking Spiritual Energy wrapped around him. When the sun swords rained down, they stopped abruptly before him.


    Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh�� With extremely piercing sounds, the sun swords rained down, shaking with invisible power.


    Gu Dongliu stepped forward. His white clothing flapped in the wind and his sharp eyes stared at the endless rain of swords. With a cold voice, he uttered, "Break."


    His voice was like an avenue. As soon as he spoke, the endless rain crumbled. A path opened up wherever his voice passed.


    When the sword rain was destroyed, a true Golden Raven descended suddenly. It was so fast that it broke through the Gu Dongliu''s formless Spiritual Energy shield. This terrifying raven gripped the Sun God in its claws and shot towards Gu Dongliu.


    The sword was so powerful it could kill anyone before it. A white shadow flashed by. The extremely fast Golden Raven whistled past but the sword was met with air.


    Gu Dongliu appeared elsewhere, still standing on the martial arts platform.


    So fast. Everyone trembled inwardly. The three-legged Golden Raven''s speed was at the extreme. But just as it arrived, Gu Dongliu seemed to have teleported. It was hard to see with one''s naked eye.


    Lu Nanian still stood there. The Golden Raven was his Dharma. It had now evolved to the level of a top demon king.


    Where''s Gu Dongliu''s Dharma? The people finally realized that Gu Dongliu still hadn''t released his life spirit or Dharma. This confused many people. Was the man still hiding his abilities now?


    Others might overlook this but Lu Nantian obviously wouldn''t. He''d noticed earlier that Gu Dongliu still hadn''t released his life spirit or Dharma. However, he was still calm. The sun swords rained down towards Gu Dongliu. At the same time, the Golden Raven with the holy sword continued towards him.


    Lu Nantian wanted to see how far Gu Dongliu could go without using his Dharma.


    Gu Dongliu disappeared again and moved as fast as lightning. Shocking sharpness emanated from him. He seemed to turn into the most terrible ritual implement or soldier in the world. He grasped the law in his hands. Frightening sword intent whistled through the air as Gu Dongliu pointed forward.


    He pointed at the ground and a sword matrix appeared. It seemed to be formed by ancient words. The matrix spun wildly and ancient words flashed.


    When the Golden Raven and sun swords arrived, he pressed that finger down. Everything was in turmoil suddenly.


    The Sun God sword collided with the sword matrix and then returned to Lu Nantian''s side. As for the sun sword rain, it couldn''t get close to Gu Dongliu at all.


    "Third Senior Brother has too many tricks." Ye Futian was shaken. There were many Mandate Sorcerers in the world who practiced both martial arts and sorcery. They were skilled in every element. However, geniuses like Gu Dongliu were different. He could summon war gods for battles and he could use the Kuji-in words to release his mightiness. He was skilled in all types of laws and his spiritual attacks were of the same level. Now, he could also use sword matrices.


    They were vastly different skills but he was amazing at all of them.


    "Read more." Xue Ye glanced at Ye Futian and chuckled. "Do you want to transcribe books with me?"


    "You can do it alone." Ye Futian shuddered. He wouldn''t do that even if his life depended on it.


    "Hey, I''ll suggest it to Second Senior Sister and Third Senior Brother," Xue Ye said. "Third Senior Brother said that people with many talents should read more. For a genius like you, transcribing books is the best way method of cultivation."


    "Fourth Senior Brother, I''ll definitely suggest to Second Senior Sister to let you down the mountain more in the future," Ye Futian said.


    Xue Ye''s eyes brightened and he quickly smiled. "In that case, the best way of cultivation for you is to do whatever you wish."


    "Can''t you two be more serious?" Luo Fan gave them a look.


    "No matter how we act, Third Senior Brother is going to win," Xue Ye said nonchalantly. He had absolute confidence in Gu Dongliu.


    Countless people in the space around the martial arts platform stared at the battlefield. They were shaken by the two''s power.


    Gu Dongliu had been reputable before but very few witnessed his skills with their own eyes. They knew he was powerful but didn''t know exactly how powerful. Now, they finally had the chance to see the third disciple of the Cottage battle.


    The two figures on the martial arts platform stood separately in the air and on the ground. They stared at each other and stopped attacking.


    Gu Dongliu looked up at Lu Nantian. Sharpness exuded from his scholarly aura. Then, he uttered his first sentence to Lu Nantian.


    "My turn." With that, he picked up his feet and walked forward. The next moment, he disappeared.


    He re-appeared before Lu Nantian.


    A horrible and invisible spiritual storm invaded instantly. Lu Nantian seemed to drown in a pair of frightening eyes. Then Gu Dongliu pointed forward, releasing his sword. His action was like lightning!

 266 Top Match

    Chapter 266: Top Match


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan saw this and understood that Gu Dongliu hadn''t \gone all out when he went to the Qin palace last time. No wonder a mere step from him would scare the Donghua Clan into submission.


    Now, Gu Dongliu finally showed his abilities. The frightening spiritual attack and swords arrived at once, about to overwhelm Lu Nantian. However, Lu Nantian was equal to Gu Dongliu. He wouldn''t be defeated so easily.


    The nine suns filled the sky and the three-footed Golden Raven entered the Dharma. After that, his body also gradually entered the Dharma, becoming one.


    The nine suns became one. The Golden Raven shone dazzlingly inside the sun. Lu Nantian fused with the Sun God''s image. The Golden Raven transformed into illusory light that shone over his body. The sun''s fire surged into him.


    Right now, Lu Nantian was like the Sun God.


    The next moment, Lu Nantian raised his hand. A humongous Golden Raven''s apparition appeared. The sun''s flames melded into its body. It opened its mouth and spat out endless sun swords. It collided with the incoming sword technique. At that moment, sword aura streaked across the martial arts platform. The matrix shook. The unbelievable mightiness was like a battle between gods rather than Nobles.


    The sword technique collapsed with the Golden Raven. Gu Dongliu disappeared again. He teleported and then everyone saw various afterimages of him. With Lu Nantian as the center, the sword technique exploded and a handprint covered the sky. Boundless power tried to kill him.


    Lu Nantian was as brilliant as a god but he couldn''t bear the spiritual attack. He seemed to fall into Gu Dongliu''s world of Eye Sorcery. He looked like a god to the outsiders but only he knew what kind of state he was in.


    Spells and martial arts techniques flew forward with the ancient words. He used all his power to fight back but Gu Dongliu''s attacks still hit the sun. The sun shook violently and was about to collapse.


    Boom! A violent flame burned the sky and earth. Lu Nantian finally moved. He seemed to transform into the sacred bird and actually changed his position while dodging the attack. He appeared right before Gu Dongliu''s afterimage. A horrible attack formed in his hand and turned into a Golden Raven that could rip everything apart.


    Gu Dongliu didn''t fear this at all. The two actually started fighting move for move. Under everyone''s shocked eyes, the two fought in close distance. The martial arts were unsettling and the entire platform shook. The matrix was unsteady.


    They have no weaknesses. Everyone who witnessed this was shaken inside. Both martial arts and sorcery were the best of the best. They even combined the two well and both attack and defense were perfect. It would be difficult to top this match in the future.


    "Gu Dongliu has the upper hand." The Nobles had keen eyes and could see the situation clearly. Gu Dongliu had a lower plane but he was skilled in spiritual sorcery. During the battle, Lu Nantian had to withstand attacks to his mind and was at a disadvantage. His rhythm wasn''t as smooth as Gu Dongliu''s. He had to defend while attacking; Gu Dongliu only had to attack.


    Boom! Just then, there was a huge sound. The martial arts platform shook and everyone''s eyes were glued there.


    Lu Nantian had been hit.


    A moment ago, Gu Dongliu had broken through the defense and his attack rushed into the sunlight. He hit Lu Nantian, forcing him back.


    "This��" The Donghua Clan''s eyes were frozen. Some couldn''t believe that the man they believed in, the once-in-a-century talent, would lose. The Qin Dynasty also frowned. The Donghua Clan had told the King of Qin that they would definitely win. But now, Lu Nantian had no advantage at all.


    Lu Nantian looked at his chest. Blood seeped from it. Countless eyes stared at that point. The blood seemed to be boiling in the fire, dissipating like smoke.


    At that time, a figure appeared quietly in the crowd. She was so beautiful and flawless that she didn''t seem to be from this world. But despite her beauty, no one noticed her now. Everyone was staring at the battleground.


    However, Lu Nantian looked over. Seeing the flawless and calm features, he became calm. As if noticing his eyes, many people followed his gaze and saw that quiet yet purely beautiful figure. They guessed her identity.


    She was, Hua Qingqing, the daughter of the leader of the Donghua Clan. She was also Lu Nantian''s fianc��e. She was a different type of beauty than Qin Mengruo and Chu Yaoyao. She was pure and clean. She wasn''t as elegant as Qin Mengruo or as moving as Chu Yaoyao. She was just pure beauty as if untainted by the world. Looking at someone like her was easy on the eyes.


    Was she here to support Lu Nantian?


    Lu Nantian''s gaze returned to Gu Dongliu. He didn''t attack again after forcing Lu Nantian back. They were both clear that if Lu Nantian was only at this level, the winner would be obvious already. There would be no need to fight anymore.


    Of course, Gu Dongliu wouldn''t underestimate his opponent, especially someone known to be a once-in-a-century talent of the Donghua Clan.


    Lu Nantian''s eyes were extremely calm. Then sunlight shone from his body. The halo kept expanding and a world-burning fire arrived. With Lu Nantian as the heart, this world was about to turn into a world of sunlight and burn up.


    Firelight arrived at the vast battleground on martial arts platform. The battleground was lit as flames grew. Finally, the entire ground started burning.


    Whistles came from the world of fire. Everyone stared at this scene in shock. What had happened?


    A dazzling sunlight halo appeared around Lu Nantian. He''d become the physical incarnate of the sun��a true god. Every shred of light and will on him could turn into a fire that burned the world.


    The flames burned the matrix too. Then fire reached out from the light shield on the platform. The vast matrix was ignited.


    This��


    It was impressive.


    Everyone''s hearts were shaking crazily. The matrix had been burned. Lu Nantian''s fire was so powerful that it surpassed the matrix. It had been created in a joint effort by Nobles of two top forces. What did it mean for it to be destroyed now?


    The fire broke free from the matrix''s restraint. Endless flame Spiritual Qi went towards Lu Nantian. Gu Dongliu looked so lonely in this world of fire. The flames finally stopped spreading but the matrix was already broken. The spectators could feel the heat. The flames danced wildly and right now, Lu Nantian was god.


    The hearts of the top Nobles shook as they felt the spreading heat. The power gave them heart palpitations. Was this the legendary intent power?


    Crown Prince Qin Yu''s eyes were extremely sharp as he looked to the battleground. Was this why the Donghua Clan leader was so confident? No wonder he thought Lu Nantian would definitely win.


    "Lu Nantian is known as a once-in-a-century talent of the Donghua Clan. Now, it seems that it''s not just the Donghua Clan. No one in the entire Eastern Barren Territory will be comparable to him in a few centuries," the leader of the Moon Clan lamented. The disciples trembled inwardly.


    Virgin Chu Yaoyao looked to the elder. "Uncle-Master, what kind of power is this?"


    "The Eastern Barren Territory belongs to the younger generation. Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu''s powers are enough to defeat the leaders of the top forces," the elder said. In addition to the Moon Clan, everyone present understood what this top match meant.


    Before, the first disciple of the Cottage came down to challenge the clan leader of the Fuyun Sword Clan. Now, did the third disciple of the Cottage and Lu Nantian of the Donghua Clan have the same abilities?


    Ye Futian naturally felt the intent power in the heat as well. It felt familiar.


    "Senior Brother, is this sage intent?" Ye Futian asked, gazing at the battlefield.


    "Yes." Luo Fan nodded.


    It indeed was Sage intent. The Sage Plane was above the Noble Plane. Lu Nantian had perceived a bit of a Sage''s abilities now.


    How many Sages were there in the Eastern Barren Territory? Some said that there were none. Others thought that some hid their abilities. Perhaps there truly was a Sage. But no matter what, Sages were the undisputable top in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Now, Lu Nantian released a bit of sage intent. Of course it would shake many hearts. This was why the Moon Clan claimed that even in the entire Eastern Barren Territory, no one could surpass him in a few centuries. A Sage could create a spell with a thought. Lu Nantian wasn''t a Sage but he already had some of the ability.


    At this time, Lu Nantian shone brilliantly. The Spiritual Qi resonated with him and endless flames burned towards Gu Dongliu. The fire transformed into Golden Raves, rain of sun swords, and world-burning flames.


    Gu Dongliu''s body flashed. He was almost supersonically fast. However, the world law''s existed. No matter how fast he was, he couldn''t be faster than Lu Nantian''s thoughts.


    Boom, boom. Gu Dongliu was hit and forced back. His body started burning. His white clothing was bathed in fire. Was the powerful Cottage disciple going to lose like this?


    A legend was about to end in the Dongqin College. Was Lu Nantian about to step on the Cottage and become an undefeatable legend?


    Gu Dongliu gazed at Lu Nantian. Fire danced wildly on his robe. Suddenly, unbelievably bright light blasted from him.


    "Lin," he uttered. As soon as he spoke, a huge ancient world transformed into light and descended behind him.


    Bin.


    Dou.


    Zhe.


    Jie.


    Zhen.


    Lie.


    Qian.


    Xing.


    He uttered the Kuji-In Nine Seals of Spiritual Power. The world resonated with him and incredible light burst from his body.


    The next moment, an extremely brilliant apparition appeared behind him. It was like his shadow. The nine words spun around like something sacred.


    The shadow descended like a god!

 267 Win or Lose

    Chapter 267: Win or Lose


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everyone was shocked by Gu Dongliu''s changes. Was this his Dharma?


    A frightening image appeared behind him. The nine ancient words spiraled. In that instant, Spiritual Qi resonated with Gu Dongliu''s body. Frightening power radiated from him. All the fire spells that came at him were destroyed.


    Clearly, he had fused his life spirit with his Dharma but what was his life spirit? Was it that image or those ancient words?


    The terrible flames burned towards him but the nine words flashed. A nine-word light shield appeared around Gu Dongliu. They swirled around him and the flames couldn''t get through. At the same time, Spiritual Qi seemed to reverberate, resonating with the nine words.


    Above Lu Nantian, the sage intent enveloped the boundless space. Various Golden Ravens appeared with the Sun God sword. They flew towards Gu Dongliu at the same time. This was much more powerful than the Sunset River that Lu Nantian had released. Every attack contained some sage intent.


    Gu Dongliu seemed to not see it. He stepped forward in the air. The surroundings all shook. Thousands upon thousands of ancient words wrapped around him and transformed into a huge palm. It kept slamming down on the incoming attacks.


    In a moment, shocking currents burst forth and spread around the martial arts platform. Many strong cultivators walked forward, releasing powerful auras. They stood at the front to block the aftershocks.


    Zhu Qing from the College stepped out too. A formless water spell was released and transformed into a mirror-like shield. It blocked the wild power that swept over. However, her eyes were glued to the platform.


    Even as the mountain elder, she was still shocked by this battle. Both Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu were too powerful.


    Right now, Lu Nantian could create a spell with a thought. His spells filled the sky and destroyed everything.


    Thousands of ancient words wrapped around Gu Dongliu and resonated with the world. He seemed to contain unstoppable mightiness. The words circled and the image behind Gu Dongliu was like a spirit. The nine words transformed into nine beams of light. Bathing in the holy light, Gu Dongliu''s temperament became even more extraordinary. His white robe fluttered magnificently. He stepped forward. The spells in his path were all destroyed. No spells could approach him.


    So what if Lu Nantian had a Sage''s power? Fight him!


    Gu Dongliu''s hands moved together. Instantly, endless ancient words whistled past him and gradually formed a mudra. With this, the entire world seemed to shake. Gu Dongliu was now like the ruler of the world. Behind him, various images flew out onto the mudra, strengthening it.


    "Junlin Mudra," Gu Dongliu uttered. The mudra flew out, destroying everything in its path towards Lu Nantian.


    When Lu Nantian saw this, his previously calm eyes finally looked uncharacteristically serious. He knew that the final battle had come. The opponent before him now was the most powerful Gu Dongliu.


    The world of fire went wild. Endless fire moved towards Lu Nantian. Metal and wind elemental power went to him too. Right now, Lu Nantian seemed to be really burning. His power shot up, about to surpass the Noble Plane. The will released from his eyes was enough to kill a Noble.


    With the Golden Raven, Lu Nantian was like the Sun God. He gripped the Sun God sword and tore at the incoming ancient words. There was a huge boom and the ancient mudra shook. It cracked and was about to extinguish.


    "Combat Mudra." Endless ancient words flew over, transforming into an extremely terrifying mudra. It was filled with combat power and flew towards Lu Nantian. He stared forward. His body was extremely powerful and the Golden Raven rushed out. It collided with the mudra and the world shook.


    "Destruction Mudra." Heavenly soldiers roared and transformed into an indestructible mudra.


    "Iron Mudra."


    "Murderous Mudra."


    Gu Dongliu continued speaking. Nine mudras appeared in the sky. Endless ancient words hovered in the air, fighting against the Sage ability. Nine huge mudras were formed out of thin air and flew towards Lu Nantian.


    The crowd could only see Lu Nantian wildly fight against the mudras. The Nine Seals hovered around him. Thousands upon thousands of words dropped from them endlessly.


    "This��" The spectators seemed to stop breathing. They''d never expected a battle so fierce, despite Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu being the opponents. They were too powerful. The battle between the Sword Saint and Fuyun Sword Clan were probably just at this level too.


    Lu Nantian had released sage intent. Everyone had thought that he would definitely win and there would be no surprises. But then Gu Dongliu seemed unwilling to let the Cottage''s legend die. His abilities evolved again and he transformed into an undefeatable king.


    Who could defeat a Gu Dongliu like this?


    The Donghua Clan were no longer so confident. Right now, Gu Dongliu was too dazzling.


    He had landed before Lu Nantian. The nine words circled him and the god-like Dharma behind him was undefeatable. When he landed, the heavy words became even stronger. They seemed to transform into a matrix and mudras streamed endlessly towards Lu Nantian.


    Boom, boom, boom. Lu Nantian stood there as endless mudras flew to him. Power kept shaking around him. The sun that enveloped him trembled too. Staring at Gu Dongliu, toughness flashed past his eyes.


    This was not just his battle. It represented the entire Donghua Clan.


    Fire descended from the vast sky. Endless birds melded into his body as he released his will. He instantly entered a focused state. His body suddenly disappeared and became illusory. At the same time, his figure appeared in another space. The ancient words around him started burning.


    Next, multiple images of him appeared in the sky. Each figure possessed the power to destroy everything. They only had one target: Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu''s long hair fluttered. He felt the omnipresent threat and his expression was as sharp as before. The Dharma behind him released horrible power and the nine words spun violently. He created a mudra and uttered, "Nine Seals to one. Kill."


    Then, everyone saw an unbelievable scene. Endless copies of Lu Nantian charged towards Gu Dongliu at once. At the same time, countless ancient words and mudras grouped around Gu Dongliu.


    Instantly, the sky and earth shook and rumbled without end. Everyone saw the various copies of Lu Nantian get destroyed. They also saw Gu Dongliu suffer a horrible attack but he still stood there like an undying figure. His body released a horrible aura. Like a god, all the power in the world seemed to be his. The next moment, they saw a sun with Gu Dongliu as the heart. It stretched out and the sky seemed to be close to burning.


    "Careful." Elders of each top force felt the extreme power. Many high-level Nobles walked forward at once to release their energy and create a defense spell. Countless light shields rose up around the martial arts platform, stopping those horrible shockwaves. Cracks kept sounding as many spells were broken. And this was just the shockwaves.


    What kind of pressure did the two fighters withstand?


    Everyone stared forward. They could no longer see Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu anymore as they were at the heart of the storm. The shockwaves lasted for a while before the destructive force dissipated. At the same time, many people vaguely saw the two amongst the flames and light. They stood quietly, staring at each other. Time seemed to stop. Everyone canceled their spells as they stared at the two. Who won?


    Many held their breaths, especially those from the Donghua Clan and College. Finally, under everyone''s scrutiny, Lu Nantian fell over.


    "Senior Brother!"


    "Nantian!"


    The Donghua Clan''s hearts shook as if their belief had caved in. Many people charged towards the martial arts platform to help Lu Nantian up. But he raised his hand and stopped them. Blood kept flowing from his mouth. This top figure looked so pathetic now. However, he still tried to pick himself up. No one supported him. Glancing at Gu Dongliu, he turned with difficulty and walked away while swaying. Right now, he was bent over and his steps were unsteady. He was clearly badly injured.


    Lu Nantian had lost. But could anyone say he wasn''t strong? Could the Donghua Clan blame him?


    Seeing that swaying figure, everyone was moved. In the cultivation world, losing was always humiliating but no one thought Lu Nantian''s loss was embarrassing. He lost but was still a hero. His abilities were enough to be at the uppermost level of the Eastern Barren Territory. No one had the right to mock him. How many people could defeat him? They could only lament why the Cottage existed when there was someone like Lu Nantian.


    The Cottage had Gu Dongliu.


    Countless eyes fell on him. The past was the past and Gu Dongliu was now number one in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Disabling the Donghua Clan Noble outside the Qin palace had told everyone how proud he was. Today, they finally truly understood that the third disciple of the Cottage was at the same level as those big figures of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    He was also someone at the peak now.


    Lu Nantian had been the most monstrously talented in centuries in the Eastern Barren Territory. He was so powerful that he even possessed some Sage abilities. But even so, he still lost.


    The winner between the Donghua Clan and Cottage was still the Cottage. The myth was not proved wrong and the legend was still a legend. The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan wanted to kill the legend but even with Lu Nantian''s unconventional power, they still failed.


    What kind of place was the Cottage?!

 268 Guard

    Chapter 268: Guard


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The first disciple of the Cottage was given the title of Sword Saint. After today''s battle, third disciple Gu Dongliu could be made into a saint too. No one knew what the Cottage was like. Other than the Cottage disciples, no one��even College disciples��had stayed there before. This mysterious place was the sacred land for many talents in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Gu Dongliu turned around. He was still standing straight, even though his clothes were messy and had some burn marks. But so what? Everyone only had respect and admiration for him, even those not from the College. Someone like him was worthy of respect. Lu Nantian, who had lost, was the same. If he hadn''t faced Gu Dongliu, Lu Nantian would be the one turned into a saint today.


    "Senior Brother," Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and the others walked forward.


    "Let''s go," Gu Dongliu said. With that, he started walking away. Xue Ye and the others seemed to perceive something; they all followed him.


    Ye Futian also felt something. He and Yu Sheng followed Gu Dongliu out.


    "Ye Futian," a voice suddenly called out, shattering the silence. Ye Futian looked over to the speaker. Beside the Qin Dynasty group, he saw Yin Zhen from the Yin Family looking over. "Earlier, you stole our Five Element Rod and Demonic Tripod. Today, I wish to see the Cottage''s abilities as well."


    "You don''t qualify." Ye Futian gazed coolly at the man and continued following Gu Dongliu.


    Yin Zhen''s eyes hardened. He stared coldly at Ye Futian''s back. "The Cottage seems like a varied mix."


    "He''s hurt," Qin Yu said while looking at Gu Dongliu''s leaving backside. Everyone looked at Qin Yu, agreeing inwardly with him. Gu Dongliu was probably hurt. The last hit had been too powerful. If someone as strong as Lu Nantian could fall, Gu Dongliu couldn''t be unharmed. However, he was still standing. Standing meant victory. He had left with his back straight too, even though he was hurt. He was such a proud fellow.


    Of course, he had the right to be proud. Not many in the entire Eastern Barren Territory was more qualified than him to be proud.


    Gu Dongliu was indeed injured. When they walked out of the Dongqin College, there was a massive crowd waiting outside. Seeing Gu Dongliu, they became excited. Someone asked straightforwardly, "Who won?"


    "Xue Ye," Gu Dongliu called. Xue Ye understood and went to support Gu Dongliu''s arm. Then they soared into the air and left. Seeing this, the crowd rustled with noise.


    "Gu Dongliu had Xue Ye help him fly?"


    "He must be badly hurt," many people guessed.


    Everyone was talking. If Gu Dongliu lost, did it mean the Cottage lost? Otherwise, why did they all leave? But the Dongqin College was silent. No one came out other than the people of the Cottage and they didn''t know the result. They were all anxious, wishing they could go in immediately and ask.


    Who won this record-breaking top match?


    The place that the Cottage disciples resided in wasn''t far from the Dongqin College. They quickly returned. As soon as they landed, Gu Dongliu spat out blood. His pallor became pasty and his aura wilted.


    "Senior Brother!" everyone exclaimed. Extremely nervous, they helped him sit down.


    "It''s alright," Gu Dongliu said, waving his hand while sitting there. "I''m better now. Lu Nantian is an opponent that deserves to be respected."


    Everyone agreed. Anyone who could fight with their third senior brother to that extent deserved to be respected.


    "Senior Brother, Lu Nantian has already fallen. So what if they see your injuries? Why did you hide it?" Xue Ye asked. He knew that keeping it down was very bad for the injury.


    "The people of the Cottage cannot fall." Gu Dongliu looked at Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and the others and said, "This has nothing to do with pride. The Cottage is too brilliant now. The eyes of the entire Eastern Barren Territory is on us. This is why we can only continue being powerful. Otherwise, it will be a disaster."


    Hearing his words, everyone grew thoughtful. They vaguely understood him.


    Where did the reputation of the Cottage come from? The two brilliant battles from before were what gave the Cottage the almighty status. This was also why countless eyes were on them. Why did the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan partner up to target the College and Cottage? Wasn''t it because they were too successful?


    Last time, they had worked together to defeat Ye Futian. Yu Sheng had almost died. It was a test for the Cottage so Gu Dongliu had gone directly to the palace to disable the Donghua Clan''s Noble. This wasn''t only due to the Cottage''s pride. It was also to show the world that the Cottage couldn''t be bullied.


    Thus, Gu Dongliu couldn''t fall. As long as he and the Sword Saint didn''t fall, no one would dare to harm the Cottage. On the other hand, if a legend fell, the Cottage would no longer be the Cottage. They only had eight disciples. They couldn''t take any losses. Anyone''s loss was a disaster to the Cottage.


    "Xue Ye, Luo Fan," Gu Dongliu said, looking at them. "The Cottage will only be firmly anchored in the Eastern Barren Territory when you two reach my plane."


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan nodded. Their eyes had never been this serious before. They all knew the responsibility the Third Senior Brother bore. It was the glory of the Cottage. Thus, he kept going even with the grave injury.


    Lu Nantian of the Donghua Clan was that strong. Could the clan leader be any weaker? Further, with the Donghua Clan''s heritage, they must have some extremely powerful old guys too.


    "Xiaoshi, Futian, Yu Sheng, you all need to work hard too." Gu Dongliu turned to Yi Xiaoshi and Ye Futian. There was a rare smile on his face. At this moment, he didn''t look like the strict Third Senior Brother anymore. He looked more like a warm elder who protected their growth.


    Ye Futian finally realized that even the powerful Cottage had such pressure.


    "Third Senior Brother, don''t worry. When I get to your level, the Cottage will become immortal." Ye Futian smiled brightly as he looked at Gu Dongliu. "You should rest well right now."


    "Yes." Gu Dongliu looked at him and nodded seriously. "Those who know me will understand my arrogance. Those who do not can be abandoned without worry. I believe you can do it."


    "I will work hard." Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    "The teacher has said that he wishes for the Cottage to become the true sacred ground of the Eastern Barren Territory. The Cottage''s disciples all work hard towards this." Gu Dongliu''s eyes glinted brilliantly.


    Ye Futian looked at him. Was this the teacher''s goal? What did the true sacred ground mean?


    ��


    In the Dongqin College, everyone watched as Gu Dongliu left with unsettled hearts. They agreed with Qin Yu''s words. Gu Dongliu was injured but this didn''t stop him from being the legend of this generation. Everyone present came from a top force of the Eastern Barren Territory and there were many important figures here. However, no one had the confidence to win against Gu Dongliu.


    Seeing this battle made the trip worth it.


    Qin Yu surveyed the crowd and said, "Today is the first battle of the Dongqin College. The martial arts platform displayed two monstrously talented figures. Both were injured. This will be known as a legendary battle for centuries."


    Everyone''s eyes flashed. Qin Yu was tricky too. He only noted that both were injured and didn''t mention who had won. This result must have ruined his plan. However, no one refuted him. Everyone had seen the result and knew it clearly. Qin Yu wasn''t wrong either. This truly was a legendary battle. No one would put Lu Nantian down.


    "With this precedent and the fact that everyone has come from afar to group here, as well as the top forces who have come to support this event, the Dongqin College will not disappoint you all," Qin Yu said slowly. "Starting tomorrow, we will erect a battle platform outside the college. The students of the Dongqin College are willing to challenge anyone from the Eastern Barren Territory. I hope that, at that time, we will be able to witness everyone''s brilliance." With that, he gazed at the College and continued, "Especially from the Eastern Barren College. I wonder if there is anyone else like Gu Dongliu. I believe the Eastern Barren College will not disappoint us."


    Everyone''s eyes flickered. As expected, the defeated Dongqin College wouldn''t stop here. They prepared to continue calling the forces of the Eastern Barren Territory to fight. Most importantly, they would challenge the Eastern Barren College!

 269 Group Battle

    Chapter 269: Group Battle


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The people of the Eastern Barren College looked to Qin Yu. Lu Nantian had lost so now they wanted to win back their reputation with the College?


    Zhu Qing''s eyes flashed coldly. She wanted to see what surprises they''d prepared other than Lu Nantian.


    "The Dongqin College called everyone from the Eastern Barren Territory here so we hope you all will not be disappointed," Bai Lishu said while looking at Qin Yu. He seemed confrontational.


    People of the various forces were a bit excited. What would happen tomorrow? Furthermore, Qin Yu had said that this was a battle of the Eastern Barren Territory. Anyone of the forces could participate. Many people wanted to try and compare themselves to the top talents.


    Soon after, people began leaving.


    Outside the Dongqin College, the massive crowd was still waiting. When they saw the people from the top forces come out, they grew lively. People started asking for the result of the battle they''d witnessed. However, the top forces went straight into the air and left. They didn''t seem to be in the mood. Even the College left directly.


    This shocked many people. Did Gu Dongliu of the Cottage really lose?


    "Senior Mu, how was the battle?" someone asked a senior of a big force in Chaoge City. Clearly, they knew each other.


    "Both sides were hurt but Lu Nantian fell down," an elder replied. As soon as he spoke, everyone looked over. Both sides had been hurt but Lu Nantian had fallen. The result was clear.


    Gu Dongliu of the Cottage had won.


    "I didn''t think that Lu Nantian, someone known as a once-in-a-century talent, would lose. Seems like the Donghua Clan brags too much," someone muttered.


    "No." The elder shook his head. "Lu Nantian lives up to that title."


    Everyone''s eyes glinted. They saw the respect that flashed through the elder''s eyes.


    Xiao Mu said, "Not many in the Eastern Barren Territory can perceive the abilities of a Sage. With Lu Nantian''s present abilities, he is comparable to those true big figures. He was just unlucky to face the third disciple of the Cottage." With that, he sighed and walked away. He sympathized for Lu Nantian but also lamented Gu Dongliu''s power.


    As soon as he finished, everyone gaped. Lu Nantian had perceived the abilities of a Sage and was comparable to those big figures? They suddenly wished immensely to witness that battle that they had missed.


    The news quickly spread, rushing towards Chaoge City. The city was shaken. Storms erupted in countless hearts. They all regretted that they couldn''t have witnessed it. This battle that was like the one between the Sword Saint and Fuyun Sword Clan''s clan leader had happened so close to them. It had been right in the Dongqin College. However, hearing that there would be more battles tomorrow, everyone felt better. Finally, they could witness something. They couldn''t miss it.


    The Dongqin College invited all forces of the Eastern Barren Territory for a challenge. It must be another great event.


    The Cottage didn''t care about the discussions of the outer world. Their third senior brother was hurt so they didn''t feel any joy at the victory. This battle was enough to make Gu Dongliu a saint but to them, his health was most important.


    Luo Fan helped Gu Dongliu leave that night, returning to the Cottage. Xue Ye and the others remained in Chaoge City. This matter wasn''t over.


    Gu Dongliu had defeated Lu Nantian. The Donghua Clan and Qin Dynasty naturally were upset. Other than them, some others were upset too. For example, Xirou and Luo Junlin of the Royal Xuan Temple.


    They had witnessed the entire battle too. Gu Dongliu was so powerful, and the more powerful he was, the more uncomfortable Luo Junlin was. This meant it was more difficult to kill Ye Futian.


    They were clear that if Gu Dongliu had lost, it would be entirely different. But Gu Dongliu had won. Thus, anybody��even the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan together��had to think carefully before doing something to the Cottage, let alone him.


    Luo Junlin felt depressed. He realized that if this kept developing, it would get more and more difficult to kill Ye Futian. After all, Ye Futian was growing too. With his talent and a place like the Cottage, he would sooner or later turn into someone like Gu Dongliu. At that time, even the Royal Xuan Temple wouldn''t be able to touch Ye Futian.


    The next morning, people crowded outside the Dongqin College. There was a battle platform outside the Dongqin College and a vast space around it. Only those from the top forces could be there. The other spectators could only watch from afar. Otherwise, they couldn''t fit at all. It was unclear how many people were in the city now. Even the air around this place was filled with a sea of people.


    People from the top forces arrived gradually and took up a portion.


    "The College is here." Everyone looked over. They saw Zhu Qing, Zong Xu, and Bai Lishu leading the students. Today, the Dongqin College''s target was the College so everyone obviously paid most attention to them.


    "The Cottage hasn''t appeared." Many noticed that the Cottage disciples weren''t there.


    "I heard that someone saw Luo Fan and Gu Dongliu leave the inn yesterday. They must''ve gone back to the Cottage to recover," someone commented. Even so, the other disciples should be here. However, they heard that Yin Zhen of the Yin Family had challenged Ye Futian yesterday and was rejected. Ye Futian said Yin Zhen wasn''t good enough. Were they afraid of being targeted by the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan?


    As the top forces arrived, the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan alliance walked out of the Dongqin College to the center front of the platform. They were in charge today.


    Countless eyes looked to them. Qian Shanmu and Qing Mengruo, standing together, attracted many eyes. They were too attractive and had just wedded yesterday. They naturally attracted much attention.


    Qing Mengruo was still as beautiful as before. The pure and elegant girl was now someone''s wife. She seemed more like a woman but was still mesmerizing. One of the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory, the young princess of the Qin Dynasty, was the first to marry. Hua Qingqing was engaged to Lu Nantian too. Only Chu Yaoyao was left. It was rumored that Qin Li of the Qin Dynasty was pursuing her.


    Qin Yu walked forward and said to the crowd, "Yesterday was the opening of the Dongqin College. Using this chance, we invite all top forces for a friendly match. There are no rules today. Anyone who wishes to come up can challenge at will. Anything is fine as long as the other accepts. If anyone who performs well wishes to enter the Dongqin College, be my guest." Finishing, he gazed into the crowd. There wasn''t much action.


    Clearly, they were all waiting. Today was mainly for the Dongqin College and Eastern Barren College. The others were mostly here for the show. Of course, if they get interested, they might go try.


    Seeing no responses, Qin Yu said, "Today, the Dongqin College is the host. Then, I guess we will go first while saving the best for last." With that, Qin Yu retreated. Some people behind him walked out at the same time. Seeing two of them, the spectators were intrigued.


    Qian Shanmu and Qing Mengruo had walked out at the same time. They had wedded yesterday. Would they start the first battle today?


    Then everyone realized that other than them, there were four more people. The six of them stepped onto the platform.


    "Is this a group battle?" Everyone was interested. Would the first battle be a group one?


    Other than Qian Shanmu and Qing Mengruo, the four weren''t very familiar. However, the six had stepped forward as disciples of the Dongqin College.


    "The six of us are all in the lower Arcana Plane," Qian Shanmu said. "We would like to challenge Xiao Wuji, Yu Qingshan, Su Muge, Jiang Teng, Tang Ye, and Han Feng from the Eastern Barren College." As soon as he spoke, the crowd went wild.


    The six that Qian Shanmu had named were all familiar to them. Of the young generation of the College, Xiao Wuji and Yu Qingshan were definitely well-known. The other four were a little less skilled, but they were still geniuses of the College. Last year, the weakest of them were already at the top of the Dharma Plane. Now, they should probably all be in the lower Arcana Plane.


    The Dongqin College wished to make up for their loss with this first battle. However, could Qian Shanmu win with this line-up?


    The eyes of the College all flashed. He was so ambitious. Did he want to take all the accomplished disciples in the lower Arcana Plane in one fell swoop?


    Xiao Wuji walked forward. He hadn''t proved himself with a battle since being invited by Tang Ye in the Ancient Barren World last year. Though his reputation there had already spread through the forces, he''d also displayed extraordinary talent in the College. However, he hadn''t displayed his true skills before everyone like the first disciple and Gu Dongliu of the Cottage had.


    Today, Qian Shanmu gave him this chance.


    Yu Qingshan also walked forward. Before Xiao Wuji''s arrival, he''d already been renowned amongst the College disciples. He was one of those monstrous people. With him, Xiao Wuji, Su Muge, and the others, how could Qian Shanmu''s group dare to challenge them?


    The six from the College stepped forward together. Without speaking, they went to the battle platform.


    Qian Shanmu didn''t take advantage of them. They weren''t any lower in plane or reputation. This way, there was no reason to avoid the challenge. They could only welcome it.


    The 12 stepped onto the platform. Countless eyes fell on them.


    Qian Shanmu''s group of six instantly went into position. Husband and wife, Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo, stood on either side. The other four stood behind them. Clearly, Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo were prepared to use rhythmic sorcery to aid the battle. It was highly possible they had already prepared for this battle.


    Amongst the Qin Dynasty crowd, Qin Li looked at this and his lips curled into a smirk. He couldn''t blame Lu Nantian''s loss yesterday. Not even his father could. However, everyone would truly see the Dongqin College''s glory today. The era of the Eastern Barren College was over!

 270 A Prepared Battle

    Chapter 270: A Prepared Battle


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Xiao Wuji''s group of six spread out as well. Yu Qingshan warned them, "Be careful."


    Though the six people were all top talents of the Eastern Barren College, the Qin Dynasty was also well-prepared with six people chosen just for them.


    Yesterday, Lu Nantian was defeated. This time was another chance for the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan to gain back their reputation. They would not accept another failure. Therefore, this would be a fierce battle.


    The Eastern Barren College and people here all knew what they would face. However, the six people selected to be adversaries were all famous geniuses of the College. Thus, there was no possibility of a refusal even though the other side must be well-prepared.


    Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo sat cross-legged in a line. What appeared before Qin Mengruo was a guqin. Instead of a flute, Qian Shanmu had a zither. People were surprised by their instruments. Since ancient times, the guqin and zither played together had alluded to conjugal intimacy. This time, this couple was going to fight with guqin and zither.


    The guqin and zither sounded at the same time. The guqin sounded gentle like a flowing spring while the zither was majestic, like the roar of a crane or dragon. In an instant, the sound turned into an invisible aura, directly falling down on the four figures in front. Their auras instantly strengthened. Power in the world resonated with the music. Some terrible forces grew in their bodies and seemed ready to erupt at any time.


    Dragons appeared, hovering and soaring behind the four people. The golden dragons were extremely scary for they seemed to be becoming real. More frightening was that the four people''s temperaments appeared to be fused together by the music, forming a stronger airflow.


    Xiao Wuji''s group had already acted. The power of ice shot out, going to freeze the four people.


    Suddenly, a dragon''s roar was heard. The earth quaked fiercely as if a real dragon was born. The sonorous roar shattered the spell. Many of the spectators were caught off guard. They felt like their eardrums had been shattered. The weaker groaned for their mentality was almost crushed by the roar.


    Xiao Wuji''s group was obviously confronted with even stronger power. Their bodies trembled. Clearly, they didn''t anticipate the roar could contain such terrible power.


    Even worse, the dragons punched while roaring. The punch broke through the air and the dragons above the four cultivators combined into one. A horrible golden dragon appeared, ferocious and enormous, soaring to the sky and rushing toward Tang Ye and another disciple of the Eastern Barren College.


    The two had just suffered that roar. When the ferocious golden dragon crushed toward them, the two''s faces changed. There was no time for them to escape. They could only release their dharma to resist with all their might.


    At this moment, a terrible rhythm penetrated their brains. Then the large dragon arrived.


    Bang. There was the terrible sound of a collision. The two people were thrown into the sky. They spat out blood in the air and fell down below the platform. They were defeated by just a blow.


    "It''s a joint attack." People all stared at the four on the platform. It was not just a joint attack. Their attack, assisted by the instruments of Qin Mengruo and Qianshan Mu, could erupt in an instant and shatter the world.


    "It''s the Imperial Dragon Spell."


    What the top forces saw was not Tang Ye''s defeat but the abilities of the four. The four had transformed their Spiritual Qi into dragons. This was not difficult for many strong cultivators but it was special because the strength was coupled with the support from Qin Dynasty. They knew that this was definitely the Imperial Dragon Spell of the Qin Dynasty.


    The Imperial Dragon Spell was passed down the generations in the Qin Dynasty, known as imperial spell. Reaching the extreme, the imperial cultivator could ride dragons. Even at the elementary level, the cultivator could have a body with dragon''s strength and shape.


    The four strong cultivators all practiced the spell. What did it mean? Were they all the descendants of the Qin Dynasty royalty? Or did the Qin Dynasty pass the spell to the disciples of the Dongqin College? If so, it was even more terrifying. The Qin Dynasty had taken a very shocking step.


    Boom. Four figures stepped out, moving like thunder, surrounded by indistinct dragons. They went straight towards Su Muge and Jiang Teng with amazing speed.


    Their strategy was very clear: defeat the weak first. Xiao Wuji and Yu Qingshan were the strongest who couldn''t be defeated at the first. They would deal with the strongest two only after defeating the others.


    The four people were very strong as if they had no opponents. Su Muge''s face changed slightly. It might be very difficult for him to contend with the four strong cultivators, especially when the four were assisted by two rhythmic sorcerers.


    Boom.


    Right at that moment, a figure descended from the sky like a god. A terrible force followed, crushing down. A mountain appeared and fell toward the four. The four raised their hands and dragons soared toward the mountain. However, Xiao Wuji stood before them, stopping them.


    A powerful gravity spell subjected the four to extremely strong pressure while dragon vines appeared, rolling over toward the four. But at the time of the spell''s release, a terrible sound wave came and the dragon-shaped vines were cut off and shattered. Simultaneously, that melody turned into light, bathing the four people as resistance to the oppression of gravity. Even the spell of wind came upon their bodies.


    Bang.


    The four stepped forward simultaneously, shaking the platform. Xiao Wuji said, "Go take care of the two behind them. I will stop the four." Yu Qingshan, Su Muge, and Jiang Teng nodded and acted. Yu Qingshan moved straight toward Qian Shanmu while Su Muge and Jiang Teng went to Qin Mengruo. They had obvious targets.


    Qian Shanmu just ignored them. He played the 25-string zither with an incredible speed, constantly releasing majestic melodies. Su Muge and Jiang Teng, moving toward Qin Mengruo, felt their brain get penetrated by countless arrows. Their face turned pale. Soon, the guqin spell played by Qin Mengruo also came, transformed into dragons and crushing toward the two. Su Muge and Jiang Teng were thrown away.


    "How..." People''s hearts trembled. In this intense battle, four people from the Eastern Barren College had been defeated.


    It was clear that the six from Dongqin College acted as one while the six from the College were too scattered. Two were wounded at the beginning. Then Su Muge and Jiang Teng, who couldn''t be matches of Qian Shanmu at all, were also defeated.


    The two strongest cultivators in Dongqin College were Lu Nantian and Qian Shanmu. The latter was known as number one in Rhythmic Sorcery. Su Muge just couldn''t take even one shot from him.


    Xiao Wuji was strong. However, he was faced with four strong cultivators who were good at joint attack and the Imperial Dragon Spell.


    In this battle, the Eastern Barren College would definitely be the loser.


    In Xiao Wuji''s battlefield, the four strong cultivators were attacking fiercely. Every punch they threw out would bring enormous dragon figures out. However, Xiao Wuji''s pace was assisted with the wind spell which helped him escape from the attack. The dharma behind him kept absorbing Spiritual Qi. It was an illusory figure which was very similar to Gu Dongliu''s.


    Seven sacred wheels rotated crazily with dazzling lights. The seven wheels represented all seven attributes.


    Seeing the four coming, Xiao Wuji''s illusory figure shone with horrible illusory light. A spiritual attack rushed toward the four, However, the four''s minds were united as one. Qin Mengruo''s guqin spell had also arrived. The spiritual attack could do nothing to them.


    Behind Xiao Wuji, the seven sacred wheels burst out with bright light, releasing spells of seven attributes in an instant and crushing toward the four strong cultivators.


    "Xiao Wuji is really strong!" People kept looking at the battlefield. If the four were not good at joint attack and were instead separated, they would have been defeated by Xiao Wuji immediately.


    Facing the horrible spell attacks, the four stood together and the dragon figures on their body soared into the sky and crisscrossed as a dragon-shaped curtain to block the attacks.


    Then, they retreated. They stopped fighting with Xiao Wuji and went to Qian Shanmu. At this moment, Qian Shanmu was fighting with Yu Qingshan. Yu Qingshan was trapped by his rhythmic attack.


    "Watch out," Xiao Wuji warned. Yu Qingshan tried to retreat but Qian Shanmu''s rhythmic attacks became more violent. Everything was locked, seeming to immobilize him. At this time, the four went toward Yu Qingshan and attacked.


    Yu Qingshan wanted to resist but Qian Shanmu didn''t allow it. Notes kept exploding in his brain. His mentality was going to break down. Bang�� With a loud noise, Yu Qingshan was shot down. His body fell down to the platform.


    Boom, boom, boom. Xiao Wuji came too late. He attacked the four cultivators with his spell and finally separated them. Two of the four were wounded. But then, notes kept descending on him. Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo were free since only Xiao Wuji was left now.


    Xiao Wuji''s eyes became very cold. He stepped forward with a violent aura, ready to fight alone.


    "Junior Xiao, it''s enough," Bai Lishu shouted.


    Xiao Wuji stopped in hesitation. He reluctantly turned around and stepped down from the platform with Yu Qingshan. Su Muge and Tang Ye were very indignant.


    They lost the battle too miserably.


    "This is a well-prepared strategy. Is this fun?" Zhu Qing glanced at the Dongqin College.


    Qin Yu laughed and said, "This battle is just for mutual learning. The result doesn''t matter. Moreover, the four disciples of Dongqin College are all geniuses from top family forces and chose the Dongqin College to cultivate in. They are talented in martial arts so we taught them the Imperial Dragon Spell. Today was like a test for them.


    People all looked at Qin Yu. The result didn''t matter? Naturally, whatever the winner said was right, since the loser was the humiliated one.


    But people were more surprised by Qin Yu''s last sentence. People realized that the significance of this battle was not just to defeat the Eastern Barren College but to tell the world what the Dongqin College could bring to its disciples.

 271 Evil Fourth Senior Brother

    Chapter 271: Evil Fourth Senior Brother


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The people of the Eastern Barren Territory were not very shocked. The Eastern Barren College had lost pretty badly, but upon closer thought, wouldn''t the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan prepare well before creating the college and calling everyone to Chaoge City? They naturally wouldn''t underestimate the College or Cottage. Similarly, they were also at the same level as the College. This victory was a well-planned result.


    It was just that Gu Dongliu''s powerful performance yesterday destroyed their preparations. They must have been absolutely confident in Lu Nantian. If Lu Nantian had won, the Dongqin College would completely steal the Eastern Barren College''s spotlight.


    The College understood this too. Zhu Qing, Zong Xu, and Bai Lishu were all clear. The two forces partnered up to create the Dongqin College just to replace them. They could see from this arrangement. It was definite.


    To be honest, they could have left after yesterday. However, the Dongqin College had sent out the challenge. If they had left, it would be the same as avoiding the battle.


    Qin Yu gazed at everyone and continued speaking, "All strong cultivators of the Eastern Barren Territory have gathered here. Today, anyone who wishes to try can do so. As mentioned before, the Dongqin College will enroll students during the next three months. This is the examination stage.


    "In addition, one battle platform doesn''t seem to be enough. Thus, I would like to divide the platform into four: martial arts, sorcery, rhythmic sorcery, and free fighting. Mixed battles are allowed. This way, we can see the talents more clearly and having multiple people challenging simultaneously will be more efficient."


    Everyone admired Qin Yu''s plan. He was using the other forces to hype up the Dongqin College and also using the stage to find students. It was a great tactic.


    As soon as he finished, people went up. A matrix lit up on the platform, dividing it into four battle platforms.


    In the Eastern Barren College group below, Xiao Wuji said, "I will challenge again."


    The earlier defeat was a group one. He was not satisfied.


    "If you wish to challenge, your opponent can only be Qian Shanmu. Are you confident?" Bai Lishu asked.


    Xiao Wuji stared at the man on the other side. He was confident in his own abilities but he didn''t know if he could beat Qian Shanmu. He''d already experienced the rhythmic sorcery but it was only the tip of the iceberg.


    "Qin Yu purposely made a separate platform for rhythmic sorcery," Bai Lishu said. "Why? Who can beat Qian Shanmu and the Donghua Clan in that aspect? I heard that Hua Qingqing''s musical sorcery isn''t any weaker than Qian Shanmu''s."


    "The Donghua Clan leader''s wife used to have the title of number one musical sorcerer in the Eastern Barren Territory," Zhu Qing said from the side. "Her students will definitely be skilled." Though it was the era of the younger generation, as a strong cultivator from the older generation, she naturally knew who the clan leader''s wife was.


    Once the most beautiful in the Eastern Barren Territory, she had both looks and talent. Back then, her fame wasn''t any less than the three beauties of today. Hua Qingqing apparently had inherited 90% of her skills.


    "Xu Yan, you should go," Zhu Qing said.


    Behind her, a pretty girl nodded. "Yes, Master." With that, she walked towards the free fighting platform.


    Bai Lishu glanced at Xu Yan. She was in mid-Arcana Plane and was one of Zhu Qing''s favorites. She wasn''t well-known but was very powerful.


    Xu Yan didn''t say who she wanted to challenge. She just announced her name and plane. Then the Qin Dynasty sent someone from the same plane to fight her.


    In this battle, Xu Yan easily crushed the opponent. Everyone understood that the College was still the College. Even though the Dongqin College could shake the Eastern Barren College''s status, it couldn''t completely crush them. It was impossible. In the end, they would probably just tie. But even so, the Dongqin College still won.


    If they could be even to the Eastern Barren College and pass down techniques like Imperial Dragon Spell, it would show their stance. The Dongqin College would become a powerful force in the future. Their disciples would also continuously join the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan.


    In the Eastern Barren Territory, the College was the most attractive place for geniuses. There was no competition. This was probably why the two forces joined together to create the Dongqin College.


    Next, the other forces gradually opened up and went up to the platform to fight. The atmosphere intensified. Disciples from even those top forces wanted to go up and witness the abilities of the best.


    The fights between the two colleges were most interesting. They both had losses and wins and were very exciting.


    The Dongqin College had geniuses good at every type of skill. The Qin Dynasty was better at martial arts while the Donghua Clan was better at spells. Though many geniuses studied both, they still leaned towards one. Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Hua Jieyu were the best examples.


    However, the one platform where the Dongqin College never lost was for rhythmic sorcery. Many geniuses, even Gu Biyue from the Witch Clan, went to try and were defeated.


    The battles were getting more and more exciting. The atmosphere grew hot as well. However, some people noticed that the Cottage still hadn''t arrived.


    Right now, they were at the inn.


    "Fourth Senior Brother, why aren''t we going today?" Ye Futian asked Xue Ye.


    "Today is the glorious day for the Dongqin College. Why should we go?" Xue Ye asked.


    "To push them down," Ye Futian said.


    "The Dongqin College already lost a critical battle yesterday. Do you think they''ll give the Cottage a chance today?" Xue Ye said indifferently. "They''ll definitely try to threaten us with rules. For example, you''re in the Dharma Plane. If they make a battle of the Arcana Plane, you won''t be able to participate. Even if you can win some rounds, so what? How many disciples does the Cottage have? How many rounds can we win? The Dongqin College prepared for a whole year for today. They will definitely do well."


    A little depressed, Ye Futian muttered, "Yes, but I still don''t like it."


    Last year, the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan had defeated Yu Sheng at the Qin palace. The Noble''s one hit had injured Yu Sheng gravely. Now, they were targeting the College and Cottage again, challenging Third Senior Brother. Though the Cottage had won, Ye Futian was still annoyed.


    "That''s right." Xue Ye chuckled. "Junior, what can you do if you go up?"


    Ye Futian blinked. "What do you mean?"


    "Regular victories in this competition are meaningless. You win one round and they can win one too. We''re the only ones left in the Cottage. Either we don''t fight or we completely squash them, understand?" Xue Ye chuckled.


    "And when they''re all proud, stomp them down? Wow, you''re so old and wise." Ye Futian stared at his fourth senior brother. He was still too inexperienced.


    Xue Ye glared at Ye Futian. He was so handsome��he wasn''t old!


    "Can you do it?" Xue Ye asked.


    Ye Futian''s brows smoothed and he smiled brightly. "I''ll try."


    "Rest well today." Xue Ye patted Ye Futian''s shoulders.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and then said, "Senior Brother, are all scholars so simple-minded?"


    "F*ck off," Xue Ye muttered after a pause.


    "Evil. I''m going to turn bad because of you." Ye Futian left while laughing and said, "Yu Sheng, get ready."


    Xue Ye watched Ye Futian''s back. This guy didn''t need to learn to be bad. They were all the same. Ye Futian had the second senior sister wrapped around his finger. The others couldn''t do that.


    Just as Xue Ye had predicted, today indeed was the Dongqin College''s day. Their disciples were able to display extraordinary talent on either of the four battle platforms, especially for rhythmic sorcery. Hua Qingqing had gone once and defeated a powerful person from the Witch Clan. This told everyone that not one of the top three beauties used only their looks. They were all extremely powerful.


    On this day, talents from all over stepped onto the battle platforms in hopes of joining the Dongqin College. It could be predicted that, in the coming days, there might be a wave of people coming to register here.


    This was now an alternate choice to the Eastern Barren College.


    Many people debated over the Cottage''s absence. Everyone already knew that the third and fifth disciple had left. Fourth disciple Xue Ye probably wouldn''t do anything. That left Yi Xiaoshi and Ye Futian.


    Not many knew Yi Xiaoshi. Just as everyone thought, Ye Futian''s plane was too low. He didn''t have much use. This was probably why they weren''t here.


    The College had complaints about this. They''d been beaten today but the Cottage wouldn''t show up. This pissed off a lot of them. However, the Cottage didn''t care about these guesses and talk. They didn''t care about anyone''s thoughts or complaints. They acted how they wanted. The College was unable to disturb them either. This was why they had a strange relationship. Even the important figures of the College couldn''t influence the Cottage''s decisions.


    The next morning, a crowd had already gathered outside the Dongqin College. They''d all come to take up a spot with a better view of the battles. Of course, some also wanted to get the Dongqin College''s recognition so they could join.


    Yesterday''s battles had become topics of discussion too. They wondered what kind of great fights would take place today. Other than the two colleges, would the amazing fighters amongst them fight too?

 272 Modest or Proud

    Chapter 272: Modest or Proud


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The spring sun brought some warmth as it shone over Chaoge City. More and more people grouped in the center of the city. There were more strong cultivators here than yesterday. The top forces hadn''t left yet. Even if they didn''t participate, they could see the levels of the others. They could compare themselves and see what level they were at.


    The battles continued. People gradually moved onto the battle platforms, challenging those from the other forces. Many from Chaoge City targeted the Eastern Barren College. These people naturally wanted to join the Dongqin College. They were from Chaoge families. It would be great if they could join the Dongqin College and be under the Qin Dynasty. But even if they were geniuses, it was difficult to defeat the College. Most battles ended in failures.


    Someone in the College crowd suddenly exclaimed in shock. Many people looked over and saw that the Cottage had arrived. They were standing to the side quietly.


    Seeing them, a lot from the College frowned, feeling upset. Tang Ye asked directly, "Were you in the inn the entire day yesterday?"


    Yesterday, the Dongqin College had challenged the College. It was extremely important but the Cottage had vanished. The consequence was that they were completely repressed by the Dongqin College. The first loss especially had humiliated him. Tang Ye had been forced down with one hit.


    How he felt went without speaking.


    Xue Ye looked forward, ignoring him. Yi Xiaoshi looked at Tang Ye and smiled. "Yeah."


    "You��" Tang Ye was frustrated with Yi Xiaoshi''s indifference but couldn''t say anything. He had no right to order the Cottage around. Not even the elders could influence the Cottage. No matter how upset he was, he couldn''t do anything.


    Those b*stards.


    "The Cottage has arrived."


    Many eyes looked over at Ye Futian and the others. Two days ago, Gu Dongliu''s epic battle had raised the Cottage''s status once again. Paired with the fact that they didn''t show up yesterday, today''s appearance attracted much attention.


    "Young Master Ye is here." From the distance, Gu Biyue smiled at Ye Futian. Her eyes were mesmerizing. As soon as she spoke, everyone saw Ye Futian and the Cottage group. Beside her, Gu Zhiqiu glanced at his junior sister. He couldn''t do anything. This was just how she was.


    Ye Futian chuckled. "Do you want to serve me?"


    Gu Zhiqiu''s eyes flashed with a sharp glint, staring daggers at him. Did he not care about that warning from before?


    Ye Futian felt Gu Zhiqiu''s eyes but ignored him.


    People of the other forces were intrigued. Qin Li had purposely spread news of Gu Zhiqiu teaching Ye Futian a lesson and many knew about it. But was Ye Futian teasing the Witch again? Did he not learn his lesson? Or maybe he had his Cottage brothers with him so he was more confident. Gu Zhiqiu couldn''t do anything to him.


    "No, but I wish to see you display your radiance like in the Ancient Barren World." The Witch''s smile was very mesmerizing. Ye Futian had been extremely brilliant that day at the Mirror Mountain. Everyone present had been impressed.


    With the phrase, "You are not qualified to understand my world. Those who know me understand my arrogance" was still shocking to think back on. But even though Ye Futian had made a commotion at the Qin Dynasty, his reputation was still mostly due to being part of the Cottage.


    He smiled and looked away.


    The girls of the Moon Clan looked at Ye Futian. The woman who had helped send Hua Jieyu''s message smiled. This guy wasn''t very obedient. He was publicly flirting with the Witch. She would have to talk to Hua Jieyu.


    Chu Yaoyao also looked at Ye Futian. She was curious about the man Hua Jieyu loved.


    "Ye Futian," Yin Zhen of the Yin Family said coldly. He gazed at Ye Futian coolly. "I challenged you two days ago. Today, I challenge you again. Will you take it?" He wanted to see if Ye Futian would avoid the challenge on an occasion like this.


    But Ye Futian seemed to not hear him. He gazed at the Dongqin College and smiled. He walked to a battle platform where the battle had just ended. It was the platform for free fighting.


    "What is he doing?" Everyone stared at him. Was he finally going to fight?


    A moment later, Ye Futian stood onto the platform. Countless eyes focused on him. He walked up as soon as he arrived. The Cottage truly wasn''t playing around.


    Disciples of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan all looked at him, wondering who he would challenge. With his plane, who could he challenge?


    "I heard that yesterday, the Dongqin College set up a challenge to test the cultivation results of their disciples. Today, I would also like to do that." Ye Futian chuckled. "One year ago, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and I came from a small country. Our planes are still low but we wish to test our cultivation from this year at an event like this."


    Some people had a strange look. They were all clear what had happened one year ago. The name of Cangye had become known throughout the Ancient Barren World. The various top forces had gone to the Cangye Kingdom as well.


    Thinking back, their group had only come to cultivate at the Eastern Barren Territory for one year. They''d just attracted attention because they joined the Cottage.


    Hearing this, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen understood. They walked to the battle platform too.


    "We''ve cultivated here for one year and are probably at the same level as the new disciples of the Dongqin College. We are only at the Dharma Plane as well. It''s unfortunate. I would like to witness the brilliance of the Dongqin College disciples today. Please take care of me." Ye Futian was very polite as he spoke.


    Everyone was shocked. Since when was the Cottage so humble? He was too humble. They were quite uncomfortable. Ye Futian was clearly from the Cottage and extremely talented. But the way he said it, he was just a rookie who had only cultivated for one year. It made sense too.


    This�� Many from the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan were annoyed. Did Ye Futian really want them to send rookies of the Dharma Plane to fight against him? It was suicide.


    "Disciples of the Cottage aren''t judged by their planes," Qin Li said calmly, staring at Ye Futian.


    "I have entered the Cottage but have yet to prove myself. I don''t have a glorious record and feel embarrassed. Today, I am nervous to challenge the geniuses of the Dongqin College too," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    Everyone gaped at him. Was this possible? However, it was Qin Li who had said that Ye Futian hadn''t proved himself yet. But when Ye Futian repeated those words so modestly, it felt kind of weird. Even Xue Ye and Yi Xiaoshi were dumbfounded. They''d underestimated how shameless their junior was.


    The senior sister from the Moon Clan smirked. Jieyu''s boy was so evil but his eyes were so clear and honest. He was very convincing.


    In reality, even without a track record to prove himself, Ye Futian''s hurried fight at the Qin Dynasty was still unreachable for someone on the same plane.


    Yu Sheng was the same. His combat ability was wild.


    Ye Wuchen was from the seventh peak of the Fuyun Sword Clan. Many had learned that Ye Wuchen had killed Li Daoyun from the Arcana Plane.


    Did Ye Futian really want these three to fight with new disciples of the Dharma Plane?


    "It is even more of a sham for the Cottage and Fuyun Sword Clan to be overly modest," Qin Li said coldly.


    "Will the Dongqin College accept the challenge?" After Qin Li spoke, Ye Futian''s tone abruptly sharpened. "Or are you only able to fight back with planned techniques?"


    Qin Li stared at him, livid. At this time, Qin Yu said calmly, "The Dongqin College does not have anyone in the Dharma Plane at the same level as you. There is no need to fight this battle. We admit defeat."


    Everyone was shocked at this. The Dongqin College had been so successful yesterday but was forced to surrender at the start of today. It was quite difficult. But everyone knew that if they really fought, the result would be the same. Losing like that was giving in to Ye Futian''s group. Surrendering without a fight prevented Ye Futian from showing off.


    "Of course, if you wish to challenge personally, we can try," Qin Yu continued. Ye Futian''s plane shouldn''t be too high. He probably wasn''t even in the high-level Dharma Plane. Since Ye Futian was from the Cottage, losing to him wouldn''t be too embarrassing, right?


    "That''s boring." Ye Futian shook his head and said, "If I fight someone from another plane, can I use a ritual implement?"


    "If you challenge an Arcana Plane, then of course." Qin Yu nodded. A Noble ritual implement was powerful but also depended on one''s abilities as a foundation. He couldn''t improve by too much.


    Noble intent was the same. Of course, the talents of the top forces all had noble intent.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and shrugged. He glanced at Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng. It had ended without even starting.


    Of course, Ye Futian didn''t want to end just like this. After Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng left, he walked towards another battle platform.


    There, a Donghua Clan disciple who was skilled in rhythmic sorcery had just won. Seeing Ye Futian''s arrival, many people looked over. Was he going to challenge this Arcana Plane rhythmic sorcerer?


    The man studied Ye Futian and smiled. "You want to challenge me?"


    Ye Futian shook his head. Everyone froze, confused.


    Then Ye Futian''s gaze moved past the crowd to the Dongqin College. His eyes fell on Qian Shanmu. Following his gaze, everyone''s eyes hardened.


    What did Ye Futian want?


    "I don''t know rhythmic sorcery but I would still like to witness the brilliance of the best rhythmic sorcerer of our generation," Ye Futian said slowly. "Ye Futian of the Cottage would like to learn from you!"

 273 Thunderous Moves

    Chapter 273: Thunderous Moves


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    This one utterance shocked everyone.


    Ye Futian, a disciple of the Cottage, was going to challenge Qian Shanmu.


    Back when the Qin Dynasty crowned the Crown Prince, a guqin recital ensued at the Qin imperial palace. Ye Futian made a move then, in the fourth level Dharma Plane.


    It had only been a year. Even if he cultivated really quickly, how powerful could he have actually gotten? He very well may only be in the sixth level Dharma Plane. If he had cultivated quickly enough, maybe he could be in the seventh level.


    Qian Shanmu was already in the Arcana Plane.


    Of course, the people would not question the abilities of a disciple of the Cottage. Even if he had never truly proven himself before, he was still extremely powerful. But who was his opponent right now?


    It was Qian Shanmu, also known as the number one musical cultivator of the younger generation. Even opponents in the same plane would need to be wary in battle with a person like this. Forget about those in lower planes. Regardless of the distance between their planes, were ritual implements really going to make up for it?


    Ye Futian was too rash. In everyone''s opinion, he should not have chosen Qian Shanmu as his opponent.


    This idiot.


    Among the group from the College, Tang Ye and others were dumbstruck. When they recovered, they cursed under their breath. When Ye Futian''s trio stepped onto the battle platform and made Qin Yu admit defeat, the student disciples of the College felt great. But in the blink of an eye, the idiot challenged Qian Shanmu. Who did he think he was? This wasn''t the top of Mirror Mountain. There were no statues or relics he could borrow power from.


    This was a battle platform.


    Gu Biyue had a glint in her eye. The light smile on her face was captivating. This guy really won''t give up until every word out of his mouth is enough to put people in shock.


    Even the people of the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan were stupefied. Qin Li then let out a strange smile. This Ye Futian guy could have picked anyone and he chose to challenge Qian Shanmu?


    The disciples of the Cottage were indeed so arrogant, it was ridiculous.


    In the crowd, Qian Shanmu''s eyes fell on Ye Futian. Ye Futian claimed not to know about music. These were the words he had once said to Ye Futian. Now, these words were coming out of Ye Futian''s mouth. Was he prepared to have an exchange with him using music?


    Just then, everyone watched Ye Futian take off the bag on his back and pull out a guqin. He had obviously come prepared.


    At this sight, everyone grew more interested.


    "Does he know what he''s doing?" Su Muge frowned. Ye Futian was going to challenge Qian Shanmu using music?


    Music was Qian Shanmu''s specialty. In the first battle, Qian Shanmu had used music as a supplement. Su Muge was completely unable to withstand his musical sorcery. Of all things, Ye Futian wanted to challenge Qian Shanmu with the thing he was best at. Did he have a death wish?


    "Can you shut up?" Yu Sheng said coldly hearing the voice coming from the group beside him.


    "His battle doesn''t only affect him." Su Muge looked at Yu Sheng with cold eyes. Who didn''t know of the Cottage''s status? What would the world think if Ye Futian got defeated? Was he sending himself right up to his opponent for humiliation?


    "Should we let you go then?" Yi Xiaoshi''s eyes swept toward Su Muge. How noisy. If little brother chose to challenge him, he must have his reason.


    The fourth brother had already said, if a disciple of the Cottage decided to battle, it must be a battle that would shock the world. If Ye Futian was able to win Qian Shanmu, that would be a given.


    On the musical battle platform, the figure standing opposite Ye Futian sneered as he glanced at Ye Futian. There were hints of mockery and disdain. Challenge Qian Shanmu? What a joke. Turning around, he stepped off the platform.


    The people of the Donghua Clan let out looks of amusement. They had been extremely upset when Lu Nantian had lost to Gu Dongliu. Now that Ye Futian of the Cottage had asked for a challenge, it was the perfect time for cruel payback.


    Qian Shanmu walked onto the platform and stood opposite Ye Futian. Below the platform, arrogance was exuded from the eyes of his wife, Qin Mengruo. Her husband''s skills and knowledge of music wasn''t something Ye Futian could challenge. However, she did know that he was also good at music. Back at the Qin palace, Ye Futian had played "The World" for Gu Ming and caused him to fall to his knees, completely controlled by the music. That was Ye Futian''s response to Qian Shanmu''s insult about him not understanding music.


    Did he want to prove his musical abilities once more today?


    If so, then he was going to pay the price.


    "Donghua Clan, Qian Shanmu. Please, enlighten me," Qian Shanmu said, maintaining proper etiquette. He then sat down with crossed legs. Ye Futian did the same facing him.


    One on the guqin, one on the zither. However, there was not going to be any harmonization between the two instruments this time��it was going to be a battle.


    The sounds of both instruments rang out at the same time. The guqin sounded crisp while the zither was deep. These were two obviously different styles of music being played on the platform.


    The piece Qian Shanmu played sounded majestic and powerful. A formless energy formed in the space around. The sounds of the zither harmonized with the earth around causing a flow of strong energy. Although there had yet to be a release of great power, it still gave people a feeling that once the music reached an explosive point, everything would be destroyed.


    There wasn''t going to be any mystery about this battle.


    As the number one musical cultivator of the younger generation, it was obvious that Qian Shanmu would be able to crush Ye Futian.


    Compared to the powerful energy associated with Qian Shanmu''s piece, Ye Futian''s music sounded ordinary and boring. There wasn''t anything new. It was melodious and serene. His music sounded so ridiculously simple.


    This had many people confused. Was Ye Futian really going against Qian Shanmu with this piece?


    There were so many possibilities with music but it was also something that required a lot of care. First of all, there needed to be a basic foundation of the piece. From there, all sorts of destructive spells could be released.


    With just one listen, Qian Shanmu''s piece was able to exude power, while Ye Futian''s sound was a joke. Could a piece like this take even one blow from Qian Shanmu?


    In the direction of the group from the Donghua Clan, a girl stared at Ye Futian. Her beautiful, pure eyes had hints of curiosity. She was Hua Qingqing. Her mother was well-versed in music so she had grown up surrounded by it. Thus, she was naturally sensitive to anything having to do with music. She could feel something unordinary from Ye Futian''s music.


    Simple, pure, and clean. It was a sound without any impurities, like the heart of a child. But would a musical piece like this actually be able to withstand the destructive spells Qian Shanmu was about to release?


    Her eyes hinted her curiosity.


    As the sound of his music changed, a powerful energy circled around Qian Shanmu. Suddenly, the five fingers on his right hand jumped around of the strings of the zither. It was loud like thunder. The ground shook and a terrifying spiritual storm morphed into tens of thousands of sharp swords, all charged for Ye Futian.


    In a split second, everyone could feel the murderous intent in his music. It was then that the people had the mistaken illusion that this might be the end of Ye Futian.


    What made everyone freeze in surprise was Ye Futian did not use musical sorcery to block off this attack. He was still playing the guqin quietly. It was almost as if everyone saw the swords all pierce into his mind.


    Would Ye Futian fall at just one attack?


    He seemed to have shivered lightly but the music never stopped. He continued to play and the attack seemed to already have dissipated into nothing.


    This had many people sighing in relief. Although they had a feeling that Ye Futian would definitely lose, they would be disappointed if a disciple of the Cottage were to be defeated so easily.


    Naturally, Qian Shanmu knew how Ye Futian had managed that. He used noble will as a complement to his music. This formed a layer of protective spiritual energy. In Ye Futian''s mind, he could almost feel the will transform into a dragon which circled around to protect his will.


    Qian Shanmu was still playing, his attacks nonstop. A crazy rain storm seemed to have appeared around Ye Futian. Endless spiritual swords pierced ferociously into Ye Futian''s mind. However, his music and will were still there in the form of a dragon. From time to time, the dragon would roar, destroying any incoming destructive spiritual energy.


    The power of his spiritual defenses is quite strong. His noble will is working together with the noble ritual implement. Looks like Qian Shanmu won''t be able to get rid of Ye Futian so quickly, everyone thought.


    But that was not the extent of Qian Shanmu''s attacks. Besides the endless spiritual attacks, a frightening storm of Spiritual Qi appeared around him. The earth hummed in unison with the sounds of his instrument. A suffocating energy spread on the battle platform. It felt like something that could wipe out the earth. Energy built like this would definitely be incredibly powerful once it exploded.


    The rumbling of thunder exploded in the air. A horrifying flash of lightning struck down at Ye Futian. It was an easy task for Qian Shanmu to send out spells with his music.


    Ye Futian was still playing on his guqin with his head down. It was almost as if he didn''t see a thing. When the lightning struck down, it was actually absorbed into the sound of music in the surroundings. The music transformed into Spiritual Qi that flowed in a circle around his body. However, an endless amount of Spiritual Qi gathered crazily in the air above his head. It formed faintly into a scary pattern. This pattern was able to absorb the Spiritual Qi of the world around him. It gave off a show-stealing seven colored light, a blinding light. With the flow of Spiritual Qi, the pattern took shape. The never-ending sounds of music motivated the flow of Spiritual Qi.


    As everyone looked on in surprise, a Spiritual Qi matrix formed over Ye Futian''s head.


    This�� Everyone''s heart raced. They watched a matrix form out of nowhere above Ye Futian. The pattern spun and the Spiritual Qi went wild, causing a matrix storm. A black hole appeared, absorbing all energy while giving off a destructive energy.


    What terrifying musical sorcery.


    This was no longer simply sorcery released by music. The music had formed a matrix. Its destructive energy was able to make people feel like it could destroy anything and everything.


    Although it hadn''t been that long since Qian Shanmu stepped into the Arcana Plane, With his gifts and his powerful noble will, just how powerful would a matrix him formed in mid-air be? Would Ye Futian be able to withstand his attack?


    The previous attacks were nothing. Qian Shanmu was only just getting started for real. If Ye Futian kept up with the challenge, he would definitely end up dead.


    Many people stared at Qian Shanmu. It seemed like even though Qian Shanmu kept up a calm face, he had a wild beast hidden inside. He must not have been happy about Lu Nantian''s lost to Gu Dongliu.


    Now that he was making his move, he was bound to push Ye Futian into a dead end. Qian Shanmu was going to end him with thunder and lightning.


    Countless pairs of eyes then landed on Ye Futian. How is this guy going to withstand that kind of power?


    If he admitted defeat now, maybe he could be spared by Qian Shanmu''s attack!

 274 Battle of Music

    Chapter 274: Battle of Music


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Presently, Ye Futian remained seated quietly. He was handsome with an extraordinary aura. His long fingers danced over the chords of the guqin. The frightful scene in the sky had no effect on his performance. Right now, he was serious and focused. Even if a mountain collapsed in front of his very eyes, he wouldn''t blink an eye. Unaffected, he would continue to play.


    At this moment, the people seemed to have been brought into a mystical artistic conception. Secretly, they began to sympathize Ye Futian, as if they were worried he would be swallowed by the torrent, seizing to exist.


    Above Ye Futian''s head, the strange sight grew increasingly terrifying. The matrix that continuously swallowed Spiritual Qi was like a ruthless beast, killing everything in sight.


    Finally, Qian Shanmu''s fingers plucked the chords of the zither. A force of frightening spiritual energy wrapped around the storm over Ye Futian''s head. Dark clouds covered the sky causing the world to fall into darkness. It was like the birth of a demon. Thunder and lightning decorated the skies as the strong winds howled. Everything then came down on Ye Futian.


    Many people got nervous and stared closely at the scene ahead. It was too terrifying. Was that really something a cultivator in the Dharma Plane could withstand? Not even prodigies in the lower Arcana Plane could likely withstand such an attack.


    As the destructive storm approached, the Royal Xuan Temple''s Luo Junlin watched with cold eyes. His hands were clenched into tight fists. He wished Ye Futian would be destroyed and killed by this storm. Only that would take care of the danger in the Nandou Nation. Otherwise, Ye Futian would come knocking to settle the score sooner or later.


    Over by those from the College, Tang Ye, Su Muge, and others watched without feeling any sympathy. If Ye Futian really died like this, it would be because he was stupid.


    Just when the storm reached the skies above Ye Futian, the sound waves radiating around him suddenly sounded sharply. A formless storm of spiritual energy brewed. As soon as any spells came for him, it would be destroyed. Then, it would be turned in Spiritual Qi and pulled in to revolved around Ye Futian.


    Just like that, the people witnessed a shocking sight. Spells with destructive powers strong enough to end life of earth would be destroyed by the spiritual storm everytime they got too close. As Ye Futian played, he had unknowingly created a defensive shield of spiritual energy around himself. It was able to destroy any attack spells.


    Sorcery was motivated by spiritual energy. Even spells from a matrix were the results of the release of spiritual energy. Powerful cultivators specializing in attacks with spiritual energy could also use it to destroy spells.


    The sound of the guqin became rapid. The matrix above Ye Futian released attacks at him wildly but his fingers began to fly across the chords even faster. His moves were fluid and fast like a running river, creating a beautiful piece of music. No matter how fast the storm was blowing or how strong the tides, nothing was not going to move. No force was powerful enough to shake him.


    At this moment, above that handsome figure, there was even a hint of the power of a Noble.


    Such strong defense techniques. Everyone looked ahead. Although he was borrowing power from the Noble ritual implement, it was obvious that Ye Futian must have been very educated in music. When he said he didn''t understand music, it was simply to mock Qian Shanmu.


    Qian Shanmu was also slightly shaken up now. Ye Futian played the guqin. There was nothing special about it, yet he was still able to set up a defense. As a musical sorcerer, Ye Futian knew all about the techniques of musical attacks. Direct spiritual attacks were the most lethal. Su Muge had fallen to this kind of attack. But Ye Futian''s defense was with spiritual energy. It was as if he had a dragon protecting his mind from spiritual attacks. There was no way to invade.


    The second type of attack was using music to initiate attack spells. Similarly, Ye Futian had set up a defense. He gathered spiritual energy and formed a storm that destroyed any spells that got close. Nothing could get close to him.


    Not only did Ye Futian know music, he was well-versed in the way of music. This was something that Qian Shanmu could not deny at this point.


    Of course, it was one thing to know. Ye Futian was able to block his musical attacks. This was part of Ye Futian''s abilities. Even with the help of ritual implements, it was difficult for his musical attainments.


    Not even spells from a matrix could breakthrough Ye Futian''s defense. This made Qian Shanmu understand, it was practically impossible to defeat Ye Futian using music to initiate spells.


    Then there was only one way to do it. It was also the way to test truly how knowledgeable a person was about music. That was to use music to create an artistic conception. Then, came the interference of will, taking control of it or going for the kill.


    Back at the Qin palace, this was what Ye Futian did to Gu Ming. It made Gu Ming surrender and fall under the control of this music. Gu Ming was not able to withstand the artistic conception and actually kneeled down on the ground.


    There were no doubts about Qian Shanmu''s knowledge of music. The movement of his fingers changed as he played the chords of the zither. Unknowingly, the sound changed slowly. As Qian Shanmu played, there was something holy about him. He glowed brightly and even showed up in a mystical image in many people''s minds. Many rays of light shined from him. Then, many illusory images appeared in the scene in their minds, all of Qian Shanmu.


    "Holy Sound." Not many people present knew about this musical piece. However, it was obvious that Hua Qingqing was one of those who knew. This was an attack piece that had an extremely strong artistic conception. Qian Shanmu had actually played this piece in a battle of music with Ye Futian.


    The same image appeared in Hua Qingqing''s mind. Qian Shanmu shined brightly like a saint. The words he said were like those of a saint. His palm waved and like the will of a saint, whistling swords and wild divine beasts appeared suddenly and charged at Ye Futian.


    At this moment, the artistic conception Ye Futian felt was the strongest because this piece was targeted at him. It was as if he saw Qian Shanmu turn into a saint. The light encapsulated him. The saint''s words turned into sharp swords, racing towards him. The saint''s will turned into dragons, phoenixes, and qilins. Right now, he seemed so small he could collapse at any moment.


    At this moment, many people had a misconception that Ye Futian seemed like a weak scholar. How could he go against a saint?


    One word could sentence him and one thought could take his life.


    But the weak student was still playing quietly. In the crazy wind and rain, he was still playing. Playing his very own music. With the sound of his music, the swords disappeared and the demon beasts destroyed. No matter how fierce the attack was, Ye Futian was unmoved. From his body and from his music, the people could see the strength in his character.


    Gradually, the sounds elevated but were still stable. Little by little, it elevated and destroyed all the attacks meant for him. At the same time, he was able to maintain protection of his mind. His will remained untouched.


    As Ye Futian''s music pierced through the air, people could feel it. It seemed like the weak student had grown. In the midst of the crazy rainstorm, he had matured. Scholars had the knowledge and ambitions to rule the world.


    Noble will radiated from him. Ye Futian had an outstanding aura that seemed to be changing without him knowing. But he was as resolute as ever. He had an incredible spirit that dripped from him. The weak student seemed to have grown after the storms. He was finally at the center stage, challenging a character that was high above everyone else.


    Some really powerful people were not affected by the music. Their thoughts flowed freely. From Ye Futian''s music, they could hear a story of experiencing the obstacles of life and growth. His music seemed to be a journey, a journey to maturity. It was a truly strange feeling but it also felt very natural.


    The music was still elevated and getting more exciting. The notes had climbed a height that could break through into the heavens.


    In the minds of the crowd, they could see a young man stepping into the Noble Plan and then they the growth of an emperor. Overcoming all the obstacles without fear and taking control of the world.


    At this moment, the instrument playing youth no longer seemed like a weak scholar. His back straightened and he body was like that of a dragon. There seemed to be the roaring of dragons in the music. The emperor''s will broke out and took control.


    Ye Futian''s spiritual energy kept destroying all the attacks. The ever-climbing notes were like an emperor''s trusty mount carrying him up. In the illusory scene, Qian Shanmu and Ye Futian were having a standoff, like a saint and an emperor.


    What was music? Real music went along with an artistic conception and could bring them into the world of music.


    Qian Shanmu said Ye Futian did not know music. In respects of musical attacks and technique variation, Ye Futian was indeed lacking compared to him. However, in this past year, he had a deeper comprehension of music. In terms of artistic conception, Ye Futian was confident enough not to lose.


    "A Chaotic Nation" and "The World" combined for a piece. With his innate willpower, how was he going to lose? He immersed the Imperial Tactics into his music, making the artistic conception stronger. The people would just think that it was the conception brought on by the music. They wouldn''t think that it was a special method.


    In the illusory scene, two large figures appeared. They looked as if they were ready to have the world beneath their feet. The will on the two figures grew stronger but the saint''s figure was like that from the beginning. And the emperor''s figure seemed to be continuously growing until it was able to break into the skies and control the world.


    The vast surroundings were frozen. At this moment, everyone could feel the artistic conception hidden in the music. They felt like they were experiencing the standoff.


    Ye Futian had actually gone up against Qian Shanmu using pure music.


    That figure now stood straight. With the continuously climbing sounds of the instrument, his emperor intent grew even stronger.


    Finally, accompanying a vibration, the saint''s figure collapsed. Qian Shanmu felt a pressing force of will crushing down.


    DUANG! The zither let out a sharp noise and everyone''s gaze remained frozen on it.


    The chord had snapped.


    Qian Shanmu''s hands froze. Following a low moan, he spat blood, staining the zither red.


    The Ancient Barren World''s number one musical sorcerer of the younger generation had lost to Ye Futian, a disciple of the Cottage, in a battle of pure music.


    At this moment, Qian Shanmu remembered the words he once said to Ye Futian. You don''t know music.


    If he didn''t understand music, who did?

 275 Weak and Fragile

    Chapter 275: Weak and Fragile


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was still playing the guqin. The elevated notes dropped back down and the emperor''s will disappeared. Finally, with one last note, the music stopped.


    He lifted his head slowly and looked to Qian Shanmu. Ye Futian''s clothes were white as snow, unstained by all filth. His eyes sparkled like the stars in the sky and his handsome face seemed brighter now than ever.


    My time on earth has yet to end, yet my heart is in the skies. In times of storm and rain, I will turn into an emperor.


    As the music ended, the vast space fell into an extreme silence. Countless pairs of eyes froze on the two figures on the battle platform. Qian Shanmu stared dumbfoundedly at the broken string on the zither as if he still couldn''t believe he had actually lost.


    The Donghua Clan couldn''t believe it either. They couldn''t accept this.


    Qin Mengruo was pale. Her man had lost to Ye Futian in music.


    Hua Qingqing''s clear eyes stared at the handsome figure in white. From beginning to end, he never once used music to initiate an attack spell. What he did do was to use music to express an artistic conception. The unyielding growth of a young man into an emperor who controlled the world.


    The conception created by his music kept getting stronger until it completely crushed Qian Shanmu. Perhaps his musical attainments couldn''t compare to Qian Shanmu, but the world he experienced through music was more expansive than that of Qian Shanmu. Even the people from the College were shocked at these results. Especially those who had verbally insulted Ye Futian before. Tangye and Su Muge felt the gazes of their fellow schoolmates and felt a rush of heat to their faces.


    Yu Sheng, however, thought that this kind of result was a given. He was the only one who so blindly trusted Ye Futian. His eyes stared coldly at Tangye and said, "Was it not embarrassing enough back at the top of Mirror Mountain?"


    Tang Ye''s gaze froze on Yu Sheng. His expression didn''t look too good.


    "How can someone like you understand his world? You better keep your mouth shut in matters regarding him in the future," Yu Sheng said coldly. His wild eyes looked threatening.


    Tang Ye clenched his jaw. Yu Sheng was actually threatening him?


    But Yu Sheng actually didn''t give a damn about his opinions. He looked away as soon as he finished saying what he had to say and completely ignored Tang Ye''s existence.


    A whisper came from the large crowd, "Qian Shanmu actually lost." Nobody knew who said that but the entire crowd immediately erupted into conversation.


    Qian Shanmu, the so-called number one musical cultivator of the younger generation in the Eastern Barren Territory, had lost in a musical battle. Could he still be considered ''number one''?


    The powerful cultivators of various top powers all turned their attention to Ye Futian. Although his level of cultivation was on the lower side, it would increase sooner or later.


    Another Gu Dongliu was going to be born from the Cottage.


    Two genius cultivators of the Donghua Clan: Lu Nantian defeated by Gu Dongliu and Qian Shanmu lost to the hands of Ye Futian. In their rivalry with the Cottage, the Donghua Clan had been thoroughly defeated.


    Ye Futian placed his guqin back into his bag. His movements were unrushed and he didn''t make any attempts to insult Qian Shanmu on his loss. Winning him in a musical battle was already the best insult. There was no need for spoken words.


    "What was that piece you played?" Qian Shanmu lifted his head to ask Ye Futian.


    Qian Shanmu had played "Holy Sound", the music of saints. It was an extremely difficult piece to play. It was even harder than normal to fully reveal its artistic conception but he had done it. Despite all this, he had lost.


    Ye Futian returned a look at him before he said, "It was a spur of the moment thing. I don''t know what it was." After saying what he had to say, Ye Futian turned away and was ready to leave.


    Qian Shanmu''s expression was frozen. It was obvious that he was at a loss. Ye Futian had actually said he defeated the music of saints simply with something he came up with on the top of his head.


    "You won, but you don''t have to be so fake." Qian Shanmu had to admit that Ye Futian was very knowledgeable when it came to music, but for him to say that he won with a piece he casually came up with, wasn''t Ye Futian just trying to humiliate him?


    Ye Futian stopped in his tracks with a smile. "What is music? Although it can be used to battle, that music is born from spiritual attacks. True music has to do with the tones themselves. Pure and in harmony with the artistic conception. You said that I don''t understand music and you''re right, I don''t. But do you truly understand it?" He then continued on his way. Qian Shanmu was stunned.


    Do you truly understand it? At this moment, Qian Shanmu questioned himself. In deep thought, he lowered his head to look at the broken chord. He seemed to have taken a real hit.


    Just then, a beautiful figure walked up beside him. She could see that Qian Shanmu was struggling and questioning himself. This was her man. She didn''t want to see him like this.


    "He''s just trying to get to you and put you down," Qin Mengruo said to Qian Shanmu. "You''re better than everyone when it comes to music. If he didn''t have a ritual implement for defense, you would''ve won early on. He wouldn''t have been able to withstand your musical attacks."


    Qian Shanmu looked up at his wife. Qin Mengruo was just as beautiful as always. She was gracious and beautiful and her eyes were filled with her belief and trust in him. The two of them looked into each other''s eyes and slowly, Qian Shanmu began to recover a bit his confidence. As a prided member of the Donghua Clan, it was obvious that he had something others didn''t. Whether that something was willpower or outlook, he was incomparable.


    It was just that this battle took a huge blow on him. He had lost to Ye Futian, a mere Dharma Plane cultivator, in his specialty, music. On top of that, he presented the Donghua Clan and Ye Futian, the Cottage. Just when everyone thought Qian Shanmu would be able to destroy Ye Futian, he lost. This was not something he could easily get over.


    "Wait." A voice rang out just then. Ye Futian stopped once again and turned back to look over in the direction of those from the Dongqin College.


    The person who had spoken was Qin Li. Qian Shanmu''s defeat had also greatly affected the Dongqin College. If they let Ye Futian leave victorious, they wouldn''t be able to cover their losses no matter who they challenged next.


    "If you''re going to keep insisting that you don''t understand music, then what are you good at?" Qin Li asked. To win against Qian Shanmu in a musical battle and still claim not to understand music. How fake. If so, then Qin Li wanted to know what Ye Futian was actually good at.


    "What are you trying to do?" chuckled Ye Futian.


    "Martial arts. Are you good at that?" asked Qin Li.


    "I''m okay," answered Ye Futian.


    "Qin Mang," Qin Li called out, and a person appeared by his side immediately. This person was not as built as Yu Sheng, but standing there, people had a feeling that he was really strong. His bright and piercing eyes were trained on Ye Futian like a fearsome demon beast, filled with wild energy.


    Qin Mang stepped on to the martial arts platform. He was a royal descendant of the Qin Dynasty. Within his body were five dragon meridians. His gifts in martial arts were shocking. He was in the top-level Dharma Plane.


    "Qin Mang, Dharma Plane, focusing in martial arts. Challenging you to a battle of martial arts. Do you accept?" Qin Li asked, observing Ye Futian.


    Everyone was surprised. It was only natural that many of the top powers knew of the younger generation prodigies from the Qin Dynasty. This Qin Mang was royal blood, had five dragon meridians within, and was extremely gifted in martial arts. Plus, he was in the Dharma Plane. So, there wouldn''t be any reason for Ye Futian to use ritual implements, right?


    Although it was obvious that Ye Futian''s level of cultivation was still lower than that of Qin Mang, he was still a disciple of the Cottage. He was the center of attention. Shouldn''t it be normal for him to battle someone at a higher level?


    Qin Li used this point to his advantage and wanted to defeat Ye Futian through Qin Mang. It would also prove some things on his part.


    "Are you sure you want to challenge me in martial arts?" Ye Futian swept a quick glance at Qin Li.


    He saw the frivolous look in Ye Futian''s eyes. "Of course."


    Ye Futian smiled at him and returned to his friends from the Cottage. He handed the bad with his guqin to Yu Sheng. Then, he turned back around and headed for the martial arts battle platform.


    Countless pairs of eyes followed Ye Futian as he moved. He was able to defeat Qian Shanmu in music. This meant that Ye Futian was a Mandate Sorcerer of the spirit element, but Qin Li chose to challenge him in martial arts. Qin Li claimed that Ye Futian had never proven himself. So how was he going to fair when it came to martial arts?


    Stepping onto the platform, Ye Futian looked at Qin Mang. "Are you ready?" He sounded nonchalant, frivolous.


    Qin Mang stared at him and answered coldly, "Yes." As soon as he said that, a wild energy was released from him. Very faintly, the images of dragons appeared. That''s right, dragons. Not one, but five.


    In the blink of an eye, Qin Mang''s aura became terrifying. The Imperial Dragon Spell was in motion. Five dragons revolved around him, roaring. He was already in the top-level Dharma Plane. Now, he had opened the five dragon meridians. His combat skills were through the roof.


    Just then, a rod formed from Spiritual Qi appeared in Ye Futian''s hand. He held it calmly and the air around him became different. His aura was growing stronger and more powerful.


    BOOM! The battle platform shook with a single step from Qin Mang. The dragons protected him and their roars came and went. The five dragons continued to circle. At that moment, Qin Mang lifted into the air. He looked as if he could dominate the world when a Dragon Dharma seemed to have appeared behind him. It looked like a totem.


    Ye Futian moved. His body charged forward and flew up in the air. He danced and soared in the sky. His aura was still growing stronger as he headed straight for Qin Mang.


    Since this was a battle of martial arts, they needed to go at this head-to-head.


    ROAR! The air vibrated at the loud roar of a dragon. Qin Mang came down at Ye Futian with his dragons. This made Ye Futian look weak and fragile. But instead, the energy around him was just getting stronger.


    Finally, the images of the dragons descended and headed right for Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian stopped moving and the long rod in his hand swung down on these images.


    The Nine Heavenly Attacks. First attack, Genesis.


    In a split second, an enormous image of a rod appeared and everyone watched as Ye Futian disappeared into the circle created by the images of the dragons. A loud noise followed. The dragons'' image split from the middle and Ye Futian''s rod landed directly on Qin Mang.


    In the next moment, Qin Mang''s body flew in the direction of the group from the Dongqin College. With a loud crash, his body fell on the ground in front of Qin Li.


    Weak and fragile.


    Ye Futian descended, his figure blown by the wind. The long rod had already disappeared from his grasp. He took one look at Qin Li and smiled. "Is this all you guys got? Geniuses of the Qin Dynasty?"

 276 An Even Wilder Strike

    Chapter 276: An Even Wilder Strike


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s somewhat frivolous voice caused the entire place to turn completely silent once again. Qin Mang was at the peak of the Dharma Plane. He had opened up five dragon meridians and his battle abilities were extraordinary. However, he was defeated by just one strike and was unable to fight back at all. He was blown directly backward and landed in front of Qin Li.


    How ironic was that?


    In particular, Qin Li had deliberately targeted Ye Futian a few times before and said a lot to belittle him. How about now?


    First, Ye Futian used a ritual implement and defeated Qian Shanmu with music. Then, he overpowered Qin Mang in just one hit.


    Did Cottage disciples need to prove themselves?


    The crowd suddenly thought of the first and third disciples of the Cottage. In the past, they similarly did not prove anything about themselves, but when they did, it was a disaster for their opponents.


    The Sword Saint used the Fuyun Sword Clan to become famous. Gu Dongliu first eliminated a top-tier force and then became famous by defeating Lu Nantian. The exact same thing seemed to be happening at the moment.


    Ye Futian stepped on Qian Shanmu and the genius of the Qin Dynasty. Once again, he showed everyone how bright Cottage disciples were.


    Qian Li did not speak. What else could he say? The reality of the situation was more impactful than any words. He was the one who started the challenge, and what was the outcome?


    At this instant, the people from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan stared very coldly at Ye Futian, especially Qin Li and Qin Mengruo.


    "You are indeed a Cottage disciple," Qin Yu said suddenly. "During this martial arts exchange in the Dongqin College, we are able to see the power of the eighth disciple of the Cottage. Qin Mang did not lose for nothing. However, you belittled the Qin Dynasty after merely one victory from yourself. Indeed, this is the usual style of the Cottage��too arrogant."


    Ye Futian smiled and looked at Qin Yu. Just now, his son Qin Li criticized Ye Futian and mocked him openly, saying that he had not proven himself. Now, he defeated the people from the Qin Dynasty, but Qin Yu wanted to deny him again.


    How hypocritical was that?


    Apart from being hypocritical, he was still reluctant to admit their defeat. This was unacceptable��


    Ye Futian smiled. "Prince Qin, you are flattering me. Perhaps my words just now were somewhat inappropriate. The Qin Dynasty is a top force in the Eastern Barren Territory, and now you have even established the Dongqin College. Obviously, you have many powerful cultivators. Indeed, one battle alone cannot say anything. Maybe I have not proven myself previously, and therefore the Qin Dynasty did not really send any powerful cultivators on the stage yet. Since this is the case, I am willing to see for myself the real geniuses of the Qin Dynasty."


    Then, Ye Futian folded his hands and said, "I am Ye Futian, a disciple of the Cottage. My martial arts is in the Seventh-level Dharma Plane and I will challenge anyone in the Dharma Plane. Anyone?"


    "Err..." Hearing Ye Futian''s words, everyone felt somewhat stunned.


    Now it was really awkward for the Qin Dynasty. Qin Yu said that Ye Futian had belittled the Qin Dynasty because of just one battle, and Ye Futian decided to continue the challenge. Qin Yu said that Cottage disciples were all too arrogant. Immediately, Ye Futian became much more humble and praised the Qin Dynasty. Furthermore, he announced his martial arts level directly��Seventh-level Dharma Plane. It was surely acceptable for him to challenge anyone in the Dharma Plane.


    Even though he was a Cottage disciple, the Qin Dynasty was similarly a top force. He had already allowed them to send someone two levels above him. However, in reality, everyone knew that Qin Mang was already one of the strongest Dharma Plane cultivators in the Qin Dynasty. Otherwise, Qin Li would not have asked him to fight in the first place.


    Since Qin Mang was instantly defeated, anyone in the Dharma Plane would definitely lose to him as well. There would be no suspense at all.


    Ye Futian spared no face for Qin Yu.


    Many people looked at Qin Yu. They could almost imagine Qin Yu''s mood at the moment. He probably wanted to kill Ye Futian at this instant.


    "Mr. Ye is really too crafty." In the direction where the Witch Clan was, the witch Gu Biyue giggled softly. Qin Yu was unable to find a way out of the embarrassing situation.


    Beside her, the Warlock Gu Zhiqiu also stared at Ye Futian. It seemed that he had underestimated Ye Futian previously. With the talent that Ye Futian had displayed today, he would undoubtedly be another top genius should he enter the Arcana Plane. By then, even without a ritual implement, he would probably still be able to contest with Qian Shanmu.


    It was not just Gu Biyue who had such a thought. The lady from the Moon Clan who had met with Ye Futian also felt that the person whom Jieyu liked was really too crafty. However, it was still pleasurable to look at him. He had a handsome look and a frivolous smile which all seemed to make him amazingly charming. Furthermore, when he was playing music, he looked as pure as a newborn baby and also as domineering as an emperor. What kind of person was he exactly?


    "We don''t need that. Since we have already seen the power of the eighth disciple of the Cottage, we don''t need another battle." Qin Yu''s tone was somewhat stiff as he rejected Ye Futian''s challenge.


    To fight further would bring disgrace to themselves. Therefore, they might as well give up. They would also be criticized by others, but if they chose to continue, they would not know how long the battle would last, given Ye Futian''s shamelessness.


    "That''s unfortunate. I have not had enough fun." Ye Futian smiled and looked at Qin Yu. Then, he turned around and walked down the battle platform. Just as he left the platform, he said, "Yu Sheng, go and see how strong the geniuses from the Dongqin College are."


    The fourth brother had already said that either the Cottage disciples would not fight, or they would destroy the Dongqin College completely.


    Didn''t they want a contest? Let''s have one then.


    "Alright." Yu Sheng nodded and walked onto the battle platform.


    Everyone looked at this scene, puzzled. What was the Cottage trying to do?


    Yu Sheng was very burly. His appearance alone already looked very violent, and his body seemed to be filled with an endless amount of power. This was the person who took the demonic tripod from the Yin Family. During that time, even the Arhat only raised the tripod four feet. On the other hand, Yu Sheng took the tripod away, resulting in a conflict, causing a huge loss to the Yin Family.


    "Yu Sheng, wood-cutter of the Cottage, Seventh-level Dharma Plane. I will challenge any Dharma Plane cultivator from the Dongqin College, and any class of cultivator as well," Yu Sheng said calmly. His voice was very monotonous, but it gave the rest the feeling that he was overlooking everyone as if he was making little of all the people from the Dongqin College.


    Similar to Ye Futian, he was in the Seven-level Dharma Plane and would accept the challenge from any Dharma Plane cultivator. Furthermore, he was not a Cottage disciple, but only a wood-cutter.


    The battle platform that Yu Sheng had walked onto was one which allowed all types of cultivators to fight on. He did not restrict the class of cultivators that he would fight against, which meant that anyone with any type of abilities could challenge him.


    Looking at Yu Sheng who was standing on the platform, everyone could clearly feel the meaning of this word: supercilious.


    Whether it was Ye Futian or Yu Sheng, these people from the Cottage did not even bother about the Dongqin College at all. Just like what Qin Yu had said, Cottage disciples were very arrogant.


    Although Yu Sheng claimed that he was a wood-cutter from the Cottage, nobody would really treat him as one. He managed to display four Nobles on the Mirror Mountain Stone Wall in the Ancient Barren World, and also took away the demonic tripod from the Yin Family.


    "Qin Yuan," Qin Yu shouted the name of a person. Immediately, a figure with an outstanding temperament walked forward and stepped onto the battle platform.


    "Qin Yuan." The eyes of many sparkled. Qin Yuan was similarly a grandson of the king of Qin, but not Qin Yu''s son. Instead, he was a son of another prince and was a direct descendant of the Qin Dynasty.


    Qin Yuan cultivated both martial arts and sorcery, and was a Mandate Sorcerer. He had opened up six dragon meridians.


    Qin Yuan was certainly stronger than Qin Mang.


    It was said that among the many grandsons of the king of Qin, Qin Yuan''s talents were second only to Qin Li.


    When Qin Yuan stepped onto the battle platform, a faint dragon totem appeared behind him. His Dharma erupted and a divine dragon appeared and coiled up around him. Many golden dragons whizzed over directly and struck towards Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng looked coldly and emotionlessly at the scene before him. On his body, dark golden demonic light started to flow.


    Buzz. His demon-like wings appeared as he stepped forward. When the dragons reached before him, the wings behind him struck forward and turned into very sharp blades. All the invincible-looking feathers on the wings extended outwards and destroyed the incoming illusory dragons directly.


    "This..." Everyone looked at Yu Sheng who was walking forward. He was simply disregarding Qin Yuan''s existence, as he did not bother about Qin Yuan or his attacks at all.


    Yu Sheng''s pace was not fast, but he took very large steps each time. With every step that he took, he gave everyone a violent feeling and an invisible pressure, especially for Qin Yuan. He seemed to be looking at an invincible demon which was walking towards him slowly.


    An even wilder aura spread from Qin Yuan''s hands as he punched out into the air. Immediately, the power of martial arts and sorcery merged into one. A terrifying golden dragon charged towards the incoming Yu Sheng like a real dragon.


    Bang. Suddenly, Yu Sheng stomped fiercely on the ground, and even the battle platform trembled because of it. At the next moment, everyone saw a figure charging violently forward. His devil-like wings changed their shape continuously and turned into the sharpest demonic blades in the world, striking forward. In this instant, Yu Sheng was himself a devil. He allowed the dragon to approach him and his body went through the dragon directly.


    The incoming illusory dragon was destroyed It passed through Yu Sheng''s body and was then crushed into pieces. However, Yu Sheng did not stop at all. He appeared in front of Qin Yuan and reached out his hand, grabbing towards Qin Yuan.


    Qin Yuan''s face instantly turned pale. He attacks could not even slow his opponent down. Knowing that he would surely lose, he backed away, wanting to escape. However, he clearly could not run away. Yu Sheng turned into a demonic shadow and in just a flash, Qin Yuan felt his arm being grabbed by an overpowering force. He was unable to break free at all.


    Roar. An illusory dragon bloomed out from him and dashed towards Yu Sheng who was holding his arm.


    Yu Sheng did not even seem to have noticed the dragon and lifted his arm directly. Immediately, he raised Qin Yuan into the air together with the illusory dragon. Then, he smashed them down onto the ground.


    Bang�� An extremely loud sound erupted. Everyone''s heart also trembled fiercely because of the noise.


    The illusory dragon vanished. On the battle platform, Qin Yuan lied on the ground, motionless.


    "How dare you." The faces of those from the Qin Dynasty turned totally black. They could feel that even if the hit did not kill Qin Yuan, he would still be severely injured. Just like Ye Futian, Yu Sheng defeated his opponent in just one strike. However, Yu Sheng''s attack felt even wilder and more violent.


    "Sorry, I didn''t imagine him to be so weak," Yu Sheng said calmly. Then, he turned around and left.

 277 Murderous Inten

    Chapter 277: Murderous Intent


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Looking at the burly figure who was walking down the battle platform step by step, everyone could feel their hearts twitching. Yu Sheng was way too violent. He was actually almost a demon himself. He smashed Qin Yuan onto the ground in just one hit, causing him to lie there motionlessly.


    Is he really that weak? Qin Yuan was a direct descendant of the Qin Dynasty, a grandson of the king. Therefore, he was undoubtedly gifted. However, looking at the scene right now, he was indeed very weak.


    The people from the Qin Dynasty stared at Yu Sheng''s back firmly. Their faces looked as black as it could possibly get.


    After the three battles, the prestige of the Dongqin College was extinguished totally, as their members were defeated so easily. Every single battle had managed to shock everyone.


    At the moment, on the battle platform, Qin Yuan''s body twitched as he wanted to get up. Someone from the Qin Dynasty then walked up and carried him away. That smash must have broken many of his bones. Such a power was just invincible.


    Even Kua Shan from the College who similarly had a very violent power felt astonished as he watched Yu Sheng walk back. With such power, Yu Sheng was someone whom he could only look up to. Is this guy even a normal person? He was thinking that if Yu Sheng had entered the Arcana Plane, could he alone defeat the joint attack from the four Dongqin College cultivators on the previous day?


    Wood-cutter of the Cottage.


    Even though Yu Sheng claimed that he was a wood-cutter, his talents were certainly no weaker than Xiao Wuji.


    Many people sighed with emotion. The Cottage was still the Cottage. Anyone from it was as strong as, if not stronger than, the best geniuses of all the top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    After the three battle, the momentum of the Qin Dynasty collapsed totally. Apart from anger, they also felt helpless. They could not do what Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had done. Such battles could not be copied. How could they possibly ask Qian Shanmu or Qin Li to challenge ordinary disciples from the College?


    Hence, the people from the Dongqin College actually became quiet. Nobody continued the challenge anymore.


    Suddenly, someone walked onto the battle platform. He was Qi Ao, an exceptionally talented genius from the Fuyun Sword Clan First Summit.


    Seeing his appearance, a strange expression appeared on the faces of many. It seemed that apart from the two major colleges, the other forces also did not want to miss the contest this time. Finally, the geniuses from these forces started to go onto the stage.


    Qi Ao stated that he would challenge the disciples of the Sword Saint Mountain. These two forces had always been mutually antagonistic. Under such a circumstance, it was thus not surprising that the Fuyun Sword Clan would want to challenge the Sword Saint Mountain.


    Very soon, the glint and flash of cold steel filled the battle platform. A sharp aura permeated the entire place and the battle looked extremely dangerous. In the end, Qi Ao defeated a genius from the Sword Saint Mountain and emerged victorious.


    Then, the Dongqin College actually changed its target to the Sword Saint Mountain as well, as if it was teaming up with the Fuyun Sword Clan to suppress the disciples of the Sword Saint Mountain. Together, they defeated many people from the Sword Saint Mountain.


    Everyone in the world knew that the Sword Saint established the Sword Saint Mountain after leaving the Book Mountain. Although he had founded his own force, he was still the eldest disciple of the Cottage. Previously when the conflict broke out outside the Tripod Tower of the Yin Family, the Sword Saint Mountain also declared openly that it would support the Cottage. Therefore, it was not unusual for the Dongqin College to target the Sword Saint Mountain. However, the fact that they did so with the Fuyun Sword Clan caused many to have additional thoughts.


    Did the Dongqin College create this false appearance deliberately? Or had the Dongqin College teamed up with the Fuyun Sword Clan as well?


    In the latter case, this new combined force would really be very powerful.


    The match continued. After the battles of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, the Dongqin College still participated actively in the contest, but their main target had changed to the Sword Saint Mountain. Disciples from the two major colleges still took apart in the fight, and they each had both wins and losses.


    Before anyone realized it, it was already evening. The Cottage disciples had already left. They planned to leave on the next day. In today''s battle, the Cottage had already proven certain things. The Dongqin College was jointly established by two top forces and it could obviously not be stopped. However, they were only bringing disgrace to themselves when they wanted to become famous by defeating the Cottage.


    The contest on the second day finally ended. Even though all the major forces did participate in the event, it was more like a competition between the two colleges in reality.


    The people from various forces left one after another and returned to the inns where they were staying at.


    After today''s battles, the Cottage disciple Ye Futian became famous. However, to some people, this was definitely not a piece of good news, for example, Luo Junlin.


    Ye Futian finally displayed his outstanding talents and defeated Qian Shanmu. A person like him would surely rise, and this could not be stopped at all. Luo Junlin knew clearly that once Ye Futian became a noble, it would be the end for the Nandou nation. A person whom he thought he could easily kill in the past had already become a serious threat at the moment.


    Luo Junlin was in the courtyard of a particular inn, and there seemed to be something bothering him. He Xirou kept him company. Suddenly, a figure walked towards them. Seeing the incoming person, He Xirou and Luo Junlin both stood up and greeted, "Senior Xia."


    The person was Xia Luo, a disciple of the Royal Xuan Temple. He was extremely gifted and a direct disciple of the first lord. Among the many disciples, he was quite reputed. Moreover, he was a very nice person and all the other disciples respected him a lot.


    "The two of you are always together. When are you getting married?" Xia Luo asked, smiling.


    He Xirou blushed slightly and said, "Senior, not anytime soon."


    "Is it because junior Luo does not want to be responsible?" Xia Luo said jokingly.


    Luo Junlin shook his head. "Senior Xia, I do want to marry her."


    "Is there something bothering you?" Xia Luo looked at Luo Junlin. "Is it because of Ye Futian?"


    The whole Royal Xuan Temple knew what happened a year ago. The resentment between Luo Junlin and Ye Futian was not a secret.


    Luo Junlin did not say anything, but he did seem to have admitted it.


    "Ye Futian is indeed an absolute genius. He relied on the noble ritual implement today, but with the talent that he displayed, he may still be able to beat Qian Shanmu with music if they are at the same level. Furthermore, his martial arts abilities��" Xia Luo sighed. "These are only what we have seen. On the battle platform today, Ye Futian did not show us everything that he has, for example, his full-element talent, his Life Spirit, and Dharma." Xia Luo''s words caused Luo Junlin and He Xirou to frown firmly as they felt an immense pressure envelop them.


    "I came here to remind Junlin: you must cultivate hard. Otherwise, in the future, should Ye Futian really deal with your family, the Royal Xuan Temple cannot participate, or else the Cottage can take part as well," Xia Luo continued. "Junlin, you are very talented, and there is still a chance that you may win Ye Futian. Count this as a challenge for yourself."


    "Today, Ye Futian was so arrogant. In addition, there has been so much accumulated resentment between him, and the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan. I''m sure these two forces will not let him off easily," He Xirou said.


    "Of course, the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan want Ye Futian dead. However, it is not that simple. The relationship between the different forces in the Eastern Barren Territory is very complicated. The College, the Cottage, and the Sword Saint Mountain would definitely form a superpower if they team up. Even though they want to kill Ye Futian, they will not dare to do so easily. Moreover, Ye Futian will only become stronger as time passes. As for assassination, if it really happens, the people from the Cottage are also not fools and they will definitely know the culprit."


    Xia Luo said emotionlessly, "Therefore, the only way is for you to cultivate harder and try to always be ahead of Ye Futian, although this is very difficult."


    "Senior, thank you for the reminder," Luo Junlin nodded.


    "Don''t have too much pressure as well. Rest early." Xia Luo smiled and nodded, after which he left the place.


    After Xia Luo left, He Xirou''s eyes sparkled and she said softly, "Junlin, with Ye Futian''s talents, it will be increasingly difficult to kill him in the future."


    "Xirou, what do you want to do?" Luo Junlin stared at He Xirou.


    He Xirou smiled gently. She clung tightly onto Luo Junlin and kissed his lips. Smiling, she said, "The senior is right. If someone really assassinates Ye Futian, with the current resentment between him and the two forces, they will naturally be suspected."


    Luo Junlin''s eyes sparkled as he stared at He Xirou. Holding her cheeks with his hands, he shook his head and said, "Don''t risk that for me. Even if I die, I don''t want anything to happen to you."


    "Fool, why would anything happen to me?" He Xirou''s look was extremely gentle. This was the man that she loved, and she was willing to sacrifice everything for him.


    Why was Gu Dongliu from the Cottage so domineering? It was so that the people in the world would not dare to touch anyone from the Cottage.


    Assassinating a Cottage disciple was definitely an extremely dangerous thing. Both Luo Junlin and He Xirou knew well that if the truth was found out, even the Royal Xuan Temple would not be able to protect them. Their only ending would be death.


    However, many times a woman would do something at all costs and even risk her life, for example, for her loved one. Of course, He Xirou would not carry out the assassination herself. That would be playing with fire. However, as luck would have it, she knew a suitable person. Perhaps she already had such a thought long ago. When she first met with that person, she had thought of assassination. Therefore, she had been hiding him all the time and had not really used him yet.


    Now, she finally had the chance to use him. Furthermore, with his loyalty, she believed that nobody would suspect her.


    ...


    Ye Futian, of course, did not know that He Xirou intended to kill him. At the moment, he was cultivating in the inn. On the next day, they would leave the place, because it would be meaningless to continue staying.


    In today''s battle, it was already sufficient for him to defeat Qian Shanmu. Although he could have done more, it was ultimately a bad thing for him to display his outstanding talents. After all, his level was too low. Even the third brother had such a worry. Because of this, the Cottage had been maintaining its domineering attitude all along.


    "Futian." Ye Futian heard a familiar voice. Liu Feiyang, Liu Chenyu, and Ye Wuchen came to his place.


    "Hello," Ye Futian said, smiling. He had already told them that he would leave the next day. It was uncertain when they would next meet.


    "Hi, but I have some bad news for you," Liu Feiyang said.


    "What is it?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It''s about Hua Jieyu."


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled, and he questioned further, "What happened to her?"


    "Not long ago, I heard someone saying that at first, Hua Jieyu wanted to come to Chaoge this time. However, she ended up in a conflict with the Virgin of the Moon Clan and did not come in the end," Liu Feiyang said.


    Ye Futian frowned. He had been puzzled as to why Jieyu did not come to Chaoge even though she knew that he would be here. It turned out that there was actually really a reason. In addition, when she asked her senior to pass the message to Ye Futian, she deliberately did not mention the exact reason. Maybe it was because she did not want him to worry too much.

 278 Sacrificial Lamb

    Chapter 278: Sacrificial Lamb


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Notwithstanding the deliberate deceit, Ye Futian could feel that the senior of Jieyu meant no harm. Hence, Jieyu''s situation should not be too worrying after all. Perhaps there had been some conflicts between her and Chu Yaoyao only.


    Thinking about this, Ye Futian seemed to start pondering about something. Then, he said, "How about we ask the ladies from the Moon Clan out and have a chat?"


    With a faint smile on his face, Liu Feiyang looked at Ye Futian and said, "We''re fine with it, as long as you are not worried that Jieyu will be unhappy after knowing it."


    "Ha." Ye Futian glanced at Liu Feiyang with a disgusted look. Was he even the like of man who was afraid of his girlfriend? Obviously not.


    "Let''s go. We''ll talk on the way," Ye Futian said, holding his head high. It seemed that he had to prove his status in the relationship.


    Liu Chenyu glanced at Ye Futian in repugnance. Nice acting. We all know you too well.


    "Oh yeah, Chenyu, Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo have already married each other. When will you two do the same?" Ye Futian turned his head around and looked at Liu Chenyu. Her contemptuous stare froze as she looked at Ye Futian, stunned.


    His thinking is way too non-linear.


    "It''s none of your business," Liu Chenyu said, widening her eyes at Ye Futian.


    "Ahh��" Ye Futian blinked his eyes. Liu Chenyu also seemed to realize that she had spoken something misleading. Then, Ye Futian stared at her, smiling, and said in a gentle tone, "I see. You two can discuss this. Just remember to inform me about it by then." As he spoke, the group walked out of the inn.


    The night sky today was somewhat dark, as no stars could be seen. However, Chaoge City was extremely lively at the moment and the streets were all lit with lights.


    Just when Ye Futian left the inn, at a corner of the street, a lazy-looking figure stood up slowly and walked forward. Before this, he was still trying to figure out how to get close to Ye Futian. In the worst case scenario, he could only find a reason to enter the inn. However, he knew that in that case, he would definitely die after going in. Nevertheless, God seemed to be helping him as well and Ye Futian walked out from the inn himself.


    The group walked and chatted. Since Ye Futian was with Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu, he naturally seemed to be at ease. However, along the way, Ye Futian suddenly stopped.


    "What is it?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "I sense a murderous aura. Let''s pretend to go back." Ye Futian kept his voice low. Then, he said, "I almost forgot to bring something important. Let''s go back to the inn and come out again."


    The looks of Liu Feiyang and the rest all changed slightly. Then, they cooperated with Ye Futian and said, "Alright, let''s go back first to take that."


    They did not look around unnecessarily. Since Ye Futian had sensed a murderous aura, it was very likely that someone wanted to attack them. At this time, they would certainly not be so foolish to deliberately alert or find the opposite party.


    Ye Futian''s decision was undoubtedly the most correct one. He wanted to go back to the inn without alarming the opposite party. The seniors from the College and the Cottage were in the inn. There, it would be impossible for the opposite party to do anything.


    In the darkness, the figure frowned. Had he been discovered already?


    Hu Tong was not a professional assassin. However, he owed the daughter of the fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple his life until the very moment. Since it was an order from Ms. He, even though he knew that he would probably die, he still came without any hesitation.


    He knew that today, he needed to kill an extremely important person.


    Although the person''s level was not high, indeed much lower than himself, nobody in the Eastern Barren Territory dared to kill the person easily. Since Ms. He had asked him to do so, he had no other choice.


    "Can''t let him return to the inn," Hu Tong thought to himself, after which he walked out of the darkness. Perhaps he had not been discovered yet, and perhaps Ye Futian would really come out again. The further Ye Futian was from the inn, the more likely he would survive. However, he could not take the risk. This was an opportunity which he could not miss.


    Ye Futian and his group sped up, and Hu Tong similarly increased his speed. He charged towards Ye Futian and his group from the side. A powerful gravity spell enveloped the space, pressuring Ye Futian and his team.


    Almost at the same instant, a figure jumped into the air.


    Hu Tong drew his sword, and the dazzling, silvery glint of the sword illuminated his face. He did not cover his face. To the top forces from the Eastern Barren Territory, he was merely an insignificant person. Nobody would recognize him.


    He came here to assassinate. If he did cover his face, he would be showing everyone else that he was an assassin. However, unexpectedly, he was still discovered. Although he was not professional, who exactly was so sensitive?


    "Prison." He cast an earth-elemental spell. Immediately, the mighty earth-elemental Spiritual Qi around Ye Wuchen raged and then turned into a prison, directly sealing the space which he was in.


    An extremely bright, silvery blade of light struck down but did not cut the prison open.


    Hu Tong''s level was the Upper Arcana Plane.


    An endless amount of earth-elemental Spiritual Qi raged in the vast space and turned into an enormous space prison, blocking the path in front of Ye Futian and sealing the space entirely. He charged towards Ye Futian directly.


    At this moment, everyone realized that he was going for Ye Futian.


    Hu Tong''s speed was extremely fast. At the same time, his hands danced and many spells flew out. Earth dragons whizzed towards everyone one after another, while a powerful gravity spell pressured the space, causing everyone''s actions to slow down.


    Hu Tong knew clearly that he did not have much time. The place they were at was very near to the inn Ye Futian was staying at, as they had just come out for a short while. He had to kill Ye Futian quickly.


    Countless vines swept out. This wood-elemental spell bloomed wildly in the air. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu glanced at each other and immediately knew the intention of the other. The two cooperated and in just a flash, the space was filled with vines.


    In the next instant, flames started to burn and ignited the vines directly. Right away, the entire space was filled with fire and became very blurry. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu knew that they could not stop the assassin directly. Therefore, they could only use such a method to slow him down.


    "Run, quick!" Liu Feiyang roared.


    Yu Sheng had already approached the spell prison in front. Following an angry roar, he turned into a demon and a terrifying illusory devil appeared behind him.


    The giant demonic tripod appeared in Yu Sheng''s hands and he smacked it forward. Accompanied by a loud bang, a hole appeared in the prison.


    "Go!" Yu Sheng shouted.


    Ye Futian knew that it was not the time to be polite. He was the target of the assassin. Thus, if he was to run, the opposite party would not have the time to deal with the rest. On the other hand, if he chose to stay, the others would instead be in greater danger.


    The wings of the Roc appeared, and a wind-elemental spell enveloped his body. Even though he was under the gravity spell, his speed was still very fast as he charged towards the hole in the prison. However, suddenly, an appalling sandstorm engulfed the entire space and blew towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian released his Dharma��a monstrous ape with a pair of brilliant wings. With the Five Element Rod in its hand, its body span and struck forward fiercely, splitting the storm apart. Then, he continued to move. However, the endless, frightening sandstorm swept across his body directly and stuck onto him. Then, Ye Futian realized that he was bound to the void.


    At the next moment, many brown spears emerged from the storm and pierced towards his body. Suddenly, Yu Sheng''s burly body blocked in front of Ye Futian again. He had turned into a real, majestic devil and raised the demonic tripod above his head.


    The violent power slammed into the demonic tripod wildly, forcing Yu Sheng downwards. Hu Tong bypassed him directly and charged towards Ye Futian. He did not have much time left.


    Seeing the incoming Hu Tong with his spear, Ye Futian activated the Imperial Tactics in his body. Instantly, a shocking emperor will burst out from his body. His power seemed to have become stronger and even the blood in his body felt like it was burning.


    The Sun and the Moon Dharma appeared. They turned into the power of yin and yang and struck towards Hu Tong.


    Hu Tong could only feel a terrifying will charging into his mind, as if he was facing an all-powerful emperor. He was astounded by this. Who exactly was the person whom he was trying to kill?


    Bang. Ye Futian broke free from the binding, but Hu Tong''s attack had already arrived. An extreme power erupted from Ye Futian''s body. Following a loud roar, the Divine Ape came to the world and the howls of dragon filled the heavens. The Roc extended its wings and divine phenomena appeared in the sky.


    The monstrous Divine Ape struck out with the Five Element Rod in its hand, colliding with Hu Tong''s spear. With a loud bang, the incoming spear was crushed and Ye Futian''s Five Element Rod hit onto Hu Tong''s body. However, Hu Tong''s palm continued forward and a horrifying palm print engulfed Ye Futian, eventually slapping onto his body.


    Accompanied by two loud bangs, Ye Futian was blown backward, and he spat a mouthful of blood. Hu Tong similarly spat much blood and only felt, to his astonishment, that even his organs were rolling about. Did a Dharma Plane cultivator actually just injure him?


    This was really incredible.


    Just as he was thinking, Yu Sheng fell from the sky and smashed towards at him with the demonic tripod, as if he was a demon himself.


    Ye Wuchen similarly struck at him with his sharp sword.


    Around them, more and more people started to move closer. Hu Tong''s face became as white as a sheet. He knew that he had failed.


    He no longer had any chance to kill Ye Futian. The strike just now was his best opportunity.


    Bang. Hu Tong slapped out his palms and two huge palm prints flew out, charging violently towards the incoming figures. A strong force caused him to be blown backward and with this, he turned around, wanting to escape. However, suddenly, many ancient pages flew towards him from the distance. The ancient pages penetrated across space and arrived from afar. Then, they turned into spells and struck towards Hu Tong.


    Hu Tong''s face turned pale. After blocking the spells, he turned around. Immediately, he saw a figure walking towards him in the air and staring at him with an extremely cold look.


    Xue Ye had arrived.


    "Who sent you here?" Xue Ye usually liked to joke around, but at the moment his eyes were only filled with a cold murderous look, as if he was from the netherworld.


    There was actually a person who tried to assassinate a Cottage disciple.


    This was sufficient to make him feel cold throughout his body.


    He did not know who the person in front was. Since he dared to assassinate a Cottage disciple, he was definitely sent here by someone.


    Hu Tong glanced at Xue Ye. He obviously knew what would happen to him. A dreary smile flashed across his eyes. Then, he raised his palm and, under the astonished stares of everyone, slapped towards his own head. With a loud bang, blood sprayed into the air.


    Even the injured Ye Futian was shocked when he saw the scene. Hu Tong was actually so cruel to himself.


    This person who tried to assassinate him did not plan to go back alive in the first place!

 279 Storm is Brewing

    Chapter 279: Storm is Brewing


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Xue Ye looked at the falling corpse whose face was already badly mutilated. His expression was extremely gloomy. He actually chose this kind of method to keep the secret.


    Many people had already gathered around them and all realized that the person who was assaulted was actually Ye Futian.


    Someone wanted to assassinate a Cottage disciple. This caused many people to feel somewhat frightened. They all understood that the matter was really serious.


    That time at the Qin Imperial Palace, some people oppressed Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, and injured Yu Sheng. Because of this, a noble from the Donghua Clan was permanently disabled.


    On the other hand, the nature of the event at the moment was clearly much more serious. This was an attempted assassination. In the first place, the person wanted Ye Futian dead. Regardless of whether it was successful or not, the severity of the matter would not change. If this was instructed by another top force, there would definitely be a great bloodshed.


    Many people could not help thinking about the event that happened earlier in the day. Ye Futian defeated Qian Shanmu, and then knocked out Qin Mang from the Qin Dynasty in just one blow, causing the Dongqin College to lose much face.


    Could it be that the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan planned this assassination?


    These two forces were obviously highly suspicious. However, in such a situation, if someone wanted to kill Ye Futian, the Cottage would surely suspect the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan first. Therefore, why would these two forces take such a risk?


    Could it be that they wanted to start a war? Or perhaps another force was trying to create a storm secretly and cause a war between the Cottage and the two forces.


    How would the Cottage and the College handle this?


    Many people flashed towards Ye Futian. Yi Xiaoshi and the people from the College were here as well. Seeing the scene, their faces all turned cold.


    Yi Xiaoshi approached Ye Futian and asked, "Are you injured?"


    "No big deal." Ye Futian shook his head; he could still stand up. It was indeed a narrow squeak just now. Fortunately, he had come out with a few others. Otherwise, if he was alone, he might really die in the assault from an Upper Arcana Plane cultivator. Who exactly wanted to kill him?


    The atmosphere was extremely tense. The mountain elders from the College, Zhu Qing and Zong Xu, had arrived as well. Walking in front of Xue Ye, Zhu Qing asked, "What happened?"


    "The little brother encountered an assassination attempt," Xue Ye said in a gloomy voice. After he finished speaking, he neared Ye Futian. At the moment, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were all gathered around him, and an extremely cold murderous aura was being emitted from them.


    "Any clue?" Xue Ye asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head. "It''s a sorcerer who is skilled in earth-elemental abilities. He cultivates martial arts as well and is in the Upper Arcana Plane. Shortly after we left the inn, I felt some murderous intent hiding in the darkness. He had been waiting outside."


    "Who do you suspect the most?" Xue Ye asked.


    Ye Futian pondered for a while, after which he shook his head. Without further clues, nobody would know who planned the assassination. The Qin Dynasty, the Donghua Clan, and the Yin Family all had reasons to kill him. Maybe it was even planned by someone who wanted to deliberately incite conflicts.


    It was even possible that the Royal Xuan Temple did this, as Luo Junlin and he were implacable enemies. With Luo Junlin''s level, he would probably not be able to send an assassin like this, unless a noble gave the order. However, the nobles from the Royal Xuan Temple had no reasons to do so. Nevertheless, Luo Junlin''s girlfriend had an extraordinary status. Therefore this possibility could not be ruled out completely. It was thus very difficult to find out who gave the order of assassination just by guessing.


    "Let''s go back to the inn first," Zhu Qing said. Xue Ye nodded, and then they brought the corpse of the sacrificial lamb back to the inn.


    An invisible pressure spread across Chaoge City. Soon, all the forces received the news that Ye Futian encountered an assassination.


    At once, everyone had a feeling that although the Eastern Barren Territory had been in peace for many years, a huge storm was brewing at the moment.


    A Cottage disciple encountered an assassination attempt. It was still unclear who did this, but there was certainly someone from a top force behind the curtain. Ordinary forces would not dare to do this. Furthermore, ordinary forces also did not have any reasons to do so. Apart from people from the top forces, Ye Futian did not seem to have offended anyone else. The only exception was the Yin Family which was also a subsidiary of the Qin Dynasty.


    After receiving the news, the Warlock Gu Zhiqiu and the witch Gu Biyue from the Witch Clan both felt puzzled. Were the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan really so crazy?


    The people from the Fuyun Sword Clan all appeared to be looking on. They actually wished that the assassination was really planned by the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan, so that they could watch a nice show.


    Many members of the Moon Clan were very surprised that Ye Futian actually encountered an assassination attempt. If Hua Jieyu knew about this, she would surely be very worried.


    On the other hand, Chu Yaoyao was somewhat puzzled. Was it really done by the Qin Dynasty?


    When the news reached the Royal Xuan Temple, its members also watched the event in anticipation. Obviously, they did not give the order.


    At the moment, many disciples of the Royal Xuan Temple were gathered together, discussing the event. He Xirou tried her best to control her emotions. Then, she returned to her residence alone and her face turned pale.


    Did it fail?


    The assassination attempt actually failed.


    Furthermore, in such a short time the event had already caused a great disturbance. It was obvious that Chaoge City would certainly not be peaceful in the next period of time.


    Would she be suspected?


    She believed it would not. Although Hu Tong was loyal to her, he had been hiding in darkness all along. Nobody would notice such a person, as Chaoge City was filled with Arcana Plane cultivators. Moreover, she had given the order secretly. Most importantly, Hu Tong was already dead.


    A dead person would clearly keep the secret.


    In addition, Hu Tong was not a citizen of Chaoge City in the first place. Nobody would know him.


    The only loophole was actually in the Royal Xuan Temple because Xia Luo might be able to guess something. However, even if he really suspected her, he would never betray the Royal Xuan Temple, for he should know the severity of the issue.


    Thinking about this, He Xirou''s look slowly turned firm again.


    Dead men tell no tales.


    She just had to act normally.


    Following Hu Tong''s death, this secret would be buried underground forever.


    Just let the Cottage and the Qin Dynasty fight against each other.


    This night, many people in Chaoge City could not sleep. Many disciples of the College departed from the inn in search of evidence. The people from all the top forces realized that they were being watched closely. This was very rude, but nobody said anything.


    The attempted assassination of a Cottage disciple was surely planned by a top force. Therefore, although the various forces were unhappy that their actions were being closely watched, they could not say anything. Nobody would offend the College at this time for such a reason.


    The Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan were very quiet, so quiet that it was actually tense. They knew well that the Cottage would probably suspect them first for the attempted assassination of Ye Futian. Under such a circumstance, a war would easily break out if they were not careful.


    Chaoge City spent the night in this tense atmosphere. On the next day, the whole city was filled with discussions about Ye Futian''s encounter.


    In the Dongqin College, many people were gathered around the battle platforms. The contest would be held as usual today. The Dongqin College would be admitting disciples for three months continuously. Even if some of the top forces were not present, the battle would still continue. However, the atmosphere at the moment was clearly somewhat different. On the last two days, the place was filled with enthusiasm. However, now an invisible pressure seemed to be engulfing the Dongqin College.


    The people from various top forces arrived gradually. Qin Yu walked onto the battle platform and was about to announce the start of the contest. However, suddenly, a group of cultivators flew over from afar. Immediately, countless people stared in that direction.


    These people were from the College.


    The group was led by the two mountain elders Zong Xu and Zhu Qing. With a cold face, they flew to the battle platform directly. Qin Yu similarly stared at the sky. Then, he saw Zong Xu and Zhu Qing land on the battle platform directly. Zhu Qing asked Qin Yu, "Does the Qin Dynasty not plan to provide an explanation?"


    Qin Yu frowned and said to Zhu Qing, "The Qin Dynasty is also very surprised by what happened last night. If you need, we will try our best to cooperate."


    "That''s all?" Zhu Qing''s face was cold.


    "Mountain Elder Zhu Qing, what do you want then?" Qin Yu frowned.


    "This is Chaoge City, owned by the Qin Dynasty. The College came because of your invitation," Zhu Qing said coldly.


    "Do you think that the Qin Dynasty is so foolish, and we will do such a thing in our own territory?" Qin Yu said.


    "Nothing is impossible." Zhu Qing turned around and looked at everyone else. "I''m sure that all of you know what happened last night. Next, I hope that all the people from the top forces in Chaoge City will stay to help us in the investigation until the culprit is found out."


    "I mean every single person." Zhu Qing''s expression was very stern. The entire place turned silent. The College was really overbearing. They were not allowing anyone from the top forces to leave Chaoge City.


    "Isn''t this too much?" someone from the Fuyun Sword Clan said suddenly. Why did they have to stay back and cooperate?


    "After we find out the culprit, the College will go to your places to thank you and apologize. I hope that everyone can understand us," Zhu Qing continued. Many people sighed in their hearts. Since Zhu Qing had said so, it was indeed understandable. After the culprit had been found, they would apologize personally.


    This meant that they would not stop until they found the culprit.


    "The Sword Saint Mountain will fully cooperate with the College." At the moment, the people from the Sword Saint Mountain made their position. Many people cursed in their minds; the Sword Saint Mountain was related to the Cottage in the first place, so of course, they would cooperate.


    "The Liu Kingdom will also cooperate. I do not wish this kind of thing to happen to anyone," someone from the Liu Kingdom said as well. If assassinations were to happen frequently, the Eastern Barren Territory would be in a mess. In the future, if everyone could do this, all the talented juniors from various forces would be assassinated.


    This issue must, therefore, be handled seriously. Everyone could imagine the determination of the College. This storm would probably not end anytime soon.


    "Thank you for your understanding," Zhu Qing said. Then, she turned and looked at Qin Yu. "If we cannot find the culprit for too long, the College will take it that the Qin Dynasty did this. Bye." After speaking, they ascended into the air directly and left.


    "You..." Qin Yu stared at the back of Zhu Qing who was already in the sky, and his face seemed very annoyed. If they could not find the real culprit, they would assume that the Qin Dynasty did this.


    Many people were shocked. Since the assassination happened in Chaoge City, which was the Qin Dynasty''s territory, the College would put the blame on the Qin Dynasty if they could not find the culprit. This was the College''s attitude.


    Among the crowd, where the people from the Royal Xuan Temple were at, Luo Junlin clenched his fists. His heart was filled with some fear. He clearly knew who the culprit was. Although the order was given secretly, the determination of the College still caused him to feel frightened!

 280 Second Sister Down the Mountain

    Chapter 280: Second Sister Down the Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The contest in the Dongqin College continued as usual. However, nobody was in the mood anymore, and the atmosphere in the last two days had totally vanished. Furthermore, the College and the Cottage no longer participated. It was as if the momentum of the contest held by the Dongqin College was completely destroyed because of the attempted assassination of Ye Futian.


    Many people could not help thinking about the events that happened recently. The Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan were allied through marriage, and the Dongqin College officially opened. Lu Nantian challenged Gu Dongliu, many grand events were held in Chaoge City. For a while, the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan looked very glorious.


    However, Gu Dongliu defeated Lu Nantian, while Ye Futian defeated Qian Shanmu. During the contest, the College and the Cottage attracted the attention of Chaoge City again.


    At the moment, everyone in Chaoge City was guessing who exactly planned Ye Futian''s assassination. Could the truth be found out? If not, the College would assume that the Qin Dynasty did this. In that case, would these two top forces start a war?


    The atmosphere in Chaoge City remained tense. It was said that the disciples of the top forces were not just being watched closely. Moreover, the College even started to investigate the people whom they had contact with.


    Immediately, Chaoge City was filled with panic. Many top forces were very unhappy about this, and some even made criticisms openly. However, the College did not bother about these. Their only aim at the moment was to find the culprit.


    Of course, while the people from the top forces were unhappy about it, they did not allow any of their disciples to leave. How could they not take into account the College''s attitude? They did not plan the assassination in the first place. If they really left, the College would certainly suspect them.


    The people from various forces could clearly see the determination of the College. As for He Xirou, she did not dare to leave even more. She was clearly not so foolish as to actively make the College notice her.


    Another day passed. According to someone, the people from the College had been going down the mountain one after another and many had already arrived at Chaoge City. In the inn where the Cottage disciples were at, a pretty figure walked over quietly. She seemed as light as a fairy and was wearing a white shirt and a long dress. Her black hair fell gently behind her back like a waterfall. When she walked, her steps were very light, as if she did not have any weight.


    "Sister."


    When Xue Ye saw the charming figure coming towards them, he was stunned for a while.


    The person who had come was the second disciple of the Cottage, Zhuge Hui. She turned her eyes and looked at Xue Ye. Seeing her smiley expression, Xue Ye lowered his head slightly.


    "After we go back to the Cottage, you will copy books for a year and will not be able to leave the mountain." Zhuge Hui''s voice was very light and gentle. Xue Ye gave a bitter smile and nodded miserably. Of course, he knew why the sister was angry. After the third brother went back to the Cottage, he was the eldest person from the Cottage here. The little brother experienced such a thing and was almost killed. As a senior, he was of course responsible.


    "Sister."


    "Second sister."


    Yi Xiaoshi and Ye Futian also walked over and were both surprised by the arrival of the second sister. Yi Xiaoshi was particularly shocked. Since he entered the Cottage, the second sister had never left the mountain. This was the first time.


    "Little brother, how''s your injury?" Zhuge Hui walked forward and looked at Ye Futian.


    "Sister, it''s no big deal. Moreover, even if I am injured, I will recover when I see you," Ye Futian said, smiling. "This incident has nothing to do with the fourth brother. Sister, don''t blame him."


    "You little one." Zhuge Hui said, "He was with you, and yet such a thing happened to you. It''s already a light punishment to forbid him from leaving the mountain for a year. Now, do you have any idea as to what happened?"


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head. "I have caused you to worry."


    "Xiaoshi, tell me what has happened these few days," Zhuge Hui said, looking at Yi Xiaoshi. Then, she walked to the side and sat down. The other few disciples of the Cottage all stayed beside her obediently. The commanding nature of the second sister was very obvious. In the Cottage, she could decide on everything.


    At the moment, it was the first time that she really went down the mountain. Yi Xiaoshi told her about the things that had happened, including the response from the College. After he finished speaking, the mountain elders Zhu Qing and Bai Lishu from the College also came to the place. They had just found out that the second disciple of the Cottage had come.


    The first and the third disciples of the Cottage had both become famous after a battle. However, there was still a female disciple whose seniority was between them. Nobody knew her well. Even the people from the College which was also on the Book Mountain did not know who exactly the second disciple of the Cottage was.


    They only knew that there was such a person, and her name was Zhuge Hui.


    There were no legends about her in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    However, because of Ye Futian''s attempted assassination this time, the second disciple of the Cottage went down the mountain instead of Gu Dongliu. Nobody dared to look down on her. The Cottage had long proven to the people in the world that they had to treat every single Cottage disciple seriously. Therefore, when the second disciple, who was ranked even higher than Gu Dongliu, went down the mountain, nobody dared to overlook her.


    Zhu Qing and Bai Lishu came and stared at Zhuge Hui. The second disciple of the Cottage was not only a female but also so beautiful.


    Zhuge Hui glanced at Zhu Qing and Bai Lishu and a gentle smile appeared on her face.


    "Second sister, this is Mountain Elder Zhu Qing," Xue Ye said.


    "This is my second sister," Xue Ye said to Zhu Qing as well. His words caused a strange expression to appear on Ye Futian''s face. Is this the first time the mountain elder of the College and the sister meet? He actually introduced them to each other.


    He would believe that the people from the College had never stepped into the Cottage. However, had the second sister never gone down the mountain before? Otherwise, with the second sister''s look and status, she would definitely have attracted much attention.


    He looked at Yi Xiaoshi, feeling somewhat puzzled. Yi Xiaoshi seemed to have understood his doubt and said softly, "Since I entered the Cottage, this is the first time I have seen the second sister go down the mountain."


    Hearing Yi Xiaoshi''s words, Ye Futian felt somewhat warm. The second sister had actually never left the Cottage before. This time, she did so for the first time, all for him.


    "Mountain elder, do you think we can find the culprit with what you have done?" Zhuge Hui asked, smiling. She was very direct and did not disguise her meaning at all.


    Zhu Qing was not angry either. Although she was more senior, in reality when she watched the battle between Gu Dongliu and Lu Nantian, she already knew that Gu Dongliu was stronger than her.


    Cottage disciples could not really be treated like ordinary juniors.


    Furthermore, the Cottage disciple before her was even more senior than Gu Dongliu.


    "Very unlikely," Zhu Qing replied directly. If the assassin was still alive, everything would be much simpler. However, the person who tried to assassinate Ye Futian was already dead, and he even crushed his own head and was highly mutilated. He was so cruel to himself precisely because he did not want to leave any clues to them.


    In addition, Chaoge City was not their territory.


    Although they had made all the top forces stay, they were still being held back. Clearly, they could not investigate all the top forces one by one. In that case, they would offend the entire Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Mountain elder, with such a mild approach, of course, it is very unlikely," Zhuge Hui said, smiling. Zhu Qing''s eyes sparkled. Was her approach too mild? Making all the people from the top forces worried and stay back was already everything that the College could do. Was this considered as too mild as well?


    "However, you did one thing correctly. If we cannot find the culprit, we will take it that the Qin Dynasty did it," Zhuge Hui continued. "Since it happened in Chaoge City, and we were invited by the Qin Dynasty to come here, they have to be responsible. But you were so gentle to the Qin Dynasty. Do you expect them to cooperate?"


    Zhu Qing''s eyes flashed and she asked, "What do you think we should do then?"


    "My little brother encountered an assassination in Chaoge City, and yet the contest in the Dongqin College is still being held. Are they joking?" the second sister said, smiling. Zhu Qing''s eyes glittered. Then, she felt an incredible spiritual will being released from Zhuge Hui and fill the entire place.


    "Sister." The eyes of everyone present sparkled as they gazed at the second sister. At the moment, she was enveloped by in a beam of dazzling light and shocked everyone with her appalling spiritual will. Many beams of spiritual will turned into illusory figures and charged out of her body. Immediately, the sky was filled with many figures which all looked like Zhuge Hui.


    Zhu Qing and Bai Lishu gazed at Zhuge Hui. They could feel more clearly how strong her spiritual will was.


    "Brothers, wait for a while," Zhuge Hui said, smiling, after which she closed her eyes. In the next instant, the many illusory figures in the sky charged out and flew away into the distance.


    Ye Futian was very shocked. The second sister was sitting quietly there with her eyes closed, but a sacred light was being emitted from her body as if she was a goddess who had come to the mortal world.


    ...


    Outside the Dongqin College, the contest was still being held. Although many people, especially those from the top forces, were not in the mood, it was still a grand event for Chaoge City and many people who wanted to join the Dongqin College.


    Suddenly, a whizzing sound was heard from the sky. A strong spiritual might fell.


    At the next moment, everyone saw a group of people flying over.


    They ignored the ongoing contest and appeared in the sky above everyone directly.


    All the people lifted their heads and saw many charming figures appear in the sky.


    Moreover, they were the same person.


    She was like a goddess who had come to the mortal world and was extremely beautiful. Nobody knew her.


    The people from the Qin Dynasty frowned. It was somewhat rude for her to appear directly in the sky in such a situation.


    The people from various top forces were also curious. Who was this person?


    Suddenly, the figures turned into many brilliant streamers and shot downwards like meteors.


    Qin Yu seemed to have realized something. He gave a cold humph and said, "How dare you." Just as he finished speaking, he stepped forward. Apart from him, many cultivators from the Dongqin College also stepped forward simultaneously. However, they were still too slow.


    At the moment, the four battle platforms were all occupied. The people on the platforms raised their heads and looked at the incoming streamers in astonishment. The charming figures were falling down like meteors.


    Bang, bang, bang�� Many loud noises erupted as the people on the battle platforms were blown backward directly. Then, the platforms were crushed to pieces.


    Many nobles arrived at the place and looked coldly at the destroyed platforms.


    Bang. Following another loud noise, Qin Yu turned around only to see the gates of the Dongqin College being destroyed directly.


    In this instant, the faces of everyone from the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan turned extremely cold. They stared at the figure in the sky. At the moment, there was only one person there standing proudly like a fairy.


    All the people from the top forces were astounded. Who was this lady?


    "Who are you?" Qin Yu asked in a very cold tone.


    "The contest of the Dongqin College ends here. Within seven days, if you cannot find the culprit behind my little brother''s attempted assassination, the Cottage will take over Chaoge City. By then, the Dongqin College will of course no longer need to exist." After she finished speaking, she dissipated in the air.


    At this instant, everyone''s heart trembled fiercely.

 281 He Xirou

    Chapter 281: He Xirou


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the vast space outside the Dongqin College, the crowd was instantly stirred up.


    Those arrogant words made them feel like even their heads were going to explode.


    If Ye Futian''s assassination could not be investigated clearly within seven days, the Cottage would take over Chaoge City, and the Dongqin College would no longer need to exist!


    Err�� Is she mad? Cottage, and little brother.


    Many people were extremely shocked. The identity of the fairy-like lady was already blatantly obvious.


    The eldest disciple of the Cottage was the Sword Saint. The third disciple Gu Dongliu, fourth disciple Xue Ye, and fifth disciple Luo Fan had already gone down the mountain one after another.


    The identity of the person who had just appeared was clear.


    The second disciple of the Cottage had come down from the Book Mountain.


    The eldest disciple of the Cottage went down the mountain to challenge the Fuyun Sword Clan, while the third disciple went down the mountain to eliminate a top-tier force.


    Now, the second disciple had come down as well. With just a few sentences, she made everyone remember her.


    The Cottage was still the Cottage, and nothing had changed. Furthermore, this time, not only was she overbearing, but she was also beautiful.


    Of course, everyone knew what Zhuge Hui meant. Ye Futian encountered the incident in Chaoge City, so clearly the Qin Dynasty had to be responsible. This was the Qin Dynasty''s territory, and the Cottage was invited here to participate in the grand events held by the Qin Dynasty. Her little brother was almost assassinated, and the Qin Dynasty was still holding the contest here.


    Did they even bother about the incident? Did they bother about the Cottage? At the moment, the assassin was already dead. If there was even someone who could find the culprit, it had to be the Qin Dynasty. If they could not, the Cottage would take over Chaoge City to continue the investigation. Such a domineering attitude meant that if the culprit behind Ye Futian''s assassination was not found, the Cottage would turn Chaoge City upside down.


    The words from the second disciple represented the will and determination of the Cottage. Nobody could assassinate a Cottage disciple. The culprit behind the incident this time must be caught at all costs. Otherwise, it might happen again in the future.


    The charming figure had already vanished, but everyone was still gazing at the sky. They knew that it was not her real body but rather made from spiritual will. This was certainly a very astonishing method. Before she even arrived, her will already reached the Qin Dynasty and said those words.


    The Cottage was thus both hated and respected by everyone. However, in the depth of their hearts, everyone hoped that they could cultivate in such a place.


    "Why don''t I have a senior like this," Liu Feiyang said, sounding depressed. "Chenyu, do you think I should ask Ye Futian if the Cottage is still admitting disciples?"


    Liu Chenyu rolled her eyes at Liu Feiyang and said with total contempt, "You? Forget about it."


    What kind of place was the Cottage? Till now, there were only eight disciples.


    "Hey, what''s that look?" Liu Feiyang said, noticing the contemptuous look from his sister. Is she even my real sister?


    Among the crowd from the Moon Clan, Chu Yaoyao seemed very lost. By looking at appearance alone, she, as the Virgin of the Moon Clan, was naturally as good as the lady that had just appeared. However, the lady was the second disciple of the Cottage. Her arrival was sufficient to make everyone else pale into insignificance.


    Chu Yaoyao could imagine that if she, the Virgin of the Moon Clan, was beside the second disciple of the Cottage, her aura would be destroyed instantly.


    An intense desire filled the eyes of Chu Yaoyao. Every lady would hope that her power would match her appearance. Only then could she be called unparalleled.


    She was Ye Futian''s senior, and she came for Ye Futian.


    In the direction where the people from the Royal Xuan Temple were at, He Xirou''s body trembled slightly and her face turned pale. She lowered her head gently, not wanting the others to notice her state of mind. She had always been very confident about the plan. Whether it succeeded or failed, she believed that nobody would suspect her. That was because everything was carried out secretly. Nobody here knew Hu Tong''s real identity. To the various top forces, he was only an insignificant figure.


    However, at the moment, He Xirou was somewhat shaken.


    She knew well that as long as something was done, there would surely be traces left behind, and there would be loopholes. The crucial thing was whether they had the abilities and determination to find out.


    The arrival of the second disciple of the Cottage made her see this determination.


    She suddenly realized that she was not as confident as she once thought. At the moment, she was somewhat scared. Was there really something that could remain hidden forever?


    After their astonishment, everyone looked at the group from the Dongqin College and stared at Qin Yu. The second disciple of the Cottage was so overbearing. What would the Qin Dynasty do?


    Zhuge Hui straightforwardly announced that the contest in the Dongqin College would end right now. Obviously, she was unhappy about the Qin Dynasty''s attitude.


    Qin Yu stood there and was very quiet as if he was thinking. After a while, he scanned everyone and said, "She''s right. The Qin Dynasty is indeed responsible that such a thing happened in Chaoge City. Hence, we will cooperate with the Cottage to find the culprit. After seven days, the contest will resume." After speaking, Qin Yu turned around and left.


    The entire place was stirred up once again.


    Did Qin Yu, the prince of the Qin Dynasty, actually compromise?


    This was really crazy.


    Was Qin Yu afraid of the second disciple of the Cottage that just appeared?


    Although the second disciple of the Cottage had come here for a just reason, the opposite party was the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan after all. Qin Yu''s compromise was still very unexpected and puzzling.


    This did not seem like the Qin Dynasty''s style at all.


    The two top forces allied and established the Dongqin College together in order to fight against the College and the Cottage. Therefore, the compromise this time would make them look weaker in comparison.


    At the moment, Qin Yu was walking towards the interior of the Dongqin College. The people from the Dongqin College were also staring at him. They were extremely unhappy, but since Qin Yu had said so, the contest could only end.


    Everyone stepped out one after another and walked towards the Dongqin College.


    When Qin Yu reached the gates of the Dongqin College, he suddenly stopped. The destroyed gates were particularly glaring. Looking at the scene in front of him, a mocking smile flashed across his face. Then, he continued walking and stepped into the Dongqin College.


    ...


    Chaoge City was shocked by the words of Zhuge Hui. Countless people started discussing the second disciple of the Cottage.


    For a while, Zhuge Hui became the spotlight of Chaoge City.


    Everyone was guessing how strong the second disciple of the Cottage was.


    From her words, she should be no weaker than the third disciple, Gu Dongliu.


    When the news spread to the inn, Xue Ye sighed with emotion. Even after leaving the mountain, the sister was still so fierce. However, it was the Qin Dynasty who faced her this time.


    After hearing the news, Mountain Elder Zhu Qing was stunned for a long while and sighed uncontrollably. Later waves are stronger and higher than the former. At the moment, the world was already dominated by the younger generation.


    She thought that her actions were already sufficiently overbearing. However, when the second disciple of the Cottage came from the mountain, her mere few words already made Zhu Qing speechless. In comparison, her response was indeed too mild.


    Chaoge City became tenser because of Zhuge Hui''s words. The Qin Dynasty also started to investigate the incident. They even started asking the various top forces where all their disciples had been and whom they had had contact with on the day of the assassination attempt.


    Of course, all the investigations were being carried out secretly, and not openly. Otherwise, it would cause all the top forces to lose their faces. Moreover, everyone saw the entire event. Although the Qin Dynasty was investigating and the top forces were unhappy about it, they could not blame the Qin Dynasty.


    Everyone saw the domineering attitude of the Cottage for themselves. Apart from the Qin Dynasty, the College was also busy carrying out the investigation. An invisible pressure engulfed the entire Chaoge City, especially the region around the Dongqin College.


    Very soon, another three days passed.


    In these three days, the contest in the Dongqin College was canceled, but the people from the top forces could not leave, and they were very unhappy. However, they also wanted to see what this incident would eventually evolve into.


    At the moment, in a famous restaurant, many people from the top forces were drinking. At the same time, they were paying close attention to the progress of the situation.


    Suddenly, someone said in a sarcastic tone, "The Qin Dynasty is really working hard for this."


    "The Qin Dynasty is indeed responsible for this incident. If they don''t find out the real culprit, they are highly suspicious themselves. From what the second disciple of the Cottage said, if they don''t find the culprit in seven days, there will probably be a fight. Even the Qin Dynasty is not ready for a real war. Therefore, they could only help in the investigation," someone said, smiling. The person who spoke was from the Fuyun Sword Clan. They had been unhappy with the Cottage all along.


    "Does anyone know the progress of the investigation?" someone from the Ji Family asked, appearing to be discussing only for fun.


    "I heard that the Qin Dynasty has ordered the Yin Family and other major families of Chaoge City to investigate and spread the order down the chain so that the major and minor forces could all help in the investigation. They are checking everyone''s whereabouts on the day of the assassination attempt. I even heard that the Qin Dynasty has listed all those who have gone out on that day as suspicious targets to investigate one by one. Now, they have probably already filtered out a few," someone said. Everyone''s eyes sparkled. It seemed that the Qin Dynasty was really using its strong influence over Chaoge City this time.


    Chaoge City was, after all, Qin Dynasty''s territory.


    Before one of the tables, He Xirou and Luo Junlin were sitting together. Some panic flashed across He Xirou''s eyes. When she gave Hu Tong the order that time, she had of course gone out of the inn allocated to the Royal Xuan Temple.


    Was the Qin Dynasty trying to turn Chaoge City upside down?


    Luo Junlin stared at He Xirou. He had faintly felt threatened.


    ...


    In the inn where the Cottage disciples were at.


    Zhuge Hui obtained a stack of paper, on which there were many names listed. Furthermore, the things they had done on the day of assassination were also clearly indicated.


    It was sent here by the Qin Dynasty.


    "Little brother, take a look." Zhuge Hui gave the name list to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took it and then read through the contents carefully. After reading all the information, he took out one piece of paper and stared at one spot.


    There, a name was written: He Xirou.


    He Xirou was the daughter of the fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple. In the evening on the day of the assassination, she left the inn alone and went somewhere nearby, returning after a short while. Nobody knew where exactly she went and whom she met.


    Ye Futian clearly remembered He Xirou. She was Luo Junlin''s girlfriend.


    The people in the name list were all from top forces. He Xirou was the only person he had enmity with. She had sufficient reasons and motivations to harm him.


    That day, everyone saw him defeat Qian Shanmu and Qin Mang, displaying his talents. Luo Junlin and He Xirou should understand that after a few years, he would be able to kill Luo Junlin.


    Thinking about this, Ye Futian extended his finger and pointed at He Xirou''s name!

 282 Arrival of the Fifth Lord

    Chapter 282: Arrival of the Fifth Lord


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Royal Xuan Temple, He Xirou.


    Zhuge Hui looked at where Ye Futian was pointing at and asked, "Little brother, you suspect her?"


    Ye Futian told Zhuge Hui about some of the things that had happened in the Cangye Kingdom during that time. Then, he said, "Second sister, I can''t be sure either. Furthermore, this name list is provided by the Qin Dynasty. I can only say that there is quite a high probability that she did this."


    Zhuge Hui nodded. Obviously, she also knew that if the assassination was really planned by the Qin Dynasty, they would try to lead the Cottage towards a wrong direction.


    "Since you think that she is highly suspicious, that''s sufficient. If she really did it, she wouldn''t be able to run away." A smile appeared on Zhuge Hui''s face. She stood up and said, "Let''s go."


    "Sister, where are we going?" Xue Ye asked.


    "We''ll go and constrain all the people from the Royal Xuan Temple," Zhuge Hui said emotionlessly. Xue Ye felt somewhat speechless. The sister was indeed the sister. No evidence was needed. Since the little brother believed that He Xirou was highly suspicious, they would constrain all the people first, and then investigate. They would investigate each person in the name list one by one. If they were all not guilty, then it had to be the Qin Dynasty.


    At the moment, the disciples of the Royal Xuan Temple were busy doing their own business. Some were cultivating in the inn, while others were outside inquiring news about the assassination. Just like the other top forces, they were curious as to who the culprit was.


    Would the incident eventually trigger a battle between the top forces?


    Outside of the inn, two disciples of the Royal Xuan Temple were chatting casually. Suddenly, a group of cultivators walked over from afar and went to different spots around the inn, as if they were trying to surround the inn.


    "What happened?" The disciples of the Royal Xuan Temple were stunned.


    "They''re from the College."


    Their faces turned pale. Then, they turned around and returned to the inn to report the observation. Soon, the people from the Royal Xuan Temple inside the inn were all shocked by the news. What exactly is happening?


    Many cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple ran out of the inn, and they were led by an elder from the temple. He looked at the people in front of him and said, "What are you doing here?"


    Xue Ye walked forward and asked coldly, "Is He Xirou here?"


    Immediately, the looks of all the people from the Royal Xuan Temple froze. With such a formation, it was obvious why the College was looking for He Xirou.


    Everyone knew what the College was investigating in Chaoge City recently.


    In this instant, the people from the Royal Xuan Temple suddenly recalled the events that had happened in the Cangye Kingdom a year ago. The face of many people instantly darkened.


    Did He Xirou do this?


    At the moment, He Xirou and Luo Junlin were together. The inn was a mess, and there were people moving about all the time. He Xirou obviously knew what was happening.


    Her face turned extremely pale. Was she still exposed in the end?


    But how was this possible? The assassin was dead and there were no witnesses. Even if the College had some clues, they had no reasons to arrest her.


    Suddenly, a palm grabbed her hand firmly. Beside her, Luo Junlin said gently, "Xirou, no matter what happens, I will be with you."


    He Xirou''s eyes turned red instantly. She held Luo Junlin''s hand tightly and determination flashed across her eyes. Turning her head, she stared at Luo Junlin and said gently, "No. If something happens, I will take all the responsibility. Promise me that you will live." At this point, she was already preparing for the worst. She knew that if the Cottage believed firmly that she did this, nobody would be able to keep her life. Even her father, the fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple, could not as well.


    "No." A painful expression appeared on Luo Junlin''s face.


    He Xirou smiled gently at him. Then, she tiptoed and kissed Luo Junlin on his lips, after which she said softly, "You are not involved in this in the first place. I don''t want anything to happen to you. Promise me, alright?"


    An extremely agonizing look appeared in Luo Junlin''s eyes. He hugged He Xirou tightly.


    Suddenly, they heard a whizz. He Xirou broke free from Luo Junlin''s embrace and her look turned firm again as she stared at the incoming person.


    "He Xirou, the elder wants to meet you," the person said.


    "Alright." He Xirou nodded. Then, she let go of Luo Junlin''s hand and said gently, "Stay here." After she finished speaking, she followed the person and left.


    After a while, He Xirou came out of the inn. She looked at the people from the College.


    "Did you plan this alone, or was it the intention of the Royal Xuan Temple?" Xue Ye asked, looking at He Xirou.


    "I don''t understand what you are talking about." He Xirou looked at Xue Ye emotionlessly. She would not sit still and wait for death. The Royal Xuan Temple was also a top force in the Eastern Barren Territory. Hu Tong was already dead, so even if the College had some clues, they had no solid evidence. How could they be so sure that it was her?


    "You don''t want to admit it?" Xue Ye said coldly.


    "Does the College think that I planned to assassinate Ye Futian?" He Xirou looked at Xue Ye and sneered, "Why?"


    "It doesn''t matter if you admit or not. The College will go to the Royal Xuan City and investigate all the places you have been to, and all the people you have met with this year. Do you think that you can run away?" Xue Ye continued.


    "You will never be able to find out something that I didn''t do." He Xirou''s voice sounded confident as if she was trying to cover her guilty conscience. At the moment, she felt extremely cold.


    She knew that she might be totally done for. However, she was not resigned to her fate and still had a last sense of hope. She did not want to give up now.


    "Since this is the case, I hope that the Royal Xuan Temple can cooperate for a few days and not leave the inn," Xue Ye said again.


    The eyes of the elder from the Royal Xuan Temple sparkled and he said coldly, "Before everything is investigated clearly, the College has already surrounded the inn. Now, you even want to ground us here. Isn''t it too much?"


    "If we have really confirmed the culprit, do you think we will only ask you to simply stay here?" Xue Ye said coldly. "This better not be the intention of the Royal Xuan Temple. Otherwise, it will involve more than just all of you."


    The faces of the people from the Royal Xuan Temple were all gloomy. He was really too arrogant.


    The elder of the Royal Xuan Temple flicked his sleeves and turned around, walking into the inn. He was extremely angry at the moment, not only at the College but also at He Xirou. Since the College was suspecting He Xirou, it was very likely to be true. If they really find out that He Xirou did this, this idiotic woman could die and nobody would pity her.


    ...


    After the news spread, Chaoge City was shocked.


    Was everything actually planned by the Royal Xuan Temple?


    It was said that Luo Junlin, the man whom He Xirou liked, was a genius in the Royal Xuan Temple. He cultivated under the fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple and was from the Hundred Lands, a wild region, just like Ye Futian. There was a deep hatred between the two of them. Therefore, did He Xirou plan this because she was afraid that Ye Futian would threaten Luo Junlin''s life after becoming stronger? If this was really the case, she was really a pathetic woman. She tried to assassinate a Cottage disciple for a man.


    When the people from the College surrounded the inn the Royal Xuan Temple was staying at, Luo Junlin did not even show up. Women were easily affected by emotions and carried away by love. However, Luo Junlin was not like her.


    Soon, there was news that the College had sent cultivators to the Royal Xuan City at the southern part of the Eastern Barren Territory. They even brought the corpse of the assassin there. If the assassination was really planned by He Xirou, she would certainly not be able to escape the consequences.


    It seemed that the domineering words left by the second disciple of the Cottage outside the Dongqin College that day were indeed effective. Clearly, the Qin Dynasty had helped in the investigation. Otherwise, it would definitely not be so efficient. After all, it happened in Chaoge City.


    All the pressure fell on the people from the Royal Xuan Temple. The people from the other forces all looked on the progress of the matter.


    Over these few days, the people from the Royal Xuan Temple were grounded and could not leave the inn. Once again, the people from Chaoge City saw the overbearing attitude of the College and the Cottage. Obviously, if the assassination was the intention of the Royal Xuan Temple, all the cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple in Chaoge City would probably be killed.


    A few days later, in the inn where the Royal Xuan Temple was at, a group of mighty cultivators arrived in the air. When they arrived, they glanced coldly at the crowd surrounding the inn. The eyes of their leader were filled with coldness as he said emotionlessly, "You surrounded the people of my Royal Xuan Temple before even investigating the matter clearly. Very well." As he finished speaking, he stepped into the inn directly.


    Many people flashed forward and bowed to salute. "Greetings, fifth lord."


    The fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple, He Yulu, had arrived. His daughter, He Xirou, also appeared in front of him.


    "Follow me." He Yulu stopped and brought He Xirou away. They came to the courtyard where He Xirou was staying at. With his back facing He Xirou, He Yulu asked coldly, "Why did you do this?"


    "Dad." He Xirou raised her head and looked at her father.


    "A few months ago, something happened in the Royal Xuan City. An Arcana Plane cultivator offended a powerful family, and his entire family was threatened. You helped him to solve the issue, right?" He Yulu turned around and looked at He Xirou.


    He Xirou''s face turned completely pale.


    "Since I could find out about this, do you think that the College cannot?" Some pain could be seen in He Yulu''s cold eyes. She was his daughter, his biological daughter. However, now she had made a fatal mistake.


    "Dad." He Xirou''s eyes turned totally red. She knew that she could hide it no more.


    He Yulu looked at his daughter and his heart also softened. He sighed. "I have already settled Hu Tong''s family. But it is very difficult to conceal the truth from the College. Xirou, why did you do this? Did he encourage you?"


    He Xirou trembled. She obviously knew whom his father was referring to.


    "Dad, I decided this myself. He did not know about it beforehand." He Xirou said, her eyes becoming red. "At this point, I will take all the responsibilities. Dad, I am unfilial. If something happens and I cannot serve you in the future, please forgive me."


    Seeing He Xirou''s tears flowing out, He Yulu felt somewhat sorrowful. In his heart, he hated the College and the Cottage.


    If he was strong enough, the College and the Cottage would not be able to bully them to this extent.


    If he was strong enough, the Cottage would not be able to do anything to his daughter since Ye Futian was still alive.


    However, precisely because he was not strong enough, he knew well that once the Cottage found out everything, they would definitely not let his daughter off.


    "Dad, I don''t really have any wishes. I only hope that if something happens to me, you can protect him," He Xirou begged her father. She knew that after everything was exposed, Ye Futian would surely not let Luo Junlin off, even though she was the one who planned the assassination.


    "You are still thinking for him," He Yulu said angrily. "If it were not for him, you wouldn''t have ended up like this. I regret taking him as my disciple that time."


    "Dad, I really beg you. This is my last wish." He Xirou''s face was wet with tears. He Yulu''s heart twitched and he clenched his fists.


    It was hard to keep a grown girl at home. Since the situation had already progressed to this extent, what else could he say? Could he blame He Xirou?

 283 Xirou’s Death

    Chapter 283: Xirou��s Death


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A group walked in the air above the inn that the College stayed at then descended. Those who went to investigate the Royal Xuan City had come back too. They brought the results with them.


    In the Royal Xuan City, Xirou had come in contact with someone named Hu Tong. According to someone who knew him, Hu Tong was in the upper Arcana Plane with earth elemental power. Xirou had helped Hu Tong''s family before. Then Hu Tong disappeared.


    People from the College quickly went to find Hu Tong''s family but found that they''d disappeared a few days before they went to Royal Xuan City. As the controller of the city, the Royal Xuan Temple could definitely make someone disappear without a trace.


    When the news was brought back, everything became clear. However, the person was dead and the family had disappeared. There was no proof.


    Over by the Cottage group, Zhuge Hui and the others sat together. Hearing this, Zhuge Hui smirked. No proof?


    "Junior, let''s go," she said to Ye Futian with a smile. It was already so clear. Was there still a need for proof? It was up to judicial discretion. Whether the evidence was destroyed or not, it was unimportant.


    "Okay." After hearing the news, Ye Futian understood as well. Xirou was definitely the culprit.


    That day, this woman had gone to Cangye to pressure his friends and family for Luo Junlin, threatening Cangye and taking away his relatives. Now, she killed someone for Luo Junlin.


    She was unforgivable.


    Back then, he hadn''t entered the Cottage yet and had just returned to Cangye to wait for everyone''s invitations. He didn''t have the ability to touch the princess of the Royal Xuan Temple.


    Now, the College and Cottage would stand up for him. His second senior sister would personally go help him. He wasn''t solving it himself but this feeling was still heartwarming.


    The group strode towards where the Royal Xuan Temple group was. People gathered wherever they went, creating a terrible flood that followed the College.


    This matter had caused a great commotion in Chaoge City these few days. The inn where the College stayed was always surrounded by people waiting to hear the results. Now, the College''s investigator had returned and they walked out. The people knew that the matter was about to be resolved.


    The powerful cultivators gathered at the Royal Xuan Temple''s inn. There were many people waiting there too, including people from the top forces. They all wanted to see the ending.


    An invisible pressure enveloped the inn. The strong cultivators of the Royal Xuan Temple walked out and watched the College approach with cold expressions. The crowd cleared out a path. He Yulu, the fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple walked out, looking at the College.


    "What is the meaning of this?" he asked, expression cold and indifferent.


    Zhuge Hui gazed at him and smiled. "I''m sure the Royal Xuan Temple is already clear on who orchestrated this. There''s no need for me to explain who Hu Tong is. You hid his family to destroy everything, and I can ignore that. However, if anyone dares to stop me from taking the person, I will assume that this is not only Xirou''s actions. Instead, it is the wish of the Royal Xuan Temple in Chaoge City." Zhuge Hui''s voice grew cold as she spoke. "If that is the case, none of you will be able to leave."


    She didn''t want to debate with the Royal Xuan Temple. The Cottage had their own rules: family would be untouched. As of now, Xirou seemed to be the only own responsible, rather than the Royal Xuan Temple. Then Xirou must take responsibility for it. However, if the Royal Xuan Temple wanted to protect her, it would show that they approved of Xirou assassinating Ye Futian. In that case, they were also responsible.


    When Gu Dongliu had gone down the mountain, he had only wanted to punish the culprit. However, the top forces tried to protect the man, leading to the disaster. Thinking of this, the people of the Royal Xuan Temple grew uncomfortable. They were embarrassed by Zhuge Hui''s threat and also furious for being involved because of Xirou''s stupid actions.


    If not for the stupid woman, would this be happening? Now that the fifth lord was here. Was he planning on protecting his daughter? If so, they believed the second disciple of the Cottage would really do what she said. It wasn''t as if the Cottage had never done that before.


    Even the strong cultivators gazed at He Yulu. Was he still not willing to turn his back on his family? Was he going to make everyone pay for He Xirou''s stupidity?


    Everyone around them was shaken. They looked at the fairy-like woman. The second disciple of the Cottage was so powerful. If anyone stopped her, no one from the Royal Xuan Temple would be allowed to leave. She didn''t even care if the fifth lord was before her.


    He Yulu did not know what to do and didn''t reply. He knew his daughter had made a grave mistake. She could be as stubborn as she wished but she definitely should not try to assassinate a Cottage disciple.


    But she was still his daughter. One could imagine how it must feel to give his own daughter up. Right now, he was full of fury and hatred towards the Cottage.


    Just then, the Royal Xuan Temple voluntarily moved aside. Two more figures walked over. At that moment, countless gazes fell on the one in front. It was He Xirou.


    Right now, she looked frail. However, her eyes were still cool and indignant as she looked coldly at the Cottage. These people were here to force her to die.


    "I sent the man," Xirou said, halting. She admitted it.


    With how things were, would the Cottage give up if she denied it? Of course not.


    Xirou stared coldly at Zhuge Hui. So she''s the second disciple of the Cottage. She was so domineering in how she bullied Xirou.


    "Months ago, I saved Hu Tong''s family, making him owe his life to me. I already started having these thoughts. Later, Hu Tong followed me and worked for me until he failed the assassination," Xirou recounted calmly. "I am the only one responsible for everything."


    "What did I do to you?" Ye Futian asked. Had she been planning his death since months ago? Just how much did she want to kill him?


    "Because you''re so talented. I''m sure that I''m not the only one. Many forces in the Eastern Barren Territory want you, and even the Cottage, dead. They just didn''t do anything." Xirou suddenly laughed. Everyone knew that she was speaking the truth.


    The Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and Fuyun Sword Clan all wanted the Cottage wiped from existence. The Cottage disciples were too talented and skilled. Their only crime was that they were too successful. To many people, the talents of the Cottage disciples were a sin. Of course, Ye Futian''s talent wasn''t Xirou''s only reason. More importantly, his talent threatened Luo Junlin.


    "I will take responsibility for my own actions. I confess," Xirou spoke again. She was prepared to die.


    "Shut your mouth," He Yulu ordered coldly. He looked at Zhuge Hui. "My daughter made a mistake because I failed in teaching her. Thankfully, nothing came out of it. Ye Futian is still alive and well. I am willing to apologize and give whatever you request." Here, He Yulu was still trying to save his daughter''s life.


    "Nothing came out of it?" Zhuge Hui smiled sarcastically.


    The effect of an assassination attempt wasn''t only the assassination. If she let it go just because Ye Futian didn''t die or only wanted compensation, wouldn''t the other forces try it too?


    "Do it yourself?" Zhuge Hui asked Xirou, ignoring He Yulu.


    He Xirou lowered her head, fists clenching weakly. Though she was ready, she still didn''t want to die.


    "Is that how overbearing the Cottage is?" He Yulu asked coldly. "Ye Futian is alive but you won''t end this until she dies?"


    "Yes." Zhuge Hui only gave He Yulu one word. Since you say I''m overbearing, then so be it.


    Crack. He Yulu clenched his fists and his knuckles cracked. A wild aura spread from his body. Zhuge Hui looked at him. Her white dress fluttered but not a bit of her aura flowed out. However, the calmer she was, the more scared the others became.


    If He Yulu really dared to fight back, what would be the consequence? The people of the College walked forward. The assassination had failed and now they called them overbearing? What a joke.


    The people of the Royal Xuan Temple looked at He Yulu nervously. If he really fought back, what would happen to them?


    "Father," Xirou called. He Yulu looked to his daughter and saw her shake her head. "I did it so I will bear it alone." Her eyes were red. She looked back at Luo Junlin, longing filling her eyes. Luo Junlin gazed at her with the same gentle and unwilling eyes.


    "Father, I''m sorry." As soon as she finished, Spiritual Qi went wild around her and formed sharp daggers before her body. Then she closed her eyes.


    "Xirou!" He Yulu''s expression twisted in pain. He reached out to stop her.


    "Father, don''t forget what you promised me." When she spoke, she used her mind to guide the blades to her heart and relaxed her guard.


    There was a soft sound and the blades pierced her, staining her clothing red. Xirou''s body went limp and collapsed. He Yulu caught her. Xirou opened her eyes and looked at her father. Tears rolled down her cheeks as her body struggled in pain. She didn''t want to die but she had to.


    Finally, she closed her eyes and her aura disappeared. He Yulu scanned the people before him with red eyes.


    "The Cottage forced my daughter to die. I, He Yulu, will remember this," he said in a frigid tone.


    "The Cottage didn''t force your daughter to die. It''s your disciple and daughter''s evil stupidity that killed her," Ye Futian said coldly.


    The scene was very tragic and made people want to pity them. However, did they need pity? She had caused it and then turned to lash out at the Cottage, making the Cottage seem like they were bullies?


    Ye Futian couldn''t allow it.


    However, this wasn''t over!

 284 Location: Nandou Nation

    Chapter 284: Location: Nandou Nation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    He Yulu raised his head and stared coldly at Ye Futian. His daughter had died but Ye Futian still spoke so condescendingly.


    "Don''t look at me like that." Ye Futian stared coldly back at him. "I know you want to kill me. If I wasn''t from the Cottage, I''d be dead long ago. I wouldn''t even be standing before you.


    "One year ago, your daughter He Xirou brought Luo Junlin and people from the Royal Xuan Temple to the Cangye Kingdom. She threatened the kingdom to hand over my family. At that time, I didn''t even know your daughter."


    Ye Futian stared at He Yulu and said coldly, "If I hadn''t made a name for myself in the Ancient Barren World at that time, if strong cultivators from the Liu Kingdom hadn''t gone with me, what would the result be? My family would die horribly because of your daughter''s name. I would also die quietly because, in your daughter''s eyes, I''m nothing. Where were you, the father?"


    Ye Futian''s voice was frigid. Pitiful? There was nothing pitiful about Xirou. Should people pity her just because she was dead? Since when did Xirou care about anyone else''s lives?


    Seeing He Yulu''s cold eyes, Ye Futian continued, "Perhaps, you wouldn''t care even if you knew. Someone so important like you won''t care about the fates of those in the weak Hundred Lands. Their lives can''t be compared to your daughter''s life. At that time, have you ever thought of the term, ''bullying others with your power?''


    "No. For important people like you, it''s natural to mistreat others. If the Royal Xuan Temple can fight against the Cottage, you won''t even apologize. You will only think of ''bullying others with your power'' when you''re powerless as you are now. Isn''t that laughable?"


    He Yulu''s expression was heavy. He couldn''t refute it.


    Everyone else was very quiet as they listened to Ye Futian''s interrogation. It was straightforward and realistic. This was the cultivation world. If Ye Futian wasn''t from the Cottage, he wouldn''t be alive right now. The fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple wouldn''t even know of his existence.


    "Do you feel any guilt about Hu Tong''s death? I heard that his entire family disappeared. You''re the clearest about what you''ve done," Ye Futian said, sneering. "You don''t care about other people''s lives so what is pitiful about your daughter''s death? It''s karma."


    Even without this assassination attempt, Ye Futian would still have killed Xirou in the future. There was no reason except for what had happened in the Cangye Kingdom back then.


    It was unforgivable.


    "Junior, there''s no need to say that to him. He won''t understand," Zhuge Hui said.


    Their teacher had said that logic prevailed in this world. He Xirou had committed this crime so she must bear responsibility for it. They wouldn''t involve her relatives or family. It wasn''t that they couldn''t fight against the Royal Xuan Temple. The assassin warranted a cleansing but they didn''t do it.


    Their teacher had told them that if they had weapons, the murderous aura would be created naturally. In the world of cultivation, it would be more dangerous for a stronger cultivator to go astray. If they didn''t have principles, they would act as they wish and kill people like cutting grass. It would be a great sin.


    Virtue wasn''t only one''s plane of cultivation.


    Zhuge Hui knew that He Yulu would hate the Cottage and may even hurt them in the future but they still held to their principle. She couldn''t reach their teacher''s plane but the Cottage acted without feeling guilty.


    "Senior Sister, the Cottage can''t be tainted by him." Ye Futian glanced at Zhuge Hui. The Cottage didn''t need to give explanations but he couldn''t allow the Cottage to be defamed. Right now, he viewed the Cottage as his family.


    Zhuge Hui looked into Ye Futian''s clear eyes and smiled brightly. Her junior brother was mischievous and great at flirting but was very pure. Their teacher would definitely like him. She didn''t say anything else. Ye Futian was clear about things so he could take care of it. She stood behind him; the Cottage would also stand behind him.


    Any disciple of the Cottage could represent them all.


    Ye Futian continued looking at the Royal Xuan Temple. "No one is stupid here," he said. "Xirou deserved to die but it''s sad because she fell for someone unreliable. All her evils were done for that person. Even now, he''s still standing in the back, watching everything. Luo Junlin, don''t you feel ashamed?" As soon as he spoke, many people looked to Luo Junlin, including people from the Royal Xuan Temple and He Yulu.


    Luo Junlin''s eyes hardened. He stared coldly at Ye Futian. "Of course I feel ashamed. Because I''m powerless to take revenge for Xirou," he said coldly.


    Ye Futian scoffed. "You''re still pretending? If you truly love Xirou, why would you, a man, tell her about your hatred and what happened in the Hundred Lands. Why would you use her to borrow the Royal Xuan Temple''s power against me and Cangye?" Ye Futian laughed coldly. "If you didn''t think of the consequences before, wouldn''t you still know about Hu Tong and this assassination with your relationship with Xirou after I entered the Cottage? Wouldn''t you know the consequences then?


    "Even if you didn''t participate and this was Xirou''s own idea, had you ever done anything to stop her? You stood in the back, watching everything, letting her kill me and take all the blame. Even now, you''re standing in the back to protect yourself. Do you take the Royal Xuan Temple or me as idiots?"


    Ye Futian stared coldly at Luo Junlin. He Xirou was dead and that was over. But how did everything start? It was because of the one behind her��Luo Junlin.


    The man''s eyes were frigid. Ye Futian''s words all implied that Ye Futian wanted him dead. Now, his teacher looked over. His gaze was cold.


    "Teacher, I tried to stop Xirou," Luo Junlin said, voice pained as he clenched his fists.


    "Really?" Ye Futian laughed. "Then why was Xirou the one who stood out instead of you? Everything she did was for you. Don''t you think that it''s more suitable for you to confess? If you gave yourself up, wouldn''t my anger and the Cottage''s anger be extinguished? Wouldn''t Xirou still be alive?"


    "Shut up." Luo Junlin''s features turned menacing. "You forced Xirou to kill herself and are now putting all the blame on me."


    "Are you angry from the shame?" Ye Futian sneered. "Everyone can decide by themselves who is right or wrong. Luo Junlin, I always thought that our rivalries would be solved by ourselves, however, you keep pushing my bottom line. In that case, I won''t play with you anymore."


    Luo Junlin had tried using the Royal Xuan Temple and Xirou to kill him. All these tricks and the assassination had threatened his life. In that case, it should end now.


    "Since you love Xirou, you must want to avenge her. Now, I will give you the chance," Ye Futian said. "We will fight. Neither the Cottage nor the Royal Xuan Temple will interfere. Only one man may live." With that, he looked away from Luo Junlin to He Yulu. "Your disciple can avenge your daughter''s death now. I''m sure the Royal Xuan Temple won''t refuse." As he said that, he knew that Luo Junlin couldn''t refuse. Even if the Cottage didn''t pressure him, He Yulu definitely would.


    As expected, He Yulu looked over as soon as he finished. It was an Arcana against a Dharma. Luo Junlin had entered the Arcana Plane last year while Ye Futian was still a Level. How could he let go of the chance for revenge?


    Luo Junlin stared at Ye Futian. A fight to the death? He was so arrogant.


    Ye Futian was strong. Luo Junlin had witnessed his performance at the Dongqin College''s battle platform. But did he really look down upon Luo Junlin?


    "Right here, right now?" He Yulu asked.


    "One month later at the Nandou Nation of the Hundred Lands." Ye Futian looked at Luo Junlin. "Back then, you wanted me to be your servant. Your father''s one decree forced me into despair. How about we end it all today? If you lose this battle, you won''t be the only one dying."


    Hearing his words, Luo Junlin''s expression turned cold. He obviously understood what Ye Futian meant.


    The location was the Nandou Nation.


    If he won, Ye Futian would be dead and the rivalry would be over.


    If he lost, not only he would die, but the Nandou Nation would also be destroyed.


    Ye Futian wanted to use this to destroy Nandou. He clearly didn''t want to wait anymore. He didn''t want to keep playing with Luo Junlin!

 285 Behind the Assassination

    Chapter 285: Behind the Assassination


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian indeed didn''t want to keep playing with Luo Junlin. He wanted to solve it by himself but Luo Junlin didn''t think like that.


    If you use tricks, then I''ll do it unashamedly. It began in Nandou and it will end in Nandou.


    Before, the Luo family had oppressed him. They thought they were kings and could be high up in the kingdom. Then Ye Futian would now return it to them.


    "Okay," Luo Junlin said with a dark face. He accepted the challenge. He was clear that he had to accept. Ye Futian''s every word went straight to his heart. Both the Cottage and his teacher would force him to accept. Furthermore, he wasn''t untalented. Since Ye Futian was so confident, he would let him have his way.


    One month later, they would fight in Nandou Nation. He knew that he couldn''t escape from this. Instead of waiting for Ye Futian to mature, he should end it when he still had the advantage of a higher plane.


    With the Cottage''s reputation in the Eastern Barren Territory, they wouldn''t interfere no matter what the result was since Ye Futian had made this request. This was a great chance for Luo Junlin.


    "Senior Sister, let''s go back," Ye Futian looked back and said to Zhuge Hui. After spending a year in the Cottage, he was familiar with their customs. Not involving relatives was one of their principles. Only the perpetrator would be punished. But if they were protected, it was a different matter.


    He''d heard that Third Senior Brother once killed an entire group because someone killed a man but was protected. A group like that allowed people to kill recklessly. Thus, Gu Dongliu had taken the role of god.


    "Alright." Zhuge Hui nodded and smiled. She looked to He Yulu. "If he doesn''t appear at the Nandou Nation one month later, I will come to find you."


    With that, the people of the Cottage and College turned to leave. Everyone looked at the receding backs of those people, many thoughts in their head.


    This was the Cottage and their way of doing things. If someone tried to assassinate their disciple, they would dig the perpetrator up no matter what. Now, He Xirou, the organizer of the assassination, was dead. The one behind her, Luo Junlin, would soon have a fight to the death with Ye Futian.


    Everything seemed to be over for now. The depression shrouding Chaoge City seemed to lighten up as well. However, the Royal Xuan Temple was even more depressed.


    Soon after, the people of the Qin Dynasty arrived. Qin Li apologized to He Yulu on behalf of the Qin Dynasty. They had helped the Cottage search for clues and couldn''t keep it from the Royal Xuan Temple. However, it was meaningful that they''d come to apologize.


    As for what they talked about, no one would know.


    Soon after, the Royal Xuan Temple left Chaoge City. Only one disciple was left behind��Xia Luo, the direct disciple of the first lord. After that, the Qin Dynasty announced that the battles would start again.


    At the inn, the College and Cottage prepared to leave Chaoge. Liu Feiyang, Ye Wuchen, and the others were all waiting with Ye Futian. At a pavilion, Ye Futian tapped against the stone table. He gazed at Liu Feiyang and asked, "Feiyang, where did you get the news that Chu Yaoyao and Jieyu have issues?"


    Hearing this, Liu Feiyang''s eyes flashed. He studied Ye Futian. There seemed to be an implied meaning but he knew Ye Futian wasn''t suspecting him.


    "At a restaurant. Some people were discussing it," Liu Feiyang said. "After that, Wuchen and I went to find you."


    Ye Wuchen was silent. He continued drumming the table.


    "Did you think of something?" Liu Chenyu asked.


    "It''s coincidental," Ye Futian murmured. "How can the Moon Clan''s private matters be spread and that you two just happened to hear them discussing it?"


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu exchanged glances, feeling shaken. "Do you suspect someone else behind this?" Liu Chenyu asked.


    "It''s definitely He Xirou," Ye Futian said. From the beginning to the end, everything pointed at Xirou and she paid for it with her life. Other than Luo Junlin, no one deserved to be protected with her life. Thus, it must be Xirou. She had kept Hu Tong beside her since long before with murder in mind. Despite this, Ye Futian still felt something was wrong. It was too coincidental.


    Liu Feiyang happened to get the news and when Ye Futian left the inn, the attempt happened. If he didn''t go out, the assassination would be much more difficult.


    Xirou definitely planned it but did someone help her? If that was the case, then something else didn''t make sense. Only the people close to Xirou would have known about this. The Royal Xuan Temple wouldn''t participate because they had no motive to kill him.


    "Hopefully I''m just overthinking," Ye Futian said quietly. He didn''t think too deeply. He knew that even if there really was someone behind the curtains, he wouldn''t find any evidence. Hu Tong and He Xirou were all dead. How would he investigate?


    Ye Futian suddenly smiled and looked up. "Wuchen, will you visit Cangye in one month?"


    "I''ll try to go back." Ye Wuchen nodded. The forces of the Eastern Barren Territory would be interested in Ye Futian and Luo Junlin''s battle. He could go back to visit his family too.


    "I''m sure Lord Ye would want to meet Chenyu," Ye Futian teased.


    Liu Chenyu rolled her eyes. "We''re leaving."


    "Come to the Liu Kingdom when you have time," Liu Feiyang said to Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen.


    "Yes, I''ll definitely go when Wuchen proposes," Ye Futian said, grinning. Ye Wuchen was speechless and left soon after. The College and Cottage gradually left. They soared into the air, no longer wishing to take part in the Dongqin College''s battles.


    ��


    Qin Li and Xia Luo came to a courtyard in the Dongqin College of Chaoge City. A figure stood quietly before them, smiling at Xia Luo. It was Qin Yu.


    Xia Luo walked over and bowed. "Qin Luo greets Uncle."


    Qin Yu nodded with a smile. "Qin Luo, you''ve worked hard all these years."


    "It''s worth it if I can help revive the Qin Dynasty." Qin Luo shook his head. His true surname was Qin; he was from the Qin Dynasty.


    "Yes." Qin Yu nodded. "Though you''re a prince, you were sent out as a child. If the Qin Dynasty can recover its glory, your efforts will not go to waste."


    "Thank you, Uncle." Qin Luo bowed.


    "Since He Yulu left someone behind for talks, it''s clear he hates the Cottage. Go back and plan well. You must succeed," Qin Yu said.


    "His daughter died. How can He Yulu not have hatred? He should be angrier that he''s powerless. His daughter died before his eyes but he couldn''t protect her. This powerlessness will definitely transform into hatred for the Cottage. I''m sure he won''t refuse if there''s any way to fight against the Cottage. My teacher is a bit troublesome but I will try my best." Qin Luo nodded as he spoke. He''d been behind this assassination all this time. Ever since he found out that Xirou and Luo Junlin hated Ye Futian, he started paying attention to Xirou. That was why that conversation had happened, leading Xirou to act.


    Of course, Xirou and Luo Junlin couldn''t have guessed anything from that. It had just been a casual conversation.


    As for clues, the Qin Dynasty didn''t have to look for long. They knew who it was already. However, everything went according to plan. They only had to act as the guide. Everything else was up to the Cottage themselves.


    Qin Yu''s eyes flashed coldly.


    That day, the second disciple of the Cottage had arrived and destroyed the Dongqin College''s gate. He had embarrassed the Qin Dynasty but they still cooperated with the Cottage. Did they really think the Qin Dynasty was easy to bully?


    "Qin Li, you should quicken things with Chu Yaoyao," Qin Yu said.


    "Yes, Father." Qin Li nodded. Now that Chu Yaoyao was willing to date him, he was sure he could succeed soon.


    Of course, he knew that Chu Yaoyao was very smart and wouldn''t be like Xirou.


    Chu Yaoyao had higher standards too. She wouldn''t be satisfied with just being the wife of a crown prince. She knew that relying on men was not permanent and that Qin Li had ulterior motives. But what did it matter if they had the same goal?

 286 Newcomer to the College

    Chapter 286: Newcomer to the College


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The battles of the Qin Dynasty continued but the large forces had all started leaving Chaoge City. Next, the Dongqin College would start enrolling students.


    Ye Futian''s group returned to Book Mountain. Everything seemed to go back to normal.


    The College examinations for this year were about to start. Strong cultivators from all over the Divine Capital came. Perhaps pressured by the Dongqin College, the College would hold largescale entrance exams this year and enroll more talented cultivators. It caused a splash in the Divine Capital. Countless youths would come to the College.


    What had happened at Chaoge had spread throughout the Eastern Barren Territory. Everyone knew about it. The Divine Capital was the College''s territory and was one of the three main cities of the Eastern Barren Territory. Naturally, they paid more attention than other places.


    The Dongqin College would definitely become a superpower but the Cottage still had its legacy. Especially with Gu Dongliu''s victory over Lu Nantian and Zhuge Hui''s appearance, everyone witnessed the Cottage''s true face again.


    The first three disciples of the Cottage could all represent the top of the Eastern Barren Territory alone.


    The powerful College was about to hold exams and the Divine Capital was watching. People from the other mountains of the College paid attention too. Many talents appeared, attracting much attention.


    This all seemed unrelated to Ye Futian. He continued to cultivate quietly in the Cottage, preparing to go back to Nandou. He was confident in himself but he couldn''t underestimate Luo Junlin either. There was a difference in plane, after all.


    One day, Yi Xiaoshi found Ye Futian and had a strange expression.


    "Seventh Senior Brother, why are you looking at me like that?" Ye Futian found his eyes strange.


    "How many girlfriends do you have?" Yi Xiaoshi blurted.


    Ye Futian made a face. He glanced towards Zhuge Hui and Xing''er. The two pretty girls looked over and Ye Futian glared at Yi Xiaoshi. "Seventh Senior Brother, you''re ruining my image."


    What the heck. He asked how many girlfriends I have. Is he purposely ruining my perfect image before Senior Sister? Jealousy. He must be jealous of my status.


    Yi Xiaoshi gave him a look. What image?


    "The new students are choosing their mountains today. A really beautiful girl didn''t choose any mountain��not even the first one. She said she wants to join the Cottage to find you." Yi Xiaoshi side-eyed Ye Futian. How many pure girls had this guy tainted?


    Yi Xiaoshi had gone down the mountain to look. The girl''s eyes were very clear and she was beautiful. She was definitely an innocent one. Thinking of Ye Futian''s character, she must have been lied to. So why was Ye Futian pretending to be innocent before Senior Sister?


    "Uh��" Ye Futian was awkward. "Seventh Senior Brother, you''re purposely doing this. How can someone other than Jieyu come to find me?" Jieyu was part of the Moon Clan. She wouldn''t take part in the College''s exams.


    "I''ll give you a hint. She''s a silver-haired beauty, cold as ice." Yi Xiaoshi continued giving him a look. Did he really want to deny it? Could the girl have found the wrong guy?"


    "Uh��" Ye Futian blinked, deflating. He''d thought of someone. Silver hair, cold as ice�� She was indeed unforgettable.


    Seeing Zhuge Hui and Xing''er grinning at him, Ye Futian looked away. This was too awkward!


    "How beautiful?" Zhuge Hui smiled at Yi Xiaoshi.


    Yi Xiaoshi looked at her and replied, "Very beautiful but definitely not as beautiful as you, Second Senior Sister." He had chubby cheeks when he smiled and looked submissive. After being with Ye Futian for a year, he''d learned some things just by watching. He had to��his status was at risk.


    "Xiaoshi, your smile is so fake," Zhuge Hui said cheerily. Yi Xiaoshi''s smile froze awkwardly. Looking at Zhuge Hui, he didn''t even know how to reply.


    "Seventh Senior Brother, you spoke wrongly. Few women can be compared to Senior Sister. I do know that girl but she can''t even be compared to Senior Sister," Ye Futian said seriously. His tone was much more natural than Yi Xiaoshi''s.


    "I always like what Junior says," Zhuge Hui said with a smile.


    Yi Xiaoshi was about to cry. How come they were so different? Even being shameless required talent. He could only lament at his lack of skill.


    Beitang Xing''er watched this all with a smile. Xiaoshi wanted to copy the junior but it wasn''t the same. Ye Futian was attractive and looked even better when he smiled. This was his personality too. He was natural when complimenting girls and it felt comfortable.


    "Since she''s here for Junior, bring her here for me to see," Zhuge Hui said with a smile.


    "Uh��" Yi Xiaoshi blinked and looked at her in shock before nodding. "Okay."


    With that, he left, feeling sad at the bias. Zhuge Hui was too biased. Even girls who came for Ye Futian could enter the Cottage.


    When Yi Xiaoshi left, Zhuge Hui smiled at Ye Futian. "Old lover?"


    "Senior Sister, I''m not like that." Ye Futian gazed into her eyes and explained seriously, "Her name is Loulan Xue. She''s a regular friend I made in the Ancient Barren World."


    "Why would a regular come to find you at the Cottage?" Beitang Xing''er asked. There was no trust in her eyes.


    "Really��" Ye Futian looked into the eyes of his pretty senior sisters and muttered sadly, "If you don''t trust me, you can ask her later."


    "Okay," Zhuge Hui replied, smiling.


    The newcomer indeed was Loulan Xue. She''d participated in this year''s grand exams and performed extraordinarily well. She was known as the most powerful of this year. Everyone paid attention to her and even the top mountain wanted her. They believed she could be the direct disciple of the dean.


    At this time, there were many disciples at the square on Book Mountain. Loulan Xue stood primly in the middle. One would be attracted with a single glance and everyone was like that. Every mountain wanted her but Loulan Xue said she wanted to find Ye Futian at the Cottage. This caused an uproar. Many people guessed that she was Ye Futian''s old lover.


    Some knew Loulan Xue, such as Tang Ye. He''d seen Loulan Xue when she was with Ye Futian in the Ancient Barren World. But Ye Futian and the others all entered the Eastern Barren World last year while Loulan Xue didn''t. Many people forgot about her.


    The disciples from last year were also in the crowd, such as Nangong Jiao and Tuoba Yun. They were attracted by Loulan Xue''s aura too. Many people said that not only was she the best of this year, the last year couldn''t beat her either.


    At this time, someone walked over and stopped close to the crowd. People looked over. It was Yi Xiaoshi from the Cottage. Loulan Xue looked over too. Many people thought she would be disappointed. She was talented but one didn''t enter the Cottage just by being talented. No one in the Cottage was normal.


    The event at Chaoge had bolstered the Cottage''s reputation.


    "Second Senior Sister wants you to follow me up the mountain," Yi Xiaoshi said. As soon as he spoke, everyone stared at him in shock.


    They knew clearly who the second senior sister was. It was the powerful girl who dared to shatter the Dongqin College''s gate. She wanted Loulan Xue to go up the mountain. Was she going to accept Loulan Xue as a disciple?


    "Oh." Loulan Xue started walking, following Yi Xiaoshi towards the Cottage. Everyone looked over but they didn''t argue. If the Cottage really wanted her, what was there to argue about? No force in the Eastern Barren Territory could compete with the Cottage.


    They were sure that the Cottage''s one word was more impactful than a genuine invitation from any top force.


    Yi Xiaoshi brought Loulan Xue to the Cottage. After seeing Ye Futian, Loulan Xue kept looking. It had only been one year but now, everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory knew his name. Her mother said that he was born this way. There would be chaos wherever he went.


    "Hello, Virgin." Ye Futian smiled at her. He didn''t think they could meet again after the farewell at the Ancient Barren World. He definitely didn''t expect her to come to find him.


    "Yes." Loulan Xue nodded. Her personality was cool, just like her aura.


    "How come you''re here? Are you going to cultivate at the College?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''m here to find you?" Loulan Xue looked at him with her silver eyes.


    "Find me?"


    "Yes." Loulan Xue nodded.


    "Why do you want to find him?" Zhuge Hui asked, grinning. This silver-haired girl really was cold.


    Loulan Xue glanced at her and then back at Ye Futian. She bowed her head slightly and hesitated to speak.


    "Just speak," Ye Futian said after seeing that.


    Loulan Xue raised her head, staring at Ye Futian. "My mother wanted me to ask you if you plan on marrying me."


    Ye Futian was shocked. Zhuge Hui and Beitang Xing''er were shocked too. They gaped at Loulan Xue. Did this cold girl really ask that?


    "Good friends indeed." Beitang Xing''er grinned at Ye Futian, smiling ambiguously.


    "Seems like we don''t have to ask anymore," Zhuge Hui asked, smiling.


    Yi Xiaoshi felt emboldened. He gave Ye Futian a look. Was he still going to deny it? Was he still going to pretend? He''d lied to this innocent girl and now, she''d come to the Cottage. Was Ye Futian going to take responsibility?


    Ye Futian''s mind was in turmoil. He stared at Loulan Xue. "Virgin, even if the Empress acts recklessly, you shouldn''t."


    He didn''t know how to reply!

 287 The Empress’s Plan

    Chapter 287: The Empress��s Plan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Loulan Xue looked at Ye Futian. Her expression was cold but her eyes had a strange look as if even she thought it was a bit weird. After a moment, she shook her head and whispered, "It''s not acting recklessly."


    Yi Xiaoshi walked over and patted Ye Futian''s shoulder. "Junior," he said, smiling devilishly. "Just admit it." You wanted to pretend before Senior Sister but you can''t keep pretending, huh.


    Seeing the annoying smile on Yi Xiaoshi''s face, Ye Futian really wanted to beat him up. Sadly, he wouldn''t win.


    "Virgin, didn''t I tell you in the palace that I have a lover? You saw her too." Ye Futian looked at Loulan Xue. She had been there when Hua Jieyu went to the peak of Mirror Mountain.


    "I don''t mind." Loulan Xue shook her head.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian was completely speechless as he stared at the silver-haired girl. What was she thinking?


    "How horrible," Yi Xiaoshi commented happily.


    Zhuge Hui and Beitang Xing''er watched all this while grinning. They didn''t say anything; they watched Ye Futian quietly.


    "Virgin, don''t joke." He was close to tears. What was Loulan Xue thinking? How long had they known each other for?


    Loulan Xue''s silver eyes looked disappointed after Ye Futian''s rejection. However, there was still some joy. Perhaps she would be more disappointed if Ye Futian accepted like this.


    It was simple why she did as the Empress had said. She didn''t really care about relationships. It was too hard to find someone she liked in Ancient Loulan. The people she interacted with were all below her. The Virgin of Ancient Loulan obviously had to leave descendants. This meant she had to choose a man sooner or later. Otherwise, she would be stuck in Loulan forever.


    Ye Futian was very suitable. He was handsome and talented. Loulan Xue could still remember his performance in the Ancient Barren World. She didn''t like him that much but he had left an impression, at least. He was the best choice so she didn''t reject the Empress'' idea. Of course, she had another implication, also thought of by her mother.


    "My mother told me to follow you and I agreed," Loulan Xue said, gazing at Ye Futian. "Didn''t you take in a servant in the Ancient Barren World? I can serve you too."


    Ye Futian stared at her, wanting to cry. He knew what Loulan Xue was like. She was an ice beauty, the Virgin of Ancient Loulan. Even if she wanted to be a servant, did she know how to serve? Was this a joke?


    "Virgin, did the empress force you to do this?" Ye Futian muttered, thinking of that beautiful old lady. That woman had tried to force him to marry Loulan Xue. It was possible she''d forced Loulan Xue to do this too.


    "No, I''m doing this voluntarily," Loulan Xue said. "If you think that I can''t take care of someone, I can learn."


    "I''m cultivating at the Cottage. I don''t deserve having a Virgin to take care of me," Ye Futian said. "The Cottage won''t allow it." He couldn''t make Loulan Xue so he could only have Second Senior Sister take care of it. With that, Ye Futian looked pitifully at Zhuge Hui.


    Loulan Xue also gazed at her, seeming a bit scared. Zhuge Hui grinned at Ye Futian. Did he want her to be the bad guy?


    She gazed at Loulan Xue and smiled. "If she wishes to be a servant, then I can make an exception and let her stay." She quite liked Loulan Xue''s personality. She was interesting.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian gaped at Zhuge Hui. She''d actually made an exception.


    "Thank you, senior." A faint smile appeared on Loulan Xue''s cool features. She seemed happy.


    Zhuge Hui looked deep at her and said, "You can live with Junior and take care of him."


    "Okay." Loulan Xue nodded lightly. Then she said to Ye Futian, "My mother is here too. She''s not far from the Book Mountain and wishes to see you."


    "Not going," Ye Futian refused resolutely. That woman was troublesome and difficult.


    "Rest assured. She won''t be hard on you," Loulan Xue continued.


    Ye Futian blinked. "Did she plan all this?" he asked, defeated.


    Loulan Xue just looked at him quietly without replying.


    Ye Futian couldn''t have a temper faced with this cold beauty. What could he do? "Alright, I''ll go with you," he could only say with Loulan Xue''s eyes on him.


    "Okay." Loulan Xue nodded.


    Then Ye Futian said to Zhuge Hui, "Senior Sister, I''m going out."


    "Okay." Zhuge Hui smiled and nodded.


    Loulan Xue took Ye Futian down the mountain. After they left, Zhuge Hui was still smiling.


    "Second Senior Sister," Beitang Xing''er called. "Why did you agree?"


    Zhuge Hui gazed at the receding backside and chuckled. "If someone else did that, I would think she just wants to stay in the Cottage. But why do I find this girl so cute?"


    Beitang Xing''er''s eyes glimmered while Yi Xiaoshi rolled his eyes. Having good looks meant everything.


    After leaving Book Mountain, the two went to an empty field. The Black Wind Eagle flapped its wings and they climbed on. Ye Futian didn''t speak and Loulan Xue didn''t either. They were both quiet.


    "Do you find me shameless?" Loulan Xue looked over, eyes falling on Ye Futian.


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head.


    "My mother said that I can''t enter the Cottage with my talent. If I want to cultivate there, I have to use you."


    I knew it was that old woman, Ye Futian thought. He didn''t say it out loud though. He couldn''t insult Loulan Xue''s mother in front of her.


    "However, this wasn''t all because of her. I also agreed to it." Loulan Xue looked forward, seeming to avoid his eyes. She was as cold as frost but she would get shy about relationships too.


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded and didn''t say anything else. Everyone wanted to join the Cottage.


    The Empress of Ancient Loulan had wanted Ye Futian to marry Loulan Xue to bring Loulan back to glory. Now that she''d come to study in the heart of the Eastern Barren Territory, she obviously wanted to go to the strongest force. Everyone knew about the Cottage. The empress definitely did as well. With Ye Futian cultivating at the Cottage, she would naturally think of a trick like this.


    After some time, they arrived at a pavilion in the Divine Capital. Ye Futian stepped in and discovered many strong cultivators there. The Empress of Ancient Loulan had come personally. People naturally flocked to her. Ye Futian saw her in a courtyard. He wasn''t that respectful this time. He stared straight at her.


    "What, you dislike me that much?" The Empress saw Ye Futian look at her coldly.


    "No, I wouldn''t dare," Ye Futian said.


    "You are now a disciple of the Cottage. I can''t do anything to you. No one in the Eastern Barren Territory can. You can dare to do anything." The empress smiled coldly. Then she looked at Loulan Xue. "He didn''t agree?"


    Loulan Xue shook her head and murmured, "But the senior at the Cottage said that if I''m willing to be a servant, I can stay in there."


    The Empress nodded. She could accept this. However, she was even unhappier with Ye Futian. "I''m giving my talented daughter to you but you bear to make her a servant. Good job," she said sarcastically. "Is she not pretty enough?"


    "Empress, you''re being a bit too illogical. I can''t force feelings. How long have we known each other for? Plus, you and the Virgin know that I have a lover. What is the point of doing this?" Ye Futian asked. "Just as you said, your daughter is very talented. How can you make her do this?"


    "If only everyone in the world could be as talented as you. If we had the Cottage to support us when something happens, we wouldn''t care about that much." The Empress scoffed. "She will cultivate in the Cottage from now on. From the surface, she is your servant but I dare you to bully her."


    Ye Futian stared, speechless.


    "I won''t treat you poorly either. I will now confer you the title of the Loulan Son. Don''t worry, this is only a title that hasn''t ever existed before. You don''t have to be responsible for anything but you will have power. From now on, you will be second only to me in Ancient Loulan. This token represents me." The Empress tossed a token at Ye Futian. Seeing that he wanted to speak, she continued, "Don''t be so quick to refuse. I know you don''t need Ancient Loulan when you have the Cottage. But don''t you feel any danger from the assassination attempt earlier? You don''t think your senior brothers will always protect you, right?"


    Ye Futian''s expression changed. The empress made sense. No one would dare after that last event but what if the forces in the Eastern Barren Territory changed? His senior brothers had to cultivate too. They weren''t his guards and wouldn''t be by his side at all times.


    "Come in," the Empress called at this time. Nine strong cultivators walked into the courtyard. They wore silver armor and looked powerful. Their sharp eyes focused on Ye Futian with formless pressure.


    "Bow to the Son," the Empress said coolly.


    "Loulan Silver Snow Guard greets the Son," the nine said while bowing.


    "The Loulan Silver Snow Guard is the guard of Loulan. They are the generals of the guards and all are at the Noble Plane. They will be by your side, at your beck and call. You don''t need to doubt their loyalty," the Empress continued.


    Ye Futian blinked. This woman was so unfriendly but her actions were completely opposite from her attitude. He was tempted to have nine Nobles listen to him.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s expression, the Empress scoffed inwardly. Want to fight with me? You can''t escape from my hold!

 288 Ye Futian’s Decision

    Chapter 288: Ye Futian��s Decision


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Empress of Ancient Loulan was extremely powerful. She was the ruler and king. But Ye Futian gave her a headache.


    Back then, Ye Futian had received the sage''s treasure from the Loulan Relic. The sage told her to become closer to Ye Futian and make him part of Loulan and also choose a husband for her daughter. But she failed.


    Later, Loulan Xue went back and told her that Ye Futian''s girlfriend truly was extraordinary. She had also broken many records at the Mirror Mountain peak. The empress had been very frustrated.


    Now, Ye Futian''s name was already known throughout the Eastern Barren Territory. Just as the sage had predicted, he would gradually display mind-blowing talent. He might even become the best of the Eastern Barren Territory. Under this circumstance, she naturally had to take him in earlier and also have Loulan Xue cultivate in the Cottage.


    It wasn''t her place to be the icing on the cake. She wasn''t sending him direly-needed help either but she did her best. She put her daughter by his side and gave him the power of being above all except her. She believed he would accept it. Plus, her daughter was so beautiful and innocent. After some time, he would definitely soften.


    Having a lover was a bullsh*t excuse. She knew how men were.


    "Empress, I hope you won''t cause mischief about the Virgin anymore. It''ll affect her reputation," Ye Futian said.


    As for being the Loulan Son and the nine Nobles, he would grudgingly accept it. He didn''t like to take advantage of people but��he could manage.


    This b*stard, the empress swore inside as she looked at the earnest Ye Futian. He wouldn''t even thank her?


    Despite her thoughts, her expression warmed up. Looking at Ye Futian gently, she said, "Okay, you two can take care of the feelings. I won''t force you. You''ve seen my attitude. As for how you will develop will be up to you and I won''t interfere. But you have to help take care of Loulan Xue at the Cottage. She isn''t very sensitive about many matters."


    "Ah, how can I not work to fulfill the Empress'' wishes?" Ye Futian said. He knew that the old woman just wanted to beat him up. They were both good at acting and he wasn''t scared.


    The Empress nodded. "You can take care of the nine Silver Snow Guards. I won''t disturb you any further and will leave soon."


    "You''re in such a hurry," Ye Futian said. "Why don''t you stay in the Divine Capital for a few days?"


    "No, I have matters to take care of in Loulan. I will come to visit in the future," the empress said. Inside, she cursed, You''re so fake. You must wish I''d leave right this moment.


    "I see." Ye Futian nodded. Then he said to the nine guards, "Since the Empress is in a hurry to leave, I won''t keep you. As for you nine seniors, let''s change a place to live. I have relatives cultivating in the Divine Capital. You all can live there and take care of each other."


    The Empress gritted her teeth. Ye Futian said that he wanted her to stay but now he was already ordering the Silver Snow Guard.


    So conscious, huh. I''ve never seen someone so shameless.


    "Yes. You all listen to the Son''s command in the future. Seeing him is like seeing me," the Empress said to the nine.


    "Yes, Empress." The nine bowed and then said to Ye Futian, "Please order us as pleased."


    "Seniors, you are too kind," Ye Futian said. "I will take you all there now. Second Senior Sister is still waiting for me so I shouldn''t delay. Empress, safe travels."


    "Okay, go do what you must." The Empress smiled and nodded while she ground her teeth.


    "Goodbye." Ye Futian put his hands together and then left straightforwardly. The nine Silver Snow Guards bowed to the empress and followed him away.


    Loulan Xue gazed at the Empress, who nodded at her. "Go and cultivate well. With our treasured book and the sage''s guidance, I''m sure the Cottage will truly approve of you one day."


    "Okay, I''ll go now." Loulan Xue nodded lightly and left with Ye Futian.


    When everyone left, a female guard in the pavilion walked over to the Empress. She looked in the direction Ye Futian went and said, "Empress, that man is too shameless."


    "I''ve realized." Her smile disappeared and she glared in that direction. She had ruled Ancient Loulan for so many years as the female regent. She''d seen all types of people and controlled countless strong cultivators. Only Ye Futian was uncontrollable.


    She''d given Ye Futian her daughter and even Nobles as his guards, as well as giving him the title of Son. But that b*stard accepted the guards happily but didn''t give her anything. He wasn''t even grateful and wanted her to disappear. That b*stard��


    Ye Futian didn''t care about what the Empress thought of him. That old woman tried to use him so he couldn''t be too nice with her. Since she gave him Nobles, he would take them without feeling bad.


    As for Loulan Xue, they had traveled together in the Ancient Barren World. Hua Jieyu knew that he saw Loulan Xue as a friend. Since Zhuge Hui allowed her to cultivate at the Cottage, he would take care of her as needed.


    In the sky, Ye Futian asked the guards, "What do I call you all?"


    "Silver One, Silver Two, Silver Three��" the nine said one by one.


    Ye Futian was shocked but he nodded. "Oh, I got it." They were quite special.


    Soon after, they arrived at the Guqin Gardens of the Divine Capital. Coincidentally, Hua Fengliu and the others were there. Seeing Ye Futian come, they all came out. They''d heard of what had happened at Chaoge.


    Nandou Wenyin walked up and asked, "Futian, were you hurt in Chaoge City?"


    "Some minor injuries. I''m alright, you don''t have to worry." Ye Futian smiled innocently. His masteress was the best. That old empress couldn''t compare.


    "Be careful out there," Nandou Wenyin said.


    On the other hand, Hua Fengliu and Tang Lan''s gaze fell on Loulan Xue. She was so pretty and had a unique aura. Her silver hair was like snow and her silver eyes were strangely beautiful. Was this guy getting with girls again? And he''d even taken her to see his father-in-law?


    Yi Xiang looked at the nine guards. He could feel faint pressure from them. They were Nobles��nine powerful Nobles. From what he knew, the Cottage only had eight disciples so they couldn''t be it.


    The Cottage wouldn''t wear silver armor either.


    "Master, Masteress, this is my friend Loulan Xue," Ye Futian introduced. "We met in the Ancient Barren World. She is the Virgin of Ancient Loulan and saved my life. She''s going to cultivate in the Cottage."


    Nandou Wenyin nodded and said, "Thank you, Virgin."


    Loulan Xue looked at her with a strange expression. Ye Futian had called them Master and Masteress. She didn''t know much about the world but she wasn''t stupid. She vaguely guessed their identities. She had seen Hua Jieyu before. The girl had traces of these two. She''d inherited both of their attractiveness and had even surpassed them. Thinking of everything that had happened, why did it feel weird for Ye Futian to bring her here?


    "These nine seniors are Noble cultivators from Ancient Loulan. The empress has helped me and even made me the Son of Loulan. These nine are with me," Ye Futian continued.


    The listeners kept getting shocked. The empress had helped him, made him Son, and gave him Nobles?


    "That empress is so nice." Yi Xiang shot him a look of disdain. Ye Futian was speaking nonsense.


    "Yeah, I think so too. She''s so kind and is a good woman." Ye Futian nodded seriously. The Empress wouldn''t know how to think if she heard this.


    "Ha." Hua Fengliu looked at him; Tang Lan also looked. Tang Wan and Yi Qingxuan smiled ambiguously.


    Why would the empress of Loulan do all this? Thinking of the relationship between Hua Fengliu, Ye Futian, and Hua Jieyu, wasn''t it obvious?


    Seeing everyone''s eyes, Ye Futian lost some confidence. However, he still said naturally, "Master, Masteress, it''s not what you think."


    "Then what is it?" Hua Fengliu asked. The Empress'' idea was obvious. He knew that Ye Futian could tell too. As his teacher and father-in-law, he knew how this boy was.


    Ye Futian sighed inwardly. Why didn''t they believe him? Was he a player?


    "Master, Masteress, I want the nine seniors to live in the Guqin Gardens. If anything happens, they can take care of it. If you and Senior Yi Xiang have any questions, you can ask them too," Ye Futian said. With the stone statue from the Mirror Mountain, they would definitely try for the Noble Plane. It would be easier if they had Nobles to guide them.


    "Also, I will have a final battle with Luo Junlin in the Nandou Nation to take care of everything. How about you and Masteress come back with me? You can take care of the problem with the Nandou Family too," Ye Futian continued. "I will go to the Moon Clan to get Jieyu. Then we can go back together. What do you think?"


    Hearing this, Hua Fengliu glanced at him. At least he remembered Jieyu.


    Nandou Wenyin looked at him gently. "Futian, you''ve worked hard." These things would require him to take care of. She''d always had her mind on the Nandou Family. It was the place that filled her with disappointment and sadness. Her brother was still there.


    "Going back?" Yi Xiang looked up into the air. Even though he always insulted Ye Futian, he''d seen the boy''s growth this year. He wasn''t even 20 years old but he had already shaken the Eastern Barren Territory. Still in the Dharma Plane, he was known by all. He didn''t say it but he knew that Ye Futian valued relationships greatly. It was time to resolve the matter with the Nandou Nation. Up to now, they''d only escaped.

 289 Chu Lian

    Chapter 289: Chu Lian


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    There was a door on the top of the hill behind Book Mountain. A Dharma matrix was carved on that door like a black vortex.


    This was the entrance to the Ancient Barren World.


    Every top force of the Eastern Barren Territory owned a place for entering the Ancient Barren World, so did the College.


    After returning from the Guqin Gardens and helping Loulan Xue settle down, Ye Futian came here, ready to enter the Ancient Barren World not for cultivation but for the Moon Clan. The Moon Clan was in the north of the Eastern Barren Territory. It would take even strong cultivators much time to go there. The passage to Ancient Barren World was no doubt the fastest way.


    The Black Wind Eagle flew fast into the Ancient Barren World. The stronger Ye Futian became, the more the Black Wind Eagle grew. At this moment, it had reached the peak of the Dharma Plane. Before getting into the Arcana Plane, it could still enter the Ancient Barren World.


    The two crossed the passage and landed on a mountain. There were some buildings among the mountains where many disciples of the College lived. Those disciples came to the Ancient Barren World for cultivating. Therefore they lived temporarily here in the mountain instead of going back and forth. Seeing Ye Futian''s arrival, many disciples were confused.


    "Who is he?" a new guy asked.


    "Ye Futian." Someone recognized him. Many people looked over here, including Nangong Jiao. Her beautiful eyes fell on Ye Futian. Though they were enrolled in the College together last year, Ye Futian had already become a legend.


    In the battle of Chaoge City, Ye Futian defeated Qian Shanmu with rhythmic sorcery, which was enough for him to be known to all in Eastern Barren Territory.


    The Black Wind Eagle flapped its wings and brought Ye Futian away.


    The Moon Clan was in the central area of the Ancient Barren World, north of the Barren City. The Ancient Barren World was like a smaller version of the Eastern Barren Territory, sharing the same terrain.


    The base of the Moon Clan was more beautiful than the College''s. With ancient green hills, surrounded by rivers and mist, the scene here was very relaxing. When one or two beauties walked down from the hill, people would feel that this must be heaven.


    Arriving here, Ye Futian saw two young beauties walking down. They were very young and full of energy. The left one was tall with a pair of beautiful slender legs. She looked slightly proud and became vigilant when seeing Ye Futian here. The one on the right was petite and slim. She looked at Ye Futian with her innocent eyes, full of curiosity, thinking that this guy was really handsome.


    The two beauties were both disciples of the Moon Clan. The left was Lu Qiu; the right was Ning Qiaoqiao.


    "Who are you?" Lu Qiu looked at the Futian arrogantly but full of vigilance. There shouldn''t be males in the base of Moon Clan. The arrival of Ye Futian confused her.


    "I''m Ye Futian. I want to visit the Moon Clan. Would you two fairies please lead the way for me?" Ye Futian smiled.


    "Ye Futian," Ning Qiaoqiao murmured. Suddenly, something occurred to her. "Are you Ye Futian from the Cottage?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded lightly, smiling at Ning Qiaoqiao.


    She blushed a little and immediately nodded, "All right, just follow us."


    "Thank you, fairy." Ye Futian''s smile grew bigger. This beauty was really kind.


    But Lu Qiu was still observing Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. She knew this guy was very famous, even in Moon Clan. He was indeed talented but part of his fame also came from the fabulous disciple of the Moon Clan who was as good-looking as Chu Yaoyao, one of the three top beauties in Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Are you here for Hua Jieyu?" Ning Qiaoqiao asked and took a quick glance at him. This was her first time meeting Ye Futian. Though she knew of his name, Ning Qiaoqiao didn''t expect that he could be so good-looking. He and Hua Jieyu were well-matched to each other.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    "She must be very happy to know you are here." Ning Qiaoqiao laughed. Last time, Hua Jieyu wanted to go to Chaoge City too. Ye Futian must be the reason.


    "I heard that you defeated Qian Shanmu on the battle platform of Dongqin College. Can you defeat him without the help of the ritual implement?" Lu Qiu asked Ye Futian. There were many rumors about Ye Futian, even in Moon Clan. She was very curious about his strength.


    "I would fail," Ye Futian responded very frankly. He could fight across levels but not across planes. And since Qian Shanmu was master in rhythmic sorcery, he would be too arrogant to say that he could win.


    "What if it was not for rhythmic sorcery and you are in the same plane as him?" Lu Qiu kept asking.


    Ye Futian smiled and looked at her. "I wouldn''t know unless I try."


    "So you mean the outcome is unknown. Perhaps you are not as strong as in the rumors." Lu Qiu doubted his strength. The disciples of the Cottage were indeed strong but every top force had top talents. If a disciple of the Cottage could be so powerful, would the Moon Clan even have the right to be compared to them?


    "Maybe." Ye Futian didn''t want to argue. He just nodded, smiling.


    "Sister Lu, you are too curious." Ning Qiaoqiao glanced at Lu Qiu. Soon, they arrived at the top of the ancient mountain. There were many communities here. The peak was the exit of Ancient Barren World, directly leading to the Moon Clan.


    Seeing Lu Qiu and Ning Qiaoqiao come back with a man, many disciples here all gathered to see them. When learning that the guy was Ye Futian, they all looked at him curiously.


    Being observed by so many girls, Ye Futian felt a little embarrassed. This was the trouble of being attractive. He was contemplating that maybe he could ask Hua Jieyu if he could cultivate here for a while. It must be paradise to live in the Moon Clan.


    At this time, a line of beauties came. The leading woman was extremely beautiful. Her graceful posture and perfect proportion of figure made her no worse than the three beauties of Eastern Barren Territory.


    "You are Ye Futian?" the woman went to Ye Futian and asked.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Why are you here instead of cultivating at the Cottage?" the woman asked with a cool tone.


    "I''m here for Hua Jieyu. I also want to visit the seniors of the Moon Clan." Ye Futian smiled gently.


    "Hua Jieyu is cultivating. Our seniors might not want you to disturb her. Frivolous love will affect her cultivation," the woman continued. "Moreover, Moon Clan doesn''t welcome any man. This is just our base in the Ancient Barren World. Our seniors are not here. We don''t have the right to let you in."


    Ning Qiaoqiao looked at the speaking woman, a little stunned.


    Indeed, the Moon Clan didn''t welcome any man since this was an all-female clan. However, with Ye Futian''s reputation as a disciple of the Cottage and his relationship with Hua Jieyu, he should be allowed in.


    Knowing the status of the speaking woman, Ning Qiaoqiao guessed that she was still entangled with that trivial matter from before.


    "Sister Chu, how about we go in to ask the seniors'' opinion?" Ning Qiaoqiao looked at that woman.


    "Sister Ning, don''t you remember what they had taught us before? Cultivation comes first. You are new here. How can you be so relaxed? Don''t you remember the teachers'' words?" The woman looked at Ning Qiaoqiao. Her tone was a little harsh. Ning Qiaoqiao was stunned and felt hurt. It was really embarrassing for her to be reprimanded in public like this.


    Ye Futian looked at that woman. Her surname was Chu? He seemed to figure out something when looking at that beautiful face.


    "Fairy, you are right. Cultivation is the most important." Ye Futian smiled and said, "However, secular things are inevitable too. I have seen a disciple of the Moon Clan dating too. That should be common. But according to you, should that fairy be reprimanded too?"


    "Is that so?" The woman said coldly, "If it''s true, tell me who this rule breaker is. I will tell our seniors about her."


    "She is Chu Yaoyao of the Moon Clan," Ye Futian revealed the name with a smile. After he finished, all the girls around him froze. That woman was also stunned. She looked at Ye Futian coldly.


    "Ye Futian, as a disciple of the Cottage, how dare you insult our disciple? Are you looking down upon the Moon Clan?" the woman responded coldly. Her name was Chu Lian, Chu Yaoyao''s sister. The two looked alike each other. Ye Futian inferred that from her surname.


    "Oh no, I just said something that should be well-known." Ye Futian pretended to be surprised. "It is said that Qin Li, the grandson of the Qin Emperor, has been here. He and the fairy of the Moon Clan got along very well. When I was in Chaoge City, I saw them together. Are you saying that what they did is an insult to the Moon Clan?"


    "You��" Chu Lian was speechless. She fell into the trap that Ye Futian had prepared for her.


    Ye Futian said that Qin Li had a date with her sister. She believed that and it was no secret. Therefore, it was impossible for her to say that Ye Futian was slandering.


    "Jieyu is my girlfriend. There''s nothing wrong with me coming to see her. The grandson of the Qin Emperor was allowed in to meet the fairy Chu Yaoyao. Nobody stopped them. Now, why do you repeatedly stop me in this way?" Ye Futian looked at Chu Lian and asked, "Are you unsatisfied with the Cottage?" Ye Futian sneered secretly. He was unhappy about Chu Yaoyao because she didn''t allow Hua Jieyu to go out. But that was the rule of Moon Clan and he wouldn''t complain about that. This time, Chu Lian stopped him without even asking the seniors'' opinions. She even berated Ning Qiaoqiao who was on his side. Obviously, she did this on purpose. In that case, he didn''t need to be polite anymore.


    "If it is so, I would like to have a fight as the disciple of the Cottage." Ye Futian said coldly and his smiled disappeared.


    Since you use the Moon Clan as an excuse, then I''ll have to use the Cottage.

 290 Within the Moon Clan

    Chapter 290: Within the Moon Clan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As a top power of the Eastern Barren Territory, there wasn''t just one group within the Moon Clan. The College had the nine mountains, and the Fuyun Sword Clan had the seven summits.


    There were four major groups within the Moon Clan. The clan leader belonged to the Moon Tower. This tower was the holy land of cultivation in the Moon Clan. They didn''t teach disciples directly. Only the most elite members were qualified to cultivate at the Moon Tower. It was the pillar of the Moon Clan. Other than that, the clan also had the Qianyue Pavilion, the Xiaoyue House, and the Hanyue Temple. Each of these three groups had their own specialties. Hua Jieyu cultivated at the Xiaoyue House. The Virgin Chu Yaoyao was a disciple of the Qianyue Pavilion.


    Presently, the Virgin Chu Yaoyao was located in some building of the Qianyue Pavilion. In front of her, a beautiful woman was seated, looking at a page in her hand. It was a list of some sort and a lot was written own.


    This beautiful woman was the leader of the Qianyue Pavilion, Yan Feihong. She taught Chu Yaoyao personally and was her favorite disciple. But they weren''t the only ones there. There was one other, the grandson of the Qin emperor, Qin Li.


    The Dongqin College was still holding their competitions but the royal grandson wasn''t even in Chaoge City. He was here at the Moon Clan. He had provided the list in Yan Feihong''s hand. Every line of the list was filled out with the names of treasures that would sway any top-level Noble.


    However, Yan Feihong looked unmoved. Her expression remained calm. A while later, she folded the page and looked up at Qin Li. "Yaoyao has been cultivating under my care for quite some years now. I see her as my own flesh and blood. Furthermore, I am prepared to have her take over my spot in the future. Thus, I do not wish for her to head to the Qin Dynasty and become the Crown Princess."


    Qin Yu was the Crown Prince now and when he became the emperor, Qin Li would be on a shortlist to becoming the new Crown Prince of the Qin Dynasty. Then, Qin Li''s wife would naturally be the Crown Princess.


    "Of course, I understand, Senior." Qin Li nodded at Yan Feihong. Extremely modestly, he bowed. "I have been attracted by her and have fallen deeply in love. I would never dare allow this goddess to be treated as inferior to me. If I marry Yaoyao, I would not force her to do anything. She can continue to cultivate at the Moon Clan and inherit your seat. I will only stand behind her and support her."


    The sparkle reached the eyes of Yan Feihong. Qin Li continued, "The list you have right now is just a fraction of the bride price. If Senior is willing to agree to this marriage, it would be my greatest honor and make me the luckiest man. At that time, my father is willing to multiply whatever is on that list now and send it here to the Qianyue Pavilion."


    Seeing the modest royal grandson in front of her right now, Yan Feihong was swayed. Nothing on the list was fit for Chu Yaoyao''s use. Instead, it was for the use of someone at the level of Yan Feihong. It was obvious that these gifts weren''t meant for Chu Yaoyao but for her. She was the leader of the Qianyue Pavilion and they were going to send these gifts to the pavilion. Was there more that needed to be said?


    The Qin Dynasty was being seriously generous.


    However, she was also clear of the Qin Dynasty''s goal. It wasn''t as simple as Qin Li''s infatuation with Chu Yaoyao. If the two of them really got together, it would be obvious. It was going to be a marriage alliance.


    Naturally, the royal grandson represented the Qin Dynasty and Chu Yaoyao was the Virgin of the Moon Clan. There was no explanation needed for their relationship.


    "Yaoyao, what do you think?" Yan Feihong turned to question Chu Yaoyao.


    "It is only natural that you decide on the matters on marriage, teacher," Chu Yaoyao said softly. Yan Feihong nodded lightly. She already knew in her heart that Chu Yaoyao also liked Qin Li and had agreed to his courtship.


    With Qin Li''s gifts and his status, he was definitely a fitting candidate. Furthermore, he was not going to interfere with Chu Yaoyao''s cultivation at the Moon Clan. This way, Chu Yaoyao wouldn''t need to worry about her future.


    "I don''t dare to be rash when it comes to your marriage. I will discuss this with your uncle-masters. Go bring Qin Li for a look around," said Yan Feihong. Chu Yaoyao nodded and led Qin Li away.


    ...


    At the same time, in the Ancient Barren World, on top of the Moon Clan''s Ancient Peak.


    Ye Futian was having a standoff with Chu Lian. Hearing his words, her expression darkened.


    Ye Futian of the Cottage.


    There wasn''t anyone who didn''t know of this name. Although she had not gone to Chaoge City, she had heard the stories of his glorious victories. Forget about his battle with Qian Shanmu, the mere fact that he defeated Qin Mang of the Qin Dynasty was the greatest proof that he would be undefeatable by anyone in the same plane as him. And since Chu Lian was still in the lower Ancient Barren World, it was obvious that she was also still in the Dharma Plane.


    Ye Futian wanted to pay a visit to the Moon Clan and was blocked by her. He had the audacity to challenge her.


    Thinking of this, Chu Lian said coldly, "This is the entrance to the Moon Clan. Past this door behind me, you will be in the Moon Clan territory. You aren''t a member of our clan, so I will not let you enter, and this is how you''re going to act? Is this how all the disciples of the Cottage take care of things? Are you trying to bully us?"


    What she said had just placed Ye Futian against the Moon Clan. If Ye Futian really dared to make a move on Chu Lian, he would actually be bullying the Moon Clan.


    Ye Futian didn''t answer. Instead, he stepped forward, giving off a feeling of dominance. His handsome features seemed to have been carved from stone; very defined. Chu Lian felt pressured with every step he took.


    The Moon Clan disciples all around were at a lost upon witnessing this scene. It reminded them of the conflict between Chu Yaoyao and Hua Jieyu. Such a small ordeal could be exacerbated because of different standpoints. And now, Ye Futian had come for a visit, Chu Lian shouldn''t have stopped him, but she did. Ye Futian wasn''t exactly known for his good temper, so he challenged her.


    Multiple figures flashed by and appeared beside Chu Lian. They were her senior and junior sisters from the Hanyue Temple. So, of course, her enemies were their enemies.


    "Are you qualified to represent the Moon Clan?" Ye Futian asked her coldly. "There are many of your fellow clan members here right now. It should be pretty easy for them to tell whether or not you''re targeting me on purpose. You also know the truth. If you have the guts to do so, then don''t go hiding behind the name of the Moon Clan. What an embarrassment."


    "You��" A chilling gust washed over Chu Lian. Spiritual Qi gathered as an ice spell was released.


    But just then, Ye Futian stepped forward at an unbelievable speed. A crisp sound was heard and the ice Spiritual Qi formed a spell and crystals of ice began to cover Ye Futian. The chilling air permeated his body and tried to frost him over.


    BOOM! Ye Futian''s body was tough. The ice crystals burst, and with one step, he had arrived in front of Chu Lian. His terrifying aura crushed down on her. Following that, Ye Futian lifted his hand, and with one palm forward, he sent Chu Lian flying back. Even when her feet finally met the ground again, she had to take steps back to stable herself. She let out a soft groan.


    They were on completely different levels.


    "Chu Lian." Multiple figures ran to her side and stared coldly at Ye Futian. However, they knew that if he was able to send Chu Lian flying simply by the wave of his hand, there was no way they could go up against him.


    Ye Futian''s cutting gaze turned to look at them. He then walked right past them. The Black Wind Eagle flapped its wings and gave the girls a look of disdain.


    Walking over to the Ancient Barren World''s exit, Ye Futian turned back to look at Ning Qiaoqiao. "Can you be my guide?"


    Ning Qiaoqiao was surprised but quickly nodded with a smile. "Alright." She walked forward to Ye Futian''s side and led him through a gate, leaving the Ancient Barren World. All the other people saw this and gradually started to follow, preparing to head back as well.


    Chu Lian''s expression was dark. Ye Futian had humiliated her simply with the wave of his hand.


    As soon as Ye Futian exited the Ancient Barren World, he had arrived at the Moon Clan''s Ancient Peak. The jaded mountain peak looked divine. Birds chirped and flowers bloomed. Heaven on earth.


    "Hua Jieyu cultivates at the Xiaoyue House. I am also a disciple there but as soon as Hue Jieyu entered the clan, she was taken in by the leader to be taught personally. I''m not as gifted," said Ning Qiaoqiao. She led Ye Futian and the others in one direction.


    "What about Chu Yaoyao?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Chu Yaoyao cultivates at the Qianyue Pavilion. That was her younger sister before, Chu Lian. She cultivates at the Hanyue Temple," explained Ning Qiaoqiao. "Other than that, there is also the Moon Tower where the clan leader cultivates."


    "Got it," nodded Ye Futian. It seemed like every top power had complicated relations within. Hua Jieyu and Chu Yaoyao were obviously from different groups.


    Ning Qiaoqiao continued to lead Ning Qiaoqiao forward. Along the way, many people asked questions but when they found out he was Ye Futian, all they did was smile. This seemed like a normal thing to them.


    Ye Futian of the Cottage was here to visit his girlfriend. It was nothing out of the ordinary and no questions needed to be asked.


    Stepping into the Xiaoyue House territory, Ye Futian could see many beautiful girls. After finding out about his identity, they all gathered around in curiosity. He was a serious bigshot nowadays. He had actually come to the Moon Clan to see his girlfriend.


    Just then, Ye Futian stopped moving and smiled at a girl in front of him. "So, we meet again."


    The female returned a smile. It was the Hua Jieyu''s messenger, Yun Rou.


    "Senior Sister Yun," greeted Ning Qiaoqiao.


    Yun Rou nodded in acknowledgment. Looking at Ye Futian with a smile, she asked, "Here to see Jieyu?"


    "Yeah." He smiled.


    "I''ll take you there," she said.


    "Thank you."Ye Futian nodded and the two of them headed off in some direction. However, on the road there, a group of people approached from ahead. A group of women. A picturesque sight.


    The laughter was music to the ears. Ye Futian''s eyes fell on the figure at the center of the group. It seemed that in the year that Hua Jieyu had cultivated at the Moon Clan, she had become even more beautiful. Ye Futian thought to himself, Good thing I made my move quick.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes locked on Ye Futian. Her clear eyes filled with hints of bitterness, longing, and joy. Her slender fingers reached up to brush away the hairs obstructing her vision, and she looked at Ye Futian shyly. Just one look was enough to make Ye Futian feel like she had taken his soul.


    This Fox, how was she still so captivating?

 291 Not Modest at All

    Chapter 291: Not Modest at All


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian let out a bright smile and watched the girl across from him in silence, carefully taking in her beauty. And Hua Jieyu did the same to him. The two of them looked at each other with smiles that met their eyes. The shyness in her eyes became more evident but the gentle smile never left her face.


    "Why are you looking at me like that?" Her voice was soft. In Ye Futian''s ears, her words were flirtatious. She turned her head away from him slightly but was still captivating as ever.


    "My wife has gotten even more beautiful." Ye Futian smiled. As soon as he spoke, all the girls around began to giggle.


    "Who''s your wife?" Hua Jieyu lowered her head at his words, a timid expression was on her face. Many of her senior sisters were watching! How could this guy be so brazen?


    Ye Futian smiled brightly and walked up to her. He put his hands on her hand and ruffled her soft hair. Hua Jieyu''s face grew even redder. Lifting her head slightly, her beautiful, timid eyes stared at Ye Futian.


    "You..." Ye Futian said softly. Another wave of giggles and laughter ensued. They were all teasing Hua Jieyu. Feeling the countless eyes on her, Hua Jieyu''s face burned.


    "I haven''t agreed yet." Hua Jieyu stared at Ye Futian with a pouting face. She then turned around and jogged off. She was too embarrassed with so many people looking on. This jerk really knew how to pick the worst settings. Smiling big, Ye Futian began to follow her.


    "Is it really necessary for you guys to show off just how in love you guys are?" Yun Rou chuckled from the sidelines.


    "Exactly. We''re all single here," said another member of the Moon Clan. They were being too shameless. The Moon Clan was a place for females to cultivate and a majority of them were single. It was too hateful for the two of them to show off like this.


    "Thanks, everyone." Ye Futian left the crowd with a smile. The Black Wind Eagle waddled behind him, wings flapping and then moving up to cover its eyes. Even it couldn''t bear to watch the couple. Seeing the Black Wind Eagle like this, the crowd was first surprised but recovered quickly and started laughing hysterically. This demon beast was something else.


    The couple arrived in the courtyard where Hua Jieyu lived. She slowed her pace and Ye Futian asked her with a smile, "So, are you going to agree to be my wife?"


    Hua Jieyu stopped walking and turned around to stare at him. With small steps, she was now standing directly in front of him. She lifted her head to him. Her beautiful eyes were bright and clear, her gaze gentle. She stared at the handsome face in front of her.


    Getting on her tiptoes, Hua Jieyu placed her hands on Ye Futian''s shoulders and said softly, "I agree." With these words, her enchanting red lips met his for a soft peck.


    Ye Futian felt like his heart had melted. His gaze was still on her when he said, "Fox, you''re so captivating. I just want to eat you up."


    "You wouldn''t dare," Hua Jieyu answered with a flushed face.


    "Why wouldn''t I?" Ye Futian said this while his arms wrapped around her slim waist and held her tightly. He then kissed her fiercely. Hua Jieyu''s small hands curled into a fist and hit him lightly. Shortly after, she stopped fighting it and let Ye Futian continue.


    A while later, Ye Futian finally let her go. Seeing how flushed and shy she looked made him smile. "Can we take care of this here and now?"


    "Go to hell." Hua Jieyu lifted her long leg and kicked Ye Futian lightly. This guy kept pushing his luck. What went on in that head of his?


    The sight of Hua Jieyu acting like a teenage girl made Ye Futian feel as if they were back in the past. The days of beautiful youth.


    "Jieyu, I''m prepared to take a trip back to the Nandou Nation. Are you coming with me?" Ye Futian asked softly.


    "Yeah." She nodded. Naturally, she knew of what happened in Chaoge City. The battle between Ye Futian and Luo Junlin in the Nandou Nation would be the end of his rivalry with the country. Of course, she had to go with him. Plus, she had wanted to head back for a visit herself.


    "Let''s go see my teacher." Hua Jieyu took Ye Futian by the hand and led him away. Not long after, they arrived at a building in a serene area. Hua Jieyu''s teacher, also the leader of the Xiaoyue House, lived here. She looked very young and was beautiful. She was a tranquil beauty, elegant and refined. It was very comfortable to look at her.


    "Teacher," Hua Jieyu called out. Ye Futian bowed and greeted her as well, "Greetings, Senior."


    Goddess Xiaoyue gave him a once over. This was the man that her disciple was in love with. He was indeed exceptional. She had heard all about his gifts and abilities early on. His looks and aura were the best of the best. He was very well-matched for Hua Jieyue.


    "Jieyue is always talking about you. She can''t even focus on cultivating by my side. Tell me, what should I do about that?" Goddess Xiaoyue smiled. It was evident from her tone that she was joking. Hua Jieyu glanced at her teacher. When had she talked about Ye Futian? Her teacher was doing this on purpose.


    "If so, then if Senior doesn''t mind, I am willing to stay and cultivate in the Moon Clan. If I''m always with her, then she won''t miss me." Ye Futian smiled in response.


    Goddess Xiaoyue blinked a couple of times, then turned to smile at Hua Jieyu. Her little boyfriend was quite dreamy.


    Hua Jieyu glared at Ye Futian. This guy definitely does not have pure intentions.


    "Forget about it. You even took the Demon Clan''s Witch as your servant. I don''t want more of your servants to show up in the Xiaoyue House." Hua Jieyu chuckled at Ye Futian. Ye Futian gave her an awkward look. Hua Jieyu smirked and said, "I heard the Witch even took care of you in Chaoge City."


    "Uh��" Ye Futian was speechless. Someone had tattled.


    "It was a misunderstanding. That was only a joke. You should know me by now, Jieyu. Don''t you know how I feel about you? Am I that type of guy?" Ye Futian asked straightforwardly.


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded with a smile on her face. From his expression, it was obvious that he felt wronged.


    "Stop being all lovey-dovey in front of me, you two," smiled Goddess Xiaoyue. Hua Jieyu blushed immediately. Returning a glance, she said, "What are you talking about, Teacher?"


    Goddess Xiaoyue stared at her for a moment and smiled. "Do you want to leave the mountain?"


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded. Of course, her teacher knew about the happenings in Chaoge City.


    "Your heart hasn''t been here for a while, right?" joked Goddess Xiaoyue. "Remember to come back. Don''t get carried away by a certain someone." Ye Futian could feel the sweat running down his face. It seemed like Goddess Xiaoyue had a deep misunderstanding of him.


    Just then, footsteps from the outside were heard. Yun Rou and others had come. She looked at Goddess Xiaoyue and said, "Teacher, the people of the Qianyue Pavilion and Hanyue Temple claim that Ye Futian trespassed into the Moon Clan. They''re asking if he''s here."


    Goddess Xiaoyue frowned. She turned to Ye Futian. "What happened?"


    "Please forgive me, Senior." Ye Futian bowed and then proceeded to explain the situation. Yun Rou nodded in agreement. "One of our fellow Xiaoyue House disciple, Ning Qiaoqiao, witnessed the entire thing. That''s what she said as well."


    "If so, then Chu Lian was purposely giving Ye Futian a hard time." Goddess Xiaoyue sounded a bit upset. They didn''t say anything after what happened last time, but it seemed that the opposing party still held a grudge.


    "But even so, Chu Lian is a disciple of the Moon Clan, and Ye Futian is an outsider. Ye Futian fought them and entered the Moon Clan by force. Using this as an excuse, there isn''t much we can do to fight back," said Yun Rou.


    "Qin Li should be at the Qianyue Pavilion, correct?" Goddess Xiaoyue asked suddenly.


    "Correct," nodded Yun Rou.


    "If so, then you go tell her, if they want to start something with Ye Futian, they are welcome to. If they''re gutsy enough to pick a fight with a disciple of the Cottage, then I''m obviously not going to stop them. If they try to bring up the Moon Clan''s reputation, ask them if Chu Lian is allowed to block Ye Futian from coming into the Moon Clan to look for a disciple of my Xiaoyue House. Did they ask for our permission before Qin Li entered?"


    Yun Rou nodded at every word Goddess Xiaoyue said. "I understand. I will go tell them now."


    "I should go with her," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay. Yun Rou, on your way, guide Ye Futian and Jieyu off the mountain," said Goddess Xiaoyue.


    "Yes, Teacher," nodded Yun Rou.


    "Thank you, Senior." Ye Futian lifted his hands and bowed to her before they left.


    At the entrance to the Xiaoyue House, there were many people waiting. Powerful cultivators of the Qianyue Pavilion and the Hanyue Temple were present. Chu Yaoyao and Qin Li were also among the crowd. When Ye Futian''s group approached them, everyone''s attention turned to him.


    Chu Yaoyao took one look at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu who were standing side by side, and then thought of Qin Li beside her.


    Yun Rou stepped forward and said to the crowd," The situation has been made clear. Ye Futian came to see my junior sister, and the Xiaoyue House had agreed to it. He did not trespass into the Moon Clan. As for the accusation that he hurt Junior Sister Chu Lian, Ye Futian has stated that she was deliberately trying to give him a hard time and not allowing him to enter clan territory. This was why he made a move and that was personal between the two of them. If Chu Lian or anyone else has something to say about that, they can go directly to Ye Futian. The Xiaoyue House is part of the Moon Clan, so obviously, we won''t be interfering in their personal business."


    Those from the Hanyue Temple and the Qianyue Pavilion frowned. Based on her attitude, it was obvious that Yun Rou was not happy about this. Take things on directly with Ye Futian? What about the Cottage?


    Yun Rou took the Moon Clan out of the equation and claimed that it was personal business. This was pushing everything onto Chu Lian.


    "Chu Lian is a disciple of the Moon Clan. What''s the problem with her stopping an outsider from entering?" someone from the Hanyue Temple asked coldly.


    "If Ye Futian was here for someone in the Hanyue Temple, then it wouldn''t have been a problem. But he came for someone at our Xiaoyue House. Since when did we need permission from the Hanyue Temple?" Yun Rou''s tone was still soft and gentle. "The Qin''s royal grandson is also present. Did anyone come to ask the Xiaoyue House for permission when he entered clan territory?"


    Qin Li''s eyes widened. Yun Rou had put him on the spot. "I was simply making an example. I don''t have anything against you. Please forgive me if I have caused you any inconvenience."


    "It''s fine," Qin Li answered nonchalantly with a smile. "I have witnessed the ways of the Cottage''s disciples back in Chaoge City. Everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory knows. You are right, though. This isn''t a big deal. If Ye Futian is willing to apologize to Chu Lian, then we can all put this behind us. We shouldn''t let it hurt the relationship between anyone here."


    Ye Futian looked over at Qin Li. This guy is becoming more and more of an eyesore.


    "Since when did you have a say in my business?" Ye Futian spoke in a cold demeanor. He was not modest at all!

 292 A Storm of Change Is About to Hi

    Chapter 292: A Storm of Change Is About to Hit


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Of course, Ye Futian knew that Qin Li''s utterance was meant to instigate more problems for him. He knew that it was impossible that Ye Futian would apologize. Qin Li''s ultimate goal was to put Ye Futian in a bad light with the members of the Moon Clan. Otherwise, what qualifications did Qin Li have to tell Ye Futian what to do?


    Qin Li was not a member of the Moon Clan.


    The royal Qin grandson was a definitely not an ordinary identity, but with the Cottage''s status in the Eastern Barren Territory, a disciple of the Cottage wouldn''t care about a royal grandson.


    Qin Li stared at Ye Futian and chuckled. It didn''t seem like he was bothered. "I was simply concerned. I only want the best for the Moon Clan. Looks like I have overspoken."


    Ye Futian stared right back. He''s a sly one. He always tried to turn people against Ye Futian, but never confronted him directly.


    "On top of the Ancient Peak in the Ancient Barren World, many other Moon Clan members heard what Chu Lian said and saw what she did. Do I need her permission to come and see Jieyu? And to use an excuse like dating can affect cultivation? If so, then what is the royal grandson doing here in the Moon Clan? Don''t tell me you came to play." Ye Futian''s cold eyes swept over everyone in front of him. When his gaze fell on Chu Lian, he said, "It looks to me like you guys have a pretty good relationship. So, why is it a distraction to cultivation when it comes to me? In your heart, you know well whether or not you were purposely being difficult with me. Do you think that everyone is an idiot?"


    If this was the way Chu Lian and the others wanted to do things, then Ye Futian was going to let them. Didn''t she feel like a despicable person? Ye Futian didn''t care about his relations with these people. So, what if some people in the Moon Clan didn''t like him? Was he supposed to simply let Chu Lian stop him from entering and just go back to the College? Simply because of what they thought? Or was he supposed to apologize and admit that he was in the wrong?


    Chu Lian and the others didn''t look too good. Ye Futian continued, "What Yun Rou said is right. You are welcome to pick a fight with me, but don''t claim that I disrespected the Moon Clan as an excuse. Who does Chu Lian think she is? Can she represent the entire Moon Clan? I will take my leave now." Ye Futian said his goodbyes and stepped forward with Hua Jieyu by his side. The crowd in front of them very naturally parted to make way for them and watched Ye Futian and the others leave.


    The Black Wind Eagle followed behind them, flapping its wings. Its sharp eyes swept over everyone. One could feel its disdain with just one look.


    This dumb creature. Chu Lian was pissed. How dare it look down on them.


    "The disciples of the Cottage are domineering as usual." Qin Li chuckled. Everyone around him did not seem like they were in the best of moods. "Let''s go." Naturally, they were going to have to report this incident to the elders.


    Chu Yaoyao watched Ye Futian''s departing figure and felt a mix of emotions. Even though Ye Futian didn''t know her, every time she saw him, her impression of him deepened.


    Ye Futian obviously didn''t care about what Chu Yaoyao and her friends thought of him. Sometimes, when someone came from a different standpoint right from the beginning, it wasn''t worth the hassle because it wouldn''t change anything.


    Yun Rou sent them off the Moon Clan territory, and the couple mounted the Black Wind Eagle to return to the College. In the skies of the Ancient Barren World, the Black Wind Eagle soared with Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu on its back.


    "It''s nice when it''s just the two of us." Ye Futian looked to the beauty beside him. Standing there, her long hair fluttering in the wind. She looked like a fallen angel, her beauty incomparable to any worldly things.


    "There''s also a demon beast." Hua Jieyu smiled lightly.


    "Should we roast it for dinner?" Ye Futian said jokingly. The Black Wind Eagle jolted in shock. Please don''t joke like that. It would scare an eagle to death.


    Hua Jiyu rolled her eyes at him. Ye Futian walked forward until he was standing behind her and wrapped his arms around her slim waist. Holding the beauty tightly in his arms, he placed his head on her shoulder. Tilting his head downward, his nose was in her hair, inches away from her neck. Her sweet scent was an attack on his senses. Hua Jieyu''s face flushed red immediately. His actions were so flirtatious.


    "Jieyu, I missed you so much," Ye Futian''s said softly.


    "I missed you too," she replied. The Black Wind Eagle blinked a couple of times. Oh gosh, this was too much, even for an eagle.


    "Jieyu, do you know what my greatest wish is every day?" Ye Futian asked. His soft voice was warm and affectionate.


    Hua Jieyu shook her head.


    "My greatest wish is for you to be the first person I see when I open my eyes in the morning," he said gently.


    Hua Jieyu blinked, and when she registered what he had said, she blushed even harder. The color reached her eyes and she stomped down on Ye Futian''s foot. In what sounded like a whining tone, she said, "How shameless."


    "Fox, when do you plan on fulfilling my wish?" Ye Futian teased her with a smile on his face.


    "In your dreams," she said.


    "I do often see you in my dreams." He sighed.


    "I''m not talking to you anymore." Hua Jieyu couldn''t stand him anymore. She wanted to move forward but could not escape the tight embrace of Ye Futian. Her body relaxed and leaned into him. It was a scene right out of a storybook.


    When they got back to the College, Ye Futian explained why Loulan Xue had come. This made Hua Jieyu question whether all his words on the way here were paving the way for this.


    Arriving at the Cottage, Ye Futian brought Hua Jieyu to the second senior sister. The first thing the second senior sister and Beitang Xing''er thought when they saw Hua Jieyu was that she was beautiful. The second thing that came to mind was still that she was beautiful.


    "So beautiful," Zhuge Hui complimented. Smiling at Ye Futian, she said, "Little brother, how come I feel like everything you told me before was a lie?" This rascal complimented her every day. He told her she looked like a goddess and that there was no one who could compare to her beauty. It turned out, he was hiding such a beautiful girlfriend. It was suspicious indeed.


    "How could that be? In my heart, the second senior sister and Jieyu are equally beautiful," Ye Futian stated matter-of-factly. Obviously, Hua Jieyu wasn''t going to call him out in front of Zhuge Hui.


    "Is that so?" Zhuge Hui chuckled at his response. "You''re such a sweet talker. It''s no wonder you tricked the best-looking girl to be your girlfriend. You''re indeed my junior brother."


    Ye Futian scratched his head and muttered, "Senior Sister, there was no trickery going on. It''s mutual attraction."


    "Yeah, mutual attraction." The second senior sister was amused by Ye Futian''s actions and started laughing.


    Passing by, Yi Xiaoshi and Luo Fan witnessed this scene and sighed deeply. They then lowered their heads and went on with their own business.


    What a monster.


    Hua Jieyu stayed for a meal at the Cottage and then headed back to the Guqin Gardens with Ye Futian. He was going to head out first, going back to the Cangye Kingdom for a visit before meeting her in the Nandou Nation.


    ...


    The Hundred Lands, at the entrance to the Ancient Barren World


    Ever since the entrance opened over a year ago, this area began to thrive compared to its previously barren state. A city was built from scratch. Emperors of countries all over the Hundred Lands had set up quarters in this area. There was no way the area wouldn''t flourish.


    Now, powerful cultivators in all different planes roamed the streets of this city. Whether they were in the Arcana Plane or the Dharma Plane, they all wanted to test their luck in the Ancient Barren World. Even though it was possible that they would lose their lives there or might come back with nothing, people continued to go. This was a great opportunity in the eyes of those in the Hundred Lands.


    Just then, a commotion was heard from the Ancient Barren World''s entrance. A group of people could be seen exiting and stepping into this space. Leading them was a middle-aged individual. His aura was outstanding and domineering. He reached out both hands and an energy was released. A force of noble will erupted from him. He looked up at the sky and laughed maniacally. "The heavens have not forsaken me!"


    Noble. He had finally reached the plane of his dreams. A plane that only emperors could reach.


    Although he could already feel the power in the Ancient Barren World, he could not hide his excitement once he stepped out onto this land.


    Noble. From here on out, he stood at the top of the Hundred Lands. He had finally reached the level of his ancestors and had the qualifications to become the emperor of a country.


    The cultivators behind him smiled. This trip to the Ancient Barren World had been a dangerous one. Life-threatening situations at every turn. Some of their fellow Arcana Plane cultivators were never going to come back but it was all worth it. This was the chance they had been waiting for. The clan leader was now in the Noble Plane. After being oppressed for so many years, he was finally now a Noble.


    This middle-aged individual was the leader of the Nandou Clan, Nandou Tai.


    After his outcry, everything fell silent again. His eyes swept over everyone in his surroundings. He said, "Let''s go." Then, he moved to leave the area. Although he was now in the Noble Plane, he still couldn''t be rash when it came to Ye Futian and Luo Junlin who were disciples of top powers in the Eastern Barren Territory. It was unfortunate that he wasn''t a Noble all those years ago. Though it wasn''t too late. At least now he was qualified enough to deal with many things. Emperor Luo probably wouldn''t dare to mess with the Nandou Clan again.


    "Who is that?" someone asked.


    "Don''t know," replied an emperor in the area. They were all confused by the departing figure.


    "How many cultivators have made it into the Noble Plane so far?" an observer questioned. Since the Ancient Barren World opened, more and more Nobles in the Hundred Lands were born.


    A little while after Nandou Tai left, another group exited the Ancient Barren World. These people had terrifying auras. Just one look was enough to have people trembling in fear.


    "Are we there yet?" someone among the newcomer group asked.


    "We''ve arrived at the entrance to the Ancient Barren World in the Hundred Lands. We''ll head to Nandou now," a young man answered. In a flash, they were all on the move, traveling in a certain direction as a pack. Their energy filled the area.


    There was absolute silence at this moment. Many people looked to the large group in the sky.


    That was the energy of Nobles.


    Other than the young man, everyone else was a Noble.


    This�� It was impossible that the Hundred Lands had such a powerful force.


    "That looked like the Crown Prince of Nandou, Luo Junlin," said an emperor. Everyone''s eyes widened immediately.


    The Nandou Nation''s Luo Junlin was back? He had joined the Royal Xuan Temple, a great power of the Eastern Barren Territory, and now he was back with many Nobles in tow. What did this mean?


    A year ago, Ye Futian joined a top power and many emperors gave in to him and were still in the Cangye Kingdom. Lots of people went to pay their respects back then. They felt that Cangye was on an unstoppable rise.


    But what now?


    Luo Junlin had returned with Nobles. This news spread like wildfire throughout the city. People from all countries in the Hundred Lands got ahold of this news and they realized: a storm of change was about to hit the Hundred Lands

 293 Everyone’s Attitudes

    Chapter 293: Everyone��s Attitudes


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Nandou Nation, imperial palace.


    In the past year, there seemed to be a force of pressure in the skies above the palace causing the entire area to feel suppressed. There were many emperors in the Cangye Kingdom and also all emperors were willing to ally with them. Ye Futian was also fought over by top powers of the Eastern Barren Territory. All of this combined caused everyone in the Nandou palace to feel heavy-hearted.


    Emperor Luo felt extremely pressured and thus, he spent the past year almost entirely on cultivation. He was waiting for an opportunity. When happenings of this past year faded into the past and when he became more powerful, Emperor Luo was going to head to the center of the Eastern Barren Territory. There, he was going to get rid of Ye Futian once and for all. He was willing to wait��wait for the perfect time. He was not going to give Ye Futian a chance to grow.


    Just then, a group of powerful cultivators appeared in the sky above the palace. This got the attention of many in the palace, causing them to lift their heads. When the sight of the youth leading the group became clear, everyone grew excited.


    "The Crown Prince is back."


    "Junlin had returned leading Nobles."


    More people looked up. This was the moment they felt the heavy burden being lifted off.


    Crown Prince Luo Junlin had returned and he was leading a group of Nobles. What did this mean? Immediately, people came running from all directions of the palace. The entire place began crowded and lively, contrary to the pin-dropping silence it was in before.


    A figure stepped into mid-air. It was Emperor Luo. He looked to Luo Junlin and the Nobles. "Junlin, you''re back."


    "Father," Luo Junlin called out. "This is my teacher, and these are elders from the Royal Xuan Temple." The Royal Xuan Temple''s fifth lord, He Yulu. He had come in person to see Luo Junlin kill Ye Futian. If Luo Junlin couldn''t kill Ye Futian, then he would watch Luo Junlin be killed.


    Emperor Luo''s heart pounded. He had heard from Luo Junlin last year that his teacher was the fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple, a bigshot in the Eastern Barren Territory. And now, he was here in person.


    "Greetings, fifth lord." Emperor Luo was very polite. He placed himself below the other party. Even though he was an emperor, he was nothing when in front of a person of high status from the Eastern Barren Territory.


    He Yulu simply glanced at him. "Let''s go down."


    "Yes, teacher," nodded Luo Junlin. He was not in the best mood right now. He had been watched for days now, there was no way he could escape this battle.


    There was a light in Emperor Luo''s eyes. Luo Junlin''s teacher didn''t seem too happy.


    "Where is Miss Xirou?" Emperor Luo asked his son. He knew that He Xirou was the fifth lord''s daughter and Luo Junlin''s girlfriend. She was very polite to him when they had met. He quite liked this future daughter-in-law.


    "Father," called Luo Junlin. He watched as He Yulu stopped in his track and glared coldly at Emperor Luo. This caused the father-son duo to shiver. They had a bad feeling. Could it be that Luo Junlin came back because something happened?


    He Yulu descended and walked into the palace with the Luo''s following behind him. There was tension in the atmosphere. Luo Junlin saddled up beside his father, "Father, Ye Futian challenged me to a battle here in Nandou."


    Emperor Luo''s eyes sharpened immediately. Ye Futian challenged Luo Junlin to a battle? It had only been a year. Was Ye Futian able to fight against Luo Junlin now? On top of that, he had been the one to initiate the challenge. Did this mean Luo Junlin was the passive party?


    "Where''s Xirou?" Emperor Luo used spiritual energy to project his message. He could feel something was amiss.


    "Xirou." Luo Junlin was muttering. "Xirou went up against Ye Futian for me. She has died because of Ye Futian''s clan. I will avenge her."


    Emperor Luo halted abruptly, heart pounding loudly. All the color left his face.


    He Xirou was dead! And her father, a big shot in the Royal Xuan Temple, had come here with Luo Junlin who was the passive party in a challenge with Ye Futian.


    Of course, he knew what this meant.


    Was Ye Futian now capable of causing the death of the daughter of a Royal Xuan Temple lord? What''s more, Ye Futian set the battle in the Nandou Nation. Why?


    Emperor Luo thought of a lot of things at that moment. He thought back to when both Luo Junlin and Minister Hua reported to him about Ye Futian. He had then nonchalantly written up the imperial order and set it directly to Donghai City. He had said that everything under the heavens belonged to him.


    In Nandou, his will was the will of the heavens.


    He wanted Ye Futian to be a study attendant, essentially a servant, and Hua Jieyu to be the Crown Princess. Now, in merely two years, he felt shivers hearing Ye Futian''s name again.


    Others in the palace did not know why Luo Junlin had come back. They were still in heated discussions regarding this topic. Everyone seemed so excited. The news of this continued to make its way out of the palace.


    Not long after, Minister Hua stepped into the imperial palace. He moved rapidly and had a commanding presence. His eyes were sharp and a smile was spread across his face. Was the Crown Prince back with a group of Nobles?


    This was exciting news.


    At the same time, there was a remote courtyard located at the border of the deep palace. It was a run-down location that looked like it hasn''t been cleaned in a long while. It was hard to imagine that such a place existed in such an extravagant palace.


    Just then, an extremely beautiful female walked into the courtyard. The guards outside bowed and greeted, "Princess."


    The female was the princess of Nandou. She was no longer the little girl she was before. She had blossomed into a captivating beauty with a hint of indifference and grace.


    Inside the run-down courtyard, a figure sat quietly on an old rocking chair. He seemed so relaxed and dazed as he looked up at the sky. It didn''t seem like he noticed the princess'' arrival.


    "Teacher, I''m here to see you," she called out. The figure seated in front of her was the Nandou Nation''s Minister Zuo. He was placed on house arrest in the palace.


    "Child, I told you not to come as often anymore. Wouldn''t want His Majesty to get upset," said Minister Zuo.


    "My older brother came back from the Royal Xuan Temple with a bunch of Nobles," she said.


    "I saw." His tone was still so calm. He did not seem fazed.


    "Teacher, do you still believe in your prophecy?" she asked. "If you apologize to my father, I can put in a good word to get him to forgive you too."


    Minister Zuo chuckled and shook his head. "Silly girl. This isn''t a good sign for Nandou. Just look at the sky." Saying this, he reached his arm to point at the sky. "So red, blood red."


    She took a look and sighed inwardly. "Take care, Teacher." Then, she turned to leave. The princess had been trying her best but never managed to persuade anyone.


    Minister Zuo was still smiling up at the sky. The evils we bring ourselves are the hardest to bear.


    The news quickly spread all over the Hundred Lands. On the second day of Luo Junlin''s return, many emperors from surrounding countries came to pay the Nandou Nation a visit. Even when He Xirou had come, many of them arrived to see her. Now, Nobles from the Royal Xuan Temple were here and the rumors even said one of them was a lord of the temple.


    In the past year, many emperors became close with the Cangye Kingdom. They were afraid that Emperor Luo might hold a grudge against them for that. There was no way these emperors from the Hundred Lands knew what was going on at the center of the Eastern Barren Territory. They also didn''t know why Luo Junlin came back with the Nobles.


    Ever since Luo Junlin entered the Royal Xuan Temple and the door to the Ancient Barren World opened, the Hundred Lands have been in a state of unrest. Nobody wanted to get sucked into the storm and potentially lose their lives. Everyone wanted to move up in life.


    In a situation like this, how could they not visit when a bigshot from the Royal Xuan Temple was here? Thus, the entire Nandou palace��no, the entire imperial city��was filled with a celebratory atmosphere. It was as if the Nandou Nation was welcoming the peak period of their country. Nandou had its reputation ruined during the Tingfeng Banquet over a year ago. Now, the Crown Prince was back. Was he finally able to make the country proud?


    Emperor Luo welcomed the visiting emperors like nothing was wrong. They drank and chatted. Through Luo Junlin, he got an understanding of the whole situation. However, he did not announce it to anyone. There weren''t even that many people in the palace that knew.


    On the other hand, the atmosphere in the Cangye Kingdom was the complete opposite of that in Nandou. After getting the news, everything became tense. This was especially true in the Cangye palace. Many people felt just a bit worried.


    Luo Junlin was back with Nobles. It was obvious that he came prepared. They were definitely not here in the Hundred Lands for an innocent visit. So, why were they here? To destroy Cangye?


    Had something happened to Ye Futian in the Eastern Barren Territory? Some people thought so. Others thought it might be possible that Ye Futian, Ye Wuchen, and the others who left for the Eastern Barren Territory weren''t favored by elders of their clans. So, perhaps they didn''t have any say, unlike Luo Junlin. Therefore, he was able to get Nobles on his side and get them to return with him.


    This was very possible. After all, Ye Futian and the others were still at lower levels of cultivation. Luo Junlin was levels above them and even got the daughter of a high authority figure to be his girlfriend.


    Presently, in the Cangye palace, Emperor Ye frowned at the news he received.


    "Father, after a thorough investigation, the big shot is a lord of the Royal Xuan Temple. It''s the father of Luo Junlin''s girlfriend. He is also his teacher," said Ye Danchen.


    "Is Luo Junlin already able to mobilize power like that?" Emperor Ye was worried.


    If these people made a move on Cangye, they wouldn''t be able to fight it.


    "Father, should we send people immediately to investigate the situation at the center of the Eastern Barren Territory?" asked Ye Lingxi softly.


    "If they really wanted to make a move, then it''s already too late. I hope Futian and the others are fine." Emperor Ye thought of Ye Futian and the others, they''re outstanding cultivators, so they should be fine.


    "Brother Ye." A voice rang out suddenly. A group of people flooded in. They were the emperors of Yunchu, Yan, and various other countries. They had promised Ye Futian that they would stay in Cangye and listen to Emperor Ye''s orders.


    Emperor Ye frowned at the sight of them. How dare they barge in. They weren''t usually like this.


    "Brother Ye, I heard that Luo Junlin came back leading a group of Nobles from the Royal Xuan Temple," said Emperor Chu.


    "And?" Emperor Ye lifted an eyebrow at him.


    "Brother Ye, under these circumstances, we would like to leave Cangye temporarily. You wouldn''t mind, would you?" asked Emperor Chu. In a situation like this, if the Royal Xuan Temple made a move on Cangye, they would most likely go down with the country.


    Emperor Ye''s gaze sharpened immediately and said coldly, "When Ye Futian made you guys stay, it wasn''t so you could vacation here. It was to prepare for any danger. Now that it has come, you want to leave?"

 294 Betrayal

    Chapter 294: Betrayal


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Why had Ye Futian ordered the emperors of all these countries to stay in Cangye? It was a defense measure against Emperor Luo, of course. Now that Luo Junlin was back with a group of powerful cultivators, many people thought they would target Cangye. So, Emperor Chu and the others wanted to leave?


    "Brother Ye, you see the situation right now. If the people Luo Junlin brought back really attack Cangye, then for us to stay here would be waiting for death. We''re better off observing from afar, and then, if needed, we will come to your aid. You should be understanding of this," stated Emperor Yan. It was obvious none of them were willing to take a risk. When Luo Junlin charged over with the Nobles, it was going to be the end.


    "And what if I say I can''t be understanding?" Emperor Ye said with a smile.


    "It is truly disappointing that you would be so unreasonable," Emperor Chu replied. "If Brother Ye is unwilling to think for us, then I don''t see the point of this friendship."


    "Friendship?" Emperor Ye laughed sarcastically. "Don''t you guys forget the reason why you stayed. You were the ones who begged Ye Futian. You guys gave yourselves up to Cangye as an act of redemption."


    Back then, the six emperors allied with He Xirou and Luo Junlin, demanding that Ye Futian''s friends and family be relinquished. They wanted to kill Ye Futian. Then, Ye Futian came back on the kunpeng and the emperors came to ask for forgiveness on their own accord. They wanted to talk "friendship" now?


    When they had just given themselves up to be controlled by Cangye, they acted with the utmost respect. They agreed to whatever Ye Futian said and were also were polite with Emperor Ye, referring to him as "His Majesty". But after some consideration and some time together, Emperor Ye didn''t feel the need for them to address him as so and reverted to addressing each other as "Emperor". He had become friendly with his fellow emperors. But now��


    Thinking of this, Emperor Ye said again in a cold manner, "You guys were the ones who were willing to give up power. That was the only reason why Ye Futian let you all off the hook. It seems like you have forgotten this in just a year''s time. If so, then do as you please. Also, you better pray that Luo Junlin and his people are absolutely sure they can take on Futian and the others. Otherwise, if Ye Futian and his friends come out unscathed, I will be the one praying for you guys. Praying that when you come to our doorstep begging for forgiveness once again, he''ll let you all go a second time."


    Did they want to be fence-sitters? Everyone knew how to do that. But this wasn''t that simple. They had threatened Ye Futian''s family. He only decided to keep them in Cangye because he was worried that there would be nobody to protect the country once he left. But they wanted to leave now, immediately after Luo Junlin returned?


    They sure knew how to switch sides for their own benefits.


    Emperor Chu''s group looked at one another and shared a common look in their eyes. Naturally, they understand what Emperor Ye meant, but the problem was, they were in imminent danger while the threat of Ye Futian was not immediate. How should they decide?


    Of course, it was to take care of the immediate danger. The other choice was to stay here with the Cangye people and lose their last fighting chance when Luo Junlin attacked.


    In all honesty, they also wanted to wait and get a clear understanding of the situation or they could travel the long distance to the center of the Eastern Barren Territory and investigate.


    However, danger was too close. Rumor had it that emperors of many other countries had already arrived in Nandou and were having a jolly good time socializing with Emperor Luo. The Hundred Lands were already stirred up by the situation and everyone was talking about it. It was said the Nandou Nation could mobilize its troops at any time. Plus, it wouldn''t take long for the Nobles to arrive in Cangye due to the proximity between the two countries. There was no time.


    The lesser of two evils. This was a simple choice to make.


    Emperor Ye''s words hit a sore spot for the emperors. If they left now and Luo Junlin couldn''t get rid of Ye Futian, they would still be in danger.


    There was only one way out. They had to pick a side.


    They had already decided to leave for Nandou. Once they got there, the emperors were going to apologize and beg for forgiveness. They were forced to stay in Cangye, against their will. Would Emperor Luo be understanding of them? Under these circumstances, should they do something to prove their sincerity?


    The emperors looked at one another and sent secret messages telepathically. Emperor Ye raised a brow, seemingly noticing that something was amiss. He turned to Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi, "You two should step out."


    "Yes." The royal Ye siblings could feel the weird atmosphere as well and prepared to leave.


    "Attack." Right after Emperor Ye had spoken, the six emperors made their move abruptly. Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi''s faces fell and they tried to retreat. But these were Nobles, it wasn''t that easy to escape them. The pair of siblings were captured in the blink of an eye.


    "Presumptuous!" Emperor Ye yelled furiously. Sword qi filled the air and covered the entire area in a matter of seconds. However, the emperors of Yunchu and Yan stood as a blockade in front of Emperor Ye''s children. They gave off a similar burst of wild energy. Emperor Chu said, "Forgive us, Brother Ye. We don''t have a choice. We''ll be borrowing the prince and princess."


    Emperor Ye moved his arms about and sword qi blanketed the sky. The six emperors froze. Emperor Chu said, "Brother Ye, don''t push us. Would the palace be able to withstand it if we fought?"


    Six against one. There was no questioning the results and many people in the palace would die.


    "Father," called out Ye Danchen, "we''ll go with them." He knew well and clear of the situation they were in. If anybody made a move, the Cangye palace would be in danger.


    "Father, send someone to the Eastern Barren Territory. Nothing will happen to us," said Ye Lingxi. The two of them were furious too. These bastards actually had the nerve to betray Cangye. Ye Futian was the only one they could believe in now. He wasn''t going to let this go.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and the other two were their friends. The two royal children saw for themselves how well the group did in the Ancient Barren World. Even though Luo Junlin had the upper hand right now, as long as Ye Futian wasn''t dead, the two of them would be fine.


    "Danchen, Lingxi." Emperor Ye turned green while his eyes burned red with rage.


    "Brother Ye, we have no other choice. Farewell for now." The six emperors left in a flash and made their way out of the palace in no time. Then, they went to get their families. When they had surrendered to Cangye, one of Ye Futian''s conditions was to have the royal families from these countries move to Cangye. But now that the six emperors chose betrayal, their families were a direct threat.


    The Cangye palace was in an uproar. Emperor Chu and the others had actually betrayed them. They also took Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi. Was it so they could go seek refuge with the Nandou Nation?


    Emperor Ye stood there with a darkened expression. Sword intent flowed around him, almost suffocating. Naturally, he knew why Emperor Chu took Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi��as an offering to the Nandou Nation, to make amends.


    The emperors understood that since they had chosen to betray Cangye, they must make their way back to Luo Junlin. There was no going back after this. They had to make mend their relationship with Nandou.


    When the news got out, the imperial city of Cangye was in an uproar. The reactions were as strong as an earthquake. Dark clouds shifted and spread in the skies above the imperial city. Could it be that the rumors were true? Luo Junlin was bringing people to attack Cangye?


    In the imperial city, the Lin''s were a powerful family. Cangye''s number one beauty, Lin Yueyao, lifted her head to the skies. The news that trickled out from the palace shook the city. It was only natural Lin Yueyao would find out. The figure of a handsome young man came to mind for her. Luo Junlin had made a fierce return. What about him? Where was he? She hoped that nothing had happened to him in the Eastern Barren Territory. She was worried.


    Presently, no one knew how things would turn out under these circumstances.


    The Nandou Nation was lively. Emperors from all over had arrived. All the while, the Cangye Kingdom was met with stormy skies. It seemed like in the span of a single night, the two countries had swapped positions. And what would be their fate?


    ��


    Ye Futian had no idea what had happened in the Cangye Kingdom and nobody knew that Luo Junlin''s return with the Nobles would cause so much commotion.


    When he made the six emperors pledge their allegiance to Cangye, it was indeed to protect the country. It was to give Cangye the power to speak up to the rest of the Hundred Lands. He never anticipated any of the present events when he did what he did back then. The six emperors had betrayed Cangye and Ye Futian''s past decision had created a direct threat to the country.


    Presently, Ye Futian was still on the way back. There was a long way back to the Hundred Lands. They passed by many deserted areas. It took a long time, even for Nobles.


    In the cloud-ridden skies above the barren lands, a kunpeng soared with wings that looked like the clouds in the skies. It was the kunpeng from the Liu Kingdom.


    Ye Futian didn''t choose to depart from the Ancient Barren World. Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and himself were in the Dharma Plane while his master, Hua Fengliu, and the others were in the Arcana Plane. There were also the nine Nobles. If they left from the Ancient Barren World, they wouldn''t have been able to travel together. Thus, they decided to travel the distance to meet up first.


    On the way, the passed by the east of the Eastern Barren Territory. That was where the Liu Kingdom and the Fuyun Sword Clan were located. Liu Feiyang, Liu Chenyu, and Ye Wuchen brought a lot of their own people to travel with them.


    Up ahead, on the land below them, was an enormous, magnificent ancient city. Looking down from the skies above, the ancient city looked white like it was sculpted from white jade.


    "Son, this is Loulan City." On the kunpeng, a Noble of Loulan pointed this out to Ye Futian.


    "Yes, but we''re in a rush now, so we won''t be stopping. We''ll come again if we get the chance next time." Ye Futian nodded at the Noble. Liu Feiyang smiled at Ye Futian. They all knew how Ye Futian became the Son of Loulan out of nowhere. What a Son he was, to skip over the city just like that.


    "Alright," the Noble nodded in return. They listened to the Empress'' order and followed Ye Futian. Obviously, they would do what he said. As long as he didn''t ask them to cause harm to Loulan, Ye Futian''s every word was their command.


    The kunpeng continued to advance on their rushed journey to the Hundred Lands, passing directly over Loulan City.


    In the Loulan Palace below them, the Empress sat in an ancient meeting hall.


    Just then, a graceful female approached. She bowed and greeted, "Empress."


    "Lan, there is something I need to bother you with. You''ll have to take a trip," said the Empress.


    "Alright," the female nodded.


    "The Son, Ye Futian, will arrive in the Nandou Nation a short while later for a battle. Bring a group of Loulan''s most powerful Nobles over to greet the Son. Other than that, if he is victorious, you guys don''t have to do anything. But if he loses, I don''t wish for anything to happen to him," said the Empress.


    "I understand." This young lady was the Empress'' most trusted subordinate. She had been with the Empress for many years, through thick and thin. She was known as the person only lesser to the Empress.


    Lan left the hall and the Empress sat back in her chair. Her eyes drifted outside. They would pass by Loulan on the way to the Hundred Lands from the Eastern Barren Territory, but that rascal, Ye Futian, felt prejudice against her. He was definitely not going to come. However, she didn''t care. To her, it didn''t matter what he thought of her.

 295 Rage

    Chapter 295: Rage


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Imperial City of the Nandou Nation was immersed in a joyous atmosphere, especially the Imperial Palace. Many people were looking forward to the prince Luo Junlin leading an army of cultivators and attacking Cangye. According to His Majesty, this day was not far away. Within a few more days, they would eliminate Cangye and kill Ye Futian.


    Due to the overwhelming announcement, people from different parts of the Nandou Nation came to the Imperial City one after another. People from all the major cities had come to observe the situation.


    In the Imperial Palace, there was a continuous stream of people entering to pay a visit. They included the leaders of various families in the Nandou Nation. The Nandou clan had also sent someone to the palace to send their congratulations.


    Suddenly, outside the Imperial Palace, a group of people descended from the sky. They were the emperors from the Yunchu Nation, the Yan Kingdom, and so on. They were still holding Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi in captivity.


    There were many people outside the Imperial Palace, some of which recognized them and exclaimed uncontrollably, "They are Emperor Chu and Emperor Yan."


    "That''s right. Didn''t they submit to the Cangye Kingdom? Why are they at the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace now?"


    Everyone''s eyes sparkled. Then they saw the emperors holding Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi in captivity. A strange expression appeared on their faces as they had vaguely guessed what was happening. Even the six emperors who had submitted to Cangye were planning to change their master now.


    Emperor Chu said to the guard of the Imperial Palace, "We would like to meet Emperor Luo. We have brought with us the prince Ye Danchen and the princess Ye Lingxi of the Cangye Kingdom."


    "Please wait for a while," the guard said, feeling very pleased. Over these days, many emperors had arrived. Even the six emperors who had submitted to Cangye that time were surrendering at the moment. It was all thanks to prince Luo Junlin who had brought such prosperity to the Nandou Nation. Before long, Emperor Chu, as well as the other emperors, was invited into the Imperial Palace.


    In the palace of the Nandou Nation, Emperor Luo was drinking tea and chatting with many other emperors. They sat on the ground and appeared to be very relaxed. Noticing the arrival of the six emperors, Emperor Luo glanced at them and smiling, he said, "Why are you here?"


    "Brother Luo, last year, we fought together. However, because of the situation at that time, we had to submit to Cangye. Fortunately, the prince has finally made his grand return now, and we no longer need to live a petty life under the Cangye Kingdom. We have brought the prince and princess of the Cangye Kingdom here to visit you," Emperor Chu said. Many other emperors looked at him. He had said everything in such a beautiful way. Furthermore, he was actually so calm and thick-skinned.


    "Why did you bring the prince and princess of the Cangye Kingdom to Nandou?" Emperor Luo asked emotionlessly. "I think you should settle this yourself." After he finished speaking, he continued drinking his tea quietly, as if he was a mystery.


    At the moment, he was sneering in his heart. The six emperors were people who would bend with the wind. That time, when the Cangye Kingdom was strong, they all wanted to enter and enjoy the benefits. Now when Luo Junlin had just returned, they received the news and came here to observe the situation. Since this was the case, he would fulfill their wish.


    He did not say anything about the situation in the Eastern Barren Territory, and also did not mention the challenge. He deliberately created a false impression that Luo Junlin had brought the cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple here to destroy Cangye. He wanted to see how these people would react. As for the consequences, he was no longer bothered at the moment.


    If Luo Junlin won the challenge, Ye Futian would die, and the Cangye Kingdom would, of course, be destroyed. Everything would happen naturally. If his son, Luo Junlin, lost�� Then all these happy clowns would be buried with them.


    "Brother Luo, what do you mean?" Emperor Chu asked.


    Emperor Luo was still drinking his tea and did not say anything, allowing Emperor Chu to take his own understanding. He would not mind it even if Emperor Chu got the meaning wrong.


    Seeing the scene, the eyes of the six emperors sparkled, after which they glanced at Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi. Emperor Luo had asked them to settle everything themselves. How should they handle it? Was it not enough to bring them here?


    Suddenly, an emperor sitting opposite Emperor Luo asked, "Brother Luo, when do you plan to send the army and eliminate Cangye?"


    "There is no need to hurry. In a few days'' time, Ye Futian will come here and die. After he is killed, we will destroy Cangye," Emperor Luo said emotionlessly. His tone was very casual as if the Cangye Kingdom was insignificant.


    All the emperors smiled and said, "With such an outstanding descendant, you will become the king of the Hundred Lands in no time."


    Hearing all these compliments, Emperor Luo seemed very calm. However, the six emperors including Emperor Chu could not keep calm. It seemed that the rumors were indeed true. The news actually came from Emperor Luo himself and the Cangye Kingdom might be destroyed anytime. Fortunately, they had come to the Nandou Nation to apologize. There was still a chance for redemption.


    "Kill yourselves." Emperor Chu looked at Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi. Immediately, the faces of the two turned pale as they stared at Emperor Chu.


    "You are an emperor after all. Are you actually so despicable?" Ye Danchen said, staring at Emperor Chu.


    Slap�� Emperor Chu raised his hand and slapped Ye Danchen on the face, causing him to spit out a mouthful of blood. With a cold expression on his face, Emperor Chu said, "I don''t want to say anything unnecessary. Do it yourselves."


    Some sadness appeared in Ye Lingxi''s eyes. She was so young and did not want to die.


    "Are you not afraid of his revenge?" Ye Lingxi said, looking at Emperor Chu.


    "Didn''t you hear the words from brother Luo?" Emperor Chu sneered.


    Ye Lingxi smiled and said, "Although I do not know what happened, what does Luo Junlin, the prince of the Nandou Nation, have to compare with Ye Futian? Furthermore, there is still Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Hua Jieyu. You will definitely regret it."


    A cold aura was emitted from Emperor Luo, and a murderous intent filled the place.


    Ye Lingxi closed her eyes and a figure appeared in her mind. She was not resigned to her fate. Was she going to die like this? She did not want to die.


    Why did fate make fun of her like this?


    "Stop," someone shouted coldly. Then, Emperor Chu saw a graceful lady in a red shirt walking towards him. She looked at him coldly and said, "You are an emperor after all. This is too mean."


    That time, he surrendered to Cangye pettily. Now, he had brought the prince and princess of the Cangye Kingdom here to submit himself. In order to survive, he was really using all kinds of methods.


    Emperor Chu was humiliated like this and his face darkened. However, he knew that the lady before him was the princess of the Nandou Nation, Luo Mengyan. Therefore, he did not say anything and only looked at Emperor Luo.


    "Father, can you give them to me to handle?" Luo Mengyan said, looking at Emperor Luo.


    Emperor Luo glanced at his daughter, and then said to Emperor Chu, "What do you think?"


    "We''ll follow the princess''s wish." The few emperors nodded.


    "Alright," Emperor Luo said and looked at his daughter. He knew well that if Ye Futian won, he would surely die, and it would be over for the Nandou Nation as well. However, today Emperor Chu and the rest had brought Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi here. He was the bad guy, and his daughter saved them; he wanted Ye Futian to owe his daughter a favor.


    "Follow me," Luo Mengyan said, looking at Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi.


    The two glanced at each other. Then, they followed Luo Mengyan and left the place. Emperor Chu actually really wanted to harm them, and the princess of the Nandou Nation saved their lives.


    After the three left, Emperor Luo looked at the six emperors and said emotionlessly, "How about a drink together?"


    "Thank you, brother Luo." Delight could be seen on the few emperors'' faces. They walked forward one after another and sat down on the ground. The many emperors started to chat casually, discussing the future situation of the Hundred Lands. There were even a few emperors who hinted that they would honor the Nandou Nation as the king of the Hundred Lands in the future.


    They knew that they could not do anything to stop the Nandou Nation from sending out the army and defeating the Cangye Kingdom. Instead of being passive, they might as well be more active which could perhaps bring them more benefits.


    ...


    When Emperor Chu stepped into the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace, a Kunpeng was flying quickly in the sky above the Cangye Kingdom Imperial City.


    "We''re finally here." Ye Futian looked below him. Buildings and clouds flashed past them as they rushed directly towards the Imperial Palace.


    "Master, Masteress, we''ll visit Uncle Ye first, and then go to Donghai City," Ye Futian said, looking at Hua Fengliu.


    "It''s your call," Nandou Wenyin said, smiling.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded gently. They could already see the Imperial Palace below them.


    At the moment, the atmosphere in the palace was still very tense. Emperor Ye had already sent someone to the Eastern Barren Territory, but he would not be able to make it in time, because they did not have much time left. Even with his own speed, he would need several days to go to the Eastern Barren Territory and come back, not to mention his man.


    There was more and more news coming from the Nandou Nation so that Emperor Luo could send out his army anytime. Under such a circumstance, it was clear how desperate the people in the Imperial Palace were. However, suddenly, a whizzing sound erupted from the sky and a gust of violent wind blew across. Many people raised their heads in astonishment. Then, they saw a Kunpeng. Its cloud-like wings extended as it descended slowly. At this instant, everyone held their breaths and wild joy filled their minds.


    The Kunpeng arrived, so did Ye Futian.


    In the Imperial Palace, everyone''s heart beat rapidly as they awaited Ye Futian''s arrival. Emperor Ye had naturally seen it as well and his eyes sparkled. He flashed and turned into a sword, ascending into the air.


    On the back of the Kunpeng, Ye Futian and the rest smiled and looked at Emperor Ye.


    "Uncle Ye," Ye Futian shouted with a smile on his face.


    "Your Majesty," Hua Fengliu, Yi Xiang, and the rest also shouted. They had a good relationship with Emperor Ye.


    Emperor Ye smiled and nodded at everyone. However, his smile was somewhat forced, as if something was bothering him.


    "Futian." Emperor Ye''s tone was very low, and the usual warmness in his voice was completely missing. Noticing the difference, Ye Futian and the rest knew at once that something was amiss. Withdrawing his smile, Ye Futian asked, "Uncle Ye, what happened?"


    "Luo Junlin returned to Nandou with many cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple, saying that he would send an army to attack Cangye. The six emperors are traitors and brought Danchen and Lingxi away. They have probably already offered them to Emperor Luo," Emperor Ye said in a low voice.


    Boom. Just as Emperor Ye finished speaking, a freezing aura erupted from Ye Futian''s body immediately and his face turned extremely cold. The six emperors had forced Emperor Ye to hand over his family members. However, because of the situation in Cangye, when the six emperors begged them and chose to surrender, he still gave them a chance, asking them to stay in Cangye for ten years. Now, the six emperors actually betrayed them directly and also took away his friends Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi. His mood at the moment could be well imagined.


    Ye Wuchen stepped forward. Sword will was emitted from his body and a murderous intent filled the place.


    "Uncle Ye, come here," Ye Futian shouted.


    Emperor Ye knew what Ye Futian wanted to do. He flashed and landed on the back of the Kunpeng.


    "Senior Kunpeng, please go there at the fastest speed," Ye Futian said. The wings of the Kunpeng trembled and its large body flashed out like a bolt of lightning, sending a gust of violent wind towards the ground. The people in the Imperial Palace all felt that they could not stand firmly. Then, they saw the Kunpeng shoot into the clouds in an instant, flying off into the distance.

 296 How Overpowering

    Chapter 296: How Overpowering


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the moment, many cultivators were gathered outside the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace, staring at the majestic palace. There were many emperors inside the palace, including the six emperors from the Yunchu Nation and the like who had come to apologize.


    Nandou Yue was a cultivator from the Nandou Clan, whose leader had just entered the Noble Plane. However, Luo Junlin had returned, and they had to observe the situation first. Because of their leader''s current level, they were thinking about whether the Luo Family could return the Nandou Nation to them after dominating the Hundred Lands or perhaps give them another kingdom, such as Cangye.


    Nandou Yue came here to send his congratulations, and at the same time gather more information. More than a year ago, the Cangye Kingdom and Ye Futian were so glorious. However, all of this turned out to be illusory and was about to become history.


    "Greetings, Minister Hua." Suddenly, Minister Hua walked out of the Imperial Palace.


    "I heard that the leader of the Nandou Clan has entered the Noble Plane. Congratulations," Minister Hua said emotionlessly, feeling somewhat envious. Nandou Tai actually stepped into the Noble Plane before he did.


    "All thanks to your support. When can I meet His Majesty and the prince?" Nandou Yue asked.


    "His Majesty is now chatting with various emperors, while the prince is cultivating with the people from the Royal Xuan Temple. You can follow me and take a walk around the palace," Minister Hua said. Nandou Yue nodded and said, "Alright then. Thank you. Then, the two walked towards the palace.


    Suddenly, a fierce whizz was heard in the distance, accompanied by many exclamations, causing Minister Hua and Nandou Yue to stop and turn around to take a look. There, a giant was charging directly towards the palace at an astonishing speed. It seemed to be a Kunpeng.


    "Kunpeng." Minister Hua''s look turned serious. More than a year ago, Ye Futian rode a Kunpeng to return to Cangye. Now, a Kunpeng appeared in the sky above the Nandou Nation. Was he here?


    Apart from him, many people outside the Imperial Palace raised their heads and looked at the sky as well, all feeling shocked.


    It was actually the legendary demon Kunpeng.


    The enormous Kunpeng flew towards the Imperial Palace directly. Finally, the group of people on its back became visible. Their leader was a handsome man with an icy expression. He was, of course, Ye Futian.


    That time during the Tingfeng Banquet, Ye Futian behaved extremely frivolously. There were too many people in the Nandou Nation who knew him.


    "Ye Futian is back." Everyone was very surprised. Furthermore, he was going towards the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace.


    Minister Hua frowned. After the prince returned, His Majesty said that after a few more days he would kill Ye Futian and destroy Cangye. Indeed, Ye Futian was here. It seemed that His Majesty and the prince knew about it all along.


    Nandou Yue''s eyes sparkled. He did not only see Ye Futian, but also the charming and elegant lady beside him. She was Hua Jieyu, a junior whom the Nandou Clan had put in a lot of effort to train. Also, Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin were all there.


    "Stop them," Minister Hua commanded coldly. Just as he finished speaking, the guards ascended into the air and blocked the path to the Imperial Palace. They looked at Ye Futian and his team and shouted, "Stop."


    "Enter," Ye Futian said. The Kunpeng''s wings trembled and its huge body charged forward. Needless to say, the guards were all sent flying away directly. Following a loud rumble, the gates of the Imperial Palace collapsed due to the collision. Behind them, countless people witnessed the scene and felt flabbergasted. Did Ye Futian just break into the palace?


    "How dare you." Minister Hua flashed and blocked in front of them. His look was extremely cold.


    "Kill everyone in the way," Ye Futian said. The Silver Snow Guards behind him released their noble auras and stepped forward. Minister Hua was very shocked. Seeing the incoming Silver Snow Guards and the Kunpeng, he did not dare to intercept and backed away immediately with his look turning very black.


    How did he dare to block?


    At the moment, many important people from the Royal Xuan Temple were inside the Imperial Palace, including the fifth lord. Why did Ye Futian dare to break in by force? Even if he had nobles with him, he should not be so bold.


    The Kunpeng flew past Minister Hua. Standing on its back, Ye Futian glanced at Minister Hua. His extremely freezing look caused Minister Hua to feel cold throughout his body. Ye Futian''s look made him feel that he was looking at a dead person. It was as if in Ye Futian''s eyes, Minister Hua was already non-existent.


    Nandou Yue''s heart raced wildly. Not long ago, he was still thinking that Ye Futian and the Cangye Kingdom would probably both be eliminated this time. However, in the blink of an eye, Ye Futian was here, and he broke into the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace by force.


    But did Emperor Luo not say that he would kill Ye Futian and destroy Cangye?


    Why did Ye Futian still dare to do so? Did Ye Futian really not get any help from his clan? Then where did those nobles come from?


    "Let''s go," Minister Hua said coldly. He continued moving forward, following the Kunpeng.


    At the moment, the various emperors who had been drinking tea inside the Imperial Palace had noticed the sound outside. Emperor Luo''s look turned cold, for he knew that Ye Futian had come. Only he knew the reason for Luo Junlin''s return. He did not tell anyone else and even announced to the public that he was going to kill Ye Futian and annihilate Cangye.


    However, Ye Futian was now here.


    It was really funny that those foolish emperors from the Yunchu Nation and the like heard the rumors and wanted to surrender to him. But he would obviously not care about the fate of those emperors.


    During that time, these people who would always fall on the side of the stronger had already betrayed once. Since they were willing to come here, he welcomed them warmly. Clearly, he was not bothered about the consequences.


    "What is happening?" All the emperors were astonished.


    "What happened?" Emperor Chu''s eyes sparkled. Suddenly, Emperor Luo stood up and smiling, he said, "Brothers, you should get up and welcome the guests." After he finished speaking, he started walking forward. Before him, a Kunpeng suddenly appeared fiercely. On its way, many people wanted to stop it but did not dare to do so. Therefore, they could only watch the Kunpeng flatten many buildings and eventually reach the place.


    Ye Futian appeared on the Kunpeng.


    The emperor from the Yunchu Nation froze and his heart trembled violently. Ye Futian once again rode the Kunpeng here. The scene was extremely similar to the one that happened more than a year ago. Moreover, this time, there were more powerful cultivators beside him.


    "Where are they?" Ye Futian asked coldly. He did not say anything unnecessary and questioned the emperor directly.


    Seeing the scene, Emperor Ye was very surprised. On their way, Ye Futian''s look was very cold as he was in a bad mood, while Emperor Ye was also worried about Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi. Thus, the two were not in the mood to chat about the things that happened in the Eastern Barren Territory. He was therefore unclear about the situation as well and only followed Ye Futian to the Nandou Nation.


    From the way that they entered the Imperial Palace, it seemed that Ye Futian was not afraid of Luo Junlin at all. So did Emperor Luo purposely spread the rumors these few days?


    Seeing Ye Futian''s look, the six emperors looked at Emperor Luo one after another.


    Emperor Luo stared at Ye Futian. At the same time, Ye Futian was also looking at him. The two stared at each other, and this was the first time that the two really stood opposite each other. Although they had already met on the Tingfeng Banquet, Ye Futian was still too weak to stand opposite him at that time. However, at the moment, when Ye Futian looked at the once all-powerful emperor who changed his fate with just an edict, there was only coldness in his eyes.


    In the past, Emperor Luo was far more superior than him. He could not even reject an order from Emperor Luo. However, now, he had seen too many nobles.


    "Ye Futian, did you just break into my Imperial Palace like this?" Emperor Luo was looking at the handsome young man in front of him, and also recalled the events in the past. The young man whom he was not bothered with, and whose fate he once thought he could easily change was already famous in the Eastern Barren Territory at the moment. He could even force He Xirou, the daughter of the fifth lord of the Royal Xuan Temple, to die.


    How ironic that was.


    "Do you want your whole family to die?" Ye Futian''s tone was extremely icy. He was not polite at all as he threatened directly. Just as he finished speaking, everyone present was astounded, especially the six emperors from the Yunchu Nation and the like. The sentence was like a bolt out of the blue.


    Ye Futian asked Emperor Luo if he wanted his entire family to die.


    How contemptuous and arrogant that was?


    It was precisely the meaning behind such arrogance that really caused all the emperors present to feel a wave of coldness fill their bodies.


    Ye Futian came here in such an overpowering way, and he definitely knew that Luo Junlin was here. Therefore, what did it mean when he dared to speak to Emperor Luo in such a way?


    At this instant, Emperor Chu''s face turned extremely pale. He felt that he might have made a fatal mistake.


    Apart from the emperors, Minister Hua and Nandou Yue also felt frozen after hearing Ye Futian''s words, as if Ye Futian said that line not only to Emperor Luo but also to them.


    "Where are they?" Ye Futian continued in an icy tone. Emperor Luo''s expression became as awkward as it could possibly be. The young man whom he could once eliminate with just an order was speaking to him with such a tone at the moment.


    Do you want your whole family to die?


    "Ye Futian, how dare you," someone suddenly shouted coldly. Luo Junlin and the people from the Royal Xuan Temple had arrived. A trace of hope was rekindled in Emperor Chu''s heart as he prayed that Luo Junlin could deal with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at Luo Junlin. Just as Luo Junlin stopped and was about to speak, Ye Futian said emotionlessly, "Do you believe that I can kill you right now?" The Cottage had its own rules. He Xirou bore the full responsibility for his attempted assassination and killed herself, thus Luo Junlin was not punished.


    Ye Futian knew that Luo Junlin had played some dirty tricks, but he still did not rely on his seniors in the Cottage to kill Luo Junlin directly. Instead, he gave Luo Junlin an official challenge and a chance to take revenge. The loser would die. However, if Luo Junlin and the Nandou Nation did not follow the rules, then the challenge would be unnecessary.


    Luo Junlin''s face turned pale. He knew that Ye Futian would really dare to do so.


    Ye Futian dared to kill him, but the people from the Royal Xuan Temple did not dare to kill Ye Futian. The reason was simple��the Cottage was stronger. Furthermore, Ye Futian''s status in the Cottage was way higher than his own status in the Royal Xuan Temple. Therefore, even if Ye Futian really killed him, the Royal Xuan Temple would hate Ye Futian, but nobody would dare to take revenge for him for the moment.


    If the previous line from Ye Futian had caused the mood of Emperor Chu and the rest to worsen to the extreme end, then this line caused the six emperors to become extremely desperate and regretful.


    Ye Futian asked Luo Junlin if he believed that Ye Futian dared to kill him immediately.


    Who was killing who after all?

 297 Death of the Six Emperors

    Chapter 297: Death of the Six Emperors


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    All the emperors felt extremely cold. They could vaguely feel that they may have been deceived by Emperor Luo. Now that they thought about it carefully, Emperor Luo had indeed been deliberately announcing the news all along. In reality, after the people from the Royal Xuan Temple arrived, they stayed in the Imperial Palace and did not really show up.


    They did not come here to eliminate Cangye.


    But was Emperor Luo the only person to put the blame on? Hearing that the people from the Royal Xuan Temple had arrived at the palace, the various emperors came to visit themselves. They were the ones who could not retain their composure, and many other emperors actually did not come. Why could they not keep calm? That was because they wanted to benefit from the situation.


    The important people from the Royal Xuan Temple had arrived, and the prince of the Nandou Nation had also returned. Under such a circumstance, Emperor Luo chatted with them and remarked casually that he was going to obliterate Cangye. Would they suspect anything?


    No, they believed it firmly. Therefore, the rumors kept spreading.


    Until this moment, when Ye Futian rode the Kunpeng and broke into the Nandou Imperial Palace by force, something seemed to be broken.


    Nandou Yue''s heart trembled gently. If Ye Futian could kill Luo Junlin, then how about the Nandou Clan?


    He looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu who was beside him. This unparalleled couple was almost taken to pieces that time, as Hua Jieyu was almost sent into the Imperial Palace. They used their lives to resist. Because of this, Hua Jieyu almost died.


    Thinking of this, terror and coldness started to fill Nandou Yue''s heart.


    Ye Futian''s dominance broke the fantasies of all the people present.


    "You are really arrogant," someone from the Royal Xuan Temple said coldly. Ye Futian threatened to kill Luo Junlin openly and was not bothered about the Royal Xuan Temple at all.


    "This is the resentment between me and them. It''s none of your business." Ye Futian glanced at the people from the Royal Xuan Temple. They gave a cold humph but ultimately did not say anything. Indeed, they had no reasons to meddle in the resentment between Ye Futian and these emperors. If the people from the Royal Xuan Temple were to intervene, they would not be standing opposite Ye Futian alone, but against the entire Cottage.


    It''s funny how these weak idiots actually kidnapped Ye Futian''s friends to go to Nandou. Pathetic indigenous nobles.


    Ye Futian''s words caused Emperor Chu and the other five emperors to feel a chill running down their spines. They trembled and really felt fear. Ye Futian said to the nobles from the Royal Xuan Temple that they were not in a position to intervene in the matter. What did this mean?


    "I will ask you one last time. Where are they?" Ye Futian''s voice was extremely cold. This time, he was really angry.


    "They''re with me," someone said suddenly. Luo Mengyan was already here not long ago. Seeing Ye Futian''s overpowering attitude, she was similarly shocked. She walked forward, staring at Ye Futian. This man, who had punched her when they first met, no longer had the immaturity he had when was younger. At the moment, his temperament was more elegant and his look was more handsome. He had ridden a Kunpeng to this place and brought many powerful cultivators with him. However, he was here to take back what they owed him.


    Ye Futian was naturally able to recognize Luo Mengyan as well. She was about 18 or 19 years ago, the age when a lady was the most beautiful. The previously capricious princess seemed to be more sensible and charming at the moment. She stood gracefully at her spot and her tall stature was almost perfect. She was still wearing a flame red attire and was very eye-catching, but her previous self could still be faintly seen in her eyes.


    "Give them to me." Ye Futian was, however, not polite at all as he glanced at Luo Mengyan emotionlessly.


    Luo Mengyan gazed at him and said stubbornly, "How can you speak to me like this?"


    Ye Futian frowned. It seemed that she had not changed after all.


    Stepping forward, some coldness spread from Ye Futian''s body.


    "Do you want to hit me again?" Luo Mengyan stared at Ye Futian with her water-like eyes. Her wronged look caused a strange expression to appear on the face of everyone. Why did they feel that the princess of the Nandou Nation was once bullied by Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian had indeed beaten Luo Mengyan several times. The first time was during a friendly fight in the Donghai Academy, while the second time happened in Qingzhou. That time, Luo Mengyan wanted Qin Yi to become her servant, and she was punched by Ye Futian once again. She even complained to Minister Zuo.


    Seeing Luo Mengyan''s look, Ye Futian also felt somewhat weird. Although Luo Mengyan was capricious, he did not have a poor impression of her. Nevertheless, she was the daughter of Emperor Luo and her position was destined.


    "Futian." Suddenly, a gentle voice came from the distance. It was from Ye Lingxi. She and Ye Danchen rushed towards Ye Futian and Ye Lingxi said, "Futian, the princess is not involved in this. She saved us."


    "Lingxi, Danchen." Noticing that the two were safe and sound, Ye Futian finally set his mind at ease. He approached the two and said, "Are you injured?"


    "No. It''s just that someone with surname Chu slapped my face," Ye Danchen sneered, looking at Emperor Chu. He and Ye Lingxi had always believed Ye Futian, but they still did not expect Ye Futian to reach so quickly. He wanted to see for himself now how Emperor Chu could escape this time.


    Ye Futian glanced coldly at Emperor Chu. His look actually caused Emperor Chu to feel frozen, for he saw a murderous intent.


    "She saved you?" Ye Futian asked, looking at Luo Mengyan.


    "Yup. After we were brought here, Emperor Luo asked them to settle us themselves. He wanted to kill us, but princess Luo stopped them," Ye Lingxi said softly. Just now, they were already desperate and almost died, and Luo Mengyan saved them. Although they were enemies, Ye Lingxi was still grateful to Luo Mengyan.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly, after which he said to Luo Mengyan, "It seems like I misunderstood you. Thanks."


    Luo Mengyan smiled, but her smile was dreary and self-mocking. Did he merely say that this is a misunderstanding? From Ye Futian''s look and tone, she could feel an obvious sense of distance.


    He, whom her father wanted to kill but her master valued, really came back in a domineering way, just like what her master had prophesied. Would there really be a disaster for the Nandou Nation?


    "Very well." Ye Futian turned his head and looked at the six emperors from the Yunchu Nation and the like. A cold smile could be seen in his eyes.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s sneer, the six emperors'' faces instantly turned pale.


    "Brother Luo." Emperor Chu looked at Emperor Luo, wanting to ask for help. At the moment, only Emperor Luo and the people from the Royal Xuan Temple could save them.


    Seeing the scene, Ye Futian sneered. Did they still want to count on Emperor Luo now?


    "Ye Futian, go out of my palace to settle the resentment between you and them," Emperor Luo said coldly.


    "Shut up." Ye Futian glanced at Emperor Luo. The six emperors were allowed to enter the palace, and yet Emperor Luo asked him to settle the issue outside.


    Emperor Luo''s expression turned very bitter. He was the emperor of Nandou, and this was his Imperial Palace. At the moment, Ye Futian had shouted at and threatened him multiple times here, and made little of him.


    Hearing the conversation between the two, the six emperors became totally hopeless. They knew that nobody would be able to save them; neither Emperor Luo nor the Royal Xuan Temple could.


    Ye Futian''s dominance was way beyond everyone''s expectations. The Royal Xuan Temple did not dare to touch him. It was funny how they thought Luo Junlin had returned in order to kill Ye Futian and destroy Cangye. Emperor Luo also said so. But what was the reality?


    How hilarious.


    "It''s all him. We were bewitched by Emperor Chu. Master Ye, please forgive us," an emperor said, pointing at Emperor Chu.


    "B*stard," Emperor Chu roared in anger. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "Master Ye, I know that I am wrong. I swear that from now on, I will only listen to your orders."


    "Do you think that you still have value?" Ye Futian glanced coldly at Emperor Chu. Does he still want to live?


    During the first time, Ye Futian forgave them. The second betrayal was, however, unforgivable.


    Emperor Chu looked at the nobles on the back of the Kunpeng and became hopeless. That time, Ye Futian needed them to protect Cangye, and therefore chose to forgive them. How about now? After Ye Futian''s return this time, would anyone dare to touch Cangye again?


    There would be none.


    This time, he was not only valued by major forces. Instead, he led many nobles here himself.


    "From today onwards, the six kingdoms of yours will no longer exist," Ye Futian said coldly. "Kill them."


    "Yes." The nine Loulan Silver Snow Guards stepped out. They walked forward and instantly surrounded the six emperors, holding a silver spear each. Immediately, snow started to fall around them and an extremely cold aura engulfed the entire place. All the people below the Noble Plane started to shiver uncontrollably.


    The six emperors were desperate. Each of the nine nobles before them was stronger than any of them.


    Emperor Chu did not seem to be resigned to his fate. An extremely violent Spiritual Qi started to rage, and willow branches danced in the air, striking towards Ye Futian with an incredibly sharp aura. Emperor Chu was still struggling.


    However, beside Ye Wuchen, a cultivator stepped out. In an instant, sword qi filled the air and turned into an appalling sword screen, enveloping Ye Futian and the rest. The sharp willow branches swayed gently onto the sword screen, and an ear-piercing sound actually erupted, but they could not penetrate the screen at all.


    At the same time, the Silver Snow Guards moved. Snow danced in the sky and their spears pierced out like dragons. The terrifying snowstorm tried to bury the six emperors while an extreme coldness exploded from the silver spears.


    The nine spears, along with the snowstorm, finally arrived and a silvery light enveloped the whole space around the six emperors. Then, everyone saw a strikingly brilliant, dazzling silvery light.


    "No..." Miserable cries erupted. Overpowered in terms of grades, Emperor Chu and the other five did not even have the chance to show their powers. The sky-blotting silver light penetrated their bodies like snow, and the silver spears passed through their throats, but there was no blood. Their blood and bodies were frozen directly. They stood motionlessly as if they had turned into statues.


    The nine nobles flashed and returned behind Ye Futian quietly as if they had not done anything.


    The cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple looked at the nine nobles. Who were they? Clearly, they were not from the College. Then why were they beside Ye Futian?


    Emperor Luo, as well as the other emperors, did not, however, bother about the identity of the nine nobles. He only saw the death of the six emperors. They were killed like ants. At this instant, he felt sad because of the death of his kind. Would his ending be like this?


    As for Minister Hua and Nandou Yue, their faces turned completely pale, and even their bodies were trembling slightly, due to either the coldness of the air or the coldness within their hearts.


    They were emperors, the high-ups at all the places. In the Hundred Lands, they were kings. However, because of just one sentence from Ye Futian, the six emperors all died, turning into frozen statues.


    Suddenly, Nandou Yue thought about Nandou Tai who had entered the Nobles Plane not long ago. An intense fear filled his heart!

 298 The Supercilious Nandou Tai

    Chapter 298: The Supercilious Nandou Tai


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was not just Emperor Luo, Minister Hua, and Nandou Yue who felt fear. Every single emperor present, who had been drinking and happily chatting with Emperor Luo about the future, felt some coldness fill their bodies.


    At this exact moment, Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at them casually. His look was filled with iciness and ridicule.


    Ye Futian obviously knew why these emperors were here. They were probably all waiting for Emperor Luo to destroy Cangye and really knew how to take advantage of an uncontrollable situation.


    Unfortunately, they were wrong.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s look, all the emperors started to hate Emperor Luo. This b*stard actually told them that he would kill Ye Futian in a few days'' time and attack Cangye. They were all waiting for their benefits. However, at the moment, the six emperors had been frozen into statues, standing at their spots. This scene was too much.


    Turning his head, Ye Futian looked at Emperor Luo and Luo Junlin, and said, "There are four days left. You can start to prepare for your funerals." After that, he turned around and said, "Let''s go."


    There were only four days left before the scheduled battle between him and Luo Junlin. He would let Emperor Luo spend the four days full of anxiety.


    The Kunpeng ascended into the air and flew off into the distance. Outside the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace, countless people stared at the departing Kunpeng and their hearts trembled fiercely. Ye Futian had broken into the palace by force and left in one piece. The cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple did not manage to make them stay.


    "That''s Ye Danchen and Ye Lingxi," someone said. Everyone also noticed the two on the back of the Kunpeng. The two were brought into the palace by Emperor Chu, and now they were brought back by Ye Futian directly. What did this mean?


    Ye Futian came to the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace for them and successfully brought them back.


    What exactly happened in the palace?


    Nobody knew. At the moment, the palace was in dead silence. The six frozen statues stood there, and their throats all had similar wounds. Emperor Luo and Luo Junlin were speechless; Ye Futian asked them to prepare for their funerals.


    The people from the Royal Xuan Temple gave a cold humph, after which they left. The various emperors did not continue to flatter. At the moment, they were only thinking about how to redeem themselves. What did the look from Ye Futian before he left exactly mean? Would he come back to get even with them?


    "I need to go back and inform the leader." Nandou Yue suddenly thought of something. Ye Futian had come in such an overpowering way. Once he returned to Donghai, it would be a disaster for the Nandou Clan.


    Luo Mengyan stared at the disappearing figure. She lowered her head slightly and her eyes were red. A strange feeling developed in her heart.


    He is back. The master is right.


    Turning around, Luo Mengyan left the place. Over the year, she had become much more mature.


    "Minister Hua, announce this to the public: four days later, prince Luo Junlin will battle with Ye Futian outside the Imperial Palace. Life-and-death battle," Emperor Luo said coldly, looking into the distance. "In this battle, he will surely slay Ye Futian." His voice was very firm as if he was giving himself confidence. Luo Junlin could not afford to lose this battle. Defeat would be equivalent to death. He would die as well.


    "Yes." Minister Hua nodded and turned around, walking out of the palace. Nandou Yue also followed him and left. He was already not in the mood to congratulate Emperor Luo. Moreover, he would be trying to kill himself should he do so at the moment.


    "Everyone, please help yourself," Emperor Luo said emotionlessly. All the emperors cursed in their minds and hated Emperor Luo to the extreme. This b*stard.


    "Brother Luo, we will take our leave first," an emperor said, folding his hands. Although they really wanted to slap Emperor Luo to death now, they would still try not to offend him. From his words, there would be a life-and-death battle between Luo Junlin and Ye Futian. What if Luo Junlin wins?


    The various emperors ascended into the air and left one after another, all feeling very terrible. Emperor Luo sneered and glanced at them, after which he looked at the six frozen statues. All the emperors had come here willingly. They were merely small-minded people.


    Luo Mengyan came to the dilapidated courtyard again. Minister Zuo was sitting there as usual, staring blankly at the sky.


    "Master." Luo Mengyan lowered her head as if she was a girl who had done something wrong.


    "He is back," Minister Zuo muttered as if he was speaking to himself.


    "Yes, he is back." Luo Mengyan lifted her head and looked at Minister Zuo. Much of his hair had already turned gray and he appeared to be very old. For some reason, she felt very bitter at the moment.


    "Master, you were right. He not only came back, but the people from the Royal Xuan Temple did not dare to touch him," Luo Mengyan said softly. "That time, father suspected that you were being disloyal. But from the look of it, being the emperor of a kingdom will neither be his extreme nor be his target."


    Her father Emperor Luo had to be respectful towards the people from the Royal Xuan Temple, while Ye Futian scolded them directly. What was an emperor to him? Would her master even betray her father just in order to help Ye Futian become an emperor?


    "Betrayal?" Minister Zuo gave a self-mocking smile. "I once wanted to redeem everything, but your father walked towards the abyss step by step. Destined to become an emperor? If I did not see her that day, maybe I will think so as well. In life, sometimes such things do happen. You will meet a person whom you are destined to meet at a particular time. That is no coincidence, but rather fate."


    "Her?" Luo Mengyan did not understand.


    Minister Zuo recalled that fascinating figure in the sky. Her surname was Donghuang, while his surname was Ye.


    They met in front of Emperor Ye Qing''s statue. The two had a similar temperament. It was like they were born with it.


    "Mengyan, you are already much more mature than three years ago, and not as capricious as that time. In the future, you still need to live your life properly, and not under the shadow of this period. Forget what is about to happen," Minister Zuo urged. Luo Mengyan would not die; she was not a short-lived person. However, she was destined to be alone for her entire life.


    Although he said this, some things could not be changed by mere words.


    Luo Mengyan seemed to have vaguely understood something and felt extremely sad. With some tear marks at the corners of her eyes, she said softly, "Master, if at that time I was not so capricious, if at that time I could be closer to him, and did not act superior because I was the princess, could I have changed everything?"


    Minister Zuo shook his head and said, "Silly girl. It''s not your fault."


    Luo Mengyan''s eyes turned completely red. For some reason, tears started to flow down her cheeks continuously.


    ...


    The Kunpeng soared in the sky. Emperor Ye also could not remain calm after the trip to the Nandou Nation.


    Luo Junlin returned to kill Ye Futian? How ironic.


    "Under Ye, you can settle the six nations including the Yunchu Nation," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright." Emperor Ye nodded.


    "Feiyang, you can let senior Kun send Uncle Ye and the rest back to Cangye first. I have something to settle in Donghai City," Ye Futian said to Liu Feiyang. There were some things in Donghai which he had to deal with.


    "Do you need us to follow you?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "Nope. It''s some family matter of my master and masteress. I will take care of them myself. The Silver Snow Guards will follow me," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay," Liu Feiyang nodded. Then, the group split into two. Emperor Ye, Liu Feiyang, Ye Wuchen, and the rest would return to Cangye. Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Hua Fengliu, Nandou Wenyin, Yi Xiang and Tang Lan would go to Donghai.


    ...


    The Donghai City was quite remote and close to the East Sea. It was the main city of the East Sea Prefecture.


    The news that prince Luo Junlin had returned had obviously spread to Donghai. However, the impact here was clearly much weaker than the Imperial City. The two places were too far apart, and the people here could not feel the atmosphere there. Only major clans would pay close attention to the situation in the Nandou Nation. To the Donghai City, the most significant event recently was that the leader of the Nandou Clan had stepped into the Noble Plane.


    After the news spread, an endless stream of people started to visit the clan and give them presents, almost destroying the gates of the Nandou Clan. In addition, people from many major clans wanted to ally with the Nandou Clan through marriage. They sent their men to marry the ladies in the Nandou Clan or sent their princesses to the Nandou Clan.


    In the past, such a thing would definitely not happen. Although the Nandou Clan was similarly very strong before this and was indeed the most powerful clan in Donghai, it was still an old royal family. The emperor was suspicious and would surely not allow it to grow excessively. It was therefore not necessarily a good idea to be too close to the Nandou Clan. However, the situation at the moment was already different. At the instant when Nandou Tai stepped into the Noble Plane, they knew that many things would change. Emperor Luo might need to rely on his powers.


    Today, a grand banquet was being held in the Nandou Clan. All the powerful people from the Donghai City had come here to send their congratulations.


    Inside the Nandou Clan, the banquet seats were filled with people. All the major forces from the Donghua City had all arrived.


    An example was the Donghai Academy. It was of course led by Yan Shao, the Headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, and the Art Saint. The Vice Headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, Han Mo, had died mysteriously while chasing Ye Futian. At the moment, the Art Saint had taken over the position of the Vice Headmaster.


    Apart from the people from the Donghai Academy, Lord Luo was also here, as well as large clans such as the Lin Family. Lin Xiyue was among the people of the Lin Family; she was sitting with her father.


    Mu Hong, whom Hua Fengliu and Ye Futian had visited before, was also here. He was Hua Fengliu''s friend and was in the Arcana Plane. That time, he rejected taking Ye Futian in as his disciple.


    In summary, almost all the important people from the Donghai City were present. Nobody dared to not give a noble some face.


    A noble was someone who might become an emperor.


    After everyone had sat down, Nandou Tai stepped in slowly with a majestic gait and a noble style. He glanced at the crowd with a dignified look and then approached the only seat at the front, after which he sat down.


    "Greetings, Nandou Clan Leader." Everyone stood up one after another and saluted, appearing to be extremely respectful. From the moment he stepped into the Noble Plane, Nandou Tai''s status was already different.


    Nandou Tai glanced at the crowd with a sharp look, feeling very pleased. The scene made him feel the honor his ancestors once had��the feeling of being worshiped by everyone. This day was not far away.


    "Everyone, please sit," Nandou Tai said, waving his hand and fully displaying his style as a noble. Everyone thanked him and then sat down.


    Nandou Tai smiled. An emperor was worshiped by everyone just like this. At the moment, he was already a real king of the Donghai City, and the next step would be to become the emperor of a kingdom. He had already reached the required level, and all that was needed was an appropriate opportunity.


    He glanced at Nandou Wenshan who was lowering his head and sneered in his heart. So what if you are a direct descendant of the royal family?


    At the moment, he was already a true king. After the incident at that time, he did not punish Nandou Wenshan at all, because did not want to cross the line and also did not want another internal conflict.


    However, at the moment, the so-called descendant of the king no longer needed to exist, because he was the king. After Emperor Luo destroyed Ye Futian and the Cangye Kingdom, Nandou Wenshan and his relatives could disappear as well!

 299 Every Single One of Them

    Chapter 299: Every Single One of Them


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Since the School of the Emperor Star unified Donghai Academy, it had been taking firm control over the academy. However, as the best place to cultivate in the entire East Sea Prefecture, many young people from various places would still come here to cultivate.


    The academy was full of lively young people, many of whom were also discussing the situation of the Nandou Clan. A noble had actually appeared in Donghai City, causing many juniors in the academy to develop a sense of admiration.


    At the moment, a group of people with extraordinary temperaments appeared outside Donghai Academy and stepped into it. They were, of course, Ye Futian and his team.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Yi Qingxuan, and Tang Wan walked in front, stepping into the familiar place. They all felt that the things here had stayed the same, but the people had changed. Two years ago, they were cultivating here, but it was as if a long time had passed. They even felt like the environment was already somewhat unfamiliar.


    Yi Xiang, Hua Fengliu, Nandou Wenyin, and Tang Lan similarly sighed with emotions. They were also part of Donghai Academy in the past, and Yi Xiang was even the Headmaster of the School of the Finance Star. Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin had cultivated in the School of the Emperor Star before, while Tang Lan had cultivated in the School of the Finance Star. However, was the Donghai Academy now still the same Donghai Academy?


    The auras of Ye Futian and his team members were too outstanding and therefore they attracted the attention of all the disciples instantly, especially Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu who were walking at the front. Their looks were really too amazing. They are probably not disciples of Donghai Academy, right?


    Suddenly, a disciple who was about 18-years-old walked past. Seeing Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, his look immediately froze.


    "Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu." He stopped and muttered to himself, "Headmaster Yi." Then, he turned around quickly and ran into the distance. Immediately, the news that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu had returned alarmed the entire Donghai Academy. Even those young people were shocked after knowing their identities. Are they the ones who caused a great disturbance in the Nandou Nation that time? They were from Donghai Academy.


    After a while, some elders came to the place. Seeing Yi Xiang, Hua Fengliu, and the rest, they took in a deep breath.


    "Yi Xiang," someone shouted.


    "Where is Yan Shao?" Yi Xiang asked directly.


    "Why are you back here?" someone questioned.


    "Let''s go to the School of the Emperor Star," Ye Futian said coldly. The group continued to walk forward. When they reached the School of the Emperor Star, many disciples had already come down from the mountain and were staring coldly at them. Of course, some vigilance could be felt from the disciples.


    "Where is Yan Shao?" Ye Futian asked. "Is my grandmaster buried at the School of the Emperor Star?"


    That time, he had warned Yan Shao that his grandmaster must be buried at the School of the Emperor Star. Otherwise, he would let the whole school be buried with his grandmaster.


    "The School of the Emperor Star is not a graveyard," someone said coldly.


    "So this means my grandmaster is not buried here." Ye Futian''s tone became cold. He started to step forward.


    "Ye Futian, Nandou Tai has already entered the Noble Plane. I advise all of you to leave," someone said.


    "Nandou Tai, noble?" Ye Futian sneered. He looked at Yi Xiang and said, "Grandmaster''s death was directly caused by Minister Hua and Nandou Tai right?"


    "Yes," Yi Xiang nodded.


    "Okay, Nandou Tai will be buried with him," Ye Futian said emotionlessly. The hearts of the people from the School of the Emperor Star trembled.


    Yi Xiang took a step forward and a powerful might spread out. Looking at the people from the School of the Emperor Star, he asked, "Where is Elder Qin buried?"


    Feeling the pressure from Yi Xiang, the faces of the people from the School of the Emperor Star darkened, but they still did not speak.


    Bang. Yi Xiang stepped forward and punched out. In that instant, thousands of afterimages burst out from his fist. The expressions of the people in front changed drastically as they tried to block. However, following many loud bangs, they flew out directly one after another and spat up much blood. Their faces turned pale as they gazed at Yi Xiang. The Headmaster of the School of the Finance Star was becoming stronger and stronger.


    "Where?" Yi Xiang stepped forward.


    "After Elder Qin died, the School of the Emperor Star discussed how to bury him. The school is a place for cultivation and obviously cannot be used to bury anyone. Therefore, we cremated Elder Qin''s body. His ashes have been placed at the location where he used to live. In this way, we did not bring disgrace to him," someone said.


    "Ashes." Ye Futian gave a somewhat dreary smile. He flashed and started walking in the air. Hua Jieyu followed him and they went to the place where Hua Jieyu once lived, which was also where Elder Qin had resided.


    When they arrived at Elder Qin''s former residence, the place was already overgrown with weeds. The dilapidated courtyard had not been cleaned for a long time and was even sealed up. Nobody cared about the place.


    In the old house where Elder Qin used to live, there was a cinerary casket. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu stood in front of the cinerary casket and felt very sad. Tears flowed down from Hua Jieyu''s eyes as she said softly, "Grandmaster."


    Ye Futian''s eyes were also slightly red. He still remembered Elder Qin teaching him how to play the guqin at this place during that time. The smile from the kindly elder was so amiable. That day after waking up in the morning, the elder saw him with Jieyu and blessed them with eternal love.


    He also recalled the music "A Chaotic Nation" at the Nandou Clan that time. Although Elder Qin was about to die, he played the piece with much vigor and dignity which remained in everyone''s memories forever. However, after he died, he was merely placed here alone.


    Thinking about this, Ye Futian felt an intense sorrow surging up his heart.


    The elder was laid quietly in the School of the Emperor Star. Most disciples of Donghai Academy probably did not even know that such a person existed.


    Ye Futian knelt on the ground and started kowtowing at the dust-filled cinerary casket. His head collided with the ground and actually produced a clear sound.


    With her face wet with tears, Hua Jieyu knelt down and also started to kowtow at the deceased elder. Then, Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin walked up as well and knelt down. This was their master.


    "Grandmaster, you like the School of the Emperor Star. I will let you stay here. Although you like a quiet environment, I do not hope that you will still be so lonely after passing. Therefore, I will do certain things. Grandmaster, please forgive me." Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the cinerary casket.


    "Donghai Academy should not forget about such a senior." Yi Xiang also supported Ye Futian. Elder Qin had no intention of becoming reputed��otherwise, he would not have stayed alone in the School of the Emperor Star to practice guqin��but they could not bear seeing him being still so lonely after dying.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded. Then, he stood up and walked outside. Some coldness flashed across his eyes. He ascended into the air and flew towards the most central part of the School of the Emperor Star, while the Silver Snow Guards followed him closely. The group reached the top of the glorious palace in the school. Below them, there was a straight flight of stairs that could lead all the way down from the School of the Emperor Star.


    "Ye Futian, how dare you." Seeing Ye Futian being so rude, many people from the School of the Emperor Star came to scold him.


    "I''ll give you an hour. All scram. From today onwards, the School of the Emperor Star will no longer exist," Ye Futian said coldly. His voice spread towards the distance, causing many people to be astonished.


    During the time when Ye Futian was younger, he stood at the gates of the School of the Emperor Star. He played "Decree of the General" and allowed everyone to witness his unparalleled elegance. Today, he stood on top of the School of the Emperor Star and announced that from that day on, there would be no more School of the Emperor Star.


    "Arrogant." An Arcana Plane cultivator stepped forward. Immediately, Silver Nine glanced at him and a noble-level ice intent bloomed. With just one look, the Arcana Plane cultivator stopped in the air. Then snow covered his body and he turned into an ice statue in midair. Accompanied by a clear sound, the frozen statue exploded and his body was crushed directly with it.


    Immediately, the looks from all the people in the School of the Emperor Star froze and their faces turned pale. The nine cultivators stood behind Ye Futian and an extremely terrifying coldness spread from them. That was the aura of nobles; they were nine nobles.


    "Seal the School of the Emperor Star with ice," Ye Futian said coldly. The nine nobles stepped forward and walked towards different directions. An intense coldness engulfed the entire school and snow suddenly started to fall from the sky. Every piece of snow was filled with bone-penetrating iciness.


    When the snow landed on the cultivators from the School of the Emperor Star, they actually felt that the coldness was seeping into their bones. Soon, the school was filled with heavy snow.


    "It''s so cold." All the disciples of the School of the Emperor Star were shivering. Even those who were cultivating were forced to stop due to the coldness, after which they walked out of their places. Then, the cultivators from the school rushed down the mountain one after another.


    "Go to the Nandou Clan and inform the Headmaster," someone said. The snow was getting heavier and the place was also getting colder. Below the School of the Emperor Star, the disciples of Donghai Academy rushed over one by one and raised their heads to look at the snow-filled sky above the school. They all felt a horrifying coldness surround them. Gradually, the School of the Emperor Star seemed to be covered with a silvery layer and became crystal clear.


    "Err..." The disciples of Donghai Academy all seemed to be flabbergasted.


    Are they going to freeze the entire School of the Emperor Star?


    This is crazy!


    Ye Futian stood at the peak of the School of the Emperor Star. Around him, an endless amount of snow danced and turned into a snowman. Then, he used Spiritual Qi as his sword and actually started to carve in the snow. He closed his eyes and the image of the elder playing the guqin appeared vividly in his mind. His sword danced in the air continuously and snow filled the entire place.


    Slowly, a statue depicting an elder sitting cross-legged and playing the guqin appeared before him. The statue was very large, and its height reached ten meters. With Ye Futian''s carving, he gradually started to look more lively. Ye Futian was an inscriber and could naturally carve.


    Time passed by slowly. The School of the Emperor Star was already fully covered with ice, and the huge statue was finally completed. The kindly elder was sitting there quietly and his callus-filled hands were placed on the strings of the guqin. However, Ye Futian did not stop. He continued to carve a crane which stood beside the elder with its head raised high. Hua Jieyu, Hua Fengliu and the rest all watched in silence. The statue really resembled the actual person in terms of appearance and expression.


    Then, Ye Futian took out Elder Qin''s ashes and buried them below the statue. He turned around and said to Silver One, "Senior, I hope that the statue will remain here forever."


    Silver One walked forward. Then, an extremely frightening coldness erupted from his body and a snowstorm raged in the air. A powerful spell was cast and gushed towards the statues. Very soon, the two statues were covered by a silvery layer and looked crystal clear, as if they would remain frozen for thousands of years.


    Walking back, Ye Futian glanced at the frozen School of the Emperor Star, after which he said, "We will go to the Nandou Clan now and bring Nandou Tai and Yan Shao here. I want them to be turned into ice statues and kneel down in front of grandmaster to repent forever. And also Minister Hua and Emperor Luo."


    These were the culprits who had caused his grandmaster to die. He would bring them here, every single one of them!

 300 See You Off

    Chapter 300: See You Off


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Nandou Clan was filled with guests who were chatting and laughing casually. The grand banquet had drawn most of the famous clans and families in Donghai City. Nandou Tai sat high at the front and felt extremely prestigious.


    The people who could sit close to Nandou Tai were all power holders of Donghai City, such as the Headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, the new chief of the East Sea Prefecture, Lord Luo, and the like.


    "Brother Nandou, congratulations on the breakthrough. After His Majesty attacks Cangye, and the situation in the Hundred Lands changes, His Majesty will very likely become the king of the Hundred Lands. At that time, perhaps you will have the chance to become the king of a region as well," Lord Luo said suddenly, smiling.


    "Lord Luo, you are too polite. I will still need you to compliment me in front of His Majesty," Nandou Tai said, smiling.


    "That''s for sure. A noble has emerged in Donghai City and everyone has come to congratulate you. I believe that among the people present now, there are many distinguished ones and also many talented juniors. Using this opportunity, I think that we can ask these juniors to give a performance to liven the atmosphere of the banquet," Lord Luo said. A few years ago during his birthday banquet, there were also juniors who performed to complement the joyful atmosphere. However, Ye Futian appeared at that time and surprised the entire banquet with his ''Melody of the White Feathers''. Then, he defeated Zhou Mu and almost caused Lord Luo to be unable to find a way out of the awkward situation. Luckily, he interfered secretly and the atmosphere of the banquet was ultimately not affected. At the moment, there were so many juniors present. Their performances must be very remarkable.


    "Alright. I also want to see for myself the young talents of Donghai City nowadays. If there is anyone with an outstanding performance, I will surely reward the person heavily," Nandou Tai said with a smile on his face. He recalled the junior Hua Jieyu of his Nandou Clan. She was so outstanding, and the Nandou Clan had also prepared to use a lot of resources to cultivate her. However, unfortunately, she wanted to be with Ye Futian. Although her talents were exceptional and she had entered a powerful force now, Luo Junlin claimed that he was going to kill Ye Futian and this may affect her.


    Then, various young talents walked up to perform one after the other. Zhou Mu also performed. His drawing was becoming more and more fantastic. Mu Hong also asked his children to perform. Mu Yunqing and Mu Yunni made an amazing performance as well.


    "Xiyue, don''t you want to display your skills?" Lord Luo said, looking at Lin Xiyue. Lin Xiyue''s eyes sparkled, after which she shook her head gently and said, "Lord, I am only mediocre and will not go up to show my inadequacies."


    "Brother Lin, Xiyue is becoming more and more humble." Smiling, Lord Luo looked at Lin Xiyue''s father and said, "Now, the girl is becoming more beautiful and she is at her prettiest age. Does she have a lover already?"


    "Lord Luo, she is focused on cultivation only and does not think about love issues," Lin Xiyue''s father said, smiling. Clearly, he knew about his daughter''s thoughts. She already had a person in her heart, but it was destined to be impossible. That person was destined to be in a different world from his daughter; he had told his daughter about this before. Despite that, however, Lin Xiyue would probably not be interested in the talents of Donghai City.


    "Haha, I think that the disciple of the Art Saint, Zhou Mu, is not bad. They two also know each other. Brother Art Saint and Brother Lin, what do you think?" After drinking a few glasses of alcohol, Lord Luo started to match them randomly.


    Zhou Mu looked at Lin Xiyue who was indeed very beautiful. Of course, she was still not as good-looking as the girl whom he once liked. In the past, he always wanted to chase Hua Jieyu, but the events that had happened afterward had made him more realistic.


    He and Hua Jieyu were not from the same kind of world.


    That time, his master failed to chase Nandou Wenyin. On the other hand, he did not even have the rights to chase her. Her boyfriend was destined to be his unbeatable rival. Therefore, he was not resistant towards Lin Xiyue at the moment.


    "Lord, I do not have such a thought at the moment," Lin Xiyue rejected. Lord Luo was stunned, after which he smiled and said, "I was being too gossipy."


    "Lord Luo, it''s only because she is still immature. When she grows up, she will know your good intentions." The words from Lin Xiyue''s father were very euphemistic. Lord Luo smiled and nodded.


    Among the crowd, Shu Yuyan looked at the scene quietly. She was the princess of the Shu Family, a large clan in Donghai City, and had been cultivating in the School of the Emperor Star. In the past, her relationship with Hua Jieyu was extremely well. She did not like the banquet today, because she did not like how the people of the Nandou Clan behaved. However, her father wanted to bring her here so she had no other choices.


    I wonder how Jieyu is doing right now.


    Suddenly, a group of cultivators ran in fast from the outside of the Nandou Clan. They rushed here from Donghai Academy to inform their leader. They hurried into the Nandou Clan and were about to inform everyone present. However, at the same time, another group of cultivators also arrived outside the Nandou Clan. They were, of course, Ye Futian and his team who had departed later. Despite that, their speed was much faster and therefore the two groups arrived almost simultaneously.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and the rest stood outside the Nandou Clan. This noble house still looked very stylish. When Ye Futian first came here, Hua Fengliu was the one who brought him in. That time, Ye Futian said that one day, the Nandou Clan would beg Hua Fengliu to go in. However, at the moment, he no longer needed the Nandou Clan to beg them, because that would be useless anyway.


    When the guards saw them, they looked extremely astonished.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Nandou Wenyin, Hua Fengliu. The many charming faces that appeared before them made them panic.


    A long rod appeared in Ye Futian''s hand��the Five Element Rod.


    The rod expanded continuously and a brilliant light flew on it. Looking at the gates of this noble house, Ye Futian''s body started spinning forward. Then, he lifted the rod and smashed it down fiercely. Following a loud bang, the gates were struck open. He walked forward and stepped into the Nandou Clan.


    The loud noise spread into the Nandou Clan. At the banquet, the eyes of many sparkled as they looked at the outside. Nandou Tai asked coldly, "What is happening?" Just as he finished speaking, a group of people rushed in hurriedly. They found the Headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, Yan Shao, and shouted urgently, "Headmaster, Ye Futian, Yi Xiang, and they��are all back!"


    Boom. Yan Shao immediately stood up. Many people''s hands which were holding wine glasses froze in the air.


    After they recovered from the surprise, they looked outside again. That loud bang�� In the distance, a group of people walked into the Nandou Clan through the gates. Ye Futian was walking in front with the Five Element Rod in his hand. Nandou Wenyin and Hua Jieyu were behind him. They also did not expect to enter the Nandou Clan in such a way.


    "Stop." A few guards walked forward, attempting to stop Ye Futian and his team from advancing further. However, countless vines swept towards them and they could not escape at all. Immediately, their bodies were lifted and smashed onto the ground forcefully.


    "Dharma." The people from the Nandou Clan were shocked. Ye Futian was already at the Dharma Plane.


    Still, there were brave guards who walked forward. However, with no exception, they were all blown backward. Ye Futian and his team continued to move forward, walking towards the banquet step by step.


    The banquet was very grand and spread out over a long distance. When Ye Futian reached one end of the banquet, he was still quite far away from Nandou Tai. Nevertheless, Nandou Tai could already see them.


    The people on the banquet stepped back one after another as they watched Ye Futian and his team walk forward. The enthusiastic atmosphere just now had totally vanished at the moment. Eventually, Ye Futian moved closer and closer to the front of the banquet.


    Lin Xiyue stared at the handsome figure and a strange expression appeared in her eyes. Is he finally back? Recently, there were many rumors claiming that Luo Junlin would kill Ye Futian and destroy Cangye. She did not believe them.


    Zhou Mu naturally saw Ye Futian as well and his face turned pale. Ye Futian was destined to be his unbeatable rival. Since Ye Futian stepped into Donghai City, his situation became very bleak.


    The Art Saint looked at Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin and sighed in his heart.


    Yan Shao''s face darkened. These people actually broke in just like this.


    Nandou Wenshan stood up and happiness erupted from his eyes. His sister was finally back.


    Nandou Tai was still sitting there and stared coldly at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "Very lively. Just like the other day." Ye Futian smiled, but it was a sneer. He recalled that during the year-end of that particular year, the Nandou Clan was also very lively. Many people were here, including Minister Hua and Xia Feng, the former chief of the East Sea Prefecture.


    Today, everything was just like that day.


    The place fell into a deafening silence. Everyone looked at Ye Futian and his team. They just broke into the place like this and nobody knew where they obtained the courage to do so.


    "I heard that you have entered the Noble Plane and set a banquet here. Congratulations," Ye Futian said, smiling at Nandou Tai. Nandou Tai''s eyes sparkled. Ye Futian knew that he was already a noble, and still dared to enter like this. He looked at Yi Xiang, and then at the nine figures at the back. Who were these nine people?


    "That day, my grandmaster played a piece of music here. Today, I will also play one." Ye Futian smiled and continued, "To see you off."


    Nandou Tai stood up and his expression turned extremely cold.


    See him off?


    "Take him down," Nandou Tai said. Immediately, Nandou Ku stomped on the ground and flew towards Ye Futian. He bent his hands, which were glittering with a sharp, golden light just like the claws of an eagle, and struck towards Ye Futian.


    Feeling his aura, Hua Fengliu and the rest did not respond at all.


    With the Five Element Rod in his hand, an appalling might erupted directly from Ye Futian''s body. He stomped on the ground and looked as imposing as the furious thunder. A terrifying power converged on his body and then he struck the rod forward. The strike seemed to have gathered all the powers from the heaven and the earth.


    "Seventh-level Dharma Plane." Everyone was astonished. In merely two years'' time, Ye Futian was already in the Seventh-level Dharma Plane. More frighteningly, the strike brought with it the powers of wind and thunder.


    The rod filled the entire sky and seemed to be shattering the earth itself. Bang... Nandou Ku gave out a miserable cry. The bones in his hand cracked and he was blown backward directly. He held his right arm with his left hand in pain and his face was as pale as a sheet.


    He was in the Arcana Plane. Even though it was only the Lower Arcana Plane, he was still a strong cultivator in the East Sea Prefecture. However, he could not even take a single hit from Ye Futian.


    At this very moment, Nandou Ku recalled the scene when he first saw Ye Futian. That day, Hua Fengliu told him that he would eventually remember Ye Futian''s name. At that time, he turned his nose up at it. However, what about now?


    "Uncle." Ye Futian turned his head and looked at Nandou Wenshan. Nandou Wenshan stared at Ye Futian and emotions filled his heart. The previous juvenile was already so strong at the moment.


    "Futian, Wenyin, Jieyu," Nandou Wenshan shouted.


    "Brother, everything is over now," Nandou Wenyin said softly. From her tone, Nandou Wenshan could feel a very strong confidence.


    He smiled. Was everything really over?


    "Uncle, are you willing to become the emperor of the Nandou Nation?" Ye Futian asked.


    Right after he finished speaking, everyone''s look froze!

 301 Debt Collection

    Chapter 301: Debt Collection


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian asked Nandou Wenshan if he was willing to become the emperor of the Nandou Nation.


    Since when was the emperor of the Nandou Nation determined by Ye Futian?


    Even Nandou Tai, who had already become a noble, did not dare to have such thoughts. Apart from Emperor Luo, there were also cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple who were brought here by Luo Junlin. The Nandou Nation might even become the king of the Hundred Lands. Yet, Ye Futian asked Nandou Wenshan so casually��


    "How dare you." Lord Luo stood up. Pointing at Ye Futian, he said coldly, "Boastful fanatic."


    Ye Futian glanced at him and said, "That time in the Luo Palace when I was battling with Zhou Mu, was it you or the Art Saint who intervened secretly?" At that time, he did not dare to ask. However, at the moment he obviously no longer cared about it.


    "I don''t understand what you are saying," Lord Luo said coldly.


    "I''ll settle that with you later." Ye Futian glanced at him and continued to look at Nandou Wenshan. "Uncle, Nandou Tai''s immediate relatives will no longer exist after today. I will not let any of those who participated in the event two years ago off. As long as you agree, after I settle all the issues, you will control the Nandou Nation. The Nation Clan after the clean-up will very likely still be the king of the Nandou Nation." Ye Futian would certainly not eliminate the entire Nandou Clan. After all, Hua Jieyu, as well as his masteress and uncle, was part of the Nandou royal family in the first place.


    "Brother, this is the unfulfilled wish of our ancestors. You should take it," Nandou Wenyin also said.


    The conversation between the two caused the faces of all the people around to turn serious. If Ye Futian was only being arrogant, then how about Nandou Wenyin?


    "Alright," Nandou Wenshan nodded. He was part of the royal family in the first place, so of course, he would be willing to control the Nandou Nation. Furthermore, he also knew that Nandou Tai was already planning to deal with him. Over the two years, he had been watched all the time. After Nandou Tai entered the Noble Plane, he would occasionally glance at Nandou Wenshan with a murderous look.


    "Uncle, that time you and masteress were both present. Help me to identify all the people who participated in the event that year," Ye Futian said.


    "No problem." Nandou Wenshan nodded again. Of course, he knew that Ye Futian would definitely not let those people off. That day was really tragic for him. Back then, he was only in the Glory Plane and broke into the Nandou Clan alone. He displayed his unparalleled talents in an attempt to obtain support from the Nandou Clan, but Nandou Tai rejected it. Then, Minister Hua and Nandou Tai gave the order to kill him. That time, Ye Futian was only a juvenile. How sad.


    On that day, Hua Jieyu was forced to stab herself with a sharp blade. In order to be with Ye Futian, she almost committed suicide.


    On that day, Elder Qin played "A Chaotic Nation" here with his own life. When the music finally stopped, he also vanished, being forced to death.


    On that day, Yi Xiang, Ye Futian, and Hua Fengliu were all chased and almost died together. If they were not lucky, they would not have escaped alive.


    Now Ye Futian had returned. How could he possibly let those people off? Ye Futian would surely kill Minister Hua, Nandou Tai, the Headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, and the like. The clean-up of the Nandou Clan was inevitable.


    "Where did you get that confidence?" Nandou Tai stood up. His noble-level might spread out and a terrifying noble will pressured towards Ye Futian. He wanted to see why Ye Futian was so confident.


    "Silver Snow Guards," Ye Futian shouted.


    "Yes." The nine cultivators walked forward and stopped behind Ye Futian. Immediately, nine noble auras erupted simultaneously. In just an instant, a bone-penetrating coldness engulfed the entire place.


    "Nobles." Everyone was terror-stricken. The nine armored cultivators at the back who were dressed like guards were actually all nobles.


    Nandou Tai''s face turned very pale and the aura around him withered immediately. Although he was already a noble, each of the nine people before him was stronger than himself in terms of will and might. How could he even win this? His body trembled slightly as he stared firmly at Ye Futian.


    No... He was not resigned to his fate. He had just entered the Noble Plane, which was the level of an emperor.


    "Disable Nandou Tai and Yan Shao first. I want them alive," Ye Futian said again. Then, some light shone. He sat down cross-legged and his Guqin Spirit appeared. He put his fingers on the guqin and stroked the strings. A sharp noise spread out and even caused space to vibrate.


    Many of the people present were also guests at the Nandou Clan two years ago. Immediately, they knew what Ye Futian was going to play.


    It was the amazing piece that Elder Qin had played two years ago: "A Chaotic Nation."


    "I will use this piece of music to see you off," Ye Futian said. By "seeing them off" he was referring to disabling or killing them.


    Hua Jieyu walked up to Ye Futian and sat down beside him, looking quietly at him as he played the guqin. The jingling music spread out and increased in volume continuously as if he would never give in to fate and was fighting back.


    The scene two years ago appeared vividly in his mind. His grandmaster came here on a crane and told him that he would teach Ye Futian one last piece of music. Even at that moment, his grandmaster was still so gentle and kindly.


    The nine nobles walked out in the music. Nandou Wenshan and Nandou Wenyin went beside them.


    "Everyone, please cooperate and stay where you are," Yi Xiang said, scanning the crowd present. Everyone''s heart trembled fiercely, and nobody dared to move.


    Today, Ye Futian was here to collect his debt. He was here to collect what they owed him two years ago.


    The sharp music was ear-piercing. Many people from the Nandou Clan felt fear after listening to the music, including Nandou Tai. He looked at the nobles walking towards him and then at Nandou Wenyin, after which he said, "Wenyin, how have I been treating you?"


    Nandou Wenyin glanced at him coldly and said, "That time, you destroyed my life. Although I hated you, I still chose to stay in the Nandou Clan, because my surname is Nandou. Nevertheless, I do not wish that my daughter will follow in my path. However, you wanted to control Jieyu''s life again. I said that I would betroth Jieyu to Futian. What did you do?


    "Ye Futian came alone to the Nandou Clan, wanting to redeem everything at all costs. You still had a choice at that time. If you chose to support him back then, you would have become the king of the Nandou Nation. However, what did you choose?


    "Kill. You wanted to kill Ye Futian, and almost forced Jieyu to death. It is unforgivable," Nandou Wenyin said coldly. "Disable him."


    "Wenyin, I''m your uncle..." Nandou Tai watched as the aura from the nine nobles engulfed his body, and the frightening coldness froze everything. He was overpowered by their noble wills and their levels, and could not resist the domineering will at all. The difference was simply too big. He felt that he could hardly move. His body was about to be frozen and his will extinguished.


    "No, I am a noble." Nandou Tai trembled. He was not resigned to his fate.


    The tingling music reached his ears and sounded so ear-piercing. At this very moment, Nandou Tai recalled the day when Elder Qin played "A Chaotic Nation." He recalled the unbending young man two years ago who was so outstanding. However, he still did not choose Ye Futian, because he thought that killing Ye Futian in order to spare all later trouble was much easier.


    However, how about now?


    The cold spear stabbed Nandou Tai''s body slowly, nailing him against the throne. Against several high-level nobles, he could not resist at all. Following a muffled humph, Nandou Tai''s pale face was filled with pain, regret, and fear.


    Ye Futian said that the Nandou Clan would still exist. Nandou Wenshan would become the emperor and control the Nandou Nation. That was the position that he had longed for. He thought that after entering the Noble Plane, he would become the emperor.


    It seemed like a pleasant dream.


    He smiled drearily. If he had decided to support Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu back then, would the Nandou Nation be his?


    "Leader." Looking at Nandou Tai who was nailed onto the throne, the faces of all the people from the Nandou Clan turned pale and were filled with terror. Yan Shao was even more frightened. He knew clearly that while Ye Futian might spare the others, he would certainly not be able to run away.


    Buzz. Yan Shao''s body flashed out in an attempt to escape. However, a noble stepped forward. Ice filled the entire sky and froze his body directly. The entire region of space was frozen and Yan Shao turned into an ice statue.


    The noble walked forward and punched the ice statue. The ice crushed and Yan Shao spat out a mouthful of blood. He fell down from the sky, feeling as if all his organs had been destroyed.


    In just a short while, Nandou Tai, the leader of the Nandou Clan, and Yan Shao, the Headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, were disabled. Apart from the music, the whole place was in a complete silence. The banquet seemed to be so ironic at the moment.


    Today, all the powerful people from Donghai City came here to congratulate Nandou Tai''s breakthrough into the Noble Plane. However, they were actually here to see him get disabled.


    Fear filled the face of Lord Luo. He looked at the scene in horror and his face turned pale. Apart from him, Mu Hong also felt extremely scared at the moment.


    That time, Hua Fengliu and Ye Futian came to him and wanted him to take in Ye Futian as his disciple. He rejected it and his daughter mocked them. Later, his children had some conflicts with Ye Futian. However, the young man whom he had rejected taking in as a disciple was no weaker than him at the moment. He defeated Nandou Ku instantly with just one strike. His background was even more frightening; he could let nine nobles listen to his orders.


    How pathetic.


    The person whom he rejected as a disciple and mocked in his heart that time was so strong now that he could not even resolve things.


    Lin Xiyue stared at Ye Futian who was playing the guqin and looked very lost. He was becoming more and more outstanding. That time on the Tingfeng Banquet, he was already brilliant enough. However, after one year, he had become a legend.


    Lin Xiyue''s father looked at his daughter and sighed in his heart. This girl is going down deeper and deeper. In the future, how can anyone else interest her?


    Shu Yuyan looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. She recalled Hua Jieyu''s look when she was thinking about Ye Futian back then in the School of the Emperor Star; like a girl in love. That time, Shu Yuyan laughed at Hua Jieyu. Now that she looked at the two again, they were really a golden couple; a match made in heaven. Perhaps only they would look harmonious when they were together.


    I really do bless them.


    The music continued and its volume increased rapidly. Around Ye Futian, miserable cries broke out constantly. Nandou Wenshan and Nandou Wenyin had brought the nine nobles and started the clean-up.


    Those who participated in the battle two years ago were all killed.


    Those who participated in the event but not the battle were all permanently disabled.

 302 A True Man

    Chapter 302: A True Man


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A vigorous cleansing began in the Nandou Clan. Today, all the important figures in Donghai City were present. They were all testy as if they were sitting on needles. One could imagine how they felt inside. The music was still loud and strong, melding perfectly into the scene. The world seemed to be unsettled.


    Not only did Ye Futian want to cleanse the Nandou Clan, but he also wanted to kill Emperor Luo and replace him with Nandou Wenshan. The latter was the king of Nandou. So what if his cultivation wasn''t enough?


    Nandou Tai was nailed to his seat. Seeing everything happen, his heart was in pain. Ye Futian kept playing quietly, not even looking at him. Now, Nandou Tai understood that he was definitely going to die. He looked at how Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu matched each other.


    Actually, Nandou Tai had wanted to bless them before but he wasn''t that powerful. When he saw how extraordinary Ye Futian was and Emperor Luo''s decree arrived with Minister Hua, he could only try to kill Ye Futian. What would have happened if he believed Ye Futian would gamble everything?


    That day, Elder Qin and Yi Xiang successfully helped them escape. If the Nandou Clan''s power was added to that, they could definitely succeed. At that time, he might have accomplished his goal of sitting onto the Nandou Nation''s throne.


    But now, it was all just a dream.


    He closed his eyes, the music entering his ears. His heart was already filled with despair.


    Yan Shao was the same. Disabled of his cultivation, he stared at Ye Futian with hatred. Back then, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu had studied at the Donghai Academy. Hua Jieyu had been at the School of the Emperor Star too but now they were at this level.


    "Let us two fight," Hua Fengliu said to the Art Saint.


    "Alright." The Art Saint nodded. His battle with the Guqin Devil would continue.


    The two controlled themselves from being affected by Ye Futian''s music and started fighting. One played music while the other painted. The cacophonous music painted a chaotic image. Zhou Mu was lost without his youthful charisma. His old opponent was way out of his league now. He couldn''t even gaze up at Ye Futian while on his tiptoes.


    After a long while, the Guqin Devil and Art Saint''s fight came to an end. This time, Hua Fengliu disabled the Art Saint''s life spirit. He thrummed the instrument strings lightly and then stopped. Looking up at his old opponent, he said, "You should know how you defeated me back then. I know it''s not your fault. The School of the Emperor Star wanted you to win, so you did. Teacher couldn''t do anything and always felt guilty, even sacrificing himself for my daughter and student."


    The Art Saint chuckled dryly. Of course he knew��had always known. This was why he never felt joy or bragged about defeating Hua Fengliu. It hadn''t been a glorious fight but had become a classic battle that everyone in the Donghai City knew about.


    The surrounding people were shocked. They didn''t know the fight from back then had been rigged. Hua Fengliu had never talked about it publicly or explained anything. Everyone thought he had lost. Now that he defeated the Art Saint, he revealed the truth.


    Finally, Ye Futian''s music stopped. The cruel pressure gradually lifted. The Nandou Clan was in ruins. Many strong cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star had suffered as well.


    "Uncle, the Nandou Clan will be yours," Ye Futian said. "Take these two to Donghai Academy." With that, he turned to walk away. There were many familiar faces here today but he wasn''t in the mood.


    The group returned to the Donghai Academy with Nandou Tai and Yan Shao. The School of the Emperor Star, sealed with ice now, was magnificent. It looked like a miraculous scene. The disciples of the academy were all grouped there, looking at the ice mountain and the statue of the old man playing the guqin at the peak. Many people didn''t know who he was. They''d only heard from others that this was a senior who played "A Chaotic Nation" two years ago, sacrificing himself to save Ye Futian.


    "They''re back." The crowd came to life. Ye Futian''s group returned powerfully in the air with Nandou Tai and Yan Shao captured. Many people trembled at the sight.


    Nandou Tai was now a Noble. Yan Shao was the controller of the Donghai Academy. These two could be said to be the most powerful of Donghai City. Now, they were being taken to the School of the Emperor Star as if they were nothing. After that, they were forced to kneel before Elder Qin''s statue.


    "Ye Futian, just hurry up. Elder Qin is my senior brother, after all. Your master, Hua Fengliu, calls me Uncle-Master too," Yan Shao said fearfully. He was afraid now. Not only was he about to die, but Ye Futian also wanted him to kneel before Elder Qin forever. Even death couldn''t atone for his sins. He would be spit upon for eternity.


    Ye Futian ignored him. Did he only know of their relationship now? After Grandmaster had died, his body had been burned and bones buried in the courtyard. No one cared for him and weeds abounded, turning it into an abandoned land. When did Yan Shao ever think of his senior brother? His people had killed his senior brother.


    "Grandmaster, the Luo family and Minister Hua will kneel here to repent after this." Looking at the statue, he said coldly, "Seal them."


    The Silver Snow Guard nodded. Horribly cold aura descended upon the two. The extreme ice spell fell onto Nandou Tai and Yan Shao.


    "No��" Nandou Tai and Yan Shao trembled in fear but to no avail. They quickly became two ice statues, kneeling before the other statue to repent.


    Ye Futian stared at the statues for a long while without speaking. Returning to Donghai City this time, he''d resolved some matters. Now, only Luo Junlin and his father and Minister Hua were left. They were the true masterminds.


    "Senior Yi, who will take care of Donghai Academy?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I will," Yi Xiang said. "I''ll stay here." He''d seen the world but discovered that one''s talent was truly destined. He was old and had reached his limit. He planned on staying here and teaching the younger generation. Hopefully, greedy forces like the School of the Emperor Star wouldn''t appear anymore.


    Schools were places of education. It was the place to contribute to the later generations. He was willing to stay here and contribute his own strength.


    Ye Futian froze. Tang Lan and Yu Sheng walked up, calling, "Master."


    "Father." Yi Qingxuan''s eyes froze too.


    Yi Xiang chuckled. "What? I''m old and can''t mess around with you all. Yu Sheng, I''m handing Qingxuan to you. My life is worth it because I can have such an extraordinary disciple."


    "Are you crazy?" Ye Futian said, staring at him. "What are you thinking? How can you improve in a small place like Donghai City?"


    Yi Xiang glared at him. "What do you know? Donghai City is a small place. That''s why I must stay. I''ve learned much these two years and can open up the minds of many youths here so they won''t be restricted to this small world. They should have a wider of view of their life. Plus, with your example, I can brag forever here to motivate the youngsters."


    Ye Futian was speechless. He knew how Yi Xiang was. Since he''d decided, no one could change his mind.


    "Then, come find us when you''re tired of it all." Ye Futian didn''t try persuading him anymore.


    "Alright, you dare say this now that you''re independent. Just don''t act like you don''t know me in the future," Yi Xiang said, shooting him a look.


    "How could I?" Ye Futian rolled his eyes.


    Yi Xiang turned and stepped forward. Countless eyes below the School of the Emperor Star fell upon him. He gazed down at the crowd and said, "I am Yi Xiang, headmaster of the School of the Finance Star. I''ve decided to return to Donghai Academy."


    "Headmaster Yi."


    "Headmaster."


    Many of the old members of the School of the Finance Star were excited. Was their headmaster really returning under these circumstances?


    "I know that you all have many questions about what happened today. Some are furious too," Yi Xiang said to everyone. "Two years ago, my disciple, Ye Futian, fell in love with Hua Jieyu, a disciple of the School of the Emperor Star. I''m sure you have heard how talented they were at that time.


    "Later, Minister Hua forced the School of the Emperor Star onto the other schools because of his relationship with the school. He wanted to control the entire academy. Ye Futian and I left. Then, Emperor Luo released a decree to make Ye Futian the crown prince''s servant and Hua Jieyu, the crown princess. The evilness should go without saying. Who can bear it?


    "The Nandou Clan and headmaster of Emperor Star worked together for power and ambition. They wouldn''t care about some measly youths. We fought back and for this, Elder Qin even played his last piece and died. I was wounded as we escaped. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu almost died but thankfully, survived and escaped. I''m sure you''ve heard of what happened afterward.


    "Ye Futian and Yu Sheng returned during the Tingfeng Banquet of Nandou Nation. Who in Nandou can be compared to them? The later events proved this as well. No one in the Hundred Lands can be compared to Ye Futian, let alone in Nandou only.


    "Now, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu have become disciples of top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory. These two had been so close to being killed by Nandou and the School of the Emperor Star. How can an academy like this call itself an academy?" Yi Xiang asked.


    "I''m back, not because I want the power. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng are both like my disciples. I cultivated with them in the Eastern Barren Territory. The benefits compared to the Donghai Academy should go without saying. However, Donghai Academy is my home. Half of my life was spent here. I hope to see it flourish, I hope to see it grow, I hope to see a new Donghai Academy.


    "Therefore, I will stay." Right now, Yi Xiang was full of just. All the disciples were silent. After that, a voice said, "Greetings to Headmaster Yi."


    "Greetings to Headmaster Yi," more people said. The voices shook the sky.


    The world was just and just people would win hearts. The disciples of the Donghai Academy were young but they still knew right from wrong. Headmaster Yi Xiang of the School of the Finance Star had given up his status and risked his life to bring Ye Futian into the Nandou Clan and fight against injustice. Now, Ye Futian was successful. Yi Xiang could live comfortably but he gave it up and returned to Donghai to educate the later generations.


    Yi Xiang was a true man!

 303 Zhe Song

    Chapter 303: Zhe Song


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Nandou Wenshan would rectify the Nandou Clan; Yi Xiang would reorganize the Donghai Academy; Nandou Tai, the one that everyone congratulated when he entered the Noble Plane, was dead; Yan Shao, the headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, was dead. They had turned into ice statues to kneel before Elder Qin. Lord Luo and the Art Saint had been disabled. Many strong cultivators of the Nandou Clan and schools of the Donghai Academy were killed or disabled.


    All of this had happened in one day. The entire city was in upheaval. Nothing this big had happened in Donghai City before. The last big event was probably when Emperor Luo''s decree arrived at Donghai two years ago. What happened yesterday was a continuation from two years ago.


    Ye Futian''s name rang throughout the city once again.


    Countless years ago, people heard of Ye Futian''s name because he was the Qin Devil''s disciple and had defeated Zhou Mu, the disciple of the Art Saint. Since then, their hearts trembled whenever they heard his name. After the emperor personally sent out a decree, Ye Futian had refused and escaped.


    At the Tingfeng Banquet, everyone learned about Ye Futian''s staff and dharma and Yu Sheng''s roar. After that, the rumors about him were from the faraway Cangye Kingdom. Apparently, he had been accepted as a disciple by a top disciple from somewhere very far away.


    Now, he was back, bringing Nobles with him. His one word killed Nandou Tai, who had entered the Noble Plane, and Yan Shao, headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star. He said he wanted Hua Jieyu''s uncle, Nandou Wenshan, to be the Nandou Clan''s leader.


    Right now, he was in the abandoned Guqin Gardens. His grandmaster''s matter had always pressed down on his heart. Now, it was resolved. His uncle and Yi Xiang would take care of the Nandou Clan and Donghai Academy too.


    A breeze blew past the Guqin Gardens. The group sat in the courtyard with a heartwarming atmosphere.


    "Master, Masteress, let''s live here for a few days. Then we''ll go directly to the Nandou Nation and resolve that," Ye Futian said. Donghai City was part of the Nandou Nation, after all. He wouldn''t return to Cangye until he took care of Emperor Luo.


    "Alright." Hua Fengliu and the others wanted to stay a few days too.


    "There''s something I don''t understand," Ye Futian said. "How did Han Mo, vice headmaster of the School of the Emperor Star, and Xia Feng, chief of the East Sea Prefecture, die?" Yi Xiang didn''t know about this either and he''d investigated. None of them had killed Xia Feng and Han Mo. According to Yi Xiang, they''d gone after them.


    "It is indeed strange." Hua Fengliu didn''t know.


    Ye Futian gazed at the swaying willows outside the courtyard. He thought of the old man who swept the garden and understood something. But he didn''t understand why the man didn''t appear at the Nandou Clan if he''d always been there.


    Would Godfather really not reveal himself if he wasn''t in mortal danger? Did Han Mo and Xia Feng die because they''d really threatened his life?


    If Godfather had done it, then where was he now? Was he still watching Ye Futian?


    The next day, Nandou Wenshan came to the Guqin Gardens to tell them about the Nandou Clan. The first steps had been completed. With the Silver Snow Guards'' help, he now held all the authority in the clan. Those elders weren''t stupid. If they followed Nandou Wenshan, it meant they would have Ye Futian behind them. Ye Futian could also help the Nandou Clan retake the Nandou Nation. How could they not support Nandou Wenshan? After all, Nandou Wenshan was a direct descendant of royalty.


    Other than Nandou Wenshan, Shu Yuyan also came. She chatted with Hua Jieyu and teased Ye Futian.


    Lin Xiyue came too. She said that she would go to the imperial city right now. She wanted to witness the fight between Ye Futian and Luo Junlin. She would cheer Ye Futian on.


    ��


    The promised date was finally here. Today was the day of the final battle. Today, Nandou Nation''s Imperial City was filled with strong cultivators. According to the citizens of the city, many mysterious cultivators would arrive. They were extraordinary and terrifyingly powerful. Those people would most likely come from somewhere far away. Rumor said that they were super forces from the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Ever since Ye Futian broke into the Nandou palace to take Ye Lingxi and Ye Danchen away, there were all sorts of rumors in the palace.


    Some said that the Yunchu Nation emperor that had taken them to the Nandou palace had submitted to the Nandou Nation. But Ye Futian was back with a force at the same level as Luo Junlin''s Royal Xuan Temple. Therefore, the emperor of Yunchu was forced to hand them over.


    This was also why Ye Futian and Luo Junlin would fight.


    Emperor Luo announced publicly that Luo Junlin would kill Ye Futian and end everything. He seemed to be very confident in Luo Junlin.


    The people of the Imperial City all believed him. After all, Luo Junlin was the Legendary crown prince. He had double life spirits. Not only that, his cultivation plane was higher than Ye Futian. No matter how talented Ye Futian was, he couldn''t catch up. Ye Futian had probably been forced to accept this battle. However, there were also whispers that Ye Futian had entered the Nandou palace, killed the six emperors, and taken the people away. Many scoffed at this though.


    How could he kill six Nobles?


    However, many high-status people knew this was true. The regular citizens wouldn''t know what happened in another kingdom but the emperors of the Hundred Lands obviously knew.


    Today, many strong cultivators descended in the cities surrounding the Nandou palace, including those from the Eastern Barren Territory. Everyone was discussing who would win. There was a roofless wine shop near the palace. It was filled with people because the Cangye Kingdom had arrived.


    The Kunpeng landed with Emperor Ye. Ye Futian wasn''t here yet so they waited.


    "That''s Ye Wuchen," someone said, looking at a youth amongst them. Ye Wuchen had become quite famous in the Imperial City due to the Tingfeng Banquet. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu had extraordinary qualities too. Everyone started discussing that these people were most likely from the Eastern Barren Territory.


    At this time, a group came from the distance. They stood out from the crowd with sharp auras. Everyone had an ancient sword. The crowd moved aside subconsciously, letting them through. After arriving, they glanced at Ye Wuchen.


    The leader had cold eyes. He was Zhe Song, pride of the Fuyun Sword Clan''s first summit. Li Daoyun was his junior brother and had asked him many questions before. He often helped Li Daoyun. But after Li Daoyun accepted Ye Wuchen''s challenge and was killed, the first summit couldn''t say anything.


    However, Ye Wuchen acted on his own accord and was very close to Ye Futian from the Cottage. Zhe Song had warned him before but Ye Wuchen ignored him. Everyone knew about the rivalry between the Fuyun Sword Clan and Cottage though. In addition, the girl Li Daoyun had liked, Liu Chenyu, was now very close to Ye Wuchen. They were sitting together right now. Under these circumstances, the first summit obviously was upset with Ye Wuchen.


    "You came from the Cangye Kingdom. Are these your family?" Zhe Song asked Ye Wuchen.


    "Is there a problem?" Ye Wuchen looked up at him. Zhe Song was a swordsman from the first summit. Ye Wuchen was from the seventh summit. Of course, he couldn''t compare to Zhe Song''s cultivation. He''d been a swordsman for many years and was known as number one of their generation.


    "The Fuyun Sword Clan is a sacred place for swordsmanship in the Eastern Barren Territory. I don''t wish to see it used in a place like the Hundred Lands as a weapon to fulfill one''s personal greed," Zhe Song said. "I can''t control Ye Futian but the Fuyun Sword Clan cannot be disgraced like this."


    Ye Wuchen''s gaze was sharp as he looked to Zhe Song. He naturally never thought to use the Fuyun Sword Clan''s strength to bring Cangye to power.


    Ye Futian hadn''t done so either. He''d always wanted to resolve the Nandou problem with his own means and never used the Cottage''s name. However, the assassination in Chaoge City told them all that even if he didn''t, the others might. Xirou and Luo Junlin were examples.


    For more than one year, the Nandou Nation had used the Royal Xuan Temple to threaten Cnagye. If Ye Futian hadn''t become known in the Ancient Barren World, what would have happened?


    After that, Xirou and Luo Junlin still didn''t give up. They tried to kill Ye Futian, which was why he challenged Luo Junlin now.


    Zhe Song''s words had double meanings. He was warning Ye Wuchen while also mocking Ye Futian. He looked down on Ye Futian for taking advantage of his position.


    "If it has nothing to do with you, you naturally can show off your character and make yourself seem proud and upright." Ye Wuchen chuckled but didn''t say anything else. Zhe Song wasn''t Ye Futian. His family hadn''t been threatened. He was a bystander so he could act like this.


    "Fake," Liu Feiyang muttered. He''d personally seen Xirou bring people to Cangye. At that time, the Cangye Kingdom had felt such despair. If he and Ye Futian hadn''t arrived, what would have been the consequences? This didn''t happen to Zhe Song so what right did he have to judge?


    Zhe Song gazed at them. Beside him, Qi Ao said, "I would like to see what would happen if Ye Futian lost this time."


    "He won''t." Ye Wuchen was obviously more confident in Ye Futian than others.


    "A Seventh-level Dharma Plane against the Arcana Plane," Zhe Song said indifferently. "Luo Junlin of the Royal Xuan Temple isn''t that much of a failure."


    Everyone''s hearts trembled. This group seemed to come from the domineering Fuyun Sword Clan. Ye Wuchen was cultivating there too.


    "That''s what I think." At that time, another voice spoke. Another group arrived and everyone moved to the side. The two at the front were very stunning. The young man had a powerful aura and the woman had unparalleled beauty. She was like a fairy. Everyone''s eyes focused on her, sighing inwardly at how beautiful she was.

 304 You Can Try

    Chapter 304: You Can Try


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was Qin Li and Chu Yaoyao.


    After Ye Futian left the Moon Clan, Qin Li became much prouder. He went to the Moon Clan with gifts and Chu Yaoyao''s master, Yan Feihong, was already swayed. Xiao Yueju''s attitude when Ye Futian went to the Moon Clan directly led to this. Yan Feihong agreed to Qin Li''s marriage with Chu Yaoyao and allowed the latter to cultivate at the Dongqin Academy for a while.


    This news caused a ripple throughout the Eastern Barren Territory. People wondered if the Moon Clan would ally with the Qin Dynasty.


    Qin Li and Chu Yaoyao walked over now, gazing at Zhe Song, Ye Wuchen, and the others. Chuckling, Qin Li said, "Luo Junlin isn''t the best of the Eastern Barren Territory but he is still a genius from the Royal Xuan Temple and He Yulu''s personal disciple. With such an advantage in plane, there is no reason he will fail."


    Emperor Ye and Ye Lingxi frowned. These people were clearly all from top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory like Ye Futian. Otherwise, they wouldn''t dare to make such comments. But from their tone, there wasn''t much chance for Ye Futian to win.


    "You also thought this when Ye Futian challenged Qian Shanmu outside the Dongqin Academy," Ye Wuchen said calmly without looking at Qin Li. The man had said many things, judging Ye Futian many times. He was humiliated every time but never learned his lesson.


    Of course, Ye Wuchen knew that they were enemies so Qin Li naturally wished for Ye Futian to lose.


    Qin Li didn''t mind Ye Wuchen''s jab. Smiling, he said, "Ye Wuchen, people would think you''re a disciple of the Cottage."


    "It''s so lively here." There was a chuckle. The strong cultivators of the Ji Family from the Ancient Barren World had come. Others descended from the sky. The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan were here. Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo appeared together, causing many gasps.


    Chu Yaoyao was already beautiful. Qin Mengruo was another beauty but in a different style. The building instantly became filled with talents and beauties. Even more terrifying, the strong cultivators behind these people were probably Nobles.


    The restaurant not far from the palace instantly became so lively. All the strong cultivators from the Eastern Barren Territory grouped here.


    When the people around the palace heard about this, they rushed over to witness this scene. Emperor Luo also came with Minister Hua.


    Arriving, Emperor Luo gazed at everyone and greeted them. "You all have come from a faraway place. As the leader of the Nandou Nation, I must fulfill my duties as a host. This place is very crude. Please follow me to the Nandou palace." Though he was an emperor, he still had to lower himself before these people.


    "Sure." Qin Li smiled and nodded. His attitude surprised many people. Was this person against Ye Futian? Everyone now knew about Ye Futian''s relationship with Emperor Luo. If he acted closely with Emperor Luo, what would Ye Futian think?


    Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo obviously cooperated with Qin Li. Many walked over to Emperor Luo, making him look powerful. The spectators were confused. It seemed that Ye Futian wasn''t well-off in the Eastern Barren Territory. Otherwise, why wouldn''t these people care about his feelings?


    "Senior Brother, shall we?" Qi Ao asked Zhe Song.


    Seeing this, Emperor Ye furrowed his brows. He wasn''t familiar with the powers of the Eastern Barren Territory and didn''t know what was happening.


    "Didn''t he say he won''t get involved in the Hundred Lands?" Ye Lingxi asked softly.


    What did Zhe Song say earlier? He didn''t want Ye Wuchen''s sword to be used in the Hundred Lands.


    Even though her voice was soft, Qi Ao still heard her. His eyes flashed and turned to her. "Is it your place to speak?" The first summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan had always disliked Ye Wuchen. Now, a girl beside him had comments too?


    Ye Wuchen arched an eyebrow. He could tell that Qi Ao was targeting him. Otherwise, he had no reason to humiliate Ye Lingxi. He stood, sword intent wrapping around him.


    "What, you want to fight me?" Qi Ao looked at him.


    The surrounding people all stopped, looking intrigued. Was this an inner fight of the Fuyun Sword Clan?


    "Wuchen." Emperor Ye placed a hand on his shoulder, telling him to stop. He knew that they were all disciples of the Fuyun Sword Clan. He didn''t want to make Ye Wuchen''s life in the clan difficult because of this.


    Ye Wuchen''s expression was cold while Qi Ao looked at him with a smile. Ye Lingxi said, "It''s alright."


    "Let''s go," Zhe Song said. Qi Ao chuckled and the first summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan left, following Emperor Luo.


    Qin Li, Chu Yaoyao, Qian Shanmu, Qin Mengruo, and many others followed as well. The Ji Family smiled and went to join them.


    The people around them looked at Emperor Ye and whispered. Many followed Emperor Luo away. The crowd here thinned. Just then, a group of strong cultivators arrived in the sky. It was Ye Futian''s group.


    In the sky, Ye Futian was going straight to the Nandou palace. When he was about to arrive, he saw the huge Kunpeng below and the group heading towards the palace. His eyes flashed.


    "Down," Ye Futian said. They went to the restaurant.


    Sensing something, many people looked up to see Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and the others.


    "Ye Futian." Many were surprised. Sadly, those people had just left. Otherwise, there would be a show to watch. But with so many disciples of top forces here, probably nothing will happen.


    "What''s wrong?" Ye Futian asked, sensing the odd atmosphere. He looked to the distance and seemed to see Qin Li, Chu Yaoyao, and the others.


    "Those guys are so arrogant," Liu Feiyang scoffed. He quickly recounted what happened.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He wasn''t surprised at Qin Li. That guy was always here and Ye Futian started disliking him more and more. However, the conflict between Fuyun''s first summit and Ye Wuchen seemed more glaring. Otherwise, Zhe Song and Qi Ao wouldn''t act like that.


    "Uncle Ye, did the imperial advisor come?" Ye Futian asked Emperor Ye.


    "Yes, he is at the inn." Emperor Ye nodded.


    "Good. Take him to the palace. Uncle Ye, I''ll go now," Ye Futian said. His body flashed and the group headed towards the palace. Nandou Wenshan and many of the Nandou Clan came as well.


    The group whooshed past. In the front, Emperor Luo''s group was powerful too. Those following him looked back and saw Ye Futian''s group in the air. Their expressions changed.


    Emperor Luo stopped and turned too. Seeing the people, his eyes turned cold. He knew what had happened in Donghai City but could do nothing. Now, Ye Futian brought the Nandou Clan over. What did this signify?


    "Ye Futian." Qin Li and the others looked up. The people behind them were intrigued. Was he finally here? These people had been invited by Emperor Luo into the palace. Ye Futian must be upset now. They didn''t care though.


    While everyone looked up, Ye Futian acted as if he didn''t see them. He passed right above their heads. At that moment, the smiles of Qin Li and the others froze as they watched the people go past without looking at them.


    This was different from what they had imagined.


    "What is he doing?" Qi Ao furrowed his brows, upset. Ye Futian had gone right past their heads.


    Ye Futian continued forward. Before the Nandou palace, the guards all moved aside when they saw him. Soon after, Ye Futian stood in the empty space before the palace. Emperor Luo and the others arrived, staring coldly at him. So many strong cultivators were gathered; they all stared at Ye Futian.


    "Lock the palace. Do not let anyone in," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes." The nine Nobles nodded and spread outside the palace.


    The crowd was shocked. Qin Li and the other powerful figures were about to enter the palace with Emperor Luo but Ye Futian stood there and ordered to lock the palace. What did he mean? Was he going directly against the top forces? Many people had sharp gazes. Was Ye Futian really that powerful to do this?


    The Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and Fuyun Sword Clan frowned. Qin Li sneered and said, "Ye Futian, Emperor Luo invited us into the Nandou palace as guests. What are you doing?"


    "Today is my battle with Luo Junlin to resolve matters of the Nandou Nation but you are with Luo. What are you doing?" Ye Futian asked in reply.


    "Do I need your permission to stand with someone?" Qi Ao asked. He thought the people of the Cottage needed to mind their own business.


    "From this moment on, the Nandou palace no longer belongs to the Luo family. It is returned to the Nandou Clan. My uncle is the descendant of the Nandou Nation''s royalty and will inherit this palace. From now on, no one is allowed to step foot inside."


    "Just with them?" Qi Ao gazed at the Nobles around Ye Futian.


    "No��" Ye Futian stared at Qi Ao and said coldly and proudly, "Because I am a disciple of the Cottage."


    Qi Ao''s eyes hardened. Those from the Eastern Barren Territory understood the weight of those words. Ye Futian''s meaning was clear. If the other forces would get involved, then it was no longer Ye Futian''s personal matter. He would use his identity as a Cottage disciple.


    "Disciple of the Cottage!" The people of Nandou didn''t understand. They were curious as to what the Cottage was.


    "What if I want to go in?" Zhe Song looked at Ye Futian. As a swordsman of the Fuyun Sword Clan''s first summit, he also had his pride.


    "You can try," someone in the crowd said. A few people walked out. The one at the front was a handsome scholar in a pure white robe!

 305 Eye For Eye

    Chapter 305: Eye For Eye


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was Gu Dongliu from the Cottage.


    Behind him were Xue Ye and Luo Fan.


    The three Nobles of the Cottage had appeared in Nandou Nation. Gu Dongliu had come personally.


    Zhe Song stared at Gu Dongliu. This man had defeated Lu Nantian at the Dongqin Academy. No one could defeat him except those legendary figures of each top force. Since Gu Dongliu was here, everything was settled. Qin Li and the others all shut up.


    Ever since that fight, Gu Dongliu''s status in the Eastern Barren Territory was undisputable.


    The people of the Nandou Nation looked at the newcomer, wondering who he was. The palace instantly silenced with his arrival. Even those from the top forces didn''t dare talk back to him.


    "Third Senior Brother." Ye Futian smiled at Gu Dongliu. He knew how significant it was for Gu Dongliu to come personally and felt warm inside.


    Hearing this, everyone''s eyes flashed. Ye Futian''s senior brothers had arrived.


    "Today is the fight between my junior brother and the Nandou Nation. Anyone from the Eastern Barren Territory who interferes will become the Cottage''s enemy." Gazing at everyone, Gu Dongliu continued calmly, "Next, you can just watch." His calm voice was filled with indescribable dominance. The top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory were only allowed to watch.


    The people of Nandou were all shaken. Ye Futian''s senior brother seemed to be more powerful than all of them. Had they thought incorrectly earlier?


    "The Cottage wants to be in charge of even us?" Qin Li asked. The Fuyun Sword Clan agreed with his question and looked to Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu gazed at him. "Yes." His reply was only one word.


    Qin Li''s smile froze while everyone else looked at Gu Dongliu. The Cottage''s style was so familiar.


    The atmosphere tensed. Qin Li didn''t continue. He was the grandson of Emperor Qin but he wasn''t at the same level as Gu Dongliu. His father would be more suitable.


    At this moment, a group of figures arrived inside the palace. It was the strong cultivators of the Royal Xuan Temple and Luo Junlin. After He Yulu brought them over, he guarded Luo Junlin as he cultivated. He disliked Luo Junlin greatly now but he still hoped Luo Junlin could kill Ye Futian.


    He gazed at Gu Dongliu. Had the third disciple of the Cottage come? If it wasn''t the Cottage, Ye Futian wouldn''t force Xirou to die. It was also because of the Cottage that he couldn''t even avenge for his daughter''s death.


    Ye Futian and Luo Junlin both went into the air. More and more people gathered over. There were countless strong cultivators now.


    "Royal Xuan Temple, step back," Gu Dongliu said coldly, gazing at the people around Luo Junlin.


    He Yulu''s eyes flashed and hardened. "I will watch here," he said.


    "Step back!" Gu Dongliu repeated, his tone colder.


    He Yulu''s anger flared. The others from the Royal Xuan Temple were also furious.


    "My Second Senior Sister is gentle and kind so only one person died at Chaoge. My Third Senior Brother isn''t so easy," Luo Fan said coldly from the back. The Royal Xuan Temple dared to protect the person who tried to kill his junior brother? If it had been Gu Dongliu instead of Zhuge Hui at that time, things would have been different.


    They weren''t familiar with First Senior Brother, the Sword Saint, but they obviously knew Zhuge Hui and Gu Dongliu''s personalities. Both were obedient to the teacher but Zhuge Hui was a woman, after all. She was naturally softer. Gu Dongliu was more overbearing.


    The surrounding people all looked at Luo Fan. Since when was their second disciple gentle and kind? That woman had smashed the gate of the Dongqin College when she arrived and threatened to stop the battles.


    The Royal Xuan Temple all looked uncomfortable. He Yulu waved his hand. "I''m sure the Cottage will keep their promise."


    Ye Futian and Luo Junlin had promised that whoever lost would die. The Cottage could change this rule so he was afraid.


    He took the Royal Xuan Temple back, stepping out of the range. The space was empty and ready for Ye Futian and Luo Junlin.


    "Will your people retreat too?" Luo Junlin asked Ye Futian.


    "Don''t worry. I need to finish some things." Ye Futian chuckled and looked to Emperor Ye''s side. "Imperial Advisor," he called. A man walked out from beside Emperor Ye. When he saw Emperor Luo, his eyes hardened. It was Mo He, the imperial sorcerer of Nandou.


    What''s going on? Many of the Nandou Nation were confused.


    Mo He shot into the air and went to Ye Futian. He was blind but very sensitive. Facing the people of the Nandou Nation, he said, "I am Mo He, the imperial sorcerer of the old royal family of Nandou." This caused everyone''s eyes to focus on him. He was from the old royalty and had been the imperial sorcerer.


    "Luo Tianyi was once the guard of Emperor Nandou," Mo He said calmly. "That year, His Majesty, Luo Tianyi, and I entered the Ancient Barren World together. Luo Tianyi sneakily killed His Majesty and blinded my eyes. He stole His Majesty''s fate and entered the Noble Plane. He claimed to be emperor and stole the throne."


    Emperor Luo''s face was livid. "Nonsense," he uttered.


    "Senior, please go back," Ye Futian said to the imperial advisor. Looking at Emperor Luo, he continued, "We can worry over the validity of that later. But what about Donghai City?"


    "I conferred a title upon you but you refused. What can I say?" Emperor Luo said.


    "Good. It seemed that you ''blessed'' me," Ye Futian said, smiling. "In that case, I will bless you too. After you die, you can kneel before my grandmaster and repent for eternity."


    "You��" Emperor Luo''s expression was ugly. Ye Futian hadn''t even fought with Luo Junlin yet but wanted to kill him?


    "Take him down," Ye Futian ordered coldly. Silver Snow Guards instantly stepped forward to Emperor Luo. A horrible iciness descended. Thinking of how the other six emperors had died, Emperor Luo trembled.


    He reacted quickly too. He shot into the sky, wanting to transform into lightning and escape. But then, a figure shot up too, standing right before Emperor Luo. It was an icy girl. She looked at Emperor Luo and he felt coldness seep in from head to toe. Then he turned to ice, transforming into a statue in the air.


    The girl grabbed in the air and brought Emperor Luo''s ice body to Ye Futian. A group of Nobles appeared behind her. They all had terrifying auras. The Silver Snow Guards froze, surprised at her appearance. The sudden changes came too quickly. In only one moment, Emperor Luo was captured and defenseless.


    The woman who had captured Emperor Luo bowed to Ye Futian. "I am Lan. Greetings to the Son."


    "Greetings to the Son," the other Nobles said, also bowing. Ye Futian was surprised. They called him the Son so they must be sent by the Empress.


    That woman had sent such a strong force here.


    "Ye Futian." Luo Junlin''s aura was going wild as he glared at Ye Futian. They hadn''t even started but Ye Futian already acted?


    "You''re breaking the rules." He Yulu frowned.


    Ye Futian glanced at Luo Junlin and said to He Yulu, "Luo Junlin is a disciple of the Royal Xuan Temple so I followed the rules of the Eastern Barren Territory to challenge him. Whoever dies will lose. My grudge with the Nandou Nation is another matter."


    With that, he looked to Emperor Luo. The man''s eyes were filled with fury as he glared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian didn''t care. "Do you feel hopeless?" he asked. He had dreamed that Luo Junlin could defeat Ye Futian and he could continue to rule. It was just a dream. Even if Ye Futian lost, it would have nothing to do with Emperor Luo. Ye Futian would treat him how he''d treated Ye Futian before.


    "Disable him," Ye Futian ordered.


    "Yes." Lan nodded. She hit Emperor Luo''s body with her palm. At that moment, horrible icy intent ate into Emperor Luo''s body. He yelled as the coldness entered his bone marrow. He shook with deep, deep fear.


    He was an emperor but was now being disabled. Even now, he couldn''t accept this.


    He was the leader of Nandou; he was an emperor.


    Countless eyes fell on him in confusion and shock. Was the emperor of the Nandou Nation really being disabled just like this? The battle hadn''t even started yet but Ye Futian had disabled an emperor. No one had thought of this, including Emperor Luo.


    "No��" He could feel the coldness damaging his organs. His brows were covered in white frost. Feeling the loss of power, he was in despair. At this moment, he thought of a scene from before. He was writing a decree in his library. At that time, he had been an emperor that ruled over the land.


    Now, the situation was flipped. Ye Futian didn''t give him any chance at all.


    "Him too." Ye Futian pointed at Minister Hua, who was completely dazed. He knew his fate when he saw Emperor Luo disabled; he didn''t even dare to escape. If he tried, Ye Futian would notice him.


    With a plop, he fell onto his knees. He was at the peak of the Arcana Plane and shouldn''t be so cowardly. But seeing Emperor Luo disabled right before him, he was completely shaken.


    Fear won over his pride.


    "I was just following orders. Please forgive me," Minister Hua begged on his knees.


    Ye Futian stood in the air, looking down coldly. Following orders? It was a laughable excuse.


    Without any mercy, Minister Hua was disabled just like Emperor Luo. Of course they were in despair.


    Ye Futian had experienced that despair before. When Xia Feng, chief of the East Sea Prefecture, had announced the decree, it was like being struck by lightning. No one could imagine how hopeless he had felt.


    Now, it was payback. An eye for an eye!

 306 Duel

    Chapter 306: Duel


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless eyes from the Nandou Nation looked to the disabled Emperor Luo and Minister Hua. It didn''t feel real. There was no way to fight back. With one word, Ye Futian disabled an emperor and minister.


    They inhaled sharply and looked to Ye Futian. He was so domineering in his revenge. Back then, Emperor Luo hadn''t given him any way to fight back. Now, he made Emperor Luo feel the same despair.


    Everyone thought that Ye Futian would resolve his problem with the Nandou Nation after his fight with Luo Junlin. However, he didn''t give Emperor Luo any shred of hope, just like what Emperor Luo had done before.


    Ye Futian had thought about returning with absolute power. However, the assassination told him that Luo Junlin and Emperor Luo still wanted him dead, even when he was in the Eastern Barren Territory. Thus, he decided not to play with them anymore. Since they acted that way, it was easier.


    He''d wanted to use the Cottage''s power to challenge Luo Junlin. After killing him, he would kill Emperor Luo with the Cangye Kingdom and the other six emperors to fully resolve the matters with Nandou. With the Cottage present, no forces of the Eastern Barren Territory would get involved. However, things didn''t go as he''d planned. The other six emperors had betrayed them but the Nobles of Ancient Loulan listened to him. This way, things were even easier.


    "He''s so serious. It seems that what happened really is a thorn in his chest," Luo Fan murmured in the crowd. He''d never seen Ye Futian like this before.


    "Imagine if it happened to you," Xue Ye whispered. Since they''d come to Nandou Nation, they naturally knew what had happened before. It was unforgivable for an emperor to bully a youth.


    "Yeah, I''ll be harsher." Luo Fan nodded.


    Gu Dongliu looked calmly to the palace. Ye Futian had a cold aura now. His attractive features emanated a cold cruelness, similar to Gu Dongliu. Their teacher had once said that being murderous would hurt themselves. However, he also lived by another phrase: kill all evil.


    Emperor Luo was the ruler of the Nandou Nation but treated Ye Futian so horribly. He clearly was an evil person to play with a youth''s fate. He didn''t have any pity at all. An emperor like that deserved to be killed. Even if Ye Futian lost today, Gu Dongliu would have killed Emperor Luo.


    There was so much evil in the world that one couldn''t rid it all. But since it happened to someone beside him, he would act as the judgement and rid the evil.


    Ye Futian looked at Emperor Luo with no pity; there was only coldness.


    "Did you think this day would come when you sent out that decree?" he asked.


    Emperor Luo was still trembling. Of course he didn''t think that one day, Minister Zuo would be right. This was a calamity for the Nandou Nation. He didn''t believe in fate but in the end, fate still played him.


    "Do you regret it?" Ye Futian gazed at Emperor Luo and Minister Hua. An emperor and minister were being toyed by a youth.


    Regret? Of course they regretted it. Everything was over. Minister Hua still remembered the scene when Ye Futian stepped foot inside the Nandou Clan. He had been sitting high up, watching the brilliant youth burst in. Two short years later, it was the other who was playing with his fate now.


    "Can we start now?" a dark voice said.


    Ye Futian looked over to Luo Junlin. The aura around Luo Junlin was chaotic right now. He witnessed everything but couldn''t change anything. Back then, he was the high and mighty crown prince. His single utterance could determine Ye Futian''s fate. Now, Ye Futian had the Cottage and many Nobles to work for him. He could determine the Nandou Nation''s fate.


    Now, only Luo Junlin had the opportunity to kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was calm. His white robe and black hair fluttered despite the lack of wind. At this moment, the chaotic world seemed to quiet down. Only these two facing each other existed.


    Luo Junlin was a legendary crown prince of the Nandou Nation. He had double life spirits and became the crown prince as a youth. He was the future emperor of Nandou and worshipped by countless. Some people were born to be great. He was one of them.


    He''d definitely displayed his brilliance before. He was the first of the Hundred Lands to make people from the Eastern Barren Territory come and take him as a disciple. It had been such an honor when the Royal Xuan Temple came for him that day. Every emperor came to congratulate him.


    If Ye Futian didn''t exist, Luo Junlin would absolutely become the legend of the Nandou Nation.


    However, the heavens seemed to purposely create an opponent for him. The youth from Donghai City had rejected the decree and fled for his life. He''d entered the Cangye Kingdom. When he''d returned, he stole the spotlight of the Tingfeng Banquet with his staff and dharma. Even though Luo Junlin had been accepted by the Royal Xuan Temple, he still couldn''t steal Ye Futian''s thunder.


    After that, forces of the Eastern Barren Territory went to Cangye to fight for people. Apparently, Luo Junlin and Xirou were there too.


    The battle between Luo Junlin and Ye Futian seemed to be fated, destined since their first meeting at the Donghai Academy. Luo Junlin was royalty but Ye Futian displayed the aura of an emperor. Thus, they stood before each other today.


    Ye Futian waved his hand. The Silver Snow Guards around him retreated, emptying the space. Only the two stood proudly above the Nandou Nation. A wild aura burst forth. Noble intent exploded.


    Luo Junlin had entered the Arcana Plane one year ago. Now, he was in the second level. Though he was only in the second of the nine levels of the Arcana Plane, he was still four levels higher than Ye Futian at the Seventh-level Dharma Plane. There was also the big difference of plane.


    How could Ye Futian make up for this? Even now, Luo Junlin couldn''t understand where Ye Futian got the confidence from, other than having the Cottage behind him.


    The difference in plane was also why Zhe Song, Qin Li, and the others thought Ye Futian would lose if the Cottage didn''t interfere. Luo Junlin of the Royal Xuan Temple wasn''t useless.


    He wasn''t a regular cultivator of the Arcana Plane. A regular Arcana cultivator without noble fate from the Ancient Barren World would be much weaker. Faced with someone with noble intent, the difference in plane would be wiped out.


    The next moment, Luo Junlin released his dharma. It was a huge stone phoenix dozens of meters long. It pressed down on the sky with terrifying red light streaking across its surface. Flames flowed through the brilliant feathers like lava. One could feel various types of noble intent from Luo Junlin.


    He had twin spirits. The phoenix and stone figure were dharmas created from his twin spirits. The moment they were released, Ye Futian felt scalding heat and horrible pressure.


    Spiritual Qi of the world flowed violently towards Luo Junlin''s body and the stone fire phoenix. At this moment, Luo Junlin was like a true king ruling the world.


    "So powerful." Countless eyes fell upon Luo Junlin. Ye Futian had disabled his father today, pressing down everything. Right now, Luo Junlin probably had fury burning like the phoenix. His eyes seemed to contain fire as he stared at Ye Futian.


    Horrible power weighed down on Ye Futian. Countless eyes fell upon him, watching the handsome figure stand facing the wind. The next moment, dazzling light shot out. It was his noble fate.


    The red fire noble fate and purple lightning fate danced and roared wildly in the air. After that was sharp golden fate, heavy earthen fate, green wooden fate, a ripping gale, and extremely icy frost intent.


    Seven beams of colored light rose right into the clouds. Ye Futian was now bathed in full attribute noble aura. He was young but he was like a Noble. His body seemed frail but was extremely impressive.


    Qin Li, Chu Yaoyao, Qian Shanmu, Qin Mengruo, and the others all looked at him. His talent was truly monstrous. No wonder he''d broken so many records of the Ancient Barren World and was invited personally by Gu Dongliu. But could his talent make up for the difference in plane?


    Boom! An extremely wild aura burst from Ye Futian as he released his dharma. The horrible apparition of the Divine Ape appeared behind him. It was covered in shocking light. Gold and dirt-yellow light flowed across. It also glimmered with purple electricity. The powerful Divine Ape''s body was like a dragon. It also had dazzling golden feathers behind him that covered the sky.


    The wings should be from the golden Roc but it transformed in Ye Futian''s dharma. It was huge and beautiful, fitting perfectly with the Divine Ape.


    One''s impression of the dharma was that it was beautiful and powerful. It seemed to contain many top forms. Ye Futian''s body seemed to meld into the dharma too, as well as various noble fates.


    "This dharma��" Many people were speechless. His power seemed untouchable.


    "Junior hasn''t had a true fight since entering the Cottage. We''ll be able to see his true abilities today," Luo Fan said, smiling. Ye Futian was well-known throughout the Eastern Barren Territory. However, he''d used rhythmic sorcery against Qian Shanmu and instantly defeated Qin Mang.


    Today''s battle with Luo Junlin would allow them to finally see Ye Futian''s combat ability.


    Gu Dongliu stared forward. He was excited to see Ye Futian challenge an Arcana cultivator from the Royal Xuan Temple as a Seventh-level Dharma Plane.


    Luo Junlin stepped forward. The stone phoenix flapped its wings. Soon after, sharp meteorites appeared in the sky. Fire wrapped around the meteorites, covering the sky and blocking the sun.


    "Die," Luo Junlin uttered coldly. His voice was filled with murderous intent.


    This spell was the Meteorite Attack.


    The moment he spoke, countless sharp flaming meteorites fell from the sky. A wind spell followed, wrapping around the mountain-like boulders and hurling them towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked up. Each meteorite was thousands of pounds and had sharp points at the bottom. It would be horrible if he was hit.

 307 Combat Ability

    Chapter 307: Combat Ability


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian reached out. Wind and thunder converged in his palm. A horrible gale wrapped around and purple lightning danced. Even his eyes seemed to shine with purple light. Wild Spiritual Qi formed a frightening image in his palms. It spun like a windstorm. A shocking spell was about to be born.


    "This��" Everyone discovered with surprise that two different spells emerged from Ye Futian''s hands. A horrible windstorm was created on his left hand. On his right hand, a terrible lightning dragon was forming. It seemed to have been carved. Endless lightning transformed into a chain that swung towards the falling meteorites, locking them in lightning.


    The wind and lightning dragon was still growing wildly.


    "Our junior can inscribe?" Xue Ye''s eyes flashed. Ye Futian used his spiritual energy and powerful sense of Spiritual Qi to inscribe in the air without an inscriber''s pen and paper. He released a spell that was above his plane.


    An inscriber who could inscribe in the air was similar to a summoner. When their spiritual energy and sense of Spiritual Qi were powerful enough, they could inscribe spells in the air. Of course, it would be much slower. Casting a spell of the same level could be instantaneous. But to inscribe a spell above one''s level, one needed to gather stronger Spiritual Qi and control it with extreme spiritual energy. Any mistake could cause the entire spell to fail.


    Boom�� Extremely terrible weight descended under Luo Junlin''s control. Instead of dodging the attack, Ye Futian gathered his spell.


    He was crazy.


    Ye Futian stepped in the air and welcomed Luo Junlin''s spell. Then he threw his hand forward. A real dragon and elephant seemed to roar. This hit landed squarely on the sharp boulder. The next moment, a purple dragon appeared. It filled the entire sky and wrapped around all the falling meteorites. A true dragon appeared as well. It ran past, crushing everything.


    "Thunder Dragon Spell, Dragon Elephant Roar martial arts technique," Xue Ye said. He''d read tens of thousands of books and knew millions of spells. He''d transcribed practically every spell in the Book Cave of the Cottage.


    The spell Ye Futian used, Thunder Dragon Spell, was in the Arcana Plane. The Dragon Elephant Roar was a powerful martial arts technique. He had combined martial arts and sorcery, casting both at the same time. They complemented each other and created even more power. The overlapped attack was much stronger than a scattered attack. The falling meteorites instantly shattered or cracked.


    Now, the spell in Ye Futian''s left hand was activated. A horrible wind swept past, destroying everything. The meteorites in the sky all turned to dust.


    "Nice," Luo Fan praised. Ye Futian''s reaction was practically perfect. There was a big difference in plane but he''d resolved the attack. He was flawless in both sorcery and martial arts. Added to his Full Attribute talent, he was a genius talent. Luo Fan felt some pressure as the senior brother.


    Qian Shanmu, Qin Mengruo, and the others all watched seriously as well. They were slightly surprised. It was their first time seeing Ye Futian fight with his full ability. Qin Li had said that Ye Futian had never proved himself in battle. Today, they saw his combat ability. He''d displayed his monstrous talent in one attack.


    Luo Junlin looked coldly at Ye Futian. Since Ye Futian dared to challenge him, he would naturally be able to take more than one hit. Luo Junlin was prepared for this.


    Wild flame Spiritual Qi gathered. The stone phoenix flapped its wings and flew out. Lava-like flames flowed through the air towards Ye Futian, burning the sky red. It seemed able to burn everything.


    Liquid firelight appeared in the vast sky. Ye Futian''s surroundings were all covered. He was now in a fiery red world. Luo Junlin''s dharma seemed to come to life and attack endlessly.


    Ye Futian released his sun dharma. It hung high in the sky. There seemed to be a divine tree inside the sun with twisted roots. He himself seemed to transform into a furnace that could burn everything. Runes of fire wrapped around him. He released his wild noble intent and stood there, watching the incoming fire.


    Lava-like flames dropped onto him. He seemed to be inside the sun, feeling the horrible destructive power. Even though he cultivated fire spells, he still couldn''t overlook this attack. But his own power and the flame intent wove with the sun dharma to create a shield. The divine tree extended, absorbing the incoming flame power. The sun grew more dazzling and gradually expanded.


    Luo Junlin''s fire attack was ineffective against Ye Futian. It even felt like it was strengthening Ye Futian''s fire.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and passed through the fire. He went towards Luo Junlin; he was so overbearing and ignored everything.


    The stone phoenix flapped its wings hurriedly. A spell shot towards Ye Futian like a sharp knife. Ye Futian slapped forward. Like a burning handprint, he swept past everything and burned the sharp knife.


    Many people were shocked. Luo Junlin''s fire attack seemed to be helping him instead.


    The stone phoenix returned to Luo Junlin''s side and didn''t continue attacking. Luo Junlin stared at the approaching Ye Futian. Animosity grew. No matter how powerful Ye Futian was, Luo Junlin was in the Arcana Plane and didn''t fear the Dharma Plane. The stone phoenix dharma seemed to meld into him. Beautiful wings appeared behind him.


    Ye Futian stood in the sky and looked down on Luo Junlin. His eyes were wild.


    "Thousand Mirror Images." As soon as Ye Futian spoke, a water elemental spell was born. It transformed into countless mirrors that reflected upon Ye Futian. Then he moved.


    In a moment, thousands of images appeared around Luo Junlin. They were all reflections of Ye Futian; it was impossible to determine which was real. Even worse, the sky within range of the spell turned into a mysterious mist. It covered his aura so Luo Junlin couldn''t use it to find Ye Futian.


    As Ye Futian moved, the countless images in the sky surrounded Luo Junlin. It was dizzying.


    Luo Junlin''s wings flapped and he rose up.


    Boom. Ye Futian cast a spell that transformed into a mountain that smashed down at Luo Junlin. Under the Thousand Mirror Images spell, endless mountains seemed to be coming at him.


    Luo Junlin''s wings turned into blades and swept past. Wind tore through the sky, passing through the mountains. They were apparitions instead of a real attack but he had to clear them all.


    At the same time, Luo Junlin used a spell to smash the illusory images but his spell went straight past. The Thousand Mirror Images was a water elemental spell. It had no attacking power but was also unable to be destroyed directly.


    Boom�� With a huge boom, the solid attack came and shattered under Luo Junlin''s spell. But at the same time, lightning flashed in the sky.


    Crack. Purple light filled the sky and the lightning dragon unfurled. The Lightning Dragon spell erupted once again. Thousands of dragons seemed to go to Luo Junlin. His expression was ugly. With the Thousand Mirror Images spell, every attack multiplied. They were fake but he had to react. Otherwise, the real attack could hurt him.


    A boundless storm gathered around him, enveloping him and tearing apart everything else. The true lightning dragon descended upon the windstorm. Lightning and wind intertwined. Luo Junlin''s windstorm continued rising, trying to escape from the spell.


    Ye Futian wouldn''t allow it. Endless vines curled towards him. At the same time, the Dragon Elephant Roar was activated and charged towards Luo Junlin.


    Trapped by the spell, Luo Junlin could only defend instead of attack. He was in the Arcana Plane but was restricted by Ye Futian. This shocked many people.


    Ye Futian''s every attack was filled with noble intent and reached the Arcana Plane. It was as if he was truly in the Arcana Plane, rather than Dharma.


    Qin Li stared at the battlefield, looking uncomfortable. He''d wondered if Luo Junlin could kill Ye Futian but the latter''s abilities were beyond his expectation.


    Luo Junlin was restricted in every aspect and his features twisted. He stopped trying to burst free. Endless Spiritual Qi gathered around him. His dharma entwined with his body. Bits of stone appeared. He seemed to be turning into a stone figure and kept expanding. Soon, a stone giant more than 100 meters tall appeared. Its surface burned with horrible flames. However, the giant''s eyes were Luo Junlin''s.


    He didn''t fight back and just allowed the spells to fall on him. The giant stone man shook and the spells kept damaging the surface rock but couldn''t hurt him. The broken stone skin quickly recovered as if it was undying.


    "How can you defeat me?" Luo Junlin roared. He swept his arms across, almost filling the entire sky. But at that moment, inside the Thousand Mirror Images, a staff appeared before Ye Futian''s might body. It kept enlarging.


    The Divine Ape melded with Ye Futian''s body. He grasped the staff with immense strength. Unparalleled power gathered in his body.


    Everyone saw a beautiful scene. Inside the spell, thousands of figures twirled the staff at once. The wind and clouds howled; the world changed.


    This scene was too beautiful.

 308 The Death of Luo Junlin

    Chapter 308: The Death of Luo Junlin


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Shining with the light of Divine Ape''s figure, Ye Futian played out thousands of illusory figures with his long staff. He had a very mighty aura.


    Luo Junlin was in the sky too. While observing the countless illusory figures, he internalized his dharma into his body. Soon, a good amount of magma erupted from the crevices on his enormous rock-like body. He reached out his large rocky hand and a horrible noble intent soared into the sky. He folded his hands and roared angrily. Numerous flaming meteorites fell from the sky, turning the entire sky red.


    Bang, Bang. Some of those meteorites, falling down in a certain place, were all crushed. Luo Junlin looked there and found one of the thousand figures was real. Only the real one could have such a strong force.


    Simultaneously, the thousands of figures targeted the rocky body. Ye Futian kept twirling his staff. Spiritual Qi of the world converged like terrible waves, getting strong and stronger.


    Luo Junlin still looked indifferent. The world around him changed, creating continuous heavy pounds. The strong cultivators in the Arcana Plane could resonate better with the natural world. The plane was also known as "nature and man as one."


    Luo Junlin lifted his palms and pounced toward Ye Futian''s real body. The flames on his palms dazzled like a Noble Handprint, extending endlessly and crushing everything. Ye Futian suffered the horrible gravity pressure brought by the handprint. Clearly, Luo Junlin was oppressing him with a gravity spell. Worse was that the flaming rocks from the sky kept falling down on him, seeming to bury him in this space.


    "The Royal Xuan Handprint." The top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory were all surprised. The Royal Xuan Handprint was an aggressive spell combining martial arts with spells; it was very fierce.


    As long as the handprint was thrown out, the target would be trapped in a space of extremely scary gravity. Everything around would fall down on the target automatically. Right now, Ye Futian was the target at the center of the attacks.


    Countless flaming meteorites crushed fiercely toward Ye Futian but he seemed to not be worried at all. His body seemed to have a magical rhythm. Every blow of his staff shattered the incoming meteorites.


    Though he hadn''t reached the Arcana Plane, Ye Futian still had the power to gather the power in the world and resonate with the natural world as a strong cultivator in Arcana Plane could��nature and man as one.


    "What a fierce attack!" People were amazed by Ye Futian''s dancing body and magical rhythm full of strength.


    The flaming meteorites all disappeared but Luo Junlin''s large handprint followed. The entire sky darkened. Endless horrible pressure crushed down like a coffin to bury Ye Futian.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian felt like there was a king in that handprint sitting high on the throne and scorning him. The scene didn''t stir Ye Futian''s heart. Taking advantage of the time, he threw out his staff to rip the sky apart. All of a sudden, the Divine Ape roared, shaking the world.


    Rumble�� There was a horrible explosion. Then the huge palm print was split from the middle. Huge meteorites kept blasting but a very strong force came down to Ye Futian''s staff. The staff trembled. His body was forced back.


    Luo Junlin''s ferocious eyes stared at Ye Futian. He slowly folded his palms and endless Spiritual Qi gathered around him. Another wave of boulders fell down from the sky.


    A giant illusory stone figure appeared behind Luo Junlin like the king of stone.


    A second handprint was sent out. At this time, two king figures loomed simultaneously over the numerous falling meteorites, pouncing toward Ye Futian at the same time. He Yulu looked at this battle indifferently. This time, Luo Junlin would definitely kill Ye Futian.


    The ape roared angrily. Ye Futian''s aura grew more fierce and aggressive. When the attack came, he waved his staff and split the air. A crack appeared in the sky. The meteorites and handprint were totally demolished.


    With another roar, more illusory king figures appeared in the sky and sent out more handprints. By comparison, Ye Futian''s body was very small. Though he had the Divine Ape as a guard, he seemed to be almost buried.


    This time, Ye Futian stood still. His dharma broke out into the sky. An extremely enormous figure of an ape appeared behind him. With seemly endless strength, he twirled his staff and auras of the world all gathered to the staff. No matter how strong the attacks were, he just stood still in place. The noble handprints came down upon him but all shattered. He just couldn''t be defeated.


    Poof�� People were shocked to find that Luo Junlin spat out a mouthful of blood. His body was burning too. An incomparably frightening aura loomed and rose up. He folded his palms again.


    Blood kept rushing out from his mouth. The whole world was shaking. Countless nobles appeared in the sky.


    "How can it be?" The top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory were all stunned by this scene. This was the true Royal Xuan Handprint but only cultivators of the Noble Plane could use the Royal Xuan Handprint. Those below the Noble Plane could only create the embryonic form as Luo Junlin had at first. It was the limit.


    However, the kings in the sky were all real, looking down at Ye Futian. The Spiritual Qi around Luo Junlin all resonated with his aura. Horrible airflow came and trapped Ye Futian in the midair.


    "So powerful." At this moment, all the spectators looked up at the heart-shaking scene. The kings in the sky glared at Ye Futian, seeming to crush him beneath their feet.


    "Very good!" Qin Li grinned hideously. He glanced at people of the Cottage, wondering whether they would help Ye Futian. If they acted, they would be the enemy of the Royal Xuan Temple. But certainly, if Ye Futian won this battle, the Royal Xuan Temple would not be happy either. The plight the Cottage faced now was what they had been plotting.


    The age of the Cottage and the College should come to its end.


    Gu Dongliu''s group watched the battle. Junior Ye had done his best. His every blow was of the Arcana Plane. His dharma helped him become stronger and stronger. Even the world was shaken by his staff. But unexpectedly, Luo Junlin used the Royal Xuan Handprint, risking getting hurt or ending his own life. But if he succeeded, this blow could be fatal to Ye Futian.


    Emperor Luo and Minister Hua closely stared at the front. Die. They''d been disabled but they still wanted to witness the death of Ye Futian.


    In the vast space, countless eyes stared at this scene. The sky was chaotic, the airflow was terrible, and the power was destructive. It had never been expected that the battle could be so fierce.


    Ye Futian looked up at those illusory figures. Endless spirit gathered and entered his body. He could feel the threatening pressure in his body. Even at this moment, he didn''t give up. His eyes were extremely calm and fearless.


    His staff kept spinning. There was some unknown power growing in his body. His blood seemed to be burning and boiling; his veins and bones were snarling. The ape''s roar and the dragon''s growl shook the ground. A beam of sacred light appeared above Ye Futian and soared into the sky. His noble fate pierced into the sky. Everything in the sky bathed in the light and converged to produce a beam of more dazzling light.


    "What is that?" People stared at Ye Futian''s body curiously. His noble fate seemed to be activated, becoming more dazzling and dreadful. At this time, Ye Futian became a true king without the help of noble intent. His body spun and his staff twirled. The sky changed color and his noble fate turned into beams of light. Light rushed into the staff. Then, all the power in the world gathered here as if he was the sovereign of the world.


    Bang. Ye Futian stepped heavily in the air while the ape ascended. The staff slashed through the air.


    "I''ll kill you!" Luo Junlin raved toward Ye Futian. He spat out more blood. The kings in the sky sent out more threatening handprints, wanting to kill Ye Futian on the spot.


    The giant ape and Ye Futian acted as one, raising the staff together. Everywhere the staff swept, those meteorites were shattered. Ye Futian descended above Luo Junlin. He glanced at Luo Junlin indifferently. His staff slashed down. This was the fourth hit of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. The staff slashed down with the Imperial Tactics.


    All the dreadful Royal Xuan Handprints were split by the staff. The flaming staff slashed down toward Luo Junlin below.


    Seeing the staff getting closer and closer, Luo Junlin''s eyes revealed a hint of despair. The staff loomed and he roared angrily, "I will not accept��"


    Bang! The stone figure shattered. Luo Junlin''s body burst into ashes as well, seeming to disappear.


    In the sky, only one handsome figure stood there proudly with a mighty illusory figure of an ape behind him. He seemed unshakable as if what people saw was not a strong cultivator in Dharma Plane but an emperor of the world.


    The turbulence in the sky dispersed and the meteorites disappeared. Ye Futian withdrew his noble fate so that others could not sense his emperor''s intent. Though he''d activated the Imperial Tactic, he covered that with his noble fate. Therefore, others would regard it as some kind of strong spell.


    With rumbles, some meteorites fell onto the imperial palace on the ground. However, people still looked up to the figure in the sky, unwilling to look away.


    Luo Junlin was so strong; he even used the Royal Xuan Handprint. Nobles had been everywhere. Everybody thought that Ye Futian would be killed but Ye Futian had killed Luojun with one blow.


    Luo Junlin was killed on the spot.

 309 Ended

    Chapter 309: Ended


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless people had gathered outside the Imperial Palace, but there was only a deafening silence at the moment.


    Today, in the sky above the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace, prince Luo Junlin battled Ye Futian and was killed.


    At this instant, many people from the Nandou Nation recalled the scene when Luo Junlin became a disciple of a powerful cultivator from the Royal Xuan Temple. He was extremely glamorous and various emperors came to Nandou to congratulate him.


    Today, however, the legendary prince of the Nandou Nation only managed to make another person famous. He was the unparalleled young man who came from Donghai City and was forced to leave his hometown by Luo Junlin and Emperor Luo. When he returned, many nobles listened to his orders and called him the Son. When his senior stood beside him, nobody from the top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory dared to touch him. He was only in the Dharma Plane and crossed four levels to kill Luo Junlin.


    If Luo Junlin could be called a legend, then what about Ye Futian?


    "The Nandou Nation is totally over." Everyone had this thought in their minds. It was already certain that the rulers of the Nandou Nation would change. Emperor Luo was disabled and Luo Junlin was killed. The fate of the Luo Family would be changed completely.


    The people from the Nandou Nation looked at Ye Futian, the miraculous young man who came from Donghai City. Two years ago, he defied the emperor''s order and wrote his own fate himself. In the future, he would be the legend of the Nandou Nation. In addition, with his talents, even the vast Eastern Barren Territory would probably also become a stage for him to perform. The young man who looked like an all-powerful emperor when he fought was born extraordinary.


    Emperor Luo trembled and his hopeless look gradually turned blank. His son Luo Junlin had been a genius since he was a child and had twin spirits. In reality, this was also true indeed. How many people in the Hundred Lands could win him in the battle just now? However, destiny was just so cruel. Since Luo Junli was so talented, why would a person like Ye Futian exist? Why would such a person be born in Donghai City?


    His mind was filled with regret.


    If everything could start all over again, he would go to Donghai personally and kill Ye Futian. However, it was already too late to regret at the moment. He regretted, but could not change anything.


    At this very moment, he recalled many things in the past. That time, he planned a trap and killed the emperor of Nandou in the Ancient Barren World. Taking away the emperor''s noble fate, he eventually managed to enter the Noble Plane and took over his position, becoming the emperor of a kingdom. He went against god''s will and changed his own destiny. He was not resigned to his fate and changed it himself. In the end, however, everything was still lost. Compared to the young man standing proudly in the air, he seemed so petty at the moment. The emperor was but an ant.


    A tear actually appeared at the corner of Emperor Luo''s eye. It was not that he was not strong enough, but instead, he felt that the world was really unfair and everyone''s fate was unpredictable. He had paid a lot to reach the position he was at now. However, his most talented son was killed and he was disabled, and an inevitable death awaited him. Thinking about his entire life, he was not resigned.


    He Yulu from the Royal Xuan Temple clenched his fists firmly as his face turned gloomy. He was unconcerned about Luo Junlin''s death. Although his daughter, He Xirou, had begged him before dying, he had already given Luo Junlin a chance. As long as Luo Junlin could kill Ye Futian in the battle, he would try his best to protect him. However, he failed himself and did not manage to kill Ye Futian.


    Compared to Luo Junlin''s death, he was more concerned about the fact that Ye Futian was still standing there in one piece. Not only was he alive, but he also displayed an astonishing combat power and attracted everyone''s admiration.


    Luo Junlin was his disciple, so he obviously knew how strong his disciple was. Even though Luo Junlin was weaker than those top geniuses, he did not know if any other young person in the Eastern Barren Territory could cross four levels and kill Luo Junlin like what Ye Futian had done. At least, he did not know such a person.


    This was the best chance they had, and yet Luo Junlin did not manage to kill Ye Futian. In the future, even if the Royal Xuan Temple wanted to take revenge, they could not fight against the Cottage.


    How about another assassination?


    That depended on whether they could pay the price, and the answer was obvious.


    "Let''s go." Turning around, He Yulu walked away and showed no signs of wanting to stay. Luo Junlin was already dead. What did the other issues of the Nandou Nation have to do with him?


    The people of the Nandou Nation watched as the cultivators from the Royal Xuan Temple took their leave. They knew that the Luo royal family was totally done for.


    The Royal Xuan Temple abandoned them and left. Luo Junlin was killed, but they did not say anything at all. Nobody knew the exact reason, but at least they knew that the people from the Royal Xuan Temple were weaker than the people in Ye Futian''s clan. Previously, Gu Dongliu had warned the people from the Royal Xuan Temple to back away, and nobody dared to disobey him.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian started walking in the air, attracting everyone''s gaze. He walked up to Emperor Luo who also raised his head and looked back at him.


    At this moment, Emperor Luo felt somewhat dreary. As an emperor, he once viewed Ye Futian as an ant. Now, however, Ye Futian was far superior and was looking at him from above.


    "Ye Futian." Suddenly, everyone heard a clear voice. Ye Futian turned his head and saw a charming figure��Luo Mengyan, the princess of the Nandou Nation.


    Ye Futian looked at her calmly.


    "I won''t ask you to let him off, but the tragedy at that time was caused by him, my brother, and Minister Hua. Many people from the Luo Family are innocent. Can you please let them off?" Luo Mengyan did not show up just now, and she also did not plead Ye Futian to forgive her father for she knew well that this was impossible. A person should pay for what he had done, but it should not involve the entire Luo Family.


    "In the future, the direct descendants of the Luo Family shall be ordinary people," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright." Luo Mengyan felt very sad, but she still nodded. That time, the order from her father involved all the relatives of Ye Futian and an elder whom Ye Futian respected a lot was killed. Later, her father and brother also went to Cangye and threatened Emperor Ye to hand over Ye Futian''s master and masteress. Now, Ye Futian decided not to kill every single one of them. What else could she say?


    "Silver Nine, bring the two of them to Donghai City and freeze them in front of the School of the Emperor Star. I want them to kneel down before my grandmaster''s statue to repent," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes, Son," Silver Nine nodded. Then, he brought Emperor Luo and Minister Hua and left the place. The emperor and the minister were carried off by him just like two ants. The emperor of a kingdom would kneel down before the School of the Emperor Star, causing many people to sigh. Donghai Academy would probably become famous in the Nandou Nation.


    Ye Futian walked back and stood above the Imperial Palace, scanning the crowd. The hatred between him and the Luo Family finally ended, and he also completed what he had been bothered by for a long time. He wished that his grandmaster could now rest in peace.


    "Luo Tianyin stole the Nandou Nation, and it shall now be returned to the Nandou royal family. My uncle Nandou Wenshan, a descendant of the former Nandou royal family, will be the emperor of Nandou in the future. The sin that Luo Tianyin has committed will not involve anyone apart from those directly in the Luo Family. Next time, if I can become powerful enough, I will also try to help the Nandou Nation. I hope that Nandou can become more and more prosperous," Ye Futian said loudly. Then, he looked at Nandou Wenshan and smiling, he said, "Uncle, I will leave everything else to you." After he finished speaking, he smiled and backed to the side.


    Nandou Wenshan took a deep breath and walked forward. He went to the spot above the crowd and felt very emotional. In the past, his ancestor had been killed. Now, the Nandou Nation was finally returned to him.


    He recalled the scene when he first met Ye Futian. That day, in the Luo Palace, he was extremely suave, and shocked everyone with his "Melody of the White Feather." That time, Nandou Wenshan already somewhat admired Ye Futian. However, he did not expect Ye Futian to create such a miracle in only two years and help him get back the Nandou Nation. Some elders of the Nandou Clan trembled in excitement. The nation was finally returned to them.


    Fortunately, Ye Futian did not hate the entire Nandou Clan because of Nandou Tai alone. Fortunately, the relationship between him and Hua Jieyu was firm enough, otherwise, they would not be able to get control over the nation.


    "Greetings, Your Majesty." Outside the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace, many courtiers bowed to salute. The guards also knelt down on one knee.


    "Greetings, Your Majesty." Seeing a group of people taking the lead, more and more people started to salute Nandou Wenshan. They knew that while Nandou Wenshan''s level may not be very high and he was not even a noble, he would sit firmly as the emperor because of Ye Futian''s presence. Nobody would be able to change this.


    Emperor Luo ended up like this. Who would still dare to touch Nandou?


    The earth-shattering voice echoed in the sky. In the Imperial Palace, the faces of the people from the Luo Family turned pale, and there were even some who started to escape.


    Ye Futian landed on the ground. He stood beside Hua Jieyu, and Hua Jieyu held his hand. The two gripped each other''s hand firmly and smiled at each other. Both of them could finally set their minds at rest. The problem in the Nandou Nation which had been bothering them for a long time was finally over.


    "Futian, thank you." Hua Jieyu''s voice was as gentle as water. She knew that Ye Futian chose to forgive the Nandou Clan and let her uncle become the emperor not because he had any special feelings towards the Nandou Clan. Nandou Tai had treated him poorly, how could he have any affection for the Nandou Clan? He did everything only because of his affection for her.


    "Do you want to marry me in return?" Ye Futian smiled and looked at Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu blushed and widened her eyes at Ye Futian. This guy. Everything just ended and he is already starting to show his real self.


    "No problem." Hua Jieyu gave a charming smile.


    "I''ll take it for real." Ye Futian also smiled. Beside them, Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin smiled as they looked at the two, after which they glanced at each other. In the eyes of the other, they could both see relief and joy. The two had really grown up and had surpassed them.


    To Hua Fengliu, Ye Futian was his disciple, and also his son in law. Ye Futian was no different from his own children. He recalled the scene when his Life Spirit was destroyed in Qingzhou, and Ye Futian carried him to Donghai. The two relied upon each other for life. Now, he felt that all bitterness had ended and sweetness had begun, as everything was over. At the moment, he only had one wish, that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu could be happy and safe for their whole life. He already had such an amazing daughter and son in law. What else could he ask for?


    Qin Li, Chu Yaoyao, Qian Shanmu, Qin Mengruo, and Zhe Song all looked at Ye Futian. They each had different expressions on their faces and all felt somewhat shocked. Although today''s battle did not happen in the Eastern Barren Territory, many people still witnessed it. From then on, nobody would question Ye Futian''s combat abilities.


    Looking at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu who were standing together, Chu Yaoyao lowered her head slightly and felt a complicated emotion surging in her heart.


    Turning around quietly, Qin Li and the rest were ready to leave. When Qin Li passed by Zhe Song, he smiled and said, "Together?"


    Zhe Song looked at Qin Li, after which he nodded, "Alright." Then the people from the Eastern Barren Territory left the place one after another.


    Still, there were many people in the crowd who were staring at Ye Futian. Emperor Ye, Ye Danchen, Ye Lingxi, and Lin Yueyao were also here. Clearly, she would not miss the occasion. At the moment, she was smiling very brightly as she blessed the couple in her heart.

 310 Let Me Help You Measure I

    Chapter 310: Let Me Help You Measure It


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A bright smile appeared on the faces of Gu Dongliu, Xue Ye, and Luo Fan.


    "He''s indeed my junior. He has my style," Luo Fan said with his head held high.


    "Shameless." Xue Ye looked at him in disgust and said, "You? If Little Brother is at your level, he will defeat you with just one strike."


    Luo Fan looked at Xue Ye and said emotionlessly, "Brother, this time sister allowed you to leave the mountain because of little brother. When you go back, you should stay there and cultivate. I plan to travel around the Eastern Barren Territory for a while before going back."


    Xue Ye widened his eyes at Luo Fan.


    "Let''s go," Gu Dongliu said emotionlessly as he turned around.


    Luo Fan walked up and asked, "Third brother, do we just leave like this?"


    "The issue here is settled, and little brother no longer needs us now. We''ll let him have his own time here." Gu Dongliu continued walking and left the place. With the nobles from Ancient Luolan beside him, nothing would happen to Ye Futian. The people from the Eastern Barren Territory did not dare act so recklessly.


    Gu Dongliu, Xue Ye and Luo Fan''s white clothes swayed in the air as they took their leave. Ye Futian glanced in that direction. He did not go there and also did not thank them. To him, the Cottage disciples were all like his family members.


    However, at the moment, not all those who had stayed behind were happy. Many emperors from the Hundred Lands had come here to watch the battle. They all could not keep calm, especially those who had drunk and chatted with Emperor Luo. They felt very uneasy because Ye Futian had seen them that day. Now that the general situation had already been determined, they no longer had the chance to switch their position.


    A few emperors approached Ye Futian and lowered their heads respectfully. "Mr. Ye, we''re here to apologize."


    Ye Futian stared at them. Immediately, all the emperors trembled with fear. Looking at the scene, many people from the Nandou Nation sighed in their hearts. Even emperors felt scared before Ye Futian.


    "Later, go and find Emperor Ye and the emperor of Nandou to discuss it," Ye Futian said, waving his hand. He did not have the time to deal with these people. That time, the emperors from the Yunchu Nation and the like apologized and surrendered, but they betrayed him immediately after Luo Junlin returned. They even used Ye Lingxi and Ye Danchen as hostages. Therefore, Ye Futian was already not bothered with these emperors at the moment.


    Of course, these emperors had not done anything to him before. Otherwise, he would not choose to forgive them again, just like Emperor Chu.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s cold look, the emperors nodded and said, "Yes." Then, they stepped back respectfully. They were also very emotional. He was such a young Dharma Plane cultivator and yet his status was already above the emperors. Many strong nobles listened to his orders.


    Emperor Ye, Ye Wuchen, and Liu Feiyang walked up to Ye Futian.


    "Uncle Ye."


    "Do you need my help to handle the issues here?" Emperor Ye said.


    "That would be great," Ye Futian said, smiling. Emperor Ye had been an emperor for a while and would, therefore, be able to settle these issues easily. Meanwhile, he could teach Nandou Wenshan as well. On the other hand, Ye Futian could not bother to deal with these things.


    "When are you going back?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "After I finish handling everything here," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright. Now you already have powerful cultivators protecting you. I will stay here for a while and then go back to the Eastern Barren Territory first." Liu Feiyang smiled. Ye Futian nodded, after which he looked at the Imperial Palace. He then walked towards that direction.


    Next, they needed to put the Imperial Palace in good order.


    Ye Futian went to a courtyard in the palace. There, he saw Minister Zuo.


    "You''re finally here." Minister Zuo looked at Ye Futian. He stood up and said, "Please sit."


    "Minister Zuo, you don''t have to be so polite," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay," Minister Zuo nodded. "Do you blame me?"


    That time, if he had not treated Ye Futian so well and even gave him the Decree of the Minister, many things would probably not have happened.


    "Last time when I met the princess, I asked her to tell you that I do not blame you at all." Ye Futian shook his head. "Minister Zuo, do you want to follow me to the Eastern Barren Territory?"


    Minister Zuo shook his head. "I do not belong there. Although I am an astrologer, I need to hide this ability. Otherwise, there is a high chance that I will die earlier. I will continue to stay at Nandou."


    "Alright. Senior, can you continue to be a minister and help my uncle?" Ye Futian said. Minister Zuo was a minister and many courtiers were chosen by him. If he was willing to help, it would be much easier to organize the Nandou Nation.


    "Yes I would serve him," Minister Zuo nodded. Ye Futian folded his hands and said, "Thank you, Minister Zuo."


    Minister Zuo stared at the handsome young man in front of him. Perhaps, even he himself did not know about his future.


    The Nandou Nation faced a major reorganization. In the Nandou Nation Imperial City, Ye Futian''s name spread to all the restaurants, inns, and any place where there were people. In just one day, everyone knew about him. However, just when everyone was discussing Ye Futian, he and Hua Jieyu left the place quietly. Even his master, masteress, and Yu Sheng did not know about it. Of course, the Loulan Silver Snow Guards were still following them and protecting them secretly.


    ��


    The East Sea was extremely vast. There were ships sailing in the boundless sea. They appeared to be particularly tiny and lonely in the sea, especially when it was nighttime.


    At the moment, in the sky above the East Sea, a demon was flapping its wings and flying forward. The first light of the morning could already be seen. In the distant horizon, a trace of red light appeared and shone onto the sea. Immediately, the East Sea turned golden.


    "Such a beautiful sunrise." On the back of the demon, a charming lady was folding her legs casually, and her body formed a gentle curve. Under the radiance of the first light of dawn, she looked like an elegant fairy, and nobody would have any evil thoughts upon seeing her. However, suddenly, a pair of hands grabbed her slim waist from behind. If anyone else saw the scene, the person would certainly die of envy.


    "Indeed it''s beautiful but not as beautiful as you," Ye Futian said, smiling. Hua Jieyu glanced at him with a passionate look.


    "Are we there already?" Hua Jieyu asked softly.


    "Yup, should be reaching soon," Ye Futian nodded. The red sun ascended into the sky slowly and the sea started glistening, producing a fascinating view.


    In the distance, an island city could roughly be seen. That was the city of Qingzhou. It was Ye Futian''s hometown, and also where the two of them met and fell in love. Now that all the problems of Cangye had been settled, Ye Futian wanted to go back to Qingzhou and take a look. He wanted to try his luck at his house to see whether his father had returned.


    The Black Wind Condor sped up and brought the two across the East Sea. It reached the shore and without stopping, it headed towards the city of Qingzhou directly.


    This island city was peaceful as usual. Every day, it had its own stories. After the monster tide that year, the city was slowly regaining its vitality as well. Since the Ye House was rebuilt, it still looked quite stylish.


    When Ye Futian arrived and saw the state of the Ye House, a strange expression appeared on his face. Could it be that my b*stard father is really back?


    The Black Wind Condor landed in front of the house. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu walked towards the house and the guard outside was shocked by their appearances. At the moment, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were already no longer the young teenagers they once were. That time, although they were already good-looking, their auras were far weaker than now. Their looks alone were already telling everyone else that they were extraordinary. Furthermore, the demon had a very sharp look. It must be a powerful one.


    "Mister and Miss, may I know who you are looking for?" the guard asked.


    "Are the people from the Ye House back?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You are referring to Ye Baichuan''s family, right? They have already been missing for a few years. My master rebuilt this place," the guard said.


    "Feng House?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes. Do you know my master? Do you need me to inform the people inside?" the guard said politely.


    "Is Uncle Feng inside?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Nope. The lady stays here," the guard said.


    A strange look appeared on Ye Futian''s face. It''s actually that girl.


    "Never mind then," Ye Futian said, smiling. He grabbed Hua Jieyu''s hand and turned around.


    "Don''t you want to meet her?" Hua Jieyu smiled and looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian pinched Hua Jieyu''s hand. This fox is actually teasing me.


    "Are you just going to leave like this?" Behind them, a voice spread out suddenly. Ye Futian turned around and saw a charming figure running out of the house. Feng Qingxue was already 19 this year. Standing gracefully at her spot, she looked even prettier and her body was tall and sexy. Seeing her, Ye Futian smiled and said, "Qingxue, you have grown taller."


    Feng Qingxue looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Ye Futian was already more mature and also more handsome. On the other hand, the girl who was once a legend in Qingzhou Academy was also more attractive and stunning at the moment.


    "Then am I more beautiful as well?" Feng Qingxue smiled. Unlike in the past, she already knew how to control her emotions now.


    "Yes, much prettier," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    Feng Qingxue gave a sweet smile and asked again, "Are you still cultivating in Donghai Academy?"


    "Nope." Ye Futian shook his head. Last time when he came here with Minister Zuo, he was still a disciple of Donghai Academy.


    "Then where are you cultivating? Next time, if I have the chance, maybe I will go and find you," Feng Qingxue asked, smiling.


    "Sure. I am cultivating in the College Cottage in the Eastern Barren Territory," Ye Futian replied. Hua Jieyu sighed in her heart. She could clearly see the emotions in Feng Qingxue''s eyes. However, she probably did not know what the College Cottage meant.


    "I''ll take note of that," Hua Qingxue nodded. At the moment, she had not realized that this was probably a place that she would never be able to go. After a few days, there would be news from Donghai City. It would be hard to imagine how she would feel after knowing the truth.


    "I''ll leave now," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay. Bye." Feng Qingxue nodded.


    "Help me to say hello to Uncle Feng." Ye Futian waved his hand at Feng Qingxue. Then, he grabbed Hua Jieyu''s hand and returned to the back of the Black Wind Condor. The Black Wind Condor flapped its wings and flew off into the distance very quickly. Feng Qingxue still stood at her spot and gazed blankly at the slowly disappearing figure. The encounter was plain and simple, but she was still somewhat sad.


    In the sky, on the back of the Black Wind Condor, Hua Jieyu smiled at Ye Futian and asked softly, "Do you miss her?"


    Seeing Hua Jieyu''s mischievous look, Ye Futian smiled and nodded, "Of course. Her body shape was good last time, and it is even better now. Have you noticed how long her legs are?"


    Hua Jieyu blinked her eyes. Then, she widened her eyes at him looking displeased. Sitting down, she extended her legs that were crossed. A pair of slim and tender legs were presented in front of Ye Futian just like this.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled and he said, "Fox, let me help you to measure it."


    As he spoke, he put his hands on her legs. The soft legs were very elastic and felt extremely good.


    "Go away." Hua Jieyu kicked him gently and quickly moved her legs away, her face turning red!

 311 Lin Qiu

    Chapter 311: Lin Qiu


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qingzhou Academy was vibrant with many youthful disciples.


    Today, Qingzhou Academy appeared to be exceptionally busy, because it was the day of the Spring Quarter Examination. The disciples of the academy had gathered together for the examination, and the heads of the School of Martial Arts and School of Sorcery had also arrived.


    At the moment, Qingzhou Academy was particularly lively. The City Lord of Qingzhou, Qin Shuai, was also here, along with many other high officials of the city. Qin Shuai''s daughter, Qin Yi, was now sitting beside him. She watched as the young teenagers in the gymnasium displayed their talents and powers.


    Qin Yi was already 20-years-old. Her body, which was already extremely sexy in the past, was becoming even more attractive. She was still teaching in Qingzhou Academy and was a goddess in the hearts of many disciples.


    Of course, at the moment, she already had a boyfriend. He was Lin Qiu, the most talented disciple of Qingzhou Academy over many years. He was also the direct disciple of the Headmaster Gu Mu. At the moment, Lin Qiu was sitting beside Qin Yi and Qin Shuai. The two did look like a suitable match.


    "Nowadays there are more and more geniuses here." Qin Shuai smiled as he looked at the battle platform. Beside him, the master of House of Swordsmen, Leng Qingfeng smiled and said, "Yup. Qingzhou Academy was badly damaged after the monster tide that year, but the young generations of Qingzhou all started cultivating harder after that."


    "Furthermore, Lin Qiu''s talents have also encouraged many." Lin Qiu was just over 20 and had already entered the Dharma Plane. In Qingzhou, this was definitely considered as extremely amazing and his talents were outstanding.


    "After all, he has been to the outside world," the lord of the Metal Pavilion said, smiling. "Our Qingzhou Academy has not had such an excellent disciple before right?"


    Qin Shuai''s eyes sparkled. Have we not had such an excellent disciple?


    Smiling, he shook his head and did not say anything. However, two figures appeared in his mind uncontrollably. If they did not leave the academy, they would have become legends of the academy long ago. Of course, they were not meant to be bounded to Qingzhou anyway.


    "General Qin, when will Lin Qiu and Qin Yi be getting married?" the lord of the Metal Pavilion asked, smiling.


    "I''m not in charge of this. You should ask them about their own opinions." Qin Shuai smiled, while Lin Qiu looked at Qin Yi.


    "There''s no need to hurry. I will serve father for a few more years and will not get married so early," Qin Yi said, smiling. Everyone nodded and did not say anything.


    The Spring Quarter Examination continued and the academy was very lively. Suddenly, a demon flew past the sky above Qingzhou Academy. It flew towards a particular place in the academy while descending from the sky. Many people noticed the scene. They raised their heads to look at the demon one after another and a strange expression appeared on their faces.


    "There''s someone on the back of the demon," someone said. The few Pavilion Lords of Qingzhou Academy squinted as they stared at the diving Black Wind Condor, wondering about the identity of the people on top.


    The demon in the sky was, of course, the Black Wind Condor which was carrying Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. It landed in a certain courtyard. The courtyard looked somewhat deserted and was uninhabited. It was the place where Hua Fengliu and Hua Jieyu used to live. It was here that Ye Futian once had many warm memories.


    The two landed on the ground and felt very emotional upon seeing the dilapidated courtyard.


    Hua Jieyu took a step forward. The stairs and rooms were all filled with dust. She wanted to go in but ultimately stopped. Turning around, she smiled and said, "Let''s go." She was only here to take a look.


    "Okay," Ye Futian nodded. Today, Qingzhou Academy seemed to be particularly lively as the Spring Quarter Examination was being held. They should have been noticed by many just now.


    The two stepped onto the Black Wind Condor and were ready to leave. However, suddenly, many people ran to them. Seeing Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, they were clearly stunned momentarily.


    "Ye Futian." The look from Leng Qingfeng, the master of the House of Swordsmen, froze. Two years ago, Ye Futian had returned here once together with Minister Zuo. Today when he returned again, he was even more mature and handsome. However, he heard the news from Donghai City that Ye Futian was wanted by Nandou. He was unsure about how the situation was like at the moment.


    Hua Jieyu was back as well. The lady who was once a legend in Qingzhou Academy already had a stunningly attractive look now.


    "Senior, how have you been?" Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "Ye Futian, today the Spring Quarter Examination is being held in Qingzhou Academy. Why not you go there and help to teach your juniors?" Leng Qingfeng invited. He was not very clear about what happened in Nandou, but he knew that Ye Futian, a former disciple of Qingzhou Academy, had amazing talent.


    "No, thank you." Ye Futian shook his head. Although he had some memories in Qingzhou Academy, he did not have much emotion towards it.


    "General Qin is also there." Leng Qingfeng knew that Ye Futian had a good relationship with Qin Shuai and Qin Yi.


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu held his hand and smiling, she said, "Let''s go and meet General Qin."


    "Alright then," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Let''s go." Leng Qingfeng smiled and nodded. Then, the group walked down the slope and arrived at the gymnasium. When the people in the vast gymnasium saw Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, many froze. Although the younger ones did not know them, many teachers and disciples of Qingzhou Academy did.


    Qin Yi was stunned for a while. Then, she dashed out and approached Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. She looked at the two and a bright smile appeared on her face. Then, she said to Ye Futian, "Hey. Shouldn''t you come and visit me first after returning?"


    "Am I not here already?" Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders and smiled.


    Qin Yi looked at Hua Jieyu again. Smiling, she said, "It seems that you have gotten yourself a beautiful girlfriend. It''s no wonder that you have forgotten to visit me."


    "Am I the kind of person that values gals over pals?" Ye Futian said softly.


    "Humph." Qin Yi smiled and glanced at him.


    "Let''s go and meet General Qin." Ye Futian held Hua Jieyu''s hand and walked to the main seats. Qin Shuai stood up to welcome them. After the news from Donghai City, he had always been very worried about Ye Futian. Seeing that the two were well and so outstanding now, he also put his mind at ease. That time, if it was not because of Ye Futian, he and Qin Yi would certainly have a miserable life.


    "General Qin," Ye Futian shouted, smiling.


    Qin Shuai patted on his shoulder and said, "Futian, come and sit beside me."


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded and sat beside Qin Shuai. Hua Jieyu sat beside Ye Futian, while Qin Yi sat on the other side of Qin Shuai. Below them, Lin Qiu''s eyes sparkled. He had heard about Ye Futian before but did not know much. After all, in the island city of Qingzhou, there was limited news that he could receive. At most, he would hear some news from Donghai City.


    When he saw Hua Jieyu walking towards him, he was immediately stunned. There was actually such a beautiful lady in the world, and moreover, she had cultivated in Qingzhou Academy in the past. If he also started cultivating in Qingzhou Academy a few years earlier��


    "I heard some bad news from Donghai City about you. Are you okay now?" Qin Shuai asked in a serious tone.


    "I have solved them all," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "That''s great," Qin Shuai nodded. "In the future, if you are free, come back more often. Qin Yi also talks about you every now and then."


    "Did I?" Qin Yi widened her eyes at Qin Shuai. Who would betray his daughter like this?


    "I also miss senior sometime. I miss the days when you were teaching me how to cultivate during lectures," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "How many lessons have you attended?" Qin Yi stared at Ye Futian in despise. You can continue pretending��


    "Err..." Ye Futian gave a dry laugh. Did I not attend any? Hua Jieyu also gave a charming smile. He was really thick-skinned.


    Suddenly, Lin Qiu turned around and looked at Ye Futian. Smiling, he said, "I am Lin Qiu, Qin Yi''s boyfriend. Qin Yi mentions about you often, and today I finally manage to see you in person. Indeed, you are extraordinary."


    Ye Futian blinked and smiled. "I am Ye Futian. I''m really jealous of you. Senior Qin is the goddess in my heart. Now you have managed to get her."


    "Yes, lucky indeed," Lin Qiu said, smiling. He glanced at Hua Jieyu who was beside Ye Futian and criticized in his heart how hypocritical Ye Futan was. Ye Futian''s girlfriend had such an outstanding look, and yet he said that he was jealous of Lin Qiu.


    Ha. In the past, he also thought that he was lucky. Qin Yi was, after all, the goddess in the hearts of many disciples of Qingzhou Academy; she was sexy and pretty. However, after seeing Hua Jieyu, he felt that he was in fact not that lucky.


    "You can continue," a Pavilion Lord said to the disciples of the academy. The young teenagers of the academy stopped looking at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu and continued their examination.


    Seeing the lively, friendly competition between the young disciples, Ye Futian recalled the Fall Quarter Examination that he once participated. Qin Shuai smiled and asked, "What do you think?"


    "Not bad," Ye Futian nodded. "However, you should encourage the disciples to go out and see the world outside for themselves." Only when one had traveled to the outside world would one know how small the city of Qingzhou was. In the past, his master Hua Fengliu was in the Arcana Plane. Even though his Life Spirit was destroyed, he was still the strongest person in Qingzhou. Even the Headmaster was only at the peak of the Dharma Plane. There was such a huge difference between the isolated island city and the outside world.


    Ye Futian and Qin Shuai chatted casually. Of course, most of the time he was chatting with Qin Yi. Slowly, the Spring Quarter Examination was also nearing its end. An elder announced the names of those who would be officially accepted, as well as the ranking of the examination. Many disciples of the academy danced with excitement. Looking at them, Ye Futian seemed to have seen his young self.


    Noticing the end of the Spring Quarter Examination, Leng Qingfeng smiled and said, "Futian, do you want to go and say something?"


    "No, it''s fine." Ye Futian shook his head gently. He had no intention to be in the spotlight.


    "Lin Qiu, go and say something," Leng Qingfeng said. Lin Qiu nodded, after which he walked onto the gymnasium and said, "Today, I feel very happy to witness the talents of all the juniors during the Spring Quarter Examination. However, learning never ends and it is even more so for cultivation. As the disciples of Qingzhou Academy, we should not belittle ourselves, but we should at the same time broaden our horizons. Qingzhou Academy once had many outstanding disciples, such as Ye Futian. Today, it so happens that he is here as well. Does everyone want to meet him?" Just as he finished speaking, countless people stared at Ye Futian. Ye Futian was stunned and he glanced at Qin Yi.


    "What is this guy doing?" Qin Yi frowned. Many disciples of the Qingzhou Academy started looking at Ye Futian.


    "Brother Ye, why not we broaden the horizon of the juniors of Qingzhou Academy?" Lin Qiu looked at Ye Futian and smiled!

 312 Conflic

    Chapter 312: Conflict


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Lin Qiu did this obviously because he was somewhat unhappy. After Ye Futian appeared, he noticed the attitudes of Qin Shuai, Qin Yi, and Leng Qingfeng.


    Qin Shuai looked as though he really wished that Ye Futian would be his future son-in-law instead. Even his girlfriend Qin Yi was extremely warm towards Ye Futian. Qin Yi was not so active when she was with Lin Qiu, and till now he had not touched her hands. He was even thinking if there was something going on between the two. Even the master of the House of Swordsmen, Leng Qingfeng, treated Ye Futian in a very different manner.


    Was Qin Yi''s boyfriend him, Lin Qiu, or Ye Futian, after all? Was the most genius person from Qingzhou Academy him or Ye Futian?


    Of course, there was another important reason. Ye Futian''s girlfriend was actually such a beauty. He had never seen such an attractive lady before.


    As the genius of Qingzhou Academy, he had been to the outside world when he was young. After his return, he became the disciple of Gu Mu, the strongest person of Qingzhou. He was a talented Mandate Sorcerer himself and had entered the Dharma Plane. Naturally, Lin Qiu would feel somewhat arrogant. He was extremely unhappy about what happened after Ye Futian arrived. Therefore, he clearly had to prove certain things.


    Hearing his words, the disciples of Qingzhou Academy all started to get excited. Even the young disciples of Qingzhou Academy were only a few years younger than Ye Futian and had heard about his name. They really wanted to see how outstanding Ye Futian was at the moment and whether he could be compared to their genius senior Lin Qiu.


    "Lin Qiu, what are you doing?" Qin Yi was unhappy. She could naturally see that Lin Qiu wanted to compete with Ye Futian, maybe because their attitudes had caused Lin Qiu to be displeased. However, what was their relationship with Ye Futian?


    She and Ye Futian knew each other well in the academy long ago. That time, her father was disabled and many people of Qingzhou Academy all looked at her with much contempt. On the other hand, their enemy, the Murong Family, was flushed with success and obtained the position of the City Lord. Who dared to stand out to make sure that justice was served?


    Ye Futian broke into Qingzhou Academy alone and killed the then mighty Murong Qiu, after which he escaped. After he returned, he eliminated the Murong Family and allowed her father to become the City Lord. Because of all these, her family was able to reach where it stood today.


    Did she need to consider Lin Qiu''s feelings before deciding how she and her father should treat Ye Futian? That would be too unfair to him.


    She had told Lin Qiu before about the things regarding Ye Futian and her father. If Lin Qiu really loved her, he would be able to understand her and should not try to compete with Ye Futian.


    Lin Qiu frowned. His usually gentle girlfriend Qin Yi actually blamed him openly because of Ye Futian. This obviously caused him to be even more unhappy. Is she trying to protect Ye Futian?


    "Xiao Yi, I only wanted brother Ye to display his talents in front of the juniors to encourage them. I''m doing nothing else," Lin Qiu said, smiling.


    "How should he display it?" Qin Yi said in an unhappy tone. Ye Futian already said that he did not want to go. Lin Qiu said this directly before obtaining Ye Futian''s permission, and this was clearly very disrespectful. How could Ye Futian not know what he was trying to do?


    "How about have a friendly fight with me?" Lin Qiu said emotionlessly. Then, he looked at Ye Futian directly and asked, "Brother Ye, what do you think?"


    Ye Futian found it both funny and annoying. Glancing at Qin Yi, he said, "My talents are only ordinary and I obviously cannot beat you. I admit defeat." How could he go and beat Lin Qiu, Qin Yi''s boyfriend? After all, he had to give some face to his senior. Furthermore, it was really an uninteresting thing to compete with someone from Qingzhou.


    "Brother Ye, how can you belittle yourself like this? We''ll stop immediately after the winner has emerged." Ye Futian was not interested, but Lin Qiu did not want to give up. Does he want to avoid the battle by just speaking?


    "Lin Qiu, this is too much." Qin Yi stood up and her tone was very cold. Ye Futian was already like this, and yet he was actually so aggressive. Did he think that Ye Futian was really weaker than him?


    Lin Qiu frowned and looked at Qin Yi. His look also turned somewhat cold.


    Who was he? He was the most talented young man of Qingzhou and the direct disciple of the Headmaster. Furthermore, he knew that a few days ago, his master had already entered the Arcana Plane. Even among the many island cities of the East Sea, only a few could be compared to his master, not to mention Qingzhou. Even if he was to go to Donghai City, he would still be considered as a powerful cultivator. He had once cultivated in Donghai City as well. Qin Yi scolded him openly for another man.


    "It''s none of your business," Lin Qiu replied emotionlessly. Qin Yi froze at her spot immediately. The atmosphere turned somewhat awkward at once. During the Spring Quarter Examination, a conflict actually erupted between the perfect match, Lin Qiu and Qin Yi, in the eyes of everyone from Qingzhou Academy. Although this was normal for a couple in love, it was quite serious under such a circumstance.


    Qin Shuai looked at Lin Qiu. In the past, he was the general of the Dark Kylin Knighthood. Seeing Lin Qiu''s attitude, he said, "Qin Yi, I think you can forget about continuing the relationship with him."


    "Yup." Qin Yi nodded gently. It seemed that they still did not understand each other well enough. Moreover, they did not have strong feelings for one another.


    She accepted Lin Qiu as her boyfriend only because she was already over 20. In a small city such as Qingzhou, ladies of her age would usually be engaged. Lin Qiu was indeed considered exceptionally outstanding in Qingzhou, and furthermore, his master was the Headmaster Gu Mu. Everyone thought that they were suitable for each other, and therefore she wanted to try being together with him. However, in reality, she did not have strong feelings towards him. Lin Qiu wanted to chase her probably because her identity and appearance were suitable for him as well.


    Both of them only found the other merely suitable��


    "Lin Qiu, from now on, there will be no relationship between the two of us," Qin Yi said, looking at Lin Qiu. The whole place fell into a deafening silence. Qin Yi wanted to break up with Lin Qiu, and she announced this before everyone.


    Since Lin Qiu tried to provoke Ye Futian, Qin Yi would not be in a difficult position only by ending the relationship with him. In this way, whatever Lin Qiu wanted to do would be irrelevant to her. Ye Futian similarly would not be in a difficult position to respond.


    Ye Futian gave a bitter smile. He did not expect his appearance to cause Qin Yi to break up, but from this incident, it was clear that Lin Qiu and Qin Yi were only reluctantly together. Thus, it was also good that they could realize this.


    Hua Jieyu held Ye Futian''s hand gently and glanced at him. She was glad that they really loved each other.


    "Are you sure?" Lin Qiu''s handsome face looked somewhat gloomy at the moment.


    "Yes," Qin Yi said.


    "Ha." Lin Qiu sneered. Then, he glanced at Ye Futian and said, "Could it be that there is something between the two of you?"


    "How dare you!" Qin Shuai shouted coldly. Lin Qiu was clearly referring to something and was actually trying to ruin Qin Yi''s reputation.


    Qin Yi also did not expect Lin Qiu to say something so shameless. Her face turned very black. She looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu in apology and felt that she had been wronged.


    Ye Futian also squinted. It was alright for them to break up because of a conflict, and he could ignore Lin Qiu''s provocation as well. However, Lin Qiu actually wanted to ruin Qin Yi''s reputation before everyone.


    "Lin Qiu, stop talking," Leng Qingfeng said. "Go down."


    Lin Qiu ignored him. Smiling, he looked at Qin Shuai and said, "General Qin, why are you so agitated? You and Ye Futian seem to be very close. Have you ever wanted him to be your son-in-law?"


    Ha, he is but a garbage City Lord. So what if he rebuilt the Black Kylin Knighthood. His master was a real Arcana Plane cultivator and had a very high status.


    "Take him down," Qin Shuai said coldly.


    "Yes." Behind Qin Shuai, several cultivators in black armor walked forward. However, suddenly, someone said, "General Qin, what are you doing?" As the voice diminished, a figure walked over. It was Gu Mu, the Headmaster of Qingzhou Academy.


    "Headmaster, Lin Qiu said something very inappropriate. I was helping you to discipline him," Qin Shuai said.


    "I will discipline my own disciple. General Qin, you should not be troubled with that," Gu Mu said emotionlessly.


    Qin Shuai frowned and said, "Headmaster, how do you plan to discipline him?"


    "Of course I will teach him to speak carefully next time." Gu Mu looked at Lin Qiu and said, "You should not have spoken so inappropriately on such an occasion."


    "Master, I am wrong." Lin Qiu bowed at Gu Mu. He could naturally tell that his master was trying to protect him.


    "That''s it?" Qin Shuai''s face darkened.


    "General Qin, what do you want then?" Gu Mu said emotionlessly. "Qin Yi said openly that she would break up with Lin Qiu. Shouldn''t she consider Lin Qiu''s feelings as well? It is inevitable that Lin Qiu spoke so impulsively."


    Gu Mu had been cultivating over the years and was disconnected from the outside world. He was very emotionally affected by the events during that time. Finally, he had managed to enter the Arcana Plane a few days ago. After entering the Arcana Plane, his mentality also changed. He treated Qin Yi quite well and was happy that Lin Qiu was with her. However, Qin Yi did not give his disciple any face because of Ye Futian. Did she even care about his existence?


    That time, Hua Fengliu had a high status in Qingzhou, and his disciple behaved very arrogantly in Qingzhou Academy. Now, Hua Fengliu had already been disabled, and Gu Mu was in the Arcana Plane. How could he allow Hua Fengliu''s disciple and daughter to suppress his disciple?


    A strange expression appeared on the faces of many. A conflict actually broke out between the Headmaster and General Qin��


    Gu Mu turned his head and ignored Qin Shuai''s expression. He looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Then, he asked Hua Jieyu, "How is your father now?"


    Hua Jieyu looked at Gu Mu but did not reply.


    "My master is, of course, doing very well." Beside her, Ye Futian smiled.


    "I have not seen him for very long. If he ever returns to Qingzhou, I would like to have a friendly fight with him," Gu Mu said.


    "Headmaster, you managed to break through?" a Pavilion Lord of Qingzhou Academy asked.


    "Yup. I have entered the Arcana Plane." Gu Mu nodded. Immediately, the place turned completely to silence. Qin Shuai''s face turned very black and he finally understood why Gu Mu''s attitude had turned so domineering��it turned out that he had entered the Arcana Plane.


    "I don''t think you will have that chance." Ye Futian looked at Gu Mu with a faint smile on his face. He looked really confident after entering the Arcana Plane.


    "Is it?" Gu Mu said emotionlessly. "Since I won''t have that chance, how about you and Lin Qiu have a friendly fight since you are both here?"


    Lin Qiu stared at Ye Futian. Everything seemed to have returned to its original state.


    "He''s too weak." Ye Futian, however, did not look at Lin Qiu. He said directly to Gu Mu, "How about you give it a try instead?"


    PS: I saw many questions about why Qingzhou was so closed. When I was introducing the city of Qingzhou, I wrote that it was an unruled island city and had little contact with the outside world. Hua Fengliu was the strongest person even though he was only in the Arcana Plane and had suffered a severe injury. Also, not many people knew that he was known as the Guqin Devil. Even Donghai Academy in Donghai City was a legend, not to mention places even further away. The Tingfeng Banquet in the Imperial City caused at most a short wave of excitement in Donghai, so they wouldn''t know about the changes in the rulers so quickly. Ye Futian went to Qingzhou right after everything ended, so the news obviously would not spread that fast��

 313 End of the Nandou Nation

    Chapter 313: End of the Nandou Nation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s words caused everyone in the vast space to stare at him. They were all stunned. Did he ask the Headmaster Gu Mu to fight him? The Headmaster already said that he had entered the Arcana Plane not long ago. With such a level, he could be considered a legend in Qingzhou.


    How old was Ye Futian? It was said that he started cultivating at the age of 15, and now he had only been cultivating for three to four years.


    He was simply mad.


    Many people in Qingzhou Academy did not like Ye Futian. Hearing his words, their faces turned cold. He was indeed as supercilious as before. Actually, Ye Futian also felt quite speechless. Was he so incompatible with Qingzhou Academy?


    When he participated in the Fall Quarter Examination for the first time, he ranked first for the written test. In the fighting test, he wanted Yu Sheng to get first, but in the end, Murong Qiu got it because of the relationship between the Pavilion Lord of the Earth Pavilion and the leader of the Murong Family. This caused many subsequent disturbances, and he also left Qingzhou Academy because of this. Now when he returned, Gu Mu had entered the Arcana Plane and was very arrogant. Did he want to fight with Ye Futian''s master? He also asked his disciple to fight with Ye Futian. It was already obvious what he was trying to do.


    "Idiot." In the gymnasium below, Lin Qiu said to Ye Futian, "You should look at the situation first before trying to show off. What are you? How do you dare to talk to my master like this?" This was Qingzhou Academy after all, and his master was the Headmaster. Even though Ye Futian was no longer wanted by Nandou, he was really an idiot to behave so arrogantly in front of the Arcana Plane Headmaster in Qingzhou Academy itself.


    Ye Futian glanced at Lin Qiu and then said to Gu Mu, "Since you do not know how to discipline your disciple, I''ll help you." After he finished speaking, he stepped out in the air and walked towards Lin Qiu.


    "Dharma Plane��" The looks from countless people in Qingzhou Academy froze. Only Dharma Plane cultivators could walk in the air without using any wind-elemental spells.


    Clearly, Ye Futian was also in the Dharma Plane. He was such a young Dharma Plane cultivator. Furthermore, he was a Mandate Sorcerer��


    Lin Qiu also frowned. Ye Futian was actually also in the Dharma Plane. This caused his face to darken. He was weaker in terms of cultivation talents.


    Lin Qiu released his Dharma Plane aura. Since Ye Futian was also in the Dharma Plane, he could only prove himself by defeating Ye Futian.


    Following a splashing sound, many sky vines that covered the entire sky swept towards Lin Qiu. Lin Qiu wanted to avoid them, but the vines were everywhere and he could not escape at all. Flames erupted from Lin Qiu and a flaming bird Dharma actually appeared, trying to burn the vines away. However, the vines glittered with red light and survived the flames. They wound around Lin Qiu''s body firmly and tied him in the air directly.


    Err�� Seeing the scene, the disciples of Qingzhou Academy all turned speechless. Was this their most talented senior Lin Qiu? He actually could not even withstand a hit from Ye Futian.


    "You were jealous over a trivial matter, and then humiliated the lady whom you once pursued. I think you should just be an ordinary person," Ye Futian said casually, causing many to tremble. Was Ye Futian going to permanently destroy Lin Qiu''s foundations?


    "How dare you." Lin Qiu''s expression immediately changed as he stared firmly at Ye Futian. Many sharp blades formed from the vines and pierced into Lin Qiu''s body. With his character, it was very likely that Lin Qiu would avenge Qin Yi in the future. Thus, Ye Futian would rather be the bad guy. Anyway, it was not the first time that he acted as the bad guy in Qingzhou Academy.


    "Master, save me," Lin Qiu cried miserably and stared at his master with a horrified expression.


    Gu Mu''s face turned extremely gloomy. A mighty Arcana Plane aura erupted from him and he said coldly, "Let him go."


    "I said that since you do not want to discipline him, I''ll help you do so." Ye Futian glanced at Gu Mu.


    "You are really daring." Gu Mu continued releasing his Arcana Plane aura and his face darkened. He did not expect Ye Futian to actually be so strong. However, he still could not tolerate Ye Futian behaving so arrogantly in Qingzhou Academy.


    Sword qi whizzed in the air and a frightening might engulfed the gymnasium. Gu Mu stepped forward and charged towards Ye Futian directly, bring along a terrifying sword will.


    "Headmaster, show mercy." Leng Qingfeng also did not expect the event to go in such a direction. If he knew this earlier, he would not have invited Ye Futian to come and watch the Spring Quarter Examination.


    With an endless might, Gu Mu''s sword charged towards Ye Futian like a bolt of lightning. How could he stop now?


    However, Ye Futian only stared coldly at Gu Mu. It seemed that there was a reason for the fall of Qingzhou Academy. As the disciple of Gu Mu, Lin Qiu behaved in such a way. Instead of punishing him, Gu Mu only flaunted his superiority as an Arcana Plane cultivator. How could anyone under his teaching become outstanding? Since this was the case, Ye Futian could only solve the problem of Qingzhou Academy on the fundamental level.


    "You wanna die?" Lin Qiu stared at Ye Futian firmly with a ferocious look. The sharp blades from the vines pierced into his body and he gave out a miserable cry again. Ye Futian looked at him emotionlessly. "Idiot."


    "Ye Futian!" Gu Mu arrived with an appalling sword will. Suddenly, a noble will enveloped Ye Futian and his white shirt started to sway in the air. Looking at the incoming sword, he raised his hand and punched in the air. A monstrous lightning dragon actually appeared and the howls of dragons filled the place. Even the color of the sky changed as the dragon penetrated through the sword qi and charged towards Gu Mu. Gu Mu''s sword will collapsed wildly. Feeling the frightening, noble-like might, his heart trembled fiercely. How could this be!


    Countless people froze as they gazed firmly at the scene in the sky. The lightning dragon destroyed everything in its path and its huge head appeared in front of Gu Mu. It opened its ferocious mouth and bit towards him.


    Gu Mu''s body glittered with lightning. He gave an angry roar and struck out his Arcana sword. However, the lightning dragon moved forward with a crushing force and engulfed his sword directly. Then, its monstrous teeth gripped onto his body.


    An extremely astonishing scene appeared in the sky. Ye Futian reached out his hand and released a shocking lightning dragon which bit Gu Mu directly. Leng Qingfeng stood up and could not stop trembling. It was as if everything had returned to the day when Ye Futian participated in the Fall Quarter Examination when he used the Hand of the Dragon.


    Even time seemed to have stopped. The Qingzhou Academy gymnasium was in a deafening silence as all the disciples looked at the scene in astonishment.


    The Headmaster Gu Mu, an Arcana Plane cultivator, could similarly not even withstand a hit from Ye Futian. This overturned their knowledge about cultivation. Could any person''s talents really be so strong?


    "No, no..." Lin Qiu watched the scene in desperation, and his face turned very pale. His master, an Arcana Plane cultivator, actually could not even take a single blow from Ye Futian. This caused him to feel extremely scared and helpless. Just now when he saw Hua Jieyu, he thought that Ye Futan was very lucky. He believed that his talents were no weaker than Ye Futian; hence he was jealous and the subsequent events followed.


    All the Pavilion Lords of Qingzhou Academy stood up one after another and their hearts raced wildly. The scene was really too astounding. Nobody expected the young man who had left a few years ago to already be so shockingly strong at the moment.


    "Your disciple was wrong. Instead of punishing him, you actually allowed him to act freely. Since this is the case, you''ll follow him together." As Ye Futian finished speaking, the lightning dragon howled fiercely and an endless amount of lightning penetrated Gu Mu''s body directly, causing him to glitter with radiance. Gu Mu cried in pain as the lightning dragon brought his body onto the ground. Accompanying a dragon howl, the lightning dragon disappeared, but Gu Mu lied miserably on the ground like a dead body.


    Actually, Ye Futian would not have done this just because of the incidents today. However, during that time when Xia Fan was flaunting his superiority and disabled General Qin, and when the Murong Family was in power, Gu Mu, the head of the holy land of cultivation in Qingzhou, never once stepped out and said anything. He did not deserve to be in this position.


    Today, just because he had entered the Arcana Plane, he was so supercilious. His disciple tried to ruin Qin Yi''s reputation and yet he was so domineering towards General Qin. This caused Ye Futian to be totally enraged.


    Hence, this happened.


    Lin Qiu''s face was as white as a sheet. He looked helplessly at his disabled master who was lying on the ground, and his heart was filled with coldness. Following a splashing sound, the vines carried his body and smashed him onto the ground. With a loud bang, he lied with his master, and his meridians were similarly destroyed.


    In the dead silence, someone in Qingzhou Academy suddenly said, "Ye Futian, even though you hate Qingzhou Academy, this is really too much." The person was a trusted aide of the Headmaster Gu Mu.


    Was it too much? In the past, maybe Ye Futian would not have done this. However, he had experienced too many things over the years. Luo Junlin relied on He Xirou''s powers to deal with Cangye, and they even tried to assassinate him. The six emperors from the Yunchu Nation and the like also betrayed him. Therefore, he knew much more about human nature. Gu Mu and Lin Qiu behaved like this. When he was here, he could still deal with them. However, what would happen after he left?


    If Gu Mu really hated them, he could do much evil before running away. If something were to happen to General Qin and Qin Yi, there would be nothing Ye Futian could do. Even if he was to kill Gu Mu by then, it would be meaningless.


    "Master Leng, in the future you''ll be the Headmaster of Qingzhou Academy," Ye Futian said, looking at Leng Qingfeng. Leng Qingfeng had a good character and could sit well in this position.


    "Err..." Leng Qingfeng felt very emotional. He also did not expect Ye Futian to actually be so powerful. However, Gu Mu was the Headmaster of Qingzhou Academy after all and he was disabled by Ye Futian. If he was to become the Headmaster, the people of the academy would probably not accept him after Ye Futian left.


    Someone very close to Gu Mu said, "We don''t accept this. Who are you to decide on the Headmaster of Qingzhou Academy?"


    Ye Futian scanned the crowd coldly. Then, he shouted loudly, "Silver Snow Guard." Just as he finished speaking, the temperature in Qingzhou Academy seemed to fall immediately. In the sky, several figures stood proudly and their might enveloped the whole region. When their aura filled the place, the people from Qingzhou Academy all started trembling.


    The figures that had appeared in the sky were like the kings of the void. "Yes," they roared simultaneously.


    "Who does not accept my decision?" Ye Futian said emotionlessly. Those who were not convinced looked at the people in the sky, and their hearts twitched. What level were these people?


    "Even the emperor of the Nandou Nation was determined by me. Why can''t I determine the Headmaster of Qingzhou Academy?" Ye Futian seemed to have changed into another person altogether and was extremely dominating. Hearing his words, the people from Qingzhou Academy were all flabbergasted. Could Ye Futian determine the emperor of Nandou?


    "Jieyu," Ye Futian said. Hua Jieyu smiled and looked at him. Walking forward, she approached Ye Futian. The Black Wind Condor gave a long tweet and came before Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "General Qin, senior, if you have any problems, you can go to Donghai Academy and find Yi Xiang, the Headmaster. If he still can''t solve it, you can go to the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace and look for the emperor, who is Jieyu''s uncle. He will inform me about it." Ye Futian looked at Qin Shuai and Qin Yi. Smiling he said, "I will take my leave now. Senior, take care." After he finished speaking, the Black Wind Condor extended its wings and flew into the sky. The nobles then followed them and left.


    In Qingzhou Academy, countless people gazed at the departing figures in the sky and could not remain calm. They would probably not forget about this in their entire life!


    "This b*stard..." Qin Yi''s eyes were slightly red. Why did he have to ask those nobles to show up before leaving? Obviously, she knew that it was all for her. A crystalline tear flew out from the corner of her eye, but her face was still filled with a bright smile. The once young juvenile had already turned into a fully grown eagle. The sky would no longer be able to bind him!

 314 Teaching

    Chapter 314: Teaching


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When one was only slightly stronger than the rest, perhaps they would be jealous of one and not convinced by one. However, when one was so powerful that the rest did not even dare to be jealous, they could only look up at one in awe and respect.


    Ye Futan was precisely trying to leave such an impression in Qingzhou Academy. From then on, nobody would dare to disrespect General Qin and Qin Yi. In the end, he still did not manage to meet his family members, but he finally settled everything else here.


    In the Hundred Lands, various emperors went to Cangye and Nandou to send their congratulations. The emperors who had drunk and chatted with Emperor Luo all stated that they were willing to be absolutely obedient and accept all conditions. Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin spent a few days in the Nandou Nation Imperial Palace. Then, the group returned to the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Ye Futian first sent Hua Jieyu back to the Moon Clan, after which they went to the Guqin Gardens of the Divine Capital. When Ye Futian and Yu Sheng finally returned to the Cottage, more than a month had already passed since their departure.


    On Book Mountain, the Cottage was peaceful and harmonious as always.


    Beside the bamboo forest, in front of the small huts.


    "Little brother, you''re back." Seeing Ye Futian, Beitang Xing''er smiled gently. She had two lovely dimples on her cheeks.


    "Yup. After one month, you have become more beautiful." Ye Futian smiled.


    Beitang Xing''er was already used to it. Smiling, she said, "Sit down. You returned just in time for the meal. I''ll go and call the fourth brother here."


    "Next time I join any place, I will definitely be the youngest," someone sighed. Ye Futian smiled and looked at the fifth brother who was cooking. Then, he said, "Fifth brother, why didn''t you spend a few more days outside the mountain?"


    Luo Fan widened his eyes at Ye Futian who was rubbing his nose in it. At first, he planned to enjoy his time below the mountain. However, the third brother actually said that without him, nobody would be here to cook for the second sister.


    This is too miserable and inhuman! Luo Fan thought.


    "Are you complaining?" Suddenly, a gentle laughter was heard. The second sister came out from the bamboo forest and smiled at Luo Fan.


    "Sister, please sit. The dishes will be ready very soon." Immediately, Luo Fan was filled with enthusiasm and his lifeless look from just now was completely gone. Only then did the second sister smiled in satisfaction. She looked at Ye Futan and said, "Little brother, you didn''t bring Jieyu here?"


    "Sister, Jieyu went back to the Moon Clan," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay. She can come whenever she is free," Zhuge Hui said, smiling. "I heard them talking about your battle in Nandou. Even I regret not going to Nandou myself to watch it."


    Ye Futian scratched his head and said, "Obviously I cannot disgrace to the Cottage."


    "Yup. Finally, there is a decent brother in the Cottage," Zhuge Hui said. "Come here and sit."


    Luo Fan''s face darkened. The face of Yi Xiaoshi who was walking over was also wet with tears. That was the impression their senior had of them!


    Luo Fan and Beitang Xing''er finally returned. The meal was ready and the group sat in a circle. Ye Futian asked, "Where is the third brother?"


    "He went to cultivate," Beitang Xing''er replied.


    Ye Futian nodded gently. Suddenly, Zhuge Hui seemed to have thought about something and said, "Little brother, I heard from them that your martial arts are significantly stronger than your sorcery?"


    "Yup." Ye Futian nodded. He obtained the body-enhancing technique from Emperor Ye Qing and the art of the Nine Heavenly Attacks was passed to him from the Snow Ape. The spells that he had learned were not as strong so naturally, he would be better in his martial arts. In fact, at a high level, there would be no particular advantage of being a sorcerer or martial arts cultivator. It depended on which area one was more talented at.


    "Four, go tell Zong Xu that little brother and Yu Sheng will be going to their training field later to cultivate," Zhuge Hui said to Xue Ye.


    "Now?" Xue Ye asked.


    "What do you think?" Zhuge Hui said, smiling.


    "Alright." Xue Ye put down his chopsticks, looking hurt. Then, he left the place.


    I have no human rights�� I have not eaten yet. The difference in treatment��


    "Thank you, sister." Ye Futian smiled brightly. The sister was really nice to him.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s voice, Xue Ye sped up with tears in his eyes. Out of sight, out of mind.


    Suddenly, some footsteps approached. Ye Futian turned around and saw a cold-looking figure walking towards him. It was Luolan Xue, the Virgin of Ancient Luolan. However, to Ye Futian''s bewilderment, the pure Virgin Luolan Xue was actually holding a basin at the moment. In the basin, there were many pieces of washed clothes. Ye Futian choked on his rice.


    Cough, cough�� Was this still the Virgin of Ancient Luolan, the cold beauty Luolan Xue?


    Luolan Xue glanced at Ye Futian and then said to Zhuge Hui, "I''ll go and dry the clothes in the sun."


    "Alright. After you''re done come and eat with us." Zhuge Hui nodded.


    "Okay." Luolan Xue nodded gently, after which she walked towards the back of the bamboo forest.


    Beitang Xing''er looked at Ye Futian, feeling somewhat embarrassed. In the past, she used to do all this.


    "Little brother, what is it?" Zhuge Hui asked Ye Futian who was choking.


    "Nothing. I ate too fast." Ye Futian lowered his head and continued to eat. Thinking about the imposing manner of the fourth and fifth brothers outside and the things that they had to do on the mountain, Ye Futian was gradually able to accept the truth.


    The Cottage was a special place. It could not be judged in an ordinary way.


    Maybe, perhaps�� Washing clothes is also a kind of cultivation?


    "Eat slowly," the second sister said, smiling. "Since she will become your servant, I''ll help you teach her."


    Cough, cough�� Hearing this, Ye Futian who had lowered his head to eat was choked again. His eyes turned red and he was almost moved to tears... Why was the sister so outstanding!


    After Luolan Xue hung the clothes, she returned and stood quietly at the side.


    "Help little brother to fill his bowl first," the second sister said.


    "Okay," Luolan Xue nodded. She looked at Ye Futian and extended her slim arms. Ye Futian passed his rice bowl to her. Luolan Xue filled the bowl with rice and passed it back to Ye Futian. Only then, the second sister said, "Sit and eat together."


    Luolan Xue sat down quietly beside Ye Futian. All this while, Ye Futian had been lowering his head and eating in silence.


    "Little brother, eat more." Zhuge Hui smiled and helped Ye Futian to fill his bowl with meat. Then, she looked at Luolan Xue and said, "Little brother is so skinny. You should help him to take more meat. In the future, you''ll do all these tiny things. Don''t wait for someone else to tell you that."


    "Alright," Loulan Xue continued nodding. Ye Futian continued eating with his head lowered. Luo Fan, Yi Xiaoshi, and Beitang Xing''er all tried to keep their faces straight.


    On the other hand, Yu Sheng looked at the scene with satisfaction. The second sister is really thoughtful. Futian better be used to this.


    Zhuge Hui smiled and looked at Ye Futian and Luolan Xue. The little brother was outstanding in all aspects except that he was too kind to beautiful ladies. Since Luolan Xue requested to be his servant, she clearly had to be ready for it. Zhuge Hui heard that it was the intention of the celestial empress of Ancient Luolan. Did she want her daughter to enter the Cottage like this and become a disciple? Then she would need to be a servant first.


    Nevertheless, Zhuge Hui was quite satisfied with Luolan Xue''s performance so far. She did not behave like she was a princess at all and was very obedient. Thus, she could be taught slowly and in the future, she would definitely become a competent servant.


    Xue Ye only returned after they finished eating. Zhuge Hui asked him, "Is it settled?"


    "Yup. Little brother and Yu Sheng can go to the training field anytime." Xue Ye nodded.


    "Then bring them there now," Zhuge Hui said.


    "Alright," Xue Ye nodded.


    "Can I go and take a look?" Luolan Xue said softly as she looked at Zhuge Hui.


    "Bring her along," Zhuge Hui said to Xue Ye.


    Xue Ye nodded. Then, he brought Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Luolan Xue out of the Cottage. They came to another mountain of the College. This mountain was ruled by Mountain Elder Zong Xu and was known as Mount Chong. The mountain was filled with many orderly arranged palaces and attics. An ethereal mist filled the place, making the mountain look like a fairyland.


    The Cottage is probably the simplest among the nine mountains of the College, Ye Futian thought.


    Of course, there were only a few people in the Cottage in the first place.


    The Mount Chong training field was a very famous cultivating area in the College. Every day, many disciples would come here to cultivate and train.


    The arrival of Ye Futian and his team caused a great disturbance at the training field. It was as if the disciples on Mount Chong already knew the news. Clearly, Mountain Elder Zong Xu had deliberately told them the message.


    Standing at the edge of the training field, Ye Futian could not keep calm. This was the first time he came to a place of cultivation in the College. The training field was built using purely white stone. It was in the shape of a canyon which was tens of meters deep. At the edge of the training field, there were a few towering boulders carved into statues which resembled humans. The statues were slanted and faced the training field. From them, a terrifying might was emitted, pressuring the people in the training field. Although Ye Futian was standing on the edges of the field and did not step into it, he could still feel a noble-like pressure.


    Apart from that, the entire training field was also enveloped in a matrix. Ye Futian could feel a very strong pulling force that was trying to suck him into the canyon. It was an extremely powerful gravity. Many people went around the group and looked at them.


    "Little brother, seems like Mountain Elder Zong Xu has already told everyone about it. Now, many disciples are coming to Mount Chong, and they probably all want you, a Cottage disciple, to train with them. Take care of yourself. I will not accompany you." Xue Ye patted on Ye Futian''s shoulders and smiled. Then, he left the place alone and Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Luolan Xue were left here.


    "He is gloating," Ye Futian muttered to himself. Then, he said, "Yu Sheng, let''s go down." After he finished speaking, they walked through the air and headed towards the training field. Just as they entered the sky above the training field, they felt an extremely strong gravity trying to pull them down. Immediately, they started to fall at an incredible speed and landed in the canyon like two bolts of lightning.


    "The gravity is so strong!" Ye Futian stood in the canyon and felt that his footsteps were extremely heavy. Apart from that, the noble might coming from the enormous stone statues above him also made him feel like he could not even move a single step.


    This was indeed a good place to train their martial arts skills.


    Luolan Xue did not go down. She only stood at the edge of the canyon and watched in silence. Apart from her, many people at the edge of the training field looked at Ye Futian. Among them, someone with an outstanding temperament smiled and said, "I heard that Ye Futian killed Luo Junlin who was in the second level of the Arcana Plane when he was only in the Seventh-level Dharma Plane. I wonder how strong Luo Junlin''s combat abilities were."


    "In any case, Ye Futian''s combat power is certainly very strong indeed." Beside him, another young man smiled.


    "Yup. Since this is the case, anyone on Mount Chong who is below the second level of the Arcana Plane can go and have a friendly fight with Ye Futian or Yu Sheng if you want to. There''s no need to hesitate." The young man smiled. It was a rare chance to have two Cottage disciples to help in their training.

 315 Training Field Cultivation

    Chapter 315: Training Field Cultivation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the side of the field, more and more people gathered above the gorge. These were all disciples of Mount Chong that hurried over after receiving the news.


    There was a mountain above the training field with a building. That was the cultivation ground for Mountain Elder Zong Xu. Right now, he stood at the edge of the mountain and looked down. The Cottage had recommended Ye Futian to cultivate at Mount Chong''s training field and he naturally agreed. This could motivate his disciples.


    Ye Futian obviously noticed all the people who''d arrived but he didn''t care. He tried walking, running, and displaying his martial arts strength in the gorge. He realized that his every move was restricted. Horrible noble might and gravity weighed down. Each move became difficult.


    The training field was big. There were other cultivators present, all in different planes. Most were above the Arcana Plane. It was difficult for someone of the Dharma Plane to move here. There were also all sorts of weapons made of white stone here.


    If I can move naturally in this field, I will definitely have a breakthrough, Ye Futian thought. If he could reach a certain speed and strength under this pressure, what would he be like without the pressure? His abilities would soar.


    At that time, someone flew over and landed with a boom. A youth appeared before Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. "Duan Lan, Eighth-level Dharma Plane. I specialize in martial arts and would like to exchange experiences." The youth gazed at Ye Futian and issued a challenge.


    Countless eyes from above the gorge looked over. Someone had started already.


    "Ye Futian, Seventh-level Dharma Plane," Ye Futian said, smiling. He wouldn''t refuse. Since the disciples of Mount Chong wanted to use him to train, he would use them too.


    Duan Lan stepped back and then charged towards Ye Futian. Each step was extremely heavy and mighty. He soon started running. He seemed to contain horrible strength, filled with wildness. He punched, fist hurling towards Ye Futian with terrifying power. The might and gravity of the training field seemed to be working for him, melding into the powerful punch. His moves flowed like water, not affected at all. Clearly, he''d practiced here many times.


    A dragon and elephant roared above Ye Futian. Seeing the incoming attack, he stepped out and raised a fist, punching over. He wasn''t used to the mightiness and gravity here, so his punch was a bit uncoordinated. It didn''t affect his speed or power though. A true dragon and elephant seemed to burst from his fist.


    The two attacks crashed with a deafening boom. Then Duan Lan''s fist started shaking. With a grunt, he flew back, spitting out blood.


    "So powerful." Duan Lan stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had Emperor Ye Qing''s body-enhancing technique, and the three life spirits were extremely large divine beasts. He was practically made of steel. One could imagine how powerful he was when adding in the Dragon Elephant Roar.


    Boom. Another figure landed. It was Kua Shan who climbed up Book Mountain with Ye Futian. He was now cultivating at Mount Chong. His burly body landed before Yu Sheng. "I want to challenge you."


    "Sure." Yu Sheng nodded. He sprinted forward, creating consecutive booms. Because of the pressure and gravity, his every step seemed extremely heavy, shaking the earth. This sound gave everyone pressure. He gradually sped up and landed explosively before Kua Shan with a punch. Accompanied by a huge crash, Kua Shan flew back. Many people trembled inwardly. Yu Sheng''s strength was perverted.


    Many people challenged Ye Futian and Yu Sheng afterward, and the two defeated them all. They gradually became used to the gravity and their moves became smoother.


    A group of youths stood above the gorge. "What do you think?" the one in the center asked.


    "Very strong," the youth beside him answered. "Ye Futian must have cultivated a body-enhancing technique. He contains extreme power. Yu Sheng''s burst power is even more terrifying. This is natural-born talent. His body-enhancing technique isn''t any weaker."


    "Yes. I heard that Yu Sheng once lifted and took away the Demonic Tripod in Chaoge. He probably cultivates the demonic method." The one in the center smiled. "You should try."


    "Okay." The one on the side nodded. He stepped out, walking in the air before landing in front of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "It''s Xia Houchu." Everyone''s eyes glistened. Xia Houchu was in the First-level Arcana Plane but he specialized in strength. He was born with godly power and was a genius of Mount Chong, ranking in the top five. He was also Mountain Elder Zong Xu''s personal disciple.


    "Xia Houchu, First-level Arcana Plane. I''m too used to this training field. You two can fight together."


    Ye Futian had killed Luo Junlin but this didn''t affect Xia Houchu''s confidence. They were fighting in the training field.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward, shaking the earth. He roared and shot into the air. His fists came down at Xia Houchu. Xia Houchu looked coldly at him. Power burst around him and he stepped forward as fast as lightning. He rushed at Yu Sheng and the two crashed in the air. With a boom, Yu Sheng flew back. He skidded backward after landing and almost fell. Xia Houchu landed steadily on his feet.


    Dark gold light gleamed on Yu Sheng''s body. He seemed to have a layer of dark gold armor. Horrible demonic might bloomed, turning him into a demonic king. He started sprinting again.


    Xia Houchu wasn''t intimidated. He also ran forward and they crashed again, creating continuous booms. Each crash was terrifyingly strong. Finally, they separated. Xia Houchu''s hands trembled. He looked at Yu Sheng as if looking at an anomaly. Yu Sheng was covered in dark gold light as if a true demon had taken over.


    Xia Houchu turned and walked to where the weapons were. He took out a huge mace. It was made of white stone so it was entirely white. He dragged it across the ground, creating screeches. Looking at Yu Sheng, he said, "Go get a weapon too."


    Yu Sheng''s hands radiated with terrifying dark gold light. He stepped forward. Instead of going to get a weapon, he ran towards Xia Houchu. Seeing this, Xia Houchu waved his mace. Wind roared. When Yu Sheng approached, Xia Houchu flew into the air and slammed the mace down, about to split the earth apart.


    Boom�� Yu Sheng resisted the mace with his body. There was an earth-shaking force and he flew out. He crashed onto the ground and spat out a mouthful of blood. But he didn''t seem affected. He climbed up and wiped the blood away.


    Ye Futian frowned. He walked to the weapons and picked up a staff. It felt as if he picked up a mountain. The stone staff was long and felt like thousands of pounds.


    Ye Futian gripped it and yanked it up. He twirled it with difficulty. Now he understood why Xia Houchu could hurt Yu Sheng with one hit. The weapon was so heavy that it was shocking. If he could get used to it and fight with such large weapons, his power would be unimaginable.


    "It''s useless. You just got here so you can''t be used to wielding such heavy weapons," Xia Houchu said. His confidence was understandable. He was used to the might and gravity of the training field but Yu Sheng and Ye Futian had just arrived.


    Ye Futian ignored him. He pulled up the staff and started twirling it, going from slow to fast. His moves had a unique rhythm. It sped up bit by bit and felt like it was getting smoother.


    When the staff swept past, wind whistled around Ye Futian faster and faster. It gradually flowed like water. An extremely large force gathered above him. His noble intent bloomed. A subtle figure of the Divine Ape appeared. The air popped when the huge stone staff moved, stirring the clouds and wind.


    Ye Futian went to Xia Houchu, golden wings shining behind him. The world''s might seemed to lie with him. Xia Houchu arched an eyebrow. He felt some pressure.


    A wild aura burst from him. His dharma was a huge demonic ox. When he saw Ye Futian fly over with shocking might, he roared and charged with his mace. The pressure was like a mountain. He burst out with extreme power. With a boom, the mace was shattered by the staff. The staff continued to sweep Xia Houchu''s body. With a thud, he was flattened. Blood spurted out and many of his bones were broken.


    Various figures descended. They supported Xia Houchu and looked coldly at Ye Futian. One stepped out. "Challenge."


    "Do the disciples of Mount Chong like going in rounds?" Ye Futian mocked coolly. "Sorry, I will not accept now."


    "You��" The other stared coldly at him.


    "I''ll play with you all after I get used to this training field." Ye Futian turned to Yu Sheng. "Let''s go cultivate."


    Yu Sheng scanned them coolly and left with Ye Futian.


    Everyone trembled inwardly. Cottage disciples truly were terrifying. They''d just gotten here but defeated Xia Houchu, in the Arcana Plane, while only being in the Seventh-level Dharma Plane. They would become even more frightening after they got used to the field.


    It took much time. Ye Futian exercised his physical body and strength. Two months passed without them realizing. He and Yu Sheng could not overlook the gravity and pressure of the training field. Their strength had reached the limit. They could imagine how fast and strong they would be outside the training field!

 316 The Giant with Innate Strength

    Chapter 316: The Giant with Innate Strength


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the training field, Ye Futian was practicing fist forms. There seemed to be a fantastic rhythm in his postures. He acted unrestrainedly, like an emperor.


    The dragon''s roar, ape''s growl, and thunder could be heard in his fists, which made him very mighty. His body moved flexibly like a roc flying in the sky. The strong pressure didn''t deter his actions.


    Finishing the exercise, he lifted his long staff again and began to practice with only his physical strength. Horrible explosions were heard again. He didn''t need to gather power for the Nine Heavenly Attacks. He only needed pure physical strength to wield the staff and control the rhythm. Without the gathering of power, every move was exhausting to Ye Futian. He needed stronger power. With the extremely heavy staff in hand, it was very difficult for him to practice, especially in the training field.


    However, Ye Futian practiced repeatedly. Sometimes, he was forced to stop and there would be a huge explosion in the air. People constantly looked at him. Every blow Ye Futian managed to slash out made him stronger. An invisible power was growing stronger and stronger in a horrible way.


    While he kept practicing with his staff, some dreadful crackling sounds came from his body. The dragon''s roar and thunder became more and more sonorous. His blood seemed to boil crazily in veins. Finally, the sky was shaken by another blow. A stronger momentum appeared above him. His martial arts entered another level��the Eighth-level Dharma Plane.


    He glanced at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng was looking up at the statues in the midair. A few days ago, Yu Sheng had made a breakthrough. Observing those statues could help strengthen mentality. This was what Ye Futian taught Yu Sheng.


    This training field was the perfect place for martial cultivators to cultivate. What Mountain Elder Zong Xu mastered in was martial arts. But Ye Futian could also practice Spiritual energy by virtue of those statues here.


    Ye Futian put down the stone staff. Staring at those statues, he began to meditate, which made those statues clearer to him. Suddenly, those statues seemed to come to life. Their faces loomed, and an extremely might came down to oppress his mentality.


    Ye Futian looked very calm. He kept staring at those statues, resisting the might with his mentality. Soon, some sweat oozed on his forehead. The mental deterrence was more painful than physical impediment. Ye Futian needed to take a break from time to time. After that, he would practice martial arts again.


    Finally, after some days, Ye Futian, sitting in the valley, had a breakthrough mentally. Both his martial arts and sorcery entered the Eighth-level Dharma Plane. He was getting closer and closer to the Arcana Plane. When he was cultivating in Qingzhou City, the Arcana Plane used to be a legend to him.


    Ye Futian stood up and stepped forward with the staff in his hand. He looked up at the edges of the valley and announced loudly, "Anyone of the lower Arcana Plane would like to have a battle? I am waiting here." His voice could be heard throughout the whole training field. Countless eyes fell upon Ye Futian. Was he finally going to accept the challenges?


    Two months ago, Ye Futian defeated Xia Houchu. After that, everyone wanted to challenge him. At this time, he was still in the Dharma Plane but wanted to challenge cultivators in the lower Arcana Plane? Ye Futian was so audacious! The lower Arcana Plane included levels from the first to the third.


    In the sky, a man stood proudly and looked at Ye Futian. walked to above the gorge, attracting everyone''s attention with his burly body. His short hair made him look very vigorous.


    He was Mo Bei, a strong cultivator in the Second-level Arcana Plane.


    "Senior Brother Mo!" Many people exclaimed. Mo Bei was an excellent disciple of Mount Chong. He swooped to the ground with a shocking oppressive force.


    Ye Futian looked up at the comer and felt extreme pressure as if it was a mountain coming to him instead of a person.


    Boom. White light dazzled. Mo Bei''s legs trampled down like two towering mountains, seeming to crush everything beneath his feet.


    Ye Futian raised his head. His long staff began to spin. The might grew stronger and stronger. Gradually, a horrible windstorm formed, seemly because of the spinning staff. The hideous might pervaded the space. Spirit in the natural world all gathered here. Ye Futian clutched the staff and slashed at the descending Mo Bei. For an instant, the long staff spun and soared like a dragon while Mo Bei was like a noble statue, treading and crushing everything.


    When the two collided, a sonorous explosion sound was heard everywhere. Mountains broke down and stones exploded. Mo Bei''s body was thrown up high in the sky, faster than how he had come. He spat out a mouthful blood in the air and then fell down like a parachute. Somebody flew out to carry the badly hurt man. Mo Bei spat out more blood and his face was very pale.


    "This��" Frightened, people trembled. They didn''t expect Mo Bei, who descended with such extreme oppressive force, would be defeated so miserably.


    "Who else?" Ye Futian erected his staff by his side and looked up at those people like a king. The might in the valley remained still, but Ye Futian was not disturbed at all. He had been practicing physical strength in the training field. His physique had become very strong. His long staff weighed several tons. Every blow he slashed out gathered all the power. People could imagine how strong he was. In this bout, Ye Futian in the Eighth-level Dharma Plane defeated Mo Bei, a strong cultivator of the Second Arcana Plane, so easily. Mo Bei was hit squarely by Ye Futian''s staff. How could he bear it?


    Ye Futian''s voice rang throughout the gorge, threatening all the cultivators. They all stared at that handsome figure. The disciples cultivating on the Mount Chong were very indignant. This was their place but Ye Futian made it his own stage. However, Mo Bei was defeated. Very few people in the lower Arcana Plane here could defeat Ye Futian.


    Right at this time, a straight-backed figure descended. With an explosive sound, the whole training field shook. All the spectators trembled too. They looked down at the valley and saw a large figure standing there like a giant.


    Looking at the figure, Ye Futian was greatly surprised. He had never seen anyone with a larger body than this man. Yu Sheng was burly enough, but this man was even taller than Yu Sheng. He was covered in muscles and stood there like a mountain.


    "Tu Ling is going to fight?" People were all amazed by this scene. They turned to a young spectator who folded his hands behind. The young man was the direct disciple of Mountain Elder Zong Xu, Zhong Lihen, who was the number one among those disciples on Mount Chong. He was in the Noble Plane was very talented.


    Tu Ling was the disciple of Mountain Elder Zong Xu too, but he only followed Zhong Lihen''s order. Obviously, Tu Ling''s appearance was arranged by him.


    Zhong Lihen stood there with his hands folded behind. He knew how strong Tu Ling was. He had the strongest physical strength on Mount Chong.


    Ye Futain challenged the status of Mount Chong. Zhong Lihen believed that Tu Ling was going to let others know how powerful the Mount Chong was.


    Tu Ling''s large body made him look like a muscle mountain. He went aside to fetch a very hideous stone hammer then treaded toward Ye Futian. His eyes were full of murderous intent. He began to run quickly with his large body. Every step he made shook the valley.


    Ye Futian felt a fierce pressure from the rival. He wielded his staff again and his body spun. A stunning hit was prepared for Tu Ling.


    Tu Ling pounded Ye Futian''s long staff with his stone hammer. The hammer and staff collided.


    Bang. A sonorous sound was heard everywhere. Ye Futian was forced back. He twirled his staff again, wanting to collect strength, but Tu Ling came up with another pound. With a loud sound, Ye Futian''s body was thrown away. The long staff supported him so that he didn''t fall down.


    "Third-level Arcana Plane, you have an inborn strength." Ye Futian looked at Tu Ling. He was a monster like Yu Sheng.


    Bang, bang. Tu Ling treaded toward him step by step. Ye Futian stood up. Suddenly, a figure rushed toward him. It was Yu Sheng. With a long lance in hand, Yu Sheng descended like a demon and rushed toward Tu Ling.


    Tu Ling clutched his hammer with both hands and smash down heavily. Yu Sheng was instantly thrown away by the strong force.


    "Such explosive strength!" Ye Futian stared at the rival. Tu Ling stood there like one of those statues in the sky. He had an innate large body and power. Tu Ling was much stronger than Luo Junlin.


    People above the valley were watching this battle. They were not surprised. If someone in the Arcana Plane could defeat Ye Futian, it must be Tu Ling. Mountain Elder Zong Xu once said that Tu Ling''s strength was stronger than anyone else he had ever seen. However, Tu Ling was not very smart.


    Bang. Tu Ling stepped toward Ye Futian again. Looking at that large body, Ye Futian yelled, "Hey, big guy." Tu Ling stopped walking but his face grew fiercer as if he was going to swallow Ye Futian up. "Your strength is not bad. What''s your name?"


    Tu Ling glared and treaded toward him. His every step shook the ground. Another pound by the hammer came but Ye Futian escaped. He sprang up into the sky and stared at the big guy.


    Tu Ling looked up at Ye Futian. His eyes told of his extreme anger. Another attack was sent out. Ye Futian kept evading the attacks. He didn''t intend to confront Tu Ling directly. People became curious. It was a very smart choice to not fight directly. There was a huge difference in level between Tu Ling and him. Even if they were in the same plane, Tu Ling''s strength was incomparable.


    "What a tough guy!" Ye Futian exclaimed seeing Tu Ling glaring at him,


    "Dodge? Is that all you can do?" Tu Ling spoke in his deep voice.


    "In a battle, strength is not everything. I have hundreds of ways to defeat you but I appreciate your strength, so I don''t want to hurt you." Ye Futian had encountered many other talents, but Tu Ling was the first one he had met whose strength could be compared with Yu Sheng''s.


    People were made speechless by his words. Ye Futian was forced to dodge in such an embarrassing way. How dare he say something ridiculous like this?

 317 The Qin Dynasty’s Proposal of Marriage

    Chapter 317: The Qin Dynasty��s Proposal of Marriage


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Tu Ling stared at Ye Futian with his big eyes. He jumped up and wielded his hammer at Ye Futian. Swathed by a gust of Spiritual Qi, Ye Futian stepped forward. In an instant, multiple illusory figures appeared around him. Tu Ling''s hammer hit those illusory figures. Suddenly, with a loud explosion, a long staff slashed down on him. Tu Ling roared and turned around. He threw his hammer out again but all he saw were multiple layers of Ye Futian''s illusory figures.


    Bang, bang, bang�� Within a short period of time, Tu Ling was hit more than ten times. He fell down on the ground but wasn''t wounded. He glared at that figure in the air.


    "You just can''t hurt me." Tu Ling stared at Ye Futian maliciously.


    "Try this." Ye Futian''s body spun and rose up above the valley. He came down to those stone statues and danced in the air. For a moment, the power and pressure contained in those statues were gathered by his waving staff and converged to his body, making him stronger and stronger.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and looked down at Tu Ling beneath. Then his body rushed down at Tu Ling with lightning speed. Seeing the figure falling from the sky, Tu Ling felt like those statues were alive. The statues'' deterrent force entered Ye Futian''s body, making him look like a god descending from the sky.


    The heavy staff, thousand times heavier by the gravity spell, chopped down. The air shrieked and a line of light appeared in the air. Feeling the strong power, Tu Ling trembled a little. He roared with anger and wielded his hammer toward the sky.


    Bang. There was a loud collision. Tu Ling''s hammer was cleaved. He closed eyes. The earth was shaking but he didn''t get hurt. He opened his eyes and found that the long staff had brushed past his shoulder.


    Ye Futian ascended into the sky and smiled. "You are strong but you can''t win with only strength. This is your fatal weakness. Keep working." Then he turned to Yu Sheng and said, "Let''s go." Yu Sheng also flew up and went with Ye Futian. Loulan Xue had already left.


    Around the training field, many people still looked at that fading figure with some surprise. His last blow seemly borrowed the deterrent force from those statues above the valley and was very formidable. If Tu Ling really got hit, he would very possibly have died.


    When Ye Futian and Yu Sheng returned the Cottage, it happened to be lunchtime. Loulan Xue prepared the table diligently. Ye Futian wasn''t used to this.


    "Junior Ye, Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu are your good friends, right?" Luo Fan asked.


    Ye Futian was confused about his question but nodded and said, "Yes, we are very good friends."


    "Things in the Eastern Barren Territory are a little bit different now. Recently, the Qin Dynasty has been very active," Luo Fan continued.


    Ye Futian felt something ominous and asked, "Is there anything to do with Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu?"


    "After returning from the Nandou Nation, Chu Yaoyao of the Moon Clan directly went to the Dongqin College for cultivation. Her romantic relationship with Qin Li is said to be confirmed. Besides, the Qin Dynasty also established diplomatic relations with the Royal Xuan Temple and the Fuyun Sword Clan. The two forces all have sent some disciples to Dongqin College for cultivation."


    Luo Fan continued slowly, "When the Dongqin College was found, the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan persuaded many forces'' disciples to cultivate there. It is very popular now. Not long ago, the Qin Dynasty claimed that they would go to the Liu Kingdom for a marriage proposal. Qin Yuan, the youngest son of the Qin emperor, will marry Liu Chenyu, the princess of Liu Kingdom."


    Ye Futian''s hand with chopsticks froze. His eyes turned cold. The Qin Dynasty was really officious.


    "What do they want?" Ye Futian asked coldly. They hadn''t mentioned the marriage to the Liu Kingdom officially. How could they just directly claim to the public this news before the Liu Kingdom made its response?


    "Obviously, they want to dominate the Eastern Barren Territory," Xue Ye responded. "The Qin Dynasty has always regarded the College as the biggest rivalry. That means they think the College will be the biggest obstruction for Emperor Qin to dominate the territory.


    "They once invited the College and the Cottage. If the College and the Cottage had agreed, the three top forces could absolutely dominate the Eastern Barren Territory. But we rejected, so they hurried to join hands with other forces so the College and the Cottage would be isolated and easier to be defeated," Luo Fan continued. The Qin Dynasty finally revealed their true purpose.


    "Will the king of the Liu Kingdom agree with the marriage?" Ye Futian asked.


    "We have no idea." Luo Fan and Xue Ye shook their heads. It couldn''t be so easy.


    Ye Futian''s good mood was disturbed by this news. One reason was the romantic relationship between Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu. Besides, he wouldn''t be willing to see Liu Chenyu marry someone from the Qin Dynasty. However, from his stance, it seemed that it was none of his business. The Cottage had no reason to stop this either.


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu were indeed his good friends. They were the prince and princess of the Liu Kingdom but they couldn''t decide Liu Chenyu''s marriage.


    Ye Futian didn''t want to continue lunch anymore.


    It was not only the College, but all of Eastern Barren Territory heard about the news, causing a sensation.


    The top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory especially knew that Ye Futian and Liu Chenyu were very close. The Liu Kingdom even allowed Ye Futian''s group to ride its Roc when visiting the Nandou Nation. Therefore, when the Qin Dynasty announced its future relationship with the Liu Kingdom, everyone was surprised.


    A few days later, the Qin Dynasty announced the exact date they would go to the Liu Kingdom for the proposal. The news rattled the Eastern Barren Territory again.


    In the courtyard the Liu Kingdom''s imperial palace, a middle-aged figure in a dragon robe sat silently, resting his eyes. Soon, two figures walked to the sitting figure and bowed. "Father." The two were Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu.


    "What''s the matter?" Emperor Liu asked with his eyes closed.


    "Father, the Qin Dynasty is very treacherous. We can''t let them take Chenyu away," said Liu Feiyang. The Qin Dynasty had announced the date and he was very worried.


    "The Qin Dynasty sent a secret ambassador to visit me. What I was told was that Qin Yuan, the youngest son of Emperor Qin, wants to marry Chenyu. But Chenyu won''t live in the Qin Dynasty. Instead, Qin Yuan will come to our kingdom and live here."


    Where they lived could make things totally different. If Liu Chenyu went to the Qin Dynasty, she was the hostage. Vice versa, if Qin Yuan lived in the Liu Kingdom, he would be the hostage.


    Qin Yuan, the youngest son of Emperor Qin, was very talented. His mother was Emperor Qin''s favorite concubine. Everyone knew that Qin Yuan was the Emperor''s favorite son.


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu were also stunned by the news. The Qin Dynasty had a sent a secret ambassador here? And Qin Yuan was going to live here? How treacherous Emperor Qin was!


    "Father, you agreed?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "I neither agreed nor rejected them," Emperor Liu answered.


    "Father, even if Chenyu doesn''t have to go to the Qin Dynasty, but you know the Qin Dynasty. Everyone knows their wild ambition. If the Qin Dynasty manages to dominate the whole Eastern Barren Territory, our kingdom will only be a nation in name."


    "Even though the Qin Dynasty is going to be the dominator, they still need someone to govern places," Emperor Liu said. "The Qin Dynasty promised that no matter what, the Liu Kingdom won''t be replaced. It doesn''t matter whether Qin Yuan is going to live here or not. The Liu Kingdom and the Qin Dynasty are allies. No need to worry."


    "Father, do you believe that?" Liu Feiyang asked.


    "Is there any difference?" Emperor Liu opened his eyes and looked at his children. "Do you know why the Qin Dynasty suddenly established the Dongqin College and revealed its ambition?"


    Liu Feiyang shook his head.


    "I heard that the Qin Dynasty has found and opened the grave of the Qin Dynasty''s ancestors. You should know that the ancestors of the Qin Dynasty used to be the dominator of the Eastern Barren Territory." As a ruler of a kingdom, Emperor Liu needed to consider what would happen if he agreed to this marriage and what the aftermath would be if he said no.


    The Qin Dynasty had sent a secret ambassador before announcing to the public. They respected him enough to let him choose between friend or foe.


    Liu Feiyang looked uncomfortable. He asked, "Father, are you willing to be subordinate to the Qin Dynasty? All the top forces know the Qin Dynasty''s true purpose. Why still choose to cooperate?" He couldn''t understand all of this.


    "Feiyang, the world will be united after a long time of division and divided after a long time of solidarity. This is the inevitable rule. Once the balance breaks, the Eastern Barren Territory will definitely be united by a power that could override any other forces." Emperor Liu sighed. Sometimes, one could only conform to the trend.


    "But there are the Cottage and the College." Liu Feiyang didn''t give up.


    "You are too na?ve." Emperor Liu looked at his son and continued, "Do you know the Cottage? Do you know what they want?"


    Liu Feiyang looked at his father without response. He did not know the Cottage very well. He only knew that it was a miraculous place.


    "The Sword Saint, the first disciple of the Cottage, is famous enough for he is the founder of the Sword Saint Mountain," Emperor Liu said. "Now, third disciple Gu Dongliu is also known to all because of that battle. In Chaoge City, everyone witnessed the second disciple''s ability. Let me ask you a question. If the second and third disciples of the Cottage go out, will there be two more Sword Saint Mountains?"


    Liu Feiyang was stunned. He suddenly found that his father saw a much bigger picture than he did.


    "Moreover, the Cottage has a fourth and fifth disciple as well as your good friend Ye Futian. You all know his talent now. When those people improve, no one in the whole Eastern Territory will be able to stop the Cottage."


    Liu Feiyang was speechless. His father was telling the truth.


    "But the Cottage doesn''t want to dominate anything." Liu Feiyang wasn''t convinced yet.


    "Indeed, the Cottage doesn''t want to be the dominator. But they want to build a different Eastern Barren Territory," Emperor Liu murmured, looking up at the sky. "Mr. Du of the Cottage is a strange man."

 318 Lowly Man

    Chapter 318: Lowly Man


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Mr. Du of the Cottage was naturally a legendary man. Even if he really couldn''t cultivate, as rumored, he was still a legendary man if he could build a place like the Cottage.


    In the Eastern Barren Territory, there were many rumors about him but only very, very few truly knew him. His location was always mysterious. It was rumored that the disciples of the Cottage often couldn''t find him, let alone people of the other forces. As for what he wanted to do, Liu Fei Yang didn''t know. His father claimed that Mr. Du wanted to create a different Eastern Barren Territory. This confused him more.


    "The Qin Dynasty is planning for the world and targeting the College and Cottage," Emperor Liu said. "Only they are the matches of the Qin Dynasty. The Eastern Barren Territory has come to a turn. Under this situation, the only thing we can do is choose an option." As the ruler of the Liu Kingdom, these words may seem to underestimate him; however, he understood that the top forces all knew the region was about to change. They knew since the Dongqin College was established. Otherwise, the Donghua Clan, Moon Clan, Royal Xuan Temple, Fuyun Sword Clan, and other forces wouldn''t go cultivate in the Dongqin College. The Qin Dynasty had just given them a reason to choose it.


    Now, the Qin Dynasty was giving the Liu Kingdom a reason to choose them.


    "If we must choose, I would rather choose the Cottage." Liu Chenyu, who had stayed silent, looked to her father. Her pretty eyes were resolute. The Qin Dynasty''s proposal was a catastrophe for her.


    Emperor Liu gazed at his daughter. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu had always been the two children he loved. He didn''t want to hurt Liu Chenyu but she didn''t seem to understand him.


    There was a clear difference between the Qin Dynasty and Cottage.


    The Qin Dynasty created the Dongqin College, targeted Ye Futian, married the Moon Clan, used the conflict between the Cottage and Royal Xuan Temple to get close to the latter, and used the rivalry between the Sword Saint and the Fuyun Sword Clan to ally with the latter. Now, it was proposing to the Liu Kingdom. They would use any tactic to achieve their goal��that was the Qin Dynasty.


    The Cottage was just and moral.


    If they chose the Qin Dynasty, the Cottage wouldn''t do anything to them unless provoked. But would the Qin Dynasty just give up if they chose the Cottage? Furthermore, the Cottage didn''t even think of allying with other forces. He didn''t know what the consequences for rejecting the Qin Dynasty would be.


    "Chenyu, do you have feelings for someone else?" Emperor Liu asked.


    Liu Chenyu looked up, her dark eyes gazing at her father. After a pause, a figure appeared in her mind. Did she like him? She couldn''t help but think of many memories. They first met in the Ancient Barren World. Ye Futian had forced them to be together. It had been like that every time after that and she gradually got used to it, like it was the norm. She thought of the Cangye Kingdom. The two had strolled by the river, the sky filled with fireworks. That scene had been too beautiful.


    If she married into the Qin Dynasty, married their youngest prince, Qin Yuan�� Thinking of this, she suddenly smiled. She understood her heart. The figure that had somehow been planted into her mind was the one she liked.


    "Yes." Liu Chenyu nodded.


    "Ye Futian of the cottage?" Emperor Liu asked. "I heard that his girlfriend is Hua Jieyu from the Moon Clan." Clearly, Emperor Liu had mistaken Liu Chenyu''s lover for Ye Futian. After all, he''d heard that Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu often hung out with Ye Futian. He was also so extraordinary. Compared to him, Ye Wuchen was more subtle. This was why Emperor Liu would misunderstand.


    "No." Liu Chenyu shook her head.


    "No?" Emperor Liu was surprised. "Who is it?"


    Liu Chenyu lowered her head and didn''t reply. She could sense from her father''s words that the Liu Kingdom bore great pressure for this proposal. If the Cottage wanted to fight, they might be able to fight against the Qin Dynasty. But Ye Wuchen wasn''t a disciple of the Cottage. He cultivated in the Fuyun Sword Clan but couldn''t even represent them. He was only a swordsman of the seventh summit.


    How would her father choose now?


    Seeing Liu Chenyu''s expression, Emperor Liu sighed inwardly. "In that case, I will send out invitations for all young prides to come to our kingdom. They will be here for the Qin Dynasty''s marriage proposal."


    Liu Chenyu froze. She vaguely understood her father''s intentions.


    The Liu Kingdom quickly sent invitations to all top forces, inviting their strong cultivators to come visit. Many people didn''t understand. Was he planning on accepting or refusing? But no matter what, they were willing to witness the Qin Dynasty''s proposal. This event would cause a stir. Once the marriage was successful, the Qin Dynasty''s force would be even more terrible, taking up half of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    ��


    At the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan, Ye Wuchen was anxious. He couldn''t calm his mind and his cultivation was affected. He knew about the Qin Dynasty''s proposal. Every top force was talking about it. He would know about even if he didn''t want to.


    Some people from the first summit purposely leaked the information to the seventh summit. They''d personally seen that Liu Chenyu and Ye Wuchen was close. Li Daoyun, who had liked Liu Chenyu, had also died in Ye Wuchen''s hands. Many of the first summit guessed that this was one of the reasons why Ye Wuchen killed Li Daoyun.


    At this moment, Ye Wuchen stood alone on the summit, gazing at the sea of clouds. Footsteps sounded behind him.


    "Swordsman," the comer said. "The Liu Kingdom has sent invitations for everyone to visit the Liu Kingdom."


    Ye Wuchen turned to look. It was the man he''d ordered to pay attention to the Liu Kingdom''s news.


    "Other than that, the Liu Kingdom also sent a letter." The man walked over to hand the letter to Ye Wuchen. It was marked to be only for the eyes of Ye Wuchen of the Fuyun Sword Clan''s seventh summit.


    The handwriting was elegant, as if written by a girl. Ye Wuchen ripped it open and took out the piece of paper inside. The writing on the white paper was the same elegant font.


    Can you come? They were three very simple words. After seeing it, Ye Wuchen folded the letter and put it away. He gazed at the sea of clouds, a smile in his eyes. These three words expressed her feelings. He understood. Since he understood, he would go.


    In the Cottage, Ye Futian also received the message from the Liu Kingdom and thought that Wuchen would probably go. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng rode the Black Wind Eagle down the mountain. Second Senior Sister had Loulan Xue follow. They first went to the Guqin Gardens and then brought Silver One towards the Liu Kingdom.


    The kingdom was in the east of the Eastern Barren Territory. There were two top forces here: the Liu Kingdom and the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    The vast kingdom controlled boundless land and its control of their territory was stronger than all except the Qin Dynasty. However, what decided a top force''s strength wasn''t their control of the territory. Instead, it was the strength of those at the tip of the pyramid. Why could the eight disciples of the Cottage shake the entire Eastern Barren Territory? It was because they had a few extremely powerful disciples.


    The imperial city of the Liu Kingdom instantly grew lively. Strong cultivators of the top forces all arrived. Those from all over the Liu Kingdom also gathered in the imperial city to witness the Qin Dynasty''s proposal.


    Ye Futian''s group didn''t head to the palace immediately after arriving. Instead, they went to a restaurant for a meal. All sorts of people frequented restaurants and were great places to get news. Right now, the restaurant they were in had many people discussing the proposal.


    "I heard that Qin Yuan of the Qin Dynasty came early yesterday. Is it true?"


    "Of course. Not only is he here, but Princess Qin Mengruo, Qian Shanmu of the Donghua Clan, Qin Li, and many others also came as well. After Qin Yuan arrived yesterday, he visited eight lords in the palace in one day. He''s very mannered. It seems that the Qin Dynasty has put much consideration into this."


    "There is news today that Lord Kang is very satisfied with Qin Yuan, even praising him that he''s like a dragon. He clearly approves of the wedding."


    "Qin Yuan is the son of Emperor Qin and his beloved Concubine Nan. Concubine Nan is a famous beauty of the Qin Dynasty. Apparently, Qin Yuan inherited the good points of his parents. He''s extremely handsome and extraordinary in every aspect. If the Qin Dynasty is genuine, Princess Chenyu will not be disappointed."


    While everyone discussed, many people gazed unconsciously at Ye Futian, Loulan Xue, and the others. There was no reason other than that Ye Futian was a pretty boy and Loulan Xue, with her silver hair and eyes, was an icy beauty. They were both rare species.


    Ye Futian made a face. What were they looking at him for?


    "Maybe you are the prince of Qin?" someone asked jokingly.


    "Do you think I look like him?" Ye Futian asked in reply.


    "Haha, no. If you were the prince, I would see the others as well. Even though you have a nice temperament, something seems to be lacking."


    "Indeed, he is lacking a royal aura," someone joked. "I''m just kidding. Please do not feel offended. You two can''t be compared." He thought that Ye Futian wouldn''t feel offended to be compared to Qin Yuan.


    "Indeed they cannot be compared. Qin isn''t qualified," a cold voice said. It was Yu Sheng. As soon as he spoke, the entire restaurant quieted down, everyone looking at him.


    Qin isn''t qualified? This guy really dared to speak his mind. Since he had the courage, he must be powerful. Could this group be from another top force? But even a top force couldn''t dare to say Qin Yuan wasn''t qualified to be compared to them, right?


    Ye Futian shot a look at Yu Sheng. With his temper, they couldn''t stay in the restaurant anymore.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian rose and turned to leave.


    "Who are you? You sound too confident," a voice called.


    Ye Futian stopped at the door. "I feel quite insulted to be compared to those lowly people from the Qin Dynasty."

 319 All Here

    Chapter 319: All Here


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless gazes fell on Ye Futian''s back. Even if he was from a top force, he was being too disrespectful by calling the Qin Dynasty "lowly" in public, right?


    Thinking of what had happened at Chaoge City, they were close to figuring out this youth''s identity. In the Eastern Barren Territory, only disciples from one place could be so arrogant and think that the Qin Dynasty didn''t qualify to be compared to them. It was the Cottage, of course. And other than Ye Futian, which other young disciple came down from the mountain?


    "I didn''t think I would be able to meet the eighth disciple of the Cottage while drinking here today," someone said, putting their hands up to greet him.


    "The Cottage and Qin Dynasty has always been at odds. Mr. Ye is exaggerating a bit by calling all of the Qin Dynasty as lowly," someone else said. "When Qin Yuan entered the imperial city, he was extremely mannered and visited the lords. Many lords had great impressions of him and praised him. How can he be lowly?" His voice was calm. Since he knew who Ye Futian was, he wouldn''t be too impolite. He just wanted to hear Ye Futian explain his comment on the Qin Dynasty. Did he like Princess Liu Chenyu too?


    "Qin Mengruo of the Qin Dynasty has married below her rank to the Donghua Clan," Ye Futian said indifferently. "Qin Li, the grandson of the emperor, is also pursuing Chu Yaoyao. Now, Qin Yuan is proposing to the Liu Kingdom. Do they want to have marriage alliances with all of the Eastern Barren Territory?


    "Qin Yuan does not know Liu Chenyu at all but made such a commotion. Has anyone thought of how Liu Chenyu will feel? Entering the imperial city and visiting the lords�� Is he preparing for when he comes to live in the Liu Kingdom?" Ye Futian''s voice turned cold. "If these actions aren''t lowly, then how would you describe them?" With that, he began walking out of the restaurant. Clearly, he was upset with this marriage. He would do his best to destroy it.


    The people who heard him were shocked. Everyone knew how powerful the Qin Dynasty was. Thus, the people of the Liu Kingdom were happy to see the alliance between the two parties. However, they also knew a bit about the Qin Dynasty''s ambition. Hearing Ye Futian''s words, other ideas appeared in their minds. Indeed, the Qin Dynasty was being too active recently, allying with each force. It was clear what they were planning. Of course, they were more shocked by the last sentence.


    Entering the imperial city and visiting the lords�� Is he preparing for when he comes to live in the Liu Kingdom? This phrase was accusatory. Who of the lords Qin Yuan visited would dare to support him now? Were they thinking of betraying?


    The Cottage disciples were indeed extraordinary talented. Their words were sharp as well.


    What happened at the restaurant quickly spread throughout the palace. Many people were shocked that Ye Futian had arrived in the imperial city and publicly disapproved of the marriage. They didn''t know if this was the Cottage''s attitude or Ye Futian''s own.


    Ye Futian had publicly called the Qin Dynasty lowly. He''d offended them and the people wondered how the Qin Dynasty would react.


    Something else was strange. Lord Kang had praised Qin Yuan to be like a dragon. He clearly supported the marriage. But with Ye Futian''s words, he felt ashamed now. The other lords didn''t dare speak up for Qin Yuan anymore. However, this didn''t seem to affect Qin Yuan. News quickly spread that he continued to visit the lords.


    Someone asked him why. Qin Yuan claimed that the descendants of the Qin Dynasty were mannered and cultured. When asked about his thoughts on Ye Futian''s words, he said that he wouldn''t speak about someone behind their back. Many complimented Qin Yuan''s reply for being classy. Others thought that he was virtually fighting with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian suspected Qin Yuan''s actions while he just said he was visiting the lords out of politeness. Ye Futian called the Qin Dynasty lowly while Qin Yuan said he wouldn''t speak behind Ye Futian''s back. Many in the Liu Kingdom praised his perfect response. Lord Kang stepped out again, claiming that he''d met Qin Yuan, won over by his classiness. He thought highly of the junior but nothing else. As for the comments of lowly people, he didn''t care.


    Ye Futian seemed to have lost in this virtual fight.


    Of course, some also turned up their noses at Qin Yuan''s response. When Ye Futian had only been famous in the Ancient Barren World, Qin Li had publicly commented on him. The Dongqin College hadn''t been established at that time; Ye Futian and the Qin Dynasty hadn''t had any conflicts either. Now that Qin Yuan was claiming that he wouldn''t speak about others behind their backs to show the classiness of the Qin Dynasty, it was a bit not genuine.


    This made people suspect that Ye Futian would also pursue Liu Chenyu. But Ye Futian had a girlfriend who was rumored to be cultivating at the Moon Clan. If he pursued Liu Chenyu now, would Emperor Liu agree?


    Ye Futian ignored all the talk about him. He''d experienced the fakeness of the Qin Dynasty long ago. After learning that a disciple from the Royal Xuan Temple entered the Dongqin College to cultivate, he began suspecting that the Qin Dynasty had taken part in the assassination at Chaoge City.


    Second Senior Sister had arrived and destroyed the gate of the Dongqin College. Why would the Qin Dynasty swallow everything and cooperate with the Cottage to find the culprit? Were they truly so weak?


    Looking at the entire plan, it seemed that the Qin Dynasty was ruling over the entire world already. Qin Yuan had displayed a great demeanor but he''d also learned the pretense of the Qin Dynasty. Of course, Ye Futian didn''t reply indirectly again. There was no need. He''d already expressed his attitude.


    Liu Feiyang came to the inn Ye Futian was staying at.


    "How are things?" Ye Futian asked after seeing Liu Feiyang.


    Furrowing his brows, Liu Feiyang shook his head. He wasn''t clear either.


    "What is Emperor Liu''s attitude?" Ye Futian asked. The one who could truly decide this was still Liu Feiyang''s father.


    "Before Qin Yuan came, the Qin Dynasty already sent a secret ambassador to see my father," Liu Feiyang said. "He said that Qin Yuan would marry into the Liu Kingdom. No matter what happens in the future, the Liu Kingdom''s status won''t change."


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. It turned out that the Qin Dynasty had already planned everything.


    "This proposal carries a lot of weight," Liu Feiyang said.


    Naturally, Ye Futian knew that since Liu Feiyang was here, he really placed great importance on friendships and disapproved of this. He wasn''t thinking from the perspective of the Liu Kingdom''s interest. They were friends but it would be understandable if Liu Feiyang, as a prince of the Liu Kingdom, cut off all ties with him.


    "What level is the Liu Kingdom''s power?" Ye Futian asked. It wasn''t really his place to ask but he did so anyway.


    Liu Feiyang understood him, of course. "According to my father, the Qin Dynasty might have found and activated their ancestors'' tombs. My father estimates that there is a great difference in power."


    Of all the top forces, only the three in the center were the strongest: the Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and the College. The others were all a bit weaker. If the Qin Dynasty reactivated the ancestors'' tombs, it would be terrifying.


    Ye Futian''s brows knitted. One''s power determined one''s confidence. If the Liu Kingdom didn''t fear the Qin Dynasty''s power, they could do as they wished.


    "Chenyu revealed to me that she has feelings for Wuchen. This would have been great news in the past, but now��" Liu Feiyang said. "If Wuchen had your status, he could fight for her, but he''s only a swordsman from the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan. Disciples from the first summit have gone to cultivate at the Dongqin College. It''s highly possible that they will become allies. Under this situation, it is difficult for Wuchen to compete with Qin Yuan. I''m a bit worried." He didn''t feel good about this. He didn''t expect the Qin Dynasty would propose so suddenly.


    Ever since Qin Yu was given the title of crown prince, the Qin Dynasty started taking huge strides forward. They were becoming more and more powerful. The Liu Kingdom was under great pressure and he feared his father would choose to sacrifice Liu Chenyu.


    "I hope His Majesty won''t agree," Ye Futian murmured. This was the Liu Kingdom''s matters. He couldn''t interfere and could only try his best. In the beginning, he''d jokingly pushed Liu Chenyu and Ye Wuchen together. If they really had mutual feelings, he couldn''t just sit and watch Liu Chenyu marry Qin Yuan.


    ��


    People from the various top forces gradually arrived at the imperial city. The Qin Dynasty had visited all the important figures and expressed their attitude. Finally, the day of the marriage proposal was here.


    Today, guards stood in order outside a place inside the palace. A group came from afar on the golden road outside the palace. The person at the front wore a golden robe. His long hair was tied up. He had handsome features and a pair of bright eyes. He had a slight smile and looked really mesmerizing. Indeed, he could be a flower boy. This was Qin Yuan, youngest son of Emperor Qin. Today, he was the star.


    Beside him were Qin Mengruo, Qian Shanmo, Qin Li, Chu Yaoyao, and the others. They were all extraordinary while the girls were even more beautiful. Two of the three beauties appeared together.


    This group also signified something else. Qian Shanmo and Chu Yaoyao were respectively from the Donghua Clan and Moon Clan. Appearing with Qin Yuan, this added more to the proposal.


    Qian Shanmu was obvious. The Donghua Clan had already announced to ally with the Qin Dynasty. But was Chu Yaoyao here as Qin Li''s girlfriend or the Virgin of the Moon Clan?


    Another group flew over quickly and landed outside the palace. In the distance, a group of swordsmen came in the air with whistling sword aura. They also landed near the palace.


    In the distant crowd, many people walked towards the palace. They were all from the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory and had all arrived. Emperor Liu had invited people from all over for the proposal. They naturally wouldn''t miss this event. This could very possibly show the direction of the Eastern Barren Territory''s future!

 320 The Proposal

    Chapter 320: The Proposal


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian had arrived. A line of swordsmen descended beside him. It was Ye Wuchen''s group.


    "You are here." Ye Futian smiled at Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen nodded slightly with a comparatively serious look. He looked at the palace behind, having no idea about how his story would end. What if he couldn''t make it?


    The strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty in front of them stopped and turned to Ye Futian''s group, seeming to wait for them. Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen''s eyes fell upon one among this group. It was a very handsome guy they had never met before. He must be the groom in this proposal��Qin Yuan, the youngest son of Emperor Qin. Qin Yuan was as young as little princess Qin Mengruo and Qin Li, the grandson of Emperor Qin.


    While observing Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen, Qin Yuan smiled at Ye Futian and said, "Nice to meet you. I am Qin Yuan. I heard your name a lot, Ye Futian."


    "Really?" Ye Futian smiled too and said, "But I don''t know you."


    A few days ago, the two had had a fierce conversation in the air. Now Qin Yuan could still smile and greet Ye Futian in a typical Qin Dynasty style. He was really hypocritical. In all of Eastern Barren Territory, the Qin Dynasty was the one that wanted to eliminate the Cottage the most.


    "Never mind, we know each other now. We can communicate more." Qin Yuan still smiled.


    "I am not interested in that." Ye Futian moved forward.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s group walking away, Qin Yuan smiled. Was that the Cottage style?


    Qin Li''s eyes flickered. It would not be so easy for Ye Futian to stop this marriage.


    "Let''s go." The people of the Qin Dynasty moved forward too. The guards guarding the palace gate backed aside, letting them in. All forces were guided forward in the mighty palace. Coming to the golden stairs before the imperial palace, they walked up step by step and saw a golden dragon-shape path leading to the throne. Many people were waiting there. They were all the Liu Kingdom''s important men. It was the Qin Dynasty''s proposal day. The Liu Kingdom invited all forces to be the guests. The Liu Kingdom''s nobilities would naturally attend.


    There was a slope in the front decorated with a painting of a dancing golden dragon in the center. Besides the slope were stairs leading to the golden throne above. Obviously, this was where Emperor Liu was going to sit later. He was not here at this time.


    Liu Kingdom''s nobilities all looked at the coming guests. Except for those guards, most were famous among the young generation. They discussed with smiles.


    "It is good to see so many young talents of the Eastern Barren Territory," a magnate said and smiled.


    "Those young talents here must be the future of the Eastern Barren Territory."


    They chatted casually while observing. The most eye-catching people should be Qin Yuan''s group. They were very outstanding, including Qin Yuan, Qin Li, Qin Mengruo, Qian Shanmu, as well as Chu Yaoyao. Everyone in this group could be seen as a top talent among the young generation.


    Some people were looking at Ye Futian''s group, guessing which force they came from. Soon, they roughly knew the answer by judging their appearances and auras.


    Some eyes fell upon Ye Futian. They knew who he was. Beside this handsome and decorous youth was another bulky man. Obviously, it could only be Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    The one-arm swordsman by his side should be Ye Wuchen from the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan. The woman with silver hair and eyes must be the one from Ancient Loulan who was sent to the Cottage.


    Ancient Loulan showed their ambition in occupying a place in the Eastern Barren Territory too. Ye Futian was their bet in this gamble.


    At this moment, Qin Yuan came up to bowed toward those nobilities in a very humble manner. Many of the noble elders all responded with smiles and praised the humbleness of the Qin Dynasty''s prince.


    "If the Qin Dynasty''s prince and our princess are going to marry each other, it will be a very romantic story," said someone. People pretended not to hear this man''s public approval of the marriage. They kept chatting and laughing.


    Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen looked at those people with indifference. It seemed that Qin Yuan''s effort in visiting around these days helped him a lot. No one knew what the conversations between Qin Yuan and those noble men were about, but it seemed that they were getting along very well with each other. As for Ye Wuchen, he was neither good at social kind of things, nor was he as hypocritical as the Qin Dynasty.


    Qin Li''s group stood near Ye Futian. Qin Li looked at him and smiled. "Brother Ye, I heard that you have some complaints about our proposal. Why did you defame us?"


    "Defame?" Ye Futian stared at Qin Li. He did say that the Qin Dynasty was vile but was that defamation?


    Qin Li knew what Ye Futian meant. He kept smiling and said, "The Cottage and the Qin Dynasty are at odds, so I understand your complaint. Brother Ye, I heard that you and Princess Chenyu are good friends. My uncle is here for the proposal. Shouldn''t you be happy for her?"


    "Yes, we are good friends. That''s why I won''t let her marry a hypocrite," Ye Futian responded coldly. "You played the mutual affection thing. It''s your business, but don''t play that trick on others. By the way, don''t call me ''Brother Ye''. I am not your brother." Obviously, he was alluding to Qin Li''s affair with Chu Yaoyao.


    Chu Yaoyao glanced at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. She was still mild and charming.


    Qin Li sneered. "Let''s wait and see. I am sure Emperor Liu won''t refuse such a good proposal."


    "Lord Ye." At this moment, someone laughed charmingly. Ye Futian turned around and saw the Witch Gu Biyue and her brother Gu Zhiqiu coming together with some strong cultivators from the Witch Clan.


    "Long time no see. Lord Ye has another beauty around." Gu Biyue looked at Loulan Xue with a smile. She had met Loulan Xue in the Ancient Barren World.


    "Do you want to join us?" Ye Futian laughed.


    "I''d like to, but my brother won''t allow me. I''ll have to wait for another chance to serve you." Gu Biyue smirked at Gu Zhiqiu behind her. Gu Zhiqiu and Ye Futian glanced at each other quickly and looked away.


    Ye Futian didn''t care about Gu Zhiqiu''s warning. Gu Zhiqiu had done nothing to him either.


    Besides the Witch Clan, the Ji Family, Royal Xuan Temple, and Fuyun Sword Clan all came. Many other forces could be seen here too, except the most distant Sword Saint Mountain and the Qianqiu Temple. As for the Moon Clan, only Chu Yaoyao came.


    The Royal Xuan Temple and Fuyun Sword Clan were the closest to the Qin Dynasty.


    At this time, a dignified figure appeared above the slope, followed by Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu. Looking at the crowd, Liu Chenyu saw Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen. Her beautiful dark eyes were seemly full of vexation.


    "Your Majesty." All the noble men bowed.


    Qin Yuan''s group walked forward and bowed. "Your Majesty, we are Qin Yuan, Qin Li and Qing Mengruo from the Qin Dynasty."


    "Your Majesty, I am Qian Shanmu from the Donghua Clan."


    People constantly bowed and introduced themselves; Ye Futian did too. He noticed that when bowed, Chu Yaoyao introduced herself directly without mentioning the Moon Clan.


    "You are all guests from afar. Thank you for coming," Emperor Liu said with a smile, looking at the people.


    Qin Yuan took a step forward and bowed again with a smile. He raised his head and showed his handsome face to Emperor Liu. Before Qin Yuan could say anything, a figure stepped forward, stopped before him, and said to Emperor Liu, "Your Majesty, I am Ye Wuchen from the seventh summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan. I''ve always had a strong admiration for Liu Chenyu, the princess. Today, I come to the Liu Kingdom to ask for your permission for our marriage."


    Qin Yuan was supposed to say the same thing but he had to keep silent now. He raised his head and looked at Ye Wuchen before him. How could Ye Wuchen make the first proposal?


    People fell silent. Liu Chenyu stared at that one-armed figure in white standing straight proudly below the stairs. His tone was so determined. Her eyes turned a little red and she smiled lightly. Her feelings were obvious to all. He came in such a direct way. She saw his backbone. How many people in the Eastern Barren Territory dared to contend with the Qin Dynasty? She knew what kind of pressure Ye Wuchen was facing.


    Emperor Liu was looking at Ye Wuchen too. He glanced at Liu Chenyu and immediately figured out that it was him.


    Ye Wuchen was wearing all white. One of his sleeves hung down loosely; clearly, he had only one arm. But when he made the proposal, his eyes were determined and his body stood straight, proud as a sword.


    His arm had been chopped off by Li Daoyun, but Li Daoyun had been killed by his sword. The emperor appreciated Ye Wuchen''s spirit a lot. If it was in the past, he would have agreed to his proposal, but Ye Wuchen''s rival was Qin Yuan, the Qin Dynasty.


    "Ye Wuchen, is this deliberate?" Qin Li suddenly questioned. The silence was disturbed. He said coldly, "We announced today''s proposal many days ago. And now, what are you doing? What do you mean?"


    Qin Yuan bowed toward the emperor too and said, "Your Majesty, I am Qin Yuan. I have admired Princess Chenyu for a long time. Today, I come to ask your permission for our marriage."


    "What lies!" Ye Futian said coldly. "How many times have you met Chenyu? How many conversations have you had with her? Admired her for a long time? How? Ye Wuchen and I knew Chenyu long ago. We were always together when we were in Chaoge City. Don''t tell me that the Qin Dynasty knows nothing about the affection between Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu. Naturally, we come to propose. Who''s the one making trouble now?"


    Ye Futian continued, "I heard that the Qin Dynasty''s little prince, Qin Yuan, is very noble. A noble gentleman will not do such a lowly thing like robbing other''s love. Am I right?" It was not appropriate for Ye Wuchen to say this so Ye Futian would say it for him!

 321 Turtle Mountain

    Chapter 321: Turtle Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Since Qin Yuan called himself a mannered person and wanted to be an honorable man, Ye Futian would make it easy for him.


    Qin Yuan didn''t look back. He stood calmly with Ye Wuchen. Only Emperor Liu could make the decision about this marriage proposal. He didn''t seem to want to agree to the Qin Dynasty''s proposal so easily though, which was why he invited everyone here.


    Ye Futian wanted to see what Emperor Liu was planning.


    "Ye Futian, your words are a bit illogical," Qin Li retorted. "As the saying goes, beautiful girls are loved by honorable men. My uncle has clearly seen Princess Chenyu before. There is nothing strange about liking her. Though he is honorable, there is no reason why he should give his beloved to someone else. Your words are too bizarre.


    "Furthermore, my uncle is here to propose a marriage. The Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and other forces all wish to see this. As for Ye Wuchen of the Fuyun Sword Clan coming to propose, is this his own idea or the clan''s?"


    "The Fuyun Sword Clan has never thought of this," Qi Ao of the Fuyun Sword Clan''s first summit said. Ye Futian looked over coldly. So the clan was on the Qin Dynasty''s side?


    Qi Ao''s expression was indifferent. The Fuyun Sword Clan hated the Sword Saint and thus resented the Cottage. He''d warned Ye Wuchen many times to stay away from Ye Futian but Ye Wuchen always ignored him. In this case, the Fuyun Sword Clan wouldn''t stand with a traitor like Ye Wuchen.


    "In that case," Qin Li said coolly, "Ye Wuchen is just here on his own accord. Doesn''t this insult Princess Chenyu?" The strong cultivators from the seventh summit who''d come with Ye Wuchen gazed at Qin Li. Was he saying that Ye Wuchen wasn''t qualified to propose? Insulting Ye Wuchen was the same as insulting the seventh summit.


    The strong cultivators behind Qin Li stared back. Faint pressure emanated from both sides.


    Emperor Liu hadn''t said anything. He just watched this scene quietly. He''d invited everyone here so he wanted to see what the current situation was like. He could learn some things from these people''s reactions.


    "A group of losers has the courage to brag here?" Yu Sheng''s large eyes stared at Qin Li, extremely pissed. After Ye Wuchen lost his arm to save them, Yu Sheng began viewing Ye Wuchen as his brother. Now, Qin Li was insulting Ye Wuchen''s status. Despicable.


    The people of the Qin Dynasty looked uncomfortable. Yu Sheng was clearly talking about the battle at Chaoge. The Cottage never lost against the Qin Dynasty or Donghua Clan.


    "Everyone, no need to argue." Emperor Liu now waved his hand. Gazing at Qin Yuan and Ye Wuchen, he said, "You are both at the top of the Eastern Barren Territory''s younger generation. I am a bit flustered that both of you think so highly of Chenyu." Smiling, he looked to the lords and officials. "What do you all think?" He didn''t ask for Liu Chenyu''s opinion because he already knew.


    The people''s gazes flashed. They were very quiet and no one wanted to speak first. It was easy to anger people by taking sides now.


    Qin Yuan bowed again. "My father told me that if Emperor Liu agrees to this marriage, it would be too much for Princess Chenyu to move so far away. He ordered for me to remain in the Liu Kingdom and serve Emperor Liu with Princess Chenyu."


    Everyone''s eyes flashed. Qin Yuan said that he was willing to move to the Liu Kingdom. With his status, he didn''t have to do so but he still did. This was the sincerity of the Qin Dynasty, as well as the Liu Kingdom''s pressure. Since the Qin Dynasty was this willing, would the Liu Kingdom still reject them?


    "Your Majesty," a robed man with an extraordinary temperament said from the group of lords and officials. "Since the Qin Dynasty is so sincere and Prince Qin is extraordinary, I think Your Majesty should consider it." The speaker was Lord Kang of the Liu Kingdom.


    "Lord Kang is right. I agree." Now that someone started, the others all spoke too, approving of Qin Yuan and Liu Chenyu''s marriage.


    As for Ye Wuchen, he stood there alone. No one was willing to speak for him.


    The sole reason was because Ye Wuchen hadn''t visited them before. They didn''t know him. Ye Wuchen was also only a disciple of the seventh summit. He couldn''t represent the Fuyun Sword Clan so it was okay to offend him. On the other hand, if the emperor really chose Ye Wuchen instead of Qin Yuan, the Qin Dynasty would be furious. The Liu Kingdom would be the victim. They would be involved and wouldn''t be able to escape. They had to think for themselves. As for Liu Chenyu, no one cared what she wanted. Only the emperor''s statement was needed.


    "These b*stards." Liu Feiyang gazed coldly at the lords and officials. Did the Qin Dynasty bribe them or were they afraid of the Qin Dynasty?


    Emperor Liu also looked at them. His serious eyes also seemed to be smiling. No one knew what he was thinking.


    "It seems that everyone thinks more highly of Prince Qin," he said with a smile. "He is very talented and I appreciate him. However, this concerns Chenyu''s future. I must think carefully. I''ll need some time."


    "I am willing to wait." Qin Yuan smiled and bowed.


    Ye Wuchen glanced at Liu Chenyu. Everything was going against him. He felt an invisible pressure.


    "I invited everyone to visit the Liu Kingdom. I will arrange a pavilion for everyone to stay in. The imperial city contains many relics. Everyone can enjoy themselves as they wish," Emperor Liu said. "Has anyone heard of Turtle Mountain of the Liu Kingdom?"


    Everyone''s eyes flashed. People from every force had obviously heard of Turtle Mountain''s legend before. According to legend, Turtle Mountain existed for longer than the Liu Kingdom. The imperial city was established here because of this mountain too. It was created by spirit stones. Apparently, there were countless matrixes around the entire mountain.


    Of course, this wasn''t why it was called Turtle Mountain. It was because there was a Turtle Hermit there. This turtle had lived for countless years. A rumor in the Eastern Barren Territory said that this turtle was why the Liu Kingdom could be established. Before each emperor came into power, he had to climb to the peak and be blessed by the Turtle Hermit.


    This old turtle had mysterious talents and was a fortune teller. Of course, this might be exaggerated but the Turtle Hermit definitely had abilities like an astrologer. It was the Liu Kingdom''s totem.


    People didn''t understand why Emperor Liu suddenly mentioned Turtle Mountain.


    "I have heard the legend of Turtle Mountain many times and have always wanted to go," Qin Yuan said. "Now that I have the chance, I must visit it."


    "The Turtle Hermit in on the mountain," Emperor Liu said, chuckling. "I will order the mountain to be opened. Anyone who wishes to visit may do so freely. If anyone can receive the Turtle Hermit''s blessing, he will have no problem in becoming the princess'' husband." After speaking, Emperor Liu stood up and left, glancing at Qin Yuan and Ye Wuchen.


    The lords and officials'' eyes flashed. Did the emperor want Qin Yuan and Ye Wuchen to meet the Turtle Hermit? Only the emperors had the right to go up the mountain. Even if he really did open it up, would Qin Yuan and Ye Wuchen be able to meet the legendary Turtle Hermit? Even the lords and officials had never seen it before.


    Qin Yuan had an odd expression. He didn''t expect Emperor Liu to do this and make him compete with Ye Wuchen in Turtle Mountain. However, they both came to propose at the same time. Emperor Liu was very polite too. Finally handing them over to Turtle Mountain seemed okay too. He was a true fox.


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu let out a breath. Thankfully, their father didn''t agree to Qin Yuan just yet. They still weren''t optimistic though. They both knew what Turtle Mountain was like. What would he do if both Ye Wuchen and Qin Yuan couldn''t see the Turtle Hermit?


    Liu Chenyu gazed at Ye Wuchen. They exchanged glances and seemed to understand what the other was thinking.


    Liu Chenyu turned around. Liu Feiyang walked to Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian''s side. He didn''t care about the Qin Dynasty.


    "Take me to Turtle Mountain," Ye Wuchen said to Liu Feiyang.


    "Alright." Liu Feiyang nodded. The group then left the palace.


    Qin Yuan had planned on talking to the lords and officials. Seeing this, he bid farewell casually and left too. The other strong cultivators also left. They weren''t interested in marrying the princess but wanted to see Turtle Mountain too.


    Countless people were waiting for news outside the palace. When they saw all the strong cultivators leave, they were confused. Did the emperor approve of Qin Yuan?


    Soon, the palace sent out the definite news that Qin Yuan wasn''t the only one proposing today. Ye Wuchen of the Fuyun Sword Clan had also proposed. Many people realized that Ye Wuchen was the one Liu Chenyu liked. No wonder they were always with Ye Futian. However, the first summit of the Fuyun Sword Clan was on Qin Yuan''s side. As a swordsman of the seventh summit, how would Ye Wuchen compete with Qin Yuan?


    News about Turtle Mountain also spread. The Liu Kingdom would soon open up the mountain. Many strong cultivators would head towards it.


    Turtle Mountain had always been a place that only the emperor could step foot in. It was mysterious. Many people from the kingdom were curious about it. The emperor also said that anyone who was blessed by the Turtle Hermit could marry the princess. Thus, countless strong cultivators gathered near Turtle Mountain, many miles from the palace.


    As a sacred land of the Liu Kingdom, there were many pavilions at the foot of the mountain, surrounding it. This was where the royalty performed rituals. There were also soldiers guarding the mountain, surrounding it all. In addition, there were high towers in all directions so no one could approach from the sky. But now, the doors of the surrounding pavilions opened. Countless strong cultivators poured through and came to the foot of the mysterious Turtle Mountain!

 322 Climb the Mountain

    Chapter 322: Climb the Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Mist wrapped around Turtle Mountain, shrouding it so that it looked like a divine turtle. At the foot of the mountain, one could feel bounding Spiritual Qi. Light of every element shot from it, making it look so beautiful.


    Right now, countless people were present. People from the important families of the Liu Kingdom also came. However, the strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty and Ye Futian''s group were still at the foremost.


    Many youths from the Liu Kingdom looked to Qin Yuan, Qian Shanmu, Ye Futian, and the others. These prides from the top forces that were known throughout the Eastern Barren Territory were the goals for many youths. Their existence were benchmarks.


    "Qin Mengruo and Chu Yaoyao are so beautiful," the daughter of an important family praised their beauty. She was also a beauty and had always thought that the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory weren''t as pretty as her. But now that she saw them, she discovered their charm. She was far behind.


    "Prince Qin is so handsome." The girl beside her was looking at Qin Yuan. In the crowd, he was definitely one of the top flower boys.


    "Is Ye Futian not handsome?" a girl in a long blue dress asked, chuckling.


    "Of course, but I like Prince Qin''s gentleness more. I heard that Ye Futian is too arrogant and a bully. The disciples of the Cottage don''t respect anyone. He called Prince Qin a lowly man but Prince Qin didn''t comment on him. So I like Prince Qin more. He and Princess Chenyu suit each other."


    "Don''t you know what Ye Futian said in the Ancient Barren World?" a youth around 18-years-old asked.


    "Those who know me understand my arrogance?" the girl asked in return.


    "Cottage disciples don''t need to care about others," the youth said. "They do as they wish and are like true men. I don''t like Prince Qin." He didn''t say that he thought Prince Qin was insincere.


    "Who do you think will reach the summit?" the girl asked, chuckling.


    "If Qin Yuan is competing with Ye Futian, he obviously won''t be able to win. But with Ye Wuchen, I don''t know." The youth trusted the Cottage disciples because he wished to cultivate there.


    "Qin Yuan is only competing with Ye Wuchen but Ye Futian and the others will also climb the mountain. I heard that Qin Yuan has extraordinary talent. Qian Shanmu, Qin Li, Qin Mengruo, Chu Yaoyao, and the others are all talented too. Let''s wait and see."


    Everyone around them was also discussing this. At this time, Qin Yuan''s group made the first step towards Turtle Mountain. Ye Futian''s group also stepped toward it.


    There was no true road on Turtle Mountain. The ancient turtle-like mountain seemed to have been cut into pieces. Strange and jagged rocks were everywhere.


    The moment they stepped onto the mountain, it was as if a divine turtle was riding them. Every step became heavy. Ye Futian tried flying but the power forced him down. They could only walk but this was expected. If they could fly, anyone would be able to climb the mountain.


    Liu Feiyang was also there. "How long will it take to the summit?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I don''t know." Liu Feiyang shook his head. "Only the sovereigns have reached the summit before. I heard that many royalties lost themselves in the Turtle Mountain. We must be careful."


    Ye Futian nodded. He glanced at the Qin Dynasty group in the near distance. They were also climbing by foot. Qin Yuan was in the center. Qin Li seemed to feel something and glanced towards Ye Futian.


    As they walked, the mountain became covered in a layer of fog. The ground wasn''t as clear anymore. Now, other than going up, they didn''t know what direction they were heading in or where they were. Many strong cultivators of the Liu Kingdom followed them onto Turtle Mountain to test how far they could go.


    Time passed bit by bit. Everyone''s steps grew heavier. The invisible pressure from Turtle Mountain kept growing. Many cultivators from the Liu Kingdom slowed down. Some couldn''t even walk anymore and had to sit down for a rest.


    "Ah!" A cry sounded, echoing throughout the mountain. Fear rose in many people''s hearts. They didn''t feel as relaxed as before. Only those from the top levels could continue forward steadily. Some talented ones from the Liu Kingdom could as well but they''d slowed too.


    In the crowd behind them, a girl who cultivated sorcery stopped. "I need to rest," she said to her companions. With that, she sat on a rock and tried to gather the Spiritual Qi around her to cultivate. Climbing the mountain was too tiring and she''d used up all her Spiritual Qi. Because she didn''t cultivate martial arts, she did not have a lot of stamina.


    "Alright." Everyone nodded and sat down to rest. But soon, everyone''s bodies started trembling. Then some invisible force pulled onto their bodies and hurled them downward. That moment, consecutive screams shattered the silence. They kept echoing and the people''s hearts weren''t as sure as before. This type of scream sounded occasionally after that, shaking everyone up.


    Ye Futian''s group kept going. The people around them disappeared and he didn''t know where Qin Yuan''s group was.


    Using Freedom Meditation, he saw a giant divine turtle. Its pressure was even scarier than the martial arts training field. He had to stop the Freedom Meditation. Otherwise, he wouldn''t be able to walk much. He could use this to train his body usually. However, he was climbing a mountain now, not cultivating.


    After one day, they all felt tired. They had no clue where they were. This was the scariest��it seemed endless.


    "Should we rest?" Ye Futian asked. This was his first time mentioning it. Even someone as powerful as him felt tired. Ye Wuchen and the others naturally did too.


    Ye Wuchen stopped and nodded. Everyone sat on the ground and closed their eyes. When Ye Futian closed his eyes, he actually felt drowsiness attack him. He wanted to relax and sleep. His body became light as if he was floating in the air. Suddenly, a hand from deep in his mind grabbed at him.


    "We can''t rest!" Ye Futian cried out, eyes flying open. Everyone was startled awake; there was a bright flash. They all panted heavily. Exchanging glances, they took a deep breath and stood up to continue climbing.


    "Is this really a sacred land of your kingdom?" Ye Futian looked at Liu Feiyang, completely done.


    "My father said before that only the strongest can step foot on Turtle Mountain," Liu Feiyang replied. "Those who wish to become emperor must pass this trial."


    Ye Futian was frustrated but he had to keep going. But if they were like this, the others must not be well off either. Ye Wuchen had been quiet all this time. He couldn''t relax until this matter was settled. Thus, he looked even more persistent.


    Days passed like this. It seemed impossible to reach the summit. They were exhausted now. Their legs were heavy and their muscles were taut. It felt horrible to have their mind and body tense for so long.


    Countless people looked up at the mountain from the foot. Many of the ones who''d tried had fallen down. Some were lightly hurt while others were badly injured. However, people still kept trying to better themselves.


    Through the mist, they could see people around the middle of the mountain. Those who crossed the middle were from the top forces. Even some of them had fallen down, including those in the Noble plane.


    "Prince Qin and Ye Futian seem to be in the same place," someone said. The people were small in their vision but they were in the middle. No one knew if they could reach the top.


    Anyway, Ye Futian didn''t know where they were. Right now, they were extremely exhausted but the road became smoother. It was easier to walk. A sea of flowers appeared in the mist. It was magnificent and beautiful.


    "Are we at the top?" Ye Futian asked. He looked to the side but realized that everyone was gone. "Yu Sheng, Wuchen," Ye Futian called. There was no echo. His voice just disappeared.


    Ye Futian frowned. A beautiful figure walked out of the flowers. Her beautiful eyes stared at him, almost melting his heart.


    "Chu Yaoyao?" Ye Futian was confused. As Chu Yaoyao stared at him, she walked over and reached out a hand. She just looked at him dazedly.


    "A hallucination?" Ye Futian stepped forward. He ignored the girl and brushed past her. Then he saw another hallucination. Qin Mengruo, the cold beauty, was playing her guqin. Music floated around her. There was a rapid stream before her.


    When the music stopped, Qin Mengruo stood up. She placed her hands on her shoulder and pushed her clothes down a bit, revealing her porcelain-like shoulders. Long legs stepped into the water. Her clothes became wet and she turned to smile at Ye Futian.


    He blinked. Why would he see this kind of hallucination?


    "No thank you." Ye Futian continued forward, ignoring the beautiful image. After that, Lin Yueyao, Senior Sister Qin Yi, Loulan Xue�� everyone appeared in his hallucination, annoying Ye Futian. Was this a test for his mind? Why would there be so many beauties? He wasn''t a pervert!


    Of course, the hardest to resist was still when Jieyu appeared but he still resisted. There would be chances in the future.


    Yu Sheng also had hallucinations but they were much easier than Ye Futian''s. There were no beauties. Only two people appeared: his father and Ye Futian.

 323 Battle on Turtle Mountain

    Chapter 323: Battle on Turtle Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was annoyed. Climbing mountains was tiring in itself and got even more so as he went. If he could, he wished he could just drop down and rest. It was honestly too tiring. The worst thing was when you couldn''t see the end or even the light. And now these beautiful images were trying to lure him. It was horrible!


    When someone was so physically exhausted, their willpower would go down and they would want to completely relax. The further they went, the harder it was to resist. Even worse, the images that Ye Futian saw kept becoming more beautiful.


    The girls are skeletons. Ye Futian went forward with his eyes closed but it was useless. The realistic images were imprinted directly into his mind. He couldn''t escape it at all. If this really was a trial on his mind, it was too cruel. No wonder Liu Feiyang said many people would lose themselves here. If he chose to give in, would he get lost? He didn''t know.


    Hua Jieyu appeared in his mind. Ye Futian smiled brightly. He shouldn''t be distracted by beauty but Hua Jieyu''s image always appeared. "Fox, if you do this, something bad will happen," he muttered. Thinking of Wuchen, Ye Futian gritted his teeth and continued forward. He wasn''t the only one going through this on Turtle Mountain.


    Right now, Qin Yuan also saw many images. With his exhausted mind, he saw his father sitting on the throne and reaching out to him with a smile. It was as if he could sit onto the throne if he wished.


    Qin Yuan''s expression twisted in pain. He wanted the throne so badly but he knew it wasn''t his. The Qin Dynasty''s throne was Qin Yu''s. He could never get it.


    In his fantasy, he saw Qin Li appear before him, powerless. If he wanted to, he could kill Qin Li. His face twisted. He wished he could kill the man.


    Everyone thought that Emperor King loved Qin Yuan most but that was just on the surface. If he did, why would he send Qin Yuan to the Liu Kingdom to marry the princess? It was to distance him from power so he wouldn''t have those thoughts. He had to achieve the goal too but actually, he didn''t want it.


    Marry Liu Chenyu? She was pretty but wasn''t Qin Mengruo, his sister from another mother, also pretty? As one of the top three beauties, she was obviously prettier than Liu Chenyu. Chu Yaoyao was the Virgin of the Moon Clan. Why did Qin Li marry her instead of him? In what aspect was he worse than Qin Li?


    In his hallucination, he was inside the Qin palace. A dream-like scene appeared inside that opulent pavilion. The elegant and arrogant Qin Mengruo, the moving Chu Yaoyao, and beautiful Liu Chenyu all lay before him. They only had a thin blanket over them. Their snowy-white arms and legs were bare. If he wanted, he could enjoy the best moment in the world. It was so tempting. He could drown in this for eternity.


    His features kept twisting and becoming menacing. Gritting his teeth, he started bleeding and his eyes reddened. Others would definitely never think that the scholarly and calm Qin Yuan could look like this too. He was completely different from how he usually was.


    Trembling, Qin Yuan ignored his dreams and continued forward. He knew what he had to do now. If he failed, he wouldn''t be able to answer to his father.


    Chu Yaoyao didn''t know she appeared in so many men''s fantasies. She was also undergoing this trial. Exhausted, she wanted to stop and rest against someone. She was so tired; she could fall over any time. She couldn''t keep going anymore.


    At this time, someone appeared before her. He was so handsome and his eyes were so pretty. He had a subtle smile and gave off a playfully bad feeling.


    The handsome man walked to her side and said, "I''ll carry you." With that, he squatted down before her. Chu Yaoyao smiled brilliantly. That moment, she didn''t care whether it was real or not. She didn''t care about the consequences either; she just wanted to rest on his back.


    Thus, she rose to her tiptoes and sprawled onto the youth''s back. She grasped his neck and rested her face on his shoulder, smiling sweetly. This image was so beautiful. She didn''t have to pretend and could be her truest self.


    ��


    After a long while, the almost-utterly exhausted Ye Futian appeared before a path on Turtle Mountain. The hallucinations finally disappeared. White clouds floated in the sky. It was quiet and peaceful. Before him, he could make out an ancient pavilion at the peak. He was almost there.


    "Have I finally gotten out of it?" Ye Futian took a deep breath. He walked to a huge rock to sit down and recover his mental and physical energy.


    After a while, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen walked out too. They came to Ye Futian and sat down. After that, Liu Feiyang and Loulan Xue appeared too.


    The Silver Snow Guard never appeared. He was probably stuck in the hallucination. This event didn''t have anything to do with him so it wasn''t that important. It was normal that he couldn''t get out of it.


    After resting a bit, Ye Wuchen stood up. Seeing that, everyone else rose and continued forward. The pressure was still great but without the hallucination, they wouldn''t get lost.


    In the distance, other figures appeared. It was Qin Yuan, Qin Li, Qian Shanmu, and Qin Mengruo. Chu Yaoyao wasn''t there. In another direction, Gu Zhiqiu and Gu Biyue appeared too. Unexpectedly, they reached this point too. They must have strong willpower too.


    Other people appeared below them. Only one strong cultivator from the Ji Family arrived��Ji Kong.


    Zhe Song and Qi Ao of the Fuyun Sword Clan were there too, as well as one from the Royal Xuan Temple. The people walked upward. Here, they couldn''t be too far from the peak.


    The Qin Dynasty and Ye Futian''s group went up together. Qin Yuan had recovered. His handsome face was gentle and calm again. He kept looking up.


    Qin Li glanced at Ye Futian. Chuckling, he said, "Ye Futian, earlier, you defeated a pride of the Dongqin College at Chaoge City. I''ve always wanted to challenge you but your plane is too low so I couldn''t. But you killed Luo Junlin at the Nandou Nation and showed extraordinary combat ability. How about you let me experience your ability today?" As he spoke, he walked towards Ye Futian. Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo walked over too, bodies flashing and releasing their might. Qin Yuan pretended he didn''t see it and kept climbing.


    "Don''t think about stopping us." Liu Feiyang''s expression was cold. Ye Futian obviously knew what Qin Li was doing. His Arcana aura was very strong now. Dragons wrapped around him and one could hear dragon cries in the air.


    Qin Li stepped towards Ye Futian with horrible might. As a monstrous figure, his talent and ability were both powerful. He''d activated eight dragon meridians and was one of the rare figures in the Qin Dynasty.


    Nine meridians was the limit.


    "Wuchen, go first," Ye Futian said. Ye Wuchen and Qin Yuan were the stars today. It didn''t matter for the rest but Ye Wuchen must get to the top.


    Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo''s life spirits appeared. Guqins sang and strings of music fell onto Qin Li. His might grew until he became like a true dragon. Qin Li grabbed in the air. Instantly, many dragons roared towards Ye Futian and the others. With bared teeth and claws, they were going to kill the group.


    The Qin Dynasty had people with eight dragon meridians. Their dragon intent was like true dragons.


    Boundless sword intent bloomed from Ye Wuchen. He stepped to the side and the sword intent cut through the sky. It streaked towards the incoming dragon while he continued walking like a sword.


    Qin Li''s eyes were cold. He stepped forward and grabbed towards Ye Wuchen. At the same time, a figure appeared before him.


    It was Ye Wuchen.


    The Five Element Rod in his hand enlarged into an extremely big staff. He twirled it and used the power of the world to slam it down. Horrible gravity fell on the Five Element Rod, making it thousands of pounds heavy. It shattered the dragon and went for Qin Li.


    Eight dragons roared from Qin Li''s body. Strong and sharp claws caught onto the rod and forcefully stopped its downward motion.


    Countless eyes at the foot of the mountain looked up at the scene. Light glowed from some people''s eyes as if they could see through the space. Looking at the tiny figures on the mountain, their insides trembled.


    "A battle erupted."


    "Who''s fighting?" Those with lower planes couldn''t see what was happening.


    "Ye Futian of the Cottage and Qin Li of the Qin Dynasty. Qian Shanmu, Qin Mengruo, and Yu Sheng might join in."


    "What about Qin Yuan?"


    "Still climbing. He''s in line with Ye Wuchen."


    More voices sounded at the foot of the mountain. Many people were in an uproar. Qin Li really was fighting with Ye Futian and they couldn''t see it? They could only see blurry figures.


    "Who will win?" someone asked. He was anxious because he couldn''t see.


    Qin Li, a grandson of the emperor, was scarily talented. He also had a high plane. But they''d all witnessed Ye Futian''s abilities. He had killed Luo Junlin.


    "I don''t know. The emperor''s grandson has eight dragon meridians while Ye Futian has a ritual implement staff."


    Someone sighed heavily. It was such a pity that they couldn''t see such a battle on Turtle Mountain!

 324 Madman

    Chapter 324: Madman


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On Turtle Mountain, Ye Futian and Qin Li stood, facing each other. The powerful pressure remained but they were fighting in this environment right now.


    The royalty of the Qin Dynasty opened up their dragon meridians and cultivated martial arts. Their physical bodies were like dragons��extremely terrifying.


    Ye Futian used a divine beast''s body-enhancing technique. His body was impossible to copy and was also extremely powerful.


    Dragons wrapped around Qin Li. His life spirit was a dragon and his dharma was a dragon. His meridians had turned into dragon meridians and his bones were like a dragon''s bones. His blood roared as if a dragon was inside his body.


    His lips curled into a cold smirk as he stared at Ye Futian. Behind him, cacophonous music fell onto him, bolstering his strength. His aura kept growing more frightening. At the same time, piercing music traveled into Ye Futian''s eardrums, stabbing his fatigued mind.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stepped towards Qian Shanmu. Loulan Xue went to Qin Mengruo. Liu Feiyang didn''t participate because even though he''d climbed with their group, he was still the Liu Kingdom''s prince. The Qin Dynasty was here for a marriage proposal. If he fought with them, the Qin Dynasty could snatch this excuse to attack.


    "Where do you think you''re going?" Qin Li sneered and threw his hands forward. Eight dragons soared into the air, flying towards the three. The golden claws were extremely sharp, tearing through everything.


    A huge Demonic Tripod emerged in Yu Sheng''s hands. With a huge sound, it flew out. The black tripod killed everything, crashing into the dragon.


    Frightening coldness flowed through Loulan Xue''s body. An ice spell that could seal everything in ice bloomed. The dragons turned to frost but kept going, trying to shatter everything. An ice wand appeared in Loulan Xue''s hands, twirling. Endless ice Spiritual Qi shrouded the dragon. Then there were cracking sounds. The ice cracked, along with the dragon''s body.


    Ye Futian raised his Five Elemental Rod. Different lights flashed as it transformed into a huge staff. It split down from the heavens. But even worse was Qian Shanmu''s grating music. Hallucinations appeared in the minds of the three, making them feel that Qin Li''s every move was incredible. Every attack could turn them into ash.


    Qian Shanmu was only in the lower Arcana Plane but as the number one musical sorcerer in the younger generation, his Spiritual Energy was much more powerful than the three. His spells could be very threatening.


    "Holy Sound." Ye Futian felt that Qin Li''s figure was suddenly boundless. He was as large as a saint. In Chaoge City, this had appeared in the fight with Qian Shanmu. But that had been Qian Shanmu. Now, the Holy Sound was being used to help with Qin Li''s fighting.


    Qin Li opened his mouth and uttered unclear sounds. They were like a dragon''s language. His aura became even more terrifying. The minds of Ye Futian''s trio were shaking as if a mysterious power had descended.


    Ye Futian''s dharma bloomed. An ape roared while Ye Futian''s body grew more monstrous. His blood boiled and his noble intent rose up. He twirled the Five Elemental Rod and the heavens changed. The sky and earth trembled as the Five Elemental Rod seemed to connect the two. The ape struck it down, splitting the sky.


    Qin Li''s expression was domineering and cold with the help of the Holy Sound. He was already an entire plane higher than Ye Futian. He had nothing to fear. He reached out, his arms turning into dragon arms. Various dragon shadows wrapped around his arm, again grabbing at the Five Elemental Rod.


    Following a deafening roar, many dragon figures were shattered. Qin Li still grabbed the Five Elemental Rod though. Various dragons snaked over, wrapping around the rod.


    "This was the Yin Family''s treasure. It should be returned to its owner," Qin Li said coldly. A glow that belonged to him bloomed now. He was the grandson of Emperor Qin, son of the crown prince. He was the future heir to the throne. With eight dragon meridians and baptized by dragon blood, he had been nurtured by the ancestors'' dragon meridians.


    Ye Futian wielded the Five Elemental Rod; the Divine Ape was on his body. He glared coldly at Qin Li. The man wanted to rob him of his rod?


    Ice and fire Spiritual Qi bloomed from the Five Elemental Rod. The Spiritual Qi of Turtle Mountain seemed to have gathered there. The spell gradually covered Qin Li''s body. The flames transformed into a furnace. Noble intent passed through the rod into Qin Li''s body.


    "You think this will do something?" Qin Li looked indifferently at Ye Futian. He was at the Third-level Arcana Plane. He was so strong and gold light covered him. He''d transformed into a golden dragon. He seemed to hide a gold dragon in him and was unmoved no matter how the fire burned.


    Hiss, hiss�� The gold dragon burned like in a furnace. Qin Li''s brows furrowed slightly as he felt some pain. He looked down to see that strange golden fire burned in many places. They were like an emperor''s fire that could destroy any resistance.


    Boom. Qin Li hurriedly let go of the rod and retreated. But Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue had already pounced toward Qian Shanmu and Qin Mengruo. It would be troublesome if these two weren''t taken care of.


    The Demonic Tripod enlarged quickly. It transformed into a dark tripod hovering in the air, looming over Qian Shanmu''s head. The demonic pressure hammered down. The world turned dark as if demons had descended. He thrummed his guqin violently. The Holy Sound fell over him instead of Qin Li. It seemed to turn him into a saint.


    Yu Sheng appeared under the Demonic Tripod. His burly body shone with dark gold light. He reached out and the light from the Demonic Tripod instantly turned into a dark gold halberd. He was like a horrible demon going to kill Qian Shanmu.


    Loulan Xue arrived before Qin Mengruo. Her silver eyes had become a bit demonic. Snowflakes swirled in the air, sweeping towards Qin Mengruo. The coldness entered one''s bones; it could freeze one''s soul.


    Many people looked to this battlefield from the side. Compared to Qin Yuan and Ye Wuchen climbing the Turtle Mountain, they were more interested in this battle.


    ��


    While the battle was still happening, Qin Yuan and Ye Wuchen were still climbing up, practically side by side. It seemed that after climbing up these steps, they could meet the Turtle Hermit.


    They''d been extremely exhausted but were now suddenly filled with power. Power radiated from their bodies. Ye Wuchen''s body was like a sword. He walked forward extremely calm. His eyes were filled with unwavering determination.


    A special power emanated from the stone steps. It was like an invisible matrix with an endless string. It flowed through the steps like soundwaves. The moment Ye Wuchen stepped onto them, the invisible ripple seemed to transform into the world''s sharpest sword intent. It pierced his body, almost snapping it. The sword intent flowed through him and then stabbed him. It was using his power to attack himself. The stronger his sword intent was, the stronger the attack was. Even more terrifying, the might of the stone steps grew even more powerful.


    Qin Yuan also underwent this pain. He used his power to resist the might but that power turned back against him, attacking his flesh. This was so painful. Not only did he have to bear the might of the Turtle Mountain, but he also had to bear his own attack. Something flickered past his handsome face. It was a shred of pain. Who thought of this horrible test?


    The stone steps were so long and steep too. Ye Wuchen needed to use more and more resistance to go up, reaching the limit. This growing power would also be used to attack him.


    Ye Wuchen didn''t think of all that. He continued climbing. Sword light wrapped around him, melding into his body. His entirety dazzled like a sword. His steps were slow but very steady. He climbed step by step. Endless sword intent flowed through him, stabbing into his bone marrow. But so what? If he couldn''t even protect his love, he wouldn''t qualify to become a swordsman.


    A swordsman should have no fears.


    He continued climbing, one step at a time. The pain strengthened as he walked. Endless sword intent passed through him. Any misstep could kill him. His sword intent strengthened. The force he had to bear strengthened as well. It was almost at the limit, penetrating his flesh.


    Blood appeared on his clothes. His sword body was damaged too. His organs seemed to be damaged by the sword aura as well but he didn''t retreat. His steps didn''t stop either. In fact, his sword intent was still strengthening. He was amidst a destructive sword scene.


    "Madman." Behind him, Qin Yuan suffered the horrible pain, his face twisted. Seeing that Ye Wuchen was still going forward, his every step so sure, he cursed inwardly. Was Ye Wuchen willing to give his life for a woman? But thinking of his mission, Qin Yuan didn''t give up either. He continued.


    After a while, Qin Yuan was halfway there. Looking at the remaining portion, Qin Yuan was in pain. Ye Wuchen was past that point. Blood kept dripping onto the stone. Qin Yuan didn''t even know if Ye Wuchen could survive to the top.


    Sword intent from the surroundings stabbed into Ye Wuchen''s body, ravaging him. He looked up, eyes still as determined as before. However, his steps faltered. It was too painful.


    A figure appeared in his mind. They didn''t have a dramatic relationship. It was as calm as water. When they occasionally met eyes, they would feel shy. But this little trickle of emotions warmed his heart.


    The three words in the letter he''d received at the mountain: can you come?


    He had come. And since he was here, he would do it. It was his promise; it was his protection. If he couldn''t, he would allow all the swords to pierce his heart and kill him.


    Ye Wuchen continued forward!

 325 Turtle Hermi

    Chapter 325: Turtle Hermit


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the foot of Turtle Mountain, countless people gazed at the mountain. There were nobles, Arcana Plane cultivators, as well as Dharma Plane cultivators.


    An extremely intense battle seemed to have erupted on Turtle Mountain. However, they could clearly see the stone steps below the palace. There was no mist there and everyone could vividly see two people. Although the two figures appeared to be very tiny in their eyes, they could still figure out who they were.


    Qin Yuan, the youngest son of the king of Qin, and Ye Wuchen, the Swordmaster of the seventh summit of Fuyun Sword Clan, had arrived at the final stone steps, trying to reach the top. They seemed to have encountered an extremely strong resistive force. Qin Yuan stopped when he was halfway through the stone steps and did not continue to walk.


    On the other hand, Ye Wuchen''s body looked as proud as a pine and as straight as a sword. He walked forward step by step. Although he was slow, everyone could see him moving. With every step that he took, he was leaving Qin Yuan even further behind.


    At first, everyone thought that the outcome of the contest was obvious and Qin Yuan would certainly win. But what could they say now?


    When Ye Wuchen reached the top of the stone steps, sunlight from the sky sprinkled onto his body. At this instant, he seemed to be showered in an endless radiance and had become the most dazzling existence. If a person from the royal family of Liu Kingdom managed to reach the top of Turtle Mountain, he could inherit the throne.


    Now, Ye Wuchen managed to reach the top.


    Surprise filled everyone''s eyes. Nobody had expected Ye Wuchen to be able to do so. From now on, Ye Wuchen, the Swordmaster of the seventh summit of Fuyun Sword Clan, could be compared to the best geniuses of Eastern Barren Territory.


    Qin Yuan was still standing at his spot. He also tried to advance forward, but eventually, he failed and was blown back to the bottom of the stone steps. The battle between Ye Futian and Qin Li also stopped. They raised their heads to look at the stone steps above them when they saw Ye Wuchen''s body disappearing from their view. A smile appeared on Ye Futian''s face. We won.


    The peak of the Turtle Mountain.


    Ye Wuchen walked forward. At the moment, the pressure had already disappeared. He walked past a door and arrived at an ancient palace. It was a stone palace, and there were many complicated symbols on the ground. Looking at the symbols, Ye Wuchen actually found them to be extremely mysterious, but he could not understand them.


    "I am Ye Wuchen. Greetings, Turtle Hermit," Ye Wuchen said. He only had one arm and could not fold his hands. Therefore, he could only bow slightly to salute. At the moment, his white shirt was covered with many frightening bloodstains.


    A figure slowly climbed out from the stone door of the stone palace. It was a turtle. The turtle extended his neck and looked at Ye Wuchen. His behavior was very much like a human, and furthermore, he appeared to be very old. Liu Feiyang had said that Turtle Hermit was the totem of Liu Kingdom and had lived for countless years. He was literally an old monster.


    The crawling speed of turtles was extremely slow, often so slow that people would lose their patience while waiting. Luckily, Ye Wuchen was a very patient man. He stood quietly at his spot.


    Turtle Hermit approached him and extended one of his feet which looked like the arm of a person. He took a willow branch and started drawing on the ground. The symbols around Ye Wuchen lit up. They released a dazzling radiance and appeared to be very mysterious and unpredictable.


    The symbols were made up of countless figures and were changing continuously as if they were trying to derive the future. Finally, a diagram was formed. Turtle Hermit looked at Ye Wuchen. His look was gentle but filled with some sympathy.


    "You should leave Liu Kingdom," Turtle Hermit said with a human voice. This was the first thing that he said.


    Ye Wuchen was puzzled. He looked at Turtle Hermit, stunned, and said, "I don''t understand."


    "Liu Kingdom''s events will bring you misfortune. You will be involved." Turtle Hermit''s voice was very soft.


    Hearing this, Ye Wuchen felt a wave of coldness surging through his body. He was not afraid of danger. With his determination, he managed to reach the top of Turtle Mountain. However, he was afraid that he would not be able to change anything. Turtle Hermit claimed that Liu Kingdom''s events would bring him bad luck. Did it mean that he could not change the fate of the kingdom?


    "Senior, can you predict the future?" Ye Wuchen asked.


    Turtle Hermit shook his head. Even this action was performed very slowly.


    "Nobody can predict the future. It is just that I can see what normal people cannot, and from there make some deductions," Turtle Hermit said slowly. "There are laws governing everything in the world. I can see more of them because I live longer than others. Furthermore, my talents in cultivation are limited, and therefore I can only spend my time doing these boring things."


    "Senior, since you cannot see the future, everything is still unknown," Ye Wuchen said.


    Turtle Hermit stared at him and a warm smile appeared on his face. Ye Wuchen had such a firm faith, but he was not strong enough to change anything. Ultimately, he was only a young Arcana Plane cultivator.


    "Wait for a while. I''ll let your friends in," Turtle Hermit said. Then, he walked back through the stone door with the same slow speed.


    ��


    At the moment, many people were gathered below the stone steps on Turtle Mountain where Qin Yuan was at. They included Qin Li, Qian Shanmu, Ye Futian and his team, as well as the people from various top forces. They all saw Ye Wuchen reach the top of the stone steps. On the other hand, Qin Yuan had fallen down the steps.


    Qin Yuan had lost to Ye Wuchen.


    Qin Li''s face was somewhat gloomy. He looked at Qin Yuan and said, "Go and try again." From his tone, it seemed that he was not very respectful towards his young uncle.


    Qin Yuan''s mother was Concubine Nan, a charming lady. He would obviously not respect the son of such a degrading woman. His father was the crown prince of Qin Dynasty, the righteous successor to the throne, and he was the grandson of the king.


    Some gloominess flashed across Qin Yuan''s handsome face as he raised his head to look at the stone steps. He knew that it would be useless even if he tried again.


    Some other people tried, but they gave up after only a short while. They did not want to marry anyone from the Liu Kingdom and therefore did not have to go through this suffering.


    Suddenly, a mist formed from Spiritual Qi appeared across Turtle Mountain. The dense mist enveloped the whole mountain and soon everyone''s vision blurred.


    "What is happening?"


    A strange expression appeared on everyone''s face. In the mist, Ye Futian saw a path in front of him. Then, he heard someone say, "Come up." The voice was gentle but seemed to have a magical power. A weird expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face, but he still decided to follow the path in the mist and went up the mountain.


    After walking for a while, the mist slowly dissipated and Ye Futian''s surrounding became visible. He realized that he was in front of a stone palace. Ye Wuchen was standing there.


    Have I reached the top of Turtle Mountain?


    "Wuchen." Ye Futian approached Ye Wuchen. Then, he saw an old turtle crawl out from the stone door. The turtle stared at him with a gentle look, causing Ye Futian to feel very strange. The action and demeanor of the turtle were very much like a human.


    "Senior, did you bring me here?" Ye Futian asked.


    Turtle Hermit nodded. He slowly walked up to Ye Futian, after which he did the exact same action as before. He drew with a willow branch and a dazzling light was emitted. Countless symbols started changing continuously. However, unlike Ye Wuchen, many diagrams appeared in the end. Turtle Hermit raised his head and looked at Ye Futian. Smiling, he said, "Too many variables. I can''t deduce anything."


    "Senior, what are you doing?" Ye Futian''s face was filled with doubt. Liu Feiyang had said that Turtle Hermit had an unfathomable ability and knew the past, present, and future. Of course, Ye Futian did not believe in that. Nobody could predict the future. Even an astrologer could only estimate the upper limit of a person''s fate. There would still be countless unforeseen events in his life.


    Turtle Hermit looked at Ye Futian and said, "You were born extraordinary."


    Ye Futian was stunned. It seemed that the so-called Turtle Hermit indeed had some abilities. He also knew that he had an unusual background. Emperor Ye Qing, the Snow Ape, and the behavior of his godfather all proved this.


    "In the illusion, you saw many beautiful ladies?" Turtle Hermit smiled and looked at Ye Futian.


    "Err..." Ye Futian was speechless. This old turtle even knows about that? Was that not merely an illusion?


    "Beauties still decay into mere skeletons after death. That''s just an illusion and does not reflect my true nature," Ye Futian said in a righteous manner.


    "Images spring from your heart." Turtle Hermit looked at him with a faint smile.


    Ye Futian widened his eyes at the old turtle. This is nonsense. I was not bewitched by the illusions.


    "The desire for food and sex is part of human nature." Turtle Hermit smiled and said, "It is natural to fantasize about something nice. This desire is normal."


    Anyone who lived in the world would have desires. Otherwise, he could not be called a human. When one did not have any desires, one would be a saint, but also a devil.


    Today, countless people had climbed Turtle Mountain. Turtle Hermit saw many things, including normal desires and distorted, evil ones. Some people were elegant and very good-looking. However, the desires hidden in their hearts were the complete opposite.


    Ye Futian was speechless; he had been caught red-handed. If he knew this earlier, he would not have climbed Turtle Mountain.


    This turtle was really a b*stard. He could actually peep into everyone''s illusions. Could this be the reason why the king of Liu asked them to climb the mountain?


    Thinking about this, a strange look appeared on his face. This meant that Turtle Hermit also saw the illusions that the people of the Qin Dynasty encountered.


    "Senior, let''s talk about my friend." Ye Futian changed the topic.


    "You are blessed." Turtle Hermit smiled. Ye Futian did not understand what he meant by "blessed."


    "As for your friend, I advised him to leave. Otherwise, he will face misfortune," Turtle Hermit said. "But he seems to be really stubborn."


    "Misfortune?" Ye Futian''s look froze. Was it not enough for them to climb Turtle Mountain?


    "Senior, what do you know?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Let''s not talk about this. Come, follow me." Turtle Hermit crawled slowly into the stone palace. Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian looked at each other. Then, they followed him into the stone palace.


    The interior of the stone palace was actually very unusual, as if they had entered another world instead of just a stone palace. In this place, there was the radiance from the sun, the moon, and the stars. Rain and snow fell from the sky, sand danced in the air, as well as lightning and cold wind. Together, the many scenes depicted a picture of the entire world.


    "I have made this over my whole life. It contains the simplest laws governing everything in the world. My level is not high enough and I cannot understand the real laws, but it should be of some use to the two of you. How much of it you can comprehend depends on yourselves," Turtle Hermit said slowly.


    Ye Futian started to feel the world. The sunlight that was pouring down, the wind blowing across, the violent lightning, and the other elements were all running according to their own laws. It was fascinating indeed.


    "Senior, I have a few other friends on Turtle Mountain. Can you let them in as well?" Ye Futian asked Turtle Hermit.


    "You slippery little guy." Turtle Hermit looked at Ye Futian, then he smiled and nodded. "Anyway my days are numbered. I''ll fulfill your wish then!"

 326 Conspiracy

    Chapter 326: Conspiracy


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the moment, those trapped on Turtle Mountain and those who had climbed it had all returned to the foot of the mountain safely. Qin Yuan, Qin Li, and Chu Yaoyao were gathered together. Countless people were looking at them.


    Qin Yuan failed to climb to the top of Turtle Mountain. On the other hand, Ye Wuchen succeeded. According to what the king of Liu had said, Ye Wuchen would be married to the princess of Liu Kingdom. This meant that the Qin Dynasty would have to return in failure.


    "Does the prince of Qin plan to give up?" someone in the crowd asked. Would the Qin Dynasty let it go like this?


    Qin Li looked at the crowd. Then, he smiled and said, "Liu Feiyang, the prince of Liu Kingdom, is a good friend of Ye Wuchen. He accompanied Ye Wuchen up the mountain, so naturally, Ye Wuchen could reach the peak of Turtle Mountain. This is the holy land for the royal family of Liu Kingdom. There is thus nothing surprising about this outcome."


    Everyone''s eyes sparkled. Qin Li did not want to admit Qin Yuan''s failure.


    Qin Yuan looked at everyone with his handsome face. Smiling, he said, "I really admire princess Chenyu. How can I give up so easily?" A strange expression appeared on everyone''s face. Was the Qin Dynasty so determined to win this?


    Qin Li raised his leg, and the group left the place. Chu Yaoyao followed beside him and glanced at Turtle Mountain. They have not come down yet. I wonder where they are now. Thinking about the illusion that she had experienced on Turtle Mountain, she felt very uneasy.


    Qin Li and his team returned to the Imperial Palace. The people from various forces also followed them curiously and returned to the palace. They wanted to see how the event would progress. The king of Liu, however, was not in the palace at the moment.


    On the peak of Turtle Mountain, there was another sloping land behind the stone palace. At the top of the sloping land, there was a huge rock, on which Turtle Hermit was lying on at the moment. The King of Liu also appeared on the slope. Turtle Mountain was the holy land of Liu Kingdom, so only the kings could climb it freely.


    "Senior, what''s the progress?" the King of Liu asked. He was the king of Liu Kingdom, but Turtle Hermit had lived for countless years, so it was naturally alright for him to address Turtle Hermit as "senior." When the king was young, Turtle Hermit was already the "Turtle Hermit".


    "Have you ever thought of bringing your people away from Liu Kingdom?" Turtle Hermit looked at the King of Liu.


    King Liu''s expression turned serious. Was the situation really this bad?


    "This is the product from the hard work of our ancestors. Even if I was willing to leave, what should I tell my people?" The King of Liu sighed. "Can I tell them that we are escaping from an unknown threat?"


    "How about surrendering?" Turtle Hermit said again.


    The King of Liu shook his head. He could feel a wave of coldness surging in his heart. Turtle Hermit turned silent and did not say anything else. The King of Liu understood his meaning.


    This would be a disaster for the Liu Kingdom.


    Qin Dynasty claimed that it would leave Qin Yuan the Liu Kingdom to be the king''s son-in-law. However, he would not believe in such words easily. The problem was, what could he do even if he did not believe in that?


    "How''s Ye Wuchen?" the King of Liu suddenly asked.


    "Very stubborn. He will definitely be involved," Turtle Hermit said. "Although he is not as talented as some people on Turtle Mountain, the purity of his heart for the sword is almost unparalleled. He will certainly be more accomplished than you in the future."


    "It''s no wonder that that person on the seventh summit granted him the title of Swordmaster so quickly," the King of Liu said. "How about the few others from the Cottage?"


    "Their potential is limitless. Eastern Barren Territory will surely undergo a major change over this generation." Turtle Hermit shook his head and said, "Unfortunately, Qin Dynasty has come too quickly."


    "I''ll go and take a look," the King of Liu said. He did not ask about anything else. Turtle Hermit could deduce many things, but he was not a prophet. His attitude already revealed that Liu Kingdom would face a crisis.


    The outcome of the deduction was that, whether he agreed to the marriage proposed by Qin Dynasty or not, the crisis would still exist. In other words, the purpose of the Qin Dynasty this time might be more than just proposing the marriage.


    "Alright," Turtle Hermit nodded slowly. Then, he started to climb down the slope. His action was slow, and the King of Liu waited very patiently.


    ��


    At the moment, Ye Futian, Ye Wuchen, Yu Sheng, Loulan Xue, and Liu Feiyang were all in the stone palace. Turtle Hermit had fulfilled Ye Futian''s wish.


    The group was quietly feeling the mysterious powers in the stone palace. In the scene depicting the world, a willow branch moved gently and danced in the wind. However, it actually cut mountains into two and split rivers wide apart. A trace of flame bloomed, but it could not be extinguished until the entire heaven was incinerated.


    Ye Wuchen felt these pictures and sword will flew on his body. Even a willow branch could cut mountains apart. Then how about a sword? He had a sword body and was therefore very sensitive towards swords. He was immersed in the scene as if he had turned into a sword, or a trace of sword will himself. In the past, his master had told him that the sword will from a really powerful person cross thousands of miles and kill his enemy. This was the so-called "killing a person from thousands of miles away and not leaving a trace behind."


    Ye Futian was similarly trying to feel his surroundings. Here, the laws governing various elements were running. When he activated the Freedom Meditation, he was able to see everything more clearly. He recalled the battle between the third brother and Lu Nantian from Donghua Clan in Chaoge City. The powers that Lu Nantian released that time had given him a similar feeling.


    Could it be that the control of various laws was the ability of a sage? Did Turtle Hermit manage to understand the secret of the Sage Plane?


    That was a legendary plane.


    Suddenly, two figures walked into the stone palace. Seeing them, Ye Futian and his team all stopped the cultivation.


    "Your Majesty." Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. He was surprised that the king of Liu actually appeared here with Turtle Hermit.


    The king of Liu smiled and did not release his might at all. Instead, he looked very friendly. Smiling, he said, "How do you feel?"


    "We have learned a lot," Ye Wuchen said, looking at the king.


    "That''s great. You should spend some time cultivating here. Don''t worry about things down the mountain." The king walked to Ye Wuchen and patted on his shoulders lightly. Ye Wuchen stood at his spot, feeling somewhat puzzled. What did the king''s attitude mean? Was he going to agree to the marriage between Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu? Why then did Turtle Hermit say that Ye Wuchen had to leave, or else he would face a disaster?


    The king of Liu walked past Ye Wuchen and approached Ye Futian. Then, he stared at Ye Futian.


    "Your Majesty," Ye Futian said.


    "You don''t have to be so polite." The King smiled and said, "Ye Futian, I have a favor to ask of you."


    Ye Futian''s face was filled with doubt. Looking at the King, he said, "Your Majesty, please speak."


    "Take care of Feiyang and Chenyu in the future," the king said. Ye Futian stared at the king. Liu Kingdom was a top force of Eastern Barren Territory, and the king was the lord of the kingdom. Why would he say such words? It must be that the king knew something bad was going to happen.


    "I''ll definitely do my best." Ye Futian nodded solemnly.


    "Thanks," the king said, smiling. He similarly patted Ye Futian on the shoulder. "Work hard to cultivate. The future of Eastern Barren Territory belongs to all of you." After that, he looked at his son Liu Feiyang. Then, he turned around and left the stone palace. Turtle Hermit accompanied him out as well.


    Ye Wuchen frowned and kept standing at his spot. After sending the king out of the stone palace, Turtle Hermit returned and said, "Don''t worry and concentrate on cultivating. Since the king has promised you, nothing will happen in the Imperial Palace." Clearly, he was referring to Liu Chenyu.


    Ye Wuchen nodded and continued to cultivate.


    ��


    In the Liu Kingdom Imperial Palace, Qin Yuan went to the Princess Pavilion where Liu Chenyu was at.


    "Prince Qin, what is it?" Liu Chenyu asked softly. Her tone was flat but it gave people a sense of distance.


    "Just now, I went to Turtle Mountain and experienced the illusion there. During the trial of character, I actually saw you. Therefore after I return to the palace, I just want to come and see you." Qin Yuan''s handsome face was filled with a gentle smile. The distortion and ferocity he had on his face on Turtle Mountain had completely vanished. Furthermore, Qin Yuan''s smile seemed to contain a magical charm that would cause others to have a good feeling about him.


    Even though Liu Chenyu did not like him, she still could not really hate him after looking at his face. It was not because he was good-looking, but rather it seemed to have a special power.


    Liu Chenyu did not reply to his words. What could she say?


    "I have nothing else. I only wanted to come here and take a look. Bye." Qin Yuan was very polite. Then, he turned around and left in a very appropriate manner.


    Beside Liu Chenyu, her servant said, "Princess, the prince of Qin is really handsome. He seems to have been born with such a charm. I''m sure everyone wants to get close to him." The servant said so only because Liu Chenyu''s character was good. Otherwise, she would not dare to say this.


    A strange expression appeared on Liu Chenyu''s face; she knew that her servant was right. However, at the moment she suddenly thought of another person and a gentle smile appeared on her face. He really made it to the peak of Turtle Mountain.


    After Qin Yuan left, they waited for the king of Liu to return. Then, they paid the king a visit, but the king of Liu did not give them a reply. He only invited all the visitors to a feast and said that he would announce the result after Ye Wuchen and the rest returned from Turtle Mountain.


    The people from the Liu Kingdom Imperial City were also waiting for the news. Ye Wuchen climbed Turtle Mountain, and they were all wondering if the king would really choose him.


    In the few days that followed, Qin Yuan would visit the Princess Pavilion where Liu Chenyu was at every single day. Each time, he would only stay for a short while which was very appropriate.


    Even the king of Liu knew about this. However, he also had no reasons to stop Qin Yuan from doing so. After Ye Wuchen returned in a few days'' time, he would announce the outcome. By that time, what other excuses could Qin Dynasty find?


    One day, in the pavilion where Qin Li resided, there were only Qin Li and Qin Yuan.


    "You still haven''t settled Liu Chenyu?" Qin Li frowned and stared at Qin Yuan with a sharp look.


    "Liu Chenyu''s level is only slightly lower than mine. I need time," Qin Yuan said.


    "But we don''t have time. You already saw that old king''s attitude yourself. After Ye Wuchen returns, he will announce the outcome. By that time, our plan will have failed," Qin Li said coldly. "This failed because of you. I''ll give you two more days, and you must take down Liu Chenyu completely. Don''t you like such a beauty?"


    Some gloominess flashed across Qin Yuan''s eyes. He was more interested in Chu Yaoyao, the lovely Virgin of Moon Clan. If he had the chance, he would certainly make Chu Yaoyao submit before him.


    "Isn''t it too risky?" Qin Yuan asked.


    "Even if it is exposed, Liu Kingdom will not dare to kill you because of your identity. If Liu Kingdom really assaults you, you will have contributed to the success of the plan instead," Qin Li said emotionlessly. "If father''s plan is affected, you''ll be responsible for it."


    "I got it." Qin Yuan nodded. Then, he turned around and left.


    Looking at his back, some coldness flashed across Qin Li''s eyes. Naturally, he knew that Qin Yuan would love to kill him. Such a worthless idiot actually dreams of obtaining the throne, but he is good-looking. He is indeed the child of that slut!

 327 Outrageous Murderous Inten

    Chapter 327: Outrageous Murderous Intent


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the evening, Qin Yuan came to the pavilion Liu Chenyu was at again.


    Many people in the Imperial Palace were already used to it. Everyone also knew that Liu Chenyu obviously liked Ye Wuchen. Qin Yuan was but wasting his time. Nevertheless, Qin Yuan was a guest. Every day, he would greet the rest politely, so the Liu Kingdom also could not chase him out.


    Stepping into Liu Chenyu''s pavilion, Qin Yuan''s eyes were filled with gloominess. He was in an extremely bad mood. In the first place, he was already unhappy that he had to come to Liu Kingdom to be the king''s son-in-law. Today, he actually had to do such a dangerous thing.


    Qin Li was correct in that he indeed hoped that Qin Li would suffer a miserable death. But what could he do?


    Although his mother, Concubine Nan, was loved by the king of Qin, he knew clearly that it was because his mother had relied on her ability. The king of Qin loved Concubine Nan only because of certain reasons. However, the king''s real goal was the world, and only the crown prince Qin Yu was his heir, while Qin Li was Qin Yu''s heir.


    On the other hand, he appeared to be having a good life, but in reality, his status was extremely petty before Qin Yu and Qin Li.


    Today, he did not want to come here at all. This was the Liu Kingdom Imperial Palace. It was easy for Qin Li to do merely the talking, but he knew that this would be very dangerous. However, what else could he do?


    Qin Yu was already the crown prince at the moment, and the king of Qin was passing his authority to Qin Yu gradually. Qin Yu was very powerful in Qin Dynasty now and nobody dared to disobey his orders. The fate of Qin Yuan and his mother was all in the hand of Qin Yu. This time, the order Qin Yu had given him was that he must complete the plan. Otherwise, he would bear the full responsibility. Before Qin Yu, he could not fight back at all.


    "That b*stard." Qin Yuan''s eyes were filled with ferocity. He stepped into the courtyard and, very quickly, his look turned normal again. The usual charming smile appeared on his face.


    "Prince Qin." The servant came to welcome him. Seeing the charming face of Qin Yuan, the look of the servant turned somewhat infatuated, as if she was lost.


    "Out. I have something to discuss with princess Chenyu." With a gentle look on his face, Qin Yuan smiled at the servant. His eyes seemed to be filled with a mysterious color. The servant looked very lost and she nodded gently. Then, she walked outside the pavilion. It was as if she would obey all of Qin Yuan''s orders at the moment.


    Qin Yuan continued walking and approached Liu Chenyu.


    Seeing Qin Yuan come again, Liu Chenyu was quite unhappy, but she could only tolerate it. For some reason, every time Qin Yuan arrived, she could not really hate him, as if his face really had a special charm.


    "Chenyu." Qin Yuan''s voice was very gentle and he looked at Liu Chenyu with much admiration.


    "Prince Qin, what is it?" Hearing the way Qin Yuan called her, Liu Chenyu frowned gently.


    "Are you willing to be my wife?" Qin Yuan asked.


    "Prince Qin, please do not drivel. I have something else to settle. Please leave," Liu Chenyu said in an unhappy tone.


    Qin Yuan''s eyes sparkled. B*tch, you want this yourself.


    Qin Yuan''s look changed suddenly as if he had turned more intriguing. A mysterious spiritual power was released from his body and turned into an invisible radiance. It made him look so charming that anyone looking at him would feel lost. Liu Chenyu looked at Qin Yuan and felt as if she was being attracted to him. It felt very weird.


    "What''s happening?" Liu Chenyu felt an ominous presentiment.


    A mysterious and powerful Spiritual Energy engulfed Liu Chenyu directly. At this instant, she only felt somewhat lost and very tired. Faintly, it was as if the person standing before her was not Qin Yuan but rather Ye Wuchen.


    Liu Chenyu knew that something bad was happening, but her spiritual will was constantly being weakened and eroded. Eventually, she stood motionlessly at her spot, looking lost.


    "B*tch, since you chose this path, I''ll fulfill your wish." Qin Yuan''s look was extremely gloomy. He did not want to do this; after all, this was at Liu Kingdom. But what other choice did he have? His heart was filled with resentment at the moment. He hated Qin Li, hated the king of Liu, and hated Liu Chenyu. This b*tch. Am I any lesser than Ye Wuchen?


    Qin Yuan''s personality was distorted due to the environment he had grown up in. On Turtle Mountain when his willpower was at its weakest, he had already exposed his true, distorted self in the illusion. At the moment, this was also the case. He was like a two-faced person. He was the gentle, talented, and handsome prince Qin, but also the petty Qin Yuan who could only live in the shadows. Even his ability was one which was unpresentable and disdained by others. However, whenever he used this ability on women, it had always been very effective.


    His smile became gentle and charming again. He approached Liu Chenyu step by step and looked at the pure and proud beauty before him. He reached out his arm and stroked her fine hair and beautiful face.


    "Chenyu, you''re so beautiful." Qin Yuan''s voice was extremely gentle. Although Liu Chenyu was not one of the top three beauties of Eastern Barren Territory, she was also a famous beauty. She was the noble princess of Liu Kingdom and had a unique kind of charm. At the moment, she was standing quietly before him, allowing him to do whatever he wanted. This further stimulated the distortion in Qin Yuan''s heart.


    Didn''t she want to reject me? Then, how about after I get her body? His fingers slid down from her stunningly beautiful face and touched her exquisite neck gently. Then, he placed his hand on her shoulder. Reaching out both of his hands, Qin Yuan took off Liu Chenyu''s outer clothing. Her white shoulders were flawless, and her sexy clavicle was so captivating.


    Liu Chenyu''s body trembled gently. She looked like she was in pain, and her spirit was also struggling. She seemed to have realized what she was experiencing and wanted to break free from the control. However, she felt so powerless at the moment and could not concentrate at all, as if there was a prison that locked her spirit inside. She felt terrible.


    "So beautiful," Qin Yuan exclaimed. He had only seen a small part of her body, and it was already so fascinating. His look alternated between being gentle and being distorted. He moved his head close to Liu Chenyu''s ears and neck, and enjoyed the smell from the beauty before him. An enchanted look appeared on his face.


    "Help..." A soft and low voice came out from Liu Chenyu''s mouth. Qin Yuan frowned and walked closer to Liu Chenyu, continuing to release his powerful Spiritual Energy. She actually can still resist?


    He heard some footsteps behind him. The servant was walking back again. Because it was in the Imperial Palace, Liu Chenyu only had a servant to take care of her. There were no guards because none were needed. Who would dare to assault the princess in the Imperial Palace? Unexpectedly, this happened today.


    Qin Yuan was not in a hurry. He turned his head slowly and glanced at the servant. He released his Spiritual Energy and a special charm bloomed. He said to the servant, "Wait outside."


    "Okay." The servant felt somewhat lost. She nodded obediently, after which she left.


    "Chenyu, nobody will disturb us. You will feel happy, and in the future, you will be my wife. All I have done is to bring this fantastic process forward," Qin Yuan said with a ferocious look on his face. You''re really strong and can still shout even in this situation.


    Qin Yuan took off another one of her shirts, and there was only a thin undergarment covering Liu Chenyu. Her sexy body caused Qin Yuan to take a deep breath. Even Ye Wuchen has probably not enjoyed this scene before.


    Tears flew down from the corners of Liu Chenyu''s eyes. Her body started to tremble.


    At the moment, Ye Wuchen and his team landed outside the Imperial Palace and stepped into the palace straightaway. They could have spent more time cultivating��after all, it was really a rare opportunity��but Ye Wuchen was too bothered by the events in the Liu Kingdom and could not concentrate. Therefore, the group returned from the mountain.


    Fortunately, after their return, they did not hear any bad news. The king of Liu was waiting for them to announce his decision, so nothing bad should have happened.


    "Shall we go to Chenyu''s place?" Liu Feiyang said.


    "Yup," Ye Wuchen nodded. After experiencing the events on Turtle Mountain, he seemed to know his thoughts more clearly. Even his feelings towards Liu Chenyu became more intense.


    The group headed towards the Princess Pavilion directly. At the same time, in the pavilion where Qin Li was at, a noble informed Qin Li, "Ye Futian and his team are back. They are heading towards Liu Chenyu''s place."


    Some sharpness flashed across Qin Li''s eyes. Qin Yuan has already been there for some time. What a perfect moment. Making Qin Yuan the king''s son-in-law had never been the goal of Qin Dynasty. They were already not interested in allying with the Liu Kingdom anymore.


    ��


    In the pavilion where Liu Chenyu was, Qin Yuan was still enjoying the beauty before him. She was really beautiful, much more beautiful than any of the women he had played before. He was thinking how she would compare to the top three beauties of Eastern Barren Territory.


    His hands slid across her tender skin and were about to remove the last barrier. Tears flew down Liu Chenyu''s cheeks continuously. Her body trembled constantly and she was in great pain.


    "A crying beauty will make people want to pamper her even more. I''ll treat you very gently," Qin Yuan said, placing his hands on the thin undergarment. However, suddenly, someone outside shouted, "Princess, are you here?"


    Qin Yuan''s hands froze at the spot. He quickly picked up the clothes on the ground and put them on Liu Chenyu.


    Some footsteps came from the outside. They sounded very urgent. Very soon, a group of people appeared. Ye Wuchen, Liu Feiyang, and Ye Futian walked in first and saw the scene before them. Liu Chenyu''s shirts were messy as if they had been put on randomly, while Qin Yuan''s hands were placed on her clothes. Liu Chenyu stood there motionlessly and her face was filled with tears.


    Boom. A violent rage erupted from Liu Feiyang''s body.


    ''B*stard!" Liu Feiyang roared in a hoarse voice as he rushed forward. Ye Wuchen approached Liu Chenyu like a straight sword and shouted, "Chenyu." As he spoke, he helped Liu Chenyu to put on her clothes properly.


    "Her Spiritual Energy has been attacked," Ye Futian said. A trace of sword will emerged from the center of Ye Wuchen''s eyebrows and entered Liu Chenyu''s mind.


    "Chenyu." Ye Wuchen''s voice spread continuously in Liu Chenyu''s mind. Suddenly, her body trembled and she broke free from the control. She stared at Ye Wuchen and tears flew down her face constantly. Her body trembled fiercely as if she had just experienced the most terrifying thing.


    Looking at her expression, Ye Wuchen only felt extremely guilty and painful. He hugged her tightly and said gently, "Chenyu, it''s alright now. I am here." Ye Wuchen stared at Qin Yuan who was behind her. His look seemed to be from the deepest part of hell and his murderous intent filled the sky!

 328 Kill

    Chapter 328: Kill


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing Ye Wuchen''s eyes, Qin Yuan''s heart trembled gently and he felt somewhat scared.


    "I didn''t do anything," Qin Yuan said. Then his body flashed into the air in an attempt to escape from the place. Qin Li had said that his life would not be in danger, but clearly, he did not believe in that. A person could do anything in anger and would not care about the consequences.


    Now, all he needed to do was to escape from the place and wait for these people to calm down. He also did not expect them to come here at this moment and interrupt his business. Originally, after he did what he was going to do, Liu Kingdom would be forced to take him as the princess''s husband.


    "You still want to leave?" Liu Feiyang charged towards Qin Yuan. Qin Yuan''s look turned monstrous and his Spiritual Energy erupted wildly, piercing into Liu Feiyang''s mind. At this instant, Liu Feiyang finally understood what a terrifying thing his sister had experienced.


    Everyone knew that the king of Qin and Concubine Nan had a son named Qin Yuan. He was very talented and liked by the king. However, his existence was not really strongly felt in the outside world, because he seldom appeared outside. Very few people knew what his ability was. Only at this very moment did Liu Feiyang finally know Qin Yuan''s ability.


    "Stop him!" Liu Feiyang roared. Immediately, many imperial guards appeared outside the pavilion. They ascended into the sky and stopped Qin Yuan in midair.


    "Take him down," Liu Feiyang shouted coldly. Among the guards who had appeared, there was a noble. His might enveloped the place and he reached out his hand towards Qin Yuan directly.


    "You dare to touch me?" Qin Yuan roared coldly. However, the incoming hand still continued forward and grabbed him directly.


    "Let me go!" Qin Yuan shouted in anger. "I am the son of the king of Qin."


    Many people ran over from the distance one after another. The king of Liu was here himself. Today, he had invited several lords and ministers to discuss the proposal of Qin Dynasty. Little did he expect something to happen here.


    When the king and the rest arrived, they saw Ye Wuchen hugging Liu Chenyu whose shirts were messed up. Then, they noticed the scene in front of them and roughly understood what had happened. Immediately, an appalling might was emitted from the king of Liu and engulfed Qin Yuan. Qin Yuan could clearly feel the murderous intent spreading from the king.


    "Your Majesty, I didn''t do anything. You can''t do anything to me." Qin yuan looked at the king in fear. This was the Liu Kingdom Imperial Palace after all. If the king really wanted to kill him at all costs, he would certainly die.


    Crack. The king of Liu clenched his fists and his murderous intent did not weaken at all.


    Did Qin Yuan do such an inhuman thing because he was confident that the king did not dare to touch him? This place was, after all, the Imperial Palace of Liu Kingdom. Qin Yuan actually wanted to do something to the princess of the Liu Kingdom in the Princess Pavilion.


    How daring that was!


    This was more than just going too far. Qin Yuan was certainly frenzied.


    "Your Majesty, please calm down." Suddenly, someone walked to the king and bowed. It was Lord Kang.


    "Your Majesty." Another person walked out and bowed at the king. Although they did not say much, everyone knew that they were reminding the king to be calm. They could all feel the rage and murderous intent of the king at the moment. However, if he really killed Qin Yuan impulsively, the consequences would be unimaginable. The cultivators from Qin Dynasty would surely come to Liu Kingdom.


    "Calm down?" The king of Liu glanced at those who spoke. His face was gloomy and his murderous intent did not decrease at all.


    Suddenly, Liu Chenyu walked out from Ye Wuchen''s arms. She stared coldly at Qin Yuan and an extremely strong murderous intent could be seen.


    "Kill him," Liu Feiyang said to the noble who was holding Qin Yuan.


    "Your Majesty, we must not do that." Lord Kang tried to stop him. Looking at the king again, he shouted, "Your Majesty."


    The king of Liu clenched his fists firmly. He knew that once he said the phrase "kill him," the Qin Dynasty would have an excuse to attack the Liu Kingdom.


    Suddenly, there was the sound of people moving in the air, and another group of cultivators arrived. It was Qin Li and the others from Qin Dynasty. In the distance, the people from other top forces were all alarmed as they observed the situation from afar. What is happening? So many people have actually gathered there, they thought.


    "Your Majesty, what do you mean by this? Why are you seizing my uncle?" Looking at the scene, Qin Li frowned as if he did not know about this at all.


    Qin Yuan heaved a sigh of relief in his heart. Qin Li and the people from Qin Dynasty had arrived, so the king of Liu should probably be calmer now.


    "Qin Li, I really admire the princess and only wanted to be closer to her, but I didn''t do anything else. Help me to persuade His Majesty," Qin Yuan said.


    Qin Li''s eyes sparkled. He looked at Qin Yuan and said, "Uncle, how could you be so confused?" After that, he looked at the king of Liu and said, "Your Majesty, perhaps my uncle was attracted by the princess and was worried that you would not agree to our proposal. Fortunately, he did not do anything. Your Majesty, I beg your pardon. My uncle will be responsible for this and will be married to princess Chenyu in a proper manner."


    Everyone was puzzled by Qin Li''s words, especially Liu Feiyang and Ye Wuchen. Their look turned extremely icy. Qin Yuan did such an inhuman thing, and yet Qin Li said that luckily, he did not do anything. Furthermore, he said that the price Qin Yuan would pay for this was to be married to Liu Chenyu in a proper way. There were no punishments, and Qin Dynasty and Qin Yuan would benefit instead. How ridiculous this was. Yet, Qin Li said it as if it was only reasonable and right.


    The king of Liu stared at Qin Li. Did Qin Li even take his existence into account?


    "Father, kill him." Liu Feiyang''s eyes were blood-red. His sister had been humiliated in such a way, but Qin Li actually asked Qin Yuan to marry her. How absurd!


    "Do you know what you are saying?" the king of Liu said, staring at Qin Li.


    Qin Li bowed slightly at the king and said, "Then, Your Majesty, please kill him."


    Everyone stared at Qin Li, including the king. However, Qin Li looked at Qin Yuan and said, "My uncle did nothing too terrible. You kill him and the army from the Qin Dynasty will come. Your Majesty, is that what you want?"


    "Are you threatening me?" the king said.


    "I would not dare," Qin Li said out loud. He bowed at the king and continued, "I am but telling the truth. Your Majesty, if you have agreed to our proposal earlier, this would not have happened. But it already did. Are you really going to destroy the relationship between the two kingdoms, or even start a war, just because of this?


    "For now, the best way not to ruin the princess''s reputation would be to let my uncle be married to her properly," Qin Li said with much confidence and composure as if no one was beside him. Many people stared coldly at him, but he did not seem to mind at all.


    Nobody knew what he was thinking, or why he was behaving so wildly.


    "Your Majesty, if the prince of Qin really marries the princess, it would be good for her as well," Lord Kang urged.


    "That''s right, Your Majesty." Many people nodded one after another. They could clearly see Qin Li''s dominant attitude and were frightened as well. If Qin Yuan was really killed and the army from Qin Dynasty came to attack the Liu Kingdom, their safety would be compromised.


    "You b*stards!" someone scolded. A noble also said emotionlessly, "You can actually say something so shameless." There were obviously also people who had moral integrity.


    The king of Liu looked at these people. When the people from Qin Dynasty just arrived at the Imperial City, they visited all the lords and ministers. Was that why the situation was like this now?


    "Your Majesty, calm down first. You are also doing this for the princess." Some people did not speak aloud but instead transferred their words to the king''s ears secretly.


    Thud... Suddenly, everyone heard a soft noise.


    "Chenyu!"


    Everyone looked below them where they saw a sharp blade formed from Spiritual Qi pierce directly into Liu Chenyu''s body, right before her heart. Her black eyes were filled with hatred as she stared at the people in the sky. So many people from the Liu Kingdom actually suggested that she should be married to Qin Yuan.


    "Chenyu, why are you doing this? I told you that I am already here." Ye Wuchen hugged Liu Chenyu in his arms. He did not look at her directly, and his eyes were filled with guilt and self-blame.


    "I know." Liu Chenyu nodded. She looked at Ye Wuchen very gently and held his hand tightly as if he was the only person she could trust.


    "Chenyu." The king of Liu also did not expect his daughter to be so determined. He similarly felt very guilty and that he had mistreated his daughter.


    "Princess, your reaction is too intense. You don''t have to do this," Qin Li said. "My uncle will not disappoint you."


    "Shut up!" Yu Sheng roared at Qin Li and clenched his fists, producing a cracking sound. Suddenly, Ye Futian stepped out and walked towards Qin Yuan. Ye Wuchen also approached Liu Feiyang and said, "Feiyang, help me to take care of Chenyu." Then, he passed Liu Chenyu and went to Liu Feiyang. He walked forward and caught up with Ye Futian, after which he said, "Let me do it."


    Ye Futian looked at Ye Wuchen. Then, he stopped moving forward.


    "What do you want to do?" Qin Yuan stared coldly at the incoming Ye Wuchen.


    A terrifying sword qi whizzed on Ye Wuchen''s body. In his hand, there was an extremely sharp sword will.


    Everyone stared at him. Someone from the Liu Kingdom shouted, "How dare you!"


    "Ye Wuchen, how dare you do this!" Qin Li also roared, but his body remained in the original spot and he did not move at all.


    Ye Wuchen accelerated and turned into a blade of light.


    "Bring him away!" someone from the Liu Kingdom shouted at the person holding Qin Yuan.


    "Let me go!" Qin Yuan also struggled as he tried to break free. However, Ye Wuchen had already arrived. His palm struck out like a sword and a beam of light flashed across before vanishing.


    The noble from the Liu Kingdom let go of Qin Yuan, but Qin Yuan only reached out his hands, trembling, and covered his neck. There, blood was flowing out slowly. His body trembled fiercely, and his usually charming eyes were only filled with an endless fear at the moment.


    Holding his neck, Qin Yuan turned around with difficulty and looked at Qin Li, who was still standing at his spot. He stared at Qin Li firmly and his face became distorted and looked very ferocious. He wanted to say something, but the blood from his neck started to gush out like a spring. He could not speak and only stared at Qin Li with a vicious look.


    Finally, Qin Yuan''s body collapsed to the ground and started twitching. Even he did not expect himself to actually die here.

 329 Storm Incoming

    Chapter 329: Storm Incoming


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Very soon, Qin Yuan''s body stopped moving and became motionless. His blood colored the entire ground. Everyone froze. The Imperial Palace fell into a terrifying silence.


    Qin Yuan, the youngest son of the king of Qin, came to the Liu Kingdom to propose a marriage. Now, he died in the Liu Kingdom Imperial Palace. Whatever the cause of his death might be, he was already dead now. What would the consequences be?


    Many lords and ministers stared very coldly at Ye Wuchen. They looked as if they wanted to eat Ye Wuchen alive.


    The king of Liu looked at Ye Wuchen similarly. His expression was very complicated and he could not keep calm. Could he blame Ye Wuchen? Ye Wuchen did this for his daughter Chenyu. At the instant when he landed the strike, the consequences he would need to face were already destined. It did not matter if he was the Swordmaster of the seventh summit of Fuyun Sword Clan or not. The person he killed was the youngest son of the king of Qin. Even if the son of the leader of Fuyun Sword Clan did this, his outcome would still be the same. However, Ye Wuchen did not hesitate at all. He struck out that hit so resolutely. Even at this moment, his look was still so firm and calm, and his one-armed body still stood straight.


    Looking at the scene in front of her, Liu Chenyu''s face was already wet with tears. The warmth that this strike brought her far exceeded the pain she had suffered. When Qin Yuan did such an inhuman thing in her house, the Liu Kingdom Imperial Palace, many lords, and ministers did not speak for her. They did not punish Qin Yuan and were even discussing marrying her to him. How ridiculous and desperate this was. Because of that, she stabbed herself with a sharp blade. She was so desperate and wanted to show these people her attitude, even if she might die. Even her father, the king of Liu Kingdom, was hesitating. On the other hand, Ye Wuchen directly attacked and killed the person who humiliated her.


    She looked at Ye Wuchen and her eyes were filled with resolution. In this lifetime, she would accompany him regardless of what would happen. She would live if he was alive, and die if he was to die!


    In the distance, the people from various forces looked at the scene. Different thoughts raced through their minds. As for Qin Li, there seemed to be a sneer in the depth of his emotionless eyes.


    He finally died! Qin Li thought. Of course, he knew why Qin Yuan looked at him like that before he died. Qin Yuan was not stupid; instead, he was extremely clever. Qin Li was the one who had ordered Qin Yuan to do what he did. Just now, he clearly had the chance to save Qin Yuan, but he did not.


    Because, this was the real plan!


    Qin Li did not expect it to work out so easily. Even Qin Yuan did not know why they came to propose the marriage this time. Only Qin Li knew everything.


    Alliance through marriage? They did not need it. Qin Dynasty was not interested in allying with the Liu Kingdom, because it would be meaningless. The king of Liu was very cunning. At most, he would only sacrifice Liu Chenyu in the marriage and ultimately he would still not listen to Qin Dynasty''s commands.


    Now, what the Qin Dynasty really needed was a battle, one that would shock the entire Eastern Barren Territory. They not only needed a battle, but also an overpowering victory, and they needed it urgently.


    Just like what the king of Liu had thought, the few disciples of the Cottage had already grown to this level. How could Qin Dynasty wait for them to become even stronger? They had already planned many things. Now, they needed a battle that would ignite the whole situation. Therefore, the scene just now happened. If he really tried to stop everything, nobody could really kill Qin Yuan, unless, of course, the king of Liu wanted him dead himself. If he stepped in, Ye Wuchen''s powers would be insignificant.


    Qin Li was extremely excited. A useless b*stard died, and they completed the plan perfectly. How could he not be excited? Of course, he would not display it. At the moment, his body was only filled with a cold murderous aura.


    The people from Qin Dynasty went beside Qin Yuan one after another. Their cold and terrifying aura engulfed the space.


    "Take him down," someone shouted coldly. The person who gave the order first was actually a minister from the Liu Kingdom. The lords and ministers stared firmly at Ye Wuchen with an extremely cold look. Although Qin Yuan was killed by Ye Wuchen, he died in the Liu Kingdom Imperial Palace. He came here to propose marriage.


    Sword qi whizzed in the air as the cultivators from the seventh summit of Fuyun Sword Clan went before Ye Wuchen to protect him.


    "Who dares to touch him?" Liu Feiyang roared angrily. He was still holding Liu Chenyu. Suddenly, Liu Chenyu stepped forward. Dragging her injured body, she walked towards Ye Wuchen step by step.


    Ye Futian similarly stared coldly at the people around. These b*stards! He naturally knew the consequences that might be caused by Ye Wuchen killing Qin Yuan, but he did not stop Ye Wuchen. Liu Chenyu was Ye Wuchen''s girl. If such a thing happened to Hua Jieyu, he would kill the culprit as well. If Ye Wuchen did not kill Qin Yuan, he would no longer be his true self. His sword would also no longer be sharp.


    "People from the seventh summit, get out of the way." Suddenly, another group of cultivators whizzed over in the air. It was the people from the first summit of Fuyun Sword Clan. Among them, Zhe Song stared at Ye Wuchen and his eyes were filled with murderous intent.


    Ye Wuchen was from Fuyun Sword Clan. Because he killed Qin Yuan, they had to give him away. If the people from the seventh summit wanted to protect him, it would surely affect the whole Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Sword will flew on the cultivators from the seventh summit. A terrifying sword qi whizzed and they did not back away at all.


    The sword of the seventh summit would not give way to its enemies.


    Qin Yuan deserved to die.


    The atmosphere in the Imperial Palace was extremely tense. On the ground, Qin Yuan''s corpse was still lying there, but there was no longer anyone who cared about his death. All anybody cared about at the moment was the consequences his death would bring. Everyone was thinking about his own benefits and losses.


    Liu Chenyu approached Ye Wuchen and stared at him. The event had changed their affections from lukewarm to scorching hot. She went beside Ye Wuchen and then leaned on his body quietly. Ye Wuchen looked at her similarly. He extended his right arm and held her gently. Lifting his head, he looked at the people around him. There was no fear in his eyes at all. If he was afraid of death, he would not have killed Qin Yuan.


    Liu Feiyang looked at the two who were surrounded by many cultivators. Yet, the scene at the moment seemed so warm. His eyes were actually filled with a terrifying red light. Staring at the king of Liu, he shouted, "Father!"


    The king''s heart trembled. He was also affected by the scene before him and felt very guilty. That was his daughter. She was humiliated in such a way in the palace, but he did not manage to do anything for her. On the other hand, Ye Wuchen attacked the perpetrator directly. What did the ministers under him do? They wanted his daughter to be married to the man who humiliated her.


    Crack. The king clenched his fists and his eyes were filled with coldness.


    "Uncle." Suddenly, Qin Li walked to Qin Yuan''s corpse and said, "You came to the Liu Kingdom to propose marriage. At first, you wanted to be married to the princess in a gorgeous manner. But you ended up like this." After that, he raised his head. Glancing coldly at the king and Ye Wuchen, he said, "Your Majesty, how do you plan to solve this problem?"


    "What do you want?" the king asked, staring at Qin Li.


    "Hand the three of them to me. Also, kill the people from the seventh summit of Fuyun Sword Clan," Qin Li said. He wanted to bring back Ye Wuchen, Liu Chenyu, and Liu Feiyang. Furthermore, he wanted the people from the Liu Kingdom to kill the people from the seventh summit.


    "What if I don''t agree?" the king said.


    "My uncle did not die for nothing." Qin Li''s tone was emotionless but he appeared to be very domineering.


    "Your Majesty, please think of the general situation," Lord Kang said to the king, bowing. Many people also started to urge the king one after another.


    The king looked at these people and only said one word, "Scram." The lords and minister were stunned for a while. Seeing the expression of the king, they bowed and left.


    Qin Li watched and sneered. This was, of course, the outcome he had expected. "Your Majesty, I see what your attitude is," he said. Then, he looked at Zhe Song and said, "How about Fuyun Sword Clan?"


    "The death of the prince of Qin was definitely not the intention of Fuyun Sword Clan. As for Ye Wuchen, do you want him dead or alive?" Zhe Song asked emotionlessly.


    "I''m fine with either." Qin Li smiled.


    "Alright," Zhe Song nodded. Then, he stepped forward and an appalling gust of sword qi swept out, engulfing Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu. The cultivators behind him also walked forward one by one.


    "Scram," the king said again, looking at Zhe Song.


    Zhe Song''s expression froze. He lifted his head to look at the king and said, "This is an internal affair of Fuyun Sword Clan. Your Majesty, do you also want to interfere with this?"


    "This is my Imperial Palace," the king replied coldly.


    Zhe Song looked at the king of Liu. Then, he looked at Qin Li and said, "It seems like I can only go back and report first. From this moment on, Ye Wuchen is no longer a disciple of Fuyun Sword Clan. We will automatically finish anyone who tries to protect him."


    "Okay. I trust Fuyun Sword Clan," Qin Li nodded. Zhe Song turned around and left along with the people from the first summit.


    Qin Li looked at the king of Liu. Then, he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, goodbye."


    Then, the people from Qin Dynasty brought Qin Yuan''s corpse and went about to leave.


    "Wait," someone suddenly said. Qin Li stopped and turned around slowly, eventually looking at Ye Futian. "You ordered Qin Yuan to do what he did, right?" Ye Futian asked.


    Qin Li''s look froze as he stared at Ye Futian. "What are you saying?"


    "From the beginning, your goal was not to propose the marriage. You seem to be neither sad nor angry about Qin Yuan''s death." Ye Futian cultivated in the Freedom Meditation and was thus very sensitive towards the feelings of others. Qin Li was not sad at all. Instead, Ye Futian could feel that he was excited. It was as if he was anticipating Qin Yuan''s death all along.


    Thinking about the abnormal things that happened earlier, he suddenly realized that the Qin Dynasty never wanted to ally with the Liu Kingdom through marriage. The Qin Dynasty wanted to rule the world, and their greatest opponent was the College Cottage. They had already allied with several forces. Also, Liu Chenyu from the Liu Kingdom and Ye Wuchen were very close to Ye Futian. After today''s event, Liu Kingdom and Ye Wuchen would be in great danger.


    "Qin Yuan was my uncle, the brother of my father, and my grandfather''s beloved child. What are you thinking about?" Qin Li stared at Ye Futian and said coldly, "Do you want to take the blame off of Ye Wuchen and say that my uncle''s miserable death was caused by me? How ridiculous."


    "I am thinking about whether you will have the same expression Qin Yuan had when you die." Ye Futian looked at Qin Li and did not continue to argue with him. Qin Yuan was already dead, and any argument would be meaningless. As long as they had this as an excuse, they would create huge bloodshed in Eastern Barren Territory. However, no matter how this storm would evolve, Ye Futian knew that between him and Qin Li, only one would survive!

 330 Pessimistic

    Chapter 330: Pessimistic


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Beside Qin Li, the Qin Dynasty''s powerful cultivators released their pressing energy onto Ye Futian. Meanwhile, Qin Li smirked coldly as he stared at Ye Futian and said, "I was thinking the same thing." Their eyes met and both of them radiated a murderous intent.


    Ye Futian''s eyes swept toward the guards next to Qin Li. All of them had terrifying auras. Naturally, he knew there was no way he could kill Qin Li here. Averting his gaze, Ye Futian''s eyes landed on Emperor Liu. This was the Liu Kingdom''s imperial palace. The only way he could kill Qin Li was if Emperor Liu wanted to make him stay.


    "Qin Li." Just then, a voice rang out coldly. It was Emperor Liu.


    "Yes, Your Majesty," answered Qin Li.


    Emperor Liu took a step forward and in a split second, a force of terrifying energy crushed down on Qin Li. Witnessing this scene, the cultivators of the Qin Dynasty advanced beside Qin Li one by one in order to protect him.


    Qin Li lifted an eyebrow at Emperor Liu. "Could it be that Your Majesty wishes to kill me?"


    Emperor Liu continued forward and his outreached palm curled into a tight fist. Immediately, a horrific formless rush of air pressed onto Qin Li. It was like a giant invisible hand. Qin Li became stiff and the look on his face was not good. His body twitched here and there as if in immense pain.


    BOOM! The Nobles of the Qin Dynasty released shocking forces. All of them were extremely powerful.


    "You know well and clear what happened today. The Qin Dynasty also knows. The reason why I''m not killing you is not because I don''t understand, but because I want you to relay a message to Emperor Qin. Never take things too far because we will meet again." Emperor Liu stared hard at Qin Li before saying coldly, "Scram." With that said, his palm shook and with a loud boom, Qin Li''s body was propelled into the air. He spat up blood following a soft groan. However, he did not care too much of it and quickly wiped the blood seeping from the corners of his lips. Staring at Emperor Liu, a dark smile appeared on his face. Qin Li didn''t question Emperor Liu''s intellect. It was because he believed that Emperor Liu was a smart man that he knew the emperor wouldn''t kill him.


    Although Qin Yuan had died in the Liu palace, not all had been lost then. Nobody knew what the Qin Dynasty would do to the Liu Kingdom, what methods would be used against them. But what would the Qin Dynasty do if Emperor Liu really killed Qin Li?


    With the lives of the entire Liu royal family on the line, would Emperor Liu really disregard it all just to kill them?


    "I will commit Your Majesty''s words to memory. I shall take my leave now," said Qin Li. He turned to leave with Qian Shanmu, Qin Mengruo, and the others followed behind him. Chu Yaoyao looked back and looked in a specific direction. So many feelings rushed through her. She never expected what happened today and she didn''t know the entire story behind it.


    But the result for the Qin Dynasty''s visit to the Liu Kingdom was the death of Emperor Qin''s youngest son, Qin Yuan. He had come to propose a marriage alliance but ended up dead right here in the Liu palace. Naturally, she knew what this event would lead to. It seemed the peace in the Eastern Barren Territory was no longer.


    As Ye Futian watched Qin Li leave, his fists clenched tight and he sighed inwardly. Emperor Liu understood that this was part of a scheme set up by the Qin Dynasty, yet he let Qin Li go. It was obvious Emperor Liu took the lives of the royal Liu family into consideration. However, Ye Futian was not optimistic about this situation. Even though Emperor Liu didn''t kill Qin Li, did it necessarily mean that the Qin Dynasty would go easy on them?


    Ye Futian did not think so at all. Since the Qin Dynasty had gone through the lengths to set up all of this, they were most likely already well-prepared for every and all scenarios.


    The people from other powers watched Qin Li and the others leave, and knew they should depart as well. One by one, they stepped forward to bow to Emperor Liu and left. Of course, they also knew what the events of today would mean for the future. They must hurry back to their clans and report to higher-ups in order to make appropriate countermeasures.


    Not far from the palace, Qin Li and his group came to a stop in the air. In a lowered voice, he said to the people next to him, "Monitor everything that goes on in the Liu palace."


    "Yes." Multiple Nobles descended to return on land, not leaving with Qin Li.


    Qin Li led the rest of his people further into the skies while a sinister smile escaped.


    In the Liu palace, there was tension in the air outside the princess'' residence. Every palace official had a thought of their own. Emperor Liu had a darkened expression on his face while Liu Feiyang stood with fury in his eyes and a murderous intent radiating from him. Liu Chenyu was hurt and leaned quietly on Ye Wuchen. At this moment, she had no will to do anything but to stay peacefully in his embrace.


    "Chenyu, Father has failed you. I''m sorry." Emperor Liu looked at his daughter with guilt-stricken eyes. His daughter, Liu Chenyu, a devastating beauty as described poetry, graceful and pure as she was, had experienced such a terrible thing. All the while, as the emperor of the Liu Kingdom, he couldn''t protect her as a father should have. At the very end, he didn''t even make all those from the Qin Dynasty stay. Only Qin Yuan was killed.


    Liu Chenyu did not reply and remained quiet as she had been for a while. Of course, she knew her father did what he did for a reason. He had so many things to considered. But to have such a thing happen to her, one could only imagine the pain she was in.


    Emperor Liu lifted his head. Looking out to the crowd, he said, "Relay my order, Princess Liu Chenyu of the Liu Kingdom is now betrothed to Ye Wuchen."


    Only then did Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu lift their heads to look at the emperor. Although this was something they wanted, it was hard to be happy at a time like this.


    The officials standing around did not have a single word to say. At this point, it was useless to attempt to convince Emperor Liu otherwise.


    "You can all go now." Emperor Liu waved his hand at the officials signaling for them to leave.


    "Yes, Your Majesty." Everyone nodded and left contemplating what they would overcome this difficult situation.


    When everyone was gone, Emperor Liu''s attention returned onto Ye Futian''s group. "I''ll go get some medicine. You guys wait here," he said. The emperor left after that.


    Ye Futian turned around to look at Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu. He watched Ye Wuchen wrap his one arm around Liu Chenyu and told her, "I will kill Qin Li." His voice was filled with determination. He sounded so sure, nobody would question his determination. Whether it be Ye Wuchen or Ye Futian and their other friends, everyone wanted Qin Li dead.


    Not long after, Emperor Liu returned with a jade green bottle. He arrived beside Liu Chenyu but instead of feeding the medicine to Liu Chenyu, the emperor handed the bottle to Ye Wuchen. "You should do it."


    Ye Wuchen nodded and supported Liu Chenyu as they sat on the ground. His arm lifted the bottle to Liu Chenyu''s lips and fed her the liquid medicine. Qi rushed through her body, a flow of life. A jade green light radiated from her wound which slowly began to heal. This was obviously a sacred healing medicine treasured by the Liu Kingdom.


    After that, Emperor Liu took out an intricate looking box and opened it in front of Ye Wuchen. Inside was a sword with an extremely thin blade. It looked to be light as a feather and the light reflected off the blade seemed cold and cutting. Under the sword was an ancient book, weathered and pages yellowed.


    "These are treasures of my kingdom, this sword and a book on sword tactics. A dowry of sorts. Take it," Emperor Liu said to Ye Wuchen.


    "Thank you, Your Majesty," Ye Wuchen nodded.


    The emperor''s attention turned to Ye Futian before placing another open box onto the ground. In the ancient box was a long robe. It almost looked transparent, shining with silver. A hint of Spiritual Qi could be felt from the robe. It was obviously a ritual implement.


    "You''re a disciple of the Cottage, so naturally, your cultivation should be guided by the people of the Cottage. There isn''t much I can give you. This sorcerer''s robe has the ability to disguise. Perhaps it will be of help to you in the future." Emperor Liu handed the robe over to Ye Futian and continued, "As a favor, I asked you to take care of Feiyang and Chenyu, but now that things have progressed to this point, I can only be thick-skinned and beg you to bring them to the College. Even though their gifts are not enough to get them into the Cottage, they are qualified enough to enter the College."


    Ye Futian stared at Emperor Liu. As the leader of an entire country, he was here begging Ye Futian. It was obvious, he anticipated the dangers that could come, but even so, he still let Qin Li go.


    "If Your Majesty is so pessimistic of the Liu Kingdom''s future, why didn''t you take care of those people from the Qin Dynasty?" asked Ye Futian.


    "What''s the point of killing them? Would it be enough to destroy the Qin Dynasty?" said Emperor Liu. "On the contrary, killing them would give the Qin the perfect excuse to attack us. Right now, even if they used the death of Qin Yuan as an excuse, the people of the world are not idiots. If the Qin did something wrong, other clans in the Eastern Barren Territory and the people of the world will obviously be able to see."


    Ye Futian didn''t have anything to say. Emperor Liu continued to explain, "I already gave orders to get everyone out of the palace. Hopefully, the Qin Dynasty doesn''t plan to wipe us out completely. Other than that, I plan on escorting you guys back to the College personally. There''s no time to waste, let''s head out now."


    "Alright," nodded Ye Futian. The Qin Dynasty didn''t dare to make a move on him just yet, but the same could not be said for Ye Wuchen, Liu Chenyu, and the others. They had to leave the Liu palace immediately and hurry back to the Cottage to see if his senior brothers and sisters were willing to help.


    "Wuchen, let''s go," Ye Futian turned his head and said. Ye Wuchen supported Liu Chenyu as she got up.


    Emperor Liu personally escorted them. He led them to the Liu Kingdom''s entrance to the Ancient Barren World. Then, Emperor Liu, Ye Wuchen, and other powerful cultivators entered the upper Ancient Barren World. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were still not in the Arcana Plane, so they could only enter the lower world. All of them made plans to meet up at the exit to the College.


    The news got out from the Liu palace and spread through the imperial city like a forest fire. Everyone was in fear and had the feeling that a horrific storm was about to hit the country.


    When these people had arrived, everyone gossiped about Emperor Qin''s youngest son, Qin Yuan, and how he planned to ask for the princess'' hand in marriage. They gossiped about whether Qin Yuan and Liu Chenyu looked good together. But now, there was the sudden news that Liu Chenyu almost committed suicide and the Qin prince, Qin Yuan, was killed in the Liu palace. Also, Emperor Liu ordered that Liu Chenyu be betrothed to Ye Wuchen. This was all too shocking. Even the common people had a feeling that the Eastern Barren Territory was going to be shaken up.


    What would the Qin Dynasty do?


    People left the palace gradually. Emperor Liu had actually ordered for everyone in the palace to disperse. This made the citizens of the Liu Kingdom understand, Emperor Liu didn''t think it was at all possible to go against the Qin Dynasty. He was truly pessimistic about this situation.


    The people from the various powers returned to their own clans. All of them had originally thought that the Qin Dynasty had genuinely wanted to create a marriage alliance with the Liu Kingdom and have the Liu follow the Qin. However, it was now clear that they had all been wrong. From the looks of things, this was the Qin Dynasty''s first move against the Liu Kingdom.


    From this move, it was also obvious to them just how confident the Qin were.


    What was going to happen in the next battle? Was the Liu Kingdom, a top power in the Eastern Barren Territory, going to be wiped off the map for good?

 331 Arrogant Qin Yu

    Chapter 331: Arrogant Qin Yu


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The College, entrance to the Ancient Barren World.


    When Ye Futian and Yu Sheng got there, Ye Wuchen, Liu Chenyu, and the rest had already arrived and were waiting. "Where is His Majesty?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Father returned to the Liu Kingdom right after escorting us here," said Liu Feiyang. He was a little resentful about how things turned out but Emperor Liu was his father after all. He also understood that as the leader of an entire country, his father had to consider the citizens. He also had other children to think of as Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu weren''t his only offspring. But because of their relationship with Ye Futian, Emperor Liu only put the two of them under Ye Futian''s care. Everyone else was in much greater danger than they were.


    Ye Futian nodded and sighed inwardly.


    "Futian." Just then, Ye Wuchen spoke up. Ye Futian looked over at him and heard him continue, "Take care of Chenyu for me."


    Ye Futian lifted his eyebrows in confusion and replied to Ye Wuchen, "You can''t go back to the Fuyun Sword Clan now." If the Seventh Lord was in charge of the clan, perhaps nothing would happen. However, in the Liu palace, Zhe Song''s attitude was clear to see. It was dangerous for Ye Wuchen to return to Fuyun. In order to separate themselves from this situation, it was very possible that the clan would choose to sacrifice Ye Wuchen and hand him over to the Qin Dynasty.


    Liu Chenyu also looked at Ye Wuchen. She pulled on his hand, not wanting him to leave.


    "Swordmaster, you should stay at the College temporarily. We will head back to report to the summit lord first. If there is any news, we will come back and let you know," said a fellow cultivator from the Fuyun Sword Clan''s seventh summit.


    Ye Wuchen looked at him in silence and finally nodded his headed lightly. "Alright, if teacher has any orders for me, come let me know." He had been the one who killed Qin Yuan. He had wanted to go back and personally report to his teacher.


    "Okay." The group bowed to Ye Futian before excusing themselves and leaving.


    After watching everyone leave, Ye Futian turned to Ye Wuchen and the others. "Let''s head up the mountain." They then made their way to the Cottage. All around them, many students of the College watched them. Some of them in confusion. Had something happened?


    When the disciples of the Cottage saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng return with Ye Wuchen, Liu Chenyu, and the rest in tow, they had a feeling that something had happened. Days ago, Ye Futian had left for the Liu Kingdom upon hearing of the Qin Dynasty''s proposal of a marriage alliance with them. If nothing happened, they wouldn''t be bringing Ye Wuchen and the others back here.


    Ye Futian went directly to the second senior sister. Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and others came closer as well. Zhuge Hui stood in front of a small hut with her eyes on the group. She asked, "Little junior brother, are you in some trouble?"


    "Senior Sister," Ye Futian greeted before giving a summary of what had happened in the Liu Kingdom.


    "So, this would mean that the Qin Dynasty came well-prepared and their true intention behind the proposed marriage alliance isn''t a marriage alliance at all." Zhuge Hui was an intelligent person. She saw through things like this in seconds. Her beautiful eyes turned cold.


    "Is the Qin Dynasty already operating so undisciplined?" After listening to everything that happened, Luo Fan looked pissed. They were deliberately trying to start a fight, making their moves on the Liu Kingdom. And to sacrifice a prince just for an excuse? What a pitiful prince. It seemed like he wasn''t as doted on by Emperor Qin as the rumors had it. He wasn''t of a particularly high status. Otherwise, not even Qin Yu and Qin Li would dare to orchestrate something like this.


    "Senior Sister, is there still hope for the Liu Kingdom?" Although Ye Futian didn''t have high hopes, he still wanted to believe in a little luck.


    Zhuge Hui shook her head. "The Qin Dynasty went as far as sacrificing a prince. It''s obvious that they are dead set on destroying the Liu Kingdom. If I''m not wrong, the Qin troops might already be in the Liu Kingdom." They had already made all the preparations. So, it was obvious they weren''t going to get the Liu a fighting chance.


    When Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu heard what Zhuge Hui said, they felt as if all hope was lost. Liu Feiyang''s hands curled into tight fists, his eyes red. Ye Wuchen could feel Liu Chenyu''s grip tightened on his own hand, her palm moist with perspiration.


    "You guys can stay here at the College without a worry. No one can come here and take you away," Zhuge Hui said to them. She sighed inwardly. This might very well be the end of the Liu Kingdom. The Qin Dynasty was starting a war in the Eastern Barren Territory. She clearly understood that the Qin''s final target was the College and the Cottage. Their existence was the biggest hurdle in the Qin Dynasty''s road to rule the entirety of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    ��


    Just as Zhuge Hui had predicted, the Qin Dynasty was well-prepared and moved at the quickest speed. Qin Li and his people had also traveled through the Ancient Barren World to return. They broke through the entrance controlled by the Liu. This was a fact that Emperor Liu found out when he escorted Ye Futian''s group into the Ancient Barren World.


    At this moment, a terrifying sight appeared in the skies above the Liu palace. Flood dragons circled the skies, growling and roaring. They gave off a frightening aura and on the backs of these demon beasts stood many people. The Qin Dynasty was here with an army of flood dragons. Right in the center of the army was a truly enormous dragon. The creature was the color of actual gold and had what looked to be the sharpest of all claws.


    Standing on the back of this giant golden dragon was Qin Yu. His purple gold imperial robe danced in the wind along with strains of his long, jet-black hair. The look in his eyes was cold and chilling.


    The Qin Yu right now was nothing like the gentle Crown Prince of Qin Dynasty seen in Chuge City. He dominated with his strong aura. He was the Crown Prince of the Qin Dynasty. The future Emperor Qin. And he was about to be the ruler of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Both inside and outside the imperial palace, countless pairs of eyes fell on the back of the golden dragon at Crown Prince Qin Yu.


    Ages ago, after the battle of Gu Dongliu and Lu Nantian in Chuge City, the people had claimed that they had become the two top cultivators of the Eastern Barren Territory. They all talked about how powerful and mighty they were. At that time, Qin Yu didn''t make much of an impression to the people in Chaoge City. To others, he was a person who could easily be cast aside.


    But presently, Qin Yu stood tall in the skies. It was only just then that people realized, Qin Yu was someone who could stand leveled with Lu Nantian and Gu Dongliu. He was one of the most powerful cultivators in the Eastern Barren Territory even years ago. Emperor Qin had even invited all the power clans in the territory to witness the ceremony that made Qin Yu the crown prince.


    What did this mean? It meant that Emperor Qin had already acknowledged that Qin Yu had what it took to inherit the throne.


    At this very moment, everyone finally realized that they were about to see a very different Qin Yu. The arrogant crown prince of Qin.


    "Father," Qin Li called out as he approached. "Emperor Liu has already sent everyone in the royal family away. He personally escorted Liu Chenyu, Ye Wuchen, and the lot out of the country. They''re probably at the College."


    "Qin Ge," Qin Yu yelled out. A handsome figure came forward to stand beside Qin Yu. He was also a prince of the Qin Dynasty, third in line and highly gifted. "Bring some people to the College and ask them to hand over the person who killed our youngest brother along with the Liu spawns," said Qin Yu.


    "Okay." Qin Ge nodded. He then led a group of people away, heading far away. Not even the College could meddle and protect the killer of a Qin prince, right?


    "Uncle," Qin Yu called out for yet another person. An elder stepped forward. "Crown Prince."


    "Go chase after the runaways from the royal Liu family��dead or alive," said Qin Yu.


    "Yes." With a wave of the elder''s hand, the flood dragons roared loudly and one of them followed after him. They went in a different direction from the last group to chase after any royals who managed to escape from the Liu Kingdom.


    Qin Yu''s eyes drifted to the space below him. He spoke coldly, "My youngest brother came to the Liu Kingdom to propose marriage and might a sad end in the palace. The Liu royals and their acquaintances joined hands in a scheme that killed him. Today, the Qin Dynasty officially declares war with the Liu Kingdom. With the exception of royal descendants, anyone who willing pledges alliance to my Qin Dynasty will be spared of death.


    Qin Yu''s voice rumbled through the air. Everyone inside and outside the palace, people trembled in fear. He didn''t give the Liu any chance to explain their side of the story and directly declared war.


    "I had long tried to persuade Emperor Liu but he refused to listen. Now he has made a terrible mistake." From below, Lord Kang rose into the skies. "I am willing to pledge alliance to the Qin Dynasty."


    "Very good." Qin Yu nodded. After that, more figures lifted into the air. Some of them were lords who supported the notion of marrying Liu Chenyu to the Qin.


    "A bunch of cowards!" someone yelled furiously.


    "Lord Kang, you shameless b*stard."


    "Activate the Xuanwu Matrix," a voice ordered calmly. Then, a beautiful woman with a crown and a long robe stood in the air above the imperial palace. The look in her eyes was cold and cutting as she stared up at Qin Yu. As she finished speaking, the entire palace lit up bright. A terrifying force of Spiritual Qi climbed straight into the clouds. The world around filled with Spiritual Qi before it all rushed back down in the direction of the palace. An enormous image of a Xuanwu, the Black Turtle appeared over the large, stern structure.


    This was the ultimate defense matrix. It absorbed all the Spiritual Qi around.


    Empress Liu. Qin Yu looked down at the beautiful figure. Coldly, he spoke, "For his wives and children, Emperor Liu went as far as put the fate of his country on the line. And now you''re actually willing to fight in his name? Why don''t you return to the Qin Dynasty with me?"


    "Qin Yu, although you are considered equal to Gu Dongliu, you will never be good enough to ever be compared to him with those morals of yours," Empress Liu said, still staring at him.


    "Is that so?" Qin Yu''s eyes frosted over. "His Majesty, Emperor Liu, should turn those people over if I take you back to the Qin palace with me, right?" Finishing his sentence, the dominating aura around him exploded. In his hand, appeared a long, golden dragon spear. A strong force of energy radiated from the weapon and when Qin Yu pointed the long spear into the sky, the skies and the clouds shifted. The spirits of dragons awakened and revolved around Qin Yu, growling with fury. With nine dragons circling him, he seemed invincible.


    This... All around the palace, everyone looked up at Qin Yu. Right now, he looked like the mighty god of war.


    I can''t compare to Gu Dongliu? Me? Qin Yu''s expression was cold. Today, with the weapon of his ancestors and the blood of the royal Liu family, he was going to let the world witness the revival of the Qin Dynasty. Today, he was going to show the people just how strong and powerful the Qin Dynasty was.


    The Qin didn''t just need a victory. They needed a war that would astound the world to spread a message to all powers in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The Qin Dynasty that once ruled the world was back.

 332 Shaking the Heavens

    Chapter 332: Shaking the Heavens


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qin Yu''s spear pointed at the Xuanwu Matrix below. The dragons around him roared and the giant golden dragon, on which he was mounted, rushed down, charging directly at the Liu palace below.


    He seemed to be bathed in a golden glory. Rays of golden light broke through the clouds in the sky like flashes of lightning. The long dragon spear struck the large Xuanwu Matrix and in a second, it seemed like the dragons attacked the matrix in a crazed frenzy. All the while, the sharp tip of the spear pierced into the matrix inch by inch. At the same time, lines appeared to cover the large formation.


    An enormous golden dragon claw sunk into the bright Xuanwu Matrix causing the cracks on the formation. Those inside the palace looked up to witness this scene with a trembling fear. In the sky above their heads, the image of a gargantuan golden dragon appeared on the long spear.


    "Empress Liu, the Xuanwu Matrix was created by the Turtle Hermit and can only be broken by the attacks of levels beyond the Noble Plane. Qin Yu is the same as Lu Nantian. He has been enlightened with abilities of a Sage and can use ritual implements of the Sage level," exclaimed a Noble beside the Empress. "Empress, the Liu Kingdom is in grave danger."


    At the Sage level, Qin Yu could not be defeated by mere numbers.


    More cracking could be heard as the fissures on the Xuanwu Matrix continued to increase. Until at last, with one final loud crack, the matrix was broken.


    "Empress Liu, do you wish for me to continue?" Qin Yu''s eyes were electrified as he looked at the Empress.


    "Why must the Qin Dynasty take things this far?" a voice drawled. A distance away, an old turtle was approaching. His movements seemed extremely slow but in the next second, he was already in front of Qin Yu.


    "Emperor Liu already let the people of the Qin Dynasty off the hook. So, why do you guys have to do this to him?" The Turtle Hermit spoke human words at Qin Yu. He had already predicted such an ending. The Qin Dynasty had come with the intentions of destroying the Liu Kingdom and things had indeed progressed to this point.


    "I heard that even though the Turtle Hermit''s gifts are not enough to become a Sage, living for so many years has enabled you to be enlightened with Sage Intent. Today is the perfect opportunity to see for myself," Qin Yu said with eyes set on the Turtle Hermit. Naturally, he had included the Liu Kingdom''s totem demon beast in his plans. But now, not only had Qin Yu been enlightened with Sage Intent, but he also controlled Sage implements. What more did he have to be afraid of?


    "Alright," nodded the Turtle Hermit. His body expanded suddenly until eventually, the godly creature was about twice the size of the giant golden dragon. His body spanned out in the sky over the palace. Lifting his front claws, the Turtle Hermit swatted it in the direction of Qin Yu.


    Naturally, Qin Yu wasn''t afraid. With the golden spear in his hand, he struck it at his opponent. At this moment, he could feel that the webbed paw of the Turtle Hermit swinging down on him wasn''t just a paw, it felt extremely heavy. It felt like the sky had collapsed and was crushing down on him. All around the palace, everyone felt the force and experienced the suffocating feeling even though the attack wasn''t meant for them.


    BOOM! The attack of the two collided. Qin Yu''s body flew back and actually crashed into the ground, crumbling part of the structure around him, also causing dust and dirt to fly into the air. And in the center of the Turtle Hermit''s paw was a line of blood.


    With a single flash of golden lightning, Qin Yu was back in the air. Staring at the Turtle Hermit, he laughed, "You are indeed the totem beast of the Liu, but today the totem will be destroyed and the Liu Kingdom will be no longer.


    "Kill them!" As soon as Qin Yu''s order was given, the army of flood dragons, as well as the giant golden dragon he mounted, charged downward while he went for the Turtle Hermit.


    A wild battle ensued and in mere moments, the Liu palace was ridden with fighting figures. One after one, the glamorous golden buildings fell, as did the powerful cultivators of the palace. Among the army riding on the flood dragons, many of them had extremely powerful Noble implements. They were ancient and had holy auras. This seemed to be an ancient army of soldiers with ritual implements with an equally rich history.


    The citizens watched the earth-shattering battle unfold from afar. Empress Liu had truly impressive powers and her abilities were invisible. She managed to kill multiple powerful Nobles, but the golden dragon got a hold of her. At the same time, more Nobles caged her in. Slowly, she reached her limit and the color on her beautiful face drained, resembling the snow-white of her clothing.


    The Turtle Hermit''s abilities were not to be doubted. However, Qin Yu did not go head to head with him. He circled the large body of the Turtle Hermit, attacking. Gradually, the number of injuries on the creature increased. His body was large and his movements were slow. This was his weakness. Qin Yu took full advantage of this fact and attacked like a madman.


    "Are you guys leaving?" The Turtle Hermit lowered his head, directing his question at Empress Liu and her people.


    In front of the Empress, the golden dragon breathed heavily and the Nobles circled. With her long dress flowing in the wind, she shook her head. "As the empress of the Liu Kingdom, I would rather die in battle than run." And just like that, she was off to continue her battle, her figure flashing by. The Turtle Hermit sighed.


    Heavy hits landed on Empress Liu repeatedly. Quickly after, she was back on the ground. Her white clothing now colored with the red of blood. Remnants of blood could be seen in the corners of her mouth and yet she still looked just as majestic.


    "I want her alive," Qin Yu said as he looked down at Empress Liu.


    Gathering Spiritual Qi, she forged it into a long sword, red like the blood on her clothes. Without hesitation, Empress Liu glided the sharp blade across her own neck.


    Blood spread everywhere. Empress Liu looked up at the sky and was taken back to the days of her youth. Then, with a smile on her face, she closed her eyes. To have been the empress of this kingdom, she had no regrets.


    ��


    In the Ancient Barren World, Emperor Liu suddenly halted on his rushed journey back to his kingdom. His hand was extended. The jade ring on his finger slowly lost its light, losing its original color. His eyes became red. Lifting his head toward the sky, his heart clenched with an excruciating pain.


    So quickly? It happened so quickly, he couldn''t make it. He had let Qin Li go with a glimmer of hope. If the Qin Dynasty still had the slightest bit of reason and morality, they wouldn''t push the situation to extremes. However, the Qin Dynasty only cared for their own goals and would sacrifice anything to meet them.


    Emperor Liu did not continue to advance. He didn''t go back to the Liu Kingdom. With great determination, he turned around. "Follow me," he said. The powerful cultivators beside him followed the emperor. The group traveled with such speed it was as if they were galloping through the skies of the Ancient Barren World.


    Others who saw them were shocked. The direction in which Emperor Liu was traveling was not the Liu Kingdom, but Qin Dynasty territory.


    The Qin Dynasty was just like the other great powers. They each had control of an entrance to the Ancient Barren World. The exit to which was in the imperial palace.


    At this moment, people were chatting animatedly in the Qin palace. They were all very excited. War had officially been declared on the Liu Kingdom. Following this would be the collapse of the Liu. The Qin would shake up the Eastern Barren Territory and make the other powers submit to them willingly. Then, it was straight to dominating all of the Eastern Barren Territory, restoring the glory of their ancestors.


    Just then, quite a number of approached the entrance to the Ancient Barren World, ready to back up the army over in the Liu Kingdom. However, they were interrupted by a figure that exited from the door to the Ancient Barren World. Everyone present was frozen as they looked at the person. It was a Qin Noble feared by others in the Ancient Barren World. But here he was now, covered in blood.


    "Let Emperor Qin know immediately!" he screamed. His outburst startled many. In the next moment, a majestic figure emerged through the doors and the air filled with murderous intent. Behind him, followed more people and in the hands of each of these people were corpses which they flung to the side.


    Emperor Liu. A shiver went down their spines. Emperor Liu wasn''t in the Liu Kingdom. He had charged over here to the Qin Dynasty. Was he insane?


    "Let''s go." The people reacted quickly, turning in an attempt to leave. However, the wind blew wildly as Emperor Liu flashed by. He was an overbearing presence. An unbelievably large foot appeared and came smashing down. The Qin cultivators looked up and the shock was written on their faces.


    "No!" some people screamed. With a loud boom, Emperor Liu''s foot came down and those people were turned to ashes. An endless force of murderous intent spilled from every pore of the emperor''s body as he continued to make his way into the Qin palace. Since letting Qin Li go wasn''t even to stop the Qin Dynasty from wiping out the Liu, then it was time for a massacre. If they wanted Emperor Liu dead and the Liu Kingdom gone, then they were going to have to endure his wrath.


    Emperor Liu killed his way into the palace. Nothing lived on the ground he passed. He killed everyone in his way, no one an exception. The death of Empress Liu was his wake-up call.


    He wasn''t willing to think about anything else.


    This day was destined to be without peace. To the Eastern Barren Territory, this was a bolt from the blue.


    Qin Yu held a Sage implement in his hands and was enlightened by Sage Intent. He arrived in the Liu Kingdom and battle with the Liu''s totem demon beast, the Turtle Hermit, for hours. He depleted the Turtle Hermit and even suffered some major injuries himself. However, the army Qin Yu led had obliterated the Liu Kingdom that was already falling apart from the inside. They had completely wiped out the imperial palace.


    On this day, Emperor Liu forwent thoughts of life and death and crashed the Qin palace without caring of any possible repercussions. He killed everyone in sight, blinded by rage. Many royals of the Qin Dynasty lost their lives, including multiple princes and concubines. Not even when Emperor Qin stepped in was Emperor Liu deterred from his crazed massacre. There was only murder in his eyes.


    Finally, Emperor Liu perished in the Qin palace.


    A powerful leader was now gone from the world.


    A top power was going through a drastic change.


    The Eastern Barren Territory was shaken up, as was the heavens.


    The Qin Dynasty''s powerfulness shocked the Eastern Barren Territory. However, Emperor Qin''s arrogance and his tendency to underestimate his opponents caused heavy and unfortunate consequences for his own country.


    Lord Kang was temporarily placed in control of settling the Liu Kingdom and hunting down more royal descendants. But everyone knew, Lord Kang and the others who gave in to the Qin were simply lackies. The Liu Kingdom only existed in name now.


    At the same time, the Qin Dynasty''s third prince, Qin Ge, arrived at Book Mountain with a group of people.


    In the skies outside Book Mountain.


    Qin Ge and his people stood in the air. They were here to make the Cottage hand them over. Liu Chenyu and Liu Feiyang were the spawns of the Liu and Ye Wuchen was the murderer of Qin Yuan. Obviously, they had to come them. Although it was bound to be a failed attempt, they had to at least get their attitude across.


    What qualifications and reason did the Cottage have to protect these people?


    Just then, Zhuge Hui heard the voices of those sent from the Qin Dynasty above the Cottage. Looking at Luo Fan, someone said, "Are you guys idiots?"


    "Perhaps." Luo Fan shrugged. "Or maybe you guys think that even though you don''t have what it takes to make us hand them over, with "logic" on your side, there is now an excuse from you guys to pick a fight with the Cottage."


    "Just like how you started a fight with the Liu Kingdom?" Zhuge Hui''s tone was harsh and cold. The Cottage already knew of what happened with the Liu Kingdom. It was just as she predicted.


    "Perhaps," nodded Luo Fan.


    "Relay the message to your third senior brother. They''re disturbing my cultivation," Zhuge Hui said softly.


    Luo Fan blinked a couple of times.


    "So, permanently disable their powers." Zhuge Hui said this rather nonchalantly. Luo Fan''s eyes brightened. The second senior sister was the second senior sister indeed!

 333 When the Cottage Is Unreasonable

    Chapter 333: When the Cottage Is Unreasonable


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Outside Book Mountain, Qin Ge and the rest were still waiting for the Cottage to respond. Before them, there were already many cultivators from the College. They stared at the people from Qin Dynasty. They all knew about what happened in Liu Kingdom. Although there was no relationship between the College and Liu Kingdom, the destruction of Liu Kingdom still enraged many people from the College.


    The anger of the College was different from Ye Futian''s. They did not know anyone from Liu Kingdom and were not in any way related to the kingdom. They were angry about Qin Dynasty''s cruelty and that the Qin Dynasty broke the rules that the Eastern Barren Territory had been following for many years.


    In the Eastern Barren Territory, the three most powerful forces were the Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and the College. The other top forces were somewhat weaker than those three. For many years, the situation had been maintained as such. Although there were occasional conflicts between disciples of different forces, they had still been following the hidden rules and nobody dared to break them.


    The world of cultivation had always been very cruel. Very often, larger forces would bully smaller ones, and this would remain that way forever. However, this had at least never happened to a top force, until the destruction of Liu Kingdom. Qin Dynasty was trying to destroy the balance in Eastern Barren Territory and break the stable relationship that had existed for many years. Furthermore, although there seemed to be a reason for Qin Dynasty''s actions, everyone knew that, in reality, Qin Yuan was but an excuse for them to start a war. Even if Qin Yuan did not die, the Qin Dynasty would still find another excuse to start the war. The destruction of Liu Kingdom was only the first stop on Qin Dynasty''s path to ruling the world.


    Mountain Elder Zhu Qing looked at Qin Ge and the others from Qin Dynasty and only said one word, "Scram."


    Qin Ge was however not bothered by that. He looked emotionlessly at the people from the College and said coldly, "Is the College protecting the person who killed my brother?"


    "Does he not deserve to die?" Zhu Qing similarly said as she stared at Qin Ge.


    Some coldness erupted from Qin Ge. He stared at the people from the College and said, "My brother died in the Liu Kingdom for no reason. The College is not only protecting the murderer but is also humiliating the dead like this. Qin Dynasty will remember this." Qin Ge naturally knew that it would almost be impossible for him to get Ye Wuchen. If the Cottage would give him Ye Wuchen so easily, it would no longer be the Cottage. However, Qin Yu still asked him to come. He did not need the Cottage to give him Ye Wuchen. All he needed was an excuse to attack the College and the Cottage in the future.


    "That''s up to you. Now, can you scram?" Zhu Qing glanced at Qin Ge in disgust. She liked none of the princes from the Qin Dynasty.


    Qin Ge stood proudly and said coldly, "I still need to hear the Cottage''s reply."


    Suddenly, someone said from afar, "What reply do you want to hear?" Then, a figure slowly strolled over. His shirt was as white as snow and his long hair danced in the air. His handsome eyes stared at Qin Ge with a sharp look. His tone was monotonous, but it also sounded extremely arrogant. He simply looked at Qin Ge, but it was as if he was going to penetrate Qin Ge''s eyes with his stare.


    Seeing Gu Dongliu''s look, Qin Ge''s proud heart actually felt somewhat scared. He was the third prince of Qin Dynasty and was very talented. All along, he was supercilious and believed that he was no weaker than anyone else. However, for some reason, when he really faced Gu Dongliu, his might seemed to be suppressed because of just one look from Gu Dongliu. Gu Dongliu was, after all, as famous as Qin Yu. Moreover, he had defeated Lu Nantian before.


    In that battle, Lu Nantian had displayed sage intent and could almost be considered the strongest person in Eastern Barren Territory. However, he still lost to Gu Dongliu who was only a grade two noble then.


    "Ye Wuchen killed my brother. Also, the remnants of Liu Kingdom, Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu, are also at the Cottage. I would naturally hope that the Cottage can give them to me," Qin Ge said emotionlessly. However, his tone was already not as domineering as before.


    "You have disrupted her cultivation," Gu Dongliu suddenly said. Both the people from Qin Dynasty and those from the College were stunned by his baffling words.


    Disrupted her cultivation? Who is she?


    Frowning, Qin Ge looked at Gu Dongliu and asked, "What do you mean?"


    "Unforgivable," Gu Dongliu said. Qin Ge widened his eyes and stared at Gu Dongliu.


    Unforgivable?


    Even Mountain Elder Zhu Qing also looked at Gu Dongliu, stunned, but she roughly knew who Gu Dongliu was referring to.


    The second disciple of the Cottage, Zhuge Hui.


    All of a sudden, Gu Dongliu stepped forward and an aura erupted from his body. His white shirt moved even though there was no wind, giving off a flapping sound. He scanned the people from Qin Dynasty and his look suddenly turned weird. Invisible Spiritual Energy immediately enveloped all of them.


    "Gu Dongliu, what do you mean by this?" Qin Ge asked. He came to the Cottage to ask for people. Even if the Cottage did not want to hand them over, what reasons did they have to attack him? Was disrupting her cultivation also a valid excuse?


    Gu Dongliu did not pay attention to Qin Ge''s words. Instead, he took another step forward. In this instant, extremely sharp spiritual will spread onto the nobles from Qin Dynasty.


    The people from the Qin Dynasty were all shocked. Was Gu Dongliu actually going to attack them? Even though the cultivators who followed Qin Ge this time were strong, they could obviously not fight against Gu Dongliu.


    At the moment, Gu Dongliu was already one of the strongest people in the Eastern Barren Territory. Even if Qin Yu was here instead, there would only be a fifty-fifty chance that he would win should he not rely on the sage ritual implement.


    If Gu Dongliu really wanted to deal with them, the outcome would be blatantly obvious.


    "Gu Dongliu, what exactly do you want?" Two people each took a step forward and their might bloomed violently. However, Gu Dongliu''s look continued to become increasingly demonic. His handsome eyes were like two spiritual vortexes, and a monstrous spiritual will pressured the two people. Then, Gu Dongliu extended his palm and invisible sword qi started to dance wildly, circling the two nobles.


    "I want to kill." Gu Dongliu clenched his fist. A frightening current raged wildly, giving off a sizzling sound. The two nobles each gave a miserable cry. Then, blood oozed rapidly from their eyes, nose, and mouth. Their bodies trembled fiercely and they eventually fell from the sky.


    Bang. The people from Qin Dynasty all started to tremble. They raised their heads and looked at Gu Dongliu in shock.


    Is he mad? Ye Wuchen killed Qin Yuan, so it was only reasonable for Qin Dynasty to come. In addition, they had never had a head-on conflict with the Cottage. Did Gu Dongliu actually kill someone?


    Qin Ge also stared at Gu Dongliu in astonishment. What was the Cottage thinking?


    "Are you declaring war on Qin Dynasty?" Qin Ge''s face turned very pale, fear showing across it.


    Gu Dongliu said that he wanted to kill. How many did he want to kill? How about him, a prince of Qin Dynasty?


    "I already said that you have disrupted her cultivation. The penalty is death," Gu Dongliu said emotionlessly as if he was not bothered at all. It was as if the people he killed were neither nobles nor from Qin Dynasty.


    Just as he finished speaking, the appalling spiritual will continued to explode, engulfing the other cultivators. Ancient characters seemed to circle around him, and a mysterious aura enveloped those from Qin Dynasty.


    "Gu Dongliu, are you mad?" a noble from Qin Dynasty shouted loudly.


    Gu Dongliu, however, did not seem to have heard his words. He continued to reach out his hand and clenched it fiercely. The sound of explosions emitted continuously, followed by miserable cries. The spiritual wills of those nobles could not withstand the attack and were destroyed rapidly. Blood flew out from their fear-filled eyes and they dropped from the sky one after another. In just a short while, Qin Ge, the third prince of Qin Dynasty, was the only person left there.


    At the moment, the imposing manner Qin Ge had when he had just arrived was completely gone. His face was highly distorted and pale, while his eyes were filled with anger and intense fear. When a Cottage disciple was unreasonable and started to kill, it would certainly be a disaster.


    "Is the Cottage so inhuman now?" Qin Ge roared but his voice was trembling. This was not the style of the Cottage.


    The people from the College also stared at Gu Dongliu in bewilderment; Gu Dongliu had actually killed the nobles from the Qin Dynasty. Even Mountain Elder Zhu Qing could feel her heart racing. Obviously, she knew the consequences that might be caused by Gu Dongliu''s actions.


    Suddenly, Zhu Qing recalled what Zhuge Hui told her in Chaoge City, that the College was too gentle in its actions.


    Indeed, compared to the Cottage, she was way too gentle.


    "Inhuman?" Gu Dongliu still looked at Qin Ge calmly. Everyone in the world knew that Cottage disciples were reasonable. Therefore, Qin Ge dared to come to the Cottage and asked them to hand the murderer over. What they did not know was that the Cottage could also be unreasonable.


    "You have annihilated an entire kingdom. After doing such an evil deed, you still dare to come here for this. Since this is the case, I can only help the world to enforce justice and execute the punishment." Just as Gu Dongliu finished speaking, Sword Qi whizzed out. Ancient characters started to circle around Qin Ge''s body. At this instant, Qin Ge started to tremble wildly. He was stricken with fear.


    Qin Dynasty had finally begun to expand in order to rule the world. He was supposed to find his own stage and let his radiance shine. He came to the Cottage to ask them to hand those people to him. Originally, this was supposed to be his first appearance in the Eastern Barren Territory. Little did he know that his emergence this time would also be his last.


    "Kill," Gu Dongliu said coldly as the sword will whizzed over. Qin Ge''s face was distorted and his body trembled. In his desperation, his body was torn apart slowly, until he turned into nothing. Gu Dongliu did not look at him again. Turning around, he walked up Book Mountain right away, as if he had only done something trivial.


    Zhuge Hui asked Luo Fan to tell him to disable these people. However, he killed them straightaway. To him, there was little difference between disabling and killing them. Her character was indeed still too gentle and kind.


    Qin Dynasty dealt with the Liu Kingdom in such a way and eliminated the entire family in an attempt to shock the Eastern Barren Territory. They came to the Cottage in order to display their prestige as well. They wanted to tell the world that the Qin Dynasty was going to rule the world. However, the Cottage was not the Liu Kingdom. They would not be able to deal with it using the same method.


    Since a war was already destined to happen, he would fulfill Qin Dynasty''s wish.


    Since Qin Dynasty did not obey the rules of Eastern Barren Territory, the Cottage did not have to be reasonable as well.


    The people from the College, including Zhu Qing, stared at Gu Dongliu as he left. They were totally shocked and all felt speechless. It was as if that today, they had just met the Cottage and Gu Dongliu.


    "Cottage disciples are sooooo handsome!" a beautiful girl exclaimed, looking at Gu Dongliu. Vaguely, her eyes were actually filled with wild fondness.

 334 The Tree Desires Calmness But the Wind Will Not Cease

    Chapter 334: The Tree Desires Calmness But the Wind Will Not Cease


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the battle between the Qin Dynasty and the Liu Kingdom, the king of Liu actually did not go back to aid the Liu Kingdom. Instead, he broke into the Qin Imperial Palace and caused a significant loss for the Qin Dynasty. Qin Dynasty had been too careless.


    Of course, this battle did not really shake the Qin Dynasty''s foundations. The power of the strongest people was, after all, the deciding factor of whether a force was strong or not. For example, the Cottage only had a few disciples, but to Qin Dynasty it was far more threatening than any other force in Eastern Barren Territory. The reason was simple��they were all too strong. They could be considered a whole kingdom.


    Today, who could be considered as the most powerful people in the Eastern Barren Territory? They were, of course, those who had comprehended some sage intent, or those who had a sage ritual implement.


    Qin Dynasty dared to fight against the whole world because they already possessed people of both kinds. Furthermore, they had allied with Donghua Clan. Combining the powerful people and resources of the two top forces, they could already change the whole Eastern Barren Territory.


    Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan agreed that after they ruled the world, Qin Dynasty would control the events in the world, while Donghua Clan would be reputed as the first clan in Eastern Barren Territory and control the cultivators'' world. Together, they would govern the world.


    Although the madness of the king of Liu had caused the Qin Dynasty to pay a price, it was insignificant when compared to the destruction of Liu Kingdom. Moreover, many cultivators from the Liu Kingdom had also surrendered. Now, Qin Dynasty was only waiting to wave its arm and call the world to attack the Cottage. It would then rule the Eastern Barren Territory.


    At the moment, cultivators from many top forces in Eastern Barren Territory were gathered in a luxurious palace in the Qin Imperial Palace. Qin Yu, the crown prince of Qin Dynasty, was sitting on the throne above everyone else. Below him, there were many cultivators from Donghua Clan, Fuyun Sword Clan, Royal Xuan Temple, and other forces. Even Ji Family had sent someone here to visit the Qin Imperial Palace.


    Suddenly, someone from Fuyun Sword Clan folded his hands at Qin Yu and said, "Fuyun Sword Clan originally wanted to capture Ye Wuchen and bring him here. However, Ye Wuchen has yet to return until now. He followed Ye Futian into the Cottage."


    Qin Dynasty had directly eliminated the Liu Kingdom which was close to and as famous as Fuyun Sword Clan. How could Fuyun Sword Clan not be frightened? Qin Yuan was killed by a person from Fuyun Sword Clan. Naturally, they had to send someone here to explain.


    "I understand," Qin Yu said. "I have already sent Qin Ge to the Cottage to ask for Ye Wuchen. However, the Cottage is so unscrupulous and they will very likely not hand him over. By that time, what do you think we should do?"


    "Fuyun Sword Clan will go to the Cottage with Qin Dynasty and ask for Ye Wuchen," the person from Fuyun Sword Clan said. "More importantly, this concerns Qin Dynasty. How can the Cottage dare not to hand him over?"


    "That''s right. With the powers Qin Dynasty has now, the Cottage will certainly give him to us. After all, the Cottage is not involved in this," someone from Ji Family also echoed.


    "If the Cottage dares to break the rules of Eastern Barren Territory like this, I believe that all the forces in Eastern Barren Territory will respond to our calling." Royal Xuan Temple had sent the fifth lord, He Yulu here. The Liu Kingdom was destroyed and every force in Eastern Barren Territory was wildly shocked.


    In the past, Royal Xuan Temple already had some relations with the Qin Dynasty. Now, they would, of course, want to be as close to Qin Dynasty as possible. In addition, there was still resentment between them and the Cottage.


    "By then, I hope that everyone will support us," Qin Yu said, smiling. Why did they destroy the Liu Kingdom? It was because they wanted to display their dominance and scare the forces in Eastern Barren Territory. Although Fuyun Sword Clan, Royal Xuan Temple, and the like seemed to be very close to Qin Dynasty at the moment, in reality, they all had their own plans. Only absolute powers could instill awe, and perhaps even fear, into them.


    It would not just be these two forces. By the time Qin Dynasty decided to attack the Cottage, they would call upon all the forces in the world to join them. Who would dare not to obey them?


    Suddenly, some footsteps came from outside the palace. The person coming in seemed to be panicked. Very quickly, someone appeared at the gates of the palace and looked at Qin Yu. Bowing, he said, "Your Highness."


    Qin Yu raised his head and asked, "What is it?"


    "Your Highness��" The person''s mouth twitched, as if he wanted to say something but stopped. He even glanced at the people from other forces.


    "We''re all allies. Just say it," Qin Yu said.


    "The spiritual imprint of the third prince has extinguished." The person buried his head low and bowed.


    Qin Yu''s body trembled gently and a horrifying coldness erupted from his eyes. He leaned forward and almost could not prevent his violent might from being released. "You didn''t see wrongly?" he questioned coldly.


    "Your Highness, apart from the third prince, the spiritual imprints of all the nobles who went this time have been extinguished." The person''s head went lower. Even his voice was trembling.


    Qin Yu stood up and his look was extremely freezing. Qin Ge and the people from Qin Dynasty who had followed him were all dead. He naturally knew what this meant; the Cottage was declaring war. He did not expect the Cottage to actually be so decisive and kill Qin Ge and the rest. After all, they had not really declared war with the Cottage. They only sent someone there to ask for Ye Wuchen. Even if the Cottage did not want to hand him over, how could they kill the messengers? Moreover, the person they killed was the prince of Qin Dynasty.


    Some sharpness also flashed across the cultivators from Fuyun Sword Clan. They obviously knew what that person meant: the people who went to the Cottage were dead.


    He Yulu squinted and recalled the scene when his daughter was forced to die. Indeed, the Cottage was still so overbearing and supercilious.


    The expressions of the people from Ji Family all froze and they were extremely shocked. The Qin Dynasty cultivators who went to the Cottage were all killed. Was this the reply of the Cottage to Qin Dynasty?


    "Everyone, what do you think?" Qin Yu suppressed his anger and looked at the people present.


    "The Cottage is simply too presumptuous and does not follow the rules at all," a cultivator from Fuyun Sword Clan remarked angrily.


    "If we do not eliminate the Cottage, Qin Ge will have died for nothing," He Yulu also said coldly. "Qin Dynasty should send out the army immediately and attack the Cottage."


    "We wish that Qin Dynasty will have an easy victory and rule the world," a person from Ji Family said, folding his hands. Qin Yu looked at everyone else. The things they were saying at the moment were very different from what they had said just a while ago.


    "You should leave for now. I will discuss this with my father. The Cottage will surely pay the price," Qin Yu said coldly. The other people left one after another. After they left, Qin Yu slapped the chair, destroying it at once. A terrifying murderous aura was released from his body.


    The overbearing attitude of the Cottage not only allowed them to kill Qin Ge but also instilled fear into the other forces. At the moment, it would be difficult to call them and attack the Cottage together.


    Qin Dynasty annihilated the Liu Kingdom to display its powers and show that it could easily conquer anything. However, because of Qin Ge''s death, everything returned to its original state. Previously, if he was to call upon the various forces, many people would respond. However, the Cottage had killed a prince of Qin Dynasty. How could the Qin Dynasty not take revenge?


    Qin Yuan''s death caused the Liu Kingdom to be destroyed. What the Cottage did was far more overbearing than what happened in the Liu Kingdom. How could the Qin Dynasty not start a war? At the moment, the top forces would only choose to remain still and observe the situation.


    ��


    The news about what happened below Book Mountain spread to every corner of Eastern Barren Territory very quickly. Countless people were astonished.


    Qin Dynasty destroyed the Liu Kingdom, while Gu Dongliu, the third disciple of the Cottage, slew Qin Ge.


    Both events seemed to have occurred for a reason, but in reality, there were none at all. The two strongest forces of Eastern Barren Territory had just collided head-on with each other for the very first time.


    Previously, even when Zhuge Hui, the second disciple of the Cottage, destroyed the gates of Dongqin College in Chaoge, Qin Dynasty still chose to tolerate it. They even helped the Cottage to investigate on the culprit behind Ye Futian''s attempted assassination. After all, the assassination happened on Qin Dynasty''s territory. It was, therefore, reasonable for the Qin Dynasty to tolerate it.


    But what about this time? Would they start a war?


    The destruction of the Liu Kingdom and the death of Qin Ge caused the atmosphere in Eastern Barren Territory to be even more intense. Everyone could feel that a storm was brewing and a war was imminent. Now, countless people were discussing what the outcome would be if the overbearing Qin Dynasty and the arrogant College Cottage really started a battle.


    At the Cottage, however, nothing seemed to have changed because of Qin Ge''s death. The place was still quiet and peaceful, just like always. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu had officially entered the College to cultivate. Ye Wuchen was a disciple of Fuyun Sword Clan and had spent much time and effort cultivating his sword skills. At the moment, there was a pressing need for them to cultivate and become stronger. After all, they were still too weak to be involved in the situation in Eastern Barren Territory. Only when they became sufficiently strong and had powers close to that of Gu Dongliu, they could participate in the war in Eastern Barren Territory.


    During mealtime, Ye Futian asked everyone else, "Sister, brother, will Qin Dynasty start a war?"


    "I''m not sure." Luo Fan shook his head. "However, whether they choose to start a war or not, it will be difficult for them to get help from the other forces." Those who dared to participate in the war would need to be prepared for death.


    Ye Futian nodded. The second sister had asked the third brother to disable Qin Ge and the others. That time, he even thought that the second sister was being too impulsive. Afterward, however, he realized that the second sister and the third brother did so not just because they were angry; they also wanted to shock the other forces.


    Qin Dynasty eliminated the Liu Kingdom and showed the intention to attack the Cottage. At that time, the Cottage already knew that the battle would come sooner or later. Since this was the case, they did not have to wait.


    Killing Qin Ge would cause people from other forces to be scared of the Cottage and hence not dare to ally with Qin Dynasty.


    "What''s the master''s level?" Ye Futian asked. Actually, he was not even sure of the real powers of the Cottage now. The eldest brother, second sister, third brother, and the master should be the strongest members of the Cottage, but he only knew how strong the third brother Gu Dongliu was. Clearly, he was still somewhat worried. Since Qin Dynasty dared to fight against the whole world, they certainly had a source of confidence.


    "Why are you thinking so much? Just concentrate on cultivating. In the future, I still need you to protect me." The second sister smiled and glanced at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled and felt speechless. However, after looking at the second sister, he said in a serious tone, "In the future, I''ll surely protect you."


    ''Right, that will be great." Zhuge Hui reached out her hand and patted on Ye Futian''s head. Immediately, Ye Futian''s expression froze, along with his hands. He did not know whether to laugh or cry. I am, after all, an adult. Could you please not do this?


    "Originally, I wanted to fulfill the master''s aspiration here in a gentle way. But from the look of it, that would be too difficult," the second sister sighed. The tree desires calmness but the wind will not cease!

 335 Declaration of War

    Chapter 335: Declaration of War


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A head-on conflict had erupted between the Qin Dynasty and the Cottage, shocking the entire Eastern Barren Territory. Countless people waited for the Qin Dynasty to respond.


    Qin Ge, the third prince of Qin Dynasty, was killed by the Cottage when he went there to ask for Ye Wuchen. If Qin Dynasty did not respond to this, everyone in the world would think that Qin Dynasty was not qualified to unify Eastern Barren Territory after all. Just when everyone was discussing it, some news spread from the Qin Imperial Palace.


    Qin Dynasty officially announced to the world the seven sins of the Cottage. Firstly, the Cottage was overbearing in its behavior and had been killing the innocent. Gu Dongliu had eliminated a top-tier force in Eastern Barren Territory. This was cruel and inhumane.


    Secondly, Cottage disciples had robbed others of their possessions. In Chaoge City, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had taken the treasures from Yin Family by force, namely the Five Element Rod and the demonic tripod.


    Thirdly, Cottage disciples had been bullying others because of their status and did whatever they wanted. They had once forced He Xirou, the daughter of the fifth lord of Royal Xuan Temple, to kill herself. Furthermore, they still did not leave the matter at that, eventually killing the Royal Xuan Temple disciple Luo Junlin, his father, and many others who had a deep resentment for Ye Futian. They were brutal and killed everyone who tried to oppose them.


    Fourthly, the Cottage protected murderers, in particular, Ye Wuchen. They ignored the decision of Fuyun Sword Clan and even killed the people from Qin Dynasty who went there.


    There were still the fifth, sixth and seventh sins. It was as if the Cottage had done much evil and could not be forgiven.


    Qin Dynasty announced that they would send their army to the Divine Capital and attack the Cottage in order to protect Eastern Barren Territory. In addition, they invited all the powerful forces to gather in the Qin Imperial City and discuss the situation in Eastern Barren Territory. They also hoped that the leaders of these forces could attend themselves to determine the future together.


    The news spread and shook the entire Eastern Barren Territory fiercely. Were the most powerful forces in the Eastern Barren Territory finally going to collide head-on with each other?


    It seemed unlikely that the Cottage would be able to fight against the Dragon Army of Qin Dynasty. Apart from that, the Qin Dynasty invited all the powerful forces to gather in the Qin Imperial City. They probably wanted to attack the Cottage with the aid from these forces. Of course, the Qin Dynasty did not say it directly but only claimed that they would discuss the situation together. However, everyone knew the truth.


    Qin Dynasty had already officially declared war on the Cottage, so the various forces obviously could not reject the Qin Dynasty''s invitation. At the moment, the Qin Dynasty was extremely powerful and it had easily destroyed the Liu Kingdom. Even if they did not want to fight with the Qin Dynasty, they had to give Qin Dynasty some face. Moreover, the battle between the Qin Dynasty and the Cottage would be considered a top-tier one in the Eastern Barren Territory. Everyone wanted to watch it for themselves.


    The Eastern Barren Territory was stirred up. Immediately, the cultivators from various top forces left their places. The leaders of many forces also departed themselves and headed towards the Qin Imperial City, leading their fellow members. Even they would be involved in the great change that was imminent in Eastern Barren Territory.


    The Cottage, of course, also received the news, but it was expected. Qin Dynasty wanted to rule the world and Gu Dongliu killed Qin Ge directly. This was almost like declaring war. How could the Qin Dynasty not respond to it?


    The Qin Imperial City was filled with many talented people. For a moment, the forces in the Eastern Barren Territory all gathered here. It was not just the top forces; cultivators from various forces reached one after another, especially those subsidiary forces under the Qin Dynasty.


    Very quickly, news spread from the Qin Imperial City: Fuyun Sword Clan had arrived. Even the leader of Fuyun Sword Clan, together with several summit lords, was here. Afterward, the people from Royal Xuan Temple also arrived. All the five lords were present. Then, the leaders of Ji Family, Witch Clan, Moon Clan, and many others arrived at the Qin Imperial City one by one.


    There had never been such a grand occasion in Eastern Barren Territory before. Many leaders from top forces were here themselves. This was clearly because of the fact that Qin Dynasty had declared war to the Cottage. The influence of this was way too big, as it would very likely determine the future of Eastern Barren Territory and affect the entire situation. It would determine what would happen in the future and even where the various people would end up in. In such a situation, even the leaders of different forces must pay absolute attention. After all, not long ago, a person who had been as famous as them, namely the king of Liu Kingdom, died in the Qin Imperial Palace.


    This would be a huge change that had never happened in Eastern Barren Territory in the past hundreds of years. Qin Dynasty and the Cottage would be the main players leading to this change, while everyone else would also be involved trying to maximize their benefits.


    At the moment, the people from Royal Xuan Temple were gathered somewhere in the Qin Imperial Palace, including the few lords. The first lord of Royal Xuan Temple was wearing a loose robe and had black hair that filled his head. From him, one could feel a very powerful temperament.


    "First lord, if Qin Dynasty asks us to attack the Cottage with them, what should we do?" someone suddenly asked. After Qin Ge died, they guessed that a great battle would probably happen between the two forces. Because of the relationship between them and the Cottage, they would surely not be on the Cottage''s side. However, the question was whether they should participate in the battle at all.


    Qin Dynasty declared war on the Cottage first and claimed that the Cottage had committed seven sins. Then, they gathered all the forces in Eastern Barren Territory and invited all the cultivators, which was really cunning of them. If Qin Dynasty asked Royal Xuan Temple to participate, what should they do?


    "What do you think?" the first lord asked.


    He Yulu''s eyes sparkled. Obviously, he hoped that they would fight against the Cottage, but he did not dare to voice his opinion so easily at the moment.


    "Clearly, we cannot participate in the battle easily," Xia Luo suddenly said.


    "Xia Luo, what''s your opinion?" the first lord asked.


    Xia Luo looked at his master. Bowing, he replied, "Qin Dynasty and the Cottage are both extremely strong. They probably both want to unify Eastern Barren Territory. Even though we cannot prevent this from happening, it will be dangerous for us to get involved easily. Furthermore, after Qin Dynasty eliminated the Cottage, Eastern Barren Territory will be unified. We will definitely need to benefit sufficiently from this so that in the future, we will have the same position in Eastern Barren Territory."


    "You think that Eastern Barren Territory will certainly be unified?" the first lord asked.


    "Yes, master. Since the Qin Dynasty wiped out the Liu Kingdom so simply, it can do the same to other forces. After all, there is a huge difference between their strongest cultivators and those from other forces. I think that only the College Cottage can deal with the Qin Dynasty, and this general trend cannot be stopped. Master, we can only try to get more benefits in order to secure our position. After all, even if Qin Dynasty unifies Eastern Barren Territory, it will make no difference to us as long as they do not control us directly," Xia Luo said slowly.


    The first lord squinted and his eyes sparkled. He could understand Xia Luo''s words, but it was still somewhat difficult for him to accept the reality. Moreover, they would surely need to pay a price first before being able to benefit. This meant that ultimately, they still had to fight for Qin Dynasty.


    In another pavilion, the disciples of the Moon Clan were all gathered together. Even the leader of Moon Clan was present. At the moment, a group of ladies was gazing into the distance. They were all exceptionally pretty, especially the first lady. It was as if she was an ethereal fairy that should not even exist in the mortal world.


    "Leader, Virgin Chu Yaoyao and Qin Li had been very close to each other. They had already confirmed their relationship. When the Liu Kingdom was destroyed, Chu Yaoyao even followed Qin Li there. I am worried that we have already been tied to Qin Dynasty since then," a lady said.


    After all, the Virgin of Moon Clan had a very high status and her words were often influential. She could represent Moon Clan when she was outside.


    Goddess Wangyue did not say anything but her eyes sparkled.


    Chu Yaoyao had been very close to Qin Li and was already Qin Li''s girlfriend. On the other hand, another genius from Moon Clan was the girlfriend of Ye Futian, a Cottage disciple. This was indeed very tricky. How should they handle the situation?


    Apart from them, all the leaders in Eastern Barren Territory were thinking of the same question: if Qin Dynasty asked them to attack the Cottage, what should they do?


    Qin Dynasty was really too cunning. Instead of just declaring war, they summoned everyone in Eastern Barren Territory to this place.

 336 Mr. Du’s Aspiration

    Chapter 336: Mr. Du��s Aspiration


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A grand feast was being held in the Qin Imperial Palace, drawing many cultivators from various places. Most people in Eastern Barren Territory had already arrived, including many leaders and important figures.


    Outside the Qin Imperial Palace, countless people gazed at the open palace from afar. The entire place was packed with cultivators. They lined up in a neat row which extended from outside the palace all the way to the central region of the feast. There, the king of Qin and the crown prince Qin Yu were sitting on the thrones above everyone else. There were many groups of people around them, each of which represented a top force in Eastern Barren Territory. Behind them, there were also people from various forces. They were the top-tier forces in Eastern Barren Territory, such as Yin Family from Chaoge City whose members took orders from Qin Dynasty directly. Now, they also responded to Qin Dynasty''s call and came to attend the event.


    On the right of the king of Qin, a group of people with outstanding temperament stood proudly. All of them were extremely talented and famous in Eastern Barren Territory. At the very front of this group of people, there were two charming ladies. They were stunningly beautiful and had attracted much attention.


    Hua Qingqing was as pure as a fairy who had descended from the heaves. From her eyes, one could not see any distractions. They looked perfectly clear and pure. Beside her, there was another fair lady. She was also a very famous beauty in Eastern Barren Territory, Lady Yuxiao.


    In the past, Lady Yuxiao was also known as Goddess Yuxiao. She was a very famous lady in Eastern Barren Territory. Later, she fell in love with the then handsome young leader of Donghua Clan. Lady Yuxiao was the wife of the Donghua Clan leader at the moment.


    It was said that the Donghua Clan leader was cultivating in seclusion and did not come himself. However, nobody dared to ignore Lady Yuxiao. She obtained her position today definitely not because she was married to the Donghua Clan leader. Instead, some claimed that the Donghua Clan leader had such a renowned status today only because he married her.


    Countless people stared at Lady Yuxiao. She was very honored and seldom appeared in front of other people. However, today she was still here. It was clear how important Qin Dynasty''s announcement was.


    Apart from Lady Yuxiao, a leader from Qianqiu Temple was also here. He was an eminent monk and had brought with him the Arhat and many other disciples. Apart from that, many leaders and important figures from Fuyun Sword Clan, Royal Xuan Temple, Witch Clan, Moon Clan, and Ji Family were also present.


    Seeing these people, many cultivators around sighed in their hearts. This was all because of the destruction of Liu Kingdom. Qin Dynasty invited all the cultivators in the world and countless people responded. Although various top forces did not declare their position, they still could not ignore the Qin Dynasty. Indeed, they were all present, including many important people. Qin Dynasty had, after all, easily destroyed the Liu Kingdom. Moreover, Donghua Clan was also Qin Dynasty''s ally.


    Two out of the three most powerful forces in Eastern Barren Territory had allied with each other. Their influence was well understood.


    The banquet which was filled with people was somewhat noisy as different people discussed various matters. Suddenly, the crown prince Qin Yu stood up and signaled for everyone to be quiet. The many noises immediately started to diminish. Eventually, the place was in total silence, apart from the occasional discussion among the people from top forces.


    The king of Qin scanned the vast crowd and said politely, "I am indeed honored to have all of you from so many distant places here." Many cultivators folded their hands and said, "Your Majesty, we''re honored as well."


    "I will not be too polite or indirect. I think that everyone can see the situation in the Eastern Barren Territory at the moment clearly. We happily sent a group of people to the Liu Kingdom so as to propose marriage as my son Qin Yuan wanted to marry Liu Chenyu, princess of Liu Kingdom. However, he was assaulted in the Liu Kingdom Imperial Palace and died miserably in a foreign kingdom. Every time I think about this, I feel great pain. The Liu Kingdom is cruel and inhuman and should be destroyed. Because of this, many people in the Liu Kingdom paid the price. However, the culprits Liu Chenyu, Liu Feiyang, and the murderer, Ye Wuchen, are still happy and unpunished today. The Cottage is protecting these murderers."


    The king of Qin said angrily, "Because of this, they even killed Qin Ge who went there. My son Qin Ge was very talented, but he died in such a petty way. Even during a war between two nations, no one kills the messengers. The Cottage is simply frenzied and does whatever they want. I think that all of you have also heard about and can remember the seven sins they committed. Such a force should not have even existed in Eastern Barren Territory. Today, we invited all of you here to discuss this. What are your opinions?"


    The eyes of the people from various forces all sparkled. They each had their own plans.


    "The Cottage is in indeed lawless and ignores the hidden rules in the Eastern Barren Territory. Fuyun Sword Clan now officially announces that we have expelled Ye Wuchen from the clan. Your Majesty, you can punish him in whatever ways you want and you do not need to care about Fuyun Sword Clan''s view," the leader of Fuyun Sword Clan suddenly declared.


    Everyone''s eyes sparkled. This was also an outcome they had long expected. Fuyun Sword Clan did not agree to fight alongside Qin Dynasty because it would be extremely risky.


    The Cottage slew Qin Ge. How could the various forces not be frightened? Arrogance and boldness were built upon immense confidence, while confidence came from power. The boldness and confidence of the Cottage caused them to be very afraid.


    The king of Qin glanced at the leader of Fuyun Sword Clan. Indeed, although they managed to summon various forces here today, the different forces all had their own thoughts. They would clearly not make a decision just because of his words.


    "Over these few years, the Cottage has indeed crossed the line, especially this time when they killed Qin Ge. Qin Dynasty should go there and make sure that justice is served," a lord of Royal Xuan Temple said. His reply was very ambiguous.


    On the other hand, the people from the Moon Clan, Ji Family, and other forces all watched quietly and did not say anything. They had to observe the situation first. A major change was imminent in the Eastern Barren Territory. None of them knew what was about to happen.


    "Master, what do you think?" Suddenly, the king of Qin looked at the eminent monk from Qianqiu Temple. He was wearing a kasaya and had prayer beads around his neck and in his hand. At the moment, he grabbed the beads around his neck and closed his eyes. Then, he made some obscure noises and shook his head gently without replying to the king.


    The king of Qin looked at everyone present. It seemed that they would not make a decision until they could see a clear objective.


    "Over these years, the Cottage has become more and more uncontrolled. It now already has the potential to threaten the entire Eastern Barren Territory. If we wait for a few more years, Eastern Barren Territory will probably be ruled by the Cottage. By that time, all of your lives will be in the hands of the Cottage." The king of Qin said emotionlessly, "Therefore, I want to put an end to this situation. I invited all of you here to create a new era." The moment when he finished speaking, the place turned even quieter. Was the king of Qin planning to show his cards to Eastern Barren Territory?


    Create a new era? Whose era?


    "Your Majesty, do you want to unify the Eastern Barren Territory?" The leader of the Witch Clan stared at the king of Qin with a sharp look. He asked the question which everyone else wanted to.


    "No, I want to change Eastern Barren Territory, together with all of you, because I do not want you to disappear into the river of history just like Qin Dynasty," the king of Qin said.


    "Disappear?" Goddess Wangyue from Moon Clan looked at the king and said, "Your Majesty, is that too exaggerated? Although the Cottage is supercilious, its members do not seem to have the intention to rule the world."


    "Goddess, do you know why the relationship between the Cottage and the College is not good?" The king of Qin stared at Goddess Wangyue.


    "Why is that so?" Goddess Wangyue asked.


    "This is a top secret. Even I only know bits and pieces of it," the king said emotionlessly. "The reason is that the chief of the College and Mr. Du from the Cottage have different aspirations.


    "That time, the eldest disciple of the Cottage, Sword Saint, was extremely powerful and shocked the world in just one battle. Everyone thought that they could already see the glory of the College as another super-being had been born. However, when Sword Saint asked Mr. Du if he should stay on Book Mountain, Mr. Du asked him to leave and build his own clan.


    "The College has the Cottage with them. Even at this point, they can easily become the top clan in the Eastern Barren Territory. When all the Cottage disciples are strong enough, what position will the College have? They can conquer the world. Everyone has ambition, including the College. The College wants to become the totem head of the Eastern Barren Territory, but Mr. Du did not follow the will of the College. Instead, he only did what he wanted to. Is it because he does not have wild ambition at all?"


    The king looked at the crowd and said in a serious tone, "It''s the opposite. Mr. Du''s plans and ambition are even larger, wilder than the College Chief. The eldest disciple, Sword Saint, built Sword Saint Mountain. By the time the second, third, and even fourth disciples begin to establish their own clans, the entire Eastern Barren Territory will belong to the Cottage. The other forces will no longer be able to do anything about it.


    "If there is really such a day, ask yourself this: how are your talents compared to the Sword Saint and Gu Dongliu? By that time, the Cottage disciples will establish their own forces, and will anyone join your forces? The Cottage does not even have to fight. They just need to wait for time to pass before they can become the symbol of the Eastern Barren Territory. At that time, who will remember the Witch Clan? Or the Moon Clan? You will just vanish into the river of history.


    "This is Mr. Du''s aspiration," the king said, staring at everyone else.


    They knew what the king had just said was very likely to be true. If there was really such a day, the Cottage would not have to battle at all to unify the Eastern Barren Territory. By that time, the Cottage would become the absolute holy land in Eastern Barren Territory. Furthermore, even if they wanted to fight back by then, they would not be strong enough to deal with the Cottage disciples.

 337 A Foregone Conclusion?

    Chapter 337: A Foregone Conclusion?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The king of Qin looked at the people from various forces who were deep in thought. He knew that they were somewhat shaken.


    It was certainly not easy to convince these people to attack the Cottage alongside Qin Dynasty. Even though Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple were close to Qin Dynasty, they would still be unwilling to face an enemy like the Cottage. Every force was selfish. Only when the Cottage really threatened their existence would they consider making this decision.


    Today, he was trying to tell everyone that the threat Qin Dynasty posed them was far less than the Cottage. Otherwise, why would these people follow the Qin Dynasty and fight against the Cottage?


    "In the past when the Qin Dynasty was the king of the Eastern Barren Territory, various forces here coexisted and different clans still developed in good order. Our dynasty ruled the world but did not interfere with the existence of clans. In the future, it will remain the same. If the Qin Dynasty can rule the world again, we will surely share everything we have with all of you. We and Donghua Clan jointly established Dongqin College for the cultivators in the world. The situation in the future will not be very different from now."


    The king continued to persuade them, "Now, we have even found the tomb of our ancestors. There are many ancient books in them. As a result, we even teach techniques of the Qin Dynasty in Dongqin College to disciples. When we establish a new era together, this will even be more so. Qin Dynasty will definitely not keep all the good stuff to ourselves. Instead, we wish that all the forces can develop and grow together, unlike what the Cottage is doing. When forces such as Sword Saint Mountain fill every corner of the Eastern Barren Territory, there will be no place for you."


    Everyone''s eyes sparkled and they felt even more worried. Indeed, Qin Dynasty had obtained the tomb of their ancestors and their powers must have grown significantly. Furthermore, they had already stated clearly that they were going to revive the Qin Dynasty.


    "Your Majesty, you''re right. Now, the Cottage is already ignoring all the other forces and is extremely arrogant and supercilious. What will it be like in the future?" an elder from Yin Family echoed.


    "In the future, any Cottage disciple can shake the Eastern Barren Territory with a single sentence," someone said.


    Many people also echoed this, but the people from various top forces still kept quiet. Would Qin Dynasty really behave in the way that the king of Qin had described? They would obviously not believe him so easily. After all, the destruction of Liu Kingdom was a living example. If the Qin Dynasty really unified the Eastern Barren Territory, nobody would know what would happen.


    Currently, both the Cottage and Qin Dynasty were already far stronger than any of them. If a force was to fight against them alone, its outcome would certainly be just like the Liu Kingdom.


    This was also the most difficult problem each force was facing at the moment. They were too weak, but Qin Dynasty declared its ambition to rule Eastern Barren Territory and wanted them to state their position. However, they would be in danger regardless of whether they made their position clear. If they chose not to declare their position now, Qin Dynasty might win and find them afterward. They would end up just like the Liu Kingdom. If they chose to stand on Qin Dynasty''s side, they would face the risk of losing.


    Now, nobody knew clearly what the Qin Dynasty and the Cottage really had. Qin Dynasty was confident because they were strong, had allied with Donghua Clan, and found the tomb of their ancestors. On the other hand, the Cottage was very mysterious. Nobody knew whether Mr. Du from the Cottage really knew about cultivation or not, or how strong he was.


    "I know that you still have concerns and are worried that I will not keep my promise. But please rest assured. As long as you are willing to attack the Cottage with us, I will bring you to the tomb. There, you will be strengthened by our ancestors and obtain sage ritual implements. I am even willing to take a blood oath with you in front of the tomb. The only goal of the Qin Dynasty is to restore the glory we once had and not to own everything in the world," the king of Qin announced loudly. When he finished speaking, many people could feel their hearts trembling. Their eyes brightened and they were somewhat shaken.


    Only real benefits could move a person.


    Eastern Barren Territory would be unified sooner or later. They could not resist the general trend at all. When Qin Dynasty destroyed the Liu Kingdom and the Cottage killed Qin Ge, the situation in the Eastern Barren Territory changed from being subtle to clear. A war could erupt at any time, and the current era seemed to be approaching its end at an accelerated pace. Nobody could stop the torrents of this trend.


    Just now, Qin Dynasty had been discussing the Cottage''s threat. Now, they mentioned about being strengthened by their ancestors and obtaining sage ritual implements. How could they not be moved?


    Suddenly, Xia Luo, a disciple of the first lord of Royal Xuan Temple, said to his master secretly, "Master, if we want to get the upper hand in the future, we must get their trust now. There is no time to hesitate. The relationship between Royal Xuan Temple and the Cottage is already unrepairable unless we tie the fifth lord up and give him to the Cottage."


    The first lord''s eyes sparkled. He knew that his disciple was only describing the reality, but Royal Xuan Temple would obviously not give the fifth lord to the Cottage. Otherwise, Royal Xuan Temple would no longer be able to have a firm standing in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Noticing that his master was still hesitating, Xia Luo added, "Master, it''s time for us to make a decision. There is a difference between being the first to accept and being forced to accept. If the five lords in Royal Xuan Temple can all be strengthened and get sage ritual implements, we will definitely be able to have a place in Eastern Barren Territory in the future. Now, we only want to maximize our benefits."


    The first lord clearly knew what his disciple was saying was all correct. He glanced at the people from other forces and discussed secretly with the other lords. The fifth lord, He Yulu, obviously supported this idea. Soon, the first lord said, "The Cottage is uncontrolled in their behavior and forced my Royal Xuan Temple disciple to die. We have been unhappy about this since long ago but we could only tolerate them because we were too weak. Now, Qin Dynasty is willing to call upon the world to attack the Cottage, and Royal Xuan Temple is, of course, happy to know that. We will join you in the battle." When he finished speaking, the place fell into complete silence. There was finally a top force that made their decision. Everyone knew that from the moment he said this, Royal Xuan Temple would really be tied to Qin Dynasty''s war chariot.


    Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and Royal Xuan Temple had allied.


    The king''s eyes glittered. Finally, a force declared its position. What Qin Dynasty needed the most at the moment was such a primer. The statement from the first lord of Royal Xuan Temple was sufficient to break the mental defense of the other leaders.


    The outcome was already a foregone conclusion��they had to join the Qin Dynasty.


    Thinking about this, he glanced inadvertently at Xia Luo who was sitting behind the first lord of Royal Xuan Temple. Xia Luo''s real surname was Qin and he had stayed in Royal Xuan Temple for many years, all for this moment. In the future, he could assist his brother Qin Yu in ruling.


    Xia Luo was also extremely excited at the moment, but he still controlled himself. He was sent to Royal Xuan Temple when he was young, so naturally, he was very adept at hiding his emotions. In the many years at Royal Xuan Temple, he had never once displayed any relationship to Qin Dynasty. He even did not really contact the Qin Dynasty. Only in Chaoge City did he start to execute Qin Dynasty''s plan. Finally, at this very important moment, he played a key role.


    He knew clearly that at such a time, the leaders of various forces only needed a primer, and he had played his role well, causing the first lord of Royal Xuan Temple to make the decision.


    "Great. With your decision, Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and Royal Xuan Temple will definitely achieve a lot. Who else is willing to join me and establish a new era?" the king asked loudly.


    "Your Majesty, we will follow you," a person from Yin Family made his stance.


    "Your Majesty, we will follow you and fight against the Cottage." Many people announced their decisions one after another. The forces which followed the Qin Dynasty naturally knew what they should do at the moment. Royal Xuan Temple had already nodded, so it was time to let the other forces feel that the torrent of change was unstoppable.


    The various top forces all felt some pressure from the situation. The eyes of the Fuyun Sword Clan leader sparkled, after which he also said, "Fuyun Sword Clan will also follow Qin Dynasty."


    "Fantastic. With the aid of Fuyun Sword Clan, we can accomplish anything," the king said, grinning.


    "Congratulations, Your Majesty. You will certainly destroy the Cottage and rule the Eastern Barren Territory." The voices of people became stronger and stronger. The cultivators from the Witch Clan, Ji Family, and the Moon Clan sat on their seats. Looking at the scene before them, they all sighed in their hearts.


    Although the true strength of the Cottage was unknown, they would probably not be able to fight against so many major forces. Even if Mr. Du from the Cottage knew how to cultivate, he should not be stronger than the College Chief. The top cultivators from Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan would be able to deal with him.


    In the Qin Imperial Palace, the sound waves turned into a terrifying mass which spread outwards continuously. The crowd in the distance felt the power of the torrent and was deeply shocked. A new era was approaching. Were the College and the Cottage going to be destroyed?


    Suddenly, a man in a black shirt appeared among the vast crowd outside the palace. He looked ordinary and was wearing a black robe which swung in the air. He also had long, black hair. On his usual-looking face, however, there was a pair of eyes which looked as mysterious and deep as the stars, making him somewhat unusual.


    Through the loud noises, he walked calmly towards the palace step by step. Occasionally, some people would look at him and notice his special temperament. They would frown and think about why he had attracted their attention although he looked ordinary. It felt as if at the moment they saw him, they knew that he was certainly extraordinary, unlike his appearance.


    Very soon, the man reached the gates of the palace and continued to walk forward.


    Seeing him, a guard outside the Qin Imperial Palace questioned, "Who are you?"


    The person ignored him and still walked slowly towards the palace. From his body, a faint might was being released.


    Seeing the scene, a guard walked forward and shouted, "Stop." However, the person did not seem to have heard anything and continued to advance. A murderous aura was emitted from the guards but in the next instant, the man in black shirt took a step forward and an invisible current started to flow. Immediately, the space around him seemed to freeze. The guards stopped and stood motionlessly at their spots like statues. They just watched as the person walked past them and into the palace.


    Very soon, the guards could move again. They could all feel their bodies being filled with cold sweat and only astonishment could be seen on their faces. Such a terrifying person! Just now, they felt that if they were to move even slightly, they would be crushed into a million pieces!

 338 Extremely Fragile

    Chapter 338: Extremely Fragile


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Amidst the crashing tides, the black-clothed man stepped forward. His aura seeped out bit by bit.


    Many people from the surroundings looked at him strangely. He looked average but his eyes were very deep. His eyebrows were different too. They were like crescent moons but also like broadswords.


    Some from the Qin Dynasty furrowed their brows. Bodies flashing, they went to him. "Who are you?" someone asked.


    The man didn''t reply. He continued forward, his aura shrouding over who was before him. In an instant, those hearts started trembling, their pupils contracting. That moment, they felt that they were in a terrifying space. The formless aura could rip them into pieces.


    The black-clothed man seemed to be alone in his world. He walked to the center of the banquet. His steps gradually moved up into the air. Each step was higher than the last.


    Gradually, more and more people discovered his existence. Many people looked up, eyebrows arching. Emperor Qin had gathered all strong cultivators here. Everyone present was a top figure of the Eastern Barren Territory''s top forces. Who was this guy? How dare he be so impolite and crazy as to walk in the air?


    The guards moved to stop him but his aura abruptly became extremely terrifying. The horrible intent radiated from him, creating a force field in the vast space. Those who wanted to stop him froze in the air, staring at him.


    Hiss�� Piercing sounds rang out in the air. An invisible force shrouded the space, pushing down the crashing tide. The sound weakened and everyone looked up. They saw the black-clothed man walking towards the center of the stage. As the force strengthened, the tides weakened. Its strength quickly faded until it was completely gone. Soon, the space was quiet and felt eerie.


    As soon as the man appeared, he repressed the wild atmosphere. He stood proudly in the air. He was average-looking but was now the absolute focus. He seemed to be the only one in the Qin palace.


    The big figures in the banquet all looked at him, hearts trembling. The clan leader of the Fuyun Sword Clan even stood up with an extremely icy expression. His eyes were like an unsheathed sword that stabbed toward the man. It was that sharp.


    "Emperor Qin, you invited all the strong cultivators here. Why didn''t you invite me?" the man said in the air. His voice was as cold and hard as stone. His eyes still focused on the important figures of the Qin Dynasty.


    "I was afraid I''m not important enough for the first disciple of the Cottage." Emperor Qin remained in his seat, staring at the black-clothed figure in the air.


    It was the Sword Saint, the first disciple of the Cottage. He''d come out of the west of the Eastern Barren Territory and come to the Qin palace. The people of the top forces were terrified. No one thought that the Sword Saint would appear in front of everyone. This was crazy. Qin Ge had died outside Book Mountain not long ago. Now, the Sword Saint came to the Qin Dynasty alone. Was he showing absolute confidence in his abilities?


    The vast space was dead silent. Not many had seen the Sword Saint before so they didn''t know who he was until Emperor Qin''s words.


    "I heard that the Qin Dynasty is calling the Eastern Barren Territory to punish the Cottage. How can I not come?" The Sword Saint''s voice contained formless power. No matter what his cultivation was, his own aura could push down the entire Qin palace.


    Emperor Qin kept looking at the Sword Saint without speaking. Qin Yu, though, walked forward. He was level with Gu Dongliu and Lu Nantian. The Sword Saint had made a name for himself earlier and more impressively.


    The Sword Saint only used one battle because he''d challenged the Fuyun Sword Clan. One battle turned him into a saint. It had been many years since that one battle. What plane was the Sword Saint at now?


    "I''ve heard of you for many years, Sword Saint. I would like to learn from you today," Qin Yu said. A gust of horrible battle intent radiated from him.


    The Sword Saint scanned Qin Yu. The next moment, horrible wind swept over the Qin palace, ravaging the world. Sharp sword intent flooded out, splitting the heavens. Endless sword intent converged into a broadsword that hung in the air.


    The sword hung across the sky, hanging over everyone''s heads. At that moment, everyone present felt the pressure of the world ending. The sword could fall on them at any moment.


    Countless people looked up at the Sword Saint, especially those from the top forces. What level was he at now?


    Hiss�� The hovering sword came down. Without saying anything, the Sword Saint moved directly. This action didn''t seem to use any skill or spell. It was just like a plain sword movement. The sword floated down as if it was unthreatening. Just like a flash of light, it didn''t target anyone. Instead, it stabbed the center of the stage, the location of the banquet.


    No one moved, whether because the sword was too fast or because they weren''t the targets. Anyway, no one stopped the sword and let it fall and split the center of the Qin palace''s ground. A thin crack appeared, spreading outward in different directions like a tree''s roots. It expanded crazily in every direction before stopping at the feet of the top forces.


    The Fuyun Sword Clan leader looked down at the thin crack by his feet. Sharp broadsword light seemed to shine from it. The light contained incredible broadsword intent; it seemed eternal. Sword intent shone from the leader''s eyes, rushing into the crack. It found the broadsword intent and tried to erase it but it was impossible. Discovering this, he trembled involuntarily. He knew what this meant.


    It meant that the Sword Saint had sage intent now. He''d surpassed the Fuyun Sword Clan''s leader and his sword intent.


    The lord of the Royal Xuan Temple also looked down to feel the broadsword intent. His arm trembled; his expression was uncomfortable. The other people all looked down and were unsettled. Those who had lower planes felt that their souls would be ripped apart when they felt the broadsword intent.


    Hiss, hiss�� At that moment, the broadsword intent in the crack exploded. It tore apart everything as it expanded crazily. The ground was ripped apart with horribly deep fissures. The light dimmed and the remaining broadsword intent scattered. All that remained was the mark. One could still feel the horrible existence within it.


    The vast palace was dead silent.


    Just as the Qin Dynasty called the Eastern Barren Territory to prepare to punish the Cottage, the first disciple appeared. He just walked into the palace and made one move. He seemed to be the only one here.


    The strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty were uncomfortable, especially Emperor Qin and Qin Yu, the crown prince.


    Just then, Qin Yu pulled out the golden dragon spear. A dragon roared faintly as if it contained the soul of a dragon. The Sword Saint''s one move told him that the Sword Saint had progressed much further than him. His sage intent was deeper too. It would be impossible to win against him without a sage ritual implement.


    Dragons roared and Qin Yu shot into the air. Dragons seemed to wrap around them. However, the Sword Saint just scanned them indifferently. "I don''t mind if you want to fight here but how many of the people present can leave alive?" His words shook everyone. Earlier, his attack hadn''t meant to kill anyone so he split the space. But if a battle truly happened, just the shockwaves would be impossible to bear for most people. A shred of the broadsword intent could kill many strong cultivators. Not many would be able to survive.


    "The mighty Sword Saint is threatening other people''s lives?" Qin Yu said, staring at the Sword Saint. If they fight, they would obviously go battle it out in the air.


    "If there''s a next time, I won''t cast my broadsword like this and it might not be at the Qin Dynasty," the Sword Saint said indifferently. As soon as he finished, he turned and walked away.


    Accept Qin Yu''s challenge? He didn''t have time for something so boring. Seeing how the Qin Dynasty had treated the Liu Kingdom and were about to attack the Cottage, he''d come to the Qin Dynasty. Now he had to play with Qin Yu?


    "You''re going to leave like this?" Emperor Qin called to the Sword Saint''s back.


    "You can try keeping me here but you must bear the consequences," the Sword Saint said. Emperor Qin stared at his backside with an ugly expression. He could feel from the bit of broadsword intent that the Sword Saint was no longer below his level. If he really tried to make the man stay, no one could predict the consequences. Many people would die.


    Qin Yu gripped the dragon spear as he glared at the man''s back. Were they really letting the Sword Saint leave like this?


    There wasn''t much time for him to think. The Sword Saint quickly transformed into a black dot that faded into the distance.


    Everyone stared at the Sword Saint, feeling unsettled inside. He was much stronger than before. What would the result be if he visited all their clans? They didn''t dare imagine it.


    At that moment, the powerful atmosphere from earlier was gone. The Eastern Barren alliance was about to be born but now, it looked fragile enough to shatter at a touch!

 339 Teacher Is Very Lazy

    Chapter 339: Teacher Is Very Lazy


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After such big news erupted in the Eastern Barren Territory, the disciples of the Cottage were a bit unsettled. They received news that the Qin palace was holding a banquet to call for all the strong cultivators in the territory to attack the Cottage.


    If a battle of this level really erupted, countless people would die no matter who won.


    But the Cottage was still as quiet as ever. It was Ye Futian who wasn''t so indifferent though. After all, this was because of him.


    "Second Senior Sister, I heard that the Qin palace held a banquet today. Emperor Qin might call the entire territory to fight the Cottage." Ye Futian found Zhuge Hui to ask. She was so calm that she was sitting on a swing right now. She was beautiful but Ye Futian wasn''t in the mood to appreciate it.


    Zhuge Hui smiled at him. "Didn''t Junior tell you to go cultivate? Don''t worry, nothing will happen for now."


    Ye Futian scratched his head in confusion. "How do you know?"


    "The Qin Dynasty wanted the entire territory to fight the Cottage. The teacher is lazy and we can''t find him so who can take responsibility?" Zhuge Hui asked.


    Ye Futian scratched his head. "You?"


    "I''m busy. You still have a First Senior Brother."


    Rolling her eyes, Zhuge Hui said, "When the Fuyun Sword Clan insulted our teacher, First Senior Brother went there directly. Now, those guys want to attack the Cottage. He could go to any force and the alliance would fall apart. The Cottage isn''t the Liu Kingdom. The Qin Dynasty isn''t completely confident so he got a bunch of people to support him. They aren''t stupid though. It''s just that your First Senior Brother hasn''t left his mountain for too long and they forgot."


    Hearing this, Ye Futian was a bit more reassured. First Senior Brother must have improved over all these years. For a fight like this, they had to have complete confidence. Otherwise, who wouldn''t be afraid of the First Senior Brother, as Second Senior Sister said?


    "First Senior Brother can probably beat the Fuyun Sword Clan''s leader now, right?" Ye Futian asked curiously. They''d tied back then but a Cottage disciple''s talent was usually better than most.


    "Your Third Senior Brother should be clearest about his abilities. Since he killed Prince Qin, the guy died for nothing," Zhuge Hui said. "Your Third Senior Brother probably just wanted to help the Liu Kingdom."


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded while sighing inwardly. It was too bad for the Liu Kingdom. They couldn''t take revenge yet.


    "What is First Senior Brother like?" Ye Futian mumbled. Of all the disciples, First Senior Brother was the only one he hadn''t met yet.


    Zhuge Hui''s lashes fluttered. She smiled and said, "Like a rock."


    "A rock?" Ye Futian didn''t understand.


    "Yes." Zhuge Hui nodded. "He has a bad and stubborn temper."


    "You''re talking about me again," a voice said from the distance. Zhuge Hui chuckled and looked up towards somewhere. Clearly, she already sensed him.


    A few people walked over. The man at the front wore black. It was the Sword Saint who''d come from the Qin Dynasty. Luo Fan, Xue Ye, and Yi Xiaoshi stood beside him.


    "First Senior Brother, am I wrong?" Zhuge Hui asked, grinning.


    "Alright, you''re always right," the Sword Saint said, smiling. His deep eyes were gentler now. He wouldn''t be as sharp with his juniors as with the Qin Dynasty.


    Ye Futian studied the newcomer. This was their first meeting. It was also his first time seeing Second Senior Sister lose her authoritative aura before the Cottage disciples. Their eyes and simple conversation felt like regular siblings.


    No matter how many legends there were and how legendary they were, they''re just regular people with their family.


    "Little junior," Sword Saint called, gazing at Ye Futian.


    "First Senior Brother," Ye Futian greeted with a bright smile. "I was wondering what you would be like while talking to Second Senior Sister. Now I see that you are truly handsome, amazing, charismatic, powerful��"


    Sword Saint blinked at Ye Futian before bursting into laughter. "No wonder I heard that your senior sister spoils you," he stated. "Good job."


    Beside Sword Saint, Yi Xiaoshi was annoyed. It was also their first meeting but the difference was too much. He was impressed by this guy''s shamelessness.


    "First Senior Brother." A small figure ran over. Beitang Xing''er gazed at this legendary figure, feeling a bit nervous since it was also their first meeting.


    "I heard long ago that the teacher took in a beautiful junior sister. These guys are lucky." Sword Saint chuckled.


    Hearing the compliment, Beitang Xing''er blushed. "I''ll go get Third Senior Brother." With that, she turned and jogged away.


    "Fifth Brother, go cook. Fourth Brother, help him. Seventh Brother, get some good wine," Zhuge Hui ordered. Everyone nodded and went to work while glaring at Ye Futian in jealousy. This guy had nothing to do��


    "Senior Brother, you came back from the Qin Dynasty?" Zhuge Hui asked.


    "You''re smart." Sword Saint smiled at her. "I went to visit the Qin Dynasty and decided to drop by. I haven''t met the juniors yet."


    Beside them, Ye Futian was stunned. First Senior Brother had talked about visiting the Qin Dynasty so casually. He wondered how amazing it must have been.


    Prince Qin Ge of the Qin Dynasty had died under Gu Dongliu''s hands. The Qin Dynasty wanted to attack the Cottage so the First Senior Brother went to visit them when the entire Eastern Barren Territory was guarded. It must have been extremely imposing and daring.


    It seemed that Second Senior Sister had been right but instead of going to the other forces, First Senior Brother had gone to the Qin Dynasty.


    "Our junior had been worried that the Eastern Barren Territory would ally against us," Zhuge Hui said. "Now he can rest assured."


    Ye Futian smiled, lips quivering. Since First Senior Brother went to the Qin Dynasty and came to the Cottage in one piece, he must have solved the problem.


    "They don''t have the courage to forge an alliance and fight the Cottage," the Sword Saint said. "But since the Qin Dynasty has already declared war, the Eastern Barren Territory won''t be at peace. You still have to be careful."


    Zhuge Hui nodded lightly. The rivalry had been sowed. Even if the Qin Dynasty didn''t dare to fight directly, war was inevitable since their declaration. They just didn''t dare show their hidden cards now and start an extreme war.


    "Is there still no news of the teacher?" the Sword Saint asked.


    "First Senior Brother, it''s not like you don''t know him. Maybe he''s finding pretty disciples somewhere again," Zhuge Hui muttered. "It''s all his fault for not keeping his eyes on the teacher."


    "You think Third Junior can keep the teacher if he wants to leave?" Sword Saint said. "You know how lazy he is."


    Ye Futian listened to the conversation, feeling awkward. What kind of legend was the teacher?!


    "First Senior Brother, you really spoke up for me." Handsome Gu Dongliu walked over. He glanced at Zhuge Hui, who looked away, not feeling like giving him attention.


    Seeing those small movements, the Sword Saint shook his head. "You two��"


    "How lazy is the teacher?" Ye Futian asked.


    "How many disciples did he accept? And he just takes them in without teaching them. How lazy do you think he is?" Second Senior Sister asked.


    Ye Futian felt more embarrassed. There were only seven disciples before him. And the teacher just took them in without teaching�� he truly was lazy.


    "So many people are dreaming that the teacher wanted to rule over the Eastern Barren Territory." Shaking his head, the Sword Saint said, "It would be great if that old man has those aspirations."


    Zhuge Hui''s eyes glimmered. If one knew how lazy the teacher truly was, one would know how bizarre it was to rule over the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "How many times have people seen him? How can they understand his state?" Gu Dongliu said calmly. Even those top figures couldn''t say that they understood the Cottage''s teacher.


    These three were probably the most familiar with the teacher but they still couldn''t find him.


    As they chatted, the wine and food were prepared. Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue came too. Since Ye Futian joined, this was the first time all disciples were present.


    The atmosphere was as casual and light as before. The disciples were all legendary figures outside. But here, they were all regular people who chatted normally.


    ��


    In the outside world, the Sword Saint''s appearance at the Qin Dynasty caused a great uproar. The Qin Dynasty had wanted the entire Eastern Barren Territory to attack the Cottage but he''d failed. The Sword Saint''s appearance had dismantled the alliance. No one dared to risk it.


    The broadsword intent left in the palace also showed Emperor Qin that his cultivation was the peak of the Eastern Barren Territory. Anyone who wanted to attack the Cottage knew the consequence. They couldn''t survive the Sword Saint''s revenge.


    Of course, they couldn''t send soldiers directly but the Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple had agreed publicly to ally with the Qin Dynasty. This powerful force feared the Sword Saint but they couldn''t back out.


    Countless days later in the Ancient Barren World, many College disciples were cultivating at a relic. Just then, a group of strong cultivators descended. They were from the Qin Dynasty; the leader was Qin Li. He waved his hand and surrounded the people of the College.


    "Disable them and leave," Qin Li ordered coldly. His men attacked instantly.


    The bystanders were all terrified and moved to the side. The College disciples fought back violently but were soon all disabled and taken away.


    Many hearts were trembling. As expected, the Qin Dynasty didn''t send soldiers directly to Book Mountain. But they wanted to become the overbearing lord of the Eastern Barren Territory. They couldn''t let Qin Ge die for nothing.


    The war had descended without realizing.


    After that, the Qin Dynasty sent word that the College could hand over Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu as an exchange.


    The College was furious. They knew that Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu were just an excuse to start a war!

 340 Battlefield in the Ancient Barren World

    Chapter 340: Battlefield in the Ancient Barren World


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Obviously, the College couldn''t agree to the Qin Dynasty''s request. Not because Liu Feiyang or Liu Chenyu were of any particular importance to them, but because this was simply an excuse for the Qin to start a war. What kind of people would they be to send these youngsters to their deaths? Since a war had already been declared, then following this, they were going to have to get into battle mode.


    The College recalled all disciples cultivating in the Ancient Barren World. Then, they were paired with more powerful cultivators before heading back, ready to retaliate. And so, the war between the Qin Dynasty and the College erupted in the Ancient Barren World.


    The Eastern Barren Territory was not surprised by the start of the war. The Sword Saint took a trip to the Qin Dynasty and scared powers away from creating an alliance with the Qin. And although they didn''t dare to directly send troops to exterminate the Cottage, the Qin weren''t just going to give up. The Ancient Barren World was meant to be a place for disciples of all powers to train and cultivate, so it was, without question, the most fitting setting for this war to erupt.


    On this day, two figures descended from a mountaintop in the lower Ancient Barren World, traveling in the air. They were particularly fast. One of them had large, golden roc wings on his back. Majestic, he was. The other had dim golden wings of a devil which brought the winds.


    These two were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. They had yet to enter the Arcana Plane and could only enter the lower Ancient Barren World. However, it was because of this very reason that the people who could pose a threat to them in the lower world were little to none. The two of them continued forward on their journey to somewhere in the Ancient Barren World. People would look up in the skies at them as they passed by and couldn''t help but be surprised. It was Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "Let''s go. To the Qin''s territory," someone said. There was no explanation needed for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s appearance in the lower world. Everyone knew what they were here for. The Qin Dynasty had declared war on the College''s Cottage.


    In the center of the Ancient Barren World, in the Barren City, many people saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng fly by. After the initial shock wore off, they followed behind the two.


    "Ye Futian defeated Luo Junlin, an Arcana Plane cultivator. His combat abilities are obviously already at the Arcana level. It''s probably impossible to find anyone who can beat him in the lower Ancient Barren World." People in the Barren City were watching the figures in the sky.


    "That''s right, but the Qin Dynasty wouldn''t have declared war if they weren''t fully prepared and they definitely wouldn''t fight Ye Futian one on one."


    "That''s true, too. The Qin Dynasty has a strong foundation, even in the Ancient Barren World. Even if Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were to make their way over, they wouldn''t necessarily have the upper hand."


    The people discussed as their figures flashed by to follow Ye Futian and Yu Sheng on their journey.


    The crowd grew and grew. All of them headed for the center of the Barren City. There, sat a small palace, the sub-palace where the Qin was stationed in the lower world.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng arrived in the skies near the sub-palace.


    Inside the palace, powerful cultivators lifted their heads to see the two figures in the sky. There wasn''t much surprise in their eyes. The war had already begun, so they were obviously prepared.


    The people outside the palace did not fly up to fight Ye Futian. Instead, they turned and headed into the palace to gather with the other cultivators. In the battle at Chaoge City, Ye Futian had already demonstrated his intense Dharma-leveled combat abilities. They would have had to have a death wish to try and take on Ye Futian alone.


    As expected, the Qin Dynasty is fully prepared, many people thought as they looked quietly down at the sub-palace from afar.


    Looking down from the skies, the people could see that more and more cultivators of the Qin Dynasty were gathering in the palace.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng advanced until they were directly above the palace grounds. Their cold eyes swept past the faces of the Qin below.


    The sun and the moon hung high in the sky while water and fire complemented each other. Ye Futian released his Dharma. His whole body seemed to be burning like the sun, encased in flames. Destructive yet eye-catchingly bright.


    Beside Ye Futian, the shadow of a devil appeared behind Yu Sheng. The armor he wore was sharp like a blade, just like those devilish wings of his. In this instant, it was almost as if Yu Sheng was possessed by the devil. A dim golden light illuminated the area around him. Without saying anything, the large golden roc wings behind Ye Futian spread brought him charging into the sub-palace, not waiting for his opponents to finish gathering there.


    The two of them flew side by side, wings shining brightly. They made their way downward with great speed. A divine tree of flame appeared behind Ye Futian.


    WHOOSH! Vines shot down at the crowd below. This spell, Lock of a Thousand Vines, was a spell that Ye Futian cultivated very early on, but it was also a spell with growth potential. The higher your level of cultivation, the more powerful the spell. And of course, the spell had already been altered by Ye Futian. The thick vines were actually engulfed with water and fire, making it shine brightly.


    The people of the Qin Dynasty saw the vines unfurl toward them and a couple of them grouped together to unleash the Imperial Dragon Spell. The shadow of dragons soared through the skies. As the long spears in their hands pointed up at the sky, images of dragons seemed to rush from the weapons with loud roars. However, there seemed to be no end to the vines. They wrapped around the illusory dragons and they were immediately frosted over by the coldness radiating from the vines. Then, a golden burst of flames flickered by, and extremely bright characters and inscriptions appeared. The illusory dragons wrapped in vines turned into dust after that.


    Yu Sheng was even more domineering. He held the Dark Demon''s Heavenly Halberd and turned into a forceful devil. He walked through the images of the dragons, ripping them apart. The devilish flame in his shining, golden pupils was a flame of fury. He took the destruction of the Liu Kingdom and what happened to Liu Chenyu and Ye Wuchen to heart and now, he finally had a chance to release all the rage.


    BOOM! Yu Sheng descended for the skies, stepping on a dragon. The small group formation was broken up when everyone was sent flying in a different direction. When they got back up, they surrounded Yu Sheng, all their eyes glued on the large, built figure at the center of their circle.


    The devil wings behind Yu Sheng spread and he charged ahead with the Heavenly Halberd in his hands. The cultivator in front of him yelled out in rage before the long spear in his hand spiraled forward like a dragon. When the halberd and the spear collided, the image of the dragon disappeared and the spear was destroyed. The Heavenly Halberd had pierced into Yu Sheng''s opponent. Yu Sheng then lifted his weapon, with the body still on it, and threw the wounded cultivator at the incoming attackers behind him.


    "Get in formation! Don''t fight him alone!" More and more people rushed out from the sub-palace. However, all it took was a loud, wild roar from Yu Sheng to scare everyone around him into backing up. They all knew by now, that if they made a rash decision to fight this wild beast of a man head-on, it would only be asking for death.


    On the other side, those fighting Ye Futian had been trapped in a cage of vines. With the sun and the moon high in the sky, and the will of water and fire rushing through the battle formation, the people tried so hard to withstand the power. A large illusory dragon appeared around them and blocked off Ye Futian''s attack.


    In the sky around Ye Futian, the flashes of lightning were bright and the sounds of thunder rumbled loudly. It was obvious that immensely powerful sorcery was being conjured around him. A terrifying Thunder Dragon took shape with the power of sorcery and traveled downward, growling loudly and ready for destruction.


    Thunder cracked loudly in the sky. The powerful cultivators on the ground below felt numb and their focus broke, as did the battle formation. The water and fire vines curled toward them and their screams rang out continuously. Their bodies were encapsulated by the bright light of water and fire. Quickly after, they perished.


    The people of the Qin Dynasty rushed over from inside the sub-palace. None of their expressions looked too good. They did not make a move right away. Instead, they got into formation, barricading Ye Futian and Yu Sheng in the middle of a circle.


    The Imperial Dragon Spell went into motion across all the formations and all of the cultivators'' powers seemed to harmonize, creating something overwhelmingly powerful. The cries of dragons were heard, shocking many.


    "Activate the Five Soul Guard!" screamed a cultivator. Immediately, a bright light spread over the grounds inside the sub-palace. In this vast space, the Spiritual Qi had gone out of control, gathering crazily.


    A great pressure was felt over the area. Ye Futian looked into the distance and saw multiple statues of sacred beasts appear in the palace: a large, ferocious dragon, an enormous Xuanwu, the Black Turtle, a bright divine bird, the Phoenix, a gargantuan stone elephant, and a bright Golden Roc.


    The crushing power of these statues fell on Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. At this moment, it seemed like they were looking at five horrific demon beasts. The wills of these beasts went straight to their heads.


    "Don''t look," Ye Futian said to Yu Sheng. They were going to cut off their senses to the beasts, but even without sensing them, the pressure was still crushing down on them. It made the entire area feel extremely heavy.


    "Just treat this like you''re cultivating at the College''s training field," said Ye Futian. However, this power was even scarier than what he had felt in the training field. The statues there weren''t as powerful. Plus, when fighting at the training field, everyone felt the same thing, but now, this crushing pressure was manipulated to only affect Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. The cultivators of the Qin Dynasty did not feel a thing.


    Outside the palace, countless people were watching this scene. They felt shivers down their spine. It was no question that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were strong, but it was still too reckless of them to try and kill their way into the Qin''s territory in the Ancient Barren World.


    They had to know, the Qin Dynasty chose this location because they could use the Five Soul Guard''s power to help them cultivate and also use them in battle. This area used to be a relic site but was claimed by the Qin and made into this sub-palace. They had kept this place running for years. For these two to charge in so recklessly was simply putting themselves in danger.


    Although the Sword Saint''s arrival in the Qin palace made all the other powers wary of sending troops to exterminate the Cottage, Ye Futian made his way to the sub-palace on his own. The Qin couldn''t let him get away now.


    The Qin Dynasty had their doubts, but so did the people of Sword Saint Mountain and the Cottage. The two parties were keeping each other in check, but the war had already erupted in the Ancient Barren World. It had become the tacitly agreed upon battlefield.


    "Since you willing delivered yourself to the doors of hell, then we are happy to oblige," a Qin cultivator said coldly with his spear pointed at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. It was an exciting thought, to be able to kill a disciple of the Cottage.


    Everyone in the ruling class of the Qin Dynasty wanted Ye Futian dead. Now, the chance was finally here.


    "This place is quite suitable for cultivation. This place will no longer belong to the Qin Dynasty," Ye Futian said. He completely disregarded what the other guy just had said.

 341 To Claim for Oneself

    Chapter 341: To Claim for Oneself


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Even from afar, people with stupefied by what Ye Futian had said. He was indeed just as arrogant as the rumors said. He was actually this confident. Even when standing in the Qin''s territory, facing the statues of the Five Soul Guard.


    "Initiate the Spiritual Matrix," a voice uttered coldly. After that, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could feel an invisible weight push down on their bodies. It was as if an enormous sacred elephant was sitting on them. Not only was it difficult for them to move, but there was also a sharp and piercing intent, a burning intent. Along with this feeling, five spiritual beasts appeared in their minds.


    "Yu Sheng!" shouted Ye Futian. Stepping forward, the image of the Divine Ape appeared, adding to his already wild aura.


    Yu Sheng responded by following beside him with the halberd still clutched in his hand. The two of them moved forward, every step felt heavy than the last.


    BOOM! They stomped down hard suddenly and their bodies were propelled forward. In front of them, a group of cultivators had gotten in formation and were staring at them with cold eyes.


    The Imperial Dragon Spell went into action and the Battle Will morphed into a dragon that danced wildly in the air. When the cultivators saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng charging for them, they gave a loud battle cry before throwing out the long spears in their hands. An enormous dragon followed the weapons, roaring loudly as it attacked. It seemed like the Spiritual Matrix the cultivators had formed added to the power of the dragon. This was evident as it charged for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, growling fiercely.


    Yu Sheng stomped down on the ground hard. His aura was explosive, making him look even scarier. The image of the devil enlarged as he took a step forward to stand in front of Ye Futian. The Heavenly Halberd attacked and, in this instant, the demon seemed to be following right behind the weapon, cutting its way through everything in sight. The halberd, which was entangled by Demonic Will, collided with the dragon. The beast''s body shook violently. The same powerful vibrations also made their way onto Yu Sheng. He screamed, a demonic growl, if you will. Shockingly, multiple illusory images of a demon head were released before they exploded along with the image of the dragon.


    A figure flashed by. It was Ye Futian. He rushed toward the Qin''s battle formation. All the while, Spiritual Qi gathered and produced a large rod. The Five Element Rod had exceeded the Dharma level and was not permitted in the lower Ancient Barren World. The same went for Yu Sheng''s demonic tripod.


    When the long rod took shape, Ye Futian swung it forward fiercely, ready for destruction. The powerful cultivators in formation yelled out together before attacking. Their powers harmonized and created a bright light that took the form of a dragon.


    BOOM! The long rod was swung downward with immense power, almost as if it were the heaviest object on earth. Those in the formation moaned in pain and the ones with lower levels of cultivation spat blood on impact. The formation was broken in seconds as many of them were thrown in different directions by the sheer force.


    Ye Futian paid them no attention. He continued forward. making his way deeper into the sub-palace. Cultivators behind them tried to get into formation again, following after them. However, Yu Sheng turned around and with one blow from his halberd, he had single-handedly stopped their attack.


    "Block him!" someone shouted when they saw where Ye Futian was headed. However, their attempts were futile because they were no match for Ye Futian as Dharma Plane cultivators. When the sun and the moon hung in the sky and the wills of water and fire descended upon them, it was the end.


    Ye Futian charged over to the statue of the large Golden Roc of the Five Soul Guard. The statue was enormous. The look in its eyes was filled with demonic energy. Its body glowed, including the wings on its back. A figure stood behind the statue and communicated with it through will to control its attacks on Ye Futian. Immediately, Ye Futian felt the Golden Roc rush into his mind.


    The look in his eyes became eerie as he allowed the roc''s will to enter. He was shocked to find there really was the will of a Golden Roc inside the statue. The strong, sharp will could destroy most anything. What it wanted to do now was destroy Ye Futian''s will.


    A scary force of Emperor''s Will rushed into the statue and took control of its will. If it had been the Golden Roc''s will that had attacked Ye Futian, he wouldn''t have been able to do anything, but it was a Dharma Plane cultivator that was controlling the will. There was no way he could destroy Ye Futian''s will. Ye Futian had no doubts about how this battle would end when he saw these statues. What relics in the Ancient Barren World could stump him at this point?


    Behind the Golden Roc, the Qin cultivator screamed in horror. Backing up, he looked at Ye Futian with shock written on his face. What level of will was that? How can it be so powerful?


    The vines of the Sun Tree unraveled toward the cultivator noisily, killing him. Ye Futian shot over to stand atop the statue of the Golden Roc. He closed his eyes and allowed his will to enter the stone.


    Yu Sheng fought his way through until he was stood in front of the statue. He was able to slow down the formation formed by the Qin Dynasty''s people all by himself. And although it didn''t last very long, it was still an impressive feat.


    "What is he doing?" Many people questioned as they observed from the skies above the sub-palace. Presently, Ye Futian was standing on the back of the Golden Roc statue. His white clothes fluttered and his hair blew in the wind. It was truly an extraordinary sight.


    "Ye Futian was able to control a statue at top of Mirror Mountain," someone said. Ye Futian been famous in the Ancient Barren World and was later accepted by Gu Dongliu as a disciple of the Cottage.


    Could it be...? Just as the people had this thought, they saw the statue light up as if it was coming to life. It glowed with a bright, golden light. Its wings looked ready to spread and take off. The people of the Qin Dynasty were frozen in shock witnessing the scene in front of them.


    The Five Soul Guard was a relic of the Ancient Barren World and were eventually repossessed by the Qin Dynasty. Throughout the years, many Qin cultivators have trained for combat using the Five Soul Guard, but never had they seen the statue shine so brightly.


    This is bad. They all shared the same thought, not having a feeling about what was about to happen.


    In the next moment, they felt the painfully strong Golden Roc Will break into their minds. It forewent any physical harm and went straight for their Spiritual Energy. It was an attack on the Spiritual Will.


    In their minds, a sharp, cutting image of a Golden Roc appeared. Some people screamed in pain as they felt their Spiritual Will being destroyed. They were on the verge of collapsing, no longer able to take the pain.


    Very quickly, every Qin cultivator experienced the same sensation. In their spiritual world, the true king of the skies, the Golden Roc, appeared and destroyed their willpower.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward, charging over to the battle formations with his halberd. Sounds of the weapon piercing into flesh and screams of agony came endlessly.


    "Go! Hurry, run!" When the screams were heard, many people ran for their lives, but the cultivators controlling the other statues of the Five Soul Guard didn''t give up. They activated the will of their own statues to attack Ye Futian. In the air, a Golden Roc, a giant elephant, a dragon, and the other beasts of the Five Soul Guard graced the skies together. However, the will of the Golden Roc was stronger and powerful than the rest, allowing it to enter the wills of the other statues. The cultivators behind the statues spat blood before turning around to make their escape.


    The crowd watching from the skies trembled in fear at this scene. They couldn''t believe this was the result of the fight. A complete wipeout.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng barged into the Qin Dynasty''s territory and absolutely crushed their Dharma Plane cultivators. The Qin tried to use the power of the Five Soul Guard against Ye Futian, but it actually gave him the chance to take control and used to his advantage.


    Looks like there really isn''t anyone who can stop them in the lower Ancient Barren World, many people thought.


    It was said that the war between the Qin Dynasty and the College had already begun in the upper Ancient Barren World. Each party took turns delivering their own vicious attacks, causing many deaths on both sides. It didn''t seem like a battle that would end any time soon. Many Nobles in the upper world took part in this lasting battle, so the eruption of the final battle was still far in the future. However, in the lower world, the result was determined as soon as the battle began. The two young men were enough to conquer all.


    What else could the Qin Dynasty say? Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were merely cultivators in the eighth level Dharma Plane. They weren''t even as far along in cultivation as the people they had just fought.


    This was an ending that the Qin probably would not have expected.


    And it wasn''t. At this very moment, Qin Yu was seated in the Qin palace in the outside world, feeling shocked and furious at the news he had just received. He berated those who had returned after running away from battle. He announced that whoever could go back to the lower Ancient Barren World and kill Ye Futian and Yu Sheng would be greatly rewarded. But still, no one dared to enter once again.


    Of the Qin that entered the lower world, there were those who died and those who ran. Shouldn''t this be a clear sign to them? In the lower Ancient Barren World, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were already invincible. Entering to fight them would be a death wish.


    The enraged Qin Yu then tried to entice people with the ''prince'' title. Regardless of which clan one was from, as long as they were of the Eastern Barren Territory, they would have the privilege of marrying a princess of their choice for killing Ye Futian in the Ancient Barren World. Many were swayed by this. Qin Yu really wanted Ye Futian dead. It was a shame that he couldn''t enter the lower world himself or he would have done the deed personally.


    News spread all over the lower world, shocking everyone. They were all in awe of how valuable Ye Futian''s life was. Killing him could make someone a prince of the Qin Dynasty. But even so, there still wasn''t anyone who dared to try.


    They couldn''t do it and didn''t have the guts to do it either. Sure, the Qin Dynasty could go against the Cottage, but who else would dare to do so?


    Of course, there was another reason behind this order and why Qin Yu wanted Ye Futian dead. Ye Futian had taken over his sub-palace in the lower Ancient Barren World.


    The people of the Qin Dynasty couldn''t enter the Ancient Barren World through the entrance in the palace. What were the Qin cultivators supposed to do? Hold off on cultivating in the lower world until Ye Futian reached the Arcana Plane and left for the upper world? Right now, the only thing they could do was use the entrance in the Liu Kingdom or borrow the entrance of another power. However, that would be humiliating for the Qin Dynasty.


    This was absolutely intolerable.


    Naturally, Ye Futian didn''t have the time to care about the Qin Dynasty''s feelings. He sealed the Qin palace''s entrance into the Ancient Barren and then proceeded to sit quietly in the Qin''s sub-palace and cultivated with Yu Sheng. In this sub-palace, they found quite a bit of useful objects for cultivation. They also had the Five Soul Guard to enlighten them as they cultivated. How could they possibly put such a perfect environment for cultivation to waste?


    The Five Soul Guard consisted of five elements and also contained extremely powerful Spiritual Energy. This helped speed up the enlightenment process. Not only Ye Futian was doing this, but Yu Sheng was also following right along. For the time being, they still couldn''t enter the upper Ancient Barren World. Since they couldn''t step onto that battlefield, the best thing they could do was stay here and reap some benefits.


    In no time at all, months had passed. The two cultivating young men entered the ninth level Dharma Plane one after the other. They were only one step away from the Arcana Plane!

 342 The Summoning of the Great Emperors

    Chapter 342: The Summoning of the Great Emperors


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Eastern Barren Territory, Western Region, Shu City.


    This was a small city in the Eastern Barren Territory and there weren''t many high-leveled cultivators here. Because of certain reasons, high-leveled cultivators of the Eastern Barren Territory were unwilling to enter Shu City. Plus, this city was extremely chaotic and produced many evil beings. However, there were also many people who were pure of heart.


    In Shu City, there were many Buddhists who tried to spread their beliefs to others. They all came from Qianqiu Temple, which wasn''t located too far from Shu City. Presently, many guests sat in a restaurant and chatted as they enjoyed wine. Among these paying customers was a peculiar pair. There was an elder dressed in tattered clothing and a smiling young woman in green seated beside him. She held the wine pot in the air and poured the liquid directly into the elder''s waiting mouth.


    "That''s good wine," the elder said with a great, big smile that reached his eyes. It was obvious that he was enjoying himself.


    "You should go easy on the wine and eat some more of the food." The young woman took the wine pot away before picking up a piece of meat with her chopsticks, feeding it to the man.


    Many people in the restaurant looked over to them with strange looks on their faces. The old man was ungroomed and unkempt while the young woman was beautiful and graceful. How could she be feeding this wretched man? Where did this old geezer come from?


    "My shoulders are a bit sore," the elder said in what seemed like a mumble to himself. It was as if he didn''t notice the attention he received from the other customers.


    "Let me give you a little massage," the young woman stood up with a smile. She then moved behind the elder and began to rub his shoulders.


    The old man seemed like he was enjoying this. His eyes closed and he looked lost in the experience. Oh, these blissful days. He felt free as a bird. What a difference this was from that disobedient child back at home.


    This... Some guests couldn''t take it anymore. This old man was enjoying himself a little too much.


    "That''s right, Senior. I still haven''t really comprehended those moves you taught me with a sword from last time. When are you going to teach me some more?" the girl asked with a sweet smile.


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about, child. I''ve never even touched a sword in my life. How would I know anything about sword tactics?" the elder drawled with his eyes closed.


    The young woman didn''t take it to heart and kept the smile on her face. "Then, when are you going to show me again with a tree branch?"


    "Oh, you''re talking about that time. I was just messing around with a branch. If you want to watch again, then I''ll show you a couple more moves next time," said the elder. "You, child, have really let it go to your head. You actually think they''re sword tactics? This old man knows nothing about cultivation."


    The young woman''s smile grew as she listened to the elder''s response. Her small hands continued to massage, allowing the old man to continue in his bliss.


    "Miss, I am from the Shuzhong Sword Clan. If you want to learn how to use a sword, maybe I can teach you," a middle-aged man in the restaurant spoke up, eyeing the young lady in green.


    "Thanks, Mister, but that won''t be necessary." The girl turned to smile at him before turning back to focus on the elder.


    "Miss, there are a lot of swindlers in the world of cultivation. You should be careful," warned the middle-aged man.


    "Thanks for the heads-up, Mister," nodded the young woman. Others shook their heads when they realized she was disregarding the warning. One look at that old man and it was obvious, he was no good. He didn''t even act his age.


    "This is so nice." Just as the people cursed him in their minds, the elder expressed his satisfaction. Immediately, rage-filled eyes glared at him. This old geezer had to be doing this on purpose.


    The elder''s eyes were still closed in enjoyment. He didn''t give a damn about what anyone else though. He was being wined and dined, with this young girl waiting on him. This was the life.


    DONG! Just then, a bell rang. In an instant, it seemed like an invisible force had invaded the restaurant. The elder''s body shook violently. He sat up straight abruptly, his body still shaking slightly, uncontrolled.


    What''s that sound?


    Everyone else''s reaction was nowhere as strong as the elder''s. However, the same look of confusion reached their eyes. It sounded like a bell and it seemed to be traveling from somewhere far away. The immense willpower could be felt faintly as the people allowed the will to enter their minds, affecting that as well.


    "What''s going on?" the young woman asked the elder. This was her first time seeing the elder so serious. In the months she had known him, the elder was always indolent and never took anything seriously.


    The elder was still slightly shaky. In a flash, he disappeared from inside the restaurant and was now standing outside. The young woman was dumbfounded. She hadn''t even been able to see his movements clearly. Taking a deep breath, she followed after him.


    The elder looked behind him. A formless soundwave swept over the area, covering the entire Shu City. One after the other, people exited buildings all over the city. They lifted their heads, looking into the distance. The entire city listened as the bell sounds continued. They felt the willpower once again.


    The elder stared in one direction. The citizens of the city seemed like they finally realized what was going on and stared at the will. There seemed to be a holy light in some people''s eyes.


    Where everyone was staring, there was a mountain, a blurred vision. The mountain was incredibly tall, almost as if it reached into the heavens. The body of the mountain seemed to glow in a holy light, making it visible from even the farthest places.


    It was the Eastern Barren Territory''s number one mountain, Sky Mountain. The place closest to the sky.


    BOOM! A loud noise erupted and the ground shook. The people of Shu City all looked down at the surface they stood on as their bodies shook. These were vibrations brought on by an earthquake.


    The elder never lowered his gaze from the skies. His drowsy gaze was now sharper than ever. His seemingly tattered clothing was actually clean, blowing in the wind. His long, messy hair and beard also blew in the wind. Beside him, the young woman in green watched him with undivided attention. At this moment, the elder seemed almost divine.


    All over Shu City, cultivators from Qianqiu Temple put their hands together and prayed. A light reached their vigor-filled eyes as they stared at Sky Mountain.


    A bell sounded from Sky Mountain. Was this some sort of sign?


    A couple hundred kilometers away from Shu City stood an ancient temple. The sounds of the bell entered the temple and a bell within the temple rang as well. The two bells rang in harmony.


    Standing somewhere high in the temple was a figure staring out in the distance at Sky Mountain. His hands were clasped together and he was being shaken up on this inside.


    An old monk approached and other monks bowed at the sight of him. It was obvious that the old monk was of high status. He looked over at Sky Mountain and began to recite complicated scriptures with a strand of Buddhist beads behind his fingers.


    "Bells have sounded from Sky Mountain. It is the sound of the Great Emperor!" The old monk spoke, stirring up waves in the hearts of the monks in the Qianqiu Temple.


    The news of Sky Mountain''s bells spread like rapid fire. Very quickly, the Western Region was buzzing with commotion. Sky Mountain was special in the Western Region.


    With all the commotion in the Western Region, there was no way for the news to be contained. It started to spread to other regions of the Eastern Barren Territory and eventually, every top power received the news. The bells have sounded from Sky Mountain, ringing out over the Western Region.


    At the moment, this news even drowned out the war between the Qin Dynasty and the College in the Ancient Barren World.


    All the attention in the Eastern Barren Territory was shifted to the Western Region.


    ��


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had been cultivating in the Ancient Barren World all this time. They were in the Qin dynasty''s sub-palace. Just then, a girl arrived in the sub-palace looking for Ye Futian. It was a disciple of the College, Nangong Jiao. She was an acquaintance of Ye Futian''s. She was already in the top-level of the Dharma Plane. She was preparing to break into the Arcana Plane, just like Ye Futian.


    When Nangong Jiao saw that the two of them had completely taken over the Qin Dynasty''s territory and claimed it as their own, she was speechless.


    "Are you here to cultivate?" Ye Futian asked her with a smile. Although the College and the Cottage didn''t see eye to eye, it was all internal. Now that the Qin Dynasty wants to control all of the Eastern Barren Territory, they were on the same boat.


    Nangong Jiao shook her head and said, "Not long ago, I got the news. Bells sounded from Sky Mountain in the Western Region. The entire Eastern Barren Territory is talking about it. You guys have been cultivating here without contact with the outside world, so you might not know. I came to tell you the news."


    "Bells sounded from Sky Mountain?" A look of confusion appeared on Ye Futian''s face. He had only been in the Eastern Barren Territory for a couple of years, so it was natural that he didn''t have a complete understanding of its history. So, bells sounded from Sky Mountain. What was there to talk about?


    "Sky Mountain is the number one mountain in the Eastern Barren Territory. It is said to be the one place closest to the heavens. In ancient history, Sky Mountain is the most sacred place in the Western Region. It is the place where you met with saints. Legends have it that at the peak of the mountain, they could fill the purest Spiritual Qi and is extremely helpful in cultivation. Especially so for cultivation in the Arcana Plane. It would make it a piece of cake. But of course, there is no proof."


    Nangong Jiao continued to explain, "Then, something big happened at Sky Mountain. According to history books, the Eastern Barren Territory was in the dark ages a couple hundred years ago. A terrifying demon beast appeared and ate people. The Western Region was compared to hell. That beast was extremely powerful and took over the Western Region''s sacred grounds, Sky Mountain. That was until the appearance of two people." Nangong Jiao paused for a moment. There was a mysterious glow in her eyes. A yearning.


    "Who?" Ye Futian became curious after seeing the look in her eyes.


    "I don''t know their real names, but I''m sure you know of them as well. The two people from the legends are the two Great Emperors who unified the world, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing." Nangong Jiao continued solemnly, "They once stepped into the Eastern Barren Territory and at that time, they weren''t yet Great Emperors."


    Ye Futian shivered lightly. He was no stranger to these two names. Furthermore, he had yet to be revealed relations to them. Naturally, he also knew that they were once in the Eastern Barren Territory. They even made it to Qingzhou City, which was actually quite far from the Eastern Barren Territory. What he didn''t know though, was that they had left behind a piece of history there.


    "There are many legends regarding the two Great Emperors and Sky Mountain. People claim that they were still teenagers in those days, traveling the world as a pair while ridding the world of evil. When they came across the demon beast in the Eastern Barren Territory, they locked it up in Sky Mountain for life. This also changed the mountain. Nobody steps foot on the mountain and today, bells rang from the mountain. Some people say that it''s the summoning of the Great Emperors!"

 343 Uproar

    Chapter 343: Uproar


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng left the Ancient Barren World. Before leaving, they, they moved the Five Soul Guard to the entrance of Book Mountain. Many people in the Barren City were speechless at this. It was practically robbery; they wouldn''t even let it go when they left.


    "Second Senior Sister." Ye Futian found Zhuge Hui in the Cottage.


    "You''re back?" Zhuge Hui smiled at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and asked, "Senior Sister, Nangong Jiao of the College said that Sky Mountain has a legend about Donghua the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. Are the legends in the ancient records true?"


    "They should be." Zhuge Hui nodded.


    "Why has no one from afar come to investigate?" Ye Futian asked in confusion. Donghuang the Great ruled the world. Since there may be legends about him on the Sky Mountain of the Eastern Barren Territory, people should be looking for him.


    "Maybe this has something to do with his decree about the Eastern Barren Territory," Second Senior Sister replied with a smile.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed as he looked to her. Then he smiled. "You know so much."


    "I''m your senior sister, after all." Zhuge Hui grinned.


    Ye Futian scratched his head. She made sense. "Senior Sister, I want to go to Sky Mountain," he said. He didn''t act polite this time. The Cottage was like his family now and he didn''t need pretense with family. Even if the bell didn''t ring from Sky Mountain, he would still go if he discovered that there were traces of Emperor Ye Qing there.


    His birth was possibly related to Emperor Ye Qing. Minister Zuo of Nandou Nation had predicted that he had an emperor''s fate. He also had the emperor''s fate inside him. All this required him to look. He couldn''t miss this chance. Of course, he also knew that understanding all this might not be a good thing. He had to be careful. He knew about the Snow Ape''s ending, after all.


    "Okay." Zhuge Hui smiled. "I''ll go with you."


    "Thank you, Senior Sister," Ye Futian said. "Since Sky Mountain has legends of the two emperors, will you and Third Senior Brother go and try?"


    "Your Third Senior Brother and I probably won''t have the chance to climb to the peak." Zhuge Hui smiled and shook her head. "Sky Mountain neighbors Shu City. Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing had repressed the Demon Bird but rumor says that its intent is still alive. It is imprisoned in Sky Mountain. Thus, Sky Mountain contains the intents of both emperors and the Demon Bird. The higher someone''s cultivation, the more easily they can be affected. Strong cultivators rarely go to Shu City, thousands of miles away. This is why only Qianqiu Temple can be so close to the mountain. They use the intent to exercise their own intent."


    "So it''s easier for non-cultivators to climb the mountain?" Ye Futian found it strange.


    "Technically, yes." Zhuge Hui nodded and smiled. "But those who don''t cultivate can''t climb onto Sky Mountain. However, the bell has rung so some opportunities will appear. We can go for the fun."


    "Senior Sister, can I go too?" Xue Ye came over and asked timidly.


    "Has a year passed?" Zhuge Hui asked.


    "I can take care of our junior, right? And if you need help, you can just tell me," Xue Ye said charmingly.


    Zhuge Hui smiled at him. "Fine. Go call all your brothers."


    "Great." Xue Ye instantly cheered up and turned. Ye Futian understood that Zhuge Hui wanted all the disciples to go to Sky Mountain. After all, there was the legend of the two emperors. The bell ringing might be a sign of something.


    ��


    The Cottage never cared about the Eastern Barren Territory but decided to go out their mountain this time. It was evident how important the Sky Mountain''s bell was. The other forces naturally went to Shu City too.


    Especially in the west, all forces, no matter size, went to Sky Mountain like pilgrims. The Eastern Barren Territory was shaken instantly. Even the Qin Dynasty inviting all top forces to Qin Mengruo and Qian Shanmu''s marriage, the opening of the Dongqin College, or Gu Dongliu and Lu Nantian''s battle wasn''t as big as this.


    Last time mostly involved the top forces or powerful groups of the Eastern Barren Territory. This time, many strong cultivators from the west went as well. Other than them, countless people from other regions set off too.


    No matter how talented Gu Dongliu or Lu Nantian were, they couldn''t be compared to Donghuang the Great. The relic of the two emperors that ruled over the east had rung its bell. One could imagine the effect it created.


    Shu City, closest to Sky Mountain, was in an uproar. This small city that was rarely visited instantly became the center of the Eastern Barren Territory. People were everywhere; strong cultivators in the Arcana Plane could be seen easily. Any random person on the streets may be in the Noble Plane.


    Strong cultivators from the Qin Dynasty had arrived too. There were many of them and all were powerful. Because of their battle with the College in the Ancient Barren World, they attracted much attention no matter where they went.


    At this time, Qin Yu and Qin Li were both in the Qin Dynasty group. They looked to the Sky Mountain that was almost connected to the sky. Was the strange bell a chance for them? Was it a good sign for their ruling of the Eastern Barren Territory for a bell to ring from the relic of Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing?


    At this time, another group came with flashes of light and descended beside the Qin Dynasty. They were from the Donghua Clan. The leader was Lady Yuxiao. The talented Lu Nantian and Hua Qingqing were on either side of her.


    "Lady and Brother Lu are here." Qin Yu nodded at Lady Yuxiao. The wife of the Donghua Clan''s leader was his senior.


    "How do you feel?" Lady Yuxiao asked.


    "It''s thousands of miles away but I can still feel the slight pressure from the Sky Mountain. No wonder there are rarely any strong cultivators in Shu City. The monks of the Qianqiu Temple are so strong." Qin Yu chuckled.


    "Can you feel it?" Lady Yuxiao asked Hua Qingqing.


    "It''s very weak," Hua Qingqing murmured. Lady Yuxiao nodded slightly. It was the same as before.


    At this time, someone walked to Qin Yu and said something. His eyes flashed.


    The College and Cottage had arrived together.


    "Lady, an old friend has arrived. I''ll pay them a visit," Qin Yu said. With that, he turned and left. Many people looked at him. Old friend? Was it the Cottage?


    The College and Cottage had indeed arrived together.


    The Qin Dynasty had officially declared war on the College. They''d fought in the Ancient Barren World earlier. If they met in the outside world, the Qin Dynasty might act without warning. They had to be careful.


    The first meeting after war broke out between them would take place in Shu City. This attracted many people.


    Qin Yu gazed at the College. This time, the five mountain elders of the College had all appeared, as well as the disciples of the Cottage. Zhuge Hui and Gu Dongliu had all come.


    Countless eyes fell on them. Was this the first time the disciples of the Cottage all appeared outside Book Mountain?


    "The second disciple of the Cottage is actually so pretty," someone commented after seeing Zhuge Hui''s beauty. She had a slim body, slender legs, and faintly smiling eyes but still had an arrogant feeling. It was hard to imagine that such a fairy-like person had destroyed the gate of Dongqin College in Chaoge City.


    Third disciple Gu Dongliu was handsome and scholarly. However, he still had a sharp feeling. His eyes were vibrant like daggers.


    The fourth and fifth disciples looked frivolous and cynical. The sixth disciple was another pretty girl. She had a youthful beauty.


    The seventh disciple was chubby and stood out. Eighth disciple Ye Futian was handsome and easy to recognize. Other than him, one-armed Ye Wuchen, Prince Liu Feiyang, and Princess Liu Chenyu of the Liu Kingdom were present as well. Along with Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue, this group stood out from the crowd.


    All Cottage disciples except Sword Saint are here, everyone thought.


    Qin Yu was a bit excited. If he succeeded, he could kill all of the Cottage this time. However, wanting to kill all of them was very difficult.


    "Should the Cottage not hand these people over to the Qin Dynasty?" Qin Yu couldn''t help but chuckle when he saw the icy stares of the Liu siblings.


    "They''re here. Come take them," Zhuge Hui said. She was smiling but still gave off a cold arrogant feeling.


    "I''d like to try." Qin Yu laughed as he released his aura.


    A few figures appeared from the distance. They wore long robes and had sharp auras. They spread out in a line and surrounded the Qin Dynasty.


    A youth walked out from the crowd and bowed before Zhuge Hui''s group. "Mo Xie greets the master uncles."


    "Mo Xie." Many people studied this youth. He was the top disciple of Sword Saint Mountain. He''d joined the year the force was established and was the Sword Saint''s first disciple.


    Thus, all disciples of the Cottage were his master uncles though not many were more powerful than him.


    "Is First Senior Brother here?" Zhuge Hui asked.


    "Master told me to come aid my master uncles. He can come immediately if needed," Mo Xie said. Zhuge Hui nodded and gazed at Qin Yu. This was the west; it was the Sword Saint''s territory.


    Qin Yu stared at the people before him. He collected his aura, knowing it wasn''t possible to deal with the Cottage here.


    "Ye Futian," Qin Li suddenly called.


    Ye Futian looked up at him.


    "You want to go onto Sky Mountain?" Qin Li''s eyes fell on him. Ye Futian scanned him coldly but ignored him. "I thought you''d hide in the lower Ancient Barren World. Since you''re out, make sure you''re ready."


    Qin Li chuckled and the people of the Qin Dynasty turned. Then Qin Yu said, "The conditions from before still stand. Whoever kills Ye Futian will be protected by the Qin Dynasty and given the position of princess'' groom."


    Everyone watched as the Qin Dynasty left. Things were clearly different after war started. They didn''t hide their murderous intent at all!

 344 Someone on Sky Mountain

    Chapter 344: Someone on Sky Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Sky Mountain''s bell rang. All the strong cultivators in the Eastern Barren Territory gathered to go up the mountain. What Qin Yu had said was a trap for Ye Futian. The Eastern Barren Territory was so vast. On Sky Mountain, someone could very possibly seize this opportunity to kill Ye Futian in order to join the Qin Dynasty.


    The cultivators of the Eastern Barren Territory were of all levels. Not all cultivators could have the gifted talent to become a member of top forces, nor could they have the fate to marry the princess of the Qin Dynasty. If they could make full use of this opportunity, they could rise up the ranks, though it was very risky.


    Human beings were the most complex creatures. No one could predict what this group of people would encounter. It was very ominous that Qin Yu chose to stay here. This was Qin Dynasty''s style.


    But the Cottage wouldn''t be like them.


    Staring at Qin Yu and Qin Li''s back, murderous intent filled his eyes too. As long as there was a chance, he would kill them without showing any mercy as well. The surrounding people witnessed the exchange between the two top forces. They knew that if the Qin Dynasty had the confidence to destroy the Cottage, they wouldn''t hold back.


    "Let''s go," Zhuge Hui said. The group nodded and rose into the air, moving toward the Eastern Barren Territory''s most famous mountain.


    Soon, the strong cultivators gathered in Shu City also started departing. The countless cultivators on the road were like a frightening army.


    A black dragon soared in the air. Zhuge Hui, Gu Dongliu, and the others were all on the back of the dragon. As they got closer and closer to the mountain, the black dragon suddenly growled and flew downward.


    Seeing the mountain getting closer and closer, Gu Dongliu wasn''t surprised. He could feel the deterrent force of the mountain getting stronger and stronger. There was an aggressive malicious power constantly oppressing people''s wills.


    Suddenly, it began to snow; the air grew cold. Snowflakes floated down endlessly. The black dragon landed at the foot of the mountain. Countless people were already there, standing under the snow.


    "What level was the Demon Bird back then?" Luo Fan murmured quietly. He could feel that invasive power too. Standing at the foot of the mountain, he even felt like the whole mountain was going to knock him down and imprison him here forever. Was this the intent power of the emperor?


    "Some ancient books recorded that there had been sages during the period of darkness. They were all engulfed by that Demon Bird. Therefore, the Demon Bird must be at that level too," Gu Dongliu inferred.


    "Under such a deterrent force, it''s very difficult for us to go up with our present plane." Zhuge Hui sighed. To go to the mountain, one must either be extremely well-cultivated, even more than the Demon Bird and Donghuang the Great from centuries ago, or in lower levels so he could be less sensitive to the malicious power.


    That kind of power was not substantial. Therefore, it couldn''t affect those in lower levels. It was contained in the mountain. The stronger the cultivators were, the more invasive the power became. However, if a person who had never cultivated stood here, he would feel nothing.


    There was a straight road on the mountain like a belt carved out by generations of people for pilgrimage before the Demon Bird appeared.


    At this time, a line of figures walked toward that path. They were dressed in cassock and chanted with their folded their hands in front of them. The scene was very solemn. Their bodies emitted the light of the Buddha, covering them in a sacred sheen.


    The Arhat that Ye Futian knew was among them. Obviously, they were the strong cultivators from Qianqiu Temple.


    The Buddha''s scripture can protect them from devil power, many people thought. Sky Mountain''s bell has rung. If someone can go up to the mountain, it must be the monks of the Qianqiu Temple. Most people here belonged to forces near the mountain. The Qianqiu Temple was their mecca.


    Another line of figures came out. These strong cultivators were from the Witch Clan.


    Ye Futian looked up at the mountain but couldn''t see the top. It was as if the mountain''s top melted into the sky. Though his level was not high, he could still feel that deterrent force from the mountain, as well as that invasive power disturbing his will. On the way to the top, the feeling would get intensified constantly. Under such a deterrent force, it would be very hard to climb the mountain.


    People gathered here because they thought the ringing of the bell on the mountain was the emperor''s call. Otherwise, they wouldn''t have come. Generations of people had tried before.


    At this time, people continually stepped up on the road to the mountaintop.


    "Are you going or not? Why are you staring at us?" At this moment, Mo Xie turned back and saw the people of Fuyun Sword Clan. The Cottage and the Sword Saint Mountain appeared at the same time, attracting the Fuyun Sword Clan''s attention.


    The head of the Fuyun Sword Clan was also here. Glancing at Ye Wuchen, he scorned, "So the Cottage accepts disciples that the Fuyun Sword Clan throws out?"


    The Mountain Elder of the College stared at the man. At this time, Zhuge Hui smiled. "You are not young anymore. Why don''t you just shut up? This is the western territory. Watch your mouth or you will regret it."


    The head of the Fuyun Sword Clan froze. Was this a threat?


    "Funny." He huffed coldly but didn''t continue the debate. The Fuyun Sword Clan moved forward. This was the western territory, which meant the Sword Saint was possibly here. The Fuyun Sword Clan was the inferior one. However, he was sure that the Sword Saint was not strong enough to confront with him. Moreover, the people of the Qin Dynasty and the Donghua Clan were also here. If the Cottage dared to fight, the two forces wouldn''t stand by.


    Zhe Song and Qi Ao beside him were also staring coldly at the Cottage.


    Ye Futian''s group didn''t move. Soon, the Fuyun Sword Clan, the Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and Royal Xuan Temple all gathered together. These forces had all claimed to ally with the Qin Dynasty when they were in the Qin Dynasty''s palace. Because of the Sword Saint Clan, they hadn''t taken any actions so far. Now, they kept close with the Qin Dynasty. They were afraid that the Cottage would take revenge.


    "Let''s go up," Zhuge Hui said and stepped forward.


    Ding�� The bell''s sound came down like a horrible wave. More snowflakes fell down crazily. Everyone closed their eyes. This ring seemed to be from heaven, coming down to the mountain and sweeping everything.


    Hearing the sound, those climbers felt like an enormous bell ringing in their heart. They trembled fiercely. Some moaned; some spat out blood as they were forced back. The vibrations of the huge sound send them sliding on the snowy ground.


    Bang, bang... Some climbers from the air fell down to the ground, blood gushing from their mouths. Their hearts were badly hurt.


    The second disciple of the Cottage also stopped. Blood seeped from the corner of her lips.


    The third disciple trembled. Seeing Zhuge Hui get hurt, his eyes looking at the mountaintop sharpened.


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan were also hurt, as were the Mountain Elders and other top talents in Noble Plane of the College.


    "Senior Sister and Brother!" Ye Futian looked at the scene in astonishment. Just because of a bell''s ring, countless people in the vast place were badly hurt. People like Qin Yu, Lady Yuxiao, Lu Nantian and people of the Fuyun Sword Clan were all forced back, hurt. The stronger one was, the more injured they were.


    Ye Futian also felt a horrible deterrent force, but the feeling was not so strong. He only felt his body grow heavier when the frightening power penetrated his body.


    The snow was still falling; the air became depressing. All big names of the Eastern Barren Territory were hurt just because of the bell''s one ring.


    Was this really the emperor''s call? What happened on Sky Mountain? Why did the bell ring?


    In the silence, everyone looked up at the mountain. Was it possible to climb this towering mountain? They all looked to the peak within the clouds. The snow kept falling; it was especially heavy near the peak.


    At this moment, there was a figure standing on the top of the mountain and watching all of this silently. People would be stunned if they saw him because someone had managed to reach the top.


    In the snow, the figure seemed incomparably lonely.


    He took out a flask and drank a mouthful of wine. Then he spilled some wine on the snow.


    It was as if he was the only person in the world.

 345 On Sky Mountain

    Chapter 345: On Sky Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Standing below Sky Mountain, Zhuge Hui looked up. She could feel that the pressure had strengthened after the bell.


    "Does this mountain really have a spirit? Are the intents of the two emperors really looking and keeping Nobles from stepping onto the mountain?" Zhuge Hui asked.


    Bells rang from Sky Mountain for some reason, pushing down all Nobles.


    "If the intents of the two emperors really are here, there''s no need to do this," Gu Dongliu murmured, looking up.


    Donghuang the Great was the ruler of the Divine Prefectures of the East. He wouldn''t care about the plane of those who climbed the mountain.


    "I think we came for nothing." Xue Ye and Luo Fan were annoyed too after knowing that there was no hope for them.


    "Xiaoshi, Xing''er, Junior, only you all can go," Luo Fan said.


    Ye Futian nodded. He looked up at the high peaks. Snow fell down lazily, draping many people in a layer of white.


    The Cottage disciples weren''t the only ones who realized this. The mountain elders of the College were also advising the younger generation. Similarly, at the Qin Dynasty, Qin Yu was telling his people, "Qin Li, seems that only you all can go."


    "Yes, father." Qin Li nodded.


    "Don''t hold back if you have the chance." Qin Yu''s eyes flashed coldly. He still hadn''t taken revenge for Qin Ge by killing Gu Dongliu.


    "I understand." Qin Li''s eyes were cold.


    Beside them, Lady Yuxiao of the Donghua Clan looked to Hua Qingqing. She murmured, "Qingqing, will you go?"


    "Yes." Hua Qingqing nodded. She wanted to go see what Sky Mountain was like.


    Lu Nantian gazed at her with gentle eyes. He reached out as if wanting to caress her flawless features. But as if afraid of tainting her, he just touched the strands of hair by her hair. "Come down if you run into any danger," he said gently.


    "Okay," Hua Qingqing replied.


    "Take care of her," Lu Nantian instructed the disciples of the Donghua Clan.


    They nodded. If nothing unexpected happened, Lu Nantian would be the next leader of the Donghua Clan; Hua Qingqing would be the lady. Qian Shanmu was talented too but still far from Lu Nantian.


    Hua Qingqing and the people of the Donghua Clan started walking away. Lady Yuxia muttered, "Legend says that only those with pure hearts can climb up Sky Mountain. Qingqing is pure and untainted. If anyone can make it, I''m sure Qingqing will succeed over the people of the Qianqiu Temple."


    "I believe that too." Lu Nantian smiled at the pure and flawless backside. He hoped she could see the scenery of Sky Mountain.


    At this time, Gu Zhiqiu looked back at the clan leader of the Witch Clan who''d been forced down the mountain. The man nodded at him and said, "Only you can plant the demonic way into others. The Sky Mountain can''t stop you. Go without worry. The ring of the Great is a call to you."


    Gu Zhiqiu looked to his master. Could he do it? Even the most talented man of the Eastern Barren Territory would lose confidence when faced with Sky Mountain that the Great had once come to.


    "Senior Brother, you can do it," Gu Biyue said, smiling. Gu Zhiqiu nodded. Eyes determined, he continued walking.


    The Arhat also looked at the foot of the mountain. A monk there put his hands together and chanted. The Arhat did the same and turned to climb the mountain.


    Qi Ao was still together with the people of the Fuyun Sword Clan. Only the seventh summit was missing from the seven summits of the clan. Ye Wuchen, a swordsman of the seventh summit, had been banished by the clan leader. Now, he stayed with Ye Futian.


    Strong cultivators of the Moon Clan, Royal Xuan Temple, Ji Family, and others gradually started climbing too. Some people had sped up on the road but not many chased after them. If it was really so easy, they wouldn''t have waited until today.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. The group of disciples from the Cottage, College, and Sword Saint Mountain all set off together.


    "Follow them," Zhuge Hui said to Xue Ye and Luo Fan. The two understood their senior sister; she wanted them to follow Ye Futian''s group. Though they''d given up on climbing the mountain, they had to stop Nobles from the Qin Dynasty and other groups. When they couldn''t continue, the Nobles of the Qin Dynasty also wouldn''t be able to continue.


    People were everywhere on the mountain. Ye Futian felt the faint might coming down on him. There was also a sense of evil affecting him. This formless spiritual intent seemed to be omnipresent.


    Ye Futian wasn''t far from here. He saw the Moon Clan but sadly, didn''t see Jieyu though Chu Yaoyao was present.


    "Hello, fairy." Ye Futian saw a familiar face. She was Yun Rou, the disciple of Xiao Yueju and senior sister of Jieyu.


    Yun Rou smiled at Ye Futian. This guy was such a sweet talker. She didn''t say anything to Ye Futian though. The situation in the Eastern Barren Territory was ambiguous and the Moon Clan didn''t want to lean towards any side.


    The mountain road was vast and the powerful group of strong cultivators climbed up. Snow floated down from Sky Mountain, bringing coldness with it. The entire mountain was covered in a layer of white.


    Some people were fast; others were slow. Ye Futian''s group maintained the same speed, neither fast nor slow. They could feel the formless pressure and invading evil intent getting stronger as they climbed.


    Some people of the Arcana Plane already started feeling the pressure.


    "How tall is the mountain?" Ye Futian asked Du Ming from the Sword Saint Mountain.


    Du Ming was Mo Xie''s disciple. He was the third generation of Sword Saint Mountain. He was older and more skilled than Ye Futian but had to call him "grand uncle master." The status of the Cottage made them speechless.


    "No one has climbed to the top in all these years," Du Ming replied. "I don''t know how tall it is. Some say that it goes as high as the sky and climbing it is as hard as climbing the sky."


    Ye Futian couldn''t reply. When he climbed Turtle Mountain, he could at least see the approximate height. Though he could fly in Sky Mountain, he didn''t know how tall it was. The peak was in the clouds.


    "Let''s hurry up a bit," Ye Futian said. Everyone sped up. As they continued, low cries sounded beside Ye Futian. He looked to the Black Wind Eagle with its wings spread out. "What''s wrong?"


    The bird hung its head; its limbs drooped on the ground.


    "You can do it." Ye Futian patted the Black Wind Eagle''s forehead. Its eyes sharpened a bit and nodded forcefully. It continued going upward with Ye Futian.


    As they kept climbing, they gradually moved to the middle of the mountain. Various peaks loomed over them, surrounding them in the mountain''s belly. Ye Futian''s heart sped up as if there was a strange rhythm. The evil feeling strengthened and the Black Wind Eagle''s eyes glowed with red light as it stared ahead.


    Many people stopped here.


    Ye Futian''s group walked up and saw a canyon going upward. There were images on the walls of Demon Birds. There was also a black roc with sharp black feathers and claws. It seemed to have come from hell. Each image seemed ready to jump out of the wall. There were many corpses on the road. Some of the bodies were very tragic and hard to look at.


    Ye Futian just glanced at the wall and already felt a Demon Bird flying into his mind. He instantly looked away from the wall.


    The Arhat and people of the Qianqiu Temple were at the center of the walls now. Buddhist light dazzled on them. The demons couldn''t reach them. The Demon Birds seemed to fly to them but were stopped by the Buddhist light.


    The Qianqiu Temple is most likely to climb to the peak, many people thought when seeing this.


    The strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty walked out first. They activated the Dragon Emperor Technique. Roars filled the sky and dragons protected them as they walked. They passed through the space but didn''t leave. Instead, they looked back to Ye Futian''s group. The Witch Clan followed them, showing their own skills.


    At this time, a quiet beauty walked out from the crowd. Many people gazed at her. Hua Qingqing, one of the Eastern Barren Territory''s top beauties, was going alone?


    "Miss." Qian Shanmu and many other Donghua disciples walked up.


    "No need," Hua Qingqing said softly. Music notes pulsed on her body and a layer of sacred light covered her. Music emanated from her as she walked forward. The music was so pure, without any impurities. The evil Demon Birds seemed to brush past without touching her.


    "As expected of the Donghua Clan''s daughter," Qin Li praised.


    "Grand Uncle Master, should we escort you?" Du Ming asked.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded naturally, surprising the people of the Sword Saint Mountain. This grand uncle master was from the Cottage, after all. Du Ming had just asked out of politeness and he took it?


    "Broadsword Matrix," Du Ming said. The disciples of the Sword Saint Mountain stood together to form the matrix. The light from the swords created a curtain of light, surrounding them.


    "The Cottage will use this type of trick?" a mocking voice said.


    Ye Futian turned to see Qi Ao and the Fuyun Sword Clan standing there. Afterward, they gathered their sword intent into beams of dazzling sword light. They shot into the sky and passed through the space. When they reached the other end, they turned back to Ye Futian''s group mockingly.


    Many people looked at their group strangely. They''d anticipated seeing the Cottage disciples go forward. They didn''t think that the Cottage couldn''t do it but this was still disappointing.


    "Are we getting looked down upon?" Yi Xiaoshi asked.


    "I think so." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Senior Sister and us will go first. You can do it." Yi Xiaoshi patted Ye Futian''s shoulder.


    Ye Futian stared at him. "Shouldn''t you do it?"


    "I don''t have to do it if you can." Yi Xiaoshi looked to Du Ming. "Let''s go."


    "Okay." Du Ming nodded. The broadsword matrix escorted the people across the space, leaving Ye Futian alone. Even the Black Wind Eagle was taken with.


    "You''re okay with this?" Ye Futian muttered as he walked forward.


    Many people looked at him as he stepped onto the path between the walls. The images on the walls seemed to come to life, crazily rushing to him.


    Countless eyes froze on him, watching him just walk over like that. Qin Li and Qi Ao narrowed their eyes. Was this guy looking to die?


    The horrible Demon Birds landed directly on him, about to rush into his body. Many people even closed their eyes. People had died like this.


    "Annoying."


    They heard Ye Futian''s voice at this time and discovered with shock that Ye Futian was walking forward totally unaffected!

 346 I Have a Question for You

    Chapter 346: I Have a Question for You


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "This��" Ye Futian strolled casually on the road as if the Demon Birds from the walls had no effect on him. They rushed towards him but his white robe fluttered, his black hair flying. Noble intent bloomed from him and his entire body seemed to be shrouded in sacred light. The evil couldn''t hurt him.


    Everyone was shocked. How powerful was Ye Futian''s will? Was it because he had a low plane so he wasn''t as heavily affected? But no matter what, Ye Futian''s powerful walk destroyed all suspicions earlier. Yi Xiaoshi and the Sword Saint Mountain disciples left him behind because they had absolute trust in him.


    They really were crazy. They trusted Ye Futian before he''d even tried.


    Qi Ao and the disciples of the Fuyun Sword Clan had already descended on the other side after transforming into sword light. Seeing Ye Futian''s actions, Qi Ao''s expression grew ugly. This was a slap to him.


    "He isn''t in the Arcana Plane yet. He must''ve benefited from his low plane," someone nearby said after seeing Qi Ao''s change of expression.


    Chu Yaoyao looked at Ye Futian from the Moon Clan group. She walked forward.


    "Virgin," someone called.


    "I want to try." Dazzling light enveloped her. Her body flashed and countless copies of her appeared. They were destroyed by the Demon Birds but Chu Yaoyao continued forward. Like a fairy, her movements were like a dance, leading people to gasp.


    First, there was Hua Qingqing. Now, there was Chu Yaoyao. The top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory were not only amazing in their looks.


    People behind them started trying too, working together. More and more strong cultivators passed it. Very rarely did anyone die. The people from before had rushed too much, causing them to get killed.


    On the road, the people of the Qianqiu Temple and Witch Clan had already set off again.


    Qin Li watched Ye Futian walk over with a cold glint in his eyes. He waited for Chu Yaoyao and asked, "Yaoyao, are you alright?"


    "Yes." She nodded lightly.


    "Come with me?" Qin Li asked.


    "I''ll wait for my sisters. You can go first." Chu Yaoyao''s voice was gentle and her moving eyes made people want to protect her.


    "Okay." Qin Li nodded. The Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan continued forward soon after.


    Ye Futian''s group also started walking. Forces such as the Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple were nearby. Many people came gradually after them. Seeing these figures, they felt that the road ahead wouldn''t be peaceful. The two parties had declared war. Liu Chenyu, Liu Feiyang, Ye Wuchen, and the Qin Dynasty were true enemies. The rivalry between the College and Qin Dynasty; between the Cottage, Sword Saint Mountain, and Fuyun Sword Clan; between the Cottage and Royal Xuan Temple��


    It was shocking they could bear it for this long.


    The mountain road grew steeper. Everyone gradually entered the belly of Sky Mountain. Snow was everywhere, dancing in the sky. They couldn''t see outside the mountain anymore. They looked up at the soaring peak and could only keep walking. No one knew how long it would take.


    The snow grew heavier. Everyone was covered in a layer of white. Some would use fire Spiritual Qi to melt the snow on them but they started feeling cold. In addition, the evil feeling grew stronger too. It seemed to seep from the mountain and influenced them from everywhere.


    The Black Wind Eagle followed close to Ye Futian. Its claws dug into the ground; its eyes glowed red while it hung its head. Ye Futian planted a mark in its mind with a shred of emperor''s intent. This chased away its fear so it could keep going.


    Gradually, more and more people started giving up. They felt that if they continued, they would be completely controlled by the evil feeling, becoming its puppet. Those who continued had extremely strong wills. They followed the strong cultivators of each top force. If anything happened, these top cultivators could buffer the attack. They could also learn a lot from them.


    The days passed. They had already walked for seven days and had no clue where they were. The strong cultivators at the foot of the mountain were still there. People constantly gave up and went back down.


    People were everywhere in the white snow. Almost half of the strong cultivators of the Eastern Barren Territory were here.


    The bell didn''t ring again. Otherwise, they probably couldn''t stay there anymore.


    Zhuge Hui stood there, quietly gazing at Sky Mountain.


    "Do you think Junior is the person our teacher wants to find?" she whispered. Only the other Cottage disciples could understand.


    Gu Dongliu looked at the snowy peaks. The first three disciples were the clearest about the teacher''s goal. However, the goal was too lofty. Despite their talent, they couldn''t do it. It was so lofty that they didn''t even know what step they were at now.


    Now, merely the Eastern Barren Territory threatened them.


    "I don''t know," Gu Dongliu whispered. When he''d heard Ye Futian utter that sentence in the Ancient Barren World, he went to the Cangye Kingdom without hesitation.


    "I wonder if Junior will gain something on the mountain," Zhuge Hui said, smiling. The Eastern Barren Territory had the legend about the two emperors. If Ye Futian could accomplish something and the teacher knew, he would be very happy. But where exactly was that old guy hiding? He''d tricked Zhuge Hui here and dumped the entire Cottage on her without teaching her anything. Now he''d escaped to enjoy life alone. That old man!


    ��


    On Sky Mountain, the Black Wind Eagle stopped again. Its legs trembled and the feathers on its wings stood up straight. There were many marks on the walls ahead. There were signs of claw scratches, lightning, and fire. A horrible aura emanated from it all. This was probably where the two emperors had fought with the Demon Bird.


    Everyone felt their bodies grow heavy. An invisible force pressed down on them. Black ravens flew between the walls. Their eyes had a deadly aura and occasionally glowed red.


    Thud, thud, thud�� They could practically hear their own heartbeats grow louder and louder.


    "Push it down." Ye Futian glanced at the Black Wind Eagle. The mark planted in its mind released a powerful might. He saw the Black Wind Eagle''s eyes become demonic, glinting with a bloody light. It was about to go crazy.


    "Ah!" A pained cry ripped out. Many hearts trembled and the people looked back. A strong cultivator in the Arcana Plane couldn''t resist the evil intent anymore. His eyes shone with terrible demonic light. His hand had also transformed into a frightening golden dagger that he stabbed into the man beside him.


    Blood bloomed in the white snow. Seeing the fresh blood, many people couldn''t control the evil in them either. They screamed as the wild aura exploded. They lost control of themselves. Even those of the top forces started shaking. The evil accumulated in them was too hard to repress. They lost control and started attacking wildly.


    Many people charged towards Hua Qingqing, Chu Yaoyao, and Qin Mengruo. The three were the top beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory. They easily attracted evil thoughts. People also went crazily to the fairies of the Moon Clan.


    "Kill them," Qin Li ordered coldly. Instantly, the people of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan started acting. The scene became more chaotic.


    Blood flew through the air with the snow, leading to more evil thoughts. Even Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu''s eyes turned red as they stared coldly at Qin Li. They hated his guts. This type of negative emotion was easy to be pushed out and affected by the evilness.


    Seeing this, Hua Qingqing stepped into the crowd and sat down, legs crossed. Her guqin spirit appeared and she started playing. Seeing her flawless and angelic features, even more people pounced towards her.


    Music rang out. It was so wholesome it could almost purify their souls. The world fell quiet; all evil thoughts were eradicated by the music. Those who pounced towards her stopped, struggling in place.


    In the front, the Arhat and Qianqiu Temple disciples who''d forged on alone looked back. Those who were pure enough would be unaffected by the evil influence. Hua Qingqing was probably that type of person.


    As the soothing music flowed out, much of the redness in people''s eyes were a bit controlled. The fighting continued though. Many people couldn''t completely extract themselves.


    Qin Li looked over to Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu. Seeing the redness in their eyes, he chuckled. "Want to kill me?"


    The murderous intent grew in their eyes.


    "Qingqing is kind but it''s better for these failures affected by the evil to kill themselves. Why save them?" Qin Li asked, glancing at Hua Qingqing.


    "Evil thoughts are born in those who are evil. No need to save them," Qi Ao also said.


    "I have a question for you." Ye Futian walked forward. The place was a bit chaotic now. Qin Li was in the direction of the Moon Clan.


    "What question?" Qin Li asked with a sneer.


    Ye Futian stopped before Qin Li and smiled brightly. "Do people like you never repent? even when facing death?"


    Qin Li arched an eyebrow. His eyes sharpened as he stared at Ye Futian. At that time, a wild aura burst from Ye Futian''s body. He transformed into an afterimage that shot forward.


    Boom. Qin Li''s aura erupted too. Then he saw a heavy staff that weighed thousands of tons drop from the sky. It swept down everything with the roar of a divine ape and dragon. It was about to split everything apart!

 347 Go Straight Forward

    Chapter 347: Go Straight Forward


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qin Li''s expression changed. A dragon also roared above him. His arm seemed to transform into the arm of a dragon as he blocked the incoming staff. He''d been looking for a chance to kill Ye Futian''s group but didn''t expect that Ye Futian dared to attack him first.


    Boom. The staff swung down and there was a huge sound. Qin Li''s entire body shook. The fabric on his arm tore apart and he fell onto one knee. The ground underneath cracked.


    Everyone was shocked; no one processed it all. Ye Futian had been talking and smiling earlier but changed as soon as he finished. He wanted to kill Qin Li. How ruthless!


    At this moment, terrible dragon scales appeared on Qin Li''s arms. They shone frighteningly; clearly, they were ritual implements. If he didn''t have these protecting his arms, they would probably have broken under Ye Futian''s sudden attack. It was too abrupt and Ye Futian hadn''t held back at all.


    Whoosh�� Wind whistled as the staff twirled. The air current went wild. Vines spiraled out from Ye Futian, Locking Qin Li''s body.


    "Stop." The people of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan finally processed everything. Their auras immediately flared and they rushed towards Ye Futian. They cast spells simultaneously at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was still unmoved. Eyes cold, he brought his murderous staff down again. The entire weight of the world seemed to fall onto Qin Li.


    Qin Li knew that he''d lost his chance. The most important task now was to save his life. He dazzled brilliantly. His dragon armor transformed into a true dragon that roared. It spiraled above him, protecting him. He raised his arms too for protection.


    Boom! There was another huge explosion. Dust flew in the wind as Qin Li was forced into the mountain. A ditch appeared in the mountain. He grunted and spat out blood. Even with the ritual implement protecting him, he was still injured.


    Dragons came over murderously. Ye Futian knew he would fail so he retreated after swinging his staff.


    "Royal Grandson!" The people of the Qin Dynasty grouped around Qin Li. He felt his body shake inside. Activating a battle technique, his blood rumbled and dragons roared. Then he took a deep breath, calming the tremors inside. He stood up slowly and stared coldly at Ye Futian, eyes full of murderous intent.


    "You''re lucky to be alive." Ye Futian chuckled. His smile was gentle and calm as if nothing had happened.


    Everyone was speechless at his smile.


    "You won''t be so lucky." Eyes filled with menacing murder, Qin Li said, "Kill him."


    Strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty went up, surrounding Ye Futian. Disciples of the College advanced too. No matter what, the College and Cottage were one group. They obviously had to stand together against the Qin Dynasty. Otherwise, the Qin Dynasty would kill them after killing Ye Futian. Many people had already died in the Ancient Barren World.


    The people of the Donghua Clan walked up too. Disciples of the Sword Saint Mountain walked towards them.


    A huge battle was about to start.


    The surrounding people held their breaths. The various forces had already declared war. Were the rivalries finally going to be ignited on Sky Mountain?


    Hua Qingqing stopped her music and watched the imminent battle with her pretty eyes.


    Chu Yaoyao gazed at Ye Futian. She didn''t know what to think. The Moon Clan obviously wouldn''t get involved.


    "This is between the Qin Dynasty and Cottage. What is the Sword Saint Mountain doing?" Qi Ao from the Fuyun Sword Clan said. He looked at the group with sharp eyes.


    Du Ming furrowed his sword-like brows. Gazing at Qi Ao, he said, "What is it to you?"


    "Shouldn''t the college give us Ye Wuchen, the traitor of the Fuyun Sword Clan?" Qi Ao asked with a smile.


    Ye Futian looked coldly at him. Qi Ao obviously knew that he wouldn''t hand Ye Wuchen over. He was just using this as an excuse to enter the battle.


    Snow continued falling. The atmosphere was getting tenser.


    "Why didn''t you learn anything from when First Senior Brother went to the Fuyun Sword Clan?" Yi Xiaoshi asked.


    Ye Futian scanned the crowd. The Royal Xuan Temple was watching menacingly. They didn''t say anything but he was sure that they would act if needed.


    The Cottage had a disadvantage in numbers.


    Ye Futian rose slowly against the might from Sky Mountain. Wind elemental sorcery gathered around him. Golden roc wings unfurled with Noble Will. Everyone looked at him. What was he doing?


    "No need to fight. The problem between Qin Li and I is personal," Ye Futian suddenly said. Then he shot into the sky and rose up as if he was going to reach the peak. In the sky, Ye Futian was like a Roc, transforming into a bolt of lightning. Many people stared at this scene in shock. Unexpectedly, Ye Futian left everyone here without fighting.


    "Want to escape?" Qin Li gazed at the figure in the sky. "Chase him." As soon as he spoke, people shot into the sky like dragons in flight. They pursued Ye Futian.


    "Onto the mountain." Yi Xiaoshi''s body flashed. Strong cultivators from every force advanced up Sky Mountain, much faster than before.


    This imminent battle was cut short because of Ye Futian''s sudden departure.


    "Let''s go." The Fuyun Sword Clan and Sword Saint Mountain started climbing too. Ye Futian crossed an impossible length and landed on a huge boulder. Then he continued forward as if the evil feeling and might didn''t exist.


    "Feiyang, take care of Chenyu," Ye Wuchen said. Then he shot forward like a flash from his sword.


    "I''ll take a look," Chu Yaoyao said and also sped up the mountain.


    Ye Futian was galloping down the path. He was so fast, with powerful cultivators of high planes from the Qin Dynasty close behind him. If not for the might from Sky Mountain, they would''ve caught up. After all, he was in a lower plane.


    More and more strong cultivators pursued him but he didn''t seem to care. When he''d acted, he had already thought of various scenarios. Noble Fate rose up in him, fighting against the repressive might. Emperor Will was in this too, allowing him to reduce the pressure from the mountain.


    The pressure grew. Subtle lightning could be seen amongst the falling snow as if this was a world of lightning. Even the boulders of the mountain glimmered with lightning. Ye Futian stepped into it and felt the powerful Lightning Will press down. It ran through his body but it wasn''t all. The evil feeling strengthened too. His feet walked forward involuntarily.


    "You think you can run?" Behind him, Qin Li walked over. There were dragon roars as if he was a dragon. He was covered in dragon armor. The strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty formed a matrix around him. They stepped into the lightning world together.


    Ye Futian ignored them. Since he attacked Qin Li, he hadn''t thought of actually escaping. His only motive for attacking was to kill Qin Li.


    Back in the Liu Kingdom, seeing what Qin Yuan did to Liu Chenyu, seeing Liu Chenyu attempt suicide, Ye Wuchen''s helplessness, and Qin Li''s arrogant words, he''d already wanted to kill the man. He was helpless back then though. Emperor Liu wouldn''t kill him, so Ye Futian couldn''t either.


    Now, they were in Sky Mountain. The strongest man beside Qin Li was only in the Arcana Plane. The higher they climbed, the more pressure those with high planes would feel. Ye Futian finally had a chance now. Plus, since they were at war, Qin Li would kill him if he didn''t kill the other. He only worried about how to do it now.


    Yi Xiaoshi arrived too, as well as some people from the Donghua Clan. People from different forces gradually entered this lightning world. Of course, many people dropped out because they couldn''t take it anymore. Those who entered involuntarily slowed down. Red glowed in some eyes again, even those who were greatly talented.


    Chu Yaoyao also entered the lightning. Seeing the lonely backside in the distance, she felt that Ye Futian wasn''t escaping. She saw the determination in his backside.


    Ye Wuchen, Yu Sheng, Loulan Xue, and the others started walking here too.


    "If you think you can''t take it anymore, don''t force yourself," Hua Qingqing said to the people around her. She obviously felt the pressure too.


    The Qianqiu Temple and Witch Clan were before Ye Futian. At this moment, Gu Biyue stopped. She wanted to give up but saw Ye Futian speed up and overtake her. She couldn''t help but stare and ask, "Are you crazy?"


    Ye Futian ignored her and continued past.


    Qin Li''s expression grew uglier. His will kept getting corroded. He knew the pressure contained in this space, but Ye Futian kept advancing. Some of the strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty beside him were unstable already. Their eyes glowed red; their murderous intent intensified.


    "We can''t keep dragging it on. Kill him," Qin Li ordered coldly. His people burst forward towards Ye Futian. Their eyes were bloody; they wanted to kill so badly.


    Boom.


    Seeing this, Yi Xiaoshi sped up too and actually transformed into a bolt of lightning. He started later but arrived first. He leaped over Qin Li, body turning into a blur. He reached out and his arms actually stretched, curling towards the people going to kill Ye Futian.


    "Kill him," Qin Li uttered coldly. Various Qin Dynasty cultivators stepped out and soared in the sky.


    Yi Xiaoshi seemed to have eyes on the back of his head. He kicked backward and his feet actually turned into a golden mountain. It pressed down, radiating with gold light. With a huge boom, it forced the people back.


    "Come back." Yi Xiaoshi waved his arm and dragged the people back like tentacles.


    As if he didn''t know about the battle behind him, Ye Futian advanced without looking back.


    Qin Li''s expression was ugly. "Take care of him," he said coldly. Then he brought some people to continue chasing after Ye Futian. The rest surrounded Yi Xiaoshi.

 348 Time

    Chapter 348: Time


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing that they wanted to go around him to pursue Ye Futian, Yi Xiaoshi flashed and blocked them. He dazzled radiantly. The next moment, a huge tree grew wildly. He seemed to have become a divine tree that spread in all directions.


    Even more frightening, the tree that Yi Xiaoshi turned into wasn''t only green. It also had a terrible golden tint, like a true emperor''s glow.


    "Emperor''s Vine."


    Everyone''s eyes flashed as they stared forward. The Emperor''s Vine was known as the emperor amongst trees and had the sturdiest vines. Clearly, the life spirit of the Cottage''s seventh disciple was the Emperor''s Vine and used it to create this dharma.


    With this dharma released, all wood and gold Spiritual Qi were devoured.


    A wood elemental spell was released while dazzling gold tendrils covered the sun. They sped in the air, going towards the group that wanted to kill Ye Futian. Every vine was like a horrible blade. The strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty were facing a great enemy. Not daring to underestimate it, they turned around to defend themselves with spells. They didn''t dare to keep chasing Ye Futian.


    "That''s right." Yi Xiaoshi smiled brightly. That moment, countless strong cultivators formed a battle matrix and went straight towards him. Dragons roared from many of them. They stabbed their spears forward, wanting to shatter Yi Xiaoshi''s body.


    Whoosh�� Endless vines swept forward, transforming into thousands of tentacles that curled towards the people. A golden flower bloomed. The sharp petals spun and expanded like a frightening gold vortex. Horrible dragons roared above the spears with murderous intent. They destroyed everything; the gold petals continuously got shattered. It seemed powerful for the flower to be destroyed but it kept blooming and blooming without end.


    The dragon apparitions extinguished and the powerful auras of the Qin Dynasty disappeared. However, the petals were still coming. They exploded into a rain of petals. Every droplet of rain sharpened into sturdy golden blades.


    The people sped backward but saw golden vines coming at them from behind, blocking their escape route. They could only force themselves to fight back.


    Squelch�� A horrible golden tendril pierced someone from the Qin Dynasty. He screamed in pain.


    "Retreat, battle matrix!" someone yelled. Sensing danger, they didn''t dare to feel cocky anymore. The seventh disciple of the Cottage wasn''t as famous but he was just as powerful. The Cottage couldn''t be rated with common standards.


    "Junior, this is all I can do." Yi Xiaoshi looked to Ye Futian in the distance. He knew Ye Futian''s plan: use the characteristic of Sky Mountain to kill Qin Li. Beside them, the people of the Fuyun Sword Clan walked over. They glanced at Yi Xiaoshi and continued their pursuit.


    More people arrived and continued forward, going in Ye Futian''s direction. Ye Futian gradually slowed down. It became harder as he went. Many people had been left behind now. Those without steadfast wills couldn''t get here at all.


    At this point in the lightning world, Ye Futian was at the front. Behind him was Qin Li''s group. The Donghua Clan, Fuyun Sword Clan, and Chu Yaoyao were behind them. After that was the College, Beitang Xing''er, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen.


    Everyone was closing in on each other because the people in the front slowed down. Even though the ones behind slowed down as well, it wasn''t as much.


    Only around 50 people were following Ye Futian. The rest had been left behind.


    "How far can you go?" Qin Li asked coldly, watching Ye Futian get closer. He only had two people with him. The others had either been stopped by Yi Xiaoshi or gave up.


    Those with him were extraordinary. They were part of the Qin Dynasty''s royal family and were in even higher planes than him.


    Ye Futian suddenly stopped. He turned around to look at Qin Li and smiled. "Since you want to kill me so badly, should we have a duel?"


    "Idiot." Qin Li sneered with mockery. He was stronger than Ye Futian but with such a disadvantage now, why would he fight? He wasn''t a good person. To kill Ye Futian was his only goal.


    The people of the Donghua Clan and Fuyun Clan walked up. There were four from the Donghua Clan, with Hua Qingqing in the back. There were also four from the Fuyun Sword Clan��Qi Ao and three other swordsmen. They were all amazing geniuses.


    Chu Yaoyao stood in the back, watching this all.


    Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Beitang Xing''er, the Black Wind Eagle, Du Ming of the Sword Saint Mountain and two other strong cultivators, and four disciples of the College were behind her.


    The Royal Xuan Temple was also there. Both sides were more equal in number now. They were all the best of their forces.


    "Die," Qin Li uttered. As soon as he spoke, people from the Qin Dynasty stepped out on either side. Dragons spiraled above them. All royalty from the Qin Dynasty had dragons as their dharma. That was their totem.


    The dragons soared and pounced at Ye Futian, wanting to shred him with their golden claws.


    Ye Futian grasped his Five Element Staff. The Divine Ape growled, the dragon roared, and the golden Roc shimmered. His body seemed undefeatable. He stepped forward and all the might in the world gathered on him. He swept his staff across, hitting a dragon. It was a giant golden dragon with a shocking defense that forced Ye Futian back. Then a frost dragon exhaled at him. Iciness filled the sky, covering him.


    Ye Futian flew in the air and swept his staff again. Using the momentum, he retreated. The two from the Qin Dynasty were in much higher planes. They chased without stop. Qin Li also followed, wanting to kill Ye Futian.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stepped forward and shot into the sky. Ye Wuchen, with his sword, soared like a beam of sword light.


    Whoosh��


    A beam of sword light cut the snowflakes in the sky, slicing the air. Ye Wuchen came to a stop. His body spun with his sword out. Silver lightning seemed to crack across, splitting at the touch.


    Qi Ao appeared before him. Studying Ye Wuchen, he said, "Today, I will take care of things for the Fuyun Sword Clan."


    With that, Qi Ao continued walking. Zhe Song was the swordsman from the first summit but Qi Ao was the strongest of the first summit in Arcana Plane. He was confident in becoming a swordsman of any summit.


    He walked before Ye Wuchen and brought out his sword. It danced in the air like silver light, constantly changing and blocking all escape routes.


    Ye Wuchen stared forward, his eyes changing. That moment, a sword seemed to appear in Qi Ao''s eyes. As a disciple of the Fuyun Sword Clan, Qi Ao was familiar with what ability the swordsman from the seventh summit had. He activated the Sword Eye.


    He ignored the sword light in his eye. Powerful will pushed back the Sword Will. Forgetting the light, he focused on the attack. Ye Wuchen couldn''t threaten him so he didn''t have to care about the Sword Eye.


    Ye Wuchen brought his sword down. It was a simple move but seemed to slice the world. It was so powerful that it actually cut down one of Qi Ao''s lines of defense and continued invading.


    His plane wasn''t as high as Qi Ao. In order to win, he had to attack. If he defended, he would be dead.


    The other swordsmen blocked the cultivators of the Sword Saint Mountain. Swords and broadswords clashed. They seemed to want to end the old rivalry between the two forces.


    Another from the Fuyun Sword Clan blocked Yu Sheng.


    The College disciples wanted to help Ye Futian but the Donghua Clan appeared to isolate them.


    On Qin Li and Ye Futian''s battlefield, Ye Futian kept getting forced back. Qin Li was two levels higher than him, in the Arcana Plane, and there wasn''t much hope for Ye Futian.


    Qian Shanmu sat down and started playing his guqin. Music covered the battlefield. Musical sorcery transformed into spiritual attacks that stabbed into the ears of the College and Sword Saint Mountain, affecting their fighting.


    Beitang Xing''er looked at Ye Futian. She was worried but she didn''t have a high plane either. She probably wasn''t stronger than Ye Futian so she couldn''t help.


    Glancing at Qian Shanmu, she walked over. Stopping in place, she closed her eyes. Invisible spiritual energy shrouded the area.


    The spiritual storm converged and landed inside Qian Shanmu''s mind. At that moment, he could only see Beitang Xing''er''s image in his mind.


    "Stop," Beitang Xing''er uttered. It echoed countless times in Qian Shanmu''s mind.


    Stop, stop��


    The endless echoes were like an invisible storm hitting Qian Shanmu. He flew backward, the music cutting off. He looked up at Beitang Xing''er in shock.


    She ignored him and started attacking the others. Soon, another Donghua Clan cultivator was forced back and almost killed by a College disciple.


    "Junior Sister." Qian Shanmu gazed at Hua Qingqing. Many thought Qian Shanmu was the best musical sorcerer of the young generation but he knew Hua Qingqing was stronger in both talent and ability.


    Hua Qingqing''s eyes flashed. She walked to Beitang Xing''er.


    They stared at each other and formless spiritual energy clashed. Hua Qingqing''s clear eyes held the gaze. Beitang Xing''er began to look worried. Her spiritual energy wasn''t as strong as Hua Qingqing so she couldn''t help anymore.


    At that time, Ye Futian was forced back again. He crashed against a boulder and grunted. Blood seeped from his lips.


    Qin Li''s trio pressed down.


    Ye Futian stood up and turned. He continued racing up the mountain.


    "Escaping again?" Qin Li''s expression was frigid. "Just stopping them is enough."


    With that, he brought the other two and continued after Ye Futian. At the front, coldness glinted past Ye Futian''s eyes as he raced. The time was coming!

 349 Extreme Breakou

    Chapter 349: Extreme Breakout


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the lightning-filled world, the great battle continued. Even the geniuses from various top forces were under extreme pressure, and it was not just from the battle itself.


    Ye Futian slowly disappeared in the distance. Qin Li and the two Upper Arcana Plane cultivators from Qin Dynasty were chasing him.


    The mountain path was very rugged. Ye Futian did not look behind him and kept advancing forward. In front of him, the lightning-filled world seemed to be turning into an icy one, where ice storms were raging. Before he even reached, he already began to shiver.


    The snowflakes falling from the sky condensed into frost and turned into part of the icy world on Sky Mountain. Ye Futian stepped into it and could only feel extremely cold. It was as if he was covered in snow and ice and coldness seeped into his bones continuously.


    Apart from being cold, evil thoughts also intensified and were mixed with the freezing coldness. Various negative emotions flashed across the eyes of Qin Li and the other two cultivators. A frightening murderous intent was released from them as they stared at Ye Futian''s back with a bloodthirsty look.


    Before them, they could vaguely see the Arhat of Qianqiu Temple and Warlock Gu Zhiqiu of Witch Clan. The two advanced forward without any distractions and only had one goal��to reach the top of Sky Mountain. Their clan-mates were all left behind as they did not have the ability to follow them.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian changed his path and walked towards the side.


    Qin Li''s body was fully covered with a piece of dragon armor. Stepping on the snow, he continued the chase.


    The four people walked in the snow and climbed a huge rock, after which they arrived on a flat piece of land. In the distance, there was only a cliff, and it seemed likely that they had nowhere else to go.


    Ye Futian finally stopped. Cold wind was blowing, and his white shirt was covered with snow. In the strong wind, he looked somewhat bleak.


    "Where can you run now?" Qin Li''s eyes were filled with a terrifying red light. Just now, Ye Futian forced him to kneel down with his rod, which was very humiliating. The murderous intent Qin Li had towards Ye Futian at the moment surpassed everything else. His negative emotions were ignited totally and he only wanted Ye Futian to die.


    "Now, there should be no one else here to disturb us," Ye Futian said with his back facing Qin Li. Qin Li''s eyes sparkled. What did Ye Futian mean?


    No one else will disturb us?


    In the first place, there were not many who could reach this place. Moreover, a battle had erupted below them, so there should indeed be no one else here.


    "Do you think this is a good place to bury your corpse?" Ye Futian turned around slowly and stared at Qin Li. At this instant, his eyes seemed to contain a supreme trace of dignity. The blood in Ye Futian''s body started to roar and roll. A golden divine flame seemed to be burning in his blood. From his body, many brilliant traces of light spread out.


    Boom! Noble Will charged into the air and it even seemed to be slightly golden. At this moment, Ye Futian had evolved. His blood, muscles, and fate were all becoming stronger at a remarkable pace. The Spiritual Qi around him formed a storm centered at him. Snow flew wildly in the sky. Even the snowflakes seemed to be covered in a sacred radiance.


    From his eyes, one could notice a faint golden light glittering. Qin Li looked at Ye Futian''s eyes and actually felt that he was inferior in front of Ye Futian, that he needed to kneel down and pay homage to Ye Futian.


    "What''s happening?" Qin Li''s face darkened quickly. Ye Futian''s might was rising rapidly, especially his will. It actually made him want to kneel down and surrender. How ridiculous this was.


    Who was Qin Li? He was the grandson of the king of Qin Dynasty, the son of the crown prince. In the future, he would be able to succeed from his father the throne. He was born noble and extraordinary. How many people in the Eastern Barren Territory could make him kneel down and salute? How could a person who had entered the Eastern Barren Territory for merely two years make him develop such a feeling?


    It was not just Qin Li. The two beside him were both royal members and descendants of important people in Qin Dynasty. Moreover, they were in the Upper Arcana Plane, which was way higher than Ye Futian''s current level. The difference was almost an entire plane, which obviously could not be made up in any way. However, they also felt that they wanted to worship Ye Futian at the moment.


    Ye Futian stared at the three before him. The Emperor Will was still burning and his body seemed to be boiling under this power. He became extremely burly as if he was an emperor who had come to the mortal world.


    Since Emperor Will was formed in his body in Donghai City, this was the first time he activated it so thoroughly. In the past, he had used Emperor Will to control various relics and occasionally help him in battles. However, apart from the time when this ability awakened, he had never released it so completely like this time.


    He also knew that it was difficult to close the gap between different planes. Qin Li was not part of his consideration, but the two people beside Qin Li were real Upper Arcana Plane cultivators. Both the Arcana Plane and the Dharma Plane were divided into nine levels each. At the moment, Ye Futian was at the peak of Dharma Plane, so the difference between him and Upper Arcana Plane was almost an entire plane. In the world of cultivation, this gap could never be closed. Therefore, Qin Li and the other two were extremely confident that they would certainly be able to kill Ye Futian if they could catch up with him.


    Precisely because of this, Ye Futian activated his powers at the moment. Emperor Will in his body started to burn. He stared at Qin Li only with a murderous look.


    "Who exactly are you?" Qin Li tried to calm down from shock as he stared firmly at Ye Futian. He did not know what ability Ye Futian had used, but based on Ye Futian''s change at the moment, he was certainly not just a Cottage disciple. However, Qin Li had been to the Nandou Nation. Ye Futian was from such a small nation in the Hundred Lands, so why did he have such temperament? He was like a superior emperor.


    "The person who will kill you." Ye Futian held the Five Element Rod in his hand and his body was covered in an emperor armor. It actually looked more dazzling than the dragon armor Qin Li was wearing.


    Ye Futian''s Guqin Spirit appeared behind him. Nobody was playing the Guqin Spirit, but music was coming out from it. The Spiritual Qi in the sky converged on the Guqin Spirit and a trace of Spiritual Will circled around it. Ye Futian was controlling it with his mind.


    Meanwhile, the Five Element Rod in his hand expanded as Emperor Will gushed into it, making it seem as if it was on fire. The five colors on the rod turned into a brilliant emperor color. Ye Futian waved his arm and the entire sky changed its color.


    At this instant, Ye Futian recalled the battle in Donghai City and that special feeling appeared again. Activating the Imperial Tactics to its extreme, his every move made him look like an emperor. The difference was that in Donghai, another willpower was guiding and controlling him but at the moment, he was fighting himself.


    The Five Element Rod smashed down from the sky and cracked the earth open. Qin Li froze at his spot. Even with noble ritual implements, they could not fight against that level of power.


    The two people beside Qin Li activated their powers fully. Wind whizzed around them and dragon howls could be heard in the sky. A golden dragon sword appeared in the hands of one person, while an ice scepter appeared in the hands of the other. They were both noble ritual implements. After all, their positions were extraordinary��they were both direct descendants of the royal family.


    Two dragons charged towards the Five Element Rod. At the same time, ice started to cover the rod.


    Bang! A violent explosion was heard. Even the ground itself seemed to have cracked. The dragons were crushed into pieces and Qin Li''s face was bombarded with wildly flying snowflakes. Knowing that Ye Futian had purposely lured them here to kill him, Qin Li retreated quickly. He understood that he already could not participate in this battle.


    Dong. Suddenly, Ye Futian started to charge forward. He swang his rod and passed the two Upper Arcana Plane cultivators from the center. Having finally lured Qin Li here and found a chance to kill him, how could Ye Futian let Qin Li leave the place alive?


    The music from the dancing Guqin Spirit seeped into the ears of the two continuously. The long rod in Ye Futian''s hand turned into wood-elemental and actually began to extend and curl, eventually grabbing Qin Li who was trying to escape.


    "Come back." The rod retracted.


    "Save me!" Qin Li roared. His voice echoed on Sky Mountain and spread outwards continuously. Feeling Ye Futian''s intense murderous intent, he really felt a death threat.


    "Let him go!" someone shouted. One of the cultivators behind Ye Futian charged forward like a dragon and struck his sword out. At this instant, Ye Futian felt as if there was a golden dragon which was piercing towards him with a sharp sword. The attack was incredibly powerful.


    Ye Futian flung Qin Li behind him to prevent him from escaping. In the meantime, he retracted the Five Element Rod and gave another strike. His attack was executed smoothly and landed on the body of the golden dragon, breaking it into pieces.


    The music from the guqin continued to be released in the snow. It was very ear-piercing and sounded chaotic. Ye Futian had played the music using Emperor Will and everyone hearing it wanted to submit to him.


    Ye Futian continued to move forward, swinging the Five Element Rod in his hand again. Wind and clouds in the sky roared and snowflakes danced with the Five Element Rod. Together, they turned into a monstrous vortex where all the natural forces converged.


    Ye Futian would frequently practice boxing when he was free. During his practice, he would activate the Imperial Tactics. With this, his every move would be filled with the rhythm of an emperor. Therefore at the moment, he activated the Imperial Tactics and merged that rhythm into the Nine Heavenly Attacks.


    His rod struck out and even the sky seemed to be roaring. When the Upper Arcana Plane cultivator before him felt the power of the attack, his face was only filled with shock and astonishment. With Ye Futian''s willpower and the influence of his music, it felt as if Ye Futian was an invincible emperor. The pressure of his willpower brought much desperation to the cultivator.


    The Dharma of the Qin Dynasty cultivators turned into a dragon which dashed out. He activated his sword and roared loudly, wanting to block the strike.


    The long rod covered the sky and the sun. It smashed down from above and even the sky seemed to be collapsing.


    Bang!


    An extremely loud noise erupted. The Five Element Rod broke open all defenses and crushed everything in its path, hitting directly onto the body of the Upper Arcana Plane cultivator. Without any suspense, the cultivator fell flat onto the ground and even his body was slightly deformed. His body trembled gently and blood gushed out continuously, coloring the white snow on the ground.


    His eyes were still open, but his heartbeat had already stopped. He could not die in peace.


    He was a descendant of the royal family of Qin Dynasty. Furthermore, he was a talented Upper Arcana Plane cultivator and was not far away from the Noble Plane. Once he became a noble, he would be a mainstay of the Qin Dynasty and all-powerful in the future. However, he died on Sky Mountain.


    Seeing the scene, the faces of Qin Li and the other cultivator were filled with fear, especially Qin Li. Under the influence of the music, his Spiritual Energy was completely suppressed and his eyes were filled with horror.


    At first, he thought that Ye Futian would definitely die in his hands on Sky Mountain. It would be a piece of cake to kill Ye Futian.


    However, at the moment Ye Futian was like an emperor and he an ant. He did not even have the ability to fight back.


    Nobody would understand his despair.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s look, Qin Li was no longer arrogant like he had always been. He could only feel that he was extremely petty and low!

 350 Dancing Snow

    Chapter 350: Dancing Snow


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the other battlefield, Qin Li''s cry for help finally arrived. His voice echoed between the mountain walls.


    Everyone in the battle felt their hearts tremble fiercely. The cry for help actually came from Qin Li. Three cultivators from Qin Dynasty had gone to chase Ye Futian, two of which were in the Upper Arcana Plane, and the last one was Qin Li. On the other hand, Ye Futian had not even entered the Arcana Plane. In any way that one could imagine, the outcome of this battle was blatantly obvious and it should end immediately.


    So why would the person asking for help be Qin Li?


    A while ago, Ye Futian was injured by Qin Li and the other two, and he spat out a lot of blood. This was also the reason why he tried to escape. Qin Li had asked the others not to chase with him and only intercept Ye Futian''s allies.


    "Let''s go." The people from Donghua Clan quickly retreated from the battlefield. Then, the members of Fuyun Sword Clan also broke away and started to climb the mountain.


    Qin Li was the son of Qin Yu. In this alliance of various top forces, Qin Li was playing a very important role. If he was to die on Sky Mountain in the presence of the other forces, the people from these forces would not be able to give a sound explanation to the Qin Dynasty.


    The disciples from the Cottage, the College and Sword Saint Mountain did not continue the fight as well. They similarly advanced forward. Everyone was enduring a great amount of pressure.


    There was actually another battlefield on the mountain path in front. There, two cultivators from Royal Xuan Temple were battling with a lady. They were the ones who were the last to arrive at the place. They met on their way, and for some reason, a battle erupted.


    The lady was Loulan Xue. Her level was lower than her opponents, but as she fought, a treasurable book was hovering over her head. When she released its power, her entire surrounding would be sealed with ice. With its incredible power, she managed to intercept the cultivators from Royal Xuan Temple.


    Noticing many people coming towards them, they also stopped the battle. Loulan Xue glanced at her opponents, after which she started to climb the mountain. Her willpower was not that strong, but by relying on the power of the treasurable book she could still keep her mind clear from the corrosion.


    Near the cliff, Ye Futian also knew that Qin Li''s loud shout would attract the attention of the people below. Why did he lure Qin Li and the other two here? Firstly, he wanted to cut off Qin Li''s reinforcement so that he could kill Qin Li here. Secondly, he did not want others to see his status at the moment. It was, after all, too unique for him to have Emperor Will in his body. Emperor Ye Qing was a taboo, and the Snow Ape also fought to his death. So clearly he did not want to expose his secrets in front of everyone else.


    In addition, he could not maintain such a status for too long. Emperor Will had already been activated and his body could not withstand such a strong power. He was wildly burning his potential so that both his physical body and willpower could evolve to an extreme standard, allowing him to have incredible combat power at the moment. This was against the rules of cultivation so naturally he had to pay a price. However, even though he knew that he had to pay a price, he still wanted to kill Qin Li. This was his determination.


    After killing an Upper Arcana Plane cultivator, he walked toward Qin Li and the other cultivator. Spiritual Qi whizzed in the air and converged around Ye Futian.


    The dancing snowflakes that filled the sky were exceptionally beautiful, but in the eyes of the Qin Dynasty cultivator, they were only decorations for his funeral. The ability he had been cultivating was precisely ice-elemental. He pointed his scepter at Ye Futian and an ice dragon appeared. At the same time, a frightening gust of frost swept out, trying to bury Ye Futian forever.


    "Kill!" Qin Li shouted loudly. On the ground, many sharp blades made from ice appeared and pierced towards Ye Futian. However, even he himself was not very confident.


    Ye Futian was showered in emperor''s light and his body was covered with a piece of sacred armor. After killing the other cultivator, his momentum did not decrease at all. Instead, he became even stronger. As he swang the Five Element Rod, air currents around him raged. The rod destroyed everything in its path and the ice-elemental abilities charging towards him were all crushed into ashes.


    Boom�� Many deep noises were heard. As the Five Element Rod swept forward, the many sharp blades were crushed one after another. Ye Futian was waving the rod with a special rhythm. Finally, his arm struck forward. His action seemed to be very slow, so slow that one could clearly see his every move, but within the slowness, there was also, ironically, swiftness, as if his strike contained a mysterious rule. This strike caused space itself to explode.


    Eventually, the Five Element Rod hit the ice dragon. Accompanying many explosions, the ice dragon was quickly annihilated. The Five Element Rod continued forward and struck towards the cultivator with the same momentum.


    Holding the scepter in his hand, the Qin Dynasty cultivator shouted, "Ice Guardian!" The snowflakes dancing in the sky converged around him and his body turned into an everlasting dragon-shaped ice statue. The Five Element Rod struck down. Without any suspense, the ice was crushed and the rod crashed on the cultivator''s head. Blood danced in the air along with the snow.


    "No��" Qin Li''s face was filled with intense fear as he raced towards the cliff.


    Ye Futian stared at Qin Li''s back emotionlessly. He stepped across the corpse directly and walked towards Qin Li.


    Dong. Qin Li stomped on the ground and ran towards the cliff. However, Ye Futian would obviously not give him the chance to escape. His body flashed forward like a bolt of lightning and he released an ice spell. A terrifying snowstorm raged before him, burying Qin Li''s body. Shivering, Qin Li froze in his spot.


    Ye Futian jumped into the air and struck the Five Element Rod down from above.


    "You can''t kill me!" Qin Li roared, releasing his Dharma and Life Spirit. A dragon shadow was released from his body and ascended into the air. He raised his arm covered in dragon armor before him in an attempt to block the attack.


    The Five Element Rod fell down and a clear cracking sound was heard. Even though Qin Li''s arm was protected by a ritual implement, it was still crushed directly. Qin Li was blown backward and spat up much blood. Lying on the ground, his face turned as pale as a sheet.


    Ye Futian continued to walk forward, spinning the rod in his hand. He looked at Qin Li as if he was only looking at a corpse. There was already no way that Qin Li was going to survive.


    "A while ago, I asked you if you would repent before you die." Ye Futian approached Qin Li step by step and said coldly, "That was not a joke."


    "Let me go. If you kill me, my father will surely kill you at all costs. Even the Cottage will not be able to save you," Qin Li said.


    "It seems like I was just wasting my time trying to talk to you." Ye Futian raised the rod and Qin Li''s eyes were filled with desperation.


    Suddenly, wind whizzed over behind them. Ye Futian frowned and turned his head around when he saw a charming figure walking towards them on the snow. It was actually Chu Yaoyao. She bypassed the battlefield and did not participate in the battle there. Instead, she chose to come here.


    "Yaoyao, save me!" Qin Li was already in total hopelessness at the moment. He did not even think about how Chu Yaoyao could save him. Ye Futian glanced at Chu Yaoyao and some murderous intent flashed across his eyes.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s look, Chu Yaoyao could only feel some pain in her heart. After all, she was Qin Li''s girlfriend. Ye Futian would only consider her as his enemy and would likely kill her.


    Chu Yaoyao stared at the stunningly handsome and brilliant figure in front of her. The genius of the Eastern Barren Territory, Qin Li, was now lying before him, and two powerful cultivators from Qin Dynasty were both killed by him.


    But so what? This young man who was both talented and good-looking, who dared to kill Qin Li so casually, and whom she first fell in love with, only wanted her to die, because they stood on diagonally opposite sides. She was nominally Qin Li''s girlfriend.


    Thinking about this, Chu Yaoyao lowered her head slightly, feeling depressed. In her mind, she recalled the lady who was also from Moon Clan, the lady who was brilliant and pure. She was somewhat envious. Why was she not the one who got to know him first?


    Raising her head, Chu Yaoyao gazed at Ye Futian with her charming eyes and said gently, "I like you." Snow was still falling down onto her exquisite face. Chu Yaoyao''s words, however, seemed to freeze the entire space. Ye Futian was stunned, and so was Qin Li. In any case, it was very inappropriate for Chu Yaoyao to say so at this time. It could even be considered as ridiculous and weird. However, she still chose to say it at such a time. Perhaps she knew that if she did not say it now, she would never have the chance to because the person whom she first fell in love with wanted to kill her.


    Spit. Qin Li spat out a mouthful of blood, and his chest rose and fell fiercely. He stared coldly at Chu Yaoyao as if she was from the deepest part of hell.


    "B*tch!" he roared angrily at Chu Yaoyao. When he was in such a hopeless situation, when his fate was controlled by Ye Futian, his girlfriend told Ye Futian that she liked him. Nobody could imagine how much desperation and humiliation Qin Li had suffered today. In fact, even an ordinary person would not be able to take such humiliation, not to say Qin Li.


    After being stunned for a while, Ye Futian asked, "Are you scared that I''ll kill you?" He felt that it was too absurd. The only possible explanation was that Chu Yaoyao saw the scene and feared that he would kill her.


    Chu Yaoyao''s heart felt as cold and freezing as the snow that filled the sky. She stared at Ye Futian and suddenly, she gave a self-mocking smile and said, "Is my love for you so petty?"


    She was the genius of the Moon Clan and also one of the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory. She met the person whom she liked for the first time and even told him that she liked him. However, Ye Futian thought that she said so only to stay alive. How sad.


    "You b*tch!" Qin Li trembled and stared firmly at Chu Yaoyao.


    Ye Futian did not say anything else. He turned around and looked at Qin Li. Moving his arm, he raised the Five Element Rod high in the air.


    "Let me off. I will give that b*tch to you for free. You can get whatever you want. Don''t kill me!" Qin Li stared at Ye Futian in desperation. Who in the world would not be scared of death? The more arrogant one was, the more one would fear death. Qin Li was born extraordinary and superior, and glory awaited him in the future. How could he be willing to die?


    "You have already been alive for too long." After Ye Futian finished speaking, he struck the Five Element Rod down. Following a soft sound, Qin Li''s body trembled. He was still opening his eyes and staring firmly at Ye Futian. Blood flew down from his head and colored the white snow on the ground, but it was soon buried by snow again.


    Finally, Qin Li''s head dropped to the ground and he lied there quietly.


    Never had he expected himself to die just like this.


    The snow on Sky Mountain was indeed cold.


    Chu Yaoyao looked at the scene calmly and was not shocked at all. She still stared at the standing young man. He was standing proudly in the dancing snow. His shirt was as white as snow and he was showered in emperor''s light. Needless to say, he looked elegant and unparalleled.


    Even time seemed to freeze. There, a handsome young man and a beautiful lady stood in the boundless snow!

 351 Intensification

    Chapter 351: Intensification


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the dancing snow, Chu Yaoyao stared at the man in front of her with her charming eyes. She did not even know when she started to like him; perhaps because of Hua Jieyu she started to pay attention to her boyfriend Ye Futian. During the conferment ceremony of the crown prince in Qin Dynasty, Chu Yaoyao saw him for the first time. She saw the new disciple of the Cottage, the young man who said these arrogant words in the Ancient Barren World and fought Qian Shanmu head-on with music.


    Notwithstanding, she only discovered her love for him on Turtle Mountain. In the illusion, the person that appeared in her mind was actually Ye Futian. She only realized at that moment that she really liked him.


    In her most beautiful age, she fell in love with a person whom she should not. Her love was thus destined to end in failure. She also did not know why she would say those three words today. Perhaps it was because she saw his murderous intent, or because she knew it was her only chance to say those words in front of him.


    Ye Futian similarly looked at Chu Yaoyao. Although he did not really like the lady before him, he still had to admit Chu Yaoyao''s beauty. After all, she was one of the top three beauties. Snow was falling slowly onto her face and her lovingly pathetic expression was sufficient to melt the heart of any. However, in any case, he still could not like her, because the two of them had so little contact in the first place, and furthermore she had done some bad things to Jieyu before. Moreover, she was Qin Li''s girlfriend.


    Grasping the Five Element Rod firmly in his hand, Ye Futian felt a wave of fatigue surging inside him. He knew that the potential he had was running out. If he did not kill Chu Yaoyao now, he would no longer have the chance to.


    He lifted the rod gradually. Seeing his action, some pain flashed across Chu Yaoyao''s eyes. She gave a miserable smile and only stared at Ye Futian. Then, she closed her eyes.


    I''m really so petty.


    Ye Futian had lifted the Five Element Rod, but when he saw the heart-shattering look, he hesitated. Some footsteps could be heard in the distance. Ye Futian glanced there, after which he looked at Chu Yaoyao.


    "Forget everything," Ye Futian said softly. Then, he sat on the ground and retreated his might slowly. The strikingly dazzling emperor''s light dissipated. Ye Futian felt an endless amount of tiredness gushing towards him and really wanted to sleep on the spot.


    Emperor Will, which was way beyond what he could handle, had been wildly exhausting his potential. It allowed him to cross the enormous gap between different planes and possess a stunning level of combat power, but after the battle, any person could kill him.


    It was a risk for him to kill Qin Li, but he still did so. The damage Qin Li had brought to the Liu Kingdom, Liu Chenyu, and Ye Wuchen were enough for Ye Futian to kill him a thousand times over. It would be much more difficult to kill Qin Li after leaving Sky Mountain. Hence, Ye Futian did not hesitate at all.


    Chu Yaoyao opened her eyes and looked at the man sitting on the ground. She could not describe her feelings at the moment.


    Tweet. In the distance, wind and snow whizzed in the air as a black figure charged over. It was the demon Black Wind Condor whose eyes were completely red at the moment. Flapping its wings wildly, it approached Ye Futian. Then, it turned around and looked at Chu Yaoyao in vigilance, emitting an ear-piercing noise at her.


    Ye Futian had called the Black Wind Condor here with his Spiritual Will, as they were connected through their wills. At the instant when he killed Qin Li, he knew that he would suffer a severe after-effect. Thus, when he made his attack, he asked the Black Wind Condor to rush here. That was why the Black Wind Condor arrived before everyone else.


    In the snowstorm, many people arrived one after another, including the people from Donghua Clan, Fuyun Sword Clan, Sword Saint Mountain, the College, and Royal Xuan Temple. Loulan Xue, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Beitang Xing''er were here as well.


    When they saw the scene in front of them, they were all utterly stunned. There were five people in front of them. One was standing, one was sitting, and three were lying on the ground, breathless. Clearly, the last three had already died.


    The people who were lying on the ground were actually Qin Li and the two Upper Arcana Plane cultivators from Qin Dynasty.


    The people from Donghua Clan and Fuyun Sword Clan could all feel their hearts twitch instantly as their faces turned pale. After all, they were allied with the Qin Dynasty. It was obvious how they would feel after seeing Qin Li dead in front of them. The genius of Qin Dynasty, the son of the crown prince, the person who would very likely be the future crown prince, died on Sky Mountain. This was definitely the most severe thing that had happened on Sky Mountain so far. Nobody knew the consequences this would bring. However, how did Ye Futian manage to do this?


    They stared at the man sitting on the snow-covered ground. At the moment, Ye Futian''s face was somewhat pale, as if he was very exhausted. Clearly, he had lost the ability to battle, but no injuries could be seen on his body. How did he kill Qin Li?


    If Qin Li was the only person here, they would easily accept the outcome. After all, Ye Futian''s combat abilities were extremely strong. However, apart from Qin Li, there were still two Upper Arcana Plane cultivators from Qin Dynasty beside him.


    Of course, this was not the right time for them to investigate how Ye Futian killed Qin Li.


    ''No..." Behind them, another person arrived. It was the princess of Qin Dynasty, Qin Mengruo. Another member of the top three beauties appeared in this snow-filled world.


    Qin Mengruo walked forward. She looked at the three corpses, and then at Ye Futian and Chu Yaoyao, after which she asked coldly, "Why didn''t you kill him?" She was clearly saying this to Chu Yaoyao.


    At the moment, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and the rest had already approached Ye Futian and were standing in front of him, blocking him from the rest. However, many people saw that Chu Yaoyao and Ye Futian were the only two here at first. Ye Futian had already lost his ability to fight, so why did Chu Yaoyao not kill Ye Futian?


    Chu Yaoyao did not reply. How could she answer this question?


    In fact, Ye Futian was the one who did not kill her.


    "Do you want to keep watching?" Qin Mengruo looked at the crowd and said, "Kill him."


    At the moment, everyone''s eyes were filled with a faint red light and many violent, bloodthirsty thoughts were racing through their minds. They had been more or less influenced by the environment. Hearing Qin Mengruo''s words, everyone released their auras instantly. Qin Li was killed by Ye Futian, so a full-on war was probably inevitable. Nobody could stay safe in this situation.


    Qin Li died before them, how could they still stay neutral and not assault Ye Futian? In that case, Qin Yu would certainly not let them off. Nobody knew how furious Qin Yu would be after knowing Qin Li''s death. After all, everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory knew that Qin Yu had been training Qin Li as his successor. He had asked Qin Li to do many things on his behalf. Therefore, at this instant, many cultivators charged towards Ye Futian.


    Although the powers of the two parties present were similar, it was much more difficult to protect a person than just to battle. Ye Futian had lost his ability to fight, so even a spell would be able to kill him. Therefore, it was not very difficult to kill Ye Futian.


    The people from the College, Sword Saint Mountain, and the rest all guarded in front of Ye Futian and Spiritual Qi around them started to rage. Soon, another battle erupted. Furthermore, everyone chose the opponent they had been fighting a while ago.


    A blade of light flew over and charged towards Ye Futian directly. Ye Wuchen ran out and his Sword Qi turned into a storm, blocking the incoming strike.


    Qi Ao seemed to be expecting Ye Wuchen''s aid in the first place. His wrist trembled and sword rain filled the sky, engulfing Ye Wuchen totally.


    Ye Wuchen similarly built a sword curtain that was impenetrable.


    Qi Ao stared coldly at his opponent. He waved his sword smoothly but did not strike forward. Instead, he only swang his sword in situ. Every swing would leave a trace on the space. Soon, in the sword storm, countless blades of light appeared. It was an extremely powerful attack: Iaido Cut.


    The sword curtain that Ye Wuchen had built was cut apart continuously as the blooming Iaido Cut filled the entire sky. Some cruelness flashed across Qi Ao''s red eyes. When Ye Wuchen''s defense was shattered, he would be torn into pieces by the blades of light.


    In the sword curtain, Ye Wuchen looked in front of him. An endless amount of Sword Will was flowing on his body as if he was a sword himself. He cultivated the sword body, so it was natural.


    Thug... A soft sound was heard. Ye Wuchen actually gave up his defense and turned into a beam of light. Passing through the incoming attacks, he charged towards Qi Ao directly.


    "How stupid." Qi Ao''s look was extremely cold. Suddenly, a terrifying Sword Will was released from Ye Wuchen''s eyes. As he released the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique, a sword appeared and enlarged in Qi Ao''s vision.


    Qi Ao closed his eyes directly, but his body and action did not stop. He continued to release Iaido Cut which charged towards Ye Wuchen like a net. In his mind, he saw Ye Wuchen coming directly for him. He knew that it was an illusion caused by the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique. Did Ye Wuchen really dare to charge towards him like this? That would be committing suicide.


    The outcome of a duel between two swordsmen only depended on a single thought.


    Ye Wuchen arrived and charged into the net of swords. He recalled the scene when he was cultivating on Turtle Mountain. He struck his sword forward as if the attack was the only thing left in the world. Even he himself seemed to have turned into a sword. As he opened up a gap between the net of swords in front of him, constant soft sounds were heard; many swords penetrated through his body, but Ye Wuchen did not seem to have felt anything. He passed through the net directly and a lightning flashed out from his forehead.


    At this instant, Qi Ao saw in his mind a sword approaching him continuously. He suddenly had an ominous feeling. Then, his expression changed drastically and he opened his eyes. In the next moment, a silver bolt of lightning passed through him directly, along with some blood.


    Qi Ao''s forehead was penetrated. He widened his eyes and stared firmly at Ye Wuchen, after which he fell onto the ground.


    Ye Wuchen turned around. Dragging himself, he walked towards Ye Futian step by step. With every step that he took, blood would flow down his body, coloring the snow on the ground. There were still many cuts on his body at the moment. Finally, he came beside Ye Futian, after which he sat down with much difficulty. The two sat together and looked at each other. They both smiled.


    "Thanks," Ye Wuchen said. Ye Futian naturally knew what he was referring to��Qin Li''s death.


    Ye Wuchen was supposed to take the revenge himself, but Ye Futian did it for him. He killed Qin Li on Sky Mountain.


    "We''re brothers." Ye Futian smiled friendly but his voice was somewhat weak. Smiling, Ye Wuchen nodded and looked at the battle in front of them.


    The strong wind was still blowing and the snow raging in the sky. On Sky Mountain, it seemed that the heavy snow would never stop.

 352 Demonic Possession

    Chapter 352: Demonic Possession


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen had both lost their ability to continue fighting.


    One had completely exhausted his powers, while the other was severely injured. The coldness actually froze the wounds on Ye Wuchen''s body, but it was extremely freezing. Even with his strong will, he still started to shiver.


    "Qi Ao!" The other three members of Fuyun Sword Clan present were all Swordmasters of their summits. Realizing that Qi Ao was actually killed by the traitor Ye Wuchen, their faces darkened. However, two of them were intercepted by two cultivators from Sword Saint Mountain, while the other was battling with Yu Sheng.


    "Let''s end it quickly. Kill the two of them!" the two people fighting with Sword Saint Mountain shouted at the cultivator battling with Yu Sheng. In the battlefield, Yu Sheng''s level was the lowest; he was only at the peak of the Dharma Plane and had yet to enter the Arcana Plane. If he had not relied on the powers of the demonic tripod, the battle would have already ended. It was therefore unbearable for the Swordmaster that he was actually stopped by Yu Sheng.


    "Alright," the last person replied.


    At first, he still wanted to keep some of his strength. Although they all had to participate in the battle, the people from Fuyun Sword Clan actually did not want to kill Ye Futian themselves as they were still somewhat scared of the Cottage. However, even Qi Ao had been killed in the battle. The bloodthirsty looks in their eyes were intensifying and they were almost becoming irrational.


    The person launched various attacks wildly at Yu Sheng. His sword became even more violent, and his strikes turned into many dazzling beams of light which shot towards Yu Sheng.


    "Scram!" Yu Sheng roared. He hurled the demonic tripod out as if it was a mountain, crushing all attacks with mere strength. A demonic shadow appeared which suppressed everything and split the blades of light apart. However, his opponent also moved like a beam of light and changed the angles of his attack rapidly. A few traces of Sword Will actually charged out of Yu Sheng''s defense and flew towards Ye Futian and Yu Wuchen.


    The Black Wind Condor gave a long tweet. With red light flashing in its eyes, it blocked in front of the two and extended its wings, creating a few wind blades. Accompanied by a few soft sounds, the wings of the Black Wind Condor were penetrated by the attack and blood could be seen.


    Yu Sheng turned around to take a look and his eyes looked increasingly wild. Rumble! Terrifying dark light erupted from his body and a dark demonic shadow could vaguely be seen. Around him, dark golden air current flew and expanded continuously, followed by many crackling sounds. It was as if Yu Sheng''s body was becoming larger. At the moment, he could not only be described as being burly; he was overbearing.


    "Yu Sheng!" Noticing the change, Ye Futian''s expression changed.


    The Swordmaster before Yu Sheng could feel his heart race as he stared at the person in front of him, stunned. With his overpowering body, Yu Sheng no longer looked like a human, but rather a devil, a demon. His eyes were blood-red as if he was from hell, and anyone looking at them would be deeply attracted.


    Around Yu Sheng, the dark demonic light engulfed all the gold color. Demonic Will filled the sky and converged to form an enormous pair of demonic wings, even larger in size than previously. The demonic armor on his body also looked more ferocious and monstrous, as if it was even more frightening than a noble ritual implement. The Spiritual Qi in the sky gushed towards him wildly and was absorbed into his body. His might increased steeply and he turned into an invincible demon.


    "What monster is this?" The other two Swordmasters of Fuyun Sword Clan saw the situation and their expressions also changed. Was Yu Sheng still a human? He looked completely like a demon.


    Yu Sheng opened his mouth and roared. The heaven and earth thundered with him and even Sky Mountain itself seemed to be trembling. Everyone was wildly astonished and stared at him. They saw a demon appearing in the mortal world. With the dark demonic tripod in his hand, he walked forward. Demonic Will in the tripod gushed rapidly towards Yu Sheng''s body and the tripod soon turned into a small one which Yu Sheng held with his left hand. At the same time, an endless amount of Demonic Will converged at his right hand, forming a Heavenly Halberd surrounded by demonic powers.


    Dong. Yu Sheng stomped fiercely on the ground and even earth seemed to be cracking apart. Then, he walked towards the Swordmaster of Fuyun Sword Clan. That Swordmaster was in the Middle Arcana Plane, but at the moment when he faced Yu Sheng, he was actually somewhat scared. His heart raced and he only felt that the person before him was unbeatable.


    What kind of monsters did the Cottage have?


    Ye Futian killed Qin Li and two Upper Arcana Plane cultivators from Qin Dynasty. Now, Yu Sheng had also turned into such a horrifying state. What kind of people were they?


    Although the Swordmaster was frightened, he still forced himself to calm down with his strong willpower and started to swing his sword. The blades of light turned into a brilliant curtain which appeared in front of his body. It was as if anyone who tried to enter the curtain would be torn into pieces. This was the defense sword technique of his summit, Images of Sword.


    Thousands of blades of light turned into countless afterimages. Each image seemed to contain an extremely strong attack power.


    Boom! The ground trembled and snow danced wildly in the air. Yu Sheng approached the cultivator and stabbed out the Heavenly Halberd. A wave of demonic might gushed out and crushed everything. When the halberd pierced into the sword curtain, it charged inside directly, like darkness engulfing lightness.


    Thud... The huge demonic Heavenly Halberd broke the sword curtain and pierced into the Swordmaster''s body directly. The Swordmaster trembled violently and his face quickly turned pale and he spat blood continuously. Why did I come to Sky Mountain? Why did I choose Yu Sheng as my opponent? he asked himself.


    Buzz! Yu Sheng withdrew the Heavenly Halberd. The body of the Swordmaster was thrown into the air along with the halberd, appearing to be so insignificant. A Swordmaster of Fuyun Sword Clan died so miserably and could not fight back at all.


    Everyone in the battle could feel their hearts pounding fiercely as they were all bewildered by the scene, especially the death of two Swordmasters of Fuyun Sword Clan. Four geniuses of Fuyun Sword Clan had come here, but two of them already died.


    ''He has already been possessed by a demon!" someone exclaimed, looking at Yu Sheng''s eyes. His eyes looked too terrifying; red light was flashing in his black eyes. It was as if he was only a killing machine now and completely out of control.


    There were many powerful evil thoughts here in the first place. The Demonic Will that Yu Sheng had released was similar in nature to the evil thoughts. All the other people had been suppressing the evilness with their strong willpower so that they would not be controlled by it. However, when Yu Sheng released his demonic powers and stopped resisting the evil thoughts, the two negative powers complemented each other and caused him to sink into madness.


    Dong. Yu Sheng raised his foot and continued to walk towards the battlefield. His body was already very big and burly in the first place. At the moment, he had turned into a demon. It was as if he would even be the leader among demons, superior and overbearing.


    Dark demonic light turned into a monstrous chain that swept out wildly towards a Swordmaster who was fighting with a Sword Saint Mountain disciple. The Swordmaster wanted to retreat from the battlefield but he was stopped by the Sword Saint Mountain cultivator. The chain arrived and blotted out the entire sky, sealing his escape path. Then, it flew towards him. The Swordmaster struck out his sword and cut the dark chain into two. Although Yu Sheng had turned into a demon and looked extremely powerful, his level was, after all, same as that of Ye Futian, which was too low. Therefore, his combat ability was actually not as strong as it seemed, at least weaker than Ye Futian when he burnt Emperor Will. A Middle Arcana Plane cultivator could still destroy his attack.


    Nevertheless, Yu Sheng''s appearance was too frightening at the moment. Even though his power was not as strong as everyone had imagined, he still caused an immense amount of pressure with his overpowering might. Even if a noble was here, he would probably not be as frightening as Yu Sheng.


    Buzz! Just when the Fuyun Sword Clan Swordmaster was rejoicing, suddenly, Yu Sheng tossed out the Heavenly Halberd in his hand. The Swordmaster did not have any time to dodge at all. With absolute power, the Heavenly Halberd pierced into his body and killed him in midair. Then, it brought the corpse along and nailed him onto the ground.


    "Err..." Everyone was astonished.


    "Junior!" Qian Shanmu looked at Hua Qingqing. Yu Sheng was possessed by a demon at the moment and had turned into a killing machine. If this was to continue, he would kill every single one of them. Even if Yu Sheng could not do so alone, with the help of others, they would definitely lose badly.


    But he knew Hua Qingqing''s ability. Only her music could affect Yu Sheng''s demonic state right now.


    Hua Qingqing glanced at Yu Sheng. She stepped forward and a dazzling radiance was emitted from her body. She sat cross-legged in midair and a sacred light erupted from her. She released her Dharma, which was actually a brilliant halo. An extremely pure figure appeared inside the halo, and she looked like a holy fairy.


    The sacred radiance shot towards Yu Sheng. Then, she started to play her guqin. Immediately, the demonic light around Yu Sheng seemed to be retreating, as if it was suppressed.


    "Holy Sound." Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at Hua Qingqing. At the moment, the sacred her looked like a pure fairy. At the instant when she played the music, Ye Futian knew that Hua Qingqing was the person who was really suited to play Holy Sound. When the music was played by her, it contained a real, holy aura. The music and her will fit perfectly.


    In the sky, the melodious music spread. Many people looked at Hua Qingqing; her fingers were slender, and her hands were beautiful, just like herself. When she played her guqin, she was like a goddess and nobody dared to have any evil thoughts about her. It was no wonder that Lu Nantian was obsessed with this junior of his.


    At this moment, everyone realized that Hua Qingqing had actually never participated in any battle. Her mind was pure and she did not want to be involved in this. But because of the situation, she had to fight.


    Many a time, a person could neither be considered as being good or being evil. His position could have already been determined at birth. Ye Futian did not kill Chu Yaoyao not only because she admitted that she liked him, but also because he could not find a reason to kill her, other than trying to hide his secrets. Chu Yaoyao had never wanted to kill him. She was different from Qin Li. Qin Li not only wanted him dead, but he was also really evil.


    Yu Sheng roared angrily at Hua Qingqing, after which he walked towards her. However, Hua Qingqing''s music turned into a sacred radiance which kept suppressing the Demonic Will on Yu Sheng''s body. The music entered Yu Sheng''s ears continuously, causing him to feel extremely uncomfortable. After all, Yu Sheng''s level was far lower than Hua Qingqing. Hua Qingqing was in the Middle Arcana Plane, and her music was able to fight against his Demonic Will as well.


    Qin Mengruo stared at Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen and said, "Kill the two of them first."


    Yu Sheng turned around and glanced coldly at Qin Mengruo. He did not look at Hua Qingqing again. Instead, he stomped on the ground and charged towards Qin Mengruo directly. The demonic light glittering in his eyes became extremely dreadful!

 353 Stubborn Conviction

    Chapter 353: Stubborn Conviction


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing Yu Sheng charging towards her, Qin Mengruo''s expression changed and she immediately started to back off. At the same time, Qian Shanmu appeared in front of Qin Mengruo. His Zither Spirit appeared and he started to play it.


    Yu Sheng''s eyes were filled with red light at the moment. He raised his hand and the Demonic Will circling his hand turned into many sharp blades which pierced towards Qian Shanmu.


    Music erupted and the demonic blades also exploded with it. Following the loud bang, Yu Sheng arrived in front of Qian Shanmu. At this instant, Qian Shanmu felt an extremely terrifying pressure pressing onto him. Yu Sheng''s might was way too fierce. Anyone close to him would feel incredibly pressured.


    Bang! Yu Sheng punched, and his fist flew through the air. Taking the hit, even Qian Shanmu''s Life Spirit seemed to be on the edge of exploding. He gave a muffled humph and spat out a mouthful of blood.


    Hua Qingqing''s music finally arrived. Many dazzling illusory figures appeared around Yu Sheng and slowly converged into existence. They all looked like fairies.


    Bang. Yu Sheng, however, did not seem to have noticed them at all. He stomped on the ground and even snow cracked apart, leaving behind a deep footprint. His demonic wings flashed and cut across everything in its path as he continued to charge towards Qin Mengruo. Light was glittering in his demonic eyes, making Qin Mengruo feel as if she was being looked at by a demon from hell. Immediately, her heart was filled with fear. How can he be so strong?


    Hua Qingqing''s expression changed and she shouted aloud, "Stop!" Even her eyes looked somewhat cold at the moment.


    Qin Li from Qin Dynasty was killed, so were Qi Ao and two other Swordmasters from Fuyun Sword Clan. Was Yu Sheng going to kill Qin Mengruo as well?


    Qin Mengruo was already married to Qian Shanmu and could be considered a member of Donghua Clan. If she was to die here��


    In the Holy Sound, many sacred fairies appeared. Enveloped in auspicious light, they flew towards Yu Sheng. The demonic might around Yu Sheng was suppressed, but he was still staring at Qin Mengruo. Roaring out loud, the Demonic Will around his body charged towards Qin Mengruo''s body directly. The traces of Demonic Will were extremely sharp and penetrated her body instantly. At this moment, her face turned very pale. Her body was being infiltrated with Demonic Will and engulfed by a demonic aura.


    "No..." Fear filled Qin Mengruo''s exquisite face which was however highly distorted. Soon, she dropped onto the ground and lied in the snow.


    A beauty just died like this.


    "So cruel!" Everyone present was astounded. Yu Sheng was already immersed in killing and had turned into a true devil. He did not have any pity for a beautiful lady at all. Since Qin Mengruo wanted Ye Futian to die, he would kill her.


    Qian Shanmu''s face turned pale, while Hua Qingqing played her music even more rapidly. Sacred radiance poured onto Yu Sheng and her strong Spiritual Will tried to invade his body wildly. Yu Sheng was enveloped with a holy light and started struggling as if he was in great pain.


    Holy Sound was an extremely strong offensive musical spell. Spiritual attacks would come from all directions. After all, Yu Sheng''s level was too low and his Spiritual Energy was way weaker than that of Hua Qingqing. Therefore, even his demonic might seemed to be suppressed.


    Dong. Yu Sheng stomped on the ground which trembled. He backed off and went beside Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen. Carrying the two of them in his hands, his demonic wings trembled and Demonic Will gushed into the sky. Then, his body similarly ascended into the air.


    The Black Wind Condor gave a long tweet and also followed them into the sky.


    Hua Qingqing and Qian Shanmu blinked and chased the group.


    Loulan Xue also moved and flew into the sky.


    The other people also wanted to follow them, but they were stopped by one another.


    Xiao Wuji from the College glanced the four leaving in the sky. In the Ancient Barren World, he had already met the four, namely Ye Futian, Ye Wuchen, Yu Sheng, and Loulan Xue. During this battle on Sky Mountain, they had all released their brilliant radiance, especially Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Although they were only at the peak of the Dharma Plane, they were way too powerful.


    Suddenly, Yi Xiaoshi arrived at the battlefield from the distance. He approached Beitang Xing''er and asked, "Xing''er, where is the little brother?"


    Pointing at the sky, Beitang Xing''er replied, "He lost the ability to fight, and Yu Sheng has brought him upwards. Hua Qingqing went to chase them."


    Yi Xiaoshi glanced at the battlefield. Noticing Qin Li, Qin Mengruo, and Qi Ao''s corpses, he was also astonished. Did they and little brother do this?


    "I''ll go and find him." Moving his body, Yi Xiaoshi similarly flew into the sky and towards the higher part of Sky Mountain. In the sky, a pair of demonic wings was glittering and rising up steadily. Snow filled the sky and the temperament was extremely low, but Yu Sheng did not seem to have felt anything at all. He was carrying Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen with his hands. Demonic Will surrounded the two, helping them to block the coldness outside.


    "Yu Sheng, where are you bringing us?" Ye Wuchen asked.


    Yu Sheng did not respond. His eyes were still very red.


    "He is bringing us up the mountain," Ye Futian said, feeling somewhat speechless. Is it really appropriate for him to hug both of us like this? Did he even ask for our opinions?


    It was really awkward!


    Bang. Yu Sheng started to decelerate and eventually landed on a path on the mountain. Then, he continued to walk up the mountain. Behind them, the Black Wing Condor followed closely. Its eyes were filled with appalling red light and coldness was seeping into its blood and bones. If Ye Futian did not plant Emperor Will in its body, it would not be able to persist for so long.


    Glancing at the Black Wind Condor, Ye Futian said, "Little bird, hold on." The Black Wind Condor nodded and used its sharp claws to leave many marks on the ground.


    "So tired. I''ll sleep first." Ye Futian closed his eyes. He was too exhausted. After killing Qin Li, his Spiritual Energy and physical body were both extremely drained. The power in his body had all been consumed, so he really needed to lie down and rest.


    Yu Sheng was possessed by a demon at the moment and was affected by the evil thoughts. To the rest, he was a complete killing machine, but to Ye Futian, he would always be that stubborn boy.


    Nowhere would be safer than on Yu Sheng''s body because Ye Futian knew that if someone wanted to kill him, the person definitely had to kill Yu Sheng first, even though Yu Sheng had been possessed.


    Ye Wuchen sighed. He actually had to sleep on a man''s body, but he had no choice anyway. He also closed his eyes and wanted to take a good nap. At the moment, they could not be of any help even if they wanted to. Therefore, they could only let Yu Sheng withstand all the pressure.


    Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen were practically disabled at the moment. Having a slow reaction was not too different from not having cultivated at all. As long as Yu Sheng could block the coldness for them, they would be safe.


    Yu Sheng seemed to have lost all sense of feeling and only continued to walk forward step by step. His body was extremely burly and looked like a demon. Although he was carrying two people with his arms, he was doing so with ease. It was just that this scene looked too beautiful��


    Hua Qingqing was following behind them. She was similarly enduring a great amount of pressure, as the coldness and evilness were both becoming stronger. These two forces coexisted on Sky Mountain but they also seemed to be balancing each other.


    She looked at the burly figure before her and a strange look appeared in her eyes. Obviously, she knew that Yu Sheng had already stopped resisting the evilness and was allowing it to merge with his Demonic Will. At the moment, Yu Sheng was already totally different. However, she did not understand why Yu Sheng could still keep a bit of rationality at this stage. He protected Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen and even brought them up the mountain.


    She could not understand why.


    On Sky Mountain, she encountered many things which she could not understand. She could not understand why Ye Wuchen could kill Qin Li and the two Upper Arcana Plane cultivators from Qin Dynasty, how Ye Wuchen killed Qi Ao, and how Yu Sheng could still maintain his stubborn conviction even though he had turned into such a terrifying being. It was like protecting Ye Futian was Yu Sheng''s stubborn conviction which could not even be shaken by any evilness.


    Qian Shanmu and Loulan Xue were behind Hua Qingqing as their talents and levels were both weaker than Hua Qingqing. Intense hatred filled Qian Shanmu''s heart, making it easier for him to be influenced by the evil thoughts. The red light glowing in his eyes was frightening and he was hesitating about whether he should continue walking.


    His wife was killed by Yu Sheng.


    Even if the Cottage and Qin Dynasty had already started their war, the person who died was his wife.


    Loulan Xue was in a similar state. She released her treasurable book to resist against the evilness on Sky Mountain and continued walking. The path on Sky Mountain seemed extremely long as if it was endless. Only the snow falling down from the sky would never stop.


    ��


    Over these few days, people had been climbing Sky Mountain one after another. However, as time passed the number of people going up the mountain decreased gradually. The number of those coming down increased instead.


    Those people could only sigh in their hearts. Everyone in the world knew that it was as difficult to climb Sky Mountain as climbing the sky itself. This most famous mountain in the Eastern Barren Territory really deserved its name. Even though the bell had been sounded and rumors claimed that it was the call of the emperors, most people still could not make it to the top. Nobody knew whether anyone in the vast Eastern Barren Territory could really reach the peak of Sky Mountain.


    The people from various forces did not leave, including those from the top forces. They were all at the foot of Sky Mountain, waiting for their descendants or disciples to return in victory. If someone was really lucky enough to obtain the remains of the emperors, his fate would change forever.


    Qin Yu hoped that his son Qin Li could obtain these. He firmly believed that the bell from Sky Mountain was an auspicious one. Sky Mountain would witness the era of Qin Dynasty.


    Fuyun Sword Clan, Royal Xuan Temple, and the other forces from the Eastern Barren Territory also hoped that their disciples would encounter some rare opportunities that would change their fate so that they would not be controlled by the Qin Dynasty and the Cottage in the future. Once the three major forces started a war, the entire Eastern Barren Territory would be involved.


    Suddenly, a group of cultivators flew over in the air and arrived at the foot of Sky Mountain. They were from the Qin Dynasty. With a serious expression on their faces, they walked towards Qin Yu.


    Seeing them, Qin Yu frowned and said, "What is it?"


    The people lowered their heads and did not dare to look into Qin Yu''s eyes directly.


    Qin Yu frowned and said coldly, "Speak."


    The group of people knelt on the ground and someone said, "Your Highness... The spiritual imprints of Qin Li and Qin Mengruo... were extinguished!" Their words were like a bolt out of the blue which struck into Qin Yu''s ears. Qin Yu trembled and could not even stand properly. A monstrous wave of coldness erupted from him and swept towards the sky.


    "What did you say?" Qin Yu asked coldly, staring at the people kneeling on the ground.


    The few did not dare to say anything and only buried their heads on the ground.


    Qin Li was his son and his successor. On the other hand, Qin Mengruo was married to Qian Shanmu from Donghua Clan, witnessing the alliance between the two top forces.


    Now, both of them had died!

 354 Evil Eyes

    Chapter 354: Evil Eyes


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the foot of Sky Mountain, the people from various forces were astonished by the news that Qin Li and Qin Mengruo died on the mountain.


    Qin Yu stood there and an extremely tense might spread out from his body. The snowflakes that fell onto him were crushed into ashes. Many people felt an imminent storm.


    Qin Li and Qin Mengruo died together. What did this mean?


    If they died because of the conditions on Sky Mountain, Qin Dynasty could not do anything but admit their fate. However, what if they were killed? More importantly, it was very likely that they were indeed killed.


    In the Eastern Barren Territory, who dared to kill the people from Qin Dynasty?


    Perhaps only those from the College and the Cottage would dare to do so. The two forces were in a war right now. Therefore, it would be normal for the people from these two forces to end up in a fight even on Sky Mountain.


    Zhuge Hui and Gu Dongliu were also at the foot of Sky Mountain. They also heard the news, but their emotions were not very much affected. Vaguely, they felt that Qin Li and Qin Mengruo must have been killed by Ye Futian and his friends. Qin Li brought many members of Qin Dynasty onto Sky Mountain, and he certainly wanted to kill Ye Futian.


    If Ye Futian and his friends really killed Qin Li and Qin Mengruo, Zhuge Hui and Gu Dongliu would neither be surprised nor be bothered. Since it was a war, one party would eventually die.


    Thus, it was, of course, better for the people from the Qin Dynasty to die. They would not want anything bad to happen to their little brother.


    The person from the Qin Dynasty continued his report. Hearing his words, everyone realized that apart from Qin Li and Qin Mengruo, two Upper Arcana Plane cultivators in the royal bloodline were also killed. This bewildered many. What exactly did they experience on Sky Mountain? Was it really done by Cottage disciples?


    Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan had both sent people up Sky Mountain, as well as their allied forces Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple. If a life-and-death battle really broke out, it was clear that people who died would not just be those from the Qin Dynasty.


    Qin Yu stood these for a long while as if he was slowly digesting the news. Lifting his head, he glanced at the sky. He clenched his fist and a cold murderous look filled his eyes.


    "Son, if you were killed by someone, no matter who he is, I will definitely tear him into a thousand pieces." Qin Yu''s voice was cold and gloomy. At the moment, he was also unsure whether Qin Li''s death was caused by those from the Cottage. However, if there was really a battle, some people from the College or other forces would also have been killed. Surely, someone would come and deliver the news.


    Many people at the foot of the mountain could feel Qin Yu''s determination.


    Qin Yu did not manage to see any messenger from the College, but the Fuyun Sword Clan received one. The news he brought was that Qi Ao and two other Swordmasters from Fuyun Sword Clan died on the mountain. Immediately, might from Sword Qi enveloped the entire place.


    Qin Dynasty and Fuyun Sword Clan suffered such a miserable loss. What did this mean? These two forces were allies. It seemed even more likely that there had been a fight. However, they did not understand why nobody from the College or Sword Saint Mountain died.


    "Send someone up the mountain and investigate." Although the people from Qin Dynasty and Fuyun Sword Clan could stay here and wait, they were not willing to do so. Therefore, they continued to send their members up the mountain. Whether the death of their disciples was caused by the people from the College and Sword Saint Mountain or not, they had to know what was happening.


    Many people were thinking about what would happen at the foot of Sky Mountain if the massacre was really caused by the people from the Cottage. The most powerful cultivators from various forces were all gathered here. If a battle was to break out, it would certainly be a very terrifying one.


    ��


    On Sky Mountain, the intensity of the snow increased with altitude. On the mountain path, Yu Sheng was carrying two people in his arms. Beside him, there was a Black Wind Condor. The group looked somewhat lonely. They had already been walking for very long. Yu Sheng, who had entered a demonic state, seemed to have lost the sense of tiredness and kept advancing forward. In this world, Yu Sheng was undoubtedly the person who understood Ye Futian the best. They had grown up together, and Yu Sheng also knew all of Ye Futian''s secrets, including what he inherited from Emperor Ye Qing.


    According to rumors, the two emperors had left something on the peak of Sky Mountain. The bell from the mountain was the call of the two emperors. Yu Sheng firmly believed that if the rumors were true, the bell from Sky Mountian must be summoning Ye Futian. He had to bring Ye Futian up the summit. This was his stubborn conviction.


    The Black Wind Condor was beside Yu Sheng. At the moment, its eyes were not just glowing with red light, but they also seemed somewhat demonic. As it walked up step by step, evilness seeped into its body continuously. In these few days, its mind had been occupied with a figure, a frightening, enormous demon whose body covered the entire sky.


    The demon''s body was enveloped with a dark golden light. The glittering darkness caused the condor to be frightened, while the golden light seemed extremely sharp. The demon''s huge eyes looked very demonic as if it had shed much blood in the world.


    It was a Demon Bird, the Dark Demon Bird. Its original form was a mutated roc so its wings were extremely sharp. It seemed to be disdaining all lives with its unruly look.


    The Black Wind Condor felt that the will of the Demon Bird filled every corner of the mountain walls and its image kept showing up in its mind. If Ye Futian did not plant a trace of Emperor Will in its mind, it would not be able to tolerate this.


    On the mountain path, they met Warlock Gu Zhiqiu from Witch Clan. Gu Zhiqiu was walking very slowly and his eyes were also filled with red light. He glanced at Yu Sheng who walked past him and a strange expression appeared on his face. Then, Hua Qingqing also came and walked past him.


    Gu Zhiqiu raised his head and glanced at the endless path helplessly. Could he really just not reach the peak of the mountain?


    Yu Sheng continued to walk up as if he would never be exhausted.


    Hua Qingqing had been following them closely. She stared at the figure in front of her. Yu Sheng who had entered a demonic state was burning his powers. How could he persist for so many few days?


    Over these few days, the shock Yu Sheng had given her was very intense despite the fact that he killed many people, including Qin Mengruo.


    On a huge rock along the mountain path, someone was sitting. It was the Arhat from Qianqiu Temple. The powers of Buddhism were mysterious and could fight against all kinds of evilness. Qianqiu Temple was the force closed to Sky Mountain. Its members would frequently use the pressure on Sky Mountain to train their willpower. Therefore, the Arhat had always been taking the lead on Sky Mountain. However, he was also sitting down and resting at the moment.


    Suddenly, the Arhat opened his eyes and looked at Yu Sheng who was walking towards him in the snow. He obviously saw the eyes of Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Condor. They seemed to have turned into devils. Then, he noticed Hua Qingqing who was behind them.


    Yu Sheng slowly walked towards him at a steady pace. The Arhat frowned and said coldly, "Sinner."


    Yu Sheng ignored him, while the Black Wind Condor glanced at him with its demonic eyes.


    "I have said in the past that you would definitely turn into a demon and bring harm to the world. It seems like this is indeed the case," the Arhat continued coldly. "Sinner, stop."


    Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Condor still continued to advance and showed no signs of stopping.


    "Since this is the case, I can only kill the demon in you." After the Arhat finished speaking, golden light filled the place. In the sky, many swastikas appeared and started to rotate wildly. Then, they flew down and whizzed towards Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Condor. This Buddhism spell was extremely powerful and could suppress everything.


    Yu Sheng suddenly stopped and gave an angry, demonic roar. Many demonic images charged out from his body and collided with the ancient characters, eventually neutralizing each other.


    The Arhat stood up and looked at Yu Sheng from above. His eyes were filled with compassion.


    "Yu Sheng, put us down," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng put Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen on the ground. The two were already awake, but because Ye Futian had exhausted much of his powers and Ye Wuchen was also severely injured, in addition to the bad condition on Sky Mountain, they had not regained the ability to battle.


    Ye Futian glanced at the Arhat coldly. He did not expect the Arhat to block their path here.


    "We have no problems with each other right?" Ye Futian said emotionlessly. The only time when he had met the Arhat was in the Yin Family Tripod Tower in Chaoge. Although they disliked each other, there had been no real conflicts between them.


    "Buddhism stands on the opposite side of demons. Since he is a demon, I must kill him. However, if you are willing to go down the mountain yourselves, I will give you a chance," the Arhat said emotionlessly. Dazzling Buddhism light was coming out from his body and he looked solemn and majestic.


    Ye Futian turned his head and glanced at Hua Qingqing behind them. The Arhat must be doing this on purpose.


    A terrifying demonic current started to flow around Yu Sheng. Many illusory demonic figures appeared around him and merged with his body. Flapping his demonic wings, he turned into a black bolt of lightning and charged towards the Arhat. The demonic current circling around his body turned into the Heavenly Halberd which pierced towards the Arhat.


    The Arhat put his hands together and mysterious sounds came from his mouth. A brilliant light was emitted from the beads around his neck and a golden body appeared. Then, a huge palm print appeared and crushed towards Yu Sheng.


    Although Yu Sheng had been climbing the mountain continuously, he was obviously also tired and his might was weaker than it had originally been. In addition, the Arhat cultivated Buddhism techniques and was a genius from Qianqiu Temple. Clearly, he was not afraid of Yu Sheng''s attacks.


    The two opposing powers collided and were annihilated together. The Arhat stood firmly at his place. A bright light was emitted from his body and he seemed unshakable. He also did not attack actively, as if his aim was not to really kill Yu Sheng.


    Behind them, Hua Qingqing approached the group. Her Guqin Spirit had already appeared in front of her. Ye Futian walked towards Hua Qingqing. Although he had not regained much of his strength, he could not watch Yu Sheng fight against Hua Qingqing and the Arhat alone. He knew well that Yu Sheng would not be able to hold for much longer.


    Holy Sound was being played again. However, suddenly, the Black Wind Condor appeared before Ye Futian. It flapped its wings and stared at Hua Qingqing with its demonic eyes.


    The Black Wind Condor seemed to have given up any resistance and allowed the evil thoughts to corrode its mind. It closed its eyes and the enormous Demon Bird appeared in its mind again. At this instant, it could feel the evilness in every corner of Sky Mountain gushing into its mind, trying to occupy its head.


    Ye Futian obviously knew what the Black Wind Condor was trying to do. He stared firmly at the condor which started to tremble as if it was suffering from a great amount of pain. Darkness filled its mind. At this instant, an evil current formed in the sky and charged wildly into the head of the Black Wind Condor. Then, Spiritual Qi in the sky also gushed towards its body. Ye Futian wanted to control it again, but he quickly realized that he could no longer do so.


    When the Black Wind Condor opened its eyes again, everyone could only see a pair of evil eyes looking down on them. It was as if it was no longer its previous self, but rather the ruler of fate, the king of the sky!

 355 Gazing at the Mountaintop

    Chapter 355: Gazing at the Mountaintop


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hua Qingqing gazed at the Black Wind Eagle. Its eyes were filled with terrifying bloodthirsty light. Faint evil thoughts rushed into her mind. The evil current flowed around the Black Wind Eagle. It seemed to be evolving. The shadow of a Demon Bird seemed to rise above him.


    The melody wrapped around, protecting her will. Hua Qingqing''s robes fluttered. She looked as pure as an angel. The fairies around her were like shadows. They uttered sacred chants as light loomed over the Black Wind Eagle, trying to purify it.


    Wham. The Black Wind Eagle, slightly transforming into a Demon Bird, flapped its wings. They covered the sun as evilness snaked around it. Darkness flashed through the wings as it filled the sky. It pounced towards Hua Qingqing. It clawed at her, wanting to rip everything.


    Hua Qingqing hurriedly strummed her instrument. The angelic illusions pushed their palms forward in a sacred mudra to restrain the demon. The sacred mudra clashed with the evil claws. The blackness broke through. The claws continued tearing towards Hua Qingqing. Under the might of the Demon Bird, Hua Qingqing looked especially small and fragile. She was like a weak girl who was about to be destroyed by the demon.


    However, Hua Qingqing''s expression didn''t change. Her delicate pale fingers continued playing the instrument. Sacred light enveloped her and continuously expanded. Sacred music wrapped around her, transforming into a divine halo. It flowed towards the Black Wind Eagle, enveloping the shadow of the Demon Bird. The Black Wind Eagle cried out. Its evilness was about to be purified by the sacred light.


    Hua Qingqing lowered her head. Her slender fingers danced over the instrument strings. She was fully immersed in the music, unaffected by anything else. The glow about her dazzled even brighter. She was like a saint that could not be tainted.


    The Demon Bird''s light dimmed and brightened erratically. The Black Wind Eagle''s light crashed around. It screamed and continued crashing towards Hua Qingqing without caring about anything. Its sharp wings cut through the curtain of light. Its claws crashed towards Hua Qingqing but they seemed unable to touch the sacred light around her.


    With a scream, the Black Wind Eagle soared into the air and then swooped down. It covered the sky, filling the air with evilness. It continued attacking but couldn''t breach Hua Qingqing''s defenses. After that, the air filled with countless afterimages. The Black Wind Eagle attacked wildly.


    Sacred light wrapped around, covering Hua Qingqing in dazzling brilliance. She couldn''t be tainted. Right now, she was pure and flawless like a saint.


    The Black Wind Eagle soared again. With a scream, it gulped the evilness of Sky Mountain. Its eyes grew more demonic. Spiritual Qi snaked around it and the Demon Bird''s shadow swelled. When it lowered its head, it looked down on everything arrogantly. The last shred of reason in its mind was about to be extinguished. The Demon Bird''s will would take over entirely.


    The Black Wind Eagle turned to Ye Futian, taking one last look at him. Then its eyes started burning. It gazed at Hua Qingqing and the large body rushed down again. It transformed into a true Demon Bird, the king of darkness in the sky. It was like a bolt of black lightning that could destroy everything.


    Hua Qingqing looked up. Before her, endless sacred light converged, transforming into a sacred and sharp sword. It could behead all evil. It stabbed towards the incoming the darkness. That moment, darkness and light collided. There was a horrible sound as the sacred light pierced the dark body. Dark power was driven back but those evil eyes were still coming. It looked extremely determined. Its claws came tearing down onto Hua Qingqing''s body. With a ripping sound, the untainted clothes were torn apart. Blood seeped out and Hua Qingqing flew backward, crashing against a boulder. Her face paled.


    The Demon Bird transformed by the Black Wind Eagle instantly turned around and rushed up. It pounced towards the Arhat who was battling with Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng had long become exhausted. He forced himself to continue with his will, burning up his potential energy. The Arhat kept pushing him back. He was hit by the Buddhist light but he continued on.


    Just as the Arhat was about to end the battle, he saw the king of darkness descend. The Arhat''s expression changed slightly. Buddhist light burned and the Thousand Hands of the Buddha appeared. They covered the sky and restrained the demon.


    Rumbles kept sounding. The Demon Bird tore through all the hands, letting them fall on it without being affected. It just kept swooping down at the Arhat, the sharp claws coming down. The Arhat chanted and the Buddhist light dazzled, covering him. The sharp claws came down through the light. It hit the Arhat and sent him flying downward. He spat out blood; he was badly wounded.


    The Black Wind Eagle was covered in blood. It screamed. Darkness covered its body to completely transform it. Its reason was disappearing. Bloodthirsty light filled its eyes. It cried out and soared up, going straight to the peak of Sky Mountain. If it remained there, it would kill everything, including Yu Sheng and Ye Futian.


    "Little eagle." Ye Futian looked up at the departing figure. He felt the spiritual mark the Black Wind Eagle had left get buried. Ye Futian could still sense its existence but he couldn''t control it anymore. He knew that the Black Wind Eagle had transformed into the Demon Bird to fight for him.


    Boom. At this time, Yu Sheng fell too. He was at his limit and couldn''t keep going. The demonic will around him gradually faded. He was back to normal and lay quietly in the snow. Ye Futian walked over to him. He helped Yu Sheng up and put the other on his back. Turning, he looked at Ye Wuchen. The youth smiled at him. "Take Yu Sheng up. I can''t do it anymore," Ye Wuchen said.


    "Be careful." Ye Futian nodded at Ye Wuchen. Then he continued up the path.


    "You''re so heavy," Ye Futian muttered. The two figures had a tragic feeling.


    Ye Wuchen watched them continue up. He turned and started walking down. He couldn''t keep going anymore. Even if he recovered, he still couldn''t go to the top. Ye Futian had to take care of Yu Sheng. He had to give up. When he was close to Hua Qingqing, he saw that she had stood up. They exchanged glances. Ye Wuchen asked, "Did Qin Li and the people of the Qin Dynasty not deserve to die?" With that, he continued downward.


    Hua Qingqing stared at his back. She obviously knew Ye Wuchen''s hatred of the Qin Dynasty. She could tell that the Qin Dynasty had arranged things to destroy the Liu Kingdom and take over the Eastern Barren Territory. The royalty of the Liu Kingdom had been killed. Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian obviously had a reason to want to avenge Liu Chenyu. Did the people of the Qin Dynasty deserve to die?


    Her heart trembled, but she was from the Donghua Clan. She was the daughter of the clan leader. Yu Sheng had killed Qin Mengruo, wife of her senior brother, Qian Shanmu. She and Qian Shanmu were both good at rhythmic sorcery. They often learned with her mother as children. Thinking of this, she smoothed her thoughts and started walking up again. Her clothing was messy and bloodstained, but it was still pure.


    The Arhat walked back with difficulty. He sat down and meditated with Buddhist light glowing around him. Hua Qingqing glanced at him and then to Ye Futian. She was confused. What was just? what was evil?


    The Arhat tried to stop Ye Futian and kill the evil. But Yu Sheng, the evil in his eyes, risked everything to protect Ye Futian, even if it meant dying.


    Even a beast sacrificed itself to be controlled by a demon to protect its master from getting injured.


    How did one determine what was evil or just?


    How could the handsome figure carrying Yu Sheng be so attractive? He could risk everything for his friends, Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu, and kill Qin Li. From Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu''s perspective, this was a friend for life. Because of that, they would live and die together.


    Hua Qingqing liked rhythmic sorcery since childhood and had pure thoughts. She didn''t like conspiracies and didn''t care about the rivalries of the world. But this time, her will wavered. It was quite traumatic.


    Perhaps her mother was right. It was too hard to preserve a pure heart in the world of cultivation. She was able to keep her innocence because of her high status and protection from her parents.


    Three figures on the mountain path seemed to never be exhausted. They were so tired but still kept going.


    The snow was still coming down, filling the air. Snow kept falling onto their bodies. Ye Futian often used fire spells to chase away the coldness around Yu Sheng.


    Hua Qingqing kept following behind him. They continued climbing. After who knew how long, Ye Futian looked back at Hua Qingqing. The icy wind blew against his face. His eyes were tired but his smile was still like the sun.


    "I have a girlfriend. You can''t keep chasing me," Ye Futian said. Hua Qingqing froze. He blinked and then started walking again.


    "Ah, it''s so annoying to be handsome." Ye Futian was frustrated. He continued walking; he was so tired.


    Time passed. The two figures on the snowy paths seemed especially tiny and lonely. They climbed higher and higher. Gradually, they could see the sky when they looked up.


    The mountaintop was getting close.


    The evil intent was extremely terrifying now. The invisible pressure weighed down on them. It felt that they were carrying the entire Sky Mountain.


    Ye Futian paused and then continued. Each step left a footprint in the white snow. Each step looked extremely heavy. But he kept going without stop.


    Behind him, Hua Qingqing left behind footprints as well. She was slow, very slow. She''d heard that only those with hearts pure enough could climb onto Sky Mountain.


    Then what about Ye Futian?


    She looked up at the figure up ahead, carrying Yu Sheng through the heavy snow. What kind of person was he?

 356 Writing the World

    Chapter 356: Writing the World


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Carrying Yu Sheng, Ye Futian walked up the mountain, stepping through the snow. He smiled bitterly and walked with difficulty. Compared to the pressure, the evil thoughts actually didn''t affect him as much. He hadn''t recovered completely but the Emperor''s Will was still there. It was unwavering. The evilness wouldn''t corrode him so easily.


    Yu Sheng was sleeping like a slab of rock. He''d led Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian for so many days in his demonic state and then fought with the Arhat. He''d completely sapped his energy and was now unconscious. This was good too though. He wouldn''t feel the evilness and could make it on Ye Futian''s back.


    "We''re almost there." Ye Futian looked up. The peak of Sky Mountain seemed to be right before him. The closeness was almost as if he could get there with one step. However, this was Sky Mountain.


    He took another step, leaving a deep footprint in the snow. Snow continued falling but he couldn''t feel any coldness. He let them fall on his body and head. He continued walking. It was difficult and slow, but he didn''t give up. This was also Yu Sheng''s determination. Earlier, he''d brought Ye Futian up the mountain even in his demonic state.


    Hua Qingqing was still following behind them. Seeing this, she was quite impressed. She knew the pressure she was shouldering. How could Ye Futian continue with someone on his back? What was his will like?


    The two continued one after another. Like snails, they crawled up, forgetting about the time and their fatigue.


    Ye Futian felt numb. He didn''t know how long he''d walked for. When he made his last step and walked to the peak, he felt dazed. Raising his head, he looked at the sky. It was still high up. White snow fell down from the atrium. He reached up and a snowflake fell onto his palm. A bright smile appeared as if all his worries were gone.


    The invisible pressure disappeared. Now, he felt so light. He was now at the border of the mountaintop. Looking back, he could see the entire world under him. The adrenaline from getting to the top rushed through him. It was rumored that there was an invisible force field around the peak. No one could get in directly.


    Closing his eyes, Ye Futian exhaled. Then he turned and gazed at the scenery here. Snow covered the peak. Carrying Yu Sheng, he walked forward. There seemed to be two snowmen there. They sat with guqins in their laps. They seemed focused on playing the instruments.


    Though they were only snowmen and Ye Futian couldn''t see their faces, he still felt an extraordinary aura. The one on the left had long hair made of snow falling down his shoulder. His movements were filled with grace. Ye Futian could imagine the amazing feature, playing the instrument here. Ye Futian could recognize the other person at a glance.


    It was Emperor Ye Qing.


    Since this was Emperor Ye Qing, then the other person''s identity was obvious too. It was Donghuang the Great, the master of the east.


    The legends were true. It had been rumored that the two emperors had come and left their mark here. Presently, all statues of Emperor Ye Qing had been destroyed. It was valuable for his features to be preserved here.


    Centuries ago, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing had played their guqins here. They drank and sang, forcing back the Demon Bird together. But later, Donghuang the Great ruled the world while Emperor Ye Qing disappeared. What had happened after the two ruled the world?


    Setting Yu Sheng down, Ye Futian bowed to Emperor Ye Qing''s snow statue. He didn''t know what their relationship was, but there was obviously something.


    When he bowed, his eyes fell somewhere. He walked up and brushed the snow away. He saw a gourd. It hadn''t been buried deep in the snow. Had someone come here to drink while they were climbing the mountain?


    Ye Futian felt shaken. He looked around but there was only endless snow in the vast space. No one was here.


    Then who had drunk wine here? If someone had been here, what plane was he at? There didn''t seem to be any bells on Sky Mountain either. Then where did the ringing come from?


    Ye Futian looked to the two snow statues, feeling something. He activated Freedom Meditation. At that moment, he could make out two lively figures. Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing had come to life and entered his perception.


    "Senior," Ye Futian called to Emperor Ye Qing''s statue. Centuries ago, Emperor Ye Qing hadn''t become emperor yet. He was younger than when Ye Futian had seen him on Mount Tianyao. He was unrestrained and free.


    Donghuang the Great had very lively eyes. Black hair fell down his shoulders and he was very handsome. He had an aura that stood out. Ye Futian knew that he wasn''t really looking at them. This was just a projection of their wills. They didn''t exist anymore.


    Music streamed into his mind. The guqins in their laps pulsed. Each music note imprinted in Ye Futian''s mind and transformed into a musical piece. Right now, he had a hallucination. He seemed to have teleported and was listening to the two emperors play.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and the scene became clearer. He seemed to have time traveled to centuries ago. The two emperors were young and played this piece together at the mountaintop. They were united and vowed to live and die together.


    These two had been absolute geniuses and reached the pinnacle of the Divine Prefecture. What was the reason for what had happened? Was it because of power?


    Ye Futian felt depressed. He opened his eyes and looked up at the snow-filled sky. Then he sat down. His guqin spirit appeared and he started to play.


    Music notes pulsed as a graceful music streamed out. It was beautiful and unrestrained. The song traveled the world, taking care of rivalries and gratitude as needed. From the music, one could vaguely sense how the player had traveled the world with a sword in his youth. He lived freely but followed his own heart. He wanted to take revenge without being disturbed by the world.


    As Ye Futian played, music notes actually emerged from the snow statues of Emperor Ye Qing and Donghuang the Great.


    In the other direction, a beautiful figure reached the peak. Hua Qingqing had finally come. She looked over at Ye Futian and found him playing the guqin. Hua Qingqing loved music and was obsessed with the guqin. She naturally understood the mystery of the music. It was so beautiful and without any flaws. The artistic conception showed was pure and heavenly. She walked over towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, leaving footprints in the white snow.


    A moment later, she was before the two. She looked hard at Ye Futian but didn''t do anything. She didn''t want to interrupt the music.


    Ye Futian knew she was here, but he also didn''t want to finish. The music notes kept appearing in his mind. His fingers strummed and sensed the thoughts of Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing at that time.


    The beautiful music gradually changed, becoming darker with a tinge of sadness. A shadow fell over the unrestrained feeling. One could sense some struggles of one''s heart. The pure heart was disturbed and unable to maintain its innocence. They struggled to break free. They were in pain, sadness, and anger. It snowed harder as if it could feel the sadness in the music too.


    The image of the two emperors playing the guqin also appeared in Hua Qingqing''s mind. As it streamed into her ears, her soul was shocked and completely dragged into the artistic conception.


    She had struggled and thought hard while climbing the mountain too.


    The music changed again. After the struggles and pain, everything returned back to normal. Their hearts were as calm as water and retained the purity. Snow danced in the air.


    Hua Qingqing looked up. She obviously was familiar with guqins but had never heard such a perfect musical piece. Seeing the music notes jumping before her, she also sat down and released her guqin spirit. Her slender and beautiful fingers strummed the strings, playing with Ye Futian. There were harmony and resonance. The two emperors had played this song. With these two playing, the artistic conception grew stronger.


    At the peak of Sky Mountain, the music that had crossed through time sounded amongst the snow. It was so beautiful.


    From the calm music, they could feel the hearts of the two emperor''s rise. They were as pure as before, keeping to their hearts. However, the music gradually sharpened and rose up. It wanted to sing loudly to the sky.


    Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing unconsciously put all their spiritual energy into the music. Snow danced in the air as Spiritual Qi flowed wildly. That moment, the two could feel that the Sky Mountain had changed. Endless radiance shone down. Every snowflake was an artistic conception.


    They could almost see the emperors playing music in the snow. Boundless radiance shone down from the sky, covering the entire mountain. Even more frightening than the artistic conception was the determination to reach the top.


    The sonorous music contained the emperors'' determination. The emperor''s light glowed faintly around Ye Futian. He was completely immersed in the artistic conception.


    At that moment, Ye Futian understood that, centuries ago, the two emperors had hardened their resolve to reach the top. They''d decided at the peak of Sky Mountain with this musical piece to rule the world!

 357 Ten Musical Masterpieces

    Chapter 357: Ten Musical Masterpieces


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing both immersed themselves in the music. They faintly felt that they were playing the same song but in different artistic conceptions or different stages of growth. This song could be divided into two parts which could be played both separately and coherently as a whole.


    Snowflakes floated down from the sky. Each piece of them was a share of the mood. With some golden light spreading, it seemed that Spiritual Qi was raining on the Sky Mountains. The Spiritual Qi enveloped the whole mountain and fluctuated with the music''s rhythm.


    The music played by Ye Futian sounded fervid, full of exuberance. Sitting there, Ye Futian''s body emitted blazing light. His noble intent was triggered unconsciously. On the towering Sky Mountain, that handsome figure activated boundless Spiritual Qi with his music like a king, sitting there as if he was the only one in the world.


    Ding. With a flip, Hua Qingqing stopped playing her music. Staring at the guqin before, she just couldn''t continue any longer. She couldn''t play this song.


    As the Guqin Spirit disappeared, Hua Qingqing stood up. She took a deep breath and became drunk with the endless implicit Spiritual Qi mixed in the snow. She suddenly figured out the whole mountain was covered with endless Spiritual Qi.


    She lowered her head and saw Ye Futian still immersed in his music as if nothing in the world could disturb him. The mood contained in his music gave her an illusion that Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing were playing the music in front of her. The world was such a wonderful picture but who was the controller?


    It seemed that only Ye Futian existed in the world.


    The handsome youth, the music, and the snow were everything.


    It was said that Donghuang the Great was the composer of this masterpiece, a portrayal of his life. After he unified the world, the song was listed as one of the world''s top ten musical masterpieces, named Ukiyo.


    There were many tales about Donghuang the Great among so this song was not very noticeable. However, it was a loud name to every music lover. The life of Donghuang the Great could be captured in the music. But after unifying the world, it was said that Donghuang the Great never played the song in the public again.


    Of course, it was impossible for people in the Eastern Barren Territory to know the truth. They heard all these hearsays from the distant. But as one of the Divine Prefecture''s top songs, Ukiyo indeed existed. The name of the song just naturally dawned on Hua Qingqing when she heard what Ye Futian was playing. Especially when standing on the mountain covered with the two Emperors'' moods, she was sure that this was definitely Ukiyo. She could feel the straightforwardness mixed with sadness and struggling as well as the soaring aspiration in the end.


    What was a man''s vocation in the world? No one knew the answer. But Donghuang the Great knew that he was going to unify the world.


    If Donghuang the Great''s life was recorded, it must be an epic story.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian stopped his playing. The artistic conception disappeared but it was still snowing on the Sky Mountain. Seeing the floating snowflakes, Ye Futian took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He was going to play it from the start again. He could feel the uniqueness of this song, far more marvelous than any other he had ever played before. The first part was the accumulation of mood and the second part was sublimation. The former part was easier to play but the quintessence lay in the latter.


    He once played The World and A Chaotic Nation. Neither could hold a candle to Ukiyo.


    Ye Futian''s present Dharma Plane was not low and he''d even triggered his Emperor''s Will. But only one-tenth of the artistic conception was played out by him. He couldn''t even complete the song and had to start over.


    The melodious music was heard again. Ye Futian felt like he traveled to the world of centuries ago, the age of the two emperors and the era of chivalry. What a fantastic world!


    This time, Ye Futian played it more fluidly. The artistic conception grew stronger. Hearing the music, both Ye Futian the player and Hua Qingqing the listener reached a sublimation of their spirit as they experienced those stories again and again. The unordinary Emperor''s Will effused from Ye Futian''s body. On the top of the Sky Mountain, there seemed to be only him. All snowflakes floated down on his body. He melted his spirit into the Spiritual Qi in the snow. The Spiritual Qi danced with the music''s rhythm. The music governed the movement of the Spiritual Qi.


    During the playing, Ye Futian felt like his will and the snow combined as one and floated down from the sky. With his senses extending through the snowflakes, Ye Futian could vaguely see the scene on the road. He saw those monks of Qianqiu Temple trudging on the path. Though protected by the Buddha light, they struggled to move even a step. Their features twisted slightly; their eyes showed a wisp of evil intent.


    When the snowflakes fell on them, the Arhat seemly perceived something. He yelled toward the mountaintop, "Who is it?" He faintly felt that somebody was watching them.


    As the snowflakes continued floated down, Ye Futian saw Loulan Xue and Chu Yaoyao. They were also struggling on the trek. He also saw Yi Xiaoshi and sixth sister Beitang Xing''er. They had joined Ye Wuchen, Liu Chenyu, and Liu Feiyang. When meeting Ye Wuchen, Yi Xiaoshi was afraid that Ye Wuchen would get more hurt, so he decided to take him back. On the way back, they encountered Liu Chenyu and Liu Feiyang.


    Through the snow, Ye Futain saw a lot of people on the road. He could see everything clearly. Gradually, he could make use of every tiny snowflake to sense every artistic conception and everything on Sky Mountain. However, while his senses extended, he stopped playing again. It was too strong and too tough for him to continue even with the help of the two Emperors'' will.


    Hearing the music stop and seeing that handsome figure in the snow, Hua Qingqing''s heart brimmed with assorted feelings. Ye Futian looked up at her. Hua Qingqing stared back at Ye Futian''s eyes with her own beautiful eyes. Finally, she turned around slowly and walked to the edge of the cliff on the Sky Mountain. Then she closed her eyes. Endless snowflakes were still falling. A drop of tears was dropped from her eyes and rolled down on her face.


    She leaped off Sky Mountain. The piercing cold wind beat on her delicate face. The most difficult thing in the world was no more than to deceive one''s own heart.


    Why had she heard this music? Why was the player her rivalry?


    She just couldn''t kill him.


    Seeing Hua Qingqing jump down, Ye Futian was stunned and confused. Obviously, he had never thought that Hua Qingqing would choose such a way. He was even prepared to fight with her. Now, only he and Yu Sheng were left on the Sky Mountain. Where was the little eagle?


    He put his hands on the guqin and continued to play it. The splendid music was heard again.


    ��


    At the foot of the mountain, those top forces finally saw someone come down from the Sky Mountain with shocking news. Ye Futian murdered Qin Li and many other strong cultivators of the Qin Dynasty.


    Yu Sheng, who had become a demon because of the Sky Mountain''s devil spirit, took Qin Mengruo''s life and killed two strong disciples of the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    Ye Wuchen, once refused by the Fuyun Sword Clan, killed Qi Ao.


    The news set everyone''s nerves on edge.


    Countless eyes fell upon Qin Yu and the head of the Fuyun Sword Clan. They knew that Qin Yu had been waiting for the news to come. As everyone had expected, Qin Li was killed by the disciple of the Cottage. Qin Mengruo was killed too. How exactly did Ye Futian and Yu Sheng do this?


    People of the Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, and Fuyun Sword Clan began to act. They moved toward the strong cultivators of the Cottage and surrounded. People of other clans retreated from this circle. They were not strong enough to meddle in this dispute. Even other top forces were reluctant to get involved.


    Everyone on the Sky Mountain was all under the Noble Plane and they already created such a sensation. If a similar battle erupted at the foot of the mountain, the result could more disastrous. The whole Eastern Barren Territory would be affected.


    Qin Yu''s face was livid. His eyes revealed a fierce murderous intent. Glaring at Zhuge Hui and Gu Dongliu, he said, "What are you going to do with this?"


    Before Qin Li went up to the mountain, Qin Yu had reminded him to kill Ye Futian as soon as possible. In the end, Ye Futian wasn''t killed, but Qin Li lost his life. Even his sister was also killed.


    "What are we going to do?" Gu Dongliu glanced at Qin Yu disdainfully as if he was looked at an idiot. The war had been issued and he asked what they were going to do?


    Why didn''t they ask themselves this question when they killed the disciple of the College in the Ancient Barren World or when they fought against the Liu Kingdom?


    "Stay away from me," Zhuge Hui glanced at Qin Yu indifferently. Were they asking the Cottage to hand over Ye Futian?


    Zhuge Hui and Gu Dongliu had guessed that Qin Li was killed by their people, but they didn''t expect it was Ye Futian. How could he be so strong? This made sense though. The disciples of the Cottage would never lose. If somebody had to die, it must be the enemy.


    "Uh��" Many people were stunned by Zhuge Hui''s words. Was the second disciple of the Cottage provoking the Qin Dynasty?

 358 Bloody

    Chapter 358: Bloody


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Qin Dynasty and College had already declared war but the battlefield remained in the Ancient Barren World. The top figures hadn''t really clashed yet. But now, Qin Yu stood before Zhuge Hui. Their exchange made everyone think that a big war was about to start.


    Qin Yu''s aura grew more frightening after hearing Zhuge Hui''s words. The entire icy space became more repressive.


    Boom. Qin Yu grasped his dragon spear. It radiated with frightening light and dragons seemed to converge, exhaling in the iciness.


    Is this the Saintly ritual implement that Qin Yu used in the battle at Turtle Mountain? Many hearts trembled when seeing that dragon spear. It spun and a horrible aura radiated from Qin Yu''s body.


    He wanted the Cottage to explain but Zhuge Hui just told him to go away. Qin Yu''s son, Qin Li, and Princess Qin Mengruo had all died. Zhuge Hui''s words were destined to start a war.


    Gu Dongliu stepped forward. However, Lu Nantian of the Donghua Clan also stepped out. A powerful aura descended onto Gu Dongliu. Though he''d lost in the Dongqin College, it didn''t mean that he was weak.


    Qin Mengruo had married Qian Shanmu so she was part of the Donghua Clan. However, Yu Sheng killed her.


    Gu Dongliu turned to look at Lu Nantian. His eyes were so sharp.


    Lady Yuxiao of the Donghua Clan, the leader of the Fuyun Sword Clan, and strong cultivators from various forces all walked forward. Power filled the air.


    The strong cultivators of the College and Sword Saint Mountain weren''t too far away from Zhuge Hui. They also released powerful auras.


    "Anyone under the upper Noble Plane, leave," Zhuge Hui said to the other side. Those below that plane didn''t even qualify to join this type of battle. It was for those at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane or even higher.


    "Leave just because you said so?" the Fuyun Sword Clan''s leader uttered coldly. Endless sword intent wrapped around him.


    Zhuge Hui smiled. She placed her slender hand on her waist. Everyone was watching her so they obviously saw her movements. She wore a long white dress and was like a fairy in the snow. There was a belt around her waist. It seemed to just be an accessory but now, everyone realized that it was hollow. Then Zhuge Hui pulled a thin whip out of it. It dazzled with purple light; it was very beautiful.


    Boom. Zhuge Hui''s hand shook. This simple belt contained a very long whip that curled up into the sky with Zhuge Hui''s movement.


    Boom, crack! Under the thick snow, there was a sudden crack. Many people''s hearts trembled as they looked up. At that moment, the sky seemed to have changed color. Endless thunder and lightning flashed as dragons and snakes danced.


    Boom, crack�� Thunder was about to destroy the world. The purple whip shone in the air like a spiritual snake. Every bolt of lightning that came out of it could shatter one''s soul.


    "If you wish the Fuyun Sword Clan to disappear, I have no objections," Zhuge Hui said coldly as she gazed at the clan leader. His face grew uncomfortable as he stared at the whip and horrible thunder. If Zhuge Hui released the thunder and lightning, no one from the Fuyun Sword Clan would survive except him.


    "A Saintly ritual implement." Qin Yu stared at the long whip. Endless thunder power in the world was sucked towards the whip, covering the entire sky. The second disciple of the Cottage actually had a ritual implement in the Saint plane.


    "Retreat," Qin Yu also said. He clearly agreed with Zhuge Hui''s words and told those of lower planes to retreat. He knew that if they started fighting, just the power in that whip could kill anyone below the upper Noble Plane, let alone actual fighting. Actually, the differences between the higher planes were bigger than the last. Those in lower planes couldn''t cross it at all.


    People from both sides started retreating to somewhere far away. The others watched from even further places. No one dared to approach them. Soon, only the top figures remained in the icy place. Even Xue Ye and Luo Fan retreated.


    "Junior Sister, what''s wrong?" a voice traveled over from somewhere far away. The crowd could only hear the whistling of the wind. Then they felt an extremely sharp aura. An ordinary-looking yet mighty figure stood in the air. It was the Sword Saint.


    "Senior Brother, some people are getting cocky. I''m going to take care of them," Zhuge Hui said, smiling at the Sword Saint. Her tone was casual as if Qin Yu, crown prince of the Qin Dynasty, was nothing.


    "Okay, I''ll help you." The Sword Saint nodded. Broadsword intent filled the air. The strong cultivators released their might. With them as the heart in this vast space, even the snow couldn''t seem to get in.


    Qin Yu''s expression was uncomfortable. Zhuge Hui''s words were too arrogant, but he wasn''t as confident after seeing the ritual implement. He was equal to Gu Dongliu and Lu Nantian, but Gu Dongliu was the third disciple of the Cottage. Zhuge Hui was second.


    Before, the second disciple wasn''t as famous. However, she made her powerful debut at Chaoge City and her reputation grew. Many guessed that since she was ranked higher than Gu Dongliu, she couldn''t be weaker, especially judging from her confidence.


    If this was the case and both sides had Saintly ritual implements, Qin Yu really didn''t have much of a chance.


    Zhuge Hui smiled at Qin Yu. Endless thunder grouped at the tip of the whip. Then she waved her whip elegantly. It curled up and slapped towards Qin Yu. The world darkened instantly as if the thunder of Armageddon was coming.


    Qin Yu looked up. A dragon roared and rushed out of his body. It soared into the air. He stabbed his dragon spear forward and countless dragons appeared. They gnashed at Zhuge Hui. Dragons could destroy everything. With this one action, the battlefield made everyone feel as if their blood was boiling. They were so powerful.


    They were the top figures of the Eastern Barren Territory. They could change the skies.


    The whip swept forward, beating down on a dragon. It actually pierced straight through. It seemed to contain shocking thunder spell and frightening lightning. It blinded everyone and destroyed that dragon.


    A purple shadow burst from Zhuge Hui''s whip. There was also a faint shocking white glow. It cut a beautiful arc in the sky. Everyone saw various dragons dissipate, destroyed by the thunder. Ignoring everyone''s shock, Zhuge Hui shook her arm. The whip danced and spiraled in the air. Destructive bolts of lightning burst towards Qin Yu.


    Qin Yu stood in place and roared. He sounded like a dragon. The light of a true dragon enveloped him and one appeared before him. The horrible lightning fell down on the golden dragon but couldn''t break past the defense.


    Boom. A fairy-like figure walked in the air. Zhuge Hui walked in the void like a goddess. She was bathed in electric light. A strange power flowed towards her whip as it danced again. It swept down the void. It looked soft and gentle but was actually like the sharpest weapon in the world.


    Qin Yu''s body flashed and flew out like lightning. He went straight for Zhuge Hui''s body. The Qin Dynasty focused on martial arts. If he could get close to Zhuge Hui, his possibility for winning would increase.


    Zhuge Hui smirked at that. Her whip spiraled and enveloped the entire space. Qin Yu''s expression changed when he saw the whip descend like a spinning top. He transformed into a nosediving dragon, becoming one with the spear. He was so sharp that he could tear through anything. He shot into the sky.


    "Idiot," Zhuge Hui uttered. The vortex-like whip curled in the air like a terrifying tornado. However, it was a storm of lightning and thunder. It folded the air in. Qin Yu was inside that storm and still shooting up.


    Zhuge Hui pulled her arm back. The thunderstorm gathered and instantly, endless lightning tore out from it. It destroyed everything and sealed the space shut. Qin Yu seemed to have given himself up to it. His spear danced wildly and various frightening dragons burst out. However, they were destroyed by the closed storm.


    When the storm swept past, Qin Yu fell down through the air. His body had no more sharp light. His elegant clothes were torn apart, revealing brilliant armor. It dazzled like a powerful ritual implement. Even his head was enveloped by the light of the armor.


    Everyone was shocked at this. What exactly did they find from the Qin Dynasty''s ancestral grave?


    While they thought, the beautiful figure in the sky didn''t stop. Her whip went flying towards Qin Yu again. It was like a dancing snake, impossible to capture.


    Boom. Qin Yu didn''t face it headfirst. He dodged this time, trying to escape it. His attack was under Zhuge Hui''s whip; he couldn''t use it. Even though he was fast, the whip was faster. It caught up to him and cracked crisply in the air. Various beams of lightning exploded on Qin Yu''s body. He felt his nerves go numb and he was thrown back, his face pale.


    Ever since the Qin Dynasty reopened their ancestral grave, they''d wanted to recover their past glory. Qin Yu was now standing at the top of the Eastern Barren Territory. He''d destroyed the Liu Kingdom with one battle and was so proud. He ruled over the Eastern Barren Territory. But in today''s battle against the Cottage''s second disciple, he couldn''t defend himself at all. It was so humiliating!

 359 Mystery of Sky Mountain

    Chapter 359: Mystery of Sky Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless figures stood below Sky Mountain, looking up at the figure in white. At that moment, many people realized that the second disciple of the Cottage was also one of the most brilliant women of the Eastern Barren Territory. In fact, "one of" might not even be needed. Even Lady Yuxiao of the Donghua Clan couldn''t compare with her shocking beauty, coldly arrogant personality, and absolute talent and ability. Zhuge Hui won in all aspects.


    The first three disciples of the Cottage were all standing at the tip of the Eastern Barren Territory. This was also why the Qin Dynasty viewed the Cottage as the biggest threat even though they only had eight disciples. They were just too powerful.


    In this battle, even Qin Yu couldn''t defend himself before Zhuge Hui. How could anyone else from the Qin Dynasty fight against her? Probably a bunch of them would die from just one crack of the whip.


    Zhuge Hui''s pretty face still had a faint smile, but her smile gave people a cold feeling. She waved her arm and the whip curled up again. It danced in the air, crackling explosively. The rumbling thunder resounded in the air. Zhuge Hui was bathed in the thunder''s glory like a goddess.


    Bolts of lightning flowed down the whip. The tip connected with the thunder in the air. Lightning exploded there; it was powerful enough to destroy everything.


    Boom. Zhuge Hui waved her arm. That moment, the thunder gods seemed to move with her. Her whip seemed to drag endless thunder down from the sky, hurling toward Qin Yu.


    Feeling the mightiness, many people were terrified. If they stood there, they would definitely be destroyed.


    Before the whip arrived, endless thunder and lightning already flew toward Qin Yu. A Saint could cast a spell with a thought. Zhuge Hui was also someone at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane who had a Saint''s Will and a Saintly ritual implement. One could imagine how powerful the whip''s spell was.


    The snowy ground exploded. Qin Yu''s body was shrouded in lightning. His dragon soared into the air. His armor was extremely brilliant and resisted the deadly thunder. At that moment, he was like Zhuge Hui, bathing in the divine thunder.


    Seeing the whip come, Qin Yu''s expression was terrifying. He stabbed his dragon spear again, riding a dragon''s roar.


    With boundless electric brilliance, the whip was like a divine snake. It snaked upward, curling around the dragon. Beams of lightning cut through everything and killed the dragon. The whip snaked up the dragon spear and transformed into a sharp blade. It hit Qin Yu squarely. Beams of thunder stabbed through. The whip was now like an undefeatable blade, about to pierce Qin Yu''s body.


    Qin Yu instantly drowned in the lightning. If not for the powerful armor ritual implement, he would be stabbed through by the whip. Even so, his body still trembled under the light and was thrown back. However, Zhuge Hui didn''t show any sign of stopping. Her whip curled around Qin Yu and tossed him in the air. Then it slapped down, crackling continuously. Everyone saw how Qin Yu''s body was ravaged cruelly in the air.


    With a huge boom, Qin Yu was slapped onto the ground. His entire body was numb. Both his physical body and mind were traumatized. Even with the Saintly ritual implement, he was still in a pathetic state.


    "Enough," a voice said. Figures flashed before Qin Yu. They were from the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan.


    "Do you still want an explanation?" Zhuge Hui asked coldly, gazing at them. Qin Yu stood up and spat out blood. His body twisted but he looked up, staring at the figure in the air. He was so humiliated. As the crown prince of the Qin Dynasty, he had never been humiliated like this.


    His son, Qin Li, and his sister, Qin Mengruo, had both been killed. Now, not only did the Cottage not compensate him, they defeated him so cruelly before everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory. One could imagine how Qin Yu was feeling now. His eyes were bloody and filled with bloodthirstiness.


    Lady Yuxiao, the clan leader of the Donghua Clan, and others all stared up at Zhuge Hui. She had a Saintly ritual implement and such powerful combat ability. She was definitely a force to be reckoned with. Paired with the Sword Saint, it would need the leaders of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan to defeat them. If they fought here, they wouldn''t gain anything. It might result in people of lower planes on both sides getting killed. Those of higher planes might not win either. At least, no one could defeat Zhuge Hui and the Sword Saint.


    It seemed that they had to swallow this humiliation.


    "Let''s go," Qin Yu gritted out. He clenched his fists tightly and murderous intent filled the air. But he couldn''t kill Zhuge Hui. Not only that, he had to be defeated so humiliatingly.


    The group turned and walked away. In the air, Zhuge Hui collected her aura and put her whip away, casually tying it around her waist. Her delicate waist looked so thin and soft. She was such a beauty but had such shocking combat ability. Practically no one could defeat her.


    A battle that could have erupted ended just like this. It seemed that both sides had some scruples. After all, no one could bear the consequences if a battle of this level really erupted at full force.


    Before, the Qin Dynasty was sure they could make the Liu Kingdom disappear so they destroyed it. However, the Cottage, College, and Sword Saint were on a completely different level. If Qin Yu had defeated Zhuge Hui in this battle, they would try to kill everyone here. But since Qin Yu was defeated, they had no way of winning.


    The Cottage had these worries too. Even though the Sword Saint and Zhuge Hui were powerful, the strongest enemies hadn''t acted yet. It was enough to just force them back. If a full-out war really happened, the disciples of the College and Sword Saint Mountain would also be wiped out.


    The people of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan hadn''t actually left yet. They were waiting for the rest of the people to come down from the mountain.


    Time passed bit by bit. Because of that battle, the atmosphere was a bit ambiguous. Gradually, people came down. At this time, a beautiful figure walked over the white snow towards the crowd.


    "Qingqing." Lady Yuxiao and Lu Nantian walked up. Hua Qingqing walked towards the Donghua Clan and looked at the two with complex feelings.


    "You didn''t go up Sky Mountain?" Lady Yuxiao asked. Few outsiders knew about her daughter Hua Qingqing''s talent, but she was clear. Hua Qingqing didn''t like fighting and rarely displayed her talent. But actually, Qian Shanmu was far behind her. She was also pure and could fend off the evil intent. It was highly possible for her to climb Sky Mountain.


    Hua Qingqing shook her head and whispered, "I climbed up."


    Lady Yuxiao''s eyes flashed; her heart trembled. Hua Qingqing had reached the top. "What is there?" she asked. It was rumored that the mountaintop had marks of the two emperors. They had ruled the world. What could they have left behind? Why did a bell ring on Sky Mountain?


    "The two emperors once played a song at the peak of Sky Mountain," Hua Qingqing said. "Their intents created an image. They left behind Ukiyo, one of the ten musical masterpieces of the Divine Prefecture."


    Lady Yuxiao''s heart jumped. She had taught Hua Qingqing and Qian Shanmu musical sorcery. She became famous in her youth and had even been higher than the present top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory. No one dared to say they were better at musical sorcery than her in the Eastern Barren Territory. She obviously was more familiar with the top ten musical pieces. Those were the ultimate dreams of anyone who cultivated in musical sorcery.


    "You heard it?" Lady Yuxiao''s voice changed.


    "Yes." Hua Qingqing nodded and smiled. "It is beautiful but sad. I memorized the first half but I was unable to play the second half."


    "Unable to play?" Lady Yuxiao was a bit disappointed but quickly recovered. Hua Qingqing was insanely talented but it was understandable if she couldn''t play one of the top ten pieces. The artistic conception must be so powerful.


    "What a pity." Lady Yuxiao sighed. "It is rumored that Ukiyo is out of the world. Even you cannot play it. It seems that the Eastern Barren Territory is not destined to be able to witness the top ten pieces. Apparently, Donghuang the Great will no longer play Ukiyo in the world. Will this piece just die away like this?"


    "Die away?" Hua Qingqing sighed inwardly. Perhaps Ukiyo would appear in the Eastern Barren Territory soon. She didn''t say anything else. She didn''t tell Lady Yuxiao that Ye Futian was also at the mountaintop and was able to play Ukiyo. Her heart still hadn''t recovered.


    If her mother and senior brother knew what had transpired at the mountaintop, she wouldn''t know how to face Qian Shanmu.


    ��


    At the mountaintop, snow flew as the music streamed gracefully. Ye Futian played Ukiyo again and again.


    As he tried again and again, he felt his will enter the white snow, floating with it. He felt endless Spiritual Qi flow through. If his spiritual intent was strong enough, he might be able to control all the Spiritual Qi in Sky Mountain.


    Sitting cross-legged, light flashed around Ye Futian. The snow that filled the air fell onto him, covering his body. His eyes were closed tightly. As his senses expanded, he felt that the intent of the two emperors was everywhere. It seemed to have melded with the snow.


    Gradually, a miraculous scene appeared in his senses. He was standing at the mountaintop and feeling the boundless Spiritual Qi that fell down. It was like a ritual bell. It was shapeless and invisible, falling with the snow. It covered Sky Mountain and pressed down on it. Perhaps, this was the pressure that they all felt.


    As his will melded into the flying snow, the sense grew clearer. Not only was there a ritual bell that weighed down on Sky Mountain, he also sensed an extremely dark Demon Bird. It was also in Sky Mountain!

 360 Magical Bell and the Demon Bird

    Chapter 360: Magical Bell and the Demon Bird


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the music, Ye Futian melted his spirit in the floating snow and the whole Sky Mountain. His spirit existed everywhere now. At this time, he had a wonderful feeling that his senses toward the world were getting more and more acute. He stopped playing the song.


    Closing his eyes, Ye Futian was drunk with this artistic conception. He could feel his mental power melting into nature. As long as he wanted, his mental power could resonate with the endless Spiritual Qi as a unity as if his mental power belonged to nature.


    "It''s Arcana Plane!" Ye Futian opened his eyes and smiled. While playing the music, his spiritual power naturally broke levels which made him rise up to the Arcana Plane. Everything happened so naturally. He didn''t break his level on purpose. It was totally an accident.


    Cultivators also described the Arcana Plane as the unity between man and nature. People of the Arcana Plane could extend their senses through nature. If one cultivated both martial arts and sorcery, a breakthrough in sorcery could also help them make a breakthrough in martial arts.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian stopped playing the song temporarily. Having reached this stage, he naturally wanted to improve his strength in all aspects so he could totally enter into the Arcana Plane. He began to practice fist forms. Every move he made contained great momentum that shook the surrounding space. Snowflakes near him were all shattered. Very soon, an invisible force field formed around him.


    Under the endless flying snowflakes, a dragon''s roar and ape''s growl could be heard constantly from his fists. His fists were like a dragon''s, his strength like an ape''s, and his speed like a roc''s. He acted like a young emperor. Every time he practiced fists forms, he would activate Imperial Tactics to help him improve.


    Gradually, he immersed himself completely in his practice, which made his every punch stronger and stronger. That invisible force field resonated with the world, and then a faint light screen loomed. The space around him turned into a vacuum with snowflakes flying around.


    Finally, with a dragon''s roar, Ye Futian threw out a fist. The air trembled and a horrible ape''s shape appeared together with a flying golden roc. This random fist was thrown out toward the distant, penetrating the space and shaking the air.


    Ye Futian stopped his practice and took a deep breath. His body commanded a powerful presence. Spiritual Qi of all attributes spun around him like a curtain of bright light, flowing like waves, and dispersed gradually.


    "Wow!" Ye Futian breathed out a mouthful turbid breath. Both his sorcery and martial arts broke into the Arcana Plane. When playing the song on the Sky Mountain, his mental power reached the extreme unconsciously, by virtue of which he managed to rise up into the Arcana Plane. What a wonderful experience!


    He looked down at Yu Sheng, not knowing when he would wake up. The artistic conception on the Sky Mountain was perfect for mental cultivation. Especially when he was playing the music, the whole Sky Mountain was covered with endless Spiritual Qi.


    Sitting beside Yu Sheng, he began to play the song again. The Guqin Spirit appeared; the music was heard again. That wonderful feeling hit him again. His senses became clearer, seemly because of his breakthrough in Plane. He felt that his will melted into endless Spiritual Qi with the music and combined with it as one. His mental power existed everywhere, floating down with the endless snowflakes.


    At the top of the mountain, that Arhat was still trudging on the path. His eyes were half evil intent and half Buddha light as if he was struggling with the devilish power. He couldn''t hear the music. Every step him made was exhausting to him, but he didn''t give up.


    Suddenly, the Arhat frowned and a blazing Buddha light flashed in his eyes as if his eyes were consecrated. He saw endless Spiritual Qi flicker in the air. Those snowflakes falling from the top were transformed from Spiritual Qi. He even perceived an invisible mental power.


    "Who is it?" the Arhat cried out. There was only silence in the air. The Arhat hesitated, thinking that it must be an illusion because of his tiredness on the road.


    At this time, the Spiritual Qi above his head gathered in frenzy. In an instant, endless snowflakes condensed into an iceberg. The Arhat''s face changed. At the next moment, rumbling sound was heard. The iceberg fell down toward him with tremendous pressure.


    The Arhat was worn out by the deterrent force from the Sky Mountain when climbing. Now, another formidable pressure came down to him, setting him into an extremely dangerous situation. He yelled and began to recite scripture. Buddhist symbols appeared together with blazing Buddha light. He was about to attack, but suddenly, an invisible artistic conception descended. All Spiritual Qi froze, moving at an extremely slow speed. The attack couldn''t be formed.


    "How can that be?" The Arhat''s face changed. His consecrated eyes saw the endless Spiritual Qi get controlled by an invisible power and flow very slowly. His mental power didn''t work and that dreadful iceberg was to come. He yelled angrily and his physical strength broke out with dazzling Buddha light. He raised his hand and sent out a violent Buddha Handprint.


    Bang. The Arhat''s body was crushed and he rolled down the mountain. He groaned and spat a mouthful blood.


    He was irked. Who is the enemy? Only three people surpassed him. They were Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Qingqing. Who could it be? If it was them, how could they use the Sky Mountain''s Spiritual Qi?


    While he was thinking, the piercing cold wind storm rolled toward him. He trembled and stood up, scurrying down the mountain. He didn''t even figure out his enemy. In such a case, he could only escape.


    While he was running, the snowflakes around him thawed and chased behind him. At this time, countless sharp golden knives rushed toward him. He was going to be killed. The Arhat leaped and rose into the air. He didn''t rise up high. Instead, he nosedived to escape.


    The pressure on the Sky Mountain went from top to bottom. Therefore, it was a wise choice of the Arhat to escape downward, because he could even be faster in that direction.


    The knives pierced toward him. The Arhat stepped firmly in the air and left an immense golden footprint. With a loud explosion, those sharp knives and golden footprint were all shattered. The Arhat used that force to continue escaping. He dared not to stop until he felt the snowflakes around him return to normal. He turned around and gazed at the mountaintop. Not knowing who wanted to kill him, he was vexed.


    Suddenly, the surrounding Spiritual Qi seemed to flow again. His face changed. He turned into a flash of golden lights and escaped with no more hesitation. On the Sky Mountain, Ye Futian was playing the song. His face looked cold. Of course, he was the one that attacked the Arhat. He''d just made use of the Spiritual Qi through the music. However, his senses hadn''t extended everywhere of the Sky Mountain yet. It still needed a while. But he found that, by means of the music, he could communicate with the two Emperors'' remaining will to control the whole Sky Mountain.


    As time passed, more and more people gathered at the foot of the mountain. Ye Futian''s sensory range also became wider and wider. Gradually, he could see that Magical bell clearly. That transparent golden bell enveloped the whole mountain as if it was part of the mountain, safeguarding the Sky Mountain invisibly. However, Ye Futian also perceived a dreadful evil air. He saw the Demon Bird.


    An enormous Demon Bird''s illusion overshadowed the whole mountain from bottom to top. It felt like the enormous Demon Bird was buried by the Sky Mountain and oppressed by the Magical bell.


    Ye Futian knew that it was not the real Demon Bird but something transformed from the Demon Bird''s will after it died and melted into the mountain. What surprised Ye Futian most was the enormous Demon Bird''s head was right below his feet.


    "Little eagle?" When Ye Futian finally figured out the Sky Mountain''s secret, he saw that his little eagle was under the Demon Bird''s head. It was entangled with a horrible demonic will as if it was going to become evil and transform into a Demon Bird.


    He saw a narrow pass linking the mountaintop to the inside. The Black Wind Eagle seemed to enter the mountain through that way. At this moment, that narrow pass was blocked by snow.


    An invisible storm penetrated that pass and made it full of Spiritual Qi. Ye Futian''s will also entered the mountain, and then he perceived an extremely demonic intent. The further inside he went, the stronger it grew. Finally, Ye Futian''s will came to the Demon Bird. Ye Futian felt that demonic intent was going to devour his will.


    "Little eagle?" Ye Futian called. Endless devil intent enveloped the Black Wind Eagle. It had grown horrible demonic wings. The Black Wind Eagle was going to become a demonic roc.


    Its eyes had become extremely evil. They were not the Black Wind Eagle''s original eyes anymore. That pair of cold vicious eyes looked directly to the front as if it could perceive Ye Futian''s presence.


    Whoosh. A terrifying dark wind swept past everything and devoured Ye Futian''s will immediately.


    On the mountaintop, the music suddenly stopped. Ye Futian groaned and his face paled. He stood up and moved to a corner on the mountaintop. He stomped on the snow on and the pass appeared. Ye Futian glanced at the pass from above and began to play the music again. His music resonated with the world. Endless Spiritual Qi fell down toward that pass. Then Ye Futian stepped forward and jumped down. The music could still be heard. Ye Futian carried the guqin in his arms and moved straight toward the Black Eagle. Soon, he arrived.


    The exceedingly frightening demonic intent enveloped him immediately. Before him was the illusion of that enormous Demon Bird!

 361 Continuous Ringing

    Chapter 361: Continuous Ringing


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the instant when Ye Futian arrived, a monstrous evil aura spread out from the illusory Demon Bird and charged towards him. Very soon, darkness engulfed him.


    Many intense evil thoughts broke into Ye Futian''s mind. His body trembled and a strong Emperor Will erupted, protecting his mind. At the same time, his fingers stroke wildly on the strings of his guqin as he attempted to communicate with the will on Sky Mountain.


    Emperor-like golden radiance ascended into the sky, and the snow on Sky Mountain started to flow towards his location. His senses spread out wildly, while his Emperor Will merged with the willpower on Sky Mountain, defending the corrosion from the evilness.


    Bang! In Ye Futian''s mind, a real Demon Bird seemed to have appeared. It blotted out the sky as if it could even devour the heaven and the earth. It stared at Ye Futian with an unruly look and opened its black demonic wings. It was as if the end of the world was approaching.


    Although the Demon Bird was already dead, its will did not dissipate. Therefore, the two emperors left behind an everlasting willpower to suppress the evilness from the Demon Bird. Despite so, however, the evil will on Sky Mountain could still affect the surrounding region thousands of miles in radius, resulting in a very low number of cultivators in Shu City. It was then obvious how terrifying the Demon Bird was when it was still alive.


    At the moment, Ye Futian was at the center of the will of the Demon Bird. If he did not have Emperor Will to protect his mind, he would probably be engulfed and destroyed in an instant.


    A dark current enveloped Ye Futian''s body. Even though the Demon Bird''s will was frightening, Ye Futian guessed that it should still be at the sage-level when it battled the two emperors and was suppressed. At that time, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing had yet to unify the world, as the battle occurred even more than three hundred years ago. Hence, Emperor Will was at a higher level than the Demon Bird''s will. Ye Futian only had traces of it, but it still managed to protect his will from being devoured.


    In Ye Futian''s mind, there was Emperor''s Light protecting him from the environment. With much determination, he stared at the Black Wind Condor in the darkness before him. Its entire body was enveloped in black light. Ye Futian did not want to see it get engulfed and become a substitute for the Demon Bird, turning into another bloodthirsty demon king.


    The only way was to communicate with the will on Sky Mountain to suppress the Demon Bird''s will. At the same time, Ye Futian would plant a stronger Emperor Will into the Black Wind Condor''s mind so that it could resist against the Demon Bird.


    Ye Futian was enduring a terrifying amount of pressure. The enormous Demon Bird was charging wildly into his mind, along with a frightful will. It had already engulfed Ye Futian''s Spiritual Will totally. On his body, many dark currents appeared. Ye Futian felt that he could hardly withstand this for much longer. Activating the Imperial Tactics, his blood started to burn, and dazzling radiance ascended into the air and charged towards Sky Mountain.


    This was the second time on Sky Mountain that he exceeded his limit. Moreover, this was even riskier than the last time. Previously, he was confident that he could kill Qin Li, but this time he was not sure whether he could win the Demon Bird''s will.


    Sky Mountain was so compatible with him. It was as if it existed only for him so that he could come here to inherit the music and the willpower. He still believed that he could win against the Demon Bird''s will.


    During that time, the two emperors could suppress the Demon Bird at this place. Now, he had Emperor Will and could communicate with the willpower the two emperors had left behind on Sky Mountain. Why would he fail? Furthermore, when he fought with Qin Li, he was still in the Dharma Plane. Now, he was in the Arcana Plane.


    Ye Futian''s willpower merged with the sky and the earth. Many traces of golden Emperor''s Light rose into the sky. Emperor Will flew towards Sky Mountain along with the music, attempting to merge with the will on the mountain.


    The willpower of the two emperors during that time had already merged with Sky Mountain as if it had become part of the mountain. Ye Futian believed that he would be able to do so as well.


    The melodious music spread out on Sky Mountain continuously. Even the snow that filled the sky seemed to be listening to the music. The snowflakes danced with the music, forming a resonance.


    "What''s that?" At the moment, there were still people on Sky Mountain. They suddenly seemed to have heard a piece of music and stopped at their spots, feeling the music quietly. The music seemed to be everywhere. It had merged with the snow falling from the sky, entering their senses.


    "It''s wonderful..." many exclaimed. They stopped one after another and raised their head to look at the falling snow.


    Music was hidden in the snow. Who was playing it? Could it be that the will left behind by the two emperors had revived?


    "This music..." Many people were fully absorbed and influenced by the music. They stood motionlessly and felt the rhythm in silence.


    The music continued and spread on Sky Mountain steadily. At the moment, Ye Futian was fully focused on playing. His senses seemed to be merging with Sky Mountain slowly, turning into part of the mountain. The area that he could sense became wider and wider.


    Time passed by slowly. Ye Futian had been enduring a massive amount of pressure, but as the music played the will on Sky Mountain seemed to be merging with him, helping him to resist against the evil will and reducing the pressure he was experiencing. After a long while, Ye Futian''s mind suddenly trembled. He could see the entire Sky Mountain. He could feel that his willpower had become extremely strong.


    The golden Emperor Will had merged with Sky Mountain completely. Ye Futian felt as if he was standing on Sky Mountain. It was a mysterious and amazing feeling. It was as if Sky Mountain had become part of him; his will was now the will of Sky Mountain.


    Moving his will, the snow on Sky Mountain similarly moved. An endless amount of Spiritual Qi roared and the magical bell slowly formed.


    Clang! Just as Ye Futian thought about it, the magical bell rang. An extremely powerful force was released and charged into Sky Mountain, pressing down on the Demon Bird. Following a loud bang, the enormous Demon Bird was almost blown into pieces. The evil will in Ye Futian''s mind was removed immediately.


    The Black Wind Condor trembled fiercely and the evil aura surrounded it was weakened significantly, but it spat out a mouthful of blood. It suddenly opened its eyes and stared coldly at Ye Futian. That was not the look of the Black Wind Condor, but rather the Demon Bird.


    On Sky Mountain, at the instant when the bell rang, many people gave a muffled humph and their faces turned pale. Although their levels were not very high, the pressure they were experiencing rose significantly with the ring, shaking their minds.


    After so many days, another ringing of the bell came from Sky Mountain. At the foot of the mountain, a powerful, invisible sound wave swept across. Immediately, the shirts of many started to wave fiercely in the air and countless people closed their eyes. They only felt a storm running right through them, especially those whose levels were high. They felt that even their will was going to be crushed.


    "The bell rang again." Many people were astonished. Nobody knew why the bell on Sky Mountain sounded off in the first place.


    Clang! This time, the ringing did not only occur once but twice. Many nobles spat much blood and their faces all turned pale. The more powerful people among the nobles received an even stronger hit.


    "Which b*stard did this?" At the place where the Cottage disciples were, Zhuge Hui''s mouth was covered with blood. She cursed at Sky Mountain and looked extremely unhappy. She seemed to have felt a large magical bell being merged with Sky Mountain. It was exactly the magical bell that was ringing.


    Beside Hua Qingqing, the faces of Lady Yuxiao and Lu Nantian were also pale. Hua Qingqing lifted her head and stared at the peak of Sky Mountain. The bell was ringing continuously. What did this mean? She knew that Ye Futian was at the summit of Sky Mountain at the moment, playing the music left by the two emperors.


    Clang! Another bell ring sounded. Many people turned totally speechless. Zhuge Hui glanced at Sky Mountain in resentment, after which she turned around and left.


    "Let''s get out of this place," someone said. Then, many cultivators left the foot of the mountain directly. The cultivators from the Cottage, the College, and Qin Dynasty all left one after another. If they chose to remain here, they might be killed by the ringing eventually.


    The continuous ringing spread into the distance. It reached Shu City and spread towards places even further away. In the Western Region of the Eastern Barren Territory, countless people looked at the Sky Mountain. Was this the sound of the two emperors? Nobody knew that the person ringing the bell was not an emperor but actually Ye Futian. If Zhuge Hui found out about this, she would probably take out the whip on her waist...


    After the three continuous rings, much of the evil aura had dissipated and even the illusory Demon Bird looked unstable. However, the Black Wind Condor was similarly in a state of misery. It coughed out blood continuously and its eyes were filled with evilness.


    "Little bird, are you still in there?" Ye Futian shouted. He stopped ringing the bell, for otherwise the Black Wind Condor would also be killed. His Life Spirit appeared and an appalling spiritual storm bloomed. The will on Sky Mountain merged wildly with the spiritual storm, along with the music. Then, the storm charged towards the Black Wind Condor. Ye Futian wanted to see if the condor was still its previous self.


    The spiritual storm entered the Black Wind Condor''s mind. Ye Futian saw an endless darkness, but he did not give up. His brilliant will charged into the dark vortex. Then, he finally felt the existence of his Emperor Will. It was buried in the darkness but not destroyed; the Demon Bird could not eliminate Emperor Will.


    "Little bird," Ye Futian''s will shouted.


    In the Emperor Will, an extremely weak willpower appeared. Ye Futian felt the existence of the Black Wind Condor.


    Tweet. Ye Futian heard a voice and was delightfully surprised. The Black Wind Condor was still alive.


    "I will merge Emperor Will into your will to help you fight against the power." Ye Futian communicated with the Black Wind Condor with his will. Then, he released his Life Spirit and dazzling Emperor Will was planted into the Black Wind Condor''s mind continuously, along with the will on Sky Mountain. Together, they protected and merged with the Black Wind Condor''s will.


    At this point, Ye Futian exited the Black Wind Condor''s mind. His Life Spirit vanished and the evil aura engulfed the Black Wind Condor again. Ye Futian stared at the Black Wind Condor, paying close attention to its movements. Suddenly, a message from the Black Wind Condor appeared in his mind, causing a strange expression to appear on his face.


    "Alright. Be careful then," Ye Futian responded. Then, he turned around and charged out of the tunnel. Very quickly, he was back on Sky Mountain again.


    The snow was still dancing in the air. Ye Futian heaved out a long sigh and looked at Yu Sheng who was lying on the ground. A smile finally appeared on his face, as if he felt extremely relieved. He lied on the ground again.


    In Sky Mountain, the Black Wind Condor was still standing there. The dark light engulfed its body once again and the powerful evil will tried to invade its mind. Its body was enveloped in darkness, but this time, the Black Wind Condor''s look was extremely sharp. It closed its eyes and endured everything went silent.

 362 The King of Qin

    Chapter 362: The King of Qin


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The cultivators from various top forces retreated from Sky Mountain. At the foot of the mountain, there were still countless figures, but they were all below the Noble Plane. Only a minority of them was from top forces.


    People on Sky Mountain made their descent one after another. Slowly, those at the foot of the mountain also started to leave. After trying, they knew that even if the bell ring from the mountain was really the call of the emperors, they would not be able to get anything in the end. Of course, they were still many who were unwilling to leave, especially those from the Western Region of the Eastern Barren Territory. This towering Sky Mountain was a sacred land of the Western Region.


    Time passed by slowly. Many rumors spread at the foot of Sky Mountain. According to those who had just climbed down the mountain, they could hear an extremely elegant music coming from the snow dancing in the sky. That was due to the artistic conception that had fused with Sky Mountain when the two emperors played the piece in the past.


    There were also people who claimed that the bell ring from Sky Mountain, as well as the music, was formed because Donghuang the Great missed his best friend Emperor Ye Qing with whom he explored the world. Therefore, his will crossed over an endless amount of space and time and reached this place, affecting Sky Mountain and producing the ringing.


    Legends about the two emperors started to spread around again. Even today, many people still did not understand why Emperor Ye Qing died all of a sudden, and why Donghuang the Great ordered everyone to destroy Emperor Ye Qing''s statues around the world. Was it because of his position?


    "Sigh. The two intimate friends who had once roamed around the world together eventually stood opposite each other because of power, and it all ended with the death of one of them. However, even though Emperor Ye Qing had failed and died, Donghuang the Great would probably still miss him sometimes." People at the foot of Sky Mountain were chatting.


    "I wonder what kind of people they are exactly. Too bad I was not born during that era to witness their legends," a young man said, smiling. The two emperors unified the world and must have experienced many difficulties.


    Suddenly, someone said, "Obviously they are people who care about the world." The few who were chatting turned their heads and saw an old man in ragged clothes walk beside them. He had a wine pot hanging on his shirt. The old man walked towards the foot of Sky Mountain and stood there with his hands behind his back. Staring at the summit of Sky Mountain, he actually seemed to possess an extraordinary temperament.


    "Elder, why do you say so?" the young man asked, smiling.


    "If they do not care about the world, how can they become the masters of the world?" the old man said emotionlessly.


    "I don''t believe that." A young man in blue shirt shook the folding fan in his hand and said, "The rules of the world are set by strong cultivators. They can unify that world obviously because they have the absolute power to do so. The so-called ''care about the world'' is too hypocritical. Moreover, if you are speaking the truth, why did Emperor Ye Qing become a taboo?"


    The old man smiled and shook his head but did not argue with the young man.


    "Elder, so here you are. I have spent so long looking for you." Suddenly, a girl in a green dress walked over from the distance. She was delighted upon seeing the old man. Seeing the girl, the old man shook his head and smiling, he said, "Girl, the fate between the two of us has ended. You don''t have to look for me anymore in the future."


    "What fate are you talking about? I don''t believe in that. Elder, I''ll follow you in the future. Don''t leave me behind," the girl said affectionately. "Don''t worry. In the future, I will cook nice food for you every day."


    The elder shook his head. "My fifth son can cook very well. I have not tasted it for too long. I''m going back."


    The girl froze and seemed very upset. "Elder, so you''re going back home." The old man was lazy and had been wandering outside. She always thought that he did not have a home.


    "Yup." The old man smiled and nodded.


    "Then allow me to go to your place. I can massage you," the girl said, grinning.


    Smiling, the old man replied, "My sixth daughter has also grown up by now and she is very obedient. My second daughter is very mischievous, but she will massage me as well." The girl stared at him with her eyes widened? Sixth daughter? He has so many children?


    "Based on your appearance, I am definitely better-looking than your second and sixth daughters," the girl said with her eyes widened.


    "My second daughter is really beautiful. I''m sure nobody in the Eastern Barren Territory will object to this after seeing her. My sixth daughter is also prettier than you." Thinking about those two girls, the old man smiled.


    "Then why are you here instead of at home?" The girl pouted and was somewhat unhappy.


    The old man looked at Sky Mountain and said, "I am waiting for someone whom I may be waiting for." This sentence sounded very awkward. The girl did not know what he meant and also looked up at Sky Mountain. Waiting for someone whom he may be waiting for? Who is that?


    The young man beside them had been listening to their conversation all along. He looked at the old man in bemusement and said uncontrollably, "He''s mad."


    The girl blinked and found his words very reasonable. This old man had been speaking ridiculous words every day. He must be mad.


    "I..." The old man stared at the young man, stunned. Then, he shook his head, feeling speechless. Am I mad? The young people nowadays...


    ��


    The year 10003 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was slowly coming to an end. In this year, many major events had happened in the Eastern Barren Territory. At the start of the year, Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan allied through marriage and established Dongqin College, while Gu Dongliu won Lu Nantian in the challenge. Then, Ye Futian encountered an assassination and Qin Dynasty officially started on their path to revive their kingdom. In this year, much blood had been shed in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    An ultimate battle almost broke out at the foot of Sky Mountain. The second disciple of the Cottage was dominant enough and actively fought against Qin Yu, shocking all the forces including Qin Dynasty itself. Otherwise, many people in the Eastern Barren Territory would have been killed.


    Nevertheless, everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory could feel that it was destined to be a rough year. The storm would sooner or later sweep across the Eastern Barren Territory. Qin Li''s death was certainly a cause of this.


    Qin Yu returned to Qin Dynasty and reported to the king of Qin. At that moment, the king of Qin was sitting in front of the pool in his pavilion and fishing. Listening quietly to Qin Yu''s report, his expression did not change much. In fact, he knew about Qin Li''s death even before Qin Yu did. He was, after all, in the Qin Imperial Palace.


    On Sky Mountain, one of his daughters and one of his grandsons died.


    Qin Mengruo and Qin Li were different from Qin Yuan. Qin Yuan was the son of his concubine and his talent was actually bewitchment, which was really embarrassing. In addition, he even wanted to inherit the throne, which was ridiculous. However, because that particular concubine was really good at a certain area, he had always been pretending to love Qin Yuan. Cultivators had to enjoy themselves sometimes, after all, but in reality, among all his children Qin Yuan was the one most disliked, or even hated, by him.


    On the other hand, Qin Mengruo was his youngest daughter and also one of the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory. He had always loved her. She was married to someone in Donghua Clan for a purpose, and because of this he always thought that he owed her much.


    Qin Li was his favorite grandchild.


    Qin Ge was also very outstanding among his offspring.


    They all died because of the Cottage.


    "We have been doing many things to the Cottage, but it seems that we''re always the one that loses ultimately. Now, Mengruo and Li''er have both died," the king of Qin said. His tone was very calm, but there was some coldness hidden in the calmness. Qin Dynasty had indeed shocked the other forces in the Eastern Barren Territory by destroying the Liu Kingdom. However, they seemed to have lost in all their encounters with the Cottage.


    "Although the power of the second disciple of the Cottage is beyond our expectations, it is actually normal that she can defeat you. After all, she is ranked above Gu Dongliu. If she similarly has a sage ritual implement, she can obviously defeat you. It is only that I did not expect you to lose so badly," the king continued. "Of course, you should understand that we have never really been afraid of the second disciple, or Sword Saint."


    Qin Yu stood beside the king, listening quietly to his words. His father had conferred him as the crown prince and he had been managing Qin Dynasty from then on, while his father stopped managing all the issues. However, he knew clearly that his father was the real backbone of the Qin Dynasty.


    "Many people in the world claim that Mr. Du does not know how to cultivate. But how can someone who does not know this teach such a group of disciples? Furthermore, these disciples are so obedient. Do you believe in that?" The king of Qin glanced at Qin Yu. Smiling, he shook his head, as if he was mocking something.


    "Moreover, he is a person who does not seem to have existed at all. Over these years, we have tried many times and failed. I think that Mr. Du from the Cottage is not only very strong, but also very skilled in hiding himself, or maybe camouflage. Perhaps, even if he stands right in front of you, you will not be able to recognize him."


    The king of Qin sighed. "We have such an opponent who has been watching in darkness. If he does not show up, how can I make my move? However, until today, many of my children and grandchildren have died. We have not even seen Mr. Du for once, not to mention about finding out how strong he is. Just the Cottage disciples alone have brought us much trouble." The king gave a self-mocking smile and shook his head. "Nevertheless, we finally have a piece of good news."


    "What news?" Qin Yu asked. He did not see any good news at all.


    "Every time, the Cottage displays its overpowering dominance and shocks everyone else. The appearance of Sword Saint, Qin Ge''s death, and the counterattack from the second disciple. Every time, the Cottage is telling us not to move easily. But this is also precisely telling us that the Cottage has its own concerns. It seems like Mr. Du is not invincible after all." The king of Qin smiled. His eyes were filled with intelligence and insight. He indeed seemed to be circumspect and farsighted.


    Then, he ordered coldly, "Go and invite the leader of Donghua Clan here. Then, go to Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple. Since they have stepped onto our ship, they can stop thinking about muddling through." His eyes were filled with coldness. Sometimes, when one declared one''s position, many things would be destined.


    Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple already had no other choice.


    "Alright." Qin Yu''s eyes sparkled with sharpness. It seemed that his father was really going to make a move this time. Even the king of Qin could not tolerate the death of Qin Mengruo and Qin Li.


    "Ye Futian is from the Hundred Lands. According to Qin Li that time, he has some seniors and friends there. Should we..." Qin Yu''s eyes were flashing with coldness.


    "That''s an ungentlemanly trick." The king shook his head. "Destroying the Liu Kingdom can prove the power of our dynasty. On the other hand, what can killing those people do apart from making us feel better? Since Qin Li was killed by Ye Futian in a battle, we''ll kill Ye Futian. You need to remember that in the future, you will be the king of Qin, the king of the Eastern Barren Territory. Some things will bring disgrace to your position. Do not let the others have a chance to laugh at you."


    "Yes, I get it." Qin Yu nodded. Then, he turned around and left the place.

 363 Swordsman

    Chapter 363: Swordsman


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    While the disturbance at Sky Mountain had yet to calm down, the leader of Donghua Clan arrived at Qin Dynasty personally. It was said that he was invited by the king of Qin. This was the meeting between the leaders of two of the three top forces in the Eastern Barren Territory so clearly it had an extraordinary significance. In particular, it occurred during such a sensitive period. The people in the Eastern Barren Territory could not help thinking about what it meant. There was probably only one topic that would require these two leaders to meet up and discuss��unifying the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Soon, Qin Dynasty also invited the cultivators from Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple. A big piece of news spread��Qin Dynasty opened the tomb of their ancestors and allowed the strongest members of these top forces to enter.


    When people received the news, many realized that a real storm would sweep across the Eastern Barren Territory at any time. A few months ago, Qin Dynasty had invited many forces in the Eastern Barren Territory to a grand meeting, when Sword Saint appeared and shocked everyone present. However, at the moment it seemed likely that they would no longer be deterred.


    But this was normal as well. Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple had already declared their position a few months ago. Therefore, they could only follow the Qin Dynasty as they had crossed the point of no return. In the Qin Imperial Palace, many people were in front of Qin Yu making a report.


    "Has he descended from the mountain?" Qin Yu asked coldly.


    "No." A person in front of Qin Yu shook his head. Although the people from various top forces had retreated from Sky Mountain, Qin Yu could obviously not tolerate Qin Li''s death. He had still sent some cultivators below the Noble Plane to patrol at the foot of Sky Mountain and wait for Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian had actually not climbed down the mountain yet. It was also possible that he had descended from the mountain but in another direction so as to avoid any trouble. Sky Mountain was too huge and it was impossible for Qin Yu''s men to surround the entire mountain.


    "Did the people from Donghua Clan confirm that Chu Yaoyao indeed had to chance to kill Ye Futian at that time?" Qin Yu asked with a freezing look.


    The person before him replied, "Yes. According to them, Ye Futian had already lost the ability to battle and Chu Yaoyao was right there at that moment."


    Qin Yu clenched his fist and his expression was extremely icy. Chu Yaoyao was after all Qin Li''s girlfriend. She was right there and certainly had the chance to kill Ye Futian, but she actually did not do so. Did she just watch Qin Li get killed?


    "Has Chu Yaoyao come down from the mountain?" Qin Yu questioned.


    "Yes, she has returned to Moon Clan with the others."


    Qin Yu nodded and coldness was flashing in his eyes.


    He would wait and see if Chu Yaoyao and Moon Clan would behave sensibly. If not, he would not mind destroying one more force.


    His son Qin Li would not have died for nothing


    .��


    The 10003rd year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was approaching its end.


    The leader of Fuyun Sword Clan, Han Ruoshui, had returned to the first summit of the clan. At the moment, he was holding a sword which was emitting a wave of coldness into the surrounding. He stared at the sword, where he could see his reflection as well as the sharp look in his eyes.


    This was a famous sword named the Alkaid. It was used by the best swordsman in the Eastern Barren Territory a few hundreds ago. Nobody expected it to actually be kept in Qin Dynasty''s tomb. Now, it belonged to him.


    Qin Dynasty wanted to revive itself in the Eastern Barren Territory. He had already made some promises to Qin Dynasty. In fact, he had to make those promises; he did not have a choice.


    "Senior." Many people whizzed over in the air and landed on the summit, looking at Han Ruoshui.


    "Is he not here?" Han Ruoshui asked. There were seven summits on Fuyun Sword Clan but only six people present. The person who was absent was obviously the lord of the seventh summit, Gu Cheng.


    The few people present remained silent. For a long time the leader, Han Ruoshui, and the lord of the seventh summit, Gu Cheng, had been the strongest cultivators in Fuyun Sword Clan. However, Gu Cheng was more withdrawn and also more focused on cultivation.


    After the things regarding Ye Wuchen happened, the relationship between the two summits became more subtle, especially after Han Ruoshui expelled Ye Wuchen from Fuyun Sword Clan and commanded the rest to kill him should they encounter him outside. Gu Cheng was extremely dissatisfied with this decision.


    "It seems like his heart no longer belongs to the clan," Han Ruoshui remarked emotionlessly. Just as he was talking, suddenly, an extremely sharp Sword Will erupted from the seventh summit. The Sword Will ascended into the sky and crushed everything in its path.


    Countless people in Fuyun Sword Clan stared at that location. Then, they saw a figure walk in the air and step into the blade of light.


    "It''s the seventh lord." The disciples of Fuyun Sword Clan were all astonished. What was the seventh lord doing?


    Han Ruoshui and the rest turned their heads and looked in that direction. He frowned slightly and was somewhat unhappy. In that direction, the person standing in the air swang his hand. Immediately, a beam of light charged towards the first summit.


    "What''s that?"


    "It''s a sword post!" someone exclaimed in shock. The beam of light penetrated across space and reached the first summit, continuing to fly towards the leader Han Ruoshui.


    Han Ruoshui extended his arm and grabbed the post with his fingers. He stared at Gu Cheng emotionlessly.


    "Gu Cheng, lord of the seventh summit of Fuyun Sword Clan, would like to challenge the leader Han Ruoshui." A loud voice spread across the whole Fuyun Sword Clan. At this instant, everyone in the clan was astounded. They knew that the seventh lord was unhappy with the leader but did not expect such a thing to happen.


    "It''s part of the rules of our clan for disciples to send sword posts in order to challenge one another. On the other hand, you are offending me by challenging me," Han Ruoshui said coldly. "Give me a reason."


    "Swordsmen do not bow and scrape. As the leader of Fuyun Sword Clan, you received benefits from Qin Dynasty and want to listen to their orders. You are no longer suited to be a swordsman, and even more so to be our leader," Gu Cheng said from afar. His voice echoed within the seven summits.


    Han Ruoshui sneered and said, "As the leader of Fuyun Sword Clan, my responsibility is to ensure that our clan is safe from danger. Under this general trend, a straight sword would break too easily.


    "I would rather break than bend."


    Gu Cheng said emotionlessly, "My disciple Ye Wuchen killed Qin Yuan because he deserved to die. Fuyun Sword Clan is weaker than the Qin Dynasty. It is alright for you to expel Ye Wuchen from the clan to protect us. It is also alright for you to send someone to bring him back. But now, you have deviated further and further from the right path. Instead of becoming a lackey for others and living a petty life, we might as well dismiss Fuyun Sword Clan. A swordsman who has a sword in his heart has a sword in his hand. A Fuyun Sword Clan disciple who has the summit in his heart is in the clan. I have already dismissed the seventh summit of Fuyun Sword Clan."


    "You''re not in the position to make that decision." Han Ruoshui stepped forward and Sword Will whizzed in the air.


    "We who have different principles cannot work together. If I win, I will dismiss Fuyun Sword Clan; if you win, I die." Gu Cheng similarly walked forward. Two beams of light charged towards each other. Countless members of Fuyun Sword Clan stared at the battle and could not keep calm.


    Today, the two most powerful cultivators in the clan were having a life-and-death battle because of differing values.


    An extremely appalling sword storm erupted in the sky above Fuyun Sword Clan. The two stood opposite each other but did not attack directly. They merely stood in the air. However, even though they were not doing anything, an earth-shattering Sword Will was born and pressed down from the sky. Enduring the Sword Will, many people felt as if their bodies were going to be torn apart.


    The two stood motionlessly in the air, but it was as if they had already fought countless times. They stared attentively at each other and were both very solemn. Although the two did not move, their eyes seemed to be filled with the reflection of swords.


    Finally, two afterimages appeared in the sky, charging towards one another. The two afterimages flashed and vanished immediately. In the sky above Fuyun Sword Clan, it seemed like the two had not moved at all. Suddenly, however, a terrifying beam of Sword Will formed in the sky and turned into a beam of light, shooting towards one of the mountains. Immediately, the summit of the mountain glowed with a dazzling radiance. A crack appeared at the center of the summit and the beam of light cut the mountain into two pieces directly.


    The people from various summits looked at that particular mountain. The blade of light at its center was not dissipating, as if it was going to exist forever. Then, they raised their heads and looked at the two people standing opposite each other.


    Some people noticed that the sword-yielding arm of the leader Han Ruoshui trembled. Blood flew down from his arm and onto the famous sword, the Alkaid, which was glittering with light.


    "You lost," Han Ruoshui said.


    Gu Cheng glanced at the sword in Han Ruoshui''s hand and sighed. "I did not lose. You indeed do not deserve to be the leader of our clan." After he finished speaking, many beams of Sword Will erupted from every part of his body.


    Then, everyone saw Gu Cheng''s body being crushed directly. A beam of light ascended into the sky and charged towards the distance like a bolt of lightning.


    "He''s dead." Everyone sighed.


    What was the beam of light that left?


    Han Ruoshui glanced at the distance and did not chase the beam of light. Turning around, he walked towards a palace on the first summit, remaining silent along the way. Blood flew down his arm continuously and dripped down from the sky.


    ��


    At the mountainside of Sky Mountain, a few people were cultivating in the snow. Ye Wuchen was sitting down cross-legged and Sword Will was circling his body. Liu Chenyu and Liu Feiyang were also beside him. Suddenly, Ye Wuchen opened his eyes and gazed into the distance.


    Feeling Ye Wuchen''s abnormal breathing, Liu Chenyu looked at him and asked softly, "What is it?"


    "I cannot remain calm. It''s as if something is summoning and nearing me. I have a bad feeling," Ye Wuchen replied.


    "Stop thinking too much," Liu Chenyu urged.


    Ye Wuchen looked at her. Stoking Liu Chenyu''s beautiful hair with his right hand, he replied, "Alright."


    "Why has he not returned yet? Yi Xiaoshi went up to find him and is also missing now. I wonder if he has found him," Liu Feiyang said. Ye Wuchen looked at the top of Sky Mountain. Vaguely, he felt that Ye Futian had reached the peak of the mountain.


    "Stop worrying. Let''s just wait." Ye Wuchen stood up and walked on the snow. He went in front of a cliff and stared at the distance, feeling uneasy. That feeling was also becoming more and more intense gradually.


    In the distance, a brilliant beam of light penetrated across endless space and charged into Sky Mountain with an astonishing speed. Ye Wuchen, who was standing there, suddenly felt his heart tremble. Then, he saw a blade of light charging right towards him.


    "Be careful!" Liu Chenyu shouted. However, Ye Wuchen did not dodge. The beam of light charged into his mind directly. Immediately, a frightening wave of Sword Will erupted from his body.


    "Wuchen!" Liu Chenyu''s face turned pale as she ran towards Ye Wuchen. Liu Feiyang was also shocked. However, suddenly, a voice spread out from Ye Wuchen''s body. "Wuchen, remember, a swordsman is neither arrogant nor impatient. A swordsman is brave and fearless. A swordsman never changes his original intention and always strikes forward!" This was what Ye Wuchen''s master, the seventh lord of Fuyun Sword Clan, had said to him on the first day he became a disciple. Today, the same words sounded off again on Sky Mountain.


    Hearing this voice, a drop of tear flew down from Ye Wuchen''s eye and dripped onto the snow.

 364 Set-up

    Chapter 364: Set-up


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu both stood beside Ye Wuchen. They heard the voice and were filled with deep respect.


    A swordsman should indeed be like that.


    Liu Chenyu saw the tears at the corners of Ye Wuchen''s eyes and felt pain for him. Immediately, she correctly guessed what had happened. A man would not shed tears easily. It was obvious to her why Ye Wuchen would cry at the moment.


    An extremely powerful Sword Will was circling around Ye Wuchen so Liu Chenyu could not go near him even though she wanted to. This Sword Will should be the last gift from his master. The Sword Will flew on Ye Wuchen''s body and turned into a strong sword aura. Ye Wuchen closed his eyes and the snow falling down was crushed by the Sword Will near his body. He was like a sword standing in the snowstorm.


    After a long while, the Sword Will on Ye Wuchen finally dissipated. Liu Feiyang discovered that Ye Wuchen''s temperament changed again. Ye Wuchen no longer felt as sharp, as if he was totally natural and had merged with the sky and the earth. This was because he had made a breakthrough. The Arcana Plane was where cultivators would coordinate with heaven and earth continuously in order to create a resonance between their powers and the natural forces in the world.


    Ye Wuchen lifted and head and allowed snow to fall onto his face. He did not mourn and did not even feel any sadness. On the contrary, he would only remember what his master had said. He would become the swordsman that his master hoped to see, one that would only advance forward.


    On the peak of Sky Mountain, Ye Futian was playing a piece of music, while Yu Sheng was sitting before him, cultivating. The music entered Yu Sheng''s ears continuously. The snow that filled the sky turned into an endless amount of Spiritual Qi which poured down and enveloped Yu Sheng. However, a violent dark golden current was spreading out from Yu Sheng and resonating with the sky. A dark golden demonic power had buried him.


    Boom! Suddenly, a frightening current erupted and Demonic Will filled the region. Yu Sheng opened his eyes and the darkness in his eyes slowly faded. The might from his body felt even stronger at the moment. Just like Ye Futian, both his martial arts and sorcery had broken through into the Arcana Plane. Although he did not main spells, he had never stopped cultivating his Spiritual Energy.


    "You''re awake." Ye Futian stopped playing the music and smiled. Finally, they had settled everything on Sky Mountain.


    "Yup." Yu Sheng nodded and stood up. He looked around Sky Mountain and asked, "What happened here? And what is this music? It has such a strong artistic conception."


    "Ukiyo. It was left behind by the two emperors," Ye Futian replied. "We have already been on Sky Mountain for very long. I wonder what the situation in the Eastern Barren Territory is like now. We should go back."


    "Alright. Where is the condor?" Yu Sheng asked.


    "It''s staying on Sky Mountain to cultivate. The environment is very beneficial for it," Ye Futian responded. Yu Sheng asked no more.


    Snow turned into a wind-elemental spell which enveloped the two. Then, they flew down from the mountain along with the snow. They could clearly see every corner of Sky Mountain and so could find their friends easily.


    ��


    At the foot of Sky Mountain, there were still many people who had chosen to stay despite the fact that countless had left. From the mountain path, a group of people was walking down in the snow. They each had an outstanding temperament and were all very young, therefore attracting the attention of many. As the people below chatted, they all noticed the handsome young man at the center of the group.


    Ye Futian had come down from the mountain.


    The Cottage disciple Ye Wuchen had killed Qin Li and a few others from Qin Dynasty on Sky Mountain. Yu Sheng who was beside him had also killed Qin Mengruo, causing a great battle between Qin Yu and Zhuge Hui. At the moment, this group of people was walking down from Sky Mountain just like this.


    "It seems like all our seniors have left." Ye Futian looked at the massive crowd before him. They had stayed on Sky Mountain for very long. In addition, he had created the bell rings previously. It was obvious that his second sister and third brother were also injured by the ringing. Should he keep this a secret?


    Among the crowd, an old man who was sitting in the snow stared at the group of people walking down the mountain. He squinted slightly and smiled. It was his first time seeing that guy. The girl in the green dress was still beside him. She also looked at those people and said, "So they are the legendary Cottage disciples."


    Cottage disciples were absolute legends to many in the Eastern Barren Territory, especially the first three disciples. They were already among the most powerful people in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The old man stood up and said to the girl, "Look at them. Do you think they have my temperament?"


    "You..." The eyes of the girl in green dress were filled with disdain as she said, "Elder, you are certainly a powerful cultivator, but don''t try to boast."


    The old man pointed at Ye Futian and his team and said, "You don''t believe me? Look at the pretty girl there. That''s my sixth disciple. The fat guy beside her is my seventh disciple. The one in the middle who is the most-looking should be the eighth."


    "Elder, I didn''t expect you to be so thick-skinned. From what you have said, the second daughter you were talking about is the second disciple of the Cottage. So you''re Mr. Du from the Cottage?" the girl in a green dress said with much contempt.


    Cough, cough! The old man patted his shirt to remove the snow and said in a serious tone, "Let''s stay low."


    The girl blinked her eyes, after which she burst into laughter.


    Seeing her reaction, the old man widened his eyes. Did she not believe him?


    All of a sudden, a group of people walked out from the crowd and towards Ye Futian''s team, blocking their way.


    "Elder, look. I think they are from Qin Dynasty." The girl in the green dress looked nervous. If Qin Dynasty did leave anyone behind, their task would definitely be to kill Ye Futian.


    The people who appeared before Ye Futian were indeed from Qin Dynasty. Seeing them, the disciples from Sword Saint Mountain similarly walked up. Clearly, Sword Saint Mountain had also left quite many people behind at the foot of Sky Mountain. This was the Western Region after all, and Sword Saint Mountain was the closest force.


    "If you attack them, you will not be able to leave the Western Region alive," a cultivator from Sword Saint Mountain warned. The eyes of those from Qin Dynasty sparkled and their looks turned cold. Behind them, two people stepped forward and released an appalling aura. They were both nobles.


    "Kill him."


    The two people charged towards Ye Futian in the air. A terrifying might swept out and engulfed Ye Futian. Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at them with some sharpness in his eyes. Suddenly, a powerful current started to flow on Sky Mountain.


    Clang! The bell rang again and its sound turned into a gigantic wave, sweeping across the foot of the mountain. The two nobles lifted their heads and looked at Sky Mountain. They could feel an invisible magical bell crushing towards their bodies along with the ringing.


    Bang! The horrifying sound wave passed through their bodies. The two nobles gave a muffled humph each and fell from the sky immediately. Their faces turned pale as they spat out much blood.


    Clang! Clang�� The bell on Sky Mountain rang continuously. Even the vast earth seemed to be shaking along with it. Countless people closed their eyes and put their hands in front of them as they tried to stand still. However, even so, they still felt a strong impact and their hearts raced.


    The shirt of the old man standing in the snow danced in the air. At the moment, there seemed to be a beam of light flowing on his body, protecting him from the sound. At the same time, he looked up at Sky Mountain.


    Was it a coincidence that the bell on Sky Mountain rang now? He would not believe so.


    The two nobles were impacted by the sound waves continuously and spat much blood. They both felt somewhat numb from the impact and could not stand properly. Just now when the bell on Sky Mountain rang, all the nobles left. However, in order to kill Ye Futian, Qin Yu had sent them back again. Little did they expect the bell on Sky Mountain to ring again when they were about to make their attack.


    Just when they were feeling dazed, they suddenly felt an imminent danger approaching them from the front. Lifting their heads, they saw a blade of light striking towards them.


    Clang! The ringing came again. The two nobles could not stand still and felt as if their minds were going to explode. The blade of light flashed and blood bloomed out.


    The two nobles extended their arms and held their throats with their hands. They widened their eyes, not resigned to their fate. How could they die like this?


    The ringing finally stopped. The crowd slowly recovered from the shock. When they saw the two nobles lying on the ground, they were all astonished. Was this fate? The two nobles actually died in such a ridiculous way. Moreover, after they died, the ringing stopped immediately.


    If this was not fate, someone on Sky Mountain must be helping Ye Futian. But that was clearly even more impossible.


    The people from the Qin Dynasty walked up to the two corpses. Their faces were as dark as they could possibly get.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian and his team were also not bothered to fight the rest and they simply ignored the people from Qin Dynasty. The members of Qin Dynasty also did not dare to stop them anymore. The two nobles were all they had to kill Ye Futian.


    As Ye Futian walked, suddenly, another person blocked in their way. A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. The person before him was an old man in ragged clothes. He put his hands at his back and stared at Ye Futian with an interested look.


    Beitang Xing''er wanted to walk forward, but Yi Xiaoshi pulled her back and hinted at her. Seeing Yi Xiaoshi''s evil grin, Beitang Xing''er widened her eyes at him. Yi Xiaoshi was trying to set Ye Futian up.


    "Elder, what is it?" Ye Futian asked with a weird look.


    The old man did not speak and continued to look at him. His eyes were becoming brighter and brighter. Ye Futian was totally speechless. Then, he tried to bypass the old man. However, the old man moved and continued to block his way, after which he asked, "Where are you from?"


    "A far, insignificant place," Ye Futian replied. "Elder, are you looking for me?"


    "Your age?" the old man asked again.


    "..." Ye Futian''s face darkened, but he still replied, "About 20."


    "20, 20." The old man seemed to be thinking about something. Then, he smiled at Ye Futian. "Call me master."


    "Err..." Ye Futian did not know how to react. Was this old man crazy?


    "Sorry, my old man is mad." The girl in green shirt beside them ran up and wanted to pull the old man to the side. The old man''s face immediately darkened.


    Cough, cough. The old man cleared his throat and looked at Beitang Xing''er and Yi Xiaoshi. He stood there with his head held high and acted like he was a famous person.


    "Take care of him properly. Don''t let him come out like this again." Ye Futian smiled at the girl in the green dress. The old man was too funny.


    Suddenly, Beitang Xing''er pulled Ye Futian''s sleeve.


    "Sister Xing''er, what''s up?" Ye Futian asked.


    Beitang Xing''er signaled at Ye Futian with her eyes. Then, she walked up and said to the old man, "Master, why are you here?"


    Yi Xiaoshi also ran up and said in a charming tone, "Master, how are you recently? I miss you so much!"


    Ye Futian blinked his eyes only to realize that the old man was smiling and staring at him. Immediately, his expression changed drastically. Now it was really awkward for him...


    Yi Xiaoshi, this b*stard! Now I''m done for!

 365 Gossip in the Cottage

    Chapter 365: Gossip in the Cottage


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Divine Capital, Book Mountain was particularly lively at the moment.


    Mr. Du from the Cottage had returned.


    Although College disciples did not know much about Mr. Du, it did not affect the image of Mr. Du, the old man who was said not to know how to cultivate, in their minds. Since the first three disciples of the Cottage were all so powerful, it further displayed how extraordinary their master must be.


    Perhaps some people would think that Mr. Du was lucky and all his disciples happened to be extremely talented. This was a fact, but why would he get these disciples in the first place? And why did the Cottage disciples follow him willingly? This alone was enough for the rest to ponder.


    That time when Sword Saint became famous, countless people yearned for a place in the Cottage. Later, Gu Dongliu also became famous and the name of the Cottage shook the entire Eastern Barren Territory, attracting the attention of everyone. Now, after the battle between the second disciple and Qin Yu on Sky Mountain, this particular summit on Book Mountain had already become a legend. Even the members of the College were curious about what kind of mysterious place the Cottage was.


    There was obviously nothing special about the place itself. Ye Futian and his team walked up the mountain. Meanwhile, Zhuge Hui, Gu Dongliu and the rest who had received the news came out to welcome them.


    "Second sister, third brother," Ye Futian shouted, smiling. The two nodded in return. However, the second sister only looked at Mr. Du. Her usually happy eyes looked somewhat wronged at the moment as she said softly, "Master, you have left us for so long. Now you finally returned."


    The old man smiled and said, "Girl, I returned because I know that you will miss me."


    "Err..." Although Ye Futian already knew on their way that Mr. Du would address his second sister like this, he still felt somewhat weird when Mr. Du really called so before her.


    "You know that I miss you? Even though you are here now, will you slip away again someday?" The second sister looked at her master with her eyes filled with suspicion.


    "Even if I leave, I will leave properly. What''s ''slip away''?" The old man then looked at Gu Dongliu and said, "Three, what do you say?"


    "Master, whatever you say is obviously correct." Gu Dongliu nodded seriously.


    "Yup, I think that you are better to me, unlike some girl... Sigh, she is not even as obedient as some other girls outside." The old man shook his head and sighed, after which he walked forward with his head held high.


    "Master, I''m just afraid that you will leave us here again." Zhuge Hui walked up to Mr. Du and grabbed his arm.


    "That''s better," the old man nodded in satisfaction.


    The second sister raised her head and realized that Xue Ye and Luo Fan were staring at her. Smiling, she put her hand on her belt and said, "What are you looking at? Go and cook some good food for the master."


    The two immediately shivered. After they returned from Sky Mountain, the second sister had always been doing a little action: touching her belt. This action was indeed frightening.


    "Master, sister, wait for a short while. I will go and cook now," Luo Fan said without hesitation. Then, he quickly fled from the place.


    Ye Futian rolled his eyes. The second sister was grabbing the master''s arm like a little girl, while the arrogant third brother was standing beside the master quietly. From the scene, it was obvious what position the master had in the Cottage. It seemed like whether he could have a happy life in the future would depend very much on the master.


    Thinking about this, he widened his eyes at Yi Xiaoshi who was beside him. Because of him, the master had such a bad first impression. Ye Futian hoped that the master would not mind that incident. Yi Xiaoshi, however, did not seem to have noticed anything as he continued to walk forward in silence.


    The group arrived at the hut, where Luo Fan and Xue Ye were busy cooking. The master sat down, and the second sister also sat down beside him. The third brother remained standing so Ye Futian and the rest clearly did not dare to sit down.


    "Why are you all looking at me? Sit down." The old man widened his eyes at everyone.


    "Yes, master." The third brother nodded and sat down. Only then did the rest follow.


    "Master, when you were not here, I took a disciple privately, Futian. You have also met with him. Yu Sheng is Futian''s good friend and is helping to cut wood in the Cottage. Luolan Xue is Futian''s servant and takes care of his accommodation," Gu Dongliu said.


    "Okay." The old man nodded. Smiling, he looked at Ye Futian and Luolan Xue and said, "Kid, you really know how to enjoy yourself."


    "Master, that time I actually did not want to agree to Luolan Xue becoming my servant. However, the brothers and sisters told me that you may return to the Cottage anytime. Therefore, I asked her to stay here so that if you have anything, you can ask her for help," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "You started thinking for me before even seeing me. How filial." The old man smiled and looked at Ye Futian.


    "That''s what I should do. The second sister and third brother have told me that as a Cottage disciple, the most important thing is to respect the master. They often remind me to show filial respect to you when I see you," Ye Futian continued, grinning. Although Mr. Du had been smiling and looked very friendly, Ye Futian felt that Mr. Du was able to see through him, causing him to feel somewhat stressed.


    "Terrific." Luo Fan who was cooking looked at Ye Futian in admirable. When Ye Futian said this, he also complimented the second sister and third brother.


    Yi Xiaoshi also sighed in his heart. He had yet to learn Ye Futian''s skills.


    "Little brother is right. In the Cottage, apart from Xing''er little brother has always been the most obedient one," the second sister said, smiling.


    "Second sister, you''re the best!" Ye Futian was somewhat touched.


    The old man nodded and said, "Recently the Eastern Barren Territory is not peaceful. Girl, didn''t I warn you against fighting easily outside?"


    "Master, I also did not want to, but someone really needed a good beating, so I had to fight. Furthermore, if we did not do that, they would probably send an army here directly. Since you don''t care about this, what else can I do?" the second sister said, feeling wronged. Perhaps we will only be able to see this side of second sister in front of the master, Ye Futian thought.


    The old man sighed and said, "Try not to fight anymore."


    "I know." Zhuge Hui smiled and nodded.


    "Master, now the Eastern Barren Territory is in a mess. Qin Dynasty is wildly ambitious and has opened the tomb of their ancestors. Now, they even invited Donghua Clan, Fuyun Sword Clan, and Royal Xuan Temple to enter the tomb and cultivate. If Qin Dynasty really leads various forces in the Eastern Barren Territory and come here, what should we do?" Gu Dongliu asked. In the past, the master was absent so he and Zhuge Hui managed everything in the Cottage and made decisions themselves. Now the master was back so he obviously had to ask the master for his opinions.


    "I don''t even understand why they are fighting for a place like the Eastern Barren Territory." The old man shook his head. "While I was outside, I heard that the Liu Kingdom was destroyed. Futian, a few descendants of Liu Kingdom are good friends with you right? Are they the two people just now?"


    "Yup, Feiyang and Chenyu are my friends. I knew them before entering the Cottage." Ye Futian nodded.


    "How miserable." The old man shook his head and said, "Power and desire always blind people. In the past, I have warned you that because of your strength, you will naturally want to kill and have more desires. In the future, you must always remind yourself that the stronger you become, the more you should try keeping to your original self."


    "Yes," everyone nodded. When they entered the Cottage, the master had already reminded them about this. This time he was probably telling it to Ye Futian.


    "Dongliu, it''s especially for you. You''re too incisive and penetrating," the old man said to Gu Dongliu. "You should learn from your big brother."


    "Over the years, I have been going to Sword Saint Mountain regularly to learn from him," Gu Dongliu nodded. "However, I still feel that if we encounter a force like Qin Dynasty, one that would kill others easily to satisfy their own desires, we need to stop them by destroying them."


    "If you are slightly stronger, I think you would have gone to Qin Dynasty directly, right?" the old man asked, looking at Gu Dongliu. Gu Dongliu remained silent. There were too many unfairness in the world and it was impossible for him to intervene with everything. The Liu Kingdom did not have much of a relationship with the Cottage, and what happened to it was quite irrelevant to them. However, their destruction happened right before everyone and in particular, it affected the Cottage disciples negatively. Hence, murderous thoughts began to develop in Gu Dongliu''s mind. Thus, when Qin Ge, a prince of Qin Dynasty, came to Book Mountain for Ye Wuchen, Gu Dongliu killed all the people from Qin Dynasty. This was his sharpness.


    "It is reasonable to stop their killing by killing them. I can''t say that you''re wrong. However, the people who have decided to eliminate the Liu Kingdom are still the higher-ups in Qin Dynasty. In every force, there are people of different kinds. For example, every member of the Qin Dynasty has his own family and children. If we destroy the whole dynasty, how many innocent people will die? How will it be any different from the destruction of Liu Kingdom?"


    The old man seemed to have turned more solemn. He continued in a serious tone, "If one day, you can kill anyone with the sword in your hand, and you stop any unfairness you come across by killing the wrong party, how much blood will stain your hands?"


    "Moreover, even if you destroy the Qin Dynasty, there will be a second Qin Dynasty in the future. The world of cultivation is always like this. He who gains power gains desires. Stopping their killing by killing them will never change anything."


    "Master, therefore you always teach us that humans are unpredictable. The only person who can change all these is the one who sets the rules," Gu Dongliu said.


    "I have just returned. Let''s not talk about such a serious topic. Five, is the food ready?" the old man shouted, smiling.


    "Yes. Master, you should eat first." Luo Fan and Xue Ye started to serve the dishes.


    "Master, eat more." Zhuge Hui helped the master to fill his bowl, while Beitang Xing''er also served the master.


    Hearing the conversation between the master and third brother, Ye Futian had many thoughts in his mind. Qin Dynasty was like this because the people who set the rules within the Qin Dynasty were like this.


    According to ancient books, 300 years ago the Divine Prefectures of the East were in a total mess. Peace returned only after Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing unified the world. Many schools and academies were built. That was why his hometown Qingzhou had Qingzhou Academy. However, even so, both Qingzhou Academy and Donghai Academy were filled with people with various selfish desires. Gu Mu from Qingzhou Academy and School of the Emperor Star in Donghai Academy were all like this.


    In any case, real emperors were still the people who could influence the world. Now, the master had established the Cottage in the Eastern Barren Territory which only had a few disciples. Perhaps, he was trying to build a different kind of place.

 366 Arriving in Moon Clan

    Chapter 366: Arriving in Moon Clan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Luo Fan and Xue Ye finished cooking. Everyone ate while chatting.


    "Girl, you''ve comprehended a bit of Saintly Will?" the old man said.


    "Yes." Zhuge Hui nodded. "Yes, but I don''t seem able to make the step."


    "It''s not easy. As the ancient books say, a Saint knows the world and all creatures. He has an open heart. That is why I tell you all that you should cultivate your heart as well. Your heart has nothing to do with your plane, but it can determine your level. Some do not have great talents but have an extraordinary heart. Thus, they can still reach extremely high planes. In contrast, if your heart is not enough, your limit is already determined, no matter how talented you are."


    The elder spoke while eating. Ye Futian and the others listened carefully. No wonder his senior brothers and sisters respected their teacher so much. He wasn''t very attractive��he looked careless and even a bit trashy��but when he spoke seriously, he was like a true master.


    "Teacher said before that a Saint isn''t only a saint in their cultivation plane," Zhuge Hui said seriously. "In that case, why can evil people reach this level too?"


    Ye Futian had never seen his second senior sister ask for advice so seriously. This was the first time.


    "An evil person doesn''t necessarily have a closed heart," the elder said. "Everyone holds onto their own views and has their own desires based on that. You may think he is evil, but in his eyes, his actions are just. For example, many people think that there are too many cultivators in the world. They think the resources are limited and should belong to the strong cultivators. Those who aren''t ambitious are like ants who shouldn''t be pitied. The weak should become slaves. Do you agree?" Everyone started pondering about the teacher''s words. They seemed simple but were actually quite deep.


    "Of course not," Zhuge Hui said. "There are many forces in the Divine Prefecture. For example, the top forces of the Eastern Barren Territory take up different types of cultivation resources. A regular person isn''t even able to find a simple battle technique. If they aren''t lucky, they will be ordinary for their entire life. Not everyone in the world can find a good teacher."


    Everyone nodded, agreeing with their second senior sister. Her words resonated with Ye Futian deeply. He''d started in Qingzhou City of the Hundred Lands. The people of Qingzhou didn''t even know what the outside world was like. How could they compare in worldview and resources?


    "I won''t find it strange if other people think like this, but I''m surprised you think this way." The elder smiled at Zhuge Hui. "Then, let me ask you, would you like for everyone in the world to have equal resources or for only you all to be part of the Cottage?"


    Zhuge Hui obviously understood what he was saying. She also knew that equality didn''t exist in the world. All forces would only choose the most talented. Oftentimes, one''s birth decided their starting point.


    "Emperors and saints are only human. No one can think all this through. Many times, people will treat something differently if they look from a different angle. Thus, I hope that none of you will go to the extreme. Only someone with an open heart can see the world clearly.


    "I cannot teach everyone in the world, so I chose you all. In the future, each of you will influence more people. For example, your first senior brother established the Sword Saint Mountain. That is heritage too. Those who are talented and work hard will naturally receive more. However, those with ordinary talents should be treated equally as well. At least, no one has the right to rob them of their efforts to change their fates."


    The elder continued, "Back then, the Divine Prefecture was in chaos. The weak were treated like ants. The two emperors ruled the world and taught them the way, establishing academies. This gave everyone an equal chance. Everyone had the chance to change their fate."


    Ye Futian seemed to understand. It was too complicated.


    The elder chuckled. "I''m off topic again. In the future, you''ll have more thoughts after leaving the Eastern Barren Territory. My third, fourth, and fifth disciples, tell me about your cultivation. Did you slack off while I wasn''t here?"


    "Teacher, I am untalented and only entered the grade one Noble Plane," Gu Dongliu said. Ye Futian looked at him speechlessly. Was he seriously calling himself "untalented" while in grade one Noble Plane? When Gu Dongliu fought with Lu Nantian at the beginning of the year, he was still in grade two. It seemed that the battle had helped him improve a lot.


    "I am in grade four," Xue Ye said.


    "Teacher, I''m in the middle tier, though only grade six," Luo Fan said with a smile.


    "Teacher, I''m still in the lower Arcana Plane," Beitang Xing''er mumbled.


    "I''m in upper Arcana Plane." Yi Xiaoshi scratched his head.


    "Yu Sheng and I broke into the Arcana Plane on Sky Mountain," Ye Futian said, smiling. Would the teacher praise him for entering the Arcana Plane before he turned 20?


    "You''re almost 20 years old and only just entered the Arcana Plane?" The elder stared at Ye Futian with an exaggerated expression.


    Ye Futian blinked. "Teacher, I''m only turning 20 next year."


    "That doesn''t matter. Xing''er is younger than you, but her plane is higher. I don''t know how you''re cultivating," the man said mercilessly. "But thankfully, you''re lucky. You aren''t as talented, but I''m your teacher. You still have a chance."


    "I��" Ye Futian wanted to argue, but he saw that Zhuge Hui was smiling at him and Gu Dongliu looked serious. His temper died out. They''d told him before to respect the teacher! But his talent had been looked down on!


    "Teacher, what plane are you in?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "I don''t cultivate." The elder shook his head.


    "Teacher, do you think I''ll believe that?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Didn''t you see at Sky Mountain? Did the bell have any effect on me?" the man continued. Ye Futian froze. He hadn''t thought of this, but it seemed to make sense now.


    "Maybe it''s because your plane is too high?" Ye Futian asked, blinking.


    "You think so?" The man ate with his head down. He didn''t look like it.


    Ye Futian was confused. So was he wrong and the teacher really didn''t know how to cultivate?


    Yi Xiaoshi tried not to laugh. Ever since Ye Futian came, his status had been dropping. Now, the teacher was back and this guy would finally get a taste of things. Ha!


    "Even though your cultivation is low and you aren''t talented, don''t give up. I''m done eating, so you can come with me. I''ll teach you well. I treat all my students equally." The man stood up and dusted himself.


    "Ah��" Ye Futian was perplexed.


    "You aren''t coming?" the man said, walking away with his hands behind his back.


    Ye Futian scratched his head. He glanced at his seniors and saw them all looking at him, so he stood up. Yi Xiaoshi finally couldn''t keep his laughter in. The day had finally come. But then everyone turned to look at him and Yi Xiaoshi felt that the mood was strange. Seeing all their strange eyes, he froze and looked to Ye Futian.


    "Wait for no," Yi Xiaoshi mumbled. "Teacher just came back and he''s going to help Junior?" Since when was the teacher so diligent?


    "You finally realized?" Beitang Xing''er asked.


    Yi Xiaoshi went completely blank. What��was happening?


    "Xiaoshi, you can''t figure out the teacher," Zhuge Hui said, chuckling. She obviously knew Yi Xiaoshi had been gloating.


    ��


    In the Moon Clan, it was the annual banquet for testing the accomplishments of the disciples for this year. Right now, it was very lively. Many beauties were together, all looking to the beautiful battle before them.


    Both sides of the battle were gorgeous. One was Chu Yaoyao, the Virgin of the Moon Clan. The one fighting her was equal in both looks and talent. It was Hua Jieyu who had been cultivating at the Xiaoyue House. After returning from the Hundred Lands, Hua Jieyu had been working hard. She''d improved greatly and was now in the Arcana Plane.


    "Yaoyao hadn''t improved a lot this year. What happened?" someone asked. Chu Yaoyao was at this level last year and was still here now.


    Many people nodded. Maybe it was because of her relationship with Qin Li that caused her to slack in cultivation. Otherwise, no matter how talented Hua Jieyu was, she couldn''t catch up in one year.


    Right now, a muffled grunt came from the battlefield. A spell hit Chu Yaoyao. Just as she was about to escape, endless vines restrained her, anchoring her to the ground. Before her, Hua Jieyu stood with a crown. She was as brilliant as a queen. That was her life spirit. Powerful spiritual strength radiated from her, influencing her every attack.


    "Defeated." Chu Yaoyao looked depressed. She''d lost to the beautiful girl before her.


    Hua Jieyu retracted her spell and gazed at Chu Yaoyao. Not wanting to compete, she''d only wanted to cultivate quietly before. But she couldn''t forget how Ye Futian had been treated when he came last time. She didn''t want Ye Futian to go through that if he came to find her again. Thus, she had to compete.


    The surrounding people fell quiet. They knew what it meant if Chu Yaoyao lost. Many people looked over to the leader of the Moon Clan. She had witnessed this herself.


    "Hua Jieyu will replace Chu Yaoyao as the Virgin," she said.


    The crowd was in an uproar. How long had Hua Jieyu been here? She''d already replaced Chu Yaoyao.


    At this time, people from the distance were hurrying over. Goddess Wangyue looked over and asked, "What''s going on?" As soon as she spoke, she looked to the distance. There was a powerful aura coming from there.


    "Qin Yu of the Qin Dynasty has come for a visit," a voice said. A short while later, Qin Yu arrived with a dragon. He looked down at Goddess Wangyue and smiled. "I''m sorry for the disturbance. Please forgive me."

 367 Mockery

    Chapter 367: Mockery


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everyone in the Moon Clan looked up at the incoming figure. Their expressions changed slightly.


    Qin Yu came with a dragon without any prior notification. Standing arrogantly in the air, he was being very impolite. He wasn''t the only one here either. There were also various dragons and strong cultivators. The people of the Moon Clan instantly felt pressure.


    The Qin Dynasty wanted to ally with the entire Eastern Barren Territory against the Cottage. They wanted to become the king. If not for the Sword Saint''s arrival months ago at the banquet, the alliance would have been formed already. Now, the Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple were apparently fully allied with the Qin Dynasty. In this situation, the Moon Clan naturally wished to remain neutral, but it seemed difficult now.


    "Since the crown prince is here, please take a seat." Goddess Wangyue''s voice was gentle and her eyes were calm. No one could guess what she was thinking, but actually, she was sighing inwardly too.


    The three top forces of the center were already at the peak. Now, two were allied and the Qin Dynasty had excavated their ancestral tomb. There would be no suspense if they attacked the Moon Clan. The Liu Kingdom had set the example.


    "No need. I came today to say something," Qin Yu said nonchalantly. He made a direct rejection and remained in the air, looking down at Goddess Wangyue.


    Many Moon Clan disciples were upset at this. Their pretty eyes turned cold, but no one dared to do anything. The Qin Dynasty wouldn''t dare to do this to the Cottage. When Qin Ge had brought his men to the Cottage, Gu Dongliu had killed them all outside Book Mountain. That had been so powerful.


    Sometimes, people envied how free and chivalrous the Cottage could be. Even their enemies probably both feared and respected them.


    "Crown Prince, please speak," Goddess Wangyue said calmly.


    "Chu Yaoyao." Qin Yu''s cold gaze fell to Chu Yaoyao who was still on the battle platform. "Ye Futian killed my son Qin Li on Sky Mountain. You are his fianc��e. Why did you just stand there?"


    Chu Yaoyao''s face paled instantly. What must come would always come. Many people had seen Qin Li die before her. She couldn''t refute Qin Yu''s accusations.


    Everyone in the Moon Clan looked to her. All the pressure in the world fell onto her at this moment.


    "Why aren''t you speaking?" Invisible might came from Qin Yu''s body.


    "I cannot explain," Chu Yaoyao said, looking up.


    Qin Yu''s expression turned frigid. Did she think that was enough?


    "The Moon Clan did not wish to see the death of the royal grandson," Goddess Wangyue said. "I can understand your feelings too. However, Ye Futian is responsible. You should go to him, rather than take your anger out on a woman."


    "I naturally won''t take my anger out on an unrelated person," Qin Yu said. "However, she is my son''s fianc��e, but she didn''t do anything. She didn''t kill Ye Futian even after he lost the ability to fight. I have to suspect her. My son is dead but the marriage still stands. Chu Yaoyao is still the daughter-in-law of the Qin Dynasty. Goddess, you won''t mind if I take her to the Qin Dynasty, right?"


    Everyone in the Moon Clan was aghast. Since Qin Li was dead, the marriage naturally should be canceled. But Qin Yu still wanted to take Chu Yaoyao away? He clearly didn''t want to forgive her. They didn''t know how she would be treated if she really went to the Qin Dynasty. Qin Yu would do whatever he wished.


    "Crown Prince, don''t you think your words are a bit bizarre?" Goddess Wangyue said. "He is dead but the marriage still stands?"


    "So are you saying that if my son is dead, there''s no need to search for the reason? There is no need to investigate what his fianc��e did either?" The dragon under Qin Yu huffed. He stood on the dragon''s head and his voice grew colder. Invisible might radiated from him. It seemed that if the Moon Clan dissatisfied him today, he would attack directly.


    The Moon Clan all looked uncomfortable. Chu Yaoyao looked around. She knew that they couldn''t save her. Since Qin Yu had brought his men here, the result was already decided. Who in the Eastern Barren Territory could counter the Qin Dynasty other than the Cottage?


    "I''ll go," Chu Yaoyao suddenly said. Her pretty eyes were determined. When she spoke, she looked relieved. She had chosen this path. Since it was the wrong path, she would pay for it. She naturally had her own motives when she''d accepted Qin Li''s pursuit. Now, she had to bear the consequences.


    Hearing Chu Yaoyao''s words, many people went to look at her. She smiled faintly as if she didn''t really care. Looking up at Qin Yu, she said, "I am willing to go to the Qin Dynasty with you. Qin Li''s death has nothing to do with me and I couldn''t kill Ye Futian, but all of this is meaningless. I''ll go with you." With that, she rose into the air. She looked down at Hua Jieyu with some envy.


    A dragon moved forward to take her. However, Qin Yu didn''t show any sign of leaving.


    Goddess Wangyue gazed at him. "Anything else we can help you with?"


    "There is indeed. It is my main reason for coming," Qin Yu said. "Goddess, I''ve heard of you and look up to you. I didn''t come here today just for myself. I also bring the wishes of my father and the leaders of the Donghua Clan and Fuyun Clan to invite you to join us in ruling the Eastern Barren Territory." Since he came, he must take care of Chu Yaoyao''s matter. However, he wouldn''t do all this just for her. The one he wanted to kill was Ye Futian; he wanted to destroy the Cottage.


    "I do not have that ambition. Crown Prince, please tell Emperor Qin and the other clan leaders that I must disappoint them." Goddess Wangyue''s voice was gentle.


    "The Cottage is unjust and murders the innocent. Many royal lives of the Qin Dynasty were lost in their hands. The Eastern Barren Territory will attack them together. Goddess, you are one of the leaders of a top force. How can you sit without doing anything?"


    Qin Yu continued, "Goddess, do not worry. To show our sincerity, we wish to have a marriage alliance. My son is dead, but there are still many excellent juniors. Coincidentally, the Moon Clan chose a new Virgin today. She can marry into the Qin Dynasty. What do you think?"


    The disciples of the Moon Clan stared. This was Qin Yu''s true motive today. He wanted to force the Moon Clan to choose. As for the marriage, it was even more of a joke. They were sure that Qin Yu knew who the new Virgin was. The only reason he wanted to take Hua Jieyu away was to provoke Ye Futian.


    Relatives shouldn''t be involved in these things. Hua Jieyu was only a girlfriend and was also a disciple of a top force Qin Yu''s words were extremely impolite, even a bit insulting. He was clearly pressuring the Moon Clan, wanting to take over them. Further, it wasn''t just the Qin Dynasty pressuring the Moon Clan now. It was the alliance of four top forces.


    If they agreed, they would live.


    If they refused, they would die.


    The Moon Clan was facing what the Liu Kingdom had faced. Last time, the Qin Dynasty found an excuse to attack. This time, they were even more direct. The Qin Dynasty was stronger now too. They wanted to destroy two top forces in a row. They were so cruel.


    Hua Jieyu gazed at Goddess Wangyue. Obviously, she wouldn''t go with Qin Yu.


    Goddess Wangyue fell silent. Then she looked to Qin Yu and said, "The Moon Clan doesn''t wish to be involved in the rivalry between the Qin Dynasty and Cottage. Hua Jieyu is our Virgin. I will ask of her opinion on the marriage. If you have nothing else to say, please return."


    She rejected him.


    All Moon Clan disciples present held their breaths. An invisible force enveloped them. They knew what Goddess Wangyue''s rejection meant. It was highly possible they couldn''t bear the consequences.


    "Goddess, do you not care about justice?" Qin Yu asked coldly. He scanned the others and said, "I believe that not everyone in the Moon Clan is as confused as Goddess Wangyue. Does anyone wish to accomplish something great with the Qin Dynasty?"


    Many hearts trembled. Before the Qin Dynasty destroyed the Liu Kingdom, they''d separated many lords and officials of the Liu Kingdom. Apparently, those traitors were in charge of the current Liu Kingdom. Now, Qin Yu clearly wanted to attack the Moon Clan. He asked who wished to follow them to divide them.


    "Junior Sister, the crown prince''s words aren''t completely illogical," someone suddenly said. It was Yan Feihong, leader of the Qianyue Pavilion, master of Chu Yaoyao. Her status was very high. She was Goddess Wangyue''s senior sister.


    Goddess Wangyue gazed at Yan Feihong, her eyes turning cold. Yan Feihong''s eyes flitted away. She didn''t dare meet Goddess Wangyue''s eyes. Though she was older, her junior sister was more excellent and had a very decisive personality. However, faced with the Qin Dynasty''s pressure, the Moon Clan had no other choices. She had to think for herself.


    "Senior Yan knows how valuable justice is. People like you should be the leader of the Moon Clan," Qin Yu said. "Anyone else?"


    "Shut up," Goddess Wangyue said coldly to Qin Yu. As soon as she spoke, the air turned chillier.


    Qin Yu''s smile froze. He stared down at Goddess Wangyue. He grasped the dragon spear and a dragon''s image wrapped around the tip.


    Goddess Wangyue stood up. Her robes fluttered without any wind. She wasn''t young but she only looked around 30 years old. Her aura was cold and cool. She had once been the beauty of the Eastern Barren Territory, but she was still single now.


    "Qin Yu, how did you feel to be whipped like a dog by the Cottage''s second disciple at the foot of Sky Mountain?" Goddess Wangyue mocked. "The one who killed your son is Ye Futian of the Cottage. You don''t dare go to him, so you come to flaunt your power here. Don''t you think it is embarrassing for someone so cowardly to become the king of the Eastern Barren Territory?"


    Since they would fight, there was no need to be polite. As the Goddess Wangyue, she was as pure as jade. But this didn''t mean that she was soft!

 368 Sister-in-Law

    Chapter 368: Sister-in-Law


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the silence, only Goddess Wangyue''s voice could be heard. Qin Yu froze but then a murderous intent flashed in his eyes. People of the Moon Clan were also stunned. They didn''t expect that their gentle and beautiful fairy would scold Qin Yu in such a tone, but her emotional outburst was understandable. The Qin Dynasty was really rude and unreasonable.


    Everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory all knew the dispute between the Qin Dynasty and the Cottage. But the Qin Dynasty had been balking at confronting with the Cottage. They knocked down the Liu Kingdom only to show their strength. Now they planned to get the Moon Clan involved in this dispute?


    The air grew oppressive. Qin Yu and Goddess Wangyue gazed at each other coldly. Some people came from the Moon Tower and descended beside the fairy. Though the head of the Moon Clan, Goddess Wangyue''s seniority in the clan was not very high. Among those comers, many were her seniors.


    "It is surprising to know that Goddess Wangyue is so resolute." Qin Yu suddenly laughed scornfully. "What a shame! You have so many disciples here! Let me ask again. Whoever follows the Qin Dynasty can be exempted!"


    Qin Yu glanced at the crowd. Many wavered.


    Yan Feihong stepped forward and spoke up, "I would like to follow the Qin Dynasty. Would anyone like to join me?" Hearing her words, many people rose up including a few talented disciples.


    "Master Yan?" Chu Yaoyao looked at Yan Feihong in disappointment.


    "Yan Feihong, does the Moon Clan not treat you well?" an old lady questioned her coldly.


    "Senior, this is the only way out. Going against the trend is no good for the Moon Clan. Can you persuade them? I don''t want to see them die," Yan Feihong responded.


    "Good! At least I know what kind of people you are now. When the clan is in danger, you cower and even betray the clan. There is no need for such kind of people to stay anymore." Goddess Wangyue didn''t care about the betrayal. She looked at her people and sighed. "As the head of the Moon Clan, I always choose to stay away from the chaotic of the Eastern Barren Territory. But there are always some people who just want to provoke me."


    "You know this is inevitable. Why do you still choose this way?" In the air, Qin Yu held his threatening long spear in hand. The long spear spun and dragon''s roar was heard.


    "Qin Yu, you think you are the smartest in the Eastern barren territory? No. Others just won''t do it in your ways. You want us to get involved in this war? Okay, I''ll satisfy you," Goddess Wangyue said apathetically.


    Qin Yu didn''t say anything else. The Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan, Fuyun Sword Clan, and the Royal Xuan Temple had allied. The Cottage was their only concern. The Moon Clan was so rebellious. In that case, he would exterminate this rebellious clan.


    The long spear emitted blazing golden light in the air. Numerous mighty dragons surrounded Qin Yu. Suddenly, some soaring sharp Sword Will appeared beside him. Obviously, the Qin Dynasty was not the only comer.


    "It seems that both the Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple chose to be loyal dogs. How pathetic it is!" Goddess Wangyue scorned. She distinguished the three lords of the Fuyun Sword Clan as well as the three heads of the Royal Xuan Temple. With them, Qin Yu was definitely a far more powerful force than what the Liu Kingdom had confronted with before.


    It was obvious that the Qin Dynasty had learned a lesson from the fight with the Liu Kingdom. At that time, if Emperor Liu was not absent, Qin Yu''s group might not have defeated the Liu Kingdom so easily.


    All the disciples of the Moon Clan could feel the predicament they were in. At this time, Goddess Wangyue rose into the sky. An enormous Kunpeng appeared behind her, overshadowing the sky. When the Kunpeng appeared, an extremely icy breath rolled over. All the steam in the air liquefied into a substantial rain. A rainstorm suddenly came to the Moon Clan.


    The Kunpeng was Goddess Wangyue''s life spirit. With her level, her life spirit had grown very mighty and condensed into substantial giant Kunpeng. Since Kunpengs evolved from fish, they had both strong spells of wind and water. Goddess Wangyue was at the top of the Noble Plane, almost becoming a Sage. Controlling the forces of nature like rain and wind was very easy to her.


    A crescent moon loomed behind the fairy at this time, reflecting the vast space like an ancient mirror. This was her second life spirit.


    "It''s the Moon Mirror." Qin Yu looked at that Dharma that included the Moon Clan''s heirloom. The Moon Mirror was the origin of the Moon Clan''s name. The Moon Mirror was a Sage-level ritual implement.


    Every top force''s creation had a story. The thriving of the Liu Kingdom was because of the Saint Turtle, whereas the Moon Clan became a top force because of this ritual implement.


    "Be careful! Let me fight with her," Qin Yu said seriously. Goddess Wangyue with the Moon Mirror was a great threat to him. Though not having been in a battle for a long while, Goddess Wangyue was known to be best at a one-versus-many fight.


    Right now, Goddess Wangyue looked more beautiful and extraordinary like a snow goddess. Her beautiful cold eyes peered at the sky and then beams of moonlight swept through behind her. Raindrops in the air were all frozen into ice. In an instant, extremely cold air covered this place. The world turned snow white.


    The dragons around Qin Yu growled. Their enormous bodies gradually froze. The strong cultivators on dragons also felt their mentality froze. Soon, their bodies were turned into ice sculptures. This was Ice Sorrow, a spell mixing cold ice spell with spiritual energy.


    Qin Yu''s body emitted the sharp aura of the gold attribute. He rode his dragon and rushed downward. He slashed the spear down. Those dragons around him were covered with snow but still moved on. Qin Yu rushed toward the fairy-like gold lightning.


    Among the people here, only he was at the same level as Goddess Wangyue. The masters from the Fuyun Sword Clan and the Royal Xuan Temple were all weaker. Without the help of a Sage-level ritual implement, others couldn''t be Goddess Wangyue''s match at all. Qin Yu had to deal with this himself. Though they had the advantage in number Goddess Wangyue could still very possibly win with the ritual implement.


    Qin Yu was good at martial arts while Goddess Wangyue only cultivated sorcery. To get closer to her would definitely be best for Qin Yu.


    The Kunpeng rushed toward the dragon. Goddess Wangyue gazed at Qin Yu. The moon behind her melted with the ritual implement and sent blazing lights toward Qin Yu. Trembling, Qin Yu held his mentality and a suit of resplendent armor appeared on his body. The freezing attributes couldn''t stop him anymore. He rushed down toward the fairy.


    At this time, a pair of ice wings appeared behind Goddess Wangyue like the Kunpeng''s wings. She gathered the attribute of wind and then a violent tornado moved toward Qin Yu. She quickly rose up higher at an amazing speed.


    Qin Yu ripped apart the tornado. He glanced at the fairy up in the sky and sneered. Goddess Wangyue was good at the Wind attribute; of course, he couldn''t catch up with her. But if the fairy chose to escape, she couldn''t protect others. They would be killed.


    Bang. An extremely keen intent burst out. A glaring golden light fell down and covered the whole Moon Clan. At this moment, all people of the Moon Clan were terrified. Goddess Wangyue was the only one that could confront Qin Yu.


    At this time on another battleground, a strong cultivator of the Royal Xuan Temple went down to Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu''s face changed a little. With wind sorcery, she escaped, but the enemy in the Noble plane. How could she escape? She was caught soon.


    Suddenly, a glaring light came from afar. It was as fast as lightning. Even the air was quaking. Whoosh. The noble who caught Hua Jieyu was split into two. That glaring light stopped and stayed above Hua Jieyu''s head. A shrill sound was heard from the light and a horrible image loomed. It was Broadsword Will.


    Seeing there was still someone rushing toward Hua Jieyu, that Broadsword Will turned into lightning again and split the comer. Blood splashed in the air. Those coming noble cultivators were killed one by one. Then the Broadsword Will rushed toward Qin Yu. He waved his long spear and pierced toward the lightning. The lightning was diminished but Qin Yu''s face paled. In the Eastern Barren Territory, only one person could send such violent Broadsword Will.


    He turned around and peered at the distant. A figure in black stepped out. He moved slowly but it only took him several steps to the battlefield. The person looked at Hua Jieyu but Hua Jieyu hadn''t figured out what had just happened. The man in black had just saved her, but she didn''t know who he was. How was he so powerful? His appearance stopped the battle abruptly but naturally.


    "My sister-in-law, are you okay?" The man in black smiled at Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu blinked. Sister-in-law? She quickly figured out the comer''s status. Since she was his sister-in-law, he must be a disciple of the Cottage.


    Among the disciples of the Cottage, only one person was good at the broadsword. Thinking of this, Hua Jieyu smiled. She didn''t expect that Ye Futian''s senior brother would come.


    "My greetings, Senior Sword Saint." Hua Jieyu bowed slightly. The Sword Saint was a legend of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Senior Sword Saint?" The Sword Saint shook his head with a smile. "I''m Ye Futian''s senior brother. You can call me that too."


    "Oh." Hua Jieyu nodded slightly and called, "Senior Brother."


    "Good." The Sword Saint nodded slightly and looked at Goddess Wangyue.


    Goddess Wangyue floated in the air. She looked at the Sword Saint and said, "It seems that you were right."


    "Though our teacher is busy, he is always concerned with us," the Sword Saint said. After the bell on Sky Mountain tolled and all forces went back, the teacher found him and asked him to visit the Moon Clan. Actually, he had been living below the Moon Clan''s mountain for a few days. Goddess Wangyue had met him before. The Moon Clan didn''t want to get involved. He respected her choice, so he just lived there!

 369 Move Clan

    Chapter 369: Move Clan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qin Yu and the other strong cultivators looked at the Sword Saint with uncomfortable expressions. They''d brought people from four top forces, overestimating the Moon Clan''s power.


    But they didn''t expect that the Sword Saint would be here too.


    They had strength in numbers, but the top force determined everything. If either the Sword Saint or Goddess Wangyue went after Qin Yu, no one could stop the other.


    The Sword Saint had killed countless nobles with a bit of Broadsword Will.


    "Goddess Wangyue," Qin Yu said coldly, "you didn''t want to enter the battle because you''ve already become allied with the Cottage."


    Goddess Wangyue gazed at him coldly. The Sword Saint had chatted with her before. She didn''t wish to enter this storm and wanted to stay neutral. However, the Sword Saint didn''t like this. He thought that the Qin Dynasty would come. And just as he''d predicted, the Sword Saint really did come. She couldn''t even take a step back. If she didn''t agree, her clan would be destroyed.


    In that case, she could only joint the battle.


    "Their safety is on you." Goddess Wangyue looked down. Her life spirit flashed, shining onto Qin Yu. He was instantly isolated. A cold intent seeped into his bones.


    The spell Ice Sorrow was cast again. This time, it was targeted at Qin Yu alone instead of the group.


    Qin Yu felt his spiritual energy about to be frozen. Both his senses and movements slowed down. Iciness attacked him, about to cover his body.


    Dazzling golden light shone. His body seemed to turn to gold like he was a god of war. Endless light shot through everything, roaring in the world of ice and snow, tearing the iciness.


    Goddess Wangyue reached out, closing her eyes. The entire world seemed to slow.


    Boom. A shocking windstorm was born. A boundless hurricane enveloped her and Qin Yu. If one looked down from the air, they would see a vortex of wind. Goddess Wangyue melded into the windstorm and circled around Qin Yu incredibly fast.


    Qin Yu held his dragon spear in preparation. He was a powerful martial arts cultivator and had extreme power. However, Goddess Wangyue was a pure sorcerer. She couldn''t fight him directly.


    That horrible windstorm spun crazily. Qin Yu felt that he was spinning with the air too. He couldn''t see the outside world clearly.


    The Moon Clan looked up to the windstorm. It could destroy everything and rip this clan apart. But now, it rose up into the air, leaving the Moon Clan. It was clear that Goddess Wangyue was worried this wild battle would hurt her disciples. For someone at the pinnacle like Qin Yu, no one could stop him if he wanted to kill. She could only move the battleground.


    As for the Moon Clan, she handed it to the Sword Saint. She clearly trusted him more than she trusted herself. She believed the Sword Saint could protect the Moon Clan more. Thus, she brought Qin Yu away.


    The Sword Saint looked up to the sky. Broadsword Will filled the sky, coming out of his body and going in many directions. Gradually, the entire air was sliced by them.


    "Die!" he uttered coldly. As soon as he spoke, those beams of Broadsword Will transformed into bolts of lightning. They shot across the sky. Dragons roared, the Broadsword Will cut, and the dragons were split apart, crying out.


    Powerful nobles used their spells to fight back, but the Broadsword Will seemed undefeatable. There were various squelches. People in the sky were continuously sliced; they couldn''t fight back at all. Sorcery and sword light cut towards the Sword Saint and the Moon Clan at the same time.


    "Stand there and don''t move," the Sword Saint said to the Moon Clan disciples who wanted to fight. He shot into the air, grasping a bit of Broadsword Will, cutting through the air. The Broadsword Intent used his body as the core and spread out. Instantly, a dazzling broadsword enchantment shone in his surroundings. Endless sorcery and sword light shone down, trying to destroy the enchantment.


    Just then, beams of sword light descended like lightning. It drowned everything, almost breaking the air as it went straight to the Sword Saint. These were from the leaders of the Fuyun Sword Clan.


    The Sword Saint looked but didn''t move. Beams of Sword Will cut down, blasting on his body. However, terrifying broadsword light flowed across his body, almost transforming into solid armor. Sharp sword aura descended but couldn''t cut through the armor.


    There was a huge difference between someone almost in the Sage Plane and at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane.


    "Retreat," the leaders of the Fuyun Sword Clan said. They knew that even if they had more people, the Sword Saint was enough by himself, even if he had to protect the Moon Clan too.


    People retreated hurriedly, soaring into the sky.


    "I''d warned you at the Qin Dynasty last time. Since you didn''t listen, why don''t you stay now?" the Sword Saint said. The broadsword enchantment around him shrieked and transformed into boundless light. It broke through the air, chasing after the escaping figures.


    "Hurry!" someone yelled.


    They were fast, but the Broadsword Will was faster. It streaked across the sky, destroying all defensive spells. Many people became helpless. They watched the Broadsword Will descend and cut through their bodies. Faced with this Sage broadsword light, they couldn''t fight back at all.


    Only the leaders of the Fuyun Sword Clan could block the attack. But then, the Sword Saint''s body seemed to transform into light. He was even faster than the Broadsword Will. Reaching out his right hand, dazzling light consolidated into a blade.


    "No!" someone yelled in fear when he saw the Sword Saint. However, the man didn''t charge at him. He just walked past and halved the person. He wasn''t the only one. When the Sword Saint walked past those escaping, blood would bloom in the sky.


    The strong cultivator with Chu Yaoyao twisted his features. Just as he wanted to kill Chu Yaoyao, the sword light descended. His dragon was killed and then it fell upon him.


    Chu Yaoyao fell down with the destroyed dragon''s corpse. Looking at the Sword Saint who passed her, she felt reverence. With his sword, the nobles were like ants. He was so powerful. She thought she would die today. She didn''t expect that she would be saved by Ye Futian''s senior brother. Of course, she knew that the Sword Saint wasn''t here for her. He was here for Ye Futian''s lover��Hua Jieyu was at the Moon Clan.


    Dazzling sword light bloomed in the air, accompanied by fearful begs for forgiveness. Chu Yaoyao fell through the sky. She felt indescribable emotions as she looked up at that scene. Below her, the Moon Clan also saw that dazzling light. The sky seemed to be sliced apart. They felt yearning. Was this a truly top battle? A single man could destroy an entire army.


    "Yan Feihong," a cold voice said. Then figures flashed, flying towards Yan Feihong.


    The Sword Saint didn''t kill her. This was the private matter of the Moon Clan so the clan would solve it.


    Yan Feihong''s face paled instantly. She looked to the furious crowd around her. "I was thinking for the Moon Clan too. Was I wrong?" she asked. "The clan leader knew that the Sword Saint was here. Why didn''t she tell us?"


    "I knew," an old woman said. "I saw the clan leader with the Sword Saint. He guessed that the Qin Dynasty might attack the Moon Clan and asked for our opinion. The clan leader didn''t wish to be involved. The Sword Saint was fair and respected our choice. However, he didn''t leave, preparing to fight the Qin Dynasty. If they didn''t come, none of this would happen. If more people knew about this and the Qin Dynasty heard about it, we would be forced to enter."


    "Stop wasting time with her. Wait for the clan leader to return and punish her," others said. Yan Feihong''s face was pale.


    In the air, the Sword Saint killed everyone and rose up again, going to another battlefield. He saw Goddess Wangyue in the sky, but Qin Yu wasn''t there.


    "He escaped," Goddess Wangyue said. "He must have known that it would be dangerous once you were free so he gave up."


    "Yes." The Sword Saint nodded. Qin Yu had saintly ritual implements too. It would be hard for Goddess Wangyue to keep him here.


    "Thank you." After all, the Cottage and Moon Clan didn''t have much of a relationship.


    "You''re welcome. The Qin Dynasty is working with everyone to attack the Cottage. Helping you is helping the Cottage," the Sword Saint said as they returned to the Moon Clan.


    "However, the Moon Clan won''t be safe anymore," he continued.


    Goddess Wangyue knew this too. She gazed at the green mountains and smiled bitterly. "Since the Qin Dynasty is forcing the Moon Clan to choose, there''s nothing else I can say. Is there room on Book Mountain?"


    "Welcome." The Sword Saint nodded with a smile.


    Looking down at the people, Goddess Wangyue said, "You have all seen what happened. There is no need for me to speak further. I will move the clan to Book Mountain. If anyone wishes to leave and stay away from this storm, I will not force you. Those who wish to go, please gather your belongings and get ready to leave."


    The Moon Clan was in an uproar, but they understood that their leader was helpless. They had no other choices. If not for the Sword Saint, the Moon Clan would have either gone to the Qin Dynasty or been destroyed.

 370 Wife

    Chapter 370: Wife


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Book Mountain, the Cottage.


    On the ancient summit surrounded by clouds, there was a patch of emerald-green grass, on which a handsome figure was sitting quietly. Beside him, there was a pile of books. The person was reading a book in silence at the moment.


    On a huge boulder not far behind him, an elder was lying down quietly. He was holding a wine pot in his hand, from which he would take a sip every now and then. He looked extremely leisurely. The two were obviously Ye Futian and his master Mr. Du. After finishing the book, Ye Futian closed his eyes. Immediately, Spiritual Qi around him resonated. Wind whizzed in the sky and the entire atmosphere turned tense. Accompanied by ear-piercing noises, many sharp wind blades appeared in space which seemed to be interwoven in a messy manner. They swept forward and even space itself seemed to be entangled. More amazingly, the wind blades which were charging forward slowly converged together, eventually forming a straight line.


    Boom! A loud noise erupted. A low mountain in the distance was cleaved into two pieces at the middle. The crack was as thin as a line and was hardly noticeable. The wind-elemental spell was as sharp as a sword.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes, after which he started reading another book.


    "Master, little brother, mealtime!" someone shouted from the distance. Ye Futian put down the book and turned his head. He saw Beitang Xing''er walking towards him with a lunch box. The old man on the huge boulder stood up. Smiling, he said, "Six, what good food is there today?"


    "Master, take a look yourself." Beitang Xing''er jumped onto the boulder and opened the lunch box. Then, she took out the rice and dishes. At once, the aroma of food spread out. Ye Futian also stood up and approached Beitang Xing''er, feeling somewhat hungry.


    The old man glanced at Ye Futian and said lazily, "Who asked you to stop?"


    "Master, I have been practicing for quite long and feel really hungry now," Ye Futian said, feeling wronged. "Furthermore, I am almost done learning all the spells."


    "Oh, Xing''er, later go to the Book Cave and pick some more spells for your brother to cultivate," the old man said, grinning.


    "Some more?" Ye Futian said with a long face. "Master, these spells are all quite ordinary and not very useful. Moreover, they''re not very hard to learn."


    "Kid, what do you know? Reading a book is cultivation. It can allow you to find your true self. Just like the saying, the meaning of a book will become clear if you read it a hundred times. You only know so few spells so far, and yet you claim that these are useless. Since you have decided to become a sorcerer, you must be adept at least 3,000 spells. Otherwise, don''t call yourself a Cottage disciple," Mr. Du said emotionlessly, but his hands had already started moving. As he ate and drank, he continued, "It''s a rare chance that I am back, and I am using all my time on your cultivation. You don''t know how much your brothers and sisters envy you."


    "Master, I am willing to give this opportunity to them." Ye Futian was almost going to cry. 3,000 spells? I might as well die! Is this old guy going to ask me to cultivate all the spells in the Book Cave?


    I will die.


    Revenge��this is certainly revenge!


    "No way. You are the youngest. I have taught all your brothers and sister before, so I cannot be biased. I am a man with principles," the old man said in a serious tone.


    "It''s fine. I don''t mind," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright then. Six, in the future you will copy books with him. After your fourth brother started copying books, he has learned many spells. I think that it''s really helpful," the old man said casually.


    "Master, I''m wrong. I will continue to cultivate spells," Ye Futian cried. Beitang Xing''er giggled, looking very charming. She looked at Ye Futian and said, "Little brother, come and eat. The dishes are getting cold.


    "Thank you, sister Xing''er." Ye Futian was touched. The two sisters were really good to him.


    "Little brother, you should stop complaining. Second sister and third brother are all hoping that the master can spend more time teaching them." Beitang Xing''er served the dishes to Ye Futian. Smiling gently, she continued, "Only after you learn many spells can you merge them and be an expert. You are talented in all elements, so you should naturally make full use of it. When you understand all spells, you can do whatever you want. You can cast spells simply with a thought."


    "Listen to her. You are already not young. I really wonder how you used to cultivate in the past. Xing''er is younger than you but she knows more than you. You are really hopeless. Luckily, you have met me," Mr. Du said as he ate. Ye Futian felt speechless. Just now, Mr. Du called him ''kid'', and now he said that Ye Futian was not young.


    "I am only repeating what you have taught me," Beitang Xing''er said.


    Ye Futian sighed. He felt unlucky that he had such a master.


    "Master." From the distance, Yi Xiaoshi also walked over. Noticing that Ye Futian and the master were eating together, he looked at Ye Futian in envy. It seemed indeed that fat people had no rights.


    "Fat boy, what is it?" the old man asked.


    Cough, cough... Ye Futian coughed and glanced at Yi Xiaoshi. This nickname was fantastic.


    Yi Xiaoshi widened his eyes at Ye Futian. He was brought to the Cottage when he was young, and since then the master had been calling him ''fat boy''. What could he do? Was it his mistake to be fat?


    "Master, Goddess Wangyue had brought the disciples of Moon Clan here. She wants to see you," Yi Xiaoshi said.


    "Didn''t your big brother come back as well?" the old man asked.


    "Nope. I think he should have returned to Sword Saint Mountain to prepare," Yi Xiaoshi replied. At the moment, the situation in the Eastern Barren Territory was extremely unstable, so even Sword Saint Mountain was unsafe. Therefore, he naturally had to gather everyone together. Book Mountain was undoubtedly the safest place. Both the Cottage and the College were situated here. The only place that Qin Dynasty did not yet dare to attack was Book Mountain. Otherwise, they would have made their attack long ago. They were clearly not very confident.


    Beside them, Ye Futian''s eyes glittered. Goddess Wangyue had led all the Moon Clan disciples here, so something bad must have happened in Moon Clan. The master indeed had some foresight; Qin Dynasty still touched Moon Clan after all. However, since big brother had been ambushing there, Qin Dynasty must have paid a huge price this time. Moon Clan was here, so obviously Jieyu was as well.


    "I''m full. Master, I''ll go and take a look." Ye Futian dashed out.


    "Have your cultivation ended?" the old man roared.


    "Master, what are you saying?" Ye Futian replied, but he was already very far away.


    Humph, easy. Didn''t you say that you don''t know cultivation? Then come and chase me!


    "Look at how much he values his girlfriend over his master. Why did three take in such a disciple for me?" the old man remarked, speechless.


    "I totally agree. I think he should get some punishment." Yi Xiaoshi added oil to the fire.


    "Alright. Fat boy, you can cultivate with him," the old man said casually. Yi Xiaoshi immediately kept quiet.


    "Ask your second sister to go. I''ll go and chat with my senior," the old man said, after which he turned around and left. Yi Xiaoshi nodded and went back.


    At the entrance of Book Mountain, the huge square was filled with beauties of various kinds. There were so many charming ladies that even the entrance to Book Mountain was blocked. This was definitely a feast to the eyes of the College disciples. Countless people from the College had come here after receiving the news and were enjoying the sight.


    "So many beauties."


    "I heard that in the future, the members of Moon Clan are going to cultivate on Book Mountain?"


    "I think so. I wonder if the chief is going to agree."


    "Obviously he is going to agree. My mountain has a lost of empty space and can accommodate many of them."


    "Same for my mountain."


    The entrance of Book Mountain became extremely lively. The members of the College were almost going to drool. The scene before them was too beautiful and dazzling. In the College, there were far more male disciples than female disciples, so they had never seen such a large group of pure beauties. They felt that they were already in heaven.


    "It''s my first time seeing Goddess Wangyue. She indeed deserves the name of goddess, so pure and ethereal."


    "That''s the Virgin of Moon Clan, Chu Yaoyao. She is one of the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory."


    "And there, so many beauties. Who is that?" Everyone turned to look in a particular direction. Not far behind Goddess Wangyue, there was a lady who was about nineteen years old. She was even prettier than Chu Yaoyao. Her face was stunning and flawless, and her skin was as smooth as jade. She was as exquisite as an elf.


    "Yeah, who is that? Why have I never heard about her before? She is even more beautiful than Chu Yaoyao, so why is she not one of the top three beauties?"


    Many people started discussing. The College disciples Tang Ye was also among the crowd. Knowing obviously who that lady was, he said, "She is Hua Jieyu." Hua Jieyu seldom showed up in the Eastern Barren Territory so not many knew her. Therefore, although her look was gorgeous, she was not as famous.


    "Hua Jieyu," many people muttered. Then, they suddenly thought of a person: Hua Jieyu, Ye Futian''s girlfriend. It seemed that they would not stand a chance at all.


    Suddenly, a person arrived at the place from the distance. Ye Futian landed on the ground and similarly felt somewhat dazzled.


    "Greetings, goddess." Ye Futian bowed at Goddess Wangyue who was in front of the rest.


    "I have heard your name many times. Indeed, you look extraordinary," Goddess Wangyue said, smiling. She was being honest. Every Cottage disciple was incredibly talented. Ye Futian was not yet twenty, and yet his name had spread to every corner of the Eastern Barren Territory. Even Qin Li died to him. His future was certainly going to be bright and grand.


    "Goddess, you flatter me." Ye Futian scratched his head as if he was feeling embarrassed. Then, he said softly, "I''m here to see my wife."


    "Wife..." Goddess Wangyue blinked. Then, she smiled and turned around to look at Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu''s face blushed at once as she noticed that many people around her were staring at her. She widened her eyes at Ye Futian. Can''t this guy keep a low profile?


    Ye Futian walked into the crowd and approached Hua Jieyu. Smiling, he said, "Jieyu, I miss you so much."


    "Hey, do you think that we are non-existent?" Yun Rou, whom Ye Futian knew, said, smiling.


    "Sister, in the future we will be a single family." Ye Futian grinned and looked at her, causing many Moon Clan members to laugh. Then, he reached out his hand towards Hua Jieyu''s hand. Hua Jieyu dodged slightly, but then she allowed him to grab her hand. Another wave of uproarious talk and laughter erupted.


    "What an animal..." Seeing the scene, countless College disciples could feel their hearts bleeding.


    Suddenly, another group of people arrived at the place. It was Zhuge Hui and the rest. Zhuge Hui glanced at Ye Futian and smiled. This guy really could not keep a low profile!

 371 Roar of the College Chief

    Chapter 371: Roar of the College Chief


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Noticing the scene before her, Chu Yaoyao lowered her head slightly. One year ago, she was still the genius of Moon Clan and really stood out among her peers. After knowing Qin Li, she had the chance to become the future masteress of Qin Dynasty. However, as fate would have it, she fell in love with Ye Futian.


    Now, Hua Jieyu had replaced her as the Virgin of Moon Clan, and in addition, the entire Moon Clan came to the College. Hua Jieyu naturally took away all the attention that had once belonged to her. Thinking about this, Chu Yaoyao felt somewhat lost.


    Of course, nobody would care about her feelings at the moment. When Ye Futian appeared beside Hua Jieyu, she, one of the top three beauties, was almost non-existent.


    In the sky, Zhuge Hui smiled and glanced at Ye Futian. Then, she landed on the ground and said to Goddess Wangyue, "Welcome to the College."


    "Excuse us for troubling you," Goddess Wangyue said.


    "Master has gone to see the College Chief. Goddess, what are your plans?" Zhuge Hui asked. Mr. Du had gone to the College Chief''s place to discuss how they should handle the people from the Moon Clan. After all, Moon Clan was a large force, and its disciples were no fewer in number than the College.


    "I''ll wait for Mr. Du''s opinions," Goddess Wangyue said. Actually, Moon Clan was asking the College for help this time, so she would not request for anything else.


    However, the style of the College was completely different from the Qin Dynasty. One could easily see this from Sword Saint''s attitude. Goddess Wangyue had seen for herself how Zhuge Hui dealt with Qin Yu at the foot of Sky Mountain. This second disciple of the Cottage was indeed an arrogant lady. However, at the moment she looked very mild, unlike Qin Yu who was always supercilious.


    "Alright, I will stay here and accompany you," Zhuge Hui said, smiling.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian shouted, "Sister." Zhuge Hui smiled and looked at him, when Ye Futian said shyly, "Sister, can you help me to tell the master something..."


    Seeing Ye Futian''s expression, Zhuge Hui immediately knew what he was thinking of. Grinning, she said, "Go and talk to the master yourself."


    "Err..." Ye Futian had an ominous feeling. Will that old guy agree? he thought.


    Zhuge Hui widened her eyes at Ye Futian and said, "Did you make the master angry? Don''t worry. The master will still agree to such a small request."


    "Thank you, sister." Ye Futian gave a bright smile. With these words from Zhuge Hui, he would not worry anymore. If that old guy did not agree, he would go and disturb second sister...


    The people from Moon Clan looked at Hua Jieyu in jealousy. It seemed like Jieyu was going to cultivate in the Cottage. It was indeed good to have a relationship with Ye Futian. Anyhow, Hua Jieyu was the Virgin of Moon Clan at the moment, so it would be a good thing for her to cultivate under Mr. Du.


    ��


    The first mountain in the College was also the highest summit on Book Mountain. On this particular summit, many ancient palaces stood within the clouds, producing an ethereal view. There were many wonderful caves there, all of which were blessed spots for cultivation.


    As the first mountain in the College, the facilities here were of the highest standards. Spiritual Qi was abundant and there were many matrices on the summit, unlike the Cottage which was very simple.


    Before a pavilion on the first mountain, there were two people. One of them was an elder in gray robes who had an outstanding temperament. He had long hair and a beard and looked divine. Beside him, there was a handsome young man. He was a disciple of the first mountain, Bai Lishu.


    Suddenly, someone shouted, "Senior." Then, an old man wearing simple clothes walked in directly and shouted at the elder in gray robes, "Senior, it has been many years. You still look energetic."


    The elder in gray robes glanced at the person who had just entered. With a cold face, he replied emotionlessly, "Do you still remember my existence? What a rare sight."


    The elder in gray robes was the College Chief, and the person who had just arrived was obviously Mr. Du.


    "Senior, what do you mean? When I am outside, I often think about you," Mr. Du said.


    "Is it?" The College Chief still looked cold as he continued, "If so why are you only visiting me now when you have returned a while ago? Is it because of Moon Clan?"


    "I came here to visit you. Moon Clan is only a trivial, secondary matter," Mr. Du said.


    "Ha." The College Chief sneered.


    "Master, uncle, I''ll leave first." Suddenly, Bai Lishu bowed at Mr. Du, after which he left the place. The resentment between his master and Mr. Du had existed for a long time. He did not know the exact reasons, but it was definitely something he should not get involved into. Furthermore, Mr. Du had always been very mysterious and would very rarely appear in the first mountain. Even he had only seen Mr. Du for a few times.


    "Senior, in these few years, the first mountain is becoming grander and more gorgeous. But I think you have too few disciples. It''ll be better to have more people here," Mr. Du said softly.


    "I have enough disciples here. In fact, how many people are there in the Cottage? I think you will have no problems taking in an entire clan," the College Chief sneered. Mr. Du had gathered the members of Moon Clan and wanted to give him everyone.


    "Senior, you know that I am lazy and not in the College most of the time. There are so many beautiful young girls here and I don''t want to delay their cultivation. You are the ruler of Book Mountain, so naturally, you will arrange everyone from Moon Clan. I believe that with your words, all the mountain elders will cooperate as well," Mr. Du said.


    "Moreover, we have a common enemy today. Senior, you cannot disappoint them."


    "Alright. Then we will distribute them equally onto the nine mountains." The College Chief stared at Mr. Du. Since the Cottage did not want to take in disciples, he would give some people to them by force.


    "No way. You have no idea what kind of people my disciples are. Their mouths are sweet, and they are good-looking and talented. They are just too outstanding, so something bad will happen. Don''t count the Cottage in," Mr. Du said, waving his hand.


    The College Chief stared coldly at Mr. Du and said angrily, "Are the disciples in my first mountain not outstanding?"


    "Senior, don''t get angry. It''s bad for you," Mr. Du advised. "Senior, then it''s all settled. Moon Clan is also a top force, and many great girls can cultivate with College disciples together in the future. They can have friendly fights with each other and improve as a whole. It will certainly motivate College disciples to work harder. You should organize a friendly competition once in a while. It will definitely be more effective than in the past."


    "Wait, who agreed that it''s all settled?" The beard of the College Chief danced in the air. He could not tolerate this anymore.


    "Senior, if you insist on this I''ll get angry," Mr. Du said, grinning.


    Seeing his expression, the College Chief was even more furious. He said coldly, "So what?"


    "I am really angry." Mr. Du''s smile grew brighter.


    "You... you..." The College Chief pointed his finger at Mr. Du and said coldly, "Scram!"


    "Then it''s all settled." Mr. Du smiled in satisfaction, after which he turned around and left.


    "This is too much." The College Chief''s beard danced with the wind. It was ridiculous.


    "Oh yeah." Mr. Du suddenly stopped. Turning around, he added, "My eldest disciple will also bring the people from Sword Saint Mountain here. Senior, you should also help to organize them at that time. The people from these three forces can have exchanges and improve together. For the College, I have also spent much time and effort." After he finished, he turned around and left casually.


    "Why don''t you die outside that year!" the College Chief roared, unable to control his anger.


    The people from Moon Clan, Sword Saint Mountain, and the College would be gathered together. There would be so many more issues for him to settle.


    That b*stard... he can continue to drink and sleep in the Cottage! Also, why do I have to manage the people of his eldest disciple? And his few disciples have never put the College in their hearts!


    "Bai Lishu!" the College Chief shouted. Bai Lishu appeared beside him in a flash and said, "Master." He did not know why his master was so furious. It seemed that Mr. Du had enraged him again.


    "Go tell the few mountain elders to go down together and welcome the people from Moon Clan. Then distribute them into the few mountains," the College Chief said angrily.


    "Master, how do we distribute them?" Bai Lishu asked.


    "Settle it yourself." The College Chief swang his sleeves and left. Bai Lishu gave a bitter smile as he shook his head. He was so innocent.


    ��


    Book Mountain became busy again. The College disciples were all very excited: the members of Moon Clan were actually really distributed to the various mountains.


    In any case, the number of people who went to Mountain Elder Zhu Qing''s mountain was the largest. After all, Zhu Qing was a lady and there were many female disciples under her, while all the disciples from Moon Clan were female. Chu Yaoyao chose that mountain as well.


    The other disciples also chose the most suitable mountain for them one after another. Although they felt somewhat awkward, they also anticipated cultivating with College disciples as they could have exchanges with each other and improve together.


    Book Mountain became lively. On the other hand, Goddess Wangyue went to the Cottage along with Zhuge Hui. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were obviously with them as well.


    In the Cottage, after Goddess Wangyue saw Mr. Du, she saluted and said, "Greetings, Mr. Du." She saluted him like she was a junior. Even though rumors in the Eastern Barren Territory claimed that Mr. Du could not cultivate, the first three disciples of the Cottage were all at the same level as her. This legendary Mr. Du should clearly be respected. In addition, she was quite young, so it was alright for her to salute to a senior.


    "You don''t have to be so polite. You can treat Book Mountain like your home and do not have to be so restricted. Just behave like you are in Moon Clan," Mr. Du said, smiling.


    "Alright," Goddess Wangyue nodded gently. "Mr. Du, after the disturbance in the Eastern Barren Territory..."


    "Don''t worry. The College is not Qin Dynasty, and I also do not want to unify the Eastern Barren Territory. You don''t need to think so much. Just take it like you are being a guest on Book Mountain for a while. Furthermore, you have also met with my eldest disciple. He will bring the people from Sword Saint Mountain here. My second and third disciples are also doing fine with their cultivation. When you have the chance, you can chat with them. You can come to the Cottage at any time without restriction," Mr. Du said.


    "Thank you, Mr. Du." Goddess Wangyue stopped worrying. It seemed that Mr. Du indeed had no intentions of ruling the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Jieyu, come and meet the master," Ye Futian suddenly said. Hua Jieyu nodded gently and said to Mr. Du, "I am Hua Jieyu. Greetings, master."


    Mr. Du smiled and stared at Ye Futian, who smiled back nervously and scratched his head.


    "Master, can Jieyu stay in the Cottage and cultivate?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You have already asked her to call me ''master''. How can I reject?" Mr. Du widened his eyes at Ye Futian. Then he looked at Hua Jieyu and said, "Girl, in the future, you can cultivate with me just like him. Meanwhile, you can help me to keep an eye on him."


    "No problem." Hua Jieyu nodded, smiling, after which she stared at Ye Futian with a proud look.


    Ye Futian blinked his eyes. Whose master was this after all?

 372 Training

    Chapter 372: Training


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Moon Clan, Sword Saint Mountain also shifted entirely to Book Mountain. The whole Eastern Barren Territory was astonished by this. As the two large forces moved to Book Mountain, a super-being was born on Book Mountain, one formed from the College, Sword Saint Mountain, and the Moon Clan. More importantly, the Moon Clan was forced by Qin Dynasty to move.


    Just like what happened on Book Mountain, Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple had also officially shifted to Qin Dynasty. Clearly, these two forces knew that it would be a disaster for them should the Cottage send Sword Saint to attack their clans, just like what Qin Yu had done to the Liu Kingdom. How could they not guard against this?


    At the same time, the Qin Dynasty had sent many people to watch over the places outside Book Mountain and in the Ancient Barren Territory to prevent the College from attacking them or Donghua Clan suddenly.


    The Eastern Barren Territory had entered an era where the two super-forces stood opposite each other. This would be a key stage in the development of the Eastern Barren Territory. Once one of the two forces won, it would very likely become the king of the Eastern Barren Territory. The remaining three top forces, namely Qianqiu Temple, Witch Clan, and Ji Family, did not dare to get involved easily; they just observed the situation carefully.


    Because of the Moon Clan''s current situation, the Qin Dynasty would naturally not deal with them anymore. Otherwise, they would probably achieve a directly opposite effect. That time Qin Yu decided to attack Moon Clan because the four major forces had already allied and they all thought that Moon Clan would be easily defeated. In addition, Qin Yu wanted to deal with Chu Yaoyao as well as Ye Futian by dealing with Hua Jieyu.


    Therefore, Qin Yu decided to go to the Moon Clan and eliminate them if they were disobedient. He did not expect Sword Saint to be waiting in ambush there.


    In that battle, a few summit lords from Fuyun Sword Clan and a few lords from Royal Xuan Temple were killed, officially starting the prelude to the final battle. Thus all the forces chose to shift one after another. However, after the battle in the Moon Clan, both parties turned quiet instead. There had been no fights between them since then.


    It was said that the Qin Dynasty was allowing the most powerful people from various forces to enter their tomb to cultivate and breakthrough. Clearly, they wanted to end the era in a single battle.


    Book Mountain was also very lively. The three major forces had combined together and interesting events were happening every day. Many young people in the College became much more motivated to cultivate. Furthermore, many people from Moon Clan were also being pursued, especially the prettier ones.


    ��


    The last day of the 10003rd year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar approached quietly without any disturbances. In this year, too many major events had happened in the Eastern Barren Territory. The peaceful year-end drew a period to the entire year. Of course, it meant in no way that everything was ending.


    In the Cottage, Ye Futian had not actually been spending his days in peace. He was mistreated and forced to cultivate spells every day. Luckily, Jieyu had been cultivating with him at the moment. Whenever he was tired from the cultivation, he would look at her and feel much better. Who asked Jieyu to be so beautiful?


    "Master, can''t I even rest on the last day of the year?" Ye Futian complained to Mr. Du who was sitting on a cliff, drinking and enjoyed the sight of the cloud sea. This is too much��


    "You''re so weak and yet you are thinking about resting every day," the old man replied in contempt without even turning his head around. "How''re the spells?"


    "Master, these spells are so easy to learn. Do you not believe in my talents?" Ye Futian replied in a depressing tone.


    "Talents? You have talents?" the old man said in disdain. Then, he stood up slowly and walked to Ye Futian. "You think that you''re very outstanding? I wonder where you got that confidence."


    "But these spells are really easy!" Ye Futian argued. "Tell me that you are not really planning to ask me to learn all the spells in the Book Cave."


    The old man took out a thin book from his shirt and threw it in front of Ye Futian. "Since you feel those are easy, try this spell."


    "No problem," Ye Futian nodded. Then, he picked the book up and started reading. Slowly, his expression changed. He stopped smiling and his look turned serious as he frowned every now and then. Hua Jieyu who was beside him watched the scene curiously. What exactly did the master give him?


    After Hua Jieyu arrived at the Cottage, she had been cultivating under Mr. Du together with Ye Futian. Both of them were Full Attribute Sorcerers and were also at the same level, so it was easy for Mr. Du to teach them together.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian raised his head. "Is it really an actual spell?" he asked the old man who had returned to the cliff and sat down.


    "If you cannot do it, don''t suspect it. Didn''t you think that you are very good? Just like this?" the old man remarked with contempt.


    Ye Futian widened his eyes at the old man. He is definitely doing this on purpose!


    Ye Futian was totally speechless. Since he started cultivating with Mr. Du, he had been humiliated every single day... Was this really his master? Although his father-in-law would also humiliate him sometimes, Mr. Du was way worse.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian lowered his head and continued to read the book. Then, he closed his eyes and tried to cast the spell. Wood-elemental vines swept towards the sky with a splashing sound. Vaguely, there was a golden radiance attached on it and the power of the wind was also following along.


    "No..." Ye Futian shook his head and continued to try. He failed again and again but continued to try.


    Beside him, Hua Jieyu took the book and read through it. Her eyes were immediately filled with surprise. Although she had heard about merging different spells and casting together or even merging spells with martial arts, she had never seen such a spell before. Was it really possible to cast the same spell with Spiritual Qi of different elements simultaneously?


    Each type of Spiritual Qi existed independently of the other types. In a sorcerer''s battle, he would often cast two spells simultaneously to increase their powers. For example, when he was casting an aggressive spell, he would attach a wind-elemental spell on it to increase its speed and power, or perhaps attach the power of lightning. All these could be done rather easily.


    However, the spell that Mr. Du had given Ye Futian was different. The spell should be formed by condensing Spiritual Qi of three different elements together. Perhaps they would be able to do this when their levels got higher. But could this really be done by an Arcana Plane cultivator?


    Ye Futian had become totally serious as if he was trying to beat himself. Mr. Du, on the other hand, lied down on the ground and drank his wine casually. He would occasionally glance at Ye Futian and smile to himself.


    After a long while, Ye Futian stopped trying. Looking at the cliff, he questioned suspiciously, "Did you just give me a spell which can only be learned by a person with a level higher than the Arcana Plane?"


    "If you can''t do it, just admit it. With only such talents, I really don''t know where your arrogance came from. I wonder why I even have such a bad disciple," the old man sighed. Ye Futian gritted his teeth. This old b*stard...


    The old man squinted his eyes. Grinning, he asked Ye Futian, "Do you want to learn?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian was cursing Mr. Du in his heart, but his face was filled with a bright smile.


    "That''s it?" the old man asked.


    "I know that I am not talented enough. Master, please teach me."


    I will tolerate this for this time...


    "Since you know that fact, you can still be saved." The old man stood up slowly. Approaching Ye Futian, he said, "Although you are a sorcerer, you are but a beginner. You don''t even know what is a real spell. Using Spiritual Energy to communicate with Spiritual Qi and combining them in a simple way would only produce the easiest spells and most useless sorcerers.


    "Spiritual Qi in the world is like different strokes. You need to combine them into characters, and then turn them into a language. There are countless ways to combine them and different combinations will produce different spells. An outstanding sorcerer is skilled at controlling every single character and can form them into various spells with ease. Therefore, you need to know thousands of spells. Only when you are familiar with them, you can be more creative, or even create a new spell." the old man said slowly. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu both listened very attentively.


    "Spiritual Energy is the bridge between sorcerers and the characters. An Arcana Plane cultivator has already merged his will with the world and can sense his surroundings much better or resonate with Spiritual Qi around him. You need to be able to see all the Spiritual Qi characters in your mind at the instant when you release your Spiritual Energy. They are like the extenders to your arms and legs. Your Spiritual Energy will then be everywhere. With just a thought, all the characters will move.


    "Do you understand?" the old man asked.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were both deep in thought. They need time to digest the information and put it into practice.


    "Haven''t you comprehended Noble Will already? Can''t you even understand such a simple reason?" the old man added in disdain.


    Ye Futian was stunned. He thought about the powers contained in fire-elemental Noble Will, where he could feel an invisible power of flame. Maybe this was similar to what the master had just said. On Turtle Mountain, he had felt an even more mysterious power. It was like the rules of the world.


    "How about a sage?" Ye Futian suddenly asked in curiosity.


    "Sage?" The old man looked at Ye Futian and said, "A sage can kill you with a single thought."


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled.


    "You don''t believe it? Your big brother is here. I''ll ask him to let you experience the Broadsword Will of a half-sage." Mr. Du looked at the distance. The Sword Saint walked over and smiling. He said, "Master, today is the last day of the year. Are you still teaching little brother?"


    "This guy is untalented and yet supercilious. To prevent him from causing me to lose face outside, I can only endure the tiring process of teaching him," Mr. Du sighed. "You heard me just now. Let him feel it."


    "Alright," Sword Saint nodded and looked at Ye Futian. "Little brother, be careful."


    "Yup. Big brother, please," Ye Futian nodded.


    Sword Saint released his will. Immediately, Ye Futian felt an endless coldness seeping into his body. He froze at the spot, not daring to move as cold sweat broke out from his forehead.


    At the moment, he was engulfed by Broadsword Will. He felt that even his body was going to be crushed under the will. If Sword Saint wanted to kill him, he did not even have to move. The feeling only continued for an instant before disappearing. In this short while, Ye Futian''s back was totally wet with sweat, as if he had just returned from hell.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s expression, Mr. Du said, "Work hard, and don''t be lazy." Then, he and Sword Saint left the place together, while Ye Futian was still standing motionlessly at the spot.


    In the distance, Sword Saint laughed and said, "Master, little brother is already very outstanding. Why do you have to give him an emotional blow like this?"


    "He is too arrogant and needs to learn too many things!" A meaningful smile appeared on Mr. Du''s face.

 373 Another Year

    Chapter 373: Another Year


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was somewhat depressed. Since he started cultivating, he had never received such a severe emotional blow. He continued cultivating the spell given to him by his master and tried to understand what his master had said. Although he was improving slowly, he was still not close to succeeding. After a long while, he stopped and asked, "What spell did this old guy give me exactly?"


    "It''s indeed difficult to learn. Master must be trying to upset you on purpose. Don''t be discouraged." Hua Jieyu gave a sweet smile.


    "My fox is the best." Seeing the bright smile on Hua Jieyu''s face, Ye Futian opened his arms and added, "Come and encourage me then."


    "No! I''m going to cultivate as well." Hua Jieyu glanced at him, pouting prettily in embarrassment. Then, she turned around and similarly tried to understand Mr. Du''s words previously.


    "What a disobedient girlfriend..." Ye Futian muttered, after which he closed his eyes. Instead of continuing to cultivate spells, he started to sense his surroundings with his mind. His Spiritual Energy communicated with Spiritual Qi around him as his senses swam in the endless Spiritual Qi.


    Over these days, he had learned many spells and had indeed benefited much. While these spells were mostly mediocre and probably useless in future battles, learning them still helped in his cultivation.


    It became completely silent. A gentle wind blew over the bushy grass patches, causing them to feel comfortably cool. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were both sitting there quietly and closing their eyes. At the moment, Ye Futian felt as if he no longer had a physical body. His Spiritual Energy seemed to have filled every corner of the sky and earth. In his senses, he had turned into an ancient tree. All the wood-elemental Spiritual Qi around him was part of the ancient tree.


    Suddenly, many branches and vines appeared out of thin air in the space around Ye Futian, producing a splashing sound. With his body as the center, countless branches and vines swept outwards wildly, blotting out the entire sky. In an instant, they flooded everything around him, as if they were everywhere. His body, on the other hand, was like a divine tree, the source of everything.


    Puff... Ye Futian opened his eyes and stared at the scene in front of him. It was still the same spell Lock of a Thousand Vines, but when he followed his master''s instructions and cast it carefully, it was indeed much more powerful than previously.


    Hua Jieyu also awoke in surprise. Looking at the scene in front of her, she smiled brightly. Although Ye Futian had not learned Mr. Du''s spell, he had already improved a lot. This meant that at the very least his method was correct.


    Ye Futian grinned and continued to cultivate. He cast various spells at a lower speed, but their powers increased significantly. While cultivating, he also discussed their experiences with Hua Jieyu. In the blink of an eye, it was already close to dusk.


    The radiance from the setting sun poured onto Ye Futian''s face, making his angular face look even more handsome. Hua Jieyu sat beside Ye Futian with her knees bent. She supported her cheeks with her hands and stared at Ye Futian, smiling.


    At the moment when Ye Futian opened his eyes, he immediately saw Hua Jieyu''s exquisite face. Smiling, he asked, "What are you looking at?"


    "You!" Hua Jieyu smiled sweetly. Why is this guy looking better and better?


    Ye Futian blinked and grinned. "If you continue doing this, I''ll think about inappropriate stuff."


    "About what?" Hua Jieyu smiled and looked at him.


    "About doing it right now."


    "You don''t dare to!" Hua Jieyu blushed and looked even more stunning under the sunset.


    "Just see if I dare." Ye Futian suddenly leaped forward and pushed Hua Jieyu onto the ground. Hua Jieyu screamed as she fell down. Noticing that Ye Futian was staring blankly at her, she did not dare to look into his eyes. She turned her head away and her cheeks were blushing in embarrassment which made her even more attractive.


    "Fox, you''re really pretty," Ye Futian said.


    Hua Jieyu turned her head back slowly and widened her eyes at Ye Futian. "Get up, quick."


    "Alright," Ye Futian replied, smiling. However, he suddenly lowered his head and kissed gently on Hua Jieyu''s forehead.


    "Let''s go and see father together." Ye Futian stood up and also pulled Hua Jieyu up. Then, he grabbed her hand and they left the place together. Hua Jieyu just allowed him to hold her hands as they ran on the emerald-green grass path. Light from the falling sun showered down on the two, producing an everlasting picture.


    ��


    Moon Clan and Sword Saint Mountain had both shifted to Book Mountain, so naturally, Ye Futian had also brought Hua Fengliu and the rest to Book Mountain.


    They were currently staying in a house on the mountainside of the Cottage. When Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu reached the place, they immediately smelt waves of aroma.


    "Master, Masteress, what good food are you making again?" Walking in, Ye Futian realized that dinner had already been prepared. Masteress and Aunt Tang were busy, while Yu Sheng, Yi Qingxuan, and Tang Wan were also helping.


    As for those nobles and Luolan Xue, Ye Futian had already asked them to return to Ancient Loulan. They should clearly spend the annual year-end with their families. The disciples on Book Mountain whose homes were in the Divine Capital had also gone back.


    Seeing the deluxe feast, Ye Futian grinned and said, "Master, I really envy you for being able to marry Masteress and Aunt Tang."


    Hua Fengliu glanced at him and said, "Jieyu, he''s referring to something."


    Ye Futian turned his head and saw Hua Jieyu staring at him, smiling.


    "No... absolutely not." Ye Futian smiled trembly.


    "I don''t think so," Yi Qingxuan commented as she carried a dish over.


    "Yu Sheng, look at your girlfriend! What is she saying?" Ye Futian asked.


    Yu Sheng glanced at Ye Futian in disdain. You''re so scared of your girlfriend and you asked me to take care of mine?


    "What''s that look?" Ye Futian noticed Yu Sheng''s look. It seemed that Yu Sheng had already changed drastically.


    "Futian, on Book Mountain you don''t have to call me Master," Hua Fengliu said. Ye Futian naturally knew what he meant. At the moment, Ye Futian''s master was Mr. Du, so he should make certain things clear.


    "Master, don''t worry about that. That old guy will not mind about these," Ye Futian said. "Furthermore, it''s okay to have two masters."


    "Futian, Mr. Du is an amazing person. Don''t talk nonsense," Nandou Wenyin said, walking over. Ye Futian turned speechless. Even the masteress was speaking for that old guy.


    "Alright. I''ll listen to you," Ye Futian nodded.


    Nandou Wenyin smiled and said, "Let''s eat. After we finish you should go back to the Cottage early to accompany your master and seniors."


    "I have been with my master and seniors every day. Today I shall stay here," Ye Futian said.


    "It''s enough for Jieyu to accompany us. Who cares about you? Just finish eating and leave," Hua Fengliu said, totally unconcerned. Ye Futian immediately looked as if he had been wronged. His position in the family was indeed unbeatable.


    "What''s your level now?" Tang Wan asked Ye Futian curiously.


    "Arcana Plane," Ye Futian replied. "Jieyu and Yu Sheng as well."


    Tang Wan''s lips twitched as she was somewhat speechless. Their cultivation speed was really fast. If they were in Donghai they would already be famous.


    Hua Fengliu and Tang Lan were also in the Arcana Plane.


    "It has been over four years." Hua Fengliu sighed as he recalled the past. In the year 9999, he came to know Ye Futian in Qingzhou Academy and took him as his disciple. Now, this disciple of his was almost as strong as he was. In the past, Ye Futian was even compared to the disciple of Art Saint, but now so many things had changed as if it was all merely a dream.


    "Yup, I have also known Jieyu for over fours now," Ye Futian nodded. On the exact same day four years ago, they held their hands beside Qingzhou Lake and confirmed their relationship.


    "Tomorrow it will be the year 10004. You''ll both be 20." Hua Fengliu looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Time passed really fast.


    "Yup, and I can get married," Ye Futian said, grinning. Everyone widened their eyes at him. This guy was really not serious at all.


    "Wait till you are as strong as your big or third brother. It''s too early now," Tang Lan said.


    "Aunt Tang, this is too much!" Ye Futian stared at Tang Lan pitifully.


    Big brother and third brother were both grade one nobles and half-way into the Sage Plane. They were standing at the top of the Eastern Barren Territory. How long would he need?


    "Let''s eat." Tang Lan ignored Ye Futian, while Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin laughed. Then, the family happily enjoyed the annual feast. They had not had such a warm time together for a very long time. However, Ye Futian felt really speechless when he was actually chased out after the meal. Luckily, Hua Fengliu did not cruelly take away Jieyu from him and allowed her to leave with him together.


    After returning to the Cottage, Ye Futian ate again with Mr. Du and his seniors. Then, he went to chat with Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu. Without anyone realizing it, it was already late into the night. A crescent moon hung in the sky.


    Beside the cliff in the back mountain of the Cottage, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were sitting on the grass. A melodious music spread out, adding some vitality to the silent space. The music was beautiful yet sad as if it was telling a very ancient story.


    At the top of an ancient tree in the Cottage, a figure was standing quietly. Her white shirt swayed in the wind and she was like a fairy under the moon. Another person landed quietly on an ancient tree beside. He was similarly wearing a white shirt and his face was extraordinarily handsome. In the darkness, he stared at the lady in front of him. The lady, however, did not seem to have noticed him as she continued to gaze at the distance. The young man also did not speak and accompanied her in the silence.


    "Little brother is amazing. Such a piece should only be present in heaven," the lady said, smiling. It was the second sister, Zhuge Hui.


    "You miss home?" Gu Dongliu asked.


    "Why would I miss that place? Since I have left there, I''m not going back," Zhuge Hui replied.


    "One day, I''ll bring you back," Gu Dongliu said.


    "Can you?" Zhuge Hui turned around and looked at him.


    Gu Dongliu did not say anything else. He flashed and left the place.


    Zhuge Hui looked at the vanishing figure. Raising her head, she stared at the crescent in the sky.


    ��


    At the highest place in the Cottage, there was also a person lying quietly on a rocking, drinking. It was a slovenly old man in ragged clothes. As he drank, he listened to the music and seemed to be enjoying himself.


    "I''m really glad to be able to hear Ukiyo again in my life," the old man muttered to himself, smiling. His look seemed to have penetrated across time as he recalled the past.


    Over 300 years ago, the piece Ukiyo appeared along with the emperors of that generation.


    How about now?

 374 A Carriage Pulled by the Responding Dragon

    Chapter 374: A Carriage Pulled by the Responding Dragon


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Year Ten Thousand and Four of the Divine Prefecture Calendar


    In the back mountains of the Cottage, an ocean of clouds graced the skies along with a beautiful sunrise. Such a picturesque view. On a field of grass, music played from a guqin. The rays of the new year''s first sun fell on Ye Futian''s face. Both he and his music were full of youthful spirit. Beside him, Hua Jieyu sat quietly. As the music continued to flow, she sat audience while appreciating the beautiful sunrise. Everything seemed perfect. If only life was always like this.


    Looking around her surroundings, the Spiritual Qi took shape and fell continuously. It looked like tiny sparks of gold in the air. Every bit of Spiritual Qi was so clearly visible to them as it filled the area they were in. This was brought about by the sounds of the guqin. When Ye Futian used his spiritual energy to create harmony between his music and heaven and earth, all the Spiritual Qi in the air stood still.


    The first rays of sunlight shined on Ye Futian''s handsome figure. A peculiar aura radiated from him. It was almost as if he was in control of everything in existence. All the spiritual energy materialized in his mind. Spiritual Qi of all elements came together with the artistic conception created by the sounds of the guqin and assimilated into his will.


    Just then, the fingers of Ye Futian''s right hand strummed across the chords of the guqin. As the music sounded, the Spiritual Qi around transformed into golden vines. They continued to grow endlessly and as the gathered Spiritual Qi grew more powerful, the golden vines shot into the sky like flashes of lightning at an unbelievable speed.


    At this, a look of surprise spread across Hua Jieyu''s face. He had succeeded. Ye Futian had actually successfully cultivated the spell given to him by the teacher in a day.


    The music stopped and Ye Futian opened his eyes. Although the sun was on him, it was not blinding. The look in his eyes was pure and held the hint of a smile.


    Three elements incorporated into one spell. This brand-new spell had the tenacity of the wood element, the sharpness and defensiveness of the metal element, and the speed of the wind element. It was terrifyingly powerful, far more powerful than the Lock of a Thousand Vines. The name of this spell, the Fatal Entanglement.


    "Not bad." Hua Jieyu smiled.


    "Of course! That''s because I''m your man," Ye Futian said pridefully.


    Hua Jieyu let out a soft humph.


    "Do you think the old man has more of these types of spell that he''s keeping to himself?" mumbled Ye Futian. If they were all spells of this level, he would definitely be able to defeat common attacks from any cultivator at the same level. He would also no longer need to rely on the Nine Heavenly Attacks during battle. His strong martial arts and sorcery abilities greatly complimented each other, taking his combat ability to a whole new level.


    This way, even if he made his way into the Arcana Plane, he wouldn''t have to worry about fighting cultivators from other planes. After all, as the levels of cultivation increased, the difference between each plane also increased. People went to new means and took more powerful measures. Thus, causing the effects of some of his skills to decrease. Ye Futian must do more if he wanted to have the same combat ability between different planes as he did before.


    "How greedy," teased Hua Jieyu.


    "This isn''t greedy. How''s this for greed? I want every day to be like today so you''re the first person I see in the morning." Ye Futian chuckled.


    Obviously, Hua Jieyu knew what he was insinuating. She smiled softly. "What are you thinking? Would you have been able to release the Fatal Entanglement without the help of your music? Focus on cultivating. Don''t you want to gloat in front of Mr. Du later?"


    "You''ve got a point. Indeed, my fox is the only one who gets me," Ye Futian nodded. Then, he closed his eyes again. Previously, he had entered a mysterious realm through his music and assimilated into the Spiritual Qi of the world by the means of spiritual energy. That was how he released the spell. Without the help of the Ukiyo song, it was difficult to do so. Ye Futian continued on his way to enlightenment through cultivation.


    Many hours later, the teacher strolled in while stretching. He smiled at the sight of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu cultivating together. This rascal sure is diligent. Looks like I''ll have to put him down a little more...


    Would Ye Futian spit blood in anger if he knew what the teacher was thinking at the moment? Need to be put down for being diligent?


    "Teacher." Hua Jieyu turned around to greet him.


    "Morning, Jieyu." Mr. Du smiled at her. Ye Futian stood as well. His eyes were shining as he said his greetings. "Teacher, the spell you gave me yesterday was no challenge at all, I already mastered it."


    "Oh, really? Show me." The elder male placed his hands behind his back and smiled at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded in response and closed his eyes. A peculiar force of will radiated from his body while his spiritual energy harmonized with the Spiritual Qi around. A moment later, the air was filled with golden vines that blocked the sun. They grew extremely rapidly and created a cage around the entire area in mere seconds.


    Witnessing the spell released in front of his eyes, the elder gave Ye Futian a look. He was looking down on him. "It took you a whole day to learn that and it takes you that long to release the spell? Who''s going to wait for you in a battle? If you meet a powerful opponent, you would be dead before you finished releasing the spell."


    Uh�� Ye Futian blinked. According to his script, wasn''t the teacher was supposed to be shocked and subdued by his great gift? However, he did have a point.


    "How come I have such an incompetent disciple?" The elder sighed. "Here are some more spells. Keep them and focus on cultivation. Don''t even think about going anywhere else before you learn everything. I can''t stand to be embarrassed by you if you leave the mountains with your abilities at this level." With that said, the elder threw some books at Ye Futian and turned to leave. He walked with leisure, hands behind his back.


    "I��" he wanted to cuss but held himself back when he looked at the books in his arms.


    Hua Jieyu let out a laugh. Ye Futian had finally met his match. Mr. Du was a strange man indeed. Not even her father could render Ye Futian speechless like that.


    And just like that, Ye Futian was put on house arrest. From the very first day of the new year, he was forbidden from leaving the back mountains to focus solely on cultivation. So pitiful. Ye Futian began to miss the days before the teacher returned to the Cottage.


    ��


    The days passed and the Eastern Barren Territory remained quiet without any rain or storm. Those of the Qin Dynasty alliance still had their heads buried in cultivation. Everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory knew that they were preparing for the final war.


    Things had already escalated to this point. The battle of the Eastern Barren Territory was inevitable. Furthermore, the Qin were in a much bigger hurry for this war to begin. Mr. Du had already returned to the Cottage and all of the Eastern Barren Territory already knew how capable he was in bringing up his disciples. There was no way they were going to give him more time to do so.


    After the bells rang on Sky Mountain the year before, the snow never stopped. The Eastern Barren Territory''s number one mountain was now a snow mountain, covered with a soft, fluffy layer of precipitation. After all this time, the bells never rang again. The commotion at the foot of the mountain had also subsided. However, there was still quite a handful of people who stayed behind. For example, there was the Qianqiu Temple of the Eastern Barren Territory''s Western Region. Now that those from Sword Saint Mountain had moved to Book Mountain, the Qianqiu Temple was now at the top throughout the Western Region.


    However, the temple still felt a wave of urgency.


    If a big war broke out in the Eastern Barren Territory, the times of top clans fighting for power would be over. As soon as victory was determined, all power in the Eastern Barren Territory would fall in the hands of one group. The people must pray for change, to become stronger.


    At the foot of Sky Mountain, the Arhat looked up at the majestic mountain. He remembered the situation when he climbed the mountain last year. That was his first time stepping on to Sky Mountain and he had reached the very top. After that time, he had tried many times, but not once did he reach such heights again.


    "The evil energy from Sky Mountain is growing stronger," one of Qianqiu Temple''s monks said from beside the Arhat. He held a strand of Buddhist beads in his hand while his sight was set on the great mountain in front of him.


    "It''s been this way since the bells rang. Furthermore, the force of repressed energy has also gotten stronger. The two energies seem to have kept at a balance from the very beginning, fighting from dominance," another person said from the side.


    "Could it be that the bells were really the summoning of the Great Emperor and that someone had already made their way onto the mountain?" someone mumbled.


    "It''s very possible. The short period after the first bell would have been the perfect opportunity."


    Hearing the elders'' words reminded the Arhat of the first time he stepped onto Sky Mountain. At that time, someone attacked him and used the Spiritual Qi on the mountain to force him off the mountain. If someone had really made their way to the top of Sky Mountain, could it be the same person who attacked him? Also, the bells rang again once he was off the mountain. It was when Ye Futian came down. The Nobles of the Qin Dynasty had wanted to hurt him when the bells rang again. Could it really just be a coincidence?


    The Arhat''s eyes were cold. He had a feeling. If someone really did make their way onto Sky Mountain, it was very possible that it was Ye Futian.


    Just then, the roar of a dragon came from the skies above. The cultivators of the Qianqiu Temple were surprised. The roar did not come from Sky Mountain. It was headed for the mountain.


    Turning their attention, everyone looked up into the sky. Snow began to fall, blowing in the wind. In the high skies, a dragon appeared. This dragon actually had wings. It was the Responding Dragon also known as the lord of the skies.


    The dragon came down toward them. Those of the Qianqiu Temple were shaken as they took in the scene unfolding above them. Not just because they saw the Responding Dragon, but also because there were some figures standing on its back. The most shocking thing was that the dragon was pulling a carriage.


    Someone had arrived in a dragon-pulled carriage. A carriage pulled by the Responding Dragon.


    Even those of the Qianqiu Temple were shocked, so it was no question for the others. Many at the foot of the mountain looked up and trembled in fear. Who was this person?


    In all of the Eastern Barren Territory, they had only heard of the powerful Dragon Army of the Qin Dynasty and not even they could compare to the line-up in the skies right now.


    The dragon carriage stopped above Sky Mountain. On its back, the group of people took one look at the crowd on the ground below with cold eyes, showing no emotions. Then, a few youths stepped out of the carriage. There was an indescribable aura around them. They didn''t look down, but instead, focused all their attention on Sky Mountain. Was this the place where Donghuang the Great and Emperor Yeqing left their mark?

 375 A Person Who Can Change the World

    Chapter 375: A Person Who Can Change the World


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Donghuang the Great and Emperor Yeqing united the Divine Prefecture, many people began to follow their trail. A lot of people knew that Donghuang the Great and Emperor Yeqing spent some time in the Eastern Barren Territory during their upbringing, which was why so many wanted to step into the Eastern Barren Territory. However, the two emperors put out a ban stating that non-native Sages were not allowed to enter the Eastern Barren Territory.


    They had united the Divine Prefecture and were peerless existences. Who would dare to challenge the ban? Even to this day, there were many who didn''t quite understand the reason for the emperors'' ban. Despite this, there still many people who followed their footsteps in those days. Naturally, they all knew about Sky Mountain, but no one was ever able to reach the top, especially Nobles.


    Last year, however, the people heard that bells rang out from Sky Mountain. Powerful cultivators from all over the Eastern Barren Territory gathered to climb the mountain, as there was a chance they might find relics left by the two emperors on the mountain.


    On the Responding Dragon, the two people leading the group were clad in silver. Looking at Sky Mountain, one of them spoke, "I heard that many people made attempts here. No one succeeded?"


    "That''s correct. No one was successful and after time everyone simply gave up. The number of people coming to the Eastern Barren Territory also greatly decreased. I speculate that the emperors'' wills have assimilated into Sky Mountain and only Sages have a chance of withstanding the power, making it possible for them to make it onto the mountain. However, because of the ban, Sages can''t enter the territory and no one dares to sneak in. No one knows for sure whether or not the will of Donghuang the Great can oversee everything happening on the Sky Mountain," explained a Noble standing beside the youth. He was more knowledgeable in events from all those years ago.


    "Did the two emperors actually leave anything behind on Sky Mountain?" The youth was getting curious. Almost everyone in the world was curious about everything regarding the two emperors. They were true legends.


    "Who knows. But since the bells rang, there might actually be something."


    "You guys came quick." The voice came from afar. A flame-like red light was suddenly emitted from the skies, melting all the falling snow. A group of shining figures descended from above. The light was blinding, just like the sun.


    It was a large Sun Bird, the Three-legged Golden Raven. Its body was engulfed in flames and its eyes filled with a wild look. On the raven''s back was what seemed like a sun carriage. On the two sides of the carriage stood many powerful cultivators, protecting the person seated in between. Just like the previous group, it was definitely a majestic sight.


    All this commotion... Everyone standing at the foot of Sky Mountain were in shock. That was two powerful groups in a row. With such eye-catching entrances, they didn''t seem like any powers of the Eastern Barren Territory. They were much more dazzling. With a pounding in their chests, many speculated, could they be outsiders? How many years has it been since the last time an outsider set foot in the Eastern Barren Territory?


    "Let me give it a try," said the youth in the silver. Without sparing a glance at the person who had previously spoken, he headed straight for Sky Mountain. Many youths beside him also stepped up to join him. They were all cultivators in the Arcana Plane. Nobody above the Noble Plane was allowed on Sky Mountain. They were all very clear on this o rule.


    Youths from the carriage pulled by the Three-legged Golden Raven also made their way toward Sky Mountain. The Responding Dragon and the Three-legged Golden Raven stopped in the skies, attracting a lot of attention.


    The happenings of the next few days had the audience at the foot of the mountain feeling unsettled.


    In the next few days, people continued to arrive at Sky Mountain. Some people came in a flying battleship. This ship was quite intimidating. It flew in the skies and was carried by the winds. Obviously, it was an extremely powerful ritual implement used for flight. However, the people of the Eastern Barren Territory had never seen or even heard of anything like it. Same as the other groups, this ship carried many powerful cultivators. Among them, were a few beauties. They had long, slim legs, beautiful, pale skin, and exquisite features. They also made their way onto Sky Mountain. There were also cultivators that arrived mounting large demon beasts. Their demonic auras filled the skies and frightened those at the foot of the mountain.


    More and more cultivators gathered. Even those from the Qianqiu Temple were feeling unsettled. The huge war of the Eastern Barren Territory could break out at any moment. Nobody would have expected for outside powers to arrive at Sky Mountain because of the bells at a time like this.


    From what they knew, the Eastern Barren Territory hadn''t had these many outside visitors in many years now. After all, people aimed to reach high places. An extremely small percentage of those who left were ever willing to return. Had it not been from the relics of Sky Mountain left by the two emperors, the resource-lacking Eastern Barren Territory really didn''t hold much appeal to the outside world.


    As the news of Sky Mountain spread, the Western Region was stirred up. Then, it continued to spread all throughout the Eastern Barren Territory.


    On Book Mountain, at the Cottage, Ye Futian was the first to get the news, with the exception of those who set camp at the foot of Sky Mountain. As soon as those cultivators set foot on Sky Mountain, he knew. The Black Wind Eagle was still cultivating on the mountain.


    "Teacher, outsiders of the Eastern Barren Territory have arrived at Sky Mountain." In the back mountains, Ye Futian spoke to Mr. Du who was drinking while seated on a cliff.


    "I know," the elder answered as he stared into the distance. He never expected that the bells of Sky Mountain would not only stir-up the Eastern Barren Territory but also pique the interest of the outside world. Was this a good thing or a bad thing? He was very clear. Ever since the two emperors established the ban, there had been little to no contact between the Eastern Barren Territory and the outside world. Now, the territory had once again attracted the attention of the outside world. This was a big change.


    "Come sit," said Mr. Du. Ye Futian nodded and sat down beside him. Mr. Du didn''t seem like he was in the best mood.


    "Do you know why there were only seven disciples in the Cottage before you?" Mr. Du asked suddenly. Ye Futian shook his head. Although this old man was unlikeable at times, there was no doubting his teaching abilities. It was evident based on his own thoughts after these days of cultivation and also through the abilities of First Senior Brother and Second Senior Sister.


    "Because I''m lazy. Humans are the most complicated. Not even the disciples that you have taught yourself will agree with everything you teach them. Especially as time goes on, it is so easy to throw away things you used to feel so strongly about. I''m just one person, there''s only so much I can do. How can I influence many? All I can hope for is that the disciples I teach can influence even more people in the future." As he spoke, he took another drink of wine. This is the first time Ye Futian had seen him like this and so he spoke, "I heard from First Senior Brother that you had your own dreams. That must be your reason for starting the Cottage. What are your dreams?"


    "What dreams could a person like me possibly have?" Mr. Du shook his head and continued, "Do you know why Donghuang the Great and Emperor Yeqing gave orders for martial arts schools to be set up all around the world?"


    "To help martial arts thrive," Ye Futian answered. This was what it said in the history books.


    "300 some years ago, the Divine Prefecture was in complete chaos. There were countless strong powers and each of them controlled a different location. Or they started family clans, some tried to develop their own religion. These people were their own masters, but was the existence of these powers a good or bad thing for the people," questioned Mr. Du.


    Ye Futian didn''t reply. He simply sat and listened.


    "Of course, there was nothing wrong with families and clans. However, when you had something they wanted or if you became a threat to their interests, somethings became inevitable. For example, why did the Qin Dynasty want to take down the Cottage?"


    Naturally, Ye Futian understood why. The Cottage was strong and powerful which the Qin Dynasty felt was a threat. That was why they were so set on destroying the Cottage.


    Mr. Du continued, "In the vast lands of the Divine Prefecture, formidable beings that could greatly affect us were born. When they appear, you would be able to imagine things you''ve never been in contact with before. Take the many cultivators who arrived in the mountains today for example. What would happen if they knew that someone had made it to the top of Sky Mountain and received the relics of the two emperors?"


    Ye Futian looked at his teacher. The elder still had his eyes focused ahead. He didn''t know if there was a hidden meaning behind what Mr. Du said, but Ye Futian understood.


    When these formidable beings appeared, they would most certainly gain the support of the best of the best and be able to receive the best resources. Nobody would be able to restrict them from doing anything they wanted. This was something both the teacher and Second Senior Sister had reminded him twice of. It was the same logic as a person with a weapon will produce the killing thoughts. Wasn''t that exactly what Emperor Luo did to him all those years ago?


    "The Divine Prefecture has always been run this way. It hasn''t changed in millions of years. It''s the same even today. Even so, there are always some who have remained untouched by the dirty ways of the world despite the hardships they have been through and instead; they dream of changing the world. And that is how the two emperors of the Divine Prefecture were born." The elder looked serious. His tone was filled with admiration and respect. "How could someone become a leader of the world without having the people of the world at heart. That is why martial arts schools were established. It was to try to give everyone in the Divine Prefecture a fair chance."


    "However, it''s not that easy, changing the world. Even for the emperors. It would be difficult to simply change the Eastern Barren Territory, so forget about the Divine Prefecture." The elder seemed to be laughing at himself. It was then that Ye Futian withdrew his playful attitude and became serious. He was now also filled with admiration and respect.


    So, this was the teacher''s dream. Wanting to change the world. It sounded like a laughable thing, but at the same time, it was sad.


    "So many people in history have wanted to change the world. However, when they reached a certain status, their mindset changes. If you were the College Chief, would you want the other powers of the Eastern Barren Territory to overpower the College?" The elder continued, "So, Futian, sooner or later, you''ll step out of the Eastern Barren Territory and you''ll witness crueler things. You''ll see the black and whites of the world. I hope that no matter what you experience, you''ll stay true to yourself and remember your beginnings. If one day, you can become a person who influences the world, even if it''s nothing bid, never forget your initial intentions. Never became the type of person you once despised."


    "I understand," nodded Ye Futian.


    "Alright, go cultivate," said the elder.


    Ye Futian lifted his head slightly to look at the older male with a smile. "Teacher, after all that, I see you in a whole new light."


    "Scram," the elder gave him a glare.


    "And there goes your good image again." Ye Futian sighed and turned to leave. He would place the elder''s words deep in his heart. Even if he couldn''t become a person who could affect the world in the future, he would most definitely not become a person who did bad things.

 376 Descend Upon Book Mountain

    Chapter 376: Descend Upon Book Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the foot of Sky Mountain, it was a beautiful sight with dragons, Golden Ravens, and floating warships. Many more people were attracted to Sky Mountain. They wanted to see the strong cultivators who''d come from beyond the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The extraordinary youths descended from the mountain those days to return to their camps. They couldn''t climb Sky Mountain. Countless eyes focused on the beautiful figures in the sky. Even they couldn''t climb Sky Mountain?


    "Has anyone climbed Sky Mountain since the bell rang last year?" a handsome youth on a dragon asked while looking down.


    Many people below him met his eyes and shook their heads.


    The Arhat''s eyes flashed. The pressure of Sky Mountain increased after the last year. It was normal to be unable to climb the mountain no matter how strong you were.


    "Yes," someone said at that time. A figure in a gold robe walked out of the robe. Seeing him, many people were confused. It was Qin Yu of the Qin Dynasty. Shouldn''t he be preparing the battle with the College? Why was he here?


    "I am Qin Yu from the Eastern Barren Territory''s Qin Dynasty. Greetings," he said, soaring into the sky.


    "Who?" The youth did not greet him back. Qin Yu had extraordinary temperament and cultivation, but he didn''t care. He wanted to know who could reach the top of Sky Mountain.


    The sharp gazes of people of other forces landed on Qin Yu. They wanted to know too.


    "A junior of mine reached the peak last year," Qin Yu said.


    "Where is he? What''s at the peak of Sky Mountain?" a fiery youth from the Golden Raven asked. Fire intent burned in his eyes. This was because of the technique he cultivated. He was so powerful that it showed in his movements.


    "She is in my clan. The wills of the two emperors are at the peak. They''d left a famous piece called Ukiyo," Qin Yu. Hua Qingqing had admitted to stepping onto Sky Mountain. She wouldn''t lie.


    "Ukiyo." Everyone''s eyes flashed. Ukiyo was one of the top ten pieces. It was said that there would be no law with it. Apparently, when Donghuang the Great played it at his peak, he froze all the laws and time. Was it here again?


    "If you dare lie, you will pay for the consequences. Where is she? I shall go now," the fiery youth said.


    "I would like to see as well," a beautiful girl on a floating warship said.


    All strong cultivators were intrigued. They wanted to go forward and fight for the chance for Ukiyo.


    "Everyone, my junior has limited cultivation," Qin Yu said, putting his hands together. "She heard Ukiyo, but only heard it. She couldn''t play it and wasn''t able to learn it. She can''t perform it."


    At this, everyone grew disappointed, but it was normal. As one of the top ten pieces, it couldn''t be easy to get. However, if she could reach the top of Sky Mountain, she must be impressive.


    "In that case, bring her here," the youth said. Qin Yu nodded. He came to Sky Mountain because he''d heard this news. If he could get connections with these people from outside the Eastern Barren Territory, the Cottage would be nothing. He guessed that these people who''d crossed such miles were probably at the Sage Plane.


    The hearts of the people below trembled when they heard this. They couldn''t believe that someone had actually climbed Sky Mountain and heard Ukiyo.


    The Arhat''s heart was clear. He knew who Qin Yu was talking about. When he was resting on Sky Mountain, Ye Futian''s group had come. Hua Qingqing of the Donghua Clan had been close behind Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Qin Yu meant that Hua Qingqing had stepped onto the peak. If she reached it, then why did Ye Futian descend unharmed? This was interesting.


    "Greetings, Crown Prince." Thinking of this, the Arhat descended and greeted Qin Yu.


    Qin Yu looked at him, confused. Why was the Qianqiu Temple talking to him?


    "Are you speaking of Hua Qingqing of the Donghua Clan?" the Arhat asked.


    "Yes." Qin Yu nodded. Since he said it, he wouldn''t hide it. He hoped Hua Qingqing could take these people up.


    The Arhat smiled. "If that''s true, I know someone else who also reached the peak. Perhaps Hua Qingqing never told you."


    Qin Yu furrowed his brow. "Speak."


    "When I climbed Sky Mountain, I had seen Hua Qingqing," the Arhat said. "She was chasing after Ye Futian��perhaps because Ye Futian had killed the royal grandson of the Qin Dynasty." Hearing this, Qin Yu''s expression turned ugly. This was a thorn in his heart.


    "If Hua Qingqing reached the peak, she must have caught up to Ye Futian. Why are they both alive now? Ye Futian had been gravely injured at that time and couldn''t fight back," the Arhat continued.


    Hearing this, Qin Yu instantly understood what the Arhat was hinting at. His features twisted. Hua Qingqing hadn''t mentioned this. She only told her mother, Lady Yuxiao, that she reached the top but wouldn''t say anything else. Because of her status, no one asked further.


    But now, he had to think more.


    "Crown Prince, do you know about the bells after Ye Futian descended?" the Arhat asked. Qin Yu nodded. Someone had naturally reported this to him. The noble sent to kill Ye Futian had been killed instead. It was very ironic.


    "If Ye Futian stepped onto Sky Mountain, do you think it would be a coincidence?" The Arhat was getting closer to the truth.


    "You mean that Ye Futian received the relic on the mountain?" Qin Yu''s eyes were so sharp. The Arhat smiled without replying.


    "Who is Ye Futian?" the strong cultivator on the dragon asked.


    "The Cottage is the most powerful force in the Eastern Barren Territory," the Arhat said, bowing. "Their disciples are extremely talented and no one in the Eastern Barren Territory can rival them. Ye Futian is the youngest disciple. He is monstrously talented. To him, the relic would be easy to take. If anyone of the younger generation can take it, it must be him."


    The Arhat praised Ye Futian generously. He knew the Buddhist law and understood a human''s heart. These people from outside the Eastern Barren Territory had come with such a spectacle. They must have a special status. With their arrogance and special identities, they wouldn''t think that they were below someone from the Eastern Barren Territory. Of course, he couldn''t say that. It would be like looking for death. He just bragged about Ye Futian to complement it.


    "Really?" the youth on the three-foot Golden Raven replied coolly, as expected. His eyes seemed to have sacred fire. Was there somewhere like the Cottage in the Eastern Barren Territory?


    "Where is the Cottage? Take us there," the strong cultivator on the floating warship said.


    "Of course," the Arhat said with his hands in prayer.


    "Please," the person said. The Arhat''s body flashed and stepped onto the floating warship. The woman there was very tall. Her long legs seemed to take up more than half of her body. She was sexy and beautiful. The Arhat lowered his head, hands together. His Buddhist heart couldn''t be swayed. The other girls had extraordinary looks too. They were obviously above average figures.


    Everyone turned around, ready to set off. Since Ye Futian could get the relic, they would go personally. Otherwise, he should come by himself.


    "Take the Hua Qingqing that you spoke of before to Sky Mountain to wait here," the strong cultivator on the dragon said to Qin Yu. His attitude was arrogant but Qin Yu didn''t lose his temper.


    He nodded and said, "Yes." As he spoke, he glanced at the Arhat. It seemed that the Qianqiu Temple could be an ally too. The Arhat''s actions weren''t too friendly to Ye Futian.


    The floating warship shot forward like lightning. Dragons soared, spreading their wings and covering the sun. The sun god''s bird screamed�� The many strong cultivators set off at once to the Book Mountain, the divine capital in the center of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "This��" Many people below were shocked. They''d thought that the Qin Dynasty and Cottage would erupt into battle. They didn''t expect that an outside force would arrive and didn''t know what would happen if they went to Book Mountain. And Ye Futian had reached the peak of Sky Mountain, receiving the two emperors'' relic? With the Cottage''s pride, they wouldn''t hand it over even if Ye Futian really had it.


    The College, Cottage, and Moon Clan were all on Book Mountain. Every day was lively with all disciples working hard on cultivating in preparation for sudden changes.


    Now, clouds rolled over the empty sky above Book Mountain. Many people looked up to see a horrible dragon rush down from the sky. At the same time, a huge beautiful warship appeared overhead.


    Next, dazzling flames rose up in the sky. The Golden Raven had come with the sun chariot. Gradually, other strong cultivators arrived with demons and rushed down. Seeing this shocking scene, all hearts of the disciples trembled. What was happening?


    This was such a powerful spectacle. They''d heard that foreign strong cultivators had arrived at Sky Mountain, but why were they here at Book Mountain?


    May figures rose up. Countless mountain elders and strong cultivators of the Sword Saint Mountain and Moon Clan soared. They stared at the comers. Even the College''s headmaster looked up with furrowed brows.


    They aren''t weak, the strong cultivators who went up to the sky thought. They didn''t mind though. If not for Donghuang the Great''s law, the entire Eastern Barren Territory would be ruled as one.


    The Cottage also looked up. Zhuge Hui''s eyes flashed coldly. Where were these people from? They were so impolite.


    "Where are you going?" Mr. Du called just as Zhuge Hui was about to soar into the air.


    "Teacher, I want to go see," she replied.


    "Stay obediently," Mr. Du said, giving her a look.


    "Oh." Zhuge Hui was sad, but she still obeyed. She naturally understood her teacher, but she didn''t care. After all, she had been young when she came out back then!

 377 Low-class Clan

    Chapter 377: Low-class Clan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Zhu Qing stared at the newcomers and asked, "What are you here at the College for?"


    The strong cultivator in the air looked at her. The three-footed Golden Raven pulled the sun chariot. The youth who seemed to be bathed in fire said, "Is this the most powerful sorcery paradise of the Eastern Barren Territory?"


    He was from the center of the Barren State. The Eastern Barren Territory was only a small portion of the boundless Barren State. Because of Donghuang the Great''s law, it became isolated from the rest of the state. Without the arrival of Saint strong cultivators, it naturally fell from glory. Even if there were extraordinary figures, they would leave and never wish to return.


    The Barren State was boundless and had countless strong forces. He was from one of them��the Sacred Fire Sect of the Barren State. The others with him had come from super forces as well. Otherwise, they wouldn''t cross the world to come here.


    "This is the College of the Eastern Barren Territory," Mountain Elder Zong Xu said, answering him.


    "Is Ye Futian here?" the beautiful girl on the warship asked.


    "Why are you looking for him?" A handsome and charismatic figure soared into the air. Clad in white, he looked like a scholar but had a sharp aura. It was Gu Dongliu.


    "We heard that Ye Futian reached the peak of Sky Mountain last year and received the two emperors'' relic," the girl said in a cool and gentle voice. "We wish to see him."


    "Who said that?" Gu Dongliu asked coolly. He knew that his junior had made it, but he didn''t know what he''d received. He didn''t ask either. It was easy to cause trouble about this. The fewer people who knew about it, the better. Now that these outsiders knew about it, it was clear that someone had told them.


    No matter if Ye Futian really had the relic, the person who told them had ulterior motives. The woman didn''t reply. The Arhat stepped down the warship.


    "Where is Ye Futian?" the strong cultivator on the dragon directed his question below him, ignoring Gu Dongliu''s interrogation. His voice shook the sky. They didn''t have time for this nonsense.


    Many people were furious. They were so rude.


    Another figure rose up from the Cottage. It was Ye Futian. He looked at them, confused. Did Hua Qingqing tell? If it was her, why would she jump down the mountain instead of attacking him?


    "Why are you looking for me?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes," Ye Futian admitted. The College disciples stared. No one knew that Ye Futian had reached the peak last year.


    "What did you receive?" the man asked again.


    "The two emperors left a melody at the peak. I listened to it, cultivated for a bit, and then descended," Ye Futian answered.


    "Is it Ukiyo that they left behind?" As expected, Ye Futian''s words matched Qin Yu''s. The peak really did contain Ukiyo.


    "I do not know the name. The melody is very difficult and impossible to see its mystery," Ye Futian replied. Ukiyo indeed was very hard to cultivate. It was logical that he couldn''t see its mystery. It would be strange if he could.


    The Cottage thought of the melody that had rung out at the end of last year. They knew that Ye Futian had learned it. Of course, they wouldn''t betray him.


    "Are you done asking?" Gu Dongliu''s eyes were sharp. He glanced at the intruders. They''d landed directly on Book Mountain, looking down on them and interrogating Ye Futian. He was pissed.


    Many people in the air looked at Gu Dongliu with arched eyebrows. Book Mountain was very proud and they seemed offended by them.


    "If you''re done, please leave," Gu Dongliu said. He was telling the guests to leave. Of course, these people weren''t guests.


    "So arrogant." Someone on a demon smiled thinly. "Come with us," he said to Ye Futian.


    The people on Book Mountain were angry. Arrogant? Who was the arrogant one? And they''d just told Ye Futian to go with them. That was so rude.


    "You all came so impolitely and landed directly over Book Mountain. Now you are taking a disciple of the College away and you want me to be submissive? Aren''t you crossing the line?" Mountain Elder Zong Xu said coolly. Ye Futian was from the Cottage, but he also belonged to the College.


    "Shouldn''t a low-class clan be like that?" a cold elder from a dragon said harshly. In the cultivation world, the strong cultivators were the highest class. Since they were here, the low-class clans should receive them submissively. This was the rule of their world. Did the Eastern Barren Territory not even know this because of their isolation?


    All strong cultivators in the air thought this was natural. Why did they have to explain it?


    The College disciples were furious. The words were so ugly, but they knew. Even in the Eastern Barren Territory, this implied rule existed. This was the cultivation world.


    The people of the College were in an uproar. They were so insulted.


    Ye Futian stood in the air with a calm expression. However, he was troubled inside. His teacher had been telling him a few days ago that it was logical for the malpractices of the most powerful clans. It was a lot to ask the strong to respect the weak. If these people wanted him to go, he had to go.


    They were more respectful than Emperor Luo too. After all, he was just a small figure to these people now. If he was insignificant, their attitude would be like Emperor Luo.


    "Low-class clan?" Gu Dongliu uttered coldly. He was from the Cottage. The Cottage couldn''t be insulted. He wouldn''t let them take his junior away.


    Gu Dongliu walked forward, an invisible current flowing through him. "I am Gu Dongliu, first-tier Noble Plane. Please."


    The strong cultivators in the air were confused. Was he challenging them? It was interesting to be challenged by a low-class clan in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The handsome youth on the dragon looked to the elder who''d spoken. The elder stepped out immediately. He was the one who had called them a low-class clan. His aura abounded and was extremely powerful. When he stood in the air, the entire space seemed to become heavy. Everyone in the College felt horrible pressure fall upon them, almost flattening them.


    A few mountain elders stepped out with their own currents. They blocked the might in the air so it wouldn''t reach the ground. The strong cultivators in the air watched calmly.


    "Hmph," the elder huffed. He reached out and clenched a fist before Gu Dongliu. Instantly, a terrible pressure was born. The Spiritual Qi in the world shook as if a huge palm was created and pushed to Gu Dongliu.


    The current across Gu Dongliu turned more terrible. His eyes shone with sorcery light and flashed like lightning to the surroundings. The palm instantly scattered into Spiritual Qi.


    "The haven of sorcery in the Eastern Barren Territory?" The elder walked forward. The sky and earth were so heavy. He raised a hand and there was thunder. Earth Spiritual Qi went wild in the air, pressing down to Gu Dongliu so he couldn''t move. He raised a hand and punched the air. Loud explosions sounded. Everyone could see a fist intent cut through the air, sweeping about as if it could destroy everything.


    Wind whistled with this punch. It swept with powerful force towards Gu Dongliu.


    Boom! Ancient words flowed around Gu Dongliu, forming nine words, meaning "may the presiders over warriors be my vanguard."


    Every ancient word transformed into a dazzling and powerful light. The boundless fist intent cut through the sky like a fist from heaven. It could probably destroy everything.


    Under this, Gu Dongliu seemed so small and would be pulverized under the fist. However, he stood there without moving. When the fist intent came, the nine words shone brilliantly. They swept across, ripping everything. The fist intent kept pressing down but vanished when they collided against the words.


    The strong cultivators in the air were shocked at this. They obviously felt that Gu Dongliu''s Noble Will had reached the pinnacle.


    Gu Dongliu''s eyes were cold. He stared at the other and stepped forward. With this simple step, he transformed into lightning and disappeared.


    Afterimages appeared in the air.


    A shocking roar sounded through the air. The elder released his life spirit dharma. It was an armored stone ape. It was huge and loomed behind him. He clenched his right hand and seemed to be one with the aggressive stone ape.


    Seeing the lightning, he roared angrily and punched. The stone ape roared, shaking the world. The terrifying fist was like a mountain, about to destroy everything blocking him. The fist intent kept building up too. It seemed endless and unshakeable.


    The light streaked across and crashed into the huge and terrifying fist. An explosion sounded and the boulder flew. Heavy rumbles kept sounding. The crowd saw countless fist shadows get broken through. There seemed to be a beam of sharp light inside that couldn''t be blocked.


    Boom!


    With that loud boom, the aggressive elder arched backward. A handprint appeared on his chest. The next moment, he flew back as if struck by lightning to the dragon. Someone behind him stepped forward and used powerful strength to stop him.


    The old man spat out blood, dying his collar red.


    "High-class clan? You can''t take a hit!" Gu Dongliu said coldly, gazing at the elder from where he had stood earlier.


    The elder spat out more blood, his face completely red!

 378 Win Over

    Chapter 378: Win Over


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    He''d been defeated instantly. The elder''s blood boiled within him. He felt so embarrassed. Low-class clan? He had been defeated so pathetically.


    On the dragon''s back, the charismatic youth at the front looked at Gu Dongliu. "I am from the Nantian House of the Barren State. If you wish to join my house, I will not treat you badly." He wanted to take Gu Dongliu in. This was a low-class clan in the Eastern Barren Territory but it wasn''t strange for there to be a powerful person. This place was known as the haven for cultivation in the Eastern Barren Territory. It was natural there should be some shining stars.


    Thus, he wanted the other to join him in the Nantian House. If Gu Dongliu was willing to follow him, he would be a great help in the future. After all, he had many competitors in the house. Having his followers deal with powerful figures wasn''t embarrassing.


    "The Nantian House is a familial clan. You can join the Taixuan Mountain for cultivation," another strong cultivator on a mountain said. Gu Dongliu could summon the nine words and had a special life spirit. Someone so powerful deserved to be won over.


    "Would you like to join the Mortal World?" the beautiful girl on the warship also asked. Her voice was very gentle and her benefits were obvious. Her force was called the Mortal World.


    Below, the people of the College all had odd expressions at these words. They wanted to win over Gu Dongliu but who was Gu Dongliu?


    He was the third disciple of the Cottage��someone who was known throughout the Eastern Barren Territory. So what if they were powerful forces from the outer Barren State? Was he supposed to submit to them?


    The College disciples didn''t like the Cottage, but that didn''t mean they didn''t look up to Gu Dongliu and the others. Especially after that storm where the first three Cottage disciples displayed their brilliance, Gu Dongliu was like a legend to the younger disciples. So what if these intruders were outside forces?


    The strong cultivator from the Nantian House had still been defeated with one hit.


    "Where does the loser get the confidence?"


    "How can the defeated still be so arrogant? Is this what a high-class clan is like?"


    Many disciples started whispering on Book Mountain. They were upset by the tone of the youth from Nantian House. Perhaps the outsiders thought they were being polite to invite Gu Dongliu, but to the disciples of Book Mountain, it was insulting.


    If you wish to join my house, I will not treat you badly.


    What did they take Gu Dongliu as? They wanted him to become a personal guard? How laughable.


    There was another 20-year-old youth behind the Nantian youth who spoke. Hearing the discussions, his eyebrow jumped up and coldness flashed past his eyes.


    These low-class people of the Eastern Barren Territory didn''t respect the Nantian House at all. They were completely isolated from the outside world.


    His body flashed and jumped down like a Roc. An Arcana aura bloomed from him as he announced, "I am in the lower Arcana Plane. I would like to see how the disciples of the cultivation haven are." He didn''t report his name because the people here weren''t good enough. He was just coming out because he''d heard the comments and wanted to teach a lesson. Let them know what the Nantian House was. The man who''d fought Gu Dongliu couldn''t represent the Nantian House at all.


    Dazzling light glittered on him with an extremely sharp silver glow. Seeming to be bathed in divine armor, he shot towards Book Mountain like lightning. The College disciples had sharp eyes. One stepped out and shot up quickly, straight towards the other. He wanted to see just how powerful the Nantian House was.


    Brilliant golden light stole everyone''s attention. The College disciple waved his hand and cast his spell. Beams of golden light shot towards the outsider like swords. However, the Nantian House youth didn''t dodge. He walked in the sky. The countless golden spears that stabbed towards him snapped under his feet. They either passed by him or he stepped on them. He was so domineering.


    After shattering the spell, he continued downward like lightning. Spiritual Qi resonated around the College disciple. Boundless gold Spiritual Qi gathered. However, before he could cast his spell, the other had arrived. He stepped down and the College disciple''s expression changed. The Spiritual Qi transformed into a golden spear that stabbed at the other in panic.


    Crack. The foot landed, snapping the spear. The College disciple tried to retreat, but there was no time. The foot came down squarely on his chest. He fell through the sky, leaving an arc of blood.


    "Cultivation haven of the Eastern Barren Territory?" The youth looked down. The silver light on his body was like true ritual implement armor. It was so eye-catching. He could shatter a spell with his feet. He was so powerful.


    Boom. People rose up from Book Mountain continuously. They were extremely fast with their wind spells and charged at the other.


    The youth gazed at them. Then he flashed and charged towards one. They separated at contact and the College disciple dropped down, covered in blood. After that, the Nantian House youth continued to flash, leaving behind silver afterimages. Those who shot up from Book Mountain kept falling down. No one in the lower Arcana Plane could defeat him.


    "His technique is strange and has an extraordinary life spirit. It''s like a divine ritual implement," a strong cultivator from the College said. This youth was most likely a core figure of the Nantian House. It was logical that he was powerful.


    At this time, another figure shot up. It was Xiao Wuji. Of all current College disciples, he was the strongest in the lower Arcana Plane.


    Bathed in full attribute Noble Will, Xiao Wuji created spells of every element, body dazzling. The two crashed against each other, battling in the air.


    The battle was very intense. It finally wasn''t a one-sided fight.


    The strong cultivators in the air watched patiently. This was the most powerful cultivation spot here. Seeing these cultivators, they realized it still had some talents. This man was quite good.


    The youth below was the pride of the Nantian House. His name was Nan Yu and was in the top ten of his generation. As a disciple of the main lineage, his technique and life spirit all had an advantage. It was quite a feat for someone in the Eastern Barren Territory to fight him to this extent.


    Nan Yu grew stronger and stronger. Endless silver light flowed through him, each beam extremely sharp. They pierced towards Xiao Wuji while a spear appeared in his hands. His spear technique was very precise and broad. He stirred the wind and clouds with his movements. Even when Xiao Wuji tried to dodge with a wind spell, the spear would follow, finally forcing Xiao Wuji back.


    "Such precise techniques." The people of the College had sharp eyes. They didn''t have such great spear techniques. Wind and clouds converged with the spear, forming a horrible force that took control of the air. The attacks went full out without restraint.


    "Finally someone talented that can do this," Nan Yu said coolly to Xiao Wuji.


    Thud. As he spoke, the ground shook. Another figure shot into the air with aggression.


    "Cottage."


    The College disciples looked up. The person who''d appeared was Yu Sheng from the Cottage. His eyes were cold as he went straight to Nan Yu. Nan Yu looked at him with interest. This man''s aura was very wild.


    "Yu Sheng, come back," Ye Futian called. In the air, Yu Sheng stopped abruptly. He looked back at Ye Futian with some frustration. He asked with his eyes why he couldn''t fight.


    These guys were too rude and came to take Ye Futian away so brashly.


    Ye Futian gave him a hard look. With Yu Sheng''s impulsiveness, anything could happen if he attacked. The youth had a high status. If he was badly hurt, it would cause troubles. He had to think about Yu Sheng.


    "The cultivation level of the Nantian House can''t be matched by the Eastern Barren Territory. You saw the previous battle. Will you consider joining?" Nan Feng, the youth on the dragon, said. He was in the top three of the younger generation. Nobles couldn''t climb Sky Mountain, so they''d just sent the best of the youths.


    The College disciples were uncomfortable. Earlier, Gu Dongliu had pressed back, but now, they were still humiliated.


    "Not interested," Gu Dongliu said coldly.


    "Okay." Nan Feng nodded and looked to Ye Futian. "I''m still going to take him. We only want him to take us up Sky Mountain. We won''t hurt him."


    Ye Futian and Qin Yu''s words matched; they didn''t lie. He believed that Ukiyo existed on Sky Mountain, but Ye Futian couldn''t learn it.


    "No time," Gu Dongliu said. The people beside Nan Feng furrowed their brows. This guy was taking their kindness for granted.


    Coldness emanated from the strong cultivators in the sky. Weight pressed down. The low-class clans were so stubborn and disobedient.


    "Third Senior Brother," Ye Futian said, walking up. "I''ll go with them."


    Gu Dongliu looked at him. "Junior, no one is forcing you to do anything. Leave it to us."


    "I know, but I want to return to Sky Mountain," Ye Futian insisted. The Cottage was surrounded by enemies and the Qin Dynasty watched like a predator. If they started a war with the Barren State because of this, it would be a disaster for both the College and Cottage.


    Naturally, he didn''t want them to just care about him and not the others. Furthermore, nothing bad would happen if he went to Sky Mountain.


    "Let him go." A voice came out of the Cottage.


    Gu Dongliu''s eyes flashed and he nodded. "Yes, Teacher."


    Mr. Du was the owner of that voice. Since their teacher said so, Gu Dongliu wouldn''t keep insisting.


    The strong cultivators in the air retracted their auras. It seemed that someone was smart here. Sages couldn''t enter the Eastern Barren Territory, but they still couldn''t defeat the powerful forces from the Barren State!

 379 The Opportunity

    Chapter 379: The Opportunity


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Staring at those figures in the sky, the people of the College were not very happy. Even when confronting the Qin Dynasty''s alliance, the College and the Cottage had never flinched.


    The Qin Dynasty had lost many talents because of the Cottage but still couldn''t handle them. But now they had to be subject to a foreign force. It was obvious to all that the College was anything but the match of the Barren State''s forces. That was why Ye Futian chose to compromise despite Gu Dongliu''s insistence.


    "Let''s go," Nan Feng said to Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng made a step forward. He was vexed.


    "Calm down." Ye Futian glanced at him and then looked up at the sky with a smile. He moved in the air, not heading for the dragon but that warship.


    Nan Yu furrowed his brows. He glanced at Ye Futian with some discontentment.


    "May I come in?" Ye Futian smiled at the lead woman on the ship.


    This woman with long slender legs was Chu Shang, a rare beauty in the world. Seeing Ye Futian coming, she smiled gently and responded, "Please come in."


    "Thank you." Ye Futian stepped up on the warship in the air. Seeing this, the College beneath was speechless. This guy really picked a good place, but they felt good because Nan Yu on the dragon''s back didn''t seem happy about that.


    "Since it''s settled, it''s time to go." Standing on the dragon''s back, Nan Feng chose not to bother since he had reached the goal.


    The dragon rose into the sky and the warship also set off. All strong cultivators all left the Book Mountain.


    Standing with the Cottage, Hua Jieyu looked a little anxious. She asked Mr. Du, "Sir?"


    "Don''t worry!" Mr. Du said gently. When he waited at the Sky Mountain that day, he''d sensed something from the bell''s tolls. Then at the end of the year, he heard Ukiyo played in the Cottage. He knew what that meant.


    That meant if Ye Futian went to the Sky Mountain, it would be very advantageous for him. Further, he was a very shrewd guy.


    "Let me go to have a look." Zhuge Hui was not very reassured.


    Mr. Du didn''t stop her. Many people on the Book Mountain were ready to go, including Zhuge Hui, Gu Dongliu, and the Sword Saint. They rose up in the sky and moved toward Sky Mountain.


    The clouds gathered and rolled on the way. The warship moved very fast. The dragon and three-footed Golden Raven guarded beside warship in case someone came to take Ye Futian away.


    Standing on the warship''s deck, Ye Futian smiled at the woman and said, "I''m Ye Futian. What''s your name?"


    "I''m Chu Shang," the woman responded, looking at the distance.


    Many other women stood behind the two. Some strong cultivators in Noble Plane were staring at Ye Futian too. This guy chose their warship just to flirt with Chu Shang? Did he have some inappropriate thoughts?


    Chu Shang was indeed a charming woman with extraordinary appearance and temperament, but didn''t Ye Futian know Chu Shang''s status? How dare he flirt with her? Probably because the Eastern Barren Territory was isolated and he had no idea how big the gap was between them.


    "I heard you talking to my third senior brother. You said you are from Mortal World. That is a pretty name. What kind of a force is your Mortal World in the Barren State? I guess it must be a very famous clan there," Ye Futian said casually. Those people behind them thought too much. The reason he chose this warship was just because Chu Shang looked more pleasant than Nan Feng. Moreover, women were more willing to have conversations. He could tell that from their attitude toward his third senior brother.


    "Of course, no clans here in the Eastern Barren Territory can be our match," Chu Shang answered very frankly.


    "It is so even if all your forces unite as one," another woman behind them added indifferently.


    Ye Futian grinned. Of course, he knew that the strongest governed all. The forces from the Barren State were so strong. Even their guards were already in the Noble Plane. There must be many sages in their clan. How could the forces in the Eastern Barren Territory be their match? He didn''t ask further. He knew they were disdainful about him. He began to observe the warship. It was very luxurious to make a warship. The Barren State must be a very rich place.


    "I heard that you are the most talented youth among the young generation here?" Nan Yu asked, looking at Ye Futian from the dragon''s back at that moment.


    On Sky Mountain, that monk had claimed that if somebody of the Eastern Barren Territory could get the emperors'' relics, it must be Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flickered. Obviously, somebody imparted them things about him. That was why those guys came to the Cottage looking for him. Whether it be Hua Qingqing or not was not clear. But hearing what Nan Yu said about him, Ye Futian was wondering who hated him so much.


    "I am not very talented. I just reached the Arcana Plane not too long ago. Who told you that? I''m really flattered." Ye Futian laughed.


    "You are not very talented? Then how can you reach the Sky Mountain''s top?" Nan Yu scorned. He wouldn''t believe that Ye Futian was just a normal guy. Since he could reach the mountaintop, there must be something special about him.


    "It''s probably because I am lucky," Ye Futian responded.


    Nan Yu glanced at him coolly. If Ye Futian really was so talented, why didn''t he stand up when they defeated all challengers from the College? Why didn''t he dare to respond? Ye Futian seemed unworthy of his attention.


    "Some people guessed you got the Sky Mountain''s relics. Is that true?" Chu Shang also asked him with a gentle smile. She looked gentle and mild, but Ye Futian could keenly feel the indifference under her smile.


    "Sky Mountain is such a mysterious and profound place," Ye Futian replied. "Just that song is abstruse enough. It''s very difficult for me to understand what it means. I could only roughly feel the artistic conception. How could I get the relics? Do you think it''s possible?" He would not admit it anyway.


    Chu Shang looked at Ye Futian seriously and found that Ye Futian had a pair of beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. She turned away and didn''t ask more.


    This guy looked outstanding. She had no idea what kind of talent he had, but if possible, she would like to have Ye Futian work for her. It might be a good idea to bring him back to the Mortal World for further cultivation.


    A line of figures descended upon Sky Mountain, including Qin Yu. He brought Hua Qingqing here. The head of Donghua Clan and Lady Yuxiao also came. They were displeased because of Qin Yu''s disclosure of Hua Qingqing''s story. But Qin Yu was thinking about the big picture. They could only hold their anger in check.


    Hua Qingqing admitted that Ye Futian was on the mountaintop, but she didn''t say what exactly had happened. Lady Yuxiao was very curious about what happened between her daughter and Ye Futian. She didn''t tell Qin Yu this though.


    Seeing Ye Futian appear again, a hint of murderous intent showed in Qin Yu''s eyes.


    Ye Futian also noticed them. His eyes looked colder. He knew it must be them. What a group of nasty people! Then he saw Hua Qingqing, who also raised her head and looked at him with indescribable emotions. She was wondering whether she would fight with Ye Futian if all this could happen again.


    "She is the one?" Nan Feng glanced at Hua Qingqing. This woman had a good-looking face too. She could be counted as a rare beauty even in the Barren State. A kind of innocence made her even prettier than Chu Shang.


    "Yes, she is Hua Qingqing, a youth who has been to the mountaintop." Qin Yu nodded.


    "Good. You two lead us to the Sky Mountain''s top." Nan Feng looked at Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing. Since the two had been to the mountaintop, there must be something unusual about them. They might know the method to climb Sky Mountain. It was the best to have them as the guide.


    "But the pressure from the Sky Mountain is much stronger than before. I''m not very sure whether we can go up," Hua Qingqing said lightly. Standing at the foot of the mountain, she could feel that pressure.


    "How would you know if you don''t try? Just lead the way," said the youth bathing in flaming light. He was from the Sacred Fire Sect, named Du Ao.


    Hua Qingqing glanced at Du Ao and nodded. They moved toward the Sky Mountain.


    "Be careful," Lady Yu Xiao warned her daughter. She looked at Qin Yu coldly. Obviously, she was very unhappy about this.


    Ye Futian, Hua Qingqing, and other youths from the top forces all headed for the mountain. Those in Noble Plane stayed at the foot and saw the youths go up.


    In the distance, a few figures stood in the snow and stared at those youths too. They were Sword Saint''s group. They worried about Ye Futian. Though these forces from the Barren State came for the Sky Mountain and they wouldn''t hurt Ye Futian, they still needed to be on guard.


    On the way to the mountaintop, Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing led the way. They didn''t talk to each other. A horde of strong cultivators followed behind them. Last time, these cultivators had tried but failed.


    "Every snowflake here seems to be transformed from the Sky Mountain''s Spiritual Qi." Chu Shang reached out her hand and looked at the snowflakes on her palm. Then she looked up at the endless snow on the mountain.


    "Does it mean that the whole mountain is a just heap of Spiritual Qi?" Ye Futian laughed. But he knew that Chu Shang was right. The Sky Mountain was indeed full of Spiritual Qi. The two Emperors'' will melted in the whole mountain. Every snowflake was a share of their intent.


    When stepping on the snow of the Sky Mountain, he felt so familiar with everything here. Every part of his body felt good. His little eagle was still cultivating on the mountain. He could see everything on the mountain.


    "How did you get on top of the mountain last time?" Chu Shang asked.


    "My level is quite low, so I didn''t suffer a lot from the pressure. I was lucky," Ye Futian answered.


    "The Sky Mountain is covered with two emperors'' deterrent force of will as well as strong demonic will. If you can resist that, then you can go up to the mountain. But this time, both powers became much stronger," Hua Qingqing murmured. She didn''t expose Ye Futian. Even the Arhat could only infer. Only she knew that Ye Futian managed to learn the Ukiyo by the two emperors. When he went down the mountain, that bell tolled. It was not an accident. That bell rang just for him.


    "Let''s speed up," a strong cultivator from the Super Xuan Mountain urged. The deterrent force hadn''t threatened them so far. They could speed up.


    ��


    At the foot of the mountain, Qin Yu informed the head of Donghua Clan, "The Sword Saint''s group is here."


    "What do you want to do?" the head of Donghua Clan asked. Of course, he knew that the Sword Saint''s group was here. The Sword Saint, Zhuge Hui, and Gu Dongliu were all here in the snow at the foot of Sky Mountain.


    Qin Yu sneered, "Isn''t it the opportunity that we want?"

 380 General

    Chapter 380: General


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Sky Mountain was still covered in boundless snow.


    On the mountain path, a group of cultivators was walking upwards. It was Ye Futian and the rest. As they ascended, their speed gradually dropped because the pressure was becoming larger and larger.


    Han Lan, the young man from Taixuan Mountain, asked Ye Futian, "How long do we need to reach there?"


    They had already been walking on Sky Mountain for quite a long while, and yet they still could not see the end, just like the previous time. Since Ye Futian had been to Sky Mountain, he should know the answer.


    "I can''t tell. If you want to reach the peak of Sky Mountain, you should not talk about how long you need. As we go higher, the pressure we experience will increase. The last bit will be the hardest," Ye Futian replied.


    "You look so relaxed." Nan Yu from Nantian House glanced at Ye Futian.


    "I have been here for many times, so clearly it''ll be easier for me." Ye Futian smiled.


    Nan Yu glanced coldly at Ye Futian, and some faint evilness could be seen in his eyes. He was affected by the evil thoughts on Sky Mountain and felt somewhat manic.


    Apart from him, the rest felt the same as well. As the group continued their ascent, more and more people could no longer endure the pressure and chose to leave Sky Mountain.


    Chu Shang also looked at Ye Futian who was walking with ease and looked calm. The influence Sky Mountain had on him was indeed minimal. Apart from him, Hua Qingqing also did not seem to have encountered any difficulty as she walked in the dancing snow. Although Hua Qingqing was advancing with the others, she appeared to be alone by herself, like a plum flower blooming in the snow.


    This caused everyone from the Barren State to have a strange feeling. They would not think that they were weaker than the two, but why did Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing look so relaxed? If the two really had mastered the secrets of Sky Mountain, they would have discovered it long ago.


    The group passed through regions after regions and had already been on Sky Mountain for a few days. It was extremely difficult to climb the mountain, so the number of cultivators in the group had been decreasing consistently. At the moment, there were only over ten people left and they no longer looked as imposing as they were at the start of the climb.


    Their speed was also decreasing. Even the geniuses from the major forces in the Barren State were more and more affected by the evil thoughts.


    Du Ao from Sacred Fire Sect was still covered in a holy radiance to resist the coldness and pressure on Sky Mountain. However, an evil flame seemed to be burning in his eyes. He felt an extremely evil power seeping into his mind continuously, influencing him.


    Suddenly, Hua Qingqing turned around and said softly, "The pressure and evil thoughts are both becoming stronger. We should give up." Everyone in the snow stared at her pure eyes which were still not affected by the evilness at all. Standing in the snow, she looked cold and ethereal.


    "Since you can reach the peak last time, we can do it this time as well." Du Ao from Sacred Fire Sect walked forward. He suddenly reached out his hands and put them on Hua Qingqing''s shoulders, and he stared at the flawless lady before him.


    Hua Qingqing''s body trembled slightly. At the instant when his hands touched her shoulders, she stepped back immediately. Her look turned cold at once as she stared at Du Ao and a freezing aura erupted from her body.


    Everyone around looked at them with a strange expression. Chu Shang also glanced coldly at Du Ao. Although the evil will on Sky Mountain could indeed magnify the evil thoughts in everyone''s minds, Du Ao was a genius from Sacred Fire Sect after all. He was bringing himself disgrace by doing such an act.


    "Du Ao''s right. Let''s keep going," Nan Feng said emotionlessly. They would naturally not give up so easily. Hua Qingqing looked coldly at Du Ao, after which she turned around and continued walking.


    An evil flame was burning in Du Ao''s eyes as he gazed at Hua Qingqing''s back. He was not totally affected by the evil thoughts. Instead, Hua Qingqing was very attractive to him in the first place.


    This lady was born with a pure, flawless temperament which protected her from the evil thoughts. Perhaps this was also the reason why she could reach the peak of Sky Mountain.


    Hua Qingqing was not only very beautiful, but she also had an extraordinary physique. If she could become his partner, it would be very beneficial to his cultivation of certain fire-elemental techniques. Such an exquisite lady was rare even in the Barren State.


    Du Ao walked up to Hua Qingqing and asked, "You have an extraordinary physique. Are you talented in fire-elemental abilities?"


    "Nope," Hua Qingqing replied coldly as she continued walking forward.


    "Sacred Fire Sect had many unique techniques that are very suitable for you. Do you want to join us and cultivate?" Du Ao continued. The people around him all glanced at him.


    "I guess he''s just too free," Nan Yu sneered. Nevertheless, Hua Qingqing was indeed extremely pretty and attractive.


    "Ye Futian!" Nan Yu shouted at the person in front of him. Ye Futian turned his head around and looked at him.


    "Do you want to join Nantian House and become my subordinate? In the future, you''ll become a general in Nantian House." As the group advanced on Sky Mountain, the impression Nan Yu had towards Ye Futian had also changed. It seemed to him that Ye Futian''s willpower was very outstanding, for otherwise, he would not be able to endure till the moment. He was willing to give Ye Futian a chance to let him join Nantian House.


    A direct descendant of Nantian House such as him would certainly have a high position in the family in the future and own many powers. For example, the people who had followed him to the Eastern Barren Territory this time were all generals from Nantian House.


    "No, that''s fine." Ye Futian smiled. Subordinate? Nantian House general?


    "The Eastern Barren Territory lacks cultivation resources. Even though you are talented, your cultivation will still be delayed if you stay here. Because your talents are not bad, we are willing to let you join Nantian House. Do you know how many people in the Barren State dream of joining us? Those top nobles below the mountain all joined us willingly," Nan Feng also said as he stared at Ye Futian with a supercilious look. However, he felt that by saying this he was already giving Ye Futian much face.


    He could not find a way to explain the position of Nantian House to the people in the Eastern Barren Territory. Perhaps Ye Futian would find out only after he went to the Barren State himself.


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. "I am used to my own clan."


    How could Nantian House compare with the Cottage?


    He had big brother, third brother, the kind and gentle second sister, the clever sixth sister, and fourth and fifth brothers in the Cottage. Although Yi Xiaoshi was somewhat abnormal recently, he was still quite cute. Only that old guy... but Ye Futian could still barely tolerate him.


    They wanted him to give up such a nice place and become a general in Nantian House.


    Idiot.


    "Why does everyone from the holy land of the Eastern Barren Territory not know the appropriate things to do?" Nan Yu remarked emotionlessly. He was clearly referring to Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian. Both of them had rejected the invitation from Nantian House.


    Ye Futian thought that he was an idiot, but he was thinking of the same thing as well. Ye Futian just gave up the opportunity to join Nantian House. In the future when he realized what Nantian House was, he would regret it.


    As the group continued forward, eventually there were only seven people left.


    They were Ye Futian, Hua Qingqing, Nan Feng and Nan Yu from Nantian House, Chu Shang from Mortal World, Du Ao from Sacred Fire Sect, and Han Lan from Taixuan Mountain.


    At the moment, their footsteps seemed to be extremely heavy, including Ye Futian. A gust of wind blew down from the sky and onto everyone''s body. Even Nan Feng and the rest felt that they were almost reaching their extreme and could not hold on for much longer.


    An extremely powerful aura was released from their bodies. Nan Feng and Nan Yu were covered in silver, dazzling armors, while Chu Shang''s body was showered in a brilliant radiance as if she was a fairy from the heavens. Du Ao''s body was covered with a fiery light, which at the moment seemed to have been corroded by the evil thoughts; only dark, evil flames were burning. Han Lan was releasing a wild aura as if he was a cold, fierce demon.


    On the other hand, musical notes seemed to be dancing around Hua Qingqing''s pure body which was showered in sacred light.


    "It''s not far away. If we persist for a while longer, we''ll reach the top. Last time, it was like this as well. If we can break through our limits, we can reach the summit." Ye Futian''s face was completely red, and a terrifying light was burning in his eyes as if he was in great pain. However, he still gritted his teeth and continued walking.


    Hua Qingqing glanced at Ye Futian. He could trick everyone else but not her.


    Ye Futian was only pretending to be in pain, but of course, she would not tell everyone that.


    Their current location was still quite far from the summit. Last time, the Arhat intercepted Ye Futian and the rest right here. She knew well that these people would not be able to reach the peak, especially when Ye Futian was present.


    Everyone tried to endure the pressure and their speed slowed further. The evil thoughts were everywhere, and they could even feel a monstrous Demon Bird appear in their minds.


    Nan Yu frowned and asked Ye Futian, "How long do we need exactly?"


    "Soon," Ye Futian replied with much difficulty.


    After a while, the flames surrounding Du Ao turned into darkness. His look was filled with evilness, and his will could no longer take it.


    "How long?" Du Ao also asked.


    "Soon," Ye Futian said.


    "How many times have you repeated that word?" The evil light in Du Ao''s eyes blazed, and his tone was very threatening.


    "We''re almost at the top. Every step that we take now is as difficult as climbing the sky. You''re the geniuses from the Barren State, so since I can endure it, I believe you can as well. If I can no longer take it, I''ll quit," Ye Futian said. Du Ao gave a cold humph, and the others also did not know whether they should give up or not. Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing were both continuing.


    Ye Futian sneered in his mind. Didn''t they want to climb Sky Mountain?


    Since this was the case, he would accompany them to the end.


    They were all geniuses from the Barren State and thought that they were extraordinary. Ye Futian really wanted to see how long they could hold.


    He sneered and continued advancing, keeping to an extremely slow speed so that the rest could follow him.


    Suddenly, in the minds of everyone, a terrifying illusory Demon Bird appeared. It was as if the Demon Bird could attack their wills, causing them to be in great pain.


    Giving a muffled humph, Nan Yu stopped and could not lift his feet anymore.


    Ye Futian turned around and asked, "What is it?"


    "Are we there yet?" Nan Yu stared at Ye Futian.


    "Soon..." It was still the same reply.


    Nan Yu stared coldly at Ye Futian, and his eyes were filled with blood streaks. He could not even remember how many times Ye Futian had said that word.


    "Can you no longer persist?" A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. "If you can''t, don''t force yourself as it will be dangerous. After all, you''re an important person from Nantian House. If something were to happen to you..."


    Dong. Nan Yu''s eyes were filled with demonic red light, but he still took a step forward. An evil aura was flowing on his body, and even his look changed. Suddenly, he gave a muffled humph and blood flew from the corner of his mouth.


    Nan Feng and Chu Shang looked at Ye Futian. Although they were affected by the evilness, they were still rational. They both felt that something was amiss. If they were to continue, they would eventually collapse!

 381 The Demon Bird on Sky Mountain

    Chapter 381: The Demon Bird on Sky Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Is he acting like this deliberately? Nan Feng thought, gazing at Ye Futian. His words had indeed been very provocative and had lured them all the way here. However, even if Ye Futian did this on purpose, what could they do? They could give up anytime. Because Nan Yu was unwilling to give up, he had reached his extreme at the moment and was injured. It seemed likely that he would not be able to continue.


    How about the rest? How long more could they endure? Could they reach the summit of the mountain?


    Ye Futian had been claiming that they would reach soon, but nobody knew how far away the summit was exactly.


    Suddenly, Du Ao from Sacred Fire Sect walked up to Hua Qingqing and asked, "Hua Qingqing, how long more do we need?"


    Hua Qingqing felt somewhat disgusted��Du Ao had been following her all along.


    However, Sky Mountain this time felt different from the last. She was also enduring a great amount of pressure. The willpower that had merged into the mountain seemed to have revived, as well as the evil thoughts. She was similarly reaching her extreme and could not keep her distance from him.


    "We still have some distance to go. You should give up. Although I did manage to reach the peak the last time, I indeed walked up myself. This time, however, it seems to be tougher." Hua Qingqing turned her head and glanced at everyone.


    "Alright." Du Ao''s body was covered in dark light, while his eyes were burning with an evil flame, in which some darkness could be seen. He took another step closer to Hua Qingqing. Then, he suddenly reached out his hands and grabbed towards Hua Qingqing''s arms.


    Hua Qingqing''s expression changed; this was already the second time. With her body showered in sacred radiance, she released a strong wave of Spiritual Energy towards Du Ao while trying to avoid the grab. However, Du Ao''s arms became covered in terrifying flames as he struck his hands towards Hua Qingqing''s body. Under the pressure of Sky Mountain, she could not dodge the surprise attack at such a close range. Thus, Du Ao still grabbed the upper parts of her arms.


    "Follow me down the mountain," Du Ao said as he started to descend. It was challenging to climb Sky Mountain, but right the opposite for descent.


    "Let me go!" Hua Qingqing''s Guqin Spirit appeared behind her, and the music immediately tried to attack Du Ao''s Spiritual Will.


    Boom. Du Ao''s eyes were covered in dark flames, and a sacred fire-like radiance enveloped the two. He was in the Upper Arcana Plane, while Hua Qingqing only the Middle Arcana Plane. Clearly, she could not fight back.


    "I''ll go down first." Grabbing Hua Qingqing with his arms, Du Ao turned around and ran down the mountain. This unexpected event caused everyone to be momentarily stunned. Everything just happened in an instant. It was as if Du Ao had already planned long ago that if he could not make it to the top, then he would bring Hua Qingqing down with him.


    Ye Futian took a step backward and wanted to chase them. He squinted, and coldness filled his eyes.


    "It''s none of your business. We''ll continue forward." Han Lan from Taixuan Mountain was releasing an extremely wild aura, as if he was a human-like demon, as he stared at Ye Futian with his monstrous eyes. Evil thoughts had entered his minds and activated the wildness in him. Therefore, he wanted to continue the ascent.


    In this short moment, Du Ao had already brought Hua Qingqing down the path for quite a distance. Ye Futian could see Hua Qingqing staring at him like she was asking for help. She knew that Ye Futian could save her.


    "Let''s try again. If we really cannot do it we''ll give up," Nan Feng also said to Ye Futian. Although he despised Du Ao for his action, it was none of his business as well.


    Ye Futian glanced at everyone and nodded. "Okay then." After that, he turned around and continued the climb. His will, however, began to envelop Sky Mountain and he could see Du Ao bring Hua Qingqing all the way down. Their speed during the descent was unrestricted at all and extremely fast, while the evil thoughts were also weakening. However, the evil flames in Du Ao''s eyes were not extinguishing at all; instead, they were growing more intense. Looking at the pure and flawless lady before him, his eyes were filled with greed. If he could bring her to Sacred Fire Sect, she would be his in the future.


    "B*stard!" Ye Futian''s heart was filled with coldness. At the moment, there was a monstrous dark figure inside Sky Mountain. The endless Demonic Will circling Sky Mountain turned into an illusory Demon Bird and engulfed the region of darkness.


    Suddenly, however, a pair of eyes opened in the darkness. The pair of eyes looked unruly and unrestricted as if they were from the Demon Bird itself. At this instant, the endless willpower on Sky Mountain gushed towards the illusory Demon Bird that had just formed. The willpower from Sky Mountain and the Demonic Will turned into two forces that tried to eliminate one another. Then, some coldness flashed across the demonic pair of eyes.


    Buzz! A figure charged out towards the sky like a dark bolt of lightning. It kept ascending and flew out of Sky Mountain directly, while an endless amount of Demonic Will circled around its body. At this instant, an enormous Demon Bird appeared on the summit of Sky Mountain.


    The Demon Bird dived down from the summit with a striking speed, like a bolt of lightning.


    At the moment, Ye Futian and the rest were still climbing the mountain with much difficulty.


    "Why are the evil thoughts getting stronger?" Chu Shang said. Her wonderful body was covered with protective light, but suddenly she could feel the evil thoughts increasing rapidly.


    Apart from her, the rest also felt it and were puzzled.


    "Above us!" Suddenly, Nan Feng raised his head and saw a Demon Bird which had blotted out the sun and the skydiving down towards them. His face immediately turned very pale.


    "Run!" Without any hesitation, Nan Feng turned around and ran down the path. Clearly, he did not want to climb Sky Mountain anymore. The Demon Bird which he saw was the one that had appeared in their minds. It actually existed!


    Everyone did not hesitate and turned around to run directly. However, the Demon Bird was too fast and reached them in a flash. They could only take out powerful ritual implements to protect themselves.


    The enormous Demon Bird swept past them, and it was as if the end of the world was coming. They were all blown off into the air directly as they coughed much blood. Then, they fell back onto the ground and still kept rolling downwards. However, the Demon Bird dived past them directly, as if it was not interested in them at all.


    Cough!


    Nan Feng spat out a mouthful of blood which colored the snow below him. The hit just now was too terrifying. Turning around, he saw Ye Futian also lying down on the ground and yelled coldly, "Bastard! Why didn''t you say that there is actually a Demon Bird on the mountain?"


    "I didn''t see it the last time here," Ye Futian replied.


    "Idiot!" Nan Yu was even more severely injured. Just now, he was already reaching his extreme, and furthermore, the sharp claws of the Demon Bird landed on his chest directly. If he did not have a ritual implement, he would either be dead or disabled by now.


    Chu Shang also looked at Ye Futian but did not say anything. Nobody had expected such an outcome, one that was even more miserable than the last. It seemed that they would never be able to make it to the summit.


    Ye Futian sneered in his heart. Since these people wanted to climb Sky Mountain, he would accompany them and entertain them well.


    Of course, he would not really kill them here.


    Otherwise, if he and Hua Qingqing returned alive but the rest were dead, the top forces from the Barren State would certainly not let them off.


    At the mountainside of Sky Mountain, Du Ao chose not to continue the descent. On the other hand, he brought Hua Qingqing to an isolated corner on the mountain and injured her. The resistance from her had caused him much trouble.


    Lying in the snow, Hua Qingqing''s face turned miserably pale. Never had she expected such a thing to happen.


    The evil flames in Du Ao''s eyes were still burning as he stared at Hua Qingqing on the ground. He walked up step by step and said, "Your body really suits me. Don''t worry. In the future, I''ll bring you back to Sacred Fire Sect. Perhaps one day you''ll become the wife of the Son of Sacred Fire Sect."


    "Scram!" Hua Qingqing''s eyes were filled with murderous intent as her Guqin Spirit appeared again. Obviously, she was unwilling to be humiliated like this.


    "Why are you even resisting?" A flame god seemed to have appeared behind Du Ao, protecting him from the music. Then, a horrifying Flame Intent landed on Hua Qingqing''s body which caused her shirts to start burning in the dancing snow. Her white and smooth arms were displayed in his sight.


    "You''ll not get what you want," Hua Qingqing said with resolution.


    "Even if you kill yourself, I''ll still not let you go." The evil within Du Ao was ignited. Hearing his words, tears flew down from Hua Qingqing''s eyes.


    Seeing Du Ao walk towards her step by step, she was desperate.


    Du Ao produced evil laughter. Suddenly, he seemed to have felt something and shouted coldly, "Who''s there?"


    Turning around, he saw wind whizzing wildly in the distance and snow sweeping towards him along with some dark light. Then, he saw a monstrous Demonic Bird.


    "What''s that?" Du Ao''s expression changed instantly as the Demon Bird charged towards him at an astonishing speed. He grabbed Hua Qingqing and backed quickly.


    The Demon Bird swept out its wings and slapped onto the two. At once, the two were separated and fell onto the ground.


    Du Ao glanced at Hua Qingqing who had fallen to a place far from him and was unwilling to give up. However, he suddenly noticed the Demon Bird staring at him and charge towards him again.


    "B*stard!"


    Seeing the Demon Bird rushing towards him, Du Ao immediately took out a spell scroll and crushed it. His speed increased significantly, and he flew towards the side of the mountain like a gust of wind. He wanted to leave Sky Mountain.


    The Demon Bird flapped its wings and neared Du Ao rapidly. His face turned pale as he took out another scroll. The scroll was crashed under fire and turned into a flame guardian.


    Bang! The sharp claws of the Demon Bird struck out, and even the flame guardian was smashed into pieces. The frightening power caused Du Ao to be blown away and spit much blood in the air. Using this force, he retreated from the mountain hastily with the aid of wind.


    The Demon Bird continued forward, but Du Ao was already at the edge of Sky Mountain. He immediately charged down, leaving the mountain.


    Only then, the Demon Bird stopped and did not continue to chase. Its body made an arc in the sky as it made its way back. When it passed by Hua Qingqing, it glanced at her with its unruly eyes, after which it flew past her.


    Hua Qingqing stared at the Demon Bird and shouted, "Thank you." She had vaguely guessed a few things. Since the willpower on Sky Mountain had been controlled by Ye Futian, he would be able to control the Demon Bird as well.


    Du Ao descended from the mountain, looking extremely injured, and soon he returned to the foot of Sky Mountain. Seeing Du Ao''s appearance, the people from Sacred Fire Sect asked, "What happened?"


    "Nothing. There is a demon on Sky Mountain. I was assaulted by it," Du Ao replied emotionlessly. The evil thoughts in his eyes slowly dissipated.


    The cultivators from Mortal World walked up and asked, "Where''s the lady?" The people from Nantian House who were on the back of the dragon also asked a similar question.


    "I don''t know. We were separated," Du Ao replied as he glanced at the crowd. He seemed to be looking for Qin Yu and the family members of Hua Qingqing, but he realized that they were no longer here.


    In the distance, however, a group of cultivators was heading towards Sky Mountain on the back of a dragon.


    The composition of the group was astounding��Its members included Qin Yu, Donghua Clan leader and his wife, Lu Nantian, Fuyun Sword Clan leader, and the lords from Royal Xuan Temple!

 382 Game Between the Bes

    Chapter 382: Game Between the Best


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On the cloud-shrouded first mountain of the College, a pavilion was standing on the steep summit. Here, one could get a striking view of the entire Book Mountain.


    At the moment, there were two old men in the pavilion playing a game of chess. They were clearly the College Chief and Mr. Du from the Cottage. Bai Lishu, who was standing beside them, was somewhat puzzled��such a scene was indeed extremely rare. It was the first time he saw his master and uncle playing chess.


    What wind was blowing today? Why does it feel abnormal?


    "It has been so long since we last played. Senior, your skills have improved significantly. You are less direct than you were in the past. Now, every move of yours seems natural and yet hidden with more moves. You are a master at it," Mr. Du remarked, smiling.


    "Your moves may seem mild, but you have secretly gained control of the entire game. Over these years, you''re becoming better at planning and calculation." The long beard of the College Chief swang in the air, and he was sage-like. Although he was old, his voice was firm and stable.


    "This is not planning. This is momentum." Mr. Du shook his head.


    "You made your moves in the whole Eastern Barren Territory in an attempt to fulfill your wish. So now, how''s the momentum?" the College Chief sneered, staring at Mr. Du.


    "Senior, why do you have to be so unhappy?" Mr. Du smiled.


    "How many years have both of us been cultivating? How long more do I have? Sooner or later I''ll pass away. I want to leave here to find a way to break through. Is it so difficult to give you this position?" the College Chief snarled, looking at Mr. Du. "Even if you don''t want it, what about your first disciple? Why did you ask him to leave that time? To fulfill your wish?"


    Hearing the conversation between the two, Bai Lishu was shocked. Rumors outside claimed that that time, Mr. Du asked his first disciple to establish his own clan instead of staying at the College. The College Chief was extremely dissatisfied with this, and a conflict broke out between the two. The real reason was actually that the College Chief was looking for a person to take over his position, but Mr. Du rejected. Therefore, he thought of the Sword Saint.


    This was indeed surprising.


    "Senior, do you think I''ll be a good chief?" Mr. Du smiled with a lazy expression. "Moreover, I think you''re well aware of some other reasons."


    College Chief Xiao stared at Mr. Du. Eventually, he heaved a long sigh in his heart. He knew why Mr. Du would not take over his position, but he did not even allow Sword Saint to take over. The College Chief was extremely unhappy��he did not have much time left.


    Although cultivators could live much longer, they were not immortal. He was not yet a sage and would still die eventually. Only after he made the breakthrough, his lifespan could be extended. Hence, he wanted to leave the Eastern Barren Territory and look for opportunities outside. With his talents, he would not be able to feel the Sage Plane and take the last step by secluding in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Senior, I know that you have high hopes for me. I have also thought about how you can leave without worries after all these are finished. But..." Mr. Du gave a bitter smile and shook his head.


    "If you wish to fulfill your ambition in the Eastern Barren Territory, you will go against the benefits of the others. It''s certainly not as easy as you have imagined," College Chief Xiao said. He knew what his junior wanted to do.


    "That''s true. It''s so difficult to change just the Eastern Barren Territory." Mr. Du continued shaking his head. He gazed into the distance and added, "What''s coming will come."


    Hearing his words, College Chief Xiao similarly raised his head. In the sky, wind and clouds whizzed. Suddenly, the howl of dragon erupted, shocking the entire earth.


    On Book Mountain, countless people looked up at the sky, where they saw a real dragon devouring clouds and descend from the height.


    The enormous dragon was golden and majestic. Three people were standing on its back. The person who was in front had a crown on his head and was wearing the emperor''s robe; he looked all-powerful. He was the most powerful person in the Eastern Barren Territory, the king of Qin.


    On each side of the king of Qin, there was also an elder. They looked unfathomable. Apart from them, many cultivators appeared in the sky around them as well. They were powerful nobles from the four major forces which had allied. Now, they had also come to Book Mountain.


    Immediately, Book Mountain was shaken. Many people ascended into the air to face their common enemy.


    Qin Dynasty finally sent their army to Book Mountain.


    Standing on the back of the dragon, the king of Qin looked at the pavilion on the first mountain, as if his look had penetrated across space. He stared at the two elders playing chess and laughed. "Greetings, College Chief Xiao, Mr. Du."


    With a cold expression on his face, College Chief Xiao lifted his head and shouted, "Scram." He wished that the king of Qin could scram as far as possible.


    At the moment, he was somewhat anxious.


    "Senior, since the guest is here, we don''t have a reason to chase him away." Mr. Du, however, smiled casually. He looked at the king of Qin in the sky and said, "Please."


    "Alright," the king of Qin nodded, smiling. He walked down from the sky, while the two elders followed him closely. On the other hand, the dragon remained hovering in the air.


    The various mountain elders of Book Mountain, as well as the cultivators from Sword Saint Mountain and Moon Clan, ascended into the air one after another. They stared coldly at the people opposite them, creating a stalemate.


    Goddess Wangyue came near the pavilion on the first mountain but kept her distance. Then, she looked at the two elders beside the king of Qin. Their eyes looked deep, and they were not releasing any aura, but everyone could feel that they were extremely dangerous. In addition, they looked ancient. If they still seemed old despite having cultivated to this level, they must have lived for many years.


    The king of Qin landed on the ground, after which he saluted to Mr. Du by folding his hands and said, "I have heard your name for very long, but unfortunately have not met you in person. Today, I came here to visit you. Please do not blame me for disturbing."


    His tone was sincere, and he was not hypocritical. Instead, he meant what he said.


    Mr. Du was indeed a respected figure in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    There were eight disciples in the Cottage. The first three were already famous in the Eastern Barren Territory, and any one of them could establish their own clans and stand at the peak of the Eastern Barren Territory. The other disciples were still growing, but they had already displayed their remarkable talents. In the future, it seemed unlikely that they would be much weaker than the Sword Saint and the other two.


    Even if Mr. Du did not know how to cultivate, he would still be considered as a legend by picking these disciples and teaching them to such a level.


    Furthermore, the king of Qin did not believe that Mr. Du really could not cultivate.


    The two people beside the king of Qin also stared at Mr. Du, as if they were trying to feel something from him.


    "You''re too polite." Mr. Du smiled casually. He had noticed that while the king of Qin had brought many cultivators here, the leader of Donghua Clan and his wife, as well as several other important figures, were not here.


    Mr. Du smiled mildly; he knew what had happened.


    "College Chief Xiao and Mr. Du, you have been enjoying yourselves. I am mediocre at playing chess. Mr. Du, are you interested in playing a game with me?" the king of Qin said, looking at Mr. Du.


    "Please." Mr. Du extended his arm. College Chief Xiao stared at him and his beard swang in the air.


    "Senior," Mr. Du shouted at College Chief Xiao.


    College Chief Xiao was, however, still staring at him.


    "Senior, our visitors are our guests," Mr. Du added. Only then, College Chief stood up unwillingly. Then, he walked to the side the glanced coldly at the king of Qin.


    "College Chief Xiao, I apologize for the trouble." The king of Qin nodded at the College Chief. Then, he sat down opposite Mr. Du. The pieces returned from the board as they started a new game.


    In the sky above Book Mountain, the people from both the College and Qin Dynasty and its allies all gazed at the situation in the pavilion, feeling somewhat emotional.


    The most powerful person in the Eastern Barren Territory and the mysterious and low-key legend from the Cottage were playing a game of chess on Book Mountain.


    They all knew clearly that in this game, the pieces would still fall onto the chessboard, but they would affect the whole Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Mr. Du, I heard that you are College Chief Xiao''s junior, so you''re more senior than me. You should go first," the king of Qin said politely.


    Mr. Du nodded gently and landed his first move casually, as if it only depended on his mood.


    The king of Qin smiled and similarly made his move.


    Book Mountain seemed to be very quiet, but the atmosphere was somewhat tense. The sound of chess pieces landing on the chessboard was exceptionally clear.


    "Mr. Du, you seem to be making your moves randomly, but without me realizing it you are already taking control of the whole game. Terrific." The king of Qin smiled. Then, he made his next move. Seeing the scene, College Chief Xiao''s eyes sparkled.


    Mr. Du wanted to take control of the game, while the king of Qin followed him closely. All his moves were direct and aggressive.


    Mr. Du smiled and continued the game.


    As the two played, slowly, an invisible aura actually spread out from the king of Qin and enveloped the space.


    "Mr. Du, you''re a legendary figure, why are you confining yourself to such a small place?"


    The king of Qin made his move. On the chessboard, there seemed to be a dragon charging out and devouring everything.


    "I make my moves after careful consideration." Mr. Du smiled and continued to make his move casually. Immediately, the region where his piece landed seemed to be rescued from the siege. Once they were rescued, they could respond to the whole game and form an unstoppable force.


    The king of Qin held a piece in his hand, but his hand hovered in mid-air. The aura around him turned into the shape of a dragon. It was as if he was temporarily trapped.


    Finally, his finger landed onto the board. The dragon charged out and wanted to kill its enemy at all costs.


    "At all consequence?" Mr. Du shook his head, after which he made his next move. He never once spent time thinking before making his move, as if he had already known everything.


    However, his move was still defensive.


    "You take control of the whole game. If your plans work out, you will be unstoppable. We do not have much time left. We''ll either make or break it," the king of Qin said emotionlessly. He looked at the chessboard, where he felt an invisible pressure. Then, he made his move, which charged into the enemy''s territory in an attempt to break the balance.


    "You leave yourself with no paths of return. If you lose, you lose everything. Why?" Mr. Du said again and continued the game.


    The people on Book Mountain listened to the conversation between the two. There were many hidden meanings which they could not understand fully.


    The pieces of the king of Qin and Mr. Du landed on the chessboard, but the chessboard itself could be the entire Eastern Barren Territory.


    The king of Qin froze as he stared at the chessboard. When Mr. Du made his last move, the situation changed drastically. He had always been in a defensive position, but after that move, it felt like he could clear all his enemies with one strike. The pieces which the king of Qin sent on the siege all seemed to be in a dangerous position now as if they would be killed immediately.


    "Do you still want to continue?" Mr. Du asked.


    The king of Qin was shocked in his heart. His fingers trembled gently as he stared at the chessboard, after which he made his move. The two ends of his pieces on the board worked together to form a siege as if they were two dragons. If any of them won, they would engulf their enemies together. "I have already made my move and cannot return. Qin Yu and the rest have gone to Sky Mountain. After the battle there ends, they''ll come here."


    "Unrepentant. Why?"


    Mr. Du shook his head and put down his next move with his hand. Immediately, a region that was under the siege also changed drastically and cut the connection between the two dragons. It was as if this move could decide the game.


    "It''ll be difficult for them to leave Sky Mountain in one piece," Mr. Du remarked casually.

 383 Battle Between the Bes

    Chapter 383: Battle Between the Best


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the foot of Sky Mountain, the wind was blowing and snowflakes were dancing wildly in the air. In the distance, there was a group of cultivators. Many people looked in that direction and were astonished.


    The group consisted of Qin Yu, the crown prince of Qin Dynasty, Donghua Clan leader and his wife, Lu Nantian, Fuyun Sword Clan leader, the lord from Royal Xuan Temple, as well as several elders from Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan.


    So many strong cultivators had appeared at Sky Mountain and they were heading directly towards the place where the three strongest disciples of the Cottage were at.


    The Eastern Barren Territory was about to change drastically.


    The long-awaited battle was about to erupt at the moment. Nobody had expected it to happen neither at the College nor at Qin Dynasty, but rather at Sky Mountain.


    The only question was why the king of Qin was not present.


    Sword Saint, Zhuge Hui, and Gu Dongliu also noticed the group. Standing proudly in the air, their eyes were only filled with coldness. It seemed like the group was aiming directly at them. At the other side, the cultivators from various top forces of the Barren State all seemed to be interested in the situation. It seemed to them that the Eastern Barren Territory was not in a peaceful state.


    They would probably be able to see how strong the best cultivators of the Eastern Barren Territory were.


    The crowd beside Sword Saint and the other two retreated as far as they could. Qin Yu and the rest had arrived and the final battle was imminent, so clearly they had to avoid it totally. Therefore, shortly afterward only three people remained quietly in that region as if they were isolated by the entire world.


    The snow fell down continuously from the sky, onto the three who were standing straight at their spots. Sword Saint looked majestic, Zhuge Hui cold and proud, while Gu Dongliu extremely sharp.


    This was the first time the three eldest disciples of the Cottage stood together to fight their enemies. Many people turned very emotional; these three were the legends of the Eastern Barren Territory. They were the models for countless many. However, this time, their enemies were way too strong��Donghua Clan leader and his wife, Fuyun Sword Clan leader, Royal Xuan Temple lord. All of them were very influential figures in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    How would the Cottage disciples fight them?


    "It seems like someone has a poor memory. Or perhaps, those hits from my whip that time simply aren''t painful enough." Zhuge Hui smiled coldly as she glanced at Qin Yu. Immediately, Qin Yu''s face darkened. The battle at Sky Mountain last time was the biggest humiliation he had experienced in his life.


    Looking down at Zhuge Hui who was wearing a white shirt and standing in the snow like a fairy, Qin Yu said, "The second disciple of the Cottage indeed looks elegant. I heard that you''re still single now. How about marrying into Qin Dynasty? Coincidentally, I need a concubine." After that, he looked at the other people beside him and said, "Be gentle later and don''t injure her." Qin Yu really wanted to clear himself of the humiliation he had experienced at Sky Mountain on that day. The only way was for Zhuge Hui to submit herself below him and be played by him. She would use her entire life to repent for that battle.


    Lady Yuxiao glanced emotionlessly at Qin Yu and felt somewhat disgusted. Qin Yu was humiliated because he was weaker, and yet he wanted to humiliate Zhuge Hui in such a way, which was really distasteful.


    That day at Sky Mountain, Qin Li was killed and Qin Yu lost badly in the battle, which totally shattered his confidence. His mentality, therefore, became somewhat distorted. This could also be seen from his act of using Hua Qingqing to get closer to the people from the Barren State.


    At the moment, Qin Yu would achieve his goal at all costs. However, Lady Yuxiao did not say anything. Donghua Clan had also crossed the point of no return.


    Just as Qin Yu finished speaking, an extremely sharp aura bloomed from Gu Dongliu and ascended into the air, charging towards Qin Yu. His murderous intent filled the sky.


    Hearing Qin Yu''s words, Zhuge Hui suddenly laughed. Concubine? She then put her hand near her waist. Following a soft noise, her long whip appeared in her hand.


    Zhuge Hui''s arm trembled slightly. The whip rotated and flew into the air, turning into a white bolt of lightning which penetrated across space. In the sky, thunder roared and lightning flashed. Immediately, countless lightning flew on the whip as it swept towards the sky. It was as if the whip had turned into a lightning storm that was attempting to engulf the entire region. Every lightning in the storm held a destructive power. Anyone who got trapped in the storm would almost certainly be destroyed.


    "Back!" The people in the distance had already retreated a huge distance, but feeling the power of the storm, they ran back again as they still felt unsafe. Zhuge Hui''s casual action actually caused the whole region to be enveloped in such a devastating power.


    Beside Sky Mountain, the people from the Barren State were all surprised by the scene. It seemed that they had indeed underestimated the power of the College. At least the lady before them was very strong. This lightning spell was definitely one that had exceeded the noble-level.


    In the sky, the expressions of Qin Yu and the rest all turned dignified. Zhuge Hui had only cast one spell, and it already caused them to feel some pressure. This lightning spell was cast by the whip, a sage ritual implement. At the moment, all the lightning forces in the world had been brought together and the catastrophic storm was charging towards them, trying to engulf every person.


    "Leader." Qin Yu held his dragon spear in his hand, but he looked at Donghua Clan leader who was beside him. The previous battle already proved that he was no match against Zhuge Hui.


    Donghua Clan was a force which was as famous as the Qin Dynasty and the College. Thus, the power of its leader was undoubtedly very strong.


    Donghua Clan leader stared below him. He was holding a scepter in his hand, the Earthly Scepter.


    Donghua Clan was well-known for its spells, and its leader cultivated both martial arts and sorcery. At the moment when he held the Earthly Scepter, an invisible gravity enveloped the region. Accompanying a violent rumbling, brown-colored radiance stared converging wildly around him. It actually turned into many enormous meteorites which were as huge as mountains. Then, they dropped down wildly towards the lightning storm.


    Rumble! The sky cried and the battlefield turned into an actual doomsday. Bolts of lightning and meteorites collided into each other. Under the endless purple lightning, the meteorites were crushed continuously, but they seemed to be endless as well. They dropped down continuously, trying to fill the storm.


    Zhuge Hui''s rotating arm suddenly pointed directly at the sky. At once, the lightning storm engulfed the sky and stopped gathering any powers.


    The shirt of the Donghua Clan leader swang in the air and his long hair danced. He pointed his scepter downwards and immediately, a terrifying gravity stopped the storm from ascending. Suddenly, a whip struck out from the storm towards Donghua Clan leader.


    The expression of Donghua Clan leader did not however change and a sacred, illusory figure appeared beside him. The figure looked huge and burly as if it was a divine being. He pointed his scepter out and immediately, many enormous palm prints appeared in the sky. They blotted out the sky and grabbed towards the whip, sealing the entire space. Like an agile snake, the whip suddenly changed its direction and charged towards Qin Yu.


    Qin Yu''s body turned into a golden beam of light which dodged to the side. Then, the whip swept towards the dragon Qin Yu was on, causing it to howl ferociously. The whip wound around its huge body directly, after which the lightning storm appeared again. Zhuge Hui''s arm trembled suddenly. Right away, the radiance circling around the dragon in the lightning storm turned into many lightning swords and cut the dragon into countless pieces.


    The dragon gave out cries of misery and roared continuously. Seeing the scene, the crowd in the distance was astounded. The dragon was a noble-level one, and its physical defense was extremely strong. However, it was cut into many pieces directly by Zhuge Hui''s whip. It was then easy to imagine what the lightning storm could do to a human.


    All of a sudden, a wave of Sword Will bloomed in the sky as Fuyun Sword Clan leader stepped forward. Holding the famous sword the Alkaid, he turned into a blade of light and descended from the sky. The silvery light reflected from his sword lit the entire sky as he struck directly towards Zhuge Hui who was attacking Qin Yu.


    Sizzle... An extremely appalling Broadsword Will also bloomed. Sword Saint turned into a bolt of lightning and his Broadsword Will penetrated across space. It cut through the silvery blade of light and ascended straight upwards, charging towards Fuyun Sword Clan leader Han Ruoshui.


    That year, Sword Saint became famous after battling Han Ruoshui in Fuyun Sword Clan. At the moment, the two were fighting again. Sword Saint was actually more famous than Han Ruoshui now. However, Han Ruoshui had a famous sword, but the Sword Saint did not have any ritual implement.


    At the instant when they started fighting, even the sky seemed to be split into pieces. Broadsword Will and Sword Will filled the entire sky. Even though the onlookers were very far from the battle, they could still feel how dangerous the situation was. Sword Saint did not have a ritual implement, but he chose to have a forceful close-ranged combat.


    Gu Dongliu''s body flashed as he charged towards Qin Yu directly. His speed was extremely fast, like a mere illusion.


    Clang! A violent sound erupted. The first lord of Royal Xuan Temple struck down with a golden bell, blocking Gu Dongliu. The golden bell flew in the sky and a frightening pressure was spreading from it.


    "Another sage ritual implement. Does Royal Xuan Temple also have one?" Many people were shocked.


    "Maybe it was from Qin Dynasty''s ancient tomb and somehow Royal Xuan Temple first lord got it. Perhaps the sword of Fuyun Sword Clan leader came in the same way."


    "All the three of them have ritual implements. In addition, Qin Yu, Lady Yuxiao, and Lu Nantian had not participated in the battle. It''s no wonder that they dare to come here directly with so much confidence."


    Many people discussed. Nevertheless, the three Cottage disciples were indeed very strong. To deal with them, Qin Dynasty needed so many powerful cultivators as well as the aid from sage ritual implements.


    "Look at Sword Saint!" someone exclaimed. The melee combat between Sword Saint and Han Ruoshui even caused space to split apart. As they battled, they rose higher and higher into the sky and were hardly visible. The rest could only see blades of light, as well as the Broadsword Will and Sword Will that had filled the place.


    However, Sword Saint''s actions suddenly became much slower, but the Broadsword Will from his body grew in intensity. A broadsword appeared in his hand and his every move looked all natural as he turned the forces in the world into Broadsword Will. When he struck out, a straight beam of light appeared, cutting the sky into two halves. Han Ruoshui struck out wildly with the Alkaid, but his attacks were crushed in the Broadsword Will. Hence, he could only retreat and his situation looked bleak.


    "Go and help him," Qin Yu shouted at the lord from Royal Xuan Temple. On the other hand, he tried to block Gu Dongliu with the dragon spear in his hand.


    Gu Dongliu was as famous as him and that time Gu Dongliu even won Lu Nantian, but at the moment Qin Yu had a ritual implement.


    "Alright." The lord from Royal Xuan Temple flashed and struck out at Sword Saint with the golden bell.


    Looking at the battle in the sky, many people were speechless. Fuyun Sword Clan leader and the lord from Royal Xuan Temple both had sage ritual implements, and yet they could only barely fight against Sword Saint!

 384 Off the Mountain

    Chapter 384: Off the Mountain


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qin Yu held the golden dragon spear in his hands as he radiated with a cool, golden light. With sharp, cold eyes, he looked down at Gu Dongliu.


    The three senior disciples of the Cottage rattled the Eastern Barren Territory. Today, they would meet their end. With his father keeping everyone in check at the College, no one dared rush to their rescue. When the battle here was finished, they would head over to destroyed the College and the Cottage. It would be a cleansing of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Qin Yu moved and took the form of flashes of golden lightning, breaking into the skies. Before he could even reach Gu Dongliu, the dragon spear released lightning that filled the sky and charged at him like sharp blades.


    Gu Dongliu lifted his head, gaze sharpened and his murderous intent filled eyes turned somewhat demonic. In the next moment, Qin Yu entered his line of vision and his opponent''s every move now seemed to be in his control.


    All Qin Yu knew was that he could feel shadows appear in his spiritual will. They were like war gods that charged at him. This pissed him off and his heart cooled even more. Spiritual Sorcerers were so annoying. The only way to defend against this type of spiritual attack was with spiritual energy. There was no other way and it was no use trying to dodge out of the way.


    HISS! Flashes of lightning emitted from the dragon spear ripped through skies. What followed was the image of the spear shooting forward. A light grew at Gu Dongliu''s feet and as if he had been teleported, he disappeared from where he stood. The spear pierced into a bed of snow, releasing a loud explosion. The ground had been broken and what was left was a terrifying dark hole.


    Qin Yu waved the long spear and his body turned with the motion. The lightning seemed to have shifted with the wind and were carried over to a new location, the location where Gu Dongliu was standing.


    BOOM! The lightning continued to crackle in the sky. However, each flash only managed to get his shadows as Gu Dongliu moved way too quickly to be caught. His white clothing danced in the wind and the light around his feet was still shining brightly. His hands were held in a mudra. The heavens and earth harmonized and ancient characters began to revolve around his body. It was the character ''Xing'' of the Kuji-in Nine Seals of Spiritual Power. Each character of the Nine Seals correlated with one mudra, one spell.


    Qin Yu''s face fell. He turned slowly and looked at the figure across from him in the sky. He spoke coldly, "Is dodging all you know to do?"


    Gu Dongliu stared back at him and all Qin Yu could feel was his body go numb. His spiritual will seemed to be restricted while illusory figures of war gods charged into his mind.


    Images of dragons appeared within Qin Yu with a roar. Nine dragons with bright eyes circled and along with these nine dragons, there was also a large, majestic golden dragon. This golden dragon was the Dharma of his Life Spirit.


    With loud roars, the dragons, as well as the long spear in his grasp, were on the move. Qin Yu took a step forward and waved his spear once, splitting the skies. However, his attack was still unable to touch Gu Dongliu because he was just too quick.


    WHOOSH! The Nine Seals continued to revolve around Gu Dongliu. A bright image of a figure appeared behind him basked in the light from the Nine Seals. Gu Dongliu looked like a deity at this moment.


    The Xing character floated in the air and was imprinted on his body. When his environment harmonized, more lines of ancient characters appeared. Following that, Gu Dongliu''s body could be seen zipping through the air, only his shadow could be seen in the vast space. It was beginning to get hard to tell which image of him was real and which were fake. These images all came in front of Qin Yu and were destroyed by the spear in his hands. Then, the images continued to come at him. It was a wild scene to witness as there seemed to be no end to these images of Gu Dongliu.


    Behind Qin Yu, the dragons rushed out only to realize that a powerful force of energy gathered which led to the release of war gods. The images of nine war gods graced the skies. They were majestic and formidable with ancient characters revolving around them. They were ready to take on the dragons.


    So powerful, thought the crowd as they observed from afar with racing hearts.


    They were too powerful. The three eldest disciples of the Cottage were ready to take on the top-dogs of various great forces. The second disciple, Zhuge Hui, a goddess-like beauty, was up against the clan leader of the Donghua Clan. The first disciple, the Sword Saint, fought two men while the third disciple, Gu Dongliu, fought Qin Yu who had a ritual implement.


    However, the Qin Dynasty had people who had yet to make their move. Lady Yuxiao watched the battle between Clan Leader Hua and Zhuge Hui. She was ready to tag him out at any time. It was obvious the couple didn''t want to bully a junior cultivator by fighting together. After all, Zhuge Hui could only be considered a junior to them.


    Lu Nantian did not make a move either. He observed the battle between Qin Yu and Gu Dongliu. He had fought Gu Dongliu all those years ago in Dongqin College, but Gu Dongliu was much more powerful now. He had already made his way into the grade one Noble Plane. At the same time, he was enlightenment with a sliver of Sage abilities. Although it was just the basics, he was on his way up.


    As for the other cultivators, they were all gathered in the air around the battle of the Sword Saint. Better safe than sorry. If both Clan Leader Han Ruoshui of the Fuyun Sword Clan and the first lord of the Royal Xuan Temple couldn''t handle him, they would be ready to attack him as a group. They had their hearts set on coming out victorious in these battles. They could never allow these three eldest disciples of the Cottage to return to the College alive.


    The cultivators from the Barren State watched the battles in shock. They were surprised at just how capable the College''s disciples were. They all had Sage abilities. If they were willing to go to the Barren State, it would only be a matter of time that they entered the Sage Plane. Never in a million years did they expect this.


    Du Ao eyes were trained on the battlefields. He took notice of Clan Leader Hua and Lady Yuxiao''s abilities. They were extremely powerful indeed. He wondered what they would do if they knew about what he had done to their daughter.


    He wasn''t worried though. He had brought quite a lot of powerful cultivators from the Holy Fire Clan. Besides, did they even have the guts to take him on even if they knew?


    At the Qianqiu Temple''s campsite, the Arhat had already returned. He took a look at the battlefields and let out an emotionless smile. This was exactly the situation he talked about.


    He had another thought: if this situation got even messier, would it be able to start a bigger storm that would drag in the top powers of the Barren State as well?


    In the end, the Qin Dynasty and the College would both suffer great losses and may even have their names wiped from the Eastern Barren Territory. This way, the Qianqiu Temple, the Witch Clan, and the Ji Family would be the only top powers left in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "What are you thinking about?" asked a monk when he saw the little twinkle in the Arhat''s eyes.


    "I was wondering when our temple would be able to spread throughout the Eastern Barren Territory and receive the respect of the people," answered the Arhat.


    "Buddhism reaches those who were fated for it. There is no need to be greedy for the respect of the people. Fate comes from Buddha. If it''s not fated to be, there is no need to force it," explained the monk who now held his hands together. "Do you know why our temple is built in the Western Region of the Eastern Barren Territory, facing Sky Mountain and why we refuse to move elsewhere?"


    "To use the evilness from Sky Mountain to strengthen our hearts for Buddhism. To be unaffected by the invasion of evils is the fruit of our labors," said the Arhat.


    "There is one more reason. With a clear heart, you will be able to see your true self. Knowing your true self will help rid yourself of all inner evils. Those cultivating in Buddhism have no need in the business of the material world," said the monk. He held his Buddhist beads tightly and closed his eyes.


    "Thank you for your advice, abbot." The Arhat put his hands together and bowed his head lightly at the head monk. Naturally, he understood the meaning behind the abbot''s words.


    ��


    On Sky Mountain, Ye Futian''s group made their way off the mountain at an unusual speed despite the ground being covered in snow. In no time, they were halfway there. This was when they noticed a figure seated quietly among the snow and boulders of the mountain. The person was covered in a thick layer of white snow. All that could be seen through the thick blanket of precipitation were a pair of beautiful eyes.


    It was Hua Qingqing. She was waiting.


    The Demon Bird was able to find him, so Ye Futian was able to see everything on Sky Mountain. He walked toward her and removed his long, white robe before draping it over the girl.


    "It''s cold." He smiled at her.


    Her innocence-filled eyes met his. He has great eyes.


    "Thank you." Hua Qingqing spoke softly. Ye Futian smiled and turned away. He knew the true meaning behind her words of gratitude.


    "What a gentleman," teased Nan Yu. He looked over at Hua Qingqing and lowered his voice. "Such a pity." In his opinion, she had already fallen to the wrath of Du Ao. It was truly a pity that this innocent, beautiful girl was taken advantage of by a guy like him. Nan Yu''s heart wavered for her, as beauties did to many.


    Chu Shang also looked sympathetically at Hua Qingqing. The group then proceeded on their journey off the mountain.


    After they left, Hua Qingqing shook the snow on her body before her thin arm, white as snow, reached out. Ye Futian obviously knew that her clothes were half ruined. She put on Ye Futian''s white robe, not caring how it might look to other people. She then followed the footsteps left behind by Ye Futian''s group and headed off the mountain.


    At this point, the group reached the side of the mountain and with a giant leap, they were in the air, descending from Sky Mountain by flight. At the foot of the mountain, the camps set by the people seemed so orderly. Three different battles had broken out in the sky. There were the cultivators from the Barren State and the others who observed off to the side. When Ye Futian and the others leaped off the mountain, they landed in the middle of a battle.


    "Big brother, second sister, third brother." Ye Futian froze. He then saw Qin Yu and the others which cause his expression to turn cold. The people of the Qin Dynasty had actually picked a fight with his senior brothers and sister at Sky Mountain.


    Du Ao turned his attention in one direction in confusion. That was when he saw Hua Qingqing and smiled in her direction. Hua Qingqing had also seen him but her expression was cold.


    She''s actually okay? The Arhat was surprised. He looked at Hua Qingqing and saw the clothes she was wearing. He couldn''t help but let out an interested expression. Could there be a story on Sky Mountain?


    Hua Qingqing was wearing Ye Futian''s clothes and she had also purposely lied about Ye Futian''s time on Sky Mountain. The Arhat was sharp at picking up these things and it felt strange. Could something truly interesting have happened at the top of Sky Mountain back then?


    Qingqing. From afar, Lu Nantian saw her. Then, he saw the clothes she was wearing and the look on his face changed.


    "Capture Ye Futian," ordered Qin Yu who was in the middle of his battle with Gu Dongliu. Some cultivators who had been observing in the sidelines charged in Ye Futian''s direction.


    They really have a death wish.


    In the midst of her battle, Zhuge Hui struck down with her long whip, forcing Clan Leader Hua back. She then rushed over to Ye Futian, leaving behind only illusory images of herself.


    Clan Leader Hua reached out and his large hand grabbed a figure only to have it disappear in front of his very eyes. Only then did he realize that the figure wasn''t really Zhuge Hui.


    He seemed confused for a second, then screamed loudly at the cultivators headed for Ye Futian, "Watch out!" Just as his voice rang out, Zhuge Hui appeared and snapped her long whip in their direction!

 385 Exposed

    Chapter 385: Exposed


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Zhuge Hui''s whip swept through the air at the cultivators headed for Ye Futian. All their faces dropped before backing up quickly. The whip was extremely quick. The bright light illuminating the weapon seemed to have transformed into a sharp blade, cutting through the air.


    SNAP! The whip landed directly on one of the cultivators. Along with a horrid scream, everyone froze as the witnessed the noble''s body split in half under the impact from the whip. The whip dancing in the sky now seemed like the sharpest, most powerful weapon in the world.


    Zhuge Hui flung his body off to the side before she rushed over in Ye Futian''s direction, leaving only split images of herself. At the same time, the Sword Saint''s weapon came down with a terrifying force, giving the Fuyun Sword Clan''s leader and the first lord of the Royal Xuan Temple no choice but to move back. The Sword Saint distanced himself under the power of Sword Will as well. As for Gu Dongliu, Qin Yu had no ability to stop him from leaving the battle at all.


    The battles halted abruptly as Zhuge Hui, the Sword Saint, and Gu Dongliu were now all standing in the air in front of Ye Futian. They weren''t going to allow the cultivators of the Qin Dynasty or the Donghua Clan to get close to him. No one from the Donghua Clan seemed to be in rush to continue the battle either.


    Clan Leader Hua and Lady Yuxiao''s eyes drifted over to Hua Qingqing. "Qingqing, come here." The young girl made her way over to Lady Yuxiao.


    A look of confusion crossed the couple''s faces when they saw the white robe she was wearing. Lady Yuxiao voiced her confusion, "Qingqing?" Her curiosity on the subject was evident in her eyes. She had seen the same white robe on Ye Futian. He was no longer wearing it, making it obvious that his clothes were now on Hua Qingqing.


    Nan Feng, Chu Shang, and the others all focused on Hua Qingqing. She probably didn''t know how to open up about the humiliating and hurtful things that were done to her. It was something that would be difficult for any female. As for Du Ao, he kept up his cold demeanor as he bathed in the light of the holy fire. The fire in his eyes seemed to be masking a hint of mockery.


    "Father, Mother, let''s go home," Hua Qingqing said suddenly. It was indeed something she couldn''t talk about. This wasn''t only a matter of her reputation, but also, how was she going to explain Ye Futian''s clothes? Was she supposed to tell everyone that he saved her? That would only hurt him because then the people of the Barren State would find out that Ye Futian was responsible for what happened with the Demon Bird. That was exactly why Hua Qingqing wished for the battles to end here and she would explain everything to her parents once they returned home.


    "Go home?" Clan Leader Hua was confused. "Nantian, bring Qingqing over to the side." Things with Hua Qingqing could wait until they got home. Finishing this battle was the important thing right now. The three Cottage disciples were much too capable. If they let them go, there would be unthinkable repercussions. Clan Leader Hua knew that if the disciples got a couple more years to cultivate, the three of them would be at the top of the Eastern Barren Territory. This was the reason why Emperor Qin was in such a rush.


    Hua Qingqing looked at her father, not knowing what to do. If she confesses that Ye Futian saved her, it would put him in danger, but if she didn''t say anything, her parents would kill him. As for telling her parents the truth about what Du Ao did to her, what would happen if she did? Would her parents declare war on the powers of the Barren State? It may lead to the end of the Donghua Clan at the end.


    From her eyes, one could tell that Hua Qingqing was extremely conflicted. She didn''t know what to do.


    At this moment, Qin Yu was staring at her. She was actually wearing Ye Futian''s clothes. It seems this girl isn''t as pure and innocent as she lets on. Qin Yu''s younger sister Qin Mengruo married Qian Shanmu of the Donghua Clan and was killed. What did Hua Qingqing do? She hid the truth about what Ye Futian did on Sky Mountain. It looked as if something they weren''t aware of definitely happened on Sky Mountain last year. However, Qin Yu did not come out to point fingers at Hua Qingqing right now. It could be dealt with later. What he needed now was to use the abilities of Clan Leader Hua and his wife to defeat the Sword Saint and his juniors.


    Just then, the Arhat noticed the stalemate they were in from where he stood at the Qianqiu Temple campsite. He looked up at the cultivators from the Barren State and asked, "Have you guys been on Sky Mountain?" Those from the Barren State turned to look at the Arhat, listening as he continued to speak. "With two people who have been on the mountain before leading the way, there''s no way you guys wouldn''t be able to make it up Sky Mountain."


    "We were attacked by a Demon Bird," said Nan Feng.


    "Demon Bird?" A look crossed the Arhat''s face before his eyes moved toward Ye Futian. That''s when he noticed that Ye Futian was also looking at himself with chilling eyes.


    In this instant, Ye Futian suddenly realized who had tattled. He never thought it would be the Arhat of the Qianqiu Temple. He should have guessed.


    "I get it now," said the Arhat. His eyes moved away and folded his hands. He chanted the name of Buddha and said nothing else.


    "What does that mean?" asked Nan Yu.


    "I can''t say." The Arhat shook his head.


    Nan Yu''s brows knit together in confusion. Han Lan of the Taixuan Mountain spoke next, "If you know something, say it."


    "You wouldn''t believe it even if I were to tell you. Also, I wouldn''t be very well-liked after saying so. I am not yet a very experienced monk and can''t take the hatred that would result from telling," the Arhat shook his head once more.


    "Kongming," the Qianqiu Temple''s abbot looked at the Arhat and called out for him. The Arhat''s monastic name was Kongming.


    Du Ao moved toward the Qianqiu Temple group while the Three-legged Golden Raven and the cultivators of the Holy Fire Clan followed behind him. Looking down at the Arhat, Du Ao said, "Say it and I can guarantee that no one will be able to hurt you."


    "The abbot forbids me from speaking about it," the Arhat shook his head yet again. "I''m afraid that the abbot would be held responsible for what I have to say. How would I continue to cultivate at the temple after that?"


    "You can come with me to the Barren State and join our Holy Fire Clan for cultivation," said Du Ao.


    The Arhat looked around and saw that Nan Feng had also approached. "I can also guarantee not to let anyone hurt you." The Arhat bowed his head slighting and then bowed deeply at the Qianqiu Temple''s abbot. "Abbot, monks don''t lie. I have to speak the truth." After that, he turned back to Du Ao. "There is no Demon Bird on Sky Mountain."


    "Do you think we''re blind?" Nan Yu spoke coldly. He was attacked by the Demon Bird and also suffered injuries.


    "The Qianqiu Temple has been in the Western Region, facing Sky Mountain, for years now. No one is more knowledgeable on the matters of Sky Mountain. There is only the will left by the Demon Bird, but it''s not actually here. If you guys don''t believe me, you can ask the abbot," said the Arhat. Everyone''s attention shifted to the abbot immediately. All they saw was that he had his hands clasped tightly and that he was chanting the name of Buddha. He was greatly disappointed.


    "Wise monk," Nan Yu called to the abbot.


    "Observing Sky Mountain can help you understand your heart and see who you really are. For the looks of it, Kongming, you already know your own heart," said the abbot.


    The Arhat nodded and replied, "I do."


    "If so, then you can go now," said the abbot.


    "Thank you for everything." The Arhat bowed again. Of course, he understood his own heart. The more he cultivated in Buddhism, the clearer things became. Buddha says that all living creatures are equal but where was this equality? People only respected those of high status. Cultivating Buddhism was simply a pursuit of power for him.


    Now that it was clear to him that the Qianqiu Temple had no ambitions, there was nothing left for him there. Plus, there were also the changes in the Eastern Barren Territory. Buddha talks about chance. His chance was here now.


    "Let''s go," said the abbot. He turned to leave, leading the others of the Qianqiu Temple with him. Many of them looked back at the Arhat. His comprehension of Buddhism was so great. The Arhat was able to comprehend the true meaning of scriptures easily and was even given the title of Arhat because of that. However, it seemed like he was also extremely capable in hiding who he really was. What a pity.


    The people from the Barren State watched as all this unfolded and knew that what the Arhat said must be true. Du Ao spoke, "Continue what you were saying."


    "I already said that Hua Qingqing was not the only one who had made it onto Sky Mountain, so had Ye Futian. In reality, they weren''t the only ones." He moved on to explain further, "When Ye Futian tried to kill the Qin Dynasty''s Qin Li on Sky Mountain, he was already at wit''s end. He couldn''t fight anymore and was being chased by Hua Qingqing. There to protect Ye Futian, was fellow Cottage disciple, Yu Sheng. In his group, was also a demon beast, the Black Wind Eagle. The beast turned into the Demon Bird in order to protect Ye Futian. It wounded Hua Qingqing and I before flying onto Sky Mountain. Then, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng continued onto the mountain as well. Hua Qingqing also resumed her chase, following behind them."


    The Arhat continued, "If you don''t believe me, you can ask Qin Li''s father, Qi Yu. It was him that told you guys Hua Qingqing made it onto Sky Mountain. Then again, you can also ask Hua Qingqing, but in my opinion, something must have happened between her and Ye Futian on the mountain. Otherwise, there is no way his clothes would end up on her."


    Abruptly, Du Ao''s face turned green. As did, Nan Feng and Nan Yu''s faces. After listening to the Arhat''s explanation, they believed a good half of what he said. So, there wasn''t a Demon Bird on Sky Mountain at all. Then where did the one they saw come from?


    "That Demon Bird saved Hua Qingqing," muttered Du Ao. Nan Feng and the others felt enlightened as everything suddenly seemed so clear.


    The Demon Bird appeared suddenly on Sky Mountain and saved Hua Qingqing. Then, Ye Futian put his clothes on her. How funny. They had thought that Ye Futian was simply being a gentleman. It seemed as if they were too na?ve. They had been played by a youngster from the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Interesting. Nan Yu clapped and turned around slowly. His eyes stared in Ye Futian''s direction. Interesting indeed. He brought them onto Sky Mountain and had the Demon Bird attack them, wounding them. No wonder he kept trying to get them to keep climbing up.


    Du Ao''s eyes were chilling and radiated with a murderous intent.


    That Demon Bird almost killed him. Maybe Ye Futian wasn''t gutsy enough to kill everyone, but if just one person was killed, there was no way anyone would suspect it was his doing. Plus, there were others present. Who would have thought that he almost died in the Eastern Barren Territory?


    Ye Futian didn''t look at them because his eyes were trained on the Arhat. After the Arhat spilled the beans, everything was now out in the open. Ye Futian could no longer hide anything. Why did he do this?


    Zhuge Hui and Gu Dongliu were also staring at the Arhat with a cold demeanor. However, the Arhat had already hopped on the Three-legged Golden Raven along with Du Ao. He had betrayed the Qianqiu Temple. He saw this as his chance to leave the Eastern Barren Territory and was now heading to the Barren State for cultivation.


    "You tricked me and got me on Sky Mountain. Then, the Demon Bird attacked. Did you want me dead?" Nan Yu asked Ye Futian. His smile was ingenuine.


    "Are you serious?" Nan Yu''s eyes filled with a murderous intent.


    Cultivators of various Barren State powers moved toward Ye Futian. That was when Nan Feng spoke up. "And we thought you didn''t get the relics of Sky Mountain. Looks like we underestimated you. What did you get from Sky Mountain?"

 386 Do You Deserve It?

    Chapter 386: Do You Deserve It?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Hearing the Arhat''s words and the inquiry of people from the Barren State, people all stared at Ye Futian. They had never expected that Ye Futian really reached the mountaintop and got the Sky Mountain''s relics. For centuries, countless people had tried but failed. However, Ye Futian made it.


    It was pitiful that he had such a great talent but encountered with strong cultivators from the Barren State. The Arhat had exposed the fact. Ye Futian was set in danger now. The Cottage was competent to confront with the Qin Dynasty, but it couldn''t be these foreign forces'' match at all.


    At this moment, there was only silence on the Sky Mountain. Lady Yuxiao looked at Hua Qingqing and asked, "What exactly happened on the mountaintop on that day?"


    Hearing what the Arhat had said, Lady Yuxiao guessed that there must be a story between her daughter and Ye Futian.


    Hua Qingqing lowered her head and said lightly, "Someone wanted to kill me and Ye Futian saved me."


    "Who was it?" Lady Yuxiao asked coldly.


    "Mother, can we just skip over it?" Hua Qingqing looked at her mother with her beautiful imploring eyes. Things were getting more and more complicated. She didn''t know what Ye Futian was going to meet but could only hope that her parents could stop entangling with Ye Futian. If the Donghua Clan was involved again, they would be in a very dangerous situation.


    "Madame, we can talk about this later? If we don''t handle the Cottage now, you know the result," Qin Yu said while coming up and glancing at Hua Qingqing.


    Lady Yuxiao stared at Qin Yu coldly. If it weren''t for Qin Yu, her daughter would not have gone to the Sky Mountain and been threatened by others. Ye Futian saved her daughter. Lady Yuxiao owed Ye Futian now.


    Lady Yuxiao turned to Du Ao. From what they had said before, she inferred that Du Ao must be the killer. Lu Nantian''s face grew livid. His body seemed to effuse dire flames.


    "Sir, Madame, I didn''t expect that, but it has happened. Good to hear that Miss Hua didn''t get hurt," said Qin Yu, "With the Barren State''s forces, we can very easily dominate the whole Eastern Barren Territory now."


    Bang. The head of the Donghua Clan hit his scepter on the ground. Veins bulged on his face. As the head of the Donghua Clan, how could he stand with the fact that his daughter was bullied by others?


    "Sir, think about the larger picture. We''d better act now. Ye Futian''s group are doomed to die," Qin Yu kept saying. He gestured to the others and walked toward the Cottage. The Cottage''s four famous disciples were surrounded near the Sky Mountain.


    At this time, Ye Futian looked at Nan Feng and laughed. He walked back toward the Sky Mountain and turned around when arriving at the edge of the mountain. He smiled at Nan Feng and said, "Why should I tell you what I got on the Sky Mountain? It''s none of your business."


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, people all sneered. It''s not about who you are. It''s about what you got. Can''t you understand?


    "What a fool!" Nan Yu looked at Ye Futian disdainfully. It''s none of my business? He sneered and moved toward Ye Futian. "The relics on the Sky Mountain are not something that you can take. Just tell everything and you can still live."


    "Really?" Ye Futian looked at Nan Yu and said, "Even though you believe me, you are still going to kill me after I tell the truth. To tell or not, what''s the difference?"


    "I''ll still offer you the chance to join the Nantian House. You follow me, be our guard, and I''ll let bygones just be bygones." Nan Yu walked to Ye Futian as if he was trying to save him.


    Seeing Nan Yu walking forward, the people of the Nantian House became vigilant. They surrounded the Sword Saint''s group quietly to get the upper hand. They probably didn''t dare fight back though.


    What Ye Futian got was the Sky Mountain''s relics; no one could save him now.


    Zhuge Hui turned to Ye Futian and Nan Yu disdainfully. Nan Yu thought he was smart enough? She knew what kind of person Ye Futian was. Nan Yu wanted to bribe her little brother? Was he serious?


    "Follow you?" Ye Futian smiled at Nan Yu. "Do you deserve it?"


    Hearing Ye Futian''s provocative words, Nan Yu blanched but then smiled more brightly. His body effused some extremely sharp aura which made him look like he was wearing a suit of silver armor. He reached out his hand and then a silver spear condensed with bright cold light. In an instant, Nan Yu became very powerful with his opulent armor.


    "I can give you one last chance. If you don''t cherish it, there is no more." Nan Yu smiled.


    Ye Futian laughed and turned to the Sky Mountain. Suddenly, Nan Yu rushed toward Ye Futian very fast like a lightning. The others didn''t intend to assist Nan Yu because they thought it was beyond doubt that Nan Yu would defeat Ye Futian anyway.


    Seeing this, Qin Yu smiled with satisfaction. Now that the Barren State was attacking Ye Futian, the Cottage would definitely go to help. A wonderful show was right away. Perhaps the Barren State could do all the things he wanted this time.


    Whoosh! The silver spear pierced toward Ye Futian directly with a stunning speed. It seemed that Ye Futian didn''t notice what was happening. He didn''t turn around. But with a stomp, some blazing light projected from his legs as if all wind and thunder gathered around him.


    With a buzz, his body disappeared, leaving only a blue electronic light in the air. The spear pierced nothing. Standing on the Sky Mountain''s precipice, Ye Futian turned around slowly and looked at Nan Yu.


    "It''s Shadow Step." Gu Dongliu''s eyes flickered. His little brother was really talented. Within such a short period, he had mastered this spell to such an extent. Gu Dongliu also practiced the Shadow Step. He knew it was not easy, but Ye Futian could use this spell to escape Nan Yu''s attacks so easily. Obviously, he had reached the proficiency or he wouldn''t use it in such a situation.


    "Nice try." Nan Yu glanced at Ye Futian and then his body rushed toward Ye Futian again like a straight silver lightning.


    Just at this moment, there were rustles. Countless golden vines appeared around Ye Futian and rushed toward Nan Yu very fast like countless golden spears. More horrible was that those golden spears twisted like vines and overshadowed the sky. They twisted randomly.


    It was the spell, Death Coil.


    Nan Yu was forced to stop. He brandished his silver spear and a silver curtain appeared around him, demolishing those vines rushing toward him. His arms waved with an amazing speed. In an instant, silver light blazed and all the vines were cut off. But soon, people found that the vines seemed endless. They suffused the whole space and threatened Nan Yu.


    "What is this?" The Barren State''s strong cultivators were stunned, especially Nan Feng. He knew Nan Yu''s strength. Nan Yu was the Nantian House''s talent. His level was much higher than Ye Futian''s. Though both were at the lower Arcana Plane, Ye Futian had only reached the first plane. And yet Ye Futian could still cast a spell and trap Nan Yu. What did it mean?


    At this time, Nan Yu was vexed. Blazing light burst from his spear into the sky. Every move he made pierced the air with incredible mighty force. When his spear pierced those vines, metallic sounds were heard.


    Blazing light projected behind Nan Yu. His life spirit burst out. It was a figure of the god of war with a spear in hand. Nan Yu and his life spirit waved spears synchronously. Everything around them was shattered. The Death Coil couldn''t get close to them now.


    "Die!" Extremely cold light flashed in Nan Yu''s eyes. He turned into a flash of silver lightning and shattered all the coming vines.


    "Nantian House''s talent is forced to release his life spirit?" The Barren State''s people didn''t doubt the result they expected but were still a little surprised by the process. They looked at Ye Futian on the precipice. Ye Futian reached out and blazing purple lightning soared like thunder chains. His body bathed in this brilliant purple light like a god.


    The sky changed color. People at the foot of the mountain looked at the sky with astonishment. They had never seen purple lightning.


    "Your defense is really strong." Ye Futian''s eyes turned demonic. Purple light flickered in his eyes. His mentality had melted in the spell. Then the brilliant purple lightning flashed through the sky and squarely hit the incoming silver figure.


    Nan Yu growled and his silver spear pierced toward the coming purple lightning. That lightning was conducted through the spear and shocked Nan Yu''s body. In an instant, he was shocked and shook violently. His mentality was also attacked by the lightning.


    It was a mixed spell named Divine Thunder Kill.


    Bang, bang, bang. While Nan Yu was numb, more purple golden lightning came down and hit him. Nan Yu''s body kept shaking. He totally lost consciousness. With some rustling, the Death Coil came again and entangled his body. Nan Yu''s body was pulled up into the sky and hovered before Ye Futian.


    Countless people were stunned at this scene, especially the Barren State''s strong cultivators. Nan Yu was defeated in such a miserable way, but he was supposed to be stronger than Ye Futian.


    "You still want me to follow you?" Ye Futian looked up at Nan Yu in the air.


    Nan Yu stared at Ye Futian with vicious eyes. Blazing light appeared again, but soon the vines smashed him onto the precipice.


    "How dare you!" At this time, a strong cultivator in Noble Plane stepped out from the Nantian House. He rose into the sky and reached out his hand, wanted to catch Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at him coldly and said, "Go away!"


    Clang! As soon as he spoke, the bell tolled and a horrible invisible storm demolished everything. With a loud explosion, that cultivator in Noble Plane paled and was thrown back in the air!

 387 Final Day for Qin Yu

    Chapter 387: Final Day for Qin Yu


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Not only did the windstorm force back the Noble, but it also swept through Sky Mountain and the void. Light flowed through many strong cultivators. They had to shield themselves with their hands but still let out grunts, faces paling. Those above the Noble Plane all retreated. From the Barren State camp, dragons roared and the Golden Raven screamed. The boundless sky shook.


    After a long while, the bell faded, sweeping towards the west of the Eastern Barren Territory. Echoes sounded below the mountain.


    Everyone looked up at Ye Futian. He stood proudly in the air, looking down at everyone. They all understood now that Ye Futian controlled the bell, just like the bell at the foot of the mountain last year. He truly controlled the will of Sky Mountain.


    The Noble from the Sacred Fire Sect lowered his head and arched his back. Then his head rose slowly, looking at Ye Futian with a horrible expression. That one utterance had forced him back.


    The eyes of the other Barren State cultivators shone. It was as the Arhat had said.


    Qin Yu''s expression was ugly and then he sneered. This way, no one could protect Ye Futian. He would die today. No matter what happened, he wouldn''t be able to escape. With his power, he didn''t qualify to control Sky Mountain yet. The Barren State forces wouldn''t let him go. The Cottage wouldn''t be able to protect him either.


    Ye Futian''s eyes fell on his seniors. Zhuge Hui grinned at him. "Junior, you''re pretty good."


    "Senior Sister, that was an accident." Ye Futian shuddered when he saw Zhuge Hui''s smile. That wasn''t on purpose.


    "I was wondering which b*stard did it last time. Didn''t think it was you." Zhuge Hui had a faint smile in her eyes. She''d guessed it, but it was still shocking to witness. Of course, she wasn''t really blaming Ye Futian.


    "Senior Sister, I''m not filial. How about I leave the Cottage? You can all go back. I won''t return," Ye Futian said. The Sword Saint and the others were all shocked. They gaped at Ye Futian but quickly understood. This guy��was worried he would involve the Cottage so he tried to separate himself. After all, the opponent was no longer the Qin Dynasty but the Barren State. Ye Futian knew that his seniors wouldn''t watch without doing anything, but that would offend the Barren State forces.


    Hearing these words, Zhuge Hui flashed and walked to Ye Futian with a smile.


    "Senior Sister," Ye Futian called.


    Smiling, Zhuge Hui reached out and pulled Ye Futian''s ears. "Say that again?"


    "Senior, I''m sorry." Ye Futian was about to cry. He was an adult now. Did she have to do this in public? His perfect image was destroyed.


    "Good." Zhuge Hui let go and patted Ye Futian''s head. "Don''t say those things anymore."


    Ye Futian really wanted to cry. Couldn''t she take care of his ego?


    Without him realizing, the Sword Saint and Gu Dongliu had also walked over. They didn''t say anything, but just standing there showed their stance. Ye Futian felt warm inside. His seniors were great.


    "Let go of me," a cold voice came, shattering the moment.


    Ye Futian turned. Nan Yu had been immobilized by the mountain with the spell, seemingly tied up like a hog. His extremely dark eyes glared at Ye Futian. He was humiliated in front of everyone.


    "Do you know what you''re doing? I am from the Nantian House of the Barren State." Nan Yu''s voice was frigid. If people heard that the descendant of the main lineage of the Nantian House was humiliated in a place like the Eastern Barren Territory, he would become a laughingstock.


    "You asked why I didn''t challenge you at the College. Do you know why now?" Staring at Nan Yu scornfully, Ye Futian mocked, "A failure like you can''t even take a hit. It''s meaningless to defeat you, other than making you threaten me with your family. Do you know what ''insulting'' is?"


    Nan Yu''s immobilized body trembled. His expression was extremely dark. He couldn''t refute Ye Futian''s words.


    "Enough," Nan Feng said from a dragon. "Let go of him."


    Ye Futian gazed coldly, ignoring him.


    "Are you willing to join the Mortal World? We are a clan. You are talented and will find a place there," Chu Shang suddenly said, inviting Ye Futian to the Mortal World.


    Ye Futian smiled at her. Would he still be free after joining the Mortal World? He would be handing his fate over.


    "Thank you, Fairy Chu, but I like the clan I''m with now," Ye Futian said, smiling. "I received the Sky Mountain relic by chance. It belongs to me. Can you take your people away now?"


    Chu Shang studied Ye Futian. He was too na?ve. The relic was Ukiyo, one of the ten top musical pieces. Ye Futian couldn''t keep it. Even if Chu Shang agreed to leave, the other forces wouldn''t.


    It wasn''t that simple.


    "What about you all?" Ye Futian looked at the other forces. They looked back without saying anything. "I''ll attack if you try to rob me. Will we just stay here in a stalemate?" Ye Futian asked. He hated how low his level was. Otherwise, he could just kill whoever wanted to rob or kill him. There was no need to be so careful. He knew he couldn''t do things out of loyalty. It would be better if he was alone. He could escape after killing. But with the Cottage, College, and his family, how could he escape? He couldn''t only think about himself.


    "Everyone, he can attack using the Sky Mountain''s will. He would be useless without it. If you go to the Cottage, he will return," Qin Yu said, expression cold. Since Ye Futian had Sky Mountain''s will, it would be hard to kill him here. If they went to Book Mountain, it would be easier.


    "The bell doesn''t affect people of the Arcana Plane as much. They can take him," the Arhat said from the Golden Raven. He obviously felt the bell earlier, but he could bear the reverberations. Many Arcana Plane cultivators had come from the Barren State. They could capture Ye Futian easily. As for Nobles, Ye Futian''s side only had three. How could they fight back? If Ye Futian used Sky Mountain''s will to fight, all Nobles would be hurt, including his seniors.


    "That works." Qin Yu''s eyes flashed.


    "Take them," Du Ao said coldly. Strong cultivators of both the Noble and Arcana Plane walked forward.


    "Senior Sister, I want to start killing," Ye Futian said.


    "Me too." Zhuge Hui scanned the crowd coldly.


    "Let''s kill Qin Yu first," Ye Futian said. He looked at Qin Yu as if the man was already dead.


    "Okay." Zhuge Hui nodded.


    Ye Futian looked over at Qin Yu and then saw the leaders of the Donghua Clan with Hua Qingqing. The girl looked at him and said, "Mother, Father, can you not fight?"


    "Qingqing, go back." The leader sighed. He wanted to step out, but that was impossible now.


    The Barren State was involved now. Ye Futian and the Cottage had their fates decided. The Eastern Barren Territory would belong to the Qin Dynasty now. How could they step out now? Emperor Qin and the Qin Dynasty would wipe them out.


    "Clan Leader, the Donghua Clan will become the top clan after this battle," Qin Yu said. He knew that Lady Yuxiao didn''t like him.


    The clan leader nodded and stepped forward. Countless strong cultivators charged towards Ye Futian''s group. Below the mountain, everyone watched this with shaken hearts.


    "Seniors, if I do anything, I swear it''s not on purpose," Ye Futian pleaded. Zhuge Hui glared. Was he going to do it again?


    "Don''t use too much force," Zhuge Hui said.


    "Of course��" Ye Futian smiled tremblingly. Then he soared into the air, eyes turning cold while looking at Qin Yu. "Qin Yu, Sky Mountain will be your burial ground." With that, he started communicating with Sky Mountain''s intent.


    That moment, the snow fell stronger from Sky Mountain. They swept towards Ye Futian and everyone felt a terrifying Spiritual Qi. All the snow on the mountain turned into Spiritual Qi, filling the space. Every snowflake contained Spiritual Qi.


    "He can use Sky Mountain''s Spiritual Qi." Everyone''s expressions changed. Now they understood that people of the Arcana Plane couldn''t kill him.


    Golden vines suddenly extended from Sky Mountain, reaching above everyone. They expanded wildly and quickly, covering the sky and even the snow. Ye Futian stood there with his handsome eyes shut tightly. He quietly sensed everything.


    Qin Yu''s group looked up. "Retreat," he said.


    Rustles sounded endlessly as the vines covered the heavens. Qin Yu tried to retreat, but then the bell started ringing again. The rings swept through. That moment, an ancient bell appeared in everyone''s minds.


    The bodies in the air shook and grunted. Qin Yu''s face turned white.


    Clang�� The bell rang again. A huge bell fell from the sky in their minds, shaking everything. With a grunt, Qin Yu spat out blood. His face was white. In addition to him, all Nobles on Sky Mountain were like this. Blood seeped from many mouths. The powerful figures of Barren State were pained.


    The Sword Saint, Zhuge Hui, and Gu Dongliu sat before Ye Futian with closed eyes. They didn''t have to care about anything other than fighting against the power so it was easier.


    Qin Yu roared. Golden light covered him. He wanted to escape.


    Clang, clang�� The bell kept ringing and he kept spitting out blood. His body fell while endless vines fell too. They wrapped around his body and brought him towards Ye Futian.


    "No��" Qin Yu was actually terrified. He couldn''t control his own body!

 388 Start Killing

    Chapter 388: Start Killing


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Qin Yu felt himself flying towards Sky Mountain. Vines wrapped tightly around his limbs and neck, dragging him to the mountain. He was truly afraid. His father had gone to the Cottage to stop Mr. Du and the College. If they killed the Sword Saint and the others, the Eastern Barren Territory would belong to the Qin Dynasty. But he never thought that not only could Ye Futian activate Sky Mountain''s bell, he could also control its Spiritual Qi.


    I won''t die. Qin Yu had a strong will to live. Gold flashed brilliantly from his body, tearing through everything. At the same time, his ritual implement armor flashed, blocking the spell''s attack. The gold vines were cut by the powerful metal intent. Qin Yu got some hope, but then he heard a clang�� He spat out a mouthful of blood. His hope was extinguished.


    Ye Futian was truly going to kill him.


    Fear intensified inside Qin Yu. There was an explosion. He felt himself crash against the mountain as the vines transformed into blades that pierced him. However, Qin Yu was covered in the ritual implement armor, blocking that attack.


    Ding, ding, ding�� The bell flattened everything. The boundless sky trembled.


    "B*stard."


    "Stop."


    The Noble figures of the Barren State were all on the ground, vomiting blood. The majestic dragon was limp on the ground, blood flowing from its mouth. The Golden Raven was also weak on the ground, bleeding fiery blood.


    It was tragic. All strong cultivators were forced down on Sky Mountain while the weaker ones still stood. They didn''t know what to think about the Nobles on the ground. The bell kept echoing in their minds. Ye Futian controlled the bell on Sky Mountain, defeating them instantly. He was so cruel.


    Qin Yu was tied up on the side of the mountain like Nan Yu. He was weak to the point that he was on his last breath. The ritual implement dimmed and his spiritual energy was down. He couldn''t use Spiritual Qi to armor his body.


    The sharp thorns touched Qin Yu''s neck. They were frigid to the bone. Qin Yu looked up weakly and said quietly, "Let me go."


    Let him go? Ye Futian laughed. Qin Yu hadn''t thought about letting anyone go when he plotted to destroy the Liu Kingdom.


    "The Qin Dynasty is cruel. A force like this is destined to drown in the river of time. Qin Yu, you won''t be lonely." As soon as Ye Futian finished, an extremely sharp blade pierced Qin Yu''s neck. Blood flowed out. His eyes were wide as saucers as if recovering his energy. He glared at Ye Futian.


    "I refuse!" he roared with all his might. Finally, his eyes dimmed and his aura disappeared. He was nailed dead to the mountain. The snow and ice of Sky Mountain covered him. Instantly, he was turned into an ice statue, sealed to the side of the mountain.


    "The Liu Kingdom refused too," Ye Futian muttered. Beside him, Nan Yu trembled in fear. The unimportant low-class figures he''d looked down on now had an aura that scared him. Ye Futian had used Sky Mountain''s intent to defeat all strong cultivators here and crucified a top-level Noble.


    Ye Futian turned slowly. Countless eyes at the foot of the mountain gazed at him in terror. He had received the Sky Mountain relic and controlled its intent. Qin Yu, crown prince of the Qin Dynasty, had died on the mountain. He probably wouldn''t be the only one.


    In the snow at the foot of Sky Mountain, the leaders of the Fuyun Sword Clan, Royal Xuan Temple, and Donghua Clan were all pale. They were all breathing with difficulty now. They knew that since Ye Futian could kill Qin Yu, he could kill them too.


    In the sky, the golden vines covered the sun. There was no snow anymore. Ye Futian gazed at the leaders of the Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple. The vines went to them.


    Boom. The Fuyun Sword Clan leader used his last bit of power to transform into sword light to escape. With a clang, the bell rang and he dropped down��powerless and hopeless. Vines swept over and curled around him. Then they snaked up his arm. His sword was raised into the sky and cut a beautiful arc. With a soft sound, the Fuyun Sword Clan leader, a top figure in the Eastern Barren Territory, had his neck sliced by his own sword. Like Qin Yu, he died on Sky Mountain.


    "No, I''m willing to submit to the Cottage." The Royal Xuan Temple leader gazed up at Sky Mountain, at the handsome figure hovering there. He was willing to submit to them. Right now, he just wanted to live.


    "Don''t insult the Cottage." Ye Futian looked at him in scorn. The sword flashed and blood spilled onto the snow. Everyone''s hearts were numb. This was the third top figure that Ye Futian had slain.


    He had started killing.


    Who would have thought that these top figures would die like this? The Alkaid sword flew towards the leaders of Donghua Clan as fast as lightning. The leader''s face was white. He stood with his wife and sighed inwardly.


    The Donghua Clan had always wanted to be the number one clan. Thus, they joined with the Qin Dynasty. Who would have thought that the disciples of the Cottage were all this talented? Instead of dying in the hands of the Sword Saint, they would be killed by the youngest disciple. They really had been dreaming.


    The Alkaid transformed into icy lightning filled with murderous intent. Then a beautiful figure stood before them.


    "Qingqing," the leader yelled. It was Hua Qingqing before them. She looked up at Sky Mountain. The Alkaid was coming down like lightning with extreme sharpness.


    Boom! Sword aura burst forth. Cold light reflected on Hua Qingqing''s face. Her eyes stayed open without even blinking. Rather than looking at the sword, she looked at Ye Futian.


    "Qingqing, move aside," her father said, but she seemed not to hear. She remained there.


    "I''ll die for them," Hua Qingqing said to Ye Futian.


    "You didn''t attack me on Sky Mountain and helped me keep the secret," Ye Futian said. That''s why I saved you earlier. However, your parents must pay." Hua Qingqing was different from the people of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. That was why Ye Futian saved her. However, the Donghua Clan leader had tried killing his seniors.


    "I know. That''s why I will die for them," Hua Qingqing said softly.


    "You can''t."


    "They didn''t participate in the matter with the Liu Kingdom and didn''t know. It was the Qin Dynasty. If you''ve already decided, kill us all." Hua Qingqing''s eyes closed slowly. A teardrop fell from the corner of her eye. She wasn''t afraid of death. She''d just thought of the snow on Sky Mountain and that beautiful melody. If she knew this day would come, would she have attacked Ye Futian? Would she have kept the secret for him?


    "Junior, forgive them," the Sword Saint murmured with his eyes closed.


    Ye Futian heard his words and looked in Hua Qingqing''s direction. "What will the clan leader do in the future?"


    "I will retreat and never be involved in the Eastern Barren Territory again," he said.


    "What if you can''t?" Ye Futian continued.


    "If they can''t do it, I''ll die." Hua Qingqing opened her eyes and looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at those determined eyes. The next moment, the vines with the Alkaid sword whooshed away to another direction. He didn''t kill the Donghua Clan leader and Lady Yuxiao.


    The other direction was where the Sacred Fire Sect was.


    The Arhat''s expression changed drastically. "Help me." He flashed and hid behind Du Ao of the Sacred Fire Sect.


    The frigidly shining Alkaid came over. Du Ao looked up at Ye Futian and said coldly, "Do you dare kill him?"


    Whoosh. The vines curled around the Arhat, tying him up and taking him into the air.


    "Let go of me." The Arhat looked up at Ye Futian in fear. The golden vines took him straight into the air, right across from Ye Futian who looked at him. "You wish to enter the Barren State?" The Arhat wanted to use Ye Futian''s life as a spring to cultivate in the Barren State.


    "I don''t agree," Ye Futian whispered.


    Behind the Arhat, the Alkaid came with the vines. With a squelch, the blade cut into the Arhat''s head. Slain! His eyes were still open, but blood kept flowing. The vines disappeared and he dropped down the sky. His heart was utterly cold.


    Wasn''t this his chance? Strong cultivators from the Barren State had come. He could leave the Qianqiu Temple in the Eastern Barren Territory and enter the Barren State to cultivate. Everything was so perfect. He even knew Ye Futian''s secret.


    Why was this the ending? Why did he die?


    The Buddha spoke of reincarnations. Where was it? A person died just as a candle would be extinguished. They would disappear from the world. His life was still so short. He had so much talent but hadn''t shone yet before dying at Sky Mountain.


    He wasn''t willing.


    But even so, he had died. His corpse fell onto the snow like the clan leaders of the Fuyun Sword Clan. None of them were willing; none of them had expected this ending.


    "I''m sorry. These personal rivalries have nothing to do with you," Ye Futian said to Du Ao. His voice was calm, but Du Ao''s expression was extremely ugly. These were personal rivalries that had nothing to do with him? That was a slap to his face. And yet, Ye Futian''s voice was monotone. He didn''t consider Du Ao at all.


    Of course, he didn''t. If not for the force behind Du Ao, Ye Futian would have started killing directly. He''d already offended him. Did he have to care about Du Ao while killing the Arhat? If he did, wouldn''t he just submit to him?!

 389 Is It Not Good To Be Alive?

    Chapter 389: Is It Not Good To Be Alive?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Sky Mountain fell into a deafening silence. After killing Qin Yu and the others, the vines dancing in the sky slowly disappeared. Snow fell down from the sky, along with waves of coldness. Countless people gazed at Ye Futian. At the moment, the handsome young man seemed to be the only person left in the world. Qin Yu had died, so had the Fuyun Sword Clan leader and the lord of Royal Xuan Temple. Donghua Clan leader and his wife announced that they would live in seclusion in the future.


    The final battle in the Eastern Barren Territory ended in a way that nobody had expected. It felt somewhat unreal, but certainly very shocking. After this battle, nobody in the Eastern Barren Territory would be able to fight against the Cottage. Of course, the forces from the Barren State were not counted.


    However, Ye Futian had done more than just kill Qin Yu and the others. He had also greatly offended the people from the Barren State. He injured Nan Yu and killed the Arhat right before Du Ao. He had suppressed all the nobles from the Barren State and all of them looked weak and dying at the moment. Even strong demons such as the dragon and Three-Legged Golden Raven were exhausted. It was thus obvious how much Ye Futian had offended the rest.


    The ringing finally stopped and the echoes also gradually dissipated. Only then, many people could relax. The nobles stood up one after another, all seemed to be injured, after which they stared coldly at Ye Futian. Although Ye Futian did not aim this attack at them, the unexpected calamity still caused them to be extremely furious. They were humiliated in such a ridiculous way, so of course, they would feel unhappy.


    "Are you not going to let him go?" Nan Feng said to Ye Futian. At the moment, his tone was not as domineering as it had been. He had witnessed everything that had happened. If they really forced Ye Futian too hard near Sky Mountain, their ending would be more or less the same as Qin Yu.


    Ye Futian was stunned, after which he turned around and looked at Nan Yu who was still nailed to the cliff. Smiling, he said, "Sorry. I forgot about you." Then, golden vines shot out towards Nan Yu''s head like lightning.


    Ah! Blade-like vines magnified rapidly in Nan Yu''s eyes. His body trembled fiercely and he could not help screaming in horror. Fear even caused him to close his eyes and his bound body kept spasming He saw for himself how Ye Futian had killed those people just now. Seeing the vines charging towards him, he obviously thought that Ye Futian was going to kill him.


    Bang! The golden vines pierced into the cliff beside Nan Yu which exploded. Then, the vines swept towards his body and Ye Futian asked, "What is it?"


    Nan Yu opened his eyes and realized that the vines on his body had all vanished. Ye Futian was staring at him innocently. Seeing Ye Futian''s expression, Nan Yu knew at once that he had been fooled.


    Following a cracking sound, Nan Yu looked at Ye Futian coldly as a strong aura spread from his body. However, when he saw the swaying golden vines around Ye Futian, he only felt somewhat powerless.


    "In any friendly fight, accidental injuries cannot be avoided. I believe that as a genius from Nantian House, you will not be so stingy." Ye Futian smiled and said, "Please."


    At the moment, Nan Yu even felt like he wanted to kill somebody immediately. Looking at Ye Futian''s mocking look, he turned around and walked up to Nan Feng and the rest.


    This time, they would admit defeat.


    "Do you really not want to join us in Mortal World?" Suddenly, Chu Shang looked at Ye Futian and said, "I am being very sincere. With your talents, you will definitely be valued in Mortal World."


    "Thank you for your kind will, but I will not," Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    "Alright." Chu Shang took a deep look at Ye Futian. What a pity, she thought. Turning around, Chu Shang brought her people and left the place. In addition, the people from other forces also took their leave one after another.


    On Sky Mountain, who could defeat Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian stared emotionlessly at the disappearing figures. He knew that the entire issue was far from being over.


    "Not resigned?" Suddenly, Zhuge Hui opened her eyes and smiled at Ye Futian.


    "Somewhat," Ye Futian said. He had the ability to kill everyone on Sky Mountain, but he could not. Instead, he could only let all of them go, so he would, of course, feel dissatisfied.


    "If you are not resigned, then become stronger. When you are more powerful than everyone else, you don''t have to be scared of anything anymore," Zhuge Hui said, smiling. The world was just so cruel and real. The people from the Barren State could threaten Ye Futian in so many ways, but Ye Futian could not kill them even though he had the ability to.


    Nan Yu was so supercilious and arrogant, but only because he had Nantian House behind him. Otherwise, who would he be compared to Ye Futian?


    Looking at the handsome young man before her, Zhuge Hui smiled brightly. He was so clever and talented. One day, he would stand way above those from the Barren State.


    "Yup. I''ll try my best." Ye Futian grinned and nodded. If he was alone and had no families, perhaps he would kill all the people from the Barren State, but he was not.


    "Okay. Next, it''s time to clear the debt between us." Zhuge Hui smiled and stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian blinked his eyes. Then, he raised his head to look at the snow on Sky Mountain and remarked, "Sister, the snow scenery on Sky Mountain is really beautiful, just like you."


    Zhuge Hui was still looking at him, smiling.


    "Big brother, third brother, are you feeling better now?" Ye Futian said again.


    ��


    In the pavilion on the first mountain of Book Mountain, two people were sitting there, playing a game of chess. In the sky, there were many cultivators. Some were from Qin Dynasty while others from the College. They were all staring nervously at the two. At the moment, the game between the king of Qin and Mr. Du seemed to have reached its climax, especially after the sentence from Mr. Du. He said that it would be difficult for Qin Dynasty to leave Sky Mountain in one piece. Was he saying that a battle had already erupted at Sky Mountain? Could the three disciples from the Cottage really kill Qin Yu and his team?


    Taking a chess piece in his hand, the king of Qin stared at Mr. Du. His look was extremely sharp. However, Mr. Du only smiled gently, as if he had taken control of everything. This caused the king of Qin to have a bad feeling.


    "Mr. Du, are you joking?" the king of Qin asked, smiling.


    Mr. Du shook his head. "I usually don''t joke."


    "Perhaps you have seen wrongly," the king of Qin said again, after which he put down the piece in his hand. With this move, his pieces on the board were connected once again. The situation on the board changed and a terrifying force seemed to be gathering.


    "Life is just like a game of chess. Take a step back, and conflicts will automatically be resolved. Retreating does not mean cowardice. It''s merely a way to live," Mr. Du said in a calm tone. Without any hesitation still, he made his next move.


    Beside them, College Chief Xiao was astonished. He did not expect Mr. Du to be so skilled in chess. Mr. Du had thoroughly displayed his attitude towards life on the chessboard. Previously, his moves had all been retreating and defensive. On the other hand, the king of Qin followed him closely and was very aggressive. However, at the moment, Mr. Du''s move changed his stance drastically, as if he had inverted the world. In an instant, he ended the game. The pieces of the king of Qin seemed to be destroyed totally while Mr. Du''s pieces were like sharp blades which annihilated everything in their path.


    A cold sweat broke out from the king''s forehead and he felt somewhat uneasy. Life was just like chess, and chess was like life. Mr. Du''s game caused him to feel frightened. This was not just a game of chess, but also a game of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The king of Qin held a piece in his hand as he stared at the chessboard before him. After a long while, he still could not make his move. He actually did not know how to continue.


    "This game has already ended. We don''t have to continue," Mr. Du said softly.


    "I don''t believe you!" The king of Qin looked coldly at Mr. Du as he continued his next move as if he was making his final struggle.


    Mr. Du shook his head and also made his next move. The king''s face turned extremely pale. Suddenly, a powerful aura spread out from the back of Book Mountain, along with many loud roars. A battle seemed to have happened.


    Then, everyone saw a few people charging towards them. College Chief Xiao frowned; that was the entrance to the Ancient Barren World. Did a group of people just break through by force?


    "Your Majesty, the spiritual imprint of the crown prince is... destroyed!" someone shouted. His words entered the ears of the king of Qin like a bolt out of the blue. His hand froze in midair and his body started trembling.


    His son Qin Yu had died.


    Boom. In the sky, all the people from the Qin Dynasty were bewildered. The crown prince Qin Yu had died. What did this mean? Qin Dynasty probably had a miserable defeat at Sky Mountain. But how could that be?


    Donghua Clan leader and his wife, Fuyun Sword Clan leader, Royal Xuan Temple Lord, Qin Yu, and Lu Nantian were all very powerful cultivators. Furthermore, they had brought several sage ritual implements. How would they lose?


    Puff. The king of Qin took a deep breath and closed his eyes, after which he opened them again. The piece in his hand fell down onto the chess board. Raising his head, he looked at the old man before him and asked, "Mr. Du, you have already set up your plan at Sky Mountain? So who is that sword?"


    The king of Qin pointed at a piece on the board. He did not understand why he would lose.


    "Is it important?" Mr. Du shook his head.


    "Then how about Book Mountain? Who will stop me from destroying the place?" the king of Qin said coldly, pointing at the chessboard. He slowly stood up and an extremely frightening aura erupted from his body. Apart from him, the two elders from Qin Dynasty also released their auras. The auras from them engulfed the vast Book Mountain. In the sky, the cultivators from Qin Dynasty also released their auras and pressured the rest. The disciples from the College, Sword Saint Mountain, and Moon Clan all ascended into the sky. They similarly released their auras to fight against the incoming pressure.


    "Are you still unrepentant?" Mr. Du asked.


    "Do I have a choice?" The king of Qin picked up his piece and put it onto the chessboard. That was a place of no return. He was making his last stand.


    "I have taught a few disciples on Book Mountain. I want neither fame nor wealth, not to say the ambition to unify the Eastern Barren Territory." At the moment, Mr. Du was still sitting there quietly, as if he was muttering to himself. "All I wanted was to influence a few people so that they can inherit my ideology. Slowly, they can influence the entire Eastern Barren Territory. Why is it so difficult?"


    "I don''t care about your ambitions. Rumors claim that Mr. Du does not know cultivation. Today, I want to see for myself if you really know how to cultivate or not!" the king of Qin said coldly as his might pressed onto Mr. Du.


    Mr. Du raised his head to look at the king of Qin and asked softly, "Is it not good to be alive?"

 390 Reason For Becoming a Disciple

    Chapter 390: Reason For Becoming a Disciple


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Is it not good to be alive?" Mr. Du''s calm voice erupted in the ears of the king of Qin, sending a wave of coldness down his spine. Even though Mr. Du had not released any might, his words alone still had such a power, the power to instill fear into the king of Qin.


    "Junior..." College Chief Xiao stared at Mr. Du with a solemn expression.


    "I have no other choice." Mr. Du scratched his head as if he felt somewhat speechless.


    Roar! Suddenly, the howl of dragon erupted and shook the earth. On Book Mountain, many College disciples were astonished and actually felt their blood boiling. The powerful howl came from the king of Qin. Then, an appalling dragon charged out from his body and flew into the sky. A terrifying golden claw struck out towards Mr. Du''s head. The two were too close to each other and the attack was too violent. Moreover, the person who made the attack was the king of Qin. Nobody below the Sage Plane would survive such a surprise attack. At this instant, every single person on Book Mountain stared at Mr. Du, their hearts racing.


    Mr. Du, however, did not die. The golden dragon claw remained in midair. Many illusory dragons charged out from the frightening claw, howling, but even such a strong attack did not manage to kill Mr. Du.


    Time seemed to be frozen. Mr. Du just stood there quietly. The monstrous dragons tried to engulf his body, but they were blocked by an invisible radiance. The flowing radiance seemed to be indestructible. Furthermore, the radiance slowly enveloped the body of the king of Qin.


    The king of Qin started trembling. He was astonished, frightened, and puzzled.


    "Sage..." The king of Qin could feel his heart sink. He looked at Mr. Du but only saw him staring back with his usual calmness and quietness. The king''s look changed continuously. Then he asked, "Why? Why do rumors claim that you do not know how to cultivate?"


    "How many people in the world dare to say that they know how to cultivate?" Mr. Du replied.


    "But why did you not attack us?" The king of Qin was still lost. He thought that he had already exerted enough pressure. If Mr. Du was really so powerful, why did he not destroy the Qin Dynasty? He had never once assumed that Mr. Du really did not how to cultivate, for he did not dare to underestimate a person who could teach Sword Saint and Gu Dongliu. However, Mr. Du had always kept a low-profile which made him feel that although Mr. Du could cultivate, he would only be as strong as College Chief Xiao, or perhaps even slightly stronger. But he would certainly not be a sage. Otherwise, why would he only make his move now?


    "Am I not attacking you now?" Mr. Du said slowly. Then, the dazzling radiance brought the body of the king of Qin up into the sky. All of a sudden, an illusory figure appeared behind the king of Qin. His pupils seemed to have turned gray and a horrifying will charged towards Mr. Du. At this instant, many illusions appeared on Book Mountain. Many evil dragons seemed to have emerged in the sky above the mountain, blotting out the sky and the sun.


    Countless people were bewildered as they stared at the frightening illusions before them. Many also felt scared. The two elders from Qin Dynasty went beside the king of Qin and released a similar power. It was as if they had turned into Death. A face formed from dark current appeared in the sky and looked down at Book Mountain.


    "Who dares to touch my descendant?" An extremely cold voice erupted, causing many people on Book Mountain to feel frozen.


    The king of Qin? His descendant? It was said that the Qin Dynasty had opened the tomb of their ancestors. It seemed that they had actually found a will left behind by their ancestors.


    The scene was too scary. Everyone felt that their bodies were enveloped by death. Was this the real reason why Qin Dynasty dared to come to the College?


    Mr. Du raised his head to look at the illusory figure in the sky and said emotionlessly, "Your descendant has been unfilial. I''m helping you to teach him a lesson." An endless amount of dark current flew in the sky as the eyes of death stared at Mr. Du. Then, the dark current charged down wildly toward every corner of the College.


    Mr. Du extended his hand to the sky. In the next instant, an enormous palm print appeared above Book Mountain. The palm print stood between the sky and the earth and covered the entire Book Mountain. The endless dark current collided onto the palm, but sharp Sword Will and blazing flames also appeared on the enormous palm.


    The palm print expanded rapidly and covered the entire sky. The palm print was like a world by itself, while its fingers were like five mountains. The Sword Will at its center was powerful enough to penetrate through the sky, and the divine flames that had filled the sky could burn the world into nothingness. The Sword Will and flames merged together. All the people from the Qin Dynasty were enveloped by the palm print.


    "No��" The king of Qin and the others from Qin Dynasty felt an endless fear engulfing them. They tried to ascend into the air in an attempt to escape, but they quickly realized that the palm print seemed to have frozen space. They could not move at all and a heavy gravity pulled them downwards. Instead of escaping, they were only sinking down.


    "It seems that the only thing that can solve everything is still power. In this world, the biggest thing is indeed the fist." Mr. Du gave a self-mocking smile. He closed his palm slightly and in the sky, the enormous palm print started to clench.


    "Mr. Du, please!" many people begged. However, at the moment, Mr. Du was not merciful at all. The palm print clenched directly. Accompanied by an ear-piercing bang, everything turned into ashes. The palm print turned into Spiritual Qi and slowly dissipated. Sunlight poured down from the sky, but everything in the sky was gone. There was no more dark current, neither was there any cultivator from Qin Dynasty; there was only some willpower that had remained behind. Everything else had turned into insignificant pebbles in the long river of history. With that clench, the Qin Dynasty had completely turned into the history of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    On Book Mountain, countless people trembled and were shocked beyond words. Nobody could adequately describe their feelings at the moment.


    The enormous palm print had changed the era in one move.


    Was this the real Mr. Du? He was the Mr. Du who was said not to know how to cultivate but had nurtured the best disciples in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Countless people stared at the old man, and their eyes were filled with respect and fanaticism. The disciples from the College, Sword Saint Mountain, and Moon Clan all had only one feeling. Mr. Du from the Cottage was unquestionably the strongest person in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The old man slowly withdrew his hand. Feeling the countless fanatic looks, he heaved a long sigh. Then, he looked at College Chief Xiao and said, "Why is it so difficult to keep a low-profile?"


    Cough�� College Chief Xiao was instantly drawn back into reality and looked at Mr. Du speechlessly. However, Mr. Du only put his hands behind his back and walked away slowly.


    ''This b*stard�� He is still in the mood to feel complacent..." College Chief Xiao cursed softly.


    ��


    On the path between Sky Mountain and Book Mountain, a group of cultivators was traveling in the air. They were precisely Sword Saint, Zhuge Hui, Gu Dongliu, Ye Futian, and the rest. After resting for a while, they started their journey to Book Mountain.


    "Brothers and sister, will anything happen to the Cottage?" Ye Futian asked, feeling somewhat worried. Since Qin Yu had intercepted them here without the king of Qin, he had very likely gone to Book Mountain. Apart from that, Ye Futian had also offended the cultivators from the Barren State.


    "Don''t worry. The master is there, so nothing will happen," Gu Dongliu replied.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled, after which he asked again, "What level is our master at?" He would be an idiot if he really believed that Mr. Du did not know how to cultivate.


    "Sage," Gu Dongliu said directly. Ye Futian''s eyes brightened. It seemed that he had been worrying for nothing.


    "Actually, I worry for the master," Sword Saint suddenly said. "Cultivators from the Barren State had come here, and Qin Dynasty also forced us so tightly. I think that the master has to display his powers."


    Both the second sister and third brother kept quiet. This caused a strange expression to appear on Ye Futian''s face��since the master was a sage, why should they worry?


    "Little brother, do you know how we became the disciples of Mr. Du?" Sword Saint suddenly asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian shook his head.


    "I''m an orphan. Many years ago when I was young, I wanted to enter a small clan to learn broadsword techniques. However, I was rejected because my talents were too poor. I could not even go up the mountain. Someone pointed at a stone wall at the foot of the mountain and told me that if I could carve a word on the wall, they would let me onto the mountain. I took my broadsword and attempted for three months. Finally, I managed to make a very light mark onto the wall. Excited, I tried to enter the clan but was chased out again. An old man passed by the told me that I was too stupid to cultivate and that I should follow him to do miscellaneous work. Disheartened, I decided to follow him." Thinking about his past, a warm smile appeared on Sword Saint''s face. He would never forget this.


    "Then you became Sword Saint in the Eastern Barren Territory..." Ye Futian blinked his eyes. It was really a simple story.


    "Second sister, how about you?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "I forgot," Zhuge Hui said. Ye Futian was totally speechless.


    "She ran away from her home that time and her family members were all looking for her. Master told her that there was a good place where she would never be found by her family. So he brought her to the Eastern Barren Territory," Sword Saint said, smiling.


    "Err..." Ye Futian did not know what to say.


    "What about third brother?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "That''s even simpler. That year when the master brought your second sister out to play, they met your third brother. I heard that after seeing your second sister, your third brother decided to follow them and would never leave again," Sword Saint said.


    "..." Ye Futian was somewhat dazed. Were these really the three Cottage disciples who had become famous in the world? What amazing reasons they had for becoming disciples of Mr. Du...

 391 Removal of the Ban

    Chapter 391: Removal of the Ban


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    According to Sword Saint, the reasons why the three became Mr. Du''s disciples were really simple. In reality, however, there were much more hidden behind the simpleness.


    Sword Saint did not tell Ye Futian that in order to carve something onto the stone wall that time, he did not sleep for three months. His sword-yielding hand was rubbed to bleeding. He fell down countless times but stood up every time. Finally, he succeeded but was still chased out, after which he lost consciousness. Mr. Du was beside him and watched him for three entire months. When Sword Saint fainted due to starvation and then woke up, Mr. Du gave him a few fruits. That was why he would live to become the eldest disciple of the Cottage in the first place.


    Sword Saint also did not tell Ye Futian that the people who were searching for Zhuge Hui that time were extremely powerful, but Mr. Du still managed to bring her out. Similarly, he did not tell Ye Futian that after Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Hui met, Gu Dongliu once saw the young and beautiful Zhuge Hui using lightning to cultivate her body, which was almost a self-abuse method. He asked Mr. Du why he would mistreat his disciple in such a way and questioned his ability to teach. Then, Gu Dongliu who had already displayed his talents that time had a friendly fight with Zhuge Hui and lost badly.


    He was still not convinced and asked Zhuge Hui if she could stop cultivating using that method. Zhuge Hui smiled and asked him if he would protect her, to which the severely injured Gu Dongliu agreed. Therefore, everything after that followed. Unfortunately, until today Gu Dongliu still could not win Zhuge Hui.


    Of course, all these had all become history. Apart from themselves, nobody would know their feelings towards their master, as well as towards each other.


    ��


    The Eastern Barren Territory was wildly astonished.


    In a single day, a catastrophic event that had not happened for hundreds of years occurred. Qin Dynasty was annihilated, while the powerful cultivators from Fuyun Sword Clan and Royal Xuan Temple all died on Sky Mountain and Book Mountain. Donghua Clan leader announced that he would seclude in the future.


    Mr. Du and Ye Futian from the Cottage had once again shaken the world.


    On Sky Mountain, Ye Futian controlled the willpower of the mountain and caused the bell to ring, suppressing all his enemies.


    On Book Mountain, Mr. Du displayed his powers as a sage, eliminating everything with a single palm print.


    Everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory realized that an era had ended. Qin Dynasty which once wanted to rule the world had completely turned into a speck of dust in history.


    After receiving the news, many people in the Eastern Barren Territory visited Book Mountain. In this battle, the name of the Cottage spread to every corner of the territory. Some people were excited, while some were in fear. Those who were excited were of course the disciples from the College, Sword Saint Mountain, and Moon Clan, while those who were in fear were allies of Qin Dynasty. Only the strongest cultivators died in the fight, so most people were still alive.


    Despite that, in the Cottage, Mr. Du did not seem to be so excited at all, nor did he seem to be very complacent like he was on Book Mountain. In the back mountain, Mr. Du was lying on a rock and drinking his wine quietly.


    "Master," Sword Saint shouted. Then, Sword Saint, Ye Futian, and the rest walked to him. Apart from them, Goddess Wangyue was also present. She came here to visit Mr. Du but did not want to disturb him by herself. Seeing the return of Sword Saint and his team, she followed them here.


    "Mr. Du," Goddess Wangyue said, saluting.


    "Hi," Mr. Du nodded, "what is it?"


    "May I cultivate under you, please?" Goddess Wangyue said, bowing. The scene on Book Mountain just now had really left a huge impact on her. Was this the real power of the Sage Plane? She wanted to break through her current level and needed a good teacher. Mr. Du was undoubtedly the most suitable person.


    "I''m lazy and do not plan to take in another disciple." Mr. Du sat up and smiling, he shook his head.


    Goddess Wangyue was somewhat disappointed at first, but immediately she was relieved. A mysterious person like Mr. Du would obviously not take in disciples easily.


    "Mr. Du, with the situation in the Eastern Barren Territory now, what should Moon Clan do?" Goddess Wangyue asked. If Book Mountain really wanted to unify the Eastern Barren Territory, she would be willing to support. Although she did not have a choice anyway, this time, she was being sincere. After spending these few days in the College, she could feel the difference between this place and other places.


    Even though there were also conflicts between College disciples, they would focus mainly on cultivating. Furthermore, the aim of the College was to teach its students. This was unlike a clan; apart from cultivation, there were also many malicious competitions. There were of course also many miscellaneous things in the College, but relatively its members were much friendlier.


    "It''s up to you," Mr. Du replied, smiling. "In the past, I have always wanted to change certain things, but in the end, I have done nothing."


    "Mr. Du, with your reputation now, everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory would respond to your call. What can you not achieve?" Goddess Wangyue was confused.


    "If I unify the Eastern Barren Territory after eliminating Qin Dynasty with my powers, then I will be no different from Qin Dynasty itself. Once I leave the Eastern Barren Territory, or if someone even stronger appears, the same thing will happen again. Human minds and ambitions are the hardest things to change in the world." Mr. Du shook his head.


    "Mr. Du, what is your ambition?" Goddess Wangyue asked.


    "I wish that clans and families will no longer be the main players in the cultivation world. On the other hand, they will be replaced by places such as colleges. The people in the world will no longer keep precious resources to themselves. Instead, they will teach others, and knowledge can be passed down the generations," Mr. Du said, staring at Goddess Wangyue.


    Goddess Wangyue was stunned, after which she bowed slightly at Mr. Du in admiration. Then, she said, "Mr. Du, if your ambition is fulfilled, all the cultivators in the world can have a better environment. However, I think it''s a wish that can never be realized."


    There is greed and desire where there are people. Powerful cultivators will naturally want to establish their own clans or families.


    "When the people who agree with your ambition stand at the peak of the world, your ambition will automatically be fulfilled," Mr. Du said, smiling.


    Goddess Wangyue was stunned; she suddenly thought of the Cottage disciples. She was astonished as she suddenly understood his meaning. Mr. Du''s words were correct. If one day, his disciples became the strongest few in the Eastern Barren Territory, they would practise his ambition and establish different colleges. Furthermore, they would continue to nurture people who agreed with their ideals. When such a group of cultivators stood at the peak of the Eastern Barren Territory, the influence of clans would be weakened indefinitely. Places such as the College would become the sacred land in the territory.


    "I got it." Goddess Wangyue bowed, after which she left the place, feeling somewhat shocked.


    This was the mysterious and unfathomable Mr. Du.


    Sword Saint and the rest all stood at the side and listened quietly. When Mr. Du said these to Goddess Wangyue, he was also saying it to them.


    Ye Futian also heard the conversation, but he did not think too much about it. He did not have such a great ambition to care about the whole world. What his master had said was still too far away for him.


    "How''s the people from the Barren State?" Mr. Du asked, looking at Ye Futian.


    "I let them off. Will the sages from the Barren State come here?" Ye Futian asked. Mr. Du was a sage and the ban was still effective. As long as sages could not enter the territory, there would be nothing to be scared of.


    "Yes." Mr. Du nodded. Ye Futian was momentarily stunned. Mr. Du was actually so certain about it.


    Seeing his expression, Mr. Du smiled and said, "A relic from the two emperors is way more attractive than you think. If the emperor did not set the ban, the cultivators from the Barren State would have come here long ago. They did not dare to sneak up Sky Mountain only because they are afraid of the willpower left behind by the emperor. However, now you have obtained everything. The people from the Barren State will definitely not give up so easily."


    Mr. Du smiled and continued, "The Divine Prefectures is vast and boundless. The emperor has to rule the world, so he will definitely not keep a close watch on the Eastern Barren Territory. If someone here goes missing one day, do you think he will ever notice it?"


    Ye Futian gave a bitter smile. Of course, he understood what Mr. Du meant. In the past, there was nothing in the Eastern Barren Territory that could attract the attention of the cultivators from the Barren State. Thus, the Barren State had obeyed the rules. However, the situation was different at the moment.


    "Then I''ll stay on Book Mountain forever," Ye Futian muttered. Since the ban was still effective, nobody would touch him openly.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Mr. Du said again, "Actually, I have something that I didn''t tell you just now."


    "What?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "That year when Donghuang the Great announced the ban, the complete sentence was that sages could not enter the Eastern Barren Territory, but if there were sages in the Eastern Barren Territory, then the ban would be automatically removed," Mr. Du said, staring at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Mr. Du in bewilderment and blinked his eyes. Then, even his face turned dark as he stared firmly at Mr. Du. So this meant that after Mr. Du displayed his power as a sage, the ban had become ineffective.


    Cultivators from the Barren State could come to the Eastern Barren Territory directly.


    "So after receiving the news, more people from the Barren State will come here?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yup." Mr. Du nodded seriously. Ye Futian''s face darkened further. On Sky Mountain, he did not dare to touch the people from the Barren State because he was scared of revenge from the Barren State, and that they would kill his friends and relatives. On the other hand, as long as he did not kill the people from the Barren State, the powerful cultivators from the Barren State would at most aim at him only. However, now that the ban in the Eastern Barren Territory was removed, all the cultivators from the Barren State could come to the Book Mountain directly. In this case, Ye Futian could not dodge from anything.


    "Master, what should I do then?" Ye Futian asked.


    "How do I know?" the old man muttered. Then, he lied down and continued drinking.


    This old b*stard... Ye Futian cursed in his mind. He was actually still in the mood to drink.


    "Master," Ye Futian shouted.


    "Don''t worry. I will not let you drag the others down," Mr. Du said lazily. "In the worst case, I''ll hand you over to them."


    "..." Ye Futian regretted his initial decision. Could he still sever his relationship with Mr. Du now?

 392 Disaster of Donghua Clan

    Chapter 392: Disaster of Donghua Clan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Donghua Clan leader and his wife had announced that they would dismiss the clan and seclude in the future. In one night, all Donghua Clan disciples left.


    The clan which once wanted to become the first clan in the Eastern Barren Territory turned particularly deserted. At the moment, only a few people remained. For example, Lu Nantian and Qian Shanmu.


    After knowing what happened on Sky Mountain, Qian Shanmu had a mixed feeling. His wife Qin Mengruo was killed by Ye Futian, but his junior Hua Qingqing let Ye Futian off instead. Because of Hua Qingqing''s decision, Ye Futian did not kill his master and masteress. However, what would happen if Hua Qingqing did kill Ye Futian on Sky Mountain?


    Victory? That would be impossible. They had already received the news from Book Mountain: Mr. Du was a sage. They were destined to fail from the start. It was a meaningless battle in which the Cottage did not suffer any losses. If the king of Qin did not decide to go to Book Mountain himself, Mr. Du would not even need to display his powers.


    Suddenly, Donghua Clan leader looked at Qian Shanmu who was kneeling on the ground and said, "You should leave."


    Qian Shanmu kowtowed on the ground, after which he stood up and departed. After he left, only four people remained in Donghua Clan, namely Donghua Clan leader and his wife, Lu Nantian, and Hua Qingqing.


    "Nantian, bring Qingqing and leave from the Ancient Barren World," the clan leader said to Lu Nantian.


    "Masteress, you should bring Qingqing and leave." Lu Nantian shook his head.


    "Nantian, are my words already useless?" The clan leader turned somewhat serious, but Lu Nantian still stood there quietly. "Masteress, you leave."


    "We don''t have much time. Do you want to kill Qingqing?" the clan leader scolded.


    "I''m not leaving." Hua Qingqing stood at the side.


    "Master, masteress, we have been wrong from the start. Perhaps Mr. Du has already foreseen everything from the beginning. He does not want to rule the Eastern Barren Territory at all, but instead only wants to teach his disciples peacefully so that they can become stronger. On the other hand, we want to obtain all the influences in the Eastern Barren Territory. Only now do we understand that everything has but been a dream. In front of the really powerful forces, the Eastern Barren Territory itself is meaningless," Lu Nantian said to his master and masteress. Then, he knelt on the ground and added, "Master, masteress, I hope that in my next life I will still be your disciple." After that, he stood up and walked up to Hua Qingqing. He reached out his hand, wanting to touch her pure and flawless face, but in the end, he still put his hand down, just like in the past. However, he only felt somewhat relieved. Smiling, he said, "Qingqing, live on." Then, Lu Nantian turned around resolutely and walked out of Donghua Clan.


    Looking at his back, tears flew down from Hua Qingqing''s eyes.


    "I don''t really have any regrets in my life and it has been perfect, apart from the battle with Gu Dongliu. Nevertheless, it''s not embarrassing to lose to a Cottage disciple, is it?" Lu Nantian shouted. Then, he suddenly sped up and turned into a beam of light, charging out of Donghua Clan.


    At the moment, there were many people outside Donghua Clan observing its every move. In the distance, there was a restaurant which was entirely reserved by a group of people. Outside the restaurant, there was a dazzling Golden Raven which was showered in a holy radiance.


    In the restaurant, there was a young man sitting down and drinking while looking in the direction of Donghua Clan. His eyes seemed to be filled with Flame Intent. He was drinking leisurely as if he was enjoying himself.


    Cultivation was, after all, an extremely difficult activity in the first place as it needed much patience and perseverance. Therefore, when he had free time, he would spend it on enjoying himself.


    The young man was precisely Du Ao, the cultivator from Sacred Fire Sect of the Barren State. He did not leave the Eastern Barren Territory. After leaving Sky Mountain, he wanted to go to the College directly but heard that there was a sage there. Hence, he would obviously not go there hastily. On the other hand, he asked some of his people to go back to the Barren State, while he brought the rest to Donghua Clan.


    On Sky Mountain, he almost died because of a beauty. He could not kill Ye Futian for the moment, but how about the beauty? How could he give her up?


    Suddenly, Du Ao noticed someone walk out from Donghua Clan and battle with his men. The person was showering in a brilliant flame as his Life Spirit appeared, which was actually a Three-Legged Golden Raven. This caused a strange expression to appear on his face. He then commanded, "Ask him if he would submit to me. I can bring him to Sacred Fire Sect to cultivate."


    "Alright." A cultivator walked towards that direction. However, many terrifying suns appeared behind the person in the distance and he burnt the person from Sacred Fire Sect to death immediately. Meanwhile, he continued to battle the people from Sacred Fire Sect as he advanced towards the restaurant.


    "Humph. Let''s not wait anymore and go there directly. Apart from her, kill everyone else," Du Ao said coldly. At once, the people beside him walked out of the restaurant and towards Donghua Clan.


    In the distance, many people were astonished by the scene. Donghua Clan leader announced that he would seclude in the future and dismissed the clan. However, before he could leave, the cultivators from the Barren State came to Donghua Clan and attacked it without any reasons.


    ��


    The members of the Cottage would clearly not know what was happening in Donghua Clan. Ye Futian also did not think that such a thing would happen.


    On Book Mountain, Mr. Du, College Chief Xiao, and the Cottage disciples were all present. Even the few mountain elders and Goddess Wangyue were here as well. This was the first time Ye Futian met the College Chief. He looked somewhat pale but sage-like. At least he had a better temperament than that old guy.


    Ye Futian had heard in the past that the relationship between Mr. Du and the College Chief was very bad. However, from the look of it, it was not that bad after all. At least Mr. Du and College Chief were chatting happily at the moment. Furthermore, they were chatting about the future of the College and the big brother.


    "Think carefully. It''s all up to you. Don''t take my thoughts into account," Mr. Du said to Sword Saint.


    "Shut up!" College Chief Xiao widened his eyes at Mr. Du.


    "Master, I am willing to." Sword Saint nodded.


    "Great!" College Chief Xiao looked excited and laughed. "Fantastic! At least you are not like your master."


    "Senior, watch your words." Mr. Du smiled and stared at College Chief with a you-know-what-I-mean look.


    College Chief Xiao pointed his finger at him and his beard trembled in frustration. Forget it. Who asked me to be weaker.


    "In this case I will gather everyone tomorrow and announce your decision to the College," College Chief Xiao said, feeling at ease. He was finally able to unload his burden as someone was willing to take over his position. More importantly, the person was indeed very suited for the job.


    "No problem." Sword Saint nodded. Looking at the scene, Ye Futian felt somewhat emotional. From the next day on, his big brother would be the new chief of the College.


    "Since you have agreed to it, take care of the Eastern Barren Territory in the future," Mr. Du said to Sword Saint, looking at him seriously. Sword Saint nodded solemnly and replied, "Master, I''ll practice your ideology."


    At the side, Goddess Wangyue asked, "Will Sword Saint Mountain combine with the College in the future?"


    "I established Sword Saint Mountain to teach my disciples in the same way the College does, so I will let the Sword Saint Mountain disciples decide for themselves if they would stay or leave," Sword Saint replied.


    Goddess Wangyue smiled and suddenly asked, "Can I stay here?"


    Everyone was momentarily puzzled as they stared at Goddess Wangyue in bewilderment.


    "Goddess, what do you mean?" Sword Saint asked.


    "I''ll stay in the College to cultivate and Moon Clan will combine into the College to become another mountain, for example, Moon Mountain," Goddess Wangyue said, smiling.


    Even Mr. Du and College Chief Xiao seemed surprised. Goddess Wangyue was the leader of Moon Clan and she was actually willing to become a mountain elder in the College. In addition, combing Moon Mountain into the College would be against the will of Moon Clan ancestors.


    "I agree," someone suddenly said. Everyone turned their heads to see Ye Futian lifting both of his hands in the air in agreement. Everyone then looked at Hua Jieyu who was beside Ye Futian. Hua Jieyu blushed slightly and lowered her head, after which she kicked Ye Futian with her shoe. Why is he in such a hurry?


    "You have no rights to say anything here," Mr. Du remarked emotionlessly.


    "..." Ye Futian widened his eyes at Mr. Du. However, thinking about Moon Clan combing with the College in the future, he felt elated.


    "I think it''ll be hard for you to convince the members of Moon Clan," Sword Saint said. Moon Clan was different from Sword Saint Mountain in that he established Sword Saint Mountain all by himself.


    "Both Moon Clan and the College exist for people to cultivate. Even if Moon Clan stays at the College, it will still be passed down the generations, maybe in an even better way. If they do not agree, I''ll stay here myself and let the members of Moon Clan choose if they would stay or leave. I''ll give my position as the leader to someone else," Goddess Wangyue said. After the event, this time and her conversation with Mr. Du last time, her state of mind had changed. Therefore, she made such a decision.


    "You can take the mountain occupied by the Cottage," Mr. Du said.


    "Mr. Du?" Goddess Wangyue was stunned. Giving the mountain occupied by the Cottage to us?


    "In the future, there will only be the College in the College. There will no longer be the Cottage," Mr. Du said, smiling. Ye Futian seemed to have a premonition and felt somewhat sad. Was the Cottage, the legendary place of the Eastern Barren Territory, going to vanish?


    "Mr. Du!" Suddenly, everyone heard a voice from a certain direction of Book Mountain. They turned around and looked in that direction. College Chief Xiao frowned; why is it the entrance to the Ancient Barren World again?


    A powerful aura spread out from there. Immediately, Mr. Du seemed to have known what was happening. Frowning, he stood up. Then, everyone saw two figures charging towards them. Behind the two figures, there were many cultivators chasing them.


    Bang! A frightening flame flew into the body of the person in front. The person trembled fiercely and pushed the other person towards Mr. Du.


    "How dare you!" College Chief Xiao shouted coldly and many people walked forward. However, they quickly realized that the person flying towards them was Hua Qingqing.


    Hua Qingqing turned around with much difficulty as an invisible force was pushing her forward. She looked at her mother and her eyes were wet with tears. At the moment, an illusory Three-Legged Golden Raven appeared on the body of Lady Yuxiao which was burning her wildly.


    Lady Yuxiao''s body was ablaze and her aura weakened continuously. She looked the people from the College and said, "I know that in the past I have offended you much. I''ll repay you in my next life. Mr. Du, please save my daughter Hua Qingqing!"


    After that, the burning Lady Yuxiao knelt down in midair, appearing to be exceptionally miserable. In the Eastern Barren Territory, perhaps only Mr. Du could save her daughter. Hence, she chose to escape to this place.

 393 The Eastern Barren Territory United Under One

    Chapter 393: The Eastern Barren Territory United Under One


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everyone from the College was swayed as they watched Lady Yuxiao kneel down in the air, bathed in a rush of flames.


    Lady Yuxiao used to be a well-known female cultivator. She later married Clan Leader Hua, but no one expected for her life to end up this way. No matter what the relationship between the College and Lady Yuxiao was like, they couldn''t help but feel sorry for her. It was a truly horrible thing to witness.


    Goddess Wangyue clenched hands into a tight fist and a force of Ice Will descended upon Lady Yuxiao, wanting to exterminate the flame. However, the flame of the divine golden bird which surrounded Lady Yuxiao seemed to contain a hint of Sage Will because it could not be put out. Gradually, the image of her became faint as she began to fade away. She was trying to push through the immense pain. Her eyes were trained on Mr. Du.


    "Mother!" Hua Qingqing cried out loudly at the sight of her mother in pain. Tears streamed down her beautiful face.


    Mr. Du sighed deeply. He knew there was no saving Lady Yuxiao. She was holding on to her last breath with all the strength left in her body. It was the only reason why she had yet to disappear completely. Mr. Du spoke to her, "Don''t worry, go."


    "Thank you, Mr. Du." Lady Yuxiao bowed to him and was gone immediately, her image disappearing within the flames.


    "Mother!" Hua Qingqing''s heart clenched tightly. She wanted to charge out and reach for her mother. However, Goddess Wangyue reached out her hand and cast a Wind spell. The invisible force wrapped around Hua Qingqing''s body and brought her to the side.


    Ye Futian never thought Clan Leader Hua and Lady Yuxiao would end up this way after letting them go back at Sky Mountain. His cold eyes swept over to the cultivators of the Holy Fire Clan and the young man mounted on the Three-legged Golden Raven, Du Ao.


    He had already tried to make a move on Hua Qingqing back on Sky Mountain. Fortunately, he was stopped by Ye Futian. What Ye Futian didn''t expect was that instead of hiding and lying about his evil doings, Du Ao made another move for her after leaving the mountain. Only this time, it was publicly. Did this rascal not have any shame? Especially as a disciple of one of Barren State''s top powers. Perhaps, he didn''t at all about what the people thought, doing only what he pleased. Even if it was wrong, it had to be known to the public. Even the Qing Dynasty needed to come up with an excuse to wipe out the Liu Kingdom.


    "Pardon me, but this girl is someone we want, please hand her over to the Holy Fire Clan." An elder illuminated by flames stepped forward. He radiated with hints of Sage Will. His aura was strong. It was he who attacked and killed Lady Yuxiao.


    The people of the College looked at the elder. He sounded polite but the look in his eyes told another story. Everyone understood that for the Holy Fire Clan to do something like this, they had no morals, no conscience. They only held back because there were Sages in the College. Otherwise, there would be no talking to them. They would simply kill everyone in their way.


    Everyone remembered clearly how things went down the last time the Holy Fire Clan arrived at the College. They remembered just how crazy and wild these people from the Barren State were.


    "Scram," Mr. Du spat out in a cold tone. The cultivators of the Holy Fire Clan stared down at Mr. Du from where they were in the air. It seemed that not even a Sage from the Eastern Barren Territory could strike up any fear or respect from them.


    "Since it seems like Senior is not willing to welcome us, we''ll leave," Du Ao said from his spot on the Three-legged Golden Raven''s back. His eyes, filled with a hint of mockery, drifted onto Ye Futian. Ye Futian stared right back. He could feel the disdain and ridicule from Du Ao''s eyes.


    On Sky Mountain, Ye Futian was wildly arrogant because he had the will of the mountain at his advantage. He used it to kill many powerful cultivators and used the sound of the bell to injure Barren State cultivators.


    Now, there were Sages in the Eastern Barren Territory. The ban had been lifted. Du Ao wanted to see just how arrogant Ye Futian could be now.


    The people of the Holy Fire Clan left. Du Ao was in no hurry. When the Sages of the clan arrived, everything would fall into their hands, whether it be Ye Futian or Hua Qingqing.


    "How presumptuous," said College Chief Xiao. He was angry but couldn''t do much. He knew that although his junior brother could stop the opposing party, he had to think about the disciples of the College. Furthermore, College Chief Xiao knew something no one else did. Mr. Qu couldn''t stay at Book Mountain for much longer.


    The second the ban was lifted, things were already set.


    Everyone looked over at Hua Qingqing. Their hearts hurt for the crying girl. The Holy Fire Clan had already crashed the College, one could already imagine what happened at the Donghua Clan. There was no need for questions.


    "Let her rest," Mr. Du said as he watched Hua Qingqing. He sighed inwardly.


    "Okay," nodded Goddess Wangyue. She led the young girl away and the others also began to disperse. However, the disciples of the Cottage stayed. Mr. Du shook his head. "How are we as humans supposed to keep the desires of others under control with just morals? How are we supposed to control those with the weapons and desire to hurt others without rules and regulations?" When he finished what he had to say, he began to walk away.


    Ye Futian watched the teacher''s back as he departed. He was beginning to understand the teacher''s dreams. These powerful cultivators from the Barren State arrived in the Eastern Barren Territory and lacked even a shred of respect for anyone. They showed no signs of wanting to hide their hunger and desire for power. Neither did they care about what anyone else thought. In order to conquer Hua Qingqing, they went as far as killing her family. Cruel and violent.


    A person with a weapon will produce the killing thought.


    Because there is no one to restrain them.


    It was said that Hua Qingqing, one of the Eastern Barren Territory''s three great beauties, is innocent and kind. She didn''t know of the evils of the world. Her innocence was reflected in her beauty, clean and pure. She had been protected from the real world since the day she was born, but it was this kind girl that experienced the greatest evil. How ironic.


    "Fourth brother, do you have a pen and paper?" Ye Futian asked Xue Ye.


    "Yeah," he nodded. Xue Ye then pulled out the supplies from on his person and asked, "Little brother, what are you going to do with it?"


    "Copying down a musical score." Ye Futian explained quickly and walked over to a stone table. Laying out the paper, he began to write.


    Zhuge Hui and the others grew curious and came to his side.


    "This is?" Zhuge Hui asked quietly.


    "The Ukiyo Song," Ye Futian answered with a smile.


    "What''s it for?" asked Zhuge Hui.


    "I''ll gift a copy to anyone who comes to the College from the Barren State," he replied nonchalantly. Everyone gave him a strange look.


    The Ukiyo Song was one of the world''s ten great musical pieces. It was left by the Great Emperor. Was Ye Futian really going to just give it out so easily?


    "You''ll gift it? To anyone?" asked Zhuge Hui.


    "Yup, I''ll gift it to anyone," Ye Futian said as he nodded in all seriousness. "Actually, I should say I''m lending it to them. I''ll make them pay for it later."


    "..." It seemed like Ye Futian was preparing to keep track of anyone who comes to Book Mountain.


    Perhaps this type of compromise was a form of resignation.


    "Don''t worry. The Ukiyo Song isn''t that easy to learn. I''ll also leave a copy at the College for people to copy. From now on, a copy will be given to any Barren State power that comes to the College," smiled Ye Futian. Not even Hua Qingqing who was very talented at the guqin could play this piece.


    The reason why Ye Futian could play it was because his will synchronized with the wills of the two emperors on Sky Mountain and received this piece directly. As for the last portion of this piece, it had to be played with Emperor Will. Ye Futian was certain, even if the cultivators of the Barren State received the Ukiyo Song, it wouldn''t be that easy for them to learn. Better yet, they probably wouldn''t be able to learn it at all.


    Zhuge Hui chuckled and patted Ye Futian''s head. "Little brother is a special person indeed. I''m liking you more and more."


    "Uh..." Ye Futian blinked before sneaking a glance at third brother.


    "Jieyu, you don''t mind, do you?" Zhuge Hui smiled at Hua Jieyu.


    "Senior Sister, if you like him, you can take him with you," Hua Jieyu said softly.


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu as if he had been wronged. Does she have to be so cruel?


    ��


    Today was a special day for the College. College Chief Xiao, the Sword Saint, and Goddess Wangyue gathered the disciples of Book Mountain, Sword Saint Mountain, and the Moon Clan, respectively. The enormous crowd gathered at the square on Book Mountain and focused their attention on the group of people at the front. College Chief Xiao, the Sword Saint, Zhuge Hui, Gu Dongliu, all the mountain elders, and Goddess Wangyue stood on an elevated plane looking down on everyone.


    Many people had heard rumors and knew that College Chief Xiao had something to announce today. There were already large groups gathered at the foot of Book Mountain. They looked up at the sacred mountain, the holy place of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    News of what happened at the Donghua Clan had already spread. The ruthless doings of the Barren State cultivators greatly angered the peopled. Hua Qingqing was now staying on Book Mountain. Had it not been for Mr. Du, Hua Qingqing would have been taken by the people of the Barren State.


    But could the College really stop them?


    "From today on, Sword Saint Mountain will merge with the College. The disciples of Sword Saint Mountain will enter the College for cultivation. Anyone who objects can leave now." The Sword Saint''s voice resonated on Book Mountain, shocking many.


    "From today on, the Moon Clan will merge with the College. The disciples of the Moon Clan will enter the College for cultivation. Anyone who objects can leave now." Goddess Wangyue''s voice rang out right after.


    "From today onwards, the position of College Chief will be held by the Sword Saint. Goddess Wangyue will take the position as Vice College Chief and aid the Sword Saint in running the College, teaching the youth of the Eastern Barren Territory, passing on their knowledge," another voice spoke out. At the foot of the mountain, many people lifted their heads to look at the long stairs in front of them. The three great powers of the Eastern Barren Territory had announced such big changes today.


    From this point on, the Sword Saint and Goddess Wangyue were in charge of the College.


    At the bottom of the Book Mountain stairs, a few groups appeared. The arrival of these three groups had many people in shock. They were the Qianqiu Temple, the Witch Clan, and the Ji Family. With the arrival of these three groups at Book Mountain, the great powers of the Eastern Barren Territory were now all gathered at the same place. Although Mr. Du had no thoughts of ruling all of the Eastern Barren Territory, the reality was the entire Eastern Barren Territory already belonged to the College.


    The three groups walked up the stairs and arrived at the square.


    "We have come to congratulate the College. We hope that the Sword Saint will never forget your true self and your initial intentions." The abbot of the Qianqiu Temple held his palms together and bowed in the Sword Saint''s direction.


    "Abbot, you are too polite. I will keep your teachings at heart," the Sword Saint said as he returned a courteous bow.


    "The Witch Clan has come to congratulate the College."


    "The Ji Family has come to congratulate the College."


    The other two powers expressed their congratulations as well. In the large crowd, the Witch Clan''s Gu Biyue had a smile on her face as she looked in Ye Futian''s direction. Who would have thought this day would come when they first met in the Ancient Barren World?


    A distance away, the wind picked up and clouds rolled in, catching the attention of everyone on Book Mountain. They all turned to look in the distance. What they saw was a large group of people riding closer to Book Mountains on clouds!

 394 The Thousand Thundering Illusions

    Chapter 394: The Thousand Thundering Illusions


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    All the most powerful cultivators in the Eastern Barren Territory were gathered on Book Mountain and they were sternly looking into the distance.


    They''re here. Many people shared the same thought. The crowd gathered at the foot of Book Mountain were also looking up at the figures rolling in on clouds in the sky.


    Powerful cultivators from the Barren State had arrived on Book Mountain. Not even the gathering of all the Eastern Barren Territory''s top powers would be enough in comparison.


    The Eastern Barren Territory had just been united. How was the College going to resolve this threat? Would they hand Ye Futian over?


    Everyone in the Eastern Barren Territory knew the exact reason for the arrival of the Barren State cultivators.


    It was because of Ye Futian. He stepped onto the top of Sky Mountain and acquired the relics of the two emperors. He was able to control the will of Sky Mountain. It was rumored that he received one of the world''s top ten musical pieces, the Ukiyo Song.


    The newly arrived crowd descended from the skies and separated into four groups: the Mortal World, Nantian House, the Holy Fire Clan, and Taixuan Mountain. Du Ao, Nan Feng and Nan Yu, Chu Shang, and Han Lan were also present. They were the first to get the news in the Barren State, and thus, were the first ones to arrive. Other powers of the Barren State most likely haven''t yet received the news.


    Du Ao, Nan Feng, and Nan Yu stared at Ye Futian. The look in their eyes was ice cold. Beside them were the most powerful cultivators of their respective groups. Sages were among them. They were interested to see how arrogant Ye Futian could be now. They remembered every detail about what happened on Sky Mountain.


    "We heard that a Sage has appeared in the Eastern Barren Territory. We''re curious to see who he is." The person who spoke was of the Nantian House. He stood in front of Nanfeng and was donned in a glamorous long robe.


    Years ago, when the Great Emperor set the ban, Sages disappeared from the Eastern Barren Territory and the plane no longer existed there. If a Sage were to appear, even those in the Barren State would get the news. Although the Eastern Barren Territory had little to no contact with the outside world, the powers of the Barren State still kept an eye on them. Otherwise, they wouldn''t have known about the bells that rang from Sky Mountain. But now, there was a Sage in the Eastern Barren Territory and they didn''t hear anything about it before.


    Obviously, the person in question was intentionally hiding his identity and this was his hideout. If it weren''t so, there was no need for a cultivator of his level to stay in a place like the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Just someone from the mountains. There''s not much to say," a voice drawled from somewhere on Book Mountain. It was Mr. Du. He did not appear beside the Sword Saint or College Chief Xiao. "Now back to you guys. Why have you come?"


    "We heard someone from the Eastern Barren Territory made it on Sky Mountain and obtained the relic of the Great Emperor. So, we wanted to come to see for ourselves, just who this person is," a Sage from the Holy Fire Clan spoke nonchalantly. He had on a long robe, covered with images of flames. A strong Flame Intent radiated from him.


    "Me." Just then, Ye Futian walked out from the crowd. He looked to the newcomers from the Barren State and spoke, "I stepped onto Sky Mountain and harmonized with the will left by the Great Emperor. From that, I was able to control the power of Sky Mountain. Other than that, I also received the score for the Ukiyo Song."


    "So, you''re finally willing to admit it." Nan Yu smirked. Wasn''t Ye Futian really arrogant on Sky Mountain? He even tied him up to the stone wall at Sky Mountain and humiliated him in front of everyone.


    Nan Yu was curious how Ye Futian would meet his end.


    "And then?" The Sage from the Nantian House pushed for Ye Futian to continue with emotionless eyes.


    "The will of Sky Mountain is already in my control. It would be useless for you guys even if you got your hands on it. As for the score for the Ukiyo Song, I can give it to you guys," said Ye Futian.


    Du Ao and the rest all sneered, mockery filled their eyes.


    "Alright," the Sage nodded.


    Ye Futian reached into the front of his robe and pulled out the musical scores. With a wave of his hand, the four copies were delivered to each of the four groups. Reaching out, the Sages of each group received the papers.


    Opening up the page, the Sage of Nantian House gave it a once-over before folding it back up and speaking, "You should come take a little trip with us."


    "That''s going too far," said College Chief Xiao. He already handed over the score and they still wanted to take Ye Futian?


    "Who knows if he''s still hiding some other treasures. Besides, he was so arrogant on Sky Mountain, he''ll be fine," Nan Yu sneered.


    "There''s another person on Book Mountain. Hand her over," said Du Ao. The person he was speaking of was obviously Hua Qingqing.


    Who cared about the Sage?


    What had to be done, must be done. They weren''t going to leave until they were handed all the people they sought.


    Ye Futian gave a deep inward sigh and then smiled bitterly.


    Just then, a figure approached. It was Mr. Du. He looked right at Ye Futian. "So? Did you really think compromising and giving in would work?"


    "I''m sorry, teacher," said Ye Futian. He felt a little guilty.


    On the way back to Book Mountain from Sky Mountain, he had heard some stories about the teacher from First Brother. Ye Futian knew that even though the old man was a Sage, he seemed to have another identity. He was hiding out in the Eastern Barren Territory. It was because of this that he was such a mystery. Not a lot of people have seen him or knew much about him.


    Ye Futian didn''t want his teacher to pique the interest of the Barren State because of today. That was why he willingly handed over the score. Unfortunately, it was no use. Although the old man said he didn''t care about Ye Futian and would hand him over, Ye Futian knew it was just a joke.


    Mr. Du looked at Ye Futian once and stepped forward to look at the crowd. "You already got the musical score, so why aren''t you all getting the hell out of here?"


    Everyone looked at Mr. Du strangely.


    "Old geezer, do you want to die?" asked Nan Yu. Now that the ban of the Eastern Barren Territory was lifted, who cared if this old man was a Sage? How dare he try to get rid of them?


    WHOOSH! A delicate figure whisked by. It was the Cottage''s second disciple, Zhuge Hui. With a loud thunder-like crack, her long whip unfurled in Nan Yu''s direction.


    "How presumptuous." A Noble from Nantian House made his way toward Zhuge Hui. The Noble with a sharp, cutting aura reached out his hand.


    Zhuge Hui snapped her whip once more, cracking down like lightning and thunder. A crisp snap was heard and following that were the horrid screams of the Noble. He was struck by the whip and flung off of Book Mountain. His body twitched uncontrollably upon landing at the bottom.


    The Nantian House Sage took one step and released a terrifying energy at Zhuge Hui. Mr. Du moved at the same time. His hand reached up at the sky and clenched into a fist. Immediately, the Sage froze and turned his attention over to Mr. Du in shock.


    "One more move and you die," Mr. Du said calmly. As soon as his utterance was heard, the four groups from the Barren State looked up at him, dumbfounded. Was he actually threatening a Sage of Nantian House?


    The Sage indeed made no other motions. Zhuge Hui, on the other hand, charged over to Nan Yu. Top-level Nobles stepped out. There were even those who had been enlightened by Sage Will. However, Zhuge Hui''s whip danced wildly in the air. An image appeared on her body. The people were shocked to realize that she was duplicating. One into two, two into four. In short moments, she was everywhere, waving her whip at the same time. Thunder and lightning erupted, lighting up the skies majestically.


    The Thousand Thundering Illusions.


    The eyes of the everyone from the Barren State lit up and watched everything unfold in shock. Illusory images filled the sky. In the lit-up sky, her whip came down, cracking one after another. The Nobles of Nantian House were flung away one by one. In a split second, a long whip bypassed everything in its way to get to Nan Yu, picking him up into the air.


    "Let me go!" Nan Yu screamed out in horror. He had already been treated this way once on Sky Mountain. This was already the second time.


    But at this moment, it didn''t seem like anyone from the Nantian House could hear his screams. They were all frozen in place as they watched the beautiful girl bathed in the lights from the lightning. The Thousand Thundering Illusions was an exclusive skill from a certain Barren State power.


    Second Sister is so powerful, thought Ye Futian. He was also surprised by the scene in front of him. It seemed as if she had been hiding her true abilities.


    Whether it was the people on Book Mountain or at the foot of the mountain, everyone was looking up at Zhuge Hui.


    The long whip moved in a circle, spinning Nan Yu around in the air. Zhuge Hui looked up at him just to hear him scream out in anger, "You dare touch me?!"


    Just then, the whip moved toward a stone wall on Book Mountain. Nan Yu''s body hit the wall along with the force of lightning and the wall exploded loudly. Nan Yu''s pitiful cries followed.


    The whip snapped back and with one movement of Zhuge Hui''s arm, Nan Yu''s body was flung away from Book Mountain.


    "Who are you?" the Nantian House Sage asked Zhuge Hui. "The Thousand Thundering Illusions doesn''t belong to the Eastern Barren Territory."


    "Take a guess." Zhuge Hui smiled at him. She then stepped toward the Holy Fire Clan. Looking at Du Ao, she spoke again, "He offended me. You guys wouldn''t mind if I taught him a lesson, would you?"


    "Even if you are of the Zhuge Family, what right do you have to teach a disciple of our clan a lesson?" asked a Sage of the clan.


    "Based on the fact that he acted out of place in front of me," she said. Her whip snapped once again. The Sage wanted to make a move but felt a strong pressure descend upon himself. Lifting his head, he saw Mr. Du. With confusion on his face, he questioned, who is he?


    SNAP! The whip cracked down and no one was able to stop it. Du Ao cried out in pain. After being hit by the whip, he toppled over on the Three-legged Golden Raven. A deep, bloody mark appeared on his body.


    Countless pairs of eyes were frozen in place, shocked at everything that had just happened on Book Mountain. Everything was so unexpected. For example, no one expected that the powerful cultivators of the Barren State would get so badly beaten up.


    "Many years ago, something big happened to the Barren State''s Zhuge Family. Their first daughter suddenly went missing and couldn''t be found even after the family searched high and low in the Barren State," a cultivator from the Mortal World spoke out suddenly. The four powers were stunned. They had all heard of this story.


    So, the girl in front of them was the daughter of the Barren State''s Zhuge Family, Zhuge Mingyue?

 395 The Reappearance of Donghuang

    Chapter 395: The Reappearance of Donghuang


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The cultivators of the Barren State stared at the beautiful girl in shock. Perhaps the name ''Zhuge Mingyue'' was unfamiliar to many of the younger cultivators but they were aware of the background she came from just by hearing this name.


    Zhuge Qingfeng was the top dog of the Zhuge Family. He made his name many years ago, proving himself to be more capable than all others his age. Presently, he was already a great legend in the Barren State.


    Zhuge Canyang was the most outstanding cultivator among the newest generation of the Zhuge Family. He had already reached the Sage Plane a couple years ago. A true talent indeed.


    These two people were known as the most outstanding of the entire Zhuge Family in the last thousand years. The former was Zhuge Mingyue''s father. The latter, her older brother.


    With a background like that, not even the Sages of the four great Barren State powers could compare. As for Nan Feng, Nan Yu, and Du Ao, they were merely young prodigies of the Barren State powers. They weren''t even the very best. So, they obviously couldn''t be compared to Zhuge Mingyue. And just like that, they realized that a person of such high status was hidden within, what they considered, an inferior clan.


    Nan Yu and Du Ao had an awkward look on their faces. Just by hearing this name, they knew that there was nothing they could do about the beating they just received. They weren''t going to get revenge and there was absolutely no one who dared to do it for them.


    Hearing their words, Zhuge Hui turned to the disciples of the Cottage with a great smile. "Remember my real name, Zhuge Mingyue."


    Seeing that she had just admitted her identity, the Barren State Sages were shaken. The Sage of the Nantian House spoke, "Who would have thought that the daughter of the Zhuge Family ran away and ended up in the Eastern Barren Territory. A place cut off from the Barren State and where Sages were forbidden. You even changed your name. No wonder the Zhuge Family was unable to find you even though they searched high and low in the Barren State."


    Not only did Zhuge Mingyue change her name, but she also rarely left the mountain. Before Ye Futian was attacked in Chaoge City, there weren''t even many people in the Eastern Barren Territory that knew of her existence. All they knew was that no one had ever seen the second disciple of the Cottage.


    "I heard that Zhuge Qingfeng had originally intended to send Zhuge Mingyue to cultivate at the Holy Zhi Palace. Why did you choose to run away here to the Eastern Barren Territory instead of joining the most sacred group of the Barren State? You even found yourself a teacher here," asked a Sage of the Holy Fire Clan. The Holy Zhi Palace was the holy land of the Barren State. It was a place where many demon beasts could be found. Every great power in the Barren State wished to send their younger generation cultivators to the Holy Zhi Palace. Zhuge Hui, on the other hand, chose to run away.


    "Because that''s where the Young City Lord of White Cloud City cultivates," said a Mortal World Sage. Everyone''s eyes rounded immediately. They shivered at the thought of that person. As Sages of the Barren State, they had obviously heard some of the Barren State''s stories. The city lord of White Cloud City once cultivated at the Holy Zhi Palace with Zhuge Qingfeng. The two of them were the two most outstanding disciples and were closer to each other than anyone else. Naturally, they had hoped for their descendants to come together as well. However, the daughter of the Zhuge Family was rebellious by nature and hated having her fate decided by the family. Eventually, she ran away from home. She definitely had a strong personality.


    "Are you done?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled at those who had spoken.


    Looks like Miss Zhuge is ready to return to the family. Now that Zhuge Mingyue had revealed her identity, the Zhuge Family was obviously going to be sending for her. Then again, her identity might have been revealed even if she hadn''t done so herself. After all, all this happening in the Eastern Barren Territory wasn''t exactly something that went down quietly. The Zhuge Family was bound to take notice.


    "Get out of here if you''re done. You guys already got the musical score. From now on, you''re all forbidden from stepping onto Book Mountain. If I find out in the future that anyone makes a move for Book Mountain, they won''t be stepping outside ever again. Otherwise, it''ll be an impending death," Zhuge Mingyue announced as her eyes swept across the crowd. She continued with a smile, "You should all know that I can kill any one of you, but your clans wouldn''t dare lay a finger on me."


    Du Ao clenched his fists tightly and a fire was lit, engulfing his body. His eyes shot out flames of rage. He couldn''t believe he was being bullied in such a way.


    SNAP! The long whip swung out and landed on Du Ao. His skin split open. He had once again been attacked and was now growling with pain on the ground.


    Oh, the hatred he felt. He couldn''t believe he wasn''t ever going to be able to get revenge for this brutal beating.


    "Everyone knows how to bully others. How does it feel?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled big. These people had descended on Book Mountain, arrogant and oblivious to anyone else. Even with a Sage on Book Mountain, Du Ao led the Holy Fire Clan here to stir up trouble. He was so sure that no one from the College dared to hurt him. He was the same on Sky Mountain. He was the only one allowed to hurt others. No one was allowed to retaliate. She knew how to bully people with power, too.


    "We will take our leave now," the Sage of the Mortal World said his farewells before leading his people off Book Mountain. They had not suffered any losses and even got the score. There was no need for them to linger. If it hadn''t been for Nan Yu of the Nantian House and Du Ao of the Holy Fire Clan, Zhuge Mingyue wouldn''t have been provoked. They were asking for it.


    The Nantian House and the Holy Fire Clan also gradually began to leave Book Mountain. They came with arrogance and left with panic. Very quickly, those arrogant Barren State cultivators had all left.


    Countless pairs of eyes landed on Zhuge Mingyue. No one would have expected for the Cottage''s second disciple to have such a strong background. She had completely overpowered those from the Barren State. Of course, they were also surprised by just how powerful Mr. Du was. He threatened to kill a Sage if he made another move. This teacher and disciple were truly a well-hidden pair.


    Zhuge Mingyue walked over to Ye Futian who stood not too far to the side. "Why are you looking at your second sister like that?" she asked with a soft chuckle.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were frozen on the beautiful face in front of him. A bright smile then lit up his face. "Because my second sister is so pretty."


    Zhuge Mingyue laughed lightly at his words. Reaching out a pale finger, she knocked him on the head. He knew now that her identity was revealed, she would probably have to leave the Eastern Barren Territory and return to the Barren State.


    "Don''t look so sad, kid. Let''s go," she said. She then walked over to Mr. Du. "Teacher."


    He nodded his head knowingly and announced to everyone, "Today, my eldest disciple gains control of the College and will begin to teach here. The Cottage is officially disbanded. From here on out, there is only the College and no more Cottage."


    Hushed whispers erupted at his announcement. Was the Cottage that was renowned all throughout the Eastern Barren Territory for so many years really going to be history now?


    The disciples of the Cottage were saddened by Mr. Du''s words and all lowered their heads.


    "I''m leaving," said Mr. Du. Other than the Sword Saint, all the disciples of the Cottage followed him up the mountain.


    "Teacher, both you and Senior Sister are so powerful. Why did Little Brother still have to give out the score?" asked Luo Fan. He wasn''t too happy about what happened today. Although the teacher and his senior sister were able to kick those people off Book Mountain, it still didn''t feel all that satisfying.


    "Are we able to protect you guys forever?" asked Mr. Du. "Never underestimate those who are willing to sacrifice everything for benefits. She was able to scare them, yes. However, if your Senior Sister and I weren''t here and if they didn''t get the score, who''s to say they wouldn''t have made a move for your Little Brother? They got something that they wanted. The Sages knew that we had already made a compromise and knew when to take a step back."


    "Teacher, leave things on Book Mountain to me. Go," Zhuge Hui said to Mr. Du.


    "It''s been so many years. There''s not much more keeping me back anymore. Your teacher''s lazy and doesn''t want to run around anymore," Mr. Du replied, shaking his head.


    "Teacher, who are your enemies?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Don''t think too much, kid. Focus on cultivation. I will leave you some books. Be good and finish all of them," ordered Mr. Du with a glare.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded obediently.


    ��


    Sometime after all that, the College had finally been settled. However, it was still pretty lively as many people from all around the Eastern Barren Territory came, wishing to meet the Sage. However, the back mountain where the Cottage was located was quiet. The atmosphere was different there.


    On this day, a bright, blinding ray of light suddenly broke through the clouds in the sky above Book Mountain. Many people lifted their heads to the sky and watched as a group descended from where the light shined through. Bodies clad in armors approached like a group of divine generals.


    In the midst was a beautiful young girl. The female wore a crown and a robe. Basked in a divine light, she looked just like a goddess from the heavens.


    Ye Futian, who was in the middle of cultivating, looked up as well. Seeing the group, his heart rate sped up and he felt short of breath. How could it be? How could it be them? He had seen this girl before. It was in his younger days, on Mount Yao in Qingzhou City.


    This girl''s surname was Donghuang.


    Mr. Du leaped into mid-air and stared at the incoming group. He seemed calm and unbothered as if he already knew they were coming.


    The disciples of the Cottage stepped outside one by one, looking up at the sky. They were taken aback by the blinding sight of this divine army. They could all feel that the teacher was waiting for these people. This was probably why he didn''t leave. If he left, what would they do?


    "Excuse me, are you the princess, Her Highness?" Mr. Du asked the girl. She nodded her head lightly. A smile reached Mr. Du''s eyes before he kneeled down completely. "Greetings to the Princess from a sinner."


    "If you know you have sinned, then get up and leave with us," said a soldier behind the girl. Mr. Du nodded and stood. He smiled at the girl. "Your Highness, you should be 20 this year, correct?"


    "Yes," nodded the girl.


    "Good, very good." Mr. Du was actually smiling in this situation. He lowered his head to look down at the Cottage. "I won''t be around to guide you guys from now on. Remember to take care of yourselves."


    "Teacher..." the disciples called out one after another.


    "I''m going now." Mr. Du gave them all one last smile and he was high up in the sky in a flash.


    The girl lowered her head to look down on Book Mountain and her eyes landed on Ye Futian. After all these years, they have finally met again. A couple years ago they were 16 years old. Now, they were 20!

 396 Parting

    Chapter 396: Parting


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Mr. Du left. All the disciples on Book Mountain witnessed his departure. People working for Donghuang the Great came for him. No one knew exactly who Mr. Du was or that he had anything to do with the Great Emperor.


    The people from the Barren State did not actually leave the Eastern Barren Territory and so, they also got wind of this news. They were all shocked but finally understood how Ye Futian acquired the relics of Sky Mountain. His teacher was connected to the Great Emperor, so it wouldn''t be weird for him to get the relics. And so, they decided to leave the Eastern Barren Territory. Not only were they wary of Zhuge Mingyue, but also because of that Mr. Du.


    Zhuge Mingyue didn''t go to cultivate at the Holy Zhi Palace and unexpectedly became the disciple of an incredibly powerful recluse.


    Ye Futian had someone carve the score for the Ukiyo Song on a stone wall located on one of Book Mountain''s mountains. Whenever someone from the Barren State came, they would be led there. This prevented anyone from targeting the College for the score. What Du Ao did to the Donghua Clan was the perfect example.


    The Cottage was engulfed in a peculiar atmosphere.


    It was that of parting.


    The teacher was lost before but everyone knew that he would come back. This time no one knew if he was coming back or if he was even allowed to. They wouldn''t even be able to go find him. Furthermore, the second sister was also going to leave soon.


    This magical place, the Cottage, may truly be split up.


    On the mountain, the disciples of the Cottage were currently seated together for a meal. There was chit-chat and laughter. Zhuge Mingyue spoke with a light smile on her face. "Our little fifth brother still makes the best food."


    "Senior Sister, if you like my food then I''ll cook for you every day. I won''t step another foot off the mountain," Luo Fan replied while bustling around.


    "Since when have you been such a good boy?" Zhuge Mingyue chuckled.


    "Second Sister, who will look after me when you leave?" Beitang Xing''er''s voice was low and melancholic. After bringing brought to the Cottage by the teacher, Zhuge Mingyue had taken care of her. One could even say that she was raised by Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Xing''er, do you want to come with me?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    Beitang Xing''er froze. When she realized it wasn''t a joke, she began to feel conflicted. Should she leave with the senior sister? If she left, who would take care of the others?


    "Go," Gu Dongliu said in the middle of his meal. "Eldest Brother is busy with the College and won''t have time to take care of you."


    Beitang Xing''er looked toward Gu Dongliu and understood the hidden meaning behind his words. He might leave the Cottage, too. Her eyes reddened. To hide the fact that she was about to burst into tears, Beitang Xing''er lowered her head and continued eating.


    Years ago, when her family died, it was the teacher that brought her to Book Mountain. It was Third Brother who got revenge for her. Since then, the Cottage was her home. Her senior brothers and sister were closer to her than family. Now, the teacher was gone and they were all separating. The Cottage would no longer exist in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "Xing''er, why are you crying? You''re all grown up now and will have to marry soon. We would have had to separate sooner or later," Xue Ye said when he noticed the tears in the corners of her eyes.


    "I won''t marry." Beitang Xing''er shook her head.


    "Silly girl." Zhuge Hui patted her head. She then looked toward Ye Futian. "Why so quiet today?" This rascal was usually the most active, but he hadn''t said a word today.


    "What''s wrong? Feeling sad?" teased Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Senior Sister, would you pretend not to know me when I go looking for you, wanting to hang out?" Ye Futian lifted his head to face her.


    "What goes on in that head of yours?" She lifted her hand to knock on his head. "If you dare to not come looking for me, then I''ll really come after you."


    "Futian and I will definitely come visit together," Hua Jieyu said softly.


    Zhuge Mingyue turned her attention over to Hua Jieyu, giving her a look before chuckling.


    "Senior Sister?" Hua Jieyu was slightly confused.


    "I know what to do so Little Brother will come see me." She laughed. "What if I take Jieyu with me so that Xing''er will have a companion."


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes widened before shaking her head no. "I don''t want to go." That was when she realized Ye Futian was looking at her. Seeing the look in his eyes, she lowered her voice to ask him, "What are you looking at? You want to get rid of me again?"


    "Jieyu, Senior Sister''s suggestion is worth a second thought," he said in all seriousness.


    "I''m not reconsidering." She shook her head.


    "You and Jieyu think about it," laughed Zhuge Mingyue. "Jieyu is so pretty, I''m too worried to let her follow you around while you travel recklessly through the Barren State." She knew well and clear that after the Cottage disbanded, Ye Futian would definitely head to the Barren State. Without the teacher, the Eldest Brother, and her around, it was all up to himself.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. He was considering similar circumstances as the Second Sister.


    "When you return to your family, wait for me." At this time, Gu Dongliu, who was also unusually quiet today, spoke up. Everyone turned to look at the Third Brother. It was obvious who his words were meant for.


    "What for?" Zhuge Mingyue didn''t look at him. Instead, she lowered her head to focus on the dishes on the table.


    "You know what for," he replied.


    "I don''t know," she said, finally looking up at him.


    Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Hui met eyes. Everyone else watched them as the atmosphere took a weird turn.


    "Wait for me to come marry you." Gu Dongliu stood up after replying and walked away.


    Just like that, everyone was completely frozen in shock.


    The Third Brother was so manly.


    "The Third Brother is so cool," Ye Futian exclaimed while watching the departing silhouette.


    "A real man," Luo Fan complimented.


    "So awesome." Yi Xiaoshi was stupefied.


    Zhuge Mingyue watched as he left, the corners of her mouth curling into a smile. She then glared at Ye Futian and the others. "Eat."


    After their meal, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu strolled toward the back-mountain hand in hand. Hua Jieyu spoke softly, "I won''t go."


    "Wifey, you''re too beautiful, too eye-catching. What happens if someone tries to steal you from me in the Barren State?" Ye Futian joked. Something of the sorts happened in the Donghua Clan. Du Ao went to take Hua Qingqing.


    "Then you protect me," she replied.


    Hearing her gentle voice, Ye Futian lowered his head. He felt guilty. Walking over to a cliff, he watched the sea of clouds. "Qingzhou City, Donghai City, the Nandou Nation. I thought I''d seen the whole world, but the world is far larger than I imaged. What they called the fate of an emperor seems like nothing more than a myth. I''ve given you the fate of an empress but to this day, I still don''t have the ability to protect you."


    From his words, Hua Jieyu knew that he was feeling down in the dumps. She lifted her eyes to him. "Look at me," she said.


    Ye Futian turned to her. She walked forward and leaned against him. Standing on tip-toes, she planted a soft kiss on his lips and then separated from him. She never meant for her words to upset the man she loved.


    A smile bloomed from her like a beautiful flower. Hua Jieyu looked up to the sky where the sun was shining brightly.


    "When you were 15, people thought you didn''t know how to cultivate. You were optimistic and joyful. Then, during the Fall Exams that same year, you shocked everyone with your talent and proved yourself to the entire Qingzhou Academy. At sixteen, you set foot in Donghai City. You played the Melody of the White Feathers Garment at the Luo Palace, used the Decree of the General in front of the School of the Emperor Star, and made yourself known as the Guqin Devil''s disciple. That year, an emperor wanted to kill you and you refused to just give in, taking fate into your own hands. During the Fenghua Banquet, you gained the recognition of Emperor Ye. During the Tingfeng banquet, you were undefeatable. After that, you wowed the Ancient Barren World and entered the Cottage. Your life is just beginning and you''re already a legend in the Eastern Barren Territory. This year, you''re twenty. You dominated in the battle on Sky Mountain and now, there isn''t a single person who doesn''t know you in the Eastern Barren Territory." Hua Jieyu smiled brightly, the sunlight lighting up her face. In a gentle voice, she spoke, "Ye Futian, I''m proud of you."


    Ye Futian turned to take in her profile. He chuckled. "My fox knows how to console people now."


    Hua Jieyu looked at him again and laughed. "Everything I said was true. You''re only twenty and you''re able to deal with Nobles and Sages so naturally. I believe that since you''re already able to overshadow everyone our age in Qingzhou City, Donghai City, the Nandou Nation, and the Eastern Barren Territory, someday, you''ll be able to do so with the world. There will be a day when the entire Divine Prefecture will know your name."


    "Am I really that outstanding?" Ye Futian was high off the compliments.


    "Yeah," Hua Jieyu nodded in all seriousness. "You said that you''ll make me an empress. I will remember that, so you have to fulfill your promise."


    "Okay." All of Ye Futian''s dispiriting thoughts were wiped away by Hua Jieyu''s words. He had no time to waste being dispirited. In his younger days, he was so confident in himself. Was he going to let these losses dull his light?


    "Then do you agree to go with Second Sister?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I agree." Hua Jieyu nodded. "But not to run away. When I get to the Barren State, I will work hard on cultivation and wait for you to come for me."


    "Okay," he nodded. Then, he hugged Hua Jieyu close to him and continued, "Before we separate should we take care of something important in our lives?"


    "You wish." She blushed hard in his embrace.


    "I''ll be so lonely and cold with you."


    "Then you have to come for me sooner."


    "Fox, you''re too cruel."


    "Hmph."


    Their exchange continued as the sunlight beat down on the green grass. This had Ye Futian thinking that even though the world of cultivation was cruel, it was also beautiful. He had so many people that liked him and there were also people he liked.


    Days later, a large group had arrived in the sky above Book Mountain. All of them had impressive auras and were truly outstanding. They were from the Zhuge Family. Naturally, they were here for Zhuge Mingyue. She accepted everything that had happened. Disciples of Book Mountain and the Cottage were here to see her off. Seeing everyone in front of her, she smiled. "Don''t miss me too much."


    Beside her, Beitang Xing''er was already in tears. "Eldest Brother, Fourth Brother, Fifth Brother, Xiaoshi, Futian, you guys take care." She then turned to Gu Dongliu who stood further away. "Third Brother, take care."


    "When you get to the Barren State, remember to listen to your Senior Sister," said the Sword Saint.


    "Okay," Beitang Xing''er nodded.


    "Jieyu, you also have to listen to Senior Sister," he said softly as he patted her head.


    "Okay," nodded Hua Jieyu. She looked behind Ye Futian at Hua Fengliu and the others. "Father, Mother, teacher, Clan Leader, all of you have to take care as well."


    "Little Brother." Zhuge Mingyue spread her arms for Ye Futian.


    He walked forward and shared a light hug with her, then with Beitang Xing''er.


    "I look forward to when we meet again, Little Brother," Zhuge Mingyue said softly. The three of them lifted up in the air and headed for the ship in the sky.


    "Let''s go," said a young man on the ship. He took one look down below, his eyes falling emotionlessly on Ye Futian. The ship in the sky began to move. Zhuge Hui took one last look downward at a lonely figure in white. Then, she turned away and moved further and further away.

 397 When the Music Stops, the People Go

    Chapter 397: When the Music Stops, the People Go


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Days later, the Cottage became unusually lively. The disciples of the Moon Clan had moved into the Cottage. Mr. Du had said before he left that the Cottage was one with the disciples of the Moon Clan. All at once, the mountain was filled with beautiful women.


    If this had been the Ye Futian of the past, he would''ve been so happy. However, he was no longer in the mood for any of that. These past few days, he remained at the cliff, reading and cultivating. It used to be Jieyu accompanying him, but now it was Yu Sheng.


    A couple of figures headed his way. The Sword Saint, Goddess Wangyue, Xue Ye and Luo Fan, as well as College Chief Xiao, all arrived in Ye Futian''s location.


    "Little Brother," the Sword Saint called out.


    "Eldest Brother, College Chief Xiao, Goddess," Ye Futian greeted.


    "Your Eldest Brother is the college chief now, you can just call me Uncle-Master," College Chief Xiao chuckled.


    "Alright, Uncle-Master Xiao," nodded Ye Futian.


    "Sit, we''re just strolling around," said College Chief Xiao. "We were so busy settling things at the College, we didn''t even have time to chat with you."


    "Uncle-Master, you''re too polite." Ye Futian was still unfamiliar with College Chief Xiao. After all, they hadn''t met too many times. However, he was different from what Ye Futian had imagined. The disciples of the Cottage had all naturally assumed that the relationship between the college chief and their teacher was not a good one but in reality, it was the exact opposite. The relationship between the two of them was not one that could be easily understood by outsiders.


    Some people claimed that College Chief Xiao wanted to control all of the College and was thus displeased with Mr. Du. Truth was, the college chief had always wanted the Sword Saint to take over.


    The group took seats on the ground. The Sword Saint spoke, "Little Brother, the people of the Qin Dynasty are already gone. The palace is now empty. They''re most definitely worried about the College''s revenge and have completely become a thing of the past. Several lords of the Liu Kingdom have come to Book Mountain with apologies. Wuchen and Liu Chenyu are cultivating on Book Mountain. I asked for their opinion and they rejected the apologies, so I told the people from the Liu Kingdom to leave. However, I won''t order any follow-ups with them as this is a Liu Kingdom business. I''ll leave it for them to deal with themselves."


    "Okay," nodded Ye Futain. It was only natural that Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu would refuse to forgive the traitors of the Liu Kingdom.


    "Also, your Third Brother left. He came to see me and then left without saying anything to anyone else," said the Sword Saint. Ye Futian nodded in understanding. This was expected. According to Third Brother''s personality, there was no way he wouldn''t leave. The proud scholar he was would definitely chase after his target.


    "The teacher and your Third Brother had high hopes for you. They both mentioned you before leaving, saying that you don''t belong in the Eastern Barren Territory. Your world is somewhere far away."


    "I''ll be leaving for the Barren State in some days," said Ye Futian. "Fourth Brother, Fifth Brother, Seventh Brother, what are you guys planning to do?"


    "We''ll stay to help out at the College for the time being. After everything is completely settled and the Eastern Barren Territory starts anew, we''ll leave," Xue Ye explained. "As his disciples, we''ll help teacher achieve his dreams."


    Ye Futian nodded. Life is full of meeting and parting. Everyone had their own path to take. The disbanding of the Cottage was only a matter of time. Although, the time seemed to have arrived too early. So, there was no helping these feelings of sadness.


    "Your teacher always wanted to be able to create change. In the end, he realized he wasn''t able to change a single thing and even dragged his disciples into it," said College Chief Xiao. "A thorough jerk."


    "Uncle-Master, what kind of person was the teacher? Why was he taken away?" asked Ye Futian.


    College Chief Xiao let out a reminiscent look. He said, "When your teacher was young, he was just like you guys, full of pride and confidence. He was so focused on traveling the world. That was until he met two people, the two people who changed his fate."


    "Donghuang the Great and Emperor Yeqing?" Ye Futian asked him with bright eyes.


    "That''s right." College Chief Xiao looked so serious as he nodded his head. "Not many people knew about this slice of history, but your teacher did indeed leave with the two emperors. It was many years before he returned and when he finally did, his edge was gone. He became lazy and idle. I''ve asked him what happened while he was gone and he said that he was tired of what he saw in this world. He killed some people but never told me who. However, I''m sure that they were people he shouldn''t have messed with. Otherwise, he wouldn''t have returned to the Eastern Barren Territory and gone into hiding. He only began to change slightly when he started taking in disciples. He had new goals but it was all null in the end. Though, he did say before he left that he had no regrets. He said he had seen things that others hadn''t and killed those that others didn''t dare to. Now, he even had a group of such extraordinary disciples. He wouldn''t feel regret even if he were to die."


    Ye Futian listened quietly. He never thought that his lazy, alcohol-loving teacher would have such an astounding story behind him.


    "Your teacher always said that principle ruled humanity, but more often than not, principle loses to a physical punch. Therefore, your punch has to be stronger and more powerful than everyone else''s because that''s the only way people will listen to you. In reality, that jerk has never had any principle when he was with me because his punch was always stronger than mine." College Chief Xiao seemed to be complaining. Ye Futian and the others couldn''t help but laugh. It seemed like College Chief Xiao had been through a lot.


    "Because of this, his life was full of contradictions. He spent his whole life in a world of self-contradiction," College Chief Xiao continued. "He has finally let everything go now. He said the person he had been waiting for had finally arrived. So now, the future is up to you guys."


    "The person he had been waiting for?" Ye Futian was interested. "Who?" Just as he asked, he realized that both College Chief Xiao and the Eldest Brother were looking at him. He was Mr. Du''s last disciple. After Ye Futian came on the mountain, Mr. Du cultivated with him in the back mountains and even said that he had no regrets leaving. So, who was the person Mr. Du was waiting for?


    "Is it me?" Ye Futian muttered. If so, then the old man that always looked down on his talent was actually waiting for him? Wasn''t that funny? However, he couldn''t manage to let out a laugh.


    Lifting his head to the sky, Ye Futian could almost see the elder''s figure. The old drunkard that was both respectable and loathsome. Why was he the one he waited for? What did the old man know? Their only similarity had to do with the two emperors.


    After some random chit-chat, Eldest Brother and others left. Ye Futian watched their departing figures and called out, "Uncle-Master, Senior Brother, I won''t come to say goodbye when I leave either."


    "The College and the Cottage will always be your home." The Sword Saint turned to smile at him. In fact, everyone turned to give him a last smile.


    Days later, Ye Futian could no longer be found in this spot. The disciples of the Cottage had all left the mountain, including Xue Ye and Luo Fan. Now, only the ladies of the Moon Clan remained.


    Standing by the cliff right now was a beautiful girl. She stood quietly, looking up at the ocean of clouds. The view here was truly breathtaking. This girl, was Chu Yaoyao.


    "Sis," called out a voice. Chu Lian approached, looking equally beautiful. With her eyes on the same view, she asked, "What are you thinking?"


    "No much." Chu Yaoyao shook her head.


    "Don''t lie to me. Ever since you left Sky Mountain, you''ve been hiding something deep down," said Chu Lian. "Can you tell me?"


    "You want to know?" asked Chu Yaoyao.


    "Yeah," Chu Lian nodded.


    Chu Yaoyao smiled before giving her reply, "I fell for a person I shouldn''t have fallen for."


    "It''s not a matter of whether or not you should have. If he''s worth it, then you should follow your heart. Throughout the Eastern Barren Territory, there wouldn''t be a single person who wouldn''t fall for your charm."


    "Of course, there is."


    "Who?"


    "Someone who used to cultivate," Chu Yaoyao answered with a big smile. "But that''s all in the past now. Everything starts anew now."


    On another mountain of Book Mountain, another beautiful girl stared into the distance with a tear-stained face. "Why did he have to leave by himself?" she uttered through her tears.


    Beside her, a young man spoke to her softly, "Because he couldn''t bear the thought of dragging you around while they wandered."


    "That''s his opinion. Doesn''t he know that this is even crueler?" Liu Chenyu cried.


    "He''s cruel to himself as well. However, he would rather shoulder it all himself. I would do the same in his situation." Liu Feiyang smiled. "He wants to give you the world, not have you suffer with him."


    There was another girl on Book Mountain with her eyes focused somewhere far away. It was Yi Qingxuan. She did not cry though. She was smiling. She knew that this was all part of the experience. Parting was going to be a large part of it. This was the choice she made. The man she loved did not belong to her fully. He belonged mostly to the young man beside him.


    ��


    Months later, a rumor spread from Sky Mountain. They said that the sounds of a guqin were heard from the mountain. The beautiful music melted in with the snowflakes. Nobody knew if this was another appearance of Emperor Will. However, there weren''t many people climbing Sky Mountain anymore so not many cared about this rumor.


    At the top of Sky Mountain, the fluffy, white snow never stopped falling. A figure clad in white sat quietly, playing the guqin while the snow fell. It was Ye Futian. He hadn''t left the Eastern Barren Territory just yet. He was cultivating here. All this time, he was practicing on the guqin and building his Spiritual Energy. He also cultivated sorcery and martial arts to strengthen his body.


    Not far from Ye Futian, Yu Sheng sat cross-legged, also cultivating.


    In a distance was a one-armed youth practicing with a sword in the snow. Ye Wuchen was bathed in Sword Will, flowing and blowing through the snow. There was also a girl on the snowy mountain. Quietly, she took in the cold of the Sky Mountain. It was Loulan Xue.


    Just then, the music stopped. Ye Futian shifted his gaze to the mountain trail. There, a beautiful figure braced the cold winds and approached the mountaintop. Her steps were light and she headed for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took in what she was wearing. The rough fabric looked like something monks would wear, but not even the plain clothing could hide her innocent beauty.


    "You..." Ye Futian was surprised at how the girl in front of him was dressed.


    "When the monks from the Qianqiu Temple arrived on Book Mountain last time, I wanted to be enlightened. So, after that, I went to the temple and I cultivate there now," smiled Hua Qingqing. The air of innocence around her seemed to have been restored.


    "That''s good." Ye Futian returned her smile.


    "Can you play the Ukiyo song for me again? I want to listen to the full piece," she asked softly.


    "Okay," Ye Futian nodded. His expression became serious and he placed his hands on the guqin.


    The peaceful music resonated on Sky Mountain once again. Perhaps, this was the last time.


    When the music stops, the people go!

 398 Barren State, Yunyue City

    Chapter 398: Barren State, Yunyue City


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Barren State was boundless. In the north was the Demon City that was at the border of the Demon World. The Demon God race and Taixuan Mountain loomed there. White Cloud City guarded the west, pressing down on the boundless land. There was also Inferno City near Fire Mountain that occupied a lot of land.


    The south had an endless snowy terrain. There was a temple there with two gusts of power. The snow area and Fire Mountain formed a strange territory. The center was the renowned Alchemy City. Of course, Zhongzhou City was still the richest. This place loomed over the center of the Barren State. Strong cultivators were everywhere there.


    Yunyue City in the east of the Barren State wasn''t the main city there, but it had an ancient history and was magnificent.


    Right now, a Black Wind Eagle flew in the sky above Yunyue City. Its eyes were very sharp. It was an eagle, but when it flew, it felt like a roc. It was that fast. There were four youths on its back. The one at the front was handsome and he looked forward. Beside him was a muscular youth. He was resting with his eyes closed. The one-armed handsome youth behind them had two ancient swords crossed behind his back. There was also a veiled girl. She had long silver hair that fell down like a waterfall. Her eyes shone with silver light, beautiful yet demonic. They were cold.


    This was Ye Futian''s group, coming to the Barren State from the Eastern Barren Territory. They paused at times along the way. Mooncloud City was one of the bigger cities. Its liveliness was comparable to the Qin Imperial City in the center of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "That should be Crescent Lake." Loulan Xue stood up. Wind blew against her as she pointed at a crescent moon-shaped lake. She held a map that she''d bartered for after entering the city.


    "It should be White Jade Tower before Crescent Lake." Looking forward from the lake, one could make out a palace-shaped building. The Black Wind Eagle sped up and it became clearer.


    It was a palace-shaped inn��one of the three biggest inns in Yunyue City. It was entirely white and seemed to be made from jade, hence the name. It was as magnificent as a royal palace.


    As they got closer, the Black Wind Eagle rushed downward and landed on the steps of White Jade Tower. Ye Futian felt Spiritual Qi hit him. This meant that White Jade Tower was made from spiritual stone. It contained a matrix inside. Living in it, they would feel powerful Spiritual Qi. It was beneficial to cultivation.


    Looking up, Ye Futian walked up the steps and stopped outside the main hall. Loulan Xue and Yu Sheng held the spiritual stone and walked in. They were going to spend a few days here, so they chose somewhere like White Jade Tower. It would be easier to get information. They also needed a map of the Barren State. They couldn''t get it in a smaller place.


    Many people walked up and down the steps.


    "Sir, are you a foreigner?" a thin youth in a blue robe asked Ye Futian.


    "Yes." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    "I am Yang Ting," the other greeted.


    "Ye Futian."


    "Brother Ye, are you here for the battle between the four clans?" Yang Ting asked.


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head. He''d just arrived and didn''t know anything about the four clans.


    "Most people who come to Yunyue City are here for that reason. I misunderstood." Yang Ting put his hands together in apology.


    "No problem. I just arrived and am new to Yunyue City. Please help me in the future," Ye Futian said politely.


    "You flatter me. We can help each other," Yang Ting said, smiling.


    "Brother, it''s done," a voice said. A pretty figure walked out. She had a ponytail and looked young, clean, and pure.


    "This is my sister, Yang Yi," Yang Ting introduced. "This is Brother Ye."


    Ye Futian and Yang Yi nodded at each other. Yang Yi stared at Ye Futian with her pure eyes, thinking that Ye Futian was really attractive.


    As Ye Futian matured, his temperament kept changing. His features became more handsome too. He was very attractive now.


    "What are you looking at me for?" Ye Futian asked, smiling gently.


    Yang Yi realized that she''d spaced out. Blushing, she averted her eyes quickly.


    "Brother Ye is handsome, but you don''t have to do that," Yang Ting also joked.


    Yang Yi kicked him and whined, "What are you saying? I''m just curious."


    At this time, the ground below them shook. Ye Futian looked and saw a figure land on the white jade steps. The person was tall and extremely burly. His upper body was bare. The silver armor only covered his most important part. His eyes were like bronze bells, filled with authority as he scanned them. He climbed the steps and walked through Ye Futian''s group.


    "What beast is that?" Yang Yi was looking up. She saw a fiery-red knight with a mount come. The beast was a dark bird.


    The knight was a woman clad in fiery-red clothing. Her curvy body formed a beautiful picture with a different kind of attractiveness. The woman''s manliness was beautiful and cold.


    "Blue Phoenix," Yang Ting said.


    The woman''s Blue Phoenix landed. She also walked past Ye Futian without even looking. However, her Blue Phoenix glanced at the Black Wind Eagle and cawed.


    The Black Wind Eagle had been silent. After the Blue Phoenix cawed, its eyes sharpened instantly. It shot a gaze at the phoenix. One could see darkness flowing through its eyes.


    The Blue Phoenix wouldn''t stop. The knight frowned and glared at it, wondering why it was bullying an eagle. After glancing at the Black Wind Eagle, the Blue Phoenix entered the hall with the knight. The Black Wind Eagle glanced at it arrogantly and closed its eyes to rest.


    At this time, Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue walked over. "Brother Yang," Ye Futian said, "I''m ready."


    The Yang siblings looked at Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue. This group all had great temperaments. Loulan Xue had her face veiled, but judging from her body, she wouldn''t be ugly.


    "Come, let''s go together," Yang Ting said, smiling. Ye Futian nodded. The two walked to the side and climbed the steps. They found their own floor and courtyard. Coincidentally, they were neighbors.


    After entering the courtyard, they found that the entrance was in the backyard. After a hallway was the front courtyard. They could see Crescent Lake and the people arriving at the inn.


    "The Eastern Barren Territory should be in that direction," Ye Futian murmured, looking into the distance. Now, he had already stepped foot inside the Barren State. He was extremely far away from the Eastern Barren Territory. It would take months to cross that distance. Now, he would truly be in the outside world, far from his home.


    Loulan Xue stood beside him and said softly, "I asked around in the hall earlier. The map isn''t easy to get. The Barren State is too big. Even many people in this city haven''t gone out of the eastern region, let alone the entire Barren State."


    Ye Futian nodded lightly. "You''ve worked hard. Our future is unknown. I hope you won''t regret this." He''d warned Loulan Xue, but she had insisted on coming.


    "This is my duty as a servant," Loulan Xue replied softly. "As for regret, this is my own decision."


    "Is Brother Ye here?" a voice came from the other courtyard.


    "Yes, Brother Yang. Come over," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay." A laugh sounded and then two figures came from the sky.


    "The view is quite nice here," Yang Ting said, laughing. "But it''s truly expensive."


    "Brother Yang, I have a question to ask. I came here to challenge myself and I wish to travel the entire Barren State. Is there anywhere I can get a basic map?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The entire Barren State?" Yang Ting''s eyes flashed in shock. It wasn''t realistic to travel the entire Barren State at Ye Futian''s age unless he improved his cultivation as he traveled. Many people did this though, so he didn''t find it too strange.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "This type of map is rarely used. I don''t know where to find it, but the top four forces of Yunyue City will have them," Yang Ting said.


    "Which four forces? How are their abilities?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yunyue City has the Feng Family, Wang Family, Thunder Clan, and Yunyue Merchant Union," Yang Ting said. "They form the uppermost level in Yunyue City. All have people in the Noble Plane."


    Ye Futian nodded. This was only Yunyue City. How powerful would the main cities be?


    "Brother Yang, are you from this city?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes."


    "Then why are you living here?" Ye Futian was curious.


    "Brother Ye, how about we get a drink? We can chat while walking," Yang Ting said.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. The group left the courtyard and walked towards the wine house at the top level.


    "The top four forces control most of the resources in the city. They hold a battle at the end of every year to decide the distribution of the resources. To be fair, they don''t use the Noble Plane. Thus, all those who fight are in the Arcana Plane. Because there are injuries and casualties and the forces use it to attract more talents, it became a custom. Every year, this event is when they choose talents to fight for them. Those who perform well can join them.


    "The White Jade Tower belongs to the Yunyue Merchant Union. Every year, they would invite others here. That''s why I asked if Brother Ye came for that reason."


    As Yang Ting explained, they arrived at the open-ceiling wine house. Many people were there; it was very busy.


    "So you wish to join the Yunyue Merchant Union?" Ye Futian asked.


    "They are a force in the chamber of commerce. They have the most resources and are the most generous," Yang Ting said, eyes sparkling.


    Ye Futian nodded. After coming to the Barren State, he discovered that they would often use cultivation resources. For example, spiritual stones were common here and used as currency.


    "Brother Ye, are you interested?" Yang Ting asked after they found somewhere to sit.


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head, laughing. He''d come to the Barren State to cultivate. He wasn''t going to join a force!

 399 Common Man

    Chapter 399: Common Man


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yang Ting wasn''t surprised. Since Ye Futian wanted to explore the Barren State, he obviously couldn''t stay in one place.


    "Brother Ye, the Yunyue Merchant Union controls many auction and trade buildings," Yang Ting said. "They will definitely have the map you want. You don''t want to join, but there''s another way. You can rent yourself to fight for them and receive what you want."


    "You can do that?" Ye Futian was interested.


    "Of course," Yang Ting explained. "For their battles, if you help them win a round, there will be rewards. The exceptionally talented can beat more opponents and receive more rewards. Otherwise, how can they attract people to fight for them? You must know, injuries and deaths are common. That is why they won''t send all their people. Otherwise, it''s easy for an uncontrollable battle to erupt. It had happened before."


    "I see. I''ll consider it." Ye Futian nodded. He looked into the distance at Crescent Lake. There was a slight breeze. The view was so nice.


    At that time, loud noises came from behind. Ye Futian turned around and saw two figures step onto the battle platform in the center of the wine house. They were getting ready to fight.


    The place was big, so the platform wasn''t awkward. The two shot into the air and started fighting there and then. They were both in the lower Arcana Plane.


    "Doesn''t the White Jade Tower care?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Standing onto the platform means that both agree to the fight," Yang Ting said. "The White Jade Tower purposely supplied this place and likes seeing this. It helps them rate the people''s abilities. Especially during these times, most everyone who lives in White Jade Tower is for the battle. They naturally wish for the White Jade Tower to see their performance. The tower will naturally report to the Yunyue Merchant Union."


    As expected, the battle was endless. More people stepped onto it to fight and more people gathered around.


    Ye Futian saw an elder in a long black robe. He was in mid-Arcana Plane and was very powerful. He controlled a fire spell. He must not be as talented to be in the Arcana Plane at his age. But because he''d cultivated for so long, he''d studied sorcery more and had better control.


    The black-robed sorcerer beat many people. Gradually, more powerful people challenged him. Now, Ye Futian saw the female knight with the Blue Phoenix walk on. A fiery spear solidified in her hands. Flames covered her, making her seem very handsome. In her clothing, she also looked sexy.


    "I know who they are," Yang Ting said. "Fire Girl Liu Lan and Black Sorcerer Xi Mu are both quite famous here."


    The two had an intense battle. Liu Lan was skilled in fire and wind but was a female knight who cultivated martial arts. Her combat ability was very strong. She added her elemental talent to her spear technique. Each attack was beautiful. Sometimes, she would use spells for aid. However, she often missed. Black mist would cover Xi Mu and then he would teleport. This shocked Ye Futian. He used Freedom Meditation and Xi Mu''s actions became clear. No move could escape from his eyes.


    The black mist was just a cover-up. Xi Mu actually used a water elemental spell. He must have added spiritual sorcery as well to create an illusion while moving with a spell. However, he looked mysterious to people of the same level.


    "Brother Ye, who do you think will win?" Yang Ting asked.


    "Fire Girl," Ye Futian replied.


    "But Xi Mu has the upper hand now." Yang Ting was surprised. Xi Mu used his technique to restrict Liu Lan.


    "What determines victory is still one''s ability. Some methods are interesting, but Xi Mu is a sorcerer and not a martial artist. He can''t attack suddenly. His attack is comparable to the Fire Girl, but his defense isn''t. He will lose but can drag it on for a while."


    Yang Ting looked to the battlefield curiously. Xi Mu still had the upper hand. But as time passed, changes occurred. The Fire Girl became more intense, making Xi Mu panic. After a while, he lost miserably.


    "Big Brother Ye is so powerful," Yang Yi praised. Yang Ting also looked to Ye Futian, impressed. He was quite observant.


    "Big Brother?" Ye Futian smiled at Yang Yi with her ponytail and pure features. She couldn''t be 20 yet. Ye Futian really was old now. He thought of his little sister Ye Xiaoqin. She must have grown up now. He wondered how she was now. Was she still in Donghai?


    "Yeah. Can I call you that?" Yang Yi asked, smiling.


    "Of course." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Big Brother Ye, has anyone ever complimented your looks?"


    Ye Futian blinked and then nodded seriously. "I''m used to it."


    Yu Sheng looked away with disdain. He was tricking little girls again and Yu Sheng couldn''t stand it.


    Ye Wuchen was quiet the entire time and didn''t have much presence. Yang Ting would sometimes look over. He had a unique feeling by just sitting there.


    "Incredible. I''ve heard of you two long ago," someone suddenly praised. Ye Futian''s group looked over and saw a young man and woman. The man was handsome. The woman, in a pale blue dress, was sexy but still elegant��very attractive. There were also servants and guards behind them. Clearly, they had a powerful family. Their appearance attracted many eyes. Xi Mu and Liu Lan nodded politely.


    "That is Shang Hai and Shang Qing, siblings from the Yunyue Merchant Union. Their father is in charge of White Jade Tower," Yang Ting murmured to Ye Futian. "I''m going over."


    With that, Yang Ting went to the Shang siblings. He bowed slightly and then hovered around the two. He looked submissive.


    "Why is he like this?" Yu Sheng asked Yang Yi. He was confused. If he wanted to join the union, he should use his power. Being submissive like this detracted from his strength.


    Yang Yi bowed her head.


    "Yu Sheng." Ye Futian glared at him. They''d only just met Yang Ting and didn''t know each other. They had no right to interfere with how the other acted.


    "Yang Yi, we''ll go down now," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay." Yang Yi nodded. Ye Futian''s group walked down the steps and left the wine house.


    Back at the courtyard, Ye Futian sat before Crescent Lake, thinking about the battle.


    Xi Mu and Liu Lan were quite powerful. Ye Futian guessed that their abilities were equal to some of the talents in the College. Thus, he guessed that the talents in Yunyue City wouldn''t be stronger than the best in the Eastern Barren Territory. This was normal though. Yunyue City wasn''t a main city and there were many cities of this scale. The truly best would definitely go to the bigger cities. Furthermore, even though the Eastern Barren Territory didn''t have many resources, the best were still quite talented. They were at least equal to the best in Yunyue City.


    "The Spiritual Qi is very heavy here," Ye Futian said, smiling. He closed his eyes to cultivate.


    A while later, a voice said, "Big Brother Ye, can I come over."


    "Yes." He nodded. "Yang Yi, come over." As soon as he finished, a figure descended from the wall. She said, "Big Brother Ye, you can call me Little Yi."


    "Little Yi," Ye Futian called.


    Yang Yi smiled. "Were you looking down on my brother?"


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head. That was the truth. Everyone lived differently. He didn''t know Yang Yi well so he had no right to comment.


    "Our parents were killed while trying to enter a relic when we were young. After that, we had to survive alone. In a conflict after that, we were both injured. I was heavily injured and can''t cultivate as well as before. My brother works hard and wants to join the battle so he can find a spiritual medicine for my injury. The Yunyue Merchant Union controls many trades. They''ll definitely have the medicine. That''s why he''s so submissive with them."


    Yang Yi continued softly, "We''d also used all our savings to live here. All of this is for me. My brother is actually quite talented, but he was restricted by me. Big Brother Ye, I don''t mean anything. I just hope you won''t look down on my brother." With that, she smiled and turned to leave.


    After she left, Ye Futian smiled wryly and turned to Yu Sheng. "Did you hear that?"


    Yu Sheng scratched his head and said, "I''ll apologize."


    Ye Futian looked into the distance. "The Barren State isn''t all top forces like the Nantian House and Sacred Fire Sect. There are many common men with common lives, working hard for their goals like us."


    "Brother Ye," another voice said. Yang Ting came over directly with a smile. "I asked earlier. They do have a map. If you''re chosen to fight and perform well, you''ll have the chance to get it."


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng gaped at him. He''d just come back. Yang Yi had come earlier in secret.


    "Okay, I''ll consider it seriously." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He didn''t mention Yang Yi.


    "Let me know when you decide. I''ll register for you," Yang Ting said before leaving.


    "Thank you," Yu Sheng said.


    Yang Ting halted and looked at him, surprised. This burly youth always followed Ye Futian but didn''t speak until now. "Since we''re friends, we should take care of each other," Yang Ting smiled and returned to his courtyard.

 400 Show the Door

    Chapter 400: Show the Door


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian had been practicing in White Jade Tower. The matrix made his cultivation much easier. These days, more and more people gathered in the tower. Strong cultivators kept checking in, preparing for the upcoming battle of the four strong forces.


    Ye Futian and Yang Ting, as well as Yang Yi, were getting along very well with each other. Familiarity grew between them. Yang Yi and Yang Ting frequently visited Ye Futian in his courtyard. Other than some interesting news about the Barren State, they also discussed how to cultivate. Yang Ting found that Ye Futian knew a lot about this. While benefiting a lot from Ye Futian, Yang Ting began to be curious about Ye Futian''s strength.


    Yang Ting was very gregarious in the tower. He had made many friends these days. Perhaps because their parents died early and they had to struggle to live, they were very good at making friends.


    In the courtyard, Yang Yi and Ye Futian were chatting.


    "Big Brother Ye, where are you from?" Yang Yi asked curiously.


    Ye Futian was good-looking. Yu Sheng looked unusual. Ye Wuchen and Loulan Xue were also different from common people. She had presumed that Loulan Xue was Ye Futian''s girlfriend and called her sister. But Loulan Xue told her that she was just a maid, which surprised her.


    "I come from a very distant place. In the east, there is a land isolated from the Barren State. That''s my hometown," said Ye Futian.


    "I have never left Yunyue City since I was born but you have been to so many places," said Yang Yi with a smile. "Brother Ye, won''t your parents miss you?"


    "My parents?" Ye Futian smiled with embarrassment. "I don''t know. To tell you the truth, I don''t even know who they are."


    "Ah..." Yang Yi said, startled, "I''m sorry, Big Brother Ye."


    "It''s okay. Perhaps they are very famous people and are enjoying their life now," Ye Futian joked.


    "Do you hate them?" Yang Yi asked.


    "Hate?" Ye Futian shook his head. "I have never thought about it. I don''t think I hate them. Life is so wonderful. I''ve felt fervor, frustration and sadness. Everywhere I go, I experience a story. Life is so, isn''t it?"


    "Yes." Yang Yi nodded firmly. Looking at that bright and handsome face, Yang Yi thought that Ye Futian must be very optimistic.


    "Yang Yi, come to harass your Brother Ye again?" Yang Ting said, walking over.


    "No way, we were having conversation. You can ask Brother Ye." Yang Yi grumbled.


    Ye Futian smiled.


    Yang Ting also laughed and shook his head. He turned to Ye Futian and said, "Brother Ye, all the tower''s rooms are already occupied. There are many other places full of people. It seems that the battle this time will be very fierce. Have you decided?"


    "We will join." Ye Futian nodded. He had thought over this these days. They didn''t have to show much strength in this battle. After defeating some people, they would get the Barren State''s map. They could decide where to go then, rather than wandering blindly in this place.


    "Good. I have companions now." Yang Ting smiled and nodded. "Brother Ye, what''s your level? I need your information to sign up for you."


    "The second level of Arcana Plane," Ye Futian answered. On basic of this, he was confident that the third level was not far.


    "Okay." Yang Ting didn''t make further comments. With Ye Futian''s age, this level was already very high but was not high enough to make him outstanding. But that was also because Ye Futian didn''t start cultivation until fifteen which was comparatively late.


    "I''m going to sign up for you now," said Yang Ting.


    "I''ll go with you," Ye Futian said.


    "That''ll be even better." Yang Ting nodded and then the line of people walked out of the court, heading for the wine house on the top of White Jade Tower.


    More people gathered here than in the past few days. Yang Ting looked around but didn''t see the White Jade Tower''s staff.


    "Perhaps they are busy on other things. Let''s wait here for a while," Yang Ting suggested. Ye Futian nodded and was about to find a seat when the Black Wind Eagle walked forward. There was the Blue Phoenix ahead. The Black Wind Eagle lifted its head high and looked at the Blue Phoenix disdainfully. Of course the Blue Phoenix would not stand with the Black Wind Eagle''s provocation. It tweeted constantly and some strong aura effused from it. Spectators around were interested in the two birds. Somebody laughed and murmured, "What an interesting eagle!"


    "Who is its master? People who don''t know might think it is a golden roc." Many people there made fun of the Black Wind Eagle. How could it lift its head up high before a Blue Phoenix?


    The Black Wind Eagle was seemly not very self-aware. Its proud eyes still looked at the Blue Phoenix lazily. Something dark flashed in its eyes. That Blue Phoenix kept tweeting as if it was really irritated.


    Liu Lan, the owner of the Blue Phoenix, frowned. She and the Blue Phoenix could read each other''s mind. She could feel that the Blue Phoenix seemed a little grumpy.


    "Get back here!" Ye Futian shouted. Hearing his voice, the Black Wind Eagle instantly calmed down. It lowered its proud head and walked to rub against Ye Futian.


    "You think you''re powerful now?" Ye Futian knocked on the eagle''s head to warn it that this was not a date.


    Ye Futian turned to Liu Lan and bowed his head slightly. "Sorry about that."


    "Your eagle is really bold!" Liu Lan sneered. An eagle dared to provoke the Blue Phoenix. It wasn''t just being bold. Her Senior Master had paid much effort to get her this young Blue Phoenix.


    "No, it''s just inexperienced," Ye Futian said with a smile. The Fire Girl just nodded and didn''t say anything else.


    At this moment, a rustle came from people around the pub''s corner. They kept looking down curiously.


    "It''s Sorcerer Wu." Many people exclaimed. Hearing this, people were all stunned and hurried to look down over the edge.


    "Sorcerer Wu is also here now?" Yang Ting''s eyes flickered.


    "Who is Sorcerer Wu?" Ye Futian was confused.


    "Wu is his surname. He is a very famous spell sorcerer. Nobody knows his real name, so people call him Sorcerer Wu. He is powerful to a horrible extent. Though he is only in the middle level of Arcana Plane, the whole Yunyue City knows his name. The forces all want him to join, but he refused them all. This time, he came to join the battle. Is he ready to join the Yunyue Merchant Union now?


    Yang Ting''s curiosity was provoked. He stood up and suggested, "Let''s have a look."


    Ye Futian also stood up. From what Yang Ting had said, Ye Futian inferred that this must be a very talented sorcerer here. He wondered how strong the Sorcerer Wu would be.


    Ye Futian walked to the corner and looked down. He saw a figure in a black cloak. He could see that this man was much younger than he thought. But his dress was just as strange as his name.


    "Even Mr. Shang came to welcome him. That''s Sorcerer Wu!" Somebody exclaimed. Shang Qing and Shang Hai as well as the White Jade Tower''s other staff stood down there to welcome him.


    "No wonder we couldn''t find them," said Yang Ting.


    In the distant sky, sword intent rolled over. People looked up and saw a figure riding a sword. He came very quickly and descended slowly.


    "Duan Que, the Demon Swordsman, also came?" People were very surprised. With the two here, it seemed that the battle would be very vicious.


    Sorcerer Wu and Demon Swordsman all came to help the Yunyue Merchant Union. The other three forces must have invited some top talents too.


    "Duan Que, known as the Demon Swordsman, is very skilled in sword play. He is also very strong. The Yunyue Merchant Union is really one of the top forces. Much must have been spent to invite the two," said Yang Ting.


    Ye Futian''s group looked calm. They knew that every place had its top talents. Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman were two of them.


    Shang Hai and his sister welcomed Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman into the White Jade Tower. People returned to their seats and continued their comments.


    "Brother Ye, this battle might be more dangerous than before. Please be careful!" Yang Ting said to Ye Futian. Seeing the two here, he felt that this battle could be very vicious.


    "I will." Ye Futian nodded.


    After a while, the pub suddenly became quiet. Some people came up from the stairs. Ye Futian turned around and saw Shang Hai and Shang Qing found good seats for Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman. They looked very hospitable. Some people of the White Jade Tower behind them walked up and looked around. They saw Ye Futian and walked to him.


    "Sir, do you live in the Qiuyue Court in the first floor?" the man asked him.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Sir, our White Jade Tower is full now," the man said. "We only offer reception to those who are willing to fight for the Yunyue Merchant Union. Therefore, could you move out? I''m very sorry."


    Yu Sheng frowned and asked coldly, "What do you mean?"


    Yang Ting and Yang Yi also looked displeased. "My friends are also going to join the battle," said Yang Ting.


    "Sorry, we don''t accept any other applicants now," the man said. Ye Futian knocked the table with his fingers. He glanced at Sorcerer Wu''s direction, knowing that this was because of their arrival.


    "Okay, we will leave after finishing the drink." Ye Futain didn''t argue further.


    "Could you pick up your luggage now?"


    "What do you mean?" Ye Futian was vexed. "You entered our room?"


    Bang. Yu Sheng pounded the table, shattering it. He stared at the man coldly. They still lived there and those people couldn''t wait to pack up their things to empty the room for the two?


    Many people noticed things happening here. They showed some sympathy to Ye Futian''s group, but this was how it worked. The White Jade Tower was occupied. Someone had to leave so Sorcerer Wu and Demon Swordsman could settle down.


    Shang Hai and Shang Qing walked over and stared at Yu Sheng. "Sir, what do you mean?"


    "What do I mean?" Yu Sheng sneered.


    "It''s our wrong, but please understand us," Shang Hai apologized.


    "We have paid enough spirit stones for next few days, isn''t that right?" said Loulan Xue coldly.


    "Give them the refund." Shang Hai asked his staff to do so. That waiter seemly had everything prepared. He directly delivered Ye Futian''s group a bag.


    "That''s enough?" said Ye Futian lightly.


    "Now you''re just looking for trouble," Shang Hai scolded.


    Beside him, Shang Qing smiled and said, "If it''s not enough, I can give you more." Then she walked out and dropped spirit stones before Ye Futian''s group, one by one.

 401 Undercover

    Chapter 401: Undercover


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Shang Qing''s pretty eyes were cold and arrogant as she looked at Ye Futian''s group. Of all those living in White Jade Tower, they were the only ones who hadn''t signed up to fight for them. In that case, why would they live here?


    Everyone in Yunyue City knew that living in White Jade Tower during this time meant they were here for the battle. If Ye Futian''s group was living here but not helping, were they spies from the other three forces?


    Of course, it didn''t matter even if they weren''t. Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman were here; White Jade Tower was full. Who else could they choose to kick out?


    As for offending people, the Yunyue Merchant Union didn''t care. They only had to make Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman happy now. They didn''t have to waste too much time with Ye Futian''s group. If they wouldn''t go nicely, they would be forced out.


    The spiritual stones clinked brightly on the ground.


    Yang Ting and Yang Yi''s faces were all pale. Looking down, Yang Ting clenched her fists and said to Shang Qing, "Miss Shang, my friend has decided to help you fight. Why are you like this?" Faced with the Yunyue Merchant Union, they couldn''t fight back at all.


    Shang Qing glanced at Yang Ting with a smile. Yang Ting had been wandering around them all these days. She naturally knew what Yang Ting wanted. People who had to rely on those tactics wouldn''t be skilled. This was also why she treated Ye Futian''s group like this. Those who were truly proud wouldn''t act like Yang Ting. People and objects were grouped by their similarities. If Ye Futian was with Yang Ting, they were the same.


    "We need two courts. You can give yours up too," Shang Qing said. She tossed some spiritual stones at Yang Ting.


    "You''re too much." Yang Yi''s eyes reddened. Her brother had given up everything for her and this chance. Now, Shang Qing was about to shatter everything.


    "Hurry up," Shang Qing said, smiling. Her voice was still calm. She turned and moved away to Sorcerer Wu. "You might have to wait a bit," she said gently.


    "It''s alright." The Demon Swordsman''s eyes fell upon Ye Wuchen. Swordsmen could sense each other''s auras. This one-armed swordsman had two swords. He had an uncommon feeling.


    Crunch. Yu Sheng clenched his fists and his aura exploded. With his personality, he wouldn''t allow anyone to insult Ye Futian. Before, he would have attacked long ago. It was different now. They were in the outside world and could get killed by a small misstep. He had to bear it and repress his temper.


    Yang Yi''s eyes were red. She bent down to collect the spiritual stones. She knew this was humiliating, but so what? She''d experienced this before. This was everything her brother had.


    Seeing Yang Yi''s figure, Ye Futian felt bitter inside. He squatted down and smiled. "Little Yi, it''s alright."


    "Yeah." Yang Yi looked up at Ye Futian and squeezed out a smile. Her eyes were still red. Ye Futian could see the tears in them. Loulan Xue and Ye Wuchen also squatted down quietly to help them pick up the spiritual stones.


    The surrounding people laughed while watching at this scene. It was unbearable to Ye Futian''s group, but this was actually normal. The White Jade Tower had asked them politely to leave, but Ye Futian insisted on asking why. Why would they do that? They were just looking to be humiliated. They didn''t know the rules of the cultivation world at all.


    Fire Girl Liu Lan looked at this calmly. Then she looked to Sorcerer Wu. But there, the Demon Swordsman was watching Ye Wuchen picking up the stones. He was disappointed. He''d thought that the other would be a true swordsman, but he seemed to be wrong.


    "Okay." Ye Futian chuckled after picking up the stones and said, "Let''s go." Everyone nodded and the group started walking out.


    "You don''t deserve to practice swordsmanship," a voice said at this time. Many people were shocked. The speaker was Duan Que. He sat there, quietly drinking wine with the Shang siblings, but everyone knew who he was talking to��the one-armed swordsman.


    Ye Wuchen''s steps halted, but his emotions didn''t change. Then he started walking again, leaving without saying a word.


    Ye Futian''s group left the White Jade Tower. There was still someone at the border of the wine house watching them. Now, the figure left quietly and walked outside. People walked to and fro from the tower though. No one noticed him.


    After leaving the tower, Ye Futian gazed at Yang Ting. "Brother Yang, I''m sorry."


    "This has nothing to do with Brother Ye. The Yunyue Merchant Union is too insulting. I guess I was asking for it though. The more I go to them, the less they''ll respect me." Yang Ting laughed at himself. He thought that the Shang siblings knew him now, but after seeing their attitude, he realized they didn''t care about him at all. This was probably the tragedy for unimportant figures.


    "Only abilities can win over respect," Yang Ting said seriously. She''d learned this from the Shang siblings'' attitude towards Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman.


    "Brother Ye," Yang Ting continued. "Actually, I was the one who was wrong. I was always inviting you to join the Yunyue Merchant Union. I didn''t think this would happen. What do you plan on doing now?"


    "I haven''t decided. What about you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Yunyue Merchant Union isn''t the only top force. I don''t have the ability to prove anything, but I should also work hard to earn the resources to cultivate. I won''t give up so easily. I will try other forces," Yang Ting said. "Brother Ye, what do you think?"


    Ye Futian glanced at the Yang siblings. Seeing Yang Yi''s bowed head, he knew that Yang Ting was pretending to be okay. He did all this for his sister, but he only said it was for himself.


    "That''s too much. I don''t plan on experiencing that again," Ye Futian said. "Let me know when the battle is starting. I will be there." He didn''t plan on trying to join another force.


    "Okay." Yang Ting nodded. He didn''t know what ideas Ye Futian had.


    "Please wait," a voice said behind them. Ye Futian''s group turned and saw a figure run up to them. It was a 20-year-old youth like them. He wore simple clothing and had average looks. He wouldn''t attract much attention in a crowd.


    "You?" Yang Ting asked. He''d seen this man before; he also stayed in White Jade Tower.


    The newcomer greeted Ye Futian''s group, "I am Wang Linfeng."


    Yang Ting''s eyes flashed. His surname was Wang? Usually, he wouldn''t think much, but this was a sensitive period. If a Wang lived in the White Jade Tower and then ran after them, he had to feel suspicious. He''d heard about the forces trying to spy on each other before.


    "Are you from the Wang Family?" Yang Ting asked.


    "Yes." Wang Linfeng nodded. "Can we speak elsewhere?"


    Ye Futian looked at him and said, "If you''re going to hide, then no."


    Wang Linfeng''s eyes flashed. He reached up and wiped his face. Mist clouded instantly and his face changed, becoming much more handsome. It was as if he''d changed entirely.


    "I had to. I''m sorry." Wang Linfeng glanced at Ye Futian with some shock and then nodded at him. "I saw what had happened earlier. The Yunyue Merchant Union is too cruel. Would you be willing to fight for the Wang Family?"


    "Spying in White Jade Tower must be a method that the four top forces use often, huh." Ye Futian''s voice was cool. He thought of the Shang sibling''s treatment to them and if it also had something to do with suspicion. After all, they were the only ones who didn''t sign up.


    "I heard that the disciples of the forces would compete amongst themselves too. If they find powerful people to fight, they would get rewards," Yang Ting said. He could see this from how Shang Hai and Shang Qing treated Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman.


    Now, Wang Linfeng was helping the Wang Family enlist people.


    "That is so indeed. Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman joining the Yunyue Merchant Union makes things troublesome," Wang Linfeng said.


    "If I agree, will you be able to let us participate directly?" Ye Futian asked. Since he was a spy, he must not be a very important person in the family.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s question, Wang Linfeng smiled wryly and shook his head. "You must pass our exam. After all, there are limited spots."


    "What plane are you?" Ye Futian asked.


    Wang Linfeng looked at him with some confusion. "Mid-Arcana Plane."


    "Yu Sheng." Ye Futian looked over to Yu Sheng.


    The other immediately understood Ye Futian''s intention. Yu Sheng walked towards Wang Linfeng. Power burst from him, actually pressing down at Wang Linfeng.


    Bang! Yu Sheng took a step and moved forward. Before Wang Linfeng, he raised his fist and punched. The punch had horrible power and the air popped around it.


    Wang Linfeng''s eyes sharpened instantly. He could sense that the man before him was only in the lower Arcana Plane, but he''d felt such strong pressure. Raising a hand, dazzling light shone from his hand. He lunged forward and sent his arm forward.


    Boom! The two attacks crashed. Wang Linfeng felt extreme power travel up his arm. He was forced backward. After steadying himself, he stared at Yu Sheng in shock. He hadn''t used all his power, but someone of the lower Arcana Plane could send him back with one hit. His strength went without saying.


    Yu Sheng''s expression was still calm. He turned and walked back to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at Wang Linfeng. He also turned and walked forward. "I won''t take any exams. You saw what had happened at White Jade Tower. I do not wish to experience it again. I will be at the battle. If you can let us fight, then we will. If not, I will find another force. Finally, I need a map of the Barren State and some spiritual medicine."


    Wang Linfeng looked at Ye Futian''s arrogant backside. His eyes sharpened and he clenched his fists. "No problem. I will arrange it." He seemed to have found a treasure.


    He and Shang Qing had the same thoughts. Strong cultivators would naturally be proud and he''d observed everyone in White Jade Tower. Ye Futian had been humiliated, but he''d been too calm. To stay calm in the face of humiliation required extreme pride and confidence!

 402 Battle of the Four Top Forces

    Chapter 402: Battle of the Four Top Forces


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s group turned to leave. Yang Ting and Yang Yi stared at Yu Sheng with shock. Yang Yi said, "Big Brother Ye, Yu Sheng is so powerful."


    "Of course he is." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    "Then what about you?" Yang Yi asked curiously.


    "I''m obviously not as powerful as him," Ye Futian said, chuckling.


    "Oh. Big Brother Ye, will you fight for the Wang Family?" Yang Yi asked.


    "We''ll see." Ye Futian patted Yang Yi''s head. "You have so many questions."


    Yang Yi giggled. "Thank you, Big Brother Ye." When she heard Ye Futian mention medicine to the Wang Family, she knew it was for her.


    Hearing it, Yang Ting figured out that Yang Yi had told Ye Futian about it. He gazed at Ye Futian and said, "Thank you, Brother Ye."


    No matter if they succeed or not, he was still grateful.


    "No need to thank me. I still have to trouble you. Since we were kicked out, may we stay in your home?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Okay." Yang Ting nodded, his heart feeling warm.


    The group climbed onto the Black Wind Eagle who spread its wings and flew somewhere.


    ��


    Countless days later, Yunyue City was even busier. In the Yang residence''s yard, music streamed like godly music. Ye Futian was sitting cross-legged in the yard, playing a calming melody. Playing the guqin could help him focus and raise his spiritual energy. Sorcerers could cultivate this way; it went without saying for musical sorcerers too.


    The music slowed down and stopped. The echoes remained and the people were still mesmerized. Loulan Xue sat near Ye Futian with her eyes closed. When the music stopped, she opened her pretty eyes. She felt extremely calm.


    Yang Yi was beside Ye Futian. Moving her hands from her knees, she looked up at Ye Futian. "Big Brother Ye, how come you can do everything?"


    These past days, Ye Futian often talked to her brother about cultivation. Yang Ting was very impressed. Ye Futian''s music was also very beautiful. She''d never heard something so calming. It made her heart relax and she could almost forget everything. The feeling was great.


    "Of course. That''s who I am," Ye Futian joked.


    Yang Yi giggled. With her ponytail, she was filled with youthful spirit. She gazed at Ye Futian, not wanting to look away at all. These days were probably her happiest days. There were no frustrations or worries; it was peaceful. Before, she always had some worries from struggling to survive with her brother. She was lonely too. After all, she was just a girl.


    Ye Futian added liveliness to the home. He looked so nice when he smiled too. His unique charisma could spread to the others, calming them. She wished Ye Futian could be her real brother. That would be great.


    Ye Futian obviously didn''t know what she was thinking. In reality, he didn''t even know that he felt reliable to Yang Yi. He was used to relying on others. Now that he was out here by himself, he was changing without realizing. Perhaps he was transforming without even himself realizing.


    "Brother Ye." Yang Ting walked over now. His brows were furrowed and seemed to be worried.


    "What''s wrong?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I just went to get information. The news about Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman joining the Yunyue Merchant Union has spread through the city. The other three forces became desperate and paid a lot to invite many people in the Arcana Plane. Many of them are well-known. The news is spreading like wildfire. This year''s battle might be the most intense yet. All who will represent the forces will be extremely strong."


    As the battle was drawing near, Yang Ting obviously had to go get news. After all, Ye Futian had already agreed to fight for the Wang Family.


    And there were risks. If he had a cruel and powerful enemy, the consequences would be horrible.


    "Oh?" Ye Futian smiled at Yang Ting. "Yu Sheng is strong too."


    "Brother Ye, I''m serious. Don''t joke." Yang Ting had to panic a bit at Ye Futian''s careless attitude. "The Yunyue Merchant Union will see you represent the Wang Family and send the people after you to protect their ego."


    "I''ll keep that in mind," Ye Futian said when he saw Yang Ting''s serious expression. He knew that Yang Ting was trying to help.


    "Brother Ye, you can give up if you want. We can go to the trading post. If we''re lucky, we might get a map."


    "Then what about the medicine?" Ye Futian asked. Yang Yi needed the medicine to be cured. Her injury was on the spiritual level. For a sorcerer, that was a catastrophe. He played music all the time to help her compose her spiritual energy.


    Hearing this, Yang Ting fell silent. This was always on his mind, but there was no other chance to get something so valuable. Even if it appeared on the market, he had no money.


    "Don''t worry. It''ll be fine," Ye Futian said.


    Yang Ting nodded. He would remember this. While getting news, he understood that this battle had nothing to do with him anymore. Even if he stayed in White Jade Tower, he would be eliminated from fighting for them.


    The days passed. Yunyue City became livelier and livelier. People from outside hurried over without stopping for this feast. The battle of the four top forces was always the most anticipated event. They could watch the most powerful people of the Arcana Plane in the Yunyue City fight each other.


    The day was finally here. The entire city shook.


    Countless people and demons flew toward the same direction. In the center of Yunyue City, there was an ancient battle platform. All battles had taken place there.


    Somewhere, a Black Wind Eagle flew in the air. Ye Futian''s group stood on it, gazing around. There were all types of people and demons around them, hurrying forward. Everyone had the same destination.


    The huge crowd had a powerful force as they went in the same direction.


    "We''re here at the Yunyue Battle Platform. The four forces have already entered," Yang Ting said. The people descended and then started walking.


    Now, the four top forces of Yunyue City had already arrived. Each force took up one corner with great distance between them. Between them was an ancient matrix battle platform formed by two half-moons. There was also an ancient battle drum.


    In the Wang Family''s place, Wang Linfeng was a bit worried. The person he was waiting for hadn''t come yet.


    A beautiful girl stood before him. She was Wang Yurou, one of their prides. She was very talented. Wang Linfeng was a disciple of the main lineage, but he worked for Wang Yurou.


    They had the same lineage but had different statuses. Otherwise, Wang Linfeng wouldn''t have been sent as a spy. As Ye Futian had guessed, he didn''t have a high position.


    There were others beside Wang Yurou, all with extraordinary auras.


    "Still not here?" Wang Yurou asked.


    "He promised me he would be here." Wang Linfeng was panicing. His future relied on Ye Futian. He didn''t have a high status in the Wang Family and couldn''t receive many resources. He relied on Wang Yurou. She also had much stress about this battle. She personally went to find people to fight for her. Last time, Wang Linfeng told her that he''d found at least one person and maybe even more. But now, they weren''t here yet.


    "If you ruin it for me, you''re dead," Wang Yurou said coldly. She glanced at the people beside her. Thankfully, she had backups and had brought many people here. She didn''t lack people to fight for her. What she lacked was people at the top.


    Wang Linfeng was covered in cold sweat. He knew that Wang Yurou looked pretty but was the strictest. If he affected her this time, he would have a horrible ending.


    I hope I''m not wrong, he prayed. He gazed into the crowd. More and more people were here. Even if they came, they would be easy to miss.


    He was usually right about people. Otherwise, he wouldn''t be sent as a spy. Ye Futian''s group were proud, confident, and calm. People like that should keep their promises.


    Ye Futian had arrived now. He was asking Yang Ting where each force was. The people of the four camps were all serious. The atmosphere was suffocating. Clearly, they placed heavy importance on this.


    He saw the Yunyue Merchant Union. They had the most people. In the crowd, he could see the Shang siblings in elegant clothing. Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman were beside them.


    On the other side was a group of strong cultivators in purple robes. They were from the Thunder Clan. The people who were dressed differently were there to help them. They were easily distinguished.


    Across from the Yunyue Merchant Union, there were many armored guards. They had sharp and cold auras. Yang Ting told him that that was the Wang Family.


    They went over. Seeing Wang Linfeng, Ye Futian called, "Wang Linfeng."


    Wang Linfeng turned. Seeing Ye Futian, his eyes flashed. "You''re finally here!" he said quietly.

 403 Wang Linfeng’s Decision

    Chapter 403: Wang Linfeng��s Decision


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Wang Yurou stared at Ye Futian''s group. Wang Linfeng brought them here to help. This battle meant a lot to Wang Yurou. It was not just about her, it was also about the interest of her whole family. She had to win. She needed to win this battle. In the battle of four forces, every single round was very significant.


    Ye Futian also looked at Wang Yurou. She looked delicate, beautiful and of a valor. She had all the good points of both man and woman. This was a very charming woman.


    She looked at Ye Futian straightforwardly as if she could see through him. If Ye Futian''s group was just ordinary people, they could not help and could even get her into trouble.


    "Who will fight?" Wang Yurou asked Ye Futian''s group.


    "How many of us do you want?" Ye Futian asked in turn. Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Wang Yurou''s eyes flickered. From his words, she inferred that Ye Futian was very confident that he could fight no matter how many fighters she wanted. What a proud man!


    People around Wang Yurou walked forward and stared at Ye Futian''s group. They were also here to help Wang Yurou. If Ye Futian''s group joined in, there would be too many fighters. Somebody had to leave then. Usually, Wang Yurou would bring nine people with her, which meant if Ye Futian''s group joined, someone among their nine had to leave.


    "How many of you can fight?" Wang Yurou asked again. Neither two sides responded to each other directly.


    "Is three enough?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You three are all in the Lower Arcana Plane?" Wang Yurou asked again. She had heard from Wang Linfeng that Ye Futian was in the second level of Arcana Plane which was of the Lower Arcana Plane. That was exactly what she needed in this battle. It would also be good if someone was in the Middle Arcana Plane. She could let him help her other family members.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. Both Yu Sheng and he were in the second level of the Arcana Plane. Ye Wuchen was in the third. Moreover, it was very possible for them to break through their present level at any time.


    The battle of the four forces set restrictions on people''s level in every round. That made sense since it would be unfair if somebody in Lower Arcana Plane faced someone in the Upper Arcana Plane.


    "Do you know the rules?" Wang Yurou asked.


    "Yes." Before coming, Yang Ting had briefly introduced the battle rules to them. There wouldn''t be any major amendments, of course.


    "The battle this year is the same as the last year," Wang Yurou said. "People in the Arcana Plane are divided into three groups: Upper, Middle, and Lower. I am in the Lower Arcana Plane, so my family let me be responsible for this group. I will select nine people to fight for me. Now I have nine people with me already. If you three join us, there will be 12, with three extra."


    Though Wang Linfeng brought Ye Futian''s group here, she was reluctant to let strangers fight for her. She trusted Wang Linfeng very much, so she gave Ye Futian an opportunity, but she still didn''t trust him. Now, she was trying to give Ye Futian some pressure. She needed Ye Futian to prove that they had the strength to substitute her three strong cultivators.


    Yang Ting and Yang Yi, standing behind Ye Futian''s group, could feel the pressure too. Though with a charming face, Wang Yurou commanded a powerful presence. Yang Ting started to realize that it was such an unpractical thought of him to sign up for the battle. Just standing before Wang Yurou, he could feel the forcing power. How could he have the strength to face his enemy in the battle? However, Ye Futian looked quite calm as if he felt nothing. Wang Yurou''s powerful presence couldn''t threaten him at all.


    As a musical sorcerer, Ye Futian was impregnable. Yang Ting was not going to fight, but he was keyed up already. The battle hadn''t started, but an oppressive force could be sensed already. The air was a little stifling to him.


    Wang Yurou was not the only one staring at Ye Futian. The nine people around her were also glaring at him with their sharp eyes. Some of them were well-known talents while others also used much effort to be here. But Ye Futian''s group just abruptly appeared and was going to knock three of them out? Wasn''t this ridiculous?


    Ye Futian looked into Wang Yurou''s eyes. Then he turned to Wang Linfeng and said, "Remember our deal?"


    Wang Linfeng''s eyes flickered.


    "I told you that I would come here, but I am not going to take any so-called tests. If you don''t trust us, we''ll just leave now." Ye Futian smiled thinly. When leaving the White Jade Tower, Yu Sheng had proved his strength.


    Wang Linfeng was struggling. He looked at Wang Yurou.


    Wang Yurou was also a little surprised. What an arrogant guy! She wanted Ye Futian to prove their strength. Instead, Ye Futian gave her pressure as if he didn''t care at all.


    "Wang Yurou, aren''t we enough?" a man beside her questioned.


    "I agree. We have Xing Feng here for the Lower Arcana Plane. We don''t need anybody else. Why should we bet on those people? We don''t even know them. Moreover, we have promised to help. Nobody would like to be replaced by a group of strangers." Somebody showed his discontentment. Wang Yurou had selected the nine people herself. Seeing someone threatening their position, the nine were naturally disgruntled. They had passed enough tests to be here.


    Why should some of them leave just because of Ye Futian''s few words? Furthermore, who would leave among the nine?


    Wang Yurou was hesitating. Ye Futian had forced her to make the choice.


    She looked at Wang Linfeng and said, "They are your people. You decide." It was just a simple sentence, but it gave Wang Linfeng so much pressure. He was the one to make a decision.


    He knew what it meant. If he insisted to let Ye Futian''s group fight and they were defeated, he would lose everything. He would have no say in the family and no trust from Wang Yurou anymore. But if Ye Futian''s group really won this battle for Wang Yurou, Wang Linfeng would also benefit a lot.


    He knew that this was a gamble. He was going to bet his future on this decision. Ye Futian''s group decided his future.


    "Let them fight," Wang Linfeng said determinedly, clenching his fists. The decision was made. He had to undertake all responsibilities no matter what the consequence would be. He glanced at Ye Futian, hoping he hadn''t judged incorrectly.


    "Okay." Wang Yurou nodded. She didn''t trust Ye Futian yet. This was their first meeting. Who knew Ye Futian''s strength? Cultivators tended to be blindly confident. Without the test of a good-sized battle, it was not easy for people to admit that they were as good, especially for those talented people.


    But Wang Yurou trusted Wang Linfeng. Another reason was that some of the nine people she selected were not top talents. The battle would be very fierce. No force could have all its fighters survive. Usually, there would be no more than three people left to fight, so she would like to have a try and bet on Ye Futian''s group.


    "What about the things I asked for?" Ye Futian asked Wang Linfeng.


    "The Barren State''s map and the spiritual plant or something, right?" Wang Linfeng asked.


    "It''s Spirit-Refining Grass," said Ye Futian.


    "We have only one original version of the map, so I had someone transcribe one for you. It might not be exactly the same, but it''s enough for you." Wang Linfeng took out a map and said, "Since you know the rules, you must know that you are going to face talents from the other three forces. If you three defeat six of them, I''ll give you the map. As for the Spirit-Refining Grass, it''s very expensive and rare. So if you defeat twelve, I promise to get the plant for you."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. "One last question, if I offend people of the three forces when fighting, what''s the consequence?"


    This was the four forces'' battle. If he defeated too many cultivators and harmed the interests of others, he would definitely get into trouble. He had to consider that.


    "Rest assured. The battle of the four forces has been held for years. There are rules and people follow them. No one is allowed to have conflicts after the battle. Otherwise, there won''t be so many people willing to fight. Retaliation won''t happen or the four forced would have gotten into too many troubles now," Wang Linfeng said. "If they hate you, they will kill you only on the battlefield."


    "Got it." Ye Futian nodded. He was confident he would defeat twelve people.


    Wang Yurou turned to the nine people she''d selected and talked to three of them. The three looked sulky. One of them said, "We promised to fight for the Wang Family and we passed all the tests. Now we must leave like this, Miss Wang?"


    "That''s right. Just because of his few words?" another person grumbled. The three were very indignant.


    "What I have promised to you, I give you three times more," said Wang Yurou.


    The three looked at each other. They knew that they could not change the decision and so they agreed.


    "Follow me." Wang Yurou walked away. Ye Futian, Ye Wuchen, and Yu Sheng followed behind. Actually, Loulan Xue was also very excellent on the battlefield, but out of some concern, Ye Futian didn''t let her participate.


    "When the battle begins, Xing Feng and I will decide your order of fighting and your rivalries," Wang Yurou said to the people. Some people nodded. Ye Futian just glanced at that youth named Xing Feng.


    The line walked to the Wang Family. Many of the people there looked over at them too.


    "Yurou, are you confident about this battle?" a senior of the Wang Family asked.


    "Grandpa, trust me." Wang Yurou nodded firmly.


    "Good." That senior nodded with a smile.


    Ye Futian looked straight at the Yunyue Merchant Union''s members. Some of the people there also noticed Ye Futian''s group. They were Liu Lan and Xi Mu, the Dark Sorcerer.


    Seeing Ye Futian appearing with the Wang Family, Xi Mu was very interested. He said to Shang Hai, "Mr. Shang, look!"


    Shang Hai turned around and saw the Wang Family. When seeing Ye Futian, his eyes sharpened. They two looked straight at each other across the distance.

 404 First Battle, Yu Sheng

    Chapter 404: First Battle, Yu Sheng


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    "Aren''t those the people that were kicked out of White Jade Tower?" dark sorcerer Xi Mu said, grinning. Sorcerer Wu, the Demon Swordsman, and others all looked over with interest.


    Ye Futian getting kicked out was still fresh in their memories. It must have been interesting. That day, Shang Hai and Shang Qing had scattered spiritual stones on the ground. They''d all squatted down to pick it up before leaving. Now, they were representing the Wang Family? Were they trying to regain their reputation that they''d lost in White Jade Tower?


    "Interesting," the Demon Swordsman Duan Que said, chuckling while holding his chest.


    Shang Hai squinted and then laughed. Did they want to use these methods to get back at the humiliation? They must be dreaming.


    "Brother, they''re helping Wang Yurou." Shang Qing giggled from the side.


    Shang Hai had naturally seen Wang Yurou beside them. She was the cold beauty from the Wang Family, but she was handsome and coldly arrogant. The youths of the four top forces always joked over who could take this thorny rose. He obviously had these thoughts before too. He didn''t like her though. It was just the desire for men to take over things.


    "I saw. Since Wang Yurou chose them, they probably have some skills," Shang Hai said, chuckling. He didn''t care though. Even if they were skilled, these nameless people couldn''t be too powerful. This time, the battle was filled with monstrously talented people. Many extreme prides of Yunyue City would come. Ye Futian''s group was nothing. It would be impressive if they could win some rounds. They''d most likely be cannon fodder.


    "That''s unfortunate. Wang Yurou is in the lower Arcana Plane so she''ll probably go to that battlefield. We won''t meet her." Shang Qing smiled. If they met, it would be interesting.


    "That''s not definite." Shang Hai smiled. "Other than the usual battles, there are other methods too, aren''t there?"


    Something flashed past Shang Qing''s pretty eyes as she glanced at Shang Hai. Did her brother want to keep humiliating them?


    "Brother, you don''t think White Jade Tower was enough?" Shang Qing giggled. "You''re too much."


    Shang Hai''s smiling eyes also had some coldness. Since they wanted to represent the Wang Family to regain their dignity, he would help them. He just wished they wouldn''t be too weak. That wouldn''t be too fun.


    "Go tell Feiyu to take care of them," Shang Hai said, smiling.


    Shang Qing nodded. "Okay." With that, she went elsewhere. Shang Feiyu was the person representing them in the lower Arcana Plane.


    ��


    People arrived gradually. The four top forces waited. The vast space became more serious and repressive. The people who came to watch stood far away, but they also felt the repressive atmosphere. The annual battle wasn''t a simple battle. It pertained to the resource division of the next year. Cultivation resources determined their development.


    Currently, the Yunyue Merchant Union was the wealthiest and developed strongly. They were about to overshadow the other three. Because they had more resources, they could usually invite better people to fight for them. Their attraction was also stronger.


    Before, that was why Yang Ting wanted to help the Yunyue Merchant Union. They were wealthy and gave more. Of course, no force was stingy about this. It just depended on who was willing to spend more.


    At this time, a figure walked towards the Yunyue battle platform from the four forces. The vast space instantly silenced.


    The battle platform was big. The four figures walked in the same direction��the ancient battle drum in the center. The drum was very strange. It had four sides. The four figures all stood before one side.


    The strong cultivators of all forces looked over. A while later, someone raised a fist and slammed down on the drum. With a huge boom, the drum shook the sky. The vast space became extremely quiet. Everyone stopped talking.


    "Yunyue Merchant Union," the person said. His voice rolled into the distance with the drumbeat.


    Boom. As soon as he spoke, the drum was beaten again. A voice said, "Thunder Clan."


    After that, the representatives of the Wang Family and Feng Family both beat the drum. Drumbeats echoed through the sky.


    The vast space was silent. This was the ceremony before the battle. It was also a vow. They established the vow with the drum; it had been like this since the beginning. At the end of the battle, they would keep their promises.


    The four didn''t come down after beating the drum. They stood before the ancient drum and turned around. Facing the people, they said, "The rules are the same as before. The first battle is of the lower Arcana Plane. It determines the distribution of spiritual stone mines. First place receives 40%, second place receives 30%, third place 20%, last place 10%. Any objections?"


    There were countless mines within the city. No one family could take it all for themselves. It would lead to war. Thus, they followed this rule for many years. The four top forces would mine them together. The distribution ratio was determined by each year''s battle.


    The first battle was the lower Arcana Plane. It would determine the distribution of the spiritual stone mines.


    In the Barren State, spiritual stones were the basis of cultivation. The importance of this battle went without saying. Each force would try their best and send their best people. The helpers were chosen carefully.


    "No objections," the head of the Yunyue Merchant Union said from their place.


    "No objections," the heads of the Thunder Clan, Wang Family, and Feng Family also said.


    "To the battle platform," a figure before the drum said. Instantly, strong cultivators from four directions walked out.


    From the Wang Family, Wang Yurou brought Ye Futian''s group over. Countless eyes fell on them.


    Ye Futian also felt the serious atmosphere. He was shocked that the four forces would use this method to distribute resources. The pressure felt by the fighters went without saying. No wonder Nobles weren''t allowed. A Noble battle of this importance would be hard to control. He had to admit that this method was strange, but it was logical.


    Each force sent one core disciple and nine helpers to fight. They walked to four places and stopped. Wang Yurou sat onto the ground. The others also sat down. Ye Futian''s trio sat as well. The strong cultivators of the other three forces also sat down.


    Yang Ting had told Ye Futian the rules. Those on the battle platform would fight in order. For example, the Yunyue Merchant Union would send people for the first battle. The second battle would be by another force. As for the target, there was no rule. They could challenge anyone. When there was no one left, the first round would be over.


    During this, the core disciples wouldn''t fight. The helpers who remained would enter the second and final round with them. Of course, it was possible their helpers were all defeated and they would be alone. It would be dangerous to fight against the others.


    For example, if Wang Yurou was the only one left from the Wang Family, but the other three forces had helpers. Who would be eliminated first in the next round? It went without saying. The three would definitely eliminate Wang Yurou first. Thus, the abilities of the helpers were very important. It affected the result directly.


    "The Yunyue Merchant Union won last year. Today, they will fight first." The four before the battle drum acted as the judge.


    Instantly, countless eyes went to the ten of the Yunyue Merchant Union. Shang Feiyu led many strong cultivators and had invited two powerful people.


    At this time, Shang Feiyu''s eyes went directly to the Wang Family. Wang Yurou arched an eyebrow. Then a figure walked out. This person was clad in silver white. He had flowing long hair and was handsome.


    "Zuo Xiaoyun." Everyone''s eyes flashed. Some recognized him.


    He looked at the Wang Family. Icy Spiritual Qi gathered into a silver spear. He pointed it at the Wang Family and he said, "I challenge the Wang Family."


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. Zuo Xiaoyun was looking straight at him. He understood that the Yunyue Merchant Union was targeting him.


    "Zuo Xiaoyun, Third-tier Arcana Plane, martial arts and sorcery. He is most skilled in ice sorcery and spear. His spear contains spells and can slow you down. This battle requires speed. You can''t be fooled by his spears." Wang Yurou seemed to be talking to herself. Then she looked at Ye Futian''s group. "Send someone for battle." She would test their abilities through this.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. "Yu Sheng."


    Yu Sheng stood up. His burly body almost blocked everyone''s vision. He walked out.


    "Remember, end quickly," Wang Yurou reminded.


    Yu Sheng didn''t reply. He walked out to Zuo Xiaoyun. Instantly, countless eyes fell onto the two.


    Yang Ting and Yang Yi watched nervously. This battle was very important.


    Of course, no one was more nervous than Wang Linfeng. Standing in the crowd, he stared forward, fists clenched tightly. His heart seemed to stop. This battle could determine his fate. If Yu Sheng lost, it meant he''d been wrong.


    Whoosh. Wang Linfeng took a deep breath and exhaled. His eyes shone brilliantly. He gambled his future for this battle!

 405 Apologize

    Chapter 405: Apologize


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Nobody knew how nervous Wang Linfeng was. Opposite the members of Wang Family, Shang Hai and Shang Qing from Yunyue Business Alliance seemed to be very relaxed as they looked at the arena, smiling. The people whom they had chased out of Yunyue Business Alliance appeared in front of them again in such a way. Were they trying to prove themselves? Shang Hai was looking forward to the outcome.


    The people beside him, including Fire Girl Liu Lan and Black Sorcerer Xi Mu, all looked at the arena calmly. At the center of the Yunyue Battle Platform, Zuo Xiaoyun waved his spear, around which ice danced. He was wearing a silver armor and his long hair danced elegantly in the air.


    This was his first battle on the Yunyue Battle Platform. In this battle, he would let everyone in Yunyue City remember his name.


    Buzz! Zuo Xiaoyun pointed his spear in Yu Sheng''s direction. The region around him turned colder and colder and the water-elemental Spiritual Qi in the area turned into Ice Will, resonating with his body. Slowly, a wave of Ice Will covered the center of the battle platform.


    However, Yu Sheng only stood there in silence. He neither spoke nor moved. It was as if he was a mere statue.


    "What is he doing?" Wang Yurou frowned. Yu Sheng was very burly so clearly, he was a warrior who cultivated martial arts. Against a sorcerer, he actually stood at his spot without moving. Was he trying to kill himself? A warrior should attack first. Ideally, he should get closer to his opponent to have a close-ranged combat which would increase his win rate significantly. Did he not even know this?


    She had already reminded Yu Sheng twice that he should end the battle quickly. A martial arts cultivator must not drag a battle against a sorcerer, especially when the sorcerer was skilled in ice-elemental abilities. The longer the battle, the more disadvantageous the situation would be for the warrior.


    The battle between the four factions was very important so she had obviously collected information of her opponent. Therefore, she knew Zuo Xiaoyun''s way of fighting. He would first use spells to affect his opponent. Once he got the upper hand, he would strike with his spear. With his spells slowing the Spiritual Energy and movement of his opponent, he would win the fight easily.


    "Just watch," Ye Futian said emotionlessly. Wang Yurou was somewhat unhappy and glanced at Ye Futian, but she did not say anything else. Facts would prove themselves. She should just watch the battle. She hoped that she would not be too disappointed.


    The battle platform became colder and colder, while Ice Will gradually engulfed Yu Sheng''s body, causing a layer of frost to appear on his body. Noticing that Yu Sheng was still standing at his spot, Zuo Xiaoyun gave a mocking smile and remarked, "I didn''t expect the opponent in my first battle to be an idiot." After that, he suddenly charged forward at an incredible speed. "Freeze!" he shouted coldly.


    Right away, the frost covering Yu Sheng''s body solidified and clear crackling sounds were actually heard. Yu Sheng''s body was slowly frozen and the Ice Will started to seep into his body. This would cause him to lose his ability to fight and even freeze his blood. Even if he could not be frozen totally, he would be significantly slowed and his judgment skills would also be affected.


    "Why did Wang Family send such an idiot onto the stage?" A strange expression appeared on the faces of many. Even a few leaders on the Wang Family viewing platform frowned and glanced at where Wang Yurou was sitting. She should not make this kind of mistakes. Why did she use such a person?


    At this instant, Wang Linfeng could even feel his face turning pale and his body trembling. Why is this happening? Why is this the outcome?! A warrior would no longer be able to fight after being frozen. Moreover, Zuo Xiaoyun could definitely kill Yu Sheng in a single hit with his spear.


    Seeing the scene, Wang Yurou could finally no longer remain calm and said coldly, "Idiot!" She had never seen such a stupid martial arts cultivator who would stand still to allow his opponent to cast a spell on him.


    "Shut up." Hearing that Wang Yurou actually scolded Yu Sheng, Ye Futian look at her with a cold expression.


    Wang Yurou similarly stared at Ye Futian coldly and did not avoid his stare at all.


    All this happened in a short instant. On the Yunyue Battle Platform, Zuo Xiaoyun stomped on the ground and ascended into the air, after which he made a handsome maneuver midair. He was actually displaying his skills on the stage as if he was absolutely confident that he would win. Seeing his action, everyone knew how confident he was.


    To Zuo Xiaoyun, this battle was too easy and meaningless. With his rotating body and handsome posture, the spear in his hand pierced forward towards Yu Sheng''s throat like a bolt of lightning. He wanted to kill his opponent in one strike.


    "Boring," Shang Hai said emotionlessly with a mocking sneer on his face. He thought that Yu Sheng would at least try to resist, but instead, the battle was so uninteresting.


    Wang Yurou withdrew her stare and no longer looked at Ye Futian. Instead, she looked at Yu Sheng, regretting her willfulness. If Ye Futian and Yu Wuchen were also like this, she would be sending them on the stage only for her opponents to humiliate.


    On the Yunyue Battle Platform, the silvery ice lightning was only an inch away from Yu Sheng''s body. Everyone thought that the battle had already ended. However, when the spear almost reached the statue-like body, the frozen Yu Sheng suddenly moved. He just moved in such a ridiculous way. He took a step back and raised his hand, grabbing towards the spear.


    "Huh?" At this instant, the pupils of countless people contracted. What was happening? How could someone already frozen by a spell still move?


    Their thoughts only managed to flash across their minds. In the next instant, the spear almost touched Yu Sheng''s throat, but simultaneously a dazzling golden radiance flashed on Yu Sheng''s frozen palm, crushing the Ice Will directly. Then, the spear which was only an inch away from his throat suddenly stopped. It just stopped in the air suddenly, but ironically it seemed all so natural.


    The front part of the silvery spear was held firmly by a hand. The terrifying strike was actually stopped without any suspense. Similarly, Zuo Xiaoyun''s body was stopped in the air along with his cool action. He was still in the posture of piercing his spear down. His long hair danced in the air and he still looked elegant and extraordinary. However, instead of complacency, his face was only filled with fear.


    He saw a monstrous pair of eyes. The body which he had frozen, the person whom he thought was an idiot, just stared at him like that. Yu Sheng''s calm eyes caused him to be deeply frightened. Zuo Xiaoyun also did not know why he felt scared; it only came from his instinct.


    Crack! A clear sound was heard as the spear condensed from Spiritual Qi was broken into two. Recovering from the surprise, Zuo Xiaoyun let go of his spear and wanted to back off. However, he would clearly not have the chance to do so.


    Yu Sheng took a step forward and his palm slid forward along the broken spear, his action looking smooth and natural. Then, he grabbed the arm of Zuo Xiaoyun who was trying to escape. At this instant, Zuo Xiaoyun only felt that his body froze in the air and could not move completely. He tried to put his arm out but realized that it did not move at all. In the next moment, Zuo Xiaoyun''s body flew into the air. He was lifted by Yu Sheng until he was upside down, after which he was smashed towards the other direction.


    Bang!! A shockingly loud noise erupted, shaking everyone''s heart. Because the force was too great, Zuo Xiaoyun even bounced up slightly from the ground. Then, he just lied there, twitching occasionally. He had always fantasized that he could become famous in one battle and display his unparalleled grace so that the people in Yunyue City would remember him. Perhaps, the people in Yunyue City would really remember him. However, he would only form the background.


    Yu Sheng started walking back. From the start to the end, he did not say anything. With just a simple action, he ended the battle.


    Many people had not even recovered from their surprise until now and they only stared blankly at the burly figure who was walking towards Wang Family.


    "How is this possible?" Shang Hai froze at his spot and he looked absolutely startled. Beside him, Shang Qing also stared at the Yunyue Battle Platform, stunned. The difference was too huge.


    Black Sorcerer Xi Mu, Fire Girl Liu Lan, Sorcerer Wu, and Demon Swordsman were all puzzled as if they had seen something very strange.


    On the other hand, in the Wang Family direction, Wang Linfeng clenched his fists firmly. Even his body trembled in anxiousness as he stared at the figure before him.


    From hell to heaven.


    He knew that he had won his bet. Furthermore, the outcome was even better than he had imagined.


    "Interesting." The members of Wang Family all smiled. The first battle had already given them a surprise. It seemed like Yurou indeed had great vision and they could ask her to do things without worrying. Little did they know that Wang Yurou was also extremely shocked at the moment. She gazed at the returning figure and had yet to recover from the astonishment.


    "Apologize," someone said coldly. Wang Yurou was stunned and withdrew her roaming thoughts. She looked at Ye Futian who was beside her, but Ye Futian only stared back coldly. She knew that Ye Futian asked her to apologize because she called Yu Sheng an idiot earlier. She stared firmly at Ye Futian and the people around them also looked at Ye Futian in surprise. He actually asked Wang Yurou to apologize.


    "I was only being anxious." Wang Yurou gave a charming smile. Although she had given a reason, she did not really apologize.


    "Wuchen," Ye Futian shouted, after which he stood up. Ye Wuchen understood him immediately and similarly stood up.


    Wang Yurou was stunned. Looking at Ye Futian who was getting up, she asked, "What are you doing?"


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said, after which he actually turned around. Countless people looked at him and Wang Yurou was totally bewildered.


    Wang Linfeng also looked at the scene in surprise. What was happening?


    At this moment, many thoughts raced across Wang Yurou''s minds, which included anger. Ye Futian was actually leaving in front of everyone else. She also felt somewhat worried. After all, she had invited them here, so if they left�� In addition, Yu Sheng''s performance had indeed been eye-catching.


    "I''m sorry," Wang Yurou said. Ye Futian stopped, turned around, and glanced at Wang Yurou emotionlessly. Then, he sat down again.


    Yu Sheng had also returned from the stage. He had no idea what had happened and only sat beside Ye Futian quietly.


    The people around them all looked at Ye Futian in amazement. This guy is really arrogant.


    Looking in front of him, Ye Futian said coldly, "I hope that this will never happen again." Wang Yurou stared at him and gritting her teeth, she replied, "Alright." She felt somewhat unhappy. Ye Futian seemed to be excessively arrogant and ignored her presence completely.


    I hope that his power is enough to support his arrogance, she thought.

 406 Wang Linfeng’s Victory

    Chapter 406: Wang Linfeng��s Victory


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Xing Feng, the genius whom Wang Yurou had personally invited, was sitting on her left.


    At the moment, Xing Feng looked in front of him and said, "The battle has just begun. We shouldn''t be too serious about some trivial stuff. After all, our aim is all the same, isn''t it?" Then, he glanced at Ye Futian who was on the other side.


    "Trivial stuff?" Ye Futian glanced coldly at Xing Feng and added, "It ends now."


    Xing Feng gave a slight nod. "Although Zuo Xiaoyun has a small reputation, his power is mediocre and he is way too arrogant; he actually underestimated his opposite like this. Our real challenge is still to come. In all the four forces, there are powerful people that will only show up much later. Therefore, in the subsequent battles, you must cooperate with me and Yurou. Try your best to eliminate some people from the other three clans. As long as you can ensure that they have no more people than us in the end, you can leave the rest to me and Yurou."


    Ye Futian was puzzled and glanced at Xing Feng in surprise, after which he looked at Wang Yurou, who looked calm and did not say anything. Clearly, she approved how Xing Feng had addressed her.


    Smiling, Ye Futian immediately managed to guess certain things. After Yu Sheng displayed such a powerful combat ability, Xing Feng however only touched on this battle lightly. At the same time, he said those words to remind the people here that in Wang Family, he and Wang Yurou were the key players; the rest were only here to support them in the fights and only needed to try and eliminate the people from the other forces.


    Xing Feng did not want Yu Sheng to steal his thunder and hinder him from chasing the beauty.


    "No problem," Ye Futian replied, smiling. Yu Sheng fought in that way not to attract attention. It was his usual way of fighting.


    In Ye Futian''s opinion, they should try to keep a low profile. Thus, they only needed to win and did not have to display all their powers. Since Xing Feng had said this, he was obviously happy to agree.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian thought of something and asked Wang Yurou, "If the other three parties have no people left before the twelve battles, what will happen?" They had agreed that if they could win twelve battles, Ye Futian would receive a Spirit-Refining Grass. However, if the eliminate tournament caused him to have fewer than twelve battles in the first place, he would obviously not meet the target.


    "This would normally not happen. If the other forces have nobody left and among the three of you there is at least one left, you''ll still get what you want," Wang Yurou replied. Ye Futian nodded lightly.


    Ye Futian could clearly understand what Wang Yurou meant. Suppose they had the most number of people present, the other three parties would definitely not allow the situation to continue and would challenge them one after the other. Furthermore, Wang Yurou knew that apart from Xing Feng, many people would have been eliminated from the tournament towards the end. This meant that if Ye Futian and his team were still on the battlefield at the end, they would have enough fights.


    At the moment, someone from Feng Family also walked onto the Yunyue Battle Platform and challenged Thunder Clan. It was as if they deliberately wanted to keep some kind of balance in the tournament.


    In this battle, the cultivator from Feng Family lost. The person who walked out first would always be in a disadvantageous position as his opponent would choose someone who could fight him effectively.


    Suddenly, someone near the battle drum said, "Wang Family, send someone onto the stage." It was the third battle and Wang Family''s turn to challenge someone.


    "Do you want to go?" Wang Yurou asked Ye Futian.


    "Of course." Ye Futian nodded, after which he said, "Yu Sheng."


    "Yu Sheng again?" Wang Yurou squinted. Yu Sheng stood up and Wang Yurou also did not say anything else. After all, she did not care about who Ye Futian sent, as long as they could ensure that in the last part of the tournament they would not be jointly attacked by the other three forces.


    Yu Sheng walked towards the Yunyue Battle Platform slowly and a strange expression appeared on the faces of many. Only a short amount of time had passed since his last battle and many people were still thinking about it.


    Wang Family had sent him out again.


    The people from the other three forces also felt that something was amiss. In the first battle, he could be considered a surprise. However, it would be meaningless to send him again now. The party which he challenged would be prepared and send someone strong. What was Wang Yurou thinking?


    At the moment, Wang Yurou was thinking about whether or not she could know how strong Yu Sheng really was in this battle. Although the battle just now looked very shocking, it was mainly due to the sudden change in the situation. Yu Sheng was so mighty and Zuo Xiaoyun made a mistake by going close to him, causing him to lose in a single hit. However, this battle would not be so easy again.


    In the Wang Family, Wang Linfeng also did not understand why they had sent Yu Sheng. What tactic was this?


    Little did they know that Ye Futian had not considered any tactics at all. Since everyone had seen Yu Sheng''s combat power, he would send him again to defeat his opponent by force.


    "Who wants to fight me?" Yu Sheng looked at Yunyue Business Alliance. He would not forget what happened in the White Jade Tower.


    Shang Feiyu glanced at the burly figure. Beside him, someone said lightly, "Can I go?"


    "It''s not appropriate for you to fight now." Shang Feiyu shook his head. Then, he looked at a person behind him and said, "Li Kui, you go."


    "Alright." Li Kui stood up and walked towards the Yunyue Battle Platform. He was half-naked and was not wearing any shirts, while his lower body was covered in armor. When he walked, even the ground seemed to be trembling. His enormous body seemed to be filled with wild power.


    "It''s him." Ye Futian had seen this person. When he just arrived at the White Jade Tower, two other people also walked into the restaurant. One of them was Fire Girl who had come on a Blue Phoenix, while the other person was precisely Li Kui.


    Li Kui approached Yu Sheng. He looked serious and did not underestimate his opponent at all. After watching Yu Sheng''s strike in the last battle, he could obviously feel how powerful Yu Sheng was.


    This fight would not be easy.


    Boom! A wild aura suddenly erupted from Li Kui''s body. A golden radiance enveloped his body and behind him, a giant demon appeared. It was a golden bull that looked majestic and powerful.


    An extremely violent aura swept across like a storm. Li Kui was at the center of the golden storm and he was filled with endless power. Looking at Yu Sheng, he said, "Release your Life Spirit and Dharma."


    Yu Sheng glanced emotionlessly at Li Kui and said, "Make your attack."


    Li Kui was stunned. Staring at Yu Sheng, he said, "Without your Life Spirit, how do you fight me?"


    Yu Sheng was somewhat impatient and suddenly walked forward. Following a loud bang, even the battle platform seemed to be trembling.


    Dong, dong, dong... Yu Sheng just started to walk directly towards Li Kui who was staring firmly at his opponent. Was Yu Sheng going to fight him without his Life Spirit and Dharma? Yu Sheng was really looking down on him.


    "You''ll regret this." The aura around Li Kui became even wilder and a golden current ascended into the sky. He stepped forward and faintly, a golden demon bull seemed to be charging out towards Yu Sheng. His body was covered with a huge golden bull which had given him an extremely wild power. Then, he charged towards the incoming Yu Sheng.


    "Such a strong power." Looking at the battle platform, everyone was amused.


    The two people approached each other and finally collided. At this instant, there seemed to be a real golden bull trampling and destroying everything in its path. Even Yu Sheng''s burly body was enveloped by the terrifying golden storm and engulfed by the enormous illusion. However, inside the storm, Yu Sheng punched out.


    "Scram!" Li Kui roared in anger. With his body covered in the illusory golden bull, he was like a gigantic demon bull which was charging forward, attempting to eliminate everything.


    Looking at his power, everyone from the four forces could not keep calm. The people from Yunyue Business Alliance this time were all really strong. Li Kui was only the third strongest and there were two more people before him.


    Yu Sheng''s fist finally landed onto the huge demon bull. Dong... At this instant, Li Kui only felt his heart miss a beat. Then, the fist penetrated through the golden storm directly and the illusory golden bull was crushed into pieces. Yu Sheng''s fist smashed onto Li Kui''s chest.


    Bang!! Accompanied by a loud bang, Li Kui felt his body fly into the sky and his bones all broken. He spat out a mouthful of blood, after which he fell down and landed in the Yunyue Business Alliance region.


    Yu Sheng withdrew his fist. Turning around, he walked back and only left everyone with the elegant view of his back. Again, he easily instantly defeated his opponent in a single punch.


    Shang Feiyu looked at the scene before him in bewilderment. Raising his head, he stared at the figure in the distance and his face darkened. Turning around, he glanced at Shang Hai and Shang Qing. At the moment, the two were also flabbergasted. However, Shang Hai and Shang Qing would still not admit their mistake in White Jade Tower. Instead of regret, their minds were only filled with cold murderous intent.


    Looking at Yu Sheng, who was walking back, Wang Yurou''s eyes were filled with astonishment. At this instant, she obviously realized that she had underestimated Yu Sheng''s power. Yu Sheng was definitely a genius and it was very likely that nobody on the battlefield could compare with him in terms of just physical power.


    Puff. She took in a deep breath. It seemed like she had to change her tactics as Yu Sheng had the chance to stay until the end.


    Suddenly, on the Wang Family viewing platform, the leader of Wang Family asked, "Who is he?" Because he trusted Wang Yurou''s abilities, he had handed everything regarding the Lower Arcana Plane fights completely to her and allowed her to use resources to invite cultivators. In any case, he still knew who Wang Yurou had invited. However, three of the participants were changed just before the fight and he actually could not recognize them.


    The people around him all shook their heads; nobody knew who Yu Sheng was.


    "I think that Wang Linfeng invited them for Yurou. Just now I saw him discussing this with Yurou," someone said. The eyes of the leader sparkled and he said, "Ask him to come."


    "Wang Linfeng," someone said. Wang Linfeng who was immersed in excitement turned his head and saw many people near the leader of Wang Family looking at him.


    "Come here," the leader said.


    "Leader, yes." Wang Linfeng bowed and nodded. Then, he walked towards the leader of Wang Family.


    At this moment, he knew that he had won.


    Yu Sheng had only used two battles to win him the bet. Wang Linfeng, who was not in the main branch of Wang Family, had never been noticed by the leader. Now, he finally had the chance to walk towards the main stage of Wang Family.


    Wang Linfeng could hardly contain his excitement at the moment. He had to thank Shang Hai and Shang Qing from Yunyue Business Alliance for this!

 407 Keeping a Low Profile

    Chapter 407: Keeping a Low Profile


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On the Yunyue Battle Platform, the battle continued. It was the fourth battle and Thunder Clan''s turn to challenge someone. As a reciprocation, Thunder Clan chose Feng Family and eventually lost the fight as its cultivator was being effectively targeted. Both clans had one victory and one loss each.


    After one round of battle, Thunder Clan and Feng Family each lost a member; the Wang Family did not lose anyone, and Yunyue Business Alliance lost two.


    The second round began and it was Yunyue Business Alliance''s turn to send someone again.


    "You go," Shang Feiyu said to a person whose hair was fire red. The person opened his eyes and a firebolt shot out from his eyes. Nodding gently, he stood up and walked towards the Yunyue Battle Platform.


    Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun. Everyone''s pupil contracted. This was one of the two most powerful Lower Arcana Plane cultivators in Yunyue Business Alliance. He was known as the Demonic Blood Palm because his palm techniques were extremely deadly and could instantly kill his opponents, shattering their organs into pieces. Furthermore, apart from possessing mighty close-combat abilities, he was also adept in wind-elemental spells and had cultivated agility skills.


    In Yunyue City, Nie Yun was a famous genius. Nobody expected him to go onto the stage so quickly. However, everyone could understand why Shang Feiyu had decided to do so. This time, they had to challenge another clan and were still on the passive side. If Wang Family still chose to send Yu Sheng, Yunyue Business Alliance would lose three people and have a lower chance of winning in the end. He had to win one battle for now. Therefore, Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun walked out in advance.


    With his eyes red as blood, Nie Yun stared at Wang Yurou and said, "I challenge Wang Family."


    Countless people looked at the burly figure in the Wang Family''s direction. Would he accept the challenge again? Many people guessed that Yu Sheng was a mysterious cultivator whom the Wang Family had invited. Indeed, he caught everyone by surprise and instantly defeated two people from Yunyue Business Alliance. However, at the moment Yunyue Business Alliance had sent Yunyue onto the stage. If Yu Sheng accepted the challenge, it would be equivalent to the two clans having their decisive battle in advance.


    Yunyue Business Alliance was forced to make this move. Would Wang Family dare to accept it?


    Ye Futian stared at Wang Yurou. Since Wang Yurou had said that she would decide on the order in which they would participate in the battle, he had no objections.


    "Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun, a top genius," Wang Yurou reminded Ye Futian. Then, she said to a person behind her, "Lin Qing, go."


    The person''s face immediately turned pale. Did she just ask him to fight Nie Yun? The outcome of the battle was obvious. He clearly knew that he was sent only to lose. In addition, Demonic Blood Palm was an extremely dangerous person. He was ferocious and could kill his opponent in one hit. Nevertheless, since he had accepted Wang Family''s invitation to the battle, he did not have any other choices.


    The situation of any battlefield was indeed unpredictable. He also did not expect himself to fight Nie Yun. Standing up, he walked towards the Yunyue Battle Platform, looking somewhat desperate.


    Ye Futian glanced at Wang Yurou. It seemed that after seeing Yu Sheng''s powers, Wang Yurou had changed her plan. She wanted to keep Yu Sheng to the end instead of having the decisive battle in advance because she was also worried that in the latter case the other two clans would reap the spoils effortlessly. If Wang Family and Yunyue Business Alliance fought too hard at the start, causing their strongest members to be eliminated, Thunder Clan and Feng Family would target them at the end without hesitation.


    What Wang Yurou did not know was that even Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun was completely no match for Yu Sheng.


    Just like expected, Lin Qing lost terribly. After taking just a single strike, he was severely injured and taken down from the stage by others. Although there were generous rewards for participating in the battle of the four factions, there was also an intense danger.


    Wang Yurou looked on calmly. Lin Qing was the weakest person in her party and therefore she had chosen him to be eliminated.


    Every year during this battle, the four clans would fight each other with their wits and strengths. Even if Yu Sheng could really win Nie Yun, Wang Yurou would also not send him. Otherwise, she would destroy the balance and the other three clans would jointly target Wang Family. It was alright to have an advantage, but certainly not a huge one.


    Li Kui was quite a powerful cultivator and indeed the third strongest in Yunyue Business Alliance. They had already gained a lot after Yu Sheng eliminated him from the tournament.


    Just like the previous round, the Feng Family challenged the Thunder Clan and lost for the same reason.


    Next, it was Wang Family''s turn again. Wang Yurou still did not send Ye Futian or his friends onto the stage. Instead, she sent another person who was similarly among the weakest in her party. Shang Feiyu sneered and sent someone who won the fight easily.


    "Yurou deliberately sent two people to lose." The cultivators from Wang Family naturally knew Wang Yurou''s tactics. She had sent the weakest two onto the stage to keep the subtle balance on the Yunyue Battle Platform.


    The leader of Wang Family nodded his head in satisfaction as he really liked Wang Yurou''s decision. If they kept sending out strong people and gained a huge advantage, it would slowly turn into a disadvantage instead. She knew how to make a choice and keep a good balance in the arena.


    After that, Thunder Clan also sent someone who lost to Feng Family.


    After the second round, the four clans each lost two people in the tournament and everything seemed to have returned to its original state.


    The third round began and it was Yunyue Business Alliance''s turn again. This time, however, Shang Feiyu did not send Nie Yun. A person walked out from Yunyue Business Alliance and stood at the center of the platform, looking in Wang Family''s direction. Obviously, he was here to challenge Wang Family. The four forces seemed to have reached a hidden consensus.


    "Leng He mainly cultivates spells and is skilled in ice and metal elements. He is good in both offense and defense and is also quite a famous sorcerer," Wang Yurou introduced. Then, she turned her head and looked at Ye Futian. "Can you win?"


    "No problem," Ye Futian replied.


    "I''m not talking about Yu Sheng. I mean you," Wang Yurou added.


    "Yes." Ye Futian still nodded.


    "Alright, you shall go then." Wang Yurou turned her head back. Ye Futian stood up and walked to the center of the Yunyue Battle Platform. In Yunyue Business Alliance, many people saw Ye Futian and started paying more attention. He was with Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen and among them, he seemed to be the leader. Yu Sheng had already displayed his talents. What about him? Shang Hai, Shang Qing, Liu Lan, and Sorcerer Wu all seemed to be interested.


    Apart from them, the people near the leader of Wang Family were also interested in Ye Futian''s powers. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen were swapped into the battle just before it started. They wondered how strong Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen were.


    In the next fight, they would see for themselves one of them.


    Leng He and Ye Futian stood opposite each other. Suddenly, a golden and white radiance glittered around them and a wave of coldness swept past, along with a sharp aura.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian''s body was surrounded with a flame red radiance which was condensed from fire-elemental Spiritual Qi. It was as if his body was covered with fire which eliminated the coldness.


    Leng He waved his hand and a spell was cast at once. Immediately, Ye Futian''s surrounding was filled with Ice Will. Around him, many ice pillars appeared and actually started to wind like vines, attempting to engulf him.


    Ye Futian walked forward, but the terrifying ice pillars blocked his path and sealed the space. However, Ye Futian did not stop at all and continued advancing. The fire on his body was like a furnace which melted the ice pillars. Soon, he walked out of the frozen space directly.


    Buzz! Leng He waved his hand fiercely. Suddenly, many golden pythons swept towards Ye Futian, blotting out the sky. On Ye Futian''s body, the frightening furnace-like fire was still burning wildly. He charged towards the incoming spells which were melted into nothingness upon touching his body. Therefore, he managed to dash towards Leng He directly.


    Seeing the scene, Leng He''s expression changed slightly. Then, he released his Life Spirit and Dharma, which was an enormous python. The gigantic python had two colors��gold and white��corresponding to the two elements.


    The python breathed out and the ice-elemental Spiritual Qi around him charged wildly towards Ye Futian. The space itself seemed to have turned into a silvery world and even the audience could feel waves of coldness. After that, many monstrous golden pythons charged towards Ye Futian''s body again.


    Suddenly, a splashing sound was heard. In the silvery world, countless vines bloomed from Ye Futian''s body and towards the huge pythons. The vines wound around the pythons and flames burst out from the vines, incinerating all of them. At the same time, the vines continued to extend wildly and broke out from the frozen world directly, sweeping towards Leng He''s body.


    "His spells are stronger than Leng He''s." Everyone''s eyes sparkled. The outcome of a battle between two sorcerers depended on the relative powers of their spells. Clearly, Leng He was suppressed.


    The giant python charged out, but the countless vines wound around the python directly. Then, they continued forward and destroyed everything in their path. Soon, they wrapped around Leng He''s body and lifted him into the air.


    "What spell is this?" Leng He froze in his spot. Why is this wood-elemental spell so powerful?


    "Lock of a Thousand Vines," Ye Futian replied.


    "It can''t be! That is only an ordinary wood-elemental spell and not this powerful." Although Leng He was not talented in wood-elemental spells, he still knew about them.


    "It is this powerful in my hands." Ye Futian smiled. Then, the vines smashed Leng He towards the ground.


    "I admit defeat!" Leng He shouted. His body stopped right before he was about to hit the ground, after which he was thrown in Yunyue Business Alliance''s direction.


    The spells disappeared. Ye Futian turned around and walked back to Wang Family.


    Looking at his back, Shang Hai and Shang Qing''s eyes were filled with coldness. Ye Futian was actually also quite strong. Although he was not as powerful as Yu Sheng, he was certainly not weak.


    The people from Wang Family all nodded slightly. Although they were not too surprised, the outcome was still favorable.


    After Ye Futian sat back down in his seat, Wang Yurou said softly, "Not bad."


    Ye Futian smiled and did not say anything else. The battle continued and just like the previous rounds, after the third round ended the balance between the four forces was still maintained.


    The fourth and the fifth rounds continued. Ye Wuchen also participated in one battle. Just like Ye Futian, this single-armed swordsman did not astonish everyone, but his sword skills were still commendable and he defeated his opponent.


    After the five rounds, the four forces each had five cultivators left. The atmosphere around the battlefield turned even tenser. Everyone knew that after keeping the balance for five rounds, the cultivators who managed to remain were all very powerful. The situation could change at any time.


    "Be careful. Next, the real battle is starting," Wang Yurou reminded. Apart from her, they only had four assisting cultivators left, namely Xing Feng, Ye Futian, and his two friends. Because Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen all had a good performance, Wang Yurou had decided to keep them until now.


    It seemed that Wang Linfeng was indeed right in his choice.

 408 Not Allowed to Win?

    Chapter 408: Not Allowed to Win?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The sixth round still started with Yunyue Business Alliance.


    At the moment, apart from Shang Feiyu, the four remaining cultivators in Yunyue Business Alliance were all very powerful, especially Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun and Ye Xiao, the strongest assisting cultivator in the Lower Arcana Plane section. Ye Xiao was also the person who posed the biggest threat to the other three clans.


    If Ye Xiao could stay until the end with Shang Feiyu, but the assisting cultivators from two out of the three other forces were already eliminated by then, the outcome of the tournament would be decided.


    In the first part of the previous tournament between the four factions, Yunyue Business Alliance had emerged first while Thunder Clan second. The reason was that Yunyue Business Alliance had invited a very strong cultivator to assist them. He eliminated all the assisting cultivators from Wang Family and Feng Family but did not touch the people from the Thunder Clan. The reason was simple: if he did also eliminate the assisting cultivators from the Thunder Clan, in the final battle the other three forces would jointly attack Yunyue Business Alliance as they would have more people left. On the other hand, by not eliminating the cultivators from Thunder Clan, Yunyue Business Alliance and Thunder Clan would each eliminate one other family by themselves in the final battle, after which they would fight.


    This time, Ye Xiao also posed an extremely large threat to the rest.


    Apart from Ye Xiao and Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun, there were two other assisting cultivators, namely Broadsword Master and Gu Yun.


    Broadsword Master was a nickname this particular cultivator obtained after being famous because of his broadsword techniques. The other three forces speculated that he was about as strong as Li Kui whom Yu Sheng had defeated, perhaps even more dangerous, because his broadsword was too quick and cold. Gu Yun was the weakest among the four but was still known by quite many. At the moment, nobody remaining on the Yunyue Battle Platform was weak.


    Just like what many had guessed, Gu Yun walked out from Yunyue Business Alliance this time. As the champion of the last tournament, Yunyue Business Alliance would obviously not break the balance actively. It would be fine as long as they were not too far behind. Although they had already lost Li Kui, their disadvantage would disappear as the tournament continued and all the forces only had four assisting cultivators left. Gu Yun still challenged Wang Family.


    "Who wants to go?" Wang Yurou asked. At the moment, only Xing Feng, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen were still in the tournament.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian said. Wang Yurou nodded gently. They could no longer afford any mistakes now so it would be good for Yu Sheng to go. When it was their turn, one of Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen would have to be sacrificed.


    Yu Sheng walked out and Gu Yun''s face turned somewhat pale. He knew his powers; since Li Kui was defeated in a single hit, he would certainly not win. Nobody doubted the outcome of this battle. Just like the previous two fights, Yu Sheng ended the battle in just one hit without any suspense.


    Then, it was Feng Family''s turn. Similarly, they sent their weakest member to be sacrificed. Just like Wang Family, Thunder Clan sent a powerful person who easily defeated their opponent. In such a situation, nobody wanted to become the weakest one. After that, it was Wang Family again.


    "This time, who will go?" Wang Yurou asked. Among these three people, one had to be eliminated now.


    "Wuchen, you or me?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''ll go," Ye Wuchen replied. Standing up, he walked towards the Yunyue Battle Platform.


    Wang Yurou did not say anything. Yu Sheng must not be eliminated now. It seemed that between Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen, they had chosen Ye Wuchen to be sacrificed.


    "Yunyue Business Alliance." Ye Wuchen was carrying two swords behind his back. One of his arms was missing and the long sleeve swang in the wind. He still chose to challenge Yunyue Business Alliance.


    "Who''s willing to go?" Shang Feiyu asked. At the moment, he had three cultivators left beside him and none of them was weak, to say the least. Any of them should be able to defeat Ye Wuchen without difficulty.


    They had all watched Ye Wuchen''s previous battle. His sword techniques were fine, but not strong enough.


    "I''ll go," Broadsword Master said. Since Ye Wuchen was a swordsman, he would be more than happy to eliminate Ye Wuchen.


    "Alright." Shang Feiyu nodded. Then, Broadsword Master approached the center of the battle platform and stood opposite Ye Wuchen.


    "Your sword is too slow. You should go down yourself," Broadsword Master said, looking at Ye Wuchen. He had paid close attention to Ye Wuchen''s previous battle from the start to the end. Ye Wuchen''s skills were not bad but too slow. With such skills, Ye Wuchen would not stand a chance against him.


    "I don''t have such a habit," Ye Wuchen replied calmly.


    "If I take my broadsword out, I can''t promise that you can leave alive," Broadsword Master said coldly. Everyone agreed with Broadsword Master''s words. He was comparable to Li Kui, but his broadsword was even more dangerous as it could kill his opponent in one strike. If he really fought, nobody could promise that Ye Wuchen would leave alive.


    "You talk too much," Ye Wuchen said. A gust of Sword Will circled around his body. Immediately, it was as if he turned into a sharp sword drawn from the sheath. Many traces of Sword Will flew on his body.


    "Since you want to die, I''ll grant you that," Broadsword Master said emotionlessly. Similarly, a powerful gust of Broadsword Will filled his body. In his hand, Broadsword Will condensed into a broadsword.


    Broadsword Master turned his hand slightly and a cold light was reflected from the blade. Coincidentally perhaps, the freezing light actually shot towards Ye Wuchen''s eyes.


    Ye Wuchen still looked at his opponent calmly as he stood straight at his spot.


    Buzz! A frightening gust of wind suddenly swept across, in which Broadsword Will was actually fused. The chilly wind blew onto Ye Wuchen''s body, just like the cold light from the blade.


    The whizzing wind grew in intensity and turned into Broadsword Will that enveloped the space like a storm of blades. Ye Wuchen and Broadsword Master were both inside the storm.


    Broadsword Master walked towards Ye Wuchen step by step. The Broadsword Will around him became stronger with every step that he took. As he wandered inside the storm of blades, the terrifying environment tried to crush Ye Wuchen who was at the center of the storm into pieces.


    "He''s in danger," Wang Yurou reminded Ye Futian. It was very likely that Broadsword Master would kill his opponent.


    "Let''s just watch," Ye Futian replied emotionlessly. Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Wang Yurou did not say anything else. Since they had chosen this themselves, they would not be able to blame her even if something unfortunate happened. Many people could sense how strong Broadsword Master was at the moment.


    "Watch closely," Broadsword Master suddenly said. Then, his body seemed to have dissolved into the storm.


    When Ye Wuchen heard his words, the broadsword appeared. The broadsword reached towards Ye Wuchen along with the wind. The lightning-like strike was so fast that many people could not even react.


    The blade merged with the wind and struck down. Many people could not bear watching the fight anymore. What would happen to Ye Wuchen after the hit?


    The blade finally landed. It severed Ye Wuchen''s body, but everyone realized that an overlapping figure appeared there. It was an afterimage.


    In the storm, Ye Wuchen seemed to have vanished, and there was only a sword. The sword made a perfect arc in the air, freezing its surrounding. Then, the storm dissipated. Everyone realized that Ye Wuchen was already behind Broadsword Master and facing him sideways. Broadsword Master was still in the posture of striking his sword down, but there was a trace of blood on his neck. Blood poured out from the wound.


    "Is it fast?" Ye Wuchen said. Then, he turned around and left without even looking at Broadsword Master.


    The broadsword disappeared and Broadsword Master stared firmly at Ye Wuchen. He covered his neck with his hands which were soon colored by blood. He took a few steps backward trembly, after which he collapsed onto the ground. Blood colored the entire ground.


    Countless people froze and stared at the person who had fallen onto the battle platform. The person who lost was actually Broadsword Master. This was the first person who died on the stage. The reason was simply that he was slower than Ye Wuchen but he wanted Ye Wuchen dead. Therefore, he died instead.


    Shang Feiyu looked coldly at the scene before him as someone from Shang Family went up to remove the corpse. At the moment, most people from Shang Family were also staring at Ye Wuchen. Wang Family seemed to have invited a few cultivators who were unknown but powerful. Was this meant to be a surprise for them?


    It was, of course, unnecessary to describe the emotions of Shang Hai and Shang Qing at the moment. Beside them, a strange expression appeared on Demon Swordsman''s face, after which he smiled and remarked, "Interesting. It''s only that his level is too low."


    Looking at Ye Wuchen who walked back and sat down quietly, Wang Yurou was completely astonished. She had not expected that apart from Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen was so strong as well. She suddenly realized that since Ye Wuchen did not display all his powers in his first battle, then how about Ye Futian? Was he also as strong as Yu Sheng?


    "Wang Yurou has invited some powerful people this time," someone in Yunyue Business Alliance suddenly said. This was the first time an important person among them spoke. They had all been watching the battle in silence previously. However, at the moment, they realized that Wang Yurou had given even a surprise.


    Wang Yurou did not even expect this herself.


    After the battle, they still had four people left, but Yunyue Business Alliance only had two. This was supposed to be a good thing as it was an advantage. However, noticing that the three other forces were all looking at them, Wang Yurou did not feel pleased at all. Instead, she felt that they were in a bad situation.


    "I challenge Wang Family," someone from Thunder Clan said. Wang Yurou could feel her heart sink.


    The important people from Wang Family also frowned. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen had displayed their strong combat powers one after another so obviously the other three forces would be scared of the threat they posed. At the moment, the person who walked out from the Thunder Clan was the weakest among the four they had. Clearly, he was meant to be sacrificed. He walked out not for victory but to display their attitude.


    Wang Yurou''s eyes sparkled and she seemed to be hesitant.


    "We can''t win this," Xing Feng said softly. Wang Yurou''s eyes glittered as she stared at Xing Feng.


    Xing Feng glanced at Wang Yurou, after which he turned to look at Ye Futian beside her and said, "You shall go. You are only allowed to lose this and not win." If they won this again, the advantage of Wang Family would be too big. The other three forces would very likely jointly target them.


    Not allowed to win? Ye Futian frowned. Previously Wang Yurou had said that they had to listen to her and Xing Feng. He had no objections and allowed Wang Yurou to decide on the order they had to fight. But...losing deliberately?


    "I don''t know how to do that," Ye Futian replied coldly.


    Xing Feng frowned and said, "Even if you don''t, you still must lose."


    Ye Wuchen glanced at him coldly and said, "If you want to lose, just go yourself."


    In Yunyue Business Alliance''s direction, Shang Feiyu urged coldly, "Is Wang Family sending anyone or not?"


    "Go, quick," Xing Feng said coldly.


    Ye Futian glanced emotionlessly at Xing Feng. What Wang Yurou had said earlier was indeed correct; if the three of them all managed to remain until the end, they would definitely have at least twelve battles, because everyone else would target Wang Family. However, they wanted to him to lose deliberately so that the other three forces would not jointly attack them.


    Was that even necessary?

 409 Xing Feng Ou

    Chapter 409: Xing Feng Out


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As Wang Yurou watched Xing Feng and Ye Futian argue, a strange look flashed across her eyes and many thoughts appeared in her mind. With the combat powers that Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen had displayed, they had caused some trouble to the Wang Family, but if they could stay until the end they would very likely allow Wang Family to be the final winner. However, the problem was that the other three forces would not allow Wang Family to win so easily.


    She also understood that Xing Feng''s views were different from hers. She was considering completely for the benefit of her family and only wanted to win in this tournament. At the very least, they had to get the second place.


    On the other hand, while Xing Feng also wanted them to win, he certainly had to think for himself as well. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen came together and the latter two had a fantastic performance earlier, endangering his position. Therefore, he wanted to find a balance and let Ye Futian or his friends be eliminated one by one so that he could stay until the end.


    This way, he would receive credit for the victory. Otherwise, he would receive almost nothing if they won but be punished if they lost. In such a circumstance, it was obvious what Xing Feng would do.


    Ye Futian sneered and glanced at Xing Feng, after which he said, "Yu Sheng, you go."


    "Alright." Yu Sheng nodded. Standing up, he walked towards the battle platform. The people from Thunder Clan saw this and all sneered. At the moment they saw Yu Sheng stand up, they knew that Wang Family did not want to lose this fight. Otherwise, they would not sacrifice Yu Sheng.


    Actually, Thunder Clan did not want to win this round at all, because if they did, there would be three assisting cultivators left in Wang Family but four in Thunder Clan. By then, the Thunder Clan would have replaced Wang Family as being in the most advantageous position. They would only be helping Wang Family out. Hence, they chose to sacrifice the weakest person and keep the stronger ones so that they would not be targeted.


    After this battle, the people from Yunyue Business Alliance and Feng Family would also probably challenge Wang Family. After these three families fought, what would happen? When it was Thunder Clan''s turn again, they would have absolute control over the situation.


    The battle between the four factions was not just a test of combat, but also of tactics and strategies. Of course, in the end, combat power was still the most important factor. If a force was too weak, it would be eliminated by the rest first. At the moment, although Yunyue Business Alliance seemed to be on the losing end, the two people left in their team were Ye Xiao and Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun, whom nobody dared to challenge easily. They seemed to be in a disadvantageous position, but because the cultivators they had invited were too strong, it would still be difficult to eliminate them directly. However, if the people whom they had invited were weak, the situation would be totally different.


    In Wang Family''s direction, Xing Feng realized that Ye Futian had asked Yu Sheng to go and stared coldly at Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian ignored him completely and only looked emotionlessly at the battle platform.


    It was still a simple battle. Yu Sheng defeated his opponent in the most direct way and then returned. Immediately, many people from the other three forces all started looking in Wang Family''s direction.


    After this round, there were four people left in Wang Family, three in Thunder Clan and Feng Family, and two in Yunyue Business Alliance. Moreover, Wang Family had an advantage not only in their number of cultivators but also the power of their cultivators. Xing Feng, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen had already displayed their strong combat abilities, and everyone also started to suspect Ye Futian''s power. In such a situation, the other three forces could clearly not tolerate Wang Family to continue being the strongest.


    "What is Yurou thinking?" The leader of Wang Family stared at the Yunyue Battle Platform. Wang Family had an advantage too early and had attracted the attention of the other three families. It was very likely that they would be targeted by everyone else.


    The balance was destroyed and the atmosphere on the Yunyue Battle Platform turned quiet at once.


    Among the two assisting cultivators left in Yunyue Business Alliance, one suddenly walked out. Immediately, everyone''s look froze.


    The person who walked out was Ye Xiao. He was the strongest assisting cultivator in Yunyue Business Alliance and very likely also the strongest in the four families. He was going to participate in this battle and from this, it was obvious how determined Yunyue Business Alliance was to win. If they sent Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun instead, Wang Family might send Xing Feng and Nie Yun could lose. In that case, Yunyue Business Alliance would be in a completely passive situation. Therefore, Ye Xiao went onto the stage.


    In the Wang Family''s direction, Wang Yurou''s face turned slightly pale. Xing Feng glanced coldly at Ye Futian and said, "Idiot. Now who do you send?"


    Ye Futian looked back coldly and said, "You."


    Xing Feng was stunned. Ye Futian sneered and added, "Until now, you have yet to participate in a battle. It''s your turn."


    "You are crossing the line," Xing Feng replied coldly. He asked Ye Futian to go and lose the battle precisely because he was worried that Ye Futian and his friends would threaten his position. Indeed, Ye Futian wanted to eliminate him now.


    Ye Xiao was probably the strongest assisting cultivator and at least in the top three. He was also the last person Xing Feng wanted to fight with. However, Ye Futian asked him to go and fight.


    "Wang Family, what is happening?" a person from Yunyue Business Alliance said emotionlessly.


    "Since you don''t dare to fight, we will just consider you as giving up. You shall be eliminated directly," Xing Feng said coldly, staring at Ye Futian.


    Wang Yurou similarly looked at Ye Futian. Clearly, she also hoped that Ye Futian could fight this round. Xing Feng was very strong and must not be eliminated early. If Xing Feng lost to Ye Xiao, they would not be able to predict the consequences.


    Realizing that Wang Yurou was looking at him, Ye Futian said emotionlessly, "Him or us?" After that, he just looked in front of him. At first, he did not want any trouble and only wanted to go up and defeat Ye Xiao directly. However, since Xing Feng was creating trouble, Ye Futian would not mind to let him be eliminated. Since Xing Feng was trying to play small tricks, he might as well scram.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Wang Yurou''s face darkened right away. From her perspective, she would obviously choose to sacrifice Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian said that she had to choose between him and his friends, and Xing Feng.


    Who should she choose? If she gave up Ye Futian and his friends, only Xing Feng would be left as her assisting cultivator. What would happen then?


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Xing Feng''s face turned extremely black. The thing that he was worried about finally happened.


    Ye Futian did not go up to the battle stage to lose probably because he wanted to eliminate Xing Feng.


    "You go. I''ll give you the Spirit-Refining Grass," Wang Yurou said. If she had to choose between Ye Futian and his friends, and Xing Feng, she would obviously choose Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen. However, if she only had to choose between Xing Feng and Ye Futian, she would choose Xing Feng. She knew well that Xing Feng was extremely strong, but she was unsure of Ye Futian''s real combat ability.


    Hence, she promised Ye Futian that she would still give him the Spirit-Refining Grass if he agreed to fight Ye Xiao.


    "After he is eliminated, I will guarantee you victory." Ye Futian stared at Wang Yurou, who also looked back. The two stared at each other for a while. From Ye Futian''s eyes, Wang Yurou could only see firm confidence and arrogance.


    Near the battle drum, the person from Yunyue Business Alliance said coldly, "If Wang Family does not send someone, you will be considered as admitting defeat. One person shall be eliminated." As the supervisor of the tournament, he had the rights to maintain the rules of the tournament.


    "Xing Feng, go!" Wang Yurou shouted. She was still staring at Ye Futian coldly.


    Xing Feng was stunned, after which his face darkened. Wang Yurou had already made her decision. If he did not fight, he would be eliminated anyway.


    Standing up, Xing Feng glanced coldly at Ye Futian but did not say anything. Then, he walked towards the Yunyue Business Platform.


    Seeing the scene, many people seemed to be surprised. They did not understand why Wang Yurou would send Xing Feng this round. Was she trying to risk everything in a single venture?


    If Xing Feng won, Yunyue Business Alliance would be destroyed totally. If Xing Feng could win Ye Xiao, he could also defeat Nie Yun in the next turn.


    But what if Xing Feng lost?


    Wang Yurou''s risky tactic caused many to be confused. However, although they were puzzled, they were looking forward to the fight. Would the battle between Ye Xiao and Xing Feng be the decisive fight between Yunyue Business Alliance and Wang Family?


    The other two families were also happy to see this situation.


    The two people on the stage released their all-powerful auras. Ye Xiao''s body was covered in a dazzling golden light. He raised his arm and a golden, sharp palm extended out from his hand. Fused with spells, the palm print grabbed towards Xing Feng across space. The entire region seemed to be covered by the palm print which blotted out the sky as it struck towards Xing Feng.


    Xing Feng did not dare to hesitate and released his Life Spirit and Dharma directly, which was actually a monstrously violent dragon. Raising his hand, he punched out and his fist collided with the golden palm print, crushing it to pieces.


    Suddenly, Ye Xiao started walking forward. Behind him, a brilliant radiance also appeared, which turned out to be a row of golden palm prints. They circled around Ye Xiao and released eye-catching golden light.


    Ye Xiao formed a seal with his hands, after which he released the attack. Immediately, many palm prints pressed down from the sky and destroyed everything in their path.


    "Such a violent attack." Everyone was astonished by the attack. Ye Xiao was very adept in aggressive skills and could release many palm prints to annihilate his enemies.


    The two attacked each other aggressively, but very quickly everyone realized that Xing Feng was suppressed by Ye Xiao and was in a disadvantage.


    Xing Feng is going to lose, many people thought.


    The people from Yunyue Business Alliance all sneered and Shang Feiyu also looked in Wang Yurou''s direction. At the moment, Wang Yurou also looked frustrated and she said, "Now are you happy?"


    "I said that you''ll win," Ye Futian replied.


    "You sound so confident. What if you don''t win?" Wang Yurou stared coldly at Ye Futian.


    "If we don''t win, you can do whatever you want to me. What if we win?" Ye Futian stared at Wang Yurou.


    "If you can get us first, I''ll also let you do whatever you want to me!" Wang Yurou said emotionlessly, staring at Ye Futian''s eyes.


    "Sure. I''ll remember that." Ye Futian smiled. Just as what everyone had expected, Xing Feng was defeated by Ye Xiao.


    When the battle ended, Xing Feng''s face was as dark as it could possibly get. He came to the tournament with much confidence and wanted to help Wang Family to stand out from the rest. He was not satisfied with just joining Wang Family; he wanted Wang Yurou. However, he only had one battle in the tournament, in which he lost.


    With a weak aura around him and blood flowing out from his mouth, Xing Feng walked back step by step. When he returned beside Wang Yurou, Wang Yurou said, "Thanks."


    Xing Feng gave a self-mocking smile. Clearly, he knew that Wang Yurou said it only out of sympathy.


    "After the tournament ends, I''ll wait for you," Xing Feng said coldly to Ye Futian.


    "Scram," Ye Futian replied and did not bother to argue with Xing Feng. If Xing Feng did not provoke Ye Futian first, he would not have been eliminated.


    Xing Feng''s face turned cold and he walked down from the battle platform, but he did not leave the place. He would like to see how Ye Futian was going to die later!

 410 Avatar of God

    Chapter 410: Avatar of God


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The atmosphere on the Yunyue Battle Platform became even tenser.


    At the moment, everyone was well aware that the phase right before the final battle had already begun. From this instant on, every step that a force took would be of paramount importance as they might lose everything should they make a single mistake. All the four clans did not dare to be careless.


    Below the battle platform, the cultivators from the four forces all seemed to be rather anxious. The ranking in this tournament would determine the resource allocation in the next year which was instrumental to them.


    Nobody in Wang Family had expected Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen to stay until the very end. Nobody had met them before or knew who they were. On the other hand, Xing Feng, the most powerful person Wang Yurou had invited, was eliminated early. It seemed that the situation at the moment was not favorable towards Wang Family.


    Wang Linfeng was also staring at the battle platform. What exactly happened there? Why did Xing Feng participate in the previous fight? What would happen next? He had a feeling that whatever that was about to come would very likely change his destiny.


    Beside the crowd, Yang Ling and Yang Yi stared at the Yunyue Battle Platform nervously. They did not expect Ye Futian and his friends to be so strong. They had not even lost a fight yet.


    Yang Ling clenched his fists tightly as if he was even more anxious than he would be should he be the person on the battlefield instead. At the moment, Ye Futian had already won over six battles and could get the map he wanted. In the following battles, Ye Futian would be fighting solely for the Spirit-Refining Grass. Moreover, every battle that followed would be extremely dangerous.


    On the Yunyue Battle Platform, Wang Family, Feng Family, and Thunder Clan each had three cultivators left, while Yunyue Business Alliance had two. There seemed to be a subtle balance once again. However, the three forces had displayed their intention to target Wang Family earlier. Would they continue?


    It was Feng Family''s turn to challenge someone. Countless people looked at the cultivators from Feng Family. This time, the person from Feng Family in the Lower Arcana Plane tournament was Feng You, a genius from the family.


    Feng You''s eyes sparkled as he stared at the three other forces before him. It was now his turn to challenge someone. No matter which clan he chose to challenge, the person whom he sent would be targeted and he was not confident that they would certainly win. The only possible weaker force was Wang Family, but of course, it was only a possibility. After all, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen had yet to fight anyone who was sufficiently powerful.


    "We give up our rights to challenge the others," Feng You suddenly said, causing many people to be shocked.


    Was Feng Family giving up their rights so early? This would mean that from now on, Feng Family could no longer challenge any other forces and only passively accept challenges.


    Of course, it may seem on the superficial level that giving up would be beneficial as Feng You did not need to send anyone out only to be targeted. Instead, he only needed to send someone to respond to challenges based on the strength of his opponents. This was clearly advantageous. However, in the previous tournaments, no force would give up so early. Nobody was stupid and all the forces knew the benefits of giving up.


    The only time when a force would choose to give up early was when it was jointly targeted by the other three, or when all the four forces had decided to give up and enter the group battle phase directly.


    Nevertheless, it was actually a good time for Feng Family to give up. At the moment, they were not on the losing end and had also not exposed their most powerful cultivators so the other forces would not dare to challenge them easily. There was already resentment between Wang Family and Yunyue Business Alliance. Therefore, it was highly unlikely that Feng Family would be targeted by anyone else. The more probable situation was that all the four parties would give up and start the final battle directly.


    Once they entered the final stage, one of Yunyue Business Alliance and Wang Family would definitely be eliminated first. Feng Family and Thunder Clan had always had an unspoken agreement on it.


    Feng Family gave up. Therefore, the pressure they were experiencing was transferred onto Wang Family, or more specifically Wang Yurou.


    Wang Yurou looked in front of her and started to think quickly. Even if she chose to challenge someone, who should she choose? Wang Family would be targeted anyway.


    "I also give up," Wang Yurou said. Just after she finished speaking, many people took a deep breath. Was the final battle coming early?


    Feng Family and Wang Family had given up one after another. It was likely that Thunder Clan and Yunyue Business Alliance would do the same.


    Ye Futian glanced at Wang Yurou in surprise. Nevertheless, from Wang Yurou''s perspective, this was the most appropriate strategy.


    "Next, it''ll be time for you to prove yourself," Wang Yurou said to Ye Futian. No matter how much she was unhappy about Ye Futian earlier, they would be fighting alongside each other in the following battle.


    "Prove myself?" Ye Futian smiled and said, "Your encouragement seems so fake."


    What did he need to prove?


    After Wang Yurou gave up, countless people stared at Thunder Clan. Lei Xingtian glanced at everyone and grinning, he said, "I also give up."


    At such a time, nobody was willing to send someone onto the stage only to be targeted. Otherwise, they might lose the person and be eliminated earlier in the final battle. They would rather have the final battle early. Therefore, in the end, it was Yunyue Business Alliance''s turn again.


    As long as Yunyue Business Alliance also gave up, the last phase of the tournament would begin immediately.


    It was too fast. Nobody expected the final battle this time to come so quickly.


    On the battle platform, the four forces still had a total of eleven assisting cultivators. Shang Feiyu was still sitting on his seat. With a cold expression on his face, he raised his head and stared at Wang Yurou and Ye Futian who were opposite him. If they were to enter the final battle now, Yunyue Business Alliance would only have two assisting cultivators, while the others each had three.


    What would happen then?


    Shang Feiyu did not know, but he would not bet.


    The other three forces wanted Yunyue Business Alliance to enter the final battle with a disadvantage. Was it possible?


    "Feng Family, Thunder Clan, I''m afraid you have to eliminate another person from your side so that you are in the same situation as me," Shang Feiyu said. Everyone''s eyes sparkled as they stared at Shang Feiyu. How domineering he was��


    "As for Wang Family, don''t even think about keeping a single person." Shang Feiyu glanced at Wang Family coldly. Then, he looked at Feng Family and said, "Feng Family, do you have any objections?"


    Feng You''s face darkened. Beside Shang Feiyu, both Ye Xiao and Nie Yun stood up. Clearly, if he chose not to agree, Shang Feiyu would challenge Feng Family directly.


    If Feng You sent the weakest person he had, he would surely lose. If he sent someone stronger, what if he lost?


    The people from Yunyue Business Alliance were all satisfied with Shang Feiyu''s performance. He was domineering in the first place. Yunyue Business Alliance would never be on the weaker side.


    "It seems like Feng You''s plan failed," many people muttered to themselves. Feng You would definitely not bet.


    "Alright." Indeed, Feng You smiled and nodded at one of the cultivators. The person''s face turned pale and turning around, he left directly. He did not even fight, because he would certainly lose. He could obviously beat neither Ye Xiao nor Nie Yun.


    Then, Shang Feiyu looked at Thunder Clan and asked, "How about Thunder Clan?"


    At the moment, the other three forces had given up. Therefore, Yunyue Business Alliance had the initiative and could challenge others continuously.


    "Fine, I agree." Smiling, Lei Xingtian nodded and also gave up a person.


    The forces had the same number of cultivators left again, except for Wang Family. Just now, Shang Feiyu had said that he would not allow Wang Family to have anyone left.


    Realizing that Shang Feiyu was staring at her, Wang Yurou''s face turned pale. Turning around, she looked at Ye Futian. It Ye Futian was really so strong, this would be the time for him to display it.


    At the moment, Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun had already walked to the center of the Yunyue Battle Platform and was staring at Wang Family.


    "You go?" Wang Yurou said to Ye Futian.


    "No need." Yu Sheng stood up directly and walked out, causing Wang Yurou to be stunned. She looked at Yu Sheng, and then at Ye Futian.


    No need? The words were simple and yet filled with confidence. Was Yu Sheng confident that he could win Nie Yun? He said that there was no need for Ye Futian to go, which meant that Ye Futian was very strong as well.


    Wang Yurou realized that Ye Futian was only looking at Yu Sheng. What a mysterious guy... she thought. She felt that she could no longer understand Ye Futian.


    Seeing Yu Sheng walk out, many people said to themselves, "It seems like Wang Family does not want to give up."


    Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun looked at Yu Sheng coldly. Terrifying blood-red light flashed in his eyes.


    Nie Yun reached out his hand, which were glittering with a bright red radiance that looked like the color of both flame and blood.


    This time, Yu Sheng would really face a powerful cultivator. It would be impossible for him to win the battle like he did before.


    "Your battle will end here," Nie Yun said coldly. Around him, a frightening blood-red radiance spread and enveloped the entire region. Even the people from afar could feel a terrifying aura. Then, everyone saw Nie Yun charge towards Yu Sheng. His speed was incredibly fast.


    Nie Yun withdrew his palm slightly towards himself. With his palm red as blood, he suddenly struck forward. At once, an enormous, monstrous red palm print appeared in the sky. Standing at his spot like a solid tower, Yu Sheng raised his arm and punched towards the incoming red palm print directly without any hesitation.


    "Idiot," Shang Feiyu said coldly. Reacting to Nie Yun''s palm print by force?


    Yu Sheng was only trying to kill himself.


    Noticing the scene, the rest also felt that Yu Sheng was going to have a miserable ending. The two fists finally collided with each other. Immediately, a frightening power from the blood-red palm print charged into Yu Sheng''s arm. Yu Sheng''s face was still emotionless. A force flew in his body and eliminated the foreign power. On the other hand, Nie Yun only felt an extremely overpowering force penetrate through his fist. His arm trembled and he felt as if it was going to split apart. He backed off like the wind, but Yu Sheng took a step forward and grabbed Nie Yun''s wrist with his hand.


    "He wasn''t blown backward?" Many people looked at Yu Sheng''s hand in astonishment. Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun''s palm print did not send Yu Sheng flying. Instead, Yu Sheng did not seem to be affected at all.


    Nie Yun''s expression also changed drastically as he looked at the scene before him, totally bewildered. He punched out with his other hand, but at the same time, Yu Sheng also moved. Yu Sheng ascended into the sky directly, bring along Nie Yun''s body. At this instant, Nie Yun actually felt that he could not resist at all.


    Buzz! Nie Yun''s body was tossed about in the air, while Yu Sheng walked towards Yunyue Business Alliance. Then, he suddenly descended and smashed Nie Yun''s body towards the ground like he was the avatar of God.


    Bang!!! The Yunyue Battle Platform trembled violently as Nie Yun''s body landed in front of Shang Feiyu. At this instant, Shang Feiyu''s heart skipped a beat. Apart from him, everyone could not help but be totally startled.


    The burly figure standing on the Yunyue Battle Platform only looked like the invincible God at the moment. Wang Yurou''s body trembled uncontrollably. At the instant when Nie Yun was smashed onto the ground, she felt as if her heart was being punched heavily.


    That was Nie Yun, Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun.


    However, was there any difference between this battle and the previous ones?

 411 Who Wants the Third Place?

    Chapter 411: Who Wants the Third Place?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yu Sheng stood proudly on the Yunyue Battle Platform. At the moment, everyone was staring at him with a very different look. He just defeated Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun in a quick and overpowering manner. How strong was he?


    Not long ago, many people thought that Ye Xiao was very likely the strongest person present. However, from the look of it, it seemed that the strongest assisting cultivator was probably the god-like figure on the stage.


    Below the battle platform, Xing Feng was still witnessing the battle. At the moment, his face turned slightly pale as he finally understood why Ye Futian and his friends did not agree to lose deliberately.


    Since they had Yu Sheng, why should they lose? Who said that Ye Xiao was unbeatable? If Yu Sheng were to participate in the last battle, the outcome may be different, and Xing Feng would not have been eliminated as well.


    On the Wang Family viewing platform not far away, the cultivators were all astonished. Even the leader''s eyes sparkled as he thought about how they must get Yu Sheng to join Wang Family regardless of the outcome of the tournament. He could tell that Yu Sheng was born with outstanding strength and would definitely be a powerful cultivator in the future. Even when Yu Sheng did not use any spells or techniques, he was already an invincible being. If he did rely on other methods, how powerful would he be?


    The leader of Wang Family looked at Wang Linfeng who was below him and said, "Wang Linfeng, very well done by you." Wang Linfeng bowed in return and replied, "Thank you, leader."


    At the moment, Wang Linfeng was also astounded. Yu Sheng was way too strong. Such a person was actually chased out of White Jade Tower by Shang Hai and Shang Qing in a humiliating way. Wang Linfeng did not even know how to describe this incident. If the people from Yunyue Business Alliance found out about it, what would be their reaction?


    Wang Linfeng could see in his mind that their expressions would certainly be very interesting.


    The people from Yunyue Business Alliance obviously did not know about this. The incident in White Jade Tower that time seemed only to be a trivial one and the important people in Yunyue Business Alliance would clearly not hear about it.


    At the moment, all the cultivators in Yunyue Business Alliance felt extremely terrible. Nie Yun lost so they only had one assisting cultivator left which put them in the most disadvantageous position among the four clans. Although they also seemed to have fallen behind just now, the two cultivators they had were Ye Xiao and Nie Yun. Therefore, nobody really thought that Yunyue Business Alliance was in a bad position. Moreover, because of the domineering attitude of Shang Feiyu, Feng Family and Thunder Clan each sacrificed one of their cultivators willingly. Shang Feiyu even said arrogantly that he would eliminate everyone from Wang Family. However, after Yu Sheng''s battle, the overpowering attitude of Yunyue Business Alliance was destroyed in the most direct manner. Now, they were really in the most disadvantageous and precarious position.


    The first clan in the previous tournament had their back to the wall at the moment.


    Yu Sheng glanced at Ye Xiao who was beside Shang Feiyu and said in a domineering tone, "Come out." Many people seemed to be startled. Instead of waiting for Ye Xiao to say anything, Yu Sheng challenged him instead and just stood there.


    According to the rules, it was still Yunyue Business Alliance''s turn to challenge someone, but Wang Family could choose the person to respond to the challenge. It was certainly alright for Yu Sheng to fight again.


    Ye Xiao''s expression turned cold. Even he was not confident that he could win someone who just instantly defeated Nie Yun. Ye Xiao stared at Shang Feiyu, whose look turned extremely gloomy.


    Should they continue?


    If he chose to continue and Ye Xiao won, everything would be fine. However, if Ye Xiao lost, Yunyue Business Alliance would not have any assisting cultivators left. In the final battle later, he had to face three people from Feng Family and three from Thunder Clan by himself. In any case, he would definitely lose in the end. Even in the best scenario, he could only obtain the third place: the three forces would jointly eliminate Wang Family first, and then he would be eliminated by Feng Family and Thunder Clan.


    In the last tournament, Yunyue Business Alliance obtained first. How could he accept the third place this time?


    Noticing that Shang Feiyu was hesitating, everyone knew that the previous battle had totally shocked Shang Feiyu. His words just now were only like a joke.


    Eliminate everyone from Wang Family? At the moment, he did not even dare to send Ye Xiao onto the stage.


    Suddenly, someone from Wang Family said, "Yunyue Business Alliance, what are you waiting for?" It was like the response to Yunyue Business Alliance''s prompt just now.


    Shang Feiyu clenched his fists firmly. Finally, he made up his mind and said, "We will give up." He needed Ye Xiao to help him in the final battle later.


    Yu Sheng glanced coldly at Shang Feiyu and Ye Xiao and said, "If you don''t dare, just shut up." After that, he turned around and left. Shang Feiyu burst into a rage as it was extremely humiliating.


    The cultivators from the four factions all returned to their positions. At the moment, Wang Family''s advantage was already very obvious. They had three assisting cultivators, and all of them were probably very strong.


    Thunder Clan and Feng Family each had two assisting cultivators, while Yunyue Business Alliance only had Ye Xiao. However, the following battle would no longer be only between the assisting cultivators. The disciples from the four clans would also join.


    Dong! The battle drum was hit again, turning the atmosphere in the battlefield even more solemn. Everyone knew that the final battle was about to start.


    "The ranking of the tournament depends on the order in which each clan is eliminated. The clan all of whose members are eliminated first will be ranked the last, and so on," someone in front of the battle drum announced.


    "You can begin." After he finished speaking, on the Yunyue Battle Platform, Shang Feiyu and Ye Xiao stood up with a cold expression on their faces.


    The people from the Thunder Clan and Feng Family also stood up one after another.


    Wang Yurou glanced at Ye Futian who was beside her and saw Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen still sitting there calmly.


    "They will probably target us together," Wang Yurou said softly. At the moment, instead of feeling relaxed, she became even more anxious. Although they seemed to be in the most advantageous position, it was often also the most dangerous position. The other three clans would not want to see such an absolute advantage.


    Indeed, right after Wang Yurou finished speaking, the people from the other three clans all looked at them simultaneously. The people from Wang Family noticed the scene and their faces darkened. The combat ability Yu Sheng had displayed was way too powerful, so the other forces were clearly scared of Wang Family.


    Wang Family could still end up in last place. When the other three forces teamed up, they would not just have an advantage in term of assisting cultivators. In addition, the three disciples of the clans could fight against Wang Yurou who would be alone.


    It would be equivalent to eight versus four.


    Even though Yu Sheng was extremely powerful, it seemed unlikely that Wang Family could win.


    Shang Feiyu, Feng You, and Lei Xingtian were all very strong after all. They were the best geniuses in the Lower Arcana Plane in their respective clans and were certainly no weaker than the assisting cultivators.


    "Even if we lose this, it''s only because of bad luck. Nobody in Wang Family shall discuss this battle or blame Yurou and the three assisting cultivators. Furthermore, agree to all their requests and reward them just like we would if we get first," the leader of Wang Family instructed.


    "Yes, leader." The people around him all nodded. He said this because he was worried that some people would be unhappy with Wang Yurou or the three assisting cultivators after the battle. He would clearly not allow such a situation to happen.


    Even if they lost, it would not be their fault. Even if the three assisting cultivators would not join Wang Family, the leader would still try to maintain a friendly relationship with them. Sometimes, it was not humiliating even to lose.


    As they spoke, the people from Wang Family started to look at the Yunyue Battle Platform, mentally prepared to lose the battle. Clearly, they were not optimistic about the outcome of the tournament.


    The cultivators from the other three forces all walked towards Wang Family as if they had an unspoken agreement. It was clear why Yunyue Business Alliance would choose to do so. As for Feng Family and Thunder Clan, as long as they could eliminate Wang Family and then Yunyue Business Alliance, they could compete with each other for the first place.


    Wang Yurou stared coldly at the cultivators from the other three forces. Then, she looked at Ye Futian and said, "If I knew earlier that Yu Sheng is so strong, I would not have given up the challenge. Then we would not have ended up in such a situation."


    Ye Futian did not say anything. Wang Yurou added, "Remember what you promised. If we don''t win, you will do whatever I say."


    Ye Futian smiled and glanced at Wang Yurou. At this time, Wang Yurou was actually thinking about this, but it seemed that she was not stupid after all. After seeing Yu Sheng''s power, if she could let the three work for her, she would definitely earn more than she would if they got the first place.


    "Just remember it yourself." Ye Futian smiled, after which he stood up and walked towards the stage. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen followed behind him. Wang Yurou wanted to follow them as well, but Ye Futian said, "Just wait here and watch."


    "..." Wang Yurou blinked her eyes. Wait here and watch? What is he thinking? Does he think that the geniuses from the three forces are all trash?


    Although Yu Sheng had defeated Demonic Blood Palm Nie Yun, the assisting cultivators from the other forces were no weaker than Nie Yun. Moreover, Shang Feiyu, Feng You, and Lei Xingtian were all very strong.


    The people from the other three forces surrounded Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen at the center of the stage. Ye Futian was facing the two people from Yunyue Business Alliance. On his left, Yu Sheng was facing the cultivators from Thunder Clan, while Ye Wuchen on his right against the cultivators from Feng Family.


    "You should just give up," Feng You said. He did not want to fight.


    "I agree," the people from Thunder Clan nodded. Once Ye Futian and his friends gave up, Feng Family and Thunder Clan would get at least the second place.


    "Yunyue Business Alliance will get the fourth place. Who wants the third place?" Ye Futian suddenly said. When he finished speaking, everyone was momentarily stunned. A strange expression also appeared on the faces of the people below the battle platform.


    Ye Futian said that Yunyue Business Alliance would get the last place and asked which of Thunder Clan and Feng Family wanted the third place. This was simply too...


    "Are you saying that the ranking of the tournament is determined by you?" Feng You asked, smiling. He had never seen such an arrogant person. Even though Yu Sheng was very strong, and even if Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen were both as strong, Ye Futian was really not giving the rest any face at all.


    That was way too arrogant.


    Ye Futian looked at Feng You. Smiling, he replied, "That''s right."


    Boom! An extremely violent aura erupted before him. Ye Xiao walked forward with his body covered in a golden radiance. He was showered in divine light and seemed all-powerful.


    Accompanied by a loud bang, Ye Xiao charged directly towards Ye Futian. A terrifying golden palm print appeared and penetrated across space, grabbing towards Ye Futian. A sharp look flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes as he stared at the incoming Ye Xiao. Following by a splashing sound, countless vines suddenly appeared in the sky. They swept out towards Ye Xiao''s body at an incredible speed.


    "The spell is different from just now." Everyone''s expression changed. Although the spell looked like Lock of a Thousand Vines, it felt totally different. Its power was way stronger.


    The frightening golden vines wound around the incoming palm print like a divine tree. Then, they continued towards Ye Xiao''s body. There were too many vines and their speed was too fast. Ye Xiao''s expression changed at once and many enormous golden palm print appeared around him, striking outwards. However, at the moment it was as if Ye Xiao was engulfed by a divine tree. The countless vines penetrated his attacks directly, after which they swept towards his body.


    At the next instant, Ye Xiao felt that he could no longer control his body. He was lifted into the air and could not move at all. Countless people stared blankly at the scene before them and were bewildered once again.


    Was that really Ye Xiao?

 412 Outshined in all Fields

    Chapter 412: Outshined in all Fields


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Xiao, a renowned teen within Yunyue City, reputed to be among the strongest three individuals in the arena, supposedly even rumored to be the strongest. However, his body was now struggling uncontrollably, yet unable to move even an inch. Even someone as strong as him could not stand a single blow. The onlookers felt as though they were in an illusion; Ye Xiao could not even withstand one strike? Was this really happening?


    While all this was happening right before their very eyes, Ye Futian was casually standing there. He had a look of ridicule on his exaggeratingly handsome face, as though this was natural to him. His calm demeanor made it clear to everyone that he did not even consider Ye Xiao as an opponent.


    Many thought back to how Wang Yurou had prematurely sent Xing Feng to battle, to how Yu Sheng had dominated the rest, and to how Ye Futian had asked them who wanted to be third. It suddenly dawned upon them that Ye Futian did not just undermine Ye Xiao, he did not feel any challenge from the four clans since the moment he stepped onto the Yunyue Battle Platform, and as it turned out, there was another amazing person apart from Yu Sheng.


    Wang Yurou stood rooted to the ground. The three of them were challenging everyone else. She could not believe her eyes as she watched Ye Xiao lose the ability to resist with just a single spell. It came as a great shock to her. She thought of the conversations she had with Ye Futian previously. Was this the source of his pride? It was indeed very well hidden. Up until this point, he had not revealed his true strength.


    Ye Futian gazed upon Ye Xiao indifferently, and with a loud swish, vines coiled around Ye Xiao''s body, smashing him into the ground with a bam�� Following the waves of an earsplitting ruckus that resounded, countless vines attempted to penetrate the Yunyue Battle Platform, impaling every inch of Ye Xiao''s body.


    Ye Xiao closed his eyes, his face pale and his body quivering. On the Yunyue Battle Platform, nobody could fault Ye Futian even if he were to kill him. The loud impact attracted the attention of the crowd, and they realized it had been yet another instant kill.


    The two strongest aides of the Yunyue Business Alliance, Ye Xiao and the Demonic Blood Palm, Nie Yun, had both suffered humiliation through their crushing defeat. When Shang Feiyu saw this, his aura become exceedingly frenzied, his expression menacing.


    He had previously proclaimed that he wanted to rid the Wang clan of all its participants. Thinking about it, he found it ironic. Nie Yun and Ye Xiao could not even defeat a single member of the Wang clan.


    The Feng family and Lei clan looked with the same disbelief at what was happening. In reality, the battle had concluded within mere moments, but the impact it gave them was too strong.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept across the Feng and Lei clans, and he questioned them. "Will you two clans decide among yourselves who will be second or third, or shall we do it?"


    Feng Xingtian and Feng You both had grim expressions. They looked at each other, then looked towards Shang Feiyu and said, "Shang Feiyu, you confront him and stall for time. Feng You, the two of us settle the fight quickly."


    "Alright," Shang Feiyu replied coldly.


    "No problem." Feng You nodded as well. The person he was facing was Ye Wuchen, whom he felt would be easier to handle.


    Although Yu Sheng was very strong, the three Thunder clan experts, one of them being the prodigy Lei Xingtian, would be able to suppress him even if they were unable to defeat him in a short time. As long as Shang Feiyu was able to stall Ye Futian for a short while, they still had a chance. Compared to being merely second and third, they felt the gamble was worth it.


    Letting them decide insinuated that the Thunder clan and Feng family would battle it out while Ye Futian and his partners watched on. What did this mean? Ye Futian would win without lifting a finger.


    "Do it." Lei Xingtian shouted, and he took a step towards Yu Sheng as his voice left his mouth. At the same time, Feng You and his two experts headed towards Ye Wuchen, while Shang Feiyu gradually moved towards Ye Futian.


    "Why go to this extent." Ye Futian sighed lightly. He saw Shang Feiyu covered in a terrifying aura while walking towards him, his life spirit Dharma in full bloom. Yet to Ye Futian, all this was futile.


    The Fatal Entanglement still in effect, his body upright like a tree, towering upon the masses. Countless vines morphed into golden lightning, rushing towards Shang Feiyu who was emitting his life spirit.


    Shang Feiyu was still moving at the speed of lightning, however, the speed of the vines exceeded his. With Ye Futian at their center, they shrouded every nook and cranny of the arena, swooping towards the trapped Shang Feiyu.


    Shang Feiyu let out a ferocious roar, his expression filled with fury. He attacked in a frenzy, attempting to cut the vines that were coming in waves. But what happened next left him in despair, as the strength he was so proud of was only able to slice through a mere few vines, while the remaining oncoming vines bound around him and pierced his limbs and body. In an instant, he was tightly bound and his expression turned deathly.


    How could this be?


    Shang Feiyu faced the same shameful fate as Ye Xiao, entangled by vines and thrown across the air to Ye Futian''s feet, his pitiful plight witnessed by all of Yunyue City.


    "Is this all you have?" Ye Futian cocked his head, looking at Shang Feiyu, his voice brimming with sarcasm. Since the moment he stepped onto the Yunyue Battle Platform, Ye Futian had already known that Shang Feiyu had a bone to pick with him, and he naturally knew why.


    The Yunyue Business Alliance had once chased him out of the White Jade Tower in such a humiliating manner, and so when they saw him on the Yunyue Battle Platform, the siblings from the Alliance had wanted to shame him again. However, this time would be different��


    Ye Futian coldly glanced in the direction of the Yunyue Business Alliance, and with each step he took, the vines encircled Ye Xiao''s body, lifting him up.


    "This�� can''t��" The crowd felt as though they were becoming numb to this sight. Shang Feiyu had also been decimated.


    While Ye Futian was crushing Shang Feiyu, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen''s battles were also concurrently taking place.


    The experts from the Thunder Clan headed straight for Yu Sheng, with two at the front and Lei Xingtian at the back, casting Thunderbolt spells through the air, furiously striking down and attempting to trample Yu Sheng. The other two''s attacks were also equally overwhelming. They even released their Life Spirit and Dharma the moment the fight began, using their strongest attacks against Yu Sheng.


    A dark golden light started to flow around Yu Sheng''s body, threads of aura circulating him like a set of dark golden armor. Instead of dodging the attacks by the two experts, Yu Sheng moved to grab both of them by the wrists.


    "Bang!" Yu Sheng swiftly flew into the air, carrying one person in each hand, as though they were ants. At this moment, everyone completely ignored the two experts; they were already insignificant. What right did they have to call themselves gifted in front of Yu Sheng? They weren''t even fit to be an accompaniment to his strength.


    As Yu Sheng landed while carrying the two of them, he flew straight towards Lei Xingtian, descending upon him like a god, attempting to trample Lei Xingtian beneath his feet.


    "Crackle�� crackle��" Bolts of violet lightning struck down from the heavens towards Yu Sheng, but it did not even make him falter for a split second as the lightning could not even faze the dark golden light surrounding Yu Sheng, instead inflicting further damage to the two experts whom Yu Sheng was carrying, causing their hair to stand on end.


    "Bammmmm!" Yu Sheng''s descent caused a great impact, and directly pulverizing Lei Xingtian''s body.


    Lei Xingtian let out an enormous roar and struck back as though he was the incarnate of a lightning god. However, Yu Sheng took no notice and proceeded to push down even further. Infuriated, Lei Xingtian manifested a ball of destructive lightning in his palm and blasted it towards Yu Sheng''s foot.


    With a bang, Lei Xingtian could be seen half kneeling, breathless as blood streamed from his mouth. The other two experts were also driven into the ground ruthlessly by Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng''s figure appeared godlike, as though he had absolute dominance.


    "He''s too strong", thought Lei Xingtian as he raised his head and looked at Yu Sheng. It was only when Yu Sheng stood right before him that he understood that Yu Sheng had already gone easy on him. Otherwise, he would have been utterly overpowered.


    "I admit de��" Lei Xingtian shouted despairingly, struggling internally. However, Yu Sheng grabbed his neck, making a crack sound, as he arrogantly said, "Wait your turn."


    The last place in this battle had to be the Yunyue Business Alliance. Even if Lei Xingtian wanted to prematurely retire from the battle, they would not agree to it. The placing for this battle was up to Ye Futian to decide.


    ��


    On Ye Wuchen''s end, Feng You was shrouded in his wind spell and indeed swift. Not only that, but the other two experts were also empowered with his spell ability. Feng You was a prodigy who excelled in wind spells. All three of them had their speed boosted by his wind spells. Their speed was as though a twister was forming around Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen closed his eyes, his lone arm holding his blade.


    "Strike now!" Feng You opened his mouth, and as his voice landed, Ye Wuchen moved. Swift as his blade, all they could see was a glimpse of his blade, as though it had appeared from the heavens to destroy everything in the world. In that instant, Feng You and his partners had an illusion that Ye Wuchen''s blade was already at their necks.


    His blade eventually landed in front of Feng You''s throat. As for the other two, there was a trace of blood on their necks. Had his sword gone an inch deeper, they would already be dead. His quickdraw was like lightning. One strike was enough to end it all.


    "Tap, tap, tap��" Ye Futian''s crisp footsteps echoed with a peculiar melody against the silence in the area. When Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen''s battle ended, he had not even finished walking that extremely short distance; such was the speed in which they destroyed their opponents.


    Finally, Ye Futian''s footsteps came to a halt. He walked to the Yunyue Business Alliance, with the two bodies in tow.


    "Which of you wants to be third?" Everyone was reminded again of what he said before.

 413 The Siblings’ Terror

    Chapter 413: The Siblings�� Terror


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The surroundings fell silent as countless gazes fell onto Ye Futian.


    First? To him, helping the Wang family get first was mere peanuts to him. The three of them all dominated their opponents with their high-handed methods. Be it the external support or the prodigies of the four clans, they were all wiped out with no mercy. Nobody could comprehend their strength. What terrifying potential did they have? Was there no one in Yunyue City who could defeat the three of them?


    How was the Wang clan able to invite them? This was the thought in the minds of the leaders of the four clans. Could they be disciples from the inner city''s major factions? Ye Futian''s looks and demeanor, Yu Sheng''s dominance, Ye Wuchen''s coldness, all their prodigious talent pointed towards that possibility. However, what was Ye Futian trying to achieve by walking towards the Yunyue Business Alliance?


    Shang Feiyu and Ye Xiao were still entangled in mid-air, feeling only embarrassment. alongside them were Lei Xingtian who was in Yu Sheng''s grasp, and Feng You who had a blade held against his throat.


    Every moment of the three fights kept the audience around the Yunyue Battle Platform captivated in perfect silence. The Wang clan did not dare to hope for victory, but never in their wildest dreams did they imagine that victory would come as swiftly and one-sidedly as this.


    Wang Yurou''s mouth fell open while she watched Ye Futian in complete astonishment. What was he trying to do? Not only her, but Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were also looking in his direction. In fact, everyone''s eyes were on Ye Futian.


    The vines moved once again, with multiple swishes, the golden vines moved like lightning and dropped the two people onto a corner of the Battle Platform, where the Yunyue Business Alliance and the Shang siblings were.


    The two of them landed heavily in front of Shang Hai with a bam. The siblings had somber expressions, different from the sneering faces they had just now.


    When Ye Futian first appeared on the Battle Platform, they had scornful looks. They thought that that was just Ye Futian''s means of redeeming his dignity. It would not matter though, as he could do nothing to change the situation even if he had exceptional strength. Therefore, they had the idea of letting Shang Feiyu intentionally picking on Ye Futian and his partners. However, they now bore witness to Ye Futian''s ability. The person they had chased out of the White Jade Tower, was now standing on the Yunyue Battle Platform with absolute authority. He had control over everything and caused the champions of the previous battle, the Yunyue Business Alliance, to fall to last place.


    This year, they could get 40 percent of the spirit stone mine''s profits, but next year, they could only get 10 percent. Because of this wealth, the Yunyue Business Alliance could always afford to invite the strongest aides and had never gotten last place for over ten years.


    This would be the first time in close to 20 years.


    "Are you satisfied now?" Ye Futian looked in Shang Hai''s direction and taunted. He had not even gotten back at them for the incident at the White Jade Tower, and now Shang Hai and Shang Qing had gotten Shang Feiyu to pick on him, challenging the Wang clan incessantly since the start. Could they still afford to laugh now?


    "What''s happening?" The Yunyue Business Alliance Leader thought to himself. Why would Ye Futian say these things to Shang Hai? Also, he immediately noticed that since the start of the battle, Shang Feiyu and the Wang clan seemed to have constantly butted heads. Could it be that the younger generation of the two clans had some prior conflict?


    Shang Hai and Shang Qing''s faces turned pale as their hearts missed a beat. This *sshole was definitely saying these things on purpose. He was trying to get them in trouble. Indeed, Ye Futian had intentionally done it, as he sneered at them. He then calmly turned around and walked away.


    "Wait a minute," the Business Alliance Leader exclaimed.


    "Do you have any questions for me, senior?" Ye Futian replied as he turned back.


    "No matter how tempting the terms that the Wang clan has offered you, my Yunyue Business Alliance is willing to give you ten times of that." No matter the reason Ye Futian did it, fighting on the Yunyue Battle Platform had to be for his own benefit. Since the Wang clan was able to afford it, he was willing to use ten times the price to attract the teen.


    "I only need a map and one stalk of Spirit-Refining Grass. That''s enough for me, but thank you for offering, senior." Ye Futian smiled. The other three clans felt their hearts drop.


    A map and one stalk of Spirit-Refining Grass? Such simple terms were enough to exchange for victory in this battle? This was simply unheard of��.


    Even the Wang clan leader felt cold sweat down his spine. Even though the Spirit-Refining Grass was valuable, but it was nothing compared to their strength and what they had done for the Wang clan.


    Wang Yurou suddenly felt uncomfortable. The reward was simply too shabby.


    "All right, I understand." The Business Alliance Leader nodded. "But why didn''t you approach the Yunyue Business Alliance for such simple terms? I can guarantee that my Alliance is the most generous among the four clans. With your strength, there would be no problems getting ten times of that." His glance then moved towards Wang Yurou, and he said again, "Is it because of that girl from the Wang clan?"


    "Why didn''t I approach the Yunyue Business Alliance?" Ye Futian said with a playful smile on his face. "I hope you don''t take offence to today''s battle." Ye Futian felt that the Alliance Leader''s attitude towards him was friendly, and there was no need to make an enemy out of him. He was willing to let bygones be bygones.


    Upon finishing his sentence, he turned and left. The Alliance Leader did not say anything, but took another glance at Wang Yurou. However, he did not know that Wang Yurou was also heaving a sigh of relief. She knew that she had missed an opportunity to get on Ye Futian''s good side on multiple occasions.


    The first time was when Ye Futian refused to accept the assessment. If Wang Linfeng had not insisted on taking a gamble, she would probably have missed out on Ye Futian and his partners.


    The second time was when she had to make a choice between Ye Futian and Xing Feng. She definitely had the thought of forsaking Ye Futian back then. Thankfully, everything turned out for the best in the end.


    The Wang clan had emerged as the champions.


    "I know the reason why." Abruptly, a distinct voice sounded out from the crowd. As the entire Yunyue Battle Platform was silent, this voice could be clearly heard by everyone around. Instantly, everyone''s gazes moved towards the origin of the voice. It was at a corner of the Wang clan. There, a pure-looking girl in a ponytail stood with a look of indignation on her face. Naturally, that girl was Yang Yi. On the Platform, Ye Futian was stunned. What was this girl doing now?


    "Oh?" The Alliance Leader looked at Yang Yi and asked, "Then tell me, young lady."


    "It''s because big brother Ye was chased away by people from your Yunyue Business Alliance." Yang Yi had been unhappy with the way he had been treated, and upon seeing how strong he was, she was even more unhappy.


    Since the Yunyue Business Alliance wanted to know why, she did not mind revealing the humiliation that her brother and big brother Ye received that day.


    Upon hearing her words, the Alliance Leader''s face turned dour. Ye Futian and his partners had been chased out of the Yunyue Business Alliance?


    As the wealthiest clan among the four in Yunyue City, the Yunyue Business Alliance operated multiple trading places in the city. This was how they were able to continuously bring in talent: because they were willing to offer favorable terms to attract talents from different disciplines. Yet here Yang Yi was telling him that Ye Futian and his friends had been chased out of his Alliance?


    Ye Qing''s face darkened as she tried to denounce her. "This is the Four Clans Battle, not a place for you and your nonsense." As she said that, many looks landed on her from within the Alliance. Even the Alliance Leader glanced at her, seemingly picking up on something. Shang Qing was implicitly confessing that she had done something, even she herself understood that. However, she was now in a panic.


    She was afraid because she knew the Alliance Leader''s temperament.


    If the matter were to come to light now, in front of the four clans, she would have no standing in the clan in the future. Hence, she had to stop Yang Yi despite knowing that it was a foolish move.


    "Shut up." The Alliance Leader coldly said, following which he looked at Yang Yi and questioned, "What exactly happened?"


    "That day, my brother was staying at the White Jade Tower with big brother Ye and his friends. My brother was willing to fight for the Yunyue Business Alliance, and was persuading bro brother Ye to do so too. Eventually, big brother Ye agreed to help the Alliance. That day, we decided to inform the people in the White Jade Tower, but there were a few people arriving, and the Tower didn''t have any rooms left. So, the people from the Alliance scattered spirit stones over the floor, and made us pick them up and scram."


    Yang Yi looked viciously at Shang Hai and Shang Qing. Evidently, she still felt enraged while recalling what happened that day. As her recount ended, the surroundings fell even more silent. This was indeed, a huge turn of events��..


    Everyone had witnessed Ye Futian and his friends'' strength. Geniuses of this caliber had looked to join the Yunyue Business Alliance. However, not only did the people in the Alliance reject them, they did so in a humiliating manner. Forcing them to pick up spirit stones off the floor and scram?


    What huge irony this was.


    No wonder the atmosphere felt weird today. This was the reason why the Yunyue Business Alliance was at odds with the Wang clan.


    "Hahaha. Yunyue Business Alliance''s younger generation really shows promise." The Wang clan leader burst out laughing. This was indeed a joy to behold. Not only did they give up the three prodigies, but they also handed him a magnificent gift.


    His words were akin to rubbing salt onto the Yunyue Business Alliance Leader''s wounds, The Alliance Leader''s face was already grim beyond belief. His people had done such a thing and ruined his reputation.


    "Who was it! Stand out." The Alliance Leader bellowed. In that instant, Shang Hai and Shang Qing''s face drained of color. If Ye Futian had been eliminated or been someone negligible, this would have been an insignificant matter, and no one would have cared. However, when they revealed their overwhelming strength, it was clear that this matter could not be simply brushed over. This ''insignificant'' matter would end up ruining their futures.


    Shang Hai and Shang Qing walked out, trembling. The Alliance Leader looked indifferently at both of them. His glare terrified the siblings. The vanity on their faces was nowhere to be seen.


    Similarly, those who had been there to witness the incident, like Liu Lan and Xi Mu also had colorful expressions.


    This time, everyone had been mistaken. Who could have thought that a few guests at the White Jade Tower would be this strong?

 414 Drop Dead

    Chapter 414: Drop Dead


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Shang Hai and Shang Qing stepped before the Alliance Leader, only to hear him coldly ask them, "How do you two think this should be settled?" The siblings had ghastly expressions as the rest of the Alliance stared at them.


    Shang Hai then said, "Great Elder, even though we have some responsibility for this incident, but we did it in consideration for the Alliance. We helped the Yunyue Business Alliance to find Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman to aid us, and it just so happened that the White Jade Tower ran out of accommodation. Naturally, we had to evict some guests. Back then, they did not express their interest in helping fight for the Alliance, so we had to choose to make them leave."


    Shang Qing chimed in too, "Yes, Great Elder. They refused to move out of the White Jade Tower, so we had to resort to using extreme methods."


    "You call this a reason?" The Alliance Leader stared at the two of them. There were many ways they could have used to deal with the situation. For example, they did not have to host Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman in the White Jade Tower, or they could have used more peaceful means to settle the problem. The only reason the siblings acted the way they did was purely out of their arrogance.


    Shang Hai bowed and committed, saying, "We will definitely clinch victory in the other battle." Right now, there was no value in justifying his actions. The only salvation he had was to show his worth by obtaining more benefits for the Yunyue Business Alliance.


    "You had better," said the Alliance Leader bluntly. "Get back in line."


    Both of them bowed and backed down. The Alliance Leader was expressionless, today''s battle had to continue; he would resolve the issue after he went back. His gaze moved towards Ye Futian, and he nonchalantly said, "let the battle resume."


    Everything had already happened the way it did. Shang Hai had already offended Ye Futian heavily, it was no longer possible to rope him over to their side.


    Today, not only did they end up last, but the Yunyue Business Alliance also suffered a loss in reputation.


    Yang Yi felt at ease now that she had said her piece, but Ye Futian looked at her worriedly. That was a rash decision, she had antagonized the Shang siblings by doing that. Moreover, after the Alliance Leader knew the truth, even though he would blame the Shang siblings, but the furthest he would go would be to punish them harshly. However, since he knew that Ye Futian could not be converted to his side, he would be less concerned about their punishment.


    His key priority was still on the benefits that he could obtain. In this round, the Yunyue Business Alliance had suffered heavy losses. The Alliance Leader''s attempts to persuade Ye Futian was because of his strength, but that was separate from his resentment towards him.


    "Do the two of you want to decide now?" Ye Futian said, looking at Feng You and Lei Xingtian. Ye Fuchen sheathed his sword, while Yu Sheng released Lei Xingtian. The three of them stepped off the platform, back to where Wang Yurou was.


    There was no question who first place belonged to, but second and third had not been decided yet.


    "Since it''s already come to this, let''s not compete anymore. How about our clans both share the 50 percent?" The Feng Clan leader looked towards the Thunder Clan.


    "Sure." The Thunder Clan leader nodded. Even though it was not a satisfactory outcome for both clans to share the 50 percent, it was one that both clans could accept, the clan that held the short straw was the Yunyue Business Alliance with only 10 percent.


    "Well, go ahead and announce the results," The Feng Clan Leader said.


    The drum sounded and the Wang clan representative reported, "the Wang Clan is in first place."


    "The Feng Clan and Thunder Clan come in second place together."


    "The Yunyue Business Alliance, last place." The Yunyue Business Alliance representative''s voice was sullen. After the announcement, the Wang Clan leader stood up. The experts by his side all followed suit and turned to where Ye Futian and his friends were.


    Ye Futian and Wang Yurou turned around and walked back towards the Wang Clan.


    The Wang Clan leader was undoubtedly welcoming them back with open arms in celebration of their victory.


    Wang Yurou walked over to the Wang Clan leader and bowed slightly while saying, "Fortunately, we did not betray the Clan leader''s expectations."


    In reality, she was relieved at her luck. The victory had come too easily, and by no means had she contributed to it. In fact, the moment Ye Futian and his partners stepped onto the Yunyue Battle Platform, the conclusion was already decided.


    "You''ve done well," the Wang Clan leader said, smiling.


    "The credit belongs to the three of them." Wang Yurou glanced at them, then turned towards another direction and continued, "Wang Linfeng did very well too."


    "That''s right," The Wang Clan leader nodded, then beamed and complimented Ye Futian and his friends. "The three of you have exceptional talent, we won the battle completely because of the three of you. If you have any requests, feel free to tell me. I''ll definitely satisfy them."


    "Thank you, senior. We''ll accept the terms that we were previously promised, that''s enough for us. Apart from that, I have an unruly request," Ye Futian said.


    "Feel free to say it," The Wang Clan leader replied.


    "Yang Ting, Little Yi, the two of you come over." Ye Futian turned around and looked at the Yang siblings. The two of them heard Ye Futian''s voice and were puzzled, then started walking his way.


    "Big brother Ye." The innocent Yang Yi broke into a jog with a beaming smile on her face. She knew how capable Ye Futian was, and was happy for him from the bottom of her heart. Moreover, she had already vented her anger on the Shang siblings.


    On the other hand, Yang Ting felt as though something was off. He had mixed feelings towards the matter. He never expected that his life would have such huge ups and downs, that the few people who he had casually greeted at the White Jade Tower would be so overwhelmingly powerful. He understood the world of martial arts cultivators sufficiently well to understand that other than this coincidental meeting, it would never have been possible for him and Ye Futian to cross paths, not to mention becoming friends.


    "This is my friend Yang Ting, and his younger sister Yang Yi. I treat her as my younger sister as well, would it be possible for them to enter the Wang Clan to cultivate?" Ye Futian asked for the Wang Clan leader''s opinion. Yang Yi had formerly told him about Yang Ting''s goal to enter one of the four Clans to cultivate. To the siblings who were dependent on each other, entering the four Clans held immense significance. It meant that they would no longer have to be bullied by others.


    Of course, the primary reason was that Yang Yi had offended Shang Hai, and Ye Futian needed to neutralize this potential threat.


    "Big brother Ye." Yang Yi gazed at him with admiration, while Yang Ting, who had already guessed the reason, was feeling conflicted.


    "Sure." The Wang Clan leader decisively agreed, saying, "after the two of them enter the Wang Clan, I will not let them be treated shabbily or let them be hurt."


    A person of his caliber naturally knew Ye Futian''s intentions.


    "Thank you for that." Ye Futian nodded in appreciation.


    "It''s but a small matter. Take a seat and let''s watch the upcoming battles together." The Wang Clan leader said, smiling. The Four Clans battle had two more fights remaining. Apart from the Lower Arcana Plane battle, there were also the Middle and Upper Arcane Plane battles.


    "You''re being too kind senior, I''ll just take a seat below and watch," Ye Futian replied courteously.


    "That''s fine too, I''m sure you don''t have much in common with an elderly man like me. Yurou, take good care of him," the Wang Clan leader instructed. Wang Yurou nodded in acknowledgment and ushered Ye Futian to one of the seats among the Wang Clan''s audience.


    Wang Yurou sat beside Ye Futian and said, "after today''s battle is over, accompany me back to the clan, I''ll give you the Spirit-Refining Grass."


    "No need for that, just give it to Little Yi," Ye Futian said, looking at Yang Yi, who was behind him.


    "Alright." Wang Yurou nodded. At that moment, Wang Linfeng walked up and passed a map to Ye Futian, saying, "thank you very much for your efforts in this battle."


    Wang Linfeng was definitely one of the people who had gotten the most benefits out of that battle. Through that battle, he had gone from being one of the marginalized clan members to becoming one of the core members within the clan. It was Ye Futian and his friends who had given him all these.


    "No need, you strived for it yourself," Ye Futian replied. He knew that Wang Linfeng was also taking a gamble on him, and his foresight had paid off.


    Wang Linfeng smiled in silence and went back to his seat.


    Ye Futian opened the map that had been passed to him, oblivious to the erupting second battle. In his eyes, Yunyue City was just a pit stop on his journey, his ambition did not lie here.


    "In such a hurry?" Wang Yurou was surprised. What was in the Barren State map?


    The map was large, so Ye Futian asked Yu Sheng and Wang Yurou for help to spread it open. Even though it was just a copy, it showed details for a large portion of the great expanse that was the Barren State. His eyes swept across the map, and his gaze eventually landed on one spot, where a major influence was.


    The Zhuge family.


    Moreover, they were located right in the middle of the entire State. He would go there sooner or later, and not only him, but his third brother as well. His second sister was there, Jieyu and Xing''er were there too. He wondered how they were coping, they probably missed him a lot.


    "Zhongzhou City," Ye Futian muttered to himself.


    "The centerpiece of the Barren State, located at its core is Zhongzhou City, overseeing the continent," Beside him, Wang Yurou explained.


    Ye Futian nodded as he noticed not only the Zhuge family but also the Mortal World and the Nantian House in the vicinity of Zhongzhou city. All these influences being listed were elite forces.


    The Mortal World and the Nantian House laid along the eastern region and were closer to where he currently was. Of course, this was relative to the Zhuge family. In actuality, he was still extremely far away. Right now, he had not even reached the center of the eastern region.


    Ye Futian noted down the locations that he would adventure to in the future. He would at least have cultivated to the Noble Plane before he would step foot into that region. He was no longer in the Eastern Barren Territory; the people from the Nantian House would not let him off easily if they met him.


    He also saw where the Holy Fire Clan and Taixuan Mountain were. They were even further away, with the Holy Fire Clan being in the western region, beside the Fire Mountain. There were also many neighboring first-rate factions being labeled.


    "White Cloud City." Ye Futian looked at one of the cities in the eastern region. He had heard that name before, from the people of the Nantian House.


    "White Cloud City is very far from here, the White Cloud City Lord is a legendary figure, why are you concerned with this?" Wang Yurou asked. The White Cloud City was an entity beyond her imagination.


    "Looks like third brother has fierce competition." Ye Futian sighed internally, without explaining anything to her. His gaze moved towards the eastern region and pointed at a landmark, asking, "this is the capital of the eastern region?"


    "That''s right, that''s the Divine Sky City." Wang Yurou had a look of longing in her eyes. The Divine Sky City was the land of dreams to all cultivators in the eastern region. All the strongest cultivators in the regions gathered there, as well as those with the most talent.


    "Given the chance, you might be able to head there," Wang Yurou said. With the potential that Ye Futian and his friends had displayed, there was a good chance that they could get accustomed to the distinguished city.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded lightly, keeping the map. At that moment, Wang Yurou said, "I agreed to one request from you just now."


    "I think so." Ye Futian lifted his head and looked at her.


    Seeing Ye Futian look at her made Wang Yurou break into a smile. The change from her usual cold and aloof demeanor showed a different kind of charm. Her smiling face held some semblance of feminine wile. She asked, "what request do you want from me?"


    Ye Futian was bewildered by her change in expression and shrunk back, saying, "You''re not trying to take advantage of me �� right?"


    "....." Wang Yurou saw him shrinking back and her expression froze. She cursed at him, "Why don''t you drop dead?"

 415 Correction

    Chapter 415: Correction


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Wang Yurou looked at the battle, nervously biting her lips.


    Ye Futian looked at her side profile and weakly proclaimed, "I have a girlfriend."


    Wang Yurou clenched her fists in frustration. She had an urge to violently bash Ye Futian.


    "Are you going to state your request?" Wang Yurou said unfeelingly.


    "I haven''t thought of it yet, you owe me one for now," Ye Futian casually replied. His bet with her just now was just in the heat of the moment, he did not really have a request since the Wang Clan had already accepted Yang Ting and Yang Yi into the clan.


    Wang Yurou did not say anything, her gaze continuing to stare at the battle. Everything started to quieten down.


    Ye Futian raised his head towards the battle, which was continuing under the same rules, except the fighters were of the Middle Arcana Plane. Apart from that, this battle was no longer determining the allocation of the spirit stone mines'' benefits, but some of the resources allocation in Yunyue City.


    In this battle, Ye Futian only recognized the participants from the Yunyue Business Alliance: Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman, Fire Girl Liu Lan and Black Sorcerer Xi Mu. These were all people he had met in the White Jade Tower. Moreover, the leader of their team was Shang Hai. Evidently, he was one of the more talented cultivators in the Yunyue Business Alliance, and among the elites in the Middle Arcana Plane, and had specially invited Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman to support him in battle.


    "Where are you all from?" Wang Yurou asked Ye Futian after her brief moment of silence.


    "A small place very far away, you''ve never been there," Ye Futian replied softly.


    Wang Yurou was astonished by his answer. With the strength that Ye Futian and his friend''s had demonstrated, she was not expecting them to be from such an insignificant place.


    Just then, the Black Wind Condor and Loulan Xue came over, the Black Wind Condor standing beside him and Loulan Xue sitting down.


    Wang Yurou glanced at Loulan Xue and asked, "Your girlfriend?"


    "No," Ye Futian shook his head and replied, "just a friend."


    "Looks like you aren''t a decent gentleman either," Wang Yurou criticized, smiling. Since Ye Futian claimed that he had a girlfriend, why was he bringing another beautiful lady friend by his side?


    Loulan Xue glanced at Wang Yurou and explained, "Maidservant."


    "...." Wang Yurou was speechless. Her gaze returned to the battle and she said, "the Demon Swordsman is going up. I heard what you said before about Shang Hai chasing you out of the White Jade Tower because of him and Sorcerer Wu?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "What do you feel about his strength?" Wang Yurou asked. The Demon Swordsman had drawn his sword, and his blade was quick. One strike of his sword felt as though tens of thousands of Sword Qi erupted at the same time. Among the dazzle of countless Sword Qi, an unpredictably ethereal sword was hidden, swiftly severing the opponent''s neck and causing blood to spurt uncontrollably.


    The loser was greeted with death.


    "*sshole." Wang Yurou''s demeanor became unforgiving. The Demon Swordsman had killed one of the Wang Clan''s prodigy aides.


    The Demon Swordsman Duan Que turned towards the Wang Clan''s viewing gallery after killing his opponent, and his gaze landed where Ye Wuchen was, as though on purpose. Following which, he walked back to where he was. Standing in wait there was Shang Hai, with an equally cruel expression. He also looked at the Wang Clan, and his gaze stopped where Wang Yurou and Ye Futian were. He was unmistakably targeting the Wang Clan.


    "Looks like the battle''s become relentless." It was no surprise to the countless onlookers who were watching the Yunyue Battle Platform. It was a common sight every year for the first battle to be relatively peaceful. As the battles progressed, they would get more fired up and killing would become more rampant.


    In the first battle, the Wang Clan and the Yunyue Business Alliance went head-to-head with each other and caused the Yunyue Business Alliance to lose face. They naturally wanted to get their revenge, and so the Demon Swordsman Duan Que was sent out prematurely and slew his opponent in one strike.


    As predicted, the battles progressively intensified and there were more experts dying and getting seriously injured. Each time it came to a duel between the Wang Clan and the Yunyue Business Alliance, the battle would be exceptionally brutal.


    Of course, the unlucky ones were the aiding experts from both sides, especially those whose battle ability were not strong enough.


    Sorcerer Wu, whose expertise was in sorcery, went up to battle as well. His entire body clad in robes, he had a terrifying battle ability. His eyes seemed to have Dark Demonic Flames in them and one gaze from him could cause his opponent to ignite. His Flame Spell was as scary as Demonic Flames, as they were inextinguishable and could burn his foe to death.


    "Looks like we''re going to lose quite badly this round," Wang Yurou said. The Wang Clan had lost the relaxed attitude they had just now and were watching the battle platform grimly.


    Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman were extremely famous, therefore they had caused quite an uproar when the Yunyue Business Alliance had invited the two of them, causing the Four Clans to scramble to invite even stronger prodigies to aid them.


    With regards to the duo''s battle ability, the inner circle of the Four Clans did not underestimate them. They were not from their sects, and they were also juniors. This limited the Four Clans'' understanding of them.


    Now, after witnessing the duo''s strength, the Wang Clan felt as though things were going to go south, especially since they were being targeted. All the experts assisting the Wang Clan had a high possibility of being wiped out by the two of them, causing the Wang Clan to lose all support.


    Over at the Yunyue Business Alliance, the Alliance Leader and many of the alliance members were visibly happier. Shang Hai had not let them down in this battle and had salvaged some of their prestige. If they could get first place in this battle, they would have redeemed themselves.


    "Big brother, Shang Hai being young and prideful, it can''t be avoided that he would make some mistakes. However, it seems that he really did it for the Yunyue Business Alliance. Under those circumstances, for him to get on the good side of prodigies like Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman, he would naturally ignore some other people." One of the elders beside the Alliance Leader said. He was Shang Hai''s grandfather; he had no reason to speak up for Shang Hai''s mistake just now. However, he could now help to clear Shang Hai''s name.


    "Indeed, Shang Hai has good insight, the experts supporting the Wang Clan are too arrogant. They''re evidently insistent on getting revenge on our Yunyue Business Alliance," another person spoke up, causing the Alliance Leader to nod his head and say, "If Shang Hai can get first for this battle, I''ll let the matter rest."


    The remaining people nodded their heads and turned their attention back to the battle.


    As the battle progressed, the Wang Clan and the Yunyue Business Alliance continued to be at loggerheads. There was still no one who could deal with Sorcerer Wu and Duan Que. Eventually, the Wang Clan gave up the right to challenge someone, but the Yunyue Business Alliance did not let up and the two continued to eradicate their competitors.


    The supporting experts were all eliminated.


    "What''s the wager for this battle?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The operating rights for various industries in Yunyue City next year," Wang Yurou replied. The four clans were the strongest establishments in Yunyue City, and so they had a firm hold over the best resources in Yunyue City. The only people who could compete for these resources were the four clans.


    "What will happen to the last place?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "They can only manage the industries with the lowest profit margin," Wang Yurou replied.


    Ye Futian did not say anything. Judging by the situation on the Yunyue Business Platform, the last place would definitely be the Wang Clan.


    The Yunyue Business Alliance was picking on them and the other two clans were inadvertently letting them be and watching from the sidelines. The Wang Clan had gotten the most benefits from the first battle, so they would definitely not let the Wang Clan obtain a good placing in this battle, or it would cause a shift in power balance among the four clans. However, even after the Yunyue Business Alliance had eliminated the Wang Clan, they did not let up and continued to challenge the Feng Clan and Thunder Clan''s support experts. Similarly, all of them were eliminated and ultimately, only the duo from the Yunyue Business Alliance was left standing.


    "This looks very similar to the previous battle." The audience felt a ripple in their hearts. In the last battle, Ye Futian and his friends had been unbeatable. In this battle, it was Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman''s turn. The two of them had helped Shang Hai get into the finals in dominating fashion, and even when they were up against the other three clans, they had not been afraid of a three-on-three. Similarly, they had defeated all three clans with their strength alone.


    After the battle, the people from the Feng Clan and Thunder Clan looked at Shang Hai, and heard him say, "In this battle, the Wang Clan will be last place. You all decide who will be second and third." His words were identical to what Ye Futian had said, as though it was a tit-for-tat.


    Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman stepped forward, heading towards a Wang Clan prodigy. The Feng Clan and Thunder Clan experts were a little hesitant, but they did not interrupt them. They were not confident in winning a three-on-three. In the earlier battle, Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman had been too overbearing.


    "Forfeit the match." The Wang Clan leader saw the two of them heading towards the Wang Clan juniors and said to them. If they did not forfeit the match, the duo would definitely be ruthless.


    "I forfeit." The Wang Clan prodigy had an extremely grim expression. The match that Wang Yurou had been in had been extremely impressive. However, this battle had been extremely humiliating.


    The Demon Swordsman had a mocking smile, following which he turned around to look at the other two people. The Thunder Clan and Feng Clan experts immediately broke into a fight, which eventually ended in the Thunder Clan''s victory.


    The cultivator in front of the drum announced the end of the battle. The Yunyue Business Alliance representative shouted, "This battle, the Yunyue Business Alliance is first."


    "The Thunder Clan, second."


    "The Feng Clan, third."


    "The Wang Clan, last."


    The four voices sounded out and in the Yunyue Business Alliance''s direction, the Alliance Leader and the members all looked joyful.


    The Demon Swordsman Duan Que raised his head in Ye Futian and his friends'' direction and smiled, "It seems as though it was nothing special, the opponent was simply too weak."


    What Ye Futian and his friends had done, he and Sorcerer Wu had done as well.


    Turning around, he walked towards the Yunyue Business Alliance, looked at the Alliance Leader and said, "I don''t think that Shang Hai made a mistake, what does the Alliance Leader think?"


    Shang Hai had forcefully evicted Ye Futian and his friends because of him and Sorcerer Wu. Before this, Shang Hai''s decision had been questioned by many. Even though it did not affect him, but it did not reflect well on him.


    The Alliance Leader looked at Duan Que and thought, what a presumptuous individual. Of course, he had the right to be arrogant. He let out a hearty laugh and said, "Of course looks like it was a misunderstanding on my part. What Shang Hai did at the White Jade Tower was right."


    "Thank you, Great Elder." Shang Hai bowed, and a glint appeared in his eyes. This meant that the Alliance Leader would no longer pursue the matter.


    "How can he do this?" Yang Yi had a gloomy look. She had brought up the matter in public to redress Big Brother Ye''s grievance. Yet, the Alliance Leader had corrected his words. Wasn''t this to say that Shang Hai was right to humiliate them?


    "Little Yi, he''s driven by profit, this is nothing to be surprised over." Ye Futian said, smiling and accepting it casually. He was on the Wang Clan''s side, while Duan Que and the rest were supporting the Yunyue Business Alliance. Which side would the Alliance Leader be on? There was no doubt about it. Even if it made Ye Futian unhappy, what could he do about it?

 416 Gamble Showdown

    Chapter 416: Gamble Showdown


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yang Yi naturally understood what Ye Futian was saying, but it did not reduce her unhappiness. She angrily looked at the Business Alliance Leader and said, "I thought he was a good person, but it seems I was wrong."


    "This girl��" Ye Futian let out a bitter smile while shaking his head. He fondled her head, thinking, it looks like Yang Ting really protected his younger sister very well, allowing her to be so innocent.


    As the Alliance Leader of one of the four clans, how could the Yunyue Business Alliance Leader be described simply as good or bad?


    "Duan Que seems to be intentionally provoking you and your friends," Wang Yurou said. Ye Futian was aware of that too. After defeating his opponent, the Demon Swordsman Duan Que''s gaze would look towards them. By claiming that his opponents were too weak, and making the Alliance Leader correct his words, even though he had not officially spoken with Ye Futian, he had already taunted Ye Futian.


    "Leave him be," Ye Futian said indifferently, not caring much. Shang Feiyu and his supporting experts had also been arrogant, but it did not mean that Ye Futian needed to prove them wrong every time. To be honest, it was quite boring to do so.


    Yunyue City was just a pit stop for him. If it wasn''t for Yang Ting and Yang Yi, he would probably have left the moment he got the map, and not be wasting his time trying to improve relations with the Wang Clan. By doing so, after Yang Ting and Yang Yi entered the Wang Clan, they would be able to lead better lives.


    The third battle went on after that, and the atmosphere got even tenser.


    As though to prove the audience right, the fights got even more merciless, and no one was able to get off the battle platform unscathed. Every battle resulted in either serious injuries or death. Even battles between the Thunder Clan and Feng Clan had also become relentless. It was apparent that the Feng Clan had been dissatisfied with the second battle''s results, and wanted to make a comeback in this round.


    This round, the Thunder Clan and Feng Clan broke away from their earlier low-profile actions and became immeasurably wild, showing their overbearing attitudes.


    In the earlier two battles, the Yunyue Business Alliance and Wang Clan had both gotten one victory each in domineering fashion, and their clans had only been able to fight for second or third place. To the other two clans among the four clans, this was not a glorious feat, as it made diminished their presence. The Thunder and Feng Clan did not want to leave this kind of impression on the inhabitants of Yunyue City. What kind of prodigy would want to work for them in the future if this continued?


    The first battle had been unexpected and shocking.


    The second battle left people marveling at the Yunyue Business Alliance''s might. In this battle, the residents of Yunyue City truly witnessed the strength of all four clans, as the four clans were matched in strength and put up an entertaining display.


    Finally, the Thunder Clan dominated the other three clans and got first, the wealthiest among the four clans, the Yunyue Business Alliance came in second, showing off the strong foundations of the Alliance.


    The Wang Clan only came in third, and the Feng Clan came in miserably at last.


    At the end of the three battles, the Feng family had the short straw, drawing second in the first battle, coming in third in the second battle and last for the third round, doing worse each round.


    It was only until it ended that the audience came to a sudden realization that the biggest winner this time was not the Yunyue Business Alliance or the Wang Clan. Although these two clans had been competing fiercely, the eventual winner was the Thunder Clan, drawing second in the first battle, coming in second in the third battle and first for the third round, getting even more dominant each time.


    The Yunyue Business Alliance had come out on top of the Wang Clan.


    As such, the Thunder Clan leader was beaming from year to year, his commanding gaze circling the surroundings, as he said with a chuckle, "This year, my Thunder Clan and the rest of you have put up a fantastic display. This can be considered a good end to the year, from tomorrow onwards, let us all make preparations for all the matters that need to be handed over next year."


    In contrast to the Thunder Clan leader, the Feng Clan leader''s expression was gloomy. "Looks like you''ve made sufficient arrangements to discreetly become the biggest winner." In the direction of the Yunyue Business Alliance, the Alliance Leader said coolly. Last year, his Alliance was the biggest winner.


    This time, his all-out war with the Wang Clan ended up helping the Thunder Clan.


    "The Yunyue Business Alliance did quite well too," the Thunder Clan leader said, laughing. He looked up at the sky, it was already evening and the setting sun''s rays showered upon the Yunyue Battle Platform, with several rays of golden light. It was indeed a beautiful day.


    "What wonderful weather. Let us let this year''s four clans battle end here," The Thunder Clan leader proclaimed.


    "Is it over already?" Around the Yunyue Battle Platform, the endless Yunyue City citizens felt as surrounding the area did not feel a sense of closure. With the ending of the four clans battle, they felt a sense of loss. To them, battles of this standard could only be seen once a year, for them to witness the potential of these prodigies standing above all other cultivators.


    "It has ended," The Wang Clan leader said in a soft voice. Many had even stood up. Wang Yurou and Ye Futian were also among those that stood up.


    "Has it ended yet? I don''t think so." Suddenly, a voice sounded out, and many of those who had already stood up looked towards the person who said that. Surprisingly, it was Shang Hai from the Yunyue Business Alliance.


    Shang Hai''s gaze swept across where Ye Futian was standing for a moment, following which he said to the audience, "the four clans battle decides the allocation of resources in Yunyue City. However, after the three rounds of battle have ended, there''s still one more chance to change the allocation."


    The audience''s eyes lit up as they all looked towards Shang Hai. They knew what Shang Hai was referring to. This time, even though the Yunyue Business Alliance was not the biggest winner, but besides the Thunder Clan, they were in second place. Even so, they were still not content?


    "You want to start a gamble showdown?" the Thunder Clan leader questioned.


    The crowd all had astonished looks. Everyone in Yunyue City knew that apart from the three rounds of battle, there was still the gamble showdown. As the name suggested, a gamble showdown was a gamble.


    After the three rounds, the clans'' benefits had already been allocated. The four clans could then use the resources that they had gotten, and use it as a wager to start a gamble showdown against those who had participated in earlier battles.


    Shang Hai turned around and said to the Alliance Leader, "Great Elder, I am bitter about the results of the first round that I lost. I would like to win back what I have lost, and I hope that Great Elder can give me this chance."


    The Business Alliance Leader''s eyes glimmered, and a sharp glint appeared in them. He scrutinized Shang Hai and asked, "How do you want to gamble?"


    Shang Hai''s gaze fell in the direction where the Wang Clan was, and callously replied, "I will use what I have won in the second round, to wager for what the Wang Clan has gotten in the first round."


    The Wang Clan leader frowned, looking at Shang Hai, and he asked, "What do you mean?"


    "Me, Sorcerer Wu and Duan Que were the victors of the second round. We challenge Wang Yurou and her three supporting experts," Shang Hai said mercilessly. Everyone who heard his words had weird expressions, they thought Shang Hai was out of his mind. Three Middle Arcana Plane cultivators, challenging Lower Arcana Plane cultivators?


    "Are you joking?" The Wang Clan leader rebutted emotionlessly. "Even though the four clans have the gamble showdown rule, but there has never been such an unfair battle. I will not accept it."


    "It is indeed rather unfair. As such, I will not participate in the battle, only Sorcerer Wu and Duan Que will. As for the wager, I will add on the 10 percent profits of the spirit stone mine from the first round." Shang Hai announced in a clear voice, "How about this?"


    "Hmph." The Wang Clan leader snorted. "Ridiculous." He knew that Ye Futian and his friends had talent, but Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman Duan Que, were also exceptional people in the Middle Arcana Plane. Sorcerer Wu was in the fifth level of the Arcana Plane while Duan Que was at the pinnacle of the Middle Arcana Plane, the sixth level. How could Ye Futian and his friends'' cultivation level even compare to them?


    Apart from Ye Wuchen and Wang Yurou who were in the third level of the Arcana Plane, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were only in the second level of the Arcana Plane. Three to four levels of difference was not something that could be neutralized merely with numbers. Even if the other party raised the wager, there was no meaning in accepting if defeat was beyond doubt. Moreover, if he accepted the battle, Shang Hai would definitely be gunning for Ye Futian and his friends'' lives.


    "Go back," The Wang Clan leader said. The rest of the Wang Clan stared at Shang Hai expressionlessly. What an imagination he had, to come up with such ludicrous terms for a battle.


    Ye Futian and his friends also turned away. They had no intention of fighting.


    "Don''t you want to prove me wrong?" Shang Hai said deliberately, looking at Ye Futian, whose back was facing him. "You were so arrogant before this, do you want to just walk away in dejection?"


    "This *sshole," Yang Ting said coldly, "he knows no shame."


    A Middle Arcana Plane cultivator trying to taunt Ye Futian into accepting the showdown. Shang Hai was the epitome of shamelessness.


    "Brother Ye, don''t fall for it," Yang Ting said to him.


    "I know." Ye Futian nodded lightly, not taking it to heart.


    "Oi." Another voice sounded out. It was Duan Que, he smiled and said, "A swordsman that is willing to demean himself, is not worthy to hold a sword."


    Ye Wuchen''s footsteps slowed down. Duan Que''s words were evidently referring to the incident in the White Jade Tower where Ye Wuchen had stooped to pick up the spirit stones on the floor.


    Ye Futian''s footsteps slowed down as well, and he suddenly smiled brightly and asked, "Why do you do this to yourself?" Saying that, he looked towards the Wang Clan leader and asked, "Senior, do you trust me?"


    The Wang Clan leader''s eyes gleamed, and he looked towards Ye Futian. "You mean to say, you want to accept the battle?"


    Ye Futian nodded lightly.


    "Are you out of your mind? I know that you''re very strong, but that is the Middle Arcana Plane. His fighting ability is at the peak of the Middle Arcana Plane. He''s intentionally trying to taunt you, not just to get the resources from the Wang Clan, but also your lives," Wang Yurou said in a hushed voice.


    "I know." Ye Futian was still looking at the Wang Clan leader.


    The Wang Clan leader looked Ye Futian in the eyes, and guffawed, "it''s been a long time since I''ve seen such a wild teenager. I''ll accompany you in your insanity this time. What we won in the first round, was originally won for us by you. So, I leave it up to you to decide."


    "Thank you, senior." Ye Futian nodded and shifted his gaze towards Shang Hai''s direction.


    At this moment, Shang Hai was beaming brightly. Duan Que also had a radiant smile. He looked towards Ye Futian, saying to Shang Hai in a faint voice, "Don''t forget what you''ve promised to give me."


    "I''ll give you double," Shang Hai said with a piercing gaze.


    "Good. I''ll help you to reap their lives." Duan Que''s smile got even more radiant!

 417 Don’t Insult a Swordsman

    Chapter 417: Don��t Insult a Swordsman


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Like Wang Yurou had said, Duan Que had been intentionally provoking Ye Futian and his friends in preparation for this moment. Shang Hai had told him that he wanted Ye Futian''s life and had promised him many benefits for it. The best chance to kill Ye Futian was naturally on the Yunyue Battle Platform. Therefore, both Duan Que and Shang Hai were intentionally using provocative language to anger Ye Futian and his friends, and Duan Que had even gone to the extent of insulting Ye Wuchen.


    Everything had been for this moment.


    To their surprise, Ye Futian and his friends had been unable to withstand the taunting and had accepted the battle.


    What a way to court death.


    "Grand Elder." Shang Hai looked towards the Business Alliance Leader. Previously, the conflict with Ye Futian had nearly ruined his future prospects. Now, he was going to reclaim what was rightfully his.


    In this battle, not only was he going to kill Ye Futian and his friends, but he would also win back everything he had lost in the first round. Hence, it would be equivalent to the Yunyue Business Alliance coming in first for both rounds, surpassing the Thunder Clan to become the real winner.


    The Alliance Leader looked at Shang Hai and said, "Alright, everything will be up to you to decide." After saying that, he took a seat again, and the Yunyue Business Alliance members around him all sat back down and looked towards Ye Futian and his friends.


    Just like how Shang Hai had imagined, they also felt that, regardless of how strong Ye Futian and his friend''s battle capabilities were, the large gap in cultivation levels was not something that could be bridged by raw talent and fighting ability. Moreover, Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman Duan Que were both already extremely talented cultivators, which was apparent from their performance in the second battle. Under these circumstances, the Wang Clan was as good as giving them the win on a platter.


    "Thank you, Grand Elder." Shang Hai was ecstatic, and he looked towards the opposite side where the Wang Clan members were all sitting back down too.


    The Thunder Clan leader frowned and looked towards the Wang Clan and said, "Brother Wang, do not make a foolish decision. 40 percent of the spirit stone mines'' profits are not a joke."


    The Thunder Clan had already cemented its position as the biggest winner this time, and evidently, they did not want their position to be replaced by the Yunyue Business Alliance.


    The Yunyue Business Alliance was already in an advantageous spot and showed signs of becoming the strongest among the four clans. If this trend continued, the power balance among the four clans would eventually crumble. Now, the Wang Clan was about to give the Yunyue Business Alliance a generous gift, something that he did not wish to see.


    "Naturally, I''m not joking," the Wang Clan leader said. "My decision is final, let the four clans witness the gamble showdown."


    "What respectable resolution." The Business Alliance Leader chuckled. "If anyone violates the rules of the four clans battle, everyone has the right to execute them."


    "Go forth," the Alliance Leader said to Sorcerer Wu and Duan Que. "After this battle, the two of you will be well-rewarded."


    Sorcerer Wu stepped forward in silence, while Duan Que marched forth with a grin, both of them stepping foot on the Yunyue Battle Platform yet again. The rays of the setting sun showered down upon them. The two of them were among the most dazzling cultivators among today''s four clans battle. Now, they were going to battle the three most dazzling Lower Arcana Plane cultivators from the first round.


    On the other end, Ye Futian and his friends slowly walked down the viewing gallery. Wang Yurou was there too, and she softly whispered to them, "With my strength, I''m simply unable to help the three of you in this match." Even though she had absolute confidence in her strength, she also knew her limits. Sorcerer Wu and the Demon Swordsman were both exceptional individuals in Yunyue City, how was it even possible to surpass the level boundary and defeat them? She was definitely not a match for them.


    "It''s alright," Ye Futian replied. Wang Yurou glared at him, how could he still be so nonchalant at this point in time, did he not know the dangers that awaited him in the upcoming battle?


    The four of them stepped onto the Battle Platform where Duan Que was smiling while looking at them. He had been waiting a long time for this.


    "You stay here and watch," Ye Futian said to Wang Yurou in a hushed voice. Wang Yurou was stunned for a moment and felt anger after she recovered. This *sshole was doing the same thing again.


    Ye Futian also stopped walking forward. He turned to Ye Wuchen who was beside him and said, "Wuchen, you deal with him."


    Since Duan Que wanted to witness what a swordsman could do, Ye Wuchen would grant him that honor. Ye Wuchen continued stepping forward. Seeing him come closer, Duan Que had a grin on his face, and asked, "You want to die one by one?"


    "Sure, I''ll grant your wish." The Demon Swordsman Duan Que smiled, and similarly walked forward, a terrifying Sword Will surrounding his body, resonating with the universe.


    He stretched out both arms. In an instant, tens of thousands of Sword Wills roared simultaneously, hovering around the vast Yunyue Battle Platform. The Sword Wills formed a horrifying sword-shaped air current, gliding towards where Ye Fuchen was. It was a deadly yet elegant sight. Just like his nickname, the Demon Swordsman had a magical command over his swordcraft, causing his sword techniques to be unpredictable and ethereal.


    "A Lower Arcana Plane fighting a Middle Arcana Plane, unable to withstand just a few sentences of provoking. An idiot like you, how did you live to cultivate until today?" Duan Que appeared as though he was embracing tens of thousands of swords in both arms. He raised his head and had a look of intoxication on his face. The moving sword current drowned out everything, enveloping Ye Wuchen in it.


    Feeling the aura of his sword current, the Wang Clan did not appear optimistic. What on earth was Ye Futian thinking, letting Ye Wuchen face the Middle Arcana Plane Duan Que alone?


    The Business Alliance Leader also felt Duan Que''s Sword Will and a glowing smile appeared on his face. This battle would definitely restore the Yunyue Business Alliance''s reputation, as well as all the resources that they had lost. He simply could not understand why the shrewd fellow from the Wang Clan would agree to such a ludicrous gamble showdown. Even the most crafty person would commit such mistakes once in a while.


    Shang Hai''s performance now was indeed commendable.


    Duan Que''s body rose into the air, ascending towards the sky alongside his sword. His gaze fell onto Ye Wuchen and he said, "Even though your sword techniques are speedy, but you''re not a qualified swordsman after all. It''s your honor to be able to die at my hands." As his voice landed, he waved his arm, and in an instant, countless Sword Wills turned into real blades and rained upon Ye Wuchen''s body.


    Watching the figure with one lone arm shrouded in Sword Wills, many people gave silent sighs. What a pity, Ye Wuchen''s strength was not to be underestimated, but alas, he was too rash.


    At that moment, Ye Wuchen stepped forward. In that split second, it was as though he was not a human being, but rather a sword; an indestructible sword.


    At the same time as he stepped forward, a formless Sword Will charged straight ahead, cleaving the sword current. His foot took yet another step forward. Around his body, an intense sword veil formed around him. When the Sword Will that Duan Gang had released rushed towards him, it permeated the sword veil and flowed along the sword veil. Contrary to what the audience thought, it did not break through the defense of the sword veil, but rather it encircled the sword veil.


    "Invoking the Sword Will." Duan Que gazed upon Ye Wuchen bewilderedly. It seems like he has some strength, Duan Que thought to himself.


    Both his arms swinging around, countless Sword Wills moved in tandem with his arms, as though all the Sword Qi in the world were under his command. Following up, Duan Que waved his hand and dealt one blow with his sword.


    When the sword struck, it was as though the void had split into two by the Sword Will, and words started to appear in front of Ye Wuchen. Ye Wuchen treated it as though he saw nothing, and took another step forward, the words exploded in front of him, and ended up as remnants of Sword Will, continuing to flow around his body, unable to break through his defenses.


    Many people had surprised expressions. The Demon Swordsman had already dealt two blows, yet he was still unable to break through or even cause damage to Ye Wuchen.


    Duan Que squinted, and his palm stretched out. Immediately, an even stronger Sword Will was manifested and he resonated with the Worldly Sword Will. After that, his fingers moved, and a sword sliced towards Ye Wuchen.


    Bang. The harsh blade of light was stopped in its tracks, but Duan Que''s movements did not stop. His fingers continued to brandish even more killing blades as though they were bolts of lightning.


    The waves of dazzling blades of light seemed to slice the void apart into countless pieces, and Ye Wuchen''s body was completely engulfed within, enduring the countless Sword Qi''s killing intent. Waves of horrifying light blades submerged his body, blocking everyone''s field of vision. However, seeing those dazzling blades of light, many people felt pity for Ye Wuchen.


    In all likelihood, he would have been decimated by these sword techniques.


    Among the Sword Qi''s screeching, Duan Que''s movements finally came to a halt, and he looked towards the scary sword storm that Ye Wuchen was trapped in. A cruel smile appeared on his face as all he could feel there was Sword Qi. He could almost see Ye Wuchen''s body being impaled by tens of thousands of Sword Wills.


    In the brilliant storm, a fleeting glimpse of Ye Wuchen''s body could be seen. Everyone''s gaze focused on that figure. They saw countless Sword Qi intersecting Ye Wuchen''s body. There was no longer any sign of human life, only the aura of swords.


    "Why��" many people sighed. How could it be possible for Ye Wuchen to defeat Duan Que. The Wang Clan leader''s expression was pale. Even though he had joined in on Ye Futian''s insanity, but he still felt terrible seeing this kind of ending. Conversely, the Business Alliance Leader''s face had a resplendent smile. This battle was already half won.


    Everyone had differing emotions, but suddenly, the body that had been penetrated by countless Sword Qi moved again. He took another step forward. Even though it was just one step, everyone''s expression froze.


    Duan Que was also dumbfounded. Could it be that he was not dead yet? At the moment that he was dumbstruck, Ye Wuchen''s body disappeared, transforming into a blade, an indestructible blade, encompassing the countless Sword Wills that had been attacking him just now and penetrating the void.


    Duan Que''s expression changed, following which he saw a pair of eyes, and in his mind, a killing sword figure appeared.


    "Get out!" Duan Que angrily shouted. He drew his sword, a sword that was aided by the heavens, slicing through the void.


    That strike was extremely beautiful, and it rendered the figure that had appeared in his mind in half. As the blade was striking through the void, he felt a sense of extreme danger. An unstoppable sword was headed straight for him while his sword was already in motion and could not be withdrawn.


    "How could this be��" This was the last thought in Duan Que''s mind as the blade severed his throat.


    Duan Que''s body quivered uncontrollably, as a figure that appeared to be formed out of Sword Qi stood upright before him. The figure only had one arm and was standing quietly as always, but the sword in his hand had already cut through Duan Que''s throat.


    "Don''t insult a swordsman." This was the last voice that Duan Que heard as his body was torn into smithereens by Sword Qi!

 418 Are You Satisfied Now?

    Chapter 418: Are You Satisfied Now?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Duan Que collapsed, the single-arm figure stood above the platform. Everyone was dazed.


    Did Ye Wuchen just win the battle? The Demon Swordsman was killed?


    Realizing that, people''s hearts beat fast. Shang Hai''s heart also pounded as if a big hammer was beating it. His face paled all of a sudden, all the color draining.


    Not a long ago, he had just presumed that he was going to win it all back. Now he was frozen by this fact. A deep fear came to him. What happened before him seemly set him into an icy cellar.


    Duan Que was dead. Ye Wuchen killed him. Shang Hai didn''t care how Ye Wuchen did it or why he was so strong. He only cared about the result. This battle was a gamble to him. The wager was what they got in the second round, including the mines. The big fortune was even more important than his life. Now, because of his gamble made out of impulsion, he was going to give all the fortune away. Of course he was frozen and terrified. He had never thought about what could happen if he lost the gamble. Would his grandpa forgive him easily?


    The leader of the Merchant Union looked livid. They''d actually been defeated. Duan Que, that proud Demon Swordsman, was killed by a silent single-armed swordsman.


    As the saying went, the more silent was the more dangerous. In previous battles, both Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were very high-profile. Compared to them, Ye Wuchen behaved in a more low-profile way. But as a result, he killed Duan Que.


    "What a wonderful fight!" the leader of the Thunder Clan exclaimed. "There has not been such a wonderful battle of four forces for many years. He was seemingly very glad to see the Yunyue Merchant Union to be defeated. Among the major four forces, Yunyue Merchant Union was the strongest force. The Thunder Clan naturally didn''t want the Yunyue Merchant Union to be the final winner. The Thunder Clan''s leader was very confident that his clan had a stronger comprehensive strength than Wang Family''s. Even if there was a year for Wang Family to develop, they still couldn''t threaten the Thunder Clan. What''s more, Ye Futian''s group was just the Wang Family''s external aid. He would not feel threatened unless the Wang Family''s youth were as strong as Ye Futian''s group.


    As long as they were not the Wang Family''s members and they didn''t plan to join, he would not mind. He also believed that the Wang Family wasn''t attractive enough to them.


    Hearing the Thunder Clan''s leader''s words, the leader of the Merchant Union felt more embarrassed. The Wang Family''s members were also stunned. Wang Yurou just couldn''t believe what she had just witnessed.


    "What a promising youth!" the Wang Family''s leader also exclaimed. He kept looking at the Yunyue Platform and laughed. "The real talented one didn''t show his interest but was forced to fight. Somebody just wants to be humiliated." His words were like a slap.


    From Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen''s previous reaction, everyone knew that they were not interested at all. But Shang Hai and Duan Que provoked them again and again. They were forced to fight. People all witnessed the result of the fight. Moreover, Shang Hai had planned to let Sorcerer Wu and Demon Swordsman fight Ye Futian''s four people. As a result, the Demon Swordsman was directly killed by Ye Wuchen.


    "It''s not over yet." At this moment, Shang Hai clenched his fists, veins standing out under his skin. His eyes fell on Sorcerer Wu. Though the Demon Swordsman was dead, the mysterious Sorcerer Wu was here. He still had a chance to win it all back.


    "Kill him. If you win, what I have promised Duan Que before, I''ll give you in double," Shang Hai said to Sorcerer Wu determinedly. Sorcerer Wu was his last hope. As long as Sorcerer Wu could kill Ye Wuchen quickly, it was still possible for him to handle Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. As for Wang Yurou, he didn''t even count her in. She didn''t have the strength to get involved in this battle at all.


    Hearing Shang Hai''s promise, Sorcerer Wu stepped out. His figure in the black cloak looked very mysterious. He glanced at Ye Wuchen and suddenly a stream of dark flames surrounded Ye Wuchen''s body. The demonic dark fire bloomed like flowers and swept toward Ye Wuchen.


    Sword intent appeared from Ye Wuchen and wove into a sword curtain to protect his body. The dreadful demonic dark fire gathered to attack the sword curtain. A hole appeared. The demonic fire penetrated it and the hole kept expanding. That terrible fire eroded the curtain rapidly. The curtain was going to disappear.


    Sizzle. The curtain suddenly transformed into beams of sword light and dissipated. Every beam of light contained some demonic fire. Ye Wuchen retreated. He stared at Sorcerer Wu sharply. Sorcerer Wu was not just a fire-attribute sorcerer. The fire was really demonic, but it was also because of his comparatively low level.


    Ye Wuchen had a sword body melted with the sword intent given by his grand master. That was why it was a mistake for Duan Que to attack him with sword intent. Unless Duan Que had stronger sword intent, he couldn''t get the upper hand. But this time, the Sorcerer''s level was also higher than his and he attacked Ye Wuchen with such a strange way. Ye Wuchen would very possibly be defeated.


    People were surprised at this sight. It seemed that Sorcerer Wu was more fearsome than Duan Que though his level was lower.


    The Merchant Union''s leader''s eyes brightened. Shang Hai also became hopeful. It was possible to win.


    "Kill him!" said Shang Hai. If Ye Wuchen was killed, the path would be smoother.


    The dark demonic fire seemly turned into countless snakes and wreathed toward Ye Wuchen. Ye Wuchen''s sword intent broke out and soared up as if it was going to rip all everything apart. But suddenly, a thunder was heard and a flash of purple lightning crushed the demonic fire into dirt.


    Ye Futian walked to Ye Wuchen and said, "Let me handle it." It was not because Ye Futian didn''t trust Ye Wuchen''s strength. When fighting with Duan Que, it was about Ye Wuchen''s dignity as a swordsman. He had to fight. But when confronting with Sorcerer Wu, Ye Futian didn''t want Ye Wuchen to handle it alone.


    Looking at Ye Futian, Ye Wuchen nodded and retreated back slowly. People around the platform were surprised. They thought Ye Futian was overconfident. He could help Ye Wuchen to fight Sorcerer Wu together but chose to fight one to one. Was he really so confident about his strength?


    "You could fight together," said the Sorcerer in a low voice. Hearing his low and eerie voice, many people were surprised. The Sorcerer was even more arrogant. Ye Wuchen had killed Duan Que, yet the Sorcerer was still so arrogant. Did it mean that Duan Que''s strength meant nothing to Sorcerer Wu?


    Hearing Sorcerer Wu''s words, Shang Hai''s eyes brightened more.


    Ye Futian froze but then smiled at the Sorcerer. He turned to Shang Hai and said, "I''ll give you a chance. You can fight together with him too."


    "What?" The spectators were speechless. Were they competing about who was more arrogant? It seemed that they didn''t take each other seriously at all.


    "This is your idea. Everyone heard you. Don''t regret it!" Shang Hai wouldn''t miss such a chance. He walked out and directly stepped onto the platform.


    "Of course." Ye Futian nodded and stepped forward. While he moved forward, the Death Coil was released. His body turned into a big tree. Endless golden vines rushed out toward Sorcerer Wu.


    In a black cloak, Sorcerer Wu lifted his head. Dark fire lit up in his eyes. Suddenly, those vines were set on fire by the dark flames. Dealing with such a spell was a piece of cake to him.


    The vines appeared endlessly; so did the dark fire. What Sorcerer Wu didn''t expect was that the fire didn''t stop the vines. He dodged quickly without getting hurt by the vines. His eyes sharpened and more fire burnt the golden vines up. However, there were too many vines to burn.


    Whoosh. The wind raged. A horde of horrible black fire crows appeared behind the Sorcerer''s body and pounced toward different directions. Where the crows swept, all the vines were burnt out.


    One black crow transformed back into Sorcerer Wu''s figure and overlooked Ye Futian in the sky. That pair of horrible eyes under the cloak looked straight at Ye Futian. In an instant, Ye Futian''s whole body was shrouded in darkness.


    "Burn!" the Sorcerer said coldly.


    However, Ye Futian''s will wasn''t burned down. He looked up at Sorcerer Wu indifferently. Was Sorcerer Wu attacking him spiritually? It seemed that Sorcerer Wu had been hiding his real strength. What a scary man!


    At this time, an enormous black crow appeared behind Sorcerer Wu.


    "It''s none of your business. You shouldn''t have come," Ye Futian responded with a cold look. Dreadful lightning flashed in his eyes. The two''s eyes collided and Sorcerer Wu trembled a little as if that lightning struck him.


    Lightning gathered and overshadowed the sky. Then the mighty lightning hit down. Since Sorcerer Wu was good at dark spells, Ye Futian decided to attack him with the lightning. The sacred lightning cracked down directly on Sorcerer Wu''s body. Endless black crows around Sorcerer Wu were shattered. He couldn''t escape at all as if he was confined


    Sorcerer Wu looked livid. What kind of power was the lightning?


    Boom. The lightning descended as if doomsday had come. With the Thunder God Spell cast, the destructive lightning seemly turned into chains and whipped Sorcerer Wu''s body. Both his mentality and body were hurt heavily.


    Another black crow appeared. Sorcerer Wu''s eyes became extremely cold. But the lightning descended again and pierced through the black crow as well as Sorcerer Wu''s body. He shook violently.


    At this moment, Ye Futian walked forward. His eyes were so indifferent.


    Seeing this scene, people''s faces all paled. Ye Futian''s spell was so strong that it even broke the limit of levels. This was also out of Shang Hai''s expectation. He rushed toward Ye Futian immediately. Extremely wild power projected from his body. He folded his hands behind him. Horrible power was gathering there.


    "Be careful!" Wang Yurou cautioned Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his hand and a long staff appeared in his hand.


    "You must die!" Shang Hai''s figure descended. A big destructive handprint rushed toward Ye Futian. The Wang Family''s members paled. How could Ye Futian be so careless? Generally, a sorcerer couldn''t bear Shang Hai''s attacks within such a short distance.


    Boom. Ye Futian''s body spun in the sky. A great momentum gathered and his body was surrounded by thunder and lightning. A thunder dragon seemed to appear in the sky but growled like an ape. Finally, with the great momentum, Ye Futian slashed his staff down to Shang Hai who was rushing to him too.


    Bang! Without any suspense, Shang Hai dropped like a flash of light and fell down on the battle platform heavily.


    Boom! With another blow, Sorcerer Wu''s body was thrown away. Then Ye Futian rushed downward with his staff in hand. With a loud explosion, the whole platform shook violently together with people''s frightened hearts.


    Ye Futian slashed down beside Shang Hai''s body. Shang Hai''s whole body trembled heavily. That blow almost frightened him to death.


    "Is this what you want? Are you satisfied now?" The staff disappeared. Ye Futian stood beside Shang Hai and looked at him disdainfully. Then he turned around, leaving an extremely conceited figure.


    The leader of the Merchant Union stood up from his seat, his hands slightly quivering. The Merchant Union was defeated in such a miserable way.


    The Wang Family''s leader also stood up. Looking at Ye Futian, he took a deep breath. Ye Futian was too strong and powerful. It was a pity that he wasn''t the Wang Family''s member.


    Both the Thunder Clan and Feng Family shared the same pity. In this battle, the Wang Family was the biggest beneficiary. The whole thing was just because of a young man who defeated Sorcerer Wu with a strong spell and deprived Shang Hai''s ability to fight.


    Years later, people in the Yunyue City would still remember their shock brought by this stunning fight. Probably no one could surpass Ye Futian. Though not at the same level, Ye Futian still defeated his rivals so easily. The three young men just showed people their invincible mighty power.

 419 Wang Yuqing

    Chapter 419: Wang Yuqing


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Wang Family followed Ye Futian''s group away. Under the sunset, their shadows dragged. Countless gazes from around the Yunyue Battle Platform were still gazing in that direction in shock.


    The leader of the Merchant Union stood up straight, also watching the silhouettes of the Wang Family as they left. The battle was over and the final divisions had been announced. The Yunyue Merchant Union would barely get anything next year.


    If one looked closely, one would see that his hands, hidden in his sleeves, were trembling. He turned to gaze coldly at Shang Hai who was pulling himself up.


    Right now, Shang Hai seemed to have wilted. His face was colorless while blood still flowed from his lips. His organs seemed to have been shattered by that hit. He was badly hurt. However, no one came to help him away. Seeing their leader''s expression, no one dared.


    They all knew that Shang Hai had messed up this time. The leader wouldn''t forgive him. He''d already redeemed himself and the leader had planned on letting him go. But he wanted to take revenge and taunted Ye Futian while they were leaving, thus causing this destructive attack. He''d dug his own grave.


    The Thunder Clan and Feng Family all looked at Shang Hai with disdain. He didn''t know his own strength and couldn''t even take a single hit. However, that youth was honestly too powerful. He would definitely become an important figure in the future.


    The Thunder Clan and Feng Family were obviously happy to see this result. The most powerful Yunyue Merchant Union was repressed. To the Thunder Family, the Wang Family winning the most was less threatening than the Yunyue Merchant Union. It was the same for the Feng Family. They weren''t last place anymore.


    Under these circumstances, the Yunyue Merchant Union probably wouldn''t be able to change anything.


    In the direction of the Wang Family, they orbited around Ye Futian''s group. Wang Yurou''s pretty eyes gazed at Ye Futian beside her. "Are you better at sorcery or martial arts?" She was curious. Earlier, Ye Futian''s sorcery had been crazy. Despite his low plane, he could defeat Sorcerer Wu. Ye Futian''s sorcery was too powerful to be a regular sorcerer.


    Everyone had thought he was a powerful sorcerer; Shang Hai thought so too, so he launched a close attack. But that last strike had been fatal. The one strike had carried immense power and flattened Shang Hai, the pride of the Yunyue Merchant Union. There hadn''t been any suspense. His martial arts skill was undeniable.


    "Guess." Ye Futian smirked.


    Wang Yurou glared, but heard Yu Sheng say nonchalantly, "He isn''t the strongest at sorcery or martial arts."


    "Then what?" Wang Yurou froze and looked at Yu Sheng in confusion.


    Yu Sheng gazed at Wang Yurou with a meaningful expression. Seeing his eyes, Wang Yurou instantly understood. She was forced to look away in silence.


    Ye Futian glared at Yu Sheng. This guy had changed too much. What was he thinking now? Ye Futian wasn''t like that.


    "Little Yi," Ye Futian called.


    Yang Yi walked over and greeted, "Big Brother Ye."


    "After I leave, remember to cultivate well," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    Wang Yurou glanced at him. Was he talking to her? This time, Ye Futian had displayed such great talent. He guessed that the Wang Family would try to keep him, so he made some hints to keep them from asking.


    Wang Yurou sighed inwardly. The Wang Family couldn''t keep someone as talented as Ye Futian. She knew that there was no point. Ye Futian didn''t think too highly of her.


    "Big Brother Ye, are you going to leave?" Yang Yi looked up, gazing at Ye Futian.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "I still have many important things to do."


    "What things? I want to go too," Yang Yi said innocently.


    "You dummy." Ye Futian patted her head.


    At that time, the Wang Family''s leader walked over. Glancing at Ye Futian and Yang Yi, he smiled. "Don''t worry. We won''t mistreat the Yang siblings after you leave."


    "Thank you, senior," Ye Futian said.


    "You won so many things for the Wang Family and helped us take revenge. This is nothing. We owe you. Do you have any requests?" the family leader asked.


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head, smiling. "I didn''t know anyone after coming to Yunyue City and met the Yang siblings by fate. I only wish that you will help me take care of them."


    "Alright. Yurou, Yang Ting and Yang Yi will cultivate with you from now on. Yang Yi will be like your sister," the family leader said to Wang Yurou.


    "Yes." Wang Yurou nodded. She naturally wouldn''t argue. Ye Futian had helped her greatly this time.


    "I won''t keep you, but please stay a few days so I can be a good host," the family leader said. Ye Futian gazed at him, but he continued in a light tone, "Kid, help preserve my image. Don''t reject me in front of so many people."


    "Okay." Ye Futian smiled wryly and nodded. The family leader was truly powerful. Ye Futian couldn''t reject him.


    The family leader finally smiled. He nodded and patted Ye Futian''s shoulder.


    It was nighttime when they returned to the Wang Family. They held a big celebratory feast. Ye Futian''s group were obviously the stars. Many people wanted to meet them.


    After the feast, they arranged a place for Ye Futian''s group to stay. It was where their core disciples lived and were right next to Wang Yurou.


    Right now, moonlight splashed down. A map was placed on a stone table in the courtyard. Ye Futian sat on a stone stool, looking quietly.


    "What''s the plan?" Ye Wuchen asked, walking over.


    "I plan on going to Divine Sky City," Ye Futian said. "That is the main city of the Barren State''s east. It will have the most resources, people, and news. We will cultivate there and reach the Noble Plane. What do you think?"


    "Whatever you say," Ye Wuchen said. He sat beside Ye Futian and looked up at the full moon. He completely trusted Ye Futian. The journey from the Cangye Kingdom had given them tacit understanding.


    "I don''t dare go anywhere with a low plane. If we reach the Sage Plane someday, we can go anywhere," Ye Futian sighed. He gave himself a small goal: the Noble Plane.


    Only if he reached the Noble Plane would he be able to travel through the Barren State.


    The Arcana Plane was honestly too weak. It was difficult to forge ahead without the help of a powerful force. But now, he didn''t want to rely on another force. Nowhere could be like the Cottage. Even if something existed, it wouldn''t have that feeling.


    "Thinking of Chenyu?" Ye Futian asked Ye Wuchen who was spacing out.


    "A little," Ye Wuchen said softly. She must hate Ye Wuchen for leaving her in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Noble, Sage��he still had a long way to go, but his heart was growing more determined.


    Ye Futian chuckled. His Guqin Spirit appeared and music flowed under the moonlight. It was calm and peaceful, making one feel a slight longing for home.


    ��


    Days later, Ye Futian prepared to leave that day.


    Many people were walking somewhere in the Wang Family. A while ago, a figure had entered, causing an uproar. Wang Yuqing, the princess, had returned.


    Many elders sat before the main pavilion. Even the family leader came to welcome her personally. Seeing the group walking over, he smiled gently.


    The leading woman was beautiful and cold. Both her features and temperament were similar to Wang Yurou. She was even more handsome and seemed more powerful. Wang Yuqing was Wang Yurou''s true sister.


    Beside her was a group of boys and girls. They all had extraordinary temperaments and were spirited. They gazed at the Wang Family with cool eyes. They clearly had special backgrounds.


    "Grandfather," Wang Yuqing called to the family leader. However, her tone wasn''t as respectful as the other members. To most people, the family leader wasn''t only the family leader. He was also the most powerful and naturally should be revered. If he couldn''t cultivate, who would revere him?


    But Wang Yuqing was different. She''d seen many people at her grandfather''s level out there. In fact, she learned from people of the Sage Plane. After some time, she wouldn''t feel as reverent as the others in the family.


    "You''re back," the family leader said, smiling.


    "Yes. These are my senior brothers and sisters," Wang Yuqing said.


    "They look extraordinary. As expected from the Top Three Schools of the Divine Sky City," the family leader said, smiling. "The banquet is prepared. Welcome."


    Everyone walked forward. Wang Yurou walked to Wang Yuqing and called, "Sister."


    "How is your cultivation?" Wang Yuqing asked.


    "Third-level Arcana Plane," Wang Yurou answered.


    "Keep working hard and try next year at the Divine Sky City," Wang Yuqing said. "Where are Mother and Father?"


    "They''re coming," Wang Yurou said.


    "Yurou, call Futian over," the family leader said.


    "Okay." Wang Yurou immediately understood. She left and went towards Ye Futian''s yard.


    "Futian?" Wang Yuqing asked. "Grandfather, who''s that?"


    "A very talented junior. I would like you two to meet each other. Maybe you can recommend him to the Top Three Schools. His talent shouldn''t be a problem."


    "The Top Three Schools isn''t that easy to enter," a youth beside Wang Yuqing said.


    "I know that. I wouldn''t say that if he wasn''t talented," the family leader said, chuckling.


    It was undeniable that it was already a miracle for the Wang Family to have Wang Yuqing. If they had another so-called pride, how powerful could he be? The family leader was probably ignorant and didn''t know what true talent was!

 420 See the World

    Chapter 420: See the World


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian found it strange after he heard Wang Yurou''s invitation. The family leader was quite thoughtful to have Wang Yurou''s sister recommend him to the Top Three Schools. However, the family leader didn''t know that he didn''t want that. After leaving the College and Cottage, he didn''t want to join another school. And if he really wanted to join, he would go by himself. He didn''t need Wang Yuqing''s recommendation.


    I''ll just take it as a farewell, Ye Futian thought.


    Later, the group followed Wang Yurou to a place. A banquet was prepared. Other than the family leader, a group of youths sat in the upper seats, showing their high status. One of the girls was beautiful and handsome. She was indeed similar to Wang Yurou. She was obviously Wang Yuqing. Other youths sitting beside her looked at Ye Futian judgmentally.


    Earlier, they''d heard the Wang Family leader praise Ye Futian to the sky. He really liked this youth, which activated their arrogance.


    "Senior." Ye Futian bowed and the group took their seats.


    Wang Yuqing glanced at Ye Futian and said, "My grandfather said that your combat ability is extraordinary and can fight across many planes. What is your Dharma?"


    Her grandfather wanted her to recommend Ye Futian into the Top Three Schools. She was curious how powerful someone had to be for her grandfather to be so impressed.


    "Senior, you flatter me. My Dharma is quite average. As for fighting across planes, perhaps it was because the opponents at Yunyue City were weak and I was lucky," Ye Futian said, smiling. He wasn''t really modest. He just said that because he didn''t want to enter the Top Three Schools.


    Wang Yurou glanced at him, surprised. She wondered when Ye Futian became so modest. She knew how arrogant this guy was. Plus, she thought that with his talent, he would have no problem entering the Top Three Schools. He could become a disciple sooner or later.


    "Oh." Wang Yuqing nodded slightly and said to the family leader, "Even if the opponent isn''t strong, fighting across planes is still difficult. If you wish to enter the Top Three Schools, you can go to the Divine Sky City at the beginning of next year and join the exam. You must be mentally prepared though. The exam for any of the schools attract the top youths of the entire eastern part of the Barren State. The battle at Yunyue City can''t compare."


    Wang Yuqing sounded like she was preaching. She was Wang Yurou''s elder sister and was slightly older. She also had a higher plane and was an official disciple of the Top Three Schools. For a young talent who wanted to join the school, this attitude was natural.


    Hearing the family leader''s words, she thought that Ye Futian wanted to join the Top Three Schools and use this chance to meet them.


    "I see." Ye Futian nodded. He didn''t mind Wang Yuqing''s attitude. He knew that Wang Yuqing was speaking the truth too. Divine Sky City was the main city in the area while the Top Three Schools was the gathering place of all the prides. It must have all the elites in the vast Barren State. It wasn''t something that the small Yunyue City could compare too.


    "That''s good too. With Futian''s talent, he would have no problem even if he participated in the exam," the family leader said. He naturally could see that Wang Yuqing wasn''t very interested. It made sense though. The Top Three Schools wasn''t a regular place and his granddaughter was only a regular disciple. She didn''t have that high of a status. Having her recommend Ye Futian might not be that suitable.


    "Oh right, we''ve only been talking about Futian. Yuqing, why did you suddenly return," the family leader asked. Entering the Top Three Schools meant the chance to enter the legendary Sage Plane. Thus, the seniors of Yunyue City''s four forces wouldn''t interfere with the disciples. It was like they''d broken off their past and just focused on cultivation.


    They wouldn''t call their disciples there back even for important things like the battle of the top four. Cultivation resources were important but were incomparable to the disciples cultivating at the Top Three Schools.


    Once one of the forces got a Sage figure first, the battle would be over. It would become meaningless. Furthermore, even if one couldn''t enter that plane, they could at least become a powerful upper-level Noble figure. To them, the battle of the top four was an unimportant mundane matter. After opening up their world, people like Wang Yuqing wouldn''t care anymore. Thus, even though they''d heard that Ye Futian''s performance had been brilliant, Wang Yuqing wasn''t impressed. She only felt that Ye Futian was quite talented and could have a chance if he took the exam. But that was it. She didn''t have to care.


    "The school issued a mission and is coincidentally close to Yunyue City, so we came to visit. It''s not just us. Many more people will come. Shang Yunfeng from the Blazing Sun School has returned too. He should be at the Yunyue Merchant Union right now with many of the other disciples."


    The Top Three Schools of the Divine Sky City were the Blazing Sun School, Bright Moon School, and Starry School. Wang Yuqing was cultivating at the Starry School. Everyone present was the same. They were disciples of the same school.


    The Yunyue Merchant Union also had a disciple cultivating at the Top Three Schools. Shang Yunfeng, whom Wang Yuqing had mentioned, was cultivating at the Blazing Sun School.


    "What mission? Can we help?" the family leader asked. If Wang Yuqing needed the family''s resources, he would give it all.


    "No, we aren''t the main force," Wang Yuqing explained. "Many powerful seniors will come. They are the main figures. We are just following to challenge ourselves and see if we''ll have the chance."


    As one of the top forces, the Top Three Schools had many challenging missions in addition to cultivation.


    "The Evil Dragon?" The family leader''s eyes flashed when he heard Wang Yuqing''s words. If the powerful figures came and were near Yunyue City, it could only be one place��the horrifying Evil Dragon Zone.


    "Yes." Wang Yuqing nodded.


    "Is the sapling grass matured?" the family leader asked. As the leader of a top force in Yunyue City, he obviously knew what the Evil Dragon Zone had. He also knew that the Top Three Schools had their eyes on it. They didn''t want others to get it.


    They were waiting for the sapling grass to mature.


    "No." Wang Yuqing shook her head. "But half a month ago, someone went in first to guard it."


    The family leader was shocked. Someone dared to steal from the predator? Who dared to take what the Top Three Schools wanted?


    "Who''s so brave?" the family leader asked.


    "Don''t know yet, but according to the information, he is at the peak of the Noble Plane. He is handsome and looks scholarly. No one guarding the Evil Dragon Zone is his match, but we don''t know who he is. The information said that he may be a nameless solo cultivator," Wang Yuqing said. "Thus, the people sent this time are mostly at the peak of the Noble Plane, close to the Sage Plane."


    Ye Futian''s expression turned odd at those words. The peak of Noble Plane, handsome, scholarly, nameless solo cultivator�� He thought of someone. It couldn''t be so coincidental, right?


    Yu Sheng clearly thought the same. He glanced at Ye Futian.


    "Does the Evil Dragon Zone really have a dragon?" Ye Futian asked.


    Wang Yuqing glanced at him. The family leader nodded. "There''s a very powerful dragon. Futian, why are you asking?"


    "Nothing, just wondering." Ye Futian smiled and blinked. When he''d been cultivating at the Cottage, he''d wanted to eat dragon meat. "Can I go with you?" Ye Futian asked Wang Yuqing. He wanted to see.


    "What would you do?" Wang Yuqing asked.


    "I''m ignorant and hadn''t seen these things yet. I want to see the world." Ye Futian''s smile was brilliant. His youthful handsome features were very convincing. People would think he was innocent and na?ve.


    Wang Yuqing''s eyes sparkled as she thought.


    "Yuqing, since Futian wants to see, just take him with," the family leader said. "He wants to go to the Divine Sky City too. He can go with you." To him, Wang Yuqing still wasn''t familiar with Ye Futian. If they traveled together, she could see how great he was. They might become close friends and deepen the relationship too.


    Wang Yuqing glanced at her companions. Clearly, she couldn''t decide alone.


    "It''s good to think like that. Seeing the outside world is better than staying here. We can take him," a youth beside her said, smiling. He was Jiang Nan. At the upper Arcana Plane, he was the leader of the Arcana Plane disciples.


    "Since Senior Brother Jiang said so, we will take him to see the outside world." The others nodded.


    Wang Yuqing glanced at Ye Futian. "We can take you, but remember, you must listen to our orders. You can''t make trouble. We are cultivating at the Starry School. If you can enter in the future, we can give you advice."


    "Thank you. When will we leave?" Ye Futian nodded and smiled. He had to be low-key outside.


    "Tomorrow morning," Wang Yuqing said.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. Then he looked to the family leader. "Senior, I might not return after leaving tomorrow. Please take care."


    "Good, you can follow Yuqing to the Divine Sky City." The family leader nodded and smiled. "You will soar after leaving. I anticipate your news."


    "Thank you, senior." Ye Futian raised his glass!

 421 Meet Senior Brother Again

    Chapter 421: Meet Senior Brother Again


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The next morning, a line of figures gathered in Wang Family''s hall, ready to leave. Many Wang Family''s members attended to see off Wang Yuqing and Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s victory in the battle of four forces was a big boon for Wang Family. They could only treat Yang Ting and Yang Yi well to reward Ye Futian since he would not stay here anymore.


    "Brother Ye, you won''t come back anymore, right?" Staring at Ye Futian, Yang Yi was reluctant to say goodbye.


    "How come you think so? Remember, I still want to see your wedding. I will be back if there is a chance. As for you, keep following your master and keep working hard on your cultivation, okay?" Ye Futian smiled at her but he knew that it was less likely for him to come back again. As a small city in Barren State, Yunyue City was just an interlude in his life.


    His target was the Zhongzhou City, the most talent-intensive place of Barren State.


    "It''s not a lie, right?" Yang Yi showed her suspicion. Her ponytail looked very cute.


    "Do I look like a liar?" Ye Futian rubbed her hair lightly and laughed.


    "It''s a deal then." Yang Yi reached out her pinkie.


    "Deal!" Ye Futian also reached out his finger. Yang Yi was finally convinced. Yang Ting witnessed their deal with a smile. He knew that Ye Futian was just comforting Yang Ting. This city was too small for Ye Futian to show his talent.


    "Take care." Yang Ting made a brief farewell. Ye Futian had done too much for him and his sister. He could only keep that gratitude in his heart. They met each other by chance and said to take care of each other, but Ye Futian was always the one to take care of others.


    "Take care." Ye Futian patted Yang Ting''s shoulder lightly. On the Black Wind Eagle''s back, Ye Futian turned to the Wang Family, folded his hands and said goodbye.


    The head of the Wang Family also folded his hands and said, "Hope to hear your name one day."


    "Grandpa, goodbye," said Wang Yuqing. Then the line of figures set out on their journey.


    In the sky, Jiang Nan of the Starry School glanced at Ye Futian in the near distance and smiled at Wang Yuqing. "Your grandpa seemly thinks very highly of him."


    "My grandpa just doesn''t know the strength of the Top Three Schools. It''s not surprising that he said those words," Wang Yuqing responded.


    The head of her family claimed that he hoped to hear Ye Futian''s name in Yunyue City again. If Ye Futian''s name was heard here one day, it meant that he would have stirred the entire east Barren State. Obviously, by saying that, Wang Yuqing''s grandpa hailed Ye Futian''s potential very much.


    "Yes." Jiang Nan nodded with a smile and looked in the distance.


    Standing beside Ye Futian, another disciple of the Starry School noticed the Black Wind Eagle. He asked, "Your eagle flies really fast. Is there anything special about it?"


    "Nothing special. Every time it becomes slow, I just whip it. That''s why it flies so fast," Ye Futian joked. The Black Wind Eagle rolled its eyes and waved its wings violently. It kept speeding up. Ye Futian looked down at his eagle in amazement. Was it provoked?


    That man beside Ye Futian was also surprised. From its appearance, the Black Wind Eagle looked more like a roc. Then he quickly denied it. Black Wind Eagle was just an eagle. Demon beasts were classified by their talents. Eagles would never surpass rocs.


    ��


    Evil Dragon Zone was a vast habitat of many kinds of demon beasts. The periphery was a forest where cultivators came to hunt beasts for riding. The famous Evil Dragon Zone was the central area of the forest. It was where the evil dragon lived. Many cultivators who came here had been killed by the evil dragon. That was how this place was named.


    Arriving at the periphery, Ye Futian''s group found that there were many people in the sky heading toward the forest.


    "Is it dangerous for us to stay here?" Somebody in the sky showed his concern. People flying in this area would very easily be heeded by demon beasts here and become their prey.


    "Don''t worry. The Top Three Schools have removed all the obstacles. This place is for training now. The Evil Dragon Zone might have been segregated from here. It''ll be less threatening in the future," somebody assured the concerned one.


    "The Top Three Schools'' people have been here for a long time. Is it because the Dragon Grass has grown ripe?"


    "Not yet. It is said that a strong foreign cultivator wants to take the Dragon Grass away regardless of the Top Three Schools'' prohibitions. So the Top Three Schools called up many strong cultivators to come."


    "Who is the bold guy?"


    "I don''t know. When we arrive, you will see. The Top Three Schools have been competing with each other all the time. Now there is a foreign cultivator and the evil dragon. We will see a wonderful show!"


    Ye Futian''s group heard the conversations. They kept heading forward. Groups of cultivators constantly came. They could see demon beasts in the forest from time to time. Sometimes, there would be some battles, but they never stopped, heading all the way to the hinterland of the Demon Forest.


    After a long while, they finally set foot in the central region. Various figures had arrived at the mountain area. Wang Yuqing looked toward a direction and said, "There they are."


    They went straight toward that direction. It was a hillside where many people were already there, including a lot of young disciples from the Starry School.


    The Top Three Schools had many disciples. Those disciples who had visited the Wang Family on their way were the ones Wang Yuqing was familiar with. Those she was unfamiliar with came here directly.


    "Master Yun," they called a senior in the distance. That senior turned to them and nodded slightly. He didn''t recognize some of these young men. But since they called him Master Yun, he guessed they must be students from the Starry School.


    "Jiang Nan, you have been to the Wang Family. Why are there some new faces?" At this time, an enchanting woman of about 25 or 26 years old noticed Ye Futian''s group.


    "The youth of the Wang Family would like to come for broadening their horizon. So we came together," said Jiang Nan.


    "So you even begin to take care of her family." The woman smiled and looked at Wang Yuqing and Jiang Nan meaningfully.


    "Li Man, you are really talkative." Wang Yuqing responded coldly.


    "Little brother, are you twenty now? This is a dangerous place. Do you need me to take care of you?" Li Man looked at Ye Futian and giggled. This woman was a little different from others. She had a perfect figure. Though not as beautiful as Wang Yuqing, her every move was full of charm. She was even more attractive.


    "I''m not that young." Ye Futian was a bit annoyed�� He was being flirted with.


    "What a pretty boy!" Li Man exclaimed with a smile. Ye Futian was speechless. This was always a good-looking man''s trouble.


    "Li Man, can''t you just be serious?" grumbled a young man beside her.


    "It''s none of your business," Li Man responded coldly.


    That young man glared at Ye Futian and scolded, "This is our trial. Why would those outsiders be here? You''d better ask them to behave themselves."


    "I''ll be with them," said Wang Yuqing lightly.


    Ye Futian became more morose. He just took all the blame at once. Relations between people could be very complex.


    Li Man was a charming woman. Seeing Li Man flirting with him, the youth scolded immediately. He seemly had a crush on her. What a shame! She was flirtatious while he was serious. It might be difficult for them to be together.


    Looking at the distance, Ye Futian found that there were many people on other mountains. There was an extremely high mountain before them. Various demon beasts hovered at the slope. It looked like a confrontation between man and beast.


    A scary demon aura pervaded the huge mountain. Many visitors were terrified at the scene. Only the Top Three Schools dared to blockade this place.


    If the Top Three Schools were not here, they would not have come at all. That evil dragon was in the cave. Obviously, it also knew that it was besieged.


    Ye Futian looked around and saw there was an isolated peak in the distance towering into the sky. It looked quite lonely. At the top of it, there was a figure sitting with his legs crossed and meditating.


    The figure in white sat silently as if he was a part of the hill already. He had a handsome face. Sitting there quietly made him look like a sage.


    "Is he the one coming for the Dragon Grass?" Jiang Nan asked, looking at the hill''s top.


    "Yes." Master Yun nodded.


    "Even your strength is not enough to handle him?" Jiang Nan was amazed.


    The old man shook his head and said, "This man is extremely talented. His strength is much stronger. No wardens of the Top Three Schools could defeat him, needless to say me. Otherwise, there won''t be so many people of the Top Three Schools gathering here."


    Jiang Nan nodded slightly. Looking at that figure, Wang Yuqing couldn''t help exclaim, "What an extraordinary temperament he has!"


    "Master Yun, is there any chance that he could join our Starry School?" Li Man stared at that figure and asked. What a gorgeous man! Sitting at the hill''s top alone, he looked so charismatic. He even dared to steal from them. That was so hot!


    People around her rolled their eyes. This woman was captivated again. But that was normal for Li Man.


    "Generally, cultivators like him think things in a different way. He has such strength and talent. It''s not necessary for him to join any groups. We have nothing to teach him either," Master Yun explained.


    "What a pity!" Li Man murmured gloomily. She looked at people around and quipped, "Why don''t you have that kind of temperament?"


    Seeing Ye Futian, her eyes brightened. "You are as handsome as him, but your temperament is weaker. It''s okay. You are so young. I can train you."


    Ye Futian became totally speechless.


    He was not angry though. If it were others, he would take it amiss. But as his third senior brother, Gu Dongliu was always handsome like this.


    As he had expected before, the one at the top of the hill was exactly the Cottage''s third disciple, Gu Dongliu. He came to the Barren State for training and now he was here at the Evil Dragon Zone.


    Naturally, Ye Futian wouldn''t admit that he knew the robber in such a circumstance. His third senior brother was going to grab the Top Three Schools'' heirloom. Ye Futian wouldn''t recognize his senior brother at this moment. He was not that stupid.

 422 Fight for I

    Chapter 422: Fight for It


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian''s eyes later focused on another hill. There, an icy glare swept towards him. It was Shang Hai from the Yunyue Merchant Union.


    Shang Hai clenched his fists. His eyes were extremely cold and filled with murderous intent. After the battle of the top four forces, he''d been neglected by his family. His status had plummeted. During this time, his cousin Shang Yunfeng returned. He begged his uncle to come out and practice with Shang Yunfeng. They had been close when they were young. Thus, Shang Yunfeng took him along. He prepared to leave his family forever and follow his cousin to the Divine Sky City. Even if he wasn''t talented enough to enter the Top Three Schools, he would still rather make a living in the Divine Sky City instead of home. He knew his grandfather didn''t like him anymore. He wouldn''t have his previous status.


    "What are you looking at?" an older youth beside Shang Hai asked. Following his gaze, he looked at Ye Futian''s location. "Those are from the Starry School. Wang Yuqing from the Wang Family is cultivating there. You must have met them before."


    "The people beside Wang Yuqing are Ye Futian''s group," Shang Hai said coldly.


    Shang Yunfeng''s eyes flashed as he scanned Ye Futian''s group. His expression was calm. After returning, he''d heard that his family had been defeated miserably in the battle. He was curious. It seemed that the Yunyue City still had some talented people.


    "He''s following Wang Yuqing. It seems that he wants to use Wang Yuqing to enter the Starry School. But the Top Three Schools isn''t that easy to get into. Wang Yuqing is an average disciple. She isn''t that powerful," Shang Yunfeng said. "Since he''s here, I can help you kill him when the chance comes. I can take revenge for you."


    "He''s with the Starry School. Will that cause trouble?" Shang Hai asked.


    "He''s not a disciple. There''s nothing troublesome," Shang Yunfeng said calmly. The Top Three Schools had a special status in the eastern Barren State. What was wrong with killing an unimportant figure?


    Wang Yuqing and Ye Futian''s group also noticed Shang Yunfeng and Shang Hai. Wang Yuqing told Ye Futian, "That''s Shang Yunfeng from the Yunyue Merchant Union. He''s from the Blazing Sun School."


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded and looked away from Shang Yunfeng. Clearly, he didn''t care. As for Shang Hai, his eyes were extremely sharp. He couldn''t hide the murderous intent and kept staring.


    Ye Futian coolly gazed at Shang Hai and looked to the Beast Mountain. "What kind of herb is the dragon protecting that the top three forces have come?"


    "The Dragon Grass is born with a dragon and needs to be nurtured with dragon blood," Wang Yuqing said. "Filled with the essence of nature, this grass is extremely fragile. Only a dragon can grow it. Thus, the Top Three Schools never touched the dragon. They just guard it so others can''t take it."


    "What is it used for?" Ye Futian asked. Since his third senior brother wanted it, it must be beneficial towards his cultivation.


    "It can raise a dragon''s wisdom. For cultivators, it can strengthen one''s spiritual energy. For powerful Nobles, not only does it raise their spiritual energy, it can also increase their perception of Spiritual Qi."


    "In other words, if a low-level sorcerer uses Dragon Grass, they can possibly break into the next level? And a high-level cultivator increases their perception, so they can also enter the next level?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You can say that." Wang Yuqing nodded. "In addition, if the Dragon Grass is matured, the demons that guard here can benefit too."


    Ye Futian gazed at the countless demon beasts on the mountain before him. As demons became higher level, their intelligence would increase too. Noble demons could even speak in human tongue.


    The Dragon Grass could raise their intelligence. No wonder it created such a crazy situation.


    "So what will we do now?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Wait. The promised day is tomorrow. The strong cultivators of the Top Three Schools should arrive soon," Wang Yuqing said. Ye Futian nodded and stopped asking. He just waited quietly.


    Cultivators not from the Top Three Schools were waiting too. They mostly came today to watch and see if they could benefit in some way. The Top Three Schools cared about the herb. But to the other people, even the corpses of the demons were precious. Of course, some wanted to capture a beast to ride too.


    Four hours later, more strong cultivators descended. Their auras were terrifying. They looked around and landed directly somewhere. The strong cultivators of the Blazing Sun School had arrived soon.


    After, the strong cultivators from the other schools arrived too and landed in their respective camps.


    "Mu Shi and Senior Brother Tan are here."


    The people of the Starry School were surprised. Of the two at the head of the incoming group, one was older and one was younger. The older was Master Mu, a famous elder at the Starry School.


    The younger wore a headpiece. His aura was extraordinary. This was Tan Zhong, a popular genius disciple of the school. Today, he came with Master Mu to the Dragon Zone. It seemed that the Starry School would definitely get the Dragon Grass.


    Of course, the Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School were powerful too. Clearly, this fight would be intense.


    "Him?" Tan Zhong asked, looking up at Gu Dongliu on the lonely mountain.


    "Yes." Master Yun nodded.


    Tan Zhong gazed up and said loudly, "The Dragon Grass has long been discovered and protected by the Top Three Schools. No matter who you are, please leave now and everything will be alright."


    There was barely anybody in the eastern Barren State who dared to anger the Top Three Schools.


    On the mountain, Gu Dongliu opened his dark and deep eyes. He looked at the Starry School and asked, "Did the Top Three Schools plant it?"


    Tan Zhong furrowed his brows. Someone from the Blazing Sun School said, "No, but we''ve protected it for many days. It naturally belongs to us."


    "It grew naturally and you haven''t taken it yet. Why does it belong to you? According to your logic, if I stand guard outside the Top Three Schools for many days, will the school become mine?" Gu Dongliu asked the Blazing Sun School. His voice was emotionless. He was just stating facts.


    The people of the Top Three Schools frowned and their expressions turned cold. It seemed that this man was set on stealing the herb.


    "This has nothing to do with you," Tan Zhong said coldly. "If you don''t leave, be prepared for the consequences.


    Gu Dongliu looked away from the Top Three Schools.


    At this time, there was suddenly a dragon''s roar from the mountain''s peak. It shook the sky. A burst of demonic aura surged forth. Everyone saw a huge dragon in the sky. Its cold eyes gazed at them.


    It was a black demon dragon while its large body shone with dark gold light. It looked even more menacing and terrible. Its eyes were filled with aggressive light. The Dragon Grass was close to maturing now and these damn human cultivators wanted to steal it. They were horrible.


    "There seems to be a cave there." Ye Futian looked at the dragon. It had come from inside the mountain.


    "If anyone takes my Dragon Grass, I will destroy it." This dragon actually spoke in the human tongue. Its voice was frigid and vaguely threatening. It knew what the humans wanted so it threatened them with it."


    "It''s yours if we don''t take it. Even if you destroy it when we take it, we can still take your corpse away. How should we choose?" a strong cultivator said coldly as he looked at the dragon. "You have committed sins. If you leave voluntarily and scram off to the demon region, we can spare your life."


    With that, strong cultivators stepped into the air and rose up to the mountain''s peak. Someone looked at Gu Dongliu and asked coldly, "Are you sure you''re not going scram?"


    Gu Dongliu opened his eyes and looked coolly at the other. He remained sitting there, unmoved.


    "Take care of him first," someone said.


    Then there was a sun in the air. An elder from the Blazing Sun School wielded a sun sword. Sunlight splashed down and reflected on the sword. It sliced down on Gu Dongliu. Fiery sword light appeared in the air, burning everything.


    The attack was extremely fast. Gu Dongliu stood up at some point and stepped forward. His feet glowed brilliantly and his body flashed like lightning, immediately teleporting.


    The sword fell down, splitting the mountain. The entire peak burned with flames from that crack, but Gu Dongliu still stood quietly to the side.


    The strong cultivator with the sword sun kept striking. This time, beams of sunlight pierced through the sky, sealing that space.


    Gu Dongliu''s body transformed into afterimages. His feet shone brightly and his footsteps were thunderous. He streaked among the sunlight and his techniques were amazing.


    "Such precise steps," someone praised. Ye Futian knew that it was their teacher''s Thunder Shadow Steps. He was also cultivating it.


    The Blazing Sun School''s cultivator kept attacking, but Gu Dongliu just dodged instead of fighting back. Seeing this, the strong cultivator frowned. "His body is very agile. It''s very hard to kill him if he dodges. We can''t waste more time. Each school send one person to stop him and then kill him."


    The Top Three Schools had no objections. A strong cultivator walked out from each school and faced Gu Dongliu. The others kept pressing up towards the mountain.


    "We will attack from the middle," a Noble from the Starry School said.


    The strong cultivators had to deal with the dragon without completely angering it. Otherwise, it would destroy the Dragon Grass and everything would have been in vain.


    "Follow closely," Jiang Nan said. Then Wang Yuqing and Ye Futian''s group walked forward, running straight for the demon beasts in the mountain. The other disciples of the other two schools also prepared to enter the middle of the mountain. The Dragon Grass was growing there!

 423 Dragon Residency

    Chapter 423: Dragon Residency


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The strong cultivators of the Top Three Schools led the way to the mountain. Descending from above, there was a horrible demonic aura. Various demons guarded the cave, roaring at the people. There were many demon kings present, commanding the demons.


    "Kill. Other than the Dragon Grass, anything you take is yours," someone from the Starry School said. Demons grouped in this mountain and there were demon kings guarding it. There was also a horrible dragon close to the Sage Plane. There must be some precious items inside.


    As soon as he spoke, there were Noble cultivators killing towards the Noble demon kings. Spiritual Qi went crazy and spells swept through the sky.


    Strong cultivators from the Top Three Schools all started attacking from different places.


    "I''ve warned you of the dangers before. Since you wanted to come see, you must be responsible for your own consequences. I am busy and can''t take care of you," Wang Yuqing told Ye Futian''s group. "Of course, you can leave before it''s too late." With that, she walked forward, going to kill the demons on the slope with the Starry School cultivators.


    Beside Ye Futian, the Black Wind Eagle flapped its wings, wanting to try. Ye Futian gazed at it. "Calm down. It''s not your time to show off yet."


    At Ye Futian''s scolding, the Black Wind Eagle lowered its head sadly. It looked dejected.


    "Yu Sheng, Wuchen, Loulan, come with me to hunt some upper-Arcana demons. I want live ones," Ye Futian murmured. The others nodded. They started walking in the air towards the slope. They released their auras. Loulan Xue''s cultivation was the highest. She was in the mid-Arcana Plane.


    Back when Ye Futian''s group had just entered the Dharma Plane and entered the Loulan Relic, Loulan Xue had already been at the peak of the Dharma Plane. She was able to fight with Li Daoyun and get the Sage Book from the Empress. Her cultivation obviously wouldn''t be lower.


    Now, the Sage Book was already part of her dharma.


    Before them, Wang Yuqing was already fighting on the mountain. She killed a demon and looked back at Ye Futian''s group. They weren''t weak, but their planes were a bit too low. It was still dangerous. She''d thought that Ye Futian''s group would give up.


    Boom. An icy arrow shot towards Ye Futian''s group. Yu Sheng stepped forward and punched. The icy arrow instantly shattered. Then a snowy white ice wolf pounced towards them. The coldness froze the air into frost. This demon wolf was in the mid-Arcana Plane. Seeing that Ye Futian''s group was weaker, it dared to come over.


    "Don''t keep those under the upper-Arcana Plane," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng punched and broke the ice wolf''s claws with brute force. Then he ripped its head apart.


    The group advanced and continuously killed demons. When they stepped onto the mountain, they heard many booms. A horrible stone ape was striding over. It was huge with horrible strength. Using its aggressive power, it slapped towards Ye Futian''s group with a terrifying pressure.


    Demons were good with Spiritual Qi and knew how to cultivate. They had inherited skills and knew some spells. The more intelligent the demon, the more powerful they were. When they reached the level of demon kings, they could learn human spells.


    Yu Sheng''s body glowed with golden light. Demonic intent wrapped around. The Demonic Tripod appeared in his hands. It enlarged and he slammed it towards the stone ape.


    Boom. With the loud sound, the stone ape''s arm shook and forced Yu Sheng away with the Demonic Tripod. After all, he was in the lower-Arcana Plane. The difference in plane was too much. He was naturally weaker here.


    Loulan Xue gripped her icy scepter and walked forward. Endless snow flew towards the stone ape. The iciness covered it immediately, making it into a huge statue-like thing. At the same time, Ye Futian''s golden vines snaked up, tying around the stone ape.


    The stone ape was extremely violent. It raised a hand and grabbed them. His harsh eyes were filled with wildness.


    "Blind one of its eyes," Ye Futian said coldly. This demon was too wild.


    Loulan Xue released her dharma. A snowy mountain appeared behind her as if there was a mysterious apparition. She reached out her icy scepter. Endless icy intent descended, covering the surroundings in white frost. Ye Futian felt his movements slow. Thankfully, this spell was targeted at the stone ape. It didn''t affect him that much.


    The stone ape''s body turned white. Its arm slowed down.


    Then Ye Futian flashed. He unsheathed a soft sword. Its light was cold and reflected in the stone ape''s eyes. The stone ape grabbed at the sword in its eyes. It thought that it grabbed it, but then felt something extremely dangerous. With a squelch, blood flowed out and its vision blurred.


    There was a shocking roar. The stone ape grasped its eyes, its hands dyed red.


    Icy intent was still descending on him while golden vines wrapped around its neck. It roared and moved its hands. But it saw a youth with a sharp sword close to him. The sword light pressed down. Above its head, there was someone with a Demonic Tripod that could fall down at any time.


    "Submit or die," Ye Futian said coldly. After that, his eyes turned very strange. His orbs were like a boundless abyss. They seemed to transform into a bottomless storm that people would drown inside. The stone ape felt its spiritual intent get swept into that storm. A hallucination appeared in its mind. Ye Futian''s figure seemed to become extremely huge before it.


    Its burly body trembled. It wanted to fight back, but it felt an intent snake into his mind. It told him that if it fought back, he would die.


    The stone ape lowered its head. It knew that it would definitely die if it fought back. A spiritual mark was planted in its mind. It knew then that its life didn''t belong to itself anymore.


    "Lay down," Ye Futian ordered. The stone ape immediately followed the order.


    Loulan Xue had a strange expression. Ye Futian was a beast trainer too? He hadn''t displayed that kind of talent before.


    Even Ye Wuchen didn''t know this. It was his first time seeing Ye Futian train a beast.


    The Black Wind Eagle flew wildly before hem, crashing against other demon beasts. Its opened wings covered the sky, almost purposely blocking the scene. They were in the back. Everyone else was going towards the middle of the mountain. No one would notice.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian continued staying in the back and looked for upper-Arcana Plane demons.


    Ye Wuchen and Loulan Xue vaguely understood Ye Futian''s plan. It seemed that Ye Futian wanted the Dragon Grass too. Otherwise, he wouldn''t be controlling demon beasts here. They were both lower in number and cultivation plane. If they really wanted to get the Dragon Grass, they wouldn''t be able to fight at all. Clearly, Ye Futian was planning.


    He clearly had thoughts. He had the same opinion as Gu Dongliu. He didn''t care about the Top Three Schools. Since this herb was natural and so valuable, why wouldn''t he fight for it if he had the chance?


    The Dragon Grass fight might not have anything to do with them, but no one knew about the future. It was better to be prepared. Even if they couldn''t use the beasts, it was still protection. Shang Hai really wanted to kill him and he had the Blazing Sun School with him.


    The strong cultivators of the Top Three Schools continued forward. Ye Futian''s group purposely hung back. Many demon beasts pounced and all who were below the Arcana Plane were killed immediately.


    Their planes weren''t high, but they worked together seamlessly. Even demons in the upper-Arcana Plane were quickly taken. Gradually, demons were controlled by Ye Futian. Some lay down while others remained in the demons beasts, but they didn''t chase the Top Three Schools.


    Boom. A huge explosion came from the mountain. Ye Futian''s group looked up. They saw that the mountain had been exploded by the Noble figure. The mountain was actually hollow.


    Some Noble figures flashed and rushed inside. There were many horrifying beastly roars. Some Nobles were actually blown out. Some were even covered in blood and had menacing claw marks on their bodies. They were greatly injured.


    "Be careful!" someone roared. Various horrible demon kings walked out of the mountain. They gazed coldly at the crowd and guarded the place.


    "Enter! It''s empty!" someone said. Everyone agreed and their bodies glowed. They crashed directly toward the mountain. Countless figures passed into the mountain.


    Boom, boom, boom�� The stone cracked open continuously as people from the Top Three Schools entered the mountain.


    Ye Futian''s group was behind them. After the Starry School opened up the mountain and entered, they quickly entered as well.


    It was indeed empty inside. The vast space was brilliant and filled with Spiritual Qi. The glow lit up the entire mountain.


    Ye Futian looked down and saw piles of spiritual stones. There were also rare gems and ritual implements like small hills.


    "This��" Ye Futian was quite speechless. This was an entire dragon residence and it was so opulent. The dragon was too rich.


    "It''s rumored that dragons are greedy and like treasures. Seems to be true," someone said coldly. They looked up. There was a dazzling jade stone with an herb growing. It snaked upwards in a dragon-shape and shone like a rainbow. The Spiritual Qi around it was extremely thick.


    "Dragon Grass." Everyone looked there. There were a few horrible demons guarding it!

 424 Start Fighting

    Chapter 424: Start Fighting


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian scanned the Dragon Grass and instantly realized that it had nothing to do with him for now. The Top Three Schools were fighting at the top of the mountain. The strong cultivators who''d rushed in were busy with each other. In addition, there were the powerful demon kings guarding the Dragon Grass. Even though it was tempting, going now would be suicide.


    He scanned the piles of treasures on the bottom, lighting up the mountain. His eyes brightened. Body flashing, he went downward. Many others had noticed this too. Disciples from the Top Three Schools went down to the treasures. Some had already started sweeping through.


    Activating his Freedom Meditation, Ye Futian''s eyes turned brilliant. He gazed downward and his vision cleared. His senses sharpened. Instantly, different colors entered his eyes. All the treasures contained powerful Spiritual Qi.


    "What''s that?" Ye Futian looked in the corner. There was a ring there. It shone faintly with purple light, along with a tinge of gold. It was extremely beautiful, but it looked more like jewelry so no one noticed it. Most were going after ritual implements and other treasures.


    Spiritual Qi seeped out. Ye Futian felt that this gem was quite special. However, his spiritual energy reached an obstacle. Something like a seal was stopping him from entering.


    A strand of emperor''s intent reached out, attacking that seal and erasing it. As if something had shattered, Ye Futian''s spiritual energy actually entered a unique space. There were many spiritual stones inside, as well as spell scrolls and other gems.


    Ye Futian''s body flashed. He picked up the ring. He obviously knew what this was.


    This gem contained spatial power. These kinds were very rare. A usual alchemist couldn''t make it. It also required special material. The owner of this ring must be a powerful figure of high status. Otherwise, he wouldn''t have something like it. But the ring was in this dragon residence. This meant that the dragon had probably killed the ring''s owner.


    This dragon had so many treasures but didn''t even look at them. This fetish was a bit��


    As for the ritual implements, Ye Futian didn''t care. They had a bunch of good ritual implements. With this ring, they wouldn''t have to burden the Black Wind Eagle anymore either. It was useful.


    There were still many demons coming over. Outside the dragon residence, the demons kept rushing over. Their numbers grew.


    The disciples of the Top Three Schools went to meet them while Ye Futian''s group stayed in the back. With the others there, they naturally didn''t have to do anything.


    Battles had erupted in the air around the Dragon Grass too. The Nobles clashed with the demons protecting the herb. The world shook and the auras in the place went wild.


    "You really know how to hide. You keep in the back and pick up all the treasures," someone from the Starry School said, gazing at Ye Futian''s group.


    "They''re really here just to watch," Jiang Nan said coolly.


    "Our plane is too low and we can''t really help," Ye Futian said, smiling without minding.


    Wang Yuqing didn''t say anything. She hadn''t expected Ye Futian to do anything and just brought him here to watch.


    "Little brother, do you want to come with me?" Li Man grinned at Ye Futian.


    "No need." Ye Futian shook his head. Li Man smiled and went for some demons.


    But then, a few figures came towards Ye Futian''s group. They were Shang Yunfeng and Shang Hai. The dragon residency was very chaotic now. No one would notice things here.


    "I heard that you were very powerful during the battle of the top four," Shang Yunfeng said to them.


    Ye Futian glanced at Shang Hai. "Young Master Shang, where''s the arrogance you had at the White Jade Tower? Now you''re using a senior brother to deal with me?"


    Shang Hai''s expression was uncomfortable. He knew this wasn''t honorable. Ye Futian was both younger than him and had a lower cultivation. He and Shang Qing had been so aggressive at the White Jade Tower. Now, he was using his cousin to kill Ye Futian. It was indeed embarrassing.


    Of course, Shang Hai wouldn''t admit it. He said coldly, "Why did you come here? It''s suicide."


    Ye Futian smiled at Shang Yunfeng and Shang Hai. Then he said to his people, "Retreat."


    He moved back as soon as he spoke, preparing to retreat out of the mountain.


    "You want to go?" Shang Yunfeng smirked. His body flashed and turned into an extremely fast shadow.


    Whoosh�� Sword light cut across to Shang Yunfeng like lightning. There was a blur in his eyes. Shang Yunfeng scoffed. He raised his hand towards the sword light, but then he felt danger. The sword was faster than what he saw and misled him. There was a flash of gold and he was instantly bathed in golden light. The sword cut near his eyes, but the armor stopped it. However, his head still shook and his steps slowed. His expression turned uncomfortable.


    The swordsmanship was so strange. The cultivation was much lower, but he''d almost gotten hit. The eyes were a cultivator''s weakest part. Even a lower-Arcana Plane sword that hit his eyes could blind him.


    Shang Yunfeng vaguely figured out how these people could succeed in the battle of the top four. This mere sword was incredible.


    Boom. There was a horrible golden flash that bathed Shang Yunfeng. He was like a statue of gold. He stepped out again like a golden bolt of lightning going after Ye Futian with extreme speed.


    Yu Sheng threw the Demonic Tripod down at Shang Yunfeng. The power was shocking, but Shang Yunfeng''s golden body crashed against it. There was a horrible shake. Yu Sheng and the Demonic Tripod were forced away.


    Shang Yunfeng grabbed the air. Instantly, horrible pressure fell upon them. The gold windstorm vaguely turned into a golden tripod. It spun wildly and pressed down.


    Yu Sheng''s Demonic Tripod enlarged and he pushed it against the incoming golden tripod. His body shook violently again. Shang Yunfeng was getting closer.


    Ye Futian threw out a spell scroll. Instantly, horrible thunder and lightning destroyed everything. It hit Shang Yunfeng directly, numbing his nerves. He shook and his steps stopped involuntarily. Ye Futian''s group continued retreating to a cave.


    "Go." Ye Futian glanced at Shang Yunfeng. The group retreated and Shang Yunfeng didn''t pursue them. He looked up at the Dragon Grass.


    The Dragon Grass was dazzling. The strong cultivators from the Top Three Schools couldn''t defeat the demons and were still intensely at war. At the mountaintop, they saw the dragon there. The Top Three Schools didn''t hurry. Their people were below them. As long as they could stop the dragon, they could still get the Dragon Grass.


    Ye Futian was outside the mountain. Demon beasts rushed into the dragon residence and also at him. His eyes turned demonic. He continuously controlled them and made them act as his eyes.


    "What will we do now?" Ye Wuchen asked.


    "Wait. It''s okay if there''s no chance. If there''s a chance, I''ll go steal the Dragon Grass while you all protect me. I need to control more demons now." Ye Futian continued to control demons. This time, it wasn''t only those in the upper-Arcana Plane. He controlled those from other planes too.


    The strong cultivators here were very patient. Ye Futian was patient too. He stayed outside, waiting for a chance.


    The battle inside continued. Many demons were killed while some strong cultivators were injured. The fight between the demon kings and Noble figures were even worse.


    As time passed, the Dragon Grass on the gem-like rock glowed even more brilliantly. In the sky, sunlight passed through everything to fall upon the Dragon Grass. Spiritual Qi went wild. As if they would be swallowed, they rushed towards the Dragon Grass.


    Dazzling light lit up the entire sky.


    "The Dragon Grass is mature." The eyes of the people from the Top Three Schools flashed. Icy spells descended and sealed the earth. The entire mountain seemed to be buried by spells. The huge dragon was frozen too. Its movements slowed.


    Vines covering the sky wrapped around the dragon. But then it roared and everything shattered. The mountains shook for it.


    It turned and entered the mountain. Its huge eyes stared at the Dragon Grass, wanting to eat it now.


    A golden rope instantly wrapped around its huge body. Then it transformed into extremely sharp blades, slicing at its skin. The scales broke and it started bleeding.


    "Come back," an icy voice said. The dragon was pulled back roughly. It roared in anger and the mountain rumbled. Stones fell towards the dragon residence.


    "If you dare do anything, I''ll destroy it all." The dragon looked furiously at the human cultivators. The mountain was still shaking as he spoke. The rumbles went on endlessly. It seemed that if he wanted, he could destroy this entire mountain and bury the Dragon Grass.


    "Bastard." The rope was sharper than knives, but the dragon broke it apart. The people in the sky didn''t dare move.


    Inside the mountain, everyone had gone for the Dragon Grass. It was mature now, so there were no more worries. They would get it.


    Ye Futian saw it all through the demons he controlled, but he still didn''t act recklessly. He was waiting for the demons and Top Three Schools disciples to clash violently.


    Many beasts flew towards Ye Futian''s direction, covering the sky.


    Ye Futian took out a spell treasure from his bag. It was a silver cape. Putting it on, the cape covered his body. At the same time, a strange power ran over him. It changed his temperament, even changing his features.


    "It''s your time to show off," Ye Futian said, patting the Black Wind Eagle''s head.

 425 Death of Shang Hai

    On the peak of the mountain, the demonic dragon was using its huge body to block the entrance. Around the dragon, many dazzling figures were standing and staring coldly at it. Suddenly, the mountain trembled, as if it was going to collapse soon. The dragon knew that it was no match for so many cultivators and thus used this to threaten the rest.


    Gu Dongliu was standing not far away and he was being intercepted by three powerful cultivators.


    "If you scram now, we can still spare your life. Why do you have to find trouble yourself?" a cultivator from Blazing Sun School warned the dragon.


    The demonic dragon only stared back at the cultivator coldly. It had been the king of this vast region for its whole life and had been commanding the other demons. Never had it suffered such a humiliation. It was a proud dragon, after all, and had been protecting for many years the Dragon Grass which was nurtured by its blood essence. Why would it give the treasure to these cultivators for free? The arrogant dragon clearly could not take such humiliation. Moreover, these cultivators actually believed that the people below could obtain the Dragon Grass. How funny.


    The cultivators from the three schools stared coldly at the dragon, but they were not in a hurry. The people from the three schools had already broken into the mountain. Once they obtained the Dragon Grass, the rest could slay the evil dragon directly. In this way, the Dragon Grass would not be damaged. The Top Three Schools could then discuss who would eventually get the treasure.


    At the moment, an intense battle was happening in the Dragon House. Everyone wanted to obtain the Dragon Grass first. Even some demon kings became greedy and wanted to get the treasure, causing a wild battle to erupt between all the people and demons around the Dragon Grass. Countless people were injured as a result.


    On the other hand, the Dragon Grass was still wildly engulfing the Spiritual Qi around it like a black hole as if it was trying to suck all the Spiritual Qi in the world. The dragon-shaped grass swayed in the air. Finally, a cultivator and a demon managed to break through many obstacles and approach the Dragon Grass. The person reached out his hand towards the Dragon Grass, while the demon also extended its claws. Noticing the scene, all the nobles started to charge towards them. However, suddenly, the Dragon Grass started swinging.


    Sizzle... Flame red radiance erupted from the Dragon Grass and an illusory fire dragon actually appeared, charging into the foreheads of the noble and the demon king in an instant. Then, both of them gave a miserable cry, after which they covered their heads with their hands and backed off quickly. Soon, they collapsed onto the ground and their wills were severely damaged.


    An illusory dragon appeared on the Dragon Grass and scanned around it with a cold look.


    "That dragon attached its will onto the grass so that it can use its power to initiate spiritual attacks." The people in the Dragon House were all astonished. The dragon was indeed cunning and had actually left such a surprise.


    The illusory dragon stared coldly at the crowd. Then, the Dragon Grass continued swinging. Many terrifying illusory figures erupted from the grass and charged towards the nobles and greedy demon kings which actually dared to disobey its orders. Did they think that the dragon had been nurturing the Dragon Grass for nothing?


    The nobles and demon kings who were still battling saw the attacks charging towards them and their expressions changed at once. They tried to escape, but the frightening spiritual attacks were unavoidable. The attacks charged into their minds directly, causing many people to fall onto the ground.


    "I''ll kill everyone who dares to try and take the grass," the illusory dragon said coldly, but it was already becoming blurry. The many cultivators and demons around stared at the figure above the Dragon Grass. Then, a noble who was lying on the ground said, "It''s going to disappear soon. Take the grass."


    The disciples of the Top Three Schools walked up one after another. Finally, a brave person cast a spell at the Dragon Grass. A brilliant radiance was released from the swaying Dragon Grass, incinerating the wood-elemental spell. However, the illusory figure seemed to be too weak to cast another attack.


    "Let''s go." Seeing that the threat was gone, the disciples of the three schools walked forward towards the Dragon Grass. Immediately, many spells swept toward the grass simultaneously. A cultivator also used a wind-elemental spell to get closer to the grass. However, when he approached the Dragon Grass, many spells flew towards him directly, causing to he to be blown away in severe injury.


    Then, a few cultivators who tried to get closer to the Dragon Grass were hit as well. When all the spells had been cast, the disciples of the three schools stood in a circle around the Dragon Grass.


    They would attack anyone who tried to approach the grass.


    Around them, there were still demons charging towards them continuously. The battle had never once paused.


    Suddenly, a loud rumbling was heard and many demons charged out from the caves. They actually charged towards the Dragon Grass at the same time. Meanwhile, a completely black demonic bird enveloped in terrifying Demonic Will charged out from somewhere like a bolt of lightning. On the back of the bird, there was a mysterious figure covered in a silver cloak.


    At the moment, the mysterious figure was sitting down cross-legged on the back of the bird. His fingers stroked on his guqin and a powerful music was released.


    "Who are you?" The cultivators from the Top Three Schools all frowned. The person did not seem to be a member of the three schools. They had not seen him earlier and he suddenly appeared here, so it was likely that he had been hiding somewhere near all along.


    The music suddenly turned sonorous and caused everyone listening to feel annoyed and manic. When the demons around heard the music, they started to roar wildly, as if they had turned insane. A group of demons started charging towards the crowd directly.


    A monstrous stone ape descended from the sky along with a terrifying aura towards the crowd. Some spells flew towards the ape, but they were crushed directly. Its enormous body continued falling down.


    At the same time, many powerful demons attacked simultaneously, as if they had an unspoken agreement.


    "How dare you!"


    A person turned into a bolt of lightning and with an incredible speed, he passed through all the demons. Then, he struck out his sword towards the person in a silver cloak on the back of the demonic bird.


    The person in the silver cloak was clearly Ye Futian. The cloak he was wearing was given to him by the king of Liu. Ye Futian, however, did not even seem to have noticed the incoming attacker at all. An extremely dazzling golden radiance was released from Ye Futian''s body as his fingers stroked across the strings of his guqin. Music erupted and charged into the mind of the attacker directly, severing injuring his Spiritual Will. The attacker went blank momentarily and even his sword was tilted.


    With an astonishing speed, the demonic bird turned into a black bolt of lightning. At the instant when the attacker was stunned, it struck out with its sharp claws, causing the attacker to fly out.


    The demonic bird was precisely the Black Wind Condor. At the moment, its eyes were filled with darkness. As it glanced at the crowd with its frightening eyes, everyone could feel an appalling Demonic Will.


    The radiance around Ye Futian grew brighter as if he was being showered in divinity. His temperament was particularly outstanding, but his music was like the howls of demons, causing everyone to feel manic. The demons around him had all gone insane.


    "Beastmaster..." Everyone''s face darkened. The mysterious person could actually control the demons with music.


    "Stop him!" an injured noble shouted. Everyone could feel the threat of Ye Futian and the demonic bird.


    The disciples from the Top Three Schools dashed towards Ye Futian one after another. However, many powerful Upper Arcana Plane demons surrounded Ye Futian, helping him to pave the way. At the moment, Ye Futian was partially burning Emperor Will and even his blood seemed to be boiling. This was indeed a very rare chance. If he could get the Dragon Grass, everything would be worth it. Even if he could not, he believed that his third brother would still be able to bring him to safety.


    Just like what he thought, when Gu Dongliu heard the music inside the mountain, he knew that it was Ye Futian. A dazzling light glittered on Gu Dongliu''s body as he released his Life Spirit and Dharma. Nine eye-catching characters circled around his body, causing the three people intercepting him to become tense immediately. Was he going to make his move?


    However, although Gu Dongliu had released his strong aura, he did not make any attack. Since little brother was inside, Gu Dongliu believed that he could settle everything in the mountain. All that Gu Dongliu had to do was to keep a close watch on the situation on his side.


    Ye Futian rode on the demonic bird and many demons charged towards the crowd. Many spells flew towards him, but he only played the guqin in silence. His temperament was superior, while his music was violent and sometimes sharp, bringing pain to the cultivators attacking him.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Violent collisions could be heard continuously. A group of cultivators from Starry School charged towards Ye Futian, which of course included Wang Yuqing. She raised her hand to cast a spell. Immediately, flames started to dance in the sky. However, the person in silver cloak only glanced at her emotionlessly and stroked casually on the guqin. Her spell was eliminated at once, after which an ear-piercing sound invaded into her ears directly. She trembled and fell down helplessly from the sky. Raising her head, she looked at the unstoppable figure in the sky.


    The entire space was enveloped in an invisible musical storm. All the injured nobles stared at Ye Futian. He was outstanding and actually had Emperor''s Light around his body. Who was he?


    Suddenly, a golden lightning struck towards Ye Futian. It was Shang Yunfeng.


    Ye Futian started to play the music at a faster rate. The music turned into a beam of dazzling golden light which charged into Shang Yunfeng''s mind. At this instant, Shang Yunfeng felt a superior might and an even more destructive power trying to crush his Spiritual Will.


    A demon leaped into the air and grabbed one of Shang Yunfeng''s legs, causing him to be immobilized.


    Shang Yunfeng''s expression changed drastically. Then, he saw a monstrous pair of eyes. In Shang Yunfeng''s eyes, a calamitous, enormous demonic bird appeared, destroying everything in its path. His will trembled and was severely damaged. Suddenly, a sharp claw landed on his head, producing a clear cracking sound. Immediately, cracks appeared on his head which was showered in golden radiance.


    The demonic bird stared coldly at Shang Yunfeng. It could still remember Shang Yunfeng''s arrogance earlier. Indeed, it was the type that would hold a grudge.


    Bang. The demon which had leaped into the air brought Shang Yunfeng''s body down and smashed him onto the ground. Then, Shang Yunfeng lied motionlessly there.


    "No!" Shang Hai''s expression changed drastically. He saw Ye Futian glance coldly at him, after which music spread again. Many terrifying waves of music flew out and charged into Shang Hai''s mind directly, ignoring all of his defense and causing his body to tremble fiercely. The demonic bird whizzed over and grabbed his head with its claws just like it did to Shang Yunfeng, after which it threw him downwards.


    "Are you happy now?" Shang Hai heard a cold but somewhat familiar voice in his mind. At this moment, he could only feel waves of coldness running down his spine. He widened his eyes and stared firmly at the figure in silver cloak before him as if he could not believe the reality.


    It was no wonder that the mysterious person only tried to kill him and Shang Yunfeng. However, how could the all-powerful mysterious person be him?

 426 Secret Escape

    Shang Hai had never imagined that he would die here. He had been unpopular in his family and had, therefore, decided to follow Shang Yunfeng. However, not long after they left their family, both Shang Yunfeng and he were killed. All of this was an extension of the event in White Jade Tower.


    The last picture he had in his mind was the restaurant in White Jade Tower, where he stood arrogantly and threw the spirit stones in front of Ye Futian. At that time, he was the prestigious genius of Yunyue Business Alliance. He had invited Sorcerer Wu and Demonic Swordsman to assist his family and the road before him seemed bright. Everyone thought that he would have a glorious future. However, everything changed because of the incident which he thought was insignificant. When he saw Ye Futian for the second time, Ye Futian was already on the Yunyue Battle Platform. He was elegant and unparalleled.


    Now, it was the third time Shang Hai met Ye Futian. Ye Futian was following Wang Yuqing and had been keeping a low profile, unlike how he had behaved on the Yunyue Battle Platform. However, when he changed yet again, he seemed to be even more powerful.


    Which one of them was the real him? Shang Hai wondered if Ye Futian would become his assistant if the incident in White Jade Tower did not happen. He wondered if his fate would be changed because of this.


    There was no "if." Shang Hai''s body fell onto the ground and he stopped thinking. He, the young master of Yunyue Business Alliance, would lie here for all eternity. The people from Yunyue Business Alliance might not even find out that he was killed by Ye Futian.


    On the ground, Wang Yuqing saw the bodies of Shang Yunfeng and Shang Hai in the distance and was totally shocked. Just like her, Shang Yunfeng came from Yunyue City and was a genius who had entered the Top Three Schools. He had successfully changed his fate but died here.


    Raising her head, Wang Yuqing looked at the brilliant and all-powerful figure and a strange thought appeared in her mind. The people from the Top Three Schools were all so outstanding and yet the mysterious person had attracted the complete attention of everyone. What kind of person was he?


    At the moment, he was still charging forward on the back of the demonic bird. His music had turned into an appalling storm, affecting the demons and martial arts cultivators around him. When he attacked his opponents with his music, a destructive note would explode in their minds directly.


    Around him, hundreds of demons were following and listening to his command. Moreover, most of these demons were in the Upper Arcana Plane. They had gone wild in the music and were destroying everything in their sight. Even the geniuses from the Top Three Schools could not block such a wave of demons.


    Many people were hit by the demons, including the genius Jiang Nan who came together with Wang Yuqing. Of course, the same thing happened to the people from the other two schools.


    In the sky, Ye Futian was showered in Emperor''s Light. He had fused Emperor Will into the music and thus the music was just like a terrifying spiritual attack. It strengthened the demons around him and at the same time attacked his opponents. Furthermore, the Black Wind Condor had devoured the will of the demonic bird on Sky Mountain and had evolved, allowing it to turn into the demonic bird. In this state, its combat abilities would increase significantly.


    Many cultivators were sent flying out one after another and nobody could stop the demonic bird from advancing. The demons helped to pave the path for the demonic bird which was charging directly towards the Dragon Grass.


    Suddenly, a person flew over with the wind and was even faster than Ye Futian. With everyone''s attention fully absorbed by Ye Futian, he extended his arm towards the Dragon Grass.


    Some coldness flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes. His fingers stroked fiercely across the strings of the guqin and countless notes danced simultaneously. Then, the musical storm in the sky converged towards the intruder. The intruder''s expression changed drastically as he felt an immense might crushing towards him. Immediately, he let go of the grass and retreated, after which the musical attack also stopped.


    Then, everyone realized that the demonic bird was already before the Dragon Grass. On its back, a divine tree seemed to have appeared on Ye Futian''s body. It grew in size and many branches from it swept towards the Dragon Grass.


    The illusory dragon in the Dragon Grass appeared again, but the branches of the divine tree blotted out the sky and engulfed the Dragon Grass directly. An extremely powerful willpower eliminated the original will attached on the grass. The illusory dragon gave out a low roar, after which the Dragon Grass was brought towards Ye Futian''s body.


    Although a long time seemed to have passed, in reality only a short while had passed since Ye Futian appeared. He charged through everyone with the help of the demonic bird and obtained the Dragon Grass.


    Buzz! Immediately, the demonic bird turned around and turned into a black beam of light. With an incredible speed, it left. The people from the Top Three Schools only looked at the scene and actually forgot to intercept the bird.


    The nobles were all injured and could only watch everything happen. At the moment, their faces darkened; the mysterious person only made his move after they were injured. However, there were even stronger cultivators above them. Why did he dare to snatch the treasure? Was he trying to kill himself? He would never be able to bring the Dragon Grass out of this place.


    Roar! The howl of dragon shook the sky. The evil dragon knew that the Dragon Grass has been taken away and its enormous body started to tremble fiercely. Immediately, the entire mountain started shaking, producing a loud rumbling. Many huge boulders fell down and the mountain seemed to be collapsing.


    "We can''t wait anymore!" the cultivators from the Top Three Schools shouted. The terrifying rope earlier was activated again, tying up the dragon''s body so that it could not go down. At the same time, the people from the Top Three Schools descended one after another. They broke the side of the mountain directly and charged inside.


    Roar, roar! The evil dragon roared ferociously. The ground shook and the entire mountain seemed to be falling apart.


    At the instant when the cultivators started moving, Gu Dongliu also moved. A dazzling radiance appeared under his feet and he charged out at an astonishing speed. The three cultivators who had intercepted him attacked at the same time in an attempt to stop him. However, the nine characters around Gu Dongliu turned into nine beams of light which shot towards the three and eliminated everything in their path.


    The three people felt an intense threat from the attack and backed away one after another. Then, Gu Dongliu charged out and looked at the people who were entering the mountain.


    At once, everyone there felt an invisible force approach them. Then, a row of brilliant ancient characters appeared, blocking their path. In addition, many warriors were also formed from the ancient characters.


    Nobody wanted to waste any time with Gu Dongliu so many people descended one after another. The cultivators from the Top Three Schools already knew that someone not from them had taken the Dragon Grass.


    Gu Dongliu''s eyes turned increasingly demonic and terrifying as if the entire region was contained in his eyes. Behind him, the god-like figure released an eye-catching radiance which enveloped the entire space. Then, inside the space of Eye Sorcery, countless characters appeared and sealed the space, blocking everyone''s path.


    "Scram!" someone shouted and launched an attack towards the countless characters. However, every character released a brilliant beam of light, or an enormous amount of Sword Will, or a powerful spell towards the rest.


    "What do you benefit from this?" Someone turned around and glanced coldly at Gu Dongliu. Someone had taken the Dragon Grass and they did not understand why Gu Dongliu was blocking them. Could it be that the person who had taken the Dragon Grass was his associate?


    While Gu Dongliu was slowing down the cultivators, the demonic bird tried its best to charge out of the mountain. At the moment, the mountain was collapsing and the earth was cracking apart. The cultivators from the Top Three Schools and the demons were all in a mess.


    Just when Ye Futian charged out of the mountain, many demons outside started gathering around him at the same time, as if they had gone wild simultaneously. In the meantime, a terrifying dark light surged on the demonic bird, covering the region around it. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were both hidden inside.


    Buzz! A violent gust of wind swept past and a demonic aura ascended into the sky. Countless demons ran towards the distance at the same time, while a demonic bird tried to escape with a silver-clothed figure on its back.


    Behind them, many people finally managed to charge out from the chaos. Looking at the mysterious person who was already quite far from them, their faces darkened. Why did the people at the peak not stop him?


    "Why did you not intercept them?" Jiang Nan looked beside him, where Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Ye Futian appeared. Apart from them, the Black Wind Condor was also present.


    It turned out that at the instant when the demonic bird charged out from the mountain and darkness enveloped all the demons, the bird turned back into the ordinary Black Wind Condor. Also, Ye Futian took off the silver cloak and naturally stood beside Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen. On the other hand, the wild demons continued running forward.


    Of course, the escaping demonic bird and Ye Futian were formed with a water-elemental illusory spell. In such a chaotic situation, nobody would notice the difference.


    "How do we intercept them with our levels?" Ye Futian smiled and looked at Jiang Nan. How could Ye Futian and his friends stop the intruders? Jiang Nan was probably just venting his anger at them.


    "Humph." Jiang Nan gave a cold humph and stared at the figure in the distance. The Three Top Schools contested for the Dragon Grass but it was actually taken away by a stranger. Moreover, what exactly happened at the peak of the mountain?


    Finally, loud roars were heard one after another. Many powerful nobles managed to break free from Gu Dongliu''s binding and started to chase after the demons.


    Light appeared below Gu Dongliu''s feet as he was about to chase after them as well. He could not let anything happen to the little brother. However, just when he was about to leave, he seemed to have felt something. Turning his head, he looked behind him, when he saw Ye Futian standing there in one piece.


    This caused a strange expression to appear on Gu Dongliu''s face. What''s happening? The music just now certainly felt like it was from the little brother. Coincidentally, Ye Futian was also looking at him and seemed to be smiling. Immediately, Gu Dongliu knew what had happened.


    It was a secret escape.


    It was indeed the little brother. Gu Dongliu had only managed to give Ye Futian a very short moment, and he already successfully escaped.


    "Chase!" The most powerful nobles from the Top Three Schools charged out with an incredible speed. Soon, they caught up with the escaping demons but did not see Ye Futian and the demonic bird. The mirror images had already disappeared. Ye Futian''s goal was to not leave any evidence. Since the mirror illusions had already vanished, nobody would know what had happened.


    The cultivators who had caught up with the demons all gazed into the distance. Their Spiritual Energy spread out as if they were trying to find something, but clearly, they failed.


    "Let''s chase in different directions." The cultivators from the Top Three Schools charged out towards three different directions. However, the culprit Ye Futian was only standing quietly beside the mountain and watching everything that was happening before him. Clearly, he knew that the Top Three Schools would never be able to find anything.

 427 Unscathed

    Very soon, the cultivators from the Top Three Schools returned. Apart from a group of wildly escaping demons, they did not find anything. All their faces darkened. The culprit actually escaped right before them. How did he manage to do it?


    The mountain was still collapsing and many people ascended into the sky. The whole place was still in a chaos. Ye Futian and his friends stood quietly at a corner and he was not worried that he would be discovered.


    Before he decided to make his move, he had already planned everything. The third brother had heard his music before and would definitely know that it was him after hearing the music. Indeed, Gu Dongliu had helped Ye Futian to delay the most powerful cultivators for a short while, which was sufficient for him to carry out his plan. Everything was in entire chaos and all the demons had gone wild. Ye Futian and the rest escaped from the mountain with the group of demons, after which he used a mirror spell to create an illusion that he was still trying to escape. Everything was done flawlessly and secretly. At that time, the entire region was filled with demons and a demonic aura. Nobody would suspect him at all.


    His face was still exposed after wearing the silver cloak, but the ritual implement changed his appearance. In addition, the demonic bird was too conspicuous. Nobody would think that it was him and the Black Wind Condor.


    The only being which might have felt something, namely the willpower of the evil dragon, had also been eliminated by him from the Dragon Grass. Next, Ye Futian only had to behave normally.


    The cultivators from the Top Three Schools stood in the air and their faces were all very gloomy. Many people were severely injured and were carried out of the mountain by others.


    The Top Three Schools had sealed the Evil Dragon Zone for a very long time to allow the Dragon Grass to mature. They were very determined to obtain it.


    At the moment, the Top Three Schools had sent such a powerful team, but the Dragon Grass was snatched by someone right before their eyes. How embarrassing that was.


    In the sky, the most powerful nobles glanced at the cultivators below them. At first, they thought that by intercepting Gu Dongliu and the evil dragon, the people inside the mountain could certainly get the Dragon Grass. However, the disciples of the Top Three Schools had disappointed them. The disciples also felt somewhat embarrassed.


    "Who is that?" Tan Zhong from Starry School asked the disciples below.


    "A very strong beastmaster. He controlled all the demons and used musical spells to drive the demons wild and make them attack," Jiang Nan said. "We were no match for him. Some people from Blazing Sun School were even killed on the spot."


    "He is indeed very strong. His music contained an extremely powerful spiritual attack which could ignore any defense. Nobody could stop him," Wang Yuqing also said. They had all experienced it just now and nobody could be blamed. The mysterious person was too mighty.


    "You know him right?" Tan Zhong said coldly, looking at Gu Dongliu.


    The cultivators from the Top Three Schools also looked at Gu Dongliu. If Gu Dongliu did not intercept them just now, the mysterious person would not have escaped successfully.


    Gu Dongliu glanced at Tan Zhong emotionlessly and his body was still glittering in a brilliant radiance. Turning around, he was ready to leave.


    "You want to leave just like this?" Tan Zhong shouted coldly. Stepping forward, he penetrated across space and walked towards Gu Dongliu. He extended his fist and clenched in the air. Immediately, the endless earth-elemental Spiritual Qi in the sky raged and converged towards Gu Dongliu. The limitless Spiritual Qi turned into many meteorites which circled around Gu Dongliu.


    "Star Burial."


    The disciples of Starry School were all surprised. It seemed like Tan Zhong was really angry.


    Tan Zhong was an outstanding talent in the school and was extremely strong. He came here to contest for the Dragon Grass so that he would have a slight chance of breaking through his current level, in which case it would be more likely for him to enter the Sage Plane in the future. However, before the Top Three Schools could begin the internal contest, the Dragon Grass was already taken away by an outsider. This was clearly unacceptable for Tan Zhong who was proud and powerful.


    Countless people looked at the scene in the sky. The faces of those from the Top Three Schools were all very cold. Previously, Gu Dongliu attacked out of a sudden and blocked their path by cutting off the space, but that did not mean that they were weaker than him.


    At the moment, they were clearly already enraged by Gu Dongliu.


    Around Gu Dongliu, the star-like meteorites formed continuously. The region around him was filled with a suffocating gravity and pressure as if it could make the sky collapse. The white-clothed figure inside seemed to be exceptionally small and lonely.


    "Bury!" Tan Zhong said coldly. Right away, the countless meteorites floating in the sky converged in an instant with Gu Dongliu''s body as the center. The scene was very frightening.


    Bang! Bang! Bang... The meteorites were as quick as lightning and buried Gu Dongliu''s body directly. They seemed to have turned into a star which started to rotate rapidly.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. It was indeed a powerful spell. However, he was not worried. Although Tan Zhong was a genius noble from Starry School, he knew very well about his third brother. Moreover, he did not think that the things Mr. Du had taught the third brother would be weaker than those in Starry School. After all, Mr. Du was brought away by someone sent by Donghuang the Great himself.


    Tan Zhong''s fist was still clenched and meteorites collided onto the star continuously. As the star rotated, it also started to contract. If Gu Dongliu was not dead by now, he would be crushed into pieces.


    The rapidly spinning star released a bright radiance. However, suddenly, a crackling sound was heard and the star was penetrated. Immediately, many loud sounds spread as countless holes appeared on the sphere. The entire star was enveloped with an even more dazzling light, in which an illusory figure could be vaguely seen.


    Boom! Accompanied by an earth-shattering bang, the starry sphere exploded. Gu Dongliu''s body was covered in an eye-catching divine light as the nine characters circled around him.


    Tan Zhong frowned gently. Just then, a cultivator from each of Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School stepped forward. An extremely freezing aura was released from the cultivator from Bright Moon School. Immediately, the entire place was covered in frost, slowing the actions of everyone. As the vast space suddenly turned cold, many people below the Noble Plane shivered uncontrollably.


    Gu Dongliu could feel his senses and movement become slower. In the other direction, a sun seemed to have appeared on the cultivator from Blazing Sun School. In the sky, the light from the Sun poured onto the sun behind him, after which countless beams of light shot towards Gu Dongliu, incinerating everything in their path. The freezing and blazing techniques were indeed destructive when combined.


    "Hand him over, and we''ll spare your life," the cultivator from Blazing Sun School said coldly. Three cultivators from the Top Three Schools were jointly attacking Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu''s expression was calm as always. The nine characters around his body rotated wildly and the illusory figure behind him seemed to have turned divine and merged with his body. At this instant, Gu Dongliu looked even brighter and more powerful. Many traces of Sword Will were born and span around his body, denying all spells.


    Gu Dongliu suddenly moved forward. He turned into a bolt of lightning and passed through space itself. As he guarded against the attacks of the three cultivators, he quickly approached Tan Zhong.


    Gu Dongliu punched out his fist which turned into a terrifying mudra. He looked all-powerful as if he was the emperor of the world. It was one of the Nine Seals, the Junlin Mudra.


    In response, Tan Zhong lifted his hand and punched out. A star seemed to be flying out. The attacks from the two collided and the entire sky trembled, giving out a rumbling sound.


    The Nine Seals converged again and turned into a second mudra, the Douzhan Mudra, which was even more powerful. It then charged towards Tan Zhong.


    Tan Zhong''s expression changed slightly. Giving out a loud roar, he continued to block.


    However, after the Douzhan Mudra, there were still the Pomie Mudra, the Jingang Mudra... Finally, when the Jingang Mudra landed, the enormous palm print crushed everything. Followed by a loud bang, Tan Zhong was sent flying out and collided fiercely onto the wall of the mountain.


    The expressions of the people from Starry School changed. Did Tan Zhong actually just lose?


    Gu Dongliu turned around and glanced at the other two cultivators. The Nine Seals circled around him, after which they converged into many mudras. He raised his hand and the mudras flew out towards the two simultaneously.


    The faces of the two darkened and they cast various spells to block the attack.


    Gu Dongliu ascended slowly into the sky. Scanning coldly at the cultivators from the Top Three Schools who were trying to stop him, he said coldly, "Stop wasting your time. If I want to leave, you can''t stop me." After he finished speaking, he turned into a white beam of light which flew into the distance. He was so fast that many people could not even follow him.


    The faces of the people from the Top Three School all turned gloomy. They stopped and stared at the slowly disappearing beam of light.


    Today, the Top Three Schools had lost all their faces.


    "Bring that dragon back," someone said coldly. Then, a few cultivators went to deal with the dragon and successfully defeated it, after which the most powerful people from the Top Three Schools left the place directly. They did not even pay attention to the disciples of the three schools as they were too embarrassed to stay.


    At the moment, the dragon had been brought away and the mountain had also collapsed, leaving everything in a mess. Looking at the scene, the disciples of the Top Three Schools and the people in the distance all felt very emotional.


    It turned out that even the Top Three Schools would fail sometimes.


    Who was the scholar in the white clothes? And who was the young man in the silver cloak? Perhaps, they are the disciples of some mysterious place or person in the Barren State, many disciples of the three schools thought.


    Many disciples had learned something from the journey. They had always thought that the Top Three Schools would be able to easily obtain anything in such an isolated place and it would only be an internal contest. However, two outsiders had appeared and they had grabbed the attention of everyone.


    "Let''s go. There are still many treasures in the Dragon House," someone said. At once, many people walked towards the Dragon House.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian and his friends left quietly. Nobody paid attention to such an inconspicuous group.


    They advanced forward and walked into the beast forest. After a while, they stopped in front of a quiet stream.


    "Third brother, are you here?" Ye Futian shouted.


    "Yup," someone said. Then, Gu Dongliu landed before them. Looking at Ye Futian, he asked, "Why did you come to the Barren State so early?"


    "It''s meaningless to stay in the Eastern Barren Territory, so I came here to follow your footstep," Ye Futian said, smiling. Then, he took out the Dragon Grass and added, "Third brother, can this help you to break through?"


    "It''s not so easy to enter the Sage Plane. I can only say that it helps." Gu Dongliu took over the grass, after which he divided it into two portions and said, "All of you should have some yourself as well. It should be able to help you break through."


    "Is it enough for you? We can break through later," Ye Futian said. Since the third brother wanted the Dragon Grass, he would not be greedy. Gu Dongliu''s level was higher and so should clearly have the priority. Cottage disciples would not make distinctions among themselves.


    "If half of it doesn''t help, it would be the same even if you give me everything," Gu Dongliu said. "You should have it now before it attracts the attention of demons."


    "Alright," Ye Futian nodded and accepted the item.

 428 Divine Sky City

    One day later, Ye Futian and his friends returned to the mountain where the evil dragon had been at. At the moment, the entire mountain had already collapsed, but many people had yet to leave.


    On a huge boulder somewhere on the mountain, Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing were sitting down cross-legged with their eyes closed. Just before this, they had had a conflict with the disciples of Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School and many were injured. Of course, it was the same for the disciples of the other two schools.


    "It seems like we have no more business here." Ye Futian looked before him. The place in the Dragon House where treasures had been piled up was completely empty now. Anyhow, it was within his expectation.


    The nobles had already left the day before, and the people who had remained were all Arcana Plane juniors.


    Ye Futian and his friends had already eaten the Dragon Grass and successfully broke through their current levels. Apart from their sorcery, their martial arts levels increased as well. In addition, they managed to reach the peak of the third level, that was, the peak of the Lower Arcana Plane.


    Dragon Grass was indeed a treasure that even top nobles would contest for. It had refined their bodies completely. Of course, the person who benefited the most was not Ye Futian or Yu Sheng, but rather the Black Wind Condor. Dragon Grass could increase the intelligence of its consumer and that particular piece was nurtured by the evil dragon. At the moment, even the eyes of the Black Wind Condor became brighter. Ye Futian exclaimed in his heart about how lucky the condor was to get such an outstanding master.


    As for the third brother, he had gone to search for a place for seclusion. In any case, even if Gu Dongliu did not do that, Ye Futian would also not leave together with him. The goal of Gu Dongliu at the moment was to enter the Sage Plane and his path was different from that of Ye Futian and his friends. If they were to follow him, they would not experience enough toughening.


    Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu agreed that they would meet in the Central Region of the Barren State in the future.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said softly.


    "Where do we go now?" Loulan Xue asked.


    "Divine Sky City," Ye Futian replied, ready to leave. However, suddenly, Wang Yuqing who was on the boulder in the distance looked at him and asked, "Ye Futian, where have you been to?"


    Ye Futian turned around and looked at Wang Yuqing. Smiling, he said, "You were here contesting for the treasures and we could not participate. Therefore, we went to the demon forest to do some training."


    Wang Yuqing did not suspect him at all. Standing up, she added, "We are going to return to the Divine Sky City. You should come with us."


    Beside her, Jiang Nan looked at her and said softly, "Why are you still bringing him along?" Before they came here, Ye Futian said that he wanted to see the bigger world. Now, he had seen it for himself, but the people from the Top Three Schools were all disgraced. The Dragon Grass was taken by a mysterious person and the disciples of the three schools were easily defeated by him. Jiang Nan clearly felt unhappy.


    Jiang Nan did not like Ye Futian in the first place; Ye Futian was too good-looking and his smile always caused Jiang Nan to feel uncomfortable. In addition, he saw the awkward side of the Top Three Schools. Hence, Jiang Nan disliked Ye Futian even more.


    "That day, my grandfather asked me to take care of him. Senior, let''s bring him to Divine Sky City," Wang Yuqing asked. That day in Wang Family, the family leader had asked her to look after Ye Futian.


    "Alright then." Jiang Nan glanced coldly at Ye Futian. Although he was chasing Wang Yuqing, he could not interfere with her issues.


    In that case, they would just bring Ye Futian back.


    Ye Futian stared at Wang Yuqing, thinking about whether he should follow them.


    "My grandfather asked me to take you to Divine Sky City. Let''s go," Wang Yuqing said again. Hearing her words, Ye Futian nodded. Since it was an order from the leader of Wang Family, he would follow them, which he did not mind. By having someone to lead him, it would also save him the trouble of asking for directions himself. In addition, these disciples from the Top Three Schools all had traveling ritual implements with them.


    When they reached Divine Sky City, they would part. Ye Futian could clearly feel the distance between him and Wang Yuqing, but this was normal anyway. The disciples of the Top Three Schools all had their own pride.


    Ye Futian walked up to Wang Yuqing when Jiang Nan took out a ritual implement. This ritual implement could be expanded and contracted, and when it expanded it turned into a fish-shaped flat object which also seemed to have two wings. It was a ship-like ritual implement. It could accommodate tens of people.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. A powerful wind-elemental Spiritual Qi was spreading out from the ritual implement. Clearly, there were matrices carved in the implement and it needed spirit stones to activate. Then, he also thought about the treasures in the Dragon House earlier. The Eastern Barren Territory was indeed barren as it only had basic offensive and defensive ritual implements. On the other hand, in the Barren State, there were different kinds of ritual implements. The difference between the skills of the armorers in the two regions was too huge.


    In the Eastern Barren Territory, Ye Futian had never heard of any master armorer. However, on the map of the Barren State, Ye Futian saw a capital called Alchemy City.


    Jiang Nan glanced coldly at Ye Futian, after which he said to everyone, "Let''s leave." Everyone stepped onto the ship, including Ye Futian.


    Jiang Nan really seemed to hate Ye Futian.


    The ritual implement ascended into the air, after which it shot towards a certain direction.


    ��


    The Barren State was vast and boundless. Even the Eastern Region of the Barren State was very extensive. Divine Sky City was the only capital city of the Eastern Region. It was certainly the center of the Eastern Region, but its position was not at the geographic center. Instead, it was closer to the Zhongzhou City region, which meant that it was closer to the Central Region of the Barren State.


    Yunyue City and Divine Sky City both belonged to the Eastern Region, but the distance between them was still incredibly long.


    Even with the help of the ship ritual implement, the team still spent one month to reach Divine Sky City, demonstrating well how far the two places actually were. After all, they were on a noble-level ritual implement.


    In the sky above Divine Sky City, a ship flew past swiftly.


    On the ritual implement, Ye Futian looked down at the extremely magnificent view of the capital and was filled with excitement.


    The Barren State, I''m coming.


    In the sky, there were many different ritual implements and powerful demons flying past. Below them, many buildings towered into the clouds, along with numerous eye-catching and unique architectures. They were grand and majestic and Ye Futian had never seen such a scene before.


    "A capital city is indeed different." A smile appeared on Ye Futian''s face as he recalled how he and Hua Fengliu entered Donghai City. As he grew, he was also walking towards further and better places step by step. In the past, although he was also supercilious, it was only because he was young and arrogant. He had never expected himself to actually travel to such a far place. As he recalled the past, it felt as if a long time had passed.


    Wang Yuqing glanced at Ye Futian and said softly, "In Divine Sky City, try to keep a low profile. I heard that you have performed very well in the battle of the four factions in Yunyue City, but here there are many more geniuses. People who are more talented and powerful than you can be seen everywhere. If you keep making trouble, you may not end up well. Do you understand?"


    "Yes. I always keep a low profile." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. Before him, many disciples of Starry School glanced emotionlessly at Ye Futian. Jiang Nan did not turn around, but a mocking sneer also appeared on his face.


    Ye Futian had no background and was so weak. He would almost certainly have a difficult time in Divine Sky City.


    "In Divine Sky City, you can only rely on yourself. Don''t have any other expectations," Wang Yuqing added.


    "Don''t worry." Ye Futian smiled. Was Wang Yuqing actually worried that Ye Futian was going to follow her?


    In that case, Wang Yuqing was only having an overactive imagination.


    Jiang Nan turned around and asked, "Where do you want to alight?"


    "I''ll follow you for a while. When you reach Starry School, I''ll alight as well," Ye Futian replied.


    The Top Three Schools were at the center of Divine Sky City. Since they had come here anyway, it would, of course, be better to alight at the central area.


    Jiang Nan smiled lightly and did not say anything. The ritual implement continued its journey in the sky above Divine Sky City.


    "This year is going to end soon. At the start of the next year, the Top Three Schools will recruit disciples again. If you want to try, you can do so next year. You wouldn''t have any chance this year," Wang Yuqing said calmly, looking in front of her.


    "Alright," Ye Futian replied, but he did not have such a plan. Perhaps, Wang Yuqing thought that he wanted to join Starry School.


    Wang Yuqing nodded gently and did not say anything else. She had already done what her grandfather told her to, which was to bring Ye Futian to Divine Sky City. Whatever Ye Futian may choose to do in the future was none of her concerns. After all, she was also only an ordinary disciple of Starry School. She needed hard work to follow in the footsteps of the geniuses there and did not have time to take care of Ye Futian.


    "The school exams are coming again at the end of the year. Are you confident?" Jiang Nan asked Wang Yuqing who walked beside him.


    Wang Yuqing shook her head gently and said softly, "The school exams do not belong to me. Senior, you should try to display yourself during then."


    "Yup," Jiang Nan nodded.


    Finally, an enormous and spectacular group of buildings appeared vaguely in sight. Pointing in that direction, Wang Yuqing said to Ye Futian, "That is Starry School, a holy land of cultivation in the Eastern Region of the Barren State. Even the most powerful families in the Barren State will send their descendants into the Top Three Schools."


    "Let''s go down." Jiang Nan controlled the ritual implement to descend. Soon, they landed outside Starry School.


    Outside the school, there were many people, all of whom were young. Some were the disciples of Starry School, while others came here to visit, dreaming that one day they could enter as well.


    "We''re here," Wang Yuqing said to Ye Futian.


    "Junior, let''s get going," Jiang Nan said.


    "Yup," Wang Yuqing nodded. Then, she said to Ye Futian, "Take care."


    "Of course," Ye Futian nodded. Jiang Nan, Wang Yuqing, and their team walked towards the college when Ye Futian shouted again, "Wait."


    Wang Yuqing turned around and said to Ye Futian, "What is it?" She seemed to be somewhat impatient.


    Ye Futian walked up to her with a bag in his hand. He handed the bag to Wang Yuqing and said, "Travel fees."


    Wang Yuqing frowned and asked, "What do you mean?"


    "This journey has been long and the ritual implement needs spirit stones to activate. I should give you this. I don''t like to owe other people anything," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    Wang Yuqing was somewhat unhappy. Since she had promised her grandfather that she would bring Ye Futian to Divine Sky City, she would naturally not ask for any payment. Ye Futian''s action seemed to be disrespectful towards her.


    "Since he gave it, you should take it," Jiang Nan said, smiling. Was Ye Futian trying to clear everything between them?


    Wang Yuqing gazed at Ye Futian, when he smiled and said, "The ritual implement is his. You can give the spirit stones to him if you want. Goodbye."


    After that, Ye Futian and his friends turned around and left.


    If they were really friends, Ye Futian would clearly not mind about this. However, he could feel the attitudes of Wang Yuqing and Jiang Nan. It was as if they were helping him only because he was poor. This being the case, he decided not to owe them anything.


    "He has his moral principles." Jiang Nan smiled and said, "Maybe he still does not understand what the Top Three Schools mean."


    Did Ye Futian not want to owe them anything?


    Ye Futian did not know that by doing so, he would never be able to be friends with the disciples of the Top Three Schools.


    In the future, he would naturally understand it. Young people who just reached Divine Sky City were always very ardent. After a while, their passion would be extinguished by reality. However, it was none of Jiang Nan''s concerns anyway. After all, Ye Futian''s life and his life would just be like two parallel lines in the future. They would never have any relations again.

 429 Have You Never Seen a Beauty?

    The road outside Starry School was extremely broad and filled with an endless stream of people.


    As Ye Futian and his team walked on the street, they noticed a large group of people walking towards their direction. Within the group, two people looked particularly elegant and distinguished. The group walked towards Starry School and the passers-by started discussing it. After listening to their conversations, Ye Futian found out that the two were extremely popular geniuses in Starry School.


    The famous geniuses from the Top Three Schools would naturally attract much attention.


    Where the group passed, the crowd all burst into excitement. Soon, they passed right before Ye Futian.


    "They looked so prestigious," Ye Futian muttered. So this was how the geniuses from the Top Three Schools looked like.


    "Where are we heading?" Luolan Xue asked softly.


    "Ask around which is the best inn nearby. We will stay there first," Ye Futian replied.


    "The best one?" Luolan Xue repeated.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded. He had obtained a gemstone ring from the Dragon House in which there were many items. Therefore, he was not actually poor at the moment and clearly would not treat himself poorly. Of course, there were more important reasons, one being that cultivation would be more effective in a better environment. Apart from that, he could obtain more information in a good inn.


    "Alright," Luolan Xue nodded, after which she left to ask the people around. Soon, she returned and said to Ye Futian, "The best inn nearby is called Celestial Pavilion. Its environment is splendid, but it is also extremely costly."


    "We''re not short of spirit stones. Let''s go," Ye Futian said straightforwardly. Luolan Xue glanced at Ye Futian who had already started walking. This guy... indeed always keeps a low profile. We have just arrived in Divine Sky City and he already wants to stay in the best inn. Let''s see how long he can sustain in this way.


    As the best inn near Starry School, perhaps even the top three in Divine Sky City, the environment of Celestial Pavilion far exceeded Ye Futian''s imagination. Ye Futian looked into the pavilion and only saw isolated courtyards built within lakes. The place was quiet and graceful and also filled with dense Spiritual Qi which enveloped the sky above the entire pavilion. Clearly, it was filled with Spiritual Qi matrices. Moreover, Celestial Pavilion did not accept spirit stones. Instead, one had to pay ritual implements or treasures in order to stay inside. It was indeed the best inn nearby.


    However, Ye Futian eventually decided to stay in Pro-Celestial Inn which was not far away from Celestial Pavilion. After all, cultivators should not only seek pleasure and instead needed to experience some toughening.


    The name of Pro-Celestial Inn was indeed well given.


    At the moment, Ye Futian and his friends had already settled down in Pro-Celestial Inn and were drinking and chatting in a pavilion. Beside them, there were many other pavilions.


    "The environment here is also very good," Ye Futian remarked softly.


    "Still quite a huge difference from Celestial Pavilion," Luolan Xue said.


    "As cultivators, we cultivate our characters. Do not mind about superficial glory," Ye Futian said earnestly.


    Luolan Xue was stunned. Looking at Ye Futian''s serious expression, she nodded and said, "Alright."


    Noticing Luolan Xue''s look, Ye Futian recalled the scornful look of the pretty lady when they went to Celestial Pavilion. He could feel his heart hurt and wondered if he would buy Celestial Pavilion in the future if he had the chance to.


    "The place of the young city lord of White Cloud City on the Barren Sky Ranking increased again. Now, he has already entered the top ten," someone in a pavilion nearby suddenly said, pulling Ye Futian back into reality. His eyes sparkled as it was not the first time he had heard this name. Also, what was the Barren Sky Ranking?


    According to the map of the Barren State, White Cloud City was in the Western Region, which was separated from the Eastern Region by the Central Region and therefore extremely far away. Why would someone here talk about the young city lord of White Cloud City?


    "I heard that as well. At the age of 20, he entered the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. Now he has only cultivated for less than fifty years and has already entered the Sage Plane. His talent is indeed astonishing. After a few more years, perhaps his ranking can move forward some more. Maybe he will even have the chance to challenge the first three places on the Barren Sky Ranking," someone added. It was indeed shocking that the young city lord could enter the top ten on the Barren Sky Ranking at such a young age.


    "Speaking of the young city lord of White Cloud City, I suddenly recalled another person. I heard that the lady of the Zhuge Family, a top family in Zhongzhou City, was found. She has actually been roaming outside to escape from her family and has become a disciple of someone else. At the moment, she has been taken back to her family. Rumors claim that the relationship between the lord of White Cloud City and the leader of the Zhuge Family has always been quite good. Perhaps the two families will ally through marriage, which will be another popular story in the future," another person said. "I heard that the lady of the Zhuge Family is very beautiful and talented. I wonder if she would match the young city lord of White Cloud City."


    When Ye Futian heard that someone was talking about his second sister, he started paying attention. However, when he heard that the stranger was actually asking if his second sister could match another person, he frowned in dissatisfaction. In his opinion, the young city lord of White Cloud City could not match his second sister who was so beautiful, kind, and good to him.


    "Mr., may I ask what the Barren Sky Ranking is?" Ye Futian asked, looking at the person beside him.


    "You don''t even know what the Barren Sky Ranking is?" A strange expression appeared on the face of the person. "Did you come from another place?"


    "Yes I came to Divine Sky City to train myself," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Oh, I see." The person smiled and continued, "The Barren Sky Ranking is an infamous and authoritative list in the Barren State which ranks all the famous people here. It doesn''t just rank them according to their levels. Instead, it considers their levels, talents, ages, and many other factors. Most people who can enter the ranking are all extremely famous. There are a hundred people on the list. Even the last person there is also one of the most outstanding people in the Barren State."


    "In this case, I don''t think the Barren Sky Ranking is that authoritative after all," Ye Futian said emotionlessly. According to the person before him, the Barren Sky Ranking includes all the brightest cultivators in the Barren State. If it only depended on levels, sages would probably never be able to make it to the top ten. This was sufficient to show how excellent the talents of the young city lord were.


    "The Barren Sky Ranking has extremely strict requirements and every time before it is updated, it will undergo rigorous reviews. Why are you doubting the authoritativeness of the list?" the person said, smiling.


    "The Barren State is vast and boundless and there must be many people hidden in seclusion. There will also be many people who keep low profiles and do not display their talents. Therefore, it is not authoritative enough," Ye Futian replied.


    "You may be right, but this is relative in the first place. If people don''t even know about you, how can you enter the ranking?" the person said.


    "The Barren Sky Ranking is too far from us. Why don''t we chat about the talents in Divine Sky City? Now the exams of the Top Three Schools will be starting soon. I wonder how many geniuses will show up this time," a person in a pavilion nearby said.


    "I know a person who will almost certainly become famous in the Top Three Schools."


    "Who is that?"


    "The young dragon on West Mountain," the person said with a sharp expression. "At the beginning of this year, he entered Starry School to cultivate. It''s about time for him to display himself."


    Many people nodded in agreement, thinking about how mighty the pure-blooded dragon on Western Mountain was during that time. Unfortunately, he had died. Now, his son would follow his footsteps. Moreover, apart from his father who had passed away, the young dragon still had an equally powerful uncle.


    "Compared to the young dragon on Western Mountain, I''m more concerned about the eventual fate of the few ladies," someone said, smiling.


    "You can stop dreaming about that."


    The group of people chatted casually and Ye Futian could not understand most of their conversation. In their chat, many people were mentioned, but Ye Futian was still unfamiliar with Divine Sky City. Apart from the Top Three School, he almost knew nothing else.


    "Luolan, later we''ll take a stroll outside and you will be in charge of collecting information, such as the top clans and families here and the important places in Divine Sky City. Try your best to get them," Ye Futian said to Luolan Xue. Unknowingly, he was already used to asking Luolan Xue to do these things. Luolan Xue had also been carrying them out quietly and outstandingly. As such, Ye Futian never had to worry about these miscellaneous matters.


    "Okay," Luolan Xue nodded.


    After the meal, Ye Futian and his friends walked out of the inn and strolled casually on the streets. On the other hand, Luolan Xue was busy searching for information. Suddenly, they heard a dragon howl from the distance. Many people ran to the sides of the street.


    Ye Futian turned around and only saw a mess in front of him. In that direction, an ice dragon was charging towards them. There were also many powerful cultivators beside and behind the dragon.


    "Do all the people in Divine Sky City like to attract attention so much?"


    Ye Futian felt speechless. Beside the horn of the ice dragon was a girl who was about 13 or 14-years-old was standing. She was using a whip in her hand to slap the dragon, causing it to howl continuously.


    "This loli actually has such a large team with her," Ye Futian muttered, staring at the girl on the dragon.


    The ice dragon charged past Ye Futian and his team when the girl glanced at Ye Futian and said, "What are you staring at? Have you never seen a beauty before?"


    "..." Ye Futian was totally stunned. Looking at the girl who was standing akimbo, he laughed uncontrollably. A 13 or 14-year-old girl actually just asked him such a question. It was indeed unimaginable.


    "How dare you laugh?" Noticing that Ye Futian was laughing, the girl forced the ice dragon to come to a stop. Pointing her whip at Ye Futian, she said, "Someone, come and bring him along."


    "Err..." Ye Futian was dumbfounded. A cultivator beside the dragon said to the girl, "My lady, this isn''t appropriate."


    "Did you not hear me?" the girl said aggressively. The cultivators beside her all seemed to be in a difficult position. Then, a person walked out and said to Ye Futian, "Sir, could you please come with us?"


    "I didn''t do anything right?" Hearing his words, Ye Futian frowned. Did it work this way?


    "I know, but my lady is in a bad mood. I''m really sorry and we promise that your safety will not be compromised," the person said.


    Ye Futian was speechless. Although their attitude was not bad, the situation was...


    Looking at the group of people before him, Ye Futian, "I don''t think I can reject this right?"


    "I''m sorry." The person in front gave a bitter smile and folded his hands, feeling helpless about the temper of the girl. The mother of the girl was not present and nobody could control her at all.


    The expressions of Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen turned cold, but Ye Futian turned around and said, "Just carry on with your stuff. I''ll go with them."


    "Thank you for your cooperation." The person nodded at Ye Futian, after which Ye Futian joined the group. The girl smiled and glanced at Ye Futian as if she was very satisfied. She waved the whip in her hand and the ice dragon continued forward.

 430 Later, He Died

    The large group of people advanced towards a certain direction on the dragon.


    Ye Futian was somewhat unhappy. The girl in front was forcing her way on the road, causing the passers-by to give way, which was extremely overbearing. However, the passers-by seemed to have guessed her identity. They were not angry and only watched the scene. After all, it was usually difficult to see the girl. Nobody expected her to appear in the central region of Divine Sky City.


    "Sir, how do I address you?" a middle-aged man beside Ye Futian suddenly asked.


    "Ye Futian."


    "Mr. Ye, I''m really sorry for this," the person apologized. "The lady was punished by her mother and is therefore in a bad mood. I hope that you will not blame her. Later, perhaps she will offend you again. Take this as a compensation."


    The person took out a ritual implement which was in the form of a shirt. Then, the middle-aged man deliberately activated the implement, causing it to release a faint radiance. Ye Futian felt its powers; it was actually a noble-level defense ritual implement.


    This caused a strange expression to appear on Ye Futian''s face. It was really odious to compare with others.


    Ye Futian was unwilling to stay in an expensive inn and was even despised by the lady in the inn. On the other hand, the middle-aged man just took out a noble-level ritual implement casually.


    "Senior, what kind of person do you think I am?" Ye Futian said emotionlessly, but he had already taken over the ritual implement. Then, he added in a serious tone, "However, because she is young and immature, I will not blame her for this."


    Noticing that Ye Futian had accepted the ritual implement, the middle-aged man smiled and said, "Thank you for that. If the lady is rude in the future, please forgive her. I will compensate you again."


    Ye Futian''s rolled his eyes and said, "As long as she does not cross the line." At the moment, he was thinking that he would tolerate it even if she crossed the line. He was poor, after all, and it was actually a profitable trade.


    "Although the lady is somewhat capricious, she usually will not cross the line," the person said to Ye Futian, smiling. With their status, they did not have to be like this. However, there were rules in the family. If the girl behaved lawlessly outside and offended many people, they would still be punished. Therefore, he had to handle everything for the girl. Moreover, if the girl kept behaving recklessly, one day it would bring a disaster to the whole family, so he should take care of such issues quickly. In the future, it would be better for the madam to restrict the lady more. After all, she was about to become a young adult and should not throw tantrum when in a bad mood.


    Divine Sky City West Court was an extremely famous place in the city.


    At the moment, Ye Futian and the others arrived at this place and entered West Court directly. In West Court, the scenery was beautiful and elegant with many well-arranged buildings and courtyards. In addition, there was a small hill with one side of it flattened. There was a waterfall coming down from it and also pavilions on top of the hill. The whole place looked like a fairyland.


    If Ye Futian did not see it for himself, he would not have believed that it was a manor in a city. It looked like the scene on a mountain.


    Ye Futian and the rest walked to the foot of the waterfall and looked up at the hill, where there was an elder sitting down cross-legged. There was a teapot before him and he was drinking the tea at the moment. Not far away from him, there was also a guqin. It was clear that he was a person of refined interests.


    "Grandfather Feng," the girl shouted at the elder. At the moment, the elder had already stood up. Smiling, he said, "Hey you''re here. You haven''t been here for quite a while."


    "Well, I am now. Grandfather Feng, how have you been?" the girl said in a gentle tone. The overbearing attitude she had outside was completely gone.


    "I''m fine. Come up here," the elder said. The girl nodded gently and rode the ice dragon up the waterfall, after which she walked up to the elder.


    "You''ve grown for quite a bit. That time when you came here, you were still a child. In the blink of an eye, you''re almost a big girl," the elder said with a kindly look. "I heard that you are unhappy with your mother''s arrangement?"


    "Grandfather Feng, I do not mean that. I only do not want to leave home to cultivate," the girl said in a pitiful tone.


    "You''ll experience it sooner or later. You''re going to go back anyway. How far can it be when it is also in Divine Sky City? Furthermore, West Court is also your home, so stop thinking about it. You should not waste your talents," the elder said.


    "Fine," the girl nodded.


    "Go. You have been here a few times. Go and choose a place yourself. If you have any problems, come and find me," the elder added. The girl nodded gently and left the hill. Glancing emotionlessly at Ye Futian, she said, "Follow closely."


    Ye Futian widened his eyes at the girl, but thinking of the ritual implement, he did not say anything. A great man would not argue with children.


    West Court was extremely large. The girl picked a courtyard where the scenery was fantastic, while the people who accompanied her would stay in the courtyards just beside. Ye Futian felt somewhat speechless. He felt totally insignificant at this place.


    Just then, the girl seemed to have noticed him. A quirky expression appeared on her still immature face as her eyes sparkled. Realizing that the girl was staring at him, a strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. Why did the girl order her men to bring him here?


    "How did I offend you?" Ye Futian asked, looking at the girl.


    Raising her head, the girl looked at Ye Futian and said, "Why did you laugh just now?"


    "Is there a problem with that?" Ye Futian said, looking at the girl. "Do you not laugh?"


    "I don''t care. If I say there is a problem, then there is one," the girl replied capriciously.


    "I..." Ye Futian wanted to curse but stopped when he saw the middle-aged man beside the girl signaling at him with his eyes.


    Ye Futian stared at the middle-aged man as if he was reminding the man not to forget about the compensation.


    "Do you know how to play guqin?" the girl asked.


    "Yup, a bit," Ye Futian nodded.


    "That''s nice. You can become my musical attendant. Life wouldn''t be that boring in the future." The girl smiled mischievously, while Ye Futian only had a strange look on his face. Musical attendant?


    Very long ago, he had heard this word. Someone in Cangye wanted him to become a musical attendant. However, it was a girl this time. Moreover, it was a rich girl. Just now, the elder had said that West Court was her home. West Court was just as nice as Celestial Pavilion.


    The girl looked at the people who had followed her and said, "Alright, you all should go back and report. I''ll focus on cultivation."


    "We were asked to take care of your safety," the middle-aged man said, bowing.


    "What can happen to me in West Court? I don''t need you here." The girl waved her hand as if she wanted to chase the people away.


    The group still did not move.


    "Fine, help me to prepare the guqin. Then you can go and rest." The girl seemed to know that she would not succeed, so she only asked for something less.


    A maidservant came and put the guqin in the courtyard, while the middle-aged man folded his hands and brought the people away, leaving only two ladies to take care of the girl. Of course, Ye Futian and the dragon were also left behind. The ice dragon was coiled up and resting, appearing to be somewhat lazy.


    The girl sat down before the guqin, after which she started playing alone. The music spread and was actually quite skilled. However, it seemed to be somewhat messy, clearly demonstrating that the girl was not focused. The girl also knew that she was playing the piece poorly. Annoyed, she stroked fiercely across the strings with her fingers, after which she stood up. Throwing down the guqin, she returned to her room.


    A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. He walked up and touched the guqin lightly. The sound from the guqin was extremely clear and the reverberation was still audible. It was certainly a very rare guqin.


    "How long do I need to stay here?" Ye Futian asked the maidservant beside him. Although he had received something, he would not stay here forever. The girl had a weird character and Ye Futian did not have time to keep following her.


    "It''s going to be the end of the year soon. At the start of next year, the lady will enter Starry School to cultivate. Hence, the latest you will have to stay is until the start of next year," the maidservant replied. Ye Futian nodded gently. Without him realizing it, another year was about to pass.


    "There''s a small courtyard there. I apologize for this." The maidservant pointed in a direction. Ye Futian nodded, after which he went to the small courtyard to practice his boxing and cultivate.


    At night, the bright moonlight poured down and illuminated West Court.


    Ye Futian was still practicing his boxing skills in the courtyard. Even though he had been brought here in a ridiculous way, he must not fall behind in terms of cultivation.


    Suddenly, he heard some music that was very different from the disorganized one in the music. The music now was very penetrating and influential. It could actually cause its listeners to feel somewhat sad as if they could feel the grief in the musician''s heart.


    Ye Futian stopped practicing and an even stranger expression appeared on his face. Music was a display of one''s mental state. Was it really the girl who was playing the music? He did not really believe that.


    Then, Ye Futian walked to the other courtyard, when he saw a young girl sitting down quietly under the moonlight. She looked pure and flawless and was playing the guqin under the moon.


    The music changed continuously. It sometimes sounded joyful, as if she was filled with happiness, and sometimes sad, making it seem unpredictable.


    Does she have a story at such a young age? Ye Futian thought, looking at the girl. The music continued and became increasingly arousing. Unknowingly, Ye Futian had already approached the girl and stood there, listening quietly to the music.


    The music became more and more sorrowful. In the end, it made its listeners feel as if they were heartbroken.


    Under the moonlight, tears filled the face of the girl. She actually started crying without realizing it.


    Finally, the music stopped, but the artistic conception still remained for a long while. Ye Futian still seemed to be immersed in the reverberation. After a while, he said, "You are so young. What do you know about grief? Why are you playing such a sorrowful piece?"


    "Why would I not understand it? Do you?" The girl widened her eyes at Ye Futian.


    "Of course," Ye Futian replied.


    "Have you ever experienced separating from the person closest to you?" the girl asked.


    "Yup," Ye Futian replied emotionlessly. He had experienced partings several times.


    "From what I heard just now, both of your parents should still be alive right?" Ye Futian asked in doubt.


    "Yes," the girl said slowly. "Once, there was a hero. He was friendly and kind. At home, he always had a smile on his face. Outside, he was very famous and everyone knew him. He was the most popular person in the Eastern Region of the Barren State. When I was young, he always liked to hug me and tell me that I do not need to work hard and can do whatever I like, as long as I am happy every day. With him present, I can live a glory life and nobody would bully me."


    Ye Futian stared at the girl. Just like what he had expected, the girl had a rich background.


    "Later, he died." The girl sounded very low-spirited. After she said this, she started crying again.

 431 Dragon Master

    Ye Futian was momentarily stunned. Looking at the tear marks on the girl''s face, he did not know what to say.


    It was indeed a sad story. The girl must have been very happy to be loved by such an adult. However, he eventually died.


    This was the world of cultivation. No matter how powerful one was, one might still die.


    "My life also changed after that. My parents became extremely strict towards me and no longer plays with me. Every day, they would ask me to cultivate and want me to enter the Top Three Schools. Why do I have to go to those rubbish places?" the girl complained. Ye Futian was speechless. The Top Three Schools were the holy lands of the Eastern Region. Yet they were actually referred to as "rubbish places" by the girl.


    Raising her head to look at the crescent in the sky, the girl said softly, "Uncle, I miss you." Ye Futian realized that the person whom the girl had called a hero was her uncle. She had a senior who loved and petted her so much and yet he died. It was no wonder she was so sad.


    Ye Futian did not speak and only sat there quietly to give her time to calm down.


    After a while, the girl suddenly turned her head. Staring at Ye Futian, she said, "Why did I just tell you these? Since you already know my story, shouldn''t you tell me what grief you have experienced?"


    "You are much more fortunate than me. My parents went missing mysteriously, so is my godfather, and I do not even know where I am from. There was this old guy who was not bad to me, but he was also taken away by someone. My senior sister who loved me was also brought back by her family. My girlfriend also parted with me. Do you think my life is miserable?" Ye Futian said slowly.


    Hearing his words, the girl was stunned and said, "I think so. Then why can you still laugh?"


    "Life still goes on and we have to face it optimistically. Furthermore, shouldn''t we work hard to make up for these regrets?" Ye Futian replied, feeling somewhat weird. Am I actually enlightening the girl? Was I not brought here by force?


    That was quite shameless.


    Forget it. She looks so pitiful so I shall just console her for now. Why am I always so kind?


    "Sounds reasonable," the girl nodded. Then, she seemed to have realized something and said in a low tone, "But my uncle will never return..."


    "Therefore you should become the person whom he hoped you will. You should grow up happily," Ye Futian said.


    "I didn''t expect you to know how to console someone." The girl stared at Ye Futian with an alerted look and said, "Is it because I am too pretty?"


    "..." Ye Futian closed his eyes and put his hand on his forehead. Do girls now all become mature so early? She was so young and yet thinking so much.


    "Girl, are you in a serious lack of love?" Ye Futian said, looking at the girl.


    "You''re the one who lacks love." The girl stared angrily at Ye Futian.


    "What are you looking at? Have you never seen a handsome man before?" Ye Futian said in contempt.


    "..." The girl pointed her finger at Ye Futian. She had never seen such a shameless person. Then, she calmed down again. Smiling, she asked, "Uncle, what''s your name?"


    "Uncle..." Ye Futian jumped up from the ground. Uncle? Am I that old? This was turning unbearable. Calm down... I lose if I am serious, Ye Futian thought.


    Ye Futian sat down again and smiling, he replied, "Uncle''s name is Ye Futian."


    "My name is Long Ling''er. Uncle, how did someone as shameless as you manage to find a girlfriend?" The girl asked, smiling. She really doubted if Ye Futian''s girlfriend left him because of this reason.


    "My appearance." Ye Futian grinned brightly.


    "You won." Long Ling''er felt that she had totally lost. Then, she walked to the guqin and the sorrowful music spread again.


    "Stop!" Ye Futian shouted. At once, the music came to a halt.


    Then, the girl stared at Ye Futian. If she was to continue playing, she would probably spend the whole night crying again.


    Music was something that could very easily trigger one''s emotion. If the girl played the piece again, she would definitely cry.


    "How about I play a piece of music for you?" Ye Futian offered. It seemed like the only person who could save the sad girl at the moment was the kind him.


    "Can you even play?" Long Ling''er doubted.


    "Of course. I''m much better at this than you," Ye Futian said in a serious tone. What was that look of the girl?


    "Then you come and play." The girl left the guqin and still stared at Ye Futian in suspicion.


    Ye Futian walked up to the guqin when his temperament suddenly turned sacred and peaceful. The moonlight poured onto his handsome face. He held the guqin with his hands and used the tip of his fingers to stroke on the strings. Immediately, an extremely tranquil music spread from his fingers.


    The music was clear and peaceful. Under the moon, it brought all its listeners into a quiet and placid environment, as if they were sitting down alone under the moonlight, after which they slowly lied down. Showering in the bright moonlight, everyone felt pacified and free from worries.


    "Purification of the Night Moon" was the first piece of music that Ye Futian had learned. However, music would be upgraded according to the level of its player. At the moment, this simple piece was played by Ye Futian. Although it did not require much skill, its artistic conception was displayed flawlessly. For any piece of music, the artistic conception was more important than the techniques used.


    The girl sat beside Ye Futian and raised her head to look at the moon. Her eyes were filled with peace and she felt more and more relieved. Then, she slowly closed her eyes and actually fell asleep sitting down.


    Ye Futian turned around to glance at the girl. Under the moon, the girl was sleeping serenely, just like what a little girl would do.


    Behind them, a maidservant walked up and brought the girl away gently, while the music continued. Ye Futian only stopped playing after the maidservant walked out from the room.


    "Thank you," the maidservant said to Ye Futian.


    "Don''t mind it," Ye Futian said politely.


    "Even after these few years, the lady is still troubled by the event that year. Very often, she will cry in her sleep and she gets angry easily. I''m sorry for the trouble this has caused you," the maidservant added. She had been taking care of the girl for many years.


    "No problem. I''ll go and rest now," Ye Futian said, after which he turned around and left.


    The anger he had in the morning was completely gone now. She was but a pitiful young girl, so he should not be too serious. However, Ye Futian suddenly felt that something was wrong and looked at the luxurious West Court before him. Sigh. I am more pitiful.


    ��


    The next morning, Ye Futian was woken up by a loud noise. Walking out of the room, Ye Futian saw Long Ling''er standing akimbo outside the door. She was staring angrily at him like a porcelain doll. Ye Futian realized that when she was angry, she looked quite cute.


    "What''s up?" Ye Futian asked lazily.


    "Did you play a lullaby yesterday?" Long Ling''er widened her eyes at Ye Futian. She actually fell asleep.


    "It''s just a soothing piece of music," Ye Futian said speechlessly. Why was it a lullaby?


    "It''s the same. Why did you make me fall asleep?" The girl was unhappy.


    "You were tired and therefore fell asleep. What does it have to do with me?" Why is she even unhappy about this? Ye Futian thought.


    "You..." The girl pointed her finger at Ye Futian. Then, she stomped her foot on the ground and turned around. "Follow me."


    "Where are we going?" Ye Futian asked.


    "As my musical attendant, clearly you are following me to learn guqin together," Long Ling''er said. Ye Futian actually did not know what to reply and only started to follow her. Did he actually have to learn guqin with her?


    Forget it. I am just doing a kind deed.


    The two went before the waterfall seen on the previous day, after which they rode the ice dragon up the hill. The environment of the place was indeed elegant. The elder who surname was Feng was already waiting here. Noticing the arrival of Long Ling''er, he gave a kindly smile.


    "Grandfather Feng, I''m here to learn guqin," Long Ling''er said softly.


    "Sure," the elder nodded. Then, he looked at Ye Futian and asked, "Who is he?"


    "He is Ye Futian, my musical attendant," Long Ling''er replied. The elder did not say anything else. After all, the music that he was about to teach Long Ling''er could not be learned by ordinary people so it really did not matter.


    "I believe you already have the basics; your parents should have taught you many things as well. I''ll teach you music directly," the elder said.


    "Okay," Long Ling''er nodded gently.


    The elder walked to the guqin. The guqin was in the shape of a dragon and seemed to be made from dead wood. It was extremely aged and looked somewhat magnificent.


    He then started playing the guqin slowly. When the music spread, Ye Futian actually felt that the music was not part of the mortal world. Instead, it was meant for dragons.


    "Err..." At this instant, Ye Futian was astonished. When the girl asked him to come here and learn music together, he thought that her teacher would only be displaying his skills in front of an expert. However, when he heard the music from the elder, he finally understood how supercilious he was.


    At the moment, he felt an invisible current flowing in the sky, as if many pure-blooded dragons were dancing and speaking.


    Running the Freedom Meditation naturally, the invisible forms before Ye Futian became clear at once. A shocking picture appeared before him: he actually saw many real dragons coiled up in the sky. The ice dragon beside Long Ling''er also moved restlessly and ascended into the sky and towards the elder. Suddenly, a low dragon howl was heard from the back of the hill. Then, Ye Futian saw an even larger dragon appear. It was a purple dragon whose body was huger than any dragon he had seen before. The purple dragon also went behind the elder and coiled up.


    Ye Futian could feel that the music was like a special kind of language. It could summon illusory dragons and also real dragons and communicate with them spiritually. It was more than just a language. It felt as if they were the same species.


    "Girl, a Dragon Whisperer is born able to communicate with dragons. You need to use your heart to listen and feel. When you play the guqin, your Spiritual Energy will turn into your language and resonate with heaven, earth, and dragons. An excellent Dragon Whisperer could turn music and dragons into a single body," the elder said slowly in a solemn tone. "Only when you can do that, you can be called a real Dragon Master."


    "Dragon Master." Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. It was a sacred and powerful class and was even more honorable than Dragon Knight. The elder before him was clearly a powerful Dragon Master. In addition, the girl who liked to play was actually also a young Dragon Master who came here to learn.

 432 Swindled

    To become a Dragon Master required a unique talent, and that was to be a Dragon Whisperer. Ye Futian stood at the side, quietly listening. He realized that the melody being played was like a dragon''s whisper, and it resonated with the dragon''s spiritual energy.


    As the elderly person continued to play, the giant purple dragon started to dance and move forward in tune with the music. It could also cast spells from its mouth, as though the spells were cast together by the dragon and the elderly person.


    Ye Futian thought to himself, if a Dragon Tamer could resonate with dragons and make use of the dragon''s body to cast powerful spells, coupled with the demonic dragon''s biologically strong build, it would be like the person and dragon combined into one entity. This would definitely be much stronger than a Dragon Knight and a dragon joining forces.


    After the elderly person''s performance, Long Ling''er started to practice. Although she could play the entire piece without any problem, her attainment and level were evidently too low, causing her to be unable to resonate with the giant ice dragon. At her current level, the best she could do was to establish a connection. However, she was still young. Ye Futian had not even started cultivating at her age, and the difference from birth made a vast difference to the starting point for cultivators.


    Although this little girl was a little pitiful, she was born with a golden spoon in her mouth, and naturally had the talent of a Dragon Master. If she wanted to learn, she could easily find a strong Dragon Master to teach her. It was no wonder that she dared to call the Top Three Schools run-down places. How could an ordinary person compare with her?


    The elderly person patiently taught her, while she diligently tried to learn. Even though she claimed that she did not like cultivating, it looked like she put in a lot of effort into it.


    Ye Futian silently waited at the back, sitting on a rock and diminishing his existence. In reality, every time the elderly person played, he would be attentively watching and listening.


    Without them noticing it, a few hours had gone by. Long Ling''er finally stood up and said, "Grandpa Feng, I''ll come by again tomorrow to consult you."


    "Alright. Little girl, you have a good amount of talent, you just need a little bit more patience. Go back and practice more," The elderly man replied while smiling.


    "Okay." Long Ling''er nodded her head, following which she turned to Ye Futian and said, "Let''s go."


    Both of them then climbed onto the giant ice dragon to leave. On the demonic dragon''s back, Long Ling''er looked at Ye Futian proudly and asked, "How was it? Wasn''t it an eye-opener for you? Did you manage to understand the guqin piece?"


    "It was fine, it''s pretty simple to understand," Ye Futian replied nonchalantly.


    Long Ling''er''s gaze fixed on him and she looked at Ye Futian, astounded. She then replied in a small voice, "You''re unbelievable."


    Ye Futian shrugged. He was often misunderstood anyways.


    In the next few days, Ye Futian accompanied Long Ling''er in her studies. The little girl was improving bit by bit, and it became natural for them to argue constantly.


    One day, while Long Ling''er was in the yard, a crisp voice was heard. Long Ling''er''s palm struck the edge of the guqin, and she dispiritedly said, "I don''t want to learn anymore."


    "Why, not learning because you''re lacking in talent?" Ye Futian retorted lazily from the side. Something he enjoyed recently was to rub her misfortunes in her face.


    "You''re saying it as if you can learn it," Long Ling''er quipped disdainfully.


    "I can." Ye Futian nodded while smiling.


    "I trust you." Long Ling''er''s smiled cynically, her tone full of sarcasm.


    What is that expression for? Ye Futian thought to himself. In his dismay, he asked her, "What if I can do it?"


    Long Ling''er looked at him and asked, "What do you want then?"


    "I want to stay at the Celestial Pavilion for a year. You pay for it." Ye Futian was still bitter about that incident to date. He looked at the little girl and wondered if his request was too much for her. To be fair, one year''s stay was an astronomical sum.


    "No problem," the little girl agreed readily. She even looked at Ye Futian with some contempt. What low standards he had. Looking at the little girl''s expression, Ye Futian knew that he had asked for too little. He tried to change his condition and said, "I made a mistake."


    "You''re not allowed to go back on your word. Are you sure you can do it?" the little girl looked at Ye Futian and questioned.


    Ye Futian glared at her. She dared to question if he could do it? How could she.


    "Get your to dragon cooperate with me." Ye Futian stepped up and Long Ling''er looked at him with suspicion. He was actually going to do it?


    She stood up and passed her guqin to Ye Futian, turning to the giant ice dragon and instructing it, "Listen to him."


    The giant ice dragon nodded and its big eyes stared at Ye Futian. Ye Futian gracefully took a seat in front of the guqin. His fingers moved along the strings, and a crisp melody started playing, as though a dragon''s roar was echoing throughout the heavens.


    In an instant, Long Ling''er started to tremble, and her vision focused on Ye Futian.


    This was �� As the melody continued, it was like a demonic dragon''s dance, causing a storm to emerge. The Qi flow around Ye Futian formed the shape of a dragon, and at the same time, a peculiar spiritual energy assimilated into the music and rushed into the giant ice dragon''s brain.


    At that moment, the curled-up body of the giant ice dragon started to gradually straighten, and its giant head lowered to look at Ye Futian. An image appeared in its brain, of a person playing the guqin. There was a mysterious Spiritual Will communicating with it, trying to establish a connection.


    From the Spiritual Will in the guqin melody, it could feel a sense of danger. As a demon king, it had considerable intelligence, so it naturally understood that Ye Futian was a beastmaster and could control demonic beasts. However, Ye Futian''s intention was not to control it. The melody was friendly and only wanted to establish a link with it.


    "Senior dragon, can you cooperate for a bit?" Ye Futian lifted his head and smiled at the giant ice dragon, his smile full of goodwill.


    The giant ice dragon nodded and released its Spiritual Will, in an instant Ye Futian''s guqin melody was absorbed into its Spiritual Will. At that moment, its giant eyes and brain were filled with Ye Futian''s figure. It spiraled upwards and Long Ling''er raised her head, stunned at what she was witnessing. Following which, Ye Futian''s hands vibrated vigorously on the guqin.


    "Roar��" An astonishing dragon roar sounded out, and even the air trembled forcefully. The house tremored and Long Ling''er covered her ears with her hands, sitting back on the ground, her brain vigorously pulsating. The dragon roar was actually the Cangshan Dragon Chant, emitted through the mouth of a dragon. Ye Futian withdrew his Spiritual Will and the melody gradually stopped.


    Long Ling''er sat there, staring blankly at Ye Futian. "How did you do it?"


    "Cause I''m not stupid like you," Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    The little girl''s eyeballs rolled in their sockets, and she walked towards Ye Futian and started cradling his arm.


    Ye Futian saw her smiling gently and involuntarily stepped back. He looked at her cautiously and questioned, "What are you doing?" For things to deviate from the norm, there must be a reason.


    The little girl stepped forward, hugging Ye Futian''s arm and gently shaking it. She tenderly said, "Big brother Futian, can you teach me how you learned it?" The atmosphere changed too quickly, the wilful little princess suddenly changed into a gentle and adorable girl.


    "Hmmm, this is a little hard." How could Ye Futian cave so easily?


    "Big brother Futian, just take pity on me, please." Long Ling''er''s tears welled up in her eyes.


    Life is but an illusion Ye Futian thought to himself, then said, "Trying to trick me?"


    The little girl''s tears suddenly disappeared. She let go of Ye Futian''s hand and clenched her teeth, saying, "Didn''t you want to stay in the Celestial Pavilion? If you can teach me, I''ll buy the Celestial Pavilion as a gift for you."


    "��" Ye Futian went silent for a few seconds, following which he looked at the little girl and said, "Do you think I''m this kind of person?"


    The little girl stared at him and wanted to open her mouth again, but Ye Futian folded before her and said, "Deal."


    Ye Futian had a bright grin on his face now. He was already intending on teaching her, but hearing that he could get the Celestial Pavilion for it, Ye Futian was looking forward to seeing the look on the Celestial Pavilion''s staff member''s face. She had dared to look down on him��


    "When can you start teaching me?" The little girl looked at Ye Futian grudgingly�� This shameless fellow.


    "Now, of course," Ye Futian replied. His road to riches depended on the little girl now, thinking of the cost of staying at the Celestial Pavilion for one day, if the Celestial Pavilion was his��


    Ye Futian was already starting to imagine his wonderful life ahead.


    "Start off by playing the piece ten times." Ye Futian instructed.


    "Huh��" Long Ling''er''s mouth hung wide open. She looked at Ye Futian then glared even harder. "You''re not lying to me, are you?"


    "Are you going to learn?" Ye Futian replied. The little girl''s fundamentals were weak, if she wanted to bypass that to learn harder guqin pieces, her level would not be able to keep up. What she needed was to beef up her fundamentals. Moreover, the elderly person had already taught her very well, he was just lacking a little bit. There were some crucial things that the Freedom Meditation could see that the elderly person could not. That was why he had the ability to teach Long Ling''er.


    "I''ll trust you just this once," The little girl looked at Ye Futian and replied, starting to play the guqin piece.


    After ten attempts, Ye Futain started to correct her mistakes, asking her to try to contact the dragon and attempt to resonate through her guqin melody. At the same time, he started his Freedom Meditation and channeled his Spiritual Will into her melody as well.


    The first time was a failure. "You''re too nervous and taking it to heart. Your Spiritual Will is being messed up. Try again," Ye Futian said.


    Long Ling''er continued trying.


    "The musical notes are jumbled up. Try again. Your intent has to be one with your heart, let go of all distracting thoughts and let yourself be free. Imagine yourself as the dragon, not it as you. Try again." Ye Futian corrected her time and again, and the little girl started to get into the rhythm.


    This guy seems to be really good, the little girl thought to herself.


    The failures continued. In the evening, a dragon''s roar sounded yet again in the yard. What followed was a shrill scream. The little girl jumped off the seat and onto Ye Futian. He hugged her and heard the little girl say, "Big brother Futian, I really did it."


    "Yup." Ye Futian saw her innocent smile and was happy for her. No wonder she was so nervous, looking at how excited she was after learning it.


    "I''ll definitely become a strong Dragon Master," Long Ling''er exclaimed loudly.


    "Definitely. But shouldn''t you be getting off now?" Ye Futian replied.


    The little girl blinked her eyes and got off Ye Futian. "I''m such a huge beauty, it''s advantageous to you," she replied, not minding it at all.


    "What are you thinking about?" Ye Futian rubbed her head forcefully, messing up her hair.


    The little girl turned back and stared at him viciously, then smiled sweetly and said, "Big brother Futian, why don''t you continue to accompany me and cultivate in the future? I''ll buy a few more Celestial Pavilions for you."


    "Such a handsome person like me accompanying you? You must be dreaming," Ye Futian knocked on her forehead and said.


    The little girl''s expression looked upset. It was really too cute.


    "Then can you celebrate the new year with me this year? My parents said that they won''t be accompanying me this year," the little girl asked again.


    Ye Futian looked at the little girl''s expression, then nodded his head and replied, "Okay."


    "Thank you, big brother, Futian." The little girl''s way of addressing him suddenly become a lot closer, as though it was natural to her!

 433 The Celestial Pavilion’s New Owner

    It was already dark and Long Ling''er had fallen asleep peacefully under Ye Futian''s guqin melody. As the music stopped, Ye Futian stood up, bid goodbye to the two maids and left. After he had left, the two maidservants looked at each other and one of them said, "The young lady''s mood has been better these past few days."


    "Indeed. Even though the young lady argues with him every day, she seems to be enjoying the process. Ever since that incident a few years ago, there hasn''t been anyone playing with the young lady like this. The old master and mistress have become strict, the young lady''s temper has become worse, and there haven''t been any other members of the clan that have been as daring in front of the young lady. They''re either jealous or afraid. Even though the young master dotes on the young lady, but his character��" The other maid shook her head lightly. They had watched Long Ling''er grow up and they knew that ever since the previous Clan leader had died, many things had changed, and they had not seen the young lady act like that for a long time.


    "But that fellow sure is daring, to mess around with the young lady like that. Doesn''t he know the young lady''s identity?" the first maid replied, smiling. "Moreover, his looks and talent appear to be very outstanding."


    Ye Futian did not know that the two maids were discussing him. Even though he did not know the little girl''s identity, he could guess. A teenage girl who dared to easily say that she would buy the Celestial Pavilion, how could she come from a simple background? However, he did not treat things like background and identity too seriously. He knew that the little girl was seriously lacking love, which was why he decided to play along with her for a few days. However, many other things were crystal clear to him. For example, when he arrived at the building he was staying in, an elderly figure appeared in front of him. Ye Futian was not surprised. He walked forward and bowed, saying, "Ye Futian greets senior."


    "You''re also a Dragon Master?" the incoming person asked. It was the elderly person that had been teaching Long Ling''er the guqin.


    "No, I''m not." Ye Futian did not hide the fact that he had been teaching Long Ling''er, and he never had any intention of doing so. After all, he had been secretly learning from the elderly person as well. He might as well come clean. If it was discovered by someone else later, it would cause them to loathe him instead. It just so happened that he had the ability to teach the little girl.


    "How then are you able to learn my guqin piece?" the elderly person asked curiously. Anyone who was not a Dragon Master did not have the unique talent, and by all standards meant that they were not able to learn it. Even if they were well-versed in the guqin melody, they weren''t able to communicate with demonic dragons.


    "I''m a Musical Sorcerer, at the same time, I''m also a beastmaster. That''s why I''m able to imitate the ability of a Dragon Master, but not truly own it. I didn''t mean to learn from you secretly, I hope senior can forgive me." Ye Futian said. The ability he had revealed was slightly different from Dragon Masters; he had controlled the demonic dragon by establishing a connection with it, while Dragon Masters took a more direct approach by resonance.


    "I understand." The elderly person nodded his head, and in a flash, he had already vanished.


    So fast Ye Futian thought to himself, but he did not dwell too much on it. At the elderly person''s level, he would not do anything to Ye Futian over such a small matter, moreover, Ye Futian had graciously admitted it.


    When the elderly person went back to the waterfall mountain that he had left from, the guards that were following Long Ling''er previously were already waiting here. When they saw the elderly person, they bowed and addressed him, "Senior."


    "How is it?" the elderly person asked.


    "There shouldn''t be a problem. Their meeting this time was a coincidence, his comrades are all from foreign lands," replied the guard.


    "Okay, originally it shouldn''t be a problem, but because this involves little Ling''er, we ought to be more careful. Since there isn''t anything wrong, everything will revert to normal. We don''t need to interfere, and little Ling''er seems to like him quite a bit. It''s good to have someone to accompany Ling''er in her cultivation." The elderly person waved his hand and said, "You can go now."


    "Understood." The guard nodded. "Should we find a way for him to enter the Starry School to accompany the young lady to cultivate?"


    "We can discuss this in the future. We still don''t know how he feels about it yet, maybe his original intention of coming to the Divine Sky City is the Top Three School as well. To learn the guqin piece in only a few days, his potential is definitely not a problem. Also, this incident should only reach the ears of the Madame, there''s no need to let too many people know about it," the elderly person replied.


    "Understood. I''ll take my leave then." The guards bowed and left.


    The next day after Long Ling''er had woke up, she called Ye Futian to go together to the waterfall mountain to cultivate and learn the guqin. Like always, the elderly person was waiting there to teach Long Ling''er. There was nothing different from usual.


    Ye Futian understood that it was the elderly person''s acknowledgment of him being there. Therefore, even though Ye Futian''s supposed identity was a musical attendant, he was, in actuality, learning the Dragon Master guqin melody.


    After they had finished learning, he would teach Long Ling''er. In the following days, the happiest person was naturally Long Ling''er, having two people teaching her at the same time. Grandpa Feng being the main teacher, and Ye Futian correcting the details and mistakes. This caused her to learn very quickly.


    The days in the West Court were peaceful and simple, Long Ling''er''s attitude towards Ye Futian had changed a lot for the better, but the two of them still argued occasionally.


    Outside, a sensational event happened in the vicinity of the Starry School. One of the three famous inns of the Divine Sky City, the Celestial Pavilion, was changing owners. It had been bought by someone and the handover was taking place.


    As a top-quality inn in the Divine Sky City, the Celestial Pavilion had strong backing and the person behind it did not lack financial wealth. Those who stayed or drank at the Celestial Pavilion were of a certain stature. All this had a special meaning, yet under such a strong backing, the Celestial Pavilion was bought over by someone else. This naturally caused quite an uproar.


    Not long after, there was news that the ones who had bought the Pavilion were that clan from the West Mountain. Majority of the people became less shocked upon hearing it. Since it was that clan, it was but a small issue for them to buy over the Celestial Pavilion. Many people were still curious, what did that clan buy over the Pavilion for?


    There were rumors that at the start of next year, that person would be entering the Starry School to cultivate. Could it be that it was bought for her to live in? However, near the Starry School, there was the West Court, which was also the private property of that clan. An extremely powerful person already lived there, so what was the point of buying the Celestial Pavilion?


    Many people could not understand why, but after much debate, the masses just gave up guessing. They just lamented that the people in power were just that wilful, why would they need a reason to do so?


    Even if they racked their brains, they could probably never guess that buying the Celestial Pavilion was just tomfoolery between the little girl and a scheming fellow. The origin of it was because that fellow had been looked down upon by a pretty lady working at the Pavilion and had been bearing a grudge.


    Apart from the Celestial Pavilion, the Starry School''s end-of-year examinations also raised quite the ruckus, especially so within the Starry School. This was one of the biggest event organized by the School every year.


    ��


    Back at the West Court, Long Ling''er had learned yet another guqin piece and looked extremely exhilarated. She smiled at Ye Futian and asked, "Big brother Futian, aren''t I great?"


    "So-so. The main reason is that you have two good teachers," Ye Futian replied lazily.


    "Hmph, can''t you give me some encouragement?" Long Ling''er glared savagely at Ye Futian.


    "Wouldn''t your ego skyrocket then?" Ye Futian stared back at the little girl with disdain in his eyes.


    Long Ling''er crossed her arms on her hips, following which she took out a badge from her pocket. she pouted and passed it to Ye Futian. "For you."


    Ye Futian took the badge in his hand and saw the words Celestial Pavilion inscribed on it. Although he had guessed that it would not be hard for Long Ling''er, he did not expect that it would be this simple. When the two of them were fooling around, Long Ling''er had said that as long as he taught her, she would buy the Celestial Pavilion as a gift for him. In just a few days, she had really bought it��


    Ye Futian sighed in his heart. She was really rich beyond human reasoning. Faced with such a person, Ye Futian really wanted to say If there''s such a good thing in the future, remember to look for me.


    "..." The little girl looked at Ye Futian, blinking her eyes. After being stunned for a few seconds, she opened her mouth and asked, "Nothing to say?"


    "Good girl." Ye Futian rubbed the little girl''s head.


    The little girl''s face darkened. She questioned him angrily, "Shouldn''t you at least pretend to be modest and reject my offer, keep it after failing to persuade me, then praise me?"


    "Little kids shouldn''t think that much." Ye Futian patted her lightly on the back of her head.


    "I can''t believe that you''re this kind of person." Long Ling''er was close to crying.


    "Oops, looks like you found out," Ye Futian replied shamelessly.


    "Boohoo��" Long Ling''er turned around and walked to her two maids and said, "I want to go out and play."


    Ye Futian was dumbfounded. He thought that the little girl had felt hurt, but he had underestimated her.


    "Young lady, we can''t decide this," the maid replied.


    "Uncle Yang." The little girl shouted loudly and soon the middle-aged man appeared, saying, "Did the young miss look for me?"


    "I want to go out," Long Ling''er declared seriously.


    "Young miss, the Madame has already said that cultivating is your priority in this West Court until you enter the Starry School," Yang Xing explained patiently.


    "I''ve already been learning so fast. Today I want to thank big brother Futian. Can''t I go to the Celestial Pavilion to celebrate? Moreover, I promised to give the Celestial Pavilion to big brother Futian, so I should naturally go and take a look." Long Ling''er justified for herself and Ye Futian unknowingly became a scapegoat.


    "This��" Yang Xing was in a dilemma.


    Long Ling''er ran to Ye Futian''s side, cradled his arm and said, "Don''t worry Uncle Yang, with big brother Futian around, I definitely won''t create trouble."


    Ye Futian had a headache. This was one burden he could not get rid of.


    Yang Xing looked at Ye Futian, nodded his head gently and said, "Alright then."


    "Thank you, Uncle Yang." The little girl smiled radiantly. She had finally gotten her way.


    ��


    At the Celestial Pavilion, it had been exceedingly busy the past two days for two reasons. The first was because the Celestial Pavilion had been bought by that clan from the West Mountain and was changing owners. This naturally attracted a lot of attention. The second was the upcoming Starry School end-of-year examinations. Many disciples who had done well in the examinations would come here to celebrate.


    At this moment, there were many Starry School disciples outside the Celestial Pavilion. Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing were also among them. Wang Yuqing raised her head and looked at the flashy main door of the Pavilion, feeling mixed emotions in her heart.


    Although she was a core disciple of the four clans of Yunyue City and could be considered as wealthy, but to her, coming to the Celestial Pavilion was still something that could be deemed as a luxury. Be it accommodation or dining in the Pavilion, they were all paid in ritual implements, not spirit stones. To come to the Pavilion was a symbol of one''s status.


    Wang Yuqing had never been here. To her, such extravagance was not a must. Even if she met some important people in the Pavilion, the difference in their status meant that they would not have much interaction. Today, however, because of Jiang Nan''s outstanding results in the end-of-year examinations, they were here to celebrate.


    "Let''s go, I''ll bring you to experience the atmosphere of the Celestial Pavilion," Jiang Nan smiled while saying. He walked forward and continued, "I hear that the Celestial Pavilion has since changed owners, and has been bought by that clan from the West Mountain. Many people are here to join in the fun today, I wonder if we''ll get the chance to meet some famous people."

 434 Pleasure-Seeking?

    Among the many courtyards in Celestial Pavilion, there was an extremely clear pool. From each of the independent courtyards, there was a long path leading to the central area of the pool, where the guests in Celestial Pavilion could enjoy delicious meals. It was called the Fairy Pool. Of course, outsiders could also come to the Fairy Pool to have a meal, but it would be very costly. Nevertheless, there were still many people drinking and chatting at the Fairy Pool at the moment. The large Divine Sky City clearly had many rich people.


    Today, Jiang Nan was also generous for once and invited several of his college mates to the Fairy Pool to enjoy themselves.


    "This environment�� I feel like I am having a meal in a fairyland," a person complimented. He looked at a platform at the center of the Fairy Pool where a group of ladies was dancing gracefully. Their white clothes and long dresses swang elegantly in the air. In the middle of the group, there was a flawless lady whose face was covered in fine gauze. As she played the guqin, the melodious music spread out, relaxing many. With such an environment, it was no wonder that Celestial Pavilion would charge so much to have a meal here.


    "Senior, we have to thank you for having the chance to experience the environment in Celestial Pavilion." Another person smiled.


    A complacent expression appeared on Jiang Nan''s face. Looking at Wang Yuqing, he smiled and asked, "Yuqing, what do you think about this place?" His main purpose today was to treat Wang Yuqing.


    "It''s indeed gorgeous," Wang Yuqing nodded. Even the ladies who were playing the guqin and dancing were extremely charming. Beside the Fairy Pool, there were also several arched bridges which held a few independent attics in the air, producing a beautiful sight.


    "The banquet at the Fairy Pool is all made up of expensive delicacies. The wines and dishes here are all mixed with Dragon Grass and can benefit cultivation greatly. It''s not just the environment here that is outstanding. Ordinary people may not even have the chance to come here once in their whole life," Jiang Nan said, smiling. He looked at the independent attics on the arched bridges and added, "The people who can eat in those attics are definitely those with noble status. They can see us from there, but we cannot see what is happening in the attics."


    "Okay," Wang Yuqing nodded gently, wondering what kind of people would be in the attics. She then looked in the other directions. There were many people in the Fairy Pool, but the place was really huge and spacious. Every table would occupy a lot of space and they would not be affected by the people from the other tables at all.


    The people who were present all had an outstanding temperament.


    Suddenly, a wave of noise erupted in the quiet environment. Many people looked in that direction and saw a large group of people walking in from the path in the distance.


    The person at the front of the group was actually a girl who was about 13 or 14 years old. Clearly, her position was extraordinary.


    "She''s the dragon girl from West Mountain. She''s actually here. Could it really be that Celestial Pavilion was bought to give her?" someone asked.


    "West Mountain girl dragon?" Jiang Nan, Wang Yuqing, and their friends all looked in that direction. Noticing the grandeur of the girl, they sighed in their hearts. They had heard that the girl dragon would also enter Starry School to cultivate in the following year. By that time, she could be considered as their juniors. However, in Divine Sky City such a relationship was too common and not special at all.


    Wang Yuqing and her friends knew that the little princess from West Mountain Dragon Clan was someone in a completely different world from them.


    Wang Yuqing was from one of the four major clans in Yunyue City. However, her background was really insignificant in front West Mountain Dragon Clan, just like the difference between an elephant and an ant.


    The dragon girl was someone whom she could not seek connections with even if she wanted to.


    "I think that''s the management team of Celestial Pavilion. Why is the dragon girl gathering all of them?" someone asked softly. They suddenly had a weird thought. Could it be that buying Celestial Pavilion was not the suggestion of the Dragon Clan, but the capricious decision of the dragon girl?


    "I actually heard some rumors. When Dragon Clan bought Celestial Pavilion, there were no orders given from West Mountain itself. Instead, the order was given directly from West Court, causing this to happen," someone said, smiling. A strange expression appeared on the face of everyone. Many people knew that the dragon girl was cultivating in West Court at the moment. If the order was given from West Court, it was really very probable that she was the one who had decided to buy Celestial Pavilion.


    After the dragon girl and the group of people left the place and walked into the deeper parts of Celestial Pavilion, someone asked, "Why is she buying Celestial Pavilion?"


    "I heard that she wanted to give it to someone as a gift," the person just now replied, smiling.


    "A gift?" The expressions on everyone''s faces turned even stranger. It was really extravagant to give Celestial Pavilion as a gift. However, the dragon girl was only 13 to 14 years old. Why was she giving Celestial Pavilion to someone?"


    Many people could not understand why. Jiang Nan who was sitting there smiled and said, "The world of the dragon girl is something that we do not understand, and can never understand."


    "You''re right there," someone said.


    Then, everyone returned to enjoying their food. Why should they care about so many things?


    ��


    At the moment, Ye Futian was waiting outside Celestial Pavilion instead of following Long Ling''er inside.


    In the distance, there was a long tweet. The Black Wind Condor, with three people on its back, descended from the sky and landed before Ye Futian. It was exactly Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Lou Lanxue.


    The Black Wind Condor and Ye Futian were connected through their minds. Before Ye Futian reached, he already ordered the Black Wind Condor to bring his friends here.


    "Didn''t you decide not to stay here?" Loulan Xue asked Ye Futian.


    That day, after Ye Futian saw the price, he decided to leave himself. "Now we are going to," Ye Futian said, smiling. "Let''s go."


    The three looked at Ye Futian with a strange expression. Then, Loulan Xue took a step forward and said, "That day after you were brought away, I asked around and found out that the group of people was from West Mountain Dragon Clan. The girl is the young princess of the Dragon Clan, which is a top clan in Divine Sky City."


    "West Mountain Dragon Clan." Ye Futian seemed to have heard of this name before. The group walked into Celestial Pavilion, where one of Long Ling''er maidservants was waiting for him. Noticing Ye Futian''s arrival, she shouted, "Mr. Ye." Then, she turned around and said to a lady beside her, "Lead the way."


    The lady was about 20 years old and looked pure and cute. Her name was Shen Yu and she worked in Celestial Pavilion. When Shen Yu saw Ye Futian, she managed to recognize him and his friends at once. After all, they had left a deep impression in her mind the last time.


    A few days ago, Ye Futian and his friends came to Celestial Pavilion and said that they were going to stay here. However, after she told them the price, Ye Futian said that cultivators had to endure suffering and should not enjoy themselves too much, after which he turned around and left. Immediately, she could not help but burst into laughter. However, at the moment, Ye Futian was looking at her with a faint smile, just like how she looked at him on that day. Because of this, she did not really dare to look at Ye Futian directly. After all, the maidservant had come with the people from the Dragon Clan just now, who was also the owner of Celestial Pavilion at the moment.


    "Alright," she nodded gently, not daring to look into Ye Futian''s eyes. Then, she turned around and led the way.


    Shen Yu walked at the front and her heart raced in anxiety. Without her realizing it, Ye Futian walked up to her. Smiling, he asked, "What''s your name?"


    "My name is Shen Yu." Shen Yu lowered her head, not daring to look at Ye Futian.


    "I''m Ye Futian."


    "Okay," Shen Yu nodded gently.


    "Do you feel very hot? Why is your face red?" Ye Futian asked, smiling.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Shen Yu''s face turned even redder as she explained softly, "Maybe I do feel very hot."


    The maidservant beside them looked at them with a strange expression. What were they talking about? Loulan Xue and Yu Sheng both looked at Ye Futian in contempt. What a bad taste... Clearly, he was deliberately teasing Shen Yu.


    The group walked along the long path and Shen Yu kept her head down throughout the way. That event that happened that day made her feel really awkward at the moment. She was also guessing the relationship between Ye Futian and West Mountain Dragon Clan.


    Suddenly, someone shouted, "Ye Futian."


    Ye Futian stopped and looked along the path when he saw a few familiar faces at the banquet at the Fairy Pool. It was Wang Yuqing and Jiang Nan.


    "Why are you here?" Wang Yuqing asked. She knew clearly what kind of place Celestial Pavilion was. Ye Futian actually appeared before her at the moment.


    Apart from Wang Yuqing, a strange expression also appeared on the faces of Jiang Nan and his college mates.


    "I plan to stay here for a few days," Ye Futian replied.


    "A few days?" Wang Yuqing''s face darkened at once. Even with her level and status, she had never dared to enter Celestial Pavilion. On the other hand, Ye Futian was going to stay here for a few days.


    "Are you mad? Do you know how much it costs to stay here for a day?" Wang Yuqing said, staring at Ye Futian. "I brought you to Divine Sky City for you to cultivate, not to seek pleasure. If you become addicted to it, how can you become stronger?"


    Jiang Nan also seemed to be interested in what was happening. This idiot actually came to Celestial Pavilion to stay.


    "Is this called enjoying while you can?" He was indeed an interesting guy.


    "My grandfather asked me to take care of you, but you character is actually so poor!" Wang Yuqing was somewhat angry as Ye Futian was wasting his resources in Celestial Pavilion. In her opinion, Ye Futian was clearly seeking pleasure and superficial glory at this place.

 435 Talen

    When Ye Futian heard Wang Yuqing''s words, he could feel his head hurt. Back in Wang Family, Wang Yuqing thought that he was going to join the Top Three Schools and had always been viewing him as a junior. As a disciple of the Top Three Schools, Wang Yuqing had an invisible form of arrogance around her. When she talked to him, her tone was also very commanding.


    At the moment, when she saw him in Celestial Pavilion, she still had such an attitude. This caused him to be somewhat speechless.


    Beside him, Long Ling''er maidservant asked, "Who is she?" She was somewhat puzzled; she had seen Ye Futian''s behavior in West Court. He was no weaker than Long Ling''er and had brought her under complete control. Long Ling''er had been affectionately calling him "Brother Futian" since then. Now, he was actually verbally attacked by a young lady. Moreover, the lady seemed to be somewhat arrogant, as if it was only natural that she scolded him.


    "A friend of mine," Ye Futian said, giving a bitter smile.


    "Who''s your friend?" Wang Yuqing said coldly. "If my grandfather didn''t ask me to take care of you, I wouldn''t have even brought you to Divine Sky City. However, my grandfather was actually wrong about you. What a pity that he actually had great hope for you."


    "Everyone has their own lives. If he wants to degrade himself, it''s his business. Yuqing, why do you have to be angry?" Jiang Nan who was beside her said, smiling. Many people who were eating in the Fairy Pool looked in this direction and seemed to be interested in what was going on.


    Ye Futian felt even more speechless. He gave her some spirit stones when they arrived at Divine Sky City precisely because he did not want her to think that she had helped him. He did not want to owe her anything. However, Ye Futian was still mindful about the relationship with Wang Family. After all, the leader of Wang Family had been really good to him and so he did not want the relationship between Wang Yuqing and him to become too bad.


    "Since we''re not friends, please stop talking about my business." After Ye Futian said that, he walked away.


    "You..." Seeing Ye Futian''s attitude, Wang Yuqing''s face turned even colder. Then, she added, "What an ungrateful person."


    "Yuqing, I already said that you''re not even from the same world. You don''t have to talk to him. There is no need to be angry with such a person," Jiang Nan consoled.


    "That''s right. We came here to celebrate. Don''t let this ruin your mood," another person beside them said.


    "Yeah but when I think about how my grandfather was so hopeful for him, I still feel angry," Wang Yuqing said. "At first I hoped that he would at least put in some effort. The year is going to end soon and he still has the chance to enter the Top Three Schools next year. If he can really enter, I don''t mind taking care of him. But now... Forget it. What does it have to do with me?" Then, she shook her head.


    "Come and try this dish. It''s made from Flame Ganoderma and can benefit people who have fire-elemental talents." Jiang Nan smiled and helped Wang Yuqing to fill her bowl. It was good that Wang Yuqing could see for herself what kind of person Ye Futian was. Jiang Nan disliked Ye Futian all along; he was but a frog in the well which was slightly good-looking.


    In the other direction, Ye Futian and the group had already stepped into the villa area.


    Shen Yu who had had her head lowered also raised her head and looked curiously at Ye Futian. She wondered what kind of person Ye Futian was exactly. When she saw him for the first time, he could not afford to stay in Celestial Pavilion but still wanted to keep up his appearances. When she saw him for the second time, he was accompanied by a maidservant of the princess of Dragon Clan. Clearly, he was a person under Long Ling''er. However, not long ago he was humiliated ridiculously as if he was only an insignificant person who had a bad history. Was he actually someone who had managed to seek connections with the powerful?


    "If you keep staring at me like this, I will misunderstand your intention."


    Ye Futian looked at Shen Yu, grinning. Shen Yu was stunned, after which she blushed and turned her eyes away from him. This guy is really thick-skinned, she thought. But he''s indeed good-looking.


    The group came to a particular courtyard, which was the best one in Celestial Pavilion. Many people were already here.


    Long Ling''er was lecturing the other people in the courtyard. Realizing that Ye Futian had arrived, she smiled brightly and ran to Ye Futian. "Brother Futian, why are you so slow? It''s so boring!"


    Then, she held Ye Futian''s arm. Immediately, countless people stared at Ye Futian. The people who had taken over Celestial Pavilion were all from the Dragon Clan. Seeing that Long Ling''er was actually so close to the young man before them, they were petrified at once.


    Since when was the little devil so easy to deal with?


    Shen Yu looked at Ye Futian with astonishment written all over her face. She knew clearly who the little girl was. Even the previous owner of Celestial Pavilion could only lower his head before her and greet her politely. The dragon girl from the Dragon Clan was, without any exaggeration, one of the most powerful young girls in Divine Sky City. She was the only child of her parents in the Dragon Clan, and also the favorite person of the talented previous leader of the Dragon Clan.


    The relationship between the dragon girl and Ye Futian was actually so good. Just before this, Ye Futian was actually humiliated by a lady.


    "Stop." Ye Futian widened his eyes at Long Ling''er. Is she trying to kill me? It''s alright to mess around in West Court, but here...


    "Mr. Ye," Yang Xing, who was in front, shouted. Then, he said to the rest, "In the future when you work in Celestial Pavilion, you''ll all listen to Mr. Ye''s orders. He''s the new owner of Celestial Pavilion."


    Many people were somewhat shocked. When they heard that Long Ling''er bought Celestial Pavilion to give to someone as a gift, they were already very surprised. They did not expect the person to actually be so young.


    Shen Yu was bewildered once again. The person who could not even afford to stay in Celestial Pavilion the last time had become the new owner of the place.


    "Why are you not greeting the owner?" Long Ling''er pointed her finger at the crowd.


    Immediately, everyone bowed and shouted, "Greetings, Mr. Ye."


    "Mr. Ye, if you have anything to tell them, please do," Yang Xing said.


    Ye Futian turned around and said to Loulan Xue, "Loulan, come here." Loulan Xue walked up, also feeling somewhat surprised. Ye Futian was brought away by force and in addition to staying safe, he actually managed to form such a good relationship.


    "In the future, she''ll be in charge of Celestial Pavilion. Just listen to her orders," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes, Mr. Ye," everyone nodded.


    "Shen Yu," Ye Futian shouted. Shen Yu was stunned and she raised her head to look at Ye Futian. Why was Ye Futian calling her?


    Smiling, Ye Futian looked at her and said, "Shen Yu, you have been working in Celestial Pavilion in the past. In the future, you''ll help Loulan to manage the things here."


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Shen Yu was totally puzzled. She blinked her eyes, not really understanding what was going on. She had only been a receptionist in Celestial Pavilion. At the moment, Ye Futian was asking her to manage Celestial Pavilion. Was he joking?


    Noticing that Shen Yu was staring blankly at him, Ye Futian smiled and said, "What? Are you not willing to?"


    "Of course I''m willing..." Shen Yu shook her head and asked anxiously, "Are you being serious?" She stared firmly at Ye Futian as if she was scared that he was only joking.


    "Do I look like the kind of person who lies?" Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    "You''re not lying to me?" Shen Yu''s eyes turned red immediately and she seemed to be very excited. She was worried that Ye Futian was teasing her deliberately because of the event that had happened last time.


    "If you''re not willing to, forget it," Ye Futian said with a serious expression.


    "I''m willing to!" Shen Yu quickly said. Only then, Ye Futian smiled.


    Shen Yu''s heart pounded fiercely and she could not remain calm. She had been working here and naturally knew what kind of place Celestial Pavilion was. If she could manage Celestial Pavilion, she''ll certainly become successful in her career. But she still felt that the whole chain of events was very dramatic.


    Ye Futian decided to choose her because he needed a person who was familiar with Celestial Pavilion to help Loulan Xue. Although Shen Yu had mocked at him before, she did not have any malicious intentions. Instead, she was quite innocent. It was clearly better for Ye Futian to choose someone who was pure and simple.


    Of course, the main reason was that Shen Yu looked quite pretty when she smiled...


    "Uncle Yang, another thing," Ye Futian said, looking at Yang Xing. "Can you ask them to keep this a secret?" As a person who always kept a low-profile, Ye Futian did not like to attract too much attention.


    "Alright," Yang Xing nodded, after which he told everyone about it. Then, he asked the rest to leave, leaving only Shen Yu at the place.


    "Loulan, have you finished what I told you to do?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes," Loulan Xue nodded.


    "If you need any cultivation resources, just go and get the best," Ye Futian said, smiling. It felt really good to become rich over one night.


    What was their goal of coming to Divine Sky City? It was to cultivate and become stronger. Since they had the resources of Celestial Pavilion at the moment, they would clearly invest them into cultivation.


    "I understand," Loulan Xue nodded.


    "She''s your..." Long Ling''er extended her neck and looked at Loulan Xue.


    "Maidservant," Loulan answered. There had already been a few misunderstandings in the past.


    "Wow, Brother Futian you''re awesome." Long Ling''er looked at Ye Futian in admiration. Even his maidservant looked so charming.


    "Let''s go and eat together." Ye Futian noticed the strange look from Long Ling''er and was somewhat speechless. The girl was only so young. What was she thinking about?


    "Alright!" Long Ling''er giggled, after which she grabbed Ye Futian''s arm and pulled him outside. Ye Futian turned around and said, "Settle your meal yourselves."


    Yang Xing and the people beside Long Ling''er all followed her, leaving behind Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen who could only watch them leave.


    "That''s amazing." Yu Sheng''s face was also filled with admiration. It seemed like there were no females whom Ye Futian could not deal with.


    Ye Wuchen who seldom spoke also muttered, "It''s a talent." Yu Sheng nodded seriously. It was indeed a talent.


    Long Ling''er and Ye Futian walked out of the courtyard. Still holding Ye Futian''s arm, Long Ling''er said, "Brother Futian, do you want to consider joining Starry School with me? I''ll buy the other two inns which are as famous as Celestial Pavilion for you."


    "If I go there, how do I cultivate?" Ye Futian widened his eyes at Long Ling''er.


    "I''ll bring you with me," Long Ling''er said.


    "Bring me?" Ye Futian was speechless. Then, he moved Long Ling''er hand away and said, "You''re the princess of Dragon Clan, and I''m your musical attendant. Mind your image outside."


    "I don''t care about that," Long Ling''er said, indifferent.


    "The fact that you don''t care doesn''t mean that other people don''t as well. Moreover, if the people in your family find out that you have given Celestial Pavilion to me, they''ll definitely not ignore it," Ye Futian said.


    "But you have taught me many things," Long Ling''er said naively. "That''s much more important than Celestial Pavilion."


    "Other people will not think in this way." Ye Futian rubbed Long Ling''er head and added, "Listen to me."


    "I got it." With her hand, Long Ling''er made a funny face at Ye Futian.

 436 Genius

    A group of figures walked through the covered bridge by the Fairy Pool. Everyone in the Fairy looked over. The group walked down the bridge towards the independent building ahead. Regular people couldn''t go in. Enjoying a meal in the Celestial Pavilion was already luxurious. Entering the pavilion in the Fairy Pool was something else. But the people didn''t find it strange anymore when they saw the group. It was the little princess of the Dragon Clan.


    Long Ling''er was around 13 or 14 years old. She was still young, but from her features, it was clear she was already pretty. After a few more years, the Divine Sky City would have another skilled and rich beauty.


    Everyone had heard of the West Mountain Dragon Girl''s talent. She was a Dragon Whisperer and had a Dragon Master''s talent. When she was a child, her family had captured a young dragon for her to become familiar with them.


    Some people were born to be envied. If the most powerful of the West Mountain hadn''t died, Long Ling''er''s life would probably be even more amazing. After all, when he had been alive, there were few who could fight him in the entire eastern Barren State. His loss was a disaster to the Dragon Clan and had taken years for them to recover from.


    Everyone gazed at the people around Long Ling''er and saw Ye Futian. They were confused. Wasn''t he the one who had been insulted earlier? And the woman who had been with Ye Futian was beside Long Ling''er now. Was she a servant?


    This made many people curious. They looked to Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing. Right now, those two were stunned, gaping at Ye Futian. What was happening? When did Ye Futian get with the West Mountain''s Dragon Clan? They knew Ye Futian and obviously knew he couldn''t be from the Dragon Clan.


    Ye Futian didn''t look at them. They entered the pavilion directly.


    Jiang Nan tapped the table rhythmically and chuckled. "No wonder he can live in the Celestial Pavilion. He''s joined the Dragon Clan."


    "What do you mean?" Wang Yuqing asked.


    "The princess of the Dragon Clan is young and she will soon join the Starry School. It''s normal for the family to find people to study with her. I''m sure your ''friend'' is smart and took this chance. Don''t you find this scene familiar?" Jiang Nan laughed softly.


    "Are you talking about the Wang Family?" Wang Yuqing asked, understanding Jiang Nan.


    "What do you think?" Jiang Nan laughed. "I''ve underestimated him. He truly is skilled in this aspect. He could get with your family in the Yunyue City and win your grandfather and sister''s favor. Now, it''s the same in the Divine Sky City. He went straight to the Dragon Clan. I''m impressed."


    "It''s not easy to join the Dragon Clan though. How did he do it?" someone beside him whispered. The Dragon Clan was in the building. It was a bit far away, but they still didn''t dare to gossip loudly.


    "There are high and low ways. I wouldn''t know the specifics." Jiang Nan laughed meaningfully. "So when he said that he''ll stay a few days here, he was purposely showing off to you."


    "The West Mountain Dragon Clan," Wang Yuqing mumbled. She still found it strange.


    "They may be one of the top families in the Divine Sky City, but he''s only a study attendant. There''s no need to worry. He may be good at this, but he doesn''t know that he''s already fallen. A truly strong cultivator wouldn''t willingly be someone else''s servant," Jiang Nan said. "Any disciple of the Top Three Schools is better than that."


    "Yes." Wang Yuqing nodded. She didn''t want to discuss Ye Futian anymore. She''d thought that they would have nothing to do with each other anymore, but she didn''t expect to see him with the Dragon Clan. It shocked her.


    Ye Futian didn''t know or care about Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing''s thoughts. To him, those two were only passersby in his life. After entering the pavilion, he realized it contained many hidden magic arrays. Standing before the mirror-like floor-to-ceiling window, he could see the outside, but the outside couldn''t see in. Not only that, but the noise outside had softened too. They wouldn''t be disturbed. It was quiet.


    "Brother Futian, the food here is good. They''re all made with spiritual herbs. If you feast here every day, it will help with your cultivation," Long Ling''er said. "But I still want Brother Futian to be with me." With that, she gazed pitifully at Ye Futian again.


    "There aren''t any outsiders here. Stop acting." Ye Futian could see through her acts.


    The girl glared at her and then sadly shook Ye Futian''s arm. "I''m serious."


    "Uh��" Ye Futian just found it strange for the little girl to whine. He knocked gently against her head. "Where did you learn all these tricks?"


    "How did you find a girlfriend? You don''t know how to take care of girls at all," the girl said with disdain, letting go of Ye Futian.


    "Miss, you can fool around before us, but please don''t do that before outsiders or your family. You''ll hurt Mr. Ye." Beside them, Yang Xing was in cold sweat. This girl was too strange.


    "I know, I know. I''m not stupid." Long Ling''er glared at Yang Xing.


    "Okay, good." Yang Xing nodded.


    "This place is no fun." Long Ling''er looked sad, but then her eyes lit up. "Oh, Brother Futian, I heard that the Starry School has a bunch of pretty girls."


    "Not interested." Ye Futian wouldn''t get tricked.


    "I''m not lying. The famous beauties of Divine Sky City are there too," Long Ling''er kept saying.


    "I have a girlfriend," Ye Futian replied.


    "Liar," the girl muttered.


    "I heard that Ling''er is here. I wonder how old she is now. Can I see her?" a voice said from the outside. He seemed to purposely send his voice here. The sound was softened but was still clear.


    Everyone looked toward the window and saw a few people standing before the building. The leader wore an extremely glamorous robe. It dazzled with gold light. The clothing seemed to be made with a roc''s feathers. It was both elegant and sharp.


    The youth''s temperament was also shocking. He was around 20 years old. Other than black, his hair also shimmered with gold. His features were defined and he was extremely handsome. He looked extraordinary.


    Right now, everyone in the Fairy Pool was attracted by him. They were shocked that he''d come to the Celestial Pavilion that the Dragon Clan had bought.


    "Jin Yunxiao." Seeing him here, Wang Yuqing and Jiang Nan''s expressions changed. They looked up to him.


    Jin Yunxiao was a pride of the Starry School. He''d performed well in the final exam and entered the Starry Rank. Other than that, his background was also powerful. He was from the Jin Clan.


    The Jin Clan Nine Cloud Palace was a powerful family in the Divine Sky City like the West Mountain Dragon Clan. They were also rivals. Countless years ago when that legendary man from the Dragon Clan had been alive, they''d repressed the Jin Clan. After he''d died, the tides were turning. Now, the disciples of the Jin Clan weren''t as obedient before the Dragon Clan.


    The other people beside Jin Yunxiao were also talents from the Starry School.


    "It''s Yuan He and Mu Jiangxue," Wang Yuqing called when she saw the other two. They were all people she looked up. They were younger than her, but their statuses were completely different. But even Yuan He and Mu Jiangxue had to stand behind Jin Yunxiao.


    "Senior Brother Jin, Senior Brother Yuan, Senior Sister Mu," Jiang Nan stood up and greeted. He was older than them, but he''d entered later, so he had to call them seniors.


    Many powerful people joined the Top Three Schools in their childhood. For example, how old was Long Ling''er? But she would join the Starry School next year.


    Jin Yunxiao glanced over and then looked away to the pavilion. Mu Jiangxue''s expression was cold. Yuan He nodded slightly when he saw Jiang Nan. "Jiang Nan," he said, "you did well in the exam."


    "Thank you, Senior Brother." Jiang Nan looked proud that Yuan He actually replied. Jiang Nan was a genius, but he didn''t stand out in the Starry School. Yuan He and Mu Jiangxue were the true prides. It was a feat to get a praise from them.


    "I''ve interacted with Senior Brother Yuan," Jiang Nan whispered. "You can say we know each other."


    Wang Yuqing nodded. Interacting with them was something to be proud of in itself.


    At that time, inside the pavilion, Long Ling''er''s pretty eyes filled with disgust when she saw Jin Yunxiao. "I don''t like him." She clearly knew Jin Yunxiao. Their families were both top families of the city. They obviously had interacted before.


    "Who is he?" Ye Futian asked.


    "He''s from the Jin Clan. They''re presumptuous. Look at his clothes. So unfashionable." Long Ling''er pouted. "They even turned their home into the Nine Cloud Palace. It''s the most luxurious place in the city. They love to show off. When I was young, they wanted an arranged marriage with me, but my uncle told them to scram. I''ve only heard of that before though. I don''t know the details."


    "Of course it''s real," Yang Xing said. "When you were born, the Jin Clan came to congratulate your parents. They wanted an arranged marriage, but the family leader told them that they were a group of failures and told them to get out. He forced them out and the Jin Clan didn''t even dare to fight back." Thinking back to the previous family leader''s glorious history, he felt honored.


    At that time, the family leader had still been alive. But sadly, the heavens were jealous of geniuses!

 437 West Mountain Dragon Fledgling

    After Ye Futian had heard these past events, he gained a newfound respect for that senior from the Dragon Clan. He would definitely have been unequaled among his peers, but it was a pity that he died young. Ye Futian felt it was a pity he was unable to meet him. No wonder that little girl was still wallowing in the sadness of her uncle''s death after so many years. He could imagine what kind of person he was, kind and friendly to his family, yet dominant to outsiders. This was a person deserving of respect.


    "Tell him that I don''t want to see him," Long Ling''er told Yang Xing.


    "Understood." Yang Xing nodded and walked out of the pavilion, speaking to Jin Yunxiao across the air, "The young missus is busy and has no intention of meeting you."


    Jin Yunxiao did not get angry. Instead, his thin lips curved upwards into a smile, giving people a scathing feeling. "I heard little sister Ling''er is entering the Starry School next year to cultivate. Why would she not want to meet her senior? If she has the ability to enter the Starry School, perhaps I would help to take care of her as well."


    Yang Xing frowned. Ye Futian, who was in front of the window felt contempt when he saw the look in Jin Yunxiao''s eyes. His tone was getting frivolous.


    "Who are you to want to take care of me?" Long Ling''er stood in front of the window and shouted. Her voice echoed throughout everyone enjoying the banquet in the Fairy Pool. Long Ling''er did live up to her reputation as the apple of the Dragon Clan''s eyes, everyone thought, with the tone that she was speaking to Jin Yunxiao in.


    "Little sister Ling''er sure has a short temper for someone so young," Jin Yunxiao smiled as he continued, "however, I''ve heard that little sister Ling''er has yet to become a Dragon Master. If this continues, getting into the school through the examination might prove to be an impossible task."


    "This is not something that young master Jin should be worrying about," Yang Xing replied unfeelingly after hearing Jin Yunxiao''s words. Jin Yunxiao was evidently picking a fight with her.


    "West Mountain Dragon senior only has little sister Ling''er as an only child. I''m just worried that there will be nobody to take up his mantle." Jin Yunxiao smiled while speaking, the provocation in his voice clear for everyone to hear. The people in the Fairy Pond quietly watched while all this unfolded. The two families had their fair share of disputes and stories, especially when that person was still alive, he had kept the Jin Clan suppressed. When Long Ling''er was born, the Jin Clan had been humiliated when they asked for her hand in marriage. Now that that person was dead, the Dragon Clan were on the weaker side, so it was natural that people from the Jin Clan provoked the Dragon Clan whenever they met.


    "You��" Yang Xing''s expression looked sullen while Long Ling''er''s cheeks puffed up in anger and she clenched her fists.


    "Say that again." A voice sounded from outside. Everyone''s gazes turned and a figure strolled down the long corridor. The person had a flawless complexion, was handsome beyond belief and his seemingly skinny figure was brimming with strength. His eyes sparkled spiritedly and his gaze was like lightning, directed straight at Jin Yunxiao who was on the bridge.


    In the Fairy Pool, many people''s expressions changed upon seeing him appear.


    Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing''s expression hardened as they saw that person walk closer step by step. Of course, they recognized him as another person cultivating in the Starry School, with more repute than Jin Yunxiao.


    Ever since this person was born, he had always been in the spotlight, his every movement noticed by everyone in the Divine Sky City. If there was any of the younger generations in the West Mountain Dragon Clan whose position could rival the dragon girl Long Ling''er, it would be him.


    Dragon fledgling, Long Mu. The son of that legendary person from the West Mountain. When that legend was still alive, Long Mu received attention from all around. Even up till today, he still continued to receive an exceeding amount of attention. That was because Long Mu was his son.


    Also, there were rumors that even though that pure-blooded dragon West Mountain Dragon Clan leader had Long Ling''er as his daughter, he was grooming Long Mu as his successor. He intended to let his nephew take over his position, as this was the child that his brother had left behind. Many people claimed that the familial ties in the West Dragon Mountain were weird. The person that legend had doted on most when he was alive was not his biological son, but Long Ling''er.


    Now, after he was dead, the person the current West Mountain Clan leader had the greatest expectations for was not his daughter, but his nephew Long Mu. Such close brotherly ties earned the respect of many.


    Jin Yunxiao''s gaze also moved towards Long Mu; his expression no longer looked relaxed. It had turned deadpan, his sharp gaze staring at the figure getting closer.


    Long Mu, the son of that legendary person, the b*stard son of the person who had suppressed the Jin Clan when he was alive. And his son''s potential was also exceptionally high. He had put on an impressive display this year at the Starry School''s year-end examination and had overshadowed Jin Yunxiao. This was someone whose background, talent and ability were all above him.


    Long Mu''s body moved in a flash, like a bolt of lightning. Following a deafening crash, Long Mu landed on the bridge, causing the bridge to tremor as though it was about to collapse. Long Mu stood firmly, scrutinizing Jin Yunxiao coldly. Everyone below had their attention captivated by the two of them who were standing apart.


    Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing yearned to be like the two of them. They were true geniuses, and they had not expected both of them to appear together. Everyone wondered if a fight was going to ensue.


    "Say what you just said again." Formless power started to accumulate around Long Mu, just like a shadow of a pure-blooded dragon appearing. The pure-blooded dragon Qi circulated in the air, giving people an overbearing feeling. The moment Jin Yunxiao repeated his words, Long Mu would strike immediately. Knowing Long Mu''s personality, this was absolutely possible.


    Jin Yunxiao stared at Long Mu, smiling as he said, "Long Mu, you''re just as arrogant as ever."


    "Scram," Long Mu emotionlessly spat out just that one word.


    Jin Yunxiao''s expression turned disdainful. An extremely sharp aura could be faintly seen around his body, the golden shirt made of Roc feathers that he was wearing made light sounds. His shirt moved even though there was no wind, and emitted a terrifying light. Behind Jin Yunxiao, a fleeting roc shadow unparalleled in strength appeared. Jin Yunxiao was like a roc with no equal.


    A sharp-edged hurricane started to form, striking Long Mu like knives. Jin Yunxiao''s mouth arcked into a cruel smile, following which a brilliant golden shadow appeared at breakneck speed. The shadow pounced towards Long Mu at speeds that were too fast, like a roc tearing through the wind, threatening to destroy everything.


    Long Mu''s body remained still, as he lifted his fist and delivered a punch. A thunderous roar resounded throughout the heavens, like a dragon''s furious cry. The two forces clashed, and the bystanders witnessed an arrogant roc and a haughty dragon in battle.


    With an ear-splitting bang, the bridge collapsed as streaks of golden lightning flashed across the sky. Jin Yunxiao''s body returned to his original position, a pair of dazzling wings gently flapping on his back. His arms hung beside him, trembling lightly, but the coldness and arrogance remained on his face. He coldly observed Long Mu, who was standing at the same spot. The bridge beneath Long Mu had already broke, and it was empty in front of him. Long Mu stood at the edge of the broken bridge, his gaze still fixated on Jin Yunxiao.


    "We will fight again." Jin Yunxiao smiled faintly, turning around and saying, "Let''s go." As his words left his mouth, his wings flapped and he flew outwards. The people behind him looked towards Long Mu and proceeded to follow him out.


    In the other pavilion, Ye Futian witnessed the entire fight. He naturally saw that Jin Yunxiao was on the losing end, and had braced himself and left. Moreover, the Jin Clan''s Life Spirit was the Roc. No wonder both clans were at loggerheads.


    "Your brother?" Ye Futian asked Long Ling''er who was beside him. When Long Mu arrived, Long Ling''er had softly called him, while everyone else called him Young Master Mu.


    "Yup, my uncle''s son." Long Ling''er nodded her head. "It''s just that he''s a bit obstinate. Big brother Futian, let me introduce him to you."


    The West Mountain Dragon Fledgling huh, thought Ye Futian as he recalled what was said in the inn. This gave him an understanding of that person''s identity.


    Just then, Long Mu was already walking towards the pavilion. In a moment, he was walking in with Yang Xing, his spirited gaze looked towards the crowd, and many of them bowed and acknowledged him. "Young Master Mu."


    The West Mountain Dragon Clan members naturally understood that even though the young missus was the apple of the Clan Leader''s eyes, the next leader of the West Mountain was extremely likely to be the Young Master Long Mu.


    "Brother," Long Ling''er called out.


    "Ling''er." Long Mu nodded and replied, "I heard that you were in the Celestial Pavilion, so I came over to visit you. Don''t put Jin Yunxiao''s words to heart, nobody can bully you after you enter the Starry School to cultivate."


    "Okay." Long Ling''er smiled while nodding. She walked up to Long Mu and lightly rocked his arm, while pointing to Ye Futian, saying, "Brother, this is big brother Futian."


    Long Mu naturally saw Ye Futian. He raised his head and his gaze landed on Ye Futian, a strong aura emitting from his eyes.


    "Ye Futian." Ye Futian''s eyes were pure as he smiled and introduced himself.


    Long Mu did not introduce himself as their gazes met. Instead, he questioned, "the Celestial Pavilion was given to you?" As the Young Master of the Dragon Clan, he naturally knew more than others. Ye Futian saw Long Mu''s attitude and knew that the people from the Dragon Clan were unhappy with this incident.


    "Brother, I agreed to give it to big brother Futian," Long Ling''er retorted.


    "I know." Long Mu nodded lightly, following which he said to Ye Futian, "Thank you for taking care of Ling''er these past few days. You can treat this Celestial Pavilion as your reward. Also, you can leave now."


    "Long Mu, what nonsense are you spouting." Long Ling''er looked angrily at Long Mu, her hands crossed on her hips, with a fierce demeanor.


    "Ling''er, don''t be mischievous," Long Mu berated her.


    "Okay." Ye Futian did not mind, smiling while he nodded. To the West Mountain Dragon Clan, he was just an outsider. Even though the lassie was a little reliant on him, but it was merely because of her loneliness during these sad times. After a few years, she would still be the Dragon Clan''s young missus, and he would still be himself. Moreover, he did have plans to stay long-term with the Dragon Clan; it was just that he had gotten closer with the young girl after these few days. He liked Long Ling''er and treated her like a younger sister.

 438 Pioneer

    Hearing Ye Futian''s reply, Long Ling''er looked at him and said, "I won''t let you leave."


    "Ling''er, cultivate well with Senior Feng. Don''t keep thinking about the past," Ye Futian said, smiling. "I''m going." With that, he walked out.


    "Brother Futian," Ling''er called.


    Ye Futian stopped. Turning around, he said, "Hey, don''t you know that you''re annoying?"


    Long Ling''er''s eyes were red. Her tears were about to fall out and Ye Futian''s heart softened. This girl was too good at acting.


    "You didn''t forget what you promised right?" the little girl said pitifully.


    Ye Futian was confused, but he quickly remembered what Long Ling''er was talking about. He''d promised to spend New Year with her.


    "I remember." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Then you must do it," Long Ling''er said.


    "Okay." Ye Futian chuckled and started walking out.


    After he left, Long Ling''er glared at Long Mu. "Happy now?"


    "Ling''er," Long Mu said. "You''ve messed around enough. How well do you know him?"


    "I don''t care." Long Ling''er glared.


    "You are Uncle''s only daughter. You''re the little prince of the Long Family," Long Mu continued. "Even without me, you should know the recent relationship between Uncle and the family. Now, you casually gave the Celestial Pavilion to a stranger. What would the family think?"


    "I''m not eating anymore." Long Ling''er turned and left.


    Looking at her back, Long Mu felt helpless. "Uncle Yang," he said. "Take Ling''er back."


    "Yes, Young Master Mu." Yang Xing nodded and followed out. He chuckled wryly. Long Mu was straightforward. He loved Long Ling''er, but their personalities were too different. It was hard to get together. He was more suited for cultivation.


    When Ye Futian returned, Loulan Xue, Yu Sheng, and Shen Yu had gone out. Only Ye Wuchen was cultivating. They didn''t return until evening and had come with many things. Yu Sheng carried them.


    "What''s that?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "Some spiritual herbs. We went to Qingyun Street," Loulan Xue answered. "That''s the biggest trade market in this area. I bought some spiritual herbs to make medicated baths. The martial arts cultivators in Divine Sky City often train themselves like this. I came across a way to make medicated baths. You, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen can use it."


    "You''ve worked hard. Be generous for yourself too." Ye Futian nodded. People in the outside world usually used resources for cultivation. If possible, they would definitely do so too and raise their cultivation as much as possible.


    "Yes." Loulan Xue nodded. "I''ll go do it with Shen Yu." With that, they left.


    Ye Futian looked at Loulan Xue''s back. Back when Loulan Xue had gone to the Cottage voluntarily to become his servant, he hadn''t had this thought. He thought that Loulan Xue couldn''t do well because she was a princess. But after his second senior sister trained her, Loulan Xue gradually became accustomed to being a servant and accepted it. Even Ye Futian had gotten used to it.


    "We aren''t going to the Long Family anymore?" Yu Sheng asked.


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head. "I don''t think the Celestial Pavilion is a long-term plan either. We must find other ways to earn spiritual stones."


    Long Ling''er had given them the Celestial Pavilion. She was the princess of the Long Family, but she was still too young. She couldn''t decide anything. Ye Futian had felt some things from Long Mu''s attitude. Thus, the Celestial Pavilion bought with the Long Family''s resources wasn''t very stable. It was better to rely on himself.


    "This trip cost a lot," Yu Sheng said. With their cultivation plane, ordinary methods couldn''t support their consumption of resources.


    "Yeah, let me think." Ye Futian nodded. They were poor. He felt that their cultivation planes were too low. They weren''t enough for a rich city like Divine Sky City. Of course, they could join the Top Three Schools or another force and they would have enough resources. However, Ye Futian didn''t want that anymore.


    A while later, Loulan Xue and Shen Yu walked over. Loulan Xue said, "It''s done. Want to try?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and followed Loulan Xue to a bath inside the house.


    The bathwater was bubbling now. There were fiery-red stones inside, making the entire bath look like lava. The heat was scary. The spiritual herbs were already inside.


    "You can go," Ye Futian said.


    "I''m not sure I put in the right amount. You can try it. I''ll wait here," Loulan Xue said.


    "Uh��" Ye Futian blinked at her. Was this proper?


    Loulan Xue looked up at him. Her cool silver eyes showed no disturbances and said softly, "Isn''t this what a servant should do?"


    Ye Futian wanted to facepalm, but it seemed to make sense. But it still felt weird?


    Seeing that Loulan Xue was still staring at him and didn''t move, Ye Futian had a weird expression. Then he took off his white robe and shirt, revealing a lean body. Half naked, he walked towards the bath while muttering, "Taking advantage of me."


    Hiss�� The moment Ye Futian entered the pool, he felt frightening power dig into his body. He didn''t think the high temperature would affect him, but he''d clearly underestimated the medicated bath. Instantly, streams of power dug into his limbs. His body seemed to boil and his blood flew through his body.


    "Don''t resist. Let your body take it and let the power meld into you. It won''t do much the first time, but apparently, long-term use will greatly improve your physical body. It''s very beneficial," Loulan Xue said. "How do you feel?"


    "What did you add��" Ye Futian mumbled. "But it feels good." With that, he closed his eyes and endured it quietly. The frightening power was wildly melding into his flesh, digging into his body, and challenging his every cell.


    The pain kept lowering. After a long while, he didn''t feel anything anymore. He stood up and walked out of the bath. Loulan Xue walked up and put a prepared bathrobe on Ye Futian. Right now, her silver eyes sparkled.


    "You can go now," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay." Loulan Xue nodded and left.


    A while later, Ye Futian returned to the courtyard and said, "Yu Sheng, you go try. It will help you."


    "Okay." Yu Sheng nodded.


    Ye Futian sat down in the courtyard. The ring on his finger lit up and a guqin appeared before him. He played the instrument with his eyes closed. In his mind, Ukiyo rang out. Every music note was filled with magic.


    Ukiyo was one of the world''s top ten musical pieces. Each one was a masterpiece.


    Ukiyo''s artistic conception was the minds of the two emperors. But now, Ye Futian''s mind was different.


    Ye Futian gradually forgot about Ukiyo. At that moment, he seemed to be immersed in his own world. Afterward, he strummed the instrument strings and a graceful melody flowed out. The sky darkened and moonlight shone down. The moment the music rang out, the courtyard became ethereal and clean. One''s heart seemed to be caught in that moment.


    Shen Yu stood in the near distance. When the music sounded, she felt her heartstrings twang. Her pure eyes looked quietly at the figure. His music was so ethereal. It had a special attraction that made people listen to it. The graceful music was steady and beautiful, instantly taking people into a unique artistic conception. From the music, one could feel a youth leaving home to travel far. He chased after his goal and dream, facing everything optimistically.


    He was kind and low-key. He''d put away his brightness and was unbothered by many things. However, the world never followed one''s wishes. There would always be people invading his world. Those people were arrogant. He wanted to overlook them but couldn''t avoid them. Some things would always follow him.


    Identity, status, and power were like mountains that could crush one''s spine. Even a simple relationship would still be affected.


    The music went from calm to wild as if his mind had been affected by the outside world. But after the wildness, it became serene again. However, this serenity had a lonely arrogance to it. The music became cold and arrogant. Gradually, it became hurried.


    Ye Futian''s fingers sped up and crazily strummed the instrument strings. The music became frenzied. There was an invisible aura around him. He was arrogant and able to destroy everything in the world.


    The world''s Spiritual Qi seemed to be affected too. It went wild as well and beams of purple light shone like lightning. The bolts streaked across the courtyard. The music accelerated and lightning cracked. The entire world became chaotic as if there was an electric storm that wanted to destroy everything.


    In the courtyard, Shen Yu watched this in shock. She''d felt the music change bit by bit from peace to chaos. Even now, Ye Futian had a frightening aura. It was arrogant and cold. His fingers strumming the instrument strings were still elegant, but he seemed to have changed.


    He didn''t care for the world and dared to compete with the lords.


    Shen Yu plugged her ears, but it was useless. A scene of the world ending appeared in her mind. Lightning cracked, almost destroying her mind. Yet this was only the music''s side effects. Ye Futian wasn''t attacking anyone. The electric windstorm seemed to become complete around Ye Futian. This was a frightening musical sorcery that could turn into spiritual attacks.


    Finally, the music stopped. The scary scene disappeared.


    Ye Futian quieted down and he opened his eyes slowly. He smiled. Ukiyo told him that if he added spiritual energy into the music, he could control the Spiritual Qi in the air. Now, using Ukiyo as the base, he''d composed his own musical piece according to his own mind and experiences. It was a music sorcery spell and was very powerful.


    This was a great start.

 439 Auction at the End of the Year

    The music stopped. Ye Wuchen, Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue all came to Ye Futian''s court. Shen Yu stood beside him blankly.


    Ye Futian turned around and asked, "Why are you staring at me like that?"


    "What happened to you?" Yu Sheng asked. Ye Futian often told him that music could convey one''s spirit. He had heard Ye Futian''s music many times, so he became quite sensitive to music artistic conception. He was not talented enough, but the artistic conception in the music that Ye Futian had just played was too strong to ignore. After leaving the Eastern Barren Territory, it had been a long time since Ye Futian last showed such a spirit in his music. The end of his music was very sharp and powerful.


    Yu Sheng had never heard this piece before.


    "I just need to vent. Is there any problem?" Ye Futian stared at Yu Sheng, wondering how he saw through it. What had happened these days made him a little upset and depressed.


    "I can''t even ask?" Yu Sheng grumbled.


    "What''s the name of the music you just played?" asked Ye Wuchen. He could feel the marvelous artistic conception. From the plain beginning to a heated climax, the music made him feel like there was a man standing under the sky and daring to break all the chains.


    "I haven''t named it yet. It''s an improvisation. Have any suggestions about the name?" said Ye Futian.


    Ye Wuchen, Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue were speechless. It was an improvisation? It was perfect!


    "How about Elegance?" suggested Loulan Xue. This word fit the artistic conception very well.


    "Elegance?" Ye Futian murmured and nodded immediately. "Good! Elegance is the name now."


    "It''s late now. Go have a rest," said Ye Futian. The four nodded. Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng walked toward the bamboo woods in the backyard. They needed to cultivate. It was too early for them to sleep. Loulan Xue went toward another direction. Shen Yu didn''t move. Staring at Ye Futian, she had no idea where she was going to live. Though having worked in the Celestial Pavilion before, she was not qualified to live in it.


    "Why are you looking at me? You want to spend the long night with me?" Ye Futian quipped.


    Shen Yu blushed and ran away immediately.


    Seeing Shen Yu running away, Ye Futian was speechless. Was he so scary? Maybe she was just too excited.


    ��


    The Divine Prefecture Calendar''s 10004th year came to its last day. The Divine Sky City was more bustling and lively than before. As the transaction center of the city, Qingyun Street was the busiest, especially on such an important day. People and their demon beasts crowed here. The locals were totally used to this scene. Even small kids weren''t scared.


    A line of people walked along the street. "What a lively place!" the youth in white exclaimed. It was Ye Futian''s group. These days, they had been cultivating in the Celestial Pavilion. The last day of the year was a good chance to take a breath of air.


    "Here is the transaction center of the eastern Barren State. Of course, it''ll be so lively. Look at that castle!" Loulan Xue pointed at a place in the distance. A great dark castle overshadowed this vast place.


    "It''s the Demon Castle. You could buy all kinds of powerful demon beasts there. The trainers could make a great profit from it. They have demon beasts in all levels," Loulan Xue introduced softly. She had been there before and was shocked by the scene.


    In the Divine Sky City, money could get you everything.


    "Demon beasts are so profitable? We happen to have one here," Ye Futian murmured and looked behind. The Black Wind Eagle winced, looking at Ye Futian with its big eyes. Master, this joke is not funny!


    "Maybe no one would like to buy it." Pondering for a while, Ye Futian chose to give up. The Black Wind Eagle was relieved and kept flapping its wings. How could he think about selling me, such an excellent demon beast? It''s inhumane.


    "Loulan, you could go buy yourself some nice ritual implementing clothes," Ye Futian suggested. There were many stores selling ritual implementing clothes on either side of the street. Many people came here to select gifts for their families or descendants.


    The end of the year here was busier and more luxurious than Eastern Barren Territory''s. The resources here were much more bountiful too.


    "I''m good." Loulan Xue shook her head slightly.


    "Shen Yu, go with her," Ye Futian continued. "You could pick something for yourself too."


    "Okay." Shen Yu nodded and dragged Loulan Xue away. After a while, the two came back with some bags in hands.


    Ye Futian couldn''t help thinking how wonderful it could be if Hua Jieyu was here too. He had to work harder now. In the future, this area would only be more prosperous. After Hue Jieyu came, he would definitely bring her here to feel the atmosphere. It had been a year since they were separated. Was she alright?


    "What a kind of place is that?" Walking on the street, Ye Futain was attracted by music from a quaint manor in the corner.


    "It''s a famous music workshop where music sorcerers trade guqins or music spells," Shen Yu explained.


    Hearing this, Ye Futain suddenly came up with an idea. These days he had been considering how to make money to support his cultivation. This music workshop might be a good place to start.


    "Let''s go." Thinking of this, Ye Futian walked straight toward the workshop.


    The workshop was clean and elegant. There were young beauties welcoming them. Knowing that they wanted to trade music, these beauties led them to a quaint pavilion where a guqin was placed.


    "Go ahead." An old man sat in the front. Since they wanted to trade music, the host needed to know the music''s level. If the level was too low, the music couldn''t be traded here. It was not a good idea to show the music score directly since someone might plagiarize. The best way was to play it on the spot.


    Sitting in front of the guqin, Ye Futian began to play his music, Elegance. As the music was played, the old man gradually sensed the artistic conception. He listened to the music seriously.


    From peace to mania, there was a kind of straightforwardness. No more inhibitions were there. The impetuous fire of youth burned and even howled. Endless thunder intent seemly melted into the music. The senior closed his eyes and felt it silently. He could feel that even the airflow was controlled by the music. The artistic conception was very strong.


    The music stopped. The old man opened his eyes and looked at Ye Futian in a totally different way. He smiled and asked, "Marvelous! What is the name? Who is the composer?"


    "Its name is Elegance. It''s my opus," Ye Futian raised his head and answered.


    The old man was shocked and stared at Ye Futian. "You are not joking, right?"


    Creating a song was not something new since many experienced musical sorcerers could do that either. But in Ye Futian''s age, it was not an easy thing to create a song which contained such an artistic conception.


    "It''s not a joke," said Ye Futian.


    "There are two methods. I can arrange the auction right now or you could sell it to me directly. What''s your choice?" the senior asked.


    "Auction!" Ye Futian didn''t hesitate. Only through auction could he know the real value of this song.


    "Good, but this time, the workshop will join the auction too." The senior smiled and ordered, "Tell the others that there will be a potential hit song for auction very soon."


    "Yes." The two maids beside them nodded and went to spread the news.


    "Sir, you need to play it again later for the auction. Furthermore, if the auction is successful, the workshop will take one-twentieth of the profit. If the bid is ritual implements, it''ll be a price based on the ritual implement."


    "Deal!" Ye Futian nodded and asked, "Can I conceal my identity when playing?"


    "No problem!" The old man nodded with a smile.


    ��


    There was a tower in the workshop just for auctions. People in the workshop gathered here and the tower suddenly became lively. All floors and rooms were occupied. This music workshop was a very famous place in the Divine Sky City. Many well-known music scores and spells all came from here. Therefore, many music lovers and sorcerers often gathered here.


    It was the last day of the year. Hearing that there was a potential hit song to be auctioned, people in the workshop all gathered in the tower. If a song was said to have potential, there must be something special about it.


    At this moment, an old man''s figure appeared on the stage. He waved and said, "Let''s get down to the business. Enjoy yourselves!" He walked away and then the stage burst with bright lights. Some spells helped mask the stage. On the stage, a faint figure loomed. The figure touched the guqin lightly and began to play.


    Hearing the music, the whole tower fell silent. From the ethereal music and its extremely strong artistic conception, it could be inferred that the music player was very well-versed in music.


    As the music was played, people became engrossed in its artistic conception and the player''s spiritual movement. Gradually, thunder was heard and lightning was seen. The artistic conception became more and more sublimated. Finally, the music stopped. For a while, the tower remained silent.


    "What a masterpiece!" somebody exclaimed.


    "It''s marvelous indeed!"


    "This spell is in such a low level. I don''t see anything special," at this moment, doubts were heard from a room on the third floor.


    A line of figure sat there. People outside couldn''t see them. The speaker was a young man with an outstanding temperament and some powerful men guarding beside him.


    He was from the Dragon Clan. He knew very little about music, but still, he could feel the mightiness contained in the music Ye Futian had just played. Though it had a strong conception, the spell was still just in the Arcana Plane. He just couldn''t understand what made it so special to people.


    Today was the end of the year as well as the fourteenth birthday of the Dragon Clan''s little princess. The young man wanted to select a good present for the little princess who was good at music and was going to be a Dragon Master in the future.


    At tonight''s party, many members of the family would have prepared all kinds of presents. He wanted to be different from the others.

 440 Extreme Price

    Long Yan didn''t understand music, so he went out to ask. It would be embarrassing if he gave a common musical piece as a gift.


    "What level can it be if an Arcana Plane cultivator released a Noble Plane spell?" an ancient voice came from the room on the second floor.


    Long Yan smiled and nodded. "Understood."


    The musical piece was extraordinary, but the player''s ability was limited.


    "The musical piece is called Elegance and is written by himself. If anyone is able to buy it, you may become one of the few who can understand this piece," the old man said, smiling. Powerful musical sorcery was the same as other spells and martial arts techniques. It obviously couldn''t be spread carelessly. Spells were usually given in exchanges. Musical pieces were the same.


    "Okay, the auction rule is to exchange with items. Everyone can report their prices," the elder said, gazing at everyone present.


    Ye Futian sat behind the magic array, watching everything happen. The array before him was transparent. He could see everything clearly, but the others couldn''t see him. This was a water-elemental spell.


    "Lower-Noble ritual implement," someone said. Using ritual implements as an exchange was the most common.


    Ye Futian was slightly disappointed. Was the musical piece only worth a lower-Noble ritual implement? He had to see the others.


    "Three lower-Noble ritual implements," someone else said.


    Many people joined the bid. However, the musical piece was from an unknown source. It was an original creation, but no one knew the composer and was only in the Arcana Plane. No one knew what it would be like once they got it. Thus, most people were careful when bidding. Of course, it would be different if this was from a famous composer. The price would shoot up. After a while, the bid had reached two mid-level ritual implements. This was quite a high cost. It meant that most of the people here knew what was good. Otherwise, they wouldn''t bid so high for something performed by an Arcana level cultivator. But Ye Futian was still a bit disappointed.


    The auctioneer was the old man who had listened to him play earlier. Now, he smiled slightly. If there wasn''t a suitable bid, he would buy it himself.


    "Three mid-level Noble ritual implements," Long Yan said lazily from the third level. He didn''t understand music, but since people were bidding, he would buy it and then see.


    After Long Yan bid, many people fell silent. But then, an old voice said from the second floor, "One upper-level Noble ritual implement."


    "Upper-level Noble ritual implement." Many people''s eyes narrowed. This was an unknown piece they''d only heard once. This cost was very high.


    "Two pieces," another voice said from the second floor.


    "Three pieces," yet another said. The people in the main hall were shocked. Was it that they didn''t know what was good?


    Now, people from the second-floor rooms kept bidding.


    "A set of seven-elemental Noble ritual implements, both defense and offense, with ten lower-level Noble spell decree, five mid-level spell decree, and three upper-level spell decree," a gentle voice announced from the third floor. The entire building became quiet.


    "This price��" The building was silent. It was hard for anyone under the Sage Plane or from a wealthy top force to bid like that. But the voice was beautiful and moving. The person must be very young. Clearly, it was the daughter of some wealthy family.


    Even Ye Futian''s heart jumped at the bid. He knew his musical piece was extraordinary, but he wasn''t famous and he was only in the Arcana Plane. It was an impossible price. He looked up to the room on the third floor. But just as the other couldn''t see him, he also couldn''t see her. He didn''t know who had raised the bid to this level.


    "Anyone else?" the elder asked. No one replied so the elder chuckled. "In that case, the bid is over."


    In the room, Long Yan gazed at the other room and asked, "I am Long Yan from the Dragon Clan. May I ask for your name?"


    One must have an extraordinary background to be able to pay this price. He could talk to her. If the musical piece really deserved that price, he could buy it from her.


    No one replied. Inside the room, a beautiful face was looking in Ye Futian''s direction, wondering who was selling this piece.


    "Let''s go," her gentle voice said. She turned and walked out, ready to exchange for the musical piece.


    Ye Futian also rose and left.


    A while later, Ye Futian''s group appeared outside on the street.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian started walking away. Earlier, he''d kept anonymous because he was low-key. Now, he really couldn''t reveal himself because people could kill him for what he''d earned. Now, he was curious who had gotten the piece. She didn''t even humor Long Yan.


    After strolling down Qingyun Street, Ye Futian returned to the Celestial Pavilion. After all, he''d promised a certain girl to accompany her. However, when he returned, he was notified that someone was waiting. This person''s identity seemed to be special.


    Beside the Fairy Pool, a figure sat inside the Covered Bride Pavilion with many strong cultivators with him. He looked very young and was studying Ye Futian who''d just entered.


    "Ye Futian?" the youth asked.


    "You are?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I am from the West Mountain." The other chuckled. Ye Futian was confused. He''d heard this voice earlier at the music workshop. A voice from a room had called himself Long Yan from the Dragon Clan. The other had arrived at the Celestial Pavilion first, appearing before him.


    "Can I help you?" Ye Futian asked. He''d actually guessed the other''s motive. He''d gone to the music workshop for the same reason.


    "The Celestial Pavilion was bought with the Dragon Clan''s resources," Long Yan said as expected. "Sister Ling''er is still young and doesn''t understand things. This pavilion is nothing to the Dragon Clan, but given without any reason�� Do you understand?"


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head with a smile.


    Long Yan chuckled. Tapping the table, he continued, "Then I''ll make myself easier to understand. I don''t care how you tricked Ling''er, but we will take this back. However, I don''t want Ling''er to feel bad. Thus, you can continue taking care of the Celestial Pavilion, but you must give up 90 percent of profits. I will take it. The remaining ten percent is enough for you to get rich."


    Long Yan''s smile was confident. He''d heard that Ye Futian was only a musical student and in the Arcana Plane. With that status, ten percent of Celestial Pavilion profits should definitely be enough. Ye Futian should understand that if he refused, he would have nothing. He had no reason to refuse these conditions.


    Ye Futian looked at the confident smile. He''d understood many things from Long Yan''s words. He had to give up ninety percent of the profits while still keeping this a secret from Ling''er. Also, Long Yan would be the one taking the money. He didn''t know if this was the Dragon Clan''s idea, Long Yan''s, or a small minority of the family. This wasn''t important though. He''d expected this would happen from Long Mu''s attitude.


    "What, you still have to think about it?" Long Yan asked, frowning. He was pressuring Ye Futian. "You should know how much ten percent of the profit is."


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "I understand."


    "And?" Long Yan asked.


    "You will know my answer tonight," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay. I will give you one day to think and come back tomorrow," Long Yan said. He took his people and left.


    Ye Futian watched his back and smiled, shaking his head. The man didn''t have any patience. Ye Futian hadn''t finished speaking. He didn''t have to come tomorrow.


    "The taker has the disadvantage," Ye Futian laughed at himself. He tossed the Celestial Pavilion''s badge up and then it fell down in his hand.


    ��


    The Western Court of Divine Sky City was abnormally lively at the end of the year. Many from the Dragon Clan came from the West Mountain, shattering the quietness. To them, this wasn''t only the end of the year. It was also the princess'' birthday. Long Ling''er of the Dragon Clan was cultivating at the West Court and preparing to enter the Starry School. They didn''t plan on making a big deal over her birthday. Most remained in the West Mountain for the New Years, but most lines of the family sent youths to celebrate Long Ling''er''s birthday.


    By evening, a banquet was prepared. At this time, a dragon-pulled chariot was in the sky. A beautiful figure sat in it. She was a woman of around 30-years-old. Her skin was youthful and white as snow. Her features were extraordinary and she looked wise. She gave off a noble aura just by sitting there.


    "The Lady is here." Many people looked up. She''d come to celebrate her daughter''s birthday while the family leader stayed in the West Mountain. He was growing stricter towards his daughter these years.


    The dragon chariot landed and the woman walked out. Long Ling''er called out, "Mother." Her voice was slightly disappointed. She knew her father wouldn''t come celebrate her birthday.

 441 Birthday

    The beautiful lady walked up with a smile and patted Long Ling''er''s head. "Ling''er is one year older now."


    "Mother, I don''t like celebrating like this," Long Ling''er muttered, looking at the crowd. She only wanted to celebrate with people close to her, but because of her status, she had few true friends. Many came to her birthday, but they weren''t genuine. It was just because of her status.


    "Silly girl. You must remember that whether you like it or not, the Dragon Clan is one complete piece," the beauty said gently. The girl was still too young. She couldn''t understand many things.


    Long Ling''er nodded, half understanding.


    "Auntie, Ling''er." Long Mu walked over now.


    "Hmph." Long Ling''er glared at him and then looked away, ignoring him.


    "You''re still angry at your brother?" Long Mu asked helplessly.


    "Ling''er, don''t do that." Madame Long''s voice turned serious. Long Mu was the descendant of her elder brother.


    "Mother, you always side with him," Long Ling''er said, pouting.


    "What''s wrong? What did your brother do?" Madame Long said.


    "Ask him." Long Ling''er seemed upset.


    "Auntie, do you know about Ling''er buying the Celestial Pavilion?" Long Mu asked.


    "Yes, I''ve heard about it." Madame Long nodded. How could she not know about something like that?


    "I went to the Celestial Pavilion and told the person to leave, so Ling''er became upset," Long Mu said, smiling wryly.


    "Mother, Brother Futian is so nice to me. He even taught me how to play the guqin. I became a Dragon Master thanks to him too," Long Ling''er said.


    Yang Xing stood to the side in shock. Long Ling''er hadn''t been so nice when Ye Futian was here.


    "I''ve heard of this too. Senior Feng is modest. You really think that it was all due to him? You have to know who your teacher is. That was just a coincidence," Long Mu said. He obviously didn''t think that a youth in the Arcana Plane could teach Long Ling''er. It was most likely because Senior Feng had done most of the work and Ye Futian came at the right time.


    "You don''t know anything," Long Ling''er said, pouting.


    "Alright, alright," Madame Long said gently. "You''re the birthday girl today. Don''t get angry. Since everyone''s here, let''s start the banquet."


    Long Ling''er still let out an upset huff. She didn''t know if Brother Futian would come. He''d promised. He wouldn''t go back on his words, right?


    When the banquet started, Madame Long and Long Ling''er sat in the main seats. Long Mu sat on the side. The others were all from the Dragon Clan and they came up with gifts.


    Long Yan was one of them. He couldn''t buy that musical piece from the workshop and the West Court had many guqins. Unless it was a famous one, it was meaningless. Thus, he''d bought a necklace from Qingyun Street. It was pretty and also a defense ritual implement. It could protect the wearer. Long Ling''er always wore a dragon necklace, but it was still well-meaning. He honestly couldn''t think of what to buy since Long Ling''er didn''t lack anything.


    Long Ling''er was emotionless when she accepted Long Yan''s necklace. She put it to the side and reached out a small hand to caress the dragon necklace on her neck. It glowed softly and was warm. Long Ling''er smiled. Her uncle had given this to her.


    Raising her head, Long Ling''er looked into the distance and then pouted. Did that guy lie?


    "Madame," a voice said now.


    Madame Long looked up. "Yes?"


    "A guest is here," the person said.


    Long Ling''er''s eyes brightened. "Let him in."


    "Who is it?" Madame Long asked.


    "Gu Yunxi from the Gu Clan," the person replied. "She said she''s here for the miss''s birthday."


    When Long Ling''er heard that it wasn''t Ye Futian, she was disappointed.


    "Why is Sister Yunxi here?" she wondered. After all, she was still young and wasn''t the Dragon Clan''s elder. It was just a birthday. Usually, only seniors would have outsiders come to celebrate their birthday.


    However, the Gu Clan and the Dragon Clan have always had a good relationship.


    "Oh, Yunxi, let her in." Madame Long smiled. "Mu, go welcome her personally."


    "Okay." Long Mu nodded. He rose and went outside.


    Many youths from the Dragon Clan were confused but excited. They''d all heard of Gu Yunxi''s beauty. In the Divine Sky City, she was known for making one want to give up a country for her. That was how beautiful she was.


    They all knew why the madam told Long Mu to go personally. The two clans have always had a good relationship. It was rumored that when the last family leader had died, the two families had wanted an arranged marriage. It would have been Long Mu, son of the family leader, and Gu Yunxi of the Gu Clan.


    But then Long Mu''s father died and this wasn''t mentioned anymore. The two families still had a good relationship though. Their interactions had just lessened a bit.


    Now that Gu Yunx was here for Long Ling''er''s birthday, the madam was obviously happy, so she had Long Mu go welcome her.


    A while later, a group came over. There was a beautiful girl beside Long Mu. She wore a pale pink dress that complemented her graceful and slender body. Her swanlike flawless collarbone was extremely sexy. However, her beautiful features were serene. Her movements were soft, like a floating fairy.


    She lives up to her name. For many, it was their first time meeting Gu Yunxi. She was as beautiful as people said. Many of the Dragon Clan were impressed. When she stood with Long Mu, it felt like they suited each other. Madame Long smiled warmly when she saw this. She hoped they could marry.


    Gu Yunxi matched Long Mu well.


    "Madame Long," Gu Yunxi bowed slightly. Her actions were light and graceful.


    "Yunxi, I haven''t seen you in a long while. Come sit beside me." Madame Long''s voice was gentle. It was obvious she really liked Gu Yunxi.


    Gu Yunxi didn''t object. She walked to Madame Long and sat down. She and Long Mu were on either side of Madame Long. Then she looked to Long Ling''er and she smiled. "Ling''er, do you still remember me?"


    "Sister Yunxi, you underestimate me. You''re so pretty. How can I not recognize you?" Long Ling''er was being playful.


    "Ling''er, when you grow up, you''ll be as beautiful as Madame and surpass me," Gu Yunxi said modestly.


    Long Yan kept watching Gu Yunxi. When she spoke, he was confused. This voice was familiar. He''d heard it not so long ago.


    So it had been her. No wonder she didn''t care about him.


    "Sister Ling''er, I came in a rush and didn''t know what to prepare. Today, I visited the music workshop and bought a song. Since you are a musical sorcerer, I will gift it to you. Please don''t look down on it." Gu Yunxi took out the musical score for Long Ling''er. "I like this song too, so I had someone copy it. I hope you won''t mind."


    "Of course not." Long Ling''er shook her head.


    "What kind of score would attract you too?" Madame Long asked, smiling.


    "A very hot-blooded song," Gu Yunxi said. "The artistic conception is powerful and affects the listener greatly. You can sense the composer''s brilliance from this piece. It is called Elegance too. I heard that the owner was the one who wrote it. I wonder which master wrote it."


    "Since Yunxi likes it, it must be a great song. If there''s the chance, have Mr. Feng look at it," Madame Long said. "Speaking of music, Yunxi, you are also skilled in it. Few your age can be compared to you."


    "No way. Many in the Dragon Clan is skilled in musical sorcery and there are Dragon Masters too. I cannot be compared."


    "I know someone skilled in musical sorcery and he''s around Sister Yunxi''s age too," Long Ling''er said.


    "You''re too young to know about skills. You underestimate your Sister Yunxi," Madame Long said.


    "It''s true." Long Ling''er glared at her mother.


    "I believe that anyone Ling''er looks up to will be amazing," Gu Yunxi said.


    "Yes. He promised he would come, but he still hasn''t," Long Ling''er said, pouting. "Liar, liar."


    "Madame, someone else came to visit the miss," the servant from before came and said again.


    "Let him in." Long Ling''er jumped up. "No, I''ll go personally."


    "Ling''er." Madame Long grabbed her. This girl�� She was the star but wanted to leave all the guests here. Long Ling''er was upset, but Madame Long continued, "Let him in."


    "Yes, Madame." The person nodded and then left.


    A while later, Ye Futian was brought over. When he saw the scene, surprise filled his eyes. Seeing the beautiful lady beside Long Ling''er, he guessed who she was. He realized he''d been fooled again.


    Yes, he had been fooled. Why did he believe her? She said that her parents wouldn''t spend New Years with her and needed him to accompany her.


    This girl was too good at acting pitiful.


    "Brother Futian, today''s my 14th birthday and I was scared you wouldn''t come, so��" She made puppy eyes at Ye Futian. "You won''t be angry, right?"


    Ye Futian gave her a look. What could he say? But it was her birthday and he hadn''t prepared anything.


    At that time, everyone present looked at Ye Futian. They''d obviously heard of him. He was the one that the princess of the Dragon Clan bought the Celestial Pavilion for. Their relationship seemed to be even closer than they''d expected. They couldn''t help but feel jealous.

 442 Ye Futian’s Style

    Long Yan was confused when he saw Ye Futian. When he went to the Celestial Pavilion earlier, Ye Futian had claimed that he would know the answer at night. Now, Ye Futian was at the West Court. What did that mean?


    Ye Futian walked up and said to the beauty beside Long Ling''er, "Greetings, Madame."


    Madame Long nodded slightly. She naturally followed the news about her daughter. Seeing Ye Futian in person, she saw that he was handsome and even more extraordinary than Long Mu.


    Gu Yunxi studied Ye Futian too. She was curious about the person Long Ling''er would call so sweetly.


    "Feel at home. Sit." Madame Long smiled and nodded. Her voice was soft as a spring breeze.


    "Thank you, Madame." Ye Futian nodded.


    Yang Xing led Ye Futian to a seat on the side. Long Ling''er''s eyes moved, staying with Ye Futian. She blinked cutely too and Ye Futian shot her a look. If he knew it would be like this, he wouldn''t have come. This girl was too tricky.


    "I''ve heard of how you took care of Ling''er these days. You''ve worked hard." Madame Long smiled at Ye Futian. Seeing her attitude, he understood that it wasn''t the Dragon Clan who wanted to take the Celestial Pavilion back. It was just Long Yan or a portion of the people.


    Otherwise, the Madame of the Dragon Clan wouldn''t need to be so fake with him.


    "You''re welcome. Ling''er is so smart. She doesn''t need my help. I was just playing with her these days. I hope you won''t be angry," Ye Futian said modestly.


    "The girl is stubborn. She must have caused trouble," Madame Long said, smiling. She obviously knew her daughter''s personality.


    "Mother, I''m very obedient," Long Ling''er whined.


    "Yes, you''re obedient." Madame Long rolled her eyes and said to everyone, "Don''t just chat. Try the food tonight."


    Everyone nodded and started enjoying the feast. While drinking, someone raised a glass to Ye Futian. "I want to toast you, sir. Cheers."


    "Cheers." Ye Futian also raised his glass and drank in one shot.


    The other did the same and tipped the glass to show it. Putting it down, he said, "I heard that you are skilled with the guqin and Ling''er had praised you. You must be well-learned in it."


    "No, no, I only know the basics," Ye Futian replied.


    "You''re too modest. If you only know the basics, Ling''er wouldn''t gift you the Celestial Pavilion," the man said conversationally. Many people put down their glasses and looked at Ye Futian.


    Just as how Long Mu had told Long Ling''er, the girl had given the pavilion to a stranger so casually. It wasn''t much to the Dragon Clan, but it was very precious to a younger member of the clan. Only the top figures could have cultivation resource like that.


    After all, the Dragon Clan had a massive family industry. Most of the resources were for the seniors and geniuses. The younger ones couldn''t get much. But then Long Ling''er randomly gave a study attendant an entire pavilion. The Dragon Clan members had to wonder about it.


    Long Ling''er glanced at the speaker. She was young, but she could tell something was wrong too. However, she couldn''t pinpoint why.


    "I''m curious too. If Ling''er can be so impressed, you must be very talented. Since today happens to be Ling''er''s birthday, how about you play something as a gift?" Long Yan said, smiling.


    "Great idea." Many disciples agreed.


    "Brother Futian, don''t listen to them." Long Ling''er glared at them.


    "It''s alright." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. "Since it''s Ling''er''s birthday, I can play something."


    "In that case, please." The people of the Dragon Clan smiled.


    Ye Futian stood up. Madame Long and Long Mu watched quietly. They were quite curious about Ye Futian''s skill too.


    Ye Futian walked to the center. The gem on his ring shone and a guqin appeared. Seeing this, many youths narrowed their eyes. How did he have something so precious as a storage ring? Did this bastard use up his fortune from the Celestial Pavilion already?


    Someone as young as Ye Futian couldn''t have something so precious. A storage ring wasn''t that useful, but it was extremely hard to make. It required special material so only people in the Sage Plane or the extremely wealthy could possess it.


    Earlier, they''d thought that Ye Futian''s ring was only a regular accessory. They didn''t think of storage rings. After all, rings were common while storage rings were rare.


    Long Ling''er gazed at Ye Futian in anticipation. Brother Futian''s music was amazing.


    When Ye Futian started playing, his entire image changed. He closed his eyes, sensing the current atmosphere. Then his fingers touched the strings and the music notes started pulsing.


    The song was light, gentle, joyous, and graceful.


    Everyone sensed the song''s artistic conception. They seemed to see a girl grow up without worry. She was innocent and pure; she was as energetic as an elf and could always bring happiness to others. Then she grew up and learned to worry.


    The music gradually grew heavier and sad. The depressing music made people feel like their hearts were crushed by a stone. They were deeply hurt.


    For some reason, Long Ling''er saw herself when she heard this song. She thought of many past things, such as the times when she was still innocent and carefree. As the music changed, she thought of her uncle and tears appeared at the corner of her eyes. Her heart hurt.


    Madame Long was shocked. Even with her cultivation level, she was still brought into the song''s artistic conception. She gazed at Long Ling''er and saw the tears.


    The music slowed and the sadness faded. The girl gradually grew up and became stronger and more reliable. She faced the world and accepted everything. The listeners felt sunlight shining from the dark clouds. It fell on their faces and their hearts. It was very, very warm.


    Long Ling''er''s tears disappeared. She closed her eyes, immersing herself in the artistic conception.


    The music gradually grew lighter. The dancing music notes seemed to be describing the scene before them. Long Ling''er opened her eyes and smiled at Ye Futian. She could tell what Ye Futian wanted to express from the music. The feeling was great. She would become strong and move on from the problems.


    Finally, the music stopped. Ye Futian sat quietly. Madame Long was impressed; the music had touched her. The song wasn''t very high-level, but just the artistic conception was a masterpiece. Plus, since it fit the environment so well, Ye Futian must have composed it himself. Gu Yunxi was also impressed. His skill was just as Long Ling''er had said.


    "See, I didn''t lie. Brother Futian''s music is really touching," Long Ling''er said, smiling a bit proudly.


    Ye Futian put his guqin away and returned to his seat.


    "Incredible," the youth from earlier said, clapping. "Everyone has different skills in musical sorcery. I didn''t think I would see such witchcraft today in a song to affect others with its artistic conception. Ling''er is young. No wonder she was affected."


    "Long Huan, what are you saying?" Long Ling''er glared furiously at the youth.


    "Ling''er, you''re still too young to understand people. This song is just a small trick. It''s not worthy to be respected."


    Madame Long looked at Long Huan. She wasn''t surprised at his attitude. After her brother had died, the Dragon Clan had become messy. If not for her husband''s iron grip, the clan would probably still be in a mess. But even now, some of the older members still wanted control of the family, despite their respectful appearance. Long Huan was the descendant of an elder. He was obviously upset that Ling''er had given the Celestial Pavilion to an outsider.


    Not accusing Ling''er publicly was already due to her and her husband''s authority. Ye Futian naturally became their scapegoat.


    "Yes. Long Huan is a Dragon Master and is skilled with the guqin. He naturally knows about these things. Ling''er, don''t be fooled by lowly people," Long Yan added. Others whispered amongst themselves.


    "Enough," Madame Long said. "Don''t forget why you''re here."


    With that, the entire banquet quieted down. Long Huan smiled. "Madame, don''t be angry. Today is Ling''er''s birthday. I won''t mention it again."


    Madame Long still had authority.


    "Mother." Long Ling''er looked pitifully at her mother.


    "Ling''er." Madame Long patted her head and didn''t say anything else.


    Long Mu shot her a glance. This girl was still ignorant so he didn''t find it strange. Gu Yunxi gazed at Ye Futian. This scene must be incredibly insulting to him.


    But then Ye Futian smiled and said, "Ling''er."


    "Brother Futian." Long Ling''er looked guilty. It had been wrong to have him come.


    "Silly girl." Ye Futian chuckled when he saw the guilt. The girl was stubborn, but she was still innocent. Ye Futian stood up and took out a badge. Going to Long Ling''er, he said, "Take the Celestial Pavilion''s badge."


    Everyone was shocked at this.


    "Brother Futian," Long Ling''er said, standing up. "I promised to give it to you. Don''t listen to them."


    "Someone came and asked me for it today too, so I just came to give it back. I may be a bit poor, but I''m not that lowly. This has nothing to do with you." Ye Futian patted Long Ling''er''s head. Then he turned around and gazed at Long Huan. He smiled brilliantly. "I am untalented and not skilled in musical sorcery, but I don''t wish to be humiliated like this. Please give me some advice."

 443 Do You Qualify?

    After Ye Futian spoke, everyone looked at him.


    Long Huan froze and then laughed. Many people from the Dragon Clan laughed. Ye Futian wanted to challenge Long Huan over musical sorcery? Perhaps he didn''t know what a Dragon Master was.


    "Brother Futian." Ling''er was worried too. Ye Futian was very talented, but she knew how powerful her family''s Dragon Masters were. Long Huan was a Dragon Master.


    Long Mu just glanced at Ye Futian. Why was he like this? If he was humiliated by Long Huan later, Ling''er would be sad.


    Long Huan swirled his glass of wine and smirked. A study attendant wanted to challenge him? He really didn''t know his place.


    "Madame, today is Ling''er''s birthday," Long Huan said. "There shouldn''t be any fights, but a musical challenge is elegant too. Since he wishes it, I will fulfill his wish. It can help celebrate Ling''er birthday and show everyone whether his music is witchcraft or not." He smiled and drank all his wine. Then he walked out of the crowd towards Ye Futian.


    "I will advise you well." Long Huan smiled at Ye Futian. Since Ye Futian wanted advice, he wouldn''t hold back.


    Madame Long waved her hand. Instantly, everyone rose and retreated to the back. They emptied the space for them. Clearly, Madame Long agreed to this challenge. Since both parties were willing, she didn''t have to stop it. No matter who won, it was okay. If Ye Futian won, it meant Ling''er was right. If he lost, it meant he didn''t deserve the Celestial Pavilion.


    Of course, Ye Futian would most likely lose. After all, Long Huan was a Dragon Master from the Dragon Clan.


    Ye Futian and Long Huan sat before each other, guqins appearing. Ye Futian looked down at his instrument while Long Huan looked at Ye Futian, eyes filled with scorn.


    "Please," Ye Futian uttered.


    Long Huan didn''t hold back and thrummed the instrument strings. The moment the music sounded, everyone felt a force. It was like a dragon''s roar.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and laughed. He thought back to what had happened recently. It was the artistic conception in the song. His fingers moved past the strings. When the music sounded, the notes seemed to have some special power, dragging people into his artistic conception instantly.


    Sitting beside Madame Long, Gu Yunxi''s chopsticks had fallen. She stared at Ye Futian in shock.


    This song��


    Madame Long looked at her, confused as to why she would lose her cool. Madame Long looked back over. Just as she''d expected, Long Huan''s music was powerful while Ye Futian''s was gentle. It seemed to be what Long Huan had said. Ye Futian''s music was just for comforting little girls. The artistic conception was strong, but there was no power.


    Gu Yunxi didn''t think so though because she''d heard the entire piece. The artistic conception was describing the changes in someone''s heart. The beginning was calm, but she knew how scary the second half was.


    Long Yan also had a strange expression. How? He''d heard this song earlier at the workshop and had wanted to buy it. Many people praised it. Gu Yunxi should be the one who''d bought it, so how come Ye Futian could play it?


    The others didn''t know what they were thinking. The Dragon Clan continued watching it calmly. To them, there was no suspense in this fight.


    As expected, as they played, wind howled around Long Huan. The flowing air turned into a dragon. It roared and streaked towards Ye Futian. However, there seemed to be a musical windstorm around Ye Futian. Occasionally, lightning flashed. It blocked the other''s music.


    Behind Long Huan, a true dragon was born. Horrible air current streamed. The dragon twisted and turned, flying towards Ye Futian. Gu Yunxi was shocked.


    The dragon landed above Ye Futian. Horrible air currents flowed as if many dragons were looking down at Ye Futian. Long Huan''s music melded into it. Then the dragon opened its mouth and released a world-shaking roar. It went to devour Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian didn''t seem to see it. His fingers sped up. The calm and quiet music instantly turned chaotic. It seemed to sublimate in an instant. Lightning cracked and thunder roared. Bolts of lightning streaked across the sky, entangling with the dragon shadows.


    There was instantly a terrifying image. The dragon danced with the lightning. It was beautiful.


    "What?" Everyone looked at Ye Futian in shock. His hands moved extremely quickly and the instrument strings quivered. Music notes pulsed wildly. The music was nothing like the peaceful song before. It went forward without stopping and broke through the heavens.


    At this time, all the thunder Spiritual Qi in the world seemed to be controlled. It flowed through and shone around Ye Futian. His white robes fluttered in the wind. The gentle youth seemed to have changed, shining with sharp brilliance.


    Everyone at the banquet was shaken. They stared at Ye Futian with sharp eyes. Shock also flashed past Madame Long''s eyes. The artistic conception had changed, becoming a wild and aggressive storm. It was still getting stronger. She could sense that all thunder Spiritual Qi was controlled by the music.


    Crack�� Bolts of lightning arrived. Endless lightning flashed. Long Huan felt his mind get attacked continuously. In his mind, there was a horrible storm destroying everything.


    His expression grew serious. He didn''t relax anymore and played furiously.


    However, there seemed to be an endless chain of lightning. It wrapped down on the dragons and tore them apart. Then they snaked towards his body.


    Behind Long Huan, there was a powerful roar. A dragon spirit appeared, shaking the world. But the moment it appeared, endless lightning wrapped around it to kill it.


    Ye Futian''s music was still getting stronger. It was unstoppable in its power. The shocking power destroyed the space and shrouded Long Huan. There was a huge boom. The thunder fell and shattered Long Huan''s guqin. Dust flew and the music stopped.


    Ye Futian''s music continued. Lightning flashed before him, staring like cold snakes. He seemed to be showing off. Long Huan''s expression looked dead. He was so humiliated.


    "It may be just a small trick, but I can use it against someone who doesn''t understand music," Ye Futian said coolly. His music slowed and then stopped.


    The banquet was silent. Long Huan himself had said Ye Futian''s music was a small trick and that he would advise Ye Futian. But how did he do it?


    The Dragon Master had been mocked for not understanding music. It was so insulting.


    Ye Futian didn''t hurt him, but that one sentence could pierce Long Huan''s heart.


    "How do you know this song?" Long Yan asked Ye Futian. Could he have been the man?


    "Long Yan, what''s going on?" someone asked. Long Yan knew this song?


    "I went to the music workshop to choose a song for Ling''er and someone was auctioning this song. Many people praised it, but Miss Yunxi must have bought it in the end." Many people looked to Gu Yunxi.


    Gu Yunxi was shocked. She looked to Madame Long. "It is indeed the song I gifted Ling''er."


    Madame Long opened the music score and was also shocked. Gu Yunxi had praised this song and bought it. Today, Ye Futian had played it.


    "So how did he get such a powerful thing?" The Dragon Clan wanted to support Long Huan.


    Ye Futian scoffed.


    "How did you learn it?" Madame Long asked. "Who wrote it?"


    "This was my improvisation. I wrote it," Ye Futian said. Everyone was shocked. Ye Futian wrote this? Even Gu Yunxi couldn''t believe it. She''d guessed that Ye Futian was the one who had played the piece at the workshop, but she couldn''t believe that he wrote it.


    "You may have won against me, but you can''t be so arrogant. Madame, he plagiarized someone else''s music. He must be a lowly person," Long Huan said coldly. "Don''t let Ling''er interact with him anymore." He could regain his ego this way.


    "What a joke." Ye Futian scoffed when Madame Long looked at him. "In that case, listen to this."


    As he spoke, he thrummed the instrument strings. That moment, the song entered the climax. It seemed to contain a furious fire that passed through the sky and slammed against Long Huan.


    Long Huan''s head shook. Ye Futian continued playing furiously without any order. He was just venting his anger, but it became such a wild melody.


    Long Huan stumbled back, face white.


    "If that''s not enough, let''s change the song," Ye Futian said. The music changed. Dragons roared in the sky. It was similar to what Long Huan had played. A dragon whistled and shot forward with angry fire.


    Gu Yunxi stood up. She stared at the handsome figure. At that moment, Ye Futian was unparalleled.


    "How is this possible?" Long Huan stared at him in shock. "Did you write these too?"


    "You''re just a frog in the well," Ye Futian mocked. His white clothing fluttered. Right now, he seemed to be venting all the anger he''d repressed these days.


    "Then let me teach you martial arts!" Long Huan roared. His dragons roared too. He flew like a dragon towards Ye Futian.


    Light flashed. Ye Futian put his guqin away. He was bathed in the light of thunder. Horrible lightning killed towards Long Huan, piercing his mind.


    Then Ye Futian raised his hand. Dragons roared, shattering the world. Ye Futian''s arm was like a dragon that destroyed everything directly. Then a dragon''s claw came down on Long Huan and grabbed him.


    "Do you even qualify for martial arts?"


    Ye Futian slammed Long Huan onto the ground. The ground shook, along with everyone''s hearts. The scene before them was too shocking.


    Could this really be a study attendant?


    Do you even qualify for martial arts?

 444 Ye Futian’s Gif

    Long Huan''s body slammed onto the ground, shaking. He wasn''t hurt. Ye Futian couldn''t hurt him much in the Dragon Clan. But if he could choose, he wished that today wouldn''t happen.


    He''d completely humiliated himself today.


    He''d mocked Ye Futian''s music as little tricks and wanted to advise Ye Futian. But he ended up being destroyed. Ye Futian played carelessly but defeated him.


    He wanted to compete in martial arts, but it was even worse. He couldn''t even take a hit.


    Do you even qualify for martial arts? Those words slapped him strongly. He was a Dragon Master from the Dragon Clan, but he''d embarrassed himself so much before a study attendant. He had lost all face.


    Everyone at the banquet stared at them. Their hearts pounded wildly. Study attendant? Little tricks? Who now still doubted whether Ye Futian had helped Long Ling''er?


    Even Long Ling''er herself couldn''t believe this. She''d only listened to Ye Futian play a few songs and he''d taught her the Dragon Master music. She didn''t think Ye Futian would be so powerful.


    "Brother Futian," Long Ling''er called softly. She felt guilty. Ye Futian was so extraordinary, but she''d made him into a study attendant and had him get humiliated at the Dragon Clan. She felt bad because this was all due to her stubbornness.


    Right now, Ye Futian turned towards Madame Long and bowed slightly. "Madame, today I only came to return the Celestial Pavilion''s badge and stayed because it was Ling''er''s birthday. I didn''t want to be humiliated, so I had to prove myself. I''m sorry if I caused any disturbances."


    "No, I''m not strict enough with my juniors. It isn''t your fault." Madame Long looked at the handsome youth before him. She couldn''t find anything wrong with Ye Futian''s words. Long Huan had asked for this beating and it was good to teach him a lesson.


    "Thank you for your understanding," Ye Futian said, bowing. "I won''t disturb you any longer. Goodbye."


    "Ling,''er," he continued. "I''m going now. I''ll move out of the Celestial Pavilion and we''ll see each other if fate allows it. This has nothing to do with you. Don''t be sad." Ye Futian smiled at her.


    Hearing that he was going to move out and thinking of how people told him before to leave, Long Ling''er felt that Ye Futian had been wronged. Her eyes reddened and said to the crowd, "Since you didn''t come genuinely anyway, let''s just stop this birthday celebrating. You don''t have to pretend anymore. Just go."


    With that, she walked out and jogged to Ye Futian. Grabbing his arm, she asked, "Brother Futian, you won''t stay with me anymore?"


    Ye Futian looked at her teary eyes and felt a headache. He knew this girl was a good actress, but he really couldn''t stand the puppy eyes��


    The Dragon Clan were shocked too. The princess'' relationship with Ye Futian was better than they''d thought.


    Ye Futian looked over at Madame Long. She just smiled and nodded, so Ye Futian also smiled wryly. He''d just beat someone from the Dragon Clan. Was this okay?


    "I''ll spend some more time with you." Ye Futian patted Long Ling''er''s head.


    "Yay." Long Ling''er''s eyes brightened immediately. She looked up at Ye Futian and giggled. She was very silly and na?ve. She took Ye Futian away, ignoring the Dragon Clan.


    Madame Long looked at everyone and asked quietly, "Are you satisfied now?"


    Everyone looked down. With Madame Long''s intelligence, she obviously knew what they were thinking. They''d wanted to make a scene over this, but sadly, Long Huan had lost too badly. It was too humiliating.


    "If your attitude is still like this, there''s no need to waste time for another visit. Go back now. Act as if nothing has happened. You cannot mention it or cause trouble for him," Madame Long said.


    Long Huan was already up. Madame Long said they couldn''t mention it, but many people in the Dragon Clan would still know. He was still embarrassed.


    Everyone rose, bowed, and retreated. The crowd quickly dispersed. Madame Long glanced at Long Ling''er and shook her head, smiling wryly. "Oh, that girl. Long Mu, spend more time with Yunxi. You young people should talk well."


    "Okay." Long Mu nodded.


    "I''ll go check Mr. Feng." Madame Long left with a smile, clearly giving Long Mu a chance with Gu Yunxi.


    They obviously could tell too. Gu Yunxi smiled and asked, "What do you think about him?"


    Clearly, she was asking about Ye Futian.


    "You''re skilled in music. The artistic conception is nice. I''m sure he''s quite talented. As for martial arts, it''s hard to tell from that simple exchange. Long Huan is good, but he''s not the best in the Dragon Clan. But if he can defeat Long Huan, he must be quite good too," Long Mu said.


    "Yes." Gu Yunxi nodded. She thought back to Ye Futian''s brilliance while he played. He''d performed three songs. Did he really write those brilliant songs?


    ��


    Long Ling''er dragged Ye Futian back to her room, but Ye Futian asked, "Ling''er, who was the woman beside your mother?"


    Long Ling''er froze and then glared at Ye Futian. "You think Sister Yunxi is pretty, don''t you. Do you like her now?"


    "Where do you get those ideas?" Ye Futian knocked against her head. "Didn''t she say that she would give you a song? That was the song I sold, so I''m curious."


    "Oh, then that''s coincidental. But it''s bad that there''s such a beauty before you, but you think of someone else." Long Ling''er''s fierce expression was quite cute. Ye Futian was speechless.


    "Yes, she''s a beauty, but it''ll be a few years for you," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "I knew you don''t have good ideas. Sister Yunxi is the daughter of the Gu Clan and a famous beauty. She''s cultivating at the Starry School and likes the guqin. When my uncle was alive, the two families wanted her and my brother to get married. But we don''t talk about it anymore."


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Do you really have thoughts?" the girl asked cautiously.


    "How come you''re so gossipy?" Ye Futian was speechless.


    "I''m jealous." The girl pouted. "The piece she gave me is better than your gift."


    "I��" Ye Futian stared at Long Ling''er. "She bought that. Does it count?"


    Her logic��


    "I don''t care. You have to give me something better," the girl said, clutching Ye Futian''s elbow.


    Ye Futian wanted to hit his head. His head hurt. He shouldn''t have stayed.


    "Or at least give me something similar." Long Ling''er shook his elbow. "Brother Futian, you can''t give up your sister for a beauty. Brother Futian, can you be a brother? You have to keep visiting me after leaving."


    Now, Ye Futian realized what the girl was doing. She was scared that he would leave forever, so she tried to keep him here.


    Seeing Long Ling''er look at him with beautiful and innocent eyes, Ye Futian softened. "Okay, I''ll give you a song, but don''t tell anyone other than your parents that it''s from me."


    "Okay." Long Ling''er nodded.


    Ye Futian''s ring flashed and a copied score appeared in Ye Futian''s hands. He handed it to Long Ling''er. "Learn it well and comprehend as much as you can. Don''t force it."


    "Okay." Long Ling''er clutched the score and giggled. Looking at Ye Futian, she said, "I know that you''re the best."


    "You suck too," Ye Futian mumbled. He lost to a little girl.


    "Who else?" Long Ling''er asked playfully.


    "Your aunt," Ye Futian said.


    "Auntie must be pretty," Long Ling''er said.


    "Of course. She''s the prettiest girl in the world. She''s my wife, after all," Ye Futian said proudly.


    Long Ling''er giggled. "Brother Futian, you''re so self-conceited."


    "It''s called confidence." Ye Futian patted Long Ling''er''s head. "Alright. I gave you the present and now I''m going back. Go spend time with your mom."


    "Then, this��" Ling''er held the Celestial Pavilion''s badge.


    "Put it away." Ye Futian smiled and turned to leave.


    Long Ling''er looked at his back, not wanting him to leave. "Brother Futian, I''m going to look for you tomorrow."


    "You''re so annoying," Ye Futian muttered.


    "I''ll annoy you to death." Long Ling''er smiled brightly.


    Not long after Ye Futian left, a woman stopped him and bowed. "Mr. Ye."


    "Who are you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "My lady said that your music is worth more than what you''ve received. She has a private courtyard in the Divine Sky City and wishes to give it to you," the woman said. She looked somewhere and Ye Futian followed her eyes. He saw a beautiful woman standing there. She smiled and nodded.


    Afraid I have nowhere to live? Ye Futian thought. Then he smiled and shook his head, "Thank your lady for me. However, the music is worth more than this, but those who truly understand its value will treasure it more."


    With that, Ye Futian walked away. He didn''t accept the gift.


    ��


    After Ye Futian left, Long Ling''er took out the music. She discovered that the piece was very difficult. She couldn''t play it even after many tries.


    Seeing her immersed in it, Madame Long didn''t disturb her. She just watched quietly. Mr. Feng stood beside her.


    "What piece is that?" Madame Long asked. "It seems very hard. She''s tried so many times. Is she bad at comprehending it?"


    "I don''t know. Ling''er isn''t bad at comprehending." The elder shook his head and listened quietly.


    As Long Ling''er practiced more, she could play one part haltingly. The elder''s expression grew serious.


    "What''s wrong?" Madame Long asked after seeing his serious expression.


    "Listen closely." The elder closed his eyes. Long Ling''er kept trying with a serene smile. She was immersed in it.


    But then, the elder flashed and appeared before Long Ling''er. Madame Long followed with a shocked expression.


    Long Ling''er looked up and said in confusion, "Grandpa Feng, Mother."


    "Ling''er, what song is this?" the elder asked.


    "I don''t know." Long Ling''er shook her head.


    "Can I see it?" the elder asked. Long Ling''er hesitated.


    "Ling''er," Madame Long called. What was wrong with her?


    "Grandpa Feng, you have to give it back," Long Ling''er said.


    The elder nodded and took the music score. His expression grew even more serious and he even shook uncontrollably.


    "Mr. Feng." Madame Long was a bit shocked. "Is the song very special?"


    "Madame." The elder put down the score and looked at her. "If I''m not wrong, this should be one of the top ten songs of the Divine Prefecture��Ukiyo!"

 445 Divine Spiritual Sorcerer

    On the last night of the 10004th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, a crescent hung high in the sky.


    In the Zhongzhou City region of the Barren State, there was a group of extremely luxurious, palace-like buildings. At the top of a building, there was a richly decorated house. At the moment, there were two very beautiful figures standing on the house, staring at the dazzling scene before them. In the distance, fireworks bloomed brilliantly in the sky. However, the two still seemed to be somewhat lonely, even though the place they were at looked fantastic.


    This was the Zhuge Family, a top clan in the Barren State.


    "Do you miss him?" one of the ladies suddenly asked as she smiled and looked at the younger, fairy-like lady beside her. At the moment, the fairy-like lady was looking up at the lonely moon.


    "Yup." Hua Jieyu nodded gently and grinned brightly. "He must also be looking at the moon and thinking of me now."


    "Does he dare not to?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said, "Now he should be in the Barren State as well. I wonder which small city he is in. He should have already gotten a map of the Barren State and know where the Zhuge Family is at."


    "Sister, how long do you think he would need to come here?" Hua Jieyu asked softly.


    "I guess he will come once he reaches the Noble Plane. With such a pretty girlfriend outside, how could he not be anxious?" Zhuge Hui said, smiling.


    "With you taking care of me, why should he be worried?" Hua Jieyu stared at Zhuge Mingyue and her clear eyes were filled with gratefulness. "Sister, thank you."


    "You don''t have to thank me. I will wait for him to return my favor to you," Zhuge Mingyue remarked jokingly. "He promised me that in the future he will protect me. By that time, remember to remind him about it."


    "No problem. I will do so with him." Hua Jieyu grinned brightly. In this year, the sister had done so many things for her that she could hardly pay it back. In particular, not long ago, the sister had offered a fate-changing opportunity to her.


    "I know that you love him." Zhuge Mingyue smiled.


    "Sister, Jieyu, we should go. They are urging us." Suddenly, a pure and charming figure walked over. It was Beitang Xing''er, the sixth disciple of the Cottage.


    "Alright," Zhuge Mingyue nodded, after which she and Hua Jieyu turned around and walked down from the house. The three people walked together in the Zhuge Family. On their way, many people looked at them. Some seemed to be envious while others were filled with admiration, especially when they saw the fairy-like lady under the moonlight. Her name was Hua Jieyu and she had returned with Zhuge Mingyue. She had an exquisite look and moreover was so young, attracting the attention of countless people in the Zhuge Family. However, Zhuge Mingyue had been protecting her closely and so nobody dared to touch her.


    Nobody knew why Zhuge Mingyue was so good to her. Not long ago, Zhuge Mingyue even gave the life-changing opportunity to evolve her talents to Hua Jieyu.


    That day, everyone in the Zhuge Family paid much attention to Zhuge Mingyue, but the person who walked out was Hua Jieyu. Nobody would forget the scene: the fairy-like lady appeared with a seven-colored halo around her body as if she was a goddess from heaven.


    The talents of Hua Jieyu who already had all the elements were evolved further and she became a super-rare ultimate sorcerer, a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer.


    That day, many people thought that the leader of the family would be furious, but because of the birth of a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, the leader did not blame Zhuge Mingyue. Instead, he only heaved a sigh, not knowing why his daughter would choose this.


    ��


    The Eastern Region of the Barren State, Divine Sky City, Celestial Pavilion. The place was filled with a melodious music which displayed how much the musician missed someone. Moonlight poured down onto a handsome face, and the courtyard seemed to be extremely peaceful.


    After a long while, the music slowly stopped. Ye Futian moved his finger from the strings and lifted his head to look at the moon in the sky. In the Zhuge Family, is Jieyu also looking at the moon just like me? Is she doing well? The second sister will definitely not let her be mistreated. Thinking of the second sister, Ye Futian smiled. He was not used to not having the second sister beside him. He really enjoyed the times when he was protected by her.


    Now, the second sister must also be protecting Jieyu just like how she had protected him.


    Not far away from Ye Futian, a single-armed figure was sitting down quietly. He was similarly looking up at the crescent. The moon delivers love thousands of miles away. Clearly, Ye Wuchen was also thinking of someone.


    "You''re thinking about Chenyu," Ye Futian said softly.


    "I left her behind and came to the Barren State. It has been such a long while. She must be hating me so much," Ye Wuchen said softly.


    "Then you should focus on cultivation and go back next time to marry her," Ye Futian said.


    Ye Wuchen did not speak and only sat there in silence.


    Ye Futian smiled and continued playing the guqin. The melodious music passed with time, and the 10004th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar finally passed.


    The next morning, the courtyard was extremely quiet. Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked up at the sky. A bright smile then appeared on his face. It was another new start. On the previous night, his Spiritual Energy broke through and his sorcery entered the Middle Arcana Plane.


    The effect of the Dragon Grass last time was still present, thereby allowing him to break through again in such a short period of time. Furthermore, he felt that after the medicated baths over these few days, his physical strength was also about to break through soon.


    Yu Sheng walked over and asked Ye Futian, "Do we leave today?"


    "Yup," Ye Futian nodded. "Where have you been last night? Why didn''t I see you?"


    "After the medicated bath, I have been cultivating. My martial arts level has increased," Yu Sheng answered.


    Ye Futian was momentarily stunned, after which he smiled brightly. His Spiritual Energy had broken through, while Yu Sheng did so for his martial arts. It seemed that they were both not far away from the complete Middle Arcana Plane.


    Suddenly, Shen Yu walked in from the outside hurriedly. Noticing her expression, Ye Futian asked, "What happened?"


    "Miss Long is here." A strange look appeared in Shen Yu''s eyes because it was not just Long Ling''er who was here.


    "Ling''er?" A weird expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. Did she really come here?


    "Brother Futian." Ye Futian heard a voice from the distance, after which he saw an elf-like figure walking towards him. Behind her, there was another person, a very beautiful lady. This caused a strange expression to appear on Ye Futian''s face. Standing up, he greeted, "Madame."


    "Please don''t be so polite. I just wanted to chat with you," Madame Long said, smiling.


    "Sure," Ye Futian nodded and signaled to Shen Yu. Shen Yu understood his intent and bowed, after which she left. At the moment, she could not remain calm. The female leader of West Mountain Dragon Clan actually came to visit Ye Futian herself.


    Madame Long glanced at the other few people and Ye Futian said, "They''re all very close to me. Madame, you can say it directly."


    "You are from the Eastern Barren Territory right?" Madame Long stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Madama Long, after which he smiled and nodded, "It seems like you have also heard about what happened in the Eastern Barren Territory." When he gave Ling''er the music score, he was already expecting this to happen, but it was much quicker than he thought. The Ukiyo was not a secret and it was easy to find out that he was the person who had obtained it. However, he had told Ling''er that she could only tell her parents about it. During the banquet on the previous night, Ye Futian had a good impression of Madame Long. Although he could be exposed, there was no resentment or conflict of interest between the Dragon Clan and him. Therefore, the leader of the Dragon Clan would almost certainly not sell him out. After all, he was but an unimportant figure and the Dragon Clan had no reasons to betray him. Hence, it should not cause any problems.


    "Yes I have heard about it before," Madame Long nodded. Then, she took out a badge and added, "You should continue to take Celestial Pavilion. Since Ling''er has given this to you, it''s inappropriate for me to take it back. In the future, nobody in the Dragon Clan will say anything about it."


    "Err..." Ye Futian stared at Madame Long. Obviously, he knew that it was completely different to receive the badge from Madame Long as compared to Long Ling''er. After all, Long Ling''er was still young and did not have much right to speak in the family. Thus the disciples of Dragon Clan dared to call him into question. However, it would be totally different if Madame Long gave him Celestial Pavilion. If he was a person whom the madame regarded highly of, nobody would dare to say a thing.


    Madame Long smiled and continued, "You have all come from thousands of miles away. Even though you are all talented, your cultivation will still be delayed by the lack of resources. Do you plan to keep selling music scores in the future? Furthermore, if you run into any trouble in the future, being the owner of Celestial Pavilion will help you at least partially. If you still reject this, I would have come here for nothing."


    Ye Futian knew that Madame Long was saying the truth. Dragon Clan had bought Celestial Pavilion and Madame Long gave it to him. Being the owner of Celestial Pavilion would, therefore, mean that he had Dragon Clan behind his back. This would clearly cause the rest to be somewhat scared of him.


    "This being the case, I''ll thank you for the gift, Madame." Since Madame Long had already said so, Ye Futian could not reject the offer. Thus he could only take the badge which he had returned again.


    "Haha." Seeing the scene, Long Ling''er smiled happily.


    "I''ll take my leave first," Madame Long said, smiling. Both of them did not mention about the Ukiyo, as if they had had an unspoken agreement.


    "Brother Futian, the exams of the Top Three Schools are approaching. I have to cultivate hard for a while. By that time, you must come and cheer for me!" Long Ling''er said to Ye Futian.


    "Absolutely." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    Madame Long brought Long Ling''er and left. Ye Futian looked at the badge in his hand and a strange expression appeared on his face.


    "Does this mean that we no longer have to leave?" Yu Sheng muttered.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded. He also did not expect Madame Long to deliver the badge here herself.


    ��


    The 10005th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was a new starting point for many. Over these days, Ye Futian and his friends had been cultivating quietly in Celestial Pavilion and growing stronger by the day, until Ye Futian and Yu Sheng completely entered the Middle Arcana Plane, while Ye Wuchen entered the fifth level of the Arcana Plane. The three had all become stronger and were heading towards the Noble Plane.


    Divine Sky City was slowly becoming livelier. The exams of the Top Three Schools were approaching and there were more and more outsiders in the city. Many people crossed over vast distances to come to Divine Sky City just so that they would not miss the exams this year.


    At the moment, a group of people arrived outside Starry School in Divine Sky City. Among them, there was a beautiful lady. She looked at the majestic college before her which she longed to join. Not far away, a pretty figure approached her and shouted, "Yurou!"


    "Sister!" Wang Yurou shouted, smiling. She had also come to Divine Sky City.

 446 Arrival of a Beauty

    Celestial Pavilion, Fairy Pool.


    Today, Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing came to this place again, along with Wang Yuqing''s sister, Wang Yurou.


    "Yurou, the entrance examination of Starry School will be held tomorrow. Today you should relax and try out the delicacies here," Jiang Nan said gentlemanly, smiling. Today he would be treating Wang Yurou to welcome her after her tiring journey and to wish her success in the upcoming examination. Wang Yurou was going to take part in the assessment of Starry School.


    "Jiang Nan, we don''t have to come here," Wang Yuqing said. It was too luxurious for them to come to Celestial Pavilion.


    "Yurou, didn''t you ask where Ye Futain is? Last time, we met him precisely here," Jiang Nan said.


    Wang Yurou frowned gently. She did not really like Jiang Nan as he always had an arrogant attitude. Although he was chasing her sister, he always liked to display his superiority. In addition, after she asked for Ye Futian''s whereabouts, Jiang Nan had always been indirectly satirizing Ye Futian, as if he was trying to display how outstanding he was and to belittle Ye Futian.


    Even though Ye Futian may not be as bright as the geniuses from the Top Three Schools, he had had some relationship with Wang Family after all. Before they left, Wang Yurou''s grandfather also asked her sister to take care of him. However, after they arrived here, they departed, and it seemed like their relationship was not very good.


    "Did he come here to eat as well?" Wang Yurou asked.


    "Eat?" Jiang Nan said, smiling. "That friend of yours is quite skilled. In some way, he managed to have some relationship with West Mountain Dragon Clan and become the servant of the lady of Dragon Clan. He was following behind her that day."


    Wang Yurou frowned, after which she said, "It''s impossible." According to her understanding of Ye Futian, he was a very proud person and would never become someone''s servant. She had had some contact with Ye Futian and clearly knew what kind of person he was.


    "Ask your sister then," Jiang Nan said, smiling. Wang Yurou looked at her sister who nodded gentle, "Yurou, don''t view a person with a fixed mindset. Divine Sky City is different from Wang Family."


    "Sister, grandpa asked you to take care of him. How did it end up like this," Wang Yurou said, unhappy.


    "I would have tried to take care of him if he could enter Starry School. However, since he has chosen a path of self-degradation, what can I do?" Wang Yuqing replied. "Let''s not talk about him and start eating. Tomorrow, you need to work hard and try to enter Starry School."


    Wang Yurou did not say anything else but only sighed in her heart. If she could enter Starry School, how could Ye Futian not? The talents that Ye Futian had displayed that time were far better than hers.


    Suddenly, loud noises came from the Fairy Pool. Jiang Nan and the rest turned their heads around and saw a group of people walking towards their direction. The leader of the group was extremely charming and attractive.


    "She''s Gu Yunxi." A strange look appeared in Jiang Nan''s eyes. Gu Yunxi was a famous beauty in Divine Sky City. She was cultivating in Starry School. In the college, countless geniuses tried to chase her. Today, she actually came to Celestial Pavilion.


    Wang Yuqing similarly stared at Gu Yunxi. Although she was also quite beautiful, when she saw Gu Yunxi she still felt somewhat embarrassed. A beauty like Gu Yunxi was destined to attract the attention of everyone in the world. An ordinary person would not even dare to think about chasing her.


    Gu Yunxi walked into an attic along the covered bridge. Many men were slightly disappointed as they could no longer see the exquisite face. However, they would still occasionally look in that direction, hoping to see her again. Some people also chatted about who would eventually be able to chase a lady like Gu Yunxi. Would it be Long Mu from West Mountain Dragon Clan? A few years ago when the father of Long Mu was still alive, it was said that the two families wanted to ally through marriage. Or would it be someone from Jin Clan?


    With Gu Yunxi''s status and appearance, not many people in Divine Sky City could match her.


    Very soon, Ye Futian who was cultivating quietly in a courtyard in Celestial Pavilion also received the news. Over these days, he and his friends had all been cultivating and did not know about the happenings outside.


    In the courtyard, when Shen Yu told Ye Futian that Gu Yunxi was here, a strange expression appeared on his face. Was this a coincidence?


    Ye Futian would clearly not forget about the beautiful lady who had bought his music score and wanted to give him a courtyard.


    "Count her spending this time on me," Ye Futian said. "You may leave now."


    Hearing Ye Futian''s reply, Shen Yu''s expression turned even stranger. Why would Ye Futian treat Gu Yunxi?


    "The maidservant of Gu Yunxi said that she wanted to see the owner of Celestial Pavilion," Shen Yu said softly. She was wondering if Gu Yunxi and Ye Futian knew each other.


    She felt that Ye Futian was becoming more and more mysterious. He was first visited by the young lady of the Dragon Clan and then the female leader. Now, a top beauty from Gu Clan was also here. She realized that after she knew Ye Futian, she had already seen many important people. They were all the people whom she would ordinarily not even imagine meeting. However, when Ye Futian first came to Celestial Pavilion, it was obvious that he could not afford the stay here.


    Was it because he was too good-looking?


    Thinking about this, Shen Yu glanced secretly at Ye Futian''s handsome face. After all, the people who came to look for Ye Futian were all ladies.


    "See me?" A weird expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. Why was Gu Yunxi looking for him?


    "Alright, then I''ll go and see her." Ye Futian stood up, after which he walked towards the Fairy Pool.


    When he came to the Fairy Pool and walked on the covered bridge, he heard someone shout, "Ye Futian!" Ye Futian turned around and saw Wang Yurou looking at him. He was somewhat surprised but also delighted.


    "You also came to Divine Sky City," Ye Futian said, smiling. It seemed like Wang Yurou also did not want to keep staying in Yunyue City. After knowing her for a while, Ye Futian knew that Wang Yurou was indeed a person who was not willing to live an ordinary life.


    "Yup. Tomorrow I will be going to Starry School to see if I can pass the assessment," Wang Yurou said.


    "Good luck," Ye Futian nodded, grinning. "I have something for now. I''ll leave first." After that, he walked towards the attic along the covered bridge.


    Wang Yuqing did not look at Ye Futian at all and only gave a soft humph. On the other hand, Jiang Nan sneered and said, "He came here so quickly. It seems like he also wants to get to know Gu Yunxi." He gave a mocking smile. Ye Futian did not even look at his own status and was actually dreaming about such things.


    However, he had to admire Ye Futian for his skills and thick-skinned nature. Whenever he met an important person, he would try to seek connections.


    "He looks like he''s doing well, unlike what you have said earlier, sister," Wang Yurou said.


    "Perhaps the young lady of Dragon Clan asked him to come to Celestial Pavilion to do something for her," Jiang Nan said. Wang Yurou did not say anything. In any case, she would not believe in that. She would instead go and ask Ye Futian if she had the chance to.


    Ye Futain walked into the attic where he saw a beauty standing in front of the window and turning around to look at him.


    "Mr. Ye, do you still remember me?" Gu Yunxi said, smiling. Her voice was very gentle and soothing.


    "Of course," Ye Futian said, smiling. "With your beautiful look, I don''t think I can forget about you so soon."


    Hearing Ye Futian''s compliment, Gu Yunxi was somewhat embarrassed which made her look even more attractive.


    "I heard that you''re looking for me?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes," Gu Yunxi nodded gently. "I have already learned the piece ''Elegance.'' That day in West Court, I saw you create a new piece of music on the spot. Do you have any other scores? I will use something to exchange for them."


    "I created ''Elegance'' only because of my mood that time. That day in West Court, I played the guqin also because I was angry, but it was not a complete piece. At the moment, I do not have any new scores, unfortunately." Ye Futian shook his head. Writing a new piece of music was certainly not such an easy task. Of course, if it was just a random short piece, it would be much easier.


    "In this case, if you manage to create one in the future, can you find me first?" Gu Yunxi said.


    "Ms. Gu, you''re the person who bought the first piece of music that I have ever created. If I do manage to create any more in the future, you''ll definitely take priority," Ye Futian nodded, smiling.


    "Thank you. Mr. Ye, don''t forget what you said today," Gu Yunxi said, smiling.


    "Of course I will not." Ye Futian shook his head.


    "Deal." Gu Yunxi smiled brightly and continued, "Tomorrow Starry School will be admitting new disciples. Will you join the college to cultivate?"


    "Nope." Ye Futian shook his head gently. Gu Yunxi was somewhat surprised. Was Ye Futain actually not entering the Top Three Schools?


    "That''s unfortunate. If you enter Starry School, the Musical Spell Department will definitely have an unparalleled disciple," Gu Yunxi sighed. Ye Futian smiled and said, "Ms. Gu, you''re flattering me. If you have nothing else, I''ll take my leave first."


    With the lady of Gu Clan in the attic, it would more or less have an undesirable impact if he was to stay here for too long.


    "Alright. See you next time," Gu Yunxi nodded gently and did not ask Ye Futian to stay longer.


    "See you." Ye Futian turned around and left.


    After he left, a strange expression appeared on the face of the maidservant behind Gu Yunxi. "Ms, what''s wrong with this guy?"


    "Why?" Gu Yunxi asked softly.


    "When the other geniuses are in front of you, they all want just to stay longer with you. Instead, he only wanted to leave. He also rejected your offer to give him a courtyard," the maidservant said, twitching her lips. She knew well about the attractiveness of Gu Yunxi. It was the first time she saw a person who wanted to leave himself. In the past, it was always Gu Yunxi who asked to leave first.


    "A person who could create a piece like ''Elegance'' is clearly different from the rest," Gu Yunxi said, smiling. The maidservant saw the smile on Gu Yunxi''s face and a strange look appeared in her eyes. Gu Yunxi had never seemed so interested in a man before. Could it be that��


    But their backgrounds did not seem to match. Although Ye Futian was extremely good at music, he only owned Celestial Pavilion because of Dragon Clan. On the other hand, the people who wanted to chase Gu Yunxi all had stronger backgrounds.


    Ye Futian walked out of the attic. Jiang Nan who had been paying attention to the situation sneered in his heart. Indeed, Ye Futian came out this early. It was not so easy to seek connections with powerful people.


    Gu Yunxi was not someone that he could dream of getting close to.


    "Ye Futian!" Wang Yurou shouted, standing up. Ye Futian looked at her when she asked, "Will you go to the examination in Starry School tomorrow?"


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head.


    "Why not?" Wang Yurou asked curiously.


    "It''s good to cultivate in Celestial Pavilion." Ye Futian smiled; he had his own plans.


    "How unashamed." Wang Yuqing stared coldly at ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at her and frowned. Then, Wang Yurou said, "I think there is a misunderstanding between you and my sister. Why don''t you explain it now?"


    "Explain?" A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. "Am I even that close to her?" Then, he smiled and added, "I have something else. I''ll leave first." After that, he turned around and really left.

 447 College Assessmen

    After Ye Futian finishing speaking, he actually left directly, leaving the stunned Wang Yurou behind. She did not expect the relationship between Ye Futian and her sister to be so bad already.


    That time when Wang Linfeng introduced Ye Futian to her, she already found out that Ye Futian was extremely proud from their conversation. Wang Yurou also saw her sister''s attitude just now. Clearly, she had humiliated Ye Futian in the past. It seemed like her grandfather should not have asked her sister to bring Ye Futian here. At first, her grandfather just wanted them to become friends, but the exact opposite thing happened.


    "This is absurd!" Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Wang Yuqing''s face darkened.


    "We''re indeed not very close to him in the first place. Yuqing, you shouldn''t be angry with this kind of person," Jiang Nan said, smiling.


    "If you miss the registration tomorrow, does it mean that you cannot enter Starry School?" Wang Yurou asked.


    "Of course. In the assessment tomorrow, the college will first examine if the talents of its applicants meet the requirement, which will form the first round of filtering. In this round, most people will be eliminated. If a person doesn''t even register, he clearly cannot enter the Top Three Schools, unless he''s an extreme genius whom the college will admit as an exception," Wang Yuqing said.


    The next day would be the greatest event in Divine Sky City in the new year. The whole city would be paying attention to it and countless people would sign up for the assessment of the Top Three Schools.


    Wang Yurou sighed. Was Ye Futian really not going to take part? She thought that Ye Futian wanted the map of the Barren State and come to Divine Sky City in order to find a better place to cultivate. However, it seemed like he preferred freedom rather than being bound to a single place.


    Wang Yurou wondered if she could pass the first round the next day. All the talents in the Eastern Region of the Barren State would be gathered together and even she who was a genius in Yunyue City would seem insignificant in the Top Three Schools.


    "Do you know him?" someone suddenly said in a gentle tone. Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing turned their heads and saw a charming figure standing on the covered bridge. When Wang Yuqing raised her head and saw Gu Yunxi, she could not help but feel inferior. Why was Gu Yunxi asking about Ye Futian?


    Jiang Nan stared at the elegant lady and nodded, "Yes." He did not even dare to have any wild wishes about Gu Yunxi and could only look up to her.


    "Since you know him, why are you defaming him behind his back?" Gu Yunxi asked. She heard them discuss Ye Futian.


    A strange expression appeared on Jiang Nan''s face. It seemed like Ye Futian was really skilled. He had only entered the attic for such a short period of time and yet Gu Yunxi was already asking about him. Naturally, he would not have guessed that Ye Futian and Gu Yunxi already knew each other before this. After all, from his perspective, Ye Futian could clearly not be able to know Gu Yunxi given his status. The difference between their statuses is like an impassable gap.


    "Ms. Gu, I must say that this person has a poor character. At first, he was cultivating in a small city and asked us to bring him to Divine Sky City. After he arrived here, instead of cultivating hard and trying to join the Top Three Schools, he only wanted to seek connections with people in power. He always tries to take shortcuts which is really contemptible," Jiang Nan said. Although he would never have a close relationship with Gu Yunxi, he still did not want her to doubt his character before him. Therefore, he belittled Ye Futian as such.


    "Seek connections?" Gu Yunxi thought about the music "Elegance." It was no wonder that he would play such a piece. His experience was described flawlessly by the music. In particular, on the last day of the last year in West Court, he vented all his emotions through music.


    Gu Yunxi smiled. If Ye Futian only wanted to seek connections, why would he keep his distance from her? He could have used this opportunity to get closer to her.


    "I got it," Gu Yunxi said emotionlessly, after which she left the place. She suddenly understood why Ye Futian would leave just like this; he was in total disdain.


    Jiang Nan sat down only after he watched Gu Yunxi leave. He obviously did not understand why Gu Yunxi would say that she got it and only remarked, "A person with such a poor character still wants to seek connections with the powerful, but he does not know that some things can never be hidden."


    ��


    The next morning, the entire Divine Sky City was buzzing with excitement. The Top Three Schools would hold an assessment and recruit new disciples every year on this day. This year was no exception. This day, countless people in Divine Sky City rushed to the Top Three Schools to register for the assessment.


    The first round was the most basic assessment, the examination of talents. The examiners in the college would look at the age, level, Life Spirit, and Dharma of each applicant, as well as how well the sorcerers could control their spells, how strong the martial arts cultivators were, the sword techniques of the swordsmen, and so on. They would look at many different general areas and decide if the applicant could enter the next round.


    This was also the cruelest round. Because there were too many applicants, most people would be eliminated in this round. Those who did not have outstanding talents would certainly not be able to pass the round. Only those who had extraordinary characteristics could enter the next round.


    On this day, many people would be overjoyed and many heartbroken.


    Many people who traveled thousands of miles from a small city far away to Divine Sky City might be eliminated after only a preliminary examination. Those who dared to sign up were certainly not too weak, but when compared to the entire Eastern Region they might seem just very ordinary.


    Of course, a group of extremely outstanding people would also appear on this day. The genius juniors of the top clans who had already become famous before the assessment all displayed astonishing talents.


    Some people had twin spirits while others had unique talents. For example, the dragon girl from the Dragon Clan had just passed her fourteenth birthday and she was already a Dharma Plane Dragon Master. Although she had just entered the Dharma Plane, it was still sufficient for people to exclaim about what a good start the descendants of top clans could get. Countless ordinary people would start too far behind to even catch up with them because they would receive the best resources from birth. When they just began to cultivate, they could already pass the basic levels one after another. Their foundations were very stable and they would not experience any obstacles at all. However, all the happenings seemed to be completely unrelated to Ye Futian. He was still cultivating quietly in Celestial Pavilion, trying to enter the Noble Plane as early as he could. Only then would he be strong enough to roam the Barren State.


    In the evening, Celestial Pavilion was particularly lively, perhaps even packed. The disciples of the major clans who had passed the first round all came here to celebrate.


    Long Ling''er was also here, but she did not go to the Fairy Pool. Instead, she came to Ye Futian''s courtyard to question him.


    Noticing the girl''s fierce look, Ye Futian laughed and said, "Who made my Ling''er angry?"


    "What do you think?" Long Ling''er stared angrily at Ye Futian. "You agreed that you will go and cheer for me during the assessment. Why didn''t I see you?"


    "Today the whole city is there. With so many people, can you even see me in the crowd?" Ye Futain said.


    "Did you go?" Long Ling''er blinked.


    "See. You don''t even know whether I went. So what difference would it make even if I went?" Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "You''re just being unreasonable!" Long Ling''er complained.


    "I know that the first round of assessment will take three days and countless people will participate. It''s meaningless for me to go and watch. After three days I''ll be there to cheer for you," Ye Futian said, smiling.


    "Really?" Long Ling''er stared at Ye Futian in suspicion. "It''s not a lie?"


    "I never lie," Ye Futian replied.


    "I''ll trust you for once," Long Ling''er said doubtfully. Then, she smiled and walked up to hug Ye Futian. "Brother Futian, come and eat with me." After that, she pulled Ye Futian towards the outside. Ye Futian was speechless but could not do anything about it.


    Three days later, the area outside Starry School was packed with people. Countless people stared at the holy land of the Eastern Region. Today, Starry School will officially start to decide those people who could become a disciple of the college. Outside the gates, there was a riot of voices as many people discussed the assessment of Starry School.


    "The selection in the last three days was really cruel and so many people were eliminated. Some people were eliminated right after they said their age and level and did not even get a chance to display their skills."


    "This is inevitable. Every year, countless people will sign up for the assessment. The examiners are clearly not so patient. If the age and level of an applicant do not meet the requirement, he will be eliminated."


    "This time, who do you think will be the most popular newcomers?"


    "There are already two young people who have attracted much attention."


    "You mean the dragon girl from West Mountain and young Roc from Jin Clan?"


    "That''s right. Both of them are so young but already so outstanding. The dragon girl from West Mountain is a Dragon Master, while the young Roc is said to be the most talented junior in Jin Clan at the moment. They are both not even 15 yet."


    As the crowd chatted, people who had tokens in their hand stepped into Starry School one after another, walking towards the vast square in the college. There, there were already countless people. Those who passed the first round would obtain a token and they could enter the college directly for the second round. Only their family members and friends could enter and watch the battle, while the rest could only watch from outside the school.


    Suddenly, a dragon howl was heard. An ice dragon dived down from the sky and landed outside Starry School. Many people walked out of the way and looked at the girl before them. It was clearly Long Ling''er. However, when Long Ling''er reached the gates of Starry School, she stopped and turned around to look at the crowd, as if she was looking for someone.


    Suddenly, a group walked out of the crowd. It was Ye Futian and his friends.


    "Brother Futian," Long Ling''er shouted, smiling. Immediately, countless people looked at Ye Futian. Who was this guy?


    "I have brought them here to watch the assessment." Ye Futian pointed at Yu Sheng and the others who were beside him.


    "No problem," Long Ling''er nodded. Then, she gave the token to the guards at the gates and brought Ye Futian and the rest inside.


    Everyone could recognize the little princess from West Mountain so the guards would clearly not stop Ye Futian. Moreover, they were allowed to enter in the first place.


    The group entered Starry School. The vast square before them was already filled with countless people. In addition, there were also members of Starry School on the stairs at the front with many disciples of Starry School behind them. They came here to see their newly admitted juniors.


    Long Mu, Jin Yunxiao, Gu Yunxi, Jiang Nan, Wang Yuqing, and many other people were all here already.

 448 Combat Assessmen

    The square in Starry School was extremely huge and could easily accommodate tens of thousands of people. At the viewing platform in front, one could get a very good view of the entire square in just one glance.


    When Long Ling''er appeared, many people started to pay attention to her. The top clans in Divine Sky City were all able to attract much attention. In addition, many people in the Top Three Schools in Divine Sky City were in fact from the top clans.


    After all, the various top clans had all existed for at least a thousand years and had very stable foundations in Divine Sky City as they passed down the generations. It was obvious that they would have people in the Top Three Schools and many people knew this well. Of course, on the surface, the people who controlled Starry School were still those from the school itself.


    Long Mu looked at Long Ling''er, while Gu Yunxi looked at Ye Futian. A few days ago, Ye Futian had said that he would not join Starry School. Thus he was here probably to accompany Long Ling''er.


    Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing were standing together. Seeing Ye Futian and his friends who were behind Long Ling''er, they immediately had a mocking expression on their face. Smiling, Jiang Nan said, "It''s no wonder that he''s not participating in the assessment. Since his master is joining the school, it''s clearly inappropriate for him as a servant to take part as well."


    Wang Yuqing seemed to be somewhat disgusted, perhaps because of Ye Futian''s words before he left on that day. She disliked Ye Futian more and more; he had a poor character and weak background but still had a holier-than-thou attitude.


    Turning her eyes, Wang Yuqing found one person in the crowd. It was her sister Wang Yurou.


    Wang Yurou passed the first round of assessment and survived the cruel elimination. However, Wang Yuqing knew well that the real assessment was only about to begin.


    Today, most people would still be eliminated.


    Ye Futian and Long Ling''er stood among the crowd. There were fewer people in the college than the outside, but they still managed to fill the square. At the front of the stairs before them, there was a row of elders of the college. They were the examiners of the assessment and were in charge of selecting the disciples. If there were any doubts, the more senior members behind them would decide.


    Every year on this day, many important people in the college would come here themselves. After all, the strength of the newcomers of Starry School would determine the strength of Starry School in the future. Only when they were always strong, the school could maintain its excellence. Moreover, there were three top schools in Divine Sky City and none of them wanted to lose to the other two. There was intense competition between the schools and also frequent conflicts between the disciples of the different schools.


    Standing behind Long Ling''er, Ye Futian asked softly, "How many people are in this round, and how many would the college choose?"


    "After the first round of elimination, there are about over ten thousand people left. Next, it will be the actual combat round. Every year Starry School admits roughly a thousand people but this is not fixed. If the applicants are stronger on the whole, they would admit more people, and less people if they are weaker in general," Long Ling''er replied.


    "That''s less than one in ten," Ye Futian muttered. Furthermore, there were even more people eliminated in the first round.


    In the first round, applicants were quickly selected based on their ages, levels, talents, and other general areas, while the second round would simply be actual battles. This was indeed the most efficient method. Moreover, in the combat assessment, the applicants would not be fighting against each other. Instead, they would be fighting against a Starry School disciple of the same level as them. This was simple and direct as the examiners could see the difference at once.


    If an applicant could win a Starry School disciple of the same level, he would undoubtedly become a disciple himself, but most people would lose. In that case, it would depend on their performance during the combat.


    People who performed well would be admitted directly and those who performed very poorly would be eliminated. The rest would enter a waiting list and be selected again in a final assessment.


    This was the entire process which Starry School used to choose its disciples. In this way, it could efficiently select the most outstanding group of people to enter the college.


    Time passed slowly. An elder on the stairs raised his head to look at the position of the sun, after which he said, "Time''s up. Close the gates and reject the latecomers."


    "Yes," the guards outside the college replied. If a person was late for such an important assessment, he could forget about joining the college as he was too poorly disciplined.


    "Since you''re all here, let''s start now. I believe all of you know the rules. Just like the previous years, we''ll start from the ninth level of the Arcana Plane," the elder continued. "Starry School disciples, you may enter the arena." After he finished speaking, a group of people walked out from both sides of the stairs towards the center of the square. There were nine of them.


    "Applicants, nine of you may enter," the elder added. The assessment this time was only targeted at those who were below the Noble Plane. If a noble wanted to enter Starry School, there would be a separate assessment instead of a combined assessment like this.


    The applicants this time were almost all in the Arcana Plane, which was also the most common level of Starry School disciples. Then, a group of people walked out one after another. When there were nine of them, the rest backed off and did not contest.


    The 18 people stood opposite each other in pairs. The applicants were all somewhat anxious, while the Starry School disciples all had a faint smile on their faces. One of them said, "Be careful. We will not show any mercy."


    "Begin," the elder announced. Immediately, many brilliant beams of light bloomed on the battle platform. Before the battle started, none of the participants knew their opponents, whether they were sorcerers or martial arts cultivators, or perhaps skilled in both.


    At this instant, many Life Spirits and Dharma erupted. Spiritual Qi raged in the air and spells swept across. However, one of the applicants only stood at his spot, looking coldly at the battling crowd before him.


    "Humph." Noticing the scene, the Starry School disciple who spoke earlier smiled and suddenly moved, charging towards the motionless applicant like a bolt of lightning. His speed was astonishing and created many afterimages.


    The Starry School disciple waved his palm. Immediately, a wind-elemental spell was formed and a ring-shaped storm swept towards the applicant like a chain.


    "Such a perfect combination of wind-elemental and wood-elemental spells. He''s so skilled," many people complimented.


    Ye Futian also looked at the Starry School disciple who could cast two spells simultaneously and achieve such an effect. Indeed, Starry School disciples were all talented and had their own strengths.


    Realizing that the applicant was still standing motionlessly there, the Starry School disciple said, "Why are you still not attacking? Do you want to die?" The sharp storm circling around the applicants was releasing an ear-piercing noise who seemed to be able to cut space apart. After he finished speaking, he clenched his fist and the two spells gathered towards his opponent with a shocking power.


    Many people frowned. Attacks from Upper Arcana Plane cultivators were all very powerful. The space around him seemed to be filled with an appalling storm which could crush everything there. However, the applicant was still not doing anything.


    Suddenly, everyone saw the person move. An extremely dazzling golden radiance bloomed from his body as if he was covered with a divine golden armor. Moreover, the armor actually seemed to be flowing on his body. He stepped out, ignoring the terrifying storm. The storm swept towards him and tried to cut his body apart, but no sound was produced. Instead, the spell slowly merged with his body and then froze, dissipating into nothingness. The wood-elemental spell also ended up with the same outcome.


    The person walked out directly from the attack. On his golden armor, a silvery light was also faintly visible.


    He put his palm in front of him, after which his arm actually started extending. Covered in golden and silvery light, his arm grabbed towards his opponent.


    "A spell fused with the elements of metal and water?" The expression of the Starry School disciple changed. The two different elements actually merged together.


    He stepped back with the wind, and his body ascended into the air. However, suddenly, a freezing aura erupted and Ice Will engulfed the space. Soon, his body was covered in silvery frost, as if he was going to turn into a silver statue.


    Apart from that, two liquids of different colors flowed towards him from the sky like water. The Starry School disciples still wanted to struggle but were wound by the spells directly. He turned into a real statue, not being able to move at all.


    "Err..." Looking at the scene, everyone''s expression changed. In the first battle, such an outstanding person already appeared and easily defeated a Starry School disciple. The battle was so astonishing that nobody even paid attention to the other fights.


    Every year during the assessment of the Top Three Schools, many powerful people would appear. It seemed like this was indeed the case.


    The first round of battle ended and only this person managed to defeat his opponent easily. He was from an ancient clan very far away and had a unique talent. He had come to Divine Sky City to cultivate.


    In the first round, he was admitted into the college directly as an official disciple. As for the rest, two people went onto the waiting list and six were eliminated. It was indeed very cruel.


    The second round of battle then followed and it was still the same nine Starry School disciples just now. The person who lost in the previous round seemed to be furious and defeated his opponent directly with a powerful attack. The applicant who was defeated by him felt somewhat speechless.


    In the second round, only one person went onto the waiting list and the rest were eliminated. They were all easily defeated by their opponents from Starry School.


    At this points, everyone realized that applicants who were defeated immediately by Starry School disciples would be eliminated. Those who won would be admitted directly, while those who would persist for a while would enter the waiting list.


    In the combat assessment, Ye Futian also saw Jiang Nan participate. As a Starry School disciple in charge of assessing the applicants, he was quite strong. In the midst of the battle, he even gave Ye Futian a mocking smile. Clearly, Jiang Nan despised Ye Futian.


    Time passed by slowly. After all the Upper Arcana Plane cultivators finished, it was the round for Middle Arcana Plane cultivators. Ye Futian saw Wang Yurou participate as well. At the moment, she had already entered the fourth level of the Arcana Plane. However, unfortunately, she lost badly to a Starry School disciple. Her combat abilities were still significantly weaker than the Starry School disciples and she was eliminated.


    Wang Yuqing seemed to be somewhat disappointed, but it was within her expectation anyway. She was not very hopeful for it and only wanted her sister to try.


    In the future, Wang Yurou could still stay in Divine Sky City to cultivate which would broaden her horizons. She would be better off here than in Yunyue City, as long as she did not go onto a self-degrading path like Ye Futian.

 449 Awkward Situation

    The battles continued until the night.


    The combat assessment would not pause because it was already nighttime. Instead, it would continue until it was over. Various spells appeared the darkness. The battles in the arena could still be clearly seen as waves of cultivators entered one after another.


    Outside Starry School, there was similarly only a very small portion of people who left. They were still watching the assessment in order to see how many outstanding talents Starry School would accept this time.


    "Ling''er, it''s all your fault..." Ye Futian complained in desperation.


    Long Ling''er blinked her eyes. Smiling, she said, "Why? The battles are so interesting." At the moment, the battles were between Lower Arcana Plane cultivators.


    "I forgot to ask before I came. The combat assessment actually also takes so long." Ye Futian was speechless as if he had made a mistake. Long Ling''er had just entered the Dharma Plane and would be one of the last few to be assessed. How miserable this is...


    "I think it''s really fun." Long Ling''er smiled with her head slanted. Although she also felt that the assessment was very boring, she would certainly not admit it.


    Ye Futian rolled his eyes. The battle continued from day into the night, and then into the day again. The people present were all cultivators and could survive not sleeping for one day. In fact, whenever they cultivated it would take at least a few days.


    The passion of the crowd also slowly faded with time. Finally, in the evening on the second day, it was the turn for low-level Dharma Plane cultivators. There were only very little people at such levels who came for the assessment. When it was Long Ling''er turn, Starry School actually did not have any disciples that matched her level.


    Usually, people who could enter Starry School were at least in the Dharma Plane. However, even the first level Dharma Plane cultivators who had entered Starry School in the previous year had already broken through. Therefore, Starry School did not have anyone at this level. Consequently, everyone in this level was put on the waiting list directly.


    So everything started all over again. The people on the waiting list would fight against each other to decide the person who would be promoted. Of course, if the two people were both outstanding enough, they could be promoted together. If they were both too bad, they might also be eliminated together.


    Ye Futian felt like he had to punch someone.


    Long Ling''er turned around and looked at Ye Futian, smiling trembly. There was nothing Ye Futian could do. Hence, he waited for another day.


    Nevertheless, on this day, there were similarly many talented people who appeared.


    Finally, it was Long Ling''er turn again. The assessment of Starry School was coming to an end.


    "Those people in the first level of the Dharma Plane can come up together," an elder announced. Immediately, Long Ling''er turned her head and grinned, after which she jumped onto the battle platform. Among the crowd, there was also an extraordinary teenager in a gold shirt who attracted much attention.


    At once, everyone seemed to be alerted as they stared at two figures on the battle platform. They were the dragon girl from West Mountain Dragon Clan and the young Roc from Jin Clan. They had already attracted much attention before the assessment even began as they were the young geniuses from two major clans. Today, they would be displaying their talents in front of everyone for the first time.


    There were only eight people in this level who came for the assessment. Moreover, they were all very young as older cultivators who were still in this level would have been eliminated in the first round.


    Long Ling''er and Jin Fei from Jin Clan still managed to stand out among the group: they were way too young. Although Jin Fei was very young, his eyes seemed to be filled with an arrogance which did not fit his age. Glancing at the crowd as if he was very mature, he said with a young voice, "You can fight me together."


    On the viewing platform in Starry School, Jin Yunxiao smiled. He wanted to see how the dragon girl from the Dragon Clan would be embarrassed.


    "Arrogant," Long Ling''er said, looking at Jin Fei.


    "With superior power, of course, I am arrogant. You''re Long Ling''er right. I suggest you go back and practice more. Starry School is not suitable for a spoiled princess like you," Jin Fei said coldly. Long Ling''er stared angrily at Jin Fei.


    "You..." Long Ling''er pointed her finger at Jin Fei. However, Jin Fei suddenly ascended into the air and summoned his Dharma. A dazzling Roc appeared in the sky, releasing its brilliant radiance outwards. Showered in golden light, Jin Fei looked all-powerful, as if he was a young Roc himself.


    "I shall not waste more time. Since you don''t want to attack, I''ll defeat all of you one by one." Just after Jin Fei finished speaking, an eye-catching radiance erupted from his back. Then, many illusory Rocs flew out towards the few people on the battle platform. The few young applicants all released their Life Spirits and Dharma. However, under the illusory Rocs, they were all having a hard time blocking the attack.


    Just then, Jin Fei flashed out with an astonishing speed, as if he was a Roc. He swept his wings and one of the applicants flew outwards.


    Without stopping, he blinked a few times with an incredible speed. Accompanied by continuous crashing sounds, the other applicants who were at the same level as him were completely no match for him and fell down one after another. They all looked desperately at the genius who was significantly younger than themselves. It was really unfortunate to be in the same group as Jin Fei; they were doomed to be eliminated.


    Jin Fei then looked at Long Ling''er. Smiling, he said, "Sister Long, if you leave yourself, I wouldn''t hit you."


    Long Ling''er was furious. Her Guqin Spirit appeared and she stoked on the strings. However, at the instant she started playing, Jin Fei also moved out like a golden bolt of lightning. A sharp sword appeared in his hand and he struck towards the Guqin Spirit directly.


    Long Ling''er expression changed slightly and she withdrew her Guqin Spirit. Then, a dragon howl erupted and a terrifying ice dragon spirit appeared.


    Long Ling''er had twin spirits. Because of Jin Fei''s speed, she did not have a way to play the music to resonate with the dragon.


    Long Ling''er raised her little fist and jumped into the air, punching towards her opponent in mid-air. Jin Fei''s fist collided with hers and he was actually blown backward. In addition, his arm was covered in a layer of frost.


    Clearly, although Long Ling''er was small in size, her strength was not weak at all.


    "Sister Long, your strength is not bad. I''ll be serious now," Jin Fei said, smiling. His body turned into a golden bolt of lightning which circled around Long Ling''er. Then, he suddenly attacked.


    The two collided with each other continuously. Although they were both only fourteen, the battle between them looked very intense, as if it was going to shatter the earth. Many people were astounded by this. In the future, both of them would certainly become important figures. However, in this battle, Long Ling''er was probably going to lose. The biggest advantage a Dragon Master could have was to fight with her dragon.


    Ye Futian also felt that things were not looking good for Long Ling''er. Indeed, after a while, Long Ling''er was hit by Jin Fei. She was blown backward and blood flowed out from the corner of her mouth.


    "Sister Long, I''m only using half of my powers. Why are you already losing?" Jin Fei floated in the air right above Long Ling''er. Long Ling''er stared at him angrily.


    Many people also looked at Jin Fei who was obviously teasing Long Ling''er on purpose. However, owing to the resentment between the two families, they did not feel weird about it.


    "You can stop now. Both of you have performed well," an elder from Starry School said.


    "Indeed they''re both fine. In this battle, Jin Fei challenged everyone and easily defeated them so he clearly can enter the college to cultivate. Although Long Ling''er didn''t perform too badly, she has yet to prove herself," another person said. Right after that, many people froze and stared at the elder who spoke in bewilderment.


    In fact, even though Long Ling''er had lost, nobody thought too much. With her power, Long Ling''er could undoubtedly enter Starry School. However, at the moment someone was using this as an excuse to attack Long Ling''er.


    Did she not prove herself? This also seemed reasonable. At the start of the battle, Jin Fei already eliminated everyone else. Long Ling''er, being young, would clearly not think that Jin Fei''s action was targeted at her.


    "What do you mean? She''s fourteen, in the Dharma Plane, and is a Dragon Master. Is that not enough for her to join Starry School?" a cultivator from Dragon Clan questioned the elder.


    "Her talents are indeed outstanding enough, but she still seems to lack practice. On the battlefield, she did not win anyone and was instead defeated by a person of the same level. With such a record, should we not discuss it?" the person added, as if he was trying to prevent Long Ling''er from entering Starry School. Although his action seemed to be meaningless, Jin Clan which had some resentment with Dragon Clan would do anything that would embarrass Dragon Clan.


    Even if they might not be able to stop her in the end, it was still good to humiliate the Dragon Clan.


    Therefore, for the first time in Starry School, there was an argument about whether a person could join the college. Clearly, it was a game between the people from the Dragon Clan and those from Jin Clan.


    Looking at the scene, Long Ling''er expression changed; she did not expect this to happen. Even if she could enter Starry School eventually, the situation was still very awkward and shameful for her. Other people would claim that Long Ling''er almost did not manage to join Starry School, and only did so because of her family.


    "I''m not joining anymore," Long Ling''er said. She glanced at the crowd, after which she turned around and left. She had never suffered such a humiliating situation before.


    "Look. She''s indeed spoiled," someone satirized.


    "In this case, there is indeed no need to let her join the college. She can''t even take a bit of setback," another person added. More and more people started questioning, causing the audience to be completely flabbergasted. Clearly, nobody had expected such a situation to occur.


    Ye Futian frowned and his face darkened. He did not feel much about Long Ling''er losing to Jin Fei as it was normal to lose. Although Jin Fei was somewhat arrogant, he still managed to win. However, Ye Futian was really unhappy about the attitude of Starry School. So many people were bullying a young girl.


    Even if the two clans were having a conflict, Jin Clan did not have to vent their anger at Long Ling''er, a 14-year-old girl. Moreover, Starry School also did not say anything.


    Long Ling''er walked down from the arena and looked at Ye Futian, her eyes filled with sadness and even some redness. She had invited Ye Futain her to watch her battle, not to watch her get embarrassed.


    "Brother Futian." Long Ling''er lowered her head and her voice was very low, revealing how depressed she was.


    "Silly girl. It''s only a small matter. Forget about it," Ye Futian said softly.


    "Yup. Let''s go." Long Ling''er only wanted to leave this place. Her parents had asked her to join Starry School to cultivate. Although she did not want it, she still worked hard. She never expected such a situation to happen. Her parents did not come here. What would they think of her?


    Turning around, her eyes were already filled with some tears, but she did not want to cry aloud. She had to be strong.


    "Ling''er, before we leave, we have to settle some stuff," Ye Futian softly. Then, he took a step forward and said, "All of you are seniors. Don''t you feel ashamed of yourselves by bullying a little girl like this?"

 450 A Familiar Scene

    After Ye Futian finished speaking, everyone immediately stared at him, their faces filled with a strange expression.


    Is he from West Mountain Dragon Clan? they thought. Ye Futian was speaking for Long Ling''er.


    On the other hand, Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing who knew Ye Futian seemed to be puzzled. If it was someone from Dragon Clan, perhaps it would be alright for him to say so at this place. However, why did Ye Futian dare to speak like this? Did he really think that he was a member of Dragon Clan?


    However, very soon Jiang Nan''s expression changed. Then, he sneered, "Such a crafty person."


    Wang Yuqing looked at Jiang Nan, when he explained, "He wants to join Dragon Clan completely. If he offends many people because he speaks up for the little princess of Dragon Clan, he will become a core member of Dragon Clan in the future."


    "Such a clever method." Jiang Nan even felt that he was starting to admire Ye Futian.


    "Are you humiliating Starry School?" Just then, an elder who had belittled Long Ling''er earlier stared at Ye Futian with a sharp look. In just one sentence, he argued that Ye Futian was humiliating the whole college.


    "I do not dare," Ye Futian replied. "Starry School is a holy place of cultivation in Divine Sky City and perhaps even the whole Barren State. Many people have longed joining this place. The assessment here has attracted the attention of the entire city and is clearly fair. However, I do not understand why a few seniors in particular are targeting a little girl. Is this not a shaming thing?"


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, everyone seemed to be interested in what was going in. Ye Futian''s meaning was obvious: he believed that Starry School was fair and he was only scolding the few seniors in particular.


    "How dare you!" the elder shouted coldly. "We are only speaking fairly. When did we target her? We did not say anything that would defame Long Ling''er. In this battle, she indeed did not manage to prove herself. Should we open the gates of Starry School for her just because she is from Dragon Clan?"


    After he finished speaking, Ye Futian wanted to say something, but he continued, "Who are you to speak during the assessment? If you dare to question the college further, we''ll chase you out at once!"


    Clearly, the elder understood that if he spoke any more, he would lose. After all, he was only finding an excuse to accuse Long Ling''er, but his final target was not Long Ling''er, but rather West Mountain Dragon Clan. In such a circumstance, he would naturally not want to speak too much with Ye Futian.


    "Master Yun, I actually know this person. Last year, he befriended Wang Yuqing''s family and asked me and Wang Yuqing to bring him to Divine Sky City. Now I think that I have made a mistake. He is only a crafty guy who tries to seek connections everywhere," Jiang Nan suddenly said. He had been disliking Ye Futian all along. At the moment, Ye Futian was actually using this chance to become a core member of Dragon Clan, so Jiang Nan would clearly try to stop him.


    "No wonder. So you''re a servant from Dragon Clan. I can understand why you spoke up for your master and I will not blame you for it. As for whether Long Ling''er can pass the assessment, Starry School will make the decision. You have no place here to speak," the elder said coldly.


    Ye Futain glanced at Jiang Nan, and then at the elder. Giving a bitter smile, he shook his head.


    Words from a man with low position carried little weight.


    Ye Futian still remembered what his brother in the College had told him. In the world of cultivation, one''s reasons were never stronger than one''s fists.


    If one tried to speak reasons, the rest would only crush one with their powers.


    Therefore, the more efficient way to solve a problem was still to use one''s fists.


    Long Ling''er was still standing in front of Ye Futian. Lifting her head, she said in a low tone, "Brother Futian, let''s go. Ignore these people. I am no longer sad."


    "Silly girl." Ye Futian helped Long Ling''er to fix her messy hair. Then, he smiled and walked past her, marching towards the battle platform. A strange expression appeared on the faces of many.


    "What are you doing?" the elder yelled. "Someone, come and settle him!"


    A person just wanted to go forward. However, Ye Futian bowed at the people from Starry School and said, "I am a lowly educated, background-less, weak musical attendant of Dragon Clan who knows a bit of music. Although I know that I do not have the rights to stand here, I still do not want to see my lady sad. Therefore, I want to see for myself if Starry School disciples are really so outstanding that Long Ling''er cannot even enter with her talents."


    "He''s really using everything that he can." Jiang Nan''s face turned cold. Just now, he actually saw Ye Futian stroking Long Ling''er hair. The relationship between the two was clearly better than what he had thought. However, he was not surprised by the fact that Ye Futian walked out and spoke for Long Ling''er. Ye Futian was trying to protect his master even though he might be humiliated.


    A musical attendant from Dragon Clan wanted to test the powers of Starry School disciples.


    Was he humiliating the college?


    "What a ridicule. Who are you to do that?" the elder said coldly. "Chase him out!"


    "Wait," someone said, "since you firmly believe that Long Ling''er is not qualified to enter the college, when someone questions you, why don''t you allow him to use actions to prove your claim? Instead, you''re chasing him away. Perhaps, you have been so irritable precisely because you are in fact deliberately targeting Long Ling''er?"


    The person who spoke was clearly someone from Dragon Clan. Many people seemed to be very surprised as there was actually some internal conflict during the assessment in Starry School. They knew well that such conflicts would surely occur in the college regularly. However, they managed to witness it themselves because of the special occasion today.


    "Since you both stand firmly on your grounds and there is no result, why don''t we just let him try?" an elder from the college suddenly said. Of course, he knew that the people who were arguing were from Jin Clan and Dragon Clan.


    Hearing his words, the elder from Jin Clan said, "Alright. Then we''ll let those people who have just entered the college today chase him out. Your level?"


    "Arcana Plane, fourth level," Ye Futian replied.


    "Those disciples who have just joined us today and are in this level. Who wants to go?" the elder asked, scanning the crowd.


    The people who were watching the assessment, including those outside the college, all seemed to be curious about the sudden conflict. They did not expect such a situation to happen after the assessment had already ended. It looked really interesting and they hoped that Ye Futian was at least not too weak.


    "I''m also a Musical Sorcerer, I''ll go." Suddenly, a person walked out, his eyes filled with shrewdness. It was unquestionably a very good chance for him to perform so that he would be more easily remembers by the important people of the college.


    "Alright, you can go," the elder said emotionlessly. Immediately, the person walked in front of Ye Futian and the two stood opposite each other.


    "Please," the person said, smiling.


    "Please," Ye Futian replied, after which he sat down cross-legged. His Guqin Spirit appeared, floating before him.


    The actions of the two were very similar and they both touched the strings of their guqin with their fingers. The person opposite Ye Futian smiled, after which he stroked on the strings. A trace of music spread slowly.


    "When he had his assessment just now, he performed quite well," someone commented.


    Could the Dragon Clan musical attendant fight him?


    Suddenly, Ye Futian''s fingers moved. The strings of his guqin danced wildly and an ear-piercing noise erupted. A terrifying wave of Musical Will bloomed and charged into the mind of his opponent with a shocking penetrating power.


    The person''s head trembled and his expression changed drastically. However, Ye Futian started playing his guqin at once and loud music was released.


    Clang! A frightening bang was heard from the violent music. Ye Futian''s opponent gave a muffled humph and his face turned pale.


    Ye Futian''s fingers danced and another deafening note attacked his opponent, ignoring all his defence. The person spitted out a mouthful of blood directly which colored his guqin, after which the music came to an abrupt stop.


    "Err..."


    Seeing the scene on the battle platform, many people had a weird expression on their faces.


    Ye Futian actually instantly defeated his opponent.


    Ye Futian''s opponent could enter Starry School precisely because even official Starry School disciples could not defeat him instantly. This meant that Ye Futian was also strong enough to join Starry School.


    Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing also seemed to be surprised. But then Jiang Nan said, "Your grandfather respects him so much so he is clearly not weak. Furthermore, his attack was unexpected, so it is normal for him to win."


    Wang Yuqing nodded. Beside them, many people looked at them. They were the people who had gone to the Evil Dragon Zone with Wang Yuqing. Some of them had seen Ye Futian before but did not really note his existence.


    Raising his head, Ye Futian looked at the elder and asked, "Why are you questioning Long Ling''er alone?"


    His meaning was clear. Ye Futian''s opponent was so weak and yet the elder did not say anything when he joined Starry School. However, he only tried to prevent Long Ling''er from entering the college at the moment.


    "Musical spells are supposed to develop slowly, but you used a surprise attack at the start. Not bad." The elder would clearly not admit anything and only said coldly, "This can''t prove anything."


    "I would like to try the powers of Starry School disciples again," Ye Futian added.


    The elder looked at one of the Starry School disciples and said, "Lin Yan, go."


    "Alright." A person walked out from the many Starry School disciples. He was one of the people in charge of assessing the applicants. As a Musical Sorcerer from the Musical Spell Department, his musical spells were quite extraordinary.


    "Please," Lin Yan said.


    "Let''s begin," Ye Futian said. Lin Yan nodded and started playing but in a very defensive way. Ye Futian''s music just now was very penetrating and defeated his opponent right at the start. Therefore, Lin Yan decided to be more passive in the fight.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and his fingers stroked across the strings again. The music was very rapid, as if it reached the climax at the start. Immediately, the wind and clouds moved and lightnings flashed.


    The ear-piercing music charged towards Lin Yan. At the same time, many bolts of lightning glittered in the sky and enveloped him from above.


    The expressions of many Starry School disciples changed. Lin Yan sped up his playing speed. However, the resounding music pierced into his ears wildly and the roars of lightning engulfed his senses, as if it was the end of the world. Following a loud bang, the musical spell fused with the spell and landed on Lin Yan''s body. He trembled fiercely and spitted out much blood, his face turning as white as a sheet.


    "How can this be?"


    Many people were very surprised. The people witnessing the fight felt that it was brilliant as the musical attendant from Dragon Clan was actually so strong.


    Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing also seemed to be astonished. On the other hand, Wang Yurou glanced at them from the distance. The scene at the moment seemed so familiar.


    The same thing happened in the battle between the four factions in Yunyue City. Now the stage had changed to Starry School. However, Ye Futian was still ignoring everyone else.


    Wang Yurou realized that she really underestimated Ye Futian.


    So what if they were Starry School disciples? Ye Futian could defeat them just as easily.


    Ye Futian raised his head again and looked at the elder. "Senior, you claimed that Long Ling''er didn''t prove herself and is not qualified to enter Starry School. I do not intend to offend anyone. However, according to your logic, how did the two people who lost to me enter the college?"

 451 Sweeping Victory

    Ye Futian''s words caused everyone to stare at him. Earlier, the young Roc had defeated Long Ling''er. Therefore, the elder used this as an excuse to hinder Long Ling''er from entering the college, claiming that she did not perform at all. He deliberately ignored the power of the young Roc.


    Hence, Ye Futian defeated two Musical Sorcerers of the same level as him in an overpowering manner to tell everyone that if they could ignore the strength of the winner, the two people who had lost to him should not be able to enter the college.


    "Is this guy showing off how strong he is before Starry College?" many people muttered to themselves. Just now, Ye Futian had said that he was a lowly educated, background-less, weak musical attendant of Dragon Clan who knew a bit of music�� The elder from Jin Clan stared at Ye Futian. After Ye Futian proved him wrong with his actions, the elder had nothing to say.


    On the other hand, the people from Dragon Clan all seemed to be very surprised as they gazed at Ye Futian. His performance was indeed amazing.


    "Brother Futian." Long Ling''er only felt much warmness in her heart. Ye Futian was speaking up for her. He did not want her to leave in embarrassment and wanted to get a reply for her.


    "I don''t think your description is accurate. Isn''t he someone who tried to seek connections with Wang Yuqing''s family?" Suddenly, among the Starry School disciples, a lady beside Wang Yuqing giggled charmingly. She was Li Man who had met Ye Futian in the Evil Dragon Zone and had also teased him. She did not expect this handsome young man to be so talented and be able to instantly defeat two disciples of Starry School.


    As a Starry School disciple, she knew that Lin Yan was indeed talented and strong enough to enter the college. Although the assessment of Starry School could never be totally fair, those who were weak would certainly not make it. The fact that Ye Futian could easily defeat Lin Yan clearly showed that his talents and powers were better than ordinary Starry School disciples. If he had taken part in the assessment, he could definitely pass, but he did not.


    "This temperament and music... seems just like that person," Li Man muttered.


    Wang Yuqing''s heart skipped a beat as she recalled a person who had left a very deep impression in her mind, namely the Musical Sorcerer in a silver cloak. He had appeared on the back of a demon and suppressed all the disciples of the Top Three Schools. He was extremely elegant and nobody could stop him a bit.


    That figure was indeed carved deep in her mind.


    "Him?" Wang Yuqing stared at Ye Futian. It''s impossible... How can he compare with that person? That person in the silver cloak was unparalleled...


    "No, that person was already at the peak of the Arcana Plane and was on a demon. Although their temperaments are quite similar, there are obvious differences between the two of them," Li Man said softly. Wang Yuqing nodded gently and actually felt relieved. The difference between their levels was obvious. Furthermore, that person had a demonic bird with him.


    Why would they associate the two of them together? It was totally impossible.


    Hearing Li Man''s words, Jiang Nan''s face darkened. Previously he had insulted Ye Futian publicly. Ye Futian''s performance at the moment was really slapping him hard on the face.


    "Are you saying that Starry School has no outstanding people?" the elder questioned coldly. He could not refute Ye Futian''s words. However, regardless of how strong Ye Futian was, he was only Long Ling''er follower who claimed to be a musical attendant. Even if he was a genius invited by the Dragon Clan, his position was still a musical attendant.


    A musical attendant was forcing him to admit his mistake. He was a teacher of Starry School, a top noble. On the Starry School assessment day, he was forced by a musical attendant to admit that he had been targeting Long Ling''er and that his judgment was wrong.


    How could he accept that?


    Nobody would want to lose face, especially powerful cultivators. If he really did it unintentionally, perhaps he would not mind admitting his mistake which would display his magnanimity. However, it was deliberate. If he was forced to apologize, he would lose all his face.


    Hearing his words, Jiang Nan understood that Ye Futian would never be able to make the people of Starry School change their decisions with such a method. Instead, it would only make things worse. Of course, he also had to admit that Ye Futian had achieved his goal in becoming a trusted subordinate of Long Ling''er.


    Ye Futian looked at the elder and signed in his heart. He had expected such an outcome, but he could not accept it.


    The elder avoided the topic on purpose and also claimed that Ye Futian was insulting Starry School, pushing him onto the opposite side of the college. In this way, the other members of Starry School would also feel embarrassed and have opinions about him.


    Ye Futian looked in front of him and said, "Being such a big college, can you not treat a little girl fairly?"


    Long Ling''er had indeed lost, but she was a fourteen-year-old Dharma Plane Dragon Master. Apart from Jin Fei, the other applicants of her level were all older than her. If Jin Fei did not crush the rest directly and Long Ling''er had a chance to fight, she could do the same just as well. As long as Starry School could give Long Ling''er a chance to fight the other applicants, she could certainly perform well.


    Even though she had lost to Jin Fei, it was not a quick defeat like what the elder had claimed.


    Jin Fei had claimed arrogantly that he had not used all his powers. However, only he knew if he really did try his best. The difference between Long Ling''er and him was not big. As long as a person was not blind, he would know that Long Ling''er was deserved to enter the college.


    How could the little princess of the Dragon Clan not be able to? Before this happened, who dared to think this way? Who would have thought this way? Today, the people from Jin Clan were clearly targeting Long Ling''er. On the other hand, the people from the college were completely neutral and did not voice their opinions at all. Therefore, the people from Jin Clan and Dragon Clan argued and questioned each other, bringing much embarrassment to Long Ling''er.


    "Brother Futian, I''m not entering anymore. Let''s go," Long Ling''er shouted. She did not want to see Ye Futian continue fighting for her as it was meaningless; she no longer wanted to join Starry School.


    Ye Futian smiled, after which he turned around and left the battle platform. Looking at Long Ling''er below, he said, "Alright. Since they cannot even give fair treatment to a girl, there''s no reason for you to enter."


    Then, he was about to leave. He had already done what he should. Everyone should be able to understand the purpose of his battling. Since he could not change the attitude of Starry School, he would leave it to the people of Divine Sky City to comment.


    "Wait," someone suddenly said. Ye Futian stopped and turned around. Looking at the person who just spoke, he asked, "Senior, what is it?"


    "Although the college had an argument about Long Ling''er, we''ll eventually give her a fair answer. I can understand why you spoke and fought for her. However, even though you had two victories, it''s inappropriate for you to insult Starry School like this," the cultivator from the college slowly said.


    "You''ve already hurt her self-esteem. Where''s the fairness? As for the insult, when did I do it?." Ye Futian said, looking at the cultivator.


    "When did you do it?" the person from Jin Clan said coldly. "You only won an ordinary disciple and are already so supercilious, showing no respect to Starry School. Moreover, you used this to force the college to give you an answer. When does Starry School need to give an answer to a loser? Do we need you to agree before we decide to admit any new disciple?"


    "Loser?"


    Hearing the unpleasant word, Ye Futian muttered, "Who in the world will never lose?"


    "Senior, then what do you want?" Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Starry School''s direction.


    "Since you have started the challenge, let''s continue," an elder from the school said. If they just allowed Ye Futian to leave like this, it would really be shaming for Starry School.


    They had to win at least one fight.


    "I wouldn''t want to do that," Ye Futian said, smiling. "I''m afraid it''ll only get harder for you to wind this matter up."


    "Arrogant," the cultivator from Starry School said coldly. "After winning just one fight, you think that you''ve won everything. How arrogant and supercilious are you?"


    Ye Futian''s words caused many elders to have poor opinions of him.


    He was too arrogant and did not respect the college at all.


    "You''ve only won one actual disciple of Starry School. How dare you speak such ravings?" Jiang Nan also said coldly.


    "There are quite many talented Musical Sorcerers in the Musical Spell Department," another person added.


    "Brother Futian, let''s go." Long Ling''er shook her head at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had defeated two people from Starry School. Clearly, the school was unhappy and did not want to let him go. They would certainly send someone stronger.


    Long Ling''er did not wish to see Ye Futian continue to argue with Starry School.


    "Since you''ve asked so, I can only agree to it." Smiling, Ye Futian turned around and walked onto the battle stage again. He sat down cross-legged and started to play his guqin slowly, after which he said emotionlessly, "You can send whoever and however many people you want."


    The melodious music was soothing and peaceful, as if it was only a simple piece.


    The faces of many members of Starry School darkened. Whoever and however many people they want? They had never seen such an arrogant person. Ye Futian was openly disdaining Starry School disciples.


    Just then, many Musical Sorcerers walked towards Ye Futian step by step. However, suddenly, Ye Futian''s music became more rapid and resounding. In addition, it contained a frightening penetrating power.


    Wind whizzed and thunder roared as the sky changed drastically. A figure in a white shirt was sitting down cross-legged and playing a piece of music elegantly.


    The faces of many elders of Starry School changed slightly and the Musical Sorcerers who had walked onto the battle platform also frowned. One of them had already approached Ye Futian. However, the artistic conception of Ye Futian''s music caused him to feel very threatened.


    Boom... A frightening lightning storm appeared in the minds of the Musical Sorcerers directly. At first, they did not want to team up. However, at this instant, they all gave a muffled humph. With their faces turning pale, they shouted, "Together!" Then, they sat down in different places and played simultaneously, resisting Ye Futian''s music.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and continued playing, as if he did not see them at all. The music enveloped the battle platform and penetrated the wills of his opponents. In the sky, many bolts of lightning and windstorms gathered, as if it was the end of the world. Bolts of lightning struck towards his opponents as he attacked them both physically and spiritually.


    Spit, spit... Many soft noises were heard. The Starry School disciples on the battle platforms all spat much blood that colored their strings red.


    All of them were no match for Ye Futian''s music.


    "So these are the disciples of Starry School. Such a high standard." An emotionless voice was heard along with the music. Countless people gazed at the playing figure and were totally astonished. At the moment, Ye Futian had really displayed his elegance!

 452 Gu Yunxi’s Words

    "So strong." Countless people watched the white figure on the battle platform in awe. He stood in the middle of the platform, gently playing his guqin. In the air above the platform, a thunderstorm started to form, and streaks of purple lightning struck down from the heavens, as though the gods were raging. The melody of the guqin rampaged unforgivingly, the sound imagery, caused many people to hallucinate and feel his razor-sharp intent.


    Outside the Starry School, the myriad of onlookers were awestruck. At the last moment of the Starry School admission examination, such an exciting event had happened. A musical attendant from the West Mountain Dragon Clan was annihilating the Starry School disciples. And the origin of his fury was because that little girl was being bullied.


    This incident did not reflect well on the reputation of the Starry School. The school did not understand. Why did Ye Futian not participate in the examination if he had such strength?


    Now, outstanding Musical Sorcerers were successively coming forward and walking towards the platform. However, at the same level, Ye Futian''s musical spell was unmatched. Every person who stepped up fell to his spell, and not one of them remained unscathed.


    In a short while, there were over 20 disciples from the Starry School Musical Spell department who had collapsed from the shock of Ye Futian''s musical spell, coughing up blood.


    Even one of the elders from the Musical Spell Department looked gloomy. There were many people looking at him, and he himself was affected; the musical piece had caused a stir in his heart. The piece could be described as splendid, and it was especially perfect under Ye Futian''s playing. It had brilliantly delivered the imagery of the piece, causing the spell to be exceptionally strong. Even in his department, he would be hard-pressed to find someone with so much talent.


    "Yunxi." His gaze turned towards an exceptional Arcana Plane talent in the Musical Spell Department, Gu Yunxi.


    In the Middle Arcana Plane, her musical spell attainment was definitely among the cream of the crop. Gu Yunxi had a look of confliction in her eyes, looking at the chaotic situation in the arena, she moved and glided onto the platform.


    In that instant, countless looks fell onto her alluring figure. Was the pride of the Gu Clan, going to take part?


    "Mister Ye, why do you do this?" Gu Yunxi quietly said. Ye Futian raised his head and looked at her, replying, "Are you going to take part too, Miss Gu?"


    Gu Yunxi softly shook her head, saying, "If we''re comparing our musical attainment, I naturally cannot match up to Mister Ye, I beseech you to stop."


    Upon hearing Gu Yunxi''s words, many people looked shocked. She just admitted that she could not match up to Ye Futian?


    This was��. The daughter of the Gu Clan, the genius of the Starry School Musical Spell Department. She seemed to have had some interactions with Ye Futian, to admit her loss before they even battled. Evidently, Ye Futian''s identity was not just a simple musical attendant. How could a musical attendant''s talent surpass the pride of the Gu Clan?


    Among the watching Starry School disciples, Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing''s expressions became especially grim.


    Gu Yunxi addressed Ye Futian as Mister Ye. Moreover, she personally acknowledged that her musical attainment was lower than Ye Futian''s. What did this mean?


    It meant that they knew each other. That day in the Celestial Pavilion''s Fairy Pool, it was not Ye Futian that went to play up to Gu Yunxi, but rather, the both of them were already acquainted.


    Ye Futian and Gun Yunxi were friends�� To them, Gu Yunxi stood high up above the masses, someone they could only look up to and revere. Thinking back to all the times they had insulted Ye Futian, could it all have been their own misunderstanding?


    "How could he possibly know Gu Yunxi." Jiang Nan had also noticed it, but he refused to admit it. His expression was especially flustered, and he said to himself, "What methods did he use?"


    He had just seen Ye Futian''s strength, but he still refused to accept the reality. He had mocked and insulted Ye Futian multiple times in front of Wang Yuqing. Admitting the truth would mean that he was of despicable character. He was unable to accept this reversal.


    Ye Futian naturally did not know what Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing were thinking. Ever since he had felt their self-assertive attitudes, he had only treated them as strangers. It was only the two of them who liked to show off their supposed superiority in front of him to validate themselves. Ye Futian did not even care the slightest about them.


    Hearing Gun Yunxi''s words, the rampaging melody gradually calmed down. At the end of the piece, Ye Futian sat there silently, his Guqin Spirit disappearing. He raised his head and looked at Gu Yunxi, saying, "There''s no need to be so modest, Miss Gu."


    "It''s merely the truth," Gu Yunxi replied, smiling. She looked towards the elders in the Starry School, her gentle voice saying, "Teachers, although Mister Ye claims to be a musical attendant, the truth is he''s just being humble. A few days back, when I was at Qingyun Street, I had the honor of hearing one of the pieces Mister Ye composed himself. That was the same piece that he played just now, named Fenghua. That was when I knew my musical attainment was far lower than his. Because of that, I had gone to the Celestial Pavilion to consult him. That''s why, even if our Musical Spell Department disciples have lost to Mister Ye, it''s nothing to be ashamed of. I hope our esteemed teachers do not take it to heart."


    The Starry School elders were unwilling to accept the loss. They felt that the Starry School''s reputation was tarnished. So many of their disciples could not even match up to a single musical attendant. What would others think of the Starry School?


    If Ye Futian had an innate talent that even Gu Yunxi felt she could not compare with, then their loss would not come as a surprise.


    "He composed his own Guqin piece?" One of the Musical Department elders looked shocked. If what Gu Yunxi said was true, the level of musical attainment Ye Futian had was at the level of a prodigy.


    "That''s right." Gu Yunxi nodded and continued, "At the end of last year, when Mister Ye celebrated young missus Ling''er''s birthday, he stunned the Dragon Clan with that piece. Madame Long held him in high regard, and gifted the Celestial Pavilion to Mister Ye."


    That day, when Ye Futian went to return the Celestial Pavilion Token, she only knew afterward that the Madame and Long Ling''er had been to the Pavilion. Ye Futian continued to stay there, so she naturally understood that the Madame had returned the Pavilion Token to Ye Futian. She could see the potential Ye Futian had, so she had also wanted to give him a villa, but he had refused to accept her offer.


    Gu Yunxi''s words stunned the crowd even more. They knew that the West Mountain Dragon Clan had bought the Celestial Pavilion not long ago, and not many had known the reason why. Numerous people had even guessed that it was a gift to the princess of the clan, Long Ling''er. However, they found out today that it was actually given to this young man clad in white!


    Although the Celestial Pavilion may not amount to much in the Dragon Clan''s eyes, but to the vast majority of cultivators, it was something they could never attain. Even to many Starry School disciples, lodging at the Celestial Pavilion or even having a meal there was a luxury. They could not even imagine what it would be like to own the Pavilion.


    Madame Long was willing to give the Celestial Pavilion to Ye Futian. Was this the treatment a musical attendant deserved? Even the direct descendants of the Dragon Clan did not deserve such attention. If they still thought that Ye Futian was simply a musical attendant from the Dragon Clan, they would definitely be idiots.


    "Celestial Pavilion''s new owner." Wang Yuqing turned pale, thinking about the news that had been the topic of much discussion, the changing of Celestial Pavilion''s owner. The new owner had been rumored to be from the Dragon Clan.


    Today, she finally knew who the new owner was. She recalled the day when they had gone to the Celestial Pavilion to celebrate and met Ye Futian there. Ye Futian had claimed that he was staying at the Celestial Pavilion for a few days, and they had criticized and mocked him for indulging in pleasure.


    She recalled the second time they met Ye Futian, they had treated him with the same mockery and torment. She had even told her younger sister Wang Yurou about these, and regardless of what her sister had told her about Ye Futian not being that kind of person, she continued to believe that what they had seen was the truth.


    Now, she finally understood what Ye Futian''s intention was when he returned her the spirit stones at the Starry School. She understood that Ye Futian''s silence at the Celestial Pavilion was not because he had lost face, but rather, he could not be bothered.


    Everything was encompassed in that one sentence of his. Do we know each other very well?


    Ye Futian owed her no explanation.


    She looked towards Jiang Nan who was standing beside her. She had always looked up to him, but when she remembered all the things that Jiang Nan had told her, she suddenly felt that his words were jarring. He always liked to show off and belittle Ye Futian. He would be pleased with himself for being able to speak in the presence of someone more superior, but Ye Futian was able to maintain his composure even in front of the pride of the Gu Clan.


    This should be what confidence was like. This confidence did not have to care about their cynicism, it disregarded the difference in status. This was an inborn pride. He did not feel that he was inferior to anyone, and even if he had to face the entire Starry School alone, he was unnerved. If they wanted to battle, he would leave it up to them.


    As she thought about it, her gaze moved towards Wang Yurou, and their gazes met. Wang Yurou looked at her with a look of accusation, the reason their grandfather had asked Wang Yuqing to take care of Ye Futian, was to establish good relations between the two of them. However, it had gotten into such a deadlock, and Ye Futian was even more outstanding than their grandfather had expected.


    Even in a place like the Divine Sky City, the elites of every faction wanted to befriend Ye Futian. Even the Starry School was no different from the four clans of Yunyue City in wanting to establish ties with him.


    Wang Yuqing lowered her head slightly. She had initially thought that her grandfather and Wang Yurou were shortsighted and overestimated Ye Futian. She thought that she had seen the world, and as a Starry School disciple, she was stuck-up. However, she just realized that not only was she full of herself, but she also could not judge herself clearly, not to mention others.


    "Jiang Nan, Wang Yuqing, what Gu Yunxi is saying appears to be different from what the two of you have said. Wasn''t he simply a musical attendant that only knew how to suck up?" Li Man laughed energetically, with a hint of mockery. Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing were speechless while everyone''s gazes turned onto them. What Jiang Nan had said previously had played down Ye Futian''s strengths, but Gu Yunxi conversely claimed that she was inferior to Ye Futian. This was ��. such a slap in the face.


    Feeling all the gazes on her, Wang Yuqing wished that she could crawl into a hole, while Jiang Nan looked exceptionally somber. His character and his reputation were all ruined.

 453 Long Mu‘s Words

    The Starry School Musical Spell Department''s elders and the disciples who had lost felt more at ease after hearing Gu Yunxi''s words. Since Ye Futian had such high musical achievement and was someone that was highly valued by Madame Long, it became much easier for them to accept their loss.


    Many people looked towards Gu Yunxi, the prided daughter of the Gu Clan, well-read, proficient in the Guqin, not only was she extremely talented, but she also had impeccable character.


    Her words elevated Ye Futian''s ability while saving face for the Starry School. This was a win-win scenario for both sides and an excellent display of her intelligence.


    Although she admitted that she was not Ye Futian''s match, her frankness won the respect of others. She was humble and beautiful, and even had the honor of listening to Ye Futian''s guqin piece, and headed to the Celestial Pavilion to seek Ye Futian''s teachings. The tense atmosphere became a lot lighter because of a few simple sentences from her.


    Gu Yunxi continued to maintain a faint smile, bowing in the direction of the Starry School''s viewing platform, saying, "In the battle between the Jin Clan''s young roc and Long Ling''er, Jin Fei was indeed too outstanding, which was why Ling''er lost. Both of them are stellar individuals. If we just kick Ling''er out like that, it''s truly unfair to her. I hope that our esteemed teachers can consider again whether to give Ling''er a second chance."


    Ye Futian looked at Gu Yunxi upon hearing her words. The impression that she had given him was a gentle rich young lady. Now, he had a higher appraisal of her. In just a few sentences, she could almost clear up the dispute between both parties.


    Sure enough, some of the Starry School elders nodded their heads. Gu Yunxi had given them an out and the timing was just right for the Starry School to express their opinion.


    "Indeed, in Long Ling''er and Jin Fei''s battle, although she was defeated, she has redeeming qualities as well. She exhibited extraordinary battle ability, and has the qualifications to enter the school," declared one of the elders from the School.


    "That''s right. Since many of us have differing opinions, why not we let Long Ling''er battle with a few other people, so that we can judge if her ability is enough to win us over?" another person said. The other people who were listening understood that it would not be a problem for Long Ling''er to be admitted into the School.


    In reality, even if the Jin Clan members wanted to prevent her admission, and use it as an excuse to embarrass the Dragon Clan, if Long Ling''er ultimately did enter the School, they would not be able to stop it from happening. After all, her potential was clear for all to see.


    Regarding this, both the Jin Clan and Dragon Clan members had the same understanding. What both parties were fighting over was simply the process, however, Ye Futian''s interference disrupted everything and complicated matters. Thankfully, Gu Yunxi''s arrival managed to bring the proceedings back on track.


    "Do you have any objections?" The Starry School looked towards both parties and asked.


    "If that''s the case, let''s give her a chance to try again," the Jin Clan representative nodded his head and replied.


    "Sure," the expert speaking up for Long Ling''er similarly nodded his head and replied bluntly. The Jin Clan wanted them to suffer disgrace, but the Dragon Clan would remember this grudge.


    "Since both parties do not have any objections, then it''s decided. Long Ling''er, step up." The expert from the Starry School addressed her. Long Ling''er looked in the distance, and her eyes trailed towards Ye Futian who was on the battle platform. Likewise, Ye Futian was also looking at her. He heard Long Ling''er say, "Big Brother Futian, I don''t want to enter the Starry School to cultivate anymore."


    Many people''s expressions changed upon hearing her words. The little princess of the West Mountain Dragon Clan also had a temper. Now that she had been bullied, she was starting to throw a tantrum.


    If it was an ordinary person, they would naturally not have the right to do so, but Long Ling''er was different. Even if she did not enter the Starry School to cultivate, people would not feel surprised, since the Dragon Clan had their own resources.


    "Ling''er, don''t be ridiculous." From among the Starry School disciples, Long Mu looked at Long Ling''er and said, "Uncle hopes that you can enter the School to cultivate and mature, don''t let uncle and aunty''s hopes be wasted."


    He did not say anything previously because he knew very well that even if Long Ling''er was picked on, it would not change the outcome. Ling''er had to learn to face difficulties by herself, as the road ahead for her was still very long. Regardless, Long Ling''er would be able to enter the Starry School to cultivate, even if Ye Futian did not stand up for her. The words of the Jin Clan members would not be able to deny her admission, at the very most it would just displease the Dragon Clan.


    "I''m not being ridiculous." Long Ling''er looked back and Long Mu, and turned to face Ye Futian. In the days that she had been with Ye Futian, she had gotten more reliant on him. This reliance was like that of a younger sister towards her brother and had started ever since Ye Futian taught her how to play the guqin piece.


    "If you don''t want to, then let''s just not enter." Ye Futian''s reply was simple. Cultivation was not dependent on the Top Three Schools. He understood that even if one entered the Top Three Schools, it would just be an environment conducive for cultivating. With Long Ling''er''s background, she did not need the Top Three Schools to provide any cultivating resources or experts to advise her. Her family had all these. In fact, an extremely strong Dragon Master resided in the West Court.


    This was also why Ye Futian never intended to join any of the Top Three Schools. The martial arts techniques and spells that he had were not necessarily inferior to those of the Top Three Schools. Even if he entered the Top Three Schools, what could a Sage Plane cultivator even teach him, not to mention a Noble Plane cultivator?


    His big brother, second sister and third brother were all at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane and had already grasped the Sage Intent.


    "Okay." Long Ling''er smiled brightly. Having big brother Futian supporting her felt great. Since big brother Futian wasn''t going to enter the Starry School anyways, she would do the same and have more time to often cultivate with big brother Futian in the future.


    "When was it ever your turn to speak about this issue?" Long Mu uttered in a low tone. His voice was calm, but his arrogance laid under his composed tone.


    This situation caused the atmosphere that had started to become slack to tense up again. Many onlookers had strange looks on their faces.


    Ye Futian was on the Dragon Clan''s side and had close relations with the little princess. Long Ling''er addressing him as big brother Futian further proved that point. In that case, shouldn''t he be in the same faction as Long Mu? Yet, in this kind of occasion, at this time, Long Mu''s sudden outburst caused everyone to feel that something was very odd. Their relations appeared to be complicated and the crowd was confused.


    The air became deadly silent again, and many looks turned towards Long Mu. Long Mu, the son of the West Mountain Dragon Clan''s legend, groomed as the successor of the Dragon Clan leader. Even though Ye Futian had been gifted the Celestial Pavilion, his position in the Dragon Clan was definitely not comparable with Long Mu.


    "Brother." Even Long Ling''er was stunned and glared at Long Mu. Why was he saying these things about big brother Futian? Could it be because big brother Futian was not supportive of her entering the School to cultivate?


    Gu Yunxi also looked at Long Mu strangely. She did not understand, it was the Jin Clan that was aggressive to the Dragon Clan, so why then, was Long Mu saying these words to Ye Futian? Wouldn''t this put Ye Futian in a bad light?


    If he was really Long Ling''er''s brother, he would naturally have more authority over Long Ling''er''s education. However, his words stripped Ye Futian completely of any dignity.


    In reality, Long Mu did not say these words without reason. From his perspective, he hoped that Long Ling''er would enter the School. Even with the episode that just happened, it would not affect the outcome. Ye Futian standing out might look like helping the West Mountain Dragon Clan, but in actuality, it did not serve any purpose apart from putting him in the limelight. In fact, it might even affect the Dragon Clan.


    Before this, if Gu Yunxi had not stepped out to resolve the issue and allowed Ye Futian to continue troubling the Starry School, who would the blame eventually land on? The West Dragon Mountain Clan.


    Everyone thought that Ye Futian was from the Dragon Clan and could represent them. So, he was not thankful to Ye Futian. Conversely, he felt that Ye Futian''s actions were foolhardy, to actually treat himself as Long Ling''er''s elder, and interfering with her decision to enter the School. Was this something that he could decide?


    Under these circumstances, Long Mu simply had to clarify with the crowd that Ye Futian did not have the authority to represent the Dragon Clan. Long Ling''er''s matters, were also not up to him to decide. Of course, Gu Yunxi might also play a part in this.


    Jin Yunxiao smiled and thought, how interesting.


    A glint appeared in the somber Jiang Nan''s eyes. Long Mu''s words gave him great satisfaction, as they had given Ye Futian a slap in the face. However, Ye Futian was oddly calm. He raised his head slightly and looked at Long Mu. That handsome figure had the same look as when they first met: indifferent and prideful. No matter how outstanding Ye Futian''s performance was, it did not faze Long Mu in the slightest.


    "When I speak, when did you have the right to comment?" Ye Futian''s voice sounded cool, causing many people''s expressions to freeze again, the looks on their faces becoming especially interesting.


    The two handsome teens stood there, looking towards each other, both unparalleled, with the same pride. It was as though both of them cared nothing about the other.


    Just now, Gu Yunxi''s words had made everyone realize that Ye Futian could represent Long Ling''er. But one sentence from Long Mu had brought Ye Futian back down.


    Just when everyone thought that Ye Futian would feel awkward about losing face, Ye Futian replied with the same tone, salvaging his reputation instantly. It was not about how arrogant his words or tone sounded, but the connotation that his words had.


    He questioned Long Mu''s right to comment, suggesting that his conversation with Long Ling''er was never from the perspective of a Dragon Clan member. If it was about their positions in the Dragon Clan, Ye Futian was vastly inferior to Long Mu, and naturally would not have the right to refute Long Mu. However, he was Ye Futian, not a member of the Dragon Clan. He had never wanted to associate himself with the Dragon Clan, neither did he belong to the Dragon Clan or owe them anything.


    That one simple sentence contained a wealth of information behind it.


    Jiang Nan''s expression hardened. Ye Futian was not even going to give Long Mu face? Beside him, Wang Yuqing laughed mockingly at herself. This was the person they thought was currying favor?


    The Dragon Clan, Long Mu, Long Ling''er? They all did not matter to him. He was just being himself, it was only the other people that overthought it.


    Long Mu continued staring at Ye Futian, but Ye Futian did not pay it any attention. He turned around and started to walk down the platform. Everything that happened today would end here. However, what he thought did not reflect what others thought.

 454 Becoming Famous

    "Are you going to just leave?" As the crowd watched Ye Futian take his leave from the battle platform, a voice sounded out. When they looked towards the person that was speaking, everyone''s focus gathered once again, and they had curious looks.


    As it turned out, the person who had spoken was the Nine Cloud Palace Jin Clan''s Jin Yunxiao. What a surprise, Jin Yunxiao and Long Mu who were usually enemies, were ganging up on Ye Futian together.


    This made people feel sorry for Ye Futian. Not only was he not recognized by Long Mu, but Jin Yunxiao was also stopping him from leaving too.


    Ye Futian did not take any notice and continued to walk down the battle platform. His interference today was simply to obtain redress for Long Ling''er. Since Long Ling''er asked for his opinion, he would just reply to her. As for Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao, they were merely his peers. If they respected him, he would treat them with courtesy, but Long Mu did not show him any respect twice. Why then, should he give him any face?


    Long Mu was merely a younger member of the Dragon Clan, even though he had a reputation as the successor, but at the current moment, he did not have the final say while Long Ling''er''s parents were still around.


    Jin Yunxiao raised his eyebrows when Ye Futian ignored him, and a stinging aura appeared in his eyes. He smiled and said, "I''ve heard that your guqin spell is extraordinary, and have defeated many of my peers. I would like to spar with you."


    As his voice landed, Jin Yunxiao transformed into a streak of golden lightning, brilliant Roc wings appearing on his back. With a slight tremor, he flew towards Ye Futian at an incredible speed.


    Jin Yunxiao naturally had a reason to step in. Although Gu Yunxi''s words helped to salvage the Starry School''s reputation, it was the truth that Ye Futian had crushed many of their disciples and caused them to lose face. If he was able to defeat Ye Futian convincingly, it would reflect well on the Starry School, and gain the favor of the Starry School elders. Apart from that, some of the reason lied with Gu Yunxi. When that legend from the Dragon Clan was still alive, the Gu Clan and the West Mountain Dragon Clan had thoughts of a union through marriage. The target of that marriage was Long Mu, and even until today, the Dragon Clan still had those thoughts.


    If the Gu Clan and the Dragon Clan formed an alliance through marriage, the one facing the most pressure would be the Jin Clan. Therefore, the Jin Clan hoped that Jin Yunxiao would be able to win Gu Yunxi''s hand in marriage. Faced with such an alluring beauty, he was very willing.


    Now, Gu Yunxi had voiced her adoration towards Ye Futian. So, if he crushed Ye Futian in front of Gu Yunxi, her fantasies would naturally be shattered.


    "So fast." The crowd''s views looked towards the platform, where the streak of golden lightning was striking across the air. In an instant, it had landed behind Ye Futian, with the visage of a Roc, his hand gripped into a claw that was sharper than knives, and clawed towards Ye Futian.


    "Still not resisting?" Ye Futian was still walking down the platform, and the crowd saw him acting as though nothing was happening and had no intention to turn his head. Their expressions turned ghastly. Was he looking for trouble? However, they did not notice that someone in front of Ye Futian had already moved. Since he moved, Ye Futian naturally did not need to.


    Bang! The floor shook violently and cracks appeared on that platform. As Jin Yunxiao''s claw was aiming towards Ye Futian''s brain, a powerful fist appeared in his path and punched towards the razor-sharp claw.


    Bam! As a huge sound erupted, just as the crowd thought that the fist was going to be shredded by the golden claw, they saw a brilliant roc figure flying backward onto the battle platform. Its body was floating in the air, its long golden robe swaying and its glowing golden eyes fixated on the burly figure that had just appeared in front of it.


    A horrifying strength materialized from that person''s arm. The feeling that it gave him was similar to when he was battling with Long Mu.


    The crowd stared at the figure that had clashed with Jin Yunxiao with puzzled looks. This person had come together with Ye Futian and had a faint existence. However, he was able to have the upper hand over Jin Yunxiao?


    At that moment, he gave people a feeling of having explosive power merely by standing there. Who were these people?


    Hummmmm. On Jun Yunxiao''s body, rays of golden light started to sprinkle down dazzlingly. The Roc appeared and its wings gently flapped. Suddenly, his wings tremored and the entire sky was flooded with golden light, and dozens of Roc shades and golden blades flew towards Yu Sheng with killing intent.


    A wild wind started blowing and similarly, a pair of giant dark wings appeared on Yu Sheng''s back, much like the wings of a demon. The giant demonic wings closed up in a shield in front of him, creating a defense that the attacks could not penetrate. A jarring sound sounded out, and many people''s expressions got even more interesting.


    Someone following Ye Futian had the ability to rival Jin Yunxiao. This was a horrifying fact. In the Starry School, Jun Yunxiao was already considered a top-notch talent.


    Wang Yuqing''s emotions took a giant nosedive. At this moment, she witnessed the difference between them. The burly teenager that had always been standing quietly beside Ye Futian never had a strong existence, but his battle ability was so strong that it could rival Jin Yunxiao. It turns out that she had been like an idiot, mocking Ye Futian without knowing that any none of them had ever paid her any attention. They were really beyond her.


    Bang. The floor started trembling again, and even the crowd started to quiver. Yu Sheng''s wings spread open and he stepped forward onto the battle platform, walking towards Jin Yunxiao. When he started attacking, the feeling the gave people was that of unbridled wildness and dominance, completely different from when he was silent.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian shouted. Ye Sheng''s movements came to a halt, and he stood still there. "We should be going," Ye Futian turned and said. Yu Sheng''s merciless gaze swept across Jin Yunxiao, as he turned around and stepped off the battle platform.


    Ye Futian no longer looked at Jin Yunxiao, and he turned in the Starry School''s direction and said, "Sorry for the interruption today, I hope that the elders won''t take it to heart. Goodbye."


    After saying that, he turned around and left. Yu Sheng following quietly by his side. When he reached Long Ling''er''s side, Ye Futian told her, "Ling''er, you can make your own decision. If you don''t want to, go back and ask the Madame for her opinion."


    "Okay." Long Ling''er nodded while smiling. "Big brother Futian, let''s go." She then hugged Ye Futian''s arm and the both of them walked out. Many people looked towards Long Mu, only to see him standing silently there. He did not say anything but watched the two of them leave.


    Nobody knew what he was thinking. Ye Futian did not know either, but he did not care. From a certain perspective, he was definitely not qualified to interfere in this matter, as it was the Dragon Clan''s matter. However, he treated Long Ling''er as a younger sister, so he would not interfere with the Dragon Clan''s matters, but since Long Ling''er did not want to enter the School, he would definitely support her.


    If the Madame insisted on Long Ling''er entering the School, he would relent because she was Long Ling''er''s mother. But Long Mu was merely Long Ling''er''s elder brother, he did not have the right to make decisions for Long Ling''er.


    Jin Yunxiao was also forgotten on the battle platform, looking a little awkward. He initially wanted to crush Ye Futian in a domineering manner, but he was fought off by someone beside Ye Futian. Although he did not want to admit that he could not defeat that person, it was definitely impossible to crush him. Thus, he could only watch them leave.


    Gu Yunxi looked at Jin Yunxiao, then towards Ye Futian''s gang. She was curious, what were these people? Ye Futian had exceptional guqin mastery, his martial arts level that he revealed to the Dragon Clan was also not weak. The person following him, Yu Sheng, also had explosive power.


    Under the gaze of many, Ye Futian and his friends walked out of the Starry School. The outside of the school was surrounded with people, and they all created a path for him to walk through. In today''s battle, this supposed musical attendant had shot to fame.


    He had such strength, yet he claimed to be a musical attendant who was not worthy of the Top Three Schools.


    After Ye Futian and his friends left, the Starry School''s examination officially came to an end. However, many people were unable to keep their cool. Many disciples took the examination today, but not one of them stood out as much as a person who did not enter the School.


    The people from the Starry School started to disperse. The Starry School''s reputation had been affected today, but they were not as petty as to engulf Ye Futian in their rage. However, they did not invite Ye Futian to enter the school, even if he had the qualifications for them to specially recruit him. What he had done today had left many of the higher management unhappy.


    The Divine Sky City''s Top Three Schools, did not need to beg anyone to enter their school.


    After the crowd had left, Wang Yurou still did not leave. She sighed internally, and her sister Wang Yuqing walked to her side, the both of them silently staring at each other.


    "I''ll go apologize to him?" Wang Yuqing broke the silence.


    "Someone as proud as him, do you really think an apology will work?" Wang Yurou asked. Wang Yuqing lowered her head. She knew that what Wang Yurou was saying was not wrong, Ye Futian had never cared about her. If she was to apologize, he might not even look her in the eye. As someone who did not even have Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao on his mind, would she even matter? Even if she was a beauty, how could she match up to Gu Yunxi?


    Everything had turned out like what Jiang Nan had said when they first reached the Divine Sky City. Their lives were destined to be parallel lines, never having any contact points.


    ��


    The Divine Sky City''s Top Three Schools'' examinations progressively ended, and there were many individuals with extraordinary potential that appeared, witnessed by many.


    The Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School both garnered talented geniuses, yet for the Starry School, the person who had been in the limelight in the examination did not enter the school, causing much debate. Moreover, he was the owner of the Celestial Pavilion. Last year, the Dragon Clan buying the Pavilion was a gift to him. Hence, the Celestial Pavilion became extremely popular, with many people coming to pay the rumored Celestial Pavilion owner a visit. Majority of these visitors were from the Top Three Schools.


    Many people wanted to see how outstanding of a person he was, the Celestial Pavilion owner that had risen to fame in the Starry School examinations. This included many Starry School disciples who had not been present on that day.


    Currently, there were many people in the Celestial Pavilion''s Fairy Pool.


    One person asked, "Is it really so hard to meet the Pavilion owner?"


    "The Pavilion owner is busy cultivating and not meeting guests. Please don''t mind it," the maid smiled while replying.


    "Such a huge reputation. So many of us here want to meet him, is that not enough for him?" at another table, someone else mockingly said.


    The maid smiled bitterly. These few days, there had been many people who had wanted to meet the Pavilion owner, including many who wanted to spar with him.

 455 Go Easy on Him

    Many people started to create a ruckus in the Fairy Pool, claiming to want to meet Ye Futian. This gave the maids a hard time. Miss Shen Yu had said not to disturb the Pavilion owner unless it was for important matters.


    Bang��. At that moment, a huge noise sounded out, and many people turned towards one of the chambers on the covered bridge, which was where the sound had come from.


    "Can the food here even be eaten?" a furious voice sounded from within. Following the voice, a few figures walked out and demanded with a relentless expression, "service."


    One of the maids walked forward timidly and asked, "Is there anything I can help you with?" She understood clearly that anyone who could dine in the chambers was of a considerable statute, and not someone maids like them could offend.


    "This food is inedible. After the Celestial Pavilion changed hands, the taste has become so awful. Ask your Pavilion owner to come over." The person was furious.


    "This��" The maid''s expression was ashen, and she naturally understood that the other party was intentionally using it as an excuse to meet the Pavilion owner.


    "What do you mean ''this''? Hurry up and go!" the expert howled, intentionally releasing some of his aura.


    The maid bowed and replied, "I''ll go and report this." She then took her leave. She had no choice but to go and report it.


    In the yard, Ye Futian heard Shen Yu''s report and frowned, asking, "Who is so daring as to cause trouble in the Celestial Pavilion?" Although he was the owner, the Celestial Pavilion was bought by the West Mountain Dragon Clan. There were still many Dragon Clan members residing in the Celestial Pavilion. Even if they did not care about him, they should at least give the Dragon Clan some face.


    Creating trouble in the Celestial Pavilion was not a wise choice.


    "The Zhen Clan of the Divine Sky City," Shen Yu replied. She had already investigated who it was that was causing trouble before she had come to make her report.


    Ye Futian nodded after hearing Shen Yu''s report. At current, he had an understanding of the elite clans in the Divine Sky City. The Zhen Clan was also among the elite clans, with a long heritage and their roots spread deep in the Divine Sky City.


    The Zhen Clan''s power gathered in one of the Top Three Schools, the Bright Moon School. The Zhen Clan members usually cultivated in the school. Since they were a clan that could rival the Dragon Clan, causing a little trouble in the Celestial Pavilion was naturally not surprising. There was nothing the Celestial Pavilion could do about it.


    "Let''s go have a look." Ye Futian stood up and walked outside, Yu Sheng following closely behind him.


    At the moment, even the elite clans had come to the Celestial Pavilion. It was not possible for Ye Futian to not show himself. They would use other means to force him out otherwise. He was merely a little depressed about it. Even though he had some fame within the Divine Sky City, but to the Top Three Schools and the elite clans, he did not stand out too much. Was there really a need to go to this extent?


    When Ye Futian brought Shen You and Yu Sheng to the Fairy Pool, he immediately attracted everyone''s attention. Of those that were at the Celestial Pavilion dining, the majority of them wanted to see who the person who dared to face the Starry School single-handedly was. It was rumored that no one in the Musical Spell Department was a match for him; even Gu Yunxi had admitted she was inferior to him.


    Finally, was this person willing to show himself? And that burly teenager beside him, was he the martial arts cultivator who fought off Jin Yunxiao?


    As expected, after Ye Futian had arrived, the area became much quieter.


    "You all wanted to see me?" Ye Futian said, looking at the crowd.


    "I''ve heard that you excel in the guqin, having exceptional battle ability to crush all those in the same level as you in the Starry School. I''ve come to experience it for myself." One person smiled while answering. He was someone with outstanding potential from the Blazing Sun School. The people around him were disciples from the Blazing Sun School, so if he was able to defeat Ye Futian, it would be akin to giving the Starry School a slap in the face.


    "Me too," another person chipped in. He was straightforward and ignored all the formalities.


    "So should I be sitting here and waiting for you to come forward one by one to challenge me?" Ye Futian asked the surrounding crowd. He did not have this kind of leisurely time or mood to do so.


    "Maybe after one or two matches, there won''t be a need to anymore," someone replied emotionlessly.


    "That''s true. Since that is so, within my Celestial Pavilion, there are many people cultivating. I''m sure that there are many at the same cultivation level as everyone here. If anyone wishes to challenge me, why not let my people challenge you one by one? If you defeat them all, you can come look for me," Ye Futian suggested.


    "Are you joking?" Another person frowned. Asking them to battle the cultivators in the Celestial Pavilion? Moreover, to challenge them one by one? They did not have that much free time to waste.


    "So you all do know that you are joking." Ye Futian''s gaze swept across the room, and he calmly said, "If those at the same level want to challenge me, sure. First, prepare one superior noble ritual implement. If you lose, leave it behind. If you win, you can bring two away. How does that sound?"


    After hearing Ye Futian''s words, many people frowned. One superior noble implement was not something that a normal Arcana Plane cultivator could afford unless they had the backing of a strong clan.


    This fellow was obviously doing a gambling showdown.


    "Sure." At that moment, in the chamber above the covered bridge, a voice sounded out, and Ye Futian raised his head. The maid beside him said, "That''s the group that complained."


    From the chamber, a group of people walked out. Their leader was a teen who looked a little dreary, yet gave people a feeling of stability. The teen gave Ye Futian and his friends a cold stare. However, the voice that had spoken was not his, but a female''s. She had evidently not walked out from the chamber. Moreover, they were no longer using the cuisine''s taste as an excuse. Evidently, their aim was to force Ye Futian out, and they were making no efforts to hide the fact.


    "He''s in the fifth level of the Arcana Plane, can he battle too?" the female voice sounded from the chamber again.


    "Mister Ye, be careful. This person has been granted the name Leng Sha, and he comes from the Divine Sky City''s battlefield. When he was still in the lower Arcana Plane, he defeated everyone, becoming the lower Arcana Plane''s champion in the battlefield. Now, he''s the battle servant of Miss Zhen Rong, from the Zhen Clan." From another chamber, a gentle voice sounded out. Ye Futian knew who was hinting him from the voice, the Gu Clan''s daughter Gu Yunxi. She was here today too.


    Zhen Rong''s battle servant. The crowd looked at the chamber, was the Zhen Clan''s Zhen Rong here today?


    The Divine Sky City battlefield was a reputable place. Naturally, everyone knew what it was. It was a place prepared for the wealthy families and elite clans of the Divine Sky City. There were many strong individuals there, and the younger generation of these families and clans would each select a battle servant to grow alongside them.


    Some of the stronger battle servants had the strength that was no weaker than the geniuses of the Top Three Schools, but as to why they chose to be battle servants and not enter the Top Three Schools, it was up to their own decision. Strong battle servants had the right to choose their masters. They could reject others'' offers, therefore their status was not low, but their reputation was still affected. These powerful individuals would enter the elite clans and grow alongside the geniuses of these clans. In the Divine Sky City, these battle servants from the battlefield could even assume influential positions in these clans.


    "What an honor for both the Gu Clan and Zhen Clan''s young ladies to be here today," a person said, smiling. From another chamber, a teen walked out. He had an extraordinary aura, the sunlight falling upon him made him look exceptionally brilliant. His eyes had a scorching look, as though there were flames within.


    "Chen Liu," a person in the crowd exclaimed. Many people were also stunned, Chen Liu from the Chen Clan was also here. What was going on today? The members of the Top Three Clans were all here today.


    They could understand Gu Yunxi being here since she had claimed to know Ye Futian at the Starry School examinations. But this continued to baffle people. Could it be that the Gu Clan''s young lady was interested in the Celestial Pavilion''s owner?


    The Chen Clan''s power was in the Blazing Sun School, while the Zhen Clan''s power was in the Bright Moon School. What were their intentions for coming here? At that moment, members from the Top Three Schools were all present in the Celestial Pavilion.


    "I heard that you did not give face to Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao at all during the Starry School examinations," Chen Liu said questioningly to Ye Futian. Long Mu and Jun Yunxiao were his peers, and as members of elite clans, they naturally belonged on the same level.


    That was why Chen Liu was interested in Ye Futian. He had once been on the losing end against Long Mu. Long Mu was an arrogant fellow, just like his deceased father. However, his strength was still a far cry from his father.


    When Long Yitian was still alive, he had the title of the Eastern Barren Territory''s number one; being among the top few on the Barren Sky Ranking. When he was younger, he was unrivaled. Even though Long Mu was very strong now, he was still a distance away from Long Yitian. Wanting to catch up to his father''s footsteps would be a daunting task.


    Ye Futian took a look at Chen Liu. From the murmuring in the Fairy Pool, he knew the identity of the person before him, a member of the Divine Sky City''s Chen Clan.


    "Will you or will you not accept the challenge?" From the Zhen Clan''s chamber, a prideful female voice sounded again. It was Zhen Rong.


    "The ritual implement," Ye Futian replied, looking at the chamber. Maintaining the Celestial Pavilion at the state it was in was not a solution, he could probably not escape having to battle once or twice.


    Very soon, a maid walked out from the chamber, holding a staff ritual implement in her hands, an arctic aura emanating from it. She walked to Ye Futian, saying, "My young lady says that you can hold on to it temporarily."


    "Loulan, keep it," Ye Futian ordered.


    "Understood." Loulan Xue stepped forward, receiving the ritual implement and keeping it in her possession. This caused the crowd to watch astonishingly. He was this confident?


    They had heard that Ye Futian was in the fourth level of the Arcana Plane while Zhen Rong''s battle servant Leng Sha''s battle ability was definitely strong. He was on the level of the geniuses of the Top Three Schools.


    "Yu Sheng, go easy on him," Ye Futian told Yu Sheng, who was standing beside him.


    "..." The crowd heard Ye Futian''s words and were dumbfounded. Go easy on him? These were big words to say!


    Yu Sheng stepped forward and Leng Sha frowned. Ye Futian''s attitude made him very displeased.


    Crash�� A horrifying aura started to radiate from Leng Sha. It actually formed a dark current around his body, and the dark current gave off a razor-sharp feel. Moreover, the aura started to spread and caused a dark tornado to start brewing. Zhen Rong was a sorcerer who did not cultivate in the martial arts, but her battle servant was an extremely powerful martial arts cultivator with high battle ability.


    Leng Sha stepped forward, shrouded in a dark glow, making his way towards Yu Sheng. At the same time, Yu Sheng stepped forward, an exceedingly violent aura bursting out, a dark golden glow spreading from his body.

 456 The Martial Fortune Battleground

    Leng Sha and Yu Sheng leaped into the air, appearing in the space above the Fairy Pool. Cultivators in the Arcana Plane could resonate with the heavens.


    A dark golden glow formed around Leng Sha''s body and transformed into an enormous darkness Roc. There was formidable purple lightning flowing around it, causing it to give off a scary feel. The imposing aura enveloped Yu Sheng and the pressure was exceedingly scary, as though what was attacking Yu Sheng was not a human, but a colossal Roc. One strike could tear through everything and cut through space and time.


    Yu Sheng''s body did not dodge in the slightest. He charged straight towards the enemy, and at that moment, an intimidating dark golden current surged throughout his body and demon-like wings spread open from his back, as though a demon''s shadow was behind him. His aura became overwhelming, like a devil, fearing nothing.


    Both their speeds were overwhelmingly quick and they clashed in the air. Streaks of lightning and dark energy flow exploded recklessly, extending towards all directions. After an explosion, the crowd saw dark lightning flying back, and with a crash, it smashed into one of the chambers on the covered bridge, causing the chamber to be smashed into smithereens.


    In the air of destruction, a burly figure stood pridefully, watching the crowd indifferently. The demon-like wings on it were flapping, like an unrivaled demon. Countless people looked towards the figure in the air, awestruck by his outrageous strength.


    Some of the Starry School disciples who did not witness the examinations had felt that the rumors were slightly exaggerated. But now, they understood with this strike that there was definitely no exaggeration involved. The person that could fight off Jin Yunxiao had explosive power.


    If Ye Futian had not told him to stop that day, god knows how the fight between him and Jin Yunxiao would have turned out. The person who had been unmatched in the Lower Arcana Plane, Leng Sha, had been decimated with just one punch.


    Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng gloomily. He knew it would turn out this way��. Looking at the chamber in pieces made his heart ache. This was his business. What happened to going easy?


    At this moment, from the smashed chamber, a group of people walked out. At the helm was a beautiful lady. She was cold and arrogant, her beauty different from that of Gu Yunxi''s. Even though her looks were slightly inferior, she could still be considered a stunning beauty. This was the Zhen Clan''s young missus, Zhen Rong. The noble aura around her created a sense of distance from other people.


    "Thank you for the ritual implement," Ye Futian said looking at Zhen Rong.


    Zhen Rong took a look at Ye Futian and did not say anything. It was merely a ritual implement, it did not mean much to her. She raised her head and looked at Yu Sheng. Nobody knew Leng Sha''s strength better than her, ever since she had taken him in as her battle servant, she had used ways and means to increase his battle ability and consumed many resources in the process. Compared to when he was in the battlefield, Leng Sha''s battle ability had gone up a few grades and was definitely among the genius level. However, he was decimated with no hesitation by one of Yu Sheng''s punches. From this, she could imagine Yu Sheng''s battle ability.


    Raising her head, Zhen Rong stared at Yu Sheng, who was in mid-air, and said, "Are you willing to become my battle servant? Feel free to state your conditions, I can definitely give you more than the Dragon Clan can."


    Zhen Rong was the young missus of the Zhen Clan and liked cultivating, causing her to be superior to men around her. Her coming to the Celestial Pavilion was not out of boredom, she merely wanted to see what level the person who was valued by the Dragon Clan was on. If that person''s reputation was undeserved, she would just treat it as a wasted visit. If the person was really strong, she would try to obtain the person under her wing to work for her.


    Evidently, Yu Sheng had demonstrated strong enough battle ability to move Zhen Rong.


    Battle servant? Ye Futian gave out a cruel aura. This woman wanted Yu Sheng to be her servant?


    Yu Sheng coldly swept Zhen Rong, while Ye Futian said, "My brother is lacking a maid, are you willing to take up the role? If you''re willing, you will definitely have more than what you own now in the future."


    Ye Futian''s words astounded the crowd, and the people around Zhen Rong glared at Ye Futian. One of them said ruthlessly, "You impudent fellow." Asking the Zhen Clan''s young missus to be a maid? Was this supposed to be an insult to Zhen Rong?


    The crowd also had weird looks. Ye Futian''s words were indeed presumptuous. Ye Futian looked coldly at the Zhen Clan''s members. Zhen Rong''s suggestion of Yu Sheng becoming her battle servant was natural to them? But for her to become a maid was an insult? What was the difference between the two?


    "Do unto others what you would have them do unto you. If the Zhen Clan''s members are merely of such character, then please go ahead." Ye Futian''s look was calm, and his voice emotionless. He was driving them out.


    The members of the Zhen Clan were speechless. Reasonably speaking, both of their actions were the same. However, every action had to consider the identity of the person. What was the status of the Zhen Clan''s young missus Zhen Rong compared to Yu Sheng''s? How could the two of them even be mentioned in the same breath?


    "Interesting." Chen Liu smiled. This was probably the first time someone in the Divine Sky City proposed to take in Zhen Rong as a maid. In the future, this would probably become the joke of the town.


    Zhen Rong did not pay too much attention to Ye Futian''s words. Her expression was frosty as always and she hushed the people behind her with the motion of her hand. She looked towards Ye Futian and said, "This world has its fair share of strong cultivators. However, apart from potential, opportunity can also change a cultivator''s destiny. I have seen many people with formidable potential who all had their own pride. However, people who are able to put down this pride usually go even further. They do not care about the attitudes and looks of the common people and only pursue stronger cultivation and follow their heart. Although he may not have a good reputation as my battle servant, he can make use of the Zhen Clan''s resources, and have access to the same opportunities as me while I am growing. If he can soar to greater heights in the future, can he still be tied down by just the title of a battle servant?"


    Chen Liu''s expression changed upon hearing Zhen Rong''s words. As expected of the prideful freezing beauty who loved to cultivate, her method of drawing people over to her side was straightforward.


    "What you said is correct," Ye Futian nodded and replied. "The reverse is also true. So it''s also suitable for you to be my brother''s maid, does Miss Zhen want to consider?"


    Zhen Rong''s gaze fixed on Ye Futian. She knew that nothing she said today would have any effect. This handsome teen was way too prideful and had lost himself in his pride.


    Of course, she understood how Ye Futian felt. Before someone with exceptional potential faced a real setback, they all stubbornly believed that they had the right to be proud. This illusion would cause them to be blinded and unable to recognize their true value.


    "We''re less than one month away from the opening of the Martial Fortune Battleground. In this time, you can take your time to consider. If you''re done considering, you can come and look for me. You and your brother can both become my battle servants, and I will make arrangements for you to join the Bright Moon School to step foot into the Battleground with me. If you miss this opportunity, it''ll be gone for good." After she had finished saying that, she turned around and left. The people around her followed her, including her battle servant Leng Sha. Even though he had been defeated, he was still calm and took a glance at Yu Sheng.


    Many people looked at Zhen Rong leaving and realized that the Zhen Clan''s young missus really valued Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. As expected, those with outstanding potential were likely to obtain beneficial treatment. As of date, the Dragon Clan had given them the Celestial Pavilion, and the Zhen Clan''s young lady had come to invite them under her wing.


    "I don''t need the two of you to be my battle servants, and I can send you into the Blazing Sun School to cultivate. Are the two of you willing?" Suddenly, the Chen Clan''s Chen Liu started talking, and many people looked towards Chen Liu. Were the Top Three Clans going to compete for talents?


    It seems that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were indeed awe-inspiring. The Chen Clan also wanted to take them in, albeit not as battle servants. However, if Ye Futian agreed to their request, they would be considered members of the Chen Clan in the future and have to follow the lead of the Chen Clan.


    "Thanks," Ye Futian smiled and looked at Chen Liu, "but no thanks."


    "You offended the Starry School on the day of the examinations. Even though you have potential, they probably will not accept you. However, the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School have no problems with it. Not long later, the Martial Fortune Battleground will be opening to the disciples of the Top Three Schools. Are you really going to miss this opportunity to increase your strength?" Chen Liu smiled and continued, "Consider properly, if you''re done considering you can look for me as well." After saying that, Chen Liu also brought his men and left.


    In the Fairy Pool, the disciples of the Top Three Schools looked at Ye Futian. Sure enough, the strong did not lack opportunity. It was up to Ye Futian to grasp it now. Was he going to enter the Dragon Clan, the Zhen Clan or the Chen Clan?


    If it was when Long Yitian was still alive, the Dragon Clan would be the best choice. But things had changed, Long Yitian''s death had left the Dragon Clan weak and the clan had fallen into a power struggle for a period of time afterward. This had affected their foundation and they were unable to solidify their position as an elite clan afterward.


    However, after one battle, the rest of the people no longer expressed any intention to spar. One higher noble implement was not something normal people could afford. And even if they could afford it, how much confidence did they have to win? They had all seen Yu Sheng''s battle ability, he could defeat Zhen Rong''s battle servant, Leng Sha in one punch.


    "Mister Ye, are you really not going to consider entering the Top Three Schools?" Just then, a charming figure walked to Ye Futian''s side. Many people had jealous expressions and envied Ye Futian.


    Gu Yunxi appeared to be giving Ye Futian preferential treatment.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "What is the Martial Fortune Battleground?"


    "One of the places of opportunity in the Divine Sky City. Rumour has it that it is related to the founders of the Top Three Schools, so it is controlled by the Top Three Schools. Every year, one month after the Top Three Schools'' entrance examinations, is the opening day of the Martial Fortune Battleground. It opens once a year, and only disciples of the Top Three Schools can enter. Moreover, the Top Three Schools are holding on to many other resources. If Mister Ye wishes to enter the Starry School, I will do my best to help to obtain a place," Gu Yunxi replied gently, unlike Zhen Rong and Chen Liu. It was easy for others to have a good impression of her.


    The clan Gu Yunxi was from had some influence in the Starry School. If she was willing to use her clan''s strength, she had a chance to help Ye Futian obtain a place.


    "Thank you, Miss Gu." Ye Futian smiled while nodding, and said, "Shen Yu, waive all charges for Miss Gu when she visits the Celestial Pavilion in the future."


    He did not answer, so it naturally counted as a rejection. Gu Yunxi nodded and smiled, but did not continue to persuade him. She thanked him, "Thank you Mister Ye, looks like I''ll have to come to the Celestial Pavilion more often in the future." Naturally, it was a joke. At her level, she was not lacking these resources.


    "Then I''ll be leaving first." Gu Yunxi had a faint smile.


    "Alright, please be careful on your way out, Miss Gu." Ye Futian nodded his head. Gu Yunxi''s methods were pleasing, and she showed considerable control.

 457 The Top Three Schools Gather

    After the situation with Zhen Rong, the Celestial Pavilion gradually reverted to its usual tranquility, and no one created trouble anymore.


    Ye Futian cultivated quietly in the Pavilion, improving his Spiritual Energy, practicing his guqin spell and honing his martial arts. Loulan Xue would enter the city once in a while to obtain some resources to aid her cultivation. Even though it was unable to achieve transformational change for her, but she was gradually improving.


    This was also Ye Futian''s objective for coming to the Divine Sky City. In this Eastern Barren Territory, he would raise his cultivation level and step into the Noble Plane. All other matters could be temporarily shelved for this. After he entered the Noble Plane, he would have much more choices. He could either stay in the Divine Sky City to cultivate or adventure further beyond. An Arcana Plane was far too weak to travel around the Barren State.


    These days, Long Ling''er would often come and visit him, and Ye Futian would occasionally guide Long Ling''er in her practicing of the guqin spell. Currently, Long Ling''er was in the Celestial Pavilion in Ye Futian''s yard.


    The melodious guqin melody slowly came to a halt. Long Ling''er sat quietly by the side, and as she saw Ye Futian stop playing, smiled brightly and said, "Big brother Futian, every time I hear you play, it''s like I fall into the imagery created by your guqin melody and live in it. When will I ever be able to achieve this level?"


    "Practice makes perfect. The more you practice, the clearer it will be. When I started learning the guqin, I was one year older than you are now," Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    "You''re lying to me again." Long Ling''er cackled while replying. If practice could make up the difference, why would there be any need for potential?


    Ye Futian glared at her. This little girl was simply too astute.


    "Big brother Futian, my mother has set a target for me. If I''m not able to achieve it in one year, I still have to enter the Starry School to cultivate next year," Long Ling''er complained.


    "Looks like you better start working hard then." Ye Futian smiled, and continued, "If you can''t achieve it, then you only have yourself to blame. Then just listen to your mother''s words and enter the school to cultivate."


    "Alright��" Long Ling''er mumbled. She did not seem willing.


    "You''ve been out for so long, it''s time for you to go back," Ye Futian rubbed her head and said.


    Long Ling''er scowled at Ye Futian, then stood up and said grudgingly, "I knew it, we aren''t related." Afterward, she gloomily walked out of the yard.


    Ye Futian smiled bitterly and shook his head, and after she had left, turned around and called out, "Loulan." Loulan Xue walked to Ye Futian''s side and heard him say, "If I remember correctly, tomorrow is the day that the Martial Arts Battlefield opens?"


    "That''s right." Loulan Xue nodded her head gently.


    "The things that I asked you to investigate, have they been investigated clearly?" Ye Futian inquired.


    "Yes, they have." Loulan Xue nodded her head and elaborated, "The Martial Arts Battlefield is located in the center of the Divine Sky City. Rumour has it that the Divine Sky City started to expand with the battlefield at its core, up until today. The wide expanse of the Divine Sky City, the Martial Arts Battlefield in dead center, guarded by the experts from the Top Three Schools."


    "If we want to enter the Martial Arts Battlefield, we need experts from the Sage Plane to escort us in. The exterior of the battlefield has the might of Sage Plane experts left by the ancestors that the younger generation cannot withstand. Their wills may be destroyed by the Sage might if they cannot withstand it." Loulan Xue continued her explanation of the battlefield, "Apart from this, the battlefield has nine levels, named the Nine Levels of martial arts fate. Each level deeper, there are more benefits to be obtained. In the past hundreds of years, there has only been one person in the Divine Sky City that has stepped foot into the ninth level of the martial arts battlefield. That person was named the top genius of a thousand years back then."


    "Who was it?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Long Yitian, Long Ling''er''s uncle," Loulan Xue answered.


    Ye Futian was in dismay. How did such a talent die? he thought to himself.


    "So, apart from the disciples of the Top Three Schools, there are no other means of entering the Martial Arts Battlefield?" Ye Futian asked. This was what his real concern was.


    "There is. To enter the Martial Arts Battlefield requires the protection of a Sage Plane expert. Non-disciples of the Top Three Schools will not be stopped if they attempt to enter. To the Top Three Schools, this kind of suicidal behavior is not worth their attention," Loulan Xue replied.


    "Understood. Make preparations, we leave tomorrow," Ye Futian instructed. Loulan Xue nodded lightly and did not ask any more questions. She would do whatever Ye Futian asked, and not go past her limits. She could also feel that as time passed, both her and Ye Futian were gradually getting used to each other''s roles. She still remembered when they were in the Cottage, Ye Futian was not used to instructing her to do things, and would often feel awkward. However, this awkwardness had since disappeared.


    She naturally understood that as Ye Futian grew, he was also changing. His playfulness was slowly decreasing, and the confidence that radiated from within him was stronger by the day. His aura was also slowly changing. He was still in the Arcana Plane. What would he be like in the Noble Plane? What about the Sage Plane or an even higher level? She wanted to see what Ye Futian would be like in the future, and she truly had a chance to do so.


    ��


    At daybreak of the second day, the Divine Sky City was filled with chatter. Every year, there would be groundbreaking things happening in succession. The Top Three Schools'' admission examinations were the first, and the second was the opening of the Martial Arts Battlefield.


    Every year, when the Martial Arts Battlefield was opened, it could be said to be a test of the Top Three Schools disciples'' potential. Based on how many levels they reached in the Martial Arts Battlefield, their future potential would be determined. Similarly, it was also a competition between the Top Three Schools, to see which school''s disciples were more outstanding.


    Of course, what the citizens of the Divine Sky City wanted to see was who could step foot into the eighth and ninth level of the battlefield and exhibit their formidable talent.


    In the history of the Divine Sky City, those who could step foot into the eighth and ninth level of the battlefield would definitely become influential people in the Divine Sky City or leave after developing absolute power, provided they did not die before this happened.


    How could the citizens of the Divine Sky City not look forward to such a moment? The Top Three Schools encompassed the most outstanding talents in the Divine Sky City, and it was now time to see who was the cream of the crop.


    At this moment, in the center of the Divine Sky City, at the outskirts of the Martial Arts Battlefield, countless people gathered. However, the space in front of the battlefield was exceptionally empty. That space was naturally left for the disciples of the Top Three Schools.


    In the air, a huge gang of experts made their landing. The Blazing Sun School had arrived. Apart from the disciples of the Blazing Sun School, there were many seniors and members from elite clans. They all wanted to witness the performance of their younger generation.


    Following the Blazing Sun School, the Bright Moon School and Starry School''s experts all arrived. In the blink of an eye, the empty space was filled with thousands of young teens, all in the Arcana Plane.


    The Martial Arts Battlefield was a training grounds for cultivators of Arcana Plane and weaker.


    Many strong demonic beasts appeared in the air. In one direction, there was a demonic dragon. On the dragon sat a beautiful lady, her gaze fixed on the space below. Many people looked up towards her, the Madame of the West Mountain Dragon Clan. She had personally come to watch Long Mu enter the Martial Arts Battlefield.


    Many people understood why she had come. Many years ago, Long Yitian''s accomplishment in the Martial Arts Battlefield caused his reputation to skyrocket within the Divine Sky City, becoming a legend. The West Mountain Dragon Clan had high hopes for Long Mu, and the Madame wanted to personally witness if Long Mu could inherit his father''s legacy and step into the ninth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield.


    Of course, with Long Mu''s current strength at the Middle Arcana Plane, he did not have much hope. It was more likely next year when he had reached the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane.


    Apart from Madame Long, many important figures from the various clans were here, watching the battlefield from the air. They also had their expectations.


    "Madame, long time no see. You still look as beautiful as always." In the air, a figure looked at Madame Long. It was an elder from the Jin Clan, his aura was strong and contained a sharp feeling.


    Madame Long''s gaze swept across him indifferently and she did not reply.


    "This time, of the Dragon Clan members that enter the Martial Arts Battlefield, Long Mu should be the one to go the furthest. With his current level, he can probably enter the sixth level. However, my Jin Clan''s Jin Yunlang, Jin Yunxiao from the Starry School, will not perform worse than Long Mu, especially Jin Yunlang. He has already entered the sixth level last year. This year, he will challenge the eighth level," the Jin Clan expert declared confidently.


    Jin Yunlang was a genius Upper Arcana Plane member of the Jin Clan, who was cultivating in the Starry School.


    "You had better let Jin Yunlang compete with the elite clan members from the other two schools," Madame Long coolly replied.


    This time, the Top Three Schools had obtained too many elite talents. The citizens of the Divine Sky City were unable to predict who could go the furthest.


    The Starry School had Jin Yunlang, Gu Ming, Long Mu, Jin Yunxiao, as well as the school''s Arcana Plane prodigy, Bai Qiong.


    The Blazing Sun School, the Bright Moon School, the Chen Clan, the Zhen Clan as well as other geniuses from the other two Top Schools were also extremely outstanding. This time, there would be too many geniuses entering the Martial Arts Battlefield. Nobody knew who would go the furthest until the end.


    This time''s trial was crucial. It was not only to examine their potential, but it was also an opportunity for fortune. The further they went, the better the opportunity was.


    Nobody wanted to miss such a chance.


    "Big brother Futian." At this moment, beside Madame Long, a crisp voice sounded out. It was Long Ling''er, her gaze moved towards the crowd and landed on Ye Futian and his group among the crowd.


    As her voice landed, countless gazes looked towards Ye Futian. One month ago, Ye Futian also shot to fame, so many people still remembered him. However, many people only coldly looked at him. In the past month, there was not much news about Ye Futian since he had been cultivating in the Celestial Pavilion, and did not look for Zhen Rong and Chen Liu. Evidently, he had rejected them. But how was he here now? What was the purpose of his being here?


    "This is your last chance, have you thought over it clearly?" From the Bright Moon School''s crowd, an alluring figure looked at Ye Futian. It was Zhen Rong, she was still willing to give Ye Futian a final chance.


    "I made my choice clear a month ago," Ye Futian replied coolly. Zhen Rong''s gaze turned away and she did not look at him again. Ye Futian was no longer worth her attention.


    From within the crowd, Wang Yuqing saw Ye Futian, and she felt a sense of pity. Ye Futian should have entered the Top Three Schools, if he could enter the Martial Arts Battlefield this time around, he might be able to grasp the opportunity.


    "Let''s go." A voice sounded out, and the people from the Top Three Schools nodded in agreement. The huge crowd started to make their way to the Martial Arts Battlefield.

 458 Within The Battlefield

    The entrance to the Martial Arts Battlefield was a door. In front of the door, there was an extremely wide bridge, and the disciples of the Top Three Schools all made their way across it.


    From within the door of the Martial Arts Battlefield, an intimidating aura spread out; the pressuring aura dispersing throughout the entire area. At both sides of the bridge, there were experts from the Top Three Schools standing guard. In the air above, Sage Plane experts from the Top Three Schools appeared, a horrifying aura emitting from them. This caused a strong Sage intent to envelop everyone, resisting the might from the Martial Arts Battlefield, allowing them to enter the battlefield.


    The huge army entered in a steady flow, and it took a long while for all of them to enter the battlefield. The space in front of the battlefield became empty again, but the people surrounding it continued to stare at the Martial Arts Battlefield, anticipating the results of the disciples of the Top Three Schools.


    Who would be able to go the furthest?


    "Seniors, I would like to try to enter the Martial Arts Battlefield. Would that be okay?" From within the crowd, a person walked out and saluted the experts from the Top Three Schools.


    "You may if you are able to. However, you bear the consequences," one of the elders from the Top Three Schools replied nonchalantly, not caring in the least. Every year when the Martial Arts Battlefield opened, there would be people who would want to try their luck but would eventually reap their just deserts.


    Ye Futian''s gaze lit up. It was exactly as Loulan Xue had investigated: the Top Three Schools would not interfere with others trying to enter. They would usually fail, and moreover, even if they had the capability to enter the Martial Arts Battlefield, could they affect the outcome?


    The Martial Arts Battlefield was after all the training ground for the disciples of the Top Three Schools. With the agreement from the Top Three Schools, there were people who walked towards the Martial Arts Battlefield''s bridge. However, the moment they stepped foot within, they felt a terrifying might crushing down upon them. The person who was at the forefront let out a muffled sigh. The next thing he knew, he was vomiting blood and his body flew backward.


    The experts from the Top Three Schools looked disdainfully at the sight. They had seen the same thing happen far too many times. Normal people did not stand a chance at all, unless they were disciples from elite factions who were able to withstand the Sage might using special sage ritual implements. However, those from elite factions usually joined the Top Three Schools and would have protection from Sage Plane experts.


    Just then, a group of people emerged from the crowd, causing many people to stare at them.


    "Big brother Futian." Long Ling''er was astonished, looking at the figure that had walked out. Big brother Futian wanted to enter the Martial Arts Battlefield? But he wasn''t willing to enter the Top Three Schools; how was he going to enter the Martial Arts Battlefield?


    "Mother, why don''t you help big brother Futian think of an idea?" Long Ling''er asked Madame Long who was beside her.


    Madame Long also looked at Ye Futian in astonishment. From her interaction, he did not seem like someone who was blindly arrogant. Maybe he just wanted to feel the Sage might and not enter the Martial Arts Battlefield. Of course, even if he really wanted to try, it was not a problem. As to helping Ye Futian, the Starry School''s people were also around. If she were to step in, it would reflect well on the Starry School''s reputation.


    Currently, several people from the Starry School had noticed Ye Futian. A few of them laughed mockingly, some of the younger generation were arrogant because of their outstanding potential and lacked respect. However, after they had experienced a setback, they would learn humility.


    At this time, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Loulan Xue and a Black Wind Condor had reached the edge of the bridge. They heard Ye Futian say, "I''ll go try first, you guys wait."


    As he finished, Ye Futian stepped forward and onto the bridge.


    Crash. In an instant, an overbearing intent entered his head. He could see an overwhelming figure that was god-like and had intimidating might.


    Sage intent. Ye Futian closed his eyes, and that god-like figure entered his brain, destroying everything within; the formless figure attempting to crush his will. When the difference in level was great enough, one look was enough to kill, even if it was the destruction of one''s Spiritual Will.


    Within Ye Futian''s head, a holy light shone, the golden light protecting his will from destruction and keeping the Sage might out.


    "He''s still not backing off, is he asking for trouble?" in the air, an elder from the Starry School said. The more a person resisted, the worse they would end up. Trying to combat the Sage intent was tantamount to suicide.


    Not even Noble Plane experts dared to stand up against it, not to mention those in the Arcana Plane. At this time, shades of brilliance started to shine from Ye Futian''s body. In that instant, he appeared to be covered in seven colors of radiance, causing many to have shocked looks.


    This was Noble intent, every one of them elite. Moreover, these were noble wills of all elements. Was he using this to resist the Sage intent?


    "All elements!" Many gazes locked on Ye Futian. It turned out that he was not just a Musical Sorcerer, but also a Full Attribute Sorcerer with fearsome potential.


    Madame Long also looked shocked. It looked like she had again underestimated Ye Futian''s potential. It was no wonder that he was prideful in everything that he did, no matter how low-profile he might look.


    At that moment, under everyone''s dumbfounded stares, Ye Futian took a step forward. Everyone was completely engaged in his actions. Was he actually going to try to forcefully enter the Martial Arts Battlefield?


    Presently, Ye Futian tried to weaken his will of the emperor and tried to use his Noble will to repel the Sage intent. His Noble will was repeatedly crushed, and he took step after step until his Noble Will was no longer able to resist the Sage intent. He had already walked half the distance by then.


    This distance made many people''s gazes freeze. A Noble Plane cultivator actually managed to forcefully walk half the distance using his Noble will. Could he continue to walk forward?


    Just then, Ye Futian''s body moved back to where he first started, his footsteps unsteady, as though he had been struck by an invisible force.


    "Did he fail in the end?" The crowd''s gazes lit up. Furthermore, he was not injured, this was already an extremely rare case.


    In the air, the people from the Top Three Schools had renewed looks. Nobody had mocking faces anymore, being able to reach this step was already an achievement in itself.


    "With such potential, it''s no wonder that he''s this arrogant. However, this is also a flaw that will cause him to delay his progress." One of the Starry School''s elders sighed and felt pity. He had to admit that Ye Futian''s potential was indeed outstanding.


    After Ye Futian had returned to where he started, he did not care about what others thought. Instead, he looked towards Yu Sheng and the rest and said, "Using our Noble will supported by ritual implements to withstand the Sage intent, we have a chance to enter. It''s worth a try."


    "Then let''s try it." Ye Wuchen nodded his head.


    "Yes," replied the rest.


    Although they might reveal some of their treasures, the Martial Arts Battlefield was an extraordinary place, it was still worth it to enter. As the Celestial Pavilion''s owner, he was already extremely rich, so it would not be much even if he revealed a sage ritual implement.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian announced. Immediately, the rest of the people followed suit and an even stronger Noble will burst out from within them, and they walked forward in tandem.


    Many people had bizarre looks, was Ye Futian actually going to continue trying? Was his previous retreat just testing the limits of the Sage intent?


    At that moment, Ye Wuchen''s body was shrouded by an invisible Sword Will, which transformed into an imposing sword might. His whole body became like a sword and he continued to walk forward step by step.


    Loulan Xue''s Life Spirit bloomed, and within her Life Spirit, the Sage Treasure Book appeared, releasing beams of brilliant light and enveloping her body within.


    Yu Sheng''s footsteps were heavy but steady, landing loudly every step. With his Noble will around his body, he looked like he was possessed by a demon.


    The Black Wind Condor''s eyes were completely black, similarly walking forward. The Black Wind Condor had blended into Ye Futian''s will of the emperor and its Demon Bird will.


    "Wuchen, Loulan," Ye Futian shouted and Ye Wuchen drew his sword. There were two swords on his back, one of them was the famous sword Alkaid. It had once been the sword that the Fuyun Sword Clan''s Clan Leader had shot to fame with, but when he had been killed by Ye Futian at the Sky Mountain, the sword had naturally fallen into Ye Futian''s possession and given to Ye Wuchen to use.


    When the sword was drawn, a sword veil formed in the surroundings, encompassing all of them. Loulan Xue''s Treasure Book similarly let out a bright glow, protecting everyone within it.


    The four of them stepped onto the Black Wind Condor''s back like they were forming a miniature matrix. At this time, Ye Futian''s Noble will was also absorbed into the light veil. The Black Wind Condor''s body broke into a flight, a demonic glow shining in its eyes, tearing through the air like lightning.


    Originally, the distance was already short. With the acceleration by the Black Wind Condor, they transformed into a ray of light, rushing straight for the entrance. When the horrifying Sage might culminated onto them, the light around them became even more dazzling, and in the next moment, the Black Wind Condor''s body dashed straight through the door and disappeared.


    The people outside who saw this happen had dazed looks on their faces, and many others were stunned. What was happening? In the end, it was that simple? Was it because of that Sage ritual implement?


    Madame Long had a bewildered look on her face. Ye Futian did not enter the Top Three Schools but was able to step into the Martial Arts Battlefield nonetheless.


    ��


    Presently, within the Martial Arts Battlefield, Ye Futian and his friends appeared within. In actuality, they could have entered very easily. But the reason why they did not was to hide some treasures they possessed and only revealed their Sage ritual implement.


    Choosing not to think about all of this, Ye Futian''s gaze looked forwards. Many of the disciples of the Top Three Schools were already walking forward with great vigor.


    The Martial Arts Battlefield looked like a heavenly palace and had levels leading upwards. At the furthest direction, it was a blur, but he had a faint vision of a heavenly palace located among the heavens like it was connected with the sky.


    That should be the highlight of the Martial Arts Battlefield, the fabled Ninth level.


    The place where they were at currently was the outskirts of the Martial Arts Battlefield''s first level. There seemed to be an invisible force floating in the air, yet it would flow out between one''s hands when they tried to grab hold of it. Some of the people at the front turned back and were dumbfounded when they saw Ye Futian.


    Wang Yuqing was walking in the back, and she saw Ye Futian, and her gaze froze. How did he get in? Could it be that Ye Futian had given in in the end and joined one of the Top Three Schools? If that was the case, which school did he enter?

 459 Rob Martial Arts Fate

    Ye Futian didn''t look at Wang Yuqing. He kept looking at the individual space.


    The martial arts battlefield had no Spiritual Qi. It only had omnipresent martial arts fate. Cultivators who entered the battlefield had their own plane but could only use their Spiritual Qi to fight while stealing martial arts fate from the battlefield. They would use up their Spiritual Qi, but if they stole martial arts fate, they could continue fighting.


    These were the rules of the battlefield. Some said that it wasn''t real; the field was just a mirage created by an early sage. One couldn''t tell real from unreal. Others said that this battlefield truly existed. Everything was real. The sage had just used a special force to turn it into a training ground.


    The battlefield was vast with nine levels of space on top of each other. Each level had more martial arts fate than the last. Now, the disciples of the Top Three Schools had split. They went forward and started snatching martial arts fate.


    Many amongst them had come last year and was familiar with the battlefield. For example, Long Mu''s eyes were extremely sharp now. This time, he must surpass the seventh level. Next year, when he improved more, he could challenge his father''s glorious record and try the ninth level.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. As soon as he spoke, the Black Wind Eagle flapped its wings. Four people stood on its back so they could conserve energy.


    The battlefield on this level was like a barren city. They forged onward, following the disciples of the Top Three Schools. Many figures appeared before them. They seemed unrealistic, like hallucinations that could disappear at any time. They wore silver armor and had long spears. Martial arts fate snaked around them and they seemed undefeatable like Nobles.


    "Everything in the battlefield is martial arts fate. You can take it all," Loulan Xue said. The disciples of the Top Three Schools have already charged into the crowd and started fighting.


    The stronger ones swept through without anyone able to block them. The weaker ones could barely walk.


    A silver-armored army appeared before Ye Futian''s group too. The martial arts fate filled the sky and formed a terrifying force.


    "Steal by yourself and try not to use it up before arriving at the fifth level," Ye Futian said. The creatures on each level were different. The later ones were stronger. This was why the people of higher cultivation were more likely to make it to the end.


    Right now, they were in the mid-Arcana Plane. Ye Futian''s goal was to try not to use up their Spiritual Qi before reaching the fifth level.


    Four figures flew off from the Black Wind Eagle''s back. Before them, the silver-armored army''s spears shot out. Their martial arts fate transformed into horrible and shocking power. Like a Noble attack, it pierced through everything.


    These spirits made Ye Futian feel that they were filled with Noble fate and created by Noble martial arts fate. However, they could only display power from the first Arcana Plane. Even still, their attacks were much stronger due to the martial arts fate.


    The silver-white light cut through everything. Yu Sheng walked like a demon god. With a huge boom, all the spirits around him shattered. Martial arts fate instantly wrapped around him. He grasped a silver spear and snatched it. Then he charged forward; no one could stop him.


    Ye Wuchen seemed to transform into a sword. He shot forward, creating pops of air. Various spirits were destroyed, their martial arts fate stolen.


    Loulan Xue was a bit at a disadvantage. She majored in sorcery so she had to use Spiritual Qi. She released her life spirit and melded into the horrible cold light. Everything was sealed in ice and destroyed. She tried to fight as fast as possible.


    Like Yu Sheng, Ye Futian ran straight into the crowd and clashed physically. Everything in his path was destroyed. He practiced the body-enhancing technique. The spirits of the first level couldn''t stop his terrifying body.


    The Black Wind Eagle also crashed around. The four people and one beast swept through, quickly destroying the army. Rather than stopping, they continued forward. Other spirits would come, but the ending was all the same


    "Mr. Ye," a pleasantly surprised and gentle voice said. Ye Futian turned around and saw Gu Yunxi in the near distance. There was a young man beside her. He looked extraordinary. It was Gu Ming from the Gu Clan. Other than them, the place was filled with students from the Top Three Schools.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. Gu Yunxi smiled and asked, "How did you enter?"


    She didn''t guess like Wang Yuqing and just asked.


    "I walked in," Ye Futian said jokingly. Gu Yunxi blinked. She''d thought that Ye Futian would miss this chance, but unexpectedly, he came.


    "The first three levels are easy, but in the middle, the difficulty multiplies. Each level is harder than the last. For the last three, only the top figures can enter, especially the ninth level. For thousands of years, only Long Yitian has done it. Mr. Ye, your cultivation plane is a bit of a disadvantage. Thus, you should try to get enough martial arts fate in every level. That way, you can release spells with them in the next level and help you go further."


    Gu Yunxi was more familiar with the battlefield and told Ye Futian in case he didn''t know. Ye Futian''s plane was low, but she wished he could go further. After all, there weren''t many chances before.


    "Understood, thank you." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He continued forward and martial arts spirits kept appearing only to get killed.


    In the other direction, a dazzling figure appeared. He had a pair of golden roc wings behind him. The wings flapped and swept past. The sharp feathers wildly snatched martial arts fate.


    Jin Yunxiao scanned Ye Futian, surprised that they had come. Last time, he had been defeated by Yu Sheng at the Starry School''s exam day. He would never forget it.


    This area was mostly disciples from the Starry School. Long Mu was also here, but he didn''t look at Ye Futian. He had his own goal on the battlefield and didn''t care about the others.


    The people kept moving forward. There seemed to be a strange aura around Ye Futian. That was the martial arts fate. Ye Futian could feel clearly that he could use this martial arts strength. In addition, these martial arts fate were weak and couldn''t really help him. There was no need to go crazy to get them. However, Ye Futian discovered something strange. There were countless strands of martial arts fate around him. Each one was different. Just like the spirits he''d killed were different, the martial arts fate from them was different too.


    Before him, another spirit came. Ye Futian got an idea. He instantly grouped much martial arts fate into a huge palm. He slammed it forward and killed the spirits, getting more martial arts fate and strengthening.


    Ye Futian kept attacking with martial arts fate. It was actually unneeded, but he needed to use it later. Thus, he wanted to familiarize himself with it beforehand.


    As he kept going, the strong and weak were gradually separated. The ordinary cultivators were left behind. The people with high cultivation had already entered the second level.


    People of the Arcana Plane were naturally the fastest. The first few levels were nothing to them. There were also many silver-armored soldiers on the second level. The strong cultivators killed them all.


    Ye Futian discovered that the people with high cultivation wouldn''t even take martial arts fate. They just walked past, overlooking it. Clearly, the fate from the first three levels was useless. It couldn''t help them, so they ignored it for higher levels. Soon, people crossed through the third level and came to the fourth.


    Here, the spirits contained both human and beast. Ye Futian could even sense that they weren''t restricted to a single plane anymore. Their auras were horrible and some were even from the mid-Arcana Plane.


    Ye Futian looked over. All he could see was an endless tide of spirits. Those from the upper-Arcana Plane finally started taking martial arts fate. Even they had to worry about energy usage later on. They must get strong enough fate to prepare for later battles.


    Ye Futian also charged forward, but he didn''t use his own strength. The martial arts fate from earlier flowed through his body, protecting him. When a powerful beast rushed over, Ye Futian punched. His fist was like a dragon that roared like an ape. With a huge boom, the beast shattered. It transformed into martial arts fate and wrapped around Ye Futian.


    Another demon wolf pounced like an alpha. Its demonic eyes were extremely cold.


    Ye Futian turned slightly. His palm sliced across like a sword. With a squelch, the wolf was halved. Ye Futian''s palm glowed with gold light. It was as sharp was a roc''s feather. He continued charging. But then, a dazzling figure cut before him. He looked up and saw a huge gold beast sweep past. There were many poofs as countless spirits were destroyed. There was a beautiful figure on the demon''s back. It was Zhen Rong. Her fiery sword cut past, taking all the martial arts fate from the spirits her beast killed. She swept the place clean instantly.


    Zhen Rong turned and looked coolly at Ye Futian before continuing. She was highly efficient at taking martial arts fate.


    Ye Futian froze. The battlefield was mostly fair to the disciples of the Top Three Schools. People from every plane could challenge themselves somewhere. But those with powerful backgrounds naturally had a bigger advantage!

 460 The Truth Behind the Martial Arts Fate

    Of course, even though Zhen Rong''s absorption speed was extremely fast, Ye Futian was not frantic. The Martial Arts Battlefield had nine levels, which would get progressively harder. The middle three levels were a dividing factor; the fastest person would not necessarily be able to enter the final three levels.


    These Upper Arcana Plane geniuses were able to speedily progress forward because they had been here before, and they were focused on moving even deeper. However, he needed more understanding of this place. At present, being surrounded by martial arts fate, Ye Futian faintly felt the mysterious power contained within the martial arts fate.


    At that moment, a fifth level Arcana Plane demonic beast assaulted him. Ye Futian''s body rotated slightly, and the martial arts fate formed a hurricane. His fist struck through the air with an unstoppable force, and with a huge bang, the demonic beast blew up into pieces and the martial arts fate around him grew stronger. He naturally understood that to these martial arts spirits, their cultivation level would equate to the level of their martial arts fate. Killing stronger spirits would mean that the martial arts fate obtained was stronger. Furthermore, the martial arts spirits there were countless. It was no wonder that it was called the Martial Arts Battlefield.


    Just then, not far away from where Ye Futian was, an expert soared through the air and looked at the ground. He saw Ye Futian had reached here, and his expression was frigid. He smirked and said, "The fourth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield is more fitting for you, why don''t you stay here and cultivate slowly."


    That expert was Jiang Nan. After the Starry School''s admission examinations, many people had ridiculed and mocked him. Even Wang Yuqing kept a distance from him, that woman was naturally not a good person, but she would act as though she was on a higher moral standpoint, the bitch.


    After saying that, the person continued to advance forward. Now that he met Ye Futian again, he was naturally unhappy. That was why he wanted to show off his advantage, his cultivation level was higher than Ye Futian, so he was stronger.


    Ye Futian looked at him and thought, how annoying. He did not care about Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing at all, but it seems like the other party was very concerned with him.


    The martial arts spirits in the fourth level were from all levels in the Middle Arcana Plane, there were even those in the sixth level of the Arcana Plane. However, this did not stop them.


    Currently, Ye Futian and his friends had reached the boundary between the fourth and fifth level. If they were to continue forward, they would be in the fifth level. He speculated that Upper Arcana Plane spirits would start appearing in the fifth level.


    "Let''s not enter the fifth level, I need to comprehend the martial arts fate," Ye Futian said, and the rest nodded. They found an empty space and sat down.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes, he could faintly feel that his body was surrounded by countless martial arts fate, from the first to the sixth level. These martial arts fate enveloped him like shadows, and scenes started to play within Ye Futian''s head. He intently perceived and split the scenes, following which, he saw a robust Noble Plane cultivator. The person''s finger struck down and a Sword Will that reigned over the heavens appeared, tearing through everything.


    Ye Futian saw yet another image, another sturdy Noble Plane cultivator, his body looking as though it was forged out of gold, countless golden lines coursing throughout his body. With one punch, the golden Noble Plane cultivator''s fist destroyed everything.


    In his head, these images were constantly appearing, there were martial arts, spells, sword techniques, broadsword techniques, and many others.


    Ye Futian had a conjecture. Within the Martial Arts Battlefield, all martial arts fate were experts'' spells incorporated into strong Spiritual Wills and converted into martial arts fate.


    The martial arts fate was the fortune in martial arts. Gaining that fortune would allow one to comprehend the Martial Arts.


    Ye Futian finally understood the purpose of the Martial Arts Battlefield. It was indeed a great opportunity, no wonder the disciples of the Top Three Schools were not willing to miss it. Members of elite clans would enter the Top Three Schools, not just because the Top Three Schools had an environment for cultivation, but also the resources they had.


    "Do you feel it?" Ye Futian opened his eyes and asked the rest.


    "Yes." Ye Wuchen nodded.


    "Looks like we can''t be in a hurry now, we''ll stay here and try to comprehend," Ye Futian said, and Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng nodded in agreement. The group all closed their eyes and silently perceived the martial arts fate.


    Regardless of martial arts techniques or spells, in reality, those that Ye Futian cultivated in was stronger than those contained within the martial arts fates. However, he needed to become more accustomed to using the martial arts fate to unleash a stronger power, to prepare for his entrance to higher levels.


    He was merely in the fourth level and the fortune contained in the martial arts fate was already quite strong. What about the fifth and sixth level? What was even scarier was the seventh and eighth level. Then what about the ninth level that only Long Yitian had ever stepped foot into?


    In the midst of their cultivation, many people passed by Ye Futian and his friends, but they simply glanced at him casually before continuing on. Among them, there were disciples of the Starry School who saw that Ye Futian and his friends had stopped here. They secretly thought that he was affected by his low cultivation level, even if he had outstanding potential, but his battle ability had a limit. If they were to continue further, there was indeed a great risk for them. They knew that the fifth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield would have Upper Arcana Plane spirits.


    After a long while, Ye Futian and his friends started to open their eyes one after the other. They stood up and walked into the fifth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield. Before them, there had already been many experts who had come to absorb the martial arts fate. Therefore, they did not see any martial arts spirits upon entering the fifth level. They continued to progress forward and came to a vast space. At the front, there were many people battling with the martial arts spirits.


    As expected, they realized that there were Upper Arcana Plane spirits, which had a strong battle ability. Seeing them appear, many spirits pounced towards them and attacked. The one standing before Ye Futian was in the sixth level, equivalent to the sixth level of the Arcana Plane.


    Bam. Ye Futian''s body ignited, turning him into a flaming giant. The martial arts fate surrounded him also ignited, turning into fire martial arts fate.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and struck out with a giant palm before the spirit had landed on him. The palms branded into flaming words, and with a bang, the martial arts spirit was directly torn into pieces, and its martial arts fate absorbed by Ye Futian.


    He had already absorbed sixth level martial arts fate on the fourth level. This fortune could unleash the power of a sixth level Arcana Plane cultivator. Even though Ye Futian''s cultivation level was low, but he could leverage on the martial arts fate explosion to unleash battle ability that was beyond his cultivation level. Adding that on to the potential he had, it was a small matter for him to sweep the sixth level Arcana Plane spirits.


    After he knew the benefits and uses of the martial arts fate, Ye Futian''s absorption rate increased and he swept the spirits at an insane rate. The sixth level Arcana Plane spirits were steadily cleared out and became his strength.


    At this time, a sharp look shot towards him. Ye Futian''s gaze turned and he saw a seventh level Arcana Plane spirit walking towards him. The martial arts spirit''s aura was alarming, as though a Noble Plane cultivator had possessed it. Its arm stretched out and a huge handprint appeared in the air, golden light emitting from it. The handprint gradually became more corporeal and clawed towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took a sudden step and flew into the air, his fingers piercing towards the front. In an instant, a huge amount of martial arts fate converted into a horrifying Sword Will and every strand of martial arts fate became a bloodthirsty sword that struck the giant handprint and shattered it.


    Ye Futian continued to step forward, and crackling sounds could be heard as more martial arts fate became fearsome vines, shining with golden light, engulfing the martial arts spirit.


    The spirit raised its arm and struck out, the handprint wiping out everything. However, all of Ye Futian''s martial arts fate erupted at that moment, assimilating into his Fatal Entanglement spell. Many of his martial arts fates were destroyed, but the rest of the sixth level martial arts fates still found their way past the spirit''s defenses towards its body. The golden vines struck out like sharp blades, and with a squelch, the spirit was impaled and a strand of seventh level martial arts fate started to encircle Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian could distinctly feel that this strand of martial arts fate was stronger than the rest. He had to start from the lowest level and work his way up to the highest. He could do this because of his ability to defeat people of higher cultivation levels.


    Similarly, if the disciples of the Top Three Schools were not able to do so after they reached a certain level, they would face their limit, even if the person was at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane. Ye Futian''s guess was that this limit was the sixth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield. There were already Upper Arcana Plane spirits appearing here. The sixth level would probably have martial arts spirits at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane.


    Many people saw Ye Futian killing the seventh level martial arts spirit and looked at him. It seemed like it was true that his potential was outstanding, as he could use the martial arts fate to battle someone of a higher cultivation level and challenge a higher level of the Martial Arts Battlefield. Not only Ye Futian, but Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen and Loulan Xue could do so too.


    In the fifth level, Ye Futian stayed for a very long time, absorbing a huge amount of martial arts fates, before he stepped foot into the sixth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield. He was very clear that the sixth level would be a dividing factor. The majority of the Top Three Schools'' disciples would also stop here.


    The sixth level was very quiet, and Ye Futian walked forward step by step. He came to an enormous open space, and there were many stone pillars reaching towards the sky. Over there, he saw an immense amount of martial arts spirits, like a huge army camping there.


    This martial arts spirit army was densely packed and blocked the road ahead. In front of the large army, the disciples of the Top Three Schools that had reached first all stopped here. They did not rush into action, rather, they were waiting for more people to arrive.


    To the disciples of the Top Three Schools, they understood the Martial Arts Battlefield very well. Nobody would be reckless enough to rush into the huge army alone to try and reach the next level. Only by attacking together would they have an opportunity to break through.


    When Ye Futian reached, he realized that apart from those with high cultivation levels, there were many people that he knew here. Long Mu, Gu Yunxi and the rest were all here.


    Many people turned around and looked at him when they saw Ye Futian arrive. When they saw him, the disciples of the Starry School looked especially flabbergasted.


    Him, a fourth level Arcana Plane cultivator, managed to get here? Moreover, Ye Futian was not the only one. However, when they remembered his performance during the day of the examination, they did not find it strange anymore. Reaching the sixth level was definitely possible for someone who could surpass the cultivation level difference, but this would be where he stopped. Not just Ye Futian, but the majority of the people would all stop here!

 461 Guidance?

    Ye Futian stood quietly behind the crowd and looked at the vast army before him from which a wave of terrifying martial arts fate was being released. The army extended all the way into the distance and nobody knew how many spirits there were.


    The disciples of the Top Three Schools also seemed very solemn. They knew that this level was like a dividing line. Those who could pass it would have a chance to obtain something much better.


    The people behind them arrived one after another. People who could reach the sixth level were either Upper Arcana Plane cultivators or talented geniuses from the Top Three Schools. Very soon, the disciples from the Top Three Schools also formed an army. They all stared before them with a serious expression.


    Suddenly, a person in front of the crowd from Blazing Sun School said emotionlessly, "It''s about time. Let''s start." Immediately, everyone released their auras and an astonishing gust of martial arts fate was formed, circling around them. Then, they started advancing forward.


    There was a Blazing Sun School disciple who was charging at the front of the crowd. With a Sun Sword in his hand, he leaped out in mid-air. When he lifted his sword, martial arts fate circled around the sword which was set ablaze with sun flares. Then, he struck his sword out, sending many beams of light downwards. Accompanied by a continuous sizzling, many spirits were killed, their martial arts fate flying towards the disciple.


    Battle erupted in just a split second. The disciples of the Top Three Schools all charged forward. In the martial arts battlefield trial this time, the Arcana Plane disciples of the Top Three Schools were almost all present, many of whom were geniuses. There were also many Upper Arcana Plane disciples. Clearly, the team formed by them at the moment was extremely strong.


    Behind an extraordinary disciple from Bright Moon School, the radiance of the moon bloomed and poured down. Many spirits were rooted directly, after which they were frozen and annihilated.


    Ye Futian saw Zhen Rong. Her mount was a demon which was at the peak of the Arcana Plane and was crushing everything in its path. However, she only injured the spirits around instead of killing them. She had an outstanding sword of fire in her hand and wherever she passed, blood poured down like the rain. As a sixth level Arcana Plane cultivator, Zhen Rong''s power and combat ability were both excellent. After all, she was a madman at cultivating.


    Behind Long Mu, martial arts fate turned into a pure-blooded dragon who circled around him. He was similarly in the sixth level of the Arcana Plane. As he advanced forward, the demonic dragon engulfed everything and nothing could stop him at all.


    "Our goal isn''t to pass the army quickly. Instead, it''s to collect sufficient martial arts fate. From the seventh level all the way to the ninth level," Ye Futian said. Only in this way, they could continue moving up. He believed that with their ability to challenge people at much higher levels than them, they would not encounter many difficulties. As long as they could obtain enough martial arts fate, they would be able to deal with the other people later.


    In Ye Futian''s opinion, it was not a wild thought to go to the seventh level of the battlefield, but something he must do. At the moment, he was not trying to break past the army quickly and enter the seventh level but to accumulate a sufficient amount of martial arts fate in the sixth level.


    "Alright." Ye Futian''s teammates all understood his meaning and nodded one after another. Then, they moved forward and also charged into the army.


    The four people had all obtained quite a lot of seventh level martial arts fate in the last level. With this, they could possess the combat power of the seventh level of the Arcana Plane which was more than enough for them to deal with spirits of the same level. Even if they were to encounter any spirits in the eighth level of the Arcana Plane, they were still confident that they would win.


    At the moment when they charged into the crowd, they were surrounded by spirits at once as there were too many of them. As they spread out, Ye Futian realized that many seventh level Arcana Plane cultivators were charging towards him.


    Ye Futian''s hand suddenly struck forward like a bolt of lightning and martial arts fate converged. Immediately, many palm prints were formed together and flew towards the incoming spirits. Numerous bolts of lightning swept past and destroyed everything in their paths. Then, the palm prints slapped down, producing a loud rumbling, after which many beams of martial arts fate fused with Ye Futian.


    Soon, Ye Futian''s body was buried within the huge army of martial fate spirits. He was not however anxious to charge out. Instead, he fought within the army and his every punch was extremely powerful. With every attack that he made, he would destroy one spirit and obtain its martial arts fate. It was as if he was practicing his boxing skills here. The martial arts battlefield had become a place for him to train his combat powers.


    In the sky above, some people noticed what had happened to Ye Futian and his team, for example, Jiang Nan who had been constantly paying close attention to Ye Futian. Realizing that Ye Futian and his friends were trapped, Jiang Nan sneered. Even though Ye Futian was talented, it would still be very difficult for him to break out of the army once buried.


    He flashed and left via the air, searching for his new target. He needed to kill stronger spirits in order to experience an effect.


    Ye Futian and his friends were wildly killing the spirits which were in the seventh level of the Arcana Plane. At the moment, a few stronger spirits noticed Ye Futian and walked towards him from the air. They all had spears in their hands as if they were in charge of punishing offenders. They stared coldly at Ye Futian, after which their spears flew across the sky and charged towards Ye Futian like silver bolts of lightning.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at the incoming spears above him. Then, the martial arts fate around him suddenly trembled and golden light filled the sky. A light screen appeared above him, on which there were many magical symbols. Every beam of martial arts fate seemed to have turned into a symbol.


    When the few spirits approached him, Ye Futian pointed his finger at the sky. Right away, the spells from the symbols erupted simultaneously, releasing a dazzling radiance and crushing everything in their paths. This was the ability which he had obtained from the martial arts fate.


    Accompanied with many loud booms, the powerful attacks collided with each other. Just then, Ye Futian moved his body with martial arts fate circling around him. As he moved his palm, thousands of beams of martial arts fate turned into countless vines which swept out towards the incoming enemies.


    Following many sizzling sounds, all the eighth level spirits collapsed and their martial arts fate flew towards Ye Futian.


    After Ye Futian obtained the martial arts fate, he already had a shocking amount on his body. Moreover, it was far from over yet. Of course, even though Ye Futian''s speed was very fast, there were still many people who were faster. Those people who were Upper Arcana Plane geniuses, riding on powerful demons, or holding sage ritual implements because of their extraordinary backgrounds were all moving at the front line, killing countless spirits.


    However, suddenly, many figures flew over from the distance. They were showered in brilliant golden light and wearing armor like they were divine generals. Possessing an incredible amount of martial arts fate, they looked extremely powerful.


    These general-like figures charged directly towards the powerful people in the air. For example, such a figure appeared in front of Zhen Rong. The general-like figure swang his palm forward. Immediately, a golden matrix appeared in the sky which rotated rapidly and released a destructive power. As he pushed his palm forward, it turned into a deadly power which charged towards Zhen Rong.


    Zhen Rong was holding a sage ritual implement in her hand. Although she could not use all of its powers, as she struck it out casually, red light still filled the sky as if it was going to cut the sky into two. It crushed many incoming beams of light, but a strong spell still managed to reach her, blowing her backward.


    Zhen Rong''s expression changed slightly. Indeed, it was only the sixth level and the enemies were already so powerful. It was hard to imagine how the seventh level would look like.


    These general-like figures were like noble-level martial arts fate. It did not feel like they were at the peak of the Arcana Plane. Instead, they seemed to be top nobles who had their levels suppressed.


    Apart from Zhen Rong, the cultivators who had killed the most number of spirits also encountered such an obstacle. The same thing happened to Long Mu. His level was also not high. Therefore, just like Ye Futian, he had been killing spirits from lower to higher levels. Because he had the ability to fight enemies of higher levels than him, he had already obtained ninth level martial arts fate, with which he could possess the combat power equivalent to the peak of the Arcana Plane. Of course, since his own level was not as high, he was not as strong as he would be when he entered the peak of the Arcana Plane himself.


    Before him, a violent general-like figure appeared. The pure-blooded dragon around him roared in anger as the all-powerful figure fought with him head-on. Many fierce shock waves were released outwards.


    Even Long Mu''er arms seemed to be evolving. Demonic aura filled the sky and his bloodline roared. Eventually, his arms seemed to have turned into arms of a dragon. In his body, there was a faintly visible dragon which contained an immense power.


    The members of West Mountain Dragon Clan all inherited the bloodline of the Ancestral Dragon. They had the power of a pure-blooded dragon. When their blood started boiling, the power in their bodies would be totally activated.


    Long Mu roared and the howl of dragon echoed in the sky. Then, he struck out with his fist, as if a pure-blooded dragon was fighting against the heaven. Following a loud bang, he tore his opponent into pieces, after which he obtained the martial arts fate. Then, he continued forward and destroyed all the spirits in his path in an overpowering manner.


    Long Mu passed through many obstacles. Finally, he walked out of the army and arrived before a palace. There was a door there which would allow people to enter the subsequent level.


    At the moment, there were already quite a few people here, all of whom were the brightest talents in the Top Three Schools. Beside them, there was an eye-catching figure which looked like a god. He stared emotionlessly at the happenings before him, as if he was only a spirit.


    Long Mu walked up and stared at him solemnly.


    "Congratulations. You are qualified to enter the seventh level." The figure glanced emotionlessly at Long Mu. He seemed to be both real and illusory, as if he was going to vanish at any time.


    Long Mu did not say anything. He jumped up and stood with the rest. Turning around, he looked at the battlefield, wondering how many people could enter the seventh level this time. He was somewhat looking forward to his journey in the seventh level. What did his father experience there in that year?


    At the moment, in the vast battlefield, Gu Yunxi encountered some trouble. She was being attacked by the divine general-like figure and she looked somewhat awkward.


    Below him, Ye Futian had already been fighting for a long time and had obtained a large amount of martial arts fate, including those at the ninth level. Raising his head, he looked at Gu Yunxi, after which he turned into a bolt of lightning.


    Boom! An enormous golden fist fell down from the sky and struck towards Gu Yunxi like the fist of god.


    Gu Yunxi''s expression changed slightly as she stepped backward. Suddenly, a gust of blow blew past her. Then, she saw a dazzling figure rotating in the air. In the next instant, there seemed to be a rod that swept out with a devastating force.


    Bang! Following a loud bang, the all-powerful figure was crushed into pieces, while the martial arts fate was obtained by the attacker. Ye Futian turned around and asked, "Are you alright?"


    Gu Yunxi froze in astonishment. Then, she smiled sweetly and replied, "Thank you, Mr. Ye."


    "No problem. Let''s go," Ye Futian said, clearing the path before them. Yu Sheng and the rest ascended into the sky and followed him closely. Then, another person came over, who turned out to be Gu Ming, a genius from Gu Clan. He glanced at Ye Futian and his friends, after which he joined them.


    The battlefield was in total chaos so they did not have the time to say anything.


    At the moment, Jiang Nan was blown backward by an attack. Noticing that Ye Futian was advancing with Gu Ming, his face darkened. Did this shameless scum befriend Gu Clan after entering the battlefield?


    Soon, Ye Futian and his team also arrived at where Long Mu was. When they saw Ye Futian appear, Long Mu and Zhen Rong all seemed to be surprised. However, after seeing Gu Ming, they were also relieved.


    Long Mu was somewhat unhappy as he glanced coldly at Ye Futian who actually came here under the guidance of Gu Ming and Gu Yunxi.

 462 Fishing in Troubled Waters

    Zhen Rong clearly also noticed Ye Futian. She glanced at Gu Yunxi who was beside him and some surprise flashed across her proud eyes.


    So it turned out that Ye Futian liked beautiful ladies. In terms of just appearance, Zhen Rong also had to admit that Gu Yunxi looked better. However, in terms of martial arts, she was obviously more outstanding than Gu Yunxi. At the moment, Ye Futian was walking with Gu Yunxi, but he had ignored her invitation. She would, therefore, think that Ye Futian was only fond of beauties. Nevertheless, it was normal; nobody would ever dislike a pretty lady.


    At this place, many people were in fact interested in Gu Yunxi. She was after all a popular beauty in Divine Sky City. Most people from the Top Three Schools who had managed to reach here knew each other as they were either famous in their respective colleges or descendants of major clans.


    Suddenly, someone said, "I have a suggestion. Do you want to hear it?"


    Many people looked at the young man who just spoke. It was Chen Wang from Chen Clan. He was at the peak of the Arcana Plane and was very strong. Indeed, he was the elder brother of Chen Liu whom Ye Futian had seen before. Chen Liu was right beside him at the moment.


    "Speak," Jin Yunlang said, looking at Chen Wang.


    "In the past when the martial arts battlefield opened, disciples of the Top Three Schools would compete to obtain martial arts fate for themselves or even fight against each other to obtain more. This was especially true for the Top Three Schools as people were clearly divided into their factions. Therefore, apart from Long Yitian, the others only managed to enter at most the eighth level of the battlefield and no further," Chen Wang said. "This being the case, why can''t we change this for once? The Top Three Schools shall join hands this time and disregard our differences. We will ignore all our conflicts from the past and advance forward together."


    "There were people in the past who tried this. What happened in the end?" someone said coldly. Over the years, countless people had entered the martial arts battlefield and tried various methods. Some people in the past had also tried to team up like what Chen Wang suggested. However, those who allied would always go into a conflict because of the uneven distribution of martial arts fate. Familiar with the martial arts battlefield, they understood well what the martial arts fate in the last three levels meant. Who would not want more opportunities? Who should get the last hit and obtain the martial arts fate?


    In the past, there were even occasions when people dug pits for each other at the last moment, resulting in some descendants of major clans being killed. It caused great disturbance and conflicts even broke out among the different clans. Hence, very few people would mention about teaming up since then. Nobody could control their greed and nobody would believe in the rest easily.


    "If you think in this way, just ignore what I said. We''ll rely on ourselves. However, based on past experience, if we don''t team up, maybe we can pass the seventh level but the eighth level will still be the limit," Chen Wang said emotionlessly. Everyone knew that Chen Wang was speaking the truth. Although they all believed that they were extraordinary and wanted to create the miracle that Long Yitian once did, they knew in their hearts that it was highly unlikely.


    Among so many geniuses in the past, only Long Yitian managed to do it. What did they have in addition?


    "Why not listen to him?" a lady suddenly said. Everyone turned their heads and looked at a person in the crowd. It was a very charming lady and her looks could even be compared to Gu Yunxi. Her skin was like jade and the aroma of orchids surrounded her body. An emerald green dress was on her body, turning her into a fairy. She was Liu Suqing, the top beauty of Blazing Sun School.


    Many people glanced at her. Realizing that she had spoken, many people looked at Chen Wang again. Then, someone said, "What then?"


    "I''m not sure how many types of martial arts fate there are in the battlefield. In the last three levels, there is certainly much sage-like fate. If someone manages to get that, we''ll agree that nobody will contest for it. Furthermore, we are also not allowed to leave the rest and enter the eighth level alone. On the other hand, we''ll continue to obtain other types of sage-level fate. As long as someone contributes during the process, we''ll help him to get at least one type of martial arts fate. In the end, we''ll enter the next level together. We will only have the chance to enter the ninth level in this way. What do you think?" Chen Wang suggested.


    Many people were persuaded by his plan. If they could really do what Chen Wang had said, it would theoretically work. However, it was still unclear if the situation in the past would occur again.


    "Great, I agree," Zhen Rong said. "If someone gets the martial arts fate required and enters the eighth level alone, we''ll kill him together."


    "If nobody objects this, I''ll join as well," Bai Qiong, a top genius from Starry School, nodded lightly. Then, everyone nodded one after another, agreeing to Chen Wang''s suggestion. As for whether they had any other plans in their minds, nobody would know.


    "Alright, let''s go then," Chen Wang said. Immediately, everyone turned around and walked towards the door, stepping into the seventh level of the martial arts battlefield.


    "Mr. Ye, let''s go together," Gu Yunxi said to Ye Futian who was beside her.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled, but Gu Ming also nodded at him. "Please."


    Just now, he saw how Ye Futian helped Gu Yunxi to kill that powerful martial arts spirit. He knew that apart from musical spells, Ye Futian''s combat ability was very outstanding as well.


    "Okay." Ye Futian also stopped being too polite.


    ��


    The seventh level of the martial arts battlefield was also vast and boundless. The group walked forward and soon many cultivators appeared before them, all of whom were martial arts spirits.


    This time, it was no longer an army. There were not many spirits, only hundred of them in an array. However, they all seemed to be terribly powerful. As they stared at the intruders, everyone could feel that each spirit was as powerful as the strongest one in the sixth level. They all contained an incredible amount of martial arts fate.


    The spirit which was furthest away from everyone was standing quietly on a high platform and staring at them calmly. From him, Ye Futian felt some danger.


    "The seventh level is different from the previous ones. I have not been here before. However, according to what I heard, there is indeed sage-level martial arts fate here, as if sages are actually controlling spirits at the peak of the Arcana Plane. Despite so, they can still unleash imaginably strong powers," Gu Yunxi said softly to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had felt previously that the spirits in the first six levels all had noble-level martial arts fate, although their levels were in the Arcana Plane. It was somewhat similar to his experience in the Ancient Barren World, where there was noble fate.


    Boom! Just as Gu Yunxi was speaking, a violent aura had already erupted wildly. Everyone was releasing their powers. The people from top clans even took out the sage ritual implements they had brought. Indeed, everyone looked extremely serious.


    In the seventh level of the martial arts battlefield, any carelessness might result in death. Even though many people present were the best in their generation, nobody dared to be even slightly careless in this level.


    The hundred spirits released brilliant beams of light simultaneously. Then, they extended their arms and clenched their fists in the air. At once, everyone felt an extremely terrifying gravity acting on their bodies, attempting to pull them downwards.


    "Slay them all!" Chen Wang shouted. His Sun Sword appeared in his hand which he used to strike down like a divine sword, crushing everything before him.


    Jin Yunlang reached out his palm. Immediately, a golden spear flew past everyone and pierced towards the enemies below him. Postured like a dragon, Long Mu gave a fierce roar and many dragons appeared, charging out.


    All the people launched their attacks almost at the same time. Right away, the space around them became extremely violent and destructive. Below them, many spirits exploded one after another. Suddenly, however, the sage-like figure clenched his fist in the air. An appalling power appeared immediately and even space itself was hardening. Many people felt their bodies petrify directly as they were covered with rocks.


    The martial arts spirits below them ascended and started attacking the cultivators from the Top Three Schools. Accompanying a few loud bangs, a few people were hit and blown backward. As they landed on the ground, the rocks broke and they spat up blood.


    Ye Futian and his friends were standing at the back and their bodies were similarly petrified. At this moment, he could feel a power that was everywhere around him. It was the martial arts fate left behind by a sage.


    Following a loud bang, the rocks around him broke apart. Ye Futian looked at the battlefield before him, after which he dashed forward and shouted, "Attack." Then, they also joined the battlefield.


    An enormous figure walked towards them, trying to crush their bodies under its feet. With a splashing sound, a large amount of martial arts fate Ye Futian had turned into vines which swept out and bound the body of the spirit. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen ascended into the air simultaneously. Yu Sheng punched out in the air, while Ye Wuchen struck out with his sword. Immediately, the figure burst into pieces. However, at the same time, a stronger might enveloped them. Ye Futian only felt an invisible force engulfing him as his body became ever heavier. Then, the sage-level spirit walked towards the intruders. At once, everyone felt an extremely powerful pressure.


    He stopped above everyone, after which he stomped his feet. In this instant, a few people gave a muffled humph each and their faces turned pale. Ye Futian felt an invisible foot stepping onto him, shaking his body in an overpowering manner.


    The figure walked down from the sky. Many people were forced down from the sky as they were enduring a terrifying amount of pressure.


    "Attack!" Chen Wang held the sword with both of his hands and sunlight tore everything apart. The power within his body and that of martial arts fate erupted together. Even the sky seemed to be cut into two pieces as a beam of light struck down from the middle. Meanwhile, a frightening storm appeared, which was released from an ancient bell in Jin Yunlang''s hand. The vast golden storm turned into thousands of lines and enveloped the sage-like figure.


    Various cultivators attacked at the same instant not only just to kill their enemy, but also to obtain the martial arts fate. Although everyone would get their share according to the plan, they still hoped that they would obtain it first as it was safer.


    They knew clearly that many people here had the ability to pass the seventh level by themselves. After all, they had sage ritual implements. However, it was much more difficult to fight alone and they would never pass the eighth level. Hence, when such people teamed up, the seventh level could not stop them at all.


    Bang, bang, bang... Many attacks landed on the powerful martial arts spirit simultaneously and his body started cracking apart. Immediately, many people charged out wildly, including Ye Futian and his friends.


    Suddenly, a brilliant beam of light struck down. Ye Futian seemed to see a real Roc diving towards him. He struck out the rod in his hand, after which the martial arts fate was crushed. The dazzling Roc-like sword tore apart everything and even cleaved space open. Ye Futian and his friends flew backward quickly. Then, they saw a figure floating in the sky. It was Jin Yunxiao who had battled with Yu Sheng before.


    "What are you doing?" Gu Yunxi questioned angrily, walking forward. At the moment, Jin Yunxiao was holding an extremely terrifying Roc-like sword which was a sage ritual implement. If Ye Futian was not careful just now, he could have died from the attack directly.


    Jin Yunxiao stood there proudly and flapped his wings. He glanced at Ye Futian and his friends with much contempt and ridicule. Then, he looked at Gu Yunxi. Smiling, he said, "Gu Yunxi, they are not entitled to touch sage-level martial arts fate. The alliance this time does not include them, but they actually tried to fish in troubled waters. How ridiculous!"

 463 Acquiremen

    Jin Yunxiao did not even think about obtaining the sage martial arts fate himself. Based on his level, it was clearly not his turn yet. However, Ye Futian and his friends actually wanted to battle for it. How ridiculous was that? After becoming famous on the Starry School assessment day, and receiving Celestial Pavilion from Dragon Clan, Ye Futian could not even seem to remember who he was.


    Zhen Rong wanted to rope him in, but only as her battle servant. Long Ling''er had a very good relationship with him, but even the next leader of the Dragon Clan, Long Mu, did not acknowledge his position. Was Ye Futian trying to join them just because of his identity as the owner of Celestial Pavilion? That would be impossible. Ye Futian and his friends could at most stay in the seventh level.


    Yu Sheng looked at Jin Yunxiao, wanting to walk up, but Ye Futian extended his arm to stop him. On the other side, the spirit was annihilated and the martial arts fate was obtained by Jin Yunxiao''s brother, Jin Yunlang. Realizing this, the smile on Jin Yunxiao''s face grew brighter. Since Jin Yunlang had obtained the fate, he would certainly have his share as well. He would surely be able to enter the eighth level.


    Some people looked enviously at Jin Yunlang but did not say anything because of the agreement. Jin Yunlang could obtain the martial arts fate not because he was stronger than everyone else, but because of his sage ritual implement.


    "What''s happening?" Jin Yunlang asked, looking at Jin Yunxiao.


    "Nothing. A few people want to sneak into the team and obtain sage martial arts fate," Jin Yunlang mocked him.


    "Who are they?" Jin Yunlang glanced emotionlessly at Ye Futian and his friends. He did not know who they were.


    "You need to ask Long Mu that." With a smile on his face, Jin Yunxiao looked at Long Mu, who only had a cold expression. Ignoring Ye Futian, Long Mu said, "They''re not with me. Let''s continue forward."


    "Wouldn''t more people make our journey easier?" Gu Ming frowned and looked at Jin Yunxiao in dissatisfaction.


    "We don''t need that." Jin Yunxiao smiled, after which he turned around and left.


    "Let''s go," Chen Wang shouted. Zhen Rong glanced emotionlessly at Ye Futian and did not say anything. It seemed like Ye Futian''s journey would more or less end here. Jin Yunxiao and Long Mu both disliked Ye Futian and would certainly not bring him along. Moreover, Ye Futian also rejected her and Chen Liu.


    "Brother, why not we go with Ye Futian instead?" Gu Yunxi said to Gu Ming, intending to team up with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Gu Yunxi in surprise. She had a slender body and charming appearance and had always been very friendly towards him. However, at such a moment, Gu Yunxi would actually want to follow him instead. It was indeed unexpected.


    Gu Ming frowned and said, "If we team up, we should be able to pass the seventh level, but not the next one." Then, he glanced at the people who were already leaving. If the rest all passed the eighth level but he did not, he might miss many things.


    "Miss Gu, you should go with them. Don''t be bothered with us," Ye Futian said.


    "But..." Gu Yunxi was somewhat hesitant. The attitudes of Jin Yunxiao and the rest just now were very disrespectful. Furthermore, the hit from Jin Yunxiao earlier was very dangerous.


    "Thank you for your understanding," Gu Ming nodded at Ye Futian.


    "Just go," Ye Futian said to Gu Yunxi, who nodded gently. Smiling, she said, "Mr. Ye, be careful then!"


    "Of course," Ye Futian nodded. Gu Ming and Gu Yunxi left to catch up with the others. He smiled and said, "It seems like we need to acquire some sage martial arts fate before we can pass the seventh level. Well, let''s begin!" After speaking, he walked in the opposite direction.


    Soon, Ye Futian and his friends came to a place. Not far before them, a huge sword was inserted vertically into the ground, where there were also many deep and frightening cracks. Darkness surrounded them as if it was the end of the world.


    Around the huge sword, there were countless sharp swords as well, all releasing a terrifying wave of Sword Will. On the giant sword, a martial arts spirit was standing. He stood there quietly, but everyone could feel much sharpness from him as if he had fused completely with the Sword Will around him.


    Suddenly, the swords started trembling, producing a clanking sound. An invisible wave of Sword Will whizzed over in the air, and even the sky turned dimmer. Then, the figure on the sword pointed his finger forward. Immediately, endless Sword Will charged towards Ye Futian and his friends simultaneously. Looking at the boundless Sword Will, Ye Futian felt that he was extremely tiny, while the figure standing on the sword looked like an unparalleled Sword God.


    "Don''t be tricked by the willpower." Some sharpness suddenly flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes. They were facing against a sage martial arts fate. It was as if the spirit before them had the will of a sage. Hence, they must not be careless.


    The martial arts fate around Ye Futian''s body converged and turned into an astonishing light curtain right before them. At the same time, the martial arts fate roared wildly and a powerful force gathered around him. Reaching out his hand, Ye Futian held the Five Element Rod and stomped fiercely on the ground, after which the brilliant wings of the Roc appeared on his back. As he waved the Five Element Rod, a formidable curtain appeared before him, blocking the Sword Will.


    Ye Futian struck the Five Element Rod down, bringing along a monstrous force produced from the martial arts fate. However, the figure on the huge sword looked at Ye Futian and pointed his finger out at Ye Futian again. Three thousand gusts of Sword Will seemed to have converged and charged out at him. Following a loud bang, the appalling power of the swords blocked Ye Futian''s incoming attack before he could actually strike the rod fully. Meanwhile, an endless amount of Sword Will howled and continued attacking the intruder, attempting to eliminate the powerful field around him.


    Just then, the Sage Treasure Book behind Loulan Xue released a frightening amount of coldness. Cold light bloomed wildly and shone onto the figure, causing the frequency of the trembling sharp swords to drop significantly. At the same time, Yu Sheng jumped into the air. His demonic wings flashed out and the demonic tripod in his hands expanded rapidly. Then, he struck it down from above and an endless amount of demonic force charged out as if there were numerous devils present.


    Ye Wuchen''s sword also arrived. With the Alkaid in his hand, he struck the sword out and reached his target in an instant. The figure raised his head and looked at the sky. Then, he reached out his other hand and pointed it in that direction. Many gusts of Sword Will created a sword veil which blotted out the sky.


    Bang! Then, Ye Futian''s rod destroyed the Sword Will in his path. His body rotated wildly in the sky, and an astounding illusory figure appeared behind him. It looked like a divine ape which, however, had an enormous pair of golden wings on its back. Ye Futian traced out a dazzling arc in the sky, after which he struck out the rod in mid-air, eliminating the Sword Will all around him.


    Ye Futian''s rod continued to dance and martial arts fate filled the sky. Then, he struck out for a second time and crushed all the Sword Will before him.


    Noticing the incoming Ye Futian, the figure below him reached out his palm. Right away, the endless Sword Will turned into a gigantic sword which appeared horizontally between him and Ye Futian. However, the rod broke the sword into two and continued its way down.


    On the other hand, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Loulan Xue attacked together, with the Black Wind Condor cheering for them at the side. Their destructive attacks flew towards the figure. Accompanied by a loud bang, the figure was hit and trembled fiercely.


    "Wuchen, come!" Ye Futian shouted. He and Yu Sheng stepped backward, while Ye Wuchen pierced into the head of his opponent with his sword. At once, the figure turned into a sword rain. Meanwhile, some martial arts fate landed on Ye Wuchen''s body.


    The swords below them were all crushed in this instant.


    "Such powerful martial arts fate," Ye Wuchen remarked. They had been acquiring martial arts fate along with their entire journey so he could clearly feel the difference between this one and the previous ones. The fate this time was way stronger and it was as if it could even allow him to understand the art of swords better.


    "You should feel it first. We''re not in a hurry," Ye Futian said. Ye Wuchen nodded, after which he sat down directly and started cultivating. After quite a long while, some Sword Will flew around his body and his cultivation ended. Then, he nodded at Ye Futian.


    "Let''s continue to find more martial arts fate." Ye Futian smiled. There was so much precious martial arts fate in the seventh level so they definitely had to acquire more. It was indeed a great opportunity. It was no wonder that all the Top Three School disciples wanted to enter the battlefield. However, the seventh level had already given them a tremendous amount of pressure. The eighth and ninth levels must be harder. Nevertheless, Ye Futian was really looking forward to it.


    They continued their advance and soon, they arrived at another place. Before them, there was an enormous, ten-meter-tall figure which looked like an ancient god.


    Noticing Ye Futian and his team, the figure stomped on the ground with his foot. A loud rumbling was produced and even the ground trembled for it. Then, he raised his palm and slapped towards Ye Futian and his friends. Many giant palm prints pressed down from the sky, blotting out their view and crushing everything around.


    Ye Wuchen suddenly moved. Having just obtained the sage martial arts fate, he would naturally bear the most amount of pressure. He struck out the Alkaid and immediately, the martial arts fate around him all turned into sword fate. Thousands of waves of Sword Will charged out from mid-air and actually split the palm prints open directly.


    Ye Futian and the rest dashed forward together, surrounding their enemy. The figure stomped on the ground with an incredible force, after which he punched out fiercely. Ye Futian struck out his rod and actually felt a terrifying counterforce from his rod. He was blown backward, but the arm of his enemy also trembled wildly.


    Ye Wuchen''s sword arrived like a bolt of lightning, striking onto that arm. However, a shocking light glittered on the giant, and the arm was actually not cut off. His defense was extremely strong.


    Ye Wuchen turned into a sword and appeared before the head of the giant. Then, the sword pierced out towards his forehead with thousands of Sword Will whizzing over. The enormous figure closed his eyes and his body trembled greatly.


    "Yu Sheng!" Ye Wuchen raised his head when he saw Yu Sheng descend from the sky. The monstrous demonic tripod landed onto the head of the giant, producing a continuous rumbling sound. Finally, the giant''s body was crushed and martial arts fate enveloped Yu Sheng''s body.


    "He''s so strong," Ye Futian said, smiling. "Yu Sheng, you should cultivate here."


    "No need. When we get more martial arts fate, we''ll cultivate together," Yu Sheng said.


    "That''s fine as well. We''ll acquire some more fate and cultivate together. After that, we''ll enter the eighth level," Ye Futian agreed. Then, they left and headed for other places, looking for more martial arts fate.


    Time passed by unknowingly.


    In the martial arts battlefield, there was only a small minority who could enter the seventh level. Apart from the people in the alliance earlier, even if someone did enter the seventh level, it would be extremely difficult for them to acquire the martial arts fate here. Many people would even die in this place.


    Outside the martial arts battlefield, the cultivators from the Top Three Schools and Divine Sky City were all waiting. They were all very patient. Every year, the opening of the martial arts battlefield was a major event for Divine Sky City. In particular, they would know who could enter the seventh level of the battlefield or even more. The people here all wondered which geniuses could do so this time.

 464 Conflict Outbreak

    The eighth level of the martial arts battlefield was far smaller than the previous seven levels. In nine different directions on the eighth level, there were nine sky-high bridges. They went all the way up, as if they were divine bridges leading to the heavens.


    One of the nine divine bridges, however, had already collapsed. It seemed like it was completely destroyed in a terrifying battle. The central portion of the bridge was ruptured.


    The place where the bridges led to was precisely the destination of the martial arts battlefield, namely the ninth level. When Ye Futian and his friends entered the eighth level, they immediately saw vague images of heavenly palaces.


    Looking at the scene before them, they all felt somewhat surprised. Apart from the bridge that had collapsed, the other eight all had a frightening sight on them and were guarded by very powerful figures. They were the first group to arrive here. The allied cultivators from the Top Three Schools needed to obtain even more sage martial arts fate as they had more people. Thus, they were not on the eighth level yet.


    "It is said that over hundreds of years, only Long Yitian managed to pass this level. Did he walk up the bridge that has already collapsed?" Ye Futian muttered. If just like before, one could only enter the ninth level after obtaining the martial arts fate on the eighth level, then even though those cultivators had allied, they could not all pass through. Only a few of them could at most.


    Of course, they had to defeat the guardians of the eight divine bridges first. Moreover, if Ye Futian, his three friends, and the Black Wind Condor all wanted to go through, they also had to destroy five bridges.


    "Which one do we choose first?" Ye Futian asked. They had already found the fights in the seventh level very challenging. At the moment, the guardians of the eighth level must be stronger. Before they battled, they were also not very confident.


    Why did the geniuses from the Top Three Schools who had sage ritual implements team up? It was precisely because they wanted to pass the eighth level and enter the final place of the battlefield.


    "You decide," Ye Wuchen said.


    "Then let''s just try the one in front first." Ye Futian looked before him. The rest nodded, after which they walked forward and stepped onto the bridge right before them.


    In the middle of the bridge, there was a shocking golden symbol. An endless amount of golden radiance poured down, as if there were countless ancient characters as well. The whole sky was filled with the color of gold.


    In that place, there was a person standing. He was wearing a piece of golden armor and looked like an all-powerful divine general. As he scanned Ye Futian and his team, they realized that even his pupils were gold in color. His hair looked as sharp as many golden blades. There was no wind and yet his hair was swinging in the air, looking very formidable.


    "Be careful," Ye Futian reminded. The person before him gave him a sense of extreme danger. Even though he had obtained sage martial arts fate, he still dared not to be even slightly careless. Even in the seventh level, they needed to team up to defeat their enemies. At the moment, their opponents in the eighth level would only be more powerful. After all, over hundreds of years, only Long Yitian managed to succeed.


    With the martial arts fate, Ye Futian could unleash the combat power equivalent to the peak of the Arcana Plane, but his own level was significantly lower. Therefore, his combat power would clearly be affected.


    The figure before them glanced emotionlessly at them with his golden pupils. Then, both of his hands rotated slightly in the air. At once, a horrifying wave of sharpness filled the sky. Ye Futian and his friends raised their heads only to see many razor-sharp golden spears appear above them.


    "Attack!" Just after Ye Futian said so, he dashed out like a bolt of lightning. Almost at the same instant, the golden spears in the sky fell down vertically and turned into many beams of golden light, attempting to nail the intruders onto the bridge forever.


    Loulan Xue moved and ascended into the air. She looked at the sky with her silver pupils and the Sage Treasure Book bloomed. At once, an appalling snowstorm erupted and the falling spears all seemed to be frozen and slowed. However, they were still releasing their dazzling golden radiance and continued their way down.


    A frightening silver radiance was released from Loulan Xue''s eyes. She lifted her hands into the air and an even stronger snowstorm swept out towards the sky, as if she was supporting the entire sky.


    The sharp blades stopped gradually and were frozen within the snowstorm, but Loulan Xue only felt very worried. The first attack was already so powerful.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian approached their opponent. At the moment, the figure before him was floating above the divine bridge. He extended his arm and right away, a formidable golden symbol appeared from his palm. The symbol rotated and enlarged rapidly, eventually turning enormous. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen''s attacks landed on the symbol, producing a loud bang. Many cracks appeared on the symbol, but it was not completely destroyed yet.


    The figure rotated his hands again and the symbol dissipated. Then, many golden spears appeared and charged towards the intruders, but this time at a very close distance.


    Ye Wuchen''s arm trembled. Immediately, a sword veil was formed in the sky, blocking at spears in the same way. After that, he struck the Alkaid forward and thousands of blades of light charged towards the figure continuously.


    On the other hand, Yu Sheng leaped into the air and fell down from the sky. Martial arts fate circled around him, and he looked as powerful as an ancient god who could crush the earth beneath his feet and turn into a devil. Ye Futian''s body rotated in the air. Thousands of golden vines swept out and blotted out the sky.


    The figure still looked as calm as ever. He moved his arms and immediately, three halos appeared around him. The sides of the halos seemed to be carved with many ancient characters. Then, the halos rotated wildly and turned into enormous symbols again. When the attacks of Ye Futian and his friends landed, they were all blocked by the symbols. Furthermore, as the golden halos rotated rapidly, they actually turned into very sharp blades that destroyed everything around them.


    Boom! A frightening beam of golden light bloomed and Ye Futian, as well as Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen, were all blown backward. Floating in the air, they gazed at the general-like figure and were all astonished. The eighth level was indeed much more difficult than the seventh. It was no wonder that over hundreds of years, only Long Yitian managed to succeed. From this, it could also be deduced how unparalleled Long Yitian actually was. It was no wonder that until today, many people still remembered him and would frequently mention his name.


    Suddenly, a group of cultivators walked towards their direction from outside the divine bridge. They were precisely those from the Top Three Schools. At the moment, there were fewer of them left, but those who did were all powerful elites. When they saw Ye Futian and his friends, they could not help being momentarily stunned. Ye Futian and his team actually also managed to obtain sage martial arts fate and reach here.


    "Mr. Ye is indeed extraordinarily talented." Noticing Ye Futian and his friends, Gu Yunxi smiled brightly. Just now, she was still worried that they were left behind by the allied team. Now, it seemed like she was worried about nothing. Even without the rest, Ye Futian and his friends could still obtain sage martial arts fate.


    On the other hand, Jin Yunxiao, Long Mu, and some others frowned. If they were alone, it would be quite difficult to pass the seventh level, but Ye Futian actually managed to reach here. Even though he had a few people with him, it was still an amazing result. This meant that they had still underestimated the group before them.


    Ye Futian also sensed the people behind him. Turning around, he saw them walking towards him with Chen Wang in front. Chen Wang showed no intention of fighting and only said, "Continue the battle."


    Ye Futian looked at Chen Wang and frowned gently. With these people eyeing them, it was clearly inappropriate for them to continue fighting. In the seventh level, these people did not even allow Ye Futian and his friends to contest for the sage martial arts fate. In the more important eighth level, they would clearly not allow it as well. Obviously, Chen Want wanted to use their battles to see the power of the golden figure. Furthermore, he could use any opportunities present to attack suddenly.


    "You can go first." Ye Futian smiled and stepped backward. Yu Sheng and the rest understood his meaning and all retreated.


    "Don''t be polite. When I ask you to battle, just go," Chen Wang continued, staring at Ye Futian and his friends. He was confident about passing the seventh level, but not so much for the eighth level which only Long Yitian had managed to. Hence, he wanted Ye Futian to test it out first.


    "We''re not strong enough, unlike you geniuses from various clans and schools. You should go first," Ye Futian said "humbly."


    "Just go. Why are you talking so much nonsense?" a cultivator from Zhen Clan also said coldly. He knew the purpose of Chen Wang''s words.


    Then, Ye Futian realized that the cultivators actually started to block off the path on the bridge so that they could not leave.


    "What do you mean?" Ye Futian frowned.


    Jin Yunxiao sneered and looked at Ye Futian. What do they mean? It was obvious; they wanted Ye Futian to test everything out.


    "Since you''re already here, there''s no need for you to leave. Just go and continue," Chen Wang said calmly. Since Ye Futian was not with him, he would use him as much as he could. As for the attitudes of Ye Futian and his friends, Chen Wang would clearly not be bothered.


    "I''m sorry but I am no longer interested in it." Ye Futian smiled. Just then, he ascended into the air and the rest also followed him closely, trying to retreat.


    Chen Wang drew his sword out and struck forward. Immediately, the brilliant Sun Sword penetrated across space and many blazing beams of light charged towards Ye Futian and his team, incinerating everything in their path.


    Loulan Xue''s silver clothes swang in the air and an ice storm appeared suddenly, blocking the incoming attack. However, at the same time, a Roc-like figure arrived like a bolt of lightning. It was Jin Yunlang. He took out his sage ritual implement, the ancient bell, and struck towards Loulan Xue. At once, the ice storm was torn apart and many terrifying Rocs charged towards Loulan Xue.


    Loulan Xue''s hands danced in the air and many frightening ice palm prints pressed down, but they were all destroyed by the ritual implement. Jin Yunlang dashed out like lightning and launched his attack, which Loulan Xue could only hastily respond by punching forward. Following a sizzling sound, her sleeves were crushed, displaying her jade-like skin, and a blood mark appeared on her palm from Jin Yunlang''s scratch.


    Jin Yunlang had similarly obtained sage marital arts fate. Furthermore, he was at the peak of the Arcana Plane himself.


    Jin Yunlang wanted to continue attacking Loulan Xue, but Yu Sheng fell down from the sky and punched put fiercely like a demonic god. The attacks of the two collided into each other. The sky shook, and both of them were blown backward simultaneously.


    Then, Bai Qiong, the genius of Starry School, looked at the sky. He extended his arm out at the sky and an extremely powerful gravity appeared, slowing the speed of Ye Futian and his team.


    "Don''t waste any more time on them," Liu Suqing said.


    Bai Qiong nodded, after which he punched out, causing even the space to be shaken. An invisible punch seemed to penetrate across space and charge towards Ye Futian and his friends.


    "Since you chose not to fight, then scram out of this level!" Bai Qiong said emotionlessly, glancing at Ye Futian and his team.

 465 Worship Me Like a God

    Ye Wuchen, Yu Sheng, and Loulan Xue stared at the arrogant people below them, and martial arts fate whizzed around their bodies. Ye Wuchen held his sword tightly with his single arm, while Yu Sheng clenched his fists with demonic light flashing in his eyes.


    Ye Futian, on the other hand, seemed to be very relaxed instead, as if he was not bothered at all. There was even a gentle, harmless smile on his face.


    "In this case, please be careful then. Bye." After that, he retreated backward.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen both looked at him.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said and did not turn back. Then, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen followed him. Loulan Xue scanned emotionlessly below her with her silver pupils, after which she caught up with Ye Futian with the Black Wind Condor. They actually really left the eighth level of the battlefield and returned to the seventh level.


    "Talented?" Jin Yunxiao smiled mockingly. The fact that Ye Futian could reach here indeed proved his talents, but so what? The people who were still remaining here at the moment were those in Divine Sky City with the best talents and highest statuses. Even though Ye Futian was outstanding, he was still not at the same level as the rest of them.


    There had been many arrogant and confident talents like Ye Futian in the past. But in the end, they would all be defeated by reality. Divine Sky City was ultimately still represented by the people who could now remain in the eighth level.


    Gu Yunxi obviously knew this as well. She felt somewhat sad, somewhat unresigned for Ye Futian, but what could she do? Ye Futian did not even attempt to struggle himself. Some things were just there and could not be crossed. It was unless he was the kind of person who could stand at the top of his generation. Then, he could be above everyone else just with his talents, including their positions and statuses.


    Such a person could ignore everything else. But even so, he still had to keep to a low profile before he could grow up. Otherwise, he might never have the chance to. This was the cruelty of reality.


    The people left in the eighth level did not think too much. To them, Ye Futian was not the same kind of person as them. Even though they might be enemies with and compete against each other, they still had similar statuses, but not Ye Futian.


    Just like what Liu Suqing had said earlier, there was no need to waste any time on Ye Futian and his friends. Everything that followed would be much more important. They had to pass the bridges and enter the legendary ninth level.


    There were records about the eighth level in their respective clans. However, nobody knew what was in the ninth level of the martial arts battlefield, apart possibly from Long Mu.


    They stepped forward and towards the divine bridges. Everyone looked extremely serious and took out their sage ritual implements. On the other hand, Ye Futian and his friends returned to the seventh level.


    "We could have fought them," Yu Sheng said, looking at Ye Futian. Those people had already been disrespectful towards Ye Futian for a few times. If Ye Futian did not ask him to leave, he would certainly not tolerate them any longer.


    "Many of them are top geniuses of the Top Three Schools. Furthermore, they are members of powerful clans and have sage ritual implements. If we really fight them, we''ll not know if we can win. Even if we win, how do we clear the mess up?" Ye Futian said, looking back at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng knew what Ye Futian meant. They still had to stay in Divine Sky City, so if they really did something serious, the clans behind those people could kill them easily.


    Nevertheless, Yu Sheng still felt rather upset and added, "So we just give up?"


    "Of course not." Ye Futian looked at the entrance to the eighth level and continued, "With our current conditions, even if we can enter the ninth level, we''ll not be able to achieve anything further."


    Hearing his words, Ye Wuchen''s pupils contracted slightly. Ye Futian was already considering the situation in the ninth level.


    Indeed, with their powers, they might be able to pass the eighth level. However, since the eighth level was already so difficult after they passed it, they might face even more powerful martial arts spirits in the last level. Of course, it was also possible that there were no spirits in the ninth level, but that would seem unlikely. After all, there were spirits in all the first eight levels.


    Over hundreds of years, only Long Yitian managed to pass the eighth level of the martial arts battlefield, but nobody knew whether he had obtained anything from the ninth level. Perhaps, he did not receive anything there and only acquired the martial arts fate in the eighth level.


    "What''s your plan?" Loulan Xue could vaguely guess what Ye Futian was going to do.


    "Scram out?" Thinking of the words of Bai Qiong earlier, Ye Futian smiled and said, "Let''s rest first." Then, he sat down cross-legged and started to rest calmly. It seemed like he was understanding the martial arts fate he had obtained.


    Yu Sheng and the rest sat down as well. Ye Futian should already have a plan in his mind.


    After a while, a frightening aura erupted from Ye Futian. Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Loulan Xue opened their eyes and looked at Ye Futian one after another. A brilliant beam of golden light ascended into the air from his body as the aura around him became increasingly stronger. Ye Futian was completely showered in Emperor''s Light.


    Martial arts fate circled around him and fused with the Emperor''s Light, making it even holier. It seemed as if Ye Futian was covered with many divine halos and he looked all-powerful.


    Loulan Xue was greatly shocked. She had been a maidservant beside Ye Futian. Slowly, Ye Futian started trusting her and would allow her to see some of his secrets. She could tell that Ye Futian had a very huge secret which even Ye Wuchen might not know. The only person who might possibly know it was Yu Sheng.


    "Just wait for me in this level. Little eagle, listen to my orders." Ye Futian rubbed the head of the Black Wind Condor. He and the condor were connected through their minds so he did not have to be around it to give it any orders.


    Yu Sheng stood up. Looking at Ye Futian, he asked, "Do I need to follow you?" That people there were all very powerful.


    "Nope. If we go together, we''ll be exposed straightaway." As Ye Futian spoke, the Emperor Will inside his body burnt wildly. His bloodline and physical body all became extremely strong. Then, Ye Futian took out a silver cloak and wore it. The ritual implement covered his body and water-like silver lines flew on his face, changing his appearance. After that, he turned around and walked towards the eighth level.


    When Ye Futian entered the eighth level, the people there were having a fierce battle, but it was not on the bridge earlier. Instead, it was on another divine bridge. Ye Futian realized that two divine bridges had been destroyed, and there were also two people fewer in the crowd. In just one glance, he discovered the missing people: Chen Wang who had attacked him, as well as Long Mu. He could understand why Chen Wang succeeded. After all, he was at the peak of the Arcana Plane. On the other hand, he was somewhat surprised that Long Mu also passed this level. He did not know what had happened earlier.


    In fact, it was not just him. Everyone else was equally surprised. At a crucial moment of the first fight, Long Mu suddenly took out a powerful divine artifact which helped him to obtain the martial arts fate. After that, he passed through the bridge and left directly. Everyone was enraged by this.


    To make them even angrier, after everyone risked their lives in the second battle, Chen Wang who eventually obtained the martial arts fate did not stay. Instead, he chose to enter the ninth level directly.


    Chen Wang''s idea was correct. After teaming up, they indeed managed to defeat the guardians in the eighth level. However, the outcome was no different from the previous times. Everyone still only thought about their own benefits. Such an alliance was too unreliable. Even so, everyone was still teaming up. They all hoped that they would become the third person.


    However, at the moment, they were already very tired. In the battles just now, many people were injured, and Chen Wang and Long Mu also left. They realized that with their powers now, they could not really deal with the martial arts spirit before them.


    Ye Futian dashed towards that divine bridge and his Emperor Will was burning. He did not have much time, so he had to make everything fast.


    Following a loud bang, many people were blown backward and landed near the edge of the divine bridge. Having felt something, they turned around their heads to realize a person in a silver cloak appeared. Chen Liu shouted coldly, "Scram!"


    Someone else actually managed to come. Chen Liu was in a bad mood now because his brother had left them and the rest seemed to be slightly angry with him. If it was not for the fact that he could also help in the battle, he probably would not even have the chance to participate. However, right after Chen Liu said that, he felt that something was wrong. The person in the silver cloak looked too extraordinary. The radiance of the martial arts fate around him seemed as dazzling as the fate of emperors.


    A silver bolt of lightning flew in the sky. Chen Liu backed away rapidly and many flame dragons whizzed out, charging towards Ye Futian.


    Buzz! The person in the silver cloak passed through the flame dragons directly with incredible speed. Following a loud bang, Chen Liu''s body was blown away at once and he was smashed forcefully onto the bridge. He could not even tell why the intruder was so fast.


    "Who?" Liu Suqing turned around and glanced at Ye Futian coldly. It was the crucial moment of this battle and someone else actually appeared.


    "All scram back to the seventh level." The person in the silver cloak floated in the sky and scanned the crowd coldly. His voice was also disguised and it sounded somewhat hoarse.


    "Do you know who you are talking to?" Jin Yunxiao raised his head and his golden pupils looked extremely arrogant. He was dressed in luxurious clothes, and his Life Spirit, the Roc, was behind him. Regardless of who the mysterious person was, who in Divine Sky City dared to ask all of them to scram out of this place? Was he trying to kill himself?


    Ye Futian turned his head and glanced coldly at Jin Yunxiao. Then, he stepped forward and his cloak danced in the sky. Extending his arm, he grabbed towards Jin Yunxiao.


    The golden martial arts fate looked like the fate of emperors and turned into an enormous palm print. This was an ability Ye Futian had learned from the sage martial arts fate in the seventh level. Since he was in disguise, he clearly could not use his own abilities to avoid being recognized in the future.


    The emperor''s palm print blotted out the sky and seemed to envelop everything. Feeling the power of the attack, Jin Yunxiao struck out his Roc-like sharp sword onto the palm print. However, Emperor''s Light was glittering on the palm. The Roc-like sword hit but did not actually manage to crush the palm print. It pressed down directly and then clenched, grabbing Jin Yunxiao.


    "How dare you!" someone shouted coldly. Jin Yunlang walked towards Ye Futian and his terrifying ancient bell swept out towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian shook his arm and many brilliant beams of martial arts fate appeared before him. Then, he raised his hand and slapped out. Immediately, the color of the sky changed and many palm prints flew out one after another. At this instant, many people felt as if the enormous palm prints did not come from an Arcana Plane cultivator, but instead an emperor himself.


    Boom! Multiple palm prints fused together and resonated with the sky. The all-powerful force grabbed the bell directly, rooting it to its position.


    Jin Yunlang''s expression changed drastically. He tried to connect to the magical bell with his Spiritual Energy, but a horrifying willpower appeared on the bell. The willpower seemed to turn into emperor''s flames which enveloped the bell. Then, Jin Yunlang gave out a miserable cry as the connection between the bell and him was cut off forcefully. He spat out a mouthful of blood and his face turned very pale.


    Ye Futian continued waving his hand. The huge bell flew towards Jin Yunxiao who was below him.


    "No..." Realizing the incoming bell, Jin Yunxiao''s expression changed greatly.


    Dong! The bell rang and enveloped Jin Yunxiao directly, after which it was lifted again. Jin Yunxiao''s heart almost stood still with fright. His body trembled wildly and fear was written all over his face.


    Raising his head, he looked at the figure in the silver cloak. At the moment, the mysterious person flew towards him and stopped right before him.


    "I don''t know who I am talking to, but now, kneel down and worship me." Ye Futian stared coldly at Jin Yunxiao and continued, "Like how you worship a god."


    Jin Yunxiao looked as if he had been struck by lightning and his body trembled fiercely. Looking at the all-powerful figure before him, his face turned extremely pale.


    Everyone else was totally astonished.


    Ye Futian asked Jin Yunxiao to worship him like a god!

 466 The Ultimate Land

    On the divine bridge, everyone stared at the silver-hooded figure, their hearts shaking wildly. They''d never seen anyone who dared to be as arrogant before them as this person. The abnormally cold features, proud eyes, and the emperor''s martial art''s fate wrapped around him were all undefeatable. He seemed to be born into a high position, looking down on the world. Furthermore, he had such powerful combat ability. He was so strong, but they didn''t know him.


    "Who are you?" Jin Yunxiao stared at Ye Futian in shock. This was everyone''s question. There were thousands of disciples from the Top Three Schools this time. It was a huge number, so it was natural that there were people they didn''t know. They barely knew the people from their own school, let alone all three top schools.


    But how could someone so frightening remain nameless?


    Unless this person purposely hid in the Top Three Schools, or he''d entered in a low-key way earlier this year just so he could explode now and take all the martial arts fate.


    Ye Futian scanned Jin Yunxiao coldly. He walked down from the sky like a true god. Jin Yunxiao was in shock.


    Boom! With the loud sound, the man stepped onto Jin Yunxiao''s head. The horrible force caused his body to shake. Then he fell to the ground as if kneeling in worship.


    Lowering his head, he spat out blood while his face drained of color. He''d never imagined suffering this kind of humiliation before.


    "I am Liu Suqing from the Liu Clan. Who are you? Even if you wish to enter the ninth level, there''s no need to force us to leave." Liu Suqing was beautiful and there was no arrogance when she spoke. She was even a bit humble. No matter who the man was, he was definitely an extraordinary figure with top talent and skills.


    Ye Futian didn''t even look at her. He reached out and a horrible palm appeared in the air. Liu Suqing''s expression faltered. Then the huge golden palm, like that of an emperor''s, broke through the air. She gathered martial arts fate instantly, but she was forced back with a boom. Many people were speechless to see that she was hurt. How could he do this to such a beauty?


    "All the martial arts fate here is mine. If you don''t scram before I step onto the second bridge, you''ll pay for it," Ye Futian said arrogantly. Everyone''s hearts trembled.


    All the martial arts fate here was his?


    He''d come to take it all without leaving anything to the rest! He was so powerful but had come later than the rest. Did he get delayed from snatching all the Sage martial arts fate in the seventh level?


    Watching Ye Futian step forward, Bai Qiong suddenly reached out. A huge starry handprint appeared in the sky instantly. Pressure fell upon Ye Futian. "Still not fighting?" Bai Qiong asked coldly.


    Everyone''s eyes gleamed. All these prides were scared of one person.


    "You''re looking for death." Ye Futian scanned Bai Qiong coldly. At that moment, shocking martial arts fate around him formed countless emperor handprints. They spun around him wildly. When the starry handprint pressed down, the emperor handprints flew out, shattering it.


    "As expected, he has more than one type of Sage martial arts fate." Everyone studied Ye Futian. Each type of martial arts fate could bring domineering power.


    Boom. The countless brilliant emperor handprints transformed into beams of light. They whistled and whooshed. Bai Qiong was shocked. He grouped his ritual implement to defend himself, but the handprints were too fast. Bai Qiong soon couldn''t hold on anymore. The handprints landed on him. He kept spitting out blood until he dropped to the ground. His breaths were weak; he was badly hurt.


    Those who had prepared to fight Ye Futian froze. They were in despair. Even the spirits guarding the bridge up front shouldn''t be so strong.


    They were hopeless. These top figures of the Top Three Schools actually felt powerless. How could someone so powerful be hidden in their school?


    "I won''t say the same thing three things." With that, Ye Futian walked forward towards the strong martial arts fate cultivator. That was a horrible being bathed in flames and light. He was surrounded by a world of fire with horrible fiery images around him. He stood there like a fire god.


    Ye Futian walked forward. The emperor handprints hovered behind him. Following Ye Futian''s finger, they shot forward towards the horrible figure.


    The strong cultivator reached out. A frightening fiery image was born. It was like a world-burning fire. Beams of dazzling flames shot out from the images. They were about to destroy the world.


    Endless light burst forth and crashed against the handprint. The horrible handprint seemed to burn. It kept going forward, but it was melting.


    Boom. An even more terrifying light bloomed from Ye Futian''s body. He walked forward, charging directly towards the other.


    The fire spirit reached out. Instantly, the world-destroying images shrouded Ye Futian. The world of fire was aimed at him, about to burn his body. However, the emperor-like martial arts fate around him burned with golden light. Bathed in the flames, he walked forward like an indestructible figure.


    The horrible flames couldn''t burn his body. They couldn''t even hurt him.


    Liu Suqing trembled while the others all widened their eyes. This man was so powerful that they felt despair. He wanted to take all the martial arts fate on the bridge for himself. He''d hidden within the Top Three Schools just for today.


    Ye Futian raised his hand. All spells converged into one. The countless handprints whistled and flew to the martial arts spirit. Ye Futian had turned into golden lightning, breaking the fiery images. Then he slammed down on the spirit''s head, destroying it.


    In an instant, an even stronger martial arts fate surrounded Ye Futian. He was now strong enough, but he still wanted to take all the martial arts fate. He didn''t only want to take from the eighth level either. His ultimate goal was probably the ninth level.


    Ye Futian flashed towards the bridge on the side. He looked back, staring coldly at everyone. Thinking back to his words, they all felt weak.


    "Let''s go," Gu Ming said. Liu Suqing nodded. They all retreated and left this battlefield.


    Zhen Rong''s pretty eyes gazed at that undefeatable figure. She always worshipped the strong figures and she wanted to get to know him. How could she not know someone like him? Then she also turned around and left.


    Bai Qiong was taken out by his fellow disciples of the Starry School.


    When everyone left from the exit, Ye Futian grasped the frightening fiery halberd from the bridge. He stuck it into the ground at the entrance, blocking it. At the same time, the Black Wind Eagle brought the others in from another entrance.


    There were nine bridges on the eighth level of the battlefield. Every bridge had an entrance in their respective direction. There were nine entrances to the eighth level from different places in the seventh level. The place they went out from wasn''t the same as where Jin Yunxiao and the others went.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. He flashed and stepped onto another bridge. There was a majestic figure with a battle ax. There was another battle ax stuck in the bridge behind him. It was a Sage ritual implement, just like the fiery halberd.


    Each of the nine bridges had a Sage ritual implement. However, the spirits here wouldn''t use the ritual implement against the intruders.


    The figure with the battle ax was wrapped in a horrible gale of wind. When Ye Futian''s handprint attacked, he brought his ax down. The horrible wind wrapped around the ax. Instantly, the apparition of a huge tornado battle ax appeared in the air. It split the air apart, including the handprint.


    The Five Element Rod appeared in Ye Futian''s hand and it turned into a golden staff. Those people weren''t here right now, so he didn''t have to hide his skills.


    His Emperor''s Will burned and the martial arts fate was applied to the Five Element Rod. He spun and slammed down from the air. However, the figure''s second attack was even stronger. It also built up potential energy and rode the windstorm. It contained shocking power and attacked.


    With a huge boom, it seemed even the sky would explode. The battle ax formed by martial arts fate was shattered, but Ye Futian was also forced back. However, his body danced like a streak of light. Even stronger might wrapped around him, slicing down.


    The battle ax formed again and went for Ye Futian.


    Boom. With another explosion, the battle ax extinguished again. The Five Element Rod fell on the spirit''s shoulder, cracking his body.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian called.


    Yu Sheng answered by hurling down the Demonic Tripod, crushing the spirit. Martial arts fate fell upon his body.


    "It''s up to you here," Ye Futian said, looking at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng nodded and saw Ye Futian walk towards the end of the bridge. Long Yitian could succeed in this level back then. Yu Sheng had a lower plane, but after taking martial arts fate from the eighth level, he would be able to defeat the other guards.


    Ye Futian couldn''t maintain his state for too long. He had to check out the ninth level.


    The nine bridges converged at one point. That was the entrance to the ninth level. He could vaguely make out a blurry pavilion. Ye Futian kept walking forward to the end. He released his martial arts fate and walked amongst it.


    Instantly, he disappeared from the eighth level.


    The battlefield of the ninth level was the Ultimate Land. It had become smaller too. There was only one scene. A divine palace reaching the clouds in the sky was rooted there. There was only one staircase that led up to the palace. But right now, there were two figures at the foot. They were Chen Wang and Long Mu who''d reached the ninth level. However, they were still standing at the bottom and looking up, feeling helpless.


    They couldn''t go up.


    There were 18 figures on the steps. Each one was as powerful as the ones guarding the bridges in the eighth level. This already made them despair because they''d gotten help to reach this level. They didn''t do it by themselves.

 467 Collapse

    Chen Wang and Long Mu seemed to sense something. They turned around to see a silver-hooded figure walk over. They both furrowed their brows.


    They didn''t know this man.


    After they''d entered, other people were probably trying to break in but no one came in. And yet this unknown man had entered. This naturally made them alert. The abilities of people who could come here were undisputed. If he came alone, then it was even more frightening. He must be someone extremely dangerous.


    Since when did the Top Three Schools have such a strong cultivator?


    "Who are you?" Chen Wang asked.


    "Why don''t you go up?" Ye Futian ignored his question, gazing coldly at Chen Wang.


    "It isn''t easy to climb up. How about we team up?" Chen Wang asked. He and Long Mu couldn''t do it, but the three of them could try together.


    "Do you even qualify?"


    Ye Futian glanced at him in disdain. Chen Wang''s expression stiffened. Seeing Ye Futian''s disdainful eyes, he felt extreme humiliation. But then, Ye Futian walked forward to the steps.


    Martial arts fate wrapped around him. The strongest was still the fire martial arts fate, which he''d received from the fire spirit in the eighth level. Right now, the burning Emperor''s Will carried the martial arts fate. Ye Futian was instantly bathed in horrible fire.


    He closed his eyes, feeling the power around him. The Sage martial arts fate seemed to be made from a bit of Sage Will. When some type of spell was merged into it, martial arts fate was created.


    Urged by the Emperor Will, his perception of the Sage martial arts fate intensified and strengthened. If the spirits at the steps were similar to the ones guarding the bridges, there would be no suspense.


    At this moment, Ye Futian seemed to sense the power of the spirits guarding the bridges earlier. It was so clear.


    Boom. Extremely dazzling handprints hovered around Ye Futian. They all glowed with frightening gold light as if divine fire was inside them.


    Ye Futian waved his hands and all the handprints came from all directions. They wove a frightening image before him. It was like the power released by the bridge guards but different. He had his own comprehension and had added the earlier martial arts fate and Emperor Will.


    The moment he opened his eyes, shocking light burst from his eyes. Then he waved his hand and the rays of light shot from the image. It wasn''t fiery light. Instead, it was destructive fiery handprints with golden light, driven by the Emperor Will.


    Thud. At almost the same time, Ye Futian took a step forward onto the stairs.


    The first strong cultivator bathed in endless thunder and lightning. Seeing the attack, the shield of a thunder god appeared before him. The handprints attacked crazily. Cracks snaked through the shield formed by boundless lightning. Fire crept in and burned it bit by bit. Finally, the shield shattered with a boom. The thunder might went wild.


    Boom. Ye Futian disappeared and reappeared before the spirit. He moved like lightning, instantly arriving there. The image before him crushed down on the spirit who instantly burned under it. Its martial arts fate landed on Ye Futian.


    "This��" Long Mu''s arms trembled. Chen Wang also gaped at Ye Futian''s figure. How could he be so powerful? When they''d been going through the bridge, they''d only succeeded by working together with many others. Then they couldn''t take a single step at the ninth level. But this man went up by himself and destroyed the strong cultivator there. When did the Top Three Schools have such a powerful disciple?


    Another ring of martial arts fate circled him. Ye Futian paused at the steps. Then he released a second martial arts fate. It transformed into the shield of the thunder god before him. The entire sky was filled with boundless electric light. Legendary divine light flowed through the shield.


    "Impossible." Long Mu stared at this with wide eyes. It wasn''t perfect yet, but how could someone comprehend the martial arts fate so quickly?


    Ye Futian had just used Freedom Meditation to comprehend it and then used the Emperor Will to activate the martial arts fate. It wasn''t perfect, but Long Mu and Chen Wang were still impressed.


    Boom. There was another huge sound. Long Mu and Chen Wang saw a second spirit get destroyed. Ye Futian continued forward. Each step contained extreme power. He seemed to be getting stronger and stronger.


    After that, the third, the fourth�� As Ye Futian kept climbing, Long Mu and Chen Wang realized that these steps probably couldn''t stop this man.


    Long Mu grasped his ritual implement. His father had given it to him. He also knew that his father had failed on this path. He hoped he could walk up here and see the end of the martial arts battlefield. However, he couldn''t take a single step. And yet this mysterious silver-hooded figure kept walking up steadily. Gradually, he reached the last step.


    Chen Wang stared at him blankly. At the last attack, the figure stepped down from the air. The godlike figure was ingrained in Chen Wang''s mind, unable to be erased. He''d learned all the power contained in the 18 strong cultivators.


    The silver hood flapped despite the absence of wind. The man walked to the door of the palace.


    Long Mu and Chen Wang shot forward. They wanted to step into it desperately. But when they were about to climb up, Ye Futian turned around. He stared at them with cold eyes. At that moment, a figure appeared in their minds. Like a god, the figure made them feel powerless. Then they saw the god cast a handprint that covered the sky and shrouded the entire world they could sense.


    They fought back, but there was no suspense. When the hand fell down, they''d returned to the bottom of the steps. Sprawled on the ground, they spat out blood. Their organs felt shattered.


    Long Mu looked up at the figure with difficulty. Martial arts fate wrapped around him. He really did look like a god. Then he saw Ye Futian turn around and walk into the palace.


    Boom. The gates closed shut. Formless power shook. That instant, the entire battlefield seemed to tremble.


    "What''s going on?" That moment, everyone in the vast battlefield froze and looked into the distance. The battlefield had actually shaken.


    Long Mu and Chen Wang sat on the ground. Looking at the closed doors, they felt horrible.


    Back then, Long Yitian had reached this place and was known as the most talented man in the Divine Sky City. They''d reached this spot too now, but they had used other people''s help to get here.


    And then they witnessed someone who was probably more powerful than Long Yitian. Not only had he reached this spot, he''d also broken into the palace. But right now, they didn''t even know who it was.


    A while later, they heard booms. Long Mu and Chen Wang''s expressions changed slightly. They looked up to see the palace flash with extremely dazzling light. The light radiated through the entire battlefield. Like some kind of divine power, it splashed across the place.


    The palace was shaking.


    Then, the battlefield started shaking too. It grew stronger until the people were trembling too. Rocks fell from the palace as if it was collapsing. At that moment, the people trying to get martial arts fate discovered that the spirits before them suddenly disappeared.


    "What''s happening?" Countless hearts quivered. Was the battlefield collapsing? What had happened?


    "Look at the ninth level." Many people looked over. They discovered in shock that the blurry palace was breaking down bit by bit. It was getting destroyed.


    Long Mu and Chen Wang were there. When they witnessed it with their own eyes, they realized that the battlefield was probably self-destructing because it had found the one it was looking for.


    Just at that time, a figure charged out of the palace. It was that silver-hooded figure. He was so fast, directly shooting out of the ninth level.


    When he''d returned to the eighth level, he saw that the Black Wind Eagle had already transformed into a demon bird and was waiting for orders. Yu Sheng and the others were there too. When Ye Futian landed on the bird''s back, it flashed hurriedly and rushed out from another exit.


    Even if the battlefield wasn''t collapsing, Ye Futian would still take them away. They couldn''t stay on the eighth level.


    Right now, the strong cultivators outside the battlefield all looked up in shock. The mysterious space was buzzing. It seemed to be shaking.


    "What happened?" Some strong cultivators had sharp gazes. Nothing like this had happened in countless years.


    "Mother, what''s going on?" Long Ling''er asked her mom.


    "I don''t know." Madame Long shook her head. "It must be something big."


    Her expression was solemn. The martial arts battlefield was extremely important. It was a significant place for the martial arts fate of the Top Three Schools. However, just as the shaking grew stronger, someone rushed out.


    "What''s going on?" many people asked at the same time.


    The disciple who''d escaped looked up at the crowd with incredulous eyes. "The battlefield is collapsing," he said.


    "That''s impossible," a strong cultivator said. "What happened?"


    "I don''t know. I just saw the palace on the ninth level flash, the light reaching the entire battlefield. Then the palace started collapsing. The battlefield followed," he said, body trembling.


    After that, more disciples walked out. Someone said in shock, "All the spirits disappeared."


    The battlefield will probably become history. This shocking thought appeared in many minds. They couldn''t calm themselves!

 468 Investigation

    In the martial arts battlefield, everything was collapsing. The ground vibrated, many cracks appearing. In the sky, meteorite-like objects fell, and even the sky turned into a symbol.


    It was an illusory world in the first place.


    Everyone ran towards the exit, forming a giant steam. In the crowd, a Black Wind Condor flapped its wings and followed the flow. Ye Futian and his friends were on its back. At the moment, Ye Futian was extremely weak, which was the aftereffect of burning Emperor Will. Last time in the Evil Dragon Zone, he did not release all his powers, and, in addition, he ate the Dragon Grass which helped with his recovery afterward. On the other hand, he used all the powers in his body this time, and even his face was somewhat pale. However, the journey this time was very rewarding for them.


    Loulan Xue stared at Ye Futian with her silver eyes. She knew that the collapse of the martial arts battlefield was clearly caused by Ye Futian. What did he do in the ninth level?


    As they neared the exit, Ye Futian met a group of familiar faces, namely Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing. However, Jiang Nan only glanced coldly at Ye Futian. None of the parties spoke.


    Jin Yunxiao, Zhen Rong, and the rest also flew towards their direction. When they were chased out of the eighth level, the alliance had already disintegrated. Therefore, they all started training in the seventh level. At the moment, they also could not keep calm. They guessed that the person who caused the collapse of the battlefield was very likely the young man in the silver cloak who had chased them out of the eighth level. He was way too strong and could defeat everyone by himself.


    When Long Mu and Chen Wang returned, they would know the answer.


    "Mr. Ye," someone suddenly shouted among the chaotic crowd. Gu Yunxi saw Ye Futian and his friends flying towards her direction and stared at Ye Futian with some guilt. Just now, the group who had allied with her chased him out of the eighth level. Ye Futian must be very disappointed.


    "Mr. Ye, what''s wrong?" Gu Yunxi realized that Ye Futian was in a bad state, as if he was very weak.


    "After I left just now, I tried to obtain more sage-level martial arts fate in the seventh level. I used all my strength and was injured, but it''s no big deal," Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    "That''s great," Gu Yunxi nodded gently. "Please do not mind the incident that happened earlier. Soon after you left, we were also chased out of the eighth level."


    Ye Futian obviously knew that. He blinked his eyes, thinking that Gu Yunxi was indeed kind to use such a way to console him. She was worried that his self-esteem would be hurt as it was very embarrassing to be chased out. Therefore, she said that they were also chased out afterward. Of course, Ye Futian could not say that he knew that already. After all, he was the one who did it.


    "What? Who''s strong enough to do that?" Ye Futian pretended to know nothing and felt somewhat sorry for her. He had to keep this a secret.


    "I''ve no idea. It''s an extremely powerful cultivator in the silver cloak. The collapse of the battlefield is probably also related to him." Some surprise appeared in Gu Yunxi''s eyes. Thinking about the action of that person in the eighth level, she still could not remain calm. The person was too mighty. Jin Yunlang had a sage ritual implement but it was taken away directly by the person. In the end, the ritual implement was thrown away.


    "Such a person must be unparalleled," Ye Futian complimented. Beside him, Yu Sheng glanced at him. Is he praising himself?


    "Yup," Gu Yunxi nodded gently. "Nobody in Divine Sky City in this generation can be compared to him."


    "It''s so unfortunate that I didn''t manage to see him!" Ye Futian sighed. Loulan Xue blinked her eyes.


    As they spoke, they finally reached the exit. Then, they followed the rest and left the martial arts battlefield. Right after they left the battlefield, Ye Futian saw Jin Yunlang, Bai Qiong, and some others floating in the air and guarding the exit. They stared coldly at the crowd walking out of the martial arts battlefield.


    Ye Futian immediately knew what they were looking for. They did not know that he had disguised himself. At the moment, they were outside the exit to wait for the person in the silver cloak.


    Clearly, they also noticed Ye Futian and his friends. However, they only glanced at them briefly before turning their attention away. They obviously would not think that any of Ye Futian and his friends could possibly be that all-powerful young man.


    "Brother Futian." Noticing that Ye Futian had come out, Long Ling''er ran over and asked, "Brother Futian, what happened to you?"


    "Nothing, just some minor injuries." Ye Futian smiled gently.


    "Brother Futian, who hurt you?" Long Ling''er asked angrily.


    "The spirits in the martial arts battlefield. Do you want to revenge me?" Seeing Long Ling''er cute behavior, Ye Futian rubbed her head.


    The little girl smiled timidly.


    At the moment, the huge crowd outside the martial arts battlefield was having a heated discussion. Just now, they had received an astonishing message. This time, a few people actually managed to enter the ninth level of the martial arts battlefield, achieving what Long Yitian had once done.


    Many people also reached the eighth level.


    "Look. It''s Chen Wang and Long Mu!" someone suddenly exclaimed. Countless people looked at the two figures at the exit. Hearing Long Mu''s name, Long Ling''er also looked in that direction.


    At the moment, Chen Wang and Long Mu''s breaths were unstable as they were injured. Although it was only one strike, their injuries were still quite major.


    Chen Wang ignored the stares of everyone. Flashing, he approached an elder and urged, "Master, give orders to seal this place. Don''t let any of the Top Three School disciples leave!"


    "Of course," that person nodded. Then, he went to inform the people from the other two schools. Just now, they were already guessing the person who caused the battlefield to collapse. Chen Wang and Long Mu went to the ninth level and certainly knew more things. This issue was extremely important and they had to settle it right here.


    Some people from the Top Three Schools immediately surrounded the space around the exit. They had to find out what happened behind the collapse of the martial arts battlefield.


    "Blazing Sun School disciples, listen! After you exit, do not leave!"


    "Bright Moon School disciples..."


    "Starry School disciples..."


    The elders from the Top Three Schools gave their orders one after another. All the people who had exited gathered at the space in front.


    Chen Wang, Long Mu, and the rest were surrounded by the elders from the Top Three Schools and questioned. Soon, the elders roughly knew what had happened.


    They also stared at the exit with the group. Even the elders of the Top Three Schools could not recognize every single person of their school. Nobody seemed to recall seeing any person in a silver cloak earlier. If they did not miss out anyone, such a person should not have existed at all.


    Time passed by slowly. The martial arts battlefield was still vibrating and more and more people walked out, until there was no more. The person whom they were looking for was still not present.


    "He''s not here," Jin Yunxiao said coldly. In the eighth level of the martial arts battlefield, he was humiliated badly. Moreover, he could not tell anyone else about it. Such an embarrassing experience could only be kept to himself. He was even worried that someone who saw it would tell the rest.


    "He disguised himself," Chen Wang said.


    Long Mu had a sharp expression on his face. They all knew that although the person was not out yet, it was impossible for him to be still hiding inside. Even if he was, how long could he hide for?


    It was most probable that the person was already outside, but not having the same appearance as the one they saw in the battlefield.


    That person had been hiding among the Top Three Schools disciples all the time. After he went inside the battlefield, he started attacking and snatching the martial arts fate of everyone. He even caused the battlefield to collapse.


    Everything was taken by a single person.


    Their faces all darkened. There were so many people who had entered the martial arts battlefield. If the culprit really disguised himself and was hiding among the crowd, how should they even start investigating? They could not check everybody one by one and did not know where to start.


    "Who saw a person in a silver cloak inside?" an elder of the Blazing Sun School suddenly asked.


    Many people looked at each other and shook their heads one after another.


    "Silver cloak?" someone suddenly asked. Immediately, countless people turned their heads and stared at the speaker. It was Jiang Nan.


    "Jiang Nan, did you see him inside?" Jin Yunxiao asked.


    "No, but I saw such a person in the past. Furthermore, it''s not just me," Jiang Nan replied. "Last time, when the Dragon Grass in the Evil Dragon Zone was about to mature, some people went there to take the grass. That time, a mysterious person in silver cloak appeared and took the treasure away."


    "That''s right. I was there at that time too."


    "I saw him as well," many people who had been to the Evil Dragon Zone that time said. Wang Yuqing''s heart raced as she thought about that unparalleled figure. Was he the one who caused the battlefield to collapse?


    "So it''s not the first time," Jin Yunxiao said coldly.


    Even back then, that person had already been staring at the Top Three Schools. Then, he must have entered the Top Three Schools in the assessment and kept a low-profile.


    "Who has been there at that time? All step out," an elder from the Top Three Schools said. This time, the Arcana Plane disciples of the three schools were almost all here. Therefore, those who had gone to the Evil Dragon Zone that time must also be in the crowd.


    Very soon, many people stepped forward one after another. However, someone said, "These people should all be present at that time. The mysterious person charged in from the outside."


    "There are a few more people who were there," Jiang Nan suddenly said, looking at Ye Futian and his friends.


    Following Jiang Nan''s look, the people from the Top Three Schools also stared at Ye Futian and his friends. Ye Futian explained, "I was indeed outside at that time, but I did not participate at all."


    Jin Yunxiao seemed to be surprised, after which he asked, "Then is it possible that they disguised themselves?"


    After he finished speaking, Long Mu, Gu Yunxi, and the rest all looked at them one after another.


    It seemed that this possibility could not be eliminated. However, was it really Ye Futian and his team? Who among them was so strong? In addition, if it was really someone from them, why did they not defeat the cultivators near the bridge before entering?


    "Do you think it''s us?" Ye Futian looked at Jin Yunxiao and glanced coldly at Jiang Nan. Jiang Nan was merely trying to get him involved.


    "Seniors, I was outside the cave that time and did nothing. Moreover, I also saw the mysterious person escape from the cave myself. People who were present at that time can prove this for me," Ye Futian said, looking at the people around him.


    "Senior." Suddenly, a charming figure walked out, who turned out to be Li Man. She looked at the crowd and continued, "Indeed, when the mysterious person escaped at that time, they were standing at the side and watching."


    "Yes, I can prove that as well," Wang Yuqing also said, causing Ye Futian to glanced at her in surprise. He did not expect her to stand out and speak for him.


    Ye Futian was not worried that he would be exposed precisely because of this. Although he had shown up twice, the last time when the mirror spell created the illusion that he and the demonic bird were escaping, he was standing at the side and watching the scene himself. Many disciples and elders of the Top Three Schools saw it. Hence, they would not suspect him to be the mysterious person in the silver cloak.


    Realizing that Wang Yuqing actually stepped out for Ye Futian, Jiang Nan''s face turned gloomy. Even though he also saw Ye Futian beside him at that time, he still deliberately wanted to get him involved.


    "Must the thing that you saw be real? According to what I know, there are many spells that can create illusions," Jiang Nan said coldly. Right then, many people seemed to be stunned.

 469 Divine Ligh

    Ye Futian was also momentarily puzzled, and he looked at Jiang Nan. Feeling the stares of many, a strange expression appeared on Jiang Nan''s face. He did not really mean what he just said. Unhappy that Wang Yuqing spoke for Ye Futian, he only wanted to find an excuse to prove that his words were not unreasonable and that Ye Futian could not prove his innocence in that way. However, after saying those unintentional words, he suddenly had a strange feeling and stared at Ye Futian.


    What if it was real?


    Impossible! Jiang Nan was shocked by his own thought. How can such a powerful person be Ye Futian?


    When one disliked another person, one could truly hope that the person would not be too strong. Ye Futian was the owner of Celestial Pavilion and had displayed an astonishing talent on the assessment day which had already caused Jiang Nan to be extremely unhappy. If he was really the person who broke through all obstacles and caused the martial arts battlefield to collapse, Jiang Nan would simply not be able to accept that fact that he was so mighty. That would mean that Ye Futian was even more outstanding than Long Yitian. After all, during that time, even Long Yitian did not manage to do what the mysterious person did, namely causing the battlefield to be destroyed.


    Realizing that many people were looking at him, Ye Futian tried his best to remain calm and frowned gently. He looked at Jiang Nan and said, "Jiang Nan, you have humiliated me multiple times and I never argued anything with you. Now, you even try to maliciously find various excuses to get me involved in this. What a crafty person you are!" Ye Futian also knew that Jiang Nan was only finding a random excuse. Unfortunately, what he said was the key behind everything.


    "I''m only telling the truth. The seniors will judge this themselves," Jiang Nan forced himself to say. Obviously, he would not admit that he was accusing Ye Futian.


    "Tell me about the situation in the Evil Dragon Zone in detail," an elder from Starry School said. Although Ye Futian might be suspicious, nobody would think that he was certainly the culprit just because of Jiang Nan''s words.


    A disciple walked out and explained roughly what had happened in the Evil Dragon Zone. A strange expression appeared on the face of an elder from Starry School and he said, "So the mysterious person that time was skilled in music and indeed a powerful Musical Sorcerer. Moreover, he was probably able to control demons."


    "Yes. The giant bird he was riding on and the demons charging with him were probably all affected by his music," the disciple confirmed.


    "Alright," the elder from Starry School nodded. Then, he looked at Ye Futian. "On the assessment day, your music also seems to be quite strong."


    Immediately, many people stared at Ye Futian. Chen Wang, Jin Yunlang, Jin Yunxiao, Long Mu, Gu Yunxi, and many others all seemed to be surprised.


    "They also managed to enter the eighth level of the martial arts battlefield but did not defeat the defenders on the bridge there. After we arrived, we chased them out of the eighth level. The cultivator in silver cloak appeared after that," Jin Yunlang said.


    "So they are indeed somewhat suspicious." The cultivators from the Top Three Schools looked at Ye Futian and his friends. Someone said, "What did you do in the ninth level?"


    Realizing that the person who just spoke was staring at him with a fierce look, Ye Futian knew that they were testing him. Hence, he gave a bitter smile and said, "Senior, do you really think that we have the ability to do so? In this case, why don''t we join the Top Three Schools first and then enter the battlefield? Why would we do this?"


    Everyone frowned. Ye Futian''s words also seemed to be reasonable.


    "In addition, there are so many musical spells. Why you are suspecting me just because of this similarity? As for the camouflage, Jiang Nan was only being ridiculous and trying hard to get us involved. That time, there were so many people present," Ye Futian continued. "Apart from all these, I was only in the Lower Arcana Plane in Yunyue City. How did I manage to snatch the Dragon Grass from the Top Three School disciples? I wouldn''t be able to hide my level. What treasure or equipment could allow me, a Lower Arcana Plane cultivator, to cross so many levels and defeat everyone else?"


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, many people started thinking again. In the martial arts battlefield, it was still possible for Ye Futian to become much stronger by relying on martial arts fate. However, in the Evil Dragon Zone, how could Ye Futian, a Lower Arcana Plane cultivator, defeat so many disciples?


    The logic behind this was indeed flawed.


    If Ye Futian was really the person who did this, many things could not be explained. Using a spell to create illusions that he was escaping also did not seem to be very sensible.


    At the moment, it could already be confirmed that the mysterious person disguised himself. The appearance of the young man in the silver cloak was definitely fake. There were two possibilities, the first being that after disguising himself and taking the Dragon Grass, the mysterious person entered the Top Three Schools this year with his real identity. Then, he entered the martial arts battlefield and snatched the martial arts fate of everyone else. If this was the case, the person must really know the information of the Top Three Schools very well, as he first went for the Dragon Grass and then the martial arts battlefield. It was possible that he was a junior of some secret clan who came out to train himself.


    The second possibility was, just like what they had guessed earlier, that the person was someone among Ye Futian and his friends.


    "If they really have the silver cloak, they must be hiding it on themselves. We''ll know the answer by looking in their storage rings," Jin Yunlang said emotionlessly. Although he also felt that it was probably not Ye Futian, he would not ignore the possibility since Ye Futian was somewhat suspicious. Among the people who entered the martial arts battlefield, only they were not from the Top Three Schools. Therefore, it would be easy to check on them first.


    Frowning, Ye Futian looked at Jin Yunlang and said, "I think that would be too much." Storage ring was a private item of a person and may contain some secrets. Clearly, nobody would easily give their storage ring to another person to be checked.


    "Since you claim that it''s not you, let''s just take a look. Do you think that we''ll even want anything from your ring?" an elder said.


    Ye Futian''s face darkened. Who could say that their storage ring did not have any secrets? However, noticing the looks of everyone, Ye Futian knew that he would not be able to get away without giving his storage ring.


    "All of you are seniors. Since you want to check, how do I dare not to give it? However, I can''t fully trust every one of you. How about I let Madame Long check it instead?" Ye Futian said, looking at Madame Long.


    "What do you mean? You really think that we''ll want anything from your ring?" the elder who spoke just now said coldly.


    "It''s indeed inappropriate for you to check it. If he really has nothing, you''ll actually be bullying him. If you believe me, let me take a look," Madame Long said.


    "Of course we believe you. That sounds fine," someone said. Ye Futian took off the storage ring from his finger and said, "Storage rings are precious and I only managed to pick this one up in the Evil Dragon Zone. There is only one of these between all of us. Madame, please." Then, he threw the ring at Madame Long.


    Madame Long''s Spiritual Energy entered the ring, after which she said, "The thing you''re looking for is not inside."


    "It''s not that I do not trust you, madame. However, the little princess of the Dragon Clan is very close to him, right?" a cultivator from Jin Clan suddenly said. Madame Long frowned and some coldness flashed across her eyes.


    "Madame Long, in this case, please give it to another person whom you trust to take a look," Ye Futian added. Madame Long nodded gently at Ye Futian, after which she gave the ring to an elder from Starry School. The elder checked the contents of the ring. Then, he shook his head and returned the ring to Ye Futian.


    "In this case, can we leave?" Ye Futian said emotionlessly.


    "Just leave," Madame Long said. Ye Futian looked at everyone and then said to Long Ling''er, "I''m going back first."


    "Sure," Long Ling''er nodded gently. Then, the Black Wind Condor flashed and brought Ye Futian and his friends away.


    Many people stayed at the same place, ready to continue their investigation.


    Ye Futian and his friends returned to Celestial Pavilion when he heaved a long sigh. So close! The fact that he had used a mirror spell to create illusions in the Evil Dragon Zone was also almost exposed. Luckily, he had been cautious and worried that he would be investigated after leaving the battlefield. Therefore, he left the silver cloak on the battlefield. Apart from that, he did not take any of the sage ritual implements inside. He also asked Yu Sheng and the rest to leave them in the battlefield.


    He could feel his heart bleeding. Nevertheless, he did all those to make sure that nothing would be exposed.


    Night soon arrived. Ye Futian sat cross-legged in the courtyard in Celestial Pavilion. Suddenly, a few beams of light appeared on his body. All of them looked particularly dazzling.


    Very soon, three extremely bright beams of light shot out from his body. In the next instant, the three beams of light actually turned into an unmatched radiance and lit the entire area like divine light. A sun, a moon, and countless stars appeared. Then, within the sun, moon, and stars, three illusory figures appeared. One of them was sitting inside the sun, one on the crescent moon, and the last controlling the movements of the stars.


    Without Ye Futian realizing it, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Loulan Xue were already beside him, attracted by the mysterious radiance. At the moment, the scene in the sky was extremely beautiful. The three illusory figures were sitting in the air like saints.


    Just then, Ye Futian controlled the light with his mind. Immediately, the fascinating scene in the sky turned into three beams of light and flew back into his body, vanishing gradually.


    Puff. Ye Futian felt somewhat weak. He was not in the right state to cultivate yet and had to rest for a few days.


    "What''s that?" Loulan Xue asked.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at her. Then, he said, "In the pavilion in the martial arts battlefield, there were three beams of divine light. It was where a saint died."


    "Not three saints?" Loulan Xue''s heart raced.


    "Nope, only one." Ye Futian shook his head. "This saint was the founder of the Top Three Schools. In the past, they were not yet divided into the three schools, and there was only one divine school. Later, it was split into three and slowly became the Top Three Schools today."


    "The saint was waiting for the juniors of the Top Three Schools in the martial arts battlefield. You stepped inside and obtained the three beams of divine light, after which the whole place collapsed. Did the saint not mind this?" Loulan Xue took in a deep breath. Ye Futian actually obtained the inheritance from a saint.


    "Yes, you could say that," Ye Futian nodded. Then, he smiled bitterly and said, "I did not want to enter the Top Three Schools, but in the end, I obtained the inheritance from the founder of the Top Three Schools. Err..." After that, he shook his head, still feeling somewhat strange.

 470 Confession

    The news that the martial arts battlefield had collapsed spread throughout Divine Sky City like a virus. Long Mu and Chen Wang had managed to enter the ninth level, astonishing countless many. They displayed the glory that Long Yitian had in the past. They did not enter that level with their own powers, but the people in the world would only look at the outcome.


    Of course, the more shocking news was about the mysterious person who had caused the battlefield to collapse. Countless people started guessing who exactly he was. The Top Three Schools checked all their disciples who left the battlefield but still to no avail.


    It was as if this person was non-existent at all. However, the issue would clearly not end so easily. The place of martial arts fate was destroyed but the person who had obtained the strongest fate was not found. The Top Three Schools would certainly not stop their investigation. Nevertheless, Ye Futian seemed to be unconcerned about all these. After recovering gradually, he started to cultivate, secluding himself from the outside world.


    In the martial arts battlefield, he had obtained eighteen types of martial arts fate just in the ninth level. After he left the battlefield, the martial arts fate would no longer increase his combat power, but they all turned into fate and willpower which fused into his body. This was the great benefit the Top Three School disciples had been talking about.


    These 18 martial arts fates could bring a lot of benefits. Ye Futian needed to learn their real powers and merge them with his own abilities. Of course, the greatest reward of this trip was not the 18 martial arts fates, but the three beams of divine light.


    The three beams of divine light contained the willpower of the saint. The sun, moon, and stars could change in thousands of ways, giving him many new skills and allowing him to learn a lot. The saint here was the founder of the Top Three Schools. All the most powerful abilities of the Top Three Schools were developed from the Saint''s Will.


    At the moment, each of the Top Three Schools only had one of the abilities available. On the other hand, Ye Futian had received the complete Saint''s Will.


    It was not just Ye Futian himself. He also cultivated together with Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Loulan Xue. As he released the divine light, they could feel the powers contained within it as well. Even if they could learn just a tiny bit of the Saint''s Will, they would still grow stronger.


    That time on Turtle Mountain in the Eastern Barren Territory, the Turtle Hermit had allowed them to watch the rules of the world, which was the ability of sages. After they left the mountain, they also became stronger. However, Ye Futian and his friends could feel that the Saint''s Will was really too mysterious and unfathomable. At the moment, they could only see the surface of it. They learned and improved gradually day by day.


    At the moment, two people were fighting on a battle platform in the backyard of Celestial Pavilion.


    With a dark-gold battle ax in his hand, the violent Yu Sheng fell down from the sky like the god of war. He struck out the ax, bringing along a terrifying storm. In the sky, a straight line appeared and even space seemed to be cut into two.


    Below him, Ye Futian raised his hand. Many violet-gold bolts of lightning around him converged wildly from all directions. They fused into one and contracted rapidly. Eventually, an astonishing lightning shield appeared before Ye Futian. The shield was even glittering in a golden radiance.


    The battle ax struck down and was blocked by the lightning shield. The terrifying lightning destroyed everything around it, trying to crush the ax.


    Yu Sheng gave a cold roar. The battle ax traced out an arc in the air as his body made a rotation. Then, he struck out the ax for the second time, bringing along the frightening powers of the earth. With the wind, he attacked again.


    "Punishment of the Thunder God!" Ye Futian roared coldly. The terrifying lightning shield suddenly turned into countless bolts of violet-gold lightning which swept towards Yu Sheng like a Thunder Raid.


    As Yu Sheng''s ax danced in the air, however, even the lightning seemed to be cut apart. In the sky, earth-elemental Spiritual Qi raged and many meteorites gathered. In the Evil Dragon Zone, Ye Futian had seen a top noble fight with his third brother with this ability. He, therefore, learned it from the Saint''s Will.


    "Star Burial!" Ye Futian waved his hand. Immediately, countless meteorites converged towards Yu Sheng, trying to bury him completely.


    Buzz! Yu Sheng''s devil-like wings opened. Then, he struck out his ax continuously, creating many shocking beams of light in the sky. As the Star Burial spell converged towards him, many cracks appeared on the rocks. The meteorites cracked directly before they could even bury their target. Yu Sheng was still floating in the sky.


    "Stop, stop. No more!" Ye Futian said, depressed. "This is so sad." If he cast this spell on someone else at the same level as him, it would definitely destroy his opponent at once. However, it was pretty useless against Yu Sheng. The two were having a friendly fight to train their combat powers. Ye Futian knew that he would never be able to defeat Yu Sheng without trying his best.


    "Okay." Yu Sheng landed on the ground. The wild aura around him vanished, and so did his battle ax.


    Loulan Xue had been watching the battle at the side. Two freaks... she thought. After the battles in the martial arts battlefield and learning from the Saint''s Will over this period, their levels had increased again. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had both already entered the fifth level of the Arcana Plane. However, even the battle scene of Upper Arcana Plane cultivators would not be as terrifying as theirs.


    Loulan Xue could even feel the destructive powers at the side. If anyone of them was changed to another person, the new person would lose terribly.


    "Shen Yu came just now. She said that Ling''er is here to visit you," Loulan Xue said. Whenever Ye Futian and his friends cultivated here, nobody else would be allowed to enter, not even Shen Yu. She could at most ask Loulan Xue to pass the message.


    "Alright," Ye Futian nodded. Then, he left the place and went to the courtyard, when he saw Long Ling''er smile and shout, "Brother Futian, what are you secretly doing there? So mysterious."


    "Why do I have to be secretive?" Ye Futian widened his eyes at Long Ling''er. She was young but full of mischief.


    "Then why didn''t they allow me to go in and find you myself?" Long Ling''er giggled. Then, she said to the people behind her, "You can go out now. I have something to speak to brother Futian."


    "Yes, my lady," Yang Xing and the rest nodded, after which they left the place.


    "Go out as well," Long Ling''er said to Shen Yu again.


    Shen Yu replied and then left as well. Although Ye Futian was the owner of Celestial Pavilion, she clearly also had to listen to the orders of Long Ling''er.


    "You are the person being secretive," Ye Futian said, looking at Long Ling''er. "What''s up?"


    Long Ling''er glanced at Loulan Xue. Ye Futian knew her meaning and said, "She''s with me."


    "Sure," Long Ling''er nodded. "My mother asked me to come this time. She asked me to tell you that someone is investigating you."


    Ye Futian squinted slightly, having a bad feeling. It seemed like he was not completely safe yet. He had still left some traces after appearing twice. Even though he destroyed all the evidence, there were still people who suspected him. If they really managed to find out his true identity, he would not be able to escape from all these.


    The Eastern Barren Territory was very far away from the Barren State and the people here did not really pay attention to the Eastern Barren Territory. However, if the people doing the investigating were from top clans, it would still be risky.


    Of course, he knew Madame Long''s intention in reminding him. After coming out from the martial arts battlefield, he gave the storage ring to Madame Long not only because of trust. In addition, he might be able to hide the truth from other people, but definitely not Madame Long. She knew who he was and where he was from. Therefore, he did so to display his trust Madame Long.


    Madame Long asked Ling''er to tell Ye Futian that there were people investigating him to remind him to be prepared.


    "Brother Futian, my mother said that only I can know about this and I must not tell anyone else. Why are they investigating you?" Long Ling''er stared at Ye Futian with a naive look. She was smart and roughly knew that something might have happened with Ye Futian.


    "You''re still young. Don''t think so much," Ye Futian said.


    "Who''s young? I''m almost fifteen!" Long Ling''er argued, pouting.


    Ye Futian glanced at her with contempt, but in his mind, he was thinking how he should handle this. Should he just leave? If there were people investigating him, would they also ask someone to spy on his movement?


    "Where''s the madame now?" Ye Futian asked Long Ling''er.


    "West Court," Long Ling''er replied.


    "I''ll go and pay her a visit," Ye Futian added.


    "Great! You can accompany me then." Long Ling''er giggled.


    "You''re thinking too much," Ye Futian remarked, smiling. "Loulan, I''m going out." Then, he left Celestial Pavilion with Long Ling''er.


    Ye Futian met Madame Long in an elegant courtyard in West Court. Bowing gently, he said, "Greetings, Madame Long."


    "You don''t have to be so polite." Madame Long smiled and raised her head.


    "Bring Ling''er outside to take a stroll," Madame Long said to the maidservants behind her. They nodded one after another, but Long Ling''er said, "I want to be here too."


    "Don''t be mischievous." Madame Long glanced at Long Ling''er. Long Ling''er twitched her lips in dissatisfaction and said, "Mom, then be quick." After that, she left the place unwillingly.


    Only Madame Long and Ye Futian were left in the courtyard. Ye Futian folded his hands and said, "Madame, please advise."


    "I don''t even know what happened. How do I advise?" Madame Long looked at Ye Futian and smiled.


    Ye Futian smiled bitterly and shook his head. "You must have guessed it already. I don''t have to say it."


    "So it is you." Madame Long gazed at Ye Futian. That year, her brother Long Yitian only entered the ninth level but did not manage to go further. Ye Futian actually did it.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded. Madame Long''s heart trembled. Although she had already guessed it earlier, she was still somewhat shocked by Ye Futian''s confirmation.


    That time, Long Yitian was already unparalleled in the Eastern Region of the Barren State. Now, Ye Futian did what her brother did not. Did that mean that Ye Futian was talented enough to stand at the peak of this era? Furthermore, Madame Long managed to know Ye Futian, and his relationship with her daughter was very good.


    "So Long Mu was hit by you there," Madame Long said, looking at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian felt somewhat embarrassed. In any case, Long Mu was still the next leader of the Dragon Clan.


    "I believe you have heard about his father''s story from Ling''er. That time when my brother was alive, he protected the whole family and his relationship with Ling''er''s father was also extremely good. He even viewed Ling''er as his own daughter and treated her better than Mu''er. After he passed away, we have been treating Long Mu in the same way as we did to Ling''er, causing him to develop some bad characters. Ling''er''s father and I are somewhat responsible for this," Madame Long said slowly. "It''s good for Long Mu to learn a lesson now."


    Madame Long stopped after delivering her point and did not say anything else. Ye Futian, however, started to admire her in his heart. Her words conveyed her attitude.


    "Madame, I understand," Ye Futian nodded.

 471 Suppor

    Madame Long said that it was good for Long Mu to learn a lesson, meaning that she would not blame Ye Futian for the incident. However, she also mentioned how she and the father of Ling''er viewed Long Mu. It was a hint for Ye Futian and he knew what he should not do. Although he did not like Long Mu, he would not be too serious with Long Mu because of Madame Long and Long Ling''er... At most he would punch Long Mu when he was unhappy.


    "You should tell me what you got there right?" Madame Long smiled and looked at Ye Futian.


    "Yup," Ye Futian nodded. Then, three beams of divine light erupted from his body. At once, the color of the sky changed. Sunlight and moonlight bloomed and many stars appeared.


    Standing up, Madame Long stared at the three illusory figures and was very shocked.


    After just an instant, Ye Futian withdrew them and stood calmly at his spot. Since Madame Long already knew that he had entered that place, it would not make a difference whether he attempted to hide the secret or not should she want to harm him. Moreover, according to his observation of Madame Long, she was wise and gentle and he had a good impression of her. She did not seem to be a cruel person at all.


    "What''s that?" Madame Long asked.


    "In the pavilion in the martial arts battlefield, there were three beams of divine light. Their owner is the founder of the Top Three Schools," Ye Futian replied. Blazing Sun, Bright Moon, Billion Stars.


    The Top Three Schools were originally a single entity. Madame Long knew this well. Madame Long kept staring at Ye Futian, her eyes filled with thoughts. Clearly, she was thinking.


    The courtyard was extremely quiet. Ye Futian also waited patiently. After a long while, Madame Long returned to reality. Looking at Ye Futian, she asked, "Why are you not willing to join the Top Three Schools?"


    "Madame, you know where I was from. In the Cottage, my master and seniors have been very nice to me. Therefore, on emotional grounds, I don''t want to join another school or college and become a disciple of someone else," Ye Futian replied. "Furthermore, if I enter the Top Three Schools, I''ll be bound by their rules and lose my freedom. I may not be staying in Divine Sky City for that long."


    Madame Long nodded gently, after which she said, "Since you have inherited belongings of the saint, there will be an unbreakable relationship between you and the Top Three Schools. There are also people who are investigating you at the moment. If they find out who you are, your situation will be very passive. There are two paths before you now. The first one is to leave this place and go as far as you can. If you choose this and someone finds out the truth in the future, the Top Three Schools will try to capture you at all costs."


    Ye Futian was speechless. He had already tried to carry out his plan as secretly as he could. For safety, he even gave up on many other treasures. However, there was nothing in the world that would leave no trace behind. Once someone found out his real identity, many things could be deduced naturally. They could also find other evidence, for example, the legend of the Demon Bird on Sky Mountain of the Eastern Barren Territory.


    "What''s the second path?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Enter Starry School," Madame Long said.


    "Become a disciple of Starry School?" Ye Futian seemed to be very surprised. "Will they not blame me for what I did?"


    "What''s there to blame you?" Madame Long replied. "Although Dragon Grass was important, it was only attractive to people below the Sage Plane. As for the disturbance on the assessment day, it was only a trivial matter to Starry School. You have to know that in the events that you have faced, no sages have ever shown up. Therefore all these are insignificant.


    "Since you have obtained the possessions of the saint which have extraordinary meanings, if you enter Starry School, you will certainly not become an ordinary disciple."


    A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. People standing at different viewpoints would see the same problem differently. Because Ye Futian was in the Arcana Plane, his view and the view of Madame Long were naturally different.


    He thought that Dragon Grass and the disturbance on the assessment day were both major issues, but Madame Long felt that they were all unimportant. To the whole school and the sages, they were of course also trivial. Sages would not even bother to handle these things. However, that Ye Futian had obtained the items of the saint was actually a major issue. Therefore, after Madame Long finished speaking, Ye Futian immediately understood her meaning. Comparing the two, the problems that he was worried about were indeed non-existent.


    That second path Madame Long was talking about was to let him join Starry School.


    "Even though these matters are not important, Starry School has more than just one option," Ye Futian said. Because he had inherited items from the saint, Starry School had another option: to take away whatever he had. This was a very risky choice.


    "Therefore, in the Top Three Schools, you can only join Starry School. After all, West Mountain Dragon Clan could only influence Starry School," Madame Long said. "Maybe you don''t know this yet. At the moment there are four factions in Starry School and they are the College Faction, West Mountain Dragon Clan, Gu Clan, and Jin Clan."


    "You have offended many people from Jin Clan. In addition, because of the relationship between the Dragon Clan and Jin Clan, if I recommend you to Starry School, they''ll definitely want to eliminate the threat and obtain what you have. Therefore, these two factions effectively cancel each other. The thing that will really determine the outcome is the attitude of the College Faction and Gu Clan. When Ling''er uncle was alive, the relationship between the Dragon Clan and Gu Clan was very good. Long Mu and Gu Yunxi even had the chance to be together. Later, the relationship faded slightly. However, Yunxi really admires you. In this case, as long as the Gu Clan supports you, Dragon Clan together with Gu Clan will be able to influence the College Faction."


    Madame Long analyzed, "Hence, it''s very likely that we''ll succeed. Now I need to know your choice. The first or the second?"


    Madame Long had organized everything very clearly. After hearing her words, Ye Futian thought for a while, after which he asked, "What will be my position when I join Starry School?"


    "Rumors say that in the past, there was only one divine school instead of the Top Three Schools. Among the disciples, the person with the highest status was the disciple of the saint and was known as the Son. Later, the saint was gone, and the school slowly turned into the Top Three Schools today. Since then, there were no more Sons. As you have obtained the inheritance from the saint, your position should not be low. It will be most appropriate for you to enter Starry School as the Son," Madame Long replied.


    "Furthermore, if you join Starry School, Blazing Sun School, and Bright Moon School will certainly be very unhappy after they find out what has happened. If you succeed, you will be effectively combined with Starry School. You don''t have to worry about your position."


    "What if we fail?" Ye Futian asked.


    "If we fail, give everything you have obtained. I''ll keep you safe," Madame Long said.


    "Alright," Ye Futian nodded. Then, he bowed slightly and said, "Madame, I''ll let you handle everything." Clearly, he chose the second path. The first one was too dangerous. Even if he left, he might still be sought after in the future. In comparison, although the second path was also somewhat risky, many issues would be solved once he succeeded. In the Eastern Barren Territory, he had also offended some people, but they were all juniors from their respective clans. If he could become the Son of Starry School, he would no longer be threatened by them anymore. His position would not be so low that he could not even offend the juniors from other clans.


    As for the conflicts, just like what Madame Long had said, they were all trivial. If Starry School could forgive him for what he had done, he could obviously do the same.


    "Great," Madame Long nodded. "Go back and wait for my news. Before this issue is settled, I''ll send some people to guard Celestial Pavilion."


    "Thank you, madame," Ye Futian nodded, after which he left the place. Long Ling''er pestered him for a while. Then, he returned to Celestial Pavilion to cultivate in peace.


    With his level, he clearly could not participate in this directly. Therefore, he could only allow Madame Long to handle everything. Becoming the Son of Starry School was already something that would involve all the top forces. At the moment, he could only wait patiently.


    However, this did not cause any disturbance in Divine Sky City at all. It was obviously being carried out in secret. Furthermore, Madame Long would not let too many people know about it. Only an undercurrent was surging in the city.


    After a few days, the people from the Dragon Clan brought Ye Futian to West Court. After that, he actually boarded Madame Long''s carriage with her and came to another place. It was an extremely grand house. After arriving, Ye Futian found out that he was at Gu Clan, a top clan in Divine Sky City, which was precisely Gu Yunxi''s family.


    When Madame Long appeared, the leader of Gu Clan and his wife welcomed her themselves, along with Gu Ming and Gu Yunxi whom Ye Futian had met before.


    "Mr. Ye, why are you here?" On the banquet, Gu Yunxi was very surprised that Ye Futian had come here with Madame Long. Her father had told her that Madame Long would come today and asked her to follow. However, she did not expect Ye Futian to be here as well.


    "Do you not welcome me?" Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders and smiled.


    "No, I am delighted," Gu Yunxi said, smiling. "Mr. Ye, in Gu Clan, don''t feel restricted. Just behave like you''re in your own house."


    "Own house?" someone suddenly said. Gu Yunxi turned her head. The person who spoke was an elegant and handsome middle-aged man of dignified bearing. It was Gu Yunxi''s father.


    "Yunxi, is there any further meaning behind these words?" the leader of Gu Clan asked, smiling.


    Gu Yunxi blinked her eyes, after which her cheeks blushed slightly. Staring at her father in embarrassment, she said, "Dad, what you are talking about?"


    "Mr. Ye, my dad likes to speak nonsense. Don''t mind him," Gu Yunxi explained to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. Then, he bowed to the leader of Gu Clan and said, "I am Ye Futian. Nice to meet you, senior."


    "Since you and Yunxi know each other, just call me uncle," the leader said, smiling.


    Ye Futian glanced at the leader of Gu Clan, after which he saluted again, "Uncle."


    "Good." Gu Hanshan had been looking at Ye Futian since the start, as if he was trying to analyze him completely. It was not easy for Ye Futian to be so frank and confident before him. Furthermore, Ye Futian was good-looking and talented. Indeed, he was almost perfect. It was no wonder that Madame Long was willing to help him.


    He had asked Ye Futian to be here to see if he was worth giving support for.


    "Please sit." Gu Hanshan turned around. Looking at Madame Long, he said, "Madame, let''s start eating."


    Then, everyone started to have their meal, during which Gu Hanshan had a few short conversations with Ye Futian. Then, Madame Long brought Ye Futian and left. Nobody knew what the meaning of this meet-up was.


    "Father, why did Mr. Ye come here?" Gu Yunxi asked curiously. Although the relationship between Ye Futian and Long Ling''er was very good, Madame Long should not have brought Ye Futian with her outside. Moreover, her father also seemed to be observing Ye Futian today.


    "Yunxi, how do you feel about him?" Gu Hanshan asked.


    "Mr. Ye''s musical skills are extraordinary and he can create pieces himself. He is frank, modest, and does not overvalue his status. Generally, he''s an excellent person," Gu Yunxi replied. "Father, why are you asking this?"


    Gu Hanshan looked at his daughter. She probably did not know that Ye Futian was way more outstanding than she thought. After all, he was a young man whose talents were even better than Long Yitian.


    "Since you praise him so much, how about I ask him to be my son-in-law?" Gu Hanshan said jokingly.


    Gu Yunxi''s face blushed at once. Then, she turned her eyes away and said, "What nonsense are you saying? I am going back to college now."


    Looking at her back, Gu Hanshan smiled, but he was thinking about some other things.

 472 Can You Do It?

    It was not a secret that Madame Long had brought Ye Futian to visit Gu Clan. Although it was not a big deal, it still managed to attract the attention of some people. Many people were curious as it seemed to be really unusual.


    In the Starry School, there were many disciples, most of which were geniuses. At the moment, Jin Yunxiao was standing with Long Mu which attracted the eyes of many. The two were enemies and had been fighting against each other all along. Now, Jin Yunxiao stopped Long Mu. Was another conflict going to erupt?


    "Long Mu, did you hear about the event in Gu Clan? Madame Long brought Ye Futian to Gu Clan instead of you. Is the young chief of Dragon Clan you or that outsider?" Jin Yunxiao was wearing a gorgeous shirt and his golden eyes were filled with ridicule. After hearing the news, Jin clan started to suspect certain things.


    Long Mu frowned gently and some coldness flashed across his handsome face. He had heard about the incident, but he did not know the purpose of Madame Long. Hearing Jin Yunxiao''s words, many disciples of Starry School seemed very surprised. Clearly, they did not know this yet.


    "Since when do you have the rights to talk about the internal issues of Dragon Clan?" Long Mu said, glancing at Jin Yunxiao.


    "Indeed it''s none of my business. However, since I have met you here, I still sympathize you." Jin Yunxiao''s eyes were filled with pity as he continued, "The little princess of Dragon Clan is closer to Ye Futian than you. You know how she keeps calling him Brother Futian. You also saw the scene on the assessment day yourself. Now, the person whom Madame Long brings outside is also Ye Futian. I even heard that Madame Long discussed with Gu Clan about Gu Yunxi''s marriage this time. I believe that Gu Yunxi also admires Ye Futian very much." After speaking, Jin Yunxiao stared at Long Mu. Indeed, even though Long Mu was good-tempered, he still had some emotions flashing across his face.


    "That time when your father was alive, your family was so grand. It was said that the Dragon Clan also had the intention to ally with Gu Clan through marriage. Unfortunately, the relationship deteriorated after he passed away. After all, you were not born by the madame," Jin Yunxiao continued. Immediately, Long Mu''s face turned extremely gloomy and a violent aura started spreading from his body. Then, he said coldly, "Shut up."


    A strange expression appeared on everyone''s face. Jin Yunxiao was maliciously attempting to worsen the relationship between Long Mu and the Dragon Clan.


    "Did I just say the thing on your mind?" Jin Yunxiao said, smiling.


    "Scram," Long Mu said coldly. He would naturally not doubt his aunt. He knew well how his aunt and uncle had been treating him and their relationship was not something Jin Yunxiao could destroy with a few sentences.


    As for bringing Ye Futian to Gu Clan, perhaps it was just a coincidence as Madame Long would always bring someone with her whenever she went outside. Long Mu did not know whether Jin Yunxiao''s words regarding Gu Yunxi''s marriage were true, but even if they were, Ye Futian had no chance to be involved in the discussion.


    "Madame Long just brought Ye Futian into Starry School." Suddenly, they heard someone''s voice. There were many people discussing it so the message slowly passed to Long Mu''s side. Many people seemed to be puzzled. They had heard Jin Yunxiao''s words just now. Now, Madame Long also brought Ye Futian into the college. What did this mean? Moreover, on the assessment day, Ye Futian was unwilling to enter the college and even create a disturbance. At the moment, why did he still dare to enter Starry School?


    "Long Mu, see for yourself," Jin Yunxiao sneered. However, he was also very confused at the moment. Was Madame Long''s behavior recently related to the martial arts battlefield? Thinking about the person in the martial arts battlefield who made him kneel down, Jin Yunxiao''s mind was filled with intense murderous intent.


    "When Ye Futian just arrived in Divine Sky City, he was already the musical attendant of Ling''er. What''s so strange about him following the madame?" Long Mu glanced at Jin Yunxiao emotionlessly, but he could not really remain calm inside. Clearly, he also felt that the entire issue was not that simple.


    However, the people around them felt that Long Mu''s words were reasonable. Ye Futian had received Celestial Pavilion from Madame Long and was naturally her subordinate. Perhaps he was following Madame Long at the moment because she wanted to nurture him.


    Many people wondered if Madame Long brought Ye Futian to Starry School so that he could join the college to cultivate.


    Madame Long obviously did not know what was happening there. At the moment, she had already brought Ye Futian into the deeper regions of Starry School. The place was already somewhere ordinary disciples could not normally enter. There were many ethereal palaces standing around them. Lead by one of the seniors of Starry School, they arrived in front of a magnificent and ancient palace at the deepest part of the college.


    The palace stood before them, towering into the clouds. Madame Long landed on the ground and brought Ye Futian up the stairs. Step by step, they walked to the courtyard in front of the palace.


    Beside them, a few figures appeared who were all unfathomable. Standing there, they seemed to have fused with the earth naturally. Ye Futain realized that they were all looking at him, their looks seemed to be penetrating him.


    None of these people appeared on the assessment day.


    Madame Long nodded at them. Then, she looked at the ancient palace and bowed gently. Clearly, the person inside the palace was even more respected and senior than Madame Long. Accordingly, she had to salute the person.


    "Come in," someone inside the palace said.


    Madame Long nodded gently, after which she looked at Ye Futian and said, "Go in." Ye Futian nodded. Then, he walked towards the mysterious palace slowly.


    Madame Long had told him that he was about to meet a respected elder. As long as the elder agreed to the plan, everything would be settled for sure.


    Ye Futian walked into the ancient palace, but it was as if he walked into a world of stars, where countless stars hung high in the sky. The scene was quite similar to the one contained in the beam of divine light he had obtained.


    Under the starlight, an elder was sitting quietly in front with his back away from Ye Futian.


    "Senior, my name is Ye Futian." Ye Futian bowed.


    "I heard that you were from the Eastern Barren Territory and once obtained the willpower of the two emperors on Sky Mountain," the elder said slowly, still facing away from Ye Futian. His voice seemed to be ethereal and illusory.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded.


    "No wonder you could enter the divine palace on the martial arts battlefield." The elder raised his head and looked before him as he continued, "What Yitian had done before has finally been surpassed by others. The generations will only move forward."


    "Since you have inherited the possessions of the saint and effectively become his disciple, I don''t need to test your talents," the elder continued. "Dragon Clan and Gu Clan want you to become the Son. Do you know what it means?"


    "Senior, I do not," Ye Futian replied.


    "Long Yitian also used to cultivate in Starry School. In fact, he was my disciple. Later, he became even more powerful than me and was indeed the strongest person in Divine Sky City. He could easily defeat those in his generation across the Barren State and even entered the Barren Sky Ranking. Despite this, however, he still died outside," the elder said solemnly. "On the other hand, you did what he did not manage to do; you obtained the inheritance from the saint. Dragon Clan and Gu Clan recommended you to be the Son of the college. However, whether it is them or Starry School, what we really want to see is not really a Son."


    Ye Futian nodded. A Son was meaningless to Starry School. The school might as well take away whatever he owned. He was recommended as the Son not only because he had obtained the inheritance of the saint. More importantly, it was really the talents that he had in order to obtain the inheritance. The Starry School could take away whatever he had, but not his talents.


    "The person who obtains the inheritance of the saint is effectively his disciple. As the Son, you would need to stand at the very top of this era." The elder said solemnly, after which he slowly turned around. Looking at Ye Futian with his mysterious star-like eyes, he asked, "Can you do it?"


    The elder did not talk about what Ye Futian did in the past. In his eyes, those things were insignificant. He would not be bothered with them at all. As for Ye Futian''s talents, there was also no need for any tests. The martial arts battlefield and the inheritance was proof in itself.


    It had been a long time since anyone became the Son. If Ye Futian was to become one, he needed to be the strongest person in his generation. The elder only asked him if he could do it.


    Under the stare of the elder, Ye Futian felt that even his body was somewhat shaky, like rootless duckweed. However, he still nodded and replied without hesitation, "Yes."


    "Alright." The elder nodded. Then, in the ancient palace, an endless amount of power charged towards the sky. An ancient starry bell seemed to form among the billions of stars.


    Dong! A ring was heard as if it was the sound of rules. It shook the sky and swept out in an instant, causing even the cultivators outside the palace to be slightly shocked. Then, an invisible sound wave swept out towards the entire Starry School. The sound of the bell erupted beside the ears of everyone.


    Inside many palaces, countless powerful cultivators opened their eyes and stood up immediately, astonished.


    The Starry Bell had just been rung. What had happened in the College?


    They all walked out of their palaces.


    In the college, many disciples were having friendly fights with each other. When the bell rang, they stopped right away and many were bewildered. Starry Bell would only ring when there was a major event. Did something bad happen?


    The disciples walking in the school also stopped and walked towards a certain direction. Some new disciples were puzzled and asked, "What''s that sound?"


    "It''s the Starry Bell," a disciple replied. "I heard that the bell last rang when Long Yitian passed away. Now it rang again. What''s happening?"


    "Let''s go to the Starry Square. It seems like something very important will be announced." Countless people walked towards a certain direction, including both the seniors and juniors of Starry School.

 473 Sanctification

    The bell rang and the entire school was shocked. At the moment, all the people in Starry School, including both juniors and seniors, headed for the same place.


    Jin Yunxiao walked on the road and he was in a bad mood. Soon after Madame Long''s arrival, the Starry Bell rang, so it was definitely related to her. The question was if it was related to Ye Futian. He knew more things than everyone else, including the fact that Madame Long had brought Ye Futian to Gu Clan. Jin Clan was also guessing certain things. Hence, he was more sensitive than the rest. Thinking of a certain possibility, his face turned extremely gloomy. He hoped that the truth was not what he was thinking about.


    Gu Yunxi was also on her way. Beside her, there were other female cultivators.


    "Yunxi, do you know what happened?" someone asked Gu Yunxi. After all, Gu Yunxi''s family had a huge influence on Starry School so perhaps she would know some details.


    "No, I don''t." Gu Yunxi shook her head gently, also very puzzled. She had just come out from cultivation and did not even know that Madame Long and Ye Futian had come to Starry School. Her family also deliberately did not mention this to her.


    "This is the first time I hear the Starry Bell, but I don''t think anything big happened in the college recently." The people around were all confused.


    Jiang Nan, Wang Yuqing, and many others were similarly baffled as they walked to the Starry Square, which was a symbolic place of Starry School. On the stairs in front, there were already many elders standing and discussing softly among themselves. Many of them were very perplexed too and did not know what was happening. There were also many noble-level disciples at the front of the Starry Square, including Tan Zhong.


    "Senior Tan, do you know what has happened?" someone asked. Tan Zhong was at the peak of the Noble Plane and one of the disciples with the highest status. He should know something.


    Tan Zhong, however, shook his head. He also did not know why they were summoned; nobody had told him anything.


    At the moment, a group of people walked towards the square from the distance. Every single one of them had a mysterious temperament on them. As they walked, they gave people the feeling that they had completely fused with nature and were totally unfathomable.


    "The sages in the school are here as well." Many disciples were astonished. It was extremely difficult to meet the sages in Starry School. Occasionally, they would give public lectures which provided the only chances to see them. At the moment, many sages were walking towards the square, displaying how important the issue was. The cultivators of Starry School would probably only be all present on such a day.


    "Uncle." Jin Yunlang and Jin Yunxiao were standing together and they both looked at an elder. The elder glanced at them and shook his head gently. Even the sage who was from Jin Clan did not receive any news. It was obvious that the bell was rung without their knowledge. The members of Starry School were summoned here directly.


    Everyone was curious and started guessing.


    From the distance, a few more people walked towards the square. The leader of the group looked very extraordinary. He was the Chief Elder of the school.


    "Elder Nie." A cultivator from Jin Clan walked up and asked, "What''s happening?"


    "The College Chief has something to announce," Elder Nie replied.


    "What is it? Why are all of us summoned?" the cultivator from Jin Clan asked further.


    "Later the chief will come here himself. Just wait for him to announce it," Elder Nie replied. The people around were all shocked. The College Chief very rarely appeared over these years. He actually had to announce the news this time.


    There were still many people who were just reaching the Starry Square. Those who had just returned and received the news were also heading towards here.


    Some people even discovered that Madame Long and some others who did not belong to Starry School were here as well. Ye Futian stood quietly behind her and was not conspicuous at all. Long Mu glanced in that direction. Nobody knew what he was thinking about. However, the people in Starry School also did not really pay much attention to Madame Long and Ye Futian. Such a major event happened in the college so they clearly did not have any other thoughts.


    Sunlight poured onto the square and onto everyone''s face. Countless people were gathered here.


    Suddenly, a person walked slowly toward the square. He seemed to be ethereal and unfathomable, giving everyone the feeling that he was the only person in the place. He was the College Chief of Starry School, Starry Sage. Of course, it was only his title. Many sages had their own titles and people would respectfully address them as so.


    The name of the College Chief was Chen Yuan. His title, Starry Sage, was taken after the name of the school.


    Starry Sage walked to the top of the stairs. Many disciples bowed at him to show their respect.


    Then, countless people stared at Starry Sage, waiting for him to announce the message.


    Chen Yuan scanned all the disciples and said, "Today, I summoned all of you here to announce something. In Divine Sky City very long ago, a saint established a divine school to teach his disciples. Among the disciples, the most outstanding person was his follower and known as the Son. He would be the leader of all the disciples. Later, the divine school turned into the Top Three Schools today. The ancient saint vanished and some of what he had left behind were also gradually lost.


    "Today, I wish to imitate the ancient saint. I will grant someone in Starry School the position of the Son who would be the leader of all the other disciples." After the chief said so, all the disciples in Starry School were astonished. Chief Chen was actually granting someone the position of the Son and he would be their leader.


    In the college, there were symbolic figures every batch who would become the role models for the rest. For example, at the moment, the outstanding role models in the Noble Plane included Tan Zhong, Li Wangchen, Mo Xiaoyao, while in the Arcana Plane there were Jin Yunlang, Long Mu, Jin Yunxiao, and a few others. However, because of their different levels, it was hard to tell which one of them was more favored by the school.


    On the other hand, the position of the Son would be set up in Starry School. What did this mean? Anyone who could become the Son would have much more power than the rest and be their leader. He would be the single most eye-catching figure in the school.


    Outside, the Son would represent the entire school.


    Countless people were attracted by such a glorious position. However, they knew that they could only think about it. Only a handful would really stand a chance.


    Who would Chief Chen confer as the Son? Many elders in the school also seemed to be surprised. Some people already knew it, but many others did not.


    They were all bewildered as they did not hear anything about such a major change earlier. Was this decision made up all of a sudden?


    "I have already chosen the person to be the Son. I will order the school to make holy crown and holy robes for the person, implying that we are anticipating the birth of a saint in the future. Three days later, we''ll conduct the Coronation Ceremony for the Son in Starry School. We''ll be inviting all the people in Divine Sky City to come here and watch this grand occasion," Starry Sage announced. "From this moment on, you can start to prepare for this historic event and announce it to the city."


    Hearing his words, everyone was astounded. According to the College Chief, he was not only treating the occasion as one in Starry School, but also announcing it to the whole Divine Sky City. Furthermore, he would conduct a Coronation Ceremony for the Son and allow everyone else to witness the event.


    Err�� From the words of the chief, it was obvious how much importance he attached to the event.


    The bell which would never ring easily sounded off just to announce the ceremony to be held three days later.


    Was Starry School trying to create a saint? However, which disciple in Starry School could enjoy such a glory?


    "Right. You can start the preparation." After saying that, Chief Chen turned around and left without announcing the candidate. Elder Nie followed closely behind him. A sage from Jin Clan walked up and asked, "Elder Nie, who''s the person to be conferred?"


    "Three days later, the chief will announce it. I also don''t know who the person is now," Elder Nie replied. The sage from Jin Clan stopped and his eyes sparkled. He had a bad feeling about it.


    After Chief Chen left, there was a huge uproar among the disciples on Starry Square. This was too crazy. Chief Chen was surely going to recommend an unparalleled figure who would attract everyone''s attention.


    "Who will it be?" Everyone guessing.


    Many people looked at Tan Zhong, Li Wangchen, and the like. There were even people who asked them if it was them, but they only shook their heads. They were also unsure as they did not hear anything beforehand. Nevertheless, they also turned very emotional because of the announcement.


    Who would not want such glory?


    "Will it be Long Mu?" Many people looked at Long Mu. That year, Long Mu''s father, Long Yitian, was Chief Chen''s disciple. Later, Long Yitian died and the College Chief must have been very sad. Long Yitian was an outstanding genius he had taught, after all. He was easily the strongest person in the Eastern Region of the Barren State and nobody could be compared to him. Long Mu was Long Yitian''s son, so the College Chief would certainly have a special feeling towards him. It was said that among all the people in the Arcana Plane, only Long Mu had been taught personally by the chief.


    Now, would the College Chief place his hopes towards Long Yitian on Long Mu? After all, this time, Long Mu also entered the ninth level of the martial arts battlefield.


    "Long Mu, will it be you?" someone asked directly.


    Long Mu seemed to be very confused. Shaking his head, he replied, "I don''t know." He raised his head and looked at Madame Long''s direction. Without anyone realizing it, Madame Long had actually already left.


    At the moment, outside Starry School, Madame Long, Ye Futian, and his friends were riding on a dragon. A strange expression flashed across Madame Long''s face. Looking at Ye Futian beside her, she said, "When you went in, I thought that the chief would not agree so quickly. However, the Starry Bell rang directly. Then, I thought that the chief would announce this, but he actually wanted to tell the whole city and hold a ceremony for you."


    "Why would he do that?" Ye Futian asked in bewilderment. He also did not expect this. He thought that he would face some obstacles before being able to join Starry School, but the College Chief was actually so quick in his decision.


    "I thought wrongly about it." Madame Long smiled and shook her head. "The College Chief must have been so sad about Long Yitian''s death that year. Now, the College Chief wants there to be another Long Yitian, or even someone better than him, in Starry School more than anyone else does. He wants to create a saint."


    Ye Futian was slightly shocked. He knew that what Madame Long had said was not wrong. The College Chief asked the rest to announce the news to the whole city, create holy crown and holy robes just like in the ancient times, and would hold a Coronation Ceremony for everyone to witness. He wanted to create an unparalleled, invincible figure.


    At this instant, Ye Futian recalled what the College Chief said to him in the palace.


    The person who obtains the inheritance of the saint is effectively his disciple. As the Son, you would need to stand at the very top of this era! Can you do it?

 474 Let’s Invite the Son

    The news that Starry School was going to bestow someone the title of the Son, and hold a ceremony to give him the holy crown and robe, spread throughout the Divine Sky City in a very short period of time.


    This major city in the Eastern Region of the Barren State was totally stirred up by the news as it was considered as a very important event. At the moment, Starry Sage had ordered the news to be released to the whole city himself and invited everyone to observe the ceremony. Indeed, the coronation this time had a special meaning and Starry Sage had placed much emphasis on it.


    Even the assessment day of the Top Three Schools or the opening of the martial arts battlefield did not create such a huge disturbance.


    Now, almost everyone in the city was talking about this.


    Very soon, many rumors and guesses swept through the entire city. Everyone was wondering who the Son would be. Was the person in the Noble Plane or Arcana Plane? Was the person going to be Long Mu, Long Yitian''s descendant?


    Some people even made wild guesses about whether this was related to the collapse of the martial arts battlefield. The mysterious cultivator was still yet to be found, so it was possible that he was actually a disciple of Starry School whom the college nurtured secretly. Only the important people of the school knew his real identity. At the moment, he was ready to appear as the Son. Such guesses were widely accepted; many people thought that it was indeed very plausible.


    The only people who knew some inside story were from the major clans which could influence Starry School. Nevertheless, only a handful from the Dragon Clan and Gu Clan knew the details. Before it was properly announced, they did not spread the message at all.


    Jin Clan had also guessed certain things, but they were unsure yet. They could only make some conjectures based on the subtle clues available. However, in any case, the people from Jin Clan understood that it was definitely not a good thing for them, because Starry School was hiding the truth from them. This would cause them to be very passive.


    In Celestial Pavilion, the people who came to eat in the Fairy Pool were also discussing this. Despite this, all these were unrelated to Ye Futian who was still busy cultivating. As long as he was free, he would try his best to become stronger.


    Chief Chen announced to the whole city that he was going to be crowned. It was glory and recognition for him, but at the same time also a form of pressure. Chief Chen pushed him directly in front of the public. If he wished to wear the holy crown, he would need to withstand its weight.


    Ye Futian urgently wanted himself to become stronger. He was confident that he could easily defeat those in his generation, but people in this era would include more than merely those whose ages were similar to him. In fact, many nobles could also be considered as being in the same generation as him. Ye Futian needed to become stronger in order to face all these.


    The knowledge contained in the three beams of divine light, as well as the sage martial arts fate, were sufficient for him to learn from for a long time. He was still becoming stronger by the day.


    Three days passed by in the blink of an eye. It was finally the day of the Coronation Ceremony of Starry School. Divine Sky City almost had an earthquake as countless people rushed out of their places and headed towards the same place. They wanted to see who exactly could enjoy such a glory.


    In Celestial Pavilion, Shen Yu came to the courtyard where Ye Futian was at. Ye Futian had called her here, but when he saw her, he realized that something was wrong, as if she wanted to say some words but did not dare to.


    Noticing Shen Yu''s unnatural expression, Ye Futian said, "If you want to say anything, just say it."


    "I want to go Starry School to observe the ceremony..." Shen Yu peeked at Ye Futian.


    "Err..." Ye Futian blinked his eyes.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s reaction, Shen Yu said, "I have already arranged everything in Celestial Pavilion. Mr. Ye, if you have anything else for me to do, can you tell me quickly please?"


    "Nothing. I just wanted to tell you that if I am not in Celestial Pavilion in the future, you can temporarily handle everything. The people from the Dragon Clan will help you as well," Ye Futian said, smiling. "Just go."


    "Yes." Shen Yu was somewhat inattentive. After Ye Futian asked her to leave, she immediately trotted away.


    "Do you have to be in such a hurry?" Ye Futian asked, looking at Shen Yu''s back.


    "Starry School will probably be jam-packed today. You can go and watch the ceremony as well!" After Shen Yu said so, she left the courtyard. Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. "It''s indeed about time for me to leave."


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said, turning around. His friends all nodded, after which they walked onto the back of the Black Wind Condor. The condor opened its wings and flapped them fiercely. Immediately, it charged up into the clouds and then flew towards Starry School.


    ��


    At the moment, Starry School was filled to the gates and even a drop of water could not leak through. Its surrounding was also totally packed, and there were countless people both on the ground and in the sky. It had been a long time since something like this occurred in Divine Sky City. Everyone wanted to see for themselves the Coronation Ceremony and also who the Son was.


    Suddenly, a path was created among the crowd. The large group from Blazing Sun School was here. There were also people from various clans who came with them. Then, the cultivators from Bright Moon School arrived too.


    Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School were probably the two entities in Divine Sky City which were most concerned with the event. Starry School was reviving the rules of the ancient times and granting someone the position of the Son. They obviously had to come and take a look.


    The people from different major clans stepped into Starry School one after another. The geniuses from various places also came to observe the ceremony. In the outer ring of Starry School, which was packed with people, there were three cultivators walking together and looking at the scene curiously.


    "It seems to be very lively there," one of them said. He was skinny and his eyes were very bright. Some cynicism and frivolousness could be seen from his expression.


    "Do you want to join in the fun again?" a handsome figure beside him questioned, widening his eyes.


    "Why not just go and take a look?" the frivolous young man replied, grinning.


    "We still need to find the little brother."


    "Then let''s ask the seventh brother." The skinny young man looked at a fat figure behind him, smiling. Realizing his stare, the fat person shivered, after which he said softly, "Fourth brother, we wouldn''t waste too much time anyway. Let''s just go and take a look?"


    "Just because the rest are not here, you have so much trouble." The young man beside them glanced at the skinny young man, unhappy.


    "Brother, I''m doing this for your good. It''s called ''reading thousands of books is not as good as traveling thousands of miles.'' Since we''re traveling, we obviously have to take part in more things," the skinny young man argued, smiling.


    "Reasonable." The young man whom he addressed as brother was long used to his shameless reasoning. After he said so, he turned his head and widened his eyes at the fat man behind him.


    The fat man lowered his head gently and felt somewhat wronged. I can''t provoke any one of them... When can I beat them?!


    "Seven, go and create a path," someone in front said. The fat person raised his head and looked totally lost.


    "You''re fat and can squeeze through more easily." The skinny young man smiled and stared at him. The fat man was speechless and walked forward. Why is it always me?...


    At the moment, cultivators from many different places were gathered together in Starry School.


    There were many seats on both sides of the ceremony platform, on which various cultivators were sitting. The people from West Mountain Dragon Clan, Gu Clan, and Jin Clan were all present.


    Gu Hanshan, the leader of Gu Clan, was here himself. The person from the Dragon Clan was still Madame Long. Recently, she had been handling everything for the Dragon Clan. In Jin Clan, the person present was similarly its leader.


    At the moment, Gu Yunxi was sitting beside her father and she asked, "Father, do you know who the Son is?"


    "Yes." Gu Hanshan smiled and nodded.


    "Who is it?" Gu Yunxi asked curiously. She really could not think who it could possibly be.


    "Let''s just wait for the chief to announce it later," Gu Hanshan said, smiling. He deliberately kept his daughter in suspense.


    Gu Yunxi nodded her head, disappointed. Since her father did not want to tell her, she could only wait.


    Suddenly, someone walked up to them. The person was handsome and had a supreme temperament. Bowing gently, he said, "Greetings, uncle Gu."


    "I haven''t seen you for a long while and indeed you''re becoming more good-looking. You already have some temperament of your father at that time. I hope that in the future, you''ll also have the glory you father once had," Gu Hanshan said, smiling.


    "Uncle Gu, Thank you. My father was truly paralleled in the past and I''ll work hard so that I will not bring disgrace to his name." Long Mu folded his hands, after which he nodded gently at Gu Yunxi. Gu Yunxi smiled and nodded back to return the greeting. Then, Long Mu left the place. He came here to greet them out of etiquette. After all, the relationship between his father and Gu Hanshan that time was very good.


    Many people glanced at Long Mu and Gu Yunxi, wondering if these two very outstanding young people would be together in the future.


    Zhen Rong similarly glanced at Gu Yunxi, after which she asked the person beside her, "Father, will Dragon Clan and Gu Clan ally through marriage?"


    "Probably not." The stern-looking person beside her shook his head.


    "Alright," Zhen Rong nodded gently. "Father, do you still not know who the Son is?"


    "It has indeed been kept in secret. Let''s just watch. The result will be out soon and there''s no point guessing now."


    At the moment, Ye Futian and his friends had also arrived and were walking among the crowd. Many Starry School disciples glanced at him, thinking about why he was here again.


    Jiang Nan also saw Ye Futian and his face turned cold. Ye Futian was unwilling to join Starry School but he kept coming here. How ridiculous this was. However, when they saw Ye Futian walk behind Madame Long, they were also relieved. It seemed like Ye Futian was already a real member of Dragon Clan.


    Time passed slowly. On top of the stairs, the important people of Starry School arrived one after another, many of which were elders in the Sage Plane. They stood at the two sides of the platform, all having a solemn expression. Immediately, the vast space started to turn quiet.


    Just then, two cultivators appeared. One of them was holding in his hands an extremely gorgeous starry robe, while the other was holding a crown. The two of them stood on the two sides of the center, ready to crown the Son.


    Countless people were astonished. Both of them were sage-level elders.


    They brought the holy crown and robe for the Son themselves. It was indeed an extremely glory to have.


    When Chief Chen also appeared on the top of the stairs, the place fell into a deafening silence. Everyone looked up at him.


    Was he finally going to announce the candidate?


    Countless disciples in Starry School held their breaths, especially those outstanding geniuses. They all had a wild wish that they would be the person. Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao were also among the crowd. They stared at Chief Chen, as well as the holy crown and robe.


    In the entire place, including both the inside and outside of Starry School, everyone held their breaths and waited.


    Who exactly would the Son be?


    Chief Chen scanned the crowd. Then, he said in a solemn voice, "Today, Starry School will crown the Son. You will all witness the ceremony."


    "Let''s invite the Son."


    "Invite the Son!" many people on the sides said simultaneously. Their voices resounded in the sky.


    Let''s invite the Son. Who is the Son? The whole place was in complete silence. Nobody moved or produced any sound at all.


    Suddenly, somewhere among the crowd, a handsome, extraordinary figure in white shirt walked out. At that moment, he seemed to be the only person left in the world!

 475 I Refuse

    The entire ceremony platform was engulfed by a deafening silence. Countless people looked in the same direction. When they saw the person who walked out, many people were wildly astonished. Some even started trembling.


    The figure who walked out was extremely handsome. He walked very slowly up the stairs, and with every single step that he took, he seemed to be stamping on everyone''s heart.


    Where is he going? Where?! Jiang Nan''s face was distorted as he yelled crazily in his mind, Why is it him? Why�� He had thought of all possibilities but Ye Futian. Even though he had once hypothesized that Ye Futian was hiding his real identity, he was only attempting to get Ye Futian involved because of his hatred towards Ye Futian. However, at the moment, Starry School was going to crown the Son in front of the entire city. The brightest person in Divine Sky City was actually the person whom he hated the most. It was thus obvious how he would feel now.


    Realizing that Ye Futian was walking up the stairs, Wang Yuqing was similarly stunned. Even her breath seemed to have stopped.


    The Son of Starry School was Ye Futian?


    At this instant, she could not help recalling the unparalleled cultivator in a silver cloak. A self-mocking smile actually appeared on her face.


    Was it him? The Son was Ye Futian. What did this mean?


    Life was indeed like a dream.


    Long Mu stared firmly at the back of Ye Futian who was walking up the platform, but in his heart, he was only shouting, Why?!


    Three days ago, Chief Chen had announced himself that he was going to confer someone the title of the Son, and would invite the entire Divine Sky City to come and observe the ceremony. That time, many people guessed if it would be Long Mu, but he knew that it was unlikely. After all, her aunt had never mentioned anything like this to him before. Nevertheless, he still hoped that it would be him.


    At the moment when Chief Chen invited the Son up the stage, he knew that it was not him. However, he still did not think that it would be Ye Futian. He could not help thinking about Jin Yunxiao''s words. It seemed like Madame Long had been bringing Ye Futian with her these few days really because she was trying to help him; she was helping him to become the Son.


    He turned around and looked in Gu Clan''s direction. Gu Hanshan had a smile on his face and did not seem to be surprised at all. Clearly, he had already known the result.


    Then, Long Mu looked at Gu Yunxi. At the moment, Gu Yunxi was somewhat shocked as she gazed at Ye Futian. After the initial surprise, however, her charming face was only filled with delight. She was obviously happy for Ye Futian. From her face, Long Mu could even vaguely see some admiration, an expression which she had never displayed in front of him.


    Gu Yunxi was clearly elated and her face was filled with a bright smile. She thought that Ye Futian had been humiliated in the martial arts battlefield. However, it turned out that he had been lying to her. Of course, she knew that since the Son was Ye Futian, the mysterious person in the silver cloak in the martial arts battlefield was obviously him as well.


    So he was not only adept in music, but also very outstanding in martial arts.


    Everyone present could feel their hearts racing. When Ye Futian reached the top of the stairs and turned around slowly, everyone stared attentively at him.


    "Brother Futian!" Long Ling''er blinked her pure eyes, after which she started giggling. It turned out that the Son was Ye Futian.


    "Crown the Son," Chief Chen announced officially. The two sages walked forward and put the brilliant robe and dazzling crown on Ye Futian themselves. It was indeed truly glorious.


    "Thank you, seniors." Ye Futian bowed to show his gratitude. The two sages smiled and stepped back again.


    Then, with the holy crown on his head and the holy robe on his body, Ye Futian faced everyone directly. At this instant, he seemed to have gathered an endless amount of glory on him, and the already handsome he looked even more elegant. The holy crown and robe displayed his heroism perfectly as if he was destined to enjoy such an honor.


    Sunlight poured onto Ye Futian''s body, adding to the sacred environment.


    The faces of Jin Yunlang and Jin Yunxiao, on the other hand, were extremely dark, perhaps even gloomy.


    Looking at Ye Futian, Zhen Rong recalled the scene in Celestial Pavilion. She was all-superior and asked Ye Futian to seize the opportunity to become her battle servant.


    Chen Liu also asked Ye Futian to join Blazing Sun School.


    How about now?


    Starry School was granting him the position of the Son in front of the whole city. He had defeated all the other geniuses in the martial arts battlefield and gained all the martial arts fate. Then, he even caused the battlefield to collapse and tricked everyone else.


    At the moment, he looked bright and glorious.


    Battle servant?


    Follow them?


    Now, Ye Futian''s status was already no lower than them. In some sense, it was even higher than theirs.


    The Coronation Ceremony today represented the attitude of Starry School. The school was recognizing Ye Futian as the absolute core of this generation and the leader of all disciples. Perhaps he would even be the next ruler of Starry School. On the other hand, the others were not even heirs in their families.


    In the young generation of Divine Sky City, nobody would be able to have a status higher than Ye Futian.


    Wang Yurou was also in the crowd. Standing at an isolated corner, she looked at the elegant figure on the stage and sighed in her heart. Some people would always be in the limelight regardless of where they were. Ye Futian was like this in Yunyue City, and still so in Divine Sky City.


    Shen Yu opened her mouth, unable to remain calm. The Son who was being crowned today was actually the owner.


    Thinking about what she said to Ye Futian before she left for the ceremony, she did not know whether to laugh or be upset. Then, she recalled the day on which she first met Ye Futian. That time, he could not even afford to stay in Celestial Pavilion. All these really looked like but a dream.


    Chief Chen walked to Ye Futian. Standing side by side with Ye Futian, he said loud and clear, "Today, Ye Futian will be the first Son of Starry School. All of you are witnesses. From today on, Ye Futian will be the leader of all Starry School disciples. When you see him, it''s like seeing me. All of you shall give him full respect."


    Countless people were astonished. Seeing Ye Futian was like seeing the chief. Such treatment had already exceeded what a disciple should receive.


    Becoming the first Son was a glory that even Long Yitian did not enjoy in the past.


    Was Chief Chen hoping to create another Long Yitian in Starry School?


    Gu Hanshan and Madame Long both witnessed the historic moment and stared at Ye Futian. Would he become the next Long Yitian and stand at the peak of Divine Sky City for a generation? They were looking forward to it.


    This day was only the beginning of everything.


    Suddenly, at the most inappropriate time possible, someone shouted in a low tone, "I refuse to accept!" Many people were surprised and turned their heads to look at the Starry School disciples. Then, they saw the person who just spoke.


    It was Long Mu, the son of Long Yitian, and also the next ruler of Dragon Clan.


    "Mu''er..." Madame Long looked at Long Mu. She knew that Long Mu would probably be unhappy about this, as she had already felt it from Long Mu''s attitude on Long Ling''er birthday. Long Mu was arrogant and had always thought that Ye Futian was inferior. On the assessment day of Starry School, he even verbally insulted Ye Futian publicly, saying that Ye Futian was not entitled to interfere with the Dragon Clan''s issues.


    At the moment, she pushed Ye Futian onto the position of the Son herself. How would Long Mu not have any feelings about it? After all, he was even beaten by Ye Futian in the martial arts battlefield.


    "Aunt." Long Mu bowed at Madame Long. He knew that he should not stand out to question the decision, but he still could not tolerate it. Looking at Chief Chen and Ye Futian, he continued, "There are tens of thousands of disciples in Starry School. Without any assessment, an outsider has conferred the position of the Son. I cannot accept this." Then, he bowed gently. However, after that, he still held his head high.


    Countless people stared at Long Mu. They could also understand his emotions at the moment. On the assessment day, there was some conflict between Long Mu and Ye Futian. Long Mu, who had an excellent background, did not place any importance on Ye Futian, even though Madame Long liked Ye Futian.


    However, at the moment, Ye Futian had snatched everyone''s attention and was far more outstanding than him. Long Mu was the son of Long Yitian, but now Chief Chen was conferring Ye Futian the position of the Son personally, and he even held a ceremony for it. Chief Chen was viewing Ye Futian as the successor of Long Yitian. Furthermore, it was likely that Madame Long had played a part in catalyzing the decision.


    In such a circumstance, Long Mu''s feelings could be easily imagined. Perhaps, he felt that something which belonged to him had been taken away.


    "I refuse as well!" someone said in an extremely cold tone. In the crowd, a young man dressed in a gorgeous shirt stood out and stared at Ye Futian.


    It was Jin Yunxiao.


    This was somewhat surprising. Jin Yunxiao and Long Mu had always been unable to get along, but this time their attitudes were the same. They were both the top geniuses in Starry School and expressed their disagreement together.


    Of course, the rest did not know that Jin Yunxiao stood out mainly because in the martial arts battlefield, the person in the silver cloak had asked him to kneel down and worship him.


    At the moment, Jin Yunxiao had clearly also guessed that Ye Futian was probably the mysterious person. It was easy to see how he would feel.


    Moreover, everyone knew that Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao were certainly not the only two people who would refuse to accept the decision.


    There were too many geniuses in Starry School, from both the Arcana Plane and the Noble Plane. At the moment, the chief granted Ye Futian the title of the Son directly. How would those geniuses simply accept this?


    Chief Chen and the sages of Starry School looked at the scene before them calmly. The sages did not say anything, regardless of whether they agreed or disagreed the decision. Since Chief Chen did so directly, he would definitely need to convince everyone.


    It was sufficient for the juniors to speak up.


    Chief Chen glanced at Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao. Then, he scanned everyone and said, "Today, I crown the Son and invite all of you to witness this. If the Son cannot defeat anyone in his generation, he will naturally not have the right to stand here. Today, whether you''re a Starry School disciple, or a person from the Top Three Schools, or even someone from Divine Sky City, as long as you question this decision, you can walk out. If anyone can prove that the Son is not worthy to enjoy this glory, it''ll all be my mistake."


    Then, he looked at Ye Futian and said, "If you want to wear the holy crown, you must withstand its weight. Go. Let the people of the world see the glory that belongs to you."


    "Yes!" Ye Futian nodded. With the holy crown and robe, he walked down the stairs step by step and stood in front of all the disciples!

 476 A Crushing Defea

    The Starry School''s disciples stepped back, leaving the space around Ye Futian, Long Mu, and Jin Yunxiao empty.


    Today, Ye Futian would be crowned as the Son, and the College Chief had claimed that if anyone from the Top Three Schools or Divine Sky City who doubted Ye Futian could prove that he was unsuitable for the role, he would publicly admit that he was wrong. This was how confident he was in Ye Futian.


    This meant that the moment someone in the same Plane who could defeat Ye Futian appeared, today''s ceremony would become a joke. It was not only the Son Ye Futian''s reputation that was at stake, but the College Chief and the entire Starry School''s reputation was also on the line.


    Evidently, the College Chief believed that Ye Futian had the ability to stand above his entire generation.


    All members of the Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School stared at Ye Futian, be it the disciples or the elders. They had all guessed that Ye Futian was the mysterious person who had caused the Martial Arts Battlefield''s collapse. Why else would the College Chief be that confident to hold a coronation ceremony for Ye Futian, who was not even a member of his school previously? Only exceptional talent could make a Sage Plane expert go to this extent for him.


    There was no question. It had to be the mysterious person clothed in silver.


    They even wondered if Ye Futian was someone that the College Chief had secretly scouted, but kept a secret until he was able to officially announce it to the masses today. Regardless of what they thought, what was important was what Ye Futian had obtained from the Martial Arts Battlefield, and his current level potential and ability.


    Perhaps it would all be revealed soon.


    Countless gazes stared at the three figures in the middle. Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao glared at Ye Futian coldly. They had both had extremely domineering auras when they had met Ye Futian in the past. They were arrogant and did not pay any attention to Ye Futian, so their aura would naturally be headstrong. However, in front of Ye Futian who was clothed in the holy robes, there was no trace of the aura they used to have, and they could faintly feel Ye Futian''s oppressive aura. This was not just because of his change in identity, but also because they had been defeated by him in the Martial Arts Battlefield.


    Undeniably, the martial arts fate in the Martial Arts Battlefield had a boosting effect on their strength, and they were unable to release their Spiritual Qi, so it was not an accurate representation of their actual battle ability. That was why even though they had once suffered defeat at his hands, they wanted to try again in a fair battle.


    For Long Mu, he was battling for honor; for Jin Yunxiao, to restore his sullied reputation.


    Ye Futian''s gaze landed on Long Mu and he said, "I know you haven''t been treating me as an equal, but that is just you in your own fantasy and I have not grudged you for that. You should know now that you cannot possibly defeat me if you choose to battle, are you ready to bear the consequences?"


    Everyone who heard his words was dumbfounded. How confident was he, to say such a thing? Was he afraid that Long Mu would be unable to accept the result of their battle?


    Long Mu''s expression became even colder, his fists clenched up. He knew what Ye Futian meant, if he chose to silently accept the coronation, everything would fade away with time. However, if he lost the challenge, he would be remembered by all.


    "What about you, can you handle defeat?" Long Mu retorted frostily.


    Ye Futian did not reply. He only tried to persuade Long Mu out of respect for Madame Long. Since the other party insisted on doing so, it was his choice.


    "Let''s start," Ye Futian declared.


    A beast-like aura burst forth from Long Mu, and the visage of a divine golden dragon appeared on his back, accompanied by a pure-blooded dragon''s roar. It was a five-taloned golden dragon. There was a unique aura brooding in Long Mu''s body, the members of the West Mountain Dragon Clan had their ancestor''s dragon blood and inherited the dragon''s strength.


    At the same time, dazzling flashes of purple lightning burst out from Ye Futian''s body. In an instant, the surroundings had turned into a lightning dimension, encompassing the entire area. A streak of lightning landed on Long Mu, but it was as though he did not feel anything. He launched off the ground with a bang and flew into the air, his arm grabbing at Ye Futian.


    The five-taloned golden dragon roared and rushed towards Ye Futian, tearing through the air with its gargantuan body. At that moment, Ye Futian looked minuscule.


    Ye Futian did not unleash his Life Spirit, he merely raised his arm, and all the streaks of lightning merged into one, forming a fearsome thunderstorm. The thunderstorm was reminiscent of the Thunder God''s shield, and as the golden dragon rushed towards it, it was sucked into the eye of the storm and torn to pieces by the lightning, its cry sounding out.


    It was him indeed. Chen Wang from the Blazing Sun Academy saw the scene and confirmed his suspicions. Ye Futian was indeed the mysterious person.


    Ye Futian had become like a Thunder God, shield in hand. This was the ability that the first Sage Plane expert in the ninth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield had used that day.


    Long Mu hovered in the air, his hands shaking. He appeared to have been possessed by a divine dragon and assimilated with it. He did not use any flashy moves and dived straight down towards Ye Futian. The giant divine golden dragon charged at Ye Futian with overwhelming might, like a claw threatening to tear Ye Futian to shreds.


    Ye Futian''s arm quivered and he looked into the air. The tremendous might of the lightning remained in the air and the Thunder God''s shield changed into rays of purple thunder with streaks of gold, surrounding the giant golden dragon. In an instant, lightning flooded the heavens and repeatedly struck the divine golden dragon. The dragon let out roars of agony as the Punishment of the Thunder God did not just have an exceptional offense, it also had a terrifying spiritual assault. However, on the dragon, Long Mu''s expression was focused and continued diving down. Ye Futian raised his arm and swishing sounds could be heard as countless vines appeared and entangled the giant dragon.


    Following which, Ye Futian shook his arms and multiple golden palm prints appeared around him. These palm prints spun rapidly and eventually combined into one terrifying palm print. Ye Futian raised his hand towards the air and the giant palm print descended from the heavens and gripped the true-blooded dragon by its throat.


    The giant dragon struggled under the two-pronged attack. Everyone could see Long Mu struggling and countless people were shocked. As expected, Long Yitian''s son Long Mu, prideful as he was, could not withstand a single blow from Ye Futian.


    The giant palm print did not move an inch and continued its path downwards. The dragon''s body was driven into the ground with a giant crash, and the dragon''s shadow disappeared, causing Long Mu''s body to reappear.


    It was a massacre.


    Long Mu''s expression was pale. As he thought, the difference was the same as in the Martial Arts Battlefield. His ending was equally pitiful and his pride before this amounted to nothing.


    Madame Long looked at Long Mu and sighed internally. Ye Futian would probably become a major turning point in Long Mu''s life. Hopefully Long Mu would be able to withstand it. If he did, his will would become even stronger.


    Ye Futian did not look at Long Mu, his gaze moving towards Jin Yunxiao. Jin Yunxiao''s expression had already turned somber; Ye Futian had crushed Long Mu. Naturally, he would also not be a match for him.


    Ye Futian''s battle ability was actually this strong. Would he be forever unable to get his revenge?


    Bam. Just as he thought that Ye Futian''s body moved towards him and a formidable aura oozed from him. Roc wings immediately appeared behind Jin Yunxiao''s back and he retreated backward at breakneck speed. However, Ye Futian launched off the ground with the Thundering Illusion Step and after-images were left as he chased Jin Yunxiao.


    Jin Yunxiao roared and his wings vibrated, shooting out countless sharp golden swords towards Ye Futian.


    Bang. A group of meteorites'' light appeared around Ye Futian, revolving wildly. They contained tremendous destructive power, and the golden swords flying towards him were all shattered.


    Seeing Ye Futian getting closer, Jin Yunxiao''s wings flapped once again, trying to escape. Ye Futian walked in the air, booming thunder sounding with each step he took. His body traversed the air, landing in front of Jin Yunxiao, the two of them looking as if they were going to collide. Jin Yunxiao''s expression darkened and his wings sharpened to their limit and tore through the air towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his arms and the revolving meteorites'' light circulated around his arms, warding off the wings'' attack. His palm stretched outwards and gripped Jin Yunxiao''s neck. With a jerk of his hand, his Thundering Illusion Step once again blasted off and the two of them headed downwards.


    Crash! The sound of a huge collision could be heard as the floor shattered and Jin Yunxiao''s body was smashed into the ground by Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked mockingly at Jin Yunxiao, then released his grip and turned around to leave. In the Martial Arts Battlefield, Jin Yunxiao had slashed a light blade at him and he had remembered it. Since he wanted to be humiliated, Ye Futian would grant him that wish again.


    Jin Yunxiao saw the scorn in Ye Futian''s eyes and his expression became especially grim. He was reminded of that scene in the Martial Arts Battlefield where he was forced to kneel on the ground. His eyes became red with anger and insanity.


    Bam. His body bounced off the ground and a razor-sharp Roc blade appeared in his hand. It was like a Roc had appeared from the heavens and was headed straight for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s footsteps stopped and he frowned.


    "How dare you!" an elder from the Starry School Academy berated. The Jin Clan''s elders were also frowning, did Jin Yunxiao know what he was doing?


    Humm. Before Ye Futian had moved, a figure rushed out from the crowd like a blade and passed by him. It was a figure with only one arm, he drew his blade and slashed towards Jin Yunxiao''s sword strike. In an instant, tens of thousands of light blades appeared in the air and culminated in one point, striking the Roc''s shadow and shattering it.


    The sword continued forward and the light blades merged into one at the tip of the Alkaid and stabbed the Roc blade. Waves of intimidating sword Qi flowed down the Roc blade onto Jin Yunxiao''s body.


    At that moment, Jin Yunxiao felt as though there were tens of thousands of sword wills circulating around his body. His expression turned pale and he dropped his sword, only to be greeted with an icy blade pointed at his throat. If the blade had gone a millimeter further, it could have taken his life.


    "Doubting him? Do you even have the right to?" A cold voice sounded from the lone-armed figure, piercing Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao''s hearts like blades.

 477 Dominating the Generation

    Be it Long Mu or Jin Yunxiao, their attitudes in front of Ye Futian was all captured by Ye Wuchen: Arrogant. Apathetic. Opinionated.


    Even on the day of the school''s examination, when Ye Futian revealed his extraordinary potential, their attitudes remained the same. What right did they have to be so self-centered?


    To Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao, apart from their superior family background, they had a strong battle ability and phenomenal potential. Yet to Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng, their supposed potential and battle ability was only because Ye Futian did not get serious with them. The only thing that they could rely on was their background. Today, at Ye Futian''s crowning, the two of them dared to doubt him? Were they even qualified?


    Jin Yunxiao even dared to use a Sage ritual implement to launch a sneak attack. Adding on to the sword slash in the Martial Arts Battlefield, if they did not have any apprehensions, Jin Yunxiao would have a blade in his throat now.


    Feeling an icy feeling coming from his throat, a drop of blood appeared at Jin Yunxiao''s throat. His entire body was shivering, not only from the fear of nearly losing his life but also the humiliation. He had the advantage of a Sage ritual implement, yet even Ye Futian''s follower Ye Wuchen could kill him with one slash. If this was a life-and-death duel, the blade would have already taken his life.


    The Starry School''s genius, the Jin Clan''s prodigy? From today onwards, Jin Yunxiao would no longer be able to lift his head in public.


    Many people looked at the handsome lone-armed figure and recalled the day of the examination when Yu Sheng and Jin Yunxiao clashed. If Ye Futian had not stopped Yu Sheng that day, would Jin Yunxiao already have been defeated?


    "Get back here." An expert from the Jin Clan shouted at him. Jin Yunxiao''s expression was ashen, he stared menacingly at Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian before stepping back.


    Ye Wuchen stared at him expressionlessly, yet he suddenly heard an expert from the Jin Clan say coldly, "Although the duel has no rules against ritual implements, as a disciple of the Starry School, how can you have no values? Go back and reflect on your actions."


    Ye Futian''s nonchalant gaze swept across the expert, and he smirked, would there need to be a rule in such an official duel? Jin Yunxiao had already lost and still used the Sage ritual implement to launch a sneak attack.


    The expert from the Jin Clan appeared to be berating Jin Yunxiao but was actually protecting him. However, no one cared to criticize the Jin Clan. Their attention was all on the lone-armed swordsman who had already stepped off the stage and was quietly standing among the crowd.


    Long Mu had also silently left the arena with a heavy heart.


    Now, everyone''s attention gathered once again onto Ye Futian. Donning the holy robes, he defeated the geniuses of the Starry School Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao with just a few strikes.


    He was in the fifth level of the Arcana Plane, but in the Middle Arcana Plane, there was probably no one who could defeat him.


    Ye Futian continued forward, looked at the crowd and said, "My cultivation level may be low, but the College Chief has graciously crowned me as the Son. There are innumerable experts in the Divine Sky City, and every generation has its geniuses. Even in the Starry School, there are too many disciples who have higher cultivation levels than me. Thus, I know it is hard to convince all of you."


    The crowd''s gaze looked towards Ye Futian. Today was his coronation and the last thing he should be as humble, or the hype that the College Chief had created for him would be wasted. So why was he saying this?


    "However," Ye Futian continued, "since I have been given the holy crown, naturally I have to bear its weight. To not let down the name of the Starry School''s Son, I, Ye Futian am willing to accept a challenge from all the Middle Arcana Plane cultivators in the Divine Sky City. If there is anyone who wishes to challenge me, you can step onto the arena. If I am defeated, I will have sullied the Son''s name, and I will take off the holy crown and remove the holy robes." After saying all this, Ye Futian''s gaze swept across the crowd and he said, "I anticipate your challenges."


    Although his voice was not loud, it struck everyone''s hearts like thunder. The air was filled with silence and countless gazes fell onto Ye Futian. His holy robes swayed although there was no wind, and his hair flew freely. His handsome face was calm, yet prideful.


    Being humble? They were too naive.


    Ye Futian wanted to challenge the entire Divine Sky City''s Middle Arcana Plane experts with his fifth level of the Arcana Plane cultivation level. This included the Blazing Sun School''s geniuses, the Bright Moon School''s geniuses and even the members of clans.


    Challenging every single one of them! It was as though he was affirming the College Chief''s desire since he was crowned the Son, he should dominate his generation. He would stand at the top of the hundreds of thousands of people.


    What an insane notion. Even a genius in the Upper Arcana Plane would probably not dare to say such words. If all the Middle Arcana Plane experts joined forces, it would be an intimidating force to deal with. A sea of spells could drown an Upper Arcana Plane expert.


    The College Chief looked at Ye Futian. Since he had organized today''s coronation ceremony for Ye Futian and invited the masses to watch, he was pushing Ye Futian towards them for him to withstand the pressure. When Long Yitian had risen up, it was also through crushing all his opponents all the way to the top.


    Ye Futian had received the divine teachings, so if he wanted to reach the end goal, he would have to dominate his generation and reach the pinnacle. The other matters would be settled by them.


    This time, Ye Futian was recommended to him by Madame Long and Gu Hanshan, so they would naturally have to bear the pressure together with the Starry School. Today, they would witness how far Ye Futian could go, and if he was worthy of their expectations.


    "Since the Son has such an idea, do you not want to witness it yourself?" an important figure in the Starry School said suddenly. It was an expert from the Jin Clan, and in an instant, many experts stepped into the arena.


    "You all should also go and experience his strength for yourselves." The elders from the Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School also followed suit.


    The two other schools also had numerous experts. Now that the Starry School wanted to create a Son, they would naturally want to ruin the plan. Since Ye Futian wanted to challenge everyone, they would grant him that wish.


    "Chen Liu."


    "Zhen Rong."


    "Jin Yu."


    So many experts. This was the thought in many people''s heads. The Top Three Schools and the major clans all had geniuses in the Middle Arcana Plane that were not inferior to Jin Yunxiao. At this moment, they had all stepped out. Adding on all the people that had walked out from the crowd, a terrifying alliance surrounded the arena.


    "They''re really going to join forces," someone in the crowd said.


    Geniuses all had their own pride, but at this moment, they had all put down their pride and joined forces to battle Ye Futian.


    From watching Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao''s defeat, they had probably realized that defeating Ye Futian alone was not realistic.


    "Please," Ye Futian emotionlessly said, and a few figures flew out from the crowd. One person flew into the air with an imposing sword will, as though he was one with his sword. One slash of the sword and a brilliant glow appeared from the heavens.


    Another person specialized in spells and gathered a terrifying hurricane around hi, flying straight towards Ye Futian. The roared typhoon was sharper than knives or blades and could tear a person''s body to shreds.


    Yet another person released his Life Spirit, revealing an intimidating giant golden ape. It flew down from the heavens, as though trying to crush space itself. The giant golden ape''s footprint crushed its way down, trying to erase the being below it.


    As the wind blew, Ye Futian''s holy robes billowed. He stood on the spot and raised his head, looking in the air.


    As the giant golden ape''s footprint got closer, he stretched out his palm and countless thunderbolts formed. In the air, a thunder dragon''s shadow appeared, biting the giant ape, horrifying thunderbolts coursing through its body, causing it to become paralyzed. He then shrugged his arm and the ape''s body was shrugged by the dragon into the ground.


    The typhoon and light blade descended at the same time. Ye Futian stretched out his other hand and countless flashes of lightning formed the Thunder God''s shield in front of him, swallowing the light blades and fighting the typhoon.


    "Go." As he moved his arm, the Thunder God''s shield turned into countless thunderbolts. The Punishment of the Thunder God''s spell instantly swallowed everything and struck the hurricane in the air, causing the expert to grunt as he was struck by the thunderbolt and cough up blood. The swordsman avoided the attack like a blade, however, the Fatal Entanglement was faster and covered the skies, grabbing straight at his body, pulling him downwards and smashing him into the ground.


    Seeing the three people being defeated in an instant, many experts in the arena stepped forward. The Spiritual Qi in the air appeared to have been drained dry and in an instant, numerous spells descended and several figures stepped into the air, a neverending barrage of spells landing from the skies, attempting to drown Ye Futian within.


    The crowd stared intently at Ye Futian. How was he going to deal with thousands of spells?


    Ye Futian looked into the air, an awe-inspiring Qi flow around him. He stretched out both arms like he was lifting up a piece of the earth. In an instant, meteorites started to appear in the surroundings and revolved around Ye Futian''s body. Within the meteorites, there appeared to be countless sandstorms, thunderstorms, hurricanes, just like an operating planet. When the spells descended, they were all blocked out and trapped within the sandstorms, drowned in the thunder and lightning.


    "What is that spell?" Many people felt confused and even the elders were shocked. The Starry School had some strong star spells, but they had never seen this spell. Could it be something that the College Chief had recently created?


    This spell was naturally not from the Starry School''s cultivation. Back in the Cottage, Ye Futian had learned many spells from the old fellow. This was one of the extremely strong spells that he learned, combining multiple elements and was named Quicksand Storm. It was an exceptional group combat spell that had high requirements in one''s Spiritual Energy and Spiritual Qi control.


    After Ye Futian had deciphered the sage martial fate and the divine light''s ability, he made changes to the Quicksand Storm and included the star''s revolution in it.


    The new spell that was created should be named Meteorite Storm.


    In the air, the Meteorite Storm revolved rapidly, like the stars in the sky. It swallowed everything in its path and the experts in the air experienced an extremely strong gravity trying to pull them into the storm. All their spells were all buried within.


    Ye Futian stretched out both his palms and waved them towards the air. In an instant, the Meteorite Storm moved towards the air, its destructive power sweeping everything in its way. The experts in the air started to escape frantically, yet they continue to be struck down, either by the meteorites colliding with their body or the storm cutting through them. Many of them started to vomit blood and in an instant, the strong alliance fell to pieces.


    Ye Futian felt that it was a pity. His cultivation level was low, so his control over the spell was limited. Otherwise, the spell could continue to become stronger and its true power would be able to match the heavens and level everything in creation!

 478 Battling the Pinnacle of the Arcana Plane

    Everyone stared at the prideful figure standing there in dismay. He was too strong, just a single spell could cause all those experts to become injured. The spell''s destructive force was appalling.


    Boom. At that moment, a figure descended like a flash of lightning. The figure stepped forward and the heavens rumbled, like a mountain crashing down upon Ye Futian who had just finished casting his spell. His brilliant eyes glancing at the other person, Ye Futian''s palm stretched out, his Spiritual Qi culminating into the form of a rod.


    Golden rays of light shot out suddenly and the crowd saw Ye Futian''s body quiver. On his back, a pair of giant Roc wings appeared, like a Roc king attached to him. His wings shuddered and a golden storm started to erupt. Ye Futian''s body slowly rose into the air, the golden rod in his hand striking out. The golden light pierced the heavens and with a deafening bang, the mountain was split in two and the rod collided with the figure, sweeping it back.


    "Do it." Multiple figures appeared simultaneously and headed towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stepped into the air and flashes of lightning appeared. The speed of the Thundering Illusion Step combined with the Roc wings was breakneck. It was as though he teleported in front of a person and his rod struck out with no hesitation. Another resounding crack and another person crashed into the ground.


    Bang, bang, bang��. Following that, the crowd could only see Ye Futian''s phantom, and few in the Arcana Plane could track his movements. They could only see people continuing to be pummeled into the ground and the sound of them hitting the ground.


    In an instant, there were already over ten people in the ground. The dazzling figure flew upwards and appeared in the air, its golden wings flapping gently, perfectly fitting into its aura. Compared to him, Jin Yunxiao would probably feel inferior.


    The members of the Jin Clan had extremely piercing gazes. Ye Futian actually had the Roc Life Spirit as well.


    Tchh�� A brilliant light slashed towards him and the crowd looked towards the air. They saw Chen Liu leading a group of Chen Clan geniuses in slashing the Sun Sword. The glows from the Sun Swords intersected and formed a fearsome sword spectrum which slashed towards Ye Futian like domineering sun rays.


    Hissssss�� When the Sun Swords collided with Ye Futian, his body ignited and the hungry flames turned into a brilliant light veil, circulating around his body. The flames on his body were blazing like a sun and his body the vessel for the sun. The flames threatened to burn everything to ashes and the Sun Swords actually assimilated within the flames'' energy.


    In that instant, a sun appeared behind Ye Futian, hanging high up in the sky, its rays blinding.


    "A second Life Spirit," the crowd murmured to themselves, with the Sun Spirit, he would be impervious to the flames. His body was like the sun''s vessel, able to burn everything. At the same time, within the sun, a symbol of flames appeared. Ye Futian was like the Fire God, he took a step forward and the flame symbol shot out multiple light beams towards all directions.


    Chen Liu and his clan members felt an extremely strong flame energy, and they all released their Life Spirit Dharmas to combat it.


    In the air, the unparalleled figure swung the rod like the visage of a Divine Ape. The rod in Ye Futian''s hands continued to grow bigger and turned into a giant golden rod. The rod continued its rampage, and the skies stormed.


    Fwoosh. The golden wings flickered and Ye Futian stormed forward with the rage of the heavens. Chen Liu and his clan members could feel the impending pressure and their faces paled. They saw Ye Futian swing out with his rod, and the shadow of the rod grew at an alarming rate. A golden rod that could rival the skies in length appeared, and with an ear-splitting bang, the air itself appeared to be shaking. Chen Liu and his clan members started to vomit blood, and their bodies fell to the ground.


    The group was swept to the ground. Ye Futian continued to step forward towards the direction where most of the crowd was, continuing to wield his rod. From the heavens, colossal shadows appeared and hammered down.


    "Spread out!" someone shouted, and many people started to scatter in different directions, yet the rod continued to beat many people into the ground with irresistible force.


    People from both sides of Ye Futian assaulted him and the sound of people clashing sounded out as Ye Futian''s Fatal Entanglement swathed them and threw them back.


    Invincible. This was the thought of the onlookers outside the Starry School at that moment. Under the attack of that many experts, none of them could even withstand a single strike of Ye Futian''s rod. He was strong beyond belief.


    Today Ye Futian was crowned the Son of the Top Three Schools and bestowed with the holy robes. This meant that he would stand at the peak of his generation with no rival. Zhen Rong was also among those participating in the battle. She was swept to the ground with one strike, blood streaming from her mouth. However, what made her really feel humiliation was that Ye Futian did not even look her in the eye when he injured her with his strike. It was as though to him, the young lady of the Zhen Clan was just a passerby and not deserving of his attention.


    Not just her, but there was no shortage of famed geniuses that took part in the battle of the Top Three Schools, yet no matter who it was, no matter how famous they were usually, how strong they were, they were all decimated.


    From the start of the battle, not much time had gone by, yet the hundreds of experts that had joined in the battle had all been defeated. In the air, the battle came to a halt. Donned in holy robes and wearing the holy crown, Ye Futian hovered in the air, his wings shining brilliantly, his gaze sharp, looking down upon the crowd.


    "Is there anyone else who wishes to challenge me?" Ye Futian''s gaze swept across the massive crowd. There was an ample amount of experts, yet not one of them could stand up to Ye Futian. In fact, none of them could even face him in battle; they were all brushed off.


    Within the crowd, Wang Yurou stared intently at the figure with a sense of helplessness. He had been like this in Yunyue City as well, even now, when he was facing the geniuses of the Divine Sky City, nobody could mar his brilliance.


    In another location, three figures squeezed within the crowd. The skinny teen smiled, blinking and said, "Little brother is still so suave."


    "Looks like his days have gotten even more enriching without us seniors to watch over him." Another handsome teen nodded his head and smiled.


    The fat teen stood at the back, watching the outstanding figure and thought back to his own days. There was no comparison, his life was simply too pitiful.


    "Since the founding of the Top Three Schools, this is the first time they''ve crowned a Son. Since the Starry School is the first to start off this tradition, the Son that they''ve crowned should dominate the entire plane in order to receive such preferential treatment. Why should the fights be limited to only the Middle Arcana Plane? Moreover, I''ve heard that you revealed the strength of an Upper Arcana Plane cultivator at the Evil Dragon Zone," an expert from the Blazing Sun School said. Ye Futian sweeping his entire generation and none of the disciples of the Top Three Schools being a match for him was nothing to the Starry School, but the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School would lose face.


    Many people had stunned expressions. Geniuses were plentiful in the Top Three Schools. For an Upper Arcana Plane to challenge the fifth level of the Arcana Plane was a bit of a bully. However, many people were unfamiliar with what happened at the Evil Dragon Zone, but they knew that one''s cultivation level could not be forged. Ye Futian was indeed in the fifth level of the Arcana Plane.


    "Shameless," Long Ling''er said disdainfully.


    Ye Futian''s gaze shifted in the direction of the Blazing Sun School and replied, "If the Blazing Sun School wishes to challenge me with an Upper Arcana Plane disciple, go ahead."


    Bam. They saw a figure stand up and step forward. Many people''s expressions became dumbfounded when they saw the person who had stepped out.


    "Shameless!" Long Ling''er''s face turned red in anger as she repeated herself. The person who had stepped forward from Chen Wang from the Chen Clan, a cultivator at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane. He himself was also a prodigy, the difference between the two of them was too great.


    Chen Wang stared cruelly at Ye Futian. In the ninth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield, he was defeated in one blow by Ye Futian. At that time, Ye Futian had martial arts fate surrounding him, but not this time.


    In an instant, the sun''s flames enveloped Chen Wang''s body, causing it to become extremely dazzling. He released his Life Spirit Dharma and a sun appeared. Within the sun, there was the statue of a Divine Sun Bird, the Three-legged Golden Raven.


    An awe-inspiring aura circulated around Chen Wang''s body and wings of flames appeared on his back, firing beams of light towards Ye Futian. In the air, flames from the sun descended from the skies and gathered around his body, causing the flames around his body to burn even brighter, as though he was one with the sun.


    He stretched out his arm and the flames turned into an intimidating sun god sword, the flames that it was giving off was strong enough to burn any Middle Arcana Plane expert to ashes. Many people felt worried for Ye Futian. He was easily taunted into accepting the Blazing Sun''s challenge, they felt it was a rash decision on his part. The Blazing Sun School did not pull their punches and sent out Chen Wang to battle him.


    Ye Futian''s body continued to hover in the air, thunder, and lightning at his feet. At that moment, Chen Wang leaped forward and the sun shined down on him, merging with his body and blazing Ye Futian''s body with a piercing glow. He struck at Ye Futian with the sun god sword in a straightforward manner.


    Bang! Ye Futian kicked off the ground and his Thundering Illusion Step allowed him to rapidly change places. The blade of light slashed towards the Starry School in the distance, where an expert stepped in and an invisible barrier stopped the blade of light from progressing.


    Chen Wang let out a grunt and moved at an equally speedy pace, heading straight for Ye Futian. He slashed out yet again and the blade of light appeared to transform into the sun''s rays, reaching in an instant. However, Ye Futian had already predicted the lightspeed attack and he avoided it yet again with his Thundering Illusion Step, leaving the destruction of the sun''s rays to the experts to stop.


    Chen Wang frowned. He had not expected Ye Futian''s reaction to be that quick. He stepped foot into the air once again, countless rays spilling off his body. In the air, he slashed out with his sword, this time multiple blades of sun rays were released, leaving Ye Futian with nowhere to dodge.


    Ye Futian stared at the oncoming attack, his Freedom Meditation at work. He had obtained the sage legacy and had three divine lights. These three divine lights mirrored the Top Three Schools'' abilities. Chen Wang was the genius of the Chen Clan and cultivated in the Blazing Sun School. His expertise was the sun''s flames, so he naturally mastered the Blazing Sun''s abilities. Ye Futian wanted to observe Chen Wang''s cultivation methods.


    Just then, blades of sun rays shot towards him, encircling the entire area he was in. Every blade of sun ray contained immense destructive power. In his body, an equally fearsome light was circulating. In an instant, many meteorites appeared and gathered around his body, circulating frantically. Each one of these meteorites appeared to have a dazzling light that glowed and faded, just like a star, like constellations circulating around Ye Futian''s body!

 479 A Familiar Ruse

    Chen Wang''s sun sword struck forth and waves of light blades rushed within the circulating meteorites, each sun ray blade containing immense destructive power, threatening to drown out the meteorites. However, when the light on the meteorites glowed, the sun''s flames would extinguish. When the waves of sun ray blades had completely been warded off, the meteorite formation around Ye Futian''s body was still there.


    Chen Wang''s expression froze. His attack was not able to break through Ye Futian''s defenses? How could his ability be so strong? It was similar to the meteorite storm from before, yet different. It was like a mini starry dimension.


    Ye Futian opened his arms and stood in the center of the dimension, as though the entire starry dimension revolved around him. There was an extremely brilliant glow circulating around his body, intersecting with the light from the meteorites, as though he had created an indestructible dimension.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were sparkling. His body moved forward and the dimension moved together with him towards Chen Wang. Chen Wang leaped through the air, swords in both hands, the sun''s rays firing down. Boundless Spiritual Qi resonated with him at that moment, slashing towards Ye Futian. The blades of light appeared to drown out everything else on their way to Ye Futian.


    Fizzle, fizzle�� The meteorites around Ye Futian ignited, becoming fireballs and exploding into pieces. Many people were astounded, was this slash finally going to cut through him?


    Eventually, the sun blades'' destructive power came to a halt. Ye Futian emotionlessly gazed at Chen Wang, the meteorites that had been shattered coming back together again, continuing to circulate around him. Ye Futian gradually moved closer to Chen Wang.


    Chen Wang''s expression paled slightly. His sun''s blades appeared to have a Three-legged Golden Raven merged within, and he lashed out with an even stronger force. However, the ending was the same. He was still unable to break through the meteorite storm.


    Ye Futian was already there. Chen Wang started to retreat, but he saw Ye Futian take a step forward, his body teleporting through the air, landing in front of Chen Wang. Although Chen Wang''s cultivation level was higher than Ye Futian, his teleportation speed was slower. His already pale expression turned even paler, and he slashed his blade rapidly, but Ye Futian continued to get even closer. As the meteorites exploded under the force of the blades of light, Chen Wang''s body entered the same dimension that Ye Futian was in. He had been trapped in the meteorite storm.


    Hummm�� Ye Futian moved his arm and countless meteorites smashed towards Chen Wang''s body. Chen Wang''s sword slashed at the meteorites frantically, and a rapid clashing sound could be heard. At that moment, a shining meteorite shattered the sun blade and collided with Chen Wang.


    Pshhhhh�� A stream of blood burst out from Chen Wang''s mouth and his body arched inwards from the impact. Ye Futian did not stop there, he balled up his fingers into a fist and meteorites descended rapidly. The crowd saw Chen Wang''s body being pulverized by the continuous impact and blood streamed from his mouth.


    "That''s enough." A cold voice sounded from the direction of the Blazing Sun School. Ye Futian waved his arm and with a loud bang, Chen Wang was slammed into the ground, hanging on to his last breath and covered in blood.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were blazing, yet his aura was cold. Since they had insisted he battle an Upper Arcana Plane expert, he would give them their just deserts. There would probably be no other challengers after this.


    Among the silence, many people looked towards Chen Wang. The genius of the Blazing Sun School, the prodigy of the Chen Clan, standing at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane. He had also stepped foot into the ninth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield, yet he had suffered such a crushing defeat.


    Everyone understood that there would be no need for Ye Futian to prove himself after this battle. The Starry School''s Son Ye Futian was capable of dominating his generation. He could overcome the difference in cultivation level and defeat Chen Wang, who was at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane. What more could they want from him?


    Gu Hanshan and Madame Long looked at the teen standing in the air. When Long Yitian was still young, he had not been this outstanding. Today, Ye Futian was pushed up to the position of Son by them, and the College Chief had pushed him even higher in hopes that he could become the next Long Yitian. However, from what they saw today, they understood that he had the potential to achieve even more.


    The Sage plane experts from the Starry School also looked towards Ye Futian. They did not completely agree with the College Chief''s decision previously, and they even had their objections. Now, it seemed that the College Chief had his reason for doing so, he wanted to create a legend that could overwhelm the entire generation. However, the experts of the Starry School also understood that to create such a legend would put them under immense pressure. Back then, it had been the same for Long Yitian.


    The Starry School''s College Chief kept a poker face, so nobody could tell what he was thinking.


    "Is there anyone else with objections?" the College Chief asked. He then proceeded to say, "If there are any Noble Plane disciples within my Starry School that remain unconvinced and can do better than him, you can replace him."


    The Starry School''s disciples all fell silent. Being able to sweep the entire plane at the fifth level of the Arcana Plane, who among the Arcana Plane had the ability to do better? Even in the Noble Plane, who could perform better than what Ye Futian had? At this moment, everyone understood that there would only be witnesses, no more challengers.


    "What did you obtain in the Martial Arts Battlefield''s Divine Chamber?" Someone from the Blazing Sun School broke the silence.


    When Ye Futian was battling Chen Wang, there was a dazzling glow surrounding him. They had all felt a strong, mysterious power. What was Ye Futian''s reward for stepping into the Divine Chamber on the ninth level of the Martial Arts Battlefield that made the Starry School''s Sage plane experts crown him as their Son?


    Many people''s expressions turned interesting. They had already guessed that Ye Futian was the mysterious person, but now that an elder from the Blazing Sun School had popped the question, it was finally time for the truth to be revealed. This exceptional teen had caused the Martial Arts Battlefield to crumble a few days ago.


    "I have nothing to say to that." Before Ye Futian had the chance to answer, the Starry School''s College Chief had already replied.


    "The Martial Arts Battlefield is guarded by all Three Top Schools. Now, this young one has caused the Martial Arts Battlefield to collapse, we''ve lost a land of opportunity. The Starry School has crowned him as your Son, so how are we going to settle the issue of the Martial Arts Battlefield collapsing?" the expert from the Blazing Sun School retorted. The crowd''s interest was piqued, now that Ye Futian had shown his exceptional talent, the two other schools would know that they were unable to cause trouble at the coronation, so they were using the Martial Arts Battlefield as an excuse to create trouble


    Now the Starry School had their own Son, and he had taken all of the Martial Arts Battlefield''s martial arts fate. The Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School were naturally displeased.


    "For thousands of years, the disciples of the Top Three Schools have entered the Martial Arts Battlefield to fight for the martial arts fates and raise their cultivation level. It has always been survival of the fittest, I see no issue to settle," an expert from the Starry School also spoke up. From his perspective, it was a ludicrous request.


    "If the Martial Arts Battlefield was still around, we could still maintain the survival of the fittest. However, he has caused the Martial Arts Battlefield to collapse. Should you not give us an explanation for that?" the Blazing Sun School''s expert retorted.


    "That''s right, the Martial Arts Battleground is a land of opportunity belonging to the Divine Sky City. Now that it has collapsed because of one person, and that person is the Starry School''s Son, the Starry School should account for it," another person exclaimed.


    "What explanation do you all want?" the Starry School''s College Chief coldly asked. When he crowned Ye Futian, he had expected that he would withstand pressure from the two other schools, but he did so anyway. Since Ye Futian had unrivaled potential, he would naturally have to withstand inhumane pressure. Today''s coronation reflected the College Chief''s attitude towards Ye Futian as well. Everything was done formally so that the other two schools would not underestimate Ye Futian''s position in the Starry School and use underhanded means to deal with him.


    "Since he was able to obtain something, it''s his own fortune. However, the collapse of the Martial Arts Battlefield, the loss of a land of opportunity, requires an explanation by him. In the Divine Chamber, did he remove the item securing the martial arts fates in place?" an expert asked.


    "So what if he did?" the College Chief replied bluntly.


    "The Martial Arts Battlefield is jointly protected by the Top Three Schools. If he has removed the item securing the martial arts fates in place, it''s only right that he should return it," the expert insisted.


    "The battlefield has already collapsed, how can he return it?" Elder Nie said, "If you have anything that you want to say, just get to the point."


    "Since it''s protected by all three schools, naturally it should be owned by all three schools," the Blazing Sun School finally expressed its objective.


    There was silence in the air. Many people looked at the arguing key personnel of the top three schools. Ye Futian''s performance had been too phenomenal, so much so that even the Sage plane experts of the Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School were unwilling to let him keep the treasure while being crowned as the Son of the Starry School. In the past, the Starry School had Long Yitian. Now, they had Ye Futian.


    Pffff. From within the silent crowd, a laughing voice sounded out and it sounded especially clear. Many people''s gazes moved into the crowd, and they saw a teenage person standing within.


    "Please carry on," the teen saw many people looking at him and said, still laughing.


    "What are you laughing at?" An apathetic voice sounded out from the direction of the Blazing Sun School. A Noble Plane disciple''s frosty gaze landed on the teen.


    "I''ve long heard of the reputation of the Top Three Schools as the holy land of the Eastern Barren Territory. Passing by today, I decided to come and take a look, and it so happened to be the crowning of the Starry School''s Son. I''ve previously heard of the Martial Arts Battlefield, I did not think that items obtained from the battlefield could be shared between three parties. I found it interesting, so I laughed. Please forgive my intrusion." Luo Fan smiled while speaking, having a flippant expression.


    The crowd''s expression was funny. Was this fellow not afraid of offending them?


    As expected, the Noble Plane disciple stepped out and walked towards Luo Fan. A Noble Plane''s might descended onto Luo Fan, and he cruelly said, "When the elders of the Top Three Schools are speaking, you have no right to interfere. Slap yourself and get lost."


    This Noble Plane expert was also from the Chen Clan. Chen Wang was his cousin, and the Chen Clan had lost face when he had been publicly defeated. Now, someone dared to quip in when the Sage plane experts of the Top Three Schools were conversing. The cheek of him.


    Luo Fan was stunned, and replied, "I didn''t say anything wrong, did I?"


    "Slap yourself." Chen Yu continued forward with his horrifying might. The elders of the Starry School frowned, it seemed like Chen Yu was using this as an opportunity to damage the Starry School''s reputation.


    "Senior, what should I do when I meet someone unreasonable?" Luo Fan turned to Xue Ye and asked.


    "If he can''t be reasoned with, then use your fist," Xue Ye replied.


    "The other party has Sage Plane elders around, how can I be a match for him?" Luo Fan asked again.


    "Teacher has said that the reason why Sage plane experts are able to reach that level is because of the magnanimity they have. Surely they would not interfere in a junior''s battle?" Xue Ye replied playfully.


    "That''s true." Luo Fan nodded his head seriously.


    When the crowd heard that, they were dumbfounded. Chen Yu was a Noble plane expert from the Chen Clan. What would the difference be even if the Sage plane experts did not step in?


    In the air, Ye Futian was dumbstruck and looked at Chen Yu with sympathy. Like he had predicted, it was the same familiar ruse!

 480 Good News

    Ye Futian saw his fifth brother Luo Fan step out and he knew that Chen Yu was in trouble. Out of his many brothers and sisters, his big brother was stable and strong, his second sister ''kind and gentle,'' his third brother prideful, sister Xing''er virtuous and caring, the only two jokers were his fourth brother Xue Ye and fifth brother Luo Fan. They were all here, as for the punching bag Yi Xiaoshi, he was automatically ignored by Ye Futian.


    Fatties had no position to speak of.


    This Chen Yu should be from the Chen Clan, he was probably not weak. Xue Ye and Luo Fan weren''t as awe-inspiring as third brother, but as disciples personally selected and taught by that old fellow, their strength would definitely be up to mark. After one year of not seeing them, they were likely to be even stronger.


    Loulan Xue did a double take upon seeing Luo Fan and thought that Ye Futian''s other brothers were weirdos. The battle had not even started and he had already set a trap for Chen Yu. By first complimenting the Sage Plane experts, they would not be able to settle the score with him afterward.


    "Ignorant. Get out here," Chen Yu cruelly said. The Starry School wanted to interfere, but seeing as Luo Fan looked carefree, they did not step in but chose to watch the situation.


    "Sure." Luo Fan smiled and walked forward. The people around started to frantically step back and make way for him, Chen Yu was a Noble Plane expert and the damage he would do when battling would be on a larger scale. Very soon, there was no one around Luo Fan but the three brothers.


    An even stronger flame will descended upon them. Chen Yu''s eyes contained a scary Flame Intent and the entire area was scorching like it was burning up. Chen Yu raised his hand and grabbed the flame current flowing in the air, and a giant flame palmprint formed instantly. It shadowed the heavens and headed straight for Luo Fan.


    Luo Fan raised his arm. In it, there was a fire stick. He waved it around and it started to coil around like a flame whip, the flame current in the air started to cluster and with a flick of his whip, the flame palmprint was split from the middle.


    Chen Yu hovered in the air, his arms waving. Countless fire-elemental Spiritual Qi formed currents and a flame world appeared in the skies.


    A Noble Plane expert''s vigor was naturally much stronger than an Arcana Plane''s.


    Chen Yu''s finger pointed towards Luo Fan and Sun Swords started to rain from the skies as if trying the destroy the entire area.


    "Playing with fire?" Luo Fan laughed and his whip began to move. Along with its movement, a flame storm started to brew, like a flame dragon that could devour everything. It absorbed all the Sun Swords into itself, causing the flame dragon to become even more violent and terrifying while flying in Chen Yu''s direction.


    Chen Yu''s expression turned solemn. All of a sudden, the flame dragon let out a furious roar and spit out all the Sun Swords, as if it was imitating his attack.


    Chen Yu struck out with his palm, attempting to use his Blazing Sun Print to shatter the Sun Swords. However, the flame whip that spiraled towards him ignored his attempts to shield himself, and opened its mouth like a storm, attempting to swallow him. He stepped backward and the flame storm started to chase him all the way until he had retreated to where the Blazing Sun School''s experts were at. A three-legged Golden Raven shadow appeared on his body, its body covered in flames, allowing that terrible force to flood his body.


    Booom�� A vehement current swept past and Chen Yu repeatedly stepped back, looking flustered. This was when Luo Fan finally recalled his whip and stood there, smiling at him.


    "I think it''s easier for you to slap yourself," Luo Fan said, smiling. Chen Yu''s expression was especially somber.


    "Who are you?" someone from the Blazing Sun School asked. Although Luo Fan and Chen Yu were just casually battling, Luo Fan had demonstrated extraordinary flame controlling ability.


    "Just a cook, not worthy of mention," Luo Fan smiled and replied.


    Chen Yu looked coldly at him, was he mocking him for not even being able to defeat a cook?


    "Fifth brother, that''s going too far," Ye Futian addressed him while smiling.


    Those who heard Ye Futian''s voice were astonished. Fifth brother? This person who had suddenly appeared was actually Ye Futian''s senior. It was no wonder that he mocked the Blazing Sun School''s actions just now.


    "This is called being low-profile, unlike you��." Luo Fan looked at the brilliant Ye Futian disapprovingly and continued, "Luckily you did not lose face for any of our other brothers and sisters. Am I right, fourth?"


    "I believe very much in our little brother," replied Xue Ye.


    "Fourth brother, you''ve become even more handsome," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "That''s to be expected." Xue Ye nodded as though it was something natural.


    "Seventh brother, why have you gotten even fatter?" Ye Futian looked towards Yi Xiaoshi.


    "Nonsense��" Yi Xiaoshi looked at Ye Futian with anger. He had evidently become thinner.


    "Be more serious." Luo Fan stared at Yi Xiaoshi, then turned towards the Starry School College Chief and said, "Elder, thank you for your kind treatment towards my little brother. Although this fellow''s potential may not be as high as mine, it''s still manageable, worthy of the position of Son. However, this little fellow is playful, so I hope that you can discipline him properly."


    The crowd was blushing in shame. Ye Futian''s strength was visible for all to see, yet Luo Fan actually said that Ye Futian''s potential was not as high as his and only manageable��. How could there be someone this shameless?


    "Since the few of you are Ye Futian''s seniors, I believe your potentials are also exceptional. Since Ye Futian is crowned as our Son today, why not the rest of you enter our Starry School to cultivate?" Elder Nie asked. Although this person was a Middle Noble Plane cultivator, his personality was interesting.


    "Do you still have Son positions?" Luo Fan asked and Elder Nie was stunned. Luo Fan then smiled and continued, "I''m just kidding, we''re low-profile and don''t like being bound to one place, so we won''t be cultivating in the Starry School. The only reason we''re here is to visit our little brother."


    "Okay, I understand." Elder Nie nodded his head and did not pursue the matter. This fellow is really ''low-profile'', he thought to himself.


    "Alright, now that today''s coronation has come to an end, please take your leave." The Starry School College Chief looked at the crowd and announced, ignoring what the Blazing Sun School''s experts said.


    Some people looked at the College Chief and did not say anything. They probably understood that the most they could do today were to apply a little pressure to the Starry School. Since the College Chief had already done so, he would naturally not care. No matter how much they said would be to no effect.


    The crowd started to stand up and leave the venue. The Chen Clan experts cruelly glared at Ye Futian and his friends, they likely already hated Ye Futian.


    The rest of the people could not bear to leave and continued looking at Ye Futian. What had happened today was absolutely spectacular. Not long ago, nobody knew that Ye Futian was the Son. It was a huge surprise, even though he had already made a name for himself in the Martial Arts Battlefield, no one knew that it was him. The Celestial Pavilion''s owner, the mysterious person that had caused the collapse of the Martial Arts Battlefield, the Starry School''s Son. From now on, the Divine Sky City had another genius.


    From within the crowd, Shen Yu looked at her Pavilion owner and left unwillingly. When Wang Yurou left, she turned her head back from time to time, thinking of what her sister could be thinking at this point in time.


    When everyone had left, the bustle came to an end, leaving only the Starry School''s disciples. They looked at Ye Futian, speechless.


    The disciples had mixed feelings, some were happy and others troubled. Gu Yunxi was naturally happy for Ye Futian, Li Man was also smiling, she had not expected the little fellow that she had met in the Evil Dragon Zone to be this strong, much stronger than her. However, it was ironic for Jiang Nan. He was now hiding within the crowd with a grim expression. Ye Futian could defeat even Chen Wang. Jin Yunxiao and Long Mu were not even on the same level as him, this left him in despair. Especially when he recalled all the times when he had ridiculed Ye Futian, every word he had said was grating to his ear.


    "Brothers, why have you come?" Ye Futian naturally did not care about how others felt. He was surprised to see his brothers.


    "Now that the Eastern Barren Territory has settled down and everything is on track. Big brother has broken through in his broadsword skills, so there''s nothing left for us to do and we decided to come to the Barren State," Xue Ye explained and Ye Futian''s eyes lit up. He smiled while asking, "Big brother has advanced to the next level?"


    "Yes." Luo Fan nodded. "Not only did he advance to the next level, but he also got a beautiful girlfriend."


    "Who?" Ye Futian blinked and asked.


    "Why don''t you guess?" Luo Fan smiled and looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s eyeballs rolled in their socket and he replied, "Goddess Wangyue?"


    "Smart, as expected of the pretty lady killer." Luo Fan complimented him. Thinking back on Ye Futian''s luck with girls back then, it was not something they could hope to achieve.


    Ye Futian let out a brilliant smile. Back then his big brother had headed to the Moon Clan to prevent the Qin Dynasty''s invasion and Goddess Wangyue had moved into the Book Mountain.


    Goddess Wangyue was a stunning beauty and still single, supporting his big brother to run the Book Mountain. His big brother was outstanding, at the time Ye Futian had felt that the two of them were well-matched, as expected, they were now together.


    "When will their wedding be?" Ye Futian asked. If his big brother was getting married, he would definitely go back to attend the ceremony.


    "I''m not sure." Luo Fan shrugged. "Big brother still cares about teacher''s matters."


    Ye Futian''s smile froze on his face, and his expression became serious.


    "That''s right, have you met third brother?" Luo Fan asked.


    "I''ve seen him once," Ye Futian replied, nodding. "Third brother is doing well now, he could probably have gone to break through his current cultivation level."


    "That''s good." Xue Ye and the rest nodded.


    "What is your relation to the person at the Evil Dragon Zone that day?" at that moment, an elder asked and looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at that person, it was Master Yun who had gone to the Evil Dragon Zone that time. He smiled sheepishly and said apologetically, "I hope elder doesn''t blame my third brother."


    Master Yun glared at Ye Futian. Since the moment he saw him crowned as the Son, he knew that Ye Futian was the person who had snatched the Dragon Grass. But, what could he say? He could do nothing about it.


    Within the crowd, Tan Zhong''s expression was unhappy. It turns out that the handsome scholar who had defeated him in the Evil Dragon Zone was Ye Futian''s third brother.


    Ye Futian looked at the College Chief standing above the stairway. He had been busy talking with his brothers that he had forgotten the College Chief was around.


    "You go ahead." The College Chief did not say anything, bringing his people and leaving.


    Gu Hanshan also stepped out, smiling and saying, "Little fellow, good luck in your cultivation."


    "Thank you, senior." Ye Futian nodded. Standing beside Gu Hanshan, Gu Yunxi smiled gently at Ye Futian.


    "Big brother Futian, all the best." Long Ling''er raised her small fist at Ye Futian, while Madame Long nodded lightly at him. The both of them then left. Ye Futian knew that he owed Madame Long a huge debt. Otherwise, he would be on the run now!

 481 The Polearm of Divine Destruction

    "What did third brother do?" Xue Ye overheard Master Yun and Ye Futian''s conversation and asked curiously.


    "I met third brother on the outskirts of a small city in the Barren State, within the woods. He was snatching a Dragon Grass that the Top Three Schools had their eyes on. I disguised my identity and stole the Dragon Grass, then split it with third brother," Ye Futian smiled and replied. If an ordinary disciple of the Top Three Schools dared to say such a thing, he would definitely be tortured. However, the Son''s status was different. He could say such a thing jokingly, and an Upper Noble Plane like Master Yun could only be depressed about it. Compared to the Dragon Grass, the Martial Arts Battlefield''s collapse was also thanks to him.


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan blinked in disbelief.


    "Brothers, do you want to stay here and cultivate?" Ye Futian asked. The feeling of reuniting after such a long time made him ecstatic, and even though his brothers were crafty, they treated him very well.


    "There isn''t even a Son position anymore, what''s the point of being an ordinary disciple?" Luo Fan replied disdainfully. This fellow had become the Son and wanted them to stay and cultivate? So that they would take his orders? Wouldn''t that mess up the hierarchy? How could they let it happen?


    "Alright then." Ye Futian nodded in agreement. That was how he felt too, cultivating as an ordinary disciple in the Top Three Schools was a meaningless thing to do. It was only normal that his brothers did not want to stay.


    "What other plans do you all have then?" Ye Futian continued asking.


    "We heard about your name in the Divine Sky City and wanted to go to the Celestial Pavilion to look for you. Seeing as you''ve gotten to such a high position, we can set our minds at rest." Luo Fan patted Ye Futian on the shoulder and said solemnly, "Now, I should go visit second sister."


    "Brother treats me ''really well''." Ye Futian was speechless and looked at Luo Fan. As expected, even though this guy was disciplined by second sister in the Cottage, he was reveling in the pain and still missed her.


    "Of course." Luo Fan nodded his head seriously. "Do you need me to help you tell her anything?"


    "Just tell her that I''m doing well." Ye Futian smiled radiantly.


    "When will you be going over?" Yi Xiaoshi asked.


    "Probably after I step into the Noble Plane," Ye Futian replied. "Seventh brother, you should be in the Noble Plane by now."


    "Of course." The fatty could finally hold his head up high.


    "Then you better speed up your cultivation, or soon you''ll be unable to defeat me," Ye Futian grinned while saying. The fatty glared at him and really wanted to bash him up when he saw Ye Futian''s grin.


    "Brother, are my master and masteress doing well?" Ye Futian asked.


    "They''re on the Book Mountain. Who dares to treat them badly?" Xue Ye replied.


    "What about Qingxuan?" Yu Sheng asked.


    "She''s now cultivating in the College as well, rest easy." Xue Ye nodded and saw Ye Wuchen looking at him too. He understood what Ye Wuchen wanted to ask and said, "Liu Chenyu is the same as well, just that she often stands on the mountain and blanks out. When your cultivation level is higher, bring her out if you have the chance."


    "Alright." Ye Wuchen nodded his head. He felt bad.


    "Alright, then we''ll be leaving," Luo Fan told Ye Futian.


    "Now?" Ye Futian was stunned. "Aren''t you going to stay in the Divine Sky City for a few days to accompany me?"


    "Accompany you?" Luo Fan looked at Ye Futian disparagingly.


    "What kind of look is that��" Ye Futian saw Luo Fan''s expression and was dispirited.


    "We''re leaving, take care of yourself." Luo Fan turned around flashily. This fellow isn''t his second sister, why should he accompany him?


    Naive.


    "Be careful or you''ll be chased out," Ye Futian cursed him.


    "We''re not third brother going to ask for her hand in marriage, we have no pressure." Luo Fan waved his hand, Xue Ye and the fatty also left jovially. Ye Futian looked at them walking out, smiled and said, "Fourth brother, fifth brother, seventh brother, take care."


    "The boundless sky belongs to the birds." Luo Fan felt really unrestrained. The Barren State was really big, he could travel wherever he wanted. After seeing his second sister, he could continue to travel.


    Ye Futian smiled. His brothers were probably too confined in the Cottage, with their carefree personalities, if it had not been for his second sister, they would probably have gone traveling the world long ago. Now that they were done with the Eastern Barren Territory''s matters, they were free to explore the boundless sky.


    Such a mentality was really good.


    Ye Futian turned around and walked in the direction of the Starry School, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen and the rest following him. After he had settled matters on this end, he naturally had to visit the College Chief.


    Outside the ancient temple, Ye Futian heard a voice from inside when he arrived. "Come in, you don''t have to wait outside in the future."


    "Understood." Ye Futian''s footsteps moved inwards, and the College Chief''s voice sounded again. "Arrange the Son''s living area, bring him there to settle down."


    "Understood." The servant outside the ancient temple acknowledged the command and left.


    When Ye Futian stepped into the ancient temple, he saw a starry dimension within. Above the ancient temple, an ancient scroll floated in the air. It was the Starry Treasure Book. The Starry Treasure Book released a glaring light, as though the stars were shining from within the book.


    "This is the Starry School''s legacy, the Starry Treasure Book. In it there are many secret methods and spells, you can use your holy light and martial arts fate to try and decipher it for a period of time," the College Chief told Ye Futian.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded his head. Being crowned as the Son the moment he entered the school and learning the Starry School''s secret methods, such treatment was probably something that the other Starry School disciples could only wish for.


    "After you''ve ended your cultivation, I have other plans for you, mainly to increase your battle ability. Focus on your cultivation and worry about nothing else," the College Chief continued to remind Ye Futian, then left, leaving him alone in the Starry ancient temple.


    A ray of holy light started glowing and turned into starlight, merging with the stars in the ancient temple. He closed his eyes, his spiritual energy melding into the ancient temple''s starry dimension as if they had become one.


    Afterward, many dazzling images appeared in his brain. There were remarkably strong spells turning into stars, and a shadow appeared among the stars. The giant star appeared to transform into an absolute defense. Evidently, it was an exceedingly strong star defense spell.


    Around another shadow, there were tiny stars revolving around it, which proceeded to strike out with a horrifying force that could level mountains. There were also flying stars that could transform into immense gravity, causing people to sink within, unable to escape.


    It was an eye-opener for Ye Futian. The power of the stars used the earth element as its foundation, but many of the strong techniques included other elements within. Of course, Ye Futian understood that the person who had created this miraculous ability was not the same as he thought him to be.


    Sage plane experts could decipher the rule power, saints could probably use law power. This Starry path was likely to be a saint''s understanding of the stars in the skies and using the Starry path as a foundation, he created many techniques and spells.


    At the current cultivation level he was at, even though he could feel the mystery of it, but he could probably only understand and use the basics of it.


    Ye Futian was immersed in his cultivation and completely assimilated into the starry dimension, using a saint''s law to decipher his cultivation, he completely forgot about the passage of time.


    ��


    Since the day Ye Futian was crowned as Son, the Divine Sky City was bustling for a long period of time. In this time, Ye Futian''s name was definitely the most mentioned in the Divine Sky City, as many people were debating whether Ye Futian could become a legendary person like Long Yitian.


    After all, Ye Futian had demonstrated even more outstanding potential than Long Yitian to date, but potential did not necessarily equate to one''s achievements; opportunity and one''s luck were also required. However, Ye Futian was crowned the Son and donned the holy robes. From this, they could see that his luck was strong, and at least on the same level as Long Yitian. Time would be the best judge.


    The Starry School was also not peaceful during this time. The Jin Clan''s members were unhappy, but the College Chief had gone ahead without notifying them, letting Ye Futian dominate his generation. Moreover, he had the support of the Dragon Clan and the Gu Clan, so the Jin Clan had to accept it no matter how unhappy they were.


    A month''s time had passed and Ye Futian felt his cultivation improve tremendously. His physique and spiritual energy had reached another level, and he could feel a breakthrough coming. A month ago, when he left the Martial Arts Battlefield, he had just stepped into the fifth level of the Arcana Plane. At this rate, it would not be long before he entered the Noble Plane.


    After Ye Futian had ended his cultivation, he stepped out of the ancient temple and the College Chief Chen Yuan appeared. Chief Chen looked at him and said, "your rod skills are very strong, they must be passed down by someone extraordinary."


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Let me see your ritual implement," Chen Yuan requested.


    Ye Futian took out his Five Element Rod, and Chen Yuan held it in his hand and said, "Although it isn''t bad, it''s like a dead item, unfitting of you. You should go and get another one."


    "Huh?" Ye Futian looked at Chen Yuan, the College Chief really treated him very well.


    "In the eastern region of the Barren State, near Zhongzhou City, there is a Xuantian City. On a mountain outside the city, there is a Zhaixing House, it is a very strong clan." Chen Yuan looked at Ye Futian and continued, "Not long later, the chief of the Zhaixing House will be having his birthday banquet. You will represent the Starry School to go and celebrate his birthday. Of course, the purpose of this trip, apart from celebrating his birthday, is to obtain the treasure of the Zhaixing House, the Polearm of Divine Destruction."


    Ye Futian was stunned, and looked at the old man speechlessly. "Why would the treasure of the Zhenxing House be given to me?" Since i was a major clan that had the qualifications to make the Starry School go forth to celebrate his birthday, it was evidently on the same level as the Divine Sky City''s major clans. To take the treasure of such a clan, this was��..


    "You are the Son of the Starry School, dominating your generation. What is there not to be done?" Chen Yuan nonchalantly said, "The Polearm of Divine Destruction is made from the meteorites falling from the nine heavens. The Polearm is 90,000 catties heavy, if you are able to use it well, you can crush many people just by its weight. It has the name Polearm of Divine Destruction, it suits you well."


    "90,000 catties!" Ye Futian felt numb, although martial arts cultivators had immense strength, for someone who specialized in both martial arts and spells like him, he had a strong physique. At the fifth level of the Arcana Plane, his strength was immense, but a 90,000 catty rod still made him shudder.


    "Go and make preparations, you leave tomorrow, moreover, the people going this time will not only be from the Starry School." Chief Chen went back into the ancient temple after saying all that, leaving Ye Futian there, stunned. Ye Futian shook his head bitterly, the College Chief really treated him well, crowning him as the Son, passing down the saint''s law, and now helping him to pick a ritual implement for him to ''collect''.


    Whether he could obtain it was another matter��..

 482 The Zhaixing House

    Xuantian City was located to the west of Divine Sky City. Upon heading further west, one would reach Zhongzhou City, which laid within the eastern region of the Barren State.


    Divine Sky City was the only major city within the eastern region of the Barren State. As such, not only were the Top Three Schools located there, but many great clans flourished there as well. But for how great the eastern region of the Barren State was, there were places that were just as powerful.


    The Zhaixing House was definitely unparalleled divine grounds within Xuantian City and its wider regions. As a true unchallenged power, they had even nominated a City Lord to create laws and govern the city. The competition here may not be as intense as that in Divine Sky City, but the influence of the Zhaixing House in Xuantian City was unbeatable still.


    In the skies of the outskirts of Xuantian City flew a figure headed straight for where the city was. It was Ye Futian and company, flanked by powerful figures from the Starry School who were there to protect them. Members of the West Mountain Dragon Clan and the Gu Clan had come along as well. Long Ling''er had tagged along too after clamoring to join Ye Futian and see the world. Madame Long had eventually acquiesced.


    Gu Yunxi from the Gu Clan had also come along as a representative of the clan and a disciple of Divine Sky City. The Jin Clan would be coming as well, but they were not traveling with the group.


    "We''ll be there soon," whispered Gu Yunxi.


    "Right," Ye Futian nodded. "Yunxi, how should I go about obtaining the Divine Destruction Polearm from the Zhaixing House?"


    As Ye Futian and Gu Yunxi grew familiar with each other, Gu Yunxi had allowed him to call her by her name rather than an honorific.


    "It''s your task from the college chief, how would I know what to do?" The corners of Gu Yunxi''s lips lifted slightly. The college chief was being rather cruel by ordering Ye Futian to take the Divine Destruction Polearm from the Zhaixing House.


    The chief of the Zhaixing House treasured the Polearm to death and loved flaunting it. There was no way he would just hand it over to Ye Futian.


    "Ah��" Ye Futian''s head ached. Along the way, he had found out some information about the ties between the Zhaixing House and the Top Three Schools.


    Back in the day when the Top Three Schools had not been separated yet, the saint had several disciples to whom he personally imparted his skills. Each disciple inherited a skill respectively. When the saint fell, rifts had appeared between his disciples, and they split apart to set up the Top Three Schools.


    The predecessor who had set up Zhaixing House had been a disciple of the saint as well. He had parted ways with the senior who set up the Starry School after clashing over differing opinions.


    The founder of Starry School obtained the Starry Treasure Book, while the ancestors of Zhaixing House inherited the Divine Destruction Polearm. After many years, the Top Three Schools became sacred training grounds in Divine Sky City. They were the best of the best, yet those of the Zhaixing House refused to acknowledge the schools. The ancestors of the Zhaixing House firmly believed that only they were the legitimate heirs to the Divine Path. Up till today, members of the Zhaixing House never enrolled in the Starry School, preferring to head over to Zhongzhou City to pursue their education.


    With this sort of history, Ye Futian was suspicious of College Chief Chen''s intentions in sending him to take the treasure of the Zhaixing House.


    As the group moved forward, a vast ancient city appeared beneath the cloudy skies.


    "We''ve reached Xuantian City," an elder announced. That elder was Master Yun, who had previously headed for the Evil Dragon Zone. Many top-tier cultivators of the Noble plane had been sent to accompany the Son as he traveled. Master Yun was one of them.


    The Starry School had previously asked its disciples of the Noble plane if they were willing to accompany the Son and defend the Divine Path. But no one had responded to the call.


    It was true that Ye Futian had revealed unparalleled talent the other day. But as top-tier nobles, their pride prevented them from agreeing to protect the Son on his journey. To them, it would be akin to being Ye Futian''s attendants, and no one was willing to do it.


    "Let''s go down," Yang Xing, who was behind Long Ling''er, spoke amidst the rumblings of the dragon. The demonic dragon then dived down towards Xuantian City with its riders, attracting the gazes of many people in the city.


    But the people of the city were not too surprised as well. When the chief of the Zhaixing House held his birthday banquet, many powerful figures would come from all sorts of places. This was a yearly occurrence and nothing to be astonished over.


    Once the group landed in Xuantian City, they found an inn to settle down in. News of the newcomers spread very quickly, and they were soon visited by people from the City Lord Office of Xuantian City.


    Discussion was rife outside of the inn. Everyone was trying to guess the identities of these people who had just arrived in the city. It was a rather large group, and they had arrived by dragon. Furthermore, the son and daughter of the City Lord had come to visit at the first opportunity.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was meeting his visitors from the City Lord Office at the banquet room of the inn. At the head of the group of visitors was a young man and woman, both with exquisite looks.


    "You have all traveled a long way from Divine Sky City. Why not come over to the City Lord Office to rest instead of putting up at an inn?" The young man greeted them with lightly clasped hands, smiling as he spoke. He gazed at Ye Futian, who was sitting in the center of the room and tried to guess his identity.


    The Starry School had never sent a representative so young, nor had they ever sent anyone lower than the Noble plane to the chief''s birthday banquet. It seemed as though the Starry School was beginning to not take the Zhaixing House seriously, and was only going through the formalities.


    Of course, the young man dared not to comment. No one would have dared to comment even if the Starry School had not sent a single person. The Top Three Schools in the eastern region of the Barren State were officially recognized as divine grounds. They came to visit every year with a motive of their own.


    "This is the Son of the Starry School," Master Yun quipped coldly from the side. He felt that the young man''s attitude towards Ye Futian was overly lighthearted and casual.


    The young man was taken aback for a moment before he laughed. "So this is the Son, I''ve been rude then. I''m Shi Yanfeng, and this is my sister Shi Qinglan."


    Shi Qinglan was also observing Ye Futian, her eyes glittering with a curious sparkle. She didn''t remember the Starry School conferring the title of Son onto anyone previously.


    The coronation of the Son had rocked Divine Sky City, but Xuantian City was a great distance away. Those in Xuantian City would also not be bothered to find out about news from Divine Sky City. As such, they still didn''t know about the happenings in Divine Sky City. However, they assumed that the young man was of great talent if he was able to be coronated as the Son of the Starry School.


    "If you are only here to tell us this, then please leave. We won''t bother you any further," Ye Futian said calmly from where he was seated. His tone was cool. This young man hadn''t sounded any sincerer, and the sparkle in his eye made it seem even more like he had come only to patronize them. Ye Futian had no time to deal with useless formalities.


    Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan were taken aback. They had not expected that the Son would not even be bothered to entertain them and send them back immediately. This Son seemed like an arrogant guy, they thought, as expected of someone from the Starry School.


    "If that is the case, then we will take our leave now. Please feel free to send someone for me at the City Lord Office should you require anything," Shi Yanfeng spoke again after a moment of contemplation. He then clasped his hands in farewell and left. It seemed as though he too was not too bothered about feigning civility.


    After the visitors left, Master Yun spoke, his expression cool, "For these people from the City Lord Office under the Zhaixing House to behave like this, they really are beginning to not care about the Top Three Schools."


    "Is it because of the Zhaixing House''s influence?" Ye Futian asked. He remembered the time when they were at Yunyue City, where the Wang Family had been incredibly respectful towards disciples of the Top Three Schools. However, it could have been because Yunyue City was incredibly weak. Xuantian City had its own top-tier clan��the Zhaixing House. As such, they probably were not as easily impressed.


    "Yeah," Master Yun nodded. "If it wasn''t for the backing of the Zhaixing House, they wouldn''t dare to have such an attitude at all."


    Ye Futian chuckled and stood to leave, speaking at the same time, "Master Yun, I''m not going to bother myself with these sorts of things from now on, why don''t you give me a hand?"


    "Sure," Master Yun nodded.


    After Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan left the inn, a cool smile could be seen on Shi Yanfeng''s face.


    "I don''t remember the Top Three Schools having a Son. Was he only coronated this year then?" Shi Qinglan asked.


    "Probably. This Son of the Starry School is really arrogant though," Shi Yanfeng chuckled, "sending us off without even bothering with the niceties."


    "Well, he is a disciple of the Top Three Schools. He''s probably incredibly talented if he can be coronated as a Son," Shi Qinglan guessed.


    "A Son as young as this? What is the Starry School thinking? Were people really convinced by their choice?" Shi Yanfeng raised his eyebrows questioningly. "As for talent, that''s definitely a given," he continued.


    Naturally, Shi Yanfeng did not doubt the judgment of the Top Three Schools. There definitely weren''t any idiots amidst the authoritative figures there.


    "Who cares about that though, we have our own beliefs and totems." Shi Yanfeng''s expression grew solemn as he spoke. He gazed at a tall mountain in the distance. Their belief lay in the Zhaixing House.


    These days, the younger generation of Xuantian City had hero figures of their own to look up to. Two figures, in particular, were two remarkable geniuses from the Zhaixing House. One of the geniuses had already entered the Holy Zhi Palace��the best training grounds of Zhongzhou City��to train. In light of this, the Top Three Schools didn''t seem like much, for the Holy Zhi Palace was the holy grail of all training grounds in the entire Barren State.


    "The other guests have arrived as well. We should go visit them too. Who knows if the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School have coronated Sons too?" said Shi Qinglan. She did not think too much of all this. Just like her senior said, they had their own beliefs and totems.


    The next morning, many powerful figures of Xuantian City began to gather in one place.


    A chain of mountains lay next to Xuantian City. Upon lifting one''s head, one would see palace after palace situated endlessly amidst the mountains. This was the renowned Zhaixing House.


    Strong figures guarded the base of the mountains. There was only one entrance and only one staircase that led up the mountain. At this moment, powerful individuals from all over the land were gathered at the bottom of the staircase.


    "Those are people from the Blazing Sun School."


    "And that''s the group from the Bright Moon School."


    "The guests from the Starry School have arrived as well," someone announced upon seeing Ye Futian and his entourage.


    The Top Three Schools were naturally in the center of attention.


    "That''s the group from the School of Heavenly Arts," observed another. A group of people stood there, emanating a powerful aura.


    "Those from the Red Phoenix Clan are here too." At another spot, a group of startlingly beautiful women waited, dressed extravagantly in flaming-red phoenix-feather clothing. They were the disciples of the Red Phoenix Clan.


    "People from Mount Xuanyuan and Qinglei Court have come as well," the crowd chattered amongst themselves. These groups were not as outstanding as the Top Three Schools, but they were still top clans within the Zhaixing House''s circle of influence, with Sages within their ranks. Other than these clans, other groups of varying levels of influence had come to pay their respects as well.


    At this moment, even powerful figures from the other groups were looking over at the disciples of the Top Three Schools. Some had looks of respect, others shot challenging gazes as if they were raring for a fight. But Ye Futian ignored all these people. He looked up at the mountain and Zhaixing House, which was situated at the top. The difficult task he had been set was on his mind still.


    Ye Futian wondered just how he was going to successfully take the treasure of the Zhaixing House.

 483 The Birthday Banque

    At this moment, someone from the Zhaixing House appeared on the stairs at the base of the mountains. Looking at the crowd, he said, "Please make your way up the mountain for the birthday banquet."


    At his words, everyone on the stairs moved aside to create a path. Many people also clasped their hands to acknowledge the messenger before preparing to move up the mountain.


    Everyone began walking towards the stairs that led up the mountain. However, some people graciously turned towards those from the Top Three Schools to invite them to go first. In an instant, those who had started moving first stopped abruptly and stood to a side as well. Their gazes turned to those from the Top Three Schools.


    Those people had intended to just go up the stairs as if they were oblivious to just who were around them. But since someone had spoken up, they had to show some respect as well. After all, the Top Three Schools were the divine grounds of the eastern region of the Barren State. It would be better to not cause them any offense at all.


    There were many guests from the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School. None of them made way for Ye Futian, and they even turned back to throw him a curious glance as they walked up.


    This time, the Starry School had not sent any disciple of the Noble plane. Instead, they had put Ye Futian at the forefront of the delegation. However, no one thought this was a sign of weakness on the part of the Starry School. The coronation ceremony held the other day was a move by College Chief Chen to display the Son''s true abilities to everyone. Ye Futian had also proved his worth that day.


    Everyone in Divine Sky City was aware that if Ye Futian managed to avoid anything that led to his downfall, he would grow to become a powerful figure like Long Yitian. With his outstanding abilities and his status as the Son, College Chief Chen would definitely do everything in his power to nurture his capabilities. Ye Futian probably had an ulterior motive in leading a party of individuals to this banquet.


    "We should go too," Ye Futian spoke, and they began to move up the mountain as well. Only after everyone from the Top Three Schools had left did the rest of the guests began to move towards the highest peak of the mountain range.


    The mountains were lined with ancient palaces. Exquisitely built, these palaces were a majestic sight to see. People began to arrive at the Zhaixing House one after the other, and they were welcomed by those at the Zhaixing House. A large banquet had been prepared to host these guests.


    With the arrival of the guests, the atmosphere at the Zhaixing House grew lively. Ye Futian and his companions sat at a distance, quietly observing the event. The high status of the Zhaixing House was clear from the huge turnout for this banquet. Even guests from the Top Three Schools were greeted without any special treatment.


    Then, a group of people walked out from one of the pavilions high up in the Zhaixing House. At the head of the group was a lady with her long hair coiled up on her head. She was the image of neatness in a tight-fitting white training outfit. Her eyes sparkled with the brilliance of stars, yet it held the calmness of still water. Her beauty was delicate and otherworldly, and she was even more beautiful than Gu Yunxi, who stood next to Ye Futian.


    In Divine Sky City, Gu Yunxi was known as a devastating beauty that could bring down cities. She was incredibly gorgeous, and yet this lady was even more dazzling with her ethereal, otherworldly beauty.


    Even Gu Yunxi herself was stunned momentarily by the appearance of this beauty. She then whispered to Ye Futian, "I''ve heard that there were two incomparable talents in this generation of the Zhaixing House, Mu Zhifan and Mu Zhiqiu. Mu Zhifan was born extraordinary. His abilities are beyond comprehension and he was the first person in many generations from the Zhaixing House who managed to enter the Holy Zhi Palace to train when he was in the Noble plane. But some people also claim that Mu Zhiqiu''s abilities aren''t inferior to her older brother''s in any way. This incredibly talented prodigy is also so beautiful that other beauties pale in comparison to her. But for all her incredible looks, she has this aura that prevents people from having any profane thoughts towards her. All it takes is one look for many men to feel inferior and ashamed of themselves."


    Ye Futian looked at the figure next to him. Face-to-face with such a beauty, Gu Yunxi didn''t show any signs of jealousy at all. Instead, she admired this lady who was more elegant than she was. Mu Zhiqiu''s looks and demeanor were pleasing to look at.


    "I don''t think you''re inferior to her in any way. In fact, I think you''re on par with her," Ye Futian told Gu Yunxi, a smile on his face. He wasn''t patronizing her in any way, his admiration for her was genuine. Gu Yunxi may be a daughter of a great clan, but she didn''t have the negative qualities that many other young ladies from powerful families had, nor was she arrogant. Instead, she was peaceful as still water, and her looks were pleasing to the eye. Indeed, she was beautiful both inside and out.


    Gu Yunxi was taken aback for a moment before a touch of embarrassment touched her gaze and a faint smile graced her lips.


    "You think very highly of me," she replied modestly.


    "It''s the truth." Ye Futian grinned at her.


    At this moment, all eyes were on Mu Zhiqiu. Many young men felt attracted to her, yet they understood that any romantic intentions they harbored for her could only remain delusions. For them, it was enough to be able to look upon her beauty.


    Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan from the City Lord Office of Xuantian City were also looking at Mu Zhiqiu. Shi Yanfeng''s eyes burned with passion at the sight of Mu Zhiqiu. To him, she was a goddess whose standards he could only aspire to reach. On the other hand, Shi Qinglan looked at her in admiration. She dreamed endlessly of becoming someone like Mu Zhiqiu.


    The person next to Mu Zhiqiu waved a hand to indicate a request for silence, and the chatter of the crowd slowly died down to nothing.


    "Grandfather is currently busy at the moment and is unable to welcome everyone right now. However, he will meet with everyone here at noon. Before that, please feel free to make yourselves at home in the Zhaixing House," Mu Zhiqiu announced. Her voice was not soft and delicate. Instead, it was clear and distinctive, with an otherworldly quality to it. One would immediately recognize her upon hearing her voice.


    "Miss Mu, you are too kind. Please let the chief attend to his business first, it''ll be enough for us to meet the chief at his convenience," answered someone in the crowd. Everyone knew that Mu Zhiqiu was just being courteous. Though many guests had arrived at the chief''s birthday banquet, most of them weren''t that senior that they could demand that the chief entertain them.


    The chief of the Zhaixing House was of equal standing with the college chiefs of the Top Three Schools. Only figures of that caliber were important enough for the chief of the Zhaixing House to spend time entertaining. It was already a great gesture of politeness that Mu Zhiqiu was even sent out to speak to them.


    After she had spoken, Mu Zhiqiu looked in the direction of the Top Three Schools, and her gaze lingered on those from the Starry School. The Zhaixing House and the Top Three Schools were cut from the same cloth. To be even more accurate, they shared the same origins. One could even say that the Zhaixing House specialized in skills that the Starry School no longer taught today. The only difference was that the Zhaixing House was more singular in its focus since disciples of the Starry School specialized in many different areas.


    "Why do the Top Three Schools send people to pay their respects every year?" Ye Futian asked out of curiosity. While the Top Three Schools did share the same origins as the Zhaixing House, there really was no need for this gesture. The Top Three Schools were the ones that were truly recognized as the divine grounds of the eastern region of the Barren State.


    In response, Gu Yunxi explained, "Sharing the same origins is only one of the reasons. Actually, all the knowledge that the Zhaixing House has passed down forms the core of the Starry School. The Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School are all hoping that the younger members of the Zhaixing House will join them to train. As for the Starry School, I don''t know what the reason is, but relations between the Zhaixing House and the school aren''t too friendly."


    "I bet they''re plotting something." Long Ling''er chuckled. "Their intentions probably aren''t that pure."


    "Don''t spout nonsense," an elder from the Long family chastised, glaring at her for the inappropriate comment.


    "I do think Ling''er has a point though." Ye Futian nodded instead, smiling. He doubted that the school''s yearly tradition of attending the chief''s birthday banquet was so innocent. Besides, the chief had tasked him with taking away the Divine Destruction Polearm after all.


    A commotion broke out, and many people stood up. Ye Futian looked around and saw that other than the Top Three Schools, everyone else had gotten to their feet and were looking in a particular direction. An elder walked towards them in an unhurried manner and stood before everyone. He had a mighty aura despite his advanced age, and his gaze was strong and majestic. He appeared to be a figure of great authority.


    "Chief," someone greeted him. Ye Futian''s eyes glittered, and the disciples of the Top Three Schools rose to greet him as well. No one was exempt from showing good manners before such a senior character.


    As Ye Futian stood with the people around him, he observed the chief of the Zhaixing House. The chief''s eyes were sharp as lightning, and a powerful aura emanated from his gaze. Ye Futian felt as though he had been set up by the college chief. It seemed pretty plausible that the chief might just kill him on the spot without hesitation if he were to dare to ask for the treasure of the Zhaixing House. In fact, it was a very great possibility.


    "We wish the chief a happy birthday," everyone echoed collectively. It was a magnificent sight to see.


    "You are all too kind, please have a seat." the chief of the Zhaixing House surveyed everyone with a strong gaze. His eyes lingered in the direction of the Top Three Schools for a moment.


    "We''ve prepared a small token for you, sir. We hope you''ll accept it," someone said. After that, many people began to present the chief with the gifts they had brought as well.


    Even the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School had prepared gifts as well. Since it was a birthday banquet, it was only right that the guests brought presents for the chief. The chief accepted them all without any hesitation.


    "Where''s our gift?" Ye Futian asked Master Yun as the people from the Bright Moon School sat back down.


    "You didn''t say to prepare one before we left," Master Yun whispered back.


    Ye Futian was taken aback. This was an awkward situation. He was here to take the chief''s treasure, yet he hadn''t even prepared a birthday present for him. Was he to present the chief with one of his own possessions? Even so, there was nothing of value Ye Futian could offer to someone of the chief''s status. His possessions were useful to him, but they all seemed like measly gifts to give to the chief.


    Right now, many people were looking towards the Starry School, waiting to see what they would do after the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School had presented their gifts.


    Ye Futian wanted to run away upon feeling all the gazes upon him. This was such an embarrassing situation. He couldn''t believe that the college chief had not reminded him to get a gift.


    With a solemn expression, Ye Futian then began to speak, his features handsome as a prince''s: "I, Ye Futian, pay my respects to you, sir. The college chief has sent me here to ask after you. We were planning to prepare a birthday gift for you, but we felt that no gift would be befitting enough for a person of your stature. It would be an insult to present you with anything lesser, so we decided to not do that. We hope that you don''t take offense at this."


    Everyone was instantly taken aback. Ye Futian''s words seemed reasonable at first. But then they suddenly realized that something was not right. This fellow wasn''t planning to give the chief a gift at all, yet he had spun such a fancy excuse for himself, instead making everyone who had brought a present seem disrespectful towards the chief of the Zhaixing House.


    Recovering from the surprise, everyone turned to glare at Ye Futian in fury. Just how shameless could this guy be?

 484 The Divine Destruction Polearm

    Ye Futian was so incredibly shameless. Everyone from the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School was frowning as well. What Ye Futian had said was completely unacceptable.


    "Disrespect is disrespect. What a joke you are to try to cover up your lack of a gift with pretty words," Si Yan, a Noble plane representative from the Blazing Sun School commented coldly. He was unhappy with what Ye Futian had just said.


    "Who are you trying to fool?" spoke up another Noble plane representative from the Bright Moon School. He was fair, with a slightly feminine air to his demeanor that belied a powerful cold aura. The representative was cool and fair as jade, with a gentle voice. But he was incredibly strong.


    "The disciples of the Starry School are indeed arrogant."


    "So much so that they don''t even bother with manners anymore."


    With two powerful schools having spoken out, the rest of the guests were also beginning to chatter as well. Their tone was cold, and it was evident that they were all upset by Ye Futian''s words.


    Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan, the pair of siblings who had come from the City Lord Office, mused that Ye Futian was just as he was when they met him yesterday��cold, arrogant and thinking himself above decorum and manners.


    The chief of the Zhaixing House looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian was a young man with an extraordinary aura. He was dressed extravagantly as if to highlight his status.


    "Has Chen Yuan sent such a young disciple to represent him this time?" the chief asked calmly.


    Chen Yuan was the name of college chief of the Starry School.


    At the chief''s words, Master Yun, who was next to Ye Futian, got to his feet. Bowing to the chief, Master Yun explained, "Please let me explain, senior. This is the Son of the Starry School. The college chief has sent the Son as his representative in order to let you know that there''s now an heir to the Divine Path. The college chief seeks your blessings."


    Ye Futian was taken aback at Master Yun''s speech and threw him a questioning glance. It seemed that College Chief Chen had briefed Master Yun on matters that were kept secret from him. Master Yun''s speech about a new heir to the Divine Path, and that College Chief Chen sought the chief''s blessings sounded as if there was a deeper underlying message.


    The chief''s gaze sharpened immediately. Staring at Ye Futian, he asked calmly, "I have not been keeping up with the news. When did the Starry School coronate a Son?"


    "Not too long ago. It has only been about a month," Master Yun replied.


    "The Son is a hallowed disciple of the Divine Path. Is he fit for the role?" The chief''s eyes were piercing. With the Zhaixing House sharing the same origins as the Starry School, the chief understood what it meant to be a hallowed disciple of the Divine Path. And now that Chen Yuan had coronated a Son and sent him here to the Zhaixing House, it was clear to the chief just what Chen Yuan was planning.


    "The college chief has high hopes for the Son and expects that his capabilities shall grow to be superior to that of Long Yitian''s. The Son will become a figure like no other in the eastern region of the Barren State, and surpass all competition," Master Yun announced solemnly. In an instant, everyone at the banquet went silent and all eyes were on Ye Futian.


    How arrogant Master Yun''s speech sounded. During his time, Long Yitian had been incomparably powerful and without equals in the eastern region of the Barren State. For an elder of the Starry School to announce that Ye Futian was to become even more powerful than Long Yitian and surpass all competition in the eastern region of the Barren State was just��


    Even Ye Futian was shocked. Somehow, he felt as though he had been betrayed by the college chief. This was a birthday banquet for the chief of the Starry School after all. Was it appropriate to be saying such things here? Furthermore, the two heirs to the Zhaixing House were extraordinarily skilled as well. Master Yun''s speech had essentially offended everyone present, and he could see many people raring for a fight to test his capabilities out.


    The chief of the Zhaixing House looked at Master Yun, his eyes brimming with cold mirth. What a statement Master Yun had made, that Ye Futian was unrivaled by anyone in the eastern region of the Barren state.


    It seemed as if Chen Yuan was being rash here.


    "It may be true that the disciples of the Top Three Schools are extraordinarily skilled, but your speech seems rather unrealistic, and if you ask me, overly confident," someone from the School of Heavenly Arts replied. While they were reluctant to offend anyone from the Top Three Schools, they could not take Master Yun''s words lying down. His speech was far too bold, and there were skilled students within the School of Heavenly Arts after all.


    "That''s right, we''re talking about Long Yitian here. Even if the Son is extraordinarily talented, that doesn''t mean that he''ll be able to surpass Long Yitian," a guest from the Qinglei Court sneered. "Besides, there''s still Mu Zhifan and Mu Zhiqiu from the Zhaixing House. The young master has already entered the Holy Zhi Palace, the divine grounds of the Barren State, to train. Everyone here knows how illustrious it is to be able to train there. Furthermore, the young miss is also equally talented. Given their presence, how can anyone dare to say that they''ll be unrivaled in the eastern region of the Barren State?"


    Mu Zhiqiu, who was standing next to the chief, cast her pretty eyes upon Ye Futian. Her expression was incredibly calm, as though nothing could ever disturb it.


    Ye Futian looked at those who had stepped out of the crowd to speak, and replied coldly, "It''s not your place to speak in a conversation between the Starry School and the Zhaixing House."


    "You��" The guest from the Qinglei Court pointed at Ye Futian, his expression frozen in shock.


    Everyone else''s faces were dark as well. It seemed as though it wasn''t just those from the Starry School who were arrogant. This young Son seemed to be the same, with no respect for the people around him. While the guests at the banquet were not top-tier powers, but they still had some measure of influence within the eastern region of the Barren State. For them to be reprimanded like this at a birthday banquet for the chief was insulting.


    Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan''s eyes glittered, and they turned to look at Ye Futian. As expected, he wore the same expression as yesterday when they first met him. He appeared to not have any regard for anyone else in the room.


    Ye Futian had said all this to play along with whatever Master Yun was up to. He had no idea what Master Yun had in mind, but he assumed that this had something to do with their mission.


    "I am a disciple from the School of Heavenly Arts. I have long heard of the Starry School, and now that we''re meeting in person, I would like to see just how good the students of the school are. It would serve as good entertainment for the chief''s banquet, and we''ll all be able to see just how great the "unrivaled talent of the eastern region of the Barren State" really is," a young man spoke up, glaring at Ye Futian sharply.


    "I would like to challenge the Son as well," another young man from the Qinglei Court declared as well.


    Many people looked towards Ye Futian, eager to see him prove all the wild claims made about his ability.


    "You would like to challenge me?" Ye Futian glanced coldly at them. He didn''t deign to speak to them any further, but his expression communicated his disdain. Everyone felt their rage grow. Ye Futian really didn''t seem to be taking anyone seriously at this birthday banquet.


    "I would like to see your abilities, though." The chief of the Zhaixing House chuckled coolly, looking at the representatives from the Starry School. He spoke again, "Tell me what Chen Yuan wants from us."


    "The Starry School and the Zhaixing House made a promise in the past. Now that the Son has been coronated, we are here to fulfill the promise," Master Yun replied.


    The chief of the Zhaixing House retorted coldly, "What a joke. You think you''ll create an heir to the Divine Path just by coronating a Son and making all these wild claims? My grandson has already entered the Holy Zhi Palace, and Zhiqiu is definitely a cut above the rest in her generation too. I could also make a claim on the Divine Path too. Should I go and find Chen Yuan at the Starry School then?"


    "The martial arts battlefield in Divine Sky City collapsed because of the Son. He has inherited the fate left behind by the seniors who battled in that place," Master Yun continued.


    "The Zhaixing House has never recognized that place as legitimate," the chief responded calmly, "the divine teachings lie at the peak of the Zhaixing House."


    "Then let the Son advance," Master Yun said.


    The chief stared at Master Yun. So, the Starry School intended to take away the divine teachings of the Zhaixing House.


    "I believe the chief wanted to see the abilities of the Son. If you think the Son is undeserving after seeing what he is capable of, he''ll be unable to get anything in return anyway," Master Yun persuaded. Ye Futian stood to a side, listening quietly. It seemed like the college chief had this all planned out, and he wasn''t just throwing Ye Futian to the dogs.


    It had seemed like suicide for Ye Futian to just come here and take someone else''s treasure. It turned out that the ancestors of the Starry School and the Zhaixing House had made some sort of promise in the past.


    "This is a fine timing you''ve chosen." The chief of the Zhaixing House glanced at them with a cold smile. "I''ll let you have your way then. Go ahead with the challenge, I''ll show you people from the Starry School just who the true followers of the Divine Path are."


    Everyone''s eyes gleamed upon hearing the chief''s words. What was the chief planning?


    "Follow me." The chief turned around and continued walking upwards. The guests got to their feet and followed him.


    Along the way, many cold glances were thrown at Ye Futian, the audacious guy who had caused all this. Everyone followed the chief through building after building, and soon they reached the mountains at the back. It seemed as though they were to climb to the peak of the Zhaixing House.


    Finally, the crowd began to sense frightening energy. Looking ahead, their eyes were met with a truly magnificent sight. Many people stopped in their tracks, their hearts beating wildly in their chests.


    "Is this the legendary Sky Dome?"


    The Sky Dome was a mysterious place within the Zhaixing House. A majestic view lay ahead. Before them was a vast starry dimension, with meteorites circling about in the skies endlessly. These meteorites emanated a sort of glow as if they were little stars in the skies.


    This starry dimension seemed like a mess of windstorms. A closer look revealed that it was in the shape of a mountain, almost like an ancient mountain made out of the starry skies. At the peak of this mountain was a starry polearm, thousands of meters long. It was frighteningly dazzling as if the entire starry dimension was born of its existence.


    "It''s the ritual implement, the Divine Destruction Polearm," someone announced. Many were shocked at the information, and Ye Futian stared at the powerful ritual implement. So, this was the ritual implement that weighed over ninety thousand pounds.


    "Did Chen Yuan coronate a Son and send him here for this?" The chief walked forward, before turning back to look at Ye Futian and company.


    "Yes," Master Yun replied, "the heir to the Divine Path has now appeared, and the ritual implement should thus be returned to him. Since you don''t think the Son is worthy, why don''t you test him?"


    "Long Yitian tried once back in the day, and now your school has coronated another Son to come and try again. Why don''t you coronate a Son every year from now on then? I''ll cancel all my birthday banquets in the future and play along with you, how about that?" the chief scolded sternly.


    "Did the chief think we would come here for any other purpose?" Master Yun looked at the chief. Since the chief had already brought them here, his intentions were clear to all.


    "Since you all have wildly claimed that he''s unmatched within the eastern region of the Barren State, I''ll give him one chance." The chief announced, "I won''t send anyone of the Noble plane to participate. Only those of the Arcana plane will enter the dimension with him. If he can take away the Divine Destruction Polearm, I''ll let him have it. If he fails, then the fate that he inherited at the martial arts battlefield will belong to the Zhaixing House from now on." The chief was highly confident. He knew it wasn''t that easy to take away the Divine Destruction Polearm.


    As of now, not only was Mu Zhiqiu preparing to break through to the Noble plane, but she was also about to enroll in the Holy Zhi Palace as well. Since Chen Yuan had sent a Son that had inherited the fate from the martial arts battlefield, he''d gladly take up the challenge as a huge present to his granddaughter.


    "Well��" Master Yun hesitated. He knew how difficult it was to take away the Divine Destruction Polearm. Long Yitian had tried to get at it in his younger days, but he had failed. And once he had become number one in the eastern region of the Barren State, he could not just come by and take the ritual implement by force anymore, given his stature.


    Everyone smiled coldly at Ye Futian. Hadn''t he claimed to be unmatched in ability? Now it seemed like he was going to back away in the face of a challenge and lose face. However, Ye Futian stepped forward. Eyes transfixed on the Sky Dome before him, he declared unhurriedly, "I accept the challenge!"

 485 Indomitable

    Everyone''s gazes fell upon Ye Futian as he spoke.


    These were powerful individuals of the Arcana plane from all over the land. For all Ye Futian''s outstanding abilities and status as the Son, was he really that confident in taking away the Polearm of Divine Destruction?


    As a ritual implement, the Polearm of Divine Destruction itself had incredible powers. If Ye Futian was unable to take it with him, was he really going to leave behind everything he had attained so far?


    Naturally, no one else was concerned about Ye Futian''s situation. After Master Yun and Ye Futian''s arrogance, everyone wanted to see just what someone who claimed to be the unparalleled best in the Barren State Eastern Domain was made of. Especially since the chief himself had given the word for all of the Arcana plane to challenge him, everyone was raring to find out just how good Ye Futian was that he dared to declare himself indomitable.


    "As you''ve just heard, all those of the Arcana plane are welcome to enter the Sky Dome and experience the dimension created by the Polearm of Divine Destruction. Since the Son of the Starry School has declared himself to be the unparalleled best of the Barren State Eastern Domain, now''s an opportunity to see for yourself if this is true," the chief said lightly. Even without the chief''s words, everyone was already raring for a shot at Ye Futian. They knew without question what should be done.


    "Please proceed." the chief''s cool gaze swept across Ye Futian and present company. He was absolutely confident that Ye Futian would not be able to take away the Polearm of Divine Destruction. Ye Futian was young and talented, but he was probably overconfident from not having experienced many setbacks.


    "All the best, Big Brother Futian." Long Ling''er raised her dainty hand as Ye Futian walked by.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian turned to grin and her and saw that Gu Yunxi was also nodding at him with a smile.


    Master Yun felt a twinge of worry. It was true that Ye Futian had achieved things that Long Yitian never did at the martial arts battlefield, but this was Zhai Xing House. Many things about their situation right now were uncertain. While Chief Chen had sent Ye Futian to come to collect the ritual implement, Master Yun knew that this was no easy feat. His thoughts trailed off at what could happen to Ye Futian should he really be defeated.


    At this very moment, everyone was advancing towards the starry dimension within the Sky Dome. Many challenging stares were sent in Ye Futian''s direction.


    But Ye Futian didn''t seem to notice at all. His gaze was locked on the ritual implement at the top of the dome. As he approached the center, an immense invisible weight pressed down upon him. Once Ye Futian was right under the stormy sky of the starry dimension, the gravitational force was so great he felt like he was about to be crushed in this frightening dimension.


    Ye Futian took one final step forward into the center of the dome. An invisible storm surrounded him, and the immense gravity made him feel as though he was Atlas holding up the world. It was so heavy.


    Almost at the same time, the other challengers stepped into this starry dimension as well. For a moment, the challengers floated motionless within the starry dimension. The dimension''s pressure weighed equally heavy on them, and the immense discomfort they felt showed in the slightly pained expressions many wore.


    Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan had stepped into the starry dimension as well. Looking at the ritual implement within the sky, their expressions were solemn. The thought crossed their minds that it would be highly beneficial if they were able to train here every day. Their gazes then turned to Ye Futian, who stood nearby. They were curious as to just how long Ye Futian could stay in this dimension.


    Ye Futian began to make the journey upwards. It was clear that he really intended to take the ritual implement away.


    "I, Mo Yao from the School of the Heavenly Arts, will challenge you." A figure shrouded in blinding rays of light made his way towards Ye Futian. His intent to battle was apparent. With a quiver, Mo Yao transformed into numerous shadow figures that struck out instantaneously at Ye Futian. The unforgiving energy surrounding Ye Futian grew wilder with the incoming attack.


    Ye Futian waved a hand, and immediately meteorites rose around him to deflect the attacks. Several explosions saw the attacks and the shadow figures blown apart. Throwing a glance at Mo Yao, Ye Futian struck out at him, the attack whistling through the air.


    With a loud boom, Ye Futian''s attack blew through Mo Yao''s defense and landed directly on him. The impact made him cough up blood and he was sent flying. He was then pushed down by the dimension''s immense gravity.


    Nearby, the eyes of Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan sparkled. It was just as they had expected. One who had been declared the Son was indeed outstanding in ability. Even Mo Yao, one of the more powerful figures within the School of Heavenly Arts, had been defeated in no time.


    "I, Mu Qing of Mount Xuanyuan, will challenge you." Yet another challenger of the Upper Arcana plane charged at Ye Futian, his body glowing with green rays of light. He struck at Ye Futian with a gigantic battle-ax. The force of the attack split even meteorites apart. The consequences would be disastrous if it landed on Ye Futian.


    Lightning flashed around Ye Futian, and he lifted his hand to reveal a shield of thunder. Once released, the shield morphed into gold and purple streaks of divine lightning, which rushed towards Mu Qing like an endless Thunder Raid. Mu Qing''s body was instantly covered by the lightning, which even struck all the way into his mind. He trembled violently as the lightning passed through his body. His hair stood on end, and a burnt smell hung in the air.


    "Don''t bother introducing yourselves, I can''t remember your names anyway," Ye Futian called out coldly, continuing his ascent. Everyone''s faces darkened. He was obviously insinuating that they were but small fry that he couldn''t even be bothered to get acquainted with.


    A challenger from the Red Phoenix Clan came rushing at Ye Futian in a flurry of fiery energy, bathed in phoenix flames. A phoenix shadow was created, and it charged straight at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced carelessly in her direction. The brilliant radiance of the sun emanated from him, morphing into a powerful flame matrix that flared straight at her. The challenger was halted in her tracks immediately. She struggled in the sky, seemingly about to be turned to ashes by the powerful flames.


    "Urgh..." Spitting out a mouthful of blood, she plummeted down as well.


    All eyes were on Ye Futian. The Son of the Starry School did live up to his title after all.


    The chief watched quietly at the side, completely unfazed. He had already expected that a Son chosen by Chen Yuan would be this powerful at least. It was apparent that Ye Futian had yet to reveal the full extent of his power, but the chief was not worried. Mu Zhiqiu silently observed the starry dimension by his side. Her expression was calm as usual, as though nothing could ever shake her composure.


    In the dimension, Ye Tianfu was making the journey upwards while enduring the immense gravitational force and warding off attacks from challengers. The challengers had been provoked to anger. Now everyone was encircling Ye Futian, and he was attacked by many different techniques all at once. But it seemed as though Ye Futian was surrounded by a smaller starry dimension of his own, with the meteorites that had been shattered revolving around him still in an impenetrable cloud.


    A buzzing sound came from above Ye Futian, right before a gigantic battle ax came rushing down towards him like a shooting star plummeting from the heavens. A blinding gold light appeared with the ax as if a new world was being forged within the starry dimension.


    "He''s finally making a move."


    The eyes of many challengers sparkled at the mention of Ta Kaishan. Hailing from Mount Xuanyuan, he was freakishly powerful. He was also said to have mastered one of the truths of the Xuanyuan Axe. This ax was powerful beyond measure.


    Ye Futian glanced at the sky. It seemed to him that this light the ax was emitting belied a mysterious power. Anything that came before the ax would be destroyed.


    The large meteorites within the meteorite storm that surrounded Ye Futian were split in two by the ax. There were no loud explosions unlike before. the ax cut through the meteorites cleanly and soundlessly. It was stopped only by the meteorites that glowed with a mystical light, right before it reached Ye Tianfu.


    These dazzling meteorites seemed to form an imaginary starry sky of their own around Ye Tianfu, shielding and protecting him. He was currently using Immortal Celestial Bodies, a defensive technique that was so strong it was indestructible.


    Ye Tianfu''s eyes shone with the radiance of stars in the night sky. Looking at the many who had come after him in the dimension, a flash of coldness shot through his gaze.


    "Since all of you are so eager for a challenge, I''ll make your wish come true." As he stared coldly at the crowd, the stars surrounding him slowly grew sharp and pointed. Ye Futian was now bathed in starlight, an unimaginably brilliant sight to behold. All of a sudden, he charged towards them, like a shooting star streaking through the sky.


    At the sight of Ye Futian charging towards them, one of the challengers attempted to quickly retreat. Yet Ye Futian was just as fast as a shooting star, and the radiant figure shot across the horizon at breakneck speed towards the challenger.


    With a loud boom, the challenger was sent plummeting down like a fallen star, leaving behind a streak of blood as they fell. There was not even a moment for the crowd to react before they saw Ye Futian moving through the starry sky. Despite the immense gravity, he was still horrifyingly fast.


    In the blink of an eye, dozens of people were hit by Ye Futian and felled with a resounding "thud." They were completely defenseless in the face of this shooting star. In fact, everything happened so fast that the challengers were taken down one after the other. To the onlooker, it seemed as though it was raining bodies inside the starry dimension. A magnificent sight it truly was.


    Just then, the shooting star came to a halt. However, endless streams of starlight then began to shoot outwards in all directions, hitting yet more challengers in the starry dimension.


    "Meteorites," the chief observed, conceding that Chen Yuan had chosen quite well this time; Ye Futian was commendably proficient in these techniques.


    "Zhiqiu," the chief called out.


    "Yes, grandfather?" Mu Zhiqiu, who had been by his side, answered quietly. The startling beauty remained facing forward still, while strands of hair fluttered against her forehead with the wind.


    "Go ahead into the dimension," the chief ordered.


    Mu Zhiqiu nodded lightly and stepped forward, her clothes fluttering lightly. She was incomparably gorgeous. In that instant, all eyes were on her. The jewel of the Zhai Xing House��an unrivaled beauty who had once set foot in the Holy Zhi Palace��was about to step in personally!

 486 Truly a Pity

    Mu Zhiqiu stepped into the meteor storm, her sleeves fluttering with the movement. Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan watched her. Her aura alone made those around her feel as though she was far above them. Mu Zhiqiu was a legendary figure of Xuantian City, a goddess in the eyes of many.


    Mu Zhiqiu''s fame extended beyond the city. The younger attendees at the birthday celebration all came from schools within the circle of influence of the Zhaixing House. While they might not have known who were the powerful figures within the Top Three Schools, they definitely knew who Mu Zhiqiu was. To them, Mu Zhiqiu was a goddess beyond their reach, whose standards they sought to achieve. And now, she was about to step in personally and challenge the Son of the Starry School.


    "The Son will probably be content with getting defeated at the hands of Mu Zhiqiu," the onlookers mused. While it was true that Ye Futian had shown unparalleled talent so far, no one believed he would really be able to defeat Mu Zhiqiu. Besides, there was a large gap in their respective planes.


    The disciples of the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School, as well as those from the Jin Clan, stared sharply at her. They too were wondering if Mu Zhiqiu, the renowned pride of the Zhaixing House, would be able to defeat the monstrously talented Son, who had demonstrated such great ability at the coronation ceremony.


    Chen Wang, one of the Blazing Sun School''s best who was at the peak of the arcana plane, had lost to Ye Futian. But if Mu Zhiqiu was really as powerful as the rumors suggested, then she was definitely way above Chen Wang in terms of ability.


    Most people were unaware, but some clan disciples of the Three Top Schools had caught wind of rumors that Mu Zhiqiu was definitely entering the Holy Zhi Palace. No one would ever doubt the capabilities of an individual who was able to enter the Holy Zhi Palace.


    All eyes were on Mu Zhiqiu, yet she did not seem to be bothered by the attention and was peaceful as always. Once she entered the starry storm, she glided upwards effortlessly with the whirling winds, light as air. It was as if the heavy gravitational forces had no effect on her. In fact, she was riding on the currents of the storm as if they were nothing.


    "How beautiful," murmured the challengers in the starry storm who were watching Mu Zhiqiu glide upwards. Her hair, black and silky, fluttered in the wind. She was as gloriously beautiful as an angel.


    Looking at the figure gliding up towards him, Ye Futian had to admit that Mu Zhiqiu was indeed unparalleled in her beauty. She was second to none whether in looks or demeanor. However, he ignored her and continued his way up. His attention was on the Divine Destruction Polearm that hung suspended in the sky. Ye Futian was here for the ritual implement, and no one would get in his way, not even Mu Zhiqiu.


    As Ye Futian moved upwards, the gravitational pull grew stronger. He was left straining against gravity, unable to advance. Below, Mu Zhiqiu was still spiraling upwards along with the currents of the storm. It seemed as though she were a fairy dancing through the air. In no time, she caught up with Ye Futian and cast her eyes upon him.


    She waved an elegant hand, and the storm suddenly seemed to flow to a strange rhythm. The giant meteorites moved along with the movements of her hand, and they began spiraling crazily towards Ye Futian. Everyone watched as the humongous meteorites changed their initial trajectory and sped towards Ye Futian. Furthermore, these eye-catching, radiant meteorites were not traveling in a straight line. Instead, they spiraled forward, the surface of each meteorite teeming with frightening stormy energy that made it an even more potent weapon.


    In the eye of this meteorite storm, Ye Futian appeared especially small and insignificant. His already solemn expression darkened even further. As he felt the power of this storm, he realized that Mu Zhiqiu posed a very real threat to him.


    All around Ye Futian, stars were being created and they revolved around him in a dazzling array of light. The Immortal Celestial Bodies defensive technique was a highly impressive one.


    At this moment, a giant meteorite hurtled towards him. With a loud explosion that seemed to rattle the sky, the stars that had been created were blown apart by the impact. But Ye Futian''s defensive barrier remained standing, and with the collision, a piercing sound was heard.


    A series of further explosions were heard as the meteorites landed one after the other on the Immortal Celestial Bodies that Ye Futian had summoned. Cracks began to show on the stars that revolved around Ye Futian. With a loud cracking sound, the starry defense was shattered, and yet another meteorite whistled towards Ye Futian, who had been rattled by the attack.


    In response, Ye Futian formed the shape of a bow with his body and cut through the sky like a shooting star. A loud bang was heard, and the meteorite was destroyed. Ye Futian, who was dressed extravagantly, stood upright in the sky, watching the figure opposite him intently.


    "As expected of Mu Zhiqiu," an onlooker declared. Everyone present was staring at the beautiful figure holding herself proudly in mid-air. Her peak arcana plane abilities, along with the fact that she was equally proficient at powerful star attack techniques, meant that she was able to launch a powerful attack that not only shattered Ye Futian''s defenses but also forced him back.


    What did it matter if Ye Futian was a Son of the Starry School? His reputation reached only the ends of the school. He was but fodder to boost Mu Zhiqiu''s own illustrious name.


    Mu Zhiqiu''s gaze remained peaceful. She waved her hands and activated a wind technique, twisting the air into whirlwinds that spun towards Ye Futian. The winds grew stronger still, and it seemed as though Ye Futian was about to be swallowed up by the windstorm that raged around him in a constant rhythm.


    Ye Futian watched as the wind storm tore apart meteorites and created countless sharp edges that reminded one of knives. Even worse, the windstorm merged with the starry storm that he had created, releasing an even mightier power that forced him to remain in the middle of the storm.


    Meteorites buzzed around Ye Futian, emitting dazzling starlight as they formed a storm that had him caught in the middle. With the storm continuously growing stronger and merging with the whirlwinds Mu Zhiqiu had created, the entire starry dimension was instantly transformed into a nightmarish dark landscape of wind storms. A sharp piercing sound could be heard coming from the wind.


    Mu Zhiqiu stepped forward, her long hair fluttering in the wind. As she moved, a smaller starry dimension seemed to form behind her. The smaller dimension seemed to resonate with the one they were in. The meteorites hummed and vibrated, and the formless whirling energy seemed to vibrate along with them as well.


    "Her realization of Dharma is the miniature starry sky!" Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. He realized that Mu Zhiqiu''s Life Spirit obviously had something to do with the starry skies. The Zhaixing House now seemed a more legitimate heir to the Starry Divine Path than the Starry School.


    With the appearance of Mu Zhiqiu''s realisation of Dharma, streams of starlight shot towards Ye Futian from above. The attack looked just like Falling Stars, a technique Ye Futian had used just now. Furthermore, the realization of Dharma made the attack look even more natural, as though it was following some sort of mystical rhythm.


    Along with the streams of light, meteorites were also hurtling dangerously down towards Ye Futian. The streams of light came rushing at him as though they were about to annihilate the entire space, but Ye Futian stood there silently. He reached out and instantly a golden polearm appeared in his hand. At the same time, the shadow of a Giant Roc burst out from his body. The roar of a dragon surrounded Ye Futian, and his physical capacity was unleashed to the maximum as he was covered by the shadow of a Divine Ape.


    With a rumble, the stars moved and seemed to surround Ye Futian, sparkling with a dazzling light. He waved the polearm, and in an instant, the starlight from the stars seemed to move with him as well. As the starlight illuminated the golden polearm, it appeared especially heavy.


    In the face of the attacking streams of light, Ye Futian gathered energy around him. With a strike of the polearm, a star shot out along with the movements of the weapon and destroyed a stream of light with a loud crash. But more streams of light were approaching Ye Futian. The wings on his back fluttered, and he attacked continuously with the polearm, sending out more meteorites that exploded upon impact. Ye Futian''s movements appeared slow, yet there seemed to be a methodical rhythm to it, and every strike felt equally strong.


    The roars of a dragon echoed about him as Ye Futian continued advancing onwards. Mu Zhiqiu kept up with him and continued firing streams of light at him as well. The two were battling furiously even as they moved upwards through the storm.


    "This fellow''s offensive capabilities are really strong," the onlookers mused. Mu Zhiqiu was incredibly powerful, but even she had yet to take down Ye Futian, who was still advancing upwards slowly.


    With a loud sound, a thunderbolt flashed under Ye Futian''s feet, and he charged at Mu Zhiqiu using the Thundering Illusion Step. With a strike of his polearm, meteorites exploded around him as he flew through the sky towards her.


    However, Mu Zhiqiu''s eyes remained calm and peaceful. Starlight began to gather in one place and formed a dazzling star pattern that looked just like the night sky.


    Boom! Ye Futian struck down from above and cracks appeared in the star pattern. More cracks then grew within the pattern and it seemed as though it was about to shatter at any moment. The sight of such a powerful strike sent shudders down the spines of many.


    This was all because Ye Futian wanted to get his hands on the Divine Destruction Polearm. It was plain as day that monstrously great power was hidden within this one strike. Ye Futian was already physically strong. With the added power of his realization of Dharma, this one polearm strike seemed capable of splitting the very sky itself open. However, Mu Zhiqiu''s body began to emit dazzling starlight, which repaired the cracks at a crazy speed as the starlight came into contact with the pattern.


    With a strike of her palm, Mu Zhiqiu sent the star pattern flying forward in an attempt to suppress Ye Futian''s attack. Streams of starlight shot out towards Ye Futian, forcing him back. He waved his polearm, and with a roar that seemed to come from the heavens and earth, a stronger force of energy was created. Stars attached themselves to the polearm, and with another strike, Mu Zhiqiu''s star pattern was shattered with a loud boom.


    The shattered star pattern disintegrated into star fragments and meteorites that hung suspended in mid-air. The meteorites around Ye Futian were unmoving as well. Everything seemed to have come to a standstill at this very moment.


    Ye Futian looked at Mu Zhiqiu, and his gaze was instantly sucked into hers. It was almost as if he was looking at a starry night sky instead of a pair of eyes. "It''s over now," he declared.


    Those at the Zhaixing House watched the scene before them silently. They thought to themselves that Chen Yuan had indeed selected a very talented Son. It was a pity that even Mu Zhiqiu had been forced into a stalemate by him.

 487 A Question

    Rumors were going about that Mu Zhiqiu was a definite pick to enter the Holy Zhi Palace. But no one knew the exact reasons.


    The chief of the Zhaixing House knew, of course. Mu Zhifan had recommended Mu Zhiqiu to the elders of the Holy Zhi Palace while he was there. Afterward, an influential figure from the Palace had personally come to the Zhaixing House to meet Mu Zhiqiu. After ascertaining her abilities, she had been invited to the Palace to train. As such, Mu Zhiqiu was granted direct admission to the Palace without having to go through any tests��an unimaginable honor.


    The chief also knew that this granddaughter of his was incredibly competitive. Despite being admitted directly to the Palace, she continued to prepare in order to enter the Palace through her own merit. From this, her talent and ability were clear to see.


    Not many people in the vast eastern region of the Barren State had the opportunity to train in the legendary Holy Zhi Palace. Even students of the Top Three Schools did not find it easy to gain admission��only the monstrously powerful and those of the highest abilities would be able to go. Ye Tianfu''s plane was far lower than Mu Zhiqiu''s, yet he had been able to hold up against her in battle. This was no easy feat, and the chief''s opinion of him shifted for the better. Indeed, the chief thought to himself, that old man Chen Yuan certainly had picked well this time.


    The Starry School had finally produced a character that was truly heads and shoulders above the rest, arguably even more powerful than Long Yitian, but that didn''t mean that the conclusion to this battle would be any different.


    In the instant Ye Futian looked at Mu Zhiqiu, he felt himself sink into her gaze in which saw a dazzling night sky. It seemed to be a world created by Eye Sorcery. Mu Zhiqiu was actually a powerful spirit-elemental Mandate Cultivator. Furthermore, she was talented in navigating multiple elements as well.


    The stars revolved about that dazzling night sky. An endless stream of starlight shone upon Ye Futian, bringing about a force that pressed down unforgivingly upon Ye Futian. Both his Spiritual Energy and his physical body felt incredibly heavy, and the pressure was almost unbearable.


    The starry storm around Ye Futian reflected the sight he saw within his Spiritual Will; meteorites began to revolve in a more orderly manner around Ye Futian, with each rock emitting a blindingly dazzling light. The starry sky was revolving and shifting in an orderly fashion.


    Countless people looked on in shock. They knew that this was far beyond the abilities of an individual of the Arcana plane. Mu Zhiqiu must have mastered a tenet of Sage Intent and combined it with her own power in order to move the stars. With such great power, no one would be able to defeat her, save for a person of the Noble plane.


    Everyone stared at the beauty who held herself upright in the starry sky, speechless for a moment. Who would be good enough to deserve a talented beauty like her? To even look at her was already an undeserved privilege.


    Ye Futian''s heart was beating out his chest, while his blood boiled in his veins. His physical body was barely enduring a frighteningly heavy pressure, and the amount of pressure placed on his Spiritual Will was enough to bring a person to the brink of breakdown.


    "Still not admitting defeat?" A cool, detached voice rang out to him. This was the first time Mu Zhiqiu had spoken since entering battle. She knew just how powerful the energy she was releasing could be. If she were to keep up her attack, she would not be able to maintain control over what happened next. If Ye Tianfu was unable to hold up against her, then he might be destroyed right where he was.


    Ye Tianfu ignored her. A streak of dazzling light surrounded him. In his Spiritual Will where the illusion of the orderly starry night sky was, Ye Tianfu stood upright, surrounded by light and polearm in hand. He cut a dignified figure, like a statue of an ancient saint. He looked towards the sky, and the streams of light that fell from it were instantly absorbed into his body and flowed with him. The stars trembled, and the starry dimension which had been flowing in turmoil was now slowed down with his gaze. It was as if the dimension was operating according to his will.


    Mu Zhiqiu''s clothes fluttered about her. Her eyes were still as dazzling as the stars, and starlight glowed within, making them even more striking. She stared at Ye Futian, who stared back. Time seemed to come to a standstill.


    This strange sight had many baffled. Just what was going on? The two figures��one the long-haired pride and glory of the Zhaixing House, the other the Son of the Starry School with his holy robes resplendent on him��seemed to be staring at each other. Some onlookers guessed that they were battling through Spiritual Energy.


    Within the Sky Dome, menacing meteorites floated about to a strange order before gradually forming an incredible storm. Ye Futian looked as though he was about to sink downwards. Suddenly, endless streams of starlight shot out and rained down on Ye Futian like a meteor shower.


    Ye Futian''s body, flowing with dazzling eye-catching starlight, no longer seemed like flesh and blood. Instead, it felt as though he possessed a body crafted from the stars themselves. He glowed with the starlight in his body, and the polearm he wielded also emanated a dazzling light.


    Ye Futian then began to wave the polearm about. Every move seemed to belie a sort of mystical rhythm. It seemed as though his power was limitless, and with the might of the stars, he would assert his authority over all.


    When a meteorite plummeted down towards him, Ye Futian struck out with the polearm, the seemingly sluggish movement belying incomparable power. A deafening boom resonated across the sky, and the starry dimension seemed to tremble at the impact. Even so, more meteors rained down upon him menacingly in a fury of sound. It seemed as though he was going to be buried alive.


    With a twist of his body, Ye Futian sent another strike singing towards the meteorites. The winds roared, and the light of the meteorites was scattered in all directions by the impact.


    "This��" The hearts of the onlookers were beating fast at the battle. They felt the immensity of Ye Futian''s power.


    Mu Zhiqiu was like a fairy, creating the rules of the stars and releasing meteorites. On the other hand, it was as if Ye Futian had truly mastered the teachings of the Divine Path. Starlight glowed from his being and his features were almost completely obscured by the light. It was as if he had transformed into light.


    At the fourth strike that destroyed yet more of the meteorites that littered the sky, the starlight that emanated from Ye Futian''s body and the polearm had filled the vast dimension. An endless meteor shower then began to fall from the sky. It was impossible to destroy all of them.


    Ye Tianfu took flight, and the dazzling polearm swung endlessly in the sky, destroying meteorite after meteorite to the point where the shadows of the moving polearm merged into one.


    At the fifth strike of the Nine Heavenly Attacks, everything before the polearm was destroyed. The meteorites exploded violently and fizzled off in the sky.


    To the onlookers, Ye Tianfu had bulldozed through the starry sky with his incomparably dazzling polearm. With a resounding boom, the starry dimension that Mu Zhiqiu had created collapsed, sending tremors all throughout the sky. The meteors had been destroyed, and their light was dimming.


    Mu Zhiqiu''s delicate figure trembled with a soft cough before she spat out blood, which stained her clothes.


    It was as if the starry storm no longer existed in this very moment. Everyone was stunned speechless at the sight of the beautiful figure with blood on her clothes and the young man who stood proudly in the sky with a polearm in hand.


    Many of the onlookers began to recall what Master Yun had previously said: that the abilities of the Son way surpassed that of Long Yitian. Second to none in the eastern region of the Barren State, the Son was powerful enough to rise above all. Before this, many had felt that for how skilled the Son of the Starry School was, it was boastful to make such an exaggerated claim.


    But at this very moment, things had changed.


    Mu Zhiqiu was a jewel of a talent who had been able to enter the Holy Zhi Palace. But even with her peak Arcana plane abilities, she had been defeated by Ye Futian. If that were the case, was it really an exaggeration to claim that Ye Futian was powerful enough to rise above all?


    Shi Yanfeng and Shi Qinglan''s eyes widened as they observed the happenings in the sky. Their long-held beliefs were crumbling before them, and it felt as though their hearts were breaking.


    So there really was someone who was able to defeat Mu Zhiqiu with just the abilities of a middle Arcana plane.


    Mu Zhiqiu was peerless in her talent. She was strong. No one dared to deny that. And yet she had still failed. The blood on her clothes was a shocking sight to see.


    The chief''s gaze froze on her as well. However, he remained calm��though not to the extent of numbness unlike some onlookers in the crowd. He then looked at Ye Futian, his gaze sharp and glittering. No doubt Chen Yuan had sent Ye Tianfu to the Zhaixing House in pursuit of the Divine Destruction Polearm.


    Just where had he found such a monstrously powerful Son?


    With Ye Tianfu''s abilities, entering the Holy Zhi Palace would be absolutely no problem.


    Ye Tianfu glanced at Mu Zhiqiu. The polearm in his hand disappeared, then he continued moving towards where the Divine Destruction Polearm was at the top of the Sky Dome.


    The immense pressure within the Sky Dome grew stronger still. With every step he took, he was forced to slow down even more. But he was surrounded with starlight, and as he continuously ascended, he began to make progress.


    Below him, Mu Zhiqiu lifted her head to look at Ye Tianfu ascending through the sky. The storm howled around her, but she remained firmly planted where she was.


    The journey of training was long and never-ending, and there always was someone out there who was more powerful. Being peerless in one''s talent also depended on who it was one competed against. The chance to battle could only strengthen her will.


    At long last, Ye Tianfu finally reached where the Divine Destruction Polearm was. The thousand-meter long polearm was too big for Ye Futian to hold even with both hands. He touched the ritual implement and then attempted to lift it up by carrying it on his shoulders.


    The Sky Dome seemed to tremble, and an incomparable pressure weighed him down. He was in the middle Arcana plane, which meant he was strong enough to split mountains and break the earth, enough to lift 90,000 pounds. However, the weight he was enduring now was not just that of the Divine Destruction Polearm, but also of the monstrously heavy pressure that lay within.


    Everyone was watching Ye Futian, including the chief of Zhaixing House. What did it matter if Ye Futian was powerful? He still couldn''t manage to take the ritual implement away.


    Ye Tianfu''s expression was solemn. The roar of an ape pierced the air and reverberated before a gigantic Divine Ape seemed to materialize behind Ye Futian and attach itself to him. The Divine Ape was incredibly strong. Reaching out with a pair of thick, strong arms, the Divine Ape grabbed onto the ritual implement and attempted to lift it up with a resounding roar.


    The ritual implement trembled before a frightening burst of starlight plummeted downwards. With a loud sound, the huge Divine Ape had been forced down. It was unable to endure the pressure of that energy.


    The ritual implement possesses a spirit of its own, Ye Futian thought as the Divine Ape disappeared. With his current plane, he might not be able to take this ritual implement away. The chief probably knew this, which was why he let Ye Futian have a shot at it. However, College Chief Chen definitely had his reasons for sending him here.


    "Don''t bother trying anymore, you won''t be able to take away the Divine Destruction Polearm," the chief spoke to Ye Futian, who was at the top of the Sky Dome.


    "Really?" Ye Futian looked down from where he was at the chief.


    Ye Futian touched the Divine Destruction Polearm, moving upwards along the length of the pole. A streak of dazzling sunlight emanated from his hand, surrounding the ritual instrument. Ye Futian came to the top of the Divine Destruction Polearm, his hand remaining on the ritual implement still. The ritual implement trembled slightly at this moment as if it sensed the hidden significance of the streak of light.


    The endless glow of the stars wrapped itself around the thousand-meter Polearm. Ye Tianfu closed his eyes in an attempt to resonate with the ritual implement. He sensed a strong resistance, as though the ritual implement was intent on remaining where it was, refusing to go anywhere else.


    "I''ll only ask you this: are you leaving or not?"

 488 The First Battle with One of the Noble Plane

    As Ye Futian spoke, many onlookers were shocked. How arrogant did this guy have to be to "only ask" the Divine Destruction Polearm are you leaving or not?


    Who did he think he was?


    The Divine Destruction Polearm was an instrument of the saints that was passed down through the generations. It was with the possession of the Polearm that the chief of Zhaixing House could claim that they, and not the Starry School, were the true inheritors of the Divine Path.


    For generations, the Top Three Schools, especially the Starry School have always had their eye on the Divine Destruction Polearm. But they had never succeeded in their attempts to claim the ritual implement. That was before Ye Futian came.


    The chief stared at Ye Futian, his expression luminous as the stars. The young man had thrown a question at the ritual implement: Was it going to leave with him or not?


    "The Divine Destruction Polearm belongs to the Zhaixing House, do you think you''ll be able to take it away so easily?" The chief spoke coldly. What did it matter if Ye Futian was incredibly talented?


    Ye Futian seemed to not hear him. Streaks of divine light rushed into the ritual implement and resonated within. The moment he lifted the ritual implement, he realized that he had fallen into the chief''s trap. With his current abilities and plane, he wasn''t able to take the ritual implement away even if it was just sitting there before it. The ritual implement had a will of its own, and if it didn''t choose to leave with him, he would never be able to take it away.


    As such, he attempted to communicate through the divine light. If this ritual implement was really passed down from the saints, then it should be able to sense the will of the saints. Should the ritual implement still refuse to go with Ye Futian after that, then he would accept that it was just not meant to be and stop forcing things.


    Suddenly, the Divine Destruction Polearm began rumbling violently, causing the starry storm to intensify as well.


    "What''s going on?" Everyone was spooked as they sensed the rumblings from the starry dimension. Dazzling light shot out in all directions from the top of the Divine Destruction Polearm as it began to shake violently.


    The chief''s expression changed and he stared sharply at the sky.


    All the starlight in the sky seemed to be sucked into the Divine Destruction Polearm, even as streams of dazzling light were being released. In no time the starry sky had disappeared. The ritual implement shook, then with a loud bang, a tremor spread. The thousand-meter Divine Destruction Polearm shrunk into a two-meter-long polearm that fit into Ye Futian''s hand.


    "Why is this happening?" an onlooker demanded.


    "The Divine Destruction Polearm has submitted to him."


    The expressions of all those at the Zhaixing House changed. The disciples of the Top Three Schools were shocked beyond measure as well. Everyone was staring intently at the figure in the sky.


    At this very moment, the handsome young man stood proudly at the top of the Sky Dome. His holy robes billowed in the wind, and as he gripped the Polearm, starlight revolved around him. It was as if he were an actual inheritor of the Divine Path.


    Mu Zhiqiu''s gaze was also on Ye Futian, a surge of emotion finally appearing in her cool eyes. The Polearm had actually chosen to follow an outsider, and this made her a little disappointed.


    "Good job," exclaimed Long Ling''er excitedly. She marveled at how incredible Big Brother Futian was, and smugly thought that the old man was probably drowning in regret right now for allowing him to proceed.


    Master Yun and everyone from the Starry School inhaled deeply. So, this was the Son of their Starry School. He was incomparably brilliant and luminous even here at the Zhaixing House.


    "I thank you for the gift, senior. I am a little ashamed to be accepting such a huge gift, but since the Divine Destruction Polearm has agreed to follow me, I will not insult it by refusing. Even as the illustrious name of the Polearm rings out across the Barren State, people will always remember that it originally came from the Zhaixing House," Ye Futian said. Many were taken aback by his words, and they looked to the chief to see his reaction.


    Ye Futian was making it sound as though the chief had gifted the polearm to him with his speech and words of praise when he was the one who had taken someone else''s treasure. It was obvious that the b*stard was making it impossible for the chief to go back on his word, just how shameless could one be?


    The chief of the Zhaixing House probably wanted to kill him at this very moment. How could he bear to let go of the Zhaixing House''s precious possession? He had agreed to let Ye Futian try and take the Divine Destruction Polearm because he had wanted Ye Futian''s learnings from the martial arts battlefield. Who would have thought Ye Futian would really have been able to take the Polearm away?


    Gu Yunxi blinked, and she giggled to herself. What a guy Ye Futian is she thought to herself.


    The corners of the chief''s eyes twitched, and his heart hurt. He regretted allowing Ye Futian an opportunity to take away the Divine Destruction Polearm �C he wouldn''t have done so if he had known that Ye Futian really had the ability to do so. But he was the chief of the Zhaixing House, and he couldn''t go back on his word for fear of disgrace. However, at the thought of Ye Futian taking away the Polearm, he felt a surge of reluctance.


    "Put that down," a cold voice called out. From afar, a few figures sped towards them. At the fore of those figures was an incredibly handsome man. Yet his handsome features were cold, and invisible energy flowed in the space around him. In an instant, they reached where everyone was and stared coldly at Ye Futian.


    "Zhifan," the chief called out, sending chills down everyone''s spine. It was Mu Zhifan, the illustrious son of the Zhaixing House who had already trained at the Holy Zhi Palace. He was a monstrously talented prodigy. He had returned to the Zhaixing House.


    "Grandfather, I''ve come to wish you a happy birthday," Mu Zhifan greeted the chief. He then cast a cold gaze towards Ye Futian. The latter was holding the Divine Destruction Polearm in his hand. Mu Zhifan had no idea what had just happened, nor was he interested to know why.


    The Polearm was an heirloom from the saints that sat at the Sky Dome of the Zhaixing House. This ritual implement would be his primary weapon one day, and he already had his sights set on it. With the Divine Destruction Polearm, he would restore the Zhaixing House to its rightful place and surpass the Top Three Schools.


    But today, the Divine Destruction Polearm had fallen into the hands of another.


    "The ritual implement was a gift from the chief," Master Yun spoke mildly. Mu Zhifan''s eyebrows creased and he looked to the chief with a confused expression. Someone then informed him of everything that had just happened.


    Mu Zhifan turned his gaze towards Ye Futian again and spoke, "Put down the Divine Destruction Polearm. Feel free to ask for something else. The Zhaixing House will gladly give it to you."


    "I''ll pass. Since the ritual implement has already agreed to follow me, I will not refuse it," Ye Futian responded, looking at Mu Zhifan. The chief of the Zhaixing House had already made a promise in front of everyone. Was Mu Zhifan trying to have the chief''s promise retracted now?


    This was a bet, Ye Futian thought to himself. If he was the one to lose the bet, would the chief have let him off so easily by not taking away the learnings he had gained from the battlefield?


    "I told you to put the Polearm down." Mu Zhifan took a step forward, and the power of the Noble plane emanated from his being. Invisible energy began to flow within the space immediately, pressing down on Ye Futian.


    Mu Zhifan was already giving Ye Futian a dignified way out by allowing him to ask for something else. It was true that Mu Zhifan''s grandfather had made a blunder. But for Ye Futian to still insist on taking away the treasure of Zhaixing House was out of line. Mu Zhifan had trained at the Holy Zhi Palace; the reputation of the Top Three Schools mattered little to him.


    The Top Three Schools may be the holy grail of training grounds in the eastern region of the Barren State. But the illustrious name of the Holy Zhi Palace rang out all across the Barren State.


    "Who do you think you are?" Ye Futian answered coldly, staring at Mu Zhifan. He was annoyed that Mu Zhifan expected him to put down the ritual implement with just a word.


    Since College Chief Chen had sent him to collect the Divine Destruction Polearm, Ye Futian supposed it wasn''t really his problem whether or not he could hold on to it once he had claimed it. The ritual implement was an heirloom of the saints. That old guy couldn''t possibly believe for real that Ye Futian, who was only of the Arcana plane, would really be able to take the Polearm away from the Zhaixing House.


    Mu Zhifan''s expression was cold. He stepped forward again and the invisible pressure grew stronger still. Mu Zhifan grabbed at the space before him, and a Star Plucking Handprint appeared in the sky. The gigantic Handprint covered most of the sky and came rushing down at Ye Futian. Before it had even reached Ye Futian, an immense pressure pressed down upon him, making his limbs feel incredibly heavy.


    His golden holy robes rustling in the wind, Ye Futian grabbed on to the Divine Destruction Polearm and a starry sky seemed to appear around him, starlight dazzling around him.


    Waving the Polearm, Ye Futian stepped forward. The Polearm grew to the length of several hundred meters, and with the power of the stars in the sky, Ye Futian slashed at the Handprint with the Polearm. It was as if stars were falling out of the sky towards it.


    With a loud boom, the Handprint was destroyed.


    Everyone stared fixedly at the sight, and Mu Zhifan''s expression was incredibly cold. His eyes were fixed on the Divine Destruction Polearm.


    Everyone in the world of cultivation understood that while a great ritual implement would improve a cultivator''s abilities to a certain extent, it would be unrealistic to expect a massive increase in capability. Even with a powerful ritual implement, a lower-level cultivator would be limited by their own abilities and be unable to use the ritual implement to its greatest effect. However, Ye Futian had broken apart one of Mu Zhifan''s Handprints with the Divine Destruction Polearm in hand.


    The Polearm had a will of its own and was able to resonate with Ye Futian to a certain extent. This allowed him to trigger the innate power that was present within the weapon. If that was the case, Mu Zhifan definitely could not let Ye Futian take the Divine Destruction Polearm away.


    Of course, Ye Futian had also felt that the divine light he possessed allowed him to resonate with the Divine Destruction Polearm. That was the reason why he had managed to get the Polearm to submit to him.


    The Divine Destruction Polearm really was the ritual implement that was best suited for him so far. This clash with Mu Zhifan had also made Ye Futian realize that with the power of the Polearm, he was now able to battle an individual of the Noble plane. Under this sort of circumstances, why would Ye Futian give up a treasure he had finally taken for himself?


    With a thud, Mu Zhifan took another step still, and Noble Will emanated from his being. One of the Noble plane had a distinct advantage over those in the Arcana plane �C they could crush everything with just the strength of their will.


    As expected, once Mu Zhifan''s Noble Will had been released, Ye Futian was unable to move. He was immobilized by Mu Zhifan''s power. In the past, Mu Zhifan had faced traces of Noble Will. But those were but traces of the real thing left behind by individuals of the Noble plane. Now, he faced an individual of the Noble plane in person. The resulting experience would naturally be different. After all, they were still of different planes.


    With another thud, Mu Zhifan took yet another step forward. Ye Futian felt his Spiritual Will tremble. It was as if he were facing a real king at this very moment.


    Mu Zhifan charged at Ye Futian, reaching out to grab at the Divine Destruction Polearm. Ye Futian felt as though he were in an illusion, where he was facing an irresistible power.


    A streak of light surrounded Ye Futian, and his eyes shone with a dazzling light. With a roar from the Divine Ape, Ye Futian held on to the Polearm and the space around him danced in response to him.


    With a step forward, Ye Futian attacked. A roar from the Divine Ape heralded a strike with the Divine Destruction Polearm from above. It was as if the stars were falling from the sky. Another loud bang and the Handprint was shattered again. But the shadow of the Divine Ape trembled, and it seemed unable to hold on tight to the ritual implement.


    Mu Zhifan reached out with a hand and gripped. Instantly, it seemed as though the Divine Destruction Polearm was being gripped by an invisible large hand.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed coldly. Divine light filtered into the ritual implement and it dazzled with starlight, shattering everything around it and escaping the grip of that invisible large hand. However, Mu Zhifan struck out at the same time. Ye Futian was caught off-guard, and he was forced back with a grunt. His body seemed as though it had received a great shock, and blood trickled out the side of his mouth.


    He lifted his head and sent a chilly stare towards Mu Zhifan. So, it truly was not easy to transcend into the Noble plane, Ye Futian thought.


    Ye Futian was not aware, but at this moment many onlookers were watching him excitedly. They were amazed that Ye Futian, with Divine Destruction Polearm in hand, could actually face the monstrously powerful Mu Zhifan with his Noble plane abilities in battle.

 489 Taken Away

    Mu Zhifan stared at Ye Futian coldly.


    "That''s enough now," below them, Master Yun had spoken out calmly.


    Mu Zhifan glanced down at Master Yun and challenged, "Is the Starry School that intent on taking away our treasure?"


    "Is this what a promise from the chief of the Zhaixing House amounts to?" Master Yun sent a frosty glance in the direction of the chief.


    "This has nothing to do with my grandfather. He may have made a promise, but I have never promised you anything," Mu Zhifan retorted coldly. He then moved towards Ye Futian again.


    "You''re being unreasonable," Master Yun replied, his expression dark. He began to move upwards into the sky as well. However, strong winds began to howl in the sky, and it seemed as though a surge of endless energy was pressing down from the heavens.


    Everyone looked up towards the sky in surprise, wondering just what was going on. There was a sharp gleam in the chief''s gaze. A handprint came rushing down from the skies in a flurry of starlight, heading straight for Mu Zhifan. The chief''s expression changed sharply at the sight.


    "Zhifan, be careful," the chief shouted. But it was too late. As Mu Zhifan advanced towards Ye Futian in a bid to snatch back the Divine Destruction Polearm, an immense energy pressed down upon him from above. Mu Zhifan was instantly immobilized, and he felt as though he was about to stop breathing.


    Lifting his head, his expression changed greatly as he saw a large handprint headed straight for him. The handprint slammed into him without any hesitation, and he was sent flying to the ground with a loud thud. The ground shook and cracks appeared on the surface. The powerful Mu Zhifan was now pressed down to the floor by the handprint, spitting out large amounts of blood.


    The sudden turn of events had everyone looking to the sky in shock, wondering just who had the guts to attack Mu Zhifan like this. Mu Zhifan was the future chief of the Zhaixing House. Furthermore, he was a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace. It was baffling to everyone that someone would be crazy enough to attack him.


    "Does it matter whether or not you promised?" a cool voice rang out from the sky. The voice belonged to a figure standing proudly in the sky. It was an elder with his hands clasped behind his back. Starlight revolved around him, making him look like a god of the stars.


    "Chen Yuan," the chief of the Zhaixing House said, his expression dark. He had looked at the figure in the sky, only to realize to his shock that it was Chen Yuan, the college chief of the Starry School.


    "College chief, you''ve arrived." Master Yun and everyone else from the school greeted the elder.


    Ye Futian wasn''t too surprised by the appearance of the elder. The old man had sent him here to take the Divine Destruction Polearm with just some people of the Noble plane for company. How was he to complete the task like that?


    So, this old man had been hiding somewhere watching Ye Futian take the Divine Destruction Polearm. But this old man really was cruel. Without a ritual implement of his own to give to his Son, he had sent Ye Futian to the Zhaixing House to take one. What a sneaky move it was.


    Mu Zhifan pulled himself up from the floor, covered in dust. He shook the dust off, a trickle of blood still coming from the corners of his mouth. Looking up, he glared coldly at the elder in the sky and said frostily, "I''ve heard about College Chief Chen''s illustrious name, yet this first meeting has disappointed me greatly. It''s an insult to the Divine Path that you attacked me, given your status."


    College Chief Chen''s eyes swept over Mu Zhifan lightly. Being a senior, there was no need to engage with Mu Zhifan at all. Yet given how the younger man had been so disrespectful, the college chief decided to teach him a lesson on manners.


    "Mu Zhifan, I thought you''d fight for your honor even if you were facing me, and do your great reputation justice. Instead, you''re just all talk and no action. Where''s the mightiness you had when you were facing my Son of the Starry School, who''s of the Arcana plane?" Chen Yuan stared coldly at Mu Zhifan. "You''re so arrogant when you''re bullying those of the Arcana plane, yet when someone of the Sage plane attacks you, it''s considered an insult to the Divine Path? Did your grandfather teach you this, or did you learn this at the Holy Zhi Palace?"


    Mu Zhifan''s wore an ugly expression. Staring at the college chief, he spoke again, "Ye Futian was stealing from the Zhaixing House��"


    "You can stop speaking now," Chen Yuan cut him off, not bothered with hearing whatever he was about to spout. He looked at the chief of the Zhaixing House and said, "I''m helping you to discipline your young one, Mu Chuan, if you don''t mind."


    "Chen Yuan, since when was it your place to discipline members of the Zhaixing House?" Mu Chuan, the chief of the Zhaixing House, replied coldly.


    In response, Chen Yuan said mildly, "As chief of the Zhaixing House, you had agreed to let Ye Futian return with the Divine Destruction Polearm with him if he managed to get it in his possession. Mu Zhifan is a descendant of yours, yet he ignored this promise and wildly claimed that this may not come to pass simply because he never made the promise. That reveals a lack of filial piety towards you. By not keeping a promise, he''s proven himself to be untrustworthy. By riding on his own superior abilities to bully the weak, he''s also proven himself to be ignorant of manners, decorum and humility. Since I''m seeing all this, naturally I feel like I have to take him in hand on your behalf."


    Everyone was speechless at his words. The pride of the Zhaixing House had been spoken of by Chen Yuan as if he was a worthless scoundrel. It was�� But it was impossible to refute his words. The college chief''s speech had sounded completely reasonable.


    But everyone understood that the chief of the Zhaixing House was the one who had fallen into the trap of the Starry School''s college chief. The college chief''s appearance at this crucial moment revealed that he had in fact set up this entire situation beforehand. The Son''s purpose in coming here was to take away the Divine Destruction Polearm.


    The chief of the Zhaixing House had always been arrogantly confident, and this personality trait of his had been considered by the college chief as he was setting up this trap for him.


    At this moment, Mu Chuan understood that he had been cornered by Chen Yuan. Indeed, he was in the wrong. He had been wrong in being overconfident and underestimating Ye Futian. Of course, things would have been completely different if the Son had not been so monstrously powerful. It seemed like Ye Futian had already inherited the teachings of the saints at the martial arts battleground. That was why he was able to take away the Divine Destruction Polearm.


    "Good plan, Chen Yuan," Mu Chuan said frostily.


    Chen Yuan glanced coolly at him, and continued, "The Starry School and the Zhaixing House come from the same tradition. The divine teachings have appeared and I have chosen a Son in accordance with divine will. This is as how it should have been. Since an heir of the Divine Path has appeared, the Zhaixing House should have kept the promise of its ancestors to ensure the unity of the Divine Path. Whether or not there was a promise or a challenge today, the Divine Destruction Polearm should have been Ye Futian''s from the start. It belongs to him."


    "Take it, and scram," Mu Chuan spat. He was in no mood to hear Chen Yuan out any further. This situation had also been a tussle between him and Chen Yuan. Since he had lost, he would admit defeat.


    "Grandfather," Mu Zhifan shouted. His gaze was extremely cold. He couldn''t believe they were going to just let Ye Futian take away the treasure of Zhaixing House.


    Mu Chuan waved a hand and didn''t say anything more. But Chen Yuan looked at him and spoke again, "The heir to the Divine Path has appeared, and the Divine Path should be unified again. Would the Zhaixing House like to consider assisting the heir in order to restore the past glory of our ancestors?"


    "We don''t have time for that," was the cold reply from Mu Chuan. He couldn''t believe that Chen Yuan was still trying to get Zhaixing House to become vassals of Ye Futian, the audacity of it! Chen Yuan was only sugarcoating his words.


    "If that''s your answer, then I shan''t persuade you any further. I''ll take my leave now," Chen Yuan said, before turning and walking up to Ye Futian. "You did pretty well, let''s go back now."


    "Yes, college chief," Ye Futian nodded. He was thinking that he absolutely did not see this ruse coming. The illustrious college chief of the Starry School had actually resorted to tricks like this. Ye Futian guessed it was true that the older, the wiser. He had a long way to go still.


    "Wait," a voice called out just as Ye Futian was about to leave with Chen Yuan. Turning his head, Ye Futian saw Mu Zhifan staring coldly at him. Mu Zhifan spoke, "Since you have the backing of College Chief Chen as well as grandfather''s promise, no one will stop you if you insist on taking away the ritual implement. But I''ll advise you to leave it here."


    Ye Futian''s eyebrows creased at the apparent threat. Ignoring the other young man, Ye Futian began to walk away.


    "I''ll be waiting for you around Zhongzhou City," Mu Zhifan threatened coldly as he watched Ye Futian leave. The Divine Destruction Polearm was going to be taken away just like that.


    The disciples of the Starry School began to fly off as well. The atmosphere of the birthday banquet had been completely ruined. There was no point in carrying on.


    "Let''s just end the banquet here," the chief of the Zhaixing House announced to the people still present.


    Everyone bade Mu Chuan goodbye, their hearts still slightly unsettled. Today, the treasure of the Zhaixing House had been taken from them. Not only had that young man been crowned a Son, he had pressured Mu Zhiqiu and faced Mu Zhifan in battle with the Divine Destruction Polearm. The college chief of the Starry School had even come forth to personally snatch the ritual implement for him.


    The appearance of such a character within Divine Sky City meant that the eastern region of the Barren State would now be even livelier. Ye Futian would be yet another incomparably powerful character, just like Long Yitian in the past.


    After everyone had left, the chief of the Zhaixing House spoke to Mu Zhifan, "Zhifan, don''t let yourself get affected by Mu Chuan. He intended to spite you. Don''t let anything that happened today affect your will."


    "Don''t worry, grandfather," Mu Zhifan nodded in response. A few nasty words would not be enough to weaken his will. Though the college chief had described him as though he was absolutely worthless, Mu Zhifan didn''t think he was wrong in any way. It was only right that he stood up to those who were trying to take away the treasure of the Zhaixing House.


    He would remember everything that happened today.


    The journey of cultivating was long. They would surely cross paths again in the future!

 490 Guard the Door

    In the Son''s Palace of the Starry School in Divine Sky City, Ye Futian was practicing at the school''s training platform along with a few others. News of what had transpired at the Zhaixing House was spreading through the Top Three Schools, and many marveled at how Ye Futian really seemed to have talent that surpassed Long Yitian. There were also many disciples in the Starry School who felt a twinge of jealousy at Ye Futian.


    The college chief had been incredibly nice to Ye Futian. First, he had organized Ye Futian a coronation ceremony that had been the talk of the entire Divine Sky City. And now, he had personally visited the Zhaixing House to help Ye Futian obtain the Divine Destruction Polearm.


    It was rumored that Ye Futian had obtained divine teachings from the martial arts battleground. That, in addition to the Divine Destruction Polearm and the Starry Divine Path that Ye Futian had inherited, meant that he was even more powerful than before.


    The other disciples who had yet to transcend to the Noble plane felt despair at this. It seemed as though they would never get the chance to challenge Ye Futian. Even the outstanding disciples, like Long Mu and Jin Yunxiao, would be unable to catch up to Ye Futian''s level and eventually be left behind. Perhaps Ye Futian''s coronation had marked the beginning of a new generation where he would rise above the rest, just like Long Yitian had back in the day.


    Ye Futian didn''t share these sentiments. Things did not seem to be going so well for him on the training platform, where he was swinging the Divine Destruction Polearm around with some difficulty.


    Created from the very stars up in the heavens, the Divine Destruction Polearm weighed 90,000 pounds. Even after shrinking down from a thousand meters to just two, its weight remained the same. It went without saying that it was incredibly difficult to swing around a ritual implement that weighed that much.


    Back when Ye Futian had battled Mu Zhifan at the Zhaixing House, he had invoked the will of the saints in order to resonate with the ritual implement. He had also managed to pull off the realization of Dharma and greatly increase the capacity of his power. That was how he had managed to execute the amazing techniques everyone saw that day.


    However, using his own power to swing the Divine Destruction Polearm around felt like torture. After a short while, his arms began to ache, and he stopped dejectedly. He rested the Divine Destruction Polearm upright against the ground, and with a loud bang, a crack appeared in the training platform where the Polearm had made contact.


    "What��" Ye Futian stared speechlessly at the training platform for a moment and then turned to look at the ritual implement in his hands. He looked puzzled.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were struck dumb momentarily upon seeing this as well. Loulan Xue whispered, "If a sorcerer who deals only with spells was to try to carry this, I don''t think they''ll even be able to lift it."


    Ye Futian nodded in agreement. He was in the middle Arcana plane both as a sorcerer and as a martial arts cultivator, which meant he was physically strong as well. But despite his powerful physique, he still faced difficulty carrying the Divine Destruction Polearm. He imagined no sorcerer would ever put themselves at so great a disadvantage by carrying a heavy weapon like this.


    "Yu Sheng, why don''t you give it a try?" Ye Futian called out.


    Nodding, Yu Sheng walked up to take the Divine Destruction Polearm from Ye Futian. He swung the ritual implement, and even without any special techniques, the wind howled around them and an immense pressure descended upon the space.


    "Stop, stop," Ye Futian shouted. Yu Sheng turned to look at him in confusion. "That''s enough, I can do this too," Ye Futian explained in response. He then took back the Divine Destruction Polearm and began to activate the Imperial Tactics as he swung the polearm about. His movements were slow, but it seemed as though every swing carried within it an incomparable energy. Gradually, an invisible current of energy began to flow through the space, seeming to carry incredible weight.


    Loulan Xue laughed gently at Ye Futian from behind her hands. Her icy beauty was made even more dazzling by her mirth. Ye Futian had just wanted to let Yu Sheng experience the immense weight of the Divine Destruction Polearm, yet Yu Sheng had managed to wave it around as though it were nothing. Ye Futian probably felt humiliated, which made him want to try practicing with the polearm again.


    Having spent all this time with Ye Futian, Loulan Xue knew this group of people and their unique points well. Both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had learned powerful martial arts techniques. Ye Futian trained himself with the Roc spirit, the pure-blooded dragon, and the Divine Ape. Furthermore, he had learned a set of powerful martial arts techniques that gave him the illusion of being like the Emperor when activated. She had no idea that the techniques were called the Imperial Tactics, which would make it seem as though the Emperor himself had come to this world when activated with the will of the emperor.


    Yu Sheng was in training for a very secretive method. It was incredibly painful to train, and she had accidentally caught a glimpse of his training once. It had been a frightening sight. Yu Sheng had seemed like he was being possessed by demons then.


    The method seemed more like a form of self-mutilation. It ignited the innate power of the body in a frenzied rush, and should Yu Sheng combine it with his natural power, he could even surpass Ye Futian in terms of strength alone.


    On the other hand, Ye Wuchen was a swordsman in training. His will as a swordsman was strong and pure.


    Ye Futian had the greatest talent out of them all, specializing in all attributes as a sorcerer and training in various methods. Yu Sheng relied on simple, brute force. Ye Wuchen focused on a single specialization. The three of them were all striking in their own ways.


    It wouldn''t be too far-fetched to say that she had been with the three of them throughout their paths of growth. When they had met at the Ancient Loulan in the Ancient Barren World back then, the three of them had all just transcended into the Dharma plane.


    Ye Futian was currently getting into the zone. As he waved the polearm around, his movements gradually grew more fluid like the moving clouds and flowing water. But it was still an arduous task, and Ye Futian would take periodical breaks. He perceived three streaks of divine light, and his power was increasing slowly, along with his strength.


    Ye Futian''s strength grew quickly through continuously training with the 90,000-pound Divine Destruction Polearm. After half a month, Ye Futian transcended yet another plane as a martial arts cultivator and a sorcerer. He was now in the sixth stage of the Arcana plane, the peak of the Arcana plane.


    A few days later, Yu Sheng transcended another plane too and entered the peak of the Arcana plane as well. Ye Wuchen followed in their footsteps too. Through his swordsmanship, he entered the upper Arcana plane.


    The trio gained much from their training at the martial arts battlefield, even managing to obtain the sage fate that had been on the divine bridge on the eighth level. Now that they were integrating it into their abilities for their own use, it was only natural that they managed to transcend a plane as a result.


    ��


    The Celestial Pavilion was still considered Ye Futian''s property. But ever since Ye Futian became the Son of the Starry School, he had not lacked any training resources. In fact, the college chief himself had personally visited the Zhaixing House in order to bag him an ultimate treasure. As such, Ye Futian''s status as owner of the Celestial Pavilion no longer mattered as much to him anymore.


    The same could not be said for Shen Yu though. She had been working hard at the Celestial Pavilion all this time. Since Ye Futian had put her in charge there and she had the support of the Long family, no one dared to cause her any trouble. Thus, Shen Yu, who was originally a staff member there, rose to become the de facto owner of the Celestial Pavilion, and her life took on a different path after that.


    At this very moment, Shen Yu was walking through the Celestial Pavilion. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks, and her eyes were drawn to a particular young woman. She was very pretty, and her aura belied a cool elegance. It seemed as though she was compromising her high status in order to entertain guests to the Celestial Pavilion, just as Shen Yu herself had once upon a time.


    The young woman seemed familiar, and Shen Yu vaguely remembered seeing her before. That young woman had spoken to Ye Futian once. Why was she working at the Celestial Pavilion now?


    Suddenly, two people entered the Celestial Pavilion and walked towards the young woman. One of them was as pretty as the young woman, and they even looked somewhat alike.


    "Yurou, what are you doing?" Wang Yuqing stared at her younger sister. She couldn''t believe that she had come to the Celestial Pavilion to run errands like a maid.


    "None of your business," Wang Yurou retorted.


    "Come with me," Wang Yuqing urged, looking at Wang Yurou. She had heard from Jiang Nan that her younger sister was here. Her relationship with Jiang Nan these days were tense. Jiang Nan was being clingy towards her, and she couldn''t be less bothered by it anymore.


    In the past, Jiang Nan had been an exceptionally talented senior to Wang Yuqing. But the incident with Ye Futian had caused her to see Jiang Nan as narrow-minded and petty. Of course, she had some issues of her own that led her to not want to stay by Jiang Nan''s side as well. But not long ago, Jiang Nan had told her that her younger sister was serving as a maid at this place.


    "I still have work to do, you should leave," Wang Yurou replied coldly.


    "What can the Celestial Pavilion give you?" Jiang Nan challenged her calmly. Wang Yurou shot him a cool glance. She did not like him at all. When he had received her as a guest at the Celestial Pavilion, he had repeatedly insulted Ye Futian. Wang Yurou suspected that he was mostly to blame for how strained her older sister''s relationship with Ye Futian had become.


    "That has nothing to do with you," Wang Yurou shot back frostily.


    "Why don''t you be my maid instead and serve me? I could pay you double," Jiang Nan suggested, staring at Wang Yurou. The incident with Ye Futian had affected him greatly. Ye Futian was now living a life of glory and glamour as the Son. As for Jiang Nan, he had lost all dignity because of the insults he threw at Ye Futian on the day of the test. Even now, people mocked him, and his peers at the Starry School kept their distance from him as well.


    Even Wang Yuqing, a young woman he had almost managed to woo, was avoiding him now. Truly, he had suffered many losses because of Ye Futian, and his reputation was in tatters. Now, Jiang Nan was especially enraged by Wang Yurou''s decision to work as a maid at Ye Futian''s Celestial Pavilion.


    "Leave," Wang Yurou ordered, shooting Jiang Nan another chilly glance. Upon hearing her words, Jiang Nan''s expression darkened considerably before he chuckled coldly, "Wang Yuqing, your younger sister would rather be a maid at this place than to leave with you. Looks like she''s hoping to serve another person here."


    "Sir, ma''am." Shen Yu had walked over, and she was looking at Jiang Nan and Wang Yuqing as she spoke again, "If there isn''t anything else, I would like for you to stop bothering my staff and take your leave."


    Jiang Nan looked at Shen Yu. Her youthful, pretty looks and attractive figure revealed an innocent beauty. Yet there was an air of sophistication about her.


    "If I remember correctly, you were a staff member here back then as well. Who are you to speak to me this way?" Jiang Nan challenged Shen Yu.


    "I am the manager of the Celestial Pavilion now. You are not welcome here, please leave," Shen Yu replied coolly.


    "Leaping through the ranks to become a manager when you were once a maid?" Jiang Nan laughed coldly, "What did you offer?"


    His words carried a hint of crudeness, and his gaze traveled down Shen Yu''s attractive figure. The implications of his question were clear as day. Shen Yu''s expression changed immediately. However, Jiang Nan looked to Wang Yurou and continued, "No wonder you want to be a maid here too, seems like you''re aiming for the same thing."


    "Throw him out," Shen Yu ordered frostily.


    "I''m a disciple of the Starry School, don''t you dare lay a hand on me," Jiang Nan threatened.


    "Shen Yu," a voice rang out, and Shen Yu turned to see a person entering the Celestial Pavilion, to her pleasant surprise.


    "Pavilion owner," Shen Yu greeted him. Everyone followed suit and bowed to Ye Futian and his entourage, who had just arrived.


    Jiang Nan''s expression changed. Why had Ye Futian returned to the Celestial Pavilion?


    "You should treat disciples of the Starry School better," Ye Futian chastised. Shen Yu was taken aback, while Jiang Nan chuckled coldly to himself.


    "Since he doesn''t want to leave, then don''t let him leave. Guard the door," Ye Futian continued calmly. Shen Yu broke out into a dazzling smile, and nodded, "Understood."

 491 Undercurrents

    At Ye Futian''s command, some people went to guard the entrance of the Celestial Pavilion. Those who weren''t involved in the matter moved to a side as well. Upon seeing Ye Futian staring at him, Jiang Nan grew especially uncomfortable. "What are you going to do?" he asked, his voice filled with trepidation.


    "What did he say before I arrived?" Ye Futian asked Shen Yu. He had only caught the last few lines of their exchange just now.


    "The two of them came here looking for someone. Then they kept insulting her." Shen Yu glanced towards Wang Yurou as she spoke. "I requested that he leave, but then he began to insinuate that I had risen to this position using underhanded means."


    Looking at Shen Yu''s lowered head, Ye Futian was fully aware of what she meant by "underhanded means."


    Ye Futian turned to Jiang Nan once more, disgust apparent on his face. Jiang Nan had made snide remarks at him many times before, but Ye Futian had mostly ignored him, thinking that there was not much point to arguing with such people. He didn''t expect that Jiang Nan would continue to stick around him. Perhaps Jiang Nan had grown bolder after being ignored by Ye Futian.


    "I was only saying. I didn''t do anything at all," Jiang Nan countered, feeling a little unsettled by Ye Futian''s cold expression. After all, Ye Futian had defeated Chen Wang back then. Furthermore, Jiang Nan had also heard about Ye Futian''s trip to the Zhaixing House. After taking their ritual implement, he had even managed to last a while in a fight against a Noble. Jiang Nan was well aware that he was no match for Ye Futian.


    "How do you want to settle this?" Ye Futian questioned Jiang Nan.


    "I''ll apologize and leave. From now on I''ll never step into the Celestial Pavilion again," Jiang Nan replied.


    Shen Yu chuckled coldly. How pathetic Jiang Nan was right now. Wang Yuqing was equally disgusted. It made her incredibly uncomfortable that she had once been with someone like this, and that she had even believed his words.


    "And that''s enough?" Ye Futian shot back.


    Jiang Nan stared insolently at Ye Futian and retorted, "I am a disciple of the Starry School too, and your senior. Even if you are the Son, you can''t just do whatever you want to me. Besides, I''m from a prominent family in Divine Sky City. It''s already a lot for me to apologize to you and promise to never come back again. What else do you want from me?"


    Ye Futian didn''t bother to reply. With a flash of dazzling light, a polearm with starlight revolving around it appeared in his hand. It was the Divine Destruction Polearm.


    "We''ll settle this with one swing. Whatever happens is up to your own luck," Ye Futian announced calmly.


    Jiang Nan''s expression hardened. He took a few steps back in an attempt to leave, but the door had been sealed off. Looking cornered, he protested, "You cannot do this."


    This was the ritual implement that Ye Futian was rumored to have obtained. It was the treasure of the Zhaixing House and weighed over 90,000 pounds. If he were to be hit by it��


    Jiang Nan was beginning to regret coming to the Celestial Pavilion. Ye Futian was supposed to be training at the Starry School. Jiang Nan had not expected that he would come back all of a sudden. It was even worse luck for Jiang Nan to bump into Ye Futian here.


    "I''ll only swing the polearm using my own strength. Are you ready?" Ye Futian stared at Jiang Nan as he spoke.


    "No��" At the sight of Ye Futian standing before him with the Divine Destruction Polearm in hand, his face turned deathly pale.


    The polearm whistled through the air as Ye Futian stepped forward. Jiang Nan''s face was ashen. Activating his Life Spirit, Jiang Nan summoned an armor ritual implement to defend himself. At the same time, a defensive spell surrounded his body. There was no intention to attack. Jiang Nan was only thinking of how he could defend himself from this attack.


    With another step forward, Ye Futian sent the Divine Destruction Polearm slashing towards Jiang Nan. A frightening sound emanated from the swing, and Jiang Nan felt the immense pressure coming from the ritual implement. His face went deathly pale, and he even closed his eyes as he frantically released Spiritual Qi to defend himself.


    With a loud boom, the polearm landed directly on Jiang Nan''s chest. In a flash, he was sent flying through the entrance and beyond. A figure landed on the streets, sending everyone scurrying away. Passersby looked upon the fallen figure in curiosity.


    Has there been a battle at the Celestial Pavilion? people wondered, their expressions bewildered. Ye Futian was still the owner of the Celestial Pavilion. Who would dare to make trouble there when Ye Futian''s name was so well-known?


    "It looks like someone from the Starry School," someone declared, looking at Jiang Nan. Jiang Nan was convulsing on the floor, spitting out large amounts of blood continuously. He tried to pull himself up before collapsing again and spitting out more blood. It seemed as though his sternum had been shattered. He was in incredible pain.


    "Ah��" Jiang Nan let out a pathetic cry. He lay there staring at the sky, his eyes bloodshot. Ye Futian really had no mercy towards him. That swing of the polearm had almost killed him. Jiang Nan hated Ye Futian. He wanted Ye Futian to die a horrible death.


    In the Celestial Pavilion, Ye Futian was paying Jiang Nan no attention. If Jiang Nan hadn''t provoked him first, he wouldn''t even have bothered with him.


    Looking at Wang Yurou, Ye Futian asked, "What are you doing here?"


    "I was looking for some work to do, then I remembered the Celestial Pavilion," Wang Yurou smiled at Ye Futian.


    "But you are a precious daughter of the Wang Family, do you really need to do this?" Ye Futian was confused.


    "A precious daughter of the Wang Family?" Wang Yurou let out a self-deprecating laugh, "I was unable to enter the Starry School, and with my current plane, there are many things I can''t do. I don''t know what to tell the people at home if I go back."


    Indeed, she had been a precious young mistress of the family back when she was in Yunyue City. How superior she had felt back then. But when she arrived in Divine Sky City, she met with many obstacles, and not long ago she had almost been manipulated by others. After escaping them, she had come to the Celestial Pavilion. It was then that she understood that out in the real world, family backgrounds mattered little, especially if you were from a family in a small city.


    She finally understood why so many powerful individuals, even those of the Noble plane, were willing to become bodyguards or attendants. After all, not everyone had astounding talent comparable to that of Ye Futian''s. Most people were average.


    "That sounds rough," Ye Futian chuckled, "how about I treat you to a meal as a friend."


    "Sure." Wang Yurou laughed heartily.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian offered, and Wang Yurou nodded in response. Looking at Wang Yuqing, she said, "You should go back. I''ll take care of myself from now on, you won''t have to concern yourself with my affairs." She then walked into the Celestial Pavilion with Ye Futian.


    Wang Yuqing stood there watching the two figures, struck dumb. Ye Futian had not looked her way a single time ever since he arrived. It was as if she was invisible, or non-existent.


    She was definitely disappointed. There was a twinge of discomfort too. But who could she blame for this? She had said many outrageous things to him in the past. It was already gracious of Ye Futian to not hold anything against her. Now, they were as good as strangers.


    He was the Son of the Starry School, an incomparable talent at the forefront of an entire generation. His future was brilliant beyond measure, and yet her sister could still sit with him as a friend. As for her, she probably would only be able to look up to him from afar. After all, some opportunities don''t come knocking twice.


    Walking out of the Celestial Pavilion a little dejectedly, Wang Yuqing saw Jiang Nan struggling painfully to get to his feet. She eyed him with feelings of disdain and pity before turning to leave.


    Jiang Nan looked vengefully upon the leaving Wang Yuqing. After a long while of trying, he finally managed to stand up. Shooting a cold glance in the direction of the Celestial Pavilion, he hobbled away as well.


    Ye Futian and Wang Yurou were having a meal together at the Fairy Pool of the Celestial Pavilion.


    "Can I offer you a drink?" Ye Futian raised a cup at Wang Yurou, grinning.


    "Sure." Wang Yurou nodded, and the two drank together. After a few cups, her cheeks grew flushed. She turned her pretty eyes towards Ye Futian, and chuckled, "I remember back then when Wang Linfeng first brought you to see me, I was so suspicious of you. But because I trusted Wang Linfeng, I decided to hire you anyway. I still remember how proud you were back then. It pissed me off so much."


    Ye Futian laughed but said nothing.


    "Life really is so unpredictable. Who would have thought that you''d be so outstanding? Even though you defeated the three other big factions, my grandfather and I still believed that you''d only make it to the Top Three Schools. Neither of us could have imagined that you''d be the top disciple in one of the Top Three Schools, and even be coronated as a Son. And the college chief proclaims you to be the best of a generation," Wang Yurou gushed, seeming especially chatty after a few drinks.


    Of course, Ye Futian''s presence was greatly inspiring to her. She had not thought that she would meet a person like him in her lifetime. She hadn''t even dared to think that there could be someone as brilliant as he was.


    "Is your grandfather well?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes," Wang Yurou replied, "he had great hopes for me. He was awaiting my enrolment in the Top Three Schools. Before I came here, he even reminded me to keep relations cordial between you and my older sister after I found her. I never thought things between you would be so bad. I still can''t answer to my grandfather now." Wang Yurou said all this with an air of self-deprecation. Her days in Divine Sky City made her feel the most defeated she had ever been.


    "Your sister and I may be strangers now, but I hope you don''t take that to heart. You are still a friend of mine," Ye Futian responded. "If you''re willing to help me, why don''t you stay at the Celestial Pavilion and help Shen Yu manage the place? You know I don''t have the time to do it myself, so I''ll have to trouble the two of you."


    "I didn''t come to the Celestial Pavilion to work in order to gain your pity," Wang Yurou laughed. She knew that Ye Futian was only being considerate of her feelings by offering to let her help him.


    "This isn''t pity; we''re just two friends helping each other," Ye Futian insisted. "Also, didn''t you all help me take care of Yang Ting and Yang Yi? When they come to Divine Sky City in the future, they''ll be able to lodge here."


    Wang Yurou was taken aback at his words. Looking at Ye Futian''s bright, clear eyes, she asked, "Is there anyone you like?"


    There was a brief moment of silence where Ye Futian was at a loss for words before he nodded.


    "Yes, there is," he replied.


    "She must be really brilliant then." Wang Yurou laughed.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded, "she''s even better than I am."


    Looking at the sparkle in Ye Futian''s eyes, Wang Yurou felt a twinge of envy. She would love to know just what kind of woman would be a good enough match for the young man before her.


    ��


    Jiang Nan did not return to the Starry School. Seriously injured, he hobbled into a private residence in Divine Sky City.


    An extravagantly dressed young man sat quietly in the courtyard. "You only went out to run some errands, why are you injured?" The young man''s gaze swept over Jiang Nan''s form.


    "I ran into him." Jiang Nan lowered his head, his gaze dejected.


    A sharp golden dazzle shot through the young man''s eyes. "You were injured by him?" he asked.


    "Yes." Jiang Nan nodded.


    The young man laughed coldly. "Since he has come back to the Celestial Pavilion out of his own initiative, we''re saved some trouble. I guess you were unfortunate to have made a wasted trip and even get injured for it. But vengeance will soon be yours. You''ll come with me from now on."


    "Thank you, young master." Jiang Nan bowed to the young man. The attack he had endured was worth it.


    "Come out, the two of you," the young man ordered calmly. To his side, two people walked out, their eyes cold.


    "Go ahead and take action. Remember, I have absolutely nothing to do with this." The young man stood and turned to leave. He was not worried at all that they would betray him. These people had families, they would never dare to sell him out.

 492 Killing One’s Son

    In the Fairy Pool of the Celestial Pavilion, Wang Yurou was getting drunk. The wine and food of the Celestial Pavilion weren''t regular items. Even a cultivator would get drunk.


    Ye Futian drank with her. He could see that the princess of the Yunyue City was in a bad mood. As a pampered girl who kept hitting dead ends in the Divine Sky City, she was obviously frustrated. However, people all had to get used to this process. If one wanted to get to a higher place, one must become accustomed to these trials.


    During this, Gu Yunxi also came to the Fairy Pool. When Ye Futian saw her, he ordered Shen Yu to come. Smiling, he said, "Yunxi, what a coincidence."


    "I thought you would be busy with cultivating. How come you have time to relax?" Gu Yunxi said, smiling. Shen Yu smiled at the side. She didn''t know if Ye Futian was pretending or was really that dumb. How was it a coincidence? The princess of the Gu Family liked Ye Futian and would often come to the Celestial Pavilion.


    The utterly beautiful girl did suit Ye Futian, but sadly, he apparently liked someone else. She was also very talented, but Shen Yu didn''t know how she was like.


    "We all entered a new plane recently so we came out to relax. Otherwise, we would go crazy," Ye Futian said, chuckling. There was a limit to cultivating too. If they couldn''t have a clear mind, the cultivation effect would be bad too.


    "Yes, you''re already so excellent but you still work so hard. What do you make of the other Sons of the city?" Gu Yunxi''s eyes were clear as water.


    "There is no end to cultivating," Ye Futian said. "I''m still too weak." He still had many things to do. He wasn''t satisfied with just the title of Son from the Starry School.


    Gu Yunxi rolled her eyes. The action was actually a bit flirty.


    A bit drunk, Wang Yurou looked at Gu Yunxi. Girls all had some sort of gut instinct. She could naturally feel the admiration from Gu Yunxi. Smiling, she wanted to get rid of some thoughts. She should be content to be friends with people like this. If not for the trip to Yunyue City, they probably would never meet.


    Thud. Just then, there was a huge sound. Then a woman said, "Tell the person in charge to come."


    "Miss, the Celestial Pavilion''s food will never have filth in it," the servant nearby said.


    "I said to tell the person in charge to come." The woman''s voice was sharp.


    "I''ll go check," Shen Yu said from the tower.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. He looked outside and saw two figures��a man and a woman��sitting at a table beside the Fairy Pool. They wore a bamboo hat and their hair seemed messy. They seemed to be a couple trying to make a name for themselves.


    "What''s wrong?" Shen Yu walked to them and the servant retreated. The woman looked up at Shen Yu and pointed at the table. There was an insect wriggling.


    "This is impossible." Shen Yu shook her head. "The Celestial Pavilion would never have filth like that."


    "So you''re saying that I did this on purpose?" the woman said coldly.


    "Perhaps it climbed in while you two were eating but we will take responsibility. I can treat you to this meal and have them cook it again," Shen Yu said. She could feel that the woman was in the Noble Plane. The Celestial Pavilion wasn''t scared, but this was still a business. She would try to keep things calm if possible.


    "I''m already in a bad mood and you want me to keep eating here?" The woman was being harsh. Pointing at the filth, she said, "Eat it."


    "Miss, that''s a bit too much." Shen Yu''s expression changed.


    "I told you to eat it." The woman''s voice was cold. Many people looked over curiously at the couple. Did they not know who this place belonged to?


    Even if it was the Celestial Pavilion''s fault, it was still shameful to make Shen Yu eat it. At this time, Ye Futian and Gu Yunxi had walked out too. Many people were behind them.


    "The Celestial Pavilion has already apologized and is willing to compensate you two," Ye Futian said. "Please do not push it."


    The woman glanced at Ye Futian and the people behind him. "What, the Celestial Pavilion will use its power to bully people?"


    "The Celestial Pavilion doesn''t want to cause trouble, but it isn''t afraid either." Ye Futian''s voice was cool. The couple was purposely looking for trouble.


    "Are you threatening us?" the man on the side said. His aura seeped out. Looking up, his eyes gazed straight at Ye Futian. His eyes were filled with fire and scary Noble Will.


    Behind Ye Futian, Wang Yurou felt that those eyes were a bit familiar. However, the man had some lines on his face that looked like special markings and were unfamiliar to her. He seemed to be purposely hiding his features.


    At this time, her heart skipped a beat. Finally thinking of someone, she couldn''t help but call out, "Be careful, it''s Shang Zhan!" As soon as she spoke, the bamboo hat that the man held burned to nothing. His eyes instantly became terrifying and he released strong Noble Will. It rushed into Ye Futian''s mind, trying to destroy his will.


    Ye Futian instantly closed his eyes, feeling a burst of pain. Almost at the same time, horrible Ice Will surged from the woman. It was about to freeze the world. The spell landed on Ye Futian, sealing him instantly. Their target was clear��they came to kill Ye Futian.


    The man stepped out, crossing through the space. He was too fast. He was at the upper Noble Plane and was so horrible. Just as the people behind Ye Futian and Gu Yunxi rushed out, the man''s fiery palm had already landed. It carried such murderous intent and was fatal.


    The people eating at the Fairy Pool were terrified. How could someone try to kill the legendary Son of the city? Did they want to die? An upper-level Noble could definitely kill with one strike. But how could these people be so willing to die and exchange their lives for Ye Futian?


    The stronger one was, the less likely they would give up their lives. Therefore, it was rare for people of high cultivation to be suicidal fighters. Barely anyone was willing to do it. But these two? They were crazy��too crazy.


    The people behind Ye Futian didn''t have time to react. The people beside him had the chance to block the attack, but Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Gu Yunxi weren''t stronger than Ye Futian. How could they block it? Even so, these people attacked without hesitation, almost simultaneously.


    Because of the sudden change, everyone''s potential was forced out. Yu Sheng roared and turned into a huge demon. Holding the Demonic Tripod, he stood before Ye Futian. Ye Wuchen turned into a dazzling and sharp sword. The Sage ritual implement shot out. Horrible Sword Will swept out. Loulan Xue released her book, sealing everything in ice, trying to block the opponent''s move. Even Gu Yunxi and Wang Yurou acted.


    Gu Yunxi took out her guqin and started playing. Sage Will was released from the instrument. Wang Yurou''s ritual implement was the weakest. It was only a Noble sword.


    Everyone attacked at once in the chaos. The surrounding people were all shocked. These people had attacked without caring for their own safety��


    Boom! There was a huge explosion. No matter how powerful these ritual implements were, they were only at the Arcana Plane in cultivation. None of them were in the Noble Plane, so they couldn''t block the Noble at all.


    Wang Yurou and Gu Yunxi were thrown into the air. Ye Wuchen''s sword warped and was then forced back by the palm. Yu Sheng''s Demonic Tripod boomed and he was forced back too. He crashed into Ye Futian and they both spat out blood. Even the ice around Ye Futian was shattered.


    The woman''s spell landed again. This time, everyone was covered in frost. They were about to be sealed in ice. The man didn''t stop at all. He continued forward, slapping down a palm at Yu Sheng and Ye Futian.


    Using the Thunder Step, Ye Futian stepped out, not letting Yu Sheng block him. Light flashed from his hands. Stars dazzled while the Polearm of Divine Destruction appeared. It instantly became miles long, forcing him and Yu Sheng back as it expanded.


    The horrible palm was blocked. It landed squarely on the Polearm of Divine Destruction. The thousand-feet-long polearm hit Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. It forced them into the air and they spat out blood.


    When the man saw that both attacks had failed, his expression changed. The Noble aura descended. He continued walking, murderous intent surging. He didn''t retreat at all. But then, another might fell from the sky. This undefeatable power pressed down on him. He was an upper-level Noble, but he was still immobilized, almost getting crushed.


    "How can this be?" He raised his head with difficulty to see an old man walk down from the sky. He seemed to be stepping directly on the man''s body. The elder''s hair flew and his eyes were murderous.


    "Sage." The people at the Fairy Pool looked up at the strong cultivator, eyes dancing. A Sagely figure was protecting Ye Futian in the background. The Starry School really treated the Son so well. Even so, Ye Futian had almost gotten killed.


    It was honestly terrifying for an upper-level Noble to suddenly attack at such a close distance. A Sage was strong, but they couldn''t be on guard at all times. Ye Futian could have been killed instantly.


    The elder descended and stepped down. The couple couldn''t withstand the force and collapsed onto the ground. They raised their heads with difficulty, staring coldly at Ye Futian. They were extremely angry to see Ye Futian get up. How was he still alive?


    "Who are you?" the elder asked coldly. Naturally, he wouldn''t kill them directly.


    The couple raised their heads and stared at the elder with red eyes.


    "They''re from the Business Alliance," Wang Yurou said weakly. She lay on the ground, dyeing the ground red with blood.


    "Laughable. An Arcana Plane has a Sage as a guard. It is hateful that I can''t take revenge," Shang Zhan gritted out.


    "What revenge makes you give up your life?" the elder asked coldly.


    "Taking revenge for my son cannot be topped by anything else," the woman said sharply. "My poor son was also a pride and cultivated in the Top Three Schools. But he died in the wilderness and no one cares. It breaks my heart."


    "No need to speak anymore." The man held the woman''s hand and looked up at the elder. "We are taking revenge for our son. Since we failed, we will pay with our lives. Will you kill us, or should we commit suicide?"

 493 Hidden Mastermind

    The elder looked at the two coldly and then turned to Ye Futian. Since they were enemies, Ye Futian should know that it would be up to him.


    Right now, Ye Futian was covered in blood. He breathed weakly and his steps were unsteady when he walked. Clearly, he was badly hurt. But when he walked to the two, his expression was extremely cold. He wasn''t the only one who was hurt. The people beside him had been hurt while trying to protect him. And yet, he didn''t even know the two who''d almost killed them.


    "The Yunyue Business Alliance�� Is Shang Yunfeng your son?" Ye Futian asked coldly. Wang Yurou had said that they were from the Business Alliance. That obviously meant the one from the Yunyue City.


    Ye Futian had only killed two people in the Evil Dragon Zone. One was Shang Hai, who''d had conflicts with him; the other was Shang Yunfeng. He remembered Wang Yuqing had told him that Shang Yunfeng cultivated at the Blazing Sun School. He was from the Top Three Schools, so these two were clearly talking about him.


    Ye Futian had almost forgotten about this person. He''d killed Shang Yunfeng while in his silver cape. No one knew who he was before he revealed his identity. But after the coronation ceremony, the people of the Top Three Schools all learned of his identity. If the parents wanted to take revenge for their son, they would naturally find out too.


    "Yes." The woman glared at Ye Futian, eyes still bloody and filled with murderous intent. Shang Yunfeng was their only child. They''d had high hopes for him, but he died tragically in the wilderness. How could they not take revenge? They wanted to kill Ye Futian even if it meant dying themselves. Unfortunately, they failed.


    Now, they could only hope that the one who found them would have other ways to kill Ye Futian. This assassination would end with them. They''d come to take revenge for their son.


    Since the two admitted it, Ye Futian''s expression turned colder. If he''d really died this time, it would be truly tragic. Back then, Shang Yunfeng and Shang Hai had wanted him dead. He naturally wouldn''t go easy on them. There was nothing to say now that his parents had come for revenge.


    "Do it yourself," Ye Futian said coldly.


    The two struggled, seeming to try to take one last desperate stab. But the elder wouldn''t give them the chance. He pressed down on them with his powerful might.


    Suddenly, the woman laughed. As she laughed, she started crying. It was easy to talk about death, but one couldn''t be so calm when the time really came.


    The couple met eyes. "Let us go accompany Yunfeng," Shang Zhan said. With that, he slapped his forehead. Blood spurted out immediately and he fell over. Seeing that her husband was dead, tears rolled down the woman''s face. Then she used the same tactic and lied down beside Shang Zhan. Her breathing soon stopped.


    They came to assassinate Ye Futian after knowing his current identity. This meant they were prepared to die. They knew that even if they killed Ye Futian, the Starry School wouldn''t let them escape the city.


    Looking at the two corpses, the surrounding people couldn''t calm their hearts. They didn''t expect to witness such a shocking assassination today. The cause had been a seemingly unimportant figure. They might not know him, but the Son of the Starry School almost lost his life. This was the rivalry of the cultivation world.


    The assassination attempt had losses. Gu Yunxi of the Gu Clan was badly hurt and the others weren''t well off either. A group of Arcana cultivators had gone against an upper Noble. They were lucky they didn''t die.


    Ye Futian ignored the corpses. He turned to check on the others. Wang Yurou was the most badly hurt. She was the weakest and also had the weakest ritual implement. After seeing the assassinators die, she fainted. Her body was covered in blood.


    "Senior," Ye Futian said, turning towards the Sage cultivator. The elder came to Wang Yurou''s side. He placed a hand on her and warm power enshrouded her. Spiritual Qi surged into all her body parts. Spiritual Qi was strength. It could protect her heart and veins, saving her life.


    "Call the medicine master from the school," the elder ordered. He didn''t go personally. After such a big event, he didn''t dare be careless. The event had been too dangerous. Even with his high cultivation, he''d almost been too late. Everything had happened too quickly.


    "Yes." Someone nodded and went.


    "Take them to rest. They won''t die," the elder said to Ye Futian. "You need to rest too. Don''t worry about them."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. Seeing all the hurt figures, his eyes reddened. They''d all attacked without caring for their own safety just then.


    Yu Sheng went without saying. He would never worry about the situation and just protect Ye Futian with his own body. Ye Wuchen also had many life-or-death experiences with them along the way. Loulan Xue was only a servant. They''d interacted for a long time, but they hadn''t had these experiences before. Ye Futian had never expected Gu Yunxi or Wang Yurou to act without hesitation either. He didn''t know how to repay them.


    "You all can go. The Celestial Pavilion will close for today," the elder said. Finally, the crowd dispersed. What happened at the Celestial Pavilion quickly stirred up an uproar and spread quickly throughout the Divine Sky City.


    Ye Futian was definitely the figure that everyone paid attention to this year. He''d collapsed the martial arts fate battlefield, was coronated as Son, defeated everyone in his own plane, and had no enemies in the Arcana Plane. He''d taken the Polearm of Divine Destruction from the Starry School and had become a legendary figure of his generation. But today, he''d almost gotten assassinated.


    The Starry School had sent a Sage to protect him in the background. The Gu Clan, the Dragon Clan, and other clans were the first to get the information. The two families sent people quickly because Gu Yunxi was also at the Celestial Pavilion. Other than that, many strong cultivators from the Starry School also hurried over. The Celestial Pavilion quickly gathered strong cultivators from all over.


    In one of the city''s private mansions, a youth in the courtyard learned about the news and his expression turned ugly. He yelled something about failures and not being able to take advantage of the opportunity. The upper Noble must be a failure if they couldn''t even kill an Arcana junior.


    He''d imagined everything beautifully. Shang Zhan would kill Ye Futian to take revenge for his son and then get killed by the Starry School. It wouldn''t affect him at all. It was flawless. Of course, it wouldn''t affect him even though it failed. It was clearly a revenge mission. But he was still pissed because Ye Futian wasn''t dead.


    It would be even harder to kill Ye Futian after this failed attempt too. He actually had a Sage to protect him. He would be more guarded now too. They might even send more people to protect Ye Futian.


    Plus, there were no better candidates. If he chose someone else, the Starry School would do everything to investigate the mastermind. Only Shang Yunfeng''s parents from the Yunyue Business Alliance wouldn''t need instruction.


    ��


    Many strong cultivators came to the Celestial Pavilion. Many from the Gu Clan came, including clan leader Gu Hanshan. Right now, Gu Yunxi was lying in bed. Her pallor was much better. A skilled medicine master was treating her.


    "Clan leader, Miss is alright now," the medicine master said to Gu Hanshan, but the man stared coldly at Gu Yunxi. He clearly looked angry.


    "Father," Gu Yunxi called softly, seeing her father''s expression.


    "Yunxi, do you know what you did? You and Ye Futian are good friends, but why did you rush over in that dangerous situation? If something happens to you, what will your mother and I do?" Gu Hanshan was furious.


    Gu Yunxi lowered her head and then smiled. "But Father, I''m alright now."


    "How dare you smile?" Gu Hanshan glared at her.


    "Alright, Yunxi has just recovered a bit. Stop it," the pretty woman beside them said. It was Gu Yunxi''s mother.


    "Whatever." Gu Hanshan sighed. "Girls can''t be kept after they grow up. This girl keeps running to the Celestial Pavilion and I don''t understand why. Is he that attractive?"


    As a father, he obviously knew what Gu Yunxi was thinking to do all this for Ye Futian. She wouldn''t protect him if she didn''t feel anything.


    "Father, what are you saying?" Gu Yunxi blushed as if her father had revealed her secret.


    "I''ll mention it to Chief Chen someday and see what the guy thinks," Gu Hanshan said. The Son of the Starry School was unparalleled in talent and quite matched his daughter. More importantly, his daughter liked him.


    "Father, no." Gu Yunxi''s expression changed.


    "Why not?" Gu Hanshan asked.


    "He has someone he likes." Gu Yunxi looked at her father. Her voice was a bit sad.


    Gu Hanshan was surprised. So the girl admitted it? She knew Ye Futian liked someone but was still like this?


    "Father, don''t worry about me. We''re just good friends," Gu Yunxi said.


    Gu Hanshan sighed. Looking at his wife, he said, "Look at your daughter. What is this?" As the clan leader, he ruled the Divine Sky City, but he was helpless against his daughter.


    Many people came to see Ye Futian in another room. Long Ling''er stayed beside Ye Futian, feeling belated fear. Madame Long had come personally too to check on Ye Futian''s injuries.


    "Senior, Madame, how are the others?" Ye Futian asked after he''d recovered more."


    "Don''t worry. They''ll be fine," Madame Long said. "Take this as a lesson too. If you anger someone in the future, you should still be careful."


    "Yes." Ye Futian chuckled wryly. He''d indeed overlooked Shang Yunfeng''s death.


    "After the Chief heard of this news, he ordered people to investigate whether the Yunyue Business Alliance participated in this," the Sage said to Ye Futian. "If they didn''t, we will warn them that we won''t give them a second chance. If they did, you can decide what to do."


    Ye Futian nodded. Things shouldn''t affect the relatives. If Shang Yunfeng''s parents did this for revenge, he would accept it and wouldn''t involve the Yunyue Business Alliance.


    But if they were involved, things would be different.


    Neither he nor the Starry School killed for no reason. They followed the rules of the cultivation world. After all, he had a family too. He didn''t want to make enemies someday and have them hurt his family!

 494 Hin

    Many days had passed since the assassination attempt at the Celestial Pavilion. The people of the Divine Sky City had started to forget it. The uproar over something was limited, after all. The Divine Sky City was a main city in the eastern Barren Territory. All sorts of things happened every day and people would forget. Of course, the people involved wouldn''t forget so easily.


    The one sent to investigate the Yunyue Business Alliance returned to the Starry School. The business alliance really hadn''t participated. Shang Yunfeng''s parents had come alone to take revenge for their son. When the Starry School arrived there, the entire business alliance had been terrified. They couldn''t imagine that the talented youth who''d shone at the battle of the top four would become the Son of the Starry School. He now had high status and the assassination had brought the entire alliance under a storm. After all, they had suffered the most losses. Shang Zhan was an extremely powerful figure and had died just like that. But what could they say?


    No one even dared to mention it afterward to avoid getting involved. The Starry School wouldn''t just warn them in the future.


    After the Starry School returned, the Wang Family of the Yunyue City also went to the Divine Sky City to visit the Celestial Pavilion. Ye Futian went to welcome them and saw that the family leader had come personally.


    "Senior Wang, how come you''re here?" Ye Futian asked politely.


    "After we learned of what had happened, we started paying attention. Back when you''d left, I had thought you would reach a higher level. But I didn''t think this��" the family leader said emotionally. No one thought that someone so ordinary would reach this extent.


    Wang Linfeng had also come with his family. He was also full of thoughts.


    "I''m just lucky," Ye Futian said, chuckling. "Senior, let''s have some wine."


    "Sure." The family leader nodded. "Futian, I heard about Yuqing too. That girl is a bit arrogant. Please don''t take offense. It''s my fault for not teaching her well. If you don''t wish to see her in the future, you don''t have to." He naturally wouldn''t try to persuade Ye Futian. That would make things worse. Wang Yuqing''s attitude had been so bad. It was better if they acted as if they''d never met.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. "Senior, would you mind if I keep Yurou here to work?"


    "She''s not as talented. I''m more than grateful that she can train with you. Of course, I don''t mind." The family leader smiled.


    Wang Yurou stood by quietly. Her injuries had mostly recovered now. After what had happened, she could clearly feel that Ye Futian was nicer to her.


    "Great." Ye Futian nodded. "After what happened with the Yunyue Business Alliance, do you think more things would follow?"


    "I don''t think so. Shang Zhan and his wife were aloof and spoiled their only son. They placed great hope on him and Shang Yunfeng never disappointed them. He was always successful and cultivated at the Blazing Sun School. They must have been hit hard to take this risk and come assassinate you," the family leader said. "I remember when Shang Yunfeng died, the two practically went crazy. They went to the Evil Dragon Zone and even ran to the Divine Sky City, but they didn''t find anything and were forced to leave. I didn''t think that they didn''t give up. They must have come again after realizing it was you."


    "It''s normal to keep looking for the killer of one''s son." Ye Futian nodded. He didn''t hate them.


    The group continued chatting in the Fairy Pool. At the same time, there were two figures in a courtyard of the Blazing Sun School on the other side of the city. Both elder and youth looked extraordinary.


    "So is everything investigated?" the elder asked.


    "Yes." The youth nodded. "When Ye Futian became the Son, someone in the school mentioned Shang Yunfeng''s death. But Ye Futian had just become Son and everyone saw how Chief Chen treated him. It would be useless even if someone went to find him. We weren''t as skilled as him before and were too ashamed to ask him for the man. Thus, we decided to notify Shang Yunfeng''s parents who had come to the school before."


    "And then?"


    "After, we saw people meet Shang Yunfeng''s parents secretly in the Yunyue City. Then the two came to the Divine Sky City. They didn''t tell the Yunyue Business Alliance and did everything alone, probably to avoid involving them."


    "Who were the ones who met them?" the elder asked.


    "After Shang Zhan and his wife came to the Divine Sky City, we kept watch over them and finally figured out who called them here. Uncle, guess." The youth chuckled.


    "I remember you said that Ye Futian was very arrogant on the martial arts battlefield. But he must have feared revealing his identity, so he didn''t cross the line and kill anyone from a clan. Only one person was greatly humiliated." The elder smiled. "He was forced to kneel as if worshipping a god. For someone from a proud clan, it''s unacceptable."


    "Uncle, you are so wise. You''re right on," the youth said, smiling.


    "This junior of the Jin Clan has always been arrogant. He wanted to compete with Long Mu from the same school and was humiliated like this. He obviously can''t stand it. It just so happened that Ye Futian became the Starry School''s Son and treated as a gem. He couldn''t harm Ye Futian, which made things worse.


    "He''s smart though. He didn''t send his own men, in case someone found out. Instead, he chose to take advantage of Shang Yunfeng''s parents'' hatred of Ye Futian. It''s impossible to find the connection. No matter what, it has nothing to do with him.


    "But I''m curious," the elder continued, a bit confused. "How does Jin Yunxiao know about the death of an ordinary disciple of the Blazing Sun School and think to take advantage of him?"


    "This might have something to do with a disciple from the Starry School," the youth said. "His name is Jiang Nan. He''s a descendant of the lesser Jiang Clan and is quite well-known in the Starry School. Coincidentally, he''d insulted Ye Futian and had some conflicts. This person happened to be at the Evil Dragon Zone and witnessed Shang Yunfeng''s death. He also wants to get on Jin Yunxiao''s good side. I''m afraid he told Jin Yunxiao. Our men also found out that Jiang Nan had caused trouble at the Celestial Pavilion before the assassination. It must have been to make Ye Futian go back. He must not have expected to get forced out with a staff. The assassination happened afterward."


    "I see," the elder said, smiling. "It is indeed a great plan. Unfortunately, things are always so coincidental. We just happened to have gone to Yunyue City. Did the Jin Clan participate in this?"


    "There are no signs. It''s likely Jin Yunxiao did this alone," the youth said.


    "He thought himself clever. The Jin Clan is one of the Starry School''s major clans. The Celestial Pavilion technically belongs to the Dragon Clan and Gu Yunxi of the Gu Clan was hurt badly. This event involved the schools, the Dragon Clan, and the Gu Clan. It won''t be so easy for the Jin Clan to be spared."


    Smiling, the elder continued, "Jin Yunxiao gave us a good start. Think of a way to alert Ye Futian or the Starry School. Of course, don''t make it obvious. Do just enough."


    "Understood," the youth said, smirking.


    ��


    At the Starry School, the disciples were still busy cultivating. Wang Yuqing walked down the street, feeling a bit down. She''d been depressed these past days. Her grandfather had never been angry at her, but after coming to the Divine Sky City, he''d yelled at her.


    "It''s Senior Brother Jin," someone beside her said. She looked up. Even though Jin Yunxiao wasn''t much compared to Ye Futian, but the Starry School was big. There were many disciples. To the regular disciples, Jin Yunxiao was from a powerful clan and he was still an esteemed figure.


    Wang Yuqing looked over and saw a familiar figure beside Jin Yunxiao. It was Jiang Nan. She frowned. When did Jiang Nan get close to Jin Yunxiao?


    "Senior Brother," many people called. Jin Yunxiao''s duo walked over. When they passed Wang Yuqing, Jiang Nan scanned her coolly and ignored her as if they were strangers.


    Seeing Jiang Nan''s eyes, Wang Yuqing thought of the humiliating words he''d said to Ye Futian. He''d said sarcastically that Ye Futian was skilled at kissing up to other people. Thinking back now, it was laughable. Wasn''t he talking about himself?


    "Since when was Senior Brother Jiang with Senior Brother Jin?" a youth near Wang Yuqing mumbled. Turning around, he saw Wang Yuqing and couldn''t help but smile. "Hello, Senior Sister Wang."


    "You know me?" Wang Yuqing looked at him. She wasn''t famous and she didn''t know the other either.


    "I''ve seen you with Senior Brother Jiang." The youth smiled.


    "Don''t mention him." Wang Yuqing was upset.


    The man bowed slightly, seeming polite. "I thought you two matched each other before," he said softly. "You are beautiful while Senior Brother Jiang is talented. Now that he''s close to Senior Brother Jin, he must be extremely smart. But it''s a pity that someone so smart made a mistake because of you and was almost killed, making you two have conflicts."


    "Because of me?" Wang Yuqing scoffed.


    "Yes. If not for you, why would someone as smart as Senior Brother Jiang go cause trouble at the Celestial Pavilion? Doesn''t he know that it belongs to the Son and is backed by the Dragon Clan? He''d almost died because of it too. But it''s strange that the Son almost died as well." The youth shook his head and sighed. "Thankfully, it''s all over and Senior Brother Jiang is with Senior Brother Jin now. I hope you two will make up soon. I''ll leave now." With that, he took his leave.


    Wang Yuqing''s brows furrowed tightly, seeming to ponder the man''s words. Her heart skipped a beat. Thinking back to her interactions with Jiang Nan, he didn''t seem to be a brash person. Instead, he was very calculative!

 495 Arres

    In the Celestial Pavilion, Wang Yurou found Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian saw her flustered and said, "Your injury has just gotten better, what is it that is so urgent?"


    "Just now my sister came over and asked me to tell you something," Wang Yurou replied.


    "What is it?" Ye Futian expression was curious; something was off.


    "My sister said that Jiang Nan is a sly person. To people of higher status than him, he will always maintain his manners and will not break out of character. That day in the Celestial Pavilion, when Jiang Nan insulted me and Shen Yu and ignored the background of the Celestial Pavilion, it was abnormal." Wang Yurou looked at Ye Futian and continued, "It was just at the right time that we ran into you coming back. Not long later, the Yunyue Business Alliance''s Shang Zhan couple came to the Celestial Pavilion."


    Ye Futian''s expression tensed up as Wang Yurou continued, "Also, Jiang Nan has wanted to establish a connection with Jin Yunxiao since a long time ago, but Jin Yunxiao has never given him any face or even looked him in the eye. However, not long ago, Jiang Nan was seen following beside Jin Yunxiao."


    Ye Futian closed his eyes, deep in thought. Wang Yuqing would not ask Wang Yurou to tell him this for nothing. Moreover, this involved Jiang Nan and Jin Yunxiao. Although these few incidents may look separate, if they were thought about together, there was much to be suspicious about.


    The day when the assassination had failed, the two of them had committed suicide on the spot. Because they were Shang Yunfeng''s parents, it was perfectly justified for them to want to seek revenge for their son. Nobody would think that someone else would instigate them to take revenge for their son.


    That was why there was no mastermind for this matter. It was an obvious revenge attempt. However, from the way things looked now, they had all overlooked some things because of the couple seeking revenge for their son.


    He had been cultivating in the Starry School all along. Why would the Shang Zhan couple know which day he would be at the Celestial Pavilion? They were evidently very sure that he was at the Celestial Pavilion before they made a ruckus to force him out. If the matter had been blown up, they would have had no chance to enter the Celestial Pavilion in the future.


    Of course, there was also the possibility that they had been keeping watch on the Celestial Pavilion. If they wanted revenge, it was only natural to do that, so this could not be considered a major oversight.


    The peculiarity lied in what Wang Yuqing said. That day, why would Jiang Nan do something so unlike him and cause trouble in the Celestial Pavilion, and why did the Shang Zhan couple appear not long after?


    In his conversation with the Wang Clan leader that day, it appeared that Yunyue City was not updated on what had happened in the Divine Sky City. The Shang Zhan couple had returned to the Yunyue City, how did they know of his identity and return to the Divine Sky City? However, this could not be considered an oversight. Perhaps the Shang Zhan couple had been keeping tabs on what was happening within the Divine Sky City, however, Jiang Nan was exactly the person who knew this the best.


    They would not need instigating to take revenge for their son. However, giving them information and helping them arrange a time was something that he could help them with without leaving any trace or taking any risk.


    Ye Futian''s eyes opened, a cold glint in the corner of his eyes that even he himself did not notice.


    "Does sister mean that Jiang Nan is involved in this time''s assassination?" Wang Yurou had hurriedly come to look for Ye Futian after hearing what her sister had to say. Evidently, she had understood the meaning behind those words.


    "I don''t know," Ye Futian replied, smiling. "Let the elders from the Starry School investigate." The matter involved disciples from the Starry School, so it was not fair to take only his side of the story, especially when it could potentially involve the Jin Clan''s young master Jin Yunxiao.


    "Shen Yu," Ye Futian summoned her.


    "Pavilion owner," Shen Yu, who was standing at one side, replied.


    "Ask the members of the Dragon Clan to go to the West Court and tell the Madame what Yurou just said. You will go to the Gu Clan and bring the word to them," Ye Futian gave his orders as he left to find the experts from the Starry School.


    ��


    In the Starry School, in the yard where Jin Yunxiao was, a few figures descended from the sky. Seeing these people, Jin Yunxiao''s expression changed and he asked, "Uncle, why have you come?"


    "Follow me back to the Nine Cloud Palace," the person replied coldly.


    "Is something the matter?" Jin Yunxiao looked puzzled.


    "We''ll talk when we get back, the clan leader wishes to speak to you." The person nodded, and so did Jin Yunxiao. He turned to Jiang Nan and said, "You can take your leave."


    "Yes, senior." Jiang Nan bowed and took his leave. In front of others, he continued to address Jin Yunxiao as senior.


    Jin Yunxiao and the Jin Clan members took flight and left. Jiang Nan was bewildered as he did not know why the Jin Clan members suddenly appeared to bring Jin Yunxiao away. He walked out of the yard feeling uneasy. Could it be that something had happened?


    It wasn''t possible. The matter had been flawless, there would definitely be no repercussions. Moreover, the Shang Zhan couple who had tried to assassinate Ye Futian had died then and there.


    Walking out of the yard and strolling on the pavement, a group of people walked towards him. The group of people all had exceptional auras and cold demeanors, stopping in front of Jiang Nan. The people around looked at them and many disciples quietly stepped back, evidently knowing the identities of these people.


    It was the people from the Starry School Punishment Institution. They were in charge of giving out penalties. Jiang Nan saw them stop in front of him and his heart sank. His footsteps continued normally, but his legs were already shaking lightly.


    "Jiang Nan pays his respects to elders and seniors," said Jiang Nan, suppressing the fear in his heart and bowing.


    "Jiang Nan, follow us," the person said emotionlessly.


    Jiang Nan''s face paled and he asked, "Elders and seniors, may I know, what for?"


    "We''ll talk at the trial court." The person stared at Jiang Nan with a deadpan look, as though he was a statue. Although Jiang Nan had tried his best to suppress the fear rising from his heart, his voice still jittered as he replied, "Okay, elders and seniors, please lead the way."


    "Let''s go." The group turned around and started to walk, with Jiang Nan within the group. The disciples who saw this scene started to debate. The Punishment Institution rarely ever took action. After all, the Top Three Schools was a place of cultivation and the rules were not strict. If it was not particularly important, the Punishment Institution would not step in. Once they did, it was likely a huge issue.


    What trouble had Jiang Nan caused?


    In the trial court, an imposing figure sat on the main seat. Many people were at both sides with emotionless faces, a frigid feeling spreading across the entire court. When Jiang Nan saw the elderly person sitting on the main seat, he was stunned and the color drained from his face.


    It was the Punishment Institution''s Grand Trial Elder, Elder Lu. He was just an Arcana Plane cultivator, a normal disciple. What huge matter would require a strong Sage Plane elder to personally oversee his trial?


    The entire court was deadly silent, to the point where it was actually scary. In such a circumstance, Jiang Nan could almost hear his own heartbeat.


    "Own up," Elder Lu stared at Jiang Nan for a long time, then said this one sentence. There was a mysterious might in his voice.


    Jiang Nan''s head was extremely low, and he bowed and replied, "Elder Lu, I do not understand what you mean."


    "Before the College Chief crowned the Son, he once summoned all of the School''s elders for a discussion. The College Chief is bent on the restoration of the Divine Path, thus he broke all the rules and crowned the Son, even creating the holy robes and holy crown for him and ignoring all objection. Although the Jin Clan may not agree with it, they did not say anything afterward, because they saw the College Chief''s determination."


    Elder Lu appeared to have said something irrelevant, yet he continued, "Since you''ve done it, don''t try to hide it. You are very clear of the means a cultivator can go to, if you come clean and admit your wrongdoings, I can give you the lightest punishment."


    Jiang Nan''s expression was ashen. Even though he had been afraid along the way, he held on to a glimmer of hope. Yet what Elder Lu just said had smashed his last vestige of hope. He was very clear that when the Punishment Institution believed something, they would investigate to the very end. It was one thing if he did not do it, but once he had done it, there would be no escape.


    Bringing him directly to the trial court was evidently not just simple suspicion on their part. The experts from the Punishment Institution had too many methods to make him speak up. In front of Sage Plane experts, all attempts to conceal the truth were futile.


    Cold stares landed on him and Jiang Nan''s limbs started to shiver. Cultivation was not easy, and he was born in a small clan in the Divine Sky City. His achievements, being able to cultivate in the Starry School and a soon-to-be Noble Plane expert all did not come easy.


    What Elder Lu had said about the College Chief''s determination, he had seen it too. That was why he was all the more certain that the crime of attempting to harm the Son was not something that he could bear.


    With a thud, Jiang Nan kneeled on the ground, his head planted to the floor and said, "Elder Lu, I was just jealous of the Son''s potential and the kindness he received from the College Chief. That was why I told senior Jin Yunxiao about the death of the Yunyue Business Alliance''s Yunfeng. Everything after that was all planned by Jin Yunxiao, I was only following his orders."


    Elder Lu looked at Jiang Nan who had his face planted into the ground and asked unfeelingly, "So the person was invited by Jin Yunxiao from the Yunyue Business Alliance to the Divine Sky City and brought to the Celestial Pavilion for the assassination?"


    "Yes." Jiang Nan maintained his position and continued, "I know that I have brought shame to the name of a Starry School disciple, and I am willing to be expelled. I hope elder can grant my request."


    "Since you''ve come to the Starry School to cultivate, you are a disciple of the school. After harming the Son and assisting in the planning, now you want to drop out of the school and call it quits? What a joke." Elder Lu continued, "Your cultivation was from the Starry School. Since I''ve agreed to give you a lighter punishment, I will spare your life and only permanently destroy your powers and expel you from the school."


    "Elder Lu." Jiang Nan raised his head with terror in his eyes. Permanently destroying his powers and expelling him from the Starry School?


    "No, Elder Lu, I know my mistake now, I know my mistake now��" Jiang Nan was filled with terror and shouted.


    A disciple stepped forward and grabbed Jiang Nan.


    "No, noooooo��" Jiang Nan shouted wildly, but that did not stop him from being dragged out of the court. Soon, screams of agony could be heard and he was dragged out of the Starry School and thrown outside the gates.


    The Starry School was bustling, and later, someone saw the Punishment Institution flying out of the school towards the Jin Clan''s Nine Cloud Palace. After a period of time, a groundbreaking piece of news spread through the Starry School. The assassination of the Son, Ye Futian had the involvement of Starry School disciples, one of them being Jiang Nan, who had had his powers destroyed and expelled from the School.


    The other person was the pride of the Jin Clan, a genius of the Starry School, Jin Yunxiao.


    The entire Starry School was in an uproar over this. Was the school really going to arrest Jin Yunxiao?

 496 Refusal to Cooperate

    The Nine Cloud Palace was more brilliant with each level up, and the peak of the Nine Cloud Palace was like a heavenly palace, golden light sprinkling onto the clouds, sacred and solemn.


    In the Divine Sky City, the Nine Cloud Palace could be considered the most extravagant place, and the Jin Clan''s dressing was also extremely luxurious. Presently, in the Nine Cloud Palace, a teenage figure was kneeling on the floor, and in front of him, many people stared emotionlessly at him. The teen kneeling on the floor was the Jin Clan''s Jin Yunxiao.


    "Grandfather, only Uncle Cheng knows about this matter, and Uncle Cheng is definitely loyal to the Jin Clan, so he will not rat us out. Only the Jin Clan knows about this, it will definitely not spread." Jin Yunxiao nervously looked at the elderly person in front of him. It was a perceptive elder with golden hair, even his eyes were golden, and contained a formidable sharpness.


    This person was the clan leader of the Jin Clan, Jin Chengfeng. Today, the Jin Clan had brought him back, precisely because the servant protecting Jin Yunxiao had left the Divine Sky City a while back. After Ye Futian had nearly been assassinated, a person in the Jin Clan had taken notice of this and reported it to the clan leader after he had finished his meditation. They had then found Jin Yunxiao''s servant and questioned him, that was how they knew that Jin Yunxiao was involved in the assassination of Ye Futian.


    "Didn''t you say previously that this was told to you by another Starry School disciple, Jiang Nan? He would naturally know then," Jin Chengfeng said unfeelingly.


    "He also had a part to play in the incident. If word spreads, he won''t be able to get away scot-free with his background, so he naturally will not say anything. Moreover, I have already brought him around with me and taken him under my wing. There will be no mistakes," Jin Yunxiao replied.


    "What if the Starry School decides to investigate him after news of the incident spreads?" Jin Chengfeng looked at Jin Yunxiao and asked.


    "Grandfather, the people who attempted the assassination have already died on the spot. Taking revenge for their son, this needs no investigation." Jin Yunxiao shook his head.


    "Idiot." Jin Chengfeng cruelly said, "I have already sent my men to the Starry School, they will naturally deal with your schoolmate. After all, dead men tell no tales."


    Jin Yunxiao''s expression turned grim and his heart trembled. His grandfather was the owner of the Nine Cloud Palace and was extremely decisive with his killing. Even though he did not like Jiang Nan, he did not mind having another servant by his side. However, his grandfather''s thinking was different and did not want to leave a potential threat alive.


    Indeed, killing an insignificant disciple was nothing in comparison to assassinating the Son. The Starry School had numerous disciples, and it was common for disciples to die while adventuring outside the school, so it was not strange for one or two disciples to just die off.


    "Yes, grandfather." Jin Yunxiao did not dare to refute his grandfather. Nobody dared to question his grandfather''s position in the Nine Cloud Palace; even when the next generation of the Gu and Dragon Clan had stepped up, his grandfather was still in charge of the Nine Cloud Palace.


    "I''ll settle the score with you after I''ve dealt with him," Jin Chengfeng declared emotionlessly. Having been in the Divine Sky City for so many years, he was of the same generation as Chen Yuan, so he naturally understood what crowning the Starry School''s son meant to Chen Yuan. That was why even though the school had not given the Jin Clan any advance notice, which displeased the Jin Clan, he did not mention a word of it or thought of dragging Ye Futian down from his position.


    Chen Yuan had been holding his desire in and waiting for far too long. He would only strike at the most opportune time to deal the killing blow on Ye Futian. But now was not the time.


    Jin Yunxiao''s selfish actions were downright foolish.


    At this time, a figure approached them on a Roc, flying straight down beside them. The figure walked with a trial of golden clouds behind him, and bowed to Jin Chengfeng and said, "Clan leader, we have trouble."


    "What is it?" Jin Chengfeng frowned, his sharp aura assailing the person.


    "Jiang Nan has been taken away by the Starry School''s Punishment Institution. His powers were then destroyed and he has been expelled from the school." The person continued his report, "Now, the people from the Punishment Institution are on their way to the Nine Cloud Palace. They should be arriving anytime soon."


    The expressions of the Jin Clan''s members turned pale, Jin Yunxiao even more so. He panicked and said, "How can this be? The school cannot have possibly found out about the incident."


    Jin Chengfeng coldly swept Jin Yunxiao with his gaze and said, "Bring him away."


    "Understood." Someone looked towards Jin Yunxiao and acknowledged.


    "Grandfather, this can''t be happening." Jin Yunxiao shook his head repeatedly, then followed the person and left.


    "What do you all think?" Jin Chengfeng looked at the rest of the people and asked. Although he had heard the news, he remained calm. At his cultivation level, the world could have crumbled and he would still maintain his composure.


    The members of the Jin Clan had knowing looks. They naturally knew what Jin Chengfeng was asking. If the Starry School came and asked them to hand over Jin Yunxiao, would they?


    "The Starry School dares to directly confront our Nine Cloud Palace, do they not care about our Jin Clan''s position within the school. Why do they not attempt to suppress the issue?" one of the members said, evidently vexed.


    "Before Chen Yuan crowned the Son, he had been hiding it from the Jin Clan and had the support of the Dragon and Gu Clans. Now they want to arrest our clan member, is the Starry School trying to force the Jin Clan out?" another member complained.


    The crowning of the Son had been a thorn in the Jin Clan''s flesh. Although it was rash of Jin Yunxiao to orchestrate the incident, they all secretly agreed with his actions.


    "We will definitely not hand over Yunxiao. What reputation will we have left within the school if we do so? If we do that, the disciples that enter the school will no longer want to enter the Jin Clan or become a member of the Nine Cloud Palace," an elderly member analyzed calmly. The Top Three Schools had a long heritage. Generations of disciples had entered the schools to cultivate and come out as powerful leaders. The schools would provide guidance to aid in their disciples'' cultivation, many of the schools'' disciples were under his command and could be considered members of the Nine Cloud Palace. After they had left the schools, they maintained connections with the Jin Clan and some of them even served the Jin Clan.


    After generations of disciples, the major clans had successfully infiltrated the Top Three Schools.


    "Wait for them to arrive." Jin Chengfeng did not say much and calmly announced. Not long after, the Starry School''s Punishment Institution arrived and was brought to meet Jin Chengfeng and the rest of the clan.


    From the Jin Clan''s lineup, the Starry School knew that the Jin Clan had already gotten wind beforehand.


    "Senior." The people from the Punishment Institution bowed towards Jin Chengfeng. The Jin Clan Leader was in the same generation as the College Chief, so it was only natural for them to salute him.


    "Can I know what you all are here for?" Jin Chengfeng asked.


    "Senior, Jin Yunxiao is suspected to be involved in the assassination of the Son. Elder Lu has ordered us to bring Jin Yunxiao back to the school," the person-in-charge bowed and answered in a straightforward fashion.


    "I''ve heard of the incident as well, I heard it was by someone who had their son killed by him, and the parents came for revenge. Why would Jin Yunxiao be involved with it, did you make a mistake?" Jin Chengfeng questioned.


    "The assailants were indeed the couple from the Yunyue Business Alliance, but we have found out that the two were brought into the Celestial Pavilion by Jin Yunxiao and another disciple from the Starry School, Jiang Nan. The two of them provided the conditions for the assassination to be carried out and Jiang Nan has already admitted his crime. I hope that senior will not make my job difficult," the person from the Punishment Institution continued explaining. As expected, it would not be easy to arrest someone within the Nine Cloud Palace, they thought in their hearts.


    "After Jin Yunxiao is brought back, Elder Lu will personally confirm the truth and will not malign Jin Yunxiao. Please rest assured, senior," the person from the Punishment Institution patiently reassured him.


    "Can a normal disciple''s words be trusted that easily? Please go back and ask Elder Lu if it was possible that the whole incident was Jiang Nan''s doing. He could have dragged Yunxiao into it to avoid punishment," Jin Chengfeng nonchalantly suggested. The people from the Punishment Institution wanted to continue, but they heard Jin Chengfeng say, "Go, investigate the truth soon. If there is a need, I will go to the Starry School and pay Chief Chen a visit."


    "Understood, we will go back and report." Since it had come to this, they naturally understood that the Jin Clan Leader was unwilling to hand over Jin Yunxiao. They could not forcefully arrest him, so they could only go back and report the matter. However, this was within their expectations as well. It was not an easy task to arrest Jin Chengfeng''s grandson, the young master of the Nine Cloud Palace.


    ��


    Ye Futian had already returned to the Starry School. Presently, in the Starry School''s trial court, there was not only Elder Lu, Ye Futian, experts from the Gu Clan and Madame Long were also there. They were all here waiting for news from the Nine Cloud Palace, to see if the Jin Clan would hand over Jin Yunxiao.


    After a period of time, the people who had headed for the Jin Clan had returned to the trial court. Seeing as Jin Yunxiao was not behind them, they all understood what had happened.


    "Elder Lu, the Jin Clan Leader personally met us. He wanted me to bring word to you and ask if it was possible that the incident was orchestrated by Jiang Nan alone, who just dragged Jin Yunxiao in to acquit himself," the person delivered Jin Chengfeng''s words. Of course, they had a deeper meaning.


    Elder Lu looked at Ye Futian. He naturally understood Jin Chengfeng''s intentions, he wanted the school to suppress the issue and push the blame onto Jiang Nan and not involve Jin Yunxiao in it.


    "Ye Futian, this issue can only be decided by the College Chief now," Elder Lu told him. The issue involved one of the elite clans��the Jin Clan. Even if he was in charge of the Starry School''s punishments, he did not have the authority to judge the issue.


    "The old man from the Jin Clan wants to shirk responsibility with just this one sentence?" A frigid voice sounded out from outside the court, and a few figures walked in together.


    They were the Gu Clan Leader Gu Hanshan, Madame Long from the West Mountain Dragon Clan and Chief Chen. The three important figures had come personally to address the issue.


    "College Chief, senior Gu, Madame," Ye Futian addressed them, and the rest of the people all saluted.


    "The assassination was done by the people from the Yunyue Business Alliance. Jin Yunxiao was just a participant behind the scenes and was not personally involved in the assassination. The Jin Clan naturally wants to trivialize the matter," Madame Long silently said.


    "Yunxi was injured and nearly died. Yet Jin Chengfeng wants to absolve his younger generation of blame? Why would I let him have it this easy," Gu Hanshan said ruthlessly.


    "What do you think?" Chief Chen''s gaze landed on Ye Futian and asked.


    "Jin Yunxiao was definitely involved in the incident," Ye Futian replied. Jiang Nan did not have such huge capability. Moreover, his sudden appearance at Jin Yunxiao''s side, coupled with the fact that he had already admitted his crime, meant that Jin Yunxiao was also the same.


    "How do you want to handle this?" Chief Chen asked again.


    Ye Futian stared at Chief Chen. He naturally knew that there would be serious repercussions, as the Jin Clan was the strongest influence within the school. If he wanted to incriminate Jin Yunxiao, it could trigger a huge backlash.


    "Although I luckily survived, a debt of blood can only be paid in blood. He who attempts to kill should be killed." Ye Futian looked at Chief Chen in the eyes and said. This time, it was not only him that was involved. Yu Sheng, Wuchen, Loulan Xue, Gu Yunxi and Wang Yurou had all been severely injured and nearly died.


    Chief Chen had asked him for his attitude. Naturally, it would be to kill!

 497 A Huge Uproar

    Chief Chen heard Ye Futian''s words, stared at him and asked, "Do you know what repercussions it will cause you if you do so?" He naturally understood Ye Futian''s feelings. He could help Ye Futian kill Jin Yunxiao, but he was unsure how drastic the Jin Clan''s reaction would be, or what they would do.


    There was only one thing he could be sure of, if he ordered that Jin Yunxiao be killed, with his position, no matter what ruckus was caused, it would not threaten him. However, Ye Futian was different. He was only in the Arcana Plane, the grudge of Jin Yunxiao''s death would be placed onto him. Even with his protection, to be targeted by an influential force like the Jin Clan was still an unbelievably scary thing.


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded. Jin Yunxiao had already attempted to kill him. If he still worried about the future, what purpose would there be? Even if he let it go today, Jin Yunxiao and the Jin Clan would not call it quits. If they had the chance in the future, they would definitely try to kill him again.


    "Alright." Chief Chen nodded as well.


    "Jin Ze wishes to meet the College Chief." At that moment, a voice sounded from outside the court.


    Chen Yuan turned around and said, "Let us go out."


    After saying that, the group of them walked out.


    Presently, at the bottom of the stairs, a group of people appeared. When they saw Chief Chen, they bowed and addressed him, "College Chief."


    "Is anything the matter?" Chen Yuan asked.


    "We''ve heard that a disciple Jiang Nan lured in assassins to assassinate the Son and tried to push the blame onto Jin Yunxiao. We beseech the College Chief not to trust such rumors," Jin Ze bowed and said.


    "The truth will come to light after we bring Jin Yunxiao to the school." Chen Yuan''s gaze swept across the people below. He could naturally see that the Jin Clan''s elites in the school were all here attempting to pressure the school.


    "The Jin Clan has always maintained close relations with the school. All these years, we have already assimilated into the school and become part of the Starry School. Jin Yunxiao is the descendant of the Jin Clan, why would he attempt to assassinate the Son?" Jin Ze started to plead for him, "If the College Chief arrests Jin Yunxiao over a despicable person''s words, you will be putting the Jin Clan in a spot. My brother is the Jin Clan Leader, and Jin Yunxiao is a direct descendant of the Jin Clan. This would cause the school to fall out with the Jin Clan." Jin Ze continued his persuasion, "Moreover, there is much to be suspicious about the incident. It could be the work of someone who wants to sow discord between the school and the Jin Clan."


    "I know." Chen Yuan nodded. "However, there will be a fair trial to see if Jin Yunxiao was indeed involved in the incident after we bring him here. If I have wronged Jin Yunxiao, I will personally apologize to the Jin Clan."


    "If the College Chief does this, wouldn''t it make things awkward for the Jin Clan?" Jin Ze replied. "The Jin Clan has always regarded the College Chief highly, and when you crowned the Son, the Jin Clan did not even say a word of objection as we admired the Son''s demeanor as well. The Yunyue Business Alliance sent assassins to take the Son''s life, our Jin Clan hates the assassins as well. How could the College Chief drag the Nine Cloud Palace into it just by someone else''s words?"


    "On the day of the coronation, I announced publicly that the Son would be the leader of the Starry School''s disciples. To see him would be akin to seeing me, now that someone has claimed that Jin Yunxiao is the mastermind, how could I not bring him forth for an investigation? Jin Ze, you''ve tried numerous times to stop me, what is your intention?" Chief Chen''s tone became chilly.


    Jin Ze wanted to continue persuading him but heard Chief Chen shout, "My decision is final. Jin Ze, why not you go to the Nine Cloud Palace and bring Jin Yunxiao to the Starry School?"


    Jin Ze raised his head and looked Chief Chen in the eye, then said, "College Chief, have you really made your decision?"


    "If you won''t go, I will naturally ask Lu Wang to," Chen Yuan replied.


    Jin Ze bowed slightly and said, "Farewell."


    After saying so, he turned around and left. Among those following him were many experts from the Jin Clan. Not long after they had left, many figures flew through the air. About one-fifth of the elders in the Starry School were leaving, instantly causing a huge commotion.


    Outside the trial court, with their cultivation level, Chief Chen and the rest could naturally feel people flying through the air and leaving the school. Chen Yuan stared into the air, his eyes like stars in the sky, deep and bottomless. The rest of them all fell silent, this matter was slowly brewing into a giant fiasco.


    One after the other, there were people rushing over to report that experts from the various departments had left the school. Usually, some people leaving would not garner such attention, but this time, they were leaving on a large scale. Evidently, something extraordinary had happened.


    Not just the elders, the Starry School''s disciples were also in a mess. Following which, more people started to soar through the air and leave. The entire Starry School was left devastated. More people started to gather at the trial court. Some of the elders had arrived as well.


    "Jin Chengfeng''s style is as overbearing as always. Is he forcing the Starry School to make a decision?" someone said emotionlessly. The Jin Clan was withdrawing all its clan''s experts from the Starry School. Furthermore, they were bringing many talented disciples with them.


    For many years, the influence of the Jin Clan, Gu Clan, and Dragon Clan had been deeply rooted within the Starry School and become native to the Starry School. Now, the Jin Clan had suddenly withdrawn all its members, the Starry School''s strength was bound to be affected.


    The Top Three Schools were originally equally matched in the Divine Sky City, but after the Jin Clan''s members had left, the Starry School immediately fell to the weakest among the Top Three Schools. The Starry School had to be wary.


    "College Chief, like Jin Ze has said, there could be another person behind the whole incident. The Son had obtained the divine teachings from the Martial Arts Battlefield, causing the Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School to covet it. Now that the Starry School''s strength has been weakened," someone said with a heavy heart.


    "Jin Chengfeng must definitely know about this. That''s why he''s doing this to force the Starry School to forget the issue," another person quipped in.


    Their gazes landed on Chief Chen, only to see him with his hands behind his back, looking towards the sky. In reality, when he asked Ye Futian what he wanted, he had already thought about this possibility. He understood what kind of person the Jin Clan Leader Jin Chengfeng was, they were in the same generation and had already known each other when they were younger. He was arrogant and overbearing, so the Jin Clan would not hand over Jin Yunxiao even if they had to fall out with the Starry School. It was not just because Jin Yunxiao was Jin Chengfeng''s grandson, but also because Jin Chengfeng would not allow the Jin Clan to accept humiliation from an Arcana Plane junior, especially if it would cause the whole city to know about it.


    With Jin Chengfeng''s arrogance, forcing him to make a decision with such means was also within his consideration.


    "When I crowned him as the Son and organized the coronation for him to wear the holy crown and don the holy robes, I had already thought about it. Since I wanted to restore the glory of the saints and let him walk the Divine Path, the road ahead would definitely be tumultuous." Chief Chen looked into the air and said slowly, "Before the coronation, I had asked Ye Futian, if he was to be crowned the Son, he would have to dominate his generation. I asked him if he could do it and he replied ''yes''."


    "Since he can do it, everything else should be left to us to settle. Although the Jin Clan did not voice their opinion, they evidently object to my decision. Today''s incident is also an opportunity for us. From now on, the Starry School is united," Chief Chen lowered his head, his gaze sweeping across the crowd, and said in a solemn voice. "Jin Yunxiao had participated in the assassination of the Son. If he is not punished, there will definitely be other clans who will do the same. I have decided to arrest Jin Yunxiao and incarcerate him."


    The crowd looked at Chief Chen. They could all feel his determination. However, it would not be easy to clear the Divine Path. Long ago, Chief Chen had great expectations for Long Yitian, yet Long Yitian had died away from his protection. Ye Futian was now the new hope that Chief Chen saw.


    "Convey my orders to the Starry School. Jin Yunxiao from the Jin Clan schemed to assassinate the Son and has escaped to the Jin Clan after his failure. The Jin Clan has withdrawn all their members cultivating in the school to protect him." Chief Chen''s voice was stern, and he continued his announcement to the crowd. "The Starry School is a place of cultivation, yet the Jin Clan has violated the school''s rules to protect their clan member. This has caused the school to be in an uproar, thus, from today onwards, nobody from the Jin Clan is allowed to step into the Starry School to cultivate."


    The crowd heard Chief Chen''s words and were astounded. The school was breaking off all relations with the Jin Clan which could not be reconciled. The Jin Clan had withdrawn their experts to force Chief Chen to make a decision between the Jin Clan and Ye Futian.


    Chief Chen had chosen Ye Futian who was still in the Arcana Plane. Furthermore, his methods had been unyielding and decisive. Everyone understood that once the word had been spread, the Starry School would be at conflict with the Nine Cloud Palace.


    "Lu Wang, bring your men to the Jin Clan and bring him here. Tell Jin Chengfeng that if he is unwilling to hand Jin Yunxiao over, I will personally bring my men to the Nine Cloud Palace," Chief Chen continued to give orders.


    "Understood." Lu Wang stared at the elderly man in front of him, a surge of emotions coming over him. Chief Chen was willing to go to any extent to protect the Divine Path.


    Lu Wang took his men and flew through the sky. Chief Chen''s words spread quickly throughout the Starry School, striking them out of the blue. This caused many people to be completely overwhelmed.


    The Starry School was breaking off relations with the Jin Clan. From now on, members of the Jin Clan would forever not be allowed into the Starry School to cultivate. The Jin Clan''s experts leaving had left a huge mess for the school, it seemed like the College Chief had been angered.


    The news traveled equally quickly to the Nine Cloud Palace, causing the Jin Clan to be equally stunned, many people were dumbfounded by the news. The Jin Clan''s experts withdrawing was a show of their attitude to force the school to accede to their request. However, they did not actually want to break off relations.


    Chief Chen had done so nonetheless, breaking off all relations with the Nine Cloud Palace and cutting off the Jin Clan''s way out.


    When Jin Chengfeng heard the news, he flew into a frenzy. How dare Chen Yuan be so decisive, he thought.


    When Jin Yunxiao heard the news, he was scared out of his wits. He naturally understood how grave the matter was, but he had absolutely not expected that his actions would have such serious repercussions.


    The entire Divine Sky City was in a huge uproar over Chen Yuan''s orders!

 498 Overwhelming the Nine Cloud Palace

    Lu Wang led his people to the Nine Cloud Place, with the ones at Starry School speculating if Nine Cloud Palace would hand over their people.


    Outside the trial court, Chen Yuan said, "Assemble all mighty ones who are available, and stand by outside Starry Temple."


    "Yes, sir." Everyone nodded, knowing well that big trouble had made it to their doorstep. Seems like the chief thought that even if Lu Wang was to head there himself, Nine Cloud Palace would still refuse to hand over the people.


    They knew well of Nine Cloud Palace Lord Jin Chengfeng''s temperament. With the Starry School breaking up with Nine Cloud Palace and ordering Lu Wang to claim their people, the entire issue had become the talk of Divine Sky City. The possibility of Jin Chengfeng simply handing over who they demanded was close to nil. The Nine Cloud Palace would have lost all face otherwise. The act of the chief assembling mighty ones to stand by outside Starry temple was seen to be no less than an act to declare war on Nine Cloud Palace.


    "Shouldn''t you all head back and get prepared?" Chen Yuan turned around and asked Gu Hanshan.


    Ye Futian the Son was sent to Starry School with recommendations from West Mountain Dragon Clan and Gu Clan to be conferred the Son. With Starry School guarding Ye Futian''s Divine Path, there was simply no way the aforementioned two clans would have been able to stay out of the conflict.


    "The assassination attempt had Yunxi severely injured, and that is naturally something I cannot ignore. I''ll go get ready," Gu Hanshan replied.


    "I will gather people and head there as well," Madame Long added before leaving.


    "Get back to Starry Temple. Ye Futian, head back and wait for further news," Chen Yuan said.


    "Yes, sir," Ye Futian nodded. The group left the trial court one by one.


    Chen Yuan went back to Starry Temple and stood outside. Several silhouettes appeared and gathered around him; all of them important figures of Starry School.


    Elder Nie walked to Chen Yuan''s side and asked, "Why are you here, sir?" He knew well of the implications of what took place today: the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School had been up to no good. With the power of Starry School diminished, further developments of things from here on out would turn unpredictable, should Starry School choose to wage a war against Nine Cloud Palace.


    Chen Yuan lifted his head and looked afar, and spoke slowly with misty eyes, "Since the days of the saints, the divine school split into three schools. Seven clans immersed themselves within. For countless years, all three schools never achieved anything glorious. The eastern regions of the Barren State might have conferred sacred land status, but one look at the entire vast lands of Barren State, one couldn''t help but realize the three schools were nothing in comparison. My student, Long Yitian, was a glorious figure himself once, and yet he too perished on the Divine Path.


    "There have been many proud ones since ancient times. Every headmaster, including my own mentor himself, yearned for the Divine Path, and all failed to attain it. I''m aware that my talents are limited, and the Divine Path is something I couldn''t even dream of. Just how many Holy Roads will there be in a place like the Barren State?"


    Chen Yuan''s tone turned solemn and he continued, "Now, the heavens have bestowed a sacred one right before my eyes, one who carried the heritage of the Sacred Path. This is an opportunity, one that had not been here for years. How could I possibly give it up? My own wish to witness the Divine Path aside, in the school''s perspective, the birth of a saint would create yet another Holy Road. When that happens, the top figures all over the Barren State will all flood the Holy Zhi Palace, and they will also study at Starry School. When all that came to be, all three schools will become one again, marking a return to the glorious days of the ancient saints. Do you not wish to witness such grand events taking place yourself?"


    "We remained behind at the school for cultivation and never went to create our own clan forces. We remain here to teach the people of the world and to seek our own path. It is only natural for us to wish to witness the Divine Path." Elder Nie nodded. There was no one who did not yearn to witness the fleeting Divine Path. It was just that it all just seemed too far away.


    "If one were to witness the Path in the morning, one will have passed on contented in the evening." Chen Yuan smiled. "If I was able to bear witness to the birth of the Divine Path in this very Starry School, I will have had no regrets in this life."


    "Let us hope that it will come to be. It is near impossible to bear witness of the Divine Path after all." A bitter smile was seen on Elder Nie''s face, "The Divine Path aside, one who was capable of being considered a sage, was naturally one exalted above mere mortals in the state of mind and perceptivity. Such a figure has a long way ahead of him."


    "The road is long and one''s study reaches far. We, who have been in the study of the arts, would not have bothered with that bit of time. The Jin Clan never said it out loud, but there has been a fissure between the later generations and the Son for ages. Furthermore, Ye Futian was sent into the school by the Dragon Clan, and it would only be a matter of time before change happened. They would not have simply chosen to bear witness to Ye Futian''s growth, and the break up with Nine Cloud Palace was bound to happen sooner or later. The storm had simply come early." Chen Yuan smiled with a clear state of mind.


    "Seems like you have had everything thought out, headmaster." Elder Nie did not say much. More and more elders of the Starry School made it to where they were, and all heard the conversation between the two of them. It was apparent that Chen Yuan had meant for them to hear all that.


    Lu Wang brought his men back after a while, without sight of Jin Yunxiao. It appeared that Nine Cloud Palace had refused Starry School''s request once again.


    "It is time to depart." Chen Yuan said little. He simply led his men heading for Nine Cloud Palace.


    ��


    Nine Cloud Palace, imposing and luxurious, exuding a peerless flair of extravagance.


    At the peak of Nine Cloud Palace, Jin Chengfeng wore a solemn expression, and the mighty ones of the Jin clan assembled at golden Cloud ancient temple. Each and every one of them wore solemn expressions themselves.


    "My lord, the Starry School, the Gu Clan and the West Mountain Dragon Clan have all brought their men heading for Nine Cloud Palace," someone bowed and reported to Jin Chengfeng, who was sitting at the golden temple.


    "Chen Yuan. How dare you indeed." Jin Chengfeng had golden, sharp eyes, which seemed to be capable of piercing the void and gazing at something far away.


    Between the Jin clan and Ye Futian, Chen Yuan had unexpectedly chosen to side with the boy, a young one in the Arcane Plane. He had not wanted to have anything to do with Ye Futian; he had simply wanted Chen Yuan to leave all that behind. He had always had an arrogant, remarkably extravagant temperament, and it was only natural for him to not hand over Jin Yunxiao and bear such insult. As such, threatened Chen Yuan with force. He had not expected in the least that Chen Yuan would have made one such insane decision.


    "Has Chen Yuan lost his damn mind?" an elder shouted in rage. While Jin Yunxiao had participated in the attempt, it was not him who set up the assassination attempt. He had simply used Yunyue Business Alliance for a bit. They had never thought Chen Yuan would dare cause such a fuss over something like that.


    "The time to press on the case has passed. It is now time to think about what to do with the situation at hand," someone among them added calmly.


    With the Starry School allied with the Gu clan and the Dragon clan and coming for them, their position as the great Nine Cloud Palace would have been able to do little to avoid the conflict. The fight that was about to happen seemed inevitable.


    Many turned silent. It was apparent that Nine Cloud Palace as a whole had not prepared for war. Even if they were to fight, there was no doubt that they would end up being on the losing side.


    They had forced Chen Yuan''s hand before, and now, it was Chen Yuan who was threatening them.


    Whose mind would prove more adamant?


    Winds howled and clouds stirred from afar. A row of mighty ones appeared, all of whom eyeing the extravagant, golden Nine Cloud Palace. The men of the Starry School had arrived.


    The earth-shaking howl of dragons was heard soon after, marking the entrance of the mighty ones from West Mountain Dragon clan. Mighty ones of the Gu clan appeared soon on the other side. An imposing force consisted of men from three sides, loomed over Nine Cloud Palace. It was akin to troops gathering outside the gates of an enemy fort.


    Jin Chengfeng stood up and headed out on a golden cloud. Jin Ze, a former student of Starry School, who had led students to leave the school, stood by his side.


    "Are you all here, asking for a fight?" Jin Chengfeng said as he swept his gaze at the opposing forces.


    "Jin Chengfeng, Jin Yunxiao was a student of Starry School as well. He had participated in the assassination attempt of the Son, and yet, you hid him and refused to hand him over. My daughter, Gun Yunxi, almost lost her life in that attempt. Do you still refuse to hand him over?" Gu Hanshan stood at one side, emanating a condescending air. He was, after all, the head of the Gu Clan.


    "Chen Yuan, what do you propose to do with Jin Yunxiao?" Jin Chengfeng asked.


    "For his crime of attempting murder of the Son, death," Chen Yuan replied.


    "Death, huh. The Jin Clan of the Nine Cloud Palace has done countless things for the sake of Starry School for all these years. Yet you disregarded the Jin clan with just one line all the same. Chen Yuan, you are something indeed." Jin Chengfeng''s words seemed to have been laced with razors.


    "If something like that hadn''t happened, or rather, Jin Ze had led people of the Jin Clan to simply leave after what had happened. Worse still, they take many who are not bearing the surname Jin, what would you make of that? Are they students of Starry School, or are they disciples of Nine Cloud Palace? Is the Jin Clan doing things for the sake of Starry School, or for the sake of the Jin Clan?"


    Chen Yuan looked at Jin Chengfeng and replied, "We are here today for two reasons. We are here first for Jin Yunxiao. And then, those who are not of the surname ''Jin''. I would not pursue the matter of members of the Jin Clan returning to Nine Cloud Palace. But those who do not bear the surname Jin, they have enjoyed using the resources of the school, yet followed members of the Jin Clan to serve Nine Cloud Palace. What do they think the school is? How is this any different from betraying the school? As such, as for any student who does not bear the surname ''Jin'' and left the school for Nine Cloud Palace, I shall bring them back to the school to be dealt with at a later date."


    The Starry School students who had left the school to follow the Jin Clan felt shivers go down their spines as soon as Chen Yuan finished speaking, trembling where they stood.


    Chen Yuan, the headmaster of Starry School, had never bothered himself with the affairs of the school. As the school was a place for cultivation, the school did not get involved with the future undertakings of their students and had never forced any student to stay. That was the very reason they followed the Jin Clan to Nine Cloud Palace. They had not expected the headmaster to be so forceful with the matter at hand.


    "Chen Yuan." Jin Chengfeng''s tone was as cold as ice.


    "The disciples that you have sent to be nurtured by Starry School are now being used to fight against Starry School. Do you think I will simply let that slide?" Chen Yuan spoke in a calm tone, "Hand over the one responsible, or we shall resort to violence."


    Starlight shone above Nine Cloud Palace as soon as Chen Yuan finished, having seemingly thrown them into a starry world. Nine Cloud Palace, which bathed in the light of the sun, seemed to be encased in the night for a split second. Such was the power of the sages. One thought was all that it took to change the skies, summoning abnormal phenomenon of the cosmos.


    The entire Nine Cloud Palace felt a strong pressure heaving on their shoulders at the very split second the starry sky appeared. There was an incredibly terrifying gravity in the air, bearing down on their bodies, making it difficult for anyone to move. Those who were of weaker cultivation felt it impossible to even make one step forward.


    Jin Chengfeng leaped into the sky. An overwhelmingly huge shadow of the divine bird appeared, which materialized into the Roc shortly after, cutting down the night and spraying golden brilliance all over the place, covering the entire Nine Cloud Palace.


    Infinite golden brilliance emanated through the body of the divine bird. The flowing light seemed to be deceivingly sharp, cutting the gravitational space to shreds. Two god-like figures seemed to be going at each other''s throats between heaven and earth.


    "Jin Chengfeng, are you trying to destroy Nine Cloud Palace?" Gu Hanshan asked as he took a step forward. Men of Nine Cloud Palace all had had a dreaded look on their face. The Starry School alone proved adequate to shake Nine Cloud Palace. With mighty ones from renowned clans��the Gu Clan and the Dragon Clan��thrown into the fray, the most lavish place in the entire Divine Sky City would have been razed if they were to actually fight.


    People far away all had their eyes locked onto the abnormal astronomical phenomenon taking place, and all were terrified to the very core of their being.


    Are the Starry School and Nine Cloud Palace really going to fight each other?


    Of course, there were also people of other clans who were students of the school among the crowd, and they were smirking at the development. They wished to see both sides actually going at each others'' throats, as they would have left both sides suffering heavy losses!

 499 The Wolf with the Winning Game

    Immense pressure encased the vast space right before the Nine Cloud Palace. Jin Chengfeng glared at the silhouette before him with cold eyes. It was more than his personal temperament that had led to the event taking place at the moment. He was, after all, the head of his clan, and it was a given that such a figure would have never relied solely on his personal preferences when making decisions.


    If it hadn''t had been for other situations, sacrificing one of his grandchildren was not a decision he would have been incapable of making. However, what was taking place before them all was not something that could be resolved with just the sacrifice of one person.


    Jin Chengfeng knew well of Chen Yuan as a person. The school and the clan shared a close relationship for ages, and the influence of the clan had long seeped into the school. Chen Yuan, however, had always wished for the school to be a place of purity, wanting nothing to do with the power games of the clans and be embroiled in their respective agendas. The era of Long Yitian had seen the man reigning over Divine Sky City, and things have never been as glorious. In Chen Yuan''s perspective, however, it was a great regret that Long Yitian was of the surname Long, a member of the Dragon clan, instead of a figure of a pure lineage of the school.


    Ye Futian was different. He was of the surname ''Ye''. The man was young but nonetheless capable of bringing down the martial arts battlefield, accomplishing what Long Yitian had never been capable of doing. He was also the Son conferred through a ceremony of the highest honor in the Starry School. Chen Yuan had wanted to make a saint, and Ye Futian had not let him down, thus resulting in Chen Yuan having even higher expectations of the young man.


    Under such a majestic background, should Ye Futian come to be a force to be reckoned with someday, the influence of the clans with the school would definitely be diminished by the ones siding with the school. Given that both the Dragon Clan and the Gu Clan supported Ye Futian, events resulting from such a turn of events on them would have been minimal. There was no doubt, however, that the school would be rid of the Jin Clan.


    While Jin Yunxiao never informed his clan of what he did, if the clan had actually intended to find out about what happened, they would definitely have not been kept in the dark. A warning would have been more than enough to prevent all that from happening. Yet the Jin clan kept to themselves, and that was akin to giving tacit permission to letting the events before to unfold.


    Jin Chengfeng had ordered Jin Yunxiao to be taken into custody as soon as they found out what he did, and had also ordered the members of Jin Clan within the school to leave after the school found out what had happened. Other than to test how Chen Yuan would have reacted to such things, it was also to save whatever face the clan had left within the school.


    Mass exodus right there and then would have been a wiser choice than to have their influence slowly encroached in the future. If Chen Yuan had chosen to take a step back, there would have been something else he could have done. Yet Chen Yuan proved more insistent and aggressive than he had anticipated.


    "Chen Yuan, are you sure you want to take things this far?" Jin Chengfeng''s eyes were razor-sharp. He was sure that Chen Yuan was aware of the dire consequences that would follow, even if the headmaster was to win this battle today.


    "Indeed." Chen Yuan nodded.


    "Bring Jin Yunxiao here," Jin Chengfeng said. Most people who were present were shocked. Jin Chengfeng, the head of Jin Clan, a figure who had insisted on breaking up with Starry School, instead of losing face, had finally given in instead?


    Such a turn of events was hardly surprising. If the Jin Clan was to go to war with Starry School allied with two other clans, Nine Cloud Palace would have suffered a humiliating defeat. Paying one such price just to protect Jin Yunxiao alone, was hardly worth it. However, given Jin Chengfeng''s arrogant temperament and how Chen Yuan had literally cornered Nine Cloud Palace, it was only a matter of time before Nine Cloud Palace sought revenge against the school.


    Jin Yunxiao was brought before them soon. He shivered all over from fear, looking at Jin Chengfeng and shouted, "Grandfather!" If he was to be handed over to the school, there would have been no way he would have made it out of the predicament alive. Moreover, other than the school, there was also the Gu Clan to contend with. Given how Gu Yunxi suffered severe injuries for what happened, he would have suffered consequences just as severe even if his life was spared. His fate would have taken a turn for the worse regardless.


    Jin Chengfeng did not spare even one glance for Jin Yunxiao, letting the young man scream his lungs out. The head of the clan had made his decision and intended to stick with it.


    Jin Yunxiao was brought before Chen Yuan. Members of Jin Clan retreated after handing him over and looked at Chen Yuan.


    Jin Yunxiao was frightened to the core of his being, begging as he trembled, "Have mercy, headmaster. I didn''t mean anything bad. Even if I was out of the picture, they would have wanted their revenge all the same. I was simply informing them beforehand." All traces of the young man''s pompous and domineering air vanished without a trace. His words shook as they came out of his mouth, and there was nothing but fear in his eyes.


    "I said it before: pay your respect to the Son as you would me. Yet as a student of the school, you participated in the attempt to do the Son harm. Ye Futian, the Son, and Gu Yunxi almost lost their lives because of you. Death would be a fitting sentence." Chen Yuan spoke coldly. "Lu Wang, get on with the execution." He waved his hand and sent the young man over to Lu Wang as soon as he finished talking.


    "Yes, sir." Lu Wang glanced at Jin Yunxiao.


    "No��" Jin Yunxiao''s face turned pale as Lu Wang extended his palm, enveloping the young man soon to be executed in an immense sense of dread. Jin Yunxiao felt himself suffocating. Golden lights exploded from his body in an attempt to resist his end. His eyes filled with extreme defiance. He was a member of the Nine Cloud Palace, a proud member of the Jin clan. Jin Yunxiao detested Ye Futian, seeing him as little more than vermin. He had even almost killed Ye Futian right there and then in the martial arts battlefield with just one swing of the sword. Yet, he was now sentenced to death for nothing else other than participating in the assassination attempt on that vermin.


    This is ridiculous. Who does he think he is? A will of unparalleled strength surged in his mind. He felt a strong tremor in his body, and he felt himself losing consciousness fast. He dropped to the ground with defiance in his mind.


    A proud son of Nine Cloud Palace, a young man of immense talent studying in the Starry School, perished just like that. The world was ephemeral, and life was filled with regrets.


    "Gu Hanshan, are you satisfied now?" Jin Chengfeng asked Gu Hanshan instead of addressing Chen Yuan.


    "He deserved nothing less," Gu Hanshan answered coldly.


    "Yes, indeed. He is now dead. People of Gu Clan and Dragon Clan, your affairs here are done," Jin Chengfeng said with an equally cold attitude. "As for the those who followed the members of Jin Clan here, they came of their own will to Nine Cloud Palace. If I were to simply hand them over, there would have been no place left for Nine Cloud Palace in Divine Sky City. Chen Yuan, if you insist on waging a war against us, then do it."


    The eyes of those who left the school with Jin Clan members lit up, and their fears diminished somewhat. The master of Nine Cloud Palace had not forsaken them after all. Doing so would have been more detestable than just handing over Jin Yunxiao after all.


    Jin Yunxiao was a criminal who attempted to assassinate others. Yet all the others who left the school were simply followers. If Nine Cloud Palace simply handed them over, no one would dare work for Nine Cloud Palace anymore from there on out.


    Everyone understood what was at stake. It seemed that Jin Chengfeng had yielded to the first condition, which was to hand over Jin Yunxiao. Yet, the second condition was something that could not have been fulfilled no matter what, even if it meant going to war. Furthermore, doing so robbed both opposing clans of their reason to get involved, as they have had no reason to get involved in the first place.


    Chen Yuan glared at Jin Chengfeng, seeing the head of Jin Clan burning with intentions to fight.


    ...


    All students who stayed in the school far away from Nine Cloud Palace awaited the news anxiously. Ye Futian was among those who stayed back in the school. Those who headed out that day were figures of Sage level. If he had headed out with them, he would have simply made himself a target for further extortion.


    Scorching Intent was sensed right above the school''s compound, as if being dominated by a powerful force. The sun seemed to look terrifying, as if it would burn everything under it to ashes. Under the burning sun and the vast sky, silhouettes stepped on thin air as they made to the area above Starry School. Those who witnessed the silhouettes were shaken to their core. The beings were not a mighty one from Starry School. Who were they?


    These people emanated a domineering bearing of Sage level. They stood where they were, and seemed to have melded with their environment, encasing Starry School with the might of the sun.


    Many realized that something big was about to happen.


    A few leaped from within the school. One among them asked, "May I know what is your business here with the school?"


    "Men from Blazing Sun School." Some recognized these uninvited figures. Having mighty ones from Blazing Sun School appearing at Starry School during such a time meant something good.


    They really knew when to show up.


    The spiritual energies emanated from the few Sage level figures encompassed heaven and earth, sweeping the compound of the school. They said nothing, but everyone beneath felt themselves being swept up by some sort of spiritual energy. They soon found out where it was coming from, and made their way in that direction. Their eyes peered in the same direction.


    Within the Starry School''s Temple of the Son, Ye Futian felt the wave of spiritual energy washing over him. He lifted his head, having a bad feeling inside after sensing what the mighty ones from afar were up to.


    "Ye Futian," a voice from the void beckoned him at the moment. Everyone felt their hearts about to pop out of their chests, knowing who these people came for.


    Seeing their eyes locked onto him, Ye Futian knew that there was no way he would have been able to simply back out of this. He leaped into the air swiftly, gazed at the guests and smiled. "Greetings to you all, seniors. I wonder what business you have with a junior such as myself?"


    "We are from the Blazing Sun School. When the students of all three schools headed to the Evil Dragon Zone years ago, Shang Yunfeng, a student of our school was killed. We now realized that it was your doing. We need to hear what you have to say for yourself, so come with us," one of the Blazing Sun School guests said.


    "Shang Yunfeng intended to kill me back then. I merely acted out of self-defense," Ye Futian answered. "If you need to hear me out, shall we discuss the matter further when the headmaster return?"


    He felt a chill in his mind. The Blazing Sun School had never bother speaking about the death of Shang Yunfeng before. Furthermore, it was entirely normal for a student of a school to die while out on their pilgrimage. It was obvious that these people were up to no good, judging by how they brought up such a matter at this time.


    It was apparent that Blazing Sun School had simply taken the advantage of Starry School''s mighty ones going out to settle scores with the Jin Clan to take whom they deemed responsible. There was no escape for Ye Futian.


    Dire expressions appeared on both Yu Sheng''s and Gu Yunxi''s faces hearing the words of the mighty ones from Blazing Sun School. They were just taking advantage of the school''s predicament, nothing else.


    "Since we have made it here all the way, please just come with us. When Headmaster Chen returns, he can go to Blazing Sun School," one of the guests said coldly.


    Several figures came to stand with Ye Futian, and said to the void, "Coming here at such at such a time to take him away, you Blazing Sun School a**holes are something indeed!"


    Intense heat from the sun washed onto the ground below. The mighty ones from Blazing Sun School fanned out and made it onto the ground. One of them was immensely powerful, and they seemed like someone important from Blazing Sun School. They simply looked at Ye Futian and said, "Come with us."


    Ye Futian had been conferred the title of the Son of Starry School, and Chen Yuan intended to guard him on his Divine Path. If Chen Yuan had been there, asking to take someone of theirs away would have been seen as an act to declare war. Blazing Sun School had no intention of going to war with Starry School.


    With Chen Yuan leading the mighty ones heading for Nine Cloud Palace, the timing proved convenient for them to spirit Ye Futian away. The young man needed to explain himself over what had happened at the martial arts battlefield. It was simply impossible for them to sit by and do nothing while Starry School went on to nurture a saint!

 500 Shooting Off Ones Mouth

    The people of Starry School all had their eyes fixed on the figures emerging from the void. Two sages that stood guard by Ye Futian''s side quipped, "So it seems like Yang Ding of the Blazing Sun School has resorted to such methods?"


    Yang Ding was the headmaster of the Blazing Sun School.


    Although they were still figures of Sage level staying behind the school to hold down the fort while mighty ones of Starry School went bargaining with Nine Cloud Palace, the intruders from Blazing Sun School made it clear that they would leave with what they came for, and they came prepared.


    "Ye Futian of Starry School killed a student of Blazing Sun School. There should be no problem of us taking him into custody. If all of you have no intention to cooperate, we will be forced to make a statement," one of the intruders said.


    "I will leave with you," Ye Futian said, looking calm as he did so. If Blazing Sun School wanted to take him away, there was simply no way that they would leave empty-handed. He had to leave with them even if he did not want to. There was no use fighting in right there and then as there was no stopping these intruders.


    "No." Yu Sheng clenched his fists, looking at the figure in the void with angry eyes.


    "Just wait for me here," Ye Futian lowered his voice and said. He leaped into the void as soon as he was done.


    The intruders from Blazing Sun School left with him without causing any further ruckus, seeing as how he was willing to cooperate.


    Many within Starry School looked up at the void, seeing the intruders from Blazing Sun School as a bunch of bullies.


    Blazing Sun School, like Starry School, was one of the three great schools in the Divine Sky City. It was built on the eastside of the city close to the mountains. The entire school seemed to emanate a Scorching Intent. Blazing Sun School was most abundant in fire elemental Spiritual Qi. It was like the place had actually inherited the fires of the sun.


    Ye Futian was brought straight to a tall temple within Blazing Sun School. The rays of the sun shone on the old temple, making it seemed like the entire place was surrounded by fire. A figure was seen sitting on a sun chair in front of the temple��the headmaster of Blazing Sun School, Yang Ding. Mighty ones were seen at his flank, and both were important figures of the school.


    "Greetings to you, seniors," Ye Futian said as he bowed.


    "Ye Futian, you killed Shang Yunfeng, a student of Blazing Sun School. What do you propose we do with you?" someone from the side asked.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes to look at the one who asked, then answered, "When misfortune befalls any students of the three great schools out on pilgrimage, would any of the schools make such a fuss?"


    "We naturally wouldn''t, but you are the Son of Starry School. Thus we can''t just treat this like some mishap."


    "Shang Yunfeng wasn''t strong enough to keep himself alive, and he ended up dead by my hands when out training and fighting for resources. If things like that needed figures like headmasters to get involved, the three schools would be at each other''s throats all the time. Why do you think you need to ask about this? Please just be forthright with your intentions of bringing me here," Ye Futian said.


    Both sides were clear that the death of Shang Yunfeng was but an excuse to get Ye Futian to Blazing Sun School.


    "The martial arts battlefield was the sacred ground of the three great schools, run under the authority of the three great schools. How were you able to bring down the place? What did you find in the Divine Palace of the martial arts battlefield?" Yang Ding''s eyes fell onto Ye Futian, and he asked without bothering for context.


    The very reason why Chen Yuan would confer the title of the Son onto Ye Futian and go to lengths to protect him, even waging a war against Nine Cloud Palace, was all because of what took place in the martial arts battlefield. It was only natural for him to want to find out what happened.


    "I dare not speak lightly on the matter." Ye Futian bowed.


    "You think you are allowed to keep it to yourself?" Yang Ding shot back in a very direct manner, causing Ye Futian to wear a bitter smile on his face.


    "If my words proved offensive to any of you, my seniors, please do forgive me." Ye Futian cupped his hands slightly. "Madame Long looked for me and told me someone was investigating me after the incident on the martial arts battlefield. I knew I wasn''t able to keep things under wraps, and the truth would have been exposed. I wanted to bail, yet she gave me a choice after finding out the truth. She claimed the sages of the three schools were all important figures of impressive bearings and would have had immense tolerance for faults of others. As her clan, the West Mountain Dragon Clan, shares a very good working relationship with Starry School, she recommended me to Headmaster Chen."


    Those who were present heard his words seriously and thought his cunning to be something to be reckoned with. He had, after all, showered immense praise on the sages of all three schools, and they could not help but wonder if it was simply a ploy to make it difficult for them to move against him? Regardless, the sage level figures were immensely interested as to what kind of surreal encounters happened to him.


    "I went through one obstacle after another in the martial arts battlefield, and finally stepped foot onto the ninth floor, taking out many martial arts spirits as I went. When I made it to the divine temple, I saw the founding saint of the three schools." Ye Futian''s tone turned serious, and everyone who heard him wore exceptionally solemn expressions. They had not expected the Son to have such heaven-shaking luck to be able to meet the ancient saint.


    "The saints left an undying will which was sealed within the battlefield. The very reason he left a divine path was to find one who would inherit his will. He bestowed his lineage to me after hearing about the schools of today, and ordered me to walk the divine path and leave the lineage behind for the three schools. Should it be possible, I was also to reunite the three schools as one, to serve as the master of all three schools, and reclaim the glory of day''s past."


    Ye Futian elaborated as he fixed his eyes on Yang Ding. Everyone present was shaken to the core of their being. Some even stood up to gaze at Ye Futian.


    The saint passed down his lineage to him, Ye Futian? And he made him the master of all three schools?


    Wasn''t that the same as having all of them call him ''master''?


    "That is ridiculous," someone retorted in a cold manner, suspecting that Ye Futian was deliberately bluffing.


    "I dare not lie to all of you." Ye Futian continued, "If I hadn''t acquired the recommendation from Madame Long, I would not dare step foot into Starry School. If what I just said was a lie, Headmaster Chen would not have conferred me the title of the Son and held a grand ceremony to do so. I''m certain all seniors here realize that the Son was a hallowed disciple of the Divine Path, a student of the ancient Saint."


    Everyone''s eyes lit up, and they began to find what Ye Futian said to be true. The young man had calm eyes, looked at ease, not perturbed in the slightest as he spoke.


    "What kind of lineage are we talking about here?" Yang Ding asked. Ye Futian had claimed that if he were to walk the Divine Path, he would leave his lineage behind to the three schools.


    "Please see for yourselves," Ye Futian answered. His surroundings shone with intense brilliance as he finished speaking as if he was showered in divine light. Beams of light lit up and illuminated the entire ancient temple. Three beams of divine light appeared and celestial bodies hung up high above their heads. The light of the saint rained down upon them. All eyes were dazzled as they fixed their gaze on Ye Futian.


    Three beams of divine light and the silhouette of the saint was shown. The three beams represented the sun, the moon, and the stars respectively, which in turn represented the three schools of today.


    "The three divine lights were left behind by the founding saint of the three schools himself, and he ordered me to inherit the three schools. When I walk the Divine Path, I will inherit the three lineages of the contemporary Divine Path. If I become a saint in the future, there will be no need for me to leave the three divine lights behind. I will simply follow the words of the saint and pass them down to the three schools respectively. As to whether the three schools would be reunited as one, I will leave that to all of you; I will not force my opinion on anyone.


    "However, as I was bestowed with the task by the ancient saint, it is only natural for me to do my best and have all three lineages represented by the three divine lights left behind in Divine Sky City," Ye Futian said plainly as if he was telling the truth.


    In actuality, while he did inherit the three beams of divine light, there were no words left behind by the saint. That part was all made-up: leaving behind the lineages in the three schools and all. The part where he was to be made the master of the schools was especially so.


    However, it was apparent that Blazing Sun School had taken out of jealousy for Starry School taking him, and did not want to see him grow. It was only natural for him to tell them that despite his status as the Son of Starry School, he was noted by the saint to belong to all three schools, and he would also take care of Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School equally as well.


    Doing so would not only alleviate the tensions and grievances between the schools but would also make it seem like they were interconnected.


    Everyone present pondered what they had just heard. While Ye Futian had pretty much bluffed his way through the whole ordeal, what happened at the Divine Palace�� the three beams of divine light and his status as the Son conferred by Chen Yuan himself��made it all seem irrefutably sound. It was as if every word he spoke was the truth and nothing else.


    "If that was the case, why did you not make it clear before? On the day of Conferring of the Son, you rampaged and injured students from both Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School," Yang Ding said, refusing to simply buy Ye Futian''s story at face value.


    "Even if I had made myself clear about such things, I had no certainty of how everyone would have dealt with me. It was a grave matter concerning the lineage of the Divine Path. I dared not simply utter such things everywhere I went. If I had not been brought here today, I would have chosen to wait until I was capable enough to ensure my own safety before making such statements." Ye Futian smiled bitterly before continuing, "As to what happened that day, it was a test Headmaster Chen gave me to measure my talents. If I did not display talent strong enough to overwhelm all present, there would not have been a day where I was conferred the Son of Starry School, as I was certain that I would have simply ended up dead at the hands of the students of all three schools."


    Yang Ding nodded, finding no fault in the words of Ye Futian.


    "Sir, the Divine Lights marked the lineage of the Saint. Ye Futian is of Arcana Plane, and having someone in such a plane being enlightened in the will of the Saint is an utter waste. If the one to be enlightened in the will of the Saint was you instead, sir, the breakthroughs achieved would have been unimaginable," someone suggested.


    Ye Futian''s eyes jumped. It was the lineage of the Saint after all, and that meant it was something very tempting. Not many would have behaved like Headmaster Chen regarding something like that. Furthermore, what happened right at that moment was different from the day when he met Headmaster Chen. He was brought before the headmaster by recommendations from Madame Long and the Gu Clan. Today, he was instead brought there by force, and it was only natural for them to be on guard.


    "The three Divine Lights were meant to be passed down to three respective schools by the saint. I was simply a caretaker for the moment. If you, sir, wish to be enlightened in the Divine Light of the Sun, it would be natural for me to keep it for you at the moment. However, the divine light is directly concerned with the lineage of the Divine Path. When you are done being enlightened with it, may I ask that you hand it back to me until the day I finally walk the Divine Path? Before it stays with Blazing Sun School permanently?" Ye Futian asked in a sensible manner.


    He would have handed it all the same if they tried to take it by force. It was a wiser choice to willingly hand it over himself. He was careful with his words, proposing that both parties getting enlightened together and mentioning the Divine Light of the Sun only, deflecting any suspicion they might have had of him.


    However, everyone present was aware of what Ye Futian was trying to pull, and they were able to see that he was a sensible one. He was also one who was careful enough with his words to avoid sounding deceitful in any way.


    "The saint has bestowed his lineage on you. Wouldn''t what you propose now be an affront to his will?" Yang Ding asked while looking at him.


    "I was simply proposing that we share this enlightenment together. How would that be an affront to anything? Besides, if it is convenient for you, I''m willing to reside within Blazing Sun School for the time being and study the intricacies with you. Your cultivation is strong and I would gain a lot studying under you. Wouldn''t that be wonderful?" Ye Futian said as he cupped his hands.


    "What if Chen Yuan shows up wanting to take you back?" someone asked.


    "I would then advise Headmaster Chen to return. Headmaster Chen knows of the lineage and will understand," Ye Futian said.


    "Well then, let''s have it your way." Yang Ding nodded. "I will train with you. Should you run into any problem, I would be there to guide you."


    Everyone present gazed at Ye Futian with dazzled eyes as they heard their headmaster''s words. What a cunning fellow indeed!

 501 A Sudden Deadly Attack

    Ye Futian had been forcefully taken to the Blazing Sun School, though he had not put up a fight. His cooperation made him seem sincere and genuine, and there was a chance that everything he had said about the inheritance was true. But the human heart was complicated, and it was implausible that Ye Futian would willingly give up the divine light.


    It was obvious that Ye Futian was aware of his circumstances and adapting to it in a bid to save his own life. Yang Ding, the college chief of the Blazing Sun School, could tell this as well. But in truth, he wasn''t intending to kill Ye Futian. Doing that would be as good as declaring war.


    "Let me feel the divine light of the sun that the saint passed down." Yang Ding''s face was radiant as the sun, and a hush fell over the place. All eyes were on Ye Futian.


    "Yes, senior," Ye Futian nodded, and a streak of the sun''s dazzling divine light was sent towards Yang Ding.


    "I have already severed my ties to this divine light, you may��" The words had barely left Ye Futian''s mouth before Yang Ding had already integrated his own will into the divine light. The dazzling radiance of the sun shone above him, seeming to bathe him in the very light of the saint himself. Furthermore, with Yang Ding''s immense will, the divine light shone even brighter than it had with Ye Futian. The blazing rays of the sun that were shining down from above were like divine flames.


    "The Divine Path," Yang Ding declared, his gaze sharp. He then retracted his will from the divine light. Smiling at Ye Futian, he said, "You''ll train with me from now on."


    Yang Ding did not force Ye Futian to give up the other two streaks of divine light he had. Those did not belong to the Blazing Sun School. He knew very well that if he were to take them by force, the other two schools would not leave it at that.


    "Yang Ding," a frosty voice called out from the sky above the Blazing Sun School. Following after, a line of figures descended from the misty sky. At the front of the party was Chen Yuan.


    They had been confronting those from the Nine Cloud Palace when they had gotten the news. Upon hearing that Ye Futian had been taken away by the Blazing Sun School, they had abandoned the confrontation and rushed over immediately.


    Yang Ding looked towards the sky. The flames of the chair behind him shone brighter than ever. He said calmly, "Chen Yuan, what brings you to the Blazing Sun School?"


    "Yang Ding, you''re the college chief of the Blazing Sun School. Don''t you feel that it''s beneath someone of your status to be taking advantage of the situation and bringing Ye Futian to your school?" Chen Yuan''s tone was chilly, and frightening energy pressed down from the sky as he spoke.


    "Chen Yuan, Ye Futian possesses the divine teachings of the saint of the Top Three Schools. What''s wrong with me inviting him over to experience the Divine Path left behind by the ancient saint?" Yang Ding gazed at the figure in the sky as he spoke.


    "Let him go," Chen Yuan demanded coldly.


    Yang Ding turned his gaze towards Ye Futian, and Ye Futian bowed in Chen Yuan''s direction as he said, "College Chief Chen, the Blazing Sun School really just invited me over to demonstrate the divine teachings of the ancient saint." He turned to bow at Yang Ding as well, "Senior, let me explain to the college chief."


    After he spoke, Ye Futian moved towards the sky. In that instant, all eyes were on him. Ye Futian had spoken pleasant words just now, but those were only niceties. Going up to Chen Yuan now would put him on a path of no return depending on what he did.


    "Stop." Mighty energy landed on Ye Futian. It was Sage Intent which could kill him in a heartbeat. Chen Yuan may have arrived here, but he dared not to make any hasty moves. This was also why he had not brought Ye Futian to the Nine Cloud Palace. If Jin Chengfeng were to begin attacking in a surge of savagery, things would get troublesome.


    Ye Futian stopped mid-air and chuckled. "What do you ask of me, senior?"


    Many gazes turned towards Yang Ding, as though waiting for him to indicate something.


    Before capturing Ye Futian, the Blazing Sun School''s aim was the divine teachings that Ye Futian had obtained in the martial arts battlefield. Ye Futian had been very cooperative in handing it over, all the while stalling for time. By the time Chen Yuan arrived, the Blazing Sun School had yet to decide what they were going to do with Ye Futian. Ye Futian had promised to stay here and train, but looking at things now, it didn''t seem like things were going to turn out that way.


    If they were to let Ye Futian go, he would not pose a threat to the Blazing Sun School for now. This was because they had already taken away one of the divine teachings he possessed. But Ye Futian would still be like a ticking time bomb to them.


    The atmosphere turned tense almost immediately. The disciples of the Blazing Sun School lifted their heads to look at the sight before them. They felt the immense pressure and tense atmosphere even from afar.


    "Yang Ding," Chen Yuan''s gaze landed on Yang Ding. An immense pressure emanated from the heavens and a starry dimension appeared in the sky. The skies above the Blazing Sun School turned dark as night.


    It was as if Chen Yuan would launch an attack immediately if Yang Ding were to do anything to Ye Futian.


    Yang Ding glanced at Ye Futian before laughing. "What are you doing, Chen Yuan? We were having a good chat. I''d like for him to stay at the Blazing Sun School and train with me, I could instruct him. But of course, all this is up to Ye Futian to decide himself."


    Chen Yuan''s expression relaxed a little. He had predicted that Yang Ding would not do anything to Ye Futian. His aim was probably to obtain the divine teachings, so he would not be as bold as to just kill Ye Futian just yet.


    Ye Futian had made the same judgment as Chen Yuan, which was why he had resorted to remaining civil and saying niceties. He had done his best to avoid a verbal conflict and create an illusion of harmony. Both parties were aware of each other''s underlying intentions, but in this situation, Yang Ding had a way out without embarrassing himself.


    At this moment, Ye Futian''s top priority was to get out of this place. Upon hearing Yang Ding''s words, Ye Futian mentally heaved a sigh of relief.


    "Futian, come here," Chen Yuan ordered. At the same time, a streak of energy headed straight for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian began to move forward. However, the instant he took a step, he suddenly felt an immense threat and his expression changed. Then, a frightening light of intent pierced through Ye Futian''s body like a sharp blade.


    A grunt was heard, then Ye Futian''s body shuddered in the sky before he felt a sharp blade rip through his insides, shredding his veins and breaking his bones. Ye Futian''s face turned deathly pale, and despair flooded his mind.


    He had been on guard the moment he was taken to the Blazing Sun School, saying niceties and trying to talk his way out of danger by lying. His only aim was to stall for time and make it out alive.


    While he had anticipated that the college chief of the Blazing Sun School would not kill him, he had not dared to relax. Even then, he had not expected that someone would launch a sudden attack on him all of a sudden in a bid to take his life.


    Chen Yuan''s expression changed. Darkness spread all across the sky and an immense pressure emanated from it. Everyone in the party he brought along with him wore incredibly chilly expressions as well. Madame Long and Gu Hanshan were shocked as well. They had not the Blazing Sun School to actually take action.


    Even people from the Blazing Sun School��Yang Ding the college chief and many other sages who were present��were taken aback as well. It was apparent that the current situation had occurred outside of their control.


    Chen Yuan clenched a fist in the sky. Since the other party had made a move, he had no more reservations left. In an instant, Ye Futian''s body was surrounded by the glow of starlight and was brought to Chen Yuan''s side in the sky.


    Ye Futian was pale as a sheet and in immense pain. His veins and bones seem to have all been destroyed, and he had sustained immense internal injuries.


    Chen Yuan''s expression was dark. In the starry night sky, countless meteorites appeared out of nowhere and hung over the Blazing Sun School. The disciples of the Blazing Sun School were stunned at the sight. Should those meteorites be sent plummeting down, it would surely be a disaster.


    "Chen Yuan," Yang Ding''s expression changed as well. Looking at the person who had attacked Ye Futian, he demanded, "Who told you to take action?"


    "Shang Yunfeng was a disciple of our school," the person coldly responded. "Is Ye Futian to be let off for killing a disciple of the Blazing Sun School just because he is the Son of the Starry School? He should pay for his crimes and be deposed of his cultivations." He then exhorted, "College chief, this child is crafty and talented. If we don''t get rid of him now, he''ll definitely cause us a lot of trouble in the future."


    Chen Yuan stuck out his palm at the direction of that person. In an instant, a frightening rumble sounded and a wind storm emerged from the broken earth, taking on the dazzling light of the stars. The endless wind storm rushed towards the person and surrounded him, and as Chen Yuan clenched his first, the person was buried within the meteorites with a loud crash, no longer able to move.


    They were both sages, but their exact planes were different, and the disparity in their abilities was great as well.


    "Chen Yuan, don''t be rash." Long Ding appeared before that person in an instant and lay a hand on him. Instantly, flames appeared and seeped into the meteorite formation. With a bang, the meteorites that covered the sage were burned to ashes, and the space was transformed into a flaming hell.


    A scary rumbling rang out and meteorites began to plummet towards the Blazing Sun School from the starry dimension like shooting stars.


    The Blazing Sun School was in chaos. Everyone was trying to escape, their faces deathly pale.


    This was crazy; an elder of their school had dared to launch a deadly attack on Ye Futian and triggered a battle of this immensity. This was all so crazy.


    The rumbling noise continued endlessly as the buildings of the Blazing Sun School were destroyed and turned into giant debris floating in the sky. The earth was cracking open as well at an incredible rate, with lines spreading across the ground. It was as if the entire world was going to be destroyed. It really seemed like the apocalypse.


    "Chen Yuan, the Top Three Schools may be in contention with each other, but all three schools share the same origins. You''ve gone mad!" Long Ding roared upon seeing the destruction before him. Chen Yuan was trained in the Starry Divine Path. It was based upon the earth-elemental power of the earth itself and could turn apocalyptically destructive in an instant. It had the power to turn the vast Blazing Sun School into a pile of rubble in no time.


    "So, you''re still aware that the Top Three Schools share the same origins." Chen Yuan''s face was contorted in anger. He had pinned great hopes upon Ye Futian, who had inherited the divine teachings. He could understand if the Blazing Sun School sought Ye Futian out for the divine teachings he possessed. But to make an attempt on Ye Futian''s life was unforgivable.


    Madame Long was taken aback by the scene of destruction before her eyes. College Chief Chen had not been moved to this level of anger in many years. It seemed that the peace in Divine Sky City was no more. She looked at the person who had attacked Ye Futian. This person probably had ulterior motives in provoking this fight.


    Indeed, there was someone behind this entire fiasco fanning the flames. Though Jin Yunxiao had carried out the assassination attempt, there was someone backing him who wanted the see the world burn. It seemed as though something larger was about to happen.


    "The Top Three Schools share the same origins," Yang Ding told Chen Yuan gravely. "Now that things have come to this and his cultivations have been destroyed, the Divine Path has lost its hope. He had taken the divine teachings of the Top Three Schools away from the martial arts battlefield after all. Take the divine light with the power of the stars with you and let this incident come to an end. If not, the consequences will be too much for you and me to bear."

 502 Recovery

    Yang Ding''s words only served to anger Chen Yuan further. It seemed as though an entire night sky was contained within his eyes. With an outstretched palm, the meteorite storm in the sky howled wildly.


    "Let this incident come to an end?" Chen Yuan''s voice was icy cold. "Then why did you not consider the consequences before making a move?"


    "You''ve really gone mad." Yang Ding let out a shout, and he leaped into the sky, his body emanating an endless fiery glow. His body was like a giant sun, incinerating everything that came into contact with his light. He rushed towards the attacking meteorites, intending to reduce the resulting damage and casualties as much as possible.


    The sages of the Blazing Sun School stood facing all directions, covering all sides of the school. They released their own energies in a bid to deflect College Chief Chen''s destructive attack.


    Chen Yuan took a step forward. Starlight dazzled endlessly around him, and he brought Ye Futian with him as he walked towards the sage who had attacked him.


    Around Chen Yuan, the sages cast protective spells all around. The pressure was so immense it was shocking. The expression of the sage Chen Yuan was approaching changed. He thought that Chen Yuan had gone stark mad.


    The earth shattered with a rumble as Chen Yuan walked, and the sky itself seemed to be brought down by the pressure. He shot out like a streak of starlight, and at the same time, a Divine Sun Furnace appeared behind Yang Ding, its flames headed straight for Chen Yuan.


    Chen Yuan was undeterred, and he continued advancing forward. The flames of the Divine Sun Furnace rained upon his body and clung to it, making the starlight even more dazzling.


    Flaming golden runes appeared from within the Divine Sun Furnace and shot towards Chen Yuan, as though to destroy him. But Chen Yuan did not stop. With a loud crash, the two collided into each other, and Yang Ding was sent flying.


    Chen Yuan specialized in the Divine Starry Path and possessed immense power. On the other hand, Yang Ding specialized in the flames of the sun. In close combat, it was natural that Yang Ding would lose out.


    But the flames had begun to seep into Chen Yuan''s body. His expression unchanging, Chen Yuan swung his palm at the sages below him from the sky. It was as though a large heavenly hand that could cover the skies bore down upon them. The sages were pressed down by the gravity of the stars. The ground caved in below them and swallowed them into the earth with a frightening rumble. Chen Yuan had the ability to directly control the power of the earth.


    With a loud bang, the large hand began to slam down. The sage that had attacked Ye Futian''s expression changed from shock to despair. Though he was a sage like the college chief of the Starry School, there was a disparity in their individual planes. He was far from a match for Chen Yuan. The sage was unable to handle the immense pressure that Chen Yuan was sending out, and his movements were restricted.


    "Chen Yuan!" Yang Ding shouted, but he was too late. The large hand slammed down with a loud crash and killed the sage immediately upon impact. A handprint hundreds of meters wide appeared on the ground, leaving a deep crater where it had landed. It was a magnificent sight. A figure lay within the handprint. He had been crushed flat.


    Yang Ding stopped to look at the dead body. His expression was ugly. People of the Sage plane were incredibly precious to the school. As such, Yang Ding was going to defend the errant sage even if he had disobeyed orders and attacked Ye Futian. Furthermore, that had been no ordinary sage. He was an outstanding sage of the Blazing Sun School. He could have grown even more powerful in the future and was in the running to be a prot��g�� of Yang Ding''s as a very young sage.


    The Blazing Sun School would not have let someone like him die. But Chen Yuan had ignored all consequences and crushed him to death in a fit of savage rage.


    Chen Yuan looked at Ye Futian. His injuries were incredibly severe and could invalidate him for life.


    "Let''s go," Chen Yuan ordered. He moved towards the sky, and his followers from the Starry School followed him as well, soaring into the sky in preparation to leave.


    Yang Ding glared at him in rage. How badly he wanted to battle right here right now. But this was his Blazing Sun School, and any battle he started now would only be a disaster upon his disciples. Even the short skirmish just now had been incredibly costly.


    Looking at the leaving figures, someone walked to Yang Ding and asked, "Chen Yuan has gone too far with his bullying. College chief, do we attack?"


    Yang Ding looked at the person, then glanced at the body of the fallen sage. They may have lost a sage, but they were indeed in the wrong here. Ye Futian had been gravely injured, and Chen Yuan was in a wild rage. Yang Ding was aware of the consequences of attacking the Starry School now. The resulting destruction would be indiscriminate, and two of the schools in Divine Sky City would probably become history.


    The disciples of the Blazing Sun School rose into the sky, quivering slightly. Below them, their once vast and magnificent school grounds had been reduced into a pile of rubble. The wreckage was painful to see. They had never thought that a battle of this level would break out within the Top Three Schools of Divine Sky City. This was definitely a disaster.


    Ye Futian was only a junior of the Arcana plane, but he was the reason behind the death of a sage and the destruction of the Blazing Sun School. An incident like this would have been completely unimaginable in the past.


    When Chen Yuan and his party arrived back in the Starry School, many powerful individuals gathered at the Son''s Palace. Ye Futian''s injuries were stabilized with the help of the best doctor available.


    At this moment, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen and Loulan Xue were outside the room. They were beside themselves with rage. The Blazing Sun School was one of the Top Three Schools and considered divine grounds for training in the eastern region of the Barren State. For them to have attacked a junior of the Arcana plane was unthinkable.


    "College Chief, how is he?" the group rushed to ask Chen Yuan upon seeing him exit the room.


    Chen Yuan''s expression was grim, and he did not speak. Madame Long, who was next to him, spoke up instead, "The attack was incredibly vicious, and Ye Futian''s powers were destroyed. It''ll be hard for him to recover."


    With a crack, something broke. Yu Sheng''s eyes turned red, as though blood would begin dripping from it. "I don''t believe it," he said. He then rushed into the room before Chen Yuan or anyone else could stop him.


    "This may not have been part of Yang Ding''s original plan. I don''t think he''ll be this audacious," Gu Hanshan speculated.


    "Perhaps," Chen Yuan replied, "but it doesn''t matter whether or not this was his original intention. He''s the college chief of the Blazing Sun School, and Ye Futian was captured under his command. He should take responsibility for this incident."


    "Yeah." Gu Hanshan nodded in agreement.


    "There seems to have been someone orchestrating things from behind the scenes ever since Jin Yunxiao was exposed, trying to create conflict." A thoughtful gleam appeared in Madame Long''s eyes as she spoke.


    "I know someone is trying to sow discord in secret. But it is true that Jin Yunxiao tried to assassinate Ye Futian. I''ve asked Futian, and he agreed that Jin Yunxiao has to die, so I considered the consequences. But I never thought that Yang Ding would be such an *sshole." Chen Yuan''s voice was shaking with rage. Without an order from Yang Ding, no one would have dared to make a move like this.


    Just then, an immense pressure came from the faraway skies. It seemed that the Starry School were to face yet another mighty foe. Chen Yuan looked up to see a group of people heading towards the school.


    "Looks like another bunch of *ssholes are here," Gu Hanshan commented. In no time, the group of people arrived at the Starry School. They were from the Bright Moon School, and leading the group was the school''s college chief Gong Kui.


    "Chen Yuan, I''ve heard that the Son of the Starry School has had his powers destroyed by the Blazing Sun School. How is he now?" Gong Kui asked.


    "Don''t beat about the bush." Chen Yuan shot him a cold glare. There was no way Gong Kui had come all the way just to show concern for Ye Futian.


    Gong Kui laughed. "I''ve heard that the divine teachings that Ye Futian obtained were three streaks of divine light. Since his powers have been destroyed, the divine light should naturally be returned to the Top Three Schools. Yang Ding had already gotten one streak of divine light. You can have one streak for yourself. Now, shouldn''t the divine light that rightfully belongs to the Bright Moon School be returned to me?"


    "Get out," Chen Yuan spat at him.


    Everyone was staring at Gong Kui coldly. Trust him to take advantage of someone else''s misfortune to come here and ask for the divine light.


    Gong Kui laughed, paying no heed to the glares he was receiving. The Blazing Sun School had taken back their share of the three streaks of divine light. How could the Bright Moon School miss out on this opportunity? He wanted to get a taste of the saint''s divine teachings as well.


    "The Top Three Schools share the same origins," Gong Kui replied. "That was originally an heirloom of our ancestors. Now that the heir to the Divine Path has had his powers destroyed, he has lost his right to the inheritance. I say that the divine light should be returned to its rightful owners. I want to bring it back to the Bright Moon School."


    "Attack us if you will," Chen Yuan responded coldly.


    "I''m not going to risk mass destruction unlike you. It''s not as if you don''t understand the current situation. The Starry School is at odds with the Jin Clan and at war with the Blazing Sun School too. Are you going to turn the Bright Moon School into your enemies as well? Have you truly thought this through?" Gong Kui''s tone was equally frosty.


    "I told you to get out, did you not hear me?" Chen Yuan shot the other man a cold glare.


    However, a dazzling streak of light exited the room where Ye Futian was and floated towards Gong Kui. Gong Kui was taken aback at first. Then he attached his will to the light and claimed it for himself. Chen Yuan and everyone else in the room was shocked as well, and they turned to look into the room.


    "Chen Yuan, you''ve been outdone by your own disciple. At least he knows what''s best for the Starry School in this situation. I''ll take my leave now." Gong Kui knew what he had just received upon sensing it, and he left smiling.


    In the room, Ye Wuchen and everyone else was enraged.


    "Why did you give it to him?" Yu Sheng was grabbing onto Ye Futian''s hand.


    A forlorn smile came over Ye Futian''s pale face. "I have my own plans," he replied softly. "Please leave, all of you. Tell the college chief and the rest to leave too. I would like to be undisturbed."


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian. He was concerned for the other man.


    "Let the college chief and the rest come up with a plan," Ye Wuchen advised.


    "I want to try something out myself," Ye Futian replied. Give me some time, and help me guard the door."


    Yu Sheng nodded, and the group left the room.


    After they had left, Ye Futian''s fists clenched. Desolation crept into his heart. A group of mighty sages had come for him. He had tried to talk his way out of danger, but they had still attacked him. Now, the Bright Moon school had come to demand their share of the divine light too. Since things had come to this, he had obliged as well.


    A green light danced around Ye Futian''s body. Then, branches of green leaves began to appear, slowly snaking their way upwards. Soon, an ancient tree with emerald green leaves appeared above Ye Futian''s head. This was his Life Spirit.


    His eyes closed, and the branches of the ancient tree continued to grow. Eventually, the entire room was covered by the gigantic tree, which entwined itself around his body in a way that allowed him to sit on it. An emerald green glow surrounded him and covered him completely, bit by bit.

 503 Learning in Secre

    The ancient tree shook slightly, shedding its sacred green light on every corner of the room. Enveloped in the tree, Ye Futian''s body was like a jade. Endless verdant glow poured into his body. It seemed to transform into life aura and spread through his veins to rejuvenate his badly hurt insides.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and felt everything happening in his body. His organs were hurt badly. Veins were severed and bones fractured. He had become a totally disabled man who was at his last gasp. His enemy didn''t want him to die directly in the Blazing Sun School but chose to mutilate him. Otherwise, demolishing his spirit with Sage Intent was the most straightforward way. It could eliminate a person more effectively than simply attacking the flesh. Perhaps his enemy had some qualms, so Ye Futian could still be alive. But for many people, it would be better to die than to live with such a body.


    At this moment, however, Ye Futian''s heavily injured body was recovering little by little. The ancient tree, as his natal spirit, possessed strong power to embrace and restore everything in the world.


    As the verdant light reached every part of the body, some color returned to Ye Futian''s pale face. After suffering all these fractures, being simply restored was not enough for him to alleviate all the pain. When the insides were recovered, those green lights further permeated in those broken veins to help them grow.


    At the same time, other life spirits like Ape, Dragon and Golden Roc appeared in the tree one by one. The dragon coiled around the tree. The ape stood in and the roc perched on the tree. Then they entered into his body with that verdant glow.


    He thought and a beam of blazing light appeared around him. The sacred light flowed around his body like a sea of stars. It followed the green light through his body. Every inch it flowed by, broken veins were restored and new bones grew.


    It was said that once one cultivated to a certain high level, he could be immortal. In that case, fractured bones being repaired was a small matter. But Ye Futian was just in Arcana Plane. What was happening was totally a miracle.


    His veins and bones were restored gradually. That green light together with other magical powers of different attributes entered into his body, giving him dragon-like veins and a golden roc''s hard bones. His body glowed with starry lights and became invincible.


    "I really did it." Ye Futian was shocked. He just wanted to have a try. Thinking that the natal spirit had the power to embrace everything, he released his own spirit into it to restore his injured body. He succeeded. His new veins and bones were very difficult to hurt now.


    Knowing that he wouldn''t die anymore, Ye Futian closed his eyes and immersed himself into the restoration totally.


    ��


    It caused a sensation in the Starry School.


    People constantly came to visit the Son''s Palace. Gu Yunxi came too. She looked very anxious, but Yu Sheng stopped her at the door. Yu Sheng was worried too, but Ye Futian had told him to guard the door.


    Yu Sheng knew Ye Futian. Ye Futian may be doing something extremely important. He must be trying to recover his body; he couldn''t be interrupted no matter who came.


    Long Ling''er also came after hearing the news, but she was stopped outside of the door too. Gu Yunxi and Long Ling''er came because they worried about Ye Futian while many other people came to see how Ye Futian would die.


    Ye Futian was so outstanding that there were many people jealous of him. As long as Ye Futian was in the Starry School, others couldn''t have the chance to be favored by the chief. Even those very talented would not have the chance.


    No one expected that the peerless talent who had been canonized as the Son a few months ago suddenly became so pathetic. And the fact that the big figures from the Blazing Sun School were the ones responsible made Ye Futian seem more tragic The stronger one was, the easier it was for him to be hated. Moreover, he had the heritage that both colleges longed for.


    Very soon, the news broke throughout the whole Divine Sky City, causing an uproar.


    When the Starry School''s strong cultivators headed for the Nine Cloud Palace, the Blazing Sun School took the opportunity to take the Son away. It wasn''t glamorous, but it ended with Ye Futian close to death. The Blazing Sun School lost a powerful sage and the entire college was turned into ruins.


    Besides, the Bright Moon School also forced Ye Futian to hand out the beam of holy light inherited from the Saints. Many people sighed for Ye Futian''s miserable fate.


    After what had happened, the Top Three Schools would not be as harmonious as before. A war could possibly break out. If Yang Ding didn''t hold back, he might have already declared war on the Starry School.


    Half a month later in the palace, Ye Futian''s veins and bones had recovered a lot, but he still didn''t walk out of his room. Everyone was waiting for him and Yu Sheng was extremely worried. He could sense the strong spirit in the room. Apparently, Ye Futian was fine, so Yu Sheng could only keep waiting.


    Chen Yuan came asking frequently, but no one knew the specifics. Gu Yunxi and Long Ling''er came most frequently. Wang Yurou and Shen Yu also came here often.


    A month later, Ye Futian''s body generally recovered. He stretched his arms and heard the bones crack, but he still didn''t walk out.


    The entire Divine Sky City, including the two major schools, was also waiting.


    Time continued to pass. The relationship of the three Major Colleges kept fraying. Conflicts among their disciples broke out often. Many other events happened too, which made people gradually forget Ye Futian''s name. Fewer and fewer people mentioned him.


    News was heard from the Starry School that Ye Futian''s cultivation was totally demolished. Even Chen Yuan the chief couldn''t save him. It was also said that the Son''s Palace was sealed. Ye Futian the Son might have already died or would be disabled forever. Some guessed that the Starry School might have taken Ye Futian''s Starry Holy Light away and imprisoned Ye Futian in the palace for the rest of his life.


    The Starry School''s Son was once so brilliant but dimmed so quickly like a shooting star.


    People lamented and sighed. They were amazed by the Blazing Sun School''s acuteness and cruelty.


    ��


    After getting the holy light, Yang Ding, the chief of the Blazing Sun School, and Gong Kui, the chief of the Bright Moon School, often released the light and tried to understand the Saints'' methods contained in the light whenever they were cultivating.


    By now, the Blazing Sun School had been built again. Yang Ding crossed his legs and sat in the Sun Palace, bathing in the sunlight falling from the sky. The beams of lights seemed to be substantial. Frightening flame Spiritual Qi gathered around him, making him look like a Fire God.


    The holy light boomed over his head again and looked extremely brilliant under the sun. Behind him condensed a divine sun furnace which could absorb all flame power in the world and burn everything. This power was recorded in the Sun Scripture which was passed down from the ancient times. There were many other strong methods and powers in the Scripture. People with the sun as the life spirit could cultivate it the best.


    Even people like Yang Ding mainly cultivated with it. With the help of the power of the light, he made some progress in comprehending the abilities in the Scripture.


    Yang Ding didn''t know that in a palace of the Starry School far from the Blazing Sun School, there was a figure who was sitting like him. The sun hung high above the figure and the sun''s flames kept descending behind him, gradually gathered into a dreadful divine sun furnace. It gathered endless flames from the world like the sun.


    This handsome figure with long hair closed his eyes and cultivated silently. After a long while, he managed to condense three furnaces. He stopped. When he opened his eyes, the sun''s light disappeared all of a sudden.


    That youth was Ye Futian.


    "How many furnaces can be condensed?" asked Yu Sheng after Ye Futian stopped.


    "According to the Sun Scripture, once nine furnaces are condensed, everything can be refined," replied Ye Futian.


    "You really could see the Blazing Sun School''s chief cultivating?" Ye Wuchen doubted. Ye Futian said that once Yang Ding opened the Sun Scriptures, he could see what he was doing.


    "Sure, I could even see how he cultivates. But it''s a pity that I can''t get his comprehension." Ye Futian looked a little disappointed. Hearing Ye Futian''s complaint, Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng were totally speechless.


    If Yang Ding of the Blazing Sun School and Gong Kui of the Bright Moon School knew that Ye Futian could secretly learn their ways when they were cultivating through the holy light, they might come to kill Ye Futian at any cost.


    "Futian." At this time, Chen Yuan appeared. Besides Yu Sheng''s group, Chen Yuan was the only one that could enter the Son''s Palace. This place was sealed. Besides Chen Yuan, no one could enter without permission.


    "When will you finish your cultivation?" asked Chen Yuan.


    "Chief Chen, once I learn all the means of Yang Ding and Gong Kui, I will destroy the two beams of holy light and tell you their abilities. In the future, the Starry School will make the heritage of the Top Three Schools into one and own the complete Saint''s methods," said Ye Futian. Chen Yuan looked at Ye Futian meaningfully. This guy must be very revengeful!

 504 News of Death

    The Sage figure had attacked Ye Futian and disabled his cultivation. How could he not be furious? But Yang Ding and Gong Kui seemed to have been tricked by Ye Futian too.


    "Chief Chen, how are the investigations about the person who leaked Jin Yunxiao''s news?" Ye Futian asked. They all knew that someone must be behind all this. He guessed that it would have something to do with the Blazing Sun School. Otherwise, they wouldn''t come to catch him in the Starry School.


    "The one who told Wang Yuqing was a student of the Starry School. He has a simple background and only said it after being bribed. We can''t find the source," the chief said. "However, it must have been the two major clans of the Blazing Sun School."


    "Clans?" Ye Futian''s eyes flashed.


    "Yes." Chen Yuan nodded. "The Top Three Schools are competitors, but Yang Ding shouldn''t attack you so cruelly. He would never wish to declare war. It''s catastrophic for the Blazing Sun School too. Just like the Starry School, they have two main clans��the Chen Clan and the Liu Clan. If the Divine Sky City turns to chaos, the Top Three Schools are at war, and the Nine Cloud Palace is thrown in as well, who will benefit the most?"


    "The clans," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes. Each clan wants to increase their influence and has a strong voice in each school. But the Top Three Schools are still the most important in the eastern Barren State. Some people aren''t satisfied and want to replace them. They want to rule the Top Three Schools. Each clan only has some power in the schools.


    "Once there''s war, the schools would be the most involved and be hurt the worst. The people within the schools would also fight, but they would have their clans behind them. When the schools are weakened, the clans could enter the Top Three Schools and get more power or even control them directly."


    Chen Yuan continued, "That day, the Blazing Sun School had come to arrest someone. Thus, the mastermind must be from that school. Yang Ding wanted the inheritance you have, so he was used. Of course, he must have guessed this, but he was willing because of the inheritance. He has it now, doesn''t he?"


    Ye Futian nodded. To figure out the mastermind, one must see who benefited the most from the chaos. Chief Chen must be right.


    "The Chen Clan''s leader is more ambitious and intense. The Liu Clan is calmer in comparison. Thus, it''s more possible that the Chen Clan is responsible." Chen Yuan''s expression was cold. Ye Futian thought of the martial arts battlefield. Chen Wang and Long Mu had reached the end, but he''d beaten them both. Chen Wang must be angry.


    "Chief, since I''m alright, you can move on. Don''t fall into their trap. We can settle this in the future," Ye Futian urged. He wanted to get them to pay, but he would bear it for the big picture.


    Chen Yuan looked to Ye Futian and said, "But our relationship has already worsened and the Nine Cloud Palace is thrown into the mix too. Since you''re okay and their plan had failed, they would try again."


    Some things would have a sequel after the first time.


    "Chief, you can announce that I''m dead," Ye Futian said.


    Chen Yuan looked surprised. "You prepare to leave?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "I''d planned to challenge myself outside the Divine Sky City after I reach the Noble Plane. But since there are these changes, I want to go earlier. I have the Polearm of Divine Destruction now and can protect myself. You can protect me here, but I''m afraid there will be many restrictions. It''s not suitable for cultivation."


    "Exploring is indeed a better choice. I''d planned on arranging it for you, but I didn''t think it would be like this," Chen Yuan said. "Are you sure you want to be announced dead?"


    "I want to extinguish their divine light. Yang Ding and Gong Kui will suspect me. Announcing my death now would be a good explanation. Of course, I still need a few days. I want to see more of their cultivation. I want to cultivate in isolation for a while too."


    "Alright." Chen Yuan nodded. "Since you decided, let''s do it."


    ��


    Months passed. There was less and less news about him. Gradually, no one mentioned him. One day, Yang Ding, chief of the Blazing Sun School, was cultivating in the yard. He cast the divine light he''d comprehended. The solar divine light was extremely brilliant. It seemed to contain a Holy Road. But the divine light quickly dimmed.


    Yang Ding''s eyes flew open. Looking up at the sky, he saw the Saint''s image darken and disappear. At the same time, the sunlight that filled the sky also disappeared, extinguishing completely.


    "What''s going on?" Yang Ding''s expression changed. His spiritual mind filled the space but couldn''t find any bit of abnormality in the sky. However, the divine light just disappeared like that.


    He furrowed his brows, expression turning cold. Did Ye Futian do something when giving him the divine light? But if that was true, why did Ye Futian let him comprehend for so long instead of extinguishing his divine light earlier? That didn''t make sense.


    A similar scene happened at the Bright Moon School. Gong Kui was furious. He''d just gotten a deep understanding of the divine light, but then it extinguished just like that. It was as if it never existed. He also suspected Ye Futian, but like Yang Ding, it didn''t make sense to him.


    After their divine lights extinguished, Chen Yuan from the Starry School announced Ye Futian''s death. Many students were floored at the news.


    The pride that could defeat the entire generation had died?


    The Son''s pavilion had been locked all these days. Before, people had been curious, but they gradually forgot as time passed. Few mentioned the locked Son''s pavilion. People would mention it very occasionally, but no one thought that this brilliant figure would die like this.


    Gu Yunxi was walking in the Starry School. When she heard the news, she completely blanked. Her face turned white as paper and she tumbled. Her body trembled; her mind was blank.


    "Yunxi." Her good friend supported her from the side.


    A clear tear rolled down from her eyes as she mumbled, "Impossible. I don''t believe it."


    "Yunxi, the chief announced it himself," the girl murmured. She was Gu Yunxi''s best friend and naturally knew about her thoughts. The princess of the Gu Clan had always looked up to Ye Futian. She used to visit the Celestial Pavilion a lot and often played Ye Futian''s songs while cultivating.


    Gu Yunxi bit her lips hard, making it bleed. She thought of how amazing Ye Futian had been when she first Ye Futian play in the music workshop. She''d thought that Ye Futian would be a master at musical sorcery. But when she met him at the West Court, she saw that he was so young and handsome. She became interested in him then.


    Afterward, Ye Futian became more and more extraordinary. Finally, he became the Son of the Starry School. He walked out from the crowd in the divine robe, attracting everyone''s gazes. He was so brilliant and stood atop everyone.


    That figure was ingrained in her heart. The more she thought of him, the deeper he sank.


    Of course, she knew that Ye Futian had a girlfriend, so she didn''t have any wishes. She was happy just to see him sometimes. She never thought that he would die one day.


    "Yunxi, don''t be so sad," her friend soothed.


    "I want to go see." Gu Yunxi suddenly started running towards the Son''s pavilion.


    "Yunxi." The girl followed, also running in that direction.


    Also in the Starry School, Wang Yuqing trembled as well when she received the news. She lowered her head, speechless and feeling extremely sad.


    Long Mu froze in his spot when he found out. How could Ye Futian die like this?


    Everyone in the Starry School had many thoughts. The one who''d been expected to surpass Long Yitian had died halfway through. He''d been attacked by someone in the Sage Plane.


    A figure shot into the sky at that time, going into the distance.


    "It''s Chief Chen. Where''s he going?" Many people looked up. Chen Yuan charged into the distance in anger.


    After some time, news arrived that Chen Yuan had landed in the Blazing Sun School and fought intensely with Yang Ding. The sky and ground had cracked. The repaired Blazing Sun School collapsed once again, reduced to rubble.


    The battle had been shocking. Both chiefs were hurt before Chen Yuan left in anger.


    Yang Ding was furious. He wanted to rush to the Starry School, but he''d felt Chen Yuan''s anger. He knew that if he really went, no one would be able to bear the consequences, so he just let that bastard vent.


    The news shocked everyone when it spread through the city.


    In the West Court, Long Ling''er cried when she heard that Ye Futian had died. She rushed to her mother to go visit the school. She didn''t want to believe it.


    Madame Long brought her because she was also doubtful. Had Ye Futian really died?


    During this time, only Chen Yuan had entered the Son''s pavilion. Only he knew about Ye Futian''s situation. Did he want to fool everyone to protect Ye Futian?


    After Madame Long arrived, she learned that Chen Yuan had cremated Ye Futian. His ashes were put in a box and given to Ye Futian''s friends. People saw it with their own eyes.


    The Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School also sent people over. Clearly, they were doubtful too, especially Yang Ding and Gong Kui. Why did the divine light disappear when he died? Had the Saint tied the divine lights to Ye Futian''s life so that they extinguished when he died? If not, there would be no other explanation. It seemed that they could only believe this.


    Many people sighed in lamentation. Never in this main city of the eastern Barren City had the death of an Arcana Plane figure caused such a commotion!

 505 Holy Road

    There were still two more months before the end of year 10005 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. Much time had passed after the news of Ye Futian''s death. After causing an uproar, the Divine Sky City finally forgot about it.


    Time could bury everything. No matter how excellent someone was, once fallen, they would still be forgotten in the river of time. Long Yitian had caused such a commotion with his death, but he was also buried in history. Ye Futian wasn''t an exception. Fewer and fewer people mentioned him in the city.


    Many things had happened recently too. The Top Three Schools'' relationship worsened and they often had conflicts. Some students even died in the fights. After the Jin Clan separated from the Divine Sky City, they started arranging things. They sent their best disciples to the other forces of the Barren State.


    The Barren State was too big. The clans of the Divine Sky City could control the east, but they weren''t the top forces in the vast Barren State. Not even the Top Three Schools could be counted as the top. Places like the Holy Zhi Palace were the forces truly at the peak of the Barren State and were holy lands of cultivation.


    And those in the Barren Sky Ranking were those who could truly influence the entire Barren State. Long Yitian was the only one from the Divine Sky City to have entered that ranking. Even then, he''d been at the bottom. Evidently, the ranking was very powerful. Other than abilities, it also looked at one''s combat ability, talent, potential, and more.


    Recently, two pieces of news reached the Divine Sky City. The first was that someone had challenged the young city lord of White Cloud City who was in top ten of the ranking. It seemed to have been a scholar with amazing talent and combat ability. He had just entered the Sage Plane.


    The result wasn''t unexpected. How could the young city lord at the top ten of the ranking lose? But this kind of challenge was still interesting for people. People gossiped that the man had challenged the young city lord because of the Zhuge Clan''s daughter.


    Speaking of the Zhuge Clan''s daughter, there was news that she''d entered the Sage Plane. Apparently, she had accepted a sister who was even prettier than herself. She was also a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer with the title of Ultimate Sorcerer. Countless people were won over by her, including many top talents from top forces. However, the news wasn''t very detailed when it reached the Divine Sky City. The Barren State was huge and the Zhuge Clan was too far away from the city. The news could reach them because it involved a top figure and clan of the Barren State, namely the young city lord of the White Cloud City and the Zhuge Clan.


    Of course, the most exciting news was that the Holy Road to the Holy Zhi Palace would be opened next year.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was the most brilliant place of cultivation in the entire Barren State. They only accepted disciples once every three years. The trial was very simple; it was known as the Holy Road.


    Each time they accepted disciples, they would attract the attention of the entire Barren State. The vast land would practically shake. This kind of force naturally wouldn''t accept disciples like the other forces. It was extremely largescale.


    The nine Holy Roads spread throughout every region of the Barren State. At the beginning of the next year, a big show would be unveiled.


    Outside the Starry Pavilion in the Starry School, Gu Hanshan found Chen Yuan. "Chief Chen," he said, "did Ye Futian really die?"


    "Why are you asking?" Chen Yuan asked. Countless months had passed. He didn''t know why Gu Hanshan had run over to bring this up.


    "People are discussing the Holy Road recently. I suddenly wondered if the school was trying to fool people and have Ye Futian go through the Holy Road to cultivate at the Holy Zhi Palace?" Gu Hanshan asked.


    After news of Ye Futian''s death, his friends had disappeared too. It was completely logical to suspect Chen Yuan. Did he worry that Ye Futian would be in danger so he was sent away in this manner?


    "You started doubting because of this?" Chen Yuan asked.


    "There''s a personal matter. My daughter is very depressed these days. When she protected Ye Futian from the Noble''s assassination in the Celestial Pavilion, I realized that the girl likes him. She stopped being happy after news of Ye Futian''s death. Thus, I hope that he''s still alive and came just to ask you."


    "Actually, I don''t wish he goes on the Holy Road. I hope that he would inherit the Top Three Schools." Chen Yuan gazed towards the Starry School with dazed eyes. He seemed to mumble to himself, "But I knew that as long as somewhere like the Holy Zhi Palace existed, the Top Three Schools would only be a temporary stay. Once the Holy Road opened, many disciples would want to try. I wouldn''t be able to stop them. This is the tragedy of the Top Three Schools. It''s also something I''ve been trying to change."


    Gu Hanshan understood. When somewhere like the Holy Zhi Palace existed, even if there was someone brilliant in the Top Three Schools, they would still leave. The Top Three Schools couldn''t even protest. They needed to support their students in their endeavors because the Holy Zhi Palace was a more advanced place. How could one stop them?


    If they supported the students, they could still maintain a friendly relationship after the students entered the Holy Zhi Palace. They''d come from the Top Three Schools, after all. Could they oppose their students from trying it out? And so what if they succeeded? Could the Top Three Schools kill a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace?


    The Sage figures of the Top Three Schools wanted their juniors to be more accomplished, but this method was a bit sad.


    Chen Yuan wanted to change this, so he made Ye Futian into a Son. He wanted to create a Saint.


    "I understand. Thank you, Chief Chen." Gu Hanshan smiled and bid farewell. Chen Yuan hadn''t said it aloud, but he knew the answer.


    Long robe flapping in the wind, Chen Yuan gazed at the glamorous Starry School, his eyes a bit lost. At the beginning of the new year, another batch of talents would leave to challenge themselves on the Holy Road.


    At the Nine Cloud Palace, Jin Chengfeng stood before the splendid palace. There was a group of youths standing below the steps. They were the best of Nine Cloud Palace.


    "This year, we suffered unprecedented humiliation. We''ve also sent many people during these months to challenge themselves in other places. But you were all kept here. Do you know why?" Jin Chengfeng asked.


    "For the Holy Road." Jin Yunlang''s eyes were sharp. He''d entered the Noble Plane recently. The people here were all in the lower-Noble Plane. The lower three levels of the Noble Plane were the lower-Noble Plane.


    "Correct. For the Holy Road." Jin Chengfeng''s eyes were sharper. "The Holy Road opens once every three years. Only those in the lower-Noble Plane and lower have the chance to try it and succeed. Your plane is the most suitable."


    Those in the Arcana Plane basically wouldn''t have the chance to succeed. It was only an exercise for them.


    One could also see that the Holy Zhi Palace took in disciples at the beginning of the Noble Plane. They wouldn''t have to worry about the foundation, because those who could succeed were all the stars of the Barren State. They would all have good foundations and know their talents. The Holy Zhi Palace wouldn''t have to teach them from nothing.


    Of course, only the Holy Zhi Palace had this capital.


    "The masters of the Holy Zhi Palace are all Sages. There is no exception. There are countless Noble prides. Many of the best figures of the younger generation all have divine path inheritances. Now that the Nine Cloud Palace was humiliated by the Starry School, I hope that one of you will be able to cultivate at the Holy Zhi Palace. For these last two months, cultivate in isolation. Prepare for the Holy Road at the beginning of the next year."


    Jin Chengfeng felt urgent. As a top clan in the Divine Sky City, nothing would change in the short term, but if there were no strong descendants, they would still fall.


    "Yes." Everyone nodded, eyes sharp. They were descendants of a top clan in the Divine Sky City, but they weren''t significant in the entire Barren State. They had no special rights and the Holy Zhi Palace wouldn''t make exceptions for them. The only option was to step onto the Holy Road.


    West Court, Dragon Clan Long Mu seemed to have something on his mind. Instead of cultivating at school, he came to the West Court.


    "Is Ling''er still not feeling better?" he asked a servant.


    "She''s the same as before. She often loses her temper," the servant replied wryly. When she first arrived at the West Court, the miss would often throw tantrums. Later, Ye Futian changed her. After he died, she went back to normal.


    "Mu''er, ignore that girl." A beautiful woman walked over. It was Madame Long.


    "Auntie," Long Mu greeted her.


    "I heard that you wanted to try the Holy Road to prepare for three years later?" Madame Long asked.


    "Yes." Long Mu nodded. He knew that there would be no hope this time. But three years later, he would be at the most advantageous plane.


    "The Holy Road is dangerous. There may be chances, but it''s the most dangerous trial path in the Barren State. Many people die. Everyone on the road is of the same generation. There are no rules or seniors, so killing is common. It will be very dangerous for you to enter with your current plane."


    Madame Long was clear that all the geniuses of the Barren State would be gathered on the Holy Road. It would be a huge event. Long Mu wasn''t even at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane. He could face great risks.


    "I''ll have weapons with me and I''ll be careful. I won''t let myself be in too much danger," Long Mu said. "After all, my goal isn''t the Holy Zhi Palace. I''m just going to get a feeling and challenge myself."


    "Since you''ve decided, I won''t say anything else. Cultivate well." Madame Long nodded. Trying out the Holy Road was probably the dream of everyone in Long Mu''s generation!

 506 Mount Jiuxian

    There were too many cities and forces in the vast Barren State. Apart from the capitals which ruled their own regions, there were also many places that were filled with countless clans.


    The people of the Barren State mostly divided the state according to the four cardinal directions. Apart from the four obvious regions, the largest area at the center of the Barren State was called the Zhongzhou City Region. However, in reality, apart from the capital at the heart of the region, there were also many pieces of lands, mountains, oceans, and demon forests spread out across the place.


    At the moment, somewhere in the boundless region, a group of cultivators was traveling in the sky. All the members of the group looked extraordinary. The male members were either handsome or burly-looking, while the lady in the team was charming and had snow-like silver hair. It was precisely Ye Futian and his friends. They had already left Divine Sky City for quite a long time. Along the tiring journey, they had also experienced many things.


    At the moment, there was a flying boat beneath their feet, around which there was a mighty wind-elemental force. This was a sage-level traveling ritual implement and did not have any offensive powers, but its speed was extremely fast. Of course, their levels were not actually high enough to unleash the full power of the sage ritual implement, even if it was only used for traveling. Nevertheless, this flying boat was somewhat special and it was still incredibly fast. Otherwise, even though the Black Wind Condor was fast, it was still insufficient for them to travel in the huge Barren State.


    After traveling for a few months, they also realized that the Barren State was way too enormous. Given that they were only in the Upper Arcana Plane, it was literally boundless.


    In the Barren State, cultivators in the Arcana Plane would ordinarily not attempt to cross over to another region, unless they were brought along by their seniors. Nobles were strong enough to travel to another region, but just barely. Only sages could go to whatever places they wished freely.


    "Loulan, where are we?" On the flying boat, Ye Futian looked below him. They were surrounded by clouds, and vaguely, he could see a chain of mountains below them.


    Loulan Xue took out the detailed map which they received from Chen Yuan. The map turned directly into a beam of light that floated before them. It was densely packed with information, such as the topography of the Barren State, as well as its regions and those clans with sages.


    In the world of cultivation, one''s power was of utmost importance. Therefore, even in the division of regions, it depended on whether a place had sages. If a place did not have a glorious history or a sage, it would only remain unknown.


    "Mount Jiuxian," Loulan Xue replied. "The most famous place in this region is Mount Jiuxian, so the map refers to the region as the Mount Jiuxian Region directly. Here, there are five major cities and numerous smaller cities. There are sages in all of the five major cities who are the city lords. They have the most powerful influences in this region. Mount Jiuxian is like the holy place of this area."


    Ye Futian nodded gently. The closer they got to the Central Region, the stronger the clans would become. When he first came to the Barren State, the first major city he went to was Yunyue City. In the four main factions of Yunyue City, the most powerful people were only at the peak of the Noble Plane. However, when they stepped into the Zhongzhou City Region, the most powerful people from major forces were no longer nobles, but sages. Of course, they might be ordinary sages instead of those at the peak of the plane.


    Among the clouds, purple lightning was glittering and appeared once in a while. Ye Futian frowned and said, "This is not caused by the weather. I think it''s from a cultivator."


    "Should we make a detour?" Loulan Xue asked.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and glanced below him. Beneath the clouds, there was a vast range of mountains, and he could faintly see many palaces.


    "Yup." Ye Futian suddenly had an ominous feeling. It seemed as if they were in the sky right above some clan, which was a taboo for many powerful forces even if they were really high up. However, they would not be able to remain so cautious all the time during the journey. They clearly would not stare below them all the time just to see if there was a clan. Furthermore, even with the map, they would only know roughly where they were and not their exact location, especially when they were flying in the sky.


    The flying boat was extremely quick. Immediately, it turned around and was ready to leave the place.


    Sizzle... Purple lightning flashed and penetrated across the clouds. They increased in number and quickly enveloped every corner of the place.


    ''Sh*t!" Feeling the power of the bolts of lightning, Ye Futian shouted, "It looks like a matrix."


    The purple bolts of lightning came with the clouds. Slowly, many bolts of lightning charged towards them and there was no place to dodge at all. Ye Futian controlled the boat himself, attempting to avoid the lightning, but it seemed as though they were able to sense the flying boat. At once, a huge wave of lightning which blotted out the sky blasted onto the flying boat.


    Although the flying boat did not have any offensive abilities, its defense was impressive. A wind-elemental radiance appeared around it. However, after being hit by the lightning, it still trembled and started to fall down. Ye Futian and his friends also rocked with the boat.


    "Be careful! I will descend and withdraw the ritual implement," Ye Futian said. He had already experienced in Divine Sky City how wealth alone could get him into serious trouble. Therefore, it was better for them not to display the ritual implement, especially when they were only in the Arcana Plane. Otherwise, it would clearly ignite the greed of some other people.


    Boom! Accompanied by another loud bang, a bolt of lightning dropped from the sky and landed onto the flying boat. With the help of this force, Ye Futian descended from the sky rapidly like a straight sword.


    "So this is Mount Jiuxian." Loulan Xue scanned below her and her expression also changed. None of them expected themselves to pass right above Mount Jiuxian. If they had known this earlier, they would have made a detour.


    Boom! Another bolt of lightning landed. Ye Futian and his friends turned into several beams of light and descended quickly. The flying boat disappeared, but the group dived down at the same speed as if they were meteors. Mountains and palaces flashed rapidly before their eyes, and they could even see many people in the clan. Moreover, the image before them was getting clearer and clearer.


    Thud, thud... Following several sounds, the group landed on the ground and dust was thrown up into the air. The lightning in the sky was already gone as if they had never appeared. However, Ye Futian and his friends remained cautious. After standing still and noticing the situation around them, their faces turned extremely awkward.


    At the moment, Mount Jiuxian was filled with countless people.


    At the top the mountain, there was a group of people staring at them from above. The cultivators below the mountain were clearly divided into many factions. Similarly, everyone was staring at them.


    The group of people closest to Ye Futian and his friends looked extraordinary, especially the few people at the front of the group. They looked gentlemanly and were dressed in elegant-looking clothes. In addition, there were also noble-level generals wearing armors. Everyone gazed coldly at Ye Futian and his team, and the entire atmosphere seemed to be very tense.


    At the moment, the whole place was exceptionally quiet because of the unique way in which Ye Futian and his friends appeared.


    Did they do so deliberately? everyone thought. They fell down from the sky with the help of the lightning, as if they were heavenly gods... Were they deliberately trying to attract the attention of the people on Mount Jiuxian?


    If they really did so on purpose, they would really be too arrogant.


    After all, the people before them at the moment we''re under the young city lord of Longyuan City, one of the five major cities. It was, therefore, one of the top five teams present this time. These people actually chose Longyuan City to be their opponent. Were they really that strong or just ignorant?


    Today, a few sages of Mount Jiuxian would choose their personal disciples. More importantly, the beloved daughter of Wind Sage had grown up and was extremely stunning. She might choose her partner using this opportunity. Therefore, the vast region was astonished and everyone gathered here for this grand occasion. However, there were some restrictions this time; Mount Jiuxian would not choose anyone whose level was higher than the Lower Noble Plane. Everyone knew well why this was the case.


    Mount Jiuxian was preparing for the opening of the Holy Road. They wanted to gather the most outstanding people in these few levels here in advance, after which they would head for the Holy Road.


    Hence, owing to such a background, the brightest young cultivators of the Mount Jiuxian Region were all present at the moment. The foot of the mountain was jam-packed with people and there were countless factions.


    Among them, the young city lords of the five major cities had attracted the most attention as their teams were the most powerful.


    All the cultivators were divided into various groups for combat.


    Initially, nobody dared to challenge any of the teams from the five major cities.


    Ye Futian and his friends descended from the sky, causing the young lord of Longyuan City to be the first one to be challenged in the five cities. In addition, they had appeared in such a unique way. How could they not be in the spotlight?


    At the moment, Ye Futian and his friends were totally clueless about what was happening, and they could only see everyone staring at them. They scanned around them to observe the situation and realized that there were many cultivators present. The people on the mountain were extremely powerful and hence they did not act rashly.


    "Your levels." The young city lord of Longyuan City was called Qi Yuan. A superior aura was spreading out from his body, along with some noble will. He stared coldly at Ye Futian and his friends. He was a grade eight noble. Being the first team among the five cities to be challenged, he felt that he had been humiliated. However, he still maintained his elegance and asked Ye Futian and his friends calmly.


    Ye Futian frowned, feeling the noble will from Qi Yuan. At the same time, he also noticed the coldness in Qi Yuan''s eyes.


    "Upper Arcana Plane," Ye Futian replied. At the moment, they had all already entered the Upper Arcana Plane.


    Qi Yuan''s eyes sparkled, and everyone around also seemed to be interested. Why did these Upper Arcana Plane cultivators dare to descend from the sky like this and challenge the young city lord of Longyuan City?


    Qi Yuan smiled, after which he waved his hands. Immediately, four people walked out behind him. They were also in the Upper Arcana Plane. With his level and status, Qi Yuan would not think about bullying Ye Futian and his friends.


    "Let''s begin," Qi Yuan said emotionlessly.


    "Begin?" Ye Futian stared at Qi Yuan. At the moment, he had also realized that a challenge seemed to be ongoing. They were standing on an array which was in the same region as Qi Yuan but in the direct opposite corner. Were the people present here to fight each other?


    Noticing Ye Futian''s silence, Qi Yuan frowned and was somewhat impatient.


    "Can we admit defeat?" Ye Futian suddenly said. These abrupt words caused everyone to freeze and stare blankly at them, stunned.


    What was happening?

 507 Enticemen

    Ye Futian''s group landed from the sky, appearing before Longyuan City''s crowd in a shocking manner. The battle had not even begun and they were already conceding? What were they here for then? To make fun of them?


    On Mount Jiuxian, there were experts who stared at Ye Futian''s group ruthlessly. One of the experts asked, "You landed on Mount Jiuxian, how can you admit defeat without even battling? What do you treat Mount Jiuxian as?" His expression was icy, thinking about the bolt of thunder in the sky. In this region, nobody dared to as arrogant as to walk right above Mount Jiuxian. Was this the reason these people had fallen from the sky?


    If that was so, it would not be that easy for them to sneak off. Since they had landed here, they would have to abide by the will of the heavens.


    Qi Yuan waved his hand and the four Arcane Plane experts surrounding Ye Futian''s group released their Arcana aura, they were all cultivators at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane. In an instant, the Spiritual Qi around them started rampaging and the air started to roar.


    "If you''re injured and concede, I will naturally order them to leave you alive," Qi Yuan said. Ye Futian stood there with a glint in his eyes, as though thinking of a solution.


    There were numerous experts on Mount Jiuxian. Evidently, there was an event going on, likely to be an entrance examination of sorts. Under such circumstances, what should they do?


    After considering for a moment, Ye Futian saw that the other party was already preparing to strike, and so he decisively said, "Spread out." After saying so, the four of them took one direction each, with the Black Wind Condor at the rear.


    The four of them released their auras and the crowd had strange expressions. Ye Futian and his friends were indeed in the Upper Arcana Plane, moreover, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were only in the seventh level of the Arcana Plane, meaning that they were in the lowest level of the Upper Arcana Plane. Ye Wuchen was also only in the eighth level of the Arcana Plane. Conversely, Loulan Xue''s cultivation level was the highest at the ninth level of the Arcana Plane. However, much of the difference in the cultivation level between herself and the rest had been shortened and they were catching up soon.


    However, at their cultivation level, how could they defeat Qi Yuan''s four experts? The four experts were not ordinary people. Among them was this person named Bai Yan, an extremely famous genius in Longyuan City. The Longyuan City Lord had the intention of betrothing his daughter to him to take him in as a son-in-law. If the Longyuan City was not the first to be challenged, causing them to lose face, Qi Yuan would not have sent him to battle.


    With Bai Yan''s strength, he could probably defeat all four of them by himself. They had no idea of Ye Futian and his friends'' origin. Furthermore, the other three experts were also exceptional cultivators from Longyuan City, that was why they were following beside Qi Yuan, to prepare themselves to step onto the Holy Road with him. They were all geniuses in their own right.


    "Do it," Bai Yan''s voice sounded out emotionlessly, and a figure flew into the air and a huge gravity field descended, its weight crushing down onto Ye Futian''s group. At the same time, rocks started to surround Ye Futian and his friends, attempting to petrify them and restrict their movements.


    The person who had flown into the air released his Life Spirit Dharma, a giant stone golem with horrifying strength. The Spiritual Qi in the air roared, and he landed from the sky, the shadow of the golem''s foot trampling down, attempting to squash the four of them.


    The two on the left and right moved simultaneously. The person on the left had a demonic beast as his Life Spirit. He stepped forward, his body covered in a golden glow. A humming sound could be heard from the earth, resounding under his dreadful strength.


    The person on the right fired a spell which caused dancing lightning snakes to appear and fly towards Ye Futian''s group. The only person who did not move was Bai Yan, who stood there, staring ahead. With Ye Futian''s group at the center, the Spiritual Qi exploded and the air flow became extremely unstable, as though trying to devour them.


    Just as the attacks were about to reach them, Loulan Xue released a wintry aura and it felt as though there were snowflakes falling from the sky. Her silver eyes swept across the attackers, and the three experts felt as though they were covered by a layer of ice and were about to turn into ice statues, their actions slowing down.


    At the same time, the stones on Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen''s bodies shattered. Yu Sheng launched off the ground, his muscular body flying into the air. He raised his arm and shattered the giant foot, and with a crash, the expert stomped onto Yu Sheng''s arm like his stone golem. However, Yu Sheng''s body did not fall as a dark golden light flowed around his body. He grabbed the other party''s foot with his hand and tossed him towards the ground.


    At that moment, the stone golem that had fearsome strength actually lost its balance and the expert was flung down.


    At the same time, Ye Wuchen''s lone arm stretched out and his finger pointed into the air. In an instant, countless Sword Qi stormed and tens of thousands of sword wills formed. Following his finger, the sword wills plunged towards the left and right. The expert with the demonic beast could only feel overrun by the countless razor-sharp sword wills, and he growled angrily and struck out, only to be pierced by the tens of thousands of sword wills that descended upon him. The sound of metal piercing flesh sounded went on endlessly, and the expert was covered in blood, standing still on the spot.


    The other expert''s lightning snakes were decimated and he was overwhelmed by the sword wills, ending up equally as wretched as the other two.


    Bang! The expert in the air was smashed into the ground by Yu Sheng and everyone''s hearts trembled as they heard the loud voice.


    This�� The crowd was astounded. How strong were these people? There was no trace of their cultivation level disadvantage. Instead, they crushed their opponents.


    Could it be that Ye Futian''s surrender was done on purpose to trick them into thinking that they were pushovers, only to shock the crowd when they revealed their true strength?


    What a scheme to show weakness. Indeed, their actions attracted a lot of attention from the crowd and left them awestruck. Since their flashy entrance, everything had been within their calculations, to use the Longyuan City faction as a backdrop to show off their prowess. What an elaborate scheme.


    Now, there was only Bai Yan left. All of a sudden, his body was surrounded by golden Spiritual Qi and a fearsome golden emblem appeared within the golden light. A myriad of golden arrows appeared around his body, each with a stinging aura.


    Bai Yan took a step forward and his body moved like the wind, and crackling sounds started to sound from the arrows, as though they were being fired from their bowstrings. The arrows followed him forward, attempting to erase everything in their path.


    The crowd was stupefied and looked towards Ye Futian''s group. Bai Yan''s strength was much stronger than the other three experts, could he deal with them? They saw Ye Futian move, thunder under his feet. He moved like lightning, descending before Bai Yan and slamming him with a giant golden palm print, crushing him under it. The brilliant arrows were shadowed by the palm print and the crowd saw Bai Yan being clapped into the ground by the palm print, vomiting copious amounts of blood.


    The crowd was flabbergasted. A seventh level Arcana Plane had dominated Bai Yan, who was a ninth level Arcana Plane cultivator. Such battle ability could only be described as terrifying. There was probably only going to be one such battle. In the Arcana Plane, there were definitely not many people who could defeat this group.


    On Mount Jiuxian, everyone''s gazes landed on Ye Futian''s group. The person in the middle of the spectators had radiant beauty, she was Qin Yin, the beloved daughter of the Wind Sage.


    "Who are they?" Qin Yin asked quietly. The surrounding people all shook their heads, and someone at the side replied, "No idea."


    "Does nobody know them?" Qin Yin looked towards the rest and asked. Although this group of people was only in the Arcana Plane, they had a terrifying battle ability. They should have had some fame.


    "The region around Mount Jiuxian is so huge. This time, experts from all areas are gathered here, it''s normal that nobody knows them." someone explained, and Qin Yin nodded her head gently in acknowledgment.


    What a pity. If these people were grade seven nobles, they could be of assistance to her on the Holy Road. However, no matter how strong an Arcana Plane cultivator was, there was a limit to their strength and would not be able to obtain too much on the Holy Road.


    Perhaps they might have a chance three years later, but she was already a grade eight noble and could not wait three years. By that time, she would definitely have surpassed the Lower Noble Plane and be unable to step foot onto the Holy Road.


    Qi Yuan''s expression was cold as he stared at Ye Futian''s group. He then looked at the people beside him and a figure stepped out with a noble aura around him.


    "Although it might be unfair to battle a Noble Plane cultivator, but to be standing here, I believe you have made preparations," said Qi Yuan.


    Ye Futian looked at the Noble Plane cultivator standing before him, with his current cultivation level, he was not afraid of a grade nine noble, but he had just arrived here and had not understood what was going on until now. If he insisted on being high-profile, things might blow out of control. In the previous battle, he had already offended the person in front of him.


    "We acknowledge that we are not a match for a Noble Plane cultivator and are willing to step out," Ye Futian replied.


    "Since you''re already here, how can you not battle and retreat?" As Qi Yuan finished his sentence, the Noble Plane cultivator released an alarming aura, the air resounding with it. Ye Futian''s group frowned as they felt the noble might, and they all got into their positions.


    "Wait a minute." At that moment, a voice sounded out, and the crowd''s gazes turned towards the person speaking. It was Li Xun, the Young City Lord of one of the Five Major cities, the White Sovereign City. Li Xun had a refined aura, although he was a grade seven noble with incredible strength, he was humble, amiable and approachable. There were many exceptional talents following beside him as he could win the hearts of many.


    Li Xun''s gaze turned towards Ye Futian, nodding to him as he introduced himself, "Li Xun of the White Sovereign City."


    "Ye Mo," Ye Futian replied. He used his younger brother''s name as an alias. Although this place was extremely far from the Divine Sky City and no one would know the name Ye Futian, he did not use his real name as a security measure. Otherwise, if he attracted his enemies from the Divine Sky City, he would be in a very passive situation.


    "Where you have stepped up is tantamount to declaring war on the Longyuan City''s faction. Qi Yuan can dispatch Noble Plane cultivators to deal with you, and you can only accept it. Ye Mo, would you be willing to enter my White Sovereign City''s faction? If you do so, the White Sovereign City can also send out Noble Plane cultivators to battle them," Li Xun explained.


    A glint appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes. Indeed, he did not want to be too outstanding, but he was also unwilling to follow under Li Xun.


    "The reason you are here must be for the Holy Road. Your battle ability is exceptional, but your cultivation level is low. You will need help to clear the Holy Road," Li Xun continued his persuasion.


    "For the Holy Road?" Up until now, Ye Futian still had no understanding about the Holy Road, so he nodded and agreed, "Okay."


    Now was not the time to battle. He had to understand the upcoming sequence of events first!

 508 Intentional Recruitmen

    The crowd saw Ye Futian agree and was perplexed. They could not understand what the appearance of this group of people was for.


    Could it be that they wanted to use Longyuan City as a springboard to show off their ability and attract the attention of others to find support to enter the Divine Path?


    The Young City Lord of the White Sovereign City, Li Xun had a reputation for being admirable, so it was no surprise to everyone that he would recruit Ye Futian. It was as though it was natural for him to do so. Among the Five Major Cities, the White Sovereign City could be ranked in the top three, even going as far as one of the strongest two cities. It would be extremely beneficial for Ye Futian to enter the White Sovereign City''s faction.


    Once he entered the White Sovereign City, he would have the chance to enter the Holy Road with the people from Mount Jiuxian. This time, the White Sovereign City would definitely be selected by Mount Jiuxian. If that was the case, Ye Futian''s group would not have to worry about struggling in the Holy Road due to their low cultivation level.


    Otherwise, no matter how strong they were, with only their Upper Arcana Plane cultivation level, they would be unable to hold their ground. In a place like the Holy Road where geniuses from the entire Barren State gathered, even the Noble Plane prodigies from Mount Jiuxian would appear ordinary.


    "Qi Yuan, Ye Mo''s group has already joined my White Sovereign City''s faction. If you want to continue the challenge, the White Sovereign City will naturally send out Noble Plane cultivators into battle," Li Xun said, looking towards Qi Yuan. Beside him, a girl clad in body-hugging green clothes stepped forward. She was stunningly beautiful, yet gave off a resolute aura, she was Li Xun''s younger sister Li Qingyi, who had just stepped into the Noble Plane as a grade nine noble. Her battle ability was also quite strong.


    Qi Yuan frowned and his gaze swept cruelly across Ye Futian''s group and ordered, "Step down."


    The crowd broke into mumbles. As expected, the Longyuan City did not want to clash with the White Sovereign City that early.


    Ye Futian saw the Noble Plane cultivator retreating and they started to walk towards the White Sovereign City''s faction. Li Xun saw Ye Futian''s group coming towards him, smiled and said, "With your inclusion, our White Sovereign City''s faction will be undefeated in the Arcana Plane."


    The people surrounding him who heard his words looked towards the White Sovereign City''s faction, and their gazes landed on a few other teens.


    Zhuo Jun, the strongest Arcana Plane cultivator in the White Sovereign City''s City Lord Office, an individual that was heavily groomed by the White Sovereign City. He would be Li Xun''s strongest supporter in the future, and another burly teen clad in heavy armor stood beside him. The teen''s name was Zhan Long and he was always with Zhuo Jun. Similarly, he also had remarkable battle ability.


    Apart from those two, there was also one other person dressed in plain clothes, giving people a simple and clear-cut feeling. That person was Lin Feibai, the person with a reputation in the White Sovereign City as the strongest person under the Noble Plane. The City Lord''s Office had been trying to recruit him under their charge, but he had only just joined because of the Holy Road. Many people wanted to know who was stronger between Zhuo Jun and Lin Feibai.


    With the three of them, and now the inclusion of Ye Futian''s group, the White Sovereign City''s Arcana Plane force would be like a fish in water. It would be extremely difficult to deal with them, but the focus this time was still on the Noble Plane cultivators.


    "My name is Li Qingyi," Li Qingyi introduced herself to them.


    "Ye Mo, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen and Loulan Xue," Ye Futian replied.


    Li Qingyi introduced the rest of them to Ye Futian. Zhuo Jun had his arms crossed and nodded lightly at Ye Futian while Lin Feibai was emotionless. Ye Futian did not care and just smiled.


    "Miss Qingyi, are the people today all here for the Holy Road?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Mount Jiuxian is taking in disciples. Even if it wasn''t for the Holy Road, it would still be a spectacular event. Moreover, there are rumors that the daughter of the Wind Sage, Qin Yin, will be picking her husband. What do you think?" Li Qingyi replied to Ye Futian. Qin Yin was reputed to be a spectacular beauty and the beloved daughter of the Wind Sage. The Five Major Cities had sent out their most talented offspring to try and win her hand in marriage.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the top of the mountain. Among the crowd, there was indeed a girl with exceptional looks and a graceful aura, that must be the Qin Yin that she was mentioning.


    "Of course, if we are able to join forces with Mount Jiuxian and enter the Holy Road, that is also a great option," Li Qingyi continued and Ye Futian nodded. From Li Qingyi''s words, he had a general understanding of what was happening today.


    When he left the Starry School, Chief Chen had reminded him that the Holy Road was opening up and countless talents would all head towards the Barren State''s nine Holy Roads to attempt to clear it. Chief Chen had also asked him to consider it.


    Now that he had coincidentally arrived at Mount Jiuxian, he could feel that the entire Barren State was probably making preparations to enter the Holy Road. Currently, in the space at the foot of Mount Jiuxian, there were battles erupting in all directions, the Spiritual Qi in the air rampaging and Life Spirit Dharmas exuding their brilliance. It seemed like everyone wanted to display their strength to the Mount Jiuxian experts.


    There was only a minority of people who did not start battling. Of course, there were a few factions that were extremely salient. They were the Five Major Cities'' factions, each taking up a different direction and watching each other.


    The Five Major Cities, apart from Longyuan City and the White Sovereign City, also included Xuanyuan City, the Heavenly City, and the Frost City. Among the five cities, the White Sovereign City, Xuanyuan City, and the Heavenly City were the strongest three cities. That was why the Xuanyuan City and Heavenly City''s factions were treated as the strongest opponents by the White Sovereign City this time.


    At that moment, Qi Yuan stepped forward, his gaze on the White Sovereign City''s Li Xun. The crowd was startled, was Qi Yuan going to challenge Li Xun?


    His gaze sweeping across Li Xun, Qi Yuan''s body flew into the air. Li Xun understood his intention and stepped into the air. Immediately, there was a Noble Will spreading from above the crowd.


    Seeing the scene, three figures stepped out from the Xuanyuan City''s faction. They were in the Arcana Plane and not Noble Plane cultivators.


    "Xuanyuan Pojun." Li Qingyi''s expression changed. Xuanyuan Pojun was the son of the Xuanyuan City Lord and had phenomenal strength. He held golden axes in both hands, a stinging aura exuding from the axes.


    Zhuo Jun and Zhan Long both stepped forward. Li Qingyi looked towards Ye Futian''s group and said, "Can you send out one person to join Zhuo Jun in battle? Zhuo Jun will deal with Xuanyuan Pojun."


    "Yu Sheng, you go then," Ye Futian looked towards Yu Sheng and said. Yu Sheng nodded and stepped out.


    At the same time, from another faction, three Arcana Plane experts stepped out. They were from the Heavenly City. Presently, the White Sovereign City''s Arcana Plane force was the strongest. If that was so, they would team up to crush the White Sovereign City''s Arcana Plane cultivators. The three Heavenly City experts all wielded swords. Their Sword Qi roared and transformed into a horrifying current, flowing in the air.


    Lin Feibai stepped forward; he was also a swordsman in training.


    "Ye Mo, can you send two people to support Lin Feibai?" Li Qingyi asked. Ye Futian nodded and looked at Ye Wuchen. The two of them stepped forward together, standing behind Lin Feibai.


    The two battles erupted at the same time. Xuanyuan Pojun''s strength was indeed domineering, his twin axes slicing down from the air, the golden glow severing everything. Adding on his extraordinary strength, he had the aura of total annihilation. The two people behind him were sorcerers who specialized in crowd control abilities, supporting him during the fight.


    At Ye Futian''s side of the battlefield, the three swordsmen in training from the Heavenly City struck out with their swords at the same time, the attacks seemingly merging into one, the Sword Qi lingering in the air. An imposing sword veil appeared in the air, forming lethal sword auroras with the three experts'' movements.


    The sword in Lin Feibai''s hand started to wave, and in an instant, his body was covered in a sword veil, rendering him immune to the other party''s Sword Qi. Ye Wuchen''s lone arm wielded his sword, similarly forming a protective sword veil. Starlight started to gather around Ye Futian''s body, flowing around him like meteorites, keeping the Sword Qi out.


    The three experts'' bodies flew around, their actions perfectly synchronized. The three swords danced in unison and became one, sweeping forward. Even the air appeared to be cut in half, and the sword veil was split open. Lin Feibai retreated and said in a hushed voice, "Go forward and create an opening for me."


    Ye Futian stepped forward and Ye Wuchen, understanding his intentions from his actions, stepped forward together with him.


    The meteorites started to revolve in the air, transforming into a horrifying gravity, crushing down on the other party. Ye Futian gripped his palm and numerous meteorites slammed towards the three experts. At the same time, Ye Wuchen''s fingers pointed into the air and tens of thousands of sword wills flew towards the three experts.


    The three of them retaliated by waving their swords, forming a brilliant protective sword veil. The falling meteorites shattered unceasingly, yet it managed to cause a crack to appear in the sword veil. At the same time, Ye Wuchen''s Sword Qi slashed through and created an opening.


    At that moment, Lin Feibai appeared to transform into a sword, reaching incredible speeds. The crowd could only see a flash of a sword and the Sword Veil disappeared. Lin Feibai''s body suddenly appeared behind the three of them.


    The three swordsmen in training from the Heavenly City all had blood spurting from their throats and fell to the ground.


    What a fast blade. The crowd was astounded. It was as expected of the title of the strongest person under the Noble Plane in the White Sovereign City.


    The sword will on his body vanished and he turned around, walking back. When he passed by Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen, he said in a soft voice, "The two of you are quite strong."


    Ye Futian smiled and replied, "Your sword is very quick."


    Indeed, Lin Feibai''s sword was fast. Although he and Ye Wuchen had restricted the opponent''s movements, Lin Feibai''s sword was like lightning and took the opponents'' lives in an instant. He could be considered a prodigy in the Arcana Plane.


    "Thank you for your hard work." Lin Qingyi smiled, nodding towards Lin Feibai. Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen walked back and Lin Qingyi nodded towards them as well. At that moment, the other battle had also concluded with a victory. Zhuo Jun claimed the most credit, it was him who had given Xuanyuan Pojun the lethal strike and injured him while Yu Sheng was attacking.


    Lin Qingyi looked at them. With Zhuo Jun and Lin Feibai, now that Ye Futian''s group had joined them, they were invincible in the Arcana Plane.


    Just then, Li Xun had also returned from defeating Qi Yuan. The two of them landed back in their own factions, Qi Yuan''s expression especially distressed. However, to the White Sovereign City, it was a complete victory.


    Ye Futian''s gaze looked towards the surroundings. From now on, there would probably not be much for them to do. They did not stand in the limelight, and he even transmitted a message to Yu Sheng to not be too outstanding. Otherwise, Yu Sheng would have used his true strength and crushed everyone else. Who knows if he would have been scouted by a Sage Plane expert from Mount Jiuxian then? If the Sage Plane expert wanted to take him as a disciple, would he agree or not? If that happened, they would become extremely passive. That was why he intentionally supported Zhuo Jun and Lin Feibai and let them deal the critical strike.


    "Qin Yin, what do you think?" at that moment, an elderly person on Mount Jiuxian asked her.


    "Zhuo Jun is from the City Lord''s Office, but Lin Feibai has yet to enter. If there is the opportunity, we should recruit him. Also, we can consider letting that group become disciples of Mount Jiuxian. If they continue their exceptional performance in the future, we can further consider if we want to take them in as personal disciples," Qin Yin replied.


    "You mean that we will recruit the people from the White Sovereign City this time?" The elderly person tried to confirm her intentions.


    "Yes." Qin Yin nodded.


    "What about Li Xun?" the elderly person asked, smiling.


    "I''m not in a hurry." Qin Yin naturally understood that he was asking about her choice of husband.


    "Alright. There is no shortage of outstanding people this time around, take your time to decide," the elder smiled and said.

 509 Zhongzhou Lands

    The fighting raged on under Mount Jiuxian. But as Ye Futian predicted, after defeating Arcana Planes of Heavenly City and Yellow City, no one at this level proved capable of posing a threat to White Sovereign City, and no one challenged them anymore.


    He silently watched the fight taking place there. Li Xun and the Young City Lord of Heavenly City, Xie Wuji, and then the Young City Lord of Yellow City, Xuanyuan Bashan, fought their respective fights, and the fights looked extremely interesting. Xie Wuji was a powerful swordsman and Xuanyuan Bashan possessed horrifying power. The power of the Heaven-splitting Ax Techniques was impressive. The three were well-matched against each other, and it was hard to tell who reigned superior. None of them was able to overwhelm one another, and if things were to proceed as such, it was only a matter of time before they all ended up losers of the fight and sustained heavy injuries.


    Other than that, there was also a noble level figure who displayed immense talent and ferocious combat capacity named Zui Qianchou. From the words of Li Qingyi, he was a genius drunkard known in the regions of Mount Jiuxian. His name might have been fake as well, taken to mean "getting drunk solves all worries". The man loved liquor more than anything and was known to be a loner. City lord offices of five cities tried roping him to their respective sides, and he never said yes to any of them. Even looking for him proved a daunting task in itself.


    He was, however, very famous, and was a swordsman himself. His way with a sword was eerie and tricky, and he took on Xie Wuji, Young City Lord of Heavenly City. Xie Wuji''s way of the sword was sharp due to it being true, and Zui Qianchou''s proved tricky and unpredictable. Before a clear victor was determined between the two of them, someone from Mount Jiuxian ordered the fight to cease, fearing that one of them would end up dead, or at least both suffering grave injuries if they were to continue to fight each other.


    "Li Xun, would you be my disciple?"A fleeting voice came from a far corner of Mount Jiuxian, and it was apparent that the voice came from a sage.


    Li Xun smiled and stepped forward, bowing before he spoke. "It is my honor to learn under you."


    "Xuanyuan Bashan, will you be my disciple?" Yet another voice was heard from another sage, and Xuanyuan Bashan agreed. While it was said that Mount Jiuxian was the area''s sacred region and it was all done for the Holy Road, being able to have sages of Mount Jiuxian as mentors was one thing that proved to be of no harm.


    "Xie Wuji, Zui Qianchou, will you be my disciple?" A sharp voice was heard and everyone''s mind shook. It was the voice of a sword sage.


    "It would be my honor." Xie Wuji bowed.


    "Thank you for your generous offer, but I''m a stubborn one and love to be free from restraints. I''m afraid I will end up offending you, and as such, I would rather not dirty Mount Jiuxian further with my presence," Zui Qianchou said. Everyone was rendered speechless. Someone had actually refused the sages! Furthermore, Zui Qianchou sounded lazy as he said what he said, appearing to care for nothing. His reputation preceded him and it proved true indeed.


    "Have it your way then," the sage said plainly. While he was slightly unhappy about being refused, he was a sage after all, and he would have not done anything else.


    Elders of Mount Jiuxian spoke shortly after. "Mount Jiuxian will continue accepting students as we have during the start of all years past. We will leave what happened today as it is. Everyone else, please return."


    Many were speechless. Many mighty ones came, and Mount Jiuxian chose only four to stay. Three of the four chosen have had the honored to study under sages prior and they were young city lords. Only Zui Qianchou trained on his own, and many thought it to be a pity. Furthermore, Longyuan City and Frost City were not chosen. On this trip on the Holy Road, only the finest were retained by Mount Jiuxian.


    "What about Ms. Qin Yin''s Path Companion then? Who was chosen?" someone asked loudly, and everyone halted their steps. The elder of Mount Jiuxian took one look at Qin Yin and said, "A Path Companion has an incredible bearing in the life of Ms. Qin Yin. If everything goes smoothly, this figure will be chosen among the ones selected earlier. Of course, this will require a period of time for them to get to know each other. It would be announced after the trip on the Holy Road."


    Everyone nodded, seeing it within reason to do so.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. Mount Jiuxian''s act of taking in disciples and Path Companions was simply and apparently a front of selecting helpers for the Holy Road. The position of being a disciple and the possibility of becoming Qin Yin''s Path Companion, drove the few to be willing to help her out.


    The others left gradually and only the ones selected prior remained.


    The elder looked at Zhuo Jun, Lin Feibai, Ye Futian and the others and said, "Do you wish to be disciples of Mount Jiuxian and remain here for your cultivations?"


    "It would be my honor." Zhuo Jun cupped his hands.


    "Yes indeed." Lin Feibai nodded plainly.


    Ye Futian rose and bowed. "I''m a student of other schools and therefore, it would be inconvenient for me to cultivate in Mount Jiuxian. For that, I would ask for your understanding."


    "No problem." The elder nodded and turned to look at Zui Qianchou. "Are you getting ready to enter the Holy Road?"


    "Of course, why would I be here otherwise?" Zui Qianchou smiled.


    "Alright, Mount Jiuxian will also send out excellent students to embark on the journey. Please rendezvous here at Mount Jiuxian a month from now, and embark on the journey to the Holy Road together," the elder said.


    "Acknowledged." Everyone bowed.


    "Will you, Sir Ye, accompany us to the White Sovereign City?" Li Xun asked Ye Futian and his group.


    "We will." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Would Sir Qianchou be willing to share drinks with us at White Sovereign City?" Li Xun asked Zui Qianchou.


    "Good wine?" Zui Qianchou''s eyes narrowed to a slit.


    "Help yourself." Li Xun smiled and nodded.


    "Alright then." Zui Qianchou smiled from ear to ear and departed with the rest of them.


    Li Xun asked within the void, "Why didn''t you, Sir Qianchou, enter Mount Jiuxian? The sword sage has a great mastery of the art, so why would you refuse?"


    "We are to enter the Holy Zhi Palace anyway. Why the detour?" Zui Qianchou sounded lazy as ever.


    "Indeed." Li Xun smiled and said nothing further.


    "How about you, Sir Ye? Have you really studied under a school?" Li Qingyi looked at Ye Futian and the rest. Everyone in the group possessed immense combat capacity. They were at the seventh level of the Arcana Plane. If they had reached the ninth level, Zhuo Jun and Li Feibai probably would not have been their match.


    "Yes indeed." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. Li Qingyi did not pursue this line of thought any further.


    White Sovereign City was quite a distance from Mount Jiuxian, and the journey would take some time. Li Xun and the rest returned to the city lord office. Ye Futian and his group were reluctant to enter the city lord office, and they arranged to stay in a pavilion right outside the city lord office.


    Ye Futian and his group had been on the road for quite some time, and it was time to take a break in White Sovereign City. They had planned during their time on the road that they would enter the Holy Road. The trip on the Holy Road was a grand event of Barren State. Regardless if they ended up being able to cultivate in the Holy Zhi Palace, the trip was one worth making in itself, and a precious chance to accumulate experience as they were able to encounter all sorts of geniuses in the trip.


    "Are we really going to go with them?" Loulan Xue asked Ye Futian. She understood that since it was an invitation from Mount Jiuxian, it was definitely Mount Jiuxian being the one to hog all the attention.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. He knew what was going inside Lou Lanxue''s head, and smiled, "Headmaster Chen only briefed us on the Holy Road for a bit. We knew next to nothing of the details. Now that we have someone else to make the journey with us, it would be convenient for us as we will able to look out for each other, and learn more about the trip."


    Loulan Xue nodded slightly. She saw it unnecessary to say anything more seeing how Ye Futian had made his decision.


    "Since it''s a grand event of Barren State, I think students of the three schools will make it there too," Ye Futian said while smiling. "Jieyu is still with the Zhuge family. I wonder if she will make it on the Holy Road this time."


    It had been two years since they parted ways. It seemed like ages had passed, come to think of it. He wondered if his eldest senior brother and his teacher were doing well.


    He lifted his head to look at the sky. What happened in Eastern Barren seemed to be just right in front of his eyes. The time spent in the cottage was a happy one, yet the brothers eventually parted ways. Forces like the Qin dynasty and the Donghua clan held great ambition, and they ended up being scattered to the winds all the same. The Qin dynasty perished, and the Donghua clan was not all that better off. Even a beauty such as Hua Qingqing chose to become a nun.


    Now that he headed to Barren State, he would have been closer to Jieyu and his brothers and sisters in study. He wondered if he would have had the opportunity to break through Noble Plane on the Holy Road.


    Reminiscing about old times, Ye Futian sat with his legs crossed and took out the guqin. A slow melody was played, and an incredibly serene air was emanated throughout the pavilion. The sound of the instrument was plain, serene and free from troubles; capable of cleansing one''s mind and washing off all muddled thoughts.


    At a pavilion not far from Ye Futian was, Zui Qianchou drank silent leaning on a stone pillar. It was just as quiet over there. A silhouette walked by before stopping to hear the sound of the guqin. A pair of beautiful eyes watched Ye Futian silently, opting to quietly listen from the sides instead of interrupting the sound.


    The sound of the guqin subsided after a while, and Ye Futian smiled. "Here you are, Ms. Qinyi."


    Li Qinyi walked up and said, "My brother is preparing a banquet within the City Lord office. Many geniuses from White Sovereign City will come. I''m here to invite you. Would you care to join us, Mr. Ye?"


    "I''m not good with bustling, lively places. Thank you, but I''ll pass." Ye Futian smiled.


    "I can hear that from the sound of the guqin." Li Qingyi smiled and continued, "Your mind must be incredibly calm and serene for you to be able to play such a tune."


    "I''m flattered, Ms. Qingyi, but I''m filled with muddled thoughts myself. Words like ''calm'' and ''serene'' hardly fit someone like me." Ye Futian shook his head. "I was simply cleansing my mind with the sound of the guqin."


    "Cleansing your mind with the instrument," Li Qingyi mumbled to herself. "Would you mind if I came to listen to you play often from here on out, Mr. Ye?"


    "You are welcome to do so." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. Li Qingyi was the daughter of the city lord, and a Noble figure herself. She looked pretty, and yet he was very polite in front of her, which reminded him of Gu Yunxi.


    "Thank you." Li Qingyi smiled and shifted her eyes to Zui Qianchou. Seeing how Zui Qianchou took one look with smiling eyes at her, she seemed to have understood something, and said, "My brother had me bring you some wine." She went up and left the wine behind, before taking her leave.


    "A banquet, and that means booze. You sure you are not going?" Ye Futian spared a look at Zui Qianchou.


    "People are in places like that to act. And I wouldn''t call that a place for drinking." Zui Qianchou opened the wine jar sent over to him and took a big gulp out of it. "Good stuff indeed. Li Xun didn''t lie. But when it comes to drinking, who you drink with matters a lot."


    Ye Futian was stunned for a bit before smiling and nodding. "Indeed."


    In the month that followed, Li Qingyi often took time to listen to Ye Futian play his guqin in the pavilion. Zui Qianchou would have also been there every time a tune was played. When the playing was over, he was nowhere to be seen. Both men seldom talked to each other, but Ye Futian knew well that his playing had a great effect on calming one''s mind, and it was incredibly normal for cultivators to like hearing him play.


    Li Xun came to visit as well, and brought several jars of good wine with him, sitting around and chatting for a bit.


    Ye Futian was able to earn himself some quiet time to train at his art for the past month.


    They gathered around Mount Jiuxian on that day.


    White Sovereign City, Yellow City, and Heavenly City.


    All three cities sported impressive lineups.


    Other than leaders like Li Xun, Xie Wuji and Xuanyuan Bashan, the others brought tens of men with them as well, and most were of Noble level. Few at the pinnacle of Arcana Plane also came to test themselves out.


    It was obvious that everyone made ample preparations, but everyone was aware that only a handful would have been able to make something out on the Holy Road. Most were simply there as foils of sorts.


    The lineup of Mount Jiuxian was just as impressive. Other than Qin Yin, there were also two other personal disciples of sages who were of lower Noble Plane levels. The vast and mighty group departed soon after, making for the nearest Holy Road.


    Other than them, there were also others who made their journeys in the vast Barren State during this period nearing the end of the year, leaving their homes and making for the nine Holy Roads.


    Massive exodus seemed to be taking place across the entire Barren State. Countless mighty ones flew and set out with great vigor, and many bumped into each other in the void. Ye Futian and his group went east, crossing mountains and cities, meeting a lot of people.


    22 days later, an ocean appeared before them. It was the Border Sea. Crossing the other side of the sea would have taken them to the core regions of Zhongzhou.


    Ye Futian and his group took to the sky above the Border Sea.


    "We are almost near the lands of Zhongzhou." Qin Yin''s beautiful eyes looked out far away. There was nothing in the way above the sea, making it easy for them to see many demonic beasts and ritual implements making their way in the air. People were everywhere, and it was obvious that they were all from Barren State making their way to Zhongzhou.


    "The Zhuge family lies within the lands of Zhongzhou." Ye Futian''s eyes turned flighty. Second elder sister and Jieyu were both in the northern regions of Zhongzhou lands, and he was getting closer and closer to them!

 510 Together on the Holy Road

    Mighty ones gathered like clouds above the Border Sea. Countless discussed feverishly the opening of the Holy Road this time.


    Mount Duantian lay right beyond the Border Sea, which was shaped like protruding blades stabbing into the skies. Qin Yin gazed at the peaks of the mountains and took a detour around it before asking, "So Sage Duantian lived in the mountain then?"


    "So said the rumors." Li Xun nodded. The clouds above the mountain made the place look bleak and difficult to see with the naked eye. It was, however, obvious that the height of the mountain reached into the clouds. Only mighty ones of Noble level were able to vaguely make out the shape of the palace on the peak, but none dared to venture into the place itself.


    Sage Duantian was one of the mighty ones listed in the Barren Sky Rankings, and his mastery of the arts was said to be boundless. Few in the vast lands of Barren State dared challenge the sage himself.


    "It as said that there were disciples of Sage Duantian venturing down the mountain to go on a pilgrimage on the Holy Road, and the nearest Holy Road nearby is the Dawn Road. So we should be on the same road with them," someone near them said.


    Disciples of Sage Duantian could not enter the Holy Zhi Palace to further their studies, but they were welcomed to go on a pilgrimage on the Holy Road all the same. The Holy Zhi Palace had not stated explicitly that only those who wished to study in the Holy Zhi Palace were permitted to embark on the Holy Road.


    "Someone is coming down from the mountain." A huge warship appeared in the direction of the peak of Mount Duantian, passing right above the heads of everyone. A group exceptional figures were vaguely seen on the warship itself, like the Jiutian Gods and Goddesses looming over the mortals themselves.


    "A warship of the Mortal World," someone shouted as they took note of the mark on the ship. Mortal World, the greatest force within the area. Even when compared with the rest of the Barren State, they were still among the top class.


    "This should be the Disciples of Mortal World passing through Mount Duantian and go paying their respects to Sage Duantian then."


    "Rumor has it that several figures of extremely notable talents were on their way to the Holy Road, and they too took the path of Dawn Road." Many within the surrounding void began discussing what just took place as the warship passed by right above their heads. A beautiful girl was seen standing on the warship. Her clothes and hair waved gracefully with the wind.


    Her name was Chu Shang, a figure at the lower level of the Noble Plane.


    Ye Futian, who was right below the ship, would have recognized her if he had seen her onboard. She was that Mortal World disciple who had been to the Eastern Barren Territory and had even invited him to join the Mortal World.


    "So even the top notable forces have made their move then," Qin Yin murmured as she lifted her head to gaze upon the ship that had just passed right above her head. Despite being the daughter of the sage of Mount Jiuxian and possessing incredible talent, she knew well that the trip on the Holy Road would have proven difficult even for someone like her. The event gathered all the geniuses from all corners of Barren State. Despite Dawn Road only being one of the nine Holy Roads, the figures who showed up there were terrifyingly impressive nonetheless. As such, she needed to join forces with people of the five cities just for her to stand a chance at it.


    "I suppose the Nantian House would choose the Dawn Road as well," Xie Wuji quipped.


    "There are many from great clans and powerful schools alike." Qin Yin''s eyes looked into the distance. Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled hearing her words. He looked at the map before and was able to confirm that both the Mortal World and the Nantian House were in the same direction. Now that they are in the Zhongzhou Lands, would the two top-class forces which had been to the Eastern Barren Territory choose to embark on the same Holy Road?


    An old city stood at the edge of the Dawn Road: Ruin City. Legend had it that the city fell many times before, and was rebuilt each time. It was a place anyone on the Dawn Road would have definitely passed by. As such, the city was an incredibly bustling one despite its name, especially when the Holy Road was opened once every three years. The city was packed like sardines during such times. People from various corners of the region would flood into the city and make their way to the Sea of Ruins at the west side of the city.


    The Sea of Ruins was a place leading towards the Holy Road. Countless mighty ones gathered at the shores of the Sea of Ruins. One gaze would have been more than enough to note the presence of all proud sons and daughters of the heavens from all over Barren State.


    The opening of the Holy Road had always been the grandest of all events to take place in the Barren State. It was a given that such an event would cause quite a stir.


    Ye Futian was able to see the sea of people before his eyes as soon as he got there, and he felt rather shocked. The number of people gathered there easily exceeded 100 thousand. Furthermore, given that the Dawn Road had yet to be opened, there were definitely more who were still on their way there.


    "Dawn Road lies right beyond the Sea of Ruins. Once we journey through Dawn Road, we will have reached the Holy Zhi Palace." Someone peered at the Sea of Ruins with heated eyes. All nine Holy Roads led right to the Holy Zhi Palace. So long as they were able to make it through, they would arrive on the very sacred grounds of the contemporary Barren State.


    Other than them, geniuses from all nine Holy Roads, the best of the best generation of youths Barren State had to offer, would have gathered before the Holy Zhi Palace. The imagination of such a scene would have made the heart of anyone dance.


    All hoped that they would have become one of those who stood among these geniuses, appearing on the most brilliant stage to be found in the world.


    "There are no rules on the trip to the Holy Road, and the harshest rule of it all lies precisely in the fact that there are no rules."


    Some among them sighed. It was known to all that the trip to the Holy Road yielded the highest number of brutal casualties among all the pilgrimages one could have taken. Many aforementioned proud sons and daughters perished on the Holy Roads.


    There was to be no acknowledgment of generations on the Holy Roads, and it was an ''anything goes'' type of game for everybody. All kinds of demons and monsters would have appeared, and there was simply no telling what one would encounter on their journey next.


    Groowwwlll! A dragon howl was heard in the heavens, and the Responding Dragon was seen descending from above. Its impressive bearing overpowered all below.


    "Mighty ones from Nantian House are here." Countless pairs of eyes gazed upon the dragon descending from the heavens. Nantian House was the top force to be found within the region of Zhongzhou City, and one with powers shadowing all.


    A terrifying force beyond measure indeed.


    Many leaped forward to bow and pay their respects. All of whom who did so were younger generations of the Nantian House''s forces.


    Ye Futian took a look at the Responding Dragon in the void and found it to be the same dragon encountered in the Eastern Barren Territory. He also saw the carriage being pulled behind the dragon, and a silhouette emerged from within. It was a familiar face��Nan Feng. Nan Feng was of Upper Arcana Plane back then. Two years had since passed, and he was a Noble Plane figure now.


    Futian was reminded of the words Nan Feng and Nan Yu spoke to him about. He was back in the Eastern Barren Territory back then, and he was utterly incapable of imagining what Nantian House was like. Now that he was in Barren State, he finally got to know what kind of a force the Nantian House was.


    In the void faraway, a lineup of mighty ones appeared shining ever so brightly. They flew past right above the heads of the crowd below, paying no heed to anything.


    Everyone present knew that only members of the topmost forces dared pull a stunt like that as it was an act that would easily offend many otherwise. Those who were of the likes of Nantian House needed not to fear over offending anyone. They were capable and powerful enough to disregard such notions of respect.


    "People of the Xia Clan are here." Many leaped into the air again to go pay their respects. The Xia Clan, the largest clan within the Ruin City. They were a fearsome bunch, and the master of the clan was known to be of an imperceptible plane. Furthermore, an exceptionally talented younger generation appeared among the clan. A man named Xia Hou was of level seven Noble Plane. He could end up becoming the brightest star of all venturing on Dawn Road.


    Lingtian Sword Will descended from the skies far away after a while. A row of figures was seen descending onto the crowd riding on their swords, glittering with great brilliance. Many in the crowd cheered for the members of the Sword Saint Villa.


    A sword saint appeared in the Sword Saint Villa a few years ago. While the villa had its less than glorious days, an incredibly fearsome old man appeared within their ranks in this generation; a super mighty one who was listed on the Barren Sky Rankings.


    Many exceptional figures among the younger generations appeared as well, including Yan Jiu [1]. The reason why he was called this was because he was ranked the ninth among his peers. No one dared look down on such a name, as Yan Jiu was noted to be the heir to the sword saint, and one could take command of the Sword Saint Villa in days to come.


    The Mortal World warship appeared within the void shortly after. Top notch, mighty ones appeared one after another. It was to be another three days before Dawn Road was opened. Most arrived more than three days prior.


    Countless murmured amongst themselves. There were simply too many mighty ones, including those renowned ones. Many came with an air of confidence and assurance, but it was quickly diminished seeing their competitors.


    Ye Futian was there with the people of Mount Jiuxian. They mingled with those in the crowd and hardly anyone took any notice of them.


    Despite being descendants of sages themselves, there were simply too many of such background and caliber within the vast Barren State region. Many who just showed up were probably of a more impressive background than they were. Some even quipped that being showered with the presence of so many great ones and having their eyes opened was a reward in itself.


    People from the three schools and all clans of Divine Sky City had also arrived and ended up buried unceremoniously in the massive crowd.


    Long Mu saw such a scene from the void and felt stunned to the core of his being, feeling like he had been a frog at the bottom of the well for his entire life. But of course, his will grew strong. The days when Long Mu''s father''s name was known throughout Barren State and made it to the Barren Sky Rankings was simply glorious. He was but a child back then and was unable to witness the moment himself. He yearned to accomplish everything his father had ever done before. He also knew well, however, that his path was a difficult one.


    Long Mu came with people from the Starry School. Members of the Dragon clan and the Gu clan were there as well. Gu Yunxi was, of course, present. She heard from her father that Ye Futian was alive, and it was very possible that Headmaster Chen sent him on the journey to the Holy Road. As such, she wanted to see for herself if the peerless young man had indeed lived.


    People of the Jin clan were there, as well as those from Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School. The lineup emanated an impressive air.


    A girl of unparalleled beauty stood by the beach among the masses, gazing upon the sea before her eyes. She emanated an air that nobody could touch. She was the proud daughter of the Zhaixing House, Mu Zhiqiu. She would have been allowed entrance into the Holy Zhi Palace solely by recommendation from her brother, yet she chose to embark on her own journey instead. It had been a while since she lost to Ye Futian, and it was only recently that she had broken through the Noble Plane.


    There was a Holy Road among the nine located north of the Zhongzhou city area, a Holy Road named the Nether Road. The road was filled with mighty ones as well, even more so than the Dawn Road.


    Many, including people of the Zhuge family and Taixuan Mountain, as well as the ones of demon gods, appeared before the road. The road was known to be the three strongest roads among the nine.


    A row of figures stood quietly on the hill before the Holy Road. Two of which were ladies of extreme beauty, and one of them was especially beautiful.


    Many pairs of eyes turned to look at her. One look at her beautiful face was enough to have them feel as if they had fallen in love. If they were able to marry such a girl, it would have been of the highest honor. Yet, they knew that they would have never had a chance with such a girl. Only top geniuses from the most powerful clans would be capable of such a feat.


    She was named Hua Jieyu, who was said to be called a sister from a different mother by Zhuge Mingyue. She was studying in the Zhuge family at the moment. She was a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer out to test herself in the Holy Road!


    [1]: The ''jiu'' in Yan Jiu is written as the Chinese word for the number nine���ţ�

 511 Encountering Ones Archenemy

    The beginning of Divine Prefecture Calendar, Year 10006. All nine Holy Roads of Holy Zhi Palace were opened, and the event saw massive gatherings of mighty ones among the youths of Barren State at the roads themselves.


    Countless took the path across the Sea of Ruins. Some rode on rafts, some crossed through the void, and more powerful figures even took to the skies, either riding on demonic beasts or ritual implements. All headed for the same destination on the other side: Dawn Road.


    Ye Futian''s party was among the sea of people heading for the same place. While there were plenty of familiar faces who made it there, there were simply just too many people present within an area, so it was too large for them to meet. Everyone was only aware of the ones who took to the skies, and none of those who were familiar with Ye Futian noticed him around.


    "The Dawn Road," Ye Futian murmured as he cast his gaze forward. He was able to able to hear some gushing sounds from somewhere.


    "Look, behind us," someone somewhere yelled in astonishment.


    "A demon ape." Comments were heard here and there. Ye Futian turned around and looked behind him, and saw the group of people at his rear part way for something. An incredibly huge demonic beast was moving forward with most of its body submerged. While they were near the edge of the Sea of Ruins, the area was still deep. However, the creature was still able to keep its chest above the water, serving as a testament to its massive size.


    The beast seemed as if it was made out of gold. It shone with a blindingly brilliant golden sheen. Even its eyes were gold in color, casting a ferociously sharp gaze.


    "It''s a golden great ape. The heir of that old demon in Mount Taixing," somebody commented in an astonished tone.


    "Even demonic beasts can go study in the Holy Zhi Palace?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Depends if the palace wants to take that thing in. That is a golden great ape, an incredibly rare one among the apes, and no one knows why they are in Barren State instead of the Demon World," Qin Yin answered.


    "I heard that the ape has a name, a human name, in fact��Yuan Zhan." Li Xun added, "It''s still something rarely seen in Barren State, as most rare demonic beasts are captured and made into steeds. But that old demon from Mount Taixing is just too powerful, and hardly anyone would dare try to make a steed of that thing. As such, it practically has the whole mountain to itself."


    The gushing sounds didn''t stop. Huge waves were thrown about the sea. Yuan Zhan leaped all of the sudden, its hundred meter-tall body looking impossibly ferocious. It even kept shining with a golden sheen. It shrunk its body to the height of about two meters, making it seem like a giant. It then simply flew about the Sea of Ruins.


    Members of powerful and notable forces stared at Yuan Zhan with greedy eyes, thinking unsavory thoughts in their minds. Imagine how awe-inspiring one would become, if one would be able to take this ape as one''s steed.


    It was a pity that the old demon in Mount Taixing was something most forces would rather not mess with, even if they were someone capable of doing so. The old demon was known to have a feverish temper and performed many notable undertakings. It was only in recent years that it had winded down somewhat. Furthermore, the old demon was the only demonic beast to be listed on the Barren Sky Ranking, which spoke to the extent of its fearsomeness.


    Xuanyuan Bashan took a look at Yuan Zhan. The golden great ape was known for its domineering strength. Its defense capacity was also said to be peerless. At the moment, he wanted more than anything to see how well he could fight the ape, but he knew he probably would not be a match for it.


    "All walks of life are literally here indeed," Zui Qianchou commented with a smirk.


    "There is something I need to tell all of you," Ye Futian said.


    "What is it, Ye Mo?" Li Xun asked.


    "My real name is Ye Futian. Ye Mo is just an alias. I''ve pissed off some people and I had to use an alias instead. For that, I''m sorry," Ye Futian apologized as he cupped his hands. That fact would have been known sooner or later as they approached the Holy Road, and it became pointless to hide his identity any further.


    Li Xun and the others looked funny at the response, as they were unable to fathom what happened. Li Xun said, "No problem. It''s all the same knowing it now. It hardly affects anything."


    "My enemies are probably here too. If I''m unlucky to meet them on the road, I''ll remove myself from the party and save you all the trouble," Ye Futian said frankly as he cupped his hands again. Being struck by lightning and falling into Mount Jiuxian was all an accident after all.


    "We are now traveling as one party, and there is simply no need for you to be such a stranger. The reason we have all agreed to walk as one party was to look out for each other," Li Qingyi said with a smile. Although she was not all that familiar with Ye Futian, her days spent listening to Ye Futian play his qin made them friends with each other.


    "Qingyi is right. No need to mind about that. If you happen to run into any trouble, we''ll be there to help." Li Xun obviously did not mind, as Ye Futian was only of Upper Arcana Plane. As such, his enemies would have been of the Arcana Plane as well. There was simply no need to fear so long as the possible enemy was not a figure of Lower Noble Plane.


    Ye Futian gave a bitter smile. If Li Xun and the others knew that he had gone so far as to offend Nantian House and Mortal World, they would have probably thought otherwise.


    "Thank you." Ye Futian did not say anything further, but he was grateful for the treatment nonetheless.


    At the end of the Sea of Ruins, the Dawn Road appeared before their eyes. The place looked like somewhere out of this world, and there was a line of mighty ones who seemed impossibly strong standing guard at the shore. Anyone who stepped on Dawn Road would be given a holy badge. The other end of Dawn Road would open after three months, the passage of which would be granted so long as the one who made the journey possessed the holy badge. They would then arrive at the Holy Zhi Palace, meeting up with the others who arrived from the other Holy Roads.


    That was the one and only rule to be observed on the Holy Roads. One was given permission to do as one pleased the roads.


    It was also said that the holy badge served another purpose: those who had collected a lot of badges would be given preferential treatment, using the collected badges as payment. On the Holy Roads, however, they served no other purpose but to grant permission to be on the roads.


    It was natural for Ye Futian to hear of Qin Yin and the others talking about the holy badge. He took a look at the badge after acquiring it. There were no other rules on the roads, yet the rumors themselves would have almost guaranteed that the coming three months spent on the road would definitely be perilous.


    Ye Futian and his party stepped onto the Dawn Road. He looked forward, saying, "I once thought that the Holy Road was somewhere magical. One will be able to enter the Holy Zhi Palace after finishing their journey on the road. It''s only now that I know we are only granted a view of the place once the journey ends."


    "The Holy Zhi Palace isn''t some place you can just walk into. With all the mighty and powerful ones gathered on these roads, it''s a given that the journey will be anything but smooth," Li Qingyi added.


    "It isn''t the Holy Roads that caught the entire Barren State''s attention, but the Holy Zhi Palace itself. The Holy Roads might be called ''holy,'' but they are little else but roads," Ye Futian said with a smirk.


    "You have an interesting and unique way of seeing things. I do not ask for much. Being able to stand before the Holy Zhi Palace and admire the placed called the sacred ground of Barren State is enough for me. That and seeing what the proud sons and daughters who made it there are like." Li Qingyi''s eyes shone with admiration. That was her wish, as she knew very well that her level of talent would never grant her entry into the palace itself.


    "Your wish will come true," Ye Futian said and smiled at her.


    "Come one, there are cities and mysterious places to be seen on the road. Let''s go have a look," Qin Yin said.


    At the moment, the massive gathering of people glittered as they made their way forward. The crowd gradually dispersed, going on their way to the Dawn Road.


    Ye Futian came across their first city on the way. The gates of the city were, however, guarded by a line of mighty figures. Many looked irritated right before the gates.


    The mighty ones were none other than members of the Nantian House, who were also the first to reach the city, and went on to take the gates as their own. They went about recruiting followers and denied entry to the city to everyone. Those who wanted to enter were to surrender their holy badges.


    "They took the city." Ye Futian wore a troubled look on his face as he looked at the city gates from afar. He never expected anyone to be able to do that.


    "A common occurrence on the Holy Roads, and it is not just the Nantian House that is doing something like this. All the other top-level figures are making their way to other cities on the road with obvious intentions of taking them for their own as well," Qin Yin elaborated.


    "With so many walking the same path, wouldn''t it be rather easy to take on these forces if people were to just gather their strength?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Who is going to take the lead then?" Li Xun smirked as he asked, "Furthermore, anyone who dares to do so would need to be incredibly powerful themselves. If they were to force their way into the place or enter through other means, those guarding the place would probably respond with lethal force. But, of course, if someone very powerful wanted to enter the cities, they would simply let those powerful ones pass."


    "Look, over there." Li Qingyi pointed at the crowd outside the city and a few places where people were fighting. It was apparent that some insisted on not handing over their own badges, wanting to take badges of someone else. For people who were more powerful, doing so would have been easier than going against the Nantian House.


    Such were the minds of people. Even if they were angry about the treatment they received, they would simply swallow their frustrations in front of the powerful ones and go on to prey on those weaker than themselves.


    A group of people was walking in the direction of Ye Futian''s party. The group was a huge one, both in number and bearing, and they went to gauge his party. Qin Yin and the rest wore cold expressions and glared at them. The group smirked and walked away instead of moving against them. They were apparently wary of Ye Futian''s party, not knowing how powerful his party was.


    But what happened attracted the attention of many nonetheless. Men from Nine Cloud Palace were seen somewhere outside the city, and they looked furious. Despite being mighty ones of Noble Plane levels from the topmost force renowned throughout Divine Sky City, they were denied entry regardless. It was an immense insult, but they had heard of Nantian House and knew that Nine Cloud Palace was simply incapable of being compared to them.


    At the moment, Jin Yunlang scanned the crowd and saw Ye Futian''s party. Their pupils dilated somewhat when his eyes fell on Ye Futian. He is still alive?


    Chen Yuan had announced the news regarding Ye Futian''s death. A possibility came to Jin Yunlang''s mind immediately. His eyes sparkled though his spine shivered. Chen Yuan, you old fox. You sent Ye Futian away then.


    "Is that Ye Futian, the Son of Starry School?" The others became aware of him and approached him in a flash. Ye Futian saw the others and raised his eyebrows. What a small world indeed. There were too many people scattered all over the place while traversing the Sea of Ruins. Now that they made it there, familiar faces were seen indeed.


    The mighty ones from Nine Cloud Palace glared at Ye Futian. Jin Yunlang said with an incredibly cold expression, "So you are alive."


    "And that disappoints you," Ye Futian said with a smirk. Qin Yin and the others looked troubled. Those people looked very powerful. Ye Futian, so your enemies are all Noble Plane figures?


    "Then I will just have you die for real." Murderous intent was prevalent in Jin Yunlang''s eyes.


    Ye Futian glared at Jin Yunlang and was able to feel the air around him. He then said with a smirk, "So your ego''s been inflated, making it into the Noble Plane, hm? Have you forgotten the lesson back at the martial arts battlefield, wanting so bad to go see Jin Yunxiao then?"


    Jin Yunlang saw the sarcasm in Ye Futian''s eyes and looked at the ones around Ye Futian. A vicious smirk appeared on his face, before he uttered in a loud voice, "That guy has the lineage of the saint on him!"

 512 Another Figh

    Hearing Jin Yunlang''s words, countless eyes looked toward Ye Futian.


    The Saint''s heritage?


    At this moment, people from the Nantian House also turned in the same direction. Two youths among them both narrowed their eyes at the sight of Ye Futian. One shook slightly, and his eyes looked very cold with murderous intent.


    "Ye Futian!" Nan Yu would never forget about being humiliated on the Sky Mountain where he was tied on the cliffs by Ye Futian''s spell of vines.


    "Who is he?" a youth asked. This was a very handsome man who was one of the most talented among Nantian House''s young generation. His name was Nan Hao. Even Nan Feng who had been to the Eastern Barren Territory couldn''t be compared with him.


    "He is the one who got the two Emperors'' Ukiyo in the Eastern Barren Territory," said Nan Feng beside Nan Hao. When in the Eastern Barren Territory, Nan Feng had already entered Arcana Plane. Now he had entered the eighth level of Noble Plane.


    "He is Zhuge Mingyue''s junior brother and Hua Jieyu''s boyfriend?" Nan Hao looked surprised. Ye Futian''s name immediately reminded him of Zhuge Mingyue and Hua Jieyu who were far more famous in the Barren State than Ye Futian. Though he hadn''t been to the Eastern Barren State before, Nan Hao heard about Ye Futian who solved the mystery left by the two Emperors.


    "Yes," said Nan Feng.


    "I am going to kill him," Nan Yu said coldly.


    "Then go," Nan Hao said nonchalantly. Nan Yu was embarrassed. He was not Ye Futian''s opponent at all now. How could he win this time?


    He turned to Nan Hao. Nan Hao looked to the distance and said indifferently, "You are taught to improve both your skills and temper, but how did you do these years? Moreover, he is both Zhuge Mingyue''s junior brother and Hua Jieyu''s boyfriend. He can''t be killed by Nantian House."


    Zhuge Mingyue and Hua Jieyu both had a more elevated status than he did. The Zhuge Family would play a more and more important role in the future and Zhuge Mingyue was the secret successor, while Hua Jieyu had many influential suitors. Therefore, if they killed Ye Futian to feel better now, the consequences wouldn''t be worth it.


    "He came for the Holy Road. If he manages to pass through the Holy Road and arrive in the Holy Zhi Palace, he might meet Zhuge Mingyue''s group," Nan Yu said to Nan Hao.


    "But you said he was from a low clan, didn''t you? Why have scruples?" Nan Hao laughed contemptuously. Nan Feng and Nan Yu became speechless. They did regard Ye Futian as some unknown guy from low clans, but they were really shocked by Ye Futian''s strength in the battle on the Sky Mountain.


    Seeing their expression, Nan Hao laughed and said, "Rest assured. I actually hope he won''t disappoint me. If he goes out of the Holy Road and meets with Zhuge Mingyue''s group, that will be much more interesting. Don''t forget Gu Dongliu from the Eastern Barren Territory who challenged that young city lord and failed. He is Ye Futian''s senior brother, isn''t he?"


    "Yes." Nan Feng nodded. When going to the Eastern Barren Territory, they called them low clans but were humiliated by Gu Dongliu. That scholarly youth was a madman. He had just entered into the Sage Plane but dared to challenge that young city lord. Wasn''t he crazy?


    That city lord was on the top ten of the Barren State''s list.


    "Therefore, just let nature take its course." Nan Hao smiled. He would like to see how those from the Eastern Barren Territory would stir the Barren State.


    Nan Yu clenched his fists with a strong murderous intent. He couldn''t refute Nan Hao''s words and just nodded.


    Hearing Jin Yunlang''s words, Ye Futian didn''t react immediately. He slowly narrowed his eyes and looked at Jin Yunlang coldly. He thought that Jin Yunlang would directly fight and didn''t expect that Jin Yunlang would play tricks on him.


    Seeing many people heading toward him, Ye Futian laughed. "I did defeat you before, but you are in Noble Plane now. Why do you still play such tricks? Why are you so afraid of me?"


    The surrounding people all stopped and looked at Jin Yunlang. Ye Futian might be right. Perhaps Jin Yunlang just wanted to kill him through others'' hands. It wasn''t so easy to get the heritage of Saints.


    Sharp gold light shot out from Jin Yunlang''s eyes. Strong cultivators from the Jin Family warned people around Ye Futian, "This is just between us. Are you sure you want to join this battle?"


    These people weren''t from the Starry School.


    Ye Futian looked around. Many people doubted Jin Yunlang''s words, but that didn''t mean they would let Ye Futian go.


    Qin Yin frowned. Ye Futian said that his enemy was coming, and he was right.


    "He is our companion," Li Qingyi claimed hurriedly. Her words attracted people''s attention. Zui Qianchou laughed. These days, Li Qingyi got along well with Ye Futian, so she was trying to protect Ye Futian by saying that. She was afraid that the others would give up Ye Futian.


    "Yes, he is," Qin Yin also claimed after hearing Li Qingyi.


    "Mr. Ye, leave now!" Li Qingyi signaled Ye Futian.


    "We met by chance. You don''t need to worry about me. Anyway, thanks," said Ye Futian loudly. Then he responded to Li Qingyi secretly, "If it doesn''t work, you people just go. Don''t get hurt because of me!" Then he walked away, not because he was heartless but because Jin Yunlang''s words attracted too many people''s attention. Even the Nantian House noticed him, which would threaten the people from Mount Jiuxian. If he left, people would pay attention to him.


    Ye Futian was right. When he, Yu Sheng, and the others retreated, many people walked toward them.


    With a flash, Ye Futian took out a flying boat. Everyone stepped on and then the flying boat set out at an amazing speed.


    "Chase them!" someone from the Nine Cloud Palace ordered immediately.


    But Qin Yin said, "Stay!" A war soon broke out between the two parties.


    In the crowd, a girl in white rode her ritual implement, heading toward Ye Futian''s direction like lightning.


    Ye Futian moved very quickly. People constantly came behind him, but what confused Ye Futian was Nantian House''s reaction. He saw Nan Feng and Nan Yu. Didn''t they want to take revenge?


    "That is a Sage ritual implement!" Seeing the ritual implement Ye Futian used to escape, people behind him looked a little greedy. They wouldn''t see Ye Futian''s sneer. Ye Futian didn''t go in full speed on purpose.


    Soon, they reached a mountain and he went up through the mountain road. Many people continued to chase him. After a while, Ye Futian stopped on a giant stone, staring at people coming behind coldly.


    Suddenly, an explosion was heard from behind. Ye Futian was shocked and looked up at the sky behind him. He saw starry lights descend. Strong cultivators screamed constantly. They were crushed toward the cliffs.


    "Who is it?" a cultivator in Noble Planed roared. A thunder spell swept out. He could only see giant stars crashing down very fast. It crashed into him, forcing him down. He spat out blood.


    A beautiful figure appeared before Ye Futian. The starry lights around her made her look brilliant. Behind the figure was some golden blazing light. It was a powerful Noble from the Nine Cloud Palace. The woman turned back and glanced at the Noble indifferently. Suddenly, that Noble slowed as if he was moving in a marsh. He could only feel that both his body and will were deterred by horrible pressure as if he was in a starry space.


    Meteorites pressed down like shooting stars. That Noble roared angrily like a giant golden roc. Rumbles were heard constantly and then the golden roc''s wings were broken. That Noble spat out blood continually and was smashed down.


    "You are from the Zhaixing House." The Noble looked up at the beautiful woman and then blacked out.


    The woman turned back. There seemed to be stars in her eyes. Though in very simple clothes, she still looked beautiful like a goddess. Even Gu Yunxi had a high opinion of this woman.


    "Violent!" Yu Sheng blinked his eyes.


    Ye Futian rubbed his brow and nodded. "She is violent indeed." In the blink of an eye, this woman cleared the place for him.


    "And beautiful." Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian and said, "Have any thoughts?"''


    Ye Futian was speechless. He blinked and stared at Yu Sheng. "What are you thinking about?"


    "I mean she could be your maid." Yu Sheng stared back at Ye Futian. Who thought too much?


    "Chief Chen said that the Zhaixing House once promised that they would protect the inheritor of the Divine Path. She is from the Zhaixing House. Of course, she would help you," said Yu Sheng, looking at Mu Zhiqiu. Ye Futian was astonished. Yu Sheng thought much more than him and what he said actually sounded reasonable. Moreover, Mu Zhiqiu''s strength was really extraordinary. No wonder she was known as the most talented woman of the Zhaixing House.


    Mu Zhiqiu stood in the sky and stared at Ye Futian''s group indifferently. She didn''t show any emotion in reaction to Yu Sheng''s words. That was her personality.


    "Where is the Polearm of Divine Destruction?" asked Mu Zhiqiu.


    "Is the Zhaixing House like this?" Ye Futian said, "The Polearm of Divine Destruction is ours now and you still want to take it back?"


    "The Polearm Divine Destruction means a lot to us. How about another fight? If I defeat you, I won''t hurt you, but just take it back," Mu Zhiqiu suggested. In addition to wanting the Polearm of Divine Destruction, she also wanted to fight Ye Futian again.


    "You have entered Noble Plane and made a breakthrough in the great realm. Isn''t it unfair for you to fight with me?" said Ye Futian.


    "You can use the Divine Destruction." Mu Zhiqiu looked at Ye Futian, thinking that this guy was really hypocritical. He once fought with her brother with the Divine Destruction. Though he was defeated, his strength was still impressive. He definitely could be her opponent.


    "What if you lose again?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I won''t mention the Divine Destruction again," replied Mu Zhiqiu.


    "That''s all?" Ye Futian asked. But Mu Zhiqiu already started. She stepped out and there seemed to be a starry world in her eyes. All of a sudden, the sky turned into a night sky filled with stars.


    "And you can be the ruler of the Divine Path," Mu Zhiqiu added indifferently. She had started, not allowing Ye Futian to refuse.


    Ye Futian reached out his hands. The Polearm of Divine Destruction appeared in his hands with blazing light. The ritual implement weighed forty-five thousand kilograms. It projected horrible starry light which enveloped Ye Futian''s body and formed a shapeless star storm. "Both are mine," said Ye Futian. His temperament suddenly changed.

 513 Want a City

    Mu Zhiqiu had just entered the Noble Plane. She was only at the lowest level, but when she released her power, she was still couldn''t be compared to that day at the Zhaixing House.


    She was extremely talented. Because of luck, she was able to borrow Sage Will. Her combat ability was even stronger and regular Noble figures weren''t her match. Some of the people that she''d crushed were Grade-8 Nobles who were stronger than her, but they still fell from one hit. After all, she could enter the Holy Zhi Palace directly. Her talent was recognized by the seniors there, so one could imagine how powerful she was. Thus, Yu Sheng said her combat was aggressive and hoped Ye Futian could make her a maid.


    Right now, starry light flowed. The air turned into a world of stars. This was her Celestial Dharma. There were also stars in her deep eyes that had now become Noble Will. It pressed down against Ye Futian''s mind. He suddenly felt like he couldn''t move. He knew his mind was being restricted by the Noble Will.


    The Noble Will that he''d comprehended before bloomed to resist this weight. Blinding light flowed into the Polearm of Divine Destruction. It trembled slightly and a huge boom sounded. The surrounding mountain exploded. Spiritual Qi transformed into meteorites and spun around Ye Futian like a horrible storm. It contained lightning too, making the air extremely tense.


    They''d both comprehended the Celestial Way so their abilities were similar. The two starry storms soon collided in the vast space, clashing continuously with horrible sounds.


    Yu Sheng and the others retreated into the distance, but neither Mu Zhiqiu nor Ye Futian acted. They kept standing there. Mu Zhiqiu was dressed in light-colored clothing and her long hair flew in the wind. Ye Futian''s white robe fluttered. He gripped the Polearm tightly and transformed it into a long staff that he stood on the ground. The starry storm around him was terrifying.


    The Celestial Way seemed to appear in Ye Futian''s mind. Meteorites crashed down wildly. But in that illusory scene, Ye Futian gripped his Polearm and sacred light shone. The meteorites exploded under the Polearm''s attacks, unable to hurt his mind.


    In the outside world, stones and boulders exploded. The ground underfoot cracked and crumbled. The two hovered in the air, still staring at each other. The mountain crumbled wildly and joined the stone windstorm. Around them, a horrible scene appeared. Everything had turned into dust and smoke.


    Yu Sheng''s group retreated once again. Looking at that chaotic space from a distance, it seemed to have been swallowed up. They could barely see it.


    At that time, they saw a staff''s shadow appear in the chaotic space. It had transformed to thousands of meters long and crashed against the starry space. Stars shattered. When the staff fell down, the stars were destroyed, but the space was still chaotic. Dust and dirt flew.


    A long while later, when everything subsided, the Polearm disappeared. The two were still standing in place as if they hadn''t budged. However, blood trickled from Mu Zhiqiu''s lips. Paired with her features, it looked chillingly beautiful.


    Mu Zhiqiu stared hard at Ye Futian. Then she stepped forward and landed before Ye Futian. Seeing those features, Ye Futian had the urge to wipe her blood away. "Seeing someone and finding them loveable" was probably describing this scene.


    "What are you looking at?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Your plane is enough for you to comprehend your own Noble Will. After that, your plane will rise. Then with your Polearm, barely anyone on the Holy Road can be your match," Mu Zhiqiu said softly. Ye Futian had comprehended many Noble Wills before, but they weren''t very deep or collected. They couldn''t be fused with his abilities and had to use outside help.


    He was strong with the Polearm, but his Noble Will was weaker. If he comprehended it, his combat ability could increase. If he tried for the Noble Plane in the future, he would have no obstacles.


    "I''m in Grade-7 Arcana Plane now. Will there be a problem?" Ye Futian asked. He naturally understood that his Noble Will now wasn''t true Noble Will, just like how Mu Zhiqiu had used Sage Will earlier. Noble Will could only be used by Nobles.


    "The talented ones can comprehend it earlier so there won''t be any problems," Mu Zhuqiu said. "Many prides can comprehend it in the Arcana Plane. Then there aren''t any obstacles when they break into the Noble Plane. Your talent is more extraordinary. Even if you''re in Grade-8 or Grade-7, it''s still possible. After all, you''ve inherited the Divine Path."


    "So you admit it?" Ye Futian smiled.


    "I keep my words. I will listen to you on the Holy Road." Mu Zhiqiu went behind Ye Futian and stood there quietly. She didn''t ask for the Polearm, but after the Holy Road, she would continue cultivating. She would definitely defeat this youth.


    Her grandfather had said that she was talented, but she could still meet even more talented people while cultivating. In that case, she should use them as targets and work to surpass them.


    Ye Futian chuckled. This girl was quite cute. If Mu Zhiqiu knew his impression of her, she might be mortified.


    "Your brother is from the Holy Zhi Palace. Is there any way to raise in cultivation plane on the Holy Road?" Ye Futian asked Mu Zhiqiu. He wasn''t worried about passing the Holy Road. Only those in or below the Noble Plane were here so it couldn''t restrict him. Plus, he''d only come to challenge himself. He didn''t have to go cultivate in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Everything was for cultivation.


    Mu Zhiqiu looked at Ye Futian. She indeed knew a hidden secret that only those who entered the Holy Zhi Palace would know. Of course, this secret was useless for her. She was talented, but she was only in the lowest grade of the Noble Plane. There were also those in Grade-8 or Grade-7. She couldn''t do it when there were so many powerful people here.


    "What do you know?" Ye Futian asked after seeing her eyes.


    Mu Zhiqiu took out a holy badge. Light flowed across it as if it contained some strange power.


    "He once said that there are many cultivation places on the Holy Road. This may help with cultivation, but that''s for regular people. You''re the inheritor of the Divine Path. Looking for cultivation relics won''t help you much," Mu Zhiqiu whispered. "But this holy badge contains a secret. It''s the special item of the Holy Zhi Palace. After you exit, you have to return it to them. It''s rumored that if you have many holy badges, you can exchange it for something good. That''s true, but that''s not the biggest secret. Instead, it lies with the badge itself."


    "The badge itself?" Ye Futian took out his badge with a strange expression.


    "It''s a key. You can''t see anything when you only have one, but when you have enough holy badges, they will change and you''ll understand the mystery of the Holy Road. You can even open a secret area hidden by the Holy Zhi Palace on the road," Mu Zhiqiu said. "There''s one on each of the nine roads. In fact, they''re within the city on the road. Nine is the critical number. There are nine cities on each road. This means that there are 81 treasures on the Holy Road."


    Ye Futian thought of how the Nantian House had closed the city and required holy badges to enter. Qin Yin also said that all top figures would do this to enter the Holy Road. Was it because of this?


    "How many do you need?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I don''t know the specifics, but it''s a terrifying number. This is a secret, but most top figures know about it. Even so, it''s still difficult to do. It''s useless for regular people even if they find out," Mu Zhiqiu answered softly. Ye Futian understood, obviously. Even if regular people knew that robbing holy badges could open up a huge secret field, they had no way of robbing them. It would be suicide.


    "So the Holy Road is prepared just to challenge those at the top," Ye Futian said, sighing. If they needed a lot of holy badges, how many times would they have to fight? This wasn''t realistic. It was difficult even for top figures, which was why they thought to take over cities.


    "Why did the Holy Zhi Palace open the Holy Road?" Mu Zhiqiu asked.


    Ye Futian froze and then understood what she meant. This was how the cultivation world was. Every force that admitted disciples was like this, not just the Holy Zhi Palace. Most people were only there to complement the top. All strong cultivators in the Barren State were in action this time, but the regular prides were only to add to the number.


    Geniuses depended on the context too. For example, many of the talents from the Divine Sky City didn''t seem very brilliant here.


    "When the Holy Road opens, the Barren State moves. Many think this is a chance for them, but that''s only what they think. In reality, they''re stepping stones for the others." Mu Zhiqiu''s words were straightforward. Many would find this cruel, but Ye Futian knew it was the truth.


    "You''re right. It''s would be uninteresting to just complement the others on this path," Ye Futian said, chuckling. Mu Zhiqiu looked at him, but Ye Futian stepped forward and continued saying, "Since I''m here, I must leave my footprints on the Holy Road."


    Looking at Ye Futian''s back, Mu Zhiqiu realized that Ye Futian wasn''t satisfied with being lonely. He was so talented. She guessed that if he had the Polearm, he could battle with Grade-8 Noble talents. Even then, he still wasn''t the cream of the crop here, unless he entered the Noble Plane.


    Mu Zhiqiu caught up to Ye Futian. Yu Sheng and the others also followed.


    "What do you want to do?" Mu Zhiqiu asked.


    "I want a city," Ye Futian replied. Those top figures all ruled over cities like kings. He also wanted one. That would be his goal for the Holy Road!

 514 Relic Killer

    Ye Futian went back. Because he was worried that the Nantian House would try to kill him, which would affect Li Qingyi and the others, he left alone. However, the Nantian House hadn''t chased after him for some reason, so he naturally had to go check on Li Qingyi''s group. When he went back to the original place, he didn''t see them. Ye Futian''s group continued traveling and caught up midway.


    "Miss Qin," Ye Futian said to Qin Yin and the others, "thank you. Are you all alright?"


    Qin Yin''s group turned towards Ye Futian. Many people around him frowned, not very happy. After all, Ye Futian was a stranger and only in the Arcana Plane. They''d done enough to help Ye Futian with that battle. However, Li Qingyi was overjoyed. Earlier, she''d worried if Ye Futian could escape and had wanted to check, but Qin Yin and the others didn''t want to go look for him. She couldn''t do anything.


    "It''s fine." Qin Yin shook her head. Her gaze fell beside Ye Futian to Mu Zhiqiu. For people like her, even if she wore something plain, people would still notice her immediately. She was too pretty. Her plain clothes couldn''t hide her beauty.


    The others noticed her too. In the blink of an eye, such a beauty had appeared beside Ye Futian. She was even prettier than Qin Yin.


    "This is my friend, Mu Zhiqiu," Ye Futian introduced, noticing everyone''s gazes.


    Qin Yin nodded and looked away. "Since you''re back, let''s go together," she said to Ye Futian. With that, she continued walking. The people of the three main cities stared deeply at Ye Futian.


    "Let''s go," Li Xun said, smiling and nodding at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian started walking with them, but he felt something odd. He''d always been sensitive. Qin Yin''s group was fine from the earlier battle, but they must have some thoughts now, especially since Ye Futian came back to find them. They must''ve thought he was looking for protection.


    Smiling, he shook his head. He didn''t mind. After all, it was normal. If Qin Yin became colder, they might just split right now. There was no need to have Ye Futian keep following them. This little princess was being nice enough.


    "You run pretty fast and come back fast too." Zhuo Jun, standing behind Li Xun with his arms across his chest, glanced at Ye Futian in mockery. As the top Arcana Plane figure of the White Sovereign City''s City Lord Office, he didn''t think much of Ye Futian, especially the fact that he even had the nerve to come back today.


    "Zhuo Jun." Li Qingyi glanced at Zhuo Jun before he finally looked away and continued walking.


    "Mr. Ye, don''t mind him," Li Qingyi said, smiling. "Earlier, people said that you have the Saint''s inheritance. You left to protect us."


    "Maybe I really did fear dying," Ye Futian joked. He didn''t mind and didn''t explain.


    "One''s music expresses one''s mind. You''re not like that." Li Qingyi shook her head.


    "Thank you," Ye Futian said. "Qingyi, you can just call me Futian."


    "Okay." Li Qingyi smiled and nodded. In the front, Zhuo Jun pursed his lips. Ye Futian really knew how to get closer with people. Li Qingyi''s status in the White Imperial City was comparable to Li Xun. She was the city lord''s daughter after all. Didn''t Ye Futian think he was reaching too far?


    Mu Zhiqiu just watched quietly in the back. She had an odd feeling. Ye Futian was different from the other talents she''d seen before, but she couldn''t pinpoint exactly what she was feeling.


    ��


    The countless groups spread throughout the Holy Road. Battles erupted everywhere. Most people were hurrying towards the nine cities while the top forces were doing everything to get the holy badges. According to rumors, eight cities had been taken over already. Those top figures stayed there, ruling the city.


    Only a city named Flaming Prison City remained. Everyone competed for it so countless people surged into it. It became the most populated city. Of course, there were still many people in the wilderness. They trained, fought, and tried to find the right timing.


    Ye Futian''s group entered the Flaming Prison City. It was already bustling and it was rumored that people were buying holy badges at a high cost. Since people were buying it, others would try stealing them. Some coldblooded killers appeared, hunting the weak for their treasures and holy badges. It was bloody.


    On the Holy Road, Ye Futian felt deeply that it was too dangerous to be here alone. He could get killed if he didn''t pay attention. His group gave off a powerful feeling but was still watched by others. No wonder Qin Yin of Mount Jiuxian would invite strong cultivators from the top three cities to travel together.


    "Where are we going?" Xie Wuji, young city lord of the Heavenly City, asked Qin Yin.


    "Go find a relic," Ye Futian said. Everyone turned towards him.


    "It''s not your place to speak." The people of the Heavenly City gazed at him coldly. They didn''t have anything to do with Ye Futian. Their city lord had asked Qin Yin, not Ye Futian.


    But Qin Yin gazed at Ye Futian, so he said, "I heard that there are many relics on the Holy Road. I can decode them."


    "Those are big words." Xuan Yuanba scanned Ye Futian.


    Qin Yin also had an odd expression. Ye Futian''s words were indeed a bit too much. How could someone in the Arcana Plane say that he could decode many relics?


    "Let him try," Li Xun said. "We came to the Holy Road to cultivate. Relics are a must."


    "Yes." Qin Yin nodded in agreement. "Go check."


    There were many relics in Flaming Prison City, so it was easy to find. They came to some ruins. There was a huge stone wall standing above the rubble. Many cultivators were gathered around it. Looking at the stone wall, one could see 36 words in one line. The words were like snakes or dragons. Each word contained so much power and vitality that it seemed to come to life.


    "A sword technique," Xiao Wuji said. He was a swordsman-in-training and was obviously sensitive to these. "The 36 words form a sword technique and contain sword art. A Sage must have left it behind."


    Many of the relics on the Holy Road were from people in the Sage Plane. They were extremely valuable to most.


    Many people sat cross-legged before the stone wall as they tried to comprehend it. Xie Wuji''s eyes were also glued to it. In addition to him, Zui Qianqiu walked up too, expression serious.


    Ye Wuchen naturally felt it too, but he didn''t look at the wall. Instead, he looked to Ye Futian. He knew from their time in the Ancient Barren World that Ye Futian was practically a relic killer.


    Using Freedom Meditation, everything became clear to Ye Futian. The words seemed to come alive, showing someone practicing sword techniques. Ye Futian wasn''t a swordsman, but he could still feel the sword art.


    "Wuchen," Ye Futian said.


    Ye Wuchen immediately understood. He sat down and then Ye Futian pulled out his guqin. Music rang out with an artistic conception melded into it. He passed what he saw to Ye Wuchen through the music. The image was extremely clear. It was as if Ye Wuchen had comprehended it himself. He was submerged in the swordsmanship.


    Many people looked coldly at Ye Futian. This guy was disturbing their cultivation. But there seemed to be some special artistic conception in the song, like someone practicing swordsmanship��


    Zhuo Jun stared coldly at him. "What are you doing? Stop!" he roared. Did Ye Futian want everyone to get angry?


    "Shut up." Yu Sheng glanced at him. At this time, the song''s artistic conception was getting stronger. Everyone present could feel it. They saw someone practicing swordsmanship before them. When they looked back at the stone wall, it became more comprehensible. The stone wall seemed to come to life.


    Zhuo Jun walked over, but Zui Qianqiu stopped him. "Don''t interrupt him."


    Zhuo Jun froze. Then he realized that many of the swordsman-in-training present all had strands of Sword Intent coming out of them. They seemed to be cultivating.


    Li Xun and Qin Yin weren''t swordsmen, but they were Nobles. As the artistic conception grew clearer, they could feel it and both stared at Ye Futian in shock. He''d really decoded the relic in such a short time.


    But this guy told everyone instead of comprehending it alone to cultivate. What was he thinking?


    Mu Zhiqiu looked at Ye Futian, thinking back to what Ye Futian had said. He wanted a city, but he was still too far away with his current plane. Did he want to get a city in this way?


    A long while later, the music stopped, but no one stopped comprehending. Sword Intent was sharp on everyone. The entire sky was filled with Sword Intent. As for how much one could comprehend depended on themselves.


    Ye Futian had just opened the door.


    Finally, someone stopped and looked over at Ye Futian. He put his hands together politely. "Thank you."


    Ye Futian nodded, smiling.


    Others stopped as well and bowed to Ye Futian. "Thank you, sir."


    "Can I know your name?"


    Many people thanked Ye Futian since he''d helped them comprehend the relic.


    Xie Wuji and the others from the Heavenly City stared hard at Ye Futian, but they also felt unhappy. Since Ye Futian could comprehend the relic, why did he give it to everyone instead of just them?


    "I am Ye Futian. This is nothing, no need to thank me." Ye Futian rose with a smile. "The Holy Road has opened and many talents from the Barren State have come for the adventure but died here. You are all famous figures from all over, but how many can truly enter the Holy Zhi Palace? It''s more worth it to raise your cultivation plane with the Holy Road."


    Many people nodded. He made sense.


    "Farewell," Ye Futian said. Then he turned to leave.


    Qin Yin''s group looked at him with slightly different expressions. Zhuo Jun''s expression was more uncomfortable. Was it a coincidence that Ye Futian could do this?


    Li Qingyi was impressed. She caught up to Ye Futian. "Where are we going?"


    "The next relic," Ye Futian said. The others'' hearts trembled. What was he planning?


    "Interesting." Zui Qianqiu smiled. He was curious. Ye Futian clearly wasn''t doing it for his own cultivation, so what was his goal?

 515 Master Ye

    In the Flaming Prison City, a group of people started to move rapidly, all moving in the same direction. These people were secretly whispering, as though sharing a secret.


    There were other people who saw the commotion and was puzzled. What had happened? Could it be that something major was happening within the city? As they thought about this, the people walking on the road also started to move towards that direction. Along the way, they heard the people rushing there say, "Is it really true that someone has consecutively solved 18 relics?"


    "Indeed, the rumors say that. Within one day, he has consecutively solved 18 relics. Not just that, after he had solved it, he allowed those in the relic to stay and decipher it together. All those cultivating in the relics have received help to decipher the relics'' power and increase their strength."


    These voices spread like wildfire, but there were some who had mocking expressions, as though sneering. Where would there be such an idiot to consecutively solve 18 relics and share it with others?


    Cultivators were mostly selfish. Martial Arts cultivation was the basis for one''s survival, why would there be someone who would teach others to cultivate? If this wasn''t stupidity, what was? It was probably someone who exaggerated the truth and created these rumors.


    However, even if they suspected it, they continued in the direction, just to watch the commotion. The place where the crowd gathered was a palace. In the palace, there was a mountain, even though the mountain was not tall, there were many stone plates on it. There were inscriptions and drawings on these stone plates, and there was an enormous crowd here, all closing their eyes, cultivating and feeling the aura.


    On a giant stone, there was a handsome figure sitting quietly on a stone plate, as though deciphering it. On the stones around him, there were many figures standing. They were Yu Sheng, Qin Yin, and the rest of them. Mu Zhiqiu was also standing not far behind Ye Futian.


    At this time, Qin Yin, Xuanyuan Bashan of the Xuanyuan City, or even Xie Wuji of the Heavenly City were all extremely astounded. They had followed Ye Futian all the way and witnessed him solving 18 relics. The feeling was indescribable. Previously, they had only allowed Ye Futian to follow by their side, but only because he was Li Xun''s follower.


    Moreover, when Ye Futian had escaped during the battle with the Nine Cloud Palace and come back afterward, they were extremely unhappy and thought that Ye Futian was just using them for protection. However, this Arcana Plane cultivator had solved 18 relics in one day and guided many people in their cultivation, including all of them. They had all benefited from his guidance.


    Such potential was unheard of. This led them to suspect if what the Nine Cloud Palace had said about the divine teachings was actually real.


    Among them, Zhuo Jun''s expression was the most ghastly. Ye Futian''s cultivation level was even lower than him, he had humiliated Ye Futian before and looked down on him. Now, Ye Futian had become the focus of everyone''s attention. Not just from them, but also the many geniuses from the Barren State.


    Presently, in the area, over a thousand people had gathered. On top of that, they had all decided to continue following Ye Futian. With him around, what relic could not be solved? If he could solve 18 relics in one day, how much could his strength go up in three months?


    More and more people started to gather. When they heard about Ye Futian''s achievements, they were equally stunned. There was actually someone with such terrifying perception? Or could it be that he had some unique methods?


    Currently, Ye Futian was quietly cultivating and deciphering. This relic resonated with the Celestial Way that he cultivated in, so he had some insights.


    "Master Ye, when will you be moving to the next relic?" someone asked Ye Futian. Even though Ye Futian was only in the Arcana Plane, they still addressed him as Master Ye, and many people felt that it was an appropriate way to address him.


    Ye Futian''s eyes opened and he said, "I have had some enlightenment and will need some time to cultivate, so I will not be going to the next relic for some time. You can go ahead if you want."


    "It''s only natural that Master Ye wishes to cultivate. I am not in a hurry, so I will wait here for Master Ye," the Noble Plane cultivator saluted him and said. He had already been following Ye Futian for over ten relics and had received a lot of benefits, so he was respectful towards Ye Futian. After all, he was receiving a favor from him.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and continued cultivating, yet at that moment, he heard a voice say, "Since you have such potential, why do you need to waste time here? Isn''t it the same to go straight to the next relic and decipher it?"


    The message was jarring, yet there were others who agreed with it and said, "That''s right, if you wait until you''ve deciphered more relics to cultivate, maybe it might be more helpful.


    Behind Ye Futian, Mu Zhiqiu, Yu Sheng and the rest frowned. Even Xuanyuan Bashan and those who were not that close to Ye Futian found it jarring, and he coldly said, "Why can''t Ye Futian cultivate if he has some insight?"


    The other party''s gaze swept towards Xuanyuan Bashan and replied cruelly, "Can''t you see that there are so many people waiting for him? If he cultivates for a month or two, won''t all the people here be wasting our time?"


    The voice was inciting, and even though it was an extremely selfish thought, the person dragged other people into it, causing many people to look at Ye Futian, evidently with the same thoughts.


    "You can get lost." A cold glare appeared in Mu Zhiqiu''s beautiful eyes. Ye Futian was helping them with their cultivation, but he was now being taken for granted and had an obligation to help them solve the relics? Wasting their time? Who asked them to stay?


    "How arrogant. Everyone, since this person is able to decipher the relics, he must have some secret method. Why don''t we capture him and force him to tell us and we won''t have to be afraid that he will not continue to solve the relics," the person continued to incite the crowd.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s eyes opened again and he stared emotionlessly at the other party. Any person would have a selfish side, he helped them to decipher the relics without asking for anything in return, but some people would not be appreciative and only think of how to obtain more benefits.


    "Is that how everyone feels?" Ye Futian looked extremely disappointed. As he looked at the crowd, many of them fell silent. Why would anyone not want to increase their strength quickly?


    "I could have solved and deciphered the relics by myself, silently increasing my cultivation level. Nobody would have been any the wiser. However, I did not do that, but instead let everyone cultivate together." Ye Futian''s voice was sullen as he continued, "Despite that, there are some people among you that would misuse my kindness to try and obtain their own benefits and even incite others to deal with me. I am very disappointed.


    "If what I do will cause despicable people to plot against me, is there even a need to continue?" Ye Futian questioned them.


    The air suddenly fell silent, following which a silent broadsword light erupted from within the crowd, cutting down like a streak of lightning. One of the instigators'' expression became ghastly, and with a squish, the broadsword light cleaved downwards, cutting him into two.


    The person holding the broadsword had a frigid expression, a horrifying broadsword will surrounding his body. At that moment, another person struck out, casting spells towards the other two people inciting the crowd.


    "What are you doing?" The other two people''s expressions turned pale as well, but they realized that the surrounding people had already struck. The spells and attacks landed at the same time, drowning their bodies within. In an instant, one of them had their brain crushed, and the other had countless blades pierced into his body, his eyes filled with tears.


    In the blink of an eye, the three of them had fallen and died.


    "Biting the hand that feeds you, despicable. They should be killed." The person holding the broadsword said coldly. Previously, there had been a relic that had contained a strong broadsword technique and he had benefited greatly. He had used the broadsword technique that he had learned to kill the person.


    "The purpose of coming to the Holy Road is for our own cultivation. Since Master Ye has some insights, you should naturally stop and cultivate. If everyone else has other matters to attend to, go ahead. If you are willing to wait here, then do so. Master Ye does not owe us anything," another person spoke up for Ye Futian.


    Many people nodded as well. Even though there were still many people who had similar thoughts as those who had just died, they maintained their silence and suppressed their selfishness.


    The disturbance ended just like that.


    "Thank you for your understanding." Ye Futian nodded towards the crowd and continued, "Coming to the Holy Road is all for our cultivation. I''m not a martyr, so I will naturally value my own cultivation. If I can help you all when I''m solving the relics, I will do my best to help you decipher them."


    Ye Futian was clear that what he did would naturally cause a disturbance. This was only the start, there was sure to be more crises waiting for him. Now that there was a commotion, he would rise to fame quickly. However, the elites would also notice him, but as Mu Zhiqiu had said, the majority of people entering the Holy Road would only serve as supporting characters. He did not want to become a backdrop for others.


    Ye Futian cultivated for three days, testing many people''s patience. There were some who lost their patience and left for more challenges, but more people stayed on.


    Three days later, Ye Futian continued to solve the relics. Using three days, he consecutively solved 49 relics, causing the entire Flaming Prison City to go into an uproar. His name started to spread throughout the entire Flaming Prison City. More and more people started to follow him in their cultivation, culminating into an impressive force.


    What was supposed to be a slaughter-filled Flaming Prison City, ended up becoming exceptionally peaceful because of this unique entity. Everyone would decipher the relics and cultivate together.


    One day, within the city, a group of people was hurrying by. They were the Starry School''s disciples. When they got here, they had heard of Ye Futian''s name.


    Gu Yunxi was also within the crowd, a stunning smile on her face. Her father had not lied to her, Ye Futian was indeed still alive and had come to the Holy Road. Now, he had risen to fame in the Holy Road.


    On the other hand, Long Mu had mixed feelings. All these days in the Holy Road, he had felt his own lack of presence. If it was not for the Starry School and Dragon Clan''s experts, he would probably not be able to last long in here.


    The Holy Road''s trial was not as simple as he expected.


    However, that person who was in the same generation as him had shot to fame in the Holy Road. This made him feel helpless, was his potential really that weak?


    In the Flaming Prison City, there was a fatty who was also hurrying along, his eyeballs rolling around in their sockets like he was thinking of something, at the same time revealing a strange expression.


    "Sigh��" The hurrying fatty sighed, as though he had thought of something. He had already reached the Zhongzhou City Region''s Zhuge Clan and was supposed to enter the Holy Road through the Nether Road. However, when second sister had heard that little brother was in Divine City, she claimed that if little brother was to enter the Holy Road, it would be by the Dawn Road. Just like that, he was sent off to the Dawn Road.


    Simply because little brother might enter the Holy Road. Now, her conjecture had been proven real and their little brother did enter the Holy Road and was making a name for himself. As a result of that, he had become despondent. Did he make a wasted trip?


    Who could understand a fatty''s grievance?


    Master Ye, what the f**k?

 516 Collecting the Holy Badges

    There was a giant pavilion in the Flaming Prison City, like a royal palace standing tall. Although there was some damage to the building, it was still preserved well. Now, Ye Futian was staying in the middle pavilion. In the various ancient temples in the pavilion, many people who were cultivating in the Holy Road had gathered there.


    In the past three days, Ye Futian had solved 49 relics and nobody doubted his ability to decipher the relics anymore. Following Ye Futian in their cultivation was the right choice.


    Presently, all kinds of people could be found in the pavilion, good or bad. At that moment, before the middle pavilion, where Ye Futian''s group was, Li Qingyi walked over and asked, "Futian, there are many people asking when you will continue to solve the relics."


    "No hurry," Ye Futian looked into the distance and replied. Li Qingyi looked worried and said uneasily, "Futian, has the commotion become too huge?"


    Previously, when Ye Futian consecutively solved the relics, she was happy for him, but the episode that happened three days ago made her feel a sense of danger. Although the three people had been killed on the spot, they had revealed a potential threat. This was why she was worried that the matter would escalate out of control.


    Unless Ye Futian was willing to continue working without complaints and help them to continue solving the relics, otherwise with their unpredictability, she was unable to foresee what would happen. However, there was one thing she was certain of: Ye Futian''s objective did not stop here.


    "Too huge?" Ye Futian smiled. The storm was inevitable, but since he was unwilling to become insignificant, he naturally had to bear the risk. The more he wanted, the larger the risk.


    "Looks like you''ve already thought about it. I won''t persuade you otherwise then." Li Qingyi smiled. "I don''t have such huge ambitions like you, as long as I can go to the Holy Zhi Palace and see the nine Holy Roads and geniuses from all over, as well as those standing at the top of the Barren State, that''s enough for me."


    "Such a simple wish will naturally come true." Ye Futian nodded towards Li Qingyi and continued, "Help me convey a message, I have an announcement to make."


    Li Qingyi was stunned and she stared at Ye Futian through her beautiful eyes. After mulling over it for a second, she nodded lightly and said, "Be careful." She knew that Ye Futian was going to do something extraordinary. After saying that, she left to convey his message.


    Mu Zhiqiu walked up to Ye Futian and asked him, "Are you preparing to do it now?"


    "It''s about time, I''ll have to do it sooner or later," Ye Futian replied.


    "What are you going to do?" Qin Yin also came closer and looked at Ye Futian curiously.


    "You''ll know very soon. Next, I''ll need all of your help," Ye Futian told Qin Yin and the people standing behind him.


    "If there''s anything, just give the order," Xuanyuan Bashan agreed readily. These few days of cultivation had been very beneficial to him.


    "Alright." Xie Wuji nodded lightly as well. Now, he could feel that Ye Futian was not a simpleton. His entering Mount Jiuxian could have been a mere coincidence and not to become a disciple of Mount Jiuxian or for Qin Yin.


    "Futian, we will do our best." Li Xun smiled, nodding his head.


    "Thank you all for your help," Ye Futian smiled and replied. He would naturally not treat them shabbily afterward.


    Very soon, many people started to gather where they were. Evidently, Li Qingyi had already spread the word out, the experts within the pavilion started to gather. Ye Futian had said he had something to announce, what would it be?


    Ye Futian stood at the apex of the middle pavilion''s ancient temple, and those who arrived asked him one after the other, "Master Ye, what do you have to announce?"


    "No hurry, after everyone has arrived, I will announce it." Ye Futian looked down and smiled.


    "Alright." The person nodded, getting even more curious.


    More people were arriving and they stared at Ye Futian, who was in the air. Very soon, the entire region was filled with cultivators.


    Outside the pavilion, there was a group of people walking in the air and his expression turned ruthless upon seeing Ye Futian. They had come from the Divine Sky City and were disciples of the Blazing Sun School. Not only had Ye Futian not died, but he also had such immense rallying power in the Holy Road. When news of his death had first spread, Chen Yuan had descended upon the Blazing Sun School and leveled the newly built buildings to the ground. Looking back now, was he messing with them?


    Chen Wang was also in the crowd and the flaming pupils in his eyes contained a cruel glare. The mastermind of the incident back then had been the Chen Clan, but even so, they had not been able to kill Ye Futian. Now that his injuries were completely healed, he had made a name for himself in the Holy Road, what a great masquerade.


    All the attention fell onto Ye Futian. Behind him, Mu Zhiqiu, Yu Sheng and the rest stood quietly, protecting him. At that moment, Ye Futian waved to the crowd and the whole area fell silent.


    "I have come to the Holy Road to cultivate and challenge myself, and I have solved many relics to date. Now, I feel that the relics can only provide a limited boost to my strength, so I will not be going around to decipher the relics in the future," Ye Futian said. Instantly, many people''s stares intensified on Ye Futian.


    Li Qingyi stood below, and her heart clenched upon hearing Ye Futian''s words. What she had been worrying about had finally come. If Ye Futian gave up on solving the relics, many people would not let it be. Those who felt that the relics were beneficial to their cultivation, would they cause trouble for Ye Futian if they were unable to decipher the relics themselves?


    "Master Ye, you have so much potential, why waste it?" someone said, evidently not hoping for Ye Futian to give up just like that.


    Ye Futian waved his arm and continued, "Within the Holy Road, these relics do not have a great effect for me. If I waste my time here, it will not benefit my cultivation. Therefore, I would want to do something else.


    "There are rumors that collecting holy badges can allow us to exchange them for resources with the Holy Zhi Palace. However, I have heard another rumor that if we collect enough holy badges, there is a chance to open a giant relic in the Holy Road. Moreover, it is located in the cities and very likely to be beneficial to our cultivation," Ye Futian said.


    Some people did not understand, but a few people were astounded. They had also heard of that rumor, but they did not have the ability to confirm it. Not even them, even the elites would find it hard to accumulate such a large amount of holy badges, unless they furiously hunted for them, but this would offend a huge group of people.


    "Therefore, I want to open the giant relic in this city. If that''s the case, I will need to collect a huge amount of relics. Would everyone be willing to lend me your holy badges? If I am able to open the giant relic, I will allow everyone to decipher it together and return your holy badges thereafter," Ye Futian declared.


    As Ye Futian''s declaration sounded out, a huge commotion broke out. Collecting their holy badges? Presently, in the Holy Road, there were people paying huge amounts for holy badges. For the holy badges, many people would rob or even kill others.


    Having a holy badge meant that one could walk out of the Holy Road to the Holy Zhi Palace. Who would easily hand over their holy badge to others? Even though Ye Futian promised that he would return the badges, what if he didn''t?


    Even if he did intend to return them, if Ye Futian had gathered that many holy badges, others would covet his badges and he would become a target for many. What if he was killed and the badges were taken?


    Talk was cheap. If he really wanted to do it, it would not be as easy as he had thought. Even if he had helped many people by deciphering the relics and helping in their cultivation, when it came to their own interests, not many people were willing to sacrifice. Moreover, many of them would think, even if Ye Futian managed to open the giant relic, wouldn''t it be fine as long as they followed Ye Futian in?


    Even when Li Qingyi heard Ye Futian''s words, she was deeply astounded. She was clear that what Ye Futian wanted to do might invite trouble.


    "If I am unable to do it, I will return all of your holy badges. After everyone has handed over your holy badges, all of you will guard them alongside me, to ensure the safety of the holy badges. If we are all united, we would not have to worry about anyone who is harboring unfathomable motives. Moreover, under everyone''s protection, would I dare to steal the badges?" Ye Futian continued.


    "I''ve come to the Holy Road for my cultivation. Since there is a chance, I will definitely take it." At that moment, a figure stepped out from the crowd. There was an aura of melancholy around the person and a lock of white hair on both sides of his temple. He was refined, exceptional and handsome.


    "Xiao Junyi." A person from the crowd recognized him and was shocked. Xiao Junyi was a cultivator with exceptional talent who specialized in musical rhythm. He was gentle and there were rumors that his hidden talent was even more remarkable.


    Xiao Junyi walked forward and threw a holy badge towards Ye Futian, only to see Loulan Xue step forward and receive it. Ye Futian looked at Qin Yin who was standing below and said, "Qin Yin, please help me to record all those who have given their holy badge."


    "Alright." Qin Yin nodded.


    "You should hold on to our badges too," Xuanyuan Bashan said, and the group of them took out their holy badges and gave them to Ye Futian. Although Zhuo Jun was unhappy with it, he also handed over his holy badge.


    "I originally would not have a chance to become a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace, now that I have a chance, I will entrust my hope to Master Ye." Someone walked out from the crowd and handed over his holy badge.


    Many people followed suit and cultivators started to give their holy badges to Ye Futian in succession, while Qin Yin and the rest took down their names.


    "Thank you, everyone. These few days, I will stay here and cultivate. Once I have gathered enough holy badges to open the giant relic, I will take action," Ye Futian told the crowd and started to walk down.


    About an hour later, the crowd started to dissipate. Ye Futian had already collected more than a thousand holy badges. Although everybody had different thoughts, there were still many people who supported Ye Futian. This was naturally a good start.


    After word of what had happened spread, it triggered another sensation. Someone managed to easily gather over a thousand holy badges, a feat not even people from elite factions could do.


    Li Xun and his group returned back to their residence and Zhuo Jun''s expression was sullen as he told Li Xun, "Young City Lord, they really dared to take our holy badges."


    Li Xun looked towards Zhuo Jun while Li Qingyi reprimanded him, "Zhuo Jun, what nonsense are you spouting! If we want others to willingly hand over their holy badges, we have to be impartial."


    "Impartial indeed. Ever since we''ve entered the Holy Road and deciphered so many relics, have we ever received any preferential treatment? We''re like strangers to him," Zhuo Jun said coldly. "Even though his talent was unique and allowed him to decipher the relics, but don''t forget, he''s just an Arcana Plane cultivator who followed us into the Holy Road. In the beginning, it was the Young City Lord who took him in. It was also us that helped him out when he ran into his enemies. Look at him now, his success has already gotten to his head. He doesn''t even respect the Young City Lord now."


    "How could you think this way?" Li Qingyi looked at Zhuo Jun disparagingly. It seemed that envy was indeed horrifying.


    "Miss Qingyi, did I say anything wrong? Now that his position is elevated, he looks down upon the Young City Lord and has already forgotten who he was. Why did he let his maid take care of the holy badges instead of us? Ever since the start, he only treated us as a stepping stone, using us to progress. Even if he managed to open the great relic, we would still be strangers to him. Wanting to have preferential treatment would be akin to asking for the moon," Zhuo Jun said crabbily.

 517 A Storm Brewing

    A group of people arrived at Ye Futian''s residence.


    When Ye Futian stepped out, his gaze landed on a girl among the group, she was smiling at him, her hand brushing her fringe back. Her smile got even brighter while her eyes appeared to be a little red.


    "Yunxi, why did you enter the Holy Road?" Ye Futian smiled and asked.


    "To challenge myself," Gu Yunxi beamed gently and replied. Beside her, her brother Gu Ming looked at her. He naturally knew what Gu Yunxi was here for.


    The Starry School''s disciples looked at Ye Futian with mixed feelings. Along the way, they had heard that Ye Futian was rallying experts and collecting their holy badges. One word from him and over a thousand people responded and handed over their holy badges to him.


    This Starry School''s Son should only still be in the Arcana Plane, right? Ye Futian''s gaze swept across the crowd with a glint in his eyes. He did not say anything and looked at the Starry School''s disciples. Although the Starry School''s disciples had mixed feelings, there were still people who saluted him and addressed him as the Son. After the first few, the rest started to salute and address him as well.


    Chen Yuan had once said that seeing the Son was tantamount to seeing him. In the past, many people had been unconvinced by Ye Futian, but they all knew in their hearts that nobody could exceed Ye Futian''s potential. Not just in the Starry School, but in the entire Divine Sky City. Now, he was traversing the Holy Road, consecutively deciphering relics. Even in the Holy Road where geniuses from the entire Barren State gathered, he had made a name for himself. Even if they had objections in the past, they were all convinced now.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. The Starry School''s disciples arriving was a great help to him. His gaze landed on a person and he smiled, looking at him.


    Long Mu was conflicted. His emotions were undoubtedly the most complicated among all of them, but along the way, the Starry School''s disciples had discussed relying on Ye Futian. He was clear that Ye Futian''s potential and position were way above his league. He sighed in his heart and although he was unwilling to admit it, he had nothing to be proud of in front of Ye Futian.


    "Son," Long Mu saluted and said, but his tone was unnatural. Ye Futian did not mind, smiling and asked, "Long Mu, is Ling''er doing well?"


    "Not bad, but her temper has been quite bad recently. It could be because of the news of your death. She must be very sad," Long Mu replied.


    "She will know the truth after this is over. Long Mu, you are her brother. In the future, do not make her abide by your wishes and consider more about her," Ye Futian said.


    Gu Yunxi looked at Ye Futian, surprised. Evidently, Ye Futian was salvaging his relation with Long Mu, displaying remarkable magnanimity.


    "I will." Long Mu naturally felt the goodwill of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly. He owed the Madame a favor and Ling''er was like a younger sister to him. As long as Long Mu did not go overboard, he would not grudge him. After all, Long Mu was full of youthful vigor.


    "Who is it?" At that moment, a figure appeared in the air above the pavilion. There were many people who were protecting the pavilion and wanted to stop them.


    "It''s fine." Ye Futian looked into the air, smiled and said. The figure landed in front of Ye Futian like lightning and the earth trembled as a fatty appeared before the crowd.


    "Long time no see. Brother''s figure has not changed since we last met." Ye Futian smiled and thought to himself, how can a fatty be this fast?


    Yi Xiaoshi glared at Ye Futian, then smiled and said, "I''ve just come from second sister''s place, and I saw Jieyu." After saying that, he held his head up high.


    Ye Futian was stunned for a moment, then walked forward and smiled with trepidation and said, "Brother, you''re still as handsome as before with great style. It''s no wonder that you''re my seventh brother."


    The crowd blinked in surprise. Where did his brother appear from? Moreover, Ye Futian''s change in tone was way too quick.


    "Do you want to know how Jieyu''s doing?" Yi Xiaoshi looked at Ye Futian from the corner of his eye. See if you dare to be arrogant in front of your brother in the future, he thought to himself.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded frankly.


    Yi Xiaoshi gave Ye Futian a look with deep meaning, then pat Ye Futian on the shoulder and sighed, "Ah��"


    Ye Futian blinked and asked, "Brother, how is Jieyu?"


    What did that sigh mean?


    Yi Xiaoshi looked at Ye Futian and shook his head. "Brother, a great person like you would not bear a grudge against me, would you?" Ye Futian said anxiously.


    "Jieyu should be in the Nether Road now. Moreover, she is faring better than you now. Little brother, you need to buck up," Yi Xiaoshi replied in a heartfelt tone.


    Ye Futian was bewildered for a second, then a brilliant smile appeared on his face.


    "Still laughing?" Yi Xiaoshi asked, "Do you know how many people have attempted to look for second sister to try and get matched with her?"


    "Why don''t you look at whose wife she is." Ye Futian looked disdainfully at Yi Xiaoshi and continued, "Damn fatty, I was nearly scared to death by you just now."


    The fatty''s arms crossed over his hips. The speed of his change in tone was ridiculous.


    "You''re really not afraid?" Yi Xiaoshi looked at the fellow in front of him, speechless.


    "My Jieyu is so outstanding, how could there be a lack of suitors." Ye Futian looked disapprovingly at Yi Xiaoshi again. What was there to be afraid of? As long as Jieyu was doing well, nothing else was important. His heart was at ease. As for her suitors, which of them could even hold a candle to him?


    "That is to say after I step out of the Holy Road, I''ll be able to meet Jieyu? And second sister?" Ye Futian''s smile got even brighter. The fatty was really his lucky star.


    Yi Xiaoshi saw Ye Futian''s delighted expression and looked at him with a look of contempt.


    "Wait a minute." Ye Futian''s expression became odd and he looked at Yi Xiaoshi and asked, "If you''ve already been to the Zhuge Clan, why aren''t you at the Nether Road, but here instead?"


    "I, your brother, was afraid that you would be bullied by other people and rushed here intentionally," Yi Xiaoshi declared proudly.


    "Second sister chased you here?" Ye Futian''s eyes narrowed as he stared at Yi Xiaoshi.


    "You��" The fatty was enraged. He traveled all this distance only to hear ''chased here''? What was all his hard work for? Was Ye Futian not touched in the slightest? Although it was the truth��


    "Second sister treats me really well." Ye Futian was indeed very touched. Yi Xiaoshi wanted to hit someone. He felt hurt.


    The crowd looked at the two people and had skeptical expressions. The way these two brothers interacted was special. The Starry School''s disciples were thinking, the Zhuge Clan? Which Zhuge Clan?


    Jieyu, Gu Yunxi thought to herself. This was probably the name of Ye Futian''s girlfriend. She had known long ago that Ye Futian had a girlfriend. Now that she was here, she might be able to meet her if she walked out of the Holy Road. The girl that Ye Futian loved, what kind of person would she be? From the conversation, she must be exceptional.


    ��


    The news of Ye Futian collecting the holy badges spread across the Flaming Prison City and even out of the city to the entire Holy Road.


    The dawn of the second day, there was an exclamation at the outer region of the pavilion where Ye Futian resided. Many people moved to a corner in the pavilion, where a few corpses were lying on the floor. Their faces had turned black, as if they had been poisoned. Their bodies were undamaged, but they had been dead a long time.


    "He''s struck again," someone said with a sullen expression. These few days, many similar incidents had occurred in the Flaming Prison City. Some cultivators had died mysteriously and everyone understood that it was for the holy badges. However, up until now, nobody knew who had done it. The person''s targets were at least grade eight nobles and there were even many grade seven nobles. This meant that the person was intentionally picking the strongest cultivators in the Holy Road as his targets. This showed how horrifying the mastermind''s strength was.


    Many people gathered and debated about the incident. After Ye Futian heard the news, he also went there. When he saw the corpses on the floor, his expression changed.


    "Does anyone know what happened here?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It''s Death Qi," someone said. "In the Holy Road, a horrifying necromancer has appeared."


    "Necromancer?" Ye Futian''s gaze intensified. It was rumored that necromancers would cultivate with Death Qi and were extremely scary. They could kill without leaving any trace, and stronger necromancers could even control dead spirits.


    "The Holy Road has always had all kinds of people," Mu Zhiqiu said quietly. "Moreover, the person is killing in the pavilion, so it''s very likely that he''s mixed in with the crowd. You have to be careful."


    "That''s right, the other party could be within the crowd and attack Master Ye at any time. Master Ye, do take extra precautions," another person advised.


    "I''ll be careful." Ye Futian nodded, his expression serious. This type of mysterious expert was even more dangerous as they could kill without leaving traces or even revealing their identity. They did not even know who it was.


    "Everyone, please be careful," Ye Futian reminded them again. The crowd all nodded and felt a sense of crisis.


    Ye Futian left, then turned to Mu Zhiqiu and asked, "Have you heard of necromancers before?"


    "Necromancers are extremely rare. There is an extremely famous necromancer in the Barren State, a horrifying entity on the Barren Sky Ranking, the Dark Saint," Mu Zhiqiu replied.


    "Looks like people from all factions are arriving," Ye Futian mumbled silently. He had a premonition that a storm was brewing, he needed to make the best of his time.


    Just like Ye Futian had thought, a group of figures was marching outside the Flaming Prison City, their aura extraordinary. They were from the strongest clan in the Ruin City��the Xia Clan��with Xia Hou leading them.


    Among the nine cities of the Holy Road, the Flaming Prison City did not have people from an elite faction standing guard, thus the most people had gathered there. Now, there was someone using such an ingenious method to gather the holy badges. How could he not come?


    Even those from the most elite factions could not plunder the holy badges as it would incite the crowd''s rage. The method that Ye Futian had used was indeed innovative. However, no one else could imitate his method.


    "Are we going to look for him directly?" a person beside Xia Hou asked.


    "No hurry," Xia Hou replied and continued, "Now, he has probably only just started collecting the holy badges. There is no reason to disrupt it. Give him some more time. However, keep an eye on him, we are probably not the only clan to come here."


    "Understood." The person beside him nodded.


    The group of them entered the city. Not long after they had entered the city, another group of people arrived. The people from the Nantian House had arrived and Nan Hao stood there gracefully, his gaze sparkling and looking into the distance. He had heard that Ye Futian had to shot fame in the Holy Road in such a short time, he did not disappoint him indeed.


    If that person was to step out, he would probably cause a huge storm. However, he would watch the performance first to see if Ye Futian could continue. He naturally understood that from the moment Ye Futian had started collecting the holy badges, danger lurked from all sides.


    At that moment, an air warship flew towards the city. On the warship, there were two stunning girls with unmatched beauty. Nan Hao turned back and a look of adoration appeared in his eyes. The girls from the Mortal World were all gorgeous beauties that were lusted after.


    On the air warship, Chu Shang and another girl stood together. Taking one look at the people from the Nantian House, they continued forward and the airship flew into the city.


    There was a ripple in Chu Shang''s eyes. She had not expected that in the short span of about two years, he would have come to the Holy Road from the Eastern Barren Territory!

 518 You Can’t Handle This

    In the palace, Ye Futian sat cross-legged. Over a thousand holy badges hung suspended in the air before him. The soft glow that emanated from within the holy badges began to resonate and combine. In no time, it formed a dazzling image that looked somewhat like a map.


    "A map of the Divine Road." There was a sharp glint in Ye Futian''s eyes as he looked at the image. He tried to get a better look, but the image floated in and out of sight. It was impossible to read the map clearly. He only saw the blurry image of a giant Divine Road. Nine cities lay on the Divine Road, and Ye Futian locked his sights upon one of them. He could barely make out the outline of Flaming Prison City.


    On the map, a streak of bright light could be seen where Flaming Prison City was. Ye Futian''s eyebrows creased. Could this light be marking where the large relic was?


    He stared at it for a while, but the image remained unclear still. Ye Futian guessed it might be because he hadn''t collected enough holy badges yet. Even over a thousand of them were not enough to make the large relic appear on the map. He needed to collect more holy badges.


    It was a good thing Ye Futian''s name was known far and wide today. An increasing number of people came up to offer him the holy badges they had found. They too wanted to give this endeavor a shot. Many of these people also had more than one holy badge on them too. Furthermore, it was rumored that top-tier individuals of outstanding abilities from the Divine Road had arrived in Flaming Prison City.


    Xia Feng from the Xia Family, the pride of the Nantian House, the incomparable Goddesses of today''s world, the heir to the Sword Saint Villa, the disciples of Sage Duansheng, and the peerless Ning Huang. All of these powerful individuals had come to Flaming Prison City, and everyone knew just what that meant.


    Ye Futian''s words had to be true for all these insanely powerful people to have come to him in a gathering of the ages. If he could collect enough holy badges, then perhaps there would be a chance of accessing the large relic in the Divine Road.


    After three days, Ye Futian had collected thousands of holy badges. However, the powerful individuals who had arrived in Flaming Prison City designed to show themselves still. They did not want to disturb Ye Futian. Instead, they waited. Perhaps they were waiting for Ye Futian to finish collecting the holy badges not for Ye Futian''s sake, but for their own interests.


    It was too difficult a task to complete on their own, so how could they miss this golden opportunity where someone had come up with such a brilliant idea to do it?


    Today, Ye Futian walked out of the palace to scout the place. He wanted to find out where in Flaming Prison City the location marked out in the map was. As he left the palace, he was flanked by many who were concerned for his safety. Carrying thousands of holy badges made Ye Futian a prime target for those who were interested in obtaining the holy badges. If he were not careful, the holy badges in his possession would be taken away from him by force. As such, everyone felt a responsibility to guard Ye Futian.


    The crowd had even chosen two incredibly powerful individuals to follow behind and guard Ye Futian closely, in addition to people close to him like Yi Xiaoshi, Mu Zhiqiu, Yu Sheng, the disciples of the Starry School and Qin Yin. The two chosen individuals, Xiao Junyi and Yang Xiao, had made quite a name for themselves in Flaming Prison City. They were both grade seven nobles.


    Ye Futian''s departure from the palace soon raised a furor. Even those outside the palace who had not handed over their holy badges followed behind him. To them, Ye Futian was like a treasure trove. Whether he was going to activate a large or small relic, it was worth it to follow him. With the large entourage setting off with Ye Futian, the group soon became the talk of Flaming Prison City.


    Right now, every move that Ye Futian made was at the center of attention in Flaming Prison City.


    Ye Futian approached a pile of stone ruins in Flaming Prison City. The ruins were vast, and nothing seemed to be amiss here. But Ye Futian surmised that this was probably the location that was marked out in the map.


    Many people followed behind, curious as to what Ye Futian was looking at. Could this be where the relic was?


    From afar, an air warship sailed over, high up in the sky. Instantly, countless eyes were on it. At the front of the ship stood two women. They were as beautiful as Jiutian Goddesses, with clear, calm eyes that gazed towards where Ye Futian was.


    "The Mortal World." Many people looked up at the air warship. They were nervous that individuals as powerful as these had set their sights upon Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian lifted his gaze to look at the women on the air warship as well. He had met Chu Shang in the eastern region of the Barren State before. She had even invited him to train in the Mortal World once.


    The other woman was, unbelievably, even more stunning than Chu Shang. She was gorgeous, almost like a goddess from the Mortal World, and her looks were on par with Mu Zhiqiu''s. The only difference was in their demeanor. Mu Zhiqiu was quiet and stunningly elegant in her simplicity. The other woman was vibrant and dazzling like a peacock. The two were like night and day in terms of their aura.


    "Bing Yi and Chu Shang are Goddesses of the Mortal World, and Bing Yi is one of the Three Virgins as well," Mu Zhiqiu whispered. All eyes were on the two Goddesses in the sky. They were some of the most dazzling characters of this generation in the Barren State.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes away and didn''t look at them again. What did it matter if the women were beautiful? He remembered what the Nantian House, the Mortal World, and the Sacred Fire State, among the other powers, had done when they had arrived at the eastern region of the Barren State. In order to get at the relic in Sky Mountain, they had set foot on Book Mountain, calling the college an inferior sect and being so arrogant about it. In the end, they had forcibly taken away the Ukiyo Song book. He had vowed to remember that.


    Chu Shang observed Ye Futian as well. After two years, his aura had become even more outstanding, and there was a greater air of stability about him. However, the proud gaze in his handsome eyes had not changed a single bit.


    "You''re putting yourself in danger by doing this," Chu Shang spoke from where she was on the ship. Everyone was taken aback. They didn''t know that Chu Shang knew Ye Futian.


    "So?" Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    "Why don''t you hand over the holy badges to us for now? We can join forces and open up the relics together," Chu Shang offered. She did not invite Ye Futian to join the Mortal World again. She knew very well that with Ye Futian''s abilities, if he had reached this point and was allowed to carry on, he had a very high chance of entering the Holy Zhi Palace. Even if he didn''t manage to, there was still the Zhuge Family. The Mortal World would not even get a chance at it if Ye Futian didn''t die at this stage.


    As of now, Ye Futian''s lover was with the Zhuge Family.


    Ye Futian smiled calmly but did not reply. At the sight of his expression, Chu Shang understood his intent. She mentally shook her head at him. Though she acknowledged that Ye Futian indeed was very talented, she knew that all sorts of powerful individuals had their eye on the holy badges. He had obtained such a large number of holy badges through these means, and all these individuals had arrived at Flaming Prison City.


    If Ye Futian were to try to hold on to these holy badges, there was a good chance he might lose his life.


    "Goddess Bing Yi and Goddess Chu Shang," a voice rang out at this moment. Another group of people was moving through the sky towards the warship.


    Bing Yi and Chu Shang turned their gazes upon them and greeted the leader of the group with a smile, "Young Master Gu."


    "It''s Gu Feiyang, a disciple of Sage Duantian''s," someone declared, and many eyes sparkled at the introduction.


    "Perhaps the Goddesses of the Mortal World paid a visit to the Sage at Mount Duantian while on their way to the Divine Road, that''s why they know each other," someone whispered. Ye Futian then remembered seeing a warship of the Mortal World while passing by the Duantian mountain range the other day.


    Gu Feiyang chatted for a while with Bing Yi and Chu Shang, as though Ye Futian and the rest weren''t there at all. They weren''t in a hurry to snatch the holy badges, being completely content just observing Ye Futian for now.


    "Xia Hou and Yan Jiu are here too." Mu Zhiqiu looked to a place in the distance, and there was Xia Hou of the Xia Family and Yan Jiu of the Sword Saint Villa, moving through the sky towards them as well. They glanced at Ye Futian before looking towards Gu Feiyang and the warship.


    The ground then began to shake. A frightening demonic beast was walking towards them. The beast was a brilliant gold from head to toe, as though it had been created out of the precious metal. It was also walking like a human. This demonic beast was Yuan Zhan, the Giant Golden Ape. Even it had come to watch the commotion.


    Powerful individuals from the Nantian House arrived soon after. Nan Hao smiled at everyone present, but Nan Yu was cold as ice. He stared in Ye Futian''s direction.


    Ye Futian was observing everyone who had arrived as well. They probably suspected that he was about to open up a relic and came over to watch. Other than Chu Shang, no one else had spoken a single word to Ye Futian, but he was well aware of their intentions.


    Suddenly, the wind starting howling from far away and frightening energy could be felt. Everyone turned around to see a group of people arriving. These were all individuals of the Noble plane, and they seemed incredibly mighty.


    "It''s Mo Jun," the people murmured, their gazes landing on a black armor-clad figure. That person was someone very famous.


    If Mo Jun''s here, then he should be around too, many people thought to themselves, and they looked towards the back. Indeed, the wind howled fiercely there, and a man sat within a carriage that was being pulled by several nobles who had willingly taken up the task despite their status.


    Mo Jun and the others made way for the carriage to come to the front, and the man stepped out, surveying the crowd. Wearing a crown of laurel, he was as resplendent and eye-catching as a god. The man''s gaze was bright and energetic as he looked at everyone. It was as if he owned the entire show simply by showing up.


    "It''s Ning Huang, one of the strongest people on the Dawn Road. Everyone thinks he''ll be able to get into at least the top three," Mu Zhiqiu explained beside Ye Futian. "Even his follower Mo Jun is a top-notch individual with frighteningly powerful abilities. The two of them working together could make them the strongest on the Dawn Road."


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. Behind him, many people sensed an immense pressure. Were the holy badges really safe with Ye Futian? The recent arrival of all these incredibly powerful people made them nervous. Almost all of the top-tier individuals of the Divine Road were probably here by now.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said, turning to leave after glancing at the crowd. Those who had newly arrived shot him a somewhat interested glance, but they did not follow. After all, they had no need to take action personally.


    As he walked, Ye Futian was deep in thought. These circumstances were slightly troublesome.


    All these people had once stayed in their own lane, taking the holy badges using their own methods and keeping out of each other''s way. But after hearing that he was collecting the holy badges, they had all gathered at Flaming Prison City, watching him do the work for them.


    Then, a commotion broke out behind him. Ye Futian turned only to see someone trying to get to him but being held back by the people around him.


    That person looked at Ye Futian and said, "Young Master Ning has something to say to you."


    "Let him through," Ye Futian ordered. The person had called Ning Huang "Young Master Ning", which meant he probably served him in some capacity.


    The crowd let him go, and that person came before Ye Futian. He whispered, "Ning Shao said that if you''ve come to the Divine Road in order to enroll in the Holy Zhi Palace, then he''ll help you get in."


    "Ning Huang has ties with one of the elders at the Holy Zhi Palace. He''s been internally recognized as a direct disciple," Mu Zhiqiu whispered.


    "And then?" Ye Futian looked at the person.


    "If you are going to open up the relic, then Young Master Ning must be the only one from the Dawn Road to help you," the person continued.


    "Conditions?" Ye Futian chuckled. He knew that this offer was too good to be true.


    "You''ll pass the holy badges to Young Master Ning. He''ll take charge and you''ll assist him in opening up the relics. You''ll get what you came here for, and even enroll in the Holy Zhi Palace to train," the person continued speaking, sounding as though the proposal he was conveying was how things should be.


    "Thank you for the kind offer. However, I decline." Ye Futian smiled calmly. He wasn''t surprised that everyone was approaching him with ulterior motives.


    The other person stared at Ye Futian. This was a fantastic offer, and yet Ye Futian had refused without even considering it. How unappreciative he was.


    "You can''t handle the holy badges," the person spat after a moment of silence. His voice was chilly.


    "If I want to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, then I will do it myself without any help from anyone. The conditions you''ve offered aren''t that great." Ye Futian looked at the other person in disdain before walking away.

 519 Ambushed

    In the following days, Ye Futian would visit one place every day, flanked by various powerful figures. He managed to continuously figure out a string of relic locations, helping other people along with their own cultivations. As a result, many people who were previously unsure whether to do so began to offer up their own holy badges, prepared to take the gamble.


    Wherever Ye Futian went, the group of top-notch powerful figures would appear as well. They knew that Ye Futian was close to collecting ten thousand holy badges. They also knew especially well that once he had done so, he would be able to activate the large relic. Those who managed to collect thousands of holy badges on the Divine Road were terrifying. These people were some of the most powerful figures there.


    But it was not possible for those from the Nantian House and the Sword Saint Villa to simply just snatch the holy badges from someone else. They were powerful enough to hunt down others on the Divine Road for their holy badges.


    But they usually would not take that risk, because they were wary of offending the masses whose backgrounds were almost impossible to know for sure. Even a top disciple with powerful abilities would not be willing to take holy badges by force. Instead, they operated through occupying cities.


    It was just as well that Ye Futian had appeared now, collecting holy badges at a speed faster than them. They naturally wanted to achieve their aims through Ye Futian. First, they would let him open up a large relic site here, then once they had returned to their own occupied city, they would even have the opportunity to open up two more of such sites.


    For the past few days, someone would be killed or go missing around the palace. The necromancer was still on a murderous streak, and with Ye Futian collecting more and more holy badges, everyone had an odd feeling of being in the calm before the storm.


    It seemed like something big would go down the day Ye Futian took action.


    Now, security had increased around the heart of Ye Futian''s living quarters. Powerful figures milled about outside, guarding every corner. They were all prepared to tackle any sudden turn of events.


    Zhuo Jun hurriedly approached Ye Futian in the courtyard, whispering to him, "Ye Futian, something has happened to Miss Qingyi."


    "What''s going on?" Ye Futian''s gaze froze upon him.


    "She discovered a spy among us. Follow me." Zhuo Jun checked their surroundings carefully, before turning and leaving.


    Ye Futian''s eyebrows creased, and he followed after him.


    A short distance away, Yi Xiaoshi saw what was happening, and in a flash, he was keeping up with Ye Futian''s strides as well. The two followed Zhuo Jun to where Li Xun and the rest were training in another part of the courtyard.


    There were many people gathered there. Li Xun was squatting by Li Qingyi, holding her body close to him. It was a heart-wrenching sight for Ye Futian, and he moved forward towards her.


    "Qingyi," Ye Futian called out, putting his hand on hers before asking, "what happened?"


    However, a realization made him raise his eyebrows. Li Qingyi did not seem to be injured in any way at all. Li Qingyi''s eyelids twitched before fluttering open slowly. Upon seeing Ye Futian before her, her expression changed instantaneously, and she shouted, "Run!"


    Li Qingyi had barely spoken before a sneer was heard, and cold energy was suddenly felt. A sharp silver blade had appeared in Li Xun''s hand.


    "Be careful!" Li Qingyi screamed, and she pushed Li Xun away with all her might. However, Li Xun managed to fling the blade at Ye Futian still, and it whistled towards him like a streak of lightning. The blade was incredibly fast, and at such a short distance, it seemed inevitable that it would hit its deadly mark.


    However, the trajectory of the blade had changed slightly when Li Qingyi pushed Li Xun. Ye Futian''s reflexes were lightning fast as well. He ducked down, lightning flashing about his feet. With a hard step onto the ground, the Thundering Illusion Step was activated in an explosive, heart-stopping moment, and Ye Futian moved out of the blade''s way quick as lightning. The blade whistled past his face. It was a close call.


    Ye Futian regained his footing, and Yi Xiaoshi was by his side in an instant.


    "Are you alright?" he asked.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly, but his expression was icy cold. If it had not been for Li Qingyi''s push, he really might have been killed by an attack at such a close range. He looked at Li Xun. The other man still had on the same gentle smile from before. It was as if he had not just attacked Ye Futian.


    "Good dodge, Brother Ye," Li Xun praised, smiling still. Ye Futian was then surrounded by many people from the crowd. These were people who had previously come to offer Ye Futian their holy badges. They weren''t Li Xun''s underlings, but they obviously could not bear to give up their holy badges and had joined forces with Li Xun to set up this trap.


    "You may have been lucky, but you won''t escape death." Zhuo Jun''s expression was dark. He could not believe that Ye Futian had survived even this set-up.


    "I never trusted you. But you''re a Young City Lord of the White Sovereign City, with such a good reputation. I didn''t think you''d even use your own younger sister to trap me," Ye Futian''s voice was icy cold.


    "I had intended for her to cooperate with me. But the girl was loyal to you, so I had to knock her unconscious instead. You''ve gotten pretty friendly with Qingyi these days, I imagined you''d ignore all suspicions and let your guard down in the panic of finding out that something had happened to her. It''s a pity it didn''t work out." Li Xun shook his head, smiling. "But that doesn''t change anything."


    Ye Futian felt a coolness on his back. So, even a person as seemingly virtuous as Li Xun was had such a dark and devious side to him. His methods were incredibly ruthless and cruel.


    "Why are you doing this?" Ye Futian asked. He didn''t quite understand Li Xun''s motivations. Just what good would it do Li Xun to kill him?


    Li Xun looked back, and a figure cloaked in black walked out. The figure pulled down his hood to reveal a resolute, cold face. Upon seeing the person, inklings of understanding began to dawn upon Ye Futian.


    He had seen Mo Jun days ago at the stone ruins. Mu Zhiqiu had called him an insanely powerful, top-tier individual. Mo Jun was Ning Huang''s top warrior. Many people claimed that if the two worked together, they could be the strongest team in all of the Divine Road.


    Mo Jun''s presence was a clear indication that Li Xun was working for Ning Huang. It was no wonder he was so confident. He had been sneaking Mo Jun into this plan of his.


    "Given Ning Huang''s stature, I don''t think he would have looked for you first. Did you all approach him then?" Ye Futian asked Li Xun.


    "Yes." Li Xun nodded.


    "What do you have to gain from this?" Ye Futian asked again


    "If I become one of Young Master Ning''s followers, I''ll get a share once we open up the relic," Li Xun replied honestly.


    "A follower?" Ye Futian laughed disdainfully. It was laughable how Li Xun would rather be a dog of Ning Huang''s than be a friend.


    "I promised you before that once I open up the relic, you''d get a share too." Ye Futian sighed.


    "Do you really think you stand a chance at opening up the relic?" Li Xun''s face was shadowed with doubt, "Do you not understand that any one of these top powers could attack at any moment should they wish to? Numbers are meaningless in the face of absolute power. They''re just waiting for you to collect the holy badges, and taking care to not step on each other''s toes as well. No one ever took you seriously, so where is all this confidence coming from?"


    Li Xun continued his tirade, "As for those who offered you their holy badges, how can they be so stupid?" Li Xun didn''t understand at all. If Ning Huang had wanted to get to the holy badges earlier, there honestly had been no need for him to work with Li Xun. He could have just launched an attack on his own.


    "How could you do this?" Li Qingyi looked especially pained. Her eyes were red as she stared at her older brother Li Xun.


    "Shut up." Li Xun shot a cold glare at Li Qingyi. The girl had changed so completely. Li Qingyi no longer listened to his orders, but helped outsiders instead, causing unnecessary complications to this whole affair. She was too much.


    "Miss Qingyi, I''ve said this before," Zhuo Jun spoke, "he followed us onto the Divine Road and we offered him our protection, but he treated us as though we were just mere strangers. It was a complete joke. You should be happy for the Young City Lord that he has the opportunity to follow Young Master Ning now."


    Zhuo Jun then turned his gaze to Ye Futian, his expression cold. "He''s only someone of the Arcana plane, what authority does he have to give us any orders like he''s our superior?"


    "Followed you all onto the Divine Road?" Ye Futian scoffed in disdain. "Li Xun was the one who invited me to join all of you at the foot of Mount Jiuxian. I never once said I''d follow you. We were only supposed to take care of each other. I was grateful for all that you all had done for me, that''s why I came back to find you and let you train with me. I was never asking for your protection. Furthermore, you would all get a share whenever I opened up a relic. And now��" Laughing a little, he said no more. Once again, he was resigned to the truths of human nature.


    If he had been Ning Huang, these people would have willingly followed after him by the thousands. But just because Ye Futian was of the Arcana plane, he was seen to be unfit for many of his pursuits. And now that he had become the center of attention and could command the masses, he had attracted the jealousy of others as well.


    "Let''s not waste any more time," Mo Jun boomed, his powerful voice cold. "Let''s go," he ordered, stepping forward.


    At his words, attacks came from people on both sides. In an instant, the space was covered in spells that shot straight for Ye Futian and Yi Xiaoshi. At the same time, several people leaped through the air, descending with the spells. Noble aura engulfed the space and a frighteningly immense energy could be felt.


    A blinding light emanated from Yi Xiaoshi. With a rustling sound, a gigantic and brilliant tree appeared. The gold and green hues of the tree gave it a dazzling radiance, and the ancient tree stood proudly in the sky like a Divine Imperial Tree.


    The leaves and vines of the tree seemed incredibly sharp. A frightening murderous glint reflected off them, and the tree spread out its branches all across the space. None of the spells that descended upon the space could break a single twig or leaf of the tree. Someone swung a palm towards the tree, but an incredibly sharp vine pierced through his hand before heading upwards and stabbing the person through the throat. The person was killed in mid-air instantly.


    A few other people met similar fates. When Yi Xiaoshi activated the Emperor''s Vine Life Spirit, they had either been pierced through or had their throats stabbed by the vines without exception, dying horrifically in mid-air.


    Yi Xiaoshi was now a grade eight Noble, and his Life Spirit was especially powerful. Furthermore, he had even integrated into his Life Spirit a magic weapon that his second Senior Sister had gifted to him, making him invincible. A normal Noble would not compare to him.


    A nervous flash shot through Li Xun and everyone else''s eyes. They had not known that this unassuming fatty could have possessed such frightening power. Mo Jun''s eyebrows creased. He sensed that Yi Xiaoshi had incredibly powerful abilities.


    With a step upwards, he leaped into the sky. Unbelievably overwhelming energy emanated from his being, making him seem like a god of war. Upon sensing Mo Jun''s energy, Yi Xiaoshi knew that he had met a tough match. With a leap, he charged towards the other person.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at the sky, before turning back to stare coldly at everyone around him. Seeing Ye Futian standing there alone, a cold glint shot through Zhuo Jun''s eyes. He then dashed towards Ye Futian, his movements quick as lightning.


    His palm shot out ruthlessly in Ye Futian''s direction, sharp and deadly as a blade. But Ye Futian only turned to look at him quietly, not moving a muscle. Unbelievably, Ye Futian had no intention to defend himself.


    "You''re looking for death." Zhuo Jun''s expression was cold. The shadow of dragon claws as he struck mercilessly where Ye Futian''s heart was. Zhuo Jun wanted his attack to pierce through Ye Futian''s chest.


    The strike landed with a thud, but Zhuo Jun did not feel like he had hit flesh. Instead, his attack had made contact with an invincible divine body. His expression turned to horrified shock, but Ye Futian only stared coldly at him.


    "Are you jealous of me because you thought you were stronger than me? Was that why you thought I wasn''t fit to do everything I did?" Ye Futian asked him coldly.

 520 Forgetting About Everything

    Zhuo Jun''s face was ashen. Ye Futian had voiced his exact sentiments.


    Ye Futian had only been able to assist Zhuo Jun in battle back when they were at the base of Mount Jiuxian. He had only been a negligible cultivator in the seventh level of the Arcana plane then. Yet everything had suddenly changed once he had come to the Divine Road. He now held great influence and had countless followers.


    With the insane rate at which he opened up relics and how everyone was following his every move, it felt as though Ye Futian had become someone who was way above them. This made him and the rest feel like nobodies. But what made them truly furious was how there was absolutely no special treatment reserved for them. They offered up their holy badges like everyone else and received the same understandings of the relic as any other outsider.


    As such, Zhuo Jun had instigated Li Xun, the Young City Lord, to take action of some sort. Li Xun evidently shared his same negative sentiments, and after they saw Ning Huang send someone to talk to Ye Futian, they had secretly gotten in contact with that underling and agreed to work under Ning Huang.


    But when his blow landed on Ye Futian, he had realized that Ye Futian didn''t seem to match up to what he thought of him. At the very least, Ye Futian was physically a lot stronger than him. He had stood there and allowed Zhuo Jun to attack him however he liked, but Zhuo Jun hadn''t been able to make him move, much less break through his defenses. Zhuo Jun could not comprehend just what kind of body Ye Futian had. With Zhuo Jun''s power, his attacks should be able to do more even if he was up against a grade nine Noble.


    Ye Futian''s body was frighteningly strong. He specialized in body refinement techniques, and after he was attacked by a Sage of the Blazing Sun School previously, he had reconstructed his muscles and bones and made them even stronger with the help of the divine light and his Life Spirit. As such, his body was even stronger than before. With his current body, he would not be shaken by any attack from a person below the Noble plane.


    Zhuo Jun thought very highly of himself. But he had never been so bothered by a person before.


    Reaching out, Ye Futian grabbed Zhuo Jun by the throat before he could react and retreat. Zhuo Jun looked defeated as he stared at Ye Futian.


    "You think I owe you, but have you ever thought about just what you have done for me?" A touch of disgusted disdain descended upon Ye Futian''s gaze as he looked at Zhuo Jun. Ye Futian had taken Zhuo Jun with him as he opened up numerous relics. Yet Zhuo Jun had eventually harbored resentment and hatred for him just because Ye Futian had not shown him any preferential treatment. It was apparent that pathetic people always had a detestable side to them.


    Ye Futian gripped slightly harder, and a soft crack was heard before Zhuo Jun''s eyes rolled up into his head and he grew lifeless. Zhuo Jun had never even imagined that he would die so pitifully. It was as though he was a mere ant that had been stepped on.


    Ye Futian released Zhuo Jun, and his lifeless body fell to the ground. Li Xun did not feel any grief at the sight of Zhuo Jun''s body. He was only surprised at how powerful Ye Futian was. He had known that Ye Futian was extraordinarily talented, but he was only at the seventh level of the Arcana plane still. Zhuo Jun was at the peak of the Arcana plane and yet he had died so pathetically, as though he had gone up against a noble instead.


    Many people in White Sovereign City were surprised at Ye Futian''s might. And it wasn''t just Ye Futian either. They marveled at how even the older senior brother, the fatty, was also incredibly powerful, so much so that he could face Mo Jun in battle.


    Then, a sound was heard from the sky. It was evident that the cultivators in the palace had been alerted to the huge battle going on here. The people Mo Jun had brought and Li Xun''s underlings launched a simultaneous attack on Ye Futian. They obviously understood that they could not afford to delay any longer. They previously thought that it would be as easy as pie to take down Ye Futian with a trap. After all, they had Mo Jun with them. But even the powerful Mo Jun had been held up by Yi Xiaoshi.


    In a dazzling flurry of light, the Divine Destruction Polearm appeared in Ye Futian''s hand. In an instant, brilliant starlight shot out in all directions and a frightening starry storm appeared in the surroundings. Meteorites spun about wildly around Ye Futian, and his body seemed to be made out of the stars themselves. This was the Immortal Celestial Bodies technique.


    As the spell descended upon the space, everyone was kept from advancing. It would not be easy for these people to take Ye Futian down quickly. With a swing of the Divine Destruction Polearm, Ye Futian struck at a noble that was charging at him. The noble was at grade eight of the Noble plane, and when he raised his arm, it was as if a Gold Roc was striking, quick as lightning. But as the Divine Destruction Polearm descended upon him, he felt an incomparably immense power rush towards him.


    With a loud boom, his arm was struck numb by the blow. At the same time, an invisible weight pressed down upon him, as though he were carrying an entire mountain on his back. Ye Futian then leaped through the air towards him. With a swooping attack, the noble''s arm was shattered and his head smashed in with another loud boom.


    Everyone was shocked, and Li Xun''s expression was that of bewildered surprise. Ye Futian was so strong he could kill a grade eight noble. The ritual implement elicited feelings of fright in those who saw it.


    Powerful figures from all across the place��the disciples of the Starry School, Qin Yin and the rest of his group, as well as Xiao Junyi and Yang Xiao who had been tasked with guarding Ye Futian��had now reached where Ye Futian was. Upon arriving at the scene, they attacked directly, filling the space with frightening energy as they struck without hesitation


    "Retreat," Mo Jun ordered, making a snap judgment based on the new situation. He had no desire to battle. While Yi Xiaoshi''s plane was lower than his, he was still hard to get rid of. It was difficult to defeat him quickly. Furthermore, the rest of his people would not be able to take down Ye Futian in an instant. The other parties were now gathering in a counterattack. If they were to continue fighting, many may not be able to return.


    Yi Xiaoshi looked at him. Green and gold rays of light began to intertwine. It was as if millions of arms were spiraling towards Mo Jun at the same time. Each branch, leaf, and vine was like a sharp, invincible blade.


    Mo Jun''s eyes swept coldly over Yi Xiaoshi. The endless dazzle of lightning emanated from his being, and it seemed as though doomsday had come. Frightening spears of darkness shot out with the lightning in a lethal attack on Yi Xiaoshi and came into contact with Yi Xiaoshi''s own attack.


    Mo Jun was not eager to get caught up in battle. Upon seeing those who had just arrived attack people on his side, a radiant image appeared behind him. Within the image was a mighty figure driving a carriage of lightning drawn by frightening dark Kui. Light exploded from the image and the dark Kui burst out, pulling the carriage along as it charged around. The carriage was unstoppable, and everyone was forced back, with those who got too close getting injured from being hit.


    The person on the carriage leaped through the air to Mo Jun''s side. In a flash of lightning that hid them from everyone else, the two rose into the sky at an incredible speed. They had instantly left the battlefield and were in the skies.


    "What a mighty Dharma spirit," many people marveled as they looked at Mo Jun, who was high up in the sky. Mo Jun was a freakishly powerful figure of the Divine Road, and his abilities were incomparable.


    Mo Jun had two Life Spirits, which merged to form the powerful Dharma Spirit that had just appeared. Mo Jun was incomparably powerful, and he had snuck into the palace undetected to attack Ye Futian. Yet he had still failed.


    It seemed like Yi Xiaoshi had gotten in Mo Jun''s way. Perhaps everyone had misjudged the fatty. He was actually powerful beyond measure.


    "Li Xun." Qin Yin and the rest understood just what had happened upon seeing Li Xun in the air. Their expressions turned dark at the realization.


    Li Xun had betrayed them and joined forces with outsiders to target Ye Futian. Since Mo Jun was an underling of Ning Huang''s, it was only presumable that Li Xun had switched allegiance to Ning Huang.


    "A good reputation?" Zui Qianchou shook his head smiling sardonically. Li Xun had only been putting up a front. Looking at Li Qingyi, who was being held captive by Li Xun, he sighed to himself that it was such a waste that a good young lady like her was going to be dragged down with Li Xun.


    "Ye Futian, you can''t always just do whatever you want without thinking about what''s usually done, why set yourself up for failure?" Li Xun spoke from where he was in the sky.


    "Without thinking about what''s usually done?" Ye Futian shot Li Xun a glare. "It''s not like you know how to behave properly."


    Ye Futian ignored Li Xun after that. Turning away, he walked towards the outskirts of the palace.


    "What is he going to do?" Many people''s gazes turned to Ye Futian before they too started to follow after him.


    "Could he be��" There was a subtle sense of excitement in the air. Ye Futian had already collected enough holy badges. Was he going to open up the large relic?


    A flash of excitement shot through Mo Jun''s eyes, and he moved from where he was high up in the sky to chase after Ye Futian as well. Behind them, everyone both inside and outside of the palace was alerted to the happenings and followed the crowd too.


    In no time, a frightening gathering of people was formed. Leaving the palace to walk through Flaming Prison City, Ye Futian was followed by a procession of countless powerful individuals. It was an intimidating sight to see.


    In the skies far away from where they were, rays of light were shooting towards them. The air warship was the first to arrive where Ye Futian and the rest were. It was Bing Yi and Chu Shang from the Mortal World, who had followed after Ye Futian''s group in the sky on the air warship.


    Then, Yan Jiu from the Sword Saint Villa arrived. Following him, Xia Hou, people from the Nantian House, disciples of the Duantian mountain range and various other powerful individuals began to arrive as well. They all looked at Ye Futian.


    "Isn''t it a little inappropriate for Mo Jun and Ning Huang to act on their own?" Gu Feiyang from the Duantian mountain range commented, his voice loud and clear. It was clear that Ning Huang wanted to snatch the holy badges for himself ahead of time and disappear with them.


    "Do you have a problem with that?" A blinding light dazzled from afar, and Ning Huang came from afar, followed by countless people.


    Ning Huang glanced down. He had not expected Mo Jun to fail. It seemed like the other party had been somewhat prepared. However, the ending to these events would still remain the same.


    If Li Xun had not voluntarily come to him at the start, then Ning Huang would not have bothered with such tricks. A direct attack to snatch the holy badges by force would have sufficed for him. Ning Huang didn''t see the need for such troublesome tactics. But since Li Xun wanted to offer him the holy badges, Ning Huang just went along with it.


    Now, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to make a move. Ye Futian had collected sufficient holy badges and was ready to open up the large relic. The only thing was, it seemed like Ye Futian was still intent on holding on to the holy badges himself.


    "Give me the holy badges, and we''ll forget about everything that happened in the past. I guarantee you''ll be safe," Ning Huang looked down at Ye Futian and made an offer. He didn''t mind that Ye Futian had rejected him before. As long as Ning Huang got his hands on the holy badges, he was perfectly happy to pretend as though nothing had happened before.


    Ye Futian threw Ning Huang a glance. Ning Huang was insufferably arrogant. He was the one who had sent people to attack him, and yet now he was offering to "forget about everything that had happened" if Ye Futian gave him the holy badges. Just who was the one who had tried to pull off an underhanded attack on Ye Futian?


    Ning Huang had sent people to kill Ye Futian, and yet now he would only "forget about everything" if Ye Futian handed over the holy badges. If one were to try to apply this logic elsewhere, they''d be met with sneers. But now no one thought there was anything amiss about the statement, just because Ning Huang had been the one to say it. Ning Huang made it sound as though he was giving Ye Futian a chance.


    Ye Futian continued walking ahead, ignoring Ning Huang. Though there were countless people following after Ye Futian, the atmosphere was very tense. Everyone present in the sky was insanely powerful individuals. Within the Barren State, these people were the best of their generation in various aspects, and any one of them could potentially be iconic figures in the future. These people were sure to enter the Holy Zhi Palace.


    And at this very moment, everyone was staring at Ye Futian, preparing to attack!

 521 Great War

    Ye Futian pressed on. The void was practically filled with mighty ones. Formidable people from all walks of life seemed to have a piece of their own space, while they cast their gaze below.


    "Ye Futian, those who suit their actions to the times are wise. Hand over the holy badge, and you may still live," Li Xun, who was standing beside Mo Jun, said. He wanted to follow Ning Huang and intended to perform a deed of merit to win it. The ambush failed, however, and he began to worry for his own future.


    "You shameless b*stard. I was so wrong to have been your friend." Xuanyuan Bashan, the young city lord of Yellow City scoffed coldly as he glared at Li Xun.


    Li Xun used to be a member of Mount Jiuxian and was tutored personally by the sages, yet he betrayed them and sided with Ning Huang.


    Li Xun took a look at Xuanyuan Bashan with equally cold eyes. He did not feel any shame for what he did. One trained to achieve strength, be it serving the sages as he used to or siding with Ning Huang as he did now; it was all for his own growth. Only by following powerful figures, would one''s vista of the world be broadened. His training on Mount Jiuxian severely limited this, yet he earned the chance to encounter top-notch geniuses all the time, which was very different from how he trained back then.


    Xuanyuan Bashan would have been able to understand the correctness of his actions given time. Li Xun did not do so out of Zhuo Jun''s provocations; he weighed the pros and cons before doing what he did. He knew to seize the day when the opportunity presented itself.


    "There''s an ancient saying, ''people die in pursuit of wealth; birds die in pursuit of food.'' You knew the holy badge was too much for you, so why did you force yourself then?" Gu Feiyang of Mount Duantian asked, hoping that Ye Futian would have yielded and handed over his holy badge.


    "Well, who wouldn''t want to see what they are made of when the chance presents itself? Yet, those who did often ended up paying the price with their lives." Xia Hou smirked. He had seen too many who behaved like this, but Ye Futian was still considered one of a kind among those people. Ye Futian was able to crack the ruins, had command over what amounted to an army of mighty ones, and made them his personal guards by his flanks. All of that was something in their own right.


    It was a pity that he was out of his luck. They were on the Holy Road, and anyone encountered would be a top-level figure among the younger generations of the Barren State. Even with Ye Futian''s immense talents, his current plane meant that he would have been able to leave the ruins in death; there was simply no other way to go about it.


    "Ye Futian, you would have been a somebody and would have had a bright future of you if you made it out of here. Why risk all that for the ruins?" Chu Shang said, looking at Ye Futian. She was an acquaintance of his and no one in Nantian House knew the young man better than Nan Feng and his people. The battle of Sky Mountain was glorious. She thought it would have been a pity for one such as Ye Futian to perish on the Holy Roads.


    Ye Futian lifted his head to look at Chu Shang, then smirked sarcastically at her. It all sounded very nice, like it was all said for his own good. Yet, the Chu Shang and the others'' intentions were simple: they were after his holy badge.


    "There are many powerful figures on the Holy Roads, and you all managed to carve out your own place here. With that said, I think all of you would have thousands of such badges on your person. Yet, instead of fighting amongst yourselves for the badges, you all came here. You all looked as if you were persuading me to take a better path, but you were simply throwing threats at me. Why is that then?" Ye Futian swept his gaze over the opposing party and answered his own question, "It is because you see that I''m weak, someone you can bully into submission.


    "The world of cultivators has always been one where the strong preys on the weak. Since you are able to understand that fact, why hold on to all that and die a vain death?" Bing Yi, Virgin of Mortal World said coldly. Chu Shang was trying to be nice, yet Ye Futian seemed to have no intention to yield regardless.


    Ye Futian smirked. What Bing Yi said was the truth. The strong preyed on the weak. It was precisely because they thought he was weak that they ganged up on him, intending to take his holy badge away.


    "I hope you all will always be the strong ones." Ye Futian smirked sarcastically as he said that.


    "Goddess Bing Yi, it seems that this man has no intention of appreciating our kindness," Gu Feiyang, a disciple of Sage Duantian, said plainly. He looked at Ye Futian below, who looked dashing. Gu Feiyang took a step forward, and the winds howled in response, as his spiritual qi exploded outward.


    It was apparent that Gu Feiyang was about to make his move. Everyone beside Ye Futian blasted away with their aura as they peered upward.


    Fierce gales whipped in the air above Gu Feiyang, calling forth immense pressure on the ground below. A glittering ancient mountain, which looked like the mountain of the gods, seemed to have appeared behind him. He willed his Dharma spirit to unleash powerful attacks. Broken cliff faces fell from the skies, which looked like they have been shaved clean enough to sever the void, and they rained down on their intended targets. They flew with great speeds, making them look like a rain of giant mountain blades.


    The Noble Plane mighty ones from Starry School leaped into the air and unleashed powerful spells. Countless meteors floated in the air, which closed in on the blades of rocks; the move was none other than the Star Burial spell.


    Loud booming sounds reverberated in the air as the spells clashed. The rock blades cut through the Star Burial spell and continued raining downward. The Noble Plane mighty ones gathered their strengths and blew the blades to smithereens.


    Gu Feiyang leaped forward. His hair flailed about in the air as he extended his arm, bringing down the might of the godly mountain on his foes, seemingly with full intention of burying the heavens and earth. Everyone felt a terrifying sense of pressure on them. Their bodies were barely able to move, as if they were being crushed by gravity.


    Many leaped into the air and launched their attacks, resisting the falling giant mountain. One figure after another was thrown off, vomiting blood from their mouths. The mountain seemed to have carried an irresistible amount of pressure on it. Anyone who got near felt like their insides were being crushed by said pressure.


    Top notch geniuses were practically people who could have taken on an army all by themselves. They were existences capable of razing nations if they so fancied.


    Mo Jun, who made his move before, took to the air and launched his attacks again. His Dharma spirit bloomed and the air seemed to be filled with lightning storms. A mass of lightning in the form of a carriage which seemed to be pulled by a Kui emerged from above. Anyone who dared stand in its way would have been quickly torn apart. Galloping noises rang throughout the space as the army of chariots followed soon.


    Mo Jun leaped onto one of the chariots and went straight for Ye Futian. His eyes were cold as he glared at Yi Xiaoshi, who was standing beside Ye Futian. He did not have his fill of the previous battle, and he intended to see right there and then, how a grade eight Noble, who was of a lower plane than he was, would have fared trying to stop his stampede.


    "Be careful," Yi Xiaoshi said to Ye Futian as he leaped upward for the clouds.


    Second sister had him come to the Dawn Road instead of the Nether Road to guard Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian proved to be quite a handful, and the troubles he stirred right there was a testament to that fact. He was still incapable of taking care of himself right there, and things were looking dire for all of them.


    Yi Xiaoshi knew that that was Ye Futian''s way of things. The young man simply was unable to keep himself still in peace.


    Ning Huang took a look at the battle between Yi Xiaoshi and Mo Jun. There was a sparkle in his eyes. Yi Xiaoshi''s Dharma spirit was a powerful one: Emperor''s Vines. They took the form of Tree of Emperors and incorporated the divine arms and ritual implements of the sages, making the attack looking like he was having control over such fearsome arsenal in the thousands. No one would have been able to make it near him easily, and it was no wonder that Mo Jun was incapable of taking down Ye Futian before.


    "Hmph." Xia Hou led the mighty ones in the air downward, and a firestorm was seen above Xia Hou''s body. Dark colors streaked across the flames. It was the Flames of Ruin, flames that were inextinguishable and would have burned everything they touched until they were reduced to cinders.


    Many hesitated to move near him as Xia Hou made his move. The Flames of Ruin were simply too dangerous. Anyone who was of inadequate capacity would have been burned to death if they so much as touched the flames, with no chance of escape.


    A long xiao flute was seen in Xiao Junyi''s hand, who was standing beside Ye Futian. He put the flute close to his mouth and began to blow the instrument. Streaks of formless power of the tunes spread from the holes on the flute. Hints of sorrow came from the tune played, which fit Xiao Junyi''s temperament very well.


    The formless tune which spread out turned into a fearsome spiritual will attack. It blew like a breeze on the Flames of Ruin coming from above. The falling wisps of flames known to be inextinguishable were quickly extinguished.


    Many looked in Xiao Junyi''s direction and felt a chill run down their spines. The Flames of Ruin, which were something even powerful water spells would not have been able to do anything against, were extinguished by Xiao Junyi''s tune instead. It was a solid testament to the spiritual will laced within the tune. It would have been engulfed by the flames instead otherwise.


    Xia Hou took a look at Xiao Junyi as well. One move and he was already able to tell that Xiao Junyi was a formidable combatant.


    The tune wiggled its way into his mind in the form of formless spiritual energies, messing up his will someone and robbing him of his mental focus.


    Boom! A formidable explosion of Flames of Ruin took place and Xia Hou was seen bathing in it, like a god of fire getting ready to burn everything down in his path, as he made his way to Xiao Junyi.


    Xiao Junyi remained calm and serene as he continued playing his flute. The sorrow about his body made his clothes flutter, as his dashing figure rose into the air. A storm of immeasurable magnitude began to form around him.


    The Flames of Ruin clad around Xia Hou burned unpredictably, extinguishing for one moment only to burn bright again in the next��an influence brought about by the tune. His will was under assault and his expressions looked gloom. An unknown figure ended up making him look bad.


    It seemed that many hidden geniuses were on the Holy Road indeed.


    Xia Hou lifted his palm and went on to clap on Xiao Junyi with a terrifying palm of Flames of Ruin. The move looked a palm of burning silence, rendering all who looked at it feeling fear in their minds. Would Xiao Junyi have been able to resist one such move?


    Xiao Junyi''s body remained floating in the air, while looking all dashing and handsome as he played away with his flute. Auroras of music appeared around him, which took the forms of indestructible sword of music, and flew straight for the palm. They cut right through it and in an instant, the palm of Flames of Ruin scattered to bits and was extinguished shortly after.


    Xia Hou''s expressions changed as his Flames of Ruin roared. A dragon conjured by the Flames of Ruin out to reduce all to cinders appeared and charged straight again for Xiao Junyi. The man with the flute continued playing his tune calmly, as one divine bird of music after another gathered around him. Rocs and phoenixes came as they heard the tune, and went on to face the dragon. Both sides clashed and the dragon of Flames of Ruin was yet again extinguished.


    Xia Hou was simply unable to do anything about him.


    "Interesting." The mighty ones from Nantian House did not make their move. Nan Hao looked on with an interested expression. All manners of peculiarities life had to offer appeared as soon as the Holy Road was opened. Many formidable figures were hiding among the common people, and Xiao Junyi was one of the first of the hidden ones to have displayed fighting capacities of top-notch geniuses.


    Bing Yi and Chu Shang from Mortal World looked troubled, while Ning Huang simply spared Xiao Junyi a look. His composure remained, and then he took a look at Ye Futian.


    Ning Huang stood up from the carriage. His body was clad in immense brilliance, making him look like some kind of god. Ning Huang, at the moment, looked as if he was donned in godlike armor, looking arrogant and proud as he stepped. The air shook as he walked in Ye Futian''s direction.


    "Ning Huang has made his move." Many shivered at the thought as Ning Huang was thought to be unstoppable.


    Qin Yin, Xuanyuan Bashan, Xie Wuji and the others appeared above Ye Futian as they unleashed their formidable auras.


    Ning Huang swept at all of them with cold eyes. Some closed in on him attempting to hold him back. Ning Huang responded by taking a heavy step in the air, which seemed to have stepped right into the minds of everyone around him. Those who were of insufficient strength and training whelped in response, and blood was seen at the corner of their mouths, gazing in terror at the figure making its way downward.


    A mighty one said to be among the top three on the Holy Road, was no joke indeed!

 522 Ruins Opened

    More and more mighty ones took to the skies, blocking the sky area above Ye Futian. He still had his holy badge with him for now, which if taken, would have rendered all his previous efforts to waste.


    If those top-class figures were to get their hands on the ruins, it would have been a given that they would simply keep the place for themselves instead of sharing with others. They were only willing to hand holy badges to him because he had previously shared the ruins he had cracked opened with others. It was due to that that became willing to bet on him, even though they knew the risk of them ended up losing was high.


    With those top-class figures going all out to fight up in the air, they came to realize how meager their chances of winning were, which was close to zero. Some of those mighty ones packed more punch that they would have imagined.


    Ning Huang moved proudly like he was a god. Clad in godlike armor and looking insurmountable, he moved slowly, yet every step carried immeasurable pressure. He lifted his foot to step on the air yet again. His one step seemed to have been stepping on the hearts of the ones around him. Many felt as if they were suffocating and went pale. More went spitting blood. Even those who have reached grade seven Noble Plane felt the heft of his steps all the same, their insides being under immense pressure and their minds filled with horror.


    Boom! Ning Huang took his third step. Those in Noble Planes around him spat blood, even those who were of grade seven Noble Plane just like him. Needless to say, those of grade eight or nine suffered very badly.


    There were nine grades to the Noble Plane, with grade one being the most powerful. It went without saying that the difference between different planes was even greater. Only those who were grade seven nobles like he was were able to withstand the pressure, the likes of Ning Huang emanated. Those who were of even lower planes were unable to withstand even one step of his. If Ning Huang wanted to go on a killing spree, anyone who dared even walk up to him would have died on the spot.


    Seeing Ning Huang had already made his way down, Xuanyuan Bashan roared and went charging with his ax. The gleam from his weapon was intense, like he was going to split the sky itself. Xie Wuji, Qin Yin and all the others began to make their moves, blasting away with their sword auras and went for the impossibly imposing being. Those who guarded Ye Futian all wanted nothing then than to stop Ning Huang''s advancement.


    Ning Huang''s expressions hardly flinched. He remained the being who ignored all as he made his steps downward. Protective light screens appeared around him. The flash from the ax looking like it was to split the sky was split in the middle, and the sword intent that was aimed at him menacingly was reduced to nothing.


    Xuanyuan Bashan spat up blood as his body was sent flying. The earth cracked as he landed. Xie Wuji, Qin Yin and the others were not doing any better. All suffered grievous internal injuries, and they looked at Ning Huang in a despairing manner. Every single step he made seemed to be more powerful. No one would have been able to stand in front of the likes of him, and stayed there for long.


    Such was the meaning of top-class geniuses��beings who were seemingly invincible even against those of the very same plane, and there seemed to be unstoppable by anyone.


    Ye Futian told hold of the Polearm of Divine Destruction, and terrifying starry storms whipped up around him. Ning Huang spared him a look, before taking yet another step. Ye Futian felt like he was being stepped under a divine, giant foot, which penetrated everything. Rumbling noises were heard. His starry meteor storm was violently dispersed, and the Starry Dharma body around him cracked into million pieces.


    Ning Huang remained in the air, casting his gaze at the young man like he was a god, and spoke, "An ant trying to shake the tree. You are way in over your head. Where is the holy badge?"


    Ning Huang had sent men to tell Ye Futian to hand over his badge on the day itself. He would have let him have a share at opening the ruins and have him enter the Holy Zhi Palace as well. Yet, Ye Futian scoffed at the idea, wanting to open up the ruins on his own instead.


    Men from the Nantian House, Mortal World, and the Sword Saint Villa all cast their eyes at Ning Huang''s direction. The result hardly surprised them. It was rare enough to have Ning Huang make a move personally, and there would have been no way the likes of Ye Futian would have been able to resist him. It was indeed ants trying to shake the tree. Everything happened just as predicted.


    Rumbling noises were heard again and the earth shook. The golden great ape''s body was seen moving in Ye Futian''s direction. It was apparent that despite being a demonic beast, it had wanted to get his hands on the holy badge to open the ruins all the same.


    Yan Jiu from Sword Saint Villa took the form of a sword and zapped through the air like a bolt of lightning, making his way for Ye Futian as well.


    Ning Huang was able to feel them moving. He frowned, looking at Ye Futian''s direction and getting prepared to take him away, when he saw a sarcastic smirk on the young man''s face. Ye Futian threw a ring at Yuan Zhan, who was running at him.


    "Seems like you have a death wish," Ning Huang said coldly. He did not bother with Ye Futian and had simply turned around to move in the ring''s trajectory, catching it with his hand.


    Yuan Zhan arrived at the same time, and it threw its golden palm about with full intentions to kill. It seemed everything in the air shook for the moment. The golden great ape looked like it was made entirely of gold, sporting nigh-invincible offensive and defensive capacities. Yuan Zhan''s palm attack clashed directly with Ning Huang''s and exploded. No one came up on top of the other right there and then.


    Yuan Zhan extended its other hand trying to take the ring, yet a sword aura swept by and hit right onto the ring. It was sent flying as Yan Jiu arrived at the scene. Three mighty ones, fighting over a ring.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian, who had been the target of everyone''s wrath just a while ago, seemed to no longer be a concern to anyone. Everyone''s attention was on the ring, even though they have had no idea if the badge was indeed within the ring. Yet, given how Ye Futian threw something like that away at such timing, no one would have given up trying to snatch it.


    Ye Futian broke out his flying boat and swung his legs onto the ritual implement. He moved away like a lightning bolt riding on it.


    "Come look for me later," Ye Futian said to Qin Yin and the rest, before disappearing in the air with the flying boat. The two goddesses on the Mortal World warship cast their gaze at Ye Futian and looked troubled. The speed of the flying boat would have very probably exceeded even that of their air warship.


    Just how was that thing flying so fast? They both felt something was off right there and then.


    "Don''t let him get away," someone yelled being worried that Ye Futian had simply bluffing them earlier, before chasing after him.


    The three mighty ones continued fighting all the same, but the ring fell onto someone beneath them. Seeing how all three of them coming in his direction, the unlucky person threw the ring in haste and added, "That is just a normal ring."


    All three of them were dumbfounded. Ning Huang lifted his hand and caught the ring, before wearing an impossibly ugly expression on his face.


    They had been played.


    The ring was not even one that was capable of storage. It was just a common ornament. He threw the ring at Yan Jiu, before turning around and walking away with terrifying murderous intent.


    Does Ye Futian really think he can get away clean? If he wanted Ye Futian dead, the young man would have needed to die in the Holy Road. There was no way he could have survived.


    Boom! Everyone felt the heavens and the earth shook. They lifted their heads and cast their gaze far away, seeing a beam of light shot straight for the clouds and reaching the heavens.


    Ning Huang''s murderous intent dissipated, and his eyes grew increasingly cold. He finally came to understand that the holy badge was never on Ye Futian''s person. He threw a ring to catch everyone''s attention, while someone took the real badge and went opening the ruins.


    The booming noise heard before was a sign that the ruins were being opened. Everyone, including those high and mighty top class geniuses, was played by Ye Futian.


    Qin Yin and the others were just as dumbfounded as they looked far away. They had only come to realize that the several people, who had been with him all the time, were hardly seen as of late. Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and even Mu Zhiqiu; none of them were around. Only the most powerful Yi Xiaoshi remained.


    Having cracked open many ruins in a strong. Everyone thought he would have gone to open the ruins on his own with the badge in his hands. It would not have made sense to pas the chance off to others, to entrust others with the task.


    Yet, Ye Futian went doing so instead. He knew what everyone was thinking. When everyone thought he was totally lost and helpless in front of Ning Huang, he threw a ring out. Regardless if the badge was indeed within the ring, he knew that everyone would have gone after it. No one would have risked the chance of not confirming for themselves, an opening which he exploited to get away on the flying boat.


    One streak of lightning after another zapped by. Everyone went chasing after Ye Futian, which was also the direction leading to the ruins. The location of the ruins was the first place that he went to check out: the stone forest. When he came to the stone forest, it looked different from what he had remembered. Endless flames encased the place. Horrifying fires were imprinted on the peculiar stones of the place. The horrifying flames looked pitch black, making the place seemed like an area consisted of only fire, which looked capable of burning everything to the ground.


    Flaming Prison City. Ye Futian seemed to have come to understand the meaning of the city. The horrifying flames shot for the skies, looking like imposing figures looking down on the mortals scurrying about between the heavens and the earth.


    Yu Sheng stood right at the center of these figures, an immeasurable amount of power flowing into his body. Ye Wuchen, Loulan Xue, Mu Zhiqiu and even the Black Wind Condor was there.


    Ye Futian knew that when he had collected enough number of holy badges, the top class figures would not have let him open the ruins himself. All eyes were on him, and they would have taken the badges before he was able to open up the place. As such, he had Yu Sheng and the rest came to open the ruins instead.


    The flying boat flew forward, entering the ruins'' fire area. Despite having the protection of starlight about him, the currents of fire in the air seemed like they were capable of simply swallowing him up.


    "How do you feel?" Ye Futian smiled at Yu Sheng in front of him.


    "You should be the one to open up the place," Yu Sheng answered.


    "Haven''t we always been going about things share and share alike all the time?" Ye Futian asked as he smiled. He had always seen what was his, also what was Yu Sheng''s.


    "Yeah." Yu Sheng nodded. "What is mine is yours. So, your turn now." A beam of light was stripped from his body as he finished his sentence, making for Ye Futian. That was the something he had acquired when opening up the ruins, something that would have made him the master of the place.


    When the beam of light rested on Ye Futian, the ruins gleamed in brilliant lights in an instant, falling onto him. He felt an indescribable air turned about his body at the moment.


    "You need to enhance your plane, and let them know who you are," Yu Sheng looked straight and narrow as he uttered those words and looked at Ye Futian. His eyes flickered not for even a second.


    Ye Wuchen and Loulan Xue did not feel weird at all, yet Mu Zhiqiu was rather moved instead. Just what is with those two? How can one just simply hand over a lineage of the ruins like this to the other?


    Ye Futian smiled looking at Yu Sheng''s eyes. Yu Sheng remained as he had always been. A guy so honest that he looked rather dumb, then, now and always!

 523 Dark Saint’s Successor

    A line of figures came from the distant sky speedily. They were the ones who''d chased Ye Futian and were now arriving gradually. The airship from the Mortal World and Yan Jiu from the Sword Saint Villa were the fastest. Behind them were people from other top powers. They looked at Ye Futian in the relic coldly for they''d never expected that they would be fooled by a guy who was only in Arcana Plane.


    Ning Huang also arrived. Bathing in bright light, he looked powerful like a god.


    Everyone was looking toward the relic''s direction. They all had a profound background, so they knew things others couldn''t know. They sent people to spy on Ye Futian. Once Ye Futian collected all the holy badges, they would rob Ye Futian. For them, Ye Futian wasn''t the enemy at all. It was impossible for them to let a guy from Arcana Plane open the relics before them. Their real enemy was each other.


    However, Ye Futian didn''t open the relics himself, but the one who opened the relics still left the relics to Ye Futian.


    Born elevated, they had never been fooled like this. This was especially embarrassing for Ning Huang. He was at such an elevated status but was fooled to fight for an ordinary ring.


    Ning Huang''s group looked up at that enormous shadow of the fire god. The Flaming Prison City was left on the Holy Road by ancient Saints of the Holy Zhi Palace for the descendants to cultivate and inherit.


    Most of the relics on the Holy Road were remains of those ancestors from the Holy Zhi Palace. They died and their bodies turned into a part of the path, nourishing their descendants. Common people didn''t know the history of the Holy Road.


    "Anyone that gave me a holy badge can enter in the relic for cultivation. Others are not permitted," said Ye Futian loudly. He stood in the middle of the shadow and his voice could be heard from the distance. Those on the way became excited, especially those who had handed Ye Futian their holy badge.


    Ye Futian opened the big relics successfully and was ready to fulfill his promise. This time, he had no intention of making the relics known to everyone on the Holy Road as he had done before. Only those who had given him the holy badge would know. In this case, those who had coveted the relics for long but refused to give would have no chance to reap without sowing. They all knew that there were too many such people who thought that as long as they followed Ye Futian, once Ye Futian opened the relics, they could all enter and cultivate just like last time.


    Obviously, they were wrong this time.


    People who had handed over the holy badge walked toward the relics one by one. At this moment however, Yan Jiu in the sky pointed his finger up and horrible Sword Intent flew over all of a sudden. Countless swords hung in the sky and made clanged. Amazing destructive power broke out.


    Everyone''s eyes fell on Yan Jiu from the Sword Saint Villa. He stepped out with dreadful Sword Intent around him. The surrounding space grew more and more oppressive. He stared at Ye Futian and lifted one of his fingers. Endless Sword Intent gathered at one point and rocketed toward Ye Futian.


    The sword flashed through the air with sharp sounds and scary Sword Intent. Though the distance between the two was quite far, the Sword Intent still rushed toward Ye Futian accurately.


    In the relic, some strands of fire fell down and surrounded the rushing sword. The sword was suddenly wrapped in fire. It didn''t stop, but it was melting bit by bit.


    Yan Jiu didn''t give up. He moved forward and a horrible shadow appeared behind him. All of a sudden, strong Sword Intent rolled over as if a sword saint descended. Spiritual Qi in the world seemly resonated with his body and turned into Sword Intent, rolling in the air.


    The endless Sword Intent descended and rushed toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked up in the sky. Seeing the endless Sword Intent, his face turned cold. At this time, a flute was heard. It was Xiao Junyi playing his flute beside Ye Futian. Light transformed from the flute music clashed with the Sword Intent like lightning. In the end, both disappeared.


    Xiao Junyi attracted people''s attention with his music which soon turned into a powerful musical storm that became stronger and stronger. The musical rhythm flew around him and suddenly rushed into Ye Futian''s mind. The rhythm was invisible. Before Xiao Junyi sent his attack, no prelude was heard. No one in the relic even knew that Ye Futian was attacked. However, the music turned straight into a mental attack and disrupted Ye Futian''s spiritual energy. Xiao Junyi remained facing Yan Jiu. He looked gloomy but still handsome.


    Beams of rhythmic light invaded Ye Futian''s brain and turned into the scary light of darkness. Ye Futian''s mentality was disrupted heavily. Coldness dug into him. Ye Futian had presumed that after the relic was opened, he only needed to wait for his cultivation to rise. He had never expected there was still a deadly attack waiting here.


    While he was calculating the other talents on the Holy Road, people were calculating him too. Someone had been waiting here to send the last deadly attack then robbing everything Ye Futian worked for.


    There seemed to be a terrible deadly gray airflow in the rhythm. In an instant, Ye Futian felt like his mental will was falling apart. It didn''t give him enough time to use the relic''s power. That dreadful gray airflow swept every part of his body. His face darkened and the color spread through his body.


    "What happened?" Seeing Ye Futian''s expression, people were stunned. Then they saw a horrible shapeless rhythmic storm enveloping Ye Futian. It seemed to want to isolate him from the relic.


    "Xiao Junyi!" People looked again at that melancholy and handsome figure. Seeing what happened, Xia Hou grinned. He had fought with Xiao Junyi before. He knew Xiao Junyi''s terrible strength. Such a person wouldn''t be willing to follow Ye Futian. He''d disguised himself well, just like them!


    Yi Xiaoshi stepped out at this minute. Extremely sharp golden foliage rolled out like spears. Xiao Junyi was still playing his flute. But at the same time, there was some dark light following the rhythm. Yi Xiaoshi''s vines turned black in an instant and withered.


    "It''s the Spiritual Qi of Death."


    The sight of this shocked people and reminded them of the reason why those people died in the palace. It was him! Their hearts trembled. Xiao Junyi looked handsome with his outstanding temperament. Both his cultivation and talent were at the top level and was recommended to Ye Futian by others. No one expected that Xiao Junyi had such a dark side.


    "He''s a necromancer." Those top talents were astonished. They looked at Xiao Junyi who was still playing his flute. Ye Futian''s face had totally turned into dark. The dead spirit swept through his body, taking all his vitality. At the same time, the mental attack prevented him from communicating with the relic. He was being eaten away little by little.


    But suddenly, blazing light appeared around Ye Futian. The darkness on his face disappeared gradually while Xiao Junyi could feel there was a power protecting Ye Futian from being encroached.


    Whoosh. The horrible flames enveloped Ye Futian''s body and burned down the Spiritual Qi of Death. Then he opened his eyes and looked directly at Xiao Junyi coldly. The relic began to shake and a flaming light rushed into Xiao Junyi''s brain. Xiao Junyi groaned and was forced back. He put down his flute and glanced at Ye Futian. There was a mysterious power protecting Ye Futian. That was why he failed.


    That instant, horrible flames rolled out toward Xiao Junyi, but dark smoke appeared around Xiao Junyi. The Spiritual Qi of Death went wild and he ran frantically, but the flames caught up and burned on. There was an explosion and the smoke turned into ashes. In the distance, Xiao Junyi floated down. He looked still handsome and extraordinary.


    Xiao Junyi glanced at Ye Futian with no expression. He didn''t seem to care about this failure and just turned around, ready to leave.


    "What''s your relationship with the Dark Saint?" Xia Hou came and asked Xiao Junyi. He didn''t feel wronged to be stopped by Xiao Junyi earlier.


    Xiao Junyi ignored him and walked away. Xia Hou stepped forward and raised his hands. Instantly, endless flames appeared in the air. Xiao Junyi immediately took out his flute and played again. Dark figures loomed in the distance and rushed toward Xia Hou.


    Xia Hou frowned and waved his hand. The flames rushed to envelop those figures, but it didn''t work. Those figures kept rushing toward him.


    "Dead spirits!" Xia Hou''s face turned ashen. He lifted his hand and sent out a big handprint. Those figures were all burnt out, but Xiao Junyi was gone. He seemly had no interest in fighting with Xia Hou


    "He can control the dead spirits. He must be the successor of the Dark Saint. It won''t be easy for this generation of the Barren State," said Bing Yi on the air warship.


    People like Ning Huang, Yan Jiu, and Yuan Zhan were all very strong cultivators. Now, there was also the Dark Saint''s successor. It was known to all that the Dark Saint was maverick and cruel. Countless people lost lives because of him. Too many famous cultivators wanted to eliminate him, but those who acted always had a tragic end. The Dark Saint was a very horrible name on the Barren State''s list.


    Ye Futian had a very strong talent, but his level was comparatively low. He had encountered so many strong cultivators on this Holy Road and this was only one of the eight paths��the Dawn Road. It was the most dangerous road. What would things be like when they exited the Dawn Road and gathered at the Holy Zhi Palace with all the strong cultivators from the other roads?


    Even though Ye Futian had the relic, he still couldn''t defeat him. He was undoubtedly playing with fire. The relics could help him improve, but what about the future? Could he shoot up fast enough? After fooling people like Ning Huang, Ye Futian might lose his life on the Holy Road even with his outstanding talent.


    "If the life couldn''t be guaranteed, the promotion of strength means nothing. Let''s go!" Bing Yi glanced at Ye Futian indifferently and left.

 524 Acquisition

    Ning Huang looked at Ye Futian with hostility, but he also found it impossible to kill Ye Futian who had the relic in hand.


    "Let''s go." Ning Huang turned away, ready to go back to the city he had occupied. People like them seldom hesitated. He was upset to fail with Ye Futian, but he couldn''t stay here anymore. He decided to give up. He would continue collecting other holy badges for opening the big relic in their city.


    After all of this, their desire to open the big relic became so strong that even uncommon means might be used if necessary. After all, Ye Futian had opened one. They inferred that Xiao Junyi must be the Dark Saint''s successor. Everyone had seen him control the dead spirits. Killing others for the holy badges seemed possible to him too. With Xiao Junyi''s strength, collecting the holy badges was still easy for him. Then, Ye Futian and Xiao Junyi would open the relic. How would others think if they didn''t succeed?


    At this time, no one in the Dawn Road knew that bloody chaos was awaiting them.


    After Ning Huang left, Mo Jun would naturally follow him. Li Xun glanced at Ye Futian''s direction. He saw Qin Yin, Xuanyuan Bashan, and Xie Wuji. These people followed Ye Futian and they must have benefited a lot this time.


    Li Xun could have been one of them, but he chose to follow Ning Huang. He''d gone down a totally different path. But he didn''t regret it. Li Xun knew that Ning Huang was extremely talented and this was just a temporary failure. Ning Huang would definitely open the relic in his city. Then Li Xun would take back what he had lost. He believed that Ning Huang was a far better choice than Nine Saint Mountain.


    Ning Huang would enter the Holy Zhi Palace and become the personal disciple of powerful figures.


    Turning around, Li Xun became more determined. He glanced at Li Qingyi, who was being guarded, and said, "Take her with us!"


    "I can go on my own." Li Qingyi followed Li Xun and asked, "Do you regret it?"


    "Why would I regret following Mr. Ning?"


    Li Qingyi sneered. "You thought that Ye Futian would fail and die, but what happened? It sounds nice that you follow Ning Hung for cultivation, but can''t you see the gap between you and him? Has he talked about anything with you? Sure, he has a promising future. But is there anything to do with you? You are just one of his many followers. Maybe tomorrow he won''t even remember who you are."


    "Shut up!" Li Xun was irritated. Of course he knew that Ning Huang did think too highly of him, especially after this failure. But he didn''t want to think about it. Following Ning Huang was the only thing he had to comfort himself now.


    "Am I right?" Li Qingyi laughed. "Brother, you used to be a successful gentleman. Our father was proud of you. People in White Sovereign City all praised you. You always knew how to make the best choice. You are so clever that you only make the best choice for yourself, so you would rather betray Ye Futian and follow Ning Huang. But what do you get now?"


    Crack! A crisp sound was heard and a handprint appeared on Li Qingyi''s face. Li Xun had slapped her directly and said coldly, "Li Qingyi, remember your identity. If you dare to talk to me with such an attitude again, I won''t let you go. Don''t blame me for not considering you as my sister then."


    "Sister?" Li Qingyi looked at Li Xun ironically. Some blood oozed on the corner of her mouth. Did Li Xun finally expose his nature?


    Li Qingyi and Li Xun shared the same father but had different mothers. Li Xun, as the eldest son, was especially favored while Li Qingyi only existed to help him. This was why she entered the Holy Road. This was her destiny. Therefore, she had never asked for anything for herself. She didn''t dare hope that she could enter the Holy Zhi Palace too. Standing outside of the Holy Zhi Palace to see how strong those top talents of the Barren State were was all she wanted. She knew those talents must be far stronger than Li Xun.


    But now, she was not sure whether her wish could come true anymore.


    ��


    Those top talents who stood far from the relic left gradually, but there were still countless figures around the relic. Most of them were local cultivators. Disciples from the Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School were also among them. They exclaimed at Ye Futian''s victory.


    They had known the Son''s talent while in Divine Sky City. Now on the Holy Road, Ye Futian caused another sensation. The Starry School''s disciples would benefit a lot by following him too.


    Leaders of both the Blazing Sun School and the Bright Moon School had no idea that Ye Futian was still alive at this time. What would happen if they knew? And what would be the outcome if Ye Futian really entered the Holy Zhi Palace in the end? It was especially impossible for the Blazing Sun School to forget what a loss Ye Futian had brought to them.


    Anyway, Ye Futian had no time to think about them. Seeing those top talents departing, he claimed, "As I said before, I will open the relic and share with anyone that has handed over holy badges. Now that the relic is open, I will keep my promise. Anyone that has given me the holy badges before can enter the relic to cultivate. I will teach you how to understand the relic''s spirit and also return your holy badges."


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, many people were reassured and smiled. More than ten thousand people handed their holy badges this time. They finally reaped from their sowing. Ye Futian didn''t let them down. As he had promised before, he opened the relic successfully under the noses of so many top talents. Now that he would meet his word, they were naturally happy.


    "Of course, those who didn''t give me holy badges shall not enter the relic or you''ll bear the consequences," said Ye Futian coldly. He had helped so many people to understand the relic last time, but few people felt grateful to him.


    Now he wouldn''t let those freeloaders benefit.


    After the warning, Ye Futian closed his eyes and felt it silently. Instantly, blazing light from the enormous relic shrouded Ye Futian''s body. The shadow in the light seemed to contain an extremely strong will. It entered Ye Futian''s brain little by little.


    Ye Futian felt a sacred and dignified god appear in his brain. Inferring from the Holy Road''s history, he knew this might very possibly be an ancient Saint from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    This relic was different from others on the Holy Road. Others only had very little of ancient Saints'' spirit, but this relic had the complete heritage of the Saint''s spiritual will.


    Such a strong heritage could not have been left impulsively. Ye Futian guessed the relic must have originated from the ancient Saint''s remains. He must have sat there until he died to pass down to the future.


    Ye Futian was moved by such dedication. He felt like he was trapped in a blazing hell full of destructive flames. His spiritual will was imprisoned in it and burnt into ashes little by little. In this blazing hell, endless dreadful flames fell down. Every bit of the flames seemed able to destroy a world.


    Ye Futian knew that this fire came from the saint''s comprehension. This was some power beyond Noble Will. With his present level, he might be able to use a small part of this fire if he could get the heritage directly just like before. But to comprehend it was totally beyond his cultivation level.


    Right at this time, some spiritual changes happened in his brain. Something strange occurred. There seemed to be strands of flame Spiritual Qi floating in the world which then turned into other powers. The powers became so strong that the blazing hell in his brain seemly became real.


    Ye Futian was shocked. The ancient Saint left not only his spirit but also his method of how to cultivate and improve for future generations.


    He was immersed in it.


    Eyes closed, he seemed to completely enter the spiritual world. The heritage left by this Saint fit cultivators of fire attribute the most. Ye Futian was also good at fire, especially after he inherited the last heritage and got the Sun Scripture from Yang Ding, the chief of Blazing Sun School. If he took advantage of what he had gotten, he would gain a lot.


    In the relic, endless flames fell down. One strand of the flame entered and reached every part of Ye Futian''s body. It tempered his spiritual will, flesh, and bones, strengthening him. Bathing in the firelight, Ye Futian was completely immersed in his cultivation. Countless days later, his body shone. Strands of fire flowed through his skin. He looked holy like a god of fire.


    There were thunderous cracks from Ye Futian''s bones and muscles. His blood rumbled and his skin glowed. He seemed to be evolving.


    "He''s breaking through the barrier." Some people heard the sound from Ye Futian''s body and looked up at him. Ye Futian was understanding it more in a spiritual way. That was what a sorcerer would do during cultivation. His body was tempered unconsciously by the relic, which helped him break into the eighth level of the Arcana Plane.


    Those who cultivated in the relic were waiting for Ye Futian to help them understand the relic, but Ye Futian was immersed in his cultivation at this moment. No one would like to bother him. They just waited silently.


    The next day, the flames around Ye Futian''s body flew faster. His spiritual will was as if transformed and entered into a new level too. Ye Futian was officially in the eighth level of Arcana Plane at this time. However, he didn''t stop cultivating. The breakthrough in levels was not what he wanted by opening the relic. He wanted to comprehend it and he could still improve his cultivation.


    After a few more days, horrible flames gathered behind Ye Futian. There seemed to be a divine sun furnace emitting blazing lights that lit up the sky. With the flames rolling, Spiritual Qi spread over the world as if there was a horrible spiritual will controlling everything.


    "What kind of power is that?" Someone looked up at Ye Futian.


    "It''s Noble Will," someone answered and trembled. Though having made a breakthrough a few days ago, Ye Futian was only in the eighth level of Arcana Plane. How could he acquire his own Noble Will?


    The Noble Will could help one''s own spiritual will melt into the world and transform into an invisible horrible deterrent force. Compared to the Arcana Plane, acquiring the Noble Will was a huge change.


    A weak Noble could only acquire Noble Will of the easiest attribute like Flaming Noble Will, Icing Noble Will or Gravity Noble Will. But those with greater talents could make full use of their previous cultivation and acquire an exclusive Noble Will.


    What Ye Futian had acquired was obviously the latter!

 525 Doing Their Dirty Work

    In the blink of an eye, a month had passed. In this month, many things had happened on the Dawn Road. The experts from the elite factions occupied a city each. The Flaming Prison City''s giant relic had been opened by Ye Futian, so the city belonged to Ye Futian.


    The people from the other elite factions were imitating Ye Futian''s methods and ordered their citizens to hand over their holy badges. As Ye Futian had set the precedent and fulfilled his promise, there were many people who were willing to give it a try. Many people handed over their holy badges and formed alliances with the people from elite factions.


    In the wilderness outside the cities, Xiao Junyi had killed many people and robbed them of their holy badges and had gotten into a conflict with Sage Duantian''s disciple Gu Feiyang over plundering the holy badges. Xiao Junyi had commanded an army of dead spirits into the city where Gu Feiyang was and a massive war had broken out. Cultivators were dying constantly, causing the dead spirit army to expand and become stronger while Gu Feiyang''s command was weakened, putting him in a disastrous state.


    At the same time, apart from persuading the crowd into handing over their holy badges, the people from the other cities also used hard-handed means, like Ning Huang from Jinxiao City. He used domineering methods to sweep the entire city. Now, the entire Jinxiao City did not have ten thousand people, but the entire city all took orders from Ning Huang and was perfectly under Ning Huang''s control. The entire city was his army, with Mo Jun as the commander.


    Many people had guessed that before the Holy Road''s trial ended, Ning Huang would definitely gather enough holy badges to open a giant relic. The only thing that was uncertain would be how much benefits his followers would be given. Moreover, some people hypothesized that Ning Huang had ambitions to attack other cities.


    Presently, in Jinxiao City, in a glorious golden temple, Ning Huang sat high up and many people gathered to report to him.


    "All the cities are frantically gathering holy badges. Now, it is highly likely that Xiao Junyi has the most badges in his possession. His methods are the most ruthless, and he is currently at war with Gu Feiyang. If one party is able to kill the other, they would have gathered enough holy badges to open a giant relic," someone reported. Xiao Junyi and Gu Feiyang would definitely already have many holy badges.


    "In Flaming Prison City, Ye Futian is still cultivating in the relic and helping others to decipher it. Now, there are people gradually breaking through their cultivation levels and leaving the giant relic."


    Ning Huang''s expression hardened. Being tricked by Ye Futian and allowing him to successfully open the giant relic was a humiliation to him.


    "Perhaps, Ye Futian is not going to leave the relic," someone else said. Ye Futian had offended many elite factions this time, he was probably not going to easily leave the relic.


    "Young master Ning, I have a suggestion." Just then, a person walked out from the group. It was Chen Wang from the Blazing Sun School and the Divine Sky City''s Chen Clan. He had seen everything that had happened in the relic.


    "Say it," Ning Huang said emotionlessly.


    "From my knowledge, Ye Futian is from Divine Sky City and has many friends around him. Young master Ning can order some people to hold them captive. If that is so, Ye Futian will automatically come to Jinxiao City to kneel and beg for young master Ning''s forgiveness," Chen Wang said.


    Ning Huang frowned, this method was too underhanded. If he wanted to kill someone, he could just kill Ye Futian directly. With his identity, he would not stoop to such a level.


    Chen Wang saw Ning Huang frowning and understood that Ning Huang was prideful and as a person from an elite faction, cared about his reputation and felt that such a method was beneath him. He continued, "Young master Ning is a genius and would not use such methods. However, to deal with despicable people, we naturally do not need to care about being upright to them. Young master Ning does not need to personally get involved in this matter, just give the command and Ye Futian is dead. We will naturally settle the matter and bring Ye Futian''s head to you."


    At the side, Li Xun looked at Chen Wang. It looked like someone wanted Ye Futian dead, but he did not know the identity of that person.


    Remembering his enmity with Ye Futian, if Ye Futian did not die, he would definitely be killed in the future. Li Xun also stepped forward and said, "Young master Ning, this person has a point. A despicable person like Ye Futian dared to trick young master Ning and use underhanded means like a speed ritual implement to escape. Otherwise, the relic would have been young master Ning''s. Now that Ye Futian has opened the relic, the people following him are all grateful to him and in the Flaming Prison City, many people are claiming that if Ye Futian''s cultivation level can reach the Noble Plane, he does not need to fear the other geniuses and can sweep the entire Holy Road."


    Ning Huang raised his eyebrows, a fierce glint appearing in his eyes.


    "That''s right, those people following Ye Futian must be intentionally exaggerating to make it sound like Ye Futian''s potential is unmatched in the Holy Road," Chen Wang chimed in as well. Since Ning Wang was prideful, hearing all these would probably make him very unhappy. He was clear that someone like Ning Huang who had impressive potential would be sweet-talked by many and view himself highly. He would definitely feel that he was the person who was unmatched in the Holy Road. Now, an Arcana Plane cultivator that had tricked him before was exalted by others. He would definitely be dissatisfied.


    "There are sure to be many holy badges in the Flaming Prison City. Our Jinxiao City already has no more holy badges, we need to plunder them from others. Why don''t we let the people of the Flaming Prison City understand who is the real king of the Holy Road?" Li Xun continued to suggest.


    Ning Huang''s gaze casually swept across Li Xun and Chen Wang. He naturally understood that these two people wanted him to give the order to kill Ye Futian, it looked like they had a grudge against Ye Futian. He mockingly looked at the two of them, wanting to make him do their dirty work?


    Li Xun and Chen Wang were apprehensive when they saw Ning Huang''s sneer. They lowered their heads, not daring to look Ning Huang in the eye.


    "Mo Jun, you handle this matter," Ning Huang nonchalantly said. Li Xun and Chen Wang were elated and raised their heads to look at Ning Huang, but saw Ning Huang coldly look at them and say, "The two of you will support Mo Jun. If Ye Futian is not dead by the time the Holy Road opens, you two die."


    After saying that, Ning Huang stood up and left. The only reason why he was doing this was because Ye Futian deserved to be killed.


    The two that were trying to make him do their dirty work?


    No problem. If they could not do it, then they would pay with their lives.


    Li Xun and Chen Wang were perturbed and felt chills down their spine. If Ye Futian did not die, they would.


    How ruthless.


    The two of them clenched their fists with determined expressions. They would have to kill Ye Futian no matter the cost.


    Li Xun also left and returned to the White Sovereign City''s crowd. He saw Li Qingyi staring coldly at him and she said, "How could you be this despicable."


    Now, her brother had completely revealed the darkness within his heart.


    Li Xun looked at Li Qingyi, then broke into a cruel smile.


    "Your relationship with Ye Futian appears to be quite good. I wonder if he cares about you," Li Xun said with a sneer. Li Qingyi felt chills down her spine.


    Back then, Li Xun had already used her and nearly killed Ye Futian in one strike. Now, was he going to do it again?


    ��


    Ye Futian naturally did not know the conversation that had taken place in the Jinxiao City, but he knew that many people in the Holy Road wanted him dead. Therefore, he did not hurriedly step out of the giant relic, not because he wanted to avoid them, but because he wanted to continue raising his cultivation level.


    In this period of time, his sorcery and martial arts had both risen to the pinnacle of the eighth level of the Arcana Plane. There was a chance for him to break through his current level in the relic and raise his cultivation to the ninth level of the Arcana Plane. Moreover, he had already comprehended his own Noble Will. If his cultivation level continued to go up, he would really be one step away from the Noble Plane.


    Apart from that, he had helped others to decipher the Will that the Sages had left behind and allowed Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen to use the relic''s flame to train their physique. Like him, Yu Sheng had also stepped into the eighth level of the Arcana Plane while Ye Wuchen had stepped into the ninth level of the Arcana Plane. However, they had not comprehended the Noble Will yet, so Ye Futian asked them to start trying.


    Ye Futian also paid extra attention to Qin Yin, Xie Wuji, Xuanyuan Bashan and the disciples of the Starry School, so their cultivation levels were improving gradually.


    "The relic has a limited effect on my growth now. I''m preparing to go out and cultivate, what about you all?" Qin Yin asked Xie Wuji, Xuanyuan Bashan and the rest a few days later.


    "Agreed. I have had a deep understanding in the time that Ye Futian has helped us in our cultivation, I feel as though I am about to break through my current plane. I hope there are a few battles for me," Xuanyuan Bashan laughed and said.


    Although they all had their own enlightenment, their improvement was not as massive as Ye Futian''s. After all, Ye Futian was the person who had inherited the entire relic, and his cultivation level was much lower than theirs. Moreover, he specialized in flame abilities. Cultivators who specialized in flame abilities benefited the most from the giant relic.


    "Let''s go," Xie Wuji said. The few of them looked at Ye Futian and did not disturb him as they saw that he was still cultivating. They nodded towards Loulan Xue and she returned their holy badges to them before they stepped out of the relic. Now, the holy badges in their hands had already lost the shine it once had and could not be used to open another relic, but it was still an essential item for crossing the Holy Road.


    After leaving the relic, they realized that Flaming Prison City was in chaos. There were people fighting everywhere for the holy badges.


    "What happened?" Qin Yin asked a nearby cultivator.


    "There have been a group of people in the Flaming Prison City who have formed an alliance recently and have been going around plundering other people''s holy badges. This caused those who had lost their badges to target other people''s badges," the person replied, staying far away from Qin Yin''s group. He was evidently very apprehensive.


    Qin Yin''s expression changed. The Holy Road''s trial would become more crazed the later it went.


    At that moment, a group of experts appeared in front of them and soon surrounded Qin Yin''s group. They frowned and said, "Our holy badges are of no use anymore."


    "We know that," the expert in the air replied cruelly, then waved his arm and started the fight immediately. Qin Yin''s group had grim expressions and they knew that they had no other choice but to battle.


    In the distance, there were people who were successively gathering. Some people who had cultivated with Qin Yin''s group even came up to help, but the other party''s people were also increasing in numbers. It was only when Li Xun appeared that Qin Yin understood and coldly said, "All of you are Ning Huang''s men."


    "Li Xun, do you even have morals?" Xuanyuan Bashan''s expression was steely.


    "You all have chosen to follow Ye Futian while I am following young master Ning, it''s all for the sake of our cultivation. I''m very curious whether Ye Futian will choose to save you all." Li Xun continued emotionlessly, "Keep these few people alive and kill the rest."


    Those who had cultivated in the giant relic were stunned and Qin Yin berated, "Li Xun, their holy badges have no purpose whatsoever, what''s the point of killing them?"


    "They can only blame themselves for following the wrong person," Li Xun said callously. He wanted to enrage Ye Futian, only when Ye Futian was angry would he disregard the repercussions and step out of the giant relic.


    Now, his life was linked with Ye Futian''s. If Ye Futian did not step out of the giant relic, they would not be able to kill him, and if Ye Futian did not die, Ning Huang would have his life.


    For his own life, he could only slaughter.


    He looked heartlessly at Qin Yin. He wanted to see, who it was that had chosen the wrong path!

 526 Come and Get I

    In the Flaming Prison City''s giant relic, Ye Futian closed his eyes, deep in cultivation. Around his body, there was starlight circulating around his body, forming an invisible might around him and enveloping the surrounding area.


    The power of starlight was an extension of the earth element. Presently, above the giant relic, starlight gleamed and the people below could all feel a horrendous pressure. The revolving starlight contained an invisible might which engulfed the entire area.


    "A second Noble Will." Many people raised their heads and looked towards Ye Futian. After cultivating for a few days in the relic, Ye Futian had already deciphered the flame Noble Will. Now, an earth element Noble Will had also formed and they could feel that it was an extremely strong Noble Will from the might crushing down upon them.


    The Noble Will was the symbol of a Noble Plane expert. It was a force created by the cultivator''s Spiritual Energy resonating with the heavens, and cultivators could use it to exert the might of their Spiritual Will on others'' Spiritual Wills. At the same time, it could also be used to empower their attacking abilities, thus the gap between a Noble Plane and an Arcana Plane cultivator was nearly impossible to bridge. If an Arcana Plane cultivator did not use an extremely strong ritual implement, it would be extremely hard to challenge a Noble Plane cultivator. As long as they had not deciphered the Noble Will, even a cultivator at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane would be a lot weaker.


    However, there were some geniuses who had already formed their Noble Will while in the Arcana Plane. They would be able to bridge the gap in strength, and moreover, it would even benefit their cultivation level and cause their cultivation speed to increase.


    The Noble Will relied on the enlightenment level of one''s Spiritual Will and Spiritual Energy control. The better a cultivator was able to control their Spiritual Will and Energy, the easier it was for their Spiritual Energy to increase. Therefore, the crowd predicted that Ye Futian would not need long to break through from his current level to the Noble Plane.


    This was the difference in potential. A person with weak potential, even as their Spiritual Energy continued to grow and approach the Noble Plane, would be limited by their enlightenment and spiritual control. This would cause them to be unable to break through, or more commonly termed a bottleneck. For Ye Futian, however, there was no such thing as a bottleneck standing between him and the Noble Plane.


    At that moment, the crowd felt a formidable aura in the air and their expressions changed. They looked towards the direction it was coming from and they saw Yu Sheng''s body being surrounded by a fearsome demonic might. His body was clad in dark golden armor, as though a demon''s shadow had appeared on him.


    A terrifying image appeared in the crowd''s heads. It was as though a demon stood in front of them, trying to overwhelm their wills and make them worship it.


    He has also formed his Noble Will. The crowd saw the image and were astounded. Moreover, it was as though the Noble Will had been formed from his innate potential. This caused their expressions to become weird. Could it be that this burly teen also had remarkable potential?


    Since he had always stood beside Ye Futian, Yu Sheng had never been that outstanding.


    After a long while, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng finally ended their cultivation. Ye Futian turned to Yu Sheng, smiling and asking, "You''ve been enlightened?"


    "It seems like it," Yu Sheng scratched his head and replied.


    "Seems like?" Ye Futian was dumbstruck and thought to himself, this fellow is too sloppy.


    "You told me the crux of the Noble Will, so I tried to decipher it and the Noble Will''s might just formed uncontrollably." Yu Sheng continued, "It seemed quite easy."


    "I��" Ye Futian glared at Yu Sheng, then turned around gloomily. He really wanted to hit him!


    "Let''s continue cultivating then and raise our cultivation level to the ninth level of the Arcana Plane. That way, we''ll be only one step away from the Noble Plane," Ye Futian said, smiling. The Noble Plane that he had been anticipating for such a long time was finally within his reach and he was quite happy about it. Back then, a huge obstacle of his was the Noble Plane Emperor Luo, to him, Emperor Luo had been like a god, impossible to surpass.


    Now, he was finally reaching that level too.


    At that moment, he was interrupted by a few figures rushing towards him. At the entrance of the relic, they looked towards Ye Futian and said, "Master Ye, we have trouble."


    Ye Futian looked at them, confused. He asked them, "What''s the problem?"


    "The past few days, there have been people murdering cultivators in the Flaming Prison City. Many people have died and had their holy badges taken. Previously, the people of the Flaming Prison City thought it was a group of strong cultivators who had formed an alliance to plunder the badges. We only just found out that they were from the Jinxiao City, the Jinxiao City is currently under Ning Huang''s control and they have orders from Ning Huang to come to our city to plunder."


    The person who had rushed here continued to say, "Not long ago, a few of Master Ye''s friends were brought away by Ning Huang''s men. There were also others who were killed on the spot."


    Ye Futian''s expression turned grim. It should have been Qin Yin''s group that had been taken away.


    "The other party had left word," the person continued.


    "What did they say?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The person''s name appears to be Li Xun. He said that if Master Ye wanted them alive, you could go to the Jinxiao City to get them back. He can release Qin Yin''s group and even Li Qingyi," the person replied.


    Ye Futian''s expression became even more steely. Li Xun had brought up Li Qingyi on purpose, he was actually using his own sister to threaten him. A frosty killing intent appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes. This was not Li Xun''s first time. He had to be killed.


    "Ning Huang is going overboard," someone among the crowd said furiously. "Master Ye, Ning Huang is doing this on purpose. If you go to Jinxiao City, Ning Huang will definitely not let you go easily."


    "Master Ye, you cannot go to Jinxiao City," another person tried to persuade him.


    Around the giant relic, the experts had all stopped their cultivation and looked towards Ye Futian. There were many among them that were furious, back then, Ning Huang had come to seize the holy badges in a domineering fashion, taking advantage of Ye Futian''s low cultivation level. Now, Ye Futian had already obtained the giant relic, but Ning Huang still refused to let it go. He wanted to kill Ye Futian.


    "Have Ning Huang''s men left the Flaming Prison City?" Ye Futian asked.


    "They are still in the Flaming Prison City killing people in an extremely arrogant fashion."


    "Previously, Li Xun gave the order and killed many of our people, claiming that it was only because they had followed Master Ye in their cultivation." Ye Futian heard these two replies from the crowd.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian said, stepping out of the giant relic. The moment he stepped out of the relic, the glow around his body faded. Soon, the flame around the giant relic had been extinguished.


    The giant relic faded to nothingness in the blink of an eye. The thousands of cultivators stared blankly at the scene, afterward following Ye Futian who was walking in the air with astonishment.


    Ye Futian actually left the relic with no hesitation. This meant that if the people from the elite factions came now, they would face no resistance.


    Ye Futian moved forward in the air and said, "Let''s go."


    "Master Ye." Many people gathered around and attempted to persuade Ye Futian, saying, "Please don''t be impulsive."


    Ye Futian did not say anything and continued to walk forward. Yi Xiaoshi, Yu Sheng, Mu Zhiqiu and the rest followed closely behind him. The huge crowd of experts saw Ye Futian and many of them followed him.


    In the blink of an eye, Ye Futian had arrived at a location and there were many corpses lying on the ground.


    "B*stards." Behind Ye Futian, many people clenched their fists. The holy badges on these people already had no use, but Ning Huang still ordered them to be killed. This caused them to have chills running down their spine.


    Was the killing simply to vent his anger? Genocide? Just because they chose to cultivate with Ye Futian?


    However, Ning Huang and Mo Jun were elite prodigies. Even if they joined forces, they probably could still not win. If they went to Jinxiao City, they would definitely die before they could get their revenge.


    "Where are Ning Huang''s men?" Ye Futian asked.


    Just as he spoke, a group of people flew towards them from afar. The group was completely made up of Noble Plane cultivators with strong auras. They looked mercilessly at Ye Futian. They were followers of Ning Huang from Jinxiao City. If they were able to bring Ye Futian''s head to Jinxiao City, they would definitely be valued by Ning Huang.


    Thinking about that, they stepped forward and looked towards Ye Futian, asking, "You actually dared to walk out of the relic?" Just now, they had heard that Ye Futian had stepped out of the relic and they all gathered here. They had previously been cultivating in Jinxiao City and heard that he had dared to trick young master Ning. Now, he dared to step out of the relic. How reckless.


    "Yes." Ye Futian looked at the group standing before him and replied calmly.


    "Young master Ning wants your head, why don''t you lend it to us?" they laughed and said. Their gazes then turned to the huge crowd standing behind Ye Futian and emotionlessly said, "We''re acting on young master Ning''s orders. Those who are not involved, take your leave."


    The crowd''s expression turned cold and looked indignantly at those who spoke. Could they be so unscrupulous simply because they were Ning Huang''s men?


    At that moment, the group had already stepped forward and surrounded Ye Futian, the terrifying Noble aura surrounding the area.


    Behind Ye Futian, many people stepped forward one by one, shielding him and looking emotionlessly at the group. Although not many people stepped forward, it took courage to oppose Ning Huang.


    "You all want to die as well?" Ning Huang''s men sneered.


    "Thank you, everyone." Ye Futian looked towards the crowd and asked, "Who else is willing to join me in battle?"


    "Since I''ve received a favor from brother Ye, I will naturally do my part." A person stepped out.


    "I have broken through my cultivation level in the relic, now is the time for me to test it. I''ve heard that Ning Huang was hunting those who cultivated in the relic previously. If that''s the case, what else is there to be afraid of." Another person stepped forward, laughing. In an instant, more Noble Plane cultivators stepped forward and an invisible force was formed, causing the opposing group to be on edge.


    "Since you all want to die, I will naturally report that to young master Ning," one of the opponents said, already preparing to retreat. As they prepared to step back and retreat, Yi Xiaoshi moved in a flash to their rear.


    "Surround them," Ye Futian said. Immediately, the crowd stepped forward, surrounding the opponents. Since they wanted to fight, he would let this place be their final resting place.


    Ye Futian stepped forward, the Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hand. In a flash, starlight glittered and an overbearing Noble Will enveloped the area. His gaze swept across the group and said, "Whoever wants to borrow my head, come and get it."

 527 The Whistling Wind

    Ning Huang''s people had cold expressions after hearing Ye Futian''s words. Then their Noble Will flared and many figures walked out at once. At the same time, the people around Ye Futian walked out to kill the others. A huge battle burst out at once.


    Spiritual Qi went wild and the wind raged. Powerful martial arts spells were everywhere. A golden bird rose up behind one man. It shot towards Ye Futian like lightning or a beam of blinding gold light. It was incredibly fast.


    "Master Ye, be careful!" someone called out.


    A horrible starry storm emerged around Ye Futian. Starry light flowed through the Polearm of Divine Destruction, wrapping around him.


    Boom. With a huge sound, the man, body like a divine bird, charged. He actually broke through the outer defenses of the starry storm and went for Ye Futian''s body. However, the moment he sank into the starry storm, he felt like he couldn''t breathe anymore. Heavy might pressed down on him as if the stars were repressing him.


    He slowed down considerably. However, his aura was still sharp and kept charging forward. The divine bird clawed at Ye Futian. It covered the sun and was about to snap Ye Futian''s head off.


    Boom�� The Polearm multiplied in size, turning into a hundred-meter-long staff. Ye Futian struck out. The ritual implement carried the stars'' weight and landed, almost forcing the other down. He could barely move. Shocked, he looked up at the Polearm. Instead of a staff, it felt as heavy as all the stars in the sky.


    With a loud boom, there was no more suspense. The Noble cultivator plummeted to the ground. All his bones and tendons were shattered, his internal organs ruptured. He convulsed and spat out blood. He stared up at Ye Futian in the sky and soon stopped breathing.


    This violent hit shocked many people. They all gaped at Ye Futian, thinking how powerful he was. He''d killed a Grade-8 Noble with one strike. It seemed that everyone had underestimated Ye Futian''s combat ability and the ritual implement. They were all frightened. Even they had felt the horrible power from that one hit. It felt like the galaxy falling down. How could anyone withstand it?


    Mu Zhiqiu glanced at Ye Futian. Before the relic opened, she''d guessed that Ye Futian would be at the level of a Grade-8 Noble with the Polearm. Now, his cultivation had entered the eighth tier of the Arcana Plane. Even more importantly, he''d comprehended the power of Noble Will. The Noble Will also matched the celestial power and Polearm, allowing Ye Futian to release even more of the Polearm''s strength.


    Thus, even a Grade-7 Noble wouldn''t be Ye Futian''s match nowadays if he had the Polearm.


    At that time, two more figures rushed out, attacking Ye Futian''s ritual implement from both sides. A horribly aggressive beast charged over, along with sharp sword Spiritual Qi. They were about to destroy Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s staff whirled. The frightening starry storm in the surrounding sky seemed to go wild. This place seemed to turn into a world of stars. Starry light flowed as meteorites turned into stars. Ye Futian struck with his staff again. Those two immediately felt stars shooting towards them. As various explosions sounded, their attacks kept crumbling. The horrible stars arrived and killed them directly.


    Ning Huang''s group''s expressions changed. Was Ye Futian really this strong? Many people were helping Ye Futian and now they had a disadvantage in numbers. It was practically impossible to kill Ye Futian now.


    "Retreat," someone said. People instantly started retreating, no longer wanting to fight.


    One figure was the fastest, but a fat person stood quietly before him. He smiled and said, "Since you''re here, there''s no need to leave." As soon as he spoke, Emperor Vines burst forth, covering the sky. Each leaf transformed into the sharpest golden blades, blocking all exits. The man''s face paled. He crazily attacked the incoming leaves, but they were as resilient as divine weapons. Practically indestructible, they stabbed into him, pinning him in the air.


    The people behind him were stunned. Yi Xiaoshi stepped forward. A huge ancient tree appeared behind him, filling the vast space entirely. The emperor-like tree shook and the green and gold light sparkled.


    The others followed, blocking all exits. Ye Futian stepped forward. "Don''t keep anyone," he said coldly.


    A massacre was unleashed there. Many people watched from afar, their hearts trembling. These people from Jinxiao City had followed Ning Huang to Flaming Prison City. But now, they were stuck in this situation and getting killed.


    It seemed that other than Xiao Junyi and Gu Feiyang, there would be another huge fight between Jinxiao City and the Flaming Prison City.


    "We''re only following Ning Huang''s orders. Please forgive us," someone started pleading after more and more people died. However, Ye Futian''s group had no mercy. They continued killing.


    Following orders?


    Their attitudes hadn''t been like this earlier. They thought they were with Ning Huang so they could be arrogant. They killed and stole, performing every kind of evil, but now they wanted to be the victims. It was laughable.


    The frenzied battle continued. After a while, it finally ended. The ground was dyed red with blood and many corpses lay strewn all over. Ning Huang''s people were all dead.


    No one was happy seeing these corpses. They deserved to be dead, but they were still Ning Huang''s men. Once Jinxiao City received the news, they would most likely come for revenge. If Ning Huang and Mo Jun arrived, it wouldn''t be this kind of ending.


    "Brother Ye, you are talented and now have this kind of power. You won''t be weaker than Ning Huang in the future. You should avoid the spotlight now," someone standing on the ground advised Ye Futian.


    "Yes, stay alive to fight another day," someone added. They advised Ye Futian because they felt grateful. They didn''t want him to die in Ning Huang''s hands.


    "This news will spread to Jinxiao City soon. Brother Ye, speed is important."


    "Ning Huang''s men took my friends," Ye Futian said.


    Everyone''s faces darkened. Ning Huang''s actions were extremely lowly, but if Ye Futian went now, it was basically suicide.


    "Plus, many of the people who cultivated with us in the relic these past days may have died in the hands of Ning Huang''s people," Ye Futian continued.


    "Brother Ye, don''t be impulsive." Someone felt something was wrong with Ye Futian''s words. Would he really go to Jinxiao City? What difference was there from killing himself?


    The thousands of cultivators in Jinxiao City were enough to completely destroy Ye Futian even if Ning Huang wasn''t there.


    "Since you cultivate with me, can you all help me with something?" Ye Futian asked everyone.


    "Of course," someone said, nodding.


    "I''m sure many people will watch when I go to Jinxiao City this time. I will enter the city myself. There''s no need for you all to risk it with me. But can you all help me and seal the city?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Seal the city?" Everyone''s eyes hardened as their hearts trembled.


    "Jinxiao City?"


    "Yes, Jinxiao City." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Brother Ye," someone tried, looking at Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian waved his hand. "I''ve already decided on a battle in Jinxiao City."


    "What if you don''t return?" Everyone looked at him. He definitely wouldn''t return from the city this time."


    "Then I don''t return. If I die, Ning Huang won''t take his anger out on you all. At that time, you all can leave," Ye Futian said. "If I live, then he will escape. Can you all kill those who run from the city?"


    Crazy, everyone thought. Ye Futian actually said that the people of Jinxiao City would run away.


    "Alright," someone said, nodding. "If that moment comes, we will definitely do it."


    Many people stood out. More and more wanted to join because they were affected by Ye Futian''s charisma.


    If he dared to fight inside Jinxiao City, how could they be scared to seal the city? They would only be guarding outside. If Ye Futian really died within, they wouldn''t be in any danger.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. He stepped forward and the vast crowd immediately rose, marching towards Jinxiao City.


    In the Flaming Prison City, everyone was shaken when they heard that Ye Futian was heading towards Jinxiao City. They followed as well, so the crowd grew bigger and bigger. It formed a huge force. Other top prides also went forward to other cities.


    The news quickly shook the entire Holy Road: Ye Futian had stepped out of the relic and was heading towards Jinxiao City.


    After hearing this, Chu Shang and Bing Yi of the Mortal World both felt that Ning Huang was too cruel. He''d actually forced Ye Futian to take this step. It seemed that even if he was so talented, Ye Futian would still die this time.


    They took a warship and hurried towards Jinxiao City. After the other forces received the news, the monstrously talented figures all set off with strong cultivators, heading for the city.


    Jinxiao City quickly became the focus of everyone''s eyes.


    At this time, the huge crowd had already arrived outside the city. Ye Futian stood by the gates. There were many people in the city. Seeing Ye Futian, they sneered. Had he come to die?


    Ye Futian nodded at the crowd and his people spread out. The disciples of the Starry School were there. There was only one entrance and exit of cities along the Holy Road. The other three directions were all places of nothingness. Thus, it was easy to seal the city with enough people.


    Many people spread out as if coming to watch. Gu Yunxi looked at Ye Futian, a bit worried. However, she knew that if Ye Futian had decided, it was impossible to change his mind.


    "Be careful," Gu Yunxi whispered.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. Then he said, "Seventh Senior Brother, Yu Sheng, Condor, follow me into the city." As soon as he spoke, he stepped out towards Jinxiao City. Yi Xiaoshi, Yu Sheng, and the Black Wind Condor followed behind.


    The wind blew and dust flew. Their backs seemed tragically heroic.


    Li Xun was inside the city, along with many strong cultivators. They sneered at this scene. He''d really come to die!

 528 Stepping in Jinxiao City

    Li Xun was a bit surprised. He didn''t think Ye Futian would be so decisive and come to die not so long after capturing Qin Yin''s group.


    After entering the city, Ye Futian gazed at Li Xun. His expression wasn''t very intense and he didn''t roar either. He was frighteningly calm. "I''m here," he said coolly. "Where are they?"


    "Brother Ye is indeed loyal. Qin Yin and the others are waiting inside the city. Welcome," Li Xun said, smiling. It was as if they were still good friends. No one could tell what he had done.


    Ye Futian didn''t say anything. He just continued walking into the city.


    Countless people watched Ye Futian from the city gates until his backside grew unclear. It felt so sad to them. Now, they could only pray for Ye Futian.


    As Ye Futian walked forward, many strong cultivators stepped out powerfully. Ye Futian stopped and gazed at Li Xun. "I want to see them."


    "Brother Ye, Young City Lord Ning wants to see your head. If he sees your head, Qin Yin and the others will be fine." Li Xun was still smiling. Since Ye Futian was inside Jinxiao City, he wouldn''t be able to live anymore. As for Qin Yin''s group, Li Xun had never thought about releasing them so soon.


    In the near distance, the disciples of the Blazing Sun School arrived as well. They hovered in the air and stared coldly at Ye Futian''s group. The Son of the Starry School was extremely brilliant and had inherited the Divine Path. He was known to be unparalleled in the eastern region of the Barren State. Was he going to die here on the Holy Road?


    "All here?" Ye Futian muttered. It seemed that many of the people who wanted him dead were gathered in Jinxiao City.


    The Polearm of Divine Destruction appeared in his hand. Dazzling light spun around him and flowed into the ritual implement. Instantly, the Polearm shone blindingly. A starry world formed in the surrounding sky.


    "This ritual implement''s aura is so strong." Many people stared at Ye Futian''s Polearm. The aura coming from it was threatening.


    Boom! Wild aura burst from Ye Futian''s body. Everyone saw the shadow of a divine ape come out and rest atop Ye Futian. Extremely domineering power emanated from it. Ye Futian seemed to be filled with chaotic strength. Dazzling golden wings also unfurled behind him. Those were from the golden Roc. Its light was blinding.


    "Double life spirits?" Everyone''s eyes flashed. Then Ye Futian floated in the sky, catching everyone''s eyes.


    Li Xun furrowed his brows. He stared at that dazzling figure. Was this Ye Futian''s full power? So he was actually this strong. At Nine Saint Mountain, Li Xun had thought Ye Futian was a typical Arcana Plane cultivator. That was laughable. Ye Futian could probably fight with a Noble at that time already.


    Thud! Ye Futian''s feet lit up with electric light. Wind and lightning flashed as two wings cut across the sky. The Thundering Illusion Step and the golden Roc wings overlapped. Ye Futian was extremely fast, arriving before Li Xun like a gold bolt of lightning.


    Everyone around Li Xun instantly felt extreme might. It was as if a world of stars was weighing down on them. Their spiritual mind and body all became immovable and reacted slowly.


    At the same moment, Ye Futian''s staff grew to be hundreds of meters long. People from afar looked up at this in shock. Instead of Ye Futian''s Polearm, it looked more like a huge ape. It swept down with horribly aggressive power.


    "No��" Some with weaker cultivation were totally shocked. Even some of the Grade-7 Nobles had changed their expressions. They all activated their ritual implements to defend themselves with their biggest power.


    Boom! With the huge sound, the sky shook and countless strong cultivators were killed by the strike. The others all spat out blood from the hit. Li Xun fell to the ground. He spat out blood and his face turned white as paper.


    How could Ye Futian be so strong? That strike was definitely at the peak of the Grade-7 Noble level. It wasn''t a typical Grade-7 Noble either. Li Xun was the young city lord of the White Sovereign City and had fought with many Nobles before. Naturally, he''d fought with the stronger Grade-7 Nobles too. However, Ye Futian''s strike had surpassed all of the ones that he''d fought against before.


    At that moment, iciness descended. Frost covered Ye Futian''s body, trying to freeze his blood. It was a controlling ice spell to stop his movements. It could only stop him temporarily, but Li Xun used this chance to step on the ground and retreat quickly. Then he shot into the air, getting away from Ye Futian. He could feel Ye Futian''s dangerousness.


    Ice exploded and various spells attacked Ye Futian. However, his staff swept past again. Everything shattered. He walked down and his 90,000-pound-heavy Polearm was supported by divine light. It was terrifying as if the sky and earth would crack.


    As another huge boom sounded, a few more people were killed. Someone tried to escape, but Ye Futian''s staff swept by. It landed on the man''s head, killing him instantly.


    The surrounding strong cultivators were all stunned. They''d thought taking Ye Futian''s head would be easy, but his attacks were like lightning. He killed so many Noble figures instantly. He was terrifying.


    Thud. He activated the Thundering Illusion Step again. Ye Futian charged towards Li Xun like lightning. Since this man wanted to die, Ye Futian would make it easy for him.


    "You want to die?" a thunderous voice rolled out from the distance at that moment. Many people looked towards the heart of Jinxiao City. A huge figure steered his war chariot over in the sky with yaks pulling it. Lightning filled the air. He looked so powerful.


    "Mo Jun is here." Everyone''s hearts trembled, but they were relieved. They''d underestimated Ye Futian. He''d suddenly attacked with such frightening combat ability and killed several Nobles instantly. They all felt reassured after seeing Mo Jun now.


    Li Xun sucked in a deep breath. It felt like he''d just had his life saved. What kind of ritual implement was Ye Futian holding? Why was it so scary?


    The horribly aggressive yak-pulled the war chariot. Horrible thunder and lightning pressed down as the chariot charged towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian gripped his Polearm tightly. A star appeared around him like a god of stars. The yak-pulled chariot crushed down and the star cracked. The figure coming from the sky seemed to be undefeatable.


    In that instant, Mo Jun arrived, crushing down. The yaks and chariot galloped past like an army of thousands of horses and soldiers. They could flatten everything.


    The star shattered and Ye Futian twirled his Polearm. He struck towards the sky, almost splitting the heavens.


    Boom�� The extremely violent collision seemed to crack the sky. Ye Futian plummeted down, his arm shaking. The power contained in the hit must be terrifying. He''d comprehended Noble Will, but his cultivation plane was still in Tier-8 of the Arcana Plane. He could fight a Noble with his power or kill a Grade-7 Noble with his Polearm and divine light. But Mo Jun wasn''t a typical a Grade-7 Noble. He was the most powerful and talented; he was unparalleled.


    Mo Jun continued walking down. A horrible image appeared in Ye Futian''s mind. It felt like countless yak-pulled chariots brought thunder down on him. The sky and world cracked apart, shattering his will. This was how powerful Mo Jun''s Noble Will was.


    Ye Futian''s body flew. He struck down in the sky. The divine ape roared and thousands of staff shadows appeared. They fell upon the war chariot and everything crumbled.


    "Hand it to me." At that moment, another figure came, shining brightly. It was Yi Xiaoshi who had released his Emperor Vines life spirit. It swept forth towards Mo Jun.


    Ye Futian didn''t say anything. He turned and started walking forward. Li Xun''s expression changed. He turned and walked without hesitating at all.


    Ye Futian stepped forward. The strong cultivators in the city gathered in his direction. At that moment, a powerful Noble released a spell. Without hesitating, Ye Futian stepped in the sky. He shot forward like lightning and brought his staff down to kill the other.


    The people on either side were amazed at this scene. The person Young City Lord Ning wanted to kill was this powerful?


    Ye Futian continued. People still attacked him, but they all died. Of course, the majority didn''t rush to attack. They just watched Ye Futian walk step by step.


    Yu Sheng stood atop the Black Wind Condor, following Ye Futian. No one paid attention to them. They thought that with the two''s cultivation plane, they could be killed at any time.


    Ye Futian was extremely fast. People going towards Li Xun and the Blazing Sun School kept retreating. The wind whistled and an elegant golden pavilion appeared before him. Above the throne in the sky, there was a figure wearing an elegant robe and drinking wine.


    It was Ning Huang. He was surrounded by a countless number of strong cultivators. Nobles gathered from all directions. Jinxiao City''s eyes were focused here.


    Ning Huang continued drinking with his head down. He didn''t look at Ye Futian. He didn''t actually know that Ye Futian had come out of the relic, nor did he care. He''d handed it all to Mo Jun and Li Xun to take care of. He didn''t know until someone reported that Ye Futian had entered the city.


    Ning Huang was a bit surprised. Could Ye Futian really arrive before him?


    Mo Jun and his men couldn''t take Ye Futian''s head. They really were a group of failures.


    Ye Futian deserved to die, but Ning Huang didn''t want to kill him with these methods. Li Xun and the Blazing Sun School had suggested it though, so he had no objections. Now, it was taking this much effort to kill someone like him. Ye Futian was even going to appear before him. This was unacceptable.


    Raising his cup of wine, Ning Huang drank it at once. Setting it down, he whispered, "Kill him."


    Ning Huang didn''t even raise his head to look at Ye Futian. Since the youth was here, he could only die. He really didn''t know to treasure his life!

 529 Divine Fire of the Sun

    Ye Futian was not looking at Ning Huang; he was looking at the ones captured nearby: Qin Yin, Xie Wuji, Xuanyuan Bashan, and the others.


    "Don''t do this, Mr. Ye," Qin Yin uttered as she sighed. When they were captured and be held hostage against Ye Futian, she had thought they were all certainly going to die. They were, after all, little more than squadmates in the same party with Ye Futian, probably casual friends at most. They had never thought Ye Futian would have actually bothered to show up.


    "We are in the same party. It''s a given that no one gets left behind," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    The hearts of Qin Yin and the rest of the captives were filled with warmth even though they were rendered speechless. However, they dared not imagine being able to walk out of it all alive, given their current dire predicament.


    "How loyal of you indeed. Well, we shall send you all on your way then." Members of the Jin clan were among the ones holding Qin Yin and the rest captive, and it was obvious that they had submitted to Ning Huang. Everyone who wanted Ye Futian dead had gathered at Jinxiao City.


    The mighty ones surrounding Ye Futian walked towards him. Thousands were seen in the vast space, and there were many more on their way. Most of those present were Noble plane figures, and it was an utterly terrifying scene.


    Spiritual Qi exploded in the skies. Sun God Sword, Ice Seal, Golden Palm, and a variety of other deadly skills and techniques lashed out against him as they seemed to have blocked out the sky altogether. All of them seemed to want to reduce him nothing in just one go.


    Ye Futian''s Polearm of Divine Destruction stood tall before him as Starry Storm whipped out above him. It was as if he was clad in stars all around him. He stepped forward as countless spells came for his head. The polearm lashed out in response, meeting the spells head on, but it made it very difficult for him to move forward.


    He boosted himself with a variety of tricks, yet his own plane proved inadequate and his basics lacking, rendering him incapable of swatting everything out of his way simply by blasting out his Spirit. That was something only the likes of Ning Huang, who was a mighty one who had reached a certain level, was capable of doing.


    Seeing Li Xun, whose body was thrown back by the retaliation, Li Qingyi glared at him, who was then in shambles, with cold eyes and asked, "Li Xun, do you realize that you look like a dog now?"


    Slap! Li Xun slapped Li Qingyi''s face hard. There was no gentlenesses on his face anymore, even the fake smiles were nowhere to be found. All there was left on his face was utter gloom and darkness. He was almost killed earlier by Ye Futian and had to endure Li Qingyi''s shaming right after.


    A five-fingered mark was clear on her face, and blood spilled from the corner of her mouth. She, however, continued glaring at him with cold eyes as she spat, "I have long thought that while you were an utter fake. You at least had some reputation back in White Sovereign City. From the looks of things now, I have clearly overestimated you. Your life is forever a lowly servant''s."


    "Li Qingyi, I have many underlings who had a thing for you. I''ll give you up as a reward as soon as I get home," Li Xun spoke in a gloomy tone while Li Qingyi never took her cold eyes off him. She turned her gaze to Ye Futian shortly after and saw most of his defenses were wrecked one after another by countless spells. His life was hanging by a thread, and she worried for him.


    Ye Futian''s Polearm of Divine Destruction worked hard to tear down the attacks around him as if it was barely hanging there. One spell after another pounded on him, threatening to tear the space they were into shreds.


    Li Xun''s eyes went cold. Is he finally going to die?


    The Blazing Sun School wanted Ye Futian dead so feverishly that they played an active role in the assault. The Sun Sword attack was their work. The Jin clan moved as well, with the shadow of the Roc howling all the way as it attacked.


    Ning Huang sat quietly on his throne at the top of the stairs. Ye Futian was not someone he had to deal with personally. He had moved against the young man that day for the holy badge. Since Ye Futian no longer had a holy badge with him, there was simply no need for Ning Huang to do anything himself.


    Another burst of blinding light emerged from Ye Futian. As the attacks piled on him, a burst of violent energy seemed to have awakened within him, making his blood boil and strands of blinding light leak out from his body. Everyone present had troubled looks on their faces by then. Just what is with that light?


    But no matter what, all the attacks will end up killing him eventually, and Ye Futian''s end is near.


    Ye Futian took up the Polearm of Divine Destruction and took flight. Thousands of mirages of the weapon whipped out in astonishing brilliance, shaking both heaven and earth. Spells of all kinds were dispersed and shattered into oblivion, with one swing of the long weapon in his hand.


    "What is happening?" The pupils of everyone witnessing the scene dilated somewhat as they gazed upon Ye Futian. He simply stood there, covered by dazzling lights, as if he was clad with an aura of divinity. The air and bearing about him felt totally different and utterly peerless, like an emperor of sorts had descended upon mere mortals and demanded awe and worship from all.


    He stood right there, with the bearing of a king.


    The faces of Jin Yunlang and Chen Wang from the Chen clan went pale. The scene reminded them of what took place in the martial arts battlefield back then. Ye Futian had demonstrated combat capacity far beyond what those of his plane was capable of. So he had not used any secret arts, and something like this only happened right now? Just what had he done to make his powers enhanced? Seemingly without limit��


    Ning Huang, who was having a drink, seemed to have felt something and shifted his gaze to Ye Futian. He frowned at the peculiar aura emanating from Ye Futian, which looked like a domineering brilliance declaring to rule over all like an emperor from the heavens. It was a sight to behold.


    Seems like this one had more secrets about him than what he had let on. Ning Huang could not help but feel amused. Seems like I really underestimated Ye Futian indeed. Seeing how things are now, it''s no wonder that he was capable of taking one of the ruins out of my fingertips.


    Qin Yin and the captives stared at the scene with dumbfounded looks on their faces, feeling their core shaken. They clearly have had misunderstood Ye Futian, seeing him to be someone seeking refuge from them. From the current looks of things, their presumptions were utterly laughable. Seeing what he was capable of right there, they were sure that he simply had not been serious back then.


    But with so many mighty ones around, can he really make it out alive? Especially with Ning Huang around?


    They were still worried nonetheless. If such a godlike genius were to perish right there, the heavens would have simply been too heartless.


    The mighty ones up and about were dazed for a moment before continuing their attacks, and another round of spells began to pile on Ye Futian. He held the Polearm of Divine Destruction on his hand as the ferocity of his aura continued to climb, then being on par with levels of the Noble plane. Starry Brilliance and Imperial Brilliance melded, forming a Constitution of Stars, manifesting a divine body that seemed to be truly indestructible. Spells continued to be cast on him, yet the attacks all failed to move him for even an inch.


    Rumbling sounds reverberated in the space as the powers in Ye Futian''s body continued to climb. Spells disintegrated wildly around him, as his Imperial Brilliance shone ever more brightly. The mighty ones out for his head all went pale in response.


    Golden feathers of the Roc Spirit gleamed. Ye Futian stayed where he was and lifted his weapon to counter. A shadow of a thousand-meter long shaft swept by, wiping out just about everything that stood in its way.


    "Retreat." Many had a look of terror on their faces. How could he be so terrifying? The mighty ones at the Blazing Sun School all went practically colorless. At the very moment, Ye Futian caught sight of them and went in their direction.


    "Disperse." The mighty ones from the Blazing Sun School dispersed while looking terrified, as they whipped out their Sun Swords.


    Ye Futian swept a glance at them coldly, with will of emperors laced within his Noble Will. It was a terrifying thing to feel. All of the mighty ones from the Blazing Sun School felt as if they were shouldering a star on their bodies, making their movements dull, and their speeds reduced to sluggish lumbering. All of them looked at Ye Futian with terrified eyes as he made their way to them.


    A sun glowed behind Ye Futian. Bright and utterly dazzling, blazing with undying fires.


    "Another Life Spirit?" Many were shaken to their cores. Just how many Life Spirits does this guy have?


    The ones from Blazing Sun School felt themselves trembling all over and little else, seeing Endless Fires dropping down from the top of the conjured sun, congealing into the Divine Sun Furnace and shone directly onto their bodies, burning down everything. Chen Wang''s body burned immediately, he shouted terrifyingly as he took notice of his body burning, "No, nooo..."


    "Spare me." Chen Wang''s body remained burning with Endless Fires. He knelt, begging for mercy while feeling the excruciating pain about as the fires danced on him.


    Ye Futian''s Sun Spirit flew out and turned into the true Sun Divine Furnace, casting down on all the ones from the Blazing Sun School.


    "The Sun Scripture." While they were terrified, they were nonetheless astonished. Just when did Ye Futian learn the pinnacle art of our school? This is impossible. While he is indeed the Son of Starry School, not even Chen Yuan knew of the Sun Scripture, let alone comprehending Noble Will with that. Unless�� the martial arts battlefield, the lineage of the saint.


    Little did they know, that Ye Futian''s Sun Scripture, was taught to him personally by their own headmaster.


    Ye Futian did not entertain their utter fear and begs for mercy. One body burned to ashes after another in despair under the Divine Fire of the Sun. The sages of the Blazing Sun School was cruel enough to want him dead, and it was Headmaster Chen Yuan''s declaration of his death that enabled him to escape, for fear of him being made a target in the future by the Blazing Sun School.


    He had come all the way to the Holy Roads and did not bother messing with them in the first place; they still wanted him dead nonetheless


    There was simply one thing left to do with them: kill them all.


    The attacks around him never ceased. But as he had protection from the Constitution of the Stars, the attacks were rendered completely ineffective to him, as if he was a truly invincible being.


    Ye Futian had been horrifyingly powerful even before. With his other secret art unleashed now, he became an even more fearsome being. What he had demonstrated at the moment, probably enabled to him to truly fight toe-to-toe with Ning Huang.


    Li Qingyi, Qin Yin and the others continued to stare blankly at him. That utterly imposing figure struck fear into the hearts of everyone present.


    Ye Futian turned around and looked at the captives. The ones holding the captives were thoroughly frightened. The mighty ones from the Jin clan shook. It seemed that what happened to the ones from the Blazing Sun School, was about to befall them soon.


    Divine Beams of Flame shot out from his eyes, imposing his Noble Will on all those holding the captives. They felt their own will burned in an instant. Those of lesser training shrieked in terror, as feeling one''s own will being burned was not a pleasant thing.


    Even those of grade seven Noble Plane struggled to resist Ye Futian''s fearsome Noble Will. At the very same instant, a domineering demonic bird of prey struck from behind at blinding speeds. The Demon Bird lashed out with its claws, tearing one body after another apart.

 530 Battle Against Ning Huang

    The Demon Bird killed several people before swooping about, flapping its giant swings, separating the captives and the ones serving Ning Huang.


    The captives knew immediately what to do next. They leaped into the air and landed onto the Demon Bird''s back. The bird turned around and left immediately. It shot up and rose to a height of more than a thousand meters with one flap of its wings.


    Many cast their gaze at the bird and immediately felt the domineering bearing about it. The prideful bird''s eye turned to look at all of them, and none dared to make any move against it. It was exacerbated by the fact that Ye Futian was still around down there.


    Ning Huang spared a glance at the Demon Bird and thought it to be a truly unique being as well. That darned beast had actually worked with Ye Futian and save them all. He, however, did not care anything about it, for Qin Yin and the rest served no purpose to him. It was the idea of those working for him, and he simply delegated the task to said people. It did not matter one bit to him, whether Qin Yin and the rest ended up dead or alive.


    What piqued Ning Huang''s interests at the moment, was the dazzling and seemingly peerless Ye Futian. He knew that if he remained where he was, there was no one working for him who would have been able to get out of this deadlock with Ye Futian. Top class figures were incredibly rare. Proud sons and daughters of all sorts walked the Dawn Road, and only a handful were of such caliber. Those who reigned supreme on the Dawn Road were all fearsome figures capable of taking down an army of ten-thousand on their own.


    And it seems that Ye Futian is now one of those figures.


    Before Ye Futian was able to unleash his full power, he was limited by his plane and as such, he was not anywhere near being top class. However, at the very moment, there was no doubt that he was one of those beings. The light of his Spirit emanating alone was enough to sweep in its way clean, and killing people became as easy as lifting a finger. No one dared to move against Ye Futian at the moment, for anyone but Ning Huang would have ended up dead fighting him.


    Ning Huang began taking his steps. Every step he took shook the air around him, causing the hearts of many to beat harder than they would have been. All the mighty ones around cast their gaze at Ning Huang. So is he finally making a move now?


    Ning Huang had not bothered to do anything but give the order to kill prior. Or rather, he simply did not see Ye Futian as someone worth his time. However, Ye Futian''s prowess had clearly caught Ning Huang''s attention and could have no longer be ignored. As such, Ning Huang made his move.


    Boom. Ning Huang continued walking as both men stared at each other. While they were quite far away from each other, the step nonetheless weighed on Ye Futian''s chest, making his heart beating harder than it would have.


    Ye Futian pointed at the Polearm of Divine Destruction and was surrounded by Starry Brilliance as he locked his eyes at Ning Huang, who was walking in his direction. Ye Futian wanted to experience for himself the power of the one who was lauded to be the supreme mighty one on the Dawn Road.


    Boom. The stars around Ye Futian''s body shook and cracked. A peculiar feeling welled up in his head. The step that Ning Huang had taken seemed to be a giant beast stepping on his chest, so heavy that it would have been enough to literally crush one''s heart. Such was the testament to the pressure Ning Huang exuded.


    The broken Constitution of Stars returned to normal. Seeing Ning Huang continue to walk, Ye Futian unleashed a terrifying ray of the sun''s fires, as if the Divine Sun Furnace was shining directly on Ning Huang''s body.


    "Even if this secret art is something that let your powers enhanced to such levels, you are still far from being my match," Ning Huang commented coldly. Dazzling lights burst and an infinitely divine-looking demonic beast appeared behind him. The beast had a dragon''s head and a lion''s body. Golden scales gleamed on its gigantic body, and every scale seemed to be the most sturdy armor plate that could have been made. The roar of the giant beast made it seem like a divine beast had descended upon them, demanding mortals to bow to it in reverence.


    "A qilin." Ye Futian''s eyes were fixed on the Spirit that just appeared. The giant, golden-scaled body was bathed in fearsome, gleaming fires. Its imposing figure spoke volumes of divine will. The large irises of its eyes swept around, seemingly to be an act to have all before it to yield.


    Ye Futian finally understood why Ning Huang''s steps were able to suffocate those around him as if a terrifying beast of war had just walked over them.


    When Ye Futian looked at Ning Huang''s eyes, he was able to feel the might of a qilin, the mighty beast of war, right inside them. The pressure the eyes exuded weighed heavily on his will. Ning Huang kept walking in his direction. Even if Ning Huang himself had no intentions of doing any harm to those around him, those nearby still felt thoroughly intimidated and shaken nonetheless.


    Ye Futian fixed his gaze on Ning Huang without any intention of running away. There were the divine ape and the roc in his eyes, squaring off at the qilin in an equally fearsome manner, standing their ground and budging not even an inch. When Ning Huang took his next step, Ye Futian swept with his polearm. I don''t care how fearsome you look or feel, I''m going to swat you like a fly.


    The terrifying build-up of pressure disintegrated immediately. The strike went straight for Ning Huang as if countless stars were falling onto him. Ning Huang shouted coldly and the qilin, the beast of war, took off. The instant did not feel like it was one qilin taking off, but a dozen, meeting the stars head on and crushing them.


    The all-destroying sweep continued its course nonetheless.


    Ning Huang felt the rush of terrifying pressure coming up. He lifted his palm, conjuring shimmering lights about him. An armor dazzling peerlessly materialized around him��a full set of domineering, indomitable Qilin Armor. His arms seemed to have been infused with bottomless might in an instant, and his lifted his arms to block at the shaft rushing for him.


    Clang! A boom was heard, and Ning Huang, despite his peerless might, was thrown off his feet thousands of meters, landing hard on the palace before him. The stairs collapsed from his fall and the ancient temple was no more.


    The hearts of countless people witnessing the battle shook to their cores as they watched Ning Huang being swept away. Not even someone as powerful as Ning Huang was capable of withstanding that stick.


    A rumbling boom was soon heard as Ning Huang leaped back into action, flying into the sky and looking down on Ye Futian. The brilliance about Ning Huang''s body grew, and the beast of war grew in size as well, breathing fire as it went.


    Ning Huang took a look at Ye Futian''s Polearm of Divine Destruction. The item itself was something incredibly precious on its own. That one hit from before felt what it like stars were falling onto him.


    As he stood in the air, yet another Spirit Dharma appeared behind Ning Huang: a dazzling golden Heavenly Halberd. There was a shadow standing there as well, taking the golden weapon in its hand and looking imposing like a god. Ning Huang extended his arm and threw out a beam of blinding light from his palm. The godly weapon gradually took form as the metal-elemental Spiritual Qi around him were siphoned, imbuing the weapon with light shining for a thousand meters.


    The Qilin Dharma rushed forward and Ning Huang leaped on it. An imposing figure remained behind him, shining brightly as if it was his image. Ning Huang, who had the Heavenly Halberd in hand, looked as dashing and regal as he squared off yet again with Ye Futian.


    The qilin breathed golden fire as it rushed to overwhelm Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s Sun Spirit blasted with fire in response, clashing with the incoming golden flames in the air.


    Booooommm... The beast of war galloped away at the moment, as one shadow of qilin after another trampled the void, ramming at Ye Futian. With his Life Spirit being the qilin and the Heavenly Halberd, it was no surprise that his martial abilities were formidable.


    Ye Futian held onto the Polearm of Divine Destruction and commanded thousands of meteoric light at the void. The starry skies, meteors and the qilin shadows clashed maniacally, making it seem like the end of the world is near. Everyone around rushed to keep their distance, getting away from them for at least ten-thousand meters. They stared at the two figures from afar and thought their battle was practically one capable of changing the landscape itself.


    Blinding golden lights glittered as if tens of thousands of the Heavenly Halberd were brought down from above, cutting in between the light of the meteors. Metal-elementals were thought to be indestructible, and many pieces of the meteors were crushed or shattered right away.


    There was, however, no change in Ye Futian''s eyes. He simply looked up in the air. His body shining with godly imperial light remained just as imposing. A formless power emanated from him, encasing his body. When the Heavenly Halberd struck from the heavens, it landed heavily on the glittering screens of stars around him, yet was able to do nothing to pierce his defenses. Such was the power of the immense durability of the Immortal Celestial Bodies.


    More terrifying rumblings were soon heard as the beast of war descended, overwhelming everything in its way, bursting into Ye Futian''s starry world. Ning Huang looked regal and dashing standing on its beast with the Heavenly Halberd in his hand. He went busting one meteor after another, setting flames to the starry sky and went about destroying everything in his path with blinding golden light.


    Ning Huang had wanted to fight up close and personal with Ye Futian, and see for himself how powerful Ye Futian had gotten.


    The beast of war roared as it galloped, and Ning Huang pierced his halberd below. The strike was imbued with the might of both the heaven and the earth, a divine force bringing about dazzling golden brilliance. It was nigh-invincible and nigh-indestructible, and it was too imbued with the power derived from the will of the sages. If Ye Futian was able to borrow will of emperors and divine lights, someone like Ning Huang would have been able to do the same with sages.


    Boom... The stars around Ye Futian shook. The qilin came down with full intention to kill. Its imposing, gigantic body rammed on the defense of the Immortal Celestial Bodies. The Celestial Bodies cracked, and it continued cracking. As the golden Heavenly Halberd descended upon him at striking hard at a single point, the body shattered. The menacing light seemed to be adamant to kill Ye Futian right there and then.


    Ye Futian''s Polearm of Divine Destruction, clad in Imperial Brilliance, danced. Countless beams of light seeped within, and he went on to lift it up high against the charging Ning Huang, then bringing the weapon down with earth-shattering force. As both weapons clashed, Incredibly dazzling lights burst. The beast took Ning Huang''s body around and galloped around Ye Futian, aiming to strike at his flank, attempting to catch Ye Futian in a pincer attack of sorts.


    Divine Fire of the Sun on top of Ye Futian shone with blinding light, encasing his body with the Divine Sun Furnace, dispelling the looming death upon him. It locked the front of his body tight, as he took steps in the air. Seeing Ning Huang''s halberd come yet again, with thousands of lights from the weapon congealed into one point and intending to burst with heaven-splitting force, his Polearm of Divine Destruction split into thousands of images as they swept about.


    Boom... One rumbling roar was heard, as the light of the Heavenly Halberd was completely shattered. Ning Huang was thrown into the air again as the two weapons clashed.


    "Now I''ll see how many hits can you take," Ye Futian said as his aura grew increasingly power. He leaped forward, roaring with the might of the heavens and the earth, imposing his will on all!

 531 Ning Huang’s Defea

    Outside Jinxiao City, countless experts from the Dawn Road gathered and stood outside the gates, looking in the direction of the city. Many of the elites had also arrived. Bing Yi and Chu Shang from the Mortal World on the air warship, Yan Jiu from the Sword Saint Villa, Xia Hou from the Xia Clan, Nan Hao''s group from the Nantian House and Yuan Zhan from Mount Taixing. They all stood in different directions, not knowing exactly what was happening in Jinxiao City.


    They had heard that Ye Futian had only brought two people and a demonic beast with him into the city and gone all the way into the center of the city. Those guarding Jinxiao City had not returned yet, could it be that the battle was still not over?


    Nan Hao from the Nantian House had an interested expression. Ning Huang was from the Ning Clan. Although the Ning Clan was not an elite clan and was already on the decline, there was a fearsome elder who had risen up in the current Ning Clan. He was an extremely authoritative figure in the Holy Zhi Palace, even though normal people might not know this, but as a person from the Nantian House, he naturally knew all this.


    That person in the Holy Zhi Palace had high expectations for Ning Huang, and entering the Holy Road was merely a formality for Ning Huang. In reality, he had entry to the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate since a long time ago, and that person had taught Ning Huang a lot. He should be expecting Ning Huang''s performance in the Holy Road to be the most outstanding and enter the Holy Zhi Palace brilliantly.


    Knowing Ning Huang''s personality, he probably had not bothered to understand Ye Futian. If he killed Ye Futian, how interesting would it become? They did not enter the city as it belonged to Ning Huang. That fellow was extremely arrogant, so they did not want to provoke him for no reason, it was better to stay and wait for the result.


    "How are things on Gu Feiyang''s side?" at that moment, Nan Hao looked towards the rest and asked.


    "Not optimistic," Xia Hou replied calmly, then asked, "I''ve heard that Virgin Bing Yi is on good terms with Gu Feiyang. Are you not going to help him?"


    "A battle should naturally be decided by one''s strength. I believe that Gu Feiyang will emerge victoriously," Bing Yi replied emotionlessly. Xia Hou smiled, he naturally understood that Bing Yi did not mean what she said.


    This time, it was very likely that Gu Feiyang could not live to walk out of the Holy Road. Xiao Junyi was too dangerous. Even Virgin Bing Yi of the Mortal World would not want to offend a disciple of the Dark Saint. For many years, the Dark Saint had been a menace to the influential figures of the Barren State, why would his successor be any different.


    ��


    Presently, in Jinxiao City, Ning Huang was struck back once again. The countless figures watching in the huge area were stunned. Ye Futian''s rod skills were too overbearing and his aura was becoming even stronger as it accumulated.


    The crowd had a ludicrous thought. Could it be that Ning Huang was going to meet his demise here?


    Ning Huang''s expression became exceedingly serious. Through the two times they clashed, he could feel how strong Ye Futian was. He stood up straight, his Battle Beast Kirin returning to his back, converting back to its Life Spirit form and merging with his body since the Life Spirit alone was unable to even get near Ye Futian.


    The armor he was wearing appeared to be burning, with rays enveloping his body. Ning Huang stood above the heavens, the halberd in his hand aimed at Ye Futian. In an instant, a tremendous amount of strength entered the Heavenly Halberd. The flame and metal element Spiritual Qi in the air gathered towards it and the light emitted by the halberd became even more terrifying than before.


    "Is Ning Huang finally going to use his secret move?" The crowd was startled. Although the majority of those following Ning Huang did not come from strong clans, there was a small group of them who were of superior origin. There were a few among them who knew that Ning Huang had learned an imposing halberd skill. It was his strongest move, the God Slaying Halberd. It was a skill known for its overwhelming offensive ability, claiming that the halberd could eliminate everything in front of it, even if it was a god.


    Ye Futian''s rod skills were evidently also a super offensive ability, Ning Huang had no choice but to use his strongest move to face him in battle.


    Previously, nobody treated Ye Futian seriously, and they did not expect that he could force Ning Huang to such an extent. Nobody knew that he would be a one-man army after revealing his true strength. This kind of person was too scary, especially when he only showed an Arcana Plane''s cultivation level usually.


    The current Ning Huang was dominant and unparalleled, the God Slaying Halberd''s strength was unmatched, each stroke containing extraordinary offensive ability and extremely hard to master. Ye Futian had asked him how many strikes of the rod he could withstand. He wanted to know the answer too.


    Ye Futian''s body flew and gathered force as he struck towards Ning Huang yet again. The Polearm of Divine Destruction was like a raging dragon and even Ning Huang had to acknowledge its strength. However, the Heavenly Halberd in his hand did not budge an inch as he took a step forward, the air shaking under their force, as though attempting to trample Ye Futian''s confidence.


    The Heavenly Halberd pierced forward. At that moment, it was like Ning Huang, the Battle Beast QIlin and the Heavenly Halberd had combined into one with the heavens. A remarkably brilliant giant halberd that could match the Polearm of Divine Destruction''s shadow in strength appeared in the heavens. An invisible wave crashed down and the space between the two of them was crushed. The people watching from a distance felt a feeling of asphyxiation, the halberd strike was unbelievably tyrannical, killing all enemies in its path.


    The God Suppressing Strike, as the halberd struck, it suppressed the Polearm of Divine Destruction.


    The huge crowd watched as the Polearm of Divine Destruction and the Heavenly Halberd clashed. They were shocked by it, they were too strong, it was hard to imagine that it was a battle between a Lower Noble Plane and Arcana Plane cultivator. When the Polearm of Divine Destruction clashed with the Heavenly Halberd, they felt as though their hearts would be crushed under the pressure and an invisible might caused them to feel suffocated.


    An extremely frenzied aura erupted from both people and they retreated thereafter. Ye Futian''s will of the emperor remained overbearing, the Polearm of Divine Destruction wielded in his hands, golden clouds following along. Ye Futian acted as though the halberd strike had not affected him, continuing to accumulate might for his next blow.


    Ning Huang stared at the front, the Heavenly Halberd pointing towards the sky. He took another step forward, the halberd aiming towards Ye Futian. In an instant, a myriad of golden flames flew forward alongside the Heavenly Halberd. Ye Futian''s starry defense was penetrated at the places that the golden flames passed and shattered to pieces.


    As the Heavenly Halberd landed, tens of thousands of golden flames descended as well, this was the God''s Burial Skill from the God Slaying Halberd. Ye Futian''s Polearm of Divine Destruction roared and struck out, creating a brilliant light veil, striking the air and with an ear-shattering sound. The golden flames flew backward and at the same time, the Heavenly Halberd landed on the light veil and Ning Huang retreated again. The God''s Burial Skill was even less of a threat to Ye Futian than the God Suppressing Strike.


    At that moment, Ning Huang''s body disappeared and after-images appeared in the heavens. In the air, countless Ning Huang shadows and Heavenly Halberd silhouettes appeared, eventually combining into one and dashing forward. This was an extremely powerful technique from the God Slaying Halberd, the God Execution Strike.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt a strong threat incoming. He closed his eyes, the will of the emperor shining brightly around his body, as though entering a state of Enlightenment. His senses were heightened and he could catch a glimpse of Ning Huang''s figure. Tens of thousands of shadows had combined into one, strongest Ning Huang.


    His memory brought him back to the mountain behind Qingzhou Academy, where the Snow Ape had shown him the Nine Heavenly Attacks, each strike resonating with a corresponding cultivation level, the fifth strike likely to resonate with the Noble Plane.


    The Divine Ape growled and merged with him. An immeasurable might gathered in an instant, it was a Noble Will that formed in an instant and resonated with the heavens.


    Ye Futian''s body moved, stepping forward and the Polearm of Divine Destruction sweeping forward. When the strike landed, the crowd felt as though there was a colossal Divine Ape howling and trying to crush everything beneath its feet.


    The halberd''s shadow arrived and the Polearm of Divine Destruction cleaved forward at the same time. A piercing light burst forth and the crowd saw Ning Huang''s body turn into a flash of golden lightning, crashing heavily into a distant palace. The entire palace collapsed and Ning Huang shot right through it, his feet dragging along the ground. The Heavenly Halberd pierced the ground vigorously and created a rift in the ground. Only after that did Ning Huang stop moving backward. His head was lowered, blood streamed from his mouth and nobody could see his expression.


    When they looked at Ye Futian, his body was still standing steadily in the air with the glow of the will of the emperor and an aura of arrogance.


    Defeated! Ning Huang was actually defeated in his strongest form. The crowd was appalled. Although the Polearm of Divine Destruction was very strong, Ning Huang''s Heavenly Halberd was also a powerful ritual implement that had resonance with him.


    When they saw Ning Huang''s final blow, many of them had thought that Ye Futian would be in trouble, but eventually, the loser was Ning Huang. Nobody dared to imagine that when Ning Huang wanted to deal with an Arcana Plane cultivator, he would end up being defeated by that cultivator. This was a huge shock to them.


    Ye Futian basked in the emperor''s glow and stepped forward. Ning Huang''s head was still lowered; nobody could understand how he felt right now. He had come to the Holy Road to be first, to plunder the most holy badges. He wanted to restore the glory of the Ning Clan, this was also the expectation that the Holy Zhi Palace''s elder had for him. However, he had been defeated in battle today, to an insignificant character.


    Countless people stared at Ye Futian''s figure and those in the air around him did not dare to act rashly. Li Qingyi''s eyes were red. He had won; Ye Futian had actually defeated Ning Huang. This was inconceivable, she could not believe that it was real.


    Who could have imagined that the handsome teen who had appeared on Mount Jiuxian could actually go so far?


    Beside her, Li Xun did not dare to imagine it as well. He was dumbstruck, but after the shock came the horror, if Ning Huang were to die, he could not possibly live. Out of all the people here, he would be first on Ye Futian''s list. He was extremely regretful, but it was not the time for regrets. He wanted to live.


    His palm suddenly stretched forward and gripped Li Qingyi by the throat. Li Xun took out a dagger and pointed it towards Li Qingyi''s throat and shouted to Ye Futian, "Stop!"


    Li Qingyi was stunned, a furious expression appearing on her face.


    Ye Futian''s footsteps stopped and he looked mercilessly at Li Xun. Li Xun had been correct, the first person Ye Futian had wanted to kill was indeed him.


    "She is your sister." Ye Futian''s voice was frigid.


    "I have never treated her like my sister, she''s just the daughter of a lowly maid. If you want her to live, throw your ritual implement over," Li Xun said. The ritual implement was too strong. With the Polearm of Divine Destruction, Ye Futian''s rod skills were unrivaled. He did not expect Ye Futian to give up his life for Li Qingyi, so he only requested Ye Futian to give up his ritual implement, so that he had a chance to live.


    "Don''t do it��" Li Qingyi looked at Ye Futian and shook her head with red eyes, then said, "Kill this b*stard." While saying that, she walked forward, allowing the dagger to cut towards her throat. Li Xun''s expression changed and immediately retracted his arm, but the dagger had already left a faint cut on Li Qingyi''s fair skin.


    "B*tch." Li Xun grabbed her by the neck and lifted her up, rendering her unable to speak. The current Li Xun was crazed and looked towards Ye Futian, demanding, "Are you going to hand over your ritual implement?"


    Ye Futian''s expression was frigid as he looked towards Li Xun and said, "You will die!"

 532 The Killer, Yu Sheng

    Li Xun looked at Ye Futian''s expression and became even more determined. He could only use Li Qingyi as a threat now. If he did not do that, he would die immediately.


    He exerted some force on his palm and Li Qingyi expression became pained as if she was about to suffocate.


    Li Xun stared intently at Ye Futian. He had stepped into Jinxiao City to save people, now Li Xun could only hope that Li Qingyi was important enough to Ye Futian. Otherwise, he would have to drag Li Qingyi to the grave with him.


    "You be my hostage and I''ll throw my ritual implement out," Ye Futian said coldly.


    "Throw it here now," Li Xun replied.


    "What if you don''t let her go after I give my ritual implement to you?" Ye Futian coldly said. "You be my hostage and I''ll hand over the ritual implement. Afterward, I''ll swap you for Li Qingyi, if you don''t agree, you die now."


    After saying that, Ye Futian stepped forward. Li Xun''s expression was sullen, he naturally did not want to be a hostage, but now, he had no choice but to gamble.


    "Okay." Li Xun nodded and handed Li Qingyi over to his subordinate with utmost prudence. He himself walked towards Ye Futian, his expression pale. In the past, Ye Futian had just been an Arcana Plane cultivator to him, but the Ye Futian now basked in the emperor''s glow, an unparalleled figure.


    Eventually, Li Xun walked to Ye Futian''s side and Ye Futian stretched out his left arm, grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up.


    "If I die, kill her immediately," Li Xun shouted frantically. If Ye Futian wanted to kill him with no regard for Li Qingyi, he would have done so just now and not wasted his time to do this.


    Ye Futian''s right hand flung the Polearm of Divine Destruction forward and a figure picked it up in a flash. However, the moment the person held it, his body started to vigorously fall towards the ground. With a bang, the Polearm of Divine Destruction nearly crushed his body and the Noble might on his body erupted, only then did he barely held on to the Polearm of Divine Destruction.


    It was that heavy? Many people were stunned.


    "Take it away," Li Xun said. He wanted the Polearm of Divine Destruction to weaken Ye Futian''s strength and grasp a chance for survival. The person dragged the Polearm of Divine Destruction and started to walk further away, but Ning Huang stopped him, grabbed the Polearm of Divine Destruction and started to scrutinize the ritual implement.


    "Swap hostages now," Li Xun shouted. He was afraid that Ning Huang would give the order to kill Li Qingyi. He knew that Ning Huang did not care about his life.


    "Swap hostages now." Ye Futian stared at the other person and released his grip on Li Xun. The other person similarly let go of Li Qingyi, and both of them started walking to the other side. Li Qingyi did not dare to act rashly as he knew that he was not out of danger yet. If Ye Futian wanted to kill him with his Noble Will, he could not escape death.


    Hummmm. Li Xun sped up all of a sudden and escaped far away. Ye Futian stepped forward at the same time, the Thundering Illusion Step descending beside Li Qingyi in an instant. Li Qingyi looked towards Ye Futian, her head lowered and tears in her eyes. Why was he willing to swap for her?


    "Why aren''t you all moving, you all wanted to kill him just now, do you think that he will let you all go?" Li Xun yelled. The enormous crowd was dumbfounded, they had all attempted to kill Ye Futian previously, but were stunned by Ye Futian''s strength now.


    "He''s using a secret move to increase his strength, he can''t last much longer, wear him down." Ning Huang raised his head, looked towards the crowd and walked forward. Although he had been injured, his words still carried weight.


    "Do it," someone from the crowd shouted. In an instant, the experts started to cast their spells towards Ye Futian. If Ye Futian killed Ning Huang, their fate would be unpredictable and they might die as well. Even so, they only used long-range attacks and nobody dared to get close to Ye Futian anymore.


    Around Ye Futian''s body, starlight glowed, protecting him and Li Qingyi. Countless attacks hammered on the shield and it wavered. As the attacks got even stronger, some people from illustrious backgrounds even used their ritual implements to attack, causing cracks to appear in the starlight veil.


    Within the protective veil, Ye Futian raised his head and looked towards the vast group of experts. These people knew nothing about him, but all wanted him dead.


    "Are you still hesitating?" At that moment, a voice sounded out. Many people raised their heads and saw a burly figure standing in the air. It was Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng did not look at the crowd, but looked towards Ye Futian instead and said, "Before we arrived, we had already expected this kind of ending. When they helped Ning Huang to kill the people of the Flaming Prison City, they had no mercy. They never had any mercy towards killing you."


    Only Yu Sheng understood Ye Futian the best. Before entering the city, Ye Futian was furious and asked people to guard the exits and kill anyone who attempted to escape. However, when he saw the number of people who wanted to kill him, Ye Futian still hesitated. The vast area was filled with experts and countless attacks barraged him when Ye Futian was not resisting, even his sturdy defense was unable to withstand it.


    When Yu Sheng said that, a demonic aura erupted from within him, his eyes turned crimson like blood was going to drip out.


    Bam! His demon-like wings spread open and he was covered in demon might from head to toe, as though possessed by a demon. Behind him, an enormous demon shadow appeared behind him.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian mumbled. On the Sky Mountain, Yu Sheng had demonized and rampaged once to save him.


    Was he going to do the same now?


    Yu Sheng likely knew that his emperor''s will did not have much time left.


    "Perhaps the Arhat was right back then when he said that I''m destined to have blood on my hands. Those who attempt to kill you, even if there are millions of them, I will kill them all." Yu Sheng''s voice was ice cold, like a demon lord.


    Many people''s hearts trembled. Even if there were millions of them, he would kill them all. They saw Yu Sheng move, his demon-like wings flapping and spikes appearing on his terrifying dark golden armor, turning into frightening spears. He drew the spears with both hands and rushed towards two people at breakneck speed. The two people felt like a demon was trying to invade their head and making them kneel, the pressure making them unable to move.


    With a squish, the spears impaled their heads and as Yu Sheng flew past them, the two corpses fell towards the ground.


    Thump, thump�� Many people''s hearts thumped as they saw Yu Sheng gliding across the air with his demon wings, wherever he passed, people dropped like flies.


    How could this be? Li Xun, who thought that he had escaped a crisis stared intensely at the scene. It was groundbreaking enough for one Arcana Plane to reach the level of an elite genius, but now, there were two?


    "Surround and kill him," someone yelled furiously. Many people reacted and started to surround Yu Sheng. However, Yu Sheng''s speed became even faster. Under the possession of the demon, he allowed the attacks to land on his body like he did not feel anything. He descended in front of an expert and a battle ax appeared in his hand. He cleaved the person as though he was a log and continued forward.


    Bam, bam, bam�� In the air, there were people falling continuously, all killed by Yu Sheng. It was as though he was making good of his word to kill millions of them.


    Seeing countless spells flying towards Yu Sheng, Ye Futian felt pained. Although Yu Sheng''s defense was strong, it was impossible for him to not feel pain. But even so, that was Yu Sheng. He understood that Yu Sheng did not have a ritual implement like the Polearm of Divine Destruction and could not kill that many people. He was inciting him to step in.


    He naturally understood as well that Yu Sheng was not stupid, he saw things more clearly than anyone else. Suddenly, Ye Futian smiled, but his smile was desolate. He had thought of two people all of a sudden, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing.


    Back then, the two brothers had traveled the world, he wondered what experiences they went through to create such a magnificent piece like the Ukiyo. The piece attempted to trample the heavens and become the ruler of the world.


    Ye Futian sat with his knees crossed, surrounded by a brilliant glow. His guqin spirit appeared in front of him, causing the crowd''s attention to focus on him again. He still had another Life Spirit?


    Ye Futian held the guqin and pleasing melodies started to play from the guqin. Ye Futian''s aura changed yet again. Although the emperor''s will was circulating around his body, he appeared to be cut off from the rest of the world, as though superior to all of them. Strong imagery brought everyone else into it, from calmness to passion, and onwards to attempting to trample the heavens and reach the peak.


    Rays of the emperor will''s glow started to rise up, the golden light enveloping the entire area as the guqin melody reached every corner of the battlefield. In an instant, many people felt as though the area was changing. The Spiritual Qi became more apparent and landed from the air, merging into the guqin melody.


    Ning Huang''s expression froze. He had seen a radical scene. The Spiritual Qi in the heavens appeared to be controlled by the guqin melody, accompanying the light of the emperor''s will, resonating with Ye Futian''s will.


    The guqin melody was influencing the Spiritual Qi in the area.


    At that moment, around Yu Sheng, a group of people was casting spells to attack him. But before they were able to finish the spell, it had already dissipated into nothingness. Their Spiritual Energy was unable to control the Spiritual Qi in the air, causing them to be unable to cast their spells.


    They were flabbergasted and looked downwards at Ye Futian. The emperor''s light was shining radiantly and golden Fatal Entanglement vines were forming at their feet, coiling around their bodies. Thereafter, golden blades pierced their bodies, nailing them in the air.


    "Noooo��" There were people being coiled in succession and they were terrified. How could this happen? What guqin spell was that?


    "When the Ukiyo sounds, no spell can exist." Ning Huang stared blankly at the situation. In the skies, all spells were forbidden. The only person who could cast spells was Ye Futian. In the vast area, everyone''s life was under his control.


    Even Qin Yin''s group, who was a distance away, were petrified. They shivered uncontrollably, looking at Ye Futian playing the guqin, it was as though it was just a dream, everything was too surreal.


    In the skies, the experts were being hunted rapidly, but Ye Futian was not affected at all. His aura was remarkable and the guqin melody was like a god''s piece, not meant to appear in the humans'' world. The feeling was indescribable.


    "Noo��" In the air, when Li Xun''s body was coiled, he let out a blood-curdling scream, but the golden blades pierced his body one by one like a harsh punishment, slowly draining him of life. Li Xun felt pain beyond belief and looked towards the figure below. Apart from hatred, he also felt utmost remorse. Who on earth did he betray��


    Ning Huang was still resisting, but a demon-like figure descended from the skies, battle ax in hand, cleaving downwards. Blood trickled from between Ning Huang''s brows. He stared at the figure in front of him and said, "My death is not undeserved." He had finally understood before he died what kind of figure the person he had tried to kill off casually was.


    Yu Sheng''s palm gripped his head and ripped it off, then he turned around and walked into the air, the demon''s might rampaging. Yu Sheng said mercilessly, "If word of what happened today spreads, I will kill you."


    Qin Yin''s group heard Yu Sheng''s words and were startled. They naturally understood that those words were meant for them. The usually silent, burly teen, was now a demon.


    Yu Sheng flew towards the outside of the city and he saw Yi Xiaoshi still battling with Mo Jun. He cleaved Mo Jun with one wave of his ax.


    Outside Jinxiao City, there were countless people. At that moment, a distance away, demonic aura was brimming. A demonic might flew rapidly towards them and everyone''s gazes turned towards that direction. Next, they saw a scene that they would never forget.


    Yu Sheng''s body landed on the city''s gate and he placed Ning Huang''s head there. Like a demon, his gaze swept across the crowd and he ruthlessly said, "Those who previously followed Ye Futian and entered the giant relic, stand guard here. Do not allow anyone to step into Jinxiao City. From now on, Jinxiao City has a new owner. Those who violate the rule, kill them all." As he finished, Yu Sheng turned around and walked into Jinxiao City.


    At the same time, a glacial voice sounded out, "The killer, Yu Sheng!"

 533 One Step Away

    Outside Jinxiao City, it was dead silent. Even the elite geniuses were aghast when they saw Ning Huang''s head on the city gate. They had gathered to watch the fun, to watch Ye Futian die.


    What had awaited them was a peerless demonic figure. Ye Futian did not die. The person who had died was Ning Huang. The overbearing elite genius, commander of all the experts in Jinxiao City, was actually killed by someone else. This came as a great shock to them.


    Even Nan Hao had not expected an ending like this. Perhaps, the teen that had come from the Eastern Barren State was much more of a prodigy than he had thought.


    "How could this be?" On the air warship, Virgin Bing Yi from the Mortal World was mortified. What had just happened had subverted her understanding. Not just her, but everyone in the area was speechless. Thereafter, those who had followed Ye Futian in deciphering the Flaming Prison City''s giant relic broke into a craze. They felt emotionally charged, like their blood was on fire.


    Previously, Ning Huang had sent his men to kill their friends and caused a storm in the Flaming Prison City. He had held Ye Futian''s friends captive to try and force Ye Futian''s hand. When Ye Futian stepped into Jinxiao City, they had felt tragic, but never in their wildest dreams did they imagine that they would bring out Ning Huang''s head after Ye Futian went in.


    Ning Huang himself probably never expected it either. Otherwise, he would not be overbearing.


    Mu Zhiqiu and the Starry School''s disciples were the most startled. Nobody knew what had happened in the city, and they were unable to imagine what the situation in the city was. Jinxiao City did not only have Ning Huang, but it also had thousands of his followers. Where were they?


    At that moment, they started to stand up one by one, their auras bursting out. The experts who had followed Ye Futian all stood up proudly, guarding the city. Now, they would naturally take orders from Yu Sheng as they could partake in the glory as well.


    They were very clear that with the Jinxiao City''s changing of ownership, Ye Futian was likely to open a second giant relic, which would be another opportunity for them. Although those guarding could not possibly fend off all the experts outside, who would dare to recklessly charge in?


    Ning Huang''s head was on the city gate, even if they could manage to break through and enter Jinxiao City, were they not scared to die?


    Ye Wuchen, Loulan Xue, Mu Zhiqiu and the rest of Ye Futian''s friends moved into the city in a flash. They wanted to see what had happened. Previously, Ye Futian had not allowed them to enter the city. They naturally understood that it was because their cultivation level was too low and would only be a burden in Jinxiao City.


    "I''ll go and take a look," Gu Yunxi said quietly, entering the city as well. She had only seen Yu Sheng and did not know how Ye Futian was doing, so she was a little worried. Moreover, with her relationship with Ye Futian, Yu Sheng would not kill her.


    When Ye Wuchen and the rest arrived at the battlefield, they saw the floor littered with corpses and were startled. Qin Yin and the rest were clearing up the battlefield and preparing to bury the people. They knew that everything that they had just experienced had to be buried deep within their hearts. They could only treat it as a dream, but the dream was far too realistic and shocking.


    "Loulan, do it," Ye Wuchen said. He stepped forward and walked away, then drove his sword into the ground. The ground tore open, revealing a horrifying crack. Mu Zhiqiu also went forward to help, her strong Celestial Will erupting and causing the earth to shake as though an earthquake was happening.


    "The Holy Road opens once every three years and experts from all areas of the Barren State will gather. Moreover, the death rate in the Holy Road is extremely high, so even if there are people who die in the Holy Road, generally people will not know how they died or who they were killed by. These people that are buried here should have no other companions, but after we have buried them, we cannot let anyone else step into Jinxiao City," Mu Zhiqiu said to Ye Futian, who was sitting cross-legged a distance away. Her expression was solemn.


    Ye Futian did not say anything, but Qin Yin''s group was extremely uneasy. They knew what Mu Zhiqiu meant. Apart from them, nobody else knew that they had come from Mount Jiuxian. If they had all died in Jinxiao City, nobody would know how they had died. Unless it was someone like Ning Huang who had died, then it would be inevitable, since everyone knew him.


    However, the number of people that had died in Jinxiao City this time was huge. There might be people outside who knew that they had entered Jinxiao City, so there was still certain risk.


    "The Holy Road is a trial by the Holy Zhi Palace. Entering the Holy Road means to put one''s life at stake. However, Ning Huang''s death might probably cause us some trouble. One of his elders is an influential figure in the Holy Zhi Palace." Mu Zhiqiu looked knowingly at Yu Sheng. She did not know how Ning Huang had died, but Yu Sheng''s roar was to tell everyone that Ning Huang had been killed by him.


    Seeing the situation in front of her, she knew that the truth was not that simple. Ye Futian was extremely weak now, like he had just been through a huge battle.


    "It was Ning Huang who wanted to kill us. Moreover, this is the Holy Zhi Palace''s Holy Road, even the influential figure can''t do anything to us, right?" Li Qingyi stood beside Ye Futian and asked Mu Zhiqiu.


    "Ning Huang naturally deserves to die. However, everyone has their own stand. The influential figure in the Holy Zhi Palace had high hopes for Ning Huang and is his elder, so his stand would naturally be on Ning Huang''s side. Now, Ning Huang is dead," Mu Zhiqiu replied. Li Qingyi bit her lip nervously, she naturally knew that what Mu Zhiqiu was saying was not wrong.


    "How should we deal with the other people in Jinxiao CIty?" Yi Xiaoshi stood beside Ye Futian and asked. During the battle, although many experts had gathered, Jinxiao City was huge. There were still people who did not join in and were in other parts of the city.


    "Just now, I asked Little Condor to watch the surroundings. Since those people did not gather to assist Ning Huang, leave them be. They had previously followed Ning Huang, now they follow us," Ye Futian replied. He had already given the order to seal off the city, now he needed to control these people.


    "Alright." Yi Xiaoshi nodded and said, "You and Yu Sheng have a good rest, we''ll handle the matters here."


    "Okay." Ye Futian was indeed lethargic. He looked at Yu Sheng, now that Yu Sheng had formed his own Noble Will, even though he had demonized, he had more control over the demonic power and would not completely lose control.


    Closing his eyes, Ye Futian relaxed. He would not have to think about what would happen later.


    ��


    The days passed but the news of Ning Huang''s death was still shocking. Moreover, another person''s death in the Dawn Road caused a commotion. Sage Duantian''s disciple Gu Feiyang had been killed by Xiao Junyi and his city occupied by Xiao Junyi. At the same time, Xiao Junyi had opened the giant relic and was cultivating in it, causing a huge ruckus.


    Xiao Junyi was even more ruthless than the demon. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were forced by Ning Huang, if they did not go to Jinxiao City, Ning Huang would not let them off easily. However, Xiao Junyi hunted mercilessly and killed countless people to create his dead spirit army and even killed Gu Feiyang.


    Xiao Junyi and Yu Sheng were reputed to be the two demons of the Dawn Road that nobody wanted to provoke.


    With such figures appearing in these two factions, the other elite geniuses were naturally unable to take it lying down. They sped up their actions both on the surface and secretly. There were many people who were killed mysteriously or had their holy badges plundered. Although it did not seem like those were done by the elite geniuses, nobody knew who they had sent out secretly to do it. The carnage in the Dawn Road was even more horrifying than past years and numerous people died as a result.


    One day, Jinxiao City, which had been silent for many days suddenly released news that Ye Futian had given the order to gather a thousand holy badges. Those who were willing to offer their holy badge would be allowed into the Jinxiao City giant relic to cultivate. However, this time, the holy badges would not be returned.


    Many people could understand that. Ye Futian''s reputation was not like before since they had been able to kill Ning Huang. Now he was not asking for a favor from the crowd, but offering them a chance. In a short time, many people gathered. Too many people wanted to enter Jinxiao City and hand over their holy badge. After all, there was already a precedent and they were all willing to trust Ye Futian.


    Now, Ye Futian''s rallying power could be said to be the strongest in the Dawn Road. Although Xiao Junyi was equally as strong, who would dare to cooperate with Xiao Junyi?


    Soon, Ye Futian had gathered a thousand holy badges. It was much easier than the previous time.


    Presently, in Jinxiao City, a magnificent relic appeared. Countless golden rays shone like they were trying to light up the entire Jinxiao City. A colossal golden figure appeared in the air, like a peerless battle god. In the middle of the battle god shadow, a person floated there and countless rays landed on his body, causing the burly figure to become even more extraordinary. That person was Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian did not inherit the legacy of this giant relic but gave it to Yu Sheng to inherit. The demon might that Yu Sheng cultivated had not just demonic power, it also had an overbearing metal element ability. Therefore, the relic would be better suited to him. Even though Yu Sheng still wanted to let him have it, he rejected Yu Sheng determinedly.


    Moreover, Yu Sheng had gotten Ning Huang''s Heavenly Halberd and the God Slaying Halberd skill. When Ye Futian was battling with Ning Huang, he had already felt that the God Slaying Halberd skill was extremely strong. If it could be used with Yu Sheng''s explosive strength, just the God Suppressing Strike would be a huge difference as compared to Ning Huang. Now, Yu Sheng had inherited the giant relic. His strength would definitely go up another level.


    At that moment, Ye Futian stepped forward and walked into the relic, then looked at the crowd and said, "You all may enter the relic to cultivate."


    "Understood." The crowd nodded and moved in a flash into the giant relic.


    Outside Jinxiao City, there was a person in the air looking in the distance. From extremely far away, golden rays started to rise up and the person said, "The relic is opened."


    They knew that after Ye Futian had gathered the holy badges, adding on what Ning Huang already had, he would be able to open a second giant relic. Thereafter, word started to spread throughout the entire Holy Road and countless people were astonished.


    Ye Futian had been able to open two giant relics by himself, even the Jinxiao City''s giant relic had been occupied by him.


    After they had received the news, the elite geniuses from the other factions started to speed up the gathering of the holy badges. They were determined to open a giant relic in the Holy Road as well.


    About ten days later, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng both broke through their cultivation level and stepped into the ninth level of the Arcana Plane, the final level of the Arcana Plane. They had planned to break through to this level in the Flaming Prison City''s giant relic, but because of Ning Huang''s coercion, they had to step out of the relic. Now, they had broken through in the second relic.


    They were only one step away from the Noble Plane!

 534 Snow Ape Emperor

    The ruins of Jinxiao City was taken over by Yu Sheng, yet due to Ye Futian''s inherent extraordinary perceptivity and abilities provided by Freedom Meditation, he was able to sense a lot from the ruins nonetheless.


    A terrible metal-elemental storm whipped up around Ye Futian that day. Pieces of gold-colored blades circled around him with immense aura speaking of unparalleled sharpness. The tornado of sharp blades gathered around his body, and a pair of incredibly dazzling pair of wings of the great roc congealed behind him. Every feather looked as if they were forged out of indestructible golden blades capable of cutting through anything.


    Mu Zhiqiu watched him from the sides. Seems like he became able to comprehend metal-elemental noble will. When the day comes where he steps foot into the Noble Plane, he would have become the noble with the sturdiest foundations there is, far surpassing any who is at Noble Plane at the moment.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and saw a thread of golden light shimmer. Metal-elemental powers have always been one of his fortes. He was pleased to see the breakthrough achieved at the moment, and he took a look at the ones by his side. Yi Xiaoshi''s aura seemed to have become even more aggressive than it had been, a testament saying that he had made it to grade seven Noble Plane, and had grown considerably more powerful.


    At the gates outside of Jinxiao City, there were people taking turns to guard the place from the very time the ruins were opened. There were few, yet due to the fearsome image projected by the scene of Yu Sheng having the head of Ning Huang on his hand, nobody dared intrude Jinxiao City as of yet.


    However, a figure arrived at the gates of Jinxiao City. The figure was a huge one, with a body that seemed to be made of gold. The figure took a look at the golden lights emanating from within the city and walked towards it.


    "Yuan Zhan. Jinxiao City had given strict orders of allowing no one to pass," the ones told the ape as they shimmered about themselves. They watched the huge figure that was about to trespass with serious expressions.


    It was Yuan Zhan, and the ape was not something they were capable of stopping.


    Yuan Zhan paid them no heed. Every step he took shook the earth like an earthquake. Someone cast spells to attack him, which landed on him with rumbling booms. However, Yuan Zhan did not even bother defending himself. He simply spared a look at the one who had just attacked him. The attacker saw the intense wildness within the ape''s eyes, which sent him shivering, and he took a step back without realizing it.


    Yuan Zhan of Mount Taixing, a top class genius level figure, whose seniors were the king of Mount Taixing, the one demonic beast who was ranked within the Barren Sky Ranking. He was an extraordinarily powerful being and a peculiar one, as well as one who was acutely protective of his own shortcomings. Yuan Zhan was one of those beings that anyone could least afford to mess with.


    Yuan Zhan did not bother doing anything else to the one who attacked him after giving the man the looks. The ape continued moving forward, and no one dared get in his way. They knew none of their efforts would have amounted to anything anyway. Rumbling noises continued to be heard as Yuan Zhan zipped past at frightening speeds. The guards at the gate looked at each other with bitter grins. "So what now?"


    "If Yuan Zhan insisted on getting his way. There is simply nothing we can do here. He is obviously after the ruins there. But since Yu Sheng was the one inheriting the ruins'' lineage, It would do Yuan Zhan no good getting in there anyway." One of them answered, and everyone nodded in agreement. All there was to left to do was to see how Ye Futian would have dealt with all that.


    Yuan Zhan, who took large steps in his way in, arrived shortly near the ruins. Everyone stared at him with big eyes, given how he did not bother to do anything to conceal his presence.


    Ye Futian gazed at the demonic beast''s silhouette with cold eyes and said, "Did you not hear that Jinxiao City was off-limits?"


    "Ning Huang promised me that when the ruins were opened, I was to be allowed to train here. And that was why I handed Jinxiao City to him in the first place," Yuan Zhan answered as he kept his gaze at Ye Futian.


    "That was your business with Ning Huang. Jinxiao City belongs to us now," Ye Futian answered coldly.


    "I want to see for myself, how powerful are the ones who killed Ning Huang." Yuan Zhan''s eyes turned to look at Yu Sheng, eyes filled with wild ferocity.


    "Older brother." Ye Futian turned to look at Yi Xiaoshi.


    "Capable people are always busy," Yi Xiaoshi murmured and shimmered his plump body forward to face Yuan Zhan.


    Yuan Zhan''s eyes might have as well rolled seeing Yi Xiaoshi coming forward. The ape felt disdainful. A fat one like him probably doesn''t even possess much power in the first place. How is he suppose to fight anyone?


    Yuan Zhan raised his palm and terrifying rumble was heard all over the place. An incredibly huge golden palm lashed out at Yi Xiaoshi''s direction, overshadowing their air before it with terrifying might.


    Yi Xiaoshi remained unfazed. He extended his arm, which kept extending like vines whipping at the palm. His body blinked and a shining trajectory was seen reaching for the air behind the palm, arriving shortly after before Yuan Zhan.


    Yi Xiaoshi extended both arms at the same time, which seemed to conjure countless arms in an instant. They reached out and went tangling the huge body of the ape.


    Yuan Zhan''s arms shook for a bit and shattered the vines entwining them. He then reached out and took hold of the golden vines, pulling them towards him in a jerk, which in turn brought Yi Xiaoshi up.


    The incredible force of the pull caused Yi Xiaoshi''s body to drop sharply, heading in the ape''s direction. Pairs of shadows of arms flickered about in the air as if thousands of arms were born at the same time. Fearsome metal-elemental spiritual qi whipped about as they moved, coalescing into a giant golden palm pressing downwards. Yuan Zhan saw multiple golden palms filling the sky in an instant, attempting to suppress him where he stood. Yi Xiaoshi, whose previous attacks have been comparatively soft ones, struck with incredibly aggressive might with the palms instead, showing that he was indeed capable of blending softness and hardness in his art.


    Roar�� Yuan Zhan roared and the air before him trembled. He lifted both arms and swung hard at the great golden palm, like some arrogant ape god.


    Boom! A crazed metal-elemental might swept about and the air rumbled with it. Yuan Zhan''s body was somewhat shaken; a testament of the ferocity of Yi Xiaoshi''s attack, which looked way more aggressive than it had suggested.


    The countless palms shattered, and Yuan Zhan saw terrifying spears of golden colors followed. They looked to be manifestations of those vines from before, yet were incredibly hard and aggressive instead. The golden spears seemed to be out to pierce anything standing in their way. Yuan Zhan''s eyes went on to take a serious look. He stepped hard on the ground and his body shook with overpowering might. A screen of golden light burst forth from his body, like a horrifying torrent out to defend against everything coming at it.


    The golden spears zipped at the ape, piercing the seemingly-unbreakable defense and continued on their intended target. A golden staff of spiritual qi was conjured on Yuan Zhan''s hand. He whipped the staff at the air before it shortly after.


    Ye Futian stepped out from the ruins. His eyes sparkled as he watched the battle rage on before him. Others were doing the same. Their minds were completely shaken as they became aware, that Ye Futian''s group was at the moment, the most powerful one in Dawn Road. Yi Xiaoshi had just made it into grade seven Noble Plane, and yet he became capable of facing Yuan Zhan alone.


    The attacks of both combatants grew increasingly ferocious and violent. Yuan Zhan''s art with a staff was out of this world and demonstrated unparalleled powers.


    "Do his staff techniques have a name?" Ye Futian asked Mu Zhiqiu, who had just walked out of the ruins.


    "81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques, of the apes of Mount Taixing. The art bears incredible might, and this is actually the first time I''ve laid eyes on it personally. From the looks of it, it looks rather similar to how you go about with your staff," Mu Zhiqiu elaborated, looking at Ye Futian.


    "Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques eh?" Sparkles were seen in Ye Futian''s eyes. His techniques with the staff were named by Senior Snow Ape to be Nine Heavenly Attacks. And Senior Snow Ape was of the apes as well.


    Ye Futian activated his Freedom Meditation abilities and watched the staff techniques demonstrated by Yuan Zhan. It was more than looking similar. He was able to feel somewhat that the Nine Heavenly Attacks were actually an evolved version of the Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques instead.


    "Seventh elder brother, we''re done here," Ye Futian shouted at Yi Xiaoshi. The plump man retreated and left the battlefield soon, feeling rather let down. However, it was clear that Yuan Zhan''s powers were formidable. Had he not been training and making breakthroughs in the ruins, one whack from the ape''s staff would probably have left him lying on the floor. While Mo Jun was a formidable figure himself, he nonetheless paled in comparison to Yuan Zhan who seemed to be something made of gold.


    Yuan Zhan turned to look at Ye Futian, and Ye Futian returned the gaze, asking, "No need to try any further. If you were to face me under the same circumstances, you''d definitely lose."


    "How arrogant." Yuan Zhan eyed Ye Futian for a bit.


    "Have a closer look." The Five Element Rod appeared in Ye Futian''s hand, which then transformed into a golden rod. Golden lights flowed about him as he leaped soon after. The Five Element Rod went burst as it attacked, bringing incredible might to bear.


    At the very moment, the Five Element Rod burst forth, Yuan Zhan''s eyes were simply fixed. He watched as Ye Futian whipped about with the rod, while his eyes never left Ye Futian for even a second.


    Many who witnessed the battle felt shaken as well. How did Ye Futian come to know Yuan Zhan''s way with the staff? What Ye Futian was demonstrating, was none other than the Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques.


    Ye Futian stopped shortly after, and Yuan Zhan asked coldly, "Where did you steal those techniques from?"


    Yuan Zhan took a step forward as soon as he was done talking. A golden staff materialized in his hand bearing an aggressive aura. Yi Xiaoshi was just about to interfere when he saw the Five Element Rod in Ye Futian''s hand was replaced with the Polearm of Divine Destruction. Heavy pressures were felt around him as stars shimmered about. Saint lights flowed about him as a bearing like none other was manifested about him.


    Boom. Yuan Zhan took a ferocious stance as he leaped in Ye Futian''s direction. The Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques went for Ye Futian''s head with frightening aura.


    Starlight shimmered about Ye Futian and an even more fearsome aura burst forth. He too took a step forward and went with a heavy blow. Shimmering mirages coalesced into that one strike of his, which looked as if it could have split the heavens and the earth.


    Boom... The air shook and terrifying storms were conjured. Ye Futian''s body was thrown off and his arms felt numb. What terrifying might indeed. Yuan Zhan was thrown off as well as his body glided in the air. He was unable to come out on top at all with that one hit.


    Ye Futian was able to fight Mo Jun before he was able to make it to the next plane. As he made it to grade nine of Arcana Plane, his powers became comparable to top class geniuses on the Holy Road with the help of the Polearm of Divine Destruction. However, if his opponent was to carry a ritual implement equal in power to his, he might not have looked as powerful.


    Yuan Zhan''s golden eyes glared at Ye Futian as he asked, "What technique was that?" He had practiced the Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques since he was young, and no one was more familiar with that art with a staff than the apes. While Ye Futian had only launched one strike, Yuan Zhan was able to tell that it was something that had evolved from the Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques.


    "Come with me." Ye Futian stepped forward, as he had something to ask Yuan Zhan as well.


    There were others who wanted to go with them but were stopped by Yi Xiaoshi. "There is hardly anyone who can harm little brother on the Holy Road now." They nodded in agreement, as they came to realize that Ye Futian of that very moment was no longer the Ye Futian who had just landed on the Dawn Road.


    Ye Futian walked alone to a place with Yuan Zhan. Yuan Zhan''s eyes never left Ye Futian, and he felt that Ye Futian had something going on with the apes.


    "If you want to know where my staff techniques came from, there are some questions I need to be answered first." Ye Futain looked at Yuan Zhan and continued, "What kind of staff techniques were the Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques?"


    "Techniques passed down throughout the line of apes." Yuan Zhan continued to eye Ye Futian. The answer he gave was never a secret.


    "Where did golden great apes come from, and how did they end up in Barren State?" Ye Futian asked again. Yuan Zhan continued to eye Ye Futian, this time, without giving an answer.


    "If you want answers on that staff technique, you need to answer my questions," Ye Futian continued.


    "You swear?" Yuan Zhan asked, with his eyes fixed on Ye Futian.


    "I swear." Ye Futian nodded.


    "I will have to kill you if you are not telling me anything." Yuan Zhan said with a cold tone, "The golden great apes were a branch of the apes. I heard from my predecessors that the apes came from the demon world. The apes were led by the Snow Ape Emperor back then, following Emperor Ye Qing as he built his empire. The Snow Ape Emperor seemed to have sensed something untoward was about to happen sometime after that and had the apes who were lacking in martial training to lead the younger ones, to spread across the Divine Prefecture. Something happened to Emperor Ye Qing later. The Snow Ape Emperor disappeared, and the strongest among the apes were wiped out in a genocide. Only those who spread across the realm survived. Of course, that was only because the leaders did not bother settling the score or whatever, or else, where apes were found in this realm, there would have been golden great apes among them." He would not have told Ye Futian such things if his hands were not forced.


    Ye Futian shook slightly. The gentle figure he remembered became something unimaginable. He would have never expected the gentle Snow Ape was an emperor of the apes. He then remembered what Senior Snow Ape looked like when he faced those divine generals��a figure of regal bearing, a true king.

 535 Invasion

    Senior Snow Ape was the Snow Ape Emperor!


    Ye Futian felt rather restless now. Senior Snow Ape had never demonstrated any pressure befitting his identity of the Emperor of Apes before him until the very last battle.


    Come to think of it, if Senior Snow Ape had been one of those great demons who had followed Emperor Ye Qing, he would have been a nobody, would he?


    "Who am I then?" Ye Futian asked himself silently. When the Snow Ape Emperor first laid eyes on him, he could not have helped but shed tears and knelt as the ape knew who he was.


    Whose descendant am I exactly?


    Ye Futian felt rather overwhelmed. While he had often lauded himself to be a king of some kind when he was young, it was him being young and stupid. After having experienced so many things throughout the years, he had matured considerably and there were things he became rather reluctant to think about. At the moment, he actually had little idea what kings and emperors were actually like.


    At the moment, Yuan Zhan''s eyes were still fixed on him. He found Ye Futian''s expression looked difficult and complex. He was unable to tell what was going on in Ye Futian''s head as the man''s expression kept changing. However, as Yuan Zhan had elaborated on the history of the apes, it was Ye Futian''s turn to tell him where he learned his way of the staff.


    A formless pressure was clad on Ye Futian. Yuan Zhan said coldly, "Your turn to talk."


    "Would you like to learn that?" Ye Futian looked at Yuan Zhan and asked all of a sudden.


    Yuan Zhan blinked his big eyes in confusion. "Learn what?" He felt dazed for the moment.


    "My art of the staff. The attacks were called Nine Heavenly Attacks," Ye Futian said.


    Yuan Zhan let out a great breath, which spawned quite a gust. The staff techniques of the apes were 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques, and Ye Futian''s, the Nine Heavenly Attacks.


    "You''re willing to teach me?" Yuan Zhan asked.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded and went on to sit with his legs crossed on a rock. His Guqin Spirit manifested, and Ye Futian looked up at Yuan Zhan. "The attacks have no specific formulas, and I have only learned the first five of the nine. I will first send the will of the Nine Heavenly Attacks into your mind, and you will need to figure out the rest yourself."


    "Very well." Yuan Zhan looked at Ye Futian puzzled. He was confused as to why Ye Futian had been so frank with him.


    Ye Futian strummed the chords and a tune was heard, carrying formless will with it. Musical spells were something Spirit Elemental-based sorcerers used to deliver will and concepts. Images rose within Yuan Zhan''s mind shortly after. It was somewhere in the mountains, and the place was encased in coldness. An incredibly regal silhouette was seen on it, proud and gracious.


    "The Snow Ape Emperor." Yuan Zhan''s massive body trembled violently and gasped for breath. He then saw the Snow Ape Emperor begin to whip his staff about, which he closed his eyes to silent feel. The images were sent into his mind in waves of strong will, as if they were to be imprinted on his mind until the very last stroke of the art was finished. Yuan Zhan flinched, yet he kept his eyes close, feeling it all in silence.


    The Guqin Spirit disappeared, and Ye Futian sat waiting in silence as well. The Nine Heavenly Attacks were something taught to him by the Snow Ape Emperor. Now that he met someone of Senior Snow Ape''s race, and the Nine Heavenly Attacks were offensive techniques evolved from the 81 Strikes of the Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques, it was only natural for him to pass the techniques onto one of those apes, who happened to be right before him.


    Yuan Zhan opened his eyes after a while and looked at Ye Futian, with a very a very restless look face. He had been training in the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques since young and developed immense comprehension of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. Those nine new attacks were condensed and enhanced forms of the 81 strikes, stronger and bearing more power in every move.


    Yuan Zhan stood up and looked at Ye Futian, who remained sitting on the rock, and bowed in gratitude. "Thank you." The Nine Heavenly Attacks originated from the Snow Ape Emperor, and Ye Futian had done him a great service for willing to pass those techniques down to him.


    Ye Futian nodded and smiled. "It is an obligation on my part."


    "Where did you find the Snow Ape Emperor?" Yuan Zhan asked.


    "My hometown, a very remote corner of the Eastern Barren Territory." Ye Futian continued, "The day before Senior Snow Ape passed, he passed the techniques onto me, and now I passed it onto you, back to the apes. I suppose this is what they''d call the circle of life."


    "The Snow Ape Emperor perished?" Yuan Zhan was still rather reluctant to believe it. It was, after all, the Emperor of Apes who had been their leader.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. He still felt a tinge of sorrow whenever Senior Snow Ape came to mind. Yuan Zhan stood where he was silently and felt sad as well. If any of the elders came to know this, they would probably be as sad.


    "When we get out of here, I''ll take you to see my grandpa in Mount Taixing. He had wanted to see our emperor for a long time," Yuan Zhan spoke again after a while.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. "Very well."


    "While I have never opened up any ruins in this trip on the Holy Road of mine, I met you, and that in itself was the greatest reward for me," Yuan Zhan said to Ye Futian. He saw the Snow Ape Emperor, and he inherited the Nine Heavenly Attacks that originated from the emperor.


    "Let''s head back." Ye Futian stood up and started walking, while Yuan Zhan followed behind him.


    "Yuan Zhan, what was it like outside when you came to Jinxiao City?" Ye Futian asked Yuan Zhan.


    "Xiao Junyi killed Gu Feiyang, took his city, and opened up the great ruins within. I heard that Yan Jiu had also gathered enough holy badges to do the same," Yuan Zhan said.


    "Yan Jiu, where is he?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Flying Sword City," Yuan Zhan answered.


    "As I expected," Ye Futian murmured to himself. The Flaming Prison City was a fire one.


    The Jinxiao City, a metal one. The great ruins of Flying Sword City must have been one to impart a swordsmanship lineage. All nine cities on the Holy Road bore deep meanings within them.


    "Yuan Zhan, would you mind heading to Flying Sword City with me?" Ye Futian asked Yuan Zhan. The ape nodded without inquiring further. It was a no-brainer for him, even if it meant waging a war with Flying Sword City.


    When everyone saw a demon and a man walked side by side in the ruins, they were flabbergasted. Just what is going on here?


    Mu Zhiqiu looked rather amused as well. So, something did happen then?


    Ye Futian cast his gaze at the mighty ones at the ruins and said, "I need swordsmen to come with me on my next trip, anyone?" As soon as he finished, one figure after another stepped forward to answer his call, with Xie Wuji from Heavenly City and Zui Qianchou taking the lead. Mighty ones in the hundreds stepped out of the ruins; all of them swordsmen. Everyone came forward without asking any questions, a testament to the powerful charisma possessed by Ye Futian.


    "Elder brother, do you have any time to spare?" Ye Futian grinned at Yi Xiaoshi.


    The plump fellow glared at him, knowing that he was up to no good.


    "Wuchen, come with me." Ye Futian looked at Ye Wuchen, and then called to everyone, "Let''s go." He turned around and took to the sky as soon as he finished, with Ye Wuchen right behind him.


    "I''ll go have a look too." Mu Zhiqiu followed suit.


    Yuan Zhan stomped hard on the ground and rumbles were heard as the ground shook. Yuan Zhan ran following Ye Futian. Yi Xiaoshi flashed and rested on Yuan Zhan''s shoulder. "Hey, brother Yuan. Do you mind letting me sit here? Fat people get tired easy."


    Yuan Zhan glared at the fat person sitting on his shoulder with razor-sharp eyes and ignored him altogether. The ape ran, and the rumbling continued.


    "That fatso..." Many people looked at Yi Xiaoshi and felt speechless. So Yuan Zhan is going to let him stay there? Since when did Yuan Zhan become so friendly with people?


    "Brother Yuan, what did you talk about to our little brother?" Yi Xiaoshi asked out of curiosity.


    Yuan Zhan continued to ignore him.


    "You guys talked about staffs?" Yi Xiaoshi continued to ask, and Yuan Zhan slapped at his shoulder. Yi Xiaoshi leaped out of the way before landing on the same spot. "Alright, I''ll stop asking."


    Dust was kicked up as the group went further and further away. Countless sent them off from the ruins. Students of Starry School stood up and someone asked, "So, is Yuan Zhan now a pet of the Son or something?"


    "Maybe." They felt restless inside. They were at the Holy Road, yet Ye Futian continued going around kicking up trouble.


    "Are they going to take a city?" someone asked. With the entourage consisting of Yi Xiaoshi, Yuan Zhan, and hundreds of swordsmen, it was not hard to guess what they were up to.


    "Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were his best friends, and the three were always seen together. Now, he got his own place, and Yu Sheng got a piece of the ruins too. All there was left was Ye Wuchen, the swordsman, and all he gathered were swordsmen," Gu Yunxi elaborated.


    Everyone was stunned before someone murmured, "Looks like they''re heading to Flying Sword City then." They were envious of Ye Wuchen, who had Ye Futian taking him to take a city personally.


    It was a pity that they did not share such amicable relationship with Ye Futian.


    The headmaster had asked the students back in Starry School who would be willing to guard the Son on his divine path. No one answered the call, as most did not like him back then. Most simply sat on the fence. Now, Ye Futian had no need for them to be around even if they were willing to follow him.


    Many looked at Long Mu, as he was probably the closest among them to Ye Futian. It was such a pity.


    ...


    The Flying Sword City was a palace itself. Many mighty ones gathered while Yan Jiu remained in the air. His body remained upright and his bearing excellent. He looked at everyone and said, "Everyone, with me." With the holy badges being collected in ample numbers, they became able to open the great ruins in Flying Sword City, and he felt rather excited about it.


    Many made their way to the ruins, which was not far where they were.


    Loud noises were heard from afar and the ground shook. Yan Jiu asked, "What is that?"


    They stopped and looked behind them. The rumbling grew closer and closer, and they were able to make out that a group of people was heading their way.


    "Someone intruded Flying Sword City." A voice was heard somewhere. Yan Jiu frowned. Does someone dare to come take my place?


    The group looked more and more fearsome. Intense sword aura was sensed in the sky above, as a group came through the air. A giant golden monster was seen landing from above. With another rumble, the giant figure was seen in the air again, making its way forward.


    "Yuan Zhan." Yan Jiu glared at that giant figure with sharp eyes. Rumbles continued as Yuan Zhan took several more steps, and the ground shook violently in response. A fat person was also seen on Yuan Zhan''s shoulder. Ye Futian was also seen in the air, casting his gaze at Yan Jiu.


    "Ye Futian." Yan Jiu recognized him in an instant. When Ye Futian threw out that ring that day, he played more than just Ning Huang, as Yan Jiu was also one of them who went for that ring.


    "How dare you?" Mighty ones from the Sword Saint Villa spread out, and every one of them looked cold. Ye Futian dares to attack this place, and now is allied with Yuan Zhan as well?


    "Ye Futian, why have you come to my Flying Sword City instead of staying back to train in Jinxiao City?" Yan Jiu''s expression was as sharp as a sword as he cast his razor-like gaze at Ye Futian.


    "Just like how you went to Flaming Prison City instead of staying back to train in Flying Sword City." Ye Futian spoke plainly. "Just hand over the holy badges."


    The mighty ones around were stunned by what they just heard. So Ye Futian is here to rob Yan Jiu by invading Flying Sword City then. This is just too crazy. He dares move against a genius like Yan Jiu.


    "Are you being serious?" Yan Jiu asked as he clad himself with a will of sharpness. A formless sword intent seemed to have been conjured, and his body seemed to have become like a sword itself, which threatened to lash out at any moment, emanating a very dangerous aura.


    Ye Futian chose to intrude at the very moment he was about to open the ruins after all.


    "What do you think?" Ye Futian looked at Yan Jiu before casting his gaze down at the others below. He said, "Anyone who doesn''t have anything to do with this, you best leave immediately. When the fighting starts, there will be no mercy."


    The mighty ones around were all Yan Jiu''s followers, and they looked particularly severe at the moment. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian killed Ning Huang in Jinxiao City, and it was said that Yi Xiaoshi was too someone capable of fighting toe-to-toe with Mo Jun. Worse still, they had Yuan Zhan added to their ranks. The group was as fearsome as possible at the moment.


    Yan Jiu stayed in the sky, clad in sword aura, and addressed Yuan Zhan, "Yuan Zhan, are you sure you want in on this?"


    Yuan Zhan gazed at Yan Jiu severely and said, "He told you to hand over the holy badge, so just hand it over already."


    Yan Jiu looked especially embarrassed hearing those words.


    Ye Futian took a step forward and added, "When all mighty one ganged up on me back in Flaming Prison City, the scene was simply magnificent. You all dared not rob each other and moved against only me instead. So today will be payback time. Yan Jiu, I''ll have you hand over the holy badges whether you like it or not."

 536 Opening the Third Ruins

    Light of swords shot from Yan Jiu''s eyes, which were painful to anyone witnessing it. He was the heir to the Sword Saint Villa, and his ancestor had been the legendary sword saint. Yet now, there was someone threatening him to hand things over, whether he liked it or not.


    Voom, voom... Sword will burst forth and nine sword-like beams manifested behind Yan Jiu like nine swords being unsheathed. All nine swords also bore different wills in them, as if vastly different powers resided within all nine swords.


    Nine beams of light shot upwards behind Yan Jiu, and nine gleaming silhouettes of a sword appeared high in the air. Ye Futian lifted his head and was able to sense the power within his opponent''s swords. All top notch figures possessed extraordinary talents and abilities. Yan Jiu was an heir to the Sword Saint Villa and his ancestor had been a sword saint as well. It was simply a given that he was no weakling himself.


    Everyone around stared at the scene flabbergasted. The famed Nine Swords of the Celestials, incredibly powerful techniques which were rumored to be Yan Jiu''s namesake. It was as if the Sword Saint Villa had hoped Yan Jiu would be able to master the Nine Swords of the Celestials techniques, and usher yet another glorious era of the sword saint.


    "Gather round," Yan Jiu uttered coldly. The vast number of mighty ones around him struggled in their minds. Should I fight, or should I leave?


    "Anyone who stays and fight, I will take it as a move against me. You are all to show them no mercy," Ye Futian added coldly.


    "Indeed." Hundreds of mighty ones behind him drew their swords as soon as he was done talking. Sword wills seemed to have encased the entire area in an instant, truly a powerful scene like no other. The movements of everyone on Ye Futian''s side showed unparalleled unity, and it also showed that Ye Futian had been far more charismatic with his followers than Yan Jiu had been with his.


    Yan Jiu''s expressions were razor-sharp and his sword aura gleamed. One of the beams of swords boomed in brilliance, and the sword took flight menacingly. A terrifying sword will seemed to flow between heaven and earth into that very sword.


    A fearsome cyclone conjured by the sword whipped up. A golden giant sword was seen in the air. Its patterns gleamed brilliantly as if to overpower the space which it occupied.


    "Kill him." Yan Jiu pointed at Ye Futian, and it seemed that thousands of sword wills flowed within an instant, gushing at Ye Futian. Everyone present was able to feel the crazed torrent of sword aura conjured, and the brilliantly gleaming golden giant sword came to bear. The heavens howled in metallic noises as if signifying the sword that was to kill everything in its path.


    Boom. The earth shook violently as Yuan Zhan leaped into the air. Its golden body shone just as brilliantly as the crazed sword. He threw out his hand and conjured giant golden palm before him in an instant. Terrifying light flowed around the palm like it would suppress everything in its path.


    All apes learned the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques, but that was not to say that the apes knew nothing else but said staff techniques. The great golden apes were known for their magnificent offensive and defensive capacities too. However, when the giant golden sword lashed out, it tore the giant palm right in the middle, which caused it to crumble bit by bit. But then again, the giant sword seemed to have lost its powers right after. It was quickly shattered as Yuan Zhan slapped it with his own hand.


    "Stainless." Overwhelming sword aura whipped past in the air. Yan Jiu did not show any intention of backing down by the attack met. Yet another sword shot out from the nine. Shadows of swords seemed to have zipped through the air like bolts of lightning and went for Ye Futian and everyone else instead of just Yuan Zhan alone.


    The sword was called ''Stainless'', meaning that it moved so fast that it left no stain of any kind behind.


    They were many who were shaken to their core below. Yan Jiu was a descendant of the sword saint. Every sword within his Nine Swords of the Celestials seemed to be infused with notably different will and powers, yet all were just as fearsome.


    Yuan Zhan''s massive body shook and a layer of golden sheen burst forth to cover his body. Stainless stabbed right into the layer, yet was unable to penetrate its defenses. Ye Futian stood far away with the Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hand. His body was soon covered with fearsome Starry Brilliance, turning into an Immortal Celestial Body himself, and let himself be assailed by the sword aura.


    Boom. Yuan Zhan took a step forward, shattering all the sword aura around him. His huge body seemed to have turned into a streak of golden lightning, making its way to Yan Jiu maniacally.


    Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders at the scene. With Yuan Zhan''s help in the battle, the outcome was obvious.


    Yi Xiaoshi had also become a top class combatant by now, and it went without saying that Ye Futian, who now possessed the Polearm of Divine Destruction, was such a being as well.


    Voom, voom... Several beams of light shot past and Ye Futian sensed one congealed sword aura to another zipped in the air. It seemed that the other mighty ones from the Sword Saint Villa had come for his head.


    The Sword Saint Villa revered Yan Jiu. However, other than Yan Jiu himself, all the others were uncommon breeds of fighters themselves possessing extraordinary talents. The sword attacks crossed with each other, forming countless X-shaped attacks cutting through the air as if they were a net made of blades. It seemed as if no matter where Ye Futian went, he was destined to be torn apart by the net of swords.


    Ye Futian extended his hand and meteors materialized before him, blocking the flashes of the swords coming for him. The celestial rocks were shattered, and the gleaming, crossing sword auras kept in their immense speed as they came for Ye Futian.


    "A sword matrix then?" Ye Futian took a step forward and lifted his Polearm of Divine Destruction. A terrifying aura congealed around him, making the heavens and the earth howl. The polearm took the form of a hundred meter-long staff and was brought down hard at his front. The net of swords split down the middle in an instant. They gathered their sword aura again and whooshes from the swords were heard when they saw the extremely long staff swept at them in an overpowering manner as if it was out to block out the sky.


    They retreated quickly intending to evade, yet felt tremendous pressures weighed down on them, making it almost impossible to move, and it felt like they were soon to be crushed.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Every figure that stood in the way of the giant staff was swept away violently, spewing blood as the hits landed. The others on the other side looked troubled as they swung their swords about. However, what followed were slithering sounds instead. Imperial Vines blocked out the sky as they slithered to entangle the would-be assailants'' bodies. They attempted to escape, yet the leaves of the vines quickly extended to seal the entire space they were in, before entangling them tight. The assailants activated immensely sharp sword wills, yet none of the vines were able to be cut.


    "Just stay put already," Yi Xiaoshi said lazily. The vines were thrown below shortly after. One silhouette after another dropped hard on the floor, and blood was seen soon enough.


    The battle had only gone on for a short time, yet many swordsmen from the Sword Saint Villa had already been removed from the game.


    The followers of Yan Jiu below dared not try anything funny anymore. With Yuan Zhan being more than enough to take on Yan Jiu, Ye Futian and Yi Xiaoshi reigned supreme as they stood in the air. Anyone who dared tried anything was seen to be like someone having a death wish instead. Furthermore, all of the hundreds of swordsmen behind Ye Futian all drew their swords. As long as they moved, those hundreds would have moved as well. It would be the end of them as soon as they did so.


    Yan Jiu, who was tangling with Yuan Zhan, saw that the fight was not in his favor, and wanted to leave riding on his sword. However, Yuan Zhan would not have let him off easily. One strike with the staff had the air before it trembled, and Yan Jiu had no choice but to turn around and resist the attack. All nine swords were launched, and the shadow of the staff was shattered.


    At the same time, Ye Futian''s Lightning Steps completely blocked off Yan Jiu''s escape as well, and Yi Xiaoshi had also jumped to stand guard in another corner. The three mighty ones blocked Yan Jiu''s way in the air off completely.


    Zoom. Yan Jiu took for higher altitudes at breakneck speeds, which was an apparent sign that he refused to be caged.


    Yuan Zhan roared and took a step forward. His golden staff whipped in the air. The shadows conjured blocked the sky, as well as Yan Jiu''s way high above.


    A streak of curved trajectory was seen by Yan Jiu''s body, which surprisingly went for Ye Futian. The sword flash was apparently the real deal, and what happened earlier was simply a feint. It was a setup.


    Yan Jiu''s Life Spirit shone brilliantly, combining with the nine swords, taking the form of nine different sword wills that were dazzling to behold. The attack went straight for Ye Futian, and countless currents of sword aura in the air, as nine different wills of the sword, flew at Ye Futian as well. The combined attack seemed to one determined to make its own path, killing anyone who dared stand in its way.


    Ye Futian''s expressions became a severe one. All nine swords were divine weapons and they emanated stunning lights as they came for him. The heir of the Sword Saint Villa had truly been enraged.


    Starry Storms whipped around Ye Futian as he told hold of the Polearm of Divine Destruction. His body danced about like flowing auroras, and one strike with the staff was lashed out in the air. The strike, which shook the air before it, however, was not meant to attack anything; it was charging up instead.


    Ye Futian''s movements were fast, yet they looked slow, emanating a unique rhythm. The ones around him were only about to see that he danced about while delivering a flurry of strikes with the staff. The resulting air of ferocity piled, yet the attack had yet to be seen.


    Boom. Ye Futian struck with four strikes with the staff in a very short span of time. A terrifying force gathered and the fifth strike was seen lashing out aggressively like a true dragon howling and everything shook in response. The light of the nine swords arrived at the same time, conjuring proud flashes that aimed to kill everything, and clashed hard with the fearsome waves conjured by the Polearm of Divine Destruction. That clash effectively conjured two harrowing currents.


    Yan Jiu''s Nine Swords of the Celestials burst with remarkable power. However, the attack was blocked by the strike with the staff.


    Attacks from Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi reached their intended target at the same time. Yan Jiu shouted in anger and all nine swords returned behind his back and then went for higher altitudes. His ice-cold eyes glared at Ye Futian, which congealed into terrifying will of the sword, cold to the point of freezing.


    A gust of crazed turbulence burst forth. Yan Jiu''s rushed attacks were incapable of resisting attacks from both Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi. He was stunned so badly that he ended up throwing up blood. Yi Xiaoshi''s golden vines whipped him about like long whips, sending him flying.


    Ye Futian took a step forward, looking at Yan Jiu, who was being swiped in his direction, with cold eyes. He lashed out with his staff without mercy.


    Boom... A loud boom followed, as the strike immediately broke the bones on Yan Jiu''s body, and the poor man continued to throw up blood. His body remained levitated as his body, which was supported by sword aura, did not fall. His eyes remained sharp like a sword''s despite seeing Ye Futian coming to him.


    "Is it anger or humiliation you are feeling?" Ye Futian spared a glance at Yan Jiu without any hint of sympathy. The top-notch forces had not been kind to Ye Futian; they looked down on him from above, seeing him as nothing but prey. At that moment, however, he became the hunter, while Yan Jiu, the prey.


    "The holy badges," Ye Futian said coldly.


    Yan Jiu held out his storage ring and threw it at Ye Futian. Ye Futian intruded the ring with his spiritual energy and saw more than ten thousand holy badges lying within. He turned to look at Yan Jiu, who simply eyed him coldly without saying anything.


    He knew what was going on inside Yan Jiu''s head. It was only natural for him to feel dissatisfied and frustrated. It was as Ye Futian had put it earlier: "you will hand it over whether you like it or not." There was no other choice, and Yan Jiu knew what kind of predicament he was in at the moment.


    Nobody below was able to say anything. Yan Jiu''s holy badges had been taken.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said and ignored Yan Jiu. He did not bear Yan Jiu much of a grudge, and naturally saw no reason to kill him. If he had killed Yan Jiu, the Sword Saint Villa would have put him on their hit list. However, if Ye Futian had simply taken away the holy badges, it would have been only something between him and Yan Jiu, and the Sword Saint Villa would not possibly interfere with the affairs of the younger generation.


    The others turned and left. Many in the Flying Sword City were stunned as their eyes were locked at the silhouettes that went far away. They took a look at Yan Jiu and saw those injured from Sword Saint Villa gathered around him, and they all looked very dejected. They had probably never suffered humiliation to such an extent in their entire lives.


    "We will have our revenge when we got out of the Holy Road." Yan Jiu turned around and left riding his sword. The Holy Road was not the main point of the trip. When the mighty ones from all nine Holy Roads gathered before the Holy Zhi Palace when they got out of the Holy Road, he would have Ye Futian paid the most severe price for what he had been put through.


    An hour later. Countless Sword wills flowed crazily somewhere else from the Flying Sword City, gathering in one direction.


    An immensely huge sword silhouette was seen there. The silhouette was a transparent one, an illusionary figure made out of swords. Countless streams of sword aura flowed about the illusionary silhouette, bringing about a fearsome will.


    A single-arm figure stood quietly in the middle of the illusionary figure, and the countless sword wills flowed in his direction. The figure was none other than Ye Wuchen.


    All the other swordsmen who followed Ye Futian were able to sense the flow of sword will within the ruins, and they were envious of Ye Wuchen. They were able to tell that it was the purest of swordsmanship lineages and an utmost treasure to any who trained with the sword. It was only a matter of time that Ye Wuchen metamorphosed into something else.


    Ye Futian went taking the ruins from Yan Jiu, an heir of the Sword Saint Villa, just for him. That alone spoke volume of their friendship.


    Ye Futian stood before the ruins and he did not go up to feel it all. He was not a swordsman, and so he simply stood to see the ones who do there. He hoped that Wuchen would have been able to make a breakthrough, and it seemed that the day where the Holy Road was to be opened was closed.

 537 End of the Holy Road

    News of Ye Futian snatching the holy badge of Yan Jiu from Sword Saint Villa naturally caused some commotion. Yuan Zhan of the Golden Great Ape clan had actually partnered with Ye Futian. This made the other top forces feel danger and start discussing temporary alliances. If Ye Futian and Yuan Zhan dared to invade them together, they would unite and fight back.


    Yan Jiu had also gone there to get a share. Flying Sword City was taken now, so he could only put his hopes on the other cities. However, the relic in Flying Sword City was the only swordsman relic on the Holy Road. He was furious at this.


    However, Ye Futian didn''t continue stealing. Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi and the others needed to cultivate. Yuan Zhan was a Golden Great Ape, so he naturally had gold elemental power. Yi Xiaoshi was the same. They''d both returned to the relic in Jinxiao City to cultivate. Ye Futian prepared to cultivate quietly before opening the Holy Road. He hoped to make improvements in cultivation quickly.


    Days passed. In the blink of an eye, they''d been on the Holy Road for three months.


    That day, Ye Wuchen was inside a relic in the Flying Sword City. Thousands upon thousands of swords spun around him. Endless Sword Will whistled. Ye Wuchen''s eyes were shut tightly as domineering power emanated from him.


    Crackle, crackle�� Even more terrifying Sword Will flowed over, wrapping around Ye Wuchen and gathering before him. His entire body was silvery-white like a sword. He''d transformed into a true sword body. At this moment, sword light flashed above him. Thousands of Sword Will buried into him, turning his body into a sword. He bore horrible power right now.


    He trembled. The sword Qi around him transformed into a frightening storm that swept towards him crazily.


    Countless eyes in the relic turned towards Ye Wuchen. Hearts trembling violently, they wondered what he was doing.


    "He''s entering the next level," someone said. Thousands of Sword Will entered him and his body turned translucent like a sword. He was using the relic''s Sword Will to smelt his body into a sword and break into the next plane. Doing this was dangerous because the Sword Will here was so frightening. Not only did he have to comprehend it, he also had to swallow the Sword Will. This was crazy. He could die from the Sword Will''s backlash.


    "He''ll break into the next plane sooner or later. Why do this?" someone lamented. Some people were truly crazy for cultivation. Ye Wuchen was evidently one of those people.


    Sword Qi completely submerged Ye Wuchen, almost tearing him to pieces. Cracks appeared in the sword body that he hadn''t completely formed yet. He could break apart at any time and turn to dust.


    Right now, Ye Wuchen was completely concentrated. His mind was clear and he allowed the Sword Will to enter him without moving. Finally, terrifying sword light burst from him. All Sword Will fell silent in an instant. Then they started flowing orderly. Ye Wuchen opened his eyes. The Sword Will entered his body and gradually dissipated. However, his entire temperament seemed to change. He was like a sword standing there.


    "Noble." Everyone''s eyes flashed. Ye Wuchen had entered the Noble Plane.


    Ye Wuchen had been in the ninth tier of the Arcana Plane. After being bathed with the relic''s purest Sword Will, he naturally improved greatly. He wasn''t like Ye Futian either. He only cultivated swordsmanship, so he fit the relic perfectly. This suited him better than the relics that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng found. Thus, he broke through the boundary of plane and entered the Noble Plane.


    "Is everyone done cultivating?" Ye Wuchen asked.


    "The Holy Road will open soon. Let''s stop here. Shall we regroup with Master Ye in Jinxiao City?" someone asked.


    "Okay." Ye Wuchen nodded. He stepped forward and the light on him dimmed gradually. The relic''s light darkened as well before finally disappearing.


    "Let''s go," Ye Wuchen said. The group flashed and headed towards Jinxiao City.


    The journey down the Holy Road had ended. Many of them had entered the next level. Even those who didn''t had comprehended a lot and were close to the next level. Adding the Sage Will to this, they''d all received a lot. They also had holy badges and could go visit the Holy Zhi Palace. Even if they couldn''t join it, it was still a rare chance.


    In the Jinxiao City''s relic, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and the others had stopped cultivating too. Seeing Ye Wuchen return, Ye Futian smiled. "Wuchen, you broke into the next plane?" he asked.


    He noticed that Ye Wuchen''s temperament was different.


    "Yes." Ye Wuchen nodded.


    "Not bad. Little Eagle has entered the Noble Plane too. Seventh Senior Brother is now a Grade-7 Noble, Zhiqiu is Grade-8, and Yu Sheng and I are at the pinnacle of the Arcana Plane. I think that I can become a Noble at any time," Ye Futian said, smiling. This journey was quite satisfying. Everyone had great achievements. Not only was he close to entering the Noble Plane, he''d also comprehended many types of Noble Will. Once he became a Noble, he would be much stronger than the regular Nobles.


    "Master Ye, thank you for your care on the Holy Road." Many people thanked Ye Futian. He didn''t know who they were, but some of them had followed him from the start. No one had known how powerful Ye Futian was at that time. They only knew that he was a relic killer.


    Later, he began to make a name for himself on the Holy Road. He''d even stolen from Yan Jiu. Ning Huang had died in his and Yu Sheng''s hands too.


    Ye Futian was undeniably the most brilliant man on the Dawn Road. Of course, Xiao Junyi was also a frightening figure. However, he was too cold-blooded and killed everyone. Naturally, he wasn''t popular.


    "We helped each other. I didn''t take care of anyone," Ye Futian said, chuckling. "The Holy Road will be open soon. I hope everyone will have good luck."


    "Yes. We''ll reach the Holy Zhi Palace soon. I''m a bit excited. I wonder what this holy land will be like," someone mumbled.


    "It''s rumored that the Holy Zhi Palace is a palace in the sky. It''s grand and majestic, with many floating islands around it. It''s the most miraculous place in the Barren State."


    "I heard that before too. Now, I can finally see it with my own eyes." Cultivators from all over were excited to see the cultivation paradise of the Barren State.


    If they could become a disciple and cultivate in the Holy Zhi Palace, then��


    They''d heard that the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples were mostly in the Sage Plane. However, they didn''t accept many disciples. Many people completed the nine Holy Roads, but only one in a thousand were picked to cultivate in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian listened to their murmurs while thinking about something else.


    He was curious about the Holy Zhi Palace, but he didn''t care that much. He cared more that he could see Jieyu and Second Senior Sister soon after exiting the Holy Road. It had only been around two years, but it felt like a century.


    Right then, everyone felt the ground shake. Then a sound rolled over. "Take your holy badge to the end of the Holy Road."


    "The Holy Road is open." Everyone''s hearts trembled.


    Ye Futian looked in the distance and said, "Everyone, let''s go."


    "Let''s go."


    Many people were excited. They flew in the air, going down the Dawn Road.


    Stepping out of the city and passing by the wilderness, they discovered that there was fighting everywhere. It was very bloody.


    Ye Futian glanced down. Beside him, Mu Zhiqiu said, "Once the Holy Road is open, only those with holy badges can walk to the other end. If not, you can only backtrack. Thus, the fighting now is always the bloodiest."


    Ye Futian understood. It was not only the wilderness. Fights erupted everywhere on the Dawn Road. Only his vast group was peaceful. It was the first time something like this happened on the Holy Road. Before, there''d never been someone like Ye Futian who would open relics with a group. Even after opening the relics, Ye Futian''s group could still snatch their holy badges. If he wanted to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, the holy badges were his capital.


    Before, Ning Huang had just wanted to get as many holy badges as possible.


    Walking forward, the group finally arrived at the end of the Dawn Road. There was a curtain of light. A group of strong cultivators guarded there. Seeing Ye Futian''s group, they were all shocked. How could there be so many people?


    This was a rare sight.


    Many people from the other top forces were there too. On their air warship, Bing Yi and Chu Shang stared deeply at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng had left a deep impression on them outside Jinxiao City. He was hard to forget.


    Nan Hao, Nan Feng and the others of the Nantian House looked at Ye Futian with strange expressions.


    Yan Jiu''s eyes were the coldest. He''d received the least on the Holy Road. Though he''d stolen many more holy badges, he had no luck with the relics. The most infuriating thing was that he''d been robbed just as he''d collected 10,000 holy badges and was about to open the relic.


    At that time, a solemn and handsome figure walked over, attracting many eyes. Xiao Junyi was here.


    He stood quietly to the side. He looked harmless. It was hard to imagine how he truly was.


    Other than these top figures, many prides from the Dawn Road also gathered over.


    Of course, Ye Futian''s group was the largest. The others couldn''t rival them even when together. After all, the three months had been survival of the fittest. The weaker ones were eliminated in rounds. Only Ye Futian''s group was the most harmonious.


    "Where''s Ning Huang? I didn''t see him," an elder from the Holy Zhi Palace asked. The Holy Road was closed with no authority. Even those in the Holy Zhi Palace didn''t know what happened inside.


    Ning Huang was the descendant of Elder Ning. He thought highly of Ning Huang. They''d met before and knew Ning Huang was talented. Thus, he asked. To them, Ning Huang should be the most brilliant of all on the Dawn Road.


    As soon as he spoke, everyone''s eyes turned strange. Many subconsciously looked to Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. This confused the strong cultivator of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Had something happened to Ning Huang?


    He knew his talent. This shouldn''t happen on the Dawn Road.


    "Senior, Ning Huang was killed," someone said.


    The expression of the strong cultivator hardened. He was even more confused. Ning Huang was killed on the Dawn Road?


    "Who?" he asked. Instantly, countless eyes focused in one direction.


    "Me."


    "Me."


    Two voices rang out at once: Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian glanced at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng had dealt the fatal blow, but Ye Futian had been the one battling Ning Huang earlier. He knew that Yu Sheng wanted to take responsibility for this outside Jinxiao City.


    "Many people saw that I killed him," Yu Sheng said indifferently.


    The strong cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace were shocked. The Holy Road had a high death rate. This was their rule too. Once in the Holy Road, anything could happen. It was the same for Ning Huang. Naturally, they couldn''t blame someone just because Ning Huang had died. This would make the Holy Zhi Palace seem unfair.


    However, it would be hard to tell Elder Ning that Ning Huang was killed. They knew that Elder Ning thought highly of Ning Huang and wanted him to take his place. It was unimagined how he''d react to this news.


    "Everyone''s here. Let''s go." The man looked away without saying anything!

 538 Nothing Good

    The Holy Road''s exit was similar to the connection between the Ancient Barren World and the Eastern Barren Territory. When Ye Futian walked out of the Dawn Road, they were on a mountain. Many people looked over. They seemed to know that they were coming and waited there. They seemed to be filled with curiosity.


    These people all had different cultivations. A group of strong cultivators guarded on the side and said, "The Holy Road will be open for three days. During these three days, you cannot leave this island city. Remember, no fighting is allowed. If you have disagreements, find the island leader to resolve it. Those who break the rules will be killed. Three days later, you will know what to do."


    "Yes." Everyone nodded. These three days were probably for buffering. If those on the Holy Road had a chance to get a holy badge, they would come out in three days. However, Ye Futian guessed that three days weren''t needed. If one couldn''t get the holy badge on the first day, they probably would never get it. Those that got it would come straight out.


    Furthermore, this seemed to be an island city. Fighting wasn''t allowed and those who broke the rules would be killed. The rules were extremely strict.


    Now, they were in the world of the Holy Zhi Palace. Naturally, they had to follow the Holy Zhi Palace''s rules.


    "You can go now," the strong cultivator said.


    Ye Futian turned towards the mass walking behind him. He put his hands together. "We are now in the Holy Zhi Palace''s world and it''s safe. We should bid farewell now."


    "Master Ye, take care." Many people bowed to Ye Futian gratefully. They were safe now. Fighting wasn''t allowed in the island city.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and then his body flickered away. People were watching from afar, but they didn''t know the people walking out. The people of the island city were subsidiaries of the Holy Zhi Palace. They were under the Holy Zhi Palace''s authority.


    "Mu Zhiqiu, where are we?" Ye Futian''s body shone. He discovered this was a true city. There were restaurants and inns. It was flourishing.


    Other than Mu Zhiqiu''s group, there were also people from the Starry School and Mount Jiuxian beside him.


    "Don''t you know about the Thousand Holy Islands?" Beside him, an air warship appeared. Bing Yi, Chu Shang and those from the Mortal World were on the airship. The speaker was Bing Yi. Her beautiful features had a cold aura. She gazed at Ye Futian with curiosity in her pretty eyes.


    She really wanted to know how Ning Huang had died.


    Had Yu Sheng really killed him in his demonic state? And why did Yuan Zhan join them?


    Yuan Zhan was still there in Ye Futian''s group. They seemed to be traveling together. He wouldn''t do this if it was just simple cooperation on the Dawn Road, right?


    "I''m ignorant. How can I be compared to the goddess of the Mortal World?" Ye Futian smiled faintly at Bing Yi.


    Bing Yi furrowed her brows. Ye Futian seemed not to take her seriously. His eyes wandered across her body as if judging her. This gaze made her upset. It was practically blasphemy.


    The top figures of the Barren State wouldn''t have such impolite gazes and regular people wouldn''t even dare to look at her. Ye Futian was an anomaly.


    Bing Yi huffed coldly. She looked away and her clothing fluttered. "If you don''t know, then you can look in the sky," she said coolly. "You''ll see what kind of place it is."


    With that, the air warship moved past them, hurrying high into the sky. Ye Futian glanced at Mu Zhiqiu and Yuan Zhan. They nodded. "It''s my first time here too," Yuan Zhan said. "Let''s take a look."


    "Okay," Ye Futian answered. The group roared upward, getting higher and higher.


    As their bodies rose up, the city and buildings below them grew smaller in their vision, becoming a bunch of speckles. As they continued rising, Ye Futian''s heart quivered. When he was high enough, the scene before him shocked him slightly.


    The city below was actually built atop a mountain. It was thickly dotted. The mountain was tall and rose into the clouds, making the city seem to be floating in the sky.


    What truly impressed Ye Futian was that, when standing in the sky, he didn''t only see the floating city below. He saw the boundless sea and countless mountains of varying heights standing in the sea. Every mountain had a city atop it. Looking over, they were like thousands of islands. The scene was impressive and magnificent.


    This was a huge sea area. All the mountains rose up from the sea. However, the seawater was strange too. Instead of angry waves, it was calm. In fact, the blue sea reflected the blue sky, white clouds, and the various mountains.


    "The Thousand Holy Islands." Ye Futian''s heart trembled. The air warship wasn''t too far away.


    Bing Yi glanced at Ye Futian and said coolly, "This is the Holy River. The Thousand Holy Islands on the river all belong to the Holy Zhi Palace. All the island leaders come from the Holy Zhi Palace. At first, they were the family of the Holy Zhi Palace disciples. As the generations passed, more and more family members lived here, forming the Thousand Holy Islands of the present day. All disciples who complete their cultivation and wish to remain here will receive an island and become the leader. That island would belong to him."


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. After countless years, the Holy Zhi Palace was no longer just a simple palace. Everything on this Holy River belonged to the Holy Zhi Palace. There were innumerable strong cultivators.


    He scanned the Thousand Holy Islands. His gaze landed on the floating mountain range in the center. It was extremely magnificent and a majestic palace stood atop the peak.


    "That''s where we''re going three days later��the Holy Zhi Palace. Are you ready?" Bing Yi asked. Then she steered her air warship away. During these three days, they had to prepare for what was next. Now, all the prides of the nine Holy Roads had come out and were in different islands.


    Ye Futian stood in the sky for a long while before descending. "Let''s go," he said.


    Everyone nodded and entered the island city. After the Holy Road opened and the many prides arrived, the island became lively. All the restaurants and inns were busy. People would often ask about what had happened on the Holy Road. They would even communicate with other island cities to learn about other roads.


    Two days later, someone was discussing the Holy Road in the island''s biggest restaurant.


    "Apparently, Ning Huang, the descendant of Elder Ning, was killed by Yu Sheng, a demonic figure. He''s still not a Noble, but he can enter the demonic state and become a horrible murderous god. He beheaded Ning Huang. He''s like the god of death."


    "On the Dawn Road, it was rumored that Xiao Junyi''s the inheritor of the Dark Saint. He''s a horribly frightening existence and may be the strongest of the Dawn Road."


    "What about Yan Jiu from the Sword Saint Villa?"


    "Yan Jiu was hurt by Ye Futian and Yuan Zhan working together. Even his holy badges were stolen. He probably will never forget this humiliation."


    "Who are Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and his group? They came out of nowhere and are so powerful. The enrollment will be very interesting this time. The Dawn Road alone has so many talents."


    "Indeed. This is only the Dawn Road. The strongest three Holy Roads of the nine are usually the Barren Road in the center, the Nether Road of the north, and the Heaven Road of the west. I''m sure shocking figures have appeared from these roads too."


    "The Barren Road gathers the prides from the central region. It''s always the Holy Road with the most monstrously talented figures. Their average skill level is the highest too. There''s nothing more to be said," someone said, chuckling. Eight of the Holy Roads crossed through the Zhongzhou City Region to the central region. The ninth road was right inside Zhongzhou City. It was where the strong cultivators in Zhongzhou City gathered.


    Zhongzhou City was the biggest main city of Barren State. One could imagine how bustling it was.


    The Zhuge Family wasn''t within Zhongzhou City. Instead, they were outside in what was called the Zhongzhou lands. The Mortal World, Nantian House, Sword Saint Villa, and many other forces were in this area. Going east, it was the eastern region of the Barren State where the Zhaixing House and Divine Sky City were.


    "I heard that a young lord came from White Cloud City. He''s extremely talented and young. He''s only around 20 years old, but he''s already in the Noble Plane and has frightening combat ability. He''s comparable to how the young city lord of White Cloud City had been."


    "Didn''t someone crazy from the Zhuge Family come too? If you add that woman, then there are two, but the woman''s plane is slightly lower."


    "Some people came from the Demon God Clan too. Tomorrow, we''ll be able to see all the monsters of the nine Holy Roads. Just wait and see."


    Everyone discussed animatedly. At that time, someone stood up and left the restaurant. Many people followed him.


    Ye Futian arrived at the edge of the island city. There was an abyss before him. He gazed at the city in the distance. He wondered which island Jieyu was in. They would meet tomorrow.


    At that time, Hua Jieyu was cultivating in an inn on another island. Footsteps sounded. Hua Jieyu opened her pretty eyes. She was too beautiful to be from this world.


    "Senior Sister." Hua Jieyu smiled.


    "Cultivating again?" Zhuge Mingyue grinned. This island was part of the Holy Zhi Palace and outsiders shouldn''t be able to step foot inside. Zhuge Mingyu wasn''t really an outsider though. Her father and brother had all cultivated here before, so she was an exception.


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded. "Senior Sister, will he come?"


    "Who knows?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled. "Oh, that annoying guy brought a handsome youth here. Apparently, he''s some powerful figure from White Cloud City here for a visit. Would you like to see him?"


    Hua Jieyu naturally knew that the "annoying guy" was the young city lord of White Cloud City.


    "Senior Sister, you know me." Hua Jieyu smiled gently.


    "Yes, so I rejected him for you." Zhuge Mingyue chuckled at Hua Jieyu. "Don''t know where that kid got his luck so that you only think about him. Jieyu, what''s so good about him?"


    "Him?" Hua Jieyu thought of that bad boy and smiled brilliantly. "Nothing''s good!"


    "But you still like him?" Zhuge Mingyue giggled.


    "I just do." Hua Jieyu''s smile was very bright. Looking at that beautiful girl, Zhuge Mingyue shook her head. This girl was in too deep. There was no hope for her!

 539 No Change at All

    The three days ended in the blink of an eye.


    The floating mountain range in the center of the Thousand Holy Islands was the most majestic. It towered over the sea and rose up into the sky. Pavilions and towers were everywhere outside the mountain. It was like an otherworldly palace or a whole city. There were countless relics and cultivation paradises. This was the Holy Zhi Palace, passed down the ages. It was a true holy land.


    The Holy River had thousands of mountains. These all belonged to the Holy Zhi Palace. However, people usually called this one mountain by the Holy Zhi Palace because only the core disciples could cultivate on that island. Regular disciples couldn''t enter without permission. They could only cultivate with an elder on one of the other islands. Other than that, they would occasionally have the chance to listen to a palace elder''s lectures on the Holy Island or cultivate in a relic.


    Thus, those who could cultivate on the Holy Island were all monstrously talented. They were all the best of the best of the Barren State.


    In the east of this majestic heavenly palace of the Holy Zhi Palace, there was a shorter island neighboring it. There was a vast empty space on the borders. At the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace, one could see stairs when raising one''s head. The stairs led up to the Holy Zhi Palace like the steps to heaven.


    This was truly at the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    At the moment, there was a mass of people gathered here, stretching as far as one could see. They were the disciples cultivating on the Thousand Holy Islands and their family. Other than that, many important figures from the Barren State had come too from the various top forces. They knew this was the end of the Holy Road. Those who''d exited the nine Holy Roads had gathered here. Today was the day. Many elders who had high hopes for their juniors were here to watch.


    Of course, there were also some top forces who were close to the Holy Zhi Palace and had come to give gifts.


    This vibrant scene happened once every three years. All talents of the Barren State were gathered here. To the younger generation of the Barren State, this was true magnificence. To the important figures, some of these juniors may become significant in the future or even enter the Barren Sky Ranking.


    At the moment, someone was playing the guqin beautifully. It was mesmerizing. Even many important figures were affected by the artistic conception in the song.


    They looked over to one place. They saw a youth in a purple-blue robe sitting quietly on a smooth stone on the steps leading to the Holy Zhi Palace. He plucked at the strings and created heavenly music. From serenity to a powerful melody, it seemed to depict an epic poem.


    This youth was untainted and had defined features. He was as handsome as a god. He didn''t seem to be from the mortal world.


    Countless people from the vast space below the Holy Zhi Palace looked up at the youth. Many of the younger generation were filled with respect and worship, even if they were prides too. They wished to become someone like him in the future. Many beautiful girls had expressions of admiration too. It wasn''t an exaggeration to say that the youth on the mountain was the most beloved man of the girls of the Barren State.


    Even the strong cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace sitting beside the mountain path looked appreciatively at the youth. The people of the Barren State were clear that this youth would be one of the most brilliant figures in the future. In fact, he already was.


    In the distance, strong cultivators from the other island cities arrived. People instantly looked up at them. They were the ones from the nine Holy Roads who''d gathered here now.


    The people below looked at the incoming strong cultivators with anticipation. Were they finally here?


    "Look there. The prides from the Arid Road are here." Everyone looked over and saw people walking over. One of them was a very young and handsome youth. His eyes were like lightning, shining like stars.


    "That would be Bai Ze." Many eyes fell on this youth. Bai Ze was an extreme talent from the White Cloud City. He joined the Holy Road after entering the Noble Plane. Apparently, he''d opened countless relics on the Arid Road. No one could stop him. Now, his cultivation had reached the pinnacle of Grade-8 Noble Plane. He was probably one of the strongest this time.


    "The Nether Road is here too." Someone looked in another direction and saw figures appearing gradually.


    "Look there." Someone pointed in a direction. A group was walking over. Everyone was attractive, especially two of them.


    "Zhuge Xing, Hua Jieyu," many people murmured. They recognized these two. Zhuge Xing was the pride of the Zhuge Family''s younger generation. Hua Jieyu was Zhuge Mingyue''s sister.


    "As beautiful as the rumors say." Many more gazes fell upon Hua Jieyu. Her appearance seemed to add color to this vast space. She was so beautiful to look at. Seeing her was an enjoyment.


    "We''re here," Zhuge Mingyue said, smiling as she appeared beside Hua Jieyu. There was another innocent beauty beside them. Apparently, she was Beitang Xing''er, Zhuge Mingyue''s junior sister. She was always beside Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded.


    "Delectable," many people praised after seeing Zhuge Mingyue standing with Hua Jieyu.


    "Chi Meng of the Demon God Clan." At that time, someone''s eyes fell somewhere behind Hua Jieyu on a youth. He had a beastly figure and a blood-red line between his brows. It looked extremely demonic and was the mark of the Demon Gold Clan.


    "The Barren Road is here too."


    The people looked towards yet another direction. The mass of strong cultivators had arrived. They came from nine different directions. There were many talented figures amongst the sea of people.


    When the people of large forces saw their juniors, they smiled faintly.


    At that time, Chen Yuan appeared somewhere with an elder beside him. It was the leader of the Zhaixing House with a youth beside him��Mu Zhifan.


    "Chen Yuan, you''re the only one here from the Top Three Schools. Why are you so active? Are you waiting for Ye Futian? He''s talented, but you think he can survive the Holy Road with his cultivation?" the head of the Zhaixing House said mockingly. These two were old rivals. He was still angry about how Chen Yuan had taken Ye Futian into the Zhaixing House to take the Polearm.


    "You don''t have to worry," Chen Yuan said coolly.


    "Zhiqiu is also in the Dawn Road. You better pray that the guy didn''t run into Zhiqiu. Otherwise, the Polearm would probably be back with the Zhaixing House," the man said, laughing. He seemed very confident. When Mu Zhiqiu entered the Holy Road, she was already in the Noble Plane. He was free, so he decided to visit the Holy Zhi Palace. After all, Mu Zhifan was also cultivating here.


    Chen Yuan gazed at the head of the Zhaixing House and gave an ambiguous smile.


    "What are you smiling about?" the head of the Zhaixing House asked after seeing Chen Yuan''s odd expression.


    "You shouldn''t pray that they meet. Your granddaughter is quite pretty. I heard that the Son of my school isn''t only talented in cultivation." Chen Yuan smirked.


    The head of the Zhaixing House''s expression changed and he scoffed. "Don''t speak nonsense. Your little heir isn''t qualified. Zhiqiu will become a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace, like Zhifan."


    "There are many people cultivating on the Thousand Holy Islands. He''s just a disciple on an island. What are you so proud about?" Chen Yuan mocked.


    "How many from your school has entered the Holy Zhi Palace?" the other shot back. Neither let each other go.


    They argued, tit-for-tat, attracting much attention. Those that could come all had extraordinary statuses. Not even Sages could come if they wanted, but these two old guys were arguing.


    At that time, people gradually walked over from the distance. Chen Yuan and the head of the Zhaixing House stopped arguing. They looked at the incoming group.


    The Dawn Road''s people had finally arrived. They attracted a lot of eyes too.


    Just then, a huge figure started walking over. It was a huge golden ape. Seeing its appearance, Chen Yuan and the Zhaixing House head stared hard at it too. They knew that this was the Golden Great Ape clan from Mount Taixing in the center region. They ruled Mount Taixing and were a frightening force. The mountain leader was at the front of the Barren Sky Rank too.


    There was a stone wall in the distance, above the steps to the Holy Zhi Palace. An extraordinary elder stood there. His features were very sharp. He looked into the direction of the Dawn Road. A group of strong cultivators arrived before him. They also looked there with pained expressions.


    "Elder Ning, Ning Huang was killed. They must have used lowly tricks. Otherwise, with Ning Huang''s abilities, how could it be possible? We must take revenge," someone murmured.


    The elder scanned him coldly and said with authority, "This is the Holy Zhi Palace so you better be obedient. Otherwise, no one can protect you."


    "Then I''ll wait for when we leave. But Elder Ning, the one who killed Ning Huang can''t become a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace." These were from the Ning family. They''d been waiting for a long time, filled with anticipation, but only received the news that Ning Huang had died.


    Elder Ning huffed. He scanned the people coldly. The only one he had hope for to take his place had been killed. This upset him greatly.


    "From what I know, the one who killed Ning Huang is from the Eastern Barren Territory and is close to Zhuge Mingyue of the Zhuge Family. Think more clearly," Elder Ning said. He glanced at the Zhuge Family and then at the beautiful figure still playing his guqin.


    Right then, in Zhuge Mingyue''s direction, Hua Jieyu looked over at the Dawn Road cultivators. Zhuge Mingyue smiled at her. She knew what Hua Jieyu was waiting for. Would that guy really be with the Dawn Road?


    Then a group of figures came over in the sky from the Dawn Road''s direction. The instant she saw a handsome figure amongst them, Zhuge Mingyue smiled brightly. "Indeed."


    Hua Jieyu looked with her pretty eyes and saw the one she''d been missing every day. A beautiful smile bloomed on her face. Many people gaped at her as if her smile was the only thing in the world.


    "Heh." Zhuge Mingyu chuckled softly and then an odd expression filled her eyes. "He''s still like before."


    He was surrounded by pretty girls.


    "He really knows how to enjoy himself. As expected of our junior." Zhuge Mingyue giggled. Finally, Hua Jieyu noticed the people around Ye Futian. She obviously knew Loulan Xue, but there was also Qin Yin and Li Qingyi behind him. They were pretty, but not beautiful.


    But there was also Gu Yunxi with beauty worth a city''s treasures.


    Mu Zhiqiu was even more beautiful. She looked a fairy, standing there quietly.


    Hua Jieyu blinked and her smile turned resentful. This guy��hadn''t changed at all!

 540 Am I Not Good Enough

    "That''s too much." Zhuge Mingyue smiled and continued, "Surrounded by beauties, what a contented life."


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded with a grievance. After much anticipation, she had finally met him again, but under such a situation!


    "Should I call out to him?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    "I don''t know him." Hua Jieyu pretended to be angry and looked away, but she continued to peek in his direction. She saw him talking happily to the beauty beside him with a bright smile.


    "Hmmm, Jieyu, I''ll introduce someone more outstanding to you next time. Let''s not care about that heartless man anymore." Zhuge Mingyue nodded seriously.


    "Ahhh��" Hua Jieyu blinked and looked at Zhuge Mingyue, but she heard Beitang Xing''er say, "Second sister, little brother is so handsome and outstanding, there will definitely be many girls who like him. Maybe it''s not little brother''s fault."


    "Xing''er, whose side are you on." Zhuge Mingyue grinned, looking at Beitang Xing''er.


    Beixing Tang''er smiled and scratched her ear, while Hua Jieyu said in a touching tone to Zhuge Mingyue, "Sister, maybe what Xing''er said isn''t wrong."


    "..." Zhuge Mingyue blinked and grinned at Hua Jieyu. She had not even punished him yet. She was really hopeless.


    Hua Jieyu blushed shyly like Zhuge Mingyue had seen her thoughts. It made her look even more attractive, but that fellow was really too much. One or two would be fine, but he had four beauties by his side.


    Presently, Ye Futian did not notice anything. His gaze landed on the Holy Zhi Palace''s spectacular sky stairwell, on the teen playing the guqin. The guqin melody sounded sweet and it was extremely familiar. He had practiced the same piece too many times.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen''s gaze also looked towards that direction. Ye Futian looked towards Mu Zhiqiu and Yuan Zhan who were beside him and asked, "Who is he?"


    Mu Zhiqiu looked towards the teen in all his glory, sitting quietly there, yet looking as though he had merged with the heavens. His cultivation level was likely very high, and to be in the Holy Zhi Palace at such a young age�� Even though she had only seen him for the first time, she could guess his identity. There were very few of such people in the Barren State, his impressive demeanor could be seen from one look and he stood out from the rest.


    "If I''m not wrong, he is the Young City Lord of the White Cloud City, Bai Luli," Mu Zhiqiu replied quietly. Ye Futian stared at him and smiled, "He is indeed an exceptional person. I heard that Young City Lord Bai has entered the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking?"


    "Yes." Mu Zhiqiu nodded. Although Bai Luli''s cultivation level was not high, his prodigious talent had already obtained the recognition of the Barren State''s people. His future was sure to be bright.


    "No wonder he can express such imagery through the piece." Ye Futian smiled.


    The piece that Bai Luli was playing was one of the top ten pieces of the Divine Prefecture, the Ukiyo. Although it was only the first half of the piece, the imagery was already divine. Ye Futian admitted that even if he was the one playing, he could not do better.


    With regards to how the Young City Lord Bai obtained the Ukiyo''s score, he was not surprised. Back then, he had left the score in the Eastern Barren College. As long as an expert from an elite faction went there, they would be able to get it. With Bai Luli''s background, even if the White Cloud City did not go to get it, it would not be difficult to get his hands on the score.


    What did the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking mean? It meant that the people of the Barren State viewed Bai Luli as one of the ten most outstanding people in the Barren State.


    "Which direction is the Nether Road in?" Ye Futian suddenly asked. Previously, the Ukiyo had caught his attention, but Ye Futian naturally would not forget about being able to meet Jieyu and his second sister.


    The crowd''s gaze moved towards one of the nine directions and Mu Zhiqiu said, "It appears to be there."


    Ye Futian looked towards that direction and scanned through the crowd in a distant location. He soon saw a beautiful figure looking at him with a weird grin. Her smile gave Ye Futian the chills. He was extremely familiar with that smile, back in the Cottage, whenever he saw that smile, fourth or fifth brother would be in trouble.


    "Second sister." Ye Futian mumbled, then saw the girl standing next to Zhuge Mingyue. He saw Hua Jieyu avoiding his gaze and he did a double take. Something was wrong, how could Jieyu not miss him? If second sister had seen him, it wasn''t possible that Jieyu didn''t.


    He saw Beitang Xing''er winking at him and Ye Futian had a realization. As though he had suddenly thought of something, he froze and looked to his left, Gu Yunxi was standing quietly there; he looked to his right, Mu Zhiqiu was beside him speaking to him intimately.


    "Oh no." Ye Futian was dumbfounded. This was bad, could he be blamed for this? Being too outstanding was a mistake as well.


    "Zhiqiu, Yunxi, you have to help me explain later on." Ye Futian said. Mu Zhiqiu gave him a confused look while Gu Yunxi''s eyes sparkled. Could it be?


    "Zhiqiu." At that moment, a voice sounded. Just as Ye Futian was about to walk over to Jieyu, he saw Chen Yuan and the Zhaixing House Chief walking over to him. The Zhaixing House Chief was glaring at Mu Zhiqiu sternly. He was still arguing with Chen Yuan about this matter just now, and what did he see now?


    Mu Zhiqiu was actually quietly standing beside Ye Futian. What was happening?


    "Grandfather," Mu Zhiqiu called out to him.


    "Zhiqiu, have you taken back the Polearm of Divine Destruction?" Mu Zhifan''s expression was grim. That day, when Ye Futian had taken the Polearm of Divine Destruction, he had also arrived, but Yuan Chen''s threat allowed Ye Futian to take it away.


    Mu Zhiqiu immediately understood why her grandfather and brother looked unhappy and lowered her head in guilty. She had wanted to take it, but she had been defeated by Ye Futian again. However, her action made the Zhaixing House Chief and Mu Zhifan''s expressions become even grimmer. Was this her silent confession? Could it be?


    "What is going on?" The Zhaixing House Chief was extremely irritated.


    "Futian, nice job." On the other hand, Chen Yuan was full of smiles and looked at Ye Futian appreciatively. Previously, the Gu Clan leader had shared some thoughts with him. That was when he knew that the Son he had picked was talented in other fields on top of his cultivation. Looking at the lineup Ye Futian had, he had to admit that he was impressed.


    The frigid beauty of the Zhaixing House had been won over by him. Impressive.


    Ye Futian blinked in suspicion. Could there have been a misunderstanding? Why did the Zhaixing House Chief look like he wanted to tear him from limb to limb? Even when he first took the Polearm of Divine Destruction, he didn''t act like this.


    It was inevitable that the Zhaixing House Chief would overthink. Not long ago, Ye Futian and Mu Zhiqiu were enemies. Now, both of them were walking side by side jovially, with Chen Yuan''s words in mind, how could he not overthink?


    "Grandfather, it''s my fault, I lost to him again in the Holy Road," Mu Zhiqiu said quietly.


    "Even if you''ve lost to him, you can''t��" The Zhaixing House Chief was devastated. His granddaughter was beautiful and had outstanding potential. How could this be?


    "Zhiqiu, how could you be with a thief?" Mu Zhifan asked emotionlessly. He always felt that Ye Futian had stolen his Polearm of Divine Destruction.


    Ye Futian and the people around him raised their heads and looked at Mu Zhifan coldly. Ye Futian frowned, this Mu Zhifan was being audacious.


    "Senior, I think that there has been some misunderstanding," Ye Futian said to the Zhaixing House Chief.


    "It had better been a misunderstanding. If you dare to touch my sister, I''ll chop off the hand that did it," Mu Zhifan interrupted ruthlessly.


    "Idiot." Ye Futian looked at Mu Zhifan, annoyed. He then stretched out his hand and wrapped it around Mu Zhiqiu''s shoulder and looked at Mu Zhifan provokingly.


    Mu Zhiqiu''s body shivered and she stared blankly at Ye Futian. In the distance, Hua Jieyu and Zhuge Mingyue looked at them, doing double takes. This was too much.


    "You��" Mu Zhifan stepped forward, a cruel aura bursting forth. Yet he saw Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi, Ye Wuchen, and many others step forward and look at him ruthlessly.


    "Yuan Zhan." At that moment, another figure came forward. The figure at the forefront had a huge physique, it was a Golden Ape. He stepped right into the crowd, his gaze on Yuan Zhan, curious why Yuan Zhan would be with a group of humans.


    Mount Taixing''s Golden Ape. Chen Yuan and the Zhaixing House Chief looked at each other and thought, then saw Yuan Zhan standing in front of Ye Futian.


    When did this fellow get acquainted with the Golden Apes?


    "Father," Yuan Zhan called out to him, then introduced Ye Futian, "this is a good friend that I met in the Holy Road, Ye Futian. Father and grandfather will definitely like him."


    The Golden Ape looked curiously at Ye Futian. Ye Futian had already retracted his hand that was on Mu Zhiqiu''s shoulder and bowed slightly to him and said, "Ye Futian is honored to meet senior Ape."


    "Mm." Yuan Zhan''s father nodded. His appearance had caused many people''s attention to move towards them. After all, it was the Golden Ape clan from Mount Taixing and could be considered an elite faction.


    "Zhiqiu, explain yourself," The Zhaixing House Chief looked towards Mu Zhiqiu and said.


    Mu Zhiqiu glared at Ye Futian. This fellow was causing trouble on purpose.


    "Just kidding. I hope senior doesn''t mind. I have a girlfriend." Ye Futian smiled brightly, then pointed towards behind the Zhaixing House Chief and said, "She''s over there."


    The Zhaixing House Cheif turned around and the rest of the people all looked towards where Ye Futian''s finger was pointing. It was the direction of the Nether Road.


    "Who is it?" The Zhaixing House Chief asked. There were so many people in the Nether Road, how could he know who she was? Was Ye Futian making fun of them?


    "The most beautiful one." Ye Futian beamed. The crowd instinctively looked towards Hua Jieyu, who was standing beside Zhuge Mingyue. Although there were many beauties in the Nether Road, the most beautiful one could be seen at an instant. If Zhuge Mingyue and Hua Jieyu stood there, nobody else could compete with them.


    Those who had heard Ye Futian''s words all had suspicious expressions. It was not possible for it to be Zhuge Mingyue, so, he was referring to Hua Jieyu?


    Where did this idiot come from?


    "You mean, Hua Jieyu?" Mu Zhifan was cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace, so he had naturally heard of Hua Jieyu.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded, smiling.


    "Idiot." Mu Zhifan saw Ye Futian''s smiled and his expression was disdainful. He looked at Ye Futain and said, "Hua Jieyu, cultivating in the Zhuge Clan, Zhuge Mingyue''s sworn younger sister, a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, your girlfriend?"


    Ye Futian looked at Mu Zhifan''s expression and was irritated, he had been looked down upon.


    "Don''t create trouble for yourself," Mu Zhiqiu advised him softly. This kind of joke was not to be casually made. If he was heard by the people from the Zhuge Clan, they would not let Ye Futian off.


    "That''s right, brother Ye, it''s best not to joke about this," behind him, Xie Wuji and the rest tried to persuade him as well.


    Ye Futian rubbed the peak of his nose, then walked forward. He was actually walking in the direction of the Nether Road.


    The crowd looked at him with weird expressions. Gu Yunxi''s gaze had been on Hua Jieyu all this while. She had previously heard Ye Futian say that he had a girlfriend. She was always imagining what kind of remarkable girl Ye Futian''s girlfriend would be. Now that she saw Hua Jieyu, she was like the beauty in her imagination��a Goddess.


    As she thought of it, Gu Yunxi smiled brightly, only this type of girl could be a good fit for him.


    At that moment, numerous gazes landed on Ye Futian as he walked gradually towards the Nether Road. Zhuge Mingyue and Beitang Xing''er saw him walking over. Hua Jieyu also looked at him, then turned away. This fellow actually dared to touch other girls in front of her, shameless.


    Finally, Ye Futian walked over to the Nether Road area. He walked in front of the three of them and smiled jovially. The two of them looked at him with a weird grimace, then looked towards Hua Jieyu.


    Ye Futian saw that Hua Jieyu was not looking at him and was a little guilty. He said in a small voice, "Jieyu, I missed you so much." As his voice landed, the entire space fell silent. It started from the Nether Road, then the other places as well, countless gazes fell on them. Ye Futian''s voice was not loud, but because of Zhuge Mingyue and Hua Jieyu, many people''s attention was on them and they had heard what he said.


    What did he say to Hua Jieyu?


    "Do you have a death wish?" Mu Zhifan''s expression was frosty, he had been paying attention to what was happening all the while.


    "I don''t know you." Hua Jieyu glared at Ye Futian with a pained expression. Evidently, she was still angry. However, the crowd did not pay close attention to Hua Jieyu''s expression and only heard his words. In an instant, many people looked coldly at Ye Futian, what an impudent fellow.


    "Where did this idiot come from," someone even said mockingly.


    Hua Jieyu frowned. Even though she was feigning anger, she could not bear to hear others humiliate Ye Futian.


    "Sigh, I''ve come such a long way to find you, how heartbreaking." Ye Futian sighed. Hua Jieyu turned around and glared at him resentfully. Who was the one being wronged now?


    As she thought of this, she took small steps towards Ye Futian.


    The numerous gazes froze as they saw Hua Jieyu walk to Ye Futian''s side. Afterward, under their stunned supervision, Hua Jieyu stretched out her arm and helped Ye Futian to straighten his messy clothes with the gentleness of a lover. She had a look of helplessness in her eyes, and her gaze turned towards the Dawn Road and said pitifully, "Who are they? Am I not good enough? Tell me, I''ll change."


    Seeing the alluring beauty before him, Ye Futian felt as though he was about to melt. However, why did he have an ominous premonition?

 541 Expectations

    At that moment, under the Holy Zhi Palace, countless people''s attention gathered towards where Ye Futian was. This was especially true for the disciples of elite clans and factions. Now, Hua Jieyu, who was extremely famous among the younger generation, had a boyfriend?


    "This is too much," Zhuge Mingyue smiled faintly and said.


    Beixing Tang''er did a double take and asked softly, "Second sister, will younger brother be in trouble now?"


    "I don''t know." Zhuge Mingyue smiled. Beside her, Zhuge Xing''s gaze landed on Ye Futian, a strange expression appearing on his face. As a younger generation of the Zhuge Clan, he naturally knew that Ye Futian had a boyfriend who was one of the disciples of the Eastern Barren State''s Cottage. However, this was the first time he had seen Ye Futian and he was indeed handsome. But if Hua Jieyu only focused on appearances, she would be too shallow.


    Among the Dawn Road''s crowd, Chief Chen had a weird look on his face. It seemed like he had underestimated Ye Futian''s potential. Impressive.


    Mu Zhifan''s expression was extremely somber. What a slap to his face. He should have been happy that Ye Futian had a girlfriend. However, when he saw that the girl was Hua Jieyu, he was unable to do so. Not because he was interested in Hua Jieyu, but because when Ye Futian first took the Polearm of Divine Destruction away, he had been arrogant in front of Ye Futian. He was a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace and would take back the Polearm sooner or later. However, now that Ye Futian had crossed the Divine Road to get here, was on good terms with Yuan Zhan of the Golden Ape Clan and had Hua Jieyu as his girlfriend, this made him extremely dissatisfied.


    Mu Zhiqiu, Gu Yunxi, Qin Yin and the other girls looked towards them. It was as though they had never really seen Ye Futian''s true colors.


    "Mu Chuan, do you want to consider my offer? Since your favorite granddaughter is already by Ye Futian''s side, why don''t you join me in supporting the successor of the Saint path?" Chen Yuan asked the Zhaixing House Chief. Mu Chuan glared at him and replied, "In your dreams."


    "How stubborn, you can''t even see as clearly as your descendants. Ye Futian was only in the Arcana Plane when he entered the Dawn Road. Look at the people who have gathered around him, your granddaughter, the younger generation of Mount Taixing, can''t you see who is at the core of the group?" Chen Yuan said nonchalantly. "After a few years, you might not even have the chance to get close."


    "You think I care?" The Zhaixing House Chief scoffed. With who he was, so what if Ye Futian would become strong?


    "You may not cherish it, but when the time comes, the Saint path will crush your Zhaixing House," Chen Yuan said disdainfully.


    "You can try," Chuan Mu stared at Chen Yuan and said.


    "You think I dare not?" Both of them glared at each other.


    ��


    At that moment, Ye Futian was being stared at by countless people, sending shivers down his spine. Seeing the charming beauty in front of him look at him wistfully, Ye Futian felt a conspiracy being plotted.


    "Jieyu, these are all my friends. I''ll ask them to explain to you later, don''t misunderstand." Ye Futian was apprehensive.


    "If you like them, just tell me. I don''t have any objections," Hua Jieyu said gently, acting extremely feminine.


    "Ah��" Ye Futian blinked and saw Hua Jieyu grinning at him. He had the chills, so he smiled and said, "Definitely not." Feeling as though his answer wasn''t sincere enough, Ye Futian added, "I swear." Hua Jieyu smiled ravishingly and was pleased.


    Looks like I''ve passed the test. Ye Futian saw Hua Jieyu''s pleased smile and heaved a sigh of relief. As expected of the fox, she was hard to deal with, it took both brains and brawn to placate her.


    "Jieyu, why are there so many people looking at us speak?" Ye Futian glanced at the surroundings and asked.


    "I don''t know." Hua Jieyu shook her head.


    "Is it because I''m too handsome?" Ye Futian asked in a hushed voice.


    "Yes, it must be." Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded. The two of them held hands like nobody was watching, and walked towards Zhuge Mingyue. It was not that they were high-profile, it was just that they could not control themselves after meeting for so long. Even though they had already spoken softly, they were unable to help that so many people had noticed them.


    "Second sister, sister Xing''er, I''ve missed the two of you," Ye Futian looked at Zhuge Mingyue and said.


    "Really?" Zhuge Mingyue replied, smiling at Ye Futian. Why did she feel that his words were hypocritical? He probably only missed Jieyu.


    "It''s absolutely true. Ever since sister left the Cottage, I''ve often missed the days when you were at the Cottage and felt as though something was missing. Soon, I left the Eastern Barren State to look for you. Now that I''ve seen that second sister has gotten more beautiful, I''m at ease now," Ye Futian said earnestly.


    "Your words are so sweet that I almost believed them," Zhuge Mingyue replied, looking at Ye Futian. This fellow was still such a sweet-talker, even after two years. Nothing had changed.


    Beitang Xing''er stood at the side, smiling gently. She was naturally happy to see Ye Futian, back then in the Cottage, the senior brothers and sisters all doted on him the most.


    "Shameless." Many of the Zhuge Clan members and Nether Road geniuses looked at Ye Futian with contempt. Was that how this b*stard managed to win Hua Jieyu over?


    Such a glib mouth, how could a cultivator be this shameless? If it was only Hua Jieyu, it would be fine, but even Zhuge Mingyue fell for that?


    Sigh. Women.


    "Little Shi, did you take good care of your little brother?" Zhuge Mingyue saw Yi Xiaoshi walking over and asked, smiling.


    "I��" Yi Xiaoshi saw the difference between Ye Futian and his treatment and was infuriated, but when he met his second sister''s gaze, he lowered his head and continued, "Naturally took good care of him."


    "Little brother, is that the truth?" Zhuge Mingyue looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "Seventh brother''s performance was indeed passable," Ye Futian smiled and replied, causing Zhuge Mingyue to nod her head in satisfaction. The fatty sighed in his heart, who is the big brother here?


    "Sister, what about fourth and fifth brother?" Ye Futian asked. Previously, Xue Ye and Luo Fan had come to the Barren State alongside Yi Xiaoshi, claiming that they wanted to find second sister. Now that Yi Xiaoshi was here, where had the two of them gone?


    "The two of them were lazing around, so I found something for them to do," Zhuge Mingyue replied. Yi Xiaoshi shrunk back, thinking of his two seniors, he felt that his treatment was still alright.


    Seeing Yi Xiaoshi''s response, Ye Futian knew that his two seniors were probably in a sorry state. Looking for second sister for no good reason, they were just looking for trouble. Did they think that they were him?


    "What about third brother, have you seen him, second sister?" Ye Futian also thought about Gu Dongliu.


    The smile on Zhuge Mingyue''s face faded, and she replied, "Don''t mention him, trying to show off after he had just broken through his cultivation level. He was defeated by Bai Luli, I don''t know where he''s gone off to cultivate after that."


    Ye Futian looked at his second sister''s expression, it looked like she was worried for his third brother. His gaze turned towards another direction and Ye Futian looked at the outstanding figure by the Holy Zhi Palace''s sky stairwell, the White Cloud City''s young city lord Bai Luli. Being able to enter the Barren Sky Ranking''s top ten at such a young age, how could he be defeated easily.


    Knowing third brother''s personality, he was probably off somewhere cultivating hard.


    At that moment, in the direction of the sky stairwell, there were important figures descending from the Holy Zhi Palace. Their gazes swept across the vast area and wherever they looked, there were people. It was a sight to behold. Moreover, this was the group that had already passed the Holy Road''s selection, or there would be a terrifying amount of people.


    This was the Holy Zhi Palace''s triennial disciple selection, a spectacle of the Barren State. Apart from a few stubborn fellows from the Alchemy City and the Barren State Northern Continent''s holy temple region, the vast majority of the Barren State''s factions would participate. This was the influence that the Holy Zhi Palace had built up over the years; even the Demon God Clan experts were willing to come forth.


    At that moment, numerous gazes looked towards the direction of the sky stairwell. They heard an expert from the Holy Zhi Palace say, "The Holy Zhi Palace will be selecting its disciples now. Those who are not involved, step out from the central region."


    Once his voice landed, many figures retreated, even the influential figures from all areas retreated out of the central region.


    "Those from the nine Holy Roads, assume your positions," the expert on the sky stairwell continued.


    Ye Futian held Hua Jieyu''s hand and said, "I''ll go over first."


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu nodded gently. Ye Futian and Yi Xiaoshi left, walking in the direction of the Dawn Road.


    In the Holy Zhi Palace''s triennial admission, they would open up nine Holy Roads, namely the Barren Road, Dawn Road, Travel Road, Nether Road, State Road, Arid Road, Separation Road, Frost Road, and Decay Road. Out of the nine roads, only the Barren Road corresponded with Zhongzhou City. The other eight roads corresponded with the eight major bearings of the Barren State.


    At that moment, in the extensive area, there were nine words inscribed in the nine major bearings. Ye Futian and the people from the Dawn Road stood in the region where the Dawn word was. They looked like a huge army.


    Even after the elimination from the Holy Road, there were still countless figures standing. The disorganized area became much more orderly and distinct. Among the nine Holy Roads, it was the most evident that the Dawn Road had the most people.


    This caused many people to think, looks like the competition in the Dawn Road this time wasn''t that fierce. The fiercer the competition over the holy badges in the Holy Road, the fewer people could stay until the end. However, the crowd was unaware that what had happened in the Dawn Road was unlike the other Holy Roads.


    When Ye Futian returned, Mu Zhiqiu, Gu Yunxi and the rest continued to stand by his side. Li Qingyi looked at the geniuses from the nine Holy Roads, then looked towards the sky stairwell and the Holy Zhi Palace''s prodigies. She knew that her journey was coming to an end, she did not have expectations to enter the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. Simply being able to see such a scene was enough to make her satisfied.


    All the most outstanding figures of the generation from the Barren State had gathered here. At that moment, Zhuge Mingyue walked towards a place at the side of the sky stairwell. Over there, countless figures had appeared and one of them had a prominent aura. Ye Futian had seen him before in the Cottage, it was Zhuge Canyang, who had been to the Cottage to receive his second sister. He was also an extremely famous figure in the Barren State and the successor to the Zhuge Clan.


    "Has he come?" Zhuge Canyang asked Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Yes." Zhuge Mingyue nodded lightly.


    "In these two years, you have protected Hua Jieyu so well, just to wait for him. Now that he has chosen to step through the Holy Road and appear on this stage, I hope that he lives up to your expectations," Zhuge Canyang said softly.

 542 Mass Chaos

    At the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace, the experts from the nine Holy Roads stood cautiously. They all knew that the Holy Road was merely the first stage of the selection, walking out from the Holy Road did not mean that they were a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace; it was far too early.


    They had walked out of the Holy Road, only to arrive here and obtain the qualification to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, simply that.


    What would follow would be crueler. The geniuses from the nine Holy Roads had gathered, what a spectacle it would be to behold.


    On both sides of the sky stairwell, experts could be seen standing. Due to the sky stairwell being too long, even though there were many experts on the steps, they still appeared to be scattered, many of them appearing alone in a direction. There were those like Bai Luli playing the guqin piece, like Zhuge Canyang and Zhuge Mingyue observing silently and those who were drinking tea and watching.


    Now, many influential figures from the Holy Zhi Palace had arrived because it involved the selection of their disciples.


    The Holy Zhi Palace''s entrance examinations were different from many other factions, the Holy Zhi Palace''s elders would personally select those they valued, unlike a mass admission. Only those who were valued by the Sage Plane figures had the qualification to step foot on the Thousand Holy Island. For those who wanted to become a disciple on the Core Island, they would have to be selected by an extraordinary Sage Plane figure.


    It was exactly because of this that the entire Barren State''s geniuses gathered for the Holy Zhi Palace''s triennial entrance examinations. However, the Holy Zhi Palace would not take in many disciples as the Holy Zhi Palace''s influential figures had extremely high expectations. They had seen far too many geniuses, so it was not easy even to enter the Thousand Holy Island, not to mention becoming a Core Island disciple.


    Of course, before the many influential figures took their pick, there were still too many people from the nine Holy Roads. There needed to be another round to eliminate the majority of the survivors.


    Because of that, an elder on the sky stairwell announced, "Those who have walked out of the nine Holy Roads, step forward. The Holy Zhi Palace''s elders will personally take their pick, but before that, a huge portion of you will be eliminated."


    The crowd nodded in understanding. It was no surprise to them as many people had already known about the Holy Zhi Palace''s entrance examination rules. Tens of thousands of cultivators had entered the nine Holy Roads, how were the influential figures of the Holy Zhi Palace going to decide?


    Evidently, there needed to be a mass elimination. From the nine bearings, everyone stepped forward into the vast area in the middle of the nine words.


    At that moment, a blinding light emitted from the nine words signifying the nine Holy Roads and turned into light veils. Following that, the entire area lit up with a holographic glow, causing the area to look like a giant battlefield, spanning tens of thousands of meters.


    A normal human''s vision could not even see the edge of the battlefield. However, all those who had gathered here were cultivators with extremely high cultivation levels, so sight was not an issue to them. Tens of thousands of meters was a mere stone''s throw for them.


    At that moment, the nine words appeared to transform into nine doors, with an expert guarding each door.


    "All of you have stepped out from the Holy Road and have a holy badge in your hands. Some of you have relied on your strength while others may have used schemes. Regardless of how you did it, the Holy Zhi Palace will not interfere. However, in this battlefield, there will only be three thousand people standing at the end. You may all use your methods and there are no restrictions, those who concede can raise their holy badges and no one is to attack you. Step out from the nine bearings, that is the exit. After you have stepped out, return your holy badge to the people from the Holy Zhi Palace," the expert on the sky stairwell continued.


    The crowd was astounded. This time''s elimination would be a battle royale. The tens of thousands of geniuses from the nine Holy Roads would be reduced to only 3,000 within this battlefield. The remaining three thousand would be the true prodigies from all corners of the Barren State. Averaging out the nine Holy Roads, each Holy Road would have about three hundred people.


    Keeping in mind that every Holy Road represented countless geniuses from a certain region of the Barren State, from numerous major clans, schools, and sects. 300 people was simply a mere fraction of a clan''s young experts.


    "I have to remind you all that you had better start making preparations now. Otherwise, when I announce the start of the elimination, you might not even know how you died," the expert on the sky stairwell shouted. Immediately, many people''s expression became alert and shied away from others, trying to prevent others from sneaking up on them.


    Although the battlefield was huge, when that many experts gathered inside, it still appeared cramped. That was why, once the battle erupted, it would be mass chaos. The people around you could attack at any time, so you would not even be able to select an opponent. Only those extremely strong cultivators could dominate the area around them and aim for their targets.


    At the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace, at the edge of the giant island, it was eerily quiet within and outside the battlefield. Everyone was focused, watching the battlefield. The most outstanding cultivators from the nine Holy Roads naturally received the most attention. Ye Futian also had many gazes on him, there were many people who were worried about him.


    Zhuge Mingyue had high hopes for him, back then, Gu Dongliu had personally gone to the Cangye Kingdom to invite their little brother, so he had not experienced any entrance challenge. Now, there was such a huge scene to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, she did not know if her little brother could make it through with his cultivation level.


    Although she was exceptionally confident in Ye Futian''s potential, she was still a little worried. After all, Ye Futian''s cultivation level was rather low and she knew what level Ye Futian was at two years ago when she had left the Cottage.


    On the battlefield, Ye Futian was among the youngest. If he waited another three years, perhaps her little brother would be unparalleled, but at that time his cultivation level might have already surpassed the Lower Noble Plane and be unable to take part in the Holy Zhi Palace''s entrance examination.


    Chen Yuan also looked in Ye Futian''s direction. In the colossal battlefield, Ye Futian appeared minute. How would the prodigy of the Divine Sky City that could dominate his generation fare on the stage of the Barren State? What kind of brilliance would he show? He raised his head towards the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace. He knew that many influential figures had come today, including some of the people on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Who among them would select Ye Futian?


    In another direction, the Golden Ape from Mount Taixing also looked in Ye Futian''s direction. Yuan Zhan had just told him some things that made him extremely surprised.


    At that moment, in the battlefield, Ye Futian told the people around him, "Follow me closely."


    "I''m not intending to participate in the battle, this place is not for me," Li Qingyi smiled and replied. She was already satisfied enough to have reached here.


    "I''m afraid that I will only be a burden to you in this battle. I''d better step out." Gu Yunxi smiled gently. Long Mu and the rest sighed, Middle Arcana Plane cultivators could still have some opportunities in the Holy Road, but here, there was no opportunity to be had.


    "Alright. Giving up in this kind of scenario is nothing to be ashamed of." Ye Futian nodded. After that, he saw Gu Yunxi, Li Qingyi, and many others walking with their holy badge to the exit. When the battle began, they would immediately step out and watch the battle.


    Not just them, but many others made a similar decision at present as well. Previously, many disciples from major factions had followed their peers into the Holy Road and were protected all the way. Now, that method would not work. If they did not have the ability, staying was pointless.


    "Begin," the elder on the sky stairwell announced. As his voice landed, terrifying auras started to burst out in the battlefield and the Spiritual Qi in the air rampaged.


    Many people walked out of the exit, these were the people who voluntarily conceded. There were a few people who flew into the air, the people who dared to do so were all elite geniuses. In the sea of people, flying in the air would make them easy targets for those on the ground, and nobody would be so arrogant without enough confidence.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept across the spacious battlefield. His vision was drowned out by the crowd and he could not see where Hua Jieyu was. Around him, nobody attacked Ye Futian''s group. After all, they were in the gathering area for the Dawn Road''s experts, and who in the Dawn Road did not know Ye Futian?


    Even the elite geniuses like Yan Jiu did not dare to move recklessly.


    The Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hand, Ye Futian flew into the air, his gaze sweeping around the surroundings. In the air, there were others like him, brimming with confidence.


    A distance away, from the direction of the Separation Road, there was an icy gaze that fixed itself on Ye Futian with killing intent. There was a group of experts who were covered in flames, and there was a fearsome dark will in one of the expert''s flames.


    That was the Holy Fire Clan''s gathering area and Du Ao was within. Back then, Du Ao had led a group of Holy Fire Clan''s experts into the Eastern Barren Territory, forcing Ye Futian to climb the Sky Mountain with them. Du Ao had nearly died in the hands of Ye Futian''s Demon Bird.


    He bore the grudge all this time. Now, at the foot of the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace, he had met Ye Futian once again.


    "Yuan Zhan, Zhiqiu, how much do you know about the Separation Road''s Holy Fire Clan?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Not much." Yuan Zhan and Mu Zhiqiu both shook their heads.


    "What will happen if I kill one of the Holy Fire Clan''s disciples?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "In the mass chaos, it is common for people to die. If you kill a normal disciple from the Holy Fire Clan, they might just accept that their disciple''s strength was inferior to yours. However, it is possible that the person you kill has connections with elders in the Holy Fire Clan, and that might get you marked." Mu Zhiqiu continued, "Of course, if you are highly valued by an influential figure of the Holy Zhi Clan and enter the Palace to cultivate, there will be no repercussions."


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded, as he saw Du Ao walking in the air towards him. He moved in a flash towards the ground and looked at Du Ao, as though intentionally avoiding him.


    Du Ao''s killing intent was rampaging. Someone tried to attack him, but the imposing dark flames surrounding his body shot towards the person and enveloped him, causing the person to ignite with no chance to even surrender.


    "Trying to escape?" Du Ao looked ruthlessly at Ye Futian, who was in the crowd. Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue were closely related, but even if he could not kill him, he would disable him permanently.


    At the same time, a cruel killing intent appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes. Back then, in the Eastern Barren Territory, it was Du Ao who had given the order to eliminate the Donghua Clan. Even though the Donghua Clan Lord and his wife had agreed to disband the clan, they were hunted by Du Ao, and he even chased them all the way to the College and killed them in front of the people in the College.


    And the cause of it all, was because Du Ao had wanted Hua Qingqing''s body. On the Sky Mountain, he had almost humiliated her but was saved by Ye Futian''s Demon Bird.


    It was also that incident that had caused a pure girl like Hua Qingqing to go into Buddhism.


    Although Ye Futian and the Donghua Clan were enemies back then, what Du Ao did in the Eastern Barren Territory was still deserving of death.

 543 A Sea of Powerful Figures

    It was chaos in the vast battlefield at this very moment. Tens of thousands of powerful cultivators battled within. One could only focus on the enemies right before them, there was no choosing one''s opponent. The number of people that failed was increasingly rapidly as well. A constant stream of people left the battlefield, having admitted defeat.


    Many important figures observed the ongoing events from the top of the sky stairwell and the other side of the battlefield. Naturally, the insanely powerful geniuses whose talents were top-notch got the most attention.


    Bai Ze from White Cloud City, who was the younger brother of Bai Luli, was an obvious target for observation. He was mind-bogglingly talented, and as he stood proudly in the sky, no one dared to approach him. It was clear to all that some people were simply not to be trifled with.


    Chi Meng from the Demon God Clan marched into the crowd. His arms were powerful as a dragon''s, and when he grabbed at the crowd, several cultivators were sent flying. The attacks of those from the Demon God Clan have always been savagely violent. Chi Meng was a large burly man. Leading other powerful figures from his clan into the crowd, Chi Meng sent the people around him flying with yet another powerful swing. He was like a tiger charging into a flock of sheep, no one was able to hold their ground against him.


    The insanely powerful figures of Zhongzhou City were also under great scrutiny.


    At this moment, streaks of golden light gleamed from the middle of the crowd. The light was especially dazzling and attracted countless gazes. Several extravagantly dressed young men stood there, bathed in a sovereign glow. Streaks of light swept across the place, turning into dragons and phoenixes. No one could defend against them.


    The young man in the center of that group had an impossible elegance to his features. His aura was unmatched by most people. This young man was Huang Jiuge, an insanely powerful figure of Zhongzhou City''s Sovereign Family.


    The Sovereign Family was one of the most powerful families in Zhongzhou City and even the Barren State. They were so powerful that even the prestige of the Holy Zhi Palace meant little to them. They claimed to be descendants of Renhuang, and were arrogant beyond measure, calling themselves the Sovereign Family.


    But everyone else thought that the Sovereign Family thought too highly of themselves. There were countless powerful figures in the world. The vast Divine Prefecture may have figures like the Emperor and Renhuang, but the Barren State did not have the capacity to contain such figures.


    However, the people of the Barren State still recognized the strength of the Sovereign Family. Those from the Sovereign Family who had come to the Divine Road were not aiming to enter the Holy Zhi Palace to train. Instead, their motivation was to see the talent the Barren State had to offer and to barrel through all competition effortlessly in order to prove how powerful the Sovereign Family was. It was also a good opportunity for them to train and improve their own abilities.


    Other than the Sovereign Family, those from the Tingxue House in Zhongzhou were equally frightening as well. Murderous energy emanated from an area in the battlefield��those from the Tingxue House were carrying out vicious attacks there. A large empty space quickly emerged around them. The people around them had fallen to the ground, defeated and bloodied. No one else dared to approach those from the Tingxue House.


    The Ximen Clan and the Lightning Court were also one of the most influential powers in Zhongzhou City. Their younger generations of members were all brilliant, and they wanted to take this opportunity to shine amongst their peers by defeating them all.


    But they had not started clashing with each other yet. This large messy free-for-all was but the first stage of elimination. The real battles lay towards the end. As such, they were not too hasty about things, knowing that the fight now was only a prelude to greater things at the end.


    Other than the powerful figures from the three different paths of the Divine Road who were under the most scrutiny, there were other insanely talented people from the other paths as well.


    The abundance of talented people on the battlefield made it a dizzying sight to see. There were so many powerful figures, and they had not even displayed their full abilities yet.


    In the battlefield, the Nine Swords glinted behind Yanjiu, and after scaring the competition, no one else dared to touch him again. The same went for many powerful figures from the Mortal World and Nantian House. Their gazes turned towards Ye Futian, who was being hunted down, and a peculiar expression settled on their faces.


    When Ye Futian wielded the Divine Destruction Polearm, his battle ability was definitely top-notch. And with Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi by his side, he had no need to run from being hunted down.


    Chu Shang from the Mortal World and Nan Feng from the Nantian House knew about the bad blood between Du Ao and Ye Futian. The Sacred Fire Sect had gone to the eastern region of the Barren State as well back then, and Du Ao seemed to still be unaware of Ye Futian''s abilities now. Watching Du Ao chase after Ye Futian into the chaos alone, they knew that Du Ao was in trouble. Ye Futian was obviously sure of what he was doing.


    Hua Jieyu stood in the sky. She was watching Ye Futian as well. However, the battlefield was chaotic, and her sight was obscured at times. Ye Futian seemed to be intentionally heading towards the center of the crowd as well.


    "He seems to be being chased," Zhuge Xing commented, looking over at Hua Jieyu who was next to him. "Do you need me to do anything?"


    "There''s no need," Hua Jieyu replied calmly, not looking at Zhuge Xing. She saw that Yi Xiaoshi was not rushing to defend Ye Futian. Since the Cottage disciple was not worried, she understood that Yi Xiaoshi believed in Ye Futian''s ability to solve this himself. Ye Futian was probably intending to take revenge on behalf of Du Ao''s victim back then.


    Looking at Hua Jieyu''s profile, Zhuge Xing did not comment any further. He turned back to where Ye Futian was. Ye Futian had run to the middle of the chaotic battlefield on the dried-up path. He saw the gleam of starlight before meteorites began to appear in the sky. It seemed like that part of the sky had been sealed off.


    Ye Futian stopped and turned to look at Du Ao. Bathed in dark fire, Du Ao was a frightening sight to see. Staring at Ye Futian, he spoke, "Don''t worry, I won''t kill you. At most, I''ll just permanently destroy your powers. I heard that your girlfriend is a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer now and that she''s unmatched in her looks. There are many people out there who want a taste of her. Maybe she''ll become someone else''s woman once your powers are destroyed."


    Du Ao leered at Ye Futian. He believed that if it hadn''t been for Ye Futian''s meddling back then, he would have managed to secure Hua Qingqing, a startling beauty within the eastern region of the Barren State. Hua Qingqing was beautiful enough to bring down cities, and she was pure without a single blemish. Her aura was deeply attractive to him. It was a pity that Ye Futian had gotten in his way twice��once on Sky Mountain and the other time at the College.


    "Do you know why I brought you here?" Ye Futian asked.


    A flicker of hesitation flashed across Du Ao''s face before he asked, smiling, "Why?"


    "It''ll be easier to kill you without anyone following us," came the reply, before a burst of lightning exploded from under Ye Futian''s feet. Ye Futian''s body swayed to the wind and lightning around him, and shadows of his figure appeared in the sky. It was the Thundering Illusion Step.


    In an instant, Du Ao felt an incredibly strong surge of Noble Will descend upon him. Within his mind, it was as if a starry sky had appeared and was pressing down upon him, covering his body and his Spiritual Will. He felt suffocated.


    A rumble was heard, and Du Ao''s expression changed slightly. He didn''t understand how Ye Futian''s energy could be so powerful when he clearly hadn''t reached the Noble plane yet.


    In his mind, powerful Flame Intent was released. A dark figure appeared, covered in dark fire that consumed all and pushed back at the immense pressure. At the same time, a shadow of the dark flames appeared behind him. Upon the release of a spell, dark flame dragons writhed in the air towards Ye Futian.


    The Divine Destruction Polearm whistled through the air with a shocking might. Ye Futian was using the Nine Heavenly Attacks. It was clear that Ye Futian was aiming for Du Ao''s life by using the most powerful technique he had on hand.


    The flame dragons were reduced to nothing with one strike of the Divine Destruction Polearm. Du Ao''s face darkened, before a Sage''s flame scepter appeared in his hand. Holding the scepter out, endless dark flames began to gather before him and form a giant dark handprint. The handprint was filled with frightening dark flames and could incinerate in an instant if it were to hit someone.


    The Divine Destruction Polearm was just about to land a strike again when Ye Futian spun in the air and dealt a second attack through the space. The rapid attacks rained down on the handprint, and it exploded.


    Du Ao''s expression completely changed. Since when had Ye Futian become so strong? Back then, Ye Futian had been of a plane way lower than his. Du Ao gripped on to his scepter, and the shadow of the dark flames behind him seemed to solidify into a tangible mass. The dark flames spread rapidly and covered the surrounding space, almost like an invader preparing to massacre a city.


    At this moment, Ye Futian launched a third strike as he spun in the air. The distance between the two was great, and Du Ao laughed at the fact that Ye Futian was attacking from so far away. But then, he saw that the Divine Destruction Polearm was rapidly increasing in size as it descended upon him like a polearm from heaven.


    "No��" Du Ao''s face contorted in shock as the Polearm struck down upon him. His flames may have been strong, but they would not be able to incinerate the Polearm. His specialization in flame attacks was being countered squarely by the violence of Ye Futian''s attack.


    Du Ao sent out one defensive spell decree after another. When the Divine Destruction Polearm descended upon him, the spell decrees glowed with a brilliant light and blocked part of the attack. However, Du Ao was still sent crashing to the floor by the impact. The ground trembled with the force of which Du Ao had crashed into it, and Du Ao''s arm hung by his side, broken. He spat mouthful after mouthful of blood.


    With his left arm, Du Ao reached for the storage ring on his right hand. At the same time, he was retreating quickly, ready to admit defeat and pull out of the situation. However, Ye Futian was planning to end everything right here and right now.


    "Get lost!" Du Ao shouted, and frightening flames surrounded the crowd that was in his way. Someone was incinerated in an instant by the flames. However, enormous ancient vines curled towards Du Ao from behind, and at the instant Du Ao took out his spell decrees, the vines passed through the flames and stabbed through his arm, making him drop the spell decrees in his hand.


    In the next moment, his body was surrounded by the ancient vines, and they crept up the sky with him.


    Ye Futian, who had been preparing to kill Du Ao, was taken aback. It had not been him who had attacked Du Ao, but a powerful figure from the dried-up path. Ye Futian looked behind Du Ao to see a copper-skinned young man in tattered clothing standing there, staring coldly at Du Ao.


    "I admit defeat," Du Ao howled. "I''m a disciple of the Sacred Fire Sect!"


    The young man paid him no attention. A sharp vine pierced straight into Du Ao''s heart, killing him in mid-air. Ye Futian''s expression changed. Du Ao had died in the hands of a powerful figure from the dried-up path.


    Shifting his gaze, Ye Futian saw the person who had been burned by Du Ao''s flames. He seemed to be dressed similarly to the young man. A woman had appeared by the person''s side and a dazzling jade green glow could be seen. The glow enveloped the body, as though healing it.


    Then, powerful figures from the Sacred Fire Sect rushed over. Their expressions upon seeing Du Ao''s body were ugly. Du Ao had held great status within the Sacred Fire Sect. He possessed outstanding abilities, but he had still died on the spot.


    In the sky, a flash of dark fire shot through the eyes of Xie Ji, who was from the Sacred Fire Sect. The dark flames went straight for the young man who had killed Du Ao. Xie Ji was the best of his generation in the Sacred Fire Sect, and he was scarily powerful. The power of his will shot through his eyes, infused with the Burning of Silence flame intent. However, the young man looked up to meet his gaze without hesitation.


    Xie Ji''s body began to burn with frightening flames, and the many-hued flames merged into dragons that charged towards the young man. But ancient vines appeared on the young man''s body and curled towards Xie Ji as well. There were questioning looks on many people''s faces at the young man using wood-elemental spells to fight flames. Furthermore, those were no ordinary flames, but flames that came from Xie Ji.


    The flames started to burn on the ancient vines in an instant. However, the ancient vines remained intact and even became more frightening as they continued heading for Xie Jie, flames and all.


    Xie Ji took a step back, and his expression changed. Looking at the young man, he asked, "Which part of the southeastern region are you from?"


    "The Immortal Village," the young man replied calmly.


    "The party from the Immortal Village is here as well," the important figures who were on top of the sky stairwell as well as a distance away from the battlefield had noticed the developments here as well. Du Ao of the Sacred Fire Sect was probably the first top-notch powerful figure to have fallen in this chaotic battle.


    The Immortal Village was situated within the southeastern region of the Barren State, where it was just a wasteland. They had no contact with the outside world and had never come to the Divine Road before. But this time, they too had arrived.


    "Seems like the Undying Old Man is having a pretty satisfactory time," someone commented calmly. The Undying Old Man was one of the higher-ranking individuals within the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Look at the girl," someone said, noticing that the woman who had been healing her companion had finished her work and stood up. She raised her head to look at everyone. Dressed in simple white clothing, she was extremely clean and unblemished. While she had seemed very plain before, upon closer inspection, her features were actually stunningly beautiful and she seemed to have a mystical glow about her.


    "It''s been rumored that the Undying Old Man has had a successor. It could very well be this girl," someone from the Holy Zhi Palace speculated. There was a new belle in the Barren State now.


    "The ritual implement that guy''s using seems to be an extraordinary one," someone commented, looking at Ye Futian.


    "It should be the precious Divine Destruction Polearm from the Zhaixing House," someone replied, seeming to know everything about the Barren State. "That young man is probably the Son from Divine Sky City we heard about in the rumors. Since he''s Zhuge Mingyue''s junior, he should be from the eastern region of the Barren State."

 544 Nothing to do with Me

    Xie Ji''s eyes gazed at the figure before him. He had heard of the Immortal Village before. With someone like the Undying Old Man emerging from the place, it was near impossible for anyone not to have heard of the place.


    What the Undying Old Man was known for was to keep things immune from decay, be it living beings or dead objects. His old vines were something that not even fire would be able to do anything about.


    Du Ao wanted to escape from the mess he was in and went about killing passers-by to do it, but he had not expected the one he had burned was someone from the Immortal Village, and ended up paying the price with his life for it. It was something that would have left many outside deep in thought. The warzone gathered many geniuses from all over the Barren State, which meant that any carelessness could result in dire consequences.


    Du Ao of the Sacred Fire Sect would have probably been oblivious as to who killed him, even at the time of his death.


    Xie Ji turned his eyes to look at Ye Futian. He conjured a flame on his palm and the space around him turned crazed in an instant. Streaks of black flames danced around Ye Futian, which then turned into a fearsome Dark Lotus and went on to consume Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian frowned. So you think you can push me around instead?


    Ye Futian then took hold of the Polearm of Divine Destruction. Meteors gathered around him, yet the fearsome Dark Lotus coalesced inexhaustible fire spiritual qi, and brought with it horrifying damage potential. A globe of dark flames encased the space and the meteors burned by the flames. It seemed that the flames left terrifying marks on every piece of the meteors before lashing out at Ye Futian.


    The mighty ones from the Sacred Fire Sect surrounded Ye Futian and all casted fire spells. He looked as if he was being locked inside a cage of fire for a moment. The ones from the Sacred Fire Sect specialized in manipulating fires, and many of their fire spells had terrifying powers, and, of course, remarkable damage potential.


    A pure golden palm struck Xie Ji at that very moment, blocking out quite a bit of space above it. Xie Ji flinched a little and then struck at the golden palm with his own palm. His was a palm in Dark Flames. He was thrown behind somewhat as it clashed with the golden palm. He spared a look at the wild figure that jumped him��Yuan Zhan of the golden great apes.


    At the same time, Yi Xiaoshi lashed out with the Imperial Vines. Golden lights shimmered as his attack lashed out at the mighty one from the Sacred Fire Sect.


    Ye Wuchen, Yu Sheng and the others made it there soon enough. Thousands of streams of sword aura whooshed about Ye Wuchen. As he pointed his finger before him, the sword auras congealed into a torrent, heading straight for Ye Futian''s assailants.


    Qin Yin, Xuanyuan Bashan, Xie Wuji, Zui Qianchou had also become grade seven nobles at the moment. They arrived at the scene and began attacking, turning the place into a battlefield where both sides were of equal strength. The ones staying on the battlefield were reduced by the minute, and many turned to look at it.


    Ye Futian fought his way out of the barricade and went heading for one specific person. He then lifted his staff and struck hard, forcing the mighty one from Sacred Fire Sect to quickly back away. However, the golden vines around slithered past and blocked his escape, giving him no choice but to take the strike head-on.


    Boom! The Polearm of Divine Destruction was brought down hard, and the one struck by it had his body sent flying right away. All his bones and meridians broken, and throwing up blood by the gallon.


    Yi Xiaoshi''s Imperial Vines made their way to several other mighty ones and entangled them before throwing them down. The following loud thumps spoke of the shock they suffered as they hit the ground.


    Xie Ji was being held back by Yuan Zhan, and the mighty ones from the Sacred Fire Sect were quickly swept away, thrown out of the game.


    Xie Ji quickly retreated at the scene and looked very troubled. So everyone''s out now? There was no one from the Sacred Fire Sect left now but him.


    "This..." Many looked at the fights taking place there and sported funny looks. The ones from the Sacred Fire Sect had been bullying Ye Futian for quite a while, and no one would have expected the tables to turn like this.


    That overwhelming ape is probably that golden great ape from Mount Taixing then.


    The Sacred Fire Sect suffered quite a humiliating defeat that time.


    Xie Ji kept retreating while looking gloomy. The odds were stacked entirely against the Sacred Fire Sect, and they suffered terrible losses.


    Ye Futian and the rest did not pursue Xie Ji. The battlefield became more relaxed. The fighting that never ceased in the battlefield threw many out of the game in a very short time.


    Hua Jieyu kept tabs on Ye Futian''s battlefield. She did not participate. There were the mighty ones from the Zhuge family by her side, and there was no need for her to fight.


    "Nice ritual implement he had there, allowing someone only of Arcana Plane like him to bring quite a lot of power to bear, and it seems to work well with his abilities." Zhuge Xing, who had been watching Ye Futian''s battle added, "However, the more he relies on the powers of that ritual implement, the more apparent the disadvantages of his low levels will become later on. The battle might allow the use of everything in one''s disposal, but the ones after that, not so much. There is no certainty that he would be able to make it to the end and reach the Holy Zhi Palace. Even if he was to be noticed by any of the mighty ones from the Thousand Holy Islands, it''d still be difficult for him to match you."


    Since Hua Jieyu was brought to the Zhuge family by Zhuge Mingyue, Zhuge Mingyue kept tabs on all who took care of Hua Jieyu. They even presented a great opportunity for her, and provided her with all sorts of resources to further her training. Hua Jieyu became a totally different person compared to when she first arrived at the Zhuge family. If she were to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, her profession as the Divine Spiritual Sorcerer alone would have been enough for her to be noticed by the ones from the palace.


    While Ye Futian sported extraordinary looks and talents, he would have still paled in comparison to the height of someone like Hua Jieyu, and that was something Zhuge Xing hoped Hua Jieyu would be able to comprehend. Flowery words and cunning statements might have had their uses for some time, but such trickery would have been deemed unpresentable in the world of cultivation.


    "What are you getting at?" Hua Jieyu looked at Zhuge Xing. Her eyes looked as bright as the smile she wore with, yet her expression was one that made Zhuge Xing feel distanced; completely different from the expressions she showed to Ye Futian.


    Zhuge Xing looked at the beautiful young lady by his side. The strands at her forehead swayed about in the air, which made her feel very friendly and approachable. While there was nothing anyone could have made out from his looks at the moment, he was struggling to keep his affection for her contained within.


    Someone like him would have no trouble getting his hands on beautiful women, yet some did feel different from the others. He had taken notice of her the very first time she came to the Zhuge family. She wore an aura of sorrow about her back then, and there was always a hint of sadness in her eyes, making anyone who saw wanting to embrace her.


    While he had not been spending much time with Hua Jieyu, as it was Zhuge Mingyue who had been spending time with her most of the time. But every time he saw her, his calm composure would always falter. As time went by, he came to understand that he was longing for her.


    "You might have been lovers, but maybe he is no longer the one for you now." Zhuge Xing stayed silent for a moment before answering the question, and did not bother masking what he intended to say. He believed that Hua Jieyu was able to understand what he meant.


    The smile on Hua Jieyu''s face disappeared completely. She seemed to be reluctant to even spare a patronizing one for Zhuge Xing, despite him being a member of the Zhuge family.


    No one had any right to judge her relationship with Ye Futian, the boy whom she had been holding hands with near the lake back in Qingzhou. The one who had intruded the Nandou clan with a staff in his hand, and thumbed his nose at the emperor''s will. Their relationship was not one she would allow Zhuge Xing to judge. There was nothing she could have done to stop Zhuge Xing from saying what he wanted to say, but at the very least, she could still make her own decisions.


    "Please try not to appear before me ever again." Hints of disgust came from Hua Jieyu''s tone before she went to where Ye Futian was.


    Zhuge Xing''s eyes were stunned as he watched the beautiful girl before him take off. While she said ''please,'' it did not sound like a polite request at all. Zhuge Xing''s expressions looked bad as he saw Hua Jieyu making her way to Ye Futian.


    Is it really that wrong to even criticize him?


    Furthermore, he was saying that for her sake.


    The youths of the Zhuge family all looked funny before one said to Zhuge Xing, "We have nurtured and kept her around for more than two years, and still no chance of her making into the Zhuge family. What a pity."


    They spared a look at Ye Futian plainly. Everyone loved beautiful things, but none of them hoped for much in the first place. Despite this, they still hoped that Zhuge Xing was able to get his hands on her and make her a woman of the Zhuge family. From the looks of things, however, the Zhuge family seemed to have nurtured a Spiritual Divine Sorcerer, yet also handed a masterpiece to Ye Futian on a silver platter.


    Hua Jieyu took to the air, attracting the attention of many. Someone leaped over and got in her way, then burst the spiritual qi around him. All she did, however, was simply cast a cold glance at him. The person instantly felt as if his mind was torn off his body, the spiritual qi that he had control of was torn right there and then as if his body was entirely controlled by her.


    Hua Jieyu had always been a full attribute spiritual type sorcerer, and possessed powerful spiritual abilities. Her powers grew to fearsome levels after turning into a Spiritual Divine Sorcerer.


    Vines went on to encase the body of that person, holding him tight, rendering him caught. Lightning followed and with a loud crack, and the bolt fell hard onto the person''s body, making him tremble all over before falling below, having seizures all over.


    Hua Jieyu did not spare any more time on that person and kept going forward instead. Many who wanted to make a move on her held themselves back. The girl seemed to be a little too powerful.


    At the sky stairwell, many elders from the Holy Zhi Palace nodded in approval of her actions. Someone said softly, "Spiritual Divine Sorcerers were known as the Ultimate Sorcerer for their ability to suppress all other types of sorcerers. Even those of higher planes would fall before them."


    "Activating spells with a single thought, and a full attribute one. She is something indeed." Someone nodded at the side.


    The Spiritual Divine Sorcerer nurtured by the Zhuge family was definitely one to enter the very core island of the Holy Zhi Palace, and it was feared that many would fight for her.


    Hua Jieyu made it to Ye Futian''s side under everyone''s gaze. Gentleness was seen in Ye Futian''s eyes as he noticed her. He said, "I had no idea my girl would be someone this powerful."


    "That is all thanks to elder sister," Hua Jieyu said gently, with hints of gratitude in her voice.


    "Second sister is indeed a good one." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded, her eyes were fixed on Ye Futian.


    "Why are you looking at me like that?" Ye Futian rubbed his face without realizing it, seeing as how Hua Jieyu kept looking at him smiling.


    "That''s because you''re nice to look at." Hua Jieyu smiled brightly and held out her hand. "I haven''t seen that face for quite a while after all."


    Ye Futian grinned and took her hand. "You''ll have plenty of time to look at it in the days that follow."


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded as she smiled.


    "Nothing to do with me." Yu Sheng walked away sulking.

 545 Training using the Tablets

    The battle royale raged on in the battlefield. As time went by, fewer and fewer people remained standing, and the vast battlefield no longer seemed cramped anymore.


    Ye Futian and the others stood quietly at a corner. With the Sacred Fire Sect defeated, nobody dared move against them. However, it was not just Ye Futian. Many top-class figures remained standing tall in their own corners, nobody daring to move against them unless they were looking for a fight, kicking others out of the game.


    Eventually, the elder overseeing the battles at the sky stairwell announced, "Cease fighting." Many who were still engaged dispersed as soon as the announcement was heard. The Nine Word Ring at the nine major positions dimmed and the screen disappeared.


    The violent battle royale ended right there and then. It was rather harrowing seeing those left standing on the battlefield for everyone there, as only 3,000 people were left out of all the mighty ones who participated in the first place.


    The remaining 3,000 were, without doubt, some of the very best every corner of the Barren State had to offer.


    Many moved from the Holy Zhi Palace, cleaning up the battlefield and clearing out the injured or the dead. There were mighty ones from the Sacred Fire Sect carrying the body of Du Ao away with cold expressions on their faces. Of all the ones from Sacred Fire Sect who fought, only Xie Ji alone was left in the battlefield. It was hoped that he could show his mettle in the next battle and avenge Du Ao''s death.


    The battlefield was quickly cleaned up and the remaining 3,000 stood in staggered positions on the field.


    The elder on the sky stairwell looked at them and continued, "There will be holy tablets descending upon the next battlefield. Those who do not see themselves fit to continue, please leave the battlefield. Only 1,000 out of the 3,000 standing will remain. The 1,000 who remain will be the candidates to enter the Holy Zhi Palace. Many among these 1,000 will become disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace. As such, please do your best to withstand the pressure brought forth by the holy tablets."


    All 3,000 who remained right now were figures with serious backings. For instance, great forces like the royal family, the Zhuge family, White Cloud City, and others. None of them came and fought alone. Even Ye Futian had his entourage with him. Many of those who did not have allies before the battle royale found theirs in the battlefield. As such, while the 3,000 who remained were no doubt excellent figures themselves. The selection process was not a complete one.


    The pressure from the holy tablets coming up next would have selected 1,000 out of the 3,000, making them true candidates for entering the Holy Zhi Palace and becoming disciples.


    It all began from the nine Holy Roads. Through multiple selection processes throughout the journey, the best of the best among the Barren State elite were to be presented before the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "In the next stage, nobody will be allowed to rely on external instruments or implements of anything. Anyone who is found using such objects to resist the pressure from the holy tablets will be fouled immediately," the elder on the sky stairwell continued. Many mighty ones flashed about and came to the rear of the participants, unleashing formless pressures as if they were to isolate the battlefield.


    "The holy tablets now, please," the elder on the sky stairwell announced. The vast field turned eerily silent, and the ones standing far away looked in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace. Nine dazzling beams of light appeared and the winds howled in response. One holy tablet after another flew down from the sky stairwell and made their way down like ghosts.


    The holy tablets were as per their namesake, huge stone tablets, and each and every one of them was infused with different kinds of powers. Many below began to feel themselves trembling as the tablets made their way down, feeling a formless pressure bearing on them. Said pressures were so powerful that images popped in some of their minds.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Nine tablets descended from the sky and landed before the Holy Zhi Palace. Huge stone tablets of three zhang-tall each appeared before the masses and positioned in an arc.


    Bam, Bam! Rumbling noises were heard as soon as the holy tablets took their positions, and many were heard groaning. A considerable number of people were thrown off, and they kept going back.


    For cultivators, the strength of one''s spiritual will was the key to one''s training. This will was a kind of talent on its own, and one that was very, very important. If the strength of one''s spiritual will was weak, one could only go so far with their training. It was precisely this reason that the selection process with the holy tablets took place. Furthermore, participants only had their own prowess to rely on, and no one could help anyone.


    If one failed to pass the trial, they were out of the game immediately.


    At this very moment, Ye Futian took one step back to steady himself as well, his eyes staring right at the holy tablet before him. The tablet was a fiery red color. It felt as if a figure clad in terrifying flames walked out of the tablet as he fixed his eyes on it.


    The figure was a great one, seeming like a god of fire itself. It took fearsome steps in his direction, putting more pressure on him with every step. He instinctively wanted to retreat, yet what happened right there alone was part of the test, and he knew that retreating was not an option.


    Spiritual will attacks were some of the most mysterious powers there were. They did not look real, yet they felt every bit as real as tangible attacks. Ye Futian knew that the holy tablet stood where it was, yet what he saw at the moment was no longer a tablet, but a manifestation of flames taking steps in his directions, trying to burn him into cinders.


    He felt his own will and body burning, and it was an excruciating experience. The figure seemed far, yet it seemed near at the same time. It took one step after another at him, yet the figure never seemed to reach him. Despite this, the pressure grew as every second passed, making things feel more and more unbearable.


    Sun flare flashed and blossomed, and a sun was seen right behind Ye Futian. As the will of the flames were unleashed, he closed his eyes to bear the might of the violent burning intent, resisting the pain adamantly. He even began to comprehend the terrifyingly fiery powers within.


    "Jieyu," Ye Futian shouted softly, out of concern for her. The advent of the holy tablets brought nothing but unbearable pain to everyone present. Any lapse in concentration could have brought the thorough collapse of one''s will.


    The test could have been conducted by mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace by having their imposingly powerful bodies unleash the amount of pressure required. However, as no one was entirely clear of selfish motives, absolute fairness could not have been guaranteed. The holy tablets, however, ensured the same amount of pressures was put on everyone. Anyone who failed to withstand such pressure would be eliminated.


    Hua Jieyu was withstanding excruciating pain herself. She was sitting right beside Ye Futian, conjuring a formless spiritual power and encasing herself in it to resist the overwhelming pressure.


    Boom! Someone was struck by lightning and thrown off immediately, landing hard on the ground and throwing up blood. Sages outside the battlefield came to their aid, swooping down from above and hauling the person outside. That person was apparently one who simply lacked the strength yet chose to hold out nonetheless, and their body finally gave under the immense pressure. Some of those who followed the geniuses were eliminated one by one as well.


    There were also Starry School students by his side who gave under the pressure. Qin Yin''s body shook lightly, and excruciating pain was easily seen from her face. She threw up blood all of a sudden as her body shuddered. She was thrown behind and was kicked out of the battlefield right there and then.


    The pressure lifted off her immediately. Qin Yin turned to look in Ye Futian''s direction. Xuanyuan Bashan, Xie Wuji and Zui Qianchou remained where they were, holding on, yet she, the daughter of the Sage of Mount Jiuxian, failed.


    Her eyes looked dejected. Qn Yin knew it was probably due to her esteemed status on Mount Jiuxian and being a daughter doted on by her father. Her birth and status resulted in her lacking in experience with the world, and she had never withstood such pain in her life. All that resulted in her weak will in the face of intense pressure.


    An esteemed family background did not guarantee excellent talents after all.


    There were many who were born into high places, yet those who truly shone were those who were able to make out on their own.


    "Seems like I''m less capable than even a bird." Qin Yin looked at the Black Wind Condor right behind Ye Futian. The demonic beast remained seated quietly, and she had not expected the bird to have such remarkable prowess.


    More and more people got eliminated, and the field was quickly reduced from 3,000 participants to about 2,000. The rate of reduction slowed somewhat after that, yet there were still many who gave out and were eliminated.


    On the battlefield, Huang Jiuge''s body remained upright, and three beams of glittering royal aura were released. He looked impressively regal, and it seemed he was engaged in some battle of wills, bringing his might to bear on his opponent.


    On the other side, Bai Ze''s, from White Cloud City, clothes were billowing and he looked just as impressive. His eyes remained fixed on the holy tablet, and it seemed that he held out well against the pressure.


    Xue Que of the Tingxue House was practically clad in intense murderous intent, flaring about and cutting up any stream of will that intruded.


    The nine swords rang behind Yan Jiu and they danced around him. The sword wills were as sharp as ever.


    All those top class geniuses had already comprehended the noble will and sported power spiritual will. It was due to this that they were able to withstand such tremendous pressure, with some even fighting the wills that were intruding their minds.


    Ye Futian withstood the pressure hard, yet he did not use the power of the emperor''s will. The pressure would have been nothing to him if he did so. As the process itself was a trial of sorts, he wanted to experience the strength of the pressure exuded by the holy tablets personally, as it would help a lot with his training. After all, in his fights in the days to come, there would definitely be those who would have simply bring the might of the noble will to bear on him through purely spiritual will attacks.


    Ye Futian gradually grew accustomed to the pressure of the fiery will. While the pressure was intense, feeling like terrifying flames burning up his mind, Ye Futian grew capable of withstanding its onslaught. He threw his eyes open and went on to face the second holy tablet. It was a purple tablet, one that seemed to be clad in countless streaks of lightning.


    The streaks of lightning fell onto him the moment Ye Futian laid eyes on that tablet. Terrifying will of lightning intruded his mind, making his body flinch. The streaks of lightning ran all over his body, with every streak feeling like he was being struck by lightning bolts. The air above him seemed to have manifested a formless lightning storm that was out to bomb everything below to dust. A figure clad in intense lightning seemed to be standing at the center of the space, casting down the power of lightning to attack him.


    Starry will appeared in his mind, protecting his spiritual will from being harmed. The stars that were protecting his will, however, were continuously blown off under the assault of the lightning bolts. It seemed to be a message telling him that if he were to continue, his mind would be blown to smithereens and he would die right there and then.


    The layer of protection by the stars collapsed again and again, yet sparks of lightning began to manifest within Ye Futian''s mind. The growth of the sparks continued and the lightning born within him grew stronger and stronger.


    A fearsome thunder dragon seemed to have emerged within his mind, unleashing terrifying lightning bolts itself to resist the intruding power of lightning. The power of lightning coursed through him and grew increasingly ferocious, turning into lightning storm out to crush everything himself.


    "So this is the power of the will of lightning then." Ye Futian kept his eyes forward and a flash of lightning sparked within his eyes, holding out against the pressure of the holy tablet. Lightning-elemental noble will was born within him.


    The holy tablets, when used to deepen one''s comprehension, seem to be able to serve as tools for training!

 546 The First Challenger

    Ye Futian had already comprehended fire, metal, and earth-elemental noble wills. As such, he was experienced in comprehending noble will, which enabled him to learn its way through its workings. Furthermore, he himself had all manners of Life Spirits corresponding to each element. If he had been able to open up more great ruins in the Holy Road, he would have been able to comprehend greater types of noble wills.


    As he had made it out of the Holy Road, the pressure emanated by the holy tablets bearing on his will could have also worked as a kind of power of will, and they each bore different elemental traits. As such, Ye Futian was able to use them to comprehend the power of the noble will.


    Of course, the starry will of earth element remained the most powerful out of all types of noble wills, followed by fire. It was because both will powers matched well with his training methods, especially the starry will. It was not something he had acquired from the ruins, but something he had learned solely from his own efforts. The flame intent was acquired from the Sun Scripture coupled with what he comprehended from the great ruins in the Flaming Prison City. As such, it became comparatively easy for him to comprehend the lightning will at the moment.


    After acquiring comprehension of the noble wills, Ye Futian''s attitude towards sensing the holy tablet pressures changed. It was not just a trial, but also an opportunity.


    All nine holy tablets seemed to have different types of spiritual will pressures based on different types of elements. When the lightning will inside him was secured, he protected his willpower with holy will, then turned his focus onto the holy tablet bearing water-elemental will. His mind seemed to be assaulted with an absolute will of ice, as if to implore him to stop thinking, turning everything absolutely silent. He even began to feel his body turning stiff, the spiritual qi coursing through his body and the blood flowing within all seemed to be told to stop by the intruding will.


    Fire was the yang, and water the yin. He recalled the Shadow Scripture practiced by the headmaster of the Bright Moon School and went on to activate it. The spiritual power of water became crystal clear to him, and it seemed that he was surrounded by mist and frost. A full moon hung above him, and Ye Futian felt his body shrouded in extreme coldness. Everywhere he searched was cold to the extreme, as if the space itself was entirely frozen.


    There were people who looked in Ye Futian''s direction and they looked at him funny. The guy seems to be resisting the intrusion of the power of wills, yet he seems to be training at the same time.


    "Is all that really bearable to someone who is only of Arcana Plane?" some murmured to themselves. But the assault from the pressure felt from the tablets would probably have been less intense to someone of the Arcana Plane.


    Ye Futian''s body felt incredibly cold after a while, and even those who sat beside him were covered in frost. His body seemed entirely be encased in a cage of frosty mist, while the cold light of the moon shone on his body. Power originating from the will of the yin gradually emanated from within. It was apparent that the noble will of water element was born within him as well.


    The number of people staying behind on the battlefield continued dwindling. Those who managed to stay were all extraordinary figures.


    Ye Futian knew he was running out of time. If he were to use the tablets for training, he needed to be quick with comprehending noble wills. He laid his eyes on yet another tablet soon after. It was one with wind-elemental will infused within, and he went on to comprehend its secret. Gales whipped up around him shortly after.


    Those who took notice of Ye Futian early on seemed to be more certain about their previous speculations about him. So this Arcana Plane guy is really using the will pressure of the tablets to train. Furthermore, he is training with powers of different elements.


    "That kid is sure an interesting one," one of the mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace standing near the sky stairwell quipped as he laid eyes on Ye Futian.


    "Interesting indeed. He hasn''t been able to develop any comprehension of noble will powers before, yet noble will seemed to appear within him one after another when he endured the pressure from the tablets. It seems that he has just gained comprehension of them." Someone nodded to the comment.


    "What is his name?" one of them asked.


    "Ye Futian from the Eastern Barren territory. The kid seems to have talents, and it was him who acquired the Ukiyo song on Sky Mountain. Now he has made it this far to the Holy Zhi Palace through the Holy Roads," the one who had been keeping tabs on him elaborated.


    "Both emperors left a guqin tune in the remote Sky Mountains in the Eastern Barren territory. It could be said to be the work of fate for him to get his hands on it, but many would have gotten it now." Someone turned their eyes on the other side of the sky stairwell. There was a figure sitting there quietly with a guqin in front of him, and it was no other than Bai Luli.


    Bai Luli had played the Ukiyo song before.


    "Luli, what do you think about that kid''s talents? One of his seniors seemed to have challenged you before," that person asked with a grin.


    Bai Luli recalled Gu Dongliu''s challenge, and there was admiration seen in his deep, clear eyes. "The teacher from the cottage in Eastern Barren territory was quite a marvelous figure himself, being able to nurture a disciple like the kid here. Given more time, Gu Dongliu would have made it to the Barren Sky Ranking. Mingyue was also someone from the cottage, and now the junior before us has talent as well. It''s a pity that his level is rather low at this point. If he had been able to come here when he had reached grade seven Noble Plane, he would have been able to do a lot more great things."


    Everyone nodded in agreement to Bai Luli''s apt comment.


    It was anyone''s guess how Ye Futian would have performed from here on out, and whether it would be good enough to keep their eyes on him. However, if Ye Futian proved excellent enough as a cultivator, there was still the question of taking him in and letting him train at the core islands of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The reason why Gu Dongliu had challenged Bai Luli was because Zhuge Mingyue and the Holy Zhi Palace were hoping that Bai Luli would have been a couple with Zhuge Mingyue. If it was done, there might have been a fissure between Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu, as well as the ones with Ye Futian. If they were to let Ye Futian train in the Holy Zhi Palace, it would have been anyone''s guess what Bai Luli would have thought about that. Perhaps Bai Luli himself, with his current status, would not care about things like that. However, it was imperative to consider such matters from the Holy Zhi Palace''s point of view.


    Bai Luli''s place in the Holy Zhi Palace was an extraordinary one. He was like the face of the palace itself.


    "The numbers are close," someone quipped without considering such problems, as it was still rather too early for them. Compared to the rest of the participants, Ye Futian was actually not that much of a standout.


    A voice came from the sky stairwell after all, "That will be all."


    The nine holy tablets took to the air and flew in the Holy Zhi Palace''s direction after the announcement was heard. Many sighed a breath of relief, feeling the air around them relax. Those geniuses, however, did not show much of a reaction, and they looked calm instead.


    Ye Futian felt the power of the will of the wind around him, and then quickly put it away. Time was too short indeed, and he was not able to keep training. However, he deemed himself to be doing well at the moment. Only the wood element was left out of the seven elements to be comprehended.


    Ye Futian stood up and turned to look at the ones behind him, finding several of them gone. Only Hua Jieyu, Yuan Zhan, Mu Zhiqiu, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Zui Qianchou, Xuanyuan Bashan, and the Black Wind Condor remained. Qin Yin and Xie Wuji were unable to make it. It was quite a pity, as it was time for the Holy Zhi Palace to select disciples to be taken in.


    Only 1,000 were left on the humungous battlefield, and the small number of people left had the place feeling rather empty. Everyone who remained on the battlefield, however, were true elites.


    Countless watched the ones who remained on the battlefield from the outside. Many were mighty ones from all over the Barren State, and some were from the Thousand Holy Islands.


    The true objective of the trials would take place soon, as it was time for the Holy Zhi Palace to pick their disciples. Those candidates had proven themselves by getting past the last round, meaning that they had earned the chance to be disciples of a training place that was thought to be the most powerful in all of the Barren State.


    The elder spoke on the sky stairwell, his eyes on everyone below, "Everyone, disperse and head to the edge of the battlefield."


    Everyone went rearward towards the edge of the platform. Ye Futian and his group took a corner for themselves.


    The air was tense.


    "And now, it will be time for the Holy Zhi Palace to select its disciples. The selection will be done through battle, using only one''s own powers, no implements or instruments of any kind allowed. Who among you is willing to be the first to accept the challenge?" the elder said at the stairwell.


    The remaining thousand all looked serious. The last stage was also the most important one, as it would determine if they were able to make it as a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace, determined by the battles that were about to take place. Only actual battles proved to be the one true standard for measuring one''s talents.


    "I will." A figure walked out among the huge group of people. Countless eyes went in that figure''s direction. That figure was someone walking out from beside Zhuge Xing. A member of the Zhuge family, Zhuge Ping.


    At the side of the Holy Zhi Palace sky stairwell, Zhuge Mingyue and Zhuge Canyang stood, feeling startled. They then saw Zhuge Ping cast his glance at a single spot, where Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu stood.


    "I will challenge him for my first battle." Zhuge Ping pointed at Ye Futian and sounded rather lazy as he said so.


    Ye Futian''s performance prior had been rather eye-catching as he took out Du Ao alone. However, that was mostly attributed to the immense powers of the superpowered ritual implement. With the actual battle coming up and Ye Futian''s level of training stuck at the Arcana Plane. It was anyone''s guess how someone not even on the Noble Plane would perform.


    Being able to come this place, there was hardly any doubt about Zhuge Ping''s talents. He was among the ones anticipated to come out on top among the younger generations of the Zhuge family.


    "It seems like it was Zhuge Xing who told me to come out," Zhuge Canyang murmured. "This is the first battle of the Zhuge family, and also Ye Futian''s first. Who do you think will come out on top?"


    "Zhuge Xing has had a thing for Hua Jieyu for quite a while, and Zhuge Ping was never one to know his place. This battle will serve as a good lesson to humble him." Zhuge Mingyue grinned. Not of Noble Plane, so what? My little brother in training is not someone that can be judged by usual standards.


    The interest of the ones standing outside was piqued as well. Zhuge Ping was a member of the Zhuge family, and Ye Futian was Hua Jieyu''s lover, as well as Zhuge Mingyue''s little brother studying under the same teacher. They should have been nice to each other instead. However, the first person Zhuge Ping, a member of the Zhuge family, had challenged was none other than Ye Futian, and it seemed to be a rather peculiar thing to happen. Regardless, the battle seemed to be an interesting one.


    "Chen Yuan, a member of Zhuge family just challenged your Son. What do you make of that?" Mu Chuan of the Zhaixing House asked Chen Yuan, who was beside him, seemingly taking pleasure in his upcoming misfortune.


    "We''ll see," Chen Yuan answered plainly.


    "Alright, I''ll look forward to it." Mu Chuan turned to look at the battlefield. Despite what he had just said, he was actually hoping that Ye Futian would win. The reason was none other than Ye Futian had defeated Mu Zhiqiu despite suffering a disadvantage in plane differences.


    Ye Futian walked out slowly, and there was nothing much to make from his expression. He lifted his brow slightly and looked at his opponent rather funnily. He had not expected that the first one to come to fight was someone from the Zhuge family, and the person they picked, was him!

 547 Disqualified

    Ye Futian walked up to the middle of the large battlefield and looked at Zhuge Ping standing opposite of him. Zhuge Ping was wearing a rather smug expression on his face. Being one of the elites from the Zhuge family, Zhuge Ping had absolute confidence in his abilities, especially when facing against someone of the Arcana Plane. He was not doing this to be chosen by the Holy Zhi Palace, as defeating someone on a lower plane would not show off his true capabilities, but he chose to fight Ye Futian first nonetheless.


    The very reason he was doing this was because of Hua Jieyu. She was, after all, a Spiritual Divine Sorcerer nurtured by the Zhuge family, and also one with looks so beautiful that men would kill for her. Letting someone like Ye Futian get his hands on a treasure was a notion that irked him incessantly. He was not the only one among the younger generations of the Zhuge family to think so. As such, when Zhuge Xing asked for him to fight, he did so without any hesitation or reservation. He was simply doing this to show Hua Jieyu that Ye Futian was not the man for her.


    Ye Futian was, of course, very clear why Zhuge Ping wanted to fight him. He could not have thought of any reason other than Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu''s smile has made many in the Zhuge family fall for her, I guess, he thought.


    Ye Futian smiled and cupped his hands. "Ye Futian, grade nine of Arcana Plane, halfway into the Noble Plane. I look forward to learning from you."


    "Arcana is Arcana and Noble is Noble. I have never heard of such a thing as half a Noble or whatever," Zhuge Ping said plainly. "Zhuge Ping from the Zhuge family, grade nine noble, and I look forward to teaching you real good."


    Lightning flashed the moment Zhuge Ping finished, and Ye Futian found himself in a world filled with lightning in his mind. Angry bolts flashed about in the battlefield, bringing thunderous might to bear down on Ye Futian. Zhuge Ping''s silhouette was nowhere to be found, and all everyone was able to see were mirages of lightning bolts.


    "Lightning Phantasm Movements." All cast their eyes on Zhuge Ping as he zipped about like a bolt of lightning.


    Ye Futian saw a finger infused with sparks coming right for him at his brow. The finger felt like a terrifying flash cutting through the air. The heavy pressure of Zhuge Ping''s will flashed inside his mind. The finger attack seemed more ferocious in both speed and power than that of a sword.


    "Thrusting Thunder Finger." Many continued to follow Zhuge Ping''s movements with their eyes. The Zhuge family was one of the two forces that were most known for their specialty in manipulating the power of lightning. The other being the Lightning Court in Zhongzhou City.


    Zhuge Ping blazed past with incredible speed as if he had truly turned into lightning.


    "Despite being rather cocky, Zhuge Ping has the actual strength to back it," the members of the Holy Zhi Palace quipped to Zhuge Canyang.


    Lightning flared on Ye Futian''s body at the moment as well. He cranked up his Thundering Illusion Steps and backed away quickly, appearing in the distance in the blink of an eye. Zhuge Ping''s Thrusting Thunder Finger shot out, and a terrifying flash stabbed through the air where he stood. If Ye Futian remained where he was, the consequences would have been dire.


    Zhuge Ping frowned. He had intended to overwhelm Ye Futian using the most direct of methods, yet he missed all the same, which spoke volumes of Ye Futian''s speed.


    Another flash of lightning was seen and Zhuge Ping was nowhere to be found again. He stretched his hand to grab Ye Futian, and streaks of lightning flashes seemed to coil around Ye Futian''s body like tentacles. Light of earth element glimmered before Ye Futian, conjuring a large meteor which was quickly crushed by the lightning. Ye Futian himself, however, continued moving backward.


    "What kind of fight is that? If that''s all he is capable of, it looks rather ugly." Many looked at Ye Futian. While there was no doubt that he was fast, he had avoided facing Zhuge Ping thus far. There was no doubt that his lower plane put him at a disadvantage, but fighting like this here made him look rather bad.


    Is this really that kind of person Hua Jieyu has fallen for? Zhuge Xing turned to look at Ye Futian and felt rather disappointed. He had expected Ye Futian to have performed better than what he had seen thus far.


    Lightning flashed wildly on the battlefield, yet Ye Futian avoided all confrontation, doing nothing but evading and defending against attacks. Zhuge Ping''s speed seemed inferior to Ye Futian''s, which angered him and made him unleash his Life Spirit. Illusions of lightning bolts appeared; a product of the Zhuge family''s most renowned art��the Thundering Thousand Illusions.


    Illusions of Zhuge Ping seemed to fill the battlefield in an instant, and he himself seemed to be bathed in the flashes of lightning as he went for Ye Futian. The illusions appeared around Ye Futian, locking him out. They said at the same time, "We''ll see where you can run to now."


    The place seemed to be drowned in flashes of lightning, and bolts rained down on Ye Futian. The many illusions of Zhuge Ping went for the fatal blow at the very next moment. Every illusion seemed to bear actual power as the Thrusting Thunder Finger jutted out at him. Watching how Ye Futian was simply standing unmoved, many thought the battle was going to end soon.


    However, a mist appeared on the battlefield. Extremely cold air shrouded the area and Zhuge Ping was only able to feel the flow of his blood slow. Everything in the world seemed to move in slow motion, seemingly grinding to a halt. Worse still, intense will of gravity seemed to have befallen him, making his movements even more sluggish.


    Ye Futian stood quietly where he was as he lifted his hand. Violet lightning coiled around his arm and he cast his eyes in one direction. This alerted Zhuge Ping and made him nervous, feeling a looming threat about him. How was Ye Futian able to determine where my true body was?


    Bam! Ye Futian stomped on the ground and a flash of lightning burst from beneath his feet. Many saw a flash of lightning that moved even faster than the one before. Zhuge Ping wanted to respond, yet his mind and body seemed to have become so sluggish that he was able to do nothing as Ye Futian zipped past him. The power of lightning coiled around Ye Futian''s arm rammed hard onto Zhuge Ping''s body, making his body flash with violent streaks of lightning for a second. His mind turned numb as his body suffered seizures.


    The Thundering Thousand Illusion dispersed and only Zhuge Ping''s body remained. People around saw his body fall from the air onto the ground, still seizing. It produces a light thump. Ye Futian, on the other hand, stood in the air right above him, and no more lightning was on his arm.


    He crushed Zhuge Ping, using the power of lightning. Staying silent and unmoved, lashing out only to kill.


    The victor was Ye Futian.


    Zhuge Ping came to a moment later, looking at Ye Futian right above him. He said coldly, "So you''ve been playing dumb all along?" Zhuge Ping was able to feel several types of powerful noble will within that one last strike.


    "I told you before. Halfway to the Noble Plane. It has been an honor." Ye Futian grinned as he cupped his hand, then left the battlefield in a flash. As Zhuge Ping was the challenger in that battle, Zhuge Ping was required to stay behind on the battlefield to be scrutinized.


    "That was low." Members of the Zhuge family looked at Ye Futian in anger. Playing dumb before bursting with one overpowering lightning attack, causing Zhuge Ping to lose for underestimating his opponent.


    Many had funny looks on their faces. Other than the very last move Ye Futian had demonstrated, there was no part of the fight that could have been considered magnificent. Zhuge Ping, on the other hand, was finished off before he was able to unleash his true potential for combat.


    What was truly shown was, however, Zhuge Ping''s arrogance costing him the victory that should have been his.


    Eyes looked in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, and many turned their attention to Zhuge Ping.


    "Is there anyone willing to take him under their wing?" the elder on the sky stairwell asked.


    "He was arrogant in battle and underestimated his enemy. There was nothing extraordinary seen there." Someone spoke the truth plainly and softly, and Zhuge Ping was rendered incredibly embarrassed.


    "It was rather disappointing indeed. Let''s move on with the next battle," someone said.


    "Indeed." The elder at the sky stairwell nodded. "Underestimating one''s enemy and then failing to defeat one of the Arcana Plane. There is no need for him to have another chance to battle. As no one here is willing to take him, I hereby declare him disqualified."


    Disqualified. The word sounded like a bolt of lightning striking right on top of his head. Zhuge Ping had been a proud one from the Zhuge family and had made it this far. He had made it far enough to become a candidate himself, and he should have been one to enter the Holy Zhi Palace. The fact was, however, that he had been disqualified in his very first battle, right there and then and without mercy. Nobody wanted him. It was humiliation like no other.


    "Sir, could you give me another chance?" Zhuge Ping looked at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The elder on the sky stairwell shook his head and said, "Leave the battlefield."


    Many around looked at Zhuge Ping at the battlefield and felt conflicted about the brutality of the selection process. Every battle at this point needed to be taken seriously. Everyone needed to give it their all at this point. Zhuge Ping might have had the right to enter and train in the Holy Zhi Palace; even the mighty ones from the palace understood that. But it remained a fact that his performance was subpar, and there was no second chance for him.


    Zhuge Ping turned to glance at Ye Futian, eyes cold as ice. He lost all that pride as he walked out of the battlefield.


    Zhuge Xing cast a razor-sharp gaze at Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian was seen smiling and quietly standing where he was. His eyes returned the gaze, which made Zhuge Xing think that this had been Ye Futian''s plan all along: humiliating Zhuge Ping as he did and sending Zhuge Ping off in disgrace.


    This is too much. A light smile was seen on Zhuge Mingyue''s face instead. So this little brother was still that same little brother that we knew. Cute indeed. I''m sure this is one lesson that Zhuge Ping will never forget.


    "Well, he did win, but he seems to lack something. There was no air of a top-class mighty one about him," Zhuge Canyang quipped plainly.


    "Well, some people are meant to be different. Don''t go measuring everything with your standards. That air you speak of, you will see it soon enough," Zhuge Mingyue replied in an equally plain manner.


    Elsewhere, in another corner, Ye Futian was doing something else.


    "Was that intentional?" Hua Jieyu came up to him and chuckled. She knew naturally that Ye Futian''s abilities were beyond what was seen earlier. He had not gone all out with his battle with Zhuge Ping.


    "How''s that possible? I''m an honest person." Ye Futian smiled, yet he looked at Zhuge Ping with rather sarcastic eyes nonetheless.


    He had heard Mu Zhiqiu talk about the rules in the last selection process before. Those who lost their battle, if they performed exceptionally enough, or if their opponents were simply too powerful and they were finished off right away, the Holy Zhi Palace would give them another chance. There were those like Huang Jiuge and Bai Ze after all. No one fighting them would have much of a chance showing what they were truly capable of fighting them.


    His battle with Zhuge Ping was different, however. He had been at a disadvantage all along. He had only able to turn the tables with the last lightning attack. It was Zhuge Ping who had underestimated his opponent, and he was of a much higher plane. It was only natural that he was disqualified right away.


    The ones from the Zhuge family wanted to humiliate him in ways that were apparent to Hua Jieyu. As such, in Ye Futian''s perspective, it was only natural that he returned the favor.


    "Yeah, I believe you." Hua Jieyu''s beautiful eyes looked at Ye Futian, and she knew everything that was going on in his head.

 548 Whose Stage?

    The rules of selection of the Holy Zhi Palace were very simple. Anyone who walked out would need to display his power and talents in actual combat. Regardless of whether he won or not, he would have a chance to be selected, as long as his performance was sufficiently outstanding.


    Everyone would try their best to display their talents and win the fight because they might be eliminated if they lost and were not selected by any sage of the Holy Zhi Palace. Those who won could continue battling even if they were not selected yet.


    Zhuge Ping was the first to fight. Unfortunately, he underestimated his opponent and lost. Moreover, the Holy Zhi Palace did not give him a second chance. This was indeed a very miserable ending for him. After all, he was a junior genius in the Zhuge Family and it was not easy for him to even reach this stage. There were only three people from the Zhuge Family in total.


    "Who will participate in the second battle?" the cultivator from the Holy Zhi Palace continued. The atmosphere in the battlefield became tenser. With the lesson learned from Zhuge Ping''s failure, nobody would dare to underestimate their opponents anymore. At the moment, everyone was just one step away from entering the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Me," someone said in a low tone. Then, everyone saw a person walk out. Realizing his identity, many people seemed to be surprised.


    Why did he actually walk out so soon?


    It was Xie Ji from the Sacred Fire Sect.


    Xie Ji was the most outstanding disciple from his clan in this generation, and his position was even higher than Du Ao. Of course, he was also more powerful and he was currently at the peak of grade seven of the Noble Plane. If he really fought, who would be able to deal with him except for a few top geniuses?


    Nevertheless, there were many people left on the battlefield. Nobody thought that Xie Ji would choose them as the opponent.


    Xie Ji turned his head and looked in a certain direction. Immediately, some surprise flashed across the faces of many. Then, Xie Ji pointed at Ye Futian and said, "You."


    Err�� Many people were bewildered. Xie Ji, who was a genius from the Sacred Fire Sect and also a grade seven noble, wanted to challenge someone in the Arcana Plane. It was almost like bullying.


    Clearly, Xie Ji chose so purely to get revenge on Du Ao, and not to display his talents so that he could be chosen by the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Huh? Can he even do this?" Yi Xiaoshi squinted. Lifting his head, he looked at the Holy Zhi Palace and asked, "Can I fight for him instead?"


    "No," the cultivator from the Holy Zhi Palace replied. "The rules of the elimination tournament are as such. Anyone can choose his opponent freely. Of course, the person being challenged can also admit defeat. After all, he is not the one whose performance will be assessed in this round."


    Ye Futian was the one being challenged, so it would not matter even if he lost. Later, he would have the chance to actively challenge other people to display his talents. Otherwise, it would be very unfair to those with lower levels, because they might be challenged by a much more powerful cultivator.


    Nevertheless, despite this being the case, Xie Ji seemed to be bullying Ye Futian with his status and level. Xie Ji would normally feel disdained to do so. However, Du Ao was killed, so his actions could be understood.


    "Don''t go." Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian. Yi Xiaoshi and the rest also shook their heads at Ye Futian.


    "It wouldn''t matter for me to just feel how strong he is," Ye Futian said, smiling. Then, he walked to the center of the arena.


    Xie Ji was one of the most powerful people present on the battlefield. Ye Futian really wanted to try how strong he was. Previously, Ye Futian had used the Polearm of Divine Destruction in the battles. At the moment, he did not have any ritual implement or Emperor Will. Xie Ji, who was a grade seven noble, was three levels above him. Furthermore, even among the grade seven nobles, Xie Ji was considered to have a superior combat power. The difference was indeed very large. However, since Ye Futian had arrived here, he would need to face opponents like Xie Ji anyway. It would be good for him to have some experience in advance.


    "Sacred Fire Sect Xie Ji, grade-7 noble." Xie Ji stared at Ye Futian with a gloomy look.


    "Let''s start." In the last battle, Ye Futian had already mentioned his name and level, so he did not repeat it.


    Once he finished speaking, a trace of dark flame appeared in the pupils of Xie Ji. A terrifying Noble Will charged directly into Ye Futian''s mind. At once, Ye Futian felt a frightening dark fire lotus appear in his Spiritual Will. The lotus grew and expanded continuously and released much pressure, trying to engulf and incinerate his will.


    It was still Noble Will. However, Xie Ji''s level was much higher than his, so the will was obviously much strong. In Ye Futian''s Spiritual Will, a mysterious radiance was born, much like the radiance from the stars. The pure radiance enveloped his Spiritual Will, protecting it from the erosion.


    Buzz! The appalling dark fire lotus started burning directly in Ye Futian''s mind. The attack was indeed dominating, trying to incinerate his Spiritual Will. It was already way more powerful than mere pressure from Noble Will.


    Xie Ji was a Spirit Elemental Mandate Sorcerer. Fire was only one of his abilities. Only a Spirit Elemental Sorcerer could do more than just pressuring his opponent with his Noble Will; he could launch an actual attack directly with Spiritual Energy.


    The pure starry radiance enveloped Ye Futian''s Spiritual Will and allowed the dark lotus to attack it freely, but its defense could not be broken. The radiance was the core of the Saint Will Ye Futian had inherited from the martial arts battlefield. The three beams of divine light came into being precisely from the core and could be controlled by it. That was why the chiefs of Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School would fall into Ye Futian''s trap and he even managed to secretly learn their techniques.


    Xie Ji launched an attack with his Spiritual Will directly; he was trying to kill Ye Futian.


    Realizing that the spiritual attack actually did not manage to destroy Ye Futian, Xie Ji started to control the fire-elemental Spiritual Qi around him. Immediately, many traces of dark flames appeared around Ye Futian, turning into many dark lotuses. Everyone lotus contained an enormous amount of destructive powers. Whenever a Spirit Elemental Mandate Sorcerer cast a spell, the casting speed and power of the spell would be higher.


    The dark lotuses circled rapidly around Ye Futian''s body, and a scorching wave of dark flames engulfed the region Ye Futian was in. Ice Will suddenly appeared and a layer of frost emerged around Ye Futian. However, under the scorching heat, the ice was evaporated directly, producing a sizzling sound. Xie Ji''s level was way higher than him.


    "Why is he still fighting?" Outside the arena, Li Qingyi, Qin Yin, and Loulan Xue were watching. Although they did not manage to stay on the battlefield, they were still paying close attention to Ye Futian''s battle. At the moment, they were all somewhat anxious.


    Suddenly, a powerful wave of meteorite storm appeared around Ye Futian. They turned into the Constitution of Stars, resisting the burning flames. The wildly rotating dark lotuses converged to form a huge dark lotus, enveloping Ye Futian''s body. The meteorite storm was engulfed directly, and many meteorites were burnt into nothingness.


    "Burn!" Xie Ji shouted coldly. The dark fire lotus engulfed everything in its path. At once, Ye Futian shot towards the sky like a bolt of lightning. The dark lotus closed, trying to incinerate Ye Futian inside it.


    A golden bolt of lightning flashed across the sky and Ye Futian managed to charge out. At the moment, he was wearing a golden piece of armor and showered in starry radiance. Around him, the radiance of the dark flames still seemed to be flowing. A terrifying air current exploded and only then did the flames slowly dissipate.


    "He''s actually not incinerated." Many people looked at Ye Futian, whose defense was really amazing.


    Xie Ji lifted his head and looked at Ye Futian. He extended his palm again, but Ye Futian smiled and said, "Nice attack. I admit defeat." Then, he backed off and exited from the stage, returning to his original position.


    Xie Ji glanced coldly at Ye Futian. Although the fight was short, he could already feel that Ye Futian was not weak. Both his Spiritual Energy and physical defense were way beyond that of an ordinary Arcana Plane cultivator. Even a grade eight noble would have been burnt to death under such an attack.


    Zhuge Xing looked at the scene emotionlessly. He did not walk up to the stage just now precisely because he knew that Ye Futian could admit defeat directly. It was pointless for him to challenge Ye Futian.


    Yan Jiu, Bing Yi, Chu Shang, and many people from Nantian House had also been paying attention to this battle.


    "Without the ritual implement, he indeed can''t make it far." Bing Yi looked at Ye Futian. It seemed like Ye Futian''s ritual implement was extremely powerful.


    "Xie Ji, are you willing to join an island of the Thousand Holy Islands to cultivate?" someone on the sky stairwell asked. Xie Ji looked in that direction and replied, "No."


    "Then you can go down first," the person said emotionlessly. Even though Xie Ji had only fought with Ye Futian, there were still people from the Thousand Holy Islands who were willing to accept Xie Ji. He rejected the offer, but it was also what they had expected.


    The Core Island of the Holy Zhi Palace would only choose its disciples among the last hundred people left. The top geniuses would certainly not choose to join any of the Thousand Holy Islands in advance. They would be part of the last hundred cultivators.


    "Next," the cultivator from the Holy Zhi Palace said.


    After that, many cultivators walked out one after another and challenged various people. Some people were chosen and entered the Holy Zhi Palace, while others performed poorly and were eliminated. Of course, a minority rejected the offers from the Thousand Holy Islands and wanted to stay in the arena. Their goal was obvious.


    As the battle continued, a few extremely outstanding geniuses also participated. For example, when Huang Jiuge from Sovereign Family walked out, he randomly chose a grade seven noble. He punched out and his Sovereign Spiritual Qi turned into a pure-blooded dragon. The overpowering attack crushed his opponent directly.


    When Xu Que from Tingxue House fought, a murderous aura filled the arena. He struck out his hand and a blood mark appeared on his opponent''s neck. He showed mercy because he was in an arena under the Holy Zhi Palace. Otherwise, his opponent would have been killed by a single attack.


    Zhuge Xing also took part in a battle. He only raised his hand and pointed in the air. A bolt of lightning penetrated across the sky and struck onto his opponent who immediately collapsed.


    When Bai Ze from White Cloud City attacked, many people could not even see what he had done before his opponent fell onto the ground.


    Chi Meng from Demon God Clan only stood there and his violent-looking body was unshakable. He managed to lift his opponent up easily as if he was actually a domineering demon god.


    Many other top geniuses from various places took part in the battle one after another and displayed their shocking combat powers. The people who were left behind were all elites, but the top geniuses seemed to be in another level. They were able to crush their opponents. Without any exception, these people rejected the offers from the Thousand Holy Islands. Their stage would only be the last part of the elimination tournament.


    Many people were looking forward to that, wondering how brilliant the battles would be when these people fought against each other.


    The night below the Holy Zhi Palace looked just like the day. A cultivator had cast a spell to create an illusion so that it would always be daytime in the arena. Nobody felt any fatigue, including the spectators.


    Eventually, a few hundred cultivators had walked out, many of which had real talents. The important figures of the Holy Zhi Palace looked at every battle with much interest.


    "Ultimately, this arena belongs to those people. It seems like I wouldn''t be able to see the scene that you have described." Zhuge Canyang glanced at Ye Futian and his friends who were in silence. There were too many outstanding people. In fact, he also believed in Zhuge Mingyue''s insight. If Ye Futian was a grade seven noble, he would be able to stand at the center of the battle stage. However, as an Arcana Plane cultivator, he was really too weak.


    Against the more powerful people, he might not even be able to fight. It was not just Zhuge Canyang. In fact, many people felt this way. As the battles continued, people began to pay less and less attention to Ye Futian. This arena did not belong to him.


    Suddenly, another cultivator walked out, attracting the eyes of many. Someone in the crowd said, "He''s Yan Nan from Sword Saint Villa. He is very talented in sword skills and not much weaker than Yan Jiu. His position in Sword Saint Villa is extraordinary because he''s very strong."


    Many people looked at Yan Nan. At the moment, everyone left behind in the arena could be considered as a genius.


    Yan Nan walked to the center of the arena and looked in Ye Futian''s direction. Previously, when Ye Futian took over their relic by force, he was also present, so he still remembered this clearly. However, he did not challenge Ye Futian again. Ye Futian was only in the Arcana Plane and he might admit defeat if he was challenged. How boring that would be.


    "You, come out." Yan Nan stared at Ye Wuchen, who was also a swordsman. Moreover, Ye Wuchen had inherited the relic from Flying Sword City.

 549 Get the F*** Over Here

    "Be careful," Ye Futian reminded softly. The cultivators from Sword Saint Villa looked really strong. All the people who were still there were certainly very powerful.


    Ye Wuchen nodded gently, after which he stepped forward and walked to the center of the arena. Many people stared at his single arm, as well as the sword he was carrying on his back. Was he a one-armed swordsman? Nobody knew what outstanding characteristics he had that had allowed him to stay until this moment.


    "Yan Nan, grade eight noble from Sword Saint Villa."


    "Ye Wuchen, grade nine noble."


    "Handicapped first." Yan Nan gestured at Ye Wuchen, signaling him to attack first, but the word "handicapped" was particularly grating. The people around Yan Nan all stared at him in surprise. With his status, he should not be humiliating another cultivator in such a way, unless there was some resentment between the two of them.


    The people from Dawn Road knew the exact reason. Clearly, Yan Nan who was from Sword Saint Villa was extremely unhappy that Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian had obtained the relic from Flying Sword City. It should be a place for him to cultivate instead. In his opinion, Ye Wuchen was an unknown one-armed person. What did Ye Wuchen have that had allowed him to inherit the relic that was supposed to belong to Sword Saint Villa?


    In reality, Yan Nan was indeed thinking this. A handicapped cultivator had inherited the relic that originally belonged to him and his clan mates. How humiliating��


    The faces of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng darkened at once and a cold beam of light flashed across their eyes. A faint, freezing aura was even emitted from Ye Futian''s body. On the other hand, Yu Sheng clenched his fists tightly, producing a crackling sound.


    Handicapped?


    They did not forget how Ye Wuchen''s other arm was cut off.


    Ye Wuchen''s pupils contracted and he glanced at Yan Nan, but he did not seem to have an intense reaction. In fact, he was even calmer than Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. He had already accepted the fact that he was one-armed a long time ago. Cultivators were supposed to cultivate their mentality, and his arm was already not too important to him. Ye Wuchen still vividly remembered his master''s words; it was more important for him as a swordsman to have a clear focus.


    Sword Will started to flow around Ye Wuchen and his entire body seemed to have turned into a sword itself. A dazzling radiance erupted and thousands of swords circled around him, awaiting their orders. Together, they produced a loud clanking.


    Ye Wuchen pointed his finger forward. Right away, the thousands of swords charged towards Yan Nan like rain.


    Yan Nan stared at Ye Wuchen''s action coldly. Was Ye Wuchen trying to show off his sword skills before him?


    Behind Yan Nan, a beam of light bloomed and a huge sword seemed to have appeared. Immediately, a vast amount of Sword Will swept over and converged together. The huge sword solidified gradually and a terrifying storm made from Sword Qi emerged around it. The huge sword vibrated, after which it struck forward as if it had been drawn out of its sheath.


    Nine Swords of the Celestials, Edgeless Great Sword.


    Instantly, the huge sword struck out, even the incoming Sword Qi from Ye Wuchen seemed to have stopped flowing. Then, the Sword Will all bypassed the huge sword.


    Both of them were swordsmen. However, Yan Nan was a grade eight noble, while Ye Wuchen was only grade nine. With a higher level, Yan Nan''s Sword Will was purer and more powerful, and certainly much stronger than an ordinary swordsman. However, the Sword Qi coming from Ye Wuchen did not stop. Instead, the Sword Qi which filled the sky only charged over wildly. He had obtained the inheritance of a sage from the Holy Zhi Palace in Flying Sword City, so he was clearly stronger.


    Suddenly, the Sword Will in the sky turned into many swords in an orderly manner. Then, they unified and actually charged towards the same place, colliding with the light screen around the incoming huge sword.


    An ear-piercing noise erupted and everyone stared attentively at the battlefield. Sword Qi blotted out the sky, producing a spectacular sight. Gradually, many cracks appeared on the light screen around the huge sword, after which it cracked open. An endless amount of Sword Will pierced towards the huge sword. In the end, even the edgeless great sword had countless cracks on it and it eventually broke into pieces, dissipating into nothingness.


    Yan Nan glanced coldly at Ye Wuchen. He is not too weak, he thought. Then, Yan Nan flashed forward and passed through the endless Sword Will like a sharp sword himself. He appeared in the sky, and another sword appeared behind him. The sword penetrated across the air like a bolt of lightning, crushing the Sword Qi in its path. With a speed that was too fast to be seen by the naked eye, the sword charged towards Ye Wuchen''s forehead directly.


    Many people held their breaths. The sword was so fast that they could hardly see anything. It was more like a beam of light.


    It was the Sword of Light in the Nine Swords of the Celestials.


    At the moment, a brilliant wave of Sword Will emerged from in between Ye Wuchen''s eyebrows, after which the powerful Sword Will turned into a sharp sword, shooting forward. The two lightning-like beams of light crashed into each other. Ye Wuchen backed off, but suddenly, he felt an intense sense of danger.


    Ye Wuchen''s body suddenly moved to the right, leaving an afterimage behind. Following a soft thud, Ye Wuchen''s left sleeve was cut into two directly. A blade of light flashed across and was hardly visible to the eyes.


    So close! Everyone stared at the arena.


    "The Nine Swords of the Celestials from Sword Saint Villa. This is the Swords of Light and Darkness. The Swords of Light are exposed, while the Swords of Darkness are hidden. I didn''t expect Yan Nan to be skilled in this technique. It is quite rare," looking at the scene, an important figure from the Holy Zhi Palace praised.


    "You should be grateful that you''re handicapped," Yan Nan said. Ye Wuchen looked at the sleeve that had been cut into two, and it was empty inside.


    "Wuchen!" Ye Futian was somewhat anxious. He knew Ye Wuchen very well. Due to his personality, Ye Wuchen would not admit defeat easily when it came to swordsmanship. He would rather be severely injured than admit defeat. Moreover, Yan Nan was a dangerous person.


    At the moment, Ye Wuchen looked at Yan Nan, who extended his finger. Realizing that there was some Sword Will flowing around the tip of Yan Nan''s finger, Ye Wuchen closed his eyes.


    The Swords of Light could be seen, but the Swords of Darkness were hard to block. With his understanding of swordsmanship, Ye Wuchen should not have missed that out, but he did not manage to detect the Sword of Darkness at all. This meant that the Sword of Darkness was really powerful. Since his eyes were useless here, Ye Wuchen had decided to close them.


    "It seems like you don''t even want your eyes," Yan Nan sneered. However, suddenly, he saw Ye Wuchen who was showered in endless Sword Qi move, charging towards him like a sharp sword.


    Yan Nan pointed his finger at the sky. At once, an infinite amount of Sword Qi converged into a huge sword which fell down from the sky. It struck towards Ye Wuchen, attempting to crush everything in its path.


    The Sword Qi around Ye Wuchen danced wildly and swept towards the sky. However, Yan Nan also stepped forward, walking towards Ye Wuchen.


    A battle between two swordsmen was always the most dangerous. In just one strike, one of them could be killed. In addition, melee combat between two swordsmen would be several times more dangerous. However, Ye Wuchen was fearless, so Yan Nan would not be scared as well.


    The Sword Qi above Ye Wuchen collided wildly with the huge sword. On the other hand, many swords appeared in front of Yan Nan. As he pointed his finger forward, the Swords of Light were activated. Every single sword turned into a beam of light, charging towards Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen similarly pointed his finger forward. Right away, several sword veils appeared before him and converged into one. Then, it turned into nine beams of Sword Qi, striking towards the Swords of Light. They collided in midair. However, Ye Wuchen felt an intense sense of danger again, just like a while ago. At the moment, Ye Wuchen was clearly focused and time seemed to have slowed down for him. He could feel intense fluctuations coming from the Swords of Darkness in several places before him. This time, it was not just one sword. Instead, there were three beams of Sword Qi coming from three different directions, blocking all possible paths to dodge.


    Suddenly, a brilliant radiance erupted from Ye Wuchen. A bright blade of light appeared above his sword body as he dashed forward. At the moment, his body had combined with his sword, his sword had combined with his will, and his will had combined with his heart.


    Buzz... The three terrifying Swords of Darkness brushed past Ye Wuchen''s body, after which they actually collided with each other, sending out a horrifying force. On the other hand, Ye Wuchen had managed to close the distance between him and Yan Nan.


    "He dodged it." The powerful cultivators all looked at Ye Wuchen in surprise. With their levels, they could clearly see what had happened in the arena.


    Yan Nan frowned, but he did not seem to be too bothered. There was still a frightening power on his fingertip. However, out of a sudden, Ye Wuchen who was before him opened his eyes, his eyes as bright as the blade of a sword. In the next instant, Yan Nan saw an appalling sharp sword strike towards his throat. He sneered, after which his palm turned into a sword and swept out. A sharp noise was produced, but his attack somehow missed. Then, an intense feeling of danger befell Yan Nan and his heart pounded fiercely. This was an Illusory Sword Technique.


    Stepping in the air, Yan Nan retreated backward, and a strong wave of Sword Will appeared before him, protecting him. Then, he felt a sharp sword pierce towards him. If he was slightly slower, his throat would have been slit open.


    The sword that he had seen was actually illusory. The real fatal blow came slower than what he had seen.


    Suddenly, Yan Nan saw another two blades of light charging towards him. Just as he was thinking for a strategy, he felt another sense of danger. He sped up and his body seemed to have turned into a sword. However, instead of moving forward, he was trying to back away.


    Yan Nan formed a sword seal with his hands and a powerful sword veil appeared before him. Ye Wuchen''s attack finally arrived, and the second strike was faster than what Yan Nan had seen. It was an Illusory Sword Technique. Whatever Yan Nan was seeing was all illusory.


    Indeed, Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique could be considered as an Illusory Sword Technique. Moreover, Ye Wuchen had merged his Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique with his understanding of swordsmanship, fusing it with the aggressive technique that he had obtained from the relic. At the moment, thousands of waves of Sword Qi charged out. This was the Sword of Chaos. Yan Nan''s face turned pale; he did not know which swords were real and which were illusory.


    Yan Nan put his hands together and thousands of swords gathered around him. He no longer attempted to attack and could only defend, guarding his body with Sword Qi. Immediately, his body was enveloped in a sword veil.


    Suddenly, Ye Wuchen appeared before him. The one-armed swordsman strolled in the air and an endless amount of Sword Qi in the sky converged towards him, growing in strength as time passed. Everyone could only see countless swords floating around Ye Wuchen, producing a clanking sound. In the sky, more and more swords gathered around him.


    "Strike!" Ye Wuchen pointed his finger forward. At once, an infinite amount of Sword Qi shot towards a certain place. Everyone saw a sword rain charging towards the same spot. Almost immediately, cracks appeared on Yan Nan''s defense.


    "Yan Nan, admit defeat!" Yan Jiu who was at the edge of the arena shouted. Swordsmen were known for their aggressiveness. They could crush all defenses, but their own defense was comparatively much weaker.


    Previously, Yan Nan had gained an advantage in his attacks and was able to suppress Ye Wuchen. However, the situation of the battle flipped around out of a suddenly. Ye Wuchen was attacking Yan Nan with countless swords at the moment and Yan Nan was absolutely on the losing end. If this continued, Yan Nan would not only lose but he would also be killed.


    Yan Nan''s face turned very gloomy as he stared at Ye Wuchen in the sky. The sword veil around him was already on the verge of being crushed. Just then, Ye Wuchen raised his hand and the thousands of swords around him clanked.


    "I admit defeat!" Yan Nan roared, not resigned to his fate. Ye Wuchen''s finger stopped in the air, after which the Sword Qi dissipated.


    Countless people gazed at Ye Wuchen. This one-armed swordsman who had been keeping a low profile was humiliated by Yan Nan, being addressed as a handicapped. However, he actually defeated Yan Nan, a Sword Saint Villa disciple.


    He is actually also so strong, Li Qingyi, Qin Yin, and the other people from Dawn Road thought. It seemed like nobody with Ye Futian was weak, although their levels were somewhat low.


    Yan Nan''s face darkened as he stood blankly at his spot. He had actually lost.


    "I actually lost to a handicapped." Yan Nan gave a self-mocking smile. The word "handicapped" was still particularly grating. Raising his head, he looked at Ye Wuchen. "Is that what you learned from the relic?"


    Ye Wuchen glanced coldly at Yan Nan. Ignoring him, Ye Wuchen turned around and left. Since he could not kill Yan Nan, it was pointless to say anything else.


    "Wait," an elder from the Holy Zhi Palace suddenly said. "Ye Wuchen, do you want to join my island?"


    Ye Wuchen was the one being challenged, but his power was approved by the Holy Zhi Palace in this battle. Someone wanted to accept him as a disciple.


    "Thank you, but I would like to stay in the arena." Ye Wuchen bowed gently, after which he continued his way back. He had rejected the offer. Moreover, because he was the one who was challenged and had obtained the approval of the Holy Zhi Palace, he would not need to fight anytime soon.


    The elder did not say anything. He looked at Yan Nan and asked, "How about you?"


    Although Yan Nan had lost, his power was similarly approved.


    Yan Nan glanced emotionlessly at the back of Ye Wuchen. How could he accept something that Ye Wuchen had rejected?


    "No." Yan Nan turned around and left. Because he had obtained someone''s approval, he could still stay in the arena despite having lost. He was promoted to the next round.


    Both of them had actually rejected the offer. Clearly, they had greater ambitions. To Yan Nan, if he was to join the Thousand Holy Islands, he might as well stay in Sword Saint Villa.


    In the crowd, Chen Yuan said to Mu Chuan, "Did you see that? Even the person beside him can enter the Holy Zhi Palace. Moreover, he rejected the offer from the Thousand Holy Islands. I really don''t know why you''re always so proud before me."


    Zhaixing House had been acting superior just because Mu Zhifan was a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace. Now, Chen Yuan was almost elated.


    Behind him, Mu Zhifan''s face darkened. Indeed, even Ye Wuchen could enter the Holy Zhi Palace. The reason that he had been so complacent seemed insignificant at the moment.


    The arena was somewhat silent. The battle between the two evenly matched swordsmen just now was very remarkable.


    Ye Wuchen returned to the side of the arena. Ye Futian looked at his sleeve which had been cut off and asked softly, "Are you injured?"


    Ye Wuchen shook his head gently and did not say anything else. His handsome face looked very calm, but Ye Futian did not know what he was thinking. Nevertheless, anyone who was humiliated as a handicapped would certainly be furious. Moreover, Ye Wuchen''s broken arm was indeed his major flaw.


    "Next," the person on the sky stairwell said.


    "Me," someone replied. However, before the person could walk out, someone else in the crowd was already walking towards the center of the arena.


    Many people seemed to be very surprised. The person who walked out first was actually Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian strolled to the center of the arena and stopped. Ignoring the amused stares of everyone, he looked in a certain direction. It was where Ye Nan had just returned to.


    "Get the f*** over here," Ye Futian said, pointing at Yan Nan. After Yan Nan lost, he still called Ye Wuchen a handicapped. Ye Wuchen did not seem to mind, but Ye Futian did!

 550 Elder Ning Steps in

    When Ye Futian pointed at Yan Nan and shouted the three words, countless gazes landed on Ye Futian again. Previously, Xie Ji had challenged Ye Futian and he had conceded. After all, the difference in cultivation level was evident. Now, what confidence did he have to challenge Yan Nan?


    Yan Nan was a grade eight noble, also two cultivation levels higher than him. Moreover, Yan Nan''s potential was extraordinary, even though he had been defeated previously, it did not mean that his battle ability was not strong. How was Ye Futian going to surpass difference of two cultivation levels?


    Yan Nan also stared at Ye Futian ruthlessly. His previous defeat was already a humiliation to him. Now, the Arcana Plane Ye Futian actually dared to challenge him?


    He did not challenge Ye Futian, but Ye Wuchen, because Ye Futian had already conceded once. If he challenged him, Ye Futian would probably concede again, so he had chosen Ye Wuchen.


    Yet, after suffering a loss, Ye Futian had pointed his finger and him and ordered him to get the f**k over here.


    Ridiculous!


    Whoosh! Sword Will started to circulate around his body and Yan Nan''s body dashed forward like a sword being pulled from its sheath, heading for the center of the battlefield.


    "Since you want to scram, I''ll grant you your wish," Yan Nan said as he walked in the air. This fight, Ye Futian was the challenger. As long as he could crush Ye Futian convincingly, he would be eliminated with another loss. He would not even have the right to enter the Thousand Holy Island.


    Behind him, a sword floated in the air, countless Sword Wills surrounded the shadow sword and the Edgeless Great Sword appeared again. With every step he took, it was as though a Sword Will pierced Ye Futian''s body.


    Around Ye Futian''s body, meteorites started to form. It was like a starry dimension above his head with brilliant meteorites revolving around his body, providing a sturdy defense.


    However, Yan Nan was a swordsman and had a terrifying attacking ability. He would not care about the defense of an Arcana Plane cultivator, he would slice through it like a hot knife through butter.


    If Ye Wuchen had not cast the Illusory Sword Technique at the end, his offense would not have been defeated.


    Hummmm! An intimidating aura descended and Yan Nan''s Life Spirit turned into a Great Sword and swung down towards Ye Futian, tearing through everything in its way. If he had the chance, he would definitely kill Ye Futian without hesitation.


    As the Edgeless Great Sword dropped from the sky, the meteorites it came into contact with were all shattered into dust. The starry defense was unable to stand up to the might of the sword and were all crushed.


    "Die!" Yan Nan exclaimed mercilessly, his Great Sword increasing in speed all of a sudden and slashing towards Ye Futian''s body.


    Ye Futian retreated and the Great Sword pierced into the ground with a huge thud.


    "Is this what allowed you to be arrogant?" Yan Nan looked at Ye Futian sarcastically. His Great Sword humming, it started to chase Ye Futian again, but Ye Futian''s speed was still extremely fast, just like his previous battle with Zhuge Ping, he was mainly dodging.


    Crash! The Sword Qi shattered and the Sword Life Spirit returned to Yan Nan. Yan Nan looked mercilessly at Ye Futian and thought, since the great sword can''t catch up, I''ll use the sword of light.


    Yan Nan''s body turned into a sword ray and charged towards Ye Futian. Wherever his body passed by, the sword would roar and countless Sword Qi moved alongside his body towards Ye Futian.


    "Kill!" With a resounding roar, the light sword''s shadows tore through the air like flashes of lightning towards Ye Futian''s body.


    However, at that moment, an invisible gravity and frost will appeared in the heavens and everything felt like it had slowed down. Ye Futian''s hands struck out and large golden palm prints manifested, colliding with the swords of light. However, the palm prints were pierced through and destroyed, but the might of the swords were also weakened and unable to threaten him.


    At the same time, the shadow blades appeared out of the blue, but Ye Futian transformed into the constellations, the glimmer of the stars surrounding him. As the shadow blades slashed towards him, all they could hear was bam, bam, bam�� Three consecutive rumbles later, the Starry Defense had cracks in it, as though if another attack was to land, it would crumble to pieces.


    "Still not admitting your defeat?" Yan Nan sneered. He stretched out his arm, his Sword Life Spirit appearing in his palm. An imposing Sword Qi circulated in his palm and in a flash, his body was headed straight towards Ye Futian.


    "Be careful!" On the outside, Li Qingyi who was watching the battle shouted out instinctively.


    She could see that Yan Nan wanted to kill Ye Futian.


    A horrifying amount of lightning circulated around Ye Futian''s body and the Thunder God''s Aegis appeared in front of him. Yan Nan descended in front of him and slashed out with his blade. Numerous sword shadows appeared in the heavens and slashed on the aegis, cleaving it apart.


    "The Punishment of the Thunder God." A sharp glint appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes as the lightning in the shattered Thunder God''s Aegis remained in the air. The golden-purple lightning gleamed as it rushed towards Yan Nan''s body along his sword. With the speed of lightning, the Punishment of the Thunder God landed on him as he tried to approach for a close-range strike. However, a sword veil circulated around Yan Nan''s body and as the lightning rushed towards him, Yan Nan could only feel his Spiritual Will and body both becoming numb, like he was struck by lightning.


    Nonetheless, his sword strike did not stop. If Ye Futian dared to be so insane, then he would die.


    As the sword landed, it did not cleave Ye Futian''s body in two, as golden vines started to appear and tangle around Yan Nan''s sword. The hardy vines were successively sliced apart and Sword Qi simultaneously rushed towards Ye Futian. However, at that moment, a pair of giant shining Roc wings appeared on Ye Futian''s back and folded up, shielding Ye Futian from the onslaught of the Sword Qi.


    At the same time, Ye Futian''s wings shuddered and he transformed into a flash of golden lightning.


    Yan Nan felt that something was amiss and let go of his sword, retreating. However, the gravity and frost will had affected his speed.


    "Scram." Yan Nan saw Ye Futian rushing towards him and his finger pointed forward, Sword Qi rushing forth. However, he only saw a golden after-image and felt wind and thunder. The Roc''s wings, Thundering Illusion Step and Wind Aviation. When the three of them were used together, how fast could one get?


    Yan Nan could see the golden after-image being magnified in his field of vision, curving in a perfect arc, avoiding his Sword Qi. A fearsome sword veil appeared around Yan Nan''s body, he had been forced to defend once again.


    "Freeze," Ye Futian growled and the frost spell landed. Yan Nan''s blood felt as though it was about to stop flowing and his speed decreased yet again. However, the sword veil around his body shattered the oncoming frost will.


    However, at that moment, Ye Futian had already reached and a golden after-image appeared above Yan Nan''s head. He immediately cast the Fatal Entanglement and terrifying golden vines constricted Yan Nan''s head, then his arms and legs.


    Many people''s expression paled, especially Yan Jiu, who looked especially grim. What was Ye Futian trying to do? He was controlling Yan Nan, not allowing him to concede defeat.


    A muffled howl sounded out, Yan Nan''s throat had been constricted and he was unable to control the flow of his Sword Will. He had been completely restrained in the air.


    "Let go of him, he admitted his defeat," Yan Jiu shouted.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked menacingly at Yan Jiu, then replied emotionlessly, "I heard nothing." As he finished speaking, the golden vines pierced through Yan Nan''s arms, severing all the tendons in his arms. Yan Nan trembled in pain as the vines around his neck and head disappeared, only then could they hear his screaming voice.


    "Since he''s already disabled, there''s no need for him to stay," Ye Futian said nonchalantly, the vines flinging Yan Nan a distance away. Yan Jiu moved in a flash and caught his body, only to see Yan Nan''s arms dangling helplessly. His eyes filled with killing intent.


    "I''ve been disabled?" Yan Nan''s body shuddered, unable to believe that it was real.


    Yan Jiu looked at Yan Nan and said, "Even with broken arms, you will still be able to cultivate."


    That was all he could do to console him.


    Yan Nan''s eyes filled with agony, as though blood could drip out of them. He had extraordinary potential and wanted to enter the Holy Zhi Palace to spread the name of the Sword Saint Villa. However, he had been disabled by an Arcana Plane cultivator, no less.


    Many gazes landed on Ye Futian and Yan Nan. To Yan Nan, it was a tragedy. The genius of the Sword Saint Villa, disabled in both arms.


    How cruel of Ye Futian. Just because Yan Nan insulted Ye Wuchen for being crippled, he turned Yan Nan into a cripple.


    "Everyone." At that moment, on the sky stairwell, the elder hosting the battles looked towards the experts from the Holy Zhi Palace to see if anyone was willing to take in Ye Futian.


    "Intentionally controlling others so that they are unable to concede defeat and disabling one''s arms in a battle. His methods are too sinister," a gruff voice sounded out. Many people looked towards the person who had spoken, it was a Sage Plane figure from the Thousand Holy Island.


    Ye Futian heard the voice and raised his head in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace. Sinister? The elders from the Holy Zhi Palace should have seen that Yan Nan''s battling methods were attempts on his life.


    "I''ve heard that this person has come from the Dawn Road and is a bloodthirsty and cruel individual," another person agreed.


    Ye Futian had a glint in his eyes and felt that something was amiss. There was someone who was targeting him. He did not know anyone from the Holy Zhi Palace, if there was someone he had offended, it would be Ning Huang''s elder. He did not know if Ning Huang''s elder was among the two people that had spoken.


    Elder Ning was not among the two that had spoken. At that moment, he was in a location high up and the Ning Clan was there as well, watching the scene quietly. Moreover, Elder Ning was drinking a cup of tea leisurely. With his position and status, why would he get involved personally?


    If Ye Futian were to enter the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate, it would not be that easy to kill him.


    To him, an Arcana Plane cultivator was not worth mentioning. If he valued that person''s potential, that person would be a genius, but if he did not like that person, he would be but a mere ant.


    Although the potential that Ye Futian had just revealed was acceptable, he had killed Ning Huang. Ning Huang was the successor that he had handpicked, and he heard that they had even taken the ritual implement he had given Ning Huang. How impudent.


    That was why he wanted to stop Ye Futian from entering the Holy Zhi Palace. As long as Ye Futian did not enter the Palace, killing him would be as easy as squashing an ant.


    Of course, he was not in a hurry, neither would he step in himself.


    Because of the two voices, nobody spoke for a period of time, causing the scenario to become awkward. As an Arcana Plane cultivator who had disabled Yan Nan''s arms, he should have been vigorously fought for!

 551 The Perfect Man

    "I don''t agree with that." Suddenly, a gentle-looking middle-aged man from the Holy Zhi Palace smiled and said, "Yan Nan challenged another person and even humiliated him verbally. Moreover, he was cruel in the battle, wanting to kill his opponent. If he had the chance, he would definitely kill Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian. It is obvious that there is some resentment between them."


    "Yan Nan did not manage to do what he wanted to. I don''t think there is anything wrong with Ye Futian''s response. As for what happened in Dawn Road, I''m not too sure, but since the Holy Roads are organized by the Holy Zhi Palace, whatever that has happened there is certainly within our rules." The middle-aged man looked at Ye Futian and asked, "Do you want to join my island?"


    Many people stared at the middle-aged man calmly. They roughly knew why the two sages earlier would make things difficult for Ye Futian.


    The elder on the sky stairwell nodded. Looking at Ye Futian, he asked, "Are you willing?"


    Ye Futian looked in the direction where the middle-aged man was at. He bowed gently and replied, "Thank you, senior. However, I would like to stay in the arena and continue fighting."


    "Alright." The middle-aged man nodded, smiling. "You indeed have the chance to cultivate in the holy island. Seize the opportunity."


    "Thank you." Ye Futian nodded. Then, he backed off from the arena and returned to his original position.


    He actually rejected it. Many people were surprised. Ye Futian was in the Arcana Plane and yet he did not grasp the opportunity. It seemed like he wanted to enter the Core Island.


    He was indeed ambitious. Nevertheless, it was extremely difficult to enter the Core Island.


    Elder Ning was still drinking his tea quietly. Just like what he had expected, there was still someone who invited Ye Futian. He was also not surprised by Ye Futian''s rejection. Ning Huang had died because of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. How could they be satisfied by the Thousand Holy Islands?


    Suddenly, another person walked out. When he appeared, everyone''s eyes froze again. The person was Yan Jiu from Sword Saint Villa. Clearly, he was going to take revenge.


    "I challenge Hua Jieyu." Yan Jiu looked at the lady beside Ye Futian. A strange expression appeared on the faces of many. Ye Futian had disabled Yan Nan''s arms, while Yan Jiu challenged Hua Jieyu, Ye Futian''s girlfriend. He was deliberately trying to humiliate Ye Futian. Although Hua Jieyu was a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, she had only just entered the Noble Plane. She was clearly no match for Yan Jiu.


    A cold beam of light immediately erupted from Ye Futian''s eyes as he stared at Yan Jiu, who was also looking at him. If Hua Jieyu rejected the challenge, Yan Jiu would challenge the people beside Ye Futian one by one. As long as nobody responded to his challenge, he could continue doing so to humiliate Ye Futian and his friends. If, however, someone accepted the challenge, he would surely not show any mercy.


    Zhuge Canyang and Zhuge Mingyue looked at the arena below them emotionlessly. The juniors from Sword Saint Villa were really unruly. If Yan Jiu challenged Zhuge Xing, they would naturally not say anything. However, by challenging Hua Jieyu, he was obviously trying to humiliate Ye Futian instead of displaying his power.


    "Jieyu, don''t go," Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu. He knew that Yan Jiu would not show mercy.


    "I''ll try." Hua Jieyu smiled gently at Ye Futian. Seeing Ye Futian shake his head, she smiled and said, "Just now, you also responded to Xie Ji''s challenge, didn''t you? If I cannot continue, I''ll admit defeat."


    "Be careful then!" Ye Futian nodded.


    "Of course," Hua Jieyu responded. Then, she flashed and walked gracefully towards the center of the arena, attracting countless stares. Even if she rejected the challenge, Yan Jiu would not give up so easily.


    Yan Jiu stared at the charming figure before him. Ye Futian was really lucky to have her.


    "Are you ready?" Yan Jiu asked.


    "Let''s begin," Hua Jieyu replied.


    Just as she finished speaking, Sword Qi whizzed over from Yan Jiu''s body. At once, many straight lightning-like swords shot towards Hua Jieyu. At the same time, a terrifying sword aurora erupted from Yan Jiu''s sharp eyes. It was as if a sword hidden inside his pupils was charging towards Hua Jieyu''s eyes.


    Hua Jieyu released her Life Spirit and Dharma. Immediately, a seven-colored crown appeared and her already alluring body looked even more like an empress. An invisible wave of Spiritual Energy enveloped the arena. The incoming brilliant Sword Qi seemed to have slowed and was covered with frost. Then, the sharp swords vibrated violently and buzzed, after which they were crushed into nothingness.


    Yan Jiu jumped into the air. Sword Qi filled the sky and blotted out the sun. As he pointed his finger forward, a frightening wave of sword rain fell down from the sky.


    Hua Jieyu raised her head and a brilliant radiance bloomed from her pupils. The crown vibrated and an appalling wave of Spiritual Energy engulfed the sky. When the sword rain arrived, the sharp swords actually changed direction and passed beside her. On the other hand, the swords that did not change direction exploded one after another.


    Hua Jieyu who was covered in a seven-colored radiance did not move, but everyone knew that she was using her powerful Spiritual Energy as a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer to fight.


    Thud... Hua Jieyu suddenly felt a strong sense of danger as Yan Jiu charged towards her like a sharp sword. He knew that Hua Jieyu was a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer and flying swords would not be able to injure her. Divine Spiritual Sorcerer was the ultimate type of sorcerer, and the weakness of all sorcerers was their poor melee abilities. If he could attack her from a closer distance, he would surely win.


    Yan Jiu''s speed was so fast that Hua Jieyu did not have any time to think. Ice Seal and many vines wound around Yan Jiu''s body, but they were all crushed by his Sword Will and could not stop him even for a bit.


    The seven-colored radiance above the crown became more dazzling. Yan Jiu felt that his body and the sword in his hand suddenly deviate from their intended trajectories slightly. On the other hand, Hua Jieyu''s body danced with the wind and rotated in the air as she backed away, passing by the strike marginally.


    "I admit defeat," Hua Jieyu said softly. Yan Jiu was about to attack again and his sword rubbed against the ground, but he could only stop.


    Sword Qi dissipated and Hua Jieyu landed slowly and elegantly on the ground. Looking at her, many people praised her in their minds. Although she had taken part in the fight, it ended at the appropriate time. Yan Jiu had displayed his power, and she had also displayed her abilities. In this way, Yan Jiu would not be able to continue challenging them.


    Divine Spiritual Sorcerer was indeed a powerful class. The fatal strike just now actually missed. If Hua Jieyu was also a grade seven noble, could she control Yan Jiu''s sword directly with her Spiritual Energy?


    Yan Jiu''s face darkened. Although he had beat Hua Jieyu, it was actually a failure for him because he did not manage to do anything else. Not only could a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer suppress other sorcerers, but she could also suppress any cultivators, in fact. After all, to be a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, one first had to become an outstanding Spirit Elemental Sorcerer.


    Both of them were invited by the cultivators from the Thousand Holy Islands. However, both rejected and returned to their original positions.


    The battle continued. Ye Futian and his friends all had an amazing performance and were invited the Thousand Holy Islands, but only My Zhiqiu and Xuanyuan Bashan accepted the offers. The rest rejected, planning to continue fighting.


    In the arena, many extraordinary cultivators showed up one after another. The geniuses from the nine Holy Roads were all displaying their talents.


    This round continued for three whole days. By the time everyone had participated in at least one battle, only a small proportion of people was left in the vast arena.


    There were 160 cultivators left.


    The elimination started with tens of thousands of cultivators, and at the moment, there were only 160. These 160 cultivators were all geniuses who had rejected the offers from the Thousand Holy Islands. They wanted to enter the Core Island of the Holy Zhi Palace. The other people had either joined the Thousand Holy Islands or were eliminated.


    On the sky stairwell, the elder who was hosting the battle looked at the arena and said, "All of you must be tired after so many battles. Some of you are also injured. We''ll take a one-day break. Tomorrow, many seniors from the Holy Zhi Palace will be here to watch the battles, so you should prepare. During the break, do not leave the island. Also, no conflicts are allowed." After he finished speaking, many powerful cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace stood up and returned to the palace. Some of them also chatted as they walked. Below them, many people walked towards the arena, looking for their juniors who were not eliminated. After all, the people from many major forces were present today.


    Many young people raised their heads and looked in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace. In particular, Bai Luli had received the most attention. He was so bright and was admired by countless people.


    Suddenly, Bai Luli walked towards where Zhuge Canyang and Zhuge Mingyue were.


    "Canyang, Mingyue," Bai Luli shouted, smiling.


    "Luli," Zhuge Canyang responded, smiling. "In the admission test this time, What do you think of the people who were not eliminated?"


    "There are many outstanding juniors. I met Hua Jieyu earlier, but I only managed to watch her fight today. Divine Spiritual Sorcerer indeed deserves its name. I think that tomorrow, many seniors will fight to take her. Who will you let Jieyu cultivate under?" Bai Luli asked softly.


    "Mingyue said that she will respect Hua Jieyu''s own decision," Zhuge Canyang replied.


    "That''s great. Zhuge Xing is outstanding as well. Moreover, there are people like Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and Chi Meng, so there are indeed many excellent juniors. There are also a few people whose levels are low, but they have already displayed their amazing potential. The cohort this year is better than the one three years ago. I think the battles tomorrow will be interesting," Bai Luli said, smiling.


    "Bai Ze is certainly one of them. I heard that you have guided him before, and his talents are unsurpassed. I am also looking forward to the fights between the best juniors tomorrow," Zhuge Canyang said.


    "Alright, I will return to the palace first." Bai Luli nodded gently at Zhuge Canyang and Zhuge Mingyue, after which he left elegantly.


    After he left, Zhuge Canyang looked at Zhuge Mingyue who was beside him and said softly, "You can''t find another person in the Barren State who is as outstanding as Bai Luli. Furthermore, he is humble. Even when he wants to show his affection towards you, he only does so appropriately and never crosses the line. I really don''t know what you''re thinking."


    Smiling, Zhuge Mingyue glanced at Zhuge Canyang and said, "Don''t you feel that if a person is too perfect, he will be difficult to understand?"


    Zhuge Canyang stared at her. Indeed, Bai Luli could be considered as a perfect man. Bai Luli was handsome, elegant, talented, powerful, and had a strong background. He was the youngest person on the Barren Sky Ranking, and moreover, he was in the tenth place.


    He really seemed to be flawless.


    "I prefer someone who is cuter." Zhuge Mingyue smiled and stepped forward, walking towards Ye Futian, who was below them.

 552 Falling Heads over Heels

    Zhuge Mingyue brought Beitang Xing''er next to Ye Futian and the others. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu smiled as they shouted, "Second sister."


    "Good work, little brother." Beitang Xing''er smiled.


    "Why have you not joined the test this time?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I don''t have much interest in the training." Beitang Xing''er smiled as she answered, "I''m fine just tagging along with second sister here."


    "Only the Thousand Holy Islands will be selecting their disciples today. The most extraordinary of the ones who made it out of the Holy Roads have yet to show their true abilities, and you have had firsthand experience what Xie Ji is like. The true test will be held tomorrow. You think you can manage?" Zhuge Mingyue asked with a smile. She knew what Ye Futian''s talents were like. His lower plane, however, would continue to prove to be a disadvantage.


    Out of the ones left, which numbered to a little over a hundred, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were the weakest in terms of levels. There were not that many grade nine nobles around, with most being grade eight or seven. There were some who had broken through into grade six Noble Plane during their journey, and the difference in level for these people would not be easy to cover. It was due to this that most did not expect much of Ye Futian. In the battlefield on the next day, no matter how talented candidates of Arcana Plane were, they would have amounted to little more than just footnotes and audiences.


    "I''ll know when the time comes," Ye Futian answered.


    "Well, you''d better give it your all then. Tomorrow is different from today. Those top-class figures from the Holy Zhi Palace will choose only a handful. If you don''t shine bright enough, others might end up taking your place," Zhuge Mingyue elaborated. The Holy Zhi Palace was a place of training and it was only natural that she hoped Ye Futian would be able to make it through. It was the best choice offered to Ye Futian after all.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Alright, I''ll get out of the way of you and Jieyu. There are many great places to go for dates on the island." Zhuge Mingyue shot sly looks at the two of them, before taking Beitang Xing''er away with her.


    Chen Yuan, Mu Chuan, and Mu Zhiqiu came soon after Zhuge Mingyue left.


    "Zhiqiu, why didn''t you keep trying for a bit?" Ye Futian asked Mu Zhiqiu. Mu Zhiqiu had answered the invitation of an elder from the Thousand Holy Islands and was prepared to train under their wing.


    "Tomorrow''s test is going to be too intense. That senior was my brother''s teacher, and he said he was willing to take me in. I''ve fulfilled my goal of coming here," Mu Zhiqiu answered softly.


    Ye Futian nodded and did not pursue the topic any further.


    Mu Zhifan, who was standing behind him, looked livid. Ye Futian had earned the right to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, yet he refused. That point alone said that Ye Futian had surpassed him.


    "Futian, give it all you''ve got tomorrow," Chen Yuan said to Ye Futian. While he felt reluctant to have the Son of the Starry School train in the Holy Zhi Palace, two of the three great schools were out for his head at the moment. The best choice available to Ye Futian at the moment was to enter the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "I will, headmaster," Ye Futian said as he nodded.


    "From the way you talk today, I''d say you''re still holding back. You are, aren''t you?" Mu Chuan was feeling rather irked. Someone like Ye Futian was actually offered entry to the Thousand Holy Islands of the Holy Zhi Palace, yet he refused all the offers, and that made Mu Chuan lose face.


    "Mu Chuan, he has yet to enter the Holy Zhi Palace. You still have time to say yes to the offer to be his guard. He might not need you around tomorrow," Chen Yuan egged him on.


    "Screw you," Mu Chuan yelled. Just why do I, the chief of the Zhaixing House, need to suck up to the kid? This is too much.


    "Heh." Chen Yuan chuckled coldly. "It seems that you don''t see things as clearly as your juniors. Mu Zhiqiu is very close with Ye Futian now, and yet you continue to be stubborn. The Zhaixing House will not be having a good end with you in charge."


    Ye Futian blinked and looked at Chen Yuan, then at Hua Jieyu by his side. Seeing Hua Jieyu smiling at him, he could not help but say, "Headmaster, please don''t go about saying things like that. I''m just friends with Zhiqiu. Just friends, nothing else.


    "Right, Zhiqiu?" Ye Futian asked, looking at her.


    Just what is this old fart doing? Is he trying to kill me or something? Ye Futian thought.


    "Sorry, a slip of the tongue." Chen Yuan waved his hand, and the smile on his face made Ye Futian want badly to slug someone.


    Mu Zhiqiu looked rather funny instead and glanced at Hua Jieyu. The two beautiful girls'' eyes met for a brief moment. Mu Zhiqiu saw that Hua Jieyu''s smile was gentle and there was no animosity within. While she herself was a beauty nonetheless, she could not help but marvel at Hua Jieyu''s looks. What a beauty indeed.


    She turned her eyes to Ye Futian and nodded in agreement.


    Ye Futian saw other pretty girls like Gu Yunxi and Qin Yin were standing nearby and thought it would have been really awkward to stay there for long. He then said, "I heard the island is really beautiful. If you''re free, I guess it''d be a good idea to go walk for a bit. Now, if you''ll excuse us." He dragged Hua Jieyu away as soon as he was done talking, before asking Qin Yin telepathically, "Qin Yin, take care of Qingyi for me, thanks."


    Qin Yin glanced at Ye Futian and sighed in her mind.


    "He''s off just like that?" Yi Xiaoshi glared at him. The members of their group were not all that familiar with each other and had only gathered around Ye Futian. Very nice of you, running off with your girlfriend and all that.


    Yu Sheng glanced at Yi Xiaoshi, and said, "You''re not telling me that you haven''t gotten used to this."


    Yi Xiaoshi''s eyes met Yu Sheng''s, and he answered, "I''m still getting used to it." He had heard even back in the Cottage that Ye Futian was the kind who would be very nice with the sisters and harsh with the brothers. And it seemed to be a tradition of sorts.


    "Brother Yuan, what do you say we get a place and spar for a bit?" the fat guy asked the ape beside him.


    "I''m taken." Yuan Zhan did not bother doing much with him, going in the direction of his father instead.


    Gu Yunxi''s eyes looked rather dejected seeing Ye Futian walk away.


    "Yunxi," her brother called out to her.


    "Yes." Gu Yunxi turned around.


    "What''s going on in your head?" Gu Ming asked. There was no way he would not have known what was actually in her head. It was just that Ye Futian was probably not the kind of person Gu Yunxi would be able to get her hands on.


    "I was just thinking, well, what a couple those two are." Gu Yunxi''s smile was beaming, seemingly very happy herself.


    Gu Ming was dumbfounded. He had thought his sister would have felt down from all that she had just seen. He stared at her for a bit and found her smile stayed intact, and he felt very confused.


    ��


    The training island right before the Holy Zhi Palace looked incredibly lively. Countless were discussing the battles to take place the day, and many were speculating what the battles the next day would be like.


    The little more than hundred selected today were the strongest of the strongest seen thus far, including top-notch figures from top-notch forces. Those people seemed to have never clashed before, yet with the battle for the zenith at hand the next day, there was simply no way no one would not have been excited.


    Many were wondering if Huang Jiuge of the Sovereign family or Xu Que from Tingxue House was stronger.


    Who would prove more excellent, Bai Ze from White Cloud City or Zhuge Xing from the Zhuge family?


    There were also top-class geniuses from other Holy Roads. How brilliant things would get the next day with them showing off what they had.


    How Ye Futian, that young man of only the Arcana Plane, would perform on such a stage?


    Who would reign supreme?


    All that liveliness seemed to have nothing to do with Ye Futian. He and Hua Jieyu came to a cliff on the east of the island. They were able to gaze upon the other islands and the azure Holy River far away. It was a sight to behold, and the place felt like heaven on earth.


    The two of them walked on the rocks on the cliff, with Ye Futian taking Hua Jieyu''s hand, wobbling about as they moved, and sweet smiles were seen on their faces. A great battle took place the very first time they met each other after being separated for more than two years, and now, they were finally alone.


    "Why are you taking me here?" Hua Jieyu asked with a smile.


    "There is no one else around, so I figured it would be a rather good place to get something done." Ye Futian answered her question with a smile that was just as bright.


    Hua Jieyu blinked her eyes and felt something was off.


    "A good place for talking about those friends of yours. Very pretty girls, all of them." Hua Jieyu smiled naughtily, which had Ye Futian shuddering.


    "My fox, please, I''ve told you, we''re just friends. Don''t go having weird thoughts about me and them."


    "Is that so?" Hua Jieyu smiled and continued, "And there I was thinking I''ve got my hands full and it''s a good thing I get someone else to look after you too."


    "You mean it?" Ye Futian blinked. However, he ended up swallowing those words right before they were about to come out of his mouth. But looking at how Hua Jieyu kept grinning, he said instead, "Well, not a problem. Loulan Xue was an easy one to look after. Just get her a servant girl or something."


    "That so?" Hua Jieyu murmured, "Well how about..."


    "Jieyu, can you stop talking about other people?" Ye Futian pulled her into his arms. Hua Jieyu tilted her head to look at him, nodded for a bit and leaned on his chest, hugging him.


    "I''ve had quite a lot to talk to you about before I got here. But now that you''re right in front of me, I don''t quite know what to say instead." Hua Jieyu then asked gently, "How have you been for the past two years?"


    "Umm, do I look like I''ve had bad days?" Ye Futian asked in an equally gentle tone.


    "I think you were having a good time." Hua Jieyu answered with a smile, thinking about all the pretty girls around him.


    "What about you?" Ye Futian''s voice was flighty. He did not tell Hua Jieyu that he had actually died once.


    "I have a big sister looking after me. Of course, I''m good."


    "Good thing to know then." Ye Futian nodded. "I''m getting rather drowsy. How about we lie down for a bit."


    Hua Jieyu came out from his embrace and grinned at him. "Alright, we have a nice quiet place here. A good one for training."


    "Wait, what?" Ye Futian blinked. A good time and incredibly beautiful scenery like this, and you''re thinking about training? Gosh, you''re harsh.


    "Haven''t you noticed that many have painted you as a target? The battle tomorrow will probably not be an easy one. If you want to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, you will need to do better than how you fought Xie Ji today. So, let''s see if you''ll have a breakthrough today," Hua Jieyu said.


    "We have less than a day." Ye Futian added, "I think it''s best to get just get some rest instead."


    "If you manage to break through the Noble Plane, you can sleep all you want." Hua Jieyu glared at him.


    "Sleep all I want?" Ye Futian blinked.


    Hua Jieyu was stunned for a bit before her face flushed red. That was so not what I meant.


    "If you are able to make it into the Noble Plane before the battle tomorrow, all you want indeed." Hua Jieyu smiled sheepishly at him, and Ye Futian''s heart beat like there was no tomorrow. You know how to work your man indeed��


    "Jieyu, I think you have a very, very good point. The battle tomorrow is of utmost importance, and as such, I need to train well. As such, I will go train right now." Ye Futian added seriously, "Don''t hold me back." He flashed and found a good spot to fold his legs on. He sat down and actually got ready for training.


    Jieyu sat on a rock not far from he was, with her elbows on her knees and her hands cupping her chin, she watched silently at the side. The smile on her face never went away. I haven''t seen this guy for two years, and I think he somehow got even more handsome.

 553 Cheating

    Ye Futian sat on the huge boulder. He got rid of all other thoughts and focused on fusing his spiritual power with the world. He sensed the Spiritual Qi in the world.


    A rainbow of lights shone. Now, the lights of the six elements were brighter while the green wood elemental Spiritual Qi was dimmer. It was the only element that he hadn''t comprehended the Noble Will for, so his perception was slightly weaker.


    The six lights disappeared from his senses. Only the green wood elemental Spiritual Qi remained around him. At the same time, his mind went into his life palace. The World Tree towered over the vast space. The sun and moon hung high in the sky. Thunder dragons spiraled around the tree while a golden Roc rested on a branch. The Divine Ape guarded the tree. All his life spirits lived in harmony with the tree as the center.


    The wood elemental was different from the others. The wood spells he''d cultivated before were all focused on control. The ones he encountered now were mostly on control too. They were rarely for attacking. However, when he''d been close to dying last time, it was the World Tree life spirit that helped reform his body.


    The wood element''s most obvious characteristic was that it encompassed all life and was never extinguished. The man who had killed Du Ao had used a wood elemental spell that became even more frightening when burned.


    No matter how the wood elemental was attacked, it would continue standing tall.


    Then what was the Wood Will?


    In his life palace, the World Tree kept changing color. Sometimes it was gold, sometimes it was purple. The tree shook and the leaves rustled as if it was speaking.


    Spiritual light flashed through Ye Futian''s mind. Then he saw green light shine around him. A huge ancient tree sprouted behind him. The branches and leaves expanded wildly, stretching upward and covering the sky. It soon became a huge tree rooted beside the cliff.


    The branches swayed in the wind. Spiritual Qi gathered frantically on the tree. Then golden vines appeared, transforming into the deadly lock spell that stretched into the distance.


    "The World Tree encompasses all living things. It doesn''t die and the Spiritual Qi doesn''t decay," Ye Futian mumbled.


    Then a sun hung above the tree. It released the fire of a divine furnace to smelt everything. The green light on the tree melted into the furnace, making the fire burn even more vibrantly. The divine furnace''s fire had a green tinge, giving off green flames that were even more terrifying than before.


    I understand, Ye Futian thought. This was the wood elemental''s will.


    Moving his thoughts, the green Spiritual Qi in the air grew clearer. They rushed wildly into the tree and then entered his body. The so-called Will was one''s comprehension of spiritual power. Once his comprehension improved, he would be faster at absorbing Spiritual Qi and raising his spiritual power too.


    In fact, all the wood elemental Spiritual Qi in the world was resonating with him. The entire world seemed to be green and filled with vitality.


    "He comprehended again." Hua Jieyu sat to the side and smiled brilliantly. This guy was so powerful.


    Ye Futian had already comprehended Noble Wills of six elements, so he had the abilities. Plus, the wood elemental life spirit was his natal spirit. Naturally, comprehending the wood elemental wouldn''t take too long. However, his spiritual power wasn''t enough. He was still a step away from the Noble Plane, though he was getting closer.


    The island city was still lively while the cliff was peaceful. Without realizing, another day passed.


    When the sun rose, faint sunlight splashed onto the cliff. It was warm and serene.


    Two figures leaned quietly against a boulder. The youth was handsome while the girl was beautiful. She rested softly against the youth''s chest. The breeze lifted her hair softly. The scene was like a painting.


    "So beautiful." Ye Futian looked at the beauty in his arms. It was unclear if he was praising the scenery or the girl.


    Hua Jieyu looked up at him. "Did you raise planes?"


    "Only a bit more." Ye Futian rubbed his forehead awkwardly. "Just a bit."


    "So you didn''t." Hua Jieyu grinned at him. "Then why did you run over here at midnight?"


    Ye Futian fluttered his lashes and then looked away. "You didn''t object though." As soon as he spoke, he felt pain in his waist and he gasped. How come they''d grown up but she still did that?


    "Someone kept cuddling with me last night. I wonder who it was?" Ye Futian blinked at the beauty in his arms. Hua Jieyu''s face reddened and she straightened. Just as she was about to move, Ye quickly jumped up and said, "The time isn''t up yet. I''m going to continue cultivating."


    He escaped while speaking. Hua Jieyu stood up. Her beautiful figure and slender legs were so mesmerizing under the sunlight. However, Ye Futian didn''t enjoy the sight. Right now, he faced the rising sun. Divine light shone from his body. A strange aura surged from him too. Then he started practicing martial arts.


    Activating the Emperor''s Technique, Ye Futian moved slowly. However, each move seemed to contain an emperor''s power. The Will was strong and lively too.


    Watching him, Hua Jieyu felt enjoyment. The moves didn''t seem to contain any might, but his aura was getting stronger. Divine light enveloped him as if he was a god coming to earth. Every simple punch seemed able to destroy a mountain.


    As Ye Futian continued cultivating, dragon or ape roars occasionally sounded from his body. The expansive movements were like a golden Roc flying in the wind.


    He shattered the rock under his feet, rumbling. Cracking sounds came out of his body and an even stronger conception was born. An aggressive force formed in the surroundings. His martial arts intent stretched out as the force became stronger. His aura kept rising.


    Boom. Beams of dazzling emperor light shot upward. Seemingly undefeatable, martial arts intent transformed into a horrible force field around him. If one stepped within it, they would feel his unstoppable might press down.


    As more cracks sounded, Ye Futian''s body rumbled. Dragon and divine ape roars shook the sky. The golden Roc''s brilliance became one with the surrounding force field. He seemed to be a descending god.


    As the horrible light flashed, the stones around him exploded. Ye Futian broke the sky with a punch. An extremely dazzling fist shadow flashed and disappeared in the distance.


    Ye Futian stopped. His power was still strong, but he didn''t release it. He turned slowly and smiled at Hua Jieyu.


    At that time, Hua Jieyu had a strange expression. She turned to run. "Doesn''t count."


    "Raising planes in martial arts is raising planes too. It''s still the Noble Plane. Why doesn''t it count?" Ye Futian ran after her. Was she not going to keep her promise?


    "You didn''t break into the plane completely. Of course, it doesn''t count." With a wind spell carrying her, Hua Jieyu flew like a fairy. Her figure was beautiful.


    "Then let me ask you. Am I in the Noble Plane right now?" Ye Futian yelled. He wouldn''t let her cheat.


    "No," Hua Jieyu insisted.


    "Fox, you can''t do this." Ye Futian made a face.


    "If I say it''s not then it''s not." Hua Jieyu ignored all logic. "Plus, you already slept last night."


    "Gentlemen keep their word!" Ye Futian called.


    "I''m a woman," Hua Jieyu replied.


    "You can''t do this!" Ye Futian muttered.


    "I learned this from you."


    The two chased each other from the cliff to the island city. Along the way, many people on the ground looked up at this couple enviously.


    The city was extremely lively. Hua Jieyu had already descended. Ye Futian went up to her and whispered, "I''ll let it go today, but I''ll remember what you owe me."


    "I forgot." Hua Jieyu smiled at Ye Futian.


    "Then I''ll force it," Ye Futian whispered in Hua Jieyu''s ears. She blushed instantly and wrapped an arm around Ye Futian, making him gasp.


    "I dare you," Hua Jieyu said, smiling as she looked up.


    "I''ll do it. I''m not scared of my wife," Ye Futian huffed. It was time to show his status in the family.


    "Really?" Hua Jieyu grinned at him.


    Ye Futian was frustrated. What kind of look was that?


    Everyone in the city was walking towards the battlefield. Many recognized Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian. Yesterday, they''d both entered the final list. Because they were so attractive, it was hard not to notice them.


    "Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu seem to be really close to each other."


    "I heard that they met long ago. Of course, they''re close, but it''s quite a pity."


    "How is it a pity? They''re both so talented. Ye Futian may have a lower plane, but he''s extraordinarily talented too."


    "Yes, but he''s still far from the Divine Spiritual Sorcerer. Furthermore, if one wants to compare family backgrounds, how can he be compared to Zhuge Xing? With Hua Jieyu''s looks and talent, Zhuge Xing, Bai Ze, and Huang Jiuge are those that suit her."


    "Shh��" someone said.


    "What are you scared of? The city doesn''t allow fighting. Plus, aren''t I speaking the truth?" the person said, smiling. He didn''t hide his voice.


    Many people glanced at Ye Futian, only to see Hua Jieyu grab his hand and smile brilliantly. She looked around and then grinned at Ye Futian. "Did you hear?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. He looked as if he didn''t care. "See, they all think I''m pretty talented. I''m still not at your level, but I''ll work hard. You can''t abandon me in the future."


    Hua Jieyu smiled like hundreds of flowers blooming. The people around them all froze. Some even stopped walking and gaped at the enchanting girl.


    Ye Futian froze too. Then he smiled gently, feeling warm inside. This fox was quite sensitive.


    "Silly girl, what are you thinking about?" Ye Futian patted Hua Jieyu''s head and she glared at him with mock anger. They continued forward, leaving the crowd in the wind.

 554 Top Ten of the Barren Sky Ranking

    The vast battleground below the Holy Zhi Palace was now filled with people. The crowd stretched to the horizon. Gradually, people entered the battleground. They were the 160 prides who''d been chosen yesterday and their friends and elders. Everyone was discussing today''s battle and famous figures.


    When Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu arrived, Yu Sheng and the others were already there. Seeing them, Yi Xiaoshi and the others gave them looks of disdain. They wondered where the two went for a date yesterday. Ye Futian was smiling and looked vibrant. The must have had a happy night.


    Others stared coldly at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu walking together.


    Zhuge Xing stared daggers at Ye Futian. The other youths of the Zhuge Family didn''t look happy either. These two seemed very close and no one knew where they''d gone or done yesterday. It seemed that he''d really helped train a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer for someone else.


    Right then, two figures flashed and appeared. They were Zhuge Mingyue and Beitang Xing''er. Zhuge Mingyue looked ambiguously at the two and smiled. "Seems like yesterday went well."


    "Senior Sister!" Hua Jieyu cried, embarrassed.


    "Are you prepared?" Zhuge Mingyue asked Ye Futian.


    "Entering the palace shouldn''t be a problem," Ye Futian said. Zhuge Mingyue''s eyes brightened as she smiled at him. He seemed confident.


    "Most of those who enter the Holy Zhi Palace are at the top of the Barren Sky Ranking. Take advantage of this chance," Zhuge Mingyue said, smiling.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "When the Holy Zhi Palace invites you, just watch my eyes," Zhuge Mingyue said. Ye Futian blinked and then nodded earnestly. After all, he wasn''t familiar with the strong cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace. Since he was so amazing, people might fight for him and he wouldn''t know who to choose. His Second Senior Sister really thought of everything.


    "Jieyu, Xiaoshi, you need to work hard too," Zhuge Mingyue said to the others.


    "Of course." Yi Xiaoshi stuck his chin up. He couldn''t be worse off than Ye Futian. As the senior brother, he had to show his skills this time. He couldn''t be beaten by that guy, especially before Second Senior Sister. Otherwise, he would be completely humiliated.


    "I''ll wait and see," Zhuge Mingyue said. Then she walked towards the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Sister Mingyue," a voice called out. She looked over to the other direction and saw it was Zhuge Xing.


    "They''re important to you, but this is a competition. I will be fighting for the glory of the Zhuge Family and I won''t go easy on them," Zhuge Xing said. Zhuge Mingyue was his cousin. She''d left when she was young and only returned two years ago. Instead of caring about the family, she was closer to Hua Jieyu. However, Hua Jieyu was beautiful and the Zhuge Family all had other thoughts, so they didn''t mind. Now, it seemed that Zhuge Mingyue wasn''t nice to Hua Jieyu because of herself but because of her junior.


    As a member of the Zhuge Family, Zhuge Xing was naturally upset.


    Zhuge Mingyue had high hopes for Ye Futian but had no hopes for them at all. Did she not care about her family''s honor at all?


    "You said that this is a competition. There''s no need to go easy. Do your best. I hope you will bring glory to the family." Zhuge Mingyue smiled and left.


    "I will." Zhuge Xing''s tone was proud. He glanced at Ye Futian, who also looked at him at the same time, and then looked away.


    "Futian." Chen Yuan''s group walked over. Ye Futian looked over and saw that Mu Chuan of the Zhaixing House was still there. Mu Zhiqiu was beside him too.


    "Chief," Ye Futian called.


    "As the Son, you should rule the generation," Chen Yuan said, repeating their conversation in the Starry School.


    Seeing the anticipation in Chen Yuan''s eyes, Ye Futian nodded. "Okay."


    "You''re dreaming." It seemed to be Mu Chuan''s habit to insult Ye Futian and Chen Yuan.


    "Senior, you''re still here? Didn''t Zhiqiu choose an island to cultivate on?" Ye Futian asked Mu Chuan, smiling. This old guy was pretty funny.


    "It''s interesting to see the juniors competing. More importantly, there are so many geniuses here. I''d like to see how the Son of the Starry School loses miserably." Mu Chuan scanned Ye Futian.


    "Then watch if you''d like." Ye Futian smiled.


    "More and more people arrived. The 160 prides arrived gradually and countless figures appeared in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace too. The sat on the steps quietly, looking down. They appeared quietly, but many elders of the Holy Zhi Palace bowed towards them. Clearly, they were important.


    "Sage Liuyun is here." Someone looked up and saw an old elder sitting there quietly. Many people from the Thousand Holy Islands recognized him.


    "Sage Qijue is here too."


    "That''s Sage Daozang."


    "Senior Sword Demon." Another figure appeared, instantly attracting much attention. It was the Sword Demon, one of the top three swordsmen of the Barren State. He was a super strong cultivator on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    The top three swordsmen of the Barren State were Yan Wuji, leader of the Sword Saint Villa; Fatal Sword God of the Tingxue House, and the Sword Demon of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    These three represented the highest level of swordsmanship in the Barren State.


    Yan Wuji never passed his skills to outsiders. The head of the Tingxue House had fatal techniques and he mostly didn''t accept students. Thus, the biggest hope for swordsmen-in-training of the Barren State was to enter the Holy Zhi Palace and become the Sword Demon''s disciple. Thus, he was very popular. Many people present had come just for him.


    Seeing all these legendary cultivators appear, many people were extremely excited. Of course, when Bai Luli, young city lord of the White Cloud City, arrived, he also attracted a lot of attention.


    Bai Luli''s cultivation wasn''t as high as those big figures from the Holy Zhi Palace, but he was much higher than them on the Barren Sky Ranking. Of everyone present, he was the highest at tenth place.


    The Barren Sky Ranking was a list of the top figures of the entire Barren State. One could imagine what being tenth place meant.


    The nine before him were all extremely powerful figures who shook the world.


    Ninth place was the Fatal Sword God, the head of the Tingxue House. Eighth was a horribly powerful figure from Alchemy City. Seventh was someone from the Holy Zhi Palace. Sixth was Zhuge Qingfeng, head of the Zhuge Family. Fifth was the head of the Sovereign Family. Fourth was the city lord of the White Cloud City.


    Of the top three, two were top figures of the Holy Zhi Palace. The remaining one was the second place. She was in the Ice Temple.


    Thus, of the top ten figures on the Barren Sky Ranking, four cultivated at the Holy Zhi Palace. The city lord of White Cloud City and Zhuge Qingfeng had once been disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace too. One could imagine what kind of status the Holy Zhi Palace enjoyed in the Barren State!


    There was a reason why it was the mecca for cultivation.


    The people other than the 160 prides gradually left the battlefield, leaving room for them. Everyone felt that the atmosphere had changed. They were the top figures��the best of the best.


    Today''s battle was basically the top battle of those in the lower Noble Plane.


    "Let''s begin," a big figure said to the elder on the steps after everyone was in place.


    The elder nodded. He gazed at the battlefield and said, "Everyone, move to the edge of the battlefield. Space out."


    Everyone nodded. Even those from the same force spread out. Ye Futian glanced at Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and the others. They nodded and spread out to the side, each taking up a different place. The huge battlefield easily fit the 160 people. Everyone had a lot of distance between each other.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace usually chooses disciples for the core island from the top 100. Right now, there are 160 people left. Instead of purposely eliminating 60 people, we will directly begin the battles. The winners will qualify for the next round. The seniors of the Holy Zhi Palace will choose from the defeated. If the chosen one is willing, they can cultivate in the Holy Zhi Palace. If not, they will leave. If they are not chosen, they are eliminated."


    The elder on the steps announced the rules for choosing disciples. They were quite unique. The seniors would choose from the defeated ones. This way, the losers would become stronger as time went on.


    Other than the last person, the other 159 people would all be defeated in the end. Their combat abilities could be seen through the battles.


    Now, they must put in their all for every battle and show all their abilities. There wouldn''t be a second chance. Technically, this battle would be even crueler than the competition for the Thousand Holy Islands earlier. Some talented figures might be eliminated because they didn''t perform well.


    "The rules are a bit different from before. You cannot repeatedly challenge the same person and everyone must participate in each round," the elder continued to announce. The battles were one against one, so there would be 80 battles for the first round. Half would qualify and continue fighting. The losers would either be chosen or eliminated.


    "The order for challenges is very simple. Whoever steps out first can challenge first. If two step out at the same time, they will fight without choosing." Then the elder said, "Now, let us begin. The battlefield is yours!"

 555 Breaking the Speed Limi

    As the elder on the sky stairwell finished speaking, another figure moved rapidly out of the battlefield. The crowd saw him step out, but nobody was in a hurry to step out as well. The person who had stepped out was an elite genius from the Nether Road named Han Xiang.


    In this round, one could step out and select their own opponent, so it was also a test of one''s mental fortitude. Han Xiang was a grade nine noble, which was considered very low on the battlefield. He was at a huge disadvantage. Therefore, he had to grab the initiative without hesitation, otherwise, he would be in danger when others targeted him.


    He had thought that even if there was someone who had the same thoughts as him, it would not be those elite cultivators. As expected, he was fast enough to be the first to walk out and grab the chance.


    Han Xiang looked towards the crowd at the edge of the battlefield. The majority of them were grade eight and seven nobles. There were not many who were at the same level as him and only two who were of an even lower cultivation level than him. As such, his gaze landed on Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian had previously disabled the Sword Saint Villa''s Yan Nan and was a dangerous figure. Although Yu Sheng had also defeated his opponent to reach here, in comparison, he was less outstanding than Ye Futian. Thus, Han Xiang''s gaze landed on Yu Sheng and he said, "I challenge him."


    His thoughts were to first win one match, that way, he would have one more match to perform. Even if he were to be defeated later on, the chances of being chosen would be higher. That was why he challenged Yu Sheng, to ensure that his chances of winning.


    Ye Futian saw Han Xiang look towards him, but select Yu Sheng. He understood the other party''s thinking, that person appeared to be a grade nine noble with decent battle ability. However, his choice of challenger was��


    He looked at Han Xiang sympathetically. With Yu Sheng''s battling style, Han Xiang probably had no chance left and would have to say goodbye to the Holy Zhi Palace. If he had selected someone else, even if he was defeated, he would at least still have a chance.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward and looked at Han Xiang calmly.


    "I am Han Xiang, I look forward to seeing your abilities."


    "Yu Sheng."


    The two of them introduced themselves and a horrifying metal storm started to pick up around Han Xiang. The storm was extremely sharp and looked like it could tear apart everything. Moreover, it started to spread from his body and was extremely fearsome.


    Yu Sheng''s palm stretched out, his demon Qi rampaging. A dark golden Heavenly Halberd appeared in his hand.


    In the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, Elder Ning''s gaze landed on Yu Sheng. He was indeed a demonic cultivator. He had heard that Yu Sheng could even demonize, so Ning Huang had died in his hands.


    "Han Xiang is probably in trouble." Even though the people from the other Holy Roads were unclear, the people from the Dawn Road knew what kind of person Yu Sheng was. The image where Yu Sheng had stood in front of Jinxiao City and declared that he was the killer was clear in their minds.


    For Han Xiang to challenge Yu Sheng, it was his misfortune.


    A dark golden demonic armor covered Yu Sheng''s body. The cold aura gave Han Xiang a feeling of danger as demon wings sprouted from Yu Sheng''s back and Yu Sheng stepped off the ground, his body flying into the air. He looked down from the air, his dark golden eyes looking down upon Han Xiang, looking disdainfully at everything.


    When Han Xiang saw his eyes, he had a thought. Could it be that he had selected the wrong opponent?


    Bam. Behind Yu Sheng, his demon wings flapped and he rushed downwards, Heavenly Halberd in hand. Han Xiang did not have too much time to think, and the metal storm that had gathered around his body transformed into razor-sharp debris, raging towards Yu Sheng''s direction. This was a large area-of-effect spell that covered a huge area, leaving no room to escape. Every golden ray in the horrifying metal storm was as sharp as a blade, making jarring sounds as the wind cut through the air.


    The horrifying storm tore its way straight onto Yu Sheng''s body, but when it came into contact with Yu Sheng''s armor, it made a piercing sound, like blades scraping against each other. However, it was unable to pierce through, unable to break through the defense of the dark golden armor.


    Han Xiang''s expression paled. His assault was razor-sharp, but it was unable to even break through the other party''s armor.


    At that moment, a demonic figure appeared in front of his eyes and an imposing might crashed down upon him, instilling fear in him and influencing him to kneel down and surrender.


    The metal storm gathered in front of Han Xiang, turning into a giant golden figure. Taking the form of his Life Spirit, it held an extremely sharp golden spear in its hand and pierced towards the air, tearing through everything.


    The Heavenly Halberd in Yu Sheng''s hands also pierced forward and an unparalleled killing power descended. It was the God Suppressing Strike.


    Bang�� With a huge impact, the spear fell to pieces and the golden figure was crushed to pieces. The Heavenly Halberd dominated everything and landed on Han Xiang. Han Xiang''s body instantly flew backward and he tumbled onto the edge of the battlefield, coughing up blood. His complexion was pale and his hand was in front of his chest, he could feel that his bones were already broken. This was only because Yu Sheng did not use all his strength, or he would already be dead.


    Yu Sheng stood on the battle platform like a battle god, giving the crowd a sense of peerlessness even though the Heavenly Halberd in his hands had already disappeared.


    Turning around, Yu Sheng walked back to his position. Han Xiang was still lying there and he looked in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace. Nobody spoke. He was defeated by the Arcana Plane Yu Sheng in one strike, how could he be fancied by the influential figures?


    He struggled to get up and left the battlefield dejectedly.


    Many people from the Nether Road looked at him leaving and felt sorrowful. He previously had a chance to enter the Thousand Holy Island, but he had rejected it. Han Xiang was by no means weak and possessed extremely strong battle ability, but he had been defeated in one strike in this battle. It could only mean that his opponent was too strong. Being able to reach here as an Arcana Plane meant that they were definitely extraordinary.


    Now, on this battlefield, there were no weaklings left.


    "Next," the expert on the sky stairwell said.


    Another figure stepped out in a flash, and the crowd was stunned to see the person. It was Zhuge Ling, an expert from the Zhuge Clan. Now, the Zhuge Clan was left with only two people, the strongest Zhuge Xing and the grade eight noble Zhuge Ling.


    Although Zhuge Ling was not as strong as Zhuge Xing, he was also extremely horrifying. He had already practiced his Thousand Thundering Illusions to an extremely high level. Moreover, he specialized in speed.


    Even a person like Zhuge Ling did not dare to wait until the late stage to battle. In the battlefield, there were many others who were stronger than him, so he also needed to take the initiative and challenge someone weaker than him.


    As his gaze shifted, Zhuge Ling looked in a certain direction. Many people''s expressions changed, would it be him again?


    Previously, Zhuge Ping had already been defeated by him. Was Zhuge Ling going to try now? However, Ye Futian had previously defeated Yan Nan, a grade eight noble. He was probably not going to be that easy to eliminate.


    "You." Zhuge Ling''s gaze landed on Ye Futian. As the crowd had expected, he was challenging Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was slightly depressed. Now that everyone on the battlefield was strong, he and Yu Sheng had been treated like pushovers. After all, their cultivation levels were lower. Grimacing and shaking his head, Ye Futian walked out onto the battle platform and looked at Zhuge Ling. Previously, Zhuge Ping had already lost the chance to be invited by the Thousand Holy Island and now Zhuge Ling was challenging him. Why did they do this to themselves?


    The Zhuge Clan was his second sister''s clan. If they did not target him, he would not actively deal with them. However, they all seemed to dislike him, with Zhuge Xing at the forefront of it all.


    "You go first," Zhuge Ling said. His aura was more steady than Zhuge Ping and Yan Nan''s, and he was older than the two. So even though his cultivation level was the same as Yan Nan''s, his cultivation level was more firm.


    Yan Nan was previously struck by Ye Futian''s thunderbolt spell and restrained by his wood element spell. Zhuge Ling is different, he excels in the Thousand Thundering Illusions and can cast the thunderbolt spell at the same time. His speed is also very fast, unlike Zhuge Ping who was unable to catch up to Ye Futian. Zhuge Ling''s choice of Ye Futian as his opponent is indeed apt, as his abilities can counter Ye Futian''s. This was the thought of many people as they watched.


    In this battle, Zhuge Ling''s chances to win were higher. Although Ye Futian''s battle abilities were exceptional, his cultivation level was lower, so he would be eliminated sooner or later.


    To many people, even if Ye Futian could win, he would win one more match at best. After this round, there would be only the top eighty remaining. By then, there would be no place for Ye Futian. Of course, the precursor would be that Ye Futian could first defeat Zhuge Ling.


    "Why do you do this to yourself?" Ye Futian looked at Zhuge Ling and said. As his voice landed, a pair of brilliant golden wings appeared on his back. The Roc wings were dazzling and the power of wind enveloped his body. In an instant, a roaring typhoon appeared around Ye Futian''s body.


    Bam. Kicking off the ground, his Thundering Illusion Step bloomed and all the crowd could see was an after-image of Ye Futian. He was quick to a horrifying degree.


    So fast. Zhuge Ling''s expression changed and his body also left after-images as he moved in flashes of lightning in various directions. However, he realized that Ye Futian was flying towards his true body with a flap of his wings. Zhuge Ling''s expression became grim and thought, looks like his victory against Zhuge Ping was not coincidental.


    "Die," Zhuge Ling yelled as his images struck out towards Ye Futian. One of his images held a thunderbolt spear and pierced forward, the thunder tearing through the air towards Ye Futian''s body. However, he saw Ye Futian''s body move like a phantom, dodging the spear in a beautiful arc.


    "Too fast. How can he be this fast," the crowd looked at Ye Futian''s figure and said.


    Numerous phantoms assaulted Ye Futian yet again, but they saw the dazzling golden figure moving with the wind, changing directions rapidly and moving forward. In the battlefield, they could only see his phantoms but not his true self, like a Roc speeding up to its limit.


    "What is that movement? It looks like a Roc."


    "It''s a combination of a movement technique and a spell," someone said in amazement. It was too dazzling.


    Zhuge Ling''s expression became solemn. He stepped backward and started to cast an alarming thunderbolt spell. He pointed forward with all five fingers and numerous splendid rays shot forth. However, as the rays shot forth, he saw the Roc''s shadow fly past a ray and the next thing Zhuge Ling felt was a sense of absolute danger.


    "Over there." Many people were stunned as another phantom manifested itself behind Zhuge Ling in the air above his head.


    Many people''s hearts were beating out of their chests. How could he be this fast? His speed was even faster than lightning!

 556 The Weakest?

    The Roc extended its wings and danced with the wind. Just now, Ye Futian''s series of movements looked precisely like a Roc. Ye Futian moved with the wind, as if he had merged into the air. Then, he made a beautiful arc in the sky.


    When everyone else realized what had happened, Ye Futian had already appeared above Zhuge Ling''s real body. Immediately, all the lighting phantasms vanished. Countless vines swept out from Ye Futian''s body, winding around Zhuge Ling''s throat and body at once, just like his battle with Yan Nan earlier. Furthermore, this battle seemed to be much easier for him.


    Buzz! A violent gust of wind swept past. Ye Futian flew over like a Roc that had extended its wings, bringing Zhuge Ling''s body high up in the sky. In just an instant, he reached where Zhuge Xing was at and the vines swept out, ejecting Zhuge Ling. Following a loud bang, Zhuge Ling was thrown outside the arena directly.


    "Instant defeat." Many people were bewildered. Staring at the figure with extended wings in the sky, they could not remain calm. It turned out that Ye Futian did not actually show his real speed earlier, and this was actually his fastest speed. He had a series of movements which looked really like a Roc. Zhuge Ling''s speed was also amazing, but he could not even display it before Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s golden wings trembled and he glided down from the sky, returning to his original position. He had an easy victory.


    The arena fell into a deafening silence, and many people felt somewhat strange. Ye Futian was not even in the Noble Plane, but he had still managed to defeat a grade eight noble from the Zhuge Family almost instantly. Everyone wondered how the people from the Zhuge Family felt at the moment.


    Ye Futian did not injure Zhuge Ling. When he got up from the ground, his face was very pale. This was such a humiliating fight for him. In fact, it was the most miserable battle for him in his life. Moreover, the battle was held in front of countless people. It was obvious how he felt at the moment.


    Zhuge Ling looked in the Holy Zhi Palace''s direction and realized that nobody was looking at him. After such an embarrassing battle, even the people of the Thousand Holy Islands would not accept him, not to mention to more powerful cultivators. Just like Zhuge Ping, he would not be able to enter the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The leader of the Zhuge Family was hoping for them to enter the palace. How could he explain this situation to his seniors after going back?


    "Next," the elder on the sky stairwell said emotionlessly. Nobody would care about how Zhuge Ling felt now. It was a winner-take-all fight, so no one would pay attention to the loser, especially when he lost so badly. He was unworthy of attention from the others.


    Zhuge Ling''s face dimmed. Clenching his fists tightly, he looked at Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian was not even looking at him and only stood quietly at his spot. After the battle, Ye Futian could rest for a long while. Zhuge Ling had challenged him in the second battle and this actually saved him much trouble.


    Suddenly, two people flashed out at the same time and landed in the arena. They were both stunned and stared at each other. The expression of one of them changed slightly, while the other person seemed angry and scolded coldly, "Idiot!"


    The person who spoke was Yan Jiu from Sword Saint Villa.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had actually been promoted to the next round. Therefore, Yan Jiu walked out first to avenge Yan Nan as he could still choose Ye Wuchen. However, just by coincidence, someone from the State Road also walked out. According to the rules, the two of them would have to battle.


    "You''re so lucky." Yan Jiu glanced coldly at Ye Wuchen. Then, he walked towards the center of the arena. Around him, Sword Qi whizzed and followed him along.


    The person from the State Road who had walked out was a grade nine noble. Because his level was low, he wanted to take the opportunity to choose someone on the same level. Little did he expect to encounter Yan Jiu. This being the case, however, he could only fight on.


    Yan Jiu continued walking. Before he even arrived, the other person could already feel a monstrous wave of Sword Will envelope him. The terrifying will seemed to be penetrating his mind and body.


    "Scram," Yan Jiu said coldly. Sword Qi blotted out the sky and rained down towards his opponent. The cultivator entered a defensive stance in an attempt to block the sword rain. However, the Sword Qi in the rain converged and turned into an enormous sky-shattering sword which crushed everything around.


    It was the great sword of the Nine Swords of the Celestials.


    Accompanied by a clear crack, the cultivator''s defense was crushed directly, and the great sword fell down along with a long stream of Sword Will. The cultivator quickly shouted, "I admit defeat!" He could feel that if Yan Jiu did not stop, his body would be penetrated by thousands of swords and he would certainly die.


    "Unlucky guy," many people muttered to themselves. The cultivator had encountered Yan Jiu from Sword Saint Villa who was two grades above him. Moreover, Yan Jiu was a top genius, so the battle ended quickly.


    After such a battle, the loser clearly did not manage to enter the Holy Zhi Palace. Since the start of this round, there had already been three battles, and none of the three losers was selected.


    The elimination was indeed cruel. The people who were eliminated were destined not to be able to enter the Holy Zhi Palace. Actually, some of the people who had accepted the offers from the Thousand Holy Islands earlier were also excellent geniuses. However, they knew that the battle today would be cruel and it was very likely for them to encounter even stronger cultivators. Only those nobles who were grade eight or above would feel confident participating in the current round.


    "Jieyu, Wuchen, try to participate in a battle early and don''t drag it out to the last moment," Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu and Ye Wuchen secretly. In the current situation, the most powerful people were all calm. On the other hand, those people in the lower levels were more like to walk out early. Therefore, if Hua Jieyu and Ye Wuchen walked out actively, the worse situation would be to fight against someone who also walked out. It would, therefore, be less likely for them to encounter the more powerful cultivators.


    Both of them understood what Ye Futian meant. After another battle, Ye Wuchen walked forward. A grade eight noble had the same intention and they encountered each other. The noble was quite powerful, so the two had a fantastic battle with one another. In the end, Ye Wuchen managed to defeat his opponent by merging the Heavenly Eyes Sword Technique into thousands of swords, successfully promoting to the next round. The person who was defeated was actually not weak. In fact, his combat powerful was pretty strong. However, he was still not selected by anyone from the Holy Zhi Palace since he was defeated by someone in a lower level.


    When Hua Jieyu walked out, there was no one else. She chose one of the only few grade nine nobles left. At the moment, there were fewer and fewer grade nine nobles left in the arena. Given that they were on the same level, Hua Jieyu defeated her opponent easily. Divine Spiritual Sorcerer was honored as the Ultimate Sorcerer and this was indeed very true.


    As the battles continued, there were finally unexpected fights between powerful cultivators. Also, some people who looked weak were challenged, but they exhibited unbelievable powers. More and more people were eliminated. In the first round, however, there was almost no one chosen by the powerful cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    In the assessments held in the past, the powerful cultivators would only choose from the last hundred people left. The current round started with 160 people, and even after the round finished, there would still be 80 people. Therefore, no one was shocked. Even if none of the 80 eliminated cultivators was selected, it would be nothing surprising.


    Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi also defeated their respective opponents. To Ye Futian''s surprise, Zui Qianchou also won his opponent marginally, just like every single battle he had had. In this round, none of them was eliminated.


    After this round, there were only 80 people left in the arena, reduced from the original 160. Six people were selected by the powerful cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace. They were all those who lost to other powerful people.


    "All of you have taken part in a battle. We''ll give you half an hour to rest," the elder on the sky stairwell said. Many people sat down cross-legged, while others closed their eyes to rest their minds. This round had successfully eliminated those who were comparatively weaker. Among those that were left, not many were weak.


    They knew there were nine Holy Roads and 80 people at the moment, so on average, there would only be nine people from each road. Each Holy Road represented a direction, so what did nine people mean? They were the brightest stars in the sky, the most outstanding geniuses from their respective Holy Roads.


    Among the nine Holy Roads, there seemed to be too many people from the Dawn Road, which caused many to be surprised. The Dawn Road was not the road which people thought would do well, but there were actually over ten people left in the arena. Ye Futian and his friends already made up seven of them.


    "After this round, all the weaker ones will be eliminated completely. Those left would really be at the top of the pyramid," someone said. After this round, there would only be 40 people left, chosen from the nine Holy Roads across the whole Barren State. It was obvious how strong they would be.


    "Now, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and their team should be the weaker ones in the arena. In this round, it''s very likely that all of them will be eliminated." The people outside the arena were discussing.


    Many people nodded in agreement. Previously, Ye Futian and his friends had all displayed exceptional combat powers, but power was comparative. Among those who were left, there were not even many grade eight nobles, and most of them were grade seven nobles. The difference in their levels would be harder and harder to cross.


    Just now, Ye Futian had fought against Zhuge Ling. However, he might have to face people like Zhuge Xing, Xie Ji, and Yan Jiu later.


    It would be too difficult.


    Suddenly, Virgin Bing Yi from Mortal World transferred her voice to Chu Shang secretly, "Chu Shang." Chu Shang looked at Bing Yi, who continued, "In the next round, many people in the arena will be more powerful than you. It''ll indeed be difficult for you to continue. You should be proactive and choose an opponent from Ye Futian and his friends. In this way, it will be more likely for you to win."


    At the moment, there were almost no weak cultivators left in the arena. Only Ye Futian and his friends had the lowest levels.


    Chu Shang glanced at Ye Futian and his team. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were still in the Arcana Plane, while Hua Jieyu and Ye Wuchen were grade nine nobles. Indeed, they were the people in the arena that she would have the highest chance of beating.


    It was only that she could still vividly remember Ye Futian''s speed in the previous fight. Would he create another surprise?


    Ye Futian was cultivating with his eyes closed. Having felt something, he opened his eyes and realized that many people were scanning him. He immediately knew why they would look at him.


    With the current situation, everyone thought that he, Yu Sheng, and their friends were the weakest people left. Therefore, they were waiting to choose them as their opponents.


    Then, let''s wait and see!


    "Time''s up," the elder on the sky stairwell announced suddenly!

 557 Ugly People Always Bring More Trouble

    This time, everyone seemed to be more steady. Nobody was eager to walk out first. Suddenly, a lazy-looking figure walked out slowly. Realizing his appearance, everyone only glanced at him lightly, not feeling stressed.


    The person was Zui Qianchou. Apart from Ye Futian and his friends, nobody knew where he was from or anything about him apart from his name. Nevertheless, his level was not too low and he was a grade seven swordsman. However, his performance in the previous battles was not very bright as he only won his opponents marginally. Therefore, nobody paid too much attention to him.


    Many people wondered who Zui Qianchou would choose as his opponent.


    "I challenge Yan Jiu." Zui Qianchou sounded very lazy and his face was filled with a calm smile, but his look suddenly turned extremely solemn.


    Yan Jiu was a disciple of Sword Saint Villa and the son of Yan Wuji. During that time, Yan Wuji was ranked second among the Four Great Swordsmen. At the moment, although his position on the Barren Sky Ranking was not as high as the leader of Tingxue House, many people claimed that his sword skills were no weaker than Tingxue Swordsman. It was only that Tingxue Swordsman was expert in killing others. If they were to fight each other with all they had, most people would expect Tingxue Swordsman to win.


    In the arena now, Yan Jiu and Xu Que should be the two cultivators who had the best sword skills. Many people were very surprised that Zui Qianchou challenged Yan Jiu, but perhaps this was a swordsman''s pride. He challenged the strongest swordsman to prove himself, which was quite respectable.


    Yan Jiu stepped out and looked emotionlessly at Zui Qianchou. Zui Qianchou was not the opponent he wanted to fight, but since he was chosen, he could only agree to fight.


    Sword Will flew in the air. Just like before, countless Sword Qi turned into sword rain which filled the sky, charging towards Zui Qianchou. Zui Qianchou drew his sword, which was his Life Spirit. His sword was as thin as the wings of a cicada and was almost transparent. As he drew his sword, a sword veil appeared around him and many gusts of Sword Qi whizzed out from his body, cutting the incoming rain of swords. In the sky, a great sword appeared in the rain, falling down and crushing everything in its path. It was as if the enormous sword was going to smash Zui Qianchou''s body into pieces.


    Sizzle�� A sharp whistle was heard from Zui Qianchou''s sword. He suddenly moved, escaping the force from the huge sword above him. The wing-like sharp sword in his hand cut through the sword rain and his body danced with the sword, creating a strange arc in the air. Then, he actually escaped from the range of the great sword and continued towards Yan Jiu.


    In the Holy Zhi Palace, the eyes of Sword Demon sparkled. Zui Qianchou''s movement looked somewhat familiar.


    Yan Jiu still looked calm. The sharp sword behind him started buzzing and countless Sword Will converged towards him, eventually turning into nine swords. As he pointed his finger forward, the nine swords penetrated across space and charged towards Zui Qianchou. Instead of moving forward together, the nine swords had different speeds, as if they were deliberately trying to attack their opponent at different times and from different angles. Vaguely, they actually sealed off all the possible paths that Zui Qianchou could dodge.


    It was the Sword Sealing Technique in the Nine Swords of the Celestials.


    The nine swords reached in an instant. Zui Qianchou glanced at them briefly, after which his body turned into a beam of light. His sword continued to cut the Sword Qi around him, but his body did not slow down at all. He seemed to have turned into a ghost, or maybe a drunk person, as he moved forward. The beam of light that he had turned into jumped rapidly in the air and formed a perfect arc, passing through the gap between the last of the nine swords.


    "Why is Zui Qianchou so strong?" Qin Yin and the others from Mount Jiuxian were all astonished. Was Zui Qianchou not a clanless cultivator from White Sovereign City? That time, he had even rejected the invitations from Li Xun several times. They only knew that he valued drinking as much as his own life. However, at the moment, he could actually fight Yan Jiu.


    Zui Qianchou''s series of actions were smooth and looked easy, but in reality, his situation was extremely dangerous. Given how powerful Yan Jiu was, he would have been killed if he was slightly careless.


    Many bolts of lightning flashed across the sky, charging towards the incoming Zui Qianchou. The Swords of Light approached Zui Qianchou, but a brilliant sword aurora erupted from Zui Qianchou''s body suddenly. His speed also increased further, as if he was no longer a person, but rather a sword which was tracing out many incredible curves in the sky.


    Many terrifying swords collided into the air, producing a violent bang. The Swords of Light and Swords of Darkness both missed.


    "Is this Drunken Sword?" Someone from the Holy Zhi Palace looked at Sword Demon. Zui Qianchou had also been drinking in the arena and he looked drunk at the moment.


    "This is not Drunken Sword." With a serious expression, Sword Demon answered, "It''s Ghost Sword."


    The eyes of the people around Sword Demon sparkled and they were slightly surprised. Was it the Ghost Sword that had vanished for very long?


    In the arena, many afterimages of Zui Qianchou appeared which looked like phantoms. They flew in different directions and gathered around Yan Jiu like many ghosts. Suddenly, Yan Jiu closed his eyes. His Sword Spirit bloomed and resonated with the sky. Thousands of swords vibrated in the air, producing a loud clank.


    "Endless Celestial Swords. Strike!" Just as Yan Jiu finished shouting, his willpower and body seemed to have merged with the endless Sword Will in the vast sky. Then, many brilliant strikes were released from his body, and there were no blind spots. Everything around him was crushed into nothingness.


    Everyone saw Zui Qianchou''s multiple afterimages converge into one. There, a dazzling blade of light erupted. The two people collided with each other and separated instantly. When the light dimmed, everyone actually saw a blood mark on Yan Jiu''s face. Some people had noticed that Yan Jiu had dodged the blade of light. Otherwise, the blood mark would be on his throat instead of his face.


    As for Zui Qianchou, his condition was even worse. His body was covered in blood, producing a shocking sight. However, his face was still filled with a calm smile. He had still lost. Sometimes, one''s talents would determine one''s future. Even though Zui Qianchou had been working extremely hard, his talent would still form a bottleneck. Therefore, he had lost to Yan Jiu.


    "What''s your relationship to Gui Jianchou?" Yan Jiu asked, staring at Zui Qianchou. Only then did many people realize that these two names were quite similar.


    That time, there was some resentment between Wuji Sword and Ghost Sword, two of the Four Great Swordsmen. In the end, the once famous Ghost Sword was disabled, and there were many rumors claiming that he was actually dead. There were also some who claimed that he secluded somewhere and lived an ordinary life.


    "Make a guess," Zui Qianchou said, smiling. Then, he turned around and left.


    Suddenly, in the Holy Zhi Palace, Sword Demon asked, "Are you willing to cultivate under me?" Zui Qianchou raised his head to look at Sword Demon and replied, "Since I already have a good master, I can''t allow someone just as famous to become my master. Senior, please forgive me."


    "You don''t have to worship me as your master. You can just cultivate under me," Sword Demon said again. It was indeed unfortunate that Ghost Sword, one of the Four Great Swordsmen that time, had been disabled.


    Zui Qianchou glanced at Sword Demon. Then, he knelt down on both knees and said, "My master said that he drank alcohol and had friendly fights with you in the past, and he indeed admires you. If I can cultivate under you, he will be very happy."


    "Stand up." Sword Demon nodded. "If it''s possible, I also want to see your master."


    "My master has already died." Zui Qianchou kowtowed on the ground and stood up. Sword Demon was momentarily stunned, after which he saluted at the distance and sighed, "There is one fewer swordsman in the Barren State."


    Zui Qianchou left the arena. Looking at his back, many people were somewhat emotional. His master had already died, but he was still unwilling to call Sword Demon his master. His character was indeed strong. Qin Yin and the rest were even more astonished. Clearly, they did not expect a clanless cultivator from Mount Jiuxian to actually be a disciple of Ghost Sword. From this, they could deduce that the disabled Ghost Sword had been secluding in White Sovereign City in the Mount Jiuxian Region.


    Staring at Zui Qianchou''s back, Ye Futian could tell that Zui Qianchou was somewhat sad and not happy at all. He had chosen Yan Jiu in this round to reclaim that glory that his master once had so that the people in the world could remember his master. However, he had lost, so he was certainly unhappy.


    Yan Jiu was also somewhat anxious. Zui Qianchou had lost but he was accepted by Sword Demon. Everyone knew the resentment between Sword Saint Villa and Ghost Sword, which clearly included Sword Demon. Therefore, would Sword Demon still accept Yan Jiu?


    Apart from meeting the other geniuses of the Barren State, Yan Jiu had come here for another reason. He wanted to join Sword Demon to learn sword skills. Only by learning various techniques from the best swordsmen could he become stronger.


    He came from Sword Saint Villa, but he did not have a master yet. If he could become a disciple of Sword Demon, he would learn the techniques from the two best swordsmen of the Barren State.


    At the moment, he was unsure of Sword Demon''s thoughts. However, he was also not too much bothered, as his sword would prove everything. Even if Sword Demon would not accept him as a disciple, he could still go back.


    After Yan Jiu returned to his original position, the elder on the sky stairwell continued, "Next."


    The first battle of the second round had already left a deep impression in everyone''s mind. The mind-blowing battle between Yan Jiu and Zui Qianchou also seemed to be indicating the start of an intense competition.


    Realizing that nobody was walking out, Bing Yi glanced at Chu Shang, who was somewhat hesitant. Then, Bing Yi walked out herself.


    Bing Yi, the Virgin of Mortal World, had an outstanding appearance and looked proud and noble. Seeing her appearance, everyone exclaimed in their minds. At the moment, most people left in the arena were geniuses from top forces in the Barren State. However, who would the Virgin of Mortal World choose as her opponent?


    Bing Yi walked to the center of the arena. Looking at Ye Futian, she said, "You have gotten this far. It''s time for you to go."


    Many people stared at Ye Futian. Was it going to be him again?


    Ye Futian walked out as well. Staring at Bing Yi, he said emotionlessly, "Why do I feel that you have always targeted me?"


    Bing Yi looked very calm. She had some opinions about Ye Futian perhaps because he had been unscrupulously judging her in the Holy Road. Furthermore, he had opened three major relics one after another. His level was low, but he was able to do what others could not. Now in the arena, he had also reached this round. Nobody knew whether it was a coincidence or if he was just lucky.


    "I don''t have any opinions about you. However, you do not belong to the arena anymore." Bing Yi''s expression was very calm. Those who did not belong to the arena should clearly be eliminated. She wanted to see a more powerful arena, one that could compete with her.


    Ye Futian looked at Bing Yi. When was it Bing Yi''s turn to decide who should belong to the arena? Perhaps, she was too arrogant and opinionated to think that she was wrong. She clearly did not care about the feelings of others.


    "Ugly people always bring more trouble." Ye Futian smiled. Previously, Bing Yi had gone to Flaming Prison City to snatch his holy badge. Now, Ye Futian could finally get his revenge.

 558 Rejected

    Bing Yi was stunned. Ugly? As one of the three Virgins from the Mortal World, she had never been described by anyone as being ugly. Ye Futian was unruly in both his words and actions. Perhaps this was the reason she disliked him.


    Bing Yi did not speak anymore. In the vast arena, an extremely cold aura erupted and the coldness kept seeping into Ye Futian''s bones. He shivered uncontrollably and even the flow of his blood seemed to be slowing. In his mind, a powerful Ice Will attacked. Ye Futian saw an endless amount of white frost trying to bury him forever. Bing Yi was arrogant, but as one of the three Virgins of Mortal World, her powers were undeniably strong.


    Flames started burning on Ye Futian''s body. A sun appeared, and the scorching flames expelled the coldness. However, under the chilliness, even the flames seemed to be extinguishing. Suddenly, a green radiance glittered. The flames burning on Ye Futian''s body were actually somewhat green in color. He had merged wood-elemental willpower into the flames which were now undying.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian appeared in an icy world. There was no more arena, or anyone else, and only a place filled with endless coldness. Showered in flames, he stood lonely at his spot.


    "Illusion." Surprise flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes. He immediately realized that Bing Yi was a Spirit Elemental Mandate Sorcerer. Illusions were classified as Spirit Elemental spells.


    "Right, it''s an illusion." Bing Yi appeared in the icy world. She was dressed in an icy robe and looked as pure and noble as a goddess. She looked coldly at Ye Futian, after which she waved her hand. Immediately, many terrifyingly sharp icicles appeared around Ye Futian, charging wildly towards him. Ye Futian''s body was actually sealed in the icicle-filled prison.


    Ye Futian glanced at the prison. Just as the countless icicles were about to hit him, an overpowering aura bloomed from his body. Noble Will erupted and a pair of golden wings appeared behind him, sending out a powerful golden storm. Ye Futian''s wings vibrated, and the sealed space was cut open at once. The incoming icicles were all crushed into pieces and the prison broke apart.


    Floating in the air, Bing Yi stared at Ye Futian and said coldly, "Noble level in martial arts."


    Ye Futian''s wings flapped and he also ascended into the air in the icy world, looking back at Bing Yi.


    "So what if your martial arts is in the Noble Plane? Can you break my Spirit Elemental spells?" Bing Yi''s face was still cold as always, and she was only surprised for an instant. Sorcerers would cultivate their Spiritual Energy, while martial arts cultivators would train their physical bodies. Even a noble-level sorcerer might not be able to break her illusion, not to mention a noble-level martial arts cultivator.


    "I really don''t understand why you''re so confident," Ye Futian said coldly. In his mind, Saint''s Will merged with his Spiritual Energy and a terrifying flaming radiance bloomed. Right away, his Spiritual Will turned into Flame Will which incinerated all the Ice Will around, melting away the icy world. Soon, the illusion before Ye Futian disappeared. He was still floating in the air with Bing Yi not far away before him.


    "What happened?" Bing Yi stared at Ye Futian. She could not understand why the Flame Will just now was so powerful and broke her illusion at once.


    "Noble Plane. So his martial arts has broken through." At the moment, countless people were staring at Ye Futian, feeling the noble-level aura from his body.


    Suddenly, a powerful momentum appeared around Ye Futian, as if his body was enveloped in a sovereign aura, causing his power to grow continuously. Spiritual Qi of various elements in the air whizzed towards him and formed an astonishing field.


    Wind whizzed in the sky, and it seemed as though all the Spiritual Qi in the huge arena was gathered around Ye Futian. The wings of the Roc behind Ye Futian flapped slowly. Finally, he stomped on the ground and an ear-piercing sound erupted as if the air had exploded. Lightning flashed and an illusory Roc emerged in the sky above the arena. It charged towards Bing Yi, along with the powers of the sky. Compared to the battle with Zhuge Ling just now, Ye Futian''s attack this time was swifter and more powerful.


    "His Martial Will seems to contain a terrifying power, a sovereign power. Its pressure is shocking and it can boost his power significantly. Moreover, he seems to have learned a body-enhancing technique. His body looks like a Roc and is just so fast!" Many people were thinking of the same thing. Even though Bing Yi was strong, her situation would still be very dangerous if such a powerful martial arts noble could get close to her.


    Bing Yu reached out her white hand and a beautiful ice scepter appeared. An endless stream of ice-elemental Spiritual Qi danced in the air. Then, she shouted, "Ice Barrier!" Right away, the spell was cast. Many tree-like sharp, icy blades penetrated through the sky and the earth, appearing in front of Bing Yi in a criss-cross pattern. Immediately, they sealed off the entire space. The sharp icy blades even pierced towards Ye Futian like many enormous trees made from ice.


    Ye Futian''s rotating body, however, did not stop at all. His speed even increased further, turning into a bolt of lightning. An extremely sharp golden will appeared on his brilliant wings which extended, striking forward. Following many loud cracks, the huge icy blades were all crushed into small pieces.


    Ye Futian had been cultivating his physical body, and moreover, his martial arts had broken through into the Noble Plane. Given that his body-enhancing technique was taught by Emperor Ye Qing, it was clear how strong his body was. In addition, he had the Imperial Tactics to make him even more powerful. At the moment, his body, together with metal-elemental willpower, was almost invincible.


    Many people were surprised. Bing Yi''s ice-elemental spell actually could not stop Ye Futian''s advance.


    Ye Futian''s speed was too fast. Being a sorcerer, Bing Yi was skilled in crowd control, but not speed. However, this time, she could not restrict Ye Futian''s movement and her illusions were also ineffective.


    All of a sudden, many dazzling mirror images appeared, circling around the arena. All of them looked like Bing Yi as if she had been reflected in countless mirrors, creating a dizzying scene. However, Ye Futian, who had just broken the barrier open, charged towards one of the images without hesitation. Bing Yi''s real body was standing there. Just like the two cultivators from the Zhuge Family previously, illusions were completely useless against Ye Futian.


    "Mirror Strike!" Bing Yi shouted coldly. Immediately, snow filled the sky and the temperature around her dropped below the freezing point. The mirror images released many terrifying beams of light, shooting towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian, who was diving downwards, was hit by one of the beams of light at once. He felt a frightening Ice Will invading his body and even his blood was freezing. Then, many beams of light shone onto his body at the same time. The temperature in the arena fell rapidly and everything seemed to have stopped moving. Ye Futian''s body slowed down continuously. He could feel his entire body being frozen, and half of his blood was turning into ice, stopping totally.


    "It''s Mirror Strike, one of the most famous spells from Mortal World. To cast the spell fully, a sorcerer would need to use all of her Spiritual Energy." Many people were astonished. At the moment, Bing Yi''s long hair was dancing in the air like many icy blades. Around her, everything had frozen, while the mirror images were still emitting many beams of light.


    Ye Futian''s body was too powerful and his speed was too fast. She had to quickly finish the battle.


    Cold! Ye Futian only felt waves of coldness seeping into his bones, stopping all the processes in his body. After all, Bing Yi was two levels higher than him, and in addition, she had cast such a strong spell. If the situation continued, he would really be frozen right here.


    An even more terrifying aura erupted from his body. Ye Futian seemed to be moving his fists with a mysterious rhythm. Then, a more overpowering sovereign aura erupted from his body and the flames burning on him became wilder.


    Boom! Ye Futian''s speed increased again. Many cold beams of light continued hitting his body, but they could no longer stop him.


    Then, Ye Futian stomped his foot in the air and appeared in front of Bing Yi, bringing along an astounding aura. Bing Yi''s face turned pale. An icy world appeared in her pupils as she tried to influence Ye Futian again. However, Ye Futian punched out without hesitation. His fist penetrated across space.


    Bang. Accompanied by a loud bang, Ye Futian''s emperor-like fist landed on Bing Yi''s chest, and the clear cracks of the bones could be heard. In just one strike, Bing Yi''s body flew backward like the wind, after which she collapsed onto the ground. She spat out a mouthful of blood, coloring her shirt.


    Many people were stunned. Ye Futian did not show any mercy towards the female opponent and punched her with full force. Nobody knew how many of Bing Yi''s bones had been fractured. She put her hands on her chest and her face was as white as a sheet. Raising her head, she stared firmly at Ye Futian.


    "Are you happy now?" Ye Futian said emotionlessly. Then, he turned around and left, as if he had never been bothered with this Virgin of Mortal World.


    Many people stared at Ye Futian. They realized that they had all underestimated Ye Futian''s combat ability. Perhaps, this battle had shown everyone his true powers. Bing Yi was certainly not weak, but she had still lost to Ye Futian. It was yet another unexpected outcome. Hence, Ye Futian was already powerful enough to compete with the core disciples of various top forces. He was able to stand on the stage of the best.


    It was unlike what Bing Yi had said, that Ye Futian no longer belonged here.


    Chu Shang was stunned, unable to remain calm. The young man from the Eastern Barren Territory at that time was already stronger than her. Apart from her, Nan Feng from Nantian House was also especially shocked. This time, Ye Futian did not use any ritual implement and defeated Bing Yi with his own strength. This meant that Ye Futian was also stronger than him already.


    "He''s already so strong." The disciples of Starry School were inconspicuous among the crowd. However, seeing Ye Futian''s performance, they were also startled, especially Long Mu and Gu Yunxi. It turned out that Ye Futian was still able to shine on the strongest stage in the Barren State. He did not only belong to the Eastern Region. Only this was his arena.


    After this battle, Ye Futian was promoted to the top 40.


    The top 40 competitors were certainly the best of the best. They would most likely all be able to enter the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Zhuge Xing glanced emotionlessly at Ye Futian. He was somewhat surprised, but not really shocked. Ye Futian seemed to possess special willpower which had allowed him to resist the various illusions. Furthermore, his martial arts skills were really strong and had actually suppressed Bing Yi''s control spells, which nobody had expected. Even Bing Yi''s strongest attack was ineffective.


    It was no wonder that Ye Futian had been so arrogant. Nevertheless, it was good that he was so powerful as it would make things more interesting.


    "Bing Yi, do you want to cultivate under me?" an elder from the Holy Zhi Palace invited. Although Bing Yi was defeated by someone with a lower level, they all knew how powerful she was.


    Bing Yi raised her head to look at that person. Then, she looked at another person and said, "I would like to cultivate under Sage Daozang."


    This was the mission given to her by her master. Sage Daozang knew many types of spells and was indeed very learned. With his help, she could return to Mortal World in the future much stronger.


    Many people looked at Sage Daozang, who, however, only shook his head gently. Clearly, he was not very impressed by Bing Yi.


    Intense disappointment flashed across Bing Yi''s face. Then, she stood up from the ground with much difficulty and left. Apart from meeting other people, geniuses like her had all come here with clear targets. Unfortunately, she had failed hers. Maybe she could have better displayed her abilities if she had not choosen Ye Futian as her opponent.

 559 Ye Wuchens Defea

    The elimination of the virgin of the Mortal World left many feeling shocked, but she was nonetheless able to enter the core island of the Holy Zhi Palace to further her training. However, it was her decision to refuse the offer of training under Sage Daozang.


    "Next battle," a voice said from the sky stairwell, followed by a silhouette walking out from the edge of the battlefield, drawing the attention of countless watching the battles.


    Her looks were incredibly stunning, like a goddess descending upon the center of the battlefield.


    "I will challenge Chu Shang, of the Mortal World." Her voice was calm yet ripples could have been seen in the eyes of everyone around.


    Hua Jieyu chose to challenge Chu Shang of the Mortal World.


    Virgin Bing Yi had claimed that Ye Futian did not deserve to be left on the battlefield, and she herself had been defeated. Hua Jieyu seemed to now be taking her turn to challenge the only remaining disciple of the Mortal World on the battlefield.


    Bing Yi, who had left the battlefield, felt herself shuddering as she looked at Hua Jieyu. The girl who just came to challenge Chu Shang looked stunning, and Bing Yi thought that would have been her, a figure drawing the eyes of everyone around. However, all she was able to do by then was just to watch the upcoming battle from the sides.


    "My gosh, she has to do this?" Ye Futian gave a bitter grin as he saw Hua Jieyu walking out, and he felt as if he was being defended by a girl.


    That fox is trying to get revenge for me.


    Chu Shang responded and looked at Hua Jieyu. Her looks were quite impeccable, yet she looked like a flawless decoration of some sort standing in front of Hua Jieyu.


    Bing Yi had her challenge a member of Ye Futian''s party, and both she and Bing Yi had accomplished that. However, the outcome was nothing like what they had predicted.


    A seven-colored crown appeared as Hua Jieyu unleashed her Life Spirit, and the vast battlefield seemed to be permeated with a mystical aura, which was a manifestation of her Spiritual Qi aura field. Chu Shang felt as if the Worldly Spiritual Qi around her was out of her control. Any attempt to build up a spell seemed to come with a risk of being interrupted and broken.


    A Divine Spiritual Sorcerer was one who reigned supreme above all other sorcerers after all. As such, even if Hua Jieyu''s plane was of a lower level and Chu Shang herself was no weakling, the fight would still end up with Hua Jieyu coming out as the winner.


    Chu Shang of the Mortal World was eliminated. Due to being suppressed, she was unable to demonstrate all that she was capable of and thus was unable to capture the attention of any of the greater figures. With that, every mighty one from Mortal World ended up leaving the stage.


    Chu Shang looked especially dejected as she left the stage. The Mortal World had been one of the top forces to reign over the Eastern Barren Territory, claiming the colleges to be lesser sects, and showing off their superiority. She had not taken any from the colleges seriously, yet many of those who had studied in the colleges turned out to be bright shining stars themselves, and had grown powerful enough to kick both her and Bing Yi out of the game.


    Both Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu made it to the top 40 after their respective battles. The couple who many had not thought to stand a chance going any further than they did, advanced hand-in-hand instead. Furthermore, there were others from Ye Futian''s party who remained. The chances of both Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi making the cut were high.


    The battles continued, and yet another silhouette dressed in green walked out. He had an impeccably sculpted face and a lithe body, looking dashing and outstanding as he made his steps. His face was one that suggested that he was of no harm to anyone, yet everyone in the battlefield knew well of the threat he posed.


    The ones from the Tingxue House had often been widely regarded as the most dangerous of figures in the Barren State. The swordsman dressed in green was named Xu Que, the heir to the master of Tingxue House, who ranked ninth in the Barren Sky Ranking. Xu Que himself was thought to be one of the most powerful to have made it thus far. Many who stood in the battlefield felt worried about being picked by Xu Que to be his next opponent at the very second he walked out.


    No one, not even the genius level figures, wanted to face Xu Que at such an early stage.


    Xu Que shifted his gaze to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu before turning to look at Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng. His green shirt and jet-black hair billowed in the wind. He eventually locked his gaze at Ye Wuchen and said, "Since you are the one practicing the way of the sword, I will challenge you."


    Xu Que chose to take on Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Futian was stunned. The odds of the battle were obviously stacked against Wuchen, so much so that it seemed like Wuchen himself was already eliminated.


    Xu Que felt quiet yet dangerous to Ye Futian. Ye Futian was puzzled as to why Xu Que would pick Wuchen to be his opponent. Despite both men being swordsmen, it would have proven little with Xu Que defeating Ye Wuchen. However, Xu Que''s opinion in this had been a simple one all along: the remaining numbers on the battlefield needed to be reduced further, and no matter who he ended up facing right then, it was all the same to him. However, he was not fond of gangs and groups.


    Ye Futian''s party became the most numerous at that point, and that irritated Xu Que quite a bit. People of the Tingxue House often went about solo, and they shared the same sentiment for themselves and their opponents alike. None of them were fond of crowds. As Ye Futian''s party was deemed too numerous at that point, he felt compelled to shave off their numbers for a bit.


    As for more specific reasons as to why he picked Ye Wuchen, it was because he thought it would have sufficed to have only two swordsmen remain on the battlefield��himself and Yan Jiu��hand no other swordsmen were needed around, including Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen wore a serious look on his face as he walked towards the battlefield. He knew the odds of the fight was stacked against him; however, he saw no other way out of it but to give it his all at that point.


    Xu Que drew his sword with one hand behind his back. The sword was an incredibly common weapon, and as such, it did not count as relying on instruments and implements. His other unoccupied hand remained behind his back. While he said nothing, what he implied was obvious��Ye Wuchen was a one-armed swordsman, and as such, he intended to take on Ye Wuchen with only a single arm.


    "Make your move. You won''t have another chance at it," Xu Que said plainly.


    Ye Wuchen took his steps and activated his sword aura. Sword flashes filled the air around him, and every conjured sword seemed to be an independent weapon, yet felt like a unit of a whole. Thousands of sword flashes whizzed past, going for their target together with Ye Wuchen''s unsheathed blade.


    The place seemed to be filled with sharp blades. The clanging noises implied that every single sword contained posed a lethal threat like no other, as they went to kill Xu QUe.


    Xu Que made his move in response. Instead of evading or building up a defense, he charged straight into the masses of conjured swords instead. Tingxue House''s art of the sword specialized in attacks and was seen used for defense. Their swords were ones drawn only to kill.


    Xu Que charged without a care into the countless blades conjured specifically for the purpose of maiming him. No one else would have chosen to fight in such ways, yet Xu Que chose to do so. His wrist was seen flickering as he swung his sword about. No one was able to make clear of his movements, as he seemed to have delivered a hundred slashes within a mere instant. His imposing sword aura cutting down the torrent of blades coming at him.


    Xu Que made his move forward as he continued to look like a suspended mirage of sorts. It was as if nothing else would have been able to touch him, so long as he had his sword in his hand.


    "Impressively quick slashes and movements." Many people''s hearts were shaking. Xu Que looked like some phantom shifting in and out of the flashes of blades threatened to skewer him. Whenever he ended up, imposing sword aura surged as he continued to close in on Ye Wuchen at a frightening pace.


    Fearsome sword flashes were emitted from the middle of Ye Wuchen''s brow and blinding sword flashes were seen in his eyes. He locked his gaze at Xu Que, and an even sharper whirl of a higher pitch was heard as one blade after and another charged at Xu Que. Xu Que swung his sword about without any hint of hesitation. Yet that time, he found himself swinging at empty air, while swords made their ways for his head.


    Illusory swords. A thought flashed in Xu Que''s mind as he considered the incoming ferocious blades. He moved his body sideways and drew a string of mirages in his wake. The swords broke the afterimages of his being, and Xu Que quickly emerged at the other side. More illusory swords went after Xu Que. He knew every sword''s trail was phantasmal, and everyone was set up for the kill in one way or another.


    Xu Que''s eyes took a rather peculiar look. He did not bother evading and instead burst with thousands of sword will. The sword in his hand was pointed forward in a simple thrust, the surrounding sword will carving the way out for its advancement, breaking off everything that stood in its way, be it real or illusory.


    The sword was meant for Ye Wuchen, and it moved like a bolt of lightning. He was overwhelming his opponent with the superiority provided by the difference in plane levels.


    Ye Wuchen''s brow shone with bright, intense colors as his conjured sword will shot for the skies. A small silver sword was conjured, making intense ringing noises as it gathered massive amounts of sword aura between heaven and earth. When the small silver sword blasted with brightness, countless sword auras congealed as one as they rained down in a crazed manner, as if they would combine into a single concentrated sword will of unparalleled strength.


    A blinding flash burst forth, and the countless sword aura coalesced into one, taking the form of an extremely refined sword intended only for killing. The two sword flashes clashed and incredible sword aura burst right on the spot, tearing everything apart in its wake. The extremely refined sword will from the small silver sword burst right through the opponent''s killing sword, and one flash was seen going right for Xu Que''s brow.


    "You are a daring one." A ferocious sword flash appeared in Xu Que''s eyes as a green sword flash burst from the center of his brow, shattering the incoming sword will. He then thrust out his hand and slap his killing sword into his opponent''s sword will. Ye Wuchen felt as if thousands of sword will with intense killing intent passed right through his body. The small silver sword flew right back into the center of his brow as his body was thrown back. The countless flashes of Xu Que''s killing swords remained in the air after a while, ringing.


    Xu Que waved and dispelled his sword will.


    "You are not bad, but if we were to meet on a true battlefield instead, you would be dead by now." Xu Que spared a glance at Ye Wuchen, before turning around and walking away.


    Ye Wuchen did not doubt Xu Que''s words one bit. His plane was not even near being capable of drawing out Xu Que''s full power, and the difference between them had been apparent.


    Many eyes went on to look at Ye Wuchen, who was an excellent candidate. He was unfortunate enough to have had to face Xu Que, who was one of the most powerful in the current battlefield. It was quite an achievement on his part for being able to stand his ground for a while despite his opponent being two planes higher. However, the difference between the two men''s powers was not one that could have been covered by any other means available then, and it brought about the end of Ye Wuchen''s journey.


    Ye Wuchen turned around and walked down. Despite being defeated, he hardly felt much inside. He knew it had been adequate doing his best, and that there was nothing much he could have asked for. He had come a long way since the beginning of his journey in the Cangye Kingdom, and what he achieved had exceeded his expectations. Emperor Ye had not been very far from what Ye Wuchen was then. However, Ye Wuchen was by no means satisfied with where he was, and he vowed to continue seeking his own path in swordsmanship.


    "Ye Wuchen," a voice said. Ye Wuchen halted his steps at turned to look at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Do you wish to train under my wing?" the Figure asked, shaking the hearts of many present. The Sword Demon extended an offer to Ye Wuchen.


    "I had a teacher," Ye Wuchen replied.


    "All who teach are teachers. If you are willing, you may address me as your teacher. If you are reluctant, then I will not press the matter further," Sword Demon elaborated in response.


    Ye Wuchen turned to face the Sword Demon and bowed. "It would be my honor to study under you."


    "Yes." The Sword Demon nodded with a smile. Being capable of facing off Xu Que, who was of grade seven Noble Plane with only the powers provided by grade nine Noble Plane, was seen to be an exceptional feat in itself. Ye Wuchen was able to hold his ground for a moment, despite the disadvantage, instead of shirking, and that spoke volume of his bearing on his path of swordsmanship. While he was defeated, his prowess was not bad. Ye Wuchen was, after all, capable of building a sword body, and possessed a pair of eyes as sharp as swords.


    Many looked at Ye Wuchen in envy. His defeat was far from a humiliating one, for no other reason that he was taken as a student of the Sword Demon. He was defeated, yet he achieved the dream countless swordsmen dreamed of.


    As of then, the Sword Demon had taken in two disciples.


    Ye Futian felt happy for Ye Wuchen. The Sword Demon had impressive bearing and was one of the top figures in the Holy Zhi Palace, and was a mighty one ranked in the Barren Sky Ranking. He served as the very symbol among swordsmen in the Barren State, and there was no better path of Wuchen to take than to study under one such prominent figure.


    The ones of the Sword Saint Villa did not look happy at all. While both Zui Qianchou and Ye Wuchen became students of the Sword Demon, Yan Nan of Sword Saint Villa was crippled instead. They had no one else but Yan Jiu left in the battlefield.

 560 Invincible Migh

    The battles raged on and every battle that took place after that looked intense. There were also times where the odds of winning or losing were even, instead of merely having one side slaughtering the other.


    Even some top-notch figures chose to fight early instead of waiting till the very end, or scenarios that should have taken place later with some of the most powerful had taken place a little too early. While they were all confident of what they were capable of, they were far from underestimating others around them. All wanted to make it as far as possible in the most prominent area in all of the Barren State.


    Yi Xiaoshi made it through the battlefield, as he was also one of the most noted figures around. However, it was not due to his prowess, but due to his girth. There was no doubt that the cute fatty had the worst figure of all who fought on the battlefield. Many were puzzled by his plumpness. When cultivators reached a certain level, due to their ability to absorb ambient Spiritual Qi, it was a given that they were able to achieve stunning skin quality and figure. As such, beauties were common among cultivators, yet it was an extremely rare sight for nobles to possess his kind of figure. However, the fatty turned out to be more than what met the eyes, and he was incredibly powerful.


    The fatty walked into the battlefield with rather clumsy movements. His eyes turned to the direction where Nan Feng, the proud son of the Nantian House was.


    Nan Feng''s pupils contracted as he returned the gaze. Yi Xiaoshi then said in a rather lazy tone, "Someone from the lesser sects of the Eastern Barren Territory has come to challenge the proud son of the Nantian House."


    The fatty is indeed one to hold grudges. Nan Feng and Nan Yu were among the most pompous ones to have visited the colleges. As Nan Yu did not make the cut, Nan Feng remained the only one Yi Xiaoshi was capable of blowing his steam on. It would be rather fun to beat the likes of him up on a stage like this.


    Zhuge Mingyue grinned at the sight. The fatty has gotten naughty.


    Nan Hao turned his gaze on Yi Xiaoshi. Both Nan Feng and Nan Yu have wanted to make a move against Ye Futian on the Holy Road, and Nan Hao stopped them. He wanted to see what Ye Futian was capable of at the stage they were at now.


    It was as he had predicted: Ye Futian kicked up quite a fuss after making it out of the Holy Road. What surprised him, however, was that someone from Ye Futian''s party had decided to make a move against the Nantian House now.


    Nan Feng carved his way out with effort as well. He had not expected the likes of Yi Xiaoshi to turn out to be so powerful back when the Nantian House descended on the Eastern Barren Territory. With Ye Wuchen being offered a chance to study under the Sword Demon, it was only natural that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu would have stood a chance to enter the Holy Zhi Palace as well. There was little else the Nantian House would have been able to boast about if everyone in Ye Futian''s party who had made it this far was all accepted as part of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Are you ready?" Yi Xiaoshi asked.


    "Make your move." Nan Feng unleashed an incredibly sharp aura and became encased in silver light, signaling his will to crush everything standing in his path.


    Boom! The fatty stomped hard on the ground and took to the air, moving like a bolt of lightning and lashing out with his hand at Nan Feng. Gushing, slithering sounds were heard. His arms seemed to continue extending, turning into shiny golden Emperor''s Vines, making their way to Nan Feng.


    A row of divine arms and ritual implements materialized behind Nan Feng as a bright silver light burst. A dazzling silver spear stood and many others burst forth, lashing out to counter the Emperor''s Vines coming at him.


    The vines were cut down by the spears gradually, but the Emperor''s Vines grew in numbers in response. It was as if a massive torrent of vines threatened to engulf Nan Feng''s body. Nan Feng shouted in rage and the sky became filled with spears. The Life Spirit behind him released an incredibly blinding ray of light, threatening to penetrate everything standing in its path. Nan Feng took the ray of light in his hand and took to the air. A single thrust with the spear seemed to bring forth a peculiar rhythm. The shadows of the countless spears tore apart everything in their path.


    The master of Nantian House was known for being the number one spearman in all of Barren State. The Silver Spear of Nantian was renowned by all back in its day and fought evenly with the art wielded by Yan Wuji, the master of Sword Saint Villa. The master of the Nantian House was ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking because of it. As Nan Feng was a descendant of Nantian House, it was a given that he was no weakling himself, and his Fallen Gods Spear Techniques was a comprehensive art.


    Yi Xiaoshi''s golden Emperor''s Vines were infused with metal-elemental Spiritual Qi, which meant that it was very difficult to break them. Yet, the spears tore at them like they were made out of paper. However, Yi Xiaoshi hardly seemed fazed. He seemed to have turned himself into an ancient tree, taking root where he stood. The tree was ten zhang[1] tall and was large enough to block out the sky. It was something made entirely out of vines and they absorbed the Spiritual Qi around in a crazed manner. The golden Emperor''s Vines rained down on Nan Feng below like there was no end. Regardless of how powerful Nan Feng''s attacks were, he was determined to bury his opponent in his vines.


    Nan Feng will certainly lose this one, most who watched the battle thought in their minds. Nan Feng was not powerful enough and was not a match for Nan Hao. With Yi Xiaoshi, who had now achieved grade seven Noble Plane and a top-class figure, Nan Feng would only be able to counter his attacks at best, and it seemed that Nan Feng would not last much longer under Yi Xiaoshi''s incessant barrages.


    It was as they all thought. Nan Feng began to give after a while, becoming increasingly tied up in the golden vines. He was hoisted into the air shortly after, the unsightly scene of which was for all to behold.


    "I surrender," Nan Feng said with a pale face.


    "So even disciples of the greater sects give up then?" Yi Xiaoshi laughed sarcastically at Nan Feng, who was now bounded so tightly that his face flushed with redness and was in incredible pain. Yi Xiaoshi seemed to enjoy embarrassing him, hanging him in mid-air and watching him struggle instead of simply finishing him.


    "That fatty is really a mean one." Ye Futian chuckled.


    "That will do," an elder of the Holy Zhi Palace said. Only then did Yi Xioashi throw Nan Feng down, coming down from the air and returning to where he stood.


    Nan Feng looked in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace and saw no response. It was obvious that he had been eliminated, and none of the greater figures took a liking to him.


    "Continue," a voice said from the sky stairwell. A stout figure, who seemed to have immense strength coursing all over his body, walked forward, looking wild and unruly as he did.


    Chi Kuang, a member of the Chi clan of the Demon Gods. They trained in the northernmost regions of the Barren State, which was harsh and unforgiving. The region was sprawled with mountains, and if one were to continue moving up north, they would have reached the vast, seemingly endless Demon World. There were two top-class forces dominating the area��the Demon Gods and Taixuan Mountain.


    The cultivators of the region were all wild and unruly. The cultivation scene was dominated by martial arts cultivators, and their way of combat leaned towards brute force more than anything else.


    The Demon Gods held their territory without rest, and they lived right next to the Demon World. As such, it was not difficult to imagine how harsh their training environment was. Rumors had it that the place was often invaded by demon beasts from the Demon World, and the Demon Gods often led groups of mighty ones to hunt for demon beasts in the Demon World.


    Chi Meng was the most powerful of the Demon Gods who made it to the battlefield, and Chi Kuang, who was a grade eight Noble Plane, was a close second. They were the only two Demon Gods left in the battlefield.


    "I will challenge him." Chi Kuang pointed at Yu Sheng as he walked onto the battlefield. Yu Sheng was the one with the lowest level among all who remained on the battlefield. While he was a tough one, he was seen as easy to take on compared to others around. Furthermore, due to Yu Sheng''s style of combat being similar to his, Chi Kuang picked him as his opponent. By kicking out Yu Sheng, Chi Kuang would then be fighting in the top 40, then the top 20, and then top ten. It was a great leap in every battle. Furthermore, to Chi Kuang, that was probably his last battle that was deemed easier to handle. There were no other opponents like that left to fight in the top 40.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward and kept his eyes on Chi Kuang. The Demon God was one filled with pure, unadulterated strength, and he would make for a good opponent.


    Boom. An incredibly violent fire burned on Chi Kuang''s body, which quickly engulfed him. The veins on his muscles look wilder as they burned. It was as if his body was calling forth the endless power of magma deep within the earth.


    Boom, boom. Chi Kuang moved in Yu Sheng''s direction. Every step he took was a huge one, and the battlefield shook with it.


    Dark, golden current flowed and manifested into an armor covering Yu Sheng''s body. He became encased in an aura of demonic might as he exuded equally wild and powerful aura. He took his first step with a loud boom and ran. Both loud, powerful bodies were to clash soon.


    Both men lifted up the arm and lashed out at the same time. Chi Kuang''s arm was filled with extremely wild Demonic Qi, like a fire demon ape out to overpower everyone. Yu Sheng''s dark golden arm covered in demonic might instead. Due to being born with immense strength to begin, the air practically exploded when he lifted his arm to attack.


    The attacks of the two men clashed hard in the air, resulting in a loud, deafening rumble. Both were thrown back by the resulting shock. Chi Kuang''s arm felt rather numb. Having fought demonic beasts his whole life, he felt like a humanoid beast of war himself at the moment, clad in aura more overpowering than the demonic beasts''.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stomped on the ground and took to the air. He sprouted devil-like wings behind his back and materialized a Heavenly Halberd in his hand. Rumbling, unruly currents permeated his body, as he brought down the might of a devil onto Chi Kuang below.


    Chi Kuang felt for the first time in his life that someone two planes below him was capable of manifesting a pressure that was more powerful than his. None of the demons on the mountains were capable of doing so, yet Yu Sheng, who was of an inferior level, managed.


    What was seen in Chi Kuang''s eyes was an all-supreme devil bringing down the murderous might of hell onto Yu Sheng''s head. Yu Sheng''s Heavenly Halberd, imbued with the might of the heavens, crashed down on him. Chi Kuang felt as if a devilish god had appeared from the heavens, ready to overpower everything on the battlefield of the demons beneath before Yu Sheng got there.


    The elders of the Holy Zhi Palace all had their eyes fixed on the scene before them, compelled to acknowledge that Yu Sheng was more suitable at the God Suppressing Strike of the God Slaying Halberd than Ning Huang; Yu Sheng was the man more suitable at using the God Slaying Halberd.


    Chi Kuang roared instead of evading. Being a mighty one among the Demon Gods, he was no stranger to clashing head-on with powerful beings, let alone one who was of lower plane.


    "Roar!" A fiery-red ape shadow appeared and howled at the heavens. Chi Kuang''s right arm felt as if it was being covered by fiery rocks. The arm felt like it belonged to an ape instead of him as he lashed out at the Heavenly Halberd formed using Spiritual Qi. The Heavenly Halberd clashed hard onto the arm of the ape. The arm exploded, but the extremely powerful halberd was no more at the same time.


    Chi Kuang snorted, cladding ape arms on both his arms and sending them out to grab Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng, like Chi Kuang, had no fear of fighting up close and personal. The dark golden spikes on his arms absorbed Spiritual Qi around him maniacally. A shadow of an ape materialized behind Chi Kuang, while the shadow of a devil materialized behind Yu Sheng.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Both men clashed head-on, with a force that seemed to be able to tear everything to shreds. Their first clash had many feel like their hearts were soon going to burst out of their chests. The two brutes out to overpower each other went on fighting for rounds and rounds over a very short span of time.


    Being able to do so also suggested Yu Sheng''s body was more solid and packed more punch than Chi Kuang of the Demon Gods. What was even more terrifying was that he became wilder and unrulier as the fight raged on, making him a war beast in human form who was born solely for war.


    Chi Kuang roared and his body took a stouter and even more muscular form. As his body enlarged, his ape shadow became even more overwhelming. The hand that seemed capable of tearing everything in its path to shreds went for Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng''s demonic current burst forth, making the demon shadow at his back look even more solid, as if a devil had truly descended upon them as it extended its arms. Yu Sheng''s thick, overpowering arms extended to take on the arm coming for him and held it tight.


    "Get off me!" Chi Kuang roared.


    Boom. Yu Sheng took a step forward and raw strength surged in his arms, hoisting Chi Kuang''s body off the ground. The Demon God was flung off the ground against his will by Yu Sheng. There was no methods nor techniques involved; all there was used right there was raw, primitive, brute strength.


    Chi Kuang was shocked to the core, intending to lash out with his other hand to counter. A rumbling boom followed as Yu Sheng sidestepped and turned his arms, throwing the body of the Demon God high into the air, robbing the Demon God of his foundation on the ground with which to draw power.


    "Get off!" Chi Kuang roared, feeling his body spinning in the air.


    Voom. Yu Sheng''s arms let go. A rumbled followed soon as he did, but the throw ended up flinging Chi Kuang hard onto the ground, and everyone heard the bone-cracking sounds.


    The air returned to silence in an instant.


    So mighty ones of such levels are capable of fighting like this?


    One can still fight in such a way?


    "Wha..." Many felt as if their perceptions and knowledge was being screwed over. Was that how powerful nobles were supposed to fight?


    However, it remained a fact that the overwhelming power demonstrated shocked the audience to their core. It was all too overwhelming. All tactics and techniques were rendered utterly useless before raw, unadulterated, natural brute strength. The sheer overpowering force demonstrated alone was more than enough to suppress everything else.


    Ye Futian was in cold sweat as his heart raced. Wow, Yu Sheng, you are something��


    [1] zhang: an old Chinese measure of length equal to 3.58 meters, or 11 feet 9 inches.

 561 Fierce Battlefield

    The Demon Gods specialized in overwhelming brute force, yet one such powerful Demon God, Chi Kuang, ended up being completely overwhelmed by Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng''s solid build and explosive power startled many in the audience, especially when he hoisted Chi Kuang up with both his arms.


    What was more surprising was that he was at the pinnacle of Arcana Plane. While he was simply one step away from developing comprehension of Noble Plane of martial arts, it remained a fact that his level was lower than Chi Kuang''s. It was anyone''s guess how far his strength would grow if he was to be a grade eight or seven noble.


    The hearts of those who emerged from the Dawn Road raced. Many recalled that startling scene right outside Jinxiao City, and that was before he had achieved demonization. Once he was fully demonized, he would turn into a true demonic figure. It was no surprise then that he was able to kill Ning Huang. Many truly came to believe that Ning Huang had actually perished in Yu Sheng''s hands.


    As the battles raged on, the earth-shaking shock that Yu Sheng brought about did not last for long. Every battle that followed was earth-shattering in each of their own right. All who fought were genius level figures. The golden great ape, Yuan Zhan, whom Ye Futian''s party came to be familiar with, was just as violent in his fight as Yu Sheng had been, overpowering his opponent with sheer brute strength and little else.


    When the round of battles finished, there were only 40 silhouettes left on the vast battlefield. The elders of the Holy Zhi Palace permitted them to rest to prepare themselves for the next round of battles that were to come.


    Many outside the battlefield scanned the place, and they were hard-pressed to find anyone that was remotely considered weak. All who were left were considered geniuses. Even Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, whom many did not expect to have gotten this far, managed to prove themselves. Ye Futian defeated Bing Yi and Yu Sheng beat down Chi Kuang with his godlike strength. They were simply considered comparatively weak to those top-class candidates.


    Of all those who walked the nine Holy Roads, only 40 remained, with candidates emerging from Dawn Road and Barren Road being the most numerous. The most prominent of those emerging from the Barren Road were the mighty ones from Zhongzhou City. Due to the Barren Road being one of the top three most arduous roads of all nine, what was seen then was simply within everyone''s expectations. However, what happened with the Dawn Road was something else altogether. Due to the emergence of dark horses such as Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Yi Xiaoshi, those who were left from the Dawn Road turned out to be more numerous than those from the Barren Road.


    Other than Ye Futian''s party, there were also Nan Hao from the Nantian House, Yan Jiu from the Sword Saint Villa, and Xiao Junyi, heir of the Dark Sage. Many had gotten into frenzied discussions as to who would be able to make it into the top 20 after the upcoming round of battles.


    "The ones from Dawn Road were truly surprising. There are more of them than ones from any one of the top three toughest roads."


    "Indeed, Ye Futian''s party ended up taking three places in the top 40. There is also Yuan Zhan from Mount Taixing. But if we are talking about top-tier combatants, the ones from Dawn Road are still nowhere close. The ones in the top three will probably still be the ones who will dominate the scene."


    "There are Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and the others from Barren Road, and then Bai Ze, the top class genius from White Cloud City. As for Nether Road, there are Zhuge Xing, Chi Meng, and the others. These are truly top-class combatants indeed. But Xiao Junyi from Dawn Road is an unpredictable one. Yan Jiu, Nan Hao, and Yuan Zhan are also very powerful."


    "This year''s combatants are truly something. Yang Jian from State Road; descendants of Zhong clan and Xie Ji from the Sacred Fire Sect from Separation Road; and descendants of Vermillion Bird Street from Travel Road. The ones from Frost Road and Decay Road are definitely the most mysterious. The guy who called himself Huang from Frost Road, the heir of the Undying Old Man, and then the mysterious Ancient Shaman clan from the Decay Road, all feel dangerous.


    Many shared the same sentiment. Everyone who managed to make it to the top 40 was terrifying in their own right. The next round of battles would definitely turn into a clash of titans.


    With things being so intense at this stage, it was anyone''s guess, as to what would become of the battles during the top 20 and the top 10 stages. Even the question of who would be able to make the cut to reach such stages remained a mystery.


    Many had the opinion that one or more from Ye Futian''s party, namely Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng would have been eliminated in that round of battles. It was not that they were not powerful, but that the ones they were about to face were all grade seven or even grade six nobles. No matter how much of a genius those people were, they was simply no chance for them to come out on top. Those who remained on the battlefield were, after all, incredibly powerful figures themselves.


    For instance, Hua Jieyu had lost at the hands of Yan Jiu before, and it would have been anyone''s guess as to how she would have been able to make it through that round.


    Everyone was a top-notch genius at that point, and no one dared to pick fights without some measure of deliberation. Opponents were to be chosen wisely, as there was hardly anyone who dared underestimate anyone still standing.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes to train in the battlefield, and Spiritual Qi was seen swirling around him. It was something startling to many in the audience. He is actually training at a time like this? Is there any use now? The fact that his plane is inferior to many will remained unchanged. It looks like Ye Futian knows the situation he is in well and is feeling the clinch.


    Many on the battlefield shifted their gaze onto him. Other than him, Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu were the ones getting the most attention. It became apparent that they were indeed incredible combatants, and while they suffered disadvantages, they still stood a chance. The same could not be said for many who seemed to have a better chance.


    The break ended quickly. The elder on the sky stairwell announced for the battles to continue. Two figures leaped into the battlefield almost at the same time, almost at the very second the round commenced.


    "Yun Ce and Zhong Li." The eyes of many sparkled. The clash of the titans was about to begin.


    White Cloud City was one of the few main cities in the Barren State, and one that was renowned throughout the entire state. There were two clans in control of the city in the early days of the city��The Bai clan and the Yun clan. As Bai Clan came to overpower the Yun Clan in the latter days, the city lord of White Cloud City was descended from the Bai Clan. However, the Yun Clan had never truly fallen on hard times, and the clan remained one of the top forces in the region. But then again, the city lord of White Cloud CIty himself was ranked fourth in the Barren Sky Ranking, and Bai Luli was ranked tenth. Regardless of how powerful the Yun Clan could be, they were unable to surpass their current stature as retainers helping the Bai Clan rule the city.


    Yun Ce hailed from the Yun Clan from White Cloud City and trained alongside Bai Ze. His combat prowess as a grade seven noble was formidable.


    Zhong Li emerged from Separation Road as a member of Zhong Clan, a great clan renowned on the Separation Road. The clan shared an amicable relationship with Alchemy City. The clan leader of the Zhong clan was a mighty one who was ranked in the Barren Sky Ranking. Zhong Li was also a genius. Many speculated that he was probably the most powerful out of all who emerged from Separation Road, and his prowess was thought to be superior to Xie Ji''s from the Sacred Fire Sect. Cultivators who walked the Separation Road were no stranger to Zhong Li''s prowess as a genius, and there was no one who dared challenge him.


    The clashing of both men was bound to be an intense one. As expected, both men did not let their audience down. Their battle turned out to be an earth-shaking one indeed.


    Ye Futian stopped training and turned his eyes to the battlefield. Golden, great cauldrons were seen in the air on top of the battlefield, and each looked to contain immense power, bringing intense pressure to bear on anything they could target. What was more terrifying was that the golden cauldron at the center was carved with matrix patterns, as if it was a great matrix out to crush anything beneath it. The golden cauldron at the center was Zhong Li''s Dharma spirit. Inscribing matrix patterns on one''s Life Spirit was akin to bolstering a god which was already powerful, making it something seemingly capable of killing other gods.


    Yun Ce from White Cloud City was immensely powerful, yet he was utterly cornered and was only able to keep defending himself until the inevitable came.


    Many turned their eyes at Bai Ze, who was also from White Cloud City. Nothing was able to be made out of his calm expressions. Despite Yun Ce''s defeat, he was accepted into the Core Island of the Holy Zhi Palace to train.


    "Zhong Li was probably the strongest one from Separation Road, then," Ye Futian said to himself. He was able to feel that Zhong Li was indeed more powerful than Xie Ji from the Sacred Fire Sect.


    Two figures walked out at the same time again in the second battle. Both wanted to pick their opponents, yet both ended up clashing with each other. They were Chi Meng of the Demon Gods and the young man from the Immortal Village; the one who killed Du Ao.


    The mysterious young man fought a very fierce battle with Chi Meng before being defeated. Many in the audience were impressed at how each and every remaining combatant turned out to be mighty figures, and the elimination of each of the defeated one felt regretful to many.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. He had indeed felt the pressure on him, and he was wondering when will be the best time for Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and the others to fight their respective battles?


    The battlefield at the moment was simply too dangerous, and everyone who they were about to fight seemed like insurmountable obstacles. Top-notch genius figure from Taixuan Mountain clashed with the mysterious Huang from Frost Road in the third battle. The outcome of the extremely violent battle was a surprising one, with Huang being the victor, and all of the mighty ones from Taixuan Mountain were eliminated by then.


    Hua Jieyu made her move in the fourth battle, and she clashed with someone she had fought before��Yan Jiu.


    Hua Jieyu did not give up easily in that battle and only lost after fighting fiercely. She ended her journey at the top 40 stage splendidly. The most beautiful girl right from the beginning on the battlefield had finally made her exit.


    "Do you wish to train under my wing?"


    "Hua Jieyu, will you become my student?"


    Several great figures from the Holy Zhi Palace extended their invitations to her, and some were of a caliber equal to Sage Daozang. Yet, Hua Jieyu simply bowed lightly to everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace and looked at Ye Futian with a smile before continuing, "I will go where he goes. I ask for your forgiveness in making such a decision."


    The great figures all wore funny looks on their face, before grinning while shaking their heads. She is one hell of a girl indeed��


    And Ye Futian became the target of many eyes speaking of envy and jealousy. However, given that Hua Jieyu was not able to advance any further, many thought it was that Ye Futian would get eliminated as well.


    Huang Jiuge made the first move in the fifth battle and ended up running over his opponent.


    Xu Que fought the sixth battle and managed to overpower his opponent.


    The seventh, eighth, and subsequent continued. Every single battle was one that shook the hearts of the audience, and every victor proved their worthiness for being in the top 20.


    Half of the battles took place in the blink of an eye. Ten made it to the top 20 after ten battles were fought.


    Xie Ji from the Sacred Fire Sect walked out to take the 11th battle, and there were no other genius figures who walked out at the same time. It was one of the rare chances to pick one''s opponent. Despite his strength, he was by no means capable of simply beating any opponent who he fought. However, things might have proven different for him given that he had obtained the initiative.


    Xie Ji''s eyes turned to Ye Futian, and it proved to be a good chance for him to settle the scores.


    "So Xie Ji managed to take the opportunity. Looks like Xie Ji stands a good chance of being in the top 20," many in the audience said to themselves. But given that Ye Futian had defeated Bing Yi before, it was no easy feat for Xie Ji to use Ye Futian as a stepping stone. It would require Xie Ji to give it his all.


    Ye Futian took his steps, and dazzling golden wings appeared as he did. The wings flapped as he became encased in wind spells. Ye Futian''s body took to the air and gained speed.


    He is trying to go straight into battle like that?


    An incredibly destructive Dark Lotus appeared behind Xie Ji''s back, and the temperature of the battlefield rose all suddenly, turning the place into a scorching hell. Xie Ji extended both of his arms and raised them high in the air. The Dark Lotuses came to spread throughout the vast battlefield like an endless torrent. Flames of rage howled, seemingly going to burn everything to the ground.


    Terrifying Dark Fire Will burst into Ye Futian''s mind at the same time.


    "That is the ultimate flame spell of the Sacred Fire Sect, the World-burning Lotus." The hearts of many raced. It was one of the most powerful flame spells of the Sacred Fire Sect, one which placed an enormous, terrifying toll on one''s Spiritual Energy and Qi. It was a spell capable of igniting anything within its vicinity. It was said that the Holy Forerunner of the sect burned a city down with that spell alone.


    Xie Ji went casting World-burning Lotus right off the bat; was he trying to kill Ye Futian from the very beginning?


    Phantasmal flames burned throughout the entire battlefield. Even those who were near the edge of the battlefield were able to feel the intense heat, and it was anyone''s guess what things were like for Ye Futian, who was surrounded by countless fiery lotuses like that.


    Xie Ji went for the kill right from the start!

 562 Breaking Through and Winning

    Ye Futian''s wings were dazzling; it was as if the shadow of a Roc had appeared. He blazed at Xie Ji like a bolt of lightning. However, one fiery Dark Lotus after another came at him, each packing incredible destructive potential.


    Ye Futian picked up speed and drew a beautiful arc, like mirages blitzing forward. However, the number of lotuses grew in response, and a terrifying dark fire blazed. Countless lotuses blocked his way. Ye Futian tried to cast freezing spells and brought about freezing aura in an attempt to snuff out the fires of the lotuses. Yet all he heard were sizzling noises; his freezing spells evaporated almost instantly by the flames.


    "Xie Ji is marking his own turf by exerting his own spirit and will onto the place, and he cast that incredibly terrifying World-burning Lotus. Ye Futian''s plane has been weak all along, and none of his water-elemental spells could have worked." This was the opinion many people watching held.


    A fearsome Meteorite Storm appeared around Ye Futian, cloaking him in terrifying starlight as he continued moving forward. The Meteorite Storm clashed hard with the Dark Lotuses. He had intended to use such measures as a defense and carve his way in. However, the Dark Lotuses latched onto the Meteorite Storm and went on to eat at the rocks. The meteorites burned soon and the fire spread, threatening to burn Ye Futian''s starry world to dust.


    Countless Dark Lotuses turned into enormous petals blocking Ye Futian''s way forward completely. It happened with all the other directions as countless more gathered around, turning into petals to do the same. A huge lotus platform appeared beneath Ye Futian. Xie Ji''s Life Spirit was unleashed, melding with the platform of the lotus. The vast battlefield turned into one giant World-burning Lotus, with an explicit purpose to cook Ye Futian inside.


    Many of the people in the audiences'' faces changed. Chen Yuan, Gu Yunxi, Li Qingyi, and many others watched the scene in awe. The move was simply too powerful, and it was simply terrifying when the geniuses actually went all out against anyone they fought.


    Ye Futian stood inside the huge Dark Lotus. The entire world was filled with flames, eating their way at him. None of his spells would have been able to do much to save him from the fires.


    His deep, starlit eyes looked forward as his wings flapped about. He kept his sights to the front within the world of lotus, thinking what would happen to him if he simply barged his way out.


    Xie Ji proved to be more vicious than Bing Yi. Xie Ji used his most powerful spell right off the bat without giving Ye Futian any chance. However, the cost of doing so was immense, as it would affect Xie Ji''s performance in latter battles. Xie Ji would need a lot of rest later, and perhaps he had simply intended to use the stage to prove himself and never had any intentions of staying till the very end. He might have wanted nothing more than to show his prowess to the world.


    Ye Futian activated Freedom Meditation, wanting to see how powerful the World-burning Lotus could get. He saw the lotus being manifestations of the Fire Spiritual Qi congealing. He was even able to feel Xie Ji''s lotus Life Spirit and that it melded with that particular lotus he was caged in. He felt he was able to see Xie Ji''s silhouette inside the spell itself.


    The power of nobles lied with the ability to have one''s spirit and will resonate with the heaven and earth around, giving birth to even more powerful spells instead of controlling Spiritual Qi with one''s Spiritual Energy, and using such manifestations as spells. The cost in Xie Ji''s Spiritual Energy would be proportionate to the powerful spell he cast, which was an enormous one.


    A sun appeared behind Ye Futian, and he was bathed in fearsome flames in an instant. A terrifying fire imprint blossomed in the middle of his brow, dazzling like divine light. Fire Spiritual Qi gathered maniacally, and even the phantasmal flame that was created specifically to kill him melded with his surroundings.


    A divine tree appeared within the sun, shining with jade-like brilliance, like undying fires. Ye Futian''s body turned into a Divine Sun Furnace, embodying flames that could have burned down anything in existence.


    The flames of the World-burning Lotus crept up on him, yet the incessant fires were simply absorbed by the Divine Sun Furnace. Ye Futian''s body turned into an incredibly voracious instrument, out to devour everything around it.


    Ye Futian activated the Sun Scripture and was surrounded by brilliant lights. He felt he was a body of flesh and blood; he felt himself becoming one with the sun, turning into a divine furnace. His spiritual will fused into the furnace, and he felt like he was able to see even more Spiritual Qi, which enabled him to devour even more Fire Spiritual Qi.


    A mystical brilliance of fire was born within the dark world of lotuses, shooting at the heavens. A crisp sound was heard in Ye Futian''s mind, like he broke something. Even more violent flames burst forth at the very next moment. Spiritual Qi practically gushed at him, as if he were to steal every bit of the Fire Spiritual Qi from his opponent.


    "So, I have made a breakthrough." Ye Futian smirked. His Spiritual Energy had long reached a critical point, and it was no surprise that he was able to break into the Noble Plane. Since he had broken into the Noble Plane, he felt it was time for him to see how far the Sun Scripture, boosted by Holy Will, would have worked at devouring flames.


    The flames of the World-burning Lotus came down upon him, threatening to devour Ye Futian''s entire being through and through. However, some totally different form of fire powers seemed to have surrounded Ye Futian, and his body felt like the Divine Sun Furnace itself, neutralizing any fire powers that invaded, even the flames of an attacking spell.


    "What is happening?" Xie Ji was using spells to burn Ye Futian to death and it was only natural for him to be aware of things happening to his spell. He was startled to find that formidable fiery powers covered Ye Futian; fires that were capable of neutralizing all types of fires eating at him. Xie Ji''s spell was unable to move against Ye Futian any further.


    "Die." Xie Ji''s mind went cold as the lotus platform that was formed by his Life Spirit gave birth to even more terrifying lotuses, sending them out to devour Ye Futian.


    The Roc behind Ye Futian, who was practically encased in fire, flapped its wings hard, and then blitzed into Xie Ji''s fires. Ye Futian''s body devoured everything in its path like a divine furnace, making little of Xie Ji''s fires capable of eating Ye Futian''s body.


    Voom. Fires raged up front, and Xie Ji saw a fiery silhouette bathed in divine light appear, coming for him at a blinding speed. His face turned pale. He had paid a huge toll in Spiritual Energy to cast the spell; a spell that was not only incapable of killing Ye Futian but had actually allowed Ye Futian to come at him with impunity. Furthermore, Ye Futian actually managed to break through into the Noble Plane while fighting.


    Xie Ji recalled his Dark Lotus Life Spirit in an instant, and his body seemed to be clad in flames as well. He pointed his finger forward, and terrifying light of his dark flames burst forth. However, given how not even the World-burning Lotus was able to harm Ye Futian, a common trick like what Xie Ji had just pulled proved useless. The terrifying silhouette blitzed through the air and made it to him soon.


    Xie Ji made a snap decision to gather an incredibly huge Dark Flame palm. Ye Futian''s body descended upon him at almost the same time, lashing out with a palm of the Sun seemingly capable of melting everything. The flames of different nature clashed with a loud boom. Xie Ji''s body was thrown far away and fell to the ground. One of his arms was completely charred beyond recognition, and all meridians within shattered. Ye Futian''s attack was infused with not only the terrifying power of the fire but also his strength as a powerful martial artist. Xie Ji stood no chance fighting up close and personal with Ye Futian.


    The fearsome fiery lotuses disappeared in the battlefield. Only Xie Ji, who was writhing in pain, was on the ground, and Ye Futian remained levitating in the air.


    "Noble Plane." Many felt the aura around Ye Futian. A multiple element Mandate Sorcerer practicing both martial arts and sorcery, and both sorcery and martial arts had broken into Noble Plane. Xie Ji''s spell forced him to make a breakthrough and the tables turned against Xie Ji in an instant.


    Ye Futian made it into top 20 after the battle as a grade nine noble.


    No one would have expected Ye Futian to be able to make it into top 20. Even if he were eliminated fighting for a spot in the top 20, he would have been able to earn a place in the Core Island of the Holy Zhi Palace. There was little left to the imagination in this regard after the battle.


    Mighty ones from the Sacred Fire Sect were all eliminated after that battle.


    Ye Futian''s wings shone as he made it back to his original spot. There were mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace extending their invitation to Xie Ji, but he refused them all, perhaps due to his dissatisfaction at those who invited him.


    The battles continued, and the remaining ones continued to try to take the initiative to pick their own opponents. Every single battle was a clash of the titans, and every single battle turned out extremely intense.


    Both Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi fought incredibly formidable opponents but were able to beat their extremely powerful combat prowess. Many people speculated that both Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi were both vying for a spot in the top 10.


    As the subsequent battles kept producing combatants emerging simultaneously, there was no opportunity for anyone to pick Yu Sheng as their opponent until they were only two left on the battlefield: Yu Sheng and a fearsome figure from the State Road, Dou Kui, an heir of a fearsome tribe at the western regions of Barren State.


    Dou Kui had a stout build, which did not look all that different from Yu Sheng''s. He had tanned skin and took a golden form in battle. All one was able to see was that he proved to be a terrifying opponent.


    Many watching them walk out to battle felt that there was little left to speculate about. Dou Kui would become one of the top 20. While Yu Sheng packed explosive power and was a born warrior, Dou Kui would probably prove stronger in every way. Only those who emerged from Dawn Road hoped that Yu Sheng would win the fight.


    "You are born with invincible might and specialized wielding metal type powers, but your level is too different from mine. It''s best that you just surrender. It is a pity�� If only your plane was higher than it is now." Dou Kui shook his head. The very reason he had come to the Holy Zhi Palace was to experience the combat prowess of the myriad of formidable figures present. He saw great potential in Yu Sheng and thought his upcoming opponent would have been a very good match if only he was stronger. It was a pity that Yu Sheng''s level was too low, and Dou Kui deemed it rather pointless to fight him.


    Yu Sheng kept his eyes locked in Dou Kui''s direction and said nothing. He unleashed his wild aura and dark golden armor appeared, boiling with demonic might.


    Boom. Yu Sheng ran in Dou Kui''s direction with a heavy first step. He did not choose to use wings but instead chose to fight on solid ground. The battlefield rumbled as if an earthquake had just taken place.


    Dou Kui''s body exploded with a dazzling golden light, encasing his body. The holy, pure golden brilliance was a blinding one. He took a golden form in an instant and even his arms were seemingly made of pure gold. He sidestepped as he saw Yu Sheng coming at him, then punched.


    The air shook.


    Dou Kui''s fist seemed to have conjured some mystical imprint, clashing hard with the demonic fist that Yu Sheng lashed out.


    Boom! A golden brilliance blew up on impact, and many witnessed Yu Sheng''s muscular body being thrown far away, falling to the ground with a loud thump.


    That body which was built like a god of war was unable to withstand Dou Kui''s explosive power.


    All of the spots for top 20 were taken in a rather premature manner.

 563 Wall-breaking Battle

    The difference in plane proved to be too great still.


    Yu Sheng had made it this far relying on his incredible brute force, and that itself had been an exceptional feat. His opponent, Dou Kui, was one who had similarly explosive power, yet Dou Kui''s plane was far higher than Yu Sheng''s; it was only natural that Yu Sheng was no match for him.


    Dou Kui''s battle would have been incredibly intense, however, this was only if his opponent were Yuan Zhan instead.


    "Yu Sheng." Ye Futian turned his eyes to his friend. Yu Sheng slowly stood up, and his immensely stout figure stood as upright as it had always been.


    Many people had funny looks on their faces. That is sure one body of the devil. This one can really take a beating. That incredibly explosive punch of Dou Kui seemed to do little to harm him.


    Demonic powers of dark gold colors encased his body, and the shadow of a devil was seen behind him. He unleashed a powerful Martial Will, which felt a terrifying formless demonic current out to overpower everything around it.


    Boom. He stepped onto the ground and the battlefield shook. Yu Sheng stepped forward, and the rumbling noise reverberated in the ears of the audience, like a humanoid beast of war charging into battle.


    Dou Kui''s expression was cold. His arms unleashed dazzling golden lights with a slight tremble, and ancient mudra appeared on his arms. Rounds and rounds of golden screens radiated outwards like waves, speaking volumes of the domineering power packed within.


    Boom. Yu Sheng''s feet stomped hard on the ground and took to the air. A dark golden Devil Halberd materialized on his hands and he brought the weapon down hard on his opponent below. The scene shook the hearts of many in the audience, for it looked as if a devil itself had taken the Devil Halberd in its hand to crush everything beneath it, making a very loud statement of its dominance.


    Dou Kui blasted forth with both his arms. The rounds of golden screens turned into countless fists tearing at the space before them, clashing directly with the Devil Halberd. The conjured halberd quickly shattered with loud cracks as it made contact with the fists. The domineering golden fists went straight for Yu Sheng''s arms. Yu Sheng was thrown into the air with a loud boom before dropping onto the ground.


    Boom... A loud noise was soon produced. Yu Sheng''s feet were planted at the edge of the battlefield as his arms trembled and his aura rushed. Howls of his demonic might were heard, and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth; it was evident that he was injured. He stood up once again. The demonic might swirling about his body did not weaken. It became more violent instead.


    "He is still standing after that?" Many were rendered speechless, and they were wondering if that fighter of an inferior level before their eyes truly had a body of flesh and blood. Dou Kui''s domineering strength was such that even those merely witnessing the fight were able to feel the tremors inside them.


    Boom. Yu Sheng made his way forward again, startling many in the audience. This guy is one hell of a lunatic.


    "Do you have a death wish or something?" Golden, cold glimmer appeared in Dou Kui''s eyes as he burst incredibly fearsome Martial Will about him. Golden ring-shaped storms seemed to have whipped up around him, spinning maniacally. His body was seen glittering with terrifying golden lights as if mudras burned on his body.


    Boom. Dou Kui no longer simply stood on the ground this time and had finally taken his step forward. The shoes he wore soon turned to dust as soon as he walked. The golden lights exploded under him as if every inch of his body was bursting with sheer, immeasurable force.


    It was apparent that Dou Kui had had enough of Yu Sheng''s repeated provocations.


    When the two bodies clashed again, many turned their eyes away. Yu Sheng did not stand any chance against such violent brute force, and he would end up looking very ugly.


    A loud boom that shot up to the heavens was heard as the fists of those two men met. Ripples of golden lights tore right through Yu Sheng''s arm. The horrifying mudras penetrated through their target and the place seemed to drown in golden radiance, blinding the audience. They saw the golden lights shoot out from Yu Sheng''s back as if the golden lights went right through his entire being.


    "Yu Sheng." Ye Futian was shocked to his core. What the hell is he doing? If Yu Sheng had found his opponent to be superior, he could have simply surrendered. If he did not wish to surrender, he could have used demonized powers to fight. Just what was he trying to prove by taking Dou Kui''s explosive attacks head on?


    "I''ll grant you death if you so wish." Dou Kui''s expression was as cold as ice. He retracted his arms before lashing them out again. The ripples of golden light from his fists tore right through Yu Sheng''s body with a force out to wreck everything, bending his body and sending him flying before, dropping him to the ground in a limped state.


    Ye Futian was not the only one feeling concerned. Zhuge Mingyue, Ye Wuchen, and the others were all shocked to their core. Does he have no care for his own life anymore?


    Boom. Yu Sheng''s body dropped to the ground yet again. The domineering aura about Dou Kui was dispersed and he walked towards Yu Sheng. Would this guy rather fight to the death instead of admitting defeat? We are not fighting a life-and-death battle here. Is all this really necessary? It''d be a pity if such a formidable warrior were to just perish right here.


    Yu Sheng was still clad in demonic might. There was blood on the corner of his mouth, yet the pain he endured still proved tolerable. His father once said that Demonic Powers were not something meant to exist in this world. The practice of demonic arts was something that went against the heaven''s decree. The demonic methods that Yu Sheng practiced were incredibly domineering, and the pain he had to endure was no less than what he had just suffered.


    The Noble Plane was an incredibly critical stage to his cultivation of the demonic methods. He had been unable to break through the barriers of his body, to forge the path linking his demonic powers to the heavens and the earth. With that, the only way there was to achieve such a breakthrough��a Wall-breaking��was through the use of external force.


    He closed his eyes and let his demonic art powers course through him. A terrifying force of demonic power ran amok in his body. Crisp booming noises were heard. The body which had been continuously blasted by the golden lights seemed to have broken apart. More parts of his body produced more crisp noises, as if they were being penetrated��the signs of Wall-breaking told in the annals regarding demonic arts.


    Dark golden demonic rays burst from his body shortly after. Many saw Spiritual Qi gather maniacally around him. Regardless if it was the pure elemental Spiritual Qi used by sorcerers or the mixed, raw ones used by martial artists, it all gushed into his body like a torrent; like long bodies of dark dragons being devoured by Yu Sheng''s very body.


    The surprising change attracted the attention of countless in the audience. Even Dou Kui stopped to observe the changes to Yu Sheng''s body. What is happening?


    Great figures in the Holy Zhi Palace looked concerned. Is that demonic arts devouring Spiritual Qi of the world?


    Such demonstration of demonic methods was the result of none other than incredibly high level and ferocious demonic arts. The most powerful of practitioners of demonic arts were centered at the Devil World, but there were still many such practitioners scattered throughout the world itself, just like the race of demons themselves. While it was no surprise that Yu Sheng happened to be a practitioner of demonic arts, he was an incredibly rare one for having reached such a levels, and was thought to be one in a million.


    "Wretched devil," Elder Ning uttered coldly at the scene. He now came to believe that Ning Huang was indeed killed by Yu Sheng. The demonic methods Yu Sheng was practicing were simply too domineering.


    "Practitioners of demonic arts are known to be cruel and bloodthirsty, and the young man before us went on a killing spree on the Holy Road before. If he is left to grow further, millions will die. I suggest that we uproot the cause of such misfortune right here as it seems that we, the Holy Zhi Palace, have been given an opportunity to do so?" Elder Ning said to the great figures of the Holy Zhi Palace telepathically. Many turned their eyes at Elder Ning. Someone said, "The rules were set by none other than we at the Holy Zhi Palace. We will be left with nothing to say for ourselves if we were to kill a cultivator who walked the Holy Roads."


    "Even if we were to leave him be, we shall not accept him into the Holy Zhi Palace for further training, in order to prevent him from becoming a bringer of calamity in the future," Elder Ning added.


    "We will see," someone said. Their interactions were not known by anyone else, and as such, the eyes of the audience remained on Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng, who was devouring Worldly Spiritual Qi maniacally, stood up slowly. Terrifying powers washed over his body. The key to the practice of the demonic methods lied within breaking through one''s physical limitations continuously; breaking all that was shackling them and going against the very laws of nature.


    Boom. Incredibly violent demonic aura was unleashed, and demonic might engulfed the entire battlefield. Everyone was able to tell that Yu Sheng''s aura had changed. His aura had become that of a noble''s. He had been using the opportunity to break through into higher planes and become a noble.


    "This guy is a tough one."


    "He had been using Dou Kui''s power as a crucible of sorts, then?" some in the audience speculated. However, Yu Sheng, who had achieved his breakthrough, remained a grade nine noble. Will he be able to withstand Dou Kui, a grade seven noble?


    "Thank you." Yu Sheng turned his eyes at Dou Kui, filled with utterly domineering demonic might.


    "No need for thanks. The battle will probably be more interesting because of what you just did. I hope your new breakthrough will not be a disappointing one." Dou Kui grinned and turned. Golden rays encased his body, and Dou symbol mudras turned into rings of light screens as they spread out.


    "You will have the fight you want." Yu Sheng''s voice was cold as dark golden demonic might swirled about his body, draping a layer of glimmer over his surroundings. He turned in something like an embodiment of the demonic arts, clenched his fist, and charged towards Dou Kui.


    Dou Kui moved as well. Many saw the two rush at each other. A pure golden screen of light clashed with the dark golden glimmer of the demonic arts, resulting in blinding lights in the place. Their fists met each other. There was no more trickery; just pure clashing of physical bodies.


    Boom. Ripples of glimmer spread throughout the place as Dou Kui''s body was thrown behind. His feet scraped on the ground, making piercing grinding noises. Both his legs were encased in golden light.


    Yu Sheng stood tall at where he was, making many shudder.


    Yu Sheng, who had just achieved a breakthrough, was able to throw Dou Kui with sheer power alone.


    Many turned their eyes at Dou Kui. The man lifted his head, and a grin was seen on his face. "Now this is interesting." He unleashed even higher levels of golden lights as soon as he finished musing to himself. Golden mudras spun around his body, tearing everything in its way. His shirt was torn to shreds right there and then, showing off pure golden skin beneath. His Life Spirit was unleashed behind��a large golden ancient symbol, Dou.


    The light of the Dou symbol seeped into his body, enabling the symbol to appear in every part of his body. The intensity of the golden lights about him made him look like a god of war himself.


    Boom. Terrifying golden lights scattered about, spreading to cover the entire battlefield. It was the Martial Will of the Dou, out to flood everything in its wake, even Yu Sheng.


    Yet, at the same time, Yu Sheng''s surroundings were encased in dark golden demonic light. Immeasurably terrifying demonic will burst, the glimmer of the demonic arts spread out maniacally as if the world itself resonated with the powers Yu Sheng had unleashed. Yu Sheng''s demonic will blended with Dou Kui''s battle will of the Dou. The scene seemed like Dou Kui, the god of war, was facing off with a devil. The shadow of the devil seemed to bear down on Dou Kui''s will with incredible pressure, imploring him to submit to the supreme Martial Will.


    "Domineering indeed," Dou Kui said to himself as he walked. Infinite golden light encased his body, making his body looking like a rainbow out to pierce everything as he charged at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng stomped on the ground and everyone outside the battlefield felt the ground shake. It was like a devil standing tall. Yu Sheng responded with overpowering fist attacks when Dou Kui came bringing his might to bear. Infinite demonic might congealed around Yu Sheng''s fist. The Dou symbol appeared on Dou Kui''s fist as the fists of both men clashed.


    Yu Sheng''s fist was filled with nothing but sheer brute force. The practice of demonic arts implored its practitioners to never back down. Dark golden demonic fist pounded the enormous Dou symbol. The clash seemed to have brought forth thousands of fist will on Yu Sheng''s fist, cracking the enormous Dou symbol. A blinding light shone and the Dou symbol shattered. Dou Kui''s body was sent flying right outside the battlefield, throwing him hard on the ground.


    Formless storms whipped about the battlefield. The eyes of countless people stared at the scene, startled. This is all just too powerful.


    While there were not many flashy moments with the fight, it was nonetheless one that was considered a clash between titans. The impacts were impressive, and every clash brought about a shock that sent hearts racing as if the spectators'' blood was being set on fire.


    The powerful Dou Kui was defeated.


    Yu Sheng, who had just achieved a breakthrough, became the last candidate to make it into top 20.


    The glimmer on the battlefield was soon gone. Dou Kui coughed up blood as he slowly stood up. He turned his eyes at Yu Sheng. His eyes were not those of a dejected loser. He looked calm instead.


    "Being able to fight a battle like that, I consider this trip on the Holy Road worthwhile," Dou Kui said and then walked towards the crowd.


    "So you will not be entering the Holy Zhi Palace?" an elder at the sky stairwell asked.


    "I''m here only to experience what the best of the Barren State had to offer. Sorry to have been a bother to you all." Dou Kui bowed and left. He remained dashing, even in defeat!

 564 The Eye of Devastation

    In the battlefield, there were only 20 people remaining and they were all catching their breath. Battles at this level would definitely cause them to be worn out, so the Holy Zhi Palace gave them time to rest after each round of battles.


    Now, among the top 20 in the battlefield, there were seven people from the Dawn Road: Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Yi Xiaoshi, Yuan Zhan, Xiao Junyi, Yan Jiu and Nan Hao. This caused the crowd to be amazed, even if the Dawn Road lacked elite geniuses, it was astounding for seven people to be able to make it into the top 20. Those that were still remaining all had elite battle abilities. For instance, Dou Kui, who had just been eliminated, was extremely strong.


    Also eliminated were Yun Ce from the White Cloud City, Xia Hou from the Xia Clan, Xie Ji from the Sacred Fire Sect. Many elite figures had already been eliminated, so being able to step into the top 20 was by no means coincidence. They had all fought their way in with their strength.


    Apart from the seven people from the Dawn Road, the Zhongzhou City''s Barren Road had the most people. The Sovereign Family''s Huang Jiuge, Xu Que from the Tingxue House, Ximen Yan from the Ximen Clan and Zi Yan from the Thunder Courtyard.


    In the other seven Holy Roads, the Nether Road had two people, Chi Meng from the Demon God Clan and Zhuge Xing from the Zhuge Clan.


    The Decay Road had two people, the disciple of the undying old man, the girl who called herself Phoenix and the successor of the Ancient Shaman Clan, Gui Chen.


    The other Holy Roads all had one person each, namely Bai Ze from the White Cloud CIty, Li Xing from the Vermillion Bird Sect, Yang Jian from the Yang Clan and a mysterious expert from the Frost Road, Huang.


    At a glance, there was not a weakling to be seen, and even the crowd could not predict who was going to be eliminated next. Previously, the two who had been shortlisted for elimination, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, had defeated Xie Ji and Dou Kui. Who would dare to say that they would be eliminated next? Unless they were to be matched up against the strongest people.


    Everyone was debating about who would enter the top ten. Bai Ze, Huang Jiuge, Zhuge Xing, Xu Que,and Chi Meng should be able to continue. Apart from that, Zi Yan from the Thunder Courtyard and Li Xing from the Vermillion Bird Sect were grade six nobles and had a high chance of proceeding to the next round.


    Besides that, they were unable to guess who it would be, but they knew that it was unrealistic to make their conjecture purely based on their cultivation level. The circumstances would change based on who was battling as their battling styles all differed.


    In a nutshell, any battle that happened next was highly anticipated.


    In the battlefield, the 20 people were exceptionally quiet, like they had all fallen asleep. Evidently, they were all under immense pressure. If they won another match, they would be in the top ten.


    In another direction outside the battlefield, Chen Yuan and Mu Chuan were watching, the Starry School''s disciples behind them.


    "Mu Chuan, it''s already the top 20. Moreover, he only broke through and became a Noble Plane cultivator not long ago. Do you know what that means?" Chen Yuan asked with a solemn expression. This time, Mu Chuan was exceptionally calm and did not rebuke Chen Yuan. The successor that Chen Yuan had picked had reached here merely as a grade nine noble. How far could he go if he was a grade seven noble?


    Chen Yuan had claimed that as the Son, he would have to dominate his generation. Did that include the entire Barren State? Not just Ye Futian, but Yu Sheng and even Ye Wuchen, who had been eliminated, were all extremely strong. This was an awe-inspiring trio.


    In time, when they all grew, how far could they go?


    It was unimaginable.


    Behind them, Gu Yunxi, Long Mu, Qin Yin, Li Qingyi and the rest were all shocked by Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. They felt as though they could never catch up to the two of them and their brilliance.


    Many people in the Dawn Road felt proud of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. It looked like Ning Huang''s death in Jinxiao City hadn''t been by chance. If he could live to see the sight now, he would probably not have forced Ye Futian''s hand in the Holy Road.


    Hua Jieyu watched the battlefield quietly. She had more confidence in Ye Futian than anyone else. From way back when they knew each other in the Qingzhou Academy to the Nandou Nation and the Eastern Barren Territory, there was no one who did not know Ye Futian''s name. The Barren State would be no different.


    The wind billowed and rustled across the battlefield desolately. On the sky stairwell, the elder opened his mouth and declared, "Let the battles continue."


    As his voice landed, it became exceptionally quiet outside the battlefield and the silence permeated the air. Everyone was controlling themselves, their gazes all focused on the battlefield and anticipating the battles for the top ten.


    In the battlefield, many people started to look at others, observing their every move. Now, each of them would have to consider who they wanted to pick as an opponent.


    As the wind rushed past, two figures moved at the same time and descended on the battlefield like flashes of lightning.


    So fast. The two combatants for the first battle have already appeared, the crowd thought as they focused their gaze on the battlefield.


    It was the genius of the Ximen Clan, Ximen Yan.


    The Ximen Clan had great expectations for him. Today, many of his elders had personally come to watch the battles. Ximen Yan was indeed strong and he had proven himself in his previous battles. However, his expression now was especially grim as he stared down the opponent who had stepped into the battlefield with him.


    Anyone would be nervous when facing him.


    It was a young and handsome man, distinguished and elegant. He resembled his brother a little and there were rumors that his potential was not inferior to his brother. He would likely be an influential figure on the Barren Sky Ranking in the future.


    He was only a grade eight noble, the lowest apart from Ye Futian and Yu Sheng in the battlefield. That was because he was younger than most of them.


    He was Bai Ze from the White Cloud City.


    Nobody had expected him to be the first to step out. The contestant that had been reputed to have the ability to enter the top three was the first to appear in the battle platform.


    Unlike Ximen Yan''s serious expression, Bai Ze was very relaxed and did not show many emotions. It was like he was doing an insignificant thing. He did not care who his opponent was, because no matter who it was, there would only be one outcome.


    Ximen Yan was no different.


    The wind on the battlefield started to get more and more vigorous and it started to pick up around Ximen Yan''s body. At the same time, brilliant silver rays appeared in the air and transformed into flying daggers. The flying daggers made shrill roaring sounds and a terrifying Broadsword Will was infused in them. What was even more horrifying was that the flying daggers had become part of the storm while the storm was rampaging and revolving, as if the silver storm could destroy the entire battlefield on Ximen Yan''s whim.


    Bladestorm. The crowd felt the destructive might and was stunned. However, within the terrifying storm, Bai Ze stood there calmly. The wind billowed at his shirt and made crackling sounds and his shirt was in shreds under the sharp Broadsword Will, but Bai Ze''s expression did not change. It was like he did not feel anything.


    At that moment, Bai Ze''s eyes became exceptionally demonic and turned grey. In the next second, a formidable Spiritual Will surrounded the entire area and rushed into Ximen Yan''s brain. Ximen Yan felt like his entire world had turned grey and an immense pressure was crushing down on him.


    His cultivation level was higher than Bai Ze''s, so his Spiritual Energy should have been stronger. However, he was being suppressed by his opponent''s Spiritual Energy because Bai Ze''s Spiritual Energy was different from others.


    This was Ximen Yan''s first time battling with an expert from the White Cloud City. In an instant, he understood how scary it was.


    The White Cloud City''s strongest legacy, the Eye of Devastation.


    A Spirit Elementalist. Ye Futian watched the two of them battle and understood that an Eye Spell expert''s foundation was a Spirit Elementalist. Spirit Elementalists specialized in different abilities and were the most mysterious and tricky sorcerers to deal with, especially those that specialized in special abilities. They were often ridiculously strong.


    Ye Futian had long heard of the White Cloud City, especially his third brother''s defeat at the hands of the young city lord Bai Luli. He was observing Bai Ze''s battle and Bai Ze had not used such a dominant eye spell in his previous battles.


    Using his Freedom Meditation, he saw a grey world. That was the Noble zone that was created by the Spiritual Energy of the eye spell that had suppressed Ximen Yan.


    "Die," Ximen Yan roared, as he tried to control his Spiritual Energy and stabilize it. As he reached his limit, the storm fired countless blades at Bai Ze. However, Spirit Elementalists had always been able to counter sorcerers. Ximen Yan''s offensive abilities appeared to have been weakened drastically as an invisible grey hand appeared from the horrifying grey world and crushed down upon the storm. Immediately, the storm became chaotic and the daggers flew around uncontrollably.


    Corporeal Spiritual Energy. Ye Futian was astounded, as he exerted his Freedom Meditation. He could feel everything that was happening. The bladestorm was revolving rapidly, but none of the attacks were able to reach Bai Ze. Although they scraped past him, he stood in the eye of the storm calmly and did not move.


    "You''re still a long way away," Bai Ze casually said. The flying daggers that Ximen Yan had materialized flew backward and pierced Ximen Yan. In an instant, Ximen Yan''s body flew backward and he fell on the ground, drenched in his blood.


    The horrific Spiritual Will suppression disappeared and Ximen Yan looked like he was at a loss. He had fought his way into the top 20, but he was still unable to withstand a single blow!


    "This��" Countless gazes froze. They had expected the outcome of the battle and knew that Bai Ze was the definite winner, but they had not expected him to obtain victory in such a dominating fashion.


    Ximen Yan, who had fought his way into the top 20, was not even worthy of being his opponent.


    This caused many people to think of the glorious figures of the White Cloud City. The White Cloud Lord, fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking and Bai Luli, tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking. This was a frightening clan that was making it way to the apex of the Barren State.


    In the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, Bai Luli watched the battle calmly. He knew Bai Ze''s strength, so it no surprise for him to defeat Ximen Yan. In the battlefield, there were only one or two people who had the right to be Bai Ze''s opponent!

 565 Yuan Zhan’s Staff Techniques

    The first battle''s result truly shocked everyone. But when the two for the second battle walked out, everyone forgot about those thoughts. They refocused on the battlefield. As expected, everyone who stepped out today was able to shake their hearts. It was Xu Que of the Tingxue House against Nan Hao of the Nantian House.


    The heir of the Tingxue House''s Fatal Sword God would battle with the descendant of the Nantian House''s Silver Spear. This kind of battle was practically impossible to see in everyday life. However, every round on this stage was at this level. How could the audience not be shaken? This was probably the attraction of the Holy Zhi Palace''s triennial test.


    Xu Que''s expression was lazy as if he didn''t care at all. But as the heir of the Fatal Sword God, his focus was indisputable. If one was fooled by his appearance, the consequences would be ugly. Thus, the moment Nan Hao stepped onto the battleground, he trained his eyes on Xu Que. He was like a silver spear going directly forward.


    On the battlefield, murderous intent bloomed instantly. Murderous Sword Will transformed into a windstorm of murderous aura. It fluttered Nan Hao''s clothing. He stood there and felt the extremely murderous Sword Will ravage above him.


    He reached out and a dazzling silver spear appeared in Nan Hao''s hand. He released his life spirit and a horrible spear that pierced the sky appeared. This spear shone brilliantly and floated upward. Countless spear shadows appeared, pointed towards Xu Que.


    Faced with an opponent like Xu Que, even someone like Nan Hao didn''t dare to go easy. Everyone in the Barren State knew how dangerous the Fatal Sword God was.


    All the murderous intent transformed into sword Spiritual Qi. Whistling, it rushed towards Nan Hao.


    The silver spear behind Nan Hao shook and countless spear images exploded. Beams of silver light shot out, going straight towards Xu Que. Every beam of silver light seemed to be a true spear. Their sharpness couldn''t be stopped. The air popped scarily, ripping apart the murderous sword Spiritual Qi, charging towards Xu Que.


    Xu Que moved. He transformed into a blurry shadow as countless deadly Spiritual Qi gathered on his sword. A beam of sword light flew out and some silver light in the sky split apart. It had been cut apart. However, before everyone could see clearly, a sword came from another direction to continue cutting apart the silver light.


    Under everyone''s shocked scrutiny, the endless silver light seemed to be ripped apart at once. No one knew how many fast Xu Que''s swords had been or how many swords he''d used.


    They only saw that sword essence appear behind Nan Hao now. That was the sword of the Fatal Sword God. It split the sky with one strike. No one could describe how magnificent it was.


    Ye Futian also stared at the sword. Most people thought that Xu Que had used many swords, but he saw clearly that Xu Que had only used one. This sword had been used flowingly like water, moving according to his body and landing directly before Nan Hao. Ye Futian thought about how he would block that kind of attack.


    Silver light flashed past Nan Hao''s eyes. He stabbed his spear out without any hesitation.


    Ding! With a crisp sound, the shocking sword shadow finally stopped. Everyone saw that the sword had reached Nan Hao''s throat, but the spear had stopped it. The spear''s tip hit the sword''s tip. It wasn''t even a millimeter off.


    Everyone looked at Nan Hao''s silver eyes. It was rumored that the Nantian House trained the eye before learning the spear. One needed extremely strong observation skills. Their spear skills had to be faster, crueler, and more accurate to be cultivated to the extreme.


    The moment the sword and spear clashed, horrible fatal sword Spiritual Qi flared crazily. There was also a terribly sharp spear aura. They formed two formless light shields in the middle. But just then, Nan Hao''s life spirit shone brilliantly. He stepped forward and his spear continued forward. A gust of world-ending sharpness burst from the spear. There was a piercing sound. Everyone saw the spear''s tip flash blindingly. The sword was crumbling.


    The god-killing spear technique could destroy everything.


    The moment the sword began collapsing, wind blew past. The spear seemed to stab directly into Xu Que''s throat. His body shattered and scattered with the wind. It was only an afterimage. The sense of danger seized Nan Hao. His eyes shone with silver light. Without hesitation, he swept his spear horizontally. On the side, Xu Que rematerialized. He wasn''t holding his sword anymore, but he seemed to be gripping beams of murderous Sword Will.


    Xu Que''s sword was used to kill. He never used techniques that would just clash with the other''s weapon.


    A horrible sword windstorm rose up around Nan Hao. It even created a murderous tornado that wrapped around him. Everyone saw Nan Hao stab his spear forward. Each thrust was shocking powerful and fast.


    But the observers from the Nantian House grew even more serious. Nan Hao''s techniques now were growing faster and harsher. This meant that he was under even stronger defensive pressure. Replacing defense with offense, Nan Hao was still in a dangerous environment.


    Ye Futian stared at this battle. He discovered that Xu Que was using the Sword Will and spell techniques around him. He rarely used his sword, but it was extremely dangerous whenever he did. As if his every strike could kill, it really made one produce cold sweat. So even though he didn''t use his sword much, Nan Hao was still forced to attack wildly in this dangerous high-pressure state.


    So this is the Fatal Sword God? Ye Futian thought. Xu Que''s sword was completely different from Yan Jiu and Ye Wuchen. It didn''t seem as mighty or domineering as Nan Hao''s spear. However, Xu Que felt more dangerous than Yan Jiu to Ye Futian.


    In this kind of battle, Nan Hao will lose with the slightest misstep, unless he can defeat Xu Que, many people thought.


    The battle lasted for a long time. No one knew how many times Nan Hao had thrust his spear. But in the end, when all the dust settled, Xu Que was beside him and a drop of blood fell from Nan Hao''s throat. There was a streak of blood. If Xu Que had pushed his sword in a bit deeper, Nan Hao would have died on the spot.


    "I''ve learned much," Nan Hao said. This battle had been suffocating for him. He was always fighting while being repressed and couldn''t fight freely at all. However, he''d also learned a lot. He had to think about how to improve his spear techniques when he went back. Then he wouldn''t be so passive while fighting against people like Xu Que.


    Xu Que won this round. His sword, patience, and grasp on timing were all shocking. The Fatal Sword God of the Tingxue House was ninth on the Barren Sky Ranking and was first of the top for swordsmen. Now, people had an idea why. His sword might not be as strong as Yan Wuji''s, but his danger was unmatchable.


    Many people imagined what a battle between Xu Que and Yan Jiu would be like. If Yan Jiu could fight into the top ten this round, they might be able to see a fight between the heirs of the Barren State''s top two swordsmen.


    The battle continued. The third fight was between Yuan Zhan and Zhong Li. As before, they were both strong.


    Yuan Zhan was physically huge with a burly body. This giant body seemed to be made of gold. His every step shook the battlefield, making people feel pressured. He wasn''t the strongest here, but he definitely gave off the biggest pressure.


    However, Zhong Li''s eyes didn''t change. He was the strongest cultivator from the Separation Road. He was frighteningly calm.


    Boom. Dazzling golden light flared outward. Rings of golden light appeared around Zhong Li. He was also best at the domineering gold elemental power. The light curtain around him seemed to be covered in ancient characters. He activated his life spirit��a huge golden tripod. It spun in the air and more golden runes flowed out. There seemed to be walls of golden runes around him.


    Thud. Yuan Zhan stepped out. The ground shook when this golden body walked. He lifted a palm and slapped this giant golden ape hand down towards the wall of runes. The sound of metal clashing spread out. The wall of runes shook and countless runes flashed. However, the wall wasn''t shattered.


    Such strong defense, everyone thought. Yuan Zhan was the beastly Golden Ape. He had explosive power. Probably only Chi Meng could rival his strength. Zhong Li obviously had to defend himself.


    Roar. The roar spread through the sky. Yuan Zhan''s body seemed to enlarge. The huge golden palm continued hitting down. Following the continuous booms, the wall of runes started cracking. However, Zhong Li''s eyes were still sharp. He stared at Yuan Zhan. "Is that the extent of your power?"


    As soon as he spoke, a sound came from the tripod. His life spirit tripod shone with the blinding light of the runes. It instantly protected Zhong Li. When Yuan Zhan''s next palm arrived, the tripod''s sound shook the world. The horrible light of runes swept outward. It crashed against Yuan Zhan''s body, driving the huge body back.


    Zhong Li stepped forward. All the golden Spiritual Qi in the world gathered towards him. The gold curtain of light flashed. He sped up abruptly and punched at Yuan Zhan. The other wasn''t intimidated, naturally, and engaged him.


    The image of a huge golden tripod appeared above Zhong Li''s fist. Gold wind ravaged, actually forcing Yuan Zhan back with this terrible punch.


    "The True Qi of the Nine Tripods." Everyone stared at Zhong Li. This was a technique of martial arts that was unique to the Zhong Family. It fit perfectly with the life spirit of the Zhong Family''s heir.


    Yuan Zhan stopped. He stretched out a hand and a golden staff appeared in his grip. Shaking his arm, he stepped out. A horrible golden windstorm gathered around his staff, creating a very domineering aura.


    Was this the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques of the Ape Clan?


    Zhong Li didn''t retreat at all. He activated the True Qi of the Nine Tripods to the extreme. Rings of golden light curtains swept out. He walked in the air and brought his hand down. The huge tripod pressed down immediately. But Yuan Zhan''s golden staff crashed down angrily, shattering the tripod.


    Zhong Li''s expression didn''t change. Even more terrifying martial arts True Qi was born. His life spirit flashed with endless light. He punched forward continuously. Every fist contained the image of tripods. Countless tripods pressed down from the sky.


    Yuan Zhan twirled his staff. The 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques destroyed everything, pulverizing the incoming tripods. He walked forward while attacking, charging towards Zhong Li.


    The tripods kept shattering. The walls of golden runes shattered too. Seeing that the opponent was approaching, Zhong Li huffed. His life spirit flew out. Instantly, nine true tripods appeared above Yuan Zhan''s head. Ancient runes seemed to be carved on the bottoms. They surrounded Yuan Zhan''s large body.


    Yuan Zhan''s staff continued twirling, but Zhong Li didn''t stop while attacking with his life spirit. Thousands of tripods shot toward Yuan Zhan at once. Yuan Zhan was trapped so he could only defend himself wildly.


    Can Yuan Zhen defend himself? Everyone thought. Zhong Li had cultivated his Nine Tripods to such a terrifying extent. Yuan Zhan was from the Golden Ape Clan and was naturally stronger. Zhong Li could only attack wildly. If he lost this round, Yuan Zhan could still defeat Zhong Li with his strength. But if Yuan Zhan couldn''t defend himself, he would lose.


    Golden light in the sky slashed down. Every tripod contained immense power. At that time, Yuan Zhan stomped down. Huge power fell on his body, making the golden light flash even more brightly. The staff shadows that filled the sky condensed into one staff that split downward.


    Clang�� The life spirit tripod clanged and actually flew out. The many tripod images before him crumbled too. With the horrible tide of Qi, Zhong Li''s attacks fell apart.


    Boom. With the huge sound, Yuan Zhan stepped forward again. His might even stronger, he attacked a second time.


    Clang! The life spirit was driven back. Blood spurted from Zhong Li''s mouth. The wall of runes was pulverized and the powerful might kept him from standing steadily. But Yuan Zhan kept walking forward. His might was still growing stronger. He was unshakeable like a golden ape god that had descended into the world.


    "Such aggressive staff techniques." Everyone''s hearts trembled. Yuan Zhan had actually fought back instead of defending himself.


    "This isn''t the 81 Heavenly Staff Techniques." The big figures in the Holy Zhi Palace were impressed. This seemed to be a stronger version of the 81 Heavenly Staff Techniques.


    When the third strike flew out, Zhong Li used all his energy to maintain the True Qi of the Nine Tripods, but there was no suspense. He flew out and fell in the distance.


    "It looks like Ye Futian''s staff techniques." For those who''d seen Ye Futian fight, their eyes flashed. Many people in the Dawn Road and Divine Sky City had seen this staff technique before. How come Yuan Zhan knew it too?


    In fact, this suited Yuan Zhan more as if it belonged to him. Had Ye Futian and Yuan Zhan become friends because of this?


    When the Ape Clan of Mount Taixing saw Yuan Zhan use the Nine Heavenly Attacks, their huge eyes shone with gold light. He was so powerful. Yuan Zhan''s father''s heart trembled. This must be the staff technique that the Ape Emperor had created.


    Yuan Zhan had taken one of the top ten spots!

 566 Someone with Three Life Spirits

    After Yuan Zhan defeated Zhong Li, Xiao Junyi stepped onto the battlefield. No one else stepped out, so he received the rare chance to pick his own opponent. He chose Gui Chen of the Ancient Shaman Clan. He''d come from the Withered Road.


    Gui Chen was very thin and pretty handsome. However, he gave off a cold and eerie feeling. He seemed very interested in Phoenix, who''d also come from the Withered Road. His eyes were always on Phoenix.


    When he stepped onto the battlefield, his eyes grew even colder as he stared at Xiao Junyi. The people who got to choose their opponents would naturally choose the weakest one. Did Xiao Junyi think he was the weakest on the battlefield?


    Many people were confused as to why Xiao Junyi had chosen Gui Chen. This eerie guy with mysterious power felt dangerous. He couldn''t be the weakest.


    "You will die tragically." Gui Chen''s lips curled into a cold smirk. Xiao Junyi was calm when he heard this. The moment he stepped onto the battlefield, his handsome features seemed to be as calm as still water. It was as if nothing could move him. He was calm to the extreme, making others feel that he was cold and emotionless.


    Those from the Dawn Road obviously knew how dangerous Xiao Junyi was. He wasn''t just cold��he was cold-blooded. However, one couldn''t see that from his handsome features.


    Ignoring Gui Chen''s words, Xiao Junyi produced a bamboo flute. He put it to his lips and began playing. His clothing danced in the wind. With his handsome features and figure, he was like a gentleman.


    Strands of formless spiritual power seeped into Gui Chen''s mind along with the music. They transformed into strands of deathly black air currents that corroded Gui Chen''s spiritual energy.


    Gui Chen''s face darkened, making his face seem even eerier. His opponent seemed skilled in dark energy, just like him. Green flames appeared in his spiritual energy. Like will-o''-wisps, they seeped into the dark air currents, making the dark air currents jump around. At the same time, there were rustles. Vines curled towards Xiao Junyi. They weren''t green and had a strange color. There seemed to be thorns on the vines, making them look like poisonous snakes. They loomed over Xiao Junyi, about to bury him in them.


    "What kind of wood elemental power is this?"


    "The Ancient Shaman Clan specializes in evil elemental power. This isn''t pure wood elemental power. If the opponent is tangled in it, he''ll probably lose his combat ability instantly."


    Everyone focused on the battlefield. The vines had transformed into cobras that covered the sky, blocking Xiao Junyi''s exits. However, he seemed to not feel anything at all. He continued to play his flute. Shreds of black air currents flowed around him, covering his body like a black fog. When the cobra-like vines curled towards him, they instantly turned black. They wilted and turned to dust.


    "Such powerful Spiritual Qi of Death. He must have a lot of blood on his hands to cultivate it to this level." The big figures from the Holy Zhi Palace looked at Xiao Junyi. Very few people cultivated the Spiritual Qi of Death. Those who did were known as necromancers. They weren''t accepted by the mainstream cultivation world because one must deal with dead people to cultivate it. There was a very terrifying necromancer in the Barren State. Many people didn''t dare to anger him��the Dark Sage.


    Gui Chen furrowed his brows. His cultivation power was just as evil, but Xiao Junyi''s Spiritual Power of Death had repressed it. Even though Gui Chen''s power was evil, it still contained vitality. Xiao Junyi''s could kill everything.


    Boom. Fire burst forth. The vines that continued towards Xiao Junyi were set on fire. Wood and fire elemental power could never exist in harmony; wood must burn in the face of fire. However, Gui Chen put fire elemental power on his wood elemental spell, instantly creating will-o''-wisps in the sky. Colorful air currents flowed out towards Xiao Junyi.


    Xiao Junyi continued playing his flute. The black air currents beside him grew stronger. It was like various black snakes dancing and wrapping around him. When the endless black currents flowed, all the Spiritual Qi in the world seemed to turn into Spiritual Qi of Death. The fire arrived and extinguished. No Spiritual Qi existed with the Death Qi, so the spells would obviously extinguish.


    Xiao Junyi started walking. He stepped forward while playing his flute. The Spiritual Qi of Death continued flowing crazily around him. All spells in its path died away. He walked out of the territory of spells and towards Gui Chen. He walked lightly and slowly as if he was just strolling. However, the observers all felt chills go down their spines.


    The dark air currents transformed into black cobras and then into black dragons. They galloped across the sky, covering the sun. The song was like an orchestra of death.


    Gui Chen was completely restrained.


    Behind him, a terrifying black shadow appeared, along with a huge image. Evil currents flowed through, transforming into a huge and frightening print. It was like a rune of the Ancient Shaman Sect.


    "It''s the curse of the Ancient Shaman Sect." Light flashed past the eyes of the strong cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace. The image grew bigger and bigger. Destructive power flowed into it. Gui Chen waved his hand and the curse flew towards Xiao Junyi.


    The black dragon around Xiao Junyi roared. Endless dark currents passed through the curse, darkening it as well. The next moment, it dissipated to nothing. Gui Chen''s face turned white instantly. Shreds of black appeared under his pallor. It felt as if his entire body was taken over by the Spiritual Qi of Death. His vitality was weakening.


    "I surrender," Gui Chen uttered with difficulty. If he didn''t surrender, he would die. Xiao Junyi would really kill him.


    Such a terrifying guy. Many hearts trembled. Xiao Junyi''s abilities displayed in this battle were truly frightening.


    Ye Futian felt that Xiao Junyi had become stronger since the Holy Road. This must have had something to do with his killing on the Holy Road. Too many people had died in his hands and were turned into dead spirits.


    "Are you the heir of the Dark Sage?" someone from the Holy Zhi Palace asked.


    "Yes," Xiao Junyi replied, bowing. Without displaying his abilities, he was polite like a gentleman.


    "I heard you killed many people on the Holy Road." The voice was cold. "Murderous abilities are devoid of humanity and yet you cultivate this. Do you know your sin?"


    Xiao Junyi looked up at the strong cultivator of the Holy Zhi Palace. He still had no emotions. "If you believe that I have sinned, then does the Holy Zhi Palace know about its own sins?"


    "How dare you!" the strong cultivation roared.


    Xiao Junyi wasn''t intimidated at all. He continued looking up at the other and said smoothly, "I traveled the Holy Road and did everything according to the rules of the Holy Zhi Palace. You opened the Holy Road, allowing strong cultivators from all over the Barren State to come and steal the hoy badges and relics. There was endless fighting. Who here on this battlefield can say that they have no blood on their hands? Do you think that killing 100 people is a sin, but killing ten people isn''t? If I have sinned, then what about the Holy Zhi Palace who set this rule?"


    The strong cultivator stared coldly at Xiao Junyi, unable to refute his words.


    "Continue," another strong cultivator said.


    The elder on the stairs nodded. "You two go back. The battle continues."


    Xiao Junyi was right. Everything followed the rules. If Xiao Junyi was a sinner, then what about the Holy Zhi Palace who had set the rules? It was like slapping one''s own face.


    Clearly, Gui Chen hadn''t been chosen. It wasn''t because he wasn''t strong enough. The Holy Zhi Palace just didn''t want him as a disciple. Xiao Junyi turned and left the battlefield calmly. He knew that the Holy Zhi Palace couldn''t do anything to him. They were a group of fake people.


    The figures came out at almost the same time. Many people froze. Their eyes fell upon the youth in elegant clothing��Huang Jiuge of the Sovereign Family. Then they looked to the person standing before them, wondering who this unlucky fatty was. He actually ran into Huang Jiuge.


    Yi Xiaoshi was also annoyed. His opponent was quite strong. Huang Jiuge was probably the strongest of this batch. Many saw him as one of the top three.


    The Emperor Vine''s life spirit bloomed. A huge emperor-like tree appeared. Endless golden vines spread out, covering the sky and growing crazily. Rustles sounded. The frightening golden vines dropped down, shooting towards Huang Jiuge like bolts of lightning.


    Sovereign Spiritual Qi emerged from Huang Jiuge. It seemed as if he was covered in royal armor. Various Sovereign Swords appeared. Huang Jiuge pointed in the air and the swords burst forward. They easily cut apart the golden vines.


    However, they re-grew as soon as they were cut apart. More and more vines appeared, locking Huang Jiuge''s body. More vines shot forward like endless golden spears that wanted to bury Huang Jiuge here.


    The Sovereign Swords cut frantically, but chopping the vines seemed to make them grow faster. They grew like weeds. Huang Jiuge roared and the swords shot forward. However, the golden vines formed a wall of trees. The Sovereign Swords buried into it but disappeared. Yi Xiaoshi couldn''t even be seen.


    The wildly-growing vines absorbed so much Spiritual Qi and filled the battlefield. Some vines wrapped around Huang Jiuge''s legs. The thorns tried to pierce him but couldn''t get through the royal armor, so they just wrapped around his body, burying him.


    Boom! With a loud sound, the vines exploded. Huang Jiuge''s body shone brilliantly like the descendant of a true god. A shadow appeared behind him. It was like a god descending from heaven. This figure emanated with such terrifying pressure. At the same time, a sword appeared. It seemed to be undefeatable.


    Huang Jiuge wasn''t only a swordsman. He had a sword as a life spirit, but instead of one, he had three life spirits.


    The Sovereign Family who''d always called themselves the descendants of Renhuang had three life spirits: the Renhuang Body, Renhuang Sword, and Renhuang Bow!

 567 Battling Yan Jiu

    Huang Jiuge was buried by the Emperor''s Vine attack and he was infuriated, causing him to release his Life Spirit. A commanding Sovereign aura circulated around Huang Jiuge. He held the Renhuang Sword in his hand and swung it with both hands. The Renhuang Sword spewed out terrifying flames, shattering the oncoming vines.


    "Go." Huang Jiuge''s palm struck the Renhuang Sword and in an instant, the Renhuang Sword transformed into a ray of light that slashed forward, crushing the countless golden vines in its path. Wherever the Renhuang Sword passed by, it would reduce to nothingness, the destructive power even caused the vines to be unable to regenerate.


    Yi Xiaoshi naturally felt the killing intent from the Renhuang Sword rushing straight towards him. His fat body bounced away and the Renhuang Sword glided past and struck the ancient tree, slicing it in half and destroying it. However, the ancient tree regenerated at a rapid speed. The wood element''s ability was strong regenerative ability that could not be eradicated.


    The Renhuang Sword transformed into a flash of lightning and continued to rush towards Yi Xiaoshi. The Life Spirit could connect with Huang Jiuege''s thoughts, so even after it had left his body, it could continue attacking. Yi Xiaoshi raised his arm and fought back, in an instant the golden vines that had shot forth from his hand formed a sturdy barrier, entangling the Renhuang Sword. Although the vines were continually shredded, they diminished the forward force of the Renhuang Sword, causing it to come to a stop and howl on the spot.


    However, Yi Xiaoshi felt another dangerous aura, like he had been locked on. As his thoughts gushed, he saw the Renhuang Bow appear among the vines below. Huang Jiuge pulled the bow open and nine arrows flew through the air at the same time, piercing through the countless vines. The nine killing arrows flew in a straight arc towards him.


    "I��" Yi Xiaoshi wanted to shout profanities, but he had no time to think. His vines dragged his body back and his round body bounced The arrows flew towards him and Yi Xiaoshi''s body rolled around in the air. Before he was out of danger, another threatening aura descended yet again and in the next moment, there was a dazzling light headed straight for him.


    "I give up." Yi Xiaoshi''s speed increased and he escaped rapidly. The arrows fired through where he had just been. If he had been just a second slower, he would have been shot down from the air.


    The vines in the area disappeared and where Huang Jiuge stood, the three Life Spirits floated there, shining brilliantly.


    What strong Life Spirits. The crowd observed Huang Jiuge''s three Life Spirits and were stunned. The name ''Renhuang'' was merely given by the Sovereign Family and their cultivation techniques were all named after the emperor. Many people felt that the clan was overly arrogant and dared to refer to themselves as the descendants of Renhuang, but they had to agree that the Sovereign Family''s experts were indeed strong.


    "That''s being too much of a bully." Yi Xiaoshi was dejected as he landed on the ground. The b*stard actually had three Life Spirits. As he saw how arrogant Huang Jiuge was, he really wanted to beat him up.


    "Yi Xiaoshi, are you willing to enter my department to cultivate?" At that moment, there were multiple people who opened their mouths to invite Yi Xiaoshi.


    Yi Xiaoshi raised his head in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, then scratched his head, smiled humbly and asked, "Can I discuss it with my second sister first and come to a decision later?"


    The Holy Zhi Palace''s experts looked towards Zhuge Mingyue, then smiled and nodded. This little fellow was really sly.


    "The two of you, step down," the expert on the sky stairwell said and Huang Jiuge and Yi Xiaoshi stepped out of the battlefield. Next, there were only ten people remaining and five slots for the top ten.


    In the sixth battle, Zhuge Xing and Zi Yan from the Thunder Courtyard stepped out. The both of them cultivated in the thunder element, as the Zhuge Clan and the Zhongzhou City''s Thunder Courtyard were clans that specialized in using thunder. It would naturally be a violent match. The match would end in Zhuge Xing''s victory over the grade six noble Zi Yan, with his outburst of horrifying combat ability.


    Although Zi Yan was the genius of the Thunder Courtyard, his potential was not the highest among his peers. He was only able to fight his way into the top 20 because of his strength, but that was only because of his cultivation level advantage. When he stepped into the Holy Road, he was already at the pinnacle of a grade seven noble, then broken through his cultivation level again in the Holy Road, so it was only normal for him to lose to Zhuge Xing.


    In the seventh battle, the mysterious expert from the Frost Road, Huang, also defeated Yang Jian, causing many people to be surprised. Huang had also exhibited dominant strength in the battle.


    In the eighth battle, the beautiful Phoenix from the Immortal Village defeated the grade six noble Li Xing, fighting into the top ten as a dark horse.


    The undying old man''s successor Phoenix was the most beautiful lady in the Immortal Village. She had outstanding potential and ravishing beauty, her Life Spirit was the divine bird, the Phoenix. It was an undying bird coated in flames, had strong regenerative ability and excelled in the wood element''s life ability. In the battle, there were many influential figures in the Holy Zhi Palace who were attracted by her abilities and wanted to take her in under their department.


    After the battle, there were only four people left in the battlefield: Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Chi Meng, and Yan Jiu.


    This made many people curious, although Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had exhibited amazing potential and battle ability, why were they this composed? They had not taken the initiative to challenge someone and were still on the battlefield. Now, unless the two of them were to challenge each other, their opponents would be Yan Jiu from the Sword Saint Villa and the Demon God Clan''s Chi Meng.


    However they looked at it, it was hard for them to win.


    At that moment, the four of them did not move. Now that it had come down to the four of them, they were in no hurry. Yan Jiu and Chi Meng were also not in a hurry, they knew that Ye Futian would not battle with Yu Sheng, so it was up to them to select an opponent each.


    "Who do you want to pick?" Yan Jiu looked towards Chi Meng and asked. The rules did not prohibit them from conversing.


    "I choose him." Chi Meng looked at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng had previously defeated Chi Kuang.


    "I had the same thought too." Yan Jiu smiled and said, "Since that''s the case, I''ll go first." After saying that, he stepped out into the battle arena, but his gaze was on Ye Futian. He was waiting for Ye Futian to walk out himself.


    He had finally found a chance to battle with Ye Futian.


    "Get the f*ck out here," Yan Jiu said nonchalantly and officially challenged Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and into the battle arena.


    "Your strength surprised me, but this is as far as you go," Yan Jiu looked at Ye Futian and said. This person that had dared to snatch his relic in the Holy Road really gave him a huge surprise. Defeating Bing Yi, Xie Ji and getting stronger as his opponents did. However, this battle would spell the end of Ye Futian''s journey. As his voice landed, Sword Wills manifested in the air and moved in tandem with his arm, the Sword Qi circulating around his arm.


    Ye Futian could defeat Bing Yi and Xie Ji and could counter their spells, causing them to be unable to crush him while he attacked them at close range. However, he was different. He was a strong swordsman and did not have weaknesses like Bing Yi and Xie Ji did, so he would naturally not give Ye Futian any chance to get near him.


    He would use Ye Futian as his stepping stone to enter the top ten and if he had the chance, he would not mind getting revenge for Yan Nan. After he had entered the top ten, he would challenge Xu Que to end off the fight between swordsmen.


    "As far as I go?" Ye Futian smiled indifferently. Feeling the enveloping Sword Will, starry light started to circulate around his body. The Sage Will assimilated into the starry light, transforming into an imposing starry veil, covering his body and resisting the oncoming Sword Wills.


    Following that, a brilliant golden light burst forth and a Roc shadow appeared behind Ye Futian radiantly. Ye Futian''s entire body appeared to be submerged in the Roc''s shadow. His body became like the Roc''s body, and his eyes had an arrogant golden glow in them.


    Boom. As the vicious winds blew, the Roc wings let out a brilliant light and Ye Futian''s body floated in the air, surrounded by a wind spell. There were flashes of lightning that fired past, and in that instant, he had already used multiple elemental abilities.


    Using his Freedom Meditation, he could see everything clearly at that moment and every Sword Will appeared to be in his perception. Yan Jiu specialized in the Swords of Light and Darkness, so Ye Futian would naturally be careful.


    Countless gazes landed on Ye Futian. At that moment, the handsome teen was exceptionally dazzling.


    Sensing the Sword Will flowing in the air, Ye Futian looked at Yan Jiu and questioned him casually, "Are you even worthy?" As his voice landed, lightning appeared at Ye Futian''s feet as he burst forward with his Thundering Illusion Step, causing his body to disappear in an instant.


    The wind was rampaging in the battlefield and the Lower Noble Plane cultivators could not even see Ye Futian''s body with their eyes. He was too fast, had Ye Futian only shown the limit of his speed now?


    Yan Jiu''s expression paled slightly, like he had felt something. His finger pressed down upon the air in front of him without hesitation and the countless Sword Qi concentrated at the direction of his finger and slashed forward.


    In the next moment, he saw a flash of light descending and a palm crush down. The golden palm gave off a dominant feeling and the Sword Qi were shattered in an instant without impeding the movement of the palm.


    Bang. With a huge sound, the palm landed, yet it appeared to have landed on a sword veil, causing it to be crushed to pieces. The overbearing palm similarly sent Yan Jiu flying all the way to the edge of the battlefield, the protective sword veil around his body decimated by the palm print.


    This�� The sudden unexpected scene caused many of the crowd to freeze. Did Ye Futian just knock Yan Jiu back with just one strike? His speed and the strength in his overbearing strike was too horrifying. Ye Futian had probably not even reached his limit when he had defeated Xie Ji.


    Yan Jiu''s gaze also focused on him. He could feel a stinging sensation in his chest, only he knew how much strength was concentrated in that palm.


    Raising his head, Yan Jiu stared at Ye Futian and Sword Qi filled the skies in an instant. Behind him, nine swords flew out at the same time and the Sword Qi ravaged the heavens. Yan Jiu was infuriated.


    "Angry?" Ye Futian looked calmly at Yan Jiu and continued coolly, "The outcome will still be the same!"

 568 Promoted to the Top Ten

    Yan Jiu''s eyes seemed to be filled with swords. In his eyes, there were only many blades of light.


    The outcome will still be the same?


    Of course, it would be the same. How was it possible for Ye Futian to defeat him?


    The flow of Sword Will seemed to have slowed down, but the murderous aura only grew stronger. The nine swords behind Yan Jiu clanked and his body also turned into a sword. Unleashing a sword technique with his hands, he shouted coldly, "Attack!"


    Right away, the Sword Qi that had filled the sky poured towards Ye Futian. Even more terrifyingly, there was a dazzling sword among the endless Sword Qi. The sword looked like a beam of light and vanished from its original spot within a flash. It was precisely the Sword of Light.


    At the moment, Ye Futian was sensing his surrounding with his Spiritual Energy. Every single strand of Sword Qi was displayed clearly in his mind. Then, an extremely cold aura was released from his body. With his Spiritual Energy, he controlled the water-elemental Spiritual Qi in the entire arena. Many water droplets appeared, after which they turned into fog and ice.


    It was awfully cold.


    Around Ye Futian, a region of light appeared, within which there was a moon. That was one of his Life Spirits. Saint''s Will had been fused into the Life Spirit, causing the surrounding to become even chillier. There were three beams of divine light contained in the Saint''s Will from the martial arts battlefield. They contained the stars, the Sun, and the Moon, which corresponded respectively to the element of earth, the flares of the Sun, and the waters of the Moon.


    From the chief of Bright Moon School, Ye Futian had obtained the Shadow Scripture.


    At the moment, all the swords in the sky seemed to be covered with frost. Most of the Sword Qi was frozen in midair directly, but some of them continued forward, albeit at a much slower speed. Suppressed by the powers of the Moon, they were all covered with frost.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian started walking in the air and actually stepped towards the incoming Sword of Light before him. He activated the Thundering Illusion Step and his golden wings vibrated out of a sudden. Just like an actual Roc, he made a brilliant arc in the sky and passed beside the Sword of Light. The extremely fast blade of light was however dodged by him easily. It could not even slow him down, not to mention killing him.


    The golden Roc-like figure flew in the air and approached Yan Jiu at an astonishing speed. However, only coldness flashed across Yan Jiu''s eyes as many Swords of Darkness struck out.


    "Freeze." Ye Futian cast a spell directly with his Spiritual Energy. The ice-elemental spell immediately engulfed the hidden Sword Qi. Without even looking at Yan Jiu''s attack, he flapped his wings and soared upwards into the sky, after which he continued his advance towards his opponent. Everyone only felt that his action was extremely elegant. Only when the Swords of Darkness exploded behind Ye Futian, they realized that Ye Futian had made the beautiful arc in the sky to dodge the attack.


    Yan Jiu''s face darkened. This was the first time someone in his generation managed to dodge his Swords of Light and Darkness without much effort. Just then, coldness enveloped his body. It was so freezing that even his blood was stopping and his brain could not think properly.


    "Swords of Sealing!" Yan Jiu shouted in anger. The nine swords swept out one after another, charging towards Ye Futian. They seemed to have formed a simple sword matrix which sealed off Ye Futian''s path.


    "Idiot," someone said suddenly. In the next instant, the Swords of Sealing were all affected by the frost. A brilliant figure rotated in the air and traced out a perfect arc with extreme speed, passing through the gaps between the nine swords. Then, the Roc-like figure went over the nine swords and almost reached Yan Jiu''s position.


    The word "idiot" sounded so ironic. Yan Jiu''s ranged attacks were actually totally useless against Ye Futian. They were all rendered ineffective by Ye Futian''s ice-elemental spells and swift movements.


    A sharp radiance shot out from Yan Jiu''s eyes. Then, he charged into the sky. The thousands of swords around him converged, turning into a single great sword. The sword was heavy and filled with power as if it was going to crush the incoming Ye Futian.


    Feeling the pressure from the huge sword, Ye Futian moved his hands. Immediately, two storms appeared in the sky, one filled with metals and the other with stars. The two terrifying storms merged together, forming a hundred meter-long starry rod before Ye Futian. The rod was covered with a frightening golden radiance which made it look even heavier.


    "Edgeless Great Sword!" Yan Jiu roared. Holding the hilt of the great sword, he pushed it towards Ye Futian. Sword Qi whizzed in the air as the enormous sword fell down, attempting to eliminate Ye Futian who was below.


    The huge wings of the Roc behind Ye Futian flashed. He held the starry rod up with one arm, his body filled with a violent power. In the sky, an astonishing starry radiance appeared, circling around the long rod.


    "Go!" Ye Futian struck out the starry rod which soon collided with the falling great sword. The endless Sword Will flowing around the great sword and the starry radiance circling around the rod collided wildly into each other, producing an ear-piercing sound. To make things grander, the huge sword struck downwards and collided with the sky-shattering rod. At once, an appalling storm was generated at the point of contact. The starry rod was penetrated slowly, sending out wild waves of starry light and golden radiance. At the same time, the terrifying sword was also broken into two and torn apart gradually.


    Both of them did not show any mercy. With a sharp look, Yan Jiu continued pushing the broken sword down, while Ye Futian struck the rod upwards.


    The great sword and the starry rod created violent explosions and were crushed bit by bit. The entire region was filled with a catastrophic force. As the sword and the rod were destroyed, the gap between the two was also closed slowly.


    "Err..." Countless people stared at the scene, shocked. Ye Futian was actually fighting head-on with Yan Jiu. He used aggression against Yan Jiu''s aggression. It was too crazy. Moreover, the two forces in the arena were really horrifying.


    The two were about to collide with each other.


    The great sword was crushed and the starry rod was also broken. Then, the two appeared before each other in the destructive storm. Yan Jiu''s look was still cold. Although Ye Futian was strong, he had never thought that he would lose to Ye Futian. He was from Sword Saint Villa and had come to the Holy Zhi Palace so that the name of his clan would spread to every corner of the Barren State. The swordsmen in Sword Saint Villa were the best.


    This was only the battle to enter the top ten. How could he lose? How could Ye Futian stop his advance?


    An infinite amount of Sword Will circled around Yan Jiu''s hand. His entire arm turned into a sword which penetrated across the storm and struck towards Ye Futian. Opposite him, a brilliant golden radiance bloomed from Ye Futian''s body. It looked as if a golden Roc was charging towards Yan Jiu, and also as though many stars were flying towards him. Ye Futian punched forward directly. Golden light glittered as his body was covered with the image of the Roc. In his fist, there seemed to be the howls of dragons, the roars of apes, and the radiance of stars.


    Ye Futian had been cultivating his body-enhancing technique. He had also once rebuilt his meridians and bones with his Life Spirits. With such a powerful physical body, he would clearly not be afraid of fighting with Yan Jiu head-on.


    Bang! Following a loud bang, all the Sword Qi was crushed. The defense on Ye Futian''s first was broken, but Yan Jiu''s body was blown backward.


    Just when Yan Jiu was about to fly out of the arena, he roared and pressed his finger behind, stopping his momentum by force. He gave a muffled humph and some blood appeared at the corners of his mouth. In addition, his arm was also shaking gently and he even felt that his bones were about to break.


    Countless people were frozen, wildly astonished. If it was only a coincidence that Ye Futian had managed to repel Yan Jiu for the first time, then how about now?


    Ye Futian had injured Yan Jiu.


    Ye Futian had multiple Life Spirits and was talented in various elements.


    Was this dark horse going to continue and enter the top ten?


    Yan Jiu closed his eyes. Sword Qi flew throughout his body. Then, the Sword Qi ascended into the air and all the swords gathered around him. The nine swords converged into one, and many beams of light flashed in the sky. At this instant, Yan Jiu''s body seemed to have been replaced only by swords.


    All the Sword Will in the arena flew towards Yan Jiu''s body, causing an illusory sword to form outside his body. It was as if his entire body was enveloped in the sword.


    Endless Celestial Swords��Convergence! This was the strongest strike in the Nine Swords of the Celestials. Although Yan Jiu was far from being able to unleash the full power of the attack, it was still terrifying enough. All the Sword Will around him seemed to be have been drained. The power of the strike would be unimaginable.


    At the moment, the wings behind Ye Futian were flapping slowly. Suddenly, he ascended into the sky, sketching an elegant curve. Dancing in the air, he created many violent currents. An invisible force was formed in the sky which converged on Ye Futian''s body. It included the powers of wind, the element of metal, and the might of stars. As time passed, the force grew in intensity. Gradually, an astounding storm appeared around Ye Futian. At the same time, another starry rod appeared in his hands.


    Bang! Ye Futian struck the rod towards the sky and space itself vibrated violently. Everyone''s heart beat with the strike. Then, the rod continued dancing in the air and Ye Futian''s momentum seemed to be becoming stronger.


    Bang�� Ye Futian struck out the rod again with much force. Many people could feel the power contained in the technique Ye Futian was using. Furthermore, his technique seemed to be similar to the one that Yuan Zhan had been using. When Ye Futian used it, however, it seemed to be stronger and smoother. Clearly, Ye Futian had a better understanding of the technique.


    Suddenly, below Ye Futian, Yan Jiu opened his eyes and roared, "Strike!" The countless swords around him had converged into one. Yan Jiu moved with the sword, as if he was a sword himself. He flew across the sky like a bolt of lightning, or perhaps a meteor, charging towards Ye Futian.


    The Roc-like figure was still ascending and dancing in the air. He reached an extreme height and the powers of natural gathered wildly around him. Then, following a flash of golden radiance, he dived downwards. A meteor-like rod appeared and a low rumble was produced. Even the heaven and the earth seemed to be shaking.


    Boom�� A soft collision was produced as an eye-watering radiance erupted in the arena.


    Boom! Accompanied by a loud bang, the arena started shaking violently. Everyone''s heart also shook fiercely with the collision as they stared firmly at the scene before them.


    In the arena, Yan Jiu was lying on the ground. He was spitting out blood continuously, severely injured. Raising his head, he could see a figure standing proudly in the sky. The figure''s white shirt danced with the wind and he was covered in a charming, illusory Roc.


    Ye Futian had managed to severely injure Yan Jiu and was promoted to the top ten!

 569 Ye Wuchens Defea

    The elimination of the virgin of the Mortal World left many feeling shocked, but she was nonetheless able to enter the core island of the Holy Zhi Palace to further her training. However, it was her decision to refuse the offer of training under Sage Daozang.


    "Next battle," a voice said from the sky stairwell, followed by a silhouette walking out from the edge of the battlefield, drawing the attention of countless watching the battles.


    Her looks were incredibly stunning, like a goddess descending upon the center of the battlefield.


    "I will challenge Chu Shang, of the Mortal World." Her voice was calm yet ripples could have been seen in the eyes of everyone around.


    Hua Jieyu chose to challenge Chu Shang of the Mortal World.


    Virgin Bing Yi had claimed that Ye Futian did not deserve to be left on the battlefield, and she herself had been defeated. Hua Jieyu seemed to now be taking her turn to challenge the only remaining disciple of the Mortal World on the battlefield.


    Bing Yi, who had left the battlefield, felt herself shuddering as she looked at Hua Jieyu. The girl who just came to challenge Chu Shang looked stunning, and Bing Yi thought that would have been her, a figure drawing the eyes of everyone around. However, all she was able to do by then was just to watch the upcoming battle from the sides.


    "My gosh, she has to do this?" Ye Futian gave a bitter grin as he saw Hua Jieyu walking out, and he felt as if he was being defended by a girl.


    That fox is trying to get revenge for me.


    Chu Shang responded and looked at Hua Jieyu. Her looks were quite impeccable, yet she looked like a flawless decoration of some sort standing in front of Hua Jieyu.


    Bing Yi had her challenge a member of Ye Futian''s party, and both she and Bing Yi had accomplished that. However, the outcome was nothing like what they had predicted.


    A seven-colored crown appeared as Hua Jieyu unleashed her Life Spirit, and the vast battlefield seemed to be permeated with a mystical aura, which was a manifestation of her Spiritual Qi aura field. Chu Shang felt as if the Worldly Spiritual Qi around her was out of her control. Any attempt to build up a spell seemed to come with a risk of being interrupted and broken.


    A Divine Spiritual Sorcerer was one who reigned supreme above all other sorcerers after all. As such, even if Hua Jieyu''s plane was of a lower level and Chu Shang herself was no weakling, the fight would still end up with Hua Jieyu coming out as the winner.


    Chu Shang of the Mortal World was eliminated. Due to being suppressed, she was unable to demonstrate all that she was capable of and thus was unable to capture the attention of any of the greater figures. With that, every mighty one from Mortal World ended up leaving the stage.


    Chu Shang looked especially dejected as she left the stage. The Mortal World had been one of the top forces to reign over the Eastern Barren Territory, claiming the colleges to be lesser sects, and showing off their superiority. She had not taken any from the colleges seriously, yet many of those who had studied in the colleges turned out to be bright shining stars themselves, and had grown powerful enough to kick both her and Bing Yi out of the game.


    Both Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu made it to the top 40 after their respective battles. The couple who many had not thought to stand a chance going any further than they did, advanced hand-in-hand instead. Furthermore, there were others from Ye Futian''s party who remained. The chances of both Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi making the cut were high.


    The battles continued, and yet another silhouette dressed in green walked out. He had an impeccably sculpted face and a lithe body, looking dashing and outstanding as he made his steps. His face was one that suggested that he was of no harm to anyone, yet everyone in the battlefield knew well of the threat he posed.


    The ones from the Tingxue House had often been widely regarded as the most dangerous of figures in the Barren State. The swordsman dressed in green was named Xu Que, the heir to the master of Tingxue House, who ranked ninth in the Barren Sky Ranking. Xu Que himself was thought to be one of the most powerful to have made it thus far. Many who stood in the battlefield felt worried about being picked by Xu Que to be his next opponent at the very second he walked out.


    No one, not even the genius level figures, wanted to face Xu Que at such an early stage.


    Xu Que shifted his gaze to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu before turning to look at Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng. His green shirt and jet-black hair billowed in the wind. He eventually locked his gaze at Ye Wuchen and said, "Since you are the one practicing the way of the sword, I will challenge you."


    Xu Que chose to take on Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Futian was stunned. The odds of the battle were obviously stacked against Wuchen, so much so that it seemed like Wuchen himself was already eliminated.


    Xu Que felt quiet yet dangerous to Ye Futian. Ye Futian was puzzled as to why Xu Que would pick Wuchen to be his opponent. Despite both men being swordsmen, it would have proven little with Xu Que defeating Ye Wuchen. However, Xu Que''s opinion in this had been a simple one all along: the remaining numbers on the battlefield needed to be reduced further, and no matter who he ended up facing right then, it was all the same to him. However, he was not fond of gangs and groups.


    Ye Futian''s party became the most numerous at that point, and that irritated Xu Que quite a bit. People of the Tingxue House often went about solo, and they shared the same sentiment for themselves and their opponents alike. None of them were fond of crowds. As Ye Futian''s party was deemed too numerous at that point, he felt compelled to shave off their numbers for a bit.


    As for more specific reasons as to why he picked Ye Wuchen, it was because he thought it would have sufficed to have only two swordsmen remain on the battlefield��himself and Yan Jiu��hand no other swordsmen were needed around, including Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen wore a serious look on his face as he walked towards the battlefield. He knew the odds of the fight was stacked against him; however, he saw no other way out of it but to give it his all at that point.


    Xu Que drew his sword with one hand behind his back. The sword was an incredibly common weapon, and as such, it did not count as relying on instruments and implements. His other unoccupied hand remained behind his back. While he said nothing, what he implied was obvious��Ye Wuchen was a one-armed swordsman, and as such, he intended to take on Ye Wuchen with only a single arm.


    "Make your move. You won''t have another chance at it," Xu Que said plainly.


    Ye Wuchen took his steps and activated his sword aura. Sword flashes filled the air around him, and every conjured sword seemed to be an independent weapon, yet felt like a unit of a whole. Thousands of sword flashes whizzed past, going for their target together with Ye Wuchen''s unsheathed blade.


    The place seemed to be filled with sharp blades. The clanging noises implied that every single sword contained posed a lethal threat like no other, as they went to kill Xu QUe.


    Xu Que made his move in response. Instead of evading or building up a defense, he charged straight into the masses of conjured swords instead. Tingxue House''s art of the sword specialized in attacks and was seen used for defense. Their swords were ones drawn only to kill.


    Xu Que charged without a care into the countless blades conjured specifically for the purpose of maiming him. No one else would have chosen to fight in such ways, yet Xu Que chose to do so. His wrist was seen flickering as he swung his sword about. No one was able to make clear of his movements, as he seemed to have delivered a hundred slashes within a mere instant. His imposing sword aura cutting down the torrent of blades coming at him.


    Xu Que made his move forward as he continued to look like a suspended mirage of sorts. It was as if nothing else would have been able to touch him, so long as he had his sword in his hand.


    "Impressively quick slashes and movements." Many people''s hearts were shaking. Xu Que looked like some phantom shifting in and out of the flashes of blades threatened to skewer him. Whenever he ended up, imposing sword aura surged as he continued to close in on Ye Wuchen at a frightening pace.


    Fearsome sword flashes were emitted from the middle of Ye Wuchen''s brow and blinding sword flashes were seen in his eyes. He locked his gaze at Xu Que, and an even sharper whirl of a higher pitch was heard as one blade after and another charged at Xu Que. Xu Que swung his sword about without any hint of hesitation. Yet that time, he found himself swinging at empty air, while swords made their ways for his head.


    Illusory swords. A thought flashed in Xu Que''s mind as he considered the incoming ferocious blades. He moved his body sideways and drew a string of mirages in his wake. The swords broke the afterimages of his being, and Xu Que quickly emerged at the other side. More illusory swords went after Xu Que. He knew every sword''s trail was phantasmal, and everyone was set up for the kill in one way or another.


    Xu Que''s eyes took a rather peculiar look. He did not bother evading and instead burst with thousands of sword will. The sword in his hand was pointed forward in a simple thrust, the surrounding sword will carving the way out for its advancement, breaking off everything that stood in its way, be it real or illusory.


    The sword was meant for Ye Wuchen, and it moved like a bolt of lightning. He was overwhelming his opponent with the superiority provided by the difference in plane levels.


    Ye Wuchen''s brow shone with bright, intense colors as his conjured sword will shot for the skies. A small silver sword was conjured, making intense ringing noises as it gathered massive amounts of sword aura between heaven and earth. When the small silver sword blasted with brightness, countless sword auras congealed as one as they rained down in a crazed manner, as if they would combine into a single concentrated sword will of unparalleled strength.


    A blinding flash burst forth, and the countless sword aura coalesced into one, taking the form of an extremely refined sword intended only for killing. The two sword flashes clashed and incredible sword aura burst right on the spot, tearing everything apart in its wake. The extremely refined sword will from the small silver sword burst right through the opponent''s killing sword, and one flash was seen going right for Xu Que''s brow.


    "You are a daring one." A ferocious sword flash appeared in Xu Que''s eyes as a green sword flash burst from the center of his brow, shattering the incoming sword will. He then thrust out his hand and slap his killing sword into his opponent''s sword will. Ye Wuchen felt as if thousands of sword will with intense killing intent passed right through his body. The small silver sword flew right back into the center of his brow as his body was thrown back. The countless flashes of Xu Que''s killing swords remained in the air after a while, ringing.


    Xu Que waved and dispelled his sword will.


    "You are not bad, but if we were to meet on a true battlefield instead, you would be dead by now." Xu Que spared a glance at Ye Wuchen, before turning around and walking away.


    Ye Wuchen did not doubt Xu Que''s words one bit. His plane was not even near being capable of drawing out Xu Que''s full power, and the difference between them had been apparent.


    Many eyes went on to look at Ye Wuchen, who was an excellent candidate. He was unfortunate enough to have had to face Xu Que, who was one of the most powerful in the current battlefield. It was quite an achievement on his part for being able to stand his ground for a while despite his opponent being two planes higher. However, the difference between the two men''s powers was not one that could have been covered by any other means available then, and it brought about the end of Ye Wuchen''s journey.


    Ye Wuchen turned around and walked down. Despite being defeated, he hardly felt much inside. He knew it had been adequate doing his best, and that there was nothing much he could have asked for. He had come a long way since the beginning of his journey in the Cangye Kingdom, and what he achieved had exceeded his expectations. Emperor Ye had not been very far from what Ye Wuchen was then. However, Ye Wuchen was by no means satisfied with where he was, and he vowed to continue seeking his own path in swordsmanship.


    "Ye Wuchen," a voice said. Ye Wuchen halted his steps at turned to look at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Do you wish to train under my wing?" the Figure asked, shaking the hearts of many present. The Sword Demon extended an offer to Ye Wuchen.


    "I had a teacher," Ye Wuchen replied.


    "All who teach are teachers. If you are willing, you may address me as your teacher. If you are reluctant, then I will not press the matter further," Sword Demon elaborated in response.


    Ye Wuchen turned to face the Sword Demon and bowed. "It would be my honor to study under you."


    "Yes." The Sword Demon nodded with a smile. Being capable of facing off Xu Que, who was of grade seven Noble Plane with only the powers provided by grade nine Noble Plane, was seen to be an exceptional feat in itself. Ye Wuchen was able to hold his ground for a moment, despite the disadvantage, instead of shirking, and that spoke volume of his bearing on his path of swordsmanship. While he was defeated, his prowess was not bad. Ye Wuchen was, after all, capable of building a sword body, and possessed a pair of eyes as sharp as swords.


    Many looked at Ye Wuchen in envy. His defeat was far from a humiliating one, for no other reason that he was taken as a student of the Sword Demon. He was defeated, yet he achieved the dream countless swordsmen dreamed of.


    As of then, the Sword Demon had taken in two disciples.


    Ye Futian felt happy for Ye Wuchen. The Sword Demon had impressive bearing and was one of the top figures in the Holy Zhi Palace, and was a mighty one ranked in the Barren Sky Ranking. He served as the very symbol among swordsmen in the Barren State, and there was no better path of Wuchen to take than to study under one such prominent figure.


    The ones of the Sword Saint Villa did not look happy at all. While both Zui Qianchou and Ye Wuchen became students of the Sword Demon, Yan Nan of Sword Saint Villa was crippled instead. They had no one else but Yan Jiu left in the battlefield.

 569 Transformed Yu Sheng

    In his previous battles, Ye Futian had seemed to have taken advantage of the situation. He knew many abilities and could always find a way to suppress his opponent. Therefore, although he was certainly not weak, many people felt that he was not too strong either. This being the case, before the battle began, many people thought that Ye Futian was going to lose. However, he had totally crushed Yan Jiu in the battle, from the start to the end. Even when Yan Jiu used his most powerful ability, Ye Futian still managed to defeat him with the most elegant move.


    After this battle, many people finally realized that Ye Futian was only a Grade Nine Noble, but his combat power was strong enough to enter the top ten. Indeed, he had been promoted to the top ten.


    Yan Jiu stood up from the ground, still coughing blood. With his body bent, he raised his head and stared at Ye Futian, his eyes bloodshot. He had lost to someone whom he thought he would never lose to.


    "Just so-so." Ye Futian turned around and left. Yan Jiu was clearly no longer able to fight.


    Puff! Yan Jiu spat out a mouthful of blood and clenched his fists tightly. He wanted to use this battle to prove his swordsmanship but only received such a humiliating comment before everyone else. Moreover, there were also people from Sword Saint Villa watching the competition at the side.


    Yan Jiu did not leave the arena, as if he was still waiting for something. However, nobody from the Holy Zhi Palace spoke. Many people looked at where Sword Demon was at. Everyone knew that only Sword Demon might accept Yan Jiu as his disciple. Even if the rest asked, Yan Jiu would also reject at once. Only Sword Demon, the strongest swordsman in the Holy Zhi Palace, was capable. However, Sword Demon did not speak until the end.


    Seeming to have realized something, Yan Jiu gave a self-mocking smile. He would never forget the humiliation endured today.


    Raising his feet with much difficulty, Yan Jiu walked away from the arena step by step, producing a desolate sight.


    Sword Demon had accepted Zui Qianchou and Ye Wuchen. Zui Qianchou was an implacable enemy of Yan Jiu, while Ye Wuchen was also a good friend of Ye Futian. In such a circumstance, Sword Demon would rather choose the two of them and could only give Yan Jiu up. Thus, only Chi Meng and Yu Sheng were left in the battle for the top ten.


    When the two of them walked into the center of the arena and stood opposite each other, many people had a strange feeling. They all felt that Yu Sheng was strong but weaker than Chi Meng. However, with Ye Futian as an example, and the battle between Yu Sheng and Dou Kui, perhaps something unexpected would happen again.


    Both of them looked extremely burly. Just by standing there, they could already make everyone feel how powerful they were.


    Suddenly, Devilish Qi erupted from Chi Meng''s body. A pair of wings appeared behind his back and an illusory dragon wound around his arm, as if a pure-blooded dragon was circling around him. His eyes looked as sharp, like the eyes of an eagle, and glittered in golden radiance, while his legs were enveloped in wind. On his body, an illusory yak appeared. It was as though his entire body was made up of various demonic beasts. He looked overpowering and devilish.


    The members of Demon God Clan were capable of borrowing the powers of various demonic beasts. They could even enter the margins of the Demon World and fight with the demonic beasts there. Therefore, they had many abilities which otherwise only belonged to demonic beasts.


    "Let me feel your power!" Chi Meng taunted, staring at Yu Sheng. Then, he walked forward.


    Yu Sheng''s body was covered with a dark golden demonic light. Spiritual Qi in the sky gushed wildly into his demonic body, after which it turned into many streams of golden demonic currents that danced around him. Yu Sheng''s body was covered with a violent demonic might.


    Dong! Yu Sheng stepped forward and the ground shook. With only one step, many people''s hearts raced uncontrollably. He looked so strong that most people forgot his level. They all knew that Yu Sheng was powerful not only because of his overpowering demonic art but also because of his inborn strength. It was his innate talent that he was physically stronger than an ordinary person. One could feel his strength by just looking at his stature. Moreover, his physical talent and potential were activated further by his overpowering demonic method, which had finally created the frightening humanoid monster he was today.


    Their fists collided straight into each other. Immediately, a terrifying storm bloomed in the arena. The Devilish Qi and violent Demon Qi raged in the air. As the two collided with one another, many horrifying illusory demonic beasts leaped towards Yu Sheng. However, an enormous illusory demon appeared on Yu Sheng''s body. Immediately, the demonic beasts were suppressed firmly on the ground, as if they were kneeling down.


    At the same time, the demonic light on Yu Sheng''s fist was actually consuming the Devilish Qi on Chi Meng''s body. As Yu Sheng activated his demonic method, he started engulfing all the powers around him.


    Chi Meng punched out his left fist which actually turned into a giant Roc. With its sharp claws ready, the Roc charged towards Yu Sheng''s head. Immediately, Yu Sheng withdrew his right fist, after which he swept out his left arm. His demonic might penetrated through everything, crushing the illusory Roc. Then, his fist landed on Chi Meng''s left arm, producing a violent bang. Chi Meng, however, did not stop. His right hand punched out again with much force. This time, it was the power of the elephant.


    Under the attentive stare of everyone, the two fought wildly with each other in a close-range battle. As they fought, their bodies also ascended into the air. They battled from the ground into the sky and an appalling storm was created around them. The audience noticed that the illusory demonic beasts that Chi Meng released during his attacks could not harm Yu Sheng at all. Yu Sheng was so strong that he could break everything by force.


    Bang! Following a loud bang, the two separated from each other for the first time. Spiritual Qi rolled on Chi Meng''s body and ascended into the air. Then, his Life Spirit appeared behind him. It was a catalog that seemed to contain thousands of drawings of demonic beasts. These drawings seemed to be able to move on their own and they were filled with an imposing Devilish Qi. This was the Demon Refining Catalogue, a Life Spirit that only core disciples of Demon God Clan could possess.


    From Chi Meng''s Life Spirit, many intimidating demonic beasts charged out directly. They included Rocs, elephants, golden lions, stone apes, pure-blooded dragons��


    At this instant, all the drawings in the Demon Refining Catalogue seemed to have come alive. The thousands of demonic beasts in the sky trampled and rushed towards Yu Sheng''s body.


    "This Life Spirit��" Ye Futian was somewhat shocked. Could this Life Spirit summon demonic beasts?


    Indeed, the Demonic Refining Catalogue was capable of summoning. Even among the cultivators from Demon God Clan, only a handful would possess this Life Spirit. It was said that the earliest leader of Demon God Clan was also extremely powerful, but the clan declined slowly after that. Despite this being the case, Demon God Clan was still one of the most powerful forces in the Barren State. The demonic beasts raced and crushed everything in the sky, charging towards Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng''s expression was extremely cold and the demonic might on his body also grew in intensity. Behind him, the illusory demon seemed to have come into existence, turning into a real demon. It roared and the sky vibrated. The demonic beasts charging over actually trembled in fear and many of them knelt down in the sky, not daring to advance further. It was as though they were terrified by the might of the illusory demon.


    "Strike!" Chi Meng shouted. At once, many demonic beasts continued charging. Even though they were fear-stricken, they still listened to Chi Meng''s commands.


    With a demonic halberd in his hand, Yu Sheng swang the halberd forward suddenly, penetrating across the bodies of many demonic beasts. Blood danced in the sky. Nevertheless, there were still countless demonic beasts charging wildly towards him. Yu Sheng''s eyes were glittering with an astounding demonic light. In the depth of his eyes, there seemed to be an all-powerful illusory demon. It was an ancient demon which had granted him his startling strength.


    Immediately, the Spiritual Qi around Yu Sheng all turned into Demon Qi which circled around the sky wildly, crushing everything. Raising his head, Yu Sheng looked at the sky and then extended his arm. The Spiritual Qi in the sky turned into many dark golden demonic halberds. The vast region around Yu Sheng was filled with countless demonic halberds.


    In the next moment, everyone saw the infinite number of demonic halberds start a crazy massacre. They penetrated across the incoming demonic beasts, producing many loud thuds. All the demonic beasts seemed to be whining in pain. The demonic beasts falling from the sky seemed to have been summoned by the Demon God, which was Yu Sheng himself.


    Countless people were astonished. The scene of the countless demonic beasts being slain was too alarming. Those from the Dawn Road were now certain that Yu Sheng was the person who had killed Ning Huang. Did the same kind of massacre happen in Jinxiao City? They would clearly not know that this was the ability Yu Sheng had obtained after entering the Noble Plane in his previous battle. He did not have this ability in the Dawn Road.


    "Yu Sheng seems to have totally transformed after becoming a noble..." Looking at the scene, Ye Futian was dumbfounded. That year, he had inherited the Freedom Meditation, while Yu Sheng had obtained the demonic art from godfather. What kind of art is it exactly? Why is it so strong? he thought.


    The higher Yu Sheng''s level was, the more overpowering he was.


    Suddenly, a ridiculous thought appeared in Ye Futian''s mind��his godfather was Yu Sheng''s actual father. Yu Sheng had obtained his talents and demonic art from his father.


    So was Ye Futian''s godfather a Demonic Cultivator? Was this the reason that he was not tolerated by the powerful people in the Divine Prefecture?


    In the depth of the Holy Zhi Palace, there was an extremely tall palace. In the palace, there was a burly figure sitting quietly on the ground. Suddenly, he opened his eyes, looking at a certain direction outside the Holy Zhi Palace. The person was half-naked and his entire body was bronze in color, but at the same time filled with a golden luster. His muscles seemed to contain incredible power. At the moment, it was as though his sight could penetrate across space and he was looking at the arena directly.


    In the arena, many dark golden demonic halberds were charging towards Chi Meng. The thousands of demonic beasts roared but could not stop the incoming attack. Chi Meng backed off rapidly and stared at Yu Sheng, after which he said, "I lost."


    Right away, Yu Sheng stopped his attack. The demonic might on his body dissipated and he returned to his original position. However, his demon-like figure had been carved into the minds of countless many.


    Yu Sheng had beat Chi Meng and obtained the last position in the top ten. What exactly was his limit? Even Chi Meng did not manage to stop him from advancing. Yu Sheng was indeed a monster.


    The battles in the Holy Zhi Palace were indeed the most exciting noble-level battles in the Barren State. So many geniuses had shown up. Today, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had both become famous in just one battle. One of them had defeated Yan Jiu, while the other had beat Chi Meng.


    The ten top had finally emerged. They were Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Yuan Zhan, Huang Jiuge, Bai Ze, Zhuge Xing, Xu Que, Xiao Junyi, Huang, and Phoenix!


    Scanning these people, many people were filled with excitement. How intense would the battle of the top ten be? Even the powerful cultivators were looking forward to it!

 570 The White Cloud City Second Young Master

    On the sky stairwell, the elder from the Holy Zhi Palace looked towards the remaining ten people and said, "After battling for one day and one night, the battling ends now. The rules for the battle for the top ten will have some changes, so take one day to rest and we will commence the final battle tomorrow."


    Many people looked astonished. They were changing the rules? In the past, unless contestants who had made it to the next round were injured, they would not stop the battles. This time around, since none of the top ten were injured, it would be sufficient for them to rest for a short period of time and there was no need to stop the battles.


    "You''re all dismissed. The ten of you and those who didn''t challenge anyone, come up here." The expert on the sky stairwell continued saying. Ye Futian''s looked in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, then turned around and looked for Hua Jieyu. Seeing Hua Jieyu in the crowd waving at him, Ye Futian walked over to her side.


    "Is my performance acceptable?" Ye Futian held Hua Jieyu''s hand with an aura of smugness.


    "Mm." Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded her head.


    "Hey, don''t forget about what you promised me," Ye Futian reminded, as though he had kept "sleep" on his mind all along.


    "Did I promise you anything?" Hua Jieyu tilted her head and looked at Ye Futian. Why did she not remember anything?


    "Let''s go to second sister and ask her to be the judge," Ye Futian said dispiritedly.


    Hua Jieyu glared at him. This fellow, how could he ask second sister to be the judge on this type of matter?


    "Yu Sheng, seventh brother," Ye Futian shouted. Yu Sheng and the rest all walked over and the group traveled in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace while the rest of the top ten also made their way over. In the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, Zhuge Mingyue saw Ye Futian walking over and asked softly, "How is he?"


    Zhuge Canyang looked at the figure who was walking forward and said calmly, "Indeed, he''s not bad."


    The performance of the Cottage disciples had stunned him. It looked like the Cottage''s mysterious teacher was indeed an impressive person to be able to teach such a group of outstanding disciples.


    Ye Futian walked to their side, looked at Zhuge Mingyue and asked, "Second sister, what''s going on here?" Previously, his second sister had asked him to notice her hints, but it now seemed that there had been some changes.


    "Let''s see what the Holy Zhi Palace has to say about it, let''s go over together." Zhuge Mingyue walked forward, smiling. She placed her hand on Ye Futian''s head, caressing it and saying, "Little brother''s performance is worthy of praise."


    Ye Futian was a little dejected, only his second sister could stroke his head like this.


    Many people looked over at them. Zhuge Mingyue and Ye Futian appeared to have a very close relationship, to the extent that they could have such intimate interaction.


    Zhuge Xing was also there. He looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, appearing peeved. He looked coldly at Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s gaze also swept across Zhuge Xing; this fellow appeared to be very unhappy.


    "Jieyu," Zhuge Xing looked towards Hua Jieyu and called out, seemingly doing it on purpose to provoke Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian frowned, a ruthless gleam appearing in his eyes. Similarly, Hua Jieyu frowned as well. She had previously told Zhuge Xing that she did not wish for him to appear in front of her. Now, Zhuge Xing was still addressing her in that way; it was evident that he was doing it on purpose.


    "You will be the next Yan Jiu," Ye Futian told Zhuge Xing silently.


    "I''m waiting," Zhuge Xing replied emotionlessly.


    In another direction, Bai Ze''s gaze also looked towards them. His gaze stopped for a moment on Hua Jieyu, then he bowed to Zhuge Canyang and Zhuge Mingyue as a display of respect. Zhuge Canyang returned the bow while Zhuge Mingyue did not show any signs of acknowledgment.


    Previously, Bai Luli had brought Bai Ze to look for her and Hua Jieyu, but she had rejected him. The two of them were not even acquainted with Hua Jieyu, why would they look for her?


    The White Cloud City''s descendants had the Eye of Devastation as their Life Spirit and were all terrifying Spirit Elemental cultivators. They could use Spiritual Qi directly from the air as well as invade other people''s Spiritual Will. Many people even claimed that the White Cloud City had the Barren State''s strongest Spirit Elemental cultivators.


    Hua Jieyu was a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer and had a similar ability to the Eye of Devastation. The cultivators from the White Cloud City would naturally be very interested in Hua Jieyu as a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer. Moreover, she had ravishing looks, so Bai Ze would naturally have his own intentions.


    The group of them came to a location, and the influential figures from the Holy Zhi Palace were diagonally above them. Many people stood there, including the White Cloud City''s Young Master Bai Luli. He stood there, casually chatting with other elders. Ye Futian glanced at Bai Luli from a close distance, he was indeed a distinguished person with handsome looks, as well as an aura of refinement, although still a far cry from himself. Of course, Ye Futian''s gaze was not friendly. After all, this person was his third brother''s love rival. Bai Luli appeared to have felt Ye Futian''s gaze and looked towards him, then smiled faintly and nodded at him. His smile gave people a pleasant feeling.


    "Mingyue, your little brother''s potential is exceptional," Bai Luli said to Zhuge Mingyue, smiling.


    "He''s still alright, with my little brother''s potential, he should probably be able to make it into the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking in the future." Zhuge Mingyue smiled and replied. Bai Luli was stunned for a moment, then smiled and shook his head. He really could not handle Zhuge Mingyue. After all, he was tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Uncle Daozang, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu have exceptional potential, they will likely achieve much in the future. Why don''t you take them in under your palace?" Bai Luli looked towards Sage Daozang and said, smiling. Sage Daozang nodded slightly, he had previously invited Hua Jieyu, but she claimed that she would wait for Ye Futian to decide together.


    "All of you have come to the Holy Zhi Palace, is there anyone who is willing to join my palace? If you are willing to enter my palace, I will pick you tomorrow," Sage Daozang said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had a glint in his eye and felt odd. If there was an elder who was inviting him, he would naturally ask his second sister to pick for him. Although Bai Luli was expressing goodwill towards him, he was unwilling to accept it. With Bai Luli''s relationship with his third brother, if he accepted it, wouldn''t it be the same as accepting a favor from Bai Luli? How would he face his third brother in the future then?


    "I will consider it seriously," Ye Futian bowed and said. Although he had his own thoughts, he did not want to directly reject an influential figure from the Holy Zhi Palace. That would be inappropriate conduct.


    "Sage Daozang is personally inviting you and you still want to consider?" a cold voice said from the side. Sage Daozang looked at the person who was speaking and chided while smiling and shaking his head. "Ning Xian, it''s fine."


    His surname is Ning. Ye Futian looked at Ning Xian and understood why.


    "You have all crossed the Holy Road to arrive here all the way in the top 10. It has not been easy for all of you. If there is anyone who wishes to enter a palace, or are you all here to train yourself?" Sage Daozang looked at the crowd and asked casually. "Of course, it''s alright if you do not wish to say. We''re just chatting casually here."


    "Teacher has said that Sage Daozang has a wealth of knowledge and has numerous insights in cultivation, thus he ordered me to come to the Holy Zhi Palace and follow Sage Daozang in my cultivation," a voice sounded out and the crowd turned towards it. Their gazes landed on the beautiful lady from the Immortal Village. Her aura was subtle. Although her clothes were simple, she appeared to be beyond the mortal realm. If she dressed up, she would definitely be a captivating beauty.


    "Is your teacher the Undying Old Man?" Sage Daozang asked.


    "Yes," Phoenix nodded and replied.


    "Alright, you will follow me in my cultivation in the future," Sage Daozang smiled and said, preemptively taking Phoenix in under his palace.


    "Thank you, elder," Phoenix bowed and replied.


    "The House Master has claimed that my swordsmanship is not complete, and has asked me to learn from elder Sword Demon. Will elder Sword Demon grant my wish?" Xu Que looked at the Sword Demon and asked.


    "Yes." The Sword Demon nodded and Xu Que thanked him.


    "You are the disciple of the Dark Sage?" someone looked at Xiao Junyi and asked.


    "Yes," Xiao Junyi nodded and replied.


    "Why have you crossed the Holy Road? To kill people and refine your technique?" the person asked again.


    "If elder is unhappy about that, I can leave and not participate in the remaining battles," Xiao Junyi replied.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace will not undermine its rules," Sage Daozang said and Xiao Junyi did not reply.


    "What about you? Who is your master?" Someone looked towards Yu Sheng and asked. Many people looked towards Yu Sheng, this fellow cultivated in overbearing demonic arts and many people were curious towards his origin. Yu Sheng did not say anything. He evidently did not want to say that his demonic teachings were from his father. Now that his cultivation level was getting stronger and he had a deeper understanding of his methods, he also wanted to know what kind of person his father was.


    The people from the Holy Zhi Palace did not continue pursuing the matter. Bai Luli looked at Huang Jiuge and asked, smiling, "The people from the Sovereign Family have never entered the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate, are they interested this time around?"


    "We have no interest in doing so," Huang Jiuge replied in a straightforward manner, then continued, "I have come only to see what standard the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples are at this time around."


    "If you are willing, I can introduce you to a good master," Bai Luli smiled and said. Huang Jiuge glanced at him. As the descendant of the Zhongzhou City''s Sovereign Family, he naturally understood Bai Luli''s status in the Holy Zhi Palace. His words had the intention to get on Huang Jiuge''s good side, as long as he agreed, he might even be able to cultivate under that person''s palace. However, even with Bai Luli''s temptation, he did not say anything. He believed that the Sovereign Family''s techniques were not inferior to any faction''s. Even the Holy Zhi Palace was unable to produce anyone on the top three of the Barren Sky Ranking, and it was not because of their techniques. He would naturally achieve that goal of his.


    "Alright, there will still be people watching the battles tomorrow, make sure you give your best performance." Sage Daozang smiled and left. Many of the influential figures from the Holy Zhi Palace followed suit.


    Ye Futian did not understand the purpose of this conversation, but Zhuge Canyang and Zhuge Mingyue did. It seemed that many influential figures from the Holy Zhi Palace had already unified to form a certain will.


    After they had left, Xiao Junyi, Yuan Zhan, Phoenix, and the others all turned around and walked downwards, but Bai Ze walked to Zhuge Mingyue, bowed and said, "Previously, I had asked my brother to bring me along to visit, but it was a pity that I was unable to meet second young mistress and miss Jieyu. Now that I have met you both today, the two of you are indeed stunning."


    Zhuge Mingyue looked at Bai Ze, not knowing what he wanted to say.


    Bai Ze continued and said, "My brother is the cream of the crop in the Barren State. Now that I have seen second young mistress'' splendor, I feel that the two of you indeed match."


    Zhuge Mingyue''s eyes narrowed and many people looked towards them. Although the entire Barren State knew about Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue, Bai Ze was trying to bring it up?


    "Bai Ze!" Bai Luli shouted at him. Bai Ze did not move and continued looking at Zhuge Mingyue. Just like he had said, his brother Bai Luli was unparalleled. However, Zhuge Mingyue intentionally avoided him on purpose and made it look like his brother was wooing her, but failing at doing so. Regarding the matter, Bai Ze was very unhappy.


    What right did Zhuge Mingyue have to do so? His brother could get any kind of woman he wanted if he just asked. Of course, as the son of the White Cloud City Lord, he would naturally hold back his words and appear refined and courteous.


    "The second young master of the White Cloud City, you better mind your own business." Zhuge Mingyue smirked at Bai Ze, her tone unfriendly.


    Bai Ze looked at Zhuge Mingyue and saluted, saying, "If Bai Ze''s words have made second young mistress unhappy, I beg your pardon. The previous time, I wanted to meet miss Jieyu, but I was unable to do so. Only this time at the Holy Zhi Palace was I able to meet her. Divine Spiritual Sorcerers are indeed the Ultimate Sorcerers. Although she was eliminated prematurely because of her cultivation level, the potential of a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer will only get stronger with time. Why not let my brother introduce her to cultivate under the second Palace Lord?"

 571 Battle of the Top Ten

    Everyone looked troubled hearing Bai Ze''s words. There were obviously deep meanings behind his words after all. Even Zhuge Xing looked at Bai Ze funny. So even someone like Bai Ze has thoughts about Hua Jieyu, huh��


    Only Holy Sage Pavilion had two pavilion lords, and one of the lords was the lord of the Holy Zhi Palace itself, who had stopped getting involved with affairs of the place, leaving the other lord to practically run the place. The Holy Sage Pavilion, sitting high atop the Holy Zhi Palace, reigned supreme over all in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Two of the top three in the Barren Sky Ranking, specifically the one ranked first and third, were of the Holy Sage Pavilion, which in turn referred to the two pavilion lords. The two who reigned supreme over all cultivators in the Barren State were none other than the two lords themselves. It was because of them that the Holy Zhi Palace enjoyed extremely high status in all of the Barren State, being called the ''sacred ground'' of the Barren State. The influence of sacred grounds in Barren State usually extended only to its surrounding region. Even one as formidable as the Ice Temple at the southern regions of Barren State. The Holy Zhi Palace''s influence, however, encompassed all of Barren State instead.


    Bai Luli was a student of the Holy Sage Pavilion and he enjoyed supreme status in the Holy Zhi Palace. Bai Ze supposedly would have studied under the second pavilion lord as well. As such, Bai Ze''s intentions in having Bai Luli recommend Hua Jieyu to study under the second pavilion lord were all too obvious. If Hua Jieyu was to take one such favor, Bai Ze would have stood a good chance at getting her to be his��


    Ye Futian knew of such maneuvers all too well, and he stared at Bai Ze with cold eyes.


    "Having made it this far on her own, there is no need for recommendations from others in Hua Jieyu''s case. She would be able to make her own decisions. Your good will, while appreciated, is unnecessary." Zhuge Mingyue glared at Bai Ze, with eyes as cold as Ye Futian''s. Everyone knew that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were lovers, and Hua Jieyu stated clearly that she would follow wherever Ye Futian went. Yet, Bai Ze stated in front of everyone that he intended to recommend a teacher to her, an action saying that he was completely ignoring Ye Futian''s presence.


    Many thought the actions of the second son of White Cloud City to be unbearably arrogant. Despite being a peerless figure and had a measure of arrogance to him, Bai Luli knew prudence to a certain extent, nonetheless, and behaved amicably. Bai Ze, however, was clearly a polar opposite.


    "How about we ask what Ms. Hua herself to think about it?" Bai Ze paid no heed to Zhuge Mingyue''s coldness at the matter. There were simply too many who revered or feared the Zhuge family, and many naturally showed the same measure of respect or fear towards Zhuge Mingyue. However, White Cloud City needed to show no such sentiments to anyone other than a select few in the Holy Zhi Palace. His father, the city lord of White Cloud City, ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, and his brother, Bai Luli, ranked tenth.


    Bai Ze turned to look at Hua Jieyu as soon as he finished. "Ms. Hua, my Life Spirit, the Eye of Devastation, works in ways similar to your practice as a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer. If we were to train together, we would able to encourage each other to improve, which would, in turn, benefit our respective practices. Furthermore, the second pavilion lord is a mighty one ranked third in the Barren Sky Ranking. It is an opportunity like no other for you to be able to study under him."


    Many turned their eyes at Hua Jieyu. ''Train together'', ''encourage each other to improve'', words that sounded polite and appealing, but Hua Jieyu knew what those words truly meant. The appeal was even greater due to the fact that it would be the third strongest figure in the ranking who would be tutoring them.


    If Hua Jieyu was still single, she would have said yes without a doubt, for few were able to resist such a compelling offer. However, due to Ye Futian''s presence, Bai Ze''s words sounded overwhelmingly condescending, an attempt to take another guy''s girlfriend right in front of him. Yet, the obscenely arrogant second son of White Cloud City did not seem to care for such matters, ignoring Ye Futian who stood right beside her. He cared not for Ye Futian''s incredible talents, for Bai Ze deemed Ye Futian to be just another face in the crowd.


    Crunch. A crisp noise was heard as Yu Sheng took a step forward, seemingly fully ready to talk with his fists.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian called and Yu Sheng halted his steps, yet his eyes remained on Bai Ze.


    Bai Ze spared a glance at Yu Sheng and smirked, returning his gaze to Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu took hold of Ye Futian''s hand and looked at Bai Ze, smiling slightly and said, "It is indeed a rare opportunity to be able to study under the second pavilion lord. But, just how am I able to study with someone as ugly as you around?" She turned around and left with Ye Futian in tow.


    Ye Futian turned and smirked at Bai Ze. "See you tomorrow."


    Bai Ze was dumbfounded. Ugly?


    Bai Ze looked funny seeing both of them leaving the scene.


    The world of cultivators called couples among their ranks to be path companions. The term referred to individuals who complemented each other in terms of abilities and thus, were suitable partners for each other in training. Love was trivial in comparison. He was of the opinion that Hua Jieyu was a suitable path companion for him. However, women were creatures driven by emotions, and he believed she failed to comprehend the true meaning of the term.


    Yet, he was hardly bothered. He simply reached out in an attempt to claim what he deemed to be a suitable path companion without hesitation. With Hua Jieyu not having such comprehension and readiness to do so, he saw it fit to not pursue the matter further. Women were aplenty, beauties who should have only existed in the heavens or even goddesses, one could get their hands on whoever they fancy if they proved powerful enough.


    So Ye Futian, see you tomorrow indeed. Maybe he just thinks too highly of himself after beating Yan Jiu. And Yan Jiu is hardly worth mentioning compared to someone like me.


    In the last battle fighting for a spot in top ten, Ximen Yan was unable to even withstand one look from Bai Ze.


    "The second son of White Cloud City indeed," Zhuge Mingyue quipped with a smile before leaving the scene as well. Bai Luli yelled at his brother, "Bai Ze, you are going too far."


    Bai Ze turned around and walked towards his brother, lowering his head for a bit. While he behaved in an exceedingly arrogant manner in front of others, Bai Ze tried to behave himself in front of his brother. Bai Ze''s eyes, however, were unflinching, as if to say that he could do no wrong.


    My brother is a peerless genius in all of Barren State. Even someone like Zhuge Mingyue should have bowed before him. That was what drove him to behave as he did today, and it was like a thorn at his side.


    Many from the outside world were oblivious to it, but great figures knew well that his brother, Bai Luli, was more than just the young city lord of White Cloud City and a genius ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking. He was also one that earned unanimous praise from all the great figures in the Holy Zhi Palace. Bai Ze knew well what lied in his brother''s future��number one in all of the Barren State.


    ...


    Zhuge Mingyue walked as Ye Futian''s party left.


    "Second sister," Ye Futian called.


    "You know little of what is going on in the Holy Zhi Palace. The palace lord, the figure who reigned supreme in all of Barren State, had disappeared for years, not getting himself involved in mundane affairs. Now things are managed by the second pavilion lord who is ranked third in the Barren Sky Ranking, while the second pavilion lord himself is Bai Luli''s teacher. I never expected you to be able to come this far when you first embarked on your trip to the Holy Roads. That was quite a shock to your second sister, me."


    Zhuge Mingyue smiled and continued. "As such, expectations towards you are no longer what they used to be. I intended for you to study under one of the sages here, but things are no longer what it was before. If things don''t turn out in your favor, I''d advise you to not enter the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Not enter?" Ye Futian asked while looking puzzled.


    "You have clashed with Bai Ze, and enrolling into the palace wouldn''t necessarily be a good thing for you anymore. You may not be clear of Bai Luli''s status in the palace, but my old man told me that Bai Luli has had the higher-ups in the palace reach some kind of consensus, and that is making him the heir to the place," Zhuge Mingyue elaborated.


    The shock was clear in Ye Futian''s eyes. So that mighty one who ranked tenth on Barren Sky Ranking has earned approval from the rest of the Holy Zhi Palace then?


    "Well, given the talents of this little brother of mine, it''s fine even if you didn''t study here in the palace. You''ll still take good care of me, right?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled in a rather sly manner.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. He thought not all would have been lost even if he did not end up studying in the Holy Zhi Palace. Their journey on the Holy Roads had let all of them grow considerably in many ways.


    "We''ll see what happens tomorrow. You might still stand a chance," Zhuge Mingyue added.


    "I''ll let you make the decisions," Ye Futian said with a smile. His second sister would not have wanted anything other than the best for him, and Ye Futian did not feel like dwelling on the matter. It was easier to simply have his second sister make the arrangements for him.


    Many turned to look at Zhuge Mingyue''s party, and the news soon spread throughout the place that Ye Futian had a minor clash with Bai Ze in the Holy Zhi Palace and that Bai Ze had thoughts about Hua Jieyu as well.


    Things turned out interestingly given the young city lord of White Cloud City showed interests in Hua Jieyu. The battle the next day had just gotten more interesting for everyone.


    Ye Futian had beaten Yan Jiu before and earned himself a place at the top ten, yet the second son of White Cloud City was probably the most powerful among all who still remained in the battlefield. Yan Jiu paled in comparison, and Ye Futian the dark horse, might have met his biggest challenge yet.


    Many discussed the strengths of the candidates in the top ten. Some claimed Bai Ze to be the strongest while some others claimed Huang Jiuge to be the strongest instead. However, it was clear to everyone that Bai Ze, Huang Jiuge, and Xu Que were the three strongest among the ten. It was difficult to gauge the strengths of the other seven, as while Zhuge Xing might have been just as strong, Yu Sheng, Xiao Junyi and Ye Futian were nowhere near weak as well.


    The outcome was to be known on the battlefield the next day.


    A day''s time flew by like an arrow, and the mighty ones were seen gathering early in the morning the next day. The top ten candidates made their way onto the battlefield one after another. Many mighty ones gathered in the Holy Zhi Palace''s direction, even some great figures who did not turn up the day before showed up. Battles of the top ten candidates were something many would not have missed for anything.


    "So even you, King Kong Sage, are showing up today, I see." Sage Daozang turned to look at a figure who seemed to be bathing in golden light, a figure well known and respected in the Holy Zhi Palace. The figure was a mighty one ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking, and he was also the second most formidable figure in the Battle Sage Palace.


    The Battle Sage Palace was known to be the place where the best warriors were made in the Holy Zhi Palace, and every single person within was known to pack extraordinary combat prowess.


    The status of the Battle Sage Palace was merely below that of the Holy Sage Pavilion, and the lord within was known to have the most formidable physical attributes among all in Barren State, being ranked seventh in the Barren Sky Ranking. His combat capacity, however, was known to be peerless, so much so that even those of higher rankings hesitated to butt heads with such a being.


    "If you, Lord Daozang, are interested enough to show up yourself, is it peculiar that I''m interested?" King Kong Sage asked. Sage Daozang was the lord of Daozang Palace.


    Sage Daozang smiled and turned his attention to the battlefield.


    The elder on the sky stairwell spoke, "The battle today will be different from the ones fought prior. It is no longer done in a one-on-one manner. Whoever you think should be eliminated, you are free to challenge them. The loser will be eliminated. If you are of such prowess that no one dares challenge you, you are free to enter battle during the final round."


    The eyes of many sparkled. The rules had become more straightforward, and nothing was left to chance anymore.


    The battle of the top ten commenced!

 572 Zhuge Xing, Eliminated

    Ten candidates stood in ten directions on the vast battlefield. The rules of the game this time were that anyone that anyone deemed unqualified to stay was free to be challenged and eliminated. Any of the ten candidates were given permission to freely take the stage, but someone was bound to be eliminated.


    Who would be first?


    Huang Jiuge scanned the scene while remaining standing where he was, tall and proud.


    Xu Que remained silent with both hands behind him.


    Bai Ze simply closed his eyes, as if the upcoming fights had nothing to do with him as no one was deemed daring enough to challenge him until the very end. He also thought most standing there unworthy for him do the dirty work himself. As such, he simply intended to let the other candidates fight among themselves until one man was left standing.


    Zhuge Xing also stood quietly in his place. All who stood where they were seemed to have very high opinions of themselves, and no one deemed themselves to be inferior to the others. As such, unlike prior battles, no one was in any hurry to make a move against anyone.


    Ye Futian scanned the battlefield for a while and smirked. He made his move, being the first one to walk out, attracting the eyes of many. It seemed to many that Ye Futian knew well of his predicament��that he stood no chance of coming out as the top of the ten candidates left. As such, he chose to come up and challenge someone.


    Everyone watching was curious as to who Ye Futian would pick to be his first opponent. The audience tracked where he turned his eyes, and the result was a startling one for many, so much so that the audience looked funny. Many thought he would have chosen to challenge Huang from Frost Road or Phoenix from Decay Road. Yet, the one he set his eyes on was none other than the only candidate left from the Zhuge family��Zhuge Xing.


    Zhuge Xing returned Ye Futian''s gaze, a cold look on his face. He was the one to be challenged first, which meant that Ye Futian deemed him to be the most unworthy among the ten left on the battlefield.


    "What are you looking at, just get out here already." Seeing that Zhuge Xing had clearly not understood what he meant with his look, Ye Futian had no choice but to open his mouth.


    Cold shimmers appeared in Zhuge Xing''s eyes. He walked out with a tinge of purplish lightning sparkling in his eyes before replying, "You have guts."


    "Guts?" Ye Futian looked puzzled. So Zhuge Xing thinks I''m challenging him because I have guts? He sure has a very high opinion of himself.


    "You said quite a while ago that I don''t belong on this battlefield. But as my luck would have it, I''m still here." Ye Futian smiled and continued, "Of the other nine remaining, you are the trashiest, and so here I am and here you are."


    Crash! Threads of lightning sparks lit up as Zhuge Xing became infuriated. Ye Futian might have seemed to be cracking a self-deprecating joke, but he was actually insulting Zhuge Xing. However, was Zhuge Xing really weak? Among the members of the Zhuge family in the Noble Plane, Zhuge Xing was definitely the most talented.


    Purplish lights crackled in the huge battlefield, seeming to be sparks drawn from the heavens. As the sparks and crackling noises went on, terrifying storms whipped up across the battlefield. The lightning had gotten so intense that even the skies took on a different hue as if the battlefield had turned into a world made of lightning. Purplish streaks of lightning lashed out at Ye Futian. While the attacks were shot down, sparks coursed through Ye Futian''s body nonetheless, which gradually turned into unbearable pressure permeating the battlefield.


    "You will taste the true power of the Zhuge family," Zhuge Xing said.


    Crack, boom�� Loud noises were heard across the field as multiple streaks of lightning lashed out from the heavens, shining light on the ground. A stout silhouette appeared behind Zhuge Xing as the streaks of devastating lightning continued to rain on the ground. The silhouette was tens of meters tall, a figure to be looked up upon like a god of thunder.


    That was a true Kui, a beast of lightning and thunder. Its enormous body spoke of regal might. One War Drum of Lightning after another appeared before the enormous bull-like creature as the lightning storm turned increasingly intense.


    The image was a terrifying one, and it was the ability of Zhuge Xing''s Life Spirit. The Kui was the sacred beast of lightning and was known in the legends to be the stead of the god of thunder. The beast was described to possess the power to command lightning storms, and even its eyes were filled with the sheen of lightning. One look on its eyes was more than enough to tell the horrifyingly sizeable magnitude of lightning will housed within, as if one was being struck by lightning.


    Many shuddered at the devastating scene in the battlefield. Though Ye Futian was incredibly powerful, they were thinking that he probably had made the wrong choice in challenging Zhuge Xing.


    Zhuge Xing was nothing like Zhuge Ling or Zhuge Ping from before, as they were deemed to be completely different levels in terms of combat prowess. Zhuge Xing even had one more Life Spirit than both of them.


    "Take your time and taste it," Zhuge Xing yelled. The Kui beat on the War Drum of Lightning as soon as he finished. Countless streaks of lightning strikes rained down on the battlefield in an instant, all lashing out at Ye Futian. What was more terrifying was the resulting noise, which seemed to be powerful enough to rupture Ye Futian''s eardrums. Ye Futian felt powerful waves of lightning will directly assault his mind through his ears.


    Boom! Ye Futian shuddered for a bit and his ears rang. His feet jumped backward without him realizing it. The defenses around him that he had set up prior were all shattered by the lightning. Streaks coursed throughout his body, rendering him increasingly numb all over.


    One strike packed the power to assault both the body and the mind. Zhuge Xing''s reputation as the proud son of the Zhuge family did not come from nothing. Many deemed him to be one of the top five candidates, powerful enough to fight for a spot in the top three.


    The Kui howled and the War Drums of Lightning were heard. Rumbling noises reverberated throughout the heavens and blinding lightning flashes filled the air. Ye Futian grunted as he felt his mind about to be shattered. He feet stuck to the ground and kept going back. The star-powered defenses that he had put up around him prior were easily shattered and were of no match to the sheer devastating power of lightning.


    "I don''t see that I am wrong. Do you really think you''re qualified enough to stay?" Zhuge Xing asked coldly. Lightning gathered madly in the sky right above his head, which seemed to be driven by a shadow of the Kui. The Kui gradually took a more tangible form and the lightning strikes encased Ye Futian, as if to lock him where he stood. A freakish lightning storm began to coalesce right above Ye Futian''s head.


    It was the Thunderbolt Bombing spell.


    Horrifying lightning storms right above Ye Futian lashed out an incredibly devastating streak of lightning right on top of Ye Futian''s head. The attack that seemed like a bolt of massive lightning brought from the heavens was the most powerful lightning spell that the Zhuge family had in their arsenal. It was capable of being used by someone with impeccable Spiritual Energy control and precise training. The incredibly demanding attack packed equally incredible damage potential.


    A loud boom was heard as the inescapable spell rained down directly on top of Ye Futian''s starlight clad around him. Cracks appeared one after another, with even his body of stars shattering. His defenses were torn apart right there and then. The bolt of lightning hit him squarely from above. The spell rendered Ye Futian numb all over, and his knees bent in response. He was numbed almost to the point of paralysis; a testament of the lightning spell''s power.


    "Wha..." Eyes were set on Ye Futian, and all who watched were wondering if he was able to withstand such power. They looked at Ye Futian, who was hanging his head low, and wondered if he was able to continue fighting.


    Zhuge Xing was indeed more terrifying than Yan Jiu.


    More streaks of lightning continued to rain down on their target, without giving Ye Futian pause for even a breather. The attacks seemed to be determined to turn him to dust right where he stood.


    Boom. Ye Futian''s body became surrounded by dazzling sacred light. The light of the stars melded with it and protected him. That layer of defense did not shatter from the lightning.


    "Was that all you got?" a voice said, and many saw Ye Futian raising his head and standing straight up once again. Many shuddered at the sight, as such a devastating attack seemingly failed to even injure him.


    Just how impossibly tough can a body of flesh and blood be?


    A world of stars began appearing in the world of lightning. The sun, the moon, and the stars all hung up high in the air. A dazzling beam of sunlight, gentle beam of moonlight, and the swirling dots of starlight made the place looked like some kind of rare celestial phenomenon.


    Zhuge Xing looked slightly troubled. He actually came out unscathed from an attack like that?


    The Roc appeared in a flash of dazzling golden light and went on to cling onto Ye Futian. The scene itself was something Ye Futian accomplished by casting talents of four different attributes. All of that coupled with the elemental prowess demonstrated in prior battles made it very clear to everyone that he was a Full Attribute Mandate Sorcerer.


    Streaks of lightning continued to rain on top of him, but Ye Futian vanished from where he stood with a flash. The bolts of lightning missed their target with a loud boom. Ye Futian''s body was seen hovering in the air a moment later, his gaze locked onto Zhuge Xing.


    "My turn." The celestial bodies fell as soon as he finished. Heaven and earth seemed to be swallowed by an inferno soon after. An incredibly huge furnace appeared around Zhuge Xing, one that seemed capable of cooking everything on earth in it. The intentions of the furnace were clear��kill Zhuge Xing where he stood.


    Zhuge Xing extended his palm and said coldly, "Chains of Thunder God." Thousands of chains of lightning lashed about with full intentions of shattering the furnace around him. However, as the furnace itself was a construct made of fire, the lightning chains were unable to destroy it. The chains went on to coil around Ye Futian, pressing on the air around him and went about tearing his defenses bit by bit. However, Ye Futian seemed unshaken in the slightest.


    As moonlight poured down, Zhuge Xing felt intense cold heading for him. Fires of intense yang and waters of intense yin worked against each other, catching Zhuge Xing in between, making him feel extremely miserable. What was worse was that both powers came to form the power of the furnace trapping him within. The product of yin and yang encased Zhuge Xing securely.


    Zhuge Xing looked tremendously troubled. He basked himself in lightning, conjuring a huge shadow of lightning for protection. Lightning bolts lashed out at the same time in attempts to destroy the furnace. However, given how the furnace was a construct of fires of intense yang and waters of intense yin, the power of lightning proved useless against it.


    Zhuge Xing flashed in an attempt to escape the space occupied by the furnace, but countless meteors fell around him in a crazed manner, blocking his way out. The Kui roared as if to shatter the space it occupied. The beast that commanded storms seemed to be one with Zhuge Xing, as he raised his fist to wreck everything around it. Lightning flashed about in the air and meteors continued falling about madly.


    An immensely long rod of stars lashed out in the midst of the mess. Ye Futian was seen descending from above, striking like he was about to break the heavens. Zhuge Xing responded by letting out an intense roar and sending the Kui to charge at him.


    "Get out of my way," a loud voice boomed. The Kui trembled and Zhuge Xing''s body was forced back into the furnace. His body continued to be covered by fire and ice, causing him extreme misery. The light of that Life Spirit in the sky shone on him. As both powers continued to grow in magnitude, his lightning defenses struggled to keep up.


    The powers of fire and ice seeped into his body, making Zhuge Xing feel the searing heat and chilling cold attacking his bones. He turned pale before uttering, "Cease fighting."


    "Cease fighting. What is that suppose to mean?" Ye Futian looked at him with cold expressions as the heat and cold continued to assault Zhuge Xing. Chilling, cracking sounds were heard as Zhuge Xing''s skin seemed like it was about to break into pieces. Zhuge Xing then yelled in rage, "I surrender."

 573 The Final Six

    The power of the furnace stayed the same, yet the light of the celestial entities behind Ye Futian gradually faded. The crazed environment gradually returned to its usual tranquil state. Zhuge Xing lifted his head to look at Ye Futian. His eyes spoke of immense embarrassment.


    He had lost the battle.


    Ye Futian remained in the air, looking down on Zhuge Xing. He seemed to be wearing a smirk on his face, and his expression was more arrogant than ever.


    "You admit defeat?" There was a clear sarcastic smirk on his face. "I thought you were all pompous and full of yourself, and now you admit defeat fighting a grade nine noble? Zhuge Xing, is that all you''ve got?"


    Zhuge Xing clenched his fists and sparks crackled around him. He was enraged and felt immense humiliation, but the fact was he lost. Countless eyes were on him, and he had never felt so embarrassed in his life.


    Ye Futian was humiliating him in front of everyone.


    Ye Futian turned around and walked back to his own spot, saying to Zhuge Xing, "I think it''s better that you change your name to Zhuge Buxing [1]. That should suit you better."


    Crack�� That flash of lightning dimmed immediately. Ye Futian had to humiliate him further before leaving the scene. The name Ye Futian had just given him would probably make him a laughing stock for the rest of his life. When people would recall the battle of this day, the jarring nickname would definitely come to mind.


    Many looked at Zhuge Xing before turning their eyes to Ye Futian. Nothing seemed to be able to stop the dark horse''s advance, and it was a dark horse that was able to overwhelm the likes of Zhuge Xing. Many expected him, at that point, to continue baffling the crowd until the very end.


    It was almost a fact by then that Ye Futian had indeed grown stronger every time he fought someone stronger. The power of his Life Spirits continued to grow, as if he had been going easy in all his prior battles and never gave his all. What was demonstrated right there and then astonished everyone present.


    "Zhuge Xing, wait at the side for the moment. The selection of the top ten is somewhat different from before," the elder on the sky stairwell said. No great figures from the Holy Zhi Palace extended an invitation to Zhuge Xing. He nodded and dragged himself to the side, staying back on the battlefield.


    Many wore funny looks on their faces. Is it hat the big shots in the palace will only select their disciples when clear victors and losers are determined at the very end?


    Bai Ze opened his eyes slowly and shot a glance at Ye Futian. Seems like the guy has something. Let''s see how far he can go before I crush him once and for all.


    Another figure was seen walking out onto the battlefield, catching the attention of many. It was a beautiful girl in rather plain clothes, Phoenix.


    Phoenix turned her eyes at Xiao Junyi and said, "I challenge you."


    Phoenix specialized in Power of Life. Xiao Junyi, on the other hand, specialized in Power of Death. Both individuals bore powers that were polar opposites of one another, and it seemed that they would remain as archrivals for life because of that. Any great figures present knew that the Dark Sage and the Undying Old Man had history as well. And right there and then, their heirs met in the Holy Zhi Palace as rivals.


    Xiao Junyi walked out onto the battlefield with his eyes fixed on Phoenix as he took out his flute. He began playing his tune slowly again. Wisps of death seemed to begin circling around him as he played, before turning into a current and lashing out at Phoenix. Her body was clad in a layer of sacred glimmer at the same time. The jade-colored sacred light was something capable of dispelling all evil power, preventing the current from encroaching her body.


    The music from his flute was a will-based attack, but Phoenix''s mind proved to be just as adamant. An undying phoenix bathed in unending fires in her mind, standing guard firmly and burning down any spiritual attack intended to assault her mind.


    "This is beautiful." Everyone''s eyes were fixated on Phoenix, who seemed to have metamorphosed during the battle. Her regal, sacred figure made her look like a goddess.


    Xiao Junyi''s specialty lied in death, which was a very potent ability capable of suppressing many, but Phoenix''s abilities proved to be the antithesis that was somehow capable of countering his abilities.


    The battlefield turned scorching hot in mere moments. Wisps of fire bounced about on the battlefield, and the temperature soared. Said wisps gathered around Xiao Junyi''s body, with each and every one carried mysterious holiness to them, like undying candlelight, as they charged at Xiao Junyi.


    Grey currents of death swept about his vicinity, attempting to extinguish the wisps of fire. However, the fires like candlelight burned off the currents as they got close, and went about penetrating the black mist behind him, intending to burn his body.


    "Inextinguishable flames."


    "Phoenix''s Life Spirit is none other than the Undying Phoenix, something inherited from the Undying Old Man. Her flames are probably the Undying Flames. The power packed within one such fire spell is extraordinary."


    Many were shocked to the bone. A huge wisp of illusionary candlelight fire began to appear under Xiao Junyi''s feet. It grew in size and power shortly, becoming like a huge candle fire, wrapping his body within.


    Xiao Junyi continued playing his flute as a pitch black silhouette of death appeared behind him, encasing him within. The pitch black shadow looked like a monster embodying death itself as it opened its huge mouth to devour the flames bit by bit. It grew in size as it went on devouring, and the black mist grew in potency, making it almost potent enough to block out the sky, before devouring the candle fire entirely. It then roared in Phoenix''s direction.


    A screech of the phoenix emanated from within Phoenix. Fiery-red wings flapped about between the heavens and the earth, sprinkling Endless Fire all over the place, tainting the surroundings red. An incredibly huge shadow of the phoenix was seen across the vast battlefield, while a regal Undying Phoenix was seen right behind Phoenix herself.


    The shadow of the phoenix and the death monster clashed, as if two terrifying glimmers of light were pitted against each other in the air. The death monster expanded in a crazed manner as Xiao Junyi played his flute. The huge mouth of death spread as it grew in size, intending to swallow the immortal bird whole. The entire world seemed to have turned into pitch black darkness, as it went on to engulf Phoenix.


    Many shuddered at the scene. Just how fearsome can Xiao Junyi''s death abilities get?


    The black mist of death blocked out all light within, devouring everything in its path. The incredibly huge immortal bird seemed to be swallowed in mere moments, and the monster''s mouth continued to make its way for Phoenix.


    Phoenix did not budge from where she stood. The light of the Undying Phoenix behind her remained incredibly regal and sacred, encasing her within. The death monster finally went on to engulf her, swallowing her and her Life Spirit whole within the black mist.


    "This..." The hearts of many shook. This is just too terrifying. Is Xiao Junyi some kind of grim reaper? Is Phoenix just going to get swallowed up like that?


    Xiao Junyi''s tune with his flute did not stop; it picked up instead. Deathly powers roared. At that very moment, the black mist that emanated behind him and went on to engulf the entire battlefield shone with a dazzling light. Beams of holy lights pierced right through the darkness, dispelling the black mist. The Undying Phoenix screeched again as it went on to tear everything in its way apart.


    The death monster roared as it struggled. Many saw wisps of dazzling fire appearing around Xiao Junyi. The shimmering lights spread and the beams cut right through the darkness. The entire battlefield was filled with roaring noises. The black mist was completely dispelled. Xiao Junyi was heard grunting as he took several steps back in the next moment. Blood was seen at the corner of his mouth.


    Phoenix''s figure was seen on the battlefield again. She stood there silently while covered in sacred lights. However, she was also ensnared with wisps of death currents.


    They both lost and suffered grave injuries.


    "I give up." Xiao Junyi''s expression was as calm as ever. The handsome face never seemed to show any hint of being deterred.


    "I withdraw from further battles as well," Phoenix added. Both left the battlefield to return to their own spots and sat on the floor cross-legged.


    Is this a draw? There seems to be no victor here, and both gave up. So both are getting eliminated? Seven left on the field then��


    Yuan Zhan went up next. His body, which seemed to be made of gold, looked ferocious as ever. He fixed his gaze at Huang Jiuge.


    Yuan Zhan was challenging Huang Jiuge.


    It was a given that he would not have challenged Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Of all the other remaining ones, only Huang Jiuge''s methods of training were extremely hard and yang-based. The man packed fearsome offensive capacity, which Yuan Zhan deemed able to serve well to temper his own powers. He did not come to the Holy Zhi Palace for fame or a ranking; he came only because his old man wanted him to learn the powers from the best humans the Barren State had to offer. As such, he chose to fight the incredibly powerful Huang Jiuge.


    Haughtiness appeared in Huang Jiuge''s eyes as he stepped out to face Yuan Zhan, keeping his hands behind him all the while. He remained calm and composed, even when going up against a ferocious beast like Yuan Zhan. No hint of pressure was detected from him at all. A current coursed throughout his body as he activated his powers. Dazzling lights spawned and shot up, coalescing into a regal aura demanding reverence.


    They, the Sovereign family, were descendants of Renhuang. While the world by and large did not believe it to be so, the clan itself remained unfazed. Their ways of practice enabled them to bear mysterious currents within, something that was capable of compressing and converting the worldly powers into some mysterious power. The Sovereign family called such powers to be the Sovereign Aura. He remained adamant in his belief of his ancestor''s strength, and he intended to prove his point personally.


    Yuan Zhan stepped forward and the earth shook. The golden body of his packed endless amount of power within. He lashed out with his hand, intending to overwhelm everything in his path with his golden palm.


    Huang Jiuge made no attempt to evade the incoming attack. He leaped into the air clad in Sovereign Aura, before lashing out with his fist in return. He physically clashed with Yuan Zhan. The Sovereign Aura turned into dazzling currents as it swept out with a huge boom. None of them fell backward, and Yuan Zhan continued attacking with his huge palm, intending to turn Huang Jiuge to dust.


    Huang Jiuge continued fighting adamantly. Booming noises reverberated in the air, shaking the entire place. Both individuals continued to clash with one another. The Sovereign Aura on Huang Jiuge grew increasingly powerful, and his bearing grew in response. The power of his Sovereign Aura reached a tipping point, turning into a shadow of Renhuang. The Sovereign family trained in mysterious ways, enabling them to grow stronger to match their opponent''s strength.


    Yuan Zhan changed his attack method and used his 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques instead. Huang Jiuge''s Sovereign Aura responded by coalescing into a chariot and a spear, lashing out together with his fist, as if Renhuang himself was directing a massive army to overwhelm his enemies.


    "Some incredible methods indeed." Ye Futian looked troubled. It was no surprise why many expected Huang Jiuge to perform well, even deeming him to be one of the strongest among them all, along with Bai Ze.


    The fathers of Bai Ze and Huang Jiuge were ranked fourth and fifth on the Barren Sky Ranking, respectively, which meant they were both of incredible lineages.


    Yuan Zhan grew increasingly vicious as he failed to land an attack. He went on to use the Nine Heavenly Strikes, powers capable of splitting the earth and shattering everything in their path.


    The Nine Heavenly Strikes, used by a being the size of a golden great ape packed enormous powers within. While Yuan Zhan''s level of comprehension of the art was not as deep as Ye Futian''s, it was still fearsome nonetheless.


    It was only natural that Huang Jiuge was able to sense the underlying power of the techniques used as well. The chariot and the spear were shattered. He burst out of his Renhuang Life Spirit entirely, boosting his aura. The roar of the Sovereign Aura made attacks seem like Renhuang himself had descended on the mortal world. Huang Jiuge chose to continue to clash head-on with Yuan Zhan''s techniques, not giving in even an inch.


    The stronger Yuan Zhan got, the stronger Huang Jiuge got. Eventually, even Yuan Zhan''s full-powered Nine Heavenly Strikes failed to bring Huang Jiuge down. Yuan Zhan was rendered completely exhausted, and Huang Jiuge went on to defeat the giant ape. Many sighed seeing the silhouette like that of a king standing proud in the air. They wondered if the final battle would be between Huang Jiuge and Bai Ze.


    If those two were to clash, what would things be like? Who would come out on top?


    Six were left after the battle!


    [1] Buxing: xing in Chinese means okay or can do it, but bu xing indicates the opposite.

 574 Make Way

    As expected by all present, Huang Jiuge, Bai Ze, and Xu Que were among the six left. The three had been deemed the most powerful right from the beginning. Other than them, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Huang were left on the battlefield. As such, the ones to get eliminated next were Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Huang. Xu Que would have probably ended up being ranked third.


    The final battle was thought to take place between Huang Jiuge and Bai Ze, as both were heirs of two figures ranked in the top five of the Barren Sky Ranking, which meant that the powers that came from their lineages were too fearsome to gauge.


    All three did not seem to have any intention of going into battle on their own. As such, Yu Sheng made his move. He scanned the four other than Ye Futian and fixed his eyes on Huang.


    Huang detected Yu Sheng''s gaze and walked out. Every step brought a chill to the battlefield; a cold that was bone-chilling. He did not wear shoes, which meant he walked barefooted on the battlefield. His steps were light, his long, black hair billowing, and his rags flapped about, all of which spoke of coldness like no other. Wind blew across the battlefield soon after, and the sky was soon filled with snow. The battlefield turned to look like a dead, cold wasteland, like the extreme south of the Barren State heard in legends��incredibly barren, shriveled, and cold.


    "Yu Sheng, better take this one seriously," Ye Futian reminded his friend. He was able to feel that Huang was someone formidable.


    Yu Sheng stood as his demonic might boiled. Dark golden demonic armor encased his body. The spiritual Qi around him went berserk, coalescing in his direction, fueling his demonic aura and making it increasingly powerful. A devil seemed to stand tall and proud in a snowy wasteland, his feet firmly planted on the ground, not moving an inch.


    A large cold broadsword appeared in Huang''s hand. The blade shone with a cold gleam. A fearsome storm whipped about Yu Sheng''s body at the very moment Huang picked his blade up, as if broadsword will in the thousands gathered around him, lashing out at Yu Sheng. However, Yu Sheng''s devilish armor and physical constitution were so durable that the broadsword wills whipping about in the storm were utterly useless in breaking his defenses.


    Huang naturally knew that. He sprinted in the storm before leaping into the air. He held his blade with both hands before bringing it down on his opponent from above. The extremely cold will reached its target before the blade itself, and Yu Sheng felt as if the blood in his body was about to stop flowing. The cold that encroached his body was so extreme that he was unable to evade the slash that was to come.


    Boom. The cold air burst and a Devil Halberd was seen on Yu Sheng''s hand. He went on to lash out with overbearing demonic power. However, the Devil Halberd snapped right in the middle as the weapons clashed, and the attacking broadsword was shattered as well.


    Huang took to the air, coalescing yet another blade in his hands. Even fiercer storms whipped up quickly, encasing Yu Sheng''s body in ice. The blade which he held high above his head radiated bone-chilling coldness. His bearing grew even more ferocious as he brought his blade down on his opponent again.


    A shadow of the devil appeared with a roar, encasing Yu Sheng''s body. Terrifying demonic will was lashed out at Huang''s body. However, the terrifying will did nothing to deter his blade. The blade, which seemed to pack icy storm-like powers, came down without hesitation, and Huang''s hands did not flinch at all when he swung the blade down.


    Yu Sheng''s body continued to devour Spiritual Qi in a crazed manner, rendering the dark golden demonic storm more ferocious. The storm turned into an incredibly huge dark golden shadow of the devil, the form of which grew increasingly tangible. Yu Sheng punched, and the shadow behind him punched with him. The air shook from the ferocity of the attack.


    Crisp sounds were heard soon as the blade was brought down on its target. The fist of the devil was cut open by the blade, and the golden devil shadow that was about to take solid form shattered as well, exposing Yu Sheng''s body to his opponent. However, the blade was once again shattered from the impact.


    Even more ferocious storms of ice whipped around Yu Sheng''s body, seemingly out to bury him alive. Huang seemed like he was walking in the storm in the air. Another blade appeared in his hand, which looked stronger than the ones from before.


    Yu Sheng remained standing where he was, feeling his blood about to stop flowing. He seemed to be experiencing the extreme cold in the midst of the icy storm that seemed endless. The Spiritual Qi that he had absorbed seemed to have turned into devilish flames within his body, burning within to dispel the encroaching cold. The ice and snow around Yu Sheng melted rapidly. He was able to make out a silhouette carrying a blade in the storm.


    Dark demonic fires continued to burn within, destroying the icy storm around him. The flash of his opponent''s blade soon came for his head together with the storm.


    Boom. The shadow of the devil coalesced once again around Yu Sheng. Spiritual Qi of the world combined to create the most powerful devil, as wisps of dark golden demonic currents whipped around in the air. Devastating storms seemed to have appeared. The Heaven-tempering Power of the demonic arts was unleashed, and Yu Sheng seemed to have turned into a true devil.


    Doom. A loud rumble was heard. Yu Sheng made no attempts to evade and stepped forward without any hesitation. He punched, his fist clad in endless demonic might, seemingly capable of shattering anything.


    Boom. Terrifying storm will was soon unleashed, and a terrifying tornado whipped up before Yu Sheng. The blade did not come down, and Huang Jiuge was nowhere to be seen. He retreated far away, standing in the cold storm. Yu Sheng''s fist rumbled in the storm, shaking the air. The storm before him was completely destroyed.


    "He sheathed his blade." The audience looked at Huang, thinking that he was terrifying. If Huang was to fight anyone else but Yu Sheng, the ever prevalent icy spells were more than enough to restrain the movements of his opponents, even preventing his opponents from moving at all. That, coupled with his fearsome blade work, enabled him to easily kill his intended target. However, he did not bring his blade down in his previous attack.


    The icy storm continued raging on the battlefield. Huang Jiuge looked at Yu Sheng where he stood and then turned around to leave the scene. "I''m not here to put my life on the line fighting you." If Huang had gone all the way with his blade, both of them would have lost and suffered serious injuries. Huang was known to be a madman in the south, yet Yu Sheng proved to be even more crazed than he was.


    Huang returned to his spot. He came to the Holy Zhi Palace with the intention of studying the ways of the sacred ground of Barren State, refining and improving his powers in the process. He deemed himself to have done enough. Winning and losing never mattered much to him. He lost many fights, yet the ones he was able to defeat did not live to tell the tale. He saw life and death to be of utmost importance. He knew it at a very young age when he was left to die in the icy cold storms. He was a crazy one, yet he valued life above all else.


    Yu Sheng did not leave the battlefield. He scanned the other three. With the exception of Ye Futian, only Huang Jiuge, Bai Ze, and Xu Que were left.


    "That guy��" Many looked at Yu Sheng.


    A silhouette was seen walking onto the battlefield. His expression was composed, and a tinge of fleeting arrogance was seen in his eyes as always. Yet, at the very moment he stepped into the battlefield, his aura had Yu Sheng trapped.


    Xu Que of the Tingxue House.


    It was natural that Yu Sheng would not challenge Ye Futian. Huang Jiuge and Bai Ze thought too highly of themselves to make a move, and thus, he was left to clean things up. Yu Sheng was very powerful, yet he stood no chance in front of Xu Que. Xu Que himself had absolutely no doubt about it.


    "This is the first time I meet a monster in human form like yourself. Not even the mighty ones among the demons proved to be your match. But my abilities naturally counter yours. As such, I''d advise you to just walk out of this one yourself." Xu Que then added, "Top five is good enough for you."


    No one in the audience thought Xu Que was being arrogant with his words. Yu Sheng''s strength had long been recognized, but as Xu Que himself put it, in one such battlefield, Xu Que was probably the opponent that Yu Sheng should have avoided at all cost.


    One''s planes and levels were inadequate to fully determine the outcome of one''s battles. There were natural counters to certain abilities, by way of nothing other than the nature of a cultivator''s profession. As such, to a certain extent, jack-of-all-trades type of cultivators had an edge over others. For example, Ye Futian, and his battles so far suggested that he had always been the one to counter the abilities of others.


    Yu Sheng did not say anything. The demonic might coursing through his body proved to be a better response than any words. Xu Que smiled. He saw no other way of going about things but to fight if his opponent deemed his advice unnecessary.


    He stepped out slowly. Streaks of sword will out to kill coursed throughout his body and grew in power. His movements gained speed rapidly until he looked like a beam of light, appearing right before Yu Sheng in an instant.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stomped on the ground and punched hard. The attack shattered Xu Que''s body, which he quickly found to be just an afterimage. A killing intent lashed out at Yu Sheng''s side with a flash, drawing a perfect arc in the air. The sword cut right on top of Yu Sheng''s defense, tearing it open right there and then. The armor on Yu Sheng''s arm was torn to shreds, and his clothes were quickly reduced to tatters. Both men flashed by each other and ended up standing with their backs facing each other.


    "Do you still feel like fighting?" Xu Que asked.


    Ye Futian frowned. Xu Que''s specialty lied within his eerie speed, which, when coupled with his killing sword, served well as a natural counter to Yu Sheng''s abilities. Yu Sheng''s combat capacity was incredibly ferocious, but he was unable to do anything so long as Xu Que avoided clashing head-on with him. Anyone who was to fight Yu Sheng would probably have doubts, yet Xu Que had no such doubts. He trained in the art of the killing sword, and his blade was meant to do nothing but kill.


    An even more ferocious demonic might was soon unleashed, absorbing Worldly Spiritual Qi and converting it into formidable demonic aura. The shadow of a devil appeared, melding with his physical body. Yu Sheng looked like a devil himself at the very moment.


    "You never learn," Xu Que spoke again, and a dazzling streak of his movements was seen as soon as he finished. Yu Sheng did not bother evading. He turned around and waited for his opponent''s sword to reach him instead.


    "That crazy b*stard." Many in the audience looked stunned. Xu Que was more than just educated in spectral movements; his sword was known to be the sword of destruction.


    "You seem to have a death wish." Xu Que''s face was cold. He lashed out with his sword, which cut right through Yu Sheng''s armor and devilish physique, going for his heart without stopping.


    Yu Sheng extended his hand and grabbed hold of the sword. The sword cut his palm open, breaking through his dark golden layer of defense. Blood was soon seen on the wound, but Xu Que felt a looming danger at the very same time. An enormous palm like that of a devil soon lashed out, going straight for Xu Que''s head. Xu Que retreated in a hurry and soon heard rumbling noises around him. A Devil Halberd after another fell from the sky, cutting off his escape. He swiped with his sword with a roar. A bright, dazzling flash was seen, as all of the halberds were snapped in the middle. Xu Que lashed out like he was a sword himself.


    Boom! Another palm lashed out. Xu Que extended his hand and pointed in the air. His sword aura penetrated its intended target, but the palm landed on his body all the same. Xu Que''s body was sent flying with a loud boom, landing hard on the ground. He spewed blood, feeling all organs within ruptured. If he had not used his killing sword aura to fend off most of the force of the attack on his body, the attack would probably have destroyed all his internal organs, killing him right there and then.


    At the same time, countless Devil Halberds whooshed at Xu Que. He quickly retreated behind, evading the incoming attacks like a specter.


    "You crazy b*stard," Xu Que quipped coldly as he steadied himself. Blood was still dripping from Yu Sheng''s hand. He felt a tinge of frustration as he stared at Xu Que. He failed, and a chance like that was hard to come by a second time.


    "Sword!" Xu Que shouted in rage. Countless killing storms descended around him, turning into countless killing swords circling Xu Que''s body before coalescing into one blade.


    Xu Que''s silhouette disappeared in the very next moment. Terrifying killing storms engulfed Yu Sheng''s body. Many saw shimmers of blades within, as well as ferocious attacks dealt by Yu Sheng. However, Yu Sheng avoided clashing with Yu Sheng altogether. Sword aura gradually whipped about with Yu Sheng at the center, and a killing storm was soon built up. The crisscrossing sword aura threatened to destroy the space.


    "Yu Sheng, that''s enough." Ye Futian yelled, "He surrenders."


    Xu Que''s silhouette appeared somewhere in the air. The endless killing storm was dispersed and Yu Sheng''s body was seen clearly again. The armor on his body was severely damaged, yet his eyes remained shining with overbearing coldness as he set his eyes on Xu Que. He lifted his head to look at Ye Futian, seemingly insistent on finishing what he started.


    "Step down," Ye Futian said gently. Only then did Yu Sheng nod and walk away.


    Xu Que looked at Yu Sheng''s back. If his abilities were not capable of countering Yu Sheng''s, it would be difficult to tell who would have emerged victorious in the fight. He saw Yu Sheng to be a madman, and he had no intention to continue fighting one such madman. He flashed and returned to his spot in urgent need of rest.


    Yu Sheng, however, looked like nothing ever happened to him. He returned to his place before saying to Ye Futian, "It''s just you now." Yu Sheng had intended to clear Ye Futian''s path for him, and he did not expect to stumble upon a wall at that stage.


    "It''s alright." Ye Futian said, "Go get some rest."


    "Right." Yu Sheng nodded. Many turned to look at Yu Sheng. While it was true that he lost, no one dared to say that Yu Sheng was weak. In actuality, had Xu Que''s abilities not been natural counters to Yu Sheng''s, Xu Que might have actually been the one to lose the battle. Furthermore, Yu Sheng was still just a grade nine noble, and that meant he would grow into a terrifying being.


    Only four cultivators were left on the battlefield: Huang Jiuge, Bai Ze, Xu Que, and Ye Futian. The first three were deemed the most powerful, and they indeed had been able to make it to the very end. It was, however, completely unexpected that Ye Futian, the dark horse, was able to make it this far as well.


    Should he just roll over and make way for the remaining three then?

 575 The Top Three

    The battlefield turned silent all of a sudden. All four remaining candidates were coincidentally in four different corners. Xu Que was resting, and both Huang Jiuge and Bai Ze did not bother making a move in a hurry. Everyone seemed to be waiting for someone else to make a move.


    Huang Jiuge was in no hurry as he had already fought. Bai Ze had yet to fight anyone. Is he trying to enter the final round like this? He wants his way all cleared before fighting someone? If Bai Ze gets to stay arrogant like this, then what am I?


    Bai Ze was also waiting, but he was not waiting for Huang Jiuge; he was waiting for Ye Futian. He eyed Ye Futian with a sarcastic look. He wanted to see how long Ye Futian would take to challenge him.


    Will he avoid fighting me and choose to fight Huang Jiuge or Xu Que instead? Bai Ze was in no hurry. Having come this far, he needed only to win one or two fights to be ranked number one in this round. He had enough patience to wait until then. Ye Futian had, of course, been aware of Bai Ze''s gaze, that gaze filled with provocation and condescension, which seemed to ask Ye Futian, what are you waiting for?


    Those eyes were filled with extreme arrogance. As the second son of White Cloud City, a descendant of a figure ranked fourth on Barren Sky Ranking, Bai Ze was practically born with a silver spoon in his mouth. His background was formidable, his talents extraordinary, and everything seemed to be within his grasp so long as he bothered reaching for it. It was perhaps due to the fact that he had never suffered a loss of any kind, and there were few among his peers who were able to match his prowess in any way. As such, he was arrogant, and he knew nothing about the word ''respect''. That was why he dared to invite Hua Jieyu right in front Futian. If it had not been for his second sister being around, Bai Ze might have been even blunt with his use of words. Maybe Ye Futian was little more than a footnote in Bai Ze''s eyes, and it was only natural that Bai Ze not care about Ye Futian''s feelings. The more arrogant one was, the greater the fall.


    The battlefield was filled with an eerie silence.


    "What is he waiting for?" Many cast their gaze at Ye Futian. They never bothered looking at Bai Ze or Huang Jiuge, as if the one who should challenge someone was Ye Futian and no one else.


    No one knew what Ye Futian was waiting for.


    Yu Sheng remained on the battlefield. His eyes were calm. While no one had any idea what he was thinking about, it was obvious he was not worried. He wanted to clear the path for Ye Futian, leaving only Bai Ze behind to fight his friend, yet Xu Que''s prowess meant that he had no means of attacking. Even so, he remained firm in his belief his friend would still be able to accomplish what he failed to.


    "Any idea what he is up to?" In the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, Zhuge Canyang asked Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Who do you mean by ''he''?" Zhuge Mingyue replied with a question.


    "Ye Futian, of course," Zhuge Canyang answered. Isn''t that obvious?


    "Why Ye Futian instead of Bai Ze or Huang Jiuge?" Zhuge Mingyue turned to eye Zhuge Canyang.


    Zhuge Canyang was dumbfounded for a brief moment, yet he knew what Zhuge Mingyue meant by that. Everyone had the opinion that Ye Futian should be the one to challenge someone and that it was only natural for him to do so. It was as if Ye Futian should make his move, picking an opponent that he was able to handle, lose, get eliminated, and then make way for the others.


    Zhuge Mingyue looked at the battlefield with a slight smirk on her face. "Are you saying that the others are right to be pretentious, but not my little brother?"


    "..." Zhuge Canyang was rendered speechless, before smiling and saying, "Touch��." If Ye Futian had heard their conversation, he would have commended his elder sister for being the one who understood him.


    The eerie silence continued and many began to look impatient. That was the first time something like this happened since the battles began. Many wondered if it was because the candidates were trying to overwhelm each other through their personal bearings alone, given how it was the clash of the titans.


    It was Xu Que, who was still resting at the moment, that opened his eyes. A flicker of a sharp, killing sword will appear in his eyes. He scanned the battlefield before him and set his eyes on Ye Futian.


    "This is boring." Xu Que shook his head smiling, before walking into the battlefield and saying, "It seems like I''m the most boring person in the room. Very well, I''ll make a move. You there, get up."


    Ye Futian was aware of Xu Que''s gaze and knew that Xu Que was challenging him. He stepped out onto the battlefield. Countless eyes turned to look at them both, wondering if things were about to start again.


    That guy sure knows how to keep people waiting.


    A gust of killing sword aura encased Ye Futian, yet he lifted his head as if he was judging Xu Que, before smiling and saying, "You should have been eliminated in the last round."


    Ye Futian naturally found Yu Sheng to be stronger than Xu Que, even if it was Yu Sheng who ended up losing. He nonetheless persisted in his belief, simply because the one Xu Que, the one they called ''the heir of the God-slaying Sword'', fought was Yu Sheng. If Yu Sheng was to go all out, it would have been hard to tell who would end up dead.


    "The fact remains that I won and he lost. He was indeed powerful, but too bad I was his natural counter. Can''t you comprehend that?" Xu Que''s clear voice sounded rather lazy.


    Ye Futian nodded. He admitted that much.


    "You''re right, but you seem to not get it yourself. The one that you shouldn''t have challenged is me," Ye Futian said in a flighty tone.


    A tinge of puzzlement was seen in Xu Que''s lazy eyes. The one I shouldn''t have challenged? You are really a pompous one indeed.


    The audience outside the battlefield all looked funny. Just what is that guy thinking? He actually went boasting around someone like Xu Que?


    "So you meant that you were able to counter my abilities?" Xu Que smiled.


    "You''ll see soon enough," Ye Futian answered.


    "Interesting fellow, you are," Xu Que smiled and said. Ye Futian was the first person he met who was able to keep such an air around him.


    Xu Que took only one light step out, and the battlefield was soon covered in killing intent. Endless killing sword will gathered around him. His sword was a killing sword, and it was only natural for him to select his techniques based on the one he intended to kill. Yu Sheng had explosive power but was relatively weak in the speed of his movements. Ye Futian was different, and Xu Que decided that the best course of action was simply to go for the kill right away.


    Endless killing sword aura gathered before Xu Que. He spun the aura with only one hand, his other hand tucked behind him. He looked incredibly dashing as he did so. A fearsome vortex appeared and a sword emerged, a killing sword imbued with the might of the terrifying storm.


    "Go." Xu Que slapped out with his palm. Immense killing intent followed the sword''s movements, cutting the air between them. The sword zipped about in the air, aiming for Ye Futian. Light of celestial bodies shone around Ye Futian. The heavens and the earth turned into a world of stars. Empowered by the holy will, the celestial bodies grew to look even more real and powerful.


    Ye Futian levitated in the midst of the celestial bodies, then became clad in the shadow of the Roc, looking incredibly dazzling.


    Shoop... The sword hit its intended target, and the starry defenses crumbled in an instant. Endless sword aura flowed about and descended into the starry world. The seemingly invincible sword cleaved through its obstacles like a hot knife through butter, tearing everything in its path apart. Meteors exploded and crumbled as the sword went past, and nothing seemed to be able to stop the sword''s advance.


    Coldness followed as the stars and meteors were no more. The sword turned into a killing beam headed for Ye Futian. Thunderous light emerged from under Ye Futian''s feet, and with a flap of the Roc''s wings, he vanished from where he stood. Rumbling noises were heard, and the sword continued its course, disappearing from that space and heading for the edge of the battlefield. Mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace interfered and snuffed the sword out. The flowing sword will was blocked by the stars and the meteors, as well as the coldness, dissipating without a trace in the starry world.


    Xu Que did not continue attacking. He turned to look at Ye Futian. The starry world was a manifestation of Ye Futian''s will and it turned autonomous. It packed incredible defensive capacity, and no conventional attacks were able to cut through the starry world and get near Ye Futian. It was also impossible for immensely powerful killing moves to attack in large areas, as Ye Futian would have simply evaded such attacks. The only way to truly get to Ye Futian was to do it up close and personal.


    A sword appeared in Xu Que''s hand, a construct materialized using killing sword will. Fearsome storms whipped about around the sword. It was a sword meant to break spells, a weapon capable of cutting through all spells and kill the one conjuring the spells.


    Xu Que''s body vanished from where he stood. Grey mirages flickered around Ye Futian and an incredibly terrifying killing sword will flowed in the air, making their way to Ye Futian. Ye Futian activated Freedom Meditation, and the flow of all auras in the air became crystal clear to him. Moonlight shone in the starry world and spells of coldness covered the space they occupied, slowing down the flow of all Spiritual Qi around them. The meteor storm that circled around Ye Futian became encased in frost. The place seemed to have turned into a space responding to his will absolutely, preventing the sharp killing sword will from getting anywhere near him.


    A streak of mirages circled about him. A sword was seen cleaving the defenses of the starry world, and everything the anti-spell blade touched was soon turned to dust. To Xu Que, the place seemed to be entirely defenseless.


    Ye Futian extended his hand, coalescing the light of the stars into a staff. He danced about as if he was practicing with his staff techniques. Every move seemed naturally ordered, and the power of his techniques grew increasingly intense. His body was soon covered in some kind of terrifying might.


    "What is he doing?" Many eyed Ye Futian. Xu Que was just within an arm''s reach of Ye Futian, and he was able to launch a killing blow at Ye Futian at any moment. A fearsome killing sword will went straight for Ye Futian''s mind, filling the inside of his head with millions of killing intent, tearing everything apart and aiming to destroy his will. At the very same moment, Futian sensed impending danger looming about. He knew that Xu Que was about to make his move. Ye Futian''s body became tense, every fiber of his being rendered stiff. The endless killing aura filled every inch of his being, shocking him to the core of his being. However, Ye Futian continued to dance about with his staff as if nothing happened. Within his mind, he saw silhouettes circling around him trying to find a weak spot to exploit, yet he was able to see every move of that silhouette clearly.


    Shoop! A very thin sound was heard as the anti-spell sword lashed out. All spells around were completely broken by Xu Que. The blade was lashed out at Ye Futian''s rear, going straight for his neck.


    The sword fully intended to spill blood.


    Lightning flickered and wings flapped. Ye Futian moved forward, drawing a near-perfect arc in the air, before turning around to strike with his staff. Xu Que''s sword was one able to break spells, yet the Nine Heavenly Attacks were not spells. An enormous shadow of his staff emerged within the starry world, cleaving through the heavens and going straight for Xu Que''s blade.


    Xu Que looked troubled as he moved like flowing light, lashing out with his blade. He intended to evade the incoming attack, but the extreme will of cold and gravity severely limited his speed. Dazzling golden vines slithered about from his side to entangle him. Xu Que had no choice but to take the strike head-on. His sword was a killing sword and an anti-spell sword, silent but incredibly deadly. As such, the head-on damage potential of his blade was nowhere near formidable and definitely paled in comparison to Yan Jiu''s Heavenly Sword meant for head-on clashes. However, Xu Que was also an incredibly decisive person. He knew he had nowhere to run to, and as such, he forced his sword aura into his blade. The sword in his hand burst with intense killing light as it clashed with the starry staff.


    A loud boom signified the crumbling of his sword, and the rush of terrifying power continued its course for Xu Que''s body. He retreated by maneuvering the force of the clash at the very moment of impact, and his body continued flying backward.


    "Seal," Ye Futian spat coldly. The stars and meteors circling sealed the space they occupied. His body turned into shimmering light like the Roc glittering in the air. The broken staff was once again made whole, and Ye Futian struck at his opponent again.


    Xu Que struck with his palm, a sword embedded in it. The incoming constructs were quickly broken and his body continued to move forward. He had no intentions of staying any longer on the battlefield, and all he wanted at the moment was to be free from the starry world. However, Ye Futian''s speed was no slower than his. The Nine Heavenly Attacks descended from above. Xu Que pointed at the air with a roar of anger, and endless killing sword aura rushed at the staff like a torrent.


    The giant staff cleaved right through the torrent of swords and continued striking its target. A loud boom was heard. Xu Que grunted as he was thrown down by the attack, spewing blood from his mouth. Golden lights shimmered as the Roc continued its course. Greater might seemed to have descended from the heavens to strike at everything below. Xu Que went pale before shouting, "I admit defeat."


    The staff halted. Ye Futian remained in the air as the light of the celestial bodies dissipated. Xu Que''s body hit the ground and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth as he lifted his head to look at Ye Futian.


    Xu Que seemed to have grasped what Ye Futian meant with his words earlier. The one that he should not have challenged was indeed Ye Futian. Ye Futian had been able to capture Xu Que''s whereabouts and struck hard at his weaknesses. He continued hammering without pause once he got the better of his opponent until said opponent was defeated. Every move Xu Que made was perfectly countered in that fight of theirs.


    "Xu Que has been defeated." Countless eyes stared at the scene in astonishment. The battle before happened too quickly and those with lower levels in training were not even able to make out how Ye Futian won.


    Eyes turned in Ye Futian''s direction. He managed to make it to top three with that one battle. Only two stood before Ye Futian after that battle; two who were probably the most powerful in the battles fought in the Holy Zhi Palace vicinity thus far��Huang Jiuge and Bai Ze!

 576 Air Inscribing

    In the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, even those big figures were a bit shocked. They clearly didn''t think Ye Futian could reach this step.


    So many prides from all over the Barren State had come for the Holy Road. The List of Perfection wasn''t exactly the best of the best in the Barren State, because there were still people above the realm. But they were definitely the best of those in the lower Noble Plane.


    The three that were left had quite interesting planes.


    Huang Jiuge had the highest cultivation with the Grade seven Noble Plane. Bai Ze was a Grade eight Noble. Ye Futian was a Grade nine Noble.


    Each one was in a different plane. Ye Futian was the lowest, but he''d fought the entire way to Huang Jiuge and Bai Ze. This was definitely shocking. Many big figures were already wondering if they could get Ye Futian to be their own disciple. With his potential, he would definitely be in the Barren Sky Ranking in the future.


    Elder Ning was extremely uncomfortable. Seeing Ye Futian at this step made him realize that no one could stop Ye Futian from entering the Holy Zhi Palace. As long as he was willing, any headmaster would accept him. In this case, it would be hard to take revenge for Ning Huang and kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had to abilities to travel the Holy Road, but Ning Huang had provoked him. The consequences were predictable.


    At this moment, Ye Futian walked to his spot and stood there quietly. Instead of continuing to challenge, he looked in Bai Ze''s direction. None of the remaining three stepped out. Bai Ze smiled suddenly. Was Ye Futian copying him? But did he even qualify to do so?


    Raising his head, Bai Ze looked towards the steps and said, "Senior, since there are only three left, why don''t we fight together?"


    Hearing his words, everyone was surprised and stared hard at him. How confident was he in his own abilities? If the three fought at the same time and one was stronger than the other two, it would be two against one. Judging by Bai Ze''s arrogance, he must have thought that he was the strongest. Since he thought this and dared to say those words, did this mean that he wasn''t intimidated by Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge partnering up?


    Was Bai Ze confident in fighting the other two of the List of Perfection? The elder on the stairs gazed at Huang Jiuge and Ye Futian. "What do you two think?" he asked.


    "I have no objections." Huang Jiuge''s voice was calm. Since Bai Ze had suggested it, he would follow no matter what.


    "What about you?" The elder looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "Sure."


    The three all agreed.


    "In that case, step onto the battle podium together. For the List of Perfection, there are no rules. Fight as you please," the elder said calmly. This seemed to be setting them free.


    Bai Ze, Huang Jiuge, and Ye Futian all stepped forward at once. They walked towards different spots on the battleground. Countless eyes fell on them, feeling shaken. Many hearts even sped up.


    The List of Perfection hadn''t fought one-on-one. Instead, the three would fight together. How would the final battle be?


    Who would be the first to be eliminated?


    Who would be the first of this year''s Holy Zhi Palace battle?


    Formless wind blew past the battleground, fluttering their robes.


    Mu Zhiqiu''s indifferent eyes stared at the battleground and showed some rare emotions. She gazed at the most handsome one of the three and asked herself, Is he able to defeat Bai Ze and Huang Jiuge?


    Qin Yin, Xie Wuji, and the others from Mount Jiuxian were all a bit nervous. They watched with bated breath.


    Gu Yunxi, Long Mu, and the others inhaled sharply. Ye Futian had once swept through Divine Sky City domineeringly. Would he be able to create a miracle at the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace today?


    On the silent battlefield, Bai Ze looked so handsome. He looked at Ye Futian and suddenly chuckled.


    "You think that you can show off your pride by copying Huang Jiuge and I and not challenging voluntarily?" Bai Ze mocked. "Pride needs abilities as a foundation. A clown like you can only make a fool out of yourself."


    "You didn''t fight in the top ten battles. Why am I making a fool out of myself by standing here?" Ye Futian asked Bai Ze.


    "Because some people don''t need to fight. They only need to stand there and people will recognize them. Yet others will only be seen as a challenger, even if he fought his way here, no matter if he voluntarily challenged or not." Bai Ze stared at Ye Futian. "Do you understand?"


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. Then he nodded. "You''re right."


    Bai Ze''s words were indeed correct.


    "But there''s something you don''t understand yet," Ye Futian continued.


    "Really?" Bai Ze smiled thinly.


    "You''ll see soon," Ye Futian said.


    Bai Ze laughed. "I''m excited, but first, you''ll understand just how far apart we are."


    The moment he finished, his eyes turned dark gray. Horrible spiritual energy shot out from his gray eyes. The vast space was instantly filled with some terrible dark gray air current. Spiritual Qi flowed in reverse and the world turned gray. Those eyes pierced into Ye Futian''s mind.


    At that moment, Ye Futian seemed to see Bai Ze standing right before him. In his mind, Bai Ze had turned into a giant. He reached out and his spiritual energy pressed down, about to squash Ye Futian.


    This was the Eye of Devastation.


    Countless eyes fell upon the battlefield. Sensing the chaotic space, they clearly understood that Bai Ze had already attacked. How could Ye Futian take Bai Ze''s Eye of Devastation?


    However, a starry world had appeared in Ye Futian''s world. The sun, moon, and stars hung high in the sky. An extremely divine force was guarding it. When the huge handprint descended, it released sacred light that blocked the invasive spiritual energy attack.


    Bai Ze''s spiritual energy could even attack Ximen Yan directly, so he was obviously very strong. Ye Futian naturally had to protect his mind well.


    "Your defense is actually this strong? It''s a bit unexpected, but as long as you''re within my territory, how can you fight back?" Bai Ze asked coldly. Impossibly heavy might weighed down on Ye Futian. Afterward, a huge palm appeared in the sky. It grabbed at Ye Futian.


    The Spiritual Qi in the world roared. Ye Futian wanted to attack using a spell, but all the Spiritual Qi seemed to be restricted. It was hard to be gathered into a spell. Ye Futian had to use the power within his body. Not being able to resonate with the Spiritual Qi in the environment drastically reduced a sorcerer''s powers.


    "Trying to use a spell in my eyes'' territory�� Are you dreaming?" Bai Ze mocked. He may have been in the List of Perfection, but he hadn''t fought in any of the top ten battles. He''d never showed his true abilities. No one had been enough to make him go full-out.


    Thus, no one knew just how powerful Bai Ze was until now.


    Releasing the golden Roc life spirit, Ye Futian flashed. He punched powerfully, activating the Spiritual Qi within him. A golden Roc seemed to burst from his fist, landing on the huge handprint.


    Boom�� The handprint shattered and Ye Futian was driven back. He looked up in the sky. The more clearly he saw it, the more he could feel the pressure within this space.


    So powerful. Countless hearts quivered. Even though Ye Futian had displayed shocking combat ability earlier, he probably would still lose against Bai Ze.


    The second young lord of the White Cloud City had only released one power to make everyone feel despair.


    Huang Jiuge stood to the side. He didn''t rush to attack. Instead, he just watched Bai Ze and Ye Futian''s fight. A pure sorcerer would lose pathetically against Bai Ze.


    Thud. Ye Futian stepped out. His golden wings glimmered and he shot forward in the air, going straight for Bai Ze. Even if he didn''t use spells, his physical body was still extremely powerful.


    "Want a close-distance fight?" Bai Ze looked at him mockingly. He waved a half and instantly gathered Spiritual Qi to cast a spell. Endless thunder chains flew towards Ye Futian, blocking his incoming path.


    The golden Roc cut a beautiful arc in the sky. The Spiritual Qi inside it lay on its wings. Ye Futian flew forward like a divine bird. He shot through the spells, going straight for Bai Ze.


    "Hmph." Bai Ze huffed coldly. Dazzling gold light flashed before him, transforming into a huge golden image. It glistened before him. All metal elemental Spiritual Qi gathered wildly before him. The golden image dazzled, cutting the air apart.


    Boom. Ye Futian''s fist landed squarely on the image. It cracked but didn''t shatter. It continued to shine blindingly. Spiritual Qi fell down, mending the cracks.


    Bai Ze of the White Cloud City didn''t only have the Eye of Devastation.


    Bai Luli was known as the strongest genius of the Barren State. He was in the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking and was skilled in many abilities. Like his brother, Bai Ze must have learned a lot too.


    Ye Futian produced a golden staff. His roc-like body passed through the sky and horrible power gathered towards it. Once again, he shot towards the curtain of gold light like lightning. He brought down his golden staff. With a crisp sound, the gold light curtain broke.


    In front of Ye Futian, endless Spiritual Qi dropped down around Bai Ze at that moment. It felt like some law descended into the image floating before Bai Ze. The long image was like an inscription. It devoured the Spiritual Qi in the world and gradually formed a special image. Shocking power emanated from it.


    "Air Inscription." Ye Futian''s heart trembled. He''d once used this power before, but he couldn''t carve so many inscriptions like Bai Ze and use it in battle. This required absolute control over the Spiritual Qi in the surroundings!


    "Now do you know why I want your woman?" Bai Ze sent the message to Ye Futian telepathically. A Divine Spiritual Sorcerer could help greatly with his cultivation!

 577 Explosive Strength

    Bai Ze sneered at Ye Futian. The White Cloud City''s inscribing was the most elite in the Barren State, they even had a complete inscribing manual. Moreover, the overwhelming Spiritual control provided by the Eye of Devastation and another unique Life Spirit made air inscribing possible. Only the most elite Spirit Elementalists could inscribe spell scrolls in the air during battle, and he was one of them. Divine Spiritual Sorcerers were also likely to be able to do it. If Hua Jieyu was to become his Path Companion, they could improve their cultivation together.


    The acclaimed Ultimate Sorcerer''s will could form a spell in an instant. If it was cultivated together with the White Cloud City''s inscribing, he would definitely reach a high level of attainment. It was a pity that Hua Jieyu was not understanding and chose to submerge herself in her relationship.


    Spell scrolls started to form and as Bai Ze''s hand waved, rows of spell scrolls flew forward, surrounding Ye Futian.


    "Chains of the Thunder God." As Bai Ze''s voice sounded, the spell scrolls around Ye Futian exploded with power. In an instant, thunder flooded the entire area and hundreds of thousands of lightning chains shot out from the spell scrolls, drowning Ye Futian within. The spell Chains of the Thunder God was the spell inscribed in the spell scrolls. Countless spell scrolls activating at the same time, imagine the horrifying power released.


    In an instant, Ye Futian was locked down by countless lightning chains in the air, his limbs electrocuted by terrifying lightning. The lightning traveled along his brilliant golden body and the other end of the chains were controlled by Bai Ze.


    "How horrifying," someone in the crowd said as they were all stunned, their attention fixed on the battlefield. At his strongest, Bai Ze was too strong. Just one of his spells was already this strong, not to mention multiple spell scrolls being activated at the same time. There was no counter for the spell, countless lightning bolts flowed along Ye Futian''s body, causing him to shudder uncontrollably, probably because he was already unable to move.


    Bai Ze''s gaze swept across Ye Futian. Now, it was time for him to feel what it was like to fall from grace under the gazes of tens of thousands of people. Among the countless Thunder God chains, an abrupt lightning bolt flew towards Ye Futian body. However, at that moment, in Ye Futian''s Life Palace, rustling sounds could be heard as his Life Spirit, the World Tree swayed and let out a brilliant glow. Ye Futian''s body seemingly transformed into an ancient tree at that moment, his meridians and bones becoming a part of the tree, and a tree''s shadow could be seen within his body.


    Countless Spiritual Qi could be seen flowing towards the World Tree in his Life Palace, which was attempting to devour all the Spiritual Qi. Not only that, but the thunder chains that had locked onto Ye Futian and circulating around his body were actually converting to Spiritual Qi and being absorbed by his body, flowing rapidly towards the tree in his Life Palace.


    At that moment, the lightning on Ye Futian''s body became even more brilliant. Even though he was chained down by the thunder spell, more lightning flew towards him and was still unable to destroy his body. All the while, he stood there quietly, allowing the chains to lock his body down.


    "His body is absorbing the thunder. The Spiritual Qi within the spell is actually being absorbed by his body." Many influential figures noticed what was happening and let out surprised yells, their expressions stunned. Ye Futian''s body was unbelievably hungry, greedily devouring all the Spiritual Qi it could.


    The World Tree could support the lives of all living beings. As the spirit of all things, it was also the origin of all spells. Back then, Ye Futian used the ability of the World Tree to form his Life Spirit with the tree as a foundation and gradually developed the potential to use all elements. In the process, the World Tree gained the ability to metamorphose to other elements.


    Ye Futian had deciphered the wood elemental spiritual will, it was all-encompassing and had strong life power. As long as the World Tree was not destroyed, his Spiritual Qi would not fade away.


    At that moment, Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Bai Ze, lightning sparking in his eyes. There was no trace of him being struck by a spell at all, his expression extremely cold, killing intent buried deep inside his eyes.


    "Is this all you have?" Ye Futian asked. At that moment, the air around him was filled with Spiritual Qi and wisps of an overbearing Spiritual Will was being released, as though divine light had descended upon the battlefield. In the air, a starry dimension formed with Ye Futian at its core. The Sun and Moon hung high in the sky and the divine light illuminated the entire battlefield, causing the area to allow both the starry dimension and the eye sorcery dimension to co-exist.


    It couldn''t suppress him? Bai Ze raised his head and looked at the starry dimension, his eye sorcery was actually unable to suppress Ye Futian''s Spiritual Will and his spell did not crush Ye Futian as well. What a shock.


    "Interesting." Bai Ze smiled. He had initially thought that it would be a one-sided battle, but it turned out that Ye Futian was capable of retaliating. That made it all the more interesting. Bai Ze stretched out his arms and brilliant spell scrolls appeared in the air, a golden glow trickling into them, sending the spell scrolls flying towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian used his Freedom Meditation, allowing him to see everything that Bai Ze was doing clearly. Soon, the completed spell scrolls became circles, surrounding the area below Ye Futian. A piercing golden glow radiated and sparkling lights were emitted from the golden spell scrolls. The sparkling lights appeared to cut through the golden threads, creating a formless web, cutting through the air and tearing through everything.


    When the crowd saw the piercing light, even Hua Jieyu was worried for Ye Futian. The spell was definitely a lethal attacking spell that was able to cut through even air. Multiple spell scrolls activating at the same time created a destructive golden web that could tear through everything.


    Bang. Around Ye Futian, a meteorite barrier appeared in an instant. However, when the golden rays came into contact with it, they cut through the meteorites like tiny wires. The countless rays intersected and the meteorites were sliced to particles in an instant. They were cut into countless bits while the horrifying spell continued towards Ye Futian''s body. If it came into contact with his flesh, it could probably tear him to shreds.


    In his Life Palace, the rustling sounds continued and an innumerable amount of Spiritual Qi circulated towards the World Tree. Following that, they flowed towards Ye Futian''s body. At that moment, the Spiritual Qi in the sky resonated with Ye Futian and all the Spiritual Qi in the area turned into a celestial force. A Starry Storm that had been compressed to its limit started to revolve around Ye Futian, a clear Starry Brilliance shining in it. His body turned into Immortal Celestial Bodies, when the spell scrolls'' attacks landed, countless tiny wires slice towards him, cutting through the Immortal Celestial Bodies bit by bit. Soon, the defensive Celestial Bodies were riddled with cuts and the golden web pounced forward, tearing through the Immortal Celestial Bodies, causing them to revert back to celestial force and dissipate. However, the horrifying golden glow also dimmed and it already had no destructive force when it landed on Ye Futian''s body.


    He stopped it, the crowd thought as they looked at Ye Futian in astonishment. Ye Futian had actually stopped such a strong destructive attack.


    Bai Ze frowned. The spell he had cast was an extremely strong killer move of his, but even that was not enough to kill Ye Futian. It seemed that Ye Futian''s strength was much higher than he had expected.


    "Is this all you have?" Ye Futian''s gaze landed on Bai Ze and he asked coldly. As his voice landed, his palm grasped the air and celestial force flew towards Bai Ze, turning into countless meteorites and crashing down upon him, attempting to bury Bai Ze within.


    That was the Starry Spell, Star Burial.


    "Nobody can use spells in your Eye Sorcery Zone? Then, what is this?" Ye Futian said emotionlessly.


    Bai Ze raised his head and looked at the approaching spell. In an instant, his pupils became exceedingly scary and a Life Spirit appeared behind him. It was a pair of eyes that was exceptionally demonic. The Life Spirit assimilated into Bai Ze''s eyes and his pupils swept across the area, causing many meteorites to shatter and others to deviate from their course, missing him and crashing into the ground. None of the meteorites were able to threaten him. Even if Ye Futian was able to cast spells, it was wishful thinking that any spell could even hit him.


    "Do you know why I didn''t challenge you before this?" Ye Futian looked towards Bai Ze and asked. Swishing sounds could be heard as golden vines engulfed the area, the vines appeared to be connected with his body and blocked out the sun''s rays in an instant.


    Bai Ze''s Eye of Devastation swept forward, attempting to interrupt the spell. However, the fatal vines appeared to have no end, continuing to sweep forward. Even if their course were changed by the Eye of Devastation, they continued to change directions and assault him. This time, the Fatal Entanglement was cast by Ye Futian making use of his Life Spirit, the World Tree. It included Spiritual Qi of other elements within and converted them to metal and wood elemental Spiritual Qi.


    "However haughty you were before this is how lowly you will be after you have been defeated." As Ye Futian finished speaking, the fatal vines rushed forward rapidly. Bai Ze''s expression was extremely grim and a giant spell scroll appeared behind him, a brilliant glow emitting from it. Bai Ze waved his arm and multiple spell scrolls were created in an instant, floating in front of his body. Immediately, they turned into a golden veil with countless runes circulating within it. The metal-elemental Spiritual Qi in the air rushed into the veil, turning into an indestructible barrier.


    Bai Ze raised his head and looked at Ye Futian. What a crazy fellow, wanting to humiliate him in the battlefield?


    The Fatal Entanglement turned into sharp blades and slashed towards the golden veil in the air. Surprisingly, it did not destroy it and only managed to cause tiny cracks in the veil. Behind the veil, Bai Ze waved both arms and created more spell scrolls, which were floating in the air. Through the veil, he fired them at Ye Futian with acute killing intent.


    Ye Futian similarly looked at Bai Ze. The both of them stared daggers at each other with ruthless expressions. At that moment, a brilliant glow appeared behind Ye Futian and scrolls appeared, inscribed by Spiritual Energy.


    Materialization of Spiritual Energy. Bai Ze looked at Ye Futian and immediately understood what he was doing. He was also a Spirit Elemental Mandate Sorcerer who excelled in Spiritual Energy, what was he trying to do by crafting scrolls with his Spiritual Energy? Could it be?


    When he thought of the possibility, Bai Ze''s face turned pale. It was impossible.


    "Is air inscribing that great?" Ye Futian asked slowly. As his voice landed, an enormous amount of Spiritual Energy rushed into his scrolls. At that moment, Ye Futian utilized his Spiritual Energy to the limit and controlled the flow of Spiritual Qi. The scrolls floating in the air emitted a blinding purple glow, like they were being imbued into spell scrolls.


    This�� The crowd saw this and was dumbfounded. Ye Futian also knew the art of air inscribing. To a Noble Plane cultivator, it would not be hard to learn inscribing if they wanted to. However, to inscribe spell scrolls in the air while battling was insanely difficult. They had to have strong control over their Spiritual Energy and know inscribing, to begin with.


    For the White Cloud City''s second young master Bai Ze, one of his Life Spirits was a spell scroll, coupled with his high attainment in Spirit Elemental control, only then could he inscribe spell scrolls in the air.


    When did Ye Futian learn how to do this, and why did he not use it in any of his previous battles?

 578 Trampled

    The crowd did not know that although Ye Futian had cultivated in inscribing, he had not actually practiced air inscribing. Previously, he had used his Freedom Meditation to observe Bai Ze''s air inscribing and saw Bai Ze using his Spiritual Energy to create inscribing paper and guiding the spell into it. When he cast the spell, he could directly use his Spiritual Energy to control it and use it in battle.


    Although air inscribing seemed easy, in reality, it required a delicate control over one''s Spiritual Energy. Ye Futian could only inscribe spells that he could cast in a short period of time, he had done that in previous battles as well, so he was confident that he could emulate Bai Ze''s methods.


    Around Ye Futian, the Spiritual Qi in the air accumulated and entered the spell scroll, causing a brilliant glow to emit from it. A dangerous might wafted from the spell scrolls as they were being created.


    The Fatal Entanglement continued to attack the golden protective veil and cracks appeared in the veil. Finally, the veil was shattered and the Fatal Entanglement rushed forward to attack Bai Ze.


    Bai Ze''s body floated in the air, his expression extremely ruthless. He exerted the strength of the Eye of Devastation to its limit and hindered the movement of the vines. At the same time, the spell scrolls in his hand danced around him rapidly, turning into flames that covered the entire area and ignited the countless vines.


    Fire directly countered wood. The vines burned in the flames, but they were not destroyed and continued to move forward in the fire.


    "Be destroyed." Bai Ze waved his hand once again and his spell scrolls turned into a humongous golden web, acting as a wall in front of him that moved forward, slicing everything in its path. The Fatal Entanglement spell was continually crushed, but the web''s strength was also diminished as well.


    At that moment, Ye Futian brandished his arm and countless spell scrolls flew towards the golden web. Purple thunderbolts appeared in the air and turned into serpents, flying towards the web.


    It was the spell Punishment of the Thunder God. The brilliant thunderbolts cut through the air and slid through the openings in the web, snarling towards Bai Ze''s body. Around Bai Ze, a radiant protective veil appeared and the Punishment of the Thunder God crushed it as it landed on the veil, continuing towards his body.


    At that moment, Bai Ze''s hair was dancing wildly and his eyes became exceptionally demonic. An illusion of a pair of giant demon eyes appeared behind him and the Punishment of the Thunder God either flashed by his side or was decimated, but none of the thunderbolts were able to reach his body.


    In the air, a phantom descended with Roc wings, like a beam of light dashing towards him. A gleam appeared in Bai Ze''s eyes, was he going to try close-range combat after the spell war?


    The dazzling figure struck out at him with a rod, the Nine Heavenly Attacks''s might crushing down. Many people were dumbstruck that Ye Futian had actually made it close to Bai Ze. If the attack hit Bai Ze, what would the outcome be?


    An intense light burst forth and a spell scroll Life Spirit appeared behind Bai Ze. An innumerable amount of Spiritual Qi gathered around him and he pointed towards his Life Spirit with both hands. At that moment, his Life Spirit transformed into a giant spell scroll, its golden glow scattering down upon the land. A huge ''crush'' word appeared and attempted to squash Ye Futian.


    The rod and the falling ''crush'' collided and a piercing golden light flooded the skies. The ancient word was eradicated, but Ye Futian was also knocked back by the impact, only the spell scroll Life Spirit remained in its luminance.


    How strong, thought the audience as their hearts pounded. Was this what a fight between the elite contestants was like? They had all thought it would be the duel between Bai Ze and Huang Jiuge, but they had not expected the battle between Ye Futian and Bai Ze to be this intense as well.


    The two of them wielded strong abilities. Bai Ze was the second young lord of the White Cloud City, so everyone knew that he was strong, but they did not think that Ye Futian would be equally overbearing. The Eye of Devastation was unable to counter him and he knew air inscribing as well. On the martial arts side, his rod skills were able to tear through the air and force Bai Ze into using his twin life spirits to make Ye Futian retreat.


    At that moment, in the battlefield, Bai Ze stared coldly at Ye Futian. He had not expected that he would be forced to such a state by Ye Futian. He was the second young master of the White Cloud City and he only respected one person apart from his elders: his brother Bai Luli. Apart from him, he had never treated anyone in the Barren State as his equal. They all had to look up to him; he would become like his brother��a figure respected by everyone.


    Now, in the battle to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, how could he be defeated? Especially to Ye Futian, whose cultivation level was even lower than him. Definitely not.


    Ye Futian floated in the air, his now golden eyes observing Bai Ze. If you looked carefully, you could see killing intent in them. He knew that this second young lord of the White Cloud City had never treated him as an opponent. Otherwise, why else would he express his admiration for Jieyu in public and ignore him?


    Moreover, in the battlefield, he transmitted a message and insulted Ye Futian. If it wasn''t out of consideration for his image, he might have said it out directly. In the eyes of the presumptuous young city lord, Ye Futian was but a mere ant that he could humiliate, trample and even destroy.


    Since that was so, today would be a day he would remember forever.


    In his Life Palace, the rustling sounds continued as Spiritual Qi of all attributes appeared to be resonating with him. Ye Futian could feel that if he released his World Tree Life Spirit, the Spiritual Qi in the air would all rush towards him. However, his did not do so, he had already revealed too much with his other Life Spirits, it was better to keep his Natal Spirit hidden. Even so, in the starry dimension, a myriad of Spiritual Qi continued to pound downwards.


    "Star Pillar," Ye Futian said emotionlessly. As his voice landed, starry stone plates fell from the heavens and with multiple crashes, the stone plates transformed into stone pillars, sealing off the entire area and Bai Ze''s escape route.


    The people who saw this were all stunned. What was Ye Futian trying to do? By sealing off Bai Ze''s escape route, he was also trapping himself within. Was he this confident that he could defeat Bai Ze?


    Bai Ze felt humiliated and the giant spell scroll Life Spirit in front of him looked like a brilliant slate. He made mudras with his hands and his fingers pointed towards the spell scroll. In an instant, the Spiritual Qi within his body flowed rapidly towards the spell scroll and countless purple thunderbolts turned into serpents and descended upon his Life Spirit.


    In that instant, there appeared to be countless bolts of thunder coiling around the spell scroll, making it look like a holy talisman with a horrific destructive aura emanating from it.


    Bai Ze''s body was completely drowned in the thunder and appeared transparent. His surroundings had transformed into a thunderbolt dimension.


    The thunderbolt struck the starry pillars, causing cracks to appear in the pillars. One could imagine the might of the spell.


    Ye Futian naturally knew the power of the spell scroll. It could cast spells that were beyond one''s ability, moreover, Bai Ze had the spell scroll Life Spirit and could use it to craft spells directly, so he could definitely create an immense destructive spell.


    He could see that Bai Ze was preparing his final strike.


    In his Life Palace, the World Tree devoured all the Spiritual Qi and turned into the shade of the stars. Ye Futian''s Life Palace transformed into a real starry dimension and its power flowed into Ye Futian''s body. Immediately, Ye Futian''s skin started to emit a brilliant starry glow and Spiritual Qi of all elements started to move towards his body, turning into the light of the stars, circulating around his body. His body was like a star, if it was pushed to the limit, it would be inextinguishable.


    On top of that, a starry polearm appeared in Ye Futian''s hands and as his wings opened, he started to fly in the air. A horrifying might descended and in the starry dimension, Ye Futian''s speed started to increase and it was almost impossible to catch a glimpse of his body, all that could be seen were after-images.


    Purple thunder shot out from Bai Ze''s demonic eyes and his Spiritual Energy locked onto Ye Futian''s body. Trying to avoid his strongest spell by raising his speed to the limit? Not so fast.


    It''s too brilliant. As more cracks appeared on the starry pillars, the crowd could feel what was happening on the battlefield through the cracks and they saw the divine bird, the Roc pushing its speed to the limit and darting through the air with a terrifying might surrounding its body while destructive force appeared in front of Bai Ze, attempting to destroy everything.


    Huang Jiuge stood below the battlefield, watching the battle unfold. He was astounded as well, he had not thought that the battle between Bai Ze and Ye Futian would reach such an overwhelming extent. Fire burned in his eyes as he acknowledged both of them as worthy opponents. What a pity that the two of them were battling, he was in no position to interfere.


    "Almighty Thunder Guide, kill," Bai Ze said cruelly. As his voice landed, a bolt of thunder struck Ye Futian, who was darting through the air. That bolt of thunder acted as a guide and in the next moment, Ye Futian felt a truly destructive force as the countless thunderbolts on the spell scroll locked onto him and the flew towards him like the roar of the Thunder God.


    At that moment, Ye Futian did not dodge and rushed towards Bai Ze with no hesitation. His speed appeared to break through the limit and was becoming even faster, even to the point where it surpassed the lock on by Bai Ze''s Spiritual energy.


    At that moment, Ye Futian darted within the thunderbolts, his extreme speed allowing his body to nullify the targeting. Many of the attacks missed his body and struck behind him, but there were still numerous thunderbolts that struck him directly. However, Ye Futian''s defense was unyielding, but it continued to be torn apart as cracks appeared in the inextinguishable starry defense and the light of destruction appeared on his body.


    However, Ye Futian did not stop and instead dived past the thunderbolts. The inextinguishable starry defense was finally shattered and imposing thunderbolts struck Ye Futian''s body, but he still appeared in front of Bai Ze as Bai Ze watched him get closer in horror.


    "This isn''t possible," Bai Ze saw the descending figure and roared, casting defensive spells on his body. Faster than lightning, a polearm swung down from the air towards him.


    Bang! With a dull sound, Bai Ze''s defenses were crushed in just one strike and Bai Ze''s body curled up, blood streaming from his mouth as he fell rapidly to the ground. At the same time, Ye Futian started to descend rapidly as well.


    Bang. Another dull sound, as Ye Futian''s foot stepped down on Bai Ze''s body, crushing him beneath his feet. Another stream of blood appeared around Bai Ze''s mouth and he stared menacingly at Ye Futian. He had been trampled by Ye Futian and humiliated.


    Bam. The two of them landed and the sound of breaking bones could be heard as countless people held their breaths and watched the scene in amazement.


    Ye Futian had trampled Bai Ze and smashed him into the ground.

 579 第五百七十九章 最后一战

    Chapter 579 -- The Final Battle


    Bai Ze had been defeated.


    The second young master of the White Cloud City who had outstanding potential, exceedingly strong twin Life Spirits, and the Eye of Devastation that could counter all spells and attack others'' Spiritual Will directly. He could inscribe spells scrolls in the air and excelled in spells of all elements. Even if he was slightly weaker in the martial arts, he was still confident that nobody could get near him. How strong would he be when he used spells of all elements to create spell scrolls? How scary was the Eye of Devastation?


    Everyone had thought that his opponent would be Huang Jiuge, but seeing Ye Futian step on Bai Ze''s body now, the vast area became abnormally quiet. Even the influential figures from the Holy Zhi Palace looked at the scene awestruck.


    A furious roar sounded out as Bai Ze''s eyes were red with anger and he stared menacingly at Ye Futian. He was the second young master of the White Cloud City. Since he had been born, he had been a genius. Just like Ye Futian had thought, he looked down upon Ye Futian, even if had some potential, even if he was very strong, Bai Ze had not treated him as a peer. That was why he expressed his affection for Hua Jieyu in public. There were not many people in the Barren State that mattered to him.


    "In the top ten ranking battle, you have no victories. Now, do you understand why you could enter the top three?" Ye Futian looked at Bai Ze and said coldly, "That''s because I bestowed it upon you. Otherwise, do you think you could have stayed until now?"


    Bai Ze''s veins were popping as blood rushed to his eyes and he looked frightening. His position in the top three had been bestowed upon him by Ye Futian?


    What humiliation��


    However, everyone understood that it was the truth, because Ye Futian had been the victor in this battle. If Ye Futian had challenged him previously, he would have been eliminated a long time ago.


    "Presumptuous, arrogant, haughty. Now, do you enjoy it?" Ye Futian looked at Bai Ze and said cruelly. He wanted Bai Ze to engrave this battle into his memory and remember it forever. He wanted it to become his nightmare. He had intentionally let Bai Ze into the top three. Seeing his arrogance, he wanted to make him learn some respect.


    Ye Futian transmitted a message to Bai Ze, saying, "From now on, when people see you, they will think about how you, the second young master of the White Cloud City, was trampled under my feet. You will never be able to erase today''s humiliation."


    Saying that he wanted Ye Futian''s woman to his face? The cheek of him.


    "Open your mouth and concede," Ye Futian''s foot stomped down and he said mercilessly, his eyes full of disdain. When the arrogant Bai Ze conceded, it would be a memory that would last a lifetime.


    "You''ve already won, that''s enough," at that moment, in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, an elder said.


    "Let''s end it here," Bai Luli chipped in as well. It looked like Ye Futian was intentionally taking revenge on Bai Ze for his invitation to Hua Jieyu. This battle would be an unforgettable memory for Bai Ze. He knew that life had been too smooth for his younger brother for the past twenty years. He had never suffered any setback, causing him to become reckless and haughty. Today would be a harsh lesson for him.


    "According to the rules, as long as he has not conceded, the battle cannot be considered over." Ye Futian did not let go of Bai Ze and continued stepping on his body. This caused many people to be bewildered. They did not understand why Ye Futian wanted to humiliate Bai Ze that much. If they had known what Bai Ze had transmitted to Ye Futian during the battle, they would not find it strange. If possible, Ye Futian even wanted to kill Bai Ze. However, with the White Cloud City Lord and Bai Luli''s status, if he killed Bai Ze, he would definitely die as well. Even if the rules allowed it, those who set the rules could break them at any time.


    "Die!" A livid voice sounded out, and he saw Bai Ze holding a spell scroll in his hand, which he threw at Ye Futian. In an instant, a tremendous force appeared and Ye Futian immediately flew into the air and retreated like a flash of lightning. However, a colossal thunder god shadow appeared in the skies, striking out with his hammer. The giant hammer shadowed the entire area and smashed towards Ye Futian.


    Bang! Although Ye Futian was surrounded by a protective force, the hammer tore through his defenses. A huge starry polearm appeared in front of Ye Futian, it was the Polearm of Divine Destruction, shielding his body. Even so, the Polearm of Divine Destruction was knocked back and hit Ye Futian. The thunder''s might ran through him, causing his body to fly into the air and spew out blood.


    The crowd''s gaze froze. Bai Ze actually relied on external assistance.


    Many experts from the Holy Zhi Palace also frowned. The elder on the sky stairwell berated him, saying, "Bai Ze, you''ve already been defeated. Step down."


    Bai Ze got up from the ground, his body stooping, and his aura weak. He was in agony and stared intently at the figure in the sky with killing intent.


    Zoom. A figure rushed down from the sky. It was Ye Futian who had transformed into a flash of lightning. Bai Ze waved his arm and numerous spell scrolls appeared in his hands. He sent them flying towards Ye Futian, who was in the air. In an instant, a destructive force flooded the area, threatening to eradicate everything. At the same time, Bai Ze was shielded by a dazzling golden veil to protect himself from Ye Futian''s onslaught.


    While flying down, Ye Futian swung his Polearm of Divine Destruction as starlight emanated from it. Huge amounts of starry force were imbued in the Polearm of Divine Destruction as it cleaved downwards from the air.


    The Polearm of Divine Destruction tore through the destructive force and landed on the veil surrounding Bai Ze''s body. With a crack, the veil shattered and Bai Ze''s body was sent flying again while he spewed blood.


    Many people looked speechlessly at the two of them. Had the fight gotten personal?


    Bai Ze appeared to have become frenzied and ignored the rules. Ye Futian was the same, he had used his ritual implement in the fight.


    "Ye Futian, he''s already severely injured. You can stop now," Bai Luli said. He looked at Bai Ze, evidently displeased. It looked like his younger brother was unable to withstand the humiliation and forgotten where he was.


    "He hasn''t conceded, it hasn''t ended." Ye Futian continued to dash forward, raising the Polearm of Divine Destruction, attempting to attack him.


    They''ve both gone insane, thought the crowd as they looked on dumbfounded. Had the two of them gone on a rampage?


    They saw Ye Futian swing his polearm down yet again. Bai Luli stood up and many of the Holy Zhi Palace''s influential figures frowned.


    "That''s enough," a loud roar sounded out and reverberated through the air. Ye Futian felt an imposing Spiritual Will rushing towards him, causing him to shiver uncontrollably. Following that, a terrifying flash of lightning descended from the skies, striking Ye Futian''s surroundings. The vast battlefield turned into a thunderbolt dimension in an instant and Ye Futian was forced to stop moving and he raised his head in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace to look at Bai Luli.


    "It ends now," Bai Luli said. Although Bai Ze was in the wrong, he was his younger brother after all. He would definitely have to cover for his actions.


    "Get down now." Bai Luli''s gaze moved towards Bai Ze, his voice full of indignation. Countless people raised their heads and looked at Bai Luli. His extremely handsome looks gave people an imposing feeling as he stood there, as though his words were a decree.


    The top ten of the Barren Sky ranking was extremely imposing in his anger. Even Bai Ze, Bai Luli''s younger brother hung his head and walked out of the battlefield.


    Bai Ze was unable to stand still as he slouched, exiting the battlefield, evidently severely injured. Afterward, Bai Luli rescinded his aura and turned to the Holy Zhi Palace''s elders and said, "Luli has overstepped my boundaries, I hope that elders can forgive me."


    "It''s no matter," the people from the Holy Zhi Palace nodded lightly and replied.


    "It''s nice to have a good elder brother, you can depend on your family to get you out of trouble," the voice sounded out with a soft smile. Many people turned around and their gazes landed in the same direction. The person who had spoken was Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Mingyue, Bai Ze''s actions in this battle were indeed dishonorable. I will punish him when we get back," Bai Luli said to Zhuge Mingyue.


    "This is your family''s matters, it has nothing to do with him. However, it''s time for the second young master to learn how to be a decent human being after today''s lesson," Zhuge Mingyue said nonchalantly. Bai Ze''s expression turned extremely grim after hearing her words, she was evidently rubbing salt into his wounds.


    When the crowd saw his expression, Bai Ze understood that after this battle, he would no longer be seen as the high and mighty White Cloud City second young master. The humiliation from today''s battle would be engraved deep in his memory.


    "Alright, let''s move on to the final battle," the elder on the sky stairwell declared.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept emotionlessly across Bai Ze and he did not say anything else. He did not question the Holy Zhi Palace; he was no longer the teen he was in Qingzhou City, he naturally would not put up a needless fight, there was no point. Keeping his Polearm of Divine Destruction, his gaze turned towards Huang Jiuge.


    Now, before him, there was only Huang Jiuge left.


    It''s the final battle. This was the thought on the crowd''s minds as they all focused their attention on the battlefield. Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge walked to the highest platform.


    The final battle for the Holy Zhi Palace would start now.


    Nobody had imagined this scene. Even Mu Zhiqiu, Li Qingyi, and even Chen Yuan had not expected that Ye Futian could make it to the final battle.


    Ye Futian had shot to fame in his battle with Bai Ze. If he could still win this battle, his fame would be immortalized.


    As the chilly winds blew across the battlefield, the entire area fell silent. As the two of them stood in the air, starlight gathered around Ye Futian, shining brilliantly. On the other hand, Huang Jiuge was coated in a dazzling Sovereign Path and looked peerless, like a descendant of the Renhuang.


    "As the Son, you should dominate your generation." In the crowd, Chen Yuan was muttering to himself, a faint smile on his face. He never expected that he could witness the appearance of such a person. Beside him, the Zhaixing House chief Mu Chuan no longer had a mocking expression when he heard those words. Instead, his expression was solemn and hot-blooded.


    The Starry School''s disciples in the surroundings also shared in the glory. Ye Futian had fought his way into the final battle for the Holy Zhi Palace''s admissions with his unrivaled potential.


    Behind them, Li Qingyi had tears in her eyes. She came from the White Sovereign City and had never thought of entering the Holy Zhi Palace. She only wanted to see the geniuses from the Barren State, those who would be revered by the world.


    After a huge accident, she had come to the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace and seen what she had wanted to. However, the person who had received the most attention was the teenager that had accompanied her all the way here.


    He was standing up there!

 579 The Final Battle

    Bai Ze had been defeated.


    The second young master of the White Cloud City who had outstanding potential, exceedingly strong twin Life Spirits, and the Eye of Devastation that could counter all spells and attack others'' Spiritual Will directly. He could inscribe spells scrolls in the air and excelled in spells of all elements. Even if he was slightly weaker in the martial arts, he was still confident that nobody could get near him. How strong would he be when he used spells of all elements to create spell scrolls? How scary was the Eye of Devastation?


    Everyone had thought that his opponent would be Huang Jiuge, but seeing Ye Futian step on Bai Ze''s body now, the vast area became abnormally quiet. Even the influential figures from the Holy Zhi Palace looked at the scene awestruck.


    A furious roar sounded out as Bai Ze''s eyes were red with anger and he stared menacingly at Ye Futian. He was the second young master of the White Cloud City. Since he had been born, he had been a genius. Just like Ye Futian had thought, he looked down upon Ye Futian, even if had some potential, even if he was very strong, Bai Ze had not treated him as a peer. That was why he expressed his affection for Hua Jieyu in public. There were not many people in the Barren State that mattered to him.


    "In the top ten ranking battle, you have no victories. Now, do you understand why you could enter the top three?" Ye Futian looked at Bai Ze and said coldly, "That''s because I bestowed it upon you. Otherwise, do you think you could have stayed until now?"


    Bai Ze''s veins were popping as blood rushed to his eyes and he looked frightening. His position in the top three had been bestowed upon him by Ye Futian?


    What humiliation��


    However, everyone understood that it was the truth, because Ye Futian had been the victor in this battle. If Ye Futian had challenged him previously, he would have been eliminated a long time ago.


    "Presumptuous, arrogant, haughty. Now, do you enjoy it?" Ye Futian looked at Bai Ze and said cruelly. He wanted Bai Ze to engrave this battle into his memory and remember it forever. He wanted it to become his nightmare. He had intentionally let Bai Ze into the top three. Seeing his arrogance, he wanted to make him learn some respect.


    Ye Futian transmitted a message to Bai Ze, saying, "From now on, when people see you, they will think about how you, the second young master of the White Cloud City, was trampled under my feet. You will never be able to erase today''s humiliation."


    Saying that he wanted Ye Futian''s woman to his face? The cheek of him.


    "Open your mouth and concede," Ye Futian''s foot stomped down and he said mercilessly, his eyes full of disdain. When the arrogant Bai Ze conceded, it would be a memory that would last a lifetime.


    "You''ve already won, that''s enough," at that moment, in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, an elder said.


    "Let''s end it here," Bai Luli chipped in as well. It looked like Ye Futian was intentionally taking revenge on Bai Ze for his invitation to Hua Jieyu. This battle would be an unforgettable memory for Bai Ze. He knew that life had been too smooth for his younger brother for the past twenty years. He had never suffered any setback, causing him to become reckless and haughty. Today would be a harsh lesson for him.


    "According to the rules, as long as he has not conceded, the battle cannot be considered over." Ye Futian did not let go of Bai Ze and continued stepping on his body. This caused many people to be bewildered. They did not understand why Ye Futian wanted to humiliate Bai Ze that much. If they had known what Bai Ze had transmitted to Ye Futian during the battle, they would not find it strange. If possible, Ye Futian even wanted to kill Bai Ze. However, with the White Cloud City Lord and Bai Luli''s status, if he killed Bai Ze, he would definitely die as well. Even if the rules allowed it, those who set the rules could break them at any time.


    "Die!" A livid voice sounded out, and he saw Bai Ze holding a spell scroll in his hand, which he threw at Ye Futian. In an instant, a tremendous force appeared and Ye Futian immediately flew into the air and retreated like a flash of lightning. However, a colossal thunder god shadow appeared in the skies, striking out with his hammer. The giant hammer shadowed the entire area and smashed towards Ye Futian.


    Bang! Although Ye Futian was surrounded by a protective force, the hammer tore through his defenses. A huge starry polearm appeared in front of Ye Futian, it was the Polearm of Divine Destruction, shielding his body. Even so, the Polearm of Divine Destruction was knocked back and hit Ye Futian. The thunder''s might ran through him, causing his body to fly into the air and spew out blood.


    The crowd''s gaze froze. Bai Ze actually relied on external assistance.


    Many experts from the Holy Zhi Palace also frowned. The elder on the sky stairwell berated him, saying, "Bai Ze, you''ve already been defeated. Step down."


    Bai Ze got up from the ground, his body stooping, and his aura weak. He was in agony and stared intently at the figure in the sky with killing intent.


    Zoom. A figure rushed down from the sky. It was Ye Futian who had transformed into a flash of lightning. Bai Ze waved his arm and numerous spell scrolls appeared in his hands. He sent them flying towards Ye Futian, who was in the air. In an instant, a destructive force flooded the area, threatening to eradicate everything. At the same time, Bai Ze was shielded by a dazzling golden veil to protect himself from Ye Futian''s onslaught.


    While flying down, Ye Futian swung his Polearm of Divine Destruction as starlight emanated from it. Huge amounts of starry force were imbued in the Polearm of Divine Destruction as it cleaved downwards from the air.


    The Polearm of Divine Destruction tore through the destructive force and landed on the veil surrounding Bai Ze''s body. With a crack, the veil shattered and Bai Ze''s body was sent flying again while he spewed blood.


    Many people looked speechlessly at the two of them. Had the fight gotten personal?


    Bai Ze appeared to have become frenzied and ignored the rules. Ye Futian was the same, he had used his ritual implement in the fight.


    "Ye Futian, he''s already severely injured. You can stop now," Bai Luli said. He looked at Bai Ze, evidently displeased. It looked like his younger brother was unable to withstand the humiliation and forgotten where he was.


    "He hasn''t conceded, it hasn''t ended." Ye Futian continued to dash forward, raising the Polearm of Divine Destruction, attempting to attack him.


    They''ve both gone insane, thought the crowd as they looked on dumbfounded. Had the two of them gone on a rampage?


    They saw Ye Futian swing his polearm down yet again. Bai Luli stood up and many of the Holy Zhi Palace''s influential figures frowned.


    "That''s enough," a loud roar sounded out and reverberated through the air. Ye Futian felt an imposing Spiritual Will rushing towards him, causing him to shiver uncontrollably. Following that, a terrifying flash of lightning descended from the skies, striking Ye Futian''s surroundings. The vast battlefield turned into a thunderbolt dimension in an instant and Ye Futian was forced to stop moving and he raised his head in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace to look at Bai Luli.


    "It ends now," Bai Luli said. Although Bai Ze was in the wrong, he was his younger brother after all. He would definitely have to cover for his actions.


    "Get down now." Bai Luli''s gaze moved towards Bai Ze, his voice full of indignation. Countless people raised their heads and looked at Bai Luli. His extremely handsome looks gave people an imposing feeling as he stood there, as though his words were a decree.


    The top ten of the Barren Sky ranking was extremely imposing in his anger. Even Bai Ze, Bai Luli''s younger brother hung his head and walked out of the battlefield.


    Bai Ze was unable to stand still as he slouched, exiting the battlefield, evidently severely injured. Afterward, Bai Luli rescinded his aura and turned to the Holy Zhi Palace''s elders and said, "Luli has overstepped my boundaries, I hope that elders can forgive me."


    "It''s no matter," the people from the Holy Zhi Palace nodded lightly and replied.


    "It''s nice to have a good elder brother, you can depend on your family to get you out of trouble," the voice sounded out with a soft smile. Many people turned around and their gazes landed in the same direction. The person who had spoken was Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Mingyue, Bai Ze''s actions in this battle were indeed dishonorable. I will punish him when we get back," Bai Luli said to Zhuge Mingyue.


    "This is your family''s matters, it has nothing to do with him. However, it''s time for the second young master to learn how to be a decent human being after today''s lesson," Zhuge Mingyue said nonchalantly. Bai Ze''s expression turned extremely grim after hearing her words, she was evidently rubbing salt into his wounds.


    When the crowd saw his expression, Bai Ze understood that after this battle, he would no longer be seen as the high and mighty White Cloud City second young master. The humiliation from today''s battle would be engraved deep in his memory.


    "Alright, let''s move on to the final battle," the elder on the sky stairwell declared.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept emotionlessly across Bai Ze and he did not say anything else. He did not question the Holy Zhi Palace; he was no longer the teen he was in Qingzhou City, he naturally would not put up a needless fight, there was no point. Keeping his Polearm of Divine Destruction, his gaze turned towards Huang Jiuge.


    Now, before him, there was only Huang Jiuge left.


    It''s the final battle. This was the thought on the crowd''s minds as they all focused their attention on the battlefield. Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge walked to the highest platform.


    The final battle for the Holy Zhi Palace would start now.


    Nobody had imagined this scene. Even Mu Zhiqiu, Li Qingyi, and even Chen Yuan had not expected that Ye Futian could make it to the final battle.


    Ye Futian had shot to fame in his battle with Bai Ze. If he could still win this battle, his fame would be immortalized.


    As the chilly winds blew across the battlefield, the entire area fell silent. As the two of them stood in the air, starlight gathered around Ye Futian, shining brilliantly. On the other hand, Huang Jiuge was coated in a dazzling Sovereign Path and looked peerless, like a descendant of the Renhuang.


    "As the Son, you should dominate your generation." In the crowd, Chen Yuan was muttering to himself, a faint smile on his face. He never expected that he could witness the appearance of such a person. Beside him, the Zhaixing House chief Mu Chuan no longer had a mocking expression when he heard those words. Instead, his expression was solemn and hot-blooded.


    The Starry School''s disciples in the surroundings also shared in the glory. Ye Futian had fought his way into the final battle for the Holy Zhi Palace''s admissions with his unrivaled potential.


    Behind them, Li Qingyi had tears in her eyes. She came from the White Sovereign City and had never thought of entering the Holy Zhi Palace. She only wanted to see the geniuses from the Barren State, those who would be revered by the world.


    After a huge accident, she had come to the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace and seen what she had wanted to. However, the person who had received the most attention was the teenager that had accompanied her all the way here.


    He was standing up there!

 580 The Battle of the Elites

    Ye Futian stared at Huang Jiuge with caution in his eyes. Since the Sovereign Family dared to call themselves the descendants of Renhuang, they were naturally an extraordinary clan. Just look at the techniques Huang Jiuge cultivated in, they were of superior quality.


    Yi Xiaoshi and Yuan Zhan had both been defeated by Huang Jiuge.


    The sun and moon starlight continued to shine and there were flame and frost wills oozing from the sun and moon, flying towards Huang Jiuge. The two forces engulfed him but Huang Jiuge did not move. He stood there quietly, releasing his martial arts will. A wave of Sovereign Spiritual Qi enveloped his body, allowing the flame and frost to invade.


    He had three Life Spirits and was a rare Mandate Sorcerer. On top of that, he was gifted in Spiritual Energy control, but he did not cultivate mainly in spells, but the martial arts. The secret methods that had been passed down in the Sovereign Family were mostly in the martial arts.


    The crowd saw a brilliant ray of light as behind Huang Jiuge, his Renhuang Bow Life Spirit appeared. He was very clear of Ye Futian''s battle style. He excelled in multiple abilities and among those, speed was one of Ye Futian''s fortes. If Ye Futian combined speed with his spells, he would be in a very passive situation. That was why he had to destroy that notion for Ye Futian.


    When he put an arrow on the bow, Ye Futian could distinctly feel that he had already been locked on by an invisible Spiritual Will. The bow in Huang Jiuge''s hands let out a blinding glow and the arrow emitted a sharp aura.


    As Huang Jiuge let go of the bowstring, a ray of light flew across the air, causing a trail to appear as a piercing explosion sounded. In the next moment, the arrow landed in front of Ye Futian with a killing aura and struck Ye Futian''s undying constellation. With a crisp thud, cracks appeared in the constellation. Although it did not break through Ye Futian''s defenses, the horrifying strength still stunned Ye Futian.


    Huang Jiuge pulled the bow open again and this time, nine arrows shot through the air at the same time and many people were blinded momentarily by the arrows. The glaring light pierced through the air and flew towards Ye Futian yet again.


    Around Ye Futian, the starry storm continued to brew. When the arrows landed, the storm crumbled to dust and turned into a tremendous vortex. His golden Roc wings spread open and Ye Futian retreated. As the thud sounds continued, more cracks appeared in the constellation and it eventually broke. The force in the arrows continued to fire towards him and Ye Futian slammed his fist forward vigorously. However, the golden palm was pierced by the arrows, but the arrows had been weakened to the point that they could not hurt him.


    What strong arrows, Ye Futian thought. He had already retreated to the edge of the battlefield. If Huang Jiuge''s opponent had been some other average cultivator at the same cultivation level as him, he would probably have already been defeated in the air the moment the Renhuang Bow had been fired.


    At that moment, Huang Jiuge pulled his bow open once again. This time, twelve arrows filled with destructive force locked onto Ye Futian.


    Huang Jiuge''s body was also like his bow and the air was rampaging as the twelve arrows flew like meteors towards the starry dimension where Ye Futian was.


    Around Ye Futian, a starry storm picked up and rustling sounds sounded from his body. His body resonated with the heavens and a huge amount of Spiritual Qi turned into a starry vortex. The arriving arrows pierced through the vortex, tearing it to shreds. The starry meteorites in front of Ye Futian were rapidly destroyed but were unable to prevent the arrows'' offense. At that moment, Ye Futian moved like a divine bird, soaring across the air, weaving through the arrow rain and approaching Huang Jiuge.


    Although he specialized in spells, if the battle continued the same way, he would be the one being trapped. The speed of the arrows was too fast. It was as though they could warp across the distance between them.


    Ye Futian waved his arm and spell scrolls appeared in the air. A numerous amount of Spiritual Qi gathered and Spiritual Qi flowed rapidly from within his body into the spell scrolls, causing an alarming aura to seep from the spell scrolls, thunder firing from them.


    "The Punishment of the Thunder God." Ye Futian waved his arm forward and the numerous spell scrolls flew towards Huang Jiuge. In an instant, the skies filled with purple lightning, attempting to drown out the entire area, all flying towards Huang Jiuge.


    The Renhuang Bow Life Spirit vanished, replaced by the Renhuang Body. Immediately, Huang Jiuge''s aura became extremely scary, as though the Renhuang had descended into the world. An astonishing martial arts will erupted from his body, causing an illusion to appear in the skies. The Sovereign Spiritual Qi turned into an army with majestic figures on battle chariots, rushing towards Ye Futian. The area had turned into an actual battlefield.


    Animation of martial arts Will, this is the martial arts truth. What an overbearing technique, thought the crowd as they stared at the scene in front of Huang Jiuge, overwhelmed by it. The majestic figures held spears in their hand as they broke through everything, unfazed by death as they split the thunderbolts apart. Although they were continuously destroyed, they manage to block the wave of thunderbolts.


    Ye Futian continued to shine with the Spiritual Qi''s glow and the rustling sounds continued in his Life Palace, the World Tree shaking endlessly and the Spiritual Qi circulating rapidly. Around Ye Futian''s body, countless golden vines appeared, covering the skies, then they flew like blades, tearing through the air towards Huang Jiuge, who was standing below.


    The Renhuang Sword descended and Huang Jiuge held his Life Spirit, the Renhuang Sword in his hands. The Renhuang Body released a Sovereign aura and Huang Jiuge''s body appeared to become extremely majestic. The Renhuang Sword in his hand struck out and flew in a straight arc into the air, causing a terrifying storm to appear, cutting all the vines to pieces.


    Huang Jiuge stepped forward, moving together with the Renhuang Sword. The Sovereign aura circulated around his body, as though the Renhuang had descended into the world. He looked into the air and swung the Renhuang Sword yet again. Immediately, the giant sword tore through everything and aimed towards Ye Futian in its brilliance.


    Seeing Huang Jiuge approaching, the giant Roc wings flapped and Ye Futian flew towards the clouds. The crowd raised their heads and saw Ye Futian flying in a graceful arc. He stretched out his arm in the air and Spiritual Qi started to flock around him, a starry polearm forming in his hand. Following that, the divine Roc dived downwards. In the starry dimension, an immense force crushed downwards and landed on the Renhuang Sword and Huang Jiuge.


    A horrifying rod shadow appeared in the air and with a huge crash, the Renhuang Sword was knocked backward and Huang Jiuge grabbed it with both hands, but his body continued to fall backward uncontrollably.


    What a strong attack. Huang Jiuge''s expression was sharp. Ye Futian''s attack was extremely similar to Yuan Zhan''s and appeared to be the same rod technique. The technique was more compatible with Yuan Zhan, but had stronger force when used by Ye Futian. Evidently, Ye Futian had a greater understanding of the technique.


    Raising his head, the winds billowed in the skies and the figure descended once again. Without much time to think, an even stronger aura burst forth from Huang Jiuge, the Renhuang Sword howling as it pointed into the air. The martial arts illusion appeared yet again. Figures on battle chariots in an ancient battlefield gave people the feeling that the person wielding the Renhuang Sword had a huge army at his disposal, attacking where the sword pointed at.


    A terrifying aura swept the air and clashed with Ye Futian''s Nine Heavenly Attacks. An even scarier crash sounded out and it was like an explosion in the air. The battle chariots were smashed and the lances were broken. The Renhuang Sword was jolted back yet again while Ye Futian flew up into the air again, preparing his next attack.


    How strong. The entire battlefield was shaking and countless people thought that as they watched the two of them battle. Was this a clash between the strongest martial arts techniques?


    In the skies, Ye Futian wielded his polearm and countless Spiritual Qi gathered around his body, empowering his technique.


    Seeing the scene, Huang Jiuge frowned and took out his Renhuang Bow again. 12 arrows fired into the air, trying to stop Ye Futian from gathering more power. He could naturally feel that Ye Futian was getting stronger as the fight progressed by his increasing aura.


    The starry storm spell surrounding his body, Ye Futian''s body dived down from the skies. When the starry storm was torn apart by the arrows, the polearm shadows around him swept the arrows away. The third strike of the Nine Heavenly Attacks struck out and after this strike, even Huang Jiuge was knocked to the ground. As he landed on the battlefield, the ground trembled.


    Ye Futian continued with his fourth strike and the polearm shadow descended from the heavens directly onto the figure on the ground.


    When Huang Jiuge saw the oncoming attack, he pierced his Renhuang Sword into the ground and a frantic wave swept past. Behind him, his Renhuang Body appeared to be transforming and assimilated into his body. A destructive storm rushed forward and countless imposing figures appeared around him, raising their heads towards the air. The surrounding area had a terrifying veil, like a summoning circle. When the polearm shadow landed on the veil, it shattered the veil, causing the imposing figures and battle chariots to all explode into dust and fade away. However, the strike had been blocked and Ye Futian felt a sense of danger, like there was a divine strength being awakened.


    "Being able to force me to this point, Ye Futian, you are really strong," Huang Jiuge said. On his body, countless rays of light circulated around him, as though the Sovereign Spiritual Qi was flowing towards the Renhuang Body and Renhuang Sword.


    The sword howled in the ground and the Renhuang Body was growing. Next, an unparalleled figure appeared as though it had been summoned by the Renhuang.


    The Renhuang Sword similarly grew in size and the summoned figure grabbed the Renhuang Sword with both hands and an alarming storm formed, threatening to tear everything apart.


    Ye Futian did not hesitate and struck out with the fifth strike of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. With the force that could split the heavens, the strike landed and polearm shadows covered the entire battlefield. However, at that moment, the summoned Renhuang Body figure pulled the sword from the ground and swung it into the air. A formidable beam appeared and the polearm shadows vanished. The overbearing power split even the air and Ye Futian''s body was sent flying, his body shivering.


    Huang Jiuge stood below, raising his head and bathing in the Renhuang''s glow. He appeared to have merged with the Renhuang Body figure and held the Renhuang Sword, as though the Renhuang had reincarnated, giving others a sacred feeling.


    Many people saw the illusion and some even believed that the Sovereign Family was really the descendants of the Renhuang.


    "You can give up now." Huang Jiuge raised his head and looked into the air. As a grade nine noble, for Ye Futian to be able to battle with him to this extent was something to be proud of. However, as the descendant of the Sovereign Family, he had to obtain first in this time''s Holy Zhi Palace admission to prove himself to the world. This was also the first time he had made an appearance in the Barren State. He would create a legacy for the Sovereign Family from today onwards.


    "Many people compare you with Bai Ze, but he''s not even worthy to battle with you," in the air, Ye Futian replied. At the edge of the battlefield, Bai Ze looked extremely grim, but the crowd agreed with Ye Futian''s words.


    Ye Futian had battled with the two of them, so he was naturally the most qualified to give his opinion. Moreover, Huang Jiuge''s strength was indeed ridiculously strong, especially the Huang Jiuge now, who was literally invincible.


    If it had turned out as they expected and Huang Jiuge battled with Bai Ze, Bai Ze would most definitely be crushed. However, Ye Futian''s existence allowed them to witness Huang Jiuge''s true strength and bear witness to a worthy final battle. Even if Ye Futian were to be defeated, he could still be proud of it.


    Huang Jiuge looked into the air, but saw that at that moment, Ye Futian had closed his eyes and a fearsome aura was roaring around his body. In the starry dimension, an innumerable of starlight gathered around him and formed a giant starry polearm in front of him, causing many people to be astonished.


    Ye Futian was going to continue battling.


    At that moment, the crowd saw countless meteorites flying down from Ye Futian''s starry dimension onto Huang Jiuge, but they were sliced apart before they reached Huang Jiuge. However, the meteorites appeared to be neverending. At that moment, Huang Jiuge felt a faint pressure, as though all the meteorites in the air were weighing down on him, it was extremely heavy.


    At that moment, Ye Futian recalled the elder Snow Ape''s Nine Heavenly Strikes. The Nine Heavenly Strikes'' will resonated with one''s cultivation level.


    The sixth strike resonated with the Sage''s will.


    The divine light surrounding his body flowed as the starry force merged into one. A shocking roar sounded out and the crowd saw a Divine Ape shadow appear on Ye Futian, its hands gripping a colossal starry polearm.


    The Divine Ape leaped down from the heavens with the force of the previous five strikes and the force of the starry dimension and struck out with its polearm. The strike was basic and simple with no tricks.


    However, Huang Jiuge felt threatened by it. The huge Renhuang figure held the sword in both hands, swinging it towards the skies. At that moment, a scary sight appeared in the air.


    The huge Divine Ape was fighting against the Renhuang, the starry polearm and the Renhuang Sword clashed in the air. In the next moment, an invisible light veil swept across the area and turned into a frightening storm. Even the crowd standing outside the battlefield were shivering wildly, but their attention was focused on trying to see what was happening on the battlefield.


    When the cataclysmic storm had faded away, Ye Futian was still standing in the air and Huang Jiuge was still standing on the ground, as though the two of them had never moved.


    The wind had a stinging sensation to it.


    Pshhhh! As a soft voice sounded out, Huang Jiuge spewed out blood as his knees trembled like he did not have the strength to continue standing. However, he kept his body straight and did not collapse.


    "It''s your victory," Huang Jiuge said dejectedly. The last strike of the polearm was as though the heavens had given all its strength to it, crushing everything in its way.


    "It was luck," Ye Futian replied. He was indeed lucky, only he himself knew how much strength he had used to win the battle. It was too difficult. If it had not been for the sixth strike of the Nine Heavenly Strikes, the one who had been defeated would still be him.


    The simple conversation by the two of them made the countless onlookers freeze and the area fell silent.


    The final battle for the Holy Zhi Palace: Ye Futian��first!

 581 End

    The Holy Zhi Palace chose disciples once every three years. It was a huge event in the Barren State. So many prides came from the nine Holy Roads. They were all talents famous in their own places and now, they were all gathered here.


    After the rounds of eliminations, the final powerful group lasted until the end.


    And in the end, Ye Futian of the Dawn Road was number one.


    Until now, many people were still unclear about Ye Futian''s background. Some said he was from the Eastern Barren Territory. He''d defeated all the famous figures from the Barren State. He''d humiliated Bai Ze and shockingly defeated Huang Jiuge with one staff. From now on, everyone in the Barren State would know Ye Futian''s name.


    Hua Jieyu''s pretty eyes gazed at the figure on the battlefield. She thought back to when she was 15 years old. During the Fall Quarter Examination of the Qingzhou Academy, the youth had shown his brilliance for the first time and received first place in the written examination. At that time, he''d been young and frivolous. He was as pure as a flawless jade and filled with endless fantasies about the future.


    Now, they were adults and had experienced the hardships of life. What never changed was that no matter where they went, he was still the brightest star.


    Bai Ze, Yan Jiu, Bing Yi and Chu Shang of the Mortal World, Nan Hao and Nan Feng of the Nantian House, and many other figures all had complicated feelings. Who would''ve thought that Ye Futian would reach the highest spot in the end?


    Gu Yunxi''s smile was brilliant. She hadn''t improved much through this trip, but she was very satisfied. These experiences would probably be unforgettable for life. However, it was a pity that she probably wouldn''t be able to hear Ye Futian play his guqin in the future. He probably wouldn''t return to the Celestial Pavilion anymore.


    "Do you see it, old man?" Chen Yuan asked Mu Chuan. "When did I ever lie to you?"


    Mu Chuan didn''t refute it. Instead, he said, "You''re really willing to give someone like this to the Holy Zhi Palace?"


    "The Roc will always soar in the nine heavens. Are you looking out for me?" Chen Yuan asked. "No matter what, he''s the one I chose. He''s the Son of the Starry School."


    As the saying went, if a tree stood out from the forest, the wind would destroy it. Being too extraordinary attracted the wrong type of attention, like the Blazing Sun School against Ye Futian.


    In the Barren State, the Holy Zhi Palace was the best place for Ye Futian to cultivate. It was filled with talents who were all the best cultivators from around the Barren State. Here, Ye Futian would compete with the top figures. It would be like a battle between pavilions.


    The disciples who''d entered the Holy Zhi Palace three or six years ago would all become the motivation for Ye Futian to improve. It was rumored that the competition between the disciples was very intense.


    Next, it was time for the big figures to choose their disciples. Countless eyes looked in the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace. Who would become the teachers of the top ten talents?


    "Phoenix, Zhuge Xing, Hua Jieyu, if you wish, you can cultivate under me," Sage Daozang invited. Earlier, Phoenix had said that he wished to cultivate under him. Sage Daozang was well-learned and was the chief of the Daozang Pavilion. Many people were willing to enter it.


    "Xu Que, if you wish, you can cultivate under me." The Sword Demon invited Xu Que because the youth had said he wanted to learn swordsmanship with him.


    "Xu Que, Huang, you can enter the Tianxing Pavilion," another strong cultivator said. It was Sage Tianxing, chief of the Tianxing Pavilion, one of the top six pavilions. It was in charge of the laws of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Bai Ze, Zhuge Xing, Hua Jieyu, if you wish, you can cultivate in the Holy Sage Pavilion," an elder from the Holy Sage Pavilion said at that time. This wasn''t an invitation straight from the pavilion''s second chief, but the elder''s words represented the pavilion.


    The Holy Sage Pavilion had invited Bai Ze, Zhuge Xing, and Hua Jieyu instead of Ye Futian who had defeated the first two and was the winner of the battle.


    The Holy Sage Pavilion was the top pavilion of the Holy Zhi Palace. Huang Jiuge wasn''t invited, because he''d already said that he wouldn''t enter the Holy Zhi Palace. Xiao Junyi wasn''t invited, because he was a disciple of the Dark Sage. The Dark Sage had a bad reputation in the Barren State, so the Holy Zhi Palace obviously wouldn''t accept Xiao Junyi who cultivated with dark power.


    But what about Ye Futian? Yu Sheng and Yuan Zhan hadn''t been invited either.


    Many people were confused. Some even started whispering amongst themselves. This was the Holy Sage Pavilion. They couldn''t help but start thinking about the invitations.


    Was it because of Ye Futian and Bai Ze''s battle? That battle had shown that Ye Futian and Bai Ze probably couldn''t coexist. Then the Holy Sage Pavilion probably chose Bai Ze over Ye Futian because of Bai Luli.


    As for why they also invited Zhuge Xing and Hua Jieyu, everyone knew that it probably wasn''t aimed at Ye Futian. It was because Zhuge Qingfeng, patriarch of the Zhuge Family, was also a disciple of the Holy Sage Pavilion. Zhuge Xing and Hua Jieyu were from the Zhuge Family, so it was logical to invite them.


    Even the other pavilions were surprised. They obviously wanted Ye Futian but didn''t invite him because the winner always went to the Holy Sage Pavilion. This was an unsaid rule. They wouldn''t go fight for him.


    But the Holy Sage Pavilion didn''t want him?


    Ye Futian also felt this odd atmosphere. The Holy Sage Pavilion had chosen Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing. They both had conflicts with him. Now, other than Huang Jiuge and Xiao Junyi, only he, Yu Sheng, and Yuan Zhan hadn''t been invited.


    They''d come together.


    "There are still some left. Why are you all being so generous?" that strong cultivator from the Holy Sage Pavilion said. The others realized he wanted them to choose.


    Clearly, the Holy Sage Pavilion wouldn''t choose Ye Futian''s group. It wasn''t that he didn''t approve of them. It was just that he''d chosen Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing. The others could take Ye Futian.


    "If you''re all willing, you can cultivate in the Daozang Pavilion," Sage Daozang said, smiling. He obviously wouldn''t be generous. The pavilion was willing to accept anyone in the top ten, but he could only choose some for the balance.


    "The same for the Tianxing Pavilion," the chief said. Since the Holy Sage Pavilion let them have the three, he wouldn''t let go of the chance.


    Elder Ning made a face. He was an elder of the Tianxing Pavilion.


    "The Battle Sage Pavilion wants them," the King Kong Sage said. Everyone''s eyes flashed and turned towards him. Other than the Holy Sage Pavilion, only the Battle Sage Pavilion had two members of the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "If the Battle Sage Pavilion wants them, why can''t you fight for it?" Sage Daozang said, smiling. "Is the King Kong Sage interested in taking a disciple personally?"


    "Not me," the King Kong Sage said. "Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, if you''re willing, you can cultivate under the chief. Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi can also join the Battle Sage Pavilion."


    "The Sage Douzhan is accepting disciples?" Sage Daozang''s eyes flashed. Sage Douzhan had been cultivating in isolation for many years. No one knew what level he was at now. He hadn''t accepted disciples in a long while either. He must really like Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "Yes," the King Kong Sage said.


    Countless people looked towards the Holy Zhi Palace, their hearts trembling. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s group really did suit the Sage Douzhan. Their explosive powers were domineering while the Sage Douzhan was the best in martial arts in the Barren State. He was seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    There were only six super figures before him.


    Huang Jiuge looked up in the air, surprise flashing past his eyes. He remembered his father had once said that the Sage Douzhan was the one person on the Barren Sky Ranking that he didn''t want to fight with. This was someone who could fight to the death. He was terrifying.


    His father was fifth on the Barren Sky Ranking. It was imaginable how terrifying the Sage Douzhan was.


    Ye Futian looked towards Zhuge Mingyue. Then he heard her voice in his mind, "Choose the Battle Sage Pavilion." Earlier, she''d told Ye Futian to be prepared for not entering the Holy Sage Pavilion. She hadn''t considered the Battle Sage Pavilion at that time, but since they were willing to accept Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, they were the obvious choice.


    The chief of the Holy Zhi Palace didn''t care about outside matters, so the second chief was the most powerful. After that, the most powerful was the Sage Douzhan. He was also the most suitable for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. The second chief probably didn''t have the time to teach younger disciples.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He was also clear that this was the best choice for him now.


    Gazing at the King Kong Sage, he said, "Senior, we have a master."


    "No problem," a deep voice said from the distance. "Inherit my legacy but keep your master in your heart."


    "It''s the Sage Douzhan." Everyone turned serious. This was someone in the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Senior, can I cultivate in the Battle Sage Pavilion too?" a bright voice said at that time. Many people looked to the side of the battlefield. A beautiful figure stood there, looking towards the Holy Zhi Palace. It was Hua Jieyu.


    "The Battle Sage Pavilion doesn''t suit you," Sage Douzhan said. "Do not waste yourself."


    "Jieyu, the senior is right," Ye Futian said. The Battle Sage Pavilion was probably a place for battles. That was why they wanted him and Yu Sheng.


    Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian, seemingly unwilling.


    "Alright, start to choose," the elder on the steps said.


    "I''m willing to enter the Daozang Pavilion," Phoenix said, bowing to Sage Daozang.


    "I''m willing to enter the Tianxing Pavilion." Huang made his choice.


    "I''m willing to enter the Sword Pavilion." Xu Que naturally chose the Sword Demon.


    "I''m willing to enter the Holy Sage Pavilion." Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing chose the Holy Sage Pavilion.


    "I''m willing to enter the Daozang Pavilion," Hua Jieyu said. Many people were shocked. The Holy Sage Pavilion had also invited her, but she chose the Daozang Pavilion instead.


    Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing glanced at her, but Sage Daozang smiled.


    Ye Futian glanced at Yuan Zhan and Yi Xiaoshi. They communicated telepathically. Then he said, "We are willing to join the Battle Sage Pavilion."


    Everyone chose where they wanted to cultivate. The triennial enrollment of Holy Zhi Palace disciples was officially over.


    The Thousand Holy Islands had chosen hundreds of disciples. However, other than the Wanxiang Pavilion, the five pavilions of the core island had chosen less than 100 people. Those who entered the main pavilions were even fewer.


    Ye Futian''s group had benefited the most. Under everyone''s eyes, they''d become war gods with one battle. Everyone knew them and now, they''d also become disciples of the Sage Douzhan, seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking. They''d truly shot to the top.


    Nan Feng, Bing Yi, Yan Jiu and the others who''d had conflicts with Ye Futian felt troubled. Ye Futian''s status was above them now!

 582 Mount Taihang

    In the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace, everyone looked at the crowd below and many smiled.


    "Catch." At that time, there were various sounds. Many big figures reached out, throwing numerous badges downward. A badge appeared before everyone who would cultivate in the six pavilions of the Holy Zhi Palace. It was naturally the same for Ye Futian. The badge that hovered before him had the word "Battle" carved on it. They put a shred of spiritual energy into it and then put it away. This represented their status as a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "You have three months to take care of the matters in the outside world and then enter the pavilion. Of course, you can enter now. As for the future, you will listen to your elders," the elder on the steps said.


    "The audition for new disciples will end now. Many friends are from all over the Barren State. You can return now," the man continued. The big figures of the Holy Zhi Palace rose. They either walked towards the pavilion or started chatting amongst each other.


    It''s over, everyone in the vast crowd thought. It would be another three years before the next great event.


    In the direction of the pavilion, Bai Luli stood up. He gazed at everyone present. Instead of going to his brother Bai Ze, he turned and left with the elders of the Holy Sage Pavilion.


    Bai Luli was young, but only the big figures of the Holy Zhi Palace knew about his status.


    "Finally, it''s over." Ye Futian looked at the King Kong Sage who''d turned to leave and smiled. During this journey, he''d entered the Noble Plane, comprehended various martial arts intents, and entered the Battle Sage Pavilion. This was perfect for him. From now on, he had a place in the Barren State. He wouldn''t be pretending to be dead and escaping for his life like before.


    He wondered what those from the Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School would think now.


    Many people gathered. Hua Jieyu walked to his side. She grabbed his hand and their eyes met, smiling. Hua Jieyu had chosen the Daozang Pavilion and they wouldn''t cultivate together, but they were still both in the Holy Zhi Palace. They could meet often. They wouldn''t be separated for years like before.


    "Remember what you promised me." Ye Futian fluttered his lashes. He still had it in his mind. Hua Jieyu stomped on his foot.


    Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Yi Xiaoshi, and Yuan Zhan walked over too. Ye Wuchen would enter the Sword Pavilion to cultivate with the Sword Demon. The others would join the Battle Sage Pavilion.


    However, Loulan Xue and the Black Wind Eagle didn''t enter the Holy Zhi Palace. Ye Futian didn''t know if they could stay by his side.


    Zhuge Mingyue walked over and smiled. "You two can finally fly together," she said to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "Senior Sister," Hua Jieyu said, a bit shy.


    Ye Futian also called out, "Senior Sister." His eyes were emotional. His Second Senior Sister always thought for him. When could she truly be with Third Senior Brother? They faced much more pressure than Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. After all, they''d been dating for a long time and were close to the parents.


    "What are you doing? Trying to get emotional?" Zhuge Mingyue''s smile was bright. "I helped you take care of Jieyu for more than two years. Now, she''s yours."


    "Yes." Ye Futia nodded forcefully. Then he asked, "Oh right, Senior Sister, if I cultivate in the Holy Zhi Palace, can Loulan Xue and Little Eagle come too?"


    He''d heard that even those from the Thousand Holy Islands couldn''t enter the core island easily.


    "Those who cultivate under a pavilion''s chief can bring their family. You can too," Zhuge Mingyue said. The inheritor chosen personally by the pavilion chief natural had a different status.


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded.


    Zhuge Mingyue grinned at him. Then she reached out to pet Ye Futian''s head. "It''s so great to see you all grow up bit by bit," she said, smiling. "It probably won''t be long before you really can take care of me. I''ll be able to relax then."


    "It won''t be that long." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Junior, you must cultivate well." Beitang Xing''er''s eyes shone with anticipation. She knew that even though Second Senior Sister always took care of Jieyu and the Ye Futian, she actually had high expectations for Ye Futian. One day, he would be able to soar in the heavens and create the Cottage in their hearts.


    "Xiaoshi, the junior has surpassed you. Just keep eating and get fatter," Zhuge Mingyue said, looking at Yi Xiaoshi.


    "I��" Yi Xiaoshi was frustrated. He lowered his head and sighed. He couldn''t refute it and he was ashamed.


    "Remember to take care of the junior," Zhuge Mingyue reminded.


    "I know, Senior Sister," the fatty said dejectedly.


    "I''m going now," Zhuge Mingyue said.


    "Where are you going?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Going to my family, of course. Come visit when you''re free." Zhuge Mingyue smiled and left. Beitang Xing''er followed, but she turned around to wave goodbye at Ye Futian''s group.


    Zhuge Mingyue walked over to Zhuge Canyang''s side and whispered, "Let''s go."


    Zhuge Canyang glanced at Ye Futian before leaving the family members away. Zhuge Xing also left.


    "Your senior sister seems to treat you very well," Chen Yuan whispered, walking over.


    "Of course. Second Senior Sister is the best senior sister in the world." Ye Futian looked at Zhuge Mingyue''s back with a bright smile. His senior sisters and brothers were his closest family in the world.


    "What''s your plan?" Chen Yuan asked. "Will you enter the Holy Zhi Palace right away?"


    "I promised Yuan Zhan that I''ll visit Mount Taihang with him and visit the seniors of the Ape Clan," Ye Futian said.


    "That works too. Mount Taihang is on the way to the Divine Sky City. I can take you there." Chen Yuan nodded. He wondered if the story behind Ye Futian and Mount Taihang had something to do with the staff technique.


    "Would you like to visit Divine Sky City? That Long girl probably misses you," Chen Yuan said, smiling. He''d like to see the expressions of Yang Ding and Gong Kui.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded. "I miss Ling''er too.


    "Don''t misunderstand. She''s my sister," Ye Futian explained after seeing Hua Jieyu look over.


    "Ah, sister." Hua Jieyu nodded and smiled.


    "What kind of expression is that?" Ye Futian felt awkward.


    "Futian, I want to visit the Eastern Barren Territory," Ye Wuchen suddenly said.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. He obviously knew why Ye Wuchen said that. The Liu Kingdom of the Eastern Barren Territory had had huge changes, so Liu Chenyu was still there. After losing her parents, she only had her brother, Liu Feiyang. Back then, they''d snuck away. It had been more than two years. Wuchen definitely missed her. Now that Ye Futian and Jieyu were together again, they''d settled down. Wuchen naturally would think of Chenyu.


    "Okay. Jieyu and I miss our master and masteress too. And Big Brother." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "Chief, can you help me with something?"


    "I understand." Chen Yuan nodded. Ye Futian''s group would be slow when traveling to the Eastern Barren Territory, but if a Sage was with them, they would become much faster.


    Ye Futian looked around to his friends. Mu Zhiqiu, Qin Yin, Li Qingyi, and Xie Wuji were standing there, looking at him.


    "What, we''re strangers now?" Ye Futian asked. "Are you all preparing to leave?"


    "I''m going to the island," Mu Zhiqiu whispered.


    "Zhiqiu, what are you talking to that guy for?" Mu Chuan yelled. Chen Yuan rolled his eyes. Was this old guy still pretending to be strong?


    "I''m leaving. In the future, I''ll cultivate in the core island too," Mu Zhiqiu said to Ye Futian before leaving.


    Ye Futian smiled. "I believe you."


    "We prepare to go back too," Qin Yin said. She hadn''t been chosen.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Qingyi, if you don''t wish to go back, you can cultivate in the Starry School in the Divine Sky City."


    Li Xun had died in his hands. White Sovereign City wouldn''t dare to take revenge on him, but it would be hard for Li Qingyi.


    "No need." Li Qingyi shook her head. The city lord was her father and her mother was still there. How could she not return?


    "Qin Yin, can you let Qingyi cultivate in Mount Jiuxian? You can go back with her," Ye Futian asked Qin Yin.


    "I would do it even if you don''t tell me." Qin Yin nodded.


    "We''ll go back together too," Xuanyuan Bashan said.


    "Take care," Ye Futian said.


    "Take care." Everyone nodded.


    "Master Ye, wish you the best future." Many people looked over at Ye Futian now. They were the people who''d traveled the Dawn Road with Ye Futian.


    "You too," Ye Futian said, smiling. Then he soared into the air, preparing to depart.


    Many people from the Dawn Road waved at Ye Futian. The youth that they''d gotten to know on the Dawn Road had become number one in the battle. He would become a legendary figure of the Barren State in the future. It was destiny to get to know someone on the Divine Sky Ranking. They might be able to brag about it in the future.


    Everyone began departing gradually. Countless people soared towards different directions.


    Chen Yuan brought Ye Futian''s group and the Starry School disciples away. They rode on ritual implements. They''d come on the Holy Road and would now leave by crossing Zhongzhou City.


    ��


    Barren State, Mount Taihang


    Sunlight fell upon the mountain. A huge golden figure sat on the mountaintop, dazzling under the sun. He stood on a boulder on the cliff. Looking into the distance, he was filled with majesty.


    A handsome white-clothed figure sat quietly not too far from him. He was playing his guqin. The music turned into an image that passed into the golden figure''s mind. Many golden apes were watching from the distance. The mountain was silent for a long while after the music ended. The huge figure was still standing there quietly, looking into the distance.


    Suddenly, an ape roared. The shocking roar shook the world and even the immense Mount Taihang trembled. Many golden apes rushed over. They looked at their king from afar, confusion filling their eyes.


    Chen Yuan and the others on Mount Taihang were shaken too. Chen Yuan didn''t do anything. Since Ye Futian came, the king of the Golden Great Apes wouldn''t hurt him. He was someone on the Barren Sky Ranking, after all. If he really did try hurting Ye Futian, Chen Yuan wouldn''t be able to stop him anyway.


    Just then, the great ape actually fell to his knees and kowtowed towards the distance. All the Golden Great Apes knelt too and bowed in the same direction.


    Their king seemed to be worshipping something.


    Ye Futian watched quietly from the side. He could feel the cold sadness. Many of the demon beasts were unified. The king that led them was extremely respected. The Snow Ape was the ape emperor and had led all the great ape clans. This ape senior must be extremely sad to know that he had died.


    "My name is Yuan Hong. The Ape Emperor had personally chosen this name for me when I was very young. At that time, the leader of the Golden Great Apes was my father." The great ape stood up. He still looked into the distance as if reminiscing.


    "Now, they''ve all left me." Yuan Hong''s voice sounded abnormally tired. He turned and stared at Ye Futian with his huge eyes. "Tell me," he said, "who are you?"


    "Excuse me?" Ye Futian''s eyes flashed.


    "The Ape Emperor won''t teach his best technique to an outsider. If you''ve only seen that battle, how could you learn it and coincidentally be there?" Yuan Hong stared at Ye Futian. Heavy might descended. "I want to know the truth. You may be the last human who was with the Ape Emperor."


    Ye Futian gazed at the great ape and nodded lightly. "Let me show you another picture then."

 583 Old Friends

    In the Divine City, Starry School.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu''s group were strolling in the school and attracted countless gazes. The day before, Ye Futian had returned to the Starry School. He had crossed the Holy Road and gotten first in the Holy Zhi Palace admission examination. The news of the Douzhan Sage taking him in as a disciple had caused a huge uproar in the Divine Sky City. It turned out that the news of Ye Futian''s death last year was fake; he had secretly left to take part in the triennial Holy Zhi Palace admission examination.


    In the Holy Zhi Palace, the number one cultivation holy ground in the Barren State, the Douzhan Sage was the seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking and the number one body-refining cultivator in the Barren State.


    The Starry School''s disciples all looked at Ye Futian with a renewed respect, the Son of the Starry School was merely a start for him.


    Was that goddess-like girl his girlfriend? How beautiful.


    Wang Yuqing was also in the crowd. She had a complicated expression while looking at Ye Futian. That was the person that she once thought was shameless? At that moment, she recalled everything that had happened in the past. It was like a dream, the first in the Holy Zhi Palace admission examination, what did it signify? It meant that all the geniuses in the entire Barren State had gathered from countless elite factions and clans. Ye Futian had dominated the entire generation. However, Ye Futian was still the same as before.


    "Big brother Futian," a voice sounded out and a beautiful figure dashed towards him. When Ye Futian saw the figure, a gentle smile appeared on his face and the figure jumped into his arms.


    "Big brother Futian, you scared me to death," Long Ling''er complained miserably. She had really thought that Ye Futian had died.


    "Ling''er, aren''t I fine now?" Ye Futian had a doting expression on his face. This little girl was getting prettier and more elegant, but she was still acting like a little kid. He was afraid that Jieyu would misunderstand.


    Long Ling''er broke away from hugging Ye Futian and hugged his arm instead. Her gaze then landed on Hua Jieyu, and she asked softly after doing a double take, "Sister, are you a goddess? How can you be so beautiful?"


    Hua Jieyu looked at Long Ling''er, then laughed and said, "Of course not. My name is Hua Jieyu."


    "Sister Goddess'' name is so pleasing to the ear too," Long Ling''er replied.


    "This is your sister-in-law, hurry up and call her that." Ye Futian knocked her on the head.


    "No way, I''m still going to call her sister Goddess," Long Ling''er shook her head and replied, then asked him, "Big brother Futian, how did you manage to trick her."


    "Good looks," Ye Futian replied.


    Long Ling''er gave him a scornful look, then asked Hua Jieyu, "I don''t believe it. Sister Goddess, how were you tricked?"


    Hua Jieyu smiled while looking at Long Ling''er, then looked to Ye Futian beside her and said softly, "I was the one who wooed him."


    "Ah��" Long Ling''er was in disbelief. Ye Futian puffed out his chest in pride, his girlfriend was still as understanding as ever, giving him face in public.


    "Ling''er, you''re messing around again," at that moment, a gentle voice sounded and a beautiful woman walked over, nodding and smiling at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "Madame," Ye Futian addressed her.


    "What a perfect match." Madame Long looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu and felt pity for her little girl''s feelings.


    "Ye Futian, you''re good." The Gu Clan Leader also brought Gu Yunxi over and smiled at Ye Futian. He had long known that Ye Futian was not dead, but he did not expect him to be able to come back into the Starry School so quickly.


    "Uncle Gu," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "The first in the Holy Zhi Palace admission examination. Looks like the Starry School has its most outstanding disciple in its history," the Gu Clan Leader said. Ye Futian would definitely be able to surpass Long Yitian''s achievements.


    "That is only natural." Chen Yuan walked over and said, "This time, in the Holy Zhi Palace''s battles, not only Ye Futian, but Yu Sheng was also accepted as a disciple by the Douzhan Sage. Ye Wuchen was valued by the Sword Demon and taken under his department. The three of them are all direct disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace''s Palace Lords."


    The Gu Clan Leader and Madame Long looked at Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen who were standing behind Ye Futian. They had always been very low-profile beside Ye Futian and never exhibited their strength. Who could have expected that the two of them were also this outstanding?


    There were rumors that Yu Sheng had fought his way into the top ten with his grade nine noble cultivation level. If he had not fought someone who specialized in spectral movement and countered him, he might have been able to make it into the top three.


    "College Chief." Someone appeared in a flash and reported, "The Blazing Sun School and Bright Moon School College Chiefs have brought people to visit."


    "Oh?" Chen Yuan had a gleam in his eyes and said, "When did they become so courteous?" He looked in the distance and had a cruel smile. He replied, "Invite them to leave."


    "Come on, brother Chen, don''t be so quick to turn us away." At that moment, a voice sounded, then Yang Ding and Gong Kui walked in together.


    "The three schools were originally passed down from the same source, let''s not be so distant. This time, the Starry School''s Son Ye Futian has such an achievement, we''re also happy for him, so we''ve come just to congratulate him," Yang Ding said.


    "Yang Ding, do you even believe what you''re saying?" Chen Yuan looked at the other party. How hypocritical. Back then, the two of them had a huge battle and he had destroyed the Blazing Sun School twice.


    Ye Futian also nearly died in the hands of the Blazing Sun School.


    Now, he was happy for Ye Futian?


    "Brother Chen, you also have to look at it from my perspective. Back then, Ye Futian had obtained the divine teachings, but he was the Starry School''s Son. How did you expect me and brother Gong to think about it? Of course, we also wanted to see what the teachings passed down by our ancestors were like, but we were fooled by little brother Ye," Yang Ding replied. He also knew a little about the Holy Zhi Palace''s battles, so he naturally knew that Ye Futian''s divine light did not vanish. They had been tricked.


    However, he was unable to kill Ye Futian now, so what else could he do? Get on his good side, of course. Ye Futian and his two friends had become disciples of Palace Lords. If just one of them entered the Barren Sky Ranking and wanted revenge, they would be in trouble.


    "Little brother Ye, it was indeed my greed that made me invite you to the Blazing Sun School, but I definitely did not intend to kill you. It was that person''s selfish act. He has already been killed by brother Chen and my Blazing Sun School has been destroyed twice, suffering heavy losses. Today, I''ve come specially to apologize for that." Yang Ding then continued, "Also, since you''ve also received the Blazing Sun School''s teachings, I have a suggestion. How about you become the Son of the Divine Sky City''s Top Three Schools?"


    The Starry School''s disciples were all appalled. The Blazing Sun School Chief had come personally to apologize for his actions and wanted to resolve the conflict they had previously.


    "Futian has already entered the Holy Zhi Palace, why would he want the position of Son. What is this, icing on the cake, after hitting him when he was down?" Chen Yuan asked bitterly.


    "Brother Chen, I have no such intention. That time, I was just overcome by greed and took a divine light." Gong Kui explained, "But now we all understand that Ye Futian deserves to own the divine teachings. If Ye Futian is able to restore the glory of our ancestors one day, I pledge that my Bright Moon School will definitely follow him."


    Ye Futian scoffed when he heard Gong Kui''s words. He was too hypocritical, if one day, he wanted to deal with the Bright Moon School, would Gong Kui dare to go against him?


    "My Bright Moon school is the same," Yang Ding pledged sincerely.


    "Since the two elders are so sincere, I will not bear a grudge over the matter. However, there was someone who wanted my life back then in the Bright Moon School. Moreover, Shang Yunfeng''s death leading to his parents assassinating me in the Celestial Pavilion felt fishy. I hope that Chief Yang can put effort into investigating, that way, I will feel more at ease," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright, I will investigate it thoroughly," Yang Ding promised.


    "Since that is so, there is nothing else. After you''ve investigated the matter, Chief Yang can just notify Chief Chen. Elders, you may take your leave now," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay, I''ll be on my way to investigate it now." Yang Ding nodded. He had checked on the matter before as well, so he knew that it was indeed weird.


    Gong Kui also saluted and said his goodbyes. The two of them had come to alleviate Ye Futian''s anger. Chen Yuan did not say anything, Ye Futian''s handling of the matter was appropriate, the rest would be up to Yang Ding to manage. Moreover, Ye Futian did not have the ability to deal with Yang Ding and Gong Kui, so it was naturally better to make peace and settle the score in the future.


    "Chief Chen, I should be on my way to the Eastern Barren Territory now," Ye Futian said. It was sufficient to just stop over in the Divine Sky City, he was also only going to stay for a few days in the Eastern Barren Territory. Afterward, he would go back to the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate.


    "Alright." Chen Yuan nodded and said, "I''ll accompany you back then." He still had to watch out for Ye Futian''s safety.


    "I''ll be in your care then." Ye Futian nodded, then turned to Madame Long and said, "Madame, I hope that you can take out some time to help out with the Celestial Pavilion." After all, Shen Yu and Wang Yurou were still in the Celestial Pavilion.


    "Okay." The Madame nodded and said, "Why don''t we let Wang Yurou come to the Starry School to cultivate, I''m sure the College Chief will agree."


    "Yes." Chen Yuan was naturally fine with it.


    "Thank you, Madame." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    "I want to follow big brother Futian and play too!" Long Ling''er said.


    "Again?" The Madame glared at her.


    "Haha, it''s fine to bring Ling''er along. I''ll come back together with her," Chen Yuan said.


    "I guess so." The Madame shook her head helplessly and said, "Sorry to trouble you, College Chief."


    "Let''s go," Chen Yuan said and the group flew into the air.


    The Starry School''s disciples all looked at the figures in the distance. They could probably only look up to Ye Futian in the future.


    The Gu Clan Leader pat his daughter Gu Yunxi on the shoulder and said gently, "Let''s go."


    "Mm." Gu Yunxi nodded lightly.


    ��


    In the Eastern Barren Territory, the situation had stabilized after the revolution. The College had become the only holy land in the Eastern Barren Territory. There were no other factions that could match it. The Sword Saint was already a Sage Plane cultivator and Mr. Du leaving back then had caused a huge commotion in the Eastern Barren Territory. Now, there were three factions on the Book Mountain: The College, the Sword Saint Mountain, and the Moon Clan.


    However, there was only the College now.


    The Qin Dynasty, the Liu Kingdom and many other factions had become a thing of the past. Apart from the College, there were only the Witch Clan and Qianqiu Temple still standing as elite factions.


    Now, the Witch Clan''s witches were also cultivating in the College. The College did not discriminate and was willing to impart their teachings to all.


    At that moment, in a courtyard on the Book Mountain, a group of people was seated around a table having a feast. It appeared especially crowded.


    "Fengliu, now you and Yi Xiang are both in the Noble Plane, I also have to cultivate harder. Otherwise, I''ll be caught up by you two gradually," an elegant figure smiled and said. On that person, there was an imperial aura and by his side, there was a pair of teenagers who looked extraordinary.


    "Brother Ye, it was only thanks to your protection back then that we have our achievements today." Hua Fengliu was still his handsome and suave self, the person sitting opposite him was the emperor of the Hundred Lands'' Cangye Kingdom, Emperor Ye.


    "You''re being too distant. If I did not know you, I would not have the chance to come often to the College to cultivate. I am able to lead such a carefree life as the emperor, occasionally coming to the Eastern Barren Territory''s holy land to cultivate. If it was in the past, who would dare to imagine that? Now, you don''t know how respectful the other emperors are to me and Emperor Nandou," Emperor Ye laughed and said.


    "Indeed." Beside him, Nandou Wenshan nodded in agreement.


    Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin also smiled. They were now getting older and leading contented lives.


    Emperor Ye would often invite Nandou Wenshan and Yi Xiang to come to the Book Mountain to visit him. A group of old friends sitting around and chatting was indeed an enjoyable pastime.

 584 It’s a Promise

    "Good day, elders." At that moment, an alluring figure walked in, a jug of wine in her hands. The woman was extremely beautiful and her eyes had a hint of quick-wittedness.


    "This young lady is?" Emperor Ye asked Hua Fengliu.


    "This girl is the famous Witch Clan''s witch Gu Biyue. She was sent to the College to cultivate, but she''s been running to my place very conscientiously. I don''t know what she''s after." Hua Fengliu replied, smiling.


    "Elder, you''ve misunderstood Biyue. The College Chief knows that all of you are here, so he specifically gave the order for a jug of fine wine to be sent here. This wine is rumored to be able to improve one''s constitution and is beneficial to cultivation," Gu Biyue claimed, smiling.


    "Thank the College Chief for me," Nandou Wenyin said, smiling. "Little Biyue, come over and sit with us too."


    These few years, the Sword Saint had taken very good care of them and would often send over precious materials to improve their cultivation and potential. If it was not for the Sword Saint, Emperor Ye would not be able to come so often to the Book Mountain to cultivate.


    "Okay." Gu Biyue smiled, taking a seat at the table. She asked, "I''ve heard that all of you here today are Ye Futian''s elders, do you all have any stories to share?"


    "Trying to get news about my disciple again?" Hua Fengliu looked at Gu Biyue and continued, "I''ve already told you, you don''t stand a chance."


    "I''m just curious." Gu Biyue looked back at Hua Fengliu and said, "Moreover, if I had met Ye Futian earlier, maybe your daughter wouldn''t have had a chance either."


    "You sure are thick-skinned." Yi Qingxuan smiled faintly and said with a joking tone. Gu Biyue consistently came over, so they were all familiar with her.


    "If you have the talent, you can learn it too," Gu Biyue replied, grinning.


    "Speaking of that fellow, I wonder how his cultivation level is after leaving for so long." Yi Xiang also missed Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, he had not seen the two of them for an even longer time.


    "They should have reached the Upper Arcana Plane," Hua Fengliu predicted.


    "That''s only around my level," Gu Biyue said. "I''ve stepped into the Upper Arcana Plane a few days ago."


    "Probably, I wonder if Futian has gone to find Jieyu." Nandou Wenyin sighed and continued, "Her second sister is supposed to be from an elite faction in the Barren State, Futian''s going to suffer."


    "Why don''t you feel sorry for my disciple?" Yi Xiang asked Nandou Wenyin.


    "You''re not sorry for Futian?" Nandou Wenyin smiled, asking back.


    "Why would I care about that fellow?" Yi Xiang was reluctant to admit it.


    "That''s right, that fellow is so sly, he''s probably being free and easy." Tang Lan also chipped in.


    "Aunty Tang, you''re speaking badly about me again." At that moment, a voice sounded in the distance. The people at the table were all stunned, then they all stood up and raised their heads. They saw a group of people flying in the air and the people at the front were Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "Dad, Mom!" Hua Jieyu shouted.


    Hua Fengliu had not come around from the surprise. It was only until Hua Jieyu landed in front of him that he broke into a brilliant smile.


    "Master, masteress, old man Yi, Emperor Ye, why are you all here?" Ye Futian said, smiling. The group landed and Yi Xiang saw Ye Futian''s complacent smile and said, "Looks like Tang Feng guessed correctly, you are indeed free and easy."


    "Master, Qingxuan," Yu Sheng walked forward, saying. Yi Qingxuan''s eyes were moist, but she was still smiling. She only felt like crying.


    "That fellow actually managed to find you," Hua Fengliu looked at Hua Jieyu and said. The Hua Jieyu now had an even more eminent aura, but she had gotten skinnier.


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded her head lightly and said, "Dad, your disciple is really splendid."


    Hua Fengliu did a double take. It was like they said, daughters would always side with their husbands. Look at her, praising her man in front of her father.


    "Wuchen." At that moment, Emperor Ye looked towards Ye Wuchen.


    "Uncle," Ye Wuchen also addressed him.


    "Your father often talks about you. These few years, Chenyu has gone back to see them a few times. Do go back home to visit since you''re back," Emperor Ye said.


    "Okay." Ye Wuchen was miserable upon Emperor Ye''s words and said, "I''ll go find Chenyu."


    "Go ahead," Emperor Ye smiled and Ye Wuchen shot off like a sword from its sheath towards the top of the mountain.


    "Noble Plane." Emperor Ye''s gaze focused and he said, amazed. A Noble Plane cultivator could be an emperor of a country in the Hundred Lands. Now, Ye Wuchen had entered the Noble Plane at such a young age.


    "Wuchen has entered the Noble Plane?" Hua Fengliu looked in his direction and asked.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and said, "Master, Yu Sheng and I have entered the Noble Plane, do you want to spar with us?"


    Hua Fengliu saw Ye Futian''s cheeky smile and ignored him. He looked at Hua Jieyu and said, "Jieyu, as your father, I need to seriously consider your relationship between you and Ye Futian."


    "Father-in-law, I was wrong." Ye Futian quickly walked behind Hua Fengliu and massaged his back for him, saying, "Master, don''t stoop to my level."


    "You''re already a Noble Plane cultivator and you still don''t care about your image. How preposterous," Hua Fengliu said.


    In Hua Fengliu''s mind, a Noble Plane cultivator was already able to hold his own in any region.


    "I don''t need any image in front of Master." Ye Futian said, "I was painstakingly brought up by you."


    "Mm, those words are pleasing to my ear." Hua Fengliu nodded his head with no reservations.


    "I can''t stand this master-disciple pair." Nandou Wenyin smiled and shook her head.


    "Haven''t you gotten used to it yet." Nandou Wenshan stood beside her, laughing. He had heard from Hua Fengliu that when he was first disabled, it was Ye Futian who had carried him into Donghai City. At that time, they were given the cold shoulder by many people and were taken in by Tang Feng. Thinking back, it was really a desolate period, but thankfully that was all in the past.


    The relationship between the two of them was probably like father and son.


    "Uncle, you''re here too." Ye Futian addressed him. After all, he was a sweet talker.


    "Yes, the Sword Saint allowed us to come to the Book Mountain whenever we like," Nandou Wenshan replied.


    "Big brother is really meticulous." Ye Futian nodded his head, then his gaze turned towards Ye Danchen, Ye Lingxi. The witch Gu Biyue was also here, this made him curious.


    "What are you looking at?" Gu Biyue saw Ye Futian''s confused look and asked, "Are you surprised?"


    "You, why are you here?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "This little girl is now cultivating on the Book Mountain and she often comes here to ask about your past stories," Hua Fengliu did not evade the topic just because of Hua Jieyu but directly replied instead.


    "You can''t have fallen for me?" Ye Futian''s expression got even more perplexed.


    The people around were all speechless and the witch also did a double take, but she still smiled charmingly and said, "That''s right, do you want to take me in as a concubine?"


    "I have to discuss this with my wife," Ye Futian said with a deadpan expression.


    "I''m fine with it." Hua Jieyu grinned and walked up, saying, "I don''t have any issues with a concubine."


    The witch stared at the pair in front of her and wanted to go on a rampage. The two of them actually dared to accept her offer�� She had lost.


    "I have an issue with it." A young girl stood in front of Ye Futian and said, "If my brother wants to marry a concubine, she has to pass me first. Big brother Futian, sister Jieyu, isn''t that right?"


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu looked at Long Ling''er in bewilderment. What logic was that?


    "You''re right." Ye Futian saw Long Ling''er''s expression and nodded.


    "Did you hear that." Long Ling''er looked smugly at the witch. That woman had an aura of foxy wiles and did not look as pretty as sister Jieyu, she would need to be on guard against her.


    "You. You''re good." The witch Gu Biyue was floored and left dejectedly.


    "Futian, who is this young lady?" Nandou Wenyin looked at Long Ling''er and asked.


    "She''s a younger sister that I got to know outside. This lass is really mischievous, she even kidnapped me initially." Ye Futian shook his head with a bitter smile.


    "Big brother Futian, why are you bringing up that insignificant matter. It was because I was young and immature back then," Long Ling''er said timidly, then turned to Nandou Wenyin and said, "Ling''er pays her respects to uncle and auntie. Sister Jieyu looks like a Goddess. Sure enough, her parents also look like gods, you two are so good-looking."


    "What an obedient little girl you are," Nandou Wenyin replied. Ye Futian was flabbergasted. Obedient�� This was a little devil.


    "Master, masteress, this is Chief Chen, an elder of mine," Ye Futian also introduced Chen Yuan to them.


    Chen Yuan had been observing silently and he was surprised by how heartwarming the scene between Ye Futian and his loved ones was. There was no trace of the peerlessness at the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace. The Ye Futian now was like a teenager that had not grown up.


    The scene actually made him a little envious. At that moment, Chen Yuan''s gaze turned towards the top of the mountain and he said silently, "Sage Plane."


    Ye Futian looked in that direction too and replied, "It should be my big brother. Come on, let''s go visit my big brother."


    "Okay." Hua Fengliu and the rest nodded. The group of them started to make their way to the top of the mountain. While traveling, Hua Fengliu and Yi Xiang looked at Chen Yuan and could instantly feel his Sage aura. This elderly person was potentially an extraordinary expert. They wondered what Ye Futian had been through in the few years outside the Eastern Barren Territory.


    At that moment, many disciples from the College appeared. When Ye Futian entered the Book Mountain, he had been seen by some people. Now, many of the disciples knew that he was coming and it caused a commotion in the College. To the College and even the Eastern Barren Territory, Ye Futian was a legendary figure.


    On the main peak of the Book Mountain, there were many people walking, forming a huge formation. There were people from all peaks appearing and the scene was spectacular.


    The Sword Saint and Goddess Wangyue sat there quietly. As they saw Ye Futian''s group walking over, the two of them had gentle smiles on their faces.


    "Big brother, Goddess," Ye Futian called out to them. He saw the two of them standing together and thought, what a perfect match.


    "Big brother, clan leader," Hua Jieyu also called out. She had once cultivated in the Moon Clan.


    "You''re back." The Sword Saint smiled, nodding his head. He then saw Yi Xiaoshi and asked, "Why didn''t Xue Ye and Luo Fan come back with you, they should have met up with your second sister and Xing''er?"


    Since Ye Futian had brought Hua Jieyu back, he should have found the Zhuge Clan.


    "Heh." Yi Xiaoshi nodded and replied, "Second sister had a mission for fourth and fifth brother, so we did not come back together."


    "Did you see your third brother?" The Sword Saint asked again.


    "I saw him once. Third brother is a Sage Plane cultivator now, big brother can rest easy," Ye Futian replied.


    "I''m naturally not worried about Dongliu''s cultivation. However, with his personality, he could easily offend others outside," the Sword Saint replied. He then turned his gaze towards Chen Yuan who was standing at the side and said, "Elder."


    The College''s disciples were all stunned. The Sword Saint had addressed that elderly person as ''elder.'' How high was that person''s cultivation level?


    "No need to be courteous," Chen Yuan said. "I''m only accompanying Futian back this time, it looks like my presence is making all of you uneasy. I wanted to tour around the Eastern Barren Territory as well, you can go ahead." As he said that, Chen Yuan moved in a flash and left the area.


    How fast. Many people were astounded. The Sword Saint asked curiously, "Who is that elder?"


    "The College Chief of the Divine Sky City''s Starry School, in the Eastern Region of the Barren State. I stayed there for a while after I went to the Barren State and the College Chief treated me very well," Ye Futian replied.


    "Will you be cultivating there in the future?" the Sword Saint asked.


    "No. I will be going with Jieyu, Yu Sheng and the rest to the core of the Barren State, Zhongzhou City''s Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. If big brother wants to look for me, you can go there directly," Ye Futian replied and changed the topic, "Let''s not talk about this for now, when will I be able to attend big brother''s wedding?"


    "When the members of the Cottage gather once again, probably." The Sword Saint sighed. He had not forgotten his teacher, who had been taken away.


    "Big brother, I want to visit the Cottage," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright, I''ll accompany you there. Now, the Cottage is used by the disciples who used to be from the Moon Clan," the Sword Saint said, and the two of them made their way to the Cottage. Many people looked at their figures and started discussing.


    What kind of place was the Holy Zhi Palace? Ye Futian was actually accompanied by an extremely strong Sage Plane cultivator on the way back. What did he do outside? They could hardly imagine it.


    Some of the younger disciples had only entered the Book Mountain for less than two years. Their expressions were filled with admiration, was that the legendary Ye Futian who had killed off multiple experts in the Sky Mountain fight? He looked so young.


    What a pity that they were unable to meet the Cottage''s second and third disciple. They wondered what cultivation level Ye Futian was at now.


    Among the disciples, there was an extremely appealing girl standing there quietly. She had ravishing looks and a graceful demeanor. She was one of the top three beauties of the Eastern Barren State, Chu Yaoyao. She had seen him again, he was still the same as before, but he appeared to be more magnificent now.


    Ye Futian and the Sword Saint strolled in the Cottage, looking at the familiar buildings that had changed. They walked all the way to the back mountain, discussing certain matters.


    Ye Futian briefly told the Sword Sage about his experiences in the Barren State and about his second sister and third brother.


    The cool wind swept past and the two of them walked to the cliff. The Sword Saint looked at the clouds and said, "With Dongliu''s personality, he likely will not step into the Zhuge Clan without defeating Bai Luli. However, if it''s really like you said, Bai Luli is the tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking, how would he be defeated so easily. Dongliu can only depend on himself."


    "Big brother, have you ever thought of venturing out?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Eastern Barren Territory carries teacher''s dreams. He had always wanted to use peaceful methods to achieve it. Unfortunately, things often go contrary to one''s wishes. Now that I have the chance, I will naturally help teacher to achieve it. Until then, I will not think about the future." The Sword Saint smiled and said, "The law power emphasizes following one''s heart, one''s cultivation and mindset is the same."


    "Mm." Ye Futian nodded. With big brother''s current mindset, it was an alternative form of cultivation. He could feel that big brother was different from before.


    "Little brother, do you know why your brothers and sisters have such high hopes for you?" the Sword Saint asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head, but he knew that his brothers and sisters doted on him the most.


    "That''s because you are the person that teacher was truly looking for." The Sword Saint looked in the distance and said, "I trust teacher. Little brother, maybe nobody knows how your future will be like now, but if there''s one person who can find teacher, it will definitely be you."


    "I will work hard." Ye Futian nodded his head sincerely.


    "Me too," the Sword Saint said. "The College will forever be your home. If you run into trouble outside, tell me. Your big brother''s cultivation level may not be high, but I will do my best to strive for the day where I can personally witness the expectations that teacher had for you come to fruition. I also want to see that sight."


    Ye Futian smiled radiantly and said, "Big brother, it''s a promise."


    "It''s a promise." The Sword Saint nodded!

 585 History’s Witness

    Ye Futian stayed for a few days in the Cottage, accompanying his master and masteress. He did not know when he could return again after he left this time, but seeing the two of them enjoying their time here, Ye Futian felt relieved.


    Ye Wuchen had returned to the Cangye Kingdom with Liu Chenyu, then came back to the Book Mountain, preparing to bring Liu Chenyu with him to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Wuchen had entered the Sword Demon''s department and was considered a true disciple, so he could bring his family along. He naturally did not plan to continue leaving Liu Chenyu alone here.


    After settling these matters, the group of them gathered on the Book Mountain, preparing to leave.


    Many people from the Book Mountain had come to send them all, including the lords of every peak and many College disciples. Although the Cottage was no longer around, the Cottage''s disciples would forever be immortalized in the Eastern Barren State as the memories of a generation.


    Just as Ye Futian was preparing to leave, there were two figures who appeared in the distance, flying among the clouds towards Ye Futian. The College''s disciples did not stop them. Evidently, they knew who it was.


    The two of them looked weird. One of them was a high monk and the other was a stunning beauty. She was dressed in plain robes and there was not a speck of dust to be found on her. Her complexion was radiant, like a flawless piece of jade and her aura was pure like she had never been troubled by worldly matters.


    The girl had a faint smile on her face as she looked towards Ye Futian''s group.


    "How beautiful." Beside Ye Futian, Long Ling''er mumbled. The lady who had arrived was gorgeous and her innocent and pure aura made her exceedingly pretty, enough to rival Hua Jieyu.


    "Master," the Sword Saint saw the high monk and addressed him, nodding. It turned out that the high monk was the abbot of the Qianqiu Temple.


    "Benefactor Sword Saint." The Abbot put his hands together and bowed, then his gaze turned towards Ye Futian and he said, "I''ve heard that Benefactor Ye has returned from the Barren State, so I''ve specifically come to ask a favor from Benefactor Ye."


    "Do tell me, Abbot." Ye Futian''s gaze turned away from the lady. Back then, the Donghua Clan had been eradicated and Hua Qingqing had suffered a huge tragedy, causing her to enter the Qianqiu Temple to cultivate. Now, her aura and looks were even more outstanding than before, the Qianqiu Temple must have paid a lot of attention to her.


    "Qingqing has a connection with Buddhism. Previously, when I saw her on the Book Mountain, I took her to the Qianqiu Temple to cultivate. Qingqing needed little guidance to understand the Buddhist teachings and her comprehension is the highest of anyone I''ve met in my life. Now that she has had her first glimpse into Buddhism and entered the Noble Plane, my Qiuqian Temple no longer has any deeper Buddhist teachings to offer her. Benefactor Ye has come from the Barren State, do you know if there are any places that are suitable for her to cultivate?" the Abbot asked.


    Ye Futian was slightly taken aback. Ye Qingqing''s cultivation level was similar to his back then, he had only just broken through to the Noble Plane by obtaining multiple opportunities in the Holy Road.


    Ye Qingqing had also entered the Noble Plane? Could it be that cultivating in Buddhist teachings would cause a person''s cultivation speed to increase? That was probably not the only reason.


    It should be that Hua Qingqing was indeed destined to pursue Buddhism. When he first saw her, he had already felt that this girl was not affected by mortal desires, like she was not supposed to appear in the world. Perhaps, she was already different from birth and was enlightened after the huge incident.


    "The Barren State is vast and boundless, so I am not very familiar with cultivation places in the Barren State," Ye Futian replied. He then turned towards Chen Yuan and asked, "Does Chief Chen know any?"


    Chen Yuan looked at Hua Qingqing. He could feel that Hua Qingqing was indeed extraordinary, he had never seen such a pure person before, her unblemished eyes were crystal clear, like a pool of clear water.


    "The Barren State indeed has a Buddhist ground, but they emphasize that Buddhism will only be taught to those who are destined for it and rarely take in disciples," Chen Yuan replied.


    "If they see her, they will definitely take her in." The Qianqiu Temple Abbot saluted and said, "This benefactor must be an elder from the Barren State, could we have a word in private?"


    Chen Yuan looked at Ye Futian and saw him nodding, so he replied, "Sure."


    "Qingqing, follow me," the Qianqiu Temple Abbot said, and the three of them left together, making Ye Futian''s group curious. Not long after, they came back, but Chen Yuan''s expression was peculiar and he kept looking at Hua Qingqing.


    "Chief Chen," Ye Futian looked towards Chen Yuan and called out.


    "If Hua Qingqing heads there, there will be no problem," Chen Yuan declared certainly this time.


    Ye Futian did not know what the Abbot and Chief Chen had discussed to make him this certain.


    "I am not well versed enough in the Buddhist teachings, thus my cultivation level is low. I might not have much of a say in this, could I trouble benefactor Chen to help me make the referral?" the Abbot asked Chen Yuan.


    Chen Yuan''s gaze landed on Ye Futian again, as though asking for Ye Futian''s opinion.


    "Chief Chen, Hua Qingqing is my good friend," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay," Chen Yuan agreed to the matter.


    "Thank you very much. Since that is so, I will not be following the group." The Qianqiu Temple Abbot looked at Hua Qingqing and said, "Qingqing, this is where we part ways."


    "Take care of yourself, Abbot." Hua Qingqing nodded, smiling. Fate would come and go in circles, although she was reluctant, she accepted it nonetheless.


    "Benefactor Ye, I''ll be troubling you then." The Abbot bowed to Ye Futian.


    "Master, there is no need to do that." Ye Futian returned the bow and said, "Since the Master trusts me, I will naturally do my best."


    "How could I not trust the character of a Cottage disciple." The Abbot smiled and said his goodbyes.


    After doing that, he turned around and left as quickly as he had come. Hua Qingqing bowed in the direction that the monk had left in. The two years that she had spent in the Qingqiu Temple had healed the scars from back then, and she had found that the way of the Buddha appeared to be the most suitable for her.


    "Du Ao is dead," Ye Futian looked to Hua Qingqing beside him and said.


    Hua Qingqing was shocked and stared at Ye Futian. A teardrop appeared in her eyes and she said silently, "Thank you."


    Although she cultivated in Buddhism, how could she be void of emotion? Du Ao had destroyed the Donghua Clan and killed her mother in front of her back then, how could she not hate him.


    "It''s all over now." Ye Futian smiled tenderly.


    "Yes." Hua Qingqing nodded. That year, after they had separated in the snowstorm on the Sky Mountain, she had not expected that they would meet again. She was very thankful for the reunion.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. He turned around, looking at all the familiar figures. His big brother, master, and masteress, Yi Xiang, Emperor Ye and the rest, then waved to them and said coolly, "I''m leaving."


    "Lad, take good care of Jieyu," Hua Fengliu laughed as he reminded him. With this fellow''s luck with women, he could not help but worry.


    "Yu Sheng, I leave Qingxuan with you," Yi Xiang also told him.


    "Alright, rest assured, Master." Yu Sheng nodded solemnly. Yi Qingxuan''s eyes were puffy, she would follow Ye Futian and Yu Sheng this time to the distant Barren State and probably not see her father for a long time.


    Chen Yuan took out his flight ritual implement and flew into the clouds. The wind blowing on his body, Ye Futian looked at the people around him and broke into a radiant smile. This time, Qingxuan, Chenyu and Liu Feiyang were too. Liu Chenyu would follow Ye Wuchen to the Holy Zhi Palace while Liu Feiyang would follow Chen Yuan to the Starry School to cultivate.


    In the following period of time, he was prepared to cultivate seriously in the Holy Zhi Palace and do his best to raise his cultivation level. Now that he was in the Noble Plane, his next target was to become a Sage. If he entered the Sage Plane, he would be considered an influential figure even in the Barren State, capable of setting up his own sect or clan. Even alone, he would be able to make a name for himself in the Barren State.


    After Ye Futian''s group had left, a group of people continued to stay on the Book Mountain, reluctant to leave.


    "Let''s go back," the Sword Saint said to the crowd and the College''s disciples started to leave. However, there were still people who continued to stare at the disappearing figures.


    The witch Gu Biyue sighed softly, "How heartless."


    Chu Yaoyao also looked dejected. Hua Qingqing, who had often been mentioned in conjunction with her in the past, had also followed him to the Barren State.


    The Sword Saint left and walked to the peak of the Book Mountain. He walked at the edge, looking at the scenery below the mountain and beyond. In the silence, he started to miss his teacher.


    Behind the Sword Saint, there was a pavilion. At that moment, beside the pavilion, a figure appeared there abruptly. The figure was dressed in grey robes and had no aura, as though he did not even exist.


    The Sword Saint appeared to feel something, causing him to turn around. When he saw the figure, he bowed slightly and called out, "Elder."


    "How is your cultivation in the techniques that I taught you?" the grey-robed figure asked.


    "I have had some progress, but the technique is too profound, I still need more time," the Sword Saint replied calmly.


    "Mm." The grey-robed figure nodded briskly and continued, "Although your potential is ordinary, your mindset is outstanding and your will is firm. Those two will be able to make up for the lacking in your potential. The techniques that I have made you cultivate are also the most suitable for your mindset, decipher it comprehensively and you will reach a high level of attainment."


    The Sword Saint nodded, naturally he could feel that too.


    "Elder, who are you, why are you doing this?" the Sword Saint asked.


    "With your mindset, you should not be asking this. Don''t bother asking in the future; just treat this as a surprise opportunity and that I did not exist. Otherwise, I will make you disappear along with the College." The grey-robed figure looked apathetically at the Sword Saint. That one look made the Sword Saint feel as though he had been seen through. He was already in the Sage Plane but he still had such a feeling, it showed how high the other party''s cultivation level was.


    This mysterious character was likely to be the strongest person he had ever met in his life, even stronger than his teacher.


    A gust of wind blew past and the grey-robed figure had disappeared without a trace, like he had never been there. However, in the air, a sound entered the Sword Saint''s ear.


    "Throughout the ages, countless heroes, however prodigious they were, have faded to dust, but you will be history''s witness." The voice was faint and disappeared with the wind. The Sword Saint stared at the disappearing figure with a serious expression, emotions surging from his heart.


    Throughout the ages, how many heroes had there been? He naturally could not be considered the genius of a generation, how was he going to witness history. Turning around, the Sword Saint looked in the distance, his expression composed. Nobody knew what he was thinking.


    Only time would tell!

 586 Saint Potential?

    The magnificent and enormous Zhongzhou City lay in the Barren State. Nobody knew how many powerful forces there were in this ancient city. In the central region of Zhongzhou City was the endless Holy River where the Thousand Holy Islands could be found.


    Suddenly, a group of cultivators flew by in the sky and landed at the center of the Thousand Holy Islands. A towering city was standing at the heart of the Thousand Holy Islands which looked just like a castle in the sky.


    The group of cultivators was precisely Ye Futian and the others who had just returned from the Eastern Barren Territory. At the moment, they were in front of the sky stairwell, standing in a ritual implement which was floating in the sky. Staring into the distance, Chen Yuan said, "We''re here."


    Ye Futian looked at Chen Yuan and smiled. "Chief Chen, thank you for helping us in the journey."


    "Don''t mention it. I didn''t waste too much time either," Chen Yuan said, unconcerned. "After you enter the Holy Zhi Palace, focus on cultivation. The palace gathers the geniuses from various places of the Barren State, many of whom are successors of top forces. Be careful in what you do."


    "Yes, I will." Ye Futian nodded. "I''ll leave Qingqing to you."


    "Don''t worry about it. I''ll send her to the place," Chen Yuan nodded. Ye Futian then looked at Hua Qingqing and said, "Take care."


    "Okay." Hua Qingqing nodded, smiling brightly. Her journey was filled with uncertainty, but she was very calm and did not think too much about it. Everything would only depend on her destiny.


    "Young ones, work hard!" Chen Yuan scanned everyone, after which he controlled the ritual implement and left with Hua Qingqing.


    Ye Futian stared at Chen Yuan as he flew off into the distance. Hua Jieyu smiled gently and asked, "You feel sad that she''s leaving?"


    "..." Ye Futian blinked his eyes. Smiling, he looked at Hua Jieyu and asked back, "Are you jealous?"


    "Hua Qingqing is such a pitiful girl. Moreover, she''s pure and flawless. Even women would be attracted to her! It''d be such a pity for her to become a nun. If you like her, I can pretend that I can''t see anything." Hua Jieyu smiled warmly.


    "Really?" Ye Futian muttered to himself as he stared at Hua Jieyu doubtfully. This fox... When does she speak the truth?


    Looking at her smile, Ye Futian was determined not to fall for her trap. He held her hand and said, "You''re the only one in my heart. Let''s go into the palace."


    Hua Jieyu covered her mouth and giggled, while Yu Sheng and the rest all looked at Ye Futian in contempt. How could she believe him? Nevertheless, at the moment, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were also accompanied by beautiful ladies.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi, Yi Qingxuan, Liu Chenyu, Loulan Xue, and the Black Wind Condor were all present. The group was in its prime.


    Stepping onto the sky stairwell, they saw a grand gate before them. A group of cultivators was standing there like statues, guarding the palace. When Ye Futian and his friends reached the gate, the gatekeepers stared at them and one of them asked, "Who are you?"


    Ye Futian and his friends took out their palace decrees, after which they said their names and identities.


    "So you''re going to Battle Sage Palace, Daozang Palace, and Sword Pavilion. They''re all at different places. Those who are going to Battle Sage Palace, follow me."


    "Those going to Daozang Palace, follow me."


    "Those going to Sword Pavilion, come here."


    Three statue-like cultivators walked out. Ye Futian and his friends walked behind the respective cultivators.


    "Jieyu, Wuchen, Chenyu, I''ll go look for you later!" Ye Futian said. Hua Jieyu was going to Daozang Palace, Ye Wuchen to Sword Pavilion, while Ye Futian and a few others were going to Battle Sage Palace.


    Hua Jieyu and Ye Wuchen nodded. Then, they followed their respective gatekeepers and flew into the sky.


    "Senior, which pavilion do you belong to?" Ye Futian asked the cultivator who was leading the way.


    "The gatekeepers belong to Tianxing Pavilion," the cultivator replied. "Apart from the things within the six pavilions, all the rules and other stuff are controlled by Tianxing Pavilion."


    "I got it." Ye Futian nodded. "Where are the six pavilions located?"


    "From here, if you go straight forward, you''ll see the tallest range of palaces. That''s Holy Sage Pavilion. The pavilion closest to it is Wanxiang Pavilion, which is located on the left, while Battle Sage Palace is on the right. Daozang Palace is next to Wanxiang Pavilion, while Sword Pavilion is close to Battle Sage Palace. Tianxing Pavilion is at the center of the island. You''ll find out soon enough," the gatekeeper replied.


    Ye Futian listened to him attentively as they advanced forward. Below them, they could see many tall buildings and some other cultivators.


    Ye Futian saw gigantic towers, mountains and cultivating caves, many lively streets, and numerous relic-like places. This island city, located on top of a mountain, was indeed extremely vast. The Holy Zhi Palace was different from any place he had visited in the past. After a while, Ye Futian saw a chain of magnificent golden palaces appear before him. It sat on the ground like a golden ancient city and seemed to reflect off a sharp aura.


    The golden, ancient palaces were located on high grounds, as though they were right beside a cliff. Standing on its corner, one could see the scenery below and also in the distance.


    "We''ve arrived. You should go there now," the gatekeeper said, after which he left alone. Ye Futian shouted, "Senior, thank you!"


    Then, they stepped forward, walking along the golden, ancient path. Before them, a clean-looking young monk was cleaning the ground. Seeing Ye Futian and his friends, the monk stopped what he was doing. He put one hand vertically in front of his chest and bowed slightly. "Are you the newcomers Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and the others?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian greeted back, "Senior, it''s nice to meet you."


    "My name is Qi Jie. Uncle has asked me to wait for you here. You''ve finally arrived!" the monk said, smiling. "Follow me. I''ll show you your rooms."


    "Sure." Ye Futian and his friends followed him. On their way, Ye Futian asked curiously, "Senior Qi Jie, you look so young. When did you enter the palace?"


    "Last year," the monk replied.


    "Wait... Doesn''t the Holy Zhi Palace admit disciples once every three years? How did you enter last year?" Ye Futian asked.


    "That''s only for the entire Barren State. If someone recommends you, you can enter directly after passing the assessment set by the six pavilions." Qi Jie smiled. "The assessment that is held once every three years is a grand occasion in the Barren State. Most people want to try the Holy Roads and compete with various geniuses. However, there are also some people like me who''re lazier."


    "I see." Ye Futian nodded. He recalled Mu Zhiqiu had also told him that people like Bai Ze could actually enter the Holy Zhi Palace directly. It seemed like apart from the people who had shone during the assessment, the Holy Zhi Palace also had many other outstanding geniuses.


    "Oh yeah. I don''t think you know the rules here yet. There aren''t too many restrictions in terms of cultivation. I believe you have seen for yourselves how the palace looks like in general on your way here," Qi Jie said.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace is said to be the holy place for cultivation in the Barren State. Here, there are many places suitable for cultivation. You''re free to go anywhere or attempt any of the mysterious places or relics. However, be careful about your own safety. Furthermore, during cultivation, conflicts will often break out between the disciples of the six pavilions. The palace does not restrict any fights, but there''s one solid rule��you cannot kill or permanently disable anyone else within the palace. As for friendly fights, there are no rules, and you also don''t need any reasons. Of course, when you step into any of the six pavilions themselves, you won''t be allowed to fight."


    Qi Jie gave Ye Futian and his friends a smile that seemed to contain many hidden meanings, causing Ye Futian to blink his eyes. The Holy Zhi Palace really encouraged its disciples to fight against and learn from each other. Only with competitions would they grow.


    "Also, your relatives can cultivate in the palace, but you cannot give the methods taught by your seniors in the palace. Similarly, you cannot teach them to someone outside. This is prohibited and you must follow it. Otherwise, the consequences will be extremely severe!" Qi Jie warned. Ye Futian nodded. The Holy Zhi Palace had many disciples, including many descendants of the top forces in the Barren State. If they could bring the things they learned here outside, the arts and methods unique to the Holy Zhi Palace would be known to everyone in no time.


    The group chatted as they walked. On their way, they also met many other people, and Ye Futian would always nod to greet them. Soon, they arrived at a place filled with many attics and courtyards. Battle Sage Palace was very huge, so everyone would get an individual attic.


    "Alright. From today on, you''ll be official disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace. Do you have any other questions?" Qi Jie asked, smiling.


    "Senior, how many disciples does the Holy Zhi Palace have. Why do I feel there are not many people in Battle Sage Palace?" Ye Futian asked.


    "If you include the Thousand Holy Islands, the Holy Zhi Palace will be way too big. If you only count the Core Island, then apart from the disciples recruited outside, the descendants of various seniors in the palace, and the geniuses who are promoted to the Core Island from the Thousand Holy Islands, there are about 3,000 disciples in the six pavilions. Many people have finished learning and left the palace, or are cultivating outside, so there are only over 2,000 disciples left. Even fewer people are direct disciples of the lords of the six pavilions themselves. Among the six pavilions, Daozang Palace and Tianxing Pavilion have the most number of disciples, followed by Sword Pavilion, and then Battle Sage Palace and Holy Sage Pavilion. Wanxiang Pavilion has the least number of people."


    Qi Jie answered patiently, "As for why you didn''t see many people around, most people are usually not inside the pavilion. Instead, they normally cultivate somewhere else in this island city."


    "Why are there so few people in Wanxiang Pavilion?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "Do you know what class does the lord of Wanxiang Pavilion belongs to?" Qi Jie asked.


    "Nope." Ye Futian shook his head.


    "Sage Wanxiang is an astrologer." Qi Jie smiled.


    "So he can calculate the potentials and talents of his disciples?" Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. Astrologer was not an unfamiliar name to Ye Futian; Minister Zuo was an astrologer as well. However, astrologers often had short lives as they would reveal secrets they were not supposed to. Ye Futian did not expect there to be such a powerful astrologer in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Yes, but not everyone wants to get tested. Astrologers are not all-powerful, and their measures are also estimates, not definite. Moreover, the lord of Wanxiang Pavilion rarely calculates the destiny of anyone. I heard that after he does that last time, he has been secluding until now," Qi Jie said. Thinking about Minister Zuo, Ye Futian could also understand this. Astrologers would always carefully conceal their abilities.


    "Junior, do you know whose destiny he calculated last time?" Qi Jie asked, smiling.


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head.


    "Make a guess?" Qi Jie gave a meaningful smile.


    "Qi Jie, go back!" someone suddenly said in the distance. Qi Jie immediately put his hands together and his face turned extremely solemn. Turning around, he bowed at the incoming person and said, "Yes, uncle. I''m only explaining to them the rules of the palace. I''ll leave now." Then, he left the group, leaving Ye Futian speechless. Qi Jie''s change was really quick.


    "Bai Luli." Qi Jie secretly transmitted his voice to Ye Futian as he walked into the distance.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. The lord of Wanxiang Pavilion had calculated the destiny of Bai Luli before, so what was the result?


    "So you''re here." King Kong Sage walked to Ye Futian.


    "Senior," Ye Futian greeted.


    "You and Yu Sheng are disciples of my brother. So just call me uncle," King Kong Sage said.


    "Uncle."


    "Good. Although you have your own masters, anyone who teaches you can also be called your master. When you see the lord next time, you may call him master. Of course, if you''re really unwilling, he will not force you." King Kong Sage looked at Yi Xiaoshi and Yuan Zhan. "As for you two, in the future, I''ll be teaching you. Of course, in the Holy Zhi Palace, most of the time you''ll be relying on yourselves. There are plenty of resources around here."


    "I understand." Everyone nodded.


    "Qi Jie has told you the necessary things right?" King Kong Sage asked.


    "Yes, Senior Qi Jie has told us that," Ye Futian replied.


    "Great. In this case, I''ll not say anything extra. From now on, you''ll be disciples of Battle Sage Palace. Usually, you can do whatever you want and nobody will place any restrictions on you. Now, you can go and familiarize yourselves with the place," King Kong Sage said. "If you need anything, come and find me. Of course, if you''re bullied in the Holy Zhi Palace, don''t come and look for me. That''s the same for all the six pavilions. The people who can enter the Holy Zhi Palace are all top geniuses, and you can fight as much as you please. It''ll be too embarrassing to have you if you complain about being bullied." Then, King Kong Sage also left the place.


    "What a brief introduction." A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. From Qi Jie and King Kong Sage''s words, he could imagine how interesting his life in the palace would be in the future.


    "Uncle, bye," Ye Futian said, smiling. He was already looking forward to his life here.


    "Oh yeah. Just now Qi Jie was talking about destiny. The person who got tested was destined to go beyond the Sage Plane," King Kong Sage suddenly said, after which he disappeared into the distance. Nobody knew if he said so to give Ye Futian more stress.


    Above the Sage Plane was the Saint Plane.


    Bai Luli had the potential to become a saint!

 587 New Person in the Law Rank

    Ye Futian had heard from his second sister that because of Bai Luli''s presence, many powerful people in the Holy Zhi Palace had come to a certain consensus. Now he knew that the lord of Wanxiang Pavilion had calculated Bai Luli''s destiny, so he could roughly guess some things.


    It was no wonder that Holy Sage Pavilion had chosen Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing instead of him, the top performer for the entrance assessment. It was clearly not because of Bai Ze. After all, everyone saw how Bai Ze had lost to Ye Futian, and the people in the Holy Zhi Palace were not blind. It was only because Bai Luli meant something extraordinary to the palace. Nevertheless, Ye Futian was somewhat puzzled. Apart from people like Bai Luli, who had displayed an unbelievable potential, everyone in the Barren Sky Ranking was only strong in terms of their combat powers. Ye Futian had never heard of the existence of an actual saint. However, the Top Three Schools all had divine teachings as their founder was a saint. As the best place to cultivate in the whole of the Barren State, the Holy Zhi Palace certainly had divine teachings as well. There must have been saints from the palace in the past.


    Could it be that saints could not stay in the Barren State so they had to go to a superior region? Or perhaps was there another reason?


    "Loulan, stay here with the condor and tidy the place up. We''ll go and familiarize ourselves with the palace," Ye Futian said. Cultivators usually did not have a high demand for good accommodation. Qi Jie had also told them that most people of the six pavilions had gone to cultivate, and only a handful would stay in the pavilions.


    Ye Futian clearly wanted to see what kind of place this holy land of the Barren State looked like.


    "Alright." Loulan Xue nodded gently.


    "I''ll stay behind to help," Yi Qingxuan said, smiling.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded. "Let''s go." Then, the four people left. They went outside Battle Sage Palace and gazed at the island city they were on. It was endless and even they could not see the edge of the island. The entire island city was a place for cultivation.


    "The palace is so big. I don''t think we can know the place well anytime soon. Where do we start?" Yi Xiaoshi asked. Ye Futian also felt the same way.


    "When we came just now, didn''t we see an area filled with activities? We''ll go there first. When we meet other people, we can also ask about the situation of the palace," Ye Futian said. Nobody had any objections. Therefore, the four people stepped into the air and walked towards a certain place.


    After a while, Ye Futian and his friends arrived in a region filled with streets. Indeed, there were many people around. Somewhere in the place, there was a stone wall with some writings on it. Many people were standing there, looking at the wall.


    "Hua Fan actually got a place in Sage Palace."


    "Another top genius of the Holy Zhi Palace managed to enter Sage Palace. A new person will definitely appear on the Barren Sky Ranking in the future. I wonder who''ll be kicked out of the ranking."


    Many people were discussing among themselves. Hua Fan was a disciple of Holy Sage Pavilion. It was written on the stone wall that he had obtained the approval of Holy Sage Pavilion to enter Sage Palace, causing many to feel emotional. Although they already knew about Hua Fan''s talents long ago, he had actually gotten himself a place in Sage Palace in merely six years. It was still somewhat astonishing.


    The disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace all knew what that meant. All the cultivators who had entered Sage Palace in the past had also appeared on the Barren Sky Ranking. Many famous people could be used as examples, including the lord of White Cloud City, the leader of the Zhuge Family, Bai Luli, and, of course, many powerful people of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "When he goes to Sage Palace this time, Hua Fan will probably try to break through into the Sage Plane," someone said.


    "Indeed. Six years ago, Hua Fan elegantly got first place in the entrance assessment. He was honored as the most talented person in the palace after Bai Luli. After that, he started his rapid climb in the Holy Zhi Palace. I didn''t expect him to be able to enter Sage Palace in such a short time."


    "I suppose Ximen Hanjiang should feel some pressure now," someone said. Ximen Hanjiang was the top performer in the assessment three years ago. He was honored as the rarest genius of Ximen Clan in Zhongzhou City and had taken Bai Luli as his goal. Now, Hua Fan who had entered before him had already obtained a chance to enter Sage Palace. Ximen Hanjiang would clearly have some thoughts on this.


    "Ximen Hanjiang is talented, but it''ll not be easy for him to enter Sage Palace. Within the cohort three years ago, there are people who are no weaker than him," someone commented, smiling. There were countless geniuses in the Holy Zhi Palace. However, only a handful could enter Sage Palace.


    "I just received news that the top performer in this cohort had already entered the palace not long ago!" someone said.


    The top performers of the entrance assessments would always receive much attention.


    "The disciples in this cohort will come here one after another. It seems like the place will get more lively for quite a while. I heard that there was a major conflict between Ye Futian and Bai Ze. In the arena, he almost disabled Bai Ze and humiliated him badly. The Holy Zhi Palace will surely be busy in the future."


    "I heard of that as well. It''s said that when Bai Ze was chatting, he publicly invited Hua Jieyu to enter the palace with him, ignoring Ye Futian''s presence. He did not expect himself to meet a tough opponent this time and caused Ye Futian''s rage. However, it''s indeed embarrassing for Bai Ze this time. His brother is so unparalleled and outstanding, but he was humiliated openly in the assessment. I''m sure he really wants to kill Ye Futian now."


    "This time, a few people did not manage to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, but I heard that there are also quite a few good ones. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Xu Que, Divine Spiritual Sorcerer Hua Jieyu, and many others are all not bad. Although Bai Ze lost, his talents are not that weak either."


    "Is it?" Suddenly, a young man with white-colored skin walked over. He looked delicate and his face was filled with a gentle smile. From his smile, one could tell that he was an extremely confident person. "I think that assessment this time is only so-so," the young man said, smiling.


    Everyone turned their heads and looked at the young man, interested. Someone smiled and said, "Yun Feng, you entered Daozang Palace last year, becoming a disciple of Sage Daozang directly. So you did not participate in the assessment not long ago. I''m sure you look down on the newcomers?"


    A gentle smile appeared on Yun Feng''s face. Every three years, the top few people of the assessment in the Holy Zhi Palace would attract the attention of everyone and be in the spotlight. However, he did not take part because of his confidence in himself. Whether he attended the assessment or not, the outcome would be the same. His goal was Sage Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Two Grade Nine Nobles managed to enter the top ten. How powerful do you think the newcomers this time are?" Yun Feng said casually. Then, he stopped talking about this and looked on the stone wall before him instead.


    Hua Fan had obtained the rights to enter Sage Palace.


    Only this was his target.


    Everyone looked at Yun Feng, smiling. They were not surprised by his words. Yun Feng was the descendant of Craftsman. He had started his cultivation from drawing and his skills were fascinating. Craftsman and Sage Daozang were good friends. Therefore, Yun Feng was sent to the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate under Sage Daozang. Craftsman had once said in the future Yun Feng''s skills would surpass his. After entering the Holy Zhi Palace, Yun Feng had indeed also displayed his talents. Although he was young, he was already famous in Daozang Palace. It was, therefore, no surprise that he would say so.


    "Indeed, I agree with you," someone suddenly said. Everyone turned around and saw a few people walking towards them. The person who just spoke was handsome and young.


    "Is it?" Yun Feng glanced at the people around him and smiled.


    "Two Grade Nine Nobles could enter the top ten. Indeed, the people in the assessment this time are too weak. The two people must have been lucky," the young man replied, smiling.


    Yun Feng smiled gently and did not say anything else. Many people looked at the young man and one of them asked curiously, "You all look unfamiliar. Are you the newcomers this time?"


    Someone also had a strange expression on his face as he looked at the few people who had just arrived. He had watched the assessment this time.


    "Yes." the young man nodded.


    "Who are you? Let''s see if we''ve heard of you," someone asked, smiling.


    "Ye Futian," the young man replied. Hearing his words, everyone was stunned, causing the place to fall into a deafening silence. Then, many people started laughing and looked at Ye Futian keenly.


    It was really interesting.


    Yun Feng was also startled and looked at Ye Futian just beside him. This time, he did not divert his stare immediately. Then, he said, "I''m Yun Feng."


    Ye Futian looked at the stone wall before him. Clearly, he also saw that Hua Fan was allowed to enter Sage Palace, and this confirmed his guess.


    The Holy Zhi Palace indeed had divine teachings. In another place on the stone wall, there was a list of names carved from the top down. The first name was Hua Fan who had obtained a place in Sage Palace.


    In the last place, Ye Futian saw his own name.


    "Seniors, what''s this?" Ye Futian asked, smiling.


    Many people looked at Ye Futian curiously. One of them replied, "The Law Rank. We also call it the Small Barren Sky Ranking. Junior Ye, your name was already on the ranking when you joined us. Although it''s last place, you have still exceeded most people."


    The Law Rank of the Holy Zhi Palace only contained 100 people, all of which must be Noble Plane disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace. Just like the actual Barren Sky Ranking, it ranked disciples according to their talents and potential. It was thus also known as the Small Barren Sky Ranking.


    The targets of the sages in the Holy Zhi Palace would be the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Ye Futian had just entered the palace and not displayed anything. However, he was already on the ranking. It was obviously because he was the top performer for the assessment this time, although he was only in the last place.


    Ye Futian also saw Yun Feng''s name. He was ranked 96th on the Law Rank.


    It was no wonder that Yun Feng was unhappy.


    "I was indeed lucky. Do ignore me," Ye Futian said, smiling as if he was very humble. This was everyone to be curious. Was he really the top performer, the person who was said to defeat Bai Ze and Huang Jiuge?


    "Oh yeah. I''m completely unfamiliar with the palace. What place is this?" Ye Futian asked.


    "This is the place where the Law Rank is. It''s called the Law Battle Area. If disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace want to have a Law Battle, they can do it on the Law Battle Platform not far from here."


    "Doesn''t the Holy Zhi Palace prohibit fighting? Why is there a place meant for battles?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "It''s good to have something formal," the person replied, smiling. "Moreover, if someone on the Law Rank initiates a Law Battle, it''ll affect the ranking."


    "I got it. Apart from this Law Battle Area, what other places are there?" Ye Futian asked further.


    "The region around the Law Battle Area is known as the Law Power Zone. There are seven intriguing secret zones which are suitable for all kinds of sorcerers to cultivate. If you go further forward, you will find the Sky Reaching Tower. That acts as a dividing line. The Sky Reaching Tower is a treasure of Battle Sage Palace and can train the physical strength of martial arts cultivators. Beyond the Sky Reaching Tower are various places meant for cultivation. You will find blessed caves, mountains and relics, and secret zones left by seniors. That region is the most extensive one and occupies half of the island city. You''ll need to see that for yourself. Apart from those, the six pavilions here all have their own places for cultivation. Lastly, there is the relic of Sage Palace, the restricted area of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The person very patiently introduced these places briefly to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded. "Thank you, senior."


    "Don''t mention it. You will get the same answer by asking anyone else." That person smiled warmly.


    Ye Futian believed that the vast island city was sufficient for him to grow to the level he needed. If he had the chance, he would definitely want to enter the Sage Palace.


    Suddenly, a loud sound erupted from the distance. Everyone raised their heads and looked at that direction, where a battle seemed to be in action. Many loud collisions could be heard.


    "It''s the Law Battle Platform."


    "Junior Ye, let''s go and take a look?" someone asked Ye Futian, looking at him.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded. Then, the group left the place and walked towards the location of the battle. Soon, they arrived at the Law Battle Platform. Two cultivators were fighting against each other on the platform at the moment, and many people were standing around them, watching.


    "Zhong Li?" Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. In the arena, one of the cultivators was releasing his Life Spirit, which was a tripod. It was precisely Zhong Li who had entered the Holy Zhi Palace with him. He was from the Separation Road and lost to Yuan Zhan''s Nine Heavenly Attacks. Nevertheless, he was very strong. However, at the moment, Zhong Li was losing the fight. His opponent was a Grade Six Noble, which was higher than him. Zhong Li tenaciously defended himself for a while. In the end, he was still smashed onto the ground and spat up a lot of blood.


    The person who had defeated Zhong Li stood arrogantly in the sky. Looking at Zhong Li from above, he said, "Only geniuses can enter the Holy Zhi Palace, and the same goes to you as well. However, when you''re here, you need to understand that you should keep a low profile as a newcomer."


    Zhong Li''s face darkened. He did not expect himself to be humiliated like this in the first battle here.


    A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. Newcomer? Low Profile? In any case, he had always been keeping a low profile.


    "Ye Futian." Suddenly, a person who had watched the assessment battles looked at Ye Futian. "And Yu Sheng, Yuan Zhan. They''re all in the top ten in the assessment this year."


    Many people turned around and stared at Ye Futian and his friends.


    "Top performer of the assessment. A Grade Nine Noble in the Law Rank." Many people smiled. One person even asked, "Top performer, did you come to the Law Battle Platform to have a fight?"


    "Passing by only," Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    "Since you''re here, why don''t you try? I want to see how strong the top performer this time is," the person who had just defeated Zhong Li said. His name was Wang Yu. Three years ago, he was only selected by the Thousand Holy Island due to his low level. However, he managed to enter the Core Island with his talents.


    "No. I was only lucky to be the top performer. Clearly, I''m no match for you," Ye Futian said, smiling. "Let''s go." Then, the group started walking away from the place. Ye Futian had come to the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate and become strong quickly. It would be best to avoid any battle.


    "Since you''re in the Law Rank, you don''t have to be so humble." Wang Yu released his aura which enveloped Ye Futian. He was still unwilling to give up.


    "Now," Ye Futian said softly. Then, he suddenly turned around. Enveloped with the wind, the four people charged towards Wang Yu directly, causing everyone around to be stunned. In the next instant, vines grew out from Yi Xiaoshi''s body wildly. Yuan Zhan slapped out, while Yu Sheng struck his God Slaying Halberd forward directly. On the other hand, the Polearm of Divine Destruction appeared in Ye Futian''s hands and he attacked Wang Yu from midair with an astonishing force. This sudden change caused everyone to be flabbergasted, including Wang Yu. He used all his powers to defend, but many attacks landed onto his body at the same time.


    Bang, bang, bang�� Many loud bangs were heard. Then, everyone saw Wang Yu''s body collapse on the ground directly as he spat out blood.


    "Let''s go." Before anyone could react, Ye Futian and his friends had already left and gone up into the sky.


    "Err..." Many people were bewildered. Ye Futian was humble just a second ago, but he suddenly attacked Wang Yu with his strongest move.


    "That''s�� despicable," someone said emotionlessly. Was this the top performance in this batch?


    Zhong Li got up from the ground and said coldly, "A Grade Six Noble just challenged a Grade Nine Noble, and you''re saying that he''s despicable?" Indeed, he was still too simple-minded. He should''ve been quick and ruthless just like Ye Futian.


    "It''s still so boring in the end." Yun Feng smiled and shook his head. He thought that Ye Futian, a genius who had just entered the Law Rank, would agree to the fight. Little did he expect something like this to happen. Therefore, he was somewhat disappointed. Then, he also left the place.


    On the other, Ye Futian who was flying in the air cursed in his mind, Idiot!

 588 Misunderstanding

    The region around the Law Battle Area was known as the Law Power Zone. Ye Futian spent one day walking around in the Law Power Zone, and he was somewhat shocked. The Holy Zhi Palace was indeed a holy land for cultivators. On the left side of the Law Power Zone, there were the Ice Zone and the Flame Zone, while on the right were the Earth Zone and the Lightning Zone. In the region at the back, one could find an extraordinary storm, as well as countless ancient woods. Among the seven powers, only the element of metal seemed to be missing. However, the Sky Reaching Tower at the front, which was honored as the best place for martial arts cultivators, was glittering in golden radiance and contained metal-elemental powers.


    That was the most crowded place. Of course, Ye Futian only visited the exterior of each zone to look at the situation inside. In the end, Yu Sheng, Yuan Zhan, and Yi Xiaoshi went to the Sky Reaching Tower, while Ye Futian went to the left side of the Law Power Zone alone. Such a wonderful place was very useful for him as a Noble Plane cultivator. He would definitely not miss out on the opportunity.


    Ye Futian went into the Ice Zone on the left side of the Law Power Zone. The entire place was white. Covered completely in ice, it looked desolate and freezing cold. Ye Futian strolled on the ice and stared at the frozen ancient tree ahead which looked like s an ice statue. Even with Ye Futian''s level, he could still feel an intense wave of coldness. However, he did not stop and continued walking deeper. This was clearly a place for cultivators with ice-elemental powers.


    The coldness grew rapidly in intensity. The frozen world, along with the silver, crystal-like tree, presented a different kind of beauty. From the icy ground, many traces of white, chilly gas were being released. The cold gas could actually seep into Ye Futian''s body, and it seemed to turn into a strange kind of ice-elemental Spiritual Qi. They spread across his body bit by bit, causing his blood to flow slowly. Gradually, Ye Futian''s pace, and even his breathing, slowed down. Unknowingly, Ye Futian felt that his thoughts and breathing were becoming slower as the coldness intruded into his body.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes. Sensing the world around him with his Spiritual Energy, he discovered that even the flow of Spiritual Qi was diminishing.


    The entire world had slowed down.


    This was an effect caused by Ice Will. Apart from being slower, Ye Futian''s body was also covered with frost. If this was to continue, he would be frozen here forever.


    In this barren, icy world, Ye Futian would very occasionally see other cultivators. They would normally sit down at a certain place, feeling the artistic conception in silence. After a cultivator reached the Noble Plane, absorbing Spiritual Qi and meditating would only allow his Spiritual Energy to grow by a limited amount. In this way, his rate of cultivation would be extremely slowly. To hasten it, he would need to focus on understanding Noble Will. Noble Will of any element would do the job.


    Noble Will was something that only Noble Plane cultivators could fully understand. It involved both Spiritual Energy and Spiritual Qi. Therefore, the deeper one''s understanding was, the faster one''s Spiritual Energy would grow. This was the reason why some Noble Plane cultivators were very likely to stagnate at a certain grade, unable to move forward. If both a cultivator''s talents and resources were limited, he might encounter a bottleneck. The disciples of major forces were talented and had various resources, so they could obviously grow faster. For example, in the Holy Zhi Palace, all the disciples were geniuses in the first place. In addition, they had natural resources to help their understanding and cultivation. Why would they not become strong? This was also the reason why cultivators would seek better colleges and forces.


    This place is really suitable for Loulan. In the future, I''ll find a way to let her cultivate here, Ye Futian thought. Then, he walked some distance forward again. He realized that the deeper he went, the stronger the artistic conception became and the more he could learn.


    In his body, a flame aura was flowing, resisting the corrosion from the coldness and preventing his body from being totally frozen. Sometimes, when he could not persist any longer, he would stop and cultivate.


    In this place, even time seemed to have slowed down. As Ye Futian alternated between walking and stopping, seven days passed. His understanding towards the element of ice had also grown deeper. However, he did not give up and continued walking into the deeper part. The cold gas being released from the ground was increasing. Ye Futian activated Freedom Meditation and discovered that a mysterious current was flowing towards him from a place ahead and beneath the ground. It was as though the endless icy Qi was coming from there. He wanted to see what exactly was causing this.


    Slowly, Ye Futian felt that he was very close to his destination. In front of him, there was a frozen valley. He activated the fire-elemental powers in his body to the maximum, and only then did he manage to reach the top of the valley. Looking down, he actually saw an icy lake��the Lake of Coldness��inside the valley. Icy currents were precisely being released from the Lake of Coldness and spreading outside, causing the entire place to be frozen.


    Ye Futian activated the Freedom Meditation. He could feel a mysterious yet potent power from the Lake of Coldness, but he did not go down impulsively. Instead, he sat down at the top of the valley and closed his eyes, feeling the power around him.


    Days passed one after the other. Ye Futian could feel the icy currents that had completely filled his surrounding slowly seep into his skin, blood, and bones.


    Suddenly, a beam of divine light appeared which looked like a crescent moon. As the divine light flew on his body, Ye Futian also released one of his Life Spirits, a lonely moon. At the same time, an emerald-green color glittered on his body and an ancient tree could be vaguely seen. Then, the three started to greedily devour the ice-elemental Qi around him. The icy Qi flew into Ye Futian''s body and eventually into his Life Palace. Even the World Tree was covered in frost as it rustled, producing a desolate and cold sight.


    At the moment, Ye Futian was somewhat shocked. He actually managed to do it. After he entered the Noble Plane and understood more about Noble Will, the World Tree could actually absorb the will of various elements. Of course, this was because the coldness was seeping into his body slowly. If someone attacked him by casting a powerful ice-elemental spell, he would be frozen to death before being able to absorb anything.


    In the blink of an eye, three more days passed. Ye Futian''s body was already covered in white frost. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and even his pupils seemed to have been turned silver. Shaking his body, the frost on his body dropped to the ground. Then, he stood up and walked slowly towards the Lake of Coldness in the valley. Accompanied by many rustlings, emerald-green stems and leaves extended from his body, absorbing the icy currents flowing past him.


    Finally, he reached the edge of the Lake of Coldness. His body was covered by frost which was then absorbed by his Life Spirit, and the whole process kept repeating itself. He knew well that without the World Tree, he would not have made it this far, and would have not dared to try it in the first place.


    "It''s not water. It''s an icy lake condensed from the icy currents. What''s down there?" Ye Futian muttered to himself. The stems of the World Tree continued to extend of from his body and entered the Lake of Coldness, going deeper. Ye Futian also walked out and submerged into the lake slowly. His World Tree Spirit enveloped his body and he did not dare to be even slightly careless.


    In the Lake of Coldness, Ye Futian continued his way down with his entire body covered in his Life Spirit. As he went deeper, he finally saw what was on the bed of the Lake of Coldness. It was a crystalline, silvery snow lotus which was so clean that not even the slightest amount of dirt could be found on it. The petals of the lotus were also silver in color. As it swayed in the lake slowly, icy currents were released from it.


    "This place is frozen and contains an endless amount of coldness. Is this only because of the lotus below?" Ye Futian was astonished. What lotus was this? Although he knew that there were many rare things in the world, this was the first time he saw such a powerful snow lotus.


    The lotus had given birth to an entire world, one that was covered by intense coldness.


    Ye Futian''s body was covered by his Life Spirit, but he could still feel how terrifying the icy currents trying to invade his body were. He did not want to stay any longer.


    "What''s that?" Suddenly, Ye Futian actually saw an ice statue beside the lotus. Someone was frozen inside. Was this someone from the Holy Zhi Palace who had died by entering the relic with brute force?


    The vines of the World Tree swept out and grabbed the ice statue. Then, Ye Futian ascended from the bed of the lake. He did not want the frozen body to remain there forever. Very soon, Ye Futian was out of the Lake of Coldness again. He brought the ice statue and left the valley, returning to the top. Then, he put the statue down.


    Ye Futian looked at the ice statue as his glance turned into a long stare. The person inside the transparent ice statue was actually an extremely charming lady. Moreover, she was wearing only simple undergarments. She looked sexy and exquisite, and her skin was white and flawless, as if it had merged with the ice.


    "That''s so unfortunate," Ye Futian muttered to himself. With such an outstanding appearance, she must have been a genius from a top family or force. She actually died cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian put his hand on the ice and his fire-elemental power slowly melted it away. Very quickly, a flawless body was lying on the ground. Her skin was as pure as snow, as if she had merged with the ground. Perhaps because she had been frozen, no injures could be observed on her body and her skin looked extremely delicate.


    "Even if you want to cultivate, why did you have to dress like this and enter the lake?" Ye Futian muttered to himself, not knowing what to do. If he just carried the corpse of the beauty outside, there would certainly be a huge misunderstanding. However, it was also bad to just leave her here.


    "Please forgive me." After withdrawing his Life Spirit, Ye Futian took out a piece of cloth and put it around the lady''s body. He could not care if there would be a misunderstanding. Who asked him to be so kind? Then, he picked the body up off the ground. He could feel that the lady''s skin was still soft and smooth, just like that of an ordinary person''s.


    Lifting his foot, Ye Futian walked towards the outside.


    In the silvery world, Ye Futian carried the body towards the entrance. Suddenly, someone asked, "Is it comfortable?"


    "Yup." Ye Futian nodded subconsciously.


    "Wait..." Ye Futian staggered and immediately looked at the person he was carrying. He saw a pair of clear and pretty eyes staring at him, as cold as the freezing world. Then, he felt her breath and heartbeat.


    "A corpse coming to life!" Ye Futian immediately withdrew his hands. Accompanied by a soft thud, the lady fell to the ground. However, she did not seem to have felt anything and was still staring coldly at Ye Futian. Then, she got up from the ground. With her back facing Ye Futian, she took out her clothes from her storage ring and covered her wonderful body up with a silver-colored windbreaker. When she turned around, Ye Futian raised both of his hands up and said in a shaking voice, "It''s just a misunderstanding..." He really wanted to curse. Was this lady mad? She ran to the Lake of Coldness to be frozen, and also had not worn enough clothing.


    The lady was still staring at him. Then, she reached out her hand. Immediately, Ye Futian was slowly frozen as an extremely intense coldness seeped into his body.


    Ye Futian shivered. The lady was at the peak of the Noble Plane.


    "Err..." Ye Futian wanted to curse, but he still smiled and explained, "It''s really a misunderstanding..." The coldness continued to invade his body. Stomping on the ground, Ye Futian jumped into the air immediately, his speed as fast as lightning. However, an enormous ice wall suddenly appeared on the path before him. At the same time, his body was almost frozen and he could hardly move.


    "Listen to my explanation!" Ye Futian shouted. How unlucky did he have to be?

 589 The Name of a Shameless One

    Yun Shuisheng studied in the Daozang Palace and was a student of Sage Daozang. Her ice-elemental powers were intriguing. She had been to the World of Ice many times and was often seen training there. As her plane grew, she was able to step into the Lake of Coldness to experience the true will of ice in order to further her training. She immersed herself within the Lake of Coldness, having her skin touch the cold currents directly to become one with the true will of ice. It was as if she had always been a part of the ice.


    As she was at the pinnacle of her Noble Plane, she needed to break into the Sage Plane. However, she did not expect when she awakened that not only was she unable to make a breakthrough and had not developed any further comprehension of anything, but she found herself in someone else''s embrace, someone male.


    Yun Shuisheng extended her hand, forcing streaks of cold currents into Ye Futian''s body. He felt the flow of his blood and the flow of Spiritual Qi around him slow. That very state was the state of the place they were in. The woman''s comprehension was deep and she had already developed the ability to conjure something that resembled what the space they were in was like, using her cold will alone.


    Ye Futian lifted his head and saw very pointy icicles hanging right over his head in the air. If anyone of them was to fall, he would lose his head.


    This woman is really serious, he thought.


    "Don''t you want to know what I''ve done to you?" Ye Futian asked loudly. Yun Shuisheng halted whatever she was doing and her eyes froze. Her eyes turned ice-cold as her chest heaved.


    He actually did something to me?


    Seeing her stop, Ye Futian explained quickly, "I saw you being sealed inside the Lake of Coldness and thought you might have accidentally fallen into it. I fished you out of mercy, and is this how you would return my kind act?"


    "I was training." Yun Shuisheng was so cold that it sent shivers down Ye Futian''s spine.


    "You get naked when you train?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Go to hell." The icicles hanging over Ye Futian''s head fell, and his body felt as if it was paralyzed by the power of cold, making movement nearly impossible.


    "The palace forbids the killing of one''s own, and you are about to violate that rule," Ye Futian shouted. Indeed, one should really never judge a book by its cover. I wouldn''t have thought that someone this beautiful could get this vicious. I wouldn''t have saved her otherwise.


    "No one else is here to see anything," Yun Shuisheng replied coldly.


    Dazzling lights glimmered about Ye Futian''s body. The encroaching cold was absorbed bit by bit as they talked. A shimmering light blasted, and the Polearm of Divine Destruction appeared. The implement blasted the icicles above him like a bolt of lightning, and a flying boat appeared beneath his legs at an incredible speed.


    The icicles were all destroyed by the polearm, and rumbling noises reverberated. Ye Futian vanished from where he was. Yun Shuisheng was stunned and her expression turned even colder. That slimy *sshole. She burst forward and chased after Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took to the sky, attempting to leave the Ice Zone and make for the Law Battle Area. There will be more people outside, and that wretch wouldn''t dare do anything then. Just what did I do to her to have her come for my neck? Women are vicious creatures indeed.


    It was fortunate that Headmaster Chen Yuan had given the flying boat to him, a device of unparalleled speed. However, Yun Shuisheng''s level was far higher than his. Against someone at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane, he was unable to shake her off, even running away using a ritual implement. If she were to get any closer, he would fall under the influence of her cold spells.


    The chase took place at a neck-breaking speed as they gradually reached the edge of the icy cold world. Ye Futian continued running as they went outside the area, and he found the woman continuing the chase, but she was unable to close in on him.


    "I was just trying to be nice. Do you have to go this far?" Ye Futian shouted at the silhouette behind him. Cold spears zipped at him. Ye Futian was startled enough that he turned around and continued steering the flying boat forward in an arc. He was irritated. He was able to understand the annoyance that the woman behind him was going through. While it was all just a misunderstanding, awakening to see herself in the embrace of a stranger, who was a man, was still something no woman would want to experience. He explained what happened, and she continued to come for his neck, and that was too much for him.


    Both zipped past in the air and finally made it into the Law Battle Area. Ye Futian sighed in relief. That woman won''t dare do anything now that we''re here.


    Two people below were puzzled. Is that Yun Shuisheng of Daozang Palace?


    Yun Shuisheng was known for her diligence in training, and she was hardly seen anywhere. She had immense talent and was a stunning beauty. Her high rank in the Law Rank made her a famous figure in the Holy Zhi Palace, and many knew her.


    "Who is she going after?" Someone looked in the direction of the chase.


    "That''s Ye Futian. The one who ranked first in the battle to enter the Holy Zhi Palace," someone else answered, and many flocked to see what was going on. Just how did that newbie manage to get on Yun Shuisheng''s bad side?


    Ye Futian continued forward. The golden Sky Reaching Tower was seen right before him and there were many disciples of the palace about. Many saw the two silhouettes in a chase in the air, and some came before Ye Futian, trying to block his way.


    Ye Futian frowned and stopped at a certain distance between him and the woman chasing him. He had never seemed to have offended anyone, so he was puzzled as to why there were people blocking his way.


    "Don''t you think you''ve gone too far, girl?" Ye Futian stopped, turning around to address Yun Shuisheng coming at him. The air around them turned incredibly cold in an instant. The currents seemed to slow down and the cold encroached yet again, making Ye Futian feel as if he was still within the Ice Zone.


    Yun Shuisheng scanned the ones around him without saying a word.


    "What did he do to offend sister Yun?" one of the people who went to block Ye Futian off asked Yun Shuisheng. Ye Futian had only realized then that it was not that he had done anything to offend the other guy, but that the other guy wanted to somehow show off to the woman chasing him.


    Yun Shuisheng did not answer, as she was simply unable to. She looked at Ye Futian with cold eyes and said, "Come with me."


    "Go with you?" Ye Futian eyed Yun Shuisheng, not knowing what she was up to.


    "Are you trying to make me take responsibility for you or something?" Ye Futian asked with a smirk.


    Everyone within earshot froze at the question. Taking responsibility for Yun Shuisheng?


    Yun Shuisheng was stunned herself. Her expression was incredibly cold and many murmured below them. It was only when Ye Futian''s name was spoken that they knew that the young man was the number one newbie, and the one who ranked last on the Law Rank. It was also said that the young man was incredibly shameless. He went about ambushing Wang Yu despite being new to the place, having no consideration for status or face whatsoever.


    Just what did this guy do Yun Shuisheng?


    "Silence." Yun Shuisheng said coldly, "Come with you and I will not kill you."


    Kill? Many got even more intrigued, specifically about what Ye Futian did.


    "Sister Yun, what has he done to you?" a girl asked again. She looked incredibly stunning and carried herself with an air of elegance. She also studied in Daozang Palace and shared an amicable bond with Yun Shuisheng. Suspecting that Ye Futian had actually done something to her friend, she looked at Ye Futian with a tinge of hostility.


    "Nothing," Yun Shuisheng answered lightly while keeping her eyes on Ye Futian.


    "Just go. I''ll just pretend it never happened, and you and I never meet each other," Ye Futian said looking at Yun Shuisheng.


    Yun Shuisheng responded by taking a step forward, her cold aura increasingly intense, and her spells went on to encompass Ye Futian. Many saw that he was about to be thoroughly frozen in mere seconds. The freezing power was extremely intense, so much so that not even flames would have been able to do anything to withstand it. He felt his body being encroached and his blood about to freeze.


    "If you won''t stop what you''re doing, I''ll tell everyone what happened between us," Ye Futian said loudly, and everything seemed to freeze instantly.


    Everyone lifted their heads to look at Ye Futian. What happened between the two of them? What did he do to Yun Shuisheng?


    As expected, Yun Shuisheng stopped what she was doing. Despite her temperance, it was not hard to see that she was still infuriated, and her eyes were still fixed on Ye Futian.


    "Nothing happened between us," Yun Shuisheng said coldly.


    "If that is actually true, tell what happened and let everyone judge for themselves," Ye Futian added.


    "Ye Futian," Yun Shuisheng uttered his name coldly. She came to know his name from the chatter taking place below her.


    "I''ll remember you." Yun Shuisheng glared at Ye Futian before turning around and leaving.


    The cold aura dispersed and Ye Futian sighed. However, the relief did nothing to ease his frustration. His kindness was viciously returned; he had become a big, glowing target. Worse still, he had been threatened.


    I sure as hell don''t think anyone would be alright with something like that happening to them, he thought.


    "Nice body you have there," Ye Futian quipped as he saw Yun Shuisheng walking away. Yun Shuisheng halted briefly and shuddered before leaving the scene. She did not get herself entangled further, as she knew he would actually make good on his words.


    Many present were infuriated by Ye Futian''s words. What do you mean ''nice body''?


    Why had Sister Yun chased him all over the place like that yet did not end up daring to lift a finger against him? Their conversation piqued the interests of many.


    Just what did that b*stard do to Yun Shuisheng?


    Many disciples of Daozang Palace revered and idolized the cool beauty who ranked high on the Law Rank, and they were immensely irked at Ye Futian making a pass at her.


    "Has this guy no shame?" someone asked coldly.


    "What a vile creature." No one expected the one who ranked first in the Law Battles would be so despicable.


    It was only natural that Ye Futian heard everything and felt everyone''s hostility towards him. However, he was never one to bother himself much with the opinions of others. He saw no need to explain himself. He glanced at the Sky Reaching Tower and made his way there. He figured it would do him good to train for a bit since he was already there.


    "You think you can just walk away like this?" A dashing youth crossed his arms and looked at Ye Futian, blocking his way.


    Ye Futian frowned and asked, "Do I know you?"


    The youth gave a sarcastic smirk. It was obvious that they did not know each other.


    "Teach him how we do things here in the Holy Zhi Palace," someone quipped. It was the girl who seemed to be a friend of Yun Shuisheng. Her cold eyes continued to glare at Ye Futian.


    "And who would you be?" Ye Futian could not help but ask the girl as several people walked in his direction.


    "You don''t need to know. How dare you behave so insolently when you have just arrived here? Insulting Sister Yun and all. She might have let you off the hook, but we are not done." The girl took to the air. Her hair billowed and her expression remained cold. She felt compelled to teach him a lesson, even if he was the champion of the Law Battle.

 590 First Battle in the Palace

    Ye Futian looked at the girl before him. Yun Shuisheng might have gone looking for trouble for some solid reason, but the girl before him was simply sticking her nose in places she should not have.


    Brother Qi Jie was right: there were hardly any rules in the palace. He knew one cold hard fact about the palace��might makes right.


    He recalled the words of his senior and found that it was all the same no matter where he ended up. Most of the time, one''s fist was more compelling than one''s words. It was a pity that he was a newbie to the place, and everyone else was a part of the Holy Zhi Palace before he was. Most of them advanced from the Thousand Holy Islands. There were also people who were selected from examinations three years and six years ago. It was only natural that most people had more training than he did, especially those who were there years before him. The levels of those people were way above his, one of them being Yun Shuisheng, who was at the top of the Noble Plane. As such, the so-called righteous indignation that they seemed to be going through then was simply a mask for something far simpler��bullying the new guy. It was especially so given that the new guy was the one who ranked first in the entrance examination held earlier, who got ranked on the Law Rank as soon as he got in. It was only natural that one such figure would attract attention.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "I''m new to the palace, and in terms of planes and levels, everyone present would be my senior. Your so-called ''teaching me how you do things here'' is exactly what I see before me." He cast his glance onto everyone present as he said. Everyone knew what his seemingly polite words actually meant��he was criticizing them for bullying.


    However, there was hardly anyone moved by his words. Someone replied with a smirk, "Well, are you telling me that you have forgotten what you did, ambushing others and all back at the Law Battle Tablet? It''s only natural that we be wary."


    "So, that is to say, that you seniors find it imperative to gang up on the new guy, which would be me, then?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "Gang up?" The cross-armed youth looked at Ye Futian and answered, "We know what you are trying to pull here, but you think too highly of yourself. Pick any one of us here and fight. If you manage to win, we''ll let you off. How about that?" Many looked on with interest. While they saw Ye Futian to be some vile creature, they were nonetheless curious of what he was capable of, and this proved to be a good chance to see what he was made of. The fight would also have the added benefit of teaching him a lesson and having him know his place.


    "And you would be speaking for?" Ye Futian asked as he looked about.


    The youth was dumbfounded. He was indeed incapable of speaking for anyone present, yet the fact remained that many shared his thoughts at the moment. The girl who talked about teaching Ye Futian a lesson opened her mouth as Ye Futian kept his gaze on the students around him. "Your pick."


    "And what is your plane?" Ye Futian nodded and asked the girl.


    "Grade Five Noble," the girl answered coldly.


    "I make it a point of not bullying women," Ye Futian said crisply, rendering everyone around stunned. This guy really has no shame indeed. Not bullying woman? Then what was he doing with Yun Shuisheng?


    It was unexpected for many that he was able to find such a grand excuse to mask his cowardice. There were probably no predecessors who entered the palace as a champion and were as shameless as Ye Futian. He was indeed a trailblazer in certain ways. Hua Fan of the Holy Sage Pavilion was a genius like no other, and even Ximen Hanjiang from three years ago was just as dashing. The one before their eyes, however, despite having incredibly good looks, was a despicable one like no other. It was a pity that someone so vile was so handsome.


    "And you senior, what is your plane?" Ye Futian looked at the crossed-armed youth before him.


    "Grade Six Noble," the youth smirked as he answered.


    "I will fight you then." Ye Futian added, "As my plane was still low, may I be allowed to use a ritual implement?"


    "Beware of traps," the girl beside the youth reminded. That is one vile creature, and you can''t just fall into his trap. Furthermore, despite being despicable and shameless, his might as the champion to enter the palace was not just for show, and he is definitely powerful to a certain extent. He needs prowess equal to a Grade Seven Noble Plane to be a champion. If he is allowed the use of sage ritual implements, he will be difficult to deal with when he gets serious. They had already given Ye Futian a chance to challenge who he fancied, and they were not about to say yes to such a request.


    "Of course, you should be allowed to use a ritual implement yourself," Ye Futian said plainly after sparing a glance at the girl.


    "Alright then." The youth smiled. No member of the Holy Zhi Palace was someone common who could be found just anywhere. It was a given that the youth packed something tremendous himself, and Ye Futian had no way of getting an edge using such tricks.


    "I thank you for your generosity. May I know your name? If I were to lose, I''d at least like to know to whom I lost," Ye Futian added.


    "The name''s Yan Xin," the youth said. "Aren''t you talking a little too much?"


    "I look forward to learn from you, senior," Ye Futian said as he cupped his hands. He took out the Polearm of Divine Destruction without saying another word, and he became clad in starlight.


    "That is a pretentious one." Many looked at Ye Futian, who behaved politely despite obviously feeling very irritated inside. He had smiled broadly and addressed the other party as ''senior''. They were rather impressed at the thickness of his hide.


    "Make your move," Yan Xin said plainly. Terrifying thunderous power blazed in a mere instant. Their surroundings trembled instantaneously as Yan Xin seemed to have become another person. A shadow of a tremendously huge thunder god appeared behind him. The shadow carried a Thunder Hammer that seemed to be able to crush the earth beneath them with one swing.


    Yan Xin, the proud son of the top force of Zhongzhou City, the Lightning Court. He had only broken through Noble Plane about three years ago and had earned the favor of the elders in the Daozang Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace shortly after. He was offered a place in the palace. Now, three years had passed, and his training progressed to Grade Six Noble Plane. He had acquired impeccable control of the power of lightning will.


    While Yan Xin was eager to teach the newbie who was the champion of the Law Battle, he did not allow himself to underestimate his opponent. The guy who was all smiles before him, Ye Futian, knew no restraint when he got serious, and Wang Yu served as a shining example.


    The sky was shrouded by lightning, and everyone backed away. The battle between the proud nobles in the Holy Zhi Palace would have easily affected large areas.


    The sky was soon turned into a space of lightning. Starlight shimmered around Ye Futian, yet his starry world seemed to be overwhelmed. The god of thunder was about a hundred meters tall and looked like a true god. The eyes of the thunder god flashed. It shot a fearsome bolt of lightning, lashing out at Ye Futian.


    Voom. The wings of the Roc flapped behind Ye Futian as he evaded one attack after another. The lightning above his head kept aiming for him. Ye Futian flew about in dazzling arcs as he evaded the incoming attacks. Lights shimmered within his Life Palace. The Spiritual Qi within and about him all turned into power of stars as rustling noises were heard, circling about him and flowing to his Polearm of Divine Destruction. He activated the Divine Light of the Stars, allowing the light of the stars flowing into his weapon to shine increasingly brightly.


    At that moment, the god of thunder''s shadow extended a large palm from behind Yan Xin. It was a strike packed with immeasurable might of lightning, with the swirl of lightning in the palm looking like some terrifying vortex out to kill everything it touched. The palm struck at Ye Futian. The sky seemed to be blocked out as streaks of lightning rained down on him, sealing off the space around him.


    "Out of everyone he could have picked to fight, he had to pick Yan Xin." Many looked on with sarcastic looks. The champion of the battle to enter the Holy Zhi Palace was about to learn his first lesson within the palace.


    Yan Xin entered the Holy Zhi Palace as someone who had just broken into Noble Plane back in his day. His talents were incredibly extraordinary, despite being nowhere near as eye-catching as Ye Futian''s. The battle between the two was heavily in Yan Xin''s favor, so much so that it was impossible for Ye Futian to come out on top, for no other reason than Yan Xin was on a way higher plane than Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s spiraling body seemed to be trying to escape, yet the palm continued to smack at him, and Ye Futian seemed to be smacked soon enough. However, Ye Futian flew in an arc, turning around to ride the lightning as he blitzed across the air, heading in Yan Xin''s direction.


    The lightning bolts that were raining down hit Ye Futian squarely, yet the glittering screen of starlight protected him. Cracks appeared and the screen gradually shattered, but Ye Futian was about to escape the attack range of the palm and get close to Yan Xin.


    "Hmph." Yan Xin smirked. The tall god of thunder lifted the Thunder Hammer high and brought it down on Ye Futian. The strike seemed to be one out to kill everything in its path.


    At that very second, the Polearm of Divine Destruction in Ye Futian''s hand lashed out. The ritual implement turned into a hundred-meter long staff, breathing starlight. The starry world around him turned even brighter, circling around the Polearm of Divine Destruction. A force capable of cleaving heaven and earth seemed to be born. Even spectators who were watching from afar were able to feel the formless pressure bearing on them.


    "That is one horrifying ritual implement. He was hiding it all along." The color of some peoples'' faces changed.


    "Be careful," the girl reminded. Ye Futian hid the true might of the Polearm of Divine Destruction before, making everyone think that it was a usual sage ritual implement. Its true might burst suddenly as stars glittered in the air. The implement brought the full brunt of the starry world upon its surrounding environment. It exuded an extremely unbearable pressure. It was as if the stars had all come down on one''s shoulders.


    The weapon clashed with the Thunder Hammer. Rumbling noises were heard and storms whipped up in the air. Stars fell one by one in the starry world, turning into forces of immeasurable magnitude as they crashed down. Many saw the Thunder Hammer being thrown back, while the polearm continued its course downward.


    Yan Xin''s expression finally changed. He shouted and the god of thunder took one step forward, blocking his body. When the polearm struck, it landed squarely within the shadow of the god of thunder, cracking its gigantic body.


    "Pwwuuh." Yan Xin spat up blood and the shadow disappeared altogether. Ye Futian turned into a bolt of lightning as he lashed out. Yan Xin felt a staff land on his body before he was able to recover. While the force of the incoming staff was nothing like before, it was nonetheless enough to send him flying, dropping him to the ground spewing blood.


    Yan Xin''s face turned incredibly pale. He had intended to teach that so-called champion newbie a lesson in front of everyone, yet he ended up being the one getting beaten and injured. Just what was that thing packing so much power?


    "Are you alright, senior?" A figure came beside Yan Xin, and it was none other than Ye Futian. Sincere concern was seen from his clear eyes.


    "Was I going too far?" Ye Futian added as Yan Xin continued his silent. "I''m sorry, senior. Had I known it would turn out like this, I wouldn''t have used my full power. I''ll go easier on you next time."


    "Pfftt..." Yan Xin spit up blood again, and his face turned even paler.


    Everyone around looked at Ye Futian dumbfounded. Do you really have to add insult to injury? Just how shameless can you be? What will you have Yan Xin do from here on out?


    "Get out of my sight," Yan Xin said coldly.


    "Thank you, senior," Ye Futian said with his hands cupped before walking past him and adding in a low voice, "How were you unable to take even one hit? Were you going easy on me?" He walked in the direction of the Sky Reaching Tower as he finished, leaving everyone standing dumbfounded where they were.


    Everyone was speechless.


    Yan Xin was so enraged that he shook all over. Many looked at him with eyes full of sympathy. While it was a common occurrence for one to lose a battle, the humiliating loss coupled with Ye Futian''s words made it unbearable for Yan Xin.


    You have great strength, so why be so despicable?

 591 Conflict at Daozang Palace

    The Sky Reaching Tower glittered golden lights. Its golden dazzling sheen flowed from top to bottom and spread out to all corners. Ye Futian was able to feel the immense pressure bearing down on him by simply standing at the edge of its vicinity. It was especially so when the golden sheen passed by his body. It felt as if magnificent energies were wandering about him.


    The Law Power Zone consisted of ruins bearing powers of six elements, except for metal-element. It was thought that metal-element worked in synchronization with the tower, allowing one to develop comprehension of metal-elemental will and temper one''s body just by being around it.


    The base of the tower was open all day long. Every single door felt as if it were a cavern. A figure was seen standing right before Ye Futian, who smiled as Ye Futian walked in the tower''s direction.


    "Brother Qi Jie," Ye Futian called.


    "You are quite something yourself, little brother. You''ll be famous here soon enough," Qi Jie said with a smile, thinking that Ye Futian was indeed the champion of the Law Battles, bullying his seniors as soon as he made himself comfortable with the place and all. He used to hear that newbies were the ones being bullied.


    "I''m afraid the correct word would be ''notorious'' instead." Ye Futian shrugged, not caring whether he was famous or notorious. He was new to the palace and his plane was low. He joked around and used tricks to save himself from trouble. While many were dissatisfied as to how he behaved in his first ever battle inside the palace, there was hardly anyone who bothered trying to understand what he was going through. Having a noble at the top of her plane out for his head, and then being surrounded by a group of middle-grade nobles was no pleasant experience. He did not find it feasible to just protest the indignation he suffered and fight his way out to show how noble he was as a person. If he had lost that very first battle, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Despite having won his battle in the palace, he was humiliated all the same. His title as the champion was thought to be a joke of some kind. If whacking each and every one of those who bullied him had been a doable solution, he would not have bothered saying much to them. What mattered most to him at the moment was that he train and improve his powers.


    Reputation was hardly a concern in comparison.


    During his travels on the Holy Road and the battles for entry into the Holy Zhi Palace, he had endured all sorts of humiliation. However, no one was able to say or do anything once he came out on top. If there were to be a day where he ranked first on the Law Rank and gained entry to the Sage Palace, there would be no place for anyone to doubt his abilities.


    "Your reputation will improve when you are able to beat all of them." Qi Jie smiled and added, "Oh right, that girl back then was Xiang Zhiqin, a student of Sage Daozang. She has a high status, a princess of the Xiang Kingdom who emerged from State Road. Isn''t she pretty?"


    Ye Futian frowned at Qi Jie. Is this guy really a monk?


    "Poison coated with sugar, I''d say. I have no care for external beauty anyway," Ye Futian said plainly. While Xiang Zhiqin was indeed a beauty, he found her domineering personality repulsive.


    "You will be good friends with the Buddha, little brother," Qi Jie said with a smile.


    "So what are you doing here, senior?" Ye Futian stepped into the tower. Intense and terrifying pressure was felt welling up from below. Ye Futian lifted his head to look at the top side of the tower while he was inside. There were 18 floors, and alcoves were found at the edge of every single floor. Many were seen sitting inside to train.


    "The ones who are here most often are the people from the Battle Sage Palace, as this tower allows them to temper their physical bodies to further their martial arts, while at the same time train to develop their Spiritual Energies. There are 18 floors to the tower. How about you try and see how many floors you can go up?" Qi Jie elaborated.


    "Will do." Ye Futian nodded. Yu Sheng, Yi Xiaoshi, and Yuan Zhan were all training on the floors above. "Is the pressure at the top floor the strongest?" he asked.


    "Indeed. You''ll understand once you''ve experienced it yourself. Students of the Battle Sage Palace are all required to make it to the 18th floor before their teachers impart arts of the highest level for tempering their bodies," Qi Jie explained.


    "Understood, Brother Qi Jie. I''ll go train now." Ye Futian went straight for the first floor and found an empty spot. He sat down and within mere moments, golden sheens slithered about his body. He came to feel as if he was shouldering a tower and felt overwhelmed. The golden sheen seemed to pack fearsome penetration powers, hitting his body and making him feel as if he was being beaten up. The tremendous pressure permeated every inch of his body, making him feel as if he was being squeezed all over.


    "I didn''t expect the pressure of the very first floor to be this strong," Ye Futian murmured to himself. After experiencing the pressure for some time, he went to the second floor, then the third, fourth, and so on. When he reached the seventh floor, he was able to feel terrifying forces bearing not just on his body, but also his mind. That feeling was indescribable. It was as if his very soul was being pressed down upon. Endless lights poured down, tearing away at both his body and soul. Within brief moments, Ye Futian felt as if he was riddled in holes, his muscles torn all over, and his bones shattered completely. He was able to endure the pain for one hour before he had to leave the seventh floor. His body felt as if it no longer belonged to him, as if his will was forcefully torn away from his body.


    "I can''t believe Yu Sheng actually made it to the ninth floor." Ye Futian looked up and saw both Yi Xiaoshi and Yuan Zhan at the eight floor, but they had been training there for some time; time which Ye Futian had been spending in that world of ice.


    After taking some rest, Ye Futian felt that his body was ready again. He then went up to the seventh floor, acclimatizing himself to the pressure. He felt as if something was calling out to him from within, yet at other times, shimmering lights permeating his body from top to bottom. It was like he was shouldering a tower. If one''s body was weak, one could not withstand such pressure, and the same could be said if one''s will was weak as well.


    After some time, a figure approached Ye Futian and said plainly, "Are you that champion who beat Yan Xin with one whack with the staff?"


    "Just luck, and mostly thanks to the power of the ritual implement. Hardly worth mentioning." Ye Futian opened his eyes. The one before him was dumbfounded. It was rumored that Ye Futian was a vile creature, yet he behaved completely otherwise instead.


    Before the figure was able to say anything further, Ye Futian added, "I admit defeat."


    "..." The figure stared at him stunned, before shaking their head and leaving with a smile. This is boring indeed.


    Throughout the days Ye Futian spent training in the tower, there were several people who came looking for him. He replied to them the same way he did the first person he spoke to in the tower. Ye Futian was no longer seen in the tower after a while, as he went to the Law Power Zone.


    It was as he expected. The reputation of the champion was not good within the palace.


    Contrary to his reputation however, his rank on the Law Rank rose instead. He was then ranked 97th, right behind Yun Feng.


    ��


    Daozang Palace, the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Many students came before the majestic ancient temple. The proud students of the Daozang Palace all stopped training and returned to the palace itself. Sage Daozang personally lecturing that day to answer questions of the ones studying in the Daozang Palace and to impart ways to train. It was a rare opportunity, something that only happened several times a year. It was only natural for the students of Daozang Palace to cherish such rare events. Furthermore, Sage Daozang was the one to give the most number of lectures out of all the lords from the six palaces and pavilions, and the students of Daozang Palace were also the most numerous.


    Hundreds flocked to the majestic ancient temple, and things looked marvelous. There were also students from other pavilions and palaces to join the lecture. Daozang Palace did not mind their presence, as all members of the Holy Zhi Palace were welcomed.


    There were two figures seated on their cushions silently. The two came earlier and as such, were able to sit at the fore. Most looked at them with eyes of adoration. Those two were none other than the new students of the Daozang Palace: Hua Jieyu and Phoenix. Both figures shared two things in common: both were hard working in their training and both looked stunning.


    While Daozang Palace had always been known for their number of beauties, there were not many. There were four top class beauties among the ones personally taught by the palace lord. Other than the two newbies, there were also Yun Shuisheng and Xiang Zhiqin. Of the four, Hua Jieyu was most deemed the most perfect, for behaving like a fairy and seeming to embody all that was beautiful about the world.


    Phoenix exuded extraordinary elegance as if she was not of this world; clean and free from all that was unsightly about the world.


    Yun Shuisheng was the cool beauty of the palace, and also one deemed to be worshipped.


    Xiang Zhiqin was beautiful and elegant, with looks on par with the other three. Most deemed the four to be the most beautiful sight the Daozang Palace had to offer. As such, it was a tremendously beautiful thing for all four of them to be present at one place.


    There was also one spot flocked to by many. A figure was seen sitting there and painting earnestly, a figure named Yun Feng. He drew very slowly and spared glances at the two figures in front of him occasionally. Many surrounded him and watched the two he was drawing come to life on paper. He was only drawing their faces from the side, but it proved more than enough to tug the heartstrings of many.


    "The painting seems to be imbued with the natural prowess of the gods, and it looks like a dream. Yun Feng''s mastery of the arts is indeed impeccable, and he will become yet another famous painter one day."


    "Yun Sheng, rumor has it that you already have Sister Yun and Sister Xiang in your paintings. Are you adding the painting of Hua Jieyu and Phoenix to your collection as well?" someone asked with a smile from the side.


    "They are both angels in the mortal world. If I would have them both in painting, they would become even more perfect, free from all forms of dirt from the mortal world," Yun Feng answered with a smile. He put his brush down and looked at his work, finding it satisfactory.


    "Is that ''dirt'' you mentioned referring to Ye Futian?" someone else asked. Yun Feng stayed silent but seemed to have admitted to it nonetheless.


    Someone cast their gaze to the side. Yun Shuisheng was seen there as well, looking pure and stunning. They found it hard to believe that such a woman had been defiled by Ye Futian. They came to know what Hua Jieyu looked like, and that she was indeed one of the top beauties in Daozang Palace. They were unable to believe Ye Futian would defile Sister Yun despite having one such girlfriend himself. It was only natural that students of Daozang Palace had a very low opinion of him.


    That guy is simply lower than trash. How can he do such a thing to Sister Yun? How could he when he has a girlfriend like Hua Jieyu?


    Hua Jieyu was seen standing up slowly at that very moment, before turning around and walking in Yun Feng''s direction. Her eyes fell onto the painting, and she asked, "Do you mind destroying it?"


    "How could I possibly destroy such a masterpiece?" Yun Feng answered. Hua Jieyu spared a glance at him and added, "Allow me, then." She fixed her gaze on the painting. Flames jumped on the paper in mere moments, burning it to nothing.


    Many turned to look at Hua Jieyu. She...really gives respect to no one, indeed.


    Yun Feng was still considered famous in Daozang Palace, and his seniors were good friends with Sage Daozang himself.


    "Do you really have to go this far? Even if you destroy it, what makes you think I wouldn''t just paint another one?" Yun Feng asked Hua Jieyu with a smile.


    "I''ll destroy however many you paint." Hua Jieyu looked at Yun Feng, yet her smiling eyes carried a tinge of coldness. It was obvious that she minded his actions a lot, and it displeased her immensely.


    Yun Feng looked at Hua Jieyu and recalled a young man he saw on the Law Rank. "Is it because of Ye Futian?"


    "Do you really have to, little sister?" Xiang Zhiqin walked in their direction and turned her eyes to Hua Jieyu. "While that person has immense talent, he has little to offer in the way of propriety. He is little more than a despicable mongrel, and definitely not one to be bothered with."


    "That has nothing to do with you." Hua Jieyu turned to look at Xiang Zhiqin, and her expression turned fierce and unwavering. Throughout the days she spent training in Daozang Palace in solace, she heard many bad things about Ye Futian. While gossip was indeed a fearful thing, one had no control over what others talked about. However, she was not about to tolerate others doing the same right in front of her, whoever they may have been.


    Sparks flew between the two as they locked their eyes at each other in such a sacred place.

 592 A Grade Eight Noble

    Everyone at the Daozang Palace wore tense expressions on their faces. Two beauties of the Daozang Palace were actually at odds with each other over what Ye Futian had said.


    Many were actually a little envious of Ye Futian, who had ranked first in the Law Battle and had garnered a bad reputation for himself. It made people somewhat jealous to see how protective Hua Jieyu was over him. But Ye Futian had also been that beast who had insulted older sister Yun.


    "Younger sister, Zhiqin only meant you well. Why act this way?" Yun Feng piped up from the side, breaking the tension between the two. Xiang Zhiqin smiled snidely. Since Hua Jieyu liked Ye Futian, there was nothing she could do about it anyway.


    "I just feel sorry for you, younger sister," Xiang Zhiqin spoke calmly. "Insulting older sister Yun, launching a sneak attack during someone else''s challenge. With such behavior, it''s better that you take note of it in future, younger sister."


    Hua Jieyu looked at Xiang Zhiqin. There had been much discussion over Ye Futian in the Daozang Palace. Having paid attention to what was being said about him, Hua Jieyu was not surprised by what Xiang Zhiqin had just said.


    Hua Jieyu walked over to Yun Shuisheng. Looking down at her, she spoke, "Older sister Yun, I don''t know what caused the misunderstanding between the two of you, but I hope you can understand how he might feel being hunted down by a senior of your cultivations and plane. If he has done anything to offend you, I apologize on his behalf and ask for your forgiveness. But I assure you, he is definitely not what you think he is, older sister."


    Yun Shuisheng looked up at the startlingly beautiful face. She had been training in seclusion at the cold pond all this while and had no idea what was happening in the outside world. It was only after returning to the Daozang Palace that she learned that the man who had belittled her was actually the top disciple amongst those who had just entered the palace. Furthermore, she was shocked upon hearing that Hua Jieyu was his girlfriend, and it hit her that the events of that day might have indeed been a misunderstanding. But even if it was a misunderstanding, it was insulting to have been embraced by a man like that. That was why she had persistently pursued Ye Futian the other day.


    Thinking about that incident made feelings of indignation rise in her. But as Ye Futian was a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace, after all, there was nothing she could really do to him anyway. Besides, Hua Jieyu was a junior of hers, too. As such, Yun Shuisheng replied, "If he can make a public apology to clear the air, I''ll let this incident go."


    "Thank you, older sister." Hua Jieyu smiled at Yun Shuisheng before her gaze turned once again to Xiang Zhiqin. "As for those supposed challenges, the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace are all amazing characters in their own right. If a group of people of a high plane was to surround a grade nine noble who had just entered the palace, demand that he entertains their challenges and smear doubt over the integrity of his conduct, then I think those people should reflect on their own behavior first."


    "That''s enough," a calm voice rang out. The owner of the voice sat quietly on a praying mat before them. He was clothed in white robes that billowed onto the floor, with a guqin in front of him. Just the outline of his figure alone belied an incredible aura that was like none other.


    "You''re new to the palace, younger sister, so perhaps you''re not too aware of the culture here," the man said. He turned to the side and said, "Just as you''ve said, the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace are all amazing in their own right. That''s why it isn''t that much of a humiliation to lose in a normal challenge due to being of a lower plane. One can always train and participate in a rematch. In a way, this is how disciples of the palace motivate each other to train harder. Everyone who has entered the palace, even those at the top of the ranks, have all been met with similar setbacks before. Ye Futian''s actions are understandable, but as the top disciple amongst the newcomers and as one whose name entered the Law Rank upon entering the palace, he''s seen as someone special. As such, people will naturally be more critical towards whatever he does. Zhiqin was speaking out of good intentions." The man''s voice was gentle, and there seemed to be a mystical quality to it that made his words especially convincing.


    "As for Zhiqin," he continued, "some of the things she said were indeed out of line. Let''s not pursue this matter any further."


    Many of the Daozang Palace disciples were gazing at the figure. His face was turned to the side as he continued staring ahead.


    "Since senior has spoken, I will speak no further," Xiang Zhiqin responded.


    Hua Jieyu threw a glance. She was still somewhat unhappy, but she did not put up any further resistance and returned to her own seat. There was nothing she could do to change the thoughts of others, but time would reveal all.


    "Older brother Lian really is outstanding," people commented as they looked over at the man who had spoken. That man was Lian Yuqing, a Musical Sorcerer who was the successor that would inherit the Guqin Techniques. He was the strongest among the nobles in the Daozang Palace and was ranked fifth in the Law Rank.


    Both Lian Yuqing and Yun Shuisheng were two of the strongest nobles in the Daozang Palace. Many people knew that Lian Yuqing''s goal was to catch up with Bai Luli, who was tenth in the Barren Sky Ranking. As much as the Law Rank was nicknamed the mini Barren Sky Ranking, in reality, there was still a huge gap in the abilities of those in the different rankings.


    Suddenly, several people could be seen walking towards everyone from afar. Instantly, the disciples got up in a flurry and bowed. The man at the head of the party was Sage Daozang himself. He was the sole reason why hundreds of disciples had gathered here. They were all here to learn from him.


    Sage Daozang''s knowledge was vast, and of the six Palace Lords, he was the most well-rounded. As such, many cultivators of different professions were willing to learn from him. These included people like Musical Sorcerers and Painters, among many others. Under the guidance of Sage Daozang, they could ask him questions they had during the cultivation process and seek clarity through his answers.


    ��


    Completely unaware of the conflict happening within the Daozang Palace, Ye Futian was still intent on training in the Law Power Zone of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    A canyon lay along the southern area of the Law Power Zone. The canyon brimmed with a frightening dark grey energy, which turned out to be a hurricane that tore apart everything within range. This area was an incredibly barren one, and it seemed as if the vast raging hurricane was in the canyon.


    At this very moment, a person sat cross-legged in the midst of the hurricane, allowing the roaring winds to slice across his body, tearing his top and slashing through his flesh like unforgivingly sharp blades. His body was riddled with thread-thin, bloody cuts left by the winds, and traces of wounds that had been healed over could be seen as well.


    Ye Futian had truly experienced the savage violence of the hurricane within this area. Wind Intent at its mightiest manifested in a powerful attacking force that was like a blade, stabbing at every part of Ye Futian it could reach and harboring an intense energy that tore apart everything in its way.


    After a long while, Ye Futian stood up and began walking deeper into the canyon. A month later, Ye Futian appeared within the earth area that was located in the eastern part of the Law Power Zone. Three months after that, he set foot into the destructive lightning area, which was also in the same eastern part of the Zone.


    Time flew by in a haze. Spring changed into summer then into autumn, and in the blink of an eye, it was the end of autumn already. The fire area was a world consumed by flames, emanating frightening destructive energy. Waves of fire currents surged towards Ye Futian and seeped into his body.


    The flames of this area were incredibly powerful, and the fire currents that had entered Ye Futian''s body felt as though they were about to consume everything in their path. Where Ye Futian stood, all was barren and lifeless, having been destroyed by the flames. But one occasionally saw a few cultivators who had come here to train as well.


    This place looks like a mountain range that has been burned to ashes, Ye Futian thought to himself as he walked towards the center of the fire area. Fire currents that were even more powerful than before came rushing towards him, invading his body and even worming into Ye Futian''s mind in an attempt to burn away his will.


    A rustling sound came from within Ye Futian''s Life Palace. Jade green light flowed along the surface of his body, swallowing up the fire currents that passed through his body bit by bit. Within his Life Palace, these flame currents shot straight for the World Tree Life Spirit and attached themselves to it in an aggressive attempt to incinerate the Life Spirit.


    "Come��" Just then, a mystical voice rang out inside Ye Futian''s head. There seemed to be a special magical quality to the voice as it summoned him.


    "What''s that sound?" Ye Futian''s expression changed. He continued walking, stepping through the sea of flames. A mountain lay ahead, and it seemed like the voice was coming from there.


    "Come over here," that same mystical voice rang out again, guiding him forward. Ye Futian gradually neared the mountain, and the power of the flames grew stronger as well.


    "Don''t go any further if you value your life," someone warned from afar, opening their eyes to shoot Ye Futian a calm glance.


    Ye Futian stopped and turned to look at them, but at that moment a loud bang was heard, and the mountains seemed to have been blown apart. Ye Futian turned his gaze back to see a gigantic Divine Fire Bird before him. That Divine Fire Bird had three feet and was as dazzling as the sun itself. It was a Divine Bird of the Sun, the Three-Legged Golden Raven.


    A streak of fire current energy shot viciously towards Ye Futian. He retreated in a flash, only to feel several Three-Legged Golden Raven shadows rush into his mind in a bid to incinerate him.


    Using the Holy Will, Ye Futian kept his will intact and retreated far away before he looked forward again. The mountain was actually a massive matrix, and it was glowing blindingly bright now. The Three-legged Golden Raven charged again with a roar, but it was sealed by the matrix and could not go any further.


    It''s no wonder that these flames are so wild, given that they were generated because of this Three-legged Golden Raven. It would be good if I could consume a demonic beast of this level in future, Ye Futian thought to himself. It seemed like he had gotten into some sort of bad habit at the Cottage.


    Ye Futian then thanked the person who had spoken for the reminder. The person did not reply, closing his eyes to continue training. Ye Futian was not bothered by this, and he trained here for a period of time before leaving the place.


    When Ye Futian returned to the Sky Reaching Tower once more, Yu Sheng had already entered the tenth level of the Tower already. Ye Futian directly entered the ninth level and endured the incredibly mighty pressure present there. As of now, he had already broken through to a higher plane in terms of sorcery and was nearing the threshold of the next plane in terms of martial arts.


    After seven days in the ninth level of the Sky Reaching Tower, a cracking sound came from Ye Futian''s body. A roar emanated from within his body and something seemed to shift about him. Around Ye Futian, an even more powerful streak of Martial Will glowed.


    At this moment, Ye Futian had progressed into the eighth grade of the Noble plane in terms of martial arts and sorcery. He took in a deep breath before he walked down the tower and exited. Now that Ye Futian had made a breakthrough in his cultivation and had become a Grade Eight Noble, he could afford to take a two-day break. He was going to head to the Daozang Palace to see how Jieyu was doing with her own training.


    "Cultivation really is time-consuming, so much time has actually passed." Ye Futian smiled wryly. As one transcended into the higher planes, it took longer to grow one''s abilities and break into the next plane.


    On the way there, many people recognized Ye Futian and looked at him with some interest. This was the newbie who entered the Holy Zhi Palace after emerging as the top disciple from the Law Battle and had immediately raised a furor, attracting a terrible reputation for himself. He had disappeared for months after that, though it was unknown whether or not that was an intentional move to escape the rumors. And now Ye Futian was back. According to rumors, his girlfriend Hua Jieyu had gotten into a conflict with many people at the Daozang Palace, and it was all because of him.

 593 The Second Time

    Hundreds of disciples gathered at the sacred ancient temple within the Daozang Palace. Sitting on praying mats, they listened quietly to Sage Daozang as he explained the ways of cultivation. Occasionally, someone would raise a question they had.


    Today was coincidentally the day that Sage Daozang gave a lecture. This was the second time this year he was doing it. By now, it was the end of autumn, and there was only one season left before the year ended. As such, it was imperative that one made good use of the remaining time to train as much as they could. At the Holy Zhi Palace, it was possible that someone could make a sudden debut at the end of the year and bring about great changes to the Law Rank.


    However, it seemed unlikely that anyone within this most recent batch of disciples would stir up that sort of excitement. Ye Futian was the only new disciple whose name had been entered into the Law Rank, and he was only 97th place within the rankings. After that, he had disappeared completely, gone off somewhere unknown to train his abilities.


    Ye Futian climbed the stairs to get to the temple, keeping his footsteps light so as to not disrupt the Sage''s lecture. He threw the crowd a glance, and scanning through the hundreds of disciples present, his gaze landed on Hua Jieyu, who sat at the front. It seemed that she had been one of the earliest to come to the temple, in order to snag a front-row seat. She was training hard indeed.


    The speakers who lectured at the Holy Zhi Palace were not too bothered about disciples from other palaces coming to listen. They were generous in that they did not restrict access to the knowledge they were imparting. Ye Futian sat quietly at the back, preparing to listen quietly for a while.


    Though Ye Futian had been a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace for quite some time by now, he had been busy with training all this while. He was a disciple of the Battle Sage Palace, but other than the time he set foot there on his first day at the Holy Zhi Palace, he had not gone back since then. Ye Futian felt a little guilty. He hadn''t even gone to see that teacher of his yet, but it was good that he had come to listen to Sage Daozang give a lecture now.


    "When cultivating, most people seek out high-level techniques and powerful spells, but they often neglect the most basic training," Sage Daozang''s voice rang across the room as Ye Futian sat there, listening intently.


    Sage Daozang continued speaking, his voice calm, "Many of the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples are incredible characters in their own right. Most are ambitious, and thus intend to learn such techniques and spells. I surmise that there are some who resent me for not imparting powerful techniques and spells.


    "And yet," he continued, "the question cultivators usually neglect is: how do two cultivators of the same plane differ so much in ability? For example, disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace will always be stronger than ordinary people in the outside world, but those in the Law Rank completely outshine ordinary disciples of the Palace. Is this really a matter of how powerful the techniques and spells one knows is? Many disciples of the Palace are incredible in their own right. They definitely have no problems in technique training."


    The Sage carried on, "When we started training in our youth, perhaps our seniors had us focus more on basics, like the ability to perceive Spiritual Qi and our elemental Spiritual Qi abilities. As time passes, we forget about these things. Yet even at the Noble plane, what is required from us is no different from when we were at the start. Even at the same plane, different people can use the same spell to different effect. Why is this so?"


    Someone answered him, "Some people have stronger Spiritual Will than others, so there will naturally be a difference in the power of the spell cast."


    "That''s right." The Sage nodded slightly. "It''s the same even at the Noble plane��what decides the strength of the spell is ultimately still your basics, like how much Worldly Spiritual Qi you can activate to resonate with you and combine into a spell. And all this originates from your own mastery over Spiritual Energy still.


    "A mark of being at the Noble plane is possessing Noble Will. Spells are but Spiritual Will. For martial arts cultivators, it''s Martial Will. This all sounds a little abstract. I prefer to imagine them as domains. The cultivations of a sorcerer lie within the domain of Spiritual Energy. The form in which your Spiritual Energy manifests to negotiate the Worldly Spiritual Qi of this domain determines the strength and speed of your spell."


    "The effects of even the simplest spell can be maximized in the hands of someone powerful enough to exercise it effectively within the domain of Spiritual Energy," Sage Daozang declared, and at his words, frightening energy manifested in the room. In the next moment, everyone was transported into an illusion. The world was now consumed by flames. Currents of air flowed through the space, and terrifying fireballs appeared in the sky, descending towards the earth like suns.


    Many people looked to the sky in shock. They felt as though their bodies were about to be burnt up. Then, the suns disappeared in mid-air, and everything returned to normal.


    "Was that a fireball spell?" someone asked weakly.


    "Yes. It was a beginner fire-elemental spell, the lowest-level fireball spell there is," Sage Daozang replied, nodding. "Even when it comes to the same fire element, everyone has a different perception of Fire Intent, which determines the power of their spell. So, when it comes to training, before you stubbornly focus your attention on powerful techniques and spells, find a way to build up your Spiritual Energy domain to the best it can be. Then you''ll be able to activate stronger Worldly Spiritual Qi for your own use during battle. That''s all there is to martial arts."


    Many people were listening intently to Sage Daozang''s words and taking them to heart. Ye Futian nodded at his words. Though the Sage was talking about very simple concepts, but normally, not everyone took these concepts seriously. Now that Sage Daozang had pointed these concepts out again, these people would begin to pay them more attention in the future.


    Back then at the Cottage, his teacher had made him learn various kinds of spells and know them by heart. In a way, it was to achieve the same purpose.


    "After you''ve passed this level, move on to the next one," the Sage advised. "Use your own perception in the different domains of Spiritual Will to transcend into yet another domain and attain the power generated from a new Spiritual Energy domain. Then, use that power to modify spells and even create stronger spells. Some top-notch spells and martial arts techniques are created from the combination of various elemental abilities, and the results are powerful. Of course, this would require cultivators of a high caliber to achieve, and this is what separates the prodigies from mere geniuses. However, there are more people out there who like things ready-made, like you all. It would be nice to just take something as it is to learn, right?"


    Many people laughed at Sage Daozang''s words. Indeed, this was what the majority of the crowd was thinking, even the geniuses and the prodigies themselves.


    "Alright, we''ll stop here for today," Sage Daozang concluded and stood up, looking at the audience before him. Without question, he saw Ye Futian. With the Sage''s plane, he had been alerted to Ye Futian''s presence when he arrived.


    With a soft chuckle, Sage Daozang turned to leave. The many disciples in the audience stood up as well. Some were discussing the lecture, internalizing what they had just learned. Every time Sage Daozang gave a lecture, it was always a fruitful learning experience, with many things to become aware of.


    "Jieyu," Ye Futian called out to her mentally. Hua Jieyu was taken aback, before she stood up to look behind her. Upon seeing Ye Futian, a brilliant smile appeared on her face, dazzling those around her.


    They then saw Hua Jieyu walking quickly and lightly in that direction, pretty as a young fairy. Many eyes followed her as she walked forward, before they realized that Ye Futian was there.


    Some people recognized Ye Futian, and their expressions darkened. How dare Ye Futian step into the Daozang Palace? Yun Shuisheng was here, and even though Hua Jieyu had spoken up for Ye Futian the other day, he hadn''t actually apologized to Yun Shuisheng yet.


    "Why are you here at the Daozang Palace?" Hua Jieyu walked up to him and stretched out her hand. Ye Futian took her dainty hand in his and whispered, "I missed you."


    "Me too," Hua Jieyu whispered back just as quietly. However, those who were intentionally eavesdropping heard their exchange. They thought about the rumors that surrounded Ye Futian, and their hearts ached even further.


    Ye Futian had behaved inappropriately towards older sister Yun, and now he even had the cheek to enter the Holy Zhi Palace and hold Hua Jieyu''s hand, acting all intimate.


    "Oh yeah, about what you did to older sister Yun back then, do you want to apologize to her? She said she wouldn''t pursue this matter any further," Hua Jieyu asked Ye Futian, remembering the previous incident. Yun Shuisheng, who was in the crowd, turned to look at Ye Futian as well. The people in between them then quickly dispersed, allowing Yun Shuisheng and Ye Futian to look directly at each other.


    "She should be the one apologizing to me," Ye Futian said grumpily, recalling the memory of that incident.


    Looking at how intimate Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were, Yun Shuisheng understood that everything that had happened that day had been a misunderstanding. As such, if Ye Futian was willing to personally clarify his side of the story and apologize to her, then she would have been ready to just let it go. But witnessing Ye Futian''s remorseless expression and words made her eyes darken again at how much of an a**hole he was.


    Ye Futian had interrupted Yun Shuisheng training and forcibly taken her away, and now she was to apologize to him?


    What an arrogant guy, many people thought to themselves.


    A chill settled upon the space, and Hua Jieyu moved to block Ye Futian from Yun Shuisheng. "Older sister Yun, let me persuade him."


    Hua Jieyu''s pretty gaze flicked over to Ye Futian, wondering just what he was doing. She was annoyed that he couldn''t just give in for once. Older sister Yun was a pretty girl, after all, it couldn''t hurt to give in to her.


    "Don''t you like pretty girls? Why can''t you just give in this time?" Hua Jieyu asked Ye Futian mentally, staring at him.


    Ye Futian was surprised. Upon seeing the angst in Hua Jieyu''s eyes, he understood that Hua Jieyu was only acting in his best interests. Fine, he thought, but only because you asked.


    "I warned you in the past, and yet I got insulted by you. Now you can see it for yourself. Whatever happens between the two of you is none of my business indeed. But the Daozang Palace cannot just ignore what happened to older sister Yun," a voice rang out from beside them. It was Xiang Zhiqin, who was staring coldly at Ye Futian as she spoke. "We let you off the last time for insulting older sister Yun. Now that you''ve entered the Daozang Palace, you should apologize to her."


    "And I''ve said this before as well, what does this have to do with you?" Hua Jieyu shot Xiang Zhiqin a cold stare.


    Xiang Zhiqin looked at Hua Jieyu once again. It was also after one of Sage Daozang''s lectures that she had spoken out of good intentions, only to be insulted by Hua Jieyu. Even older brother Lian Yuqing had stepped in personally, which prompted her to leave things be and not say anything more.


    Now, it had happened again.


    "On the account of you having just entered the Palace and being my junior, I didn''t argue further with you last time. Now, I''m pointing out how he has insulted older sister Yun. Who are you to say anything about this?" Xiang Zhiqin stared at Hua Jieyu. Months had passed since the last incident, but now, two beautiful women stood before the sacred ancient temple once again, facing each other in a standoff.


    Ye Futian''s eyebrows creased, and his eyes were cold.


    Hua Jieyu apparently had to endure bullying within the Daozang Palace.

 594 The Battle of the Law Rank

    Xiang Zhiqin mentioned having let Jieyu off the previous time. Evidently, this was not the first time this sort of thing had happened. Xiang Zhiqin was a grade five noble. Against her, Jieyu was at an obvious disadvantage.


    It looked like there really was a tradition of newcomers being hazed at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "May I ask what your relation to Yun Shuisheng is?" walking to Hua Jieyu''s side and taking her hand, Ye Futian looked over to Xiang Zhiqin and asked.


    Xiang Zhiqin shot Ye Futian a glance. "She''s my senior."


    "Oh," Ye Futian nodded, "Jieyu is my girlfriend. If you, a mere junior, can meddle with what happened between me and Yun Shuisheng, then why can''t Jieyu speak up for me?


    "Are you an idiot?" Ye Futian shot at Xiang Zhiqin. Everyone''s stares hardened. Ye Futian''s words seemed to make some sense. However, in the world of cultivation, it was only one thing to make sense. If Hua Jieyu''s plane was higher than Xiang Zhiqin''s, then she could have said anything she wanted to, and Xiang Zhiqin would not have dared to do anything about it. However, the situation was that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were the weaker ones in this equation.


    "Of course she can," Xiang Zhiqin sneered. "If she even wants to battle on your behalf today, that''s fine too."


    "So, in the end, you''re just lording your seniority over us." Ye Futian chuckled. "Well then, let''s settle things one by one." As he spoke, he walked towards Yun Shuisheng. The people who had gathered close by dispersed, watching Ye Futian. They were wondering what he was going to do. News of how he had insulted Yun Shuisheng had spread through the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian approached Yun Shuisheng, and her cool gaze flickered towards him before he said, "Let me resolve what happened between the two of us. The misunderstanding from before was my fault from the start. I take responsibility for it. But it was a genuine mistake on my part as well. If you think I did it intentionally, then there isn''t much point to an apology. You can do as you like, then."


    Yun Shuisheng looked into Ye Futian''s eyes. His gaze was clear and devoid of any frivolity. His expression made it easy for one to believe his words.


    "I believe you," Yun Shuisheng replied.


    "That would make things easier," Ye Futian said. "When you woke up, I told you it was a misunderstanding and tried to explain. If you had let me do so then, there would have been no problem. Instead, you attacked me immediately without even hearing me out and even said you were going to kill me. Who would have been able to stand that? Furthermore, you chased me all the way to the Sky Reaching Tower and even wanted to take me away. Many people tried to make me stay then, but how could I be blamed for acting in self-defense? How would I dare to leave with you under that sort of situation?"


    Yun Shuisheng did not say anything in response.


    "I understand where you are coming from," Ye Futian continued, "but I hope you can do the same for me, too. Whether or not what happened at the cold lake was a misunderstanding, it was my fault. I apologize for what I said at the Sky Reaching Tower as well, it was uncalled for. It isn''t that I am scared of you, I just don''t see the need to continuously harp on such a trivial matter, to the point where it even implicates my significant other. You are free to do whatever you want when it comes to me in the future. I''ll accept it. But this is purely between the two of us, it has nothing to do with Jieyu, nor does it have anything to do with the Daozang Palace." After speaking his mind, Ye Futian then turned to leave.


    Watching him walk away, Yun Shuisheng spoke up as well, "Let''s put this matter to rest then." Ye Futian stopped at her words and smiled. Then he continued walking forward and approached Xiang Zhiqin.


    "Now that things between me and Yun Shuisheng have been cleared up, it''s time to settle things between us. You''ve meddled in our affairs twice by this point, once at the Sky Reaching Tower, and right now at the Daozang Palace. You''re even going as far as to bully my girlfriend. Tell me, how should we settle this?"


    "Older sister Yun may have forgiven you, but you''re still a despicable man. Sneaking up on Wang Yu, insulting older sister Yun. You''re in the Law Rank, yet you choose to lose by default in order to avoid battles. You seem to not know what shame is." Xiang Zhiqin glared at Ye Futian. She had been taken aback by his question. How did he intend to settle this then?


    "I entered the Holy Zhi Palace to train, not to play these silly games with all of you and participate in meaningless challenges. Furthermore, you do things like issuing challenges to those of a lower plane than you and then forcing them to accept it, or imposing your own views on other people. Then you even crow about it like it''s something to be proud of. Maybe it''s because you''ve been spoilt rotten as the princess of the Xiang Kingdom, that''s why you like to force your self-centered beliefs onto others and believe this is something that is natural and acceptable."


    Ye Futian shot Xiang Zhiqin a cold glance, and said, "Didn''t anyone ever tell you that you were being a b*tch?"


    Upon Ye Futian''s words, everyone froze and stared at them. If what Ye Futian had said to Yun Shuisheng earlier had carried hints of an insult, then this was full-out humiliation. Ye Futian had entered the Daozang Palace and humiliated Xiang Zhiqin in front of everyone.


    Xiang Zhiqin''s expression changed in an instant. She was at a loss at what had just happened. This was the first time anyone had dared to describe her in such insulting terms. The immense pressure of a Grade Five Noble began to spread across the space. Xiang Zhiqin''s long hair fluttered in the wind, and the elegance of her demeanor was undercut by a cold rage. Everyone present could sense that Xiang Zhiqin had been genuinely angered by Ye Futian''s words.


    At this moment, a man in white robes strode into view. People gave way to him and stared at the figure walking towards Ye Futian and Xiang Zhiqin. It was Lian Yuqing, a disciple of the Daozang Palace, and fifth in the Law Rank.


    Lian Yuqing had a guqin in his hands and was charming in his long white robes that went all the way to the floor. Looking at Ye Futian, he spoke, "They say you shouldn''t believe everything that you hear. I''ve heard rumors in the Daozang Palace that the disciple who placed first in the Law Battle this year was a despicable and shameless person. I always thought that might be an exaggeration, and seeing you come here to the Daozang Palace to apologize to Yun Shuisheng and put this matter to rest made me believe in my own judgment even more. Since you placed first in the Law Battle, perhaps you might have some flaws, but not to the extent that it is unacceptable. But now I''ve realized that I may have been wrong in my judgment this time.


    "Using such a term to insult a peer, and a lady at that, I''m extremely disappointed in you," Lian Yuqing continued. He had entered the Holy Zhi Palace six years ago. In his year, he had placed third in the Law Battle, and the two people above him were now first and second in the Law Rank. They were all top-notch individuals.


    Those who had come on top in the Law Battle three years back were now incredibly well-known in the Holy Zhi Palace as well, and Ye Futian was the top disciple in this year''s Law Battle. According to precedence, Ye Futian was set to have illustrious achievements and enter the Law Rank sooner or later. However, his behavior really was quite unacceptable.


    Ye Futian looked over at Lian Yuqing. With a guqin in his hands, he really was a charming-looking man. Judging by the other disciples'' attitude towards Lian Yuqing, though Ye Futian had no idea who he was, he surmised that he probably was held in high regard at the Daozang Palace. However, what did all that have anything to do with him?


    "Am I supposed to care whether or not you''re disappointed?" Ye Futian shot Lian Yuqing a cold glance. Anyone could stand at a distance and take the moral high ground over something that wasn''t their business.


    Ever since Ye Futian entered the Holy Zhi Palace, he had never spoken kindly to anyone. The disciples of the palace were all talents hailed by the people, and all of them were exceedingly arrogant as well. He had wanted to train in peace, but all sorts of troublesome things kept happening to him.


    Outside the Sky Reaching Tower, Xiang Zhiqin had ordered people to surround Ye Futian and forced him to choose one of them to challenge. If he lost the battle, then he would not be allowed to leave easily. If Ye Futian had not defeated his opponent that day, who knew what sort of humiliation he would have been forced to face.


    Today at the Daozang Palace, Ye Futian had only planned to come see Jieyu, quietly listen to Sage Daozang''s lecture for a while, then leave with Jieyu. And yet Xiang Zhiqin had jumped on him again. Furthermore, it seemed like he wasn''t her only target. Hua Jieyu seemed to have been bullied by her as well, and that Ye Futian could not tolerate.


    The atmosphere became tense again. No one could believe that Ye Futian had actually dared to talk back to older brother Lian, who was fifth in the Law Rank.


    "Older brother Lian, in the Daozang Palace, Xiang Zhiqin throws around insults like ''shameless'' and ''despicable'' on a regular basis when it comes to describing Futian. Even today, in front of everyone, she''s talking about him in the exact same way. If she can insult him, why is he not allowed to respond i?" Hua Jieyu stared at Lian Yuqing, her tone frosty.


    "As a man, and the top disciple to emerge from the Law Battle, it is only right that he is gracious to others," Lian Yuqing replied, looking at Hua Jieyu.


    "You may be fifth in the Law Rank, but it appears that there isn''t much difference between the character of you and Xiang Zhiqin," Hua Jieyu spoke coldly. Lian Yuqing''s gaze flicked back to Hua Jieyu, only to see Ye Futian holding Hua Jieyu''s hand. There really was no point in trying to reason with these people.


    "Since you all like to force people to accept these supposed ''challenges'' so much and expect ''graciousness'' from them, then let me see just how gracious all of you people at the Daozang Palace are." Ye Futian looked around at the crowd. "I''m Ye Futian, a Grade Eight Noble. If anyone wants a challenge, I''ll gladly accept."


    Since everyone was quibbling over graciousness, Ye Futian announced his plane to everyone upfront. He was going to see if those of a higher plane would be so shameless as to attack him still.


    Xiang Zhiqin took a step forward before a voice rang out, "Zhiqin."


    Everyone''s gaze snapped over to the person who had spoken. It was Yun Feng, who walked out and said, "I don''t agree with this person''s behavior as well. Since I''m closer to him in terms of ranking, let me take this battle instead."


    In the Law Rank, Yun Feng was in the 96th place, while Ye Futian was in the 97th. Previously, Yun Feng had claimed before the Law Rank that this year''s entry battle could be a flop. Evidently, he believed that if he had not entered the Palace directly last year and entered the Law Battle instead, he would have been the most dazzling individual.


    "Younger sister," Lian Yuqing said, "Yun Feng is a Grade Six Noble, he''s perfect for this. Ye Futian has defeated challengers two planes above him to become the champion of the Law Battle, and furthermore, your rankings in the Law Rank are close to each other. A challenge like this will not be seen as bullying."


    Xiang Zhiqin nodded slightly in agreement. Her expression was still cold as she turned to glare at Ye Futian. She had never been insulted like that before.


    Yun Feng walked forward, and the people around him scrambled to make way for him. Ye Futian nodded at Hua Jieyu, and she retreated as well. The two were to battle on this sacred learning ground.


    Yun Feng was very young, and he was fair and handsome. Smiling at Ye Futian, he announced, "I''m Yun Feng, a Grade Six Noble. I am a Painter." Upon finishing his words, a dazzling light shone from behind him and instantly, paintings flew out all around him. It was as if millions of paintings were suspended in the air, with each painting containing immense power within.


    Ye Futian looked at Yun Feng. Yun Feng''s Life Spirit was similar to that of Ye Futian''s fourth older brother''s Million Treasure Books. It was very interesting.


    Looking at the various paintings, Ye Futian''s expression suddenly changed. One of the scrolls had an image carved into it. It was a painting of Hua Jieyu.


    "Yun Feng." Hua Jieyu''s expression changed as well. Currents of energy rolled off her body, and her eyes were cold.


    "Please don''t take offense, younger sister. You burnt my scrolls previously when I was painting, after all. But this has always been the way of my training, I will incorporate everything that is beautiful and good in this world into my paintings. It is not to target you. I hope you can understand," Yun Feng explained. There were all sorts of painting scrolls behind him, containing images of people, demonic monsters, ritual implements, and many more.


    Hua Jieyu''s face was pale, and she looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s expression was equally cold. Suddenly, he rose up into the sky, moving out of the Daozang Palace.


    Everyone was stunned. Yun Feng followed after him, asking, "What is the meaning of this?"


    "We''ll settle this at the Law Battle Platform," Ye Futian replied coldly. After seeing that painting, he had decided to not battle at the Daozang Palace.

 595 Bloody

    Ye Futian soared through the air above the Daozang Pavilion. Yun Feng chased after him.


    Everyone looked at the two figures, something odd flashing past their eyes. Then they shot into the sky too and went over towards the battle area. Even Yun Shuisheng went forward after a moment of hesitation. He wanted to see too.


    The big group soared through the sky. Many people cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace were shocked when seeing the sight in the air. Was something big happening?


    Some unrelated people also joined them, making the camp bigger and bigger. Right now, many people were already gathered at the battle area. Just then, many looked up. They saw a group in the air, charging towards the battle platform.


    "Someone will engage in battle." Everyone''s eyes flashed. They stepped toward the battle platform. They wondered who would be fighting that would cause such a commotion.


    "That''s Yun Feng. He''s 96th on the Law Rank. He''s the descendant of the Craftsman. The Craftsman is good friends with Sage Daozang. Last year, he sent Yun Feng to cultivate under Sage Daozang. His cultivation isn''t exactly high in the Holy Zhi Palace, but he''s very talented. He has the potential to reach the top of the rank. Who''s in front of him?" someone asked while walking.


    "Ye Futian, 97th of the Law Rank. He was number one in the entrance battle at the start of the year." Some people''s eyes glinted. They looked at the two figures with interest. It would be interesting if two strong cultivators from the rank would fight a Law Battle.


    "I heard that Ye Futian had a bad reputation after entering the Holy Zhi Palace. There are many rumors about him in the Daozang Pavilion. Yun Feng had once drawn a picture of Hua Jieyu, but she burned it. Maybe this angered Ye Futian, so he wants to challenge Yun Feng directly."


    Everyone discussed this. Soon, many strong cultivators gathered around the battle podium. Ye Futian descended from the air, landing on the podium. Afterward, Yun Feng came down in a beautiful arc. Countless scrolls danced around him. He was extremely brilliant. He floated down and landed on the platform.


    Various figures flew over and landed around the platform. Just as they''d guessed, the ones who would fight this time were Yun Feng and Ye Futian, 96th and 97th on the Law Rank respectively. However, Yun Feng should be a Grade six Noble now. Ye Futian had been a Grade nine Noble when he''d first entered the pavilion. The people didn''t know if he''d improved, but even if he was Grade eight, it was still foolish to challenge Yun Feng.


    Strong cultivators of the Daozang Pavilion arrived gradually. They appeared around the platform and gazed at the two figures there. The platform was very big. It was enough, even for a Noble-level battle.


    People could fight at any time anywhere in the Holy Zhi Palace, other than the six pavilions, but people still liked to solve their conflicts on the platforms. It was a tradition. Plus, once people stepped onto the platforms, no one from the Holy Zhi Palace could interfere. This meant that they could fight however they wished without hurting or disabling anyone. No one could do anything about it.


    Stepping onto the battle podium was a voluntary thing. One had to pay for the consequences of their choices.


    "When we first met, you said that you were first in the pavilion battle by luck. Now, it seems that it''s not the truth," Yun Feng said coolly while looking at Ye Futian. "But it doesn''t matter if it''s the truth. This battle will prove it. You''re 97th on the Law Rank after entering the pavilion. I''d like to see just how strong you are."


    Ye Futian scanned Yun Feng and said, "I''m not interested in people''s positions on the Law Rank. I just know that you''ll regret meeting me after this battle." As soon as he finished, a beautiful golden Roc appeared. Behind the dazzling wings, rough sounds came from his life palace. Noble Will enveloped the entire space as Spiritual Qi rushed towards him.


    At the same time, powerful Spiritual Qi gathered into a golden staff. He grasped it and his wings pumped. Ye Futian rose slowly into the air. A starry world appeared around him.


    Yun Feng stared at Ye Futian. The Ye Futian who''d been known to be lowly and surrender no matter who challenged him seemed to have changed today. He seemed too arrogant to even know his place. Which was his true side? Everyone would know after this battle. His true self would appear after Yun Feng defeated him.


    "An artist is also called a summoner. My life spirit is a picture. Carving thousands of pictures on my life spirit, observing scrolls, and carving scrolls are how I cultivate. Not everyone can enter my scrolls," Yun Feng said coolly. He was clearly talking about Hua Jieyu.


    "This will be the biggest regret of your life." When Ye Futian finished speaking, he stepped forward.


    "I never regret what I do," Yun Feng stated. He waved his hand and countless scrolls started dancing. At the same time, his eyes turned demonic. An extremely terrifying spiritual wind enveloped the sky. All the Spiritual Qi in the world rushed crazily into those scrolls. These pictures had already been carved. Spiritual Qi entering the pictures was his strongest attack.


    Instantly, all the scrolls dancing in the air floated towards Ye Futian. He was surrounded by scrolls. The various scrolls devoured Spiritual Qi wildly, exuding shocking auras. All the scrolls seemed to be controlled my Yun Feng''s spiritual mind.


    When Ye Futian was young, he''d met someone who cultivated in Art��Zhou Mu. Yun Feng was clearly stronger than Zhou Mu. His life spirit was a picture.


    All these scrolls were carved in Yun Feng''s life spirit. They were similar to spell scrolls. Yun Feng''s attacks were like thousands of spell scrolls. However, he must have put in a lot of effort to carve these picture scrolls.


    Boom, boom, boom. The scrolls floating around Ye Futian dissipated. Horrible demonic roars sounded. The scrolls actually transformed into various terrifying demons in the air. There were dragons, phoenixes, Kirins, Xuanwus, Rocs, elephants and more�� They were like a horrible demon army.


    Many hearts trembled. This was Yun Feng''s first time on the battle platform. He''d been quite well-known when he''d entered the pavilion last year, but very few people had seen the Craftsman''s descendant fight. Now that they witnessed it with their own eyes, they were shaken. No wonder he could enter the Law Rank as a middle-level Noble. Everything in the world could enter the pictures. All spells, demons, and ritual implements could be used by the artist.


    Artists were also summoners. Every demon that appeared in the air was drawn by Yun Feng. They contained his power and possessed his cultivation plane. It was like an army of mid-level Noble super demons. Everyone started mourning inwardly for Ye Futian. It would be difficult to defeat Yun Feng.


    Various spell scrolls appeared around Ye Futian. Spiritual Qi rushed into them, filling them with terrifying power. The light of runes shone and destructive power poured out.


    This was the Void Scroll skill that he''d learned from Bai Ze.


    At the moment, Yun Feng''s spiritual energy enveloped the entire battlefield. His expression was cold. Hovering in the sky, he waved his hand. The demon army in the sky started charging towards Ye Futian. The entire battle platform shook at that moment.


    Almost at the same time, the spell scrolls burst with thunder spells. Purple-gold lightning instantly filled the sky with destructive light, covering all the demons. They struck the demons. The demons shook, but they still charged downward. They''d come out of the picture scrolls and didn''t feel any pain. But just then, a golden figure from the starry world shot forward, charging across the sky.


    Starry light dazzled around the figure. There was also a shocking windstorm. It became one with the stars, possessing power that could rip apart everything. Many people saw the golden figure flying below the demons, going forward with the starry windstorm. The scene was majestic.


    A huge elephant stepped down, wanting to push Ye Futian down. However, Ye Futian didn''t try dodging it. The destructive starry windstorm moved up. The moment the giant foot was about to stomp on him, the horrible windstorm arrived and tore it apart. Ye Futian continued soaring. He struck with the starry staff, splitting the elephant in half. Like a golden bolt of lightning, he streaked out of the space, charging towards Yun Feng.


    Yun Feng''s expression didn''t change. He waved a wand and various scrolls continued to fly out. There were ritual implements carved on the scrolls. Instantly, swords whistled through the sky. These swords were like the sharpest ritual implements and they flew orderly towards Ye Futian.


    Is it controlled by his mind? Ye Futian''s expression was cold. Terrifying cold intent descended. The extremely icy intent enveloped the space, making Yun Feng''s mind feel bone-numbing coldness. The sharp swords were covered in frost. They slowed down as if they were affected.


    Boom. The golden Roc flew through the sky, passing between the swords. Then another ritual implement created by a scroll arrived. It was a huge and ancient clock. It crashed down, trying to cage Ye Futian in.


    Ye Futian didn''t stop at all; he continued forward. Seeing the huge clock, he struck with his staff again without hesitation. With a loud ring, countless eardrums trembled while the clock was shattered.


    Such a strong attack. Countless hearts trembled. Seeing Ye Futian continue forward, Yun Feng furrowed his brows. Whooshes sounded. The scrolls behind him flew forward crazily and many heavy mountains appeared. They crushed downward to squash everything.


    The body that was like a golden Roc charged towards a mountain with the staff in front. The horrible windstorm wrapped around the body and he passed right through the mountain. It was destroyed in an instant. The other scrolls also missed their attacks. Ye Futian was getting closer and closer to Yun Feng.


    "Go!" Yun Feng waved his hand. Countless scrolls flew out like pages of an ancient book. There were endless rustles as the scrolls blocked Yun Feng. They covered the entire sky. The spells arrived after that. Horrible pressure weighed down, fiery birds shot out, icy rivers swept downward, and meteorites fell down.


    3,000 spells were cast at once, destroying the entire space.


    Boom. Ye Futian disappeared from the spot. The next moment, he appeared before a scroll attack. His staff swept over and destroyed it. The next moment, he appeared elsewhere. He struck with his staff again and a hole appeared in the sky.


    He moved towards that hole. The starry world grew more terrifying. A sun and moon hung high in the sky. The sun''s fire and the moon''s water poured down. Riding the meteorite''s windstorm, he fought against the wild law power attacks. They were destroyed continuously, but the starry body seemed undefeatable like a god. His every step seemed to have a unique rhythm that shook the sky. The world and heavens were extremely heavy.


    These days, he''d traveled the six law power zones and had cultivated in the Sky Reaching Tower. This hadn''t been a waste of time. All of his elemental powers had strengthened. His will had strengthened too.


    Many people discovered with a shock that the various law power attacks towards Ye Futian were either burned by the sun''s fiery furnace, frozen by the icy will, or buried by the meteorite windstorm. Even if they reached Ye Futian, they would be torn apart by the windstorm around him.


    The advancing figure gave everyone a strange feeling. It was as if everything was clearing a path for him. Loud booms sounded continuously. Everything kept getting destroyed. An unstoppable might was born around Ye Futian while the attacking scrolls in the sky seemed to become extremely insignificant.


    Seeing Ye Futian walk over, Yun Feng''s life spirit floated before him. There was a blurry figure drawn on the boundless scroll. It was so big it looked like a god, filled with unparalleled might. This was Yun Feng''s final drawing. He''d put all his comprehensions from cultivations into this unclear figure. He imagined it as a top god. Every bit of his improvements and comprehension would strengthen the artistic conception in the picture.


    Now, he poured his spiritual power into this picture. The figure seemed to come to life. It walked out of the scroll like a looming god. It was filled with extreme power.


    Is this the Yun Family''s final picture, the Art Soul?


    The figure that walked out of the picture crazily absorbed the Spiritual Qi in the world. It seemed to have the most perfect body. Apparently, the Craftsman had transformed all his comprehensions into this Art Soul. It was like a true Saint.


    Yun Feng had seen many people stronger than him, even Sages. Thus, his Art Soul also contained unparalleled power. Right now, it raised its huge hand and smashed down at Ye Futian. The palm covered the sky. But Ye Futian continued advancing. Aggressive martial arts will was unleashed. It turned into a horrible force field. Everything around it seemed to be flattened. It was like an emperor.


    Thud. He took another step and Yun Feng''s heart trembled. Then he saw Ye Futian raise his staff. Ye Futian''s body seemed to become a boundless shore. A 100-meter-long staff shadow appeared. It smashed down with the power of the world.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s aura wasn''t any weaker than Yun Feng''s Art Soul.


    There were terrifying rumbles. Everything in the surroundings was destroyed. A regular attack couldn''t even get close. When the huge staff came down, the huge arm shattered. Then the head and body were pulverized under the staff too.


    When the staff fell upon the scroll, it shook. Then with a cough, Yun Feng spat out a mouthful of blood. His face was pale.


    "You want to draw a god?" Ye Futian walked over. Yun Feng looked up with a pale face. "Why don''t you draw me instead?" Ye Futian reached out and grasped Yun Feng''s neck. Yun Feng struggled against Ye Futian''s hands. There was no color in his face at all.


    Ye Futian looked back. Flames shot out and burned the scroll that had Hua Jieyu''s picture.


    "How did you make it into the Law Rank?" Ye Futian held onto Yun Feng''s head and hurled him down. Many people were shaken by this scene.


    Boom! The battle platform shook. Yun Feng vomited blood. He tried to move Ye Futian''s hands, but he obviously couldn''t.


    Below the platform, countless eyes from the Daozang Pavilion were frozen on them. Xiang Zhiqin and Lian Yuqing were especially shocked by this.


    Yun Feng had been bloodily defeated.


    Ye Futian still gripped Yun Feng''s neck. "You all said that I''m shameless and don''t dare to fight anyone," he said coldly. "Today, I gave in, but do you think you qualify?" With that, he lifted Yun Feng''s body and smashed it down again. So many of Yun Feng''s bones broke, but Ye Futian controlled it well. Yun Feng wouldn''t be disabled. But even if he couldn''t disable Yun Feng, he would still make him remember what "respect" meant.


    Xiang Zhiqin''s eyes were frigid. She knew that Ye Futian was talking to Yun Feng, but the words were meant for the others too. For countless months, many rumors had mocked Ye Futian, but was it true that he didn''t dare to accept anyone''s challenge? Was it true that he didn''t have the temperament of the pavilion battle''s winner?


    Today, Ye Futian told him that it wasn''t that he didn''t dare. It was his natural arrogance. He didn''t care even if people insulted him.


    Yun Feng''s mouth was covered in blood and his face was ashen. He looked mangled. He was a pride too, but today, he''d been destroyed like this. Ye Futian was purposely using the cruelest way to humiliate him.


    "Enough?" Lian Yuqing asked coldly.


    Ye Futian looked up and sneered. "You''re the ones who wanted to fight. Now, you''re the ones who want to stop. Is this the temperament you spoke of? You''re allowed to mock me but don''t let me resist?"


    With that, Ye Futian stood up. Dragging Yun Feng''s body, he stepped towards the edge of the battle platform. Many people pitied Yun Feng when seeing his tragic state.


    Just as Ye Futian had said, Yun Feng probably regretted meeting him now. That handsome harmless-looking youth was like a demon when angered.


    "This is the challenge that you wanted. Satisfied?" Ye Futian tossed Yun Feng''s body down the platform. Countless eyes fell upon Ye Futian.


    This was the winner of the pavilion battle!

 596 Sage Douzhan

    Lian Yuqing scanned Ye Futian coldly before walking to Yun Feng''s side. He stooped down to check Yun Feng''s injuries. He discovered that he''d broken many bones. He wasn''t disabled but would need to rest for a long while before he could cultivate normally.


    This was only the physical damage. Lian Yuqing could see from Yun Feng''s dazed eyes that his psychological damages were much more painful. This junior brother of his was the Craftsman''s descendant. He could draw everything and his talent was extraordinary. He''d entered the Law Rank not long after entering the pavilion, so he was naturally young and vibrant. His goal had always been entering the Holy Sage Pavilion. Lian Yuqing knew what kind of person Yun Feng usually was: proud, fearless, and filled with confidence.


    But right now, Yun Feng''s eyes were empty. The humiliation of this battle had pulverized his confidence and pride, tossing him into a deep abyss. This kind of hit was too cruel for a proud and young talent. It could possibly ruin Yun Feng and make him doubt himself. It would be hard to recover his mindset. This was what cultivators usually described as damage to his principle heart. It would create a huge obstacle to his future cultivation.


    Raising his head, Lian Yuqing looked coldly at Ye Futian and said, "We are all cultivating in the pavilion. Aren''t you a bit too toxic?" He knew that Ye Futian had done it purposely. Otherwise, there was no need to come to this battle platform.


    "If you aren''t blind, then you''re an idiot," Ye Futian replied coolly.


    Anyone could mock others from a moral standpoint. But had Lian Yuqing said anything when Yun Feng had insulted Ye Futian? Had he reprimanded Yun Feng when he drew Hua Jieyu? If Yun Feng had drawn Lian Yuqing''s girlfriend instead, would he still be so calm? Now that Yun Feng was defeated with humiliation, Ye Futian became the bad guy.


    Lian Yuqing stared at Ye Futian. Then he stood up and walked towards the battle platform.


    What is Lian Yuqing going to do? Everyone looked at Lian Yuqing. He was at the peak of the Noble Plane and was fifth on the Law Rank. No matter what, he shouldn''t be the one going up the platform.


    "Senior Brother Lian," Yun Shuisheng called. This battle had scared her. Before, she''d always seen Ye Futian with a shameless grin, but today, everyone saw a different Ye Futian. The power he revealed in anger was honestly frightening. He had treated Yun Feng cruelly, but Yun Feng and Xiang Zhiqin had forced him into this. Plus, Hua Jieyu had already made it clear that she wouldn''t allow Yun Feng to draw her, but he still did it. This was an insult, so Ye Futian''s anger was with reason.


    On the battle platform, Ye Futian had defeated Yun Feng as a Grade eight Noble. No matter what, Lian Yuqing had no reason to fight. It damaged his image.


    "I won''t do anything to him," Lian Yuqing said softly as he stopped. Then he continued towards the platform.


    Ye Futian looked at Lian Yuqing. He hadn''t expected for Lian Yuqing to be shameless enough to walk onto the platform.


    "I shouldn''t fight, but you''re too violent. You should listen to this musical piece," Lian Yuqing said. Then he sat onto the platform and strummed his guqin. A graceful melody streamed out instantly, floating into everyone''s ears.


    "Then I''ll listen to your song." Ye Futian stood there and watched Lian Yuqing quietly. The other was a top Noble. This kind of fight had no suspense at all; he wouldn''t even try.


    The higher the plane, the bigger the differences between each level. How much cultivation did a Grade eight Noble need to reach the peak of the Noble Plane? This distance couldn''t be reached so easily.


    Strands of sound waves passed over, invading Ye Futian''s mind. In that instant, Ye Futian could barely control his spiritual power anymore. It went wild, though he continued to stand there quietly.


    The music seeping in wildly brought him into a different space. An invisible hand clutched his body, making him feel as if he was pinned down in the illusory space. An image appeared in his mind. He seemed to have been taken and slammed towards the ground. His body shook and his mind seemed close to breaking apart. Standing on the battle podium, he grunted, face paling.


    Lian Yuqing continued playing slowly. He was graceful and natural. Everyone looked at Ye Futian''s expression. They could tell what he was experiencing, but no one knew exactly what Lian Yuqing''s music was doing to him.


    Soon, Lian Yuqing''s music stopped. He looked up, gazing at the pale Ye Futian. "You experienced it," he said. "How do you feel?"


    Ye Futian gazed at Lian Yuqing and smiled eerily. "I am not Yun Feng and you are not me. Yun Feng provoked me many times and doesn''t know what respect is. He thought he was undefeatable. I had no concerns when attacking him, but what about you? What are you trying to prove with this? Don''t forget what plane you''re in. If you want to attack, then do it. What are you trying to prove? How fake you are?"


    Seeing Ye Futian''s smirk, Lian Yuqing strummed the instrument strings with his right hand. Instantly, horrible spiritual energy rushed into Ye Futian''s mind like a tidal wave. He stumbled back as if struck by lightning. He grunted and blood trickled out of his lips. Many people shuddered, but Ye Futian''s expression didn''t change at all. Instead, he smiled with ease.


    "That''s right." Ye Futian''s smile was bright. "This is the challenge you wanted. After crossing two planes and defeating Yun Feng, you��a top Noble��would come onto the battle platform personally. This is your so-called temperament. It''s very powerful, but in the future, trying being less shameless." With that, Ye Futian turned and walked down the platform. He didn''t care about this challenge, because it was meaningless.


    Things would quiet down after this.


    Seeing Ye Futian walk down off the podium, Lian Yuqing''s expression looked ugly. He didn''t stop. Ye Futian had been forcing him to attack.


    He laughed at himself. His mindset still wasn''t advanced enough, allowing Ye Futian to anger him. Did Ye Futian want to affect his mindset this way?


    "Oh, right. I''ll remember the piece you played today. If there''s a chance in the future, I''ll gift you piece too." After walking down, Ye Futian grabbed Hua Jieyu and left. He ignored everyone where.


    Lian Yuqing didn''t mind Ye Futian''s words. Gift him a piece?


    Was Ye Futian skilled in musical sorcery too? But even if he was, how many years would it take for him to surpass Lian Yuqing?


    Xiang Zhiqin looked at Ye Futian''s receding backside with an ugly expression.


    ��


    News of this battle quickly spread throughout the Holy Zhi Palace. Yun Feng, 96th of the Law Rank, had been cruelly defeated by Ye Futian. Many people lamented that the newbie who''d placed first in the pavilion battle was stronger than they''d expected.


    Yun Feng''s talent had been recognized by entering the Law Rank. He''d also cultivated for a while in the Holy Zhi Palace. However, his ending was tragic. After returning to the Daozang Pavilion, he''d shut himself in. He must have suffered horrible psychological trauma.


    He was removed on the Law Rank while Ye Futian shot up to 81. He was only a Grade-8 Noble, but he was already 81st. If he reached the mid- or top-level Noble Plane, what position would he have on the list?


    Right then, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng followed Qi Jie through the dazzling pavilion in the Battle Sage Pavilion. According to Qi Jie, Sage Douzhan, chief of the Battle Sage Pavilion, wanted to see them.


    Ye Futian saw Sage Douzhan before a golden pavilion. His upper body was bare, revealing bronze muscles. This tall body seemed to be filled with endless power. He didn''t release his aura, but just standing there made Ye Futian and Yu Sheng feel extreme pressure. Ye Futian felt like he was an ant before Sage Douzhan. He could be squashed with a finger.


    "Teacher, Ye Futian is here."


    "Teacher," Ye Futian and Yu Sheng called at the same. They''d listened to the King Kong Sage. Since they''d entered the Battle Sage Pavilion, it wasn''t wrong to call Sage Douzhan "teacher."


    Sage Douzhan nodded lightly and gazed at them. "I saw at the entrance battle that you two are physically strong. You must have cultivated powerful body-enhancing techniques. However, this comes with the technique. You didn''t truly find your potentials and cultivate to the limit. Judging from talent, Yu Sheng is the most suitable for cultivating the body. Unfortunately, you used the wrong method.


    "Very few people can cultivate the body. People like sorcery more. Even in lower planes, they say that sorcerers are stronger than martial arts. Cultivating the body isn''t the mainstream either. What do you two think?" Sage Douzhan asked.


    "Every cultivator has their own skills. All careers are the same when cultivated to the extreme. It still depends on the person," Ye Futian said.


    "No, they''re right," Sage Douzhan said to him. "Of course, this is only limited to the lower planes. When you cultivate to a certain level, there are no absolute weaknesses or strengths. For people like you who are skilled in multiple abilities, you naturally have an advantage. Everyone has different views on cultivation, but I believe that cultivating the body is stronger than everything else. It''s just that few people can go to the extreme."


    Ye Futian didn''t really agree, but from a certain aspect, Sage Douzhan was right too. If a cultivator couldn''t believe in his own cultivation, there was no point.


    "If you doubt me, then let me ask you. If I cultivate my physical body to the extreme and my body is now as strong as any spell of the same plane, how will you attack me?" Sage Douzhan asked.


    Ye Futian started pondering, but Sage Douzhan continued, "It''s simple. You only need to imagine Yu Sheng. If an attack from someone in the same plane landed on him, would he react?"


    Ye Futian nodded. This was the truth. Someone in the same plane as Yu Sheng wouldn''t be able to move him. But it wasn''t entirely right, because most attacks were above the attacker''s plane.


    "I am seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking, but people before me are still unwilling to fight me. Do you know why?" Sage Douzhan asked. He seemed extremely confident in his abilities.


    Ye Futian shook his head.


    "It''s because their attacks might not be effective. They must attack multiple times to defeat me. But they''re different. If I hit them once, they''ll die," Sage Douzhan said. Ye Futian blinked. He suddenly felt that this made sense. It really was a huge advantage!

 597 The Incomplete Heavenly Manual

    The Sage Douzhan looked at the two of them and continued speaking. "Of course, body-refining is not just about training your physical body. At your cultivation level, you should understand that not cultivating your Spiritual Energy makes you as useful as a disabled person. Apart from that, a body-refining cultivator is also useless without speed. Next, I will teach the two of you the Incomplete Heavenly Manual. It is an extremely ruthless body-enhancing technique, but it could also be incomplete, hence I named it the Incomplete Heavenly Manual."


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng listened attentively, they were extremely clear of the benefits and drawbacks of martial arts cultivation. Yu Sheng could be considered a martial arts cultivator with his unparalleled physique. However, he had lost to Xu Que in the Palace battle and the reason was obvious.


    Ye Futian also cultivated in body-refining, but he had other aspects of his cultivation to worry about. Although his physique was also overbearing, he had not reached Yu Sheng''s level. The Sage Douzhan claimed that he was going to teach them an incomplete manual that was extremely brutal. He wondered how it fared against Yu Sheng''s demonic art.


    "I''m telling you all this is to make you understand the strength of body-refining. Especially you, Ye Futian. Your cultivation is all over the place, you must be neglecting your body-refining. If the two of you do not wish to cultivate this technique, I will teach you other body-enhancing techniques."


    "I want to cultivate in this technique," Yu Sheng said. The more brutal the body-enhancing technique, the stronger its effects would be. Coupled with his demonic art, he wondered how much stronger his physique could get.


    "Master, I also want to try cultivating it," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "Alright, after you have all cultivated this technique to a certain level, I will teach you a combat technique to complement the body-refinement that you have done." The Sage Douzhan continued, "Now, I will use my Spiritual Will to transmit the Incomplete Heavenly Manual to both of you."


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng nodded, then closed their eyes. Another eye appeared to open between the Sage Douzhan''s eyebrows, like a demonic Heavenly Eye. Following that, a brilliant light shot into Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s brow chakra. In an instant, information flooded into their heads.


    Ye Futian quietly accepted the technique that appeared in his head. In the shadow of mind, he saw a figure sitting with his knees crossed. a brilliant glow circulated around his body, teaching him how to perform the technique.


    After a brief moment, Ye Futian opened his eyes and a glint appeared in them. He explained, "This technique uses external force to forge the body, converting external force into the body''s power. By forging one''s body to the limit, they will be able to open the Seven Star acupoints."


    "That''s right." The Sage Douzhan nodded and continued, "The Incomplete Heavenly Manual is extremely brutal because it requires you to constantly break through your body''s physical limits until the Seven Star acupoints have been opened. When cultivated to the limit, your body will be as strong as a ritual implement. Geniuses'' spells may exceed their cultivation level, but if you cultivate the Incomplete Heavenly Manual, your body''s strength will also exceed your cultivation level. Moreover, in the Holy Zhi Palace, the requirements for cultivating the Incomplete Heavenly Manual are satisfied."


    "The Law Power Zone and the Sky Reaching Tower." Ye Futian said.


    "That''s right." The Sage Douzhan nodded again. "The two of you have the inborn potential for body-refining, so don''t waste it. Especially you, Yu Sheng. You are a natural body-refining warrior and you have the chance to become a saint through your physique by forging an invincible body. At lower cultivation levels, spells are the strongest, but at higher cultivation levels, the cultivator with the strongest physique will reign supreme. When the two of you step foot in the eighteenth level of the Sky Reaching Tower, come find me again."


    "Yes." Ye Futian and Yu Sheng nodded, then left. The Sage Douzhan had looked for them only to teach them the Incomplete Heavenly Manual.


    After the two of them had left, the King Kong Sage appeared beside the Sage Douzhan. He looked at the Sage Douzhan and said, "Brother has not paid attention to the battle of the Holy Zhi Palace for many years, why did you take in two disciples all of a sudden?"


    Before this, his brother had also taken in Qi Jie.


    "It''s not like you don''t know about Wanxiang''s prophecy," the Sage Douzhan looked at the King Kong Sage and said.


    "Humph." The King Kong Sage huffed angrily and said, "That astrologer is just speaking nonsense. His supposed astrology is just a load of bull, how could he know what the heavens have planned for us and predict the future. Brother, there is no need to pay him any heed."


    "Everything exists for a reason. Since it is there, it has a purpose. The astrologers are able to read the heavens'' plans and prophesize, but they do not do so often for fear of their lives. However, their readings are generally likely to come true," the Sage Douzhan said.


    "Brother''s cultivation level is stronger than him, what right does he have to be able to predict your future? Moreover, brother is a genius, how can your fate be predestined by the heavens?" the King Kong Sage''s tone was cold as he questioned.


    "I naturally will not resign to my fate," the Sage Douzhan said indifferently and continued, "My pursuit is to break through to the Saint level, but I know the difficulties of that. Perhaps, in the process, there will be a disaster that will befall me. That is nothing to be surprised about since I am unable to avoid it. I will face it calmly. However, Yu Sheng and Ye Futian are outstanding talents, especially Yu Sheng. He was born for body-refining, if I am unable to do it, perhaps he will stand a chance."


    The King Kong Sage did not say anything. It was already hard to become a Saint. Countless geniuses in the Barren State had failed to do it. Moreover, it was even tougher to break through to become a Saint through one''s physique. Body-refining was considered the most rudimentary cultivation method.


    ��


    After Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had obtained the body-enhancing technique from the Sage Douzhan, they started their cultivation. Moreover, they already had strong body-refining foundations and the Incomplete Heavenly Manual could build on their foundation to break through their limits.


    In the Flame Zone of the Law Power Zone, two figures stood barefoot in the sea of flames. Their feet were in extreme pain as the violent flames burned their bodies. Their skin was crimson, and their bodies looked like they were going to be torn apart. However, they did not use their strength to resist it and used their bodies to experience it. They used the Incomplete Heavenly Manual to induct the power of the flames into their bodies and allow it to forge their bodies.


    This was what the Sage Douzhan meant by extremely brutal. The cultivation of the Incomplete Heavenly Manual required the use of external force to forge one''s body. After the cultivation was complete, their bodies would already have been forged thousands of times, so a spell at the same level was nothing to fear.


    In the Lightning Zone, they bathed in the countless thunderbolts, allowing the lightning force to strike their bodies wildly, using the lightning to forge their bodies. The lightning circulated on the surface of their bodies and was then inducted into their body, into their flesh.


    In the Storm Zone, they withstood the storm''s tearing force and even ran against the storm without using any movement techniques, merely going against the wind and using the air pressure to forge their bodies.


    In the Ground Zone, giant rocks continually fell down, striking their bodies. They could feel themselves getting closer to their limit step by step, breaking through step by step to withstand even stronger attacks.


    Their cultivation period was very mundane, but it was fruitful. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng stepped into all the zones of the law power zone to forge their bodies. As times passed, they could feel that their already strong bodies were getting even more frightening. In the future, their ability to withstand attacks would definitely be stronger. However, this cultivation method could only be described as insane. Ye Futian''s body experienced countless limitations and he would have to force himself to continue doing so in the future, to allow his body to be brutally injured, to be burned by flames, frozen by ice and torn apart by storms.


    In the blink of an eye, a few months had passed. Yu Sheng had already secured a spot in the 12th level of the Sky Reaching Tower. However, Yu Sheng was in extreme pain at that moment. An exceedingly horrifying force crushed down on his body like there were pagodas pressing down on him and smashing his body. Impact sounds could be constantly heard and blood trickled from his mouth, but he clenched his teeth and continued to bear it.


    The 12th story of the Sky Reaching Tower, this was a place that only extremely strong Middle Noble Plane cultivators could reach, but here Yu Sheng was, resisting the pressure of the twelfth level.


    Bam, bam, bam! Rays of golden light drilled holes through his body, but he did not give up. He continued to use the Incomplete Heavenly Manual and transferred the force to his legs.


    Bang... Huge sounds could be heard like something was being punctured. With a pshhh, Yu Sheng spewed out a mouthful of blood and his legs looked like they were being punctured by waves of force and a horrifying light could be seen at his sole and back.


    "I''ve succeeded." Yu Sheng walked down the Sky Reaching Tower and made a mad rush for the exit. The ground started shaking and many people looked at Yu Sheng. What was wrong with this burly guy.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng launched off the ground with his feet without using any movement techniques. His body flew straight off the ground into the air, like a flash of lightning.


    Soon, Yu Sheng''s body landed from the air onto the ground. With a huge wham, the ground split apart and two footprints could be seen. Yu Sheng continued to propel himself into the distance, and many people looked at the figure getting further away curiously. What was up with this guy?


    A figure shot towards the edge of the Battle Sage Palace and rushed towards the clouds, landing on the Battle Sage Palace. With a huge thud, Yu Sheng landed on the ground and appeared beside a figure.


    The teenage figure opened his eyes and looked at the person beside him, asking, "Yu Sheng, what''s up?"


    "I opened an acupoint," Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "How do you feel?" A glint appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes. The Incomplete Heavenly Manual required a person to open the Seven Star acupoints.


    "The strength in my feet has increased exponentially; they have very strong explosive strength now. I don''t need to use any movement techniques to jump into the air, but it uses the potential of my body instead. Perhaps, my legs will start to ache not long after."


    "The cultivation of the Incomplete Heavenly Manual is originally detrimental to one''s body, however, the opening of the Seven Star acupoints is just the start of unlocking one''s potential. If there is no need to, do not use it. Only use the explosive power when you really have to," Ye Futian said, smiling. The Incomplete Heavenly Manual had recorded that if all Seven Star acupoints were opened, the human body''s potential would be stimulated to its limit and they could become a giant and have unparalleled explosive power that could rival a mountain.


    "What are you so excited about?" Ye Futian stared at Yu Sheng.


    "It feels fantastic after opening an acupoint. Moreover, the Incomplete Heavenly Manual does not clash with my demonic art and can even complement each other. That was why I wanted to try it out and ended up here," Yu Sheng said.


    "Bragging?" Ye Futian glared at him and said. He must have done it on purpose. However, he was also very happy for him. The demonic art could be cultivated in conjunction with the Incomplete Heavenly Manual and the Sage Douzhan would teach them another technique in the future. Yu Sheng''s body would only become more and more formidable.


    Seeing Yu Sheng''s embarrassed smile, Ye Futian said, "Alright, have a break. Go and visit Qingxuan, it''s coming to the end of the year soon. You''re not allowed to cultivate at the end of the year."


    "Alright." Yu Sheng nodded and left.


    Ye Futian''s gaze landed on the distant Holy Zhi Palace. How fast it had been, another year was passing. He had heard that the Holy Zhi Palace would have a sparring session at the end of the year. At that time, he would be able to see the elites among the Noble Plane in the Holy Zhi Palace!

 598 White Lustrous Flame

    Ye Futian continued to sit at the edge of the Battle Sage Palace, looking at the distant island city.


    Yu Sheng had exceptional talent in body-refining. The first of the Seven Star acupoints he had opened should be the Flirting Star Acupoint. Strength filled his legs, causing them to have tremendous explosive power. His body had superhuman speed, and when coupled with movement techniques, he would be exceptionally quick.


    He closed his eyes and a roaring sound emitted from his body, his bloodstream struck wildly against his body like a dragon and his Spiritual Qi transformed into a golden Roc and struck his body. Emperor Ye Qing''s body-enhancement technique was different from the Incomplete Heavenly Manual, it imitated the form of demonic beasts. If cultivated to the extreme, he could soar through the skies like a golden Roc and shatter the earth like a Divine Ape. It cultivated speed, strength and other attributes the more demonic beasts he imitated. However, the Incomplete Heavenly Manual would push one''s physical body to the limit. The two techniques could be cultivated in conjunction to enhance the other''s effects.


    The blood roared within his body and crackling sounds could be heard from his bones. It was like a Divine Ape had appeared in his body and was trying to break out.


    Ye Futian exercised the power to its limit, and a mysterious current flowed through his body. He punched out with his fist and his movements appeared completely instinctive like the law power had become one with his fist. Sunlight sprinkled down, as though he was bathed in the emperor''s glow. His physical body was withstanding unbearable pain, as if it was going to be torn apart. However, it was like he did not feel the pain and continued to train his punches. On his body, a holy light shone.


    Bang! With a crisp sound, like his body had been pierced through, a horrifying light penetrated his body. Ye Futian still acted like he did not hear feel it and continued punching and forging his body. The banging noises continued and horrifying rays of light penetrated all parts of his body. With a huge roar, he could feel his body expanding and the roar sounded throughout the heavens, as his body was filled with boundless power.


    "Whoo..." Ye Futian exhaled and his breath shot through the air like an arrow. His body seemed as if it was made of metal.


    The Gloomy Star Acupoint of the Seven Star acupoints had been opened.


    Even though he had only opened one acupoint of the Incomplete Heavenly Manual, Ye Futian could feel its strength. If he opened all seven acupoints, he could indeed do what the Douzhan Sage had said and use his physical body to withstand the attacks of other cultivators in the same level as him with no reaction. At that time, using only his body''s strength and speed, he could easily crush cultivators on the same level as him.


    He did not continue to make use of the force and instead sat down to cultivate. Closing his eyes his mind drifted to his Life Palace.


    At that moment, it was dazzling in his Life Palace. His Natal Spirit, the World Tree, was swaying, its jade green branches full of life and making rustling sounds. The Sun and Moon were high up in the sky, the golden Roc was shining, the Divine Ape standing tall, the Thunder Dragon spiraling. Moreover, the scene in his Life Palace was scarier now, with the Sun Spirit''s flames being extremely frantic and the Moon Spirit''s cold rays. There was a frigid aura surrounding the area and the space filled with an icy current, originating from the Law Power Zone.


    In the Law Power Zone, he had used his Life Spirit to absorb numerous forces into his Life Palace.


    The previous time in the Daozang Palace, he had heard Sage Daozang mention in his lecture that different Spirit Zones could evolve through deeper understanding. Back then, when he learned spells in the Cottage, he cultivated in the combination of spells of different elements to form new spells. The strength of those spells was much stronger and if he could really do what Sage Daozang had mentioned and have a deeper understanding of the Spirit Zones, the spells created would definitely have horrifying power.


    The past few days, he not only used the Law Power Zones to forge his body, but he also deciphered the different elements and refined his Spiritual Energy. Although he believed in the strength of the body-enhancement technique, he did not neglect his other abilities. Each ability had its specialty, with his inborn qualifications, he would naturally not give up.


    The Sun''s flames drooped down, turning into a furnace. The Moon''s rays spilled down and the icy current did not evaporate but permeated the furnace drop by drop. The two forces intertwined, but were still distinct, as though they could not co-exist.


    The wood element descended, causing the flames to burn fiercer, appearing eternal. Lightning struck down and Ye Futian walked through all the Law Power Zones, wanting to see if all the elements that he had absorbed would have any change if he used his Sun Scripture''s Sun Furnace to refine them all.


    The furnace dimension became exceptionally horrifying, like golden lava had appeared and was flowing around in the furnace like the flames of hell. However, they appeared to lack aggression.


    Ye Futian felt the forces in the furnace and appeared to have a brainwave. He remembered Xia Hou who he had met in the Holy Road and the Holy Fire Sect''s Xie Ji. They both specialized in flame abilities, Xia Hou''s Flames of Ruin appeared inextinguishable and capable of burning everything while Xie Ji''s flames turned into a dark lotus and contained incredible destructive power. The Flames of Ruin and the Dark Lotus Flame must have been created by elders. If that was so, why not just create his own flame?


    Closing his eyes, his Spiritual Energy entered the furnace, experiencing everything going on inside it. He melded his Spiritual Energy within to perceive the changes.


    Time passed by steadily. After a long while, Ye Futian was still sitting cross-legged, but the Spiritual Qi around him was rampaging. There was an intriguing aura wafting in the air. His Spiritual Energy resonated with the heavens and a unique force appeared. A terrifying destructive current appeared in the air and circulated steadily.


    Following that, wisps of flames appeared in the air. It was a white flame, it did not appear elusive, but flowing. It burned brightly and soon, the area was full of the flames. Burning sounds could be heard in the air and the flame had a demonic beauty.


    "Success," Ye Futian mumbled softly. He opened his eyes and stopped controlling his Spiritual Energy. However, the countless flames continued to burn in the air, getting even more vigorous, as though an inextinguishable flame. Even if nobody controlled the flames, it would not be extinguished until it had burned up all the Spiritual Qi in the area.


    "This flame is pure and untainted, like a glass lamp. Let''s call it the White Lustrous Flame then," Ye Futian muttered to himself. Everyone''s perception was different, so the flame that they created would naturally be different as well. The Flames of Ruin was a different color from the flame that he had created. Although they both contained inextinguishable might, Ye Futian was naturally not going to name his flame after it.


    Ye Futian broke into a smile. Although he did not break through his cultivation level in this period of time, he had significant improvement in his body-refining and his spells. This year, he had stepped into the Noble Plane and entered the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. Although his cultivation level did not improve as rapidly as before, it was still increasing gradually and he was growing stronger. If this trend continued, he would step into the Upper Noble Plane after three to five years of cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace or even be close to the Sage Plane.


    Cultivation was the one thing he had never dared to neglect. There were many people waiting for him to become stronger��Big brother, second sister and the rest of his brothers and sisters. They were all waiting for him to grow stronger. His masters and his godfather who had disappeared were also likely waiting for him to become stronger.


    Standing up, Ye Futian left the place.


    ��


    The 10006th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was coming to an end. At the end of every year, many of the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples would gather for a sparring session to compare their learnings. Not long after, many of those whose families were in Zhongzhou City would go home to visit their families.


    In the Divine Prefecture, even to the cultivators, the end of the year was still an important event for them. In the core of the Holy Zhi Palace, there was an area with many magnificent towering palaces. At that moment, many people had come to that area for the sparring session.


    Out of the 3,000 disciples from the six palaces, many had stepped foot into the area. They wanted to see how the other Holy Zhi Palace disciples were faring. After all, to many of them, even though they were all cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace, they barely met each other, just once a year, and there were many people who did not know each other. Only those elites who had made it into the Law Rank were known by all, even among the elite geniuses of the Barren State, there were those who would end up as nobodies in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    At that moment, in a certain location, a group of people was walking on the road, their gazes on the people all around.


    "One year passed really fast. I''ve only raised my cultivation by one level this year, looks like I''ll only be able to be an onlooker in this year''s sparring session," a teenager said with tones of indolence in his voice.


    "Don''t be so humble. The sparring session isn''t ranked by battle ability, you can spar in whichever field you want. However, this year''s sparring session will still be focusing on those people on the Law Rank. After all, they are the group that attracts the most attention," another replied.


    "I''ve heard that there''s a batch of newbies this year who are rather interesting. The first among them is already the 81st on the Law Rank and is only a Grade Eight Noble. Even, Bai Luli''s younger brother, Bai Ze, was dominated by him, it''s as if Bai Ze has no presence in front of him," another voice sounded out from within the group.


    "Even the young masters from the White Cloud City were dominated? This is interesting indeed. What a pity that his cultivation is on the lower side, he probably doesn''t have any place in this year''s sparring session," someone voiced his opinion while lamenting.


    The group of people chatted while walking and many people among the crowd watched as they came closer.


    The disciples from the Holy Sage Pavilion. Many people had glints in their eyes as they thought that. Moreover, the person leading them was Hua Fan, the first on the Law Rank. He had already obtained the right to enter the Sage Palace. After he had finished participating in this year''s sparring session, he would enter the Sage Palace to cultivate.


    This year''s sparring session was likely to be his last one in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Many people are discussing you," Hua Fan said to a teen standing beside him. That teen was the second young master of the White Cloud City, Bai Ze.


    Bai Ze''s expression was grim. He had initially wanted to brilliantly obtain first in the Holy Zhi Palace admission examinations. However, he was brutally defeated by Ye Futian and humiliated in public. Even after he had entered the Sage Palace, he was still criticized by others.


    "After stepping into the Holy Zhi Palace, my cultivation level has reached the peak of a Grade Seven Noble. If he dares to come forth this sparring session, I will challenge him publicly to erase my humiliation," Bai Ze said coldly. This year, he had had tremendous improvement.


    "I heard that he defeated the Daozang Palace''s Yun Feng a few months ago. Previously, Yun Feng was already a Grade Six Noble who was on the Law Rank, you should be more cautious," another person beside him said.


    A glint appeared in Bai Ze''s eyes. He had previously heard that as well, Ye Futian''s reputation after entering the Palace was dismal and it was only restored after he had challenged the Daozang Palace''s Yun Feng and brutally defeated him.


    "In the past, the person who got first in the Holy Zhi Palace admission examination would always enter the Sage Palace. This time, Ye Futian went to the Battle Sage Palace instead. I would really like to meet him," Hua Fan said softly.

 599 Rallying Power

    There were figures flying successively into the sparring session area. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had also arrived by then. Their group walked down from the air and landed on the ground. Apart from Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, there was also Yi Xiaoshi, Yuan Zhan, and Qi Jie.


    Although the Battle Sage Palace had many disciples, most of them were out cultivating in other areas. Moreover, there were only four of Sage Douzhan''s disciples who were in the Noble Plane. Apart from Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Qi Jie, there was one other disciple named Dou Kun.


    "Will brother Dou Kun be participating in the sparring session?" Ye Futian asked Qi Jie.


    "Brother Dou Kun has always cultivated in the Sky Reaching Tower. He''s the person in the 18th level, you should have seen that before. He should be here for this time''s sparring session. It might even be his last," Qi Jie replied.


    "Is brother Dou Kun a descendant of a master?" Ye Futian was curious and asked. Dou Kun was rather similar to Sage Douzhan.


    "No, he''s from a Dou Clan in the Barren State. It''s a strong clan," Qi Jie replied.


    "Are their Life Spirits all a Dou word?" Ye Futian asked curiously again.


    "How do you know?" Qi Jie looked at Ye Futian and asked. "Even I haven''t seen it."


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded, then looked towards Yu Sheng and asked, "Do you remember an opponent called ''Dou Kui'' that you fought during the entrance examination?"


    "I remember." Yu Sheng nodded and continued, "By borrowing his strength, I was able to break through my cultivation level."


    "Brother Dou Kun and that Dou Kui should be from the same clan. However, when the people from the Holy Zhi Palace asked him whether he wanted to enter the Palace to cultivate, Dou Kui actually rejected it and claimed that he was only there to experience the strength of the Barren State''s geniuses. Otherwise, with his strength, even if he wasn''t taken in as master''s disciple, he should have been able to enter the Battle Sage Palace," Ye Futian said.


    "The Palace is indeed quite boring." Yi Xiaoshi muttered, "I wonder where fourth and fifth brother have gone adventuring." Yi Xiaoshi felt that his life was too pitiful. Back then, he had few opportunities to leave the mountain in the Cottage, and he was now sent by second sister to watch over little brother. The life in the Holy Zhi Palace was not one that he liked. However, the reason he did not like it was probably because he felt ashamed that he had been overtaken by his little brother. Now, Ye Futian was a direct disciple of Sage Douzhan while he was merely a disciple of the Battle Sage Palace. Sigh. He wondered if it would be a good idea to go out and train himself after this year.


    "I''m also bored." Qi Jie nodded seriously.


    "Seventh brother, the Palace is a haven for cultivation, how could you be bored?" Ye Futian smiled at Yi Xiaoshi and said. If he cultivated diligently, his time would naturally be well spent. The problem was that the fatty was too lazy.


    At that moment, a figure flew across the air from a short distance away and descended from the sky like a goddess. It was Hua Jieyu, she landed next to Ye Futian and smiled sweetly. Ye Futian walked forward and held her hand. Behind him, Yi Xiaoshi smacked his head and thought, Of course you''re not bored. What a bully.


    "Jieyu, those people aren''t harassing you anymore, right?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It''s gotten much better after that time, but I''ve been cultivating all this while and haven''t had time to care about them." Hua Jieyu smiled and replied, "I''ve improved a lot, you know."


    "Really?" Ye Futian blinked and said.


    "I''ve broken through to a Grade Seven Noble just a few days ago," Hua Jieyu smiled and told Ye Futian, with a little bit of smugness. Ye Futian did a double take and said, "Will I lose my standing if I am surpassed by my wife?"


    Hua Jieyu glared at him cutely and said, "You need to manage so many different aspects of your cultivation. I am a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer and specialize in cultivating my Spiritual Energy. As long as I can achieve breakthroughs in my Spiritual Energy, it''s enough. My potential in other elements will improve alongside my Spiritual Energy. As long as my Spiritual Energy is strong, I will be strong."


    "Yup, you''re definitely the Jieyu I know," Ye Futian smiled and said. Although she said it casually, she probably worked very hard on her cultivation in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "That is but mere mortal beauty," Qi Jie recited a Buddhist scripture at the side. Ye Futian recalled the last time he spoke with him, that fellow did not care about external appearances or mortal beauty. Yeah, it seemed he really did not care��


    "We''re arriving soon," Qi Jie said. At that moment, there was a row of statues in front of them, sitting there. Each one of the statues had a mysterious will embedded in them, as though the statues were alive.


    "What are those?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "Those are just decorations," Qi Jie replied, and they continued walking forward. Walking through a white gate made of stone, they reached a vast empty space where many others were already waiting.


    "How grand." Ye Futian looked around and saw the nine palaces spreading out in the formation of the Eight Trigrams. There were many people standing at the positions of the palaces, and the palace in the center sunk into the ground, creating a battle arena that looked like a valley. Moreover, there was a colossal statue behind all of the eight palaces, standing tall at tens of meters, like a god. Many people were looking at the eight statues and could faintly feel a Will emitting from the eight statues, as though they had lives of their own. It was an extremely intriguing feeling.


    Ye Futian''s group continued forward onto the ''Li'' position, on the left was the ''Kun'' position and the right was the ''Xun'' position. The ''Kan'' position was directly in front of them. In the direction of the ''Kan'' position, there was a group of people looking toward Ye Futian. Across the air, Ye Futian could feel their frosty gazes. He saw Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing, the duo who were cultivating tin the Sage Palace. Apart from them, there were many other people looking at him. The one in the middle had an exceptional aura. With just one gaze, others could already feel how strong he was.


    "Who''s the person standing in the middle of the Sage Palace''s group?" Ye Futian asked Qi Jie softly.


    "Hua Fan," Qi Jie looked forward and replied softly as well. The first on the Law Rank, Hua Fan. In another direction, many of the Daozang Palace disciples were in the ''Xun'' position. Among them were Lian Yuqing and Yun Feng.


    Yun Feng''s gaze looked towards Ye Futian with malice. These few months, he had been in terrible condition and it had affected his cultivation, causing him to stagnate at his previous cultivation level. All this was thanks to Ye Futian. No trace of Yun Feng''s previous arrogance could be seen on his face. His aura had changed after that battle. No longer was there any of his teenage arrogance; it had been replaced by a faint, grim feeling.


    "Yun Feng," at that moment, Lian Yuqing addressed him. Yun Feng looked towards him and heard Lian Yuqing say, "You can choose your sparring partner at will during the sparring session. Since Ye Futian is here as well, challenge him again. Your attainment in art is extraordinary, perhaps you can cause the statues to create images and give you some enlightenment. No matter what, you need to have him as your target and defeat him by any means possible." He could naturally see that after the battle, Yun Feng''s cultivation had been affected and needed to be remedied. If that was so, he could only escape the trauma by defeating Ye Futian. Otherwise, he would lose confidence in himself and his Will would waver, causing him to face huge difficulties in breaking through his cultivation level. Yun Feng was his little brother and as disciples of Sage Daozang, he did not wish to see Yun Feng collapse under his setback. If he was defeated again, then it could be considered fighting fire with fire. At this point, his situation could not get worse anyways.


    "Mm." Yun Feng nodded, but there was no trace of the confidence he had back then. This confidence was essential to every cultivator, or their might would be weaker than their opponent before the battle even started. Beside them, Xiang Zhiqin was also there and she glared at Ye Futian ruthlessly.


    At that moment, a few figures flew towards Ye Futian. Ye Futian smiled and asked, "Wuchen, how has your cultivation been this past half a year?"


    "The Sword Palace suits me very well," Ye Wuchen replied.


    "Is Chenyu doing well?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "She''s doing alright. I often accompany her in her cultivation," Ye Wuchen replied.


    "That''s good." Ye Futian looked at the people beside Ye Wuchen, they were Zui Qianchou and Xu Que. The few of them were all cultivating in the Sword Palace under the Sword Demon.


    "I''ve heard that you''re impressive in the Holy Zhi Palace." Zui Qianchou smiled and said, "As a newbie, you beat up the Palace''s seniors?"


    "I didn''t want to," Ye Futian shrugged and replied.


    "Arrogant." Xu Que''s looked forward and continued in a quiet voice, "However, you have every right to do so. In the Palace, there seems to be a tradition of bullying the newbies. If I had the chance, I would have done so as well."


    "You''ve been bullied in the Sword Palace?" Ye Futian smiled at the three of them.


    "The three people beside you are the combination of the successors of the Barren State''s Four Great Swordsmen, excluding the Wuji Sword. What do you think?" Xu Que said. He was the successor of the Tingxue Sword while Zui Qianchou was the successor of the Ghost Sword. They could all be considered successors of Sword Demons. Indeed, apart from the Sword Saint Villa''s Yan Wuji, the three of them were the successors of the Four Great Swordsmen.


    Had Xu Que''s words hinted that they had joined forces? This was interesting.


    The Tingxue House''s killer swordsmen always acted alone. To be forced into joining forces with others probably meant that newbies had it tough no matter which Palace they entered. These prideful fellows would evidently not succumb to the pressure.


    There were a few other people who walked to the ''Li'' position where Ye Futian was. Zhong Li and Yang Jian were all newbies from their batch, but they had all gathered together. The people from the other positions were all watching this scene with interested expressions.


    Many people who saw Ye Futian gradually got to know his identity. Standing beside Hua Jieyu, the two of them did in fact look like a well-suited couple.


    "It seems like the person who got first in this time''s admission examination has strong rallying power," someone who was watching commented.


    "Entering the Holy Zhi Palace in the same batch, the first among them beat up the Palace''s seniors and made it to the 81st spot on the Law Rank. He will naturally become a benchmark for other new disciples. Moreover, the newbies who entered the Holy Zhi Palace must have suffered a lot," someone smiled and said. In reality, the treatment they received was also similar. Under the competitive environment in the Holy Zhi Palace, it was perfectly common for battles to happen.


    "However, it seems like those from the Sage Palace have formed their own clique." There were people who looked in the direction of the ''Kan'' Palace and saw Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing. They were also new disciples from the current batch, but they had followed Hua Fan here.


    "The first of past batches have always entered the Sage Palace. This trend continued for many years and it has formed a tradition. They will always treat the previous generation''s first as their benchmark, but it seems that this batch is different. However, Hua Fan must definitely hope that Bai Ze can take over his position and be superior to Ye Futian," someone in the crowd said. The first ranking on the Law Rank had been dominated by the Sage Palace for many years.

 600 Loser

    Holy Sage Pavilion was the best pavilion in the Holy Zhi Palace and had a symbolic significance. According to some rumors in the palace at the moment, Bai Luli might have already been chosen as the next lord of Holy Sage Pavilion and he would manage the Holy Zhi Palace in the future. Indeed, Holy Zhi Palace was already paving the way for him.


    Hua Fan was ranked first on the Law Rank and was the most brilliant person after Bai Luli. The Holy Zhi Palace similarly had high hopes for him. Ximen Hanjiang was ranked just below Hua Fan. Of course, in his batch, there were also a few others whose talents were no weaker than his. Going further down the rank, it would be Ye Futian''s cohort. Although Ye Futian had emerged first in the entrance assessment of the palace, he had entered Battle Sage Palace, while Bai Ze had entered Holy Sage Pavilion. Hua Fan would therefore clearly hope that Bai Ze would top the Law Rank in the future. However, Ye Futian was already stronger than Bai Ze in the assessment. Moreover, he had defeated Bai Ze despite being one level lower. Bai Ze would need to put in much effort to surpass him.


    No elders would be participating in the Year-End Sparring Session in the Holy Zhi Palace. All the disciples here were geniuses and the elders would only occasionally guide them. Most of the time, they would be relying on their own hard work and ability to comprehend new things. The Holy Zhi Palace had plenty of cultivation resources. If a disciple had any questions, he could also ask the seniors around. There was no need for the elders to supervise everything.


    This was meant for Noble Plane disciples. After they became sages, the Holy Zhi Palace would release all restrictions and allow them to do whatever they wanted. Even in the vast Barren State, Sage Plane cultivators would be considered as extremely powerful. They would have a high position in any place.


    The Year-End Sparring Session was an opportunity for the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace to have friendly fights with and learn from each other. It was a tradition passed down the generations. Therefore, most disciples would participate to see the progress of the others. While the elders of the Holy Zhi Palace would not be present, they would also be taking note of the outcome secretly.


    At the moment, disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace were arriving one after another. The appearance of many people had attracted much attention. Clearly, all the disciples would be paying attention to those on the Law Rank.


    Suddenly, Hua Fan walked out from the Kan direction and stood in front of everyone else, looking at the rest. His long robes swang in the air and he looked indescribably elegant.


    "It''s the end of the year again. Every year, the Holy Zhi Palace holds the Year-End Sparring Session to examine the progress everyone''s made over the year. Furthermore, you''ll be fighting against each other. The session is non-competitive and does not have a ranking. You only need to display your skills casually and there are no rules. Most people should be aware of this," Hua Fan said. "It''s nice that this year, the Holy Zhi Palace has admitted new disciples, which only occurs once every three years. We have many new people here. Juniors, you should make use of this opportunity to display your talents and the progress this upcoming year."


    There were no elders present during the session. Therefore, the first person on the Law Rank was the natural candidate for the host.


    After speaking, Hua Fan glanced at Ye Futian''s direction. Ye Futian was the top performer among the newcomers, while Yu Sheng, Xu Que, and Hua Jieyu were also gathered beside him. Apart from Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing, the most powerful people among the newcomers were all around him. Hua Fan wanted to see how outstanding this newcomer, who had defeated Bai Ze with a lower level and was ranked 81st on the Law Rank, really was.


    Apart from Hua Fan, many other people in various directions were also staring at Ye Futian, looking forward to his performance. People at any level could participate in the sparring session and they would all have a chance to display themselves. Ye Futian''s level was somewhat low and he certainly would not be in the spotlight, but he could still display his skills.


    In the previous years, the top performers among the newcomers would all obtain a rank on the Law Rank after the sparring session. They might, in fact, even attain quite a good ranking. This year, Ye Futian was already ranked 81st on the Law Rank before the sparring session. Therefore, many people wanted to see which position Ye Futian could climb to after the sparring session.


    "Let''s begin," Hua Fan said.


    Everyone quietened down, but nobody walked out. Many people looked at Ye Futian and his friends. Since they were giving the juniors the opportunity to perform first, most people would obviously be looking at Ye Futian, the top performer. If Ye Futian and his friends did not walk out, those who did not do so well in the assessment would also not walk out first as to not be humiliated.


    The whole place fell into an awkward silence. Then, someone smiled and said, "Why are the newcomers this time so humble?"


    "You don''t have to worry that you''ll lose face by performing badly. This has been the case in all the previous years. Nobody will mock you. Just try your best," someone said.


    Ye Futian looked at everyone. He bowed slightly and smiling, he said, "The newcomers, including me, do not really know the rules, so we''ll not go first. Seniors, please start the session, and you do not have to think for us all the time. I believe that when we are familiar with the rules, we''ll certainly go up the stage and perform."


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, many people had a strange expression on their face. Ye Futian''s words did not have any problems, but Hua Fan had already asked the newcomers to go first. Was Ye Futian trying to refute Hua Fan by speaking like this? Indeed, this would very likely cause a misunderstanding. If Hua Fan really thought this, then��


    Many people looked at Hua Fan to see his reaction. However, his expression was just as usual, and he did not seem to have any emotions.


    "It''s simple. Ximen, go and demonstrate," Hua Fan said. Then, a young man in a blue robe walked out. A somewhat sharp kind of coldness was being emitted from him and his temperament was extraordinary. He flew into the air and landed on the Zhonggong Battle Platform, after which he put his hand forward. Immediately, a freezing aura befell from the sky and the entire place was covered with a layer of frost. Snow started falling down. In this snowy world, a silver sword suddenly appeared.


    The snow was cold, but the sword was colder.


    Two of the statues behind the Nine Halls Diagrams also lit up as though they had felt the power released from Ximen Hanjiang. They started resonating with his power. In an instant, brilliant radiance was released from the two statues and a terrifying beam of light landed on Ximen Hanjiang''s body. Then, a two-colored light circled around his body. The light from Ximen Hanjiang''s sword was seven Zhang high, so was the freezing radiance around him. It caused the Sword Qi around him to become stronger and colder.


    "Ximen Hanjiang is already in the Upper Noble Plane. In a few years, he will probably be able to stand at the peak of the Noble Plane and try to break through into the Sage Plane."


    "The radiance from both his sword and freezing aura is seven Zhang high, and it''s because he is only releasing his aura. If he''s at the climax of a fight, it might even go up to eight Zhang high. He is indeed the top performer of the assessment last cohort."


    "Go onto the stage and release your aura. Display your abilities and ask someone to fight. Do you understand?" Hua Fan said to Ye Futian. Withdrawing his aura, Ximen Hanjiang walked back to his original position. The radiance on the two statues also died down.


    A strange expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face. Just now, he could clearly feel that the two statues seemed to have turned alive. They actually formed some kind of resonance with the aura from Ximen Hanjiang who was on the battle platform. The battle platform, Nine Halls Diagram, and Eight Trigrams were indeed placed in special positions. It seemed like the statues and Nine Halls Diagrams were somehow connected and could sense each other.


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Then let''s start properly," Hua Fan said again. However, after he said that, Ye Futian still seemed as if he had not heard anything. Instead of reacting, he only stood quietly there. Ye Futian did not have any other intentions. It was only that he did not want to go onto the stage and perform, at least not now.


    The sparring session was supposed to be a very casual event. Ye Futian had come here mainly to see how strong the other people of the Holy Zhi Palace were and did not really want to display his abilities. Therefore, although he knew that Hua Fan and many others wanted to see him go onto the stage, he still made no moves.


    He simply did not want to. He did not have to go just because the others wanted him to. When he really wanted to perform, he would naturally walk out.


    Many people started smiling. The top performer this time was really somewhat interesting. It was no wonder many rumors claimed that he was shameless. Indeed, he would not act logically and did not care about others'' feelings at all. Even Hua Fan could not change his decision.


    Hua Fan did not say anything directly, but he had already hinted something. However, Ye Futian still did not move. Clearly, nobody would think that Ye Futian did not know what was happening. All they could say was that Ye Futian really had a unique personality.


    Many people from Holy Sage Pavilion frowned and glanced coldly at Ye Futian. Hua Fan was the top in the Law Rank at the moment and had received a place in Sage Palace. Indeed, he was the best disciple here after Bai Luli. Even Ximen Hanjiang would listen to his orders. On the other hand, the top performer deliberately gave no face to Hua Fan.


    Suddenly, a person walked out from the Kan direction. It was Bai Ze. Since Ye Futian did not walk out, he would do it.


    During the assessment battle, Bai Ze was badly humiliated. Over several months, he had been putting in his best to cultivate. He knew that Ye Futian must also be becoming stronger, but he still believed in himself. At the very least, he had to try. His brother, Bai Luli, was a saint-to-be, the most talented person in the Barren State. Bai Ze would not allow such a defeat to stay with him.


    Even if he was to lose again, he would still not give up. The people from White Cloud City had their own pride and they would never think that they were lesser than anyone else.


    Bai Ze walked onto the Zhonggong Battle Platform and glanced at the eight statues in the air. Then, he released his Eye of Devastation. At once, the Spiritual Qi of various elements around him raged and a horrifying artistic conception was born. It was as if all the Spiritual Qi was being controlled by him at the moment. The statues lit up one after another, and only one of them did not light up. A seven-colored radiance circled around him and it was four Zhang high. With his current level, it was already very amazing for him to achieve this. Many people seemed to be surprised.


    He was indeed the second lord of White Cloud City.


    Bai Ze was not weak, but how about Ye Futian?


    Bai Ze raised his head. Looking at Ye Futian who was in the Li direction, he said, "I''m Bai Ze from Holy Sage Pavilion. I would like to challenge Ye Futian from Battle Sage Palace."


    Since Bai Ze called for a specific opponent, it was already a challenge. Everyone looked at Ye Futian. It was almost certain that this time, the top performer would not be able to avoid the battle.


    Ye Futian glanced emotionlessly at Bai Ze. He totally disliked Bai Ze who had invited Hua Jieyu to join Holy Sage Pavilion right before him.


    "A loser has no right to challenge me," Ye Futian said. Right away, Bai Ze''s sharp look froze on the spot and his face darkened rapidly. He wanted to wash his old shame off. However, Ye Futian''s words were hitting him directly on his face!

 601 Quick and Clean

    Everyone in the sparring session was stunned. Err...


    In the crowd, Yun Feng''s face was also particularly gloomy. If he also challenged Ye Futian later and received the same reply, he would be stuck in an awkward situation and lose all his face.


    At the moment, Bai Ze was precisely in an extremely embarrassing spot. He was left on the Zhonggong Battle Platform just like this. However, he actually could not refute Ye Futian''s words. Everyone knew that he had lost to Ye Futian in the assessment battle.


    "It''s different today. We have both entered the Holy Zhi Palace. This is the sparring session," Bai Ze said coldly. Ye Futian was deliberately humiliating him.


    Ye Futian glanced at Bai Ze with much contempt. Obviously, he knew that this would cause Bai Ze to feel awkward time, but he couldn''t care less about his feelings. In the past, Bai Ze had been acting superior. He had ignored Ye Futian''s presence and disgraced Ye Futian openly. Bai Ze was actually correct in some sense; today was indeed different. In the past, Bai Ze was the second young lord of White Cloud City, a famous genius. He was the most probable candidate for the top performer in the Holy Zhi Palace assessment, while Ye Futian was known to none. On the other hand, both of them were Holy Zhi Palace disciples at the moment. Bai Ze wanted to regain his glory, but Ye Futian was too busy to play with him.


    "Precisely because it''s the sparring session, I''m not playing such a game with you. Otherwise, you will not receive a second chance after losing again," Ye Futian said emotionlessly. "If one day, your ranking on the Law Rank is higher than or close to mine, maybe I will consider accepting your challenge. Today, you''re far from being a worthy opponent for me." Ye Futian''s cold and toneless voice slammed onto Bai Ze''s face like a violent slap. In particular, his last line caused Bai Ze''s aura to erupt uncontrollably. As the second young lord of White Cloud City, Bai Ze had never been humiliated like this. Above all, he was being shamed before all the other disciples.


    Everyone present stared at Ye Futian, looking interested. The top performer of the assessment was indeed way too arrogant and everyone was looking forward to his performance. Yet, even when Bai Ze challenged Ye Futian himself, Ye Futian still rejected it straightaway.


    "During the sparring session, when someone asks you to have a fight, even if your level is much higher, you should still accept the battle and guide your opponent. This is the whole point of the sparring session," someone from the Kan direction suddenly said. It was a cultivator who had a sharp expression on his face. He looked in Ye Futian''s direction and continued coldly, "You have just entered the palace. You are too imperious."


    The person who just spoke was called Du Yue. He was a descendant of an elder from Holy Sage Pavilion and his talents were indeed extraordinary. He had a senior who was in the same generation as the lord of White Cloud City and they had cultivated in Holy Sage Pavilion together in the past.


    Ye Futian was the top performer this year and was ranked 81st on the Law Rank, but he was still just a Grade Eight Noble, a newcomer. He had rebutted Hua Fan''s words just now and also humiliated Bai Ze publicly at the moment. Arrogant, he did not look like a newcomer at all.


    "It depends on who I am talking to," Ye Futian replied, smiling.


    "..." Many people looked at Bai Ze with some sympathy. Bai Ze was really unlucky to have such an opponent. Ye Futian had humiliated Bai Ze with every sentence.


    Bai Ze''s face had already turned completely dark. Staring at the people around Ye Futian, he said, "You''re avoiding the fight, but nobody beside you has beaten me, right? Who wants to accept my challenge?"


    Hearing Bai Ze''s words, Ye Futian was somewhat surprised. Bai Ze was really digging his own grave. This being the case, he would allow the second young lord of White Cloud City to remember this day forever.


    "Yu Sheng, be quick and clean," Ye Futian secretly transmitted his voice to Yu Sheng.


    During the assessment that time, Yu Sheng lost only because Xu Que was able to target his weakness. After entering the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian had been noting Yu Sheng''s improvement. He would be able to easily deal with Bai Ze.


    Yu Sheng nodded, after which he flashed and jumped into the air. Then, he landed on the Zhonggong Battle Platform below. Accompanied by a loud bang, the entire platform vibrated. From just his burly, violent body, everyone could feel how powerful he was. They knew that Yu Sheng had also managed to enter the top ten in the assessment. Just like Ye Futian, he had entered the Holy Zhi Palace when he was only a Grade Nine Noble. He should not be underestimated.


    Looking at Yu Sheng''s appearance, Bai Ze felt as if he was being targeted by a wild beast. Yu Sheng''s huge eyes were extremely cold. He was present when Bai Ze invited Hua Jieyu personally. That time, he had left Bai Ze to Ye Futian. Since he was the one fighting this time, he would, of course, not show any mercy.


    Bang. Dark golden radiance bloomed. A suit of demonic armor appeared on his body and a pair of demonic wings behind his back. A dark golden demonic halberd condensed in his hand and an extremely violent Martial Will erupted. The might from his will immediately swept across the entire Zhonggong Battle Platform. Bai Ze felt that a demon had just appeared before him, waiting for him to surrender himself.


    Yu Sheng was actually pressuring Bai Ze with Martial Will.


    Bai Ze released his Life Spirit. A terrifying pair of pupils and his Spell Scroll Spirit appeared at the same time. Then, a powerful wave of Spiritual Will bloomed and the entire place seemed to have turned into a gray world. Yu Sheng felt as though an invisible hand was grabbing him, wanting to drag him into the destructive gray world. In his mind, the pair of gray Eye of Devastation was causing him to lose himself. Spiritual attacks were most appropriate when fighting against martial arts cultivators.


    However, at the moment, an illusory, dark gold demon appeared in Yu Sheng''s mind, guarding him. His demonic method focused mainly on martial arts, but it also contained a way to train his Spiritual Energy, namely the Demonic Meditation. It could allow his Spiritual Energy to be very stable. Although it contained little damaging abilities, it was sufficient for him to defend against spiritual attacks so that this would at least not become his weakness.


    Demonic might erupted wildly. Yu Sheng''s body seemed to be have turned into a black whirlpool, rapidly engulfing all the powers around him. That included the Spiritual Qi that was controlled by the Eye of Devastation.


    In the sky above the arena, many dark golden demonic halberds actually appeared. They then charged forcefully towards Bai Ze. Bai Ze raised his head to look at the halberds which had appeared in the sky and his face was only filled with coldness. Was Yu Sheng trying to hurt him with this kind of attack in his Eye Sorcery Zone?


    Even the speed of the halberds seemed to be restricted. Bai Ze extended his hand. Right away, many frightening golden light runes appeared before him, turning into a defensive screen. When the halberds landed, many violent bangs were produced, but the screen remained intact.


    As the demonic halberds were falling down, an alarming golden radiance was also flowing on Yu Sheng''s body. Many beams of golden light penetrated across his body, all the way to his feet. Immediately, his power shot up again. In the sky, two of the stone statues lit up, one of which was extremely dazzling. Some of the radiance poured down onto Yu Sheng''s body and actually became six Zhang high.


    "What..." Some of the cultivators looked at the statues, astonished. The light from the statue glittered, as if it was heavily stimulated. Why would Yu Sheng, a mere Grade Eight Noble, cause such an intense response? Was his artistic conception of martial arts really this strong?


    Dong! With a loud bang, Yu Sheng stomped his feet onto the ground and jumped into the air. His demonic wings flapped, and his speed was as quick as lightning. In an instant, his body penetrated across the space. Then he fell down from the sky and stepped towards Bai Ze as if he was a god from the heaven.


    Yu Sheng raised his arm and threw out the demonic halberd in his hand in midair. The halberd turned into a striking bolt of lightning and punctured through the air. With a loud bang, the golden light screen below was crushed directly.


    Bai Ze''s face darkened. Yu Sheng''s way of fighting was too domineering. Bai Ze could not move Yu Sheng at all with his Spiritual Energy. His Eye of Devastation was useful against spells, but highly ineffective against such a brutal martial arts cultivator.


    Bai Ze used all his might to stimulate his Spell Scroll Spirit. At once, many spell scrolls flew out from his Life Spirit, giving birth to a destructive power. It was much stronger than when he fought with Ye Futian. Activating the Almighty Thunder Guide, countless Chains of Thunder God immediately appeared on Yu Sheng''s body. At the same time, many spell scrolls circled around him, wildly devouring the Spiritual Qi in the sky. Many storms bloomed, and a golden lotus was being born.


    Bai Ze extended his hand. The roaring, golden storms converged together, forming a destructive golden lotus which had 81 petals. The petals of the lotus rotated wildly, destroying everything around them like sharp blades.


    Die! Bai Ze roared coldly in his mind. The deadly golden lotus charged towards Yu Sheng who was coming towards him from the air. After being defeated by Ye Futian last time in just one strike, he was motivated by the bitter experience. In the end, he finally managed to learn this combined spell whose power was simply calamitous.


    Bang! Two brilliant beams of light erupted from Yu Sheng''s feet as he continued coming down. His dark golden, demonic body seemed to have become even more intimidating and he stepped towards the destructive lotus.


    "Is he mad?" Many people were bewildered.


    Yu Sheng was trying to kill himself. Was he going to take such a horrifying spell with his body? Even if he had entered Battle Sage Palace and was learning body-enhancing techniques from Sage Douzhan, he should not be so crazy. After all, Bai Ze was powerful and this particular spell was even more hair-raising.


    You''re the one who''s trying to kill yourself! Bai Ze thought as he stared at Yu Sheng who was in the air. Then, Yu Sheng stepped onto the destructive lotus directly. An ear-piercing noise erupted, followed by a loud bang. A god-like figure continued stamping down, and it was none other than Yu Sheng. Although the dark golden armor on his body had already shattered, he had survived the attack from the golden lotus.


    Bai Ze retreated backward. However, following a loud noise, Yu Sheng landed on the ground and grabbed Bai Ze''s foot with his hand directly. Bai Ze''s body had just left the ground when he froze at his spot. Immediately, his face turned pale. Feeling the power from Yu Sheng''s hand, he was actually somewhat fear-stricken. In the next instant, he felt his body fly into the air. He quickly enveloped his body in Spiritual Qi for protection.


    Bang! After a loud bang, Bai Ze was nearly unconscious. Nobody knew how many of his bones were broken and his mind was totally blank. Countless people stared motionlessly at the burly figure, astounded. After smashing Bai Ze on the ground just once, Yu Sheng let go of him. However, Bai Ze continued lying on the ground, his body twitching uncontrollably.


    Dong. With another loud bang, Yu Sheng jumped off the battle platform and ascended into the air, returning to the Li position. Ye Futian widened his eyes at Yu Sheng in dissatisfaction and said secretly, "I only asked you to be quick and clean, not to be so serious!"


    Yu Sheng''s external defence was broken and his shirt also had many holes, through which some blood stain could be seen. Clearly, even though he had activated his acupoints to release more power, his body was still damaged under the destructive power. He could have finished the battle in other ways. Of course, this was indeed the quickest and cleanest way. From the start to the end, he trampled Bai Ze.


    "I''m fine. Already used to it these days," Yu Sheng replied. Ye Futian was speechless. As for Bai Ze, he would spend his remaining time in the Holy Zhi Palace in sheer embarrassment!

 602 The Little Brother Is no Common Folk

    Bai Ze''s body was carried out on a stretcher. Many had learned of him before he went to study in the palace, and that was due to him having a brother of unparalleled talent. It was even rumored that his brother was to be made the successor of the Holy Zhi Palace itself.


    Many thought that while Bai Ze would not have been able to achieve what his brother was capable of, he would have at least became some important figure known by all. No one expected that he would have been beaten and humiliated by Ye Futian during the battles to qualify them for entrance. Worse still, he ended up being walked over by Yu Sheng in his sparring session in his very first year entering the palace. Bai Ze''s reputation was practically in the gutter.


    Bai Ze found it difficult to live with dignity inside the Holy Zhi Palace. Those two battles were simply too intense, especially the sparring session. He was practically being slaughtered. If Yu Sheng''s plane was higher than Bai Ze''s, that would have been seen simply as the natural course of things, as it was normal to be bullied by one of a higher level. There would have been nothing humiliating about his loss if not for the fact that Yu Sheng was the one with a lower plane.


    That battle was simply too brutal for Bai Ze in more ways than one.


    Many from the Holy Sage Pavilion felt rather uneasy at everything that took place. Even Hua Fan thought they had taken it too far, judging by how badly battered Bai Ze ended up. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng held nothing back in ridiculing Bai Ze, which was more than enough to crush his pride and destroy his confidence. However one would have put it, Bai Ze was still Bai Luli''s biological brother. Futian and Yu Sheng simply did not give any face to Bai Luli or the Holy Sage Pavilion when they went about pounding Bai Ze. But then again, Yu Sheng''s strength was indisputable. He was thought to have been trained in Sage Douzhan''s art at body refinement, as he sported appallingly powerful constitution. That, coupled with his own training in demonic arts, practically made him a devil.


    Many were astonished by what Yu Sheng was capable of. From the looks of things, the second most powerful among the newly added students was not Bai Ze; it was Yu Sheng.


    It was the first time that a disciple of the Holy Sage Pavilion ended up completely overwhelmed by a disciple of the Battle Sage Palace. With Ye Futian and Yu Sheng both studying in the Battle Sage Palace, the upper ranks of the Law Rank would probably end up being bagged by the Battle Sage Palace. It was a situation that could have been overturned by the Holy Sage Pavilion if someone from there turned out to be some tremendous genius.


    That one battle allowed Yu Sheng to demonstrate his prowess; prowess that was worthy of being ranked in the top three in the Law Rank in the future.


    "Just how far are those two going to go with things," Xu Que mumbled right beside Ye Futian. It was him who had bested Yu Sheng before, however, Xu Que did not manage to end up overwhelming Yu Sheng. He won only because he was taking the attrition warfare approach with Yu Sheng. Had both of them actually clashed head-on, Xu Que might have actually been the one who ended up losing. But then again, Xu Que trained in the killing arts and cared little about how he won.


    It was even more obvious that Yu Sheng had gotten stronger, and considerably so. Bai Ze clashed head-on with such a monster, and it was only natural that he ended up losing terribly.


    Xu Que stepped onto the platform in a flash, and a sword appeared in his hand. The sword aura around him whipped about in furious howl, as streaks of formless currents of the sword flowed between the heavens and the earth. Xu Que was a Grade Six Noble, and it was a given that he had become even more formidable. Lights from two statues were seen showering down onto him.


    "Xu Que from the Sword Palace. Is there any one of the seniors here who wish to spar with me?" Xu Que asked. A Grade Five Noble went onto the stage and said, "I''ve always wanted to see how powerful the killing arts of the sword of the Tingxue House are. It seems like I''ve gotten my wish."


    The figure taking the challenge leaped into the air, but Xu Que vanished from where he stood before his opponent made it to the ground. The faces of many looked funny. Strike without proper announcement, eh? Xu Que had launched his attack before the figure was even able to stand up properly.


    Xu Que''s opponent lashed out with a palm attack, bringing the force of the mountains to bear on Xu Que in the front while being on guard against any attacks coming from the back. Streaks of killing sword aura went to attack him from the back, and all carried intense murderous intent. He responded by lashing out with his palms on both sides of his body.


    Cracking noises were heard instead. The overwhelming huge palm attack striking at the front ended up being cut right in the middle. A sword went swooping by at tremendous speeds as if it was something that came from the heavens, heading for the throat of its target. The attack carried intense cold, sending chills to everyone''s bones.


    The battle ended before the one who answered the challenge was even able to make it to the ground.


    "I''m sorry if I have offended you. That was the sword technique of Tingxue House. No patterns, no rules, just seizing any opportunities there were to be seized." Xu Que sheathed his sword and backed away.


    Everyone was rendered speechless. It was the one who answered the challenge who claimed to want to know what the sword techniques of Tingxue House were like, and as such, he could not have blamed Xu Que for striking so suddenly. Everything happened so quickly that he was unable to process anything. However, other than the element of surprise, it was still true that Xu Que was powerful, as he ranked fifth in the battles for entry into the Holy Zhi Palace. It was only natural for him to become one ranked in the upper ranks of the Law Rank in the future. He would at least be able to make it to the top 20. However, the one he fought was not one personally instructed by the palace lord, but one who advanced from the Thousand Holy Islands. Even if he were to fight squarely with Xu Que, there was no certainty that he would have come out on top.


    "That attack would have been even more ferocious if it came from the front," Ye Futian said to himself after watching Xu Que fight. Ye Futian was thinking that Xu Que had definitely merged the essence of the sword techniques of the master of Tingxue House with those learned from the Sword Demon.


    "It seems like the little brothers who entered this time around all sport incredible prowess. It would be wise to take them seriously," Hua Fan said.


    Many spectators looked amused. While the sparring session was definitely an opportunity for the newbies to show what they were capable of, the stage still belonged to the old-timers. Every time there were newbies to fight, everyone would allow the newbies to demonstrate their abilities for a bit before the old-timers went in to teach them a lesson. However, the newbies from that particular batch were interesting, especially those who had experienced sparring sessions three years ago. They felt the talents demonstrated by this particular batch were possibly higher than that of the last batch. At the very least, from the looks of things at the moment, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Xu Que performed admirably. Hua Jieyu of Daozang Palace was also a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, and it was a given that she was meant for great things in the future.


    "Understood." Many went on to try their hands against the newbies, and the fights felt rather fun. There was nothing wrong with finding something amusing to do before the true mighty ones on the Law Rank were pitted against each other.


    Yuan Zhan stepped out and made it onto the platform. Its wild body coursed with overwhelming force. He looked like a meaty mountain made of gold by just standing.


    A mighty one who seemed to be basking in dazzling golden lights walked out, looking down on the ape.


    Many who saw him walking out looked amused. Yuan Zhan is really going to get hurt really bad. The one who walked out was someone from Tianxing Pavilion, a Grade Four Noble with incredible powers.


    Boom. Yuan Zhan stepped forward and began running in the battlefield. His opponent, however, simply stood in the air, basking in showers of light. Rows of golden halberds appeared behind him, and lightning crackled about as if the end of the world was near. The golden halberds fell from the sky with a loud crackle of thunder, out to kill everything below.


    "Ning Huang''s God Slaying Halberd." Ye Futian watched the battle closely. The figure from Tianxing Pavilion was probably a student of Elder Ning.


    Yuan Zhan conjured a golden staff and struck with the Nine Heavenly Attacks. However, his opponent was simply too powerful. One halberd after another fell, accompanied by bolts of lightning as if they were some form of divine punishment dealt on their target. A devastating Thunder Halberd fell from the sky soon after. The staff in Yuan Zhan''s hand was utterly destroyed, and he ended up falling hard onto the ground with a roar. The golden halberds kept raining from the sky, landing around his body.


    "Bullying at its finest," Yi Xiaoshi said coldly at the scene.


    "That is something everyone here has been through," Qi Jie added. "But bullying newbies of my place, the Battle Sage Palace, eh?"


    Other newbies walked up one by one, and every one of them ended up overpowered. Furthermore, they went about bullying newbies of other pavilions or palaces. Ye Wuchen was also targeted by people of Tianxing Pavilion and was brutally bashed. Yi Xiaoshi, Zhong Li, and all others were no exceptions.


    When Hua Jieyu stepped forth, it was Xiang Zhiqin, a disciple of Daozang Palace who went to face her. Xiang Zhiqin was the princess of the Xiang Kingdom. It was a given that she was powerful, and she went on to overwhelm Hua Jieyu.


    "Our little sister here possesses exceptional talents indeed, being able to reach Grade Seven Noble in less than a year. Furthermore, she''s a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer. I would advise you to quiet yourself and train hard," Lian Yuqing of Daozang Palace stood at a corner watching Hua Jieyu on the platform and commented.


    Hua Jieyu smiled and said, "Thank you for guidance, seniors." She went to take her place beside Ye Futian as soon as she finished.


    Lian Yuqing looked in Futian''s direction and said, "You are now the only one who has yet to step on to the Zhonggong Battle Platform among all the new students this year. It''s better to not miss the chance to learn from this opportunity.


    Learn? Ye Futian smirked. No newbies after Xu Que managed to win, and their opponents were those who seemed to target each one of them specifically. They did well in teaching the newbies by pummeling them to the ground.


    "I don''t see any meaning to all of this," Ye Futian said plainly.


    "All of you new little brothers and sisters were proud sons and daughters, and you all had an intense ego. This served as an opportunity to warn all of you to never be arrogant and keep your feet on the ground with your training. It is also an encouragement of sorts," Lian Yuqing elaborated.


    "Whatever you say, senior." Ye Futian smiled. "I just think that as new students, the sparring sessions should have been one where we juniors get to watch our seniors fight, so as to remind ourselves to be diligent in our training. There is simply no meaning for us juniors to fight our seniors. If that is indeed so useful, why don''t you seniors go pick fights with the sages and encourage yourselves?"


    "Is it not a part of your training to find out what you lack in battle and find out parts of yourself to improve?" Lian Yuqing looked at Ye Futian.


    "I don''t see the need to do so." Ye Futian said, "If there is anything lacking with us juniors, that would be level in planes. There is hardly anything else."


    "You are indeed the champion. So arrogant." Many smirked at his comments. While such ways of ''encouragement'' did have its demerits, it had become the tradition of the place. As new students, they were expected to simply take it without question; however, Ye Futian seemed adamant on challenging the rules.


    "That way you put it, is it to say that other than differences in planes, there is nothing that sets you apart from your seniors?" Lian Yuqing added, "Even those who ranked high on the Law Rank dared not say that they were free from weaknesses and reigned supreme over others. The sparring sessions have always served as a platform to find out one''s own weaknesses by fighting others. This is to improve."


    Ye Futian looked at Lian Yuqing and smiled brightly, then said, "Indeed."


    The eyes of everyone present turned to look at Ye Futian. He actually said ''indeed''. I have never seen a newbie so insolent. Even Bai Luli did not behave in such an arrogant manner when he first entered the Holy Zhi Palace. Seems like the number one this time is indeed different from everyone else.


    Ye Futian, in turn, returned the gazes beamed at him, without any care about what they thought. Many new students looked at him and thought him to be immensely pompous.


    Qi Jie blinked and felt impressed. Our little brother is indeed no common folk. I never thought he would be daring enough to say something like that in front of his seniors!

 603 Knowing a Thing or Two

    Lian Yuqing stared at Ye Futian. The newcomer had been pretty arrogant back in Daozang Palace, asking to spar with Yun Feng on the platform, then went on to practically beat Yun Feng to a pulp. The damage was so bad that Yun Feng had yet to overcome the resulting emotional trauma. His mind remained very much crushed.


    Ye Futian came to rank 81st since that last battle. Yun Feng, on the other hand, was eliminated from the Law Rank. He had been in a deep depression since, and his training stagnated. As Yun Feng''s senior, Lian Yuqing was very dissatisfied with Ye Futian.


    While Lian Yuqing acknowledged Ye Futian''s talents and thought him to be one who would reach top three in Law Rank in the future, the new student was nonetheless little more than a junior who had just entered the Holy Zhi Palace. The newbie however, was incredibly rude and tremendously insolent. Lian Yuqing resented people with such personalities. The arrogant newbie even went so far as to say that he did not see any difference between the new students and their seniors, other than the difference in planes.


    Cultivation as a whole and the increase in planes came with the increase in one''s awareness and comprehension. As a Grade One Noble, Lian Yuqing knew that very, very well. There were bound to be great differences of various sorts between those of lower planes and those of higher planes. The difference was far more vast than what Ye Futian had stated.


    If one with such arrogance and exceptional talent were to become powerful, it was a certain thing that they would have turned out to be nasty people who went about doing as they fancied.


    "You are quite insolent indeed," Lian Yuqing looked at Ye Futian and said. He grew to dislike the newbie even more.


    "Are you saying that none of the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace are better than you in any way but difference in planes?" Ximen Hanjiang quipped. The way Ye Futian had put it was indeed too arrogant. Even he, the champion of the last batch, found Ye Futian insufferable. Ximen Hanjiang saw not even a single hint of humility in Ye Futian. All he saw was arrogance and rudeness.


    Hua Fan''s gaze turned to Ye Futian as well. Ye Futian had never been one to follow rules right from the very beginning. Hua Fan came to know that from the very moment Ye Futian was accepted into the Holy Zhi Palace. He had not been paying much attention to the newbie at first and had only heard things about Ye Futian.


    The disciples of various palaces and pavilions took an increasing interest in the champion of this very batch of newbies. There were many rumors circulating about Ye Futian in the Holy Zhi Palace. He was called pretentious, vile, horny, and shameless. It seemed that he had even behaved insolently around Yun Shuisheng in front of everyone. His reputation was quite literally in the gutter. It was not until he stepped into Daozang Palace, made peace with Yun Shuisheng, went on the battle platform and beat Yun Feng that his reputation began to take a turn for the better.


    Hua Fan was finally able to see Ye Futian with his very own eyes, and everyone seemed to get to know Ye Futian in the flesh better. His flamboyant attitude, blatant disregard for rules, and even his handsome face, all seemed to speak volume about his pride and confidence.


    Such people were utter geniuses. Ye Futian might have still been a low-grade Noble for the time being, but no one could guess how he would turn out if he became a sage one day.


    Ye Futian cast his gaze at everyone present and said, "If the sparring sessions are simply meant for gauging each other''s strengths, there would have been nothing wrong with them. How it is done here, however, is simply an excuse for some to immerse themselves in the twisted joy of bullying those who come later. How is this even sparring?


    "I participated with the intention to learn, to truly see the seniors spar against one another, and develop a comprehension about what I lack personally. I believe most newbies felt like I did. But from the battles that have taken place before, I failed to see any meaning in them." Ye Futian went on to look at everyone present. "If all here actually believe that being oppressed equals being encouraged, why don''t you all get tortured by the elders of the place a time or two and encourage yourselves?"


    "During training, disciples at the top of the Noble Plane go looking for sages to evaluate their own progress. Do they have to spell it out for you?" Lian Yuqing added plainly, "While the sparring sessions were indeed a little bit too intense, doing so allowed for seniors to demonstrate their capabilities in front of the juniors, to test themselves out and to allow juniors develop an even deeper comprehension of many things. Yet, all you were able to see was how people of higher planes trampled over those of lower planes? Or rather, as you have said before, do you think that none of the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace are better than you in any way? That it''s just a mere difference in planes?" A tinge of anger was heard within Lian Yuqing''s words, and his usual composure was cracking.


    "No matter how many times you ask, my answer remains the same. It is so indeed." Ye Futian looked at Lian Yuqing. "Cultivation is something done in phases. One will develop some measure of comprehension when one reaches a certain plane. Cultivators themselves need to have absolute confidence in themselves or they will fail to reach for greater heights. It isn''t just me I''m talking about; I mean every single one of the new students who has been defeated today. I don''t think any one of them is inferior to anyone of you seniors. It is just a difference in planes, that is all. I believe they all feel the same."


    As soon as Ye Futian finished talking, the newbies, who had their share of getting beaten up, all turned to sport sharp looks on their faces and went on to stand tall and proud, shooting their gaze at the likes of Lian Yuqing. The sessions had all of them feeling frustrated and deeply resentful. Ye Futian had simply spoken what was on their mind on their behalf.


    Lian Yuqian smirked at Ye Futian''s words and said, "What you have just said is another matter altogether. You are indeed good with words. Is this your excuse of not stepping into the platform?" Ye Futian had claimed to speak for everyone, and it was only natural that his words were taken as truths.


    "Here is where you are mistaken again." Ye Futian looked at Lian Yuqing. "You said it yourself, if such sessions were meant to have the newbies be aware of their own shortcomings, I indeed believe that there is no need for me to battle."


    Many looked rather amused at the words he just uttered. Is he admitting that he was being arrogant before?


    "So you mean to..." Lian Yuqing looked at Ye Futian.


    "What I meant was that I was not interested in battling before. Now, it is the opposite." Ye Futian spared a glance at Lian Yuqing before flashing and leaping onto the Zhonggong Battle Platform beneath.


    All eyes were on him at that very moment. Ye Futian bowed at everyone present and went to look up at everyone, saying, "Since this is my chance to verify what was being said about the sparring sessions, I''d like to do it my way to prove what I have just said, and to let all seniors here see what I had in mind with such sessions. Is there any senior here willing to give me time to prove my words?"


    Many turned to look at Hua Fan, and he, in turn, turned to look at Ye Futian and said, "Very well." Hua Fan wanted to see for himself how Ye Futian would go about proving anything.


    Ye Futian nodded. He looked at everyone again and spoke, "My plane is low, as I''m but a Grade Eight Noble. If any of the seniors were to come spar with me, there would be no doubt that I would end up losing. Since this is a sparring session and the seniors think there is more to it than just being of a higher plane compared to the newbies, I''d like seniors who have fought the juniors before, to come spar with me."


    He cast his glance at the ones from Tianxing Pavilion as soon as he was done talking, and added, "Are you the one who fought against Yuan Zhan earlier, senior? I would like to know, in what ways are you better than me, other than being of a higher plane?"


    Everyone within earshot looked bemused and came to somehow understand what he was trying to pull. This is one unbridled *sshole indeed. He went pointing out individuals and asked how they were better than he was. How is anyone supposed to answer such a question?


    If the ones asked were unable to answer his question, it would have simply verified what he said before, that other than the difference in plane, they were no better than the juniors they had just bullied.


    Yi Xiaoshi looked at the scene, dumbfounded, before looking rather amused. He knew that little brother of his well, after all. That little sh*t isn''t trying to prove anything about the sparring sessions. He was simply trying to find a logical excuse to exact his revenge.


    Yi Xiaoshi felt very astonished, thinking that his little brother was indeed the little brother he knew��one who stood tall and proud exacting his revenge. He had not, however, expected so many to have fallen into his little brother''s trap.


    That disciple of Tianxing Pavilion glared at Ye Futian with cold eyes, then said with an equally cold tone, "I specialize in martial arts attacks, blending my will into the situation of things. We can''t fight here due to our differences in planes. How are you going to prove anything?"


    "Of course I can." Ye Futian said and leaped into the air. His speed was frightening as he gathered terrifying aura about him. Overwhelming martial arts will burst from his body, the martial art statue shone the most brightly among all the eight statues, which appeared within an instant. The force gathered became increasingly powerful. Ye Futian lashed out with his hand and conjured a staff in his hand. He stepped forward and dealt a strike with the staff. The air was shaken, yet there was no stopping the growth of his aura. The force gathering about him became more terrifying, the shinning statue''s light grew increasingly bright and blinding.


    Ye Futian went made consecutive attacks with his staff, and every strike felt like a thunderstorm, fearsome and unyielding. When he dealt his fifth attack, shadows of the staff were seen everywhere on the platform. The tremendous force went about pounding away at the air as the shinning statue glowed with blinding light.


    He did not lash out with the sixth attack but stood in the air after dealing five blows. Many felt themselves trembling after seeing how he moved. While he was only a mere Grade Eight Noble, that force that he had just demonstrated in front of everywhere was extremely terrifying. He was, after all, the champion.


    Yun Feng''s face went pale. He knew that even if he were to ask for a rematch, there was simply no way he would be able to beat Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned to look at that Tianxing Pavilion disciple and said, "I now ask for your guidance." He excused himself after he was done saying that.


    Ye Futian''s techniques with the staff, his bearing, power of the body, and martial arts will all seemed to have blended perfectly. That Tianxing Pavilion disciple looked incredibly troubled. While his plane was indeed far higher than Ye Futian''s, and there was no doubt that his power would have been able to overwhelm what was demonstrated by Ye Futian, none of the spectators were blind. As soon as he made his move, everyone could tell who was better in terms of mastery of the art.


    Ye Futian seemed to be telling everyone with his actions that that was the sparring sessions that he had in mind.


    "Senior?" Ye Futian said. The person he addressed was now looking immensely troubled, as there was no way he could finish this with without making a fool of himself.


    "I admit defeat," that disciple of Tianxing Pavilion said, causing an uproar from everyone present. It was to say that other than being of higher plane, he had admitted that the art that he was best at, proved inferior compared to Ye Futian. His actions, in turn, verified what Ye Futian said before.


    "What about you, senior?" Ye Futian looked at the one who had bested Ye Wuchen before, also a disciple of Tianxing Pavilion. That person looked troubled as well, as he specialized in martial arts just like the one Ye Futian challenged.


    "So, even you seem to think that you only have the advantage in terms of the difference in planes," Ye Futian quipped with a smirk at the other party''s utter silence. He went on to look at Xiang Zhiqin. "How about you?"


    Xiang Zhiqin had beaten Hua Jieyu before.


    "Resonance of wills, blending into spells. How will you prove your superiority?" Xiang Zhiqin glared at Ye Futian with cold eyes.


    Ye Futian stood silently. Fearsome Spiritual Qi circulated about him in an instant. Many were able to feel intensely dangerous martial arts will power, and then, streaks of white flames danced in the air. The flames grew increasingly intense around him, and many were able to feel the eerie fires from above the Zhonggong Battle Platform, fires which felt incredibly cold. The fires felt as if they were capable of sucking the marrow from one''s bones, and packed tremendously devastating damage potential. Three statues glowed brightly when the fires appeared, which meant that the fires packed powers of three different elements.


    When Ye Futian ceased casting the skill and stopped what he was doing, the fires remained dancing in the air, as if they were fires that were capable of burning indefinitely.


    Ye Futian looked up and said to Xiang Zhiqin, "Please, your guidance."


    Xiang Zhiqin felt the power infused with the fires and was speechless. Many were shocked to their core at the scene and came to understand what Ye Futian was trying to do. He was retaliating as the champion of the battles to gain entry into the Holy Zhi Palace. He was retaliating against everyone and proving his point along the way.


    It was natural that Lian Yuqing came to understand what Ye Futian was trying to do, as he glared at the newbie with cold eyes. That guy is indeed a genius like no other. Lian Yuqing felt a bad taste in his mouth admitting that, but the truth remained the truth.


    "You are indeed the champion, one to emerge once every three years. I have to admit that your talents are indeed exceptional. All of them are middle-grade Nobles. While they are of higher planes, they are inferior compared to you in these areas demonstrated, and it is no surprise." Lian Yuqing went on to add, "This hardly proves anything."


    "Well then, what did all those battles before prove?" Ye Futian looked at Lian Yuqing and continued, "I wonder what you specialize in, senior?"


    Countless eyes froze as soon as he finished. Did Ye Futian just ask Lian Yuqing that? Lian Yuqing, who ranked fifth on the Law Rank?


    Lian Yuqing was startled himself, before shooting back at Ye Futian with a gaze as sharp as blades, "I play the guqin. Do you?"


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "I know a thing or two about that!"

 604 Battle of Guqin Mastery

    Everyone''s eyes fell onto Ye Futian and Lian Yuqing on the sparring place.


    Ye Futian answered that he knew a thing or two. He even knows how to play the guqin? And is he really trying battle Lian Yuqing using the guqin? Isn''t this going a little too far? Lian Yuqing isn''t like those Futian has beaten. He is a Grade One Noble, and furthermore, one who at the pinnacle of the plane, and ranked fifth on the Law Rank.


    The progression of one''s cultivation was usually as most guessed��the higher one''s plane, the deeper one''s comprehension in all areas became. No one thought an outlier like Ye Futian would have appeared, let alone one capable enough to beat both the Tianxing Palace and Xiang Zhiqin. However, it was only natural that Lian Yuqing''s comprehension was definitely higher than Ye Futian''s, as he was, after all, a Grade One Noble ranked fifth on the Law Rank.


    Just how did Futian think he was going to best Lian Yuqing playing the guqin?


    This is a joke. It was true that Ye Futian had demonstrated extremely eye-catching talents prior to this and proved his worth as the champion of the entrance battles. He was even deemed capable of taking the entire Holy Zhi Palace in five years. His name on the Law Rank would have been incredibly distinct as well. However, now he behaved like a thug. If he were to actually fight Lian Yuqing, wouldn''t he just be trying to embarrass himself?


    Of course, there were also those among the spectators who knew that Ye Futian was good at playing the guqin, like Zhuge Xing. Zhuge Mingyue was Ye Futian''s second older sister, and it was only natural that he knew where Ye Futian came from, as well as the reason why Zhuge Mingyue was able to go home��the guqin song played on Sky Mountain all those years back.


    He knew what others did not, for many of the students of the Holy Zhi Palace had trained only within the palace for the past several years. They would not have known much about a nobody like Ye Futian. If Ye Futian had been unable to make it into the Holy Zhi Palace, those senior students probably would not have even learned of his existence.


    But Zhuge Xing was nonetheless curious. Even though Ye Futian inherited the scores of the Ukiyo song passed down by the two emperors, is he actually capable of playing the subtleties of the song as intended? Just how does Ye Futian compare to one like Lian Yuqing in the art of the guqin?


    Lian Yuqing''s eyes never moved away from Ye Futian all that while. Know a thing or two?


    "So, you mean to test what you are capable of against me?" Lian Yuqing asked calmly. He felt something was amiss. Ye Futian playing the guqin against me?


    Lian Yuqing recalled the day on the Law Battle Platform where Ye Futian said that he would like to hear Lian Yuqing play a song sometime in the future. By that day, did he mean this today?


    Lian Yuqing became curious as to how capable Ye Futian was at playing the guqin and if Ye Futian was indeed as exceptional at the art of the guqin as he was at martial arts and sorcery. Even if he proves exceptional, so what?


    "It would be my honor," Ye Futian said slowly as he fixed his gaze on Lian Yuqing. Lian Yuqing''s gaze remained fixed on the silhouette on the Zhonggong Battle Platform. The tone Ye Futian had taken was similar to when he spoke to the Tianxing Palace sudents and Xiang Zhiqin; calm, yet brimming with confidence.


    Lian Yuqing was puzzled about what Ye Futian actually based his confidence on, yet the origin of this said confidence hardly mattered. He believed Ye Futian would learn that while it was indeed important for cultivators to have faith in themselves, they were also required to know their place.


    "You are a new one on the Law Rank, and it shouldn''t be someone like me to teach you anything personally. However, since you are so eager to prove your skills with the guqin, I am not in a position to refuse," Lian Yuqing replied and began taking his steps toward the Zhonggong Battle Platform. He dropped onto the platform and came face to face with Ye Futian.


    As both of them were standing on the Zhonggong Battle Platform and were going to determine who was better at the art of the guqin, it was only natural for them to do it with guqin songs.


    Ye Futian wanted to verify the validity of his idea about the sparring sessions, and as such, he was forbidden from fighting directly. There was, after all, little meaning for a Grade Eight Noble fight a Grade One Noble.


    "How do you want to go about it?" Lian asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian crossed his legs and sat. A guqin appeared in front of him. He caressed the strings with both hands, and the aura around him changed into something else entirely in an instant. At that very moment, Ye Futian looked calm and collected, as if he had become one with the cosmos around him, and of course, one with the guqin before him.


    "I will let you decide on that, senior," Ye Futian said as he began plucking the strings. The sound of the guqin was soon heard, depicting a realm within the minds of those within earshot: tranquil and peaceful like a silent night, casting off all worries and being kept company by nothing else but the sound of the instrument.


    The song was one capable of cleansing people''s minds, enabling those who heard it to relax. That demonstration was devoid of the prickly, antagonistic air demonstrated prior.


    At the very moment, those who heard the song felt as if they were basking under moonlight while listening to a soothing melody, instead of being at the sparring place. The song was simple, yet the simple song was capable of bringing people of their levels into a realm that was so peaceful and quiet. Ye Futian''s skill with the guqin was indeed formidable.


    Ye Futian''s mastery of the guqin apparently was far more than what he had described himself��knowing a thing or two��and he was definitely a master at it.


    Seeing that tranquil and handsome young man playing the guqin made everyone feel as if they were watching someone else altogether, as the one playing the instrument was devoid of any hint of obnoxiousness that he so happily demonstrated before. The spectators felt as if they were seeing another side of Ye Futian.


    Lian Yuqing knew what Ye Futian was trying to pull. He went on to sit cross-legged as well, and began playing the guqin across from Ye Futian. The sound of his playing melded perfectly with the feeling exuded by Ye Futian. Sounds of both sides melded harmoniously with one another.


    "Spectacular," many said to themselves. Lian Yuqing demonstrated his exceptional mastery at the art by blending in with Ye Futian''s playing.


    While it was easy to learn to play the guqin itself, it was very difficult to draw pictures in people''s minds with it. Blending one''s thoughts playing the guqin with that exuded from the guqin songs of others proved even more difficult. They seemed to clash and spar, using their own ways.


    Ye Futian''s guqin sounds went smoothly as intended, growing increasingly intense. It was as if a scroll painting was being unfolded gradually, being laid before the eyes of everyone. Ye Futian was not disturbed in any way by Lian Yuqing''s playing. He kept playing his tune. The painting seemed to depict a young man learning to play the guqin from a master. One simple guqin song after another was blended seamlessly by Ye Futian into one song, as if every song had actually been a part of one long one.


    With the painting unfolded, the guqin''s sounds spread out as well. The Melody of the White Feathers Garment was heard and many felt as if they saw a palace before them. The young man was playing his guqin there for amusement, yet he also seemed to have been fighting and arguing with someone else.


    Lian Yuqing was still playing. His style changed continuously, following Ye Futian''s changes, and went on to stick closely to Ye Futian''s tempo, blending his tune into the illustration. He played a dance tune as Ye Futian was playing Melody of the White Feathers Garment, and the two seemed to be benefiting from each other.


    Lian Yuqing''s playing hardly affected Ye Futian''s sounds. The illustration of the songs was still in Ye Futian''s control. The World, a song depicting the grace and glory of the world, was soon quickly replaced by A Chaotic Nation, singing about the sorrows and bloody, noble sacrifices of the world in chaos. As the intensity of the guqin''s sounds grew, many were swept off their feet and taken into the realm illustrated by the guqin''s sounds.


    Many saw Ye Futian''s expression change, blending many simple tunes and making one perfect tune out of them. He even infused the song with his own emotions. The resulting image depicted was rich and vivid. Is this what you''d call knowing a thing or two?


    However, what Lian Yuqing was capable of seemed even more out-of-this-world. Regardless of the illustrations of the songs played by Ye Futian, Liang Yuqing had no problem keeping up, blending Ye Futian''s style with compatible tunes. There was never a hint of messiness, and it spoke volumes of Lian Yuqing''s mastery at the art. He must have mastered countless guqin songs, being able to play with such poise and composure.


    Both men demonstrated their art at guqin through different means and styles.


    "He is illustrating his own life and experiences using the instrument." Many listened quietly and their eyes were filled with astonishment as they looked at Ye Futian. The ups and downs and joys and sorrows of his life were made into something like a fine brew, all found within one song. One was able to feel the impulsive youth gradually turn into someone composed, reserved and confident throughout his experiences. The state of his mind changed with the tune, yet the purity seemed to remain the same throughout.


    When the song, Elegance, was played at its climax, everyone''s emotions burned alongside the sound of Ye Futian''s playing. Streaks of light emanated from the statue, draping over Ye Futian as if it had achieved some mystical resonance with him. Lian Yuqing continued matching him with a compatible tune. The long robe reaching the floor billowed in the wind, making him seem like some legendary figure.


    "Lian Yuqing is indeed a Musical Sorcerer ranked fifth on the Law Rank, able to blend seamlessly with other people''s playing. While Ye Futian''s skills with the guqin are indeed those of a master, brimming with youthfulness, Lian Yuqing''s mastery is superior in terms of technique." Many thought it impossible for Ye Futian to learn songs from Lian Yuqing.


    However, Ye Futian paused and smiled. "Your art is definitely exceptional, befitting of one ranked fifth on the Law Rank, senior."


    "You are not bad yourself," Lian Yuqing replied.


    "The tune I will play next will not require you to play something compatible. If you were able to play something remotely similar, it would be my defeat," Ye Futian said.


    "If I''m unable to, I''d be the one defeated instead," Lian Yuqing replied forcefully. He deemed himself unbeatable in the art of the guqin.


    "It is a song that I have acquired by chance. I seek your guidance for it," Ye Futian said, then lowered his head, plucking the strings. An illustration of some sort was born yet again, and it was different from what was played before. What Ye Futian was playing now was no longer about his own life, but was of a spectator telling the story of the life of another person.


    Lian Yuqing''s expression was calm. He plucked the strings and played in a similar way. The faces of those around them began to change. They had heard the song on the day of the entrance battles.


    The one who played back then was Bai Luli. Furthermore, there were also some from the Holy Sage Pavilion who had heard the tune before, like Hua Fan.


    Ye Futian is able to play something like this? Many within earshot were swept into the intense illustration as the sound of the guqin reverberated in the air. Even the statues around them began to emanate beams of light, like they were being touched by the guqin''s sound as well.


    Lian Yuqing began to look troubled. The tune seemed to be an exceptional kind. As time went by, he felt that it was rather difficult to keep up with. It was as if the tune was trying to knock him over.


    Those adept at the guqin knew to appreciate the songs played. Ye Futian''s song directly interfered with Lian Yuqing''s mind. It was as if that song had no equivalent. At the very least, Lian Yuqing did not feel the songs he knew were qualified enough to match it. His fingers plucked on the strings furiously. The speed of the tune he played slowed, then was sustained by only his exceptional mastery at the art.


    When the painting illustrated by the tune was unfolded, it was a mighty, brimming piece. The state depicted by the sound was that of a whole world, the heart of kings and emperors. All eight statues were influenced by the tune, emanating dazzling beams of light in pulses, showering onto Ye Futian. Spiritual Qi danced around in the air, and the Spiritual Qi in the Zhonggong Battle Platform pulsed to the tempo of the guqin''s sounds.


    Lian Yuqing looked incredibly troubled by then, however, he did not stop. The tunes he played changed from one to another, and exceptional sounds kept emanating from his instrument. But then again, even his exceptional mastery proved inadequate to cover the one played by Ye Futian. His tune became encroached one time after another, for the tune of kings and emperors would not tolerate being defiled by other sounds.


    Stronger illustrations were born. Wind danced on the Zhonggong Battle Platform and the eight statues emanated dazzling light that circled around Ye Futian. The beams were grew increasingly tall. Countless eyes were set on the silhouette of Ye Futian playing. With intense emotions welling up inside them, the spectators watched him play. Their minds seemed to have been entirely carried away by the illustrations drawn by the song, as if telling an incredibly epic legend.


    It told of the Divine Prefecture, its history and culture, the chaotic world and the yearning for one to bring order. The illustration became increasingly powerful and vivid as the tune went on. All eight statues glowed with bright, tall beams of light. Air of terror seemed to have been swept in from nowhere. The clouds changed and endless Worldly Spiritual Qi rained down from above. Ye Futian remained seated cross-legged, losing himself in all of it. Many even began to look at him with dazed eyes of admiration.


    Twang! A crisp sound was heard. Lian Yuqing''s playing was completely swept away, halting abruptly. The string of Lian Yuqing''s instrument had broken. The guqin was smeared with the blood spewed from his mouth!

 605 Guqin Valley

    Lian Yuqing lost.


    A Grade One Noble ranked fifth on Law Rank and possessed unparalleled skill in the art of the guqin, yet he lost to another playing the instrument; he lost to Ye Futian, a Grade Eight Noble.


    If the competition had been one where the musical spells were used for fights, it would have been pointless as the victor would have been apparent. However, that competition was based on Ye Futian''s ideas about sparring, where one''s mastery of the art of the guqin was considered. Lian Yuqing had immense pride, especially when it came to the art of the guqin. It was unthinkable for him to attack Ye Futian, as such, he went testing Ye Futian''s skills as a fellow musician of the instrument, matching the illustrations brought forth by Ye Futian through his own extraordinary mastery at the art.


    Lian Yuqing performed admirably, befitting of one who was ranked fifth on the Law Rank. Yet, the last song proved too much for him to handle. Despite giving his all, he failed to match the state illustrated by that last song. He ended up thoroughly burnt out, suffering intense mental trauma and physical injuries while the string on his guqin broke.


    Many understood what that outcome meant��Lian Yuqing lost to Ye Futian at a guqin competition.


    Having only arrived at the Holy Zhi Palace less than a year ago, the champion of the entrance battles emerged as a newbie to question the rules of the sparring sessions, presenting his ideas of proper sparring to the veterans and old timers. He claimed that he was not inferior to his seniors in any way but plane. He fulfilled what he had claimed, beating his seniors in both martial arts and sorcery. Now, even Lian Yuqing, the one who ranked fifth on the Law Rank, lost to him. It was a prestige for Futian like no other.


    Looking at the silhouette who was still playing his instrument, many looked dazed. Rumors about Ye Futian had been all over the place since the day he entered the Holy Zhi Palace; rumors which were all unsavory, claiming him to be vile, weak, and cowardly.


    So what now? He remained calm and composed even when facing the one who ranked fifth on the Law Rank.


    Yun Shuisheng looked at Ye Futian with a tinge of interest in her cold eyes. She felt unable to read the young man before her.


    Xiang Zhiqin''s face went pale altogether. What happened before seemed like a joke. It was a sarcastic twist of fate like no other. Even the number one noble in the Daozang Palace lost, which meant that she had no place disparaging Ye Futian or doubting the one Hua Jieyu deemed worthy. She came to realize right there and then why Hua Jieyu reacted so intensely that day: Hua Jieyu knew him through and through while Xiang Zhiqin knew nothing.


    Yun Feng looked at Ye Futian. He felt the light of Ye Futian was unbearably blinding. It made him feel worthless and despaired.


    Zhuge Xing had his eyes on Ye Futian as well. The impact Ye Futian brought forth then was even more intense than the ones seen in the battles prior to their entry to the Holy Zhi Palace. The one Ye Futian faced was not a newbie, but Lian Yuqing, who ranked fifth on the Law Rank. All those who were in the same batch as Ye Futian felt some kind of heat welling up in their chests. What Ye Futian had pulled just now was indeed a tale to be told in legends. That one song made him into the only truly unique being in the place meant for sparring.


    Hua Jieyu smiled, looking at Ye Futian with her clear eyes. What a good-looking guy indeed. That was the Ye Futian that she knew and loved.


    Yu Sheng looked composed, and he was the only one capable of looking so composed. He ceased being surprised no matter what Ye Futian ended up achieving. He deemed such achievements to be Ye Futian''s destiny: a glorious being admired and revered by tens of thousands. That was his destiny regardless of where he ended up, even in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Tremendously terrifying Spiritual Qi moved as a horrifying current was sensed from afar, encasing the entire Zhonggong Battle Platform. Ye Futian continued to play his instrument as if he had totally lost himself in the illustration brought by the song he played. It was no longer a match between him and Lian Yuqing. He played because he felt a resonating power coming from somewhere else.


    It was not just Ye Futian; everyone in the sparring place felt the same kind of power. They looked far away and saw a gust of terrifying air moving toward them with the wind. Intense vibrations were whipped up around them. The air came from an area located between where they were and the Law Power Zone. The area was incredibly vast, with many secret sites and ruins strewn about the place, as well as blessed sites for training left by the predecessors of the Holy Zhi Palace for those who succeeded them. There were even places that were incredibly difficult to tread.


    The students of the Holy Zhi Palace spent many years to advance themselves, not even having to go on pilgrimages outside. The reason for that lied within the tremendously rich resources for training in the Holy Zhi Palace. Even if one were to spend five to ten years studying there, it was still impossible for one to step foot in every single place for training there was.


    The song Ye Futian was playing grew incredibly loud and vivid, reverberating everywhere. All eight statues resonated and burst with dazzling light. Mystical energy was conjured in the air, resonating with the sound of Ye Futian''s guqin. The tune was practically heard everywhere by then, spreading far and wide, invoking even stronger vibrations.


    "It''s musical notes." Many were shocked to their core.


    Lian Yuqing looked up in the air. Countless musical notes were seen coming from the area of ruins, attracted by Ye Futian''s playing. They resonated with the sound of Ye Futian''s guqin, writing a new tune with him.


    Lian Yuqing''s pride was practically shattered by then. He was utterly crushed by a student who had just entered the Holy Zhi Palace.


    That day on the Law Battle Platform, Ye Futian said that there would be a day when he would have Lian Yuqing hear him play. Lian Yuqing did not bother with him. It was totally unexpected that that day would have come so soon. Within mere months, Ye Futian indeed came to play him a song.


    "That would the Ukiyo song." Although Lian Yuqing had no idea that the Ukiyo song was introduced to the Barren State through Ye Futian, he nonetheless knew of the song renowned to be one of the top ten pieces in existence. What Ye Futian played was infused with the will of rulers. Thus, it was none other than the Ukiyo song introduced to the Barren State. It was said that Bai Luli learned the song, but it was unexpected that Ye Futian knew how to play it as well, and furthermore, was able to be so richly illustrative with the Ukiyo song.


    Lian Yuqing lost to Ye Futian in the art of the guqin. He was pitiful, yet he did not feel much sadness about it. To anyone who devoted their lives to the guqin, there was nothing to be sad in losing to someone playing the Ukiyo song. What was embarrassing about his predicament, however, was that the one who was playing the Ukiyo song was Ye Futian. Ye Futian, who Lian Yuqing disliked intensely, bested him with one such legendary song.


    The crazed rush of the current continued as more and more musical notes were seen. One figure after another moved to the site where the tune was played. Even some of the elders in the Holy Zhi Palace were so moved that they had to hear the song in person.


    The minds and hearts of many were shocked. The sparring sessions attracted the attention of the elders due to Ye Futian''s actions. They had thought the sessions were just about to begin only to find out that it was already the climax.


    With such a magnificent display of skills and power demonstrated at such a stage, what more could have happened that was deemed capable of surpassing what was seen right there and then?


    Some of the Holy Zhi Palace elders looked in the direction of somewhere in the area of ruins. They knew of a mystical place there, a place left behind by an extraordinarily powerful predecessor, and it was a place few were able to tread. At that moment, musical notes traversed the space between the two places to write a song with Ye Futian.


    "Following the trail of the musical notes, head to Guqin Valley," an elder told Ye Futian as they looked in the direction of the Zonggong Battle Platform.


    A spark was seen in Ye Futian''s eyes, and he leaped up from where he sat, playing his instrument as he headed for the place where the musical notes came from. If it was a place the elders of the Holy Zhi Palace told him to visit, then there was no doubt that it was a place worth visiting.


    So the resonating power came from Guqin Valley?


    "Guqin Valley," Lian Yuqing went pale as he uttered the name of the place. It was as he had guessed. The sounds came from Guqin Valley indeed. He had tried multiple times to venture there, yet he was unable to enter the mystical place even now. However, right there and then, the possibility of Ye Futian being given the right to enter was incredibly high. It was indeed sarcasm like no other. Lian Yuqing suffered a truly crushing defeat.


    Everyone stared at Ye Futian as he left for Guqin Valley, and they turned their eyes to Lian Yuqing, feeling extremely uneasy. The sparring session had been rather cruel to Lian Yuqing. Not only did he, the one who ranked fifth on the Law Rank, lose to Ye Futian at a guqin battle, but the victor was also even summoned by the valley itself.


    It was natural that many had heard of the Guqin Valley. It was said that there was a frightening powerful figure in the Holy Zhi Palace who reached incredible heights training with the guqin, becoming an existence feared by many. His skill in the guqin allowed him to mesmerize people and take control of their minds. It even allowed him to stimulate the latent potential of people, and his abilities were incredibly eerie in nature. Many top-class figures in the Barren State avoided him like a plague. It was said that he was the number one on the Barren Sky Ranking of the previous generation.


    That figure was none other than Liu Kuangsheng, the Nine-fingered Guqin Demon told in legends. He had been a madman throughout his life, and his soul came to rest in Guqin Valley. Many in the Holy Zhi Palace knew that Lian Yuqin tried many times to gain entrance into Guqin Valley to inherit the lineage of the ruins of Liu Kuangsheng. However, he failed at every single attempt and had never been able to truly step foot in Guqin Valley. Yet, Ye Futian''s song managed to move the Guqin Valley instead. It would have been anyone''s guess how Lian Yuqing, the one known to be the best in the art of the guqin in the Law Rank, felt.


    Lian Yuqing''s eyes were locked on the figure who just left the site. His expression changed as he took to the air, chasing after Ye Futian. He wanted to see yet again if he would be able to make it into Guqin Valley.


    Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and some others flashed and took to the air, going after Ye Futian. Many in the sparring place looked funny as one figure after another left. Despite the event of the day being sparring sessions, Ye Futian practically stole the event''s thunder. With Guqin Valley resonating with Ye Futian, many went after him, and that rendered things rather awkward for the event itself. Shall we continue or just pause it for now?


    Many turned to look at Hua Fan. At that very moment, an elder said while standing in the air, "Those who wish to leave are free to do so, but it is probably something that has nothing to do with you. Those who stay, continue the sessions." They left as soon as the announcement was made. Some others were seen leaving, but most elected to stay behind.


    "That practice was indeed inappropriate. Since Ye Futian proved his point to be true, we shall just abolish that round of events in further sessions then," said a voice. Many turned to look at the one who spoke; it was Dou Kun from Battle Sage Palace, and Ye Futian was considered his junior.


    Dou Kun was ranked second on the Law Rank.


    Many went silent at his words. While there was no absolute right or wrong, Ye Futian had beaten Lian Yuqing, and it was only natural that his points were right. From that battle, it was obvious that Ye Futian''s ranking on the Law Rank would have made a considerable leap.


    "This will be my last time hosting the sparring sessions. The future sessions will be in your hands. The sessions for newbies in the future shall be restricted to the difference of two planes at best, and they should be held mainly to provide guidance," Hua Fan said calmly.


    The battle of the day spelled more than Lian Yuqing''s defeat; it was also the defeat of obsolete rules. Ye Futian broke it as a newbie. If there was a day where he would end up as the champion of the Law Rank, it was something that had to be acknowledged, regardless of what everyone else thought of him.


    Hua Fan did not make one thing clear, however. There was a huge possibility that the future Law Rank would have been overseen by Ye Futian, and that was probably something that would happen within just a few years.


    "Continue," Hua Fan cleared his thoughts as he said. He felt immensely moved. Many prominent figures appeared from every generation, and the ones to emerge from the younger generations were destined to best the ones who came before them!

 606 End-of-year Gathering

    The Guqin Valley was one of the many relics within the Shengdao Palace, and a famous one at that. Liu Kuangsheng''s illustrious reputation was one of the reasons. Another was that no one had been truly able to touch Liu Kuangsheng''s guqin in the Guqin Valley and get his approval. This was indicative of the kind of character Liu Kuangsheng was. True to the meaning of his name, he lived wildly, and even after his death, none of the palace''s talents had been able to impress him.


    The entrance of the Guqin Valley was a stone cave. Many people were gathered here, and at the head of them was Ye Futian. He was holding a guqin in his arms, playing continuously. If Ye Futian were to stop playing, the resonance between him and the Guqin Valley may be disrupted.


    Ye Futian could feel the incredibly powerful energy of Musical Will within this valley. He walked through the stone doors into the valley. It was a whole new world on the other side of the arched doors. Startlingly bright and cheery, it was like a private little world of one''s own. There were green plains and strange jagged rocks, mountains, and springs. It was a world filled with life, and an invisible energy seemed to inhabit the space as well. Those were the musical notes that danced in time to Ye Futian''s music.


    Behind Ye Futian, many people walked out into the valley as well. Unlike Ye Futian, they felt a sort of pressure, one that surrounded them from all directions in the Guqin Valley. It was as if the Musical Will was seeping into their minds, making them feel incredibly uncomfortable. It was as though they were about to lose their minds.


    "Let''s wait outside," Ye Wuchen whispered. Hua Jieyu and Yu Sheng nodded, and they all retreated. Xu Que, Zhong Li, and many others had come as well, but they too went outside the Guqin Gardens to wait. Only Lian Yuqing followed Ye Futian in, similarly holding a guqin in his arms and playing. However, the musical notes were relentless still in their invasion of his mind.


    In the past, even if one was not a Musical Sorcerer, they would still come to the Guqin Valley in order to train their Spiritual Will. But to him, this place held a different significance. Furthermore, regardless of who came here to train, they would not come before the guqin in the Guqin Valley.


    Lian Yuqing lifted his head to gaze into the distance. The ground was higher there, and the surroundings elegant. A guqin lay quietly on a smooth large rock. At this very moment, the guqin was actually playing itself, and the musical notes that spread across the space were resonating with the guqin in Ye Futian''s arms.


    Lian Yuqing saw with his own eyes how Ye Futian walked forward until he was right before the guqin. This guqin had become famous because of Liu Kuangsheng, and was hailed as an iconic guqin in the Barren State. It was called the Soul Guqin.


    Lian Yuqing''s guqin was peaceful and calm, just like his own inner state. He had always wanted to experience just how proudly defiant the enchanted guqin of Liu Kuangsheng''s was, though it was a pity that he never actually got the chance to. Now, he watched as the newcomer to the Holy Zhi Palace, who had been first in the Law Battle, walk before the Soul Guqin and sit down, crossing his legs. He felt a twinge of jealousy towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had stopped playing by now, and he glanced at the guqin in his hands. He remembered how this guqin from the Ancient Loulan in the Ancient Barren World had been unwilling to follow him back then. Now it seemed like he would never have any use for it in the future. However, Ye Futian would keep the guqin with him as a memento.


    Since he had already walked all the way over here, he could predict what would happen next. It was a form of acknowledgment that the musical notes had drawn him here. It would also be a form of inheritance for him as well.


    Ye Futian sat down on the ground and looked at the guqin before him. The words "Soul Guqin" were carved into the side of the guqin. It was probably the name of this guqin. He reached out and touched the guqin lightly. In an instant, the strings of the guqin moved, and Ye Futian''s fingers danced along with the strings as well. The surroundings were immediately filled with musical notes, which floated into Ye Futian''s mind.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and immersed himself within the experience, quietly feeling the musical notes that were floating into his head, and remembering every single note, burning them into his memory. An image surfaced in Ye Futian''s head. A middle-aged man sat right where he was, playing the guqin with both hands. It was the previous owner of the Soul Guqin.


    As Ye Futian listened to the music, he felt a hint of Guqin Spirit within the Soul Guqin. This was the resonance created between him and the Guqin Spirit, which had also laid down a Musical Boundary around the Guqin Valley to seal the guqin here. If Ye Futian was not playing the Ukiyo song, he would not have been able to even set foot into this place.


    The music playing in Ye Futian''s mind felt wild and unrestrained to him. He had never learned such a wild song before. Back then, he had learned songs like "The World" and "A Chaotic Nation." Those were songs that had moments of magnificence and solemnity, but the only word that came to mind as he listened to this song was "wild." It was as if the song had taken on a form of its own and was on the level of a grandmaster.


    At this moment, Lian Yuqing was still struggling outside the Musical Boundary, trying to get to where Ye Futian was. However, he realized that he was slowly losing his Will. If he were really to force his way through the Boundary, he may very well lose his mind.


    Finally, Lian Yuqing stopped and sighed as he looked towards Ye Futian. He then turned to leave. He would remember everything that had happened today as a point of motivation for himself. Once he got back, he was going to train his state of mind as well as well as his abilities in the Guqin Path.


    Ye Futian stayed in the Guqin Valley for many days. Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu and the rest waited outside for him throughout. By this time, the sparring sessions had come to an end. The real sparring had started after Ye Futian left, with powerful individuals clashing against each other. Even those at the top of the Law Rank had gotten involved as well. But the fight that Ye Futian had walked out of remained the most shocking battle of this series of sparring sessions.


    On the last day of the ten thousand and sixth year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, many of the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples left to visit home. Those who didn''t leave kept busy with their training. The new Law Rank was now carved onto the stone wall in the Law Battle Platform area. Once the sparring sessions ended every year, there would be great changes to the Law Rank. However, this year, the biggest change in the Law Rank was attributed only to one person.


    Many people were gathered before the Law Rank. Zhuge Xing, Xiang Zhiqin, Yun Feng, and the others were all there, staring at the new rankings. Shockingly, Ye Futian''s name was at the top. He was tenth in the Law Rank. Despite only being a Grade Eight Noble, he had made it to tenth place. This was practically a miracle in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Of course, no one dared to question this ranking. Ye Futian had already displayed the potential of someone who would rank first in the Law Rank from his performance in battle. Furthermore, his skills in sorcery and martial arts were all outstanding, and he had defeated Lian Yuqing in battle using the Guqin Path. If it wasn''t for the fact that Ye Futian was still at a lower plane, and was not as physically strong, he may have ranked even higher.


    Other than Ye Futian, Yu Sheng had entered the Law Rank as well, though he was further down the list. But it seemed like the two names who would eventually be on top had already appeared within the Law Rank. People made it a point to remember Ye Futian''s name.


    Where the relics were, there were many people training everywhere as well. Some occasionally had their eye on the Guqin Valley as well. Hua Jieyu was waiting outside the stone doors of the Guqin Valley. Today was the last day of the year, but Ye Futian was still training inside, refusing to come out. Just then, a handsome figure walked out from the valley. All smiles, he gazed towards the countless people waiting outside the Guqin Valley for him.


    A smile appeared on Hua Jieyu''s face. Walking up to him, she first threw him a sharp glance before asking gently, "How''s your training?"


    "There was the inheritance of a senior within the Guqin Valley," Ye Futian replied. "I managed to obtain several superb songs and the senior''s guqin. He then chuckled, "Did a day without me feel like an eternity?"


    Hua Jieyu pouted at him. She thought he was being incredibly thick-skinned.


    "I thought you weren''t going to come out," Hua Jieyu said softly.


    "Why wouldn''t I? I''m planning to welcome the new year with my wife-to-be." Ye Futian laughed, before looking at Ye Wuchen. "Wuchen, call Chenyu over. Let''s find a place to sit."


    "Sure," Ye Wuchen replied, "where shall we meet?"


    "Up there." Ye Futian pointed to a mountain. "That''s the highest point in this place, we should get a pretty good view."


    Ye Wuchen nodded and turned to leave.


    "Yu Sheng, I''ll get Little Condor to bring Qingxuan over. Let''s head there first." Ye Futian smiled. Yu Sheng nodded, and they set off towards the tall mountain.


    At the peak of that mountain, one could get a bird''s eye view of the area. Staring down at the many relics below, Ye Futian laughed. "Just training in the Law Power Zone alone has taken me half a year, and there''s still plenty of resources left for me to train with for a good while. There probably are still places like the Guqin Valley among these relics. Seems like I''ll be able to train well in the palace for the next few years." After the sparring sessions, no one would be picking a fight with Ye Futian. Which was good, since he had come to the palace in order to train and ascend to higher planes.


    "We''re still going to be training here for a few years?" Yi Xiaoshi clenched his teeth. He was thinking that he wouldn''t be able to take it.


    "Seventh brother, if you''re going to be so lazy, I''m going to have to have a chat with Second sister when I get the chance." Ye Futian grinned at him.


    "You think that scares me?" Yi Xiaoshi glared scornfully at Ye Futian, but he still seemed a little unconfident.


    "Yuan Zhan, why didn''t you go back to Mount Taihang?" Ye Futian turned to Yuan Zhan and asked.


    "The old man had me follow you," Yuan Zhan replied, gazing into the distance.


    "But you didn''t have to stick with me all the way," Ye Futian rubbed between his eyebrows, marveling at how rigid these demonic beasts could be.


    Soon, Yu Wuchen, Liu Chenyu, the Black Wind Condor, Yi Qingxuan, and Loulan Xue arrived at the mountain peak at the same time. Ye Futian smiled at Liu Chenyu. "Chenyu, you''ve become prettier. Looks like our Wuchen has done a good job taking care of you."


    Liu Chenyu had been training in the palace as well. As she transcended to a higher plane, her aura became even more outstanding as well.


    "Who is Yun Shuisheng, and why have I been hearing things about her even at the Sword Pavilion?" Liu Chenyu looked towards Ye Futian, seeming to ask in all seriousness.


    Ye Futian blinked and looked at the stunning figure before him. "I was in the wrong."


    This woman is ruthless, he thought to himself.


    "It''s the last day of the year already, let''s not argue today." Yi Qingxuan walked up to them, smiling gently.


    "Qingxuan''s right." Ye Futian nodded. "Why does it feel like we''re missing something, like roasted meat or whatnot?" As he spoke, Ye Futian''s gaze landed on the Black Wind Condor, and the Condor jumped up hurriedly, speaking up woefully, "Boss, if there''s anything you want, just give the order and I''ll go get it done." The Condor was wary of the others having any funny ideas about it. It spooked him.


    "Does anyone want alcohol?" a voice rang out. Ye Futian turned to look, and saw Zui Qianzhou walking over with Xu Que, carrying a pot of wine with him.


    "Sure." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. This situation was perfect for drinking.


    "Looks like I have no choice but to bring out the good stuff." Zui Qianchou seemed a little pained. From a storage ring, he took out many wine cups. There was a great variety of cups, with some made of gold and others of jade. Ye Futian was dumbfounded at how exquisite Zui Qianchou''s taste was.


    Everyone sat together, and Zui Qianchou poured them all a cup of wine, chuckling, "Despite being alive for so long, I haven''t actually had the chance to welcome the new year with people who aren''t my master. To fate, which brought us all together!"


    Xu Que chuckled, thinking to himself that life really was interesting. He had thought himself a person who did not get along with the rest, but after arriving at the Holy Zhi Palace, he had discovered people he didn''t mind, like Zui Qianzhou and Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng seemed like interesting people too. Perhaps this really was the workings of fate at play.


    "To fate!" Ye Futian laughed, and everyone raised their cups and drank.


    "The sparring sessions a few days ago were really satisfying." Xu Que grinned. "How long do you all think it will take for us to take over the Law Rank of the Holy Zhi Palace?" Most of those who would predictably be at the forefront of the rankings were here at this gathering.


    "Probably three years," Zui Qianchou replied.


    "Three years?" Ye Futian looked towards the Holy Zhi Palace. "I''ve never thought about conquering the Law Rank."


    Zui Qianchou and Xu Que were taken aback for a moment and glanced over at Ye Futian. Then they both chuckled. Indeed, they had forgotten that not everyone had their sights set on the Law Rank. The rankings meant little to Ye Futian.


    "Then what about the Barren Sky Ranking in the Barren State?" Xu Que looked towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was still staring off into the distance. He thought about the Barren Sky Ranking in the Barren State. A smile then appeared on his face, but he did not reply. In years to come when Xu Que recalled this memory again, he would finally understand the meaning behind Ye Futian''s smile.

 607 Three Years at the Palace

    It was now the ten thousand and ninth year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. Three years had passed, and now something big was happening within the vast Barren State again. The assessment for admissions to the Holy Zhi Palace, which was held once every three years, would be happening soon. The younger generation of the Barren State had set foot onto the nine Divine Roads and was preparing to conquer the Roads and enter the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Just like three years ago, many young talents had gathered at the Divine Roads, heading towards the Holy Zhi Palace. Powerful individuals from all across the land had also arrived in large groups at the foot of the Palace, preparing to watch the final battle from there. Among them, there were many influential characters who had come in support of their disciples participating in the assessment.


    Within the Holy Zhi Palace, the disciples were busy training. At this moment, there was a crowd gathered before the Law Rank, staring at the rankings carved into the stone wall.


    After three years, immense changes had occurred within the Law Rank. About two years ago after the sparring sessions had ended, Hua Fan entered the Sage Palace and emerged from his training a Sage. Afterward, Dou Kun and the person who was third in the Law Rank entered the Sage Plane as well. Even then, they had not been replaced by the fourth and fifth person in the original rankings. Instead, the top three positions had been taken over by those who were lower down in the rankings.


    The batch of disciples from six years ago had already advanced to be at the peak of the Noble Plane. This put them ahead of many disciples in the batch from nine years ago, who had not entered the Sage Plane yet.


    It was a large leap to get to the Sage Plane, which made it difficult for people to break through into the plane. As such, it was common that disciples from two different generations would clash with each other in the Law Rank at this particular plane. Such occurrences had happened throughout the years.


    Even within the disciples that had entered three years ago, there were many whose names had already appeared within the Law Rank. Furthermore, there were many whose positions were especially eye-catching. The person who was tenth in the Law Rank was especially prominent. His rank was not especially high, but he had steadily held that position for two years in a row.


    About two years ago, Ye Futian had made a name for himself through a battle during the sparring sessions and become tenth in the Law Rank as a Grade Eight Noble. Afterward, he had maintained that rank without any changes happening. He did not increase in rank, but neither was he replaced by anyone. It was as if his position was fixed. Those who ranked lower than him skipped tenth place when they rose in ranking; those who dropped in rank also fell beneath Ye Futian as well.


    Once, there had been a person in 11th place who rose in ranking to take over the ninth place. The person originally in ninth place should have become tenth instead. But that did not happen. Ye Futian remained in his rank, and the person dropped directly to number 11 in the Rank instead. It was strange.


    However, those in the Holy Zhi Palace were not fazed at all by this occurrence. Over the past two years, Ye Futian had not participated in any more battles. He had even been absent from the sparring sessions for the past two years. Under these circumstances, even if one wanted to have Ye Futian''s ranking in the Law Rank shifted forward, it was unclear where he should be placed. As a result, a strange occurrence happened within the Law Rank where Ye Futian remained in the exact same ranking for about two years.


    "What plane is that guy at now?" someone asked quietly, looking at Ye Futian''s name on the ranking. Those next to him knew exactly who he was talking about. In truth, there were many who were curious about Ye Futian.


    Someone else answered from the side, "I thought he would have participated in the sparring sessions a few months back. In the end, he still wasn''t interested. What a character. But even without participating in the sparring sessions or any other battle, his name is still getting more prominent within the Palace."


    They continued, "He''s someone who broke through many relics continuously, and he even helped many of those entering the Holy Zhi Palace in their training. It''s no wonder he''s well known. He has an extraordinary capability in understanding things, we''ve already seen that back at the sparring sessions over two years ago. Today, whether it''s sorcery, martial arts, or the Guqin Path, he probably has outstanding achievements in all of them. Even those talents from the batch three years ago were willing to head to the Battle Sage Palace in order to ask him for training advice."


    Many people chattered before the Law Rank about how Ye Futian had become a legendary character among the Holy Zhi Palace disciples. Despite his unconventional ways, he was still outstandingly capable. They predicted that if Ye Futian were to actually participate once, there would even be the possibility that he could leap straight into the top three from being tenth in the Law Rank.


    It had been two years already. With his current abilities and his potential to become first in the Law Rank, it was absolutely possible that he would be able to enter the top three.


    ��


    Over at the Sky Reaching Tower area, shouts were heard, and there was a ruckus both within and outside the tower.


    "Entering the 18th level? This guy''s crazy good!" some people were exclaiming in jealousy.


    "Who entered the 18th level?" someone asked outside.


    "Who else could it be? It''s Yu Sheng, of course," someone replied, walking out of the tower. Many people headed for the Sky Reaching Tower in a blink, and they saw the hulking figure on the 18th floor of the tower.


    Many felt a twinge of jealousy in their hearts. Yu Sheng was probably only a Grade Four Noble. Even if that was one of the peak states in the Noble Plane, there was still a ways to go before he would be considered a superior noble. However, one usually had to be a Grade One Noble in order to enter the 18th level of the Sky Reaching Tower. Even if one was physically powerful, they probably still had to be at least a Grade Two Noble in order to enter successfully.


    Yu Sheng was only a Grade Four Noble. What kind of body did he have in order to be able to enter the 18th floor? He was a monster.


    The batch from three years ago already had Ye Futian with his strange ways and Yu Sheng, who was an absolute monster. Many people wondered if these two would be the ones to fight over the top position in the Law Rank in the future, and if so, who would prevail? However, they also understood that these two fellows didn''t seem to have any interest in the Law Rank at all. If not, they wouldn''t have ignored all the opportunities to battle. They were only concerned with training and improving their own abilities quietly. They hadn''t even participated in the sparring sessions.


    They wondered what those at the Holy Sage Pavilion would think if two disciples from the Battle Sage Palace were to become number one and two in the Law Rank in future. It would probably be humiliating for them as the top palace in the Holy Zhi Palace. Throughout history, it had always been a disciple from the Holy Sage Pavilion who stably held the first position in the Law Rank. The current disciple at the top of the Law Rank was a disciple from the Holy Sage Pavilion as well.


    The Holy Sage Pavilion was the top palace of the Holy Zhi Palace. Situated within the northern parts of the Holy Zhi Palace, the Holy Sage Pavilion towered over the land.


    At this moment, a person walked out from an ancient hall within the Holy Sage Pavilion. While this person had absolutely no aura, the sight of him standing there gave one the impression of grandeur. He lifted his eyes to look at the skies, and his gaze seemed as though it could penetrate through the sky.


    "Assistant Palace Lord," an elder from the Holy Sage Pavilion bowed and greeted him from aside. This person who had just walked out was the second most powerful man in the Holy Zhi Palace and was third in the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "It''s time for the next batch''s assessment, isn''t it?" the Assistant Palace Lord spoke in a low tone.


    "Yes." The other man nodded.


    "Are there any good seedlings in this batch?" he asked.


    "There are a few," came the reply. "They are pretty talented, but they may not be as strong as the disciples from the previous batch. Bai Ze''s already considered pretty good in terms of capability, yet in the previous assessment, he was crushed by two other participants. It was a huge emotional blow to him, and I don''t think he''s walked out of the shadow of that event yet."


    "Training is an individual responsibility. When it comes to one''s emotional state, no one else can help him but himself. If he can''t let that event go, he''s destined to remain average for life," the Assistant Palace Lord mused. Then he asked, "What about those two from the Battle Sage Palace? How far have they come along in their training?"


    "They''re both at the peak of the Grade Four Noble Plane," the elder answered. "It''s not clear how their battle abilities are at this moment, but with their performance so far, it seems like they''ll be very powerful. They''re both rare geniuses that you can only find once in a blue moon. Perhaps they''ll be of great help to Luli in future. It''s just that a senior of theirs from the eastern region of the Barren State seems to have some disagreements with Luli."


    "As you cultivate, you train the heart as well. If Luli can disregard the animosity between Bai Ze and himself, then hopefully he''ll be able to look past these affairs between seniors," the Assistant Palace Lord said. "The Battle Sage Palace will nurture them properly. When they reach the peak of the Noble Plane in the future, then we''ll gather the Pavilion Lords for a discussion to permit their entry into the Sage Palace to train."


    The man at his side nodded in response. Many of the disciples in the Holy Zhi Palace thought that the Holy Sage Pavilion would be concerned that Ye Futian was becoming so prominent. This was but an underestimation of how gracious the elders in the Holy Sage Pavilion could be. They were not concerned with the internal competition between the six palaces. The competition between disciples was a way to motivate them in their training, and the palaces would not interfere in that.


    "Time''s beginning to run out. It''s about time to put the marriage between Luli and Zhuge Mingyue on the agenda," the Assistant Palace Lord whispered.


    The Barren State had to have a saint. Many top individuals had failed in the past. Even their senior had failed. Bai Luli was to be their new hope.


    ��


    At the Battle Sage Palace, a few people had appeared by the golden cliffs. Ye Futian was there as well and was sitting opposite an incredibly beautiful woman. That woman was Phoenix from the Daozang Palace. Next to her, white flames hid her figure from sight. A strange area of will fell upon her, making it feel as though she couldn''t even move her body.


    "Sage Daozang once mentioned in his lecture that when we reach the plane we''re in right now, integrated energy should come from areas of will. Since everyone has a different perception of energy, the new areas of will created would all be different as well. This is the area of will that I''ve perceived," Ye Futian said, looking at Phoenix. He then took back his energy.


    "Thank you." Phoenix nodded at Ye Futian in gratitude. Over the past two years, Ye Futian had entered many of the relics'' secret realms. This had not escaped the notice of people, and many came to him for training advice. It was just surprising to Ye Futian that Phoenix, who was reticent in nature, would come to him for advice today as well. Phoenix''s plane was higher than his.


    "No problem, we can help each other to become better." Ye Futian smiled.


    "I''ll take my leave now. If the chance arises, I''ll come seek your advice again." Phoenix stood up and turned to leave. Her sleeves fluttered as she moved, adding to her loveliness.


    "Brother Ye, seems like you''ve got pretty good luck with the ladies." At this moment, a figure moved through the sky towards him. It was Zhong Li, another talent who had entered the Holy Zhi Palace at the same time as him.


    "Don''t talk nonsense." Ye Futian chuckled and shook his head.


    "Yeah, I''m talking nonsense here." Zhong Li laughed and threw a glance at the beautiful woman next to Ye Futian.


    In Ye Futian''s second year at the Holy Zhi Palace, Mu Zhiqiu had come to the Holy Zhi Palace''s Core Island from the Thousand Holy Islands through a selections process. Since then, she would often meet Ye Futian to discuss their training in the Celestial Way.


    "They come here for the same purpose as you do," Ye Futian explained. Over the past two years, he had also gotten closer to Zhong Li.


    "Got it, got it." Zhong Li chuckled before coming to Ye Futian''s side to seek his opinion on problems he had faced during training. Though they could turn to the elders for guidance should they meet with issues during their own training, they found that sometimes hearing about Ye Futian''s own experiences in training could inspire them, given that Ye Futian was a peer whose plane was not far from theirs.


    At the side, Mu Zhiqiu watched Ye Futian and Zhong Li quietly. After three years in the Holy Zhi Palace, the young man who had once come to the Zhaixing House in order to claim the Divine Destruction Polearm had now become someone who had an incredibly high standing among the disciples of the Palace. She knew that within the palace, there were many disciples who declared that Ye Futian would indisputably become first in the Law Rank in the future.


    "Younger brother," Qi Jie called out, walking towards Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked up at him and responded, "Older brother, is anything the matter?"


    "It''s now the assessment period for admissions to the Holy Zhi Palace." Qi Jie smiled. "Those going through the assessment have already stepped out of the Divine Roads, and many of them are outside the Holy Zhi Palace now. Someone asked me to convey a message to you."


    "Who?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Your older sister," Qi Jie replied. A smile twinkled in Ye Futian''s eyes, and he asked, "What did older sister ask you to say to me?"


    "She said to tell you that you were a rascal for not thinking about her for the past three years and that you better go and see her tomorrow," Qi Jie spoke, his expression caught in the middle of seriousness and mirth.


    Ye Futian was speechless. He blinked before breaking out into a grin. His second older sister was coming. It had been three years since he last saw her. Having spent three years in the Holy Zhi Palace, he was excited to find out how everyone else had been while he was away.

 608 Ponder Earnestly

    The next morning, strong cultivators gathered outside the Holy Zhi Palace like clouds. Big figures from all over the Barren State came over. Strong cultivators of the pavilions lined the sides of the stairs too.


    At the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace, there were even more people. Today was the day of the final battle. The talents of the nine Holy Roads would fight below the Holy Zhi Palace and fight to the end.


    Who would be the most brilliant figure this year?


    Countless people were discussing it. Many of the names were already familiar, but everyone was thinking whether the winner would be an underdog, just like last time.


    Ye Futian had swept all his opponents as an underdog last time. He''d embarrassed Bai Ze, second young lord of the White Cloud City, and defeated Huang Jiuge in the final battle. Under everyone''s shock, he''d taken first place and entered the Holy Zhi Palace, becoming Sage Douzhan''s personal disciple.


    This year was a new round. They wondered what cultivation plane Ye Futian, who had entered the pavilion three years ago, would be at now. He''d been at Grade-9 then. Would he be a mid-level Noble now?


    In the crowd, Chen Yuan, chief of the Divine Sky City''s Starry School, arrived as well. He''d come to see how Ye Futian''s cultivation these three years had been and also see if Starry School disciples could enter the Holy Zhi Palace once again.


    Long Mu and Gu Yunxi''s group joined this trial, journeying down the Holy Road. Three years ago, they''d followed Ye Futian. Now, they were Grade Seven Nobles and could hold their own. They traveled down the Holy Road to here.


    "Long Mu, Yunxi, how confident are you?" Chen Yuan asked the ones beside him. Long Mu was the descendant of his disciple Long Yitian. Chen Yuan had high hopes in him. It was just that Ye Futian had appeared and outshone the other disciples.


    Long Mu seemed to have been affected by the Holy Road last time. He worked harder on his cultivation and had improved greatly.


    "I will try my best," Long Mu answered. He gazed at the vast battlefield. Three years ago, he''d watched Ye Futian get first place. He knew he couldn''t do it, but he''d worked hard to see Ye Futian''s back.


    "Grandpa Chen, why don''t you ask about me?" a bright voice asked.


    Chen Yuan looked over and saw a pretty girl beside Long Mu. Affection filled his eyes. "You want to join the fun with your cultivation plane?"


    "Mother, Grandpa Chen is being mean," the girl complained to the woman beside her.


    "Is Grandpa Chen wrong?" Madame Long said, smiling. The 18-year-old girl was Long Ling''er. She''d grown up and was beautiful while still being filled with youth.


    "You all bully me. Brother Futian is the best for me." Long Ling''er thought of Ye Futian and smiled brightly. "Mother, do you think Brother Futian can recognize me?"


    "Maybe not." Madame Long found it funny.


    "How is that possible?" Long Ling''er made a face at Madame Long. "I don''t believe it. I might have gotten prettier, but I''m still easy to recognize."


    "Ah, yes." Madame Long shook her head and smiled helplessly. This girl was a lot to deal with. But she was very relieved that this girl could exit the Holy Road peacefully. Long Ling''er was also in the upper Arcana Plane, but Long Mu had experienced how dangerous the Holy Road was. Last time, Ye Futian had been there, but this time, Long Mu and Gu Yunxi had taken good care of Long Ling''er. Thankfully, nothing had happened. Otherwise, she would regret letting this girl go on the Holy Road.


    Zhuge Mingyue had already arrived on the steps. She was standing in the same spot as before.


    This year, the Zhuge Family still had people in the trial that was still extraordinarily talented. Of course, that wasn''t why she was here. She''d come to the Holy Zhi Palace to get some air and see Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. After all, they''d already cultivated in the pavilion for three years.


    "Senior Sister, what plane do you think Junior is in now?" Beitang Xing''er asked Zhuge Mingyue.


    "We can ask them after he comes." Zhuge Mingyue smiled.


    "Second Senior Sister," a voice called from afar. Zhuge Mingyue looked up towards the Holy Zhi Palace and saw a group flying over. It was Ye Futian''s group. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu came hand in hand. Yi Xiaoshi, Yu Sheng, and Loulan Xue were behind them. Ye Futian soon arrived and Hua Jieyu smiled as she called, "Senior Sister."


    "Seems like you''re living well in the pavilion." Zhuge Mingyue smiled at them. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu looked great and happy.


    "I''m okay. I just miss Second Senior Sister a lot," Ye Futian said emotionally.


    "Stop acting. Do you still remember me when Jieyu''s here?" Zhuge Mingyue gave a half-smile. "It''s been three years and you never came to see me."


    "Senior Sister, I was busy cultivating so I can protect you sooner," Ye Futian said with a timid smile.


    "Then what cultivation plane are you now? Can you protect me now?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    "Pinnacle of the Grade-4 Noble Plane. It won''t be long before I reach the upper-level Noble Plane," Ye Futian said.


    "Not bad," Zhuge Mingyue said, smiling. Then she looked at Hua Jieyu. "What about Jieyu?"


    "Senior Sister, I''m on the same plane as him," she said.


    "Xiaoshi, why are you hiding? You don''t know me anymore?" Zhuge Mingyue asked Yi Xiaoshi who was in the back. "What plane are you on?"


    "Senior Sister, I was waiting for Junior to finish reporting. I''m Grade Three," Yi Xiaoshi said.


    "Junior is catching up. How are you cultivating in the pavilion?" Zhuge Mingyue grinned at him.


    "It''s the problem of talent, you know? I work really hard in the pavilion. If you don''t believe me, you can ask Junior." Yi Xiaoshi glanced at Ye Futian and fluttered his lashes.


    "Yes. Seventh Senior Brother works really hard," Ye Futian said, nodding. Yi Xiaoshi let out a relieved breath.


    Zhuge Mingyue looked at them with a half-smile, making the fatty''s heart pound in fear. His senior sister''s gaze seemed to suspect that he''d been slacking off.


    "Senior Sister, is there news about Third Senior Brother?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Dead." Zhuge Mingyue''s smile disappeared. Ye Futian blinked and saw Beitang Xing''er shake his head.


    Ye Futian felt awkward and resentful. Had Third Senior Brother really disappeared for three or four years? Or if he hadn''t contacted Second Senior Sister ever since he left the Eastern Barren Territory, how many years had it been? How could Zhuge Mingyue not be resentful then?


    "Third Senior Brother must be cultivating crazily so he can go to the Zhuge Family with honor. Maybe it''s really dangerous outside," Ye Futian said weakly while studying Zhuge Mingyue''s expression timidly.


    As expected, Zhuge Mingyue''s expression softened a bit, but she said softly, "Don''t mind him. Cultivate well and don''t be like Xue Ye and Luo Fan."


    "What happened to Fourth and Fifth Senior Brother?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Don''t mention them," Zhuge Mingyue said. Ye Futian became much more confused. What had happened to them?


    "Futian," a voice said below them. Ye Futian looked down and saw Chen Yuan''s group.


    "Senior Sister, I''ll go see Chief Chen now. Jieyu can stay with you," Ye Futian said. Zhuge Mingyue nodded and Ye Futian walked out. Loulan Xue also followed. She saw an extremely familiar figure behind Chen Yuan.


    "Chief Chen, Madame," Ye Futian called while walking over. "Yunxi, you''re also here for the trial?"


    "Yes." Gu Yunxi nodded and smiled brilliantly at Ye Futian. "Long time no see."


    "Long time no see," Ye Futian said. Then he looked to the pretty figure on the side. He studied her and asked, "Who is this?"


    "You can''t recognize me?" Long Ling''er fluttered her lashes. Her clear eyes seemed a bit nervous.


    "Psh!" Ye Futian knocked against Long Ling''er''s head. "Little girl, you''ve grown up and gotten prettier."


    "Ah��you tricked me." Long Ling''er jumped up and rushed into Ye Futian''s arms. "Brother Futian, did you miss me?"


    "Hey, you''re an adult now. Aren''t you embarrassed?" Ye Futian stared speechlessly at Long Ling''er. The girl was 18 years old now. She was a slim and graceful girl.


    "Ling''er, you still make trouble even after growing up," Madame Long said, glaring at Long Ling''er.


    "This is my brother. It''s okay," Long Ling''er said, upset. "Right, Brother Futian?"


    "Seems right." Ye Futian shook his head with a dry smile. Long Ling''er had been a little demoness when she was little. Now, she was even scarier.


    "Futian, someone came to the Starry School asking for you, so I brought her with." Chen Yuan looked to the figure behind him. She was another beautiful woman with an extraordinary temperament. Loulan Xue had already walked before her.


    This woman was the empress of Loulan.


    "Empress," Ye Futian called, walking up.


    "Ye Futian, come with me. I have something to say," the empress said before turning to leave. Ye Futian followed with Loulan Xue behind him.


    The empress led them away from the crowd. Then she turned and stared coldly at Ye Futian.


    "Empress, why are you looking at me like that?" Ye Futian asked.


    "How is my daughter not good enough for you?"


    "Empress, what do you mean?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You have a girlfriend, but when I sent Loulan Xue to Book Mountain, I''d already said that you can even take her in as a mistress. Now, she''s been by your side for so many years. How come she''s still only on the side? Have you really ordered her around like a maid? Why are you humiliating her like this?" the empress asked coldly.


    She was the empress of Loulan and Loulan Xue had the high status of a princess. She could give Loulan Xue as a mistress, but Ye Futian still didn''t think she was enough. This was definitely humiliation.


    Ye Futian looked at the empress, confused and speechless. What kind of mother was this?


    Thinking of this, he became more upset. "You forced Loulan Xue into Book Mountain back then. But I''m the one who mistreated her?"


    Hearing this, the empress became even more furious. Coldness radiated from her and enveloped Ye Futian.


    "Don''t get angry. If we really want to fight, you''re not my match anymore," Ye Futian said coldly. Everyone had a temper.


    "You!" the empress roared. A cold storm arrived instantly. A frightening cold spear shot towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly, allowing the icy spear to pierce him without moving. Now, his physical body was very strong. Even if the empress was a Grade Two Noble, he wasn''t afraid. However, Ancient Loulan''s Nobles were much weaker than the Holy Zhi Palace''s Nobles, even if she was the Empress.


    "If you keep attacking, I won''t be polite anymore," Ye Futian said coolly. The Empress shook in anger, her chest rising and falling.


    This bastard, she thought.


    "Loulan Xue, come back," the Empress said in anger. "Don''t serve him anymore."


    Looking at her mother, Loulan Xue shook her head.


    "What do you mean?" The Empress stared at her. "He''s humiliating you like this and you''ll still follow him? You''re the princess of Loulan. He''s really treating you like a servant and you throw yourself onto him?"


    "Mother, I''m doing this willingly. It has nothing to do with him," Loulan Xue said softly.


    The Empress looked at her, speechless from anger. Then she said coldly, "Then I won''t have a failure like you as a daughter." With that, she really turned to leave. Loulan Xue ran over, but the Empress waved her hand. "Don''t run after me. Just follow him."


    Loulan Xue stopped. She stood in her spot, eyes a bit wet.


    The Empress'' body flashed and quickly disappeared. Her eyes were also damp. She''d asked for Ye Futian''s news in Book Mountain and learned about the Divine Sky City''s Starry School, so she went there. Then she came all the way to the Holy Zhi Palace and learned about Ye Futian''s achievements over the years.


    She didn''t bear to do this to her daughter, but she was clear about Ye Futian. He would only go further and higher. In this case, she would just let her daughter go. She could only help Loulan Xue to this point and she hoped the girl would understand her intentions!

 609 Number One of the Pavilion Battle and Law Rank

    After the empress left, Loulan Xue remained in her spot, staring at her back. They hadn''t seen each other in years. Would she just leave after scolding her?


    "Loulan, don''t think too much. It''s not how you think," Ye Futian said. "The Empress isn''t as heartless as you think. She did all that for you."


    Loulan Xue froze and looked at Ye Futian with her silver eyes. For her?


    "I''ve truly been ordering you around these years and I''ve gotten used to it. I''m sorry. If you want to leave some day, you don''t have to worry about me." Ye Futian sighed and turned to leave. He knew how calculating the Empress was. He could obviously see through her intentions.


    The Empress had already planned to make him feel guilty about Loulan Xue so he would treat her well. She wanted Loulan Xue to keep journeying with Ye Futian. This way, she could see a bigger world. Her current cultivation plane was catching up to the Empress.


    The Empress obviously knew about this. Thus, she decided to let go completely and let Loulan Xue fly with him. But she was worried Loulan Xue would be treated badly, so she yelled at Ye Futian.


    Looking at Ye Futian''s back, Loulan Xue quickly realized this. Then she looked to her mother''s back and sighed inwardly. Had she disappointed her mother?


    Ye Futian returned to the foot of the Holy Zhi Palace. As strong cultivators from the nine Holy Roads arrived gradually, Ye Futian arrived beside Zhuge Mingyue on the stairs.


    "Futian, Jieyu, you''ll watch the trial battle with me today," Zhuge Mingyue whispered. She looked forward. The battle would last a few days. Today was only the opening.


    Ye Futian''s pupils constricted. His second senior sister rarely called his name. Something seemed off with her today.


    "Second Senior Sister, is something wrong?" Ye Futian asked.


    Zhuge Mingyue turned towards him. "What are you thinking? How can anything be wrong?"


    "Really?" Ye Futian didn''t believe her.


    Zhuge Mingyue glared at him. Ye Futian''s eyes moved away and then back. "Second Senior Sister, if anything''s wrong, you can tell Jieyu and me. We can help share your troubles."


    Zhuge Mingyue reached out to pat Ye Futian''s head. Smiling gently, she said, "Kid, just work hard on cultivating and reach the Sage Plane soon."


    "Yes, I will." Ye Futian nodded. "These three years, I never left the pavilion. I''ve been cultivating every second of the day. Three years ago, I was down there. Three years later, I''m watching the trial with Senior Sister. I believe that it''ll only be a few years before the Barren Sky Ranking has my name��not for the fame but to prove some things."


    Zhuge Mingyue smiled at Ye Futian. She knew what he was talking about. Bai Luli had become tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking soon after entering the Sage Plane. Gu Dongliu had challenged him once and lost. Bai Luli also had a complicated relationship with Zhuge Mingyue.


    Ye Futian wanted to prove some things to the world.


    "Of course I trust you." Zhuge Mingyue''s smile was warm. "You''re 25 years old now, right? I still remember how you were only 18 when you came to the Cottage. You were so cute."


    Ye Futian was speechless. Cute? So Zhuge Mingyue had thought he was cute when they first met?


    "Yes, I''m 25. Senior Sister, I didn''t awaken my life spirit and start cultivating until I was 15," Ye Futian said while looking in the distance. "It''s been ten years. These ten years, I went from the beginning stage to now. I''m only a Grade-4 Noble now, but if I''m serious, I can be at the top of the Holy Zhi Palace''s rank. If I enter the top-level Noble Plane, no Nobles here dare to say they''ll defeat me." His voice was extremely confident.


    Zhuge Mingyue looked at the handsome side-profile and her eyes shone brighter. She knew that Ye Futian wasn''t bragging. He just wanted to tell her.


    "Seems like Junior has grown up," Zhuge Mingyue murmured. The three years passed in a blink and she could feel that Ye Futian had grown up. The 18-year-old who''d entered the Cottage was now mature.


    "A poem says, ''if only life can remain how it was at the first meeting'', but it''s nice to see you grow up bit by bit."


    Zhuge Mingyue patted Ye Futian''s head. Feeling Zhuge Mingyue''s gentle hands and affectionate eyes, Ye Futian was speechless. She said he''d grown up, but she was still treating him like a kid. Where was his image?


    "Senior Sister, who''s the most popular for the battle this year?" Ye Futian''s gaze moved to the examination grounds. There were countless people now. Most of them would be eliminated.


    "Zhongzhou City''s large forces all have talented figures in every generation. It''s the same this time. Amongst them, the Ximen Clan and the Thunder Courtyard both have one very talented figure. People have high expectations. Other than that, the Yan Jiu that you''d defeated last time has a sister. She''s even more talented than Yan Jiu and she''s here. The Zhuge Family and White Cloud City also have powerful figures."


    Zhuge Mingyue smiled and continued, "But no matter how talented they are, they can''t surpass the last round."


    "Of course," Ye Futian said, smiling. "Look at who was in the last round."


    Zhuge Mingyue smiled at Ye Futian with pride. She left after the first day. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu stayed beside her the whole time and Ye Futian felt keen that something was wrong. He said many things to her. Some of them seemed arrogant, but Zhuge Mingyue must have understood his intentions.


    Ye Futian continued watching the other battles because Long Ling''er was there, along with Long Mu and Gu Yunxi.


    Long Mu had truly improved greatly these past three years, perhaps motivated by Ye Futian. Long Ling''er was only 18 years old, but she''d already shown her shocking talent as a Dragon Master. She was even more talented than Long Mu. The battles this year were still spectacular. There weren''t any underdogs like Ye Futian and Yu Sheng who reached the end, but many talents were still very shocking.


    Ximen Gu of the Ximen Clan was first while Yan Qingyan of the Sword Saint Mansion was second. She was Yan Jiu''s sister. Her swordsmanship was precise and graceful. She''d added her own thoughts to the Nine Swords of the Celestials. Third was a pride from the Thunder Courtyard. Last time, neither the Ximen Clan nor theThunder Courtyard had been able to enter the top ten. This time was a boost to their ego.


    Ximen Gu entered the Holy Sage Pavilion and Yan Qingwu entered the Sword Pavilion. Three years ago, the Sword Demon hadn''t wanted Yan Jiu, but he was impressed by Yan Qingwu.


    When the strong cultivator on the steps announced the end of the battle, the vast space fell into an uproar. Some were happy while others were upset.


    Ye Futian walked down to Chen Yuan''s group. He looked at Long Ling''er and saw her grinning. "Brother Futian, how was I?"


    "Yes, the Daozang Pavilion made an exception for you. Seems like little Ling''er has grown up." Ye Futian patted Long Ling''er''s head. At 18 years old, she was only in the upper Arcana Plane, but Sage Daozang had personally made an exception to accept her. Clearly, her talent had been very impressive.


    Sage Daozang also knew Long Yitian. Coming from the Divine Sky City of the eastern Barren State, Long Yitian had been on the Barren Sky Ranking. He''d been incredible and shone for a while before passing like a shooting star. He saw yet another Dragon Master in Long Ling''er.


    "Of course." Long Ling''er was a bit proud. Chen Yuan and Madame Long were also happy. They''d thought Long Ling''er wouldn''t achieve anything and never thought the Daozang Pavilion would make an exception for her. It was a great surprise.


    "Long Mu, you did well," Ye Futian said to Long Mu. He''d entered an island on the Thousand Holy Islands. This counted as entering the Holy Zhi Palace too.


    "I''ll catch up to you." Long Mu looked at Ye Futian. The disdain still existed, but it had become his motivation to keep improving. He was especially affected when he saw Ye Futian get first place three years ago and had cultivated crazily.


    "Then you better work hard," Ye Futian said, chuckling. He''d moved on from the past conflicts.


    Madame Long smiled at these juniors. Her smile was just as beautiful as when she was young. She was obviously happy seeing the juniors like this. Long Mu had finally grown up. In the future, he could be a good and reliable man like her brother, Long Yitian.


    "Are you going back with me or entering the palace directly?" Madame Long.


    "I''m not going back. Mother, tell Father that I didn''t disappoint him this time," Long Ling''er said.


    "Okay." Madame Long nodded. "Your Father''s strictness was for the best of you. Now that you and Long Mu have entered the Holy Zhi Palace, you must cultivate well."


    "I will," Long Ling''er said. "Mother, don''t worry. I have Brother Futian and Sister Jieyu here."


    "Futian, you''ll have to take care of this girl," Madame Long said.


    "Madame, don''t worry. I won''t let anything happen to Ling''er," Ye Futian said.


    "I obviously don''t worry with you. Alright, go on now," Madame Long said.


    Ye Futian nodded and looked to Gu Yunxi. "Yunxi, don''t be disappointed. You can cultivate well in the Starry School too."


    "Yes, I will." Gu Yunxi nodded, but how couldn''t she be disappointed? She''d already worked hard, but it still wasn''t enough.


    "Chief Chen, Madame, I''m going now," Ye Futian bid farewell to everyone and took Long Ling''er into the Holy Zhi Palace.


    It wasn''t just them. Many entered the palace directly instead of going back. With Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, there was no need for the guards to lead the way. The group soared in the sky.


    "Ling''er, I''ll take you around the palace," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay." Long Ling''er''s eyes glowed with curiosity and excitement.


    Ye Futian brought her around the pavilion''s Law Power Zone. Long Ling''er looked down and said, "What is that? It doesn''t look like a cultivation area. There are so many people there."


    "That''s a Law Power Zone. Some disciples plan battles there. Many enter the Law Rank there. You, newbies, are usually more interested in them," Ye Futian said, chuckling.


    "Law Rank?" Long Ling''er was interested. "Brother, I want to go see."


    "Okay." Ye Futian smiled. The group landed before the Law Rank and Long Ling''er rushed to the front.


    "Brother Futian, you''re number ten!" she exclaimed. Many people looked towards Ye Futian. The older disciples also looked at him. He''d already entered the rank more than two years ago. If he fought again, he would definitely be higher up. Many newbies were looking at him. Was this the winner of the last pavilion battle?


    "You''re Ye Futian?" A sharp gaze looked towards Ye Futian right then.


    Ye Futian glanced over and saw a pretty girl dressed cleanly. Her entire body radiated with sharpness, giving her a different kind of beauty. This was Yan Qingwu, second of the battle and Yan Jiu''s sister.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    "It''s because of you that my brother returned soulless that year. Someday, I''ll challenge you," Yan Qingwu said.


    "I''ll be waiting," Ye Futian said, smiling. He didn''t mind. His mindset was completely different from three years ago.


    "Number one from the last round?" someone muttered, standing before the Law Rank with his back to Ye Futian. "It''s a pity I wasn''t in the same year."


    Many people looked at the speaker. It was Ximen Gu, the winner of this year. Was this newbie challenging his senior?


    Ye Futian glanced at him. He was really arrogant, but Ye Futian didn''t mind. The winner of the battle would definitely be arrogant.


    "If you''re in the same year, you won''t be anywhere near number one," Long Ling''er said.


    Ximen Gu turned around. He looked at Ye Futian and then gazed at Long Ling''er. Chuckling, he said, "You''re Long Ling''er, right?"


    "Yes." Long Ling''er looked at Ximen Gu, not liking his eyes.


    "Look at who''s number one on the Law Rank," Ximen Gu said. Long Ling''er looked and saw that the name at the top was Ximen Hanjiang.


    Ximen Gu continued, "My brother entered the Holy Zhi Palace six years ago and he was first in his pavilion battle. I entered this year and I''m first in my battle." He chuckled before walking away. "If you pretty girl wants to find someone to kiss up to, you can come to me."


    "You��" Long Ling''er looked at his backside. Her expression changed slightly.


    Ye Futian glanced at the Law Rank. Ximen Hanjiang was a strong competitor. If he could be first on the Law Rank, he was naturally very talented. The Ximen Clan had produce two winners of the pavilion battles. No wonder this guy was so arrogant.


    "Wait," Ye Futian uttered.


    Ximen Gu paused and looked up at Ye Futian. "Yes?"


    "Apologize," Ye Futian said nonchalantly!

 610 Historys Most Tragic Firs

    Ximen Gu stared at Ye Futian, though Ye Futian continued to turn his back on him.


    Two people who had been first in the admission examinations of their respective admissions batch actually got into a conflict on their first encounter, and the reason was the newbie provoking the senior. The crowd all had befuddled expressions. It was common for the seniors in the Holy Zhi Palace to bully the newbies, but it was uncommon for the reverse to happen. However, Ximen Gu was the first in the admission examination, and his brother, Ximen Hanjiang, was also the first on the Law Rank. As such, he had nothing to worry about, and he arrogantly provoked the previous batch''s first ranking in the admission examination��Ye Futian.


    Of course, Ximen Gu might not understand Ye Futian, but the people from the Holy Zhi Palace understood him very well. This was an indomitable person who dared to face all the disciples in the sparring session in his first year as a Holy Zhi Palace''s disciple. Moreover, he defeated Lian Yuqing as a Grade Eight Noble, causing the fifth on the Law Rank to keep a low profile while cultivating in the future. In the next two years, Ye Futian had not clashed with anyone, so his ranking on the Law Rank was still 10th.


    Now, there was someone who was provoking him? Moreover, that person was Ximen Hanjiang''s younger brother. This made many people thrilled. It seemed like something exciting was about to happen. The prideful fellow had not fought anyone in two years, how could he possibly allow Ximen Gu to belittle him?


    "What if I don''t apologize?" Ximen Gu looked at Ye Futian and said. He was not worried and was even a little exhilarated. Although Ye Futian''s cultivation level might be higher than his and Futian was definitely stronger than him, he felt that it was a good idea to fight him and experience the strength of the previous batch''s first. As for the other repercussions, he did not consider them. After all, although Ye Futian was 10th on the Law Rank, Ximen Gu''s brother was at the top of the Law Rank.


    Ye Futian turned and looked at Ximen Gu, smiling and saying, "If you''re unwilling, I don''t mind teaching you some respect."


    Ximen Gu looked at Long Ling''er who was standing beside Ye Futian, then smiled and replied, "Is that so? But I don''t see anything wrong with what I said?" As he finished, the entire area froze up and became exceptionally quiet. Many people''s gazes landed on Ye Futian. He was not someone with a good temper.


    "No problem," Ye Futian smiled and replied. He then raised his hand and stretched it out in Ximen Gu''s direction. In an instant, an exceptionally violent aura descended upon him; it was the strength of combined Wills. The heavens rumbled and a Spiritual Qi storm started brewing, sand flying around Ximen Gu''s body. Ximen Gu immediately released his Spiritual Will, but in the next moment, he felt a horrifying Will descending upon him. His body hardened and he was unable to move.


    Ximen Gu''s expression became panicky, and he attempted to break free from the Spiritual Will. However hard he tried, he was unable to do so. It was as though the area around him had completely frozen and his body was completely suppressed.


    Ye Futian stepped towards Ximen Gu gradually. Although his speed was slow, the crowd behind him was all startled. After more than two years, Ye Futian had finally fought someone again. But what was this overwhelming Spiritual Will? It was like a horrifying force had been created by combining Spiritual Wills. Ximen Gu was in trouble.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace doesn''t have strict rules, so the seniors often bully the new disciples. When I entered the Palace, I kept a low-profile because I knew that I was unable to defeat them, so I hate it when the seniors bully the newbies. Today, I am going to do the thing that I hated." Ye Futian looked at Ximen Gu and said calmly, "That is because some people really deserve it." As his voice landed, he swung his palm outward and the wind started billowing and turned into a palm print. With a giant smack, it landed on Ximen Gu''s face and sent his body flying, a distinct palm print on his face.


    Silence. The first in the admission examination, Ximen Gu, had been slapped by Ye Futian on his first day in the Holy Zhi Palace. This was a feat that probably nobody would ever achieve again.


    Ximen Gu stood up and wiped the blood around his mouth. He raised his head and stared cruelly at Ye Futian.


    "You humiliated me intentionally?" Ximen Gu clenched his fists and growled.


    "It looks like you understand how it feels to be humiliated." Ye Futian had no pity for him and did not feel that he had gone overboard. It did not matter how arrogant the first in the admission examination was since he was arrogant as well. However, he had dared to say such humiliating things to Long Ling''er and had no remorse. He could only let Ximen Gu feel the impact of his actions.


    Ximen Gu laughed mockingly and said, "You''re a senior. Since you said that the Holy Zhi Palace has no rules, it''s fine if you humiliate me. However, have you thought of the consequences?" As he said that, he looked derisively at Long Ling''er, who was standing beside Ye Futian. He would remember this slap.


    "It looks like you haven''t learned your lesson," Ye Futian said calmly. Then, his arm stretched forward and a giant palm appeared in the air, grabbing Ximen Gu by the neck. Ximen Gu wanted to dodge, but his body could not resist. The giant palm lifted Ximen Gu''s body across the air and slammed him into the ground. With an ear-splitting crash, Ximen Gu''s body was violently smashed into the ground and his body shuddered vehemently.


    "Ye Futian, you dare bully me like this? My brother will not let you off." Ximen Gu said ruthlessly. However, as he finished, the earth started to shake. A figure ran wildly from the distance and many people raised their heads to look at the person. They saw a burly figure land beside Ximen Gu and grab him by his shirt. Ximen Gu lowered his head and saw a pair of emotionless eyes with beastly rage in them. The expression in those eyes was as though they were looking at a dead person.


    Ximen Gu felt his body go cold. What kind of eyes were those? However, this was the Holy Zhi Palace. Who would dare treat him like this?


    When they saw the figure appear, many people grieved for Ximen Gu. He had just entered the Palace and had not understood Ye Futian before provoking him. What a tragedy.


    In the next moment, Ximen Gu felt his body being flung, and with a giant crash, his organs felt as though they had shattered as he was crushed vigorously into the ground. Moreover, the other party did not stop and smashed him into the ground repeatedly.


    Many people could not bear to continue watching. Ximen Gu was probably the most tragic first in the admission examination in the history of the Holy Zhi Palace. He had barely been in the Palace for a couple of hours and he had already been brutally defeated. Blood streamed from Ximen Gu''s mouth and his brain stopped functioning. On his first day in the Holy Zhi Palace, his views had been flipped upside down. How could this be? He was the first in the admission examination, the most outstanding among this batch''s disciples. His brother was the first on the Law Rank. How could the other party humiliate him with no reservations? He did not understand.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian shouted. If that fellow continued, he might really disable Ximen Gu.


    Yu Sheng heard his voice and stopped, then threw Ximen Gu on the ground and walked over to Ye Futian. He did not mention Ximen Gu but said, "Teacher wants us to go over."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and then said to Hua Jieyu, "Jieyu, you bring Ling''er to the Daozang Palace. I won''t be sending her."


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded. Ye Futian walked over to Ximen Gu''s side and said softly, "You can go and tell your brother about today''s incident. If he wants to look for me, that''s fine. I''m just going to remind you, if you dare to insult Ling''er again like you did today, I will make sure that you are unable to stay in the Palace." After saying that, he looked towards Long Ling''er and said, "Ling''er, your cultivation is the weakest in the Palace. If anyone bullies you, come look for me."


    "Mm." Long Ling''er nodded her head solemnly. Big brother Futian was more handsome than before, big brother Yu Sheng as well. She had not noticed that he was this handsome in the past. She would have another idol from now on.


    Ye Futian left with Yu Sheng, and Hua Jieyu also flew off with Long Ling''er. The surrounding crowd looked at the figure lying on the ground. After two years, they had finally seen Ye Futian and Yu Sheng in action again.


    How overbearing! That tone, it was as if... Many people reeled in shock, did Ye Futian''s words mean that he did not fear Ximen Hanjiang? Now, Ximen Gu was probably doubting his entire life. Tough luck, he had provoked Ye Futian.


    In the crowd, Yan Qingwu watched the incident with an equally stunned expression. Was this how things were in the Palace? Was that the Ye Futian who defeated her brother back then? What a deep impression he left.


    ��


    In the Battle Sage Palace, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng made their way to the Battle Sage Hall.


    "Master," the two of them shouted as they saw Sage Douzhan.


    "Three years, not bad." Sage Douzhan looked at the two of them and smiled. He then asked, "Yu Sheng has already made it to the 18th level of the Sky Reaching Tower, which level can you reach now, Ye Futian?"


    "The 17th level," Ye Futian replied.


    "How many acupoints can you open from the Incomplete Heavenly Manual''s Seven Star acupoints?" Sage Douzhan continued asking.


    "The same as Yu Sheng, four acupoints," Ye Futian replied.


    "That''s more than me." Sage Douzhan smiled and looked at his two disciples. He then said, "Teaching disciples is not my specialty. Although I''ve taken you two in as disciples, the truth is that all your cultivation is your own effort. Now, I will teach you two a body-enhancing technique for battle. It is extremely strong, so make sure to learn it properly. Ye Futian, I''ve heard that you specialize in all elements. However, Yu Sheng, you will have a chance to enter the Saint plane with body-refining. Don''t waste your potential."


    Yu Sheng nodded. He also knew that his physique was superior to others and was a natural warrior. Body-refining was indeed very suitable for him.


    "Prepare yourselves." The eye in between Sage Douzhan''s brow chakra opened again, and a gleaming light emitted from it, heading straight towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s brow chakras. Following that, images flooded into their brains. In their heads, they saw what looked like a god. Sage Douzhan stood in the air, naked. His frame appeared to be bigger, like an ancient god. What was even scarier was the gleaming light around his body. An unparalleled shadow appeared. It was an imposing golden figure.


    "The Douzhan Body can create a martial arts body and provide astonishing power. It is an unstoppable offensive ability," a voice sounded in their heads. Next, the cultivation method and things to look out for were all imprinted into their brains.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng closed their eyes, taking it in silently.


    "The Incomplete Heavenly Manual combined with the Douzhan Body created Sage Douzhan, who is seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking. Your potentials are both higher than mine, so your achievements will definitely surpass the seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking," Sage Douzhan looked at the two of them and said softly. He had high hopes for both of them!

 611 Alchemy Conference

    The Holy Zhi Palace was refreshed by the addition of new students. The news of the champion of this year''s Law Battle being humiliatingly crushed by Ye Futian and Yu Sheng within a mere two hours after entering the palace spread far and wide like wildfire.


    The prestige of being the champion of the Law Battle had originally been unspeakable. Even though they might have suffered some oppression or bullying due to being a lower plane, none had ever suffered what Ximen Gu had been through��getting trashed after being there for just two hours.


    Ximen Gu was then ridiculed as the most pitiful champion of the Law Battle in the history of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Many felt rather excited at the news, as both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had not been seen in action for two whole years. Many wondered if their first battle after all that time to teach Ximen Gu a lesson would earn them the wrath of Ximen Hanjiang, the one who ranked first on the Law Rank. Everyone thought it would be interesting if Ximen Hanjiang were to avenge Ximen Gu.


    Were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng trying to provoke Ximen Hanjiang? Their action of trashing Ximen Gu was a sign saying they gave no face to the champion of the Law Rank, Ximen Hanjiang. Ximen Hanjiang eyed his brother while they were in the Holy Sage Pavilion. His eyes looked rather cold doing so. Other than Ximen Hanjiang, there were also other students of the Holy Sage Pavilion present, such as Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing.


    "Him again." Bai Ze''s eyes flashed with murderous intent. If anyone was said to hate Ye Futian the most, it would have been none other than Bai Ze.


    "We were preparing to welcome Ximen Gu, we never thought..." Zhuge Xing said as he saw Ximen Gu lying there in a bloody mess. "He really showed no mercy at all; just as arrogant and reckless as he has always been."


    "Brother, crush him," Ximen yelled as he looked at his older brother.


    "You, shut up!" Ximen Hanjiang berated him coldly. "You dare pick fights with the Law Rank disciples of the latest batch as soon as you get in the palace? Did you really think you were invincible just because you''re number one?"


    He knew how terrifying Ye Futian was. Ye Futian had been a Grade Eight Noble all those years before, but he displayed immense talent like none other. While he did not actually fight with anyone, there was no doubt about his talents, be it martial arts, sorcery, or music. All were immeasurably superb. It was anyone''s guess how powerful he had gotten now that he had become a Grade Four Noble.


    Ximen Gu''s picking a fight with Ye Futian as soon as he got into the palace was little different from trying to make a death wish come true.


    "I said little more than two lines. I never knew those two could have been so vicious." Ximen Gu''s eyes were practically filled with hatred.


    "Two lines, you said?" Ximen Hanjiang retorted coldly. "You deliberately insulted a girl, and you didn''t see that to be an act to provoke him? You said you wanted to know how powerful the champion of the last batch was, and now you know. Tell me, how does it feel?"


    Ximen Gu was speechless. He had meant to provoke Futian after all.


    "Let what happened this time to be a lesson for you. Put your pride aside from here on out when you''re in the palace, and be diligent in your training," Ximen Hanjiang said coldly. Ximen Gu''s knuckles went white. So that''s it?


    "Take him to rest," Ximen Hanjiang said to someone around him, and Ximen Gu was carried away from where he lied.


    Ximen Hanjiang looked in the direction of Battle Sage Palace. While there was no doubt that Ximen Gu was indeed the one at fault, it was also true that Ye Futian went too far.


    "Brother Ximen, are we going to just let this slide?" Bai Ze asked as he looked at Ximen Hanjiang.


    "Since he is already at such a level now, it''ll only be a matter of time before we clash. He probably won''t miss this year''s sparring sessions," Ximen Hanjiang said calmly. His main objective at the moment was to make it into the ranks of saints, as he was already at the pinnacle of Noble Plane.


    The fact that Ximen Hanjiang was not nominated by the Sage Palace was an obvious indication to him, saying that he, despite being the one ranked first on the Law Rank, was not someone of exceptional caliber like Hua Fan of the previous generation. He failed to prove himself worthy of entering the Sage Palace.


    No one else said much after that, but Zhuge Xing quipped, "Alchemy City is inviting forces from all over Barren State to witness their ceremony. Are any of you, seniors, interested in going?"


    "I''m preparing to train behind closed doors. As such, I won''t be going. In the case of all of you, however, this would prove a great chance for you to train and get exposed, as mighty ones of all kinds will gather in Alchemy City," Ximen Hanjiang said. The Holy Zhi Palace was a comprehensive, self-sufficient place in itself. Most nobles simply trained within the palace and rarely made contact with the outside world. However, if an opportunity presented itself, the Holy Zhi Palace''s members were free to venture outside.


    Alchemy City was highly renowned and held an important status in the Barren State. The city never participated in the Holy Zhi Palace''s selections, and the city served as the symbol of the southwestern region of Barren State.


    Many nodded lightly. The trip to Alchemy City this time was indeed seen as one worth making. Mighty ones from all sorts of places in the Barren State, other than the Holy Zhi Palace and the Ice Temple in the southernmost regions, would probably gather in Alchemy City.


    The members of the Holy Zhi Palace felt rather disappointed, however, that the predicted fight between Ximen Hanjiang and Ye Futian was not going to happen. They had, after all, been anticipating a clash of the titans. However, the news that Alchemy City was about to hold the Alchemy Conference, spread out from the palaces and pavilions, taking the entire Holy Zhi Palace by storm.


    Ye Futian knew of the news through the mouth of Sage Douzhan.


    "Alchemy Conference?" Ye Futian eyed Sage Douzhan in the temple.


    "Indeed. The Alchemy Conference is the largest Armorer Competition in Alchemy City, and everyone below the Sage Plane is invited to the event. It is held only once in ten years. Forces from all over the Barren State are invited by Alchemy City, and the Holy Zhi Palace is, of course, among the ones invited. However, as Alchemy City never bothered participating in the Holy Zhi Palace''s selection processes, the elders of the Holy Zhi Palace saw no need to give them face. You people, however, are free to visit them," Sage Douzhan said.


    "I''m not an armorer. What is the use of me attending the event?" Ye Futian said, showing that he had little interest in it.


    "The Armorer Competition will be a gathering of mighty ones from all over the Barren State. You have been training in the Holy Zhi Palace for more than three years. Don''t you want to go outside and have a look at things?" Sage Douzhan smiled as he said, finding it impressive that despite Ye Futian''s youth, he was hardly bothered by loneliness.


    "Do you wish for me to go, teacher?" Ye Futian asked Sage Douzhan.


    "I do indeed." Sage Douzhan nodded.


    "I will make the trip then," Ye Futian answered with a smile.


    "Very well." Sage Douzhan smiled. "The act of cultivation through the refinement of one''s body is a lifelong process. This isn''t to say that one stops developing their physical body upon becoming a sage. Rather, the higher you go, the steeper the requirements will be on your body. By then, even the resources the Holy Zhi Palace are able to provide will not necessarily fulfill your needs. Furthermore, it isn''t possible for you to just keep staying in the Holy Zhi Palace. Alchemy City has the finest armorers in all of the Barren State. You will be able to find powerful body-refining implements in Alchemy City, and so, it will do you good to make friendly relations with the people of Alchemy City." It was obvious at that point that Sage Douzhan had other intentions. Ye Futian felt rather speechless at his teacher''s blatant intentions and plans for Alchemy City.


    "Teacher, I heard that the city lord of Alchemy City is ranked eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking. But why is it that Alchemy City has such a prestigious status in Barren State?" Ye Futian asked out of curiosity.


    "First of all, that would be attributed to their prowess as armorers. Forces everywhere probably have needs that can only be fulfilled by the city. Second, it would probably due to the city itself housing many super ritual implements. While the city lord of that place might only be ranked eighth on Barren Sky Ranking, the additional kick provided by ritual implements might have just made them someone few dare touch. Needless to say, no one dares invade the city''s territory. Alchemy City is where it is today due to all of those reasons," Sage Douzhan elaborated.


    "I can find holy ritual implements there?" Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled with an unusual sheen. There had been saints throughout the Barren State, and the three great schools were of the lineage of a saint. The Holy Zhi Palace''s Sage Palace was probably no exception.


    "You will indeed." Sage Douzhan nodded.


    Ye Futian came to understand why Alchemy City''s status was so prestigious.


    "Besides, as Alchemy City has invited the Holy Zhi Palace to participate in the event, all six palaces and pavilions have informed their students about it. Many of our students will probably head there," Sage Douzhan added.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. "I''ll ask around and see if anyone wants to make the trip with me."


    "Yes, you should," Sage Douzhan said.


    The news of the Armorer Competition from Alchemy City spread far and wide in the Holy Zhi Palace. Many came asking about Ye Futian, and the news of Ye Futian''s participation of the event soon reached everyone''s ears.


    Many mighty ones gathered at the Battle Sage Palace that day. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Yi Xiaoshi, Yuan Zhan, Xu Que, and Zui Qianchou were all present. The silhouette of three girls made their way through the air, and everyone''s eyes sparkled. All three were top class beauties, and they were none other than the three beauties from Daozang Palace: Hua Jieyu, Yun Shuisheng, and Phoenix. With the exception of Xiang Zhiqin, three out of the four were present.


    "So, it seems like Sister Yun and Phoenix will be going to Alchemy City as well," Hua Jieyu said with a smile to Ye Futian. As fellow students of Sage Daozang, it was natural that all three of them had become familiar with each other over the past three years.


    "Welcome," Ye Futian said with a smile. While he and Yun Shuisheng had a rocky start, their feud was long over. Yun Shuisheng was still unable to break into Sage Plane even after working at it for two years, and it was only natural that she had wanted to go outside for a bit.


    "Wait up, Brother Ye." A few more figures were seen coming through the air; it was Zhong Li and the others, fellow students who entered the Holy Zhi Palace with Ye Futian. All of them had been helped by Ye Futian one way or another in their training over the past two years, and they all gathered at Battle Sage Palace.


    "Are you going, Zhong Li?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes, indeed. My place is near Alchemy City, and I''m rather familiar with the area," Zhong Li answered with a smile. Zhong Li came from the Zhong clan of the Separation Road, which was near Alchemy City.


    "Let''s head out together then," Ye Futian answered with a smile. Ye Futian was among the ones of the lower rank in their current party. He was the one with the lowest plane when he entered as a Grade Nine Noble. Three years had passed and he became a Grade Four Noble, but the others were training as well. There were Grade Three Nobles among them, and the stronger ones had even become Grade Two Nobles. Yun Shuisheng had been at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane all that while.


    The party was indeed a fearsome one, as many hailed from top forces from all over Barren State. They leaped into the air and quickly vanished into the clouds.


    Sage Douzhan and Sage Jingang stood looking in Battle Sage Palace after they left. Sage Jingang was seen with a smile, saying, "That batch from three years has indeed become quite formidable. This time, it''s no longer the Holy Sage Pavilion being the center of things, but Ye Futian. That guy really has a way with things."


    Ye Futian was the one with the lowest plane among his party; however, the current way things went spoke volume of his natural prowess and talent, as well as his charisma.


    "Ximen Hanjiang is far from capable of such feats. He lacks the decisive advantage which allows him to make those of the same batch submit to him. Hua Fan, however, accomplished something like that. Ye Futian will probably succeed Hua Fan. Maybe he will someday become like Bai Luli��a symbol of one whole generation in the Holy Zhi Palace," Sage Douzhan elaborated with a smile.

 612 Casino

    The western region of the Barren State looked vast and endless. The place was filled with many magnificent cities, and there were two that were the most renowned among all: Alchemy City and White Cloud City. While other major cities were also very, very influential, none were able to match those two.


    White Cloud City reigned supreme in the northwestern region while Alchemy City was situated in the southwestern corner. Alchemy City''s influence encompassed all surrounding areas. Many top forces forged amicable relations with Alchemy City. Alchemy City was also immensely grand and luxurious. It was as if the entire city was made out of ritual implements. The designs of the buildings there differed greatly from those of other regions. In Alchemy City, many buildings served as ritual implements themselves. Intensely thick Spiritual Qi was found within Alchemy City, and the concentration of metal and fire elements were especially strong.


    Countless mighty ones gathered at that incredibly old and renowned city. Many more kept arriving in the city by air. With the Armorers Competition held once in ten years about to commence, it was a grand event comparable to the Holy Zhi Palace''s recruitment. Top forces throughout the Barren State gathered there, and the ones from southwestern regions were particularly eager to participate. The finest armorers from all over Barren State also gathered at the city to show their mettle.


    It should be known that the prize of every Armorer Competition ever held had been incredibly terrifying. Many were even given the chance to become the direct disciples of the city lord of Alchemy City, and the one individual who reigned supreme was even given an opportunity to marry a princess of the city lord office. As such, many flocked to participate in the event. However, the ones ranked in the top three in every Armorer Competition ever held mostly consisted of the top forces of Alchemy City, and there had even been ones emerging from the city lord office.


    While the number of people who specialized in making armaments was comparatively low in the Barren State, but the sheer size of the Barren State meant that there was still a considerable number of them gathering at Alchemy City. The Armorer Competition was seen to be, without a doubt, the most prestigious event for armorers in Barren State. There was simply no other event comparable.


    A line of mighty ones appeared in the airspace of Alchemy City; they were members of Nantian House. While Nantian House was quite a distance away from Alchemy City, the trip was seen to be a must. The Godly Spear of Nantian of the Nantian House was renowned throughout the Barren State, and the very spear among the godly spears held by the lord of Nantian House was crafted by none other than the armorers of Alchemy City. As such, it was only natural that members of Nantian House participate in the event.


    Many of the top class ritual implements throughout the Barren State, like the Godly Spear of Nantian, originated from Alchemy City. As such, many top forces respected Alchemy City.


    Members of Mortal World arrived as well in their air warships. The Sovereign Family of Zhongzhou arrived to participate in the Alchemy Conference event. Needless to say, the Sacred Fire Sect, the Zhong clan and others who originated from the southwestern regions, all arrived early in Alchemy City.


    Many mighty ones also came for another reason: to see if there were useful divine arms and ritual implements to be traded in Alchemy City. There was no doubt that the ritual implements from Alchemy City were the best in the Barren State.


    Two more figures were seen flying into the city in the air. Both of those figures were at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane. One looked dashing and handsome, and the other exuded a rather pompous aura.


    "Fourth brother, are you really planning to participate in the competition?" one of them asked.


    "Not me, us," the other answered.


    "But we can''t make stuff?" The one who started the conversation shrugged.


    "But you are good with fire, aren''t you? There is little difference between cooking and making things. I have read a lot of books and tried to catch up. I will know what to do," the one called fourth brother answered.


    "Are you messing with me? How can that work, fourth brother?"


    "We have come so far and there is nothing else I can do. We''ll have to participate whether we like it or not."


    "But you''re the one pulling all this, not me. Fourth brother, you can''t just rope me into this."


    "Luo Fan, if you weren''t the one egging me on, I wouldn''t have made such a huge mistake. Are you really trying to sit around and do nothing?" These two were of the Eastern Barren Territory Cottage, the fourth disciple, Xue Ye, and the fifth disciple, Luo Fan.


    "Xue Ye, how can you say that?" Luo Fan glared at Xue Ye. "Well then, why don''t we just go beg second sister then?"


    "To hell with that." Xue Ye glared at Luo Fan. "I don''t have the gall to do that, and besides, what good would that do? If you''re not going to participate, I''ll smack you down right here, right now."


    "Fourth brother, you''re too much," Luo Fan said rather dejectedly. How can you bully someone like that?


    "We are brothers, no? We share the credit and blame, and we sink or swim together." Xue Ye tapped Luo Fan at the shoulder as a consoling gesture.


    Luo Fan turned and look at Xue Ye dejectedly, saying, "But you sure didn''t have me around where there was credit to be had."


    "Credit, hell no," Xue Ye cursed at Luo Fan. Luo Fan sighed and lamented at his fate.


    ��


    Ye Futian''s party had arrived at Alchemy City, flying in Alchemy City''s airspace, tall and proud.


    "Zhong Li, does all of Alchemy City fall under the influence of the city lord office?" Ye Futian asked. He knew little about Alchemy City and was able to see so far that it was a city of magnificent prestige and influence.


    "No. Other than the city lord office, there is another powerful force with substantial influence in this most renowned place in the southwestern region: the Emperor family," Zhong Li elaborated.


    "They call themselves that?" Ye Futian looked rather funny as he asked.


    "The Emperor family of Alchemy City has influence on par with that of the Sovereign family of Zhongzhou City." Zhong Li added, "It''s said that in ancient times, the ancestor of the You family, which is the city lord clan, was best friends with the Emperor family. They were both saints and armorers when they came to Alchemy City. In later days, the You family retained the armorer lineage and talents of the ancestors, while the Emperor family emphasized the cultivation of their own powers, leaving their armorer lineage behind. Both forces maintained very good relations and completed with each other, ruling the renowned city in the Barren State together.


    "Their relations stayed amicable, even to this day, and it was common for members of both families to marry. The city lord of Alchemy City ranked eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking, while the head of the Emperor family ranked twelfth. Both forces never bothered participating in the Holy Zhi Palace''s selection processes. They made it out solely on their own." Zhong Li continued, "Furthermore, exceptionally talented individuals emerged frequently from both forces, and it was said that one of the exceptional talents, capable of going against the heavens, has emerged. Rumors sat that person rivals the likes of Bai Luli, and the Emperor family has pinned great hopes on them, hoping that they will one day to become a saint."


    Ye Futian nodded. The Barren State was a vast place, and while the Holy Zhi Palace was a sacred ground in the Barren State, it was not the only one. Huang Jiuge of the Sovereign family refused to train in the Holy Zhi Palace. The likes of Alchemy City and the Ice temple made it on their own as well, and mighty ones emerged one after another from their ranks. They thought themselves to be able to meet many excellent armorers participating in the event this time.


    "Will many forces from Barren State come?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Many will." Zhong Li nodded. "The Armorer Competition is a festival for armorers of the Noble Plane like none other. Some of the best armorers will stay behind in Alchemy City, but there will also be a substantial number of great armorers being bought away by outside forces with hefty prices, becoming their personal armorers. When they become sages one day, those armorers will go on to craft something befitting of their status and power."


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded. It was only natural that any top forces lacking good armorers wanted to recruit from here.


    "The event will be held in several days. Anywhere else we can go?" Ye Futian asked the members of his party.


    "We''ll go see if there are any good ritual implements for sale and have a look around since we''re already here in Alchemy City," Xu Que said with a smile. Ritual Implements were what Alchemy City was most famous for, after all.


    "You have a point." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. He glanced at Hua Jieyu beside him and thought of finding something to give to her as a gift. However, while the stock of spirit stones on his person was indeed substantial, it would still probably be inadequate as it was still the best sage ritual implements they were talking about.


    But many of the ones around him were known to be incredibly rich. Should I just go all out and leech on them? But wouldn''t that be rather inappropriate for someone as principled as I am? Futian thought.


    "There are few renowned spots in Alchemy City. The two most famous ones are the Sky Treasure Tower, established by the city lord, and the Alchemy Casino. The Sky Treasure Tower houses many top-class ritual implements to be bartered for. The Alchemy Casino also houses much powerful stuff, but the interesting part about the place is that it is still a casino. Every ritual implement can be acquired by betting something of equivalent value, like powerful spells, techniques and methods, other precious ritual implements, and so on. They can be used to trade in gamble fights." Zhong Li then added, "The casino was the most popular place in the city in every Armorer Competition."


    "Won''t we end up emptying the place if we were to participate?" Ye Futian asked, looking rather shocked.


    "..." Zhong Li glanced at Ye Futian without saying a thing. Just what is with this guy?


    "Easy for you to say. The rules of gamble fights are determined by the casino, as they are the house, after all. As such, they almost always end up being the winner. But those who gathered here for the event were all incredibly confident people," Zhong Li said with a smile. Ye Futian nodded in acknowledgment.


    "Looks interesting." Ye Futian looked at everyone around him, and some looked interested. "The casino it is then."


    "Very well." Zhong Li nodded with a smile before taking the entire party there.


    The Alchemy Casino was located at the center of Alchemy City. It was indeed the most popular place in the city, and it was said to have very powerful backing. The city lord office and the Emperor family, as well as many clans and forces, were rumored to be the ones backing the place. As such, no one ever dared kicking up a fuss with the casino, as it was no ordinary casino.


    The Alchemy Casino was incredibly lavish, grand, and magnificent. One step into the place and one was able to tell it exuded the bearing of a royal palace, flocked to by countless people.


    They kept moving forward and saw many flocked to their left side. There were three ritual implements placed on a piece of rockery seemingly made of jade: a short sword, armor, and a long whip. All three exuded aura of sage ranks.


    "All ritual implements found in the Alchemy Casino are sage ones?" Ye Futian asked with a rather shocked expression.


    "Indeed." Zhong Li nodded. "Noble ritual implements have no appeal to truly mighty ones, and anything of equal value is nothing the casino would bother forking out. As such, everything found here are sage ritual implements."


    Ye Futian felt rather interested. The sage ritual implements were simply placed where they were without any concern about them being stolen. That fact alone spoke volume about the casino''s confidence, and that in turn meant that their backing was very terrifying. Everything found as they moved forward was tremendously precious. They were not even allowed to go near them, as there were matrixes to keep them aloft.


    Ye Futian saw a fearsome golden spear before him, which seemed to have whipped up an appalling storm. The tip of the golden spear emanated light of destruction, where one could somehow see a terrifying black hole. No one dared go near the weapon.


    Many gathered around the spear, and everyone lifted their heads to look at the weapon that exuded destructive powers. Their eyes burned with a tinge of passion, and it was obvious that the spear was an incredibly precious ritual implement.


    "There is a magical bell." In another corner, a large magical bell was levitating in the air. The light spilled out of it contained terrifyingly destructive powers, and many gathered around the magical bell as well.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze around and found the place littered with powerful ritual implements. His eyes sparkled. What a nice place to be.


    "Jieyu, if you see anything you like, just pick it out. Wuchen needs a sword as well. Qingxuan and Chenyuan don''t lack anything, so there is nothing for them here." Ye Futian''s eyes continued shining.


    "..." Everyone''s eyes froze and they stared at him speechless. Is this guy actually behaving like he owns the place?


    "Ye Futian, I see that you''ve come to Alchemy City." A group of people arrived in the air, staring down at Ye Futian''s party. They were members of Nantian House. Nan Hao, Nan Feng, Nan Yu, and all the others were there.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian kept going forward without paying them any attention.


    "Can''t you hear what I said?" Nan Yu''s expression turned rather sour seeing Ye Futian ignore them.


    Ye Futian spared a glance at Nan Yu and said plainly, "Who do think you are, talking down at me like that and whatnot?"

 613 Gamble Figh

    "You..." Nan Yu pointed at Ye Futian, his face livid, never expecting to be insulted in front of everyone. He was, after all, still a member of the Nantian House and was of the Noble Plane. He never thought Ye Futian would have grown even more arrogant and contemptuous.


    Nan Hao and Nan Feng eyed Ye Futian coldly, thinking that the Law Battle champion had indeed grown increasingly arrogant. He deliberately refrained from making a move against Ye Futian on the Holy Road, due to wanting to see where Ye Futian would end up with Hua Jieyu after they made it out of the Holy Road. Nan Yu had never expected him to defeat Zhuge Xing and crush Bai Ze, emerging as the ultimate dark horse by becoming the champion. Ye Futian then entered the Holy Zhi Palace and became a couple with Hua Jieyu. Furthermore, many who entered along with Ye Futian were by his side, even Xu Yue, who had defeated him.


    Ye Futian spared a glance at Nan Yu and saw that the elders of Nantian House were there as well. However, he did not care about their presence and continued to eye Nan Yu sarcastically. Nan Yu was all high and mighty as he deemed others to be below him, and now Ye Futian thought it best to have Nan Yu taste his own medicine��humiliation and ridicule.


    "Ye Futian, the Law Battle champion to enter the Holy Zhi Palace three years ago." Many turned their eyes to look at them, mainly Ye Futian. They were guessing if the incredibly handsome young man was Ye Futian or not. He was able to beat Bai Ze and Huang Jiuge three years ago, earning his place as the Law Battle champion. Three years had passed since, and he should have grown even stronger.


    Many mighty ones who were browsing ritual implements far away came near them, and Ye Futian expectedly found many familiar faces among those people. There were Bing Yi and Chu Shang from the Mortal World, Yan Jiu and his entourage of Sword Saint Villa, and even Xie Ji from the Sacred Fire Sect. All of them had participated in the battle to enter the Holy Zhi Palace, and many came to the Alchemy Casino that day.


    The air turned rather peculiar in an instant with their presence. Bing Yi, Xie Ji and Yan Jiu, after all, lost to Ye Futian once.


    "The students of the Holy Zhi Palace are here." Many more came and laid eyes on Ye Futian''s party. The eyes of the spectators all burned with brimming brilliance, speaking of their extraordinary bearing.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was considered sacred ground in the Barren State. While many top forces did not participate in the examination battles of the palace, the students of the Holy Zhi Palace proved to be quite an attraction no matter where they went.


    Ye Futian scanned the crowd and smirked before taking his steps forward again. Everyone around walked with them. The only reason the students of the Holy Zhi Palace are here is definitely because of the ritual implements and to get the prizes in the Alchemy Casino. These students need to do battle. With that said, will we all be getting to see the Holy Zhi Palace students fight? many wondered.


    Ye Futian kept walking around for a bit before stopping somewhere. Ye Wuchen had his eyes on a short sword floating in the air before him. The weapon felt like a shadow, shimmering in and out of existence and emitting dazzling light. It was a ritual implement capable of containing a Life Spirit. Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit was none other than a small silver sword, and it was only natural for him to halt there.


    "I want that sword. How do I go about with the gamble fights?" Ye Futian pointed at the sword and said. A group of people came by. They were all in golden attire, and the leader was an elder of immeasurable strength. His eyes turned to look in another corner, seeing a swordsman from the Sword Saint Villa standing right there, exuding terrifying will of sharpness all over.


    "The Sword Saint Villa intended to take the sword as well. If you want to go on with the gamble fight, one of you needs to do battle with the one from the Sword Saint Villa. So, who is up for this?" the elder explained with a smile. A battle between the Holy Zhi Palace and the Sword Saint Villa would surely bring a crowd.


    Ye Futian looked at the other party and came to suddenly realize what Zhong Li said. The rules of the gamble fights were set by the casino, and it was impossible for the house to lose. For instance, the battle between them and the Sword Saint Villa. Both sides needed to pledge something of equal value to the sword, which would then be measured by the house. What they both would offer would have to be something the casino would like more, which meant the value of whatever was offered needed to exceed the value of the sword. As such, if they were to reach an agreement with the Sword Saint Villa, the casino would still emerge as the winner, regardless of who won the battle. Furthermore, the battle between the Holy Zhi Palace students and the students of the Sword Saint Villa would surely attract attention.


    Ye Futian cast his gaze at Yan Jiu and smirked. "You want to try again?"


    Yan Jiu eyed Ye Futian with eyes as sharp as a sword. While Yan Jiu had improved a lot over the past three years, there was no way Ye Futian would have been sitting around doing nothing; Yan Jiu was not sure of his chances of winning.


    "Both disciples of the Tingxue Swordsman and the Wuji Swordsman were unable to fight previously, how about..." The elder opened his mouth with a smile as he eyed on Xu Que and Yan Jiu. Ye Futian glanced at the elder. A cunning old fox indeed. If those two disciples of the great swordsmen were to fight here, it would surely cause quite a fuss.


    "I''m fine with anything." Xu Que shrugged.


    Yan Jiu eyed Xu Que. He looking for a sure-win in gamble fights like these, and there was no certainty he would emerge as victor if he was to be pitted against Xu Que.


    "How about you pick between me, Xu Que, and Yu Sheng?" Ye Futian intervened. He did not bother asking about Yan Jiu''s plane level. He resorted to make his own measurements with things.


    As the heir of Sword Saint Villa, Yan Jiu''s results from training for three years would be formidable. Ye Wuchen''s chances would be slim if he were to fight, as Ye Wuchen''s plane was definitely lower than Yan Jiu''s.


    "I''ll pick Yu Sheng," Yan Jiu said as he pointed his finger at Yu Sheng. He lost to Ye Futian back then, and Yu Sheng lost to Xu Que. Yu Sheng''s combat capacity was utterly terrifying, but Xu Que had been able to fight Yu Sheng and win by combining his speed with sword techniques. Yan Jiu''s sword attacks were as fast as lightning, and he deemed himself of being able to accomplish what Xu Que did back then.


    "Deal." Ye Futian smriked. Yu Sheng glanced at Yan Jiu plainly, his eyes colored with a tinge of ridicule.


    "The sword was something forged by a sage; a high-class sage ritual implement. What do you offer as a bet." The elder looked at Ye Futian''s party.


    "The guqin score of Liu Kuangsheng, the Nine-fingered Guqin Devil: Mesmerize," Ye Futian said.


    "That will do." The elder nodded with a smile. The Nine-fingered Guqin Devil was a senior from the previous generation. His song, Mesmerize, was notorious in all of Barren State as many top-class figures fell under the song. It was deemed a worthy bet, and it seemed that Ye Futian was incredibly confident about the battle.


    "Please, if you would." The elder led the way. Ye Futian and his party moved and everyone around them began to move in the same direction.


    Someone beside the elder asked the elder, "How about we make a bet on the fight?"


    "That is a given." The elder''s eyes sparkled. There was no way that there would be no bets with one such battle.


    "The odds?"


    "Two to one if Yu Sheng wins, one to two if Yan Jiu wins," the elder said with a smile.


    "Wha..." The pupils of the eyes of everyone around dilated. You have that much faith in Yu Sheng?


    Yan Jiu was famous, and that was further compounded by the fact that while Yu Sheng was formidable, he had lost to Xu Que. Such odds would have had most betting on Yan Jiu. If Yu Sheng lost, they would have lost a big one.


    "Relax." The elder then left with a smile on his face. He deemed that there was no way that Yu Sheng would lose. The odds he put were simply to have people bet on Yan Jiu.


    As the game was set, many in the Alchemy Casino bet on Yan Jiu in a crazed rush. Yan Jiu was a top-class genius and the heir of the Sword Saint Villa. While he did lose to Ye Futian, Ye Futian''s emergence as number one in the battles meant that there was nothing surprising about Yan Jiu''s loss. While Yu Sheng was indeed formidable, he ended up losing to Xu Que. As such, the odds of both people should have been even. However, since the odds were set in such an imbalanced manner, most would have bet on Yan Jiu.


    Of course, there were still quite a number of people who refrained from betting. The casino was clever, and they deemed it wise to be on their guard. There were definitely reasons for them to place so much faith on Yu Sheng.


    The Alchemy Casino had specialized platforms for holding gamble fights. Both Yu Sheng and Yan Jiu stepped on to the platform and found themselves surrounded by countless people. There were many who were unable to personally witness the fight for entry into the Holy Zhi Palace, and it was only natural they were now excited to witness Yu Sheng, who was already studying in the palace, fight Yan Jiu.


    "Those scum from the Alchemy Casino." The members of Sword Saint Villa looked livid hearing about the odds. Are they trying to insult the Sword Saint Villa? One to two and two to one; the difference was four times. Yan Jiu knew of the odds. He stood covered with intense sword aura on the platform, sporting very cold looks.


    "Please," the person hosting the fight said. The sword aura covering Yan Jiu burst, covering the entire platform in his sword might. As a superior noble, he was far stronger than he used to be. Incredibly dazzling swords were conjured in the air, and each and every one shone with golden light. Their collective weight seemed comparable to mountains as they floated above Yu Sheng''s head. It was as if they were going to fall on him.


    "Such strength." Many of the spectators were excited. While it was common for sages to fight in the casino, fights between top-class geniuses were rare instead.


    The fearsome sparkle of swords flashed in Yan Jiu eyes as he pointed his finger. Nine tremendously heavy swords felt straight down at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng looked up. Layers of light burst from his body shortly after, as if piercing through his body. He stomped on the ground and his body rumbled in response. Gloomy and Ruinous Star Acupoints opened, drawing out terrifying power from his body, as if dark golden storms whipped about.


    Boom. A heavy sword was seen coming for Yu Sheng. He took the sword with both his hands. Many trembled at the sight as the heavy sword got closer and closer but was surprisingly stopped by Yu Sheng''s hands. He held his ground as the clothes on his body burst from terrifying sword aura. A tremendously stout bronze-colored body was seen, brimming with intense power. Many saw Yu Sheng simply pick up the sword and fling it away, hitting the other eight swords falling onto him.


    "Wha..." Many witnessed the scene in shock, and those who bet on Yan Jiu began to have a bad feeling about things.


    Rumbling sounds of explosions sounded out as the heavy swords were destroyed one after another. Flashes of swords shot out from Yan Jiu''s eyes, and beams of dark and light swords zipped through the air. Yu Sheng''s stout body was, however, covered in dark golden demonic armor. The swords tore through his armor, yet his physical body was like armor as well, as it went on to withstand the onslaught from the swords without budging.


    Yan Jiu''s Swords of Light and Darkness were tremendously fast and ferocious. While their damage potential was not as strong as the heavy swords'', their sharpness was such that they were still capable of cutting down foes with one slash. However, they failed to pierce through Yu Sheng''s defenses and physical body.


    Yan Jiu''s eyes continued to glare at Yu Sheng. He did not expect Yu Sheng to have grown so much over the past three years!

 614 Top Class Treasure

    Yan Jiu''s expression turned serious as he accelerated the flow of Sword Will around him. His body became like a sword as his Sword Spirit appeared behind him in a blinding flash. His nine swords swirled around in the air as countless sword aura rushed and turned them into nine dazzling swords.


    The swords hummed as Yan Jiu took to the air and pointed his finger forward. Nine extremely blinding flashes of swords zipped through the air in an instant, heading for Yu Sheng. The sword aura flowed like a great river, completely covering the space between them.


    Yu Sheng stomped his feet on the ground. The light around his body shone in an even more dazzling manner as he reached out for one of the giant swords. The sword headed for him with the full intention of piercing through him. However, it ended up stopping in its tracks, caught between Yu Sheng''s hands. The tremendously sharp sword aura tore through everything around him and hummed loudly as if it was trying to tear his hands apart.


    Yu Sheng''s hands seemed to have conjured another pair of giant palms. The dark golden colored palms pinned the sword in its place. Both hands seemed to have gone through the entire body of the sword as they did so.


    "That is some sheer brute force like none other." The hearts of many were stunned.


    "That is the body-refinement techniques of Sage Douzhan. The art opened up the Seven Star acupoints. The Ruinous Star, Flirting Star, Gloomy Star, and the other acupoints enable power to permeate seven major points of the body, including both of the user''s arms and legs, allowing the use of sheer power like no other." Some powerful sages looked at the battle thinking to themselves that despite being sages, this was a battle to be noted in all seriousness.


    Terrifying sword aura tore through everything in its path as it headed for Yu Sheng, and then attempted to pierce through him with incredible force. However, the sword aura still failed to cut through Yu Sheng''s physical body. Back then, Xu Que had been able to make Yu Sheng submit by using sword techniques in conjunction with intricate body movements. Yan Jiu had wanted to imitate what Xu Que did but then discovered that Yu Sheng''s body had developed to become much more sturdy and powerful than it had been back then.


    Voom. A fearsome light was seen; it was the light conjured by Yan Jiu''s sword, which Yu Sheng threw back at him with his bare hands. It was indeed a show of brute force like no other. The platform shook in response. Yu Sheng made his way to Yan Jiu by stepping onto the swords.


    Sword flashes like none other flowed about Yan Jiu''s body. A giant sword that seemed to be out to destroy the space between them and crush the earth appeared in a dazzling flash, cutting the sword that was thrown back in a single, clean stroke. Yan Jiu''s body seemed to have become part of that cleaving sword itself as he swung at Yu Sheng, who was heading for him. It was the embodiment of sword and swordsman cutting everything in its way.


    Boom. Yu Sheng''s body seemed to be covered by the shadow of a devil devouring all Spiritual Qi around him. His body burst into dazzling brilliance as he lifted his arms and reached out for the giant sword coming his way. Many in the audience stood up at the scene, stunned by Yu Sheng''s strength.


    The very next moment, Yu Sheng''s hands trapped the sword swung at him. The giant sword cut through the air with a force capable of splitting the earth, yet it was stopped dead in its tracks by Yu Sheng''s hands. It was as if the devil was holding up a godly weapon. It was a stunning scene like none other.


    "Cut him!" Yan Jiu yelled in fury. Sword aura gushed about as the giant sword attempted to finish its job, yet Yu Sheng seemed entirely unperturbed. His hands slid along the sword as he moved forward, and in one single step, he descended upon Yan Jiu like a bolt of lightning. Yan Jiu looked utterly dejected as he threw away his sword and turned into a sword flash, backing away. However, Yu Sheng''s movements seemed to be faster than a lightning bolt. He descended upon Yan Jiu in mere moments before he lifted his fist up high and brought it down on the swordsman.


    Bam�� The dark golden fist tore through the space to reach its target, and the attack landed hard on Yan Jiu, sending him flying. Yan Jiu slammed down on the platform, spitting blood from his mouth as he yelped.


    Yu Sheng landed on the ground with a spectacular boom, looking as if a devil had descended upon the platform. He lifted his head to look at the elder and asked, "Where is the sword?"


    "Fetch the weapon," the elder said. A figure was seen holding the sword in both arms, walking onto the platform and handing it to Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng took the sword and walked down from the platform, returning to Ye Futian and handing the weapon to Ye Wuchen.


    "Good work." Ye Wuchen took the weapon without any hesitation.


    "You are indeed giving away ritual implements." Zhong Li, who was standing nearby, was rendered speechless. It was no wonder why Ye Futian had been so confident. What Yan Jiu did was no different from handing them their prize indeed. However, many eyes coldly looked in the party''s direction, especially those from the Sword Saint Villa and those who had bet against Yu Sheng. How is it possible for that *sshole to be so powerful?


    "He became even more terrifying," the mighty ones from Mortal World and Nantian House noted to themselves as they looked at Yu Sheng. The young man''s mastery of the demonic arts had made him a formidable being three years ago. That, coupled with the newly learned body-refining techniques, allowed Yu Sheng to simply take Yan Jiu''s sword head-on.


    "Hahaha." A laugh came from the elder from the Alchemy Casino. He looked very pleased with himself at the moment, smiling from ear to ear. The one who benefited the most from that battle was not the victor, Yu Sheng, but the elder''s casino. While the sword that was traded away was a high-class sage ritual implement, the price the Sword Saint Villa paid was just as valuable. The gamble that he set up with the spectators earlier also made him quite a lot of money.


    "That was spectacular. A battle truly befitting of the status of the students of Sage Douzhan and Wuji Swordsman. While Mr. Yan lost the match, the strength that was demonstrated definitely held up well to the reputation of the Sword Saint Villa," the elder said in an attempt to make the outcome seem less embarrassing for the Sword Saint Villa.


    "The Alchemy Conference is about to begin and many mighty ones will come, even cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace. Shouldn''t the casino show a token of appreciation or something?" someone from the crowd quipped.


    The elder smiled and replied, "There are still many top-class sage ritual implements in the casino. Would you all like to have a look?"


    "Well, bring them out already." The eyes of many sparkled.


    "Just wait for a moment. I will make the trip myself." The elder flashed and left the place, returning after a while. Several other elders followed him, all of whom had an incredibly fearsome aura. One walked onto the platform and waved, conjuring a ritual implement in the air above the gamble fight platform.


    It was a scepter of coldness. When the ritual implement was unveiled, a terrifying will of coldness swept through the air, covering the entire platform in a cold, white frost. The currents of cold continued to emanate from the scepter, making their way into everyone''s bodies. Ye Futian''s body was seen covered with a layer of frost, and he was able to feel the coldness seeping into his mind.


    "The Hail Scepter. A ritual implement capable of assaulting one''s mind and obstructing the casting of spells. It is also an item with very potent control abilities," the elder introduced the weapon and the eyes of many burned with excitement. The ritual implement showcased on the platform was then put away, before another walked onto the platform and unveiled another ritual implement.


    It was an article of clothing as thin as the wing of cicada. It was a clear, dazzling, and brilliant. A girl who was dressed skimpily went up and put the ritual implement on. It covered her white skin in an instant, as if having melded to her skin. A layer of brilliance shone about her. The elder who stood beside her used a palm attack on her. While the girl was sent flying, many were able to see that the ritual implement conjured layers of dazzling light screens, which looked as if the majority of the power of the attack was being absorbed.


    "It is a defensive ritual implement crafted with extremely painstaking effort. It is capable of dispelling most of the force dealt onto it, be it spiritual attacks, spells, or physical attacks."


    Many looked on with excitement, especially with the girl showcasing it. It was a defensive ritual implement with very high practical value.


    The third ritual implement was unveiled later��a incredibly dazzling green bead. Threads emanated from the bead as it spun in the air. Its radiation permeated the space, encasing everyone within the vicinity and making them feel as if they were under a very powerful control spell. The only difference was that no one was in control of that spell.


    "The Telekinesis Pearl. The most valuable treasure for Spirit Elementalists, especially those specializing in the use of telekinetic control. The item amplifies one''s mental powers, granting a huge boost to abilities of both offensive or defensive nature." The elder finished his introduction. His people packed up all the introduced ritual implements. The excitement in the crowd as obvious, as all three treasures were indeed top-class sage ritual implements.


    The elder spared a glance at Ye Futian before turning to look at Hua Jieyu who stood right beside him. His intentions were unreadable. The Telekinesis Pearl would have served as a huge boost to a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, especially one at such a level.


    Ye Futian took note of the elder''s eyes. Is that old guy trying to lure me into fighting a battle myself?


    The casino would begin another game. If Ye Futian, a Law Battle champion three years ago, were to fight, the house would then find an opponent who was of great popularity. It was anyone''s guess how many would bet on that game.


    Ye Futian had thought himself able to profit at another''s expense when he heard of the Alchemy Casino. He came to believe himself to be naive, as no casino would have been able to become the largest in Alchemy City if it was run by fools.


    "There are still other treasures that have yet to be unveiled. The three were but a preview; a taste for mighty ones who came from near and far, especially the students of the Holy Zhi Palace who have come to Alchemy City. I will make these treasures available tomorrow for gamble fights, and I welcome all to try their hand," the elder smiled and said.


    "That old fox..." Many people cursed under their breath. No one had expected the gamble fights for those treasures to be held the next day. It was obvious by then that all that had happened before this was simply a marketing maneuver. It was not hard to imagine what the place would look like when more mighty ones flocked to the casino. The number of competitors would shoot through the roof.


    "All are still welcomed to tour the casino today and see if there is anything to your liking. If you see anything you like, you may inquire," the elder elaborated gallantly. Ye Futian spared a glance at the elder, thinking him to be a sly one.


    "In that case, we will come back tomorrow." Ye Futian rose and smiled, before turning around to leave.


    As anticipated by many, what happened in Alchemy Casino that day spread through all of Alchemy City like wildfire. The interests of many were piqued hearing about the arrival of students from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Yu Sheng, who had become a student of the palace went on to crush Yan Jiu in the casino. Many thought the Holy Zhi Palace lived up to its reputation as the sacred ground of the Barren State, as Yu Sheng''s improvement was evidently far greater than Yan Jiu''s.


    So then, just how powerful have Ye Futian and Xu Que gotten?


    Furthermore, what the casino had just showcased made many people''s hearts pump. However, it was also obvious that only those with immense talent and those of top-class forces, or powerful sage-level figures would have had the privilege of participating in such gamble fights. Common people would not be able to offer anything of equal value as bets.


    The Alchemy Casino clearly targeted the geniuses or figures of the highest levels. Top-class sage figures would not participate easily in gamble fights. As such, only proud sons and daughters were deemed capable of drawing mass attention.


    As anticipated, mighty ones from all walks of life arrived at the casino the next day. Even mighty ones from the Sovereign family in Zhongzhou City were there, and Huang Jiuge was among those people. He looked incredibly dashing and eye-catching as he walked into the casino. It was anyone''s guess how powerful he had gotten in the past three years.

 615 Talented Beauty

    The Alchemy Casino was livelier than before today. Many people were gathered somewhere, looking towards the front. There were seven top ritual implements there, including the three from before.


    The Alchemy Casino had a good background, so they obviously could bring out ritual implements of this level. But taking seven out at once was extremely generous. They were preparing to make the biggest trade-off since the Alchemy Conference. They wanted to use these seven top ritual implements to trade for treasures of the same level from the big figures of top forces. After all, the Alchemy Casino didn''t lack ritual implements. They maximized their interest through betting on battles in the casino.


    Yesterday, news had already started spreading and it caused a commotion. Today, many top forces of Alchemy City arrived gradually. Some very powerful Sages had arrived too. After all, even Sages would be tempted by treasures of that level, but they knew that the Alchemy Casino''s target wasn''t them; it was the descendants of the top forces.


    "Senior Sister, Hail Scepter suits you." The strong cultivators of the Mortal World stood together in the crowd. Chu Shang told Bing Yi, "Go for it."


    When the elder had taken out the Hail Scepter yesterday, she''d thought that it really suited her senior sister. Three years ago, Bing Yi had been embarrassed at the pavilion battle and lost to Ye Futian. Later, Ye Futian won first place. This proved that it wasn''t because Bing Yi wasn''t talented enough. Instead, Ye Futian was too powerful.


    Bing Yi nodded. That Hail Scepter indeed suited her, but there were too many strong cultivators here today. They came from the east of the Zhongzhou lands while this was the west. This wasn''t their main city. The top forces of the west were all here.


    "Zhiqin, which treasure do you want? I''ll give it to you," someone in the crowd said. His tone was very arrogant. He had long fiery-red hair and looked handsome and domineering. Seeing him, no one found his words strange. He was qualified to talk like that.


    The woman beside him was indeed Xiang Zhiqin of the Holy Zhi Palace. Looking at the handsome man by her side, she said, "I don''t need anything."


    "Zhiqin, if your brother-in-law wants to give you a gift, just accept it. Choose any of the treasures here and he''ll figure out how to get it," the beautiful lady beside Xiang Zhiqin said. She looked similar to Xiang Zhiqin. Dignified and beautiful, she was on Xiang Zhiqin''s level. However, compared to Xiang Zhiqin''s youthfulness, she looked more mature.


    This was Xiang Zhiyan, the other princess of the Xiang Kingdom. She''d already married Li Futu of Fire Mountain''s Fire Emperor Palace.


    The handsome red-haired youth by her side was indeed Li Futu. He''d come from the vast Fire Mountain and was one of the West''s top prides. He was in the top three of his generation in the west. One could imagine how powerful he was.


    "Then that shirt." Xiang Zhiqin pointed at a beautiful women''s ritual implement shirt instead of saying anything. She''d heard that Ye Futian''s group had arrived as well. Ye Futian had unmatchable talent in the Holy Zhi Palace. She didn''t know how her brother-in-law would compare.


    "The Sovereign Family has arrived." At that time, many eyes looked over and saw the Sovereign Family walking in the crowd.


    "Is Huang Jiuge the most talented of this generation from the Sovereign Family? He was second in the pavilion battle three years ago, but he didn''t cultivate in the Holy Zhi Palace." Many eyes fell upon Huang Jiuge.


    "The Sovereign Family." A young man''s eyes fell upon Huang Jiuge at this time. He smiled. "The Sovereign Family calls themselves the descendants of the queen, but they couldn''t even get first place in the battle. He lost to someone of a lower cultivation level. I think it''s just empty talk."


    Everyone turned to focus on him. Who was brash enough to mock someone from the Sovereign Family of Zhongzhou City? But when they saw the speaker, it made sense. It was Di Zhou of the Emperor Family. They were the Emperor Family while the Huangs were the Sovereign Family. Thus, many in the Barren State would compare the two. The Emperors were famous in the west, the Sovereigns in the central region.


    Huang Jiuge gazed at the youth and asked indifferently, "Who are you?"


    "Di Zhou," the youth replied.


    "Never heard of you," Huang Jiuge replied arrogantly.


    Di Zhou didn''t mind. He just smiled and said, "You''ve at least heard of the Emperor Family''s Di Gang, right?"


    "The one who''s known as the once-in-a-century genius of the Emperor Family?" Huang Jiuge said nonchalantly. Di Gang was known as number one of the Alchemy City. Even Li Futu of the Fire Emperor Palace shone dimmer compared to him.


    "Seems like you know him." Di Zhou chuckled.


    "Yes, but we haven''t fought before. I don''t know if his talents meet his reputation," Huang Jiuge replied coolly. He was a descendant of royalty and they were both proud. So what if Di Gang was famous?


    "You''re probably not enough," Di Zhou said nonchalantly. "If my brother participated in the pavilion battle, no one else can be first. I heard that Ximen Hanjiang of the Ximen Clan is first on the Law Rank. I wonder if he''ll come to Alchemy City."


    He used big words, but Di Gang was indeed an extraordinary figure. Everyone in Alchemy City knew him. This was also the Emperor Family''s territory.


    Right then, commotion sounded at the back of the crowd. Many people turned around and saw a group walking over. It was Ye Futian''s group. Even with the Emperor and Sovereign Families, the Holy Zhi Palace was the true mecca of cultivation in the Barren State. It gathered the top prides to cultivate together. Ye Futian''s group were the geniuses of the Holy Zhi Palace. They would obviously be the center of attention. Even Di Zhou and Li Futu couldn''t steal their spotlight. Only Di Gang could, if he came.


    "The winner of the battle three years ago has come too. Interesting." Many people looked at Huang Jiuge. With Ye Futian here, the first and second place of the battle were both here.


    Ye Futian walked into the crowd and he also saw Huang Jiuge.


    Smiling, Huang Jiuge said, "It''s been three years. How''s your cultivation?"


    "Grade Four Noble," Ye Futian said. "What about you?"


    "I entered Grade Two not long ago. You won''t be able to win against me anymore," Huang Jiuge said, smiling. He seemed extremely confident.


    "Really?" Ye Futian said nonchalantly. "That''s not definite."


    "Many people came from the Holy Zhi Palace." Di Zhou gazed at Ye Futian''s group. "Other than Ye Futian, who are the others?"


    Someone beside him said, "Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que, Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi, Huang�� That one might be Yun Shuisheng. They all entered three years ago."


    Ye Futian glanced at the other. This man knew them quite well and could recognize them all.


    "How are there abilities?" Xiang Zhiyan asked Xiang Zhiqin.


    "All very strong," Xiang Zhiqin said. "Ye Futian hasn''t fought in a long time, but two years ago, he''d defeated everyone at the Holy Sage Pavilion''s battle podium. After that, he only cultivated. He''s only a Grade Four Noble, but his true fighting abilities might be at the top of Grade Two. I heard that Yu Sheng defeated Yan Jiu yesterday. He hasn''t fought in two years either and he can''t be weaker than Ye Futian."


    "The Holy Zhi Palace is the mecca of the Barren State," Xiang Zhiyan said. "They''re all very powerful. This group entered three years ago and they seem to have all matured. But it''s okay if they don''t take the treasures we want."


    Li Futu had his eyes on two. One was for himself. The other, he wanted to give to his sister Xiang Zhiqin. He didn''t care about himself, but his sister was cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace. There were tons of talents and the pressure must be high.


    At that time, Ye Futian scanned the treasures with a hot gaze. These were all Sage ritual implements. This trip wouldn''t be a waste of time. Alchemy City was the top armory city in the Barren State.


    "Which do you want?" Huang Jiuge asked from the side.


    "All of them," Ye Futian said, smiling. These were all top Sage ritual implements. There wasn''t one that he didn''t like. He picked up a brilliant pearl and said, "Jieyu, this Telekinesis Pearl will suit you well. And this defense shirt too. The Hail Scepter too." Everyone stared at him in shock. Was he really spoiling his girlfriend like this? This was crazy!


    These were top Sage ritual implements. Of course they all suited her. Which one wouldn''t if he just chose randomly? But was he going to give it all to his girlfriend?


    Even the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace stared at him, speechless. Was this possible?


    Hua Jieyu fluttered her lashes. Seeing everyone looking at her, she couldn''t help but get shy and kick Ye Futian. This guy��


    Many people were dazed. This must be Divine Spiritual Sorcerer Hua Jieyu. She was just as shockingly beautiful as rumored. Beside her, Huang and Yun Shuisheng were all beauties of different styles. There were also the Xiang siblings and the group of girls in the other direction. Today, the Alchemy Casino was a battle of the prides and a competition of the beauties. And if Ye Futian wanted everything, what did he make of the other prides here?


    Many top figures were present, such as Li Futu, Di Zhou, and Yu Ming, who was extremely talented in armory. There was also a group of strong cultivators from the west and figures from all over. It was difficult for someone to take even one ritual implement with the current setup of the Alchemy Casino, let alone take them all. It was basically a fantasy.


    "The Telekinesis Pearl must be very helpful for those who cultivate spiritual energy. I like it too," a gentle voice said right then. Many people looked over to see a beautiful girl. She seemed as gentle as water and was movingly beautiful. People could be mesmerized by one smile.


    This was Su Hongxiu, the Virgin of the Goddess Pavilion.


    "I''ll give it to you," a voice said. The speaker was Yu Ming, the top armorer. He would attend the Alchemy Conference and was known as one of the top three competitors. His abilities were evident. He was infatuated by Su Hongxiu, but so were many people. The girls of the Goddess Pavilion were all so beautiful and powerful. Many prides had fallen for them, not just Yu Ming!


    Li Futu wants to give a ritual implement to Xiang Zhiqin, his wife''s sister. Yu Ming wants to use the Telekinesis Pearl to win over the beauty. Ye Futian wants everything and there are top figures from other places as well. This will definitely be a good show.


    Many people were impressed by the Alchemy Casino''s tactics!

 616 Want it All

    Ye Futian looked around. Other than the top forces that he''d seen before, there were many that he didn''t know. They were most likely from the western region.


    In the southwest, Alchemy City was the largest city. Other than that, there was the powerful Inferno City. Fire Mountain was in the west and its influence reached outward, so many fire elemental forces arose in that area.


    The armorers of Alchemy City, the people of the main houses, the Sacred Fire Sect, and the Fire Emperor Palace were all skilled in the fire element. On the other hand, the southern Ice Temple was obviously more skilled in water and ice.


    It would be hard to take away these top ritual implements.


    "Haha��" Bright laughter sounded right then. The elder from before brought people over again. Seeing all the strong cultivators gathered here, his eyes smiled. Just as he''d predicted, these people would definitely come here to compete if he prepared seven top Sage ritual implements.


    The people of the top forces were all very confident. They also clashed with each other rarely. Thus, they wouldn''t miss a chance like the Alchemy Conference that gathered them all in Alchemy City. He had to exchange his ritual implements for the treasures of the top forces. Plus, they''d also gathered a lot of information and had judged these people beforehand. Setting up the bet like this, they could earn a lot.


    "You are all top prides. Gathered in my Alchemy Casino, I am so honored," the elder said with a smile. "Yesterday, I already introduced three ritual implements. There are four more today. This sword is the Ghost Shadow Sword. It''s the sword that Ghost Sword used. It''s thin as a cicada''s wing and slices gold as if it''s butter. It contains frightening sword intent." As he spoke, he looked towards Ye Futian''s group. Ghost Sword''s disciple had entered the Holy Zhi Palace and was still there. He didn''t believe that they didn''t want the sword.


    Hua Jieyu would definitely try for the Telekinesis Pearl too. This way, the Holy Zhi Palace disciples would have to act.


    The elder pointed at another ritual implement. "This is a Sun Crown. It contains fire essence from the Three-legged Gold Raven, the sun god''s bird. Feel its power." The Sun Crown hovered in the air, releasing frightening sunlight. Many fire elemental cultivators would compete for this.


    "The Wolf Fang Bat weighs thousands of pounds and is a martial arts ritual implement. The thorns on it are indestructible. It''s used to rip through spells and martial arts defenses. It is extremely mighty.


    "This is a golden tripod. It glows with golden light and can transform into countless golden tripods to destroy everything. It can even shatter someone''s spiritual energy and contains double attacks." The elder pointed at a huge golden tripod. The seven ritual implements were all very powerful. They were top Sage ritual implements.


    "Now, I will bring these seven to the battle platform. Those who want it can come fight for it," the elder said, smiling. "Welcome."


    Everyone''s eyes flashed. The seven ritual implements were brought out at once today. The crowd all walked towards the battle platform. The scene was very impressive.


    "The Ghost Shadow Sword is your master''s?" Ye Futian asked Zui Qianqiu.


    "When I met my master, he was already disabled and didn''t have his sword, so I''ve never seen it. But if the Alchemy Casino said that, I''m sure it''s true." Something flashed past Zui Qianqiu''s eyes. He had to get his master''s sword back.


    "The Alchemy Casino is the top gambling location of Alchemy City," Zhong Li said. "It''s also the biggest ritual implement trading center. The most important rule here is honesty. They definitely won''t lie; they all keep their words. It''s the same for us. If we don''t give up what we gamble, you won''t be able to leave, no matter who you are."


    Ye Futian nodded. "We must get the Ghost Shadow Sword. The golden tripod suits Zhong Li, as well as the Sun Crown. As for the Wolf Fang Bat, Yuan Zhan should be able to use it."


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian with strange faces. These were all top Sage ritual implements and they were a big group. Each one would suit at least someone.


    "Do you really want them all?" Xu Que stared strangely at Ye Futian.


    "If we don''t take it, others will. Let''s not waste," Ye Futian said to Xu Que.


    "That makes sense." Xu Que nodded.


    "But Yu Sheng defeated Yan Jiu yesterday," Zhong Li said. "The Alchemy Casino probably has a different judgment of our abilities now. They won''t let us win so easily anymore. Our opponents won''t be weak."


    "Since they lured us here, they clearly hope we''ll place bets and fight," Ye Futian said. "They won''t make things too hard for us. After all, if it''s the same as yesterday, the Alchemy Casino will choose the talented opponents of top forces who are the same as us. This way, no matter who wins, they''ll just trade a ritual implement for a treasure. As for the strengths of the two sides, they only worry about the bets."


    Zhong Li and the others nodded. It was true. The seven ritual implements hovered above the battle platform. They were very attractive.


    The elder looked to the crowd and said, "The Alchemy Conference is about to start. It''s rare for the top forces of the Barren State to be gathered here. Today, the Alchemy Casino brought out seven ritual implements for everyone to bet and fight for. If you want something, please stand before the ritual implement and I will arrange for a fight. Of course, you must agree to it."


    "As expected." Many people''s eyes flashed. This battle was designed for the figures of the top forces. These people were the best at attracting the spotlight.


    Many people walked onto the platform. Bing Yi walked to the Hail Scepter. She didn''t know who she would fight with, but she had to try for it.


    "Bing Yi, Virgin of the Mortal World," someone said.


    "Yan Jiu of the Sword Saint Mansion lost yesterday. He doesn''t seem satisfied." Yan Jiu walked out of the crowd at that time and walked to the Ghost Shadow Sword.


    "Xie Ji of the Sacred Fire Sect." Another person walked out. It was Xie Ji going to the Sun Crown.


    Li Futu of the Fire Emperor Palace and his wife walked out together. One went to the Sun Crown while the other went to the beautiful armor shirt. Clearly, the couple wanted two ritual implements.


    Su Hongxiu of the Goddess Pavilion went to the Telekinesis Pearl. Yu Ming also went there, saying, "Hongxiu, I''ll help you get it."


    "Thank you, Mr. Yu." Su Hongxiu''s voice was extremely gentle. One could drown in it.


    "What about the Holy Zhi Palace?" the elder said, looking at Ye Futian''s group.


    Today''s setup was to make the talents of the Holy Zhi Palace participate. They couldn''t be missing even Li Futi had walked out.


    "We want all seven of the ritual implements," Ye Futian said.


    The elder froze and then smiled. This was the best.


    "Such a big appetite." Di Zhou scanned Ye Futian. The Emperor Family had stocks in the Alchemy Casino, but this Ye Futian wanted all seven ritual implements. Could he really take it all?


    "In that case, I''ll have to arrange the battles with much consideration," the elder said, smiling.


    "No need to make it so troublesome," Ye Futian. "Since we want all the ritual implements, we''ll definitely give treasures of the same level. You only need to find seven people who can give treasures of the same level to participate in the battle and arrange one battle. Seven is too complicated."


    Everyone''s chests tightened and their eyes flashed. Ye Futian was very ambitious to want to take it all for himself.


    "So you mean you want a group battle?" the elder asked.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "We can send seven people with no problem."


    "Interesting." Di Zhou chuckled. "In that case, count me as one. I''d like to experience the Holy Zhi Palace''s abilities." With that, he stepped out to the battle platform. He wanted to participate.


    "Me too." Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Nan Hao of the Nantian House also walked out. Ye Futian actually wanted a group fight. He couldn''t miss this chance.


    Everyone''s eyes focused on the battle platform. The setup there now was frightening.


    Li Futu and his wife, Yu Ming, Xie Ji, Yan Jiu, Nan Hao, Di Zhou, Su Hongxiu, and Bing Yi were nine powerful cultivators.


    The elder gazed at them and said, "There are only seven ritual implements. If you all wish to participate, please choose the ritual implement you want."


    "Hongxiu, leave it to me," Yu Ming said.


    Su Hongxiu nodded. "Then I''ll have to trouble you, Mr. Yu." With that, she stepped off. Then Nan Hao went to the golden tripod. Di Zhou walked to the Wolf Fang Bat that no one else chose. There was still one extra person. Both Li Futu and Xie Ji wanted the Sun Crown.


    "Xie Ji, don''t compete with me. You can''t win," Li Futu said emotionlessly.


    Xie Ji''s eyes hardened. He truly wasn''t Li Futu''s opponent. "Fine, I won''t compete for the ritual implement, but I still want to be part of the fun. I''ll participate in this battle for another ritual implement. Are there any?" Xie Ji asked the elder.


    "Of course. Then you''ll gamble for another top ritual implement. If you win, you can choose any one you wish. If you lose, you''ll have to give up a top level Sage ritual implement," the elder said. "How is this oral vow?"


    "Good." Xie Ji nodded.


    "The conditions are the same for everyone else. Agreed?" The elder looked to Ye Futian again.


    "Agreed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "In that case, what will you all gamble for this battle?" the elder asked.


    "The Soul Guqin of the Nine-fingered Guqin Devil, musical piece Mesmerize, my Polearm of Divine Destruction, the Sun Scripture and the Shadow Scripture," Ye Futian said.


    "Anything else?" the elder asked, smiling.


    "The Sword Ghost''s techniques," Zui Qianchou said. He wanted the Ghost Shadow Sword this time, so he had to bet something as well.


    "The phoenix pill that my master created," Phoenix said. The elder''s eyes flashed. The Undying Old Man''s phoenix pill was extremely valuable.


    "Is that enough?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes, enough." The elder smiled. He was very satisfied with these wagers. Then he looked to the people on the battle podium. They all reported their wagers, making the elder''s smile grow brighter.


    The surrounding people were all shocked. They''d all invested fortunes.


    "Finally, both sides of the battle must agree." The elder looked back to Ye Futian''s group.

 617 The Battle Among the Sixteen

    Ye Futian looked at the gamble fight arena and said, "I want to know the cultivation levels of all the people here."


    "Alright." The elder commanded them, "You all, say your cultivation levels."


    Immediately, the eight experts on the gamble fight arena reported their cultivation levels. Of the Li Futu couple, one of them was a Grade One Noble, the other was a Grade Two Noble.


    Yu Ming, Grade One Noble.


    Di Zhou, Grade Three Noble.


    Xie Ji, Yan Jiu, Nan Hao and Bing Yi. The three of them had taken part in the admission examination battle three years ago, so Ye Futian knew a little about them.


    "Li Futu is from the Fire Emperor Palace and is extremely strong. In the region around Alchemy City, only Di Gang''s reputation exceeds his. Yu Ming is an elite armorer and specializes in matrices. Be careful. Li Futu''s wife is Xiang Zhiqin''s sister and Di Zhou is Di Gang''s younger brother. Although he is only a Grade Three Noble, he is also rather formidable," Zhong Li introduced them to Ye Futian.


    "There are two Grade One Nobles in the gamble fight arena, while we only have one Grade One Noble. Moreover, only Xu Que is a Grade Two Noble, the rest are Grade Three and Grade Four Nobles. We are in too much of a disadvantage in our cultivation levels. I would like to borrow the strength of someone else, is that alright?" Ye Futian looked at the elder and asked.


    "Who?" the elder asked.


    "Huang Jiuge," Ye Futian replied and his gaze landed on Huang Jiuge. He smiled and asked, "We''re already at the Alchemy Casino, aren''t you interested?"


    Huang Jiuge had a shocked expression. He was surprised that Ye Futian would invite him as an ally in battle. He looked at the people on the gamble fight arena, he also wanted to try it out, so he replied, "Sure, I''ll join you in battle, but you have to settle the wager yourself and accept the result of the battle."


    "Of course, if you still wanted the spoils of victory, I wouldn''t have looked for you." Ye Futian smiled brilliantly. Huang Jiuge was speechless. Was this how wretched this guy was?


    "What about the other people participating?" the elder asked again.


    "Me, Yu Sheng, Xu Que, Huang Jiuge, Yun Shuisheng, Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi and Phoenix," Ye Futian replied. "One Grade One Noble, two Grade Two Nobles, three Grade Three Nobles, and two Grade Four Nobles."


    "Do you have any objections?" the elder asked the people on the gamble fight arena.


    "None," Li Futu replied nonchalantly.


    "Sure." Yu Ming also nodded his head. The others had no complaints as well. They had two Grade One Nobles, Li Futu and Yu Ming, giving them a huge advantage. Li Futu''s battle ability was undisputed and Yu Ming was an expert in matrices. Xiang Zhiyan was also very strong. Coupled with the other five, they felt that their lineup was extremely strong.


    "Then it is settled. I will give all of you two hours to plan your tactics. The battle will begin in two hours, and the victor will be able to take all the ritual implements with them," the elder smiled and said. Many people snorted at his words. Giving them time to plan their tactics? More like giving the casino time to open up their betting house. However, this match was really something to look forward to. Out of these 16 people, half of them were geniuses from elite factions while the other half had seven Holy Zhi Palace disciples and Huang Jiuge. A battle of such grandeur got the crowd really excited. Who would win this battle?


    The elder walked to one side and had a quiet discussion with some people. This battle was a group battle and was extremely complicated, so they needed to seriously consider the odds.


    On the surface, Li Futu''s group had a stronger lineup with higher cultivation levels. The most prodigious duo from the Holy Zhi Palace��Ye Futian and Yu Sheng��were only Grade Four Nobles, but their battle strength could definitely not be considered the same as a normal Grade Four Noble.


    Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi and Phoenix could be compared with Di Zhou, Yan Jiu, Xie Ji, Nan Hao and Bing Yi. The former five should be slightly stronger, but the difference would not be that big. If Xiang Zhiyan was added to the latter five, it would be enough to make up the difference.


    What would be left was Li Futu, Yu Ming,Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Yun Shuisheng. Li Futu''s battle ability should be higher than Yun Shuisheng. After all, Yun Shuisheng was not that famous in the Holy Zhi Palace. Yu Ming was a matrix sorcerer. Apart from his own battle ability, he could set up matrixes to boost the battle ability of his entire team. If his whole team''s strength went up a notch, it would immediately resolve Di Zhou, Yan Jiu and the other three''s weakness and turn it into an advantage. Therefore, Li Futu''s lineup was likely to be stronger when considering the entire picture. What was left would operate the betting house. Soon, the odds were released. The casino had offered a one-to-one payout for both sides.


    The whole casino was in an uproar and countless people rushed to place their bets. Although the elder in charge of the betting house was there, there were people repeatedly coming forward to report the situation. Today''s match had attracted an innumerable number of experts, and the bets would reach a shocking amount, which was why he had specially allocated an hour for people to place bets.


    80 percent of the bets are on Li Futu''s team. If Li Futu''s team wins, we will incur a huge loss, the elder frowned as he thought. The initial opening of the betting house was to assess the situation. As he had expected, because the strongest two members of the Holy Zhi Palace had the lowest cultivation levels as Grade Four Nobles, the majority of the crowd did not favor them, especially with Li Futu and Yu Ming''s reputation in the Alchemy City region.


    In such a scenario, the casino needed to balance the odds well. If they felt that Ye Futian''s team would win, it was worth the gamble. However, they did not feel that Ye Futian''s team could win; this was different from Yu Sheng''s fight with Yan Jiu.


    "Adjust the odds," the elder said decisively. Soon, the news had spread that the odds had been adjusted. Li Futu''s side had their odds adjusted to two-to-one, while Ye Futian''s side was one-to-two. Evidently the odds favored Li Futu''s side heavily.


    "These b*stards," those who did not manage to place their bets in time cursed. They had wanted to place bets, but they did not expect the odds to change so quickly, and it had changed to a difference of two times.


    It looks like the Alchemy Casino is also optimistic about Li Futu''s victory, the majority of the crowd must be betting on them, even at a two-to-one payout, many people thought as they continued to place their bets.


    After Li Futu''s group heard about the odds, their expressions did not change. This was well within their expectations. However, Ye Futian''s group was surprised. It looked like the majority felt that they would lose.


    As time passed, information continued to be transmitted to the elder. Soon, the odds changed again. Li Futu''s group had changed to four-to-one, while Ye Futian''s group was now one-to-four.


    "B*stard, I''m not betting anymore," someone shouted in a rage. There was no point in betting on a four-to-one payout, there was too little to earn.


    "Why not?" a voice sounded. The person who had shouted raised his head and saw a handsome teen smiling at him, it was Ye Futian.


    "One-to-four, you can bet on us," Ye Futian smiled and said. His gaze then turned to the elder on the viewing stand and he asked, "Senior, can we place bets as well?"


    "You can only bet on your own victory," the elder replied. This was to prevent people from losing intentionally; however, this was an uncommon sight for geniuses like Ye Futian. From a values standpoint, those who participated in the gamble fight were not allowed to place bets, but it was inevitable for participants to get others to place bets for them. Therefore, the Alchemy Casino would supervise the participants to ensure that they did not lose intentionally. If the casino found any such cases, they would not live to walk out of the casino.


    "Yu Sheng, seventh brother, don''t you all have ritual implements? The opportunity has come," Ye Futian smiled and said. One-to-four, it seemed like they would be able to be well-equipped with ritual implements after this.


    Alchemy City is a good place indeed, Ye Futian exclaimed in his heart.


    "If that is so, I will partake, too," Huang Jiuge smiled and said.


    "Did you not consider me when you allocated the ritual implements?" Xu Que smiled and asked Ye Futian.


    "You''re from the Tingxue House, after all, why would you lack ritual implements?" Ye Futian replied, looking at him disdainfully.


    "Then why did you ask me to battle?" Xu Que saw Ye Futian reply with a matter-of-fact expression.


    "Do you know how rare it is to get a chance to battle. I''m thinking of you. Moreover, you can place a bet now," Ye Futian replied righteously.


    "..." Xu Que was speechless. As expected, it was impossible to reason with a shameless person. He could only place bets using his own treasures.


    "Does anyone have something good that I could borrow to place bets?" Ye Futian asked the people around him.


    "..." Yun Shuisheng glared at Ye Futian. Her impression of Ye Futian had gotten better, but now it had reverted to the first time they had met: shameless.


    "I''ll lend you this," a gentle voice sounded. A brilliant flame illuminated beside Ye Futian and the cries of a phoenix could be heard occasionally. A horrifying aura was released and countless gazes looked towards Phoenix. At that moment, Phoenix was covered in an exceedingly beautiful phoenix feather dress that perfectly fit her body. It got further from her body bit by bit and eventually flew into a storage ring which Phoenix then passed to Ye Futian.


    "Little sister." Yun Shuisheng shouted, "Aren''t you scared that he''ll lose your treasure?"


    "Isn''t it just one-to-four? If I lose, I''ll pay for it, if I win, I want a portion of the winnings," Phoenix smiled gently and said.


    "Thanks." Ye Futian nodded, then turned to the elder and asked, "How much is this ritual implement worth?"


    "You can pick four ritual implements from the Alchemy Casino," the elder replied.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded his head. The Alchemy Casino had a gargantuan organization behind them and its wealth was beyond imagination. Alchemy City was definitely the richest place in the Barren State. The surrounding people were all watching and as they saw Ye Futian confidently betting all his treasures, many people started to waver.


    Let''s just gamble that they can win, many people thought this as they continued to place their bets.


    Two hours passed by quickly and the elder nodded after hearing the final report. After the two rounds of changing the odds, the situation had been reversed. With the bets that the casino had taken in now, if Li Futu''s team won, the Alchemy Casino would earn a huge sum, but if Ye Futian''s team won, the casino would incur a huge loss.


    Evidently, the Alchemy Casino expected Li Futu''s team to win. The Alchemy Casino knew about Li Futu and Yu Ming''s strength. Moreover, Di Zhou was also very strong. Li Futu''s team had no reason to lose this grand gamble fight.


    "Please take your places," the elder looked at both parties and said. Immediately, Li Futu''s group stepped onto the gamble fight arena.


    Ye Futian''s group also moved rapidly into the arena. The group of 16 people: the geniuses from the Holy Zhi Palace versus the prodigies from all over the Barren State.


    Everyone got into position in an instant. Li Futu, Yan Jiu, Nan Hao and Di Zhou stood at the front and were responsible for the assault. Bing Yi, Xie Ji and Xiang Zhiyan stood into the middle, supporting the team with their spells and Yu Ming stood at the back, preparing his matrices.


    Ye Futian''s group also got into their positions. Yu Sheng and Yuan Zhan stood at the front, Xu Que on the left, Huang Jiuge on the right, Yi Xiaoshi, Phoenix and Yun Shuisheng at the back. Ye Futian''s position was right in the middle!

 618 The Guqin and the Matrix

    In the battle arena, the 16 experts took their places. The Alchemy Casino had Sage Plane experts creating defenses around the area. Although the arena was huge, battles of such scale would often cause huge damage to surrounding areas. Even if both parties controlled their attacks, it would still reach their surroundings, so it was natural to set up barriers.


    The geniuses of the Holy Zhi Palace versus the elites of the Barren State. Who would be the victor of this battle?


    Countless people held their breaths and stared at the battle arena. This battle would definitely cause a commotion in Alchemy City. It was extremely rare for a battle of such a scale to take place before the Alchemy Conference.


    Li Futu''s reputation was renowned in the region, Di Zhou was the younger brother of Di Gang. Although he did not have as much potential as Di Gang, he was still extremely strong. Yu Ming was one of the favorites for this time''s Alchemy Conference and the others were also experts who had taken part in the Holy Zhi Palace''s admission examination. On the other side, the first and second in the admission examination three years ago, Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge, as well as the savage Yu Sheng, the Tingxue House''s Xu Que. This match was really a sight for sore eyes.


    As ray after ray of brilliant light glowed, the Spiritual Qi in the air started to rampage, multiple colors illuminating the area. Everyone released their aura at the same time and all kinds of powerful Life Spirits appeared. These elite geniuses were extremely strong in one-to-one combat, but they all held their positions and did not move recklessly. Evidently, they would not underestimate their opponents and knew that the people they were facing were also equally strong.


    "Become chess pieces as you land." Yu Ming stepped forward. His Life Spirit was a huge golden chessboard, and the chessboard projected itself on the spacious battle arena. Golden lines intersected, turning the area into a game of chess, and the eight of them on his team each took up a square on the board like they were pieces in a game of chess. The chessboard rapidly evolved and turned into matrices. Although they did not move, they felt as though they were moving simply by standing on the chessboard, due to the developments of the chessboard.


    Ye Futian''s group felt dizzy, like they were constantly being displaced. It was as though they were battling on a moving chessboard.


    What a peculiar control-type Life Spirit, Ye Futian thought to himself. In front of him, his Guqin Spirit appeared and he sat cross-legged, strumming the strings on his Guqin. A melody sounded, giving off an unrestrained feeling. It was loud and clear and appeared arrogant, resounding in the air. Every melody appeared to have a unique power of its own, causing others to be drunk in the melody, and their Spiritual Energy appeared to be affected as it moved to the music.


    "This matrix can change one''s direction, causing our perception to be affected. I''ll control this battle," Ye Futian said, continuing to play his melody. His team felt as though the melody caused them to integrate as one as all of them were in the imagery created by the Guqin melody. The feeling was indescribable, yet felt especially apparent, like they were no longer individuals, but an entity with Ye Futian as the core.


    He actually has that kind of ability! Huang Jiuge was surprised. Was this the charm of a Musical Sorcerer? As he thought that, he no longer resisted the intrusion of the melody but assimilated into the imagery. He naturally trusted the strength of someone who had defeated him once. To doubt Ye Futian''s strength was to doubt himself.


    As for those who followed Ye Futian from the Holy Zhi Palace, they were also the same. The melody was thundering and had a haughty undertone, with the courage to take on the world. Huang Jiuge and the rest felt their Spiritual Energy becoming stronger, as though they had been stimulated by the melody. The blood in their body was boiling and their aura became even more robust; even their perception was becoming sharper.


    "What an arrogant piece, what is that piece?" Sage Plane figure stared at Ye Futian and asked.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace has a Guqin Valley, which was where the Nine-fingered Guqin Demon Liu Kuangsheng stayed when he was alive. Ye Futian had once wagered the Guqin Demon''s Guqin and Guqin piece, so this means that he had received Liu Kuangsheng''s inheritance. If I didn''t guess wrongly, that Guqin piece should be the High Song." There was a Sage Plane figure who was extremely well-learned and managed to guess the name of the piece.


    "High Song, the rumored Guqin piece that can allow people to share their Spiritual Will and Spiritual Energy to strengthen all of their abilities?" the first Sage Plane expert asked.


    "That''s right. Under the Guqin melody, the eight of them have become one," was the reply he received, causing many people to have glints in their eyes. If that was so, was Ye Futian using his Guqin to repel Yu Ming''s chess matrix?


    Li Futu and his team could also feel that the accumulation of might had ended. They started to launch their attacks. Bing Yi''s ice spell descended upon the other team, a frigid aura enveloping them, turning into an ice dimension. It attempted to drag the other team into an illusion of a world filled with ice.


    As the Guqin melody sounded, Phoenix could feel Ye Futian''s intentions through the melody. She made her move, and with a crisp sound, a shadow of a brilliant Divine Phoenix appeared, blocking out the sun. The shadow formed a veil around the eight of them and kept the frost out. Following that, Xie Ji''s destructive flame lotus assailed them along with Xiang Zhiyan''s thunderbolt spell. The two spells rushed towards them, striking the protective veil wildly, shattering it. The thunderbolt and flame lotus reached them at the same time, but at that moment, Yun Shuisheng shut her eyes and a frigid Will engulfed the area, causing the area to freeze and the flame lotus to turn into an ice lotus. The thunderbolt spell was also greatly weakened.


    "The Edgeless Great Sword!" Yan Jiu bellowed as nine blades crashed down towards them. At the same time, numerous blinding spears shot out from behind Nan Hao. Behind Di Zhou, a golden space appeared and many terrifying tripods appeared, striking towards Ye Futian''s team.


    Li Futu raised his hand and made a huge palm print appear. The flaming red palm print melted everything in existence, crushing down on Ye Futian''s team and attempting to destroy them.


    Ye Futian continued to play his Guqin piece, but it was like his team could understand what he was thinking. Yi Xiaoshi flew into the air and his Emperor''s Vine rapidly sent vines forward while Xu Que wielded his sword and slashed forward, using offense as a defensive measure. Yu Sheng let out a roar and his body wildly absorbed Spiritual Qi, creating dark golden Devil Halberds that pierced forward. Yuan Zhan also used a terrifying rod technique while Huang Jiuge struck out with his fist, which crunched through the air like a battle chariot.


    In an instant, the two forces collided and an exceedingly horrifying destructive current swept past, causing the air to look like an explosion had occurred. The chessboard matrix under both teams'' legs glowed even brighter. Next, Huang Jiuge and the rest could feel their bodies changing positions, like the ground below them was moving. Not only that, but there was also a dreadful force that was constricting them, causing them to feel especially heavy.


    "Attack," Yu Ming said. The matrix had shown its might. As he finished, Li Futu''s team launched an attack again. Ye Futian''s Guqin melody acted like strands of wire, connecting the eight people on his team, causing them to gather near him. The seven of them did not attack this time, but set up defenses in the area around them, allowing the enemy''s attacks to land.


    "Open a path," Ye Futian said as he played the Guqin. As his voice landed, Huang Jiuge''s Renhuang Bow Life Spirit emerged, and nine arrows shot forth with blazing light, as though they had Ye Futian''s spell enhancement on them. They flew with the wind, tearing through the air like nine bolts of lightning.


    Li Futu raised his arm and caught two of the arrows. Yan Jiu slashed out with a stroke of his sword, Nan Hao pierced forward with his spear and blocked the remaining arrows. However, at that moment, Xu Que''s body rushed towards them like the wind at breakneck speed. At the same time, Yu Sheng and Yuan Zhan also stepped forward, causing the earth to quake.


    They actually initiated the clash. The experts in the crowd were stunned. Both parties originally occupied one side each, but now Ye Futian''s side was not content with simply defending, and initiated a clash, daringly breaking the deadlock.


    "Matrix change," Yu Ming said. In an instant, a gold veil surrounded the people on his team.


    "Rise," Ye Futian said. As his voice landed, his body flew into the air. In front of him, Xu Que, Yu Sheng, and Yuan Zhan stepped into the air above the other party. Huang Jiuge, Phoenix and the rest also leaped into the air and they promptly reached the area above the other team in the same formation.


    Li Futu raised his head and looked above him. He stretched out both hands, each with a formidable flame force. On his right hand, there was a golden flame with a dreadful destructive ability. On his left hand, there was a black flame that was rapidly devouring the Spiritual Qi in the air around him. A huge pair of flame wings appeared behind him, it was a pair of brilliant Spiritual Vermillion Bird wings. His crimson red hair swayed and his body floated in the air. It was as though his extreme destructive force could erupt at any time.


    The other people also prepared themselves. Once the defenses were breached, they would attack vigorously.


    In the air, Huang Jiuge held the Renhuang Sword and slashed downwards. Xu Que''s blade then sliced through, following the path that he had made. In an instant, a crack appeared in the veil, then blasted open the next second.


    Hummm. A figure flew upwards, then towards Ye Futian at lightning speed. That lone individual rushed towards them with no fear. This arrogant feat could only have been made possible by Li Futu.


    Behind Ye Futian, a figure stepped forward and the area was immediately covered in frost. The surrounding people felt as though time had stopped still. The flow of air, blood and the burning flames all seemed to have slowed down in that instant. Ye Futian was shocked. He had not given Yun Shuisheng any orders, but she had already stepped forward. Ye Futian had no choice but to assist her with his Guqin melody. A robust Spiritual Energy rushed towards Yun Shuisheng, causing a fearsome snowstorm to appear around her. Her palms headed straight for Li Futu''s flame palm prints, no intention of avoiding him.


    Asking for trouble, a thought appeared in Li Futu''s head as their palms collided. The two of them were then knocked back. Li Futu looked at his palms. The flames had been extinguished. On Yun Shuisheng''s end, the horrendous flames had not burned her and had only torn her sleeves apart, revealing her fair skin.


    "Descend," Ye Futian said. They descended amidst their opponent''s forceful attacks. The location they chose to land at was where Yu Ming was!

 619 Battle Situation

    "They want to take down Yu Ming first." The crowd saw the actions of Ye Futian''s team and immediately understood what they wanted to do. Yu Ming used the chessboard as a matrix and would affect their battle. As long as they took down Yu Ming, the rest of Li Futu''s team would be split up and unable to act as a whole.


    Yu Ming looked at the air with a cold expression. The brilliant chessboard on the ground flew into the air, turning into a defensive ability that spread out across the air.


    In the air, Ye Futian continued to play his Guqin piece. The High Song became even more thundering, and the aura on the seven people beside him became stronger, as though they had all entered a state of rampage under the influence of the Guqin piece.


    Behind Huang Jiuge, the Renhuang Body Life Spirit appeared. He was like a descendant of the Renhuang with the Renhuang Sword in his hand, slashing down towards the ground. A blade of light that penetrated the heavens appeared and struck the chessboard. The chessboard slowly split, and Xu Que moved as well. With a graceful arc, the blade in his hand sliced down, splitting the chessboard in two. With a blinding glow, the chessboard disappeared.


    At the same moment, the attacks from the experts on the ground landed again. Yun Shuisheng looked down, and a frost will surrounded her body with extreme coldness. Frost surrounded the air, and the icy intent permeated every expert on the ground. They could feel their movements becoming slower and their blood felt as though it was about to stop flowing. Their spells were all being delayed and frozen. Only Li Futu''s body was bathed in endless flames, and he flew into the air, the terrifying flames burning in the air, expelling the frost intent.


    Yi Xiaoshi''s vines rushed wildly towards the people on the ground with rustling sounds. At the same time, Huang Jiuge and Xu Que moved towards Yu Ming. Yu Ming''s expression was ruthless. The chessboard Life Spirit behind him lit up glaringly and shone onto Huang Jiuge and Xu Que, slowing them down.


    "Kill." Huang Jiuge fired arrows which tore through the air. However, Yu Ming''s expression did not change as he stretched out his hand and waved it. The chessboard moved and caused Huang Jiuge''s arrows to deviate from their original path and miss him.


    Xu Que''s blade landed, yet Yu Ming''s body turned into a shadow. He was like a piece on the chess board, always in motion. It was as though he could predict all of Xu Que''s moves on his chessboard. No matter how fast Xu Que was, he could not escape Yu Ming''s perception.


    Wanting to deal with him first? Dream on.


    An even more terrifying glow was emitted, and using the heavens as pieces, Yu Ming looked at Ye Futian who was in the middle of the team, and revealed a mocking expression, chanting, "Ground restriction." As his voice landed, the chessboard that had projected onto Ye Futian''s team surrounded them, trapping them within like a prison cell.


    "Li Futu, it''s up to you now," Yu Ming said. He had controlled his matrix to seal Ye Futian''s team within his chessboard.


    Li Futu''s body flew into the air, his Vermillion Bird wings sparkling brightly, covered in inextinguishable flames. He stretched out his palm and a golden flame current rampaged wildly. Gradually, the flames transformed into a Vermillion Bird and flew out from his palm, shadowing the heavens and attacking Ye Futian''s team. The Vermillion Bird''s wings slashed downwards, the flames burning even the heavens.


    While Ye Futian''s group was trapped, Li Futu''s ritual implement, Yan Jiu''s sword, Nan Hao''s spear, and the other experts fired their strongest attacks simultaneously towards them.


    As expected of Yu Ming, many people thought. Ye Futian''s team wanted to deal with the matrix sorcerer, Yu Ming, but they had not expected to be trapped between a rock and a hard place.


    At that moment, Huang Jiuge, Yun Shuisheng, and the rest did not resist and stood still, allowing the matrix to trap them within. They released their formidable Spiritual Energy which combined with the Guqin melody to form a terrifying Spiritual Energy resonance. Ye Futian, who was standing in the middle, was immersed in a brilliant light. At that moment, his Spiritual Energy flooded the entire battle arena. With his fingers strumming the Guqin, Ye Futian lowered his head and continued playing without looking at the attacks descending from the sky. The chessboard''s matrix surrounded them and it seemed like the attacks were about to land on them.


    The Vermillion Bird dived towards them, destroying everything in its path. However, at that moment, a formidable force appeared around Ye Futian''s body, surrounding his team within. A veil of light that resembled Starry Brilliance encompassed them. Although the veil was invisible, the Divine Vermillion Bird was unable to break through it. The sword and spear reached as well, rushing towards Ye Futian. But the moment they reached the veil, they were unable to progress. All attacks appeared to falter before the veil.


    "What an intense zone force," some strong Sage Plane figures said while looking at Ye Futian''s surroundings. They could only see a handsome figure playing the Guqin. The eight figures appeared to have combined into one at that moment, all of them encompassed by the imposing light.


    "Break," Ye Futian said. Immediately, his body was surrounded by countless bolts of lightning. in the next moment, thunderstorms appeared and tore through everything, resembling the rage of the Thunder God. The heavens shook in response, and the thunderbolts appeared to have multiple colors. Green, golden, purple�� All the thunderbolts turned into dragons and serpents, and frantically devoured everything around them. The Vermillion Bird was struck by lightning and howled in agony. Its huge body pierced by the lightning. Its limbs were all surrounded by dreadful lightning and its body was completely torn apart. All the other attacks were also nullified, and even the chessboard was destroyed by the thunderbolts.


    "Spiritual Energy resonance, using the Guqin melody as a medium for Spiritual Energy to cast spells."


    "Is this Liu Kuangsheng''s Guqin piece?" many people commented as they watched. At that moment, the resonance was still active and Yun Shuisheng had a glint in her eyes. The frost in the heavens descended onto the battle platform, and she stretched out her palm and the snowstorm landed on the other team. Yan Jiu, Nan Hao, and the rest of the other team were all buried within the snowstorm, and their consciousness started fading as their thoughts came to a halt.


    "Go," Ye Futian said. As his voice landed, the people surrounding him flew forward and Huang Jiuge headed directly for Yu Ming.


    Yu Sheng launched off the ground, pouncing towards Yan Jiu, a terrifying golden glow surrounding his feet as he stomped down. Yan Jiu growled in anger and broke out of the ice. His sword slashed forward, tearing through the air.


    Bang. The footprint crushed the sword strike that had yet to reach its maximum power. Yu Sheng then stepped on Yan Jiu''s chest, pummeling him into the ground, crushing numerous rib bones in the process.


    In another direction, Xu Que headed for Nan Hao, his figure like a sword, dripping with a thirst for blood. Nan Hao was already affected by the frost spell and was unable to deflect Xu Que''s sword. Blood trickled from his arm and his spear fell to the ground. There was even a trace of blood on his throat. He fell to the ground, unable to continue battling.


    Phoenix flew towards Xie Ji instead. The Divine Phoenix shadowed the heavens and devoured the opponent''s destructive Flame Lotus and sent Xie Ji flying. Yuan Zhan assaulted Di Zhou, the two of them trading blows crazily. Di Zhou repeatedly fought back, and under the Guqin melody, Yuan Zhan attacked bravely in a flurry of strikes. Yi Xiaoshi flew towards Xiang Zhiyan, his vines rushing madly at her.


    The sudden reversal caused many people to be stunned, especially the crowd who had bet on Li Futu''s team. They were flustered that they were going to lose. However, those who had bet on Ye Futian''s team in the last round of betting had sparkling gazes. A four-to-one payout, if Ye Futian''s team won, they would be the biggest winners.


    Bing Yi looked at the battle arena, saw that her team had been dominated, and was at a loss. She fired her spells and flew forward, but saw Yu Sheng, who had just dealt with Yan Jiu, walking towards her like a demon.


    Total annihilation.


    Li Futu also had a grim expression when he saw the situation in the arena. He released his Life Spirit, a Vermillion Bird Spirit and an immensely huge flame figure. The golden flame figure looked like a god. Following that, a golden flame armor appeared on Li Futu''s body, making him look as though he had been possessed by a god. His body contained a huge amount of destructive force.


    Bam. He stepped forward, his body flying into the air, heading in his wife''s direction. When Yi Xiaoshi''s Emperor''s Vine engulfed them, Li Futu stretched out his palm, golden flames spewing from it, burning the vines to ashes.


    Li Futu''s eyes turned golden, and the giant Vermillion Bird behind him swayed, causing the flames to burn even brighter. The vines were all incinerated, and Li Futu''s body flew towards Yi Xiaoshi like a ray of light.


    "Retreat." Yi Xiaoshi heard a voice in his head and he backed off immediately. Li Futu continued to charge forward, even when he saw Xu Que''s sword slashing towards him. He grabbed the sword with his bare hands. Although the sword sliced towards him, his golden palm appeared to have hardened beyond belief and burned Xu Que''s sword.


    Li Futu continued stepping forward and delivered a punch. Xu Que''s body turned into a flash of lightning and retreated. Li Futu''s offensive ability was terrifying after he flared up.


    Countless gazes stared at Li Futu. Could the Fire Emperor Palace''s elite genius reverse the situation with his own ability?


    An imposing frost current descended and prevented Li Futu from continuing forward. Yun Shuisheng landed in front of him, covered in a frost armor. Her slender arm stretched forward, colliding with Li Futu''s seemingly godly flame arm. When their palms clashed, the image that most people expected did not appear. Yun Shuisheng was not burnt. Although her body was weak, she stood firmly without moving an inch.


    Around the two of them, a terrifying storm brewed. A storm of ice and fire, each trying to erode the other. The storm continued to expand in the air, the flames burning through space and the snow permeating the skies.


    The crowd could see the flames invading Yun Shuisheng''s arm. The golden flame was extremely overbearing and attempted to melt the ice on her body. Similarly, the armor on Li Futu''s body had been invaded by the frost, and it was making its way into his body.


    Li Futu stared at the figure in front of him. He came from the Fire Mountain and his flames and body had been tempered by the mountains'' flames thousands of times, yet, the girl in front of him could withstand and resist it.


    Was the Holy Zhi Palace really such a scary place?!

 620 Dividing the Loo

    The flames on Li Futu''s body exploded outwards, and a dazzling Vermillion Bird rose into the sky, bathed in golden divine flames. As it flapped its wings, the golden flames shot towards Yi Xiaoshi, who was battling Xiang Zhiyan. This forced Yi Xiaoshi to retreat continuously in order to avoid the flames. Then, the Vermillion Bird soared through the sky in a brilliant curve towards Ye Futian. Flames of a divine bird descended from the heavens, covering the sky with it.


    A cultivator of the Noble Plane was able to send their Life Spirit out of their body to attack their opponent. As a top-notch Noble, Li Futu was definitely able to do just that.


    Yun Shuisheng''s expression changed slightly, and she retreated. But Li Futu followed after her; there was no way he was going to let her escape.


    The space surrounding them was set alight, and golden flames raged around the two. An icy world appeared around Yun Shuisheng, protecting her from the flames. Meanwhile, the terrifying Vermillion Bird charged straight for Ye Futian, and countless gazes turned towards him


    Ye Futian was not participating directly in this battle. Instead, he was managing the situation through his guqin. However, it was clear to everyone that this Ye Futian, who had been the first in the Law Battle three years ago, was the crux of this fight. The guqin music increased the offensive power of everyone''s attacks and allowed their Spiritual Wills to resonate, making everyone stronger in general. If Ye Futian was taken down, there was a real possibility of their opponents turning the tide against them. However, it was like this realization did not register in Ye Futian''s mind. The message he sent everyone was to pay him no mind and continue fighting.


    Right then, a frightening Spiritual Will surrounded Ye Futian and radiated through the space. The entire sky seemed to be filled with the terrifying energy of that Spiritual Energy. When the Vermillion Bird rushed down towards Ye Futian in all its fiery might, Ye Futian''s fingers began to dance even more intensely across the guqin strings, and the Spiritual Will in the air activated at the same time as the spell he cast.


    In the next moment, the space around him seemed to freeze, and the Vermillion Bird was slowed down in the sky as if it was being pushed back by invisible energy. Frightening golden flames shot out from its eyes towards Ye Futian, but the energy controlling the surroundings grew stronger as well.


    Powerful Spiritual Qi accumulated in the space, and as it was let loose. The space seemed to freeze even further. The Vermillion Bird''s large body seemed to slowly become immobilized as it started to slow down even more. This was a spell that Ye Futian had created. Through combining multi-elemental sorcery and martial arts will, he had manifested a unique new spell��the Sky Freezing Technique.


    With a roar of thunder, purple and golden lightning appeared in the space. The violent lightning energy turned into the Wrath of the Thunder God spell, which shot straight for the Vermillion Bird. This was also a spell he had created. By improving on the original spell, Punishment of the Thunder God, Ye Futian had created Wrath of the Thunder God.


    As the Wrath of the Thunder God descended upon it, the Vermillion Bird shook violently, and it let out a mournful cry as it seemed on the verge of being destroyed. Right then, Li Futu, who was battling Yun Shuisheng, spat out a mouthful of blood. His breathing turned weaker, and his face was pale.


    With his Life Spirit under attack, Li Futu would naturally be greatly affected as well. After all, the Life Spirit was at the heart of a Mandate Sorcerer''s abilities. If it was badly damaged, the sorcerer''s Spiritual Energy would take a terrifyingly immense hit as well.


    "This battle is about to end," someone commented. At the sight of Li Futu''s condition, many people who had placed large bets on him turned pale. They had originally banked on Li Futu being able to use his Life Spirit to shift the battle in his favor. It came as a shock to them that Ye Futian would use guqin music to borrow the Spiritual Energy of others, resonate with it, and cast an incredibly strong spell that trapped Li Futu''s Life Spirit, allowing Ye Futian to launch an attack that caused him great damage.


    Many people looked over to the other side of the battlefield where Huang Jiuge and Yu Ming were. Other than Li Futu, Yu Ming was a Grade One Noble as well, possessing incredible power. Now that Li Futu was being held down in battle, it was anyone''s guess whether or not Yu Ming would be able to break through in this fight.


    However, Huang Jiuge then began to launch a particularly savage attack on Yu Ming. His Spiritual Will turned into a frightening illusory world, seeming to summon into being countless warriors and chariots, turning the surroundings into the setting of a terrible battle. Even while facing Yu Ming, who was of a higher plane, Huang Jiuge continued to attack fiercely, refusing to back down.


    Is Huang Jiuge that strong as well? many people wondered, surprised by the sight. Sovereign Light emanated from Huang Jiuge. Taking on the Renhuang Body, Huang Jiuge looked like Renhuang himself, wielding the Renhuang Sword and commanding the battlefield. The Martial Will illusion in the space became scarier still, with a hulking presence appearing in the battlefield, tearing through the sky in a chariot.


    Yu Ming''s expression was tense. He had not known that the man who had come second in the Law Battle three years ago would be so scarily powerful.


    The violent attack plowed through Yu Ming''s defenses, and he was sent flying, sustaining severe injuries in the process. He had been defeated. At the sight of Yu Ming being taken down, many onlookers understood that the conclusion to this battle had already been set. There would be no doubt as to how things would turn out from here.


    As expected, while the seriously injured Li Futu was still a strong force to reckon with, Yun Shuisheng was no weakling. With the support of Ye Futian''s guqin music, she launched a series of rapid attacks on Li Futu. Li Futu intended to continue fighting but was called by his wife Xiang Zhiyan to admit defeat. She did not want to see the man she loved under attack again.


    When the fighting stopped, the Vermillion Bird flew back into Li Futu''s body. Ye Futian and the rest remained in their previous formation, while the other eight people opposite them were injured to various degrees. The party from the Holy Zhi Palace had won this battle against the alliance of various powers with an absolute advantage.


    Those from the Holy Zhi Palace may have been lower in plane as a whole, but they had displayed the glorious might befitting disciples of the Barren State''s holy grounds in this battle. Of course, other than the seven disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace, Huang Jiuge had shone in the battle as well. Coming in second in the Law Battle three years ago, he was second only to Ye Futian.


    "You''ve gone easy on us," Ye Futian smiled and said politely, taking back the Guqin Spirit. On the opposing side, everyone''s expressions were tense.


    Li Futu, who had come from the Fire Emperor Palace on Fire Mountain, had finally witnessed the power of the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples for himself. His wife, Xiang Zhiyan, was considerably shocked as well, especially when she thought of how her younger sister Xiang Zhiqin was training with such a group of people.


    It was as if Yan Jie, Nan Hao, Xie Ji, and Bing Yi didn''t even exist. Back then, they had lost during the Law Battle. And now as they faced those who had entered the Holy Zhi Palace to train, they still faced the inevitability of losing.


    Yu Ming looked somewhat disappointed. Walking off the battle platform, he walked towards Su Hongxiu from the Goddess Pavilion and said, "Hongxiu, looks like I''ve lost this time."


    "You did your best, there''s no need to blame yourself." Su Hongxiu''s gentle smile belied a great tenderness that could melt one''s heart. The people around her did not dare to look at her. Women from the Goddess Pavilion may be beautiful, but it was still better to restrain oneself when interacting with them. There was the risk of finding oneself trapped in love, as proven by many before. Even a brilliant cultivator like Yu Ming had been deeply attracted by Su Hongxiu''s charms. These women were naturally attractive, and with the special skills they trained in, they were bewitching figures.


    Li Futu and the rest began to walk off the battle platform as well, but Di Zhou remained. He glanced at Ye Futian and his party before chuckling. "Interesting. However, your advantage came only from the fact that you had the guqin music to increase everyone''s powers in a group battle. If you ever come by the Emperor family residence, I''ll have you meet my older brother." As Di Zhou spoke, he turned and left the battle platform. Everyone''s eyes glinted at his words. Perhaps only Di Gang would be able to suppress these Holy Zhi Palace disciples in battle.


    Walking off the battle platform, Xiang Zhiyan came face to face with her younger sister. Xiang Zhiqin smiled and shook her head, "Older Sister, this doesn''t indicate an issue with you and Brother-in-Law''s capabilities."


    "Looks like I won''t be able to give you the ritual implement I promised you," Li Futu said.


    "It''s alright. I feel bad that you''ll have to pay for losing this bet," Xiang Zhiqin replied.


    "If you''re going to gamble, you have to be prepared to lose," Li Futu spoke calmly. On the other hand, Xiang Zhiyan asked, "Zhiqin, are Ye Futian and the rest considered outstanding in the Palace?"


    Xiang Zhiqin looked towards the battle platform and thought of the things that had happened three years ago. Back then when Ye Futian had first entered the Palace, his lack of inhibition had irked her to no end. But looking at Ye Futian again after three years, she realized that he had long surpassed her.


    "Yes, they''re very outstanding." Xiang Zhiqin nodded. That much she had to admit at this point.


    Right then, Ye Futian was smiling at the elder walking towards him on the battle platform. "Elder, about the ritual implement��"


    "Take it," the elder replied calmly, tossing the storage ring containing the ritual implement at Ye Futian. The elder had judged the situation wrongly this time, not expecting that Ye Futian''s party would actually defeat Li Futu and the rest.


    The elder had planned today''s gamble fight so that there would be many powerful individuals betting at the Alchemy Casino today. He had expected that Li Futu and the rest would win and had manipulated the odds to lure betters to bet on Ye Futian''s party. But things had not gone according to plan. This time, the elder had suffered a huge loss. As for those who had bet on Ye Futian''s party, they were over the moon with their winnings. The only regret they had was not betting more at the start.


    "I don''t think this alone is enough, senior. We did place our bets after all." Ye Futian flashed a radiant smile at the elder.


    "I''ll collect their bets first before taking you to select your ritual implements." The elder threw a sweeping glance at Li Futu and the rest before ruthlessly collecting the items they had wagered. These people had caused them to suffer a massive loss after all.


    Ye Futian took out the ritual implements. Smiling, he handed them back. "Yuan Zhan, here''s your Wolf Fang Bat. This cauldron''s yours, Zhong Li, and the Ghost Shadow Sword belongs to Qianchou. Phoenix, your Sun Crown.


    "This Hail Scepter shall go to you then," Ye Futian declared, giving it to Yun Shuisheng. She looked at Ye Futian with a hint of reluctance.


    "These clothes and the Telekinesis Pearl belong to Jieyu, so I''ll take them." Ye Futian grinned radiantly at everyone, who threw him a dirty look but naturally had no objections.


    "Are you going to treat your Older Brother like that?" Yi Xiaoshi blinked and stared at Ye Futian accusingly.


    "Don''t be mean, Older Brother. Didn''t we let you place a bet? I want a share," Ye Futian declared, staring back at Yi Xiaoshi.


    "Get lost," Yi Xiaoshi shot back despondently. Ye Futian was really taking advantage of him.


    "We''re definitely taking our share." Ye Futian was not holding back out of courtesy at all. He continued, "Yu Sheng, let Qingxuan pick some good stuff from your bets. I still have some ritual implements here for you all to take. Wuchen, you can pick a treasure for Chenyu later. Phoenix, you take one too, here''s your ritual implement back." Phoenix took the ritual implement, and everyone stared at Ye Futian, speechless at what he was doing.


    Those who had bet on Li Futu would have loved to tear Ye Futian apart in that moment, while even those who had bet on Ye Futian were tempted to hit him. As for those from the Alchemy Casino, they were incredibly tempted to kill Ye Futian, that despicable fellow.


    It was too much that Ye Futian was openly discussing how to split the ritual implements from the Alchemy Casino. Did he not consider how they would feel? But of course, Ye Futian didn''t care about their feelings. Right now, his only thought was that all this was super awesome.

 621 The Alchemy Conference Begins

    Ye Futian and the rest left the Alchemy Casino after making sweeping gains for themselves there. Everyone had gotten ritual implements for themselves, and couldn''t help but grin as they exited the Casino.


    When the elder walked them to the exit, he had asked Ye Futian and the rest when they would come back for a gamble fight. Ye Futian had declined, stating that they had enough ritual implements already. He then thanked the elder for their generosity. The anguish in the elder''s eyes was unforgettable.


    The elder was pained to the core. He had thought highly of the disciples from the Holy Zhi Palace, but with Li Futu''s party as the opposing side, the elder had underestimated the abilities of Ye Futian and the rest, causing him to make an erroneous judgment. If he had been able to judge that Ye Futian and the rest would win, they would have followed the odds of 1-1. If the elder had done that, they would have made a windfall. It was regrettable.


    News of this battle spread through Alchemy City very quickly and attracted much discussion. Li Futu from the Fire Emperor Palace had allied with people like Yu Ming, yet his party had still lost to the group of disciples who entered the Holy Zhi Palace three years ago. The Holy Zhi Palace indeed deserved its reputation as the top sacred grounds for training in the Barren State.


    Many people wanted to catch a glimpse of these people. Some of the powerful individuals who had arrived at Alchemy City were also interested to see for themselves these disciples'' abilities in a fight. Of course, discussion over this battle was soon overshadowed by far more important news. It would soon be the day when the Alchemy Conference would begin.


    ��


    Today, the atmosphere in Alchemy City was electrifying. A sea of people moved along the streets, headed in the direction of the City Lord Office. Divine arms whistled through the sky and the roars of demonic beasts could be heard. Many were discussing the Alchemy Conference. It was said that many important people within the southwest region of the Barren State would come to watch the Alchemy Conference, which was held once every decade.


    After all, Alchemy City was an important city within the region, and its City Lord was one of the more powerful men in the state. As the eighth in the Barren Sky Ranking, he was equally formidable in both cultivation and ritual implement-crafting. If he were to fight with ritual implements, no one in the top ten of the Ranking would be willing to face him in battle.


    You Chi, the City Lord of Alchemy City, was still the most powerful man in the southwest region of the Barren State. As such, even powerful individuals from other parts of the state would show him some degree of respect. Additionally, many regions in the Barren State would send people to the Conference to watch. They were all interested to see how things would unfold there.


    A staircase stood outside the entrance to the City Lord Office. Below the stairs was a vast space. Eight Alchemy Pillars standing tall within, with smelting furnaces burning on top of them. The space contained within these eight pillars was where participants of the Alchemy Conference would craft their ritual implements.


    The spectator areas were at the top and the two sides of the staircase. Seats were lined along the top of the staircase outside the City Lord Office. Those seats were only for the most important and powerful attendees of the Conference. The areas at the two sides of the staircase were also reserved for invited guests only. Normal attendees, even those of the Sage Plane, could only watch the Conference from the back.


    Right now, a huge crowd had gathered in the outer area of the Conference. Many people had come down to Alchemy City to witness this great event that was only held once every decade. Even if they weren''t interested in ritual implement-crafting, today was the day where powerful and important individuals they normally would not be able to see would appear in the city. Furthermore, many of these individuals were powerful people within the Barren Sky Ranking.


    At the bottom of the staircase, many people from the City Lord Office had arrived to maintain order in the venue. Those who had come to participate in the Alchemy Conference entered as well. Walking into the crafting area, they found a spot for themselves and waited.


    Many top armorers from various places would gather here to put their crafting skills against each other. This was their stage, and today, they would be under the scrutiny of the entire Barren State.


    "The Lu Family is here, and the head of the family has even come down personally to watch," someone observed, watching the group of people move through the sky towards the place. The Lu Family was a prominent family within Alchemy City. Though they were not as influential as the City Lord Office or the Emperor Family, they still held a significant amount of power nonetheless. The young master of the City Lord Office went to greet them. The head of the family and the more important family members were seated at the top of the staircase, while the younger family members remained at the two sides of the staircase.


    "The Zhou Family is here as well," came the cry, heralding the arrival of another important family. Like the Lu Family, the Zhou Family was another prominent family within Alchemy City.


    Afterward, many people began to filter into the venue, even including those from Inferno City. Several prominent figures had come out of the City Lord Office to personally welcome guests, though the City Lord himself had not made an appearance yet. With his status, there were few in the Barren State who would merit a personal greeting from him.


    "The Sacred Fire Sect has arrived, that''s the leader of the sect." Many people turned to look at the group moving through the sky. At the front of the group was an elder with an incredibly commanding aura. The leader himself had personally come to the Conference, and he moved straight to the top of the staircase to take his seat.


    Right then, another group of people walked out of the City Lord Office. The man in front was clad in long golden robes. Middle-aged, his features were angular and chiseled, and he moved in great style. The many important guests who had arrived at the event stood up to greet him.


    "The City Lord has come out," many people stared at the man who had just walked out. Now that many important people from all over the Barren State was arriving, of course, You Chi had to make an appearance soon, in his capacity as host and the City Lord.


    "Good morning, everyone," You Chi greeted the guests who had come, before walking to the main seat in the middle of the area. He stood there, surveying the endless crowd. Everyone in the sea of people clasped their hands and greeted him in a sonorous roar.


    You Chi waved a hand and spoke, "Today is the day of the Alchemy Conference, and I''m definitely not the star of this event. Those who intend to participate in the Conference, you can enter now." At his words, more people entered the venue.


    "City Lord You, I hope you''ve been well," a voice called out. Just then, a frightening flaming beast appeared in the sky with a group of people on it. The man at the front of the group had a magnificent demeanor. His eyes seemed to be a fiery red, and his hands were clasped behind his back.


    "It''s Yan Jun," someone announced. Everyone stared at the newcomers. Yan Jun was the Palace Lord of the Fire Emperor Palace and ranked amongst the most powerful of the Barren Sky Ranking. Li Futu, who stood next to him, was a prominent young talent whose reputation was second only to Di Gang of the Emperor Family in this region. While there had been news of Li Futu suffering a loss a couple of days ago, it was not his fault. It had been a group battle, after all.


    In addition to Li Futu, his wife Xiang Zhiyan and disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace Xiang Zhiqin had come as well, descending from the sky towards the venue.


    "Yan Jun, how have you been?" You Chi asked after the newly arrived guest.


    "How well could I be on top of those flames! I''ve come to join the fun." Yan Jun chuckled heartily.


    "It''s good that you''ve come, a couple of the old guys are here too. Have a seat," You Chi replied, before turning to Li Futu. "I''ve heard that the son of Yan Jun is overpoweringly talented. Seeing you now, indeed, you''re just like your father. You don''t have to go to the side of the staircase, stay and watch the Conference from here."


    "Thank you, senior," Li Futu joined his hands and thanked You Chi.


    "It''s embarrassing to mention, but this fellow has been a good-for-nothing guy, suffering a loss a few days back at Alchemy City and all," Yan Jun commented. Li Futu and Xiang Zhiyan stood behind him, while the others went down to the two sides of the staircase. There were limited seats, so not every one of the younger guests could stay up here to watch.


    "But that was a group battle, so it wasn''t Young Master Li''s fault. Why blame the young one like that, Yan Jun?" a gentle, alluring voice rang out from afar. Just the sound of it alone made one feel as though one could get lost in it. Instantly, many people knew who had arrived. Only one person in the entire southwest region of the Barren State could have this level of charm.


    In the sky, a group of women carried a sedan over. Those women were all in white and were as beautiful as fairies. Even the famously gorgeous Su Hongxiu was only standing to the side of the sedan. The chair blind of the sedan was pulled apart, and a woman descended from the sky. Beautiful as a Jiutian Goddess, many people were instantly enamored at the sight of her.


    The woman had hair that cascaded down her back like a waterfall, and her bright soulful eyes had an endless charm to them. One couldn''t help but be drawn to the delicate curves on that alluring figure. Wearing a long dress, the side of her leg appeared in flashes, and one could not tear their eyes away from those lovely long legs. Her skin was clear and smooth as jade, almost as delicate as a young girl''s. However, her most beautiful features were still her eyes and face. They were so perfect there was nothing to pick on, and just a look from her alone could have one utterly smitten.


    This woman was Chu Ji, Pavilion Lord of the Goddess Pavilion, and the most beautiful woman in the southwest region of the Barren State. As cultivators grew stronger through training, their lifespans would increase and their features would remain un-aged. But Chu Ji was probably the only woman of her kind in the Barren State. As she trained, she grew even more beautiful. Even Su Hongxiu, a great beauty, paled in comparison standing next to her. The two looked about the same age. It was almost like they were sisters. Furthermore, Chu Ji was frightening not because of her beauty, but because of her charm. Su Hongxiu was already incredibly charming, yet she was still far from Chu Ji''s level.


    Chu Ji was the kind of woman who could have someone enthralled with her forever with just a glance. Even Yan Jun did not dare to look at her for too long, only giving her a calm glance and grunting coldly, "Chu Ji, don''t you flaunt your glamour sorcery before the young ones."


    Yan Jun knew just how scary Chu Ji''s charm could be. There was no way the younger guests would be able to withstand that. Right now, many people were watching Chu Ji from below, astounded at how such a stunningly gorgeous woman could exist in this world. Was this the Pavilion Lord of the Goddess Pavilion talked about in rumors, the most beautiful woman in the southwest region of the Barren State?


    "Sure." Chu Ji smiled, and her aura changed instantly. She had stood there elegant and unattainable as a goddess. But in a flash, she had changed her aura to give off a completely different impression. At the sight of this, many sighed to themselves that a beautiful woman could be trouble, and this woman was definitely a disaster of epic proportions.


    In the sky, more people began to arrive, and many eyes were on them.


    "It''s the Emperor Family," someone announced.


    "Di Kai, the head of the Emperor Family is here. Di Gang has come along with him as well," someone else added. Many people gazed towards the descending figures. One of them was Di Kai, another powerful being within the rankings of the Barren Sky Ranking. The other person, Di Gang, was said to be the most talented within the southwest region of the Barren State and was unmatched within his generation.


    "A loss is a loss. Since Li Futu was there at the fight, he has no right to distance himself from it," Di Gang said calmly upon arriving, shooting Li Futu a cold glance. It was evident that he was responding to Chu Ji''s comment about how Li Futu''s loss in that battle was no fault of his.


    Li Futu''s gaze hardened, and he looked at Di Gang before replying, "Indeed, since I was there, I definitely had a part to play in it. A loss is a loss."


    Di Gang looked upon Li Futu with new admiration. Li Futu''s humility made him worthy of his reputation.


    "What a proud fellow." Chu Ji chuckled lightly. Di Gang did not look at her. He had definitely heard of her, and he did not want to be affected by a woman, especially a woman as insanely powerful as she was.


    "I, Bai Luli, hereby pay my respects to you, seniors." A figure appeared from afar, and countless gazes turned in its direction to see a handsome young man stepping through the sky towards them.


    It was Bai Luli, who was said to be the most prominent figure in his generation. While he was probably the lowest in plane amongst everyone in the Barren Sky Ranking, he was tenth in the Ranking, unmatched in the entire Barren State!

 622 Fourth Older Brother’s Troubles

    In Alchemy City, which was in the southwest region of the Barren State, Di Gang from the Emperor Family was considered the best of his generation in terms of talent. And the standard against which he was measured was Bai Luli.


    Countless gazes, including those of the important figures of Alchemy City, landed on the handsome young man. Among all the powerful figures present, You Chi, the City Lord, was the only person who ranked above Bai Luli in the Barren Sky Ranking. As such, no one could really treat Bai Luli as a junior, even if they were older.


    "Have you come as a representative of the Holy Zhi Palace or White Cloud City?" You Chi asked. Bai Luli had two important identities, one of them being his position as the young City Lord of White Cloud City. It was also highly plausible that he would be in charge of the Holy Zhi Palace in the future, which meant he definitely had the right to represent the Palace as well.


    "I''ve come as a representative of White Cloud City. Of course, the Holy Zhi Palace treats the Alchemy Conference with utmost importance too, which is why many top talents from our Palace have come to watch as well," Bai Luli replied politely, a smile on his face. Since he had not received any instructions from the Holy Zhi Palace, it wasn''t in his place to represent the entire Palace. But the second half of his speech had been immaculately polite.


    "Right." You Chi nodded lightly, before continuing, "You may be young, but you''ve already made it to the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking. Please have a seat."


    "Thank you very much, City Lord You." Bai Luli smiled and joined his hands together in thanks, before walking into the area on top of the staircase.


    Di Gang stared at Bai Luli. Both of them were from the western region of the Barren State, with Bai Luli being from White Cloud City, and Di Gang being from Alchemy City. These two main cities in the western region of the Barren City had seen the rise of the two of them respectively. Even if Bai Luli was currently within the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking, Di Gang didn''t see himself as being inferior to Bai Luli. The other man was but a target he was aiming to surpass.


    The crowd that had gathered at the bottom of the staircase was excited. It was just as they had expected. Many important people, like Di Kai from the Emperor Family, Yan Jun from the Fire Emperor Palace, Chu Ji from the Goddess Pavilion, and the leader of the Sacred Fire Sect were all here. There were prominent figures from the younger generation as well, like Bai Luli, Di Gang, Li Futu, and Su Hongxiu, among other famous names. These were people one did not usually get to see in person normally, and they were all gathered here at the Alchemy Conference.


    At the same time, many influential figures from all over the Barren State were coming to greet You Chi before taking their places at the two sides of the staircase. Ye Futian and the rest had arrived as well. After reporting to the guard, they entered the spectator area and found a spot to stand. Ye Futian looked up at the area on top of the staircase, where many important guests had already arrived, Bai Luli included as well.


    "I am Ye Futian, a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace. I have come with my peers to observe the Conference. I hereby pay my respects to all the seniors present." Ye Futian joined his hands in greeting, his gaze directed towards the top of the stairs. He had come to this Conference as a disciple of the Palace. As such, he definitely had to display the appropriate manners.


    "I am Huang Jiuge from the Sovereign Family. I have come with my family members to watch the Conference. I hereby pay my respects," Huang Jiuge greeted the seniors present as well.


    In an instant, everyone turned to look at Ye Futian. Just a few days before, Ye Futian and his friends had defeated Li Futu''s party at the Alchemy Casino and made sweeping gains for themselves. That was an incident that had been hotly discussed by many, and now the main character of that story had appeared in person.


    You Chi, Yan Jun, and the rest looked towards Ye Futian''s party. Ye Futian had been training in the Holy Zhi Palace ever since he enrolled. While You Chi and the rest would not know much about incidents that occurred as the younger people trained within the Palace, they would have at least heard about how Ye Futian had emerged first in the Law Battle three years ago. In the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian was an iconic figure within the generation that came after Bai Luli and was definitely positioned to one day reach the top in the Barren State. These people were definitely a cut above the rest. Even in the face of such a large-scale event, their expressions were calm, and they handled themselves with grace.


    "Are the boys from the Holy Zhi Palace all this handsome?" a coquettish voice chuckled. Bai Luli was a handsome young man, with his good looks backed up by substantial talent. Now that Chu Ji looked at Ye Futian again, he too was incredibly good looking, with well-defined features that looked as though they were carved out of marble. He could definitely be said to be a pretty boy.


    Among the ladies, Hua Jieyu, Yun Shuisheng, and Phoenix were all incredible beauties in their own right. Chu Ji thought they were even prettier than some of the women in the Goddess Pavilion.


    Ye Futian looked towards Chu Ji, the Pavilion Lord of the Goddess Pavilion, and felt as though he was about to drown in those gorgeous eyes that were as clear as water. Her gaze was mysteriously attractive in a way that made one lose themselves in it. That, in addition to Chu Ji''s features and figure, made Ye Futian catch himself with great determination and avoid looking directly at her.


    She''s an absolute stunner, the thought appeared in Ye Futian''s mind. This woman was so unbelievably beautiful, she definitely was trouble.


    "Big sis, are you a goddess from heaven? A glance at you has me wanting to stare at you longer," Ye Futian said, smiling. While he seemed relaxed, he was actually exerting a lot of willpower to control himself.


    Hua Jieyu took a good look at the woman as well. Ye Futian used to teasingly call her ''fox'' as a way to compliment her beauty, and yet this woman before her was truly a foxy lady. It wasn''t just a matter of looks; Hua Jieyu was in no way inferior to her in terms of beauty, but there was a constant seductive charm this woman had that ensnared others within her spell.


    "Big sis?" Chu Ji blinked, and let out the sweetest smile. Everyone found it hard to resist that charming smile of hers and felt as though they were about to embarrass themselves soon. Ye Futian''s back was also cold with sweat at the sight.


    "Chu Ji, let the poor boy off," You Chi spoke up. The corners of Chu Ji''s lips turned upwards slightly, and she restrained some of her charm. This made Ye Futian and everyone else feel a little more at ease. But even then, just Chu Ji''s face, aura, and figure alone were enough to make any man fall head over heels for her. She had only held back some of that unique charm of hers.


    "Chu Ji is the Pavilion Lord of the Goddess Pavilion. She''s a Spirit Elemental Mandate Sorcerer. The glamour sorcery she specializes in is incredibly terrifying and could cause disaster throughout the land. The girl we saw just now, Su Hongxiu, is her direct disciple," Zhong Li transmitted his voice to Ye Futian and the rest, who nodded furtively in response. It was no wonder Chu Ji''s charms were so hard to resist. After all, it was glamour sorcery born of Spiritual Energy. Furthermore, she had already integrated this glamour into her own aura, making her endlessly charming.


    "Are you interested, little brother? Do you have a girlfriend? Would you like big sis to introduce you to a few girls?" Chu Ji smiled at Ye Futian.


    Hua Jieyu looked warily at her and reached out to hold onto Ye Futian. Ye Futian chuckled and replied, "Thank you, big sis, but I already have a girlfriend."


    "That''s a pity, I was still thinking of introducing some of my disciples to you," Chu Ji said, all smiles. Ye Futian glanced at Su Hongxiu, who was behind her, and wondered if that would even have been possible.


    Everyone else stared at Ye Futian. Is this really Ye Futian, the guy who came in first in the Law Battle three years back and defeated Li Futu''s party a few days ago? Why does he seem to be so shameless? The important figures present rolled their eyes at the exchange between Chu Ji and Ye Futian as well.


    "This guy probably doesn''t have the good fortune to enjoy your kind intentions, Pavilion Lord Chu." A chuckle was heard. Someone was riding a ritual implement over to where they were. Ye Futian looked in the direction of the voice and saw a beautiful woman standing on a ritual implement.


    "Older Sister," Ye Futian called out. He had not expected that his Second Older Sister would attend the Alchemy Conference as well. There really were many people who had come to watch the Conference today.


    Zhuge Mingyue glanced over at Ye Futian cheerfully. She was surprised that Ye Futian would dare to engage with Chu Ji like this. Was he not afraid of losing himself in her charms?


    Zhuge Canyang had arrived as well, and the siblings walked forward to greet those on top of the staircase, joining their hands together. "We, Zhuge Canyang and Zhuge Mingyue, hereby pay our respects to all the seniors here."


    "Ah, our guests from the Zhuge Family have arrived. Please, have a seat," You Chi responded. Not only were the two newcomers of the Sage Plane, but they were also representatives from the Zhuge Family as well. They definitely had the right to a seat at the top of the staircase.


    Bai Luli smiled and nodded at the two, while Zhuge Mingyue looked towards Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s smile faltered. He was curious as to why his Older Sister would attend the Alchemy Conference.


    Right then, Zhuge Mingyue turned to look at the people who had come to participate in the Alchemy Conference. Her gaze then landed on a particular area of the crowd, and a half smile appeared on her face.


    "Hmm?" Ye Futian glanced over, somewhat confused, and saw two people with their heads bowed in the crowd, afraid to look at Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Fourth Older Brother and Fifth Older Brother��" Ye Futian stared at the two in shock. Back then, his two Older Brothers had gone off in search of Second Older Sister. He had asked about them not long ago, and his Older Sister had told him not to mention them. So why was Fourth Older Brother and Fifth Older Brother here? Furthermore, were they going to participate in the Alchemy Conference?


    Since when did my two Older Brothers learn to craft ritual implements�� This was all news to him. Could it be that they had been hiding their talents back at the Cottage?


    "Older Brother, you see, Older Sister still cares about us. She''s even come down personally," Luo Fan whispered, his head lowered.


    "Older Sister probably wants to kill me," Xue Ye replied glumly.


    "Older Brother, you''ve already come this far, does it matter? Either way, we''re still going to die," Luo Fan whispered back.


    "Younger Brother, you''re so loyal." Xue Ye was touched.


    "Don''t drag me into this," Luo Fan shot back. "I miss Older Sister. How about I go over to where she is?"


    Xue Ye was speechless at Luo Fan''s words and itched to pummel the rascal.


    "Younger Brother, I remember you saying something about Second Older Sister not being the romantic type and Third Older Brother being a block of wood." Xue Ye sighed quietly.


    "Older Brother, I was in the wrong." Luo Fan was anguished at his misfortune of having such an Older Brother.


    "Younger Brother, now that Youngest Brother has a bit of fame and is training at the Holy Zhi Palace, do you think he''ll be able to help us?" Xue Ye spoke up again. He had not missed Ye Futian''s appearance at the Alchemy Conference.


    "Don''t even think about it. With what you''re asking for, even the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace himself won''t be able to save you from City Lord You. Either way, you''re going to die. Why don''t you just accept your fate?" Luo Fan sighed, bemoaning his own tragic circumstances.


    Xue Ye sighed too. "If it wasn''t for you, I wouldn''t have gone to Fire Mountain to train. Then I wouldn''t have met her there."


    "Are you blaming me?" Luo Fan hissed back, scandalized. "What did I even make you do?"


    "Didn''t you encourage me to chase the girl?" Xue Ye glared at Luo Fan.


    "Did I tell you to cause this trouble?" Luo Fan shot back, unwilling to back down.


    "Who can control love between two people? Who knew she did it on purpose? Who knew her identity? This life of mine is in her hands now," Xue Ye lamented, sighing over how it was rare for a great guy such as himself to even like a girl. At the beginning of this romance, he had felt so lucky as to have met an absolute beauty like her. Who would have thought that this would turn into a tragedy?


    "It is one''s greatest fortune to die for a beautiful woman," Luo Fan commented gloomily. He had made a bad judgment. He thought he was going to help his Older Brother win back his woman, but he had not expected to be trapped in this situation. It was tragic.

 623 Seniors Being Armorers

    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Xue Ye and Luo Fan. He wore a strange expression as he pondered if those two were up to something.


    Is there anything they aren''t telling anyone? He was puzzled as to why his two seniors came to the Alchemy Conference. His fifth brother definitely had some skills with cooking, but crafting was probably out of his league.


    More and more mighty ones gathered around, and even some very renowned master armorers arrived as well. The Alchemy Conference allowed the participation of anyone below sage planes, and all of those master armorers were capable of crafting top class noble ritual implements. If they were to advance into the sage planes, they would then become capable of crafting sage level ritual implements.


    Yu Ming, whom Ye Futian had fought several days before, was among the crowd. His eyes were locked onto Su Hongxiu, who was standing behind Chu Ji, never bothering to hide his affection for her.


    Other than Yu Ming, there were also several other extremely renowned master armorers around. One of them was You Tu, a genius armorer from the City Lord office, and Gongsun Ye, the number one among the younger generation of armorers. There were also two others who were the focus of this year''s Alchemy Conference: Chi Lian and Master Mu Ou. However, the City Lord office definitely did not wish for Master Mu Ou to become the champion of this year''s Alchemy Conference because of his advanced age. Due to his inability to break into the sage planes, he had been crazed in his study of the armorer''s art, which resulted in his mastery of the art. However, the champion of the event would be offered the chance to marry the City Lord''s daughter. While it had been an age-old tradition of the event, the City Lord nonetheless would not want his young daughter to marry an old guy.


    This time, the hand of the girl whom the City Lord office was to offer was one who was very well known throughout Alchemy City: You Xi, a girl who was known for her exceptional appearance and talent.


    It was a given that should the one who reigned supreme in the Alchemy Conference end up a member of the City Lord office, he would not be marrying the daughter of the City Lord. In such cases, according to the precedence set by the previous events, the City Lord was to marry his daughter off to the one ranked second or third in the event instead.


    Countless gathered under the eight Armorer''s Pillars. Figures from top forces throughout the entire Barren State gathered in the grand stands on two sides to witness the event. Those from Nantian House, Mortal World, Sword Saint Villa and others arrived, and they all took to their respective corners.


    You Chi, the City Lord, sat at his designated place on top of the front stairs. He took a look at the sun hanging in the air. He stood up and took his steps forward, with two elders following him, moving down the stairs and stood beneath the City Lord. You Chi silenced the entire scene with a wave of his hand. Countless eyes were set on one spot��the one where You Chi, the City Lord, stood.


    "The Alchemy Conference is held once every ten years. Today, we see people from all walks of life throughout the Barren State gather here to witness the event, and we also have tens of thousands of proud armorers participating. This is my honor." You Chi addressed the crowd eloquently with a powerful and firm voice capable of reaching far away, enabling everyone present to hear him clearly.


    "While the Alchemy Conference this time is a competition between armorers below sage planes, but all who participate will be the future of Barren State''s armorer world. What will be showcased in this Alchemy Conference will become the standard of armorers for Barren State in the future. As such, I hope everyone who is participating will give their all." You Chi''s voice remained loud and firm as he continued, "As with the event held in the past, the top hundred will be allowed to join any armorer factions in Alchemy City to their liking; the top ten will be offered the chance to learn armorer''s art from me; the top three will be tutored by me personally, and I will craft a ritual implement for each of the top three. The champion will be offered the hand of my daughter, You Xi. Of course, the one offered these options are free to take it or leave it. There is no obligation."


    Many laughed. The event held once in ten years would no doubt showcase the highest standards for the current generation. As the representative of the armorer world, the City Lord Office of Alchemy City would also offer their best to hold the event. As such, the daughter whose hand was to be offered would need exceptional qualities. There was no one in Alchemy City who did not know of the name You Xi, and one would have to be a fool to refuse to marry her.


    "What happens next is all up to you." You Chi finished his speech and went back to his seat. The two elders at the middle of the stairs looked at the crowd. One of them lit incense and placed it before the stairs. The other announced, "You all have until the incense burns out to craft superior noble ritual implements. There will be no restrictions on the type of items crafted nor the methods used. The ones who succeed in crafting will be allowed to stay, and those who fail will be eliminated.


    "You may begin."


    Many moved at the same time; the very second the elder finished his announcement. The air was filled with heat in an instant as everyone took out their own smelting furnaces to begin working on their items. While the ones who participated in the event were ones who were confident of themselves to certain extents, there were also those who wanted little more than to experience the event first hand. As such, the first one served well to eliminate all those who were only there for fun and those whose art were not up to standards. Any who managed to stay was deemed to be an elite in the world of armorers.


    Ye Futian had little interest in crafting items and it was not an area he had any measure of expertise in. He turned his eyes to Luo Fan and Xue Ye and asked in a low voice, "The Alchemy Conference allows two individuals to work together?"


    "It does. Some who are talented in the armorer''s art happen to be people who do not have good fire powers, or they need others to support them in other areas. There are many great armorers who have their servants around, but the number is limited to two," Zhong Li elaborated in reply.


    Ye Futian nodded in acknowledgment. He looked at the thing Luo Fan took out for smelting and blinked in disbelief. Can that work?


    The thing that Luo Fan took out was a common furnace used for cooking, not a proper one for smelting.


    "Those two are seniors of yours?" Zhong Li could not help but look at Xue Ye and Luo Fan as he recalled hearing Ye Futian calling them ''senior.'' He was just as surprised as Ye Futian.


    "I don''t know them." Ye Futian slapped his hand on his head and said jokingly. This is embarrassing. How could one have seniors like that? Don''t go join the event if you don''t know how to make stuff. Dishing out a common furnace on the Alchemy Conference for smelting, just what��


    It was fortunate that there were too many people in the competition at that point, and few noticed them among the large crowd. Most eyes were set on the top-class master armorers, and there was hardly anyone who bothered looking at those two. Of course, even if people actually took notice of Xue Ye and Luo Fan, they would not have time to be bothered with them. They were busy at the moment, after all.


    "The fire needs to be hotter. This is not going to smelt anything," Xue Ye said.


    "Get the matrix ready," Luo Fan said.


    "This is not how it is written in the books. The steps are wrong, and so is the order of smelting."


    "Who cares? It''s all good stuff here. It''s just the same with cooking, throwing everything into one pot, that is. So long as you get the matrixes right, no one can tell you that it''s not a ritual implement."


    "No shaping needed? Can you call something like that a ritual implement?" Xue Ye asked.


    "How about you do it instead?" Luo Fan glared at him.


    "Well, I''ll leave it to you."


    The duo was extremely busy yet they never stopped talking. The ones around them got fed up and asked, "Can you two just shut up?"


    Just what kind of armorers are those two? Cooking? At a time like this?


    "If you can''t cool yourself down, then by all means, quit. The Alchemy Conference didn''t say anything about restrictions on talking, did it?" Luo Fan glared at the one who asked provokingly. He had no expertise in making things, but it was something else altogether when it came to fights. He was at the moment, very frustrated.


    "*sshole," the other person cursed under their breath and went back to work.


    Ye Futian looked distraught and furious as he watched his seniors going about.


    Geniuses, both of them. Definitely not people from the cottage.


    "Your seniors are interesting." Even Phoenix, who sported a deadpan face most of the time, cracked a smile. Luo Fan and Xue Ye were definitely the two most special ones of all who were competing.


    "I sure miss my old seniors." Ye Futian felt rather dejected at the sight. All those years ago when he was being bullied in the Qin Dynasty, his Fifth Brother was practically leaking awesomeness. His Third and Fourth brother were there to hold the Qin Dynasty''s door shut, looking equally as awesome. He admired those two seniors back then as idols, yet now��


    The incense eventually burnt out, and the host of the competition went on to announce, "Time is up. Everyone, cease what you are doing immediately or you will be eliminated right away."


    Everyone stopped what they were doing almost at the same time. Some looked relaxed, some looked disappointed. There was another voice heard right after, "Those who failed to make something, back away and leave the area."


    One figure after another retreated. Most who participated earlier left. The time for that first round was very short, and it was to make sure that only the elites stayed behind. After everyone who was supposed to leave left, many from the City Lord Office came to inspect the ritual implements crafted by the ones who stayed.


    "The seniors managed to stay?" Ye Futian saw Xue Ye and Luo Fan, and both stood where they were calmly, waiting for those from City Lord office to inspect their work.


    The inspector came by their side and asked, "What is this ritual implement that you made?"


    "This is it." Luo Fan pointed at the furnace.


    The inspector took a look inside and saw an irregular shape sitting inside. It did not look like any known weapon and the inspector did not know of anything like it. Am I the one who knows nothing here? And why does this smelting furnace look so much like a common furnace?


    "What is this?" the inspector asked.


    "Some ritual implement I invented myself. It does not have the usual shape of a ritual implement, but it is full of surprises and is very powerful," Luo Fan yapped away.


    "Something you invented yourself?" the inspector looked funny as he asked. While the piece of whatever did not look like a ritual implement, there were many participants who were of a peculiar breed, and what Luo Fan said seemed to make some sense. The ritual implement did not resemble any known item; it was only a twisted board of some kind, and it would not have attracted any attention. As such, it might have turned out to be full of surprises.


    "That''s bulsh*t. With all due respect, those two don''t know anything about the armorer''s art. They just did whatever they thought about doing," the youth beside them quipped in a very irritated manner.


    The elder was stunned. Did I just get played? The inspector elder''s expression turned severe as they exuded an imposing bearing. Xue Ye took out the ritual implement they made and said, "Have a look." As soon as he finished, Spiritual Qi gushed into the ritual implement and dazzling lights emerged in an instant, pulsing with destructive powers as lightning whipped about in terrifying might, out to tear everything apart. Blinding lights unfolded in the space they were in.


    "This is indeed a ritual implement. It was just that we didn''t follow the usual method," Xue Ye explained.


    "Shut up if you know nothing. Who are you to say that this is not a ritual implement?" Luo Fan glared at the one beside them. You *sshole actually went to tell on us!


    "You..." That person pointed at Luo Fan and continued, "I beg your pardon, senior. Those two indeed know nothing about making ritual implements. They were just messing around."


    The inspector elder looked rather amused before saying, "But it did exude the power befitting of a superior ritual implement. They pass." He left as soon as he finished. Luo Fan looked at the one who told on them in a provoking manner, before turning, his expression cold and cursed.


    Ye Futian placed his hand on his head. Well, those two are still my seniors, alright. Some work they''ve done there indeed!

 624 Sparks Flying

    The first round of the Alchemy Conference ended, and only about 3,000 people were left within the vicinity of the Alchemy Pillars. Most of the participants were eliminated in that round. While many who made it there were capable of crafting superior noble ritual implements, it was another story to be able to do so within the time of an incense burning.


    The requirements for crafting such items were tremendously high, as the process of melting the materials required for crafting the ritual implements was already very time-consuming. If the fires used were of insufficient heat, it would be impossible to melt the materials down within said amount of time.


    Many among the audience came to notice Xue Ye and Luo Fan. Those two behaved very peculiarly. However, as none of the participants were common folk, nobody said much. So long as everything was done without violating any of the rules, there would have be no trouble for anyone.


    "Split up and take your places," the elder at the stairs said. 3,000 people split up to take their spots within the vicinity of the Alchemy Pillars. The space between one participant and another became noticeably wider, and it became far easier to track everyone. Everyone on the grandstands and the seats above the stairs was able to see every single participating armorer. As such, no one would have been able to escape the scrutiny of the top-class figures above the stairs.


    "You all will be given two hours in the second round to craft your item. Anyone capable of crafting top class noble ritual implements will be allowed to remain. Begin now," the elder announced. While the time given in that round was considerably longer, the requirements also grew considerably higher. Top class noble ritual implements were required, and that would serve as a watershed as it would be a reliable measure to determine the overall standards of the master armorers.


    All 3,000 participants began working at their craft. They then seemed to be more careful as the crafting of ritual implements carried a certain risk of failure. If they were to craft a top-class noble ritual implement within two hours, the wiggle room for errors was incredibly small. Everyone needed to give their all while being incredibly careful in their respective tasks.


    "You Tu is indeed the heir of the City Lord Office. Great demonstration of crafting there. It isn''t every day you see a master at work at such a young age," Yan Jun commented as he looked at You Tu from above the stairs.


    "Gongsun Ye is doing well himself. That is some incredible fire he whipped up. His speed at melting down the materials is second to none," Di Kai, head of the Emperor Family, quipped as he looked at a slender young man at work. The young man was incredibly composed and he had great prowess at controlling fires. Furthermore, the fires he conjured were very fearsome. Not only were those top genius armorers exceptionally adept at the art of armorers, but they also possessed incredible prowess in related areas.


    Gongsun Ye, You Tu, Chi Lian, Yu Ming, and many others had great reputations, especially Gongsun Ye. He was so well known that he was deemed second to none; even one as formidable as Di Gang of the Emperor family.


    Alchemy City was like a world of armorers in itself. Gongsun Ye''s formidable prowess at the art would have earned him incredible prospects if he were to work and study under You Chi of the City Lord Office.


    "Mu Ou is incredibly adept. Too bad he is so old now," someone quipped as he looked at Mu Ou. While his capabilities were undeniable, his talents were limited, and as such, his achievements paled in comparison to others. True top-class master armorers were required to have exceptional cultivation talents, for they would not have been able to reach the pinnacle otherwise.


    You Chi was ranked eighth in the Barren Sky Ranking due to his incredible talents in both cultivation and armorer talents. It was also the very reason that he was able to become a symbol of Alchemy City.


    The spectators scanned the armorers at work, and some mighty ones took notice of Xue Ye and Luo Fan, wearing peculiar looks as they did so. "Just what the hell are they doing there?" Many others turned their attention to those two as well. They saw Xue Ye going all out with crafting matrix patterns while Luo Fan kept dumping materials into the furnace to be melted. The furnace looked like one meant for cooking, and both did not look like they knew what they were doing. It looked as if they only knew the theories of crafting ritual implements, but had not done so themselves.


    "Was that how they made that thing?" Many had bewildered looks on their faces. From the looks of things, what they crafted was not some peculiar invention, but proof of their ineptitude at the art. They were totally inexperienced at crafting ritual implements and were only able to follow what they learned from books to the letter, with the end product being some junk of unknown use or origin.


    Chu Ji of the Goddess Pavilion chuckled as she said, "I never knew there would be some interesting ones among the participants."


    "Are they seriously participating in the competition knowing only that much?"


    Are they really coming to participate in a grand event held only once in ten years, armed with such amateurish skills at the art of armorers? Are they really hoping to make it to the top hundred armed with such mediocre skills?


    Ye Futian heard the voices from above the stairs far away. He was speechless, thinking of how people had taken notice of his seniors'' ineptitude.


    "You have to give it to them, though. While they may know nothing about crafting ritual implements, they are nonetheless good at what they are doing. At the very least, that fire is indeed something, and that ability at making matrixes is decent. If those two really dedicate themselves to the art of armorers, they might actually be something in years to come," someone commented with a smile.


    "What they are doing now serves well to entertain the spectators, I''d say. But to really compete in the Alchemy Conference with those skills? They are asking to be insulted," Di Kai said plainly as he watched those two buffoons moving about. Just what were those two doing at the Alchemy Conference?


    "The Alchemy Conference is an event where all who are adept at the art of armorers are welcomed to participate. It is no surprise that you find all sorts of people here."


    Zhuge Mingyue and Zhuge Canyang said nothing. Xue Ye and Luo Fan visited the Zhuge family before. They were never seen doing anything in public; they were not top-class figures. As such, it was only natural that no one knew them, and no one knew of their connection to Zhuge Mingyue.


    "They''re geniuses," someone was heard saying. Many turned to look at the one who gave the comment: Ye Futian. He added with a smile, "They know little about crafting ritual implements, so it is a given that they are amateurs who just got acquainted with the art. But it is remarkable to see someone able to go that far while they are still new at the art. I''m not an armorer, but I can see that they are geniuses that you don''t see every day. If they were to dedicate themselves at honing the art, they would one day become one of the top armorers."


    Many looked at Ye Futian with their mouths ajar. Many were ridiculing their level at the art, yet Ye Futian went calling them geniuses.


    Geniuses like that exist?


    Ye Futian paid no heed to what the spectators'' thought about anything. Regardless of why Xue Ye and Luo Fan were participating in the Alchemy Conference, and their utter ineptitude displayed in the competition, Ye Futian ignored the ridicule of others. It was, after all, his seniors, who were competing, and he felt compelled to side with them.


    Di Gang looked at Ye Futian and said plainly with a smile, "So, you are a genius like that?" He heard from Di Zhou a few days ago that the party from the Holy Zhi Palace led by Ye Futian defeated Li Futu and his people. As such, Li Futu was deemed a loser for fighting that battle as soon as he got there. The Holy Zhi Palace was known as the sacred ground of the Barren State, and the likes of Bai Luli had emerged from there. Ye Futian was able to reign supreme as the champion of Law Battle three years ago as a Grade Nine Noble. It was a given that he was seen as an exceptional being. However, Di Gang believed that he would be the one who shined the brightest in their generation, even compared to the likes of Bai Luli and Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes to Di Gang. He never saw Di Gang before, but he was able to see the arrogance and contempt in his eyes. It as if he was an ant to be stomped on.


    Ye Futian smirked as he guessed the other party''s identity: Di Gang of the Emperor family, the one with the most exceptional talent in all of the southwestern region.


    "I''m not an armorer," Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    "I heard that Ye Futian from the Holy Zhi Palace was able to merge everyone''s spirits into one with just a single song. The champion from the Law Battle in the Holy Zhi Palace three years ago, and one who is adept in many fields," Di Gang continued.


    "I''m doing okay." Ye Futian kept the smile on his face.


    "It is a pity, however, that a jack-of-all-trades will easily become a master-of-nothing. Why not dedicate all your efforts into perfecting one area instead?" Di Fang added, "Just like those two. They may have exceptional talents at the art, but entering a competition with skills means that whatever they craft will be junk."


    "How is your little brother, Di Zhou?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "He is doing okay. While not very exceptional, one can say he is still a genius," Di Gang replied.


    "Di Gang of the Emperor family is indeed humble." Ye Futian smiled and continued, "While I train in many areas and I''m not a master in any of them, I''m still able to beat the geniuses you speak of. Even in their respective areas. As such, thank you for your concern but it won''t be necessary. You need not concern yourself with the armorers either. I suggest you focus on your own matters."


    Many turned their attention at the two young men and looked amused. One was the brightest star within the sphere of influence of Alchemy City, while the other was a renowned figure in the Holy Zhi Palace. It was apparent from their words that sparks were flying between them.


    What Ye Futian meant was obvious. What Di Gang said to be junk was still better than whatever his little brother would have been able to come up with. As such, it was best for Di Gang to stop sticking his nose into other people''s business and focus more on his own people.


    Ye Futian still wore a smile on his face. While Di Gang was known to be the most talented in Alchemy City, the other party was someone who came from the Holy Zhi Palace, and that meant there was no place for Di Gang to throw his weight around. The very reason why Ye Futian brought Di Zhou into the conversation was because he was unhappy with Di Gang insulting his seniors in front of everyone. Since Di Gang was not being nice with his words, it was only natural for Ye Futian to retort with a sharp tongue.


    "What do you mean?" Di Zhou, who was behind Di Gang, asked with a cold look, knowing well that Ye Futian was insulting him specifically.


    "The Alchemy Conference welcomed anyone who called themselves armorers to participate. The results of their work would then be measured with set rules, and there is no need for others to be noisy about their performance. Furthermore, since when is a noble qualified to judge anyone who participates in the event?" Ye Futian elaborated with a smile, and many around them looked stunned. Is he trying to confront Di Gang right here and now?


    "Furthermore, they are my seniors," Ye Futian said with a smile. Many turned their eyes to the two at work as soon as Ye Futian spoke, before turning their eyes back to Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked composed. The well-known young genius of the Holy Zhi Palace declared those two to be his seniors with pride, without any regard for their foolish and inept performance. It was easy to understand why Ye Futian retorted. So that is why��


    "Are they from the Holy Zhi Palace?" Di Gang asked with a funny look on his face.


    "Seniors before I entered the Holy Zhi Palace," Ye Futian replied.


    "Interesting." Di Gang smirked hearing Ye Futian''s reply. "It''s a pity that your plane is a little bit on the low side." If Ye Futian''s plane had been somewhat higher, equal to his, things would have turned out more interesting.


    A chuckle was heard from somewhere. Many turned their attention and saw Zhuge Mingyue''s beaming smile, and she said, "That guy became a Law Battle champion as a Grade Nine Noble, went to rank tenth in Law Rank as a Grade Eight Noble, and had the Alchemy Casino pay a hefty price as a Grade Four Noble. If his plane were any higher, would there be anything left for other nobles in the Barren State? What do you think, little brother?"


    Zhuge Mingyue smiled at Ye Futian. That rascal sure learned the annoying habit of defending one''s shortcomings from the cottage well.


    Many turned their eyes at Zhuge Mingyue and came to understand something. Rumor had it that Zhuge Mingyue came from the Eastern Barren Territory and Ye Futian was his little brother in training. With those two who were competing in the Alchemy Conference being Ye Futian''s seniors, it would then stand to reason that they were her juniors. The ''little brother'' part practically gave their relationship away, and it was no surprise that she showed up then.


    So that line ''would there be anything left for other nobles in Barren State,'' would also include Di Gang then, eh?


    "Interesting. Since we have the Alchemy Conference going on, how about we add a martial arts competition to it?" Chu Ji chuckled. "There sure are a lot of young proud sons and daughters from all over Barren State here today."


    "Martial arts competition?" Di Gang smirked. Given his current plane at cultivation, he deemed it rather pointless to join a competition meant for those of his generation.

 625 Final Battle

    Many were able to tell from Di Gang''s reaction that he felt rather indifferent. However, it was a justifiable reaction, as Di Gang''s talents and plane meant that competition among nobles was rather meaningless to him. His current goal was to become someone like Bai Luli.


    "Chu Ji, you might have underestimated my son a little too much," Di Kai, head of the Emperor family said. He knew his son better than anyone. Di Gang was a prodigy of exceptional talents, and he would have achieved great things given time, surpassing even his father. He might even actually become a saint and step foot into that plane told in legends.


    The Emperor family, one of the two top forces of Alchemy City, cast off their ancestral armorer tradition to focus on cultivation, yet none from Di Kai''s generation was able to overpower the You clan. However, Di Gang showed promise of being the one capable of accomplishing such a feat in the future, enabling the Emperor family to replace the You clan and become the symbol of Alchemy City. Whenever anyone talked about Alchemy City, they would first think of the Emperor family.


    "I have heard of Di Gang''s talents, but the younger generation from all over Barren State here are all proud sons and daughters, and the cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace were even known to be gods among men. As such, it would be obvious that I''m not underestimating anyone. If you, Di Kai, find it unpleasant, just pretend that I never said anything then," Chu Ji elaborated.


    There were many on the grandstands who looked eager to test their mettle. Seeing the Alchemy Conference underway, they grew rather restless as well.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was known to be the number one sacred ground for training in the entire Barren State. With the students of the Holy Zhi Palace there that day, many were eager to find out personally, how capable the students of said sacred ground actually were.


    "When the Alchemy Conference is over, the youngsters can have it their way," You Chi said, his eyes forward. Many turned their eyes away. The day was still meant for the Alchemy Conference, and since the city lord office was the organizing party, it was only proper that the Alchemy Conference was to be given top priority and everything else came later.


    Ye Futian shifted his eyes back on his seniors. He was still speechless seeing them work. While he felt compelled to defend his seniors in front of strangers, their performance was indeed a horrible one compared to others.


    "Is the Fifth Brother cooking or crafting? Is he simply trying to dump everything into the pot and cook it up?" Yi Xiaoshi found the scene rather unbearable to look at as well. It was their Fifth Brother who cooked for them back in the cottage, and he was undeniably good, so much so that his dishes tasted better than a lot of the so-called exquisite dishes outside. However, they were supposed to be crafting ritual implements, and Fifth Brother seemed to have just let the pot simmer after dumping everything inside.


    What actually looked different was how Xue Ye, their Fourth Brother, was seen helping out by absorbing Spiritual Qi in a crazed manner to craft matrixes on their product. While it was obvious he learned everything demonstrated there in a crash course, he was still able to show that he learned a lot and some things he did actually made sense. However, what they were doing still had people wondering if they were actually capable of crafting any ritual implement worth mentioning.


    "The base of crafting ritual implements lies with the matrixes crafted. That brother of yours seems to be decent at it, but the ways the physical object is prepared are just�� Well, let''s just say that he is bad at the simplest process of it all: shaping." Zhong Li knew something about crafting ritual implements, and he went on to comment at their work with a flabbergasted look.


    "So long as they can actually make something." Ye Futian felt dejected as well. He was puzzled as to why his seniors wanted to participate in the Alchemy Conference to begin with.


    One participant after another stopped what they were doing, and many finished powerful ritual implements were seen before them. Top class noble ritual implements, pulsing with terrifying auras. Two hours were almost up by then. Xue Ye and Luo Fan were still fumbling about. Ye Futian felt nervous and concerned on their behalf.


    "Time is up. Stop whatever you''re doing," a voice was heard eventually, and Xue Ye and Luo Fan breathed deeply as they finished in the nick of time. They had actually made it.


    "Anyone who failed at creating a top-class noble ritual implement, please leave immediately," the elder from the stairs announced. Many were seen looking at things laid before them, sighed, and left.


    More and more among the initial 3,000 were seen leaving, and there were about 300 left on the stage before long. The space where the competition was held looked rather empty by then.


    "Lift your ritual implements up and unleash their powers," the elder continued. Everyone did as they were told, unleashing the powers of their respective works. Devastating powers filled the air of the stage. There was no one left who were simply doing things for fun. The finished products of everyone who stayed behind all proved to be of top-class noble ranks.


    All of them were considered elite masters.


    What was most baffling, however, was that Luo Fan and Xue Ye were actually capable of crafting top-class noble ritual implements. While their end product was simply an irregularly shaped brick, the aura exuded from it said that it was still a top class noble ritual implement nonetheless.


    "Seemed to me that those two actually worked their a**es off to learn the art," Ye Futian commented with a smile. Those two seniors of his had always been cynical and buffoonish in their antics, but it was still undeniable that they truly dedicated themselves to learning the art. The very reason why they never learned how to shape their works was because they dedicated their efforts to learn the most important aspect of the art��the matrixes.


    The elder deliberately spared a glance at both of them and said nothing. He went on to announce, "In the next round, we will be providing the materials and smelting furnaces. All furnaces are of the same make, and you are free to choose the attributes of the materials given to you. However, every single material provided, regardless of attribute, is of the same level, and you will be limited to picking only three materials at most. Under similar conditions, the hundred who are able to craft their pinnacle noble ritual implements will be listed in the top hundred."


    One figure after another entered the arena as soon as the announcement was finished. All of them women, and all of them carried various kinds of crafting materials to be chosen by the participants. They were also people who set the smelting furnaces in their places, and every single one indeed looked identical. As such, no one was deemed to have any obvious edge against the other.


    With the elites selected from the first two rounds, the next round was all about standards of finished products crafted under the same conditions. It was the true test to pick the ones worthy of becoming the top hundred. Those top hundred were free to join any forces in Alchemy City of their liking.


    All 300 participants spread out once again, each taking their spot in front of a smelting furnace and having their selected materials laid out. The air felt tense. Many looked on feeling serious. The next round of crafting would be the key, and the winners would then make it to the top hundred.


    "Little brother, give it all you got in this one and don''t mess anything up," Xue Ye said in a soft voice. They were the slowest among the 300 in the previous round. However, they needed to be fast in the next one, and as such, they were required to make the simplest ritual implement they were able to come up with. But then again, it was nonetheless a challenge to make a simple ritual implement with the power of a top-class noble ritual implement.


    "Since when did I mess anything up?" Luo Fan asked in a puzzled manner.


    "Begin," the elder announced the start of the next round of crafting. Everyone became busy in an instant. Luo Fan and Xue Ye were especially serious, sparing no time to talk and focusing only on what they should be doing in silence.


    Time passed and finally, there was someone who finished their piece. "It''s done."


    That person was none other than Mu Ou. He crafted a very simple dagger, but it was a dagger that shimmered throughout, exuding terrifying air of sharpness. Many nodded in silence. Mu Ou was indeed very experienced at his art, and it was no surprise he turned out to be the fastest.


    Chi Lian was the second one who finished crafting. It was a sword.


    Lu Wei of the Lu clan in Alchemy City was the third person to finish crafting, followed by Zhou Sheng of Zhou clan. All of them were renowned figures in this event.


    More and more people finished crafting their ritual implements, and more and more became anxious. However, Gongsun Ye, You Tu, and Yu Ming went crafting their works in a very focused and composed manner still. It was as if they were pursuing an artistic flair in the works instead of making things simply to win the competition.


    The standards of the participants became even more apparent when they were forced to crafted high-level ritual implements using the same materials.


    You Tu crafted a pair of gloves, which were incredibly intricate. The gloves conjured terrifying shadow of a dragon and filled with an appalling sense of power as soon as he put them on his hands.


    "An heir of the city lord indeed," some quipped with an impressed tone.


    "Gongsun Ye''s work seemed not to be inferior as well. He went to craft a pair incredibly dazzling Roc wings, which shimmered with golden light, emanating incredibly sharp aura when the wings were melded with one''s body. It was an apparatus with both offensive and defensive properties, and it amplified the speed of the wearer as well. It was an astonishing feat for someone to be able to craft one such ritual implement in such a short time.


    "We''re done." Elated voices were heard. Xue Ye and Luo Fan looked at each other and smiled. The end product was still a brick. Terrifying might emanated from it as Xue Ye held his hands on the brick. It pulsed with the frightening power of lightning and packed highly destructive powers.


    "This..." Everyone was rendered speechless. Their end product looked almost identical to what they had crafted so far. Were they simply trying to get more familiar with their processes in the last round?


    While there were no rules forbidding such an act, it was nonetheless deemed baffling and shameless for them to craft a similar piece in two consecutive rounds.


    "Just how such losers manage to get so far in the Alchemy Conference? This is an insult," Di Zhou said coldly. As Ye Futian did not play nice with him before, he had no intention of being polite to him.


    "Slightly inferior standard at the art compensated with strategy. Good move," Ye Futian praised them loudly.


    "You call that a strategy?" Many looked at Ye Futian, finding him to be just as shameless as his seniors.


    100 mighty ones finished crafting pinnacle noble ritual implements soon and went on to unleash their powers as soon as they were done. The elder at the stairs, however, did not stop the competition. There was still a need to eliminate those who did not make the cut. As such, the competition at that round would have truly come to an end when 120 participants had finished crafting.


    Those who were not able to finish looked at Luo Fan and Xue Ye with disgusted eyes. They would have done the same if they knew that would have worked. One''s face was cheap when they had the chance to be among the top hundred.


    There was still the inspection of the ritual implements to be considered. The items crafted by the first 100 who finished did not seem to have any problems, and all of them were pinnacle noble ritual implements, including what Xue Ye and Luo Fan crafted. As such, they were able to make it to the top 100. Those who failed to make the cut left the arena one by one; all of them looked rather dissatisfied.


    Countless kept their eyes on the 100 at the front. They were the ones who were to compete in the final round.


    The elder at the stairs looked at the remaining hundred and said, "The next round will be the final round of the Alchemy Conference. There are no set limitations in this round. You will be crafting your best works using your own furnaces and materials. There will not be a time limit. Your time will be up when you have finished crafting your ritual implement. No re-craft will be tolerated, and finally, your rank will be entirely dependent on the quality of the ritual implement crafted."


    The next round of crafting battle was no longer an elimination round. Unlike martial arts competitions, all participants were allowed to craft at the same time. The rank would depend on the quality of ritual implement crafted.


    "You all will have one hour to rest and prepare yourselves, as well as to think what you would be crafting next," the elder continued, and the air in the stage felt different once again. In the next hour, the ritual implements crafted by the participants would decide the highest standards of the future generation of the world of armorers in Barren State!

 626 The Life Spirit Offering

    Everyone occupied a space of their own within the vast crafting area. Most were getting some shut-eye, getting their mental state to peak performance in order to participate in the final round of ritual implement crafting. This round was incredibly important.


    At the top of the stairs before the area, an elder walked towards You Chi and took a dazzling golden scroll from him. A flash of recognition shot through the eyes of many, and they stared at that golden scroll.


    "It''s the Alchemy Rank," someone said. The people spectating from afar seemed to be agitated at the revealing of the golden scroll. Now that the Alchemy Rank had been taken out, these top 100 armorers had received the right to have their names written down in the Rank. The following round would then decide their exact ranking within the Alchemy Rank in this year''s competition.


    This ranking could potentially affect the future of the participants. Should they be able to rank high in the Alchemy Rank, their prospects would be greater. All the top powers in the Barren State would support them with various training and ritual implement crafting resources. It would be an endless supply, and they wouldn''t have to worry about finding their own resources.


    This was how valuable talents in ritual implement crafting were. Each influential organization had its own armorer, and they invested a lot of resources to have these armorers work for them.


    The many armorers present took a good look at the Alchemy Rank. However, Xue Ye and Luo Fan did not seem to be the least bit bothered by the rank. They did not sit down to rest but were pacing in the side of the area. Many people were looking at the duo, wondering what they were up to. However, it was break time, after all; they were well within their rights to do whatever they wanted.


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan walked over to the spectator stands, which was on the right, and came before Ye Futian.


    "Fourth older brother, Fifth older brother," seeing the two men come over, Ye Futian smiled and greeted them. Yi Xiaoshi greeted the two as well.


    "Little brother, have you and Little Shi come over to Alchemy City for the trials as well?" Xue Ye asked.


    "Yeah, I came here to have a look around, and I got myself some ritual implements to use too." Ye Futian nodded before asking, "Older brothers, what are you participating in the Alchemy Conference for? If you want ritual implements, we could get them from the Alchemy Casino."


    Those who heard Ye Futian''s words from a distance away frowned in disapproval. What did this rascal take the Alchemy Casino for? For Ye Futian to speak of the Alchemy Casino like a place to simply get ritual implements, did he think the place belonged to him?


    "We haven''t seen each other for a few years, but Little Brother, how do you still not have any pursuits," Luo Fan replied, looking at Ye Futian.


    "Er." Ye Futian was taken aback. "If you''re not here for ritual implements, then are you really preparing to enter the City Lord Office to learn ritual implement crafting?" That seemed like a good idea to Ye Futian. If his Older Brothers were to learn ritual implement crafting from the City Lord Office, then it would be way easier for him to obtain ritual implements in the future.


    "No," Luo Fan shook his head lightly, "we''re aiming for first place."


    Ye Futian blinked and stared at Luo Fan wordlessly before turning to look at Xue Ye. With their abilities, it was already beyond lucky that they could even be in the top hundred. And now, they wanted to be first in the Alchemy Conference?


    "Are these two idiots?" Di Zhou cursed from afar. To him, something was definitely wrong with the heads of these two. Even You Tu from the City Lord Office wouldn''t dare claim that he would be able to get first place in the Alchemy Conference. In this Alchemy Conference, there were so many powerful people awaiting the results of the Alchemy Rank.


    "Older Brother, are you serious right now?" Ye Futian asked, perspiring from embarrassment.


    "Yeah." Xue Ye nodded his head, the image of seriousness. "We''ve got to be first place."


    "I believe you," Ye Futian replied, somewhat lost for words. He said the word ''believe'' with special emphasis.


    "Little Brother, since when have I ever lied to you?" Xue Ye said, looking at Ye Futian, "Since I said I''m aiming for the top, of course, I am going to go all in."


    Ye Futian looked at Xue Ye in confusion, wondering what the chances were that his Older Brother was really being serious about this.


    Ye Futian''s eyes shifted about, and he looked at Xue Ye somewhat warily before whispering, "I heard that the one who wins first place at the Alchemy Conference will be able to marry the daughter of the City Lord Office. Could it be that Older Brother has his eye on that family''s daughter?"


    "Smart guy, you finally got it," Luo Fan praised.


    "Little Brother, if a man as talented as I were to be out and about, it''s no wonder I''d attract the attention of a lady that''s as equally amazing as I am." Xue Ye sighed.


    Ye Futian was speechless for a while before he said, in some awe, "Older Brother, you''re amazing."


    "Little Brother, Little Shi, how has your training been at the Palace?" Xue Ye asked.


    "Seventh Older Brother and I are doing well. I''m a Grade Four Noble now, and Seventh Older Brother is a Grade Three Noble," Ye Futian replied.


    "That puts me at ease. Looks like you two aren''t too far from becoming top-notch nobles. The Holy Zhi Palace has many training resources; make good use of this opportunity to train well," Xue Ye advised nicely.


    "I understand, older brother." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Work hard, little brother. You''re a smart man, maybe we''ll need your help in future when it comes to Third Older Brother and Older Sister''s affairs," Xue Ye continued speaking.


    "Right." Ye Futian began to feel a little strange at his Older Brother''s words. He wondered what his Older Brother meant by telling him all that.


    "Well then, I''ll head over to prepare for the ritual implement crafting," Xue Ye announced.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded, and the two men left together to head back to their places in the area.


    An hour passed very quickly, and when the elder announced the start of the ritual implement crafting from the top of the staircase, the vast space instantly became deafeningly quiet, so much so that one could hear a pin drop.


    An endless crowd had gathered at the Conference, but no one spoke. Even the important guests had stopped their discussions as well. Everyone was intently watching the hundred people craft ritual implements. No one made any noise to not disturb those at work. This was the respect people showed towards the Alchemy Conference.


    At this moment, You Tu was bathed in frightening flames. The flames were golden and filled with an overpowering elegance. It took on the form of a dragon and became the Divine Fire of the Nine Dragons, which rushed into the smelting furnace.


    It''s the Golden Flames of the Nine Dragons, the spectators thought to themselves. The flames that were passed down a branch of the You family had incredible might. You Tu''s Life Spirit was even beaming with the flames. Nine golden fire dragons could be seen, bathed in the endless flames. It was an incredibly elegant sight. Furthermore, a pure gold material was sitting within You Tu''s smelting furnace at this moment. It was a golden asteroid, an incredibly rare material to use in ritual implement crafting. It was especially tough; even top-notch nobles would not be able to smash this golden asteroid into pieces if they tried. This material was often used in crafting Sage-level ritual implements. It could either create ritual implements with incredible attacking power or defensive ritual implements. You Tu was offering up his ultimate skills in this round.


    Gongsun Ye was also putting up a spectacular display. A dazzling matrix appeared beneath his feet, and a scroll floated within his smelting furnace. A large amount of Worldly Spiritual Qi flowed above the furnace, and many ritual implement crafting materials were melting on the scroll, dripping bit by bit into it. Afterward, seven shadow figures appeared, in the likeness of Gongsun Ye. Standing on top of the scroll, they lifted brushes and began inscribing.


    "That''s Gongsun Ye''s Dharma body," someone whispered. Everyone watched him work. While many people had given their all to enter the top hundred in the Alchemy Conference, to an armorer like Gongsun Ye, it was not necessary for him to go all out in order to reach this round. All he had to do was reveal just a part of his true abilities. But this round was where the real battle was, and he was going to craft a ritual implement that would trump all.


    Yu Ming was crafting a chess set, while Chi Lian was crafting a dueling sword. Mu Ou seemed to be crafting a magical orb, and everyone else was doing all they could to craft their respective ritual implements. Zhou Sheng and Lv Wei both had equally incredible ritual implement crafting processes.


    Ye Futian''s eyes swept across all the armorers present. Though he had little knowledge of ritual implement crafting, he could still feel the incredible skill present. The Alchemy Conference was the highest-level ritual implement crafting competition in the Barren State. Naturally, it was of a different caliber, with the Barren State''s best armorers of the Noble plane all present.


    His gaze then landed on his Older Brothers. The duo was uncharacteristically solemn. The ritual implement they were crafting seemed to be the same as what they had been doing; something that looked like a giant brick. Ye Futian wore a baffled expression at the sight. However, his Fifth Older Brother Luo Fan seemed to be cutting the brick into smaller pieces. His knife skill was akin to that required in cutting vegetables. The small pieces were all neat.


    The seriousness of his two older brothers had Ye Futian very confused. He began to suspect that his older brothers were genuinely serious in their attempt. Could it be that one of his older brothers had really fallen for the daughter of Alchemy City''s City Lord Office? However, everyone else at the Alchemy Conference was obviously very skilled in ritual implement crafting. Even if his two older brothers joined forces, it was impossible that they would gain victory over the rest.


    The crackling of flames was practically the only sound that could be heard in the quiet space. Gradually, the sound of clanging metal could be heard as well. This round of ritual implement crafting was the slowest, with four hours gone already and still no one having completed their ritual implement yet.


    In this final round, everyone was making use of their best skills in hopes of crafting a top-notch ritual implement. Whether it was ingredients or difficulty in crafting, the competitors were bringing only the best to the table, which meant the process was time-consuming. However, the ritual implements they were working on were beginning to take on their initial form.


    After two more hours, a ritual implement was fully-formed. It was a very thin sword; thin as gossamer and was dazzling silver. Like a silver thread, it flew about in the air, possessing a frightening penetrability while being almost as formless as the wind.


    "A good ritual implement," many people praised. It was indeed rare to see such a delicate crafting technique.


    Afterward, more people began to complete their ritual implements. Each one was sublime in their craftsmanship. Frightening energy drew everyone''s eyes in its direction. Over at Chi Lian''s side, a giant dueling sword that was branded with magnificent streaks of gold along its body was slowly ascending into the sky. The sword gave one the impression that it was incredibly heavy; however, the tip of the sword seemed to be unimaginably sharp, and a scary glint gleamed from the ritual implement.


    "Mu Ou''s ritual implement is almost done as well," someone commented, and many people looked towards him. A single orb spun in the air, clear and dazzling yet still releasing frightening surges of energy. Such delicateness in weapon crafting could probably only be attributed to an armorer of Mu Ou''s experience and skill.


    You Tu''s smelting furnace rose into the sky, and a Precious Cauldron of the Nine Dragons appeared, turning slowly in the sky. It was a magnificent sight to see.


    Gongsun Ye had crafted a catalog, within which the images of various people seemed to appear. Though it wasn''t fully formed yet, it had already impressed many people.


    "Seems like it''s a given that Gongsun Ye, You Tu, Chi Lian, and Mu Ou are going to be in the top ten," someone guessed. The ritual implements may not have been completed yet, but many people were already predicting the final rankings of the Alchemy Rank. The ritual implements that Gongsun Ye and You Tu had crafted also seemed to be at the level that deserved a ranking within the top three.


    Right then, someone looked in Xue Ye and Luo Fan''s direction. They were wondering how these two rascals, who had muddled their way into the top hundred, would do this round. They probably were going to come in last this time. However, the brick they had created was already cut into small pieces and even melted into something that looked like paper for a scroll. A dull metallic shine could be seen still, and Xue Ye was continuously inscribing a matrix quietly.


    "What''s that thing? A book?" Many people looked confused at the sight. They didn''t quite get what the two were trying to do, but what they were crafting now at least seemed more legitimate than whatever they had created in the past rounds.


    "Luo Fan, are you ready?" Xue Ye whispered, his voice solemn.


    "Older Brother, should we just give up? We can always beg Older Sister. Maybe there''ll be another way out." Luo Fan''s voice was equally as low.


    "I asked you if you were ready," Xue Ye hissed sternly.


    Luo Fan glanced over at him and replied, "Xue Ye, you better think this through."


    "DIdn''t I already clear things up with you before we came? I''m going to start," Xue Ye responded, and at his words, his Life Spirit flew out. An ancient book appeared and turned into an endless number of scrolls that danced in the sky. The pages from the ancient book shimmered and flew towards the small pieces of brick that lay on the smelting furnace.


    "Let''s do this," Xue Ye declared solemnly. Luo Fan was quivering slightly. While he had previously been relaxed and chatty, Luo Fan was now nervous beyond measure. He took in a deep breath and revealed an uncharacteristic seriousness. The flames suddenly turned incomparably violent and rushed towards the pages, melting them into the ritual implement. In an instant, the brick which had been cut into tiny pieces began to glow, emanating a dazzling golden glow. The matrix the two had inscribed previously began to glow intensely as well. The brick was no longer a brick, but a golden book.


    "Rascal." Zhuge Mingyue suddenly stood up, her gaze steely. Staring at Xue Ye, she ordered, "Xue Ye, stop right now." The influential characters around her were slightly taken aback as well. They knew what Xue Ye was about to do��he was going to insert his Life Spirit into the ritual implement as an offering. However, was this something Xue Ye was capable of doing? Only top armorers of the Sage Plane would dare to do such a thing. Xue Ye was obviously someone who had just picked up the art. He probably had only just read a few books on the subject. The consequences of pulling such a trick were dire. They included having one''s powers destroyed, or even death.


    What is he doing? wondered Chu Ji of the Goddess Pavilion. Was it necessary to put so much on the line just for the Alchemy Conference?


    "Is he crazy?" The large crowd now had their attention on Xue Ye. They were no longer making fun of him. Now he was actually serious and not being his usual shameless, joking self, Xue Ye was frightening.


    Fresh blood was trickling out the corners of Xue Ye''s mouth, and a desolate expression surfaced on his handsome face. Looking at Zhuge Mingyue''s expression, he said, "Second older sister, you''re so pretty, even when you''re angry. No wonder third older brother is so smitten. But I''ve finally met someone he likes after training for so long. Of course, I have to let myself do something crazy just this once."


    "Luo Fan, stop all this right now." Zhuge Mingyue then turned to Luo Fan, who was standing next to Xue Ye.


    "Second older sister, I don''t have any choice," Luo Fan replied haplessly.


    Zhuge Mingyue began to walk forward, but You Chi then spoke, "My niece, it is not permitted for anyone to interfere while the Alchemy Conference is ongoing." As he spoke, invisible energy surrounded Zhuge Mingyue. You Chi''s gaze turned to Xue Ye as well, a ripple of emotion appearing in his deep-set eyes. This rascal really is being audacious, he thought.


    "Second Older Sister, now that we''ve come to this point, you can''t stop me anyway. If something really happens to me, tell Third Older Brother that while he might have been very strict with me previously, I''ll still be his younger brother in my next life," Xue Ye whispered. "Of course, I won''t forget about you, my pretty Second Older Sister."


    "Fourth Older Brother," Ye Futian murmured, finally understanding what was going on. He stood up and stared at Xue Ye in disbelief that he had actually been serious about something that sounded like a joke.


    "Little Brother, remember what I said to you just now. Remember to take care of things between Second Older Sister and Third Older Brother. You may have been the last to become a disciple, but everyone knows that you are the Cottage''s true hope for the future," Xue Ye said, looking at Ye Futian.


    "Older Brother, there''re other ways out," Ye Futian replied seriously.


    Xue Ye chuckled and turned away without saying anything further. Luo Fan then asked, "Do you have nothing to say to me?"


    "Get lost," Xue Ye scolded him. "You better not let me meet you in the next life, you unlucky star."


    "The next life''s too far away. You better think this through. If you die, then someone else is going to take care of our sister-in-law, so you better not die." Luo Fan sighed leisurely. If Xue Ye wasn''t busy crafting the ritual implement, he would have killed Luo Fan with a slap.

 627 The End of the Ritual Implement Crafting

    In Alchemy City, a woman stood quietly at the top of an extremely tall ancient hall. She gazed into the distance, in the direction of the place where the Alchemy Conference was. When she saw Xue Ye offer up his Life Spirit to the ritual implement, her body trembled, and a flash of emotion shot through her eyes. However, she composed herself again almost immediately. Afterward, she walked out and stepped through the air in the direction of the City Lord Office.


    Over at the Alchemy Conference, everyone was moved by Xue Ye, and all eyes were on him, even more so than on people like You Tu and Gongsun Ye. Who was the woman who he had claimed to like? Who was the woman Luo Fan had called ''sister-in-law''? Could it be that Xue Ye had come here to craft ritual implements for the woman he loved? Xue Ye and Luo Fan had said that they were aiming for first place in the Alchemy Conference. The winner would be able to marry the daughter of the City Lord Office, You Xi.


    Just as everyone was busy pondering this question, a pretty figure walked out from within the City Lord Office. Walking forward, she came to the top of the staircase, standing near City Lord You and the rest. When the woman appeared, countless gazes fell upon her. She was dressed in loose, long robes that hung off her body in a way that made it hard to see her figure, but one could tell that she was tall and slim. She had an air of elegance about her, and there was a cold aloofness to her beautiful features, creating a sense of distance between her and other people that they did not dare to cross. This was a lady whose looks were not inferior to those of Su Hongxiu, though she did not have the natural charisma that Su Hongxiu had; only pure beauty.


    This lady was You Xi, the daughter of the City Lord Office.


    Her gaze landed on Xue Ye. Xue Ye glanced up at her and chuckled. "You''re here."


    "Why are you doing this?" You Xi asked Xue Ye. Her tone was cool, making it hard to guess what she was feeling.


    "Go back," You Chi ordered calmly, turning to his daughter. However, You Xi ignored his words as though she had not heard anything. This made many people speechless. You Xi was probably the only person in all of Alchemy City who would dare ignore the City Lord You Chi in this way. No one else would have dared to do the same.


    "I''d like to give myself a shot at this." Xue Ye grinned at You Xi.


    No wonder�� The crowd thought to themselves, surprised at this new development. So, it turned out that Xue Ye and Luo Fan had already known You Xi from before. Xue Ye had come to participate in the Alchemy Conference despite not actually knowing how to craft ritual implements because he had fallen in love with You Xi, the daughter of the City Lord Office. That was the reason he had come here with the goal of winning first place, even at the expense of his own life.


    "I don''t have any feelings for you, get out now," You Xi said coldly to Xue Ye.


    "Oh," Xue Ye smiled, "that''s alright. It''s enough for me that I like you. Besides, I''m not going to leave." As he spoke, his Life Spirit, the ancient book, continued flying rapidly into the ritual implement. The golden book ritual implement grew brighter still, and everyone else finally understood what he had been doing by crafting those ritual implements from the previous rounds. He had been preparing for this very moment.


    In this final round, he was turning that long brick into pages in order to make a book out of them. His Life Spirit carved matrices and integrated itself into the ritual implement, resonating with it before being crafted into one. It was the process of offering up one''s Life Spirit to the ritual implement.


    "Older Brother." Ye Futian stood there, staring fixedly at the scene happening before him. His older brother used to be so irreverent, but now he was suddenly throwing even his life away in order to craft a ritual implement. This sudden change was too much for Ye Futian. Was this all just to marry You Xi? Ye Futian wondered what his older brother had been through these few years, and what exactly he had gone through with You Xi.


    Hua Jieyu stood up as well and held Ye Futian''s hand tightly. She was equally shaken by the sudden shocking change in Xue Ye. The scene happening before Hua Jieyu''s eyes made her think about her own past with Ye Futian.


    "She also likes Older Brother Xue Ye." Hua Jieyu glanced over at You Xi. You Xi seemed aloof and emotionless, but Hua Jieyu could instinctively sense that You Xi was struggling internally, suppressing her own emotional turmoil in order to remain calm.


    Bright red blood trickled out continuously, staining Xue Ye''s top red. It was shocking to see. Xue Ye''s breathing grew increasingly weak, as if he were a lamp about to go out. His Life Spirit was being refined, his very soul being integrated into the ritual implement. However, Xue Ye continued, urging his Spiritual Energy on. He was intent on completing the ritual implement. Since he had already come so far, he was going to finish the task no matter what. He was prepared to pay any price for it.


    Frightening energy was burning, and everyone felt the energy around Xue Ye suddenly increase wildly. Despite the state he was in, the amount of energy around him was only increasing, and getting stronger as well.


    "He''s burning his own Spiritual Energy and releasing it at full capacity. What a crazy fellow," Yan Jun commented, looking at Xue Ye. It did take courage to go this far with one''s Spiritual Energy. However, he was doing it all just for a woman. Even if that woman was outstanding, with beauty that was absolutely stunning, was it really worth going this far?


    You Xi''s slim fingers quivered slightly, and it seemed like her cold gaze was on the verge of melting as well. A hint of redness appeared in her eyes.


    "That''s enough," You Xi ordered, her fists clenched.


    "You still care." Xue Ye smiled, looking at her.


    "You idiot," You Xi spat coldly.


    "You liar." Xue Ye was still smiling. At that, tears finally fell from You Xi''s eyes. Gleaming tears rolled down her cheeks smoothly, leaving tear after tear on her beautiful face. The sight of You Xi''s tears moved everyone.


    So, there actually had been something going on between these two. There was no way You Xi would shed tears for some random person. It was evident that the two had known each other from way back. Words like "idiot" and "liar" made it seem as though they were scolding each other, but it also felt like a sort of affection. The winner of the Alchemy Conference would receive the right to marry You Xi, but it seemed like You Xi had already been in a relationship with someone else before the Conference.


    If the person who won first place wasn''t Xue Ye, then what was the winner supposed to do? It was for that reason that Gongsun Ye, Chi Lian, and the rest who had not completed their ritual implement yet, were wearing such ugly expressions. They were not the only ones. Even You Chi, the City Lord, was frowning as well. This sort of affair was sure to put the City Lord Office in a difficult position and damage its reputation.


    However, the Alchemy Conference, which was held once every decade, was a tradition upheld by the You family for generations. If they were to host the Alchemy Conference, they would make sure that it was the talk of the entire Barren State. As such, You Chi would have to pick the best woman for the competition. It didn''t matter whether or not he could bear to offer up his own daughter. In any case, this also concerned the future of the City Lord Office. The winner of the Alchemy Conference would always be a person with exceeding talent in crafting ritual implements. They would make the best husband for a woman from the City Lord Office. However, his daughter You Xi had an especially fiery temperament. She had gone all out to resist this arranged marriage and created this huge mess today.


    Just then, a surge of incredibly savage energy was released. Over at Gongsun Ye''s side, his Dharma body was rapidly inscribing matrices that were even more powerful onto the scroll. It didn''t matter to him whether Xue Ye was offering up his Life Spirit to the ritual implement. For a beginner in the art of crafting ritual implements to go all out and win first place in the Alchemy Conference was madness. Even if Xue Ye paid with his life, it would be all in vain.


    Gongsun Ye was infuriated this very moment. He had believed firmly that he would be the winner of the Alchemy Conference without any hiccup occurring in his plans. He was going to enter the City Lord Office, marry the City Lord''s daughter You Xi, and inherit the City Lord Office and everything it owned in future. Everything that had happened thus far made him feel extremely humiliated.


    Is he recrafting his ritual implement? everyone wondered, their eyes flashing at the sight of Gongsun Ye''s actions. Gongsun Ye had yet to complete his ritual implement yet despite being close to it, which was why he could afford to recraft it. Now, it seemed like Gongsun Ye had been spurred to create an even more powerful ritual implement.


    Many people could secretly relate to how Gongsun Ye felt. Gongsun Ye was an immensely talented armorer from a great family of armorers. He was well-known in the world of armorers. He was comparable to Di Gang in terms of how much sway his voice held, and if he were to be ranked first in the Alchemy Rank, then he would be You Xi''s future husband as well. Now that there were hints of him potentially becoming a cuckold, he naturally could not stand it.


    You Tu glanced over at Gongsun Ye, wondering if it was possible for the ritual implement he was crafting to be any stronger still. If that was so, then there wasn''t much hope left for You Tu anymore.


    You Chi was hoping that You Tu would win first place, so that the winner of the Alchemy Conference wouldn''t have to marry You Xi. If that was the case, then it would be easier for You Chi to take control of the situation. However, it didn''t seem like there was much hope left for You Tu to win.


    With a grunt, You Tu completed his ritual implement. It was a cauldron lifted up by nine dragons, which glinted with a frightening glow. Powerful energy wafted from within the cauldron before the Nine Dragon Cauldron sank towards the ground and landed before him.


    Chi Lian had also completed his dueling sword, along with a growing number of people who were also wrapping up their work. However, Xue Ye and Gongsun Ye were still continuing, until they were the last two people left still working on their ritual implements.


    Xue Ye''s breathing was growing weaker still, and his Spiritual Energy seemed to have run out as well. The ritual implement floated before him, the golden pages shining with a brilliant dazzle. However, Xue Ye''s face was deathly pale, barely a hint of blood in his cheeks. His Life Spirit had been completely integrated into the ritual implement. Finally, he spat out a mouthful of blood, and his body fell backward as he became unable to support himself. As he fell, he managed to say, "I''m counting on you now."


    After speaking, Xue Ye lost consciousness. Zhuge Mingyue stared unflinchingly in his direction, while Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu held each other''s hand tightly until sweat formed in between their palms. You Xi''s face was filled with tears, and she shivered slightly.


    "You are the real unlucky star here. It''s my misfortune to have an older brother like you," Luo Fan murmured. Afterward, his Spiritual Energy seemed to burn as well, urging the flames to burn at their strongest in order to complete the task Xue Ye had not managed to finish. He was going to complete the ritual implement.


    The golden pages danced in the air, with each page carrying the heart and soul of the two people. Finally, the pages joined together to form the book from beginning to end, and streaks of light that were even more dazzling were released from the completion of the book. Luo Fan smiled, before plopping down onto the floor and looking at Xue Ye.


    "Older Brother," Luo Fan said to Xue Ye, "you could say I''ve put my life on the line for you. When you get married, remember to help introduce to me a woman that''s as good looking as my sister-in-law, alright?"


    Many people were speechless at Luo Fan''s words. These irreverent people really were optimistic about everything.


    Right then, an even stronger flash of light was released. In front of them, Gongsun Ye had also finished crafting his ritual implement. Within the Alchemy Pillars, a hundred armorers had all finished crafting their ritual implements. Now, a hundred ritual implements had appeared within the area, each ritual implement being a noble-level ritual implement of the highest quality.


    Whatever happened next would determine their rankings in the Alchemy Rank. However, the only question on everyone''s mind was: who would be the winner of the Alchemy Conference?

 628 The Alchemy Rank

    You Chi looked towards the crafting area, and announced, "Time''s up. Next, we''ll be determining the order of the ranking."


    "Understood," the elder standing on top of the staircase replied. He looked towards the crowd below, announcing, "We will check each ritual implement to test its strength, and display it before everyone. Then we''ll determine the ranking to be entered into the Alchemy Rank. Finally, the ranking will be judged by the City Lord and the heads of the various clans in Alchemy City. Only when there is no more dispute over the rankings will the Alchemy Rank be announced publicly." After he spoke, three elders walked into the crafting area. They started with the competitors at the back of the area. The elders walked up to the first competitor to be tested, asked his name, and then took the ritual implement.


    Spiritual Energy and Spiritual Qi flowed into the ritual implement. It was a ruler, colored a bloody red as if stained by fresh blood. When Spiritual Qi flowed into it, the ruler let out a frightening blood-red glow. It possessed immense flaming energy, and the temperature of the surroundings instantly became unimaginably hot.


    "It''s a ritual implement with top quality offensive power. It may have strong offensive capabilities, but only a single type of attack can be used. It has mid-level offensive martial arts capabilities, and it neither has any defensive power nor offensive Spiritual Energy capabilities," the elder commented. The other two elders checked the ritual implement too, and they did not dispute his judgment.


    Afterward, they began to test the second ritual implement. It was a clock with mid-level offensive martial arts capabilities, defensive capabilities, and offensive Spiritual Energy capabilities. It was evidently a very well-crafted ritual implement.


    "Impressive," many people praised. It was impressive that a ritual implement could be so well-balanced in its capabilities. Even though the ritual implement was judged as being only of a medium level, it was still a very well-crafted item nonetheless.


    The City Lord Office was very strict when it came to the judging of ritual implements. While these ritual implements were all noble-level items of the highest quality, they would still be separated into the following four grades��lower-level, mid-level, upper-level, and superior-level. If not, it would be very difficult to judge the differences between all the ritual implements crafted here. After all, the hundred people here had all created top quality noble-level ritual implements.


    The ritual implements went through the elders'' tests one by one, and countless gazes were fixed upon them. As the elders checked the power of each ritual implement, eventually an upper-level ritual implement emerged. Lv Wei presented a ritual implement that had upper-level offensive martial arts capabilities, upper-level offensive sorcery capabilities, and mid-level defensive capabilities. It was a very well-rounded ritual implement.


    Then, the elders came before Luo Fan and Xue Ye. Luo Fan was still sitting on the ground while Xue Ye had lost consciousness. Since his life was not in any danger, he was left in the crafting area to await the final results.


    "This ritual implement has a Life Spirit integrated into it. It''s a treasure book that contains many techniques. Please have a look at it," Luo Fan reminded them gently. The elders nodded. Taking the ritual implement, they injected their Spiritual Energy and Spiritual Qi into it. Immediately, the pages of the treasure book released a dazzling glow. Immense power flowed from each page in the book. In no time, the elders announced the results of their judging.


    "This ritual implement possesses a multitude of offensive techniques. It has upper-level offensive martial arts capabilities, upper-level offensive sorcery capabilities, upper-level defensive capabilities, and upper-level offensive Spiritual Energy capabilities," the elder announced.


    At the elder''s words, there was a flurry of discussion. This ritual implement had upper-level capabilities in all aspects. These two were just beginners in the art of crafting ritual implements, yet they had crafted a powerful ritual implement that was balanced in all aspects. If they were to train for a few years, they could potentially become highly skilled.


    Ye Futian clenched his fist lightly. His Older Brother''s ritual implement had achieved an upper-level grade in all aspects. Hopefully, that would be enough to help him win first in this Alchemy Conference. He wouldn''t have risked his life for nothing.


    Throughout the whole process, You Xi stared at Xue Ye. Tears remained in the corners of her eyes, but her expression and gaze became aloof and determined again. One would not be able to tell what she was feeling if not for the tears on her face.


    After Xue Ye and Luo Fan, there were many geniuses from Alchemy City who had managed to craft upper-level ritual implements as well. However, none of those could beat the ritual implement that the two had crafted. Everyone waited with bated breath. Even Ye Futian was getting nervous as he waited for a miracle to happen.


    "It''s Chi Lian''s turn now," someone said. Everyone stared at the three elders, who walked before Chi Lian to test the dueling sword before announcing the results, "Superior-level offensive martial arts capabilities and upper-level defensive capabilities."


    A strong competitor, many people thought approvingly. A dueling sword with superior-level offensive capabilities was no doubt a work of Chi Lian''s. However, it was still unknown if Chi Lian''s ritual implement would beat Xue Ye''s.


    "It''s Yu Wei''s turn." Everyone held their breath. His ritual implement was a chess set, and the results were: Upper-level offensive martial arts capabilities, upper-level offensive sorcery capabilities, upper-level defensive capabilities, and with the hidden potential for controlled attacks.


    Afterward, the elders walked towards Mu Ou and tested the magical orb he had created. The final results were: Upper-level offensive sorcery capabilities, upper-level offensive Spiritual Energy capabilities, with the hidden potential of defensive Spiritual Energy capabilities.


    As expected, things turned out the way many people had thought. While Mu Ou was skilled, he was restricted by the limits to his abilities in cultivation. He was not as strong as those top-notch talents, which restricted the quality of the ritual implement he crafted.


    Next up was You Tu''s Nine Dragon Cauldron. In the end, it was judged to possess superior-level offensive martial arts capabilities, upper-level defensive capabilities, and upper-level offensive Spiritual Energy capabilities. It was even stronger than Chi Lian''s dueling sword and had the hidden potential to carry out Spiritual Energy attacks.


    The treasure book that Xue Ye and Luo Fan had created was indeed magnificent. It did not pale in comparison to the ritual implement You Tu had crafted.


    The last person to be judged was Gongsun Ye. Ye Futian was especially nervous at this very moment. While the ritual implement You Tu crafted had been outstanding, his older brother''s creation had been no less impressive. Furthermore, it didn''t matter if You Tu came in first anyway. It all depended on that one last person.


    Gongsun Ye stood, waiting quietly for the elders to come to him. There was no hint of emotion in his expression. The elders took the scroll he had crafted before injecting Spiritual Energy and Spiritual Qi into it. Instantly, the scroll expanded such that it seemed to cover the sky itself. On the scroll, pictures seemed to come alive, and it seemed like there were matrices within the scroll as well. The matrices swallowed up the Worldly Spiritual Qi in the surroundings, and Spiritual Qi from the seven elements surged into it as well. The three elders lifted their heads to look around at the surroundings, their hearts shaken by the sight.


    "This catalog has the power of many matrices that you can combine at will. It swallows up Worldly Spiritual Qi in order to create frightening offensive spells. It even has the hidden potential of a Sage''s might within. This is a ritual implement with superior-level offensive sorcery capabilities, superior-level offensive Spiritual Energy capabilities, and upper-level defensive capabilities," the elder declared. Everyone''s gaze froze upon Gongsun Ye upon the elder''s judgment.


    This judgment seemed to have pre-determined the outcomes of this competition. It seemed like Gongsun Ye''s ritual implement would undeniably make him the winner of the Alchemy Conference. He would rank first in the Alchemy Rank.


    Gongsun Ye''s remained unaffected. He didn''t feel happy at all, only rage at how Xue Ye and Luo Fan thought they would be able to surpass him just by offering up a Life Spirit to the ritual implement. They were fools on a wild goose chase for success. Gongsun Ye thought that they should have given up by now. Yet he still couldn''t find it in him to be happy.


    Luo Fan, who was sitting on the ground, smiled. But his smile was somewhat depressed. Looking at Xue Ye, who was next to him, he said, "Older Brother, you put your life on the line in this gamble, but we''ve still lost." After all, they were only beginners in the craft. Having only started recently, they weren''t at all familiar with the ways of crafting a ritual implement. If it wasn''t for Xue Ye offering up his Life Spirit to the ritual implement, there was no way they would have come this far. Even then, they still weren''t good enough to triumph over that monstrously talented armorer.


    "So, they''ve lost." Ye Futian was shaken. His older brother had gone to such lengths, but still, he had lost. Since his Older Brother was in love with You Xi, it was a loss as long as he had not won first place.


    Zhuge Mingyue was somewhat upset as well. When she had first found out about the incident, she had been especially furious. She had never been so furious before. This was because Xue Ye''s actions were akin to looking for death. Even her father, who was the head of the Zhuge Family, would not be able to help Xue Ye, much less her. He would not help him either, because with the huge mistake he had made, there was no way the City Lord of the Alchemy City was going to let him off.


    And now, since Xue Ye had gone so far with this competition, there was nothing else she could say. In the end, he still had not managed to create a miracle and rewrite fate against all odds.


    You Xi''s expression was calm as ever. She just stood there quietly.


    The three elders were already in the process of creating the first draft of the rankings. They then submitted the draft to You Chi and the heads of the various clans in Alchemy City. After making a few small adjustments, You Chi inscribed the names into the Alchemy Rank personally.


    When You Chi stood up to announce the rankings in the quiet space, everyone perked up and listened intently. Every name on the Alchemy Rank could be a future legend in the world of armorers.


    Ye Futian didn''t bother listening; he was not in the mood. Names were announced one by one, and Ye Futian only began to listen half-heartedly when You Chi was at the last few names. Mu Ou was sixth, Yu Ming was fifth, and Chi Lian was fourth. Finally, it was time to announce the top three.


    You Chi looked at the crowd, before announcing, "Third in the Alchemy Rank, You Tu." Everyone was taken aback. You Tu, who was from the City Lord, was only third in the Alchemy Rank.


    "Second in the Alchemy Rank, Xue Ye and Luo Fan," You Chi continued. Countless people looked towards the two. Xue Ye and Luo Fan, who were lying and sitting on the ground, respectively, were two bleak figures. Though they had won second place in the Alchemy Conference, everyone only felt an atmosphere of despair about them.


    "First in the Alchemy Rank, Gongsun Ye," You Chi continued announcing.


    Being first in the Alchemy Rank was an immense glory. One was a shining star in the eyes of others, the next legend of the armorer world. But when people looked towards Gongsun Ye, they could not feel his excitement. Everyone knew that the reason for this was Xue Ye''s relationship with You Xi.


    It would have been better if he had not gotten first place. Today''s events had proven that Gongsun Ye had the abilities to be first in the Alchemy Rank, and he had attained first place, but now that he was first, the woman he was supposed to marry had now publicly revealed that she was in a relationship with another man. How was he supposed to save face now?


    Marrying You Xi, the daughter of the City Lord Office, You Chi''s daughter, and a talent in her own right, was supposed to be a good thing desired and envied by many. But now, it didn''t really amount to much at all.


    As a result, this edition of the Alchemy Conference ended on a rather strange note. None of the people in the top three were actually satisfied with their placement. You Tu was probably very disappointed with his own ranking.


    "We''ve now come to the end of the Alchemy Conference. The City Lord Office will be hosting a banquet to welcome our guests from all over the Barren State and the top 100 armorers," You Chi declared. Everyone understood that only top-notch individuals from all over the Barren State would deserve to be invited to the banquet. There was no place for commoners there.


    "During the banquet, the top 100 armorers shall receive their just rewards as well. Please follow me into the City Lord Office," You Chi spoke again before he turned to leave in the direction of the Office. The influential characters around him followed after him into the building.


    Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue moved towards where Xue Ye and Luo Fan were in a flash. You Xi went to go there as well, but she was blocked from doing so by two elders. In the end, she could only turn and go into the City Lord Office.


    Upon seeing this, Gongsun Ye''s expression turned darker. The two had been in a relationship, and Luo Fan even called You Xi his sister-in-law. Could anything have already happened between Xue Ye and You Xi? He was going to see how You Chi, a representative figure of the Barren State''s world of armorers, was going to account for this incident!

 629 Fight For I

    In Alchemy City, Ye Futian and the others gathered around Xue Ye and Luo Fan. Zhuge Mingyue checked Xue Ye''s injuries.


    "Senior Sister, how is he?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Very weak," Zhuge Mingyue said. "He''s used up all his spiritual energy and used his life spirit. He must have damaged his vitality. We won''t know the result until he wakes up. This idiot."


    "He''s indeed an idiot," Luo Fan also said.


    "I''ll take care of you later." Zhuge Mingyue glanced at Luo Fan, making him smile wryly.


    "Let me see," a gentle voice said right then. Ye Futian looked over at Phoenix and said, "Phoenix is the disciple of the undying old man. Senior Sister, let her look."


    "Okay." Zhuge Mingyue made room for her.


    Phoenix walked to Xue Ye''s side and released her spiritual energy. Green light flashed instantly, enveloping Xue Ye''s body. The thick aura of vitality oozed out. Green light seeped into Xue Ye bit by bit.


    "His vitality is greatly damaged and he''s hurt his core. He''ll be disabled by the time he wakes up," Phoenix murmured.


    Ye Futian paled instantly. "Is there any way to save him?"


    "Yes." Phoenix nodded. She reached out and took a pill from her storage ring. "This is the pill my teacher gave me," she said. "The Phoenix Pill."


    "The Phoenix Pill that is said to bring people back from the dead?" Zhuge Canyang''s eyes flashed. This medicine was extremely valuable. It could be traded for a Sage ritual implement. Even Sages dreamed about having that pill. Having it could save their lives.


    Was this woman going to give it to Xue Ye now?


    Ye Futian obviously knew how valuable the Phoenix Pill was. Earlier, Phoenix had used it as her wager at the Casino Alchemy and the others were all shocked.


    "Yes, but it''s not that miraculous. If someone is truly dead, he can''t be brought back. However, he''s only a Noble. This pill is able to replenish what he used up today," Phoenix said. Then she put the Phoenix Pill in Xue Ye''s mouth. The pill melted immediately and Xue Ye glowed brilliantly. He seemed to be blanketed in some miraculous power. The Phoenix Pill''s powerful medicinal effect was mending his body. Gradually, Xue Ye was covered in light. Luo Fan blinked. "Girl, do you have more? I''m hurt badly too."


    "Shut up." Zhuge Mingyue glanced at Luo Fan.


    "Senior Sister, I was just joking," Luo Fan said with a trembling smile.


    "Your injuries don''t need the Phoenix Pill. You just used up all your spiritual energy and didn''t hurt your core like him. This pill will be enough." Phoenix took out another pill for Luo Fan who accepted it with a smile.


    "Thank you. If you need anything in the future, just ask my junior."


    Ye Futian stared at this guy, speechless. However, he still had to thank Phoenix. Looking over, he said, "Thank you."


    "Didn''t we receive many ritual implements earlier? It''s not a loss for me." Phoenix smiled. Ye Futian made note of her help. In reality, they weren''t very close. Phoenix cultivated in the Daozang Pavilion with Jieyu. She''d only asked him some questions about cultivation before and hadn''t really interacted until this trip to Alchemy City.


    A while later, Xue Ye opened his eyes. Various faces appeared in his vision.


    "Result?" he asked as soon as he woke up. Clearly, he was still worried about the ranking of the Alchemy Conference.


    Zhuge Mingyue glared at him. This guy cared about the ranking instead of his own life.


    "Second," Luo Fan said.


    "Who''s first?" Xue Ye asked. He hoped it was You Tu.


    "Gongsun Ye."


    "So we still lost?" Xue Ye''s eyes darkened immediately.


    "Fourth Senior Brother, perhaps Gongsun Ye will give up because of your relationship with her," Ye Futian comforted.


    Xue Ye sat up and noticed the strangeness of his body. "Why am I okay?" he asked.


    "You really think that you can marry You Xi if you disable yourself and win first place? Idiot," Zhuge Mingyue scolded. "If Junior''s fellow disciple hadn''t given you a pill, you''d be disabled right now."


    "Thank you." Seeing that Zhuge Mingyue was looking at Phoenix, Xue Ye realized who''d saved him. He thanked her softly, thinking that his junior was very powerful. He always had beauties around him while Xue Ye couldn''t even catch one.


    "Since you''re alive, let''s go to the banquet in the city lord''s office. With your performance today, City Lord You won''t kill you." Zhuge Mingyue''s expression was still cold. Then she started walking towards the city lord''s office. The others all followed her.


    "Second Senior Sister, Senior Brother is pretty miserable. Don''t yell at him," Ye Futian whispered.


    "Yell? He''d gotten his life saved. Ask your asshole senior brother what he''d done." Zhuge Mingyue''s anger hadn''t subsided at all. Ye Futian found this strange. He''d seen Xue Ye and You Xi''s relationship. Why was Zhuge Mingyue saying this?


    Right then, Luo Fan patted Ye Futian''s shoulder and said telepathically, "Junior, don''t tell anyone, but Fourth Senior Brother has already had sex with her."


    Ye Futian felt awkward. This��


    "And she has it already," Luo Fan added.


    Ye Futian tripped and stumbled forward. He almost fell. Luo Fan grabbed his shoulder to steady him, but Ye Futian''s brain had almost stopped working.


    This guy�� Ye Futian finally understood why Second Senior Sister was so angry. Even he wanted to kill his senior brother.


    Wasn''t this suicide? Who was You Xi? She was the daughter of You Chi, the top armorer of the Barren State and eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking. He''d already proposed to marry You Xi to the first place of the Alchemy Conference. Even so, Xue Ye had had sex with You Xi and even got her pregnant�� This was no different from suicide.


    Ye Futian finally understood Second Senior Sister''s reaction in the Holy Zhi Palace. Indeed, she couldn''t save Xue Ye. Even the Zhuge Family''s patriarch couldn''t help. Xue Ye was looking for death. Ye Futian felt that it was a miracle for him to live until now.


    "What''s wrong?" Hua Jieyu asked. She found Ye Futian''s reaction strange.


    "Nothing." Ye Futian composed himself and stopped talking for now. He couldn''t spread this news. Otherwise, You Chi might actually kill Xue Ye. Thankfully, You Xi''s stomach was still small and no one could tell. Otherwise, no one could save Xue Ye. Now, they had to see if there was still a chance.


    You Chi had seen Xue Ye win second place in the Alchemy Conference. He''d probably consider forgiveness too. After all, this was a scandal and he wouldn''t want it to spread. If Xue Ye could marry You Xi, this scandal would be covered instead of exposed.


    The city lord''s office had already prepared a grand banquet. After Ye Futian''s group arrived, the banquet began. They quickly found their seats and sat down. Many people looked towards them and especially at Xue Ye. Had he really woken up so quickly?


    You Chi also glanced at Xue Ye, but no one could tell what he was thinking from his calm expression. While making armory earlier, he''d acted as if he didn''t even see Xue Ye. His endurance was terrifying.


    "This year''s Alchemy Conference is over," You Chi said to everyone. "Since we are all here, the promise from before is still effective. All the lords of the major families of Alchemy City are here personally. The 100 of the Alchemy Rank can choose whichever family they''d like to cultivate in. Of course, you can also join the city lord''s office."


    "Today''s final battle was incredible," the family lord of the Zhou Family said, smiling. "It''s even more impressive than the last one ten years ago. If anyone is willing to join the Zhou Family, we will definitely treat you well. We will provide the best cultivation and armory conditions."


    "The same for the Lu Family," the respective family lord said. After that, the other families all spoke out, but they didn''t say anything specific. Evidently, they couldn''t compete so directly. However, this kind of invitation was tradition. The people could choose for themselves. After all, they should know that the top 100 were still weaker than the top ten. If they entered the city lord''s office, City Lord You Chi still wouldn''t have time to teach them, and they''d have fewer opportunities. There were many talents in the city lord''s office. The top talents of every decade joined it. If they joined the city lord''s office, they would be able to receive tips from the seniors there and have a good atmosphere. However, they wouldn''t stand out and receive special training. Thus, not everyone would choose the city lord''s office.


    "Of course, you don''t need to rush. If the top ten chooses the city lord''s office, they can practice armory with me. For the top three, I will personally teach you my techniques," You Chi continued. This was what he''d promised before. "Of course, if you have other choices, I won''t blame you. This is your choice."


    "I''m willing to cultivate in the city lord''s office," Xue Ye said first. Many people looked at him. This guy had an ambiguous relationship with You Xi. He obviously wanted to cultivate in the city lord''s office.


    You Chi scanned him indifferently but still nodded. "Alright."


    Gongsun Ye''s expression was extremely ugly. He stared coldly at Xue Ye. Coincidentally, Xue Ye looked up at him and said, "Gongsun Ye, I already knew You Xi beforehand. You won first place in the Alchemy Conference, but if you can give it up, I would be grateful from the bottom of my heart. If you need anything in the future, I will help you."


    This guy. Many people looked at Xue Ye, intrigued. Was he publicly begging Gongsun Ye? Everyone understood what he wanted Gongsun Ye to give up, of course. Evidently, Xue Ye had only won second place, but he still hadn''t given up. He wanted to fight for it through Gongsun Ye.


    Gongsun Ye stared coldly at him. He felt insulted.


    "You''ve already seen what''s between my senior brother and You Xi," Ye Futian said. "It isn''t fair to you, and it''s my senior brother''s fault. But things are already as they are, so why don''t you just give them your blessing? If you have any requests, I will try my best. We will owe you in the future." Since Xue Ye and You Xi already had a child, he had to help fight for Xue Ye. And there were only two options: Gongsun Ye and You Chi.


    In reality, Gongsun Ye was the only option. After all, if Gongsun Ye insisted, You Chi couldn''t take back his words!


    Gongsun Ye raised his head and sent a mocking glare at Ye Futian. "Scram!"

 630 Talk with You Chi

    Gongsun Ye was totally pissed off. You Xi''s date with Xue Ye was a shame to him. At this moment, how could Xue Ye and Ye Futian dare to make this known to all and ask him to make a concession? Were they mad? He was first place in this Alchemy Conference. How could they treat him like this? He made great achievements both in martial arts and alchemy. People regarded him and Di Gang as the two top talents of Alchemy City.


    Gongsun Ye had planned this for a long time before the Conference. He was going to be the winner. Then You Chi would enroll him as his first disciple. He was also going to marry You Xi, the famous beauty of Alchemy City. He was going to be the next legend.


    He had waited too long for this day to come. But what happened on the Alchemy Conference had destroyed his fantasies. Everything he''d wanted had been tainted.


    Xue Ye took his woman away.


    Ye Futian was the winner of the pavilion battle three years ago. Who did he think he was to interfere with Gongsun Ye''s matters and make him stop? Owe him? He was the first of the Alchemy Rank. He didn''t need Ye Futian to owe him.


    Ye Futian was only the winner of a battle that was held every three years, but Gongsun Ye was the winner of the Alchemy Conference that was held every ten years! He would definitely become a legend in the world of alchemy. Those top talents of the Barren State would respect him too. In the future, he wouldn''t even need to care about the Holy Zhi Palace. You Chi, the lord of Alchemy City, had never bothered to attend the battle held by the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The word "scram" silenced everyone. Eyes all fell on Ye Futian. The big figures also became interested in this show held by the winner of the Alchemy Conference and the winner of the Pavilion Battle.


    Looking over and seeing Gongsun Ye''s eyes, Ye Futian knew it was impossible for Gongsun Ye to concede now. From Gongsun Ye''s eyes, Ye Futian saw anger, coldness as well as pride. Obviously, Gongsun Ye didn''t think much about his status as a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Gongsun Ye turned slowly to You Chi and asked, "Sir, my engagement with You Xi won''t be changed, right?"


    "Gongsun Ye!" At this time, Di Kai looked at Gongsun Ye and exclaimed, "It is a tradition that the winner of the Alchemy Conference will marry the city lord''s daughter. This is one of the greatest events in Alchemy City. Since Mr. You has promised, no one can change it. Please don''t mind what just happened. The engagement won''t be influenced."


    "Gongsun Ye, mind your mouth!" one of his seniors warned. Gongsun Ye was from the Gongsun Family, which was old and well-known for Alchemy.


    "I apologize for being rude." Gongsun Ye took a bow and raised a glass. "I''ll take three as punishment." Then he drank three glasses of wine.


    Xue Ye and Ye Futian didn''t look well because they knew that Gongsun Ye was going to marry You Xi no matter what.


    "Gongsun Ye." You Chi also turned to Gongsun Ye. He stood up and said, "I''m sorry about what happened before. It''s my fault. As the host of this Conference, I should be responsible for this too. Now, I would like to tell you something. You are still the one to decide. Please follow me." Then You Chi stood up and walked away.


    Gongsun Ye''s eyes flashed. Was You Chi going to give him an explanation? He stood up too and followed You Chi to the distance.


    Many people looked in their direction curiously. You Xi''s appearance probably embarrassed You Chi. He had to arrange this well. People were curious about what You Chi would say to Gongsun Ye.


    Xue Ye''s group was also looking at the same direction, but You Chi had separated the rest of them. Then he said to Gongsun Ye, "Gongsun Ye, since you are the ultimate winner of this Conference, you can be my disciple if you''d like. I will teach you everything I know about Alchemy. As for You Xi, I didn''t teach her well. It''s my fault. But before you make the decision, I have to make something clear in case you regret your decision."


    "Sir, what''s it?" Gongsun Ye felt there was something strange. You Chi had called him here for a personal conversation with him. Was there something wrong?


    "You Xi is a rebellious girl. She isn''t actually willing to marry somebody she doesn''t know. That''s why she once left home for a while. It was at that time she met Xue Ye. And they did something improper." You Chi didn''t reveal too many details. He knew that his daughter, by doing this, was protesting his decision.


    Hearing You Chi''s words, Gongsun Ye turned pale. Something improper? He knew what it meant. If he married You Xi, it would mean that she''d already had another man before marriage.


    He clenched his fists tightly. His nails dug into his palms. Gongsun Ye took a deep breath, trying to calm down.


    "I am responsible for this, but it has already happened," You Chi said. "If you decide not to marry her, I will make it up to you in other ways. After entering the City Lord''s Office, you will get to know many other beauties of my family. Once you meet someone you love, I will let her marry you. What do you think?" He didn''t actually have to make such a promise. It wasn''t a big deal even if Gongsun Ye knew the fact after their marriage. You Chi was only concerned that Gongsun Ye, the winner of the Alchemy Conference, might hate him and You Xi. That wouldn''t be a good thing for the family. That was why he chose to tell Gongsun Ye the truth and promised that he would make it up to him.


    "If I concede like this, I will never be able to move past this mark on my reputation. I will become the subject of gossip." Gongsun Ye was torn. He lowered his head and coldness flashed in his eyes.


    You Xi, you''ll regret it. Gongsun Ye''s heart was cold. He laughed and looked at Chi You. "Sir, it''s a little shameful, but You Xi is such a wonderful girl. I still want to marry her."


    You Chi looked at Gongsun Ye meaningfully, as if he knew what Gongsun Ye was thinking.


    "What if You Xi is pregnant?" You Chi continued. He didn''t want to reveal this, but seeing that Gongsun Ye still wouldn''t give up, he had to tell the truth.


    Gongsun Ye stepped back and trembled. His face turned paler. If You Chi wasn''t here, Gongsun Ye would have exploded. His fianc��e was pregnant with another man''s child.


    B*tch! Gongsun Ye was furious and needed to vent his anger.


    "I won''t change my mind," Gongsun Ye said determinedly, looking at You Chi.


    "Fine, as long as you don''t mind. However, I want you to keep this secret. I don''t want anyone else to know. You understand?" You Chi said slowly. Gongsun Ye felt invisible pressure. He knew the consequence if he dared to tell others, even if he won first place.


    "I understand," Gongsun Ye replied.


    "Okay, go back now," You Chi said. "I will give you a few days to think about it. You don''t have to make the choice now."


    "Yes, sir." Gongsun Ye turned around and walked away. Seeing his back, You Chi sighed inwardly.


    Gongsun Ye was too proud. He wanted everything to be perfect, but he couldn''t make it perfect this time. If Gongsun Ye was willing to concede and spend all his effort in practicing Alchemy, You Chi would teach Gongsun Ye everything he knew and give him a good wife. But Gongsun Ye was like an extremist. You Chi knew he would definitely mind You Xi''s pregnancy. So why did he insist?


    The two went back to the dinner as if nothing had ever happened. After a while, You Chi announced, "For those who have made the Alchemy Rank, I will give you three days to decide. I will support any decision you make. Three days later, anyone that wants to join me can come directly."


    Everyone nodded. Top talents like Di Kai and Yan Jun raised their glasses too, feeling a bit curious. Why didn''t You Chi make them decide right now? In such an occasion, most people would definitely choose to stay in the City Lord''s Office.


    Three days was enough for other schools to draw these talents over to their side.


    Gongsun Ye looked calm but was actually very upset. He knew the three days was for him.


    "The Conference has ended, but I still want to see more." Chu Jijiao smiled attractively and said, "Today, we have so many talents here. It''s a good time to have another competition, isn''t it?"


    "You have too many ideas," said Yan Jun. He looked at Bai Luli by his side and asked, "How are the two headmasters of the Holy Zhi Palace?"


    "They are well," Bai Luli replied with a smile. The two chiefs that Yan Jun had mentioned were number one and number three of the Barren Sky Ranking, respectively.


    "I''ve heard that the top chief hasn''t come out for a long time. Is he still practicing in isolation?" Di Kai asked.


    "Our head chief is always mysterious like this. I have no idea either," Bai Luli replied with a smile.


    Di Kai smiled meaningfully. Others might have had no idea, but people like Di Kai knew that the number one on the Barren Sky Ranking had been badly hurt. He didn''t reveal the truth and just smiled at people. "Among the top ten on the Barren Sky Ranking, other than number two, the Ice Temple, the other nine are all connected to the people here."


    "You are right." Yan Jun scanned the crowd. The first and second were Bai Luli''s grand-master and master. The fourth was Bai Luli''s father. Huang Jiuge''s father was the fifth. Zhuge Mingyue''s father was the sixth. The seventh was Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s master. Chi You was the eighth. Xu Que, the ninth''s successor was here too. Bai Luli was the tenth.


    Almost half of the ten people were close to Bai Luli.


    "Among people here, who will be the future top ten?" Di Kai smiled and glanced at Di Gang by his side. Actually, they didn''t know that the successor of the second was here too. This meant that the Barren Sky Ranking''s top ten or their successors were all here!

 631 Grade Three Noble

    After the banquet ended, the crowd left. Ye Futian''s group also returned to their inn, Xue Ye and Luo Fan following them back. Along the way, Xue Ye appeared to be depressed and Ye Futian naturally understood why.


    It was already late at night. In the yard, under the moonlight, Ye Futian told Xue Ye, "Brother, there are still three days, the situation can still change for the better."


    "You''ve already seen Gongsun Ye''s attitude. He isn''t going to give up. The tradition of the Alchemy Conference has continued for many years. Moreover, You Chi has personally promised him that as long as Gongsun Ye doesn''t give up, nothing will change." Xue Ye could not think of any means to overcome the situation. In today''s Alchemy Conference, he had already tried his best but was unfortunately unable to come in first.


    "During the feast, You Chi took Gongsun Ye aside for a period of time and gave him three days to consider afterward. City Lord You must be wavering as well, and brother should know the reason better than me. You sacrificed everything when participating in the Alchemy Conference and came in second. You Chi must be considering brother as well," Ye Futian said.


    Xue Ye looked at Ye Futian. Previously, he had nearly died at the hands of the people from the City Lord Office. It was You Xi who had protected him without caring about the repercussions and asked him to escape to somewhere far away.


    "Brother, what happened between you and You Xi? How could you be this foolish?" Ye Futian asked, speechless.


    "Luo Fan and I went to the Fire Mountain to cultivate. She was there as well, so we ran into each other. You know your fifth brother and me, we were only messing around with her, but we did not expect her to be so passionate. After some time, I fell in love with her, but at that time, I did not know her identity. When she gave herself to me, I swore that I would take care of her for life. For that period of time, we were very happy and freely cultivating together until we were found by the Alchemy City City Lord Office''s experts. It was then that I discovered she was the daughter of the eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking, You Chi."


    Xue Ye''s expression was pained as he continued, "I know that she lied to me, but I am not a fool. I naturally understood that she really loved me or she would not have given herself to me. In that time, I could feel her joy and cheerfulness. Although we did not interact for long, I understand her character. She is headstrong and dedicated. If she marries Gongsun Ye, I don''t know what the outcome will be."


    Ye Futian nodded. Even though You Xi knew that she would be engaged to the first in the Alchemy Conference, she still had relations with Xue Ye, evidently because she was unhappy about having an arranged marriage. From this, one could see how headstrong her nature was. She was defying her father.


    "You Xi is the daughter of the Alchemy City Lord, the eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking. There is nobody who can help me. Even Second Sister is powerless to change the situation, so I could only take part in the Alchemy Conference." Xue Ye sighed as he said, "However, nothing has changed."


    "A lot has changed. From my perspective, if brother did not participate in the Alchemy Conference, there would truly be no hope. You Chi might even not let brother off the hook then. The situation now already has hope for reversal. Let us continue thinking, there will definitely be a way out," Ye Futian said. There were still three days. As long as the situation was not set in stone, there would be hope for change.


    "Mm." Xue Ye nodded, but he still felt despair that it was impossible to change anything.


    "Little brother, rest early," Xue Ye said as he left with Luo Fan. In the courtyard, only Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu remained. He raised his head and looked at the moon in the sky, his hands behind his back as he thought. How should he resolve the current situation? As he continued thinking, he felt irritated. If Gongsun Ye was unwilling to give way, it would be a dead end.


    He sat on the floor and took out his Soul Guqin and started playing. The Guqin melody was harmonic and calmed him down. He knew how well the brothers in the Cottage treated him. Back then, when he entered the Cottage, he was only 18 and rash. At that time, everyone treated him like their own little brother and doted on him, especially second sister. His other brothers also protected him when he was surrounded by strong enemies and never allowed him to suffer.


    However, that day in the Holy Zhi Palace, he wanted to tell his second sister that he was growing and becoming stronger. Now that fourth brother had such a situation on his hand, he naturally wanted to do his part, but there was no room for him to interfere. His fourth brother was willing to risk his life for it. Would he really have to personally witness the tragedy unfold?


    The Guqin melody appeared insufficient to calm him down. Hua Jieyu walked to his side and leaned silently on his shoulder. She knew that he was in no state of mind to play the Guqin right now.


    The Guqin strings quivered gently and Ye Futian stopped playing, stretching out his arm to hug the beauty beside him.


    "Fox, we are actually very lucky." Ye Futian said.


    "Mm." Hua Jieyu nodded gently, her head sliding down to Ye Futian''s lap, where she laid quietly. She said in a tender voice, "Although we''ve been through a lot, we are now together. However, I don''t know if fourth brother can make it through this turmoil."


    "He will," Ye Futian replied softly.


    "Two years ago, at the end-of-year sparring session, you wrote your entire life story in a tune. Can you play that tune for me again?" Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian and asked gently.


    Ye Futian looked at the beauty before him and lowered his head, kissing her on the lips. He smiled and replied, "Sure." After saying that, he crossed his legs, bringing Hua Jieyu higher into his chest. Ye Futian strummed the Guqin''s strings with his fingers and the Guqin melody started again, from Qingzhou Academy where it all started��


    That one tune was all that mattered that night.


    ��


    The second day at dawn, a huge commotion started in the largest city in the southwest, the Alchemy City. The news from yesterday''s Alchemy Conference had spread across the entire city. Everyone was discussing it; not just about the Alchemy Ranking, but also about Xue Ye and You Xi.


    There were countless people who were there yesterday. The person who had left the deepest impression on them was not the first on the Alchemy Ranking, Gongsun Ye, but the second, Xue Ye. The impact that he gave them was too strong, from the first impression of just playing around to sacrificing his Life Spirit to create a ritual implement and coming in second. Moreover, he had a relationship with You Xi. This kind of story was the kind that most people liked, so it had been spread by countless people. Many people were wondering if Gongsun Ye would give up and give Xue Ye and You Xi his blessings.


    At dawn, another piece of news started circulating. Today, the Emperor Family was organizing a banquet and had invited all the experts on the Alchemy Ranking. As the two strongest factions in the Alchemy City, the City Lord Office and the Emperor Family both wanted these experts. Since the City Lord Office had given them three days to consider, the Emperor Family naturally wanted to win them over as well.


    In the inn, Ye Futian was practicing his punches in the courtyard. Hua Jieyu sat beside him, her head on her knees with a mellow beauty. Her eyes had a tender look in them as she silently watched his figure.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was filled with vigor. Yesterday, when he played the Guqin tune, he unknowingly broke through his Spiritual Energy and entered the Grade Three Noble in his sorcery, which was an unexpected surprise. Practicing his fists at dawn was a habit that he had long developed. He hoped that his martial arts could also break through together with his sorcery.


    "Futian," at that moment, Yi Xiaoshi walked over and called out to him. Ye Futian looked at him and replied, "Good morning, Seventh Brother."


    Yi Xiaoshi stared at Ye Futian, feeling as though something was different today.


    "The Emperor Family has organized a banquet today and invited those on the Alchemy Ranking. Not long ago, there were people who came to invite Fourth and Fifth Brother. The two of them have made their way there," Yi Xiaoshi said.


    A glint appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes, the Emperor Family also wanted to win over the top 100 in the Alchemy Conference.


    He suddenly thought though the Emperor Family and City Lord Office both resided in the Alchemy City and their ancestors had good relations, over the years, even though they still protected the reputation of the Alchemy City, competition was inevitable.


    If that was so, the Emperor Family would probably try means and ways to win over Gongsun Ye. Gongsun Ye would naturally be unhappy about Fourth Brother and You Xi''s matters. It was possible that he would involve the City Lord Office in his rage. If he joined the Emperor Family, what would happen then?


    As he thought about the possibilities, Ye Futian''s mind became more active and he said, "Since they''re inviting the people on the Alchemy Ranking, it''s only natural for Brother to go."


    "Di Zhou from the Emperor Family said some unfriendly things yesterday, moreover..." Yi Xiaoshi paused, evidently worried.


    "Seventh Brother, it''s not like you can stop Fourth Brother from going to the banquet," Ye Futian replied. Yi Xiaoshi''s gaze wandered over as Ye Futian continued, "Fourth Brother is the second in the Alchemy Conference, nothing will happen to him, let''s just wait and see how it goes."


    "Mm." Yi Xiaoshi could only nod.


    "I''m going out for a walk," Ye Futian said as he left the courtyard, walking over to where Xu Que resided.


    "Is anything the matter?" Xu Que saw Ye Futian and asked, smiling.


    "Does the Tingxue House have informants in Alchemy City?" Ye Futian asked. He had heard that the Tingxue House''s underground faction was all around the entire Barren State.


    "Yes." Xu Que nodded.


    "In today''s Emperor Family banquet, can they monitor what is happening?" Ye Futian asked Xu Que again.


    Xu Que stared at Ye Futian, then smiled casually and said, "Sure."


    "Do me a favor," Ye Futian requested.


    Afterward, Ye Futian left Xu Que and invited everyone to go to Alchemy City for a walk. They weren''t sure if he did it intentionally, but he selected an area near the Emperor Family''s residence.


    At that moment, it was exceptionally lively in the residence as all the geniuses had come to the residence. In name, the Emperor Family had only invited the experts on the Alchemy Ranking, but in reality, they had also sent people to invite many other geniuses in all regions of the Alchemy City. The teenage geniuses from the southwest region of the Barren State had all gathered in the Emperor Family''s residence. It was a sight to behold.


    At that moment, outside the glorious Emperor Family residence, Xue Ye and Luo Fan had arrived.


    "Brother, it''s not a good idea for us to be here," Luo Fan said.


    "I know," Xue Ye nodded and continued, "but I still want to try."


    "Why go through all this pain." Luo Fan sighed. They had already avoided a calamity on the Alchemy Conference.


    Gongsun Ye evidently did not want to give in, as seen from yesterday''s banquet. However, the guy was really a b*stard, since he had already gotten first in the Alchemy Conference, there was no need for him to be so fixated on it. Was it just because he did not want to lose face?

 632 Unbearable

    In the Emperor Family residence, the crowd had arrived a long time ago and the banquet had already been prepared. During the banquet, there was good food and wine and even beauties performing dance and musical instruments. The geniuses who had come all took their seats and the person in the first seat was not an elder from the Emperor Family, but the first in the Emperor Family''s younger generation, Di Gang.


    Today''s banquet was different from yesterday''s. They had not invited Sage Plane figures from all around, but they had invited the experts on the Alchemy Ranking and the Barren State''s southwest region''s geniuses like Li Futu, the Xiang Zhiyan siblings, Su Hongxiu, Xie Ji and many others.


    Since they were all from the younger generation, it was inappropriate for elders to be present and it would make them more formal, so it was natural that Di Gang took over as the host for the guests. Moreover, Di Gang''s identity held sufficient weight. Everyone knew that he would be in charge of the Emperor Family in the future, for this teen was reputed to be the number one in the Barren State''s southwest region. His position in the Emperor Family was the same as Bai Luli''s position in the White Cloud City.


    When Xue Ye and Luo Fan arrived, many other people were already there. Luo Fan scanned the crowd and saw Gongsun Ye. He was sitting right next to Di Gang, and the two of them seemed to be discussing some matters.


    Seeing the two of them arrive, the crowd stopped their chatter and looked towards them.


    "Have a seat." Di Gang smiled faintly, showing Xue Ye and Luo Fan to their seats. The two of them did not stand on ceremony, walked straight to a vacant seat.


    "Today, the Emperor Family has invited all of you as guests, please do not act like strangers, and enjoy yourselves," Di Gang said. Melodious music played in the middle of the banquet and a group of voluptuous beauties started to dance, leaving them in admiration.


    "We have beauties and good wine, how can we not enjoy ourselves." Someone smiled and said, "The dancers in the Emperor Family residence are indeed outstanding."


    "Today, we have many renowned beauties with us, how can these dancers be called outstanding compared to them? If the Goddess Pavilion''s Su Hongxiu dances, they would all pale in comparison," Di Gang said nonchalantly, glancing at Su Hongxiu.


    "I have also heard that the Goddess Pavilion can win over an entire city with just a dance, I wonder when I will be able to witness it," Gongsun Ye''s gaze also landed on Su Hongxiu as he said.


    "If everyone is so interested, Hongxiu will dance to hype up the atmosphere," Su Hongxiu smiled as she said. The crowd was immediately interested and someone said, "If we could have the honor of seeing Miss Hongxiu''s dance, I will have no regrets coming here." Everyone knew Su Hongxiu''s name, but it was rumored that she had never danced in public before. Could it be that they were about to experience a feast for their eyes?


    "Step down," Di Gang looked at the dancers and said. Immediately, they stopped. Su Hongxiu smiled and said, "No need, they can just assist me."


    "Please." Di Gang nodded his head and showed an inviting gesture to Su Hongxiu. It was rumored that back then when Chu Ji had danced, she had created a huge commotion in the Barren State''s southwest region. He wanted to see exactly how much appeal the Goddess Pavilion''s dance had.


    Su Hongxiu removed her outerwear, revealing a sexy skirt. Her snow-white skin was barely visible and she put on a mask on her face, then walked into the center of the dancers. She smiled at the crowd through her beautiful eyes, then started her dance regime.


    With just a smile, many people felt as though their souls were about to be sucked out of their bodies. When she started twisting her body, there was a mysterious power that descended upon them. Su Hongxiu''s dance appeared directly in their brain, as though she was right in front of them.


    As the wind blew in their faces, there was a fragrance in the air. As her sexy body wiggled around, every action attempted to seize their soul, every expression was charming to the bone, causing everyone to shudder like their bodies were being electrocuted. It was as though her dancing body was the last thing left in the entire world.


    Luo Fan felt his breathing speed up and his body heated up. He closed his eyes, not daring to continue watching. With his Will, he could feel that he was sinking within her dance, unable to maintain his composure. However, even after he closed his eyes, her figure continued to appear in his brain and would not leave.


    The banquet became exceptionally quiet. Di Gang''s gaze could not move from her, he finally knew how terrifying the disciples from the Goddess Pavilion could be. Even he could feel himself losing control, as though her every movement, every smile had turned into a spiritual imprint and was embalmed into his brain.


    "Miss Hong, that''s enough," Di Gang said. His voice had a mystical power in it as it rumbled in the crowd''s ears. It caused many people to regain their sanity.


    Su Hongxiu did a slight twirl and stopped her dance. Smiling, she removed her mask, revealing her seductive face. At that moment, many people felt as though they could not control themselves and wanted to surrender themselves to her.


    "I hope all of you have enjoyed yourselves." Su Hongxiu bowed lightly and went back to her seat.


    "Hongxiu." Yu Ming sat beside Su Hongxiu with an expression of infatuation.


    "Winning over a city with one dance, entertaining indeed," Di Gang marveled. Many people had not yet recovered from the dance and were still looking at Su Hongxiu. If they could bring her home, they would be able to admire her every night. How joyful would that be!


    "I will probably never forget Miss Hongxiu''s dance for as long as I live," at that moment, Gongsun Ye said. He raised his cup towards Su Hongxiu and said, "A toast to Miss Hongxiu."


    "Mister Gongsun is too kind." Su Hongxiu raised her cup and blushed, making her even more alluring. Gongsun Ye stared at her face, at that moment, he was thinking, Su Hongxiu is on par with You Xi in looks, but she is more seductive and has natural charm. If I could get her in my bed, what a glorious thing that would be. As for You Xi, that b*tch.


    "Gongsun, you''re about to marry a beauty, it''s not appropriate for you to say such things now. It''s better not to make City Lord You angry," someone said jokingly.


    "That''s true." Gongsun Ye smiled and nodded, continuing, "I will watch my language."


    "Are you really preparing to marry You Xi?" Di Zhou looked at Gongsun Ye and asked.


    "Why not?" Gongsun Ye said.


    "Of course, it''s only natural. However, the person who came in second in this Alchemy Conference is also going to enter the City Lord Office to cultivate," Di Zhou said, looking towards Xue Ye and smiling. He then said, "Brother Xue Ye, if you enter the City Lord Office, it''s better to let go of your obsession and give them your blessings."


    Many people who heard Di Zhou''s words had suspicious expressions. If Xue Ye continued to pursue You Xi after he entered the City Lord Office, it would be a disgrace to Gongsun Ye who had married You Xi.


    After hearing Di Zhou''s words, Gongsun Ye''s expression became grim.


    "I will not give up," Xue Ye said. He put down the wine glass in his hand and looked towards Gongsun Ye, saying, "Gongsun Ye, you and You Xi have never met each other and have no feelings for each other. Why force yourself? For you and You Xi, this is unfair. You are the first in the Alchemy Conference. Even if you give up the marriage, you can still enter the City Lord Office, become City Lord You''s disciple, and be highly valued. In the future, you will become an influential figure in the world of armorers."


    Gongsun Ye lightly sipped his glass of wine, his eyes looking downwards, avoiding Xue Ye. He had a grim expression.


    "Gongsun Ye, what my brother said is not wrong. Why force it if you have no feelings for her? There is no lack of outstanding girls that you can meet in the future," Luo Fan also said.


    "Gongsun Ye, I''m begging you," Xue Ye continued.


    Gongsun Ye smirked and put his glass down. He said in a low voice, "Begging me?" Then why don''t you kneel." As he said that, he had a merciless look in his eyes as he stared at Xue Ye. Bringing this up in public to humiliate him? After yesterday''s matter had spread, countless people in the Alchemy City were discussing the matter. His reputation had been completely ruined. There was no honor in being the first in the Alchemy Conference, only shame. All this was given to him by You Xi and Xue Ye.


    Xue Ye''s grip on his wine glass tightened, causing cracks to appear on the wine glass. He stared at Gongsun Ye and said, "If I kneel, will you agree to give her up?"


    "Brother!" Luo Fan shouted.


    "That depends on how sincere you are," Gongsun Ye sneered as he said. Xue Ye glared at him. In his entire life, he had never knelt down to beg to anyone. However, You Xi already had his child. If Gongsun Ye were to marry You Xi, he could not imagine what the consequences would be.


    Many people looked towards Xue Ye and saw his body shaking. Could it be that he was actually intending to kneel? However, that fellow had almost given up his life during the Alchemy Conference; it was probably possible for him to kneel as well.


    It looked like Gongsun Ye bore a huge grudge.


    Xue Ye stood up. Luo Fan stared at Gongsun Ye and said, "Brother, can''t you see that he''s humiliating you on purpose? Even if you kneel, nothing will come out of it."


    Xue Ye clenched his fists. He knew as well, but he thought about You Xi and he had no other choice.


    "Gongsun Ye, you''re really pitiful," Luo Fan sneered and said. "Even if you marry You Xi, with my brother and You Xi''s relationship, you think that you''ll dare touch her even if you enter the City Lord Office?"


    Crack. The wine glass in Gongsun Ye''s hand shattered. Luo Fan''s words had hit a sore spot.


    "Gongsun Ye, you can enter the Emperor Family and bring You Xi out of the City Lord Office." Di Zhou transmitted a message to Gongsun Ye. It was a good chance to win him over.


    Gongsun Ye suddenly smiled and stopped looking at Xue Ye, instead, indulging in his wine. At the same time, he transmitted a message to Xue Ye, saying, "I heard that she has your child." If he did not dare to speak about this matter, Xue Ye was unlikely to as well. Whoever said it would die.


    Xue Ye glared daggers at Gongsun Ye.


    "The two of you have humiliated me like this. Very well." Gongsun Ye continued to transmit his message, "In the past, I thought that the City Lord''s precious daughter You Xi was untainted and pure, but now... Rest easy; although she has already been deflowered, her looks are still top-quality and her skin is fairer than snow. I will take good care of her for you and be gentle towards her. As long as she is my woman, she can''t possibly resist me forever. And your child, I will take good care of him."


    Xue Ye''s expression became extremely cold in an instant. Gongsun Ye was unwilling to give up, not because of his feelings for You Xi, but because he felt that he had been humiliated and had a twisted mentality. He wanted to take revenge on him and You Xi. His thinking was not wrong. Gongsun Ye had exceptional potential and was a perfectionist; however, to him, this matter was a huge humiliation. So, he wanted revenge.


    "One day, when she''s lying under me, guess how I''ll treat her?" Gongsun Ye continued to transmit his message with a cruel tone.


    Bang. A wild aura erupted from Xue Ye, he could finally not bear it anymore as Gongsun Ye revealed a cruel smile. If Xue Ye continued to pester You Xi, he would lose face completely.


    "Xue Ye, what are you trying to do?" As they felt his aura, many people looked towards Xue Ye with amused expressions. Would he actually dare to fight here?


    "This is the Emperor Family residence," Di Zhou looked coldly at Xue Ye and said.


    "Brother," Luo Fan called out to Xue Ye. What had Gongsun Ye said to his brother?


    Bang. A spell erupted immediately, engulfing Gongsun Ye. Unbearable!


    ��


    Not long after, Ye Futian, who was not far away from the Emperor Family residence, received news that Xue Ye and Luo Fan had injured others in the Emperor Family residence and had been sieged, leaving them heavily injured.


    As Ye Futian heard Xu Que''s words, he looked in the direction of the Emperor Family residence, saying in his heart, "Sorry, brother."


    "Will everyone accompany me?" Ye Futian looked at the people around him and asked.


    "Sure." They all nodded. The group then moved in a flash towards the Emperor Family residence!

 633 Who Dares Move?

    In the Emperor Family residence, the banquet was already a mess and had suffered catastrophic destruction. Most of the people at the banquet had already stood up, looking coldly at the two figures sitting on the floor. They were Xue Ye and Luo Fan. The two of them were sitting with their backs to each other. They were dyed in blood and had lost every semblance of strength. However, the strange thing was, Luo Fan still had a smile on his face as he asked, "Brother, do you feel better after venting?"


    Xue Ye raised his head and looked at the sky with a smile of self-mocking. This was the Barren State after all, not the Eastern Barren Territory nor the Cottage. Here, they felt powerless.


    "You can still smile?" Di Zhou walked forward and said ruthlessly. Luo Fan looked at Di Zhou and said, "Why can''t I smile? You can''t possibly kill us. We came in second in the Alchemy Conference and have already agreed to enter the City Lord Office."


    "Assaulting and injuring others in our Emperor Family and ruining our banquet. Even if you''ve already entered the City Lord Office, you still need to give us an explanation," Di Zhou smirked as he said. Luo Fan looked at him derisively and turned around, ignoring him.


    "Gongsun Ye, even if you make such a decision, you''re just creating a lose-lose situation. Why go to such lengths," Luo Fan said indifferently. Gongsun Ye''s expression became extremely grim.


    "How impudent," many people commented as they looked coldly at Luo Fan, including those who had participated in the Alchemy Conference. They were extremely unhappy with Xue Ye and Luo Fan. Even though Xue Ye came in second by sacrificing his Life Spirit to forge a ritual implement, he was ultimately not from the armorer world. Moreover, he had illicit relations with You Xi before this, which made them very unhappy. After all, before the Alchemy Conference began, nobody knew who would come in first.


    "Impudent?" Luo Fan''s gaze swept across the crowd as he continued, "I''m not referring to anyone in particular, but you all are trash. My brother and I have just mastered the foundation of alchemy and we''re already able to obtain second on the Alchemy Ranking. All you armorer family disciples still have the nerve to siege us. You''re a group of idiots."


    "Asking for trouble." Strong auras started to descend one after the other and a palm slammed towards them, sending the two of them flying. Xue Ye and Luo Fan no longer had any strength to resist and they both spurted out blood. They laughed and crawled up, continuing to sit there, looking coldly at the person who had struck out at them, Lu Wei from the Lu Family.


    "Kid, I''ll remember this," Luo Fan looked at Lu Wei and said.


    At that moment, Gongsun Ye slowly stood up and looked at Xue Ye and Luo Fan, then said, "The Alchemy Conference has a tradition that the person who comes in first will win the hand of the City Lord''s daughter in marriage. It is a tradition that has been honored by countless generations and was also personally set by the City Lord Office. However, the two of you have committed a grave mistake before the Alchemy Conference. Moreover, the two of you have not repented and have repeatedly threatened me to give in and even injured me. Today, everyone at the banquet has witnessed it for themselves."


    "That''s right, I can be a witness for brother Gongsun Ye," Zhou Sheng chipped in. Gongsun Ye was the first on the Alchemy Ranking and would be a representative figure for the armorer world in the future.


    Li Futu and the rest looked at Gongsun Ye. What was he trying to achieve by saying these?


    "I can bear it no longer." Gongsun Ye walked towards Xue Ye and looked arrogantly at him, saying coldly, "According to the past years, I will marry You Xi. That is why I will no longer allow anyone to tarnish my wife''s reputation. As long as you swear that you will never harass my fiance for as long as you live, I will not pursue today''s matter further and will let the two of you leave."


    Many people had interested expressions. Was he going to deal with Xue Ye? Moreover, using You Xi''s reputation as a reason was indeed a great excuse.


    "What if I don''t agree?" Xue Ye raised his head and asked Gongsun Ye.


    "I have said it, I will not allow anyone to tarnish my fiance''s reputation." As Gongsun Ye said that, a flame palm print raised Xue Ye from the ground and the terrifying flames rushed into Xue Ye''s body, causing him to have an extremely pained expression.


    "That is why you better agree," Gongsun Ye cruelly demanded. At that moment, everyone could feel the icy aura on Gongsun Ye. He was really going to deal with Xue Ye. With his arrogance, he was unable to accept Xue Ye continuing to woo You Xi in the future. It would be a humiliation to him.


    "I did not expect you to be this despicable," Xue Ye told Gongsun Ye in a scornful tone. Gongsun Ye had probably enraged him to strike first to obtain the moral high ground to deal with him. However, how many people had participated in today''s scheme? The Emperor Family who had organized today''s banquet, were they also involved?


    It had turned out as Luo Fan had expected: the banquet had been a trap.


    More flames entered Xue Ye''s body, causing his face to contort in agony. His entire body was turning crimson and he was in the utmost pain. However, Gongsun Ye''s expression was exceptionally calm and he had no emotion in his eyes. He said emotionlessly, "If you still do not agree, I take it that you will continue to tarnish my fiance''s reputation in the future. If so, I will have no choice but to permanently destroy your powers."


    "You''re serious?" At the side, Luo Fan sat up and glared at Gongsun Ye.


    Gongsun Ye looked coldly at the other party and revealed a look of contempt. Nobody could fault him for taking action; he was the first in the Alchemy Conference. Even after he had destroyed Xue Ye''s powers, nobody could touch him even if he chose to join the City Lord Office or Emperor Family. As for Xue Ye and Luo Fan, their support was the Zhuge Family''s Zhuge Mingyue. Zhuge Mingyue aside, even the Zhuge Family could not interfere in the Alchemy City''s matters.


    When Luo Fan saw Gongsun Ye''s expression, he already understood. As expected, he was still too naive. This banquet was a trap set just for them.


    Di Gang sat quietly by the side watching everything unfold. He did not say anything nor stop anyone. At that moment, a person walked over quickly and said, "Ye Futian''s group has barged in. Should we stop them?"


    Di Gang raised his head and looked at the person, then said, "Let them in."


    A similarly mocking expression appeared on Di Zhou''s face. What a coincidence, he had just invited them over to the Emperor Family the other day at the Alchemy Casino. Surprisingly, they had come over today.


    Li Futu, Xiang Zhiqin and the rest raised their heads and looked in the distance. They saw a group of figures moving towards them quickly and the group soon reached. It was Ye Futian and the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples.


    Ye Futian stared at Gongsun Ye, cold killing intent flashing across his eyes.


    "Sister Yun, Jiuge," Ye Futian called out. The two of them understood his intentions and Yun Shuisheng took out her Hail Scepter. In an instant, the frost intent filled the area and the temperature dropped to the point of freezing. An unending snow shrouded the world and the heavens. Gongsun Ye and Xue Ye''s bodies were also the same. At that moment, Gongsun Ye felt as though his blood was about to freeze.


    At the same moment, Huang Jiuge took out a bow and fired it immediately. The arrow flew through the air and turned into a golden ray of light that assaulted Gongsun Ye. Instantly, Gongsun Ye felt an extremely dangerous aura. He felt as though his soul was about to be frozen, followed by an arrow that flew through the air, attempting to take his life.


    Under the terrifying frost intent, everyone''s thinking appeared to slow down and their gazes were rooted on Ye Futian. He had dared to attempt to kill Gongsun Ye without saying anything. He had really wanted to kill Gongsun Ye right there.


    Gongsun Ye did not dare to continue dealing with Xue Ye and his body suddenly ignited and turned into red-hot flames. His entire body was surrounded by a flame armor and he speedily retreated. While he was retreating, he raised his hand and fired a huge flame palm print.


    Bang! The flame palm print exploded and the arrow continued flying through the flames and landed on the armor, sending Gongsun Ye flying backward and vomiting blood. All this happened in an instant. From Ye Futian arriving and giving the order, there was no trace of hesitation or questioning.


    "What arrogance!" Di Zhou shouted in anger. Many people took out their ritual implements, but they saw Ye Futian walking forward, holding the Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hand and walking towards Xue Ye and Luo Fan like a gust of wind.


    Zhou Sheng was very close to Xue Ye and he had a brilliant flame armor on his body that looked like a Divine Vermillion Bird, rushing towards Ye Futian. As he raised his palm and struck out, a giant Vermillion Bird claw descended from the sky. There was a terrifying Vermillion Bird shadow that appeared in the sky and its grip could tear a person to shreds.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked coldly at the other party, raising his Polearm of Divine Destruction and striking out. With a violent bang, the entire area was enveloped by a terrifying pressure. At that moment, Zhou Sheng felt that it was hard to even move. The Vermillion Bird shadow was crushed by the polearm and with a huge crash. The crowd saw Zhou Sheng''s body being forcefully slammed to the ground. He lay on the ground, twitching and vomiting blood. With that one strike, he would be lucky to be alive after that.


    He''s gone crazy, many people thought, stunned. They were taken aback by Ye Futian''s rod strike and stared at him blankly.


    Around them, figures started to appear one after another, and their horrifying auras descended upon them. In a second, the entire banquet area was surrounded, and everyone could feel the suffocating pressure emanating from Sage Plane experts.


    "Take them down!" Di Zhou shouted in a frenzy. His body was shaking and burning up with a raging fire. Ye Futian dared to be so insolent and do such a thing in the Emperor Family residence. The moment he arrived, he did not ask to do anything and went on a killing rampage immediately.


    This was a slap to the face.


    The dreadful auras descended from the skies and surrounded Ye Futian''s group. Ye Futian''s expression became even colder and he stood beside Xue Ye, saying, "The Holy Zhi Palace''s, Battle Sage Palace, Sage Douzhan''s disciple, Ye Futian."


    The crowd was shocked and looked at Ye Futian. What did he mean?


    The other people understood his intentions. Huang Jiuge looked at the crowd around them and said, "The Sovereign Family, Huang Jiuge."


    "Tingxue House, Xu Que," a lazy voice sounded.


    Bang. With a huge sound, Yuan Zhan stepped forward and howled, "The Taihang Mountain, Yuan Zhan."


    "The Undying Old Man''s successor, Phoenix," Phoenix also said softly.


    As the voices continued to sound, each voice made the crowd''s hearts skip a beat. They finally understood what Ye Futian meant when he shouted that out.


    "My brother was bullied in the Emperor Family and no one stepped in. Now, I want to see if the Emperor Family''s Sage Plane experts dare to move," Ye Futian said coldly. Di Zhou frowned and his gaze swept across their group. He only now realized that the factions behind this group of people were enough to rattle the Alchemy City!

 634 Rampage

    Li Futu and the onlooking crowd all shuddered at the shocking scene.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, disciples of Sage Douzhan, the seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Huang Jiuge from the Sovereign Family, where the fifth on the Barren Sky Ranking was from.


    Xu Que, the successor of the ninth on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    The Taihang Mountain''s king and the Undying Old Man were also in the top 20 of the Barren Sky Ranking. Not to mention Sage Douzhan and the Sword Demon''s disciples were also around. On the other hand, the Emperor Family''s Di Kai was only 12th on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Those who had participated had ashen expressions. They did not care about Xue Ye and Luo Fan because the two of them did not have any backing. Their strongest background was only the Zhuge Family''s successor Zhuge Mingyue. Ye Futian was also only a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace. Moreover, in an argument between disciples, the Barren State''s elders would not interfere. Therefore, even if he was a Holy Zhi Palace disciple, they did not have any fear and had more competing emotions than respect.


    However, when Ye Futian and his friends shouted out those words, they no longer only represented themselves but had revealed their backings. This way, everyone would have to think twice before aggravating them.


    "No matter who you are, coming to the Emperor Family to create trouble is not allowed," a strong Sage Plane figure said from the air, his aura continuing to surround Ye Futian and his friends.


    Ye Futian looked at him coldly without any fear. "Today, the Emperor Family has organized a banquet, and my brother came to the banquet and was assaulted by a group. As the organizer of the banquet, the Emperor Family allowed my brother to be treated like that, and nobody came out to stop them. I''m suspecting that the Emperor Family did it intentionally." Ye Futian continued, "If you want to interfere from now on, it''s not me who is not following the rules, but the Emperor Family bullying the younger generation. You can go ahead and try."


    Di Gang sat there watching the scene quietly. He was rather surprised that this disciple who had entered the Holy Zhi Palace three years ago would be so overbearing in the Emperor Family residence. He waved his arm and said, "Step down."


    A glint appeared in the Sage Plane expert''s eyes as he looked at Di Gang, then rapidly retreated. No matter who it was, since Di Gang was here, they would not be able to do as they pleased.


    "Your brothers broke into a rage, injuring others and ruining the banquet, so we naturally need an explanation. Today, we need them to stay in the residence," Di Gang explained coolly. However, under his cool tone, there was unquestionable sovereignty.


    The Holy Zhi Palace''s disciple? Although he felt that a battle with another Noble Plane was pointless to him, since the Palace''s disciples had come, he did not mind. With him around, the interference of a Sage Plane expert was unnecessary.


    Ye Futian looked at him nonchalantly, then turned to his brother Xue Ye and asked, "Brother, what happened?"


    "Gongsun Ye transmitted a message humiliating me and provoking me to fight, so I did," Xue Ye replied.


    "Who among them participated?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "The guy that you beat up, and him, him, him..." Luo Fan pointed at a few people. The people he pointed at were all from the Alchemy City''s clans and some of the geniuses from the Alchemy Conference. There were a few of them who had wanted to join the Emperor Family and had fought to express their loyalty.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept across all of them. As they crossed gazes with Ye Futian, they felt a chill go down their spine. A Noble Plane figure actually made them feel fear as Zhou Sheng was still on the floor, unable to move.


    "When is it your turn to poke your nose in my brother and Gongsun Ye''s matters?" Ye Futian smiled cruelly and his gaze swept across the crowd, a terrifying martial arts Will erupting from his body. He then held his Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hand and walked towards the Alchemy City''s geniuses.


    Many people stared at Ye Futian. He actually dared to start trouble here?


    Yu Sheng and Yuan Zhan stepped forward on his left and right, Huang Jiuge, Xu Que and the rest followed up as well. A terrifying aura engulfed the area, they had all gotten elite ritual implements in the Alchemy Casino and they had all taken them out now.


    Those people who had assaulted Xue Ye were all aghast and looked coldly at Ye Futian''s group, taking out their ritual implements as well. As the members of the Alchemy City''s clans and strong armorers, they naturally had no shortage of ritual implements.


    One of the clan''s genius held a dragon staff in his hand, a dreadful flame Spiritual Qi forming from it. Terrifying flame dragons shot forth from it, flying towards Ye Futian''s group, each flame dragon was unbelievably huge and covered even the skies and blocked out the sun.


    Yun Shuisheng raised her head and looked into the air, her Hail Scepter appearing in her hands. As she cast her spell, ice rivers appeared in the air, freezing the area and the flame dragons were also frozen into giant ice statues.


    "How dare the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples be so arrogant. Take them down," Di Zhou said coldly. There were hundreds of geniuses from all over the State here today and just the Alchemy City had many members of elite clans here. Ye Futian''s group was daring enough to declare war on them. After all, this was the Emperor Family residence.


    Another figure stepped forward, this time, it was an extremely rabid genius. He held a Fire God broadsword in his hand and slashed out towards the heavens. The golden flames split the area open, cutting the ice rivers in half and heading straight towards Ye Futian''s group. An elite Noble Plane figure using a ritual implement in an outburst of strength, its strength was horrifying and the light blade swept across the air, cutting through everything.


    Yuan Zhan stepped forward, the Wolf Fang Bat in his hand becoming larger. With a loud roar, his golden body walked forward and struck out into the air. It was the Nine Heavenly Attacks which could split the heavens. The rod strike collided with the light blade in the air, causing the air to vibrate violently.


    Ye Futian''s body flew like a gust of wind towards a person that Luo Fan had pointed at. There were people who tried to attack from the side, but Xu Que and Ye Futian''s body turned into after-images; the sword shadow moving as fast as lightning, causing the people who tried to step forward to retreat. There were people casting spells from afar, but the arrows in Huang Jiuge''s hands shot through the air and assaulted them at lightning speed.


    As he saw Ye Futian descending, the person quickly retreated, but what he felt the next moment was an unparalleled pressure and a force that made him feel like the air had frozen. His moments became exceptionally slow and even his thoughts had dwindled. He knew that it was a terrifying Will assault. Next, he saw a brilliant rod striking towards him. He panicked and took out his ritual implement to block the attack.


    Crash... A deafening sound could be heard as he landed on the ground with his ritual implement. His ritual implement fell out of his hands and the impact had caused cracks to appear in the ground.


    God knows how violent that attack was.


    He spat out a mouthful of blood and felt as though all the bones in his body had been broken, then fainted, causing those watching the battle to be disconcerted.


    Ye Futian was too overbearing, barging straight into the Emperor Family residence and injuring people. Was he going to get back at all the people who had dealt with his brothers? Even Xue Ye and Luo Fan were stunned. After not meeting for a few years, their little brother was no longer the teenager that needed their protection.


    It was as if they had just realized that their little brother was the Holy Zhi Palace''s elite genius and many of the influential figures'' successors in the Barren State were willing to be by his side. He had exceptionally high rallying power and dared to barge into the Emperor Family residence to stick up for them.


    While Luo Fan was touched, he also had a strange feeling. Why did he have a feeling of deja vu?


    Back then, when Ye Futian was bullied by the Qin Dynasty, it was he who had protected his little brother. Afterward, third brother and fourth brother Xue Ye had come down from the mountain and blocked the door of the Qin Dynasty to stick up for their little brother. Now, it seemed that their roles had reversed. It was their little brother sticking up for them.


    What a tragic tale.


    At the side, Li Futu and the rest watched the erupting battle with unease. Was this the pride of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian? He actually had such a savage side.


    "Lu Family, Lu Wei?" Ye Futian held the Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hand and moved once again, landing in front of Lu Wei. Just now, Luo Fan had emphasized this person, so he must have done quite some damage to his brother.


    "You dare to be so insolent?" Lu Wei saw Ye Futian move towards him and his expression paled. Seeing the Polearm of Divine Destruction covering the skies, he felt an exceptionally heavy force on him. He wanted to dodge, but an absolute pressure crushed down on his body, rendering him unable to move. He could only watch as the Polearm of Divine Destruction got closer, and Lu Wei''s expression became ghastly.


    Bang. With a giant impact, Lu Wei''s defenses were shattered and his body was struck by the Polearm of Divine Destruction. His body was flung towards the side and crashed rapidly into the banquet tables and chairs, blood streaming from his body, twitching as he laid on the floor. Many people looked towards Lu Wei. That strike probably left him half dead.


    Ye Futian did not stop. He continued forward, spells flashing and solidifying the air. The Polearm of Divine Destruction swung repeatedly and bodies were flung left and right. In the blink of an eye, many people had been injured, especially those who had injured Xue Ye and Luo Fan. They were severely injured by Ye Futian and he did not pull his punches.


    Ye Futian would naturally not go easy on them. When was it their turn to interfere in his brother and Gongsun Ye''s matters and add insult to injury, bullying his brothers? Since they liked to bully others, it was time for them to face the music.


    This lunatic. Many people were appalled. Even those who did not participate were intimidated and stepped backward, not wanting to be dragged into it. This fellow was too violent, with his Polearm of Divine Destruction, he was unstoppable and swept everyone.


    At that moment, Di Gang, who had been silent all the while, put down the wine glass in his hand. He stood up and in an instant, a fearsome aura erupted from his body and the heavens howled. The aura in the air seemed to transform and become chilly. Li Futu and the guests looked towards Di Gang. Was the Alchemy City''s number one person among the younger generation finally going to step in?


    Di Gang stepped forward and flew into the air, his might surrounding the area. Behind him, a golden space appeared and unbearable heat and sharpness emitted from it. His Life Spirit transformed into Dharma and blinding rays of light fired towards where Ye Futian was.


    With a huge crash, a brilliant phoenix shielded Ye Futian. It was Phoenix''s defensive spell, shielding him like the wings of a phoenix. However, the blinding rays penetrated the phoenix''s wings and shot right through it, continuing forward. Phoenix''s expression paled, but Yun Shuisheng had also come over. An imposing frost intent appeared from her Hail Scepter, finally blocking the blinding rays from continuing forward.


    Huang Jiuge stepped towards Di Gang. His expression was sharp and a terrifying martial arts Will erupted from his body. He wanted to experience for himself, the strength of the Barren State southwest region younger generation''s number one. To be compared with Bai Luli, how strong was he? His Martial Will transformed into a Will Illusion, creating battle chariots that rushed forward to assault Di Gang.


    Di Gang looked casually at Huang Jiuge. In the golden area, a blinding glow emitted and under the crowd''s astounded looks, a sun chariot drove out from within. The imposing chariot dragged the sun along, the chariot itself forged out of razor-sharp weapons. It flew down from the air, crushing and burning everything in its way.

 635 Battle to the Death

    The Will Illusion that Huang Jiuge had released was shattered and his battle chariots were all destroyed and burnt to nothingness. The sun chariot was simply too strong. Nothing could stand in its way and there was even the Divine Bird Golden Raven within the sun.


    Li Futu stared at Di Gang. Was this the number one person in the Alchemy City region? This was the first time he had seen Di Gang in action. Undoubtedly, Di Gang was stronger than him. The chariot should have been forged by assimilating his Life Spirit into his Martial Will. It had endless power, both in the burning power of its spell and the execution ability of its martial arts.


    Huang Jiuge felt a tremendous pressure and released his Life Spirit. A shadow of the Renhuang appeared on his body, causing him to appear as though the Renhuang had descended, the Renhuang Sword in his hands. He slashed out into the air with the sword and instantly, an even stronger force appeared. The horrifying Martial Will swept across everything, a destructive storm appearing in the surroundings and finally crushing the oncoming sun chariot.


    However, Di Gang''s expression did not change. He stepped forward and endless light rays surrounded his body, like a god. He personally directed his chariot forward and in an instant, he had descended in front of Huang Jiuge and used close combat techniques. At that moment, Di Gang appeared omniscient, as though he was God and could destroy everything.


    Huang Jiuge raised his hands and the Renhuang Sword slashed out. A tyrannical Martial Will appeared in the air, but Di Gang acted as though nothing had happened, riding his sun chariot and crashing down. The front of the sun chariot appeared to have an extremely powerful divine arms ritual implement on it, speedily rotating and crushing everything. His might continued downwards and Huang Jiuge was knocked back, not daring to face him.


    Yun Shuisheng flew through the air, the Hail Scepter in her hand firing spells and freezing the area. However, Di Gang''s Life Spirit also had a ritual implement assimilated into it, the Golden Raven in the sun did not fear any frost power and a flame armor appeared on his body, completely unaffected by the strong freezing spell.


    Invincible, many people looked at Di Gang and thought. He was too strong, as expected of the elite genius reputed to be the number one in the Alchemy City region.


    At that moment, an illusion appeared. The crowd could only see a grey spot as an imposing killing intent burst forth. It was Xu Que. He appeared beside Di Gang, the sword in his hand slashed out, it was a spell-breaking, killing strike.


    Di Gang frowned and his arm stretched forward. In an instant, his arm had transformed into a divine arms ritual implement, refracting blinding rays and grabbing Xu Que''s sword. As screeching scraping sounds sounded out, the sword slashed on his arm, sparks flying. Di Gang was unable to grab Xu Que''s sword, but the sword was unable to sever his arm. The two of them crossed blows in a flash, as though nothing had ever happened.


    What a fast blade, what a strong defense. The crowd was amazed. However, both Huang Jiuge and Xu Que were only Grade Two Nobles, how could they hope to stand up to Di Gang, who was already at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane. Even if they were both elite geniuses, Di Gang''s reputation was not inferior to any of them.


    Bang. With another huge thud, coupled by a scream of agony, Ye Futian''s Polearm of Divine Destruction had once again sent another person flying into the distance. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were standing guard next to him, clearing all obstacles for Ye Futian.


    Presently, Ye Futian was flying in the direction of Gongsun Ye. Gongsun Ye''s expression was extremely grim. The ritual implement in Ye Futian''s hands had overwhelming power. As he saw Ye Futian flying across the air towards him, the armor ritual implement on Gongsun Ye''s body covered him, and he saw Ye Futian crushing down on him with the Polearm of Divine Destruction.


    At that moment, Di Gang had made his way over in unstoppable fashion. Shadows of chariots appeared in the area and descended in front of Ye Futian, but were all destroyed by the Polearm of Divine Destruction.


    Hummm. An exceedingly brutal aura erupted from Di Gang. He donned the Golden Raven armor, and divine sun rays shone from his body. As he rode his chariot, he was covered in divine light and the Golden Raven grew to the size of the actual Divine Bird. Its wings sliced through the air as Di Gang raised his arm, the chariot crushing through everything and colliding with Ye Futian''s rod.


    A destructive force swept the area and the Divine Bird covered the skies, its wings sweeping forward, knocking the Polearm of Divine Destruction back and causing Ye Futian to fly backward and stand in the air.


    Ye Futian stared at Di Gang, Huang Jiuge and the rest appearing by his side. True to his reputation, Di Gang''s strength was indeed overbearing.


    "Such a coward, first on the Alchemy Ranking?" Ye Futian looked at Gongsun Ye who was hiding behind Di Gang.


    Gongsun Ye''s expression became ghastly. The first in the admission examination for the Holy Zhi Palace three years ago was actually humiliating him. However, he did not have a ritual implement that could match Ye Futian''s. The power that the Polearm of Divine Destruction could release in Ye Futian''s hands was unexpectedly huge.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples are just a group of people who rely on their ritual implements to flaunt their power?" Gongsun Ye replied coldly.


    Ye Futian smirked and replied, "Since you wanted to kill my brother, my brother''s matters are my matters. Two days from now, I will challenge you at the place where the Alchemy Conference was held to a no ritual implements battle to the death. If you are able to kill me, the Holy Zhi Palace will not interfere. On top of that, my brother will leave Alchemy City. Gongsun Ye, do you dare to accept?"


    Gongsun Ye looked coldly at Ye Futian. Ye Futian was challenging him. The first on the Alchemy Ranking with no ritual implements?


    "Since you''re so eager to die, I''ll grant you your wish," Gongsun Ye replied cruelly.


    "The battle will naturally have many influential figures observing. Alchemy City will be the judge. Two days, I''ll wait for you," Ye Futian replied coldly. He turned around and said, "Brothers, let''s go."


    "Did I let you leave yet?" Di Zhou said ruthlessly.


    "Do you even have the right to stop me?" Ye Futian turned around and looked at Di Zhou, then turned to the Emperor Family''s Di Gang and said, "If you want to come as well, I will accept." After saying that, he turned around and left. Huang Jiuge and the rest looked at the crowd, then smiled and walked out.


    Such a battle was highly anticipated. They naturally understood Ye Futian''s intentions to invite the people from Alchemy City to observe. A battle to the death where the Holy Zhi Palace and other factions did not interfere was the best way to settle Gongsun Ye''s matters.


    Di Zhou looked at Di Gang and heard him reply, "Two days later, I will be there."


    The crowd was astounded. Li Futu looked at Ye Futian''s group as they left. The Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples were even more overbearing than he had expected.


    Xiang Zhiqin similarly watched Ye Futian leave. This was the rising star of the Holy Zhi Palace. Two years ago, he had shot to fame in the sparring session. With his awe-inspiring courage and determination, he had brought his brothers out from the Emperor Family and started a battle to the death.


    Gongsun Ye''s expression was extremely grim. He was previously struck by a sneak attack and was suppressed. He would use Ye Futian''s life to wash himself of his humiliation. His previous crisis was because the other party had used his ritual implement. In a real battle, how could he possibly lose to him?


    At that moment, on the ground, many people let out groans of agony, evidently in a lot of pain. A few people had even fainted and could not be moved.


    "Ye Futian." Those who had been injured had looks that desired revenge. There were also geniuses among the Alchemy City who had cold expressions while looking at the figures who had left. These Holy Zhi Palace geniuses were really arrogant, they had just come in and did as they liked.


    ��


    After Ye Futian''s group walked out of the Emperor Family, he looked towards Xue Ye and Luo Fan and asked, "Brothers, are you all right?"


    "I knew that the feast was a trap all along. Fourth Brother was too rash," Luo Fan replied.


    "It''s okay as long as you''re fine," Ye Futian replied.


    "Little brother, you seemed to come a little too�� quickly?" Luo Fan said with a questioning tone. Not long after the incident broke out, Ye Futian arrived. Why was it such a coincidence? How did Ye Futian know that they had gotten into trouble in the residence?


    "Perhaps someone did it on purpose." Xu Que said lazily, "Did we fall into your scheme?"


    "We''re all brothers here," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "So, our being injured was also part of your scheme?" Luo Fan looked at Ye Futian with a fake smile.


    "Nothing of the sort." Ye Futian would definitely not admit it. Luo Fan smiled and did not say anything more. This little fellow was getting more and more crafty. However, he naturally understood Ye Futian''s intentions for doing so. He had probably guessed that Gongsun Ye would intensify the situation due to his hate for Xue Ye.


    Only by doing so would he have a justified reason to kill the Alchemy Conference and Alchemy Ranking''s first, Gongsun Ye. Once Gongsun Ye was dead, there would be no stopping his fourth brother.


    What a bold and crazy idea. The Alchemy Conference was held once every ten years, and the first on the Alchemy Ranking would be a symbol for that generation as the future of the armorer world. However, Ye Futian wanted to kill that symbol.


    Ye Futian did not want to do that either. There was originally a peaceful method to settle this: his brother and You Xi already had feelings for each other, and moreover, they already had a child. If Gongsun Ye gave in, the most that would happen to him was that his reputation would be mildly affected, but he would still remain as a shining star of the armorer world and be thanked by the two of them. However, Gongsun Ye was too arrogant and prideful. He could not tolerate such a stain on his record, so he insisted on marrying You Xi even though he did not have feelings for her. Moreover, from Gongsun Ye''s attitude, he evidently involved his fourth brother in his anger and hated him too.


    Ye Futian did not stop his brother from attending the banquet to see how things would progress. He had seen Gongsun Ye''s killing intent.


    ��


    When the Emperor Family released the news, all of Alchemy City was in an uproar. Following up on the piece of news a few days back, when the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples had defeated Li Futu''s team in the Alchemy Casino, Ye Futian had barged into the Emperor Family and sparked an astonishing dispute, injuring many of the clans'' geniuses and brought Xue Ye out. He had also challenged Gongsun Ye to a battle to the death and allowed Di Gang to be there as well.


    The time was two days later, which was exactly the timing that the Alchemy City Lord You Chi had given them to decide. The location would be outside the City Lord Office, where the Alchemy Conference was held.


    This was so that everyone could watch the battle.


    What a crazy notion. Where did Ye Futian get his confidence from? He dared to provoke the two most outstanding individuals in the Alchemy City, the number one in the younger generation, Di Gang, and the number one armorer, Gongsun Ye.


    The influential figures did not leave and their curiosity was sparked after hearing the news. Were the teenagers nowadays so arrogant and wild? The matter should have been because of You Xi.


    As expected, after Xue Ye had sacrificed his Life Spirit to forge a ritual implement that day, the matter had not yet ended. In an elegant courtyard in the City Lord Office, the City Lord You Chi was there, looking at his daughter in front of him. She was extremely beautiful and did not wear loose clothing, so he could see her belly bulging slightly.


    "What are you here for?" You Xi''s tone was frigid.


    "Today, Xue Ye went to the Emperor Family to attend a banquet and was involved in a conflict with Gongsun Ye and was injured," You Chi said.


    You Xi turned around and looked at her father coldly, replying, "Are you happy about that?"


    "I have given them three days. These three days are for Gongsun Ye, but at the same time, they are also for him." You Chi looked at his daughter and replied, "However, he seems to be powerless to settle the issue, and his little brother has stepped in instead. He barged into the Emperor Family residence and brought them out and challenged Gongsun Ye to a battle to the death."


    A ripple appeared in You Xi''s eyes. Was it possible for the situation to change for the better?


    "In two days, you can go watch the battle," You Chi said. That battle would decide many people''s fates!

 636 Absolute Strength

    Two days later, at the place where the Alchemy Conference was held, the region around the Alchemy Conference, countless people''s gazes gathered once again. Today, Ye Futian would challenge Gongsun Ye to a battle to the death right here.


    Gongsun Ye, the number one in the decennial Alchemy Conference, first on the Alchemy Ranking. Not only was he an elite armorer, but he also had exceptionally high cultivation potential, a trait of an elite genius.


    Ye Futian had potential that would be envied by the heavens and was the rising star of the Holy Zhi Palace. He had come in first in the admission examination three years ago with a cultivation level of a Grade Nine Noble. If it was merely a contest of potential, Ye Futian would win by a mile, but Ye Futian''s current cultivation level was lower than Gongsun Ye''s. Therefore, the outcome of the battle was difficult to predict.


    At that moment, the crowd was in intense discussion. Ye Futian was a savage person, barging into the Emperor Family residence to save his brothers. Moreover, he had injured all the Alchemy City clan disciples who had participated in assaulting his brothers. There were some people who still had multiple broken bones and were recuperating in their clans. Even the elite clans'' members dared not settle the score with Ye Futian. After all, they had teamed up to bully Ye Futian''s brothers and there was nothing wrong with Ye Futian getting vengeance for them. If their elders interfered, the nature of the issue would change.


    They had heard that when Ye Futian''s group descended on the Emperor Family residence, there were Sage Plane experts from the Emperor Family who had tried to interfere. Ye Futian''s group had revealed their identities and the Sage Plane experts had not dared to move.


    The people around Ye Futian did indeed have terrifying backgrounds.


    Gongsun Ye had arrived very early. He was sitting on an Alchemy Pillar, bathing in the flames with his arms behind his back, waiting silently. Since he was already here, Ye Futian would be here soon.


    Looking at the City Lord Office in front of him, the building that he had once resolved to step into, he dreamed of becoming a legendary figure who would be the benchmark for the entire armorer world. He had been working hard towards his goal, and every step he took had been down-to-earth, even to the point of perfection. He had always felt that he was worthy of the best, and his woman would naturally be the best.


    The City Lord''s daughter You Xi had always been his ideal Path Companion and extremely suitable for him. However, the incident during the Alchemy Conference had embarrassed him, and You Xi''s conversation with him had infuriated him; his pride had been trampled on. Therefore, he wanted revenge on Xue Ye and You Xi. He would make them repent for their actions.


    In the Emperor Family residence, he had wanted to aggravate Xue Ye and find an excuse to destroy his powers. However, Ye Futian''s appearance had trampled on his pride once again. The Holy Zhi Palace''s disciple had barged into the Emperor Family residence in an overbearing fashion, ignoring all of them, and taken Xue Ye away, challenging him to a battle to the death in the process. He had no reason to reject, so here he was, to kill Ye Futian. After Ye Futian had died, he would naturally not let Xue Ye off.


    Many of the Emperor Family''s experts had come, including Di Gang. That day, he had already witnessed the strength of the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples. They were indeed very strong; however, he had not seen Ye Futian''s true strength as Ye Futian had relied on the strength of his ritual implement to dominate everyone. He was very curious how strong this Holy Zhi Palace''s rising star actually was.


    Li Futu, Yu Ming, Chi Lian, Su Hongxiu and many of the Alchemy City''s geniuses were also there. Following that, some influential figures came, some watching in secret.


    Bai Luli did not leave the Alchemy City. He stood on the steps, wanting to watch the battle. In the Palace, Ye Futian had suppressed his younger brother Bai Ze completely. The Sage Palace was considering allowing Ye Futian to enter the Sage Hall to cultivate in the future, this meant that Ye Futian had potential that was not inferior to Hua Fan. Entering the Sage Hall meant that Ye Futian would become an influential figure in the Palace. In the future, he might even become a Palace Lord. Since he was also in the Alchemy City, he naturally had to witness the battle for himself.


    Zhuge Mingyue had naturally already made her way over a long time ago.


    The Emperor Family''s Di Kai, Chu Ji from the Goddess Pavilion, Yan Jun from the Fire Emperor Palace, and many other influential figures who had not left Alchemy City appeared once again. Many people were stunned that a battle between two people from the younger generation could attract the attention of so many elite figures.


    "Ye Futian and Gongsun Ye''s battle can be considered a battle between the Holy Zhi Palace''s most outstanding young disciple and the armorer world''s elite genius. It seems to have some symbolic meaning," Yan Jun said coolly. He had heard from Li Futu that Ye Futian was not easy to deal with.


    "I heard that Ye Futian barged into the Emperor Family residence two days ago. Di Kai, what do you think about this little fellow?" Chu Ji looked towards Di Kai and asked.


    "He''s not bad," Di Kai replied calmly.


    "I heard that before he left the residence, he threatened Di Gang to be here as well. How is Di Gang compared to him?" Chu Ji smiled and asked again.


    "Di Gang''s future is that legendary plane. In the entire Barren State, there is only one person in his generation that can compete with him��Bai Luli," Di Kai replied nonchalantly and continued, "If Ye Futian wants to obtain that right, he still needs to prove himself."


    "How many years has the Barren State not had a Saint Plane expert? You should naturally understand what that legendary plane means." Chu Ji smiled faintly. If a Saint appeared, he could command the entire Barren State.


    "Let''s watch and see," Di Kai replied casually, seeming to have a lot of confidence in Di Gang.


    Chu Ji smiled. A Saint, huh? How many people dreamed of that. How much effort had the Holy Zhi Palace, the holy land of the Barren State put into trying to achieve that? Bai Luli was reputed to be the person with the most potential in the Holy Zhi Palace in many years. Would he be able to achieve the Palace''s goal?


    Suddenly, a commotion started in the distance and a group of people walked over. It was Ye Futian''s group.


    They''re here, countless people thought as their gazes landed on Ye Futian. This genius from the Holy Zhi Palace was not fighting for the Palace today, but for his brother. However, regardless of the result, he still represented the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Xue Ye is here as well." Many people looked at Xue Ye, who was beside Ye Futian. His fate lied with Ye Futian.


    Everybody understood why this battle came about.


    "Little brother," Xue Ye looked at Gongsun Ye on the Alchemy Pillar region and said to Ye Futian.


    "Fourth brother, after you enter the City Lord Office, you must remember to help me forge some weapons," Ye Futian said.


    "..." Xue Ye was stunned and the serious atmosphere was no more. The battle was about to begin. What was this fellow thinking about?


    "The deed isn''t even done and you''re already thinking about how to fleece your brother''s ritual implements." Luo Fan was also speechless as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "We were ordered by our master to come to the Alchemy City, but in reality, it was for ritual implements. We have gone to the Alchemy Casino and many people have gotten good ritual implements, but Yu Sheng and I have not found ours yet. Brother, I''m depending on you." Ye Futian patted Xue Ye on the shoulder. In the future, his brother would be the City Lord''s son-in-law; he needed to sow his seeds first.


    "The City Lord will personally forge a ritual implement for the top three in the Alchemy Conference. No matter whether you win or lose, the ritual implement is yours." Xue Ye looked at Ye Futian and reminded him, "Be careful."


    "Brother, I''m going to take your word for it. Don''t regret it," Ye Futian replied seriously. A ritual implement personally forged by the City Lord. What a steal!


    His fourth brother would have the Barren State''s best armorer as his father-in-law after he had married You Xi. Would he lack ritual implements? Robbing him was a must.


    "No regrets," Xue Ye replied speechlessly. This kid...


    "It''s a gentleman''s promise then." Ye Futian smiled and walked towards the Alchemy Pillars.


    When Ye Futian entered the Alchemy Pillar region, a group of figures walked out from the City Lord Office. The City Lord You Chi had come with his beloved daughter, You Xi, to watch the battle. However, many people were wondering who the City Lord and You Xi rooted for.


    In name, Gongsun Ye was the Alchemy Conference''s number one. He had already obtained the right to marry You Xi and could be considered her fiance. However, You Xi was probably praying for his defeat. They did not know what the City Lord''s attitude was though.


    "Ye Futian meets senior You." Ye Futian bowed towards You Chi and continued, "A few days ago, in the Emperor Family residence, Gongsun Ye and others combined forces to assault my brother, causing my brother to be injured even into today. Today, I am representing my brother to challenge Gongsun Ye in a battle to the death. If I die in the battle, it is because of my weakness, and the Holy Zhi Palace will not take revenge for me. My brother will also never step into Alchemy City. I hope that senior can be the judge for this battle."


    You Chi looked at Ye Futian, he was this confident?


    "What about you?" You Chi looked at Gongsun Ye and asked.


    "If I die in the battle, it is also because I am equally weak. My family will not interfere," Gongsun Ye replied.


    "I will be the witness for this battle. Begin," You Chi replied coolly. As his voice landed, Ye Futian looked in the air at Gongsun Ye who was on the Alchemy Pillars.


    At that moment, a brilliant light erupted behind Gongsun Ye. He released his Life Spirit, it was a catalog and it devoured the Spiritual Qi in the air frantically. Within the catalog, there were images being formed, and divine beings appeared in the sky, flying down from the Alchemy Pillars towards Ye Futian. In an instant, a giant Vermillion Bird figure appeared above Ye Futian''s head, its wings slicing down like sharp blades towards Ye Futian. At the same time, it spat out destructive flames from its mouth.


    "Absolute Territory," Ye Futian said in a low tone. Around his body, divine light surrounded him and turned into Starry Brilliance. At that moment, the brilliance flickered around him. When the Vermillion Bird wings slashed down towards him, it made a shrill screeching sound. The flames that could incinerate everything flocked towards him but was blocked by a Starry light screen.


    "What a strong defense this little fellow has," Chu Ji said softly. Combined force of Martial Will, it was probably not one of Sage Douzhan''s methods.


    Ye Futian''s body slowly flew into the air. Although the Vermillion Bird attacked him wildly, it could not faze him at all. Gradually, Ye Futian had reached the same height as Gongsun Ye.


    Gongsun Ye''s expression paled. His Life Spirit catalog flew into the air, and a light shone on Ye Futian. In the next moment, a terrifying matrix appeared within the catalog and turned into multiple Lights of Punishment. In an instant, countless rays of Light of Punishment shot down like giant crosses attempting to tear his body apart.


    Ye Futian looked in the air, lightning appearing in his eyes. In the next moment, purple, golden, and green destructive lightning flew into the air. It was the spell the Wrath of the Thunder God. The killing rays and lightning collided fiercely in the air, creating into a horrifying destructive scene. The cross-shaped rays continued to rain down, but they were unable to penetrate Ye Futian''s defenses.


    "I don''t know about being an armorer, but in martial arts, you''re a far cry from me." As his voice landed, Ye Futian stepped forward, walking towards Gongsun Ye. His arrogant figure made it seem as though the Alchemy Conference''s number one did not even have the right to battle with him!

 637 The Most Pitiful Number One

    "This..." Countless were shocked to their cores hearing Ye Futian''s voice. Isn''t Ye Futian doing too much with his words? Is Gongsun Ye really no match for him?


    Gongsun Ye stood on top of the Alchemy Pillar, looking at Ye Futian with cold eyes. Ye Futian walked towards him, and each step seemed to carry immense pressure as if Gongsun Ye was being invaded by some kind of mental powers. He was a Grade One Noble while Ye Futian''s aura suggested that he was at most a Grade Three. It was totally unexpected that Ye Futian would make the first move to attack him using Spiritual Will powers. It was deemed an insult like no other.


    However, when Gongsun Ye felt the invading will coming at him, he was shocked to find himself almost paralyzed. An illusion was welling up in his mind, as if his body was being locked in place by some intense power, rendering him totally immobile. Gongsun Ye had no way of moving his body, and even his blood seemed to stop flowing, rendering everything in him still.


    Boom. Violent flames burst forth all of a sudden. Gongsun Ye''s will seemed to have taken the form of some kind of fire god, attempting to burn everything in its path and dispel the power controlling him. Ye Futian extended his hand. Tremendously fearsome will and spells descended at the same time. He recalled from one of Sage Daozang''s lectures that Noble Will could have been seen as some kind of area of effect power. The top-class genius cultivators were capable of creating their own areas of Will, by dissolving different types of area of effect abilities, which enabled them to conjure super powerful spells.


    Ye Futian had been capable of creating several types of abilities within the three years of training in the Holy Zhi Palace. When he advanced to Grade Three Noble Plane, his areas of Will became even more powerful, so much so that no conventional Grade One Noble wouldn''t have been able to resist his powers.


    Gongsun Ye was incredibly well known, but that was due only to his prowess as an armorer. Alchemy City placed incredible emphasis in the armorer''s art, and talented armorers enjoyed prestige like no other. While there was no doubt that he was a magnificent armorer of the highest order, his martial arts competency was nowhere near that of his capacity as an armorer. At the very least, when compared to Di Gang, Gongsun Ye was way behind, so much so that he was hardly on the same level as Di Gang in martial arts.


    Gongsun Ye''s exceptional talents at the armorer''s arts made him incredibly arrogant and insolent, yet he failed to understand that the city lord of Alchemy City, You Chi, did not get where he was, being ranked eighth on Barren Sky Ranking, due to his proficiency as an armorer. You Chi was also an exceptional martial artist. If he had simply devoted all his time to hone his armorer''s skills and let his mastery at martial arts rust, he would have never been able to get where he was. You Chi would have been simply been made a servant, crafting ritual implements for others. Due to having too much renown as an armorer, and everyone around him hailing him as some sort of superior being, Gongsun Ye failed to realize his lacking competency in the martial arts.


    "Freeze," Ye Futian uttered. Gongsun Ye felt everything around him go still in an instant. Even the flow of Spiritual Qi and his own thoughts threatened to cease moving altogether. The melding of powers was simply too strong, as the will and spell became one and resonated with each other.


    Gongsun Ye burst his most powerful aura out, attempting to touch that terrifying power holding him in place. The wings behind him flapped and he took to the air. However, he soon saw a massive number of vines, enough to block out the sky, coming at him. Ye Futian conjured explosively dazzling golden vines from his hand, holding Gongsun Ye still instantly. The vines coiled around Gongsun Ye, suspending him in the air. When Gongsun Ye''s flames burned, golden flames jumped onto the golden vines, yet the flames failed to burn the vines. The Fatal Entanglement spell was evolved as well, and its power was several orders of magnitude higher than what it used to be.


    Countless eyes locked in one place as the hearts of many raced, bearing witness to what was taking place in the air at the moment. The one who ranked first on Alchemy Rank of Alchemy City and the champion of Law Battle three years ago clashed, and many have thought the fight to be one between two equally powerful titans, thus making it incredibly spectacular. No one would have thought the fight to turn out like this.


    It was slaughter. The unbelievably bright star of the Alchemy Conference, Gongsun Ye, was being slaughtered by Ye Futian, who was of a lower plane. At the moment, the prestigious rank of number one in Alchemy Rank felt incredibly cheap in front of the proud son of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Xue Ye smirked at the scene and said in a lowered voice, "I sure as hell didn''t expect our little brother to get this strong, just in the past few years."


    "Umm, brother, you seemed to have been played," Luo Fan mumbled. Their worries had been for nothing. Furthermore, the act of Ye Futian asking for a ritual implement was now seen like one robbing the blind.


    "I have no problem with that whatsoever," Xue Ye said with a smile. He turned his eyes at the stairs, and his eyes met You Xi''s. Both felt relieved as they knew that the fight left little to the imagination.


    Ye Futian stared at Gongsun Ye''s pale face above the Alchemy Pillar and looked utterly remorseless for beating Gongsun Ye so mercilessly. He and both his seniors had asked Gongsun Ye to give up, yet Gongsun Ye simply told him to get lost. Gongsun Ye went so far as to attempt to cripple his senior in the Emperor family''s residence. From the words of his senior, Gongsun Ye had not truly wanted to marry You Xi; he had only wanted to exact his revenge. His immense pride drove him off the rails, making him go to insane lengths to get what he wanted.


    "How did it turn out like this?" Gongsun Ye asked himself. He was reluctant to believe what was happening to him at the moment, but reality was cruel. He had no means of resisting Ye Futian whatsoever.


    "How, you ask?" Ye Futian looked at Gongsun Ye and added, "That is because you''re weak." Ye Futian clenched his fist as he finished. Gongsun Ye''s body shuddered violently, becoming stiff in the air without any way of freeing himself.


    He did not even have the right to fight back.


    "I''m the champion of the Alchemy Conference. I will train in the armorer''s arts in the City Lord Office. Let me go, and I will give up," Gongsun Ye begged Ye Futian for mercy. Many looked at him startled. So even someone as prideful as Gongsun Ye fears death.


    "Since he is willing to give up, please just drop the matter," someone from the Gongsun clan said.


    "Ye Futian. Gongsun Ye is the champion of this year''s Alchemy Conference. You got what you came for. Just stop already," Even Di Gang said from faraway.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. He heard a voice in his ear at the very moment, "Kill him." Ye Futian was stunned. The voice obviously came from You Chi, the city lord of Alchemy City. He came to realize that You Chi spoke with Gongsun Ye that day, and it seemed that You Chi was very irritated by Gongsun Ye.


    As You Chi gave the word, Ye Futian came to immediately realize what to do next. The golden vines were aimed at Gongsun Ye''s throat, and Gongsun Ye yelled in response, "Nooo..."


    Stab! Incredibly sharp vines were stabbed into his throat like swords. Countless people were shocked to their cores as they stared at the scene with dumbfounded eyes. Gongsun Ye was probably the most pitiful champion of the Alchemy Conference in history.


    You Chi watched the scene without showing any emotion. Everyone was given opportunities to choose their fates one way or another. You Chi gave Gongsun Ye a chance to choose, and he would have treated Gongsun Ye like a student, just like what Ye Futian had in mind. However, Gongsun Ye was simply too arrogant. As he chose his pride over the other options given to him, it was only natural that he suffer the consequences of his choices.


    Gongsun Ye''s body dropped to the ground, and the members of the Gongsun clan stared at Ye Futian with vengeful looks.


    Ye Futian dispelled his aura and looked at the City Lord Office. He was thinking about the three days that You Chi gave them to think about things. It was a move to give Xue Ye an opportunity, and it was also one given to Gongsun Ye.


    If Xue Ye indeed had all his cultivation destroyed by Gongsun Ye in the Emperor family''s residence that day, what would You Chi have done? Ye Futian had no way of guessing what was going on inside the mind of the mighty one ranked eighth on Barren Sky Ranking. As the city lord of Alchemy City and the symbol of the world of armorers, he needed to stick to the traditions set by his predecessors and recruit geniuses for the City Lord Office as well. The one who ranked first on the Alchemy Rank would have been the most suitable candidate for his daughter. As such, he probably would not have doubted any of his actions. However, You Xi opposed and rebelled against him. He was not able to do anything against his daughter. As such, he deemed Gongsun Ye disposable in order to protect the reputation of the City Lord Office and his daughter. It would have been the same for Xue Ye.


    As he said before, Gongsun Ye was too arrogant and too insolent. They had spoken, and Gongsun Ye refused to give up. That decision probably sealed his fate; one that was doomed to end in tragedy.


    Di Kai glanced at You Chi. He was curious as to what was going on in Chi You''s mind at the moment. Does he feel any pity at the loss of the champion of Alchemy Conference?


    Di Gang was seen staring at Ye Futian. The Emperor family had decided to recruit Gongsun Ye two days ago. With Gongsun Ye defeated, there was a huge chance that he would have joined the Emperor family. However, Ye Futian showed no mercy. He went killing the one who ranked first on Alchemy Rank right there and then.


    "Several days ago, you brought the students of the Holy Zhi Palace and Huang Jiuge to invade the Emperor family''s residence. You injured quite a number of our people. Since you proposed a fight to the death with Gongsun Ye, the Emperor family left you to it," Di Gang said slowly as he looked at Ye Futian. "Now that you have won the fight, I think it is due time to settle the matter of you invading the Emperor family residence."


    Many lifted their head to look at Di Gang. It seemed like Di Gang was incredibly dissatisfied at Ye Futian killing Gongsun Ye. Furthermore, given that he had invaded the Emperor family residence, it looked as if Di Gang was ready to move against him.


    "I said it that day: come and I will indulge you." Ye Futian turned his eyes at Di Gang. The air felt stiff once again. Rumors had it that something like that actually happened. However, seeing was believing, and the scene of Ye Futian provoking Di Gang still sent shivers down many''s spines.


    Is that unparalleled genius from the Holy Zhi Place really trying to pick fights with the top figure of the younger generation in the southwestern region of Barren State, right after he killed Gongsun Ye, the champion on Alchemy Rank?


    Di Gang was not Gongsun Ye. He was no armorer, and he was a fighter through and through. His proficiency in the martial arts were leagues above Gongsun Ye''s. It was said that his prowess was proven in the Emperor family residence that day. When Di Gang made his move, there was simply no one who was able to stand in his way.


    Di Gang looked at Ye Futian as he took steps forward, making for the Alchemy Pillar area. He said, "Well then, let me have a look personally at what the mighty ones of the Holy Zhi Palace are capable of. Everyone who invaded the Emperor family residence that day fought using ritual implements. That is hardly considered a true fight. Let us go about it as how it should be done then, right now."


    Is Di Gang trying to fight every single person from the Holy Zhi Palace? Many were breathing hard. Di Gang was indeed the number one in Alchemy City. He remained just as overbearing even after witnessing what Ye Futian was capable of.


    Huang Jiuge and all the others looked rather distressed. They were able to tell back in that day that Di Gang was indeed powerful. But fighting all of them all at once, all on his own? Is he trying to make a joke here?

 638 Invincibility

    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Di Gang, who was taking his steps in the air and smiled. "You are welcome to test yourself against the students of the Holy Zhi Palace, but you alone are not qualified to fight all of us at once. If you want a war, you need to bring your people with you."


    Di Gang did not mind at all. He actually went on to look at everyone below and said, "If any proud sons and daughters of Alchemy City wish to test themselves against the students of the Holy Zhi Palace, feel free to join the fray."


    "I wish to do so," a voice was heard and a figure leaped onto the platform. It was Li Futu. Many were dumbfounded. Li Futu of the Fire Emperor Palace, whose reputation was slightly inferior to Di Gang''s yet was nonetheless someone of exceptional caliber. He was said to have lost in the gang fight in the Alchemy Casino. Was he trying to fight once again here?


    "I''m not here to fight to the death. I want only to test my skills," Li Futu said. He apparently felt something was lacking in the fight back then and had been feeling rather displeased. As such, he walked into the Alchemy Pillar area and stood in the air, wanting to test himself yet again.


    "I too wish to do so." Another figure walked out. It was Chi Lian. He crafted a heavy sword in the Alchemy Conference and ranked fourth on Alchemy Rank. He was very powerful. Many mighty ones from some of the renowned clans of Alchemy City walked into the Alchemy Pillar area, gathering around Di Gang, eager to try their hand.


    "Well, in that case, we too shall see what the mighty ones of the Alchemy City regions of the Barren State are made of." Ye Futian turned his head back toward his people and saw one figure after another step up. The air above the vast ground surrounded by eight Alchemy Pillars saw the gathering of multiple geniuses and mighty ones of incredible prowess. It was truly a magnificent sight to behold.


    This fight will definitely be more spectacular than the last. No one had expected to be able to witness a showdown like this after the Alchemy Conference.


    Di Gang, Li Futu, Chi Lian, and the others joined the fray as representatives of the Alchemy City regions while Ye Futian and his people represented the mighty ones of the Holy Zhi Palace. It was the clash of titans between the best of geniuses, and the fight was seen to carry great significance.


    "Interesting." Xu Que smirked. Not only had he been able to get several ritual implements on this trip to Alchemy City, but he felt great that he was also able to see for himself what the top figures of Alchemy City had to offer. He planned to focus on making his way up the Law Rank after returning to the Holy Zhi Palace. When he became a Grade One Noble, he would then focus on breaking into Sage Planes. The sky would be the limit once he became a sage.


    Huang Jiuge looked just as excited. He chose not to study in the Holy Zhi Palace despite having participated in the palace''s examinations, as his sole objective back then was to fight top-notch figures. He was equally as excited to be able to do the same again this day.


    Everyone from both sides took their own corners and unleashed their auras, enabling everyone to make clear of the planes of one another. One figure after another was seen flashing about, making their way at each other.


    Li Futu stepped out. A proud figure was seen coming at him. It was none other than Huang Jiuge.


    Chi Lian stepped out and the one who chose to fight him was Xu Que.


    All the others selected their own opponents. Dazzling figures filled the air above the Alchemy Pillars as they went fighting each other.


    "Di Gang didn''t move." Many turned their eyes at Di Gang. He remained standing proud in the air, scanning the battlefield but not fighting himself. Ye Futian stood in the air in silence without moving as well.


    "Ye Futian was able to connect the minds of everyone in that battle back in Alchemy Casino using music, resonating them with one another. He isn''t doing something like that today but simply let everyone fight their own battles."


    "It is the same with Di Gang''s side. No matrixes are used to boost anyone. It seems like all they want is to fight each other as they are, without using amplification tools of any kind." Furthermore, both Di Gang and Ye Futian seemed to have isolated themselves from the fray. The battles there looked as if they had nothing to do with them. Many sported funny looks. Both of them seemed to have immense pride.


    The battles raged about in the area of the platform. Li Futu seemed to have been possessed by the Vermillion Bird and Huang Jiuge looked like a descendant of Renhuang. Both figures clashed and the space trembled violently in response.


    Chi Lian was a swordsman, and a golden dazzling greatsword seemed to have appeared between his hands. It went swinging about in the air in an attempt to cut everything in its way. However, Xu Que moved about like a mirage, clad in murderous intent, boasting incredible power.


    Yu Sheng, Zui Qianchou, Ye Wuchen, Phoenix, and some others found their own opponents, and each of their fights looked earth-shattering. It was especially so in the fight between Yu Sheng and Di Zhou. While Di Zhou was formidable, he was being slaughtered by Yu Sheng and sent flying all over the place. Di Zhou spat up blood from his mouth and he looked pale. Despite the predicament with his little brother, Di Gang did not intervene. He simply observed everything taking place in silence.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace is the sacred ground of the Barren State, and everyone who emerged from there is indeed the best the Barren State has to offer," many mumbled to themselves as they watched the battles taking place. While the students of the Holy Zhi Palace suffered a disadvantage in plane, they seemed to have gained the upper hand in the battle. There was no doubt that Huang Jiuge was incredibly powerful. He fought Li Futu as a Grade Two Noble. He was the first runner-up in the Law Battle three years ago. His tremendous capacity for combat seemed to once again, speak volume of Ye Futian''s powers.


    As the battles raged on, the ones at the side of Alchemy City began to see more and more losses, and it seemed like they were barely holding on. Di Gang, who had been standing in the air watching, swooped down on the battlefield. Blinding light was seen bursting from his body as he was clad in Golden Raven armor and a sun hung above him. The divine bird cried around the sun as it looked incredibly breathtaking.


    At that moment, Di Gang''s body became covered in overpowering might. Beams of scorching hot sunlight shot out, covering the heavens and bringing incredible pressure to bear down on everyone.


    "The Golden Raven Armor." Many turned to look at Di Gang. His Golden Raven Armor looked incredibly regal and proud. That was a terrifying battle tactic Di Gang had invented using his own Life Spirits. It was a form of limitless might and looked invincible. Rumor had it that in order to train and gain such battle form, he went searching for the Golden Raven at the edge of the demon world.


    The number one figure in Alchemy City was indeed a peerless one.


    "Everyone retreat," Di Gang said with an overbearing voice. Golden fiery beams shot out from his body as soon as he finished giving the order, heading for Huang Jiuge and the rest of the Holy Zhi Palace students. Everyone was seen putting up a defense against the move. Many who heard Di Gang scattered. Li Futu frowned and thought of continuing his fight with Huang Jiuge, but Di Gang had no plans of letting him continue his fight.


    Di Gang descended on his opponents like a divine bird. He raised his hand and went for Huang Jiuge right away. At that very moment, Huang Jiuge felt as if he was facing a true divine bird of the sun. The tremendous divine bird loomed over him, and it looked far more powerful that Li Futu''s Vermillion Bird.


    The golden fiery claws capable of tearing everything in their path came for Huang Jiuge. He retreated in a hurry but quickly saw the shadow of a divine bird pursuing him with lethal intention. Huang Jiuge saw no choice but to fight head on. He brought his Renhuang Sword to bear, attempting to cut the bird into two. However, the shadow of the divine bird in front of him seemed to be unbelievably solid. The Renhuang Sword hit hard on the bird, and Huang Jiuge was quickly sent flying from the resulting shock.


    Voom. With a flap of its wings, Di Gang''s body vanished. He went into another direction, which was where Phoenix was. An incredibly huge golden bird of the sun swooped down with its wings. Holy lights flashed down like blades, and every defense that Phoenix put up was completely shattered. With a loud rumble, Phoenix, who was a Grade Three Noble, was pierced by some kind of attack and spit up blood.


    Di Gang vanished once again after landing the hit. Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Zhong Li and others were attacked one after another, and they were either cornered or injured. The unbelievably fast movements of Di Gang made it seem almost impossible to catch him.


    "What incredible power." Many were stunned at the sight. Di Gang was indeed the number one in all of the southwestern region of the Barren State. Di Gang was so powerful that anything he pulled seemed to be a testament to his invincibility.


    Many were boiling with excitement. While many mighty ones from the Alchemy City regions were being crushed by the Holy Zhi Palace students, Di Gang proved adequate to even the score.


    Everyone came to understand why Di Gang chose to have all of the students of the Holy Zhi Palace fight. While he did allow the mighty ones from Alchemy City to fight alongside him, he had never once thought of relying on any one of them. He had been planning to overwhelm everyone from the Holy Zhi Palace right from the start, proving himself to be the one befitting the title of number one in Alchemy City. It was also, at the same time, the price he intended to make Ye Futian and the others pay for invading the Emperor family residence.


    Everyone from Alchemy City felt excitement like no other. Their number one mighty one was so overbearing that no one was able to stand in his way.


    "Di Kai, your son is indeed something," Yan Jun said. While his son, Li Futu, was also a top-notch genius, he had to admit after seeing Di Gang in action, that Di Gang was way more powerful than Li Futu.


    "I''ve said it before. Di Gang will become a saint someday. In the ranks of the Holy Zhi Palace, only Bai Luli would be able to stand against him. Even if the one ranked first on the Law Rank were here, Di Gang would run over him all the same. All those students here are no match for him," Di Kai said proudly. It was only natural for him to do so, having one such excellent heir to succeed him.


    He glanced at Bai Luli, who was watching the battles, thinking that when Di Gang became a sage, there would be a day when Di Gang would clash with him, who ranked tenth on Barren Sky Ranking. This would decide who was the superior one among them.


    You Chi was observing the battlefield as well. Di Gang''s talents were indeed matchless in Alchemy City, and he would be able to achieve great things in the future. Di Kai was also feeling ambitious right then, having intentions of taking his place.


    Ye Futian had demonstrated his genius-level talents when he ran over Gongsun Ye. But how will he fare against Di Gang?


    At the moment, Ye Futian burst forth with incredibly dazzling light as well. The wings of the Roc spread wide and bright. He then addressed the battlefield, "All of you, retreat and leave it to me." He flashed and disappeared from where he stood as soon as he was done talking, appearing right before a mighty one from Alchemy City the very next moment. That mighty one felt Ye Futian''s sharply exploding aura of intense might, but in the very next second, he was rendered completely stiff and unable to move.


    Boom. The wings swept and the body of that mighty one was sent flying, swatted away by the huge Roc down to the ground below. Ye Futian''s body disappeared yet again and appeared where Di Zhou was. Di Zhou intended to back away seeing Ye Futian coming, but Ye Futian''s speed was so fast that he zipped by in a dazzling arc, and with a flap of the golden wings, a deafening shriek was heard. Blood appeared on Di Zhou''s body as he hit an Alchemy Pillar hard.


    Many others were only able to see the Roc zipping through the air afterward before one figure after another dropped like flies. The hearts of many were shocked at the scene, as all of the mighty ones from Alchemy City looked helpless before Ye Futian. He seemed to be making a statement, that what Di Gang had just pulled, he was able to do the same.


    "Seems like the head of the Emperor family jumped to conclusions a little too soon. That boy is a Grade Three Noble, yet he is able to do what Di Gang just did," Chu Ji smirked sheepishly as she elaborated.


    Di Kai stared at the battlefield in all seriousness and said, "Di Gang will end his rampage right here!"

 639 Number One Genius in Alchemy City

    All of the Holy Zhi Palace students on the battlefield, even Huang Jiuge, retreated. They had all experienced Di Gang''s powers firsthand, and he was indeed more powerful than they were. He was truly the genius of the highest order in the Alchemy City regions. His reputation preceded him and he had what it took to back his immense reputation. His unbelievably exceptional talents for combat made it so that even those ranked high on the Law Rank of the Holy Zhi Palace would find him difficult to deal with.


    Di Gang proved himself to be the number one genius in all of the southwestern regions of the Barren State. While rumor had it that the prestige of both Li Futu and Gongsun Ye were almost equal to his, the truth was that Di Gang''s combat ability was several orders of magnitude higher than either of them.


    Di Gang stood proudly in the air, basking in the light of the Golden Raven and watching Ye Futian move, who was then attacking Chi Lian. Chi Lian ranked fourth in the Alchemy Conference. His combat ability was immensely high and there was no way Ye Futian would be able to easily overpower him.


    The fire and golden light around Chi Lian burst in a crazed manner and it seemed as if his body was being turned into a large painting. It was as if countless runes were coalescing into a matrix of sorts, forging a terrifying giant sword. Sword aura from all around him whooshed, and the golden light and fire resonated with the aura. The shadow of the Roc descended upon Chi Lian and at that very split second, the space around him felt frozen. He then felt a very strong, oppressive pressure bearing down on him, freezing the space around him.


    Boom, boom, boom! Incredibly terrifying golden fires exploded in the air in an attempt to destroy that power that seemed to be placing everything around him under lockdown. However, he still felt incredibly heavy and cold, as if all forces around him made it a point to pin him down, preventing him from moving.


    Sharp, high-pitched ringing noises were heard, and appalling light burst from the giant sword, tearing everything around it apart.


    "Go," Chi Lian uttered a single word with a cold voice. The giant sword, under his control, went about tearing apart everything in its path, making its way to the Roc.


    Voom. The golden mirage was unbelievably quick as it zipped past the giant sword. At that second, the giant sword suddenly blew up into countless pieces of small rune swords, bursting with incredibly sharp sword will, attempting to tear apart the space. Despite his frightening speed, Ye Futian was unable to evade the attack. The countless rune swords went for him, yet clanging sharp noises were heard soon after. There seemed to be an absolute defense field with Ye Futian at its center. The rune swords zipped past the starlight, yet they were still unable to break his defenses. The Roc soon descended upon Chi Lian.


    Chi Lian shouted. Using his body as the container, countless runes flashed about and spread all around. It was a dazzling scene to behold, like his body had been turned into a giant sword of alchemy. However, Ye Futian, clad in the shadow of the Roc, remained unfazed as he attacked. The blow landed directly onto Chi Lian''s body, and it seemed as if the attack hit the giant sword squarely as well. Intense, heavy power burst suddenly as the giant sword blasted countless shimmering runes, trying to defend against the attack in a crazed manner.


    Kaboom�� Lightning of incomparable magnitude burst, like the god of thunder himself was hammering on the giant sword in a rage. Cracking noises sounded out, and cracks began to form on the giant sword. The giant weapon was soon torn apart as dazzling lights flashed. Chi Lian''s body was sent flying by the move. He spat out blood in the air and his face looked as pale as paper.


    "Even Chi Lian, a Grade One Noble, was utterly incapable of defending against the attack." The hearts of many shuddered. While it was easy to say that what happened between Gongsun Ye and Ye Futian was simply due to everyone having overestimated what Gongsun Ye was capable of, what happened right there and then was a testament of Ye Futian''s unparalleled capacity ability which was deemed to be at the pinnacle of Noble Plane. There was no one that Ye Futian was unable to simply swat aside, other than Di Gang.


    "That fellow..." Xu Que watched Ye Futian with a startled look. He fought with Chi Lian before and knew well of Chi Lian''s prowess. He was incapable to defend against Chi Lian''s attack before, and that alone spoke volume of Ye Futian''s current prowess.


    Not having fought for two whole years, Ye Futian''s rank on the Law Rank of the Holy Zhi Palace remained at tenth place. However, everyone knew that he should have advanced a long time ago. Speculating Ye Futian''s prowess happened very often in the Holy Zhi Palace. That one battle enabled them to see it for themselves personally.


    The number genius of Alchemy City, Di Gang, stood before Ye Futian.


    "You all, back off," Di Gang addressed everyone who was being attacked by Ye Futian. Everyone retreated as told; even Li Futu did so without hesitation. He knew if Ye Futian were to attack him, there was no way he would come out on top. That Grade Three Noble from the Holy Zhi Palace now felt like a demon god of some kind. Everyone else who had fought before retreated, with only two people left within the Alchemy Pillar area��Di Gang and Ye Futian.


    Both of them stared at each other. Di Gang was basking in the light of the Golden Raven, while Ye Futian was clad with the Roc. Those two were deemed kings among birds. The upcoming battle was one that would reveal Ye Futian using his full power and how long he would last facing off against someone like Di Gang.


    Di Gang locked gazes with Ye Futian as he said, "You are a Grade Three Noble, and as such, it has not been my place to bully you. But you invaded the Emperor family residence and overpowered the Emperor family with numbers. As such, I see no other way than to fight you personally. However, I will only injure you very badly in this fight, as penance for those you have injured that day. When you reach a higher plane in the future, I welcome a challenge from you again." Di Gang spoke with an incredibly prideful tone. Despite the immense talents like none other and combat ability second to none, Di Gang still deemed Ye Futian no match for him.


    Di Gang was at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane, and he was literally steps away from becoming a sage. His talents surpassed all others, and both his offensive and defensive capacities were mastered at uncommon heights. His Life Spirit was immensely powerful and he reigned supreme in martial arts at the noble level. Besides Ye Futian, there was hardly anyone in the Noble Plane who was able to truly face him and come out on top in all of the Barren State.


    It was not a statement made in arrogance but in confidence. He had thought for a long time, if Bai Luli was of the same plane as him, there would have been an epic battle between two Nobles at the pinnacle of their training.


    "There have been many who like you before; arrogant like none other. Be it Bai Ze in the Law Battle three years ago, or Yan Jiu who is here today, or anyone you can think of, they all behaved in such ways. The end result of their arrogance, they know well themselves," Ye Futian said plainly, embarrassing Yan Jiu who was among the crowd. Ye Futian obviously targeted him for humiliation, yet Bai Luli looked composed and there was little to be found from his expression. Ye Futian was simply telling the truth: Bai Ze''s prowess was far behind that of Ye Futian, and Bai Luli saw no need to deny that. He made it a point to train Bai Ze harder when he returned to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "As for you being of a higher plane than I am, there is no need to fret about that. If we were of the same plane, you would have no business being here." Ye Futian added plainly, "Those who were of the same plane as I never stood a chance. They were nothing to me, and they had no right to even speak to me."


    "Well..." Everyone within earshot was rendered speechless by Ye Futian''s words. Di Gang was incredibly arrogant as he had what it took to back his claim. However, Ye Futian''s response proved even more insolent. He had no one of the same plane to fight against, as there was simply no one of the same plane who stood a chance against him. What he meant was he was invincible compared to everyone on the same plane in the Barren State. No one of the same plane had the right to even think about lifting a finger against him. These were probably the most insolent words a martial arts cultivator could come up with.


    "You brag without shame." Di Kai of the Emperor family said coldly, "I have never seen one of the younger generation as insolent as you are."


    "He became a Law Battle champion to enter the Holy Zhi Palace as a Grade Nine Noble, and he came to sweep everyone aside in the Alchemy City regions as a Grade Three Noble. All who he fought and defeated were people of a higher plane. As he put it himself, no one on the same plane as him stands a chance against him," Chu Ji elaborated with a smirk, finding the young man to be rather amusing.


    "Hmph." Di Kai snorted. "He will learn his lesson after this battle."


    Two distinctly terrifying auras permeated the battlefield. Di Gang said nothing else. There was no need for more words. If Ye Futian was behaving in such a confident manner, Di Gang had to do nothing else but to overpower him with sheer force.


    Terrifying martial arts will burst out. Di Gang was standing very far away from Ye Futian. However, when Di Gang lashed out with a clawing attack, the Golde Raven appeared, blocking out the sky and went straight for Ye Futian with its fiery golden claws.


    "Absolute Territory." Starlight circled around Ye Futian as it turned into a space of Absolute Territory. When the Golden Raven shadow came tearing at him, sharp, screeching noises were heard. The starlight around Ye Futian seemed utterly impenetrable.


    "Good defense. I specialize in martial arts, and I have invented the offensive and defensive techniques of the Golden Raven Armor. Are you ready?" Di Gang stepped forward, flashing like the Golden Raven at a frightening speed, coming straight for Ye Futian.


    "Spell, Sky Freezing," Ye Futian said. Powerful areas of Will permeated the space around him, seemingly freezing everything around it. It was a power that came with intense pressure, as even Di Gang''s speed seemed to have been considerably slowed. Di Gang had a strange look as he came to feel such power first hand. He was surprised to find it nearly impossible to tell what kind of elements were used to create such a fusion power. That meant that what Ye Futian pulled surpassed his current plane limit and gave birth to some completely new area of effect powers. It was a talent like no other indeed. However, that trick still proved inadequate.


    Voom. Golden fiery wings spread and devastating power of flames burst in the air. An incredibly huge Golden Raven appeared and blocked out the sky. It seemed as if the space itself was being assailed by a pair of endless golden fiery wings, cutting the frozen space apart with a pair of wings like blades capable of cutting anything in its path, as Di Gang continued to come at Ye Futian.


    Incredible pressure soon bore down. Di Gang''s imposing figure soon descended upon Ye Futian, and the Golden Raven covering his body lashed out with a claw of unparalleled sharpness, bashing hard into Ye Futian''s Absolute Territory. Tremendously terrifying starlight orbited around Ye Futian, yet Di Gang''s attack seemed to have tremendous penetration power. The golden flames seeped into his defenses, flaring about in the screen of starlight. Cracking noises were heard as the defensive power of the Absolute Territory shattered. The Golden Raven cried as it continued to tear at everything before it, heading straight for Ye Futian. Golden vines were seen bursting out, heading for the Golden Raven. The attack was, however, quickly torn apart, and Ye Futian backed away like a bolt of lightning.


    "Despite Ye Futian being a genius like no other. The difference in planes still makes it so that it is impossible for him to defend against Di Gang''s attacks," many who were watching the fight noted to themselves. Di Gang''s offensive powers were matchless among all nobles in Alchemy City, and he was second to none even when compared to all the nobles found in the Barren State!

 640 Riding the Momentum to Transcend to the Next Plane

    Di Gang stood proudly in the sky, clad head to toe in golden armor. A terrifying Golden Raven was by his side. This was the Golden Raven Armor, which was incomparable when it came to offensive and defensive capabilities. Furthermore, when attacking, the Armor could penetrate and tear through anything. As such, Di Gang could even rip through Ye Futian''s Constitution of Stars.


    Di Gang continued moving forward. Right then, a surge of power exploded from Ye Futian, before streaks of light passed through him and turned into four dazzling rays that shot up through his body. The energy surrounding his body then began to increase rapidly, becoming scarier than before.


    "This is one of Sage Douzhan''s body refining formulas. He''s awakening his body''s potential," Yan Jun explained, his eyes on Ye Futian. Sage Douzhan was seventh in the Barren Sky Ranking and the top body refinement practitioner in the Barren State. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were his disciples.


    With a shout, four streaks of bright light shot out from Ye Futian''s body. The Flirting Star, Ruinous Star, Finance Star, and Gloomy Star acupoints were all activated at the same time. Instantly, the will energy in the surroundings grew stronger still. In Ye Futian''s three years at the Holy Zhi Palace, he had managed to integrate the power of many new areas of will. Those areas of will were created through a combination of martial arts and sorcery wills. When he released the limits of his body by activating four of the Seven Star acupoints, the strength of his will had increased as well. Not only that, but Ye Futian carried immensely powerful energy within his core. His arms and legs contained explosive power too. He seemed ready to release all that energy in his body and battle it out.


    Di Gang glanced over at Ye Futian coolly. Expressionless, he stepped out in a bright flash of gold.


    "Sky Freezing Technique, Absolute Territory," Ye Futian uttered, and instantly, the atmosphere in the vast area became illusory and Spiritual Qi swirled about violently. The entire battlefield seemed to be filled with the power of Ye Futian''s will. It weighed down on everyone, and it seemed as though the sky itself would congeal.


    "Split," Di Gang spat coldly. As a peak noble, his willpower was immense. A word from him sent a gigantic Golden Raven tearing through the sky, covering the entire battlefield. It''s boundless flaming wings tore apart everything in the battlefield, ripping the energy to shreds. The Golden Raven dove towards Ye Futian in an attack. Ye Futian may have possessed terrifying noble intent, but Di Gang was not affected too greatly by it.


    Ye Futian possessed the bulk of a dragon, the strength and agility of a Divine Ape, and the flexibility and grace of a roc. In the face of Di Gang''s attack, lightning moved along Ye Futian''s body, and with a crackle, an improved version of the Fatal Entanglement Spell shot out towards his opponent. However, Di Gang tore through the spell and ripped it to shreds. With the pieces of vine dancing fluttering through the sky in the aftermath. It was evident that Di Gang was powerful.


    With a flutter of the Roc''s spirit''s wings on his back, Ye Futian stepped out towards Di Gang, his body containing power that was incomparable by its sheer amount. Then, he sent a fist flying in Di Gang''s direction. With a roar, the power of the Thunder God entered his punch, making it unbeatably powerful.


    He''s actually going to clash head-on with Di Gang? the crowd wondered to themselves. Their hearts were beating fast at the sight. It seemed like Ye Futian was being overconfident. Yet, the energy rolling off him was terrifying indeed. It did not seem like the kind of energy that belonged to grade three noble; even a noble at their peak would not be this impressive.


    Chu Ji from the Goddess Pavilion observed with a smile, "He''s created his own areas of will, crafted his own spells, combined martial arts and sorcery, and integrated the body refinement techniques he learned from Sage Douzhan into his attacks. Looks like one more monstrously powerful individual with the likes of Bai Luli has emerged from the Holy Zhi Palace. No wonder it''s the best place to train in all of the Barren State." With her plane, it was natural that she would be able to intuitively see many things that were happening on the battlefield.


    The two men''s attacks collided directly. The Golden Raven and the Roc battled each other. A fiery golden light tore through and burned everything in its path, seemingly headed straight for Ye Futian. Similarly, the explosive rage of the Thunder God had Di Gang surrounded by streaks of lightning seeking to destroy him. Di Gang had the Golden Raven Armor to protect himself. If it had been Gongsun Ye who was Ye Futian''s opponent this time, he would not have been able to withstand a single blow.


    With a thud, Ye Futian was sent stumbling back. Di Gang''s arm vibrated from the blow as well. The light rolling off Di Gang''s body neutralized Ye Futian''s lightning and Di Gang disappeared once again into an attack on Ye Futian.


    The Roc spirit''s wings fluttered, and Ye Futian charged towards Di Gang with no intention of retreating at all. As he lifted his arm to attack, a dazzling light emerged. With a crash, the sky rumbled, and Ye Futian was pushed back by Di Gang''s attack. This time, Di Gang did not stop, but continued in his attack. He was going to see for himself just how long Ye Futian could sustain this battle with that body of his.


    The crowd looked towards the battlefield to see two bright streaks of light continuously clash with each other. Each clash made the sky rumble and the light grow brighter.


    Being forced back again and again by Di Gang''s attacks, Ye Futian''s blood was rushing wildly through his body, with cracking sounds appearing from within. But his impressive physical state allowed him to endure attacks of this frightening level and continue battling.


    "Ye Futian''s actually able to fight against Di Gang to this extent," exclaimed many people in the crowd in admiration.


    Just then, Di Gang paused his attack. His wings fluttered, keeping him in the sky. Staring at Ye Futian, who was a distance away, Di Gang spoke, "It''s indeed impressive that you''ve been able to endure the attacks from my Golden Raven Armor. You have good reason to be so irreverent. However, you''re still far from my level."


    At his words, many Golden Ravens appeared on Di Gang. With a long cry, a humongous Golden Raven swooped down from the sky, its sharp claws headed straight for Ye Futian. The Roc behind Ye Futian cried out into the sky as well and spread its wings. However, the Golden Raven''s gigantic claws latched onto the Roc''s wings, keeping Ye Futian trapped where he was. At the same time, the Golden Raven''s wings came swooping down, cutting off the space to isolate Ye Futian. Di Gang came before Ye Futian in a flash and launched a series of powerful attacks on him. Each blow contained destructive energy which rushed into Ye Futian''s body, making him wheeze and feel as though his body was about to be torn apart by the attacks.


    "Nine Part Attack!" Di Gang shouted, and with the last blow, Ye Futian''s body shook violently as though he had been pierced by the attacks, and he was sent stumbling back a good distance.


    Hua Jieyu and everyone else from the Holy Zhi Palace watched the scene before them intently. The gazes of the powerful individuals spectating were equally sharp as well. They wondered if Di Gang had finally decided to get serious in the fight. This attack was probably enough to seriously injure Ye Futian. Ye Futian was almost pushed all the way back to the edge of the battlefield. A blindingly dazzling glow emanated through his body from the back, as if countless rays of light were shining through him.


    Yu Sheng''s eyes glittered at the sight. He guessed that this was��


    Members of the Gongsun Clan watched coldly. They wanted Ye Futian to be killed. Many gazes gathered on Ye Futian. His head bowed slightly, and light swirled around him. After this attack, would he still be able to continue fighting?


    "Thanks for the help," a low voice rang out, and Ye Futian lifted his head after he spoke. Taking a step forward, Ye Futian''s body quivered violently. Instantly, countless rays of light shot through his body, bathing him in a dazzling glow. Then, five streaks of light shot out from Ye Futian''s body. The fifth of the Seven Star acupoints��the Abundance Star acupoint��had been activated. Ye Futian had activated five acupoints in his body. Furthermore, the martial arts energy in his body was welling up as well, and an even stronger surge of energy flowed out, creating a frightening storm around him.


    "He''s broken through another plane in his martial arts." Many people looked towards Ye Futian in surprise. It was evident that Ye Futian was equally accomplished in martial arts and sorcery. The Grade Three Noble aura he displayed just now had come from his sorcery skills. He was still a Grade Four Noble in terms of martial arts, but he was only a step away from becoming a Grade Three Noble in that aspect.


    Now, making use of Di Gang''s power, Ye Futian had activated the fifth of the Seven Stars acupoints and the potential within his body to break through another plane in terms of martial arts. He had finally become a complete Grade Three Noble.


    Ye Futian trained using the Incomplete Heavenly Manual. At the Holy Zhi Palace, he had borrowed the power of the relics to train his body, and after much grueling training, his body had become incredibly strong. Now that he had reached the limits of his body and was one step to breaking through to the next plane, how could he not make good use of facing an opponent like Di Gang? As such, he had the intention to borrow the other man''s power to try and break through to the next martial arts plane. And he had succeeded.


    Di Gang stared at Ye Futian, and a cold glint flashed through his sharp eyes. He was a little angered now. Ye Futian had made use of their battle to break through to the next martial arts plane. This was no coincidence; Ye Futian had planned it from the start.


    "You''re welcome. Things will still end the same way though," Di Gang responded coldly. The gigantic Golden Raven seemed to take on a real form then. That was the ultimate form of the Golden Raven Armor. Di Gang was not going to play around with Ye Futian anymore. A boundless fiery golden light emanated through the sky, with intense burning power.


    "Of course, things will still end the same way," Ye Futian replied calmly. The two had very different ideas as to how this battle would turn out.


    Right then, a humongous Roc let out a dazzling glow above Ye Futian and seemed to become real as well. It was like an actual divine bird descending upon the world. At the same time, a giant shadow figure appeared within the divine bird. That shadow figure was created by Ye Futian, and it seemed to integrate into the divine bird. However, the real Ye Futian remained where he was, shining with a dazzling glow.


    "It''s a Dharma body," someone announced.


    "It''s a Douzhan Body, a technique taught by Sage Douzhan." The more prominent characters in the crowd knew more about what Ye Futian was doing.


    Indeed, this was a Douzhan Body. The most basic form of the Douzhan Body was crafted based on the Life Spirit. The stronger the resonance Ye Futian had with the world, the stronger his areas of will would become as well.


    Di Gang stared coldly at Ye Futian''s Douzhan Body. Once again, the giant Golden Raven slashed towards him. Ye Futian''s Douzhan Body, the Roc, struck out with its sharp claws as well, clashing with the Golden Raven in the air. The next moment, Di Gang appeared before Ye Futian in a flash again, aiming for another attack. However, blinding bursts of starlight appeared around Ye Futian''s Douzhan Body. The Ye Futian within the Douzhen Bodu raised his arms and concentrated an endless amount of energy within. As Di Gang charged towards him, he punched both fists forward and attacked. Instantly, countless fist shadows appeared in the space and descended like shooting stars, tearing through everything before them.


    Many people stared at the sky in shock. In a starry dimension, fist shadows were turning into shooting stars that flew down towards Di Gang. This was an offensive technique that Ye Futian had previously learned. Now, he had injected immensely powerful willpower into it and activated the technique with his incomparably strong body. He would name this attack ''Comet.''

 641 The Battle Between Two Peak Nobles

    Over the past two years, Ye Futian had learned all sorts of techniques. There was the White Lustrous Flame, the Rage of the Thunder God, the Sky Freezing Technique, and Absolute Territory. All these were some of the techniques he had managed to learn.


    Comparatively, Ye Futian was less knowledgeable about martial arts attacks. He had mainly learned the Nine Heavenly Attacks, which was the strongest martial arts offensive technique there was. He only needed to train and practice as much as he could in order to continuously integrate his own realizations into the technique and use it to its full potential.


    The Comet Punch was an offensive technique Ye Futian had developed to complement the body refining techniques he learnt from Sage Douzhan. The power of Martial Will was integrated into the attack. Within the starry sky, each fist shone like a blindingly dazzling comet and shot straight for the gigantic Golden Raven.


    The divine bird that Di Gang had summoned as part of his Golden Bird Armor was incomparable in its offensive capabilities, and it continuously tore apart all the comets that rained down upon it. However, the fists seemed to pour down in an endless torrent.


    Di Gang raised an eyebrow slightly, then charged forward once more, seeming to turn into a bright streak of light. It didn''t matter how powerful or peerless Ye Futian was, any Comet Punch that got in his way would be all shattered.


    But then, a giant Life Spirit appeared from behind Ye Futian. It was the Divine Ape, which let out a long deafening roar. As Ye Futian took a step forward, so did the Divine Ape. The sky trembled with their movement, and in the next moment, Ye Futian lifted clenched fists and charged forward. The Divine Ape followed behind him, and instantly, the entire space seemed like it was about to be crushed and annihilated. The magnitude of the punch''s power was shocking, seeming almost like an actual comet itself. Di Gang''s Golden Raven Armor charged forward to meet the attack, clashing directly with the Comet Punch. With a loud crash, Di Gang was sent flying backward. Di Gang soared through the air before stopping, his body slightly bowed. The entire sky was quite at this very moment, for Di Gang had just been pushed back by Ye Futian.


    Countless eyes were on Ye Futian as he stood there, an impressive figure of immense capability. Their hearts thumped as they thought about how Ye Futian had forced Di Gang back. Di Gang was the top cultivator in all of Alchemy City. Even if Ye Futian had broken through to the next plane, he was only still a Grade Three Noble. Yet he had still managed to force Di Gang back with his power.


    Di Kai''s expression changed as well. He had initially thought that this match was going to simply be one where Ye Futian was crushed. It had not occurred to him at all that Ye Futian could be stronger than he expected.


    You Chi watched the battle quietly. After governing Alchemy City for many years, while he specialized in crafting, he also understood that martial arts were the foundation of everything. Now that a disciple from the Holy Zhi Palace had arrived in Alchemy City in top form, even Di Gang would be shaken by their power.


    Di Gang lifted his head to look at Ye Futian. His body ramrod straight, he challenged haughtily, "You won''t get a second chance from now on." As he spoke, a golden space appeared behind him. That was Di Gang''s Life Spirit. Everyone understood the intentions behind Di Gang''s speech; he was finally going to treat the battle seriously. Before this, it was obvious that he had been holding back. Di Gang had not expected to be pushed back by a mere Grade Three Noble, forcing him to fight with everything he had.


    "You never had a chance right from the start," Ye Futian replied, equally determined. But those were just words, and anyone could brag easily.


    A dazzling sun chariot appeared within the golden space. In an instant, scorching, sharp energy filled the space. The chariot seemed to have been built with divine arms, with a sun shining behind it and the Golden Raven perched within the sun.


    "Go forth," Di Gang spat, and his Life Spirit let out a terrifying glow. A Martial Will illusion appeared within the space, and the Alchemy Pillars area seemed to be transformed into an ancient battlefield. The sun appeared high up in the sky, and the Golden Raven in the sun let out a long cry. The desolate battlefield contained the power to incinerate everything within it. At the same time, many chariots hurtled towards Ye Futian. Di Gang had created a destructive Martial Will illusion.


    As Ye Futian watched Di Gang, three streaks of light appeared. Instantly, the sun and moon hung high up in the sky along with the stars. The sun, moon, and stars had all appeared at the same time, in addition to Ye Futian''s Roc spirit. The sight of it all made the hearts of many thump excitedly. Just how many Life Spirits did this guy have?


    Li Futu''s heart skipped a beat too. Ye Futian had released his Guqin Spirit back when they were at the Alchemy Casino. Could it be that Ye Futian had a Life Spirit possessing all the elemental powers?


    Ye Futian saw the endless golden flames charge straight for him, filled with destructive scorching energy. The glow of the sun, moon, and stars behind him bled into each other, and it seemed like a special kind of willpower had been injected into them. Ye Futian instantly became the center of that light, where a pure white fire began to burn. That fire was the White Lustrous Flame. The pure white flames burned throughout the space, and when the golden fire rained down upon it, the white flames even tried to capture the golden flames as energy for itself in order to stop it from reaching Ye Futian.


    The chariots hurtled towards Ye Futian in a deadly attack. Lightning crackled around Ye Futian, destroying everything and attacking the chariots wildly, reducing them all to ash. But then, an ultimate chariot came rushing towards Ye Futian, emanating a destructive glow. Di Gang was driving the chariot, and behind him, the light of the sun and the Golden Raven covered Ye Futian and his Douzhan body. Streaks of golden light descended upon him, tearing through all of Ye Futian''s defenses and heading straight for him.


    The wheels of the chariot seemed to be made out of an extremely sharp ritual implement, making the turning wheels seem like divine blades that tore up everything in its path. Where the chariot passed, there were no signs of life at all.


    With such frightening energy descending upon him, though the chariot had not reached Ye Futian yet, he could feel its terrifying destructive power. He dialed up his defenses to the max and threw out a series of punches. Each punch seemed to have a distinct spirit of its own. It resonated with the surroundings to create an incredibly powerful momentum, and in addition to the powerful Martial Will being released at the same time, the resulting energy created seemed almost like that of an Emperor''s.


    The Divine Ape began to shine with a dazzling glow, and its aura grew even more savage. As the chariot descended upon Ye Futian from the sky, the Divine Ape gathered the energy in the surroundings and with a deafening roar, Comet Punches were sent flying towards it. Comet-like fists filled the air and crashed straight into the approaching chariot. The chariot tore through those fists effortlessly. It was like many stars blowing apart at the same time, and a bright light shone out across the vast space as the chariot continued advancing. However, the fists continued to pelt the chariot in an endless stream before the real fist shadow appeared.


    The resulting collision brought about a destructive explosion of energy within the space, with a blinding light which was painful to watch. It was like the sun itself had exploded within the sky. Some nobles in the crowd were even stunned by the sight. They felt a sense of awe at the high-level battle. Even a Grade One Noble could clearly sense how powerful those two were.


    The chariot was destroyed, and Di Gang was pushed back once again. He lifted his head to look at Ye Futian. Before the battle, he had arrogantly assumed that no grade three noble would have been able to face off against him. This was not blind faith, but a sure knowledge of his own power. However, this disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace was somewhat baffling to him. Di Gang was not the only one who was caught off-guard. Everyone else had been as well. Even Xu Que and the others only found out how strong Ye Futian truly was today.


    "Over the past two years, he has broken through many of the relics at the Holy Zhi Palace, but not once has he participated in a battle," commented Zhong Li, who was also shocked. "Everyone knows he has a special way about figuring out the relics. As such, many of the newcomers from his batch would go to him for advice, and he would always have a personal opinion to answer them with. It''s unthinkable that he would be this strong already." He had been one of those who approached Ye Futian for advice. Phoenix had done the same as well. That was why they had come to the Alchemy City with Ye Futian.


    "For him to have such a variety of abilities, other than the body refinement techniques and the Douzhan Body, he probably created them himself when he integrated his realizations of the relics into his own powers," Zui Qianchou surmised. Everyone nodded in agreement. Ye Futian had probably created those new areas of will and spells on his own, along with that punching technique which also integrated his starry power.


    This level of talent was awe-inspiring. When it came to battle, Ye Futian was probably good enough to go up against Ximen Hanjiang, who was at the top of the Law Rank. The power Di Gang had shown so far was not inferior to Ximen Hanjiang''s.


    Upon watching this battle, Xiang Zhiqin, Bing Yi from the Mortal World, Yan Jiu and everyone else from the Sword Saint Villa was speechless. They could not believe that Ye Futian had gotten this strong already.


    "Di Gang seems to be having quite a hard time." Chu Ji chuckled from where she was among the important individuals on top of the stairs. Di Kai''s expression turned slightly ugly, but he felt a rush as well. Ye Futian was stronger than he thought. The energy coming from Ye Futian now didn''t feel like a grade three noble''s at all. It was even more powerful than that of a top grade noble. However, victory would still be Di Gang''s.


    "So this is what you''re so confident about?" Ye Futian asked Di Gang, staring at him. Everyone''s gazes hardened at the dig. Di Gang lifted his head to glare at Ye Futian before he continued, "I''ve said before that if you were of the same plane as me, you wouldn''t even be good enough to be my opponent. Now, it''s my turn."


    Upon his words, Ye Futian stepped out impressively, standing tall and proud. As he moved, his Douzhan Body moved along with his actual body towards Di Gang. With the release of a spell, the space seemed to freeze over, and an immense pressure bore down onto Di Gang. This energy was way stronger than the will he had experienced previously. The Divine Ape swung a fist forward. The sheer power of this punch sent shockwaves through the sky and headed straight for Di Gang.


    Di Gang was still clad in his armor. The Golden Raven appeared with a dazzling light and cried out to the heavens. Its sharp claws tore apart everything in its way as it charged forward. A strange state was instantly born. Within the barren, lifeless battlefield, a Golden Raven screeched amidst flames descending from the sky, and its claws glinted with the magnificent shine of a divine weapon that could rip through anything.


    The two attacks collided, and Di Gang was sent stumbling backward yet again. However, this time, Ye Futian felt cracks appear in the fists of his Douzhan Body. At the same time, the bright light of the Golden Raven burned through the defenses of his Absolute Territory and came for him. Looking up, Ye Futian felt as if the illusion had grown even stronger.


    Sage Intent, Ye Futian thought to himself. Di Gang was a top grade noble, just one step away from becoming a Sage. It was not surprising that he had understood Sage Intent at this level.


    "He''s gotten even stronger." Countless gazes turned towards Di Gang. He stood there proud as a god in the sky. Is he finally going to reveal the best of his abilities? If so, then the battle is probably going to come to an end, everyone thought. Many looked towards Ye Futian, only to see him laugh. "Is this all you''ve got?"

 642 The Happy Ending of the Lovers

    The onlookers were all amazed by the confidence in Ye Futian''s voice. Did Ye Futian believe that he could defeat Di Gang now? The Alchemy Pillars created a Martial Will Zone. Di Gang''s body seemed to be burning while the sun shone above him. The Golden Raven tweeted, and its golden light was shed on every corner in this space. The flames penetrated the White Lustrous Flame as well as Ye Futian''s Martial Zone.


    The whole battlefield seemed to be in flames. Nothing could survive in this destructive zone. Beams of sharp light projected from the golden space behind Di Gang and covered his body like an armor ritual implement. But this was not a real implement. The Emperor Family''s ancestors were famous armorers, but then they gave up armory and chose to specialize in martial arts. However, the Emperor Family still possessed an armorer''s life spirit. It could absorb Spiritual Qi and create a ritual implement. Therefore, Di Gang was not using a ritual implement; he was just releasing his life spirit. It built an impregnable Golden Raven Armor and a chariot for him. Suddenly, many chariots appeared again with dreadful momentum. However, the chariots didn''t attack. They just floated around Di Gang. Once they were initiated, everything could be crushed.


    On a battlefield, Di Gang could defeat thousands of enemies just by himself. That was why he had never shown any fear when he challenged those talents from the Holy Zhi Palace. If Ye Futian was not here, he really could defeat anyone standing before him with his own power. However, the one standing before him now was Ye Futian who had unimaginable power.


    Ye Futian could feel Di Gang''s power. A non-Sage couldn''t control true Sage Power. Even if they had comprehended a bit, there was still a huge difference. Though Di Gang was known as the first Noble in the Alchemy City, it was still impossible for Di Gang to defeat a real sage.


    Ye Futian stood there with starry light surrounding him. The Divine Ape reached out a giant palm to gather endless Spiritual Qi. It transformed into a giant starry staff. With the staff in hand, the Divine Ape looked just like the Snow Ape.


    Ye Futian began to move as if practicing a martial arts fist form. An extremely strong will rushed into the Divine Ape''s body. Some fantastic rhythm resonated with the ape. Five of the Seven Star acupoints opened. The giant Divine Ape''s body projected brilliant light as if a beam of golden light penetrated through its body. Then the Divine Ape waved its long staff. The endless natural intent became one with it. The ape bathed in endless brilliant light. With great momentum, the Ape threw out its first attack.


    With a ponderous sound, even the air seemed to tremble. Great momentum rolled over and the falling flaming light was shattered. The Nine Heavenly Attacks was a great attack created by the Snow Ape. It was not changeless. The higher level Ye Futian was, the deeper the comprehension he could get, and therefore, the stronger the power of the Nine Heavenly Attacks. That power could also be used to strengthen his comprehension and strength.


    Ye Futian had been cultivating the Nine Heavenly Attacks the past two years since it was the strongest attack he had. He fused his own Martial Will into the attacks. When the attacks were sent out, his Martial Will would burst out too. The power it contained was much stronger than it was two years ago.


    Boom. The air trembled again. That giant Divine Ape waved his staff as if practicing martial arts. Every attack was stronger and scarier than the previous one.


    At the third attack, great momentum formed in the air and rolled out, seemly going to crush the barren martial illusion. A dreadful zone formed around Ye Futian. No power could approach the zone at this moment.


    "This is how the Nine Heavenly Attacks should be!" Yuan Zhan raised his head to watch Ye Futian''s moves. He seemed to want to memorize every move Ye Futian made.


    "Die!" Di Gang roared coldly. All of a sudden, he steered his chariot forward. The surrounding flames burned high and his frightening chariot crushed everything it passed.


    At this moment, however, the fourth attack of the Nine Heavenly Attacks was sent out. The chariot illusions were all shattered under the waving staff. However, Di Gang, protected by the Golden Raven Armor, continued forward in his chariot. The Divine Ape kept wielding its long staff. Endless Spiritual Qi fell down and rushed out together with the fifth attack.


    The chariot under Di Gang rushed out. The sun''s light also reached out, ready to burn Ye Futian. At the same time, an enormous Divine Golden Raven appeared, trying to resist the fifth attack.


    With a loud explosion, the giant Golden Raven was shattered, as well as the chariot. But at this moment, Di Gang''s body grew into a giant. A Golden Raven flew into his body, making him look like a real war god. He rushed to Ye Futian and sent out a deadly attack. A destructive storm rolled over, seemly crushing everything into pieces.


    Almost at the same time, Ye Futian sent out his sixth attack. Endless deterrent might crashed down, supplemented with Sage power. The whole world''s power seemly all gathered at one point and melted into Ye Futian''s staff. Then the sixth attack was sent out toward that godlike figure.


    The Divine Ape''s staff collided with the war god. Ye Futian could feel extremely horrible destructive power rushing toward him. The staff in hand exploded into pieces and disappeared. However, Di Gang stopped suddenly. He just trembled and then stood still. Soon, Ye Futian''s dharma and life spirit also vanished. He stood quietly as well.


    Was the fight over? At this moment, countless people stared at the two on the battlefield. Who exactly was the winner?


    The Martial Will and illusions around Ye Futian and Di Gang all disappeared. The two stared at each other silently.


    Some splintering sounds were heard. The Golden Raven Armor on Di Gang cracked. It broke into beams of light and vanished. His aura weakened quickly. With a groan, some blood flowed from the corner of his mouth. At this moment, Di Gang felt like his insides were all shattered. The power contained in that attack was too strong to be described.


    "I lost," Di Gang admitted defeat. What had happened was like a dream. As the first talent among the young generation of Alchemy City, he knew his strength very well. However, when the enemy was Ye Futian, a Grade Three Noble, he''d actually failed.


    Hearing his admission of defeat, everyone was shocked. How could Di Gang be defeated? Looking at that proud figure, people still couldn''t believe the fact that the top talent of Alchemy City was defeated. How strong was Ye Futian, the talent from the Holy Zhi Palace?


    People like Li Futu were startled too. Though having known that Ye Futian was strong, they still couldn''t accept the result of this fight.


    "Is it finally over?" The disciples from the Holy Zhi Palace all smiled faintly. Though this battle didn''t take much time, it was still heart-stirring. Di Gang was indeed very talented, but unfortunately, his enemy was the crazy Ye Futian.


    "You''re very powerful if you can fight me like this," said Ye Futian. He had run out of every skill he knew in order to defeat Di Gang.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Di Gang spat out some blood. His face turned pale. Was this mockery? Earlier, both had been very proud, but only the winner could laugh at the end. Since he had been defeated, no matter how proud Ye Futian sounded, he couldn''t refute it. If he was the winner, he could say things like that.


    Turning around, Di Gang walked away into the distance. He looked lonely and forlorn. He was once a peerless existence among the young generation. This defeat was enough to break all his pride.


    "Brother," Di Zhou exclaimed softly, looking at Di Gang''s receding figure, but he felt depressed too and had no idea what to say.


    Many famous talents on the stairs were looking at Ye Futian too. Bai Luli looked emotionless. As his senior had said, Ye Futian did have the strength to enter the Sage Temple. When his cultivation became higher, it was very possible for him to break through the Sage Plane.


    Di Kai was a little speechless. Chu Ji looked at Ye Futian with a smile. She didn''t expect that such a flippant guy could be so strong. It was unfortunate that he had a girlfriend. Otherwise�� Thinking of this, Chu Ji turned to Di Kai with a smile but didn''t say anything else to provoke him. The result was obvious. Nothing could change it.


    At this time, Ye Futian still stood above the Alchemy Pillars proudly as if he was the only one in the world. He turned around and looked at You Chi, the city lord of the Alchemy City. Bowing, he said, "Sir, my senior brother is second place in the Alchemy Conference. He told me that he admires your daughter very much. I hope that you can permit their marriage." There were two reasons why he fought with Gongsun Ye and Di Gang today. The first was to solve the conflict with Gongsun Ye. Secondly, he also wanted to show some of his strength before the City Lord Office.


    It was a tradition of Alchemy City that the city lord''s daughter would marry the number one of the Alchemy Conference. Therefore, the winner''s potential must be thought highly of. His senior brother had won the second place, but he didn''t have a noble background, so Ye Futian wanted to help him.


    You Xi glanced at Ye Futian from beside You Chi and then looked back at her father. At this moment, Xue Ye also walked out from the crowd and bowed toward You Chi. He said, "I have been admiring You Xi. Please let me marry her, sir."


    Neither Ye Futian nor Xue Ye mentioned the affection You Xi and Xue Ye felt for each other. They just said that it was Xue Ye who had been admiring You Xi. They needed to think for You Chi, though everyone knew what was going on.


    You Chi stood there silently and looked at Ye Futian. After killing Gongsun Ye and defeating Di Gang, Ye Futian asked for his permission in order to help his brother. He knew how to take advantage of timing.


    You Chi didn''t like Xue Ye very much because this guy had impregnated his daughter beforehand. This couldn''t be allowed! But it had already happened and he had to think about his daughter.


    "You were originally the second of the Alchemy Conference," You Chi said. "Now that Gongsun Ye has died, you are number one. Since you have such a request, I will follow tradition and give You Xi to you. If you dare to hurt her, I will not forgive you." Since he had announced this, everything was settled now.


    "Thank you, City Lord!" Ye Futian and Xue Ye stood up and smiled at each other. Then Xue Ye looked at You Xi. Both smiled happily.


    The aftermath of the Alchemy Conference was finally over!

 643 Happy Ending

    Three days later, Alchemy City was bustling.


    The City Lord Office was the busiest, attracting the whole city''s attention. Many big figures from the southwestern Barren State gathered here as well as countless talents and beauties. It was if another Alchemy Conference was being held. All of this was just because today was the wedding of You Xi, the city lord''s daughter.


    You Xi was going to marry Xue Ye, the second place on the Alchemy Conference. This was absolutely going to be a great celebration. But many people couldn''t understand why it was so hurried. Usually, it would take some time to prepare the wedding after the Alchemy Conference. It wouldn''t be so soon.


    The City Lord Office explained that this arrangement was more convenient for guests living far. Otherwise, they would have to come twice. But Ye Futian knew that it was because You Xi was pregnant. The ceremony had to be held very soon or people would gossip if they learned that You Xi was pregnant before being married. The City Lord Office was, to some extent, a landmark of the southwestern Barren State. They had to take its reputation into consideration.


    In the City Lord Office at this moment, a courtyard was decorated in a festive way. Xue Ye''s close friends like Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue were all in the courtyard, looking at this couple with smiles.


    "I never thought that my Fourth Senior Brother would be the first one to get married," Ye Futian exclaimed. But this love story was totally serendipity. If not for You Xi''s stubbornness and Xue Ye''s mischievousness, there wouldn''t be such an opportunity for them to fall in love.


    "Xiaoshi, it seems that we are the only two who are doomed to be single now." Luo Fan looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Their big brother was also living his happy life with Goddess Wangyue on Book Mountain. Second Senior Sister and Third Senior Brother would also marry soon. Beitang Xing''er was taken care of by Second Senior Sister. Only Luo Fan and Yi Xiaoshi were so lonely.


    "With your appearance, it might be difficult for you to find your Ms. Right," Xue Ye joked, walking over.


    "Brother, you are too mean," Luo Fan complained. "I helped you so much. You should at least give me some top sage ritual implements to show your gratitude." It had been really smart for Ye Futian to ask Xue Ye for some ritual implements earlier. He and Xue Ye''s qualification for the Alchemy Conference had already been given to the Junior. He had to seize the opportunity to ask Xue Ye, the city lord''s son-in-law, for something as compensation.


    "You can stay here with Xue Ye for armor in the future," You Xi said. "You won''t have to worry about ritual implements anymore"


    "No��" Luo Fan shook his head determinedly. He was not going to stay here and watch this couple''s happy life all day long. He refused.


    "You dare to leave?" You Xi looked at Luo Fan with a meaningful smile.


    Luo Fan looked at You Xi and blinked. "Sister-in-law, you can''t do this to me." If she was already like this before marriage, what would she be like in the future?


    "I know all those ''good'' ideas you suggested for him," said You Xi slowly.


    Luo Fan turned to Xue Ye with shock. You told her?


    "Brother, well done!" Luo Fan gritted out.


    "I did that for your good. Stay here and you might find your beauty too." Xue Ye laughed and patted Luo Fan''s shoulder. Seeing the two senior brothers, Ye Futian smiled. Fourth Senior Brother and the Fifth Senior Brother had always been a troublesome pair. Even in the Cottage, they bickered as one transcribed books and the other cooked.


    "Both of you are responsible for this," Zhuge Mingyue said. "Since you two helped Xue Ye to win second place, you two should stay here."


    "Senior Sister��" Luo Fan was almost crying.


    "Yes or no?" Zhuge Mingyue looked at Luo Fan with a meaningful smile.


    "Yes." Luo Fan nodded. Why he was always the one that was hurt?


    "Thank you, Senior Sister." You Xi smiled at Zhuge Mingyue.


    "You Xi, if Xue Ye dares to mistreat you, just tell me. I will give him a hard time," said Zhuge Mingyue with a smile.


    "I know." You Xi laughed and nodded. Then she looked at Xue Ye meaningfully. Xue Ye winced a little. Senior Sister overestimates me. Who knows who''ll be the bully?


    "I really worry about Fourth Senior Brother''s family status." Ye Futian sniggered. He knew why Second Senior Sister made such a decision.


    The Barren State was too vast. The City Lord of Alchemy City was a big name. Even the Holy Zhi Palace respected him. He was a symbol of the Alchemy field. His family was equal to the Zhuge Family in the Barren State. Now, Fourth Senior Brother was You Chi''s son-in-law. It made sense that Xue Ye and Luo Fan would receive this good background and resources for cultivation. No one would dare to challenge them.


    "It''s time!" You Chi strode over.


    "Sir." Ye Futian''s group bowed.


    "No need." You Chi looked at You Xi and said, "You are his wife now. In the past, you were always too capricious. From now on, remember not to be stubborn like that anymore."


    "I know," You Xi responded lightly. Obviously, she still minded what her father had done, but it was all in the past now. She couldn''t really hate her father.


    "Xue Ye, I really wanted to kill you," You Chi said, "but you are my son-in-law now. I will teach you everything I know. I wish you will treat my daughter well. If she lives a bad life, I won''t let you go."


    "I dare not," Xue Ye mumbled. Hearing Xue Ye''s complaint, You Chi couldn''t help glaring at him. Ye Futian felt a little sympathetic about his Fourth Senior Brother. Xue Ye''s life might be hard now.


    "The ritual implement you asked about is done." You Chi looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng and said, "You Xi told me to give both of you this ritual implement. So I made two. This is yours." With that, he took out a small brilliant pagoda. Colorful light covered the pagoda. You Chi waved his hand. Suddenly, the pagoda grew quickly into a big tower with incredibly strong powers of all attributes rolling within it.


    "Since you chose body enhancement, this pagoda is perfect for you," You Chi explained. "It was cast according to the Sky Reaching Tower of your Holy Zhi Palace. There are strong deterrent forces and all kinds of attributes'' attacks in it. You can also use it as a ritual implement or train your body and will."


    "Thank you, sir." Ye Futian smiled and looked at You Xi. "Thank you, Sister-in-law." He didn''t expect so much. He just wanted to ask for a ritual implement for Yu Sheng.


    You Xi smiled gently. She was grateful to Ye Futian for he helped Xue Ye and her get this happy ending. Since Ye Futian wanted this ritual implement, she would help him. She had watched that battle. With his talent and the fact that he was cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace, she believed that he would be the next legend of the Barren State.


    "As for him," You Chi looked at Yu Sheng and said, "I have seen his way of battle. He is the disciple of Sage Douzhan, just like you. By nature, he suits body enhancement more than you. Ritual implements aren''t actually suitable for his fighting. I made a set of armor. Many of its materials are the same as your pagoda. When activated, the wearer''s body will be refined. The armor can be used both to attack and to protect. If he meets a strong enemy, the armor will be triggered to help him to fight."


    You Chi took out a set of armor and gave it to Yu Sheng.


    "Thank you, Sir," Yu Sheng said, accepting it.


    Seeing this, Ye Futian felt very relaxed. Not only had he resolved his senior brother''s problem during this travel to the Alchemy City, but he''d also reached his goals. He entered Grade Three of the Noble Plane successfully. Everything went well.


    "Let''s go," You Chi said and turned around. Xue Ye and You Xi followed behind.


    Ye Futian''s group also followed. It was time for the ceremony.


    ��


    Guests rustled and bustled in the City Lord Office. Countless top talents gathered here.


    When Xue Ye and You Xi walked out hand in hand on the tall podium, everyone grew envious of Xue Ye. No one had expected that Xue Ye would be the one that married the famous beauty.


    This was a great ceremony. Ye Futian''s group stood under the stage and watched everything happening up above. They all felt very happy for Xue Ye.


    "You Xi is a famous beauty of Alchemy City. She only wears light make-up but looks so heart-stirring. Xue Ye is the biggest winner," many young men whispered. Not only did he marry a famous beauty, but he also became the son-in-law of the city lord who was eighth on the Barren Sky List. This was an enviable position.


    "But he''s really bold," someone discussed quietly. "He gained this opportunity at the cost of his life spirit. Otherwise, he wouldn''t be an option even if Ye Futian killed Gongsun Ye."


    Many people agreed. It seemed that Xue Ye and You Xi had true feelings for each other.


    "Where is Ye Futian?" somebody asked. Many people searched the crowd. Finally, they found that Ye Futian was standing with Hua Jieyu.


    "Is the girl beside him the Divine Spiritual Sorcerer Hua Jieyu?" someone said. "She''s like a fairy. Ye Futian is also a big winner in life."


    "The pride of the Holy Zhi Palace, disciple of Sage Douzhan. He really is." Many people nodded. Ye Futian deserved it though. Three days ago, even Gongsun Ye, first on the Alchemy Rank, and Di Gang, pride of the southwestern region of the Barren State, were defeated by Ye Futian. This youth looked so innocent that no one expected that he would be so strong. That incredible battle made him well-known to all.


    Some beauties looked at Ye Futian with admiration. He was so talented and handsome. No one would refuse him. Heroes liked beauties and the reverse was true as well.


    "Your Fourth Senior Brother is married now. When will your wedding be held?" Zhuge Mingyue teased Ye Futian.


    "You have to ask Jieyu." Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu and laughed.


    Looking at Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu responded gently, "You decide."


    "Really?" Ye Futian blinked.


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu smiled.


    "How about tonight? We don''t need too many rituals." Ye Futian smiled too.


    "No way!" Hua Jieyu kicked Ye Futian, blushing.

 644 The New Law Rank Firs

    In the Holy Zhi Palace, Sage Palace.


    There was a group of people who were seated. The group of people had hidden their powers and looked as though they were simply normal people. However, their disposition was like that of lords.


    Today, the six palaces from the Holy Zhi Palace had gathered. Although the Sage Palace Lord had not appeared, the second Palace Lord Liu Chan was around. The Wanxiang Palace''s Palace Lord was still in seclusion, but the Wanxiang Palace''s elder had arrived. Apart from them, the other four Palace Lords were all here with some of the elders of the Holy Zhi Palace. This group of people was enough to represent the will of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "I have invited all of you here today for two matters. First, there has been news from Alchemy City that the Battle Sage Palace''s disciple Ye Futian has created a ruckus within the city. He had led a group of Holy Zhi Palace disciples to the Alchemy Casino, defeating geniuses from other places and winning many ritual implements. Next, he barged into the Emperor Family residence and challenged the Alchemy Conference''s first Gongsun Ye to a fight to the death outside the City Lord Office and killed him," Liu Chan said.


    The Alchemy Conference was a huge event in Alchemy City and even the Holy Zhi Palace was paying attention to it. Therefore, he quickly knew of the events that had taken place in Alchemy City. However, the other Palace Lords and elders did not pay the same amount of attention to it and were shocked when they heard Liu Chan''s words. This fellow was indeed a nonconformist, he actually caused such a storm in Alchemy City and killed the Alchemy Conference''s first?


    "This little fellow has such gall, I will definitely punish him when he gets back," Sage Douzhan said. Ye Futian was his direct disciple, so he naturally had to demonstrate his stance.


    "No need, the origin of his matter was his brother. His brother from another master was in love with the City Lord''s daughter and came in second in the Alchemy Conference. He had some conflict with Gongsun Ye, that is why there was that battle. Apart from that, that day, Ye Futian also defeated another a person with the title of Alchemy City''s top genius, Di Gang," someone in the crowd explained.


    "Di Kai''s son?" someone asked softly. Di Kai was 12th on the Barren Sky Ranking; they naturally knew that.


    "Yes." Liu Chan nodded and said, "Now, his brother has already entered the City Lord Office and You Chi organized the wedding for Ye Futian''s brother and his daughter so quickly that news has not even spread."


    Everyone had curious expressions. What did You Chi mean by doing this? However, what he meant was not important. Ye Futian, who had only entered the Palace for three years, was rather interesting.


    "I ordered him to go to Alchemy City to observe the Alchemy Conference. He ended up creating a ruckus," Sage Douzhan said with pride in his heart. The kid had only cultivated in the Holy Zhi Palace for three years, but he actually went to Alchemy City to create trouble. However, not only did he not end up in trouble, but he helped his brother marry You Chi''s daughter.


    "Sage Douzhan must be delighted to have such a disciple," Sage Daozang smiled and said. In Ye Futian''s batch, he had dominated everyone with absolute power. In the past two years, many people were discussing when Ye Futian''s position on the Law Rank would change again.


    "Di Kai''s son was claimed as number one Noble in the Barren State''s southwest region. Ye Futian was able to defeat him as a Grade Three Noble and has exceptional potential. I have invited all of you here to discuss him entering the Sage Hall to cultivate. I think that when he reaches the pinnacle of the Noble Plane, he can enter the Sage Hall. What do you all think?" Liu Chan asked.


    The crowd had surprised expressions. Did he have the qualifications to enter the Sage Hall after only three years in the Holy Zhi Palace? Three years ago, Hua Fan had obtained the right to enter the Sage Hall and had entered two years ago. Now, he was already in the Sage Plane. Now, Ximen Hanjiang was waiting for his qualification, but the Sage Palace had never discussed allowing Ximen Hanjiang to enter the Sage Hall. Evidently, they felt that Ximen Hanjiang was not that outstanding yet. However, at this moment, the Sage Palace''s Liu Chan had gathered all of them for Ye Futian and skipped the first on the Law Rank, Ximen Hanjiang to discuss giving the right for Ye Futian to enter the Sage Hall.


    It was not unexpected though. The Sage Palace was the main palace of all six palaces. Now that Liu Chan was managing the Holy Zhi Palace on behalf of the Palace Lord, although Ye Futian was not a disciple of the Sage Palace, Liu Chan would not do such a selfish thing like only caring for his own Palace''s disciples.


    "Although this fellow can get out of hand, his cultivation potential is exceptional indeed. I agree." Sage Douzhan was the first to agree, causing the crowd to laugh and look at him.


    "Three years ago, in the entrance examination, we already saw how exceptional he was. He indeed has the qualifications to enter the Sage Hall and cultivate. I agree too." Sage Daozang also nodded and gave his approval.


    "I agree." The Sword Demon, the Sword Palace Lord nodded and agreed as well. This way, there were already four Palaces in agreement. In reality, the outcome was set.


    "Since that is so, we have a conclusion. I will announce it later, granting Ye Futian permission to enter the Sage Hall to cultivate." Liu Chan nodded and continued, "The other matter is about Luli. Back then, when Luli entered the Sage Hall, he obtained the Sage Hall''s teachings and the Divine Path''s recognition. Wanxiang also estimated his Saint potential for him, all of you should also know me and brother''s thoughts about this. The Holy Zhi Palace will support him wholeheartedly, creating the best conditions for Luli to become a saint."


    Everyone nodded. They all knew about this, Bai Luli was the next owner of the Holy Zhi Palace that they had selected internally. The Barren State had not had a saint for many years. Now, they needed a saint to appear, the Holy Zhi Palace was the same, they could not afford to wait any longer. However, Sage Douzhan had other plans. Although Bai Luli had proven that he had the potential to become a saint and had received the recognition of the Sage Hall''s elders, in the future, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could be his rival.


    ��


    In the Holy Zhi Palace''s Law Battle Area, before the Law Battle Tablet, many people had gathered and were looking astoundingly at a piece of news on the Tablet. Ye Futian had obtained the right to enter the Sage Hall and cultivate.


    "What is going on here?" Many people were bewildered. They were all cultivating in the Palace and naturally did not know what had happened far off in Alchemy City. However, they could guess that it was related to Ye Futian''s trip to Alchemy City.


    What did Ye Futian do this time in Alchemy City? Why did he obtain the right to enter the Sage Hall all of a sudden? Even the current Law Rank first, Ximen Hanjiang was still waiting for his right to enter the Sage Hall. However, what awaited him was Ye Futian skipping him and obtaining the right to enter the Sage Hall.


    "Big Brother Futian is really capable." There was a beautiful girl grinning happily; it was Long Ling''er. Now that she had gotten to know more about the Holy Zhi Palace, she naturally knew what the Sage Hall meant.


    "He''s Ye Futian indeed. Shocking people with his every move." Many of those who had entered in the same batch as him discussed. Most of the people in his batch admired Ye Futian, the memories of the sparring session two years ago were still fresh in their head. Ye Futian was the only one who dared to face the seniors.


    Mu Zhiqiu was also there. She was speechless. That fellow was getting stronger and stronger.


    "The Law Rank has also changed," someone shouted at that moment. They saw an elder from the Palace coming forward to renew the Law Rank. Their gazes were all fixed on one name, Ye Futian. When they saw Ye Futian''s name at its new position, all their gazes froze and expressions of disbelief appeared on their faces.


    This�� They had all imagined that after two years of not fighting anyone, Ye Futian had only recently taught Ximen Gu a lesson. If he were to fight someone, he would not remain tenth on the Law Rank, and there was a chance he could enter the top three. However, nobody had imagined that Ye Futian''s name would appear on the top of the Law Rank.


    Law Rank, first! He had replaced Ximen Hanjiang. This scene was too shocking. Ximen Hanjiang had spent six years to reach where he was. However, he did not even warm the seat before Ye Futian rushed up the rank and replaced him.


    "Why is it like this?" there was a teenager who walked forward and questioned loudly. It was Ximen Gu, the current batch''s first in the entrance examination. The moment he entered the Palace, he had been violently beaten up by Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, causing his reputation to decline rapidly. Now, his brother Ximen Hanjiang''s name had been taken and lowered to rank two on the Law Rank while Ye Futian was first. He had never exchanged blows with his brother or had any outstanding performance in the Holy Zhi Palace. What right did he have?


    "The Law Rank has never required any explanation," the elder looked at Ximen Gu and replied emotionlessly. Even if he was the first in the entrance examination, he had no right to question the Law Rank. If he was unhappy about the rankings, he could simply challenge the first and get it back through his own strength. The Law Rank would then change again.


    When Ximen Gu entered the Palace, he was taught a lesson by Ye Futian, but Ximen Hanjiang did not step in. This time, Ye Futian replaced him as the first on the Law Rank and obtained the right to enter the Sage Hall. No matter how much self-restraint Ximen Hanjiang has, he probably cannot bear it, many people thought. This was no longer a matter of restraint, but the Palace thinking that Ye Futian was more outstanding than Ximen Hanjiang. Moreover, the Palace felt that Ye Futian was far more outstanding.


    As the previous first on the Law Rank, how prideful would he be, could he take it lying down?


    The news quickly spread to the Sage Palace, into the ears of Ximen Hanjiang and the other Sage Palace disciples. Presently, there were many people gathered around Ximen Hanjiang. Bai Ze, Zhuge Xing and many others had come. When they heard the news, they were equally infuriated, especially Bai Ze. From the moment he had entered the Palace, he had had enmity with Ye Futian. The entire Palace knew that as long as Ye Futian, there would be no place for Bai Ze, he would always be suppressed. Now, Ye Futian was first on the Law Rank and permitted to enter the Sage Hall.


    How could this be?


    Ximen Hanjiang maintained his silence from start to the end. Back then, when his younger brother Ximen Gu had been beaten up, he did not exact vengeance for him. His younger brother was to blame for being insufferably arrogant and provoking Ye Futian, so he ordered him to focus on his cultivation. He had been cultivating diligently, hoping to obtain the approval of the Palace one day to enter the Sage Hall. However, he had not received such news but had heard that Ye Futian had obtained the right to enter the Sage Hall. Not only that, he had been replaced on the Law Rank.


    Ye Futian had entered the Palace for three years, but the only time he had ever shown his ability was on the sparring session two years ago. He had been silent for the next two years. Why was he granted such an honor? Look at him, for the past six years, he had defeated many opponents and quelled all suspicions about him. Those geniuses who entered the Palace at the same time at him had all been overtaken by him. However, there was now a junior above him.


    He raised his head and looked into the air, taking a deep breath. Since the Holy Zhi Palace was doubting him, he would prove himself.


    In the Holy Zhi Palace, there was a huge commotion about the Law Rank renewal and Ye Futian being allowed into the Sage Hall. However, at that moment, outside the Holy Zhi Palace, there was a group of people returning. It was Ye Futian''s group who had just returned from Alchemy City and did not know about what was happening in the Palace!

 645 Attitude of the Palaces Geniuses

    When Ye Futian returned to the Holy Zhi Palace, news of his return spread throughout the Palace. Next, in the Battle Sage Palace, Qi Jie found Ye Futian and notified him of his qualification to enter the Sage Hall and the change on the Law Rank.


    When Ye Futian heard Qi Jie''s words, a strange expression appeared on his face. He did not expect that his battle in the Alchemy City had not only solved his brother''s problem and gotten him a ritual implement, but it had also earned him the qualification to enter the Sage Hall to cultivate. This was an unexpected surprise. As for being first on the Law Rank, he did not care. After all, it would have happened sooner or later.


    "Three years ago, when you entered the Palace, you were the target of many. Two years ago, you proved yourself in the sparring session. I didn''t expect that you would rise to the first on the Law Rank so quickly. Do you know how many people in the Palace are looking for you now?" Qi Jie said with a fake smile.


    Among the thousands of disciples in the Palace, the first on the Law Rank meant that he was the number one in the Noble Plane and could represent his generation. From Bai Luli to Hua Fan to Ye Futian. Every one of them could represent a generation of disciples.


    Previously, everyone thought that Ximen Hanjiang would become the generation''s symbol, but they had not expected that it would be taken away by Ye Futian so quickly. This way, Ximen Hanjiang would be simply a transitional character. He must have been very angry.


    Ye Futian paid no notice and smiled. So what if they could find him?


    "Brother, when can I enter the Sage Hall?" Ye Futian was more concerned about that. The Sage Hall probably contained the Palace''s Saint teachings. The Holy Zhi Palace''s divine teachings were known as the Sage Hall. It would definitely be more complete than the divine teachings in the Top Three Schools and might be an opportunity for him.


    He had returned this time, preparing to cultivate and raise his strength, raising his cultivation level to the pinnacle of the Noble Plane and attempting to break through to the Sage Plane. He could only be considered an expert in the Barren State after he had broken through to the Sage Plane.


    "You can enter as a Grade One Noble. Even among the Palace''s disciples, only a select few can enter the Sage Hall. Even the first on the Law Rank might not be able to enter the Sage Hall. Take Ximen Hanjiang for example. However, those who enter the Sage Hall are definitely the first on the Law Rank," Qi Jie smiled and replied. Ye Futian wondered if the change on the Law Rank was because he had obtained the qualification to enter the Sage Hall, so he needed to be first.


    "Entering the Sage Hall at that level can assist you in breaking through to the Sage Plane," Qi Jie explained.


    Ye Futian nodded and replied, "If that is so, I will need to focus on my cultivation for a period of time. Thank you for coming to inform me, brother."


    "Make sure you focus." Qi Jie smiled and left.


    After Qi Jie left, Loulan Xue and Yi Qingxuan looked curiously at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. The two of them had not gone to Alchemy City, so what had happened that the elders in the Palace had made such a decision before they had even returned? They had also heard much discussion in the past few days. Rumor had it that to enter the Sage Hall, all six Palaces had to gather for a discussion, and more than half had to agree to the decision. This meant that at least four of the six Palaces in the Holy Zhi Palace had agreed for Ye Futian to enter the Sage Hall. Evidently, Ye Futian had moved the Palace''s elders.


    "What did you do?" Yi Qingxuan moved up close to Ye Futian and asked cutely.


    "Ask your man," Ye Futian smiled and replied. Yi Qingxuan glared at him, then saw Ye Futian smile at her and say, "Oh right, Yu Sheng brought you a gift from the Alchemy City."


    Yi Qingxuan blinked and looked at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng scratched his head shyly. Back then, when they had placed their bets in the Alchemy Casino, he had placed a bet using Ning Huang''s halberd and picked some good items for Qingxuan using his spoils of victory.


    "Yes." Yu Sheng nodded. Yi Qingxuan came up to him and hugged his arm.


    "Hey, my wife isn''t around, don''t show off how happy your relationship is in front of me." Ye Futian smiled and poked fun at them, then continued, "Yu Sheng, have a good rest today. We need to focus on cultivating starting tomorrow. You need to enter the Upper Noble Plane soon." Now that Futian was in the Upper Noble Plane, Yu Sheng''s cultivation level could not fall behind him, so he needed to ensure Yu Sheng''s cultivation speed.


    "Okay." Yu Sheng nodded and was then dragged away by Yi Qingxuan. Before she left, Yi Qingxuan made a face at Ye Futian.


    "Showoff," Ye Futian smiled and said. He then turned to Loulan Xue and said, "I brought you a gift too." As he said that, he took out two items. One of them was a treasure book. He passed it to Loulan Xue and said, "The Sage Treasure Book you had previously is too weak now. This book is at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane and has a secret methods index within. It can also be assimilated into your Life Spirit."


    After that, Ye Futian took out another transparent water crystal and passed it to Loulan Xue. The crystal appeared to have a giant snake within it. "This is a crystal made from a water element demonic beast��the Vine Serpent''s Spiritual Will. It can combine with your Spiritual Energy and assist you in your cultivation. It can support you by increasing your Spiritual Energy and your Water Intent and can even be used in battle," Ye Futian said. The Vine Serpent was an extremely strong water element demonic beast and could freeze people on sight as it had innate water element Spiritual capabilities.


    "Thank you," Loulan Xue said as she took the items. She liked the two treasures very much. Ye Futian evidently put in a lot of effort into picking them, and they were very suitable for her cultivation.


    "This time, we had a lot of spoils in Alchemy City. All of us got elite Sage Plane ritual implements, so I got you two as well." Ye Futian looked at Loulan Xue''s indifferent expression. The hardest debt to repay was relationships. Although he had seen through the celestial empress'' intentions, he still felt a tinge of guilt towards Loulan Xue. If Loulan Xue had wanted anything, he would feel that it was okay, but Loulan Xue''s selflessness made him feel that he owed her all the more.


    "Big brother, me, me..." Beside him, the Black Wind Condor flapped its wings and said softly to Ye Futian.


    "What about you?" Ye Futian looked back at the Black Wind Condor and asked.


    The Black Wind Condor blinked its eyes, thinking, big brother, aren''t you very smart? I''ve already given you such an obvious hint.


    "It can''t be that you want a treasure too?" Ye Futian looked at him with a knowing smile and replied. This fellow had become crafty too.


    "No, of course not." Seeing Ye Futian''s expression, the Black Wind Condor shuddered and replied, "It''s just that I''ve missed you." Sigh, he''s bullying me for not being a human.


    "Be good, there are no more treasures. I''ll get some for you next time." Ye Futian smiled and stroked the Black Wind Condor''s head. The Black Wind Condor obediently lowered its head, thinking, As long as I follow big brother, I will still do well in the future.


    "Big brother Futian," at that moment, a crisp voice sounded out. A slim, tall girl rushed up and hugged Ye Futian''s arm. She glared at him and said, "Big brother Futian, how could go out and have fun without me?"


    "You just entered the Palace to cultivate and you''re already thinking of going out?" Ye Futian looked speechlessly at the little devil in front of him.


    "I''m unhappy," Long Ling''er pouted and said unhappily.


    "Brother brought you a gift," Ye Futian smiled while saying. He then took out a treasure for Long Ling''er. At the side, the Black Wind Condor eyes were as wide as plates. This is what he meant by no more treasures?


    Sigh, life is tough for a condor. If only I was a human, no, a beauty.


    "I knew that big brother Futian treated me best." Long Ling''er immediately became happy. The Black Wind Condor stood at the side, silently saying to himself, an 18-year-old girl, how could you, Master? You''re worse than a beast.


    Ye Futian had finally placated the little devil and got some peace. He gave Loulan Xue some orders, then walked straight to his residence, preparing for a good rest. He thought whether or not he wanted to ask Jieyu to come over and rest together��


    In some aspects, he admired his fourth brother.


    ��


    In the next few days, there were people looking for Ye Futian every day, but they were all stopped by Loulan Xue, claiming that Ye Futian was cultivating in seclusion and would not meet anyone nor take any challenges. Since the people who had gone to Alchemy City had already returned, the incident in Alchemy City naturally could not be kept under wraps. Soon, everyone knew that Ye Futian had led the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples to Alchemy City and swept the geniuses of Alchemy City, killing the Alchemy Conference''s number one and defeating Alchemy City''s number one prodigy.


    Many disciples lamented that this fellow was too much of a prodigy. It was no wonder that he had reached the first on the Law Rank. However, some of the elite Noble Plane figures on the Law Rank still wanted to spar with Ye Futian to ascertain their cultivation results.


    Although Ye Futian had defeated many geniuses in Alchemy City, they had not been to Alchemy City, so they did not know how strong those people were. The Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples were originally a congregation of the Barren State''s most elite geniuses. However, those who had wanted to look for Ye Futian to spar were all denied access under the claim that he was in seclusion. In reality, he was simply not free.


    Inside the Daozang Palace, many people had gathered outside. Today was the day that Sage Daozang would give his lecture again. Lian Yuqing, Yun Shuisheng, Xiang Zhiqin, Yun Feng, and a few other of Sage Daozang''s disciples were in the crowd.


    "Little sister, you went to Alchemy City. This time, Ye Futian became first on the Law Rank, what do you think about it?" at that moment, one of the experts on the Law Rank looked towards Xiang Zhiqin and asked. He naturally did not ask Hua Jieyu, nor did he ask Phoenix or Yun Shuisheng. These two had accompanied Ye Futian there and were quite close with him.


    Xiang Zhiqin recalled the battle and Ye Futian''s figure appeared in her head. She looked at him and replied softly, "It''s well-deserved." The surrounding people looked at her with surprised expressions. Everyone knew about the conflict between Xiang Zhiqin and Ye Futian. Now that Xiang Zhiqin said such things about him, it was indeed intriguing.


    "Zhiqin, although Ye Futian managed to sweep all of Alchemy City, he is still a Grade Three Noble. Although his potential may be deserving of rank one, the Law Rank first has never been awarded to experts with potential. He only managed to defeat Di Gang in a tough battle, but everyone at the top of the Law Rank are elite Nobles. Are they weaker than Alchemy City''s Di Gang?" Beside her, Yun Feng continued, "Moreover, brother Lian has long been at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane. Now, he is approaching the brink of the Sage Plane. The Palace must be exaggerating by placing Ye Futian as the Law Rank first. Even Ye Futian has been avoiding challenges these few days."


    In the past two years, Yun Feng had gradually gotten over his trauma. However, Ye Futian had returned and became first on the Law Rank, causing him to be extremely frustrated.


    Lian Yuqing did not say anything. Three years ago, he was fifth on the Law Rank. Now, three years had passed. He was a genius that had entered in the same batch as Hua Fan. He was still the fifth on the Law Rank, but the names in front of him had changed greatly.


    Xiang Zhiqin looked at Lian Yuqing, then said softly, "In terms of pure battle ability, there is probably nobody who can compete with him in the Palace."


    Many people were astounded and turned to look at Bing Yi, Phoenix, and Hua Jieyu. The three of them sat quietly, not interested in the least, as though they had not heard the conversation going on. This scene made many of the Daozang Palace''s disciples speechless.


    Out of the Daozang Palace''s four elite beauties, three of them had extremely good relations with Ye Futian and had accompanied him to Alchemy City. Now, even Xiang Zhiqin, who had a grudge against Ye Futian, was speaking up for him.


    Lian Yuqing, who had been sitting quietly, raised his head slightly, looking at the Daozang Palace in front of him. The memories from the sparring session two years ago were still fresh in his mind. He had personally witnessed Ye Futian receiving the legacy of the Nine-fingered Guqin Demon. That was something that he had always wanted but was unable to obtain. For the past two years, he had cultivated in silence. Just like Ye Futian, he had not fought anyone.


    "When has the Law Rank first been so casually decided?" Lian Yuqing asked softly, and the surrounding disciples'' expressions all froze.


    Was this Lian Yuqing''s attitude? Ye Futian had never had a battle with the elites of the Palace. Although all the disciples acknowledged that his potential was unrivaled, that was the first spot on the Law Rank. If he was placed second, he would not garner such a huge reaction. Now, many people probably had the same attitude as Lian Yuqing!

 646 Ism the Law Rank Champion

    Ye Futian kept training in the Battle Sage Palace. While voices of doubt had been all over the place in the Holy Zhi Palace, he paid no heed to it and chose not to fight to prove anything. He did not even say a word about anything. As such, those voices kept circulating throughout. While there were many who believed him, it seemed that those voices would stay around until he came out to prove himself.


    Many top-notch figures ranked on Law Rank spoke out. For instance, Lian Yuqing criticized Ye Futian and voiced his doubt openly during the day Sage Daozang was giving a lecture, demanding to know since when had the Law Rank come to give such little regard about the rankings?


    The Holy Zhi Palace was known for its openness, and students were pretty much allowed to do as they pleased. It was not even seen as problematic to doubt the rankings on Law Rank. So long as they had the power to back their claims, they were free to break the rankings through their own actions. The elders of the Holy Zhi Palace did nothing to intervene.


    A tower was placed in the compound of the Battle Sage Palace where Ye Futian lived. Ye Futian sat cross-legged within the tower. Fearsome flowing lights circled around the tower. Violent lightning bolts, earth-shattering tornados, terrifying flames, bone-chilling frost and so on. The will of every element was suppressed within the tower, and they were brought to bear on Ye Futian. The tower was a deliberate attempt to imitate the Sky Reaching Tower of the Holy Zhi Palace by You Chi. It was built for refining one''s body, and Ye Futian was welcomed to train his body up any time he wished to use it.


    At the same time, the tower also served as a place to temper one''s will. Furthermore, that ritual implement allowed him to adjust the magnitude of force which he wished to subject himself to. Everything was controlled by his own will. It was the prowess of a masterpiece crafted by the best master armorer there was. At the very least, a treasure that was made specifically for refining one''s body like that was not something the Holy Zhi Palace was capable of creating. Only top-notch figures from Alchemy City were capable of such a feat. It was due to such reasons that Alchemy City enjoyed a prestigious status in all of the Barren State.


    Ye Futian halted his training, shrinking the tower back to the size of a palm and put it away. Ye Futian walked out of the compound. His progress seemed to be getting increasingly slow. While he was already a Grade Three Noble, it seemed like it would have taken a while more still before he could become a Grade One Noble.


    "Loulan, how is Yu Sheng doing?" Ye Futian asked Loulan Xue.


    "I heard that he made it through to superior noble planes a while ago," Loulan Xue replied.


    Ye Futian smiled in response, thinking it to be a normal occurrence. "Is there anything else happening in the Holy Zhi Palace as of lately?"


    Loulan Xue looked uneasy at the question, telling him, "There are many who doubt your rank as number one on Law Rank. Phoenix looked for you for a while, saying that there is something she needed to talk to you about training, but she left as soon as she heard that you are shutting yourself in to train. There are many others who came to the Battle Sage Palace, but I dismissed all of them."


    "Go to Daozang Palace and tell Phoenix that she is welcome to look for me anytime. Other than that, keep an eye on Jieyu and see if she is training," Ye Futian said, thinking that Hua Jieyu was not being nice, as she made no attempt to come look for him. He could have just go to Daozang Palace himself, but he found it tiresome to deal with all those trivial matters. He had kicked up quite a ruckus back in Daozang Palace, and he would have made himself the center of attention again if he were to show up there.


    "Will do." Loulan Xue nodded lightly and left. Ye Futian remained where he was and heard someone coming. It was Yu Sheng, and he said to Ye Futian just as soon as he came close enough, "If there is someone who doesn''t like you, you can just go tell them to shut up."


    "Outstanding people invite jealousy from others all the time." Ye Futian added with a smile, "Can you just tell everyone to shut up then? I couldn''t care less, just as they leave me alone."


    Yu Sheng felt rather startled at Ye Futian, and nodded seriously. Outstanding, eh.


    "How does it feel breaking through?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Would you like to have a go?" Yu Sheng felt rather energetic. Despite the brutal processes involved in training, he felt himself exploding with power all over his body after every session. After he began practicing the Broken Heaven Techniques, it was as if he needed to exude that extra energy all the time.


    "Yeah right, get lost," Ye Futian cursed under his breath. He would have rather fought a Grade One Noble like Di Gang instead of fighting Yu Sheng, who was of the same plane. Yu Sheng''s body was so tough that Ye Futian would have risked hurting himself fighting Yu Sheng instead of hurting the other guy.


    "Let''s go out for a bit." Ye Futian began walking. Both of them left the compound and came to the edge of Battle Sage Palace. He stared at the tall, magnificent Holy Zhi Palace before him, thinking that three years had passed in the blink of an eye. You Xi was about to give birth in the coming months, and Ye Futian would then become an uncle of the baby.


    "Yu Sheng, where do you think Godfather is?" Ye Futian thought about how he had not been seeing his godfather in ten years, and could not have helped himself but ask.


    Yu Sheng shook his head. It had been quite a while since the last time Ye Futian asked.


    "It has been quite a number of years and I''m wondering if he has gotten old; if he is still watching us train." Ye Futian chuckled. If his godfather was indeed somebody as claimed, there was no way his godfather could have turned old yet.


    A few figures were seen coming from afar. Ye Futian saw beautiful silhouettes with bright smiles on their faces.


    "Here comes my wife," Ye Futian shouted with a smile, and Hua Jieyu rolled her eyes.


    "Phoenix," Ye Futian addressed the other girl.


    "I have developed comprehension of a type of Spirit Zone and spell. Care to have a look?" Phoenix asked Ye Futian.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded. Phoenix cast her gaze forward, unleashing a streak of overbearing aura. The air around her turned heavy and fearsome as Tree-elemental Spiritual Qi whipped about around. Fire-elemental Spiritual Qi turned especially fearsome. A terrifying shadow of a phoenix appeared in the air all of a sudden, basking in undying fires out to burn everything down.


    Ye Futian cast his gaze forward, unleashing all powerful cold will to snuff the fires out. Yet the fire of the phoenix lit up again as if a phoenix was becoming increasingly powerful basking in fire.


    "Very well done." Ye Futian smiled.


    "This is Flames of Nirvana. While it is a type of fusion power, I feel something is missing still," Phoenix said.


    "Do not attempt to deliberately try to control the Spiritual Qi. Focus on your Spirit Zone. There is no need to deliberately try to sense the elemental nature of the Spiritual Qi. The spell will come on its own," Ye Futian elaborated. He extended his hand as soon as he finished, conjuring a powerful Spirit Zone and a spell was born as well. The flames within the air felt as if they were being frozen, before dissipating entirely.


    A flash of realization was seen in Phoenix''s eyes and she nodded. "I will try again when I return."


    Ye Futian had developed an unusually deep understanding of the workings of this particular area. The difference between the Noble Plane and the planes before lied within the Noble Will. Ye Futian was already at the pinnacle when the understanding of will was concerned, and there was no doubt that he was a Noble at the pinnacle of his training.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded lightly and turned his eyes elsewhere. He gazed at a place not far before him. There was a silhouette carrying an ancient sword. A girl, tall, lithe and exuding an aura of brilliance.


    "Yan Qingwu," Ye Futian looked at the girl below and said. She was ranked second on the Law Rank, and she was better at swordsmanship than her brother, Yan Jiu.


    "I heard that you defeated my brother again in Alchemy City," Yan Qingwu said.


    "Your brother?" Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. "I''ve stopped considering him my match for quite a while."


    "You can say whatever you like since you are now ranked first on the Law Rank. There are many who admire you in the Holy Zhi Palace, and you''ve gained the right to enter the Sage Hall. I''d really like to see for myself how powerful you truly are. Would you mind?" Yan Qingwu said.


    "The difference between you and me is too great. There is no point to doing so," Ye Futian said.


    "You requested to battle against the Noble at the pinnacle of their training on the sparring sessions back when you were still a Grade Eight Noble. If you were able to do so, why can''t I?" Yan Qingwu asked.


    "That was different." Ye Futian said, "But if you wanted to test yourself so badly, give it a shot."


    Yan Qingwu nodded, conjuring countless sword will around her in an instant. She came to bask herself in the dazzling light of the sword as well, gathering the sword will around her. She turned to look incredibly blinding before turning herself into a sword and coming for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian spared a glance at her before bursting incredibly powerful Noble Will. In that very split second, Yan Qingwu felt everything around her slow, and she herself became incredibly heavy. Her sword was in the same state as she was. She soon found herself unable to move, being frozen in the air. She turned her eyes at the silhouette dressed in white and came to realize the difference in power between them. Was this the power of the will of a true top-notch genius noble?


    Voom. The pressure was lifted in a second. Her body and sword kept moving forward like a bolt of lightning, but Ye Futian was soon seen stopping her sword between his fingers. The sword aura around her raged, but Ye Futian hardly budged.


    "If you are thinking about surpassing me, I''m afraid that is something you will never be able to achieve," Ye Futian said with a smile. He then twisted his fingers, flinging Yan Qingwu with her sword far away, making her look rather awkward. As she steadied herself and looked at Ye Futian, Yan Qingwu felt as if she was standing right in front of a near-insurmountable mountain.


    "If you take pride in yourself so much, why don''t you just go prove yourself in front of the students and dispel their doubts once and for all?" Yan Qingwu asked.


    Ye Futian looked at Yan Qingwu and smiled. "The Responding Dragon was known as the lord of the skies, the Roc was called the Celestial King. While the Roc might actually fight with the Responding Dragon to see who reigns supreme in the air, have you ever heard of the Roc actually proving its abilities to eagles? Make no mistake. I''m the current number one on the Law Rank."


    Yan Qingwu felt a shudder deep down as soon as Ye Futian finished. It was something that came from her soul. Her eyes followed the smiling young man, as she continued to feel a thick air of pride around him. She had never had such bold words before, and she had never seen anyone smiling so confidently.


    Since when did the Roc need to prove itself to eagles? The Roc would only fight with the Responding Dragon to see who reigned supreme in the air. That line meant that Ye Futian would only fight with the best. Those who doubted him were hardly worth his time, and he deemed it pointless to prove himself.


    Who will be considered the best in Ye Futian''s eyes? Someone like Bai Luli? He was being very apt with one thing: he is the current number one on the Law Rank. He doesn''t need to prove to anyone else about anything. The Law Rank itself is the best proof there is.


    Yan Qingwu left but she kept feeling restless. His words moved her deeply. She thought herself to be a genius like no other and was very arrogant, thinking she was some superior being. She only came to realize that if she wanted to go far, she did not need that sense of superiority around her, as the ones she needed to compete with were those who were more exceptional than she was. The sense of superiority came only when one competed with weaklings.

 647 Beneath the Battle Sage Palace

    The words that Ye Futian said to Yan Qingwu shook the entire Holy Zhi Palace to its core in no time. Him being granted entrance to the Sage Hall and his status as the number one in the Law Rank contributed to the hype surrounding him. Even though those ranked high in the Law Rank gave their opinions on the matter, no one had expected Ye Futian''s long-awaited comment to be so overbearing and imposing. He likened him to the lord of the skies, and he made it clear that he did not bother proving anything to the ones who doubted him. All that meant that the very reason he did not bother replying was simply because he had never bothered himself with the opinions of those who doubted him, right from the very beginning. The Roc did not, after all, bothered itself with what eagles thought about it.


    His comment was seen as an insult to countless mighty ones in the Holy Zhi Palace, as everyone who had doubted him was looked down on, including those who ranked high on the Law Rank.


    It was as if Ye Futian was saying, "I''ll never consider you worthy of fighting me."


    There were also quite a lot who defended Ye Futian. Many students of the same batch as he even began to look up to him. Such was the bearing of the one ranked first on the Law Rank. Ye Futian, after all, dared to provoke all of his seniors back in the sparring sessions about three years ago.


    More than two years had passed since and he had gone on a trip to Alchemy City, bringing with him a group of students and practically went mopping the place with the best Alchemy City had to offer. He became the champion of Law Rank as soon as he returned.


    Legends were usually made in such ways. Ye Futian had always had such potential and many wondered how many great achievements awaited him in the future.


    Many made their way to the Battle Sage Palace and were able to tell, thanks to what Ye Futian had said that day, there would definitely be people who were eager to fight him. Many of those who ranked high on the Law Rank were students who entered the Holy Zhi Palace six or even nine years ago. Those people were equally as prideful and they were not going to tolerate a latecomer stealing their thunder with such insolent words.


    In a nutshell, there would definitely be someone who was eager to see for themselves what the number one on the Law Rank was made of.


    As many expected, the masses beneath the Battle Sage Palace grew as more and more people gathered there. The majority, however, simply watched what was about to happen silently from below. Ye Futian took note of the fact that more people showed up at his door. As such, he simply stayed where he was and made no attempt to leave. He did not bother with the growing numbers outside and went on to keep chatting with Hua Jieyu and Phoenix. Even Long Ling''er came to the Battle Sage Palace after catching wind of what happened. Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi, Xu Que, Ye Wuchen, Zui Qianchou, and many others gathered around as well.


    "Seems to me that something interesting is about to happen." Xu Que lied on the ground at the edge of the Battle Sage Palace and said, "Qianchou, do you have any wine with you?"


    "No," Zui Qianchou answered casually.


    "Qianchou, be generous, will you? How can there be no wine at a time and place like this?" Xu Que added with a smile. Zui Qianchou would not have had a drunkard''s name if he was ever seen to not have wine with him.


    "There is a price to pay for such a show, you know." Ye Futian glanced at Xu Que. That guy sure knows how to have a good time.


    "Don''t look at me this time. You were all the rage back in that battle in Alchemy City, while we were simply coolies tagging along. Just look whose name is the first place on the Law Rank eh? I''m not doing any work for anyone right now," Xu Que said lethargically. He felt himself being taken advantage of back in Alchemy City, and he felt he needed some form of compensation for that.


    "You''re not really thinking that I need to get someone with your abilities, are you?" Ye Futian asked with a sarcastic smirk.


    "..." Xu Que was startled and speechless. He felt like beating someone up, looking at Ye Futian being all smug and pompous.


    "You think I''m just going to fall for that, eh?" Xu Que turned around and smirked, then continued to lay on the ground.


    "Some who are ranked high on the Law Rank have come." Many scanned the crowd beneath the Battle Sage Palace and found several said mighty ones.


    "There is Zhou Hao." Many turned their eyes to a corner somewhere. Zhou Hao, who was ranked tenth on the Law Rank, ranked ninth before all the ruckus. As Ye Futian went on to rank first on Law Rank all of a sudden, his place had to be pushed one rank. That was the first one of the top ten on the Law Rank to appear other than Ye Futian.


    "Someone from Daozang Palace is coming." The crowd turned to the other direction. Many from Daozang Palace showed up one after another, among them being personal students of Sage Daozang: Xiang Zhiqin and Yun Feng. The one in the middle of the group was one who ranked fifth on Law Rank, Lian Yuqing. Many were surprised to see Lian Yuqing showing up, as no one had expected it.


    Ye Futian had provoked Lian Yuqing in the sparring sessions two years ago. He went on a battle of skills in the art of guqin with Lian Yuqing and won. His playing resonated with the Guqin Valley and he acquired the lineage of Liu Kuangsheng, the Nine-fingered Guqin Devil. It was said that Lian Yuqing disputed Ye Futian''s rank on the Law Rank openly, demanding to know since when had the Law Rank become such a mess. However, Ye Futian''s overbearing reply that day meant Lian Yuqing too became one of those he looked down on.


    There was another person who ranked high on Law Rank from Daozang Palace: Yun Shuisheng. However, she was rather close with Ye Futian, and there were some who recalled Ye Futian flirting with Yun Shuisheng when he first entered the Holy Zhi Palace, so much so that he ended up being marked for death by her. No one knew why she ended up forgiving Ye Futian eventually, and some went on to speculate if it was due to Ye Futian being handsome.


    "Bai Ze, Zhuge Xing." Many looked in another direction. The students of Holy Sage Pavilion arrived as well. They seemed to be searching for someone, but Ximen Hanjiang was nowhere to be seen. It was surprising for many that the former number one who had had his prestigious place taken did not show up.


    Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing looked up at the edge of the Battle Sage Palace and saw Ye Futian sitting there enjoying himself, chatting with those around him, as if he did not notice the crowd gathering beneath.


    Zhuge Xing felt a tinge of pain in his chest seeing Hua Jieyu at Ye Futian''s side. The very reason he clashed with Ye Futian back when he entered the Holy Zhi Palace was due to Hua Jieyu. He felt that Hua Jieyu, as someone who had awakened her talents as Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, should have belonged to him instead of a nobody. Three years had passed since and Ye Futian was now ranked first on the Law Rank, well known all over the Holy Zhi Palace. Zhuge Xing himself, however, was still a nobody in the Holy Zhi Palace. Compared to those around him, his prowess was hardly worth mentioning.


    Bai Ze had proposed the idea of having Hua Jieyu train in the Holy Sage Pavilion and had a thing for her. She was, after all, a beauty like none other. No one would have even objected if Hua Jieyu was said to be the most beautiful of all the ladies in the Holy Zhi Palace. However, Bai Ze''s attachment to Hua Jieyu was nothing compared to the resentment he felt towards Ye Futian. Before entering the Holy Zhi Palace, all attention was on him. As the second son of White Cloud City and the younger brother of Bai Luli, he was the very center of attention, and Ye Futian came to become his nightmare.


    Ye Futian''s words that day provoked an untold number of people and they wanted to see for themselves what actually enabled the one who ranked first on Law Rank to say what he said.


    "Be quick to state your business, if you do have any business with me. If nothing else, I''ll be leaving soon," a calm voice was heard from the Battle Sage Palace, and the words stunned everyone within earshot.


    That fellow really thinks little of the mighty ones in the Holy Zhi Palace, eh. However, many kept their hopes up nonetheless. Having studied in the Holy Zhi Palace for about three years, Ye Futian had made quite a reputation for himself, and that was furthered by the fact that he took the most prestigious spot among the students for himself.


    In actual fact, however, Ye Futian seemed to have never fought any truly spectacular battles within the walls of the Holy Zhi Palace, especially against the top-notch figures of the place. The fuss he kicked up in the sparring session back then was hardly considered battling. Lian Yuqing had, of course, been more powerful than Ye Futian back then, and the battle was simply a battle of skills in the art of guqin.


    Is he, the one who made a stunning name for himself in the whole of Holy Zhi Palace, going to finally stand at the ultimate battlefield and face his toughest challenge? Who will be the first person to face him?


    Ye Futian killed the one who ranked first on Alchemy Rank in an instant and defeated the number one figure in Alchemy City. It would have probably been very difficult to get Ye Futian to move. Even those with a place on Law Rank would have to have a very high rank before they were deemed capable of such a feat.


    "Rumor has it that you likened yourself to the Roc just a while ago and took all who doubted you to be eagles," a voice was heard, and everyone turned their eyes. The one who spoke was none other than Zhou Hao, who ranked tenth on Law Rank. The one who spoke was also the very person who took Ye Futian''s former rank on the Law Rank.


    "Yes, I did." Ye Futian remained sitting on the ground and glanced at Zhou Hao below. The slender young man exuded an air of sharpness about him, making it seem like he was about to shoot for the skies.


    "Well then, it seems like I''ll be one of those eagles you speak of, and this eagle is very interested to see how high you, the Roc, are capable of flying," Zhou Hao said looking at Ye Futian.


    "Your name?" Ye Futian said plainly. Many looked astonished at the two words uttered. Ye Futian did not even bother knowing someone ranked tenth on Law Rank.


    Actually, Ye Futian knew very little people in the Holy Zhi Palace. He had been busy training in the past three years, and with the exception of that sparring session where he got to see many around him, he seldom interacted with any of the palace''s students. As such, the number of people he knew was very limited.


    Zhou Hao looked just as astonished. He did not expect all that Ye Futian did not even know his name, a renowned figure ranked tenth on the Holy Zhi Palace''s Law Rank. It was a humiliation like no other, yet he simply smirked and said, "Zhou Hao."


    Ye Futian recalled something, as it seemed that the one who ranked before him was someone named Zhou Hao.


    "Are you satisfied now?" Zhou Hao leaped into the air, bursting in dazzling brilliance. Everyone who ranked in the top ten on the Law Rank, with the exception of Ye Futian, were all top-notch nobles. Zhou Hao was no exception.


    "Right." Ye Futian nodded lightly but did not move. Ye Futian instead turned his eyes sideways and shouted, "Yu Sheng."


    Yu Sheng, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground, stood and walked to the edge of Battle Sage Palace. Many froze in place as that scene unfolded before them, staring at the figures above them with startled looks.


    It seemed that everything was in place for a battle to begin, and everyone waited for Ye Futian to make a move. However, the man called for Yu Sheng instead.


    Is he trying to joke with us? Is Yu Sheng going to be the one to fight instead?


    Zhou Hao''s face was ashen beyond belief. He did not mind that Ye Futian did not know his name, but at that very moment, he truly felt insulted. Zhou Hao was still one who ranked tenth on the Law Rank. Ye Futian might not have known him, but he could have at least given him the respect he deserved.


    "You really want to do it like this?" Zhou Hao glanced at Yu Sheng and asked, before turning his eyes back on Ye Futian. His voice was cold.


    "After this battle, you will be out of the top ten," Ye Futian said plainly after he spared a glance at Zhou Hao beneath him!

 648 Battle for Top Ten

    Since there were people who doubted his place as number one on the Law Rank, Ye Futian saw fit to have Yu Sheng make it as one of the top ten before he did anything.


    After that battle, Yu Sheng would have a high ranking on the Law Rank. Zhou Hao, who was currently ranked tenth, would be kicked out of the top ten as a result.


    Zhou Hao stared at Ye Futian with cold eyes. What Ye Futian was more than just arrogant; the man deemed himself to reign supreme above all, and cared nothing about the one who ranked tenth on the Law Rank.


    Ye Futian''s arrogance was so astounding that he did not even see a need for himself to fight, having Yu Sheng do it instead.


    This is truly arrogance like none other.


    Voom. Blinding golden lights glittered and an old clock of incredible size appeared right behind Zhou Hao. The workings of the clock were crisp, exuding frighteningly appalling might like none other. A pair of incredibly bright golden wings appeared behind him, which looked like the wings of a divine eagle.


    Zhou Hao possessed two Life Spirits: the Skyscraping Clock and the Golden Flame Eagle. He specialized in Spiritual Elemental powers and had developed abilities in many elements, such as metal, fire, wind, and so on. He trained in martial arts as well, making him a tough opponent The one who ranked tenth on the Law Rank was no ordinary folk.


    Anyone who was capable of making into the Holy Zhi Palace was an elite existing at a ratio of one in a thousand. Those ranked high on the Law Rank were especially so. All of them who were able to make it that high were nothing short of being geniuses. Many more arrived after hearing Ye Futian''s metaphor.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward. His stout body stood tall in the air, bringing incredible pressure to bear on everyone around him. Yu Sheng looked like a god of war simply standing where he was, alone. Many seemed to have seen the shadow of Sage Douzhan just by looking at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng resembled Sage Douzhan more than Ye Futian as he was a natural born warrior. It remained a question, however, if he proved adequate to fight Zhou Hao.


    Coldness was seen in Zhou Hao''s eyes. He waved his hands, conjuring shadows of golden old clocks. His Life Spirit, the Skyscraping Clock, continued to grow in size, reaching the heavens and filling the air with terrifying Spiritual Will. Everything within the vicinity seemed to be covered in a very terrifying pressure.


    Zhou Hao, as one who ranked tenth on the Law Rank, knew well of the weakness of ones who devoted their time to train their bodies. Spiritual Will attacks were the most effective against people like that. And he specialized in such attacks.


    His Spiritual Will melded with the space. The Skyscraping Clock shone in dazzling golden colors as it descended upon them in a crazed manner. Shadows of countless golden old clocks appeared, heading for Yu Sheng. At that very moment, even those far away and on the clock covered their ears and shut their senses off. Anyone who was of meager training backed away to any far corner. The formless Spiritual Will invaded minds and trembled within. The shockwave from such an attack was able to make them feel like they were being shaken to their core, and it was anyone''s guess what it felt like the one being targeted by the attack.


    Countless shadows of golden old clocks continued descending, all of which were imbued with two types of incredibly violent offensive powers. Yu Sheng took one step forward. Streaks of light permeated through his body and the Seven Star acupoints opened. His body seemed to be filled with powers of unparalleled violent nature. Furthermore, the Seven Star acupoints activated his Spiritual Will powers, filling him with violent power all over his body.


    The giant old clock took the form of incredibly fearsome offensive power in Yu Sheng''s mind, attempting to snuff out his willpower. However, the shadow of a devil was seen standing within, protecting his will, and remained unfazed in the face of the onslaught of Spiritual Will powers. However, Yu Sheng still felt uneasy about it all and knew he needed to get rid of his opponent quickly.


    "Some body he has developed." Many looked at Yu Sheng''s body taking on the attacks from the shadows of the old clocks and found it unbelievable that none of those attacks managed to make him budge. Yu Sheng was clad in dark golden armor. Five acupoints were opened, making his physical body unbelievably strong.


    "Spell, Wing-cutting," Zhou Hao uttered coldly. Pairs of golden wings manifested near Yu Sheng''s body in an instant, whipping up terrifying tornados and turning into all-destroying blades that cut Yu Sheng''s body up. Golden gashes were cut in the air as the blades went about. Many were shocked at the thought of what would happen to Yu Sheng if he was subject to such attacks.


    Yu Sheng glanced at the wings cutting the space around him about and shouted. An incredibly huge body of the devil appeared in an instant. The stout being was the Douzhan Body he coalesced from his powers. He took one furious step on the air and the incredibly huge Douzhan Body trembled. Dark golden light screens manifested around his body in an instant. When the extremely sharp golden wings zipped through the air, sharp, high-pitched noises were heard. While cuts were obviously dealt in the air, none of them were able to make it to Yu Sheng''s body.


    Zhou Hao remained undeterred. He lashed out with his lands and whipped up even more terrifying golden storms. Other than the dazzling Skyscraping Clock, a shadow of the divine eagle appeared as well. The endless golden storms turned into a pair of wings, cutting up the air and bringing frightening might to bear between them.


    Yu Sheng looked up at the terrifying wings. The hands of the huge devil was seen clapping in the middle. When the wings cut down on Yu Sheng, his extraordinarily powerful arms closed, stopping the wings and pinning them right there. Fearsome light burst and devastating powers were unleashed. Zhou Hao''s body turned into a bolt of lightning as he moved forward. More and more golden old clocks and golden wings went for Yu Sheng''s gigantic body.


    Yu Sheng took a step forward. The huge devil''s hands clenched into two fists, whipping up terrifying power as he launched a punch in the air. Hundreds of thousands of flashes of the fist were conjured in that one punch. It was as if the devil itself had launched the attack. It tore many of the old clocks apart in the air.


    The Douzhan Body was an offensive tactic of extreme potency, imbued with incredible damage potential. Ye Futian''s own Meteor Punch was something derived from this. Yu Sheng''s abilities were different from Ye Futian''s, as his punch was even simpler and more direct, yet it packed untold amount of force nonetheless.


    Voom. The wings of the Douzhan Body took to resemble the wings of the devil as they slashed forward. Yu Sheng took one step in the air, heading for Zhou Hao as he turned into a true god of war.


    Boom. The earth and heavens shook as a powerful surge of martial arts will burst. Yu Sheng made it before Zhou Hao. An illusion welled up in Zhou Hao''s mind. The incoming shadow of the devil seemed to demand every living thing to submit to it and live only to revere it.


    Zhou Hao''s body backed away, yet dark golden Devil Halberd was seen raining down from the heavens, cutting through the air and preventing his escape. The huge devil threw yet another punch. Hundreds of thousands of fist will were infused with that one attack, and terrifying flowing lights were conjured in the air, toppling everything before it. Zhou Hao was eventually able to feel the fearsome pressure behind the attack. The Skyscraping Clock lashed out but was quickly thrown off with a loud clang by the punch, as if it was to be split apart. Zhou Hao spat up blood as he whipped out with his wings to slash at Yu Sheng.


    The arms of the devil moved forward without care, killing anything that stood in their way. When the incredibly sharp wings cut down on it, gashes appeared on the arms. However, the arms moved forward without a care. Zhou Hao wanted to retreat, but Yu Sheng continued to move another step forward, bringing the might of his devil to bear as the fist went down on Zhou Hao. The punch covered Zhou Hao as he was sent flying.


    Boom! A grunt was heard as Zhou Hao''s body was sent flying far away. Many followed the scene with their eyes and saw Zhou Hao''s body looking smaller and smaller before he hit the ground. Zhou Hao was unable to even steady himself afterward. It was anyone''s guess how many bones that one punch ended up breaking.


    Many turned to look at Yu Sheng, who was still standing in the air. They were shaken to their cores. They never knew Yu Sheng to be that terrifying before.


    As Ye Futian said before, Zhou Hao was no longer among the top ten after the battle. Yu Sheng made it as one of the top-ranked figures on the Law Rank.


    "Anyone else feeling displeased?" Yu Sheng scanned everyone below coldly as he said with an imposing voice.


    Many of the proud sons and daughters of the Holy Zhi Palace doubted Ye Futian''s place as number one on the Law Rank. Yu Sheng thought that the only way to deal with such disputes was to simply beat them into submission.


    Zhou Hao, who previously ranked tenth on the Law Rank did not get Ye Futian to move; he suffered a crushing defeat at Yu Sheng''s hands instead. It was anyone''s guess how many dared make a move after what happened. It now seemed that only the top five on the Law Rank were deemed capable of fighting Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian remained sitting where he was, watching his friend fight. Xu Que was seen lying, drinking with Zui Qianchou and Ye Wuchen. He said to the other two, "I''m getting bored, shall we head back to Sword Palace?"


    "I''m thinking of leaving too." Zui Qianchou nodded in agreement. He found what happened too ugly to behold. Are those two trying to bag the first and second place of the Law Rank for themselves? They were able to tolerate one insane genius, but two proved a little too much for them to stomach.


    Bai Ze, Zhuge Xing, and the others looked unwell after seeing what happened. Bai Ze had been crushed by Yu Sheng in that sparring session more than two years ago. Now, Yu Sheng proved powerful enough to defeat the one who ranked tenth on the Law Rank, and he did so as a Grade Three Noble. That one battle would probably make him one of the top three on the Law Rank.


    Two students of the Battle Sage Palace, in the same batch, would be taking two of the three places in the top three. The Holy Sage Pavilion, the main institution out of all six, never felt so weak in their batch.


    Another figure walked out in the resulting silence. Many looked rather elated seeing that figure make a move. So one of the top five is finally making a move?


    It was Lian Yuqing. He already ranked fifth on the Law Rank when Ye Futian first entered the Holy Zhi Palace. Furthermore, many in the Holy Zhi Palace knew well of the feud between Lian Yuqing and Ye Futian.


    "You wish to fight?" Yu Sheng looked down at Lian Yuqing.


    Lian Yuqing spared a glance at Yu Sheng before moving his gaze past him, looking at Ye Futian at the edge of the Battle Sage Palace and saying, "During the sparring session two years ago, you bested me with the Ukiyo song. But your plane was too low back then. Now, you are number one on the Law Rank, and I''d like to see what the Ukiyo song is truly capable of once again. This time, however, it won''t just be the battle of skills, but a true battle using musical spells."


    Many were able to tell what Lian Yuqing''s words meant. He was never able to let go of the fact that he lost to Ye Futian back in that sparring session all those years ago. That defeat remained a thorn at his side. What he truly wanted right there and then, was a true battle using the guqin with Ye Futian!

 649 Los

    Ye Futian gazed at Lian Yuqing. When he''d entered the Law Rank three years ago, Lian Yuqing had been extremely proud and arrogant. When he''d defeated Yun Feng, he''d injured him with musical sorcery. This was the beginning of their conflict. At the end-of-the-year battle, Ye Futian had invited him to listen to Ukiyo and defeated him with musical sorcery.


    That day, he''d seen Lian Yuqing follow him into the Guqin Valley. He''d wanted to enter Liu Kuangsheng''s relic, but had been powerless. He''d felt Lian Yuqing''s sadness that day. It was obviously uncomfortable for a pride to be passed over by Ye Futian.


    Lian Yuqing seemed to have been cultivating in private for the past two years. However, after Ye Futian returned from Alchemy City and became first on the Law Rank, Lian Yuqing jumped out again. Jieyu had said unhappily that Lian Yuqing had declared before Sage Daozang that the Law Rank was so casual now.


    Their rivalry had already been created. Clearly, Lian Yuqing hadn''t moved on from it yet.


    Chuckling, Ye Futian said, "Then I''ll make it easy for you."


    Everyone''s eyes flashed at Ye Futian''s words. Would they see another incredible musical sorcery battle? It would be different from two years ago. Now, Ye Futian was first on the Law Rank while Lian Yuqing was fifth. The musical battle between them would be a top fight between musical sorcery Nobles of the palace.


    "Ukiyo." Many people still thought about Ukiyo, one of the top musical pieces. It was filled with emperor''s intent.


    Seeing that Ye Futian agreed to the battle, Lian Yuqing smiled faintly. "In that case," he said, "let me experience Ukiyo again."


    Ye Futian stood up. Yu Sheng retreated to the edge of the Battle Sage Pavilion, standing quietly behind Ye Futian.


    There, Ye Futian looked down at Lian Yuqing. Ukiyo? Smiling, he said, "Back then, I was a Grade Eight Noble. To prove myself in a battle of musical sorcery, I played Ukiyo. Now, you are no longer qualified to hear it."


    Everyone had been hoping to hear this musical piece. When Ye Futian said that, everyone''s eyes froze in his direction, staring at the figure in the air with shock.


    What a slap to the face��


    They gazed at Lian Yuqing. As expected, Lian Yuqing''s expression was very ugly at the moment. Ye Futian had humiliated him publicly. However, this seemed to be how Ye Futian was. Just as he had said, he never had to prove anything to those who doubted him. Now, he was first on the Law Rank. Even if Lian Yuqing challenged him, he still arrogantly said that Lian Yuqing didn''t deserve to hear Ukiyo.


    "I will hear it," Lian Yuqing said. Then his Guqin Spirit appeared. He sat cross-legged on the ground and gradually rose up to hover in the air. His entire temperament changed. Ye Futian didn''t move. He sat down on the edge of the Battle Sage Pavilion. His Guqin Spirit appeared. He seemed to be playing on the edge of a cliff. Seeing this, many people felt that it made a great picture. This was especially because Ye Futian''s temperament was extraordinary. His handsome figure made many people sigh in awe. He was such an attractive person and also had unparalleled talent. No wonder he was surrounded by beauties.


    When Xiang Zhiqin saw Ye Futian, she thought of how Hua Jieyu had said she''d understand one day when she''d suspected that Hua Jieyu had misjudged Ye Futian. Now, she seemed to understand.


    "After Ukiyo from the battle two years ago, I''ve learned a new song," Lian Yuqing said. As soon as he spoke, his white fingers started strumming the instrument strings. When the music rang out, the people didn''t hear a lovely song. Instead, the song made them feel depressed and heavy. The sunlight was shining down and the sky was clear. The weather was great, but when they heard the song, an artistic conception was born. Darkness enveloped the world. Black clouds swept in, covering the sky. The repressive song suppressed the entire place.


    Many disciples of the Daozang Pavilion looked at Lian Yuqing. Was this the musical piece that their senior brother played? Lian Yuqing often played in the Daozang Pavilion, but they''d never heard this song before. They hadn''t even heard this style before.


    In the past, Lian Yuqing played songs that made people feel comfortable like bathing in the spring breeze. Even his musical sorcery had light and bright rhythms. However, this song was clearly different from the past. It was a dark style. Was this because of the battle two years ago?


    At the same time that he played, Ye Futian''s fingers also strummed the strings. A bright and clear sound came out. It felt powerful and fanatic to the people. It immediately brought them into Ye Futian''s artistic conception. That conception was wildness. At that moment, he sat high up in the sky. Everyone in the world had to worship him.


    Black clouds covered the sky. Darkness enveloped the world. All the Spiritual Qi in the world was suppressed. Ye Futian''s music was also about to be suppressed. In that dark world, there seemed to be only one song.


    Many long black spears seemed to appear in the artistic conception. The power of dark thunder ravaged the sky above Ye Futian''s head. The swirling black clouds transformed into dark dragons. It was like the end of the world. Everything was being destroyed.


    "Such repressive music. This dark artistic conception was created for destruction." Many of the disciples closed off their senses. Even still, they were still affected by it. They felt the artistic conception and could almost feel the suppressed anger within Lian Yuqing. It seemed to have melded into the music. Had the battle from two years ago really affected him this much?


    Ye Futian also felt how terrifying Lian Yuqing''s music was. The song went into the mood immediately. It was muffled and repressive as if it could squash him directly. The song also made one feel agitated and annoyed. It could affect their minds, making them unable to focus on playing and destroying their artistic conceptions.


    Ye Futian guarded his mind and continued to play without being affected. Spiritual Qi screamed around him and the wild artistic conception continued. The air around him seemed to freeze, blocking the invasive attacks. He continued playing. His fingers sped up and the artistic conception grew stronger. It created the hallucination that Ye Futian was surrounded by an invisible force field. He was majestic and divine. People couldn''t help but worship him. His musical sorcery was extremely penetrative and influential. When the artistic conception entered one''s mind, they couldn''t even dare to think about going against Ye Futian. It was very strange.


    "The Nine-Fingered Guqin Devil." Some powerful Nobles stared at Ye Futian. The Nine-Fingered Guqin Devil Liu Kuangsheng''s music was known for being wild. It could steal one''s mind and trick one''s hearts. It was a terrifying song. The song they heard now might be from the Nine-Fingered Guqin Devil, Liu Kuangsheng, someone from the last generation''s Barren Sky Ranking.


    The two continued sitting quietly and playing. The two artistic conceptions grew stronger. The defensive power around Ye Futian seemed to get ravaged and destroyed. Lian Yuqing''s song was highly destructive. It could even break apart Spiritual Qi and spiritual will. It made Ye Futian feel that Lian Yuqing had purposely composed this song after the battle to target Ukiyo.


    Ukiyo was known to counter all spells, but Lian Yuqing''s current song was just as destructive. It was repressive and made one agitated and unable to control oneself. Faced with this kind of song, one couldn''t play a powerful song according to one''s thoughts if one''s will wasn''t strong enough.


    "I can''t take it," an observer said. He felt as if his spiritual will was about to be destroyed. He wanted to free himself.


    "What kind of song is it?" Even Xu Que felt very uncomfortable. He guarded his mind, but he still had the urge to pull out his sword and kill someone. Xu Que was a Grade Two Noble and was very talented. Even he couldn''t stand the current situation. More and more people left the space. Even Lian Yuqing''s expression changed.


    Ye Futian continued playing. A horrible spiritual windstorm seemed to gather in the air around him. It grew stronger and stronger. The white-clothed figure at the abyss'' side seemed to be bathed in endless light. He allowed the destructive power to go wild in his mind while he remained unmoving. The artistic conception of his song grew stronger until the attacking power seemed to meld into his own song. In addition, some of the weaker people no longer looked at Ye Futian with reverence. Instead, they were a bit lost. In their eyes, Ye Futian was like a god. They felt like their minds had been infected and they''d melded into his song''s will.


    Lian Yuqing wanted to destroy; however, Ye Futian wanted to control. Many of the pavilion''s prides were in pain. This musical sorcery battle was completely different from two years ago.


    On the battleground, Lian Yuqing seemed to still have the advantage. In reality, Ye Futian''s artistic conception kept enlarging and strengthening. The light he was bathed in grew brighter too. The vast world harmonized with Ye Futian''s song.


    Lian Yuqing''s expression grew more and more uncomfortable. Of course, he felt that Ye Futian''s cultivation and spiritual power was weaker than him, which was why he''d been using defense. But as time passed, his song kept strengthening while Lian Yuqing''s song was getting attacked. This was the essence and artistic conception of musical sorcery.


    This was not all. Lian Yuqing also felt that something even more frightening was happening. His spiritual power was getting affected; it was gradually being invaded by Ye Futian''s artistic conception.


    I don''t believe this! Lian Yuqing cried out within. He played wildly. As if he''d given up on himself, he submerged himself completely into the song and started attacking Ye Futian as crazily as he could. His music penetrated everything and ravaged Ye Futian''s spiritual will. Then it gradually grew lost. He felt his own will get corroded as he continuously lost himself.


    Time passed bit by bit. Lian Yuqing continued to play. Other than music, there was no other sound in the vast space. Even Lian Yuqing''s movements seemed less spirited than before. It was not only him. Even the people who were listening on the sides seemed lost. Only those with higher cultivations could still see the current situation clearly. They felt a shocking spiritual windstorm wrap around the entire space. Ye Futian sat at the edge of the abyss. He was still handsome as he played the guqin quietly. But in many people''s eyes, he was no longer a disciple of the pavilion; he was like a god.


    "Snap the string," Ye Futian said quietly as he played with his head lowered. As soon as he spoke, Lian Yuqing yanked his finger back. There was a crisp sound of an instrument string snapping. He grunted and blood trickled out of his mouth. However, he seemed not to feel anything at all. It was as if Ye Futian''s words had been an order.


    "From now on, do not touch a guqin before me. You don''t deserve to," Ye Futian said indifferently, raising his head. As soon as he spoke, his finger shook powerfully. Music echoed and the artistic conception scattered.

 650 Battle between Two First Places on the Law Rank

    As the music disappeared gradually, the people came back to themselves. They took a deep breath. What had happened had been like a dream.


    Looking up, they gazed at Ye Futian. That figure in white looked very graceful with his clothes fluttering in the wind. His bright eyes looked down at Lian Yuqing. He said that he wouldn''t allow Lian Yuqing to play music before him again.


    Lian Yuqing''s life spirit was a little bit wounded at this time, but he was more hurt mentally. In order to resist Ye Futian''s Ukiyo, Lian Yuqing created the dark music. But Ye Futian had never played the Ukiyo during the whole battle. Did he no longer qualify to hear the Ukiyo now?


    What worse was that he''d lost himself and his mental will had been controlled by Ye Futian. He couldn''t forget what had happened just now. Every time he thought about it, he was in pain. It was impossible for him to forget this battle. At that time, would he have knelt if Ye Futian had ordered him to? With his mental will being controlled by Ye Futian, he had to do everything Ye Futian ordered.


    Lian Yuqing knew Ye Futian''s music''s power. Then why did he still risk it? His level was higher than Ye Futian''s. Then why was he defeated?


    "Why?" Lian Yuqing whispered. Anger flashed in his eyes. He was asking both Ye Futian and himself. He was fifth place on the Law Rank. In the battle two years, he''d been defeated by Ukiyo. He thought that it was just because of Ukiyo, which was one of the top ten famous songs, so he devoted himself to cultivation again in order to challenge it. This time, however, Ye Futian, who was just a Grade Three Noble, defeated him again without playing the Ukiyo. Again, he was defeated in such a pathetic way. Others couldn''t understand this kind of pain.


    "You''re proficient in musical sorcery, but you gave up on the essence of music. In order to defeat me, you ignored the artistic conception and adopted some dishonest methods. You rush too much." Ye Futian looked at Lian Yuqing and said slowly, "Your level is higher. It shouldn''t be so easy for me to defeat you. With your cultivation, you shouldn''t be controlled by me so easily either. You should at least be able to escape from it, but you didn''t. You should know the reason why you failed."


    Lian Yuqing knew the reason. Ye Futian had played the artistic conception to the extreme so that his music could resonate with the world. Even the mental power of people around him could be turned into a part of the song. Even Lian Yuqing''s musical intent and mental power were controlled, which made him lose himself. If he hadn''t been so anxious to defeat Ye Futian, Ye Futian wouldn''t have seized such an opportunity to make him lose himself. Therefore, he didn''t only lose to his musical sorcery. This was why Ye Futian said that Lian Yuqing no longer qualified to play before him.


    Lian Yuqing looked despondent. His pride was totally gone. This battle had become an everlasting stain in his life.


    Watchers seemly knew that Lian Yuqing shouldn''t be defeated so easily. Ye Futian was strong, but he didn''t even play the Ukiyo. This meant that Lian Yuqing, fifth on Law Rank, hadn''t even fought against Ye Futian in his strongest state but was still defeated so horribly.


    "You have been in the Holy Zhi Palace for only three years. You don''t fight much, but whenever you do, you always destroy your enemy''s faith. What you said not a long ago was also so arrogant. You are too cruel." A voice from afar reminded people of Ye Futian''s battles since entering the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The voice seemed to be right. Everyone that doubted Ye Futian, from Bai Ze, Yun Feng to Lian Yuqing and Ximen Gu, the number one of latest pavilion battle, was always beaten miserably, their faiths destroyed in the end. After fighting with Ye Futian, top talents like Bai Ze and Yun Feng were all badly hurt. As a result, their cultivation wasn''t outstanding anymore. And now, it seemed that Lian Yuqing was going to repeat the same play.


    Countless eyes fell on the coming figure. Their hearts all pounded. Was he finally here?


    It was Ximen Hanjiang. He''d been the first place on Law Rank before Ye Futian and was now second place.


    Looking up at the approaching figure, Ye Futian said calmly, "Then why am I like that?"


    Bai Ze had invited Hua Jieyu to cultivate with him in the Holy Zhi Palace, right before Ye Futian''s eyes. Yun Feng had drawn Hua Jieyu. Seeing Ye Futian defeat Yun Feng, Lian Yuqing still dared to challenge Ye Futian and hurt him. Ximen Gu had flirted with Long Ling''er.


    "No matter the reason, you shouldn''t destroy their whole life. But you seemly enjoy it very much," Ximen Hanjiang continued.


    Ye Futian laughed. He knew this kind of quarrel was meaningless. So he just responded calmly, "I haven''t entered the Sage Plane, so I don''t know the Sage''s thinking pattern. Since I am not a Sage, I don''t know why I should say thanks to those who hurt me. I just treat people the same way they treat me. You are not me. You don''t know what happened between me and the others. What right do you have to tell me what to do?" Ye Futian smiled sarcastically and continued, "If you are so noble, why did you come?"


    Obviously, Ximen Hanjiang still couldn''t let it go or he wouldn''t have come.


    "Then, how do you explain your arrogance over the Palace''s disciples?" Ximen Hanjiang asked again.


    "As a Grade Three Noble, Ye Futian managed to gain the first place on the Law Rank. In the Alchemy City, he defeated the city''s first talent, Di Gang. Can anyone else in the Palace do that? Doesn''t he deserve first place?" At this moment, lazy laughter was heard. Lying over there, Xu Que said slowly, "Is it so hard to admit another''s excellence?"


    "Xu Que, you are the successor of Tingxue House. You are also a Grade Two Noble. You can be a top talent among your generation in the Barren State. Where''s your pride?" Looking at Xu Que, Ximen Hanjiang sneered. He was taunting Xu Que for being Ye Futian''s follower.


    "Of course, talents should have pride. But when meeting a truly excellent person, they should also learn to appreciate and follow them. As for those who just can''t admit others'' strengths, won''t they feel more ashamed after being defeated?"


    Many people looked up at Xu Que and the ones behind Ye Futian. People like Yu Sheng and Phoenix were all top talents of the Palace, but they still chose to follow Ye Futian. It was said that even many other disciples at their level would also come to learn from Ye Futian. This might be out of admiration toward an excellent person.


    "People are so strange. They envy those who are not much stronger than them but are more extraordinary. Maybe only when their enemy becomes extremely strong would they show their respect. But then it''ll be too late." Zui Qianchou also lay beside Xu Que, drinking. They looked very relaxed.


    In the crowd below, Xiang Zhiqin and Yun Feng had the same feeling too. That figure in white had become so strong that they had to show their respect. The Palace''s disciples also began to exclaim. With his talent, Ye Futian was going to be the strongest existence on the Barren Sky List. No one would doubt that now.


    "Ximen Hanjiang!" Ye Futian looked down at Ximen Hanjiang and said, "If you came here just to attack my character, you can go now. I am myself. I don''t need you to teach me. You don''t have the qualification either." After Ye Futian spoke, the two stared at each other. Their forces seemed to collide.


    Ye Futian was right. Now he was first place. Ximen Hanjiang was only second place. Ximen Hanjiang didn''t have the right to condemn Ye Futian.


    "Go ahead!" Ximen Hanjiang didn''t argue further but directly announced a battle.


    A cold storm suddenly rolled over. Everyone felt the chill. The previous number one declared war to the present number one. Who would be the winner? This war between the two top Nobles of the Holy Zhi Palace was going to pan out.


    Ye Futian stepped out. The wind blew through his dark hair. He looked at Ximen Hanjiang and said, "In the Alchemy City, I''d experienced a top Noble''s strength. It won''t be too hard this time. You just try your best." When fighting with Di Gang in Alchemy City, Ye Futian took the opportunity to break into the next plane. He had made great progress at that time. He knew what a top Noble''s level was like. Though he couldn''t tell whether Ximen Hanjiang was stronger than Di Gang, there wouldn''t be a too big of a gap between the two. At least, there was no doubt that Ximen Hanjiang would be weaker. Ye Futian didn''t have to slowly test him. Both had won first place on the Law Rank. They knew that normal means couldn''t help them defeat the other.


    "Good," said Ximen Hanjiang. Suddenly an extreme coldness appeared and the vast sky seemed to start snowing. Many people got chilled. They could feel that coldness penetrating their bones and souls. Their bodies seemed paralyzed and their brains almost stopped thinking. But this artistic conception was only aimed at Ye Futian, not them. It was hard to imagine how strong the mental pressure was that Ye Futian was facing.


    Ye Futian felt like he was in an icy world. Coldness kept invading his body while his body was burning. An enormous Golden Roc appeared. It grew larger and larger and finally turned into a real Divine Roc with golden wings. Ye Futian reached out his palms and endless golden spirit gathered into a long staff. Beams of horrible light projected from his body as well as from the Golden Roc. At this moment, Ye Futian seemly owned endless power. However, a dreadful icy storm rolled over at this time. This storm seemed to be going to freeze everything. The wind brought by this storm blew like sharp swords.


    Strong power from the Absolute Territory appeared around Ye Futian, protecting his body with starry light. But then with a sharp colliding sound, that protection zone was shattered. The extreme coldness continued penetrating his body.


    "Sage''s intent," Ye Futian whispered. The space around him was totally frozen. His body was freezing bit by bit too. In the end, his body might be torn to pieces. Even if he had endless power, Ye Futian couldn''t release it.


    Rustles sounded in his life palace. Ye Futian''s brilliant body seemed to turn into a furnace. A horrible flaming power extended to every part of his body. Then the Golden Roc flapped its wings, flying up. Ye Futian twirled his long staff. A fantastic rhythm was contained in his moves. He seemed able to control the whole world. His staff technique was like a martial arts form. Martial intent appeared in that long staff and helped him gather a horrible martial intent storm. That storm became stronger and stronger, seemingly able to break everything!


    Disciples from the Palace all looked up. The Golden Roc dancing in the icy world was such a beautiful scene!

 651 A New Era

    The Golden Roc wings had a golden current flowing around them, cutting through the snow in the sky. A majestic martial arts aura surrounded Ye Futian, causing the force to be unable to suppress him.


    Everyone could feel clearly how strong Ye Futian was. However, at that moment, Ximen Hanjiang stepped forward. With just one step, the snow in the sky appeared to emit an icy glow. The falling snowflakes became as sharp as knives and turned into razor-sharp sword will, descending upon Ye Futian''s body like silver rays of light. An even more horrifying storm rushed towards Ye Futian''s body, each snowflake turning into a killing blade that was utterly cold, attempting to drown his body within the storm.


    Ye Futian''s Golden Roc Body became even more dazzling and his wings suddenly shook, cutting through the air and colliding with the killing blades. As he took a step forward, the polearm in his arm struck out. A single strike had the might to match the heavens and the air vibrated violently, shattering the countless blades.


    Hummm. Ximen Hanjiang continued to move forward, an even stronger Will being released from him. Ye Futian felt that it was hard to even move, but his movements did not stop and he continued to wave the polearm. The second strike swept through the air and an imposing force tore through the air towards Ximen Hanjiang. Ximen Hanjiang looked at the strong attack technique, then covered it with ice. The sword in his hand swung forward, splitting the icy area into two and Ye Futian''s attack with it.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s body became exceedingly brilliant and the third and fourth rod strikes continued to thrust downwards. The strikes were of the highest caliber and the surrounding area was crushed. Ximen Hanjiang could feel the force, and his body transformed into a ray of light, disappearing in the air. He actually weaved and bobbed through the array of rod strikes because he could affect the flow of Spiritual Qi in the air, thereby affecting the speed of the other party''s strikes and find its weakest points.


    Releasing his Life Spirit, Ximen Hanjiang came closer to Ye Futian. Similarly, the Golden Roc wings flapped and Ye Futian got closer to him. The both of them appeared to have absolute confidence in their abilities.


    When Ye Futian''s fifth rod strike struck down, Ximen Hanjiang''s Life Spirit projected an image, and the entire area turned into an ice world, affecting Ye Futian''s every move. Ximen Hanjiang continued to not dodge, facing Ye Futian''s strike head-on. The entire sky of rumbling shadows were all coated by a layer of ice, and Ximen Hanjiang''s body appeared like a ray of light in front of one of the rod shadows and passed through it, swinging his sword towards Ye Futian''s throat.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt as though his entire body was about to stop moving. Not only did Ximen Hanjiang have the power of frost and exceptional swordsmanship, but he also had the ability to move at light speed. His sword did not have any specialty, but it was able to find the enemy''s weakest point to pierce under his frost intent. His battles were often decided in one slash. Coupled with his ice power, this made him exceptionally terrifying.


    As he saw Ximen Hanjiang''s ice-cold frost blade reaching, Ye Futian emotionlessly looked at him and said, "Sky Freezing Technique." The spell cast and the air appeared to have frozen. Ximen Hanjiang could feel the area around him solidifying. Not only that, but there was a horrifying martial arts Will that was applying its pressure in the surrounding area. He released countless sword wills, attempting to cut through everything, but at that moment, the Roc wings sliced the ice world apart and an immeasurable gravity crushed down upon him. At that moment, Ximen Hanjiang felt as though the weight of the entire world was crashing down with Ye Futian''s rod strike.


    Ximen Hanjiang broke through Ye Futian''s spell, but he could feel that his ice will was unable to stop the rod''s power as their surroundings were grounded to powder. He could actually feel a semblance of Sage Plane power within. At that moment, Ximen Hanjiang understood that Ye Futian''s rod technique had already reached that level; the same level as him.


    As his sword slashed out, brilliant sword rays flooded the heavens. However, under the rod strike, they were all shattered. The crowd then heard a dull thud and in the next moment, Ximen Hanjiang''s body fell from the sky, and with a giant crash, slammed heavily onto the foot of the Battle Sage Palace and created a huge pit. The huge crash caused many people to shudder and look appallingly at the figure in the ground.


    Ximen Hanjiang and Ye Futian, two firsts in the admission examination, two firsts on the Law Rank. Ye Futian had entered one generation later than Ximen Hanjiang. However, he had defeated him in a one-on-one battle and obtained first on the Law Rank in a dominant fashion.


    Ye Futian was the undisputed first on the Law Rank, be it by potential or battle ability. Even if he was only a Grade Three Noble, he was still unrivaled in the Noble Plane.


    After today''s battle, Ye Futian would be the undisputed first in the Noble Plane in the Palace. Nobody would ever dare to question him again. Those who had scorned him and those who had questioned him would all shut up after today.


    To the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples, it was the beginning of a new era��Ye Futian''s era.


    Before him, even Hua Fan had not been this outstanding. It was probably only Bai Luli''s era that could match Ye Futian''s. If that was so, who among the two generations was more outstanding? Perhaps, he would really have the ability to challenge Bai Luli''s position in the future.


    Watching the figure in the air, many people had mixed feelings. Perhaps the Holy Zhi Palace was about to welcome its golden generation. Bai Luli, Hua Fan, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng. Every one of them was all incredibly outstanding.


    Bai Ze, Zhuge Xing, Ximen Gu, and the other Sage Palace disciples were speechless. This was probably the first time the Sage Palace had been defeated so convincingly. This was also the first time that the Battle Sage Palace had broken the Sage Palace''s streak and had its own era. Looking at the figures beside Ye Futian, he would lead his generation forward.


    Ximen Hanjiang stood up with difficulty and looked at Ye Futian in the air with a bad taste in his mouth. To Ximen Hanjiang, although he had exceptional potential, he had never been like Bai Luli and Ye Futian. In his year, he had much difficulty obtaining first in the admission examination. After he had entered the palace, there were a few strong competitors in his year, and many people had doubted him, claiming that he would not be able to rise to the top of the Law Rank, but he had done it. However, not long after, Ye Futian shot up through the ranks and knocked him off his pedestal, using him as a stepping stone, gathering the attention of the entire Palace and becoming the symbol of his generation. Moreover, Ximen Hanjiang could predict that Ye Futian would be the first on the Law Rank for a long time. He had defeated him as a Grade Three Noble, so in the time before he stepped into the Sage Plane, nobody would be able to challenge his position.


    Ximen Hanjiang did not say anything and turned around and left. He also understood that after today''s battle, unless he entered the Sage Plane, he would forever be suppressed by Ye Futian.


    It has ended, many people thought in their hearts. The battle for the Law Rank had finally ended, but many people felt that it was insufficient and could not bear to leave.


    "Ye Futian," someone called out at that moment. Ye Futian turned and looked at the person. The person who had spoken was the eighth on the Law Rank. He looked towards Ye Futian and asked, "Di Gang and Ximen Hanjiang, who is stronger?"


    The Holy Zhi Palace was a holy ground for cultivation in the Barren State where geniuses gathered from all around. However, it did not mean that the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples were always the strongest in the State. There were people like Di Gang, Huang Jiuge, and many others who were also very strong.


    "In a direct confrontation, Di Gang is stronger," Ye Futian replied. He was not belittling Ximen Hanjiang but simply telling the truth.


    Many people were surprised. If Ximen Hanjiang was first on the Law Rank, they would be inferior to the Alchemy City''s Di Gang. However, now that Ye Futian had reached the top, there were probably no Noble Plane cultivators in the Barren State that could defeat him. Moreover, this was at the current moment. Tf he broke through to a Grade Two or even Grade One Noble, there would be no question. He would be invincible among the Noble Plane in the Barren State.


    The crowd started to leave gradually. Today''s storm had arisen because of Ye Futian''s arrogant words, but he had proven that he had the right to say those words. Some of those who were on good terms with Ye Futian did not leave but continued standing by his side. Xu Que smiled and said, "Should we celebrate?"


    Ye Futian glared and him and laughed, saying, "I was originally the first on the Law Rank, what is there to celebrate? Moreover, I''m not really interested in being first."


    "You''re now first, so whatever you say is correct," Xu Que said with a fake smile. Ye Futian''s words made him really want to beat him up, saying he was not interested after getting first.


    "Of course, this feeling is actually quite refreshing." Ye Futian rubbed his brow, then smiled brightly. At least, the people who doubted him in the Holy Zhi Palace would shut up. Nobody would gossip about him when he and Jieyu walked on the road; there would only be envy. As he thought about it, he felt delighted, it seemed that he was also a philistine.


    "I really want to hit someone," Zui Qianchou said.


    "Then do it." Xu Que smiled and looked at him.


    "But what do I do if I can''t defeat him?" Zui Qianchou lamented.


    "Then just drink," came the reply.


    Hua Jieyu held Ye Futian''s hand and both smiled at each other. Ye Futian had used three years to finally prove himself, reaching first on the Law Rank in a dominant fashion. From now on, the entire Barren State would know his name and nobody would ever question his potential again.


    She felt happy for him too.


    ��


    Not long after, in the Law Battle Area, many people gathered before the Law Rank, wanting to see the newly updated Law Rank. As expected, an elder from the Palace came to renew the Law Rank soon.


    Ye Futian''s first-place ranking was impossible to challenge. Following that, they saw the name on the second of the Law Rank. Although many people had their guesses, they were still astonished when they saw the Law Rank renewed.


    Yu Sheng was second on the Law Rank behind Ye Futian.


    Ximen Hanjiang had fallen from the first on the Law Rank to the third.


    "Whoooo��" Many people took a deep breath. These two prodigies had entered the Palace only three years ago and were now ranked first and second on the Law Rank. This was like a miracle. Their generation had created two heroes who stood side by side.


    Due to Yu Sheng flying through the ranks, many people even failed to realize that Lian Yuqing''s position on the Law Rank had fallen yet again!

 652 A Storm Brews in the Zhuge Family

    In the blink of an eye, a couple of months had passed. After Ye Futian and Ximen Hanjiang''s battle, the Palace had regained its usual composure. The Law Rank been updated, and nobody questioned the first and second placing.


    Gradually, everyone started to treat it normally. Ye Futian had become the symbol of the disciples of his generation, admired by many. The majority of those in the same batch as Ye Futian all respected him, they had all seen how Ye Futian had secured his position at the top of the Holy Zhi Palace with just a few battles. On top of that, the disciples who had just entered the Palace also admired him after hearing Ye Futian''s stories. This senior of theirs was like a legendary figure writing his own story, charting his own growth.


    The name mentioned the most in the Palace was Ye Futian''s name.


    However, Ye Futian did not care that much. He continued to cultivate in silence, and everyone understood that Ye Futian''s top priority was his cultivation. He had reached the top of the Law Rank too quickly, obtaining first on the Law Rank when he was a Grade Three Noble, so he still needed a fair amount of cultivation before he could enter the Sage Hall.


    Apart from his cultivation, there were often disciples from the same batch who visited Ye Futian to consult him on cultivation matters. If he had the time, Ye Futian would give them some pointers. This caused the bolder new disciples to also go to him for pointers, causing Ye Futian to be unable to relax in his free time.


    Many new disciples who had been taught by Ye Futian felt that they had learned a lot, causing them to admire Ye Futian''s strength even more. This caused Ye Futian''s reputation in the Palace to reach another high, far surpassing the previous first on the Law Rank, Ximen Hanjiang.


    At that moment, in the Battle Sage Palace at Ye Futian''s cultivation area, there were two beautiful young ladies bidding goodbye to Ye Futian, saying, "Thank you, brother Ye. If the chance arises, we will come and learn from brother Ye again."


    "Sure." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    "Brother, if we come and drop by next time, you can''t complain that we are talkative," the other lady also smiled brilliantly and said. Ye Futian nodded again, the two of them then smiled and left.


    When they left the Battle Sage Palace, one of the girls smiled and said, "Brother Ye not only has exceptional potential, but he is handsome and also so approachable."


    "Yup, indeed, he''s not like the rumors at all. It''s hard to imagine that brother Ye would say such arrogant words at the Battle Sage Palace," the other girl recalled the rumors circulating around the Palace about Ye Futian and replied. Back then, Ye Futian had ignored all the people who doubted him in the palace and never looked them in the eye.


    "When he''s arrogant, he''s unparalleled, but usually he''s amiable and refined." The girl beside her had a look of infatuation and said, "Little Yan, I feel like I''m in love."


    The girl beside gave her a look of disgust and said scornfully, "You''re the daughter from an elite clan, how can you be this starry-eyed? What kind of person are you? Brother Ye is mine."


    "Why don''t you die!" Their gleeful banter continued as they moved further and further, but in reality, they both knew that Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were a perfect match. Moreover, beside brother Ye, there were other alluring beauties like Phoenix, Yun Shuisheng, and a few others.


    On the other end, Ye Futian let out a sigh. He was a little troubled. Because he had the habit of giving the Palace''s disciples pointers, there were a few disciples in the same batch as him that looked for him for help. However, after the news spread, more and more people started to visit him for guidance. He was the most well-known person in the Palace, after all.


    "What are you sighing about?" beside him, Yi Xiaoshi asked.


    Ye Futian looked at Yi Xiaoshi and said, "Being handsome is also troublesome. It''s a feeling that seventh brother will never understand."


    "...." The fatty''s face turned black and he glared at Ye Futian and said, "I''m breaking off our relations."


    Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders. Trying to scare him?


    "The next time Jieyu comes, I need to have a good chat with her. Little brother seems to be teaching more and more little sisters." Yi Xiaoshi stared at Ye Futian.


    "Uhh��" Ye Futian looked speechlessly at Yi Xiaoshi and retorted, "Fatty, have a conscience."


    "Did I say anything wrong? There are a few little sisters that have come quite often, am I right?" The fatty grinned and looked at Ye Futian.


    "Brother, we''re all brothers, there''s always room for discussion. Which little sister do you like, I''ll introduce you," Ye Futian smiled and said, hugging Yi Xiaoshi by the shoulder in an intimate manner.


    Yi Xiaoshi''s eyeballs rolled in their sockets and he replied, "You can introduce them to me one by one, it''s good to have more interaction."


    "...." Ye Futian looked at Yi Xiaoshi in dismay. This was the fatty''s true self; how shameless. "I didn''t expect that brother was this kind of person," he said grudgingly.


    "I learned it from someone." Yi Xiaoshi looked disdainfully at Ye Futian. This b*stard, showing off in front of him all the time. If it wasn''t because he couldn''t defeat him, he would have beat him up a long time ago.


    "It looks like I need to reconsider our relationship," Ye Futian sighed and said.


    Yi Xiaoshi gave him a look of contempt.


    "Futian," at that moment, a voice sounded out. Ye Futian and Yi Xiaoshi turned around and saw Hua Jieyu running towards them. Yi Xiaoshi had an interesting look on his face. Speak of the devil. However, he soon realized that Hua Jieyu''s expression was off and his expression changed to one of concern.


    "What happened?" Ye Futian naturally realized that Hua Jieyu''s expression was off and asked.


    "There''s trouble." Hua Jieyu walked over to Ye Futian with a glum expression. Ye Futian''s heart sank. Jieyu had never behaved like this before. For her to be this worried, there was evidently huge trouble. Could it be the Eastern Barren Territory?


    "Second Sister is in trouble," Hua Jieyu replied.


    Second Sister. Ye Futian and Yi Xiaoshi were both stunned for a second.


    "Jieyu, what happened?" Ye Futian saw that Jieyu was extremely worried and flustered.


    "I heard news from the Sage Palace. A few days ago, the Sage Palace''s elders and the White Cloud City''s experts went to the Zhuge Family for Bai Luli to propose marriage to the Zhuge Family. Both parties had a happy discussion, and it is very likely that the marriage will go through. Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing are both planning to head to the Zhuge Family. The news was spread by them, perhaps intentionally," Hua Jieyu said.


    Although she had never officially joined the Cottage, she was often at the Cottage and was later brought to the Zhuge Family by Zhuge Mingyue. Zhuge Mingyue treated her like a younger sister and gave the best to her. That was why, to her, Zhuge Mingyue was not only Ye Futian''s sister, but she was also her own sister. She also knew that the Cottage had a tacit couple��Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu. She had been by Zhuge Mingyue''s side for quite some time, so she naturally knew some of Zhuge Mingyue''s secrets. Now, such a piece of news had spread, she wondered how Zhuge Mingyue was feeling.


    "Have they not given up on what happened back then?" Ye Futian''s expression immediately became extremely grim, his tone full of displeasure. It was rumored that second sister had run away and was taken in by their Master to the Cottage to escape her marriage. That would mean that when Second Sister was younger, the Zhuge Family had already suggested marriage to the White Cloud City, but it was terminated due to her leaving home. Now, the White Cloud City''s Young City Lord Bai Luli was a legendary figure who was tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking, while Sister had similarly entered the Sage Plane. Their marriage should be theirs to decide, so why were the elders bringing up and interfering in such an old matter.


    "Why is the Palace interfering in this matter?" Ye Futian was furious and puzzled. The Holy Zhi Palace was a holy land for cultivation and disregarded happenings in the outside world. Otherwise, the Palace had disciples from all major clans. If a clan broke into a war, how would the Palace handle it? Why would the Palace interfere with Bai Luli and his sister''s matters? He did not understand.


    "I don''t know." Hua Jieyu shook her head, equally puzzled as to why the Palace would take a stance. Even if Bai Luli was an elite genius and acknowledged as the successor of the Holy Zhi Palace, the Palace should not have to go to the extent of interfering with Bai Luli''s Path Companion.


    "It''s too quick," Ye Futian suddenly said. Hua Jieyu and Yi Xiaoshi looked at him with confused expressions.


    "At the start of the year, during the admission examination, sister watched the battles while chatting with me. At that time, I could already feel that she had matters troubling her. I tried to hint to her that I would grow stronger quickly, but it still happened too quickly," Ye Futian said. Now, he had already proven himself as the first on the Law Rank, invincible in the Noble Plane and had obtained the right to enter the Sage Hall. However, he had evidently not surpassed Bai Luli''s position in the Palace. If he was given just one more year, he could definitely do it. However, everything had progressed too quickly. Perhaps sister had already predicted it at the start of the year, which was why she was troubled.


    "There has been no news of Third Brother. I wonder where he has gone." Yi Xiaoshi was also worried. In the Cottage, big brother, Second Sister and Third Brother were like their elders and the Cottage''s faith. Now that something like this had happened, how could they not worry?


    "Back then, Third Brother challenged Bai Luli and failed. He''s definitely trying to improve his cultivation. However, Bai Luli is cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace, so Third Brother would have to take unconventional means to surpass him. He must have gone to an extremely dangerous place," Hua Jieyu guessed. Ye Futian nodded. Bai Luli was renowned in the Barren State, his reputation would definitely be deserved. Even Di Gang and Ximen Hanjiang, elite geniuses in the Barren State, had Bai Luli as their target.


    "Prepare to head to the Zhuge Family," Ye Futian said, leaving the area.


    "Where are you going?" Yi Xiaoshi asked.


    "I''m going to find Master and ask him why the Palace has interfered in this matter," Ye Futian replied, walking in the direction of the Battle Sage Palace''s Battle Sage Hall.


    "Futian." Outside the ancient hall, Ye Futian met Sage Jingang and his brother Dou Kun.


    "Uncle-Master, Brother." Ye Futian called out to them, "I have a favor to ask of Master."


    "Regarding your sister?" Sage Jingang asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was stunned. He did not expect that Sage Jingang would guess it.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded and replied.


    "Futian, don''t interfere in this matter," Sage Jingang said. Ye Futian''s expression froze. Evidently, his uncle-master also knew what was happening!

 653 Ye Futian Arrives

    Ye Futian looked at Sage Jingang and asked, "Uncle-Master, why is the Palace taking part in thid?"


    Sage Jingang knew a little about Zhuge Mingyue. After all, the entire Holy Zhi Palace knew about the handsome scholar from the Eastern Barren Territory who had challenged Bai Luli and knew that the scholar had come for Zhuge Mingyue. Ye Futian was Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu''s little brother. Although he could also be considered Bai Luli''s little brother, his stance was with Zhuge Mingyue.


    "It has already been many years, the Barren State needs a Saint." Sage Jingang explained, "All this is to support Bai Luli. You should know that Bai Luli is the successor of the Holy Zhi Palace. Sage Wanxiang has also estimated his potential to be a Saint. Moreover, this is only because this is the limit to which Sage Wanxiang can estimate. That''s why the Holy Zhi Palace has placed its hopes on him."


    "What does that have to do with my sister?" Ye Futian''s expression was grim. "Uncle-Master, even if the Zhuge Family has something that can help with cultivation, the Palace''s disciples should be upright. If they want it, they should use legitimate methods to get it. How can they use marriage as a tool? What is my sister? A sacrifice?"


    "The Holy Zhi Palace is a holy land for cultivation in the Barren State. How can they step in? Moreover, since Bai Luli already has the potential to become a Saint, why do they need to do this?"


    Sage Jingang stared at Ye Futian. It seemed like this fellow really cared.


    "Futian, on the Saint road, it is not as easy as you expect. The Holy Zhi Palace has had countless geniuses, and the Barren Sky Ranking has had many experts, but the entire generation has not produced a single Saint." Sage Jingang''s voice was still calm as he advised him, "Moreover, the Divine Path is more dangerous than you can imagine. Even if you have the potential of a Saint, it is still the same. You have come from the Eastern Barren Territory and are good friends with Long Ling''er, have you ever heard about her uncle?"


    "Long Yitian. It was rumored that he had died outside when he was young," Ye Futian nodded and replied.


    "Long Yitian was a talent of a hundred years in the Barren State''s Eastern Territory and one of the top-ranked in the Barren Sky Ranking. Moreover, with his age, his achievements would be even greater in the future. However, he died on the Divine Path." Sage Jingang continued, "Not only him, but every generation of geniuses in the Barren State also has had its fair share of people dying on the Divine Path."


    "I still can''t accept it." Ye Futian replied, "No matter how hard the Divine Path is, it can be cleared with one''s own strength."


    "Futian." At that moment, a figure walked out from the Palace; it was Sage Douzhan.


    "Master," Ye Futian shouted.


    "You''re right, the Palace is indeed in the wrong." Sage Douzhan said, "The Divine Path is difficult. If one attempts to conquer the Divine Path, they should have the heart to do so."


    "If that is so, why are they still doing this?" Ye Futian did not understand.


    "The Palace has a secret that has never been announced. Now, I shall tell it to you. In the three years that you have been in the Palace, have you ever heard about the Palace Lord?" Sage Douzhan asked him.


    "There have been claims that the Palace Lord is cultivating in seclusion," Ye Futian replied.


    "Wrong." Sage Douzhan shook his head and continued, "The Palace Lord is severely injured and his life is at risk, but very little people know about this matter. Now, you are the first on the Law Rank and will enter the Sage Hall in the future, so I will tell you this. The Palace Owner is the first on the Barren Sky Ranking, but he similarly met with obstacles on the Divine Path and nearly died. Now, the Palace is actually run by the Assistant Palace Lord, Liu Chan."


    Ye Futian''s expression hardened. The Holy Zhi Palace''s Palace Lord, the first on the Barren Sky Ranking, was actually severely injured with his life at risk. This matter was extremely shocking.


    "Just like your Uncle-Master said, countless influential figures in the Barren State have met with difficulties on the Divine Path. The other people in the Palace, including me, might end up walking the Palace Lord''s path, but the Palace needs hope. This hope is Bai Luli. That is why, even though we may know that we are wrong, the Palace continues to do so." Sage Douzhan continued, "Not only does the Palace know this, but the White Cloud City knows it, the Zhuge Family leader knows it as well.


    "The land is huge and there is far more than just the Barren State. You may not have come into contact with it yet, but now, if the Barren State does not produce a Saint, it may be impossible to maintain the situation as it is." Sage Douzhan''s voice was serious and sounded exceptionally dignified.


    The Wanxiang Palace had once predicted his life: he would meet a calamity, but he did not think of it. When his cultivation reached his current level, his state of mind had already reached a level where he had insight into all the world''s happenings. Now, he only had three obsessions. One was to break through to the Saint level, however, there was little hope for this. The second was for the Barren State to have a Saint in the current generation and not be restricted by others. Third was an obsession that he did not have previously. Now, he hoped that his disciples, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, could one day reach that level as well.


    The Barren State has its threats as well? Ye Futian heard Sage Douzhan''s words and thought. He looked towards his Master and said, "If Bai Luli is unable to do it, I will."


    Sage Douzhan and Sage Jingang stared at Ye Futian. His brilliant star-like eyes were filled with determination and confidence. This Law Rank first that had once looked down on the entire Palace''s geniuses had already demonstrated his unparalleled potential. Sage Douzhan also had the hope that he would compete with Bai Luli in the future to see who was more outstanding.


    "You were born ten years too late." Sage Douzhan replied, "If you were in the same generation as Bai Luli, we would be able to see who is more exceptional. Of course, if you were in Bai Luli''s position, the Palace would do our best to support you to join the Zhuge Family. Since you have the will of the Kunpeng, you would do well to cultivate now. When the time is right, enter the Sage Hall to cultivate and step into the Sage Plane. Then, you will be able to have a say in the Palace."


    Even though Ye Futian had exceptional potential and was the first among the Palace''s Noble Plane disciples, when considering the entire Holy Zhi Palace, he was still unable to influence its decisions. For Noble Plane cultivators, their only goal was to cultivate.


    "I want to go to the Zhuge Family," Ye Futian looked at Sage Douzhan and said. If he was in the Palace''s shoes, perhaps he could understand their decision, but in his own shoes, he could not. This involved Second Sister and Third Brother. His Second Sister would definitely want to be with his third brother. This was his obsession.


    When he was 18, the white-robed scholar had personally descended upon the Cangye Kingdom and invited and brought him to the Eastern Barren Territory''s Cottage. From then, their fates were already intertwined.


    Sage Douzhan heard Ye Futian''s words and stared at him. He could feel the determination in Ye Futian''s expression. He then said, "Since your obsession is that strong, go."


    "Thank you, Master." Ye Futian bowed slightly and took his leave.


    Watching the leaving figure, Sage Douzhan sighed and said, "It''s good to be young."


    Sage Jingang had a bitter smile as he shook his head, saying, "Brother, if you let him go like this, isn''t it going to create trouble?"


    "Cultivation is about training the mind. If I make him stay and not allow him to leave, it will cause a rift in his state of mind. Since he wants to try it, let''s just let him," Sage Douzhan replied. When they were young and wild, there were some things they needed to do. Whether he could make it or not would just be part of Ye Futian''s experience.


    Ye Futian was the first on the Law Rank. Liu Chan had invited all six Palaces to discuss this and permit Ye Futian to enter the Sage Hall. This was why he was not worried that Ye Futian would be injured.


    In the Holy Zhi Palace, any disciple that had the right to enter the Sage Hall represented the future of the Barren State. With regards to this point, the Sage Palace naturally understood. When Ye Futian returned to his residence, Hua Jieyu and Yi Xiaoshi were there waiting for him. Seeing Ye Futian return, Yi Xiaoshi asked him, "How was it?"


    "Let''s go to the Zhuge Family. We''ll talk along the way," Ye Futian replied and took out his flying boat ritual implement.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yi Xiaoshi, and Yu Sheng stepped onto the flying boat and flew through the air. He did not bring anyone else. This was his second sister''s matter and had nothing to do with the others.


    ��


    In the Northern Region of the Barren State that was bordering the Central Region, there was a city with an illustrious history, Xuanwu City.


    The Zhuge Family was located in Xuanwu City. Although Xuanwu City had many clans, the Zhuge Family was the number one clan in Xuanwu City and had stood tall for thousands of years. It had absolute authority in the ancient Xuanwu City.


    The Zhuge Family was located on the Crouching Dragon Mountain, the entire Crouching Dragon Mountain had only one family. The surface of the mountain was littered with cloud stairwells and ancient halls, just like a palace that went up, level by level. If one stood in the middle of the city and raised their head, they could feel a solemn aura from it.


    At the moment, the Zhuge Family was extremely crowded with guests. A short time ago, the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City experts had all come over to the Zhuge Family, causing a commotion in Xuanwu City. All the clans and sects had come over to visit, creating a spectacular event.


    The White Cloud City and Zhuge Family''s joint marriage was definitely an event that made the Barren State shake. The joint marriage should have been set many years ago, but because of Zhuge Mingyue''s willfulness, she left the house in objection. However, much time had passed and the White Cloud City''s Young City Lord Bai Luli was already a genius whose name resounded across the entire Barren State. Zhuge Mingyue was also beautiful and had exceptional potential, so everyone supported this marriage and felt that it was a match made in heaven. However, many of the Barren State clan''s daughters would be sad after this.


    At that moment, outside the Zhuge Family, there was a flying boat that flew in like a ray of light, heading towards the core of the Zhuge Family on the Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    "Who is it?" The Crouching Dragon Mountain had droves of experts. A guard raised his head, looked in the air, and saw a flying boat landing. When the guard saw one of the beautiful figures walking down from the flying boat, he bowed slightly and said, "Miss Jieyu is back, I''ll inform the young lady."


    Hua Jieyu had spent a few years in the Zhuge Family, so she could naturally enter whenever she liked.


    "No need, I''ll go myself," Hua Jieyu said calmly. The guard nodded and naturally did not stop her.


    Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian''s group walked in, walking deeper inside. The guard looked at the figures behind him and asked, "Yi Xiaoshi is the young lady''s Seventh Brother, who are the other two?"


    The person beside him glared at him and said nonchalantly, "Walking beside Miss Jieyu, who else do you think it could be?"


    A flash appeared in the first person''s eyes, a name appeared in his brain. One of the most influential figures in the Holy Zhi Palace presently, the number one Noble in the Palace, Ye Futian!

 654 I Object to the Wedding

    In the vast wilderness of the westernmost region of the Barren State, there were still some small towns with small populations. At the moment, there were a group of youths walking on the road in one of these towns. The wind blew above them, prompting many to look up at the sky. A silhouette was seen flashing by at a frightening speed, moving like a bolt of lightning.


    "What is that?" one of those young people stopped and asked, as they felt a terrifying gust of wind blew by.


    "Seems like a person."


    "That was some uncommon speed. What plane is required for one to be capable of doing that? Anyone saw who that was?"


    "I saw nothing but a blurred shadow. Seems like some handsome scholar dressed in white." The group chatted away in curiosity.


    A group of people descended right outside the town in the same amount of time for an incense to finish burning. They stood right above the arch outside the town, dressed in luxurious clothing. All of them had incredibly sharp eyes. It was as if they were going to pierce whatever they were looking at faraway.


    Everyone who passed felt a shudder. The aura emanating from those people was so terrifying that even just a small glance was capable of making people tremble in their core.


    There were few mighty ones to be found in such remote places, and anyone of Noble Plane was seen as the most fearsome there was. The weakest among the group outside the town was far stronger than the strongest of the locals.


    "Where is this place?" an exceptional-looking young man standing in the middle of the group asked everyone around him.


    "We are now outside Yu State, within the borders of the Barren State," a mighty one beside him said.


    "That fellow sure knows how to run," the young man''s eyes sparkled with a tinge of murderous intent as he said coldly. "But anyone who dares take something from me, I''ll make sure to get them even if I have to follow them to hell. There seems to have been no one who has become a saint in the Barren State over the past few years, no?"


    "Indeed." The one beside him nodded.


    "Keep searching," the young man said coldly. The ones who followed him continued their search. They had chased their target all the way from Yu State into the Barren State.


    ��


    The Zhuge family''s estate on Crouching Dragon Mountain was vast and extremely grand. Many saw Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and the rest of the party along the way. They naturally all knew Hua Jieyu; however, despite having spent years in the Zhuge family, Hua Jieyu was not all that familiar with the members of the family. She spent almost all of her time with Zhuge Mingyue when she was not training, keeping interactions with the rest of the family to a minimum. Many young, talented ones from the Zhuge family wanted to win her heart, but Zhuge Mingyue stopped all of their advances without mercy, giving them no chance at all.


    The news of Hua Jieyu''s return spread quickly among the members of the family. Many came to know that Hua Jieyu was about to return, along with the one who ranked first on Law Rank, Ye Futian.


    Hua Jieyu took Ye Futian and the rest of the party to the Moon Tower, where Zhuge Mingyue lived, but they were not able to see her. They knew from the servant girl that she went to meet the head of the family. So, they headed right for the palace where the head of the Zhuge family lived.


    Ye Futian was able to feel the deep-seated power of a millennium-old clan along the way. The place looked like a small city in itself, and there were so many mighty ones among the members of the clan that they were seen everywhere. However, Ye Futian was not in the mood to explore such thoughts.


    They moved upward and came right outside the palace where Zhuge Qingfeng lived. They were servant girls standing guard outside. Hua Jieyu went up and asked, "Is Ms. Mingyue in the Wind Residence?"


    "Please wait here. I will inform them of your arrival," the servant bowed as she said. The Wind Residence was the palace where Zhuge Qingfeng lived, and as such, it was not a place where people were allowed to come and go as they pleased. Only the sons and daughters of the lord of the place were allowed direct entry.


    "Understood." Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu waited there. The servant girl returned moments later and informed Hua Jieyu with a smile, "Ms. Mingyue would like you to wait for her in the Moon Tower. She will attend to you shortly."


    Hua Jieyu''s expression turned rather peculiar. Her second sister definitely knew why she had come all the way from the Holy Zhi Palace. If things were how they used to be, Zhuge Mingyue would come to greet her personally. However, Zhuge Mingyue was apparently occupied with some matters in the Wind Residence. Ye Futian, without a doubt, was able to sense something was amiss and frowned in response.


    "Let''s wait for her at her place then," Hua Jieyu said gently to Ye Futian.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. There was nothing else to be done about it. He had come all the way to see his Second Sister, wanting to know what Second Sister thought.


    The group turned around and left, heading for Moon Tower. Everyone was discussing the wedding of Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue along the way. Those voices were heard right from the very moment they arrived at the estate. It was as if the entire clan was talking about this and nothing else. The chatter was not limited to the estate, as even all of Xuanwu City was seen discussing the matter in a frenzied manner. The news had spread all across the Barren State.


    A group of people was seen walking towards them from the opposite direction. The group was chatting among themselves but halted their steps as soon as they saw Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and the rest of the party. Things went silent abruptly as the other group laid eyes on Ye Futian''s party.


    Ye Futian scanned the group before him. He hardly knew anyone among them, but there were several familiar faces: Bai Ze of White Cloud City, Zhuge Xing, Zhuge Ping, and the rest from the Zhuge family. Everyone else he did not know was probably a member of either the Zhuge family or White Cloud City.


    "Jieyu, you are back," Zhuge Xing looked at Hua Jieyu and said as if he was welcoming her home.


    Everyone from the Zhuge family knew that Zhuge Xing had thoughts for Hua Jieyu before, and thus they did not feel anything peculiar about his attitude. They even wished that the two would end up together someday, and had never expected to have simply nurtured a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer of heavenly grace and looks for Ye Futian instead. Many of the Zhuge family felt very displeased at that turn of events. Furthermore, when the Holy Zhi Palace was doing their recruitment drive three years ago, several from the Zhuge family clashed with Ye Futian, with Zhuge Xing being one of them. All who fought Ye Futian suffered a crushing defeat. That, coupled with the matter with Hua Jieyu, made Ye Futian a thorn in the sides of many of the younger generation of the clan. After all, many of them yearned for someone like Hua Jieyu at one point or another.


    Bai Ze glared at the person before him. They had been the ones to leak the news from the Holy Zhi Palace. It was rather unexpected for Ye Futian to become restless and come all the way to the Zhuge family''s estate.


    Where they stood at the moment was not the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Bai Ze was curious as to what Ye Futian could accomplish coming all the way there, with the wedding of his brother, Bai Luli, and Zhuge Mingyue underway.


    Hua Jieyu did not bother addressing Zhuge Xing. When Zhuge Xing made impertinent remarks back in the Law Battles, she already told Zhuge Xing to stay away from her.


    "Ye Futian, what are you doing here in the Zhuge family''s estate?" Zhuge Ping, who was standing beside Zhuge Xing, asked. He was eliminated from the competition by the hands of Ye Futian back in the Law Battles, forfeiting his right to enter the Holy Zhi Palace altogether.


    "And who would you be?" Ye Futian glanced at Zhuge Ping and asked plainly.


    "You..." Zhuge Ping''s expression was cold. Is he really ignoring me?


    "I seem to recall something now. There was one boisterous fellow back in the Law Battles with little to show despite having quite a big mouth. How are you doing now with your training?" Ye Futian asked with a smirk. Zhuge Ping''s face turned ashen and he grunted. He had nothing to retort with. Ye Futian was, after all, the number one on Law Rank.


    Everyone from the Zhuge family glared at Ye Futian. The champion of the Law Rank was indeed as insolent as the rumors described. Even being inside the grounds of the Zhuge family, he had no qualms of insulting their members in front of everyone.


    "Please, what are you all doing?" Bai Ze said with a bright smile, "My brother''s wedding with the second daughter of the Zhuge family will be held soon. Since Ye Futian is the little brother of the Second Sister, he has, of course, here to congratulate her. There is no need to be so serious."


    "Idiot." Ye Futian glanced at Bai Ze, giving him no face. Bai Ze''s smile was literally frozen in place as he went to stare at Ye Futian with cold eyes.


    "Not smiling now, are you?" Ye Futian smirked sarcastically. He had no time nor the mood to play along with Bai Ze. His objective was a simple one��he was not about to let his second sister marry Bai Luli.


    "Your brother Bai Luli is no match for my second sister. I object to the wedding," Ye Futian said coldly.


    Many looked startled at Ye Futian''s words. Bai Luli was the top genius in the Holy Zhi Palace and a figure ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking. Even though Ye Futian became the number one on the Law Rank and permitted entry to the Sage Hall, he was just another top-notch genius after Bai Luli. He seemed to have no right to say what he just said.


    Ye Futian was free to dispute Bai Ze, but there was simply no woman who deemed Bai Luli to be beneath them. Even the members of the Zhuge family acknowledged that much. As such, everyone looked forward to the wedding.


    Bai Ze looked at Ye Futian coldly. My brother having no right to marry her? If it were not for certain reasons, he might have even thought that it was Zhuge Mingyue who was a poor choice for his brother.


    "The wedding doesn''t seem like one you can object to," Zhuge Xing said coldly. "Furthermore, Bai Luli is ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking. He would be a perfect couple with Mingyue. Everyone in the Zhuge family and the Xuanwu looks forward to it."


    "Indeed. The second daughter of the Zhuge family is exceptional in both looks and training. But Bai Luli is your senior studying under the Holy Zhi Palace and a mighty one like no other. How can you be insolent?" some members of the Zhuge family said smugly. Ye Futian had taken Hua Jieyu away from them, and they were not going to tolerate him getting in the way of Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue''s wedding.


    Just because his older brother wants to get his hands on yet another proud daughter from the Zhuge family? That is just hilarious.


    "You are probably be the only one in all of the Barren State talking like this. My brother, not fit to marry Ms. Mingyue," Bai Ze said sarcastically.


    "That is a given," Ye Futian replied with utmost seriousness. Regardless of how excellent and exceptional Bai Luli was, and even if he came to rank first on the Barren Sky Ranking, there was still only one person who deserved his second sister, and that was his third brother. No one else was fit to marry her. There were no other reasons for it. The only reason that mattered was that his second sister had his third brother.


    "You''re funny indeed," Bai Ze said sarcastically.


    "I''m not being funny," Ye Futian glared at Bai Ze, "but it''s not like I expect a self-righteous guy like you to ever understand something like that. Well, I''m probably wasting too much time talking to an idiot here. Let''s go." Ye Futian began walking away.


    Bai Ze was practically in a rage with his fists clenched tight. Ye Futian never ceased humiliating him. It was as if he was nothing in the eyes of Ye Futian.


    The group saw Ye Futian''s party leave. The eyes of Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing were extremely cold. However, given Ye Futian''s current status, they knew that they were no match for him.

 655 Putting Ones Fate on the Line

    The surroundings of the Moon Tower were incredibly beautiful. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu waited there and there were servants attending to them. However, Ye Futian was rather irritated at the moment. He had never been so irritated even about the matter between his Fourth Brother and You Xi from before. He thought that perhaps his second sister and third probably mattered more to him. Even when he first stepped foot into the cottage, his seniors told him that Second Sister belonged with Third Brother. It was something that had been etched into his mind ever since.


    "Ms. Mingyue has returned," a voice was heard from outside Moon Tower. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu turned their eyes outside, seeing two beautiful silhouettes walking in. Zhuge Mingyue was poised as she had always been. Her beaming smile calmed the hearts of anyone who looked at her, giving no hint that something was amiss. Beitang Xing''er, who was following right behind her, however, looked incredibly distressed and was in a bad mood.


    "You''re here," Zhuge Mingyue said with a smile. She hardly seemed surprised to see Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "Second Sister." Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yi Xiaoshi went up to her.


    "What?" Zhuge Mingyue halted her steps as soon as she saw their reactions, glancing at them before saying, "I''ve only been away for several months. Do you all miss me that much?"


    "Second Sister, you know why we''re here, don''t you?" Ye Futian felt rather speechless at her nonchalant manner.


    Zhuge Mingyue walked forward. Ye Futian and the rest of the party made way for her. Zhuge Mingyue sat on a chair and said with a smile, "So you know?"


    "Yeah." Ye Futian and his party nodded. "What do you think?"


    Zhuge Mingye smiled at Ye Futian and said, "I agreed to it."


    Her tone was calm like a breeze, displaying exceptional tranquility. In contrast, Ye Futian and the rest shouted in response and their faces changed. Beitang Xing''er lowered her head somewhat. She had just been with her second sister at the head of the family''s palace, and it was a given that she knew what happened.


    "Second Sister, while the Holy Zhi Palace is preparing for the wedding, the status of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State and their relations with the Zhuge family means that if the Zhuge family were to object, there is little the Holy Zhi Palace can do about it. Is the family putting pressure on you?" Ye Futian added, "But if you insist on the matter, what can the Zhuge family do about it?"


    His second sister left the family at a young age due to the matter back then. It was unthinkable that she was not doing the same now. Ye Futian knew well what his second sister was like.


    "But why should I?" Zhuge Mingyue kept smiling. "Bai Luli ranked tenth on the Law Rank, someone deemed the most extraordinary person to have appeared in this generation in all of the Barren State, and is also one who possesses the potential for sainthood. Why should I object to marrying someone like that?"


    "But, Third Brother..." Ye Futian felt puzzled.


    "He isn''t fretting about this, why should you?" Zhuge Mingyue chuckled and said.


    "How can he not fret about this?"


    "If he indeed was upset about this, how come he never showed up in the past five, six years? Where is he now?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    Ye Futian was utterly stunned. Second sister, that��


    "Second Sister, Third Brother must have been held back by something," Hua Jieyu said as she took a seat beside Zhuge Mingyue, holding her arm as she did.


    "Definitely." Ye Futian nodded. "Third Brother fought Bai Luli back then for you, but he lost. Third Brother must have been traveling to hone his skills. He knew it wasn''t easy to beat Bai Luli. He might have been caught up in something or was just someplace far away."


    "Did I say anything about wanting him to beat Bai Luli?" Zhuge Mingyue asked Ye Futian with a smile.


    "..." Ye Futian was at a loss for words. Seeing Zhuge Mingyue''s bright, beautiful eyes, he came to realize that perhaps his Third Brother had been wrong.


    "He never showed up for the past five or six years. He vanished right after that one battle. He knew nothing." Zhuge Mingyue continued, "I have said yes to father. The Zhuge family will be making the announcement about my engagement soon, and I''d like to see if he will bother showing up."


    Ye Futian looked at his second sister, then turned to look at Hua Jieyu. He came to realize something with a shudder. He came to realize that he might have been wrong all this time. She knew well what his second sister was like. She had a unique personality and knew what she loved and hated. She had shown her extreme stubbornness by running away from home all those years back. She liked his third brother, and there was no way she would have cared if his third brother ended up defeating Bai Luli. She would not have cared at all, so long as Third Brother bothered showing up at the Zhuge family.


    However, his third brother was also prideful and stubborn, as well as an extremist who needed to see reason in everything he did. Third Brother wanted to protect Second Sister, and it was a given that he did not want her to suffer any indignation. As such, he challenged Bai Luli. He wanted to defeat Bai Luli not because he wanted to prove his strength, but to show the Zhuge family and the world that he was capable of protecting Second Sister; he did not want Second Sister to carry the family''s burden. As such, Third Brother went away for years without bothering to show up even once. Two individuals with distinct personalities and a strong sense of self came to like each other.


    "But..." Ye Futian wanted to say something, but he was not able to find the words.


    "But what?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled and added, "That idiot knows nothing. And since he knows nothing, I''ll show him the way. I''ve agreed to it with the clan. I will be wed to Bai Luli in a month, and a banquet will be held for guests from all over Barren State."


    "Second sister, what if Third Brother really got held back by something?" Ye Futian asked in frustration.


    "Something that took him five or six years? Was he really thinking of never showing up if he couldn''t beat Bai Luli?" Zhuge Mingyue said. She had waited for five to six years. She was not asking much of him. She only needed him to show up. However, that idiot never understood things so simple.


    Ye Futian was rendered completely speechless. Five or six years was indeed too long of a time to wait. Just where the hell was Third Brother now?


    "Second sister. Just what if Third Brother never shows up in the end?" Ye Futian felt his voice trembling as he asked. If Third Brother does not show up, is Second Sister really going to get engaged to Bai Luli?


    "If things turn out like that, your second sister will have to be generous and sacrifice herself for a bit to have a saint appear in the Barren State then."


    Ye Futian frowned at Zhuge Mingyue''s words and felt rather irked. It was not his second sister herself that had him feeling irked, but that one line she had just uttered: sacrificing herself to have a saint appear in the Barren State.


    The Holy Zhi Palace, the Zhuge family, White Cloud City, and many others in the Barren State have had high hopes for something like that happening. While his second sister looked nonchalant about it all, having both the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City showing up at the family''s door to propose, and with reasons from her own family, it was obvious that his second sister was under tremendous pressure.


    Having a saint appear in Barren State or not, what does it have to do with my Second Sister? Ye Futian thought.


    "I''m still not going to agree to this," Ye Futian said as he looked at his second sister.


    Zhuge Mingyue smiled at him, thinking that his little brother had indeed grown up. She stood up and looked at Ye Futian, before rubbing and patting his head for a bit, saying with a smile, "It seems like our little brother is getting more and more assertive. But just leave the matter between your second sister here and that idiot to us, okay?"


    "But second sister��" Hua Jieyu walked up too.


    Zhuge Mingyue held her hand and put it on Ye Futian''s before saying gently, "Sometimes, I really admire both of you. At the very least, our little brother is not some slowpoke like some idiot out there. He might be thick-skinned, but he sure is amusing."


    "..." Ye Futian held Hua Jieyu''s hand and said to his second sister, "Well then, I guess I''ll just stay here."


    "Very well, you can stay here for as long as you like. I haven''t talked to you guys for quite a while after all. One gets rather nostalgic when one gets old, and I''m really starting to miss the cottage," Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said.


    "Our second sister here still looks like a fairy. What is this ''getting old'' you are talking about?" Ye Futian asked, looking at Zhuge Mingyue. He was exaggerating. Zhuge Mingyue''s looks and bearing had always been exceptional. Furthermore, cultivators possessed very long lifespans, especially those who made it to the Sage Plane. As such, there was hardly any hint of age on Zhuge Mingyue, and she actually looked more stunning now than she had back in the cottage.


    "If only that idiot was as good with words as you are, little brother," Zhuge Mingyue said with a bright smile. She turning around and said, "XIng''er, have someone down there prepare some drinks and food. We haven''t sat down and chatted for a very long time."


    "Will do." Beitang Xing''er nodded.


    "Well, too bad Fifth Brother isn''t here." Zhuge Mingyue thought of Luo Fan, and she missed the dishes her fifth brother whipped up, despite him being rather insufferable all the time.


    The Moon Tower exuded a tranquil beauty under the moonlit night sky. They sat around and ate away. However, every single one of them seemed to be troubled by something. While they were indeed chatting with each other, they kept getting spaced out every so often.


    "Second Sister, have some more." Ye Futian put more food into Zhuge Mingyue''s bowl.


    Zhuge Mingyue said in response, "Go look after Jieyu instead."


    "I''m fine. I hear Futian talk about things back in the cottage all the time, and it''s always something about Third Brother putting more food in your bowl while you never batted an eye at him. Come to think of it, that would be rather amusing," Hua Jieyu said with a smile.


    Zhuge Mingyue smiled at the duo who seemed like they were finishing each other''s sentences. She put down her chopsticks and said, "I''m done and will be going for a walk. You guys go on." She stood up and left.


    Hua Jieyu looked rather dejected seeing Zhuge Mingyue leave. She turned around and asked Ye Futian, "Did I say something wrong?"


    "I don''t think so." Ye Futian said with a smile, "It seems like our Second Sister misses Third Brother. Just leave her alone for now."


    "Right." Hua Jieyu nodded.


    "Sister Xing''er, just what the hell is going on?" Ye Futian asked Beitang Xing''er.


    "Second Sister here might not be saying anything, but she indeed misses Third Brother very much. But then again, you know what Third Brother is like. How long would it actually take if he insists on beating Bai Luli?" Beitang Xing''er continued, "Bai Luli is a chosen one in the Holy Zhi Palace. You know better than I do what his talents are like. Just like Second Sister said, is Third Brother really not going to show up until the day he defeats Bai Luli?"


    "Second Sister is indeed under a lot of pressure with this matter. Mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City came, and everyone wanted Bai Luli to end up with Second Sister. Even all the forces in Xuanwu City thought so. It seems to the world, at least, that it would be perfect to have White Cloud City and the Zhuge family being allied through marriage. The Holy Zhi Palace is behind this as well, trying to bring forth a saint with the two allied forces." Beitang Xing''er then added, "But really, what does that have to do with Second Sister? Just why do they need to put all that pressure on her? What Second Sister is doing is not just trying to force Third Brother to show up, but she is also forcing herself by putting her fate on the line."

 656 Gathering of the Cottages Students

    Ye Futian was rendered speechless hearing what Beitang Xing''er just said. His Second Sister was indeed putting her own fate on the line.


    "Sister Xing''er, if Third Brother really ends up not showing, is Second Sister really just going to get engaged to Bai Luli?" Ye Futian asked.


    "If Third Brother doesn''t show, what reason would Second Sister have to refuse?" Beitang Xing''er sighed.


    There was a thousand-year-old tree in the Moon Tower''s forests. Zhuge Mingyue sat on top of it, looking at the bright moon in the air with her beautiful eyes. Back in the days when we were in the cottage, he once said, while standing on a tree, he would come to the Zhuge family. But, where is now?


    The moon was high in the air. The sky got darker as the hours passed. There was no joy of reunion in the Moon Tower, only faint sorrow. Servant girls escorted Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu to their quarters after dinner. However, Hua Jieyu ended up coming to Ye Futian''s room regardless.


    "What''s wrong?" Ye Futian touched the hair on her forehead after seeing sadness in Hua Jieyu''s beautiful eyes. He then said, "Everything will be fine."


    "I want to spend the night in your place," Hua Jieyu said gently.


    "Huh..." Ye Futian blinked his eyes in puzzlement.


    "If you''re unwilling, I''ll just leave," Hua Jieyu looked at him and said.


    "How would I do such a thing?" Ye Futian said as he took her hand.


    "No naughty attempts," Hua Jieyu added.


    "Well, I''m an honest person." Ye Futian then asked, "What are the naughty attempts you are talking about?"


    Hua Jieyu smiled at Ye Futian and walked to the side of his bed. She then took off her outer garments and shoes before burying herself under the sheets. Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. Happiness could not have come in a more surprising manner. It seemed that Jieyu knew that he was in a rather bad mood and had come to console him. What a girlfriend indeed.


    Ye Futian burrowed himself between the sheets as fast as he could. Hua Jieyu had her back facing him, and he went to hold her from behind. He felt warmth welling up in his heart as he cuddled her soft body.


    Hua Jieyu turned around gently to bury herself between Ye Futian''s arms. Ye Futian seemed to have felt what Hua Jieyu was feeling at the moment. He went to circlie one of his arms around her neck while the other remained circled around her body, holding her close.


    "Jieyu, what happened?" Ye Futian asked gently.


    "I''m feeling rather sad." Hua Jieyu''s voice sounded rather dejected. Having experienced matters with Fourth Brother and Second Sister in such quick succession, she felt rather puzzled as to why she was feeling especially down that day. Second Sister was like an older biological sister to her. She was able to relate to what Second Sister was going through, but she felt frustrated about it nonetheless.


    "It''s okay. Everything will turn out fine." Ye Futian did not try to do anything dirty. He just continued to hold his girl close.


    "Will we get separated because of something happening in the future?" Hua Jieyu asked gently.


    "That''s not going to happen. Do you still feel like running away from me?" Ye Futian consoled her.


    "But I have a bad feeling about things," Hua Jieyu said.


    "Don''t think too much about it. You''re just in a bad mood, that''s all. Don''t forget that prophecy from Minister Zuo. You are my empress." Ye Futian kissed Hua Jieyu''s forehead. Hua Jieyu''s dark eyes looked at Ye Futian and she said, "If you feel like doing anything, I''m all up for it." She blushed after saying the line, burying her head into Ye Futian''s chest, feeling her cheeks red hot.


    "Idiot," Ye Futian said caressing her hair, "I''m not going to do anything. I just want to hold my girl and keep her from having bad thoughts about things. Sleep."


    "Yeah," Hua Jieyu answered gently. She fell asleep soon in Ye Futian''s arms with a tranquil smile on her face.


    This feels good.


    ��


    The news of Bai Luli from White Cloud City and Zhuge Mingyue from Zhuge family getting engaged in a month shook all of Xuanwu City the very next day, and the news continued to spread like wildfire throughout the Barren State. Mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City had been staying in Xuanwu City for quite a while. Both sides were very eager to establish an alliance through marriage. However, due to some unknown obstacles or just rumors having such an effect on things, both sides had yet to truly reach an agreement. Everyone looked forward to it. The news meant that the two top forces in the Barren State would be entering an alliance through marriage.


    The City Lord of White Cloud City, ranked fourth on Barren Sky Ranking, and Zhuge Qingfeng, head of the Zhuge family and ranked sixth on Barren Sky Ranking, both studied in the Holy Zhi Palace. Both figures had been exceptionally mighty ones back in the day, and both of them shared amicable relations. Both of them were also extremely renowned throughout all of the Barren State. At the moment, both of them were going to get together again, and it was given that the news attracted the attention of the world as countless people were looking forward to the wedding. All three forces��the Holy Zhi Palace, White Cloud City, the Zhuge family��were into this. The event could turn out to be the grandest engagement ever held throughout all of the Barren State.


    Forces throughout Xuanwu City came to Crouching Dragon Mountain to congratulate the Zhuge family as the news spread. The family''s estate was in an uproar right from the early hours of the morning. That itself foreshadowed that the Zhuge family would become the focus of the entire Barren State for months to come.


    Ye Futian woke up early and exercised for a bit by doing some martial arts techniques, feeling invigorated, power coursing throughout his entire body. Hua Jieyu woke up as well, watching Ye Futian practice silently from behind. Her face was in a tranquil smile. She had thought at times, if only they were able to spend their days living a quiet life, that would be beautiful.


    Ye Futian finished his routine. He turned around, saw Hua Jieyu watching him silently, and said to her gently, "You''re up."


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded with a smile.


    "I''d love to see you still asleep tomorrow morning," Ye Futian said.


    Hua Jieyu blinked and glared at Ye Futian. "Don''t think too much about it."


    Ye Futian''s face pretty much collapsed at the comment. Happiness can''t last long, eh.


    "What a bummer. Should have done more last night," Ye Futian mumbled to himself.


    "No use regretting." Hua Jieyu smiled. Both of them had the matter with Second Sister lingering in their minds throughout the night, but they nonetheless felt at ease about the whole deal. There was simply no use fretting over the matter.


    "You two sure seem to be having quite a time." Zhuge Mingyue smiled as she walked in their direction.


    "Second Sister," both Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu yelled. Ye Futian then added, "We were just talking about the Zhuge family, and we realized we have yet to pay a proper visit to your father. When do you think it is most suitable for us to do so?"


    The pressure on Second Sister''s shoulders came from the Holy Zhi Palace, White Cloud City, and the Zhuge family. The truth was, however, that other than her own attitude about the whole thing, it was the attitude of the Zhuge family being of the utmost importance. As such, Ye Futian deemed it necessary to pay a visit to the legendary figure ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking, Zhuge Qingfeng. Ye Futian needed to know what he thought about the whole thing.


    Ye Futian also hoped that his Third Brother would come to the estate within a month from now. If he ended up not showing, he needed to prepare for the worst to come.


    "There are many who will be coming from Xuanwu City to pay their respects. The family will arrange a banquet to welcome the influx of guests. Many of them will go pay a visit to my father in the meantime, and you are welcomed to join," Zhuge Mingyue said.


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded without saying much. It seemed like his Second Sister still resented her father somewhat. Given the relationship between Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue, she would have arranged for another time for the visit otherwise. Her father, Zhuge Qingfeng, was, after all, a senior in the Holy Zhi Palace. Getting them properly introduced to each other would do Ye Futian no harm at least.


    Of course, there was also the possibility that his Second Sister did not want to get involved much. Zhuge Mingyue knew what Ye Futian was like, and she knew he would not just let go of the matter so easily.


    "Ms. Mingyue," a servant girl came said. Zhuge Mingyue turned to address her, "What is the matter?"


    "You Xi, daughter of the City Lord of Alchemy City arrived with Xue Ye and Luo Fan," the servant girl reported. Both Xue Ye and Luo Fan visited the Zhuge family estate before, and many knew of them to be Zhuge Mingyue''s juniors.


    "The seniors are here." Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. Zhuge Mingyue said, "Send them in."


    "Understood." The servant girl left. Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said, "You''re getting really worked up about things here."


    "Second Sister, you saw it back in Alchemy City yourself. Before Fourth Brother went to offer his Life Spirit, he reminded me to keep tabs on the matter between you and Third Brother. You know what Fourth and Fifth Brother thought about it, didn''t you?" Ye Futian asked with a bitter smile. Zhuge Mingyue naturally knew what he meant.


    A group of people arrived shortly after. Other than Xue Ye and Luo Fan, You Xi, who was now Xue Ye''s wife, arrived with a huge belly. As she was the daughter of the city lord, pregnant and out on a trip, it was a given to have mighty ones from Alchemy City serve as her escort. As such, the entourage was rather huge.


    "Second Sister." Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and the rest walked towards Zhuge Mingyue. They departed from Alchemy City as soon as possible after catching wind of what happened.


    Zhuge Mingyue ignored both of them outright. Her eyes were on You Xi as she dragged her aside and said, "You Xi, just what are you doing messing around with those two? Come, sit down."


    "Second Sister, you went to Alchemy City showing concern for us, didn''t you? Xue Ye and I can''t just sit around doing nothing. We got here as soon as we heard the news," You Xi said gently.


    Zhuge Mingyue glared at Xue Ye. "It''s bad enough that you mess around. You Xi is pregnant for goodness sake. Taking her somewhere so far while she is in such a state, are you trying to ask for a beating?"


    "..." Xue Ye was rendered speechless. He was just about to ask about the matter with her and totally did not expect to get berated himself.


    "Second Sister, we''re concerned for you and so is our sister-in-law. She insisted on coming here with him," Luo Fan explained.


    "Did I ask you to speak?" Zhuge Mingyue looked at Luo Fan.


    "..." Luo Fan shut up right there and then.


    Ye Futian looked at what transpired with a beaming smile. Good days, just like how it was back in the cottage.


    "If Big Brother and Third Brother show up, we''ll have a proper reunion. Big Brother is in the Eastern Barren Territory now. He''d probably rush here if he knew what happened," Ye Futian said. Such was the students of the cottage. If anything happened to one of them, all the others would rush to that person''s aid as soon as they found out.


    "I''ll deal with this myself. It''s bad enough that you came messing around here. Nobody is going to inform Big Brother about anything, you hear?" Zhuge Mingyue said with all seriousness.


    Things were different now. Ye Futian ranked first on the Law Rank of the Holy Zhi Palace and he was the champion of all in the Noble Plane. He was also the Son of Starry School. Xue Ye was the son-in-law of the City Lord of Alchemy City. If they had wanted to get someone to send word to the Eastern Barren Territory, they could have done so easily. Furthermore, there were sages right beside Xue Ye as they spoke.

 657 Starting a Revol

    Everyone in Moon Tower chatted away. Xue Ye and the rest knew what their Second Sister was like, and they had no words to say about her. What they hoped for at the moment was that their Third Brother was not too far away, that he was still near enough to catch wind of the news and come to the Zhuge family estate. There was still hope so long as he showed up before the day of the engagement.


    On Crouching Dragon Mountain, many mighty ones from Xuanwu City and young students paid their visits to the Zhuge family, and the estate bustled with noise and excitement.


    The Zhuge family threw a banquet to welcome guests from all over the place. Someone came to inform Zhuge Mingyue and the rest of the cottage group, and they got moving.


    At the place where the banquet was held, things were indeed bustling. Many young proud sons and daughters arrived, but there were still quite a number of seats not taken at the front. Zhuge Mingyue''s arrival attracted attention from all present guests.


    "Congratulations, Ms. Mingyue." Many rose and cupped their hands to pay their respects to Zhuge Mingyue, and she was seen with a faint smile throughout the whole process. That smile she wore was different from the one she wore before Ye Futian and the rest of the group. At the moment, it was one that made people feel distant; it was one put up solely for the sake of formalities.


    "Are father and the rest not here yet?" Zhuge Mingyue asked a servant girl beside her.


    "The clan leader was discussing some important matters with some senior figures in the Wind Residence. He should be here shortly."


    "Right." Zhuge Mingyue nodded. "Wait for me here, I''ll go have a look."


    "Will do." Ye Futian and the rest of the gang nodded. They found themselves seats while Zhuge Mingyue left the place.


    Many cast their gaze at Ye Futian''s party. The other guests were able to tell that they were some exceptional people and some of great renown.


    Ye Futian ranked first on the Law Rank while Yu Sheng ranked second. Hua Jieyu was a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer. Many discussed who would have ended up being the one to win her heart in the Zhuge family. Even Xue Ye and the rest were no ordinary folk. Many were able to guess their identities. They were the juniors of Zhuge Mingyue��Xue Ye and Luo Fan��who caused quite an uproar in Alchemy City several months ago. There was also You Xi, daughter of the City Lord of Alchemy City. They were quite surprised to find her pregnant so soon.


    You Chi''s daughter and son-in-law. Those were people whose statuses were not far behind Zhuge Mingyue''s. Other than that, there was also Bai Ze, the second son of White Cloud City, at the banquet.


    Some students and disciples of clans and forces in Xuanwu City smiled and cupped their hands at Ye Futian and his party. The top two figures of the Law Rank of the Holy Zhi Palace were definitely renowned figures in their own right. Furthermore, the weight of the current top two far surpassed Ximen Hanjiang. It was said that Ye Futian was still currently a Grade Three Noble and had very amicable relations with Zhuge Mingyue. People like that were deemed worthy of being friends with.


    However, no one was seen deliberately trying to be overly close and friendly with them, for they knew that they were not on good terms with Bai Ze. Worse still, both parties resented each other very much, and the same could be said for Zhuge Xing. It was thought that many of the younger generations of the Zhuge family did not like them.


    "We finally get to see Ms. Mingyue in person, and she''s definitely as exceptional as she is rumored to be. It was said that Ms. Mingyue possessed an incredibly high talent in cultivation. Being able to see Ms. Mingyue becoming a couple with Bai Luli is indeed something envious to many," someone from one of the clans in Xuanwu City said with a smile.


    "Indeed, the ceremony to be held in a month will probably be the grandest event to be held in the Barren State in recent years. We won''t see another couple so perfectly matched for one another in years to come."


    "I''ve heard that Bai Luli possesses the potential to become a saint. He, after all, got to be ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking at such a young age. The rumors are probably true, and we''ll probably be seeing the hope of a saint emerging from the Barren State in him."


    "Well, if that is the case, wouldn''t there be a saint emerging from White Cloud City, and a son-in-law who is a saint for the Zhuge family, then?" someone joked. Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue became the talk of everyone present, and things looked incredibly lively.


    "Regardless of birth, looks, or talents, Ms. Mingyue definitely has it all. Bai Luli seems like the only one for her in the entire Barren State." The youths of the Zhuge family liked the marriage alliance very much. There was no one who was ignorant of Bai Luli''s talents. He would soon become the Zhuge family''s son-in-law, marking the alliance between White Cloud City and the Zhuge family. That, coupled with the Holy Zhi Palace''s relations with both forces, would have put them at the pinnacle of the Barren State''s social hierarchy.


    There was no one they could be dissatisfied with such a marriage alliance. Everyone looked forward to it.


    "Indeed," many said in agreement.


    "Indeed my *ss," Luo Fan, who was drinking, cursed under his breath and slammed his cup on the table. He was in a very foul mood. He had not wanted to say much, but the chatter around him was practically stoking the fires of his suppressed rage. The only one suitable for his Second Sister was his Third Brother. Bai Luli had no place in all of this.


    Many turned their eyes at Luo Fan. It was obvious that this junior of Zhuge Mingyue felt rather displeased with the matter. The people of the Zhuge family frowned. While Ye Futian''s party consisted of people of great renown, they were on the grounds of the Zhuge family, and it was not their place to be so insolent in front of anyone. The marriage alliance was bound to happen, regardless of what they thought about it.


    "Fifth Brother, drink up," Ye Futian, who was right beside Luo Fan, said. Their cups touched, and Luo Fan gulped down everything in one go. His mood could not have been any fouler, yet Second Sister explicitly told them to stay out of these matters.


    Bai Ze was also drinking in silence. Yu Sheng spared a glance at him, wanting to see how long he would be able to hold it in.


    Sounds were heard from quite a distance away, and many turned their eyes to where the sounds came from. Many figures were seen arriving, and all of them were great figures from all corners of the world. There were several who exuded imposing bearing. The middle-aged man at the center wore a simple robe, yet the humble appearance was unable to conceal his tremendously exceptional bearing. The man was the clan leader of the Zhuge family, Zhuge Qingfeng.


    Ye Futian recognized a figure at Zhuge Qingfeng''s left. It was a great figure from the Holy Sage Pavilion in the Holy Zhi Palace. There was another right behind him, and that person was none other than Bai Luli. Zhuge Canyang and Zhuge Mingyue followed right behind their father. There was yet another great figure at Zhuge Qingfeng''s right��the biological younger brother of the City Lord of White Cloud City, Bai Luli''s uncle, Bai Yan. He too was a very powerful figure. The City Lord himself had returned to White Cloud City to prepare for the event to be held a month later. Bai Luli was to return to the Holy Zhi Palace later as well, and the matter would have been settled for the time being. All of them would leave right after the banquet. Everyone else in that group were leaders of Xuanwu City clans.


    They came to the front of the banquet, leaving themselves quite a distance away from the younger generation. The younger generation rose in response, paying their respects by cupping their hands before them.


    "Young people truly are invigorating." Zhuge Qingfeng walked to his seat smiling, then said, "Please take your seats."


    Everyone then sat down. Zhuge Qingfeng scanned his guests at the banquet, finding Ye Futian, Xue Ye, and the rest of the party. He then addressed them, "So, Jieyu has returned. It is quite unexpected to see Xue Ye bringing You Chi''s daughter here. It''s really something indeed. Mingyue, I assume the one right beside Jieyu would be Ye Futian?"


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan had visited the Zhuge family before, and as such, Zhuge Qingfeng knew them.


    "Indeed." Zhuge Mingyue nodded.


    Ye Futian and the rest of his gang stood and bowed. "I, Ye Futian, am here today to pay my respects, Uncle Zhuge."


    Zhuge Xing and everyone glanced at Ye Futian. That fellow sure knows how to get familiar with people. Calling some elder he met for the first time ''uncle'' and whatnot.


    "You and Jieyu are a couple, little brother of Mingyue, and you are from the Holy Zhi Palace. It seems fitting that you address me as your uncle." Zhuge Qingfeng nodded with a smile. No one felt anything weird about it, as Ye Futian''s identity and talents meant that he was not actually trying to reach for places out of his league by calling Zhuge Qingfeng his uncle.


    "Thank you, uncle," Ye Futian said. Zhuge Qingfeng nodded and asked the mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace beside him, "I heard that that kid became the champion of the Law Rank as a Grade Three Noble and that he was granted entry to the Sage Hall. Is that true?"


    The mighty one from the Holy Sage Pavilion right beside him was named Zhu Song, a sage who enjoyed an esteemed status in the Holy Sage Pavilion. His face was a stern one, even when he smiled. As such, it was not hard to tell that he was one who was both very hard on himself and others.


    "Indeed. When that kid first came to the Battle Sage Palace to train, he was like Sage Douzhan himself. Vastly superior combat capacity and all. The eldest brother summoned all six lords to discuss the matter and granted him permission to enter the Sage Hall. Everyone has high expectations for him," Zhu Song said as he nodded.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. So the very reason I was permitted entry to the Sage Hall was due to the assistant palace lord summoning all six of the lords and discussing the matter.


    The elder of the Holy Sage Pavilion was indeed different from the likes of Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing in that he did not discriminate against those from other palaces or pavilions. Ximen Hanjiang would not have been granted entry to the Sage Hall otherwise. Despite this, he still held the opinion that the Holy Sage Pavilion made the wrong decision with his Second Sister''s case.


    "I look forward to the growth of this generation." Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and said, "Have a seat."


    Ye Futian and the rest sat down. Many great figures turned their eyes at Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue. Some elders smiled and said, "The more I look at them, the more I find them to be an ideal couple."


    "Indeed, it has been quite a while since we''ve seen a couple so perfectly matched for each other in the Barren State," someone from the sides said in agreement. Many opened their mouths to talk about the matter. The banquet that day was held to greet the mighty ones from Xuanwu City to congratulate them, and it was only natural that the topic of the day was Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Many in the Barren State are looking forward to the wedding between my brother and Ms. Mingyue, however, someone in the Zhuge family claimed that my brother was ill-suited for Ms. Mingyue," Bai Ze said plainly. Many frowned. Some elder from the Zhuge family asked, "Everyone from the Zhuge family is satisfied with the arrangement. Who dared speak such insolent words?"


    Ye Futian saw Bai Ze glaring at him from the corner of his eye.


    Zhu Song glanced at Bai Ze. While it is true that this little brother of Bai Luli has exceptional talents, his temperament is nowhere near that of Bai Luli''s. He has little hope of achieving great things. But then again, if Ye Futian did say such words, he was indeed being a little too stubborn.


    "It is natural for the one who ranked first on the Law Rank to have great pride; however, everyone from the Zhuge family looks forward to the event. What he said was indeed hard on the ears," Zhuge Xing said in agreement.


    "Bai Luli and Ms. Mingyue are practically a couple matchmade in heaven. It is unthinkable to see someone displeased about it. The Holy Zhi Palace places a lot of importance on this person, yet he seems to be jealous of Bai Luli."


    Bai Ze''s words lit up the resentment of many. Many of the younger generation from the Zhuge family came forward to chastise Ye Futian. The air turned rather awkward as there was no hint of the joy and harmony found before.


    Bai Ze lowered his head and continued drinking, looking at the ruckus he kicked up with a cold, smug look on his face. Despite Ye Futian''s current prestigious status in the Holy Zhi Palace, Bai Ze still deemed Ye Futian unfit to doubt his brother and intended to teach him a lesson.


    Ye Futian glanced at Bai Ze with plain eyes and wore a sarcastic smirk on his face. If he is so hell bent on being humiliated, I guess I''ll just have to oblige him.

 658 Fighting through Words

    Zhuge Qingfeng, Zhu Song, and others turned at their eyes at Ye Futian. However, that was rather expected, as they knew Ye Futian did not like Bai Luli all that much.


    "Ye Futian, did you really say such words?" Zhu Song asked Ye Futian.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "As the one who ranks first on the Law Rank of the current generation, the Holy Zhi Palace has great hopes for you. Your plane is still low and you know little of the outside world. Bai Luli, Hua Fan, and you were three champions of the Law Rank of three different generations, and you will all train in the Sage Hall, shouldering and creating your own era in the future. Bai Luli is several years older than you and as such, he can be said to be your elder brother. While you both have not been on good terms, he would not fuss about such matters. You should put your energy on your training from here on out and cast your personal opinions aside," Zhu Song said to Ye Futian.


    "Sage Zhu Song could not have spoken better. Bai Luli is now ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking at such a young age. How is he not fit? You''re both geniuses, and you shouldn''t be holding grudges like that," someone from the side added with a smile.


    "I beg your pardon." Ye Futian stood, bowing to Sage Zhu Song and said, "My training is still lacking and there are certain matters which I do not quite understand. I would like you and Uncle Zhuge to give me some guidance on the matter."


    "Feel free to sit and speak," Zhuge Qingfeng said with a nod. He knew Ye Futian was displeased about the matter, but there was hardly anything that could not be uttered at this point. While there were some kinks to be ironed out in the marriage arrangement between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue, it was undeniable that from various perspectives, they were still a match made in heaven.


    "Thank you, uncle." Ye Futian sat down and elaborated, "I do not know Bai Luli well, and as such, I do not have much of an impression of him. However, I do know that he is not as inept as his younger brother. I''m displeased because of the matter between my Second Sister and Third Brother."


    Bai Ze glared at Ye Futian coldly. That b*stard sure remembers to be take jabs at me while he is talking about other stuff.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Bai Luli and asked, "What do you think about my Second Sister?"


    Bai Luli''s expression composed as he returned Ye Futian''s gaze before looking at Zhuge Mingyue. He said casually, "Mingyue has exceptional looks and extraordinary talent. Her personality also proves to have more grace than mine. I have no complaints and I like her very much."


    "You have good eyes, but my Second Sister doesn''t like you," Ye Futian said boldly.


    "..." Everyone present was rendered speechless. Even Zhuge Mingyue glared at Ye Futian. That kid really isn''t going to just let things slide. However, she did nothing to stop him.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Bai Ze, Zhuge Xing, and the rest sitting in the same place. "Why do you all think they make a good match?"


    "My brother hails from White Cloud City and is training in the Holy Zhi Palace. Ms. Mingyue hails from the Zhuge family, possessing extraordinary looks and talents. Why would they not make a good match?" Bai Ze retorted.


    "Bai Luli ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking. His father knows the Zhuge family leader well, and everyone in the Barren State is looking forward to them tying the knot. If that doesn''t make a good match, what would?"


    "Please, you''re being too reserved." Ye Futian continued, "Allow me to elaborate why you all deem them to be a match made in heaven. White Cloud City and the Zhuge family make perfect allies as both are formidable forces. Futhermore, Bai Luli has his desires, and the marriage not only fulfill his desires but also gets him a beautiful wife. At the same time, while the people of the Zhuge family think that having Ms. Mingyue marry someone ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking is a bit of a sacrifice, it still gives them an exceptional son-in-law. As such, they are also satisfied with the arrangement. So, there you have it, the match made in heaven that you speak of."


    Everyone was practically staring at Ye Futian. While his words were rather explicit, they made sense. What he said was indeed the core of the arrangement.


    "Everyone thinks the marriage alliance is a heavenly arrangement, as everyone weighs nothing but benefits and interests; what both sides have to gain from this. You are all thinking what White Cloud City gets out of this, what Zhuge family gets out of that. But, who among you have spared any thought for what my Second Sister thinks?" Ye Futian continued as he scanned the people he was addressing, "My Second Sister fell in love with my Third Brother back in the Eastern Barren Territory. He even challenged Bai Luli. While he ended up losing the battle, his intentions were clear. Why are you all so eager to overlook that? f you all know this yet deliberately ignore such a matter, what is this marriage alliance for?" Ye Futian smirked. Gains, nothing else, and they are calling it a match made in heaven.


    "I do not know why one such marriage alliance sounds so beautiful to all of you. Please, elders, I ask for your guidance on the matter," Ye Futian said as he bowed.


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan looked at the people around them. What their little brother had said was indeed what they intended to express, but they knew fully well they sorely lacked their little brother''s eloquence.


    "I never pushed for this to happen. If Mingyue is unwilling, then the arrangement can be stopped," Bai Luli said, looking at Ye Futian.


    "Is that so?" Ye Futian smirked and said, "If that indeed is alright, if this all can be stopped with my Second Sister saying no to it all, would you all just leave silently?"


    The weight of the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City was obvious. It was obvious what the Zhuge family went through when both forces joined hands to propose such this matter. All pressure would have fallen on Zhuge Mingyue.


    "You have gone a little too far." Elders from the Zhuge family turned their eyes at Ye Futian. One of them said, "While you''re Mingyue''s junior and a student of the Holy Zhi Palace, don''t you think what you said is a little too narrow-sighted? Mingyue is the treasure of our family, and how could we not be happy for her? But at the same time, isn''t Bai Luli the best suitor there is for her? What you have just said was simply from the standpoint of your Third Brother." The one who said so was Zhuge Xing''s father and Zhuge Mingyue''s uncle.


    "My father has put this aptly. While Ye Futian''s words sounded reasonable, they were shallow. He and his Third Brother were simply thinking about nothing but taking Ms. Mingyue away for their selfish gains. Ridiculous indeed," Zhuge Xing said.


    "Bai Luli ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking and possesses the potential for sainthood. Is there anyone who is more suitable than he is? Is your Third Brother suitable for her?" The youths of the Zhuge family rose in an uproar. Ye Futian''s words before were seen as a slight towards them, accusing them of selling Zhuge Mingyue for their family''s benefit. Many more in the banquet rose to criticize Ye Futian, making him look like some witch on a burning stake.


    "Ridiculous." Bai Ze smirked sarcastically. He liked what he was seeing. Ye Futian was not only offending the Zhuge family, but also the Holy Zhi Palace at the very moment. There was no way Bai Ze would not have liked what was happening.


    Zhuge Qingfeng watched what transpired in silence.


    Ye Futian saw everyone pointing fingers at him. He, however, seemed unfazed, lowering his head to drink a cup of wine. When he raised his head again, his eyes looked as sharp as knives before he said coldly, "I beg your pardon for my bold words, but is every single member of the renowned clans here a bunch of good-for-nothing idiots?"


    The banquet turned utterly silent as Ye Futian''s words came out of his mouth. The youths of the Zhuge family all looked at Ye Futian with cold eyes. What insolence.


    "While you''re indeed a student of the Holy Zhi Palace, it''d be best you take back what you just said," someone from the Zhuge family said coldly.


    "As a member of the Zhuge family, you wished to increase the influence of your family through a marriage alliance instead of through your own hard work in training. Don''t you feel ashamed of yourself?" Ye Futian continued his sarcastic jabs, "And furthermore, you actually put it in such a way that made it seem my Second Sister would benefit the most from this. Just because the Zhuge family might actually have a saint as their son-in-law, you all wish to kneel and lick boots? Where is the bearing and pride that you should have as a member of such an esteemed family? Can''t you train yourself to be strong enough to make the Zhuge family greater? If you see no way of achieving further greatness but to rely on such an arrangement, would I be wrong to call you a good-for-nothing?"


    "Ye Futian, are you insulting the entire Zhuge family?" Bai Ze''s voice was cold, as if he was ready to pick a fight.


    "Bai Ze, are you actually thick-skinned enough to talk to me here?" Ye Futian said to Bai Ze with cold eyes.


    "You..." Bai Ze''s face went pale.


    "During the Law Battles, you practically had eyes at the top of your head. Your pride was second to none, yet you proved to be utterly helpless. I crushed you without even having to use my full power. In the sparring sessions later, one move was all it took from Yu Sheng to put you down. Were you not embarrassed enough of yourself after all that?" Ye Futian elaborated coldly. You asked for it, and you got it.


    "I only wished to drink in silence today, yet you insisted on provoking me and kicking up a fuss. Do you really think no one knows what is going on inside your head? You know yourself that you are weak, so weak that you don''t have what it takes to fight me straight up, and so you resort to such underhanded tactics." Ye Futian glared at Bai Ze as he blasted away, "If some nobody like you wasn''t born in a high place in White Cloud City, you would be little more than a piece of filth. And now, you dare go about talking like you own the place, just because your brother is somebody. Do you know that you''re little more than a clown in the eyes of others?"


    "Shut up," Bai Ze said coldly.


    "Oh, you''re getting angry now? Why did you insist on getting yourself embarrassed in the first place?" Ye Futian continued, "You''re all smiles and feeling good about yourself when the wedding is mentioned. You talked as if it was my Second Sister who went sucking up to your brother to set up this arrangement. Don''t tell me you never thought it to be such. Think about it. Who was the one who made the proposal in the first place? If your brother was such an exceptional figure, why would he have needed to borrow the Zhuge family''s power?"


    "Ye Futian, enough," Sage Zhu Song from Holy Sage Pavilion said.


    Ye Futian stood up. He bowed to Sage Zhu Song and said, "Sir, I have talked about this with my teacher before. I know that the Holy Zhi Palace is not doing this for its own benefit, but so that there will be a saint to emerge from the Barren State. But I still do not think this is the right way to do so.


    "Bai Luli possesses the potential to become a saint. Why would he need to borrow external powers to achieve that? If he is the hope of the Holy Zhi Palace and one everyone has high hopes for, he should have enough confidence and pride to be able to accomplish the feat with his own power. If he is a figure expected by many to achieve great things, he should have the confidence and resilience to do so himself. Why resort to such trivial measures?" Ye Futian said as he looked at Sage Zhu Song.


    "It has been years since the Barren State last saw a saint emerge. It is not as simple as you think it," Sage Zhu Song said to Ye Futian. He began to sound rather serious, indicating that he rather irritated.


    "There has not been a saint in Barren State for many years, but our generation from the Holy Zhi Palace will make it happen. If Bai Luli can''t do it, then I will. There is no need to resort to such tricks." Ye Futian looked straight into Sage Zhu Song''s eyes as he spoke. An air of extraordinary excellence exuded from him; it was the air of absolute pride and confidence in oneself. It was due precisely to such confidence and pride that he mocked the members of the Zhuge family as a bunch of good-for-nothing idiots.


    Sage Zhu Song gazed at Ye Futian and said, "If you have such confidence, I''m willing to believe you. But what you should be doing now is focusing on your training. When you become a Grade One Noble and step foot into Sage Hall, breaking into the Sage Plane, then you will know that the wedding to be held between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue is not for selfish gains, but for the Barren State as whole. You should be open to the matter, not trying to ruin this arrangement because of the relationship between you and your Third Brother."


    It was apparent that Ye Futian''s words were unable to convince Sage Zhu Song. The wedding must go on. Everyone agreed to it. There were no loops to jump over, everything was in place, and no attempts to ruin it would be tolerated.


    Ye Futian looked at Sage Zhu Song. He knew he was unable to convince the sage, but he said, "I stick to my viewpoint. I''m not a saint nor a sage, and I don''t have the bearing of a saint or a sage. If I can ignore those who are closest to me, I have no place talking about greater love for the Barren State. As such, I''m only a common folk. Whatever the elders think about this, it doesn''t change the fact that I care about my Second Sister and Third Brother. As such, I object to this wedding, and I will continue to object to it!"

 659 Renhuang and Orthodoxy

    The banquet was unusually quiet. Many turned their eyes to look at Ye Futian as he made his speech. His eyes were adamant and stubborn.


    Zhuge Mingyue also turned her eyes to look at Ye Futian. While she never wanted Ye Futian to get himself involved in all of this, she felt warm inside, thinking that her little brother had indeed grown up, rising up to protect her and all. However, the wedding was not as simple as Ye Futian thought it to be. During the day of the proposal, Liu Chan, who ranked third on the Barren Sky Ranking, and the City Lord of Alchemy City himself, who ranked fourth, made it up Crouching Dragon Mountain, bringing with them a letter from the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. Her father, Zhuge Qingfeng studied in the Holy Zhi Palace, and the palace lord himself ranked first on the Barren Sky Ranking. He was also Zhuge Qingfeng''s teacher. She knew well what it meant, and there was no mistaking it when her father spoke about the matter; it was something the entire Holy Zhi Palace had decided.


    Before a grand endeavor like having a saint emerge from the Barren State, sacrifice by having her marry someone she had no liking for was seen to be a small price. Furthermore, the man she was to marry was Bai Luli. It was the dream of countless girls from renowned clans, and as Ye Futian put it, everyone from White Cloud City and even the Zhuge family thought it was her who benefitted from all of this. As such, she was deemed to have no right to think about anything. The Holy Zhi Palace had its own stance and will in the matter. Her little brother, however, chose to side with her over the Holy Zhi Palace. But there simply was nothing he could do to turn the tide of things.


    "I object as well," Xue Ye, who was sitting right beside Luo Fan, spoke and made his stance clear as well. While he was among the younger generation, he was still You Chi''s son-in-law, which gave him weight to speak on the matter.


    "Are you done being insolent?" Zhuge Xing''s father said coldly, "There are many here who are your seniors, and that includes your uncle. They are not going to make a bigger mess out of things by arguing with you. But since when did the wedding between Bai Luli and Mingyue need approval from a young one like you?"


    The youth of the Zhuge family glared at Ye Futian with angry eyes. Ye Futian insulted all of them in one shot before calling all of the members of renowned clans to be good-for-nothing idiots. Ye Futian was being too bold while inside the Zhuge family estate.


    "Ye Futian," Sage Zhu Song said to Ye Futian, "return to the Holy Zhi Palace. Go into the Sage Hall and break into Sage Plane as soon as possible." Everyone present caught what that meant. Sage Zhu Song was being very stern with those words, and he meant for Ye Futian to leave the estate, forbidding from interfering with this matter further. The will of the Holy Zhi Palace was, of course, not something Ye Futian would be able to change on his own, even if he was a rare genius from the Holy Zhi Palace, the one who ranked first on the Law Rank, and the champion among all nobles. The current will of the entire Holy Zhi Palace was unanimous, and it had only one goal��to help in the endeavor of having a saint emerge in the Barren State. And Bai Luli was the chosen one to undertake such a great endeavor.


    "Sir, I beg your forgiveness, but I''m unable to do so." Ye Futian bowed and said, "I will now excuse myself." He then bowed to Zhuge Qingfeng and left the banquet. Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and the others rose and left with him.


    Zhu Song frowned hard and he was rather displeased. Geniuses were known to have incredibly strong egos and sense of self. Ye Futian was, no doubt, one such genius, whose talents might have even eclipsed those of Hua Fan and might have even neared that of Bai Luli. However, Ye Futian was simply too young, and no one had time to wait for him to come to the right age.


    Zhu Song was unable to say that Ye Futian was wrong about anything, as he was simply thinking from his Second Sister''s standpoint. Such people always proved to be a headache as they were incredibly stubborn.


    "Such was the boldness of the young," Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and said. He behaved casually in the face of all that ruckus and obviously did not mind Ye Futian''s insolence. He was even able to dissolve the awkwardness of the banquet at the moment with just one line. The members of clans and forces of Xuanwu City present felt impressed. Such was the bearing of a top-notch figure; one which they would have had a hard time catching up to.


    Bai Ze remained gloomy throughout. He held his head low as he drank, thinking that he had once again suffered Ye Futian''s insult. Worse still, he was unable to say anything to retort. He knew well that as the second son of White Cloud City, he was seen as a dashing young man before he entered the Holy Zhi Palace, and many had high hopes for him. Now, everyone''s attitude towards him changed.


    And all that is because of Ye Futian.


    The truth, however, was due to more than just Ye Futian alone. The existence of both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng overshadowed everyone who was studying in the Holy Zhi Palace, regardless of how exceptional they were before. Bai Ze, however, was the one who was suppressed and humiliated worst.


    The banquet went on. It was all joy and harmony without Ye Futian and his party. The liveliness of the event seemed to be a statement saying that with the exception of Ye Futian and a few others, everyone looked forward to the wedding, eager to witness an epoch-making moment.


    Ye Futian and his party returned to Moon Tower. He never stopped frowning. He knew well that while he had vented his frustration and made his point back there, even that those words came from the champion of the Law Rank, what he did hardly mattered in such a place. Just like the elders of the Zhuge family put it, it was inconsequential whether he agreed to the wedding or not.


    Who would have paid any attention to what I said indeed? Despite knowing fully well that his words would have changed nothing, he deemed it necessary to vent them. Furthermore, he felt compelled to make his stance clear, in order to see how adamant the others were on the matter. His Second Sister was putting her fate on the line. Even if Third Brother shows up, so what? Is that really going to change anything?


    What great figures throughout Barren State had decided and the very will of the Holy Zhi Palace was not something anyone could change. He knew nothing about what could happen next.


    "I can''t believe we''ve just gotten through that matter with Fourth Brother, only to be compelled to deal with something similar happening to Second Sister. While I knew somehow that was going to happen, I still had a really bad feeling about things," Luo Fan said as he sulked. Worse still, what he felt this time was way worse than what he felt with the last ordeal. Those big shots want to create a saint and they go about sacrificing Second Sister''s happiness for it. Who gave them the right to do so?


    "This all happened a little too quickly," Ye Futian sighed and said. He trained very hard and came to become number one in the Law Rank. However, his plane was still too low when compared to the entire Barren State. What had transpired so far made him feel rather ill-prepared.


    "Yeah. The difficulty we''re dealing with here is far greater than what happened between Fourth Brother and his wife." Luo Fan was soon at a loss for words. What they had to tackle before was the City Lord of Alchemy City. But this time, it was the will of the Holy Zhi Palace, White Cloud City, and the Zhuge family. Worse still, their shared will was probably very, very solid, unlike the case with You Chi. When Xue Ye ended up being second place on the Alchemy Conference, the City Lord was still more inclined to marry You Xi off to Xue Ye instead.


    Ye Futian was thinking that since the Holy Zhi Palace was into this, it became apparent that their will was immovable. They were going to get the wedding done one way or another. The strength of White Cloud City''s will was a given, as Bai Luli was the young city lord of White Cloud City. The only party with any loopholes to exploit was the Zhuge family. However, Ye Futian knew nothing about what was going on inside Zhuge Qingfeng''s mind. They discussed the matter for quite a bit and yet they failed to reach a conclusion. There was only a month''s time left.


    Zhuge Mingyue returned after a while and smiled at Ye Futian. "How did it feel, scolding everybody hard?"


    "Very fun, of course," Ye Futian smiled and said. He did not want to show any signs that he was suppressing his emotions in front of his Second Sister. While he was unable to see what his Second Sister was thinking, she was still probably the one who had it the hardest.


    Zhuge Mingyue gave him the eye and said, "Come with me." She turned around as soon as she finished. Ye Futian felt peculiar about the whole thing, but nonetheless followed her out and asked, "Second Sister, what''s the matter?"


    "Your Uncle Zhuge wants to see you in private," Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said to Ye Futian. He felt even more puzzled at the moment. Why would Zhuge Qingfeng want to see me in private?


    The Wind Residence was located at the core of Crouching Dragon Mountain, and that was where the clan leader, Zhuge Qingfeng, took up residence. At the moment, Zhuge Qingfeng was standing alone with his hands behind his back at a small pavilion. Hearing footsteps nearby, he turned around and said to Ye Futian, "You are here."


    "How can I be of service, uncle?" Ye Futian asked, curious.


    "I just feel like chatting for a bit," Zhuge Qingfeng said casually.


    "Do I need to excuse myself?" Zhuge Mingyue asked gently.


    "Mingyue, come here." Zhuge Qingfeng looked at his daughter and said, "I guess you resent me."


    Zhuge Mingyue did not deny anything but she did not leave either. She went into the pavilion instead.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian and said, "I heard Mingyue and Canyang talked about you, and so I know a thing or two. In the next generation of the Barren State, Bai Luli is probably the only one who is on par with you."


    "I doubt Bai Luli will no longer be able to do so," Ye Futian said casually.


    Zhuge Qingfeng was dumbfounded, then he smiled at him and said, "You, kid, sure know nothing about being humble."


    Ye Futian did not say anything. Humility was ill-suited to the predicament before their eyes.


    "Liu Chan, the assistant palace lord, who is also one of my elder seniors, came to pay me a visit with my senior, the City Lord of White Cloud City, to make the marriage proposal. They brought a letter from my teacher, and it seemed like his days were numbered." Zhuge Qingfeng sighed.


    Ye Futian felt a shiver in his mind. It was truly a will of the Holy Zhi Palace then, and one as solid as bedrock.


    "Please don''t resent the Holy Zhi Palace. You are still young and you have yet to make it outside of the Barren State. There is still much that you have yet to learn. Do you know what kind of a place the Barren State is? Or why the will of the Holy Zhi Palace is so adamant?" Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "Please, tell me." Ye Futian wanted to know as well.


    "Barren State is one of the nine states. Emperor Xia set up Orthodoxy in each of the nine states. It was a system that lasted throughout the ages. Even when the world was unified and Emperor Xia submitted to the Twin Great Emperors, he remained in control of such a system," Zhuge Qingfeng elaborated slowly. Ye Futian was shaken to his core. He read from ancient books that the Orthodoxy was made of Renhuang, the king of man.


    Is this Xia Huang, the highest existence in Renhuang Plane?


    "Without a saint, there was no Orthodoxy in Barren State. While the Twin Great Emperors ordered the establishments of academies throughout the world, if the Barren State kept failing to produce a saint, the Holy Zhi Palace might have ended up being penalized. Forces from other states would probably take control of the Barren State, and if that happened, there would no longer be the peace we see today in the Barren State. We might end up under the reign of others." Zhuge Qingfeng said, "As such, the Holy Zhi Palace desperately needs for a saint to emerge."


    "And so, they picked Bai Luli." Ye Futian continued, "But what does that have to do with my Second Sister?"


    "The Saint Plane is a plane beyond what is known in current systems. It isn''t some plane that can be easily accessed. Even if one were to possess the potential to become a saint and wanted to become a saint, one would still need to make it to the very place where Emperor Xia set up the Orthodoxy, and it would be an arduous trip. The Zhuge family had a saint among our ancestors before, passing a treasure down the line, and that one treasure would prove very useful for Bai Luli. As such, they needed to get their hands on that treasure. However, regardless of how close we are, there is no way the Zhuge family would allow such a treasure to simply be handed to an outsider. Even if I were to be fine with it, the others wouldn''t have been."


    "As such, Bai Luli needed to be the son-in-law of the Zhuge family, and furthermore, needed to be married to one of the eldest lines of the Zhuge family, which would be my Second Sister," Ye Futian mumbled to himself.


    "Exactly." Zhuge Qingfeng nodded!

 660 A Selfish Person

    Ye Futian fell silent, finally understanding why during his visit to his teacher at the Holy Zhi Palace, both Sage Jingang and his teacher had not wanted him to interfere in this matter.


    Sage Jingang and his teacher both knew that this entire affair was the will of the Palace. Nothing would change just because of one individual''s objection. Ye Futian laughed self-deprecatingly at the thought before asking, "So, Uncle, how do you feel about this?"


    Zhuge Qingfeng replied, "This is the first time my teacher has written a letter to me to request anything. These could even be his last words. This arranged marriage came about through the will of the Palace, the White Cloud City, and the Zhuge Family. My peers, my seniors even, they all approve very much of this marriage. Not just them, but many powerful people in Xuanwu City, are awaiting this eagerly as well."


    He then continued, "Just like everyone said back there at the banquet, there has not been an arranged marriage that has elicited a response as huge as this. Nor has any marriage been under the scrutiny of so many powerful people before this."


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian. "So, tell me, how do you think I can feel about this?" Zhuge Qingfeng may have been an incredibly powerful man who was sixth in the Barren Sky Ranking, but he too had his considerations. He could not just do as he wished. Other than the fact that his daughter Zhuge Mingyue would not be happy, all the other aspects of this arranged marriage could be said to be perfect. If Zhuge Mingyue did not already have someone she liked, then Bai Luli would have been the best partner for her. There would be no one else in all of the Barren State who was as eligible as he was.


    "Then why are you speaking to me about this, Uncle?" Ye Futian asked.


    Zhuge Qingfeng replied, "It''s rare that someone like Bai Luli would appear in the Barren State. And now, there is you and Yu Sheng. You two may be young and of a low plane, but you have great potential and your future is bright. You are a student of the Holy Zhi Palace, Mingyue''s Little Brother, and Jieyu''s beloved. I don''t wish for you to become involved in this matter. I can somewhat hazard a guess at what Mingyue is thinking. If he really were to come here, Mingyue would probably give everything up for him. But under such circumstances, would that really be able to change anything?" By ''him,'' Zhuge Qingfeng was referring to Gu Dongliu.


    "So, am I to sacrifice my Older Sister for the greater good?" Ye Futian chuckled. "My teacher gave me the same advice previously, but he still let me come here. And I am but a selfish person. I don''t care for the greater good. I still think that you all are wrong. Even if this is the will of the entire Barren State, it is still wrong."


    The Holy Zhi Palace may have acted out of the intention to have a saint grace the land again, and not out of selfish motivations. But the same could not be said for the White Cloud City. Bai Luli was the son of the City Lord of White Cloud City. It was no surprise that the family would be overjoyed at this turn of events. And what about those people from the Zhuge Family? There was currently no saint within the Barren State, and Bai Luli seemed the best positioned to reach the level of a saint with his potential. The Zhuge Family would naturally look forward to having a saint for a son-in-law. This was an equally sweet bargain for the Zhuge Family as well.


    So, behind all this talk about the greater good, selfish motivations were still at play. No one cared about how Ye Futian''s Second Older Sister felt. And since no one cared about her feelings, who were they to make her sacrifice herself?


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian and smiled. He did not get angry. Instead, he said, "I''m glad Mingyue has a Little Brother like you. However, the mere concept of right and wrong has never been able to stop the affairs of the world.


    "You should go back," Zhuge Qingfeng told Ye Futian, before falling silent.


    Ye Futian bowed slightly, before leaving the Qingfeng quarters. Zhuge Mingyue did not leave with him. Instead, she watched his disappearing figure with a radiant smile.


    "You''ve seen him for yourself now, how do you feel?" she asked her father.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at his daughter and mused, "I do understand why you were so full of praise for him now. He really is an outstanding young man, not just in terms of ability, but also in terms of personality. I like him very much."


    "Little Brother already confessed he was a selfish person with no conception of the greater good, why do you still like him?" Zhuge Mingyue questioned her father further.


    "I too am a selfish man. The people of the Zhuge Family, my Older Brother over at White Cloud City, all of them are selfish too." Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and said, "There has never been an absolute saint in this world we live in. Even a Sage would still have feelings, with their own likes and their own emotions. As such, there will always be a selfish side to everyone. He dared to fight against the will of the Palace for you without bothering to hide his selfishness. At least he''s honest about it, unlike many people who mask their greed with proclamations of acting for the greater good."


    "Looks like you understand, after all, Father," Zhuge Mingyue responded.


    "Even if I do, I still can''t do anything about it. Sometimes I can''t even be bothered to think about these things anymore." Zhuge Qingfeng looked at his daughter and advised, "Bai Luli is not a bad character either. If you really are to marry him, then you''ll only be husband and wife in name, he won''t force you to do anything. Don''t do anything rash, you still have a long time to live." As he spoke, Zhuge Qingfeng turned to leave.


    Zhuge Mingyue watched as her father left the room. She didn''t know he still had her interests at heart. However, the concept of being husband and wife only in name felt impossible to her. Zhuge Mingyue chuckled self-deprecatingly before staring at the sky in a daze. Her days at the Cottage were so much more lighthearted. There was nothing to worry or trouble her.


    When Ye Futian returned, his heart felt heavier, as if an external force was pressing down upon him. Too much was riding on this arranged marriage, which made him feel helpless. Just like what Luo Fan said, the challenge he was facing here was even greater than what he had faced back at the Alchemy City. Ye Futian didn''t even know where to begin untangling this mess.


    From Zhuge Qingfeng''s attitude, Ye Futian could tell that this man, who was sixth in the Barren Sky Ranking, was not unreasonable or ignorant. It was just that there were many things and responsibilities that were honestly beyond his personal control. As such, despite his position as the head of the Zhuge Family, he has had to concede and compromise.


    Taking out the Soul Guqin, Ye Futian sat quietly at the courtyard, playing a tune. When other people heard the music, they could sense Ye Futian''s emotions within. Hua Jieyu sat nearby, not disturbing Ye Futian. Yu Sheng, on the other hand, had gone off to for a solo training session. When one was unable to do anything, it seemed like training to improve one''s capabilities was the only way out.


    The days passed, and news had spread all over the vast Barren State. Xuanwu City gradually became busier as many important figures from all over the state came down to visit. This marriage marked an alliance between White Cloud City and the Zhuge Family, making it especially significant. As such, the engagement banquet between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue was a bigger deal than Xue Ye and You Xi''s wedding ceremony. All the top powers of the Barren State were obliged to attend, and even if they weren''t happy with the arrangement, they showed up at the banquet still. This marriage was set to shift the dynamics of power within the Barren State.


    This was the first time the Holy Zhi Palace had interfered in such a matter, in a departure from their usual practices. Many influential individuals knew what this was for. This was all for Bai Luli, the incomparably powerful figure of the Barren State.


    Crouching Dragon Mountain was equally crowded as well. Many people had come to visit in advance, awaiting the start of the engagement banquet. In a part of the mountain, an important visitor was pacing about in the house. His pacing came to a gentle halt, and his eyes flashed as he cocked his head to listen to the strains of guqin music coming into the room. The artistic conception of the music was extraordinary and attracted one''s attention instantly.


    Spiritual Energy emanated from the visitor, and he sent it in the direction of the guqin music. Immediately, the music became more clearly audible. As the music played, his expression turned solemn, as if it had roused feelings of awe within him. The people around the visitor did not disturb him. Instead, they waited patiently.


    In truth, everyone in the Zhuge Family knew that there would often be sounds of guqin playing coming from Mingyue''s quarters. It was music of extraordinary artistic conception, and even the influential visitors would pay attention when the guqin playing started, basking in the extraordinary nature of the music.


    After a long while, the visitor asked, "Who''s playing the guqin?"


    "It''s Ye Futian," the member of the Zhuge Family who was hosting him replied.


    "Is it the Ye Futian who''s at the top of the Law Rank in the Holy Zhi Palace?" the visitor asked. People from the outside world generally knew little about the happenings within the Holy Zhi Palace. However, they would still pay some attention to news about who had become first in the Law Rank. Furthermore, Ye Futian had also raised quite the furor back at Alchemy City. Many influential guests had been there then, which was why most people in the Barren State had at least heard of Ye Futian.


    "Yes." The other person nodded.


    "A formidable young man he is." The visitor nodded his head in admiration before asking further, "What piece is this?"


    "It''s the Ukiyo Song," came the answer.


    "No wonder, no wonder��" The visitor mumbled before he walked away, chuckling heartily. The Ukiyo Song was one of the ten most famous songs written by Donghuang the Great. It contained the lofty aspirations of an emperor. Furthermore, it was rumored that this song had been written while the two emperors were still young. Back then, Donghuang the Great had already been harboring ambitions of conquering the world.


    What were Ye Futian''s intentions in playing this song within the Zhuge household now?


    At that moment, Ye Futian was playing the guqin quietly in Mingyue''s quarters. Actually, he was not playing according to the true artistic conception of the Ukiyo Song. In order to play the complete Ukiyo Song, a person of his current state would need a boost with the will of the emperor in order to fully attain the true artistic conception of the song. But even as Ye Futian played the song for fun, his playing was still magnificent nonetheless.


    As the guqin music rang out across the room, Ye Futian''s Spiritual Energy emanated into the space as well. The image of an emperor writing ''The World'' while raring to realize his lofty ambitions came to his mind. At the same time, Ye Futian could sense the natural order of the world present within this artistic conception. This was a form of training for him as well.


    Now that Ye Futian was an upper-level noble and was able to catch hints of Sage Intent, he needed a clearer understanding of the power within the natural laws in order to transcend to the Sage Plane. As he understood the power, his Spiritual Energy was gradually increasing as well. Ye Futian could feel that the amount of Spiritual Energy he possessed was fast approaching that of a grade two noble''s.


    ��


    Xuanwu City, which was at the base of Crouching Dragon Mountain, was bustling with activity. Huge numbers of people had arrived, and inns everywhere were fully booked. This was especially true for inns closer to Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    In a restaurant not far from Crouching Dragon Mountain, a man in white sat quietly at a table on the third-floor veranda. He ordered a few side dishes and a pot of wine. He wore a bamboo hat that covered his face. Most people in the restaurant were discussing the same topic��the engagement between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue. The discussions were lively, and many people were excited about this turn of events. However, the man in white and a bamboo hat did not seem to hear the discussions going on around him. He sat there quietly, and after a long while, he set down a spirit stone on the table. After lifting his head to glance in the direction of Crouching Dragon Mountain, he left by himself.

 661 A Letter from Third Older Brother

    Tomorrow was the day that Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue would get married. People from all over the Barren State had already arrived at Xuanwu City. This city, which lay to the north of Zhongzhou City, had not experienced such excitement for many years. The hype surrounding the event could even rival that from the time Zhuge Qingfeng took over as the head of the Zhuge Family back in the day.


    In the bamboo forest within Mingyue''s quarters on Crouching Dragon Mountain, the sounds of a guqin being played could be heard. Ye Futian was still playing the guqin, and he was still playing the Ukiyo Song as well. Right now, Ye Futian''s eyes were tightly shut, as if he had entered a state of intense concentration. The Worldly Spiritual Qi in the space seemed to have stopped moving, and everything became clearer than before.


    Zhuge Mingyue walked behind Ye Futian. As she looked across the space, she could sense the change in the Worldly Spiritual Qi here. She then sat quietly on a bamboo bench in the forest. She liked listening to her youngest brother play the guqin, especially when he played the Ukiyo Song. That song had a very deep artistic conception. The song evoked feelings of watching the world from above, painting an expansive image of that vast world through music and bringing about a sense of great heroism. Though she didn''t have such lofty ambitions as a woman, hearing her youngest brother play brought her a sense of comfort. Rising to the top was something her youngest brother should do, just like in the image the song evoked.


    Within Ye Futian''s mind, everything in his surroundings seemed to become even clearer. The various elemental Spiritual Qi did not even seem to be Spiritual Qi anymore. Instead, they were almost like actual wind, fire, lightning, among others. The elements had their own rhythm, which formed a part of the larger world. He seemed to see the shape of the wind, which blew in irregular wavy lines throughout the space. He seemed to see the color of lightning. It was almost as if he was in a different world.


    Right then, Ye Futian got the feeling that if he redirected his will, he would be able to change the trajectory of the wind, or the intensity of the lightning. The world he perceived right now seemed to be clearer than the one he had known.


    The sounds of Ye Futian''s guqin playing did not stop. The Worldly Spiritual Qi around him came surging crazily towards him, and his Spiritual Energy stretched out even further, seeming to project the guqin music further as well.


    Zhuge Mingyue, who was next to Ye Futian, lifted her head to look at him. Her eyes glittered before she broke out into a dazzling smile. More than half a year ago, Ye Futian had become an upper-level noble at Alchemy City, and now, there were signs of him breaking through to the next plane with his Spiritual Energy. He would soon officially become a Grade Two Noble. Over the past month, Ye Futian''s Spiritual Energy had grown stronger through him playing the guqin every single day.


    Finally, the guqin playing stopped, and the Worldly Spiritual Qi in the surroundings stopped flowing as well. Ye Futian opened his eyes to reveal an extreme calm. There was no hint of any joy at breaking through yet another plane. Tomorrow was the day his Older Sister would get engaged to Bai Luli, and up until now, he still didn''t have any idea as to what to do. There had also been no news from Third Older Brother, even now.


    "What''s up? Isn''t breaking through to the next plane supposed to be a happy thing?" Zhuge Mingyue asked, smiling.


    "I''ve broken through a plane with my Spiritual Energy and become a Grade Two Noble, but what use is that now?" Ye Futian replied, smiling bitterly at Zhuge Mingyue. Before, he would have been overjoyed at this development, considering how this breakthrough did not just result in stronger Spiritual Energy, but also in him obtaining greater understanding in perceiving the natural laws. He was so close to his goal, and he had gotten much stronger as well. But it wasn''t enough. This turn of events had occurred too quickly, and Ye Futian was not prepared for it.


    "Second Older Sister," Beitang Xing''er called out, walking towards the two. Zhuge Mingyue and Ye Futian turned to look at her.


    "What''s the matter, Xing''er?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    "Someone sent over a letter for Youngest Brother," Beitang Xing''er replied. For someone to send a letter all the way up to the Zhuge household on Crouching Dragon Mountain addressed to Ye Futian was interesting indeed.


    "Let me have a look at it." A sharp glint flashed past Ye Futian''s eyes, and he walked over to Beitang Xing''er''s side to take the letter from her.


    The letter was sealed, and when the person had tasked the guard with getting the letter to Ye Futian. The Zhuge family guard had not dared to open it. After all, Ye Futian was a well-known figure in the Barren State now, and everyone knew that he was the younger brother of the Second Young Mistress. As such, the letter reached Ye Futian easily, without much trouble.


    Ye Futian opened the letter before seeing a line of elegantly scrawled words on it. But when he read the contents of the letter properly, his heart skipped a beat and he felt an immense unease. The contents of the letter were simple. The person had written, "I''m sorry, I won''t be able to fulfill the promise I made to you in the past. Please live well from now on."


    There was a single word at the end of the line: "Gu."


    Ye Futian knew that this wasn''t a letter for him, but for Second Older Sister. And the person who wrote this letter couldn''t be anyone else but Third Older Brother. He had come, but he was not preparing to ascend Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    Why is he doing this? Ye Futian wondered before a thought popped into his head. What happened to Third Older Brother?


    Third Older Brother was not a coward. People from the Cottage and even the eastern region of the Barren State all knew that Gu Dongliu, the third disciple of the Cottage was a man who would refuse to back down even in the face of the toughest challenges. But now, as the engagement day of Bai Luli and Ye Futian''s Second Older Sister approached, his Third Older Brother had left a letter like this instead.


    Seeming to notice Ye Futian''s change in expression, Zhuge Mingyue asked, "Youngest Brother, who is the letter from?" As she asked, she began to walk over as well. Ye Futian''s hands trembled just the slightest. He really did not want to show his Second Older Sister the letter. But he couldn''t hide it from her either.


    Finally, Zhuge Mingyue read the contents of this letter as well. In that instant, Ye Futian could clearly sense a coldness emanate from her being.


    Zhuge Mingyue suddenly laughed. Ye Futian did not know why she did, but it was in no way a normal laugh.


    "Is the person who sent the letter still around?" Zhuge Mingyue asked Beitang Xing''er.


    "They say he still is," Beitang Xing''er replied.


    Zhuge Mingyue did not say anything further. She put a finger to her mouth and bit through the skin before writing a single word on the letter: "Alright."


    "Older Sister." Ye Futian''s heart trembled at the sight of that word written in blood. He had no idea what Second Older Sister was thinking, nor would he be able to find out. But he could sense that this letter from Third Older Brother had been an incredibly cruel move to her. No matter what had happened, he should not have sent a letter like this.


    Ye Futian thought that his Second Older Sister was right. Maybe Third Older Brother really was daft.


    "Give this back to him," Zhuge Mingyue requested calmly before she walked away. She did not speak another word, nor did she reveal any hint of sadness. She was so calm it was frightening.


    Beitang Xing''er was taken aback. She looked at Zhuge Mingyue before looking towards Ye Futian.


    "I''ll deliver this," Ye Futian offered, before leaving the bamboo forest with Beitang Xing''er. They headed to the base of Crouching Dragon Mountain to meet the person who had delivered the letter. He was a common man with a very low level of cultivation.


    "I''m the Ye Futian this letter is addressed to, please take me to see the sender of this letter," Ye Futian requested.


    "Master Ye, he said that if anyone followed me, he would not appear," the person replied.


    He''s even avoiding me as well, Ye Futian wondered to himself, thinking about what could have happened for Third Older Brother to avoid them so deliberately and only send a letter, an incredibly heartless one at that.


    The man delivering the letter evidently had no clue as to what was going on. He didn''t even know who he was delivering the letter for, and Ye Futian was sure that if he were to follow the man, Third Older Brother had the ability to hide from him.


    After a short silence, he handed the letter over to the man and said, "Tell the owner of this letter this: She has already waited for you for close to six years. We don''t ask anything else of you other than to come here."


    "Understood, young master." The man took the letter and left. Ye Futian looked at the disappearing figure before taking a deep breath. He could only leave it to Third Older Brother to evaluate things for himself now.


    Back at Mingyue''s quarters, Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and the rest had been alerted, and they appeared before Ye Futian.


    "Third Older Brother could be in some trouble," Ye Futian said to them. If Third Older Brother was refusing to visit the Zhuge household or see them, it was definitely not because he was afraid something would happen to him. There was only one possibility left��third Older Brother was doing this out of consideration for Second Older Sister.


    Whatever trouble Third Older Brother was in could be huge if he was concerned about dragging Second Older Sister down. Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and the rest did not say anything, not knowing what to say. This matter was already enough of a headache as it was. And Third Older Brother had finally appeared only to send a devastatingly heartless letter.


    "I''ll go look for Second Older Sister," Ye Futian said, before heading over to where Zhuge Mingyue lived. Standing outside, he called out," Second Older Sister."


    "Youngest Brother, I''m resting now," Zhuge Mingyue responded.


    "Second Older Sister, this is very important," Ye Futian said. There was a moment of silence before Zhuge Mingyue appeared, wearing a simple white gown. There was still no hint of sadness in her expression.


    "Older Sister, you know I have some secrets that could be related to my own background, but I must be careful about who I tell because my identity could be a serious matter," Ye Futian began. Not many people knew about his secrets. Some of the Cottage disciples knew, but even then, they didn''t know the complete truth.


    "Can Uncle be trusted?" Ye Futian asked. From the last conversation he had with the man, while Ye Futian didn''t completely agree with everything he said, he still had a rather good impression of Zhuge Qingfeng. However, he still didn''t know for sure what kind of person Zhuge Qingfeng was. Zhuge Mingyue was his daughter, so naturally, she would know him better.


    "What are you planning to do?" Zhuge Mingyue looked at Ye Futian. "If this is going to put you in danger, then don''t mention this ever again."


    "But under these sorts of circumstances, if we really are to go against the wishes of all these people, wouldn''t we still be in danger anyway?" Ye Futian urged. Zhuge Mingyue stared at Ye Futian. She chuckled. "I think he has his faults, but at least his character''s fine, and he still cares about his daughter''s life."


    Ye Futian understood what Zhuge Mingyue meant by her words, and replied, "Thank you, Older Sister. Let''s go then."


    "Alright," Zhuge Mingyue replied, walking up to ruffle Ye Futian''s hair. Ye Futian pouted silently, and the two left the place together.

 662 This Thing Called Love

    Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue had come to find Zhuge Qingfeng at his living quarters. Zhuge Qingfeng looked at his two visitors. Tomorrow was the day of Mingyue''s engagement. Had Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue come to find him as a final attempt to change things?


    "Leave us," Zhuge Mingyue ordered the attendants in the Qingfeng quarters. Zhuge Qingfeng looked to Zhuge Mingyue with some curiosity, before Ye Futian spoke, "Uncle, I''d like you to hear a song."


    "Is it the Ukiyo Song?" Zhuge Qingfeng chuckled. "I''ve heard it many times recently. It''s a song of an emperor. Its artistic conception is extraordinary."


    "This time will be a little different," Ye Futian replied.


    "Oh?" Zhuge Qingfeng''s curiosity was piqued. "I''ll listen to it then."


    "Could you seal off the Qingfeng quarters?" Ye Futian requested. Zhuge Qingfeng seemed a little confused, but he nodded obligingly anyway. A purple light shot through his eyes, and as he looked toward the sky, an endless surge of Worldly Spiritual Qi flowed immediately, seeming to turn into countless runes that sealed off the area like a boundary.


    "I''m done." Zhuge Qingfeng turned to Ye Futian.


    "Thank you, Uncle." Ye Futian nodded before finding a spot in the quarters to sit down. Sitting cross-legged, his aura became peaceful and tranquil, and the Soul Guqin appeared before him.


    Zhuge Qingfeng and Zhuge Mingyue sat aside, quietly watching Ye Futian play. As the melodious strains of music started, the two listened quietly in appreciation, feeling as though they were being drawn into an image. It was an image of two young men setting out to conquer the world, unrestrained and fearless. Zhuge Qingfeng was moved by the music. It led him to think about how the two emperors had walked the earth together since their youth. He thought about the kind of friendship the two men had had, and why Emperor Ye Qing had eventually become a taboo existence.


    The music continued, and the feelings it evoked gradually changed as well. The notes rose and fell, becoming peaceful only to become loud and sonorous after. A magnificent image appeared in Zhuge Qingfeng''s mind, and he closed his eyes to listen peacefully. Even for a man of his status and power, listening to the Ukiyo Song was still an enjoyable experience.


    Zhuge Qingfeng seemed to be enchanted by the music. After a while, he felt the energy of an emperor surge towards him from within the tune. It was a proud, commanding aura, that of an emperor with a sword in his hand ruling over the Divine Prefecture.


    "That''s not right." Zhuge Qingfeng suddenly felt that something was off as he immersed himself in the music. How could that energy be so strong, even stronger than before?


    Opening his eyes, Zhuge Qingfeng saw the handsome young man playing the guqin still. His fingers danced across the strings, and a golden glow seemed to emanate from his being. It was an extraordinary aura that seemed to turn Ye Futian into the image of a young emperor, almost like how the two emperors were in the youth. Back then, when the emperor had composed this song, he had seemed to become one with the music. This artistic conception, then, was not just the artistic conception of the song, but also of the emperor himself.


    A dazzling light suddenly emanated from Zhuge Qingfeng. He looked at the surroundings, only to see that the flow of Worldly Spiritual Qi seemed to be under the music''s control. The glow of Spiritual Qi descending around Ye Futian, bathing him in a sacred, colorful light. But Ye Futian continued playing peacefully, the artistic conception of the music growing stronger still. He seemed to be intent on revealing the artistic conception of the Ukiyo Song to the fullest. This song, which was one of the top ten within the Divine Prefecture, seemed to finally be performed in its fullest glory.


    Zhuge Mingyue smiled as she watched Ye Futian play. She was not very surprised, as if she had always thought that this was how her Youngest Brother should have been.


    The artistic conception of the song grew stronger still. Zhuge Qingfeng did not speak, nor did he interrupt Ye Futian. As he watched the young man who was sitting down cross-legged, he suddenly felt an extremely strange desire to prostrate before him. It was as if the person before him was an emperor himself, or the descendant of one.


    It suddenly occurred to Zhuge Qingfeng that he only knew how talented Ye Futian was and that he had come from the eastern region of the Barren State like his daughter. But he did not know where Ye Futian had appeared from, nor did he know why he had this amount of power, comparable to that of an emperor''s. This was very strange indeed.


    Finally, the guqin music came to a stop, but Zhuge Qingfeng''s thoughts continued racing. The song seemed to still be reverberating within his mind, and he could not forget the artistic conception he had just experienced.


    "Uncle, how did you like the song?" Ye Futian lifted his head, his clear eyes gazing at Zhuge Qingfeng as a gentle smile lifted the corners of his lips.


    Zhuge Qingfeng observed the young man before him seriously. Ye Futian was naturally very good-looking. In fact, it was rare to find a person as handsome as he was. His eyes were wide and clear, but one could only guess at what Ye Futian was thinking about behind his gaze.


    "It was perfect," Zhuge Qingfeng replied.


    "Thank you for your praise, Uncle." Ye Futian continued, "This song came from Sky Mountain in the eastern region of the Barren State. The two emperors left behind a song there, the Ukiyo Song. I managed to obtain it."


    Zhuge Qingfeng nodded. He had known about this as well.


    "Donghuang the Great had banned sages from the outside world from entering the eastern region of the Barren State. As such, no one has managed to reach the peak of Sky Mountain. Even if they managed to get there, there was no way they could have figured out this song and obtained it. The song is hidden within a snowy mental world, one has to resonate with it in order to obtain the song," Ye Futian explained, and Zhuge Qingfeng listened quietly without interrupting. He knew that Ye Futian could be about to reveal a secret about the song the two emperors had left behind.


    "I was able to resonate with that world and had become one with the will of Sky Mountain once, killing many people whose planes were higher than mine on the mountain." Ye Futian continued, "Uncle, do you know where I am from?"


    "I only know you came from the Cottage in the eastern region of the Barren State," Zhuge Qingfeng answered.


    Ye Futian then said, "Before I came to the eastern region of the Barren State, I lived somewhere even further away. My hometown was an island city somewhere within the vast sea, and there was little to no contact with the outside world. But something big happened there ten years ago. I''m not sure if Uncle has heard of this before, but it is said that the last statue of Emperor Ye Qing appeared in that city, with a giant Snow Ape standing guard over it. Donghuang the Great sent people over to destroy it afterward."


    He continued slowly, "Uncle, do you know that I am friends with Yuan Zhan, who has a staff technique that I taught him? I learned this staff technique from the Snow Ape."


    "You are a descendent of Emperor Ye Qing?" Zhuge Qingfeng''s heart thumped wildly at the revelation. There was no saint in the Barren State, and people of the Saint Plane were basically non-existent. The bloodline of Renhuang was an even greater existence than the two, which made those related to Emperor Ye Qing practically godly.


    Right now, what Ye Futian was sharing with Zhuge Qingfeng was a secret about Emperor Ye Qing. But Ye Futian shook his head, and said, "I don''t know who I am either. But I''m sure about one thing. I''ve said this to you before, Bai Luli''s abilities cannot compare to mine. It doesn''t matter if he''ll be able to make it to the Saint Plane, I will definitely be able to do so."


    Zhuge Qingfeng stared at Ye Futian. He had to admit, he was completely taken in by Ye Futian right now. If Ye Futian was someone who possibly was related to Emperor Ye Qing, then even if the Saint Plane was but a legend as of now, Zhuge Qingfeng could believe that Ye Futian would eventually reach it one day. Furthermore, just like he had said, his abilities were definitely a cut above Bai Luli''s.


    "You''ve basically handed your life over to me, haven''t you?" Zhuge Qingfeng mused. Regardless of who Ye Futian was, Emperor Ye Qing was still a taboo figure within the Divine Prefecture. Should someone catch wind of the fact that Ye Futian had ties with the emperor, he could get into big trouble. Furthermore, Zhuge Qingfeng was now in a position to capture Ye Futian and turn him in. Perhaps that would bring him a huge reward.


    "I have no enmity with you Uncle. Furthermore, why would you want to harm me, given the ties I have with Second Older Sister?" Ye Futian explained. "Why is it that you agreed to this marriage, Uncle? Your first reason was that your teacher wished for a saint to appear in the Barren State. Secondly, it would be good if this saint had a good relationship with the Zhuge Family. Well then, a saint will appear in the Barren State even without this marriage, so you''re not exactly going against your teacher''s wishes, Uncle. In any case, I too am a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace. Furthermore, would Uncle prefer the contrived relationship between Bai Luli and Second Older Sister or the friendship Second Older Sister and I share?"


    As Ye Futian spoke, Zhuge Qingfeng watched him. Many thoughts surfaced within his mind. Ye Futian had given him a difficult issue to chew on.


    "Yu Sheng''s abilities are also stronger than Bai Luli''s," Ye Futian added before he stood up and said, "Uncle, I''ll take my leave now." He then turned to leave. Zhuge Qingfeng was a great man. One didn''t have to make things too clear to him; he would think for himself.


    If it wasn''t for the fact that Ye Futian had no choice, he would not have told his secret to Zhuge Qingfeng. After all, with one more person let in on the secret, there was one more source of danger to Ye Futian. But within the current situation, Zhuge Qingfeng was the only one whose will could possibly influence the outcome of everything. The other alternative was the Holy Zhi Palace. But those representing the Holy Zhi Palace were from the Holy Sage Pavilion, and the Assistant Palace Lord Liu Chan was Bai Luli''s teacher. He didn''t know these elders from the Holy Sage Pavilion well, and thus he didn''t dare to risk it.


    "Father, with this, Youngest Brother has handed over his life to you, as I have," Zhuge Mingyue said to Zhuge Qingfeng before she left as well.


    Is your father that terrible to you? Zhuge Qingfeng wondered calmly as he watched the two leave. On the contrary, his mind was a mess.


    Two generations of geniuses had appeared within the Palace, which was already a handful itself, but now things had gotten even messier. Perhaps the Palace had indeed been too hasty in its decision. Now that the arrow was already on the bow, there was no choice left but to fire it. Zhuge Qingfeng could already see how these talents from two different generations were going to face off in the near future. It made him worried.


    ��


    Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue went to rest after returning to their quarters. Tonight, the lights of Xuanwu City would stay lit till dawn. It was set to be a sleepless night.


    The lightening of the night sky marked the start of the next day, and Xuanwu City grew lively. It was the day when Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue would get married. Many people had been waiting eagerly for this day, and it had finally come.


    It was still early morning, and the air was still chilly. A figure in white stood on a lonely mountain peak next to Crouching Dragon Mountain, gazing into the distance. From here, he could see the hustle and bustle of the activities happening on Crouching Dragon Mountain. He held a letter in his hand, which had a line of words written on it, as well as one shockingly red word written in blood. He had stood here for one night already, thinking. His teacher had once said that the world was ruled by reason and that there was always a rule to everything in this world. But right now, he realized that his teacher had not been entirely right. When it came to things like love, there was absolutely no rhyme or reason to it at all!

 663 The Barren States Experts Gather

    A Crouching Dragon Feast had been prepared on the Crouching Dragon Mountain and it was absolutely grand. Today, countless people had scaled the mountain to visit, including many of the Barren State''s elite factions. The White Cloud City and Zhuge Family''s alliance through marriage that had the Holy Zhi Palace''s involvement. Who in the Barren State would not give them some face? Moreover, the main character of today''s engagement was the Barren State''s most prominent person in the younger generation, Bai Luli.


    "Taixuan Mountain has arrived to send its regards," someone reported loudly at the foot of the mountain. Immediately, members from the Zhuge Family went forward to welcome them. Now, all the maidservants in the Crouching Dragon Mountain had been activated to welcome the guests from the peak of the mountain all the way to the bottom, it was a sight to behold.


    "The Demon God Clan has arrived."


    "The Vermillion Bird Sect has arrived."


    "Mount Duantian has arrived to send its regards."


    "The Mortal World has arrived."


    "The Nantian House has arrived."


    "The Sovereign Family has arrived."


    "..."


    Voice after voice continued to sound on Crouching Dragon Mountain. The entire Barren State had been alarmed because of this, it was even grander than the triennial Palace admission examination. Although the Palace''s admission examination was only once every three years, the elite influential figures would not appear during the admission examination. However, today was different; elite figures from all over the State had arrived.


    "The Alchemy City''s Emperor Family has arrived."


    "The Sacred Fire Sect has arrived."


    "The Alchemy City Lord Office has arrived." An even louder voice sounded out and the elite factions from the Barren State''s western region had arrived as well. The White Cloud City was one of the two strongest cities in the Barren State''s western region, so the other factions naturally had to respect it. Moreover, the Alchemy City Lord You Chi, who had not appeared at such events for a very long time, had come personally. His daughter and son-in-law were now in the Zhuge Family, so he had come to join in the fun.


    This time, the elite figures from all over had come to visit. The Zhuge Family members were all excited to partake in their family''s glory. This was the influence of this marriage. The entire Barren State had gathered to offer their congratulations for this event that was the focus of the entire State.


    The Zhuge Family Leader Zhuge Family and the older generation all welcomed them personally. Today, many influential people from their generation had arrived, including many high rankers on the Barren Sky Ranking. With him being sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking, he could not give face to perhaps one or two of them, but with so many of them arriving, even Zhuge Qingfeng had to put down his pride and welcome them.


    "Congratulations, Brother Zhuge." At that moment, Zhuge Qingfeng and Zhuge Canyang were standing there welcoming the guests, when a slim person dressed in plain black robes cupped his hands and extended his congratulations. Although he was smiling, he gave people a dangerous feeling. This was naturally related to the ability that he had cultivated. One''s cultivation techniques could affect their aura, after all.


    This person was ninth on the Barren Sky Ranking, the House Master of the Tingxue House, Xu Shang. Beside him, Xu Que stood there smiling.


    "Brother Xu, you have taken time out of your busy schedule to grace our event today. What an honor," Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and replied. The Tingxue House Master rarely ever attended any events.


    "It''s such a joyous occasion, how can I not be here?" Xu Shang smiled and replied.


    "Xu Que is pleased to meet Senior," Xu Que extended his greetings as well.


    "I''ve heard that nephew Xu Que has already entered the top ten of the Law Rank. It looks like he''s perfectly capable of taking over Brother Xu in the future," Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and commented.


    "He''s only in the top ten, that''s not worthy of praise." Xu Shang shook his head lightly.


    "Senior, Ye Futian should be in the Zhuge Family now. Where is he?" Xu Que asked.


    "He''s in the Moon Tower, you can ask the maidservants to bring you there," Zhuge Qingfeng replied. Xu Que cultivated with Ye Futian in the Palace, so they naturally knew each other.


    "Alright, thank you, Senior." Xu Que nodded in thanks.


    "Xu Que," behind him, a voice sounded. Xu Que turned around and saw the Sovereign Family''s Huang Jiuge standing there.


    "You''re here too," Xu Que said.


    "Yes." Huang Jiuge nodded. "I also want to meet him, let''s go together." As he said that, he also stepped forward and bowed to Zhuge Qingfeng, saying, "Huang Jiuge is pleased to meet Senior."


    "Do not act like a guest during this ceremony, nephew," Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and replied while taking a look at the majestic figure in yellow robes who was walking over. The Sovereign Family Leader, fifth on the Barren Sky Ranking, Huang Xi.


    "Brother Zhuge, how have you been?" Huang Xi smiled and asked.


    "Brother Huang Xi''s aura is even stronger than before," Zhuge Qingfeng replied. The two of them were long-time rivals. After all, the two of them held fifth and sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking respectively and were influential figures of their time.


    People continued to arrive in succession. At that moment, a couple walked over with their teenage daughter. The middle-aged man had an eminent dragon aura while the woman was dignified.


    "Long Ao is pleased to meet Senior Zhuge." The middle-aged man cupped his hands and saluted Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "The West Mountain Dragon Clan''s Long Ao, younger brother of Long Yitian?" Zhuge Qingfeng asked.


    "That is correct." Long Ao nodded.


    "You''re also a figure on the Barren Sky Ranking, there is no need for the formalities. Please enter," Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and replied. Back then, Long Yitian had risen as the shining star of the Barren State''s Eastern Region with his exceptional combat ability and outstanding potential. If he had not died, he would have had the chance to enter the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking. Long Ao was his younger brother, so it would be appropriate for him to address him as Senior, but Long Ao had already entered the Barren Sky Ranking, albeit not completely for his combat ability. Long Ao''s cultivation level had not reached the pinnacle of the Sage Plane and there were many people stronger than him in the Barren State''s Eastern Region, but the Barren Sky Ranking combined both combat ability and potential. Evidently, Long Ao had immense potential.


    In the Barren State''s Eastern Region Divine Sky City, Long Ao was the only person on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Senior, are my big brother Futian and sister Jieyu here?" the teenage girl beside smiled and asked.


    "They''re in the Moon Tower," Zhuge Qingfeng replied. Long Ao and Long Ling''er brought the rest and went in. Afterward, there were still people asking about Ye Futian, causing Zhuge Canyang to mutter, "Today is the marriage between the Zhuge Family and the White Cloud City, but there are many people looking for him."


    "This is his charisma," Zhuge Qingfeng replied as he remembered the sight he saw yesterday. Ye Futian was still so young, but he was already leading an entire generation. Even geniuses like the Sovereign Family''s Huang Jiuge and the Tingxue House''s Xu Que all seemed to admire him. On the other hand, Bai Ze and Zhuge Xing were also in the Zhuge Family, but nobody had asked anything about them.


    At that moment, Zhuge Mingyue was no longer in the Moon Tower but was in the Wind Residence. Ye Futian could clearly see how crowded Crouching Dragon Mountain was from the quiet Moon Tower. The voices penetrated the air and echoed throughout the all of Crouching Dragon Mountain. Whenever an elite figure or faction appeared, the reporting would sound, and with each voice, Ye Futian would feel his pressure mounting.


    This marriage had indeed alarmed the entire Barren State. Yesterday, he had sent back his Third Brother''s blood letter and conveyed his message. He did not know what his Third Brother would decide, but if he really decided to come, what kind of pressure would he have to face?


    "Why are you here?" Ye Futian looked at Huang Jiuge and Xu Que and asked.


    "We heard in the Palace that you had come with Yu Sheng to the Zhuge Family. Wuchen was worried and told us some of your matters. He asked us to bring you a message: don''t be rash," Xu Que replied.


    "I know." Ye Futian nodded. Wuchen naturally knew the relationship between him and his second sister and third brother. He must have been afraid that Ye Futian would cause himself trouble by being too rash.


    "Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue''s marriage has alarmed the entire Barren State. Your objection will probably be useless," Huang Jiuge also said. Although Ye Futian was now the first on the Law Rank, he still had no right to interfere with this matter.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian replied with a heavy heart.


    At that moment, the guests had all made their way onto the mountain. The Crouching Dragon Feast began and Ye Futian first visited the Alchemy City Lord You Chi, then saw that Long Ling''er and Madame Long and involuntarily walked forward.


    "Big brother Futian!" Long Ling''er called out to him.


    "Ling''er, why are you here?" Ye Futian asked.


    "My father came to take a look and paid a visit to the Palace as well. I asked him to bring me here." Long Ling''er looked at the middle-aged man behind her and Ye Futian''s gaze followed. He then bowed and said, "Ye Futian is pleased to meet uncle."


    "Oh, thank you for taking care of Ling''er all these years," Long Ao smiled and replied. Although this was his first time meeting Ye Futian, he had already heard too much from his daughter and wife.


    "Uncle, you are too polite. I have always treated Ling''er like my younger sister," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "This little one is too unruly, it must have been tough on you." Long Ao then asked softly, "I heard that you don''t approve of this marriage?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Back then, my brother headed to the land of Orthodoxy to pursue the Divine Path. Now, the Palace is attempting to pave the road for Bai Luli; their Will will not be doubted," Long Ao reminded him softly.


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded his head. Everyone already thought that the matter was decided and could not be changed.


    Long Ao patted his shoulder and said softly, "Ling''er, accompany Futian for a while."


    "Sure." Long Ling''er nodded. Long Ao and his wife then walked further up the Crouching Dragon Feast. Experts on the Barren Sky Ranking naturally had the right to sit at the top; Ye Futian and the other younger generation figures had seats on the bottom. As for the younger generation from normal families, their seats were even further back.


    Ye Futian saw many familiar faces. Di Gang, Li Futu, Xiang Zhiyan, and many of the experts from the Western Region had arrived. Of course, there was Yan Jiu from the Sword Saint Villa, the people from the Nantian House and the Mortal World. These peoples'' attention was all on Ye Futian. Now, Ye Futian was the first on the Law Rank and had defeated Di Gang in Alchemy City. He had made it to the top of the Barren State''s Nobles and no one could stand up to him. However, Ye Futian was not in the mood to care about them. He found a seat by himself, then sat and waited quietly.


    "They''re here," at that moment, a voice sounded and countless gazes turned towards a pair walking from afar. The White Cloud City Lord and Zhuge Family Leader both walked all the way to the top of the mountain. Many people stood up and saluted them while Bai Luli followed behind them.


    The group walked to the main seats on the Crouching Dragon Feast and turned around, their gazes looking at the vast crowd standing below.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace has arrived to send its congratulations," at that moment, a voice sounded from the foot of the mountain. The White Cloud City Lord Bai Gu and Zhuge Qingfeng both stood there, watching in the distance. Soon, they saw many figures walking towards them. The person at the front was the third on the Barren Sky Ranking, Liu Chan. Beside him were the Tianxing Palace Lord and Sage Zhusong.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Liu Chan. The Holy Zhi Palace had personally come to witness this grand event!

 664 Proposal

    At that moment, there were countless gazes on Liu Chan apart from Ye Futian''s. The Sage Palace''s Assistant Palace Lord was now the acting Main Palace Lord for the Holy Zhi Palace. His Will could almost represent the Holy Zhi Palace''s Will. Moreover, everyone knew what Liu Chan''s arrival meant��this marriage would bind the three strongest factions in the Barren State together.


    Even the White Cloud City Lord and Zhuge Qingfeng stood up to welcome Liu Chan. Although Liu Chan was only Bai Luli''s master, he was also Bai Gu and Zhuge Qingfeng''s Uncle-Master, so they had to abide by the seniority. To be precise, the majority of the people at the event were Liu Chan''s juniors.


    Liu Chan walked to a location and stopped. The crowd''s gaze immediately followed and saw him turn slowly and look at Ye Futian. Ye Futian was also surprised, he had not expected Liu Chan to look towards him. Sage Zhusong must have told Liu Chan about the incident that happened a month ago.


    "You have already obtained permission to enter the Sage Hall. You should be doing your best to raise and break through your cultivation level now. Do not let irrelevant matters affect your cultivation. After today, return to the Palace and cultivate in seclusion. Try to break through to the Sage Plane as soon as possible." Liu Chan continued, "Yu Sheng, you too. After the two of you go back, I will call for a Six Palace meeting to discuss allowing Yu Sheng to enter the Sage Hall and cultivate." After he said that, Liu Chan did not wait for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s reply before turning around and continuing forward. Zhuge Qingfeng and Bai Gu gave him the seat of honor. Be it his Barren Sky Ranking or his seniority, Liu Chan was deserving of the seat.


    Many people looked towards Ye Futian. They naturally understood the meaning of Liu Chan''s words. Ye Futian had not behaved as he should have, but the Holy Zhi Palace still valued him highly and gave their best efforts to groom him.


    Ye Futian looked at Liu Chan''s back. If the wedding between Bai Luli and Second Sister today did not exist, Liu Chan would be an elder worthy of respect. Although he was from the Sage Palace, his magnanimity was way beyond a normal person. However, on Bai Luli''s matters, Liu Chan and his stance were on opposing ends. Moreover, they stood firmly on their sides and could not be wavered. He could not persuade Liu Chan and vice versa, so they were stuck in a deadlock.


    Liu Chan sat on the seat of honor and looked at the sky before declaring, "Let the feast begin."


    "Okay." Zhuge Qingfeng nodded, then waved his hand. Immediately, everyone took their seats and the servants and maidservants from the Zhuge Family started to get busy. Today''s feast was likely to be one of the grandest in the Barren State.


    Not far away, a figure quietly arrived, it was Zhuge Mingyue.


    Zhuge Mingyue was exceptionally beautiful today. The usual plain robes that she was used to wearing had been replaced by an elaborate dress which complemented her figure perfectly. With a touch of makeup, she was ravishingly beautiful and immediately attracted everyone''s attention.


    Zhuge Mingyue was originally a stunning beauty, but now she looked even more beautiful. Many people were stunned at her beauty, then looked at the handsome Bai Luli and thought, what a perfect couple.


    Ye Futian looked at the ravishing beauty and felt his heartstrings tugging. At that moment, his second sister was so beautiful. She had a faint smile on her face, but there was a semblance of sadness and determination in her eyes. Would it really end up like in the letter? If his Third Brother did not come, Ye Futian did not know what Second Sister would do. Knowing her personality, would she really end up with Bai Luli?


    Today''s engagement banquet was already Third Brother''s final chance.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked around at the crowd then said, "Today, all of you have traveled long distances to be here. Zhuge Qingfeng thanks all of you for your presence. I will skip the formalities, please enjoy the feast and don''t hold back. Many of us are old friends and have not met for many years. I did not expect that we would be reunited here today, let''s have a toast." As he said that, he raised his glass and said, "After you."


    The crowd all raised their glasses and finished their wine.


    As the wine glasses were placed down, the atmosphere started to hype up. The Vermillion Bird Sect Leader smiled and said, "Age is catching up to me. I did not expect that the younger generation would already be this outstanding. On today''s feast, I can almost see the end of our generation and the younger generation starting to take over us."


    The Vermillion Bird Sect was an elite faction in the Barren State''s Northeast Region. The Sect Leader was an expert, 37th on the Barren Sky Ranking, so he naturally had the right to represent his generation.


    "Indeed, seeing Bai Luli makes me feel as though a new era is upon us. Today''s Crouching Dragon Feast has gathered the entire Barren State, in fact, we have gathered not only to support the event, but also to witness the arrival of a new era," another expert on the Barren Sky Ranking said emotionally.


    "In reality, back when Bai Luli made it to tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking, I felt as though our era was about to end. Looking at all these people from the younger generation, they might look unfamiliar now, but the Barren Sky Ranking''s elite figures are all definitely here," another person laughed and said.


    Many people looked at the younger generation. Many of the experts on the Barren Sky Ranking had brought their descendants here today. There were those who had already entered the Sage Plane and experts within the Noble Plane who were rising up quickly.


    "Who do you think among the next generation will be able to dominate the Barren State state?" someone asked jestingly.


    "Bai Luli has been proclaimed to have the potential to become a Saint. If he actually does it one day, everyone else''s efforts will become meaningless," someone smiled and replied. Now that Bai Luli''s Saint potential had been publicized, everyone knew the purpose of this marriage.


    "Although Bai Luli has the potential to become a Saint, there are many geniuses among the younger generation. The future is unknown, nobody knows who will lead the Barren State in the future," the Sovereign Family''s Huang Xi said nonchalantly. As fifth on the Barren Sky Ranking, he was long-time rivals with the White Cloud City Lord, so he naturally did not feel that his Sovereign Family''s descendants would be weaker than Bai Luli. For example, Huang Jiuge had exceptional potential and an enduring mindset.


    "Time will tell," the White Cloud City Lord looked at Huang Xi and replied. When two elite figures met, they also opposed each other without giving way.


    "The Sovereign Family''s Huang Jiuge is also a genius of the generation. However, he was unable to come in first in the Holy Zhi Palace''s admission examination," The White Cloud City''s Yun Clan Leader had also arrived and said flippantly, intentionally targeting Huang Xi. He was hinting that Huang Jiuge could not even obtain first in the Palace''s admission examination, thus how would he be qualified to command the Barren State?


    "Before the White Cloud City''s Bai Ze participated in the admission examination, I had also heard that he had a reputation as the second Bai Luli. Now, he has vanished among the masses. Time is indeed the best judge." Huang Xi said calmly, "Multiple incomparable talents can appear in their generation."


    "There are some people who were born prodigies, there''s no need to compare. Back then, Bai Luli crushed his generation and Ye Futian similarly dominated his generation. If Ye Futian is more outstanding, then those who were dominated by Ye Futian might end up becoming peerless in the future," Xu Shang said lazily.


    Many people looked at Ye Futian, some with admiration, others with hatred. Among the geniuses here today, there were too many who had been defeated by Ye Futian, the most famous among them being the Ximen Clan''s Ximen Hanjiang and Di Kai''s descendant, Di Gang from Alchemy City. As for Yan Jiu, Nan Hao, Bing Yi and the rest, Ye Futian had probably left them far behind now. Was Xu Shang trying to incite a conflict between the two prodigies by flattering Ye Futian like this? Everyone knew that Ye Futian was extremely unhappy with this marriage. He had publicly said that Bai Luli was not worthy of his Second Sister.


    "No matter who is more outstanding, they are both the Palace''s disciples. Xu Que is also the same, I have high hopes for them," Liu Chan said. Immediately, Xu Shang smiled and shut up; Liu Chan words still held much weight.


    "It''s time." Liu Chan looked at the sky and a glint appeared in Zhuge Qingfeng''s eyes. He looked at Ye Futian and nodded, saying, "They''re here."


    The White Cloud City Lord stood up and said, "Bring up the betrothal gifts." His voice was not loud, but it penetrated the area. In an instant, many figures at the foot of Crouching Dragon Mountain made their way up the mountain. These figures made their way up all the way until the feast and handed the betrothal gifts over.


    There were exotic treasures��elite Sage ritual implements, valuable pills, and strong secret methods indexes. There were 99 betrothal gifts and they were all priceless treasures. When the Zhuge Family''s people saw the scene, they all nodded delightedly. The White Cloud City had come with sincerity. This way, even if they took the Zhuge Family''s treasure, the Zhuge Family would not feel that shortchanged.


    Countless people sent their congratulations and it was a sight to behold. However, Ye Futian''s expression was exceptionally grim. Zhuge Mingyue looked at him nonchalantly, maintaining her expression as she occasionally glanced in the distance.


    "Brother Zhuge Family, I am here to officially propose marriage to the Zhuge Family on behalf of my son," the White Cloud City Lord said. Although both parties had already come to a consensus, he still needed to display the White Cloud City''s sincerity. For one, to highlight the White Cloud City''s magnanimity, and secondly, to give the Zhuge Family due respect.


    At the feast, countless people looked at Zhuge Qingfeng. As long as he accepted the betrothal gifts, the engagement would be considered complete.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at the betrothal gifts and surprisingly fell silent for a moment.


    "Wait a minute," at that moment, an abrupt voice sounded. A figure stood up from within the feast and everyone''s gazes landed on him.


    Ye Futian clenched his fists and was actually shivering.


    "Sit down," Liu Chan looked at Ye Futian and said in an imposing voice.


    Upon hearing Liu Chan''s voice, Ye Futian felt his entire body shiver, but he continued to stand firmly and raised his head, staring at Liu Chan with a determined expression, saying, "I object."


    "What insolence." Many people from the Zhuge Family raged at him.


    The White Cloud City Lord looked at Ye Futian with a frigid expression. In an instant, a terrifying pressure landed on Ye Futian.


    "We object as well." Xue Ye and Luo Fan stood up, striving to make their objections heard.


    "You two, sit down," You Chi chided them lightly.


    The current scenario would not care for a few young teens'' objections.


    A repressed aura started to spread throughout the grand feast.


    At that moment, an aura appeared at the foot of the mountain, as though a fight had broken out.


    Zhuge Qingfeng''s gaze moved towards the foot of the mountain, his eyes seemingly able to penetrate space itself. Over there, he saw a figure in white robes climbing up with resolution.


    In the end, he had still come.


    "Gu Dongliu has come to the Zhuge Family to propose marriage," the voice sounded through the air and throughout all of Crouching Dragon Mountain!

 665 On Crouching Dragon Mountain

    When the voice sounded on the Crouching Dragon Mountain, countless people looked in the same direction.


    Gu Dongliu had come to the Zhuge Family to ask for her hand in marriage.


    Today was the engagement between the White Cloud City''s Young City Lord Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue. The Zhuge Family had prepared the Crouching Dragon Feast, the entire Barren State had come forth to congratulate them, and the White Cloud City Lord had already given the betrothal gifts; however, there was someone who had come to ask for her hand in marriage now. Coming at this kind of time, they didn''t even need to think to know whose hand he was asking in marriage.


    Many people in the Barren State had heard that there was once a distinguished character that had challenged Bai Luli and left after being defeated. That battle was rumored to be for Zhuge Mingyue. And before this, Ye Futian and Xue Ye had stood up to oppose the marriage. It must have been for this person.


    Pairs of curious eyes looked across the air and saw a handsome white-robed scholar walking up step by step. His footsteps were not fast but each step of his had a mysterious tempo and was exceptionally steadfast. Soon, he had appeared at the feast and raised his head, looking forward.


    Everyone looked at the figure that had appeared. He had a face like a piece of jade and eyes that looked like stars. With his demeanor, he was already a remarkable figure. Facing countless geniuses from the Barren State, he had walked up to the Zhuge Family to propose marriage. His courage and boldness caused many people to secretly compliment him.


    "Third brother," Ye Futian and Xue Ye called out softly with smiles on their face. However, they did not know whether to be happy or sad. Under the current circumstance, although their third brother had come, could he really change anything?


    Zhuge Mingyue looked at the familiar face. Although five to six years had passed, he was still as dull as before but cute in its own way. He had finally come to the Zhuge Family and kept his promise. As long as he came, it was enough. At that moment, the glint in Zhuge Mingyue''s eyes appeared exceptionally brilliant.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at the figure, it was no wonder his daughter Zhuge Mingyue liked him. Such a dignified person. After being with him for years, it was only natural to fall in love with him. However, the White Cloud City Lord''s expression was grim, a frosty intent appearing within his deep black eyes.


    Asking for trouble. Bai Ze looked on indifferently. He had spread the news to lure Ye Futian to the Zhuge Family. He wanted to see how he would be embroiled in this storm and how he would get out unscathed. He was jealous of Ye Futian and also hated him. That was why he was excited to see Gu Dongliu come; it was the only way for Ye Futian to really sink. In today''s situation, whoever wanted to ruin the wedding ceremony was looking for trouble. Even if Ye Futian was the first on the Law Rank, he could not get away with it. Today''s marriage represented the Holy Zhi Palace''s will. Whoever took part in its ruin would pay the price.


    "Step down and I will not bother with you," Liu Chan said in an overbearing tone as his gaze landed on Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu raised his head and looked at Liu Chan. Those days in the Barren State, while he was on the run, he had also heard about the Zhuge Family, so he naturally knew the purpose of the joint marriage. The Holy Zhi Palace wanted to create a Saint and the person who had been chosen was Bai Luli. The entire Barren State supported the marriage except for his little brothers. However, it was to no avail. Zhuge Mingyue was naturally going to end up as a sacrifice.


    "Master once told me a story. He told me that there was once a Buddhist cultivator. He had reached a certain cultivation level and needed to experience more human emotions and experiences. He felt that if he cultivated step by step, he would need to travel too far and experience too many things. If he had that time, he would be able to give more people redemption and do more beneficial things," Gu Dongliu looked at Liu Chan and said. The crowd looked confused and did not know what Gu Dongliu meant by his words.


    "So, he took a shortcut and robbed others of their memories, using them to experience the lives of others. He successfully broke through his cultivation level, but the other person became a lifeless shell."


    Many people''s gazes lit up, seemingly knowing what Gu Dongliu wanted to say.


    "After he broke through his cultivation level, his state of mind faced obstacles again. He needed insight over more mortal affairs. Only by traveling a longer path could he strengthen his enlightenment. He felt that it was still a waste of time. At his current cultivation level, he could help more people with his abilities, so he plundered the memories of a hundred people to put his righteousness to practice.


    "As his cultivation level got higher, he started to dedicate himself to the plundering of others. He was respected by people and used Buddhist teachings to give others enlightenment. He felt that this was his righteousness. In the end, those who followed him in the cultivation of Buddhism all had their memories plundered and became puppets.


    "I would like to ask the elders present, is he a Buddha or a demon?" Gu Dongliu looked at Liu Chan and the rest. Even the influential figures were slightly moved by the story. They naturally understood the moral of the story; it was referring to today''s marriage.


    "He''s naturally a demon." Liu Chan stared at Gu Dongliu and replied, "The Barren State has no Saints. Bai Luli has the potential to become a Saint and succeed the Divine Path and protect the legacy of the Barren State. He has exceptional potential and is a match made in heaven with Zhuge Mingyue, congratulated by the entire Barren State. Who has been plundered here?"


    "Cultivation is about cultivating one''s mind. If you lie to even yourself, it is no wonder that the Barren State has no Saints." Gu Dongliu said emotionlessly, "If Mingyue and I die here today, then will you all be Buddhas or demons?"


    "Such insolence," an elder from the Zhuge Family berated him. Many people stood up and an oppressive aura was released towards Gu Dongliu, surrounding him.


    "If it is for righteousness, you should be able to sacrifice yourself and not others. If the Zhuge Family wants the Barren State to create a Saint, they can offer up the treasure. If the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City want to create a Saint, they can snatch it." Gu Dongliu continued, "Perhaps to you, that is evil and this is righteousness." As he said that, he laughed mockingly at himself. He was a reasonable person, but he also understood that today, these people would not reason with him. After all, reason was not as strong as the fist.


    As his gaze turned, he looked towards Zhuge Mingyue and a smile appeared in his star-like eyes as he said, "Sorry for making you wait six years."


    "It''s fine," Zhuge Mingyue smiled brilliantly and replied.


    "Are you willing to leave with me?" Gu Dongliu asked.


    "You still owe me something," Zhuge Mingyue said.


    Gu Dongliu looked at her, then smiled and said, "I like you."


    Zhuge Mingyue''s smile became even more brilliant. Her wedding robes appeared to have been worn just for this moment.


    "Me too, blockhead." Zhuge Mingyue stood up and the sunlight reflected off her face. At that moment, she was unbelievably beautiful.


    At the feast, there was only silence apart from their conversation. Everyone stared blankly at this scene, even the influential figures. They were also feeling uneasy. They felt as though they were looking at a sad yet beautiful love story.


    This time, the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City seemed to be the evil ones.


    Ye Futian watched all this unfold and felt his eyes become watery. Beside him, Hua Jieyu had tears in her eyes while Beitang Xing''er had already started to cry. Second Sister had waited for this moment for very long, and Third Brother was finally willing to say the words. However, what were they to do in today''s situation?


    "Good, very good indeed," in one of the seats in the feast, a monk''s palms closed together as he said. His appearance was solemn and had traces of Divine will, and he had a look of admiration and praise when he looked towards Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue.


    Zhuge Mingyue''s skirt reached the floor as she elegantly walked step by step towards Gu Dongliu. The White Cloud City Lord''s expression was extremely grim.


    "Mingyue," an elder from the Zhuge Family shouted. Zhuge Mingyue''s footsteps stopped and she heard him call out, "Do you know what you are doing?"


    "Of course I do, I''ve known clearly what I want to do," Zhuge Mingyue smiled and replied.


    "You have agreed to the marriage and the entire Barren State has come forth to congratulate you. Now, you are doing this, what do you think the Zhuge Family and the White Cloud City''s reputations will become?" The elder had a cold tone and there was a pressure emanating from him.


    "Have I ever objected?" Zhuge Mingyue looked at him and replied, "If I objected, would you all disagree to the marriage?"


    The other party''s expression froze. Zhuge Mingyue had objected before indeed. In fact, she had done so many years ago and even left home to prove it.


    "Have you all given me any choice?" Zhuge Mingyue continued asking, "Since none of you have cared about how I feel, then why should I care what happens to all of you?"


    The members of the Zhuge Family stared at Zhuge Family, then turned their cold gazes to Gu Dongliu and said, "Take him down."


    A few elders from the Zhuge Family released horrifying auras and stepped forward. At that moment, Ye Futian moved in a flash beside Gu Dongliu. Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, Xue Ye, and the others also stood up and moved beside Gu Dongliu. Even You Xi also walked out.


    "Go back." You Chi''s expression was sour. What were these fellows doing?


    "Father-in-law, there is no compromise for this issue," Xue Ye replied. He turned to You Xi and said, "You go back."


    You Xi was still pregnant.


    "Isn''t your third brother my third brother as well?" You Xi smiled at Xue Ye and replied. Xue Ye felt warm inside and grabbed his wife''s hand. Although she was the daughter of the Alchemy City Lord and nobody dared to touch her, she was willing to step out with him under these circumstances. How could he not be touched?


    "Today, I''m the one proposing marriage, why are you all adding on to the trouble?" Gu Dongliu looked at the people standing beside him and asked.


    Ye Futian smiled brilliantly and asked him, "Third Brother, do you think we''re considered the groom''s family or the bride''s family?"


    Gu Dongliu was taken aback and replied, smiling, "Such a glib tongue."


    "Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, do you all understand what you are doing?" the Tianxing Palace Lord looked at Ye Futian''s group and asked. This matter was the Palace''s Will. Now, these Palace disciples were standing on the opposing side of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Before I came, I asked my Master. My Master also agreed to my being here. Although I am a disciple of the Palace, before that, I am a cultivator, so I naturally need to follow my heart. The Palace''s Will can be wrong sometimes as well," Ye Futian looked at Sage Tianxing and replied.


    "I have said that later, you and Yu Sheng can enter the Sage Hall to cultivate. What the two of you should be doing now is cultivating," Liu Chan looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng and said.


    "Then I will not enter the Sage Hall." Ye Futian looked at Liu Chan and replied, "On the Divine Path, I do not require any external help!"

 666 Expulsion

    Liu Chan stared at Ye Futian. If it was any other Palace disciple who dared to rebel against his will, he would not care. However, he was Ye Futian, the first on the Law Rank. He had personally organized a discussion by the six Palaces to permit him into the Sage Hall to cultivate. Evidently, he had high hopes for Ye Futian. He had hoped that Ye Futian would be able to become like Bai Luli in the future or even stand side-by-side with Bai Luli. Now, he was a little disappointed in Ye Futian. Although it was not wrong for Ye Futian to have his own stance, compared to the Barren State having a Saint, all personal opinions were insignificant.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace is the Barren State''s holy land of cultivation. Cultivating in the Palace, there are no rules to abide by; you can do whatever you want and the Palace will not interfere." Sage Tianxing''s gaze landed on Ye Futian as he continued, "However, that is just one rule that all Holy Zhi Palace disciples must follow. The Will of the Palace is absolute, all personal Wills must make way in front of the Palace''s Will. Not just the disciples, but even the elders and the Palace Lords must abide by it. In today''s matter, you have already violated the Palace''s Will."


    "What if the Palace''s Will is wrong?" Ye Futian looked at Sage Tianxing and asked


    "Every personal Will in the Palace may be wrong, but the Palace''s Will will never be wrong," Sage Tianxing said decisively.


    Ye Futian looked at Sage Tianxing, then looked at his third brother and second sister, then said with resolution, "However, this time, I firmly believe that the Palace''s Will is wrong."


    Sage Tianxing looked towards Liu Chan. Liu Chan asked, "I''ll ask you one last time, will you step down?"


    "No." Ye Futian''s tone was still certain with no hesitation.


    "Alright." Liu Chan replied, "Tianxing Palace Lord is in charge of the punishments in the Palace. What is the punishment for violating the Palace''s Will and confronting one''s elders?"


    "Expulsion," The Tianxing Palace Lord replied.


    "Since you are so arrogant, from now on, you are no longer a disciple of the Palace." Liu Chan looked at Ye Futian and said calmly, but there was a tinge of anguish in his heart. Even so, his Will was exceptionally resolute. The Barren State needed a Saint and Bai Luli had already obtained the Sage Hall''s teachings in the Sage Hall. Now, the Holy Zhi Palace had placed supporting Bai Luli to the Saint level as its top priority. This was also his brother''s final wish for the Barren State to have a Saint. For this, all sacrifices were necessary.


    At the feast, the influential figures stared at Liu Chan with uneasy hearts. The Law Rank first, Ye Futian, had been expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace. Liu Chan was probably agonizing over doing this. However, in the current situation, Ye Futian had resolved to be on Gu Dongliu''s side. This also meant that he would be opposing the Palace''s Will. Similarly, he was opposing Bai Luli. This was a fact that could not be changed, so Liu Chan had to make a choice.


    Liu Chan must have been extremely unwilling to make such a choice. After all, prodigies like Ye Futian, including Bai Luli''s generation, had only appeared twice to thrice. The Holy Zhi Palace had never expelled any of its Law Rank firsts. Ye Futian had created an unprecedented feat.


    Sitting at the side, Bai Ze had a smirk on his face. Ye Futian had been expelled by the Palace and was now a forsaken disciple.


    "Uncle-Master, the wedding can be discussed. Be prudent about this," Zhuge Qingfeng said. He had personally witnessed Ye Futian revealing his potential, but the progression of matters was outside his control. Everything was already in place and it could not be stopped simply by him. He also knew how firm the Palace''s Will was this time. He had thought that after this matter was over, he would look for Liu Chan to have a good chat. At least, he wanted them to wait for Ye Futian for another year. However, Ye Futian was now on opposing sides with Liu Chan. The two of them were equally obstinate and firmly held their own stance. They were both unable to convince the other, so today''s scenario had been created.


    Ye Futian had been expelled. Zhuge Qingfeng naturally understood what it meant.


    "I have already asked him three times," Liu Chan replied. He had expelled Ye Futian not just because Ye Futian had violated the Palace''s Will, but also because today''s incident meant that he would be on opposing ends with Bai Luli. The Holy Zhi Palace needed to be accountable to Bai Luli.


    Who was hurt the hardest when all this happened?


    Without a doubt, Bai Luli. He was a genius, tenth of the Barren Sky Ranking, but today, Gu Dongliu had stepped onto the Crouching Dragon Mountain to ruin his marriage. Zhuge Mingyue had agreed to leave with him in front of everyone without a shred of hesitation.


    "What about you all?" Liu Chan looked at Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and Yi Xiaoshi.


    "We will stand where he stands," Yu Sheng replied.


    Hua Jieyu looked at Liu Chan and held Ye Futian''s hand, walking side by side. She did not need to say anything more.


    "Very well." Liu Chan took a deep breath and said, "From today onwards, all of you are no longer disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace."


    At that moment, the Crouching Dragon Feast appeared to be exceptionally quiet and repressed. The Law Rank first and second, as well as a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, had all been expelled. From this, they could see how deep Liu Chan''s obsession with the Barren State having a Saint was.


    Ye Futian looked at Liu Chan, then bowed towards him. He then raised his head and said, "I have learned much in my three years of cultivating in the Palace. If this matter can be resolved, I will definitely not treat the Palace as my enemy."


    In the three years of cultivation, the Palace had left lasting memories on him. Even if he was expelled, he had no grudge against the Palace apart from this incident. He only felt that the Palace was wrong this time and he maintained his stand.


    The crowd heard Ye Futian''s words and was moved. However, this matter could not be resolved that easily.


    Xu Que and Huang Jiuge looked at the figure and could not help it. Xu Que had already reminded Ye Futian in fear that he might be rash. However, there was no way for him to persuade him for he was already embroiled within.


    The Zhuge Family''s experts stepped forward. Since Ye Futian''s group had already been expelled from the Palace, they no longer had any reservations.


    "Step down," a commanding voice sounded, causing many people to be astonished.


    As their gazes turned, they stared dumbfounded at the person who had spoken. It was the Zhuge Family Lord, Zhuge Qingfeng. The Zhuge Family''s experts had confused expressions. Their Family Lord had ordered them to step down.


    At the feast, many people had confused expressions. Could it be that Zhuge Qingfeng was still in distress over his daughter?


    "Qingfeng," an elder in the Zhuge Family called out to him. He had more seniority than Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "Little Brother, what do you mean by doing this?" The White Cloud City Lord stood there, the robes on his body shaking in the wind and his body emanating a terrifying aura. He did not look at Zhuge Qingfeng, but before that, when Zhuge Qingfeng had tried persuading Liu Chan to be prudent, he could already feel Zhuge Qingfeng''s attitude. It had seemed different from what he had expected.


    Liu Chan''s gaze also looked towards Zhuge Qingfeng. He naturally felt it as well; Zhuge Qingfeng was wavering.


    "Since it''s a matter between the youngsters, let them settle it themselves." Zhuge Qingfeng''s expression was calm and did not show much emotion, as though he had already thought about it clearly. Since the matter had already come to this, he naturally had to have his own stance. Under such a scenario, any decision of his would change the lives of many people: his daughter Zhuge Mingyue, Ye Futian, Gu Dongliu.


    Every one of these peoples'' lives were now in his hands. He was the only one who could cause a change in the situation. This was Crouching Dragon Mountain, and he was the owner of Crouching Dragon Mountain. Perhaps, this was the reason why Ye Futian had looked for him yesterday. He had understood and so had Ye Futian. After Ye Futian had said what he wanted to say yesterday, he had left. The final decision was still left up to him.


    "Luli, what do you think about this matter?" Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Bai Luli, who had been sitting there all the while.


    At that moment, countless gazes landed on Bai Luli. He was the star of today. Zhuge Mingyue should have been engaged to him, but Gu Dongliu coming to Crouching Dragon Mountain and the conversation between the two of them had caused Bai Luli to lose all his reputation.


    At that moment, Bai Luli stood up and slowly walked forward. Under everyone''s gazes, Bai Luli looked at Zhuge Mingyue.


    "If you were not willing, you could have disagreed previously. Why did you have to do this?" Bai Luli asked. His Master, father, the Holy Zhi Palace, and the White Cloud City all hoped that he would end up with Zhuge Mingyue. He understood the responsibility that he had and he also liked Zhuge Mingyue. That was why he naturally agreed to the marriage.


    "Did you ever ask me if I agreed?" Zhuge Mingyue looked at Bai Luli and asked.


    Bai Luli shook his head. He had never asked the question.


    "You are the Barren State''s genius of the generation, everyone has high hopes for you. You are tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking and are unrivaled in the State, so everyone feels that this marriage is only natural. You are too perfect, but everything in existence has its flaws, so I don''t like you. Even if the entire Barren State feels that I should marry you, I dislike you. Even if he did not come, I would not marry you," she continued saying.


    Bai Luli quietly listened to Zhuge Mingyue words, then silently replied, "I understand now." As he said that, he had a self-mocking smile. The marriage that the entire Barren State supported was nothing but a farce from the beginning.


    "You''re right, everything in existence has its flaws. I am also not a perfect person." Bai Luli looked at Zhuge Mingyue and continued, "So, even though I can understand you, I cannot forgive you." As he said that, he started walking forward. As he took a step forward, he said, "That is why, I, Bai Luli, insist on taking you as my wife." As his voice landed, he looked towards Gu Dongliu and said, "As for the person who ruined my marriage, I naturally cannot forgive him."


    A tyrannical aura emitted from Bai Luli as he stepped in Gu Dongliu''s direction. The Zhuge Family''s elders all gave way as they saw this scene and created a path for him.


    Feeling the pressure from Bai Luli, Ye Futian''s group all had stern expressions. At that moment, Gu Dongliu stepped forward and shielded them. He faced Bai Luli''s gaze head-on and replied, "Let''s go up." As his voice landed, his body flew through the clouds and landed in the area above Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    Bai Luli raised his head and looked, then moved in a flash and flew into the air!

 667 The Battle Between Gu and Bai

    The two figures flew into the air above Crouching Dragon Mountain. They were both in the Sage Plane, so the impact of their battle would be extremely terrifying. If they battled on Crouching Dragon Mountain, the destruction caused would be too great.


    Countless people raised their heads and looked into the air. They saw an invisible current flowing around both their bodies. The Spiritual Qi in the air started to rampage and the winds bellowed. Imposing currents flowed down from the heavens and a Sage Plane might crushed down from the air.


    "Seeking death." The White Cloud City Lord''s expression was ruthless. Disregarding their potential, there was already a difference in cultivation level between Gu Dongliu and Bai Luli. What kind of battle would it be? If it had not been for Bai Luli stepping out, he would not have let Bai Luli fight with Gu Dongliu, and would have executed Gu Dongliu immediately. After today''s incident, what would be left of White Cloud City''s reputation?


    "Why go to such an extent?" Many influential figures looked into the air and sighed. A few years ago, Gu Dongliu had challenged Bai Luli when he had entered the Sage Plane and lost, but Bai Luli had not pursued the matter. This time, even with Bai Luli''s refinement, he was evidently enraged. Today was his engagement. He had been watched by the entire world and the entire Barren State had sent their congratulations. However, he was now a laughingstock. Just like he said, he could understand Zhuge Mingyue, but he could not forgive her. Thus, he had walked out.


    "Third Brother." Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the battle in the air. Bai Luli was famous throughout the land. Even with his third brother''s exceptional potential, he still had no confidence in this battle.


    Yesterday, he had gone to look for Zhuge Qingfeng. Evidently, Zhuge Qingfeng had been moved and was willing to help him, but he could not stop Bai Luli from stepping in unless he wanted to start a war with White Cloud City. Moreover, there were people from the Palace around as well.


    "Bai Luli is already a high-level sage while Gu Dongliu is only a mid-level sage. The outcome of this battle is quite obvious," the Alchemy City Lord You Chi said. He looked at Xue Ye, seemingly trying to hint for them not to have too high hopes.


    Ye Futian clenched his fists. The Sage Plane was split into three levels: sage, magi, archmage. Every level was then split into low, mid, and high level. Bai Luli was a high-level sage while his third brother was only a mid-level sage, so there was already a divide in cultivation level.


    Back then in the Eastern Barren Territory, Gu Dongliu had defeated Lu Nantian, a Grade One Noble when he was only a Grade Two Noble. However, although his opponent was also one of the Eastern Barren Territory''s geniuses, his opponent this time was much stronger��the Barren State''s Bai Luli.


    In the air, Bai Luli''s eyes turned gray. In an instant, the vast area was enveloped by an invisible rule power. Everything in the heavens appeared to be controlled by Bai Luli.


    "The Eye of Devastation." Ye Futian recalled the time when he had battled Bai Ze in the Palace''s admission examination. Bai Ze''s Life Spirit was the Eye of Devastation and the spell scroll; Bai Luli was evidently much stronger than Bai Ze.


    At that moment, an invisible gray hand lashed out towards Gu Dongliu, attempting to invade his Spiritual Will and take control of his body. However, at that moment, Gu Dongliu''s eyes also became especially brilliant. An overbearing Eye Sorcery light gleamed. The light actually created a divine Spiritual Will that blocked off Gu Dongliu''s Spiritual Will attack.


    Gu Dongliu and Bai Luli were both Spirit Elemental cultivators and both excelled in Eye Sorcery. Back in the Eastern Barren Territory, when he descended on the Qin Dynasty, he had rendered the Qin Dynasty''s experts immobile with just a glance.


    In the air, the two of them created a terrifying force field around them. The winds billowed as their Spiritual Wills formed force fields and the entire Crouching Dragon Mountain could feel the might of the force field.


    The invisible gray hand appeared to become corporeal and smashed towards Gu Dongliu''s body, covering the skies in an unstoppable fashion. Suddenly, a brilliant light appeared behind Gu Dongliu, it was an ancient character: Lin. The giant ancient character had a sacred glow, like a celestial light. It shone on Gu Dongliu''s body, causing his Spiritual Will to become even more powerful. Rays of spiritual light clashed with the giant hand and it finally exploded into nothingness. However, the overbearing pressure was still permeating the air.


    Under the Eye of Devastation, it had become a deathly space. Back then, when Bai Ze released his Life Spirit, his opponents could not even cast spells. Bai Luli''s would only be scarier. However, at that moment, Bai Luli stretched out both his hands and divine lightning struck down from the skies. Countless lightning rays scattered down and Bai Luli bathed within, then the lightning started to move in eight directions. Instantly, the lightning rays gathered like snakes in the skies toward eight locations, sealing off the eight directions. Then, they turned into a shadow of the Thunder God, standing in the air, as though the real Thunder God had descended. Bai Luli''s outstretched arms had lightning intent on them, flowing through the air, guiding the eight Thunder Gods to seal off the area, with Gu Dongliu in the center of the area.


    Feeling the destructive power in the skies, Ye Futian''s heart pounded vigorously. Was this the strength of a Sage Plane expert? Their spells were too powerful.


    Hua Jieyu and Zhuge Mingyue also looked at the air, worrying for Gu Dongliu. Bai Luli was simply too strong. Even the influential figures from the elite factions looked into the air. Bai Luli, the most prodigious person in the Barren State, had the potential to become a Saint. His talent had overshadowed the entire State.


    Di Gang, Li Futu, and the others of the younger generation figures all looked into the air as well. Bai Luli was the benchmark for all of the Barren State''s teens. He was the symbol of their generation, so they naturally wanted to watch him in action. This gentle and refined genius. How imposing would he be when he was angered?


    The terrifying lightning sealed off the air and the moving lightning rays had even turned pure white like light. However, there was a dark color hidden within them; it was the power of destruction. It was evidently not a simple lightning element spell, but one that had strong rule power fused into its offense.


    Gu Dongliu''s gaze was as calm as always. Although he knew how strong Bai Luli was in his heart, he had already experienced it in their battle a few years ago. Otherwise, he would not have left the Barren State and gone to the other States, crossing countless regions. It was only until a few years later that he had wanted to return and secretly check on Zhuge Mingyue. However, the news that awaited him upon his return was the marriage that the entire Barren State was anticipating.


    Gu Dongliu released his Life Spirit behind himself and a celestial shadow appeared, surrounded by nine words: Lin, Bing, Dou, Zhe, Jie, Zhen, Lie, Qian, Xing. Each ancient character released a divine glow and had its own unique, powerful aura.


    Gu Dongliu raised his head and looked into the air. Around his body, figures of war gods appeared. The nine war gods were summoned and surrounded his body. Standing in nine locations, each war god had one of the nine words on them. Next, the nine war gods actually resonated and a devastating force emanated from them. The nine war gods resonating created an absolutely divine sight, surrounding the entire area with countless ancient characters surrounding a light screen.


    Divine, strong, absolute.


    "Thousand Direction Strike," Bai Luli said in a cold voice. The eight Thunder Gods struck out with strong attacks, and at that moment, unlimited destructive light rushed towards a single direction towards Gu Dongliu''s body. However, Gu Dongliu''s body had resonated with the nine war gods that he had summoned, and the protective light screen created by the nine words released a blinding light. Then, the ancient characters flew into the air towards the destructive lightning spell in an endless wave.


    Rays of destructive light were emitted, and in an instant, countless ancient characters were reduced to dust. However, when the spell landed on the light screen, it only caused a crack to appear on it and could not break through.


    What a strong defense. Many people could feel the offensive strength and were shocked. With Bai Luli''s strength, they could imagine how forceful the Thousand Direction Strike he cast was. Even those in the same cultivation level as him would probably be defeated in one hit, but Gu Dongliu had blocked his attack with only the cultivation level of a mid-level sage. His potential was also among the Barren State''s elite geniuses.


    Many people thought about Ye Futian, Zhuge Mingyue, and Xue Ye. They were all disciples from the same master and were all prodigies. Back then, the Eastern Barren Territory''s Cottage was indeed a mysterious place. The Cottage''s master was probably also a prodigious figure, otherwise, the Great Emperor''s men would not have personally descended to bring him away.


    In the air, a terrifying glow lit up all of Crouching Dragon Mountain. At that moment, there were countless figures outside the Crouching Dragon Mountain who had all wanted to witness the Barren State''s most anticipated marriage but did not have the right to enter the Zhuge Family. However, at this moment, countless people outside Crouching Dragon Mountain were watching the scene in the distance in awe. In the air, a shocking battle had erupted and they could feel the dominant aura clearly even from an extremely far distance.


    "That''s Bai Luli," someone said, astounded. "What happened on Crouching Dragon Mountain?"


    Today was Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue''s engagement, but he was actually battling someone. It was evidently not a simple spar.


    "Who is Bai Luli''s opponent?" Many people looked at Gu Dongliu, the handsome white-robed scholar with glaring light around his body. He was also a prodigy, or he would not be able to battle with Bai Luli.


    "Gu Dongliu," someone replied. "Previously, someone had heard a voice at the foot of the mountain. Gu Dongliu entered the Zhuge Family to propose marriage."


    "Who is Gu Dongliu?" someone asked. There was someone trying to ruin the marriage at this juncture?


    "Back then, he had challenged Bai Luli for Zhuge Mingyue. Moreover, he is also the brother of the Holy Zhi Palace''s Law Rank first, Ye Futian," somebody who knew the details explained. The news spread at a breakneck pace. Not long ago, Xuanwu City had a rumor that Ye Futian did not approve of the marriage. It seemed like it was because of his brother, now that such a conflict had erupted, what was the Law Rank first Ye Futian going to do?


    More and more people rushed towards the Zhuge Family on Crouching Dragon Mountain, watching the battle in the air. Over there, Thunder Gods stood tall among the heavens and Gu Dongliu had summoned nine war gods and was surrounded by nine ancient characters. What a breathtaking sight. Most people would hardly come by a battle of this level in their lifetime.

 668 Godly Creation of All Things

    In the air above Crouching Dragon Mountain, Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu fought. The Thousand Direction Strike fell straight down and cracks became more and more apparent. The Light of Nine Words carried intense mystical powers, so much so that it was capable of repairing the cracks. More and more Spiritual Qi flowed into the Light of Nine Words from the surroundings, enabling it to shine with undying light.


    Bai Luli remained unfazed. While he knew that Gu Dongliu was an extraordinary figure possessing exceptional talents, Bai Luli nonetheless possessed the edge in Plane difference. As such, there was little to be left to the imagination with that battle.


    It was not that Bai Luli was being reckless; it was that he was the most notable figure of his generation in Barren State, one possessing the potential to become a saint and a symbol of an era. As such, he needed to have that much confidence.


    Unending Godly Thunder coursed throughout Bai Luli''s body. He glanced at the airspace above Gu Dongliu for a bit. The Eye of Devastation controlled unlimited power in their surroundings, enabling the coalescence of appalling power right above Gu Dongliu. The light from the nine shadows of thunder gods stopped attacking Gu Dongliu and was instead focused on locking down the battlefield. Unending powers flowed to one low point. At that very moment, the shadow of a giant like a true ancient god appeared, just like a saint.


    "Godly Creation of All Things." Sparkles were seen in the eyes of many great figures from the Holy Zhi Palace. It was a super-powerful ability of the Holy Zhi Palace, one passed down in Sage Hall. Bai Luli entered the Sage Hall long ago, and it was said that he attained the acknowledgment and lineage of the Sage Hall, which was why the Holy Zhi Palace saw him to be the successor and the next palace lord. Every single will of the Holy Zhi Palace had Bai Luli becoming a saint in mind, paving the way for him to do so. Godly Creation of All Things was a super-powerful offensive technique, but it was also a frightening defensive technique packed with tremendous power.


    The shadow, which looked like an ancient god, stood tall in the air, holding a Heaven-shaking Divine Hammer. Devastating light rained downward. A terrifying gravitational pressure bore down on everything below. Even in their banquet seat of Crouching Dragon Mountain, everyone was still able to sense the terrifying power of the pressure.


    "Third Brother." Xue Ye''s expression changed. The pressure was simply too powerful. Luo Fan turned rather pale as well.


    Ye Futian felt a shudder within. When Gu Dongliu and Lu Nantian fought, Xue Ye and Luo Fan were incredibly confident, not worrying that their Third Brother might end up losing at all. Right here and now, however, neither of them had any of that confidence. There might have been many who bore great titles yet had little to show for it, but when a person was able to become a true master of something, to make it to the pinnacle and become a symbol of his generation, that person would definitely not be one with a great name but little to show for it. Such a person would truly possess immeasurably terrifying solid skills and powers. And Bai Luli indeed possessed the power of the lineage of a saint.


    Gu Dongliu felt the terrifying might. Light of the Nine Words coalesced in a crazed manner around him. Fearsome sword will burst from within his body. Endless sword will coalesced as if the energies between the heavens and the earth gushed at him. A terrifying sword image appeared around him, which looked like a greatsword. Streaks of sword will whipped about, circling his body.


    A giant sword appeared right before Gu Dongliu.


    The Light of the Nine Words flowed in a crazed manner at the giant sword. The rules of its surroundings resonated with it. The giant sword was a hundred meters long. It pierced through the air and shot for the heavens. Gu Dongliu was also one who was versed in multiple disciplines. Spiritual arts, summons, sword, mudra, and speed; he was versed in all of them.


    "The sword can easily cut through a common mid-level sage," the great figures below all felt the terrifying energies within the sword as they commented. Gu Dongliu was a figure like no other at the moment. However, it was unfortunate that he met Bai Luli on that day. Bai Luli, who attained the lineage of the Sage Hall, was peerless throughout the Barren State. Among the younger generations, only Ye Futian possessed the potential to fight toe-to-toe with him.


    While Bai Luli was just in the Sage Plane, his combat capacity at the moment allowed him to fight some magi.


    The power of the Heaven-shaking Divine Hammer felt frightening in the skies. The ancient, god-like shadow moved and brought the hammer down. At that very moment, everyone felt as if they were being put under lockdown by some unbearable pressure, and it seemed that even speed would not have helped much in escaping that pressure.


    A rainbow pierced the heavens and the giant sword was brought to bear with endless divine might. The weapon was brought down in an instant without any regard for the distance between it and the target. The air around the sword seemed as if it was being split apart. The strike brought appalling might with it. However, when the hammer of that ancient god struck, blinding halos burst in the air. Everyone kept their eyes on the scene in the air. They saw the giant sword literally falling apart. The divine hammer continued to be brought down to bear on its surroundings with unstoppable force.


    There was little to nothing to be seen from the changes in Gu Dongliu''s expression. Covered with holy light, the nine gods of war surrounded the ancient word while lashing out with palm prints. The Junlin Mudra, Jingang Mudra, Potian Mudra, Douzhan Mudra�� Nine Mudras were lashed out at the air before them, taking the form of nine incredibly huge palm prints.


    Boom, boom, boom�� The Heaven-shaking Divine Hammer destroyed everything in its path. All mudras fell apart. The hammer was then brought down on the screen of the nine words, and multiple cracks formed on it under that tremendous pressure. It was soon completely shattered. The hands of the nine gods met the hammer itself eventually, stopping its advances. However, Gu Dongliu fell down like a bolt of lightning.


    Bam. A loud rumble was heard and Gu Dongliu stepped on the middle of the banquet at Crouching Dragon Mountain. Everything around him was destroyed that very second. Many great figures set up defenses of light, stopping the shockwave of the move from spreading too far. Many were able to see that the ground that Gu Dongliu stepped on shattered. His body was slightly bent and blood was seen from the corner of his mouth.


    "Third Brother." Ye Futian and the rest of his party were stunned as they looked at figure dressed in white before them.


    "That is just too powerful." Many turned their heads up to look at Bai Luli in the air. That silhouette stood proud in the air for all to see, be it inside or out of Crouching Dragon Mountain. It exuded the air of an absolute champion, a sight to behold for all in Barren State. He would have pummeled anyone from the same plane as he. It went without saying that he was not going to lose that fight, as he was fighting Gu Dongliu, someone of a lower plane. Bringing the massive offensive capacity afforded by the lineage of the saint to bear was the greatest acknowledgment he demonstrated for Gu Dongliu''s abilities.


    "How is that b*stard so powerful?" Even Long Ling''er looked rather unwell. Gu Dongliu was Ye Futian''s senior and it was a given whose side she was on.


    Long Ao and his wife glanced at the girl before turning their attention back at that figure standing proud in the air. Bai Luli ranked tenth on Barren Sky Ranking as a sage, and he managed to do so with his extraordinary talents and incredible frightening potential. How could he not be so powerful?


    While both had only attacked each other several times in that battle, it was more than enough for everyone around them to see how immensely talented those two were. It was a pity that their stance meant that they were on opposite sides with no chance for reconciliation.


    "Stop fighting already," Zhuge Mingyue looked at Gu Dongliu and said. She had never asked for Gu Dongliu to beat Bai Luli anyway.


    Gu Dongliu glanced at her and replied, "It is not that I do not know what you are thinking. It is just that there are things that I have to do." He took to the air as soon as he finished talking, shooting up like a bolt of lightning, standing before Bai Luli once again.


    The nine words surrounded him, and this time, they turned even more dazzling. Undying light shone on his body, and with him at the center, a tornado whipped up. He looked like a being of light as he gradually turned to resemble a sword.


    "Sword Traversing the Heavens," Gu Dongliu mumbled and a terrifying Heaven-slaying Sword Matrix formed with him at the center. He closed his eyes and it seemed as if countless shadows flew out of his body. Every single shadow seemed to resemble him and yet look like a sword. They circled around the vicinity and they howled about. Every sword resonated with the heavens and the earth, as they headed for Bai Luli.


    Bai Luli unleashed his Eye of Devastation Life Spirit. His eyes looking incredibly eerie, demonic, and dark, greyish dimensional storms appeared. Those swords, which came with full intentions of killing him, were surprisingly unable to get near him. They simply bent and moved aside as they got close. However, those swords did not truly leave; they reversed instead. Both controlled their own spells with an insanely powerful spiritual will.


    More and more swords appeared as they blocked out the skies and occupied all space possible in the vicinity. Bai Luli stood at the center of everything, yet he looked incredibly calm and composed. There was no fluctuation to be seen from his expression. He went to simply watch everything around him in silence. Undying lights flowed about his body, and yet another shadow of an ancient god-like being appeared. It was an incredibly imposing god clad in gold. It brought its sword down on its target''s defenses. There was no way to stop it.


    "This is just too powerful," everyone on Crouching Dragon Mountain mumbled to themselves. The super spell��Godly Creation of All Things��was mastered to the utmost perfection at the hands of Bai Luli.


    That is truly the number one genius in all of the Barren State, members of the Zhuge family thought to themselves. Their eyes on Gu Dongliu turned even colder still. The marriage arrangement that had the entire Barren State hyped up was being destroyed by him.


    What is that Bai Luli is using? people from outside the Crouching Dragon Mountain thought as they were still feeling the shock. They knew little about the power he inherited from the Sage Hall of the Holy Zhi Palace. They simply felt that Bai Luli truly had no match in all of the Barren State.


    Liu Chan was very calm. As Bai Luli''s teacher, he knew his student better than anyone else. Due to such understanding, he came to know well of Bai Luli''s potential and went to pave his student''s path. The will of the Holy Zhi Palace was a unanimous one, so much so that even a top-notch genius like Ye Futian was unable to stop Bai Luli''s journey to sainthood.


    Gu Dongliu, however, maintained his stance. He continued to bring his sword aura to bear. The number of sword aura increased over time, gushing forth like a torrent and went on to cover the space around them. He extended his right hand, unleashing Pinching Sword Techniques. His eyes remained closed, yet his spiritual will was never used to such an extent.


    He stepped forward and uttered, "My will is the will of the sword."


    He vanished as soon as he finished. The gushing downward torrent of sword will resonated all of a sudden, as every single shadow that flew out manifested at will. Endless sword wills and the rushing torrent of swords coalesced in that very moment. The river of swords melded into one sword. An incredibly refined sword flash appeared in the sky, piercing the golden god shadow encasing Bai Luli.


    At that very instant. Sword aura rampaged in the air as the shadow of the golden god cracked, bursting with blinding golden light. Bai Luli extended his hand, and an incredibly huge palm of the ancient god was brought to bear. With a loud boom, everyone saw Gu Dongliu''s body being sent flying through the air as he spat out blood. The golden brilliance around Bai Luli shattered as well, as he was sent gliding backward!

 669 What Are Sages and Saints?

    The battle atop Crouching Dragon Mountain stopped as both sides were thrown off. Gu Dongliu was injured while Bai Luli was thrown aside.


    It was apparent that Bai Luli had an absolute advantage. Even so, however, Gu Dongliu was surprisingly capable of fending Bai Luli off under the powers of the Godly Creation of All Things still. It was nonetheless a feat that impressed many.


    "Such a pity." Many looked at Gu Dongliu and sighed. Such a person would have become a legend among their peers. While he had only appeared in the Barren State twice and was nowhere near as renowned as Bai Luli, that battle on Crouching Dragon Mountain would have made him famous throughout the Barren State overnight.


    The battle that made Bai Luli a figure renowned far and wide all those years ago was one that was fought when he was at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane. He, as a noble at his pinnacle, defeated a mighty one who had broken into the Sage Plane. It was indeed a battle that made him something akin to a god. As such, he quickly rose to be ranked tenth as soon as he broke into Sage Plane. It was a prestige like no other, and Gu Dongliu''s current plane level would have meant being swiftly crushed. It was totally unexpected that he was able to hold out for so long. That alone served as a testament to his immense talent, and that he would have been a god among his peers as well.


    Regardless of that impressive feat, however, Gu Dongliu was deemed to be at his limit, and fending off Bai Luli was the most he was able to do. Even if Gu Dongliu had talent on par with Bai Luli, the difference in plane levels meant that he would still have eventually ended up as the loser.


    Many felt it a pity for two of figures of such godlike talent and capability to be on totally opposite sides. The current generation to have emerged in the Barren State seemed to be one where legends would have been made once again.


    Bai Luli glanced at Gu Dongliu calmly, and there was little to be made out from his eyes. He extended his hands once again, unleashing his Eye of Devastation Life Spirit. A powerful aura field was conjured as violet lightning bolts and golden flashes struck from the heavens. Streaks of dazzling lights filled the air like lines of spell runes. The runes quickly flowed to seal the space around Gu Dongliu''s body.


    Many turned their heads up from below. Huge matrixes that sealed off the air appeared around Gu Dongliu. The countless runes were practically all over him. Eight shadows emerged from every direction around him to control the huge matrix in the air.


    Endless lights permeated the air in the matrix as if countless threads were thrown all across the space Gu Dongliu occupied. In that very instant, that space seemed to be locked down by absolute sealing powers. No Spiritual Qi was able to be gathered as the space was put under lockdown.


    Caught in the middle of all that, Gu Dongliu remained calm as he unleashed his spiritual will. However, in the very next moment, his will felt thousands of threads all around him, and every thread felt like the sharpest blade that ever existed, tearing at his will. He was astonished to find that he had absolutely no control over the powers around him. An incredibly huge symbol saying "Seal" appeared in the air. Gu Dongliu was caught in it, and he seemed to have been rendered completely imprisoned within.


    "What kind of sealing technique is this?" Many found their jaws gaping as they felt the terrifying sealing power infused within it.


    "The Sealing of All Creations. It was a derivative skill that Luli created from the powers of Godly Creation of All Things," Sage Zhu Song explained. Be it Godly Creation of All Things or Sealing of All Creations, there was no doubt that both were godlike skills, and such powers were derived from spiritual will like no other.


    When a cultivator reached the Sage Plane, the cultivator would have developed the power to communicate with their surroundings using their spiritual will alone, enabling the use of powers of rules. When the spiritual will power was put under lockdown, however, it became a devastating blow like no other. The one to be subjected to such a predicament would have their combat capacity decimated.


    That battle was practically over.


    With Gu Dongliu''s spiritual will being put under lockdown, he was only capable of communicating with the limited amount of space immediately around him. Light of the Nine Words circled around him and nine shadows of the gods of war stood by. Sword aura permeated the air, attempting to unravel the seal.


    At that very moment, a purplish gold shadow of an ancient god appeared before Gu Dongliu, standing tall in the sky, looking like some insurmountable god.


    "His Godly Creation of All Things allows him to summon ancient gods of varying abilities." Many watched the ongoing battle with stunned looks. Bai Luli was simply too powerful, so much so that he seemed to be the manifestation of the concept of ''invincibility.''


    The summoned purplish gold ancient god held a Heavenly Halberd in its hand as if it was the enforcer god charged with enforcing the laws between the earth and the heavens. A devastating, punishing power was unleashed from the weapon it held, striking down like purplish gold lightning bolts.


    "The power of the Tianxing Pavilion."


    The hearts of many great figures shook. Such combat capacity was practically invincible if the one wielding it were to reach the pinnacle of Sage Plane. It was truly the potential of one destined to become a saint and the champion of Barren Sky Ranking in the future.


    Endless punishing lights rained down Gu Dongliu, hitting hard on the Nine Words but still unable to destroy them. The ancient god was then seen striking down with the Heavenly Halberd in hand. The air rumbled with thunderous might, creating a sonic boom like no other.


    Boom! When the Heavenly Halberd hit its intended target, sparkling lights danced in the air, spreading out in all directions. The ancient runes around Gu Dongliu shattered one after another and his defensive screen of light cracked, threatening to shatter at any given second. However, terrifying beams shot out from Gu Dongliu''s eyes. He unleashed his will to his very limit, keeping the screen of light together. Despite his efforts, the punishing lights seeped through the cracks and hit Gu Dongliu, making him spit more blood as his body trembled.


    "That''s the end of it," many quipped to themselves how short the battle had been at the sight of Gu Dongliu being bombarded. It was, however, a spectacular battle. Despite Gu Dongliu''s strategies and tricks, none of them proved to be of much use when he was being severely limited by Bai Luli''s overpowering abilities. The heir meant for sainthood crushed his opponent through sheer difference in Plane levels.


    "Third Brother." Ye Futian watched the battle above as he trembled within. So that is what Bai Luli, the number one genius of the Barren State, is capable of.


    Despite his Third Brother''s unparalleled talents, he was being suppressed all the same. Geniuses were all capable of fighting people of planes higher than theirs, and his Third Brother was one with such talent. It was a pity that the one who stood before him was another with such talent. It was near impossible to make up for the difference in plane level when fighting someone like Bai Luli and come out on top.


    "Ants trying to shake a tree; futility like none other indeed." Bai Ze glanced at the air with cold eyes. His expression was a cold one, yet his mind was elated beyond measure. What makes Gu Dongliu think he can just come over to Crouching Dragon Mountain and steal the bride like that?


    Ye Futian had already been expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace. If he dared kick up a fuss over Gu Dongliu''s death, he would have ended up dying next, and there was simply nothing anyone could do to save his skin.


    The punishing lights headed for Gu Dongliu without rest, penetrating the screen of light. Gu Dongliu remained adamant in resisting the onslaught. His white garb was stained red with blood, and it was a harrowing sight to behold.


    Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and all the others clenched their fists as they trembled. They, however, were unable to do anything to help. That battle was one that they did not even so much have the capacity to intervene in. Worse still, there were many great figures around them, and none of those great figures would have tolerated any attempts to ruin the battle.


    "Enough," Zhuge Mingyue said coldly. She leaped into the air armed and ready, but Bai Gu, the City Lord of White Cloud, City glanced at her casually. Terrifying Eye Sorcery was unleashed from his eyes, making Zhuge Mingyue feel herself going stiff all over and utterly incapable of moving. The difference in plane between her and the City Lord was simply too great.


    "You are the future lady of White Cloud City. Know your place," the City Lord said coldly with a deadpan expression. If it was not for that treasure of the Zhuge family and the desire to provide further assurance for his son, Bai Luli, on his way to sainthood, the City Lord would not have lowered himself to propose such a marriage arrangement. He was the City Lord of White Cloud City, ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking while his son, Bai Luli, ranked tenth and was seen to be a future saint. No other force throughout the Barren State other than the Holy Zhi Palace, where both of them trained, was deemed qualified enough to have him take such measures. Despite this, however, Zhuge Mingyue dared do something so outrageous. It was seen as an unparalleled display of insolence.


    Zhuge Mingyue glared at the City Lord coldly before turning her eyes back at the battlefield in the air. Gu Dongliu''s current predicament seemed to have reddened her eyes somewhat. She had once thought that so long as he was there, she would fear nothing and would give anything to be with him. She came to realize that that had been little more than an assumption. She was still afraid, and at the moment, her heart ached.


    She felt herself to have gained some understanding about that break-up letter that Gu Dongliu sent. Sometimes, it was not so much something done out of worry for oneself, but out of concern for what the other party would do.


    Zhuge Mingyue turned her eyes at Zhuge Qingfeng. The only one capable of stopping the battle was none other than her father.


    Zhuge Qingfeng took notice of Zhuge Mingyue''s eyes and knew her intentions. He knew her daughter well. If something were to happen to Gu Dongliu, all her inhibitions would be thrown out of the window. He knew that while his daughter seemed to be the calm and quiet sort, she was incredibly stubborn within.


    Bai Luli looked at Gu Dongliu in the air and asked, "Don''t you want to say something?"


    Gu Dongliu glanced at Bai Luli before closing his eyes, letting all that punishing power penetrate his body.


    What was that that Bai Luli wanted me to say? Whatever one deems to be the right thing to do, then one should persevere with one''s undertaking no matter what. What else is there to be said?


    At that very moment, Gu Dongliu recalled a lot of things: the cottage, the old man sitting in there, him standing behind the old man, asking "Teacher, what does it mean to be a sage?"


    "Your plane, your breath of mind, and your bearing," the old man answered.


    "How is one able to become a sage?" he asked again.


    "Keep an open mind, and the world will open up before you. Know your destiny, and you will know how to become a sage."


    "What is above the sage?"


    "The saint."


    "What does it mean to be the saint?"


    "According to my understanding of the saint, it means to be free of shortcomings," the old man said.


    "What would that actually be?" he asked again.


    "What the hell is wrong with you, kid? I don''t do cultivation. Can''t you go find answers yourself?"


    "But would I be able to do so?"


    "So long as you have the world in your heart and are free of yearning in your mind, there is no way you can''t do that! Are you doubting my judgment of character now? I should have left you to your own devices back then!" the old man yapped away in anger.


    Gu Dongliu thought and there seemed to be a holy shadow welling up in his mind. Formless power flowed into his body and his will seemed to grow stronger, spreading outside his body.


    The power of the Sealing of All Creations was still in place, blocking his will power. However, the Life Spirit behind him glittered with dazzling light, becoming increasingly holy as if it was imbued with terrifying divinity. Everyone was dumbfounded at the changes to Gu Dongliu''s body. The Life Spirit behind him seemed to have metamorphosed, becoming some holy being. The light of holiness flowed into his body, making him shining inside out with holy glitter!

 670 My Mind Is Flawless

    "What is happening?" Many turned to look at Gu Dongliu. Some mysterious latent power within him seemed to have been awakened. His Life Spirit gradually metamorphosed, as if he was becoming even more powerful.


    Is he harnessing the power of the Secret Arts?


    The punishing force continued to rain on him. Gu Dongliu had no time to slowly comprehend the changes occurring in his body. His spiritual will seemed to have broken through the power of Sealing of All Creations, spreading out to the greater surroundings about him. The light of the Nine Words grew intensely dazzling as they resonated with the heavens and the earth.


    Voom. At that very second, the Nine Words surrounding his Life Spirit went to bombard the eight gods of war. Limitless power gushed into the ancient words, making every word seemingly infused with some mystical power as they rained down below. Eight earth-shaking rumbles were heard as the shadows of those gods of war were being torn apart. The power of Sealing of All Creations disintegrated, but that terrifying shadow of the ancient god attacked with its halberd still.


    The shadow of the Life Spirit behind Gu Dongliu grew increasingly huge, becoming a true holy shadow. It lashed out with its giant palm at that ancient god. Nine mudras emerged as the palm continued on its path, with the powers of the world gushing into the mudra in the hand.


    The ancient god shadow''s Heavenly Halberd continued to be brought down with the might of divine wrath. The mudras shattered violently, but that halberd was unable to survive the clash as well. The holy shadow was thrown back with a huge rumble, and the body of that great ancient god broke apart.


    "He became stronger." Countless were shocked to see what Gu Dongliu had become. Mystical powers seemed to have emerged from within him, bringing the limitless power of the world in and fusing it with his body. However, Gu Dongliu''s eyes remained closed all that while. Having the world in his heart and being free of yearning in his mind, the greater world had indeed opened up to him, enabling him to sense the heavens and the earth at a vastly greater capacity.


    The power of the heavens rushed at him. One shadow after another was seen leaving his body at that very moment, and all of them were illusory shadows of Gu Dongliu himself. The shadows morphed into blinding lights and powerful flashes as they traversed the air, appearing before Bai Luli and went straight into his body. They were the manifestations of Gu Dongliu''s will, and the manifestations were so real that they looked tangible.


    Bai Luli remained standing proud in the air with his eyes looking forward. Countless shadows of Gu Dongliu appeared between Gu Dongliu and Bai Luli, heading for the latter, bringing the might of the world to bear.


    "Such powerful spiritual will." Everyone watching from below was able to feel the power permeating the air above. Gu Dongliu was fighting a battle of wills with Bai Luli. Such battles were even more perilous, as any missteps would leave the wielder''s will crumbling, turning them into beings little more than vegetables.


    Despite the mystical nature of the power welling up from within Gu Dongliu, the man himself was still of a lower plane compared to Bai Luli, and his crazed antics were deemed unthinkable.


    A pair of gigantic eyes seemed to have appeared behind Bai Luli. The Eye of Devastation unleashed tremendously terrifying light. Bai Luli''s eyes themselves turned demonic. Everything in the world seemed to have been put under his will before, yet at that very moment, the will that was heading his way was something totally out of his control.


    A shadow of will of intense holiness walked out of Gu Dongliu''s body as if his very own will had left his body. All life signs in his body ceased as all that holy brilliance gathered about the shadow of the spiritual will walking out. Thousands of others like it walked at the same time, bringing with them the resonance with the powers of the heavens and the earth. They seemed like the sharpest blades to ever be made in the world as they walked towards Bai Luli.


    "This guy is insane." Everyone watched Gu Dongliu with stunned expressions. The consequences of that very move he pulled could have very probably led to utter destruction. Once one''s own was completely destroyed, the person in question would be rendered a useless cripple, if they were able to even survive.


    Watching Gu Dongliu walking towards him, Bai Luli was able to tell without a doubt that his opponent carried incredible will power. At that very moment, he felt like there were endless sword wills hanging in the air, ready to penetrate his body.


    Fearsome will emerged from within Bai Luli as well. A great will of an ancient god appeared, encasing his body. At that moment, Bai Luli looked like a god himself.


    "My spiritual will has already been made flawless when I trained in the Sage Hall. Your plane is lower than mine. Do you think you have a chance at winning this?" Bai Luli looked at Gu Dongliu and continued, "Have you ever thought about what will happen to you if you lose?"


    "With my mind flawless and my will steeled, I do not see how I will end up losing," Gu Dongliu replied.


    "That is your idea of flawless," Bai Luli said. "If you fight, you will definitely lose."


    "What is victory and what is defeat?" Gu Dongliu''s gaze was locked onto Bai Luli. The lights of the Nine Words shimmered around his body as the endless shadows melded into one and moved forward. He extended his finger and pointed forward. Power gushed at the extended finger in a frenzy, as a devastating storm whipped about where the finger pointed at, penetrating everything as the mighty finger remained extended.


    The eyes of the shadow of the ancient god turned completely grey. A devastating will out to tear everything apart invaded Gu Dongliu''s mystical, divine body, yet he was totally unfazed as he continued to move forward. He headed straight for that devastating storm, and with his finger lowered, the powers of the heavens and earth seemed to have melded at the tip of his finger before raining down on the body of that ancient god. At that very instant, countless streaks of light appeared on that body, resembling an ancient god, forming like cracks.


    "I walk the great path alone and my mind remains adamant. So long as I remain firm in the righteousness of my actions, I will not be defeated." Gu Dongliu''s voice penetrated everything.


    The hearts of many trembled below, yet Bai Luli remained standing where he was, looking at Gu Dongliu.


    The ancient god shadow formed by Bai Luli''s spiritual will looked increasingly cracked. Streaks of devastating light leaked from within as if the construct itself would shatter soon. The expressions of Liu Chan and the City Lord of White Cloud City turned somewhat in response.


    A moment was stretched to feel like an eternity. Bai Luli stared at Gu Dongliu. While Gu Dongliu seemed to be at the verge of destruction, it seemed, at the same time, that he was not going to be destroyed.


    Gu Dongliu''s eyes remained forward as he said, "My mind is flawless."


    His divine body clashed with the shadow of the ancient god shortly after. Appalling might encompassed the air above. Everyone below and outside Crouching Dragon Mountain watched in astonishment, the battle raging on. They had no words to describe what they were seeing, and the appalling nature of the battle was felt only in their hearts.


    A powerful beam of light shot out, and the body of the ancient god seemed to have been penetrated. The holy shadow dissipated and withdrew into Gu Dongliu in an instant. Blood spouted from his mouth, as the seemingly lifeless body of Gu Dongliu opened his eyes, falling down onto Crouching Dragon Mountain below.


    "Third Brother!" Ye Futian and the others shouted. Zhuge Mingyue leaped into the air as well. The City Lord did not bother with her actions this time. He had no time for her, turning his eyes on Bai Luli instead.


    Zhuge Mingyue held Gu Dongliu''s body as she fell together with him. She ended up sitting on the ground. Her skirt trailed as she cradled the bloodied body in her arms. Streaks of tears poured out from her eyes.


    "You cried." Gu Dongliu smiled as he looked at Zhuge Mingyue.


    "You smiled." Zhuge Mingyue gazed at Gu Dongliu. The idiot can smile too.


    "You look beautiful today." Gu Dongliu was still smiling.


    "I knew you would show up," Zhuge Mingyue replied.


    Ye Futian and the others dared not interfere with the conversation between the two, and simply went to stand beside them.


    On the other side, Bai Luli''s eyes were shut as his body fell straight down from the air, hitting the ground hard. The life signs of his body were intact, but they turned weak at frightening speed as if Bai Luli was incredibly exhausted. Cultivators were always filled with vigor, and exhaustion was something that was deemed impossible. It became apparent that Bai Luli was severely injured as well.


    Gu Dongliu, as a mid-level sage, had actually managed to damage Bai Luli.


    What did he do that enabled him to awaken that mystical power within?


    Bai Luli''s eyes opened soon.


    "Are you alright?" Liu Chan asked Bai Luli.


    Bai Luli shook his head lightly as he turned his eyes at Gu Dongliu. A streak of murderous intent was seen in the eyes of Bai Gu, the City Lord of White Cloud City, as Zhuge Mingyue cradled Gu Dongliu. He said coldly, "This is Crouching Dragon Mountain. Are you trying to force my hand here?"


    Some members of the Zhuge family wanted to move against him but halted as they turned to look at Zhuge Qingfeng, who ordered everyone to stand down.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Bai Gu, as he remained at the side of Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu, staring at the City Lord coldly.


    Many great figures looked at Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu. Their sentiments for each other were something to be empathized on, yet those same sentiments were apparently seen to be unforgivable to White Cloud City. Their predicament remained intact and difficult.


    "City Lord Bai, the events have turned. There is no need to cling to it," a clear, enlightened, and composed voice was heard. Many turned around and saw the one who spoke the words; it was an old monk.


    Monk Qingdeng of Qingdeng temple, a powerful monk who ranked 11th on the Barren Sky Ranking. His cultivation was performed in line with the Buddhist way.


    "Master, the Buddhist way is said to be the way void of vanities. What made you come here today?" the City Lord asked the monk.


    "My student requested me to visit an acquaintance of his." Monk Qingdeng put his hands together.


    "You take students too, master? Is that person here? How are they doing?" the City Lord asked.


    "He is right before you." Monk Qingdeng continued, "And he is doing well."


    Many sported peculiar looks on their faces as they turned to look at those before the City Lord; it was Gu Dongliu and the rest around him.


    Who would that person be?


    "I suggest you best have that acquaintance of your student leave my sight, master," Bai Gu said.


    "City Lord Bai, why cling to something that doesn''t belong to you?" Monk Qingdeng put his hands together and asked.


    "Give it a rest, Bai Gu." Another voice was heard somewhere else. Bai Gu turned his eyes and found himself looking at You Chi, the City Lord of Alchemy City. He said coldly, "I suggest you get your son-in-law out of the way."


    "Please, just let it end here." Many were shocked to hear those words, and their eyes were soon frozen at the one who said them.


    The City Lord of White Cloud City himself was stunned as he looked at the one who spoke, Luli.


    Bai Luli walked forward and looked at Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue, before saying, "You were right. Your mind remained adamant, and so long as one remains firm in the righteousness of one''s actions, one will not be defeated. You were not defeated, and I was not defeated in today''s battle as well, for what I did was righteous too."


    He then turned his eyes at Ye Futian and said, "You were right too. If one has the talent of a saint and the potential to achieve sainthood, there is no need for borrowing help from external forces. I also think that I can achieve sainthood within resorting to using help from external forces. However, the Holy Zhi Palace has high hopes for me. If it is something that enables me to reach such a goal in a more assured manner, I see no reason to deny it."


    He then turned to look at Zhuge Mingyue and said, "I''m not a perfect person, and there is no perfect person in this world. I would not have needed to explain anything, but in this battle, if he had not earned respect for himself, I would have killed him without hesitation. I need to do something for myself for what happened today."


    Finally, he turned around and said to Liu Chan, "Teacher, let''s go."


    Liu Chan looked at Bai Luli with eyes of admiration. This is indeed Bai Luli, the genius of his generation like none other.


    "Indeed." Liu Chan nodded. He did not say anything further and did nothing to blame anyone. If Bai Luli himself wanted to end things that way, then so be it.


    Bai Luli nodded and leaped into the air. His silhouette was high in the air as he said, "I walk the great path alone, and while I''m not perfect, my mind is flawless!"

 671 Visitors from Yu State

    In the venue of the banquet, the eyes of many saw Bai Luli off.


    As he said it himself, he was no saint and, therefore, was imperfect. As such, he would have been angered and would have resented people and things. As he put it himself, he was unable to forgive Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu, yet that battle changed his mind and he calmed down. It was probably done out of respect and acknowledgment for Gu Dongliu''s prowess and belief, but Bai Luli looked even more human for doing so.


    Bai Luli was, after all, the number one genius in all of Barren State and the heir chosen by the Holy Zhi Palace. As such, his temperament would have been that with a comprehensive moral compass. Bai Luli was a person worthy of respect and so was Gu Dongliu. Gu Dongliu would probably be yet another Bai Luli, and everyone in the Barren State would learn his name after that battle.


    "I walk the great path alone and my mind remains adamant. So long as I remain firm in the righteousness of my actions, I will not be defeated!" Many turned their eyes at Gu Dongliu. They were able to feel the same vibe from him being together with Zhuge Mingyue as they did with her and Bai Luli. Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue were a good match. At the very least, the love between them was flawless.


    Liu Chan gazed at Gu Dongliu for a bit, before turning around to address Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and the others, "Attaining sainthood without the use of external help. I look forward to your way of the Divine Path. Take care." He then left the scene to follow Bai Luli. Sage Tianxing and Sage Zhu Song followed and disappeared from Crouching Dragon Mountain in mere moments.


    Ye Futian finally felt his nerves wind down, seeing Bai Luli and Liu Chan gone. He had never expected the one to eventually give up to be Bai Luli. If Bai Luli had not made his stance clear, the Holy Zhi Palace would have still sided adamantly with him, and their predicament would have remained. He knew clearly that both Bai Luli and Liu Chan were adamant in their stances, and none felt themselves to have done the wrong thing. Cultivators also trained to cultivate their minds, after all. If they thought something to be wrong, they would not have done so in the first place.


    The entire Barren State looked forward to the marriage between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue. The Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City both hoped Bai Luli to do so and did all they were able to prepare everything for him. Bai Luli said it himself as well, he liked Zhuge Mingyue''s temperament. As such, he did nothing to resist the arrangement. If it had not been for Gu Dongliu''s emergence, the wedding that everyone in Barren State looked forward to would have probably been flawless. However, there were few who cared what Zhuge Mingyue thought about the arrangement.


    The pressure from the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City was intense. This pressure had been shouldered by Zhuge Mingyue. As such, she agreed to it, and everything unfolded as it had today.


    As for Liu Chan, he probably knew Zhuge Mingyue''s attitude and stance on the whole arrangement, yet he did not see himself to be doing the wrong thing. In Liu Chan''s eyes, the priority of having a saint emerge from the Barren State superseded everything else. It was a great endeavor, and Zhuge Mingyue''s personal wishes were insignificant in comparison. Furthermore, Liu Chan may have thought it to be a good thing for Zhuge Mingyue to be able to marry Bai Luli. As such, that further reinforced his beliefs of him doing nothing wrong.


    However, Ye Futian was the junior of both Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue, and he was just as entangled in the predicament as those two. He too had his own stance and stuck to it. As such, in his eyes, both Liu Chan and Bai Luli were, without a doubt, wrong. Anyone who arranged and encouraged for the wedding to happen was all wrong. That was because he knew that if there were to be even some slight changes to how the events unfolded today, his Second Sister and Third Brother might have been eternally doomed.


    Liu Chan''s position was a flawless one. He had nothing to rebuke Ye Futian and even allowed the young man entrance to the Sage Hall, free of all selfish thoughts. Even when Ye Futian ended up being expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace, he had nothing to say about it and held no grudges. The wedding was the only thing that Ye Futian did not agree to. It was fortunate that the ending was not an irredeemable, sour one.


    The one to have felt most displeased was the City Lord of White Cloud City. He remained where he was with a cold expression and said, "Luli devoted himself to the great endeavor, yet despite having agreed to the marriage arrangement, something like this happened with the Zhuge family. Don''t you think you owe me reparations in some form, junior?" Many were able to tell right there and then that the City Lord of White Cloud City was still immensely displeased with the whole thing.


    "Senior, if Luli is able to let go and wish them both happiness, don''t you think you should let go of the matter as well? I will find a suitable time after this to apologize personally at your place," Zhuge Qingfeng said.


    Bai Gu''s expression remained cold. It became apparent to him that Zhuge Qingfeng had decided to simply let the matter slide.


    "If that is the case, save your efforts." Bai Gu then said plainly, "Farewell." He waved his hands aside and leaped into the air. The people of White Cloud City began to leave one after another.


    Bai Ze''s expression was an utterly disgusted one. He glared at Ye Futian coldly, finding it puzzling as to why his brother decided to give up at the very last minute. If his brother had insisted, Gu Dongliu would have been dead. If Ye Futian dared stand in his brother''s way, Ye Futian would have died as well. However, everything had come to nothing.


    He stood and left with the people of White Cloud City.


    Many great figures of the Barren State looked at the scene and thought that the relations between White Cloud City and the Zhuge family had just taken a turn for the worse.


    The City Lord of White Cloud City had always been a very overbearing person. His talents were peerless and he had made quite notable achievements when he was young. He was probably even the most exceptional figure of his time, and he had never been caught in such an awkward predicament. What the Zhuge family did today had no doubt offended White Cloud City direly.


    Many turned their eyes at Zhuge Qingfeng. The stance of the clan leader of the Zhuge family had definitely budged. He would not have prevented the mighty ones from the Zhuge family from acting otherwise, as his daughter was still the main focus of the day. There was little to be read from Zhuge Qingfeng''s expression. He looked composed as he saw Bai Gu off.


    Zhuge Qingfeng knew his senior well. Bai Gu was immensely overbearing, wanting to be the number one and the most prestigious one no matter where he went. Bai Gu was also incredibly stubborn. Such a combination of personality traits coupled with his talents got him to where he was today. The City Lord of White Cloud City enjoyed a status that was just as prestigious as the City Lord of Alchemy City, and both figures were seen as the most renowned figures in the western regions. It was such that he and the City Lord of Alchemy City were two of the most powerful figures in the Barren State, right behind the mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace and the Ice Temple.


    As Zhuge Qingfeng knew Bai Gu very well, he also knew that he had offended Bai Gu in ways unthinkable. However, he did not feel guilty about it all. Liu Chan did what he did for the sake of the great endeavor, yet that senior of his had selfish agendas; Bai Gu would not have pressured him continuously otherwise. As such, Zhuge Qingfeng cared little about what Bai Gu thought. What happened happened, and there was little point in having regrets about it. Furthermore, despite having lost quite a bit, Zhuge Qingfeng had a lot to gain that day. What there was for the taking needed to be taken. At the very least, that was the action befitting his status as the clan leader.


    "Master Zhuge, I see that the case has ended, and I bid you farewell," the head of the Sovereign family, Huang Xi, said.


    "There is no need to hurry, Brother Huang Xi." Zhuge Qingfeng continued, "We, the Zhuge family, have thrown the banquet here in Crouching Dragon Mountain to celebrate the engagement of my daughter. While there have been some untoward incidents, the event will continue."


    Many were shocked to hear Zhuge Qingfeng''s words. They all turned their eyes at Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu and came to realize right there and then what he meant.


    Huang Xi looked rather funny at the response. Zhuge Qingfeng does know how to get things done quickly, and he sure has no qualms about offending Bai Gu further. He obviously sees himself guilty as charged now, so he can at least take what is there to take.


    The battle between Gu Dongliu and Bai Luli demonstrated Gu Dongliu''s talents and prowess in ways that could not have been done any better. Having him replace Bai Luli was seen to be a sound option for the Zhuge family. Furthermore, they did not forget all those people of the younger generation standing behind Gu Dongliu.


    The former number one and number two on the Law Rank, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, as well as the son-in-law of You Chi, the City Lord of Alchemy City, all stood by Gu Dongliu. It was apparent that they respected that senior of theirs very much. If Gu Dongliu were to become a son-in-law of the Zhuge family, rallying behind Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue meant that Ye Futian and the rest of them were made their family as well.


    Zhuge Qingfeng literally wasted no time with his new decision. Even those old farts from the Zhuge family would have been rendered speechless at that point.


    Zhuge Mingyue lifted her head to look at her father, then lowered her head to look at Gu Dongliu and smiled. Ye Futian and the others smiled as well, looking forward to it all. However, Gu Dongliu''s expression changed somewhat and he said, "No."


    The smiles of many were, as expected, frozen in place. Zhuge Mingyue''s smile disappeared as she looked at Gu Dongliu.


    Father actually wanted us to get engaged, and you, Gu Dongliu, object instead? What the hell are you thinking?


    "Mingyue, we''ll talk about this later. I need to leave." Gu Dongliu struggled to get up as he seemed to have recalled something. His expression was of the utmost seriousness. The expressions of everyone in Zhuge family turned ice-cold. That b*stard ruined Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue''s wedding just to bail right afterward?


    "We are visitors from Yu State, here to pay our respects to the Zhuge family," a voice was heard from outside Crouching Dragon Mountain. Countless eyes turned in the direction of that voice in an instant. Many felt the occurrence peculiar. Visitors from Yu State?


    Yu State was one of the Orthodoxy states led by Emperor Xia, situated right next to Barren State, with their borders being near the Barren State''s western regions.


    Visitors from Yu State? What are they doing here in Crouching Dragon Mountain?


    Gu Dongliu''s expression changed drastically. Such changes in expression had not appeared on him even when he was fighting Bai Luli just moments ago. He knew that one battle would, at least, have not gotten many in trouble, and that was also the reason he refused to show up and had written that break-up letter instead. However, he was unable to hold himself back, seeing that line written in blood.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked outside. The group outside the mountain flew in before he gave his permission. Their auras were powerful and the guards of Crouching Dragon Mountain did not bother stopping them. They knew there was no they could have stopped those visitors. There were even several among the group who possessed the aura of sages.


    The group landed before them from the air. The young man standing in the middle exuded an air of exceptionality. His body was a slender one and his eyes were filled with pride. He swept his glance at Gu Dongliu and thought that he had to praise Gu Dongliu for his prowess in running away. Gu Dongliu kept his trail well hidden and that made him very difficult to find. Even when the group had a lock on his aura, they were only capable of tracking him to a possible area, not an exact one. If he had stayed hidden all the time, they would have had a more difficult time tracking him down. It was unfortunate that Gu Dongliu sparked a battle himself, which enabled the group to track him.


    Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue lifted their head and looked at the visitors in the air, suddenly recalling that break-up letter Gu Doingliu wrote and why he was in such a hurry to leave before. They came to realize something at that very moment.


    Those visitors were the true reason why that letter was written in the first place!

 672 Public Enemy

    Everyone''s eyes were on the group that showed up out of nowhere. The young man who seemed to be the leader glanced at Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue, smirking in his mind. He is doing this for a girl. Hardly surprising.


    The impasse of love had always been the downfall of heroes. Gu Dongliu was one exceptional figure himself, who dared steal from that young man and had been on the run since. It was unfortunate that Gu Dongliu was caught eventually.


    Girls, always the weakness.


    "And you would be?" Zhuge Qingfeng looked at the group that just showed up. They gradually landed on the ground and the young man bowed and said, "I heard that the Zhuge family of Crouching Dragon Mountain was throwing a banquet and there were many senior figures of the Barren State here. I sincerely apologize for any disruption caused. My name is Zhan Xiao, from the Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State."


    "Zhisheng Cliffs." Many great figures at the scene felt rather surprised. Throughout every single one of the nine states, any place or force bearing a word implying ''holiness'' or ''divinity'' in its name was something to be reckoned with, as such naming conventions were never taken lightly. The Holy Zhi Palace and the Ice Temple had all once been sacred grounds. It was only due to the circumstances of the times that they gradually fell into decay, and hardly saints appeared in this generation. The Zhisheng Cliffs were one of such sacred grounds in Yu State, and it was a place enjoying prestige like none other in Yu State.


    "You are all visitors from sacred grounds, I see. Please, take a seat," Zhuge Qingfeng said.


    "My pleasure." Zhan Xiao cupped his hands and said, "But I only came for one person on this trip, and I will bother you all no longer after I''m done." Zhan Xiao set eyes on Gu Dongliu. He then added, "This person has done something despicable in Yu State. He stole some treasure that belonged to me. I''m about to take him away and I assume you all will not mind that."


    I stole something? Gu Dongliu glared at Zhan Xiao with cold eyes. He knew well where that piece of treasure actually came from.


    Many turned their eyes at Gu Dongliu. While there was no way they would have just believed Zhan Xiao''s words, they were curious as to what Gu Dongliu did to actually have mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs chasing him all the way to the Barren State.


    What was the treasure that he stole?


    Zhuge Qingfeng turned his eyes to Gu Dongliu, who stood up and glared at Zhan Xiao, saying, "I''ll hand you the piece that you seek. Would you settle the matter then?" If it had not been for the circumstances right there and then, there was no way he would have simply handed the piece over. He was only able to make compromises as he did not want to involve Mingyue and the rest in his mess. The score between them would be settled at a later date. Of course, Gu Dongliu also knew that the probability of Zhan Xiao agreeing was close to zero.


    Zhan Xiao glanced at Gu Dongliu sarcastically and said, "I''m taking you away as well."


    Gu Dongliu continued glaring at him. Things turned out just the way he had predicted. Zhuge Mingyue stood beside him and glared at the visitor with cold eyes as well.


    "I will need to know the situation better before I make any judgments," Zhuge Qingfeng said.


    Zhan Xiao and the rest of his party turned their attention to Zhuge Qingfeng and he added, "Sir, this person stole something of mine and ran away with it. There is nothing to explain about the situation, as I can''t be accusing him without solid reasons. I hope you understand, sir."


    "You expect to take someone away from the Zhuge family just because you say so? I''m afraid that is not appropriate," Huang Xi said. He was not saying what he said because he was friends with Zhuge Qingfeng. It was on the contrary instead, as he and Zhuge Qingfeng had been rivals for a very long time. However, it was still inappropriate for someone of the younger generation from Zhisheng Cliffs, Yu State to simply intrude into the Zhuge family and ask to take someone away in front of mighty ones ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking. Furthermore, the visitor''s attitude was a rather harsh one, and it was deemed to be a rude thing to do in front of one''s seniors. Zhuge Qingfeng did not say anything further, as if he was acknowledging Huang Xi''s stance.


    "Does this person have some kind of relationship with all of you seniors?" Zhan Xiao looked at everyone present and asked. He then continued after hearing no response, "In that case, pardon my intrusion then. That person behaved in a vile manner and stole something from me. I will be taking him away. Farewell." The group turned around and left as soon as Zhan Xiao finished without any hesitation. Coldness was seen in Zhan Xiao''s eyes as he turned around.


    They went investigating the happenings around the area after tracking Gu Dongliu to the Zhuge family estate. Many top-notch individuals were found there, and the clan leader, Zhuge Qingfeng, was a figure ranked sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking himself, which spoke of his capabilities. While the group hailed from Zhisheng Cliffs, they seemed rather shorthanded, given the situation they found themselves in. Since the opposing party insisted on keeping Gu Dongliu around, it was apparent that they were not allowed to simply just take who they came for.


    Quite a surprise that you got someone so powerful to back you in the Barren State.


    "Head back to Zhisheng Cliffs and tell my junior that I will be looking into that sacred item with him," Zhan Xiao transmitted his voice to the one beside him, causing the mighty ones at his side to react abruptly. The person knew well who junior Zhan Xiao meant. There was no one else but him who would be able to move someone whom the top-notch figures in the Barren State insisted on keeping with them.


    When the group of visitors left, the air on Crouching Dragon Mountain changed. While the visitors from the Zhisheng Cliffs were dismissed, their words meant that the matter was far from over. Gu Dongliu was probably made a target by the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Ye Futian stood there and he was at his wit''s end. He knew Third Brother was in trouble when he read that letter, and that was why he went to reveal his secret to Zhuge Qingfeng when he went to see the clan leader. He knew that if Third Brother indeed showed up, the one who would be able to break the deadlock was none other than Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "How much of what he said was true?" Zhuge Qingfeng asked Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu turned around and looked at Zhuge Qingfeng. He had come all the way to Crouching Dragon Mountain preparing to give his life up. He deemed himself lucky that he was still alive. Mingyue''s father had been good to him so far.


    "Zhan Xiao is indeed someone from Zhisheng Cliffs. His plane is close to mine but he has sages serving him. As such, one could say that his status in Zhisheng Cliffs is a high one. It is said that he was one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs. As for the treasure, I did take one, but it wasn''t exactly how way he put it. For now, I''m afraid it''s inconvenient for me to reveal the details," Gu Dongliu explained. He did not want to lay out what Zhan Xiao did in front of everyone. If the details went back to Zhan Xiao''s ears, his vicious personality would make sure that many died for it. While everyone present was a renowned figure in the Barren State, Gu Dongliu would have rather not get anyone entangled in his mess.


    Zhuge Qingfeng nodded. "In that case, stay and recuperate to your heart''s content. While Zhan Xiao may be someone from Zhisheng Cliffs, he won''t be able to do anything against the Zhuge family for now."


    While Zhisheng Cliffs was sacred ground, what the younger generations did outside would not reach the ears of the saints in Zhisheng Cliffs. There were many lineages to Zhisheng Cliffs, and that was one similarity shared with the Thousand Holy Islands in the Holy Zhi Palace. Even their most powerful individuals would only be on par with the mighty ones on the Barren Sky Ranking. Even if they were somewhat stronger, they would not be stronger by much. There was an old saying, "The mighty dragon is no match for the native serpent." It would not have been easy for the visitors to do anything against the Zhuge family.


    Be it Zhuge Qingfeng or any of the top-notch figures in Barren State, many of them were mighty ones ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking who had been through a lot. If they were intimidated enough by the words of someone of the younger generation to do as they pleased, it would be an insult to their current status.


    "Thank you, sir," Gu Dongliu gave his thanks.


    "Father, let the banquet continue," Zhuge Mingyue said as she looked at her father. Many looked at Zhuge Mingyue with startled eyes. No one had expected Zhuge Mingyue, a girl, to ask to be married to Gu Dongliu. Her personality was indeed something else altogether.


    "Mingyue." Gu Dongliu looked at her. Zhuge Mingyue returned the gaze, staring straight at his eyes, smiling. She said firmly, "If you are unwilling, I''ll just go find someone else."


    "..." Ye Futian was baffled, thinking that his Second Sister was definitely someone that no one would be able to keep in check. Third Brother simply had no way out of this.


    Gu Dongliu sighed in his mind as he looked at Zhuge Mingyue''s eyes. He knew that Zhuge Mingyue''s mind was all made up.


    "I''ll never forgive you if you don''t show up today. But since you''re here, I''ll be wherever you go from here on out. Be it living free and unfettered or on the run for the rest of my life, it will be my choice." Zhuge Mingyue looked at him, then turned around to say to her father, "I won''t regret this."


    Gu Dongliu held her hand and felt warmth in his heart. "Alright."


    Both of them smiled at each other. Putting all worries aside, their hearts were connected as one at the moment. They gazed at each other warmly and sought comfort within each other.


    Ye Futian beamed with a bright smile. He felt warm deep down as well. While he definitely was able to feel a tinge of pressure, at the moment, he was truly carefree and had put all worries behind him. His Second Sister and Third Brother finally ended up together after all.


    This is just beautiful.


    The same smile was seen on Hua Jieyu''s face as well, and it was a pretty one like none other. She looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. Their hands were held tight together, and both of them were able to sense the other''s thoughts.


    "If that is how it is, Zhuge Qingfeng, just let them have it their way then," Huang Xi said. Everyone who was there practically served as a witness to Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue. Their love was one that deserved to be made whole.


    "Leader, I think it is best to handle this with more caution. It can''t be done in such a messy manner," some elder from the Zhuge family said. While the Zhuge family did not fear the people of Zhisheng Cliffs, it was undeniable that there were risks to deal with. Furthermore, despite Gu Dongliu having demonstrated his exceptional talents, the arrival of visitors from the Zhisheng Cliffs irked them. If they had completed their alliance with White Cloud City, having Zhuge Mingyue married to Bai Luli instead, things would have turned out very differently.


    The Zhuge family would have truly stood at the pinnacle of the Barren State. The state of affairs now, however, had too many uncertainties in it. The family ended up offending both White Cloud City and the Holy Zhi Palace. Now, they had Zhisheng Cliffs added to their list of enemies.


    "My Second Sister and Third Brother are in love with each other. How is this messy in any way?" Ye Futian said. He then looked at Zhuge Qingfeng and continued, "I hope that you will give your blessings to them, uncle. If there are any risks to be had, Third Brother will definitely not drag the Zhuge family into the mess. When everything is settled, my Third Brother''s talents will prove that he is no way inferior to Bai Luli."


    "I will leave the Zhuge family," Gu Dongliu said. Since Zhuge Mingyue made it clear that she was willing to travel the world with him, Gu Dongliu had no intentions of letting her down. If something untoward was to happen, he had no intentions of dragging the Zhuge family into it.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian. Despite him singing praises about Gu Dongliu''s talents, Zhuge Qingfeng knew a thing or two about Ye Futian''s own talents. He also of course, had great admiration for Gu Dongliu.


    "Since when do you get to say anything about the affairs of the Zhuge family?" a youth berated.


    "Ms. Mingyue is the very treasure of the Zhuge family, how can her marriage be set with just a few words?"


    "Ye Futian, you are no longer a student of the Holy Zhi Palace. Who are you to tell the Zhuge family what to do?" Zhuge Xing added coldly.


    "First, he went kidnapping Hua Jieyu, and now he egged his Third Brother on to marry his Second Sister. He is something indeed."


    "He is now just a worm expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace. Of course he''d want to look for another backing. And what better could that backing be other than the Zhuge family, eh?"


    The younger generations of the Zhuge family erupted in an uproar with their dissatisfaction towards Ye Futian. The score over what happened a month ago had yet to be settled. He openly insulted the Zhuge family as a bunch of good-for-nothing idiots. Back then, Ye Futian was still a student of the Holy Zhi Palace, the number one on the Law Rank, and a student of Sage Douzhan. His status was totally different back then. Now, he turned his back on the will of the Holy Zhi Palace and stood at the opposite side of the palace. It was unthinkable that he had the gall to interfere with the affairs of the Zhuge family.


    The elders said nothing as the younger generation went on attacking Ye Futian with sarcastic words. The great figures looked at the scene and saw that the Zhuge family''s younger generation harbored a very deep grudge against Ye Futian!

 673 Dust Settled

    Ye Futian scanned them and felt anger welling up inside, but it was not anger at how those people berated him sarcastically; it was anger caused by how they only saw their own interests and the interests of their family. They never gave any thoughts about what Second Sister wanted herself. The marriage arrangement between Bai Luli and his Second Sister was something everyone in the Zhuge family agreed to. Zhuge Xing and Bai Ze got close as if they became brothers. His Third Brother showed up, demonstrating talents that were in no way inferior to Bai Luli, and it was his Second Sister who asked to be married. But everyone else jumped out in objection.


    What are these people taking my Second Sister for?


    "Only ants think about sucking up to people and climbing ladders. I would sooner spare myself the shame and agony of being around filthy, wretched beings like you all," Ye Futian said coldly at the younger generation of the Zhuge family, giving them no face at all. He believed that Zhuge Qingfeng sided with Zhuge Mingyue and that the clan leader would have been embarrassed to have this younger generation be in his family.


    "How dare you!" the youths burst out in anger. Some even went pointing fingers at Ye Futian. It was the day of the grand banquet in the Zhuge family, yet the discarded filth of the Holy Zhi Palace actually dared humiliate them like that.


    "You want to have a go?" Ye Futian scanned all those pointing fingers at him and said, "Any of you below the Sage Plane are welcomed to take me on all at once."


    "You..." It was craziness like no other. Ye Futian never so much even batted an eye at them.


    Huang Jiuge and Xu Que watched the scenes unfold in amusement. There were other young geniuses of the Barren State, like Di Gang, present. Ye Futian''s glorious history with battles was such that even if all the cultivators below the Sage Plane were to actually take him on, their chances at beating him would have been slim still.


    What he said, boy, that was some roasting indeed.


    "I''d like to see for myself, how powerful the former number one on the Law Rank actually is," a cold voice was heard and a figure was seen standing up.


    The members of the Zhuge family turned in his direction. It was none other than Zhuge Qing, a youth of immense talent at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane. While he had never trained in the Holy Zhi Palace, he was the number one noble in the Zhuge family. Furthermore, he was actually halfway to the Sage Plane, and that alone spoke volume of his terrifying prowess.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Zhuge Qingfeng and shouted, "Uncle."


    "He wants to try his hand, so show what you''re made of," Zhuge Qingfeng said.


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded and looked at Zhuge Qing. "You mind going up?"


    "No need for that. There are many seniors here. The damage won''t be too great," Zhuge Qing said plainly. He took one step forward as soon as he finished his sentence. Lightning fell from the sky at that very second and a terrifying was soon seen all over the place, imbued with devastating power.


    Many great figures went to isolate the area right outside where both of them were. Zhuge Qing''s eyes turned especially demonic. Extremely terrifying lightning will invaded Ye Futian''s mind right there and then. Zhuge Qing''s body turned into thousands of mirages in the very next second, and lightning bolts headed for Ye Futian. Crackling, devastating forces bombarded Ye Futian''s body. Yet he stood there completely unfazed, taking on the lightning bolts with nothing but his own body.


    Ye Futian glanced at Zhuge Qing with plain eyes. One look was all it took to slow the thousands of streaks of lightning to almost a standstill. The mirages were almost frozen in place. Everything at that moment seemed to have stopped altogether.


    "Get lost." Ye Futian lifted his palm and vibrated it in the air. Meteors streaked the skies, shattering the mirages, which then coalesced into a single being��Zhuge Qing.


    Zhuge Qing was being bombarded heavily at that very moment. Blood spewed from his mouth as he was thrown hard on the floor, destroying the tables and chairs below.


    The youths of the Zhuge family turned pale. That was only one move.


    The number one noble in the Zhuge family was totally helpless.


    Zhuge Xing and many others were filled with envy as they watched Ye Futian at work. No one in their generation was even able to match Ye Futian blow for blow.


    The great figures of the Barren State present at the banquet were all shocked. They had long heard that the young genius from the Holy Zhi Palace was a powerful being like none other, but they did not have any idea how powerful he actually was. They were able to see for themselves that very day that Ye Futian was indeed very powerful.


    There was no one of his caliber to be found in the Zhuge family, or rather, there was no one of his caliber to be found among all the nobles in any of the top forces.


    "Grade Two Noble now." A tinge of bafflement was seen in the eyes of Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and the others. Ye Futian defeated Di Gang and Ximen Hanjiang when he was a Grade Three Noble. Now that he became a Grade Two Noble, it stood to reason why Zhuge Qing looked so helpless in front of him. It was Zhuge Qing''s unlucky day to fight a genius like Ye Futian.


    "Anyone else feel like having a go?" Ye Futian scanned the younger generation of the Zhuge family, and as expected, none dared answered.


    "Ye Futian, would you consider joining the Sovereign family? I''ll train you like how I train the rest of the members of our family," Huang Xi said.


    "Come to Alchemy City instead." You Chi interjected, "You have your senior here for company."


    The faces of the younger generation of Zhuge family turned even more sour as the two great figures extended their invitations. The burn was intense.


    Discarded filth of the Holy Zhi Palace? Dreaming of sucking up to the Zhuge family? A genius like Ye Futian would have doors open for him throughout every single top force in the Barren State even if he was indeed expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "I thank you both for your kind invitations, however, I currently do not have any thoughts of joining any force," Ye Futian said. The two nodded while smiling. They were not actually being serious to begin with. Of course, if Ye Futian had actually said yes to any one of them, they would have been very happy nonetheless.


    "Uncle," Ye Futian looked at Zhuge Qingfeng and said, "I do not have any intentions of interfering with the affairs of the Zhuge family. I showed my concern because the matter at hand involved my Second Sister and Third Brother."


    Zhuge Qingfeng had, of course, understood his intentions. Ye Futian practically handed his life to Zhuge Qingfeng the day before. His relationship with Mingyue was that so long as the Zhuge family did not let Mingyue down, it was all the same whether he ended up joining the Zhuge family or not.


    Zhuge Qingfeng turned to look at his daughter. The eyes he saw said that even if he were to object, it would all turn out the same anyway. The girl would have ended up running away with Gu Dongliu regardless. She had done the very same thing all those years before, after all.


    "Very well, the marriage will have my blessing," Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and said.


    Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue were stunned for a bit, before turning to smile at each other. Many great figures at the banquet smiled as well. The lovebirds tied the knot, and it was a rather happy ending to things. However, the ending brought some measure of pressure with it nonetheless.


    "Clan leader." Some elders from the Zhuge family looked at Zhuge Qingfeng. They found how he handled the matter to be rather haphazard, as he did not even bother discussing it with them.


    "Mingyue is my daughter. I ask that you all let me decide on the matter," Zhuge Qingfeng said with a certain measure of might. His tone was such that no one else said anything further.


    Many present looked at Zhuge Qingfeng. When the one ranked sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking was determined to get something done, none in their family were able to do anything to stop him. His attempt to marry off his daughter to Bai Luli was one done against his conscience. His current attempt to prevail against dissenting views was considered penance for his daughter.


    "Thank you, sir," Gu Dongliu bowed and said.


    "What did you call them?" Zhuge Qingfeng smiled at Gu Dongliu and said.


    Gu Dongliu was stunned and then looked rather funny. He seemed to have trouble bringing the words out from his mouth.


    "What are you hesitating for?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled sheepishly at him and said.


    Gu Dongliu turned serious and shouted, "You have my thanks, father-in-law."


    "Well said," Zhuge Qingfeng answered.


    Zhuge Mingyue practically smiled ear to ear at that. She turned to look at the sky and felt rather relieved. The dust settled, and the ending turned out to be a happy one.


    "Today is a big day for the Zhuge family. Everybody, drink up!" Zhuge Qingfeng said with a clear, booming voice, and his words were heard throughout Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    A tinge of firm will was heard from his booming voice. No matter what the future held, he would naturally stick to his decision made on that very day. At the very least, it was a decision he made by listening to his heart.


    Many who heard the voice outside Crouching Dragon Mountain were stunned. Bai Luli had left long ago.


    What is that big day the Zhuge family is talking about? What is happening in Crouching Dragon Mountain right now?


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Xue Ye and all the others were happy for their Elder Brother and Sister. Ye Futian''s mind was on the verge of collapse when he heard that his Second Sister was to marry Bai Luli. While he made his way to the Zhuge family, there was no way he would have been able to stand against the will of the entire Barren State. That felt very, very bad to him. It was fortunate all of that was in the past.


    He, however, did not mind much about being expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace. The path of cultivation was a long journey, and the Holy Zhi Palace was little more than a stop on that journey, instead of everything there was to it. The opinions of the world mattered even less to him.


    "Little Brother." Gu Dongliu looked at Ye Futian.


    "Third Brother," Ye Futian shouted in response. They smiled at each other as Gu Dongliu recalled their first meeting back at the Cangye Kingdom all those years ago.


    Our little brother has finally grown up.


    The banquet resumed. While the engagement between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue was completely ruined that day, that seemed rather insignificant compared to all the other hurdles that happened in Crouching Dragon Mountain. News of what happened would travel throughout the Barren State soon enough.


    Ye Futian toasted to many great figures as a gesture of gratitude: Huang Xi, You Chi, Yu Shang, and all the others. All of them helped him one way or another on that day, and he owed them for it.


    None of those great figures took Ye Futian as just another face among the younger generation. Within just a few years, Ye Futian would have become yet another Bai Luli. Zhuge Xing and the others burned with jealousy seeing how the great figures treated Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian came before Monk Qingdeng and said, "Thank you, master."


    Monk Qingdeng smiled and nodded at Ye Futian.


    "How is Hua Qingqing doing?" Ye Futian asked. Chen Yuan told him back then that he would send Hua Qingqing to Qingdeng Temple.


    "She is doing fine. She has a destiny with the Buddhist way, and I thank you for sending her to the temple," Monk Qingdeng smiled and said.


    "You said that she asked you to come see me. Did she ask for you to bring any word?" Ye Futian asked.


    Monk Qingdeng replied, "Only that I send her regards to you."


    "Thank you, master." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Brother Futian," Long Ling''er came at him and said, "I think I''m not going to study in the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "What the hell are you talking about?" Ye Futian glared at her and said, "Train hard in the Holy Zhi Palace. When you return, go to Battle Sage Palace and tell Loulan Xue that I will go pick them up in the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Okay," Long Ling''er answered with some reluctance.


    "Any word you need me to bring?" Xu Que asked.


    "Tell Wuchen and the others to train hard. Don''t worry about me," Ye Futian said to Xu Que.


    "Alright." Xu Que nodded.


    Ye Futian turned his gaze far away. He still needed to head back to the Holy Zhi Palace at least once, and he still needed to say his goodbyes to his teacher at the very least!

 674 Sage Wanxiang Leaves The Hall

    After a few days, news of what happened at Crouching Dragon Mountain had spread across the Barren State, causing a great furor.


    Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue''s engagement had been the talk of all of the Barren State, and over half of the top powers in the land had come to wish them well. However, someone had tried to steal the bride on the day itself, and in the end, the engagement ceremony had become Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu''s. For Gu Dongliu to have replaced Bai Luli as the groom was shocking beyond measure. Furthermore, it seemed that when the two clashed that day, in a battle between the Barren State''s two most monstrously talented individuals, Gu Dongliu had actually been able to injure Bai Luli despite being just a mid-level sage. And it was even said that if the two had been of the same plane, then Gu Dongliu would have been even more powerful. This seemed ridiculous to many.


    In the past, Bai Luli had stood alone at the top of his generation, with no one within his generation who was good enough to challenge him. Anyone who did had been defeated. But now, it seemed like there was finally someone who was good enough to challenge Bai Luli at the top. Furthermore, following after these two monstrous talents was Ye Futian. His future was bright, and perhaps he too would be able to contest Bai Luli after some time. Looks like there were many talents within this generation in the Barren State.


    There was one more thing that made people shudder to hear. Gu Dongliu, who has now the son-in-law of the Zhuge Family, had offended the cultivators of Zhisheng Cliffs, which was in the Yu State. It seemed like those cultivators weren''t planning to let Gu Dongliu off. They had probably gone back to mobilize more people.


    It was unknown whether this would lead to conflict between the Yu State and the Barren State.


    While the powers of the nine states would have some interaction with each other, it took too long for normal cultivators to traverse such vast distances of land. It took a person of at least the Sage Plane to head over and explore a different state.


    As such, for the average person, the Barren State was vast enough a territory to explore. Within their lifetime, they did not necessarily get the opportunity to venture out to the other states, which made these states absolutely foreign to most people. Any knowledge of sacred places within the other states, like the Zhisheng Cliffs, probably only existed in ancient texts and rumors.


    In the Mingyue quarters on Crouching Dragon Mountain, the training grounds glowed with a dazzling light. Ye Futian stood on a building, watching the training grounds. He could vaguely make out the outline of a Celestial Shadow, which was incredibly radiant.


    Zhuge Mingyue and Hua Jieyu were there as well. Zhuge Mingyue was even prettier than before now. With a smile on her face, she watched the Celestial Shadow.


    "Is Third Older Brother still training?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yeah," Zhuge Mingyue nodded, and continued, "he seemed to have some sort of realization during that battle. Since he didn''t get the opportunity to train during the fight itself, he went straight into training that very night."


    "But that��" Ye Futian blinked in surprise, "that was the best time." Every moment in a night of passion was priceless, but his Third Older Brother had shut himself off to go and train instead.


    "What are you thinking about, Youngest Brother?" Zhuge Mingyue looked over at him smiling. Ye Futian shuddered before answering, "N-Nothing. I just feel it''s a bit of a pity. Fourth Older Brother and Fifth Older Brother went to such trouble to come visit, but Third Older Brother has shut himself away like this. He''s really missed out on this reunion."


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan had already returned to Alchemy City with You Chi.


    Zhuge Mingyue looked at him with a half-smile. This rascal dared to make fun of his Second Older Sister and his Third Older Brother, he was really getting bolder nowadays.


    "Older Sister, do you think Third Older Brother will break through to the next plane?" Ye Futian asked. He was excited about the prospects of that happening. If his Third Older Brother were to break through to the next plane, he would be at the same level as Bai Luli. If they were to battle again then, who knew how things could turn out this time.


    "Maybe. But according to him, something has changed in his Life Spirit," Zhuge Mingyue replied.


    "Right," Ye Futian nodded, "looks like Third Older Brother is going to be training on his own for a while. I won''t wait for him then, I''m planning to make a trip back to the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Do you want me to get my father to send some people along with you?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    "There''s no need to. I''m not a child, and in any case, I''m the strongest person under the sage level now," Ye Futian shook his head and chuckled, not being humble at all. The Zhuge Family already had issues with him over things like this. Back then, he had been publicly accused by many of wanting to make use of the Zhuge Family''s power. If he were to receive help from the Zhuge Family now, he would definitely be laughed at behind his back. Furthermore, it would only bring trouble to Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "Alright then." Zhuge Mingyue smiled and nodded.


    "I''ll take my leave now then." Ye Futian left to find Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu and the rest, before leaving the Zhuge household together.


    ��


    At the Holy Zhi Palace, an equally huge furor had ensued the moment news of what happened at Crouching Dragon Mountain reached their ears. Ye Futian had been implicated in the battle between Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu. As a result, he was expelled from the Palace. Both his and Yu Sheng''s names were removed from the Law Rank, and Ximen Hanjiang had become first in the Law Rank again. However, becoming first in the Law Rank this way seemed a little uneventful. It had been a lot more exciting the first time Ximen Hanjiang had reached the top of the Rank before Ye Futian had taken over him.


    Many months ago, Ye Futian had faced Ximen Hanjiang and won in a battle they had after he had risen to the top. Many people were anticipating the day where they would be able to compare Ye Futian and Bai Luli. But life was full of surprises, and in just a few months Ye Futian was no longer a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace. He set a historic precedent for being the first disciple who had been first in both the Law Battle and the Law Rank to be expelled from the Palace.


    Right then, Ye Futian was being blocked by a guard outside the Palace.


    "I''m here to say goodbye to my teacher and to pick up my family. Please help me report this to them," Ye Futian requested.


    "Alright." The guard naturally knew about Ye Futian as well, and he went forth to announce his arrival. Soon he came back, and told Ye Futian, "Go ahead."


    "Thank you," Ye Futian thanked the guard before heading straight for the Battle Sage Palace. Hua Jieyu went to visit the Daozang Palace instead. Sage Daozang had been kind to her, and so she wanted to bid him farewell as well.


    In the Battle Sage Palace, Ye Futian first returned to his old living quarters. Loulan Xue and Yi Qingxuan had been waiting for them over the past few days. Yuan Zhan had arrived as well, saying, "I''ll leave with you as well."


    "Alright, you should come and see Teacher with me." Ye Futian nodded at him. This was also something that Senior Yuan Hong had asked of him as well.


    "Right." Yuan Zhan nodded, and they set off towards the Battle Sage Hall, where both Sage Douzhan and Sage Jingang were. It was as if they had been waiting for the two.


    "Teacher, I''ve been very unfilial to you," Ye Futian bowed to Sage Douzhan as he spoke.


    Sage Douzhan was a large, burly man. He watched Ye Futian very calmly, and replied, "Back then when you asked to go visit the Zhuge Family, your will was unshakeable. I thought about it but concluded you wouldn''t regret anything. Since you acted out of your own will, there is no question of you being unfilial."


    "Will Yuan Zhan leave with you too?" Sage Jingang asked.


    "Yes, Uncle. I''m sorry," Ye Futian replied apologetically.


    "Don''t worry about it." Sage Jingang shook his head and chuckled.


    "You and Yu Sheng were previously first and second in the Law Rank, with few worthy competitors in the Noble Plane," Sage Douzhan mused. "Your next aim should be to reach the Sage Plane. It''s just a pity you didn''t manage to train inside the Sage Palace. But since this was a choice you made on your own, there isn''t much to be sorry or regretful over. The world is vast, there''ll be training opportunities everywhere."


    "Thank you, Teacher," Ye Futian replied, his heart warm. His three teachers��Hua Fengliu, Mr. Du from the Cottage, and Sage Douzhan��had all been individuals with unique personalities. They all had an important influence on various periods of time in his life, offering him help and advice. They had been very kind to him, and he was extremely grateful for that.


    Walking this path of cultivation, Ye Futian had encountered many challenges and enemies, but he had also met many elders worth respecting and made friends that stuck through thick and thin with him.


    Just like what Sage Douzhan had just said, the world was vast, and there''ll be training opportunities everywhere.


    "You may have left the Palace, but you''ll still be a disciple of mine. The Barren State isn''t the limit of your cultivations. Many people struggle to leave this vast land throughout their entire life. Some manage to leave but are forced to come back in the end. But I hope your names will become famous not just in the Barren State, but throughout the nine states," Sage Douzhan told Ye Futian. He had high hopes for the two of them.


    "No," Ye Futian shook his head, and Sage Douzhan looked at him, "it''ll be the Divine Prefecture and the world beyond."


    Sage Douzhan was taken aback slightly before he smiled and nodded. "That''s right, the Divine Prefecture and the world beyond it is." Since Ye Futian had such great ambition, the sage would eagerly await the day he realized his dreams. He hoped he would live to see that day.


    "Teacher, I''ll take my leave now," Ye Futian said.


    "Go ahead," Sage Douzhan replied casually. He stood there, his back proudly straight.


    Ye Futian turned and walked out of the Battle Sage Hall. He then looked back at the building, before bowing once towards the hall and leaving for good. Yu Sheng too bowed towards the hall, and the group walked out of the Battle Sage Palace.


    "Younger Brother, take care of yourself," Qi Jie called out from aside.


    "Older Brother, you take care too." Ye Futian waved casually at him.


    Many people had gathered outside the Battle Sage Palace. From the Sword Palace, there was Ye Wuchen, Liu Chenyu, Zui Qianchou, and Xu Que. Many people had come from the Daozang Palace as well. There was Hua Jieyu, Yun Shuisheng, and Phoenix. Even Xiang Zhiqin had come as well.


    Mu Zhiqiu and Zhong Li were here too, and many people stood watching from afar. There were people who had received guidance from Ye Futian, like Yan Qingwu and many other disciples from the Palace, who had come to say goodbye as well.


    "Wuchen," Ye Futian called out to Ye Wuchen, "you got my message from Xu Que, right?"


    Ye Wuchen nodded, and asked, "What are your plans from now on?"


    "I don''t know yet," Ye Futian replied. "You just carry on with your training in the Palace and aim for the Sage Plane. I urgently have to break through to the next plane. I think I''ll train on my own for a while. If the time is right, I may go on a trip somewhere far away. When that happens, I''ll let you know."


    "Alright." Ye Wuchen nodded.


    However, everything Ye Futian had said was but plans he had made, and ideas in one''s head often don''t turn out as one imagines.


    "You''re going to leave just like this?" Zui Qianchou asked.


    "What else can I do?" Ye Futian shrugged. "I''m just training somewhere else. It''s not like you''ll never see me ever again. Train well, you all, we''ll get the chance to take on the world together in future. I''ll take my leave now, you don''t have to see me off."


    Ye Futian and the rest then left the Palace. Though Ye Futian had said not to see him off, Ye Wuchen and everyone else still followed after him anyway. As such, a strange sight could be seen within the Holy Zhi Palace. A talent had been expelled from the Palace and was leaving, yet he was followed by many other talented individuals who were sending him off.


    When many influential characters heard about this, they were moved as well. Ye Futian was a leader of his generation at the Holy Zhi Palace, and everyone looked up to him. It was a pity.


    In a part of the Wanxiang Pavilion, stars dotted the sky, lighting it up with a soft glow. The constellations seemed to revolve around the world. This was the Wanxiang Hall, and a figure sat amidst the endless starlight. Just when Ye Futian left the Palace, the figure grunted, his face pale. As he opened his eyes, a flash of dazzling light burst across the hall. In the next moment, the glowing stars had disappeared. The man stood up, and instantly he seemed so much more impressive. He then walked out of this place.


    Very soon, news spread through the Wanxiang Pavilion that Sage Wanxiang had finally left the hall!

 675 Crisis

    In the Holy Sage Pavilion, Liu Chan sat cross-legged, taking a break. Right then, someone walked towards him. Liu Chan opened his eyes to look at the person, asking, "You''ve finally left?"


    This person was Sage Wanxiang, the Pavilion Lord of the Wanxiang Pavilion.


    "Yes." Sage Wanxiang nodded. "I did some divination for the Palace while I was in there. Take a look at it." As he spoke, an illusion appeared before him. In the starry skies, the constellations shifted and glowed. Underneath the starlight lay a palace that stretched out like a city. This was a projection of the Holy Zhi Palace. Then, several streaks of dark light shot down from the sky, striking the Palace. It was like the end of the world, with a hint of darkness pressing down upon everything, as if a huge crisis was about to happen.


    Liu Chan was not an astrologer, but he could still somewhat understand this sort of divination. His expression turned extremely concerned and serious, and he asked, "What sort of divination is this?"


    "It''s a divination of crisis," Sage Wanxiang replied. "There''ll be a crisis at the Palace soon."


    "What will be the result?" Liu Chan''s expression grew graver.


    Sage Wanxiang shook his head. "Don''t you know that astrologers aren''t prophets. We can''t predict the future, but what we can do is to use astrology to deduce a rough idea of what might happen. Since this is a divination of crisis, that means the Palace is about to face one soon. Whether or not the Palace will be destroyed within this crisis, or if it''ll find a new lease of life is unknown. Many things can happen and change this one reading. However, this reading seems to match one that we had some years back."


    "Are you referring to��" Liu Chan''s eyes were alert. "I thought that would have been a crisis related to the Divine Path. Could it be a crisis related to the Palace instead?" His heart heavy, Liu Chan continued, "People from the Zhisheng Cliffs of the Yu State came by the Barren State not long ago. Could that have all been a sign?"


    "People from the Zhisheng Cliffs came to the Barren State?" Sage Wanxiang questioned, a gleam flashing through his eyes. The nine states all coexisted under the rule of Emperor Xia. However, as this generation of the Barren State appeared weaker, the other states were beginning to position themselves in a way that would eventually push the Barren State out of the picture and have its sacred learning grounds replaced. As such, those from the Zhisheng Cliffs were definitely not in the Barren State just to train. This was definitely not a good sign at all.


    "Yes, there was an incident several days ago." Liu Chan nodded. "Could this crisis be related to there being no saint in the Barren State?"


    "I can''t say for sure, but that is definitely possible." Sage Wanxiang sighed. "As there is no saint in the Barren State, the Holy Zhi Palace could be replaced at any time."


    "Luli is currently aiming for the Magi Plane. We should help him as much as we can, such that at the next battle for supremacy, he''ll be at a place where he can aspire towards sainthood," Liu Chan said. His gaze grew determined. There wasn''t much time left for the Barren State.


    ��


    The Black Wind Condor soared through the sky above the Thousand Holy Islands. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi, Loulan Xue and Yi Qingxuan were all there. Long Ling''er had come along too. The girl had insisted on sending them off.


    The many islands in the Divine Sea made for a beautiful sight. The island cities hung above the mountain, and weaving through them was like going through a magical celestial world. Despite the beautiful view, Ye Futian was still somewhat downcast. He wasn''t too affected by his expulsion from the Palace, but he still felt a sense of reluctance in saying goodbye to a place where he had trained at over the past four years. Furthermore, he had made many friends at the Palace, all of whom he had to bid farewell to as well.


    "Ling''er, you take good care of yourself now that Jieyu and I won''t be at the Palace anymore. If anything happens you can always go to your Older Sister Phoenix and Yun Shuisheng," Ye Futian told the girl.


    "Alright, Big Brother Futian." Long Ling''er let out a mischievous expression.


    "Okay, we''ve gone past the Thousand Holy Islands already. You should go back," Ye Futian said.


    "Let me go with you all a little further," Long Ling''er protested, reluctant to leave them.


    "It''s not as if we''ll never see each other ever again." Ye Futian patted her head. Long Ling''er was all grown up now, but she was still so clingy.


    "But I can''t bear to watch you all go, just let me follow you for a while longer." Long Ling''er grinned at him.


    Ye Futian gave up on persuading her, and the group went past the Thousand Holy Islands to enter a mountainous region as they traveled straight ahead. Right then, Ye Futian''s brow creased slightly. The mountainous area ahead of them was filled with brown sand, giving it a barren feel. With his sharp senses, Ye Futian couldn''t help but have the feeling that they were being watched.


    "May I know which senior has arrived?" Ye Futian looked up into the sky and asked. There was no reply, not even a hint of any new energy.


    Ye Futian''s expression darkened. At the Sage Plane, one''s Spiritual Will could cover vast distances. To kill someone from a distance away while being completely out of their sight would not be a difficult feat for a Sage. Whoever they were up against was evidently not near them, but somewhere that was out of the perception range of Ye Futian''s own Spiritual Will. The other person could definitely see them, it was just that Ye Futian had noticed their presence.


    Yu Sheng and Yuan Zhan lifted their heads as well, their expressions growing colder.


    "Ling''er, go back to the Palace now." Ye Futian pushed Ling''er away. This new presence could be targeting him.


    "I won''t." Long Ling''er looked towards the skies. At this juncture, she couldn''t bear to leave even more.


    "Listen to me, please." Ye Futian''s tone grew urgent. Long Ling''er did not reply but shook her head stubbornly.


    The energy grew even more prominent. It was as if the person realized they had been discovered and was now making no effort to hide.


    The Black Wind Condor continued onwards. Ye Futian''s expression was cold. He had only just left the Palace, but here he was, already caught in an ambush. He wondered who it was that wanted to attack him. Could it be the Holy Zhi Palace?


    Looking at Liu Chan, while he was insistent on nurturing Bai Luli to help him achieve sainthood, there was no need for Liu Chan to kill Ye Futian. Ye Futian was only just a noble, even if he had been expelled from the Palace, for Liu Chan to attack him with such underhanded means would be incredibly ungracious of him. But then, who was it exactly that wanted him dead?


    "Prepare to fight," Ye Futian murmured, his voice low. Ritual implements appeared in his hands at the same time. In his left hand, he held the pagoda that You Chi had given him, while in his right hand was the Divine Destruction Polearm. Powerful energy emanated from his being. Everyone in the Barren State knew that no one of the Noble Plane would be able to go up against him. If one were to attack him, they could only do so using an individual of the Sage Plane.


    Armor appeared on Yu Sheng''s body, and instantly a frightening energy appeared all over his being. The Black Wind Condor let out a powerful magical aura, and shifted into its demonic beast form, its gaze frosty.


    A strong wind started blowing, and the brown sand was sent flying through the air, turning into a terrifying sandstorm. Caught within the storm, the group''s vision was blurred, causing them to almost be unable to see the path ahead.


    Surges of murderous intent reached them. Whoever sent them had not bothered to hide their intentions. It was evident that they were here for Ye Futian''s life. Ye Futian had only just been expelled by the Palace, but the moment he left the territory of the Palace, his life was instantly being targeted, not just by a person, but by a group, he realized.


    "You can come out now," Ye Futian lifted his head and said coldly. He could perceive a few blurry figures appear within the sandstorm, all of them emanating a frightening energy from their beings. These were four powerful individuals of the Sage Plane. It seems like whoever wanted him dead thought very highly of Ye Futian''s capabilities, sending such a powerful group after him.


    Whatever happened in the sky was beyond everyone''s concern at this point, but a frightening energy was beginning to manifest there as well. Within the sandstorm, a golden flash of lightning appeared, bringing with it a scarily destructive power.


    Ye Futian suddenly found himself in an illusion. It was as if the surroundings had been entirely covered by a destructive matrix. Within the sandstorm, he could see a Vermillion Bird spread its wings and fly. He also saw a Qilin race across the space and a terrifying golden halberd appear out of nowhere. An immense pressure descended upon them, and the Black Wind Condor was immediately slowed down. Its wings grew incredibly heavy, making it hard for it to move.


    Just then, with a long cry, the dazzling Vermillion Bird rushed down from the heavens, heading straight for the group. This enormous Divine Bird was surrounded by the Light of Punishment, which formed the shape of a cross and destroyed everything in its path.


    "Immortal Celestial Bodies, Absolute Territory," Ye Futian called out. With a flash of divine light, the Divine Destruction Polearm in Ye Futian''s hand let out a blinding glow, and he was surrounded by starlight. A gust of frightening willpower was created, and the group was surrounded by the light from the stars. It was an incredibly dazzling sight.


    With a loud crack, the terrifying cross-shaped Light of Punishment made contact, shattering the Immortal Celestial Bodies and shredding apart the Absolute Territory. The destructive Light and the Vermillion Bird then continued its trajectory towards the group.


    The power of a Sage contained the natural order itself. They were on a completely different level. As such, even the strongest noble would not be able to go up against a sage. Even someone as strong as Bai Luli had to be at the peak of the Noble Plane before he was able to defeat a lower-level sage. That was the battle that had sealed his reputation as a godly existence. However, Ye Futian and the rest were currently up against four sages. Without any hesitation, Ye Futian released his Divine Ape Life Spirit, before activating his Douzhan Body. The gigantic Divine Ape stood proudly in the space, and as Ye Futian held on to the Divine Destruction Polearm, a greater defensive energy was released. The group now seemed to be surrounded by an actual star itself, and as the frightening cross-shaped Light continued its descent, only cracks appeared in the star. It was not torn apart by the Light.


    At this moment, the Vermillion Bird suddenly rushed down, and with a crack, the Star was broken apart once again. However, Ye Futian raised the Divine Destruction Polearm, and it turned into a hundred-meter polearm that covered the sky. The Polearm slashed towards the sky with a destructive power.


    With a loud crash, the violent destructive power tore through the space and tore the Vermillion Bird into pieces. But, a far scarier power began to descend from the heavens, seeming to turn everything into an image of destruction.


    Yuan Zhan stepped into the sky and roared. Wolf Fang Bat in hand, Yuan Zhan charged straight for the Qilin pacing about in the sky. The Qilin was immense in size, and despite the great power of the Wolf Fang Bat, it felt like the attack had landed on the body of an actual divine beast. Yuan Zhan spat out a mouthful of blood, feeling his own body being suppressed. Even with a ritual implement, the increment in his power was limited, and he struggled to fight back against the attack of a sage.


    An even more savage destructive power descended upon them. Dazzling golden halberds appeared in the sky, with each halberd being about a hundred meters long. They spun down from the heavens, emanating an immense power that could destroy everything in their path. The next moment, the halberds descended all at once towards Ye Futian, in an attempt to suppress him immediately. It seemed like the most important target to get rid of here was Ye Futian.


    With several thuds, several dazzling streaks of light shot through Yu Sheng''s body, and five of the Seven Star acupoints were activated. Terrifying demonic energy surged out of him, and his eyes became like that of a demon''s, shining with a blood-red glow. He was not holding back at all. He knew all too well that to hold back in this battle would be to court death.


    It was the same for Ye Futian, who was harnessing the energy within his body to the maximum. Golden flames enveloped his body, and a dazzling divine light shot upwards into the heavens!

 676 Killing a Sage

    At that moment, Ye Futian''s expression was exceptionally grim. It was a life-and-death moment; he could no longer keep his strength a secret. What was the point of keeping a secret if he lost his life?


    "Jieyu, Seventh Brother, you two go down and take care of Ling''er," Ye Futian said. Hua Jieyu''s body had a seven-color glow, and a strong Spiritual Will erupted, attempting to block the halberd striking down from the air. However, even with the treasure pearl''s boost, she was still unable to stop the halberd''s offense.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s body stepped into the air at the same time, both of them releasing their Douzhan Body and opening five Star acupoints, pushing their strength to the limit.


    "Go." Ye Futian took out his tower ritual implement and his will of the emperor entering the ritual implement, using the most strength he could from the ritual implement. The area around them appeared to have frozen. Above them, the tower glowed, surrounding the area. The halberd crushed down onto their defenses but was unable to break through it.


    In the air, the four Sage Plane cultivators saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s changes and a sharp glint appeared in their eyes. At that moment, the two of them appeared to have metamorphosed, one of them looking like an Emperor and the other looking like a demon. Moreover, they both had elite ritual implements in their hands.


    "In such a hurry to kill me right after I leave the Palace, have you thought of the consequences?" Ye Futian''s voice was exceptionally cold and sounded throughout the area.


    "You are already abandoned by the Palace, so what if we kill you?" a cold voice sounded from above them with shocking killing intent. A golden line appeared in the air and dangled down, turning into countless crosses, like a punishment spell that killed using crosses.


    "If you leave now, I can treat today''s matter like it never happened. Otherwise, no matter whether I live or die, your clan will definitely have a calamity befall them." Ye Futian''s voice was icy. He had guessed where the four Sage Plane experts were from. Among the people who he had offended, there was one who specialized in such an ability.


    "Big words for someone who''s about to die," the voice replied with frosty killing intent. The cross punishment spell turned into slaughter rule power and crushed down, tearing through their defenses and heading straight for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    At that moment, under Ye Futian''s will of the emperor, the Starry defense around them became even more brilliant. The Douzhan Body on the Divine Ape had the Emperor''s Light around it and the stars surrounded them. Moreover, Roc wings appeared and rushed into the air. The cross punishment spell struck towards them, causing cracks to appear in the Starry defense. The spell tore it apart gradually but was unable to break through it completely. Yu Sheng was the same, his body was like a demon''s and he flew into the air with a defensive ritual implement around his body.


    The two of them flew higher until they could see the four Sage Plane cultivators who were standing in the four major directions. As they saw this scene, the four people''s expressions changed. After the two of them had released their secret techniques, their auras had nearly rivaled a Sage Plane cultivator. Adding on their ritual implements, they had the ability to match a Sage Plane, that was why they could ignore the punishment light.


    "Who among the Palace planned this?" Ye Futian asked coldly. Loulan Xue and the rest were in the Palace, so only those in the Palace would know that he would come back and wait here to ambush him. Evidently, this was a premeditated assassination and not a haphazard decision. Since it was planned, there would naturally be a mastermind and it was likely to be someone from the Palace.


    Seeing the Emperor''s Light on Ye Futian''s body, making him look like the Emperor''s descendant, the four of them marveled internally, this person was indeed a genius. His potential might even be higher than Bai Luli''s and he had kept a huge secret. However, they had already come too far to give up, their only choice was to kill him.


    "Light of Punishment," a cold voice sounded and a prison made of punishment lights appeared in the air. The prison was created by countless punishment lights interweaving and the brilliant light closed around Ye Futian and Yu Sheng at a surprising speed. It was attempting to slice them into countless pieces.


    "Big Brother Futian." On the ground, Long Ling''er had a pale expression. Hua Jieyu and Loulan Xue also had worrying looks, but this was not a battle they could interfere with. Even Ye Futian had to sacrifice some of his potential to battle the other party.


    Ye Futian''s expression was cold as he used the Fatal Entanglement spell. The vines flew towards the punishment light but were sliced to shreds immediately. No matter how tough the vines were, this was a slaughter rule power light.


    Bang. At that moment, Yu Sheng stepped forward. His body was surrounded by the Douzhan Body and it made him look like a demon. He wore the defensive ritual implement on his body and the air vibrated as he rushed outwards. When the terrifying punishment light sliced towards him, he ignored it and continued dashing forward. Ye Futian also rushed out and he had an alarming defense around him. At the same time, he held the Polearm of Divine Destruction in front of him and broke out of the prison.


    At that moment, a halberd crushed down towards them with boundless pressure. Ye Futian raised his Polearm of Divine Destruction and a rule power appeared in the heavens. It was unbelievably heavy, as though the power of the heavens had all culminated in one strike of his rod, crushing forward and shattering the halberd''s light. On the other end, a gargantuan Qilin rushed towards Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng let out a roar and his huge Douzhan Body grabbed the Qilin''s claws and the Qilin bit towards the Body''s head. With a roaring bellow, the Douzhan Body''s arms tore towards both sides. In an instant, the gargantuan Qilin was torn into two halves from the middle. It was a shocking sight.


    However, at the same time, a Vermillion Bird rushed towards Yu Sheng''s back, crashing into him, causing the huge Douzhan Body to tremble violently and vomit out blood. His huge body turned around and his expression was extremely cold. With another roar, the power of his ritual implement gathered on his fists and he stepped forward, causing crackling sounds to be heard in the heavens. His fists appeared to break through space itself, landing on the Vermillion Bird and shattering it.


    At that moment, in the battleground, the scenario that had formed was two Sage Plane experts targeting Ye Futian and the other two surrounding Yu Sheng.


    "Are you a disciple of the Palace or you have cultivated there previously?" Ye Futian stared at a young Sage Plane cultivator who looked like he was in his 30s. Of course, his actual age was not so young, but the person had well-defined features and was extremely strong. He had definitely been in the Sage Plane for some time. The Palace''s spells would not be leaked, but the abilities that this teen was using looked like the Tianxing Palace''s abilities. The other person was weaker, so he should be a low-level Sage. Ye Futian was confident in killing him by using his will of the emperor and his Polearm of Divine Destruction.


    The two of them had cold expressions. They did not expect that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng still had such hidden trumps. With four Sage Plane experts dealing with them, they had expected a one-sided massacre.


    "Since you know now, you can die peacefully," the young Sage Plane cultivator said icily. As his voice landed, the rule power in the air circulated rampantly. At that moment, countless punishment lights tore through and air towards Ye Futian. Ye Futian felt the terrifying killing power and delivered an Emperor''s punch. It had a mysterious rhythm and the heavens resonated with him, strengthening the defense around his body. At the same time, the Divine Ape swung the Polearm of Divine Destruction and a huge force appeared in the air. An unending stream of punishment lights tore through the air, killing towards them. However, they were kept out by the defensive barrier around Ye Futian. The teenage Sage Plane cultivator had a frigid expression as he stretched out his hand. In an instant, a wave of golden lightning appeared in the air above Ye Futian, a halberd appearing from within the wave. It spun around and hummed in the heavens, releasing a destructive might. The halberd''s light appeared to have locked onto Ye Futian''s body. In the next moment, countless halberds slashed downwards.


    At that moment, Ye Futian struck out with his rod towards the sky. With a deafening sound, his body sank downwards in a beautiful arc with the help of the force, towards the other Sage Plane expert.


    The Sage Plane expert looked at him and Ye Futian could feel a Vermillion Bird shadow appear in his head, burning through the skies, attempting to destroy his Spiritual Will. However, the will of the emperor prevented his Will from being extinguished and he continued forward. A huge Vermillion Bird flew towards him, blocking out the skies and surrounding him in endless flames.


    Ye Futian rushed straight towards it, surrounded by his Starry defense. The Divine Ape roared and struck out towards the heavens onto the giant Vermillion Bird. A deafening crash sounded and the Vermillion Bird cried in agony, its body exploding and flames burning throughout the skies. The Sage Plane expert attempted to retreat, but Ye Futian threw out the tower ritual implement in his hand and a terrifying force emitted from it. Ye Futian''s Spiritual Will had assimilated into it and at that moment, time and space appeared to have frozen.


    The Sage Plane expert could feel his body becoming slower, while Ye Futian moved in an arc, assaulting him with another strike of the rod. His eyes widened as a terrifying Vermillion Bird flame rushed out from his pupils. However, Ye Futian''s eyes were like the Emperor''s eyes and as his gaze swept across, the Divine Ape swung down with the Polearm and it landed on the Sage Plane expert''s body. In an instant, the Sage Plane cultivator''s brain was cracked open and his body fell to the ground.


    A Sage Plane expert, dead.


    At the same time, a dangerous feeling came over Ye Futian and he turned around immediately, slashing out with his rod. However, he saw countless halberds rushing towards him and his rod technique was unable to completely shield him. The halberd tore through his defenses, landing on his Douzhan Body, causing it to quiver. He immediately retreated and coughed out a few mouthfuls of blood.


    Using the force to retreat, his body appeared in the area where Yu Sheng was. He saw a Sage Plane cultivator who had been forced to retreat by Yu Sheng''s fists and swung down at him with his rod. The Sage Plane expert suddenly felt as though his body was unable to move and raised his head, but what awaited him was the Divine Ape swinging a ritual implement down on him. With another thunderous crash, the second Sage Plane cultivator fell to the ground, dead.


    The other Sage Plane expert who had been fighting with Yu Sheng retreated and created distance between them, his expression ghastly. They had actually allowed Ye Futian to kill two Sage Plane experts. He had already grasped a speck of a Sage''s rule power. Now that he was possessed by an Emperor-like Will, his cultivation level had also entered that of a half-Sage and he had horrifying attack ability.


    The Sage Plane cultivator who had previously cultivated in the Palace had an extremely grim expression. Two of the Sage Plane experts had been killed, and they might not even be able to take down Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "As expected of the genius that rose up after Bai Luli." At that moment, an even more terrifying pressure wafted in the skies and a figure bathing in flames gradually descended.


    Feeling the aura on him, Ye Futian, who was bathed in the Emperor''s Light, was in despair. This was definitely not the aura of a Sage; he was likely a Magi. The difference in cultivation level was insurmountable. To kill them, they had sent out four Sages and a Magi. He could imagine how determined they were. They did not want to give him any opportunity to escape.


    The expert who walked down from the air looked at Ye Futian with admiration. If this person did not die, his achievements would naturally be stunning. It was a pity that he had to die today.


    "Alchemy City''s battle was a life-and-death battle agreed upon by both parties with the City Lord personally being the witness," Ye Futian looked at the expert in the air and said.


    "Don''t try to use Alchemy City to threaten me. Back then, You Chi was intentionally biased towards you, causing my Gongsun Clan''s number one armorer to die. The person who obtained first in Alchemy Conference died such an unjust death. Now, the Gongsun Clan has already moved to White Cloud City," the expert in the air replied coldly, as though he did not care to hide where he was from.


    "You''ve sought refuge in the White Cloud City." Ye Futian''s tone was frigid. Although the Gongsun Clan was a major clan in Alchemy City, it would not be considered elite in the Barren State. In the past, it depended on the City Lord Office and Emperor Family, but Gongsun Ye''s death caused a rift between the Gongsun Clan and the City Lord Office. Moreover, the Emperor Family had tried to solicit them. However, the Emperor Family was still inferior to the City Lord Office. So, they chose to leave and enter White Cloud City. In White Cloud City, the White Cloud City Lord was the absolute ruler. As the fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, only he could pay no attention to You Chi.


    "So, you must die," the person declared coldly. Behind him, a giant Vermillion Bird appeared and the skies started burning crimson.


    A colossal Vermillion Bird claw gripped downwards, covering the skies. It was much larger than the Divine Ape and Ye Futian used his will of the emperor to push his Polearm of Divine Destruction to the limit, swinging out towards the sky. However, Divine Bird''s claw was indomitable and the rod shadows were torn to shreds. The terrifying claw continued downwards and smashed onto Ye Futian''s Douzhan Body, crushing it immediately. Ye Futian''s body fell to the ground. He spit blood at the corner of his mouth.


    "Die." Boundless flames surrounded the area and spread towards Ye Futian. However, Yu Sheng stepped forward to Ye Futian''s side, his demon wings surrounding Ye Futian within.


    "Courting death!" the expert in the air howled and the Vermillion Bird struck again, crashing on Yu Sheng''s body, causing his body to convulse violently. He also spurted out blood and the two of them crashed heavily into the ground. This expert was a mid-level Magi. To Ye Futian''s group, it was not someone they could stand up to.


    Hua Jieyu and the rest landed in front of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, their expressions pale like paper.


    "Kill," the expert in the air said coldly. The Sage Plane expert who had cultivated in the Palace previously nodded and the punishment light descended upon Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Hua Jieyu flew into the air, stimulating the Telekinesis pearl to its limit in her mind. Her hair flew and she closed her eyes, making her look like a Goddess. Her Spiritual Energy affected the path of the descending punishment light. The punishment light pulsated and the Sage Plane expert in the air humphed. In an instant, Hua Jieyu spat out blood and her Spiritual Energy received a huge blow, causing her to fall to the ground.


    Roar. Yuan Zhan flew into the air with a bellow.


    "Don''t kill Yuan Zhan," a voice sounded in the air and the killing light avoided Yuan Zhan. He was the only successor to the Taihang Mountain, so they would definitely not kill him. Otherwise, if that old ape flared up, it would not end well for them.


    As the killing light was about to land, Long Ling''er ran in front of Ye Futian and shielded him with tears in her eyes. She ripped the dragon-shaped jade on her neck and said, "Uncle, you said that you would protect Ling''er, I need you now." As she said that, she flew into the air, standing above Ye Futian and raising the dragon-shaped jade in her hands. She closed her eyes as tears flowed down her cheeks. Were they really going to die here?

 677 Leaving the Mountain

    "Ling''er," Ye Futian raised his head and called out to the delicate figure in the air, a pale expression on his face. Although the teenage girl still looked weak, she stood there firmly, allowing the rampaging wind to billow on her body. Her clothes fluttered and her hair blew wildly while the youthful girl''s face had tears streaking down it. Evidently, she was scared. She was not even 19; how could she not fear death? However, even though she was scared, she still stood there, like a duckweed in the wind that could be blown apart easily.


    As the figure burned itself into Ye Futian''s head, at that moment, Ye Futian suddenly remembered the time they first met. At that time, Long Ling''er had been willful and unruly, and he could barely stop himself from beating her up. However, after more interaction with her, he found out that she was simply too lonely. Although she was the only daughter of the West Mountain Dragon Clan, her young heart had many worries that she could not tell anyone. He remembered the little girl crying under the moonlight as she thought of her uncle. Now, she had finally grown up and had come to the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. However, such a calamity had befallen her because she had come to send him off today.


    As the Light of Punishment descended, time felt like it had stopped. Ye Futian had tears falling from the corner of his eyes. He had thought that he would never cry again, but many things were beyond his control. As he watched the destructive light about to devour Long Ling''er, Ye Futian watched all this unfold in pain, but he was powerless to stop it. Not only Long Ling''er, he, but Yu Sheng and Jieyu would also become victims of this calamity.


    However, at this moment, a mysterious power descended upon the area. Time really stopped and a Light of Punishment landed on the dragon-shaped jade. The pendant suddenly let out a brilliant glow and an imposing matrix appeared in the sky above Long Ling''er''s head. The matrix was formed by countless lines interweaving and there appeared to be a dimension within the matrix. A terrifying aura emanated from the dimension. Next, rays of brilliant light glowed and a divine Purple-Gold Dragon emerged from the pendant''s matrix under everyone''s astounded gazes. The Purple-Gold Dragon was humongous and its gaze was imposing as it stared at the Vermillion Bird in the air.


    "Dragon Soul," the Magi''s expression changed as he uttered. This sudden reversal stunned Ye Futian as well. He did not expect that the jade pendant that Ling''er wore had a dragon soul within it.


    The giant Purple Gold Dragon had a dominant aura and on its head. They could faintly see a middle-aged man with his hands behind his back. This caused a huge visual impact on the onlookers. Long Ling''er was equally stunned as she raised her head and looked at the dragon.


    "Uncle Long," Long Ling''er mumbled as her heart raced. This was her uncle''s dragon. She often rode on it when she was younger. As she looked further up the Purple-Gold Dragon, Long Ling''er could no longer hold in her tears as they streaked down her face. She shouted out softly, "Uncle, have you returned?"


    The middle-aged figure turned and looked at Long Ling''er. He was dressed in green robes and had hair that was black like ink. His expressive eyes appeared to have the galaxy in them, and he looked at Long Ling''er with a doting gaze, then smiled and said, "Ling''er, you''ve already grown this big."


    "Uncle." Long Ling''er could not stop her tears as she replied, "I''m not dreaming, am I?"


    "Uncle promised to protect you," the middle-aged man smiled and replied. He then turned around and looked at the three Sage Plane experts in the air, his expression turning cold abruptly and his eyes filled with killing intent.


    "Senior, this is a misunderstanding," the Magi in the air explained. He could already guess who the person who had appeared in front of them was. He was the prodigy who had once appeared in the top ranks of the Barren Sky Ranking like a shooting star, the previous Clan Leader of the Barren State''s West Mountain Dragon Clan��Long Yitian.


    "You dare touch my Dragon Clan''s little princess." Long Yitian stood with his hands behind his back and his tone was stone-cold. The Purple-Gold Dragon flew into the air towards the Vermillion Bird and opened its mouth, swallowing the Vermillion Bird.


    The three Sages expressions'' turned pale and the person at the front shouted, "Retreat!"


    Long Yitian''s expression was cold as an ancient Guqin appeared. He strummed the Guqin''s strings and the heavens resonated with it. The dragon he was on resonated with the heavens as well and in an instant, there were three large dragon shadows rushing towards the three Sage Plane cultivators.


    The three Sage Plane cultivators were shocked and they turned around to unleash their strongest defenses. However, what awaited them was the dragon shadow rushing directly into their heads and shattering their Spiritual Wills. The three of them then fell to the ground powerlessly. Three Sage Plane cultivators, one of them who was a Magi, were killed in one blow.


    Although it was unknown how much of his peak battle ability Long Yitian could unleash now, he must have been an elite Sage Plane cultivator. The difference between him and the three people was probably the same as Ye Futian and a fresh Noble Plane cultivator.


    The ancient Guqin disappeared and Long Yitian turned around to look at Long Ling''er. Long Ling''er descended directly onto the Purple-Gold Dragon and walked to Long Yitian''s side.


    "Uncle, I missed you so much." Long Ling''er pounced into Long Yitian''s embrace and he rubbed her head with a doting expression.


    "What a silly lass, you''re already so big. Why are you still crying?" Long Yitian asked gently. The demeanor he had when he killed the three Sage Plane experts was all gone and he now looked just like a kindly elder.


    "Then, will uncle stay from now on?" Long Ling''er raised her head and looked at Long Yitian in anticipation.


    Long Yitian rubbed her head and replied, "Uncle needs to go into slumber, but I will always be beside you."


    "Uncle, what is going on here?" Long Ling''er asked.


    "Go back and ask your father," Long Yitian smiled and replied, then turned to Ye Futian''s group.


    Ye Futian also raised his head and looked at the legendary figure and said, "Ye Futian thanks elder for saving my life."


    Long Yitian nodded his head lightly and replied, "Help me take care of Ling''er."


    As he said, he raised his head and looked in the air. Could it be his mistake?


    A dragon''s roar sounded and Long Yitian and his Purple-Gold Dragon started to fade to nothingness. The matrix''s light glowed again and the illusory figure dove into the pendant.


    "Uncle." Long Ling''er''s expression was filled with longing, but she could only watch as Long Yitian disappeared. The light on the pendant darkened, but it was evidently more than a normal jade pendant.


    "Ling''er, we have to go," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay." Long Ling''er cried as she nodded. After barely surviving the calamity, she knew that it was not the time to be sad.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said, and the demonized Black Wind Condor took to the skies, carrying them and leaving like a flash of black lightning. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and the others all had weak auras. If another Sage Plane cultivator came, it would definitely be their end.


    This time, he did not let Ling''er go back to the Palace, for fear that she might run into something on the way back.


    After they had left for a period of time, a few figures approached the area that they had left from. These were the cultivators from the Palace''s edge, the Thousand Holy Islands. They saw the corpse on the ground and had curious expressions, what on earth had happened here?


    "It''s Ning Yuen," someone exclaimed. One of the Sage Plane cultivators who had been killed had been recognized, it was one of the disciples who had previously cultivated in the Palace; the Ning Clan''s Ning Yuen.


    "Let''s go and report this to the Palace," one of the persons suggested. They knew that it was not a small matter and they could not make the decision.


    At that moment, in the White Cloud City, the Gongsun Clan.


    The Gongsun Clan Leader stared at the shattered jade totems in front of him with a grim expression. The Sage Plane cultivators they had sent out had died. Did this mean that they had failed?


    To kill Ye Futian, they had even sent a Magi, how could they have failed? This was already after considering the greatest extent of Ye Futian''s abilities and even factoring in unexpected circumstances. Moreover, the assassination was not planned solely by the Gongsun Clan; it had people from within the Palace participating in the planning, so the plan should have been perfect.


    It was not just the Gongsun Clan. At the same time, in the Zhongzhou City''s eastern region, the same scene happened in the Ning Clan. The Ning Clan Leader held the broken jade totems in his hand with a steely expression.


    They were all waiting for news, what on earth had happened?


    ��


    A few days later, news had spread in the Barren State. On the day Ye Futian and his friends had left the Palace, there had been a fierce battle in the mountain ranges outside the Thousand Holy Islands. A few Sage Plane cultivators had died, including a disciple of the Palace, the Ning Clan''s Ning Yuen. The other Sage Plane cultivators were rumored to be the Gongsun Clan''s Sage Plane figures.


    The news spread quickly throughout the Barren State and caused a huge uproar. Many people guessed that Ye Futian might have been the target of an assassination. There were people who walked the Holy Road with Ye Futian claiming that back then, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had killed the Ning Clan''s genius, Ning Huang. Ning Huang was reputed to be the elite genius of the Ning Clan in the current generation. However, he died a tragic death before he had even entered the Palace. Similarly, the Gongsun Clan''s number one in the younger generation and the first in the Alchemy Conference, Gongsun Ye, was also killed by Ye Futian. So, it was not surprising that the Ning Clan and Gongsun Clan would take revenge on Ye Futian after he had been expelled by the Palace. However, why were the five Sage Plane cultivators who carried out the assassination dead?


    Three of them even had their Spiritual Wills shattered and were forcefully killed. This evidently could not have been done by Ye Futian; it had to be someone especially strong who specialized in Spiritual Will attacks.


    Who had protected Ye Futian and his friends? Where were Ye Futian and his friends now?


    It was like they had disappeared from the Barren State. There was no news about them and they had not returned to the Zhuge Family.


    In the Zhuge Family, Zhuge Mingyue was worried sick and enraged. Her Little Brother had just left the Palace and something like this immediately happened to him. This was outrageous.


    In the Battle Sage Palace, Sage Douzhan was equally infuriated when he heard the news and he ordered the people in the Battle Sage Palace to investigate the matter. Evidently, there was a mastermind behind this.


    At that moment, in the Zhongzhou City''s eastern region, on the boundless Taihang Mountain.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng sat at the edge of the cliff cultivating. The Spiritual Qi in the air rushed into their bodies and they slowly recovered their vitality.


    Thump, thump, thump... At the same time, the Taihang Mountain shuddered as though a terrifying earthquake was happening. Ye Futian opened his eyes and saw many Golden Apes in the distance, landing in the same area. In front of them, the king of Taihang Mountain. Ye Futian stood there like a golden mountain.


    Crash. With a thunderous sound, Yuan Hong stepped on the ground and cracks appeared in the mountain ranges. He flew into the air and with multiple crackling sounds, the other Golden Apes all flew into the air out of Taihang Mountain. The Ape Clan was leaving the mountain!

 678 Trampled to Death

    Now, if the Barren State was split up into nine regions according to the Holy Roads, the Dawn Road would be considered part of the same region. Taihang Mountain and the Ning Clan were both within the region of the Dawn Road, the eastern area of the Zhongzhou City. Back then, both Ning Huang and Yuan Zhan had entered the Holy Road from the Dawn Road. As such, the Taihang Mountain was not far from the Ning Clan.


    The Ning Clan had also once been an elite clan. At its prime, it had experts on the Barren Sky Ranking, but it was now on the decline. Now, the Palace''s Elder Ning was already the most influential person that the Ning Clan could produce.


    For the past few days, the Ning Clan Leader Ning Yuan had had a feeling of unease. That day, the assassination had failed and Ning Yuen had died. Until now, they did not know who had protected Ye Futian, but it was at least a magi, otherwise, they could not have killed Ning Yuen. If he had a person of that level protecting him, what other factions were behind Ye Futian?


    The reason they had dared to assassinate Ye Futian was naturally because he had been expelled from the Palace and the Palace would not interfere. As long as the assassination succeeded, nobody would know who had done it. Even if someone managed to find out, who would stick up for Ye Futian?


    Although the Zhuge Family and the Alchemy City had some relations with him, that was only because his brother and sister were in these factions, but they were not the ones in power. So, the relationship would definitely not be too intimate, even if Zhuge Qingfeng and You Chi valued Ye Futian''s potential. If Ye Futian was dead, all that potential would be pointless.


    Back then, Ning Huang''s death was definitely a thorn in the Ning Clan''s heart. However, Ye Futian had entered the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate and they could not kill him in the Palace. Afterward, he had become the first on the Law Rank and he was protected even better. The Ning Clan had once thought that revenge was impossible until Ye Futian had been expelled from the Palace. That was when the assassination plan had begun. However, they had failed. The corpses of the five Sage Plane experts were left there, so they would know who did it at a glance.


    Thud. A dull sound was heard and Ning Yuan frowned. What was happening? It was not only him who had heard the sound. At that moment, within the huge Ning Clan residence, many people felt the ground shake.


    Outside the Ning Clan residence, the people within the city looked dumbfoundedly at the scene before them, it was a herd of Golden Apes. On the ground, rampaging Golden Apes trampled the ground, causing cracks to appear. The Golden Apes had violent demonic Qi around their bodies and in the front. The Golden Ape bodies rapidly grew to a size of ten meters, each of them looking like a mountain, crushing the ground beyond their feet as they walked forward. There were also immensely strong Golden Apes walking in the air. The Golden Ape at the forefront appeared to be the king of the apes; its golden body standing tall at tens of meters, giving people an immovable, divine feel.


    Many people started escaping in all directions. They had realized that the Golden Apes appeared to be heading for the Ning Clan residence. At that moment, there were people flying into the air from the Ning Clan residence. When they saw the grand sight before their eyes, they were startled and their bodies started to shiver.


    It was the Golden Ape clan from the Taihang Mountain. What were they here for?


    There were people flying into the air in succession and even Sage Plane figures appeared. Standing in the air, he looked at the king of Taihang Mountain across the air and bowed slightly, saying, "Greetings to Taihang Mountain''s Ape elder. What has elder come for?"


    "Kill," Yuan Hong said with an extremely cold voice, completely devoid of emotion. In the next moment, the tens of Golden Apes beside him held razor-sharp golden spears in their hands and golden rays flew through the air. The golden spears then flew towards the Sage Plane expert below like golden lightning.


    It was too quick, those who had thrown their spears were all strong Golden Apes from Taihang Mountain. The Sage Plane expert was horrified and retreated immediately, but the sky of raining spears rained down and he could not dodge them.


    Tch�� With a giant sound, the giant golden spears impaled his body, pinning him to the ground. A Sage Plane expert, dead on the spot.


    In the Ning Clan, countless people watched the scene with trepidation, fear filling their minds. The Taihang Mountain had sent out all its experts to kill them.


    "Elder Yuan Hong, when has my Ning Clan ever offended the Taihang Mountain?" someone roared, only to see a Golden Ape land right in front of him and crushing him with its golden palm, killing him in the air.


    As deafening rumbling sounds were heard, the Ning Clan''s main door was smashed to dust. Next, the buildings in the Ning Clan''s residence were rapidly destroyed and the Golden Apes landed on the area above the residence, their might surrounding the entire residence.


    "Yuan Hong!" a voice shouted. The Ning Clan Leader, Ning Yuan, flew into the air with an extremely grim expression and howled at Yuan Hong, "I did not know that Yuan Zhan was there at that time, but I guarantee that Ning Yuen would definitely not have laid a hand on Yuan Zhan." He had already knew that Yuan Zhan had left the Palace with Ye Futian. Ning Yuen naturally had his own insight and would not kill Yuan Zhan. After all, they had no grudge with Yuan Zhan and did not want to, nor did they dare to offend Taihang Mountain.


    Yuan Hong''s golden eyes swept across Ning Yuan. Even until now, Ning Yuan probably did not know why he was here.


    "Since the Ning Clan likes their outstanding Sage Plane figures, today, none of the Ning Clan''s Sage Plane figures will be left alive. If any Noble Plane dares to step in, kill them all." Yuan Hong''s voice sounded like a storm in Ning Yuan''s ears, leaving him in despair.


    None of the Ning Clan''s Sage Plane to be left alive. If Noble Plane cultivators interfered, they would all be killed. This was akin to severing the Ning Clan''s lifeline.


    In the Barren State, the Sage Plane cultivators were the elite figures. A faction could only be considered elite unless it had a Sage Plane cultivator. Some small cities could not even hold their own in the Barren State without a Sage Plane cultivator, not to mention a Clan. Moreover, the Ning Clan was a strong clan and would definitely have offended many people. The clan also had many treasures. If their Sage Plane experts were all killed, how would the Ning Clan survive?


    Bang, bang, bang. The huge Golden Apes stepped forward and started killing. The Golden Ape clan was renowned for its strong battle ability. How could the declining Ning Clan be a match for them? It was absolutely a one-sided massacre.


    In another part of the battlefield, there were strong Sage Plane experts holding halberds in their hands, riding Qilins and assaulting a Golden Ape. However, the Golden Ape did not move and allowed the halberd to pierce its body, but the halberd could not even pierce through its skin. The Golden Apes naturally had invincible bodies that were forged by gold. His giant hand grabbed the halberd, snapping it in half, then slashed downwards and split the other party into two. He did not use much technique and chose to use tyrannical force to crush the other person instead.


    Below them, the Ning Clan''s members all had pale faces and boundless fear in their hearts. How could this be? Was it because of the incident that had been spreading wildly? However, the Clan Leader had already said that he would not touch Yuan Zhan, why was Taihang Mountain still here?


    "Yuan Hong, are you mad?" Ning Yuan''s eyes were blood-red as he howled, "You dare to commit genocide against a clan in the Barren State? How will the other factions in the Barren State dare to co-exist with you?"


    "When you committed murder by using a Sage Plane expert to assassinate a Noble Plane cultivator, did you not think of the consequences?" Yuan Hong said coldly, staring down Ning Yuan.


    "Ye Futian killed my Ning Clan''s genius, Ning Huang. This is between my Ning Clan and Ye Futian. What does it have to do with your Taihang Mountain?" Ning Yuan bellowed. Seeing all the Sage Plane cultivators die, he had gone into a frenzy.


    "Ye Futian killed Ning Huang, so you wanted him dead. Now, you tried to kill Ye Futian, so I''m here to kill you. After today, the Ning Clan will be removed from the Barren State," Yuan Hong said nonchalantly. As he heard his words, Ning Yuan''s expression became ghastly and he stared at Yuan Hong, saying, "Not possible, this is not possible. What relation does Ye Futian have with your Taihang Mountain? It can''t be just because he knows Yuan Zhan."


    Yuan Hong had led the Golden Ape clan to kill them, not because of Yuan Zhan, but because of Ye Futian. He had considered the Zhuge Family and Alchemy City. He felt that these two major factions would not make a huge move because of Ye Futian, but he had not thought about Taihang Mountain. Evidently, Ye Futian, who had disappeared after that day''s assassination attempt, was now in Taihang Mountain.


    "Dead people don''t need to ask that many questions," Yuan Hong replied cruelly. He stretched out his hand, and a golden rod appeared in his giant palm. He stepped forward and the earth shuddered under him. The golden rod crushed downwards, its might causing the entire Ning Clan residence to crumble. The other people''s battles all stopped at that moment. The power of the rod seemingly could cause the heavens to collapse. Before the rod had even landed, crashing sounds could be heard as the Ning Clan residence repeatedly exploded, and some weaker cultivators were pressed to the ground, unable to move, spurting blood, feeling as though their internal organs would be crushed.


    "No!" Ning Yuan bawled and a giant Qilin appeared, flying towards the air. However, under the rod strike, the Qilin was smashed to smithereens.


    Yuan Hong was an elite high-level archmage and 18th on the Barren Sky Ranking. Ning Yuan was a mid-level archmage. There was an entire cultivation level of difference between them, not to mention that their battle abilities were not on the same level. When Yuan Hong personally descended upon the Ning Clan, there was already no doubt about the outcome.


    As the rod struck down, Ning Yuan was pounded to the ground, blood gushing from his mouth. The color paled from his face as he saw a giant foot crushing down upon his body, getting closer by the second. Ning Yuan felt utterly pained. Was he going to die in such a humiliating way? Being crushed to death��


    Countless gazes stared in his direction, watching Yuan Hong''s foot trampling down. With a thunderous clap, the ground ruptured and cracks appeared in the entire residence as the Ning Clan members watched with looks of despair. Their clan leader had been stepped on and crushed to death. What a humiliating way to die.


    "Do your job." Yuan Hong raised his head and looked at the Golden Apes in the air. The Golden Apes immediately went on a killing spree and howls of agony could be heard all over the Ning Clan. The Noble Plane cultivators all shivered, not daring to participate in the battle, their cries being completely drowned out by the battle.


    The Ning Clan was finished. After today, they would be removed from the Barren State, all because their Clan Leader had ordered an assassination on Ye Futian.


    Not long after, the ground shook and roaring sounds could be heard as Taihang Mountain''s demonic beasts took to the skies and left. Outside the residence, countless people came over to the Ning Clan, but what was left was crying and rubble.


    The apes on Taihang Mountain are really brutal, many people thought. The Golden Ape clan were still demonic beasts after all, and the rage of a demonic beast was utterly barbaric!

 679 White Cloud City

    <p>The devastation of the Ning Clan caused a huge uproar in no time. The eastern region of the Barren State was the first that had caught wind of the news. All top forces were utterly shocked. It was said that the King of Taihang Mountain, that violent king of the Golden Great Apes, brought his forces of demon ape down Taihang Mountain down on the Ning clan. They swiftly destroyed the Clan with the king himself stepping onto Ning Yuan. All of their sages were killed.</p><p>The unrest occurred with the Ning Clan soon after people infiltrated their ranks to rob them. The once renowned Ning Clan was reduced to history. The few survivors ran for their lives, with some going to Ning Xian in the Holy Zhi Palace, hoping to have Ning Xian avenge the clan.</p><p>There was news saying that the very reason why the forces on Taihang Mountain went to destroy the Ning clan was because the Clan sent sages to assassinate Ye Futian, not because of Yuan Zhan. Ye Futian was apparently on friendly terms with Taihang Mountain, and as such, it was hardly a surprise that Yuan Zhan himself was so close with Ye Futian.</p><p>Zhuge Qingfeng of the Zhuge family was hardly surprised when he caught wind of the news. When Ye Futian revealed his secret to Zhuge Qingfeng, he mentioned something about the apes. What was unexpected to Zhuge Qingfeng was that Taihang Mountain reacted to the assassination attempt so drastically. Just how high is his status among the apes?</p><p>However, the destruction of the Ning Clan was probably more than enough to have whoever was scheming against Ye Futian after he was expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace reconsider their plans and stop pulling off such attempts easily.</p><p>The Gongsun Clan was the next one to be terrified. When the news reached the Holy Zhi Palace, many were shocked. No one expected Taihang Mountain forces to be the one to act in Ye Futian''s favor.</p><p>In one of the palaces in Tianxing Pavilion, Ning Xian shattered a stone chair near him. His expression was a very, very ugly one. His veins popped and he looked ferocious, losing all the bearing a sage level figure should have had.</p><p>He just received the news that Ning Clan was no more. That was his family. Even though the Ning clan had fallen on hard times, it was still his roots. The people of the Ning Clan shared blood ties with him. His heart bled hearing that Ning Clan was crushed by Taihang Mountain.</p><p>"Yuan Hong, you have gone too far!" Ning Xian yelled with intense anger. He wanted little more than to invade Taihang Mountain right there and then. However, Yuan Hong was a mighty one ranked 18th on the Law Rank. Despite being an elder of Tianxing Pavilion, Ning Xian was no match for Yuan Hong. He and the Main Palace Lord aside, the only people throughout the entire Holy Zhi Palace capable of fighting Yuan Hong were Liu Chan, the Assistant Palace Lord, and Sage Douzhan, the Lord of Battle Sage Palace.</p><p>Sage Douzhan had been Ye Futian''s teacher. There was no way he would have avenged Ning Xian as he was busy finding out who had gone after Ye Futian''s head. Only Liu Chan, the Assistant Palace Lord, would be able to avenge Ning Xian since even the Lord of Tianxing Pavilion would not be able to do so. However, the Holy Zhi Palace never got themselves involved with outside conflicts, and Liu Chan would not have fought on behalf of Ning Clan.</p><p>Ning Xian stood up and walked, heading to Holy Sage Pavilion. Liu Chan had, of course, caught wind of the news. When Ning Xian made it to the Holy Sage Pavilion, he found the Lords of Tianxing Pavilion and Battle Sage Palace present as well.</p><p>His expression changed for a bit, bowing to everyone there and then turning his eyes at Liu Chan, saying, "Assistant Palace Lord, that demon beast in Taihang Mountain was inhumanely violent. He went on to wage bloody wars when he first came to the Barren State. It was entirely unexpected that his violent nature remained for all these years, slaughtering the entire Ning Clan. Despite being amongst humans for so long, they were still devoid of humaneness. I suggest that you call upon all forces of the Barren State to destroy Taihang Mountain in order to be rid of this menace once and for all."</p><p>Liu Chan looked at him for quite a bit and said, "Ning Xian, were you the one behind what happened outside the Thousand Holy Islands?"</p><p>Sage Douzhan glared at him with equally cold eyes. Ning Xian felt immense pressure coming his way all of a sudden. He had not expected Sage Douzhan to have gotten there before him.</p><p>"I only knew of what happened and I took part in nothing. Ye Futian was expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace, and as such, I paid no heed to his affairs." There was no way Ning Xian would have admitted his role in anything.</p><p>"Ning Yuen returned to the Holy Zhi Palace before the assassination attempt and he went to the Gongsun Clan. Don''t tell me that it was something Ning Yuen decided to do himself," Sage Douzhan said coldly. A tinge of authority was heard from his voice. "Even if Ye Futian was no longer part of the Holy Zhi Palace, he was still my student. You dared plan to assassinate him as soon as he stepped foot outside the Holy Zhi Palace? And worse still, you planned this for a while, haven''t you?"</p><p>"Lord Douzhan, please do not accuse me of something I did not do. Furthermore, Ye Futian turned his back on the will of the Holy Zhi Palace and even opposed the stance of the Holy Zhi Palace. That was why he was expelled, and he no longer had anything to do with the Holy Zhi Palace nor the Battle Sage Palace. Is what you said coming from your personal standpoint or that of the Holy Zhi Palace''s? If it is something personal, I would say this much: I''m not your match. If the words were spoken from the standpoint of the Holy Zhi Palace, I do not see myself to be guilty," Ning Xian said coldly.</p><p>He came for two specific goals: to accuse and to save his own skin.</p><p>"Tianxing, what do you say?" Sage Douzhan did not bother with Ning Xian and went to ask Sage Tianxing instead. The Lord of Tianxing Pavilion was in charge of the laws, and such matters were within his jurisdiction. However, Ning Xian was an elder of the Tianxing Pavilion.</p><p>"Ning Xian did not say anything wrong. Ye Futian was expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace, and as such, he had nothing more to do with the Holy Zhi Palace. It was something personal, and from the Holy Zhi Palace''s standpoint, we have no right to deal with Ning Xian. Of course, the case of Taihang Mountain avenging Ye Futian is something that the Holy Zhi Palace will also not get involved with. However, the demonic beasts in Taihang Mountain have indeed gone too far by slaughtering the entire Ning Clan. If other forces were to imitate their way of doing things, the Barren State will be caught in a bloody storm in no time," Sage Tianxing elaborated.</p><p>Liu Chan looked at the people before him calmly and said, "None of this has anything to do with the Holy Zhi Palace itself. Period. Ning Xian, if you decide to seek vengeance, do it in an open manner and put your life on the line. The Holy Zhi Palace will not get involved with your personal vendetta. You being alive or dead will have nothing to do with the Holy Zhi Palace."</p><p>"Indeed, Assistant Palace Lord." Ning Xian nodded while cursing under his breath. It had indeed been impossible to convince Liu Chan to move against Taihang Mountain, and he had been lucky to be able to save his own skin.</p><p>Sage Douzhan glanced at Ning Xian with cold eyes and said, "Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace. While this had nothing to with the Holy Zhi Palace in principle, they were still marked for death as soon as they left the place. The Holy Zhi Palace is sacred ground in the Barren State. What would that have done to our reputation? If something like this happens again, do not blame me for ignoring my position at the Holy Zhi Palace and take things personally." Sage Douzhan turned around and left as soon as he was done talking. His stout frame made every single step he took clear, exuding an overbearing air. Ning Xian looked at his back and felt really bad.</p><p>"Ning Xian, take care of yourself," Liu Chan glanced at Ning Xian plainly and said. It was apparent that he found what Ning Xian did to be displeasing, but he did not pursue the matter further.</p><p>��</p><p>White Cloud City was one of the two cities in the western region of the Barren State with similar renown to Alchemy City. It had always been one of the top forces in all of the Barren State. Mighty ones prowled the streets of that magnificent, grand city and the place was an incredibly prosperous one.</p><p>Golden light showered from above right outside the city itself. Many looked up and felt their hearts jumping out of their chests. The lights came from one golden great ape after another. They were huge and they looked as if they were made of gold.</p><p>It had not long ago that there was news from the eastern region, saying that the Ning Clan had been slaughtered by a bunch of demonic creatures from Taihang Mountain. The same golden great apes had now made it to White Cloud City, and everyone knew what they came from. However, the Gongsun Clan had submitted to White Cloud City, yet Taihang Mountain forces still dared to come with impunity. It was seen to be an act of utmost insolence.</p><p>"Quick, inform the City Lord," the guards outside the city said. It was a matter of utmost seriousness. Yuan Hong had come all the way from Taihang Mountain, and no one other than Bai Gu, the City Lord of White Cloud City, would have been able to stand against Yuan Hong.</p><p>A vast, regal, and luxurious estate had just been finished within White Cloud City. The place served as the residence of the Gongsun Clan. However, members of the Gongsun family felt troubled and the reason was an obvious one. The news of the Ning Clan being totally destroyed was simply too shocking. They had thought the assassination attempt was something no one would dare to do or able to interfere with. They never expected Taihang Mountain forces to bring their might to bear on them, crushing the Ning Clan to stand up for Ye Futian. As Taihang Mountain dared move against Ning Clan, it was a given that they dared move against Gongsun Clan.</p><p>There were two people playing chess in the vast estate. One of them being Gongsun Jing, the clan leader of the Gongsun Clan, while the other was a top-notch mighty one renowned in White Cloud City, Yun Hao, clan leader of Yun Clan. While White Cloud City was ruled by Bai Clan, in actuality, many of the affairs in the city were taken care of by the Yun Clan. Yun Hao was a force to be reckoned with in White Cloud City. He was a mighty one ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking at 98th place.</p><p>"Relax, Brother Gongsun. White Cloud City is not the Ning Clan. Since you are here in White Cloud City, Yuan Hong will not dare to just kill his way into White Cloud City. This place still the turf of the City Lord, after all," Yun Hao said to Gongsun Jing openly, with a loud brimming voice.</p><p>"Right." Gongsun Jing nodded, but he still could not help but worried about things.</p><p>Boom. The earth shook violently for a brief moment. Yun Hao frowned while Gongsun Jing was immediately and extremely distressed.</p><p>Boom, boom! There seemed to be something like an earthquake happening as the shaking continued. Both of them spread their spiritual will out far and wide, and both of them went pale soon after. Yun Hao looked distressed and embarrassed while Gongsun Jing stood up and gave an order with a loud voice, "Everyone retreat."</p><p>Yuan Hong had actually come for them.</p><p>"Gongsun Ling, go get the City Lord!" he continued to shout. With the precedence of the Ning clan serving as a warning, he knew too well that Yuan Hong was not doing what he did then for amusement. He was there to crush his clan, and there was no way he was able to keep calm.</p><p>"Brother Gongsun, there is no need to be fettered," Yun Hao said as he stood up. His expression was cold as he stepped outside and glared at the demon apes coming from afar. He then yelled at them, "Yuan Hong, this is White Cloud City. What the hell do you think you are doing?"</p><p>Bai Gu, the City Lord of White Cloud City, was ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Rank. Of the three ranked before him, one was his teacher, one was his senior, and one was in the Ice Temple. That meant that there was hardly anyone who dared piss off the City Lord of White Cloud City in the entire Barren State. What Yuan Hong did right there, trampling all the way from Taihang Mountain, was seen to be insolence of the highest order.</p><p>Boom, boom! The earth continued shaking as one golden great ape after another showed up. There were some among them who split up, intending to surround the Gongsun clan estate.</p><p>"Get lost." Yuan Hong glared at Yun Hao with his huge golden eyes in a condescending manner. The one ranked last on Barren Sky Ranking had no place talking to him!</p><p>��</p>

 680 Attitude

    <p>Yun Hao glared at Yuan Hong upon hearing the ape telling him to get lost. He was still a mighty one ranked on Barren Sky Ranking, yet Yuan Hong dared berate him.</p><p>"Yuan Hong, I will warn you once again. This is White Cloud City, and nobody from the Barren State dares to come mess around here," Yun Hao said with a threatening tone. If Yuan Hong dared mess around in White Cloud City, then White Cloud City would have also invade Taihang Mountain at a later date. There were few throughout the Barren State capable of enduring the wrath of the City Lord of White Cloud City.</p><p>"That is where you are wrong. I''m not here in White Cloud City to mess around. I''m here to kill someone," Yuan Hong answered with a forceful tone. He extended his palm right after he was done talking. A Sky-piercing Staff made of gold appeared in his huge hands. He took one step forward and an extremely refined might permeated the space around them. The winds howled and the clouds turned, as the entire estate was being encased in the overbearing might.</p><p>Bam. Yuan Hong took another forceful step forward, which seemed to be imbued with super-powerful martial arts will. Countless of the Gongsun Clan fell flat on the ground. No one was allowed to escape. A regal, divine silhouette of a golden great ape appeared in all of their minds, which remained in their heads regardless if they were looking at it or not. Such was the might of the top-notch sage.</p><p>"Yun Hao, are you sure you want to get in my way?" A strong wave of sound traversed the air and shook everything in its path. It was a might so powerful that even those far outside the estate were able to feel it. None dared go anyway near the estate, and all of them simply took to watch the events unfold from afar.</p><p>An illusory shadow of a great ape seemed to have appeared in the sky. It blocked out the sky as its vast shadow encased everything in it as if it was something made out of pure will. Yun Hao, at that very moment, was able to feel the truly terrible might of figures ranked high on the Barren Sky Ranking. He felt utterly helpless against Yuan Hong.</p><p>The staff in the ape''s hand was lifted up high with terrible might. The shadow of the great ape seemed to have lifted its staff as well, synchronizing with his movements. It was some special ability of Yuan Hong himself.</p><p>Yun Hao burst his aura in a crazed manner. Gongsun Jing, who was standing behind him, went utterly pale as he looked at the sky. If that staff was brought down on their heads, it would pack enough force to raze the Gongsun Clan estate.</p><p>"Yuan Hong, you have gone too far." A terrifying aura was sensed from afar. The skies changed in an instant, and the vicinity became grey. It seemed as if a pair of great grey eyes appeared, gaining control of the entire space like a pair of formless hands. That incredibly huge shadow with a staff seemed to be hindered by that formless power.</p><p>"Huh..." Yun Hao felt the pressure on him lessen considerably. He let out a breath of stale air and relaxed for a bit. He came to know the terrifying might of that pressure when he was facing Yuan Hong. It was fortunate that the City Lord showed up at the nick of time.</p><p>The might that permeated the sky belonged to none other than the City Lord himself. It was a power unleashed by the Eye of Devastation. The same spell, when used by the City Lord, was several orders of magnitude more powerful than it had been when used by Bai Luli.</p><p>A terribly imposing figure dressed in white appeared in the air above the Gongsun Clan estate. The City Lord took his steps and was overflowing with terrible authority. He was practically clad in the powerful aura of one of the few top-notch figures. He addressed Yuan Hong who stood before him with cold eyes, "I care not for your affairs at Taiahng Mountain. This is White Cloud City, and I will not tolerate any disrespectful acts here."</p><p>Gongsun Jing sighed a breath of relief as well. He was drenched in sweat all over. Being faced with an imminent threat of death, even sages would have felt fear. He had no doubt that if the City Lord had not shown up, Yuan Hong would have crushed them right there and then. Those wretched beasts from Taihang Mountain, what business do they have with me killing Ye Futian?</p><p>The two figures squared off against each other in the air. One ranked fourth on Barren Sky Ranking while the other ranked 18th. It had been quite a while since such a battle happened in the Barren State.</p><p>A formless gale blew across the air. Yuan Hong''s golden eyes were set straight at Bai Gu as he said coldly, "I told you, I''m coming to White Cloud City to kill the Gongsun Clan today. Are you trying to cover for them by standing in my way?"</p><p>"I''m telling you one more time. This is White Cloud City. If you think I''m going to cover them, very well then. What if I do?" Bai Gu responded sternly. He was still a figure ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, and there was hardly anyone in the Barren State he took notice of.</p><p>Yuan Hong is threatening me? What a joke.</p><p>The assassination attempt on Ye Futian had nothing to do with him, but the case with Gu Dongliu ruining the marriage arrangement in the Zhuge family estate had everything to do with Ye Futian. However, it was nowhere serious enough that Bai Gu deemed Ye Futian to be one he had to eliminate. If he had actually had gone all the way to plan an assassination attempt on a noble like Ye Futian, that would have truly been a joke. If he had wanted to kill Ye Futian, all he had to do was simply slap the young man across the face. Bai Gu''s status was such that assassinating Ye Futian was utterly beneath him. However, since the Gongsun Clan had joined White Cloud City, it was only natural that they became Bai Gu''s men. Yuan Hong asked if Bai Gu intended to cover the Gongsun Clan, but there was hardly anything anyone could have done if Bai Gu actually did so.</p><p>"Your name has been the talk of legends, City Lord of White Cloud City. I, Yuan Hong, will find out for myself how powerful the one ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking actually is." Yuan Hong''s words sent shivers down the spines of everyone within earshot. Even Yun Hao and Gongsun Jing felt themselves trembling inside. Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain actually dared move against the City Lord of White Cloud City. It was something utterly insane.</p><p>"So be it," the City Lord glared at Yuan Hong as he said plainly. It was only three words, yet the pressure behind those three words was extremely intense. Bai Gu also wanted to see for himself how powerful the golden great ape of Taihang Mountain, said to be invincible in battle, truly was.</p><p>"This is spectacular. I never expected to be able to see this up close." A boisterous laughing voice was heard. Several silhouettes were found at the side. Everyone turned their eyes in that direction. There were some among them who were not familiar faces, but to those who actually knew who those people were, their hearts trembled.</p><p>You Chi, the City Lord of Alchemy City, appeared in White Cloud City.</p><p>Both White Cloud City and Alchemy City served as major symbols of the western regions of the Barren State. Both were true landmarks of the region, and at that moment, Bai Gu, ranked fourth on Barren Sky Ranking, and You Chi, ranked eighth, were found at the same time in the same place.</p><p>Bai Gu and Yuan Hong did not find his appearance to be surprising, as they obviously were able to sense him. They were of the same plane��Sage Plane��and it was only natural that they were able to sense each other''s presence. Yet, Gongsun Jing''s face changed. He had, after all, come all the way from Alchemy City to join White Cloud City.</p><p>"You Chi, I assume that you''re not here in White Cloud City just for the show?" Bai Gu asked.</p><p>"Of course not," You Chi said plainly. "I came for the Gongsun clan."</p><p>"You want to meddle with that assassination attempt?" Bai Gu asked as he frowned. "Just because the victim is a junior of your son-in-law?"</p><p>Gongsun Jing''s face went pale. You Chi wants in on this as well?</p><p>"My business here actually has little to do with Ye Futian." You Chi said, "It''s just that back when Ye Futian and Gongsun Ye fought, I was the one bore witness and hosted the fight. Everyone there saw it, including your son, Bai Luli. Now that the Gongsun Clan wants revenge, they''re practically throwing dirt on my face."</p><p>He was being reserved with his words, but he needed not spell it all out for Bai Gu. Gongsun clan did more than just that: they had come to join White Cloud City before they planned the assassination, and that embarrassed You Chi even further.</p><p>"So?" Bai Gu asked.</p><p>"So, I''m here to ask you. Do you mind handing Gongsun Jing to me?" You Chi asked with a smile.</p><p>Gongsun Jing''s face went pale. You Chi had indeed come for him.</p><p>"Can''t do. He is one of my people now," Bai Gu said casually. Gongsun Jing was already one of his men. If he had simply handed Gongsun Jing over just like that, that would have been an insult to his status as the City Lord of White Cloud City.</p><p>"I knew you would say something like that, given your temperament and all." You Chi hardly minded. He continued with a smile, "In that case, I''ll just sit back and enjoy the show. Go on."</p><p>Gongsun Jing felt immensely distressed. Since when did You Chi become so easy to talk to?</p><p>Bai Gu turned his attention back at Yuan Hong and said, "After you."</p><p>Yuan Hong said nothing. He simply swung his staff, and in an instant, conjured multiple shadows of the staff in the air, yet he did not attack. The shadow of the ape in the sky swung its staff around as well. An intense might was brought to bear on everything below, and many felt unable to even stand still.</p><p>The shadows of the staffs grew increasingly intense, and it seemed to be the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques of the apes. Multiple shadows of the staff were conjured in the air as a boundless air of terror hung above. It was just the might of the skill, yet many felt themselves crumbling under its pressure as if the sky was to be brought down on them soon.</p><p>The City Lord of White Cloud City looked up and cast his gaze high up in the air. There seemed to be pairs of formless, grey, huge hands interrupting with the flow of the might. At the same time, an incredibly huge golden shadow formed, as if an ancient god was standing between the heavens and the earth. It was a conjuration made entirely of gold, seemingly conjured out of spite against Yuan Hong. The summoned huge golden ancient god extended multiple golden arms and lashed out in the air. It was a terrifying sight to behold.</p><p>Boom. A thunderous rumble was heard. At the very next moment, the shadow of staff all over the air coalesced into one single weapon and was brought down on everything below.</p><p>In that very instant, many of the mighty ones were brought to the ground by the pressure, as if the sky itself was being brought down on them. The staff went swiftly at them in the air. The golden ancient god''s countless arms went on to grab the staff, but golden lights burst upon contact. Many of those arms crumbled and that ancient god leaped into the air and went straight for the staff. Terrifying will in the air seeped into the body of the ancient god as it burst for higher ground.</p><p>Boom! Yet another thunderous rumble was heard and the staff was brought down once more. The ancient god crumbled from top to bottom as every inch of its body burst into bits. Yet, the might of the staff was continuously weakened, gradually brought to a halt right on top of the City Lord of White Cloud City before dissipating altogether.</p><p>Buildings within the Gongsun Clan estate on the ground were reduced to ashes. Many had blood around their mouths. The one strike was far more powerful than what was dealt to the Ning clan.</p><p>"I see," Yuan Hong said plainly. The City Lord of White Cloud City stared at Yuan Hong''s shadow. The staff had incredible force. Yuan Hong''s offensive capacity was far beyond what he had anticipated.</p><p>"We''ll meet again when the time comes. As for you all of the Gongsun Clan, you would do well to cower forever in White Cloud City, never stepping outside ever again," Yuan Hong said as he turned around to leave. Many of the golden great apes followed. But then, You Chi called, "Yuan Hong."</p><p>Yuan Hong halted his steps and glanced at You Chi, "What business do you have with me, City Lord You?"</p><p>"Come visit Alchemy City some time. That golden staff you conjured with Spiritual Qi, it was terrifyingly powerful, but the power it packed was limited. I can forge you a weapon-type ritual implement specifically for you," You Chi elaborated.</p><p>The City Lord of White Cloud City sparked with sharp flashes. Is You Chi trying to mess with me here?</p><p>"Very well, I will visit Alchemy City sometime. Thank you." Yuan Hong turned around and left with the apes of Taihang Mountain as soon as he finished. You Chi glanced at Bai Gu and said, "That''s all for me, farewell." He then turned around and left as well.</p><p>Bai Gu, City Lord of White Cloud City, paid no heed to You Chi. As such, You Chi deemed it unnecessary for him to pay much heed to Bai Gu.</p><p>Yuan Hong naturally understood that if Bai Gu, the one ranked fourth on Barren Sky Ranking, insisted on intervening, there was little else he could have done. However, Yuan Hong demonstrated his thoughts and attitude by showing up. He would have killed if he could, but even if he was unable to do so, he was sending a message to all in Barren State: anyone who dared move against Ye Futian had better remember the fact that the Gongsun Clan was reduced to having to spend the rest of their days in fear.</p><p>You Chi understood it all the same, but it was unthinkable for him to simply wage a war against the City Lord of White Cloud City. Both of them were top-notch figures in the Barren State, and it would have been bad for them to simply go for each other''s throats because of Gongsun Jing. However, he needed to make his stance on the matter clear, nonetheless. The Gongsun Clan had deserted Alchemy City for White Cloud City and tired to assassinate Ye Futian. All that they did was seen as a severe slight against him, and he was compelled to make sure Gongsun Jing remembered that, or else everyone would think they could have their way with You Chi as they pleased.</p><p>The forging of a weapon for Yuan Hong was a show of force. If you, City Lord of White Cloud City, insists on covering for Gongsun Clan and will not show me any face, there is little I can do about that. But, I need not give face to you as well. He was interested to see if the City Lord of White Cloud City found Gongsun jing worth keeping around, and he wanted Gongsun Jing himself as well as the entire Barren State to see that.</p><p>You Chi and Yuan Hong both left White Cloud City. The demonic beasts of Taihang Mountain withdrew as they left behind rumble on the ground t, but White Cloud City was far from quiet. It was especially so for the Gongsun Clan. Gongsun Jing''s face was ashen at that point. He began to have regrets, pondering if it had been worth it to try to assassinate Ye Futian simply because he had not been able to hold himself back. He never thought that not only did the attempt ended in failure, but it had also even kicked up such a great fuss with powerful figures. The Taihang Mountain forces went out of their way for him and You Chi visited White Cloud City personally for him. What would happen to Gongsun Clan from here on out? Were they really going to just cower in White Cloud City forever?</p>

 681 Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States

    <p>What happened in White Cloud City shook Barren State once again. Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain had actually gone all the way there. If the City Lord himself had not intervened, he would have slaughtered the Gongsun Clan right there and then, just like how he did the Ning Clan. It was an overwhelming show of force indeed.</p><p>Furthermore, Yuan Hong had actually fought the City Lord. Although both sides used only one move, many were able to feel that since none of the figures on the Barren Sky Ranking actually fought each other straight up, if another such clash of the titans type of battle was to ever be fought again, the rankings might actually see huge changes. Other than that, the appearance of You Chi in White Cloud City was also something that shocked many. It seemed that the Gongsun Clan''s good days were long over.</p><p>The happenings also made it very clear for all the top forces in the Barren State, there was yet another one of the younger generation that was deemed off-limits��the former number one on the Law Rank, the currently expelled student of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian.</p><p>The expedition of the mass of demonic beasts down Taihang Mountain served as a very good deterrent. The very individual who sparked all this commotion��Ye Futian��seemed to still be recuperating and training in Taihang Mountain, knowing nothing about all that commotion he helped stir up. What he knew was only that Yuan Hong was definitely out to avenge him on that day when he led the golden great apes down the mountain.</p><p>Time passed and with the blink of an eye, it was the end of year 10009 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. The scorching sun was hanging above Taihang Mountain, casting intense light and heat on everything below.</p><p>Ye Futian stood at the cliffs and practiced a set of techniques. Every breath filled his internal organs with bursting vigor. His martial arts practice had reached Grade Two Noble Plane and was as steady as bedrock. He was one step away from entering Grade One Noble Plane. It was not just him; many of his acquaintances and friends saw varying progress in their respective cultivations. Their planes had finally and actually equaled out more or less.</p><p>Long Ao and Madam Long came to Taihang Mountain and took Ling''er away with them. They were right to worry after something like that happened. Furthermore, the end of the year was near.</p><p>Hua Jieyu came beside Ye Futian quietly, looking at the vast mountains that seemed to spread out without end.</p><p>"Having not been out for so long, I kind of wonder what the Barren State is like these days," Hua Jieyu said softly.</p><p>"Didn''t Second Sister send someone over? I heard that Third Brother is finally out from his secluded training phase and is now a Third Level Sage. I guess his progress has been great," Ye Futian smiled and said. While he had been on Taihang Mountain all this while, he came to know what happened outside from Yuan Hong himself, including how the King of Apes went slaughtering the Ning Clan and caused a commotion in White Cloud City.</p><p>Ye Futian had also learned that there had been some small conflicts happening in the Holy Zhi Palace. His teacher, Sage Douzhan, intended to have a trial with Ning Xian but was rejected by the Holy Zhi Palace. Ye Futian was, after all, an expelled student, and it was impossible for the Holy Zhi Palace to go punish an elder of the Tianxing Pavilion for his sake. However, while the Holy Zhi Palace did not interfere with the matter, the score between him and Ning Xian was far from settled.</p><p>Ning Xian was the mastermind behind it all. He knew that Loulan Xue and the rest were still in Battle Sage Palace, and as such, Ye Futian would definitely return for them. That was where the assassination attempt had taken place. If it had not been for Long Yitian showing up, Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Ling''er, and the others would have probably died in that battle that day.</p><p>It was a score that could only be settled with blood, and there was no way Ye Futian would have just let it slide. But then again, what mattered most at the moment was his training. He needed to first make it to a Grade One Noble Plane before attempting to break into Sage Plane.</p><p>"Another year is almost up." Ye Futian sighed. Hua Jieyu nodded. Indeed, time flies and yet another year is about to end.</p><p>��</p><p>Year 10009 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was almost near its end, and memories of the case with Ye Futian''s assassination attempt had softened considerably.</p><p>The Holy Zhi Palace returned to its usual peaceful days. However, many students could not help but feel something was missing. Maybe it was because someone in the past and in their midst had been too important a figure, and his absence caused some kind of vacuum in the Holy Zhi Palace. It was especially so when the day of the sparring session arrived and Ximen Hanjiang was serving as the host. If that person was still around, he might have been the one to host the sparring sessions. He had once made himself famous on the sparring platform before, yet he left the Holy Zhi Palace not having truly hosted one of those sessions.</p><p>On that day, all students of the Holy Zhi Palace stopped training and gathered around the sparring session grounds. It was indeed a lively event. The great figures watched the event from behind the scenes. They hoped that some other geniuses would rise to take the place of Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and the others after since they left the Holy Zhi Palace. However, the chances of something like that happening again were simply too slim. Geniuses of the likes of Bai Luli, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng were something that happened only once in a hundred years.</p><p>At that very moment, there was a group of mighty ones descending from the sky. The group of people exuded an air of exceptionality. There was a young man and a middle-aged man taking the lead, while many mighty ones followed closely behind.</p><p>"Who are you people?" The guards of the Holy Zhi Palace took to the air in attempts to stop them. However, at the very instant where they unleashed their might, intense pressure filled the air, causing the guards to feel suffocated. The group of people went straight into the Holy Zhi Palace unannounced and uninvited, without any regard for the guards.</p><p>"Someone has intruded the Holy Zhi Palace!" one of the guards shouted. Was there actually someone in the Barren State who dared intrude the Holy Zhi Palace? One mighty one after another leaped into the air in attempts to stop the intruders but knew as soon as they felt the aura exuded by those intruders, that they were utterly incapable of stopping them. They had no choice but to inform the lords.</p><p>The young man who was taking the lead glanced at the people of the Holy Zhi Palace and said, "Have you told Brother Zhan about this?"</p><p>"I did. We will meet in the sacred ground of the Barren State," someone beside him answered. They were composed and paid no heed to the mighty ones around them.</p><p>The Lord of Tianxing Pavilion arrived with a group of mighty ones to stop them. He looked incredibly serious as he questioned the intruders, "Who are you people?" He scanned the two taking the lead. The young man was calm and composed, exuding confidence in silence. It was as if he cared for nothing around him. The middle-aged man right beside the young man felt as if he melded entirely with his surroundings, bringing immeasurable might to bear.</p><p>"We came from the sacred ground of Yu State, here to visit the sacred ground of the Barren State," the young man said calmly. While he called the intrusion a visit, none of them bothered telling anyone about anything before they came throwing their weight about inside the Holy Zhi Palace. It was obvious that they did not find the Holy Zhi Palace a sacred ground on par with theirs.</p><p>"Zhisheng Cliffs," Sage Tianxing said. The people of the sacred ground of Yu State came indeed, and they came right inside the Holy Zhi Palace.</p><p>"I heard that it was Liu Chan who is in charge of the Holy Zhi Palace. Where is he?" the middle-aged man of immeasurable might asked. It was obvious that he knew of Liu Chan.</p><p>Many of the students below looked up in the air and felt stunned. The mighty ones from Yu State came and asked directly for the Assistant Palace Lord. They knew that the middle-aged man was some force to be reckoned with.</p><p>"Kong Yao," A voice was heard. Many turned their eyes in the voice''s direction and saw Liu Chan heading their way. His eyes were locked on the middle-aged man. He indeed knew of Kong Yao from Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State, and Kong Yao was known to be the number one figure below sainthood in Yu State.</p><p>Many of the mighty ones ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking had ventured outside the Barren State before. They went on pilgrimages throughout all nine states, and some even witnessed the attainment of sainthood and knew many people.</p><p>Kong Yao left a very deep impression on Liu Chan. He had once killed several top-notch sages all by himself. However, even a figure like Kong Yao was unable to attain sainthood, but he remained adamant in his efforts to attain it.</p><p>Liu Chan never thought Kong Yao, a figure renowned throughout Yu State, would have been among the intruders. In actuality, Kong Yao''s name was renowned throughout all nine states instead of just Yu State alone. Like the Barren Sky Ranking, there was yet another ranking with even more authority spanning throughout all nine states: the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States.</p><p>The Saint Ranking documented the existence of saints throughout all nine states, as every saint was someone at the pinnacle of their respective states. The number of saints in all nine states was few and far between. As such, every single saint was documented on the Saint Ranking.</p><p>The Sage Ranking consisted of 81 places, made so from nine times nine equaling 81, and the number ''nine'' served as a standard for all nine states. Any state with less than nine members in the ranking was deemed weak, while a state with more than nine members in the ranking was deemed strong.</p><p>Right now, however, there was no one from Barren State ranked in the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States. As there was no saint from the Barren State, it was only natural they were unable to be ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking. As such, the right to even be ranked on said ranking was taken from them, and only the Barren Sky Ranking was known throughout the Barren State. In actual fact, however, the very ranking that was held in very high esteem throughout the Barren State was seen as a lesser ranking in the eyes of other states. Liu Chan especially thought that to be quite a shame. Due to the fact that Barren State had no saint, they were robbed of the right to even be ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking, and the sacred ground of the Barren State��the Holy Zhi Palace��ran the risk of being taken from them. It was due to such reasons that he was anxious to create saints.</p><p>There were 81 sages in the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States, and Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs was one of them. He was ranked ninth and was near invincible to all below the Saint Plane. Throughout all nine states, only eight were deemed capable of beating him.</p><p>"Liu Chan, this is the Son of Zhisheng Cliffs, Qin Zhong," Kong Yao introduced the young man standing right beside him.</p><p>"I''m honored to make your acquaintance, senior Liu Chan." Qin Zhong nodded as a gesture of respect. While he exuded plain, gentle respectability, it was unable to overpower his brimming confidence.</p><p>Qin Zhong, one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, was known to be the one most talented among the nine. While he was only at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane, he did nothing to mask the admiration and importance Zhisheng Cliffs showed him. Kong Yao, the number one on Sage Ranking would not have been the one escorting him otherwise.</p><p>Kong Yao himself was a figure who was standing right below the Saint Plane, and he was the most powerful one in the Zhisheng Cliffs. There was only one explanation of having him escort a man who was his junior��this junior displayed potential for sainthood.</p><p>Liu Chan nodded to Qin Zhong. He was able to tell that the youth before him was not some ordinary figure. Having Kong Yao by his side meant that he was probably the most exceptional one among the younger generations in Zhisheng Cliffs.</p><p>"Sir, why is that that all of the Holy Zhi Palace''s students are here today? Is there something going on?" Qin Zhong asked Liu Chan.</p><p>"Today is the last day of the year and the Holy Zhi Palace is about to inspect the results of the students'' progress throughout the year. It was a sparring session to be held among the younger generation," Liu Chan elaborated.</p><p>"What a great coincidence indeed." Qin Zhong smiled. "Now that we''re here in the sacred ground of the Barren State and we meet under such circumstances, would you mind if I had a look, sir?"</p><p>"Please." Liu Chan nodded. Qin Zhong knew his manners, and he knew there was no way Liu Chan could have refused him asking in such a way.</p><p>The group made it to the grounds where the sparring sessions were held. The students saw the group arriving and knew that those were the visitors from the sacred ground of Yu State.</p><p>"Please continue," Liu Chan said plainly. Ximen Hanjiang nodded and began hosting the sessions!</p><p>����</p>

 682 Having the Palace Handle Things

    The sparring sessions changed after the year Ye Futian first appeared. There were no longer cases of seniors bullying juniors in the sessions, and outright fights were replaced with verifications. If one proved to be of a higher plane, verifications were done to check one''s comprehension in one''s training, just like how Ye Futian battled Lian Yuqing using only skills on the guqin.


    Due to having mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs in Yu State visiting, the sparring sessions would perhaps turn somewhat more aggressive, as the students gave it their all to show the best of what they were. At the very least, they deemed it unacceptable to have the Holy Zhi Palace lose face in the presence of people from the sacred ground of Yu State.


    Liu Chan, Kong Yao, and the rest watched in silence. Qin Zhong was doing the same. His expression was as still as the surface of a lake on a fine day. There was nothing to be read.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was the sacred ground imparting the lineage of saints in the Barren State. The sparring sessions served as a showcase of the highest standards the youth of Barren State had to offer. It was no surprise that there were no saints to be found in the Barren State. What they were able to see so far said that the younger generation of Barren State proved less than desirable with their prowess. They also knew that there were similiar sparring sessions among the younger generation students in Zhisheng Cliffs. But when the sessions of both sides were compared, the students of the Holy Zhi Palace indeed proved inferior.


    "Qin Zhong, you are the Son of Zhisheng Cliffs. What do you think about the younger generation of students of the Holy Zhi Palace?" Liu Chan asked. He had no intentions of bragging and was simply curious. He simply wanted to know how much of a difference there was between them and Zhisheng Cliffs. Knowing such differences would serve well as motivation going forward. Sitting in a well, looking at the sky would easily breed arrogance. He hoped that the students of the Holy Zhi Palace got to know there was a wider world out there. As such, he did not mind Qin Zhong''s presence in the sessions at all.


    "Would you mind if I spoke my mind truthfully?" Qin Zhong asked Liu Chan.


    "Not at all," Liu Chan answered.


    "From what I''ve seen so far, I have yet to find someone exceptional among them." Qin Zhong then continued, "Of course, the best might have been saved for last." Qin Zhong did not bother lowering his voice as he said so, as his words were meant for all the students attending the sparring sessions. Many found his words to be hard on the ears. The sessions had been going on for some time and many mighty ones on Law Rank demonstrated their abilities, yet Qin Zhong claimed that he had yet found someone exceptional in their midst.


    Just how arrogant do you need to be to say something so blatantly insolent, paying no heed to the Holy Zhi Palace?


    "If it is indeed as you said, do you mind if I ask what you mean by ''exceptional''?" a student of the Holy Zhi Palace asked in an irritated tone.


    Qin Zhong turned his eyes at the student who spoke and smiled. "It is something rather impossible to be described with words alone."


    "In that case, since it is the day of the sparring sessions, how about you come out and show us yourself what you mean by ''exceptional''," someone looked at Qin Zhong and said.


    Qin Zhong looked at the one who spoke and scanned the students below. He had originally intended only to see the extent of talent among the younger generation of students in the Holy Zhi Palace, with no intention of doing anything himself. He was even more reluctant to do so after seeing the extent of their capabilities. However, he understood that his words were not something that the students of the Holy Zhi Palace would take easily, and they would doubt him.


    As such, Qin Zhong smiled and said, "I''m now at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane and if I were to be brash, I would say that no one in the Noble Plane in Zhisheng Cliffs would be able to fight me at equal footing. As such, I see that I would be doing you all a disservice if I were to simply go into the sessions. If there is anything you would like to verify, please have the best among you do so with me."


    The students of the Holy Zhi Palace thought that if he dared say something like that, it was apparent that he was some very renowned figure in Zhisheng Cliffs, the sacred ground of Yu State. While they were rather irked by his comments, they knew well that he was indeed very powerful.


    Many cast their gaze at Ximen Hanjiang. With Ye Futian and Yu Sheng expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace, Ximen Hanjiang was the champion of Law Rank once again. As he stood at the top of the ranking, there was no doubt that he was the most powerful among the students in terms of actual prowess, and he might have proved to be a match for the number one noble from Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Seeing the eyes of everyone present on him, he stepped forward and said to Qin Zhong from afar, "Ximen Hanjiang, student of the Holy Zhi Palace. Would you mind having a go?"


    "Be my guest." Qin Zhong nodded calmly and gestured respectably. Ximen Hanjiang then leaped onto the stage in the middle. Qin Zhong did the same, and both of them met in the air. While they were still quite a distance from one another, their auras were already unleashed.


    Everyone stared at the two in the air. Ximen Hanjiang still felt insulted from getting beaten by Ye Futian who was two planes lower than he was. With that visitor from Zhisheng Cliffs present, he wanted to prove what he was capable of.


    Coldness shrouded the air and frost covered the platform. Ice and frost were seen in the air as if the air itself was being frozen over completely. Everything in that space seemed to have ground to a halt. At the very next moment, a sword was unsheathed. It was a cold sword which came swiftly at Qin Zhong at blinding speeds.


    Qin Zhong watched everything unfold in silence. His body was partially covered in ice. He remained unfazed even when the sword came for him. He did not even move an inch when the sword was about to reach his throat.


    Qin Zhong pointed with his finger and his movements were too quick for the eye to follow. His hands simply went knocking about in the air and a crisp sound was heard at the very next moment. Ximen Hanjiang''s sword veered off-course and even his body was thrown off.


    Ximen Hanjiang''s sword was so fast that it was able to return and hit from the flanks. At that very moment, Qin Zhong still proved to be the faster one as he moved forward, leaving mirages behind. His finger landed right on Ximen Hanjiang''s shoulder. Ximen Hanjiang''s hand let go reflexively. The sword dropped and his body was thrown off as well. The sword that he dropped dissolved into Spiritual Qi and disappeared. Ximen Hanjiang was left standing there. His arm shaking slightly and his face pale.


    "He lost?" Many who witnessed the scene found it unbelievable.


    Qin Zhong was, after all, the number one noble from Zhisheng Cliffs. While the students did consider the possibility of Ximen Hanjiang losing and felt alright even if he were to lose, they still found the way he lost the fight to be rather unacceptable. Ximen Hanjiang, the champion of the Law Rank, was not even given the chance to bring his full power to bear. His opponent simply hit him with his fingers and he dropped his sword as a result. It was an insult like none other.


    Many looked at Ximen Hanjiang standing in the cold air. Is that really the genius of the Holy Zhi Palace and the champion of the Law Rank? It was an irony like none other. It was as if everything that had just happened was nothing but a joke.


    Ximen Hanjiang considered the possibility of losing, but he never expected to lose in such a humiliating way. He lost without knowing why he lost. His opponent did not even bother fighting him.


    Is there even a more humiliating loss than this? Liu Chan felt himself trembling inside as he watched the events unfold. So that was how powerful the son of the Yu State''s sacred ground was? The difference between Ximen Hanjiang and Qin Zhong was so great that Ximen Hanjiang was utterly helpless.


    Liu Chan''s level was such that he understood that Qin Zhong was already halfway into the Sage Plane. It was entirely within reason that Ximen Hanjiang lost. When Hua Fan was in the period just before he broke into the Sage Plane, he might have had the ability to fight Qin Zhong. At the very least, the loss would have been a less humiliating one. Regardless, the fight allowed the students of the Holy Zhi Palace to understand there was more to the outside world that met the eye, and they would have understood the Holy Zhi Palace''s pressure for it.


    "If you are indeed the number one noble in the Holy Zhi Palace, I must say that I''m rather disappointed regarding the sacred ground of Barren State," Qin Zhong said softly. Ximen Hanjiang went completely pale altogether. Many looked at Ximen Hanjiang in sympathy. That champion of the Law Rank was indeed going through hell at the moment. There was never a champion in Law Rank who was so humiliated like Ximen Hanjiang.


    However, Qin Zhong''s tone was one that said that he did not seem to have any intention of humiliating Ximen Hanjiang. It was more like that he never considered his opponent in the first place. In Qin Zhong''s eyes, the Holy Zhi Palace was simply not worthy of his attention, which was why he was able to be so calm in the face of all that had happened. But then again, it was such an attitude that made the students of the Holy Zhi Palace feel even more ashamed of themselves. Ximen Hanjiang''s loss was their loss as well, as he was, after all, the champion of the Law Rank.


    Many could not help but recall that guy who was expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace a while before. If he had been here, would he have been able to fight Qin Zhong on equal footing?


    Ye Futian might still have lost as he was of a lower plane, but at the very least, it would definitely have been one far less humiliating than the one Ximen Hanjiang suffered. Furthermore, if Ye Futian had been at the pinnacle of Noble Plane, there was no certainty that the son would have been able to actually crush him.


    Ye Wuchen, Phoenix, Yun Shuisheng, and all the others were there as well. They watched the events unfold without saying anything, casting their eyes at Liu Chan and the great figures of the Holy Zhi Palace instead, wondering if they recalled that there were two genius level figures in the Holy Zhi Palace just several months ago, with one of them being the true champion of the Law Rank.


    Qin Zhong walked back outside the stage and came to Liu Chan''s side. He then asked, "The students of the Holy Zhi Palace represent the best Barren State has to offer?"


    Liu Chan was rendered silent for a while. While he had indeed wished for the students to know how powerful geniuses of the greater world were, he had never anticipated the loss to be so humiliating. Qin Zhong''s question sounded especially awkward under such circumstances. If Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were still in the Holy Zhi Palace, he would have said yes to the question without hesitation.


    Ye Futian had, after all, crushed Di Gang, the champion of the western region, Ximen Hanjiang, champion of Law Rank, and Huang Jiuge, the number one of the Sovereign family in Zhongzhou City, as just a Grade Three Noble. Such a talent would have definitely been the best Barren State had to offer. Yu Sheng was not far behind either. With both geniuses of such caliber expelled, the Holy Zhi Palace had lost their right to claim such a thing.


    The students looked at Liu Chan, who was silent, and they knew that the battle was difficult for him to look at.


    "Cultivation has no inherent limits, and I dare not say that the ones studying in the Holy Zhi Palace are definitely the best. The Barren State is a huge place and there are definitely be other top-notch geniuses out there. As such, I dare not say that the Holy Zhi Palace serves as the symbol of the very best. Of course, when you''re talking about things as a whole, it is indeed so," Liu Chan replied in a tactful manner.


    Qin Zhong nodded without saying much. At that moment, there were others showing up with people of the Holy Zhi Palace leading the way.


    "Brother Qin, you''re here." It was Zhan Xiao and the others with him. They arrived by air and smiled as soon as they saw Kong Yao beside Qin Zhong. Since Kong Yao is here, all has been settled then. He knew that someone like him would not have been able to have Kong Yao show up. As such, he called for Qin Zhong instead.


    "Brother Zhan." Qin Zhong nodded.


    "Uncle Kong." Zhan Xiao bowed slightly at Kong Yao. Kong Yao nodded in response.


    "My name is Zhan Xiao. It is my pleasure to meet all of you, seniors of the Holy Zhi Palace." Zhan Xiao nodded at Liu Chan and the others. His attitude towards them was noticeably different than what he showed Kong Yao. It was something Liu Chan and the others in the Holy Zhi Palace took note of. That Son of Zhisheng Cliffs was obviously feeling rather superior in the sacred ground of the Barren State. It was probably them who had arrived at the Zhuge family several months ago, intending to take Gu Dongliu away.


    "Brother Zhan, the Holy Zhi Palace is the sacred ground of Barren State, a place of similar lineage with Zhisheng Cliffs, I''d say. We all descended from Emperor Xia''s Orthodoxy, after all. As this is a matter concerning the Barren State, it would be best to have Palace Lord Liu handle this. That would probably make things easier to handle." Qin Zhong looked at Zhan Xiao and said, "How about you tell Palace Lord Liu what happened?"


    "Indeed." Zhan Xiao nodded and asked Liu Chan, "Is it convenient for you here, sir?"


    "Walk with me," Liu Chan said. He told the students of the Holy Zhi Palace, "Carry on."


    They left soon after.

 683 Arrest at Crouching Dragon Mountain

    Liu Chan, Sage Tianxing, and the group of mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs walked into the Holy Zhi Palace, heading for Holy Sage Pavilion. While the group from Zhisheng Cliffs had made their entrance in a rather rude manner, they still hailed from the sacred ground of Yu State and that place had saints. With that said, the foreigners indeed proved superior when compared to the Holy Zhi Palace''s members. As such, Liu Chan had no choice but to let the matter slide and treat them as honorable guests.


    "What made you come all the way here to the Barren State?" Liu Chan asked.


    "Palace Lord Liu, I''m sure you''ve heard about the incident with the Zhuge family a while ago. I''ve heard that the clan leader of the Zhuge family graduated from the Holy Zhi Palace. If you are willing to lend a hand, the matter will be over soon," Zhan Xiao said.


    "You mean the incident with Gu Dongliu?" Liu Chan asked.


    "Indeed." Zhan Xiao nodded. "I found a saint''s ruins about a year ago. Some of the secret zones proved rather dangerous. As such, a lot of sages were invited to probe the place. Many of them were from renowned clans in Yu State. I saw Gu Dongliu as a dashing and exceptional figure, so I invited him to come along, becoming friends with him, thinking him to be a man of honor. We made a deal that the sacred relic would be made mine when we acquired it as I was the one who found the sacred ground. He was, of course, welcomed to take any of the other treasures found. However, I apparently underestimated how great a person''s greed can be. Gu Dongliu took the relic for himself and deliberately activated the traps there, killing all of the other sages and then ran to the Barren State with that relic with him. Members from various forces from Yu State are after him as we speak, and we from Zhisheng Cliffs have only been pursuing him this far due to having sages with expertise in tracking.


    "While that man exuded the air of a man of honor, he was actually vile and despicable, stealing the sacred relic and killing our comrades. As such, even if he agreed to surrender what he stole, I will not just let him go. I made that very clear back when we were in the Zhuge family estate."


    Zhan Xiao continued elaborating, "My uncle and junior have come all the way here to settle the matter as well. But my junior reminded me that we are in the Barren State, and the Holy Zhi Palace is the sacred ground of Barren State. If you are willing to help us get the Zhuge family to hand Gu Dongliu over, the matter will be settled and you will have one less vile person to deal with in the Barren State."


    Liu Chan was unfazed by Zhan Xiao''s words, appearing calm as Zhan Xiao explained his case. If there was one thing that Liu Chan learned from all the years he had been alive, it was to never listen to only one side of the story and believe it to be the entire truth.


    Zhan Xiao''s words might have been the truth, but there was no way he would have simply believe it just because Zhan Xiao said so. While he indeed was on rather bad terms with Gu Dongliu over what happened to Bai Luli, from that one battle, he was able to tell that Gu Dongliu was indeed someone worthy of being in legends, sporting incredibly exceptional talents. He had to admit at least that much about the young man.


    "Liu Chan, what do you think?" Kong Yao asked, seeing that Liu Chan had not said anything in response.


    "The day you mean, I assume, would be the engagement day of Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue. As such, Gu Dongliu is now the son-in-law of the Zhuge family. Zhuge Qingfeng was indeed a student of the Holy Zhi Palace and was my junior. However, it is due to such reasons that if I were to ask Zhuge Qingfeng to hand his son-in-law over, I would be put in a tight spot, as such actions would be rather dishonorable." Liu Chan then continued calmly, "I''m afraid that it would be rather inconvenient for the Holy Zhi Palace to interfere with the matter you speak of."


    Zhuge Qingfeng had already shown his bias for Gu Dongliu that day, and Liu Chan was very angry about it. However, the two cases were still two separate cases. He deemed it inappropriate to invest his personal feelings into matters when greater rights and wrongs were involved.


    The group from Zhisheng Cliffs went there to ask the Zhuge family to hand over who they deemed responsible, and even others like You Chi, who was present, forbade them to simply take Gu Dongliu away. It was a clear statement saying that while Zhisheng Cliffs was indeed a sacred ground of Yu State, even the Son of the place had no business bossing people around in the Zhuge family estate. As such, if the Holy Zhi Palace decided to interfere, problems with morality aside, the people of the Barren State would see the Holy Zhi Palace in an unfavorable light.


    "It is due precisely to such reasons that if some vile creature like Gu Dongliu were to be allowed to stay in Zhuge family, he would make a mess of them. There would be dire consequences and it is imperative that you be involved," Zhan Xiao continued.


    Liu Chan waved his hand and said, "Kong Yao, I am obliged to treat you all well as guests coming all the way from the sacred ground of Yu State; however, the Holy Zhi Palace does not meddle with the affairs of the Barren State, and as such, it would be inconvenient for us to get involved in the case you speak of."


    "I understand." Kong Yao said plainly, "In that case, t Zhisheng Cliffs will not hold you against your will. We will look into it ourselves."


    "Very well then." Liu Chan nodded. "I will order for a feast to be prepared."


    "There is no need for that. We deemed it necessary to pay a visit here as we all hail from sacred grounds of the nine states. We will not hold you any further as we have that matter to deal with." Kong Yao''s voice sounded noticeably colder. He stopped walking right afterward and said, "Liu Chan, we will be on our way."


    "In that case, I will not hold you either." Liu Chan did not say anything further. Kong Yao and his people from Zhisheng Cliffs left shortly after.


    Liu Chan and Sage Tianxing stared at the figures leaving the place and felt rather uneasy within. It was especially so for Liu Chan. Kong Yao was known to be invincible to all below the Saint Plane. He had also witnessed firsthand what Kong Yao was capable of. He was ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking, and if Zhuge Qingfeng were to insist on refusing to hand Gu Dongliu over, Kong Yao''s forceful temperament would mean a war between him and the Zhuge family.


    "It seems like the Zhuge family will be in deep trouble now," Sage Tianxing said.


    "If the Zhuge family had the gall to refuse Zhisheng Cliff''s request, they will naturally have to deal with the problem. If Zhisheng Cliffs indeed tried to throw their weight around in the Barren State, they will definitely not be getting their wish," Liu Chan said, knowing well that the true mighty ones of all sacred grounds of the nine states were still the saints.


    The Barren State needed saints to emerge as soon as possible. If there were saints among the ranks of the Holy Zhi Palace, Kong Yao and the rest of his group would not have acted as rudely and arrogantly as they did.


    On the other hand, Zhan Xiao said when his group had left the Holy Zhi Palace, "With the Barren State in such a rundown state now, I''m surprised that Liu Chan had the gall to be so uncooperative. Even with you here, Uncle, he didn''t bother giving you any face."


    "This is normal. All who hail from sacred grounds have their own pride. What happened back there was within our expectations," Kong Yao said.


    "If you''d known that it''d turn out as such, why did you bother going to them in the first place?" Zhan Xiao asked.


    "Zhuge Qingfeng graduated from the Holy Zhi Palace and this is still the Barren State. What we did will at least ensure that they won''t be sticking their noses where they don''t belong," Kong Yao explained. If the Holy Zhi Palace had interfered and ended up standing against them, things would have gotten even more complicated. As such, he went asking Liu Chan for help. If Liu Chan made sure to stay out of this, they would be allowed to carry on with their own business without interference.


    "You are one of the top ten figures on the Sage Ranking. Why do you need to be concerned so much with the now rundown Barren State?" Zhan Xiao asked.


    "The Barren State is indeed not what it used to be, but it still bears the lineage of saints. The case is not as simple as you think," Kong Yao explained. Sacred grounds definitely housed sacred relics. Zhisheng Cliffs had saints. As such, sacred relics were in the hands of the saints instead of being in their control.


    "I understand." Zhan Xiao nodded. The group headed straight for Xuanwu City in the northern region of Zhongzhou City by air.


    ��


    There had been quite a lot happening in the Barren State. Starting with the incident with the engagement between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue, there were visitors from the sacred ground of Yu State. an assassination attempt at Ye Futian, and golden great apes venturing outside Taihang Mountain. Every single incident shook the Barren State as a whole.


    The people of the Barren State somehow felt that there was an undercurrent at work, and something huge would break out at any given moment. However, it was still little more than a hunch, and no one was able to make clear of what would happen next.


    Zhuge Qingfeng was caught at the center of the whirlpool, and as such, his awareness of such developments was more acute than most. In truth, when he saw Ye Futian demonstrate who he really was, Zhuge Qingfeng felt that the peaceful days of the Barren State were about to be over. When geniuses of such caliber emerged, shockwaves in the form of multiple great incidents followed in their wake. Furthermore, the pressure from Zhisheng Cliffs never actually disappeared. He knew the mighty ones of Zhisheng Cliffs would soon strike again.


    Zhuge Qingfeng was meditating in Wind Residence, and Crouching Dragon Mountain was not any different that day. His eyes opened all of a sudden as he set his gaze far away. What was to come have finally came. He had no idea, however, who it would be this time.


    A group of people landed above Crouching Dragon Mountain. In that very instant, an extremely stifling pressure encompassed the entire mountain. Worse still, many in Xuanwu City not far away from the mountain were able to sense the appalling pressure as well. They turned their eyes at the air right above Crouching Dragon Mountain and were able to see figures standing high and mighty in the air. Everyone from the Zhuge family walked outside and looked at the mighty ones in the air.


    Gu Dongliu halted his training in Moon Tower and looked at the sky.


    What was to come had finally came. He had witnessed Zhan Xiao kill everyone that day and he had been the only survivor. He came to understand that Zhan Xiao would not have stopped until he was no more.


    Zhisheng Cliffs was a sacred ground of Yu State, and Zhan Xiao was the Son of the place. Among the many sages that he killed, there were geniuses from renowned clans. If that information were to make it outside, it would have affected Zhisheng Cliff''s reputation and damaged Zhan Xiao''s status as the Son. There was no way he would let Gu Dongliu live. While Gu Dongliu knew that Zhan Xiao would have lied, nothing would have put the villain at ease better than to see him dead.


    That was the very reason Gu Dongliu did not elaborate his reasons for running in front of everyone. If it was simply Zhan Xiao as an individual who wanted him dead, there was still wiggle room for Gu Dongliu to free himself. If he was accused of damaging the reputation of Zhisheng Cliffs itself, however, people of the entire place would want his head. As such, he knew that there were things he had to keep to himself no matter what.


    Zhuge Mingyue came to him and took his hand, saying, "Don''t worry too much about this. If father has allowed you to stay, he definitely has a way of settling this."


    "Easier said than done," Gu Dongliu replied. Zhuge Qingfeng was seen in the air shortly afterward.


    "I''ll go after father-in-law. It''s best that you stay here, Mingyue." Gu Dongliu took to the air after saying that. Zhuge Mingyue smiled and went after him nonetheless. They were now finally together. No matter what was going to happen in the future, she deemed it necessary for them to face adversities together.


    Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue arrived behind Zhuge Qingfeng in the air shortly. Zhan Xiao glared at Gu Dongliu with cold, murderous intent in his eyes.


    "Zhuge Qingfeng," Kong Yao looked at Zhuge Qingfeng and said, "I believe we have met."


    "We have indeed." Zhuge Qingfeng nodded. That was more than ten years ago.


    "I''ll spare you the chit chat. Gu Dongliu stole a sacred relic from the Son of Zhisheng Cliffs and killed many of Yu State''s sages. I will be taking him away," Kong Yao said without bothering to beat around the bush. His forceful voice was heard throughout the entire estate.


    "I have heard Dongliu talk about this. In the ruins of saints, anyone is free to take sacred relics. If the sacred relic fell into Dongliu''s hands, then they''d naturally be his. As for the sages, the traps of the secret zones are to blame," Zhuge Qingfeng said. He knew everything that took place through Gu Dongliu, but he did not tell the truth in front of everyone, trying to downplay things and end it without incident instead. If he had simply gone about telling the truth, Kong Yao would have denied it, regardless if he believed it or not, accusing Zhuge Qingfeng of slandering Zhisheng Cliffs instead. Such would have been Kong Yao''s stance on things.

 684 White Cloud City Part One

    Kong Yao''s aura was a cold, stern one as he glared at Zhuge Qingfeng and said, "We at Zhisheng Cliffs will the one deciding who is right or wrong here. I''ll say this one more time, hand Gu Dongliu over to us."


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at him and he naturally knew who Kong Yao was��the figure ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States.


    He knew the weight of a sacred relic. There was no need for right or wrong to be determined when such items were concerned. The innocent would be made guilty if it served their interests. Furthermore, the sacred relic was something that Gu Dongliu had taken from Zhan Xiao. Even someone like Kong Yao would not have a sacred relic with him, as he was not the lineage of a saint. There was no way for him to acquire one in conventional ways either, due to Zhisheng Cliffs having saints among their ranks.


    When it came to acquiring a sacred relic, it was entirely within reason for Zhan Xiao to kill everyone around him to get it. Even Kong Yao himself would not have spared anyone mercy if he was in Zhan Xiao''s shoes. As such, it was deemed adequate to simply make one''s stance clear. There was simply no need for further explanations.


    "I''m afraid I can''t comply with that," Zhuge Qingfeng answered in a straightforward manner. An oppressive air permeated the sky above Crouching Dragon Mountain for a time. Many looked in their direction from outside the estate, and they were able to sense that stifling aura. Are the super powerful ones from Zhisheng Cliffs about to fight Zhuge Qingfeng, who ranks sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking, right inside the Zhuge family estate?


    Might emanated from Kong Yao''s body. In that very instant, everyone in the Zhuge family on Crouching Dragon Mountain felt as if a mountain had fallen on their heads.


    Kong Yao took one step forward, and that one step showered the power of rules down below. A thunderous rumble was soon heard after. Crouching Dragon Mountain was shaking.


    Pfftt. Many within the Zhuge family of weaker training went pale and spouted blood. They lifted their heads to look at the figure standing tall in the sky, their bodies wobbling. Is that something even doable for a human? One step and terror of this scale follows.


    "Are you sure?" Kong Yao''s eyes were sharp as he glared at Zhuge Qingfeng. A terrifying pressure swept over him, leaning hard on his spiritual willpower.


    Zhuge Qingfeng had never fought someone of such caliber, who ranked ninth on Sage Ranking. Kong Yao''s combat capacity probably belonged on the top three of the Barren Sky Ranking. It would not be a surprise even if his powers were comparable to the champion of the Barren Sky Ranking. The Sage Ranking was filled with the most powerful 81 sages found in all nine states. Even if every state were to have only one on the rank, there would still be nine in total. Even as the number one sage in the Barren State, there was no certainty he would have been ranked among the top nine on the Sage Ranking. In the case of the Barren State, Kong Yao''s combat capacity was definitely among the absolute top.


    Zhuge Qingfeng''s expression was incredibly severe. His body was dazzling with incredible brilliance, and it brought unparalleled brightness to all of Crouching Mountain Dragon instantly. Deep within the mountain, there was a mysterious power being unleashed. Sky blue brilliance encompassed Zhuge Qingfeng, and the entire Crouching Dragon Mountain was thrown into very bright daylight. Endless runes shone throughout the mountain, and an incredibly huge matrix appeared��Eight Trigrams Matrix.


    Afterimages glittered around Zhuge Qingfeng, turning into silhouettes of lightning. They took their places in different corners of the Eight Trigrams Matrix. They multiplied rapidly and soon, the entire matrixes were filled with shadows of Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "I''m certain," Zhuge Qingfeng replied with a steely, adamant voice. As a top-notch sage, he had no intentions of backing down easily from what he had determined to accomplish. There was simply no way for Zhisheng Cliffs to throw their weight around in the Zhuge family so easily.


    "The sacred relic." Kong Yao sensed the power and knew there was a sacred relic in the Zhuge family. While Zhuge Qingfeng was unable to wield the true power of the item, he was nonetheless able to borrow its powers to boost his own. That very Eight Trigrams Matrix that covered all of Crouching Dragon Mountain emanated an immovable feeling.


    Zhuge Qingfeng extended his hand, and all of his shadows followed suit in an instant. In the very next second, every shadow shone with the frightening power of lightning throughout the sky. His powers encompassed the group of mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs. The devastating lightning flashed about like death-bringing bolts. Many mighty ones felt spiritual will rocking about. The light was infused with extremely devastating spiritual attacks, rampaging about in their minds. If Zhuge Qingfeng had gone through with it, the scene would have really turned into a disaster. It was apparent that what he pulled was in retaliation to what Kong Yao did earlier. It would have served at least as a reminder to Kong Yao.


    Boom. Kong Yao took another step forward. Godlike statues appeared in the air and brought their might down upon the Eight Trigrams Matrix. It shook violently as a result. However, the matrix burst with tremendous light. The force of the attacks it took was spread throughout the entire matrix, ensuring its integrity.


    At the very same time, Kong Yao vanished into thin air. The people below were unable to even track his movements, making it seem as if he disappeared from existence altogether. He then appeared in the air right before Zhuge Qingfeng. He clenched his fist and punched. Godly conjuring appeared around his fist, seemingly capable of moving the heavens and the earth.


    Zhuge Qingfeng responded with a punch himself without even flinching.


    Boom! The entire mountain shook as the punches connect. As both fists collided, light burst from the matrix on the mountain, shooting heavenward. The entire matrix''s light coalesced on Zhuge Qingfeng''s body, which had his robe and black hair billowing about.


    At the moment, Zhuge Qingfeng felt it was not Kong Yao who punched him, but an incredible huge godlike figure.Kong Yao''s arm vibrated. Nine fist will exploded forth instantly. His godlike conjuring went on a stampede, howling in Zhuge Qingfeng''s mind as if it was trying to stomp him to death. It was a harrowing sight to behold. At the same time, Kong Yao burst with endless brilliance of devastation, coursing about his body.


    Boom. A powerful light exploded, shattering Zhuge Qingfeng''s shadows. Kong Yao''s body returned to where it had been before as if he never moved in the first place.


    Yet another illusory shadow coalesced and manifested into Zhuge Qingfeng. It was as if the person that was destroyed before was a shadow instead of his true body. However, the one who launched the attack was none other than Zhuge Qingfeng himself.


    "I have to hand it to the sacred relic. Working under it renders one''s defense impenetrable indeed." Kong Yao looked at Zhuge Qingfeng. With protection provided by a sacred relic, one was almost guaranteed victory and total immunity from being killed.


    The members of Zhuge family continued watching the battle in the air above Crouching Dragon Mountain and were able to deeply feel the immense power of Kong Yao, as he was capable of holding himself well against the powers bestowed by a sacred relic. That was also the first time most of them came to know the power of the sacred relic. It was said that the relic was precisely what the Holy Zhi Palace and the City Lord of White Cloud City were after from the Zhuge family, which was the very reason the marriage alliance between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue was arranged in the first place.


    Bai Luli''s talent was that if he were to reach the pinnacle of sages, armed with the sacred relic in the Holy Zhi Palace as well as the one in the Zhuge family to walk on the Divine Path, he might have very well ended up the most powerful, second only to saints. With that said, the probability of him attaining sainthood would be almost absolute. It was no surprise why all the great figures in the Barren State wanted so badly to get the alliance up��they wanted to create a saint.


    "You will not be taking Gu Dongliu away. I advise you all to return to where you came from," Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Kong Yao and said. That one strike before was more than enough to have him experience how truly frightening the one ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking was. A simple punch that seemed to have been imbued with the might of major rules capable of wiping everything in its path. If it had not been for the sacred relic boosting Zhuge Qingfeng''s defenses earlier, it would have been very difficult for him to fight against Kong Yao.


    "I have come all the way here and I will not leave without taking who I came for," Kong Yao said with a forceful tone. He turned around once he was done and told the ones from Zhisheng Cliffs, "Let''s go."


    Zhan Xiao glared at Zhuge Qingfeng and Gu Dongliu. With Gu Dongliu''s item accounted for, there were two sacred relics in the Zhuge family estate.


    Qin Zhong was very calm throughout the fight. They might have left Crouching Dragon Mountain, but they did not leave Xuanwu City. They instead took up residence in one of the inns in Xuanwu City, not far away outside Crouching Dragon Mountain. All of the guests checked out without hesitation, as they did not want any trouble with the big shots from Zhisheng City, fearing that they may have ended up offending those visitors somehow.


    "So long as the Zhuge family is armed with such a relic, it will be very difficult for us," Qin Zhong said.


    "Zhan Xiao, you''ve been in Barren State for quite a while now. Do you have any ideas on how to go about this?" Kong Yao said to Zhan Xiao. While it was possible for them to fight a war of attrition with the Zhuge family, he thought his energies could be better spent elsewhere. As such, it was still more preferable to get the matter settled as soon as possible.


    "The day I found Gu Dongliu was not during his engagement banquet; it was one meant for the proud son of White Cloud City, Bai Luli, and Zhuge Mingyue. The very reason why the Holy Zhi Palace formed an alliance with White Cloud City was due to the sacred relic on Zhuge Qingfeng. But Gu Dongliu went to steal the bride that day and Bai Luli ended up giving up. As such, the City Lord of White Cloud City, who ranks fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, definitely felt very frustrated. It was said that he held an intense grudge when he left that day," Zhan Xiao elaborated.


    "So Bai Luli was that proud student of the Holy Zhi Palace who ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking and possesses huge potential for sainthood." It was obvious that Kong Yao knew a thing or two about the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Indeed." Zhan Xiao nodded.


    "It seems that the Holy Zhi Palace is very desperate to nurture a saint. The City Lord of White Cloud City is Bai Luli''s father, and it''s only natural for him to wish for his son to become a saint." Kong Yao smirked and continued, "Pay a visit to White Cloud City. Tell him that when the deed is done, I will help look after Bai Luli when he goes on his journey to sainthood. If this proves inadequate, tell him that the sacred relic in the Zhuge family will be his if we manage to get our hands on it."


    "Will do, Uncle," Zhan Xiao smirked and said. White Cloud City had been going after the Zhuge family''s sacred relic all this while, and they would not simply let a chance like this slip through their fingers. Of course, it would have been better if White Cloud City would have simply agreed to their first proposal, as that would have meant them bagging two sacred relics.


    Zhan Xiao left Xuanwu City and headed straight for White Cloud City. He went telling everyone of Gu Dongliu''s ''crimes'' along the way. Since Gu Dongliu had his reservations about telling the truth, he would simply need to claim his side of the story to be the true story, making his lie a complete truth.


    The news spread far and wide soon. Bai Gu left White Cloud City and headed for the Zhuge family''s Xuanwu City months after he had last been there.


    The incident shook the Barren State, and both Xuanwu City and Crouching Mountain Dragon quickly found themselves isolated. Forces gathered right under their noses and they were in a crisis. It seemed as if both places could collapse soon.


    Ye Futian remained focused on his training at Taihang Mountain. He wanted to become a saint as soon as possible and had dedicated himself to comprehending the rules of Sage Plane, making good progress for the time being. However, when news from Crouching Dragon Mountain reached him, the tranquility within his mind was shattered in an instant.


    The City Lord of White Cloud City had actually wanted in on this and had even allied with Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State to achieve it.


    A rumble was heard on Taihang Mountain. A group of golden great apes took to the air with a man standing on one of them. Yuan Hong descended the mountain once again, and this time, with Ye Futian in tow!

 685 White Cloud City Part Two

    The Barren State appeared to show signs of turmoil. Since the previous incident, the White Cloud City City Lord would definitely have a hatred for the Zhuge Family. However, everyone did not expect that the White Cloud City would join forces with the Zhisheng Cliffs to target the Zhuge Family.


    This was probably their official falling out. The White Cloud City Lord and Zhuge Qingfeng were once the Holy Zhi Palace''s prodigies, but now they were on opposing sides because of a younger generation''s marriage. This caused many people to sigh.


    Crouching Dragon Mountain currently appeared to be in a dire situation. No faction dared to interfere with Xuanwu City. Even factions that used to be affiliated with the Zhuge Family only dared to watch from afar. Neither Zhisheng Cliffs nor White Cloud City was a force that they could touch.


    After Bai Gu descended upon Xuanwu City, he did not immediately attack the Zhuge Family with Zhisheng Cliff. Zhuge Qingfeng had a saint-level defensive implement in his hands, so it was not easy to deal with him. As long as they were in Xuanwu City, they were already applying enough pressure on the Zhuge Family. Now, the Zhuge Family was already internally in a mess. After all, the majority of the Zhuge Family had supported Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue''s marriage not long ago.


    In the Eastern region of the Barren State, Alchemy City, City Lord Office.


    You Chi naturally knew about the unrest in Xuanwu City. He had even sent men to Xuanwu City, but today, a group of experts appeared suddenly within his office. A herd of giant Golden Apes had landed, and Ye Futian''s group had jumped off them. You Chi had a suspicious expression as he looked at the many figures that had appeared before him. Xuanwu City was in unrest and Crouching Dragon Mountain had been surrounded, but Ye Futian was still freely coming here.


    "Little Brother." Xue Ye and You Xi appeared. Now, You Xi''s belly was already quite big as it was not long before the child would be born. As such, Xue Ye had been in a terrible condition these few days.


    "Yuan Hong," You Chi looked at the group of people before his eyes and asked, "why are you here?"


    "I heard from Grandfather Ape that senior has asked him to come to Alchemy City. I am here for that," Ye Futian replied.


    "What weapon do you want? I can forge anything for Yuan Hong," You Chi smiled and said.


    "I would like to borrow senior''s Saint instrument," Ye Futian replied. The Alchemy City was the Barren State''s holy land for armory. Sage Douzhan had once said that the Alchemy City had Saint-level ritual implements.


    A strange expression appeared on You Chi''s face. The number of Saint instruments in the Barren State was few and far between. It was an extremely precious item. Ye Futian said that he wanted to borrow a saint instrument; it sounded extremely ludicrous. Even if Xue Ye asked him for it, he might not lend it to him.


    "You should understand what a Saint instrument means," You Chi said to Ye Futian.


    What did the experts from the Zhisheng Cliffs come all the way for? For Saint items. The Alchemy City''s Saint instrument was the same as the Zhuge Family''s. They were both Saint-level ritual implements and not just ritual implements that had been used by Saints.


    "Senior also knows about my relationship with brother Xue Ye. After this matter, I will definitely return it to senior. Other than that, I am willing to use a battle technique in exchange for it��the ape clan''s 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques," Ye Futian said. "What does senior think about that?"


    "Although the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques is indeed a high-level attacking technique, it does not have much use to me and is far inferior to the Saint instrument," You Chi replied. What he was saying was the truth. To them, they were all trapped in the same cultivation level, so no matter how strong their attack techniques were, they were superfluous. On the other hand, the Saint instruments were more pragmatic.


    "Moreover, you want to borrow my Saint instrument to deal with Zhisheng Cliffs. In that case, won''t my Alchemy City be dragged into it too?" You Chi continued, "I do not wish to be involved." The Alchemy City had a transcendent position in the Barren State and did not need to be involved in worldly affairs. Nobody would touch the Alchemy City.


    "On this matter, I owe senior a favor. In the future, if senior has any wishes, I will accommodate them," Ye Futian said, looking at You Chi.


    "Oh?" You Chi smiled and asked, "What would I want a favor from you for?"


    "The Divine Path," Ye Futian looked at You Chi and replied. "In the future, I will definitely enter the Divine Path. If there is a chance, I will do my best to assist senior to enter that plane."


    You Chi stared at Ye Futian. To him, the Saint Plane was indeed attractive. However, it was extremely hard to attain. How many geniuses from the Barren State had tried to attain the Divine Path but had ended up dead? However, with Ye Futian''s potential, it was indeed possible.


    "Father," You Xi called out to him from beside him.


    "Father-in-law!" Xue Ye also called out to him and said, "Father-in-law should know who my Master was brought away by back then. Master has definitely seen the most elite figures, but when Little Brother joined us, Master once said, Little Brother was the person he was waiting for.


    "Father-in-law saw my Third Brother''s potential when he fought with Bai Luli that day. Even so, Master''s hopes for Little Brother were still higher than for Third Brother. Is that not enough to prove something?" Xue Ye continued, "The Palace has placed its hopes on Bai Luli. Father-in-law can make a gamble on Little Brother''s future. Back then, the Divine Sky City''s Top Three Schools'' Starry School Chief Chen Yuan did that as well."


    You Chi looked at his daughter and son-in-law. These two fellows, this was a Saint instrument. Did they know what it meant?


    "What if you fail, something happens to Yuan Hong and the Saint instrument gets taken away?" You Chi asked.


    "If Senior lends us your Saint instrument, what will happen? Do you not trust Grandfather Ape''s strength?" Ye Futian looked at Yuan Hong and asked.


    "You Chi, even without the Saint instrument, my combat ability is not beneath yours," Yuan Hong said as he looked at You Chi.


    "Moreover, Grandfather Ape specializes in attacking. I have a Saint item as well. Although it has only been used by a Saint and is not an actual Saint ritual implement, it still has a strand of Saint Will within it and has exceptional offensive ability. It is able to complement Grandfather Ape''s attacking techniques. If he has another Saint instrument, I believe that Grandfather Ape will be able to take on the Zhisheng Cliff''s expert by himself," Ye Futian said. The Polearm of Divine Destruction was just right for Yuan Hong to use.


    Looking at Ye Futian, You Chi smiled and nodded, saying, "Alright, I''ll lend him a defensive ritual implement that is enough for him to stay undefeated. Adding on to the attack ability that you''re so confident in, even if anything unexpected happens, he should be able to escape unscathed."


    "Thank you, City Lord." A smile appeared in Ye Futian''s gaze. He had only come here to try his luck. He had not expected to be able to convince You Chi.


    "Come with me." You Chi turned around and brought Ye Futian''s group into the most secret location of Alchemy City. Not long after, they all came out.


    "Will you be heading directly to Xuanwu City?" You Chi asked Ye Futian.


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head. "This is the western region, the White Cloud City is obviously closer."


    A glint appeared in You Chi eyes as he looked at Ye Futian and said, "Treat this like you''ve never come here, this matter has nothing to do with me. Now, I''m just waiting to carry my grandson." His voice was lethargic. Who knew how long this battle would last for��


    "I understand. Goodbye." Ye Futian and Yuan Hong flew into the air without managing to say anything to his brother.


    "It looks like father-in-law originally wanted to lend it to Little Brother," Xue Ye was quite grateful as he said.


    "Did I?" You Chi looked at him but was actually thinking Now the situation in the Barren State is quite interesting. The Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City wanted a Saint to appear and they chose Bai Luli. However, why was Taihang Mountain following Ye Futian? Also, Zhuge Qingfeng changing his stance definitely had Ye Futian''s involvement.


    All this was rather intriguing. Perhaps, many people also wanted a Saint to appear, but the person they had chosen was Ye Futian.


    ��


    In White Cloud City, when a group of Golden Ape descended, countless people in the city tensed up. It had been a short while, but Taihang Mountain had set out once again, this time to the White Cloud City. This��


    "Hurry and inform the City Lord," someone in White Cloud City said.


    "The City Lord isn''t around," someone else replied. At that moment, their expressions all hardened. The City Lord should have been in Xuanwu City. Who would be able to stop the Barren Sky Ranking''s 18th, Yuan Hong?


    The Gongsun Clan is finished. This was the thought on many people''s minds.


    At that moment, the Gongsun Clan was completely oblivious to the danger that was befalling them. Previously, the White Cloud City Lord had stepped out and intimidated the Taihang Mountain''s experts, forcing Yuan Hong to retreat. Gongsun Jing had thought that he would be safe in White Cloud City.


    Crash. A loud sound was heard. Many people from the Gongsun Clan were shocked. This sound seemed rather familiar. Next, the loud sounds continued. Gongsun Jing and a few other Sage Plane cultivators released their Spiritual Energy, and soon, their faces became pale.


    "Clan members, listen up, go now," Gongsun Jing immediately gave the order, and as his voice landed, he saw a golden light glaring in the air. An immeasurably huge golden figure came down from the skies, just like a demon God.


    "Yuan Hong, why can''t you just give us a way out?" Gongsun Jing''s body flew into the air and he was in despair. Now, the White Cloud City Lord was not around. Who would have expected Yuan Hong to come again?


    "When you sent people to kill me, did you think about that?" A voice sounded and only then did Gongsun Jing see a handsome teen on Yuan Hong''s back. It was Ye Futian. Gongsun Jing was in despair. He had not expected that Yuan Hong''s relationship with Ye Futian was this close. Why was this so? He could not understand.


    A giant rod swung down from Yuan Hong''s hands and crushed down from the skies. At that moment, the sky was filled with shadows of the rod and smashed down onto the Gongsun Clan, covering the skies and surrounding the entire clan residence.


    "I regret it!" Gongsun Jing howled and wanted to block it at the expense of his life. However, the rod shadows landed and he was completely powerless before it. He was crushed to death and the remaining shadows landed on the Gongsun Clan. In a split second, the newly built residence had become debris.


    "Yuan Hong!" a voice sounded from far away. The Yun Clan Leader, Yun Hao, had rushed over and shouted in anger, "Are you crazy?"


    "To the City Lord Office," Ye Futian said.


    Yuan Hong nodded and started walking towards the White Cloud City Lord Office. As he heard that, Yun Hao''s expression became flustered. He had just noticed that this time, Yuan Hong had come to the White Cloud City, not just for the Gongsun Clan!

 686 The Palaces Decision

    The 10009th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was fated to be tumultuous. The Barren State appeared to not have the same end-of-year atmosphere as the previous year.


    The Barren State would welcome a storm.


    However, the White Cloud City Lord Office was still in a festive mood. The White Cloud City Lord was the fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking and one of the most influential figures in the entire Barren State. No matter what happened outside, the place where his clan resided could handle the situation calmly. This was the authority and status brought to them by power. The City Lord Office would not have any sense of crisis. After all, who would dare touch the White Cloud City?


    As such, even though an ear-splitting sound could be heard outside the City Lord Office, as though the earth was shaking, they still did not realize what had happened. Many people ordered their subordinates to have a look. When the group of people flew into the air and looked into the distance, their gazes froze and they started shivering.


    It was the demonic beasts from Taihang Mountain. They naturally knew that the demonic beasts from Taihang Mountain had already come a few months ago. The White Cloud City Lord, Bai Gu, had stopped them from eradicating the Gongsun Clan, but now, the demonic beasts from Taihang Mountain had descended once again. What did this mean? Moreover, they were headed straight for the City Lord Office.


    Soon, the influential figures in the City Lord Office felt that something was off. They started flying into the air, and the sight that awaited them was the Golden Apes landing from the sky in the air above White Cloud City.


    A group of figures with strong auras moved towards them. They were the White Cloud City''s experts and had extraordinary strength.


    "What is Taihang Mountain doing in our White Cloud City Lord Office?" someone looked at Yuan Hong and asked.


    "Go in," Ye Futian said. Yuan Hong stepped forward into the City Lord Office. With a deafening crash, the gate to the City Lord Office was smashed to smithereens and cracks appeared in the ground.


    "You impudent!" someone shouted and Yuan Hong looked at the person, his golden eyes filled with demonic Qi, causing the other party to shudder.


    "Yuan Hong," Yun Hao followed him all the way and looked at Yuan Hong, saying, "White Cloud City has no enmity towards Taihang Mountain. You''re not afraid that the City Lord will assault Taihang Mountain if you invade the City Lord Office?"


    "You''re still here?" Ye Futian looked at Yun Hao and asked. Yun Hao''s gaze moved towards the teen on Yuan Hong''s back. He appeared to just realize that what Taihang Mountain was doing was this teen''s will. He was the deciding figure.


    "Still not going to Xuanwu City?" Ye Futian smiled coldly and said, "Help me to tell the White Cloud City Lord that I''ll be here for a few days. If a hair falls from my Third Brother or Second Sister''s head, as long as he has participated, I will make sure that the White Cloud City Lord Office is destroyed."


    Yun Hao stared at Ye Futian. A Noble Plane cultivator actually dared to claim that he would destroy the White Cloud City Lord Office. Although it sounded like a joke, Ye Futian had really done it. Now, the younger generation actually dared to be this crazy.


    "You dare!" an expert from the White Cloud City shouted, enraged. Ye Futian actually dared to make such ravings.


    "Too noisy, make them shut up," Ye Futian said coldly. Yuan Hong stepped forward and a giant golden foot crushed down on the person who had spoken. Within a second, the heavens had formed an overbearing might and crushed down alongside the foot. The expert had a terrified expression as he felt his body being restrained by the power of the heavens.


    Bang! With an echo, a strong Sage Plane expert had been trampled to the ground, creating a human-shaped hole. If it was not for Yuan Hong withdrawing his foot in time, it would have crushed the other party. In an instant, the people in the residence all fell silent and watched Yuan Hong blankly.


    He really dared.


    "I''ll go to Xuanwu City right now, but you better think carefully about what you''re doing. If anything happens to the people in the Office, you better think of the consequences," Yun Hao said, then moved in a flash and left at the fastest speed he could towards Xuanwu City.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept across the other party. He naturally knew that with his current cultivation level, it was not a wise choice for him to clash with such a huge faction like White Cloud City. After all, all he could do now was to leverage others'' strengths. The White Cloud City Lord Bai Gu could easily crush him. However, there were some things that he needed to do.


    The White Cloud City had actually joined forces with Zhisheng Cliffs to deal with the Zhuge Family. Now, Crouching Dragon Mountain was in peril and the other party''s objective was his third brother. If his third brother was taken away, he did not need to guess to know what would happen to him.


    What the White Cloud City Lord was doing was forcing his Third Brother and Second Sister to their deaths. Under such a situation, he had no choice but to be ruthless. Even if he was opposing the fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, he spared no expense.


    Of course, he also understood that although Yuan Hong''s strength had increased substantially, he would not be favored in a match against the White Cloud City Lord. Moreover, there were strong figures from Zhisheng Cliffs. Ye Futian naturally did not hope that his actions would implicate Taihang Mountain, so he had gone to Alchemy City to borrow a Saint ritual implement. Now, he was unsure how the storm would play out, but Zhisheng Cliffs appeared to be determined to achieve their goal, and that was something he would definitely not let happen.


    Countless cold gazes looked towards Ye Futian. They remembered this younger generation Noble Plane cultivator who was once the first on the Law Rank.


    "You all best pray that the White Cloud City Lord doesn''t do anything," Ye Futian saw them staring at him with killing intent and said ruthlessly. Ye Futian and the experts from Taihang Mountain entered the White Cloud City Lord Office. White Cloud City was in unrest. For many years, there had not been someone who dared to be so audacious and kill their way into White Cloud City.


    The news spread very quickly and caused a huge commotion.


    When the Holy Zhi Palace received the news, many people were furious, including a few experts from the Sage Palace. The White Cloud City''s father and son trio all cultivated in the Palace. Now, Bai Luli was even the Palace''s future. That day, after his battle with Gu Dongliu, Bai Luli had left the Barren State to go out and train by himself. Bai Ze was still cultivating in the Palace, but Ye Futian had actually led the demonic beasts from Taihang Mountain into White Cloud City, first eradicating the Gongsun Clan, then entering the City Lord Office.


    At that moment, the Sage Palace was filled with experts, and many influential figures had arrived. Ning Xian said, "Palace Lord, Ye Futian is so presumptuous. If the Palace still does not step in and he really does something, what will happen on Bai Luli''s side?"


    Liu Chan had a frigid expression. The day he knew that the White Cloud City Lord had entered Xuanwu City, he had sighed in pity. After all, both Bai Gu and Zhuge Qingfeng had graduated from the Palace. However, Zhuge Qingfeng''s actions on the day of the engagement must have made Bai Gu extremely displeased. Moreover, because of the Saint item, Bai Gu completely broke off ties with Zhuge Qingfeng, but he had not done anything too out of line yet and had only asked the Zhuge Family to hand over Gu Dongliu. However, Ye Futian''s actions were going to light the entire Barren State on fire.


    The reason the Palace had such a huge reaction was naturally because of Bai Luli. They felt that the White Cloud City Lord had not done anything too out of line, however, it was different when standing in Ye Futian''s position. His Third Brother''s position in his heart was similar to Bai Luli''s position in the hearts of the Palace''s influential figures. Making the Zhuge Family hand over his Third Brother had evidently breached his bottom line. If someone asked the Palace to hand over Bai Luli, what would the Palace do?


    "Bai Gu headed to Xuanwu City. Since the Palace did not interfere, we have let the storm brew. Now, why are we interfering with Ye Futian? Isn''t this helping Bai Gu deal with the Zhuge Family?" Sage Douzhan said, "Could it be, Zhuge Qingfeng is not a disciple of the Palace?"


    "Zhuge Qingfeng''s actions on the day of the engagement were already not in line with the Palace''s Will," Ning Xian said.


    "That was because the Palace stood in Bai Luli''s position and wanted the Zhuge Family to make a sacrifice. White Cloud City was naturally willing," Sage Douzhan replied coldly. "In this matter, since the Palace did not interfere from the start, we should not interfere at all."


    Liu Chan frowned. He turned towards Sage Wanxiang and asked, "What do you think?"


    Sage Wanxiang maintained his silence. He had did a divination for the Palace the other day; it was a divination of crisis, the Palace''s crisis. It was probably very hard for them to avoid it, but he was unsure where the crisis would come from. However, as of now, it seemed that the highest possibility was that the crisis came from Zhisheng Cliffs. After all, the only force that could shake the Palace now was the Yu State''s holy land, Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "You make a decision by yourself in this matter." Sage Wanxiang did not say anything more. Now, the situation in the Barren State was complicated and turmoil had already spread. He wondered how long more it was to the Palace''s crisis.


    "What about you two?" Liu Chan then looked at Sage Daozang and the Sword Demon.


    "Since Wanxiang doesn''t know, how could we know what to do?" Sage Daozang shook his head bitterly, sighing in his heart. The White Cloud City Lord and Zhuge Qingfeng, Bai Luli and Ye Futian��two generations of geniuses, both standing at opposing ends. This storm had involved two generations of people.


    The Sword Demon was also silent. Although he valued Bai Luli, he also appreciated Ye Futian. Ye Wuchen was his disciple as well and showed potential.


    What a pity. The two of them could have created a generation together, but they were now on opposing sides. If Bai Luli knew that Ye Futian had led Taihang Mountain''s clan into his house, what would he think?


    "Liu Chan," a frail voice sounded and Liu Chan turned around. Everyone''s expression became somber and they turned around and looked in that direction.


    "Brother," Liu Chan called out. The person who had spoken was the real Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, the first on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Since the Palace''s Will has already been unfulfilled, what is there to hesitate about? There are some things that we must do even if we know they are wrong. As long as our mindset is flawless, it is correct. Luli will be the next Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, so nothing bad must befall his family. I hope that I can witness a Saint being born in the Barren State before I die." The voice sounded gradually. It was heavy yet solemn, but there was an undoubtedly firm will behind it. The Barren State having a Saint, that was his desire.


    Even as the first on the Barren Sky Ranking, he had experienced danger on the Divine Path. He did not wish that the Palace would become a thing of the past after he died. If that was so, he would be letting his Master down.


    "Yes, Brother." Liu Chan bowed slightly, coming to a decision in his mind. His Brother was right. Since he had already made up his decision a long time ago, what was he hesitating about?


    "Tianxing, Sword Demon, bring a few people from your Palaces to White Cloud City and get Ye Futian to leave White Cloud City. Try your best not to injure him," Liu Chan said.


    "Yes." Sage Tianxing nodded. The Sword Demon was helpless. Why him? He did not want to see this kind of situation!


    "Douzhan, don''t interfere with this. I''ve already told them not to injure Ye Futian," Liu Chan said and looked towards Sage Douzhan.


    Sage Douzhan looked profoundly at Liu Chan but eventually did not say anything. Although they would not injure Ye Futian, the Palace''s stand was equivalent to pushing Ye Futian to the opposite side!

 687 Holy Land No More

    Xuanwu City, outside Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    A group of people stood in the air, looking down upon the Zhuge Family on Crouching Dragon Mountain. The two teens at the front were two of the nine Sons of Zhisheng Cliffs��Qin Zhong and Zhan Xiao.


    "Brother, this time, Uncle-Master has joined forces with White Cloud City Lord. They should be able to take down Crouching Dragon Mountain." Zhan Xiao looked at the two figures who had stepped towards the Crouching Dragon Mountain and let out a faint smile.


    White Cloud City Lord was rather interesting. That day, he had gone to White Cloud City to discuss some terms. If White Cloud City Lord was willing to offer a helping hand, his Uncle-Master Kong Yao would help out his son Bai Luli when he was trying to attain the level of a Saint. Evidently, Bai Gu had been tempted by that. Everyone in the Nine States knew how dangerous the Divine Path was and how many elite geniuses would be there. His Uncle-Master was an elite figure, the ninth on the Sage Ranking. Coupled with Zhisheng Cliffs'' power, if he promised to take care of Bai Luli, it would be equivalent to another safeguard for Bai Luli. However, White Cloud City Lord had claimed that he would come to Xuanwu City to apply pressure on Zhuge Qingfeng. If they could cause the Zhuge Family to concede without a fight and hand over Gu Dongliu, he would agree. Otherwise, if a fight broke out, he wanted the Saint instrument in Zhuge Qingfeng''s hands.


    If it did not become an all-out fight, they would not have completely fallen out, so he could accept the first condition. The White Cloud City Lord evidently knew what it meant, so once war broke out, he would immediately try to take Zhuge Qingfeng out. He would then snatch the Saint instrument. It seemed like he had everything thought out.


    "Although the treasure in the White Cloud City Lord''s hands is not a Saint-level one, it also falls into the classification of a Saint instrument. Adding on his Uncle-Master''s strength, the battle was originally unfair, so there will be no tension," Qin Zhong opened his mouth and said. On Crouching Dragon Mountain, two experts had already descended and countless people were watching with astonishment.


    Would the Zhuge Family be wiped out in this storm?


    "Younger brother, I''ll try to persuade you once again. Gu Dongliu robbed the Yu State''s holy item and ruined Luli''s marriage. You should know what kind of person he is. It''s still not too late to regret and hand him over, do not continue your errors." The White Cloud City Lord stood in the air, looking down upon the Zhuge Family.


    Zhuge Qingfeng stood there with an indifferent expression in his eyes. He had not expected the first person from the Barren State to deal with him would be his Brother.


    Everything was really unpredictable.


    "Clan Leader, let''s hand him over," many people from the Zhuge Family said as they looked at Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "Zhuge Qingfeng, you can''t be thinking of using the entire Zhuge Family''s future as a wager for one person?" a figure from the older generation looked at Zhuge Qingfeng and asked. Evidently, they agreed with handing Gu Dongliu over.


    "There is no way to obtain the best of both worlds. Since I have already decided, there is no need to persuade me," Zhuge Qingfeng said.


    "Are you really trying to ruin the Zhuge Family?" someone shouted at him.


    "We haven''t even tried, how will we know if we will fail? If I am defeated, I hope that Brother and Kong Yao will not indiscriminately kill innocent people, seeing as we are all from the Nine States'' holy lands."


    If he was defeated, he was willing to sacrifice his life. If he survived this calamity, the Barren State would definitely return to an era with Saints. His Zhuge Family would definitely have a Saint. He did not know what Ye Futian''s relationship with Emperor Ye Qing was, but no matter what it was, the Saint Plane was definitely not the endpoint for him.


    "Since Little Brother is willing to sacrifice yourself for a cause, I will fulfill your wish," Bai Gu replied emotionlessly. In an instant, both he and Kong Yao released a monstrous might, shrouding all of Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    "Do it," Zhuge Qingfeng said. An eight trigrams formation appeared and surrounded Crouching Dragon Mountain with many shadows moving at the same time.


    Kong Yao stepped forward and countless statues of gods appeared in the area, the heavens feeling as though it would collapse. The boundless gravity crushed down upon everyone in the Zhuge Family. A Sage Plane figure''s will could reach the heavens. One thought could manifest itself as rule power in the surroundings.


    "Wait a minute." At that moment, a voice sounded. Kong Yao frowned and the White Cloud City Lord looked back and saw a figure descending rapidly. He frowned as well and asked, "Yun Hao, why are you here?"


    "Ye Futian has brought Yuan Hong from Taihang Mountain and many other Golden Apes into White Cloud City, eradicating the Gongsun Clan. They are now in the City Lord Office," Yun Hao replied.


    The White Cloud City turned around and his expression immediately became foreboding, his killing intent engulfing the area.


    "You mean that Ye Futian and Yuan Hong are in my residence?" Bai Gu''s voice had a frigid killing intent in it.


    "Yes." Yun Hao nodded. "He also asked me to bring a message. If anything happens to his Brother and Sister, as long as the City Lord has participated, he will make sure that the City Lord Office is destroyed."


    Bai Gu raised his head and looked in the distance, a horrifying killing intent emanating from him and roaring in the skies. Nobody had ever dared to barge into White Cloud City. Apart from the Holy Zhi Palace and the Ice Temple, he, Bai Gu had the highest rank on the Barren Sky Ranking. Now, a kid in the Noble Plane dared to barge into his residence and threaten him, the fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, with his family''s lives.


    What a joke.


    Both he and Yuan Hong were courting death.


    "Brother Kong, I can only temporarily give up on this matter." Bai Gu turned to Kong Yao and said, "I''ll be back after I kill that b*stard."


    Kong Yao frowned. They were already preparing to strike, but such an interference appeared suddenly. Who was it that dared touch White Cloud City? Who was Ye Futian? Why had he never heard of such a person? Shouldn''t he be an expert on the Barren Sky Ranking? Moreover, who were his Brother and Sister?


    Bai Gu turned around and left, leaving after-images in the sky and heinous killing intent. Everyone could see how infuriated the White Cloud City Lord was.


    In the Zhuge Family, Zhuge Qingfeng also had a shocked expression. He had not expected the little fellow to strike White Cloud City now. It had temporarily alleviated the situation here. However, Yuan Hong would find it very hard to deal with Bai Gu. Wasn''t this putting himself in danger?


    Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue looked at each other. Little Brother had actually gone to White Cloud City. They were very worried about him.


    "This incident started because of me." Gu Dongliu sighed. If it really reached the worst-case scenario, he would resolve the matter himself.


    "Don''t overthink." Zhuge Mingyue held his hand and said, "Little brother knows his limits, he won''t do something that is beyond him."


    "Okay." Gu Dongliu nodded lightly. Although he was now a high-level sage, his cultivation level was still too low.


    Kong Yao looked at Zhuge Qingfeng, thinking how lucky the Zhuge Family was. He stepped back and the pressure disappeared from the Zhuge Family.


    Kong Yao walked to Zhan Xiao and asked, "Who is Ye Futian?" Zhan Xiao had arrived in the Barren State earlier than him, so he should know more than him.


    Zhan Xiao''s expression became unnatural. Of course, he knew who Ye Futian was, but it was because he knew who he was that he found it strange. A Noble Plane cultivator had actually managed to turn the situation around and foil his plan.


    "He is Gu Dongliu''s Little Brother who used to cultivate in the Holy Zhi Palace and was expelled by the Palace because of Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu''s enmity. According to many people in the Barren State, he is the number one Noble in the Barren State," Zhan Xiao replied. "However, a mere Noble Plane cultivator dares to interfere with our Zhisheng Cliffs matters and threaten the White Cloud City Lord, how reckless."


    "A Noble Plane cultivator?" Kong Yao''s expression became confused as well. It was ludicrous that a Noble Plane would be able to ruin their plans.


    "The Barren State''s number one Noble?" Qin Zhong asked curiously. "So that means that the Palace''s Ximen Hanjiang is not the strongest Noble in the Barren State." Previously, when he dominated Ximen Hanjiang, he had asked if the Palace''s disciples could represent the Barren State''s highest standards, but Liu Chan had not given him a straightforward reply, and the Palace''s disciples did not acknowledge him either.


    "Before Ximen Hanjiang, the first on the Law Rank was Ye Futian. Ximen Hanjiang''s first on the Law Rank was replaced by him. It was rumored that the difference in potential between Ximen Hanjiang and Ye Futian was huge and could not even be compared." Zhan Xiao continued, "Of course, no matter how outstanding he is, he cannot compare with Little Brother. Why care about the Barren State''s Nobles?"


    "It''s not that I care," Qin Zhong shook his head and replied. The number one Noble in the Barren State, huh. He wanted to experience it, although he did not feel that there was any Noble in the Barren State who could be stronger than him, Ye Futian must have had exceptional combat ability to be titled the first in the Barren State.


    "Let''s wait for Bai Gu to settle matters on his end," Kong Yao said impatiently. He had originally wanted to settle the Barren State issue quickly, but he had not expected so many hiccups to appear.


    ��


    In White Cloud City, Bai Gu had not arrived, but the people from the Holy Zhi Palace had. In the empty area above the City Lord Office, Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon had led many of their Palace''s experts there and the people from the Bai Clan were delighted to see them. On the other hand, when Ye Futian saw the figures appearing in the air, his heart went cold.


    He stood on the ground, watching the experts arriving in the air without saying anything. He looked calm That day in the Zhuge Family, he had already said that he would not be enemies with the Palace if they let the matter rest. However, now that two of the Palace''s Palace Lords had descended on White Cloud City, he naturally knew that they were not here to help him. He was very clear what the appearance of the two Palace Lords meant. It meant that they could forsake the Zhuge Family but he could not touch the Bai Clan.


    The Sword Demon saw the teen looking calmly at them and was speechless. The Palace''s stance shifting was the truth, however, since it was a decision made by the two Palace Lords of the Holy Zhi Palace, he was powerless to change it. The Main Palace Lord had suffered injuries he could not recover from and nobody knew how many years he could live. He wished to see a Saint in the Barren State while he was still alive. It was also the wish of many in the Palace.


    "Ye Futian, the things that you have been doing recently are too audacious. Leave White Cloud City immediately and the Palace will treat this matter like it never happened," Sage Tianxing looked at Ye Futian and said. He was in charge of punishments in the Palace, so he naturally had an authoritative aura.


    "When have I been audacious?" Ye Futian looked at Sage Tianxing and questioned. This time, he did not salute or bow, but questioned him directly.


    "Eradicating the Ning Clan and Gongsun Clan, then allowing Taihang Mountain to barge into White Cloud City and causing unrest in the Barren State," Sage Tianxing replied.


    "According to you, I should have allowed the Ning Clan and Gongsun Clan to kill me, the Zhuge Family should be eradicated by the White Cloud City Lord, then there will not be unrest in the Barren State?" Ye Futian looked at Sage Tianxing and asked. "Senior handles punishment in the Palace and the Palace has a reverent position in the Barren State; however, the Palace is not restricting the ones who started the dispute, but have come to look for me. Why is this so?"


    "You are getting more and more impudent. The Assistant Palace Lord has asked me not to injure you on account that you were once a disciple of the Palace. We have already shown mercy," Sage Tianxing replied.


    "I have entered White Cloud City. The Holy Zhi Palace may not harm me, but what about the White Cloud City Lord?" Ye Futian smiled and asked. "Is the Palace going to shield me from the White Cloud City Lord''s anger?"


    Sage Tianxing did not reply. Ye Futian had a self-mocking smile and said, "In a conflict between two parties, the Palace only restricts one side. What a joke.


    "Once one has their self-interest at heart, their actions will no longer be fair and just. Since the Palace now has its interests, there is no longer any need to keep up the facade of righteousness." Ye Futian said slowly, "When the two Palace Lords appeared, the Palace was no longer a holy land."


    The Holy Zhi Palace''s self-interest was naturally Bai Luli!

 688 Defeating Two Lords from the Holy Zhi Palace

    Ye Futian was thoroughly disappointed. In order to have Bai Luli become a saint, not only was the Holy Zhi Palace fine with sacrificing Zhuge Mingyue, but they were even alright with sacrificing the entire Zhuge family. When the City Lord of White Cloud City descended upon Xuanwu City, the Holy Zhi Palace would have intervened if that was not the case. He came to White Cloud City to confront the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace is free of personal agendas," Sage Tianxing said plainly. The two Palace Lords were ready to do anything in order to nurture a saint for Barren State. Sage Tianxing did not find that to be something personal. It was the mission of the Holy Zhi Palace, a great endeavor undertaken for the good of all. He understood that some of Ye Futian''s words made sense, but sacrifices needed to be made in order to get certain things done, and it was something inevitable.


    "If I refuse to leave, what do the two of you plan on doing?" Ye Futian was in no mood to argue any longer. He went straight for the core of the problem instead.


    "Then we will have to remove you by force," Sage Tianxing said.


    Ye Futian laughed. He looked at the two Palace Lords of the Holy Zhi Palace and said, "If that is the case, please, after you."


    "Ye Futian, while Yuan Hong ranks 18th on the Barren Sky Ranking, the Sword Demon and I are also mighty ones ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking. We are both not that far in rank compared to him. If we were to fight Yuan Hong, he would definitely lose. Furthermore, when you came into White Cloud City, did you not think about the City Lord who is ranked fourth? Didn''t you think you would end up dragging Taihang Mountain into this?" the Lord of Tianxing Pavilion said.


    "Ye Futian, I advise you to give up now. If you were to really become a saint in the future, you would be able to reclaim everything you''ve lost," the Sword Demon said, looking at Ye Futian. He was speaking genuinely from his heart, as he did not wish for Ye Futian to be embroiled in this maelstrom. The circumstances worsened by the second, and he was concerned that there was no way for Ye Futian to back away if the young man insisted on getting himself into it. It would be a pity for him to die as a noble.


    "If I become a saint in the future, what is lost will remain lost. There will be no point to any of it by then. You of all should understand that cultivators need to listen to their heart, and there are things that should never be done. If the Holy Zhi Palace decided to go on with it, then there is no need for both of you to hesitate anymore." Ye Futian then went on to address Yuan Hong, "Grandpa Yuan, I assume you''ve never used the Nine Heavenly Attacks in battle before, right? I''d like to see you use those techniques today."


    "Very well." Yuan Hong nodded. "Where would you like to see the show?"


    "I''ll take a seat somewhere on you." Ye Futian leaped and landed on Yuan Hong''s shoulder. He was attempting to develop comprehension of the powers of sages, and there was no better chance at the moment for him to do that than to witness the battle between sages that was about to happen. While he had developed comprehension of said plane from many sages, those were still powers left behind by sages of old, and they were poor substitutes of what could be gained from seeing a true battle being fought.


    Boom. Yuan Hong stepped forward and took to the air.


    Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon shot up in the air as well, coming to face Yuan Hong. The battle between the three mighty ones on the Barren Sky Ranking attracted the attention of many below. Many outside the City Lord Office looked up in the air while feeling the tremors within.


    Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain. Lords of Tianxing Pavilion and Sword Palace from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The huge golden body stood tall in the air and Yuan Hong''s might spread far and wide. He extended his hand and coalesced Spiritual Qi into a staff, brimming with immeasurable power from top to bottom.


    Sage Tianxing did not dare let his guard down. He knew too well of the potency of the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques, which was the signature skill of the apes of Taihang Mountain. The set of techniques was an offensive skill of unparalleled power.


    Streaks of golden lightning rained down from his body as a Heavenly Halberd appeared in his hand. Golden lightning was unleashed from the weapon, like punishing lights imbued with unfathomable devastating power. The power spread far and wide in the air. The sky soon looked like doomsday was near as the scene turned to be an appalling one. It seemed like it could have even easily torn any conventional sage apart.


    Ye Futian stood on Yuan Hong''s back. A golden screen of light covered his body, protecting him from external encroachment. Despite the measures taken, Ye Futian was still able to sense the punishing power of rules permeating the air at the moment, which was similar to that student who tried to assassinate him back then. The magnitude of the skill''s power, however, was several orders of magnitude higher when it was being used by Sage Tianxing himself. He had no doubt that if he dared to even take a step outside, a flash of light would have rained down on him right there and then, reducing him to ash.


    "Punish," Sage Tianxing said with a cold voice. Endless Light of Punishment rained down like crosses of light, enabling no place for escape. Such overpowering spells could have only been fended off by sheer defensive powers.


    Ye Futian took a look at the Light of Punishment raining down on them. It was a terrible spell of rules which was capable of wiping out a whole army effortlessly. It was also a testament to the sheer ferocity of top-class mighty ones.


    Yuan Hong burst with terrifying martial arts will as he swung his staff about. Countless shadows of staffs appeared in the air. The shadows materialized as light screens covering his entire body. Stifling noises were heard throughout the sky and whoever was watching the fight, inside or out of the City Lord office of White Cloud City, was able to feel a suffocating pressure permeating the air. The winds howled, and the forces between the heavens and the earth roared. Dazzling lights sparked as the Light of Punishment hit the screen of staff shadows, yet totally incapable of penetrating it.


    Sage Tianxing''s eyes turned incredibly serious in a second as he felt terrifying pressure bearing down. One shadow of golden great ape after another appeared in the air. They were all conjured by Yuan Hong and everyone below was able to tell that they were not tangible constructs; the shadows were simply illusory products of martial arts will. However, when many of the incredibly huge golden great apes danced about with their golden staffs, the visual impact was one that had many feeling that the air itself was on the verge of being split apart by the staff. It was a stunning sight to behold and the hearts of many raced.


    "Yuan Hong is more powerful than he once was." The expressions of Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon turned solemn. More terrifying Light of Punishment rained down on them as the shadows filled the air. Sage Tianxing held tightly onto his halberd. Endless Light of Punishment fell onto the halberd and terrifying lights penetrated the air, as his might grew increasingly strong.


    "Sword Demon, I might need your help in this," Sage Tianxing said. The Sword Demon nodded. He was able to feel that the aura bursting from Yuan Hong was a little too fearsome.


    Storms of blades whipped about in the air all of a sudden. They danced in a crazed manner in the air, yet were unable to penetrate the staff shadows filling the air.


    "We can''t wait any longer," Sage Tianxing said. His body vanished right as he spoke. The Sword Demon''s body seemed to have moved with him, as they went catching Yuan Hong in a pincer attack.


    At that very moment, the thousands of staff shadows coalesced into one staff. The overwhelming force encased everything in its vicinity as if the air was about to burst. Light from the Heavenly Halberd pierced the air, and the sword of the Sword Demon lashed out with ferocious force. Endless sword aura swirled in the air as it cut apart anything in its path. When their attacks met that one staff, everyone was able to feel the intensity with the attacks. The boundless force from the staff threw both of them off.


    "That is so powerful," Ye Futian mumbled to himself. While Yuan Hong''s experience with the Nine Heavenly Attacks was far less than his, the ape''s high plane level and understanding of the martial arts was not something Ye Futian could have compared with. Furthermore, the Nine Heavenly Attacks evolved from the 81 Strikes of Heaven-Traversing Staff Techniques. Yuan Hong had been steeped in that signature technique of his people enough to be able to easily grasp their evolved form. What Yuan Hong demonstrated right there and then was bringing the attacks of the 81 Strikes of Heaven-Traversing Staff Techniques to new heights, and the force packed within was even more fearsome.


    Sage Tianxing''s arm went somewhat numb. He knew how powerful his halberd techniques were, but the Halberd of Punishment, known for its devastating power of destruction, was utterly incapable of breaking the attack of that staff technique.


    They later found that Yuan Hong never stopped attacking. The ape took a step in the air, coalescing an even more powerful storm of martial arts will with the residual raging force. The air felt even more unbearable right there and then. It was yet another whip with the staff. The myriad of staff shadows went straight for Sage Tianxing. His expression turned incredibly serious as he burst with blinding light from his body, heading for Yuan Hong. He brought his halberd to bear once again, like a rainbow shooting up at the sky, penetrating everything in its path. The Sword Demon stopped attacking and stared at Yuan Hong. The aura permeating the ape''s body had not dissipated yet, but the pressure grew increasingly strong.


    Boom. Yuan Hong headed straight for him. Devastating sword aura appeared in the surroundings of the Sword Demon''s body. Countless black mirages appeared in the sky at the very next moment. Streaks of black sword shadows appeared as they cut through the air, encasing Yuan Hong within. Yuan Hong swept away with his staff. The staff shadows in the air covered every angle around him, shattering all incoming sword aura.


    Yuan Hong stepped forward once more. When Sage Tianxing made his way back, he felt the might around Yuan Hong to have grown to a critical point. Yuan Hong danced about with his staff, encasing everything in the space all of them occupied with the shadows of his staff. At that very moment, both Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon felt covered by the will of the staff.


    Bam! A stifling sound was heard as Yuan Hong''s fifth attack hit the air. Both of them felt the endless staff shadows hit them squarely before the attack even connected. They burst forth with their full power, attacking the shadows of the staff as if they were real. Both felt irresistible force being brought down onto them.


    A thunderous rumble was heard as their bodies ended up being thrown far away. They grunted and blood was seen at the corner of their mouths. Their internal organs felt rattled as they struggled to quiet their breaths.


    The thousands of techniques were helpless before sheer overwhelming power. Despite them having many tricks and tactics up their sleeves, they were nothing before Yuan Hong''s overwhelming staff techniques. They did not even get to use the tricks they had with them.


    "If both of you want for me to leave White Cloud City, then I''m sorry, but I cannot comply with that," Ye Futian said looking at Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon, who were both thrown off. They looked incredibly serious. Yuan Hong''s prowess had them feel that this power was not something coming from someone ranked 18th on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    The people of the City Lord office of White Cloud City were utterly startled. Despite having two Lords from the palace and pavilions from the Holy Zhi Palace on their side, they were still incapable of kicking Ye Futian out from White Cloud City.


    People who watched the battle from outside the City Lord Office were utterly stunned. To many, it was an incredibly rare opportunity to see mighty ones ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking battling it out. They got what they came for, and they witnessed Yuan Hong throwing off two major Lords of the Holy Zhi Palace through sheer, overwhelming force. They would have probably needed the City Lord to return before they had a chance of stopping Yuan Hong!

 689 Making a Mess out of the Barren State

    Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon stared at the battlefield in the air. The Sword Demon had been there to see Ye Futian in action back when he was entering the Holy Zhi Palace four years ago. He knew that the staff technique that Yuan Hong used was the same as the one used by Ye Futian back then. That was probably where they were connected. That staff technique was naturally suitable for the apes, and the evolution of the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques was also apparent.


    Did Yuan Hong see Ye Futian''s immense potential and as such, passed down the staff techniques to him? Is Taihang Mountain trying to create a saint as well?


    The aura in the air was terrifying. Many were shocked to their cores. Yuan Hong, who was ranked 18th on Barren Sky Ranking, defeated the one who ranked fourth on the same ranking. It was impossible for anyone to not find it shocking. It was no surprise why Yuan Hong and Ye Futian dared throw their weight around in White Cloud City; both of them came prepared.


    The City Lord of White Cloud City lifted his head. The murderous intent in his cold eyes grew even more terrifying as he glared at that golden monster. It was totally unexpected for him to be beaten by a beast. He ranked fourth on Barren Sky Ranking and his renown as the City Lord of White Cloud City brought him immense prestige throughout the entire Barren State. There was no one who did not know him. He went on to fight yet another mighty one ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking after many years. The entire Barren State was watching. It was one fight he could not afford to lose.


    Black devastating storms hung high in the sky. The entire space turned grey. The light of the spell scroll glittered. One painting after another was arranged in a stack, and a shadow emerged from the last one on the stack. The shadows that subsequently emerged were all that of the City Lord himself.


    A pair of huge grey eyes appeared in the sky, devouring all powers in the vicinity and turned the space into a world of Eye Sorcery. Countless shadows of the City Lord appeared within Yuan Hong''s mind, intending to put his mental powers on lockdown. The devastating storm whipped about outside.


    Yuan Hong felt his Spiritual Will faltering, yet another storm of an even more terrifying nature coursed throughout his body. He stood while countless shadows of golden great apes appeared around him, dancing about, wielding the staff techniques. Irresistible powers emanated from the techniques, and Yuan Hong''s body seemed to have resonated with the entire space around him. He lifted his head and let out a roar of the apes. Rumbling noises were heard as the countless shadows of golden great apes roared as well. Yuan Hong''s body grew even larger, turning into something like a true golden ancient god. As he stood proud in the air, the powers of the world that were placed under lockdown seemed to be free of their shackles.


    "Kill!" The City Lord conjured a shadow and boundless spiritual will went assaulting Yuan Hong''s mind.


    "Kill!" Yuan Hong uttered the same word with a roar. The Polearm of Divine Devastation was brought down upon the City Lord. Many felt themselves trembling within. They knew that if both parties ended up unable to kill each other, things would become peaceful between them as a ceasefire agreement would be reached. But if they were actually able to kill each other, neither of them would have hesitated to do so.


    Devastating storms consumed the entire space they were in. The golden body, which resembled a demonic god, lashed out with a staff attack. The hearts of many jumped as if the attack was something meant for them as well. The scene was simply too terrifying to behold. Stifling sounds were heard as the formless storm engulfed the air. Many below closed their eyes, feeling as if they were being consumed by the storm.


    When everything turned quiet after a while. Yuan Hong was caught panting, yet his golden body stood proud in the air. The City Lord was sent flying far away. His expression ashen and his clothes bloodied.


    "The City Lord of White Cloud City has been defeated." The hearts of many jumped crazily. Bai Gu, who ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, lost to Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain. Is the Barren State going to shake after this? There is no doubt that the ranking on the Barren Sky Ranking will see changes soon enough.


    If the ranks were to be rearranged, Yuan Hong might have been able to take the place of the City Lord of White Cloud City after that battle and be ranked fourth.


    The eyes of Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon were practically frozen. That battle shook their minds as well. Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain ventured outside and swore to protect Ye Futian in an unwavering manner. Now, he defeated the City Lord of White Cloud City to announce his presence. Even the Holy Zhi Palace would have been unable to ignore him after all that.


    "You planning to snuff out Taihang Mountain?" Yuan Hong''s voice boomed as he glared at the City Lord of White Cloud City coldly.


    Bai Gu looked incredibly distressed. There was to be no talk of destroying Taihang Mountain, given that he was not even able to kill Yuan Hong. If he insisted on destroying Taihang Mountain, Yuan Hong could just crush White Cloud City right there and then.


    Nobody was an island.


    "Bai Gu, if you insisted on meddling with the affairs of my Third Brother after this battle, don''t blame me if I go mess with Bai Luli," Ye Futian threatened him in a chilling tone. If the City Lord of White Cloud City dared lift a finger against Gu Dongliu again, Ye Futian would show him no mercy.


    Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon were practically frozen hearing Ye Futian''s words. Bai Luli was more than just the young City Lord of White Cloud City. What Ye Futian said practically made him an enemy of the Holy Zhi Palace itself.


    The Sword Demon sighed. If Yuan Hong had been crushed, things would have been simpler. Now, things in the Barren State would definitely take a turn for the worse. If Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs was here, he would definitely not sit by idly and just watch.


    "Grandpa Yuan, let''s go," Ye Futian shouted. Yuan Hong nodded and lowered his body. Ye Futian leaped onto the ape''s back and left with the rest of the demonic beasts from Taihang Mountain. The City Lord office of White Cloud City was left shivering as if the place were to fall anytime soon. The once renowned and prestigious White Cloud City was weakened considerably following that battle.


    Taihang Mountain would be known to all in the world.


    Bai Gu clenched his fists tight seeing Ye Futian and Yuan Hong leave. The murderous intent in his eyes was still as terrifying, yet the Sword Demon was seen cupping his hands and said, "Bai Gu, we will return to the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Right." Bai Gu nodded. The people of the Holy Zhi Palace left soon after as well. However, things were unable to quiet down in White Cloud City for a very long time. The news of that battle spread out throughout the Barren State at a frightening speed.


    ��


    Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue were worried while inside the Zhuge family estate. Zhuge Qingfeng felt rather uneasy as well. While Ye Futian''s action of bringing Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain to White Cloud City had saved them from their predicament for the time being, the City Lord of White Cloud City had returned. What could Ye Futian and Yuan Hong have done about it?


    At that moment, two silhouettes were descended from the airspace above Crouching Dragon Mountain. Many turned their heads to the sky and saw both silhouettes to be demonic beasts. One was a golden great ape while the other, a black wind condor.


    "Are they from Taihang Mountain?" someone from the Zhuge family asked as the golden great ape was a symbol of Taihang Mountain.


    Zhuge Qingfeng, Gu Dongliu, and the others took to the air. Seeing that black wind condor, Zhuge Mingyue said, "That is Little Brother''s demonic beast."


    The black wind condor shot down from the air and came before Zhuge Qingfeng and the others, it then said, "My master sent me to keep an eye on things here. If Bai Gu dares lift a finger against the Zhuge family, they will crush White Cloud City right away."


    The black wind condor''s words had Zhuge Qingfeng stunned. "You share a telepathic link with your master?"


    "Indeed." The black wind condor nodded.


    Zhuge Qingfeng felt himself trembling slightly inside. Ye Futian was apparently being serious. He had let a sage among the golden great apes bring the black wind condor to Crouching Dragon Mountain, while he and Yuan Hong went to White Cloud City.


    "How are things on Little Brother''s side?" Gu Dongliu asked. If they indeed shared a telepathic link, the beast would know what was happening there.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace intervened and sent Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon to White Cloud City to tell my master to leave. They fought against senior Yuan Hong and were defeated. The City Lord returned to the city and yet another battle broke out. The City Lord ended up being defeated," the black wind condor reported.


    "What?" Surprise was seen in Zhuge Qingfeng''s eyes. "Are you saying that Yuan Hong defeated Bai Gu?"


    "Indeed. Senior Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain has just left White Cloud City with my master. They are heading for Xuanwu City," the black wind condor nodded and elaborated. Zhuge Qingfeng breathed a sigh of relief. He had not expected things to unfold as such. However, he was hardly happy about how things turned out. In fact, he felt rather bothered about it all. The Holy Zhi Palace had gotten themselves involved in this, and he knew well what that meant. The Holy Zhi Palace''s participation saddened him.


    "Little Brother loved creating miracles," Zhuge Mingyue said with a smile. With the City Lord of White Cloud City defeated, he would probably never show up in the Zhuge family estate again.


    "But Zhisheng Cliffs will probably not just let things slide," Gu Dongliu said softly. He felt heavy inside as well. He did not wish for anyone to get involved in this. Yet, what Ye Futian did for him had officially gotten him tangled up in the mess. Zhisheng Cliffs would probably hate him for it.


    What happened in White Cloud City would take some time to reach Xuanwu City. Yuan Hong and Ye Futian got there at blinding speed. Zhuge Qingfeng went to greet him personally after they arrived at Crouching Dragon Mountain. His eyes looked rather peculiar seeing Ye Futian standing on the back of Yuan Hong. Yuan Hong had just defeated a figure ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking. His name would have been known throughout the Barren State soon enough.


    "Little Brother, you shouldn''t have gotten yourself involved in this," Gu Dongliu said to Ye Futian. The storm would throw Ye Futian into the vortex. No one knew what lied ahead for him.


    "Third Brother," Ye Futian looked at Gu Dongliu and said with a smile, "the students of the cottage will always stand together. No one is allowed to mess with any of us."


    Seeing Ye Futian smile, Gu Dongliu smiled as well.


    The news of that battle in White Cloud City eventually reached Xuanwu City and it kicked up quite a fuss. Furthermore, the news became the talk of the Barren State. The peace that had been kept in the Barren State was falling apart.


    The mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs residing in Xuanwu City had, of course, caught wind of the news. Kong Yao had not anticipated that Yuan Hong, who ranked 18th on the Barren Sky Ranking, was actually able to defeat Bai Gu. Their plans had obviously failed. Now, with Yuan Hong siding with the Zhuge family, it became unthinkable for him to move them.


    "I never thought a noble would have screwed up our plans," Zhan Xiao said with a cold tone. The source of the whole mess was Ye Futian, the one said to have been expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Zhan Xiao, you have any thoughts about this?" Kong Yao asked.


    Zhan Xiao smiled and said, "Uncle, it is not something difficult to settle. With the Barren State being at peace for so many years, all of the forces have grown to harbor their personal agendas. Ye Futian had offended quite a number of them. Since he insists on getting involved in this, we will simply proceed to make a bigger mess out of the Barren State and have the forces of Barren State move against the Zhuge family."

 690 Making a Mess out of the Barren State

    Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon stared at the battlefield in the air. The Sword Demon had been there to see Ye Futian in action back when he was entering the Holy Zhi Palace four years ago. He knew that the staff technique that Yuan Hong used was the same as the one used by Ye Futian back then. That was probably where they were connected. That staff technique was naturally suitable for the apes, and the evolution of the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques was also apparent.


    Did Yuan Hong see Ye Futian''s immense potential and as such, passed down the staff techniques to him? Is Taihang Mountain trying to create a saint as well?


    The aura in the air was terrifying. Many were shocked to their cores. Yuan Hong, who was ranked 18th on Barren Sky Ranking, defeated the one who ranked fourth on the same ranking. It was impossible for anyone to not find it shocking. It was no surprise why Yuan Hong and Ye Futian dared throw their weight around in White Cloud City; both of them came prepared.


    The City Lord of White Cloud City lifted his head. The murderous intent in his cold eyes grew even more terrifying as he glared at that golden monster. It was totally unexpected for him to be beaten by a beast. He ranked fourth on Barren Sky Ranking and his renown as the City Lord of White Cloud City brought him immense prestige throughout the entire Barren State. There was no one who did not know him. He went on to fight yet another mighty one ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking after many years. The entire Barren State was watching. It was one fight he could not afford to lose.


    Black devastating storms hung high in the sky. The entire space turned grey. The light of the spell scroll glittered. One painting after another was arranged in a stack, and a shadow emerged from the last one on the stack. The shadows that subsequently emerged were all that of the City Lord himself.


    A pair of huge grey eyes appeared in the sky, devouring all powers in the vicinity and turned the space into a world of Eye Sorcery. Countless shadows of the City Lord appeared within Yuan Hong''s mind, intending to put his mental powers on lockdown. The devastating storm whipped about outside.


    Yuan Hong felt his Spiritual Will faltering, yet another storm of an even more terrifying nature coursed throughout his body. He stood while countless shadows of golden great apes appeared around him, dancing about, wielding the staff techniques. Irresistible powers emanated from the techniques, and Yuan Hong''s body seemed to have resonated with the entire space around him. He lifted his head and let out a roar of the apes. Rumbling noises were heard as the countless shadows of golden great apes roared as well. Yuan Hong''s body grew even larger, turning into something like a true golden ancient god. As he stood proud in the air, the powers of the world that were placed under lockdown seemed to be free of their shackles.


    "Kill!" The City Lord conjured a shadow and boundless spiritual will went assaulting Yuan Hong''s mind.


    "Kill!" Yuan Hong uttered the same word with a roar. The Polearm of Divine Devastation was brought down upon the City Lord. Many felt themselves trembling within. They knew that if both parties ended up unable to kill each other, things would become peaceful between them as a ceasefire agreement would be reached. But if they were actually able to kill each other, neither of them would have hesitated to do so.


    Devastating storms consumed the entire space they were in. The golden body, which resembled a demonic god, lashed out with a staff attack. The hearts of many jumped as if the attack was something meant for them as well. The scene was simply too terrifying to behold. Stifling sounds were heard as the formless storm engulfed the air. Many below closed their eyes, feeling as if they were being consumed by the storm.


    When everything turned quiet after a while. Yuan Hong was caught panting, yet his golden body stood proud in the air. The City Lord was sent flying far away. His expression ashen and his clothes bloodied.


    "The City Lord of White Cloud City has been defeated." The hearts of many jumped crazily. Bai Gu, who ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, lost to Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain. Is the Barren State going to shake after this? There is no doubt that the ranking on the Barren Sky Ranking will see changes soon enough.


    If the ranks were to be rearranged, Yuan Hong might have been able to take the place of the City Lord of White Cloud City after that battle and be ranked fourth.


    The eyes of Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon were practically frozen. That battle shook their minds as well. Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain ventured outside and swore to protect Ye Futian in an unwavering manner. Now, he defeated the City Lord of White Cloud City to announce his presence. Even the Holy Zhi Palace would have been unable to ignore him after all that.


    "You planning to snuff out Taihang Mountain?" Yuan Hong''s voice boomed as he glared at the City Lord of White Cloud City coldly.


    Bai Gu looked incredibly distressed. There was to be no talk of destroying Taihang Mountain, given that he was not even able to kill Yuan Hong. If he insisted on destroying Taihang Mountain, Yuan Hong could just crush White Cloud City right there and then.


    Nobody was an island.


    "Bai Gu, if you insisted on meddling with the affairs of my Third Brother after this battle, don''t blame me if I go mess with Bai Luli," Ye Futian threatened him in a chilling tone. If the City Lord of White Cloud City dared lift a finger against Gu Dongliu again, Ye Futian would show him no mercy.


    Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon were practically frozen hearing Ye Futian''s words. Bai Luli was more than just the young City Lord of White Cloud City. What Ye Futian said practically made him an enemy of the Holy Zhi Palace itself.


    The Sword Demon sighed. If Yuan Hong had been crushed, things would have been simpler. Now, things in the Barren State would definitely take a turn for the worse. If Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs was here, he would definitely not sit by idly and just watch.


    "Grandpa Yuan, let''s go," Ye Futian shouted. Yuan Hong nodded and lowered his body. Ye Futian leaped onto the ape''s back and left with the rest of the demonic beasts from Taihang Mountain. The City Lord office of White Cloud City was left shivering as if the place were to fall anytime soon. The once renowned and prestigious White Cloud City was weakened considerably following that battle.


    Taihang Mountain would be known to all in the world.


    Bai Gu clenched his fists tight seeing Ye Futian and Yuan Hong leave. The murderous intent in his eyes was still as terrifying, yet the Sword Demon was seen cupping his hands and said, "Bai Gu, we will return to the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Right." Bai Gu nodded. The people of the Holy Zhi Palace left soon after as well. However, things were unable to quiet down in White Cloud City for a very long time. The news of that battle spread out throughout the Barren State at a frightening speed.


    ��


    Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue were worried while inside the Zhuge family estate. Zhuge Qingfeng felt rather uneasy as well. While Ye Futian''s action of bringing Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain to White Cloud City had saved them from their predicament for the time being, the City Lord of White Cloud City had returned. What could Ye Futian and Yuan Hong have done about it?


    At that moment, two silhouettes were descended from the airspace above Crouching Dragon Mountain. Many turned their heads to the sky and saw both silhouettes to be demonic beasts. One was a golden great ape while the other, a black wind condor.


    "Are they from Taihang Mountain?" someone from the Zhuge family asked as the golden great ape was a symbol of Taihang Mountain.


    Zhuge Qingfeng, Gu Dongliu, and the others took to the air. Seeing that black wind condor, Zhuge Mingyue said, "That is Little Brother''s demonic beast."


    The black wind condor shot down from the air and came before Zhuge Qingfeng and the others, it then said, "My master sent me to keep an eye on things here. If Bai Gu dares lift a finger against the Zhuge family, they will crush White Cloud City right away."


    The black wind condor''s words had Zhuge Qingfeng stunned. "You share a telepathic link with your master?"


    "Indeed." The black wind condor nodded.


    Zhuge Qingfeng felt himself trembling slightly inside. Ye Futian was apparently being serious. He had let a sage among the golden great apes bring the black wind condor to Crouching Dragon Mountain, while he and Yuan Hong went to White Cloud City.


    "How are things on Little Brother''s side?" Gu Dongliu asked. If they indeed shared a telepathic link, the beast would know what was happening there.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace intervened and sent Sage Tianxing and the Sword Demon to White Cloud City to tell my master to leave. They fought against senior Yuan Hong and were defeated. The City Lord returned to the city and yet another battle broke out. The City Lord ended up being defeated," the black wind condor reported.


    "What?" Surprise was seen in Zhuge Qingfeng''s eyes. "Are you saying that Yuan Hong defeated Bai Gu?"


    "Indeed. Senior Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain has just left White Cloud City with my master. They are heading for Xuanwu City," the black wind condor nodded and elaborated. Zhuge Qingfeng breathed a sigh of relief. He had not expected things to unfold as such. However, he was hardly happy about how things turned out. In fact, he felt rather bothered about it all. The Holy Zhi Palace had gotten themselves involved in this, and he knew well what that meant. The Holy Zhi Palace''s participation saddened him.


    "Little Brother loved creating miracles," Zhuge Mingyue said with a smile. With the City Lord of White Cloud City defeated, he would probably never show up in the Zhuge family estate again.


    "But Zhisheng Cliffs will probably not just let things slide," Gu Dongliu said softly. He felt heavy inside as well. He did not wish for anyone to get involved in this. Yet, what Ye Futian did for him had officially gotten him tangled up in the mess. Zhisheng Cliffs would probably hate him for it.


    What happened in White Cloud City would take some time to reach Xuanwu City. Yuan Hong and Ye Futian got there at blinding speed. Zhuge Qingfeng went to greet him personally after they arrived at Crouching Dragon Mountain. His eyes looked rather peculiar seeing Ye Futian standing on the back of Yuan Hong. Yuan Hong had just defeated a figure ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking. His name would have been known throughout the Barren State soon enough.


    "Little Brother, you shouldn''t have gotten yourself involved in this," Gu Dongliu said to Ye Futian. The storm would throw Ye Futian into the vortex. No one knew what lied ahead for him.


    "Third Brother," Ye Futian looked at Gu Dongliu and said with a smile, "the students of the cottage will always stand together. No one is allowed to mess with any of us."


    Seeing Ye Futian smile, Gu Dongliu smiled as well.


    The news of that battle in White Cloud City eventually reached Xuanwu City and it kicked up quite a fuss. Furthermore, the news became the talk of the Barren State. The peace that had been kept in the Barren State was falling apart.


    The mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs residing in Xuanwu City had, of course, caught wind of the news. Kong Yao had not anticipated that Yuan Hong, who ranked 18th on the Barren Sky Ranking, was actually able to defeat Bai Gu. Their plans had obviously failed. Now, with Yuan Hong siding with the Zhuge family, it became unthinkable for him to move them.


    "I never thought a noble would have screwed up our plans," Zhan Xiao said with a cold tone. The source of the whole mess was Ye Futian, the one said to have been expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Zhan Xiao, you have any thoughts about this?" Kong Yao asked.


    Zhan Xiao smiled and said, "Uncle, it is not something difficult to settle. With the Barren State being at peace for so many years, all of the forces have grown to harbor their personal agendas. Ye Futian had offended quite a number of them. Since he insists on getting involved in this, we will simply proceed to make a bigger mess out of the Barren State and have the forces of Barren State move against the Zhuge family."

 691 Crouching Dragon Mountain in Danger

    The news of the battle at White Cloud City spread all over the Barren State. MOre news followed right afterward. Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs had invited all the top forces in the Barren State to gather at Xuanwu City in order to find ways to create a saint. That piece of news soon became the talk everywhere. There was no one who did not know that Zhisheng Cliffs intended to clash with the Zhuge family. There was no one who was able to fathom the meaning of the people of Zhisheng Cliffs inviting mighty ones from all over the Barren State to gather at Xuanwu City at a time like this.


    The news that the people of Zhisheng Cliffs released was reserved, with the only notable thing being the intention of the search of Divine Paths. However, no one outside of the Zhuge family knew what lied behind such an event, but Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs knew that those ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking knew what he meant.


    The end of year 10009 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was an unsettling time. Many in the Barren State felt they were at the precipice of an epoch, witnessing the arrival of chaotic times. When year 10010 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar finally arrived, Ye Futian was training in Moon Tower at Crouching Dragon Mountain. It was the day before was the very last day of the year 10009, yet there was no banquet to celebrate the arrival of the new year. The place was not lively and was completely devoid of any festive mood.


    Ye Futian sat silently, sensing the Spiritual Qi around him. Other than training his spiritual powers, he was also trying to develop a comprehension of the sage will. Ever since he came to the Barren State, he had been visiting many ruins to experience the power of the sage''s past. He had even stood on Yuan Hong''s back just a while ago, experiencing how sages fought first hand. He became very knowledgeable of what kind of powers sages possessed. However, knowing was one thing, and comprehending it was another thing altogether.


    Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue walked up to him quietly from behind. They had no intentions of interrupting Ye Futian''s training, yet he opened his eyes and turned to face both of them. He then smiled and greeted them, "Second Sister, Third Brother."


    "Little Brother, are you trying to comprehend the will of the sage here?" Gu Dongliu asked.


    "Yeah," Ye Futian nodded, "I seem to have grown to understand something, but I can''t pinpoint what it is yet."


    "That''s normal." Gu Dongliu nodded and continued, "You''re only a Grade Two Noble. While your highly exceptional intellectual capacity allowed you to sense a sliver of the sage will, you''re still unable to get to it just yet. That is because when nobles advance to become sages, the very nature of the plane changes. In all the cultivation stages before reaching Sage Plane, it can be said that you see mountains when you see mountains and water when you see water. Yet when you reach the Sage Plane, you don''t see mountains when you see mountains, and you don''t see water when you see water."


    "Third Brother, I think you''re making it a little too deep for me," Ye Futian smiled and commented.


    Gu Dongliu looked forward. He activated his will and a leaf fell before them. He then asked, "What powers do you feel when you see the leaf fall?"


    "I feel the will of the wind," Ye Futian answered.


    Gu Dongliu did not respond to his answer. His eyes remained on that very leaf, tracking it as it kept falling, finally ending up on a rock. The leaf had no way of continuing its path, yet at the very next moment, Ye Futian''s eyes were practically frozen by what he saw. That seemingly light, helpless leaf went on to break the rock open. The very weak, powerless leaf had surprisingly functioned like a very sharp knife, cutting the rock it landed on.


    "Wha..." Ye Futian felt touched somewhat.


    "This is what you''d call ''will.'' The will melds with the heavens and the earth, and the will of sages is the very will of the heavens and the earth. When you have finally developed comprehension of that rule, you will find your will to be everywhere, turning into rules. That leaf you saw was infused with my will, and with that, it came to possess the power of rules of the sword," Gu Dongliu elaborated.


    "I understand now." Ye Futian nodded, feeling himself having touched something, yet it slipped through his fingers before he could grab it.


    "All the elemental Spiritual Qi of the world can be used to bolster the power of rules. But some more powerful rules were born from the elements themselves, yet they cast off the nature of elemental powers. You have begun to grasp this very level. When you were using the powers of noble will, that will itself was a fusion that gave birth to all new willpowers," Gu Dongliu continued.


    "Right, I know about that," Ye Futian said while nodding. His teacher back in the cottage all those years ago guided him to practice fusion spells to serve as a backing for future training.


    "You''re versed in powers of all elements. The way with cultivation dictates that the higher your plane level, the more apparent your elemental advantage becomes. Sorcerers who train with a single element will develop comprehension of rules that aren''t all that different from others doing other elements. Yet, at the Sage Plane, the difference between one individual to another can be frighteningly huge. It goes without saying that it works the same with saints. As such, there is the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States all across the nine states. Any from the Barren Sky Ranking who are able to make it onto that ranking would definitely be the stuff of legends," Gu Dongliu elaborated further.


    "If the Barren Sky Ranking was to be rearranged, you''d definitely be able to get ranked on there," Ye Futian said with a smile. Of course, his Third Brother definitely had no interest in the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "These things hardly matter." Gu Dongliu shook his head. Fame and fortune were little more than fleeting clouds to him.


    "I''m going to go train with the staff for a bit," Ye Futian said. From the sixth strike of the Nine Heavenly Attacks, he became able to touch some of the powers of the sage.


    "Right." Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue nodded and they both left soon after.


    "Is Jieyu still on Taihang Mountain?" Gu Dongliu asked Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Our Little Brother is naturally concerned for her. With things being so shaky all over the Barren State, and Crouching Dragon Mountain being the center of this whirlpool, there is a risk of the odds stacking against us. He won''t let her come here, and that is for her own good." It was only natural for Zhuge Mingyue to understand what Ye Futian''s thought.


    "But that kid won''t be able to fool Jieyu for long." Zhuge Mingyue sighed. It was impossible for Ye Futian to bring Hua Jieyu along when he went to White Cloud City back then. He also came to Crouching Dragon Mountain instead of returning to Taihang Mountain, leaving her there instead. If Hua Jieyu knew what he intended to do back then, she would have followed him to White Cloud City as there was no way she would have let him leave her behind.


    The apes of Taihang Mountain listened to Ye Futian, and that meant it would have been difficult for Hua Jieyu to come to Crouching Dragon Mountain alone.


    Gu Dongliu did not say anything.


    ��


    Xuanwu City gradually turned more lively over the next few days as mighty ones from faraway lands came. Many masters and leaders of top forces arrived one after another. There were even some mighty ones ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking that were hardly seen anywhere. Xuanwu had never been so busy.


    Many were unable to fathom why Kong Yao''s words carried such weight, being able to call such an impressive crowd. Are these forces that show up here really going to ally with Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs to take out the Zhuge family? they wondered.


    The Zhuge family estate on Crouching Dragon Mountain was seen to be a city in crisis at the moment, one that could collapse any moment. Mighty ones of Zhisheng Cliffs released more news that they would be meeting the mighty ones of the Barren State at the center of Xuanwu City��Xuanwu Tower. Mighty ones of the Sovereign family of Zhongzhou City stayed in one of the palaces of Xuanwu City. Huang Xi of the Sovereign family came personally.


    Huang Xi was training with his eyes closed in one of the compounds of the palace. A young man was seen there, and it was none other than Huang Jiuge.


    "Zhisheng Cliffs is obviously trying to do something against the Zhuge family, with the meeting of the mighty ones from all over the Barren State set up at Xuanwu Tower and all. Why do we even need to be here?" Huang Jiuge asked.


    "No harm in coming to see the event." Huang Xi opened his eyes to look at Huang Jiuge and said, "Furthermore, two of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs are here. One of them is Qin Zhong, who is known to be the number one among the nobles of Zhisheng Cliffs. When he fought Ximen Hanjiang in the Holy Zhi Palace, Ximen Hanjiang was rendered totally helpless. Don''t you want to see the one known to be the top-class genius, invincible among all under the Sage Plane from Yu State?"


    Invincible among all under Sage Plane, huh? Huang Jiuge thought. While the skills of that person were indisputable given how he had easily defeated Ximen Hanjiang, there was still no certainty that he was indeed invincible. During the engagement banquet at Zhuge family estate, Ye Futian demonstrated what he was capable of as a Grade Two Noble, and the one known to be number one among nobles of the Zhuge family had been helpless against Ye Futian as well.


    "You thought of Ye Futian, didn''t you?" Huang Xi asked.


    "Indeed." Huang Jiuge nodded.


    "Peers that you''re impressed of. I guess he''s probably the first one, and that speaks a lot about him. But getting involved with the matters of Zhisheng Cliffs and bringing the demonic beasts from Taihang Mountain to kick up a fuss in White Cloud City, he indeed seemed like he had a death wish." Huang Xi added, "You probably need to be concerned for that friend of yours."


    "The Zhuge family had divine implements and Yuan Hong defeated the City Lord of White Cloud City. Zhisheng Cliffs can''t do anything to move Crouching Dragon Mountain. Are those forces from the Barren State really going to lend their hand to a foreign force?" Huang Jiuge asked.


    "You are familiar with the Orthodoxy''s creation of saints, aren''t you?" Huang Xi looked at the sky and added, "Who would actually give up the chance to become a saint? How many were there in every generation who pursued that goal single-mindedly and without regret? With the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace completely silent, is everyone in the Barren State going to really believe that he is simply training in seclusion? He definitely had suffered grave injuries in that battle. Other than that, it''s anyone''s guess how many of those legendary figures died from that battle. Zhisheng Cliffs is sacred ground in Yu State with a saint. Even with the saint taken out of the picture, the power that Zhisheng Cliffs have under their control is also been incredibly frightening. Kong Yao is ranked ninth on the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States. Those people also understand that the mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs are also after the same goal of creating a saint, and they aren''t helping the foreign force for real. But if such efforts gain Zhisheng Cliffs'' favor and they are able to form good relations with each other, there will be more hope for them all. When it comes to the matter of saints, even such slivers of hope would prove tempting. The further up one''s place on the Barren Sky Ranking, the stronger the temptation." Huang Xi knew of their thirst for the Saint Plane, as he had been after the same thing.


    Huang Jiuge went silent. He did indeed hear about such things, but he was still too far away to be able to consider such things.


    "Just wait and see. That day will be just as lively as that engagement banquet back then," Huang Xi said. Huang Jiuge nodded and left.


    Just as Huang Xi had predicted, Xuanwu Tower was in chaos when the day actually came. The group from Zhisheng Cliffs sat quietly. There was a banquet thrown and many mighty ones arrived at Xuanwu Tower.


    "We are from the Nantian House, and it is an honor to meet you, Mr. Kong." A group of mighty ones from Nantian House arrived at Xuanwu Tower.


    "I have heard stories about the Godly Spear of Nantian," Kong Yao nodded and said.


    "We are from the Sword Saint Villa." A voice was heard far away. Sword aura whooshed above and a group of mighty ones was seen arriving, riding on their swords. The one who took the lead was none other than the leader of the Sword Saint Villa, the Wuji Swordsman, a renowned figure ranked on the upper spots of the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "I''ve heard that the place used to be a sacred ground of the sword," Kong Yao smiled and said. If some among those who were there were to combine forces with him, taking out Crouching Dragon Mountain would be as easy as squishing an ant.


    Many other forces, such as the Vermilion Bird Sect, Ximen clan, Taixuan Mountain, and Sacred Fire Sect, came one after another. More than half of the mighty ones from all over Barren State were gathered inside and out of Xuanwu Tower. What was more notable was that all who showed up were big shots. The place had never been busier.


    Some from the far corners of Xuanwu City watched all of that, feeling extremely restless.


    Crouching Dragon Mountain was in danger!

 692 Determination

    A crowd gathered before Xuanwu Tower as various powerful individuals arrived. Huang Xi from the Sovereign Family had come as well.


    Sitting down, Huang Xi looked towards a figure standing a short distance away. Clad in black robes, the figure was entirely shrouded in darkness. That was the Dark Sage, an incredibly prominent figure within the Barren State. The Dark Sage had many enemies, it was completely unexpected that he would appear as well.


    "Everyone," Kong Yao spoke from a pavilion high up on Xuanwu Tower. The space instantly quietened down, and everyone looked towards him before he continued, "You all know that I come from Zhisheng Cliffs. It is a great fortune that I am able to meet so many of my peers here in the Barren State that I have heard much about. I have invited everyone here for two reasons, the first being the Divine Path. It has been ten years since the time Xia Emperor started the orthodoxy battle. Back then, many of you participated in the battle, and you have witnessed how cruel it was. Yet how many people actually managed to enter the Saint Plane?"


    At Kong Yao''s words, many people began to remember that battle ten years ago. Indeed, it had been a ruthless fight. Those at the top of the Barren Sky Ranking were all already at the peak of the Sage Plane. But even so, the path to attaining the Saint Plane was built upon the bones of many. Many amongst these people had even been afraid to participate in this most vicious of battles. There had been many before them who had lost their lives there. This had been the case for generation after generation, where countless battled to their deaths without regret. Even the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace had not left the Palace after so many years, and everyone present had a vague idea why.


    Kong Yao said, "I know the Barren State has not had a person of the Saint Plane in many years. Is it simply a lack of ability on the part of the people here? Most of you here are incredibly talented, and for you to have been able to reach this stage, who would call themselves weak? An opportunity is what you all need. In every orthodoxy battle, the Holy Zhi Palace is the one leading armies into the fight. But compared to the other powers in the nine states, the Barren State has historically been the state with the weakest overall capabilities. I''m not saying this to belittle you, I''m merely stating the truth. This is why people from the Barren State have not stood a chance at the orthodoxy battle."


    He then continued, "The Divine Path is an incredibly difficult one to take. Death is a constant threat, not just to everyone here, but to me as well. If you all are willing, join me at the next orthodoxy battle. You can increase your chances of success by fighting alongside Zhisheng Cliffs."


    Everyone listened quietly. Even as they knew Kong Yao was speaking the truth, they were careful not to take his word completely. However, they had come here to meet him after all. Some had just wanted to catch a glimpse of Kong Yao from Zhisheng Cliffs to at least get to know him a little. Others had just come to see what was up. Of course, if Kong Yao was convincing enough, they would not have minded joining forces with Zhisheng Cliffs. As long as they were able to completely wipe out the Zhuge Family, there would be no repercussions.


    After all, the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City were also at odds with the Zhuge Family as of now. As such, Crouching Dragon Mountain had truly been isolated by the Barren State. If it hadn''t been for Ye Futian involving Taihang Mountain in this matter, Kong Yao would have already teamed up with the City Lord of White Cloud City to attack the Zhuge Family.


    "What do we need to offer?" a voice rang out. That voice belonged to Yan Wuji, the Wuji Swordsman of the Sword Saint Villa. He was 17th on the Barren Sky Ranking and the successor of the Blade Saint. As such, the intensity of his interest in the Divine Path was stronger than most other people. If there was no Blade Saint, Sword Saint Villa would not live up to its name.


    Yan Wuji''s own prot��g��, Yan Jiu had arrived as well. But Yan Jiu had lost his edge ever since his crushing defeat at Ye Futian''s hands in the Holy Zhi Palace. Yan Qingwu was training at the Palace now and had actually gained some respect for Ye Futian. It was evident that they would not be able to reach Ye Futian''s level, making it hard for Yan Wuji to count on the next generation. After all, not everyone had a Bai Luli within their ranks.


    Kong Yao looked at Yan Wuji. Indeed, swordsmen were forthright with their words and intentions.


    "Senior, Gu Dongliu of the Barren State stole our treasure and massacred the sages of the Yu State. Yet the Zhuge Family insists on protecting such a despicable man. Right now, even the Holy Zhi Palace and White Cloud City can no longer tolerate this injustice, but some people are causing a ruckus. And why is this so?" Zhan Xiao, who was standing next to Kong Yao, piped up, "Naturally it is because they want to take the treasure for themselves. For someone to dare to snatch the treasure of Zhisheng Cliffs, and to go to such murderous extents, they deserve to be punished at the hands of everyone here from the Barren State. As such, my Uncle-Master has invited all of you here, in hopes of joining forces with you to defeat the lowlifes of the Barren State."


    Everyone looked calmly at Zhan Xiao. As much as he had been all righteous with his speech, he was only doing this for the treasure as well. But that Gu Dongliu had been bold indeed to even dare to snatch the treasure of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    The leader of the Sacred Fire Sect was an elder, and he spoke up calmly, "The Zhuge Family is no ordinary power within the Barren State. Yuan Hong of Taihang Mountain has attacked White Cloud City previously. If this were to fail, what would be the consequences? Zhisheng Cliffs would not be affected very much, but all of us here at the Barren State will probably be counter-attacked out of revenge. This risk does not seem to be worth it if we''re just acting on a promise Mr. Kong is giving us." This was a thought many other people had as well. The risk really did not seem to be worth it at all.


    "Do not worry about this. I will give the Zhuge Family one more chance to hand over the person. If they still refuse, then they cannot blame us for being ruthless and exterminating all of them. With all of us acting in the name of justice, how could we fail?" Kong Yao''s voice had a mighty air to it, and many people nodded in response to his words. Kong Yao was ninth on the Sage Ranking. As long as he and the rest participated, there was no possibility of failure.


    "As for the promise everyone is worried about, does my reputation as the ninth in the Sage Ranking across all nine states not speak of my credibility?" Kong Yao responded calmly. Everyone was silent. Kong Yao would not be disadvantaged in any way by this matter. If he had publicly made a promise, indeed he should not renege on his word later on.


    If they really were intent on their journey in the Divine Path, then a chance to live longer was akin to an additional chance to aim for the Saint Plane. Over at the Divine Path, being alive alone was an opportunity on its own.


    ��


    In one of the quarters within Crouching Dragon Mountain, Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian were standing together, gazing towards Xuanwu City in the distance. They both knew that Xuanwu City was having a banquet this very moment that was organized by Kong Yao, who had invited various powerful individuals in the Barren State. They also knew that many of the Barren State''s best fighters had arrived as well, including many powerful individuals in the Barren Sky Ranking.


    By now, Ye Futian knew the reasons behind the bad blood between Gu Dongliu and Zhan Xiao and understood why Zhan Xiao didn''t just want the treasure, but also to take his Third Older Brother away as well.


    "Youngest Brother, do you still remember what I said to you before? In this world, reason is undeniable," Gu Dongliu said calmly.


    "Yes, I remember. You told me that was what Teacher said, though reason may be undeniable, fists are even more powerful than reason. So oftentimes, it''s more effective to talk using fists than with reason." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Exactly. That''s why reason right now seems insignificant, because Zhisheng Cliffs packs a great punch." Gu Dongliu spoke slowly. "Once a person has something they want to protect, they become wary and afraid of many things. From then on, they become cowardly as well."


    "Third Older Brother isn''t afraid for his own safety, of course," Ye Futain responded. He knew what his Third Older Brother was referring to.


    "Fear is fear, there is no point trying to sugarcoat it," Gu Dongliu said, not minding the implications of his words. "At the same time, it is exactly because one has something to protect, that sometimes fear turns into courage as well. When one truly reaches that point, they''ll be able to let go of everything."


    Ye Futian remained silent as he looked at his Third Older Brother.


    "I may be sorry about certain things in my life, but I don''t regret anything." Gu Dongliu began to float up slowly.


    "Third Older Brother," Ye Futian replied, his gaze hardening.


    "If I could relive this life, I wouldn''t change a thing," Gu Dongliu said, before turning into a flash of lightning and disappearing from where he was in a flash, charging out of Crouching Dragon Mountain. A brilliant streak of light shot through the sky, almost like a comet.


    Ye Futian''s heart seized up and he leaped into the sky, shouting, "Grandfather Ape!"


    Thump. At the bottom of the Zhuge house, a crack of thunder was heard and Yuan Hong leaped into the air as well. Ye Futian landed on Yuan Hong''s shoulders in a flash, and said, "Let''s go."


    Third Older Brother was right. If one thought what they were doing was right, then there was nothing to be regretful about. Now that things had come to this, there was nothing left to fear. Since those people wanted to massacre the Zhuge Family and take Third Older Brother away, why should they wait at Crouching Dragon Mountain for their arrival?


    Thud. Yuan Hong stepped through the sky, causing it to shake. Everyone at the Zhuge house looked up towards the sky to see Yuan Hong leaving Crouching Dragon Mountain in just a few steps. Afterward, a greater thundering sound was heard as the demon ape of Taihang Mountain chased after Gu Dongliu.


    Many figures began leaping into the sky. There was no sadness in Zhuge Mingyue''s eyes. On the contrary, she was absolutely calm, a radiant smile on her face. When he had appeared that day at the wedding, she had already prepared herself. Whether she lived or died didn''t matter anymore. He had not been wrong, and he would not have any regrets at the end of it. In a flash, she too turned into lightning and chased after him into the distance.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Zhuge Mingyue and spoke up, "Everyone, listen up." Countless people in the house looked up towards Zhuge Qingfeng. Could it be that the head of the family was really going to launch an attack first?"


    "All of you, stay here at Crouching Dragon Mountain. You are not to go out and join in this tussle," Zhuge Qingfeng ordered, before catching up to Zhuge Mingyue.


    Everyone at Crouching Dragon Mountain looked at Zhuge Qingfeng''s disappearing figure and felt a sense of bleakness. This was the strength of one who was head of the family, he took on everything upon himself.


    Before Xuanwu Tower, many people had gathered, and the powerful figures from Zhisheng Cliffs were mingling and chatting. It was a lively atmosphere. But then, the ground began to rumble, and Kong Yao, who was seated within the Zhisheng Cliff''s pavilion frowned. He gazed towards the distance before his expression changed. Could it be that those people were coming down from the mountain on their own?


    Everyone looked towards the distance as well. Very quickly, they saw a handsome scholar in a white shirt moving through the sky towards them. It was Gu Dongliu.


    "Gu Dongliu," Zhan Xiao stared at him, and laughed coldly, "you finally have the guts to face us yourself."


    "Zhan Xiao, you only know how to hide behind the power of your sect. Though you have the reputation of being one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, you are nothing but a despicable fellow. I, Gu Dongliu, am humiliated to be associated with you," Gu Dongliu shot Zhan Xiao a cool gaze, before turning to Kong Yao. "When I was training in the Yu State, I often heard of the sacred grounds the Zhisheng Cliffs, as well as your name. It''s better to see for myself than to just listen to hearsay, and what I have seen of the people from Zhisheng Cliffs so far does not live up to the prestige of those sacred grounds!"

 693 Not Fated to Walk the Divine Path

    At Gu Dongliu''s words, countless eyes fell on him. Back then at Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue''s engagement banquet, Gu Dongliu had made a solitary appearance on Crouching Dragon Mountain to announce to the whole world that Zhuge Mingyue was the woman he wanted. In the battle with Bai Luli that followed, Gu Dongliu had then shown himself to possess incredible talent that was in no way inferior to Bai Luli''s.


    However, after that, Gu Dongliu had gone into hiding on Crouching Dragon Mountain in response to the pressure being exerted on him by Zhisheng Cliffs. Now, he had finally made an appearance once more before insulting Zhan Xiao, one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, and then disrespecting Zhisheng Cliffs as well. It seemed like Gu Dongliu really had a death wish.


    Kong Yao looked up, the look in his eyes sharp as a knife. How dare Gu Dongliu claim that the cultivators at Zhisheng Cliffs were not worthy of its illustrious reputation?


    "Gu Dongliu, how dare you insult the holy grounds of the Yu State," Zhan Xiao spat coldly. "Take him down."


    Boom! With a loud crash, a giant Golden Ape stepped out from behind Gu Dongliu, and cracks spread throughout the ground. Yuan Hong stood there, his golden eyes surveying the crowd. Many people looked towards Yuan Hong. A couple of days ago, he had defeated the City Lord of White Cloud City, who had been fourth in the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Zhan Xiao, you killed all those sages in order to get to the treasure. If it hadn''t chosen me, I would probably have also died right there at the relic," Gu Dongliu said, staring straight at Zhan Xiao, "which is why firstly, I did not steal the treasure; it chose me. Secondly, I did not kill those Yu State sages. You know fully well who that despicable villain really is, though I don''t know if everyone else who came from Zhisheng Cliffs knows as well. It''s not hard to verify everything I just said as well. If anyone wants to see for themselves, I will project what happened using Spiritual Will. Admit it, you''re trying to snatch the treasure for yourself and silence me. Don''t bother with all those lofty excuses."


    Everyone was in shock at Gu Dongliu''s words. The vast space surrounding the Xuanwu Tower was silent. While everyone knew there was a possibility Zhan Xiao had not been speaking the truth, Gu Dongliu had never contradicted his words. As such, there had been the impression that even if Zhan Xiao''s words were not completely truthful, they had not deviated greatly from what had actually happened. The fact that Gu Dongliu had presented an account completely contrary to what Zhan Xiao had said was a jaw-dropping twist to this turn of events. Furthermore, the last point Gu Dongliu made had been especially persuasive as well.


    Zhan Xiao''s expression darkened instantly, and he snorted coldly. "How bold of you to push the blame for what you did onto me. And now that people from Zhisheng Cliffs have come for you, you besmirch the illustrious name of our holy grounds out of your own petty need for revenge. Gu Dongliu, such underhanded means you''re resorting to."


    "What impudence." Kong Yao stood up, and a terrifying pressure descended upon the vast space. Though he did not completely trust Zhan Xiao''s account, he did not want to believe that what Gu Dongliu said could be true. After all, Zhan Xiao was one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    If Gu Dongliu really was speaking the truth, then Zhan Xiao truly was a disappointment. It wasn''t so much that he had killed those sages in order to get to the treasure, but that the treasure had chosen Gu Dongliu over him, despite him being one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs. Gu Dongliu had even managed to get away from him. All this was contrary to what Zhan Xiao had told Kong Yao.


    But it didn''t matter what the truth was. The moment Gu Dongliu had blurted out everything the way he did, he deserved to die already. The issues with Zhan Xiao would be dealt with once they got back to Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "It makes no difference whether or not I was impudent," Gu Dongliu said calmly. "Previously, I was willing to hand over the treasure, even if that meant taking on a bad reputation for being despicable. But since all of you from this supposed holy ground were not willing to let me off, then I no longer had any room to be civil. Zhan Xiao, if you''re going to boast about being from holy grounds, then fight me in battle. If I lose, you''re free to take me back with you, and I''ll hand over the treasure. If you lose or are unwilling to even battle, then you may kill me. But don''t think about getting your hands on the treasure so easily when previously you didn''t even want it in the first place."


    "We''ll know everything for sure once we take you back to Zhisheng Cliffs. The treasure will still be ours no matter what," Kong Yao retorted strongly and stepped forward. The terrifying rule power of a divine elephant descended upon the space. The pressure of it was endlessly immense, and many people felt like they were being immobilized.


    Thump. Kong Yao stepped out again, and an incredibly heavy pressure began to press down on Gu Dongliu. At this point, both Gu Dongliu''s body and Spiritual Will felt as though they were being subjet to a stampede of many divine elephants, and he could not help but grunt at the sudden assault. However, his eyes remained lucid, and he stared straight at Kong Yao.


    Yuan Hong took a step forward, making the earth shake, and stood before Gu Dongliu. Explosive energy was contained within his golden body. This sheer power was the specialty of the Golden Apes. Even if demonic beasts were at some disadvantage compared to humans, they too had certain abilities they were born with.


    Kong Yao snorted coldly at the sight. He had heard of how Yuan Hong had defeated the City Lord of White Cloud City, who was fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking. But it didn''t matter to him. Even if the City Lord of White Cloud City was fourth in the Barren Sky Ranking, it still could not compare to his own ranking as ninth on the Sage Ranking.


    Each step Kong Yao took had everyone feeling as though divine elephants were stampeding across their bodies, and many of those who were on lower planes stood behind their seniors. This pressure was terrifyingly immense, causing Xuanwu Tower to shake and creak, seemingly at risk of collapsing any moment.


    Yuan Hong waved the Divine Destruction Polearm in his hand, and many Golden Ape shadows appeared around him. As the Golden Apes twirled their polearms about at the same time, the surroundings began to change as well. At this, everyone at the banquet began to retreat quickly, finding refuge somewhere far away from there. The range of such a battle would be incredibly vast, and the power involved was immense. Anyone below the Sage Plane would probably be killed in the crossfire.


    Kong Yao stepped out towards Yuan Hong and swung a fist towards him. Despite seeming like a casual punch, Kong Yao''s fist contained a power that could suppress all under heaven. Endless numbers of divine elephant shadows appeared and charged through the space, emanating overpowering energy that struck fear into everyone''s hearts. In an instant, the Golden Apes around Yuan Hong were all reduced to nothing.


    Even then, Yuan Hong stood tall and unshakeable still, continuing to twirl the polearm about. As a roar resounded through the sky, he raised the Divine Destruction Polearm and attacked, seeming to split the sky apart with one strike.


    Yuan Hong tore through the divine elephant shadows and went straight at Kong Yao''s fist. Yet Kong Yao showed no fear at all, instead allowing his bare fist to hit the Divine Destruction Polearm that swung through the sky towards him. The power of his fist will was surprising, and a glow emanated from it that seemed to look just like an enormous divine elephant.


    Thump! With a loud sound, the divine elephant was destroyed. However, the might of the staff technique was cut off as well. A frightening hurricane formed around the two and rolled off into the distance. Meanwhile, Xuanwu Tower was completely reduced to rubble. There was no way it was able to withstand the power of such a battle.


    Right then, Zhuge Qingfeng walked over to stand before Yuan Hong as well. Since the battle had begun, he too would not back off. Kong Yao looked at the two figures before him. Zhuge Qingfeng was equipped with a holy ritual implement. On the other hand, while Yuan Hong''s strike just now had only been a test attack, he was undeniably strong as well. It would be troublesome to have to take down the two of them alone.


    Turning his gaze to everyone else, Kong Yao spoke, "Everyone, since the person we are looking for has come down from Crouching Dragon Mountain, this makes things easier then. Whoever is willing to stand on my side will be a friend of Zhisheng Cliffs from now on."


    There were many sparkling eyes among the crowd at his words. Some were hesitant, knowing that if they were to participate in this now, then they would have to ensure that Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong were taken care of on the spot. If not, trouble may ensue in the future.


    Both Gu Dongliu''s speech and the actions of Yuan Hong and Zhuge Qingfeng were akin to declaring war on Zhisheng Cliffs. As such, Kong Yao would definitely not let them off. Kong Yao would have no problem taking on Zhuge Qingfeng. However, Yuan Hong was powerful enough to defeat the City Lord of White Cloud City, which made him a troublesome figure to deal with. If only one or two of them were to participate in the battle, then it would be a risk to their own lives.


    "Zhuge Qingfeng, since Gu Dongliu stole from Zhisheng Cliffs, you should just hand him over," a voice rang out, and Zhuge Qingfeng looked towards its owner. It was the leader of the Sacred Fire Sect, an elder who had lived for many, many years. This person had always gone about his affairs in a rather shady manner. Besides, if he didn''t break through to the next plane soon, he would begin to grow frail with age. As such, his desire to break into the Saint Plane was especially strong. In speaking up, the elder had basically made a statement that he was going to side with Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "My son has the potential to break into the Saint Plane. Right now, he''s working on transcending into the Sage Plane. Brother Kong, would you be able to recommend him to Zhisheng Cliffs so that he could train there?" Di Kai looked towards Kong Yao as he spoke. He had great expectations of his son Di Gang. With his son''s talent, he definitely had what it took to enter Zhisheng Cliffs and even become a prominent figure on the level of a Son. However, one needed a recommendation in order to enter Zhisheng Cliffs. Kong Yao was obviously a suitable person to seek a recommendation from then.


    While Di Kai could turn his nose up at the Holy Zhi Palace, there were people of the Saint Plane at Zhisheng Cliffs. If Di Gang could be accepted there to train, it would definitely be an added advantage in his journey to enter the Saint Plane. Evidently, Di Kai was intending to pave the way forward for his son Di Gang.


    "That will definitely be no problem," Kong Yao agreed breezily. After all, Di Gang was 12th on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Count me in too," the Wuji Swordsman, head of the Sword Saint Villa, piped up as well. He was not doing this so that his descendants may enter Zhisheng Cliffs, but rather for himself. The Sword Saint Villa had to have an individual of the Saint Plane. As such, it was imperative that he set foot into that plane.


    "Yan Wuji has joined in as well." The eyes of many gleamed at this turn of events. Yan Wuji had a holy item in his possession as well. At this point, there was no doubt about how this battle would go.


    "Looks like the majority is against you, Zhuge Qingfeng. Why go against the current?" the Nantian Godly Spear of Nantian House spoke up. It was evident he too wanted to join in the fray.


    Gu Dongliu''s gaze swept across all these people, before he calmly commented, "I''ve heard from my teacher that the Saint Plane is a state of flawlessness. If your heart is flawless, then you will attain sainthood. Though all of you are ranked within the Barren Sky Ranking, as of today, there are already flaws in your Divine Path. Attaining sainthood is probably an unattainable dream for you now."


    "What do you mean by flaws?" Yan Wuji looked towards Gu Dongliu. His conviction was absolute; he would be willing to go all out for even the smallest shred of hope, which meant his state of mind was flawless as well.


    "If you don''t believe in yourself, your heart in pursuing the Divine Path falters, which becomes a flaw," Ye Futian spoke from where he was behind Gu Dongliu. "Third Older Brother is right, you all are probably not fated to walk the Divine Path in this lifetime."


    "A whole load of nonsense." Yan Wuji''s expression faltered. Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian''s words seemed to have generated some sort of disturbance within his frame of mind, causing him to question himself. However, Yan Wuji was unwilling to suspect his own feelings. This would be playing straight into Ye Futian''s hands, proving that he was faltering in his will to pursue the Divine Path and that his frame of mind was flawed.


    Ye Futian laughed derisively. Perhaps these people had already understood his words, but it was just that they were still unwilling to accept the truth and wanted another try.


    "Whether all of you admit to this fact or not, your actions today prove that you all do want to rely on Zhisheng Cliffs because you don''t think much of yourselves. With such a frame of mind, the Barren Sky Ranking will be the highest point you will reach. What''s so good about Zhisheng Cliffs anyway? You''ll still encounter the same sort of cultivators there," Ye Futian declared. "You will all regret this." He then looked towards Yuan Hong, "Grandfather Ape, Kong Yao from Zhisheng Cliffs is yours."


    "Alright," Yuan Hong nodded.

 694 The Battle Between Those at The Top

    Kong Yao glanced at Yuan Hong. It was true that Yuan Hong had defeated the City Lord of White Cloud City and was able to become one of the top five in the Barren Sky Ranking. But for Yuan Hong to want to defeat him, who was ninth in the Sage Ranking, Yuan Hong really was getting ahead of himself. By that logic, the Sage and Saint Rankings of the Nine States would be placed below the Barren Sky Ranking, which was an absolute joke.


    In a flash, Kong Yao moved up into the sky, his will emanating from his being. Instantly, it seemed as though countless divine elephant shadows had appeared in the vast sky. The central area of Xuanwu City seemed to be besieged by a monstrous pressure, and many found it hard to breathe. Sage Intent merged with heaven and earth to turn into rules. At the Sage Plane, Kong Yao was almost an unrivaled existence. One could imagine the magnitude of the power that would be released when the will power of the rules was truly activated.


    Yuan Hong stepped forward, sending massive cracks running throughout the earth. The Xuanwu Tower area seemed on the verge of being reduced to rubble as the giant Golden Ape endured immense pressure to rise up into the sky. With a roar, thousands of Ape shadows seemed to appear at the same time, soaring through the sky.


    Countless people looked up into the sky. Demon Elephants and Demon Apes were both demonic beasts known for their sheer strength. Now that an actual Golden Ape was about to face off against Divine Elephants on their own turf, it was unimaginable just how frightening the clash would be.


    The power of Kong Yao''s Divine Elephants was no longer of the elemental kind. Instead, it had been transformed into the rule power of Divine Elephants. An enormous Demon Elephant shadow appeared behind Kong Yao. Its height reached about a thousand feet, and it was even wearing a demonic crown as if it were the king of Demon Elephants, the real Divine Elephant.


    The trumpet of an elephant sounded, and many people instinctively covered their ears with both their hands. However, it was no use. Their legs turned to jelly, and they fell to their knees. Despite moving to a great height in the sky, the pressure that emanated from Kong Yao as he engaged in battle was still immensely overpowering.


    Zhuge Qingfeng lifted his head to look at Kong Yao as well. Ten years ago, he had encountered Kong Yao back at that place. Back then, he had used this unparalleled Divine Elephant rule power in order to kill many top-notch sages. Kong Yao could even be said to have been absolutely undefeatable at that point. It had been a vicious battle, and Kong Yao had performed majestically to the point of being unrivaled. He had polished his Divine Elephant rule power to the maximum, such that he held sway over everything.


    The Divine Elephant Life Spirit seemed to contain an endless rule power, which emanated a great pressure. Kong Yao''s gaze leaped to where Yuan Hong was as the latter continued to ascend through the sky, and he stomped downwards. While it seemed like a casual movement, an impressive sight appeared in the sky.


    A large number of elephants trumpeted together before tens of thousands of Divine Elephants led a stampede through the sky. The sky itself seemed to be on the verge of being flattened, and within the army of Divine Elephants, a humongous Divine Elephant stormed towards Yuan Hong and raised its leg to stomp on him, the attack seeming like it was descending from the heavens itself.


    Yuan Hong raised his head to look at the sky, and his golden pupils emitted a brilliant dazzle. With a loud roar, he shape-shifted into a Golden Demon God and twirled the Divine Destruction Polearm in his hands about. Many Golden Ape shadows appeared at once as he struck out with the Polearm, tearing through the sky with his attack.


    Deafening cracks were heard as countless Divine Elephant shadows were shattered into nothing by the attack. The humongous elephant foot that descended towards Yuan Hong was struck apart as well. Everyone was blinded by the dazzling golden rays of light, and with his magnificent stature, Yuan Hong looked just like a god of war.


    "Humph." Kong Yao let out a cold snort that sounded surprisingly sullen before he started walking towards Yuan Hong. Every step he took felt like a Divine Elephant was stomping directly on the hearts of everyone present. The scene in the sky was even more frightening. With every step Kong Yao took, Divine Elephant shadows struck out in the sky.


    Even as Yuan Hong cut an impressive figure with his mighty golden body, in the face of Kong Yao walking towards him, everyone got the impression that he was on the brink of being taken down ruthlessly. This was exactly the kind of aura that Kong Yao gave out. It was an indomitable aura that seemed unshakeable.


    "He''s insanely powerful." Many people felt their hearts pounding within their chests. This was a person in the top ten of the Sage and Saint Ranking. The power of a single step from this man was enough to kill a top-notch sage, and considering how every step he took contained this sort of might, there was no doubt that Kong Yao was absolutely terrifying.


    Right then, the golden glow that emanated from Yuan Hong''s body grew even more dazzling. The rays of light gathered together to form a curtain of golden light that covered his body. The power of the Divine Elephant, which had been so frighteningly mighty, was immediately dulled greatly as it made contact with the curtain of light. It barely affected Yuan Hong at all.


    "That is��" The eyes of many influential characters lit up at the sight.


    "It''s a divine implement," said Yan Wuji of the Sword Saint Villa, whose gaze was sharp as a blade. He felt the energy emanating off the divine implement, as did many others in the crowd. Kong Yao definitely felt it the clearest, and his expression immediately darkened.


    Kong Yao was ninth on the Sage and Saint Ranking, but he still didn''t have a true divine implement within his possession yet. Sage-level ritual implements were of little use to him. He was already at the peak of the Sage Plane, and his attacks contained the maximum power a sage could have. He would not be able to break through this limit even with the help of ritual implements.


    Only saints had the right to use divine implements at Zhisheng Cliffs, and they were only entitled to borrow these divine implements while going on extremely important missions. Now that Kong Yao had come to the Barren State and met two opponents one after the other, he had initially thought that he would be able to just kill them without any problem. However, his opponents had both revealed that they had divine implements on them, and it pissed him off to no end.


    "Where did this ritual implement come from?" asked the head of Nantian House, who looked incredibly troubled. Could this be an heirloom passed down by the ancestors of the Apes?


    Everyone knew that there had been an Ape Emperor who accompanied Emperor Ye Qing as he went about conquering the world. However, the Golden Apes had long been integrated into the Barren State since then, and should not have any more connection to that Ape Emperor. Yet, where had they gotten that divine implement from?


    A single divine implement alone could potentially affect the outcome of this fight. If Zhuge Qingfeng had been the only one to possess a divine implement, then things could still be resolved easily. As long as Kong Yao managed to keep Zhuge Qingfeng in check, they would be able to kill Yuan Hong before helping Kong Yao to get rid of Zhuge Qingfeng. It would have been an easy win, which was why they had joined in the fight in the first place. However, now it seemed as though things would not go as planned.


    "Are you all not going to make your move?" Kong Yao spoke calmly from where he was in the sky. Yuan Hong''s own power surpassed that of the White Cloud City Lord''s. With the addition of this defensive divine implement, Yuan Hong was enough of a threat to keep Kong Yao occupied. As such, Kong Yao could only let the rest join forces to kill Zhuge Qingfeng.


    A gleam shot through the eyes of Yan Wuji and the rest before they began to release mighty energy. Since they had made a promise to Zhisheng Cliffs, they were all in the same boat now. There was no backing out at this point. If Yuan Hong and Zhuge Qingfeng were to get out of this alive, they would be in deep trouble.


    "Let''s go," Yan Wuji commanded, and he leaped up into the air. Sword Qi whistled through the air, and a Holy Sword appeared behind him, merging into one with his Life Spirit. This was the Holy Sword Yan Wuji''s ancestors had passed down to him.


    The Holy Sword shot through the air, and even those who stood a great distance away felt as though their bodies were about to be torn apart. Everyone began to retreat further still, even those who were at the Sage Plane. This was a battle between those at the top.


    Zhuge Qingfeng stood within an Eight Trigrams formation that glowed brightly in the sky. He was surrounded by images of himself, and the terrifying energy of destructive lightning crackled within the formation.


    Crack! The Holy Sword landed on one of Zhuge Qingfeng''s shadows. The other shadows around him seemed to become one, forming a dazzling formation before Zhuge Qingfeng that swallowed up the power of the Holy Sword bit by bit. The earth around Zhuge Qingfeng was torn apart relentlessly, and the buildings nearby were reduced to rubble as well, resulting in a scene of pure destruction.


    Within the crowd, Zhan Xiao, who had already retreated far away, shot Gu Dongliu a frosty gaze before giving those from Zhisheng Cliffs a single command, "Take Gu Dongliu down."


    Kong Yao was the main powerhouse of this party from Zhisheng Cliffs. They had originally planned for Kong Yao, who was ninth in the Sage Ranking, to simply descend upon the Barren State, capture their man, and leave. Which was why the rest of the party were not incredibly powerful people. However, there were still several people in the party who were archmages. At Zhan Xiao''s order, they stepped forward.


    Powerful individuals from Taihang Mountain were standing guard by Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian''s side. At the sight of those from Zhisheng Cliffs advancing towards them in an attack, they stepped forward as well, causing the earth to shake and rumble.


    A massive battle erupted immediately. The citizens of Xuanwu City had never seen a battle of this scale before. It was probably a sight that was only seen back during the time of the Saint.


    Amidst the chaos of battle, Gu Dongliu''s eyes were locked on Zhan Xiao. He did not retreat but walked forward instead. Step by step, he moved towards Zhan Xiao, and spoke, "Zhan Xiao, you do things using such underhanded means, yet your abilities are beyond subpar. You are one of the Nine Warriors, yet you are such a coward. I hope you''ll still be able to keep your position as one of the Nine Warriors when you get back to Zhisheng Cliffs after this."


    Zhan Xiao''s expression was steely. The party from Zhisheng Cliffs had taken note of Gu Dongliu''s humiliating insults towards Zhan Xiao. Furthermore, the truth Gu Dongliu claimed to speak was an incredibly huge blow to Zhan Xiao''s reputation. If Zhan Xiao didn''t manage to take back the holy item, it was highly possible that he would be punished once he returned to Zhisheng Cliffs. Right now, he had to kill Gu Dongliu and get the holy item back in his possession in order to atone for his mistake.


    "I just didn''t think you were worth the effort. Since you''re begging for death now, I''ll grant your wish," Zhan Xiao stepped forward, and the energy of an upper-level sage emanated from his being. Zhan Xiao was of the same plane as Gu Dongliu.


    Upon seeing that Zhan Xiao was finally participating in the fight, a cold murderous intent flashed in Gu Dongliu''s brooding eyes. With a step forward, Gu Dongliu released his Life Spirit, which seemed to appear in the form of a celestial being. Ancient characters surrounded it, and heaven and earth resonated with each other.


    Compared to his battle with Bai Luli back then, Gu Dongliu was even more eye-catching now. The glow emanated from his Life Spirit was even more dazzling as it seemed to be one with both heaven and earth. The will of heaven and earth itself seemed to be at the disposal of Gu Dongliu.


    "Zhan Xiao!" Gu Dongliu roared. At the sound of Gu Dongliu''s voice, Zhan Xiao''s mind was suddenly filled with a buzzing.


    "Zhan Xiao, Zhan Xiao, Zhan Xiao!" Voices buzzed in Zhan Xiao''s ears, and a powerful will power wormed its way into his mind. He saw countless images of Gu Dongliu, and his Spiritual Will was shaken. It was as if Gu Dongliu was everywhere surrounding him. Zhan Xiao suddenly felt like he was in a trance. Zhan Xiao then vaguely caught a glimpse of the shadow of the real celestial being. It was indomitable, as if Gu Dongliu had managed to walk directly into his mind.


    "Zhan Xiao, Zhan Xiao, Zhan Xiao��" Voices echoed in his mind as the shadow of the celestial being grew clearer. His Spiritual Will was shaken, and Zhan Xiao suddenly sensed a great danger before him. In a flash, he retreated and drew his ritual implement before him. Almost at the same moment, the thousands of shadows became one, and Gu Dongliu appeared directly before him. Swiping through the air with one finger, the sky itself seemed to be torn apart by the immense power of the laws of the sword.


    A stream of blades shot through the space, and even as Zhan Xiao retreated hastily, he felt blood surface through cuts in his skin. His body also felt as though some of the laws of the sword had entered it. Coughing up a mouthful of blood, Zhan Xiao''s face turned pale.


    "This here is one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs!" Gu Dongliu''s voice boomed throughout the space. Zhan Xiao grew paler still. Gu Dongliu was going to utterly destroy his reputation!

 695 The Battle of Number One Nobles

    "Gu Dongliu became more powerful." Many great figures from Barren State looked at Gu Dongliu in the air. They were present on that day of the banquet when Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu battled. Now they bore witness yet again to Gu Dongliu''s battle with Zhan Xiao, and it was apparent that his powers had grown. His Life Spirit seemed to have metamorphosed while the control of his spiritual will had with powers of rules advanced to yet another level.


    Due to Zhan Xiao''s skills as one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, his prowess was such that he would not have been simply taken out by Gu Dongliu with one move. Furthermore, both of them had fought each other before, which meant that Zhan Xiao had not anticipated Gu Dongliu''s exponential increase in power, which was why he was injured by the move just then.


    Gu Dongliu continued walking forward. Zhan Xiao looked up at Gu Dongliu with a gloomy expression. The clash right there and then made him understand that he was no longer a match for Gu Dongliu. He retreated, choosing not to clash with Gu Dongliu head on.


    Gu Dongliu''s expression was cold. His body disappeared as soon as he took one step forward. At the very next moment, the Celestial Shadow appeared in Zhan Xiao''s mind one more time, and it seemed that Gu Dongliu''s shadows were everywhere. He knew the shadows to be little more than illusions, as he was simply under attack from Gu Dongliu''s spiritual will.


    "How did he grow to be so powerful?" Zhan Xiao''s face was ashen as he unleashed his Life Spirit, giving his all to the fight.


    On another battlefield elsewhere, the battle between Yuan Hong and Kong Yao raged on, shaking the heavens and the earth. They took their fight up into the clouds, finding divine elephants everywhere. Kong Yao was simply too powerful; however, Yuan Hong was armed with a divine implement and that made him near unbeatable. He was able to simply dissolve any attacks that went at him, as he was, after all, still very powerful physically and possessed defensive capacities second to none.


    The stifling noises exploded all over the sky. Zhuge Qingfeng and the others were also fighting heaven-shaking battles. Several top-notch figures on the Barren Sky Ranking surrounded Zhuge Qingfeng, but he was able to materialize countless shadows of his within the Eight Trigrams Matrix, enabling him to change attacks and locations at will, which in turn made him very difficult to tangle with. Even the likes of Yan Wuji and Di Kai, who were very, very powerful people, found it frustratingly hard to injure him.


    The fights among the younger generations, however, had been easy ones. The likes of Qin Zhong and Ye Futian simply watched the fights of the titans around, as their planes were such that they were unable to even do anything to help. But then again, none of those top-notch figures went against them. It was, after all, a showdown between the top-notch figures. It was the principle of ''winner takes all'' at play, with the nobles at the losing side waiting to be butchered when the dust settled.


    Before the victors were determined, it was only natural for them to not waste their energies on some small fries. Furthermore, no one dared move away from the opponents they were fighting respectively. If someone from Zhisheng Cliffs or Sword Saint Villa ended up killing Ye Futian, the likes of Yuan Hong and Zhuge Qingfeng would have gone right after them. As such, there were actually only two battles that truly determined the fates of everyone there��the battle between Kong Yao and Yuan Hong, and that between Zhuge Qingfeng and the rest siding with Yan Wuji. Battles like the one between Gu Dongliu and Zhan Xiao were not of high priority.


    Ye Futian felt very tense as well. The battles at Xuanwu Tower that day would end up determining the fates of many. Losing would have dire consequences.


    "The Divine Path is one littered with death traps. If one does not have the belief to see it through, one has no business walking the Divine Path," Ye Futian said softly. He looked at Gu Dongliu and added, "Zhan Xiao is one of the nine and hails from the sacred ground of Yu State. So what? He was defeated all the same. Who is to say that my Third Brother can''t become a saint one day."


    His words were for everyone present. They were some mighty ones on the Barren Sky Ranking that he was unfamiliar with and there were elders whom he knew. However, he did not ask for any of them to interfere. The ones he wanted them to fight were the people of Zhisheng Cliffs, and no one liked messing with the likes of Zhisheng Cliffs. But at the very least, he did not hope to see any of those people against them. Or else...


    The eyes of many sparkled. Yan Wuji and the rest saw that Yuan Hong was armed with a holy ritual implement, and that was totally unanticipated on their part. There was simply no way out for Yan Wuji and those who sided with him. Ye Futian was simply giving them reminders.


    Qin Zhong glanced at the battle between Zhan Xiao and Gu Dongliu. His senior, Zhan Xiao, had taken to simply avoiding getting hit, as the odds were stacked heavily against him. Qin Zhong felt rather disappointed. Zhan Xiao was his senior and one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs. They carried the reputation of Zhisheng Cliffs with them wherever they went. Gu Dongliu had been dissing Zhan Xiao''s ineptitude before, and what Qin Zhong saw at the moment said that Gu Dongliu was telling the truth. That battle between Gu Dongliu and Zhan Xiao was a heavy blow to Zhisheng Cliffs'' reputation.


    "I heard that you were the champion of the Law Rank before Ximen Hanjiang came to claim the title," Qing Zhong turned his eyes at Ye Futian and said.


    Whatever Zhan Xiao did, that was saved for later discussions. What mattered to Qin Zhong right then was not to see Zhisheng Cliffs'' reputation get damaged any further. The embarrassment that his senior caused, he deemed it necessary to clean it up himself.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Qin Zhong. The young man before him was also a noble, yet Kong Yao was seen by this young man''s side all the time, which spoke volumes of Qin Zhong''s status in Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "I was indeed," Ye Futian said casually.


    "I fought Ximen Hanjiang in the Holy Zhi Palace before and it took me only one move. I asked the Holy Zhi Palace if the students of the Palace represented the best the Barren State had to offer. They did not answer, and then I heard you being called the number one noble in all of the Barren State." Qin Zhong''s voice was a calm one when he talked to Ye Futian. It seemed like he did not care for the war going on around him.


    "It is a coincidence that I''m also known to be the number one below the sages," Qin Zhong said slowly. His intention was apparent: he wanted to fight Ye Futian.


    Countless people of the younger generation turned their eyes at Qin Zhong and Ye Futian in an instant. They heard of what happened back in the Holy Zhi Palace, that Ximen Hanjiang was unable to withstand one finger from Qin Zhong, and it was said that Qin Zhong was the most exceptional among the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Ye Futian, on the other hand, also truly deserved being called the number one noble in all of the Barren State. The battle between them would not have been as spectacular as those around them, but many looked forward to it nonetheless.


    This was especially so for the youths, as the mighty ones of the previous generation ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking were almost run over by Kong Yao alone. They had no choice but to rely on Saint-level implements to fight him on equal footing.


    What about our generation then? they thought.


    Gu Dongliu had demonstrated his talents by crushing Zhan Xiao, but Ye Futian and Qin Zhong represented the future of their respective states. Qin Zhong might have been just like Bai Luli, as it was said in the Barren State that he possessed the potential for sainthood. But Ye Futian had made himself a legend by crushing Di Gang and Ximen Hanjiang.


    Di Gang, Li Futu, Huang Jiuge, and the others were present, eyeing the two and wishing fervently for the battle.


    "You are right to say that you''re only the number one below the sages in Zhisheng Cliffs," Ye Futian said while looking at Qin Zhong. He was trying to provoke him.


    "After you," Qin Zhong said and gestured. He remained dashing throughout, bringing the might of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs to bear.


    "No, after you," Ye Futian said. His planes in both sorcery and martial arts had reached that of a Grade Two Noble and were very steady. He was even able to catch a glimpse of a sage''s power. He wanted to see what the number one beneath the sages in Zhisheng Cliffs was capable of.


    Qin Zhong took steps forward without unleashing aura that was too powerful. He walked with grace and composure, not looking one bit like he was about to get into a fight between the pinnacle of nobles. His attitude was a plain one, yet it exuded confidence like none other.


    Ye Futian glanced at Qin Zhong as he unleashed his spiritual will. The space where Qin Zhong was in felt like it had frozen over in an instant.


    It was the Sky Freezing Technique.


    Everything seemed to have ground to a halt and Qin Zhong felt unable to move in that frozen space at all. He was alerted, deeming Ye Futian to indeed be the number one noble in all of the Barren State. Such use of areas of will was indeed terrifying. Conventional nobles would not have been able to withstand even one hit from such a move, as it would have rendered the opponent utterly helpless. It was a pity that the one whom Ye Futian was fighting was him, Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Brilliant lights burst around him. Qin Zhong''s silhouette turned incredibly holy in an instant. The light coursed and circled around him like mystical energies were flowing all over him.


    Voom. His body accelerated all of a sudden, making him impossibly fast. The power of the Sky Freezing Technique was utterly useless against him.


    His speed was unbelievable. It seemed to have taken only an instant for him to close in on Ye Futian, and then he lashed out with one finger. The seemingly-simple move was the very move he had used against Ximen Hanjiang back in the Holy Zhi Palace. It might have looked impossibly simple, but Ye Futian clearly felt the terrifying powers imbued in it, and he was surprisingly able to feel the powers of saints within. It was the power of rules.


    The number one under the sages in Zhisheng Cliffs had learned to use the powers of the sages, developing comprehension of his own rules. It was an utterly terrifying talent. That also meant that Qin Zhong was able to do what Bai Luli did��fight against sages.


    Dazzling starlight appeared around Ye Futian. His martial arts will was unleashed as well. The surroundings of his body were turned into an Absolute Territory, bringing tremendous pressure on Qin Zhong. However, Qin Zhong was completely unfazed by the pressure and did not react to it. His finger fell onto the starlight around Ye Futian all the same.


    The defensive light screen provided by the stars cracked violently and exploded shortly after. The power of rules was capable of tearing down all defensive capabilities at the noble level. It was further made worse by the fact that Qin Zhong was the one using it, as he was known to be the most exceptional among the Nine Warriors. It was due to such reasons that he was known to be the number one below the sages in Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Ye Futian might have been known to be invincible in all of Barren State. Yet, so long as he was not a sage, it would not have made any difference at all.


    Boom. The stars crumbled thoroughly and Ye Futian backed away like a bolt of lightning. That finger landed where he had been standing split seconds ago. A whirlpool was seen emanating from the finger; a manifestation of the terrifying power of destruction within. If Ye Futian had been only a split second slower, that finger would have pierced right through his body.


    "Power of rules. This Son from Zhisheng Cliffs is someone like Bai Luli." Many great figures turned their eyes to Qin Zhong. Bai Luli had beaten a sage when he was still at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane back in the day, and that battle made him the renowned figure he was today. If one were to defeat sages, one needed to develop comprehension of the power of rules. Qin Zhong was a mighty one of such caliber, but Ye Futian was still just a Grade Two Noble.


    Many turned their eyes at Ye Futian who was backing away. The younger generations had come to see Ye Futian as a nigh-undefeatable legend. Many exceptional geniuses present, including the likes of Di Gang and Li Futu, had all been defeated by Ye Futian before. And right there and then, the mighty one from Zhisheng Cliffs demonstrated extremely fearsome combat capacity before all of the mighty ones in the Barren State.


    Qin Zhong might have been just like Bai Luli: someone who was capable of defeating sages. Ye Futian was fighting more than just another genius noble right there. If he was able to beat Qin Zhong, it would have proven that he also possessed the power to fight sages. However, at that moment, it was seen to be an impossible feat!

 696 That Is How It Is

    Ye Futian looked at Qin Zhong. He knew well that the very nature of power changed when one advanced from Noble Plane to Sage Plane. No powers at the noble level would be able to withstand the rules wielded by sages. Everything a noble was able to whip up would have been easily broken by sages. Regardless of how powerful his fusion will territory had been, it stood no chance against anything Qin Zhong was able to pull.


    Despite not having become a sage just yet, Qin Zhong was halfway into the Sage Plane. He was literally half a sage at his current level, having developed matured rules and became the number one below the sages in Zhisheng Cliffs because of it. One could have even say that even conventional sages stood no chance against him.


    The wings of the Roc appeared and Ye Futian was clad in Divine Ape form. His form was imposing and filled with boundless power. Dazzling lights were unleashed and it seemed as if there were countless beams penetrating his body. There were also beams shooting out from above the Divine Ape, opening up the Seven Star acupoints.


    Ye Futian felt himself overflowing with boundless power in an instant. His eyes turned incredibly sharp, shooting out golden beams of light. He activated Freedom Meditation and it boosted his senses to the extreme. He was, after all, fighting the number one figure below sages from Zhisheng Cliffs, and he deemed it necessary to experience all there was to experience from the fight.


    He was able to feel the terrifying torrent circling around Qin Zhong. Dazzling golden lights coursed about and flowed to both the heavens and earth. Every streak of the aura made Ye Futian feel incredibly overwhelming power of rules from Qin Zhong, powers that enabled one to easily destroy any type of defense.


    Ye Futian had also caught a glimpse of the formless torrent emanating from Qin Zhong''s body that seemed to have transformed into a divine eagle, and it was the likes of which he had never seen before. It was probably a Life Spirit that Qin Zhong was able to unleash, yet somehow took form unintentionally through the use of the power of rules. Ye Futian sensed a pair of incredibly sharp eyes in the void, which he felt to be the eyes of the eagle. The eyes seemed to be capable of penetrating everything they saw, just like Qin Zhong''s own sharp eyes.


    Qin Zhong glanced at Ye Futian and felt the aura around him to indeed be exponentially stronger than Ximen Hanjiang''s. Nobles who were capable of reaching such levels were near invincible in the Barren State.


    Ye Futian''s massive spectral body lashed out with a punch, filling the air in an instant with thousands of fist will, which felt as if they were comets packed with extremely destructive power. The comet-like fist will in the air was capable of easily destroying everything in its path, and it was his most powerful attack: Comet Punch.


    Qin Zhong remained completely unfazed in the face of the tremendously massive fist before him. The formless torrent gushed about in the air and turned even more crazed. The shadow of the divine eagle seemed to be blinking in and out of existence. Beams of light punched through the fist heading for him, shattering it bit by bit. He then lashed out with one finger. The move felt as if the eagle swept through the sky as a beam of sparkling light streaked through the air. The Comet Punch that headed for him with impressive force was penetrated in an instant, blowing it up within moments.


    Ye Futian gazed at Qin Zhong. He had already figured out which rules Qin Zhong had been using. It was not just some rules belonging to any single element. Like Ye Futian, the rules Qin Zhong wielded were something new that he had comprehended entirely on his own, packing very destructive powers capable of dissolving the attacks and defenses of others easily. It was an overwhelming yet very simple move, as it only took Qin Zhong lashing out with one finger to completely destroy Ye Futian''s incredibly overwhelming Comet Punch.


    Other than keeping their eyes on the battle between Kong Yao and Yuan Hong, the big shots of the Barren State began to also take notice of the battle between Qin Zhong and Ye Futian. They sighed as they witnessed Qin Zhong''s power firsthand, impressed at the fact that he was indeed a genius of the highest order.


    Qin Zhong had yet to truly become a sage and was only halfway in, but the powers of rules that he wielded were surprisingly mature. Furthermore, those powers were not derived from rules of just any single element. Such geniuses were truly one in a million. Even if he had actually become a sage, there was no doubt that he would have possessed the power to fight those of higher plane than him.


    True top-notch geniuses demonstrated excellence at very early stages. Qin Zhong, who was known to be the number one among all below the sages in Zhisheng Cliffs, would have been invincible among his peers throughout Yu State. It was simply unthinkable to have any noble there capable of beating the most talented one among the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "Your attacks might be powerful, but they are still limited to being powers of the Noble Plane. They might be able to shake those who are newly made sages, but if that is all you got, there is simply no way for you to beat me," Qin Zhong said. His words were brimming with confidence, making it very clear that even those who had just broken through to the Sage Plane were nowhere near his caliber.


    Qin Zhong did not bother waiting for Ye Futian to reply. He took one step forward and golden mirages appeared throughout the air in the very next moment. Qin Zhong''s body appeared right before Ye Futian. He lifted his palm and struck Ye Futian. The move seemed to be a simple one, yet it packed stifling pressure within.


    Ye Futian''s Third Brother had demonstrated to him before that the Sage Plane was one where one saw mountains but did not see them as mountains, and one saw water but did not see it to be water. A leaf falling from a tree could be made to possess the power to cleave rocks. Such was the product through the use of powers of rules. Qin Zhong''s palm naturally possessed rules made specifically for destruction.


    When Qin Zhong lashed out with his palm, he felt, at the same time, a formless pressure of rules holding his body. It was a heavy, stifling feeling. Qin Zhong frowned slightly. Did he, the number one noble of the Barren State, figure out a sliver of the powers of rules? Was he trying to set up a trap to have me get close? But Qin Zhong deemed that to be inadequate nonetheless.


    A cry was heard as the divine eagle burst into light. An impressively imposing divine eagle appeared right behind Qin Zhong. Its wings flapped and cut all the pressure of rules around Qin Zhong apart. He lashed out with his palm, now imbued with rules of sharpness like no other. The attack grew even more fearsome as his Life Spirit was unleashed.


    Ye Futian lashed out with a punch right there and then. It was an incredibly huge fist boosted with the stars. The fist will was turned into stars as soon as he launched the attack, which then clashed with the shadow of the massive divine eagle. Terrifying storms whipped about them in that very instant. The stars exploded, throwing Ye Futian and Qin Zhong back.


    Qin Zhong stood in the air, the wings of the divine eagle glittering. He looked at Ye Futian with eyes that were still just as sharp. He finally deemed his trip to the Barren State to be less disappointing that he initially thought it would be. His trip to the Holy Zhi Palace before had him meet the so-called proud son of the Holy Zhi Palace, who was disappointingly weak. Ye Futian, on the other hand, had finally stoked his excitement and made him feel like fighting earnestly.


    "Are they finally going to go at it for real?" Di Gang, Huang Jiuge, and the rest looked at the duo. They paid more attention to that battle than they did to the clash of the titans between Kong Yao and Yuan Hong. After all, Kong Yao''s plane was too high for them to comprehend, yet the battle between Qin Zhong and Ye Futian was one fought between two of the most gifted genius of their generation. In a sense, it could have been also called the clash of the titans.


    Ye Futian did not disappoint. If he had easily lost to Qin Zhong, it would have appeared as if there were no exceptional people in the Barren State.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were set on the great divine eagle behind Qin Zhong. Its eyes were sharp enough to pierce everything it saw, its golden claws glittered like that of the Roc, and its wings were spread wide, looking like blades one moment but dragon scales the next. That divine eagle also sported a very long tail. A golden crown was found on its head, making it seem like the king of eagles.


    "The Dragon Eagle." Many looked at the manifested divine eagle and found it to be a mutated species. It was said that two figures of legends in the demon world gave birth to the Dragon Eagle, which possessed talents of the highest order. The Dragon Eagle eventually became the new king of the demon world, creating new races of demonic beasts. It was quite a surprise that Qin Zhong''s Life Spirit turned out to be such a rare mutated species��the Dragon Eagle.


    A high pitched, deafening cry was heard. A massive shadow of the Dragon Eagle appeared in the air, encompassing a wide area and even covering Ye Futian within. The massive shadow looked down on Ye Futian. Incredibly destructive light of rules whipped about in the air. Its wings flapped and feathers seemed to begin dancing in the air. Each and every feather was packed with incredible rules of destruction, as they cut through the air with the intention to bury Ye Futian once and for all.


    Ye Futian glanced at the air and unleashed a powerful will that covered the space they were in. A mystical power seemed to have been born between the heavens and the earth. Incredibly dazzling starlight shimmered with Ye Futian at the center, forming absolute defensive powers around him.


    The feathers were turned into incredibly terrifying blades as they whipped through the air and headed for Ye Futian. The defensive light screen was cut again and again, and cracks appeared. An incredibly huge divine ape emerged from the screen of light and materialized a staff in its hand, which it then swung at the air. An incredible force was generated as it shot for the heavens. Formless will emerged as the techniques of the staff were at play. The space around them became incredibly heavy as if it was packed with the will of rules.


    A thunderous rumble sounded as Ye Futian whipped his staff about as if there was no one around. The force seemed to have blended with the heavens and the earth like some kind of rule, generating a terrifying storm in its wake.


    The incredibly massive shadow of the divine eagle cried as it flapped its wings to kill yet again. The attack cut through the air, and two straight lines were seen raining down from above. The air was then filled with shadows of the staff as the power of the surroundings gushed into Ye Futian''s body in a crazed manner. His defenses were strengthened further. When the divine eagle managed to cut the screen of light, Ye Futian took one step forward and the divine ape lashed out with one strike of the staff, cleaving the air apart.


    Qin Zhong frowned as he was able to feel that while Ye Futian had only begun to comprehend the rules and his use of what he knew was nowhere near that of Qin Zhong''s, Ye Futian still possessed overwhelmingly brute force. Boosted by the spectral manifestation he clad himself in, the brute force was magnified exponentially. That, coupled with the force he had been gathering, allowed the power of the rules he had just come to understand to rise sharply. The end result manifested like a torrent which turned increasingly powerful by the second.


    Voom. A force of fearsome rules was born as the divine eagle blocked out the sky as it flapped its wings. At the same time, Qin Zhong moved forward. The Dragon Eagle Life Spirit behind him seemed to have melded with the shadows as it lashed out with its claws. The divine ape seemed incredibly miniature in comparison.


    Countless destructive rules appeared in the air as the claws were lashed out. The defensive light screen exploded maniacally. Ye Futian was completely exposed as Qin Zhong''s attack went straight for him. However, Ye Futian seemed to have not noticed any of that as he went swinging his staff about. The fifth strike of the Nine Heavenly Attacks burst and the divine ape roared. Terrifying powers whipped in the air. The pair of terrifying claws met the staff head on and grabbed onto it. The staff shattered bit by bit, but that pair of claws turned intangible. Countless shadows of the divine eagle appeared as its feathers cleaved through the air, heading for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s body moved like a bolt of lightning, as fearsome aura built up around him. His flying body continued to gather the force of the world, yet it was still unable to escape the feathers at his tail. The feathers seemed to be boundless as they kept cutting the divine ape, cracking the spectral manifestation Ye Futian clad himself in. However, Ye Futian did not seem to be in any bit of pain. The power he gathered became increasingly strong and the divine ape grew in size in response. A giant ape appeared in the sky.


    Voom. A flash of lightning streaked through the air. The giant ape lashed out with its arm from above, as if it had packed all the force of the Nine Heavenly Attacks into that one arm that it brought to bear.


    Qin Zhong looked up at the shadow bearing down on him. It was an overwhelming shadow which seemed to have descended in the mortal world like a god. Stars seemed to have emerged around that arm coming down on him. The rules had finally taken form, turning into overwhelming power.


    Qin Zhong extended his hand and lashed out at the hand that Ye Futian had coming down on him. The divine eagle let out a very long streak, melding with that arm he had lashed out in response. Many saw the divine ape that descended from above bombard the Dragon Eagle. The resulting destructive light was unbearably bright. The spectral manifestation began to crumble under the influence of the boundless rules. The very huge divine ape shadow that Ye Futian had been clad in exploded bit by bit and crumbled.


    However, that power seemed to have penetrated everything nonetheless. It continued to head for Qin Zhong. Ye Futian''s training with Sage Douzhan enabled him to open five of the Seven Star acupoints, allowing him to gather force using Nine Heavenly Attacks and bring the gathered force to bear, imbued with the highest power the rules were able to generate with his spectral being. There was no telling how powerful the end result of all that was. Qin Zhong was probably the only one capable of feeling it firsthand.


    Tremendously dazzling light encompassed Qin Zhong''s body as the Dragon Eagle resisted the incoming force in his stead. The devastating light threw both combatants off. Ye Futian was thrown high into the sky. All the manifestations he was clad in were no more. Qin Zhong, however, stood somewhere below without moving an inch. While terrifying light still circled around his body, it was nowhere near as dazzling.


    Blood began to show at the corner of Qin Zhong''s mouth as he grunted. His organs were severely rattled. The power of his offensive rules was tremendously powerful, yet he was no match for Ye Futian in sheer brute force. With such power coming down straight at him, even if he managed to destroy Ye Futian''s manifestations, the recoil had him severely injured nonetheless.


    "So that was what the number one below the sages in Zhisheng Cliffs was capable of," Ye Futian said casually. Many looked at him and found themselves speechless.

 697 Stand

    Qin Zhong stood rooted to the ground as though the other battles around him had no relation to him. He only knew that he had been defeated.


    He, who was undefeated in Yu State among his generation, had been defeated by Ye Futian today. The number one person under the Sage Plane in Zhisheng Cliffs had been defeated by the Barren State''s most outstanding Noble Plane. Moreover, Ye Futian''s cultivation level was lower than his.


    He raised his head and stared at Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s physical strength and his explosive power in battle, the rule power that he had understood were so strong. All this had caused him to be injured even though he had a deeper understanding of rule power. He would remember this battle.


    There were countless geniuses in the Nine States. Even though many people claimed that he was the person with the strongest potential among the nine sons, he could not be too complacent. Now, in the Barren State, he had been defeated and his Brother Zhan Xiao had also been crushed by Gu Dongliu.


    Then, what about the geniuses from the other seven states? Now, he had not entered the Sage Plane and had not interacted with any of the other states'' experts. However, they should all be prodigies as well.


    The other people also looked at the battle that had stopped and had mixed feelings. The people from the Palace were not here today. If they were, how would they feel? Previously, Qin Zhong had crushed Ximen Hanjiang in the Palace and nobody could stand up to him. Today, Ye Futian, who had been expelled from the Palace, continued his undefeated legacy. Even when he was up against a Son from the Yu State, the person with the most outstanding potential among the nine Sons. Ye Futian defeated him as a Grade Two Noble.


    All the influential figures in the Barren State knew what this battle meant. Huang Xi, Xu Shang, and the others all looked at Ye Futian, the handsome teen standing in the air. He did not have any expression of delight after his victory, because he knew that his battle could not impact the situation. It was merely a pointless battle. To Ye Futian, he had only proven that the Zhisheng Cliffs'' cultivators were not as high and mighty as they had thought. Even the most outstanding person within the generation could be defeated, proving his previous point.


    "Potential to enter the Divine Path, huh," Huang Xi muttered to himself. It was rumored that Qin Zhong had the potential to become a Sage and had the most outstanding potential among the Zhisheng Cliffs'' nine Sons. Then, now that Ye Futian had defeated Qin Zhong as a Grade Two Noble, what did it mean?


    Ye Futian naturally also had the potential to become a Saint. Not only that, but this battle had proven that Ye Futian could battle Sage Plane figures as a Grade Two Noble. Although Qin Zhong was not a Sage, he should not be weaker than someone who just entered the Sage Plane.


    Back then, Bai Luli had risen to fame in one battle. He had the divine teachings, and Sage Wanxiang had predicted that he had the potential to become a Saint. The Holy Zhi Palace had also sacrificed much for Bai Luli, even expelling Ye Futian from the Palace. The battle in the White Cloud City proved their stand even further. However, Ye Futian had now proven that he was not weaker than Bai Luli. Although they were unable to tell who was more outstanding because of the difference in cultivation level, nobody would dare to say with certainty that Bai Luli could defeat Ye Futian.


    Then, was all that the Holy Zhi Palace had done for Bai Luli really worth it?


    The Palace could have had two disciples with the potential to become Saints. Now, they were standing at opposing ends with no way back. Even the Palace was at loggerheads with Ye Futian.


    Even outsiders like Huang Xi and Xu Shang felt pity and regret in their hearts. Although they were not from the Palace, they still had the same lamentation.


    Huang Jiuge, Di Gang, Li Futu, Nan Hao, and many others from the younger generation also had mixed feelings. He had still not been defeated and was getting even stronger. Di Gang could already feel that if he battled with Ye Futian now, it would definitely not be like the battle a year ago. Now, Ye Futian could probably defeat him easily.


    His father Di Kai had high hopes for him to enter the Divine Path. Now, to enable him to enter the Zhisheng Cliffs and be under the care of Kong Yao, his father did not hesitate to go to war against Zhuge Qingfeng. However, there was someone who he could never hope to outdo in the same generation in the Barren State.


    He raised his head and looked at the battlefield in the air. Each time Kong Yao and Yuan Hong clashed in the air, the impact would make people''s hearts shudder. However, Kong Yao''s mindset had been affected, not because of his own battle, but because of an insignificant battle on the ground.


    Qin Zhong, his teacher-nephew who cultivated in the same vein as him was the most outstanding young generation in the vein. Not just that, but Qin Zhong was extremely outstanding and had once been pointed out by a Saint, claiming that he had the potential to become a Saint and would enter the Divine Path in the future. After Qin Zhong entered the Sage Plane, he would have a chance to be taught by that Saint.


    Thus, there were many voices in the Zhisheng Cliffs claiming that Qin Zhong was the most outstanding of the nine Sons. In the future, he would definitely become an influential figure in the Zhisheng Cliffs. To protect Qin Zhong, he, who was ninth on the Sage Ranking, was willing to sacrifice much.


    This was the allure of the Saint Plane. Even a descendant with the potential to become a Saint was worth his elders protecting him like this. This was also a type of legacy. So, even though the battle between Qin Zhong and Ye Futian had no influence on the overall situation and could even be claimed as insignificant, Kong Yao''s mindset had been affected. He had a doubtful thought, but he didn''t know whether he was doubting: himself or Qin Zhong.


    In the Barren State, Qin Zhong, who was protected by his vein, had been defeated by a Grade Two Noble.


    At that moment, rod shadows filled the skies and crushed downwards. Kong Yao''s mindset had been affected because of Qin Zhong''s defeat, adding on to the fact that he had been unable to obtain a decisive victory, his movements slowed for a brief moment. When he raised his hand, Yuan Hong''s Polearm of Divine Destruction had already struck down. With a deafening sound, the divine shadow was shattered and Kong Yao was slammed to the ground all the way from the skies.


    Even so, he was still not injured. Yuan Hong''s Saint-level ritual implement was a defensive ritual implement and his attacking ritual implement the Polearm of Divine Destruction was not at the Saint-level. For someone who had reached the limit of the Sage Plane, Yuan Hong would not be able to injure him no matter how strong he was.


    In reality, the first ten in the Sage Ranking had all reached a bottleneck. Although they were unable to break through that restriction, they were unmatched in the Sage Plane. However, he was also unable to defeat Yuan Hong who had a Saint-level defensive ritual implement.


    Similarly, on the other battlefield, although there were many experts on the Barren Sky Ranking who joined forces, Zhuge Qingfeng focused all his efforts on defense. With a Saint-level ritual implement, Yan Wuji and the others could not find a gap in his defenses. No matter what, Zhuge Qingfeng would not clash head-on with them.


    He was naturally clear of the current situation. As long as he and Yuan Hong were not defeated or killed, it was sufficient to deter these people. They did not dare to move rashly, because at their level, as long as they lived, it was too easy for them to massacre the other party''s younger generation. As long as they lived, the other party would not dare to make rash decisions. Especially now that Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian had exhibited their extraordinary potential, they understood it all the more. As long as they were alive, they had hope.


    In the future, Ye Futian would definitely be able to traverse the Divine Path. At that time, no matter how much Zhisheng Cliffs wanted to deal with them, they would have to weigh the consequences.


    With a bellowing roar, Yuan Hong crushed down from the skies, raising the Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hands and swinging it down upon the Nantian House Lord with the Godly Spear of Nantian. The swing contained the wrath of the heavens and the Godly Spear of Nantian raised his spear and swept towards the air. In an instant, countless spear shadows filled the heavens and the golden and silver rays clashed.


    Boom. A deafening sound could be heard as the Godly Spear of Nantian was pummeled to the ground and both his legs sank into the ground. His arms that held his spear trembled lightly. Now, Yuan Hong''s offensive ability was horrifying. How could he stand up to someone who could single-handedly deal with the White Cloud City Lord?


    Yuan Hong did not stay for long and swung the Polearm of Divine Destruction towards others. Immediately, Yan Wuji and the others fell back and turned their gazes towards Kong Yao with resentment. They were already having it tough with Zhuge Qingfeng, but Kong Yao still let another elite battler, Yuan Hong, in. How were they going to continue battling?


    "Yuan Hong''s defensive ritual implement is the same as Zhuge Qingfeng''s, they''re both Saint-level. It can weaken my offense, I can''t damage him," Kong Yao said. He could not break through the defense of a Saint-level ritual implement, so Kong Yao understood that even if they continued battling, he would not be able to take down Yuan Hong alone. The people on the ground would also be hard-pressed to take down Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "Even so, we must continue battling." Yan Wuji''s expression was sharp like a blade that had been removed from its sheath. They were at the point of no return, so they had to bite the bullet and continue. They had previously thought that the battle would be easy. With Kong Yao''s strength, he could crush Yuan Hong and kill him, then deal with Zhuge Qingfeng without any hesitation.


    Kong Yao seemed to have lost the desire that he had before. He looked at Qin Zhong and Zhan Xiao, Zhan Xiao had been injured by Gu Dongliu, and it was only with the help of Zhisheng Cliffs'' archmages that he was not killed by Gu Dongliu on the spot. Qin Zhong continued to stand there quietly, but the impact of his defeat could not be erased. After vomiting blood, Qin Zhong was not at peak condition.


    "All the people here today, do you not have opinions?" Kong Yao looked at the other influential figures in the surroundings. However, they all watched silently. It was not that they didn''t want to become a Saint, but everyone had their own thinking. Especially after seeing Yuan Hong''s Saint-level ritual implement, they knew that if there was no outcome in today''s battle, nobody knew how it would progress in the future.


    Although Zhisheng Cliffs was the holy land in the Yu State and had Saint Plane cultivators, the Saint Plane experts would not come personally to the Barren State. They might not even know about this matter. After all, they were legendary figures. There were so many people cultivating in Zhisheng Cliffs and so many things happening every day. How could they report everything to the Saints? Sending Kong Yao to handle this matter was already taking it very seriously.


    "We should deliberate on Gu Dongliu''s words. Does Zhisheng Cliffs need to investigate the matter? Don''t accuse others carelessly." At that moment, a voice sounded. Kong Yao turned around with a glint in his eye. Not only Kong Yao, but Yan Wuji and the others looked at the person who had spoken with a sharp expression. Now, they were already standing on the Zhisheng Cliffs'' side to deal with Zhuge Qingfeng, there was already no way out.


    Investigate? This person was speaking for Gu Dongliu?


    If the matter was really like Gu Dongliu had said, would Zhisheng Cliffs leave and punish Zhan Xiao? By then, it would be Yuan Hong and Zhuge Qingfeng looking for them for revenge.


    However, the person who had spoken was also an elite figure in the Barren State, the fifth on the Barren Sky Ranking, the Sovereign Family Leader, Huang Xi. Nobody expected that he would say such things. His words had shown his standpoint, evidently, he was on the Crouching Dragon Mountain''s side!

 698 Were They Wrong?

    Countless cold gazes stared at Huang Xi.


    Yan Wuji said coldly, "Huang Xi, are you suspecting the Zhisheng Cliffs of intentionally maligning Gu Dongliu?" He intentionally mentioned the Zhisheng Cliffs, hoping that Huang Xi would step down and not interfere with this matter. Otherwise, they would have trouble.


    "Naturally not. I''ve heard Gu Dongliu''s words, Mister Kong did not personally experience the incident but heard it from a younger generation. Since both Gu Dongliu and Zhan Xiao have different accounts, as a holy land, Zhisheng Cliffs should not completely believe their disciple and came to capture Gu Dongliu without investigating. In that case, it looks as though you are bullying him and is not good for the holy land''s reputation."


    Huang Xi continued, "Gu Dongliu is right, it is extremely simple to investigate this matter. We only need Gu Dongliu to use his Spiritual Will and show any of us what happened. Everything will then be clear. If it was really Gu Dongliu''s doing, I will naturally support Zhisheng Cliffs'' actions and help to take down Gu Dongliu."


    Many people had weird expressions. Although Huang Xi''s words seemed to be impartial and there was nothing off about it, he did not explicitly oppose the Zhisheng Cliffs; that would be foolish. The origin of the matter was the conflict between Zhan Xiao and Gu Dongliu. However, because of their standpoint, nobody wanted to know the truth as it was not important. But for Huang Xi to step out and say these words when the battle had reached a deadlock meant that the situation was different.


    "Although I am long-time rivals with Zhuge Qingfeng, I believe that he is a chivalrous person. If Gu Dongliu''s character is really that despicable, Zhuge Qingfeng, are you able to bring yourself to exterminate him?" Huang Xi looked at Zhuge Qingfeng and asked.


    "If the results of the investigation are like what Zhan Xiao has said, I will definitely not shield Gu Dongliu and I will hand him over. Moreover, I will give my Zhuge Family''s sacred item to the Zhisheng Cliffs as an apology," Zhuge Qingfeng replied. As his voice landed, the surroundings fell silent, but there was a faint oppressive atmosphere.


    "You doubt me?" Zhan Xiao''s expression was grim. He naturally knew what the truth was. Many people looked at him. He was merely the Zhisheng Cliffs'' Son and many of the influential figures on the Barren Sky Ranking did not have to care about him. The Zhisheng Cliffs had nine Sons every generation, but how many of them would become Saints?


    Zhan Xiao''s achievements could catch up to Kong Yao at best. From his battle with Gu Dongliu and the character that he had revealed from this matter, it was unlikely for him to become a Saint.


    "Huang Xi''s words hold reason." At that moment, another voice sounded. The crowd all looked in the distance. The Tingxue House''s Xu Shang had a mysterious smile on his face and his eyes were squinted. The impression he gave people was one that was gentle on the exterior, yet sharp underneath. After all, this fellow was a ruthless killer.


    The ninth on the Barren Sky Ranking, Xu Shang, had also made his stance. Although they did not directly oppose the Zhisheng Cliffs, their stance had already shifted.


    "Are the two of you going to interfere with this matter?" Kong Yao looked at Huang Xi and Xu Shang, asking coldly.


    "No, no..." Xu Shang smiled and shook his head. "I am merely saying, casually, if Brother Kong feels that I am wrong, you can treat it like you didn''t hear it." He was not going to take part in the battle. After all, he had a huge household to take care of. The Zhisheng Cliffs would not have any reservations about what they did in the Barren State. He naturally could not fall out with the Zhisheng Cliffs, but with his position, he could stand out and say a few words.


    "Does Brother Kong feel that what I have spoken wrongly?" Huang Xi smiled and replied, "I am thinking for both parties, if there is an option to solve it peacefully, why is there a need to battle? Zhuge Qingfeng has already said that if Gu Dongliu really did what Zhan Xiao said, he will immediately hand him over. Is that not enough for the Zhisheng Cliffs?"


    After saying so much, it was already clear that if the Zhisheng Cliffs still insisted on continuing. It would be protecting Zhan Xiao despite knowing that he did it. Although many people could feel that Gu Dongliu was telling the truth, hearing it from Huang Xi''s mouth was undoubtedly offending the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    As for Zhan Xiao, he was ignored.


    Huang Xi and Xu Shang would not go to war with Zhisheng Cliffs, but at least they could influence the situation here. The other influential figures from the Barren State would not step in after seeing the two of their stands. If nobody else joined in, Kong Yao would naturally not be able to break this deadlock.


    "I have seen the images that Zhan Xiao has shown me. There is no cause for doubt. If anyone continues to doubt him, it is the same as doubting Zhisheng Cliffs," Kong Yao replied assertively. Huang Xi and Xu Shang''s statements had caused a shift in the situation. Their side''s momentum was weakening. If he was not dominant, he might as well leave the Barren State and return to Yu State.


    "Today, in Xuanwu Tower, I have seen the attitudes of many of you in the Barren State. The Zhuge Family is also an important faction in the Barren State. Since that is so, I will give the Zhuge Family another few days to consider. If they are still unwilling to hand him over, prepare to bear the consequences," Kong Yao said coldly. "Goodbye."


    After saying that, Kong Yao turned around and left. Yan Wuji and the rest had grim expressions. They actually failed today?


    "Withdraw," they commanded, turning around and following Kong Yao. Immediately, many figures left together. The people from the Sword Saint Villa, the Emperor Family, and many other experts left.


    "Brother Kong, if we do not take down the Zhuge Family, we will be in danger," Yan Wuji said with a sullen expression.


    "I know, but all of you have seen what happened today. Are you confident to take them down?" Kong Yao continued, "Since the Zhuge Family wants to continue struggling, let us all prepare for a battle of an even larger scale. Bring all your families'' experts and assault the Crouching Dragon Mountain."


    This time, the younger generation from Zhisheng Cliffs had been present. As such, he had held himself back and not started slaughtering people.


    "Okay." Yan Wuji nodded and replied, "However, we cannot leave Xuanwu City now. We need to watch Crouching Dragon Mountain''s every move, especially Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong."


    "I know," Kong Yao replied. Yan Wuji was probably afraid that Crouching Dragon Mountain would take drastic measures and deal with him as Yuan Hong did to White Cloud City. In the current situation, Yan Wuji probably wanted to exterminate them at all costs.


    "Qin Zhong, Zhan Xiao, the two of you go to the Holy Zhi Palace. There is no need for the two of you to participate in the remaining matters. If the Palace can send its experts, it''s naturally better for us," Kong Yao said. Qin Zhong and Zhan Xiao understood what he meant by that. This time, Kong Yao was truly infuriated and was preparing to go to Crouching Dragon Mountain to slaughter them.


    "We will make arrangements too," Yan Wuji and Di Kai said as well. Everything from now on would be settled in one battle.


    On the other hand, although Zhuge Qingfeng had fought off Kong Yao, he did not feel relief. This time, they had taken the initiative to attack because Gu Dongliu had decisively stepped out of the Zhuge Family. In today''s battle, everyone had fought with reservations. They could naturally feel that Kong Yao''s attitude was getting more dominant. They would have to face even more dangerous battles ahead.


    I am still unable to leave the family out of this. Zhuge Qingfeng sighed internally as he thought. There were some things that he wanted to avoid but was unable to.


    Gu Dongliu stood there silently. He wanted to face all this alone, but Ye Futian and Zhuge Qingfeng had come, unwilling to throw him aside. He naturally felt touched, but at the same time, he was sullen because he had implicated all of them.


    Ye Futian walked over to Huang Xi and Xu Shang, saluting and thanking them, "Thank you, elders."


    "Don''t thank me, I didn''t do anything," Xu Shang shrugged his shoulders and replied. He had casually said a few words, so it was indeed nothing to him.


    "Actually, I do not wish that you be embroiled in this turmoil," Huang Xi looked at Ye Futian and said. Zhisheng Cliffs were determined to achieve their objective in the Barren State and would not step down. Ye Futian''s side was on the weaker end, after all, they were up against the Zhisheng Cliffs. It was not easy for the Barren State to have a Ye Futian. This was a person who defeated the Zhisheng Cliffs'' Qin Zhong, someone who could become a Saint in the future.


    "Neither do I," Ye Futian smiled and replied, but that was his Third Brother. However unwilling he was, he had to be involved. He was only a Noble and unable to do much, but he could not just watch it happen.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian and Huang Xi, overhearing their conversation. He had mixed feelings as Ye Futian had already won the admiration of many of the Barren Sky Ranking''s influential figures. Huang Xi, You Chi, Yuan Hong�� Although he was only a Noble, he was unknowingly affecting the entire situation in the Barren State. If not for the Palace''s mistake, in a few year''s time, when Ye Futian reached the pinnacle of the Sage Plane, he had the qualifications to represent the Barren State and become the next owner of the Palace. However, the Barren State already had Bai Luli before him, and the Palace had chosen Bai Luli.


    ��...


    News of the battle in Xuanwu City spread throughout every corner of the Barren State. The Sword Saint Villa, Emperor Family, Nantian House, and other factions had started to collect their experts while Kong Yao was still in Xuanwu City. The strife in the Barren State had become even more severe. While Qin Zhong and Zhan Xiao had reached the Holy Zhi Palace, there was nothing else left for them to do.


    The experts in the Palace evidently knew about the battle in Xuanwu City. Many of them were astonished. Even the Holy Zhi Palace''s Palace Lords felt bewildered, especially by one piece of news. Ye Futian had defeated Zhisheng Cliffs'' Qin Zhong as a Grade Two Noble. This piece of news stirred doubt in the hearts of the Palace''s influential figures.


    Back then, Qin Zhong had basked in glory in the Holy Zhi Palace. Ximen Hanjiang could not even withstand a single strike from him, but now, Qin Zhong had been defeated by the expelled disciple of the Palace, Ye Futian. Who could understand how they were feeling?


    In the Sage Palace, Liu Chan stood in front of the palace, looking in the air. Qin Zhong was rumored to have the potential to become a Saint. This was said personally by the Zhisheng Cliffs'' Saint, so it was naturally reliable. However, he had now been defeated by Ye Futian, who was still a Grade Two Noble.


    What about Ye Futian then? He also had the potential to become a Saint.


    The Palace originally had two people with the potential to become Saints, but now Ye Futian had not only been expelled, but he could also be at opposing ends with the Palace and even become mortal enemies with Bai Luli. The two people with the potential to become Saints had emerged from the Palace but were like fire and water.


    Did they regret it?


    Liu Chan had doubts about his decision, was he wrong? However, all this was for the Palace. Why would he be wrong!

 699 Madness

    In the Holy Zhi Palace, not only were the elders moved, but many disciples were also astounded by the results of the battle.


    The first on the Law Rank who had been expelled from the Palace was still a legend even when he was no longer in the Palace. He was unrivaled in his generation in the Barren State, and now, even the number one Noble in the Yu State had been defeated by him.


    In the Sword Palace, in front of an ancient palace, a figure with only one arm sat cross-legged, looking at the ravine in front of him. By sitting here, he could overlook the entire Holy Zhi Palace.


    Behind him, a girl in a red dress strolled towards him and sat down beside him. She asked gently, "What''s the news from them?"


    "They have temporarily driven off Zhisheng Cliffs, but the issue is not over yet. Many major factions are gathering their experts and preparing to siege the Crouching Dragon Mountain," Ye Wuchen replied.


    A worrying expression appeared in Liu Chenyu''s eyes. For a while, there was silence. Although they were worried, they were unable to interfere with the elites'' battles. Even those who were in the lower ranks of the Barren Sky Ranking did not have the right to participate in this unrest.


    "Zhan Xiao and Qin Zhong are now in our Holy Zhi Palace. The Zhisheng Cliffs are not intending to let them continue battling. If anyone can resolve this issue, it can only be the Holy Zhi Palace," Ye Wuchen said slowly. However, he did not have much hope. The Palace''s stand back then in the White Cloud City was already clear enough. It was already a blessing for them to not be dealing with Ye Futian, not to mention help him. However, if the Palace didn''t step in, who could resolve this turmoil?


    The Zhisheng Cliffs would not leave without Gu Dongliu, but Zhuge Qingfeng would not hand him over. Ye Futian would not allow it either, so they would definitely continue fighting.


    "It''ll be fine." Liu Chenyu replied softly. She did not know what to do either. Perhaps, she was just comforting herself.


    Ye Wuchen did not say anything. He also hoped that everything would end.


    It was not easy for them to reach this stage.


    The days passed, but the unrest in the Barren State did not end.


    The Sword Saint Villa, Emperor Family, Nantian House, and many other factions'' experts gathered in Xuanwu City. However, at this time, You Chi suddenly gave an order for the Emperor Family to return to Alchemy City, claiming that Alchemy City''s factions would not participate in the siege of the Zhuge Family. Moreover, he had given the order as the City Lord of Alchemy City and was extremely authoritative.


    This was also You Chi''s first time having such a bossy attitude towards the Emperor Family. Many years ago, the two families'' ancestors had created Alchemy City together. Even if they had their own intentions now, they were still allies on the surface. However, from another perspective, the Alchemy City Lord not allowing the Emperor Family to join forces with Zhisheng Cliffs to siege the Crouching Dragon Mountain was also appropriate.


    When Di Kai heard about the matter, he was furious. However, You Chi''s attitude was determined and he instructed the Emperor Family''s people to tell Di Kai that he was not to participate or he would have to suffer consequences.


    The attitudes of the Barren State''s elites had become more delicate. There were already a few elite figures who had either subtly or directly expressed their support for Crouching Dragon Mountain. They did not jump out and oppose Zhisheng Cliffs as it would be too foolish, but their actions had unknowingly affected the entire situation.


    Everything was changing in the outside world but the Palace remained the same. Zhan Xiao had wanted to persuade the Palace to participate, but Zhuge Qingfeng was also from the Holy Zhi Palace. No matter what, the Palace would not directly participate in the siege of Crouching Dragon Mountain, even if they were unhappy about the marriage.


    Zhan Xiao was also unhappy about this matter and he was annoyed with many of the people in the Barren State. Qin Zhong, on the other hand, stayed in the Palace to cultivate, ignoring all the conflicts that were going on.


    One day, in one of the cultivation spots in the Palace, many disciples had gathered. Zhan Xiao was there as well. Today, the White Cloud City''s second young master had claimed that he wanted to meet him for something. This second young master Bai Ze seemed to be intentionally getting close to him, he had been seeing a lot of him lately.


    He had heard that the White Cloud City''s young City Lord Bai Luli was the most outstanding person in the Barren State. Even Ye Futian was also expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace because of him. It was a pity that he missed out on meeting Bai Luli this time. Bai Luli was not in the Palace and had left to cultivate.


    "Brother Zhan, do you really plan on missing this grand show?" Bai Ze said to Zhan Xiao.


    "This time, the siege of Crouching Dragon Mountain will be done by all the elite archmages. With my cultivation level, I will not be able to influence the situation," Zhan Xiao looked at Bai Ze and said. He was curious about what business Bai Ze had with him.


    "Then, Brother Zhan, how confident are you that they will be able to deal with the Crouching Dragon Mountain this time around?" Bai Ze asked.


    "Who knows?" Zhan Xiao replied. His Uncle-Master Kong Yao was truly enraged now, but the other party had two Saint-level ritual implements with extremely strong defense, so there was still a problem. Moreover, some old fellow from Alchemy City had appeared and was opposing them.


    "If the White Cloud City is willing to participate, there will naturally be no doubt about the outcome. However, your father seems to be afraid," Zhan Xiao looked at Bai Ze and said coldly.


    "I hope that Brother Zhan can forgive me on this matter. Ye Futian used the people in the Bai Clan to threaten us. He is indeed despicable," Bai Ze replied coldly. "Come to think about it, what does Ye Futian have to do with Gu Dongliu snatching Brother Zhan''s holy item? He keeps on participating and causing destruction, threatening the White Cloud City and inviting Yuan Hong to aid him. You Chi''s attitude is likely also because of his influence. Without him, perhaps Brother Zhan could have arrested Gu Dongliu a long time ago."


    A cold glint appeared in Zhan Xiao''s eyes. What Bai Ze had said was really true. If it had not been for Ye Futian, the matter would have been resolved a long time ago. However, Ye Futian really had outstanding potential; even his Brother Qin Zhong had been defeated by him.


    "Ye Futian is a despicable person who will resort to any and all means. If the Zhisheng Cliffs were like him, the matter would have been resolved a long time ago. It is just that Zhisheng Cliffs and Brother Zhan can''t bring themselves to do it," Bai Ze continued.


    "Why do you say so?" Zhan Xiao looked at Bai Ze.


    "I heard that when Ye Futian left the Palace, he brought his family and friends. However, when he came out, only Yuan Hong was with him. The rest of them should still be on Taihang Mountain. Now, Taihang Mountain''s strength is all congregated on Crouching Dragon Mountain. If the others all imitated what Ye Futian did, wouldn''t this matter be solved easily?" Bai Ze tried to sound casual while saying it. Zhan Xiao smiled and looked at Bai Ze. This fellow was indeed despicable. However, his words made sense indeed.


    He did not know how the battle on Crouching Dragon Mountain would turn out. If they returned to Zhisheng Cliffs this time and the truth was uncovered, he would very likely be punished. There needed to be a resolution to this matter.


    "Desperate times call for desperate measures," Zhan Xiao smiled and continued. "Bai Ze, you''ve reminded me, when dealing with despicable people like Ye Futian, there is no need to abide by the rules."


    "Brother Zhan dares to take the chance, that is worthy of respect." Bai Ze put his fists together and saluted. "Since that''s the case, I''ll be leaving first."


    "Okay." Zhan Xiao nodded. As Bai Ze left, Zhan Xiao looked at his figure and a menacing smile appeared on his face and he said, "Let''s go."


    Not long after, a piece of news spread from the Palace. The Zhisheng Cliffs'' Zhan Xiao had brought a group of people and left the Holy Zhi Palace.


    In the Sword Palace, at Ye Wuchen''s cultivation spot, Xu Que and Zui Qianchou had arrived.


    Ye Wuchen saw the two of them and asked, "What''s up?"


    "The Palace''s disciples are spreading some news. Bai Ze intentionally leaked news of Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and the rest''s whereabouts to Zhan Xiao. Now, Zhan Xiao has left the Palace," Xu Que said.


    Ye Wuchen''s expression suddenly became sharp and there was a momentous surge of killing intent. Bai Ze.


    "Can we inform Ye Futian?" Ye Wuchen asked.


    "The Tingxue House has a special transmission method. I will send the news as quickly as possible to Crouching Dragon Mountain. I will definitely be faster than Zhan Xiao," Xu Que said. Ye Wuchen nodded and turned around. He looked at the base of the Palace and clenched his fists, asking coldly, "Is Bai Ze still in the Palace?"


    "Rumor has it that he is cultivating in the Valley of Knowledge," Xu Que replied.


    The Valley of Knowledge was a secret zone for cultivation in the Palace. It could hone one''s Spiritual Will energies.


    Ye Wuchen''s gaze looked forward, Sword Will emitting from his eyes. He then leaped forward and Sword Will turned into a sword and landed at his feet. It then tore through the air towards the direction of the Valley of Knowledge.


    Xu Que and Zui Qianchou looked at each other, then moved in a flash towards the direction that Ye Wuchen had left in.


    In the Valley of Knowledge, there was an extremely mysterious aura that could affect one''s Spiritual Will. As such, very little people chose to cultivate there and even fewer could reach the depths of the Valley of Knowledge.


    Presently, Bai Ze was cultivating there.


    However, at that moment, he had a premonition and turned around. He saw a figure riding a sword towards him, landing in the area in front of him.


    "Ye Wuchen." Bai Ze saw the person who had come, and a mocking expression appeared on his face. He must have come because of that issue. It was no secret and he had not intentionally concealed or prevented the news from spreading, because he did not care at all. So what if Ye Futian knew? Perhaps, it might be even more interesting that way. Would he stay on Crouching Dragon Mountain or go to Taihang Mountain?


    Sword Will emanated from Ye Wuchen''s body with surging killing intent. As he felt the aura, Bai Ze''s mocking aura became even more imminent. He coldly said, "Ye Wuchen, it can''t be that you want to duel?" Although he had been dominated by Ye Futian in the Palace, he was not scared of Ye Wuchen.


    Tch... A horrifying dark Sword Qi rushed straight towards Bai Ze. In an instant, the Sword Qi in the air erupted and Ye Wuchen''s body moved like a flash of lightning towards Bai Ze. A glint appeared in Bai Ze''s eyes, he had not expected that Ye Wuchen would be so decisive and strike without warning. He fired his Eye of Devastation and immediately, the area turned gray, a horrifying Spiritual Will enveloping everything and the Sword Qi brushing past him.


    In the gray dimension, he saw Ye Wuchen''s sword slash. It was a domineering dark sword, reminiscent of the Sword Demon''s Demon Sword technique. It could cause a sword''s power to increase multiple-fold for a short while.


    "Die!" Bai Ze roared and released his Life Spirit, pushing the power of his Eye of Devastation to its limit and crushing the sword current. However, Ye Wuchen''s sword appeared to rush forward in waves and was never-ending.


    "You''re courting death." As Bai Ze saw Ye Wuchen getting closer to him, a giant gray hand appeared in the gray dimension and grabbed Ye Wuchen, attempting to crush his body in an instant.


    As the giant gray hand swooped towards Ye Wuchen, the killing intent in Bai Ze''s eyes was terrifying. However, at that moment, a silver light burst forth from Ye Wuchen''s brow chakra and pierced forward like a silver sword torrent, destroying everything.


    At that moment, an extremely intriguing feeling appeared in Bai Ze''s head. He found it hard to estimate his distance from the sword, as though everything he saw was an illusion.


    Boom. An extremely dominant Spiritual Will storm was used to resist the force. Bai Ze''s pupils turned into horrifying torrents, crushing all the swords that slashed towards him. However, at that moment, Ye Wuchen''s strength increased rapidly and countless Sword Qi rushed towards the Spiritual Will. At that moment, he seemed to have used up every ounce of his strength to increase the killing ability of his swords, causing a mirage to appear in Bai Ze''s head. He had sunk into the sword torrent and was unable to tell the difference between reality and illusion. He could only see a destructive sword torrent crushing everything and rushing towards him. His Eye of Devastation could see a pair of Demon Sword eyes.


    "Die!" Bai Ze roared and his spell scrolls glowed. The terrifying lightning energy pierced through everything and headed straight for Ye Wuchen.


    Next, a destructive Sword Qi penetrated his brain and rampaged wildly. Bai Ze''s expression became twisted and he raised his hand and pressed it down in Ye Wuchen''s direction. However, at that moment, another figure flashed by and Bai Ze felt a cold sensation on his neck; a sword had pierced his throat!

 700 Rift at the Holy Zhi Palace

    Ye Wuchen was thrown off and he spewed blood from his mouth. However, his expression remained cold as he looked at the sword at Bai Ze''s throat.


    Zui Qianchou was seen standing right behind Bai Ze.


    Bai Ze extended his hands while shaking all over, holding his throat where blood kept oozing out. His eyes were wide open and almost popping out as he glared at the figure before him. The bloodshot eyes were filled with vile hatred and frustration.


    Am I going to die just like this? His body trembled from fear of death. He had never even once thought that Ye Wuchen and the others actually dared kill him within the Holy Zhi Palace. Have they gone insane? He was the second son of White Cloud City, a gifted proud son and a student of the Holy Zhi Palace. How dare they actually kill me? This is vexing.


    His eyes went blood-red and his aura dropped sharply. There were tears streaking down from his eyes. Fear, hate, regret, and many other emotions overwhelmed him. He had never thought himself to be one who would die at such a young age. His future should have been one filled with glory.


    He had been proud and arrogant as he blazed his way on the Holy Road. But everything changed when he met Ye Futian. His life was completely thrown off-course since from that very day. He ended up dead in the Holy Zhi Palace, by the hands of two people he had despised.


    He recalled the scene when he first came to face Ye Futian. He ignored Ye Futian right in front of him and intended to rope Hua Jieyu into the Holy Sage Pavilion to train with him. He despised Ye Futian and the feud between them started there.


    At the moment, everything was about to end. The cold sword rendered his blood cold as well. Xu Que glanced behind him and with a flash, he dropped his finger down. Sword aura filled the place there were and struck Bai Ze''s body, which was then dissolved into nothing soon after, disappearing alongside his sword flash.


    "What are you two standing there for?" Xu Que said, knowing that they had gotten themselves in big trouble.


    Zui Qianchou''s eyes turned to Ye Wuchen, who then turned around and said, "Why are you two getting involved in this? This is my problem."


    Zui Qianchou and Xu Que walked up to him. They knew that even if Zui Qianchou hadn''t done what he did, Bai Ze would have died all the same. However, the last move that Bai Ze pulled would have caused Ye Wuchen severe injuries, as such, Zui Qianchou dealt the fatal blow.


    "Don''t think about it too much. Since we have actually fought, the Holy Zhi Palace will definitely look into it, and it looks we won''t be able to hide the incident for long. What we need to do right now is get the hell out of here." Zui Qianchou''s voice did not sound like his usual playful, nonchalant self. They had just killed a student of the Holy Sage Pavilion, after all. Worse still, it was the son of the City Lord of White Cloud City and Bai Luli''s brother.


    Their violation of the rule forbidding the students of the Holy Zhi Palace killing each other was more than enough to convict them. Their predicament was made worse by the fact that the Holy Sage Pavilion treasured Bai Luli, and they would definitely not sit by knowing that his brother was killed. They needed to do something about it one way or another.


    They found someone standing before them as soon as they walked out of Valley of Knowledge, a figure exuding imposing bearing just standing around.


    Ye Wuchen and the other two were practically frozen seeing the figure before them.


    Ye Wuchen then walked up firmly and said to the figure respectfully, "Teacher, I was the one responsible for the matter. It had nothing to do with them."


    The Sword Demon glared at the three of them with sharp expression. These three b*stards have actually killed Bai Ze. Are they insane or what?


    "What is this matter are you talking about?"


    Ye Wuchen was stunned. He went on to stare at the Sword Demon with a dumbfounded expression.


    "You all have reached a certain plane in your training and now it is time for you to go out to experience the world," the Sword Demon said and turned around. "This is farewell." He disappeared as soon as he finished talking.


    Ye Wuchen bowed to the figure who just left before turning to do the same with Xu Que and Zui Qianchou. Xu Que then said, "Just get out of here."


    The three of them headed for Sword Palace like bolts of lightning, bringing Liu Chenyu with them before leaving the Holy Zhi Palace as fast as they could.


    After a while, someone found Bai Ze''s Spirit Jade Scroll broken. That could only have meant one thing��Bai Ze had perished.


    The people of Holy Sage Pavilion went to inform the Assistant Palace Lord, Liu Chan at once of the news. The Holy Sage Pavilion was shaken to its core. Bai Ze had perished within the boundaries of the Holy Zhi Palace. Nothing so dire had happened within the sacred ground for many, many years.


    Liu Chan''s expression was ashen. Everyone around him busied themselves with one matter or another. Sage Tianxing made it there as well. Bai Ze was a student of the Holy Zhi Palace, Bai Gu''s son, and Bai Luli''s brother. He had very deep ties with the Holy Zhi Palace, and he was found dead within the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Find out who did this as soon as possible," Liu Chan said coldly.


    "We are investigating the matter," Sage Tianxing responded. The entire Holy Zhi Palace was shaken by the incident. Nobody thought Bai Ze would die.


    Someone came before Sage Tianxing and Liu Chan and reported after some time, "Bai Ze had deliberately guided Zhan Xiao to Taihang Mountain and the case was feverishly discussed among the students. Many were in the opinion that Bai Ze''s action was despicable. Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and the rest of them were on Taihang Mountain.


    "And?" Sage Tianxing asked.


    "Some saw Ye Wuchen, Zui Qianchoud, and Xu Que leaving the Sword Palace, and they were nowhere to be found after. Even Liu Chenyu disappeared from the Sword Palace. According to the guards, they have been gone from Holy Zhi Palace for quite a while," the person elaborated.


    Both Liu Chan and Sage Tianxing wore dire expressions. From what they heard, the three of them were definitely involved in this. It was not known who actually did that for now, but given that all three of them were students of the Sword Palace and shared amicable relations, the other two would have gotten involved somehow.


    "Get someone after them, and go fetch me the Sword Demon," Liu Chan said.


    The people before them nodded and a group of mighty ones was dispatched outside the Holy Zhi Palace. The Sword Demon was too, summoned to the Holy Sage Pavilion shortly after.


    "Sword Demon, Ye Wuchen and the other two were students of the Sword Palace. What do you think of this?" Liu Chan asked.


    "If something like that were to happen to my friend, I would have chosen to kill Bai Ze too. He wasn''t fit to call himself a student of the Holy Zhi Palace," the Sword Demon looked at Liu Chan and said. Everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace knew of the feud between Bai Ze and Ye Futian. Bai Ze was being put under Ye Futian''s shadow all the time. He should have simply gone for Ye Futian on his own if he hated Ye Futian that much. However, he went to guide Zhan Xiao of Zhisheng Cliffs to Taihang Mountain instead. It was an act that damaged the reputation of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Liu Chan stared at the Sword Demon with a somewhat bitter expression. While there was no doubt that what Bai Ze did was despicable, Ye Wuchen and the rest should not have killed him still.


    "Killing one''s fellow student within the vicinity of the Holy Zhi Palace is the most dire of crimes one can commit within the Holy Zhi Palace." Liu Chan looked at the Sword Demon and said, "If the culprit behind this is found, the Holy Zhi Palace will make sure he is punished appropriately."


    The Sword Demon looked at Liu Chan with a calm expression. There was no doubt that he knew it would have turned out as such. It was the very reason why he chose to let them go instead of stopping them. He knew very well that none of them would come out of this alive.


    Both sets of eyes remained staring at each other and silence filled the air for a while, before the Sword Demon broke the silence and said, "The Tingxue House has already made their stance clear. If Xu Que is found to be involved in this incident, the stance of Tingxue House will lean towards him. Furthermore, You Chi from Alchemy City also made his stance clear. The incident rocked the entire Barren State, and despite not being a clear state of things, there are now two factions formed on this. Haven''t you considered why this has happened?"


    "And why indeed?" Liu Chan''s expression turned immensely sharp as he stared at the Sword Demon.


    The Sword Demon did not hold back at all. He stared at Liu Chan and said, "The Holy Zhi Palace wanted a saint in the Barren State, but there were many who did not actually care whether Barren State had a saint or not, and some did not even want to see it happen. It was because we at the Holy Zhi Palace poured all our hopes into Bai Luli and were willing to do anything for him. Many in the Barren State may have thought that even if a saint were to emerge, it would be a saint of the Holy Zhi Palace, a saint of White Cloud City, instead of a saint of the Barren State. As such, they chose another whom they saw to possess the same hope of achieving such an endeavor."


    It might have been a deliberate movement or just some momentum formed due to the times. However, there was no denying the movement formed. It was powerful enough to shake even Kong Yao, White Cloud City, and many other forces.


    "What are you trying to say?" Liu Chan felt troubled inside. So even the Lord of Sword Palace began to falter in his beliefs then?


    "The Holy Zhi Palace wanted to create a saint for the Barren State, but the Barren State as a whole disagreed with that. The people of the Barren State have their own ideas about things. If the case continues to worsen further, it is anyone''s guess what the consequence will be. Wanxiang predicted that the Holy Zhi Palace would be caught in a huge ordeal. But where did said ordeal come from?" The Sword Demon sighed and continued, "Maybe if the Holy Zhi Palace had been more careful with the case between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue, and gone to listen to opinions of more people, things would have turned differently." The Sword Demon then turned around and left.


    Liu Chan and Sage Tianxing watched Sword Demon walk away and thought, out of the six, some among them now doubted the Holy Zhi Palace''s previous decision. What was more fearsome than external enemies, was a rift within one''s own ranks. The divergence in ideology was usually the most terrifying of all such internal rifts. People at their level would often be adamant in carrying out their own ideologies.


    The will of the Holy Zhi Palace was no longer one.


    Back then when Bail Luli was to be engaged to Zhuge Mingyue, no one cared what the nobles of the younger generations within the Holy Zhi Palace thought. Nobody had anticipated that it was those nobles back then from the Holy Zhi Palace who had come to be instrumental in steering the way things would go in the Barren State.


    ��


    Someone who claimed to be from Tingxue House came to look for Ye Futian at Crouching Mountain Dragon. Ye Futian saw the one who came and they left a message: Zhan Xiao was heading for Taihang Mountain with his people. Ye Futian''s expression changed drastically hearing the news. Cold murderous intent was seen his star-like eyes.


    With the war at hand and Crouching Dragon Mountain being surrounded by mighty ones, Zhan Xiao had actually brought his men to Taihang Mountain. The very reason he had Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, Loulan Xue and the others stay at Taihang Mountain was because things were too dangerous at Crouching Dragon Mountain. However, they now found that Taihang Mountain was caught in a similar predicament instead.


    Both Taihang Mountain and Crouching Dragon Mountain were in trouble. Danger lied everywhere and Ye Futian had a hard time making decisions. If he had Yuan Hong and the ones from Taihang Mountain pulled from Crouching Dragon Mountain, there was no doubt that Crouching Dragon Mountain''s days would be numbered. It was not something he wanted to see. But, if he did not call on Yuan Hong, what could he do about the trouble that was to come to Taihang Mountain?

 701 Above Taihang Mountain

    In the Moon Tower of Crouching Dragon Mountain, Gu Dongliu came beside Ye Futian and said, "Little Brother, I''ll go to Taihang Mountain in your place."


    All that started with him. With Zhan Xiao heading to Taihang Mountain, he deemed it compulsory for him to be the one to end it. As he knew Zhisheng Cliffs and Zhan Xiao would not simply let things go, there was then a need for him to end things.


    During the prior battle, he had readied himself to end things once and for all. However, things did not turn out as he wanted it to be.


    "I''m concerned for Jieyu and the rest over there. I need to go there myself," Ye Futian said. With Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Loulan, Qingxuan, and the others at Taihang Mountain, he would not be able to forgive himself should anything happen to any of them.


    "Futian." A figure was seen approaching him. It was Zhuge Qingfeng.


    Ye Futian looked at him as Zhuge Qingfeg said, "Word from the Holy Zhi Palace said that it was Bai Ze who urged Zhan Xiao to head for Taihang Mountain. Bai Ze was killed in the Holy Zhi Palace, and the one who killed him was most probably Ye Wuchen, Zui Qianchou, and Xu Que. All three of them have fled the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Bai Ze." Ye Futian''s expression was cold as ice when he uttered the name. However, his eyes were filled with intense worry when Wuchen and the rest came to mind. It was one trouble following another indeed, and Ye Wuchen was embroiled in this incident because of him. It had never been Ye Futian''s intention for things to turn out this way as he had only wanted for Wuchen to practice his art in peace in the Holy Zhi Palace. However, it seemed that there was no way for anyone close to him to stay out of this.


    "Bring Yuan Hong with you," Zhuge Qingfeng said.


    "Can''t do." Ye Futian refused without hesitation. "I got you into this, Uncle. You have put your life on the line for me and Third Brother, and you even got the entire family in danger. If I were to have Yuan Hong go to Taihang Mountain with me, Crouching Dragon Mountain would be finished. Furthermore, even if Crouching Dragon Mountain got destroyed, the ones from Zhisheng Cliffs wouldn''t let me walk free still. This is just suicide."


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian. Things were in a dire state now and there was no time to wait around.


    "Uncle, just blaze your way out of the mountain with Grandpa Yuan right now. There''s no need to wait for them to come up the mountain and bring the war to your doorstep. Only then would I be able to leave, as they are watching every move on Crouching Mountain Dragon," Ye Futian said.


    Zhuge Qingfeng''s eyes sparkled. Is he trying to start the war prematurely?


    "I''ll get you there." A voice was heard from somewhere. Zhuge Qingfeng, Ye Futian and the rest present were stunned for a bit, before turning their attention to the figure approaching them.


    The House Master of Tingxue House, Xu Shang, who ranked ninth on Barren Sky Ranking.


    Ye Futian looked up at Xu Shang and said, "Well then, thank you in advance." Ye Futian was, of course, feeling anxious and he had also hoped to be able to bring Yuan Hong with him. However, it was not something feasible at all, as it would have brought about the doom of both Crouching Dragon Mountain and Taihang Mountain. Since Xu Shang offered his help, Ye Futian felt it unnecessary to beat around the bush. He had only needed to remember that he owed Xu Shang a favor.


    "I''m not alone in Barren State, and I can''t just go about fighting Zhisheng Cliffs head on," Xu Shang said.


    "There is no need for more words. I understand." Ye Futian nodded. Zhisheng Cliffs had saints and Xu Shang had no reason to get himself embroiled in this and make himself an enemy of Zhisheng Cliffs. It was not a good thing for Tingxue House to be involved in, and he, of course, had his reservations.


    "Better get moving then," Xu Shang said.


    "Indeed," Ye Futian said.


    "Yuan Hong, let''s get going then," Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Yuan Hong and said.


    "Right." Yuan Hong nodded. He felt concerned about Taihang Mountain as well.


    "Let''s go." Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong moved at the same time, going down Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    Mighty ones gathered in Xuanwu City in hordes not far away from Crouching Dragon Mountain. Many figures from top forces were there and they felt a frightening pressure raining down on them. Zhuge Qingfeng, Yuan Hong, and many mighty ones from both Taihang Mountain and the Zhuge family appeared. Even the sages of the Zhuge family were getting involved in the war now. They knew what things were like right there and then. If Zhuge Qingfeng lost and got killed, that would be the end of the Zhuge family. While they might have been very irked about what the Zhuge family did, they knew they had to come out and fight.


    "You all have death wishes, I see," Kong Yao said as he saw them appear. His terrifying aura increased and he took to the air with a leap. The last battle had him feeling very angry, and this time he came determined to do one thing��to kill.


    Mighty ones from The Sacred Fire Sect, Sword Saint Villa, and the Nantian House took to the air at the same time, prepared to get the slaughter started. They had no way out of this. It was either killing off the Zhuge family or having their respective clans and forces get into further trouble.


    Di Kai was there too but he hesitated. You Chi had warned him not to get involved with the war or there would be consequences to pay. You Chi had never been so stern and forceful with anything. He had no idea what would have happened to him if You Chi were to find him being a part of the war.


    The sky was literally filled with people and terrifying aura permeated the air. Countless people in Xuanwu City turned their eyes at the battlefield and felt their hearts jumping out of their chests. The frightening storm had finally made it to their doorstep. That was very probably the final showdown and it would be a very bloody one.


    ��


    The storm in the Barren State was in full force as if to serve as a prelude to bigger troubles to come.


    Countless eyes stared at Xuanwu City and hardly anyone was paying any attention to Taihang Mountain. However, at the very same time, there were figures heading to Taihang Mountain in another corner of Barren State. The one taking the lead was imposing and he was practically clad in murderous intent.


    It was none other than Bai Gu, the City Lord of White Cloud City. He was the first to know that Bai Ze died, as he was Bai Ze''s birth father and Bai Ze had a Spirit Jade Scroll in his ancestral home. He found it totally unbelievable when he first found his son dead.


    How could my son die training in the Holy Zhi Palace? How is that possible? Who killed him?


    While his second son was nowhere near as exceptional as his brother, Bai Luli, and himself had little hope for Bai Ze to achieve much. But Bai Ze was still the son of the City Lord of White Cloud City. His son had been killed by someone.


    He went to the Holy Zhi Palace as soon as he found out that his son died and found the one who killed him was probably Ye Wuchen. There was no telling if Xu Que and Zui Qianchou were a part of this. All of them fled from the Holy Zhi Palace and were fugitives now.


    The City Lord did not go after Ye Wuchen and the rest of the gang when he heard further news about the incident. He did not even go to Xuanwu City. His goal was Taihang Mountain. Knowing that his son died because of the incident with Taihang Mountain, there was only one thing left to be done��end Taihang Mountain with his very own hands. If Yuan Hong had not interfered with things back then, things would have turned out differently. Zhisheng Cliffs would have taken Gu Dongliu away and Bai Ze would not have died. He needed to have Taihang Mountain pay for this.


    Taihang Mountain needed to bear the brunt of his wrath. Yuan Hong, Ye Futian, and all the others needed to pay for what they had done.


    Bai Ze''s death had led Bai Gu throwing the composure and bearing of the one who ranked fourth on Barren Sky Ranking out of the window. There was only one thing in his mind right there and then��kill.


    He would have first ended Taihang Mountain before going to bury Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    Everyone needed to die to pay for his son''s death.


    ��


    Time passed and it was evening. The blood-red evening sun at the sky of Taihang Mountain seemed to be some sort of omen, and a lonely one at that.


    Hua Jieyu made it a habit to stand at the edge of the cliff, looking far away at the highest peak of Taihang Mountain every day. She did not go to Crouching Dragon Mountain as she knew Ye Futian was concerned about getting her involved, and as such, he left her out of it. However, she deemed it impossible for her to live on if anything were to happen to Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    Despite having such sentiments, she stayed behind in Taihang Mountain per Ye Futian''s wishes instead of going to Crouching Mountain Dragon. She did not mind standing at the cliff looking far away, waiting for his safe return at all, but she nonetheless had to keep suppressing her urge to go to him, just so that she would not be causing him further worry.


    Under the light of the evening sun, a group of people was seen walking up Taihang Mountain. A sparkle of concern was seen in Hua Jieyu''s eyes before many golden great apes took to the air and began fighting in the sky.


    It was apparent that Ye Futian was not among the ones who came.


    The airborne clash above Taihang Mountain alerted the demonic beasts standing guard. The mountains shook as one golden silhouette after another leaped into the air to join the fray.


    Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan came to Hua Jieyu''s side. Yu Sheng''s cold eyes were looking far off.


    Zhan Xiao was leading a group of mighty ones coming up the mountain. While the group was not the best Zhisheng Cliffs had to offer, there were still two sages in their ranks. They were originally tasked to protect Zhan Xiao and Qin Zhong, but they were relegated to the expedition to Taihang Mountain at the moment.


    There were many demonic beasts guarding Taihang Mountain, but the top-notch ones had all gone to fight the battle in Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    "They are nothing but a bunch of animals. Kill them all," Zhan Xiao said coldly as he walked forward. There were two killer god-like beings before him, with one of them holding a sword and emanating incredibly terrifying rules of the sword. It seemed to be infused with rules of lightning as well. One went to slash a golden great ape coming at it, which surprisingly resulted in its huge body being bisected in one go. Terrifying screams were heard in the air. The other one was just as terrifying. They killed their way up and many golden great apes fell, their blood staining Taihang Mountain.


    The blood red son seemed to be mirroring the bloody scene below, which felt rather unsettling and sad. There were simply no apes capable of stopping the advance of Zhan Xiao and his group as they killed their way up the mountain.


    The group continued killing their way up to the main mountain of Taihang Mountain. Zhan Xiao was able to see Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and the rest of the group. A terrifying smirk was seen in his eyes. Ye Futian had foiled his schemes more times than he could count, and he was determined to have him pay the dearest price there was to pay. He was about to make Ye Futian suffer.


    "You all, retreat." Several golden great apes appeared beside Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and the rest of them. Two incredibly huge golden great apes rushed in Zhan Xiao''s direction to kill him, leaving several others to ensure Yu Sheng and the rest of his group''s escape.


    "Sister-in-law, let''s go," Yu Sheng said to Hua Jieyu. She felt incredibly awful seeing one ape after another fall, but she still turned around adamantly and had the apes cover her escape.


    "You want to run?" Zhan Xiao''s expression was ice-cold. "Intercept them." They increased their speed going up the mountain until the two incredibly huge golden great apes descended, wielding their staffs and lashing out with incredible overwhelming attacks.


    A straight flash of the sword streaked through the air, cutting up the shadows of the staffs. A thunderous rumble was soon heard. That Zhisheng Cliffs'' mighty one had finally met their match.


    "We will hold them off. Please continue your pursuit." The mighty one from Zhisheng Cliffs told Zhan Xiao, who responded with a nod. "Good work." He did not get himself entangled with the battle right there and kept advancing instead. The two golden great apes intended to stop him, but they, in turn, were stopped by others.


    "You are not getting away," Zhan Xiao said coldly as he looked at them escape.


    The group caught up to Hua Jieyu and the rest of them soon, as the golden great apes were not known for their speed.


    "Get them," Zhan Xiao ordered. The mighty ones attacked and the golden great apes who were escorting Hua Jieyu and the rest fought. But, Zhan Xiao took two others beside him and kept going forward, as if he was enjoying toying with Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and the rest of them.


    Terrifying lights shot to the skies in two different directions not far away from Taihang Mountain, moving at a great speed.


    "Senior, can you go any faster?" Ye Futian asked while standing on Xu Shang''s sword.


    Ye Futian was very worried, but Taihang Mountain was within sight.


    Jieyu, Yu Sheng, stay safe.


    "Who is it?" Xu Shang''s eyes turned in another direction far away. A powerful aura was sensed encroaching the space they were in. Xu Shang unleashed terrifying sword will and cut up the encroaching aura. His expression was cold as he stared far away, and he soon caught sight of the City Lord of White Cloud City.

 702 Killing Inten

    "Xu Shang." The City Lord of White Cloud City''s eyes shone with cold light seeing Xu Shang around. According to the Holy Zhi Palace, Xu Shang''s son, Xu Que, was among the ones who fled the Holy Zhi Palace. As such, Xu Que would have possibly been one of those who assassinated Bai Ze.


    Bai Gu never expected to find Xu Shang on Taihang Mountain. He determined the day to be the one where he would bury the one who ranked ninth on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    The Eye of Devastation was unleashed and a pair of terrifying eyes appeared in the sky, covering the entire space they were in. A wisp of sword aura warped around the bodies of Ye Futian and everyone there, resounding with metallic noises as it spirited all of them away. Xu Shang took one step forward, and that one step filled the air with a killer aura, permeating every nook and cranny it could find. Bai Gu''s eyes turned serious. Despite being ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, he deemed it absolutely unwise to underestimate Xu Shang, who ranked ninth.


    Of the four major swordsmen in the Barren State, Xu Shang ranked first.


    It was for a very simple reason. That reason was his art of the killing sword. Anyone who dared underestimate Xu Shang would pay the price with their life. Any chance he managed to cling to could turn into a chance of landing the killing blow.


    At the very instant, Bai Gu felt as if he was being put under lockdown by the boundless killing aura in the air. The killing aura spread everywhere, and even the Eye of Devastation had problems controlling and dispelling the aura. He saw flashes of grey mirages as if he was being surrounded by Xu Shang''s shadows.


    "Go kill the others," Bai Gu ordered the ones he took with him, yet there was hardly anyone who moved. In actuality, the pressure that they were being put under was way higher than the one on Bai Gu. The killing aura locked them where they stood as if to say that they would have been torn to shreds and die a horrible death if they dared to move a muscle.


    Bai Gu''s expression went extremely cold at the scene. He never expected the men he brought to be hindered by what Xu Shang was doing.


    Bai Gu took one step forward, sending a frightening grey hand at Xu Shang. Xu Shang flashed about, appearing in yet another corner when one of his mirages was destroyed. His spiritual will was utterly incapable of locking Xu Shang in place.


    Soon, Bai Gu felt as if Xu Shang''s body had completely melded with the boundless killing aura around him. He was unable to sense any living aura in the mirages flashing about, giving off the illusion that Xu Shang had simply vanished into thin air. He knew, however, that it was where the truly terrifying part of Xu Shang lied. The swordsman felt as if he was nowhere, yet he was actually everywhere.


    Xu Shang, House Master of Tingxue House was the king of killers in the Barren State. Even those who ranked higher than Xu Shang on the Barren Sky Ranking deemed it necessary to give it their all when fighting Xu Shang, or they would have definitely ended up dead. Xu Shang was one such extremely dangerous figure.


    The fact was, however, other than Bai Luli who was made one of the top ten due to his potential for sainthood, all the other nine were dangerous figures in one way or another.


    "Beware!" the City Lord of White Cloud City shouted. He felt as if a black sword current appeared before one of the mighty ones from White Cloud City behind him. The blade was almost formless, making it seem undetectable. Bai Gu unleashed terrifying spiritual will powers in an attempt to stop the blade from going his way. However, the sword current was capable of tearing spiritual will defenses apart. That mighty one was seen with a frightened expression on his face, feeling as if death itself was near.


    Voop! Their throat was pierced from behind. Sword aura was unleashed as blood burst from the wound. They held onto their throat as they fell into boundless fear. Such was the power of the one ranked ninth on the Barren Sky Ranking; the power of the king of killers.


    Bai Gu burst with an even wilder raging aura, filling the air with his murderous intent. Xu Shang had just killed his men right in front of him, who ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    In yet another corner, Ye Futian moved forward riding on Xu Shang''s sword, zipping through the air. The sword will dropped exponentially, and he knew Xu Shang simply was unable to afford to spare any of his spiritual power to control the sword; he needed to focus on the fight with the City Lord of White Cloud City.


    It was anyone''s guess how many who ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking were caught in that war. Ye Futian felt rather guilty for it. He earnestly hoped Xu Shang would emerge fine from that battle.


    Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian kept moving forward. Gu Dongliu''s eyes turned as sharp as the sharpest sword to be found, seeing the bodies of golden great apes strewn about the mountain. The very reason he had followed Xu Shang and Ye Futian to the battlefield was so that he could end things once and for all with Zhan Xiao.


    Ye Futian clenched his fist and found himself shivering slightly. He prayed earnestly that nothing happened to Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and the rest of them. They followed the aura of battles and moved across Taihang Mountain.


    Somewhere far away from where they were, another appalling battle was taking place. A demonized body stood in the air as demonic might filled the space they were in. The huge armor body was unleashed and the Seven Star acupoints were activated. The being was further clad with another layer of armor. There were three sage level figures standing before him: Zhan Xiao and two other sages. However, the two sages did not have much training. One of them was a lower-level magi while the other was a mid-level magi. All the other mighty ones were being held back by the demonic beasts of Taihang Mountain. Although they were only magi, Yu Sheng simply had no way of stopping them.


    Blood spouted from Yu Sheng''s mouth. Hua Jieyu and Yi Qingxuan stood behind him. Yi Qingxuan was all tears at the moment.


    Zhan Xiao gazed at Yu Sheng and looked incredibly disgusted. He had never expected a noble to dare stand before him, and worse still, a noble whose combat capacity was frightening enough to scare him. However, the fact that Yu Sheng was still a noble remained. Despite being armed with compensation provided by the secret arts of the demonic ways and ritual implements, it was still inadequate to make up for the difference in planes.


    It was as if an ant was trying to shake a tree.


    "If death is what you seek, I''d be happy to oblige," Zhan Xiao said while glaring at Yu Sheng. They never intended to toy with Yu Sheng, yet he rampaged like a devil. Zhan Xiao was forced to admit that if the man before him was allowed to grow, the man would have, in time, became an extremely terrifying figure practicing demonic arts.


    "Kill him and just take the girls," Zhan Xiao said coldly. Ye Futian dared mess with him before and he told Ye Futian that he would make the young man pay.


    A shadow stepped forward and terrifying lightning coursed through its body. Yu Sheng howled and stood in their way. A terrifying halberd was brought to bear like it was wielded by a devil. However, when the lightning fell onto the halberd, Yu Sheng felt his entire body going numb. Despite his overwhelming force, he was rendered utterly helpless when the lightning struck him. It was some special rules of lightning employed by his opponent.


    "Die," that magi figure said coldly as he brought a lightning bird straight for Yu Sheng. That strike sent Yu Sheng flying and then landing hard on the ground, spewing more blood.


    "The ritual implement he has on him allows him to dissolve most of the attack''s power. Just go blast him with sheer power," Zhan Xiao said coldly. Both magi walked up to Yu Sheng, whose eyes looked like they belonged to someone dead. They were nonetheless rather impressed with Yu Sheng. If this guy had managed to become a sage, he would have been very terrifying. But the fact remains, we have to kill him.


    Wild, unruly rule-based attacks were unleashed. Yu Sheng stood where he was without any intention of flinching. Despite the demonic might he packed with him, he was still blasted until he kept spewing blood. His steps faltered and he fell onto the ground, yet he got up once again only for the cycle to repeat itself. However, he remained adamant against retreating.


    "What an idiot," Zhan Xiao said coldly. He ceased paying any more attention to Yu Sheng and had instead walked up to Hua Jieyu and the two other girls. All three of them were very pretty. Ye Futian sure knows how to enjoy himself. I wonder if Ye Futian will come to regret ruining my plans.


    "Ladies, would you be willing to come with me? Or do I need to make you come with me?" Zhan Xiao smirked as he said. Yu Sheng charged at him, but Zhan Xiao simply dismissed him with a heavy attack. Yu Sheng was at the end of his might and there was no way he would have been able to stop Zhan Xiao.


    "Zhan Xiao." A voice shaking the air was heard from afar. Zhan Xiao tensed up right there and then. His eyes turned incredibly sharp as he turned his eyes at the air, seeing two silhouettes coming his way in great speed.


    Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian.


    He glanced around and found that it was just the two of them in the air. He felt rather relieved about that. Good thing for both Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian to show up here right now. No better time to have both of them dead once and for all.


    "Kill them," Zhan Xiao said coldly. The two magi went straight for the two silhouettes in the air.


    Gu Dongliu''s expression went cold as he felt the plane of the two figures coming at him, unleashing his Celestial Shadow-like terrifying spiritual will with his Life Spirit. The two felt as if they were looking at a god within mere moments.


    A bolt of lightning streaked through the air and Gu Dongliu charged at the two in his way.


    Ye Futian kept going downward, coming near Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng was practically covered in blood at the moment. Even his eyes were thoroughly bloodshot.


    "You''re here," Yu Sheng uttered, seeing Ye Futian arrive. His eyes were closed as he fell into a coma. All that tension he had been holding throughout his body was all released. He felt relieved at the very moment Ye Futian showed up.


    Ye Futian carried Yu Sheng''s stout body on his back and walked towards Hua Jieyu. Zhan Xiao did not stop him as he looked on in a toying manner. To him, Ye Futian was as good as dead the moment he showed up. His arrival saved Zhan Xiao a lot of trouble. It was convenient for Zhan Xiao in the sense that he was able to kill both of his enemies at the same time.


    "Sorry for being late," Ye Futian walked towards Hua Jieyu and said to her softly.


    "I''ve been waiting for you," Hua Jieyu said with a smile. Having been through all those hurdles made her considerably calmer than she had once been. Ye Futian was there, and it was all that mattered.


    "Great couple, you two." A chuckle was heard alongside the line, "Too bad, this is your last."


    Ye Futian did not turn around. He said to Yi Qingxuan instead. "Qingxuan, help me look after Yu Sheng."


    "Yeah." Yi Qingxuan nodded in tears.


    Ye Futian turned around and glanced at his Third Brother in the air. Both of the magi had his Third Brother surrounded, but they were too held back by him. As such, he was the only one available to take Zhan Xiao on.


    Zhan Xiao, who was the same level as his Third Brother, upper-level sage, and a Son of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Zhan Xiao looked at Ye Futian and said, "Ye Futian, you are but a noble, yet you overstretched yourself meddling with the affairs of Zhisheng Cliffs. With so many dead because of you now, I wonder, do you feel guilty? Do you feel any regret?"


    "I only have one thought in mind now," Ye Futian said as he glared at Zhan Xiao, "and that is to kill you."


    Zhan Xiao smirked sarcastically at him. Kill me? Zhan Xiao burst out in sarcastic laughter as he glanced at Hua Jieyu and the rest of them. Zhan Xiao then said, "I''m thinking now, after I kill you, should I kill these few pretty girls here as well?"

 703 Birth of Rules

    Ye Futian glared at Zhan Xiao without saying much. It became obvious that only one of them could come out alive from the upcoming battle. As such, there was little else to be said.


    Ye Futian felt as if golden fires were burning within him. His body gradually became encircled with golden light, with a dazzling beam shooting upwards like the essence of holiness. Ye Futian''s personal aura turned increasingly powerful as he unleashed that mystical aura about him. All powers hidden within him seemed to be burning in a frenzy. His bones, muscles, meridians, vessels, his internal organs, and even the Spiritual Qi within his Life Palace burned in a crazed manner. His spiritual will was acting similarly. Basking under sacred lights, all powers seemed to be activated at the very same time and refined to the extreme.


    The aura Ye Futian unleashed was an extremely powerful one since the battle began.


    Boom, boom�� Beams of golden lights pierced through his body. Five of the Seven Star acupoints opened and violent resonance was heard from within. His body seemed to be undergoing changes as the Douzhan form appeared. A shadow of a divine ape stood tall in the air, encompassing Ye Futian within. Terrifying power coursed throughout.


    The smirk on Zhan Xiao''s face disappeared altogether as his eyes sparkled with a tinge of unease. What kind of aura is that? The light that Ye Futian was basking in was frightening, making it seem as if he was some kind of king among gods.


    Despite being only a Grade Two Noble, the aura coursing about him was absolutely that of a sage. As soon as he became able to develop matured power of rules, he was hardly any different from a sage. It was progress made in giant leaps.


    "What kind of secret art is this?" Zhan Xiao glared at Ye Futian with eyes like blades. He had been taken aback by the overwhelming power Yu Sheng demonstrated with his demonic arts before, yet what Ye Futian pulled right there proved even more dazzling.


    According to what he personally knew, even in Yu State, it was not to say that such secret arts allowing one to burn one''s latent potential and achieve a meteoric rise, enhancing one''s power beyond that of one''s own plane did not exist, but it was nonetheless extremely rare and the effects would have never been so overbearing and potent. Being capable of even enhancing one''s power to one plane beyond one''s current plane was already regarded as some insane work of secret arts.


    When Ye Futian went unleashing his full power right there, he was but a Grade Two Noble, yet his aura was enhanced to be that of a sage. How is this even possible?


    Zhan Xiao was not the only one who was surprised. Even the two magi whom Gu Dongliu was fighting sensed the changes in Ye Futian all the same, and they were completely taken aback.


    The pressure Gu Dongliu put on them was immense. Both of them, one lower-level magi while the other was a mid-level magi, were of a higher plane than Gu Dongliu. One of them was even two planes higher than Gu Dongliu. However, both were barely able to hold Gu Dongliu back even working together. When that lower-level magi was caught in a lapse of judgment, their split-second oversight had almost got them severely injured.


    While they were no top-notch geniuses in Zhisheng Cliffs, they were nonetheless cultivators from that sacred ground, as such their talents were by no means weak. Yet this trip of theirs to the Barren State had them reevaluate their knowledge of cultivators in Yu State.


    "The fact that you''re a noble doesn''t change. You may have enhanced the aura of your plane through the use of secret arts, but it hardly matters to me. There''s only one outcome of a bug trying to stop a wheel: death." Zhan Xiao glared at Ye Futian with cold eyes. The aura about his body burst. The ground shook as he took one step forward. A fearsome gravity rules rained from above, making Ye Futian feel as if he was being suppressed by a mountain.


    "You will experience the true power of a sage," Zhan Xiao said coldly. He lashed out with his hand at Ye Futian, and a large spectral hand went on to grab Ye Futian in the sky, smashing the young man down on the ground, attempting to end the fight right there and then.


    Ye Futian activated the full potential of his powers. He punched, and every single punch seemed to be imbued with the force of an emperor, allowing his form to exude even greater powers. That shadow of divine ape struck with a palm attack, his Comet Punches launched falling stars, clashing hard with the palm Zhan Xiao thrown at him.


    The stars exploded as the opposing palm came at him. But the divine ape had boundless lightning coursing about it, and the palm crumbled bit by bit as it hit its intended target. However, Ye Futian''s battle form was completely unscathed.


    "Power of rules." Zhan Xiao glared at Ye Futian''s shadow. It became obvious to him that Ye Futian had developed powers of rules. He would not have defeated Qin Zhong that day otherwise. Even though the rules Ye Futian developed were far from mature, they still possessed great power, being boosted by all manner of abilities.


    Ye Futian was able to sense Zhan Xiao''s power level with that one hit. Despite his current enhanced form, it was still difficult to move Zhan Xiao.


    His spiritual will entered his Life Palace and found the place burning. The World Tree swayed about and Ye Futian felt his senses grew even more powerful as he attacked with Fist of Emperors. The Spiritual Qi around his surroundings became very clear to him as it gushed into his battle form. Thunderous rumble was heard as his battle form turned increasingly huge. His Douzhan battle form seemed to be evolving into a demon god.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and felt himself becoming one with his surroundings. His Life Spirit melded with his battle form and soon, it shone with lights of all elements. No noble would have been able to do anything to harm him at the moment.


    Tremendous will power of rules burst and covered the entire space, swallowing even Zhan Xiao within. Zhan felt a terrifying pressure on him. It was as if his body was bearing the weight of countless stars.


    "The power of rules actually matured." Zhan Xiao glanced at Ye Futian, whose aura was still growing.


    "Sky Freezing." Ye Futian attempted to freeze the space. Zhan Xiao was first dumbfounded but then smirked at him. Noble will can''t be used as rules, after all.


    Doom. Zhan Xiao took to the air with one step on the ground. He extended his hand and slapped at Ye Futian once again. Appalling aura was unleashed and rumble was heard. It was as if mountains had fallen from above, and every one of them seemed to be imbued with freezing rules.


    Starlight coursed throughout the surface of Ye Futian''s body and it seemed to begin to take tangible form. When the mountains fell onto him, the screen of starlight cracked and shattered. However, he was able to tell that the true defenses of rules had taken form.


    Zhan Xiao glanced at Ye Futian with cold eyes, finding it unbelievable that he was unable to kill a noble right there and then. Even if Ye Futian had begun to develop the use of rules, It was still an insult to Zhan Xiao to be unable to end Ye Futian right away.


    A shadow of a thunder god seemed to have appeared behind him, holding a thunder blade in its hand and swung at the space before it. Zhan Xiao was not known to be one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs for nothing. He relied on more than one type of power of rules to get where he was.


    "Cut him," Zhan Xiao uttered coldly. Countless flashes of the thunder god''s blade appeared in the air and slashed downward. The star defenses around Ye Futian were broken right there and then. There was no way he could have defended against attacks using rules of that potency.


    Ye Futian''s senses were unleashed to their limits. His spiritual will melded with the heavens and the earth, controlling the will of the world around him and intending to totally freeze the space they were in. He found himself still unable to do so. The slashes possessed rules of cutting the void, enabling them to break all types of defenses, even those conjured using rules.


    Zhan Xiao took one step forward and dealt a lightning-imbued slash, cutting everything in its path downward.


    Voom. A tower appeared on top of Ye Futian, and it stopped the blade. The tower spun around in the air ringing, emanating a powerful aura of rules.


    "A top class sage ritual implement?" Zhan Xiao glanced at the tower. It was a pity that Ye Futian was the one using it, as he had no way of using its true power.


    The tower was unleashed upon Zhan Xiao''s head. Ye Futian''s spiritual will was cranked to the fullest, controlling the tower''s power. Starlight gushed out from it in a frenzy. At the same time, the divine ape conjured a staff and began gathering force.


    "Ritual implement eh? You''re not the only one with something like that." Zhan Xiao extended his arm. A mountain flew from his palm and countless shadows of the mountain appeared, heading for the tower. The two top-class ritual implements clashed in the air.


    Zhan Xiao took old of the blade and dealt yet another slash; an overwhelming and direct move.


    The divine ape burst forth with its staff, clashing hard with the flashes of the blade. The slashes that were cutting the space tore through the shadows of the staff. Ye Futian unleashed a second attack with the staff. The air around them was shaken and the move affected even the clouds above.


    Zhan Xiao, however, hardly felt anything. Regardless of how powerful Ye Futian''s art with the staff proved to be, he deemed it all the same as Ye Futian would die that very day. There was nothing his Void-tearing Blade Techniques was unable to break.


    Flashes of the blade rained down like purplish lightning bolts. Shadows of the blade filled the air. Ye Futian continued to unleash two strikes, yet the terrifying flashes of the blades remained potent enough to cut through everything, tearing through his staff and landed right onto the star defenses. Some of the slashes even managed to land on his battle form. The mountain ranges that they were at right then were cracked in multiple places as if the place was to be cut up soon. However, Ye Futian seemed to have no awareness of his own predicament. He remained astute, wielding his staff. The fourth and fifth attack of the staff shook the earth. The divine ape roared and starlight filled the air.


    Zhan Xiao unleashed yet another slash. However, nine slashes were dealt this time. The nine slashes worked as one, cutting up everything in their path. Ye Futian''s battle form was all battered and it seemed to break any time soon.


    Despite what had just happened, Ye Futian walked towards Zhan Xiao instead, unleashing even more potent destructive force.


    "Die already." Zhan Xiao dealt cuts at Ye Futian who was coming at him. However, Ye Futian did not even attempt to defend this time, as if he had given up. He crossed the space in one step, appearing right before Zhan Xiao and unleashing the devastating sixth attack.


    Zhan Xiao''s pupils dilated somewhat and he was all dumbfounded. Is he trying to throw away his life?


    The slashes cut right through Ye Futian''s battle form and the staff attack was brought onto Zhan Xiao. Shadows of the blade appeared around Zhan Xiao and a tremendously huge golem shadow appeared.


    When the attacks of both sides landed, Ye Futian''s battle form crumbled thunderously. The remaining force of the blade cut right through his defenses and reached his physical body. An appalling wound was found on Ye Futian''s body.


    On the other hand, Zhan Xiao was severely shaken as he fell to the ground. He grunted and found blood at the corner of his mouth. He wiped the blood off while glaring at Ye Futian with ferocious eyes. If he had not been equipped with defensive Life Spirit and rules, that one strike might not have gravely injured him. Is he trying to drag me along in death?


    "You can die now." Zhan Xiao walked forward but saw a dazzling figure.


    It was Hua Jieyu. She walked up to Ye Futian, cradling his arm. There was no fear in her eyes. That battle was fought between people capable of wielding sage level powers, and the enemy was an upper-level sage. She was helpless in a fight like this, but she allowed herself to die alongside Ye Futian.


    "You two are quite a couple indeed. In that case, I guess I''ll just send you on your way then." Zhan Xiao walked in their direction. Elsewhere, Gu Dongliu rampaged and severely injured one of his opponents, but the other refused to let him off, resulting in him being incapable of rushing to Ye Futian''s side.


    The devastating power of rules encompassed Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Death was upon them, and even the burning will of emperors would not have made much difference in this case.


    Zhan Xiao held a cold blade in his hand and walked up. Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu, feeling immense pain inside. He turned to face Zhan Xiao, unleashing his spiritual will, but it did not help with his case.


    "Pathetic. It would do you some good if it were imbued with rules," Zhan Xiao uttered coldly. Death was really upon them. The Tree Life Spirit whooshed in the wind. Ye Futian had never experienced the powers of the world in such clarity. Ye Futian felt that if he was given just a bit more time, his rules might have truly matured. But Zhan Xiao had no intentions of giving him more time. His blade was held high and then brought down on him. It was the blade of a reaper.


    Ye Futian glared at the devastating blade coming at him. The attack happened in slow motion in his mind. The clarity was such that he was able to sense the power of rules imbued within it.


    Everything around him grew increasingly clear. The clarity was beyond anything he had experienced. His spiritual will felt as if he had completely left the body, becoming one with the Spiritual Qi of the world.


    Everything in the world continued to be made slow. In his senses, he found the blade moving very, very slow. He turned around to look at Hua Jieyu. A tear streaked on her face, falling just as slowly.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes at that moment. His spiritual will seemed to no longer be his, belonging to the world around him instead.


    Aura of the world melded and a mystical power was being born.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked at the blade that was coming down very slowly at him. He then uttered, "My will is that of the heavens. Rules, Space-freezing." As soon as he finished his words. Everything in the world seemed to have almost slowed to a halt. At that moment, Zhan Xiao felt his blade turning sluggish. It was as if he had difficulty bringing the blade down. Even his arm felt as if it had stopped moving altogether.


    Everything went still!

 704 A Bloody Sunse

    "What''s going on?" Zhan Xiao felt the rule power of the external world as well. It was an invisible power, yet it seemed to be everywhere. His every move was affected��his blade was slowed down, and the movement of his arm became sluggish as well. This was far from the full potential of the Void Tearing Blade Techniques.


    "There''s rule power, mature laws, and they''re even��" Zhan Xiao''s expression immediately turned ugly. Right now, he could clearly perceive the type of laws these were, and it made his heart beat wildly. How could there be rule power of this magnitude?


    In the previous face-off, Ye Futian had continuously tried to use his Spiritual Will to freeze the space. However, his power then had been that of a Noble. It didn''t become a law, and as such had no effect on Zhan Xiao at all. But this time, Ye Futian''s power had reached an even higher level and evolved into laws. Furthermore, those laws were to do with spatial rule power, which was terrifyingly powerful.


    There were many classes of cultivators in this world. But while cultivators embarked on different paths, the ultimate goal of their journey was the same. At the Sage Plane, one had to realize their own laws, whether they were a Spirit Elementalist, a Full Attribute Sorcerer, or a martial arts cultivator. And for those who were skilled in different sorts of domains, they applied their own perception to the various elemental energies in order to have them evolve into brand new laws.


    Amidst the various rule powers attainable by a Sage, spatial rule power was definitely one of the higher-level ones. Space was a concept, and it was different from the elemental energies of wind, fire, thunder, and lightning. It did not exist in this world in the truest sense of the word. There was wind, fire, water, and earth in this world, visible to the human eye, and the world itself was filled with Spiritual Qi. But "space" was a vague, invisible thing. Only at the level of laws would one be able to even come into contact with this sort of power.


    It was within the current Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States that there were individuals of the best caliber who had realized this power. Those who could realize spatial rules were all peerless individuals. Yet today, this sort of power was emanating from the hands of Ye Futian, a Noble who had not entered the Sage Plane.


    As far as Zhan Xiao could remember, there did not seem to be a precedent for this in the history of the Nine States. Even that one individual whose name was renowned only managed to realize this sort of laws at the Sage Plane. Someone who had realized this at the Noble Plane would be destined to be great in the future. There would be no way Zhan Xiao had not heard of them if that was the case. The implication of this was that Ye Futian was possibly setting a new precedent within the history of the Nine States.


    No wonder Younger Brother Qin Zhong had tasted defeat at Ye Futian''s hands. At the thought of this, a troubled expression crossed Zhan Xiao''s face. With a loud explosion, a giant stone man appeared behind him. With two types of laws being activated, Zhan Xiao''s power was at a terrifyingly vast capacity.


    The blade in his hands continued to swing downwards at Ye Futian. It was true that spatial rules were laws of a higher level. But Zhan Xiao was still an upper-level Sage, and though he may not be at the level of a magi or an archmagi, there was no way the laws he spent years realizing would be weaker than the ones his opponent had just realized.


    But Ye Futian did not seem to notice. At this moment, he was completely immersed in his own world. The world as he perceived it seemed to have changed. He could see everything with great clarity, and his Spiritual Will had completely been detached from his body. It was as if his Spiritual Will no longer just belonged to himself, but to this world as well. Endless streams of energy coursed through the world, and though they were vague and invisible, they could be controlled and made tangible through Spiritual Will. Ye Futian knew that these truly were laws.


    Right now, the strength of Ye Futian''s Spiritual Energy was increasing exponentially as well. As it evolved, it directly broke through to the next plane, which was the Grade One Noble Plane. With Emperor Will burning within Ye Futian, the strength of his Spiritual Will could perhaps only be perceived by Zhan Xiao then.


    "Slash," Zhan Xiao hissed, as he sensed that Ye Futian''s rule power was growing stronger still. Everything in the space seemed as though they were about to stop moving, and an ominous feeling descended upon Zhan Xiao.


    Before the battle, he had not anticipated that he would face this sort of situation. It seemed implausible that a Grade Two Noble would be able to pose a threat to someone like him. But right now, Zhan Xiao could acutely feel a real sense of danger. At the Grade One Noble Plane, along with the increase in Emperor-like power brought about by a secret technique, Ye Futian''s power had already surpassed that of someone who had just newly transcended into the Sage Plane. Furthermore, with his maturing ability to realize laws, Ye Futian was not too different from an actual Sage. If anything, he could be said to even have reached the level of a mid-level Sage.


    At this point, even as an upper-level Sage, Zhan Xiao seemed to only be a plane higher than Ye Futian, with not much difference between their power and abilities. Besides, the rule power that Ye Futian had realized was spatial rule power.


    Ye Futian stood up, his eyes filled with icy murderous intent. The World Tree within his Life Palace rustled, and the world in Ye Futian''s Life Palace seemed to resonate with the external world. It was as if Ye Futian was in complete control of this space.


    Zhan Xiao''s blade was still powerful, and since he was also using rule power, even Ye Futian''s realization of spatial rule power was not enough to halt him completely. But even if Ye Futian didn''t manage to stop him completely, slowing him down alone was enough.


    To Ye Futian, Zhan Xiao''s blade technique was absolutely clear and played out before his eyes. A step forward and Zhan Xiao''s blade came slashing towards him. However, the blade began to move at a sluggish speed. Ye Futian dodged the slashes before sending a fist flying towards Zhan Xiao, the savage force of which landed squarely on Zhan Xiao''s arm and sent him plummeting through the sky like a dying star.


    The blade fell, and Zhan Xiao''s expression was incredulous. Frightening gravity laws manifested, exerting great pressure upon Ye Futian before Zhan Xiao swung his left arm towards him. But then, spatial rule power descended upon the space once again, and Zhan Xiao''s movements remained slow. Burning with Emperor Will and emanating an unbeatable power, Ye Futian''s fist shot out towards Zhan Xiao''s throat, where his defenses were the weakest


    Zhan Xiao wanted to avoid the attack, and his body made to avoid the attack as well, but to no avail. The Meteor Punch, reinforced by starry laws, slammed into Zhan Xiao''s throat and tore through it, causing bright red blood spurt out and stain Ye Futian''s fist.


    Zhan Xiao''s body shook violently and his eyes bulged. He wanted to make a sound, but his throat had been torn apart and there was no way he would be able to speak anymore. He trembled and an endless fear gripped him as he stared fixedly at the figure before him. He was going to die at the hands of a Noble. He had come to Taihang Mountain for revenge, to make Ye Futian regret his actions. Never had he even dreamed that Taihang Mountain of the Barren State would be where he breathed his last.


    As a person of the Yu State, and one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, he was supposed to eventually become one of the prominent figures in the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States. How could he die here? Why was Ye Futian able to kill him? How dare Ye Futian kill him?


    Ye Futian did not care at all about whatever Zhan Xiao was thinking about. Lifting his fist, he swung at Zhan Xiao again, causing blood to spurt continuously onto his face. But Ye Futian did not seem to notice. There was only endless murderous intent within his cold gaze. He would not have gone this far if it had not been for Zhan Xiao''s despicable ways.


    Third Older Brother and Second Older Sister were supposed to spend their lives together. Ye Futian was going to head out to train and break through into higher planes, and Taihang Mountain would remain firmly within its position of power. But this had all changed because of Zhan Xiao, who had led a party into Taihang Mountain, massacred many of the Apes, and put the Zhuge Family in a life-threatening situation.


    All this translated into the cold murderous rage Ye Futian felt, making him punch Zhan Xiao again and again until the latter''s throat was completely destroyed and he collapsed in pain, death eventually overcoming him.


    Over where Gu Dongliu was, the two who were currently battling him witnessed Zhan Xiao''s death at Ye Futian''s hands. They then frantically began to try and escape the battlefield. The shift in circumstances had caught them absolutely by surprise. Furthermore, they had also sensed that what Ye Futian had was the power of spatial rule power. This had come as a huge shock to them and disrupted the situation in their own battle as well.


    Gu Dongliu had seized the opportunity then to kill a lower-level Sage. Right now, he successfully launched another attack, and his blade ran straight through the throat of his other opponent, a mid-level Sage, killing him on the spot. The two men''s bodies fell to the ground, indicating the end of the battle.


    At this very moment, Ye Futian felt incredibly weak. It felt like he had used up all the energy in his body, and he sank to the ground. Hua Jieyu held him, her eyes wet with tears. At the back, Yi Qingxuan was holding on to Yu Sheng as well, tears rolling down her face silently. It was as if they had already experienced death once. But they had miraculously managed to survive. If Ye Futian hadn''t killed Zhan Xiao, the battle on Gu Dongliu''s end probably would not have been concluded as quickly.


    Gu Dongliu came over to Ye Futian''s side, observing Zhan Xiao''s corpse with a cool expression. Zhan Xiao was one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs. Before this battle, this entire affair had just been a tussle over a treasure. But now that Zhan Xiao had died, the situation was no longer simply a fight to hold on to the treasure. A Son of Zhisheng Cliffs, the holy grounds of the Yu State had been killed. And Gu Dongliu knew all too well just what the implications of that would be.


    But Gu Dongliu was not too affected by it. Looking at Ye Futian, he commented, "Spatial rule power? Youngest Brother, you are going to achieve a miracle in the future."


    "Third Older Brother," Ye Futian called out weakly, lifting his head to look at Gu Dongliu. While he had managed to kill Zhan Xiao, he felt no joy. There was nothing to be joyous about anyway.


    "Don''t think too much about it. Just sleep, and have a good rest," Gu Dongliu said gently. A huge surge of Spiritual Will emanated from him and rushed into Ye Futian''s mind.


    "Third Older Brother," Ye Futian called out again, feeling the immense heaviness of the Spiritual Will. He then saw Gu Dongliu lift his hand and strike straight at his neck. At this, Ye Futian, who was incredibly exhausted, was struck unconscious and collapsed into Hua Jieyu''s embrace.


    Hua Jieyu lifted her head to look at Gu Dongliu, who said to her, "Take him away to anywhere that''s not here, and don''t let him come back."


    Hua Jieyu stared at Gu Dongliu, before glancing at Ye Futian. She then nodded and replied, "Third Older Brother, please take care of yourself."


    As she spoke, she held onto Ye Futian''s body and turned to Yi Qingxuan. "Qingxuan, let''s go."


    With Loulan Xue and Yi Qingxuan, who was holding on to Yu Sheng, the party disappeared into the distance in a flash.


    At the sight of the sun setting, red as blood, Hua Jieyu could no longer hold back her tears, and she wept. "Second Older Sister, I''m so sorry."


    Of course, she understood why Gu Dongliu had sent her away. She knew what his intentions were as well. But she followed his instructions still. If it had been just her, she would not have left. But now Ye Futian was involved. She would forsake everyone around her if it meant Ye Futian could live well.


    Gu Dongliu turned to look at the blood-red sky. This had all happened because of him, and he had come to Taihang Mountain for the exact purpose of killing Zhan Xiao.


    What difference did it make whether it was him or Ye Futian who had killed Zhan Xiao?

 705 Omen

    After three days, an oppressive atmosphere hung over the vast Barren State.


    This was a result of the terrifying battle that had happened a few days ago. Many places within Xuanwu City had been blasted to smithereens. There had been many casualties as a result of that earth-shattering battle as well, with many dead or injured.


    Within the ranks of all the great powers, like the Zhuge Family, Taihang Mountain, Sword Saint Villa, Nantian House, and the Sacred Fire Sect, there had been many who were killed in the chaos. Even several of the most influential characters from those groups had not been able to escape injury.


    But in the end, Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong had still managed to hold off several incredibly powerful opponents. The insane fight had caused the Sacred Fire Sect and Nantian House to retreat. And after the two opposing sides sustained some damage, they had also decided to pull back for now.


    This epic battle that would be the talk of an era was named the Battle of Xuanwu City. It would go down in the history of the Barren State and be remembered for having an impact on future developments in the state.


    Other than Xuanwu City, a fierce battle had broken out over at Taihang Mountain as well. The City Lord of White Cloud City was engaged in a showdown with Xu Shang, the top swordsman in the Barren State who was dubbed the Slaughtering Sword.


    Many of the influential characters on the side of the City Lord had been killed in that battle, which had ended with Xu Que sustaining serious injuries and the City Lord getting stabbed once. That wild attack made the City Lord decide to halt the battle. Though the City Lord was definitely superior to Xu Shang in terms of ability, he did not want to engage in a life-and-death struggle fighting him. Xu Shang, the number one killer in the Barren State, was too dangerous. With his injuries, the City Lord was not a hundred percent confident of leaving this battle unscathed.


    It was said that Xu Shang had shut himself away in Tingxue House after that battle. No one knew the extent of his injuries, but one could guess at the severity of it. Even so, Xu Shang had still managed to force the City Lord of White Cloud City to retreat. The City Lord of White Cloud City probably knows better than anyone how dangerous the number one killer of the Barren State really is, many people thought to themselves.


    Other than the battle between those two, many of the Zhisheng Cliffs cultivators that Zhan Xiao had taken to Taihang Mountain had met their demise there. Similarly, many Demon Apes had also been killed, and their blood stained the ground of the mountain. However, the most shocking news that had arisen out of the battle at Taihang Mountain was that Zhan Xiao, who had come to the Barren State to take Gu Dongliu away, had been killed there. Zhan Xiao was one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs and had caused a terrifying ruckus soon after arriving in the Barren State. It was completely unexpected to everyone from the Barren State and Zhisheng Cliffs that Zhan Xiao would die in the Barren State in this way. Once the news had spread, many people were shocked, even those at the top in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Everyone knew there was a possibility that a greater crisis was about to befall the Barren State. Gu Dongliu had admitted that he was the one who killed Zhan Xiao. If Crouching Dragon Mountain were to still insist on sheltering Gu Dongliu, then all the holy items in Yuan Hong and Zhuge Qingfeng''s possession would not be able to save them.


    A Son of Zhisheng Cliffs had died here at the hands of Gu Dongliu. Even if a Saint from Yu State did not take action, it was unlikely that Zhisheng Cliffs would just let this go.


    But Kong Yao never did come to Crouching Dragon Mountain to hunt anyone down. Instead, there was a strange peace within the Barren State. It was as if a hush had fallen upon everyone. But everyone in the Barren State knew that this was but the peace before the imminent storm.


    Everyone from Nantian House, the Sacred Fire Sect, and the other powers who had been involved with Kong Yao all heaved a sigh of relief. Zhan Xiao had died at an opportune time. Now that he had been killed, did it mean that all hope was lost for Crouching Dragon Mountain and Taihang Mountain?


    Over at Mingyue''s quarters at Crouching Dragon Mountain, many people often came to ask Gu Dongliu about the situation at Taihang Mountain, and a greater number of them were interested to know Ye Futian''s whereabouts. The only reply Gu Dongliu gave them was that his Youngest Brother was injured and that he had been sent away to avoid the situation here.


    Though there was some suspicion over Gu Dongliu''s words, most people did not think too much about it. It was better that Ye Futian wasn''t at Crouching Dragon Mountain. The atmosphere at Crouching Dragon Mountain was incredibly uneasy now that Gu Dongliu had killed Zhan Xiao. No one knew what the future would bring. The fact that Ye Futian was alive presented a sliver of hope. But it was evident that Gu Dongliu''s explanation had failed to convince Zhuge Mingyue. Looking at him, she asked, "You know very well the kind of person Youngest Brother is, and I know him as well as you do. He''s not the kind of person who would just up and leave like that. What are you hiding from me?"


    "Mingyue," Gu Dongliu looked at Zhuge Mingyue, and reaching out to touch the hair by the side of her face, he whispered, "promise me something."


    "That I''ll carry on with life if you were to die?" Zhuge Mingyue returned his gaze. Over the past few months, though she had asked Gu Dongliu about this matter many times, he had never once given her a direct reply. It was obvious that he didn''t want to lie to her, which was why he intentionally did not give an answer.


    Gu Dongliu nodded at her words, and Zhuge Mingyue then replied, "Then can you promise me something as well?"


    "What is it?" Gu Dongliu asked.


    "Don''t say things like this to me again in future," Zhuge Mingyue said softly. "Since you don''t want to talk about Youngest Brother, then I won''t ask any further. But no matter what happens in the future, I won''t run. Didn''t we already agree on this on the day you came back to me?"


    Looking at the woman before him, Gu Dongliu had nothing to say. What was he to do with a strong-willed woman like her?


    ��


    A storm was brewing over at the Holy Zhi Palace as well. While Zhan Xiao''s death seemed to have no connection to the Holy Zhi Palace, anything that happened within the Barren State was unavoidably linked to the Palace, given that it was a symbol of the state. Besides, Kong Yao and Zhan Xiao had requested the Palace''s assistance many times, only to be refused by them.


    Furthermore, with all the various incidents that had occurred recently, like Bai Ze''s death as well as the battle between the City Lord of White Cloud City and Xu Que, Liu Chan and everyone else at the Palace had a strange feeling that things were really about to change in the Barren State.


    Right now, Sage Wanxiang had come to the Holy Sage Pavilion to see Liu Chan about something seemingly important.


    "What is it?" Liu Chan asked, noticing Sage Wanxiang''s expression. He could tell that Sage Wanxiang had something urgent to tell him.


    "A crisis is going to befall the Palace," Sage Wanxiang replied solemnly. Since receiving the divination of crisis in the Palace, he had spent this period of time doing further calculations regarding the divination. And with the recent events that had left the Barren State shaken, he had not dared to let his guard down at all.


    Not long ago, Sage Wanxiang had encountered a frightening prophecy. A crisis was about to befall the Palace, which meant that the divination of crisis he had received earlier was about to come to pass.


    "Are you sure?" Liu Chan''s expression instantly turned solemn as well. From Sage Wanxiang''s face, Liu Chan could deduce that the crisis the Palace was facing this time was no ordinary one. It was highly possible that this would be a massive crisis.


    "How could one be wrong about this sort of thing?" Sage Wanxiang replied, "There are laws according to which everything in this world functions. If this sort of prophecy is appearing, then it must have been caused by something. And major incidents have been happening in the Barren State over the past few days. There is a high possibility that these incidents will eventually lead to the crisis that the Palace is going to face."


    "Over at Xuanwu City, Kong Yao from Zhisheng Cliffs led several big powers in a faceoff against Crouching Dragon Mountain and Taihang Mountain. Bai Ze was killed, and Zhan Xiao lost his life as well. All these incidents may add up to become a crisis for the Palace," Liu Chan guessed. "Zhisheng Cliffs probably will not let Zhan Xiao''s death pass just like that."


    All the incidents that occurred within the past few days had caused the divination to change for the worse. Zhan Xiao''s death undoubtedly had the greatest influence on the way things would turn out in the Barren State. It could potentially have directly affected the divination itself.


    Sage Wanxiang nodded lightly. He could not determine the exact event that would push this prophecy into fruition, but judging the magnitude of everything that had happened so far, he could deduce that Zhan Xiao''s death played the largest part in all of this.


    As of today, Kong Yao was still in the Barren State, while some of his men from Zhisheng Cliffs had left. They had to go back and report that a Son of Zhisheng Cliffs had been killed in the Barren State.


    Qin Zhong had left with the other powerful individuals from Zhisheng Cliffs as well. But the next party sent from Zhisheng Cliffs probably would not be made up of Nobles like Qin Zhong anymore. Zhisheng Cliffs probably had not expected that things would turn out like this either.


    "Were there any other omens in the prophecy?" Liu Chan questioned further.


    Sage Wanxiang shook his head. Since the prophecy was one that foretold crisis, something disastrous was definitely going to happen. No one knew how things would turn out in the future, and it was not possible for Sage Wanxiang to make any predictions about it either. It was unclear whether the Holy Zhi Palace would make a breakthrough in this upcoming crisis, or be overwhelmed beyond rescue.


    "Summon the heads of the six palaces," Liu Chan ordered. "Everyone has a right to know about this, and we need to discuss what the Palace should do when this crisis finally arises."


    Sage Wanxiang nodded in response to Liu Chan''s words. Indeed, they had to start preparations for the upcoming crisis now. However, at this very moment, Liu Chan suddenly lifted his head to gaze into the distance before sighing internally. Those who were expected to return to the Palace had finally come back, though he was hoping that they wouldn''t.


    A man with an incredible aura walked towards them from afar. In a flash, he had landed directly before them. There weren''t many people who could behave so impudently in the Holy Sage Pavilion of the Holy Zhi Palace, but Liu Chan did not scold him. Instead, he remained silent, as though this was something absolutely normal to witness.


    This man who had just returned to the Palace was Bai Luli. Bai Ze, his younger brother, had been killed not long ago.


    "Teacher, have they been captured?" Bai Luli asked. He could never have expected that his final parting from his brother would be when he had left to train after the incident at Crouching Dragon Mountain. His younger brother had been killed in the Holy Zhi Palace afterward.


    Though Bai Ze really had been a little too arrogant for his own good and had many flaws that even Bai Luli had criticized, he was still his younger brother, and blood was thicker than water. Now that Bai Ze had been killed, the pain that Bai Luli felt was understandable. Bai Ze had been in the wrong for what he did, and he did deserve to be punished, but did it really warrant him being killed?


    Liu Chan shook his head gently. Xu Que was also on the run now. Liu Chan knew of the influence Tingxue House had. It was probably part of the reason why they were still unable to capture Xu Que and Ye Futian even now.


    "We''re still investigating," Liu Chan replied. "Luli, now that the Barren State is in chaos, protect your own frame of mind against disturbances from the outside world."


    Bai Luli was the hope and future of the Holy Zhi Palace. No matter what happened, those at the Palace were hoping that Bai Luli could remain unaffected by it all.


    "I understand." Bai Luli nodded. He understood Liu Chan''s intentions.


    "Wanxiang has predicted that a crisis will befall the Palace," Liu Chan told Bai Luli. "It is still unknown whether the Palace will be able to tide through this crisis. But if the Palace really is destroyed, you must live, and carry on the work of the Palace."


    "Nothing will happen to the Palace," Bai Luli replied.


    "I hope so as well," Liu Chan murmured. However, his worries remained. Now that Bai Luli had returned, and the prophecy was about to come to pass, what would become of the Barren State? And what would the Palace eventually have to face?


    No one knew the answer to these questions. All may have seemed calm in the Barren State for the time being, but there was already an army of people making their way from the Yu State to the Barren State.


    Zhan Xiao, one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, had died in the Barren State. This definitely was no small matter!

 706 The Palace’s Decision

    Undercurrents of activity ran beneath the peaceful veneer of the Barren State. The various powers in the state were all busy making preparations, especially those who would be directly involved in the storm to come.


    At this point, they stood at the precipice of a major development. It was a matter of life and death, and the outcome could very possibly be determined by the period of time to come. The people of the Barren State could also sense that this unrest would definitely lead to great changes in their state.


    It was within this period of calm that a party of dozens of people arrived at the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State. They were all from Zhisheng Cliffs, and they were all strong. Just as the Palace had predicted, Qin Zhong did not return to the Barren State again. A Son had perished in the Barren State, and Qin Zhong had suffered a defeat as well. This definitely was anything but good news to Zhisheng Cliffs.


    With the arrival of the party from Zhisheng Cliffs, the Holy Zhi Palace naturally had to step up and welcome their guests properly. Liu Chan personally came to greet the party, which included Kong Yao as well. It could be seen that Kong Yao was one of the leading figures within Zhisheng Cliffs. After all, other than the Saints, there was no other person who was stronger than Kong Yao, who was ninth in the Sage Ranking. But here at the Barren State, Kong Yao was held at bay by the holy ritual implements.


    "Liu Chan, since you''re here, I''ll get straight to the point," Kong Yao declared.


    "Go ahead," Liu Chan replied.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State is a place to pass down divine teachings, just like Zhisheng Cliffs of the Yu State," Kong Yao began. "As regions designated as places that fall under the orthodoxy of Emperor Xia, the Barren State and the Yu State are connected to each other as well. With regard to the matter at hand, I had previously requested that the Holy Zhi Palace step in and resolve the issue. Zhisheng Cliffs did not get involved, but since the Palace avoided the matter as well, I stepped in personally. But now that a Son of Zhisheng Cliffs has perished in the Barren State and the various powers of the Barren State are now at war with Zhisheng Cliffs, the Head Saint is very displeased."


    Liu Chan sighed internally. Zhan Xiao was one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, which meant that he had been chosen to be in the running alongside eight other disciples to compete for Sainthood one day. Even if Zhan Xiao''s death was not enough to elicit a reaction from the Saint, he would, at the very least, be aware of what had happened. Liu Chan did not say anything in response but waited for Kong Yao to continue speaking.


    "The Head Saint has personally declared that since this has all occurred in the Barren State, given that the Palace is the true site of Emperor Xia''s orthodoxy in the Barren State, he hopes that the Palace can take care of this matter properly," Kong Yao continued, his expression cold. "If the Palace does not handle this matter satisfactorily, then Zhisheng Cliffs will step in. The Head Saint will also report this matter to Emperor Xia such that the Holy Zhi Palace''s special status will be revoked and replaced by powers in the other eight states. Then there will no longer be any reason left for the Holy Zhi Palace to exist."


    Liu Chan''s heart thumped wildly at Kong Yao''s words as he recalled Sage Wanxiang''s predictions. Could this be the crisis that was about to befall the Palace?


    Kong Yao had said the exact thing that had been worrying Liu Chan the most. The Barren State had not seen a Saint amidst its ranks for many years, and the Holy Zhi Palace was indeed at constant risk of being replaced. Perhaps Emperor Xia usually didn''t have the time to personally look into matters regarding the Holy Zhi Palace, After all, the Palace was in no way important enough to warrant such interest from the Emperor. However, should a Saint report to Emperor Xia about the Palace, it was highly possible that an order from the Emperor would be enough to turn the Palace into history.


    Liu Chan himself was very clear about the sort of situation the Palace was facing right now. He knew that the sole reason why the Palace had not been bothered despite not having a Saint was that it was still recognized by Emperor Xia as a site to pass down divine teachings. If not, there would be no way that Kong Yao and the rest from Zhisheng Cliffs would be talking about the Palace being connected to them in any way.


    "How should we take care of this matter then?" Liu Chan asked. What would Zhisheng Cliffs demand from the Holy Zhi Palace in response to Zhan Xiao''s death?


    "Some changes have to be made to the structure here in the Barren State," Kong Yao replied. "Also, the Head Saint wants two people alive in particular."


    "Who?" Came the question.


    "Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian," Kong Yao answered. This was not his own opinion, but an order that had come from Zhisheng Cliffs. Kong Yao guessed that the reason lay in Zhan Xiao and Qin Zhong''s defeat.


    Liu Chan''s eyes flashed at Kong Yao''s words. The Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs was after Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian. The fact that he was after Ye Futian as well was interesting.


    Back during the battle before Xuanwu Tower, at the base of Crouching Dragon Mountain, Gu Dongliu had overpowered Zhan Xiao and defeated him with one strike. Now, he had even killed the man. Ye Futian had also defeated Qin Zhong, the most talented of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, despite only being a Grade Two Noble himself. These were probably the reasons why Zhisheng Cliffs wanted these two alive. If not, there was absolutely no point to their demands and it would be easier to just kill them.


    "This is a very serious matter. I''ll have to call for a meeting between the six palaces," Liu Chan replied.


    "Sure, I''m in no hurry," Kong Yao replied coolly. It was because of his rage that he was not in any rush to settle things. Since the people of the Barren State had dared to put up a fight against Zhisheng Cliffs, then he would play along with them for now. This time, if he didn''t get a conclusion he wanted, he would not leave the Barren State. What the Palace refused to do, he would take all the time he needed to achieve it himself.


    Liu Chan furrowed his brows at Kong Yao''s tone. Kong Yao seemed to be in a completely different emotional state as compared to the last time he had come to the Palace. While he seemed calm now, he was actually being much colder than before.


    "Then, I''ll take my leave for now." Liu Chan turned to leave. After a short while, Liu Chan called for a meeting at the Holy Sage Pavilion. The various Palace Lords had all arrived, and many elders were joining the meeting as well.


    "I''m sure everyone is aware of the arrival of a party from Zhisheng Cliffs," Liu Chan said. "I''ll now tell you what Kong Yao has said to me."


    After repeating Kong Yao''s previous words, Liu Chan asked again, "What do you all think?"


    Sage Zhandou spoke up, "With Kong Yao being hindered by Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong, Zhisheng Cliffs has not been able to resolve this matter in the Barren State themselves. Now, they''re attempting to bring a close to this entire affair through the hands of the Palace. Liu Chan, do you not think this is ridiculous?"


    "But this matter concerns the future of the Palace as well. If the Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs really were to report this to Emperor Xia, what would become of the Palace? This doesn''t just concern the Palace either. If the other eight states were to invade the Barren State, things will no longer be as they were, and who knows what will happen then?" Liu Chan said, "Besides, there are indeed some powers in the Barren State who need to be put in place. Even though Bai Ze was killed in the Palace, Ye Wuchen and Xu Que have not been found even today. I''m sure everyone here understands the reason behind this."


    Everyone knew what Liu Chan was insinuating. There was no doubt that Tingxue House was behind this.


    "A holy ground is not determined by its form. Without destruction, there can be nothing new constructed. If this is the end of the Palace, then fate has determined it to be so. In the face of this crisis, change must happen in the Barren State. Why go against the current?" Sage Douzhan replied. "As for Bai Ze, even if he was the younger brother of Bai Luli, do you not think he deserved to die, Liu Chan?"


    Everyone else looked towards Liu Chan and Sage Douzhan. Right not, the two most powerful figures in the Palace were at odds with each other, further signaling that the will of the Palace was no longer one.


    "Douzhan, aren''t you being too impudent with your words? Is it appropriate for you to say that this is the end of the Palace as the Palace Lord of Battle Saint Palace?" Sage Tianxing commented coldly. "Regarding Bai Ze''s death, even if he was in the wrong, it should have been a matter for the Palace to handle. The Tianxing Pavilion would have taken care of it. Since when was it the place of a bunch of disciples to overstep their boundaries and take matters into their own hands? What they have done is to murder their own peer."


    "Taken care of it?" Sage Douzhan replied incredulously, looking towards Sage Tianxing. "Just as the Palace says, the Barren State needs a Saint of their own. To this end, even the Zhuge Family can be sacrificed. And yet you say you would have dealt with Bai Luli''s younger brother? The son of the City Lord of White Cloud City? Would you have dared to do it?" His gaze was sharp, and he stared unflinchingly at Sage Tianxing. Everyone around them fell silent, watching them argue. They both had their arguments and stands, but there was one thing that was true. There indeed was no way the Palace could have done anything about Bai Ze, but what Ye Wuchen and the rest did was too extreme as well.


    "When the Palace no longer is simply a place to pass down divine teachings but takes on a strong agenda of its own, then it signifies that the Palace has already become corrupted and that these holy grounds are sacred no more. And since these are no longer holy grounds, what''s the point in keeping the shell around? Why not just go with the flow and rebuild from the ashes? If after several years there still isn''t a Holy Zhi Palace, the Barren State will still be the Barren State," Sage Douzhan said coldly.


    "Douzhan," Liu Chan chastised, his expression dark, "what you are saying is outrageous."


    Sage Douzhan looked towards Liu Chan, and replied, "We once walked this path together because of our shared beliefs, and stayed in the Palace in order to pass on the divine teachings. Other than pursuing the Divine Path, everything else was for the betterment of martial arts in the Barren State. But now, I think our paths have diverged. As such, we should not associate with each other anymore." Sage Douzhan then stood up and addressed everyone, "This is my stance on this matter. Whether or not you will take it into consideration is no longer any of my concern." After speaking, Sage Douzhan left immediately.


    Liu Chan was livid. What kind of stunt is this b*stard trying to pull?


    "Everything I do is out of consideration for the Palace. My conscience is clear," Liu Chan said, though it was unclear whether he was addressing Sage Douzhan or the people around him.


    "What do you all think?" Liu Chan asked the rest.


    "For the Palace," Sage Wanxiang murmured, before saying, "I''ll leave the decision to you."


    Sage Daozang smiled bitterly. No one had expected that things would come to this.


    "Sage Douzhan may have been a little extreme with what he said, but there is some truth to his words," the Sword Demon muttered to himself, looking up at the sky.


    "Sword Demon, for the sake of the Palace''s unity, there were some things I did not mention. But that doesn''t mean I do not know it happened. You''ve let certain things pass under your nose," Sage Tianxing accused.


    "Are you talking about Ye Wuchen?" The Sword Demon looked at Sage Tianxing. "I let him go because I too thought that it was right that Bai Ze was killed. If he deserves to die, it doesn''t matter who his older brother is. Do you understand that though?"


    The Sword Demon then stood up and turned to leave as well. There were certain things that everyone was well aware of but did not explicitly mention. It was not just out of consideration for the Sword Demon''s dignity. They were also concerned that Bai Luli might have taken issue with him. But was it really necessary to keep it all under wraps? As such, the Sword Demon paid no mind to these concerns and revealed the truth directly.


    Two of the six Palace Lords of the Holy Zhi Palace had walked out of the meeting. Looking at the two figures disappear, Liu Chan took in a deep breath and calmed himself down, before speaking again, "Right now, let''s try not to cause too much damage to the foundations of the Barren State. As of now, we don''t know where Zhisheng Cliffs will draw the line. But if Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian are what they want, then let''s take them into our custody first. Tianxing, take some people with you to go see the Zhuge Family and persuade Qingfeng. He needs to let go of some things now. If not, no one can predict just what the consequences might be."


    "Understood." Sage Tianxing nodded. In the end, Liu Chan had made a decision according to his own judgment. Now, they would try to end things quickly, and enable the Palace to tide through this crisis!

 708 Contradictions

    Gu Dongliu stared at Kong Yao. So Zhisheng Cliffs won''t even let our little brother off, eh?


    "He has left Barren State," Gu Dongliu said. "I haven''t brought any sacred relics with me this time. With Zhan Xiao dead and the killing of the sages long past, you can all put the blame on me. So, would Zhisheng Cliffs want a sacred relic? Or would you people make do with Ye Futian?"


    Kong Yao looked at Gu Dongliu and said, "Gu Dongliu, if you headed for Zhisheng Cliffs earlier, you might have ended up being a Son of the place, and there would have been no need for you to stand against Zhisheng Cliffs. Now, your threats mean nothing. I''m going to the sacred relic, and I''m taking Ye Futian as well."


    "It was you who started all this. But you brothers indeed cherished one another, and you became the very reason why Ye Futian got himself into this and stirred up all that trouble. He roped the Zhuge family, Taihang Mountain, Alchemy City, and Tingxue House into this, all so that you, his Third Brother, can live. If that is the case with him and you now surrendering yourself, it wouldn''t matter where he is now. So long as you''re around, would he be far off?"


    "As for the sacred relic, we''ll take you back to Zhisheng Cliffs after we''re done with all this. You will spill its whereabouts, whether you like it or now," Kong Yao said coldly. His words provoked Gu Dongliu enough to have his eyes filled with thick murderous intent.


    "Kong Yao, you are, at the very least, someone ranked ninth on Sage Ranking out of all nine states. You''re even the number one below the Saint Plane. Don''t you ever feel any guilt doing all this?" Du Dongliu glared at him and asked.


    "No, I don''t," Kong Yao said without any hesitation. Gu Dongliu said nothing more. He was only hoping that his little brother had already escaped.


    The news was heard in the Barren State soon that Gu Dongliu was taken to the Holy Zhi Palace and handed over to the people of Zhisheng Cliffs. The Holy Zhi Palace released more news saying that they would let Ye Futian return to the Holy Zhi Palace to end the war. The Zhuge family, Taihang Mountain, Tingxue House, and the other forces would have had further complications to deal with otherwise.


    It was apparent that the Holy Zhi Palace did not wish for Zhisheng Cliffs to end forces, like the Zhuge family and Taihang Mountain, but they had to take Ye Futian in. It was an indisputable fact, as both Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace had no intention of letting him run loose.


    Countless people in the Barren State were exasperated. With the Holy Zhi Palace stepping in, things changed drastically and it was too late for anything to go back to how it once had been. It was said that Ye Futian had fled. He was nowhere to be found in both Crouching Dragon Mountain nor Taihang Mountain. No one knew where he was and no one knew if he would have returned. Many speculated that Ye Futian was probably gone for good this time. After all, it was too late to turn back the clock now. If they were Ye Futian, they would have given up some things just to keep themselves alive. With his talents, there would always be a chance for revenge in the future.


    ��


    The east side of Taihang Mountain was near the eastern regions of the Barren State.


    The Zhaixing House was somewhere in that region. Ye Futian woke up somewhere in the Zhaixing House. He opened his eyes and felt rather tired. That battle back there thoroughly exhausted him. As he went cranking up the will of the emperor to the extreme and even went burning the powers of his Life Palace. All energies within his body were almost burnt up without a speck of power left. He had relied on nothing more than the self-repair abilities of his Life Spirit to regenerate his strength, allowing him to wake up. However, he was still extremely weak at the moment.


    "Third Brother," Ye Futian called with a low voice as he woke. He sat up and saw Hua Jieyu by his side.


    "Jieyu, where are we?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Zhaixing House." Hua Jieyu answered, "When we fled eastward that day, we passed by Zhaixing House''s territory and met the chief of Zhaixing House. He was the one who let us in."


    "Zhaixing House." Ye Futian felt rather peculiar with the name. Mu Chuan actually bothered helping me? This was where I took his Polearm of Divine Destruction all those years ago. Didn''t that old fart Mu Chuan not like me, and bickered with Headmaster Chen Yuan all the time?


    "Where is Third Brother?" Ye Futian asked.


    "He should have returned to Crouching Dragon Mountain. He said nothing would happen to him and he had us leave," Hua Jieyu explained softly.


    "Jieyu, why bother lying to yourself?" Ye Futian said looking at Hua Jieyu. Nothing would have happened to him, really?


    Ye Futian killed Zhan Xiao and his Third Brother knocked him unconscious, before having Hua Jieyu spirit him away. There was simply no need to say much about why Gu Dongliu did so. His Third Brother wanted to shoulder everything himself while having both of them flee as far as possible.


    Hua Jieyu lowered her head. She had indeed been lying to herself at times, which was she simply was unable to keep calm about things.


    "Yu Sheng, how is he?" Ye Futian appeared very calm.


    "He is training these days to recover from his injuries," Hua Jieyu said. The exhaustion Yu Sheng suffered that day when he practically turned into a demon to fight was not that far off from what Ye Futian had suffered. One could have even said that they were fortunate to be able to survive that battle at Taihang Mountain.


    "Any news about Senior Xu Shang?" Ye Futian asked further. There were too many things on his mind, too many people he was concerned about.


    "My, my, look at yourself. Do you really think you''re in a place to be concerned for others now?" A voice was heard somewhere. Mu Chuan, chief of Zhaixing House, walked in and said to Ye Futian, "Relax, Xu Shang is live, though he is pretty badly injured. But the City Lord of White Cloud City also suffered quite a bad stab wound. Both of them left on a truce."


    Ye Futian sighed in relief and said, "Thank you, sir. But why would you bother saving me?"


    "Saving you?" Mu Chuan said coldly, "I''m only concerned for that piece of treasure that was the pride of the Zhaixing House. When are you going to return Polearm of Divine Destruction to me?"


    "Mu Chuan, do you have any decency left in you?" A voice was heard berating him somewhere else. Ye Futian then saw Chen Yuan walking in, glared at Mu Chuan and added, "The Polearm of Divine Destruction now belongs to Ye Futian. Are you really still thinking about getting it back?"


    "Headmaster." Ye Futian felt rather surprised. He did not expect to see the headmaster in Zhaixing House at all.


    "Futian, take as much rest as you need. When your injuries have recovered, I''ll get you out of the Barren State." Chen Yuan looked at Ye Futian and said, "As for the affairs of the Barren State, I''d advise you to keep your hands to yourself."


    "Leaving Barren State, huh?" Ye Futian mumbled to himself. Will I be able to leave with Barren State in shambles?


    "Headmaster, just tell me honestly. How are things in the Barren State now? WDid any other mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs show up after Zhan Xiao was dead? How is my Third Brother doing now? And news, from Crouching Dragon Mountain and Taihang Mountain." Ye Futian went blasting him with questions.


    "You want to hear the truth?" Chen Yuan stared at Ye Futian. What happened to the Barren State now was already common knowledge. If Ye Futian wanted to find anything out, there was simply no hiding of anything from him.


    "Of course." Ye Futian nodded.


    "After your Third Brother killed Zhan Xiao, the mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs arrived at the Holy Zhi Palace and insisted to have the Holy Zhi Palace interfere with things. The big shots of the place then went to Crouching Dragon Mountain and other forces. Finally, your Third Brother went straight to the Holy Zhi Palace himself, wanting to end all of that conflict once and for all." Chen Yuan added, "But the Holy Zhi Palace and Zhisheng Cliffs wanted more than just your Third Brother; they wanted you as well."


    Ye Futian went silent hearing all that. Gu Dongliu had indeed wanted to shoulder everything himself, but even then, both Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace refused to just let Ye Futian go.


    "I was the one who killed Zhan Xiao," Ye Futian said.


    Chen Yuan and Mu Chuan were both shaken to the core hearing that, especially Chen Yuan. He knew secrets about Ye Futian. As such, Chen Yuan believed Ye Futian when the young man said he said he was the one who killed Zhan Xiao. However, the news still proved to be a startling one.


    Ye Futian was just a noble and Zhan Xiao was a Son of Zhisheng Cliffs, an upper-level sage. It was insanely unreasonable to have Ye Futian killing Zhan Xiao.


    "This can''t be true." Mu Chuan felt rather reluctant to believe what he had just heard.


    "My Third Brother knocked me unconscious after that battle and had Jieyu spirited me away. He then went to the Holy Zhi Palace alone. He wanted to shoulder everything for me." Ye Futian did not care one bit if Mu Chuan believed anything he said.


    "If your Third Brother was willing to go that far just to let you flee, I don''t see any reason for you to surrender yourself," Chen Yuan looked at Ye Futian and said. Someone with talents like Ye Futian did not deserve to just die like that. His future was connected to more than just the Barren State; it was connected to all nine states, and probably far beyond that.


    Ye Futian looked at Chen Yuan. He was able to relate to the headmaster''s thoughts. But he would have never been able to forgive himself, if he were to just flee like that. His guilt would have followed him for the rest of his life.


    Mu Chuan, who was hearing the ongoing conversation from the sides, knew from there that Ye Futian was not lying about anything. Chen Yuan apparently believed what he said, which meant that Ye Futian had meant not known to most people that allowed him to surpass the limits of planes. Furthermore, the fact that he was able to kill Zhan Xiao meant that Ye Futian had developed matured power of rules.


    "I''ll go check on Yu Sheng," Ye Futian said and got up. He then said to Mu Chuan, "Sir, if I don''t end up dead and when the day comes where the Polearm of Divine Destruction was no longer of use to me, I''ll return it to you."


    Mu Chuan was completely startled. Ye Futian''s talents were such that there would definitely be a day where the Polearm of Divine Destruction would no longer be able to serve him. It was not some kind of bluff. The Polearm of Divine Destruction was just a ritual implement that had once been used by a saint. If the day where Ye Futian was to achieve sainthood would come, there would indeed be no more need for that piece of equipment.


    Ye Futian left where he was and went to check on Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan. They were really having peace and quiet in the Zhaixing House. While Chief Mu Chuan had a sharp tongue, he treated them well. He would not have let Chen Yuan show up there otherwise, and would have informed Zhisheng Cliffs or the Holy Zhi Palace. There were many instances where what one did was far more important than what one said.


    Ye Futian went to sit with his legs crossed on top of Zhaixing House. The wind blew and he closed his eyes, melding his spiritual will within the wind, within the world around him. That space would have been frozen just so long as he triggered his will.


    "Rules. So this is the power of rules, huh?" Ye Futian mumbled quietly to himself. The wind blew again. That gentle breeze suddenly turned into a gale as sharp as knives, cutting up the space they occupied. Comprehension of one led to the comprehension of all.


    Ye Futian had stepped foot into that territory and had developed comprehension of matured rules of incredibly high levels: space-type power of rules. That meant that some of the simplest rules would have been nothing to him. He could have developed comprehension of them in no time. All that was needed was for the strength of his spiritual powers to reach new heights. He would have then become a true sage.


    In actuality, however, what he was right there was hardly different from being a sage. Ye Futian''s spirit and vigor restored considerably several days later. The powers within his body felt more ample than it had been before. He felt himself to have grown far stronger than he had been.


    He had spent the past few days training on top of Zhaixing House, so much so that he did not sleep nor rest at night, and he said little to nothing to anyone. Everyone was able to feel what he was going through and nobody went bothering him. They were feeling rather contradictory about things. On one hand, they hoped Ye Futian would have eventually choose to leave. But if he were to simply leave like that, they would be somewhat disappointed!

 709 Calm before the Storm

    One day after another passed in Zhaixing House. Mu Chuan and Chen Yuan looked up at the person dressed in white at the top of Zhaixing House. Mu Chuan then said, "He has been doing nothing but training these days. I wonder what''s going on in his head?"


    Chen Yuan shook his head. Ye Futian seemed to be in a never-ending trance since the day he started training in Zhaixing House, without talking to anyone nor sleeping. Even Chen Yuan had no idea what was going on in Ye Futian''s mind. But it was apparent that Ye Futian had no intentions of leaving the Barren State, or he would have left already.


    Hua Jieyu was also looking at Ye Futian from another direction. She had no idea what was going on in Ye Futian''s mind, but she nonetheless was able to relate to how Ye Futian felt. She knew Ye Futian too well, which meant she knew what his character was like, as well as what his Third Brother meant to him. That figure who stood before him and defended him back in Eastern Barren Territory held an extremely significant place in his mind. Yet, his Third Brother had now gone to the Holy Zhi Palace, and it was probably a trip he would never return from.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes on top of the mountain. Mystical energies filled his surroundings, making the entire space indescribably heavy. His eyes popped wide open all of a sudden. Tiny, broken stones rose from the ground before him. However, each and every stone seemed to have been imbued with the power of rules, and they all grew incredibly heavy, covered with a layer of light of rules as if they were shining stars. A flash shot out from his eyes, and in a split second, every single piece of those stones shot at a peak far away at breakneck speed.


    Boom... A thunderous rumble was heard as the peak crumbled before him.


    The rumble traveled all the way to the top of Zhaixing House. That bombarded peak exploded violently, with half of it gone when the dust settled. Many below turned their head up to look at the top of Zhaixing House. It was not a place anyone could have simply gone up to, and everyone wondered what was happening, seeing the peak being blasted to pieces.


    Who is training up there? Mu Chuan and Chen Yuan had their eyes thrown wide open, before turning to look at each other in shock.


    "The power of rules of the stars. The Zhaixing House and the Starry School were of the same lineage, where all learned to master the power of the stars laid down by the saint. Ye Futian has now mastered the power of rules of the stars. What do you have more to say, old fellow?" Chen Yuan said.


    "Too bad that the timing is rather off." Mu Chuan sighed. He had to acknowledge Ye Futian''s talents now. Or rather, he was forced to when he witnessed what Ye Futian was capable of back in the Law Battles.


    Ye Futian had come to develop the use of the power of rules of the stars, a territory of sages when he was still a noble. Furthermore, it seemed to be a very, very mature one. It was anyone''s guess if he had killed Zhan Xiao back then using the power of rules of the stars.


    "Shouldn''t he rest for a bit?" Chen Yuan looked at Ye Futian and said. The young man was seen standing up, then headed to the edge of the sky above the Zhaixing House. He turned his attention to where they were and said, "Headmaster, Chief Mu, it''s time for me to leave."


    "Where are you going?" Chen Yuan stared at Ye Futian and asked. So he finally has an answer now, huh?


    "Crouching Dragon Mountain," Ye Futian answered.


    "You''d be walking to your death if you did that," Chen Yuan said as he looked at Ye Futian. Regardless of how talented Ye Futian was, as well as the fact that he had come to comprehend the power of rules and killed Zhan Xiao, all that hardly mattered now.


    "I will leave Zhaixing House, and then Senior Yuan Hong will come pick me up as to not drag the chief into this." With things as they were then, there was no way he would have simply left on his own. If someone were to see him and went after him, he would have been taken down before he was even able to reach Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    "You''ve been recuperating here at Zhaixing House. If you were to head back, do you really think no one would notice?" Mu Chuan looked at Ye Futian and said, "I won''t stop you if you want to head back to Crouching Dragon Mountain. Just wait for Yuan Hong to pick you up. People from those two sacred grounds won''t come after Zhaixing House just because I let you stay around."


    Ye Futian glanced at Mu Chuan and found his words reasonable. So long as Zhaixing House did not get involved in this, people of those two sacred grounds would not have stooped so low as to go against Zhaixing House.


    The Black Wind Condor guided Yuan Hong to Zhaixing House several days later, picking up Ye Futian and leaving. Chen Yuan left with them as well.


    The Barren State was shaken to the core that day when Ye Futian made it back to Crouching Dragon Mountain. Everyone knew that Ye Futian, who had disappeared for a while, was back on Crouching Dragon Mountain. Both the Holy Zhi Palace and Zhisheng Cliffs were looking for him.


    Ye Futian went straight to see Zhuge Qingfeng and Zhuge Mingyue as soon as he returned to Crouching Dragon Mountain. Zhuge Mingyue smiled when she saw him, yet her smile was one no longer as composed as it used to be. At the moment, Gu Dongliu had gone to the Holy Zhi Palace and Ye Futian had returned.


    "Why do you need to do this? Your Third Brother has decided to give himself up. What are you returning here for?" Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "Third Brother did intend to give himself up, but Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace still have no intentions of letting me walk, no?" Ye Futian added, "If I just walk away like that, would peace return to the Zhuge family and Taihang Mountain?" Despite having returned, the people of Zhisheng Cliffs did not do anything themselves; they had the Holy Zhi Palace do the dirty work instead. But then again, with Zhan Xiao dead and Kong Yao having suffered losses in two battles, there was no way Zhisheng Cliffs would not have come prepared.


    Ye Futian thought as much himself. The people of Zhisheng Cliffs took themselves to be outside the loop, watching the show and whatever was going to happen from outside in a jesting manner.


    Zhuge Qingfeng, of course, knew what Ye Futian meant. He looked at Ye Futian silently and said, "But what can you change coming back here?"


    "The worst outcome from all of this would be to quell the rage of both Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace before we got more people into this." Ye Futian turned to Zhuge Qingfeng and said, "What is the Holy Zhi Palace''s stance in all of this?"


    Ye Futian felt heavy inside. While the Holy Zhi Palace did try to stop him at White Cloud City, he did not wish for the Holy Zhi Palace to get more involved. However, the Holy Zhi Palace had become totally involved, shattering their very last hope.


    "How much can the stance of the Holy Zhi Palace change from what it was before?" Zhuge Qingfeng then added, "They do not wish to see the Barren State in chaos and the power of the state diminished. Their actions of taking down both Gu Dongliu and you for Zhisheng Cliffs were done so to quell Zhisheng Cliff''s anger, so as to prevent that anger from spreading to the Zhuge family and Taihang Mountain."


    "So that is to say that the Holy Zhi Palace still has a line they wouldn''t cross then." Ye Futian said casually, "Is there really no other way around this?"


    "Both Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace are now standing at the same side. How are we going to do anything about this? Things would be in our favor if the entire Barren State were to be on your side. But even so, if Zhisheng Cliffs insisted on taking you in, so there is still little anyone can do to stop that," Zhuge Qingfeng said and sighed. "The only one who would be able to break through such a deadlock is the Holy Zhi Palace." He felt rather despaired as he said so. Even a figure ranked sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking was still capable of feeling despair.


    "Only they can break through this, huh?" Ye Futian looked up at the sky and asked, "Any news about Third Brother?"


    "None," Zhuge Qingfeng shook his head and answered.


    "If someone from the Holy Zhi Palace came, please tell them this, uncle: if Third Brother is still safe inside the Holy Zhi Palace, I will then head for the Holy Zhi Palace within the month," Ye Futian said and turned around to leave.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian leaving. He has still decided to surrender himself to the Holy Zhi Palace, then. Adamant and without regret, just like his Third Brother.


    Too bad that it would be a trip he would never return from.


    Someone from the Holy Zhi Palace soon came to the Zhuge family estate to take Ye Futian, and Zhuge Qingfeng told them what he had been told. The people of the Holy Zhi Palace left. A month''s time was not long, and both them and Zhisheng Cliffs had at least that much time to spare. The Holy Zhi Palace had no intentions of waging a war, and Kong Yao from Zhisheng Cliffs was in no hurry. If Ye Futian had given his word, then all they had to do was wait.


    The news spread throughout the entire Barren State and everyone sighed. Even top-class geniuses like Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian were unable to escape? Both of them eventually had to surrender themselves.


    Barren State turned quiet after the news was out. There was nothing going on. It was as if everyone was waiting as well.


    Ye Futian entered the Holy Zhi Palace within the month. Everything turned quiet on that day, unlike the two great battles which yielded no results before. A great battle could have broken out for the third time, or things would have simply ended quietly.


    ��


    City Lord Office of Alchemy City.


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan kept standing right outside You Chi''s bedchambers. You Xi held her baby in the bedchambers; a daughter born from her and Xue Ye. Despite the great event of the daughter of the city giving birth to a baby girl, there were no celebrations of any kind to be had. The reason of which was all too obvious to everyone from the City Lord Office.


    You Chi looked at his daughter and then his granddaughter before turning around to glare at Xue Ye. He said, "I''d have refused to have the wedding go on if I knew all of this would happen."


    "Is there any point saying all that now?" You Xi said gently as she looked at her daughter.


    "I even lent the divine implement to Ye Futian. Haven''t I done enough? With both Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace in this, what can I, the boss of Alchemy City, do? And there is still that thing with the Emperor family," You Chi yapped away feeling very displeased.


    "What are you telling me all of this for?" You Xi''s voice was just as gentle.


    "Daughters indeed don''t side with their daddies when they''ve grown up," You Chi said feeling very frustrated. "If they like standing around so much, let them stand all they want. I''m not yielding to anything."


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan remained standing outside as if they had heard nothing.


    You Chi, the one who ranked eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking, City Lord of Alchemy City, and in possession of a divine implement. If he had gotten himself involved in this, he might have been able to change the course of the outcome. At the very least, he would have been able to do something to affect how things were now.


    ��


    West Mountain Dragon clan, Divine Sky City, Eastern region of Barren State.


    A girl, 18 or 19, was seen yelling in some corner of the estate, "I want to go look for Brother Futian at Crouching Dragon Mountain."


    "Do you intend to walk to your death?" Long Ao glared at her daughter and said.


    "I don''t care." Long Ling''er shouted, "Uncle will protect me."


    "Ling''er, stop kicking up a fuss," Madam Long tried to persuade her. It was not that they did not want to help Ye Futian; it was simply that things at hand were simply too great for them to be able to do anything. It was Madam Long who recommended Ye Futian to the Starry School. She had admired Ye Futian all that time. If Ye Futian was unable to survive this ordeal, then it was simply because fate was against him.


    At the moment, there were many things happening with many forces throughout the Barren State other than just Alchemy City and West Mountain, and all of them had to do with Ye Futian one way or another.


    A noble capable of moving all forces throughout the entire Barren State, there was probably no other like him. Bai Luli was probably the only one who had such influence before Ye Futian came into the picture.

 710 Trouble at the Holy Zhi Palace

    Another 20 days passed with the blink of an eye. A storm seemed to be brewing throughout the Barren State. News from Crouching Dragon Mountain said that Ye Futian would be entering the Holy See Palace in seven days. It was news that shocked Barren State somewhat and caught the attention of many.


    Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian. The young man was sitting there training in silence. Everything seemed peaceful. He had made it through the Grade One Noble Plane. With him at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane and having developed mature comprehension of rules, the Sage Plane seemed to no longer be some faraway goal. It would have been something worth celebrating about, but be it Ye Futian himself or everyone around him, no one was in the mood for celebrating anything.


    "What do you plan to do at the Holy Zhi Palace?" Zhuge Qingfeng asked the young man. Ye Futian had, no doubt, been seeing if he was able to advance further. He would not have waited another month to go to the Holy Zhi Palace otherwise.


    "To prove one thing," Ye Futian answered.


    "And what would that be?" Zhuge Qingfeng asked.


    "The big shots at the Holy Zhi Palace always thought themselves to be right about everything. Liu Chan had always been reluctant to admit when he was wrong about anything, holding the extreme belief that nothing he did had ever been wrong. I''m here to prove otherwise," Ye Futian said. "Of course, there is a chance that the place simply won''t bother giving me such a chance."


    There was a self-dismissive smirk on his face when he said so. He had been weaker than others, which meant he had little means of negotiating terms with anyone. Still, he deemed that he owed it to himself to try. Even if his attempts were to end in failure, it would have still been better than how things were at the moment.


    "There''s also a chance that you''re actually able to prove something, yet the Holy Zhi Palace still won''t admit anything," Zhuge Qingfeng added.


    "Of course. But still, having tried is better than having done nothing," Ye Futian said.


    "I''ll go with you," Zhuge Qingfeng said.


    Ye Futian turned around to look at the clan leader behind him. Zhuge Qingfeng said, "Just like you said yourself. Even if you''re not going, there is no certainty to say that Zhisheng Cliffs will let the Zhuge family and Taihang Mountain off. Do you think they would let us go if I didn''t show up? I also hope that you''re able to prove something, even if things do turn out for the worse in the end. If things do turn out that way, I still hope that I''ll be able to keep the Zhuge family in one piece, for I was once a student of the Holy Zhi Palace." It was his personal decision to get involved with the matter involving Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian. Many in the Zhuge family did not agree with what he did, and so, it was natural for him as the one to suffer the eventual consequences. It was, after all, his responsibility as the head of the clan.


    "Alright," Ye Futian smiled and said, while still feeling rather guilty inside. He was the one who had gotten Zhuge Qingfeng into this in the first place, and he never thought things would turn out as they had.


    "There are seven more days. I''ll head out for a bit," Zhuge Qingfeng said. He knew more or less what Ye Futian was trying to do. If Ye Futian wanted to try, then he saw fit to try himself as well, just so that they have a better chance at it.


    A woman was wearing plain clothes and reading a sutra quietly, with a lamp and a statue of Buddha by her side in Qingdeng Temple. The abbot, Monk Qingdeng, added a bit of oil in the lamp by her side. The woman put down her sutra after a while and asked, "Teacher, I''ve turned to the Buddhist way and I should have let go of my longing for the mortal world. Yet, why am I unable to do so?"


    "Everyone in the mortal world has their own beginning and ending. One could not be on one''s path of return with unfinished business in their mind," Monk Qingdeng said.


    "Where does such a path lie?" the woman asked.


    "The path of return lies where one''s heart lies," Monk Qingdeng explained plainly.


    "I understand." The woman nodded.


    ��


    Book Mountain, Eastern Barren Territory, Barren State.


    It was a peaceful, tranquil place for training. While the access restriction to Eastern Barren Territory lifted, the spread of news and information was slow. As such, few knew about the major events taking place in the Barren State.


    A figure was seen sitting cross-legged and training at the peak of Book Mountain. That figure was none other than the Sword Saint. There was little for him to attend to in the college for the past few years, enabling him to pour his energy into his own training. As such, his level of cultivation had reached Magi Plane. Such a state would have naturally enabled him to become an invincible being in the Eastern Barren Territory. However, he was not all that worth mentioning when he was compared to the people in the Barren State. Nonetheless, he had been progressed very quickly in his training, far quicker than he had been, being able to bring his cultivation to such a height within the span of several years. Without the events in the Barren State interfering with his training, he would have become even stronger. However, what was happening in Barren State was beyond him.


    A breeze blew by and the Sword Saint opened his eyes and said, "You are here." He turned around and saw a figure dressed in grey standing before him, emanating no aura. The Sword Saint was not surprised at all. It was as if he had known all along that the figure would show up.


    "You''re going to the Barren State?" the figure dressed in grey asked.


    "Indeed." The Sword Saint nodded. Regardless if he was actually able to do anything, he deemed it necessary to go. It was his juniors who were in trouble, after all.


    "While you''ve improved greatly for the past few years, you''re far from ready," the figure in grey said.


    "I know that, which is why I''m waiting for you," the Sword Saint said.


    The figure in grey glanced at the Sword Saint with cold eyes. That very instant had the Sword Saint feeling as if he had been thrust into purgatory.


    "Stop guessing my thoughts from here on out," the figure in grey said and unleashed a broadsword in their hand. Countless runes flowed about the broadsword as if its powers were unsealed.


    "The blade will only be unsealed when you decide to fight, but it is possible that it will bring you unbearable pain in return. Do you wish to take the blade?" the figure in grey asked while looking at the Sword Saint.


    The Sword Saint did not doubt their words at all. If the blade was said to bring him unbearable pain, then it was certain that things would have turned worse than what he anticipated, instead of those words being something said only to scare him. Even so, he took the blade without any hesitation.


    The figure dressed in grey looked at him calmly and said, "Remember this. You will remain as long as the blade remains. Your life will be linked with the blade itself, the very moment you unseal it."


    "I will keep this in mind." The Sword Saint nodded. He dared not forget anything the figure dressed in grey said.


    A wind blew and the figure dressed in grey was nowhere to be seen. It was as if they never appeared on Book Mountain in the first place.


    The Sword Saint looked at the blade in his hand; the blade that could only be unsealed only in battle. He put the blade away and headed for the bottom of Book Mountain.


    ...


    Seven days passed like a flying arrow to a cultivator. Since the news spread from Crouching Dragon Mountain, many in the Barren State acted. Countless flooded the Holy Zhi Palace, with many from top forces among them. They had all reached the outskirts of the palace, and it seemed as if they had been anticipating that very day.


    The City Lord of White Cloud City and Yan Wuji, head of the Sword Saint Villa, arrived at the Holy Zhi Palace. There were also those from the Emperor family and Sacred Fire Sect. They were all in this and it was only natural that they came to witness the final outcome of it all. None of them could rest easy until they saw the demise of the Zhuge family and Yuan Hong dead.


    That day, You Chi saw You Xi and Xue Ye walking about back and forth before him at the City Lord Office. He yielded and said, "Alright, alright, I''ll go have a look at things. You all stay here and take care of the place."


    You Chi walked out of the City Lord Office and gathered some of the mighty ones throughout Alchemy City before taking to the air, heading for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    On the very same day, Xu Shang recuperated and broke his isolation in Tingxue House. He too took a group of people with him and headed for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    In Sovereign territory, Huang Xi looked at Huang Jiuge and asked, "Are you feeling rather sad about things?"


    "Among my peers in the Barren State, he was the one that was truly peerless and the one who served as a beacon for us all. If he were to simply fall, it would be a shame indeed," Huang Jiuge sighed and said.


    "Seems like you appreciate each other." Huang Xi smiled and continued, "Zhuge Qingfeng came looking for me a few days ago. I guess he had gone to quite a number of places besides here. He wanted to get his chances up as much as he could."


    "While I too wish for the Sovereign family to go do this, we are powerless against both Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace. Zhuge Qingfeng should know that much. There is just nothing the forces of the Barren State can do to change how things end," Huang Jiuge said.


    "Zhuge Qingfeng wasn''t asking for us to be in the war. He was only hoping that we give a chance to Ye Futian to prove himself," Huang Xi said.


    "Is there even a need to prove himself further?" Huang Jiuge asked. Ye Futian had already proven that he possessed unequaled talent among his peers. Even Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs lost at his hands.


    "I know not what Ye Futian was trying to prove, but since Zhuge Qingfeng himself went around visiting places, I''m now rather curious about what is that they are trying to do. So, I decided to go to the Holy Zhi Palace myself," Huang Xi said. Huang Jiuge turned to look at Huang Xi with a smile. However, he still remained unconvinced that they stood a chance to change anything.


    Chen Yuan returned to Divine Sky City at the eastern region of the Barren State after visiting West Mountain, the Gu clan and the Zhaixing House, persuading all those forces to go to the Holy Zhi Palace to bear witness instead of to fight.


    That day eventually came. The air above Thousand Holy Islands was filled with mighty ones arriving by air. The Holy Zhi Palace personnel did nothing to interfere, allowing the mighty ones to pass the Holy River and the Thousand Holy Islands, arriving before the Holy Zhi Palace.


    A massive number of mighty ones gathered at the outskirts of the Holy Zhi Palace on that day. It was a scene eclipsing the Law Battles held once in three years. After all, very few top class figures came to watch the Law Battles, yet all who came that very day consisted of top-class figures from all over the Barren State.


    It was said that Ye Futian from Crouching Dragon Mountain had departed with Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong, serving as his escort, heading for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Liu Chan stood before the ancient hall in Holy Sage Pavilion and asked, "Who is here today?"


    "Everyone in the top ten on the Barren Sky Ranking, other than the Lord of Ice Temple, will probably be here today," Sage Tianxing answered. All of the top ten figures were either already inside the Holy Zhi Palace, or they were to be found among the crowd outside.


    "Things are really bustling." Liu Chan looked up at the sky. The top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking gathering about because Ye Futian was showing up at the Holy Zhi Palace. There was hardly any time in history where one Noble Plane youth had such an influence.


    A figure flashed before them and landed right before Liu Chan. "Assistant Palace Lord." The messenger bowed.


    "What is the matter?" Liu Chan asked.


    "People from Ice Temple are here," the messenger said, and Liu Chan became dumbfounded.


    "There are also figures from all top forces, including Monk Qingdeng, who does not care for mortal world affairs. It is unknown, however, why they are all here," the messenger bowed and said.


    Liu Chan went silent. So all the top figures will indeed gather here today?

 712 What is Talen

    Hua Jieyu saw Ye Futian going further and further away, tears in her eyes. She then turned around to the Black Wind Condor and said, "Are you going to get in my way too?"


    The bird lowered its head and said, "I''m sorry, boss'' orders."


    "So are you saying it''s alright for you to ignore mine instead?" Hua Jieyu stared at the bird coldly.


    The Black Wind Condor shook its head. The bird was stuck in the middle of nowhere. It did not dare go against his master''s orders, yet it dared not offend his master''s girl. It was a pitiful scene to look at. However, it knew that its master did all that for the sake of his girl, and so it chose to keep getting in her way.


    Seeing how the Black Wind Condor insisted on not letting her pass, Hua Jieyu turned her eyes faraway and asked softly, "Hey, am I useless and a good for nothing?"


    The Black Wind Condor shook its head. It too had such a feeling when it was around its master. However, the bird progressed far faster than any other demonic beast. It had now comprehended rules of the wind. Just so long as its master kept progressing, it would benefit from it as well.


    "Take me with you. I''ll just watch everything from afar," Hua Jieyu said while staring at the bird. The Black Wind Condor turned its head, figuring out what to do, before it eventually nodded. If its master were to punish it for it, then so be it, it thought.


    Ye Futian and the others continued moving forward. Zhuge Mingyue then said, "You know what Jieyu''s thoughts are. Why did you need to go that far?"


    "Second Sister, the very reason Third Brother left that breakup letter behind was so that you didn''t end up getting into all this. But you were stubborn enough to refuse, and he had to go all the way up to Crouching Dragon Mountain because of it. Although I know doing this would change nothing, this trip is an extremely perilous one, and I''m still rather reluctant," Ye Futian said.


    "I get it." Zhuge Mingyue ruffled Ye Futian''s hair. They were still a young couple in their twenties. If Ye Futian was reluctant to let her go, Hua Jieyu would have been just as reluctant.


    In actuality, however, what he did back changed nothing, and Zhuge Mingyue could only sigh over what happened.


    The fate shared by both siblings in training was uncannily similar.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was within sight after passing one floating island after another. Ye Futian and the others finally saw the grand, regal core island. It was the place where he fought in the Law Battles all those years ago. Mighty ones from all corners were there, and they seemed to be waiting for something��him.


    Countless eyes turned in Ye Futian''s direction. Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong escorted him. Despite knowing that he would have ended up dead, the young man in his twenties insisted on making the trip nonetheless.


    A noble standing in front of all the top class figures from all over Barren State.


    Liu Chan, Sage Tianxing, and all the others were standing at the sky stairwell of the palace as they cast their gaze on Ye Futian. The one who had been a student of the Holy Zhi Palace, a young man with peerless talents who ranked number one on Law Rank and was allowed entrance to the Sage Hall. However, it was indeed a pity that it all came to this.


    "Futian," someone shouted. Ye Futian turned head at the voice and saw Chen Yuan, Mu Chuan, Long Ao, and Gu Yunxi''s father all standing there. Ye Futian looked at them and said, "Headmaster, what are you doing here?"


    "Just to have a look," Chen Yuan smiled and said.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes to the others. Many came that day. Huang Xi of the Sovereign family, You Chi of Alchemy City, Xu Shang of Tingxue House, and he heard that there were many from all over the Barren State showing up at the palace just so that he would have a better chance at what he intended to do. He had never anticipated the ones ranked high on the Barren State to come. He felt rather remorseful at the moment. He, a noble, making all those top-class figures ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking wait at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Of course, other than those on the Barren Sky Ranking who were friendly with him, there were also those who were practically his enemies, such as Yan Wuji of Sword Saint Villa, the Godly Spear of Nantian of Nantian House, Di Kai of Emperor family, the leader of Sacred Fire Sect and the others. With the mighty ones of the Holy Zhi Palace and the group from Zhisheng Cliffs considered, even if they were to be many of his seniors willing to help him, it still fell rather short.


    "Futain!" Yet another shouted his name. He turned his eyes in another direction and saw a stout, tanned figure who bared his torso walking out from the palace. It was none other than his teacher, Sage Douzhan.


    "Teacher," Ye Futian shouted.


    "Douzhan, get back here." Liu Chan could not help but stand out and intervene. Things were as complicated as they possibly could have been. Is Sage Douzhan trying to get himself on Ye Futian''s side, standing out like this? If he were to join the fray as a Lord of Battle Sage Palace, what would his stance even mean in all of this?


    "The Holy Zhi Palace does not interfere with squabbles outside and is only there to pass on the teachings of old. Today, I''m standing here as Ye Futian''s teacher, not as Lord of Battle Sage Palace," Sage Douzhan replied. It was him who allowed Ye Futian to head for the Zhuge family. Ye Futian stopped the engagement, yet he had also planted the seeds of what was happening on this very day. It had been something that Sage Douzhan had totally unexpected.


    However, per his words, as he let Ye Futian off that day despite knowing well that the Holy Zhi Palace was doing it all for the sake of having a saint emerge, they were not doing it the right way. His student did nothing wrong, and as such, he stood with the side that was doing the right thing.


    Liu Chan''s expression turned awfully ugly. Kong Yao, who was standing with those from Zhisheng Cliffs, simply smirked coldly. Very good indeed. He wanted to see how many would stand against Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "Futian, why are you here at the Holy Zhi Palace today?" Sage Douzhan asked.


    "I''m here to make things right," Ye Futian answered.


    "How?" Sage Douzhan asked.


    "I interfered in the engagement between Bai Luli and my Second Sister back at Crouching Dragon Mountain, and I got expelled for it. It was the will of the Holy Zhi Palace to have Bai Luli become a saint. As such, everything the Holy Zhi Palace did was to assist Bai Luli, and I acknowledge that." Ye Futian then elaborated further, looking at Liu Chan, "Third Brother once said that it was easy to prove what happened back in Yu State, whether it was my Third Brother or Zhan Xiao who killed all those sages. I believe the palace knew deep down. As such, why is the Palace standing on the side of Zhisheng Cliffs and taking my Third Brother? Why do they want to take me, an expelled student of the Holy Zhi Palace?"


    "Is there any meaning to saying all this?" Liu Chan looked at Ye Futian.


    There was nothing words were able to able to do anymore.


    "Of course." Ye Futian looked at Liu Chan and said, "I want to hear from the Assistant Palace Lord personally, whether the Holy Zhi Palace had been doing the right thing all this while."


    "Your Third Brother said the same thing when he came to the Holy Zhi Palace. However, I''m free of guilt, and so is the palace as a whole." Liu Chan looked at Ye Futian. He admired Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian, but it was one thing to admire and another thing altogether to say who was right or wrong. He did not think he had done anything wrong. It was simply that fate had been cruel to all of them.


    "Free of guilt, eh?" Ye Futian smiled. "Nice for you to say that you are free of guilt. The very reason why you insist so adamantly on the righteousness of your actions was because of Bai Luli''s potential for sainthood. What you have been doing was all for his sake��to have a saint among us��and as such, you found yourself free of guilt. In that case, I have one last request. If you still feel yourself to be free of guilt, I will then surrender myself to whatever is installed for me. If you still remember the beliefs you''ve held on to so adamantly, I''d then like to see if you''d really see it through."


    "And what would that be?" Liu Chan looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "The expelled student of the Holy Zhi Palace is here to challenge Bai Luli." Ye Futian uttered every single word clearly and slowly. Many who were present felt their eyes frozen in place. Not even the top-class figures ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking were able to react sensibly as they looked at Ye Futian.


    So this was what Zhuge Qingfeng was talking about when he said Ye Futian wanted to prove something? To challenge Bai Luli But Ye Futian is just a noble. How is he going to do that? Bai Luli''s unparalleled talents among his peers aside, his Upper-Level Sage Plane is already something that Ye Futian is unable to surpass.


    This is just ridiculous.


    Even the big shots who admired Ye Futian''s talents felt that he was spewing nonsense.


    The City Lord of White Cloud City glared at Ye Futian coldly. Him, challenging my son, Bai Luli? What kind of a joke is this?


    Sage Douzhan too looked at Ye Futian, feeling rather puzzled.


    "This is a joke, isn''t it?" Sage Tianxing said coldly, "Ye Futian, is there any meaning to all of this?"


    Challenge Bai Luli? Liu Chan too looked at Ye Futian without saying anything. That request was indeed a ridiculous one.


    "Do you all find it funny?" Ye Futian turned to address those who were present and added, "If I was able to kill Zhan Xiao, why can''t I challenge Bai Luli?"


    Zhan Xiao was of the same plane as Bai Luli.


    Countless eyes stared at him as he finished talking.


    Did Ye Futian just say that he was the one who killed Zhan Xiao?


    "You said it was you who killed Zhan Xiao?" Liu Chan stared at Ye Futian.


    "Indeed," Ye Futian said. "Third Brother wanted to save me, so he knocked me ou, wanting to have me leave the Barren State. He then came to the Holy Zhi Palace alone. I was the one killed Zhan Xiao."


    "So that was what happened?" Zhuge Qingfeng and Zhuge Mingyue felt rather relieved as they finally knew what actually happened.


    The great figures in the air felt rather shocked, yet Ye Futian did not seem like he was lying. But then again, how was this possible?


    "Big words you spew there," Kong Yao said coldly. Zhan Xiao was a Son of Zhisheng Cliffs and there was no way he could have been killed by Ye Futian, a noble. It was an utter insult to Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Ye Futian looked up at Kong Yao before rising up slowly. He then melded his spiritual will with his surroundings. A formless hurricane whipped around violently in this air.


    "Wind," Ye Futian uttered a word. The ferocious gale then went about rampaging in the air like a dragon.


    "Power of rules." Many found their jaws agape.


    "Fire," Ye Futian uttered yet another word. Power of rules of fire was unleashed, turning the air around scorching hot.


    "Wha..." Many shivered deep down.


    "Thunder," Ye Futian uttered yet another word, bringing about rules of Lightning to work.


    Ye Futian''s body was still seen rising up. Stars shone and glittered, then wrapped around his body.


    "Rules of the stars," Ye Futian continued. Many felt their hearts about to pop out of their chests as they stared at Ye Futian.


    A Grade One Noble brought many power of rules to bear. Furthermore, all of them were matured.


    "Space. Freeze," Ye Futian said yet again, and all of the great figures felt the power of space rules bore upon them, surprisingly feeling their bodies stiffen in the air. The entire space felt as if everything was about to freeze.


    That is the rules of space!


    "This..." Their hearts pumped excitedly. All of the great figures on the Barren Sky Ranking felt riled up inside over someone their junior unleashing their powers. It was not enough to just unleash the power of rules of respective elements. Ye Futian had even gone on to develop comprehension of rules of stars and the extremely high rules of space.


    "Number one below the Saint Plane of Zhisheng Cliffs." Ye Futian turned his eyes at Kong Yao and said coldly, "Do you know anything about talent whatsoever?"

 711 Words that Hur

    While Liu Chan had anticipated the day to be one that would have caught the attention of many, he never expected just about all of the absolute top-class figures to be found in the Barren State to show. Even the Ice Temple had someone coming to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Of course, Liu Chan knew that majority came only to see what was about to happen. While their stances and attitudes were unknown, he knew for sure that the ones who would actually get involved were but a handful.


    Sage Wanxiang was performing divination in Wanxiang Pavilion. Stars showered from above as he spun the star wheel around. He saw the grand Holy Zhi Palace caught in the middle of a storm, dark omens of devastating trouble shone and dark clouds overshadow the place. It seemed that the storm would soon be upon them, and dawn was nowhere to be found.


    "Someone come here," Sage Wanxiang shouted. One of his students walked and felt completely shaken by the image they saw. "Teacher, this is?"


    "Go inform the Assistant Palace Lord that the ordeal of the Holy Zhi Palace is upon us." Sage Wanxiang then added, "I need time to observe the stars, to wait for a sign to break the ordeal."


    The one who walked in had a very serious look on their face. Is Ye Futian''s arrival at the Holy Zhi Palace the ordeal spoken in the divination? How is this happening? What is going to happen today?


    "Yes, teacher." They nodded and left to inform Liu Chan of Holy Sage Pavilion. Liu Chan was just as shocked hearing Sage Wanxiang''s words. He was, however, puzzled as to where this ordeal was to come from.


    Nothing was heard from the forces of Zhisheng Cliffs. The great force that hailed from Yu State probably had ample preparations.


    What do we need to do before they will leave the Barren State alone? I never expected Sage Wanxiang to actually need to observe the stars like this. It is anyone''s guess how fearsome the signs are this time. Is a storm about to hit the Barren State today after such a long time of peace?


    Liu Chan''s eyes were adamant. Whatever was to happen, he would be there to help the Holy Zhi Palace survive the ordeal, for it was his mission to do so.


    In the Palace where the mighty ones of Zhisheng Cliffs were housed, Kong Yao turned his eyes to the person before him and said, "I heard Ye Futian is on his way here."


    "Not just Ye Futian. Many of the top class figures from all over the Barren State will also be here today. They may be quite a lot who want to get involved in this," the person before him said.


    Kong Yao remained calm, however, with a tinge of sarcasm on his face.


    So things turned out like this? he thought. Very well, time to clean everything up in the Holy Zhi Palace once and for all. Without a saint in the Barren State for so many years, they seem to have forgotten what respect and fear are. Well then, it''s time for the forces in the Barren State to undergo a reshuffling. This place of Orthodoxy of Emperor Xia will be taken away sooner or later. All it needs for that to come true is simply a chance.


    Kong Yao headed for a prison which was specifically built for Gu Dongliu, locking the man within.


    "Your little brother is here," Kong Yao said, looking at Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu looked at Kong Yao and sighed to himself. So our Little Brother is still here in Barren State?


    "Not just Ye Futian. Zhuge Qingfeng, Yuan Hong, and many others will come too. You may want to shoulder everything yourself, but it seems like there are many out there who actually care about you." Kong Yao smirked sarcastically. "It''s fine how things turn out, as I want to see who dares to stand up." He lifted his head and little and said, "Everyone, prepare to get a move on." Many silhouettes arrived by air as soon as he finished. All of them were mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs. Two walked to Kong Yao''s side. Their bearing was imposing, which meant that they were incredibly fearsome people.


    "Senior Kong. I heard that there are many ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking here today?" someone at his side said sarcastically. The tone was such that it seemed that the person did not care about it at all.


    "Indeed." Kong Yao nodded.


    "It''s been quite a while since I last went tempering my skills in martial arts with top-class sages." An elder beside him said in an extremely cold manner, "If someone dares move against Zhisheng Cliffs, I''m not going to hold back. I assume you won''t have any opinions about that?"


    "None at all. Anyone who dares meddle in this, there will be no mercy for them," Kong Yao said in an equally cold manner.


    "Very well then." The elder nodded. "I heard that things didn''t go so well for you when you were here last. Your opponent seemed to have used divine ritual implements. I guess this time you will be able to go at them with full force."


    "It''s a good thing to have so many mighty ones throughout the Barren State gathering here today. We''ll be able to teach them a lesson in fear and respect." Kong Yao said with a tinge of murderous intent in his eyes, "Let''s go."


    The group left as soon as he finished his words.


    Gu Dongliu sighed as he watched them leave. The trouble did not end up quelled, and it seemed that the storm was inevitable. He had been listening to the chatter in Kong Yao''s group for the past few days and knew that they brought quite a line-up this time. Zhisheng Cliffs wanted more than revenge for Zhan Xiao; they wanted to a show of force in the Barren State.


    With a Son of Zhisheng Cliffs killed in the Barren State, all the other states of the nine states would have probably been looking at how events unfolded in the Barren State.


    ...


    The outskirts of Holy Zhi Palace were filled with people. There were mighty ones to be found as far as the eye was able to see. Mighty ones from everywhere had arrived.


    Liu Chan and Sage Tianxing went outside the palace and laid their eyes on all those who came.


    Liu Chan turned his eyes to one direction, finding a group of a woman carrying a carriage made of ice. A lithe, alluring woman was seen sitting in that pure, flawless carriage, yet no one dared intrude the construct with their spiritual powers.


    "Lord Yun, you are here," Liu Chan greeted.


    "Liu Chan, it has been a while." A calm voice was heard from within the carriage. Many turned their eyes in her direction. She is indeed here. The most powerful woman in all of the Barren State, and the one who ranked second on the Barren Sky Ranking, just one place beneath the Lord of the entire Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Shouldn''t you be training within the Ice Temple, Lord Yun? What brings you here?" Liu Chan then added, "I assume you are here to see what is about to happen to the Holy Zhi Palace?"


    "My daughter was training in the Holy Zhi Palace for some years and she had seen quite a lot of progress in her training. As such, I''m here today to give my gratitude to the Holy Zhi Palace," the woman in the carriage said. Liu Chan was caught off-guard. The daughter of the Lord of Ice Temple training in the Holy Zhi Palace? It was something that he did not even know about.


    "It is our honor to have your daughter train in the palace, Lord Yun," Liu Chan replied politely. The woman before him was ranked second on the Barren Sky Ranking and, with his senior currently recuperating from his injuries, it would have made her the most powerful being in all of the Barren State.


    "Yun Shuisheng?" Sage Daozang felt something was off. One of his personal students was named Yun Shuisheng. They surname was Yun. However, people usually took their father''s surname, but it was hardly surprising for the daughter of the Lord of the Ice Temple to take her mother''s surname instead. While there were many students of excellent caliber in the Holy Zhi Palace, few fit the assumed criteria befitting the princess of Ice Temple''s caliber. With many among those that came to mind having a clear background, the only one who was left was none other than Yun Shuisheng.


    "Teacher, it''s me," a girl bowed in the Holy Zhi Palace and said. "Please forgive me for having hidden my true identity from you."


    "It doesn''t matter. The Holy Zhi Palace hardly takes the birth of those to be trained into consideration when picking students. Or rather, now that you''ve made your identity as the princess of Ice Temple clear, it''s quite flattering to have me train someone like you." Sage Daozang said with a smile, then added, "But, I don''t think your mother, Lord Yun, is coming just to see you."


    Sage Daozang had long had doubts about all that. The timing at which Lord Yun showed up was too convenient. To his knowledge, Yun Shuisheng and Ye Futian shared a rather amicable relationship, and they had both went to Alchemy City before.


    "I heard from Shuisheng that one of her friends has top-class talents and caliber, one who defeated Qin Zhong, who was known in Zhisheng Cliffs to possess the potential for sainthood. Such a person, however, was expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace and is to be taken by the palace as a present for Zhisheng Cliffs. I heard that he would show in the Holy Zhi Palace today, and so here I am out of curiosity," Lord Yun elaborated. Liu Chan and Sage Daozang both looked in the direction of the carriage. It never came to them that Yun Shuisheng actually called the Lord of Ice Temple here.


    "I assume you are all here out of curiosity, then?" Liu Chan looked at the others and asked.


    No one answered. It was apparent that all who showed today had their own attitude and stance on things.


    Seeing how he did not get any answer from the crowd. Liu Chan smirked coldly and said, "Well then, I look forward to how things will turn out."


    He stood on top of the Holy Zhi Palace and looked far away. Wanxiang said today would be the day when the Ordeal of the Holy Zhi Palace comes. With so many mighty ones from all over the Barren State here, I wonder what form this ordeal will take indeed.


    Zhuge Qingfeng, Yuan Hong, and Ye Futian were seen arriving outside of Thousand Holy Islands. Zhuge Mingyue and Hua Jieyu came as well. Ye Futian stopped and scanned the many island cities beneath him. He would have reached the grounds of the palace itself a little further from where he was then. If he were to go any further, the possibility of him returning would be very slim.


    "This is far enough. Jieyu, you can head back now," Ye Futian turned around and said to Hua Jieyu all of a sudden.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes were frozen. She then went on to stare at him with very cold eyes. He said he would let her go with him.


    "You promised me." She remained staring at Ye Futian, her eyes filled with determination.


    "I did what?" Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu and said, "Don''t you know that I''m better with words and flirting than anything else? That promise was nothing."


    Hua Jieyu remained staring at him without saying anything.


    Ye Futian started looking frustrated and said, "You have any idea how annoying you are? Loulan Xue is indeed the better girl, obedient and knows how to take care of others and all. You''re just a stubborn bull in comparison."


    Hua Jieyu remained staring at him.


    "Will you just leave?" Ye Futian''s tone turned serious.


    "No way," Hua Jieyu answered.


    "How can you be so selfish?" Ye Futian''s tone became very irritated. "That day in Taihang Mountain, you cared only about yourself and you had Third Brother go to face everything himself. So what are you doing here today? You''re being awful, tagging along. You know that? Just what are you doing here? To show how noble your love is? What about your folks? What about them, huh?"


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes were fixed on him as they went slightly red. She felt very guilty of what happened at Taihang Mountain. She was being selfish. She indeed betrayed Third Brother and Second Sister just so he was able to live. She was able to even betray her parents now.


    But am I doing this just to show how noble my love is?


    "Alright, I''ll tell you the truth, having come so far and all. You know well what kind of a person I am. I''m a ladies'' man. Unless you like fighting with other girls for my favor, I can tell you this much: I''ve been with quite a number of girls all this while, and I''m now getting increasingly sick of you. You''re good for nothing, but still, I don''t want to drag you into this mess. Stop following me." Ye Futian then said dismissively, "All that about you being my destiny and whatnot, I say that to girls all the time, and anyone who actually believes that nonsense is stupid."


    He then went on without her!

 713 Breaking the Seal

    Kong Yao, ninth on the Nine States'' Sage Ranking, the number one person under the Saint Plane in Zhisheng Cliffs. He had seen countless talents, the Zhisheng Cliffs'' generations of nine Sons were all people with outstanding potential. However, at this moment, in the declining Barren State, a Noble was pointing at him and asking whether he knew what potential was. However, he had no comeback.


    He had indeed never seen such talent.


    To comprehend such complete rule power as a Grade One Noble, a prodigy could do it. To comprehend a strong and complete rule power needed an elite prodigy like Qin Zhong who had the potential to become a Saint. However, even many Sage Plane cultivators could not comprehend spatial rule power, not to mention comprehending complete spatial rule power as a Noble.


    Today, he had been exposed to something new. He had met a genius in the Barren State. What a pity. The same with Gu Dongliu. If he had met them earlier, he could have inducted them into the Zhisheng Cliffs. However, they were now enemies.


    He was thinking, what is the Head Saint''s intention for wanting to capture them alive? Should I disable their powers first to prevent any potential issues?


    Ye Futian was so impudent in front of him. Evidently, he hated him very much. Moreover, the ties between the two parties could not be mitigated. Ye Futian also understood that was why he dared to be so insolent. Kong Yao had wanted to touch the people from Crouching Dragon Mountain, so there was no difference between offending him or not. Even if he was not insolent, Kong Yao would not let him off either.


    "Liu Chan, will you do it or will the Zhisheng Cliffs have to?" Kong Yao asked coldly.


    Liu Chan''s heart clenched. At that moment, he was extremely troubled. He had expelled Ye Futian personally. Now, outside the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian had shown his potential to the entire Barren State. As a Grade One Noble, he had comprehended multiple rule powers as well as the starry laws and spatial rule power. He had managed to do what countless Sage Plane figures had failed to.


    He wanted to prove that he was more outstanding than Bai Luli. In a sense, he had done it, although Bai Luli had also comprehended complete rule power as a Grade One Noble, the spatial rule power was enough to wipe out all his accomplishments.


    Had he been wrong?


    Gu Dongliu had questioned him, Ye Futian had questioned him. Now, doubts appeared in his mind.


    "Liu Chan, I want to see the battle between the two most outstanding teens in the Barren State. Since Ye Futian wants to challenge Bai Luli, the Palace should grant him this wish," the Sovereign Family''s Huang Xi also chipped in. Although Ye Futian had revealed such exceptional potential, it was theoretically impossible for him to defeat Bai Luli. However, since he had said that he was the one who killed Zhan Xiao, this meant that Ye Futian still had a trump card up his sleeve.


    What was this trump card of his?


    "Liu Chan, the Holy Zhi Palace claims to have a single Will for the Barren State to have a Saint. Now, there is a person with the potential to become a Saint in front of you. I want to see if the Palace will practice what they preach," You Chi said coolly. They were already at a point where Ye Futian''s potential was undisputed. If Qin Zhong and Bai Luli could do it, Ye Futian should also be able to.


    A glint appeared in Kong Yao''s eyes. These people had all come today to attempt to sway the Holy Zhi Palace? They were courting death.


    "Take them down. Kill whoever attempts to stop us," Kong Yao declared abruptly in an overbearing yet ruthless tone. His words weighed down on everyone as the experts from Zhisheng Cliffs stepped forward.


    Liu Chan raised his head and looked in the direction of Zhisheng Cliffs. He naturally knew how strong the Zhisheng Cliffs'' experts were. After Zhan Xiao''s death, there were people who had returned to the Zhisheng Cliffs to report the matter. Kong Yao did not go back, but afterward, in the group of experts that had come from the Zhisheng Cliffs, two of them were experts on the Sage Ranking.


    There were 81 Sages on the Nine States'' Sage Ranking. Among them, eight were from the Yu State and the Zhisheng Cliffs had sent three here. Moreover, Kong Yao had previously been at a disadvantage because of Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong''s Saint ritual implements, and one of their nine Warriors, Zhan Xiao, had died in the Barren State. The Zhisheng Cliffs would definitely return prepared.


    This time, Kong Yao had entered the Palace with an even more dominant might and was more confident. Zhuge Qingfeng, Yuan Hong and Sage Douzhan all around Ye Futian, shielding him in the middle.


    The Zhisheng Cliffs'' experts traveled through the air with an astonishing air of suppression. The two at the front were an elder and a teen who looked surprisingly young but had an extremely sharp aura.


    "These two are on the Sage and Saint Ranking," Sage Douzhan said with a somber expression.


    Three experts on the Sage Ranking had come today. From his knowledge, the younger archmage, Ge Feng, was the number one Warrior in the Zhisheng Cliffs'' previous generation. Now, he was the disciple of the Zhisheng Cliffs'' Saint. Ge Feng was one of the successors to the Zhisheng Cliffs who had the chance to become a Saint. He had a terrifying battle ability.


    The elder was also a terrifying figure. The rule power he excelled in was ash. It was an extremely strong rule power created by combining flame rule power and transmutation. His name was Nie Yan and he killed people indiscreetly. Many people died in his hands in every battle of the Divine Path.


    "An expert on the Barren Sky Ranking?" Nie Yan looked at Zhuge Qingfeng and commented. Sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking, would he be able to be ranked last on the Sage Ranking?


    The Nine States'' Sage and Saint Ranking had 81 Sages. Apart from the Barren State, the other eight states had approximately ten Sages each who could enter the ranking. That meant that even the last on the Sage Ranking was one of the top ten in their state. However, the Barren State did not have a Saint and was ranked last in the Nine States. Sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking was probably somewhere around the end of the Sage Ranking.


    Nie Yan''s eyes suddenly turned dark red. In an instant, the Spiritual Qi in the vast area became illusory. Under the influence of his eyes, Ye Futian had a feeling like his body would be burned to ashes. Rule power was omnipresent. With his current cultivation level, he could not withstand a rule power attack by an elite Sage Plane expert.


    Zhuge Qingfeng had already taken out his ritual implement. The eight trigrams matrix shone in the area, surrounding Ye Futian within it as well.


    Nie Yan looked at Zhuge Qingfeng, strands of dark red aura flowing in the area, enveloping the eight trigrams matrix. They then assaulted all of Zhuge Qingfeng''s phantoms. At the same time, a silver three-pronged halberd appeared in Ge Feng''s hands. A stunning light emitted from it, tearing through the air.


    Hum. Ge Feng rushed down, thrusting his three-pronged halberd at the eight trigrams matrix. Immediately, the silver light swooped towards the clouds. Thunder struck down from the heavens onto the three-pronged halberd. In that moment, rays of destructive silver light appeared in the area like a Thunder Raid.


    "Be careful!" many people shouted as they dodged the rays.


    "Disciples, return to the Palace!" Liu Chan shouted. Thunderous sounds echoed as a shocking sight appeared. The ground outside the Palace split apart and cracks appeared. The land had been torn apart. Cracks were also appearing in the eight trigrams matrix.


    "Saint-level ritual implement," many people looked at the three-pronged halberd in Ge Feng''s hands and commented. Even the Barren State had multiple Saint-level ritual implements; Yu State would naturally have them too. However, Zhisheng Cliffs'' Saint-level ritual implements were all controlled by Saints. Those under the Saint Plane were not worthy of having Saint ritual implements and Zhisheng Cliffs would only loan them out under special circumstances, such as today.


    Crash. Yuan Hong stepped forward, the Polearm of Divine Destruction smashing downward.


    In the surroundings, the Zhisheng Cliffs'' experts headed towards Ye Futian. Sage Douzhan''s body suddenly became even more burly as he released his Douzhan Body. Horrifying rays penetrated his body and in an instant, an exceedingly terrifying force erupted from his body. Stepping forward, his Douzhan Body crushed down like a battle god and the Zhisheng Cliffs'' experts immediately retreated.


    "Douzhan." Liu Chan looked at Sage Douzhan. Wanxiang had predicted that the Palace would meet a calamity today. Douzhan going into battle with Zhisheng Cliffs would undoubtedly put the Palace in peril.


    "Liu Chan, since you can''t even control the Palace''s people, I will help you do it," Kong Yao said coldly and stepped forward as well. With just one step, a terrifying giant elephant appeared in the skies, crushing down on everything. Sage Douzhan''s fists flew across the air and a golden glowing fist caused the giant elephant to implode.


    "Humph." Kong Yao humphed coldly and looked at Ye Futian who was protected by Douzhan. He said coldly, "I said that whoever dares to stop Zhisheng Cliffs will be killed. What makes you think that you can protect him?" As his voice landed, he stepped forward. Multiple giant elephants crushed down on them and Sage Douzhan''s body emitted brilliant light, his Douzhan Body keeping them at bay.


    "Master." Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Sage Douzhan, then turned to look at Liu Chan with a frigid expression, saying, "Is this the path that you have insisted on following?"


    Liu Chan fell silent.


    At that moment, the other experts from the Zhisheng Cliffs walked towards Ye Futian, releasing their rule power.


    "Little Brother." A voice sounded and Ye Futian was stunned. He then lowered his head and looked in the direction of the voice. He saw a person dressed in simple clothing walking towards him. As he saw the figure, Ye Futian lowered his head in disappointment. Even Big Brother came? Even he had been implicated in this turmoil.


    "Big Brother," Ye Futian called out to him.


    "Brother." Zhuge Mingyue saw the figure and her gaze was also fixed on him. She had not seen her Big Brother for many years, but he was still the same as before��calm, simple, so ordinary yet extraordinary.


    Many people looked at the figure who had appeared. Zhuge Mingyue and Ye Futian''s Brother? Another person from the Eastern Barren Territory. But what difference would he make?


    "The Holy Zhi Palace has already given the order to arrest you and Dongliu, why do you even harbor any hopes for them?" The Sword Saint looked at Ye Futian and continued saying, "What holy land is this? What a disgrace to its reputation."


    Ye Futian fell silent. This situation could only be resolved by the Palace, so he still had hopes for it. However, even after he had revealed his potential, he was not even given the chance to prove himself.


    "Big Brother, why did you come?" Ye Futian sighed.


    "The Cottage''s disciples are being bullied and Master is not around. As the Big Brother, how could I not show up?" The Sword Saint smiled and continued, "Even if we have to fight to the death, I should be the first." As he said that, he took out the broadsword on his back. Broadsword Will rushed into the broadsword and broke its seal. In an instant, terrifying dark energy devoured the Sword Saint''s body, engulfing every part of his body!

 714 Splintered Barren State

    A terrifying dark aura washed all over the place at the very next moment. Dark flowing light filled the space with the Sword Saint at the center, every streak of light containing fearsome blade will.


    "What kind of ritual implement is this?" Everyone''s eyes froze as they stared at the blade in the Sword Saint''s hand.


    The blade seemed to have forbidden powers. These powers were being unraveled bit by bit at that very moment. The power emanating from the blade rushed into every corner of the Sword Saint''s body, filling up his blood and even his soul.


    The Sword Saint felt as if his body was being torn apart. Every single part of his body was in indescribably great pain. It was as if the streaks of blade will coursed throughout his body with impunity, threatening to cut him to pieces. The pain was more than enough to crush someone''s will before killing them.


    Dark whirlpool seemed to have formed from his eyes. At that very instant, the Sword Saint felt the power within the blade and that it was no longer just a weapon forged from power of rules.


    The blade had a soul.


    The Sword Saint seemed to see many demonic projections within the blade. The demonic spirits manifested as terrifying devouring whirlpool. The dark aura emanating from the blade connected the heavens and the earth, causing boundless power to flow in reverse, devoured by the darkness of the demonic blade. The Sword Saint felt as if he was on the verge of being devoured by the power of that very blade.


    Regardless of how powerful a ritual implement was, it was limited by the one using it. He was only at the level of a magi, which meant that even if he was given an incredibly formidable ritual implement, he would still have had a hard time bringing out its full power due to the limitations of his own powers.


    Yet, when the seal on the blade was unraveled, the Sword Saint felt as if the blade had been crafted by the grey-robed figure just for him. The weapon matched well with the arts he trained in.


    "Just what kind of a ritual implement is this?" Many watched the scene unfolding before them in shock. The Sword Saint''s plane was not all that high, and in the eyes of many, he was simply walking to his own death. Yet, when the seal on the blade was unraveled, they felt themselves trembling within as if some power that got them feeling fear resided in the blade itself.


    Kong Yao watched how the boundless dark aura in the air looked like vines, devouring the powers of the world in a frenzy. That blade was definitely a very high-level holy item. He had never thought he would have encountered such holy items in the Barren State, and he deemed it crucial to get his hands on it.


    Such saint level ritual implements were only accessible to saints back in Zhisheng Cliffs, but if it was something that he had acquired for himself, he would have been allowed to keep it. If he were to hand it over to Zhisheng Cliffs, he would have been given another one in return, instead of simply adding more to their collection.


    "A cultivator trained in the demonic arts." Kong Yao''s expression was cold as he said, "That is someone who is trained in demonic ways. What is the Holy Zhi Palace doing keeping their hands to themselves with someone like that before us?"


    "Demonic arts." Ye Futian looked at his Eldest Brother. Since when did he train in demonic methods?


    Furthermore, the blade was a very powerful one. It was a demonic blade.


    "Reverse." A cold voice was uttered by the Sword Saint. The Spiritual Qi and power of rules seemed to have flowed in his body in reverse, being devoured by both the human and the weapon. Dark patterns appeared all over his body as if he had been clad in a piece of terrifying dark armor. He held the blade in his hand tight, as if both of them had merged into a single being.


    "Demon." The Sword Saint took one step forward and one demonic shadow after another appeared around him. Dark aura that felt even more terrifying whipped about in the air. He held the demonic blade up high and veins were seen popping all over him.


    Kong Yao''s expression changed and said, "Look out."


    He sensed a sliver of danger.


    "Kill." The blade was brought down as soon as he finished talking. The streaks of dark aura all materialized into curved blades and lashed out.


    "Get away," Kong Yao roared. The Zhisheng Cliffs mighty ones had initially surrounded Ye Futian and the others. When the blade was brought down, everyone was within range of the blade''s attack.


    "Retreat." Everyone from the major forces all backed away and evaded the dark blad as it swooped through the air as they went down.


    Pfftt... Some of the mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs closest to them ended up chopped or bisected at the waist. The power of rules proved utterly inadequate to fend off the move. Anyone who got near ended up dead.


    Blood sprayed all over the air. One sage level figures after another perished right there and then. Countless eyes stared at that very scene and many felt their minds trembling. The move was definitely one wrought by one at the pinnacle of Sage Plane. The Sword Saint melded his blade work and power of rules together with the power of the blade, boosting himself enough to reach the very limit of the Sage Plane.


    Boom! A loud rumble was heard. The blade was brought down the palace far away, with the peak having gashes on it. The sky stairwell was snapped. That was a holy stairwell leading into the Holy Zhi Palace, a symbol that was cut up by that blade flash.


    Kong Yao, Nie Yan, and Ge Feng all glared at the Sword Saint. The guy actually ended up killing so many of us from Zhisheng Cliffs.


    One slash ended up killing over a dozen mighty ones.


    What are we going to tell Zhisheng Cliffs when we return? Kong Yao''s body trembled slightly at the thought. His face turned incredibly grim.


    The two previous battles did not end up achieving their goals but Zhisheng Cliffs did not suffer many losses. However, despite having gathered more mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs, they ended up losing more instead. He deemed such a result simply unacceptable.


    "You all will die," Kong Yao said coldly. A beam of holy light burst before him as soon as he finished. It was a very, very tall Bronze Holy Cauldron, looking regal and elegant as it hovered in the air. Streaks of holy light emanated from it. Everyone in the boundless space felt themselves being suppressed by a very terrifying power of rules, so much so that they found it difficult to breathe and incapable of moving. Ye Futian felt that precisely. At that moment, he felt impossible just to move his leg.


    "Such terrifying holy item." The minds of many trembled. You Chi of Alchemy City stared at that Bronze Holy Cauldron. Alchemy City was unable to produce a holy item of such level. It seemed that Zhisheng Cliffs was determined to get their hands on it by allowing a holy item of such a level to be used by Kong Yao. That made Kong Yao almost invincible at his plane.


    "Open," Kong Yao said. The incredibly huge Bronze Holy Cauldron blew up right there and then before reforming. It turned into armor-like protective gear, flying towards Kong Yao''s body.


    Kong Yao''s arms, legs, chest, and back were all clad in bronze armor in an instant. A boundlessly huge divine elephant Life Spirit appeared. The same type of armor appeared on all four legs of that massive divine elephant.


    "It can transform." Many peoples'' eyes froze in place. Kong Yao stepped on the air below and the divine elephant shadow did the same as well. Incredible power radiated and suppressed all below it. Many were heard grunting and Sage Douzhan''s battle form protected Ye Futian within it as well, preventing him from being affected. That one step vaguely cracked his battle form, a testament of how terrifying Kong Yao was when borrowing the power of holy items. He ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking and was invincible throughout the entire Barren State. Now that he had one such super-powerful holy item with him, there was simply no one below Saint Plane capable of getting his way.


    "I''ll go take care of him," the Sword Saint said calmly, looking at Kong Yao. Terrifying dark light whooshed about him still. His body seemed to have grown quite a bit and took a demon form. The demonic blade was filled with boundless blade will, enlarging it and turned it into a hundred meter-long demonic blade. Streaks of dark aura burst from the demonic blade in a frenzy. The Sword Saint then took to the air, holding the demonic blade high in the air.


    "All who had a part in this will die," Kong Yao said coldly. His murderous intent was brimming as he stepped down. The divine elephant did the same and one divine elephant shadow after another seemed to went on a stampede in the air, stepping down as they went.


    The Sword Saint swung his blade very slowly. Dark aura gathered in a frenzy, enlarging the blade gleaming with overbearing force, lashing out at the air. Sharp noises were heard and the divine elephant shadow was cut open by the demonic blade in the middle. The blade kept cutting at the air and headed for Kong Yao.


    Kong Yao''s expression was ice-cold. A magi level figure actually came at me with a ritual implement?


    His ritual implement was also an extremely fearsome saint level holy item and his plane was far higher than the Sword Saint''s.


    One divine elephant shadow appeared after another and suppressed the air. Kong Yao shouted coldly and he, who was clad in battle armor and combat boots, stepped out, turning into a foot of the divine elephant. The divine elephant right behind him stepped out at the same time. With a deafening rumble, the boot stepped right onto the demonic blade. Terrifying dark blade flashes lashed out in the surroundings in that very instant, and that power that seemed to be bringing everything to its knees landed onto the body of the Sword Saint.


    "Cut!" the Sword Saint shouted and terrible light emanated from the blade, cutting up the rules that came at them from above. The blade and the boot stuck together and rose, with two shadows making for the sky. The blade flash was seen and both stayed away from each other, each taking one side in the air. There were countless outside the Holy Zhi Palace who lifted their heads, looking tiny.


    "Eldest Brother." Ye Futian was filled with boundless worry. Ye Futian knew that his Eldest Brother deliberately went at Kong Yao so as to get him away from the battlefield. Kong Yao was, after all, too powerful. At such a plane, Ye Futian would not have been able to fend off even one step from Kong Yao.


    Nie Yan and Ge Feng moved once again, fighting Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong. Nie Yan said coldly, "Isn''t the Holy Zhi Palace going to do anything?"


    Ye Futian glanced at Liu Chan but he heard You Chi said, "This is a feud between Zhisheng Cliffs and Ye Futian. As the sacred ground of the Barren State, it would be better for the Holy Zhi Palace to stay out of this. Even though they might not be able to carry out what they believe in, there should at least have some line they wouldn''t cross for whatever reasons."


    "Go." Yan Wuji and mighty ones from Nantian House banded together at the moment and prepared to fight Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong together. They were compelled to kill those two right there and then.


    "Di Kai, who gave you the permission to do anything?" You Chi glanced at someone, appearing right before Di Kai of the Emperor family in Alchemy City.


    "This has nothing to do with you," Di Kai said coldly.


    "I''m the City Lord of Alchemy City. If you dare do anything funny, I''d have no choice but to make my move," You Chi said coldly as well.


    Xu Shang got in the way of Yan Wuji at the same time and said plainly, "It is better for the Barren State forces to simply watch from the sidelines."


    "Are you going to become Zhisheng Cliffs'' enemies then?" the City Lord of White Cloud City stepped out and said coldly, deeming them to be on the opposite side of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "No," Di Kai said plainly and added, "but the Zhuge family and Taihang Mountain are both Barren State forces. As such, it is best for other forces from Barren State to stay out of this." He stood across Bai Gu as soon as he finished. They promised to come but they would have never asked for a fight with Zhisheng Cliffs, as doing so would have given Zhisheng Cliffs a reason to wage a war against them.


    But if Ye Futian and the others were able to get in Zhisheng Cliffs'' way, they were not beneath helping out a little. Although Zhisheng Cliffs had saints, all nine states were the Orthodoxy of Emperor Xia, which meant that Zhisheng Cliffs could not simply go about as they pleased. So long as they kept themselves from acting against Zhisheng Cliffs, it would be impossible for that force from Yu State to simply kill all of them despite the fact that they had done nothing!

 715 Civil War in the Holy Zhi Palace

    Bai Gu, City Lord of White Cloud City, was standing against Huang Yi of the Sovereign family. Both figures were ranked fourth and fifth on the Barren Sky Ranking respectively.


    Xu Shang and Yan Wuji both drew their swords and faced each other. Both of them were the most powerful swordsmen found in the Barren State. One practiced the God-slaying Sword while the other practiced the Wuji Sword. Devastating storm of sword aura whipped around both of them.


    Other than that, the Godly Spear of Nantian was also stopped by Monk Qingdeng. Chen Yuan, Mu Chuan, and Long Ao got in the way of the Head of the Sacred Fire Sect. Almost all who came to watch the fight were embroiled in the storm and it seemed as if a war was about to begin.


    Ye Futian, the one standing at the center of the storm, looked at everything around him feeling mixed. They were many seniors and elders who came out to fight for his sake. While none of them actually clashed directly with Zhisheng Cliffs, it was a sentiment he would hold close to his heart.


    There were many who were simply little more than mere acquaintances to him and they had only met several times, so much so that they had almost no relation to speak of. The most that could have been said was that he was acquainted with people of their later generations and he trained with them in the Holy Zhi Palace. That was all far less than adequate to actually have such great figures getting involved with such a mess.


    Liu Chan remained standing where he was as he scanned the place. The fiercest battle was the one taking place in midair. That was a battle between those at their pinnacle; a battle fought between the best below the Sage Plane. Kong Yao controlled the divine elephant and unleashed its rules to the limit with the bronze holy item as support. Every single attack felt as if the earth was about to collapse, being crushed under his feet.


    The Sword Saint''s blade flashes shot through the air, and boundless aura and power of rules seemed to have flowed into his body in reverse. Every single slash felt as if it was capable of cutting the space apart. Liu Chan admitted that even if he were to fight one of them, he would have been suppressed. He had never expected the Eldest Brother of Ye Futian, who came from the Eastern Barren Territory, actually had a demonic blade which was capable of producing such terrifying power.


    He had also never expected the Sovereign family, Alchemy City, Xu Shang, and many others ranked in high places on the Barren Sky Ranking would have actually acted and fought for Ye Futian.


    Liu Chan felt that he was able to vaguely understand such feelings. They were not asking for anything in return. In fact, the risk of getting involved in this battle far exceeded the reward. Zhisheng Cliffs was, after all, a true force with saints, and what they did there was similar to what the Holy Zhi Palace had been doing to protect Bai Luli. Those people went to appreciate a talent so immensely that they were unwilling to let someone with potential for sainthood perish right there and then, which was why they were willing to do anything in their power to fight for Ye Futian. Liu Chan appreciated such an attitude immensely and he was unable to blame those who acted. There was no right or wrong in that particular case. If there was anyone or anything to be blamed, it would have been fate.


    He turned his gaze at Ye Futian, which became incredibly determined in an instant. His eyes glowed with determination to see his way through, as if he had made a resolution.


    "Take him." Liu Chan said coldly.


    "Liu Chan." Sage Douzhan stood by Ye Futian''s side and protected him. He shouted in anger and his large eyes were filled with coldness.


    Liu Chan actually ordered to take Ye Futian down? Isn''t all this enough already? The boy has already shown his extreme genius level of talents and potential for sainthood. Many top-tier figures came to stand by Ye Futian and are willing to fight for him.


    "Douzhan," Liu Chan shouted, "I understand what you''re thinking but what I''m doing here is for the sake of the Holy Zhi Palace and for the Barren State. There is no other choice with things coming to this state. The only thing to do to end all this is to take him. If you still remember who you are, then move aside."


    Many mighty ones ranked on Barren Sky Ranking moved and fought for none other than Ye Futian. Almost all who ranked top ten seemed to have gotten themselves involved in this mess, and Zhisheng Cliffs was adamant to take him. If things were to escalate any further, it would be anyone''s guess what would become of the Barren State and how many forces would be in jeopardy.


    It would have been a catastrophe involving all of the Barren State.


    The end had long been decided and it was up to Liu Chan to end it all.


    "For the Holy Zhi Palace, for Barren State." Sage Douzhan turned his eyes to look at the Holy Zhi Palace and said, "I''ve said it once. The Holy Zhi Palace has rotted and so it should be reconfigured. There is no construction without destruction, yet you remained attached to how the place is now, Liu Chan. If that is the case, there is no hope for the Holy Zhi Palace''s restoration. Having the Barren State be great again is all but a delusion. You have no courage to face it all and yet you want to create a saint. But just think about it, are those legendary figures something you can just simply create?"


    "Douzhan, the Barren State is already a mess and I don''t want to see the Holy Zhi Palace splintering. I don''t want to fight you," Liu Chan said looking at Sage Douzhan.


    "Then I guess I''ll have to see for myself what you''re capable of, Palace Lord." Sage Douzhan took a step forward and his Douzhan body stood regal and tall in the air, looking immensely solemn and imposing.


    "Brother." Sage Jingang looked at that scene and did not know how to feel.


    Liu Chan kept his eyes still at Sage Douzhan and went silent for a moment. He then said, "Tianxing."


    Sage Tianxing walked up just as soon as Liu Chan, a sword appearing in his hand. The sword looked to be the Sword of Punishment, shining bright with Light of Punishment and pulsing with devastating flashes.


    Sage Douzhan looked at the scene and said, very disappointed, "I take it that you even got the holy item prepared then?"


    "Douzhan, you know this sword. It is the Sword of Punishment left behind by the previous saint. He who holds this sword will be in charge of all punishments going on in the Holy Zhi Palace. One could advise with the sword in hand even if the Palace Lord were to turn their back on the will of the Holy Zhi Palace. Are you sure you want to turn your back on the will of the Holy Zhi Palace?" Sage Tianxing said while staring at Sage Douzhan.


    "Teacher, just let it be." Ye Futian was seen with immense disappointment. He had come with the intention of getting even just to get an opportunity to fight Bai Luli, to prove to the Holy Zhi Palace that they were wrong. However, things happened just as he had expected. The Holy Zhi Palace never even gave him a chance. Liu Chan remained fixated at his own will even though he had gone showcasing his talents.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was now determined to take him down. As such, it would have changed nothing even if his Eldest Brother was to participate in all that. Just as Liu Chan put it himself, the end had already been decided and there was simply no need for more unnecessary sacrifices, getting so many seniors and elders into the mess by fighting for his sake. He looked at Liu Chan and felt immensely disappointed. He was disappointed at the place that he used to train in.


    "Futian, this is more than just your fight now. It is now my fight too." Sage Douzhan said, "This concerns my beliefs. I''ve always thought that my ordeal would take place during the path to attaining sainthood, but I never thought it''d happen right inside the Holy Zhi Palace. What irony indeed." Sage Douzhan walked out as soon as he finished. Limitless power burst and dazzling golden lights permeated through his body.


    "Douzhan. You''re a really stubborn one indeed," Sage Tianxing said coldly. He took one step and terrifying power of rules permeated the air around them. He gathered aura with his hand and lashed out with the sword. The Light of Punishment took the form of crosses and hashtags, criss-crossing with each other as they cut the air before them.


    Boom. Sage Douzhan stepped out, and his body seemed divine. His tanned skin burst with dazzling golden light. He stood still when the attack came, letting the light cut on his physical body. However, they left only gashes and were unable to break him open.


    Sage Douzhan, the number one body refiner in the Barren State. His body had been refined to the limits of refinement. He lifted his fist and threw out a punch. An incredibly huge golden arm appeared in the air, lifting its fist high and bringing it down on Sage Tianxing.


    Sage Tianxing''s expression was incredibly cold. Such was the boundless power of Sage Douzhan, lord of Battle Sage Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace, and the one who ranked seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking. His rules were power itself; extreme forces capable of shaking anything and everything.


    Sage Tianxing continued lashing out with his sword, a huge golden net appearing before them, formed by countless Light of Punishment in cross form, covering the incoming overbearing punch and cutting it up right there and then.


    Boundless light glimmered and that huge fist of power was torn apart, yet the extremely overbearing fist will continued its path. Sage Tianxing slashed with his sword. Only then was he able to stop the attack. His body was thrown backward and he looked incredibly distressed. He was still a lord of the Tianxing Pavilion of the Holy Zhi Palace, after all. Yet he was still thrown back in a fight despite being armed with a ritual implement.


    Sage Tianxing held the sword tight and another even more terrifying power burst from his body. His beaming eyes looked at the air above and beams of light appeared. Countless streaks of Light of Punishment appeared and formed the word of punishment, circling around Sage Douzhan''s body and went on to cover everything in it. Sage Tianxing stood in the center of all that, as if he was the master of punishment.


    "Douzhan, stand back. Your physical body might be powerful, but you cannot do anything facing the Sword of Punishment," Sage Tianxing said coldly and sword aura flowed into the countless Light of Punishment around them, ready to unleash terrifying killing moves any time.


    "Tianxing, you might still be in charge of punishments in the Holy Zhi Palace, but you have lost your beliefs," Sage Douzhan said, and even more powerful light burst out of his body. The Seven Star Acupoints went all open from the top of his head to all of his limbs. Dazzling light burst through his body and Sage Douzhan looked as if he was a god of war at the moment. He lifted his arms high, and with a roar, threw both of his fists in the air. Countless huge golden fists filled the air in an instant, lashing out at the void.


    "Kill!" Sage Tianxing yelled coldly. Countless killing beams emanating from the word of punishment clashed with the golden fists punching through the air, exploding violently.


    Sage Tianxing''s body broke out like a bolt of lightning and lashed out with his sword, throwing Punishment of Light, intending to pierce the Douzhan Body.


    "Break!" Sage Tianxing roared and boundless Light of Punishment exploded with that sword move. Sage Douzhan''s body was immensely formidable, yet there was no stopping the sword of a saint.


    Sage Douzhan clenched his fist and his battle form looked like an indestructible god of war. Boundless light shone, breaking up that invincible body bit by bit. The sword arrived as cracks formed. Countless beams of light pierced through yet at the same time, Sage Douzhan''s arm lashed out and his battle form threw out an overbearing punch at Sage Tianxing as well.


    Devastating light whipped around the surrounding air. The battle form exploded and was destroyed. Sage Douzhan''s physical body was pierced and streaks of blood were seen. But at the same time, Sage Tianxing was sent flying with one punch. The bones all over his body were shattered. If Sage Douzhan had not been pulling punches, refraining from going all out, Sage Tianxing would have died.

 716 Trump Card of the Mysterious Being

    Liu Chan and the others from the Holy Zhi Palace were practically frozen at the scene, staring at Sage Douzhan feeling speechless.


    Sage Tianxing was unable to fight anymore and Sage Douzhan''s unbreakable body of the god of war was dripping blood, pierced by power of rules. However, his body remained standing tall and proud.


    Liu Chan apparently never thought Sage Tianxing, who was fighting using divine implements, would have ended up fighting such bloody a bloody battle with Sage Douzhan. The Lord of the number two palace of the Holy Zhi Palace had a body that was indestructible. It suffered attacks from divine implements yet stayed completely intact, and went on to pummel Sage Tianxing until he lost all capacity for combat. If Sage Douzhan had not been going easy on him due to both of them studying in the same place, there would have been no way Sage Tianxing would have survived that one punch Sage Douzhan launched directly on his body.


    "Teacher," Ye Futian said softly. Although Sage Douzhan was his teacher when he was studying in the Holy Zhi Palace, Sage Douzhan actually spent little time teaching, and they both hardly saw each other much. However, Ye Futian remembered Sage Douzhan''s words very clearly when he was teaching, saying that his body was unlike any other, capable of withstanding all manners of attack. But it was not the case with the others, as he was able to bring them down with little more than one strike. Sage Douzhan did what he claimed he was able to do right there and then.


    Ye Futian never thought of roping others in, yet many great figures fought for his sake at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian wondered what they saw in him. Something that his teacher stood against the Holy Zhi Palace for, something that enabled his teacher to fight for him, putting his life on the line.


    "Liu Chan, while this is the first time I''ve seen him, my daughter told me to come see for myself. With so many mighty ones willing to fight for his sake, is that inadequate for you to change your mind?" Lord Yun of the Ice Temple said.


    Liu Chan glanced at her and sighed to himself. The very moment he saw Ye Futian unleash his talent, there was simply no way he would have stayed unmoved. He too questioned himself, but with things having come so far, there was simply no turning back.


    "I have gathered all six palaces and pavilions to discuss you, and we granted you permission to enter the Sage Hall. Even with the incident in Crouching Dragon Mountain, I remained steadfast in the decision to allow you to return to the palace and enter the Sage Hall. The only thing I asked was that you stop interfering with what was happening in Crouching Dragon Mountain. If you had agreed to it, none of this would have happened," Liu Chan looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "To have my Second Sister married to Bai Luli, paving his path to sainthood, yet my Third Brother would be taken away by Zhisheng Cliffs?" Ye Futian looked at Liu Chan and asked, "What did they do wrong?"


    "What did anyone do wrong?" Liu Chan stared at Ye Futian, who returned the gaze. "It''s time for all of this to end. There is no need to bring more people into this." Liu Chan then said, "Daozang, take Douzhan away."


    Sage Daozang chuckled bitterly. Did everything need to come to this?


    "Teacher." A voice was heard far away from the Holy Zhi Palace, Sage Daozang turned around and saw Yun Shuisheng. Phoenix and other students appeared. There was no way he would not have been able to read what they meant with the look in their eyes.


    When Ye Futian was studying in the Holy Zhi Palace, he was once the champion of the Law Rank and many had taken his guidance. Ye Futian''s prestige in his batch had no match. Many of the younger generations were friendly with Ye Futian, and it was due to this that the battle royale happened that day.


    "Daozang, the Sword Palace is not taking part in what is happening today." A voice was heard somewhere. Sage Daozang turned around and found the voice to be coming from the Sword Demon.


    The Sword Demon had defied Liu Chan before. With him making an open announcement that he was not taking part, it also apparently meant that he did not wish to see Sage Daozang taking part in any of this.


    Sage Daozang sighed. There was no right and wrong. Everyone had their own reasons for doing what they did. It was also an undeniable fact that things had reached a point of no return.


    Liu Chan saw Sage Daozang hesitate and he sighed as well. Ye Futian was able to gather many of the best the Barren State had to offer at the palace, had the Lord of the Battle Sage Palace fight for his sake, and caused the Sword Demon and Sage Daozang to turn against his will. It was obvious that everyone was shaken. However, he alone would have never wavered. Even if everyone around him thought him to be a vile criminal, he would shoulder it all. He walked and a terrifying aura descended from above, covering Ye Futian''s body.


    Douzhan stepped forward as well.


    "Douzhan, are you still insisting on doing this?" Liu Chan stared at Sage Douzhan and said, "Are you really going to fight me?"


    "I fight for my beliefs and I don''t need to hesitate. Make your move," Sage Douzhan said and his body remained tall and proud.


    "You are right indeed. If it is a fight for one''s beliefs, there is indeed no need to hesitate." Liu Chan stepped forward and pointed his finger in the air. The finger shot through the air in a split second, as if countless lights of minute particles fell onto Sage Douzhan''s body. He naturally knew what the Assistant Palace Lord, the one who ranked third on the Barren Sky Ranking, was capable of. He shouted and stood still with his body like an ancient god. His skin went red as if burned with fire. Fiery golden sheen burst forth as if his body was some indestructible ritual implement.


    However, Sage Douzhan''s body exploded again and again as the light of the particles hit him. It was as if he was being bombarded by some devastating force. Blood splattered and his body was sent flying backward. He was barely able to stand when he went into the fight, and there was no way he could fight Liu Chan.


    Liu Chan stepped forward, bringing his unparalleled, imposing might to bear.


    "Enough." Ye Futian looked at Liu Chan and said, "I''ll leave with you."


    Liu Chan looked at Ye Futian. Hopefully, everything would end here.


    "You were never wrong, so why do you need to leave with him?" A spectral voice was heard. Liu Chan and Ye Futian both turned around, seeing a pure, flawless figure standing not far behind Ye Futian.


    "Who are you?" Liu Chan cast a glance at the girl who appeared out of nowhere. Her bearing was pure as if she was some mystical being.


    "I''m Hua Qingqing, a student of Monk Qingdeng," the girl said.


    "What are you doing here?" Ye Futian looked at Hua Qingqing and said, "Hua Qingqing, go back to where your teacher is."


    Hua Qingqing shook her head. She turned to look at Liu Chan and said, "I''ve asked my teacher if I should come. He asked me to follow my heart. Palace Lord Liu, your stubbornness for the sake of the palace runs deep and your eyes are no longer still and clear. It seems that your mind has wavered. Why not ask yourself earnestly before you decide on anything?"


    "A student of Qingdeng, right?" Liu Chan looked at Hua Qingqing and said, "I''m not going to do anything to you, seeing that you are one of my juniors. Leave now. I understand my own mind."


    "I''m not wrong in my assessment," Hua Qingqing said insistently.


    Liu Chan glanced at her plainly and said nothing. He turned his eyes at Ye Futian and said, "Everything started because of him, and everything should end with him."


    "Don''t touch him." Yet another cold voice was heard. Liu Chan was stunned as he saw another silhouette around. It was to an extremely beautiful girl. The sight of those two girls standing together made everything else in the world seem to lose color.


    "Hua Jieyu, what is the point of you showing up?" Liu Chan asked coldly.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes remained cold. Ye Futian turned his head around to look at her, letting out a bitter laugh. He and the Black Wind Condor shared spiritual powers and it was only natural for him to know what happened. She had actually sneaked up on the bird.


    "Who asked you to come?" Ye Futian said with a tinge of anger in his voice.


    Hua Jieyu turned her eyes at him and lowered her head for a little bit, seemingly feeling wronged. However, her eyes were incredibly clear, and she said with great determination, "I won''t let them touch you."


    "Stop fooling around and go home," Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu and said.


    "No," Hua Jieyu shook her head and said, "I want to try." She closed her eyes after she finished talking. Terrifying aura emanated from within her body, engulfing her body. Extremely powerful spiritual power was unleashed from the middle of her brow, which seemed to be something unshackled as her spiritual will was being encroached. A shadow seemed to begin to form from her body. It all seemed as if there was another soul resting within Hua Jieyu''s body.


    At that very moment, Hua Jieyu recalled that scene back in Zhaixing House.


    Back in Zhaixing House that day, she saw a mysterious figure asking if she feared death.


    She said yes.


    For him? There was nothing to fear.


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian went pale as he looked at the changes on Hua Jieyu''s body. What is happening? What is going on? Is there something wrong with Jieyu?


    Liu Chan''s pupils were dilated as he stared at the changes on Hua Jieyu''s body. The illusory shadow began to take tangible shape. Hua Jieyu''s hair was flapping around in rage as another face began to take over her own. It was a face that was cold as a witch''s, exuding bone-chilling frost like no other. At that moment, it seemed as if two people were sharing one body instead of there being a single person.


    "What kind of witchcraft is this?" Liu Chan stared at Hua Jieyu and asked.


    "You''re weak. If I were to unleash my power on a weak Divine Spiritual Sorcerer such as you, there is no way you would be able to withstand it. Your spiritual will would simply dissipate and you would die," a voice said in Hua Jieyu''s mind, a voice that was bone-chilling.


    "It doesn''t matter. Just unleash your power to the limit," Hua Jieyu answered.


    "As you wish," a voice answered. At the very next moment, Hua Jieyu''s body shook violently as if her spiritual will was forcefully taken away from her body. The power spread through the air as an extremely overbearing will melded with her spiritual will, controlling the powers of her surroundings. She bit her lip and blood dripped from her mouth. Her long hair and her clothes flapped around wildly in the air. The power of the pearl in her mind was cranked to max, which served to diminish the pain she was experiencing.


    Boom. Her spiritual will seemed to have completely blown apart as unending pain emerged. Terrifying spiritual will power shot out to her surroundings. At the very moment, everything seemed crystal clear and everything seemed to be put under her control.


    Liu Chan looked at Hua Jieyu. He felt somehow that he was watching some godly figure before him. That fearsome figure standing in the air, a witch of near-limitless power, with her jet-black hair flapping about. He was able to sense that if that girl was not living within Hua Jieyu and had instead possessed her own body, there was no way he would have been a match for her. That figure was probably someone of the Saint Plane. He was puzzled as to why a being of such power existed within Hua Jieyu.


    "I''ll handle her, you all take Ye Futian," Liu Chan ordered the people of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Incredibly divine light burst from Hua Qingqing as well. Her figure floated before Ye Futian and the divine light seemed to be burning her body up. She turned into a lotus lamp. The light emanated from the middle of the lamp was incredibly bright, emanating light onto her surroundings. Tremendously powerful spiritual power emerged from within, and the lotus lamp floated lightly towards Ye Futian.

 717 Death of Tianxing

    The lotus lamp fell before Ye Futian. Hua Qingqing''s silhouette was vaguely seen as the lamplight shone at the middle of Ye Futian''s brow. Ye Futian''s spiritual power radiated through the vast surroundings around him. His entire body seemed to have become dazzlingly bright. It was as if he was a regal ancient Buddha. Sounds of chantings were heard around in the air, resonating with Ye Futian''s spiritual will.


    "Hua Qingqing," Ye Futian spoke telepathically.


    "It is me, experiencing the power in tranquility," Hua Qingqing returned. Ye Futian felt as if the power of Spiritual Qi and rules resonated with his own spiritual powers. Those violent scenes of battle melded with his mind, resulting in his spiritual powers becoming incredibly powerful.


    Liu Chan shivered inside again. Monk Qingdeng had taken in a student of very special talents. However, Liu Chan himself cared little about matters of the younger generation outside of those studying in the Holy Zhi Palace. He had never expected that this student would have been that special.


    Is that lamp the Sarira Lamp told in Buddhist legends?


    Is the Buddhist theory of reincarnation real?


    Why do so many mystical, special people keep appearing around Ye Futian?


    "I''d like to hear that song on Sky Mountain," Hua Qingqing''s voice said inside Ye Futian''s mind. She loved the sound of the guqin as well.


    Ye Futian nodded and conjured a guqin before him. It was the guqin belonging to Liu Kuangsheng, the Nine-fingered Guqin Devil, as well as the guqin in the Guqin Valley of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Liu Chan stepped out and pointed at Ye Futian. Beams of the finger''s power shot forth, bringing boundless light to the air. Hua Jieyu stepped forward and unleashed her Life Spirit. She wore an incredibly dazzling crown and looked absolutely overbearing. Her pitch black eyes looked at Liu Chan, and a formless spiritual wall appeared all of a sudden. The godlike wall halted all of the beams raining down before blowing them up, bringing incredibly devastating power to bear.


    "The most powerful power a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer lies within their thoughts, which are able to reach the gods." A cold voice was heard in Hua Jieyu''s mind. At the very next moment, Hua Jieyu felt that incredibly powerful spiritual will power taking form in some formless hand, lashing out directly at Liu Chan. Shapeless handprints appeared all over the air. Liu Chan felt as if his spiritual will power was directly sealed. He looked at that power which permeated the space with a very awful expression.


    "Break." Terrifying spiritual will power burst, manifesting into countless spots of light tearing that formless power apart. However, Hua Jieyu moved forward right afterward, and her steps made Liu Chan feel tremendous pressure bearing on him. He, of course, knew that it was not Hua Jieyu that he was facing, but some cultivator who was like Hua Jieyu and probably a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer at the Saint Plane, who was simply borrowing Hua Jieyu''s body and will to unleash her powers.


    Did some Divine Spiritual Sorcerer at the Saint Plane whose physical body was destroyed take an interest in Hua Jieyu?


    "Thunder Punishment." A cold voice was heard from Hua Jieyu''s mouth. Streaks of spiritual lightning fell from the heavens. The attack seemed to be taking no form still, bombarding Liu Chan''s mind directly. He felt as if his will was going to be torn to shreds. The attack was simply too terrifying as there were no signs to read. It was a spiritual type spell attack that went straight for his mind, after all.


    A bright light flashed in Liu Chan''s hand and a fearsome ritual implement was conjured in his hand. That was a willow whip. The aura emanating from it was powerful enough to shake souls. It was also a fearsome offensive ritual implement passed down through the generations in the Holy Zhi Palace��the God-beating Whip.


    Liu Chan flicked his arm and swung the whip around, tearing that formless attack apart in no time. Hua Jieyu grunted. Her attacks were unleashed from her spiritual will, and any attacks she suffered would also directly hurt her mind.


    Music was heard in the air from another direction while they were still facing off. The Spiritual Qi in the air seemed to have been affected by the sound of the guqin, flowing in a rather special rhythm. Sad, withered tones were heard in the song. The Ukiyo song sounded rather different being played at such a time and place.


    Many who were fighting turned their attention to Ye Futian. A terrible storm seemed to have whipped around his body and was spreading out in his surroundings in a frightening speed, seemingly out to take control of all the Spiritual Qi in the air.


    "Do it." A cold voice was heard. It was Ning Xian of the Ning clan. He led a group of mighty ones from Tianxing Pavilion and went for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian seemed oblivious to all of that as he kept his low playing his guqin. The rhythm of the song was a fast and torrential one. Glittering lights enveloped Ye Futian''s body, shining in sync with that lotus lamp. Ning Xian went up to the air right above Ye Futian, holding a golden halberd, then shot straight down for Ye Futian. Beams of light from the halberd shot forth with the full intention of killing Ye Futian where he sat. There were also few others who went attacking Ye Futian as well. No one had expected the fights that day to be so violent, not even Ye Futian himself.


    Terrifying attacks came at him, yet the Spiritual Qi moving with a mystical flow in the air turned into power of rules. The beams of the golden halberd halted right before Ye Futian as if they were frozen in place. They stopped short of piercing through Ye Futian''s brain.


    The frozen space grew wider and wider, and Ning Xian found his body getting stiff as the wave of frozen space reached him. The space where he was became completely frozen and everything seemed to be reaching an absolute halt.


    Ning Xian''s expression turned as he lowered his head to look Ye Futian. Is that lotus lamp amplifying his powers? How can he be this powerful?


    The sound of the guqin was still around. Ning Xian felt his spiritual power severely restricted. It was as if he had no way of melding his will with his surrounding Spiritual Qi. It was not just him who suffered, as everyone who moved against Ye Futian suffered the same feeling.


    The wind blew and turned into a terrifying hurricane capable of tearing everything apart. That hurricane went straight for Ning Xian and the others around him. Ning Xian reached out to sense the hurricane''s power, and his expression turned for the worse. The hurricane was an offensive spell imbued with powers of rules of wind, instead of just pure wind power. He wanted to escape but found his movements extremely sluggish, as if he had no way of moving. The hurricane cut through the air like blades as it sped at them, which then landed cuts on all of their throats.


    Ning Xian''s body shivered as it went limp, his eyes filled with terror.


    Zhhhh... Splattering sounds continued to be heard as everyone who moved against Ye Futian had their throats slit.


    The Sword Demon and Sage Daozang closed their eyes as the scene before them unfolded, feeling pity for those Ye Futian killed. They were, after all, still mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    But can we blame Ye Futian for doing this? Having been cornered like this, Ye Futian probably has no love left for the Holy Zhi Palace. We can''t expect this former student of the Holy Zhi Palace to show any more mercy.


    They all knew that Ye Futian came to the palace without expecting to leave alive. He wanted only a chance to let the Holy Zhi Palace allow him to fight Bai Luli, so as to prove himself and change the will of the palace. It was a chance he did not get, and that set the ending in motion. However, what happened right there was probably far beyond what Ye Futian had expected. There were many who did not want him dead, and that included many of the great figures in Barren State.


    Sage Tianxing face turned incredibly sour as he witnessed that very scene. All of those who were killed were mighty ones from Tianxing Pavilion. Spiritual will burst from his trembling body. The Divine Sword of Punishment shot out to the air. While his body was unable to move, his spiritual will was still intact, and it was still possible for him to guide the sword to kill Ye Futian.


    Extremely cold murderous intent was seen in Sage Tianxing''s eyes.


    Light of Punishment glittered as the sword got closer to kill Ye Futian.


    "Stop." Hua Jieyu turned around. Her terrifying spiritual thought ordered the sword to stop right there and then. However, Liu Chan''s God-beating Whip struck and she grunted, spewing blood and her face turned ashen.


    "Kill!" Ye Futian shouted in rage. His voice was extremely cold. Sage Tianxing, who was standing far away, was able to feel the power of rules which enabled the space to be frozen. That instant was followed by golden vines going straight for him like blades.


    Sage Tianxing''s pupils dilated as he attempted to resist by trying to control the power of rules but quickly found all such powers around him were rendered unusable.


    Pffttt! Cold vines landed right on him, piercing his brow, throat, and heart, nailing his body to a cliff in the Palace.


    "No!" Liu Chan in rage. The Lord of Tianxing Pavilion had been killed right before the Holy Zhi Palace.


    He turned his eyes to Sage Douzhan and then at the Sword Demon and Sage Daozang. He found a ridiculous feeling welling inside him.


    So this is where the true ordeal of the Holy Zhi Palace is?


    The hearts of the people of the Holy Zhi Palace were divided, and then Sage Tianxing was found dead in battle. There were also many of those who ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking standing against the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The Holy Zhi Palace that was once the beacon of faith of the Barren State.


    He dedicated himself to the Holy Zhi Palace and the Barren State. How did it all come to this?


    He thought that taking out Ye Futian would be adequate to cut losses to the minimum. But how did the battles get so brutally bloody? He was unable to understand any of it. His heart trembled violently and he doubted himself.


    "Was this the ending you wanted?" Ye Futian''s cold voice reverberated in Liu Chan''s mind. He looked up at the young man who was still playing the guqin, and Hua Jieyu who was being possessed by a saint.


    His hand that was holding the whip shivered. Liu Chan closed his eyes in pain. At the very next moment, he swung the God-beating Whip in his hand about. Countless light of particles shone in the air, gushing at the whip. In that very instant, it seemed as if the whip had turned into a howling dragon, imbued with power out to tear everything apart.


    Ye Futian kept his head low as he played his guqin. His spiritual will radiated in the air, enveloping his body. Power of rules of space freezing was unleashed yet again. However, the swinging whip tore the power of rules around it apart, restricting the use of the space freezing rules.


    ��


    Sage Wanxiang, in the Wanxiang Pavilion within the palace, looked at the Holy Zhi Palace completely submerged in the light of the ordeal. The entire palace crumbled with even the main palace destroyed, yet a light of hope seemed to have emerged from the ruins of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Sage Wanxiang trembled violently within.


    How did things turn out this way? Was Douzhan really right about it all?

 718 Spinning Star Wheel

    Liu Chan unleashed terrifying powers with the God-beating Whip in his hand. Countless particles coalesced into an appalling storm, swallowing everything in its path and headed for both Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu like a dragon. Every single particle that formed the dragon was imbued with the tremendous power of rules, and with the power of the whip added to it, no being below the Saint Plane would have survived its attack.


    Hua Jieyu came to stand before Ye Futian. The voice in her mind said, "If I were to resist such a force, it would exceed the limit that your mind can take."


    "Do it." Hua Jieyu closed her eyes and went burning her spiritual will thoroughly, cranking her power to the maximum. Her hair flapped around again as a terrifying power melded with her spiritual will, enveloping her entire surroundings.


    "Follow my lead and one strike will rob him of his capacity to fight," that voice said and Hua Jieyu nodded. Their melded will burst and seemed to fill every corner of the space.


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian''s fingers ran across the strings of the guqin. The will of the guqin was cranked to the absolute limit, rendering everything under the heavens under his command. A true star appeared with him and Hua Jieyu at the center. All powers under the heavens melded with the star and manifested as the power of rules of the stars. The power increasingly expanded, heading for Liu Chan.


    The frightening dragon clashed with the giant star and a terrifying rumble was heard. The space around them seemed to have exploded. Devastating storms whipped in the air maniacally, yet the God-beating Whip maintained its course without stopping.


    At that very moment, the wills of Hua Jieyu and the being within her enveloped the entire space, invading Liu Chan''s spiritual will. Liu Chan seemed to have witnessed a saint walking in his direction, intending to enter his mind.


    "With one''s thoughts as a catalyst, with the gods as a sacrifice," a voice that sounded like two people speaking said. The words spoken by the compounded voice resounded with a powerful impact.


    "Forbidden Spell, Judgment," that voice said once again in an imposing manner that shook the hearts of all within earshot. At that very moment, the silhouette of the saint seemed to have invaded directly. Liu Chan felt as if his spiritual will was being executed by some terrifying killing spell. His expression was an extremely pained one as his face twisted about before he lashed out at the silhouette with the whip.


    "Space-freezing." Ye Futian cranked his power to the limit as well, rendering Liu Chan''s movements incredibly sluggish. Liu Chan then let out a low roar. The veins on his arms popped as he shook off the shackles of rules. He lashed out with the whip, shattering all power of rules around him, and then sending it straight for Ye Futian.


    The whip exploded in rage as Liu Chan disregarded his own wellbeing to attack. The whip tore apart all power of rules as it went all the way for Ye Futian''s head. The lotus lamp shone brilliantly with divine light, enveloping Ye Futian within. Yet, the whip maintained its course, and a clear crack of the whip was heard. The lotus lamp was no more and Hua Qingqing spewed blood before Ye Futian, her face completely ashen. The aftershock hit Ye Futian all the same. His soul trembled as he spewed blood.


    At the very same time, Liu Chan grunted. His aura diminished at frightening speed as his eyes remained glaring at the space before him. That silhouette stood right before him as frightening power of judgment rampaged in his mind, threatening to tear it apart. He cranked his spiritual power to the max. His robe billowed wildly as blood dripped continuously from the corner of his mouth.


    Liu Chan grunted again after a while. His aura diminished as if he had used up all the power in him. At the same time, Hua Jieyu spewed blood from her mouth as she wobbled about, making it seem almost impossible for her to stand.


    "Who are you?" Liu Chan asked coldly. It was apparent that the being within Hua Jieyu was a saint.


    There was no response. Ye Futian then glanced at Hua Qingqing.


    "I''m alright. See to her." A smile was seen on Hua Qingqing''s ashen face. It was as pure and flawless as ever, with a tinge of sadness in it.


    Ye Futian smiled a rather pitiful smile himself. He walked towards Hua Jieyu without saying much to Hua Qingqing. He then shouted, "Jieyu."


    Hua Jieyu''s body fell backward. Ye Futian cradled her while he was trembling deep within. He felt extremely terrified inside.


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian extended his shaking hand and touched his face, feeling tears at the corner of his eye.


    "Idiot, why are you crying?" Tears were found at Hua Jieyu''s eyes as she looked at Ye Futian. She then said to him gently, "I''m feeling rather tired. Futian, do you think I''ll die?"


    "No, Jieyu. Promise me you''ll be fine." Ye Futian held her tight in his arms.


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded and said, "Futian, look at Hua Qingqing. She''s just like a fairy. Loulan is a good girl too. She''ll take care of you." Tears rolled from the corner of her eyes.


    "Don''t say anything, Jieyu. You''ll be fine. You will definitely will be," Ye Futian said with a trembling voice.


    A few people came to them. They were Phoenix, Yun Shuisheng, Mu Zhiqiu, and the others, all from the Holy Zhi Palace. Phoenix took out a pill and fed it to Hua Jieyu, saying, "Your mind suffered massive damage. Don''t say anything anymore. Take the pill and rest. You will be fine."


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded at Phoenix and swallowed the pill after looking at Ye Futian with a smile. She then closed her eyes slowly.


    "Liu Chan." Ye Futian''s voice went extremely cold as he glared at Liu Chan.


    "I never thought of hurting her." Liu Chan sighed. He then looked at Ye Futian and said, "All that I did was to end all of this."


    "You still to refuse to admit you were wrong, even at this very moment." Ye Futian smirked sarcastically and sorrowfully.


    "Liu Chan." A voice was heard from the Holy Zhi Palace. Liu Chan turned around and saw a few people walking in his direction. The one who took the lead looked incredibly withered and old. His aura was wilting, and he looked as if he could die at any minute. There were two others by his side: Sage Wanxiang and Bai Luli.


    "Assistant Palace Lord," Sage Wanxiang could not help but utter, seeing Liu Chan so incredibly weak.


    "Senior, why are you out here?" Liu Chan looked at the withered-looking old man. It was none other than the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, the one who ranked first on the Barren Sky Ranking, Sage Chunyang.


    Sage Chunyang turned his eyes at Ye Futian, and Sage Wanxiang did the same, before turning their eyes at the ones beside him as well as Sage Douzhan.


    Brutal battles were still going on in some far corners, battles fought between top-class mighty ones ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Why has everything come to this?" Sage Chunyang looked at the brutal and miserable scenes before him. Sage Douzhan was severely injured, Sage Tianxing dead, and Liu Chan was in a grievous state as well. He looked at Ye Futian with deep, old eyes filled with sorrow.


    "Why?" Ye Futian smirked and then yelled, "You tell me why! My Third Brother was framed by Zhisheng Cliffs. Why did the Holy Zhi Palace arrest him instead?


    "I studied in the Holy Zhi Palace and I was expelled. Even so, what did I do wrong? I''m here today only to set things right. Yet, why won''t you let me? Why do you still insist that you have done no wrong, even at this very moment?"


    Sage Chunyang listened to Ye Futian roar. His withering eyes remained still amidst all that and he answered, "In this world, there is more than just right or wrong."


    "So what?" Ye Futian stepped forward and said sarcastically, "If you want to kill me, do it."


    Bai Luli stepped forward at that very moment, walking towards Ye Futian and said, "There is no right or wrong. If you insist on fighting, I will fight you."


    "Is there any meaning to it anymore?" Ye Futian smirked dismissively. Bai Luli took several steps more forward and said, "There is. It is to prove your mind."


    The Star Wheel behind Sage Wanxiang spun. Stars shone all around them, encompassing the space in starlight. The space seemed as if it was an independent sky of stars, with Star Wheeling spinning and starlight covering both of them. There were only a few of them, as well as others, such as the Lord of Ice Temple, Phoenix, and Yun Shuisheng in that space.


    "My mind never needed to be proven." Ye Futian smiled and stepped forward. His body seemed to have burned as an incredibly bright beam of light shot up. His body became a tremendously regal beacon. The swaying light made Ye Futian looked as if he was an emperor. Powers of the world around them rushed at him. Under the envelopment of the divine light, Ye Futian''s aura rose at frightening speed, vaguely reaching that of a mid-level sage.


    Liu Chan''s body trembled slightly as his steps got incredibly wobbly. Ye Futian had unleashed such brilliance before when he played the Ukiyo song, yet that because there was Hua Qingqing boosting his powers as a lotus lamp and the song of kings. It was entirely normal for such a phenomenon to show under those circumstances. But it was only at this moment that Liu Chan had come to realize that the light was not something brought forth by Hua Qingqing''s lotus lamp, and it was not a product brought about by the song of kings.


    It was something that truly belonged to Ye Futian.


    So this is the real Ye Futian? The hearts of Sage Chunyang and Sage Wanxiang trembled as they locked their gaze on him. They were able to sense that the light of emperors shining before them was higher than their own power, so much so that it almost compelled those who saw it to bow and proclaim reverence to it.


    Why does he possess such power?


    Sage Wanxiang closed his eyes and cranked the Star Wheel to the limit. Starlight showered from above, covering the two figures below.


    "An heir of the Holy Zhi Palace, ranked tenth on Barren Sky Ranking, revered as the number one genius in all of the Barren State. While none of this was your doing, you were the start of all this. The Holy Zhi Palace chose you and they went doing everything for you. They thought whatever they did was right, and so did you. You have no regrets and Liu Chan felt no guilt. You all saw yourselves to be too perfect."


    "I never saw myself to be perfect. I did only what I saw needed to be done." Bai Luli stepped forward. Beings of lightning appeared and boundless lightning flashed about in the air around Ye Futian.


    Bai Luli unleashed the Eye of Devastation, looked at the sky above Ye Futian, and said, "Godly Creation of All Things."


    A silhouette looking like an ancient god appeared as soon as Bai Luli finished. The being was seen holding the Heaven-shaking Divine Hammer, possessing the power to destroy everything in its path.

 719 Unknown

    Ye Futian turned his head up and his eyes burned with raging flames. A shadow of a godly ape appeared behind him and he was covered in rules of wind. He rose like a bolt of lightning at that very moment, heading straight for that giant ancient god.


    Bai Luli stood in the air and waved his arms. That terrifying ancient god brought the hammer in its hand down. Lightning flashed in the air as the power of rules crushed everything beneath it.


    Ye Futian felt appalling powers right before him. He melded his will into his surroundings and uttered a word, "Freeze." The space around slowed and the movements of that ancient god seemed to have been affected. Ye Futian clenched his fists and terrifying light circled around him. His divine ape battle form took form and howled in the air. Five out of the Seven Star Acupoints opened and tremendously violent power was unleashed.


    The giant divine ape lashed out at the ancient god with its arm as if to shake it down. The arm of the divine ape clashed with the sluggish hammer. As the punch was imbued with rules of stars, it felt as if a star had collided with the Heaven-shaking Divine Hammer. Devastating power engulfed their surroundings and the hammer was shattered. The body of the ancient god was thrown back, and Ye Futian was thrown back as well.


    Liu Chan felt himself trembling inside. He closed his eyes, and his mind had been shaken. He opened his eyes and turned to his senior and Sage Wanxiang and said, "Wanxiang, what did the signs say?"


    Wanxiang said he needed to observe the signs and his senior should not have come out. Sage Chunyang''s end was near. Every time he spent any of his spiritual powers, his life force diminished, bringing his end even closer. It was impossible for them to show unless Sage Wanxiang saw some changes in the signs and informed Sage Chunyang.


    "Assistant Palace Lord..." Sage Wanxiang looked at Liu Chan and was rather reluctant to utter the words. The signs were too brutal for Liu Chan.


    "Liu Chan, just watch seriously," Sage Chunyang said. Liu Chan turned his deep eyes back on the two young men fighting.


    Ye Futian headed for Bai Luli at breakneck speed. Bai Luli''s eyes turned grey as he unleashed the Eye of Devastation Life Spirit. Everything around him seemed to be put under the control of his spiritual will. Eight godlike silhouettes appeared in the air taking eight different corners. Countless threads were laid out through the air with Ye Futian at the center as if a boundless matrix was set in place.


    At that very moment, Ye Futian felt his surroundings and even his spiritual will were being shackled. Lines of forbidden runes appeared, hovering in every corner around his body. The Sealing of All Creations held his spiritual will in a very restricted area with no way to spread out. His radiating spiritual will seemed to have been isolated, rendering him incapable of melding his spiritual will with his surroundings, which in turn heavily restricted on the means he was able to use. Even the power of the rules of space freezing would have been restricted to the space immediately around him.


    Ye Futian looked up at Bai Luli. The light of emperors rose and the light of all celestial bodies shone in the air in blinding brilliance. Whooshing sounds were heard as an ancient tree seemed to have been imbued with divine essence, extending for the heavens. The ancient tree grew increasingly large, a dragon of lightning circled above it and the Roc perched on one of its branches. All power of elements were melded into one and infused with the tree. The light grew increasingly dazzling and the branches expanded. Light emanating from the ancient tree extended outside the forbidden powers, with Ye Futian''s spiritual power expanding with it.


    Both the inside and outside of the forbidden power was enveloped by Ye Futian''s will. He clenched his fist and punched. The huge divine ape followed suit, lashing out with a punch at its surroundings. It was as if a star trembled in the space. Cracking sounds were heard in an instant, as the power of the Sealing of All Creations were broken through bit by bit.


    Liu Chan practically went pale looking at the scene. Those are all Ye Futian''s Life Spirits?


    The swaying light of the ancient tree enveloped Bai Luli with the mighty power of rules brought down on him in the form of Space-freezing. Bai Luli felt the space he was in almost ground to a halt, before sensing Ye Futian charge at him at top speed.


    The power of the Eye of Devastation was cranked to the limit as Bai Luli went tearing himself away from the power of rules of Space-freezing. His Eye of Devastation glared at Ye Futian. With the Eye Sorcery Zone, it was his rules that reigned; outside of said zone, Ye Futian''s rules reigned.


    An incredibly huge grey shadow appeared behind Bai Luli, holding a Sword of Devastation. At that very moment, Bai Luli''s body melded with that of the ancient god. He borrowed the body of the ancient god and wielded the Sword of Devastation with both his hands, stabbing it into the space. A devastating storm, lightning storm and a storm of power rampaged about.


    The World Tree enveloped Ye Futian''s surroundings and he moved forward. A true star appeared around him and enveloped him within. The swaying World Tree blinked. The power of rules became insanely powerful. Clad in defense by the rules of the stars, Ye Futian danced about with a staff in his hand. His twirling body lashed out with one strike after another as the divine ape roared, heading closer and closer to Bai Luli. The space felt like it was being torn apart before both of them clashed, letting out high-pitched, deafening noises.


    "Soul Sacrifice," Bai Luli uttered. His body had completely melded with his Life Spirit and the body of the ancient god, turning him into some sort of god. He then brought down the sword with both his hands. The sky felt as if it was being cleaved apart at that very moment, tearing the middle as devastating storms whipped about with the power to tear everything apart.


    The Sword of Devastation was brought down on the stars, cleaving it in the middle. The devastating storms tore everything in its path and the power of Space-freezing was brought to bear. The sword that was being brought down seemed to have ground to a halt, becoming incredibly sluggish. The roaring huge divine ape battle form descended, and Ye Futian had too become one with the ape, melding with his Life Spirit.


    Shadows of staffs all over the place coalesced as one as the divine ape crashed through the air. The World Tree Life Spirit''s light flowed in a crazed manner into the body of the ape. The staff felt as if the sky itself was being brought down, colliding with that sword of the ancient god.


    A devastating stream of storms whipped out with both of them at the center. The earth rumbled violently in response. The Sword of Devastation shattered bit by bit as the staff was brought down with boundless brilliance.


    Boom�� A loud rumble was heard as the staff was reduced to dust. The staff was brought right on top of the ancient god''s body. Cracks were seen all over the ancient god before it shattered bit by bit.


    Bai Luli was thrown behind with another rumble, landing where Liu Chan and Sage Chunyang were. He spat up blood and his face looked pale.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Bai Luli, then at Liu Chan and Sage Wanxiang. Cracks were seen on the Star Wheel in the air. Sage Wanxiang looked especially pale.


    Ye Futian stepped forward as the light of emperors shone. The World Tree swayed as he was being enveloped by his other Life Spirits. He stared at Sage Wanxiang and said, "You know how to tell fortunes, don''t you? Have you found out anything?"


    Sage Wanxiang looked at Ye Futian''s eyes. His eyes turned demonic as if he wanted to see everything there was to see about the young man. At that very moment, he saw an incredibly regal figure walking in his direction. Wanxiang turned all of his mental and spiritual focus in order to make the figure clear, of all the signs of fate within.


    That regal figure glanced at him casually. Wanxiang grunted in the very next moment. His face was ashen and blood spilled from his mouth. His mind and spirit were severely injured.


    "How could this be possible?" Sage Wanxiang said as he kept coughing blood. His hands were shaking and pain was seen in his eyes.


    "How could this be possible indeed?" Liu Chan asked himself as well. He stared at Ye Futian, the one who beat Bai Luli as a noble.


    The will of the Holy Zhi Palace was to have Bai Luli attain sainthood. They were willing to pay whatever price just to have a saint emerge. Despite Ye Futian''s insane talent and being ranked first on the Law Rank, Liu Chan deemed him disposable, for they did not have time to wait for him. However, there Ye Futian stood, having beaten Bai Luli.


    Is that sainthood potential? A noble with sainthood potential defeating an upper-level sage. What does this all mean? We gave everything to create a saint, and yet it all backfired?


    He wanted to know why it all turned out this way.


    "Cough." He coughed, spitting up blood again. No one was able to relate to what Liu Chan was going through. That very battle broke all of the illusions he believed in so adamantly before.


    "Why did things turn out like this?" Ye Futian smiled, but he looked rather sad. He himself wanted to know why as well. His Life Spirit dissipated and that overpoweringly brilliant light vanished as well. Ye Futian felt nothing but overwhelming exhaustion at that very moment.


    Sage Chunyang looked at Ye Futian and closed his eyes. Had Liu Chan been wrong? No, I was the one who was wrong.


    He was the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. In a sense, the will of the Holy Zhi Palace was his will. He had been anxious and hurried with things due to his end being near. He saw Bai Luli demonstrating the potential for sainthood and gained the acknowledgment of the Sage Hall. He wanted too badly for a saint to emerge in Barren State and had ignored everything going on in the outside world, which led to that great wrong before everyone that day. He, as one who was about to die, had to shoulder the responsibility for all that.


    "What did the signs say?" Sage Chunyang opened his eyes and asked Sage Wanxiang.


    "Unknown," Sage Wanxiang said with trembling voice and added, "Unidentifiable."


    "What do you mean unidentifiable?" Sage Chunyang asked.


    "The fact that it was unknown means that it is unidentifiable," Sage Wanxiang looked at Sage Chunyang and uttered something else telepathically. Sage Chunyang trembled slightly after hearing that and his aura became even weaker. He looked at the one before him and did not know what to make of it.


    The Lord of Ice Temple, Yun Shuisheng, Phoenix, and the others looked at the topmost authority of the Holy Zhi Palace: Sage Chunyang, Liu Chan, and Sage Wanxiang. All three of them wavered and were incredibly restless. If they had given a chance for Ye Futian to fight Bai Luli earlier, things would not have turned out like this.

 720 Calling upon Emperor Xia

    In yet another battlefield, the Sword Saint and Kong Yao were fighting a monstrous battle up in the sky. Kong Yao''s every strike packed the power to overwhelm the heavens, while every slash and thrust of the Sword Saint''s blade was imbued with force so terrifying that the heavens were in danger of being cleaved open. Their battle kept escalating.


    Kong Yao, who was clad in a bronze divine implement, fought ferociously. He stood tall in the heavens and a mystical phenomenon appeared around him. A boundless, huge Divine Elephant stood in the middle, bringing boundless powers to bear. His eyes remained fixed on Sword Saint before him.


    People practicing demonic arts trained by going against the flow. They swallowed all powers and then unleashed them in full force. Their might was extremely overbearing and one strike could have easily proven fatal.


    The Sword Saint held onto the broadsword in his hand, as streaks of black air currents flowed in reverse, rushing to his body and vaguely conjuring a shadow of a demon behind him. The broadsword disappeared from his hand, seemingly turning into sword will, merging with his body. Every single dark current flowing in the air seemed to all be sword wills.


    Boom. A terrifying dark current burst from the Sword Saint''s body, turning into a demonic blade. Their surroundings turned incredibly dark. He held the blade up high with both hands and siphoned massive power into it. He then brought the demonic blade down, and at that very instant, it seemed to have cut the space around open.


    Kong Yao clenched his fists and moved downwards. His surroundings shook and the mystical phenomenon around him trembled. An elephant roar shaking the heavens was heard as Kong Yao''s fists conjured fearsome devastating light. He lashed out at the air, clashing with the blade coming at him. A dark whirlpool swirled wherever his fists went, seemingly about to swallow everything in that space.


    The attacks of both men clashed in midair and a devastating storm whipped out. It seemed as if the space they were in was about to collapse. A silhouette was seen penetrating that very devastating space. That silhouette felt more like a blade than a person.


    The demonic blade had become one with the sword saint. That slash back then was not dealt by the blade itself, but the sword will of the blade.


    The heavens and the earth felt like they were being cleaved apart by the demonic blade. Kong Yao roared and the Divine Elephant went on a stampede. Another punch was brought to meet that incoming blade.


    Sharp, creaking noises were heard. A dazzling demonic flash swept by as the blade landed on its target. The Sword Saint''s body was thrown behind while Kong Yao ended up bleeding in many places.


    The shadow of the Sword Saint disappeared yet again, streaking through the air while Kong Yao cranked his power to the maximum. He, invincible under the saints, conjured devastating light in the air continuously. Kong Yao finally dropped from the air and was no longer on the battlefield. His body was then covered in blood as an untold number of sword will pierced through his body, but he knew well that the Sword Saint was not doing all too well either.


    "You crazy fool," Kong Yao roared in rage. The Sword Saint glanced at him before disappearing as a flash of darkness, cleaving that wheel of stars that Sage Wanxiang had laid out, entering directly.


    Ye Futian turned around and saw his Eldest Brother appear before him, staring at the figure across with cold eyes.


    "Chunyang, do you still wish to continue?" the Lord of Ice Temple asked. She and Sage Chunyang were ranked second and first on the Barren Sky Ranking respectively, so it was only natural that they knew each other. Chunyang sighed, looking at the Sword Saint and the battlefield before him.


    Everyone took notice of the situation there. One figure after another ceased fighting and headed for them. The Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, Sage Chunyang, had appeared.


    "Here you are, finally," Huang Xi said to Sage Chunyang.


    "Luli." Bai Gu rushed to his son side, seeing him injured.


    Many had funny looks on their faces. Sage Wanxiang had laid out the wheel of stars before. Did Ye Futian and Bai Luli just finish fighting?


    From the looks of things, Bai Luli was injured. This...


    "Teacher," Zhuge Qingfeng walked up to Sage Chunyang and called out to him.


    "Qingfeng, I''m so sorry," Sage Chunyang said.


    "You were acting for the sake of the Holy Zhi Palace, and I have nothing to say to that. No one can truly tell all the rights and wrongs in this. From here on out, the score between both us is cleared, and we are done with each other." Zhuge Qingfeng cut a piece of his shirt and then bowed deeply to Sage Chunyang.


    "I know little in the way of truths and principles, but I do know that the Holy Zhi Palace is just as selfish for sacrificing others for its ideals. You have no place to talk about having a saint emerge in the Barren State. If it is truly to have a saint emerge, the result before our eyes is very obvious. How did the Holy Zhi Palace go about carrying out its beliefs?" Xu Shang''s voice sounded rather lazy, yet his words were true and blunt.


    Sage Chunyang looked at everyone around him and said, "The Holy Zhi Palace is a sacred ground of the Barren State. I can hardly absolve myself from blame for all that has happened. Liu Chan followed my will and went throwing his weight around. From here on out, both Liu Chan and I will no longer be the Palace Lords of the Holy Sage Pavilion."


    Many shuddered at the words of Sage Chunyang. They had never anticipated him to be so decisive in the matter. He quit his job as the Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace with Liu Chan.


    "Luli, I and Liu Chan wanted nothing more than to have you become a saint, but things backfired and we roped you into a disaster instead. I hope you won''t be all that affected by all that has happened," Sage Chunyang turned to Bai Luli and said.


    Bai Luli was calm hearing Sage Chunyang''s words. He had nothing to say about his defeat. For years, he had been showered with adoration, ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking, and known by all as the number one genius in all of the Barren State. If Ye Futian had not appeared, he might have glittered just as dazzling as he had. However, as another emerged to take his place, he saw it fit to step down.


    Bai Luli turned around and bowed deeply to Sage Chunyang and Liu Chan, saying, "I have been training diligently all these years with the will of the Holy Zhi Palace held close to my heart, caring little for the affairs of the outside world. Starting from today, I will be going on my pilgrimage to the mortal world, and White Cloud City will no longer be involved in the affairs of the Barren State." He knelt and kowtowed to both Sage Chunyang and Liu Chan before turning to pay his respects to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    He stood up and looked at his father, the City Lord of White Cloud City, saying, "Father, let''s go."


    "Are we?" Bai Gu looked at everyone and everything before him. All he did was in line with the Holy Zhi Palace''s wishes, to have his son Bai Luli become a saint.


    So we''ve lost everything now? He had not been able to fathom why the ones ranked first, third, and he, who ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Ranking, ended up like this for standing by Bai Luli.


    Bai Gu glanced at everyone around him and said, "We will be seeing you on the Divine Path." He left as soon as he finished, without saying goodbye to his teacher, Sage Chunyang or his uncle, Liu Chan. It was very obvious that he did not want to admit defeat.


    "Chunyang, are you arranging for what is to come after you leave?" Kong Yao said coldly, "I care not for your Holy Zhi Palace. The ones I came for are still on the loose. From here on out, anyone who stands in the way of Zhisheng Cliffs or Yan Wuji and the others, I will see them all as acts of war against Zhisheng Cliffs. Those who act in such ways will suffer the consequences." Kong Yao was apparently threatening Huang Xi, Xu Shang, and the others. He had intended to kill some of them right there and then, but he had changed his mind, opting to first take Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu away. While he did not know what happened in the battle before, he knew that Ye Futian had defeated Bai Luli. That was something worthy of immediate attention and he deemed that Ye Futian must be taken away.


    Cold eyes glared at Kong Yao. He is now threatening the forces of the Barren State on behalf of Zhisheng Cliffs then?


    "Is Zhisheng Cliffs threatening Barren State now?" Chunyang looked at Kong Yao.


    "What if we are?" Kong Yao asked coldly. An aura coursed around Chunyang. Many people of the top forces in the Barren State turned around to glare at Kong Yao.


    "Brother Ge," Kong Yao called out. Ge Feng walked to Kong Yao''s side.


    "It seems that the Holy Zhi Palace is turning its back on the will of the Head Saint. Please call out to him," Kong Yao said.


    "Indeed." Ge Feng''s eyes were ice-cold. He had not wanted to bother his teacher if things were not in such dire states. He closed his eyes and cranked his spiritual power to fearsome levels. A dazzling light was unleashed from within his body, with a streak of power that did not seem to belong to him vaguely emanating. A projection was thrown in the air before them, turning into an incredibly imposing and regal form.


    "We bow to the Head Saint." Everyone in Zhisheng Cliffs bowed.


    "Teacher, I''m very sorry for interfering with your training," Ge Feng bowed and said.


    The illusory figure glanced at everyone around and said, "Chunyang, are you going against my will?"


    "Greetings to you, senior." Sage Chunyang bowed slightly. That saint then said, "Some of the people from Zhisheng Cliffs were killed in the Barren State. I''m having Kong Yao take those two responsible away, and I assume you are not against that?"


    Ye Futian turned to look at that regal figure. Is that a saint?


    Huang Xi, Xu Shang, and all the others looked incredibly troubled. There was no one who dared defy a saint, after all.


    "I beg for your forgiveness, senior. I have made the wrong decision before and now, I''m sorry to say that I cannot hand them over to you," Chunyang said.


    "How dare you?" A cold voice was heard. The might of its voice permeated the air to bear on everyone present.


    "Brother, you asked what Wanxiang saw before, didn''t you?" Chunyang asked Liu Chan telepathically. Liu Chan looked at his senior and Chunyang continued, "The main palace crumbles before the light of hope appears in the Holy Zhi Palace. That was what Wanxiang saw."


    Liu Chan shuddered before smiling as if he was laughing at himself.


    It is ironic indeed.


    The main palace, the Holy Sage Pavilion of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Brother, I''m so sorry," Chunyang said.


    "You''re not to be blamed." Liu Chan smiled and looked awfully sad.


    "Do you still remember what our teacher told us before he died?"


    "I do." Liu Chan nodded.


    Everyone present then saw their bodies begin burning. It was their spiritual will that burned, turning into incredibly mighty powers. They looked as if they were offering themselves as sacrifices, burning their very own lives.


    Liu Chan turned around and cast his gaze at everyone before him, saying, "I did what I did with the best interests for the Holy Zhi Palace in mind, and I have made a grave error in my actions. For that, I''m willing to shoulder the dire consequences of that very error by offering my life to carry on the will of the Holy Zhi Palace. May the Holy Zhi Palace live and prosper."


    "For the Holy Zhi Palace," Chunyang said.


    "For the Holy Zhi Palace." Liu Chan''s voice was no longer heard. The spiritual will of both men seemed to have merged into one before turning into a dazzling mark, flying deep into the palace, all the way to the Holy Sage Pavilion.


    "Chunyang," the Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs said coldly.


    "I call upon Emperor Xia," A dazzling light burst from afar, deep within the Holy Sage Pavilion. The bodies of both Chunyang and Liu Chan were no longer around, yet that voice was an incredibly solemn one.


    The Lord of Ice Temple, Huang Xi, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others watched as they trembled inside. The Sword Demon, Sage Daozng trembled as well.


    The nine states were all from the line of Emperor Xia Orthodoxy. Legend had it that Emperor Xia left a mark in the grounds of Orthodoxy in all nine states, and only the heads of the Orthodoxy knew how to activate the mark. However, it was also said that only saints were capable of such a feat.


    Palace Lord Chunyang was near the end of his days and Liu Chan was not a saint. They should have had no way of activating the mark unless they used secret arts. However, doing so clearly came with a terrifyingly hefty price. In this case, their lives.


    With the Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs descending personally, even though it was simply a will, everyone knew what that meant. Nobody had a way out. After rounds of brutal battles, it was still deemed necessary for Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu to be taken away, and the Holy Zhi Palace remained split with the Barren State.


    There was only one way to resolve all that way��call upon Emperor Xia.


    The deed was accomplished through the sacrifice of both Palace Lords of Holy Sage Pavilion.

 721 The End of an Era

    There seemed to be a mark being opened deep in the Holy Zhi Palace. A dazzling light burst afterward. An image slowly came into being above the sky. It was a great, regal figure. He was standing at the top of Nine Cloud Palace and looked below. His silhouette seemed to have encompassed the entire sky.


    "Renhuang." Everyone''s minds shuddered. The insurmountable legendary being. A figure who stood at the Renhuang Plane.


    The emperor who ruled all of the nine states��Emperor Xia.


    "All hail Emperor Xia." Chunyang and Liu Chan bowed and paid their respects.


    "All hail Emperor Xia." The saint of Zhisheng Cliffs bowed as well. While he was a saint of Zhisheng Cliffs and was extremely irked about Chunyang, he had no choice but to bow down to the Emperor Xia all the same.


    One figure after another bowed to show their respect for Renhuang.


    "Barren State, the Holy Zhi Palace." Emperor Xia opened his mouth calmly. His voice sounded as if it was imbued with the might of the heavens.


    "Indeed," Chunyang bowed and said.


    "What is the matter?" Emperor Xia asked. The Holy Zhi Palace had been a part of his Orthodoxy and he had left a mark to show it.


    "Brother." Chunyang looked at Liu Chan beside him.


    "I beg you to look at this, Emperor Xia." Liu Chan''s burning spiritual powers walked to Emperor Xia and turned into images to be presented to the will of Emperor Xia. The emperor came to understand what had transpired soon enough.


    "Zhan Xiao, a student of Zhisheng Cliffs killed many of the Yu State and set up Gu Dongliu of the Barren State to take the fall, pursuing the man to this land. As for what happens next, I took the liberty to call you, Emperor Xia, as I do not see any other way of solving this now that a saint from Zhisheng Cliffs is here. Please forgive my trespasses, Great Emperor," Chunyang said.


    "This place belongs to the Barren State. Why did you help Zhisheng Cliffs before then?" Emperor Xia asked coldly.


    "It is a crime of mine to have the Holy Zhi Palace bear such a shame due to my personal agendas. I deem myself no longer fit to be in charge of the Holy Zhi Palace as the Palace Lord, and I''m willing to atone for my crimes with my death," Chunyang said.


    Emperor Xia''s expression was calm. He then looked at the saint from Zhisheng Cliffs and said, "Do you have anything to say for yourself?"


    "Emperor Xia, I knew not of what transpired before. What I did know was that a Son of Zhisheng Cliffs was killed. As such, I sent people to look into the matter. I will investigate the matter thoroughly after I return. I beg for your forgiveness, Emperor Xia," the Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs bowed and said.


    Emperor looked at him plainly. The Head Saint then continued, "Emperor Xia, a saint has not emerged from the Barren State for many years, yet the Barren State still calls itself a member of the Orthodoxy. The Holy Zhi Palace was not fit to be called such and I suggest for the place to be taken apart."


    Chunyang and Liu Chan looked incredibly troubled. If it had not been Emperor Xia, the other states might have taken over Barren State a long time ago.


    They knew that there was not much time left for the Barren State. It was only a matter of time before the day would come. As such, they had gotten anxious and did everything they could to have a saint emerge from the Barren State. They had not expected such rushed, anxious efforts would lead to such wrongs in the end.


    Emperor Xia scanned everyone present and then said, "If there is to be no one at the Saint Plane emerging from the Barren State when the next Battle of Saints is held, the Holy Zhi Palace shall be taken apart. Before that day comes, Zhisheng Cliffs shall not lift a finger against Barren State."


    "Indeed, Emperor Xia." The Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs bowed. He was a saint and thus making him a being right beneath Emperor Xia. While the matter at hand concerned the Holy Zhi Palace''s survival, it was something that hardly mattered to Emperor Xia. Why does Renhuang care about a force that doesn''t even have a saint among them?


    Even Zhisheng Cliffs would not have had such a high status in the eyes of Emperor Xia, and that was the reason why no one dared to get on the bad side of Emperor Xia.


    "Thank you, Emperor Xia." Chunyang had not expected Emperor Xia to punish Zhisheng Cliffs as he knew there was simply no possibility for that to happen. The Barren State had a not had a saint emerg among their ranks, and it was obvious that the status of Holy Zhi Palace had gotten very low in the eyes of Emperor Xia.


    "Are they any other matters to be discussed?" Emperor Xia asked Chunyang.


    Chunyang bowed and said, "The Holy Zhi Palace needs a successor. I would like Ye Futian to take my place as the next Palace Lord after I perish, and he shall be assisted by all members of the Holy Zhi Palace. I would like to seek your agreement on this particular matter, Emperor Xia."


    Many great figures from the Barren State shuddered as they looked at Chunyang. The Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace had wanted a saint to emerge from Barren State so badly that he went to nurture Bai Luli regardless of the cost, yet his efforts practically turned the Barren State upside down.


    However, he was still a man of charisma and persistence. There was no one who had expected him to pass on the place of Palace Lord to a noble right before he perished. It was an act totally against convention. Nobody had done so before, and there would probably no one else doing the same thing ever again. Furthermore, he brought the matter up right before Emperor Xia was about to disappear. It was obvious to many what his intentions were.


    The mess that they were in that day was brought up by Ye Futian and Zhisheng Cliffs determined to get their hands on him. Furthermore, while Emperor Xia had decreed that Zhisheng Cliffs shall not touch the Holy Zhi Palace, he did not say anything about not moving against Ye Futian. Now that Chunyang placed Ye Futian on the seat of the Palace Lord, Zhisheng Cliffs probably dared not move against Ye Futian, as it would have defied the will of Emperor Xia.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was practically in shambles and Chunyang was doing whatever he was able at the last moments of his life to keep the place in one piece. He was also doing it so that the hope for the future other than Bai Luli lived.


    Ye Futian lifted his head and looked at Chunyang. He had not expected the elder sage to be doing such a thing for him.


    But am I fit to become Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace?


    "I acknowledge your decision." Emperor Xia nodded plainly.


    "Then I have nothing else to bother you with, great emperor." Chunyang bowed. The silhouette of Emperor Xia gradually faded away.


    "We shall see you off, Emperor Xia."


    Voices were heard and the silhouette above the sky disappeared. The mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs looked extremely irked, including the Head Saint. We really got played today by Chunyang.


    Bringing out Emperor Xia just to threaten me, eh? Good move.


    "Let''s go." The Head Saint''s silhouette disappeared as well. Kong Yao and the others with him scanned everyone present. So we just go home empty-handed like this?


    Furthermore, they had suffered great losses this time. They came to the Barren State and waged several wars with the inferior state, yet they returned with their wings clipped every single time.


    "Let''s go." Kong Yao scanned everyone present with deep eyes. It was a score he intended to settle at a later date.


    Yan Wuji of Sword Saint Villa, Godly Spear of Nantian of Nantian House, Di Kai of the Emperor family and the others turned pale as the ones from Zhisheng Cliffs left.


    What about us? With the Holy Zhi Palace calling upon Emperor Xia and making Ye Futian the next Palace Lord, the will of the Holy Zhi Palace was reunited once again.


    This time, it had the agreement of many great figures from all over Barren State.


    However, to those people, such turn of events spelled their doom. No one cared about what those few thought about anything. Chunyang and Liu Chan''s silhouette faded, as if they had indeed come to the end and turning invisible.


    They looked at everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace and Chunyang said, "You all heard what I said. From this day, Ye Futian shall be the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Hey, I didn''t agree to any of that," Ye Futian said as he turned to look at Chunyang. He was feeling very complicated at the moment. Should I resent all this happening to me?


    The battles fought today had many severely injured and their lives hanging by a thread, which included his teacher, Jieyu, Hua Qingqing, and many others.


    If the Holy Zhi Palace had only allowed him to battle with Bai Luli when he was there, none of all that would have happened. That was why he had gone to the Holy Zhi Palace in the first place. He was there to return everything to how it was before. He had achieved what he set out to do in the first place. Everything turned to how it once was, yet said result came too late.


    He was feeling very complicated deep inside at the moment, and very exhausted as well.


    "I know it is hard for you to accept what the Holy Zhi Palace did. But your teacher, the Sword Demon and Daozang, did any of them do anything untoward towards you?" Chunyang said, "Now, Liu Chan, Tianxing, and I will all be a page in history books. What happens next, take it as something you do for yourself as well as for the friends you have in the Holy Zhi Palace."


    Ye Futian looked at his teacher, Sage Douzhan, and then at the Sword Demon, Sage Daozang, then at Yun Shuisheng, Phoenix, and the ohters. He closed his eyes and felt a storm whipping up in his mind.


    "For many years, countless from the Barren State lost their lives in their journey to achieve sainthood. I myself was one of those people. The Barren State had the least hope out of the nine states of achieving such a goal. We were weak and yet we dared to challenge, but that also meant that we suffered the highest casualties. As such, I nurtured Bai Luli and put all hopes onto him. I hope that one day, someone from Barren State will be able to reign supreme, overwhelming top notch figures from the other states and let a saint be born. Only by doing so will the Holy Zhi Palace be able to achieve what it was made to do in the first place. Only with a true saint present will the Holy Zhi Palace and the Barren State truly achieve greater prosperity.


    "I''ve always had a wish, that I would be able to see a saint from the Barren State emerge before I breathe my last breath. I clung to that belief with all I had. Now, I will never see that day come, but I do not wish for this place to be taken over by the states. If such a thing was to be allowed to happen, what happened today is doomed to happen in the future. Someone like you will have emerged, but they will have been even more powerless to change anything." Chunyang continued, "None of these would have happened if there had been a saint in the Barren State. Your talents would have been discovered and you would have been a student of a saint. Bai Luli would be studying alongside you. The geniuses all over the Barren State would be known throughout the nine states. It is my fault that none of those came true. I would never see all that happen, but I hope you will bring all of the things that I have dreamed of to reality."


    His body gradually turned into bits of light as he talked.


    "Palace Lord."


    The Sword Demon, Daozang and many others listened with heavy hearts.


    "Assist him the best you can. Long live the Holy Zhi Palace." Chunyang looked at everyone present. At that moment, he recalled the hopes his teacher had for him all those years ago. It was a pity that he never had the honor to truly tutor Ye Futian.


    "Brother." Seeing Chunyang disappearing, Liu Chan turned to Ye Futian and said, "I know you hate me. I had hopes for you when I permitted you entry to the Sage Hall. I had wished for none of these events to happen. I''m a sinned one of the Holy Zhi Palace. Your achievements in the future will be great, while I, the sinned one, will be nailed on the stakes of shame. The world shall come to loathe what I did, and I will be very pleased if such a day is to come." He lifted his head after he finished talking. His body turned into specks of light, following Chunyang in the netherworld.


    Countless watched all that happening. Two of the figures ranked on the top three places of Barren Sky Ranking, the Palace Lords of the Holy Zhi Palace, perished.


    The number one and number three on Barren Sky Ranking were no more since that day.


    Many vaguely felt that an era had come to an end.


    What will the next era hold for us indeed!

 722 Returning to the Eastern Barren Territory

    Outside the Holy Zhi Palace, countless eyes fell on Ye Futian.


    The brutal battles had finally come to an end. Many had given everything they had in those battles, and great figures of untold numbers came to stand by Ye Futian''s side, fighting for his sake. It was probably one of the reasons Chunyang passed on the position of the Palace Lord to him.


    Throughout the entire Barren State as of that moment, only Ye Futian had been capable of consolidating the Barren State and the Holy Zhi Palace. The battles fought there ruined the Holy Zhi Palace''s reputation. Chunyang wanted to atone for what he did. As he put it himself, he was willing to do anything for the sake of the Holy Zhi Palace. Even in death, his plans had been laid in the hopes of making the Holy Zhi Palace thrive.


    "Where is my Third Brother?" Ye Futian asked.


    "He is in the Holy Zhi Palace. I''ll take him here," the Sword Demon said.


    "Thank you, elder." Ye Futian nodded. He had been very grateful to the Sword Demon for not participating in the battles. He was, after all, the lord of the Sword Palace. From a certain perspective, he should have sided with the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Eldest Brother." Ye Futian turned to look at the Sword Saint, who was putting his blade away. He looked very frail. All of his powers seemed to have been sucked dry. Ye Futian helped him up and the Sword Saint smiled, saying, "It''s alright, little brother."


    Ye Futian lowered his head and turned around, looking at Sage Douzhan, Hua Qingqing, and the others.


    "Teacher." Ye Futian looked at the frail Sage Douzhan and felt incredibly sorrowful.


    A peaceful smile was seen on Sage Douzhan''s face as he said, "Futian, what do you think?"


    "I feel all over the place." Ye Futian naturally understood that his teacher was asking about the matter of him becoming Palace Lord.


    "I understand. Get some rest when all of this blows over." Sage Douzhan naturally understood what his student had been going through. Everything happened too suddenly. However, he still hoped that Ye Futian was able to agree to it. While it was indeed Chunyang and Liu Chan who had been in the wrong and they were the source of the disaster seen that day, it was not the same to say that the entire Holy Zhi Palace was at fault. He still had a lot of feelings for the Holy Zhi Palace. Ye Futian had turned into the linchpin holding the Holy Zhi Palace and many forces throughout the Barren State together.


    "Did anyone allow you all to leave?" A cold voice sounded, breaking the peace. Many turned to look at the direction where the voice came from. It was You Chi talking. He stopped Yan Wuji, head of the Sword Saint Villa, from sneaking out of the place. Yan Wuji, Di Kai and the others were all exposed at the same time. Many stared at them and everyone looked troubled.


    They had sided with Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace. However, with Ye Futian being made the next Palace Lord and Zhisheng Cliffs retreating, the scene before them looked like a living nightmare. Both sides were hardly on the same level at the moment.


    Ye Futian looked at all of them with an extremely cold expression. While Chunyang and Liu Chan had their own principles for doing what they did for the sake of the Holy Zhi Palace, trying to prevent a greater crisis befalling the Barren State by making him and his Third Brother scapegoats to bring the mess to an end, those people had nothing but their own interests in mind, wanting to take out the Zhuge family and Taihang Mountain.


    "Make your move here. Aren''t you afraid that you''ll get others involved?" Yan Wuji threatened coldly.


    "If you people even had a line that you wouldn''t cross, your families might have suffered less," You Chi said with an equally cold tone. Who do you think you are, threatening us?


    "You Chi." Yan Wuji''s expression turned bone-chillingly cold.


    "If they had the guts to show up in the first place, I see no reason to have them leave this place alive," Ye Futian said coldly. Zhuge Qingfeng, Yuan Hong, You Chi, Xu Shang, Huang Xi, Qingdeng, Chen Yuan all stepped forward, surrounding them. There was no need to talk about principles at this point. The Lord of the Ice Temple, Sage Daozang and many other mighty ones came to stand in front of Ye Futian and the others with him, preventing them from getting harmed by those on the other side.


    "Let''s do this," You Chi said coldly. As someone ranked eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking, it was apparent that he was no pushover. Things had come this far and none of those people were allowed to leave, or they would have come back to bite them in the future.


    "Eldest Brother, Little Brother." Gu Dongliu''s voice was heard. Ye Futian turned around and saw the Sword Demon bringing Gu Dongliu to him. There were many wounds on Gu Dongliu''s body and he looked frail. It was apparent that Zhisheng Cliffs had not been treating him well for fear that he would escape.


    "Zhisheng Cliffs." Ye Futian''s eyes looked incredibly cold. Although Zhan Xiao was the one who had been responsible for everything, the overbearing attitude of Kong Yao and Zhisheng Cliffs was something he would never forget. Many mighty great apes in Taihang Mountain were killed by the mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs that Zhan Xiao brought with him, after all.


    Zhuge Mingyue walked to his side. Both she and Gu Dongliu smiled at each other while looking rather sad. It was fortunate, however, that the disaster was over.


    "You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng, do you have to go this far?" A roaring voice sounded, and Yan Wuji was no longer breathing after he said that.


    "The Nantian House is willing to submit to the Holy Zhi Palace," the head of Nantian House said.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace doesn''t need you," the Sword Demon said coldly. A scream was heard soon enough. The lord of the Sacred Fire Sect was unable to last long and soon had his throat slit by Xu Shang, who was wandering around in the battlefield.


    The people surrounding them looked at the slaughter taking place without sympathy. They sowed their seeds when they decided to align with Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs. If Zhisheng Cliffs emerged victorious, they would have been able to earn themselves a powerful ally. But now that Zhisheng Cliffs retreated, there was simply no way they would be able to come out of their predicament unscathed. Four of the mighty ones ranked in high places in the Barren Sky Ranking soon lost their lives in the Holy Zhi Palace. The surviving figures on the Barren Sky Ranking had been reduced in that day''s battles.


    "I should go get some rest." The weight in Sage Douzhan''s heart was settle and he fell right there and then. It was apparent that he was had only been able to stand for so long due to his powerful will.


    "Teacher."


    "Brother."


    Many came up to them. Sage Jingang lifted him up. Sage Douzhan''s eyes were completely shut and he looked very peaceful.


    "He needs to spend some days recuperating." Sage Jingang said, "I''ll take him to Battle Sage Palace."


    "Right." Ye Futian nodded. Sage Jingang then took Sage Douzhan with him and left.


    "Qingqing, we should go get some rest too," Monk Qingdeng said to Hua Qingqing.


    "Yeah." Hua Qingqing nodded and turned to look at Ye Futian, who was bowing to Monk Qingdeng saying, "Thank you, elder."


    Monk Qingdeng put his palms together and left with Hua Qingqing.


    Ye Futian came to Hua Jieyu''s side and picked her up. She was in a coma. He looked at her with gentle eyes.


    "I will ask my teacher to come out of isolation and treat everyone," Phoenix said to Ye Futian. The teacher she meant was naturally not Sage Daozang; it was the Undying Sage, who was also known as the Undying Old Man.


    "Thank you." Ye Futian thanked her from the bottom of his heart. He turned to look at the others and bowed. He said nothing, but he took all of their sentiments, his debt to all of them, to heart.


    "Futian, you have any plans in mind?" Zhuge Qingfeng looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "I''m thinking of taking Jieyu back to the Eastern Barren Territory for a while until she wakes up," Ye Futian said. He felt washed all over with exhaustion. He was barely able to keep his strength up and he was forcing himself to pick up Hua Jieyu''s body. Furthermore, his exhaustion was more than just a physical thing.


    "Right." Zhuge Qingfeng nodded. "It''s best for you all to go get some rest. Mingyue and Dongliu will accompany you to recuperate in the Eastern Barren Territory."


    "Senior Xu, do you know where Xu Que and the others are?" Ye Futian turned around and asked Xu Shang. Xu Que would have contacted Tingxue House.


    "Rest assured that I''ll have them go see you," Xu Shang said.


    "Right." Ye Futian felt at ease.


    "Grandpa Yuan," Ye Futian called. Yuan Hong''s massive body was seen stepping out. Ye Futian took Hua Jieyu with him and sat on his shoulders.


    "Eldest Brother, Second Sister, Third Brother," Ye Futian called and all of them left with Ye Futian for the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The Sword Demon and Daozang looked at each other as they watched Ye Futian leave. They sighed in their hearts. Ye Futian did not agree to become the Palace Lord right there and then. It was apparent that he was unable to let go of his grudge with the Holy Zhi Palace just yet. He may not have resented the Holy Zhi Palace, but it was still difficult for him to become a Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace so suddenly. Furthermore, Hua Jieyu was severely injured and was in a coma. He needed time to take in all of that.


    "If I had only been able to emerge from isolation sooner, maybe none of this would have happened." Sage Wanxiang sighed as well. While Liu Chan had been the one calling the shots, if he had been able to come out earlier and get to know Ye Futian personally, he might have been able to calculate his fate. Perhaps Liu Chan would have taken a different approach. Or perhaps, if he had not calculated Bai Luli''s talents or the ordeal of the Holy Zhi Palace would have been put through, the trajectory of things might have been different instead.


    Astrologers earned the enmity of the heavens by peering into celestial secrets, which was why astrologers often ended up dying bad deaths.


    It''s better to reduce the use of astrology to calculate fates in the future then. Everything in the world is eventually required to move according to the great patterns and rules, instead of deliberately changing certain facets due to having prior knowledge of certain matters. The end results are often disastrous, just like how it is with the Holy Zhi Palace now.


    ��


    The news regarding the battles taken place in the Holy Zhi Palace spread all over the Barren State quickly, shaking the entire Barren State. It had been many, many years since the last time such a disaster befell the Barren State. The war had even gotten saints involved and required Renhuang to descend upon the world again.


    The two Palace Lords from the Holy Sage Pavilion perished, ending the war with their own lives in return for peace throughout the Barren State. At the same time, it was also said that Ye Futian was to become the next Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian was able to defeat Bai Luli, who ranked tenth on the Barren Sky Ranking, while he was still a noble. Such was his fearsome talents. Many were awed, trying to imagine what the battle would have looked like. They knew that from that day onwards, Ye Futian was the true undisputed number one genius throughout the Barren State. No one had imagined that he, as a noble, would have been given the seat of Palace Lord. Just what did the previous Palace Lord see to make such a decision?


    Those who knew Ye Futian trembled in their minds. A new era had begun with the ending of the previous one.


    A legendary figure demonstrated what he was capable of. What future awaits him indeed.


    Will Ye Futian agree to take the place of Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace?


    Other than that, the Sword Saint Villa, the Emperor family, Nantian House, and the Sacred Fire Sect all went through cleansing. Only the You clan of the two top-notch forces who had been with Alchemy City for many years were left standing. Many sighed at the turn of events. The four top-notch forces which had once stood at the top of everything lost everything in one day. Their leaders were all killed and it was a rather sad thing. All of that stemmed from little more than a single thought''s difference.


    No one would have imagined Crouching Dragon Mountain to be able to fend off Zhisheng Cliff''s invasion, and no one would have been able to know that things would eventually turn out how they did. It was anyone''s guess how many years it would take for the Barren State to regain its former power after that war. Furthermore, Emperor Xia gave the Barren State little time to prepare. If no saints emerged from the Barren State by the time the next Battle of Saints was held, the Holy Zhi Palace would be taken apart. No one knew what such a future would hold.


    Perhaps only time would be able to tell anyone anything.

 723 Ye Futians Wedding

    A month later, on top of Book Mountain at the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Hua Jieyu was lying on a bed inside a room of a compound, attended to by an elder looking at her injuries. The elder shimmered with jade-green light and exuded incredibly thick life energies. A beautiful girl was standing right behind the elder. She was none other than Phoenix, a student of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The Barren State was undergoing a metaphorical earthquake after the war at the Holy Zhi Palace. Many forces were busy recuperating from the ordeal while the Holy Zhi Palace needed time to get things together again. Ye Futian and the others had all returned to Book Mountain at the Eastern Barren Territory. Phoenix had requested for her teacher to treat the injuries sustained by Douzhan at the Holy Zhi Palace, and he came to the compound right after treating Ye Futian''s teacher.


    Ye Futian, Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin all stood to one side and looked at the elder nervously. The shimmering jade-green light on the elder subsided after quite a while. He turned around and said to Ye Futian, "She overtaxed her spiritual powers in battle and used powers that did not belong to her. It is fortunate that she had ritual implements that helped keep her spiritual powers intact. Furthermore, the person you said to have possessed her probably held back as well, keeping her will from crumbling altogether. Phoenix had her take some pills before and I will work to repair her damaged spiritual powers in the next few days. She is not in any life-threatening danger, but she might undergo quite a long sleep, and it''s anyone''s guess when she will waking up."


    "Thank you, elder," Ye Futian said softly. He had been very worried for the past several days. The Undying Old Man''s words put him at ease right there and then. He would have waited regardless of how long she would sleep, so long as she was safe.


    "Let''s move. We''ll let her rest." The Undying Old Man walked outside the room and the others followed. There were many waiting outside. Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Yi Xiaoshi, and the others were all on Book Mountain now.


    "How is she doing?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    "The elder said she was in no danger, but she will probably spend quite a while sleeping," Ye Futian answered.


    All breathed a sigh of relief. If anything were to happen to Hua Jieyu, Ye Futian would have probably spent the rest of his days feeling guilty and beating himself up. The matter about him taking over as Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace would have been for naught.


    "All will pass," Zhuge Mingyue said softly.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded, then smiled and said, "What''s with the grim looks? This is good news, isn''t it?" That was probably his attempt at comforting both himself and the others, seeing how everyone looked so grim.


    "Little brother." Two figures walked in their direction. Ye Futian lifted his head and saw his Eldest Brother and Goddess Wangyue.


    "Look who''s here," the Sword Saint said with a smile. Ye Futian peered behind his Eldest Brother and saw Xue Ye, Luo Fan, You Xi, and the others. You Xi was seen carrying a baby in her arms.


    "Fourth Brother, Fourth sister-in-law." Ye Futian went up to greet them. He took a look at the baby girl in You Xi''s arms. The baby had huge eyes and looked at Ye Futian without feeling shy at all.


    "Here you go." You Xi handed the child to Ye Futian. He held her in his arms and said with a smile, "Well, are you looking at Uncle here because you think uncle is good-looking?"


    The others around them laughed. Xue Ye then said, "Well, her uncle has is quite different from her dad here in terms of looks, but her uncle is a handsome one nonetheless."


    "Brother, please." Ye Futian then turned to look at Xue Ye. "I''m her uncle and yet I don''t even know her name."


    "Xue Cao. Just call her Little Grass," Xue Ye smiled and said.


    "Grass." Ye Futian said, "So you''re naming her after the Cottage then [1] ?"


    "Indeed, if she has a little brother in the future, I''ll name him Xue Tang." Xue Ye nodded with a smile.


    Ye Futian looked at the baby girl in his arms and felt tears welling up in his eyes. He lowered his head and kissed Xue Cao''s forehead, then said with a smile, "I call myself her uncle and yet I don''t even have a gift for her."


    "I''ll keep that in mind then. When Little Grass grows, I''ll let her come ask for it from her uncle," You Xi smiled and said.


    "Alright then, you keep tabs for Little Grass here, sister-in-law." Ye Futian nodded and then looked at the Sword Saint and Goddess Wangyue, saying, "Eldest Brother, when are you going to marry the goddess? And Third Brother and Second Brother. You both are my elders. Don''t drag things out for too long."


    The Sword Saint looked at everyone. Even Beitang Xing''er and Yi Xiaoshi were there as well. Every single student of the Cottage was accounted for.


    "There is our teacher." The Sword Saint turned his gaze far away.


    Ye Futian was exasperated. Eldest Brother is really closeminded when it comes to these things.


    "Yeah, enough with teasing your sister here. What about you and Jieyu then? You two seem to be the pair with the longest history," Zhuge Mingyue said, looking at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian returned Little Grass to her mother, recalling the days when he was far younger.


    Over ten years had passed.


    Ye Futian smiled, shut his eyes, and then took a look at the sky. He then turned around and looked at Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin.


    "Teacher, mistress, I want to marry Jieyu and I seek your approval," Ye Futian said all of the sudden.


    Both Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin were stunned.


    "When?" Hua Fengliu asked. Jieyu was still in a coma at the moment.


    "A month from now. Regardless if she wakes up by then or not, I will marry her, right here at Book Mountain." Ye Futian''s words rendered everyone around him silent. It was obvious that no one had expected him to bring that up so suddenly.


    "Futian, I don''t have any objections to that, but if Jieyu were to wake up and find herself already married without knowing what her wedding looked like, wouldn''t that be quite a pity?" Hua Fengliu said.


    "If Jieyu wakes up after the wedding. So long as she is willing, I''ll throw her another wedding." Ye Futian smiled brightly. Nandou Wenyin felt her eyes getting red and she lowered her head, not knowing what to think.


    "Very well." Hua Fengliu nodded.


    "Thank you, father-in-law." Ye Futian smiled and everyone around him smiled as well, but they all felt their noses wrinkling and sand getting in their eyes all of a sudden. Regardless, it was still a beautiful thing.


    The news of Ye Futian ready to marry Hua Jieyu shook everyone at Book Mountain. While the people of Book Mountain did not know what exactly happened when Ye Futian and the others returned, they knew that a war took place in the Barren State; a war which the Sword Saint had participated in and Hua Jieyu returned from severely injured and in a coma. Yet, Ye Futian was about to marry Hua Jieyu.


    The people of Book Mountain naturally knew a lot about Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Everyone shuddered within. Gu Biyue and Chu Yaoyao felt less calm about the whole thing as they knew Ye Futian and the others best.


    Time really flies. Is he really getting married already?


    The news quickly spread throughout the entire Eastern Barren Territory. Many people headed for Book Mountain suddenly, wanting to witness the wedding.


    A great incident happened in Liu Kingdom several days after the news spread.


    Ye Wuchen brought the princess of Liu Kingdom, Liu Chenyu, and the prince, Liu Feiyang, back to Liu Kingdom for a bit. Several lord palaces that had been renowned for a while and the residences of the ministers of Liu Kingdom all went through a bloodbath. Ye Wuchen, as the one-armed god of killing, killed all those who had betrayed Liu Kingdom in the past, taking revenge for Liu Kingdom. It was something that Book Mountain had not been looking into for quite a while, and it was a task handed over to Ye Wuchen.


    No one had expected the day to arrive so quickly. Just how many years have passed since then?


    Ye Wuchen had already become a superior noble within that span of time, and all the mighty ones of Liu Kingdom who had seen him in action claimed that Ye Wuchen''s prowess was on par with the king back then.


    If Ye Wuchen had already grown to be so powerful, it was anyone''s guess how powerful Ye Futian and Yu Sheng��the two who had been legendary geniuses back then in Eastern Barren Territory��had become.


    Have they reached that plane told in legends: the Sage Plane?


    Sages were insurmountable legends in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The news of Ye Futian about to get married spread not only in the Eastern Barren Territory but out in the Barren State as well. Many top forces and top-notch figures ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking were prepared to make the trip to the Eastern Barren Territory to attend the wedding. They insisted to go even though Ye Futian had not invited anyone.


    Ye Futian knew nothing about all that and paid no heed to it all. He trained in peace at Book Mountain, and any time he had to spare was spent visiting Hua Jieyu and talking to her.


    A group mighty ones arrived at Book Mountain that day. They were all young people. Xu Que, Huang Jiuge, Yun Shuisheng, Zhong Li, and many others went looking for Ye Futian right away.


    "I heard that you''re getting married." Xu Que walked up to Ye Futian and said, "Congratulations."


    Ye Futian looked at Xu Que, Huang Jiuge, and the others. He smiled and said, "I have yet to apologize about what happened to you all before." Xu Shang and Huang Xi participated in that war. Their participation naturally had something to do with Xu Que and Huang Jiuge. Furthermore, he already knew that it was Ye Wuchen who killed Bai Ze and Xu Que was in it as well, helping them escape with the powers of the Tingxue House.


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about." Xu Que shrugged.


    "I''ll tell you something. I''m in the Holy Zhi Palace now," Huang Jiuge said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked peculiarly at Huang Jiuge.


    "What? You find that weird?" Huang Jiuge shrugged and added, "The Holy Zhi Palace doesn''t have a head now and all of the lords are waiting for you to get back. Yet, here you are, getting ready to have your wedding."


    "How is my teacher doing?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Lord Douzhan is just fine." Everyone nodded.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly, feeling at ease.


    "You should really head back after the wedding." Xu Que added, "There are many expecting your return. You can''t just keep staying here at the Eastern Barren Territory, can you? Furthermore, I''m still waiting for you to get back and grant me my permission to enter the Sage Hall," Xu Que said without bothering to hide anything.


    "..." Ye Futian looked at him, feeling speechless. So this is why he is persuading me to go back to the Holy Zhi Palace and become Palace Lord?


    The Sage Hall of the Holy Zhi Palace was the place where the lineage of saints was. There was no one in the Barren State who did not want to get in that place. As the next Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, he now had the right to give such privileges.


    Ye Futian did not respond to that. Xu Que shrugged, speechless. "Well, it seems like I can''t be of any use in this case. But no matter, the old guys will come get you in a couple of days anyway."


    "How many years do we have before the next Battle of Saints?" Ye Futian asked all of a sudden. The issue with Zhisheng Cliffs was one he had no intentions of forgetting.


    "The event is held once every 20 years. We have less than 10 years until the next one." Xu Que added, "No one ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking had any certainty about things in the last one. They didn''t even really get involved in it. The other eight states were the ones mainly fighting back then. Palace Lord Chunyang suffered a crushing defeat back in that one."


    "Short indeed," Ye Futian mumbled to himself. It was no wonder why the Holy Zhi Palace rushed to create a saint. It would have been difficult for even Bai Luli to reach the pinnacle of the Sage Plane in such a short time. It was even more than difficult for Ye Futian, given how he was just a noble.


    [1]: The Cottage is called ''Cao Tang'' in Chinese where ''Cao'' means ''grass.''

 724 Awakening

    Things got very rowdy below Book Mountain as many from the Eastern Barren Territory showed up.


    Following the news of Ye Futian''s wedding, which he released himself, there was other news saying it was not only Ye Futian who would be getting married three days later; Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were also going to hold their wedding the same day as Ye Futian.


    While Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen had been overshadowed by Ye Futian somewhat, they were still extremely renowned figures of the younger generations in the Eastern Barren Territory. Furthermore, they were hardly considered to be of the ''younger generation'' anymore. Ye Wuchen, who had not even reached 30, carved his way through the old royalties of the Liu Kingdom like a hot knife slicing through butter, killing Grade One nobles without breaking a sweat. His fearsome talents were apparent.


    People of the Eastern Barren Territory also heard that there would be many throughout the Barren State showing up at the wedding. It was indeed a very noteworthy event.


    Despite his wedding being right around the corner, Ye Futian was found training in silence at the peak of Book Mountain instead. Winds blew and there was no noise in his surroundings. It was a place where he was not bothered by anyone else.


    Quiet, light footsteps were heard behind him, prompting his eyelashes to twitch, yet his eyes remained closed. The figure who came from behind walked up to Ye Futian and sat beside him, casting his gaze at the sea of clouds far away.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and turned to look at the old man beside him. The old man looked just as he had always been, slouching somewhat and completely plain; the kind of person who would draw anyone''s attention on the streets.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes forward shortly after, gazing at the vista faraway.


    There was nothing but silence. The air was stiflingly quiet.


    Ye Futian lost track of how much he wanted to say to and ask the old man. However, he was calm and tranquil at the moment, not knowing what to say. He did not even know if he should respect or hate the old man.


    "Futian, I guess you have seen through it all," the old man said softly.


    His Eldest Brother was in possession of the demonic blade, Jieyu was possessed by a saint, and both of them were people closest to him. They were people who would give their lives to fight for him. The trail of thought then led to the demonic arts that Yu Sheng was practicing. There was just no way Ye Futian would not have seen through it all.


    "That was you in Donghai City, wasn''t it?" Ye Futian then asked softly, "Why did you let grandpa die? Why did you let Jieyu go through all that?" His voice sounded rather dejected. He had the ability to prevent all those tragedies from happening easily, yet he did not.


    "In your impression, what am I like as a person?" the old man asked softly.


    Ye Futian''s thoughts went back to more than a decade ago, and they went even further back after that. He and Yu Sheng both grew up under that old man''s tutelage.


    "Kind, firm, even cold," Ye Futian said. The old man was kind and gentle when dealing with him, yet he was harsh and cold when dealing with Yu Sheng.


    "Which one of those do you think is the real me?" the old man asked again.


    "The latter," Ye Futian said, thinking the old man to be definitely a cold person.


    The old man smiled and said, "Kid, what you saw were simply facets. I''m colder and more brutal than you could have imagined. My hands are stained with the blood of countless people. I''ve killed more than I bothered to count. All of the slaughter I did was not something you could have ever imagined."


    The old man''s voice was calm all the same as he said those words, yet one would be able to feel the grand battlefields he had been through, the battlefields which he had carried out his slaughter. He was one cold, brutal machine who had made his mark killing everywhere under the heavens.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and clenched his fists. He then asked, "Why did you treat me like you did then?"


    "That''s because you''re their child." The old man looked at Ye Futian with eyes filled with warmth and gentleness. Ye Futian felt as if he was looking at the eyes that belonged to both the Snow Ape and Emperor Ye Qing all those years ago when they looked at him.


    "Who?" Untold sorrow was heard from Ye Futian''s voice as he sounded extremely dejected. Who is the person you''re talking about?


    The old man shook his head.


    Ye Futian felt very disappointed and asked again, "You had Yu Sheng practice the demonic arts, you let Eldest Brother take hold of the demonic blade, and even the person who possessed Jieyu seemed to one who practiced demonic arts as well. Why won''t you teach me the demonic methods then?"


    "You are born as the emperor, and as such, you cannot train in the demonic arts." The old man shook his head and continued, "The one who possessed Jieyu was one I deliberately prepared for her. That person was a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer. I hadn''t thought of handing her to Jieyu so soon, but the events happening at Taihang Mountain at the time prompted me to do so earlier than expected. So, I went having Jieyu possessed with that spirit in Zhaixing House. While Jieyu had a hard time with things before, she would have had a powerful Divine Spiritual Sorcerer to guide her in her training in the future."


    "But they''re all people I hold dearest to me. Don''t you think you''re going too far with all that?" Ye Futian felt his heart aching. Yu Sheng, his Eldest Brother, and Jieyu all had different arrangements assigned to them; all of them would suffer further.


    "It was their honor," the old man said with a neutral look.


    "To hell with that kind of bullsh*t honor. How are you any different from Liu Chan?" Ye Futian howled with a low voice.


    Is this even honor at all?


    All of them were closest to him. All of them suffered just to let him succeed.


    The old man cast his gaze far away and went silent for a while, before saying, "I did not push them to do so. They were all willing to do what they did for your sake. If you feel guilty, if you hate me, then get stronger."


    Ye Futian lowered his head.


    "Nothing matters. The blood of the common soldiers was what won the general fame and glory. If you don''t get any stronger, more will die in the future. Rest assured, even if more were to die for you, I won''t bat an eye. Hate me with all you''ve got, and it still won''t change a thing." The old man stood up and said slowly, "I need to see to one particular matter and you won''t see me by your side from here on out. Take care of yourself."


    A gale swept by and the shriveled old man remained standing tall where he was, before disappearing like a mirage shortly after. It was as if he had never been there in the first place.


    Ye Futian felt incredibly painful inside as he watched the old man disappear. He then said, "I will get stronger, godfather."


    Do I hate him? How could I possibly hate him? He was the person I respected the most growing up.


    ...


    The wedding was quickly approaching, and there was a day left before the big day. Book Mountain was in an uproar, with preparation work done right from the bottom of the mountain. More guests showed up at Book Mountain: Long Ling''er, Gu Yunxi, Mu Zhiqiu, and the others all came to celebrate. They even brought Shen Yu, the servant girl who was with Ye Futian at the Celestial Pavilion. Other than that, Wang Yurou, who was studying at Starry School, came as well. Her family, the people of Wang family, would also join in the festivities. As they were acquaintances of Ye Futian, the members of the Wang family saw it fit to show up. While people of the Eastern Barren Territory knew little of Ye Futian''s current status in the Barren State, that was something made clear to all in the Barren State a long time ago.


    The youth who had once fought for the Wang family was now someone who could take the seat of Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace if he so wished. It was elegiac that it felt like a dream indeed.


    "Brother Futian, can I be your bridesmaid?" Long Ling''er asked playfully.


    Ye Futian went to pat her head and said, "Just what is going on in that head of yours all day?"


    "Futian." A voice was heard. Ye Futian turned his eyes at the direction of the voice and found his teacher, Sage Douzhan, walking in his direction alongside the Sword Demon and Sage Daozang.


    "Teacher." Ye Futian went up and greeted them, "Seniors."


    "Ye Futian, this wedding is more than just about you alone. Douzhan is both your and Yu Sheng''s teacher, the Sword Demon is Wuchen''s teacher, while I''m Hua Jieyu''s teacher. I assume you don''t have anything against all three of us serving as witnesses?" Sage Daozang said as if he was joking.


    "That''s great." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. "All of you teachers will have front seats to serve as witnesses for us."


    They nodded and Sage Daozang asked, "How is Jieyu doing now?"


    "She has yet to wake up," Ye Futian said softly.


    "Don''t worry about it so much. I''ve heard from Phoenix that she is just in a coma for the time being. She will wake in due time," Sage Daozang said to console him.


    "Haven''t you made up your mind yet?" The Sword Demon asked, "The entire Barren State is waiting for your answer."


    "I want to wait until Jieyu wakes up," Ye Futian replied.


    "Fine. No rush," the Sword Demon quipped while smiling with a nod.


    "Go take care of things. There seems to be quite a number of guests here today." The Sword Demon smiled and Ye Futian nodded.


    "Loulan, take care of teacher and the lords for me," Ye Futian said.


    "Will do." Loulan nodded.


    Ye Futian left the scene and went to the compound where Hua Fengliu took up residence, which was filled with people. The emperor of Nandou Nation, Nandou Wenshan, the emperor of Cangye Kingdom, and Ye Lingxi were all there. Yi Xiang was naturally there as well, giving instructions to Yi Qingxuan and Yu Sheng.


    Ye Wuchen''s parents were there as well and they were very pleased. They had not seen their son much since Ye Wuchen embarked on his journey of cultivation and left the Eastern Barren Territory.


    There was another guest whom Ye Futian found rather surprising. Her looks were incredibly stunning. She looked at Ye Futian and asked, "What, you don''t know me anymore?"


    "The number one beauty of Cangye Kingdom. How would I dare not know such a person?" Ye Futian replied with a smile. That woman was the number one beauty in the Cangye Kingdom before��Lin Yueyao.


    "Ye Futian, you''re such a dog. You have all that success and you go about forgetting old friends, eh? Not inviting me to your wedding and all that." Lin Yueyao then continued in a sassy manner, "Well, consider me crashing the party today. I assume you''re not going to kick me out?"


    "I wouldn''t dare. You alone?" Ye Futian shook his head with a bitter smile. He had no time nor was in the mood to invite guests. Everyone who showed up came on their own, but he was still feeling happy to see so many old friends around. It would have been better if Jieyu woke up.


    "What do you think?" Lin Yueyao said jokingly, "Should I bring a guy with me? I''d love to, but I''d lose face if the guy wasn''t as good-looking as you are."


    "You have a point." Ye Futian nodded approvingly. "I''m quite an exceptional being, after all. No guy would stand a chance compared to me."


    "..." Lin Yueyao was dumbfounded.


    "Make yourself at home. I''ll go check on Jieyu." Ye Futian smiled and left. Lin Yueyao glared at him and walked up to Emperor Ye, asking, "Your Highness, what is Ye Futian''s plane now?"


    "I don''t know." Emperor Ye shrugged.


    "With things being so rowdy at Book Mountain, I guess that fellow would really be something," Lin Yueyao murmured to herself.


    Ye Futian came to Hua Jieyu''s room. Nandou Wenyin was there looking after her.


    "Masteress, allow me," Ye Futian said softly.


    "Right." Nandou Wenyin nodded and left. Ye Futian sat at the side of the bed and held Hua Jieyu''s hands. Things were still rowdy outside, but it was uncannily quiet in the room instead.


    "Jieyu, we''re getting married tomorrow. Do you really want me to carry you all the way up there?" Ye Futian asked softly.


    "You''ve been sleeping for quite a long time. Time to get up. When we get married tomorrow, I''ll sleep with you as much as you want every day."


    Hua Jieyu was still lying still on the bed, but her eyelashes twitched.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were still on her hands. He held them close with both of his hands and said with a smile, "If you''re haven''t woken up by tomorrow, don''t say that I''m bullying you in the days to come."


    Ye Futian smiled and continued, "It''s been more than ten years. Time really does fly. You''ll be my girl tomorrow, and I''m not going to go easy on you."


    "I dare you."


    A soft voice was heard. Ye Futian shuddered for a bit. He lifted his head and looked at Hua Jieyu''s eyes. He saw her open her eyes with tears at the corners, which fell down the side of her face. She was, however, smiling. Her smile was beaming and it looked as pretty as ever.


    Ye Futian smiled as well. He took Hua Jieyu''s hand and kissed it gently, before looking at Hua Jieyu''s eyes and saying, "You''ll know if I dare tomorrow!"

 725 New Leader

    Ye Futian''s wedding day finally arrived. On that day, the winding staircase from the bottom of Book Mountain all the way to the top was filled with people. Most of them were people from all over the Eastern Barren Territory who showed up to celebrate the event. It was only natural for the Sword Saint not to stand in the way of all the people who attended the event and offer their best wishes, which led to the grand scene where the place became filled with people everywhere.


    Book Mountain was all rowdy and festive with everyone talking about the wedding to be held, as well as the ones��Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen��involved.


    "Thinking back all those years ago when the Qin Dynasty wanted to reign supreme all over the Eastern Barren Territory, conferring the royal prince his title and sending mighty ones out, Ye Futian, who had studied in the cottage, showed his mettle for the first time and caused a massive sensation. The third student, Gu Dongliu and the second student, Zhuge Mingyue, of the Cottage, followed by demonstrating their impressive capabilities, taking down the Qin Dynasty and the mighty ones of the Donghua clan. Within a period of several years, Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu were said to have become sages like the Sword Saint. Ye Futian is about to get married as well. All that felt like a dream and time really did fly by."


    "The new is replacing the old. Mighty ones of Noble Planes are impressive like none other all those years before. Ye Wuchen went on his pilgrimage for several years and came back to cut down the Liu Kingdom''s old princes and ministers. Even Grade One Nobles ended up being cut down with a single slash of the sword. So what did that all mean? I''m afraid all three bridegrooms of the wedding are near the Sage Plane."


    "Indeed. The tide of time washes everything old away. New legends began to rise on the stage of history. I''m afraid they have all carved out their own places in the Barren State now."


    Talk of the three men was heard all over the mountain. One would be able to see all of Book Mountain from its peak, and everyone below was able to see in that direction as well. The staircases were filled with beauties at the moment, and all of them were once female students of the Moon Clan, who had all now submitted. Seniors were seen above.


    The seniors of Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Ye Wuchen were all found sitting there.


    Hua Fengliu had a beaming smile on his face. It was, after all, his happiest day for the past several decades. He was once in love with Nandou Wenyin and they were forced to separate. He stayed alone at Donghai Academy in Qingzhou City, yet he never expected that ordeal to have changed his fate as well. The student that he picked up unintentionally back in the academy reunited him with Nandou Wenyin, restoring his training and Life Spirits. Everything felt like a dream. That student that he treated as his son was now to be married to his own daughter. He was so happy that it looked like he had never been happy before. Nandou Wenyin was just as happy as he was. Both looked at each other and held their hands tightly together.


    "Fengliu, Wenyin, you both can finally take it easy for real now," Nandou Wenshan said with a smile.


    "I''ve always been taking it easy," Nandou Wenyin said with a smile.


    "I don''t think I can actually take it easy with that kid," Hua Fengliu said jokingly.


    "Back when the students of both the Guqin Devil and the Art Saint fought in the Luo Palace all those years ago, I knew Fengliu had gotten himself a good student," Nandou Wenshan reminisced.


    "Yeah." Hua Fengliu nodded. "He was 80 percent like me, even with looks considered." At the moment, Hua Fengliu was thinking of the time when Ye Futian carried him on the back all the way to Donghai. Both teacher and student had never been so miserable before.


    "You are one hell of a fellow indeed." Nandou Wenshan laughed. But Hua Fengliu was indeed uncannily handsome. His sister would not have fallen for the man otherwise.


    "Elder Yi, you have to drink up today," Nandou Wenyin looked at Yi Xiang beside him and said.


    "I will." Yi Xiang nodded frankly.


    "The old man looks happy today. Have fun indeed." Hua Fengliu laughed a bit.


    "Don''t get my teacher drunk." Tang Lan, who was standing right beside, glared at Hua Fengliu.


    "It''s fine. I''m around still," Emperor Ye and Lord Ye, who were both sitting at the side, smiled and said.


    Other than them, there were also Sage Douzhan, the Sword Demon, and Sage Daozang sitting at the same table. Seeing the chatter of the group before them, all three men smiled. Such was the vigor of life, and it was something they had not experienced for years.


    They were able to get to know some of the things Ye Futian went through from those people, and it was also natural for them to get a better understanding of his personality.


    At that very moment, changes in the weather happened and a blinding light flashed in the air from far away.


    "What is happening?" Everyone in Book Mountain was able to feel that daunting air from far away, and one after another, they went looking in that direction. They then saw a golden dragon pulling a carriage with a group of mighty ones on it. All of those people sported an unusual and impressive bearing. The one who took the lead looked incredibly imposing, sitting on the carriage, looking dashing.


    "That fellow." Douzhan, the Sword Demon, and the others smiled at the incoming guests.


    "Alchemy City from the western region of the Barren State is here to offer our best wishes." A booming voice reverberated throughout the place. The one who was sitting at the front of the carriage was none other than You Chi, City Lord of Alchemy City.


    A vermillion bird swooped past. The carriage pulled by the divine bird was equally as dazzling and carried figures who were just as eye-catching.


    "Fire Emperor Palace of the flames is here to offer our best wishes." The group consisted of mighty ones from Fire Emperor Palace. Everyone in the Barren State was able to tell that they were family members of Li Futu. You Chi was now considered the supreme clan in the western region of the Barren State. With the relationship between Ye Futian and You Chi, as well as Ye Futian''s own status and talent added to the mix, the group deemed it necessary to show.


    "Hahaha." A squeamish laugh was heard and everyone saw the group of Jiutian Goddesses descend from the heavens. The woman who took the lead was fascinating and glamorous like none other.


    "The Goddess Pavilion is here to congratulate Mr. Ye on the auspicious event," the Lord of Goddess Pavilion said with a smile.


    "Chu Ji, behave yourself today," You Chi said plainly.


    "I know." Chu Ji glared at You Chi. That old fart really likes sticking his nose into places it doesn''t belong. She turned off her will of seduction and everyone felt less dazed in an instant. They felt cold sweat all over them. A frightening woman indeed. One look is all it takes to seduce people so that no one is able to think straight. Just who the hell are all those people coming to celebrate out of nowhere?


    Boom, boom, boom! The earth beneath Book Mountain shook as if the place was experiencing an earthquake. Many shuddered and then saw one enormous golden great ape after another in the air, appearing in all corners.


    "What..." The crowd was totally startled. Are they here to start trouble?


    "Taihang Mountain is here to offer our best wishes," Yuan Hong said with a voice so booming that it shook the mountain.


    "The Zhuge family is here to offer our best wishes." Yet another group descended. It was a group of mighty ones led by Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "The Sovereign family has come to offer our best wishes."


    "Mortal World has come to offer our best wishes."


    "Taixuan Mountain has come to offer our best wishes."


    Voices were heard here and there, and the air above Book Mountain was quickly filled with a tremendously dazzling scene. A massive number of mighty ones seemed to have taken over the skies. Those who showed up were glittering, eye-catching figures, exuding powerful auras.


    The people of the Eastern Barren Territory were unable to stop themselves from shaking. What is happening right now? Is this really Ye Futian''s big wedding day?


    "The Mortal World and Taixuan Mountain. Weren''t those two incredibly imposing top forces of the Barren State that descended onto Book Mountain all those years ago? Why are they here to join the celebration?"


    "There is also the Zhuge family. Isn''t that the family of the second student of the Cottage? It was said that they were the topmost force in the Barren State. Why are they here today? Surely it has more to do than just because of Zhuge Mingyue, right?"


    More showed up: Starry School, Dragon clan, Gu clan, Zhaixing House. Just about all who were acquainted with Ye Futian came. Many forces who were not acquainted with him were there as well.


    The people of the Eastern Barren Territory had hardly ever seen a grand scene like that. They all felt rather numb at all that was unfolding before them, not knowing what it was all about. Even Emperor Ye, Nandou Wenshan, Hua Fengliu, Yi Xiang and the others were hardly accustomed to such an uproar. They were all extremely restless.


    Just what kind of ruckus did Ye Futian manage to kick up in the Barren State?


    It seemed that more than half of the top-class forces from all over the Barren State were there.


    Ye Lingxi, Ye Danchen, Lin Yueyao, and the others stood in a group, looking at the scene before them with gaping mouths, feeling their hearts about to jump out of their chests. They had entertained the possibility of Ye Futian achieving extraordinary achievements in the Barren State, but they had never expected to see such an uproar right before them.


    At that moment, one figure after another went up the platform. It was Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, Yi Xiaoshi, Yuan Zhan, and Zhong Li. Girls like Yun Shuisheng, Phoenix, Gu Yunxi, and Mu Zhiqiu showed up as well. Many felt their hearts undergoing tremors looking at the silhouette of the youths who showed up.


    What a group of young people.


    The girls alone looked stunning, and all of them were incredible beauties. They were all standing at the side of the stairs, waiting to receive the soon-to-be-married couples.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan, and Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu walked up the stairs to the platform. Countless eyes were on them, and at that very moment, Book Mountain was all quiet again.


    The mighty ones from all over the Barren State who descended from the air all settled down, as it was rather inappropriate to steal the couples'' thunder. They all remained in the air but slightly lower than the height of the platform, as a sign of respect for the wedding itself.


    Ye Futian and the others went before Hua Fengliu and all the other elders. Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and the others handed the couples their cups before pouring wine into them.


    Ye Futian knelt with both knees and all the others followed suit. While it was said that gold lied with a man''s knees and one should have never kneel easily, the ones who sat before them were Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin��Hua Jieyu''s parents and Ye Futian''s teachers.


    Douzhan, Yi Xiang, their Eldest Brother, and the other seniors were people who fought for the married couples'' sake, putting their life on the line. Yi Qingxuan''s father, Yu Sheng''s teacher, Emperor Ye, and Ye Wuchen''s parents were among them. It was only appropriate for all six of them to kneel before all the figures before them.


    "I never knew where my parents were. Teachers and all of the elders before me are like my own parents. I wouldn''t be here today without any of you. A toast to all of you seniors." Ye Futian emptied his cup in one gulp.


    "Father, mother, and teacher," Hua Jieyu called out and emptied her cup as well.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen followed suit.


    Smiles were seen in everyone''s eyes. Tears were even seen in some of them, such as Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin. Those were tears of joy.


    "Stand up." Nandou Wenyin''s voice was rather shaky as she held both Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    "I got myself a student, and that cost me my daughter. Man, what a loss I''ve suffered," Hua Fengliu smiled and said.


    Beaming smiles were seen on everyone''s faces. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu smiled as well.


    "Time for the second cup," Long Ling''er smiled and said. A group came and poured them their wine.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu looked at each other. Both smiled, but Ye Futian said softly, "My second cup, to the one I love the most."


    They crossed cups and emptied them.


    "The third cup. Not to the heavens nor the earth, but to the cottage, to my brothers and sisters." Ye Futian held his cup up and toasted his Eldest Brother, Second Sister, Third Brother, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Yi Xiaoshi, Yuan Zhan, Yun Shuisheng, Phoenix, and the others, then emptied it. All the others followed and emptied their cups in a very frank manner.


    "Xu Que, more wine." Ye Futian extended his cup and Xu Que poured wine into his cup. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu went to the edge of the platform, turned his eyes to all the seniors from all over the Barren State and said, "To all of you seniors who came all the way here, I owe my life to many of you as you have fought for my sake. The fourth cup will be for all of you."


    He and Hua Jieyu emptied their cups. Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and the others felt rather moved as they walked up.


    "Wine," Ye Futian continued. Many looked at him and they saw him drinking down two cups in succession. Hua Jieyu and the others followed suit.


    "The fifth and the sixth. A toast to the past, and a toast to the future," Ye Futian had the seventh poured after drinking two cups. He raised his cup and turned his gaze to the countless people before him and said, "The seventh cup, to the Barren State."


    "A toast to the Barren State. A good one indeed. Drink up." You Chi took out his cup and every one of the great figures followed suit, drinking with Ye Futian.


    "To Barren State."


    "Futian, this is your big day today. Time to make your decision," Zhuge Qingfeng said, looking at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded and said proudly, "I agree to take the place of the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace."


    Many stood as soon as he finished. Even Sage Douzhan, the Sword Demon, and Sage Daozang stood up and walked in his direction. Many students of the Holy Zhi Palace who were present that day looked at Ye Futian solemnly. When Ye Futian spoke those words, he became more than just Ye Futian; he became the leader of the Holy Zhi Palace, the sacred ground of the Barren State.


    "Douzhan of the Battle Sage Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Sword Demon of the Sword Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Daozang of the Daozang Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "All hail the Palace Lord." The three lords bowed to Ye Futian. It was a necessary ritual, even if Ye Futian was their junior.


    "All hail the Palace Lord." Xu Que, Huang Jiuge, Yun Shuisheng and all other students of the Holy Zhi Palace bowed solemnly at that moment.


    "You Chi, City Lord of Alchemy City."


    "Zhuge Qingfeng, clan leader of the Zhuge family."


    "Xu Shang of Tingxue House."


    "We hereby pay respect to the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace."


    One great figure after another bent at the hip and bowed in Ye Futian''s direction. The Holy Zhi Palace was the place of the divine path in the Barren State, and that made it the leading place of the Barren State itself.


    With Ye Futian taking the place of Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, he was now a leader of the Barren State to a degree.


    The voices rumbled throughout Book Mountain. Many gazed at the scene and were unable to keep calm. It was a sight that would be etched in their minds, a sight that many would recall for many years to come!

 726 Orders of the Palace Lord

    That day was one destined to be recorded in the annals of the Eastern Barren Territory, for there had never been an event of such grandeur.


    No one had expected that a student from the cottage would have already become a leader in the Barren State before he even turned 30. The students of Book Mountain all felt extremely honored because of him.


    In Ye Futian''s perspective, it was also a day with unparalleled significance��he married the one he loved most. It was a responsibility like none other. It was more than just power offered to him in taking the place of Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace and shouldering the expectations of the many great figures who came before him. They would not have supported and urged him to take such a grand position otherwise. Of course, it was something to be discussed at a later date. Everything was to be put aside for the moment at that very day.


    Many great figures from the Barren State left after the banquet, countless from the Eastern Barren Territory went down the mountain with incredibly restless minds.


    The sky turned dark, yet Book Mountain remained lively, although it was nothing compared to what took place during the day. Red candles decorated the elegant room in Ye Futian''s residence. His beautiful wife laid quietly on the bed. Everything was tranquil and beautiful.


    Ye Futian went to the bed and supported his jaw with his hands, gazing at the beautiful woman before him. Hua Jieyu rolled her eyes at him but she blushed nonetheless. She obviously knew what was to come next.


    "Well, miss fox. It seems like you''re unable to escape me after all," Ye Futian said to her softly.


    "I''m drowsy. Let''s get some sleep." Hua Jieyu turned her back at Ye Futian.


    "My wife speaks the truest words. The night is worth a thousand gold. Let''s do so together indeed." Ye Futian burrowed beneath the blanket and held his wife in his hands.


    "Where are you putting your hands?" Hua Jieyu''s voice was as soft as the fluttering wings of mosquitoes.


    "Very soft indeed." Ye Futian''s hands were itchy.


    "Pervert." Hua Jieyu attempted to run, but there was simply no way she was able to get away from Ye Futian.


    "Well now you know," Ye Futian laughed.


    The bed shook rather violently after that. It was as if the ones on it were having fun playing.


    It was a fine day and a night to be remembered indeed.


    ��


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu got up early in the next morning to serve tea to Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin. Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin smiled rather sheepishly as they looked at the newlywed couple. Nandou Wenyin then said, "Futian, I expect to be seeing my grandchildren from you soon."


    "Well..." Ye Futian smiled in a rather shaky manner and looked rather awkward. Hua Jieyu''s face went all red and she rolled her eyes at Nandou Wenyin then said softly, "Mother, what are you talking about?"


    Hua Jieyu and Nandou Wenyin smiled, looking at the behavior of those two young people. It was normal for Hua Jieyu to feel embarrassed, but Ye Futian had always had skin as thick as a wall, so it was rather unexpected for him to be acting all awkward.


    "Futian, your teacher and the others said they are packing up and leaving at first light. Go check on them for a bit," Hua Fengliu said.


    "Alright. Jieyu, keep teacher and mistress company here," Ye Futian said. He did not change how he addressed his elders, and it was not due to him being unfamiliar with them, but rather simply because he was too accustomed to how he addressed them already. To him, they were both like his parents anyway.


    Ye Futian left and headed for the other compound where the lords of the Holy Zhi Palace were.


    "Teacher, uncle," Ye Futian called. He had taken to calling the Sword Demon and Sage Daozang ''uncle'' instead.


    "We''re preparing to leave for the Holy Zhi Palace to set things up for your return. When will you be returning there?" the Sword Demon asked.


    "This is why I''m here, seniors, to discuss this particular matter with you. Tianxing Pavilion is now in need of a lord to govern the place, and I''m thinking of having my Eldest Brother take the position. What do you think?" Ye Futian elaborated. While he had become the Palace Lord of the entire place, it was still unthinkable for him to throw his weight around without consulting others. A matter of such importance naturally required the other lords to discuss over it.


    "Fine proposition." The Sword Demon nodded. The Sword Saint fought Kong Yao hard that day. It was naturally a good thing for someone that powerful to be among the ranks of the Holy Zhi Palace. With the place now practically in shambles, they, of course, hoped to fill up the ranks. If Ye Futian was able to persuade the Sword Saint to take up the position of a lord in the Holy Zhi Palace, they saw no reason to be against it.


    "Well then, I''ll go discuss the matter with my Eldest Brother. If there are no further issues, we shall depart for the palace together," Ye Futian said. All three of his elders felt pleased with his words. It seemed that Ye Futian was ready indeed.


    Ye Futian came to the Sword Saint''s resident palace, where the rest of the cottage''s students stayed the night before. Zhuge Mingyue smiled sheepishly and said as soon as Ye Futian came in, "You''re early, Little Brother."


    "You''re early yourself, Second Sister." Ye Futian pretended to be oblivious and smiled. "Eldest Brother, there''s something I need to discuss with you."


    "Go ahead." The Sword Saint nodded.


    "With the Eastern Barren Territory at peace and Book Mountain serving as its sacred ground, there is no need for you to remain here any further. How about you go train in the Holy Zhi Palace with us?" Ye Futian said, "Me, Seventh Brother, and Yu Sheng will be there too. As such, I''m thinking of getting all of the cottage''s students to train in the palace."


    "Little Brother," Gu Dongliu, who was standing beside him, said, "I have discussed the matter with Eldest Brother yesterday. You''re right. With things being stable in the Eastern Barren Territory and you becoming the Palace Lord of Holy Zhi Palace, many forces throughout the Barren State will also cooperate. Our next target should be all of the nine states, and we will go to the Holy Zhi Palace with you."


    The Sword Saint nodded and said, "Dongliu spoke my mind."


    Ye Futian felt warm and fuzzy inside. Such were the students of the cottage. Everyone was willing to be by his side, entering the Holy Zhi Palace together and take on the rest of the nine states.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded furiously. He knew before he even opened his mouth that his brothers and sisters had been planning things for his sake.


    "I will hand the position of college chief to Bai Lishu. I consider that handing things over properly," the Sword Saint said softly. Bai Lishu was the personal student of the previous college chief and was an exceptional talent. It was fitting for him to take over as college chief, while the Sword Saint and Goddess Wangyue would have made for the Holy Zhi Palace instead.


    "Well, we''ll go get things pertaining to the Eastern Barren Territory arranged and then we''ll head to the Holy Zhi Palace," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��


    A group of mighty ones arrived in the Holy Zhi Palace seven days later, and the group was none other than the ones led by Ye Futian. Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin arrived with Ye Futian as well. Hua Jieyu was their only child and Ye Futian was also Hua Fengliu''s only student. With both of them married and Ye Futian becoming the Palace Lord, it was only natural for them to enter the Holy Zhi Palace as well.


    Other than that, Ye Wuchen''s parents were there as well but Yi Xiang surprisingly did not show. He remained adamant about staying back as headmaster of Donghai Academy to teach the students there. That old man was so stubborn that Ye Futian was entirely incapable of persuading him. The only thing he was able to do was to have Yu Sheng and Yi Qingxuan go visit the old man more often.


    Countless students of the Holy Zhi Palace headed towards the Holy Sage Pavilion after hearing that Ye Futian was returning. With Ye Futian agreeing to take the place of the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace and returning that day, many wondered what his orders would be.


    The crowd was huge and mighty ones were outside the Holy Sage Pavilion.


    Ye Futian and his party descended from above into the Holy Sage Pavilion. Many of the mighty ones from the Holy Sage Pavilion came to greet him, among them being many who were elders. They bowed to Ye Futian and said, "All hail the Palace Lord."


    "At ease, elders." Ye Futian waved and said, "My plane at training is still low. Despite taking up the place of Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, I still require your guidance from here on out.


    "Teacher, uncles, please gather all the elders of the Holy Zhi Palace here," Ye Futian said looking at Douzhan and the rest. They nodded and then took to the air, heading for their respective palaces and pavilions. All the elders came and gathered at Holy Sage Palace shortly after. They turned their eyes at Ye Futian, who was sitting before them and bowed. "All hail the Palace Lord."


    Ye Futian waved and said, "I''ve discussed with my teacher and the uncles before I came here. I know well that I haven''t been in the Holy Zhi Palace for long and my training is still lacking. The place of Palace Lord shouldn''t belong to me, but since I''m now at such a position regardless, I hope all the elders present will cast off any personal opinions and work to make the Holy Zhi Palace a stronger, better place."


    "It was the wish of the old Palace Lord before you. It is only natural that we place our faith in you," someone said.


    Ye Futian nodded. "The prior battles cost the Holy Zhi Palace heavily. Without a saint in the Barren State for many years, we have been bullied. With Zhisheng Cliffs intending to crush the Holy Zhi Palace, we do not have much time left. I hope you elders will work with me."


    Sage Douzhan stood beside Ye Futian and said, "The Holy Zhi Palace is the sacred ground of the Barren State, and we dedicate ourselves to creating a saint. We need to work harder on this goal in the coming days. If any are found harboring personal agendas as Ning Xian had, they will be cut down without question."


    "Besides that, we have been discussing several matters with the Palace Lord on our way here, and we would like the Palace Lord to make the announcements," the Sword Demon added. Everyone was able to tell Ye Futian''s current status in the Holy Zhi Palace. He had all the support he was able to get from the lords.


    "First of all, Tianxing Pavilion will be henceforth be renamed as Sword Saint Pavilion and will be governed by the Sword Saint. Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue will train in the pavilion, assisting the Sword Saint to reform the place into a proper Sword Saint Pavilion," Ye Futian said with a brimming voice. Many shuddered to hear one of the six palaces and pavilions being renamed.


    Tianxing Pavilion was reduced to some item of the past, replaced by the Sword Saint Pavilion governed by the Sword Saint. The man was more powerful than Sage Tianxing had been. Gu Dongliu, whose talent rivaled that of Bai Luli, and Zhuge Mingyue, the daughter of the Zhuge family, were to be added to the ranks of the palace as well. With that said, the new Sword Saint Pavilion would be restored to its former glory when it was called Tianxing Pavilion, eclipsing the pinnacle of its former achievements.


    "Second, the people of Taihang Mountain will be moving into the Holy Zhi Palace. Yuan Hong, the king of Taihang Mountain, will serve as assistant palace lord of Holy Sage Pavilion, assisting me." Many more shuddered as Ye Futian announced his second order. It was a move to replenish the losses suffered by the Holy Sage Pavilion. Even though it was far from enough to restore the Holy Sage Pavilion to its former glory, the addition of personnel from Taihang Mountain and assistance from Yuan Hong would at least ensure that the place would not look too vulnerable. All there was left to do was to wait for Ye Futian to reach greater heights.


    Many were secretly startled. The old Palace Lord had good eyes all along. Ye Futian began injecting new energy into the Holy Zhi Palace to make up for the losses suffered in that battle. Furthermore, with the Sword Saint and Yuan Hong among the ranks of Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian''s position was further reinforced, as it was only natural for them to back him with all their might.


    "Third, it is something concerning the rules of the Holy Zhi Palace. The bar for entry to the Sage Hall had been set too high, resulting in only one person or even none from a single generation to train within. Henceforth, all students who have been personally inspected by the six lords will earn the right to train in the Sage Hall. I have discussed the details of such inspections with the lords, and I hope we will be able to see more with potential for sainthood emerge from the Holy Zhi Palace."


    Ye Futian continued and everyone nodded. There were still no objections. With the crisis looming around the corner, the Holy Zhi Palace indeed needed to have more talented people emerge in order to fight the other states of the nine states.


    "Fourth, this is something that does not concern the Holy Zhi Palace. The eastern region of the Barren State was in a weakened state. The force that originated from a saint''s lineage was divided into three factions, resulting in the eastern region being continuously weakened. There is now only one mighty one ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking among them. I propose to have the three major schools of the Divine Sky City of the eastern region be reunited as one school, and Zhaixing House to be returned among their ranks. The lineage of the saint shall be made one again with students of all three schools studying under one roof. The position of headmaster shall be taken by Chen Yuan, headmaster of Starry School, while the chief of Zhaixing House shall serve as vice headmaster. Yang Ding of Blazing Sun School and Gong Kui of Bright Moon School shall serve as elders." Ye Futian added, "I will assign someone to relay the orders to Divine Sky City.


    "Fifth, this is my own private matter. All the forces who descended upon the Eastern Barren Territory to fight for the Guqin score, I will absolve them of all their wrongdoings. However, in return, I ask for them to trade that absolution with one of their treasures, which will be placed in the Holy Zhi Palace." Ye Futian said his fifth order slowly!

 727 Entering the Sage Hall

    Once Ye Futian had given his orders, the palace immediately got to work. Tianxing Pavilion was already refurbished once before, but with the Sword Saint as its new lord, it would be renamed as the Sword Saint Pavilion. Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue would also stay to assist the Sword Saint.


    People were starting to notice that the selected people to enter the Sage Hall were all Ye Futian''s closest friends. Battle Sage Palace had Yu Sheng, Yi Xiaoshi, and Yuan Zhan; Daozang Palace had Yun Shuiseng, Phoenix, and Hua Jieyu. Of course, Jieyu was already the lord''s wife by then, and no longer a simple disciple. Sword Palace had Ye Wuchen, Xu Que, and Zui Qianchou; and last but not least, Huang Jiuge of the Holy Sage Pavilion, as well as Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu, Xue Ye, Luo Fan, and You Xi of the Sword Saint Pavilion would not require an introduction by now. Yet, the people of the palace did not suspect that Ye Futian had made these decisions by favoritism. Upon ascending the role as the lord of the palace, these scenarios were bound to happen. Furthermore, these friends of his were also all gifted and competent in their own right, to have them cultivate their disciples in the Sage Hall, therefore, did not come as a surprise either.


    Additionally, these were the people that would be campaigning by Ye Futian''s side in the future. The majority of them have stepped up for Ye Futian once before, supporting him through his most dire times. Without need for much further assessment, it was clear that if anything were to happen to the palace lord, they would definitely stand up for Ye Futian without a second thought.


    The lords also came from various backgrounds of immensely prominent forces in the Barren State. Even the chief of Alchemy City had personally brought his daughter, You Xi, and son-in-law to the palace to learn, not long after their child had been born. The significance of such a decision was a clear testament.


    The chief of Alchemy City was never an avid participant of the activities within the palace, independently occupying the western regions as their leader, but he had changed his attitude since then, supporting Ye Futian wholeheartedly.


    Everything within the palace had been reconfigured around Ye Futian''s influence, which seemed to have fulfilled Sage Wanxiang''s prophecy that with this newfound energy, the palace would be revitalized and reinvented.


    Ye Futian''s influence extended beyond the palace as well. To uncover the power of the Ukiyo song on the likes of the Mortal World and Taixuan Mountain, several of the strongest candidates were sent to the palace, bearing gifts as an effort to bury the hatchet. This was also why they had hiked up Book Mountain to congratulate him, and if Ye Futian had decided to look into it, it was also likely that they wanted to copy the ways of the Sword Saint Villa.


    When the top three schools in the Divine Sky City of the east were officially merged, and Zhaixing House was also to be returned to Starry School, despite the unwillingness of college chiefs Yang Ding and Gong Kui, they knew that they could never raise a finger against Ye Futian''s decision. They had no choice but to accept.


    They wondered if they had listened to Chen Yuan and assisted Ye Futian in the past, to have been a part of the three schools, would they be able to roam about the palace on their own by now?


    ��


    A month later, the number of problems started to dwindle, and the palace had returned back to its usual routine. The turmoils of the Barren State had also been fully resolved.


    Presently, the relationship between the people of the Barren State had become closer, with a collectively singular resolve, and it was hard to imagine that all this was brought about by someone of the younger generation��a noble descendant collectively elected by both the palace and the Barren State alike. Compared to Ye Futian, his predecessor Bai Luli was elected by people of the palace alone.


    At the moment, Ye Futian was having a chat at the Holy Sage Pavilion. Standing with him were Sage Douzhan, the Sword Demon, Sage Daozang, and several seniors, as well as some of the more exceptional disciples of the palace��Hua Fan and Dou Kun, both of whom were respectively first and second on the law rank.


    "Master, Uncle-Master, what is the Saint Plane?" The three lords had gathered here to visit Ye Futian and took this chance to ask for his advice.


    "Saint Plane��" A few of them immediately looked curious. To them, the Saint Plane was of another unimaginable dimension, a realm only in fantasies and dreams.


    "Rumor has it that the people of the Saint Plane are faultless. They''d have to experience some sort of heartbreak to achieve a certain level of perfection, so as to witness the legendary plane. Even people of great perseverance and of a steady heart are said to be incapable of achieving it. If one were to even have a sliver of regret or an unstable grade in skills, it would be undeniably detrimental and unsalvageable," said Sage Daozang.


    Ye Futian, fully engrossed, replied, "Is the Saint Plane really that difficult to reach?"


    "Yup." The Sword Demon nodded. "It''s even more difficult for the people in the Barren State, as they have no experienced individuals from the Saint Plane to consult, hence their only chance is the orthodoxy battle. The Nine States are in the same situation. The battle of the Divine Path that Emperor Xia had planned is one of their most significant events. For the Barren State, since there are no saints in the first place, the participation numbers are low for this, and even the strongest competitors are eliminated early on."


    "What is it about the battle of the Divine Path that the strongest competitors of the Barren state do not dare to face?" Ye Futian asked.


    "There is the opportunity of attaining the status of a saint. It''s a battleground for the best sages from the Nine States. The elites of the Nine States bring divine instruments that were originally wielded by saints themselves, most of whom were top candidates from Zhisheng Cliffs. As for our Barren State, we don''t have the best candidates, and we also lack the capable instruments. Even if we take the chance to use one, it''ll definitely be targeted and snatched away in an instant," Sage Daozang explained with an exasperated laugh.


    "That''s devastating," Ye Futian murmured under his breath, discouraged at the sad reality of being at a disadvantage. To gain an opportunity to the Divine Path, those top candidates definitely would not let one off easy.


    "Without any saint for so many years, the Barren State is starting to severely lack resources. Back in the day, people of the Nine States used to visit us, but as the years have passed, the Barren State seems to have been forgotten by them."


    "In that case, all the more we should effectively utilize the resources of the Sage Hall," Ye Futian claimed. "Hua Fan, you''ve been at the Sage Hall for a while now, how do you feel?"


    Hua Fan turned to Ye Futian and said, "In time, I hope I can comprehend the rules involved upon reaching the Noble Plane and reach the status of a sage."


    Ye Futian nodded at this remark. In the past, Liu Dan also joined the Sage Hall upon crossing the threshold of the Noble Plane.


    "Joining the Sage Hall this time, you''ll come out with greater revelations," said Sage Douzhan, facing Ye Futian and Dou Kun. To that day, Dou Kun was still one of Battle Sage Palace''s best disciples and would also be training in the Sage Hall.


    "Understood." Futian nodded. "The current cohort joining the Sage Hall will define the palace''s future."


    "You should make good use of your time," Sage Douzhan claimed. He trusted Ye Futian, but Emperor Xia did not give them much time. To ask this group to excel in such a short amount of time was an incredibly difficult task.


    "We''ll enter straight into the Sage Hall tomorrow," Ye Futian said. They didn''t have much time to wait.


    "Alright, I''ll inform the rest and let them prepare for the disciples to join the Sage Hall immediately." Sage Douzhan got up and left, with a trail of his followers behind him.


    Futian looked on as Sage Douzhan left, expectant and eager about finally reaching the Sage Plane upon entering the Sage Hall.


    "My lord," a voice uttered from next to Ye Futian. Bowing, he said, "Zhuge Xing wishes to see you."


    "Zhuge Xing." Futian''s expression changed immediately. "Let him in."


    "Yes, my lord." The servant retreated without another word.


    Moments later, Zhuge Xing walked in, and with his hands clasped in front of him out of respect, he said, "As a superior noble myself, I request to join the Sage Hall." Zhuge Xing did not look too willing. Nowadays, to have a meeting with Ye Futian required prior notice, and he even had to bow when he approached Futian, yet Ye Futian had excluded Zhuge Xing when selecting people to enter the Sage Hall.


    "You? I''d recommend you go back and continue your training." Giving Zhuge Xing the side-eye, Futian coldly rejected him.


    Upon this remark, Zhuge Xing raised his head, unnerved. He already knew that Ye Futian did not like him, as Zhuge Xing himself used to go against him, but he was part of the Zhuge Family, after all. Where would Ye Futian be today without the Zhuge Family? Definitely dead.


    "Ye Futian, I understand your prejudice against me, but for the Zhuge Family, don''t think you can behave this way," Zhuge Xing asserted. "Don''t forget what the Zhuge Family has done for you."


    "Zhuge Xing, you''re being presumptuous," Hua Fan quietly muttered beside him.


    Ye Futian stared straight at Zhuge Xing and flatly retorted, "What the Zhuge Family has done for me? There is a difference between speaking of the whole family and the sole kindness of your father."


    Back then, Zhuge Qingfeng had protected him, yet how had the Zhuge Family treated him? They would''ve handed Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian over if they could have. However, Ye Futian would not bear this grudge, after all, Zhuge Qingfeng was the clan leader of the Zhuge Family. Even so, how dare Zhuge Xing use the Zhuge Family''s name as an excuse?


    "What is the difference?" Zhuge Xing rebutted.


    "If you weren''t part of the Zhuge Family, do you think I would''ve met you today?" Ye Futian replied, turning to Hua Fan. "Hua Fan my brother, what is the punishment for disrespecting his elder and the palace lord?"


    "There are not many rules and regulations within the palace, but respecting your elders and teachers is vital. For punishment, it would be appropriate to expel him from the palace," Hua Fan stated.


    "Escort Zhuge Xing out of the palace," Ye Futian softly declared.


    "Ye Futian, how could you?" Zhuge Xing convulsed in embarrassment and agitation.


    "Leave. If you resist, your powers will be relinquished," Ye Futian said, unconcerned. A golden ape immediately stepped forward, forcefully dragging Zhuge Xing out. Zhuge Xing stared at Ye Futian in livid disbelief, his face completely white.


    "You can make a complaint when you get back," Ye Futian remarked, before leaving, undeterred. Back then, Bai Ze and Ye Futian had decided not to take revenge on Zhuge Xing out of courtesy for the Zhuge Family. Yet, Zhuge Xing simply had to cause trouble for himself regardless.


    ��


    At dawn on the following day, there was a passageway at the back of the Holy Sage Pavilion that led to the Sage Hall. On this momentous occasion, several lords and headmasters were present to witness the entering disciples.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, the Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, and many others were standing at the entrance of the passageway, looking expectantly at the magnificent pair of gates at the end of the tunnel. They could almost make out the majestic temple beyond the gates, and of course, the sacred Sage Hall. Within that space, there were six different temples, each representing the six pavilions of the Sage Hall.


    "Teachers, Uncle-Masters, the palace is in your hands now," Ye Futian said in Sage Douzhan''s direction.


    "Go on." Several of them nodded.


    "As promised, we''ll be out in a year," Ye Futian reassuringly stated, before following the footsteps of the other disciples, stepping into the sacred Sage Hall!

 728 One Year

    The turmoil within the Barren State had been resolved, and everything had gone back to its usual state.


    As the seasons passed, time really had flown by. Ye Futian and the other disciples had already been in the Sage Hall for half a year. Within these six months, the many lords who had come to the palace had occasional gatherings where they would discuss how to let the disciples learn as fast as possible, as well as making a few scattered guesses on how well Ye Futian and the others in the Sage Hall were doing.


    Within a year, the powerful Ye Futian should already have reached the Sage Plane. For the others who had already become superior nobles, they would at least have reached the higher levels of the Noble Plane and would hopefully comprehend the rules of maturity and become sages themselves. This was how they would be qualified to join the next upcoming Battle of Saints.


    During the year of 10010 under the Divine Prefecture Calendar, Ye Futian and the others stayed within the Sage Hall. And when it became the year 10011, after going through one grueling year, the major forces of the Barren State were all eagerly anticipating a new era. The legendary figures had already made history. When the time was right, there would soon be new legends created.


    Presently, as a few people were practicing before the great statue at the temple within the Holy Zhi Palace, a ruckus had started. Huang Jiuge and Yu Sheng were standing facing each other. A terrifying shadow slowly emerged from Huang Jiuge''s body, moving towards where Yu Sheng stood. Similar to a demon, the shadow''s overpowering energy absorbed all power around him, adopting the energy of the attacks as his own.


    As a counterattack, Yu Sheng stepped forward, conjuring an indomitable shadow of his own. It raised a fist and sent a flying punch in the direction of the other, to which Huang Jiuge let out a cry and blasted unassailable energy in retaliation.


    An earth-shattering loud clamor echoed throughout the space, shaking the ground. By then, more and more people came over to see what the commotion was for. Following the loud noise, Huang Jiuge backed away and said to Yu Sheng, "Cease-fire, cease-fire."


    Yu Sheng nodded and instantly retrieved his conjured powers. The onlookers started laughing, while Xu Que said, "Huang Jiuge, aren''t you known to be arrogant, why did you yield?"


    "Do you want to try this yourself?" Huang Jiuge retorted.


    "I won''t fight," Xu Que said with his arms folded before his chest. To fight Yu Sheng would only result in disaster.


    "The beginning stages of your rule powers are taking shape. All of you should take the time to get in touch with the energy of the Battle Sage Hall. If you try carefully and sense it, you will eventually find the underlying rule power hidden within yourself," Ye Futian said as he walked up to them. "For cultivators practicing spells and those under martial arts, there are differences. I predict that the martial arts cultivators will be able to shape the rule power''s Dharma body. The masters have said before that the body is your temple. I''m wondering if the body itself is the manifestation of the rule power."


    The battle form that the masters have imparted, was that a prior stage before having one''s body as the main power itself?


    Sensing the power of the saints in the Sage Hall, he had attained multiple revelations. His intuition had never been more acute since the masters'' teachings, and he had been seeing more truths and realities during his Freedom Meditation sessions.


    Huang Jiuge and Yu Sheng nodded. Both of them majored in martial arts, and other spiritual forms of cultivation were secondary to them.


    "What''s the progress with your own practice?" Zui Qianchou asked Ye Futian.


    "Do you want to feel what it''s like?" Ye Futian jokingly replied.


    "Don''t be too harsh," said Zui Qianchou, looking at Futian cautiously.


    "Don''t worry, I''ll moderate it," Ye Futian said with a smirk, making Zui Qianchou a little uneasy.


    "This is what I achieved from training at the main pavilion within the Sage Hall, combined with every other energy I''ve gained so far, fused into a single move. Feel this," Ye Futian said while looking in Zui Qianchou''s direction. His voice dropped, and suddenly, all Zui Qianchou felt was tension around him; some sort of rule power surrounding him.


    A subtle noise started to emerge, similar to the buzz of electricity. Following this, Ye Futian''s eyes started to become incredibly strange, as purple lightning-like tendrils made their way into his eyes. As Zui Qianchou stared on, Futian''s pupils started to resemble vortexes, and the tendrils were lightning rods indicating something dire was definitely to come.


    Zui Qianchou''s immediate thought upon seeing this was how dangerous this was and to flee. In cold sweat, he stood up but suddenly felt as if his whole body had been electrocuted. He writhed as his Spiritual Will suffered a large blow. In that moment, Qianchou felt his own Spiritual Will getting sucked into a deep spiritual vortex. His body continued to tremble in agony as his legs had started to give way.


    "This is too far," Xu Que said sympathetically from the side. Right at that moment, Ye Futian retracted his rule power, smilingly looking at Xu Que, sending a chill down his back.


    "I��" As Zui Qianchou tried to recover and was just about to burst out in anger, upon seeing Ye Futian blithely looking at him, he instantly shut his mouth.


    In the future, he would never consider sparring or practising with Ye Futian again.


    "The strongest candidates of the Sage Plane only have murderous intent. That''s a fact. Although Ye Futian has not reached that plane yet, he is already more intimidating than the average sage, and his aggressive rule powers are exceptionally strong. For someone of a lower caliber, they''d definitely be defeated even by a single look, unless they''re protected by another person of the same level," Huang Jiuge claimed, feeling a little helpless. To have attained the rule power of freezing space and then using Eye Sorcery to directly attack someone else''s Spiritual Will, who in the world could defeat him?


    "How were you able to do it?" Phoenix asked quietly from the side.


    "Upon understanding, you''ll unlock countless powers. If you follow the method I mentioned, concentrate on comprehending the energy of the Sage Hall, Spiritual Energy, and the body. In order to resonate with the worldly powers, you have to consolidate all your existing powers, and upon reaching a certain threshold, you''ll find that it''s not that difficult to discover more abilities. As you slowly breathe in and out, over time, the rule power will naturally arise within you," Ye Futian replied. "And also, the rule power I just used hasn''t matured yet. If it had, I might have destroyed his Spiritual Will even as a passing thought."


    The people around him stared on, speechless. It was definitely easier said than done.


    "And why haven''t you reached the status of a sage yet?" Xu Que asked, incredulous.


    "My Spiritual Energy isn''t very strong at the moment, I suppose. It''ll come when the time is right, and I have a feeling that''ll be very soon," Futian responded softly. "There''s still half a year to go. If there is anything that any of you don''t understand, we can figure it out together. Feel free to consult me, as well as Big Brother or Second Sister here. Jieyu has been cultivating alongside Second Sister recently and has improved tremendously. You could spar one another during training as well. I don''t request all of us to leave the Sage Hall as sages, but I''d like all of us to at least have mastered the rule power, and not just the simple kind."


    To master the rule power, reach the peak of the Noble Plane, and to integrate all their existing powers, wasn''t an easy feat. Even Ximen Hanjiang, who was once at the top of the law rank, had never been able to do it. Considering these were Qin Zhong''s standards as well, Ye Futian already had unattainably high expectations. However, this was the Sage Hall, and within a sacred place such as this, Futian''s standards didn''t veer far from Qin Zhong''s. Since they could even consult one another, Futian naturally would expect more from them.


    If they couldn''t achieve this, how would they be qualified to engage in war against the Nine States and face the top geniuses within that region?


    It was also this very reason why Futian felt he had to cast his powers onto Zui Qianchou in front of the other disciples. It wasn''t to show off, but rather to trigger them and give them the motivation to improve their own powers.


    "Alright, continue with your training," Futian said. The people around him gradually started to dissipate. They were a little unsettled as they knew that they were the first batch under Futian''s rule to enter the Sage Hall. There was pressure for them to do well. They''d have to go beyond what they already mastered to truly reach the next step.


    As time went on, a year had finally passed, and the day for Ye Futian and the other disciples to come out from the Sage Hall had arrived.


    Outside the Sage Hall, the various pavilion lords and several seniors were already waiting to greet them. A long and magnificent path extended before them, where Ye Futian stood at the end. A row of people slowly walked behind him.


    Ye Futian looked exceptionally different from a year ago, radiating an aura of confidence that even made him look a lot more handsome than before. The disciples around him also gave off a sense of exalted pride.


    To witness this new confident generation, the various lords of the palace were filled with anticipation and pride. Over the past year, the clock at the Sage Hall chimed countless times. With every chime, it represented the recognition of the older generation as well. In the history of Sage Hall, there had never been a more magnificent sight.


    "Masters, Uncle-Masters," Ye Futian cheerfully called out.


    "Reached the plane?" Sage Douzhan inquired.


    "Yup," Futian responded, nodding his head. By that point, he had already reached the Sage Plane several months ago and was considered a principal sage of the highest nobility.


    Besides him, Yun Shuisheng was the first to reach the Sage Plane. She had been stuck at her previous plane for years prior, holding back her progress on purpose, as she intended to let her rule power mature first. This was to allow for a greater impact for her body and Spiritual Will upon crossing the threshold of becoming a sage. Huang Jiuge had also recently reached the Sage Plane. As for several others, they were still at the peak of the Noble Plane, but they would become sages soon enough!

 729 Goal

    The Holy Sage Pavilion threw a banquet to welcome Ye Futian and the others ending their training in isolation. Many in the Holy Zhi Palace attended the banquet.


    "Why does it look so much like a celebration for a victory?" Ye Futian smiled, feeling rather speechless. It was not like they had actually fought a war somewhere else.


    "The bell of the Sage Hall rang often for the past year. To the Holy Zhi Palace, the meaning behind this is far greater than winning a war somewhere. Furthermore, you all have grown considerably in the past year. Aren''t any of you going to share your training experiences with the students of the Holy Zhi Palace?" Sage Daozang then added with a smile, "You all missed last year''s sparring session, after all."


    "Alright, have it your way, Uncle Daozang," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    The group took their seats and Ye Futian went to take the master''s seat. Yuan Hong and the other five lords sat beside him. The Holy Zhi Palace students who attended the banquet felt things were weird. The Holy Zhi Palace had never been so relaxed in the past, but ever since Ye Futian took over as Palace Lord, the entire atmosphere of the Holy Zhi Palace seemed to have changed somehow, little by little.


    "Palace Lord, how does it feel breaking into Sage Plane?" the Sword Demon asked, smiling.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at everyone present and said, "The will of a sage reaches out to their surroundings. I feel as if I have developed a deeper comprehension of the heavens and the earth, as well as nature. I have heard that it was needed for sages to have an indomitable will and an open state of mind to be able to encompass everything around them and break into the plane. While none of that seems relevant to training, but if one trains with a closed mind, one''s will will not be able to reach out. When that happens, it will be impossible for one''s will to completely meld with one''s surroundings and touch another level of power. ''One who trains will first be required to train one''s mind.'' I find that expression to be very apt.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace might have many students, but even those who possess exceptional talents often find themselves trapped at the threshold at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane, incapable of taking any step further. At times, that actually has little to do with one''s talents and capacity for comprehension; the key lies within reaching the required state of mind. I hope my explanation helps," Ye Futian said.


    Many nodded. Everything in the world followed certain patterns, and it was a very curious and mystical thing. Some seemingly unrelated matters were actually connected at very deep levels. Yet, one would not have been able to develop such comprehension unless one reached the level required to do so.


    The students of the Holy Zhi Palace felt increasingly impressed with Ye Futian. The genius who had beaten Bai Luli had broken into the Sage Plane before he had even turned 30. Furthermore, his actual combat capacity was probably even greater. The scale of things was terrifying with Ye Futian, and he was an extremely rare case in the entire history of the Holy Zhi Palace. They were vaguely able to understand why the previous Palace Lord had been willing to give up his life to pass on the seat of Palace Lord to Ye Futian. But then again, it was a given that there were still some who found that decision disagreeable. They either found his plane or his agenda to be an issue.


    For example, the former number one in Law Rank, Ximen Hanjiang. He was not chosen to be allowed entry to the Sage Hall. He was not nominated by the Holy Sage Pavilion.


    While he felt the extremely high requirement for entering the Sage Hall to be rather irksome, he blamed most of his failure on him not being good enough. When Ye Futian was chosen over him, he battled with Ye Futian, angered at such a decision. He lost and he had no choice but to admit defeat. However, at the moment, all who were able to enter the Sage Hall were those who shared amicable relations with Ye Futian, yet he was still left out. He was unable to fathom why it had been so.


    Ximen Hanjiang asked after drinking a cup of wine, "I have something that I''m unable to comprehend and I''d like to ask the Palace Lord."


    Ye Futian heard Ximen Hanjiang''s words and turned his eyes to the man. Ye Futian was calm and composed, yet he sighed deeply in his mind as he exchanged looks with the Sword Demon, Daozang, and the rest. He had considered letting Ximen Hanjiang in before and had discussed the matter with the Sword Demon, Daozang, and the others, before finally settling on testing Ximen Hanjiang''s worthiness.


    When they went about choosing those to be allowed to train in the Sage Hall, they deemed one''s personality and state of mind to be the most important point to be taken into consideration other than talent. The Sage Hall was an important place in the Holy Zhi Palace. While the Holy Zhi Palace set no limitations on who was allowed to be taught within, the candidates for entering the Sage Hall were naturally people that the Holy Zhi Palace wanted to be able to handle crises with an indomitable mind and stance. At the very least, those who were unable to keep their stance were definitely not to be allowed to train inside.


    If one was the kind of person who would turn so easily, just like those who sided with Zhisheng Cliffs after being enticed by Kong Yao, they would turn into something to come back to bite the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Speak," Ye Futian said calmly.


    "Palace Lord, you claim that one who trains will first be required to train one''s mind. A sage is one needed to have a bearing capable of encompassing all, yet what I find is that all who are allowed to train in the Sage Hall are your friends, Palace Lord," Ximen Hanjiang said. The banquet turned quiet the very second he finished. There was a handful who shared the same sentiment as Ximen Hanjiang and they all turned to look at Ye Futian. There were many students in the Holy Zhi Palace whose talents had been verified, but not their temperament.


    "If any of my words sound offensive, I hope you will not take it to heart, Palace Lord," Ximen Hanjiang added. Zhuge Xing had served as an example before, but Ximen Hanjiang did not care. He had reached a stop in his training, but even if he ended up being expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace, he would simply return to his clan to train, which was why he dared ask in the first place.


    "That''s entirely fine." Ye Futian shook his head and said, "Many who entered the Sage Hall are your juniors, yet their plane is not weaker than yours. If you have any questions about capabilities, feel free to test yourself against anyone of them. If you manage to emerge victorious, I will give you permission to enter the Sage Hall right away."


    Many who heard Ye Futian''s words froze. Ximen Hanjiang was allowed to pick any one of theml.


    While Ximen Hanjiang had often been considered to be the worst number one on the Law Rank in the recent generations, he was still a former number one on the Law Rank.


    Am I just going to be looked down on like this? Ximen Hanjiang''s expression turned rather ugly. While he was still unable to break through the pinnacle of the Noble Plane and was currently stuck, he had developed increasingly matured rules. So I''m still getting humiliated like this, eh?


    "If you say so, Palace Lord, then I see no reason to refuse." Ximen Hanjiang got up and said, "I train in the art of the sword. I shall challenge Ye Wuchen, a student of the Sword Palace."


    Ximen Hanjiang naturally would not have picked Ye Futian or Yu Sheng, and it would have looked rather bad for him to pick one of the girls. Xu Que was a successor of Xu Shang and he had no certainty of being able to defeat him. As such, challenging Ye Wuchen seemed to be a guaranteed bet.


    "You may." Ye Futian nodded as he took a look at Ximen Hanjiang. The Sword Demon and the others who were sitting beside him looked rather disappointed. The truth was, it was the Sword Demon who denied Ximen Hanjiang''s entry into the Sage Hall. He wanted to test the young man since Ximen Hanjiang had already shown his dissatisfaction when Ye Futian was granted permission into the Sage Hall back then and challenged Ye Futian. As such, the Sword Demon decided to observe Ximen Hanjiang further. If the young man was able to endure such denials, they would have decided to nurture him further. However, it was obvious that Ximen Hanjiang turned out to be a let-down, so much so that he even went on to challenge the one who kept the lowest profile among the group, Ye Wuchen.


    It was apparent that he had avoided the stronger ones and picked on the one he deemed the weakest to challenge. It spoke volumes of his lack of bearing, and many deemed it normal that he was unable to progress further with his training.


    At the moment, Ximen Hanjiang had no idea that his outspokenness at such a place and time had cost him future opportunities.


    Ye Wuchen emerged from the corner where the students of the Sword Palace were. He flashed and took to the air. Ximen Hanjiang flashed and leaped into the air as well.


    Both were clad in overbearing sword aura, spreading throughout their surroundings. Power of rules of ice burst in an instant and crisp cracking noises were heard as the space where Ye Wuchen was became encased in ice. The icy powers went on to cover his entire body.


    A stream of powerful sword aura burst on Ye Wuchen, and noises of the ice shattering were heard. Ximen Hanjiang flashed and turned into afterimages as he went for Ye Wuchen. Terrifying sword will rules covered the blade in his hand, tearing at the space before him, as if he was to tear space itself apart.


    Ximen Hanjiang had come to develop comprehension of powers enabling his sword to cut rules, bringing frightening damage potential to bear. All defenses were rendered null before the rules of his sword, cut and shattered easily.


    Ye Wuchen remained standing where he was. His eyes turned incredibly terrifying in an instant as if they turned into a pair of swords. Ximen Hanjiang was stopped dead in his tracks all of a sudden. His eyes seemed to have been pulled away by something. Illusions filled his mind and he found himself inside a cage made of swords, surrounded by terrifying sword will.


    Ye Wuchen''s figure looked increasingly huge in Ximen Hanjiang''s eyes. A sword lashed out at Ximen Hanjiang, going straight for the middle of his brow.


    Ximen Hanjiang''s expression turned ice-cold. Powers of rules of ice burst, encasing Ye Wuchen''s body, while he went at Ye Wuchen with his sword at breakneck speed.


    Many looked on at that moment with peculiar expressions. The ones watching below saw Ye Wuchen lash out at Ximen Hanjiang with an illusory shadow. He himself remained standing where he was. He only moved when Ximen Hanjiang''s sword came right before him.


    A thrust shining with a blinding light appeared. Ximen Hanjiang was jarred awake in an instant, but it was too late for him to do anything to resist. Terrifying sword aura gushed at him and the tip of his opponent''s sword appeared right before his throat. Ximen Hanjiang''s face looked completely ashen at that very instant and he looked incredibly awkward.


    "Illusive Sword rules, I take it?" The Sword Demon''s eyes were fixed on Ye Wuchen. The Illusive Sword rules were a very rare type of power of rules, something activated and used by working spiritual type powers. The rules enabled illusive swords that looked no different from the real thing to manifest.


    Ye Wuchen sheathed his sword and dropped to the ground. Ximen Hanjiang was too ashamed to remain in the air. He returned to his seat without lifting his head to look at Ye Futian. He was the former number one on the Law Rank, yet despite him being allowed to pick an opponent of his choosing, he was still unable to end up on top.


    Many students of the Holy Zhi Palace were exasperated at the scene. No one had any reason to doubt Ye Futian anymore.


    Ye Futian took a look at Ximen Hanjiang calmly and said nothing. While Ximen Hanjiang had a problematic temperament, he was not as bad as Zhuge Xing. If he were to realize that himself and rectified on his own, he would have been a true proud son of the heavens. As such, Ye Futian did not pound on Ximen Hanjiang any further.


    "The candidates allowed to enter the Sage Hall this time were closely scrutinized and chosen by the lords themselves, instead of them simply being good friends of mine. If there are any other students of the Holy Zhi Palace who feel slighted by the selection, feel free to dispute the choice with the lords of your respective places of training. I will not hold such disputes against anyone." Ye Futian then added, "However, I hope the students of the Holy Zhi Palace will not limit their visions to just the Sage Hall."


    "What do you mean by that, Palace Lord?" someone looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "The time period for training in the Sage Hall is one year. The first batch who was permitted to train within the Sage Hall has emerged. I will not limit these people to move just within the Holy Zhi Palace. By that, I mean I''ll take them on pilgrimages throughout the other states to experience firsthand what the geniuses of other states are capable of." Ye Futian turned to everyone present and continued, "There are events held throughout all nine states, and the states interact with each other often. The Barren State is the only one isolated due to us having no saints. But the Barren State can no longer afford to be how it has always been. We cannot limit ourselves within the Barren State simply because the other states do not see us as one of them. In the past, only top-notch, supreme geniuses from the Holy Zhi Palace will have ventured outside. In the future, I wish to see all students of the Holy Zhi Palace venturing to faraway lands."

 730 Venturing outside the Barren State

    Everyone left after the banquet, but they still felt a tremor deep within their minds.


    While Ye Futian had taken over as the Palace Lord, he was still young and many students of the Holy Zhi Palace thought him to be ill-suited for the role. But from the looks of things at the moment, it seemed that Ye Futian was already prepared for his role. He seemed to even have plans to build Barren State of the future.


    There were only the lords and Ye Futian left in the Holy Sage Pavilion.


    "Ever since I''ve taken over as Palace Lord, all who assisted have been my elders and my friends, so it''s not surprising that Ximen Hanjiang had such thoughts. But now, I''m afraid there are quite a number of others who share his opinion." Ye Futian smiled bitterly as he shook his head. "Speaking of which, it seems that there are indeed forces who try to make the Holy Zhi Palace their own out there."


    "We didn''t go all the way to Book Mountain to call you out and offer our support to make you the Palace Lord for nothing. We know what is going on. If we were to split the place into factions, that would be a very wrong move. We just do what we must and make sure our conscience is clear." The Sword Demon said, "Now, the days where the Holy Zhi Palace can just focus on teaching the students and nothing else are definitely long over. With goals and objectives come agendas. No one is exempt from that rule, be it you, me, or the others."


    Sage Douzhan, Daozang, and Wanxiang all nodded in agreement. Now that the Holy Zhi Palace had a clear goal to make the place great again, to foster saints and to compete with other institutions of the Orthodoxy, as well as having an enemy in the form of Zhisheng Cliffs and others who were scheming to take the sacred grounds of Barren State apart, it was no longer sufficient to take only talent into consideration when fostering their candidates. Said candidates'' stances, personalities, and temperaments needed to be taken into consideration as well.


    "What about the matter I brought up before?" Ye Futian asked.


    Sage Daozang took out several drawings and laid them out slowly, handing them over to Ye Futian. He said, "The Divine Path forces of all nine states, as well as the people ranked on the Sage and Saint Rankings, are all accounted for here."


    Ye Futian nodded, took the drawings over and scanned them for a bit. The Barren State was the only one out of the nine states with no saints. All saints from the other eight states were ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking.


    There were 72 saints and 81 sages listed in this ranking. The 72 saints on the ranking were all the Saint Plane figures known in all nine states. There was, of course, the possibility of others who did not make themselves known and were not ranked. Such cases were also few and far between. That meant that there were fewer than 80 saints to be found all over the vast, seemingly boundless nine states.


    As for the 81 sages on the ranking, the ones listed were the 81 who were most powerful, with actual capabilities being considered instead of talents and potentials.


    Furthermore, out of the nine states, Zhisheng Cliffs was the only place with lineages of the saints in all of Yu State. As for the other states, there was more than one place like Zhisheng Cliffs in their respective territory.


    "Where did Emperor Xia live?" Ye Futian asked out of curiosity all of a sudden.


    The lords were dumbfounded as they looked at Ye Futian. It was apparent that none of them had expected for him to ask about Emperor Xia.


    The Sword Demon shook his head with a smile and said, "You''ll find out in the future." If the Divine Paths were something tangible, then Emperor Xia was the true figure of legends; a figure of Renhuang Plane, far above all in all of the nine states.


    Ye Futian wore a peculiar expression but he did not pursue the matter further. He put the drawings away and asked, "Are the preparations of that thing I talked about before done?"


    "The preparations are underway. The Holy Zhi Palace has dispatched mighty ones to gather intel about the other eight states, but the information is limited to the two states right beside the Barren State: Yu State and the Eastern State," Sage Daozang said.


    Ye Futian nodded and replied, "I''ll await further news then."


    Everyone nodded and excused themselves.


    The students of the Holy Zhi Palace were about to venture outside the Barren State. That had been the plan that Ye Futian had set right after he took over as Palace Lord. There was no way of growing more powerful and doing so quickly without venturing outside of one''s familiar territory.


    If one simply shut themselves off and trained only within the Holy Zhi Palace, disconnected from the outside world, there would have been no pressure or motivation to move forward.


    The lords came to the Holy Sage Pavilion after several months and brought news worthy of attention.


    "The Nine State Forum this year is to be held in the Eastern State," Sage Daozang said.


    "Nine State Forum?" Ye Futian looked puzzled.


    "We at the Holy Zhi Palace hold sparring sessions every year and battles once in three years to recruit students. The nine states interacted with each other often, and with the exception of Barren State being left out, the other eight often held events. The Nine State Forum is one tradition that has been maintained for years. The battles are fought between top-notch geniuses beneath the Sage Plane and serve to gauge the powers of each other. The event is held once every three years and the hosting right is rotated between sacred ground forces in the states involved. The host for this year is the Eastern State." Sage Daozang said, "But they wouldn''t inform the Barren State about it."


    Ye Futian nodded. He naturally understood that the Barren State was so marginalized that they deemed the Barren State unworthy of even participating in the event. It was really awkward indeed.


    "The battle of the saints is the battle between sages at their pinnacle, so this Nine State Forum is one fought between younger nobles at their pinnacle then?" Ye Futian smiled and asked.


    "Other than that, there is a saint in the Eastern State called the Chess Saint, known to be the number one chess player in all of the Nine States. He is the undisputed champion in the art of chess. At the same time, he is versed in the art of matrixes. He also possesses an incredibly rare Life Spirit: the Chess Spirit." Sage Daozang continued, "Now, the Chess Saint Villa has news that the Chess Saint is nearing his end and has invited geniuses from all corners of the world to gather there. It is said that he has carved his art of chess into his chessboard to be bestowed to an exceptional heir serving as his successor."


    "A Saint Plane mighty one nearing his end? What has he been through?" Ye Futian asked with puzzled looks.


    "That is unknown." Sage Daozang shook his head.


    "A chessboard of the saints is a sacred relic. At the very least, it has powers at the level of a holy item," Ye Futian said. There was no doubt that the chessboard crafted and used by the Chess Saint was a sacred relic, but it was unknown if it truly had powers matching its supposed level. However, it would have definitely made one a superb being by getting their hands on that chessboard. But then again, he was not versed in the art of chess.


    "We don''t know for sure, but many people from top forces all over the Eastern State all began to head for the Chess Saint Villa. A sacred relic, whatever that may be, proves tempting enough after all." Sage Daozang said, "Furthermore, the offer of an item embodying a saint''s way of training is tempting in itself, even if said way of training is an extremely rare one."


    "So the Chess Saint has no students?" Ye Futian asked curiously. Why wouldn''t a saint simply pass down his sacred relic to his student?


    "He does. The Chess Saint has nine students and all of them possess superb talents. They are also incredibly famous." Sage Daozang said, "But according to some news, none of the nine students studying under the Chess Saint has a Chess Spirit. It is a very rare Life Spirit, after all. As such, the Chess Saint probably has other plans and wants someone else to inherit his mantle and art at chess."


    Ye Futian nodded and said, "Well then, the Eastern State shall be our first stop in our journey to all nine states." He had the lords look into matters regarding the other eight states a year ago before he entered the Sage hall to train, making preparations to leave the Barren State on a pilgrimage throughout all nine states.


    Having broken into Sage Plane without much trouble himself, everyone around him was able to progress considerably, and the Barren State being largely at peace at the moment, he deemed it to be time to venture outside.


    Since there is something going in the Eastern State, then that shall be our first destination in our pilgrimage journey.


    "Noted, we''ll get things ready," Sage Daozang said. Ye Futian was now the Palace Lord of the entire Holy Zhi Palace, and it was only natural that he had mighty ones serving as his escorts.


    Ye Futian and his party departed the very next day in a rather unceremonious manner, but he had people from the Holy Zhi Palace seeing them off. It was especially so in the Holy Sage Pavilion, where Sage Douzhan, the Sword Demon, Sage Daozang, and many other mighty ones sent Ye Futian and his party off. Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace and a sage, was bringing a group of nobles with him on his journey through the nine states. There was no telling what was waiting for him out there.


    "There are nine years still. The journey will be a long one. Who knows what they will run into?" Sage Daozang said.


    "We shall let time take its natural course. The only thing we can do now is to wait for the condor to rise with the wind, and a sword capable of shaking the nine states to emerge," The Sword Demon cast his gaze at the air and saw Ye Futian and his party off.


    Ye Futain was the student with the most dazzling talent in the history of the Holy Zhi Palace as well as the youngest Palace Lord who began his career at the lowest plane level.


    No one knew what the future held, but they were certain that so long as he remained alive, it was only a matter of time before he went to shake up all of the nine states.


    "He has Wanxiang, the Sword Saint, and Yuan Hong going on the journey with him. There is no need for us to worry," Sage Douzhan said. With such a grand entourage of mighty ones by his side, no one would have been able to easily touch Ye Futian, unless the one they got on the bad side of was a saint.


    But then again, Ye Futian and his party were not dumb people, and they would not try to offend any Saint Plane figures. Furthermore, even if unexpected events were to occur, his status as the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace would make saints think twice in order to avoid getting on the bad side of Emperor Xia.


    ��


    The Eastern State was south of the Barren State, and they needed to tread through the southernmost regions to enter the Eastern State from the Barren State. The region was where the Ice Temple was. As the sacred ground located right beside Eastern State''s border, the ones from the Ice Temple would make contact with the Eastern State every now and then.


    Ye Futian visited the Ice Temple for a bit while on his way into the Eastern State, showing his gratitude to the lord of the Ice Temple in person. Yun Shuisheng also happened to be home to check on things.


    Yujing City, Eastern State, a month later.


    The city was incredibly famous in the Eastern State. It was so famous because a saint had emerged from the city, and this saint was none other than the Chess Saint.


    There were 72 known saints throughout all of the nine states, and any one of them was a figure standing at the very top. As a figure of legends, a saint was more than adequate to get a region famous.


    The Barren State was one of the nine, and the people of the Barren State yearned for a saint to emerge. Such was the influence possessed by a saint.


    A place with a saint in it would be extremely prosperous, and Yujing City was no exception.


    Yang Xiao, the city lord of Yujing City, was a mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Rankings, as well as the eldest student of the Chess Saint, possessing powers befitting of his status.


    Yang Xiao''s wife was also the number one beauty in Yujing City as well as the third student of the Chess Saint. The Chess Saint''s second student was equally as famous and possessed incredible powers. All nine students of the Chess Saint were exceptional people, and not even one of them was average.


    Saint Plane figures tended to check on the talents of their students before taking them in. Only people of exceptional talents would be allowed to study under the saints and tutored by them personally. There was no way such people could be anything but exceptional.


    Yet, as of late, there were others who were incredibly exceptional arriving in Yujing City. Many hailed from all over the Eastern State and there were even some from other states. Many of those people were mighty ones renowned in their respective regions or extreme geniuses with superb talents.


    Everyone in Yujing City knew why those people showed up.


    A group of people was seen taking to the air above Yujing City at that moment. Those people bore exceptional might, and they were none other than Ye Futian and his party.


    "We''re here." A smile could be seen in Ye Futian''s eyes. They had ventured through the Endless Regions in their journey and had arrived at the first stop outside of the Barren State.


    Other than Sage Wanxiang, his Eldest Brother and Yuan Hong, Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu, Hua Jieyu, Ye Wuchen, Yu Sheng, and the others were also by Ye Futian''s side.


    The first batch of students who studied in the Sage Hall had all ventured outside the Barren State!

 731 Jiu Gongzi

    Yujing City was an incredibly bustling place and the most bustling spot in all of Yujing City was none other than Qingyu House. Jinghua Mountain had the strongest of cultivators while Yujing House had the strongest wine. Qingyu House, however, had the greatest beauties.


    Of the three places, Jinghua Mountain was the place where the Chess Saint trained, and it was only natural for it to be the least lively. Yujing House was the City Lord Office of Yujing City, and only the guests invited by the City Lord were worthy of drinking the wine offered. Qingyu House was the only place without such restrictions, and as such, it was the place with the largest crowd.


    Qingyu House was not an actual house, but a boat or a floating restaurant, to be precise. It was decorated as lavishly and intricately as any place on land as it was a place floating by the lakeside of Jade Lake.


    To Ye Futian, the greatest attraction was, without a doubt, the beautiful girls onboard. As such, he deliberately appeared by the Jade Lake and sat at the forefront, leaning close to the boat. There were beauties playing music and dancing on the boat. The sound of their music and the scene of the girls dancing were sights to behold.


    "A sight to behold, isn''t it?" Hua Jieyu wore a veil beside Ye Futian and asked with a smile. It was not just Hua Jieyu doing so; all of the girls within Ye Futian''s party wore veils to conceal their faces as well. It would have caused a commotion if such a group of girls was to appear at such a place.


    "Yes indeed." Ye Futian nodded honestly but then turned to Hua Jieyu and said, "But of course, not as good-looking as my wife."


    "I think their dances are more beautiful. Even I, a girl, am enraptured by their movement." Hua Jieyu smiled sheepishly at Ye Futian.


    "Your words are true indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    Hua Jieyu leaned close to Ye Futian''s ear and said softly, "How about I dance one for you?"


    Ye Futian blinked and felt his heart jump. He recalled the time when they were younger, where Jieyu had actually captured a city''s attention with a dance. Was something that superb going happen right here?


    "Let''s dance at nightfall," Ye Futian replied just as softly.


    "Alright." Hua Jieyu nodded with a faint smile. Ye Futian looked at her and felt her words sounded rather unbelievable.


    "Jieyu, why do I get the feeling that he''s only here to look at girls?" Zhuge Mingyue sat right next to Hua Jieyu. She smiled at Ye Futian and went to pinch Gu Dongliu right beside her. "You brothers sure have a good time looking at the girls."


    "Pretty women are men''s bane," Gu Dongliu replied seriously. Zhuge Mingyue smiled at him. Ye Futian took a look at his Third Brother, who sported a deadpan serious expression. He isn''t my elder brother for nothing indeed. I sure as hell would have a lot to learn from him.


    A commotion was heard from the crowd. Another group of girls appeared when the veil at the boat was opened. The woman in the middle of the group wore thin clothes and moved as if she had no bones. She turned to look at the crowd with eyes that seemed to be able to melt peoples'' mind. Her beauty was so stunning that there were hardly words to describe her.


    "Goddess Hanyu." The voices of many were heard. The woman was the prettiest of all in Qingyu House: Goddess Hanyu.


    There were many who claimed that her looks were on par with that of the number one beauty in Yujing City. However, her rather low status meant that she was unable to be compared to that lady of the City Lord who was also a student of the saint.


    "What a beauty indeed." Ye Futian smiled. Goddess Hanyu sported jade-like fingers. Beautiful, mystical music sounded as she plucked at the strings of the guqin. Smoke rose and beauties danced, rendering the scene looking pretty in a dreamy manner.


    "The music played is just as beautiful as the ones playing it." Ye Futian began praising what he saw. Zhuge Mingyue smiled and looked at Ye Futian and said softly, "Marriage really does change a person."


    "Yeah." Hua Jieyu nodded, agreeing with every bit of that line.


    Goddess Hanyu bowed to her audience and the crowd went into an uproar. Many opened their mouths and said, "Reward her." Countless spirit stones, ritual implements, and treasures were brought onto the boat.


    "Jiu Gongzi giving a sage ritual implement away as a gift." A female voice was heard and everyone turned their eyes to a corner at the forefront of the boat. A dashing man sat there quietly, admiring Goddess Hanyu''s beautiful looks.


    "Jiu Gongzi is just as generous as always," many smiled and said.


    "Jiu Gongzi shows up here every day and he always is the honored guest. It looks like today is no exception," someone said. The one who gives the highest, most lavish reward will become the honored guest, sharing a room with Goddess Hanyu.


    While Goddess Hanyu was extremely beautiful, the further one progressed with one''s training, the more exceptional one''s temperament became. One would have had the capacity to admire beauty without succumbing to lust. To those people, their training was of the utmost importance and those who were of high statuses had their reputation to take care of. As such, it was incredibly rare to see one giving away a sage ritual implement just like that.


    "Uncle, give her a mid-level ritual implement," Ye Futian turned his head around and said. There was only one person he would have called ''uncle'' in the party he brought with him, and that was Sage Wanxiang.


    "Wha..." Sage Wanxiang looked at Ye Futian dumbfounded. Is he asking me, an honored lord of the Wanxiang Pavilion, to reward a courtesan? This Palace Lord really goes about doing whatever he wants.


    Ye Futian smiled sheepishly at Sage Wanxiang, who was probably the wealthiest among all in his party. Ye Futian had no one else to ask when it came to such requests.


    Sage Wanxiang smiled bitterly and shook his head seeing Ye Futian''s smile, before taking out a ritual implement from his ring and handing it over. The girl who took the gift looked rather puzzled and inspected it carefully, asking, "May I know who this gift is from?"


    "Our Mr. Ye," Sage Wanxiang said. The girl nodded and got up, saying to Ye Futian, "Mr. Ye presents a mid-level sage ritual implement."


    All eyes turned to Ye Futian all of a sudden. Giving away a mid-level sage ritual implement? Just who the hell is this guy? Someone else like Jiu Gongzi?


    Many began to try to guess Ye Futian''s identity. There are many from other places showing up at Yujing City now. Is he one of those outsiders? However, there did not seem to be a Mr. Ye among those renowned ones who came.


    After a moment, the girl at the boat smiled and looked at Ye Futian and said, "Mr. Ye shall come on to the boat in a moment."


    Goddess Hanyu turned her beautiful eyes at Ye Futian and nodded, feeling rather curious who Ye Futian was.


    "It would suffice to hear your music and admire your appearance, goddess." Ye Futian smiled and said, "As for coming onto the boat, there is no such need. Thank you for your sentiments, but I''d like to give such an opportunity to Jiu Gongzi."


    Many looked even more puzzled. Not only did the stranger gift a mid-level sage ritual implement, but he also did not even bother coming onto the boat.


    Curiosity appeared in Goddess Hanyu''s eyes. While she knew well that cultivators possessed a very strong will, there was hardly anyone who had been to this place and seen her so far yet refused her invitation.


    "Will do." The girl did not say much. She simply nodded with a smile.


    Jiu Gongzi turned his eyes at Ye Futian and saw many girls around him. He then smiled and asked, "So you like beautiful girls as well?"


    "Well, who doesn''t?" Ye Futian said. "It would be pretentious for one to say they don''t."


    "Interesting." Jiu Gongzi smiled and said, "You''re here for the event on Jinghua Mountain?"


    "Indeed, I am." Ye Futian nodded. Jiu Gongzi''s name implied that he was the ninth student of the Chess Saint of Jinghua Mountain. He was the youngest of the students and a rich loafer without a proper job.


    "I have eight other brothers and sisters. Why look for me?" Jiu Gongzi smiled and asked.


    "Because you happen to be the most interesting one," Ye Futian claimed with a smile. Since Ye Futian was out to try his luck, he naturally needed to know his way around. Those who wanted to inherit the Chess Saint''s chessboard would first be required to earn the approval of any one of the nine students before they were permitted entry to the Chess Saint Villa. The news that Ye Futian had gotten was that the ninth student of the Chess Saint would have shown up every day at Qingyu House.


    "That sounds fake but I like the sound of that." Jiu Gongzi smiled and asked, "Do you know how to play chess?"


    Ye Futian looked rather strange in response to the question before nodding and saying, "I suppose I do."


    Playing chess is easy. I guess there is no one who doesn''t know how to play chess, right? But then again, getting really good at it is something else altogether.


    "How about you give it a try?" Jiu Gongzi smiled and said, waving his hand nonchalantly. A table and a chessboard appeared between them. He waved again and Ye Futian extended his hand, taking a black piece before seeing Jiu Gongzi putting his piece on the board.


    Many came to have a closer look. No one had expected Jiu Gongzi to play with a stranger at such a place. Things had indeed gotten interesting.


    Ye Futian placed his piece as well. Jiu Gongzi''s eyes flashed and a peculiar look appeared on his face. He did not seem to understand why Ye Futian chose to place a piece at such a spot.


    Is this a new way of playing? No one would place their first piece like that according to the ways of chess, he wondered.


    Jiu Gongzi placed his piece. Both traded blows on the board and soon, the Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, and the others behind Ye Futian looked at the game, feeling awkward.


    "You really know how to play chess, don''t you?" Xu Que asked weakly, seeing how most of Ye Futian''s pieces were practically chewed up by his opponent.


    "Of course I do. Who else do you think is playing now?" Ye Futian glared at Xu Que. It''s just placing pieces. Who doesn''t know how to do that?


    All of the spectators looked at Ye Futian with astounded looks. They had anticipated the battle to be one between two adept players, but what was happening before them was truly unexpected.


    Wanxiang began to regret coming on this trip. This guy looked rather normal back in the palace, but he sure just went nuts after coming out.


    He began to think if he had judged Ye Futian wrong.


    Soon, Ye Futian was getting slaughtered all over on the chessboard, suffering a humiliating defeat.


    "Good one, Brother Ye," Jiu Gongzi said to Ye Futian. It was the very first time he encountered such a ''formidable'' opponent.


    "Jiu Gongzi is truly adept in the way of chess. It seems like I have much to learn," Ye Futian said.


    Cough, cough�� Someone around him choked. Does anyone even need to be good to play against someone like you?


    The ones around Ye Futian felt like turning around and leaving, pretending that they never knew him.


    "Let''s go," Jiu Gongzi got up and said.


    Ye Futian was dumbfounded. Jiu Gongzi lowered his head, smiled and said, "Are you not here to go to Jinghua Mountain?"


    "Indeed." Ye Futian got up, getting ready to leave. He achieved his very first goal of the trip. The ninth student of the Chess Saint was truly ridiculous and interesting, just like what he heard from the rumors.


    Jinghua Mountain was right beside the City Lord office as Yujing House was built with its back at the mountain. The Chess Saint Villa was on top of the mountain while Yujing House was at the bottom. One needed to pass through Yujing House to go up to Jinghua Mountain.


    There were many exceptional people there from all over the Eastern State, and all of them were at Yujing House at the moment.


    Ye Futian and his party arrived at Yujing House as well.


    "I don''t think any of you people stand a chance." Jiu Gongzi''s smile was a warm, friendly, and dashing one. He then said to Ye Futian, "But of course, you''re the only ones who got into the Chess Saint Villa through me. As such, you have my support."


    Ye Futian did not even know how to play chess. It was a given that he stood no chance at the event. Many of those who had arrived at the vast manor were very renowned throughout the Eastern State. For instance, Han Jing, who was known for his infallible calculations and a spirit elemental cultivator with mystical, curious powers. His mental calculative abilities were frightening, and he was versed in the way of matrixes as well. Many old veterans at chess had lost at his hands.

 732 Chess Battle

    In the Yujing House, Jiu Gongzi asked Ye Futian and his party, "Would you all like to take a look in the mountains or would you all prefer to first take a rest in Yujing House?"


    "Let''s go up the mountains," Ye Futian said. It was their original intention to visit the Chess Saint Villa, after all. Most of those who came to Yujing House had probably arrived in the mountains.


    "Alright." Jiu Gongzi nodded and took Ye Futian and his party for the mountain roads behind Yujing House.


    Jinghua Mountain was very tall, and the Chess Saint Villa was built at the top of the mountain. The building, which was built with the cliffs on its back, was a majestic and regal one.


    There were many people in Chess Saint Villa and all of them had an extraordinary bearing. At that moment, many more gathered at one of the cliffs to be found in the villa, which was called Chess Peak. Every single huge rock on Chess Peak had someone on top of it. Their eyes gazed forward, and there were nine huge chessboards laid out in the air. Every chessboard emanated mystical powers.


    At that moment, an intense chess battle was taking place on one of the chessboards. One of the battling participants was a youth dressed in purple and had a longsword at their hip, looking dashing and sporting an extremely extraordinary bearing. The one opposite the youth was an old man, who looked plain yet had a bearing as steady as a mountain, seemingly having merged himself into one with the chessboard before him.


    Both participants stood on the chessboard. The youth waved their palm and brought one chess piece from the sky, stabbing one of the spots like a sword. It seemed to exude extremely powerful rules of the sword the very moment it landed on its designated spot.


    The old man waved nonchalantly, and with a loud boom, a piece fell onto the chessboard. The mountains shook as a formless might descended upon them, suppressing the will of the sword.


    "So this is a chess battle?" Ye Futian said.


    For common folks, the arts of the guqin, chess, book, and painting were meant for tempering one''s temperament, cultivating one''s mind, and improving one''s character. Yet for cultivators, it went without saying that while all those aspects had their place, the most important part of the arts was battle. No one would have invested a huge amount of time and energy into forms of cultivation that had little benefit in battle.


    It went without saying that the Chess Saint was renowned not for his art at the game of chess itself, but for his way of chess being out of the ordinary, approaching that of the saints, just like how it was with musical spells and the Painter.


    He had fought a battle with Zhou Mu, a student of the Art Saint from Donghai City, involving the guqin and painting when he was young. Ye Futian''s Fourth Brother, Xue Ye, possessed a Fighting Book Spirit, and as such, was versed in the abilities of books. Ye Futian had also met someone in Alchemy City who based their cultivation on chess matrix. However, that was the very first time he witnessed a chess battle in its truest form.


    "Indeed." Jiu Gongzi nodded and pointed at the youth fighting the chess battle before them, then said, "That person is named Li Mu. His teacher is a mighty one of the Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Ranking: the Sword Celestial. Li Mu is a very renowned swordsman himself, possessing incredible talent. The Sword Celestial was versed not only in the way of the sword but also in sword matrix. Li Mu learned well under the Sword Celestial, and it is a given that he is just as capable. His sword matrix possesses incredible power. He also learned chess in order to visit the Chess Peak, incorporating his way of the sword into that of chess. He has reached incredible heights in that respect, yet he has problems breaking through even his very first game."


    Li Mu smiled and turned to look at Ye Futian, saying, "And so, that means there is even less hope for you. But of course, if there are any of you who are versed in the art, you''re welcome to try."


    "It seems that Jiu Gongzi is bringing people up to the Chess Saint Villa as well," someone smiled and said from one of the huge rocks beside them.


    "Just joining in the fun," Jiu Gongzi replied with a smile.


    That person took a look at Ye Futian and his party, deeming them to have an extraordinary bearing. However, there were hardly any who visited the Chess Saint Villa that were not extraordinary. But most of the people who visited the place came for little more than just to have fun.


    Ye Futian kept his eyes on the battle. As the chess pieces fell onto the board one after another, Li Mu''s expression turned increasingly serious and troubled. His movements at putting down his pieces became increasingly slow, and his palms started sweating.


    A sword aura descended from the air as he waved his hand. Frightening power of devastation swept across the chessboard, yet it was suppressed and stabilized by many other pieces around it.


    The old man waved as well. A low rumble sounded in an instant, and a bunch of chess pieces manifested from sword aura were pulverized right there and then. The sword aura dissipated into nothing as it was snuffed out by brute force.


    A mystical feeling welled up within Ye Futian. He activated Freedom Meditation, and at the very next moment, he seemed to be able to see that the two were not actually having a game of chess, but were actually fighting in a battlefield that took the form of a chessboard. Sword auras crisscrossed throughout the battlefield, and every single one of them was incredibly sharp, out to cut down everything in their path.


    Yet another sword fell, resonating with many other swords on the board. The sword matrix rang, attempting to break open the shackle placed on it to sweep the opposing pieces away.


    At that moment, the old man placed yet another piece with a loud tang. Ye Futian was vaguely able to see a huge golden cauldron descending with might to suppress all, pinning down the sword auras, preventing the power of the sword auras to be unleashed.


    Many swords rang and trembled. It was as if they were about to fall apart and were facing the danger of being destroyed at any moment.


    Li Mu yelled and pointed at the front with both his hands. A sword fell from the sky, turning into a chess piece then sat on the chessboard battlefield. At the very moment, all swords seemed to have manifested as terrifying sword matrixes, and they seemed to be taking form soon.


    Yet, at that moment, a rumble was heard as an incredibly heavy piece descended slowly to sit in a corner.


    An area of swords was destroyed at the very second that piece made contact with the chessboard, snapping the sword matrix brutally. The golden cauldron unleashed dazzling lights, and with waves of light screens emanating, it suppressed all of the swords in the area, locking them down.


    Li Mu grunted, and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth. He looked rather pale. Sword Will circled in the air, yet none of them descended. He was hesitating. A flash of brutality was finally seen in his eyes and he placed his piece at the very center of his opponent''s area of pieces, intending to go straight for the heart with one move. Formless devastating power swept across the field and the sword matrix materialized once again, cracking the golden cauldron.


    The old man waved again, unfazed. Another piece fell onto the field and the second piece made contact with the board. Li Mu''s face literally went lifeless. His sword matrix was all devoured, suppressed, and dispelled, turning into dust. All the other pieces were completely devoured without messing up the board at the next moment. They were turned to dust and utterly incapable of taking form again.


    "I lost." Li Mu shook his head with a bitter smile. He was still unable to make it through that very first game. The name of the Chess Saint held true. While it was true that Li Mu did not specialize in playing chess, it was nonetheless a natural thing for cultivators to learn the way of chess, enabling them to easily grasp the game''s essence due to the powerful deductive capabilities possessed by cultivators in general. However, the ways demonstrated by the Chess Saint were literally godlike. All nine games that he had laid out at random stopped a great majority of people dead in their tracks.


    "Mr. Li, your progress has been advancing at breakneck speed. Keep at it for some time and you will eventually break through that game," the old man said.


    Li Mu nodded. It went without saying that he had no intentions to give up just because he lost. Even if he ended up incapable of inheriting the chessboard of the Art Saint, the journey was still one which would serve well as training.


    "Splendid." Sage Wanxiang, who was behind Ye Futian, said, "Laying out one''s formations with chess pieces and every step calculated meticulously. Endless changes were seen within, yet at the very end, everything seemed to return to its source still."


    "You play chess, Uncle?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The way of the cultivators is one where all aspects are interconnected one way or another. So long as one has the intention to comprehend any expectations, they will be able to comprehend it," Wanxiang answered.


    You fortune-telling crook, Ye Futian thought to himself, having no intention of saying that out loud.


    "How so?" Ye Futian felt rather curious.


    "Playing a game of chess is akin to laying out matrixes and formations, with every step needing to be calculated. The process of both sides going at each other is a process of calculation as well as you anticipate where your opponent will place their piece as well as your way of dealing with those moves. So long as one is able to calculate all the possible changes and form a game in their mind, one will be able to keep themselves from losing, even though they have no chance of winning. As such, playing a game of chess should be very simple," Wanxiang elaborated.


    Sparkles appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes. That fortune-telling crook of an uncle is an astrologer. If he is able to calculate the fates of people, calculations involved with a game of chess are really nothing indeed.


    Jiu Gongzi looked at Sage Wanxiang dumbfounded. Has this old man gone mad? Calculating all possible changes?


    "A chessboard has many slots for one''s piece, and every time a piece is placed, there will be a variety of possibilities waiting to happen, which, in turn, means that changes in every game are practically limitless. As such, it would be entirely impossible to deduce every move which would have taken place, and you intend to calculate all of them nonetheless?" He looked at Wanxiang with a puzzled look. While Sage Wanxiang''s words were sound in theory and Jiu Gongzi''s teacher had also said that to be the path of the art of chess, he deemed what Wanxiang said to be rather far-fetched.


    It is indeed simple to play a game of chess, and everyone knows that. But why would there be only one Chess Saint in all of the nine states?


    "There is no need to make it that complex. It would have sufficed just to calculate the one you''re playing with," Wanxiang said in a natural manner.


    "Crazy dude," Jiu Gongzi mumbled but then turned around and smiled. "How about you go play a game then?"


    Wanxiang turned his eyes at Ye Futian, and the others and asked, "Would anyone of you like to experience a chess battle?"


    Ye Futian blinked and turned to look at others around him, asking, "Anyone?" However, all eyes were on him, which Ye Futian found to be rather annoying. You need the Palace Lord to do this personally?


    "Xu Que," Ye Futian called, and the man quickly moved his eyes away. I don''t how much of that crook Wanxiang''s words are true, and I''d rather doubt his words.


    "Qianchou," Ye Futian called again. Zui Qianchou simply took out his gourd and drank away.


    "Seventh Brother," Ye Futian turned around and asked Yi Xiaoshi. The fat guy glanced at him lethargically. His eyes then turned to carry a despising look.


    Ye Futian''s face turned solemn and dead. Is the dignity of the Palace Lord even a thing to these people? Very well, a Palace Lord should have an open heart and not be petty with these people. Ye Futian thought as he stepped out and landed on the chessboard. He felt engulfed by some mystical power in an instant, as if powers usable on the chessboard were limited, preventing participants from overwhelming one another with an advantage in plane, which would have violated fairness in a game.


    "I seek your guidance, Senior," Ye Futian bowed and said.


    "After you," the old man said.


    "Please, after you," Ye Futian said. He had no idea how to make a move before his opponent.


    The old man waved his hand without saying anything else. The first piece was placed with an incredibly heavy might, like that of a mountain. Ye Futian felt that incredibly heavy pressure instantly. It seemed to him as if he was fighting on the battlefield instead of playing a game of chess.


    Ye Futian waited.


    "Just do whatever comes to mind," Wanxiang said.


    Ye Futian felt an urge to slug someone. He would not be an opponent for someone from Chess Saint Villa even if he actually knew how to play chess, let alone that he did not even know how to play.


    He waved his hand and unleashed the power of rules, melding it with his piece and placed it somewhere. A rumble was heard as if a star had fallen onto the board.


    "What is he trying to do?" Many turned to look at Ye Futian. That very first move felt rather puzzling!

 733 Learning to Play Chess

    The old man on the other side frowned as well when he saw how Ye Futian placed his piece, puzzled at his move. He then placed his second piece with a wave of the hand, paying no heed to the piece that Ye Futian had just placed. The way he played was treating the game as steps to lay out his matrix, making it something entirely independent on its own. The final outcome would have been the same regardless of whatever Ye Futian did.


    Unless the way Ye Futian played was something of a higher level than his was. It was only through such a method that Ye Futian stood a chance at breaking his game.


    Sage Wanxiang said nothing thus far. Ye Futian placed his piece however he felt like it, and he sensed an overbearing pressure bearing on him. It was pressure from the chessboard, as he was able to vaguely sense his opponent''s pieces were gathering force. The force grew with every piece placed on the board.


    Ye Futian activated Freedom Meditation and looked at the game. He felt caught in the midst of the game instead of someone playing the game, feeling a rush of powerful power of rules sweeping at him. It was something that descended from the heavens and bore on his body. Being put under such pressure, the one playing would have to expend spiritual power to resist it, which meant that the concentration spent on the game itself was somewhat diverted, making it even more difficult to win the game.


    Ye Futian felt something mystical being in the game and was somewhat excited about it. So this is chess battle, huh? I must say this all feels so new to me.


    He waved his hand again and dropped one star piece after another. He played the game on his own instead of waiting for instructions from Sage Wanxiang. He seemed to have entered a state of his own. Under the powers of Freedom Meditation, he was able to see the game a little better, and every piece he placed seemed to be able to cut down that invading force gushing at him. To put it more aptly, at the moment, it felt like Ye Futian was working to break his opponent''s matrix formation, instead of actually playing a game of chess.


    "Go seven by five," Sage Wanxiang said, breaking Ye Futian''s excited state. He cursed under his breath, but went on to do as told and placed the piece at seventh-fifth slot.


    The placing of that piece seemed to have broken the change the old man was trying to lay out. A sparkle was seen in his eyes as he went on to place his piece, making up for it in other ways.


    "Go six by eight," Sage Wanxiang said again, and Ye Futian continued placing his piece. He was able to feel that Sage Wanxiang''s placing of pieces was more intricate than his. Or rather, the sage felt less morally restricted. The way the pieces were placed was very precise, with an expressed intention of breaking the gathering of the force of the opponent.


    "Go six by four.


    "Go nine by seven."


    One voice after another was heard in Ye Futian''s ears. The old man''s frown began to look increasingly apparent and a rather irked expression was seen on his face. What kind of dirty, crude playstyle is this? There are no methods to be seen in this and there is no force gathered either. Worse still, this is practically just a mess. However, such play style did no other thing than messing his formations.


    Every piece was placed in such a way that it would have made the opponent wanting to beat the one placing the pieces to a pulp. Displeasure was seen in the old man''s eyes as he went to continue playing the game. He was adamant in his disbelief that such a messy play style would have been able to break up his game.


    Time passed and more and more pieces from both sides were found on the chessboard. The power of rules grew increasingly powerful, spreading out to all corners. Many stood on the rocks not far away, looking at the game between those two with funny expressions.


    There was actually such a shameless way of playing? All dirty moves. Everything looked messy. Yet everything worked.


    The golden cauldron intended to take form in that game, yet it seemed as if the structure had cracks everywhere, and the golden cauldron remained incapable of truly manifesting. Furthermore, the messy star-powered pieces carried incredibly overwhelming power on their own, and the golden cauldron that was not yet able to take form was able to do nothing to crush them.


    The number of chess pieces grew on the board. The old man waved and brought a piece containing overbearing power of rules down, but he hesitated to complete the move. He looked incredibly frustrated, vaguely feeling that regardless of how the pieces were to be placed, there was simply no hope of getting his matrix up and running.


    "No way to go about this." The old man slammed the piece on the chessboard. Rumbling noises were heard as the game was broken.


    A puzzled look was seen on Ye Futian''s face as he turned to glance at Sage Wanxiang. The crook really is something indeed. He actually calculated all possible changes and made it impossible for the game to be continued?


    Everyone on Chess Peak turned their eyes to Ye Futian. You can do that?


    Many researched the way of chess or were versed with chess before coming up the Chess Saint Villa. However, it was their first time witnessing a play style that was so appalling. While the way it was played was rather ugly, it was nonetheless interesting if one were to really look into it. Just how powerful do one''s calculative abilities have to be in order to actually anticipate the moves of one''s opponent and go on to block them, affecting how the entire game is played?


    Ye Futian returned to his original spot, looking at Sage Wanxiang with a funny look. Jiu Gongzi naturally knew that it was not the work of Ye Futian himself, but the man was simply following Sage Wanxiang''s instructions. The sage claimed to intend to calculate all the changes of the game, which Jiu Gongzi took to be little more than a joke, yet the sage actually did it.


    "So is this considered a pass?" Ye Futian asked, looking at Jiu Gongzi.


    Jiu Gongzi looked at Ye Futian and nodded in a rather speechless manner.


    "Well, let''s get on with the second game then." Ye Futian seemed to have gotten riled up. Many eyes turned on him as he stepped on the second chessboard, waiting to see him play.


    Ye Futian went placing his pieces as he fancied, just as he did with his first game. He then went on to dismantle all that was thrown his way with no finesse or grace. The old man, who served as his opponent in the game, said angrily when the game was over, "I have never seen a playstyle that ugly."


    The third and fourth games soon followed. Ye Futian went on to break six games in a stride and the difficult grew. Even Sage Wanxiang found it taxing to play the games as there were more and more changes to be had. Ye Futian finally lost on his seventh game, thrown out of the board by a terrifying chess matrix. However, being able to break six games consecutively was still an achievement that had mouths gaping, and everyone went to gauge Ye Futian''s party with curious eyes.


    After playing seven games of chess battle, Ye Futian actually felt himself to have been truly initiated, gaining an understanding of the way of the chess. He felt chess was increasingly fun and he became very interested.


    "Too many changes to be calculated?" Ye Futian asked Sage Wanxiang.


    "It seems that I have underestimated the way of the chess. I have never thought one small board would be able to have so many changes capable of being executed on it. It was like a great path, and I never expected every play style and chess matrix to have that much difference in magnitude of power between them." Sage Wanxiang said, impressed enough that he stopped looking down on chess as he did before.


    It went without saying, however, that being able to rely solely on calculations without having ever learned to truly play chess and still was able to carry Ye Futian all the way to the seventh game was something incredibly terrifying.


    The games were not ordinary games. They were games laid out by the Chess Saint, and difficulty grew with each of the nine games.


    "I thought the games were interesting as well. I''m getting rather interested in chess." Ye Futian turned to Jiu Gongzi and said, "So one is only able to acquire the lineage of the Chess Saint after breaking all nine games?"


    Jiu Gongzi shook his head with a smile and said, "Yes and no. After breaking all nine, there is still one of even greater difficulty to be broken, and one would be considered to have completed the games after that."


    Ye Futian and Sage Wanxiang looked at each other. The ability demonstrated by Sage Wanxiang enabled him to break only six games, which spoke volumes of the difficulty of the remaining three lying in wait behind. Furthermore, there was one more with greater difficulty after breaking through all nine.


    Just how terrifying would that game be? He had no answer to that question as it was beyond his imagination.


    "Regardless, if you were able to pass, there is no need to fret. Han Jing excelled in both ways of chess and matrix, and his calculative abilities were extraordinary as well. Despite so, he was only able to pass the seventh game. Breaking all nine chess games of Chess Peak is not something that can be done in a day or two," Jiu Gongzi smiled and said.


    There is just no way the games laid out by teacher would be so simple.


    "Well, in that case, it''s better that we go down the mountain then," Ye Futian said, getting ready to return to Yujing House for the time being.


    "Alright." Jiu Gongzi nodded. He turned to Sage Wanxiang and said, "If you were to learn to play chess, old sir, you would definitely be able to break all nine games."


    "My interests lie elsewhere." Sage Wanxiang shook his head, smiling. Despite astrology not being something capable of being used all the time, that was where his interests lied.


    The way of the chess was the study of the myriad of changes taking place in a game of chess. Astrology, on the other hand, was the way of the heavens and the earth, for it was the study of all changes taking place in the world.


    They met an old man after coming down the mountain and arriving at Yujing House. The old man was of common bearing and looked common as well. He looked friendly, and said to Ye Futian''s party with a smile, "Ninth Brother, I heard that you have invited some people. Are these friends who you mean?"


    "Yes." Jiu Gongzi nodded and said, "This is my Second Brother."


    Ye Futian looked at the man and saw him smiling at them, without leaking any bit of aura. However, Ye Futian was able to tell that Li Kaishan, the second student of the Chess Saint, was a very terrifying sage who sported tremendously powerful combat capacity.


    Ye Futian returned the courtesy and said to Li Kaishan as well, "A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Er."


    "Whoever is here is our guest. You can relax and make yourselves at home at Yujing House," Li Kaishan replied with a smile and left.


    "Mr. Er seems to be an amicable person who seems to get along well with others," Ye Futian said to Jiu Gongzi. His demeanor matched what Ye Futian found prior in the gathered intel. Li Kaishan, the second student of the Chess Saint, was a good person.


    "Yeah, my Second Brother is kind and has a golden heart. He has many friends and Liu Zong will be here as well, answering my Second Brother''s invitation. The man should be on his way here as we speak," Jiu Gongzi said with a smile.


    "Liu Zong?" Ye Futian looked rather suspicious.


    "You are not telling me that you don''t know Liu Zong." Jiu Gongzi looked at Ye Futian with a funny look. Liu Zong''s renown was such that it would have been impossible for anyone from the Eastern State not to know him.


    Just where the hell are these people from?


    "Who?" Ye Futian smiled and asked, thinking that to be an adequate answer.


    Jiu Gongzi looked puzzled. He turned to Ye Futian and said, "The person capable of breaking all nine games."


    Ye Futian did not ask any further. He came to know Liu Zong within the next couple of days, as everyone in the house discussed things and Liu Zong was practically the talk of the place. There was talk about Zhou Zichao as well.


    When Zhou Zichao arrived at Yujing House, Yang Xiao, the eldest student of the Chess Saint went to receive him personally. However, more were found hyped, waiting for Liu Zong''s arrival. As renowned figures gathered in Yujing House grew in number, the place became increasingly lively. There were times where rumors about Ye Futian were heard, as his games of chess battles back then left quite an impression.


    Ye Futian was feeling rather carefree staying in Yujing House. He was reading a book at the time. The cover of the book had images of chess pieces carved on it. It was apparent that it was a book on chess!

 734 Banque

    Other than reading books, Ye Futian also went to play chess at Chess Peak to gain a deeper understanding of the way of chess first hand. He became more and more able to see the intricacies of chess, and he deemed that if he was able to master the way of chess, it would do him a lot of good in helping with his training.


    He also came to know, in the days he spent there, who Liu Zong was��a student of Xihua Sacred Mountain, a sacred ground of the Orthodoxy in the Eastern State. Furthermore, he was the personal student of the saint and was renowned as number one among the younger generations of Xihua Sacred Mountain. All three mighty ones of Saint Plane served as his teacher, and it was said that if there was a saint to emerge from the next Orthodoxy Battles of the Nine States, there was no doubt that it would be Liu Zong.


    Such appraisals meant that Liu Zong was more than someone with just potential for sainthood; he was destined to be a saint in the days to come, and it was an opinion shared by many in the world.


    Other than Liu Zong, Zhou Zichao, who had arrived as well, had a similarly impressive background. He hailed from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, a sacred dynasty which ruled vast regions in the Eastern State. It was said that the dynasty had once united all of the Eastern State under one rule many years ago, reigning supreme over all. While the dynasty was no longer what it once was, it was one of the top forces to be found in the Eastern State, even throughout all of the nine states.


    Yang Xiao, a mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Ranking who was also a student of the Chess Saint, would not have come to receive him personally.


    Other than them, all the others who were invited to the Yujing House were people who earned the approval of the nine students of the Chess Saint. They were all either of impressive background or possessed extremely exceptional talents. It was, after all, about the item symbolizing the lineage of the Chess Saint, and as such, it naturally drew attention.


    Yang Xiao, head of the Yujing House, threw a banquet at his place to entertain his guests. The place was incredibly lively and all who were present were people of exceptional bearing.


    Ye Futian''s party took their respective seats after arriving, and their seats were far from eye-catching. Ye Futian turned his eyes forward, finding Yang Xiao, the eldest student of the Chess Saint, to be a dashing, exceptional middle-aged man. His wife, however, looked young, seemingly in her early thirties. She sported incredible looks. She was the number one beauty in all of Yujing City, and her looks naturally matched what her reputation suggested. However, there were many women among the guests who actually had looks on par with that number one beauty in all of Yujing City.


    The girls in Ye Futian''s party also looked exceptional. Other than that, a young man and a young woman were seen sitting near Yang Xiao''s seat, which was at the front. Both of them exuded an air of elegance, as they were none other than Zhou Zichao and Zhou Ziyi, siblings who hailed from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and Zhou Ziyi was extraordinarily beautiful herself. Both siblings were extremely regal and elegant.


    There were many mighty ones found around the two of them. While every one of those people exuded a mild and peaceful air about them, the air of elegance about them was unmistakable. They were all people from the sacred dynasty. Furthermore, the people who were sitting opposite them were also exceptional figures.


    "Today''s banquet is just for fun and chatter. It is an honor to be able to meet so many proud sons and daughters of the younger generations." Yang Xiao, who was sitting at the host''s seat, smiled and said to everyone before him, "My wife and I would like to propose a toast with everyone here."


    "Your reputation precedes you, Chief Yang. It is a pleasure to be able to meet you today," someone said with a smile. All 81 who were ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking were exceptional people, and Yang Xiao was especially so, given how he was a student of the Chess Saint.


    "I assume all of you have gone up to the Chess Peak and experienced the games laid out personally. What do you think about the games?" Yang Xiao asked with a smile.


    "Difficult." Li Mu, a student of the Sword Celestial said, "I''m versed with sword matrixes and began looking into the way of chess before I even came here, but I was still unable to make it through even the first game when I arrived. I''m now able to make it to the fifth game after spending so much time here. It will prove rather difficult to break through all nine games."


    "Han Jing has broken through eight games thus far, and he should soon break the ninth in due time," Yang Xiao looked at Han Jing and said.


    "I will do so as soon as possible and go on to experience the Celestial Dragon Chess Game for myself," Han Jing said as he turned his eyes to Yang Xiao. The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was the ultimate game, one which was laid out by the combined efforts of all nine students. It was more than just a game, as an intense chess battle was expected to take place within that game, so much so that even the rules were made different.


    "I look forward to it," Yang Xiao smiled and said. He then turned his eyes at a very dashing, handsome young man and asked, "Mo Jun, when will your brother, Liu Zong be here?"


    Mo Jun was another exceptional student from Xihua Sacred Mountain and was a personal student of a saint as well. He was an extremely exceptional young man with a lithe figure and incredibly handsome looks. One look was all that was needed to tell that the young man was meant for great things, and he enjoyed a prestigious status among the youths of the Eastern State. Even so, when the people thought about the younger generation of Xihua Sacred Mountain, his brother, Liu Zong came to mind before him. Of course, Mo Jun admired his brother Liu Zong greatly as well. His brother was one destined to be a saint in the future, and Mo Jun had, of course, believed himself to be the same as well.


    "My brother likes keeping to himself. As such, I have no idea where he actually is," Mo Jun replied.


    Yang Xiao nodded and added, "I''m rather excited to see this exceptional young man from Xihua Sacred Mountain who reigns supreme among all the youths." He then took notice of a woman of exceptional appearance who exuded an air of holiness, so much so that she looked even more exceptional than the number one beauty in all of Yujing City. Yang Xiao smiled and said, "I''m rather surprised to see you here, Goddess Qingni."


    "You''re being too kind, chief." Goddess Qingni was also a student of a saint, a younger generation with links to the eight great ones of the Saint Plane in the Eastern State. Many such people were present at the banquet.


    "Brothers, how about you introduce the guests you have invited here. There are some that I don''t even know," Yang Xiao said as he looked at his younger brothers. All nine students of the Chess Saint were present that day.


    "Yes, Eldest Brother." Some of them nodded and went to introduce the mighty ones they invited to the house. All of them were exceptional figures from the Eastern State. When it was Jiu Gongzi''s turn to do so, he looked at Ye Futian with a rather peculiar expression and said, "I don''t actually know where you''re from."


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. It is really either very generous or clumsy of him to have only remembered such things now.


    "Ye Futian of the Barren State," Ye Futian said softly.


    "It sounds rather familiar. I think I''ve heard about it somewhere," Jiu Gongzi said. He then turned to Yang Xiao and did his introductions. "Eldest Brother, my friend Ye Futian is from the Barren State."


    "Barren State, Ye Futian," Yang Xiao murmured to himself. All of the younger generations of the Saints turned their eyes to Ye Futian suddenly. While people of the Barren State hardly mingled with those of other states, the people of the sacred ground would still concern themselves with the great incidents of the Barren State, especially involving Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State. As such, they had heard of Ye Futian''s name more than half a year ago.


    "I didn''t expect the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, sacred ground of the Barren State to be here. My apologies." Yang Xiao raised his cup, smiled and said, "Please help yourselves."


    "You''re too kind, chief." Ye Futian raised his cup and emptied it.


    "Oh, so you''re that Noble Plane Palace Lord." Jiu Gongzi had only just realized. He vaguely remembered something about Ye Futian being talked about more than half a year ago, but as he had little interests in such affairs, he did not take it to heart. He had only come to realize Ye Futian''s identity after hearing what Yang Xiao said.


    "Noble Plane Palace Lord, eh." Ye Futian felt rather exasperated.


    Everyone in the banquet turned their eyes to Ye Futian. Zhou Zichao then said, "I heard that you defeated Qin Zhong, the Son of Zhisheng Cliffs, and that your talents are exceptional. The previous Palace Lord in the Barren State called upon Emperor Xia after that battle in the Holy Zhi Palace, who then had you take over as the Palace Lord."


    Many present had more or less heard of that incident, but not many knew much about what happened. However, it was obvious that the previous Palace Lord thought Ye Futian possessed exceptional talents and had a chance at attaining sainthood, given how Ye Futian was able to defeat Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs and how the previous Palace Lord gave his life to call upon Emperor Xia.


    They knew a thing or two about Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs, but were hardly familiar with Bai Luli, as they hardly cared about what happened in the Barren State. If it had not been for Zhisheng Cliffs being a part of that great incident, they would not have even heard of Ye Futian''s name.


    Still, they cared little about him despite having seen his face now, as Barren State did not even have a saint in their ranks, going to great lengths and making costly sacrifices just to have a saint emerge. It was rather far-fetched, given how some who were present were students of saints.


    "If you''re a Palace Lord of the sacred ground of the Barren State, why do you suck so badly at chess?" someone asked. What has been demonstrated by Ye Futian that day was something many found appalling. It would have mattered little if Ye Futian was just another commoner. But a Palace Lord of the Barren State''s sacred ground playing a game of chess so awfully was deemed something laughable. Many turned to look at Ye Futian. So he is the rumored one. This is getting interesting.


    "Is playing a game of chess about determining who is the winner and who is the loser, or is it about having a playstyle that looks elegant?" Ye Futian smiled and said, looking at the one who just spoke.


    That person frowned and added, "While it is indeed true that the primary objective is to tell the winner from the loser, isn''t it unthinkable to ignore the process of how the game is played?"


    Ye Futian smiled, not going to argue further with the other party. While he thought Wanxiang''s play style was rather ugly, he hardly thought it was a problem. If he was able to beat the lineage of the Chess Saint playing in such a way, he would hardly care about the playstyle itself. He thought many present would share similar opinions as well.


    Mo Jun turned his eyes at Ye Futian, recalling something. With the Barren State not having a saint among their ranks for so many years, the Palace Lord must have come all the way from the Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State, seeing an opportunity in the Eastern State. Or maybe Ye Futian actually had some ideas about the nine states?


    The battles among all nine states were to happen in none other than the very sacred ground that they were at now��Xihua Sacred Mountain��and no one invited the Barren State to participate in the event.


    Yang Xiao smiled and said to everyone, "With even the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace from the Barren State coming all the way here to the Eastern State, I''d say the Celestial Dragon Chess Game will open a month from now. I will then allow all from Yujing City to witness the event at Chess Peak.


    "The nine games currently laid out at Chess Peak will resume as usual, just so everyone has a way to study the way of chess further. The Celestial Dragon Chess Game evolved out of those nine games and is practically an amalgamation of the nine games. As such, there is no way the Celestial Dragon Chess Game could have been broken without first breaking the nine games now at Chess Peak," Yang Xiao elaborated and everyone nodded. There was only a month''s time to look into it, and it seemed to be something achievable by only a handful of people, with the great majority of others having zero chance at breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    Ye Futian''s party left after the banquet was over.


    "Uncle, we have only a month. Do you think we stand a chance?" Ye Futian asked Wanxiang.


    "I didn''t know much about chess and I was only able to break the first six games. The seventh sported extremely complicated changes. Yang Xiao said it himself earlier, the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was an amalgamation of all nine games. As such, it definitely has limitless changes and that makes it even more difficult to break. I''ll spend the coming month researching the way of chess with you," Sage Wanxaing said.


    "Alright then." Ye Futian nodded. "Coincidentally, my style kind of differs from yours, Uncle, and I have developed some thoughts about the subject. Let''s look into it together." Ye Futian was compelled to work on it as they had come all the way to the Chess Saint Villa. It would have been a valuable experience even if they ended up losing eventually!

 735 Diligence

    Yang Xiao set the time where the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was to be opened, and more and more people showed up at Yujing City. More exceptional people from the Eastern State showed up at Yujing House, and even more cultivators from Yujing City gathered outside. They were all waiting for the day where the Celestial Dragon Chess Game would be laid out, intending to watch the games at Chess Peak.


    Liu Zong still had yet to show. Someone claimed that there were signs of him arriving at Yujing House, but no one was sure if those claims were true. The number one among all the younger generations in Xihua Sacred Mountain had indeed acted in a very unpredictable manner. Other than that, the news of the arrival of Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, the sacred ground of the Barren State, spread like wildfire, becoming the talk of the place.


    Many sighed and felt pity for Barren State. The Palace Lord of a sacred ground coming for the chessboard left behind by a saint was not something that anyone would have spoken proudly about. All the other sacred grounds in the Eastern State had people of the younger generations and cultivators showing up in general. It was unheard of for a lord to show up at such events, as such lords would have been saints instead.


    Only people of the Barren State would have done such a thing, as they were weak for not having a saint among them. Furthermore, it was said that while the Noble Plane Palace Lord sported exceptional talents, he had gone on to play chess in order to get his hands on the item left behind by the Chess Saint. His play style was an extremely appalling one, and that invited further pity from all.


    In all of the nine states, the Barren State was one place that was seen to have ceased to exist except in name. The Orthodoxy sacred grounds would not have lasted for many years before they were doomed to be taken apart. However, it was still rather admirable for a Palace Lord of a sacred ground of the Barren State to put his pride aside and venture outside the Barren State. At the very least, the Noble Plane Palace Lord was actually working hard for the sake of the Barren State. It was a pity that while his talents were extremely formidable, his plane was still low, which would make it impossible for him to turn things around just within a few years.


    ��


    At the moment, in the compound of Yujing House where Ye Futian was, he had many books and jade scrolls before him, all of which were related to the art of chess. Many of those books were actually something he had asked Jiu Gongzi to fetch for him from Chess Saint Villa, just so that he was able to read them.


    The Chess Saint was the number one chess player in all of the nine states and a group of people who were incredibly versed in the art of chess gathered at Chess Saint Villa. They had diligently put all of the knowledge of the Chess Saint and some special matrixes related to the way of chess onto books or jade scrolls in order to preserve such knowledge for the generations to come and prevent them from being lost down the line.


    All were materials that were offered to any cultivator who had earned the recognition of the nine students of the Chess Saint for reading. However, there were few who were willing to spend much of his time on the subject. Most of those people restricted themselves to reading and learning from incredibly renowned chess books. Ye Futian was different. He was willing to read any book there was to be read, so long as it was something related to the art of chess.


    It was a habit that he had developed during his days in the Cottage. He had been reading books like a madman in the Book Cave of the Cottage. His teacher tutored him back then by having him read books and learn spells doing so. His teacher also had him learn all spells there were to be learned, regardless of difficulty, and it eventually proved that his teacher had been doing the right thing. A book''s true essence would reveal itself after being read over a hundred times, and it worked the same for training.


    Ye Futian''s mind was practically filled with chess games at the moment. It was as if there was a book of chess etched into his mind and there was nothing he could do to dispel it. It was probably due to him being so interested in the subject for the past few days. It was fun learning new things, especially in Ye Futian''s case. He was able to sense the exceptional traits of the art of chess simply from reading the books, and he was then practically addicted to it.


    Someone walking by at that moment dumped a book before Ye Futian, who then said, "Are you planning to read all the books in Chess Saint Villa?"


    That someone was none other than Jiu Gongzi. Despite having been learning the art of chess from his teacher, he had never gone as crazy as Ye Futian. The books he had read were a small fraction compared to what Ye Futian had read.


    "One''s innate weaknesses are to be compensated with hard work." Ye Futian smiled and said, "Thanks for the hard work."


    It was fortunate that cultivators were unlike common people, whose spiritual aptitude was far behind that of cultivators. That made learning difficult for common people. People at sage levels like Ye Futian needed only to scan a book to comprehend its contents. They needed only to learn how to use their acquired knowledge.


    "It''s no big deal. It''s just that I haven''t been able to go see my baby at Qingyu House for quite some time now," Jiu Gongzi said rather dejectedly. "If I knew this would have happened, I wouldn''t have brought you up here."


    "Well, too late for regrets now," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    Jiu Gongzi shook his head and said, "Just what are you, the great Palace Lord of Barren State''s sacred ground, like as a person? Are you a horny flirt? Or are you a hardworking student?"


    Ye Futian looked like a playboy more than anything else when he was in Qingyu House. Jiu Gongzi had not expected him to be so into learning.


    "Me?" Ye Futian smiled and said, "Just a dashing, handsome young man whose talents are like none other."


    "Have you no shame?" Jiu Gongzi was speechless. Just what is the skin of this guy made of?


    "Seriously though, time is almost up and I wonder if you have any confidence in doing this. You''re still the only guy I''ve invited to our place since I need not worry about matters, given that my brothers and sisters are there to take care of things. I need only to be a playboy and little else. I never had any hopes about you being able to achieve anything before, but I''m starting to wonder if you actually have a shot at this, seeing how diligent you are in studying and all that."


    Jiu Gongzi looked at Ye Futian and found something off with his eyes, but then he shook his head and said in a dismissive tone, "And yet, here I am, getting crazed with you as well. My Second Brother invited Liu Zong, Zhou Zichao, Han Jing, and the others. Even if your progress is developing at the speed of a lightning bolt, I don''t think you''d have any chance at breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game before they do, or maybe, none of us will be able to break the game."


    He shook his head and left after he finished saying all that. Just how do I come to have such wild ideas about things?


    "Interesting young man indeed," Sage Wanxiang said as he looked at Jiu Gongzi leaving.


    "Interesting guy indeed. He is the last of the nine students and it''s only natural that he is all carefree and laid-back," Ye Futian smiled and said. Wasn''t I the one who kept getting looked after back in the Cottage?


    "How have you felt lately?" Sage Wanxiang asked.


    "I feel as if I''m ready to simulate the games myself. But then again, I''m, of course, not all that versed in the calculations that you''re so good at, Uncle. My play style is leaning more towards judgment guided by my guts," Ye Futian said.


    "What everyone sees and feels is different even if they were to learn the exact same thing. There is no need for you to be like me." Wanxiang said, "I broke six games armed with what little knowledge I had about chess. Having now read all those books with you, I''ve come to the point where I can say I''ve mastered the way of chess. This allows me to calculate the games in a broader yet pin-point manner, simulating all the changes to take place in my mind. If I keep at it, I''d be able to break even the eighth game, conservatively speaking. My chances of breaking all nine are rather high as well," Wanxiang said.


    "I''ll try to merge what you have taught me and what I learned myself, and I''ll try my hand at the nine games tomorrow," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright." Sage Wanxiang nodded. "You may try a different approach, like playing in reverse, anticipating where your opponent will place their pieces, but make it so that it feels natural and see if that gels with what you have anticipated. You should then see how the game changes further. There is no need to get fixated on winning."


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Hearing you all talk about chess all the time, I kind of feel like I''ve become a high-level player myself." Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu walked in their direction with a smile. All of them read books about chess every now and then, but quickly felt doing was rather exhausting. They had decided to invest their time in training instead.


    Things that are all about talent like this are better left for our little brother.


    "Second Sister, Third Brother," Ye Futian called.


    "I know little about chess, little brother, so I can''t help you with much. But know that all paths are connected one way or another. The way of chess is also a way at cultivation. A chess battle is like a martial arts battle. Every piece is about attack and defense. If you want to beat your opponent, you''ll naturally need to defend against your opponent''s attacks while retaliating or attack your opponent with a more explosive move. The one thing you need to do in a chess battle is master how things are in a big picture. As such, your spiritual willpower would be just as important in a chess battle," Gu Dongliu said.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. "I''ll keep your words in mind, Third Brother."


    "Don''t wear yourself out too badly," Gu Dongliu said softly. Ye Futian had little to no rest for the past few days. Training was not simply shutting down all the time. The art of chess was one that was very taxing on spiritual power, and as such, one should have been more alert against shutting oneself off. It would have gotten incredibly tiring when done so in a prolonged manner.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "Relax, brother. I like chess anyway."


    Gu Dongliu nodded without saying much.


    Ye Futian went up to Chess Peak first thing in the morning the next day. The nine games were all still there, and some were even found sitting cross-legged on huge rocks. They had been looking into and challenging the games to prepare for the upcoming Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    Although they knew that they stand little chance at winning, but they were compelled to try, given how they had come all the way there. Furthermore, they got to see the best of the top-notch geniuses to be found in the Eastern State, making it quite an experience.


    The old man guarding the game stepped onto the first game and said to Ye Futian, "You have already broken through six games and will start with the seventh. There is no need to repeat all of the games."


    He was very displeased playing against Ye Futian that day.


    Ye Futian smiled. He looked at how the old man behaved and said, "I deem it necessary to start from the beginning. I look forward to your guidance."


    "Alright then." The old man nodded impatiently and then waved his hand without a care. A piece coalesced from the power of rules fell onto the board with a loud thump.


    Ye Futian activated Freedom Meditation, allowing him to look into the game with greater clarity as if he was on the board himself, taking charge of the chess battle. He waved his hand and a piece was placed without hesitation.


    The old man kept placing pieces and Ye Futian followed suit. Soon, the old man looked at Ye Futian with a peculiar look. Ye Futian did not use that very ugly style he had been using before. However, his skills were very, very shoddy.


    As the number of pieces grew on the board, a chessboard seemed to have appeared in Ye Futian''s mind. That board was a projection of what he was playing, and it went on to continuously change with future moves. That was a simulation running in his mind.


    Ye Futian placed another piece as he waved his hand, yet his eyes were fixed on other spots, feeling that the old man would put his piece there. He turned his eyes at a different spot. As anticipated, the old man placed his piece with a hard thump, building up a powerful force. A precious cauldron went on to pressure Ye Futian''s spiritual will, intending to crush him.


    Ye Futian lost a moment later, but he did not leave. He instead asked, "Elder, can we have another game?"


    The old man frowned, but he continued nonetheless.


    "Elder, can we have another one?" Ye Futian repeated again and again. The old man got rather fed up and said angrily, "Your way of chess sucks. Why bother wasting your time and mine?"


    Ye Futian did not mind at all, smiling as he asked to continue. He was verifying what he had learned through actual battle.


    At Chess Peak, Everyone''s eyes were on Ye Futian at the moment. That guy�� really knows nothing about playing chess. He is just wasting time there. It was probably the old man with him that day who guided him and enabled him to break through six games consecutively!

 736 Celestial Dragon Chess Game

    Ye Futian had been verifying what he had learned with all nine games for the next few days. He tried different play styles with every single game, yet he ended up losing every time. Even the elders who were playing with him were able to see that he had been seeking defeat intentionally, observing the changes in their play style through his own.


    It was the first time for any of them to see someone learn in such a way. There was not even a single person in Chess Saint Villa who had done so before. They were secretly impressed at how Ye Futian indeed had thoughts about things.


    Ye Futian observed the changes of the nine games through doing actual battle, just to verify what he had learned for the days past. He felt himself progressing at breakneck speeds in chess.


    Everyone else other than Ye Futian had progressed as well. They were even a few who were able to break all nine games: Han Jing, Zhou Zichao, Zhou Ziyi, Goddess Qingni, and Mo Jun of Xihua Sacred Mountain. Other than that, there were also some others who broke eight games, with only one more to go.


    Everyone progressed, but of course, some relied on more than just themselves to do so. For instance, Zhou Zichao and his sister, Zhou Ziyi, had elders from Xihua Sacred Mountain providing guidance. The master players of chess that they hired for the event guided them like how Sage Wanxiang guided Ye Futian. After all, Chess Saint Villa did not set any rules regarding the methods used for breaking the games.


    The day that Yang Xiao had set eventually came. Many mighty ones from Yujing City came to witness the event on that day. People flocked to Jinghua Mountain, landing on Chess Peak. Countless silhouettes were found on ancient peaks and huge rocks; all of them were people who came for the event.


    Many elders from Chess Saint Villa arrived that day and all of them were there to witness the opening of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    Ye Futian and his party arrived very early at Chess Peak. They stood quietly and countless around them were talking about the chess battles that day.


    "I can''t believe that Liu Zong still hasn''t shown up." Many were seen looking around but no one saw Liu Zong at Chess Peak. Is he really going to miss today''s chess battle for real?


    Zhou Zichao and Zhou Ziyi are indeed siblings who are also students of the sacred dynasty. They both exude an air of elegance about them.


    Mo Jun looked incredibly dashing and exceptional. Han Jing looked steady and reserved. Li Mu had a handsome yet flighty feeling about him, a testament of the bearing of his teacher: the Sword Celestial.


    Goddess Qingni sported looks that reigned supreme in Jinghua Mountain. She stood alone on a huge rock, her green dress and jet black hair billowed in the wind, looking as if she was actually a fairy, one that was to be admired from afar and never to be defiled in any way.


    The girls around Ye Futian all wore thin veils over their faces, hiding them. There were many who were curious about how they looked, speculating from the girls'' figure and bearing that all of them were incredibly beautiful.


    They were also many who talked about Ye Futian. Although he was nowhere as famous in the Eastern State as he was in the Barren State, there were many who knew him nonetheless. All of that, coupled with some news regarding him as of late, he attracted quite a lot of attention to himself still.


    At that moment, a group of people was seen walking on the ancient road in the middle of Chess Peak. Many made way for them, seeing Yang Xiao and eight of his juniors walking in their direction.


    "They''re here." Many turned their eyes at Yang Xiao and the others. The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was about to be opened.


    The group made it to a cliff at Chess Peak and slowly took to the air, saying, "The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was something left behind by our teacher, passed on to all nine of us. As such, The game is one that has limitless changes and it will now be laid out by all nine of us. We present to you, the Celestial Dragon Chess Game."


    Yang Xiao turned around and looked at the many elders standing on both sides of the cliff, saying, "Open."


    The elders from Chess Saint Villa moved and went on to blast the huge cliff. Explosive rumble was heard all over the place in an instant, and dazzling lights were seen on top of the cliff as if it was something forged out of matrixes. Many were found with startled looks on their faces. They never expected a matrix to be hidden in the cliff itself.


    The matrix shone increasingly bright, spreading out to the inside of the cliff. Beams of terrifying light shot out of the cliff from inside out. Countless cracks were seen on the cliff in an instant. Patterns lit up and with a loud rumble, the rocks of the cliff turned to dust and dissipated.


    Blinding light shimmered in that very instant, which drew the eyes of many. The light emanated from a huge chessboard, which hovered in midair.


    Yang Xiao and his other juniors stepped forward and landed on the shimmering chessboard. Their bodies seemed to have melded with the board in an instant, being covered in light.


    "This would be the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, one that all nine of us brothers and sisters will hold together. Any of the invited ones are welcomed to try to break the game." Yang Xiao stood on the chessboard and said, looking at everyone, "Of course, I advise all who intend to step onto the Celestial Dragon Chess Game to first break the nine games prior. The pressure will prove too great to bear otherwise."


    Many eyes looked at Yang Xiao and the other eight of his juniors. Who would be able to break a chess game held by the nine students of the Chess Saint?


    No one moved and everyone seemed to be hesitating.


    "I''ll try." A voice was finally heard. Han Jing was seen stepping forward and countless eyes gazed at him.


    Han Jing, the first to challenge the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    "Please," Yang Xiao said.


    "Please," Han Jing said returning the courtesy.


    Yang Xiao waved his hand and placed a piece at the center of the board, containing incredibly terrifying power of rules.


    Han Jing waved his hand as well and placed his first piece. However, the second piece was placed by Li Kaishan, the second student of the Chess Saint. A streak of golden lightning seemed to have descended upon the board as he waved his hand, making all who were watching shudder.


    "Is it that all nine of the students of Celestial Dragon Chess Game place a piece each?" many asked themselves in silence, and they quickly got their answers to that question in no time.


    All of the first nine moves were placed by all nine students.


    An extremely violent power began to whip up on the board with just the nine pieces placed, vaguely intending to devour all the might Han Jing had about him.


    "Such incredible might." Many shuddered. It was no longer a simple chess game. It looked more like a battle fought through a chess game. Such a terrifying force was already whipped up with only nine pieces placed by Yang Xiao and his people.


    Han Jing felt the looming might the most as he was the one playing it. He came to look incredibly serious as he kept placing his pieces. The pieces he placed seemed resonate with one another, intending to form a matrix.


    Both sides kept playing and the number of pieces on the board grew. Sweat appeared on Han Jing''s forehead. The chess game contained nine types of great changes as if it was played using different play styles. Worse still, every play style seemed to contain limitless changes, making it impossible to see through them.


    Whoosh... Sword aura whooshed about and a sword matrix appeared on a corner of the chessboard, formed by the rules of the pieces. Han Jing wanted to place his piece there, but surprisingly, he was unable to do so. The piece was devoured by the sword aura before it even landed on the board.


    "So this is the rules of chess battle of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game then? One which enables one to block the play style of the other." Everyone present shuddered. Han Jing was practically drenched in sweat. He held the piece in his hand but had no idea where to place it. At that moment, he had only been able to feel overwhelming exhaustion and tired in his spiritual power. He waved his hand and placed another piece.


    "Han Jing is going to lose," some among the audience who were versed with the art of chess murmured to themselves. Han Jing had made a mistake under the huge pressure, which was one that should not have happened to him.


    At that moment, the fourth student of the Chess Saint placed a piece. Many shuddered the very second the piece landed on the board. A ferocious-looking bone dragon appeared on the chessboard, baring its fangs as it went for Han Jing. Han Jing went all pale, and with a grunt, spat blood onto the chessboard. He flashed and backed away from the chessboard, then sat down to restore his damaged mind and regenerate worn spiritual power.


    Many turned their eyes on that game. Several matrixes were vaguely sensed to be on the verge of taking form, exuding terrifying powers which were forged by every single piece on the board.


    "Uncle." Ye Futian''s experience was a dire and serious one, as he looked at Sage Wanxiang who had been standing by his side. Despite his startling rate of progress in the art of chess, that game was one he would have no chance at breaking. It was not an opinion formed out of having a low opinion of oneself, but one that originated in knowing one''s place.


    "Intricate." Sage Wanxiang praised, "All nine of these people were students of the Chess Saint, and as such, it is only natural for all of them to be experts in chess. All nine of them laid out a game and nine different play styles were seen. Straightforward ones and twisty ones were all there. There was only a need for one person to simulate and predict the play styles before, but the difficulty of this one is truly several magnitudes of order higher. Furthermore, all nine of them were playing in order, yet there were no rules saying that they had to actually play in a specific order."


    Ye Futian nodded. He was able to tell from the short game that everything about the art of chess written in the books was all in the game. All nine students of the Chess Saint played in ways that were nothing short of godlike. Even Jiu Gongzi, who was seen fooling around all the time before, definitely sported very high-level proficiency at the art.


    A ruckus was heard from the crowd and many turned their eyes where the ruckus came from. A figure walked toward the board from afar. Be it clothing or looks, the person did not look spectacular in any way, yet he exuded an incredibly unique air, which seemed to be a sense of self-confidence originating from the very core of his being. The angles of his face were sharp and there was no expression on his face. His strides were steady, not too fast nor too slow, with every step identical to the other.


    "Liu Zong."


    "He is finally here."


    The number one among the younger generations of Xihua Sacred Mountain, Liu Zong, arrived the very day the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was opened.


    "Senior." Mo Jun looked at that figure walking while shimmering with divine light. As far as looks went, even Mo Jun was more handsome than Liu Zong.


    Liu Zong lifted his head and looked up at Mo Jun, nodding at him as a gesture of acknowledgment. However, Liu Zong did not actually walk to where the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was. Instead, he walked up to the first game of the nine games. He landed on the board and said, "Elder, if you''d please."


    "Very well," the old man said and both began to play, which surprisingly attracted everyone''s attention.


    The game between both of them looked very tranquil in comparison. Be it the old man or Liu Zong, none had any angst.


    What felt terrifying with the game was that the play style of the old man grew increasingly powerful as the game went, forming a matrix with the pieces, yet Liu Zong''s play style looked extremely plain instead. However, the game that the old man played did not seem to pose any threat.


    Soon, the old man was cornered with no way to place his pieces adequately. He was slowly being cornered to the point of no return. He looked at the game before them and said, "Young people are truly ferocious. I admit defeat."


    "It has been an honor," Liu Zong said calmly and then went on to challenge the second game. He played full out and beat all nine games soon. The ninth game was the only one that proved somewhat threatening to him!

 737 Join Forces

    Countless eyes fell onto Liu Zong, the lone ranger genius. He broke all nine chess games consecutively as soon as he arrived, before walking up to the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    "That is Liu Zong indeed. Father claimed that in this generation of the Eastern State, Liu Zong might just rank in the top three, and it is extremely possible that he will become one of the leaders of the Eastern State in the future." At the moment, the bright eyes of Zhou Ziyi of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty fell onto Liu Zong. She looked on, hopeful, not knowing if that proud son from Xihua Sacred Mountain would be able to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game or not.


    Zhou Zichao, Han Jing, Li Mu, Goddess Qingni and the others all looked at Liu Zong.


    "I''m here today to try my hand at the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. I seek your guidance, teachers," Liu Zong said calmly.


    "Your reputation precedes you, Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain. You do look as extraordinary as you''re rumored to be. Please," Yang Xiao said as he pointed.


    Liu Zong took his steps and went onto the Celestial Dragon Chess Game hanging in the middle of the air.


    "Please," Liu Zong said. Yang Xiao nodded and began to place his pieces. His first piece was placed onto the very same spot as when he played against Han Jing before. Liu Zong then waved without hesitation. The power of rules turned into a black piece and fell down onto a spot.


    Everyone''s eyes were on the game. Both sides played very quickly. Be it the nine students of the Chess Saint or Liu Zong, none of them showed any hesitation as they placed their pieces. They traded blows intensely and before long, a good number of pieces were seen on the chessboard.


    A powerful aura of rules washed all over the chessboard. Liu Zong looked as if he was being surrounded and attacked by nine mighty ones, just standing where he was. Despite his circumstance, he remained composed. His pieces were dropped in a firm, powerful manner. His play style had limitless changes to it, and when faced with nine different play style changes, he had actually come to divide his way of playing into nine different styles to counter his opponents, which spoke volume of his frightening capacity at the art.


    "Fame is held by those who are formidable. I''m inferior compared to Liu Zong." Han Jing had opened his eyes to focus on the game and felt inferior. Many took a look at Han Jing, feeling that he had an extraordinary temperament for being able to admit that in front of everyone. Still, it was not all that humiliating to admit one''s inferiority when compared to Liu Zong. While many geniuses had gathered there, there was no one who would be able to claim themselves superior compared to Liu Zong.


    "Manifesting nine different changes in play styles to play against nine top-class players at chess all on his own, and furthermore, every single play style was developed to counter a specific style of his opponent. This Liu Zong fellow must have been trained in a variety of arts," Sage Wanxiang said softly as he gazed at the game. He had not expected for them to encounter such extraordinary people as soon as they ventured outside the Barren State. Ye Futian was indeed right to have them come out of the Barren State and open their eyes. Only by doing so would the students of the younger generation have been able to develop a greater motivation to further their training. The batch of students of the Holy Zhi Palace who had just emerged from the Sage Hall was the best Barren State had to offer.


    Ye Futian nodded. He had been steeped in his training in the art of chess for the past month, but having seen both sides trade blows personally, he was definitely unable to say that he would be able to do better than Liu Zong if he was the one playing the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    An extremely terrifying phenomenon appeared on the chessboard. Sword aura tore through the space with golden flashes of axes cutting down everything. Multiple matrix-based powers burst on the board, creating terrifying scenes. Liu Zong stood in the middle and remained unfazed. He had the protection of golden light all over him. One was able to vaguely see multiple golden arms extending like a thousand-armed Buddha resisting the pressure from the game itself.


    Mo Jun looked at his senior play against the other side quietly, learning Liu Zong''s ways. The level his senior was at was not something he could even dream of. He remembered his teacher saying that Liu Zong had read all kinds of old books and collections within three years after enrolling into the sacred ground. He spent another three years melding his acquired knowledge and putting it to good use. He had an encyclopedic level of knowledge and learned just about all there was to learn, including martial arts, music, chess, literature, and painting. There was hardly anything Liu Zong was not good at. He even went to develop comprehension of Buddhist sutras, deriving the essence of various masters filling himself with knowledge.


    While there had been times where Mo Jun grew jealous of his senior, he remained more impressed by his senior than anything else. Mo Jun attempted to mimic Liu Zong for a time but quickly found himself as not having enough mental energy to keep up, and was unable to learn all there was to learn. He gave up eventually, as talent was not something that could be mimicked.


    The battle on the chessboard came to be incredibly intense. Violent storms howled everywhere and at that moment. Every piece placed would have given birth to attacks of rules, looking like the forces of nature at work. It was a tremendously frightening scene to behold.


    Liu Zong''s expression grew increasingly serious and he no longer looked to be as carefree and nonchalant as before. He focused his gaze on the chessboard and ignored attacks of rules. The entire game had melded into a single entity at the moment and he felt as if he had been wrapped in all of it. Every step became very taxing, and the speed at which he placed his piece turned increasingly sluggish as well.


    He finally stopped after quite a while, unable to place his piece. He then said, "Impressive. I admit defeat."


    Yang Xiao waved and the pieces on the Celestial Dragon Chess Game disappeared right there and then. The terrifying phenomenon disappeared and everything turned quiet again. He looked at Liu Zong and said, "It was a very impressive feat for a person who played the Celestial Dragon Chess Game for the first time to get this far."


    Everyone nodded in agreement. No one thought Liu Zong''s defeat to be a humiliating one. He was playing against the nine students of the Chess Saint, after all. The game was also one left behind by the Chess Saint. It spoke volumes of Liu Zong''s strength, being able to get that far. Liu Zong was probably the very best of all who had played the game. His progress was so impressive that no one seemed to be able to surpass him.


    "Our Eldest Brother here was right. It was very commendable of you to have been able to come this far. In time, you will be able to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. The game is now open to all and will be open for the coming three months until it is broken," Li Kaishan, second student of the Chess Saint said. It was apparent that he had great hopes for Liu Zong. It was said that he was the one who had invited Liu Zong to come break the game in the first place.


    Liu Zong nodded in agreement and walked away from the chessboard, heading towards the corner where Mo Jun and the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain were.


    "Senior," Mo Jun called.


    "You should give it a try, brother. The game is an immensely intriguing one. Maybe you will learn something from it," Liu Zong said.


    "Indeed." Mo Jun nodded and walked towards the chessboard. He ended up being defeated just like his senior.


    "Aren''t you going to try it out?" Sage Wanxiang looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "Yang Xiao claims that to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, one needs to first learn the ways of the other nine chess game. My current proficiency in the art says that it''s still too soon for me to challenge the game. I will definitely end up defeated if I play it now." Ye Futian had become an incredibly adept player of chess after spending days learning the art of chess, yet he knew where he stood at the moment.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was still not one he would be able to break.


    "I''ll go learn more about the other nine games," Ye Futian said before walking to the chessboard of the first elder.


    "You again?" the elder saw Ye Futian and said.


    "I seek your guidance, elder," Ye Futian cupped his hands and said with a smile.


    The elder said nothing else, waving his arm and began playing instead. Ye Futian was no longer hesitant. He placed his piece immediately when it was his turn to do so.


    That game progressed very quickly between the two of them. The elder''s eyes sparkled after a while and he looked at Ye Futian. He knew before that Ye Futian had intentionally lost in order to learn his ways at chess.


    So, he is finally playing for real now? the elder thought. He was interested to see how much Ye Futian progressed.


    The elder began taking him seriously. Matrixes began appearing on the game. A golden cauldron seemed to take form soon. However, Ye Futian did not go about breaking his opponent''s formation again and again like he last did. Instead, they traded blows instead. At the moment, he put himself in the middle of the chessboard and was surrounded by starlight. The layers spread out and went on to crush everything standing in their way. He had taken to countering his opponent''s offense with offense, developing a truly formidable play style.


    The pieces of both sides slaughtered each other on the board. Violent rumbles came from the chessboard, forming terrifying power of storms. The storm of stars permeated the space. When Ye Futian placed his next piece, the power of stars burst into extremely overbearing power and crushed the cauldron. The pieces of that old man crumbled right there and then on the board, which then disappeared into nothingness one after another. The old man''s expression looked rather pale as he stared at the board.


    "It has been a pleasure, elder," Ye Futian cupped his hands and said. The elder lifted his head and took a look at Ye Futian, then nodded slightly. The youngsters are truly frightening. There is simply nothing I can pick on with Ye Futian''s play style now.


    Ye Futian walked to the next game beside the one he just played and ended up victorious as well.


    Ye Futian played one game after another just like Liu Zong did a while ago. He broke eight games consecutively. It was not until the ninth game that he was subjected to immense pressure, but he was eventually able to break the game nonetheless.


    Many looked at Ye Futian, astonished. While there were many mighty ones gathering at Chess Peak that day, few were capable of breaking all nine games. Ye Futian had managed to become one in the handful of people who could, and it was only natural that he caught the attention of everyone present.


    "He is Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the sacred ground of the Barren State, and he came to his current position as a noble. He broke six games consecutively when he first came to Chess Peak playing in an extremely ugly manner. But that was probably due to someone behind him directing his moves. He has trained his moves at Chess Peak for the past few days and he never won a single game, yet today, he actually broke all nine games," someone said as they looked at him with surprised eyes, feeling his case to be an intriguing one.


    "There was probably someone guiding him as he learned, and probably some mighty one from the sacred ground of the Barren State. But it was nonetheless a commendable feat to be able to break all nine games using proper play styles. It is obvious that he truly learned how to play chess and made frightening progress in the art."


    "This noble Palace Lord from the sacred ground of the Barren State is intriguing indeed." Many talked amongst themselves.


    Ye Futian did not go straight to trying his hand at the Celestial Dragon Chess Game after he broke all nine games. He went back to his seat and sat cross-legged instead, pondering in a serious manner. He had run into some trouble with the ninth game and it took him great effort to break through. He came to learn something from those troubles.


    There were many who attempted to break the chess games afterward. There were people challenging the nine games as well as the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. However, the Celestial Dragon Chess Game remained an immutable one.


    Everyone''s attention, including Liu Zong''s, was caught every time someone went to challenge the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. He remained observant of the game. He suddenly came to develop some thoughts.He closed his eyes and ran simulations in his mind. His eyes flashed after a while and he looked in Yang Xiao''s direction, asking, "Given that the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was laid out by nine people, is it possible to have nine people break the game simultaneously?"


    "It is possible." Yang Xiao nodded.


    "Is there anyone who will be willing to break the game with me?" Liu Zong looked at the people around him and asked.


    Mo Jun stood out and said, "Let me give you a hand, senior."


    "Very well." Liu Zong nodded.


    "I''d like to try as well," Han Jing said. He admitted that he was inferior compared to Liu Zong, but he, nonetheless, had some attachment to the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. As such, wanting to try it out with Liu Zong.


    "We shall participate as well," Zhou Ziyi said. Zhou Zichao, beside her, nodded slightly.


    Li Mu, Goddess Qingni and others joined one after another. Eight top class players gathered around quickly.


    "Would you be interested in this attempt?" Liu Zong turned his eyes to Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s actions in breaking the nine games caught his attention. He did not care how Ye Futian was able to do so and whether or not Ye Futian was being guided by someone. He cared only about the outcome.


    Ye Futian took a look at Liu Zong, before smiling and saying, "Very well then." He did not mind joining forces with the others to see what changes awaited them at the game.

 738 Do You Know How to Play Chess?

    All nine of them stepped onto the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Countless eyes on Chess Peak looked at them in mere moments.


    Liu Zong invited the nine and stepped onto the game. Is this going to be better than just him playing alone?


    "All of you please find your own opponents while I will take control of things in general," Liu Zong said. Everyone nodded and picked their opponents, standing on the chessboard.


    "Let''s begin," Liu Zong said. Yang Xiao nodded and waved his arm, bringing a piece down onto the board.


    Liu Zong countered and then Li Kaishan dropped his second piece. Mo Jun, who was right beside Liu Zong, placed the second piece of their side as well.


    18 people played one game at the same time. 18 power of rules of varying strengths permeated the entire board.


    Ye Futian picked Jiu Gongzi as his opponent. Jiu Gongzi found the choice rather funny, yet he had no intentions of going easy on him, playing as carefully as he could.


    "If one looks at things separately, it seems as if all nine of them are playing their own games. However, all nine on Yang Xiao''s side are playing as one. All nine from that side play in a single formation. Liu Zong must have been able to tell what they were doing, and as such, attempted to break the game in a similar manner. Now, his play style remains the highest throughout the entire game, keeping his opponents in check. Things will get very intriguing," someone who was knowledgeable about chess said.


    The game became obvious quickly. All nine from Liu Zong''s side attempted to counter the play style of a player from the other side to keep their opponent''s formations in check. Even though they were times where things looked grim on their side, Liu Zong covered it by looking at the entire game in general. There were even times where Liu Zong simply gave directions as to where to place one''s piece.


    Terrifying aura began to appear on the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Ye Futian was in the thick of things, surrounded by sword aura as if he was caught in a powerful sword matrix. However, his pieces manifested powerful rules of stars, sealing all sword aura in a particular location while cutting it off from the other matrixes.


    Violent auras whipped about on the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Things looked terrifying but Liu Zong and the others remained standing toe-to-toe with their opponents.


    "This truly works." The eyes of the spectators turned sharp. Even the nine who were playing the game were intensely focused, putting all of their energy into the game.


    The chess battle grew increasingly intense. At that moment, Yang Xiao placed a piece and a terrifying force appeared on the chessboard, breaking the deadlock and returned the scattered game into a single form, as if a true dragon had just coiled on the board, waiting to strike with deadly force.


    Liu Zong''s expression turned unusually severe. He placed yet another piece and split the formations into nine again, breaking Yang Xiao''s placement. Many could not help but gasp in awe. That move was really a godly one.


    However, a path was carved out as soon as Li Kaishan placed his piece. Many black pieces were devoured immediately. Mo Jun lifted his hand with an incredibly severe expression. He laid his eyes on a spot and was about to place his piece.


    "Not there. Go five by eight instead," Liu Zong interrupted Mo Jun. Mo Jun''s eyes sparkled, finding Liu Zong''s move to be a more intricate one. The piece was placed and several pieces of their opponents were gobbled up.


    "Bravo." The expression of the spectators looked severe as if they themselves were playing the game. Even the elders from the Chess Saint Villa all fixed their gaze on the game. Things were getting too interesting to miss.


    Yang Xiao''s wife placed her next piece right afterward. A very obvious threat was seen on the board, as black clouds loomed over things. It seemed as if every piece to be placed from then on was imbued with decisive killer moves.


    Zhou Ziyi lifted her arm and hesitated.


    "Go six by three," Liu Zong said. Zhou Ziyi nodded and did as she was told, without doubt, placing her piece where Liu Zong told her to. The pressure was reduced somewhat right afterward.


    The fourth, fifth, sixth students of the Chess Saint placed their pieces respectively, all of which were capable of deciding the outcome of the game. The killer moves were getting increasingly powerful and the pressure on the chessboard grew increasingly terrifying.


    Liu Zong even gave up on some pieces. It was as if he was severing an arm to keep himself alive, to keep their game afloat. Forces vaguely gathered on their side, and from the perspective of the entire game, his side had too already come to have something tangible. Any mistakes from their opponents would have been exploited, turning the tables and gobbling up their opponents. All they were waiting for was simply a chance.


    Other than Liu Zong, all players on Liu Zong''s side were on guard and on edge. They felt rather elated and looked forward to how things would have turned out further. Will we be able to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game this time?


    When Jiu Gongzi placed his piece, the entire game seemed to have been revitalized. Sword aura circled about on the chessboard, vaguely taking the form of a dragon, taking apart everything that stood in its way. Things turned when that piece was placed as if everything had been set in that very moment. Terrifying pressure was brought to bear on the nine on Liu Zong''s side. All of them felt an extremely dangerous aura looming about as if they were about to be devoured at any given moment, and it would have been game over for them all.


    The next piece became incredibly crucial.


    Countless eyes were locked onto Ye Futian. He activated Freedom Meditation at the moment, feeling caught in the middle of a terrifying battlefield. He felt as if he was at the very center of a storm with a true dragon looming right above him. Every single scale on that dragon seemed to be the sharpest blade ever made, all of which would have rained down on him at any given moment. While it seemed as if their opponent would take more time to gather their forces, the odds were actually stacked against them as their opponent had been waiting to strike.


    All eyes were on Ye Futian, including Liu Zong, Zhou Ziyi, and the others who were playing. The pressure on the chessboard was frightening. It was as if it would bring everything crashing down on their heads at any given moment.


    Ye Futian sighed deeply as he raised his hand. A piece was materialized and was prepared to be placed.


    "Go seven by nine," Liu Zong said, keeping Ye Futian from placing the piece.


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled and he looked at the spot. A chessboard appeared in his mind. The very game before him manifested in his mind. If the piece was placed on the very spot Liu Zong told him to place it, their side would be able to gather massive force.


    "Magnificent." Zhou Zichao and the others praised in awe. That spot Liu Zong suggested was no doubt the best spot to place a piece at that time. However, Ye Futian hesitated in placing the piece as told. A feeling welled up inside him. If that piece were to be placed right there, it might have looked as if the odds would be on their side, but it would have also plunged them all into an abyss that they could never recover from, costing them the game right there and then.


    "What are you hesitating for?" Zhou Ziyi asked Ye Futian. The spot that Liu Zong told him to place his piece was definitely the best spot. There was no doubt about it, yet Ye Futian continued doubting it. The others turned to look at Ye Futian as well, not knowing what was there to hesitate about.


    "No, the piece cannot be placed there," Ye Futian said.


    Many at Chess Peak looked baffled as soon as he said that. Ye Futian actually said that a place designated by Liu Zong was not good? That is the best spot to place the piece no matter how you look at it.


    However, Ye Futian remained hesitant, not wanting to place that piece there.


    Many frowned. Is he trying to make a statement here? Saying he is different from everyone else or something?


    Sage Wanxiang gazed at the game and ran simulations as well in his mind. He also made a postulation that the spot Ye Futian was about to place his piece was a trap.


    Ye Futian was indeed correct. That spot looked to be an intricate move, yet it was one that could not be used. While he had yet to be able to find out precisely why it was so, it nonetheless looked to be a move that seemed incredibly advantageous at the moment.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was indeed an intricate, profound game like none other. He was troubled just by placing one piece, and that move also went on to misguide everyone watching the game. Even Liu Zong thought it best to place a piece there.


    "Is there any other place more suitable than that one?" Han Jing said, "Just place it."


    Ye Futian shook his head lightly.


    "What do you mean by that?" Zhou Ziyi looked at Ye Futian and asked doubtfully.


    "Go." Ye Futian moved his hand and dropped the piece. Countless eyes gazed at the spot the piece was placed on. The pupils of many people dilated as they stared at Ye Futian.


    That spot was not the spot that Liu Zong asked him to place his piece on. Worse still, the piece seemed to have been wasted placed on such a spot.


    Liu Zong looked at Ye Futian. Everyone on the chessboard stared at Ye Futian as well. Yang Xiao''s eyes looked deeply at him as well, before he waved and placed another piece. That piece went on to devour a small area. The tables had been truly turned against Liu Zong''s side.


    Many awoke from that move and stopped thinking about the piece placed by Ye Futian. The game was still on.


    However, their loss seemed to have been inevitable. Several rounds later, many pieces on Liu Zong''s side were devoured. Yang Xiao and his people continued to spread their influence, and eventually, they won. Liu Zong and the other eight with him eventually lost the game. They were unable to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    Countless eyes turned to the game. The loss had been a soft one. From the looks of how the battle went, it was truly a battle between two sides of equal caliber and it looked incredibly stunning. It was a pity that no one was able to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game just yet.


    Many could not help but recall the piece that Ye Futian placed. If he were to place his piece according to Liu Zong''s advice, what would have actually happened? Would the have broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game?


    No one knew for sure, but the outcome was set. There was nothing anyone could have done to reverse it.


    Liu Zong looked at the game before turning around and leaving, saying nothing more. The others remained standing on the chessboard staring at what lied before them, feeling rather frustrated.


    Cold eyes locked onto Ye Futian. The eyes belonged to Liu Zong''s junior, Mo Jun, of Xihua Sacred Mountain, as well as Zhou Ziyi of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Li Mu, Han Jing, and Goddess Qingni all looked at Ye Futian as well. Their gazes however, were comparatively peaceful ones.


    "You went against Liu Zong''s will just to show off your own, didn''t you?" Zhou Ziyi said coldly. She felt that they were near breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game at that very turn and everything had been ruined by just one move. Her mood was extremely bad.


    Ye Futian looked at Zhou Ziyi''s cold eyes and replied calmly, "If the piece were to be placed there, we would have been defeated even quicker and the defeat would have been even more humiliating."


    "Is that so?" Zhou Ziyi wore a sarcastic smirk on her face and said coldly, "So you''re saying that you''re better at chess than Liu Zong?"


    Ye Futian did not answer. The game was over. No one knew what would have happened if that piece was placed as Liu Zong intended, and thus, there was nothing to explain.


    "Don''t you have any clue where your proficiency in the art of chess is?" Zhou Ziyi continued to jab sarcastically before taking her leave. Zhou Zichao glanced at Ye Futian plainly as well.


    "Palace Lord Ye." Mo Jun''s eyes turned to Ye Futian at that moment. He recalled how Ye Futian played before and found it astonishing that Ye Futian actually doubted his senior.


    "Do you know how to play chess?" Mo Jun''s voice was a peaceful one, yet the sarcasm beneath it was unmistakably thicker.


    Ye Futian looked at Mo Jun, who then said, "It is quite a feat for you, Palace Lord Ye, to come all the way here to join in the fun. We at Xihua Sacred Mountain will be holding the Nine State Forum soon. If Palace Lord Ye likes being at fun places so much, I can ask my teacher to allow you to bring your people to the event and watch from the grandstands."

 739 Simulations

    Ye Futian wore a funny expression as he looked at Mo Jun.


    Does he really think that we would have been able to win if that piece were placed where Liu Zong said to? Or rather, is he venting all that frustration from losing the game on me?


    Ye Futian smiled and looked at Mo Jun, saying, "I''m here all the way from the Barren State and I respect the sacred grounds of all the other states. I''m also curious what the students of the sacred ground of the Eastern State are like as well. But now, I''m sorry to say I feel rather disappointed." He turned around and left as soon as he finished, not bothering to argue with Mo Jun further.


    A spark was seen in Mo Jun''s eyes as he stared at Ye Futian with a dumbfounded expression. It was apparent that he felt surprised.


    Sage Wanxiang and the others glanced at Mo Jun coldly, then Sage Wanxiang added, "The Nine State Forum was named as such due to it being an event involving all nine states. Can the event truly be called such a name if the Barren State were to be absent? It would be a sign of discourtesy on Xihua Sacred Mountain, the sacred ground of the Eastern State, if the Barren State were to not be invited to the event. We at the Barren State will reflect on ourselves and progress further despite the slight, but as a student of a saint of Xihua Sacred Mountain, you actually dared to suggest a sacred ground of the Barren State simply watch from the stands, and you dared behave so disrespectfully to a Palace Lord of a sacred ground. You might be proud of such behavior yourself, but the world will think less of your teachers because of what you did. As such, I advise you to choose your words wisely.


    "As for chess, the Celestial Dragon Chess Game is right before your eyes. If you think you know the game so well, feel free to break it and show the world that you truly know how to play chess."


    Mo Jun glared at Sage Wanxiang. The guests from the Barren State jabbed at him sarcastically and mercilessly, yet he had nothing to say back to them.


    Mo Jun smiled and recomposed himself, before bowing and saying, "It is my fault for being discourteous. I shall take this to be a lesson and be more aware of my actions."


    Everyone turned their eyes at Mo Jun. His behavior at the moment befitted that of a student of a saint. He apologized instead of lashing out in rage at the other party''s words.


    Sage Wanxiang said nothing further and left the scene.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game remained. Countless eyes gazed at the crowd on top of Chess Peak. The inability of Liu Zong and the other eight top-tier players at chess at breaking the game spoke volumes of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game''s ferocity. It seemed that the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was not something that could be broken with just a single day''s effort.


    As for the matter with Ye Futian, it was regarded as little more than a side story. No one knew what the outcome would have been if Ye Futian simply placed that piece as he had been told. But the attitude of Zhou Ziyi and Mo Jun spoke clearly of the status of the Barren State among the nine states. Despite Ye Futian being one of the younger generations, he was still a Palace Lord of a sacred ground of the Barren State. None of them would have dared spoken in such a manner if it had been a representative of a sacred ground of other states. The attitude seen in a person''s words and actions would say a lot about the status of the one being addressed.


    Of course, Liu Zong did not chastise Ye Futian. He said nothing even though Ye Futian ended up not placing that piece as told. From that point alone, his bearing and depth of virtue had naturally been leagues above that of Mo Jun.


    Ye Futian walked to a remote area of Chess Peak. Sage Wanxiang and the others all followed him. Sage Wanxiang then said, "Why not try again?"


    "It won''t do any good. While I''ve made a lot of progress learning how to play chess, I still know where I stand. My current level says that I have no chance at breaking that game," Ye Futian said.


    "Doesn''t seem like you to be giving up so easily," Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said.


    Hua Jieyu walked to Ye Futian''s side and he seemed rather solemn. Was he affected by Mo Jun''s words?


    "Not quite. Just look at how long I''ve been playing chess. Yang Xiao and the other eight are students of the Chess Saint. It''s completely normal for me to be unable to break it." Ye Futian smiled while shaking his head. "Well, Mo Jun''s words might have been very irritating, but it shows the predicament the Barren State is facing at the moment. The Holy Zhi Palace is still a sacred ground of the Barren State, yet a student of a saint actually insulted us by saying that we were only fit to watch from the grandstands. While he was definitely discourteous, it still reflects what people of other states think about the Barren State."


    "The load is heavy and the road is long indeed." Sage Wanxiang added, "We wouldn''t have chosen you to become the Palace Lord otherwise, would we?"


    Ye Futian smiled. The act of the previous Palace Lord choosing Ye Futian to be his heir was a gamble in itself. Douzhan, the Sword Demon, or any of the other lords would have been able to simply take the place of Palace Lord. Ye Futian was, after all, still a noble. However, the previous Palace Lord knew of the Barren State''s status and he had a strong sense of crisis. He would not have placed the will of the Holy Zhi Palace on Bai Luli, hoping for him to grow quickly otherwise.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. He looked up at the sky and said, "Didn''t we venture outside of the Barren State just so we could grow stronger?" He smiled and added, "I''ll remain behind at Chess Peak to continue learning about the game. There is no need for any of you to be concerned."


    "Will do." Wanxiang nodded.


    Ye Futian had been through a lot back in the Barren State and naturally would not get upset over some trivial matters. He was simply thinking about things. Mo Jun''s attitude probably said more than Mo Jun himself; it also spoke volume about the sacred ground Mo Jun trained in, as well as how the other states looked at the Barren State. That was the pressure Ye Futian faced at the moment.


    Everyone else but Hua Jieyu and Yu Sheng left. Hua Jieyu remained by his side while Yu Sheng sat behind nonchalantly with Yuan Hong.


    The other side of Chess Peak was still bustling. There were many geniuses who attempted to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. None succeeded, yet there was always someone from the crowd trying. Liu Zong remained there still, but he did not continue breaking the game; he simply sat there and learned.


    A day passed quickly and Yang Xiao announced that they were done for the day. The crowd dispersed gradually. Yang Xiao and his people left as well, while the chessboard remained hanging in midair, shining brilliantly and emanating mystical aura like some mystical treasure.


    Many mighty ones from the Chess Saint Villa stood guard over the chessboard, but none dared do anything untoward against it. While rumors had it that the Chess Saint was about to pass, none were certain that the saint was indeed going to pass on. No one dared pulled anything funny in a saint''s domain. Furthermore, even if the Chess Saint was truly not present, Yang Xiao was still a mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Ranking.


    Ye Futian did not leave. He continued training on one of the stone platforms on Chess Peak.


    The sky turned dark and many left one after another, with only the mighty ones guarding the chessboard. Ye Futian remained sitting on the platform quietly, recalling the game that had been played earlier that day.


    He felt rather exhausted after having run the simulations for quite a while. He opened his eyes and gazed at the sky before him. The chessboard was still there and it continued to shine brilliantly with a mystical sheen. He activated Freedom Meditation and felt as if he was seeing what had taken place during the day. 18 people standing on the chessboard at the same time. Pieces placed on the board one after another. The scenes continued to be played in his mind.


    At that moment, rustles of the World Tree within his Life Palace were heard. Lines crisscrossed above the tree and something appeared. Those lines vaguely manifested into a chessboard. The images in his mind came to be played directly on that board itself. Ye Futian seemed to have felt something. His expression changed a little bit and he closed his eyes once again, sending his consciousness back into the Life Palace.


    At that moment, his silhouette seemed to have appeared in his Life Palace, looking at the chessboard. Changes took place on the chessboard. All 18 silhouettes seemed to have been projected directly in his mind.


    "Interesting." Ye Futian sported an amused expression. He never expected a chessboard to appear in his Life Palace.

 740 Try and You Will Know

    Ye Futian looked at the chessboard in his Life Palace. The World Tree swayed with swooshing sounds again, signaling that the board had become yet another of his Life Spirits.


    It had been quite a while since he had last constructed a Life Spirit using Freedom Meditation, and the reason behind it was he had been second-guessing himself. All the Life Spirits he had within him covered all the elements. He even had a spirit type Life Spirit: the Guqin Spirit. Emperor Ye Qing then bestowed him with another Life Spirit, and that enabled him to have two spirit type Life Spirits. As such, Ye Futian had been thinking that since he had gotten all elements covered with all his Life Spirits, he should not have been able to construct yet another one.


    That was until one of said Life Spirits was destroyed. However, it went without saying that he had never attempted such a thing. To have a Life Spirit destroyed was to damage one''s roots. Even if he were to be put into a situation where he was near death and there was no way out of his predicament, it was something so crazy that he would not have dared pull off, even though he might have such thoughts at such moments.


    And yet, another Life Spirit emerged and it was one that did not absorb the powers of the world to do so; the Life Spirit simply emerged in his Life Palace. He thought that it might have been due to the fact that the Chess Spirit that emerged was one without a corresponding element. He had no idea if the Chess Spirits of others carried elements, but the one before his eyes was devoid of any elemental powers.


    Regardless, it did not matter. The emergence of the Chess Spirit enabled him to spend less spiritual power on imagining the games in his mind. Furthermore, it also enabled him to run simulations in a more accurate manner.


    He flashed and his consciousness appeared on the chessboard. The game began to change. He stood in Liu Zong''s shoes instead of his own to look at the entire game. Observing the game from another perspective enabled him to acquire yet another kind of experience. Liu Zong was indeed a genius at chess and it seemed that he indeed was able to pull the best moves.


    Ye Futian continued switching his perspectives afterward, going on to stand in the shoes of Yang Lan, Li Kaishan, and the other nine students of the Chess Saint, observing their way of playing and how the game unfolded. It was a totally new feeling for him.


    "Interlocking Matrix." Ye Futian walked around on the chessboard. He was able to see in greater clarity after a while.


    In the world of martial arts, there was no way that the way of chess would have been something simple. The way of chess and matrixes were interconnected, simulating matrixes using a game of chess, making playing a game of chess seem like laying out a matrix.


    Every single one of the nine students was laying out their own matrixes, which meant that there were nine matrixes. However, all nine matrixes were interlocked instead of existing independently, merging one''s matrix with that of the other, enabling attacks and defenses to be pulled in a single move, thus making it invincible. Such was the true essence of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    Liu Zong was an impeccable genius. He seemed to have realized that very trait of the game, and as such, had gone on to use their powers to restrain the nine matrixes, employing nine different play styles. At the same, Liu Zong himself served as the core of such workings, enabling the matrixes to truly fuse. After all, they were incapable of merging as one single mind, unlike the nine students who laid out the matrixes, who were the students of the Chess Saint. While all nine of the students had nine different play styles, they seemed to work as one at the same time, without a clear distinction between one another. Looking from their perspective, the nine who were playing then were destined to lose.


    The Interlocking Matrix needed to be broken if there was to be any way to break the game. However, the nine matrixes were interlocked in such ways that there was hardly any weaknesses to be found.


    How are we going to get through this? Ye Futian then recalled the piece that Liu Zong had him place during the day. His thoughts went into overdrive and the pieces on the board flew about in great speed, turning into how it had been back then. He placed the piece as per Liu Zong''s instructions.


    From a certain perspective, placing the piece at such a location was a godlike move, a move which forcefully tore a rift in the formation of matrixes of the opponent. It was no surprise why Zhou Ziyi and the others glared at Ye Futian furiously back then. They knew the intricacies behind that very spot. He then switched to Yang Xiao''s place, wanting to see how he would have placed the next piece.


    He waved his arm and the game began to unfold at great speeds per his will, where a myriad of changes appeared on the board. Ye Futian finally stopped and he then looked at one of the spots with a startled expression.


    So this is how it is eh? He finally knew where that sense of crisis originated from. He had never expected the game to have one such lethal move hidden away. That one move was simply unbelievably frightening.


    Is there actually a way out of this game?


    Ye Futian observed the changes of the game closely, finding the interlocking matrixes actually resembled the nine games laid out by the old men somewhat as if the game he was playing now evolved from those other games. Yet all nine were interconnected, bringing a power more frightening than the nine games combined to bear.


    Ye Futian continued studying the game and ran the simulations in a frenzy. The pieces changed at great speeds, with changes seen every single moment, and all of the changes were etched into Ye Futian''s mind. That enabled the quality of his play style to process at breakneck speeds as if he had read and comprehended all books of the way of chess in one single night.


    First light appeared before he knew it. Ye Futian opened his eyes. The bits of mist and dew had wet his clothes.


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu, who was sitting by his side, and smiled gently. Yuan Hong and Yu Sheng were sitting crossed-legged and training behind them. Other than them, there were also a handful of people who had stayed at Chess Peak the entire time.


    Ye Futian extended his hand and brushed the hair on Hua Jieyu''s forehead. Hua Jieyu slowly opened her eyes and turned to Ye Futian, smiling gently as she did.


    "You''re awake," Ye Futian said gently.


    "I never slept. I was meditating all the while," Hua Jieyu replied softly. "How about you? What are you feeling?"


    "I''m fine. I was able to get a better understanding of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, but it was still a difficult thing to break it. I''m even wondering if I''ll get a chance to do so," Ye Futian said. The emergence of the Chess Spirit was not to say that his play style had evolved to such a standard that it would have continued evolving without him having to train. That would have been ridiculous. It simply meant that he had become better at comprehending the way of chess. He had achieved more in that one single night than he had studying the days prior.


    "Is there anything you can''t do?" Hua Jieyu''s eyes were smiling. They seemed to carry blind faith in Ye Futian''s abilities.


    "True indeed. I''m able to kidnap the fox after all. There is hardly anything I can''t get done," Ye Futian quipped playfully, earning him a glare from Hua Jieyu.


    The sun rose gradually as the new day unfolded before them. More and more people came up to the mountain. Chess Peak was once again a rowdy place. Many were discussing if there was a chance of breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    There perhaps was no way to break the game even after three months had passed. It was, after all, something left behind by the Chess Saint, and it was no surprise that there was still no one capable of breaking it.


    Zhou Zichao, Zhou Ziyi, Han Jing, and the others arrived one after another. They saw the chessboard as well as Ye Futian, who was near the board. They glanced at him plainly, probably still rather irked over what happened the day before. After all, they felt that they had been close to breaking the game. If they were to do it all over again, there was no way Yang Xiao and the others would have given them another chance.


    Yang Xiao and the others arrived as well, walking to where the crowd was. He was seen smiling and saying, "This is the second day. All are welcomed to try to break the game at any moment." They stepped onto the dazzling chessboard after that, waiting for someone to break through it. However, there was no one who was in a hurry to do anything. Everyone knew that as of that moment, Liu Zong was the only one who proved capable of doing anything against the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Anyone else would have been able to do little but try.


    Liu Zong, Mo Jun, and the others from Xihua Sacred Mountain arrived, and all eyes were on Liu Zong. He stood where he stood the day before. Mo Jun stood below and the others from Xihua Sacred Mountain stood silently behind.


    "We have been able to threaten the game with nine working in formation. Liu Zong, are we going to try again today?" Zhou Ziyi said as she turned to look in Liu Zong''s direction.


    "The nine students of the Chess Saint are of one mind. Nine different play styles and yet they look like one. Even if we were to try again, it would still be difficult to break the game." Liu Zong said, "I will not be playing the game today."


    He was there on that day to watch.


    "If there had not been some accidents, there would still be a chance for us. If we were to replace him with another, we might still stand a chance," Zhou Ziyi said. That ''accident'' she was talking about was naturally Ye Futian.


    Many instantly turned their eyes to Ye Futian.


    Liu Zong glanced at Ye Futian. He had reviewed the game after going back the day before. He had doubts about things. While there was still deliberations to be made regarding if that move of his had been correct or not, he had too felt a danger lurking somewhere. However, he had not been able to figure out where that sense of crisis originated from. He took all the steps Yang Xiao would have taken next into consideration, but he had not been able to be certain of where Yang Xiao would have actually placed the next piece.


    Ye Futian looked at Zhou Ziyi. Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and the others were rather irked. That girl had been accusing Ye Futian since the day before and went on to bring the issue up again. The person she meant to replace was Ye Futian.


    "Out of the nine who played yesterday, your play style was the worst. It was full of weaknesses," Ye Futian said as he looked at Zhou Ziyi. His voice was calm, without even the slightest tinge of anger. He was simply making a statement as he saw it.


    Having reviewed all the play styles of everyone the night before, he had indeed found Zhou Ziyi''s moves to be the worst. If it had not been for Liu Zong covering up for her again and again, they would have lost a lot sooner.


    Zhou Ziyi turned her eyes at Ye Futian and said with a displeased look, "So you''re blaming me for the loss we suffered then?"


    "Of course not." Ye Futian shook his head. "It was a game played by all nine of us on one side, and the loss was because of all nine of us. Everyone had a part in failing the game, which meant it was naturally not the mistakes of any one individual. But, your play style was indeed the worst out of the nine."


    The strength of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game lied within all nine players playing as one, complementing each other and melding nine play styles into one. However, they never had such trust in each other to begin with. They were doomed to fail right from the very beginning.


    Many looked at Ye Futian dumbfounded. His voice was a calm, lighthearted one, yet it carried certainty within like none other. It was as if his words were nothing but the truth.


    Zhou Ziyi glared at Ye Futian with cold eyes. He actually comes back and bites me in the face? Accusing my play style to be worst in front of everyone.


    However, that calm, tranquil attitude seemed to be one making a conclusion, as if what he said was the very truth.


    "What do you base your words on?" Mo Jun looked at Ye Futian and said.


    Ye Futian turned to look at Mo Jun and said calmly, "Try it out and you''ll know." He had not responded to Zhou Ziyi the day before and he did not argue with Mo Jun over anything. He indeed had not placed that piece per Liu Zong''s instructions, and on the surface, it seemed that he was the one who caused the loss they suffered as the game went on, even though there was no way they would have won.


    It was completely normal for them to be irked. However, Zhou Ziyi brought the matter up again that day and went on to diss him further and repeatedly. If he, the Palace Lord of the sacred ground of the Barren State were to simply let her continue doing so, no one would be impressed of his generosity; they would have simply joked about the Palace Lord of the sacred ground of the Barren State being an incompetent fool!

 741 Not Giving Up

    Many eyes fell onto Ye Futian. Is he trying to challenge Zhou Ziyi to a chess battle?


    The actual implementation was indeed the best way to verify anything. Both sides would have stuck to their own opinions otherwise, and none would have been able to convince the other. However, as the Palace Lord of a sacred ground of the Barren State, it would have been rather inconvenient for Ye Futian to challenge a member of the younger generation of the sacred ground of the Eastern State, despite the fact he was technically of the same generation. If they were nitpicking his age, he was actually even younger than Mo Jun and the others of his group.


    Mo Jun turned his eyes at Ye Futian and said, "The princess of the sacred dynasty is a girl. If you, Palace Lord Ye, feel like trying your hand, I''d be more than willing to serve as your opponent, if that is alright with you."


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Mo Jun. Although Mo Jun had apologized for his discourtesy the day before and presented himself as courteous and polite as possible, without any signs of anything being off anywhere, Ye Futian still was unable to help but feel that deep within Mo Jun''s mind, he still looked down on the sacred ground of the Barren State. Despite Mo Jun keeping his arrogance tightly wrapped, Ye Futian was still able to feel it seeping through.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded and turned around, saying to the old men, "Would you seniors mind lending me a spot?"


    "No need for the fuss. If both of you feel like playing chess, just come onto this board," Yang Xiao, who was standing on that chessboard in midair, said to Ye Futian.


    "Well, in that case, you have my gratitude, senior," Ye Futian bowed and said. Yang Xiao and the other eight walked down from the board and let the two have the place for the moment.


    Mo Jun flashed and stepped onto one side of the board. He then said to Ye Futian, "Palace Lord Ye, if you''d please."


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian turned around and called out. Yu Sheng walked up and looked at him.


    "You''re up," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng nodded and landed on the chessboard without asking anything. Since it was Ye Futian who had him play, he would have to just oblige.


    Everyone was dumbfounded and they all wore funny expressions. Mo Jun looked at Ye Futian and asked, "Palace Lord Ye, may I know what is the meaning of this?"


    "Yu Sheng is one of the junior students at the Holy Zhi Palace. He will be in charge of the pieces in my stead," Ye Futian replied. Everyone looked at Ye Futian and they were all surprised at what he pulled. No one, however, had anything to say about it, as both players were students of sacred grounds. It was obvious, however, that he was saying that his status made it inconvenient for him to face Mo Jun directly.


    Mo Jun frowned slightly and looked somewhat displeased. He had answered Ye Futian so as to face the man himself. However, what Ye Futian pulled was truly intricate, and it seemed that he had been putting the way of chess to good use.


    "As you are here to play in Palace Lord Ye''s stead, it stands to reason that the game will be played as if Palace Lord Ye was playing himself. Well then, please," Mo Jun stated in emphasis and then gestured at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng turned to look at Ye Futian, seemingly waiting for instructions from him.


    "Just play as you see fit," Ye Futian said. The dynamics between him and Yu Sheng at the moment resembled the one between him and Sage Wanxiang back then.


    Yu Sheng nodded and placed his first piece without any regard for strategy.


    Many looked on with funny expressions. Isn''t that what Ye Futian did before? Ye Futian and Mo Jun are playing the game in such an official manner, yet he actually goes about playing in such a laid-back manner?


    Mo Jun looked increasingly displeased, feeling Ye Futian''s actions to be little more than a slight against him. Mo Jun waved his hand and placed his piece at the center of the board: the Origin of Heaven.


    That move intrigued many watching. Mo Jun''s play style had surprisingly gone against convention as well. It was very rare for anyone to place their first piece at the Origin of Heaven.


    Mo Jun seemed to have placed his piece at such a spot as a gesture of provocation, seemingly stating that he was the star of that game. Many claimed that a game allowed one to see into the character of their opponents. If one''s style was a noble, unsullied one, the person would be one with such character as well. On the other hand, if the player was one who played in a twisty, sly manner, said player would be a clever and cunning person.


    Mo Jun''s style was very arrogant and flamboyant, which demonstrated the arrogance underneath the pretense of humbleness. He was a proud son of a sacred ground and a student of a sage.


    All the pieces placed contained powerful power of rules. The pieces seemed to have mystical powers connecting one another, making the entire chessboard filled with incredibly overbearing force.


    "Go two by eight," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng placed his piece without any hesitation.


    Mo Jun responded right there and then, placing his white piece in a snappy manner.


    "Go three by nine," Ye Futian continued, seemingly without any hesitation as well. At the same time, the game before him was projected perfectly within his Life Palace. Changes happened on that very board in his mind like a storm. The pieces were placed and changes kept happening as if to simulate all moves that could take place.


    "That is quick." Many thought the speed the game was being played at to be startling. It showed their respective simulative and calculative abilities, which were frighteningly formidable. It was due to such abilities that they were able to place their pieces without hesitation. It was as if everything was under their control.


    "Scattered Stars." Many who were watching the game gasped. The structure of a matrix began to appear as the game went on. Mo Jun''s play style was one that was incredibly reckless in laying out his formations. The Scattered Stars was played as the Origin of Heaven as the center, scattering pieces all over the chessboard, intending to surround Yu Sheng''s pieces and taking them out once and for all.


    Such a play style''s advantage lied within its ability to devour its opponent whole without leaving any window for retaliation. It was a one-shot-kills-all way of playing. The downside, however, was that placement of pieces was done in an incredibly loose manner, which made it easy for the opponent to cut their way through the openings. It was apparent that Mo Jun was incredibly confident in his ability at chess, intending to win by completely overwhelming and crushing his opponent.


    At that moment, changes became apparent on the board as starlight of terrifying rules glittered like incredibly sharp blades. Mo Jun hovered slightly above the board, glancing coldly at Yu Sheng. He extended his hand and conjured a white piece using rules and placed it in one spot, like a blade of starlight falling down.


    The entire game seemed to have moved the very instant that piece was placed. The Scattered Stars play style brought shimmering starlight onto the board, manifesting as straight blades landing where Yu Sheng stood. One piece after another crumbled to pieces. Several black pieces around Yu Sheng were gobbled up, as the game turned deadly and against Yu Sheng''s favor.


    "Go six by eight," Ye Futian said. A black piece was conjured, and with a wave of Yu Sheng''s hand, it landed onto the board hard, kicking up a terrifying whirlpool. All pieces gathered towards one single spot: where Yu Sheng stood. At that instant, boundless power gathered at one single place. Yu Sheng''s body seemed to have become incredibly huge and emanated extremely overwhelming might. The power took a tangible form as the piece was placed, and a matrix out to crush everything in its path formed, heading for Mo Jun.


    Mo Jun''s expression looked incredibly dire. The one piece had actually connected all the other pieces on the board, coalescing into a terrifying force. His brow looked incredibly sharp and he stepped out and put down his piece. He seemed to have turned himself into the center of the formation in an instant. The sword of light and shadow blocked out the sky and swept at Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian said something without hesitation and Yu Sheng stepped forward, landing on the spot on the chessboard with his piece. He walked straight into Mo Jun, and an even wilder and more overbearing force burst forth. Many pieces around Mo Jun were destroyed right there and then, dimming his starlight. Yu Sheng came to look even more imposing at the moment.


    "Mo Jun is going to lose." Many looked excited. They were able to tell that Yu Sheng had now had the absolute advantage. Two pieces were all it took to cement that very advantage on the board.


    Mo Jun, on the other hand, looked utterly crushed and scattered. He looked rather pale as well. That overbearing pressure pressed hard onto his body, with the full intention of crushing him right there and then.


    "Go seven by nine." A voice was heard at the very moment. The eyes of many sparkled as they looked at one corner of Chess Peak. The one who stood there was none other than Liu Zong.


    Liu Zong went to guide Mo Jun personally.


    While it was definitely not anything worth shouting about, Liu Zong was being frank with his actions, opting to voice it out loud in front of everyone instead of guiding Mo Jun telepathically, making it known to all that he was the one providing guidance right there and then.


    Ye Futian glanced at Liu Zong and said nothing. Mo Jun''s force was no longer there. He became totally incapable of looking into the whole game, after being subjected to the effects of Yu Sheng''s might and the power of the matrix formed against him. The victor would have been determined with two more pieces placed. However, Liu Zong was not Mo Jun. That very move he said was one that was immeasurably intricate, so much so that one could consider that position to be the best at the moment.


    Mo Jun placed that piece without hesitation. The powerful sword matrix of starlight began to show signs of revival, and the powerful might on the chessboard was gathered once again.


    Ye Futian glanced at seven by nine spot plainly and without paying it much heed. He went on to say, "Go six by nine."


    Yu Sheng nodded and did so. That piece worked like a hammer, dealing a devastating blow as it was placed. Mo Jun grunted as he continued to look pale. It was if there was an incredibly overwhelming power of rules being gathered, intending to split that very game.


    "Go seven by eight," Liu Zong said, and Ye Futian responded shortly after. Both placed three pieces respectively, and eventually, an incredibly wild might swept all over the chessboard and went on to gobble up all the white pieces. The formation of the white pieces crumbled completely in an instant, without any chance of revival.


    The powerful currents about the chessboard quieted down in an n instant, like the atmosphere on Chess Peak at the moment.


    Mo Jun was a very adept player of chess and a student of Xihua Sacred Mountain''s saints. His play style was reckless and arrogant, yet he ended up suffering a humiliating defeat, despite Liu Zong''s efforts. Mo Jun ended up defeated all the same, as there was simply no way to save that broken game. Liu Zong was only able to do so much to help.


    Many looked at Ye Futian. He stood quietly, his robe and black hair billowed with the breeze, making him look incredibly handsome. Many seemed to truly acknowledge the might of a Palace Lord of a sacred ground at that very moment.


    Does Ye Futian really know nothing about chess? Mo Jun looked up at Ye Futian. He had dissed Ye Futian after that game the day before, deeming him someone who knew nothing about chess. What about now then? Who is actually the one who knows nothing about chess?


    "I apologize for my reckless words yesterday," Mo Jun said, looking up and cupping his hands. He then turned around and walked off the chessboard. Despite suffering a defeat, he kept his bearing as a student of the saints intact.


    There was another person who looked rather displeased at the turn of events: Zhou Ziyi.


    It was a chess battle that happened because of her.


    Mo Jun was simply playing in her stead.


    With Ye Futian emerging as the victor, it had indeed proved Ye Futian''s words that her play style was indeed the worst among the nine.


    "What do you think?" Ye Futian asked as he turned his eyes to her.


    Zhou Ziyi looked up at Ye Futian and said, "Even if you won this game, were you really saying that it wasn''t you who caused what happened with the battle at the Celestial Dragon Chess Game yesterday?"


    Ye Futian glanced at her plainly, walked up and said, "If you are unwilling to give up, I guess I''ll just show you then."

 742 Inviting Humiliation

    Everyone''s eyes were on Ye Futian. He walked up to that chessboard hovering in the air, puzzling all who were watching him.


    What is he up to?


    Ye Futian appeared above the chessboard and Zhou Ziyi looked at him as well, frowning slightly.


    Ye Futian extended both his hands and chess pieces instantly appeared one after another in midair. All of the pieces contained the power of rules. He waved his hands and crisp sounds were heard. The chess pieces fell onto the chessboard one after another, in patterns which many found familiar. Ye Futian extended his both of his arms again and many black pieces appeared, dropping onto the chessboard as well.


    "The Celestial Dragon Chess Game." Many were able to tell where the sense of familiarity came from at that very second.


    The game that Ye Futian had laid out was apparently the Celestial Dragon Chess Game that that was played the day before. The black pieces were placed in a way resembling the very moment Ye Futian placed his piece. It was there where a difference of opinions had taken place; the moment Ye Futian defied Liu Zong''s will.


    Ye Futian recreated the game played the day before at that moment, without missing any details. He then turned his eyes at Zhou Ziyi and said, "Would you mind placing the piece?" Ye Futian went to stand where Yang Xiao and the others stood the day before.


    Zhou Ziyi glared at him coldly and glanced at Liu Zong. She flashed and landed on the chessboard as well. She then placed her piece without hesitation, at the very spot Liu Zong had wanted Ye Futian to place his piece.


    In that very instant, a powerful matrix spread out, intending to crush the white pieces.


    Ye Futian calmly glanced at Zhou Ziyi and waved his hand. Another piece was dropped on the board with a rumble, not paying any heed for the threatened game, which looked like a move that was unable to serve any use. No one was able to see what was actually going on.


    A flash was seen in Yang Xiao''s eyes as he witnessed the scene. He had not expected Ye Futian to be able to see through it.


    Liu Zong''s eyes sparkled as well. The placement of that piece made it entirely useless as it was done without paying any heed to the looming crisis. He had been simulating all the possible locations Yang Xiao would have placed a piece, which naturally included that spot that Ye Futian just placed a piece on. However, Liu Zong did not continue simulating what would have happened after that piece was placed there.


    A myriad of changes would have been born with the placement of every single piece. As such, any location that Yang Xiao would have chosen to place his piece on would have brought forth many possibilities. It was impossible for Liu Zong to simulate what would have happened with all the possibilities, which meant that he would have been able to simulate the placements that were most likely to happen. That one move was one he had overlooked.


    From the looks of the game at the moment, no one was capable of telling what that piece would have done. Based on the battle that took place between Ye Futian and Mo Jun prior, it was obvious that Ye Futian had developed high proficiency in the art of chess, which naturally meant that he would not have placed a piece that would have served no use. Liu Zong simulated the changes in his mind, and his expression quickly changed.


    The game was set with that piece placed.


    "You''re doing nothing but insulting the Celestial Dragon Chess Game," Zhou Ziyi cursed in a low voice. Liu Zong was able to tell what was going to happen but she was unable to. She still thought that the piece Ye Futian had placed served no use. She waved her hand and placed another piece. A more powerful might spread out, devouring some chess pieces.


    "Fine play." Many praised her silently. There was nothing wrong with the placement of Zhou Ziyi''s piece, as anyone would have done the same to break the opponent''s play.


    Ye Futian glanced at her silently and then waved his hand nonchalantly. Yet another piece was placed, and at that very moment, the entire Celestial Dragon Chess Game changed. The interlocking matrixes seemed to have shaved off all parts which were redundant and served no purpose, becoming a grand matrix which swallowed everything with overwhelming might. If the game was seen from a distance, the white pieces seemed to have turned into a dragon circling above the board, devouring everything below it.


    Everyone''s mind shuddered violently and Zhou Ziyi''s face turned just as pale as well.


    The game was set with just two pieces being placed. Furthermore, judging from the greater picture of the entire game, some of the weakest pieces would have been devoured first, exposing the weaknesses for all to see.


    Zhou Ziyi looked at those pieces and felt her hands shaking slightly. All of those were the pieces that she placed the day before, exposing the openings for her opponent.


    She lifted her hand, intending to place a piece, yet was unable to proceed further.


    "No need to go any further. He is right. That piece back there set the game. If he had actually placed that piece as I intended, we would have only suffered a faster and more crushing defeat," Liu Zong said as he looked at Ye Futian. He did not expect Ye Futian to continue simulating further developments with a piece that he had overlooked.


    "The Celestial Dragon Chess Game lives up to its name as something left behind by senior Chess Saint. The changes are intricate, matrixes lie underneath matrixes, and everything is indeed interconnected." Liu Zong was silently impressed, but he also wanted more of what the Chess Saint left behind, as it would serve him well to further his training.


    Zhou Ziyi was shaking all over. Even Liu Zong admitted that he had been wrong, and that place where he intended Ye Futian to place the piece was a poor decision.


    There was simply nothing more for her to say for herself.


    Furthermore, not only did Ye Futian prove that he did not make any mistakes with his placement of pieces, but what he showed also verified what he said earlier: she, Zhou Ziyi, was indeed the worst player out of all nine who played the day before.


    She recalled her previous boisterous words. Even if Ye Futian did not say anything further to embarrass her, she still felt her cheeks red hot, as if everyone was staring at her.


    "I have to say that your rate of progress at chess is really astonishing, Palace Lord Ye, as you are able to see through the changes in the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Your status as the Palace Lord of the sacred ground of the Barren State indeed holds true. It stands to reason now why Zhou Ziyi was defeated," Mo Jun said, diffusing the awkward situation Zhou Ziyi found herself in.


    Having sung praises at Ye Futian in such a manner, Mo Jun made it appear as if Zhou Ziyi''s defeat was something entirely natural. Furthermore, Ye Futian borrowed the might of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game to do so.


    "Her defeat was naturally within reason. However, one of the noblest qualities of people lies within their ability to know themselves. Being oblivious to one''s shortcomings yet going out to insult others with words only invites humiliation. It would seem that the princess of the sacred ground is nothing much after all." A voice was heard and Mo Jun turned in the direction of the voice and ended up looking at where Sage Wanxiang and the others stood. The one who said those words was none other than Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu wore a calm expression. Their party had journeyed outside the Barren State after Ye Futian took the position of Palace Lord of Holy Zhi Palace, which naturally meant that he was shouldering incredible pressure and responsibilities, yet he was treated coldly wherever he went. While Ye Futian did not take it to heart as he put all his energy into becoming stronger, she, however, took all those insults to heart.


    She had been seeing how Ye Futian pushed himself all those days. Zhou Ziyi had not been reserved with her use of sharp words directed at Ye Futian, and she had done so repeatedly. It was simply too easy to just let Zhou Ziyi off with just several sentences from Mo Jun that would diffuse the awkward situation. As such, Hua Jieyu went to diss Zhou Ziyi without reservation, saying she had invited humiliation.


    Zhou Ziyi turned her eyes at Hua Jieyu who had a thin veil over her face, her clothes billowing. Despite the veil, it was obvious by the air emanating from her and the pair of exposed eyes that she was a beauty.


    "Who are you?" Zhou Ziyi asked.


    "Madam Palace Lord of Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State," Sage Wanxiang, who was beside her, answered. He saw the time to be one where he had to make the esteemed status of Hua Jieyu clear.


    Zhou Ziyi glanced at Hua Jieyu coldly and swept away all the pieces on the board with a wave of her hand. She then said coldly, "I have indeed invited humiliation." She then walked away with a cold face. As a princess of a sacred dynasty, she had never been humiliated publicly like that. It was the first time something like that had happened.


    "I believe everyone present is here to study the way of chess and there is no need to cause any displeasure over it. Palace Lord Ye was able to see through the changes of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, suggesting immense talent for playing chess, while Liu Zong had indeed exuded the bearing of a master. All the others also displayed an exceptional aptitude for chess. The Chess Saint Villa had acted on orders from our teacher, and I hope there is someone who will be able to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game soon," Yang Xiao said to diffuse the awkward situation at hand.


    Jiu Gongzi, who was standing by his side, cast a peculiar gaze at Ye Futian. He had been lending books regarding chess to Ye Futian and he had been bearing witness to Ye Futian''s progress as the man learned from scratch. And now his way of chess has already reached such heights? It is rumored that the Palace Lord of the Barren State''s sacred ground is an impeccable genius of cultivation. It seems he is indeed very exceptional.


    "Your words held true, senior. The Celestial Dragon Chess Game is incredibly mystical indeed. We will look into it more closely," Ye Futian said and walked out of the chessboard, freeing up the area.


    Yang Xiao and the others returned to their places on the chessboard and said, "Please continue."


    There were others who attempted to break the game but the results were all the same. No one was able to break the game.


    Liu Zong did nothing and Ye Futian kept his hands to himself as well. They both simply went on to observe the changes of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    In the days that followed, Ye Futian spent all his time observing the changes to be had in the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, as well as doing simulations within his Life Palace, attempting to develop a way to break through the game.


    More than 40 days passed before they realized it.


    Liu Zong did nothing all those days, and the number of people who remained on Chess Peak diminished considerably. Many vaguely felt that it was probably impossible for anyone to break through the game within three months.


    But on that very day, there came news that Liu Zong, who had been keeping to himself for more than 40 days, would make a move to break the game yet again.


    The news caused quite a sensation. Will Liu Zong be confident enough to break through the Celestial Dragon Chess Game this time?


    Ye Futian was seen closing his eyes and doing simulations in his mind in Yujing House at that moment. He had been simulating the limitless changes over the past 40 days and more, and he had come to feel as if he had mastered all the possible changes to be had.


    He opened his eyes and said, "Third Brother, Yu Sheng, Jiuge, come with me to break the game tomorrow."


    Everyone turned their eyes to Ye Futian and they sported peculiar looks. So he has a chance at that now?


    "Alright." Everyone nodded.


    The nine students of the Chess Saint were gathered at Yujing House at that moment.


    Yang Xiao said, "Liu Zong will come to break the game tomorrow. Do you all think he has a chance at succeeding?"


    "Difficult." Yang Xiao''s wife, who was sitting beside her husband said, "He would be able to do so only if he works with several others who are incredibly adept at chess."


    "If Liu Zong can''t break the game, will the Celestial Dragon Chess Game just remain unbreakable?" Li Kaishan added, "Eldest Brother, our teacher can''t wait for too long. I figure that Liu Zong has what it takes given his mastery at chess and martial arts."


    "We''ll just wait for a bit still." Yang Xiao said, "Ye Futian was able to see through the intricate changes of the game. His chances are not entirely nil."


    "Ye Futian might have demonstrated an incredible aptitude for chess, but he was still coping with the changes of the game at the basics. He lacks the ability to take control of the greater picture demonstrated by Liu Zong. I think he can''t make it," Li Kaishan said.


    Yang Xiao did not say anything further about that. "Go get some rest, you all. We''ll see if Liu Zong is able to break the game tomorrow." He then got up and took his leave with his wife. The others left as well!

 743 Breaking the Game

    Chess Peak was once again a bustling place.


    Many showed up waiting at Chess Peak in the early hours of the morning. Liu Zong was finally going to play the Celestial Dragon Chess Game again after going quiet for so many days. It was possible that he had been making a lot of preparations. The Celestial Dragon Chess Game left by the Chess Saint and mastered by the nine students remained unbroken even after so many days.


    Will Liu Zong be able to break it today?


    Everyone looked forward to it.


    Many turned their eyes at a single place. It was where Liu Zong was standing, and there were many other top-tier chess players gathering around him. His junior, Mo Jun, the Zhou siblings, Han Jing, and others were all there. The only one absent among the ones who had attempted to break the game with Liu Zong was Ye Futian. However, there was someone else to take his place.


    The reason why those people were willing to attempt to break the game with Liu Zong was that they found themselves incapable of breaking the game even after repeated attempts for days. In that case, they stood a better chance of letting Liu Zong take the lead. If they ended up breaking the game, they would have probably been able to meet the Chess Saint nonetheless, despite Liu Zong being the one to take most of the credit. Even if none of them were able to get anything from the Chess Saint Villa, they would have still done Liu Zong a favor.


    Liu Zong was lauded to be a saint of the future, and he had the three saints at Xihua Sacred Mountain backing such claims. The value of getting at his good side would have been immense.


    At that moment, a group of people walked up to the Chess Peak. It was none other than Ye Futian and his party. He had planned to break the game that day, but he caught wind of Liu Zong''s announcement that he would be attempting to break the game again that very same day.


    The group arrived on a rock not far away from the front of the chessboard. Ye Futian glanced at Liu Zong. Liu Zong turned his head to look at Ye Futian. Their eyes caught each other and Liu Zong asked, "Will you be joining us?"


    It was apparent that he approved of Ye Futian''s abilities at chess, which was something verified at the chess battle 40 days ago. Ye Futian defeated Mo Jun and was able to peer into the hidden changes of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, which spoke volumes of his frightening talent at chess. Many claimed that of all those who challenged the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, Ye Futian was probably the second strongest at chess, right below Liu Zong. As such, Liu Zong cared not for the feud or grudges between Ye Futian and Mo Jun, as well as Zhou Ziyi, extending an invitation to break the game with him. It was only within reason that Liu Zong did so.


    "Nope," Ye Futian looked at Liu Zong and said.


    "Very well." Liu Zong glanced at Ye Futian and then turned his eyes away without saying another word. Communication between both of them was done very simply. It was considered a conversation with both sides saying just one line.


    Mo Jun, Zhou Ziyi, and the others at Liu Zong''s side all glanced at Ye Futian as well. Mo Jun''s eyes were calm while Zhou Ziyi''s looked somewhat cold. Ye Futian had no beef with the others, and as such, none of the others looked at him any differently.


    "They''re here." A group of people walked from the direction of the Chess Saint Villa. The nine taking the lead were none other than the nine students of the Chess Saint. Yang Xiao led them to land directly on the chessboard and scanned the crowd. His eyes then fixed on Liu Zong.


    They knew that all who showed up were there to see if Liu Zong was capable of breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    "Liu Zong, are you ready?" Yang Xiao asked without beating around the bush.


    Liu Zong nodded and said, "I will be challenging the Celestial Dragon Chess Game again."


    Yang Xiao nodded slightly and gestured. "Please." All nine students took their places and Liu Zong walked out. The other eight followed him onto the chessboard.


    "It''s starting." Everyone in the audience looked on with anticipation, locking their gaze onto the chessboard. If the Celestial Dragon Chess Game remained unbroken that day, there was no probably no hope for it to be broken ever again.


    Ye Futian too cast his gaze on the chessboard. He had not expected that he and Liu Zong would have chosen the same day to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    And now, Liu Zong was the first one to challenge the game; however, it was probably difficult for either of them to break the game.


    Yang Xiao made his first move, placing his first piece onto the board firmly. Liu Zong waved and a black piece was dropped, going head-on with Yang Xiao. Sounds were heard on the chessboard as pieces continued to be placed onto the board. Every single piece placed was imbued with the formidable power of rules.


    Soon, a drawing appeared across the entire chessboard.


    Ye Futian could not help but activate Freedom Meditation as he gazed at the chessboard. He saw both sides set their formations into place. Liu Zong stood at the center of the nine, at the side of the black pieces. He looked to be like a large ancient tree, and all black pieces extended from his side. The games that the other eight were playing looked like eight major branches and every branch was imbued with a different aura, yet interconnected and inseparable from each other nonetheless.


    Liu Zong''s position enabled him to take control of changes across the entire game.


    On the other side, Yang Xiao and the other eight looked just like how they looked before. All nine were interconnected with each other. All nine matrixes looked as if they were separate and independent, yet they formed a whole matrix together.


    Sword matrixes, spear matrixes, ax matrixes�� All nine worked closely with each other, as if nine dragons coiled on the chessboard, ready to lash out and crush everything in their way.


    At that very moment, Ye Futian felt he was watching a battle instead of a game of chess. The nine matrixes tore at the branches and leaves that Liu Zong had laid out violently, yet the broken branches and leaves continued to regrow, looking extremely adamant and resilient. The black pieces continued to encroach their opponent''s territory, feeding on them and forcefully tore into their matrixes.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt an extremely mystical aura emanating from Liu Zong. It was a very formidable spiritual power. He then felt that all the other eight around Liu Zong seemed to have melded into a single, inseparable entity.


    "Spiritual Sharing." Ye Futian wore a concerned expression. Liu Zong was a terrifying spirit elementalist cultivator and he was learned in many arts. At that moment, Ye Futian felt as if he was holding all nine of them together as one with his spiritual powers, enabling all of them to communicate their wills effectively. Furthermore, their play styles complemented and reinforced each others''.


    "Powerful indeed," Ye Futian said to himself secretly. It seemed that Liu Zong was just how Ye Futian thought him to be. If it was something that he was able to figure out, then Liu Zong would have been able to arrive at the same thought. Liu Zong and he shared certain thoughts, after all.


    Streaks of lightning sword aura descended from the skies, the flashes disappearing in an instant, incredibly sharp. A terrible gust of sharp aura whipped throughout the chessboard. Many looked at the chessboard and trembled within. Are they really playing chess here?


    The chessboard at the moment looked like a true battlefield instead. 18 mighty ones all stepped onto the board and played as pawns themselves. Their bodies dropped with every piece placed. Two extremely violent aurae clashed with each other.


    "Celestial Dragon Chess Game." At that moment, many were vaguely able to see a boundlessly terrifying dragon coiling on the chessboard. Its claws were as sharp as blades, shimmering with cold light. Dazzling sword matrix appeared at its abdomen. When a piece was placed, the sword matrix tore at the board, crushing everything in its path. However, Liu Zong''s body served as the center of their side. The ancient tree''s branches and leaves all turned golden, and Liu Zong seemed to have taken the form of a golden ancient Buddha. The voice of the Buddha rumbled through the air when he placed a piece. The golden leaves and branches turned into golden arms, defending against the game''s terrifying onslaught.


    "A chess battle." Under the workings of Freedom Mediation, Ye Futian seemed to be seeing a true chess battle being fought using matrixes. It was no longer simply a game of chess. It was a show of force being refined to the extreme from the art of chess. Liu Zong had forced the Celestial Dragon Chess Game to bring its most formidable might to bear. The dragon emerged and danced in the air.


    At that moment, all eight players beside Liu Zong were subjected to extremely terrifying pressure, especially Zhou Ziyi. Her face had turned pale and she breathed heavily. Her clothes were drenched in sweat and her fair skin was vaguely shown through her dress, making her look very alluring. However, she was unable to pay any heed to that at all. Such was the force of the pressure she was being subjected to at the moment.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game felt as if it had no weaknesses and there was nothing that could be exploited. The placing of every piece seemed to only serve to amplify said force.


    The shadow of the dragon became increasingly powerful and it eventually brought its massive body to bear. With the next piece placed, a sharp claw lashed out in the air, tearing everything in its path.


    The end seemed to be right before their eyes, and Liu Zong and his people seemed to be near defeat.


    "Not good." The faces of many changed at that scene. With the Celestial Dragon Chess Game bringing such terrifyingly killer move to bear, Liu Zong''s force seemed to be at the edge of dissolution. However, Ye Futian frowned at the next piece placed. He took a look at Li Kaishan who placed the piece and was puzzled as to why that piece was placed there. There were other better options which would have cut off one of Liu Zong''s arms, crushing some of Zhou Ziyi''s pieces.


    Yet at the same time, Liu Zong placed a piece first. He had taken full control. The sky changed with that move. Many felt as if the Buddha''s arms lashed out at the incoming dragon claw. The expressions of Yang Xiao and the others turned grim. Yet another piece was placed and Liu Zong countered without hesitation.


    The Buddha''s attacks melded into one, lashing out at the arm of the dragon. A fearsome illusion appeared. The dragon claw shattered and a part of the game it belonged to was gobbled up right there and then; it was a game formed with pieces laid down by Li Kaishan. That move should have been the sharpest edge of the game, and yet, it broke at that very moment.


    "Liu Zong," some called out. Is he going to win?


    Countless held their breaths in and waited, locking their gaze at the chessboard. Liu Zong had actually gained the upper hand.


    Yang Xiao and his people continued to place their pieces. They looked rather pale. The chessboard did not take one''s plane level into consideration when deciding the victor. The amount of power all players were able to bring to bear was the same.


    Finally, when Liu Zong placed yet another piece, the dragon''s abdomen suffered a crushing blow, and it was bisected right there and then. The game was broken and it completely shattered.


    The nine interconnected dragon matrix was broken.


    The eyes of Yang Xiao and his people froze at that very scene. Yang Xiao lifted his head and looked deeply at his second brother, Li Kaishan, but he eventually said nothing.


    Yang Xiao smiled and said to Liu Zong, "Congratulations."


    The game dispersed when he finished. The crowd was in an uproar.


    "It''s broken."


    "Liu Zong actually broke the chess game left behind by the Chess Saint. He will be taking the Chess Saint''s expectations and art."


    "That is Liu Zong for you indeed. A top-notch genius like no other."


    Everyone was in awe. However, Ye Futian was seen frowning. He turned his eyes at Liu Zong and then to Li Kaishan, sporting a peculiar expression as he did.


    He recalled someone saying, "Li Kaishan, the second student of the Chess Saint, is an honest man."


    But was he truly honest?


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game should not have had openings or weaknesses, yet openings and weaknesses had appeared!

 744 Countering Offense with Offense

    Ye Futian turned his eyes at everyone celebrating. Liu Zong was, after all, a successor of the saints of a sacred ground of Eastern State, a proud genius tutored by the three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain. It was naturally a wish of the people to have him break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    Everyone was happy for him.


    Ye Futian did not what to think about all that. The art of chess was never something absolute, and there were always choices when placing one''s piece. There was no way he could stand out and accuse Li Kaishan of going easy on Liu Zong.


    One owned up to one''s choices in chess. Victory or defeat, what was done was done. Even if Ye Futian were to stand out and point out that there would have been better ways to play that move, it would simply have been the case of an outsider having a clearer view of things. It would have been a testament saying that he was a very adept chess player, and it would not be okay to accuse Li Kaishan of going easy on his opponent.


    It was not something only Ye Futian understood; Yang Xiao and the rest knew that just as well.


    The fact remained that the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was broken. Even if Yang Xiao were to say that that particular move should not have been made such at that time, it would have simply meant that his Second Brother had not been as good a player. It would have done nothing to take away Liu Zong''s victory in breaking that game.


    Yang Xiao and the others simply stared at Li Kaishan for a while. If it had been other high-level chess players from the Chess Saint Villa making one such move, none of them would have felt anything wrong about that. However, it was Li Kaishan, Yang Xiao''s junior and the senior of the other seven younger juniors, who made such a move. Everyone knew well what his proficiency at chess should have been like.


    The Eight and Ninth Brothers might have made small mistakes at such points. However, Li Kaishan was the second student of the Chess Saint and such mistakes should not happen with him.


    Yang Xiao turned his eyes to look at Liu Zong. He smiled and said, "The Celestial Dragon Chess Game has been broken. Congratulations."


    Even if Li Kaishan did go easy on Liu Zong in that one particular move, Liu Zong''s proficiency at chess was still out of this world in more ways than one. As a player, Liu Zong''s chess skill was comparable to any of the nine. Furthermore, Liu Zong had to be in charge of leading his team of nine players to break the game, which in itself had been a frighteningly incredible feat.


    As such, Liu Zong was still the best candidate there was.


    "You''re too kind, senior. I just happened to be lucky," Liu Zong said without any hint of glee.


    Some of the people by his side, however, were the ones who were excited, such as Zhou Ziyi. She smiled at Liu Zong and said, "Liu Zong, the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was infinitely intricate. Among all under the Saint Plane to be found in the Eastern State, you were probably the only one capable of breaking that game."


    "There are many talented and capable people all over. What you said was too much of an exaggeration." Liu Zong shook his head.


    "Liu Zong, you''re being too humble," Han Jing said. He came to truly experience the true ferocity of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game in that one game. If it had not been Liu Zong taking charge of things, he would have lost very early. At that moment, he was drenched in sweat, just like Zhou Ziyi.


    Everyone around them continued singing praise after praise for Liu Zong.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was finally broken after being opened for over two months, and everyone felt excited. The breaking of the game would add further prestige and glory to Liu Zong''s reputation.


    Yang Xiao turned his eyes at the crowd. Everything came to an end with the breaking of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. However, he seemed to feel someone watching them at that moment. He turned his eyes to one face; that face was none other than Ye Futian.


    "Is there anything you''d like to say, Palace Lord Ye?" Yang Xiao asked.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. "Truth to be told, I''m planning to try my hand at the Celestial Dragon Chess Game today, but with the game already broken, I shouldn''t be bothering you any further. However, if I were to simply leave without giving it a go, I''m afraid I''d have regrets. So then..." Ye Futian shook his head and wore a bitter smile as he elaborated. He had spent so long running simulations and doing preparations, but in the end, he did not even get a chance to try the game. It was indeed something to feel regretful about.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was ingeniously intricate. He had spent tens of days working hard on perfecting his way of chess, not only because he wanted to get his hands on what the Chess Saint left behind, but also because he had developed a genuine interest in chess. And the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was considered the pinnacle of the art of chess at his current level of proficiency.


    Yang Xiao smiled and said, "Well, since you have been preparing for the challenge for so long, Palace Lord Ye, I suppose you can try one game."


    "Brother, the game has been broken. There is no need to keep the game around. Why all the extra work?" Li Kaishan said calmly without a hint of emotions.


    "Second Brother, everyone here are our guests, and Palace Lord Ye has been preparing for the Celestial Dragon Chess Game for a very long time. Regardless if he were to actually be able to break it, I see it necessary to give him a chance at it. One game wouldn''t have taken very long after all," Jiu Gongzi said.


    Li Kaishan did not say much after hearing that. He looked at Ye Futian and nodded plainly.


    "Palace Lord Ye, if you''d please." Yang Xiao waved and smiled. Brilliant lights shone on the chessboard.


    "Thank you, senior." Ye Futian stepped forward, and eight others beside him stepped onto the chessboard as well. Like how it was with Liu Zong, Ye Futian intended to challenge the game with a team of nine players as well.


    Liu Zong looked at the chessboard with rather amused eyes. Back in the day when Ye Futian battled Mo Jun and Zhou Ziyi in chess, he had learned of Ye Futian''s frightening proficiency in the art of chess. It had been many days since then, and he was curious if the Palace Lord had learned anything new since.


    The ones who stepped onto the chessboard with Ye Futian were incredibly formidable in their own right. The Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and Ye Wuchen were on the board with him. There were others who did not play, as the team was chosen based on who Ye Futian thought was most suitable to play the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    The game was like a chess battle, and therefore, they were to challenge the game as if they were to go to battle. The pieces were weapons coalesced with their respective power of rules.


    All nine of them were on the chessboard. Gu Dongliu and Yu Sheng went to the front while Huang Jiuge and Ye Wuchen took the back.


    Ye Futian stood at the center, Zhuge Mingyue and Hua Jieyu by his side. The Sword Saint took the rear, and Xu Que was assigned to a corner behind as well, looking rather awkward.


    Ye Futian activated Freedom Meditation. The Chess Spirit appeared within his Life Palace. All 18 players stood on the board of the Chess Spirit, reenacting the scene before Ye Futian''s eyes in his Life Palace.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was formed with nine interconnected chess matrixes without a fixed pattern. There were near-infinite changes in them instead. Every single piece changed with the changes that occurred before. As such, Ye Futian needed to run simulations at real time, but what was more important was for him to lay out his own matrixes properly, keeping them from being gobbled up by the game itself.


    What was to happen next was a test of the fruits of his crazed labor in chess training over the past two months.


    "After you, senior," Ye Futian said to Yang Xiao as he was prepared to play.


    Countless eyes locked onto the chessboard at that moment. Ye Futian and his party looked incredibly solemn, and simple matrixes began to appear on the respective corners they took, making everyone feel that the game was indeed a serious one. The mysterious, intricate mood made it clear to the spectators that Ye Futian and his party were truly there to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    Yang Xiao waved and placed his first piece.


    The second game to be played on that day began right there and then.


    Ye Futian waved his hand and placed a piece as well, exuding incredibly mystical power of rules, as if the space around that piece was to be frozen.


    Li Kaishan placed another powerful piece.


    Gu Dongliu placed a formidable piece after that. While it was Gu Dongliu who placed that piece, it had actually been Ye Futian who had instructed him where to place his piece.


    Gu Dongliu and the others did not train in the art of chess.


    "One person to play a game of chess for nine players?" Everyone''s eyes sparkled and stared at Ye Futian. The thought was soon verified, as Ye Futian was indeed playing a game of nine all on his own. However, his game consisted of nine different power of rules and was played in nine different styles. While it was actually one person who was manning the pieces, it seemed like nine different people were playing in a team instead.


    Liu Zong locked his eyes on Ye Futian. It was apparent that Ye Futian shared the same thought as him; both understood that the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was not something that could be broken by a single person. Only a play style that mirrored his would have a chance at succeeding at the challenge.


    As one piece after another was put onto the board, a formidable power of rules emanated just like before. The game brought its greatest might to bear in a short period of time.


    Liu Zong fixed his gaze on the game, and his eyes turned increasingly serious. He had never thought that such a formidable genius would have emerged from the Barren State in his generation.


    The pieces placed by the nine players on the board came to manifest in nine different styles and nine different formations.


    The pieces placed by Gu Dongliu felt like a river of swords with incredible force, and the ones at Yu Sheng''s corner brought incredible raw strength to bear. Both players complemented each other and resisted the Celestial Dragon Chess Game''s attacks at the forefront. Huang Jiuge''s matrixes felt like a tremendously powerful volley of arrows. Every single piece he placed felt threatening. Ye Wuchen''s pieces on the right looked as if they were flickering in and out of existence; tangible and intangible at the same time, waiting to strike with lethal force by exploiting the smallest weakness found.


    Every single player''s play style was unique, yet their powers and abilities melded perfectly as if they were the smaller parts of a machine that was the whole game.


    In truth, however, it was Ye Futian who was doing almost all the work. He alone played nine different roles, playing nine different styles to fight the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Such abilities made him something like a grandmaster in the art of chess.


    Sage Wanxiang looked at the chessboard and his eyes shone with mystical light. Ye Futian was truly the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace chosen by the shared will of the Barren State itself. He embodied the future of the Barren State.


    That one game would be the very first time he truly shone in the Eastern State.


    While his plane was low, it was only a matter of time before all throughout the nine states learned his name, and in time, no one would have dared look down on him like how he was being treated in Chess Saint Villa.


    Yang Xiao, Li Kaishan, and the others looked on with sharp eyes as they grew increasingly serious, taking on the game with all they had. They never expected to feel such pressure on them, the magnitude of which did not pale in comparison to the last match in the slightest.


    Li Kaishan placed his piece with incredible might. It was as if a wild, violent battleax was brought down on his opponents, cleaving a straight line.


    "Xu Que, go three by nine," Ye Futian said. The nine at Ye Futian''s side did not take turns to place their pieces, manning their own positions per Ye Futian''s instructions.


    Xu Que''s placement of his piece struck hard on the most vital point of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Despite standing at the rear corner, every single piece he placed felt like a lone assassin whose presence was undetectable, yet his killing intent and moves were unmistakable.


    "Fighting matrixes with matrixes," Yang Xiao mumbled to himself as he looked at the board. He finally realized what Ye Futian was trying to pull with his game.


    The nine interconnected matrixes on the Celestial Dragon Chess Game had been completed at that moment on the board, but Ye Futian did not make any countermeasure to prevent the formations from being formed. He did not even seem to have such intentions in the first place. However, with the Celestial Dragon matrix, the black pieces were formed of nine interconnected matrixes. Furthermore, there were sub-matrixes within the matrixes. Gu Dongliu and Yu Sheng worked as a single unit, the formations of Huang Jiuge and Ye Wuchen worked as one, Hua Jieyu and Zhuge Mingyue formed a single entity while Xu Que and the Sword Saint developed their respective forms, with Ye Futian manning the entire game.


    The scenario that appeared on the chessboard seemed to be a game designed to resist the Celestial Dragon Chess Game taking form, countering offense with offense.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game had no weaknesses, and as such, there was no need to look for weaknesses. One simply had to bring an even greater force to bear in order to break the game!

 745 Breaking the Game Again

    While the people on Chess Peak did not play chess at a very high level, they were still capable of understanding the chess battle taking place on the chessboard.


    Two opposing forces continued clashing with one another, looking like an actual battle as opposed to when Liu Zong broke the game.


    "How is he able to do all that?" Zhou Ziyi looked at what was taking place on the chessboard, feeling rather irked.


    "Princess Ziyi, Ye Futian''s chess skills aren''t too bad. That much had been proven when he was battling you and Mo Jun. This game here will become a classic." Liu Zong said to Zhou Ziyi, who was standing beside him, "There is no need to be prejudiced towards him, Princess Ziyi."


    Zhou Ziyi''s dark eyes looked at Liu Zong, on that warm smile, on his plain-looking face. She smiled and nodded slightly, feeling impressed by Liu Zong''s bearing.


    "Just call me by my name," Zhou Ziyi said gently.


    Liu Zong looked at her and she turned her eyes away. Her shy demeanor brought a smile to Liu Zong''s face.


    "Ziyi, just appreciate the game," Liu Zong said. Zhou Ziyi shuddered and her smile grew increasingly bright.


    Things on the chessboard turned increasingly intense. At that moment, Ye Futian had been running the simulations on the chessboard in his Life Palace at full force. Possible later moves based on the actual game were being simulated at breakneck speeds. It was as if the board intended to calculate all possible changes.


    A rumble sounded as the fourth student of the Chess Saint placed his piece. An intensely heavy pressure bore on the chessboard in an instant. The body of the dragon leaned heavily on the matrixes that Ye Futian and his party had laid out. Ye Futian and the other eight all felt incredibly powerful pressure on their shoulders. It was as if a true dragon was circling right above their heads.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian called. Yu Sheng placed a piece on the central region of the chessboard. A tremendously ferocious storm whipped across the board at the very moment that piece was placed, resisting the pressure from the dragon. A devil-like figure was seen standing tall.


    A piece was placed on the other side. At a remote corner, the dragon swept its tail, intending to crush all the pieces around it.


    "Eldest Brother," Ye Futian continued. He had the Sword Saint, his Eldest Brother, place a piece. The pieces at the rear swept like a matrix of blades when his piece was placed, intending to cut off the dragon''s tail.


    "The formations laid by the pieces of rules truly brought their truest powers to bear," Everyone trembled within. What they were seeing in their minds was no longer a game of chess, but a true, ferocious battle.


    Both sides continued placing their pieces, and every piece brought with it incredibly terrifying changes. The might on the chessboard became extremely violent. Every piece had to be placed with meticulous thought.


    Yang Xiao''s expression was solemn. He had never expected to be dealing with two such formidable challenges within a single day. Ye Futian stepped onto the Celestial Dragon Chess Game right after Liu Zong and he was able to stand his ground, clashing head-on.


    "Allow me." A voice was heard. It was the voice of Li Kaishan. He stepped out and used his own body as a piece, landing in a corner. One piece after another crumbled in an instant. Li Kaishan''s silhouette was seen at a spot right between Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu, facing Ye Futian. Many pieces were devoured right there and then.


    "Third Brother," Ye Futian called. Gu Dongliu made a move. He took a small step forward and stood at a spot. Tremendously powerful sword aura swirled and shot forth like a river of swords, crashing down on many pieces on the other side, returning fire with fire.


    Yang Xiao''s wife stepped out and landed on a spot. When her piece was placed, Ye Futian and the others vaguely felt a powerful chill. It was as if a bone-chilling force intended to freeze the game as it was.


    Zhuge Mingyue took one step forward, leaving Ye Futian''s side. She stood beside Gu Dongliu. Her move merged the pieces of a huge region into a single entity, breaking the freezing seal right there and then.


    One silhouette after another was seen walking out. All nine of them were no longer placing pieces on the game; they were making themselves into pieces and clashed with the other side personally.


    Both sides continued to trade blows and yet, none were able to break the formation of the other.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game was at its completed form right there and then. A true dragon seemed to have taken its place on the chessboard, and it was a force materialized by the formation of the pieces on the board. Li Kaishan placed a piece that went straight for the core of Ye Futian''s formations. That dragon seemed to have lashed out with a slash with an ax, cutting up a path forcefully.


    Ye Futian had Yu Sheng placed yet another piece, resulting in the entire force at his side to concentrate on Yu Sheng''s location. Yu Sheng seemed to have turned into an immutable ancient god. The Celestial Dragon Chess Game did not have weaknesses, but there was no way Ye Futian would simply let the game exploit his openings without a fight.


    The other side continued placing their pieces, and Ye Futian dealt with them seriously. He seemed to be able to see nine boundless figures of ancient gods on the chessboard, which were manifestations of the players on Ye Futian''s side. Not only did the formation they had weaved not have any weaknesses, but they had also gone to lean on their opponents, forcing their hands.


    "A game of chess with weaknesses to exploit," Yang Xiao said. The game that Ye Futian played was unexpectedly similar to that of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Nine matrixes interconnected with each other, enabling the power of the entire game to be focused on one single player.


    The spectators watching the game felt their minds tremble. They were, of course, able to see that the game that Ye Futian and his party was playing was no weaker than the Celestial Dragon Chess Game itself, with both sides resisting each other with equal force.


    The pieces on the chessboard grew in numbers. Yang Xiao looked at the game at hand with an unusually serious expression, hesitating to place a piece. Despite his formidable capabilities at chess, it became incredibly difficult for him to place a piece right there and then. Any missteps would have easily cost him the entire game.


    "Brother, I''ll leave this move to you," Yang Xiao said to Li Kaishan.


    Li Kaishan''s expression was an alarmed one. He gazed at the game and stayed silent for quite a while.


    A tremendously powerful pressure washed throughout the entire game. Chess Peak was unusually quiet at the moment. Everybody stared at the terrifying illusions on the chessboard.


    Li Kaishan made a move after a while, placing his piece at one spot. With that piece placed, the Celestial Dragon Chess Game brought its most lethal move. The dragon, which was coiled up on the chessboard, opened its mouth wide, chomping down on everything below. Its claws tore at the air before it. The sword aura below its abdomen swirled and its tail swept about.


    A piece was placed, triggering the entire Celestial Dragon matrix. It brought the most powerful attack to bear, intending to thoroughly crush Ye Futian''s game.


    The spectators held their breath. It was as if they were able to feel all that pressure on the board.


    Will Ye Futian be able to withstand the most powerful attack the Celestial Dragon Chess Game is able to muster?


    Li Kaishan was adept at offensive powers given that he trained in martial arts and was thought to be peerless. At that moment, his capabilities manifested on his way at chess.


    Ye Futian looked at Li Kaishan calmly and called out, ordering Yu Sheng to place a piece somewhere, blocking the trickiest attack from the other side.


    "Eldest Brother, allow me to continue," Li Kaishan said again.


    "Very well." Yang Xiao nodded in agreement. Li Kaishan placed another piece. The resulting attack did not weaken; it had gotten even more ferocious.


    Ye Futian continued defending. All nine figures seemed to have taken their places, controlling the dragon on the board, resisting its attacks.


    "We shall end this," Li Kaishan said calmly. His eyes looked incredibly sharp and he brought an extremely overbearing might to bear, unbefitting of his usual peaceful demeanor.


    The Celestial Dragon Chess Game seemed to have been revitalized with that piece placed. One piece after another was destroyed, and the defense that Ye Futian and his party had held up began to crack.


    "You lost." Li Kaishan looked at Ye Futian and said, "But being able to come this far speaks volume of your proficiency at chess nonetheless."


    "Have you really taken a good look?" Ye Futian looked at Li Kaishan and asked.


    "What?" Li Kaishan frowned and went to cover the entire game with his will. He realized that Ye Futian''s pieces had seemed unshackled and relieved when those pieces before were destroyed. With the redundant pieces all taken apart, the places that all nine of Ye Futian''s party had taken seemed to have locked the dragon down instead.


    Li Kaishan began to look worried at that moment.


    Ye Futian lifted his hand and a piece appeared. He looked at Li Kaishan and said, "Mr. Er seems to have been a little too anxious in securing a victory. This piece is actually a move I have developed by understanding how the Celestial Dragon Chess Game works, and this move is precisely the one I was urged to take when I was challenging the game with Liu Zong back then."


    He dropped the piece in his hand as he finished. All of Ye Futian''s pieces came to life when that piece was dropped. The nine interconnected matrixes formed a single entity. The sword matrix, blade flashes, and all attacks were all brought to bear on that enormous dragon at the same time, locking the dragon down thoroughly.


    The space seemed to have been halted. One white piece after another disappeared without a trace right there and then.


    Countless eyes were fixed on the chessboard at that very instant. The spectators felt their minds raging as they witnessed the white pieces disappear.


    Had this been Ye Futian''s plan all along?


    He actually planned one such sure-kill game right from the start?


    This is all just too frightening.


    In actuality, Ye Futian had been running simulations of that chessboard in his Life Palace in a frenzy, simulating a myriad of possible changes, and that happened to be one of them, which was also the quickest way to end the chess battle. Li Kaishan had given him a chance, due to being too anxious, in securing a victory.


    Ye Futian had played with nine different play styles in a game all on his own to resist the attacks of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. Eventually, all nine styles melded as one, locking down the dragon and breaking the game.


    Liu Zong and Ye Futian broke the Celestial Dragon Chess Game within a day.


    "Marvelous." Yang Xiao said, "Your proficiency at chess has indeed reached the level of a grandmaster, Palace Lord Ye. The way of chess that you have used against the Celestial Dragon Chess was actually derived from the game itself. You''re indeed the number one genius in all of the Barren State."


    "I was just lucky," Ye Futian replied humbly.


    Yang Xiao shook his head. "If the game was continued and even if Second Brother did not play as he had, I still wouldn''t have had any certainty of being able to beat you, Palace Lord Ye. In the end, you probably have other tricks up your sleeve."


    Yang Xiao had actually acknowledged that Ye Futian''s proficiency had reached such heights?


    "That was marvelous. That game was indeed incredibly well-played. It could have even been the most splendid chess battle I''ve ever seen in my life," Liu Zong said with a smile. Everyone looked at Liu Zong, seeing how he did not seem to mind Ye Futian having broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.

 746 The Choice of the Chess Sain

    Everyone on Chess Peak was feeling that they had not seen enough yet.


    Two people broke the Celestial Dragon Chess Game consecutively within just a single day. No one thought that things would have come to this. With two people having broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, it was now a question of who the item left by the Chess Saint should belong to.


    Many wore peculiar expressions on their faces as they looked at Yang Xiao and the others.


    Probably Liu Zong.


    After all, according to the rules, Liu Zong was the first one who broke the game. At the very moment the Celestial Dragon Chess Game was broken, the requirements were already fulfilled, which meant that the item that belonged to the Chess Saint should have been bestowed upon Liu Zong. However, since Ye Futian wanted to try his hand, the nine students of the Chess Saint gave him the chance at it. The rules were still as they were. It was something that the Chess Saint set, after all.


    "Palace Lord Ye, you''re indeed extremely talented in chess. I was reluctant to believe it when Ninth Brother brought it up before, but you have indeed proven to be more exceptional than what Ninth Brother described. We at the Chess Saint Villa will always welcome you here should you find any chance to visit us in the days to come. You''re welcomed to borrow any materials related to chess found in Chess Saint Villa," Li Kaishan said to Ye Futian in a calm, composed tone, showing immense admiration for him.


    Ye Futian glanced at Li Kaishan and knew what Li Kaishan meant behind those words. While his talent at chess was acknowledged by all in Chess Saint Villa, there was simply no way he would be able to inherit the lineage of the Chess Saint. This had also verified Ye Futian''s speculations that Li Kaishan had indeed intended to help Liu Zong out.


    "Thank you, Mr. Er." Ye Futian nodded with a smile, not saying much. The lineage was something that had belonged to Chess Saint Villa and the game was indeed broken first by Liu Zong. As such, he saw no reason to forcefully demand the lineage, thinking only that the lineage was not fated to be his.


    However, their trip to Chess Saint Villa and him staying behind to learn chess, neither proved to be a waste. Having developed such superb skills at the art of chess, Ye Futian felt he had gained a great deal out of the trip.


    "The rules set by Chess Saint Villa state that the one to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game is to be bestowed with an item belonging to our teacher. However, since both Liu Zong and Mr. Ye have both broken the game, I have to admit that it is quite troubling for me," Yang Xiao smiled and said.


    "Eldest Brother, all requirements were already fulfilled the very moment the game was broken. While Palace Lord Ye also broke the game, it was simply adding brilliance to a present splendor. Why should you feel troubled, Eldest Brother?" Li Kaishan said, looking at Yang Xiao.


    "Both of them had demonstrated exceptional skills in chess. If it had not been Liu Zong who went to play the game first, it would have been Ye Futian who ended up breaking the game. But you''re right, Second Brother, rules are still rules. This chessboard was forged by our teacher, which is now to be given to Liu Zong," Yang Xiao added.


    Li Kaishan nodded and said, "In that case, let''s invite Liu Zong to come to Chess Saint Villa with us."


    Yang Xiao did not respond to that comment and went on to look at everyone present. "It was indeed a fortunate turn of events for Chess Saint Villa to have the Celestial Dragon Chess Game broken twice today. Any who have participated in breaking the game today are welcome to head to Chess Saint Villa with me. As for all the others, I will throw a banquet at Yujing House to entertain guests for all corners of the world, and you will be welcomed to stay."


    Chess Saint Villa had always been the place where the Chess Saint trained in peace. Yujing House below the mountain was Yang Xiao''s territory, and it was indeed the more suitable place to throw large scale events for entertaining guests.


    "Alright." Everyone present nodded and smiled. They too would have liked to see the ending of the event themselves.


    It was rumored that the Chess Saint was to sit silently and pass in peace soon. However, it was something that had yet to be verified. No one actually knew much about the truth, even now, and Liu Zong was probably going to find out soon, which piqued the interests of those present.


    "Both of you, if you''d please," Yang Xiao said, looking at both Liu Zong and Ye Futian.


    They nodded and headed for Chess Saint Villa. The nine elders went on to clear their respective games. Everything thus far had ended.


    The Chess Saint Villa was hidden in Jinghua Mountain, surrounded by matrixes and shrouded in misty clouds. If there was no one from the villa itself providing guidance, it would have been near impossible for anyone outside to find out the true location of the Chess Saint Villa.


    After passing through the matrixes which generated the misty clouds, they saw a grand villa before their eyes, standing regal and divine. They arrived beneath the stairs and Yang Xiao looked up as he walked up the stairs, which led to the great hall at the highest point of the Chess Saint Villa. The place was the Chess Saint Palace, the very place where the Chess Saint trained in peace.


    "Please." Yang Xiao pointed his finger and guided, bringing all of them up. They all walked until they arrived beneath the stairs of the Chess Saint Palace before they stopped altogether.


    Yang Xiao turned around and looked at his brothers in training, saying, "The Celestial Dragon Chess Game has been broken twice today. The chessboard left behind by our teacher shall be bestowed upon Liu Zong, but since Ye Futian also broke the game, I''d like to bring both of them to visit our teacher. I assume you all will not be against such a decision?"


    Li Kaishan frowned slightly. Is Eldest Brother trying to let teacher decide the outcome himself?


    "I don''t there is any reason for us to doubt your decision, Eldest Brother." All the other students nodded in agreement. They saw no reason to object to having the Chess Saint make the decision instead. Even Li Kaishan found no reason to object to such a decision, and he stayed silent instead.


    "Well then, since none of you are against the decision, that settles it." Yang Xiao looked at the others and said, "While 18 people were involved in the breaking of the game this time, the ones who gave the instructions were Liu Zong and Ye Futian. As such, I can only bring those two to see my teacher. I assume none of you will mind that?"


    "Naturally," Zhou Ziyi said, and all the others nodded. While all of them had indeed wanted to see the Chess Saint, they knew that the ones who broke the game were indeed Liu Zong and Ye Futian. Going to see the Chess Saint personally was akin to having a shot at inheriting the lineage of a saint, and it was only natural for them to stay out of it.


    The grand palace felt like stars scattered all over the heavens. The entire place felt like a game of chess with no boundary, with unpredictable changes lying about everywhere as soon as one stepped into the place.


    Liu Zong and Ye Futian were both able to feel that the place was a terrifying grand matrix. If one were to simply intrude, there was no doubt that they would end up dead.


    A figure was seen sitting on the floor at the front of the palace, looking like a statue totally devoid of life.


    "Teacher," Liu Zong bowed and greeted the figure sitting crossed-legged on the floor. Dazzling lights shimmered all over the place soon after. Blinding lights shone about the figure as if a great matrix had just been activated.


    "Why are there two?" the figure said in a fleeting voice. He opened his eyes and gazed at Ye Futian and Liu Zong. Both were able to feel an extremely powerful pressure weighing down on them.


    "Teacher, both of them broke the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, and as such, I brought them both before you," Yang Xiao elaborated.


    "My name is Liu Zong, pleased to make your acquaintance, elder," Liu Zong bowed and said.


    "My name is Ye Futian, pleased to make your acquaintance, elder." Ye Futian cupped his hands.


    "Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain." The figure cast his gaze on Liu Zong. While he was at Saint Plane and concerned himself little with the affairs of his juniors, he knew a thing or two about Liu Zong from others. Liu Zong was a proud son of Xihua Sacred Mountain and was touted as a saint of the future. He was being tutored by three saints and the most renowned youth in all of the Eastern State.


    "Indeed." Liu Zong nodded.


    "What about you? Where are you from?" the Chess Saint looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "I''m from the Holy Zhi Palace, sacred ground of the Barren State," Ye Futian answered.


    "The Barren State," the Chess Saint murmured to himself.


    "Teacher, there was a shift in leadership in the sacred ground of the Barren State more than a year ago. Ye Futian took over the place of Palace Lord as a noble. He has exceptional talents. He single-handedly gathered people with nine different play styles in one place and went on to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game," Yang Xiao elaborated.


    The Chess Saint glanced at Yang Xiao. It seemed that his first student held Ye Futian in very high esteem, which meant that the young man indeed sported incredibly exceptional skills at chess.


    "For someone to inherit the place of Palace Lord while still a noble, I''d assume you to be of exceptional talent. What made you come all the way here to Chess Saint Villa in the Eastern State?" the Chess Saint asked.


    "Barren State is at a weakened state for not having produced a saint for years. Having taken over as Palace Lord of the sacred ground of the Barren State, I''m compelled by my responsibilities to venture outside of the Barren State," Ye Futian said with a calm voice, even if the one he was talking to was a saint. Of course, he already felt that the one he was talking to was not the actual saint.


    The truth probably differed from the rumors, which said that the Chess Saint was about to pass in peace.


    The Chess Saint nodded slightly and said, "Your responsibilities are heavy and the road ahead of you is long. If you''re willing, you''re welcomed to remain in Chess Saint Villa to train as one of us. There are many items that I have left behind in Chess Saint Villa, and you''re welcomed to use any of them to further your training."


    Ye Futian was dumbfounded as he looked at the Chess Saint. He had a sense of peace inside, knowing the choice of the Chess Saint.


    The Chess Saint had allowed him to remain in the villa to train as one of his students, making him the tenth student in Chess Saint Villa. To many, the opportunity to become one of the students of the Chess Saint was incredibly tempting.


    "I thank you for your generosity, but given that I now am the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, it would be rather inappropriate for me to train here as one of your students. I hope you understand."


    "It is fine." The Chess Saint nodded. "Please leave us for the moment."


    "Indeed, elder." Ye Futian nodded and retreated, turning around to walk outside the hall.


    Yang Xiao gazed at Ye Futian''s silhouette, which he thought looked rather bleak. He must be very disappointed.


    However, it was an ending that Yang Xiao had predicted as well. Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain was taught personally by three saints. His prestige and status in Xihua Sacred Mountain, even in the Eastern State as a whole, were unlike any other. Talent aside, Liu Zong''s network of acquaintances and resources for training were not something Ye Futian would be able to compete with.


    While it was true that Ye Futian was exceptionally talented and a palace Lord of a sacred ground in the Barren State, anyone in the Chess Saint''s shoes would have picked Liu Zong instead in such a situation.


    Regardless of the ending, Yang Xiao believed he had given his best to intentionally speak in favor of Ye Futian. As he said, his teacher was the one to make the final decision.


    Liu Zong was calm throughout the entire conversation. It was not a surprising end to him. While Ye Futian indeed had top-notch talent, and Liu Zong admired him as well, it was hardly able to change anything.


    Ye Futian walked outside Chess Saint Palace and looked at the sky far away, taking a deep breath. While he never hoped for much out of this visit, he would have been lying to himself if he said that he did not feel dejected in any way. However, that feeling of dejection had little to do with not earning the lineage.


    It was instead because, despite him being a Palace Lord of the Barren State, he was deemed insufficient compared to Liu Zong in the eyes of saints of the Eastern State. Like the Chess Saint said, Ye Futian''s responsibilities were heavy and the road ahead of him was long.


    Ye Futian walked down the stairs after adjusting himself mentally. The ending was something entirely out of his hands, but at the very least, he worked hard and he got something in the end. He was able to tell that what he saw was not the actual body of the Chess Saint himself. The Chess Saint probably held secrets.


    Everyone beneath the stairs saw Ye Futian walking down, and Zhou Ziyi smirked plainly. Things proceeded as expected and nobody was surprised.


    Sage Wanxiang and the others sighed silently. He gave all he had and it still was not enough? This is probably the reality of things, and things look brutally real!

 747 Liu Zong

    Ye Futian walked down the stairs and came to Sage Wanxiang and the others.


    The others knew what it meant, seeing Ye Futian walking out first. Hua Jieyu went up and held Ye Futian''s hand. She felt rather dejected. She had been paying close attention to all that Ye Futian had done: his efforts, persistence, and finally, his achievements. However, in the eyes of the saints of the Eastern State, he still paled in comparison to an heir of sainthood who was being taught by three saints.


    "They will know how excellent you are," Hua Jieyu said softly. She had no idea what she should say to console him, but she believed that Ye Futian would, in time, become the brightest light to shine in all of the nine states. She had no desire for fame, but she did not want to see him being looked down on by others like that.


    "So what if they do?" Ye Futian ruffled Hua Jieyu''s hair and smiled. "Idiot."


    "Brother Ye." Jiu Gongzi walked up and asked Ye Futian, "So our teacher chose Liu Zong then?"


    "Your teacher''s choice was expected." Ye Futian smiled and added, "Thank you for taking care of us all this while."


    Jiu Gongzi was speechless. Everyone on Chess Peak saw how wonderfully startling Ye Futian''s performance had been that day. Ye Futian''s skills at chess were definitely on par with Liu Zong''s. From the way he held himself, he might have even been the better of the two, but Jiu Gongzi also understood that it was entirely normal for his teacher to have picked Liu Zong instead.


    "I''m sorry." Jiu Gongzi said rather apologetically, "You indeed performed excellently."


    "What''s there to be sorry about?" Ye Futian smiled and said, "You''re good yourself. All students of the Chess Saint played excellently."


    "Brother Ye, if you''re not in a hurry, please stay for a little while longer. There will be a banquet thrown in Yujing House today. I have to go drink with you. Consider this as a way to bring closure to it all," Jiu Gongzi said.


    Ye Futian looked at Jiu Gongzi. With the event over, he had initially thought of packing up and leaving soon. He had learned to play chess here, and as such, he deemed the trip worthwhile. The fact that he was unable to get his hands on the item of the Chess Saint simply meant that he and the Chess Saint were simply not meant to be acquainted further. In that case, he saw no reason to cling to it and was preparing to leave. However, Jiu Gongzi had indeed been a good person and this host had been good to him. As such, he saw no reason to refuse, nodding and saying, "Alright then."


    "Yeah." Jiu Gongzi nodded. "So will you be waiting at Yujing House or will you be waiting here with me for them to come out?"


    "I''ll head to Yujing House myself. Just stay here and wait for your brothers," Ye Futian said.


    "Don''t bother. I''d have nothing to do with them around anyway. I''ll just walk you down the mountain then." Jiu Gongzi said nonchalantly, "Third Sister, we''ll be on our way."


    "Just go." The third student of the Chess Saint said, exasperated. But both she and her husband, Yang Xiao, were very accommodating to their Ninth Brother. He was the youngest, after all.


    Li Kaishan and the others remained where they were, waiting. Zhou Ziyi and the others were there as well, glancing at Ye Futian''s party plainly as they left. Ye Futian was simply out of luck having to compete with Liu Zong in breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. If Liu Zong had not been around, that lineage of the Chess Saint would have been Ye Futian''s.


    Inside Chess Saint Palace, the Chess Saint turned his eyes to Liu Zong and said, "Liu Zong, you''re a cultivator from Xihua Sacred Mountain and a student of three saints. Now that you''re here in Chess Saint Villa, I assume you know that I''m not actually here then?"


    "Yes indeed." Liu Zong nodded and said, "From what I heard from my teacher, you seemed to have ventured into that place and have never come out since, senior."


    "Indeed." The Chess Saint nodded. "My physical body remains trapped there even as of this very moment."


    Liu Zong turned his eyes at the statue-like figure before him. He had not expected someone as formidable as the Chess Saint was trapped too. That place might have actually been as terrifying as it was rumored to be. But still, he would conquer that place sooner or later.


    "I will pass down part of my lineage to you. All nine of my students will be following you starting from this very day to work with you. You''re also be welcomed to use all resources in Chess Saint Villa as you see fit," the Chess Saint added, and Liu Zong knew what he meant. He nodded naturally, seemingly to have understood that this was part of everyday life, not in the least bit, surprised.


    The Chess Saint went to address some other matters, talking not just to Liu Zong but to Yang Xiao as well.


    Both of them walked out of Chess Saint Palace after quite a while, heading for the bottom of the stairs.


    Li Kaishan, Zhou Ziyi and all the others were waiting there. Most of them smiled seeing Liu Zong emerge. That was probably the wish of everyone present, and things turned out to be as perfect as expected.


    ��


    The banquet at Yujing House was a grand one. The proud sons and daughters present came from all over Eastern State for the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. With the event over, many found it to be a rare thing to have so many of them gathering in one place.


    "Liu Zong, the chief, and the others have descended the mountain and came to the villa. I heard from the chief that he was walking half a step behind Liu Zong. Do you all know what that means?" Someone said.


    Everyone was seen with a smile on their faces. They all knew what such a phenomenon naturally meant.


    That meant that the Chess Saint had picked Liu Zong to be his true heir instead of any one of his students. Even Yang Xiao, the eldest student, would need to follow Liu Zong''s orders from there on out.


    "Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain, a legendary figure under the tutelage of three saints. What happened today is considered to be what everyone wanted to happen, and all that took place at Chess Saint Villa will probably spread far and wide, becoming the talk of the Eastern State soon enough."


    "Indeed. I''m rather curious about how far Liu Zong will be able to go in the future."


    At the moment, many turned their eyes in another direction. Ye Futian, Jiu Gongzi, and the others were sitting. Many of those who were looking at them silently sighed. Being able to break the Celestial Chess Game meant that Ye Futian was indeed an extremely rare genius. At the very least, he had superb talent in the art of chess.


    It was indeed a pity that Liu Zong was around as well.


    A group of people was seen emerging, and it was none other than Yang Xiao, Liu Zong, and the others. Ye Futian turned his eyes at them, and Liu Zong''s eyes coincidentally met his. Liu Zong then nodded at him with a smile.


    Ye Futian returned the courtesy. Regardless of what happened, Liu Zong had never offended him. Ye Futian was still feeling that he was unable to figure Liu Zong out even at that very moment.


    It was said that Liu Zong was knowledgeable in a lot of things and had many abilities. He had even researched old Buddhist sutras and knew his books well. He was an extremely comprehensive, well-rounded genius.


    Ye Futian was able to tell from how Liu Zong had broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game that the man was exceptional. Liu Zong was able to go that far without having a Chess Spirit doing all the simulations in his mind. That feat was extremely formidable.


    Liu Zong turned his eyes away, and someone from his side walked towards Ye Futian. The handsome figure came to Ye Futian''s side. It was none other than Mo Jun, Liu Zong''s junior. He twisted his brow a bit and said to Ye Futian with a smile, "Palace Lord Ye, my senior asked me to deliver a message."


    "What would that be?" Ye Futian asked.


    "He said that he wanted a word with you after the banquet. I will come to get you in due time," Mo Jun said. Ye Futian''s expression turned funny, puzzled at why Liu Zong wanted to see him.


    "Alright." Ye Futian did not refuse. He felt curious about Liu Zong as well. Just what kind of a person is he?


    He was wondering if he would get a glimpse of Liu Zong''s personality from that meeting.


    "Thank you, Palace Lord Ye," Mo Jun said. He nodded and smiled before turning around to leave. The way Mo Jun went about his business did not offend Ye Futian in any way. Ye Futian would not have agreed to it otherwise.


    Liu Zong did not stay at the banquet for long and no one was surprised. It was said that Liu Zong enjoyed his own company. It would have been a surprise if he were to stay for long.


    Liu Zong was standing at a pavilion in one of the compounds of Yujing House. A figure was seen walking quietly there: Li Kaishan, second student of the Chess Saint.


    Li Kaishan walked up to Liu Zong and stood there quietly.


    "Congratulations," Li Kaishan said quietly to initiate the conversation.


    "It was just a process. Nothing to congratulate me for," Liu Zong replied softly, no hint of elation in his tone.


    "At the very least, the process was accomplished perfectly," Li Kaishan said.


    "Same goes for you. I''ll help you out in the next Orthodoxy Battle." Liu Zong looked ahead. "I hope you won''t disappoint in finding a way to achieve sainthood."


    "I''m not just doing this for myself. I''m doing this for my teacher as well, and you''re the most suitable candidate to accomplish this," Li Kaishan said.


    "I know," Liu Zong said. He never doubted that for a single second.


    "Liu Zong." A voice was heard, and a beautiful woman was seen walking up to them, smiling and saying, "Surprise to find Mr. Er over here."


    Li Kaishan turned to look at Zhou Ziyi, smiling and saying, "I''ll excuse myself." He then left right away. Zhou Ziyi walked up to Liu Zong and asked, "I hear that you like your own company instead of that of others. Is that true?"


    Liu Zong looked at Zhou Ziyi, smiling as he shook his head. There were few in the world who understood what was going on in his mind.


    "That depends," Liu Zong smiled and said.


    "What about my company then?" Zhou Ziyi looked up at Liu Zong, feeling a little embarrassed. She lowered her head and added softly, "Will I get to walk with you in the future?"


    Liu Zong turned his eyes to Zhou Ziyi and knew what she meant. It was obvious that she was confessing her feelings to him.


    Liu Zong extended his hand and touched Zhou Ziyi''s face, which turned incredibly red in an instant. Liu Zong, upon seeing her reaction, smiled and continued, "If you''d be willing to, Ziyi."


    "Yeah." Zhou Ziyi nodded slightly before turning around, leaving with flighty steps. She said, "Of course I''m willing."


    She went outside afterward and ran into Mo Jun and Ye Futian coincidentally at the exit. She looked up at both men and continued to leave with a smile. Ye Futian''s expression turned funny looking at her. It was rare to not have Zhou Ziyi look at him with cold eyes. It seemed as if she had just experienced something happy.


    "Brother, Palace Lord Ye is here," Mo Jun said as he walked to Liu Zong''s side.


    Liu Zong turned and said, "You may go."


    "Alright." Mo Jun left.


    Liu Zong pointed at the pavilion and said, "Have a seat." Regardless of who had been here before, be it Li Kaishan or Zhou Ziyi, Liu Zong hardly moved, yet he invited Ye Futian to take a seat as he saw Ye Futian coming.


    That was probably some detail Li Kaishan and Zhou Ziyi did not pay any heed to, but the subtle gesture spoke of Liu Zong''s attitude towards Ye Futian.


    "No need for that. We''ll talk, standing. What is the matter?" Ye Futian said in a straightforward, matter-of-fact manner.


    "I''d like to invite you to participate in the Nine Palace Forum, not to witness the event, but as a representative of a sacred ground of the Barren State," Liu Zong said.


    The Nine State Forum was to be held in the Xihua Sacred Mountains. Liu Zong was a student of three saints, which meant that he had great influence in Xihua Sacred Mountain. As such, that invitation was not said for fun. If he wanted to invite the Barren State, it was very possible that he would have actually been able to pull it off.


    "Why?" Ye Futian''s expression looked peculiar. He was hardly acquainted with Liu Zong. As such, he was puzzled as to why Liu Zong did this.


    "A saint has not emerged in the Barren State for years. It would be difficult for your efforts alone to have Barren State stand tall again. Why not seek outside help? I can help Barren State stand tall and look after the people of Barren State in the next Battle of Saints. When the Battle of Saints is held, I''m afraid there will be few beneath the Saint Plane who can beat me," Liu Zong said with extreme confidence.


    "You haven''t answered my question." Ye Futian continued. Why is Liu Zong helping me and helping the Holy Zhi Palace?


    "The world thinks that I like being a lone wolf. But do you know why I behave as such?" Liu Zong said looking at Ye Futian.


    "I don''t know," Ye Futian answered plainly. There was no way he would have known what was going on inside Liu Zong''s mind.


    "Because there are hardly people in all of the Eastern State worthy of walking with me." Arrogance was practically bursting out of that short sentence of his. He then looked at Ye Futian and said, "You are one of those few people, and I''d like you to join me in creating a new era."

 748 Invitation of Xihua Sacred Mountain

    Ye Futian turned his eyes at Liu Zong. So, this is the real him?


    He had felt something about Liu Zong that he was unable to understand before. He had an impressive and exceptional background; a student tutored by three saints and possessed supreme talents; a saint of the future and an idol of all youths of the Eastern State. Even the princess of the sacred dynasty fell in love with him. Furthermore, he was humble and polite, holding himself with an exceptional bearing, all of which made him very amicable.


    Even those proud sons and daughters were all willing to help him break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, seeing themselves to be accessories. It was easy to see that Liu Zong was one of the few who stood at the pinnacle of his generation, a figure who enjoyed extreme prestige.


    Yet at that very moment, Liu Zong did not bother masking any of his arrogance with words. It was something innate, surpassing that external air of pride demonstrated by Mo Jun, his junior. The very reason he spent his time alone was that he detested having to spend time mingling with common people. He deemed few in the entire Eastern State were worthy of walking alongside him. He had turned his eyes away from competing with people of his generation a long time ago. His ambition was far greater. He wanted to create an era.


    "What era are you talking about?" Ye Futian asked calmly.


    Liu Zong wore a plain smile and turned his deep eyes to Ye Futian. He was rather surprised. Ye Futian was too composed after hearing his words. Ye Futian was not shaken at all.


    Liu Zong had been right about Ye Futian. The man before him was destined for great things.


    "An era which will enable the Barren State to shine once again," Liu Zong smiled and said. If Ye Futian''s goal was to make the Barren State great again, Liu Zong deemed it to be something rather easy.


    Ye Futian looked at Liu Zong and said, "You might have overestimated me. My current goal is a simple one. I just want a saint to emerge in the Barren State to prevent our sacred ground from being taken apart. Furthermore, this is my mission as the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, which I will see to its completion."


    Liu Zong looked deeply at Ye Futian. While Ye Futian did not say it explicitly, it was obvious that Ye Futian had rejected his invitation.


    There might have been a variety of reasons why Ye Futian did so, but Liu Zong did not bother guessing why. It was a rejection, clear and simple. From his perspective, he would still achieve great things in the future.


    The reason why Ye Futian rejected the invitation was actually simple. As a student tutored by three saints, Liu Zong was immensely arrogant. His pride was something etched into the very core of his being. Despite inviting Ye Futian to walk alongside him, it was obvious that he had not done so because he wanted to create a new era along with Ye Futian. That much was obvious from how he had invited the Holy Zhi Palace to participate in the forum, making promises to help make the Barren State great again. The point where he talked about helping mighty ones from the Barren State in the Battle of Saints made it apparent that Liu Zong was drawing people to his side.


    If the Barren State indeed became great again, the Barren State would become part of his power base.


    Before Ye Futian arrived at the pavilion, he saw Zhou Ziyi leave smiling, who remained all giggly even after seeing Ye Futian, who she resented. A tinge of embarrassment was seen in her eyes. It was apparent that Zhou Ziyi was infatuated with Liu Zong, and she did not bother concealing such feelings. Ye Futian was able to guess as to why she behaved in such a way. It was obvious that Liu Zong had done something to buy her over as well, but Ye Futian did not bother trying to figure out what had Liu Zong had actually done to her.


    Regardless, it was impossible for someone like Liu Zong to simply fall into the trap of emotion like Zhou Ziyi. While Zhou Ziyi was indeed pretty, she was not strikingly gorgeous and her personality was ordinary, which meant that she had no way to steal Liu Zong''s heart easily.


    It was apparent that Liu Zong was simply using her.


    All that meant was both men would be incapable of walking side by side for long. If Ye Futian had agreed to Liu Zong''s invitation, it would have only been a matter of time before they had serious disagreements.


    Liu Zong was hardly bothered by Ye Futian''s rejection. He nodded nonchalantly and said, "To each his own. You''re of exceptional talent and will one day achieve sainthood. I look forward to what it holds for the Barren State in the future."


    "You have my thanks." Ye Futian said, "If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave."


    Liu Zong nodded slightly, and Ye Futian turned around to leave. Liu Zong sighed in pity as he watched Ye Futian leave, but what happened was expected. A person who was capable of breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game on their own would inevitably have immense pride. Only someone who had broken the game knew how difficult it was to do so.


    Liu Zong had studied it for many days, and he knew what Ye Futian being capable of breaking the game meant. All paths were interconnected. If one was capable of such feats in chess, they would be just as impressive with their cultivation training.


    After Ye Futian returned, Zhuge Mingyue asked curiously, "What business did Liu Zong want with you?"


    "Second Sister, Liu Zong''s ambitions are terrifying. He wanted me to join him in creating a new era. Maybe he doesn''t like the era where the sacred grounds in Eastern State are on par with each other," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "He has good eyes, knowing to come for you and all." Zhuge Mingyue smiled faintly and said, "What did he offer you?"


    "He offered to make the Barren State great again and to help with the Battle of Saints," Ye Futian answered.


    "Sounds interesting." Zhuge Mingyue smiled. "With the event in Chess Saint Villa over, what do you plan on doing next? Are you going to participate in the Nine State Forum?"


    "The Nine State Forum will be held in Xihua Sacred Mountain, but since they look down on the Barren State, there is no need to go be a part of the ruckus," Ye Futian said.


    "Right." Zhuge Mingyue smiled as she nodded. She was thinking the same thing. The ordeal they had gone through on this trip irked them somewhat. Xihua Sacred Mountain was a sacred ground of the Eastern State; there was simply no reason to go kissing up to them and be part of an event that the Barren State was not even invited to. It would have made them look more desperate instead.


    "Emissary from Xihua Sacred Mountain seeking permission to see Palace Lord Ye of the Holy Zhi Palace." A voice was heard from outside. Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue were both dumbfounded. Everyone around them lifted their heads to look outside. Ye Futian then said, "Please, come in."


    A figure was seen walking in from outside. It was a middle-aged man whose aura was reserved yet he sported incredibly bright eyes. He looked at Ye Futian and the others around him. Ye Futian and the others had seen him before. He was one of the people who came to Chess Saint Villa from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "What''s the matter?" Ye Futian felt curious. He and his Second Sister were just talking about Xihua Sacred Mountain a moment ago and an emissary showed up. As the person claimed to be an emissary of the sacred ground, the invitation would have been an official one.


    "For many years, the Barren State has hardly had any relations with the other eight states and never participated in the Nine State Forum, as the Barren State was easily overlooked every time the forum was held. Now, news of the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace visiting the Eastern State personally reached the ears of the saints of Xihua Sacred Palace, which then reached the Chess Saint Villa, and I was ordered to officially invite the Holy Zhi Palace, sacred ground of the Barren State, to participate in the Nine State Forum," he said.


    Ye Futian and Zhuge Mingyue looked at each other. They had just been talking about not attending the forum since they were not invited. Now, there was an emissary extending a formal invitation to them. While it was just one person extending the invitation and it was done rather unceremoniously, it was nonetheless a show of sincerity on Xihua Sacred Mountain''s part.


    "Is this the will of the saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain or Liu Zong''s will?" Ye Futian asked as he was compelled to verify the invitation since it was only moments ago Liu Zong talked about the matter. If it happened to be Liu Zong''s personal will, there was no need for them to show.


    "I came as an emissary, and as such, I''m naturally representing the will of Xihua Sacred Mountain. This is something I dare not lie about, and there is no need to be alerted, Palace Lord Ye," the man answered.


    "Yeah, it''s just me overthinking things." Ye Futian nodded and said, "Alright, in that case, the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State shall attend the Nine State Forum in time."


    "Very well, I shall return and report to Xihua Sacred Mountain to prepare for a proper welcoming of Palace Lord Ye." He then bowed, excused himself, and left.


    Ye Futian looked doubtful after the man left. Is this really a coincidence? Or was it that Liu Zong had already known about the news but chose to keep it secret for the moment? The possibility of the latter was entirely possible. If he had agreed to Liu Zong''s proposal, then Liu Zong would have been doing him a personal favor instead. However, at this point, none of that mattered, and Ye Futian decided not to keep thinking about it.


    "Interesting," Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said. Both Sage Wanxiang and the Sword Saint walked up to them. Sage Wanxiang then asked, "The Nine State Forum is an event that even nobles from all nine states are welcomed to participate in. Shall we return to the Barren State and rearrange our personnel?"


    "The best of all nobles to be found in the Barren State are probably all here right now." Ye Futian chuckled and laid his eyes on Yu Sheng. "I heard that the hosting sacred ground in every Nine State Forum presents a holy item as a prize."


    "Indeed." Sage Wanxiang nodded and added, "It is a show of strength taking place under the table. That is how the rules work in every forum held."


    "A holy item is something that even a sacred ground could not afford to ignore. They will, of course, fight for it with all their might," Ye Futian said. The first time Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs visited the Barren State, he was unable to do anything to threaten the place due to not having a holy item with him. It was for that very reason he got more people to bear on the Barren State, bringing several holy items.


    That also meant that holy items were incredibly precious. While sacred grounds usually kept a good number of them, they would not easily bestow any of those items to their own members. Furthermore, those items were managed by saints of the sacred grounds and were passed down through the generations. Every single item was immensely precious.


    "Will the strongest nobles from all nine states be there?" Huang Jiuge''s eyes sparkled. It was a pity that he had already become a sage; however, there would still be many top notch genius sages there still.


    The very reason they ventured outside the Barren State was to get to know more of the geniuses of the nine states, and the forum worked similar to the holy roads in the Barren State. The difference between the two was only in scale.


    "Send a message back to the Barren State, spread the news to all of the students of the Holy Zhi Palace. Anyone who would like to meet superior nobles, bring them to meet us at Xihua Sacred Mountain," Ye Futian said. While most of the best nobles in the Barren State had gathered around him, the Nine State Forum was still a very huge stage, which meant that it could serve well to temper the powers of the students of the Holy Zhi Palace. It would also allow them to meet geniuses from all of the nine states, making it a rare experience.


    Ye Futian was compelled to not to waste the opportunity since they already decided to participate in the event.


    "Alright." Sage Wanxiang nodded as he had similar thoughts himself. The Nine State Forum was an incredibly rare opportunity for the young generations to get to know the world better, making preparations for people of the Barren State to venture out to all other eight states in the future.


    "No. Don''t limit this to just the students of the Holy Zhi Palace. Deliver the news to all major forces in Barren State. Any top-notch nobles are welcomed to participate in the event," Ye Futian added.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was the sacred ground of Barren State and they served as leaders of the Barren State. As such, they needed to see things further instead of simply limiting their sight to the students of the palace.


    Many of the younger generations of top-notch forces were of exceptional talent. If they were given the chance to grow, they would become a part of Barren State''s power.


    Sage Wanxiang smiled and nodded. He was naturally happy that Ye Futian was able to think like that. It was how a leader of the sacred ground of the Barren State should see things!

 749 Huatian City

    Xihua Sacred Mountain was located in the central western region of the Eastern State and was known as one of the two most powerful forces of the Eastern State together along with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Many of the great figures throughout the Eastern State graduated from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    There were eight saints in all of the Eastern State, with three of them residing in Xihua Sacred Mountain. They were the force with the most number of saints. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty ranked right behind Xihua Sacred Mountain and placed more weight in lineage through blood. As such, most proud sons and daughters of the Eastern State were most willing to study at Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain was located in Huatian City, which was famous throughout the world for housing the sacred ground. It was also the second largest city in all of the Eastern State, with the largest being the Holy Capital of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The Great Zhou Sacred Capital was, after all, the only hegemony in Eastern State. Even after the Eastern State balkanized, the Holy Capital of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty remained the largest city in the Eastern State.


    Compared to many of the old forces with lineages tracing back to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty itself, prosperity in Huatian City felt more vibrant and had greater fluidity. After all, the history of the Holy Capital was set in stone. Huatian City differed in that its borders were still expanding, with rumors saying that the city would one day replace the Holy Capital as the largest city in all of the Eastern State.


    At the moment, the Nine State Forum to be held in that great city added greater vigor to the place. Many mighty ones from all over the Eastern State were flocking into that very city.


    The Nine State Forum was held once in three years, and the event was held in different states each time, which meant that if the event was to be held in the Eastern State again, it would only happen after 24 years, even with the loss of the Barren State''s right to hold such an event.


    The Nine State Forum allowed for people to meet geniuses from all nine states. It was anyone''s guess how many people such a grand event like that would have attracted. Furthermore, the people of other states would also visit Huatian City as well.


    Huatian City was, at the moment, filled to the brim with mighty ones. Countless legendary figures gathered from all over the world. Young people of exceptional bearing were found all over the streets.


    There were some who joked that with Huatian being such a lively, prosperous place, one could have pointed in any direction and they would end up finding some renowned figure in the Eastern State, or at the very least, their juniors. While the claim was little more than a joke, the truth was not so far off.


    The restaurants and inns all over Huatian City were all filled with guests. The subjects they talked about all had to do with the Nine State Forum one way or another. Many were seen drinking and chatting away in one of the luxurious midair towers in Huatian City.


    "I wonder what Xihua Sacred Mountain will offer as a prize in the Nine State Forum this time," someone said with a smile.


    "Being able to host the Nine State Forum is an incredible honor in itself. While the holy items are precious, the hosts are still sacred grounds and they hate losing face in front of other states more than anything else. As such, the prizes of current forums have been stronger than previous ones, and Xihua Sacred Mountain will definitely not hold back. Furthermore, the Nine State Forum will allow Xihua Sacred Mountain to gain a good number of young geniuses from all over the Eastern State."


    Someone replied, "But Xihua Sacred Mountain is still the one hosting the event, so they''ll definitely put in a lot of effort to win the prize. They won''t have to give it to people from the other states then."


    Many laughed. What was said was probably what every single force hosting the event in the past had thought.


    "Nine states or whatnot, just the Eastern State itself is vast enough. It''s definitely quite an event to look forward to, given how many legendary people are gathered at one place, competing with people of the other states. I wonder who will reign supreme in this Nine State Forum. Where will that person be from?"


    "I sure hope it''s someone from our own Eastern State," someone said enthusiastically.


    "Beating geniuses of other states and enjoying glory like none other, that is probably the dream of every single genius out there. It was said that anyone who reigned supreme in the past forums has become saints, so long as they didn''t end up dead during the process. Someone actually looked into the past records of people who reigned supreme in the forums. With the exception of those who died in the process, there have never been any exceptions."


    "It''s something expected of the one able to stand at the top of the Nine State Forum, after all. Once every three years and those who perished are taken out of the equation. You can easily tell how few and far between these people are."


    "I heard that even the Barren State is going to participate in the forum this time. The Barren State has not produced saints for many years and seldom mingled with the other states. It seems like they''re somehow being isolated by the others, and this is the first time in many, many years that they are participating in the Nine State Forum. I wonder how far they can go this time," someone said all of a sudden. News from Yujing CIty had reached Huatian City.


    "That will sure be difficult." Someone added, "The Barren State is isolated from the other eight states and they don''t have saints. One can already tell how difficult it is for them to fight geniuses from other states. Although I''ve heard that the current palace lord of the Barren State was of exceptional talent and even defeated Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs, just how many years has it taken the Barren State to produce that one Noble Plane Palace Lord? It''s due to his exceptional talents that they made an exception to make him a leader of the Barren State right. Great things are expected of him. This is apparently something that cannot be replicated. Furthermore, even Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs could hardly be considered top-notch at the stage of the Nine State Forum."


    "You''re right. While Qin Zhong is indeed known to be the number one noble of Zhisheng Cliffs, the other states are far bigger than Yu State alone. Ye Futian was also said to be the most talented person to have emerged from the Barren State in many years. Even if he was able to defeat Qin Zhong and participate in the forum, there was no guarantee that he will be able to go all the way to the top. Furthermore, it was said that he broke through the Sage Plane and is no longer able to participate in the event. As for the others, it would be considered an incredible feat if they could even show what they''re made of at such a huge stage."


    Everyone talked about a lot of things and the subject kept going back to Ye Futian one way or another, as many were concerned about what happened in Yujing House. Ye Futian had caused quite a commotion there.


    "Indeed, but this Ye Futian is still really something. He actually broke that Celestial Dragon Chess Game left behind by the Chess Saint. I''d like to see him in action. Too bad that the one he had to compete with was Liu Zong. The Chess Saint chose Liu Zong to be his heir, and it was said that all nine students of the Chess Saint followed Liu Zong to Huatian City."


    "It was a pity, alright. It was an extremely incredible feat for a guest from the Barren State to be able to break that game. Too bad the one he was competing with was Liu Zong; the same Liu Zong who is tutored by three saints."


    The people kept on with their chatter. They did not bother hiding their respect for Liu Zong whenever the name of that young man was brought up. There was hardly anyone else like him in the entire Eastern State. What the people of the Eastern State found truly regrettable was that Liu Zong had never actually participated in the Nine State Forum. He was a Grade Two Noble six years ago. Although he had been very exceptional, even back then, there were plenty of geniuses at the pinnacle of Noble Plane. Regardless of how exceptional he had been, it was still impossible for him to be able to surpass the differences in grade.


    When the forum was held three years ago, Liu Zong had already become a sage, and that had always been one of the greatest regrets of the people of the Eastern State. However, they would be able to see some powerful nobles from all over the Eastern State show their abilities in this forum hosted by Xihua Sacred Mountain of the Eastern State.


    A group of people sat in a corner of an open-air restaurant, drinking and eating. They looked relaxed, and it was natural for them to have picked up the chatter around them. Such restaurants were the place where news spread at breakneck speed, enabling one to pick up information from all over the place.


    A girl within the group smiled and looked at a handsome young man of the same group when she heard all the chatter about Ye Futian and Liu Zong. That group consisted of none other than Ye Futian and his people. The ones around them had no idea that the talk of the town was sitting right beside them. No one actually knew those who were being talked about.


    "What do you think?" Huang Jiuge smiled and said to Ye Futian. What he was able to hear from the chatter was that, even if Ye Futian were to participate in the forum, he would not be able to achieve much although he had defeated Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs before. Furthermore, his achievements at Chess Saint Villa seemed to have been entirely overshadowed by Liu Zong.


    The people of the world would have never bothered with finding out details about the process. They cared only about results and outcomes, and it was Liu Zong who ended up getting the lineage of the Chess Saint, and the nine students of the Chess Saint were now his subordinates.


    Ye Futian''s eyes rolled and looked peculiar. He took a look at Yu Sheng and then went on to look the others.


    With the Barren State being isolated from the rest of the world, he had gotten used to being looked down upon by others. He had already become a sage and was now Palace Lord of the Barren State''s sacred ground. His task at the moment was to lead the people from the Barren State to participate in the event itself. He cared little about what people of the Eastern State thought about him, and he deemed it meaningless to care.


    Those people claimed that the Barren State would not be able to achieve much this time, and it was already an incredible feat if they were even able to show the world what they had. As such, he went on to look at Yu Sheng.


    "What are you doing looking at me?" Yu Sheng asked, concerned about the peculiar way Ye Futian was staring at him.


    The others looked at Yu Sheng, which frustrated him somewhat. He put down his chopsticks and went on to stare at the others. Can''t we just eat normally?


    "Nothing. Carry on," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "Right, nothing indeed," Xu Que said as well. "Eat more. You''ll need that extra strength."


    The others began to keep eating and drinking while the air felt a tad peculiar. Yu Sheng went on to glare at those people. What the hell is with all of your expressions?


    Huang Jiuge laughed, recalling the time he had fought against Yu Sheng in the Sage Hall. He was not able to help but feel cold all over. Despite having become a sage, he would have still been very, very reluctant if he was told to fight Yu Sheng right there and then. He began to feel pity for the legendary geniuses of the other states, mourning for those people deep down inside. He hoped that they would be lucky enough to avoid fighting Yu Sheng.


    Rawwrr. A cry of the condor was heard in the air. Ye Futian lifted his head and saw a Black Wind Condor coming at him with a figure seen standing on its back.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. The group then put down their bowls and chopsticks and left. They came to rest beside that Black Wind Condor before leaving by air.


    They reached a palace somewhere shortly afterward. The Black Wind Condor dived and landed in the palace. Ye Futian stood on the bird''s back while keeping his eyes forward. He found quite a number of familiar faces among the people before him.


    For instance, Zhuge Qingfeng, Yan Jun, Palace Lord of Fire Emperor Palace, as well as his son, Li Futu. His wife, Xiang Zhiyan, and a student of the Holy Zhi Palace, Xiang Zhiqin, were there as well. Other than that, there were still many others around. Bing Yi and Chu Shang of Mortal World were familiar faces who came with other mighty ones from Mortal World. The way they looked at Ye Futian was different from how they looked at him all those years ago.


    Ye Futian had once been a nobody and now, Ye Futian was a young leader of the Barren State.


    "All hail Palace Lord." They all paid their respects. Other than students of the palace, all the others present hailed from notable forces from the Barren State.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He then asked Zhuge Qingfeng, "What are you doing here, uncle?"


    "I haven''t been out of the Barren State for a long time. I figure it''d do me good, coming out for a bit," Zhuge Qingfeng smiled and said. Ye Futian''s action of venturing outside the Barren State and participating in the Nine State Forum caused others to venture out as well. They were all pioneers!

 750 Law Bell

    Ye Futian nodded and smiled. While they were many who attended the event this time, he knew well that they were only there to experience the event. While it was difficult for them to be able to do much in the Nine State Forum, it would serve them well to get to know the world better.


    "Li Futu, I assume your current level of training means you''re about to break into Sage Plane?" Ye Futian looked at Li Futu of Fire Emperor Palace. They had fought before. He was extremely renowned in the western regions surrounding Alchemy City. He was the most famous after Di Gang. However, Di Gang was dragged down by the case of his father Di Kai allying with Zhisheng Cliffs, and no one knew how he had been as of late. You Chi was the one in charge of affairs at Alchemy City, and Ye Futian did not ask much about it.


    Li Futu looked at Ye Futian and felt quite a lot going on in his mind. He then replied, "I''m working to look for a way to break into the next plane. I''ve come to develop comprehension of some power of rules."


    "Yeah, break into the next plane as soon as possible." Ye Futian nodded and added, "I think all of you are exhausted traveling here all the way from the Barren State. Get some rest while I go get someone to ask about rules pertaining to the forum this time. I''ll inform you all when I get more information."


    "Alright." Everyone nodded.


    The Nine State Forum attracted many from all over the nine states and it was anyone''s guess how many cultivators actually turned up. It was naturally impossible for everyone present to take part. Every single forum had its own unique rules for selecting worthy geniuses through the qualifying rounds.


    As the time of the forum''s opening got closer, Huatian City got increasingly lively. The mighty ones from other states had also, like the ones from the Barren State, arrived one after another.


    At that moment, there were already some who were looking into who would have been the most powerful nobles of the respective nine states, preparing to pick a bunch with the most potential.


    At the same time, news was released by Xihua Sacred Mountain saying that those who wanted to earn the right to participate in the forum were required to sound the Law Bell beneath the mountain. Those who were incapable of doing so were required to participate in a battle to climb the sky stairwell, held seven days prior to the Nine State Forum. The top 3,000 would then earn a token to participate in the forum.


    Countless geniuses gathered below Xihua Sacred Mountain where the people of the sacred ground had placed the Law Bell. Xihua Sacred Mountain was a tall mountain shooting into the skies, yet the place beneath the mountain was a vast plaza capable of housing countless. At that moment, untold numbers of cultivators gathered there.


    Ye Futian and his party had arrived as well. They looked up at Xihua Sacred Mountain and felt themselves shaking inside.


    The sacred ground, Xihua Sacred Mountain, was a place where the tall, regal buildings melded with the body of the mountain as one. It was a work of art like none other, emanating an imposing aura, looking incredibly holy and solemn. One was required to climb 3,000 steps before reaching the gates of Xihua Sacred Mountain. Looking up from the steps, the sacred ground seemed to be connected with the heavens, looking impressively sacred.


    A huge ancient bell was placed above the 3,000 steps. This was the Law Bell. The bell was guarded by mighty ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain. Many were thinking of trying to sound the bell and earning the right to participate in the forum right away.


    "So this is the Law Bell that Xihua Sacred Mountain uses to inspect their own students then?" Many looked at the ancient bell. They heard stories about the bell. It was something forged by the ancestors of Xihua Sacred Mountain and was capable of telling apart the power of rules. Only those who had developed comprehension of matured power of rules would b able to sound the bell. One would not be able to sound the bell otherwise, regardless of how powerful one''s training had become.


    Furthermore, the Law Bell had a mystical trait: the sound made by the bell was an indication if the strength of the power of rules of the one ringing it. One would be able to tell the level of the comprehended power of rules from the sound produced by the Law Bell.


    The sound was accompanied by nine images that portrayed the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, as well as dragon, tiger, the vermillion bird, and the black turtle. If the power of rules comprehended belonged to only a single element, regardless of the strength of said power of rules, one would be able to light up an image, even if one was able to produce a deafening sound with the bell.


    Those who were capable of comprehending exceptional power of rules, by merging their own talents, Life Spirits, and other abilities, would be able to light up multiple images with their produced sounds. The most powerful rules would make the Law Bell produce sounds resembling roars of tigers and dragons while lighting up multiple images at the same time. As such, the Law Bell itself served Xihua Sacred Mountain well in the inspection of the level of power of rules of their students.


    "Many geniuses from all over the nine states came to participate in the Nine State Forum, having developed comprehension of powerful power of rules. They were all to be tested with the bell. First, it fits the meaning of the forum itself, and second, it allows for the topmost geniuses to pass, earning the right to participate in the event without having to participate in the mixed battles first," someone said.


    "Indeed. All of those proud sons and daughters from sacred grounds all over the nine states will definitely be very proud. It would be rather discourteous to have them participate in the mixed battles, but if they were to simply be allowed to participate in the forum proper, it wouldn''t seem fair for the others. As such, it''s best to leave the Law Bell where it is now."


    "In this way, we will be able to tell how far those top-notch geniuses from all over the nine states have come with their talents," someone said, smiling. Those geniuses from the sacred grounds throughout the nine states came at their own will to sound the Law Bell.


    A group of people walked down from the steps. Many lifted their heads to look at the leader of that group of people and said, "That''s Liu Zong. What would it be like if he were to sound the bell?"


    "The ones behind Liu Zong are the nine students of the Chess Saint. Among the students of the Chess Saint, the eldest student, Yang Xiao, is a mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Ranking. Yet, he now stands behind Liu Zong. What does this mean?" Many felt awed at the scene. They did not know the truth. The nine students of the Chess Saint were not following Liu Zong simply because he had broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game and had earned the lineage of the Chess Saint. They were also doing so to help save the Chess Saint.


    Liu Zong walked near the side of the Law Bell. He looked at the crowd while standing on the steps and said, "The Law Bell of the Sacred Mountain is here today not only to test those who are interested in participating in the forum. Even sages, if you''re willing, are also welcomed to test the Law Bell and see how far your power of rules have come."


    The elders who were guarding the Law Bell on both sides did not say anything, acknowledging Liu Zong''s words in silence. Liu Zong''s status in Xihua Sacred Mountain was supreme. Everyone else but the three saints had to be courteous to him. Liu Zong now had the nine students of the Chess Saint escorting him as well, which made him look rather legendary.


    Although the crowd beneath the steps was huge, the number of people who went sounding the bell was but a handful. Those capable of developing matured power of rules while still being in Noble Plane were top-notch geniuses themselves. Geniuses like this were always few, whatever state they might have emerged from. Those people would have also been the most dazzling in the Nine State Forum.


    At that moment, a figure walked up the stairs and headed for the Law Bell. Many looked at that figure and there was someone who recognized him, saying, "That is Shi Tong, incredibly powerful and at the pinnacle of Noble Plane. He will participate in the Nine State Forum."


    "I''ve heard that Shi Tong has developed some power of rules. I wonder if he will be able to sound the bell if that power of rules were to be coupled with that immense strength of his."


    Shi Tong walked in front of the bell and lifted his arms. His huge fists crashed onto the bell. A huge god-of-war-like shadow was seen in the air. The thunderous sound from his fists pierced the air, and a thin sound was heard. The sound was stifled and the Law Bell wavered. However, only a stifling sound was heard produced by his fist landing on the bell. The produced sound was so soft that it sounded as if no sound was made instead.


    "Well..." Many shuddered. It was a surprise that such immense power had proved inadequate at sounding the bell. Things were indeed like the rumors said.


    The Law Bell would only sound when attacked using the power of rules. Furthermore, it had to be matured power of rules. If one only comprehended a sliver of rules, the Law Bell would react like how it just had, with only a soft, stifled sound. The clashing sound between the fist and bell had been covered entirely.


    Shi Tong was extremely angered, and his expression turned ferocious. He shouted, and a storm whipped up around him while his body turned rock-solid. A huge shadow of a stone ape was seen. He stepped forward, steadying himself, then threw his arm at the bell. Another violent clash was seen, yet the stifling sound produced was still not that of the bell.


    The Law Bell wavered as if to tease in a brutally sarcastic manner. Shi Tong''s face turned red as he clenched his fists, feeling frustrated. He thought himself to be powerful enough to earn the right to participate in the forum by sounding the bell.


    "I''ll have a go," a voice said from the air. Many turned their heads up and saw a carriage making a flashy entrance. A woman was seen standing in front of the carriage, looking sharp and dashing.


    "The princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It seems like people of the sacred dynasty are here," someone said.


    The one who had said she wanted to try was none other than Zhou Ziyi. She walked down and came in front of the bell, smiling at Liu Zong. She said, "Liu Zong, we meet again."


    "So you''ll be participating in the Nine State Forum as well, Princess Ziyi?" Liu Zong asked. Zhou Ziyi''s plane was currently at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane.


    "Yeah." Zhou Ziyi nodded. Her talents were exceptional and she had developed matured power of rules. As such, she saw it fit to participate in the forum. It was not just her; many from the sacred dynasty were participating in this forum with her as well.


    "Let''s try then," Liu Zong said. Zhou Ziyi looked at the Law Bell, gathering a powerful might about her and unleashing it. Her dress billowed and a holy golden fire was showered on her in an instant. A golden divine bird appeared, and it was an incredibly rare golden phoenix. Its wings glittered with golden colors, and at that moment, she looked incredibly regal, pure, and divine.


    She extended her slim hand and then struck the Law Bell with one finger. That dazzling golden phoenix sounded the bell right there and then. A crisp sound was heard from the bell and powerful air of rules even emanated from the sound of the Law Bell itself, which was none other than her own power of rules.


    Two images lit up on the Law Bell.


    "Not bad. You''re actually capable of that much despite being a noble," Liu Zong smiled and said. A beaming smile was seen on her face as she was praised by Liu Zong. She looked up to him with infatuated eyes.


    "Princess, here is the token for the Nine State Forum." An elder at the side of the Law Bell handed her an ancient token. Being able to sound the bell meant that she had earned her right to participate in the forum.


    "Thank you, senior," Zhou Ziyi said with a smile. She was regal and she held her manners well. The elder nodded in approval.


    "Will there be anyone else attempting to sound the bell?" Liu Zong turned his eyes at the massive crowd. All from throughout the nine states should be here. What are you all waiting for?


    The very reason Xihua Sacred Mountain chose to use the Law Bell as a selection tool was to see how capable people the people of the nine states actually were!

 751 Sound of the Bell

    There have actually been quite a lot of cultivators from all over the nine states mingling among the vast, massive crowd there. Those foreigners were hardly eye-catching among so many people, as it was impossible to tell who was from where from appearances alone.


    "This ritual implement looks interesting." Light-hearted laughter was heard. A path was carved out in the crowd, and the people actually moved aside. A group of people was seen walking slowly up there, all of whom exuded a flighty, near-undetectable air, yet there actually manifested enough power to repel everyone around them. From the way they were dressed and the bearing they exuded, everyone knew that people from others were finally on the stage. The group of people was dressed in azure garb, which looked incredibly eye-catching. They were all very good-looking and their skin looked incredibly supple despite being men.


    "Go try it out," the leader of the group told a young man at his side, who nodded and walked up to the bell. He emanated his aura, which was that of a noble. It was apparent that the young man was a cultivator who came to participate in the Nine State Forum.


    Violent sounds of waves were vaguely heard as the man approached the Law Bell. He extended his hand and terrifying scenes seemed to have appeared around him, seeming like massive waves swallowing the earth as they crashed through. He struck the bell and it sounded as if that huge ancient bell was being hit by tsunamis within an instant.


    Dong. A clear, loud sound reverberated in the heavens and the earth, which also swept through the crowd like a violent wave, making some grunt. Furthermore, everyone saw the images on the Law Bell light up one after another. There were actually three glowing images, which meant that he was even more powerful than the princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It was apparent that he was more talented than Zhou Ziyi in wielding the power of rules.


    Zhou Ziyi''s eyes turned towards the young man and she looked rather irked. Am I getting pushed aside right after I made my entrance here?


    Liu Zong also looked at the young man and extended his hand to take a Nine State Forum Token from the elder beside him. He then handed it over to the young man, saying, "Are you from Ocean State?"


    "Celestial Cliffs of Ocean State," the young man replied and Liu Zong nodded. The location of Ocean State was even more remote than that of the Eastern State. It was at the very far end of the east regions and vast oceans were found everywhere. There were countless islands and cities on the waters, with the largest city-on-sea said to be larger than even the Holy Capital of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, but Liu Zong had never been there himself. Celestial Cliffs was one of the sacred grounds of Ocean State, the supreme force in all of Ocean State.


    "I look forward to your performance in the forum," Liu Zong smiled and said. Many were impressed by Liu Zong''s bearing as a representative of the hosting force.


    "Thank you." The young man retreated and there were others coming up to test themselves. The one who came next was bathed in dazzling light as they were being clad in holy armor, which was blindingly bright. That person struck the bell without saying anything. A glittering fist will pounded on the Law Bell right. The sound produced was loud and clear, reverberating for quite some time before subsiding.


    Four images lit up on the bell.


    "Such power." Many who were watching were deeply impressed, so much so that the youth who was bathed in blinding light felt like a god of war descending upon the earth.


    Liu Zong took another token and handed it to the youth, asking, "You''re from War State, I presume?"


    "Indeed." The youth took the token and nodded quietly before returning to his own place. Many more came out to test themselves, and many other mighty ones from both Ocean State and War State came forward to sound the bell, earning themselves tokens. Many were awed seeing the many mighty ones make their moves. Those foreigners seemed to be wrestling with each other without actually fighting. The clash of titans seemed to have taken place before the forum even began.


    At that moment, mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State arrived as well. Another came up to sound the bell when the Noble Plane students came out.


    Ye Futian, who was among the crowd, lit up as he saw the person who walked up��Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Other than him, Ye Futian had also seen other mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs, such as Kong Yao. That old man showed up as well.


    Qin Zhong had already become a sage, but he still wanted to see what level had his power of rules reached, and so he showed up before the Law Bell.


    He gathered the power of rules and launched a punch at the bell.


    Dong. Terrifying sound waves threatened to rupture the eardrums of all within earshot. Some even hallucinated, feeling as if their bodies were being torn apart.


    Four images lit up in extremely dazzling lights on the Law Bell.


    "Despite being a sage, it is still an incredibly difficult feat to conjure four images," many said to themselves silently. The images on their bell were not used for testing the strength of the power of rules but their level. For instance, Ye Futian''s time-freeze rules were apparently of a higher level than the most basic rules of the five elements. Having more images meant that the might of the power of rules developed was of a higher level.


    "Aren''t you going to try it out?" Qin Zhong turned his eyes to look at one corner in the crowd. Many followed his gaze and found Ye Futian''s party standing where Qin Zhong''s eyes were focused.


    It was apparent that Qin Zhong noticed Ye Futian''s arrival. There was no way Qin Zhong would have been able to forget the supreme genius who had beaten him in the Barren State. That battle left a deep impression on him. The memories were so fresh that it felt as if it all happened the day before.


    After being defeated in that battle, Qin Zhong returned to Zhisheng Cliffs to reflect and train in seclusion. He gained a new understanding and broke into the Sage Plane after spending half a year seriously pondering. Even so, he had not forgotten that battle. It was one thought he held on to obsessively.


    Liu Zong, Zhou Ziyi, and the others turned their eyes to Ye Futian as well. The nine students of Chess Saint all did the same. Ye Futian lifted his head and looked at Qin Zhong before turning to look at Kong Yao in the crowd. Ye Futian held no enmity to Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs but he hated Kong Yao to the bone.


    Kong Yao glared at Ye Futian with equally cold and extremely sharp eyes. That genius of the Barren State had Sage Chunyang covering for him. Even the sage even sacrificed his life to call upon Emperor Xia just so to keep Ye Futian alive and have him take the place of Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    He wanted to kill Ye Futian very badly to tie up loose ends. However, the decree of Emperor Xia meant that he would dare to move against Ye Futian haphazardly as even he did not have the right to see the emperor. Emperor Xia was an emperor of humanity like no other. His words held such weight and power that no one throughout all nine states dared defy him. It was said that Emperor Xia was at a level capable of feats threatening the heavens and the earth.


    "Palace Lord Ye, you have broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game before. Why don''t you demonstrate a bit of what you''re capable of? It is not an opportunity that is easy to come by, after all," Liu Zong said with a smile.


    Many looked puzzled at those words. That young man is Palace Lord Ye Futian who came all the way here from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State?


    Everyone in Huatian City had heard of the name of the Noble Plane Palace Lord of the Barren State by now; a young man who had broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game left behind by the Chess Saint. If it had not been for Liu Zong, he might have been the one to earn the Chess Saint''s lineage.


    "I''ve been invited here by Xihua Sacred Mountain to bring the young geniuses of the Barren State to participate in the Nine State Forum. As for the bell, you may continue without me," Ye Futian said. He was now the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. With his every move representing the palace, he naturally had to be careful of the way he spoke and acted. The Law Bell was for the Noble Plane students who were to participate in the forum. It would have been improper if he went to show off before the others at a place like this even though all those here hailed from sacred grounds all over the nine states.


    "You''re planning to bring people of the Barren State to participate in the Nine State Forum?" Zhou Ziyi''s eyes were set on Ye Futian in an amused manner. She then turned to look at those around Ye Futian. She was about to participate in the forum this time as well. So the ones from Barren State are going to join the fun? In that case, I guess there is a possibility I will end up facing them. If things turn out that way, it will be interesting.


    Ye Futian turned to look at her. That woman seemed to still be holding a grudge against him. He looked at Zhou Ziyi rather pitifully. He thought her to be rather pathetic. It would have been better if she was not of any worth, yet she had to be a princess of the sacred dynasty, which meant that someone would have to find her useful.


    Zhou Ziyi saw Ye Futian''s brow furrow slightly. What is this guy trying to say?


    Ye Futian turned his eyes around without replying to Zhou Ziyi, deeming her not worthy of his time.


    "Li Futu, you''re up for it?" Ye Futian said to Li Futu who was standing right by his side. While Li Futu''s capabilities and talents were all incredibly powerful, his power of rules was still far from mature. While Ye Futian had no worries about him even having what it took to participate in the forum or otherwise, if Li Futu had the ability to get a token himself remained to be proven.


    "Okay." Li Futu walked up and stood before the bell. Many eyes fell onto him, wanting to see how good genius-level nobles from the Barren State were.


    The light of the Divine Bird glittered and Li Futu made a fist lightly. Powerful flames washed all over his body in an instant. The bird cried in the sky before shooting down like a bolt of lightning, hitting the Law Bell. A thin, stifling ting was heard. Li Futu''s fists clenched without him realizing as he watched the scene before him unfold. He was not even able to sound the bell.


    Ye Futian looked just as troubled. Such a soft ting was truly no different from not making any sound at all. The Law Bell was something that only matured powers of rules were able to sound. It was apparent that even Li Futu, the most exceptional proud son of the Alchemy City regions, was incapable of such a feat before he developed matured rules.


    Many wore peculiar looks on their faces. The Barren State was still Barren State. They were still the weakest. All of the first ones who came up from the other states had been able to sound the bell; all but the Barren State.


    "The way I see it, it''s still better for you to do it yourself," Zhou Ziyi looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "Me? I''m afraid it''d be too much for you," Ye Futian said, smirking. It was a move that startled many present. That fellow actually made the princess of the sacred dynasty the butt of his joke?


    Zhou Ziyi frowned coldly as she glanced at Ye Futian. Too much for me? What insolence.


    "Go get the Barren State''s right of entry for the forum, will you?" Ye Futian said in a muffled voice to Yu Sheng and the others who were right beside him. They nodded briskly and walked to the bottom of the stairs.


    Many watched with peculiar faces at the scene of several people walking out at the same time. All from the Barren State are trying out at the same time?


    "Who''s up first?" Xu Que asked in a rather lazy tone.


    "Have it your way," Ye Wuchen said as he walked up a few steps. Sword aura whooshed about in the air in an instant. He pointed with his finger and thousands of sword wills gushed in the direction where his pointed, hitting the Law Bell.


    Dong! A crisp clear sound flowed with the sword will, reverberating throughout the place.


    "Well, let''s do it together then," Zui Qianchou smiled and said, walking up like Ye Wuchen did before the sound of the bell subsided.


    Dong. Another trembling sound of the bell was heard, as if there was a torrent of sword aura gushing about.


    Xu Que shrugged and sword aura coursed throughout his body. He opened his eyes all of a sudden, throwing his arm out sending thousands of killing sword will through the air. The Law Bell sounded three times. It echoes reverberated throughout the surroundings.


    Zhou Ziyi looked on with incredibly amused eyes, staring at that ancient bell that kept being rung!

 752 The Sky Saints Disciple

    Many people looked at the sight in front of the Law Bell. Three swordsmen at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane had caused the bell to ring simultaneously. This meant that the three swordsmen from the Barren State had all comprehended complete rule powers.


    In the Nine States, any Noble Plane figure who could comprehend a complete rule power was considered a genius. If they could comprehend a rare rule power that could cause three or more of the pictures on the Law Bell to light up, they could be considered a prodigy. To the Nine States, the former could enter a holy land to cultivate and even alert the influential figures of that holy land. The latter could even become a direct disciple to a Saint. This also meant that the Nine States would not have too many Noble Plane figures who could cause the Law Bell to ring. Otherwise, they would not use this method to allow others to obtain a Nine State Forum Token.


    These three people had all used swordsmanship rule power to cause the Law Bell to ring, but they had not used their full power. They had merely caused the bell to ring to obtain a Nine State Forum Token and obtain the right to qualify. Therefore, only one of the pictures had lit up on the Law Bell. Even so, this caused many people to be surprised. After all, they were from the Barren State; the Barren State that was renowned for having no Saints could groom so many genius-level figures shocked many.


    Many people looked at Ye Futian. This young leader from the Barren State had led the people from the Barren State to attend the Nine State Forum. He must have used the strength of the entire Barren State, for multiple geniuses to emerge from a State was not surprising. As the people thought of this, their surprise gradually waned. However, the end had not come. At that moment, Yuan Zhan stepped forward and with his burly body and struck out with his fist. The air felt like it was about to implode as a resounding ring was heard. Following that, Phoenix stepped forward with phoenixes circling the air. She was bathed in divine flames and struck out with her fist as well. The Law Bell shook as a wave of flames spread alongside the sound of the bell.


    Yi Xiaoshi also stepped forward and struck out, causing the Law Bell to ring once again. As the sound of the bell reverberated around the area, the crowd was unnerved. Could it be that most of the Nobles around Ye Futian had comprehended some form of complete rule power? The Barren State was this prepared for this time''s Nine State Forum?


    The ringing sound of the bell continued as though it would never end. A long time later, Yu Sheng''s fist landed on the Law Bell. Everyone around Ye Futian had taken their try on the Law Bell. After a long while, the echo finally dissipated and the area fell silent. Looking at the group of people beside Ye Futian, if only three of them were able to sound the Law Bell, it would not be that shocking. However, all of them had sounded the Law Bell.


    Yu Sheng and the rest returned to Ye Futian''s side silently. They had not used their full strength to sound the Law Bell; they were only there to obtain the qualification to enter the forum. To Yu Sheng, he had no interest in showing off.


    "Interesting." Liu Zong looked at Ye Futian''s group and complimented, "The Barren State has not participated in the Nine State Forum for many years. It looks like you''re well-prepared this time around. I look forward to the Barren State''s performance in the Nine State Forum."


    Many people in the surrounding crowd nodded. With the strength that the Nobles around Ye Futian had shown, they could already rival a holy land for cultivation. Of course, it could not match up to factions like Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, they were talking about the Barren State, after all. It was already an outstanding achievement.


    The elder at the side passed Ye Futian the Nine State Forum Tokens, who accepted them. He smiled and looked at Liu Zong, saying, "I look forward to it too."


    At that moment, a figure in black stepped forward, giving them a cold feeling. He stepped in front of the Law Bell, strands of black Qi flowing towards the bell at the same time. When the black Qi current struck the Law Bell, a dull sound made many people uncomfortable. However, they also saw four pictures light up on the Law Bell with a brilliant light.


    "Where is this person from?" someone asked in astonishment. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s princess Zhou Ziyi had only lit up two pictures, but this person could casually light up four pictures on the Law Bell. Before this, only the Zhisheng Cliffs'' Qin Zhong had been able to do it with his Sage Plane cultivation level.


    "Are you from the Feng State?" Liu Zong looked at the person and asked.


    The figure in black nodded silently, accepted the token, and returned into the crowd. There, a group of people waited for him like shadows, giving people an extremely dangerous feeling. Following that, other people from the Feng State stepped out and sounded the Law Bell to obtain the Nine State Forum Token.


    "That''s the Law Bell?" A voice sounded from the air. Many people looked towards the voice and saw a group of people with transcendent auras flying towards them. The person at the front had golden eyes and was looking at the Law Bell on the ground.


    "They''re from the Qi State''s holy land of cultivation," someone said.


    "Yes, I''ve heard that the Law Bell is indeed mystical. A person who has comprehended the most elite of rule powers can cause it to howl like a tiger and cry like a dragon, lighting up more than five pictures," an elder by their side said.


    "That''s interesting." The teen smiled faintly, then turned to a person beside him and said, "You go and try it."


    "Okay." The person beside him looked somewhat similar to him and was even younger than him. He had the aura of a Noble, and he walked towards the ground from the air to the Law Bell. A brilliant light surrounded his body and in the next moment, his body had vanished.


    Clang! A deafening sound echoed into the crowd''s ears and many people were shocked as they stared in the direction of the Law Bell. A brilliant light burst forth from the Law Bell as five pictures lit up.


    How strong. Many people had appalled expressions. Who was this person? He was only a Noble, but he was already this strong?


    What was that light surrounding his body? At that moment, he appeared to turn into a flash of light and disappeared. The next thing they heard was the sound of the bell. If this was a battlefield, how would they deal with this kind of enemy? They would be killed in one hit.


    "The Qi State''s holy land, Hall of Holy Light," Liu Zong looked at the oncoming person and said. He looked at the teen in the air with a glint in his smile. Among the Nine States, the Summer State was the strongest and occupied the central position, surrounded by six other states and countless regions. Next in strength was the Qi State.


    The Qi State''s holy land, the Hall of Holy Light, was an extremely strong holy land. It could be ranked in the top five among all the Nine States'' holy lands.


    Liu Zong had guessed the identity of the teen at the front. The teen also looked at Liu Zong with a brilliant glow in his eyes. He did not avert his gaze, as though there was no need to no matter who it was. Liu Zong naturally understood the meaning behind his gaze; it was absolute pride.


    "The Nine States is indeed full of hidden talents. Well, it looks like there''ll be a lot of pressure on all of you during the Nine State Forum," Ye Futian looked at the people beside him and said. They all nodded. Indeed, the people who had appeared today were only a small portion of the Nine State Forum''s participants. There were still many experts who had yet to show their strength, but it was already shocking enough. There were even people who could light up five pictures on the Law Bell.


    Xu Que could distinctly feel that his speed was inferior to the other party''s. If he faced the person who had struck the Law Bell just now, his chances of winning would be slim.


    "What a pity that I can''t participate," Huang Jiuge''s eyes lit up as he said. Although he had already entered the Sage Plane, he still wanted to duel with others. To any cultivator, being granted a platform to spar with elite figures from all over the Nine States was definitely a blessing.


    As for Li Futu, Xiang Zhiqin, and the rest, they had mixed feelings. Initially, Li Futu was definitely able to deal with the likes of Xu Que and Ye Wuchen. However, these people had all overtaken him now. Before the Law Bell, he was unable to even make it ring, but there were people who could light up five pictures. This disparity made Li Futu feel that his pride was meaningless. If placed into the context of the Nine States, it would be worthless. He needed to work harder.


    Following that, there were experts who came forward successively to sound the Law Bell. The ringing did not stop as more experts stepped forward.


    "Liu Zong, aren''t you going to try?" At that moment, a voice sounded from the sky. Everyone looked in the air and saw a figure with his arms around his chest as he spoke coolly to Liu Zong.


    Han Yu. When the crowd saw who it was, they shuddered as they thought to themselves. He was here too.


    Liu Zong also broke into a smile. Han Yu''s reputation in the Eastern State was not inferior to his. This was a person who enjoyed the same fame as him and they were often compared. He had outstanding potential and was taught by three Saints and reputed to be a Saint in the future. On the other hand, Han Yu was the sole successor to one of the Eastern State''s eight Saints, the Sky Saint.


    If a person in the Eastern State were to select a sect of his choice, the first choice would definitely be the Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, if they were to choose a single person to be their master, more people would probably choose the Sky Saint.


    Not only was the Sky Saint extremely strong, but he only had one disciple. It was obvious what it meant to be able to have the Sky Saint as one''s master.


    Han Yu, the only disciple of the Sky Saint had a huge reputation in the Eastern State.


    "You want to try?" Liu Zong looked at Han Yu and asked.


    Han Yu continued to cross his arms and replied, smiling, "I don''t see why not."


    When the crowd heard his words, their eyes lit up. Han Yu was going to sound the Law Bell.


    "Please." Liu Zong guided with his arm as he moved back slightly. The elder by his side also stepped back, leaving the area around the Law Bell empty.


    At that moment, countless gazes landed on Han Yu. Around his body, threads of golden light appeared around him, yet appeared elusive.


    Spatial rule power. Many people were astounded as they thought. Moreover, the spatial rule power was almost corporeal. The Sky Saint specialized in spatial rule power and was one of the most terrifying figures in the Eastern State. His only disciple Han Yu had inherited his mantle and comprehended an extremely high-leveled spatial rule power.


    The Zhisheng Cliffs'' Qin Zhong looked at Ye Futian. He knew that Ye Futian had comprehended spatial rule power as well. Back when he was still a Noble, he had already comprehended it. Naturally, it would not be as strong as Han Yu''s spatial rule power.


    A faint golden spatial power rampaged around his body. With his body as the core, a spatial storm brewed and slashed towards the Law Bell like blades.


    A spatial blade flew through the air and slashed on the Law Bell.


    Clang! An explosion sounded as the sound of the bell reverberated throughout the area. Pictures started to light up successively, accompanied by the cry of Vermillion Birds and the roars of tigers.


    Seven pictures had lit up on the Law Bell!

 753 The Elder and the Young Girl

    "How strong." Countless people looked at Han Yu as they commented. This was the only disciple of the Eastern State''s Sky Saint. Seven pictures had lit up on the Law Bell. What a dominant display of rule power. This meant that if he battled with someone of the same cultivation level and both of them used their rule power to attack, his rule power could dominate the other''s rule power and kill his opponent.


    There were many extremely strong Sage Plane figures who could not even make three or more pictures light up on the Law Bell, not to mention five pictures. Beyond that, only prodigies could achieve it. Evidently, Han Yu was such a prodigy.


    "Excellent." Liu Zong raised his head and looked at Han Yu, complimenting him. "As expected of Han Yu, your spatial rule power has become stronger. With that as an attack technique, nobody would want to meet an opponent like you."


    Many people heard his words and looked at Liu Zong. Although this disciple of three Saints was courteous and kept complimenting others, what about himself? As a disciple of the Xihua Sacred Mountain, Liu Zong likely knew how many pictures he could light up on the Law Bell, but the crowd was curious.


    Liu Zong was probably not weaker than Han Yu.


    "Aren''t you going to try?" Han Yu looked at Liu Zong and asked.


    "The Nine State Forum is organized by Xihua Sacred Mountain. As the host, there is no need for me to do so. I''ll leave the time to the rest of you." Liu Zong smiled and continued, "Anyone who wants to try their hand on the Law Bell, please go ahead. Even the Sage Plane cultivators who are not eligible to enter the Nine State Forum can test their rule power''s strength here, this is a rare opportunity."


    Many people nodded silently. Liu Zong''s words were true, it was indeed a rare opportunity for them to be aware of the gap between their rule power and the Nine States'' prodigies. As such, Sage Plane cultivators started to step forward and ring the Law Bell. However, the majority of the cultivators were only joining in the fun and were unable to light up many pictures. Only those from the Nine States'' holy lands could raise a commotion.


    Ye Futian continued watching for a while and saw many visitors from the Nine States. However, he also knew that the people here were only a portion of the entire turnout, even so, they already left a deep impression on him.


    "Let''s go," he said. They had already achieved their objective and obtained the Nine State Forum Tokens. All they had to do was wait for news.


    "Coming through, please give way." At that moment, a voice sounded from behind. Ye Futian turned around and saw two figures passing through the crowd and walking towards him.


    "What is this old fellow squeezing through for?" someone berated in a soft voice.


    "He''s so dirty, what''s he doing?" Many people were unhappy as they muttered. The two figures squeezed through the crowd and walked up to Ye Futian''s side. As they walked by, Ye Futian looked at the two of them. They were one elder and one young girl. The elder''s clothes were ragged and he looked exceptionally unkempt. The young girl looked like she was only 15 or 16, dressed in plain apparel and black-faced, like she had not washed her face for a long time and was travel-worn. It was indeed glaring for such a duo to appear at the foot of the Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    The two of them walked by Ye Futian, only to see Ye Futian stop and turn around to look at the young girl with a suspicious gaze. His instinct told him that something was off.


    Using his Freedom Meditation, Ye Futian locked onto the young girl in plain robes. However, at that moment, the young girl turned around and looked at Ye Futian. With that one gaze, Ye Futian felt a stinging sensation in his eyes and rescinded his Freedom Meditation.


    This�� A glint appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes. This was the first time he had been spotted using his Freedom Meditation. The young lady''s reaction made him feel as though the young girl had felt him using his Freedom Meditation to peer at her. However, how could that be possible? He had used his Freedom Meditation on elite Sage Plane figures in the past. She was merely a young girl, how could she have known? Moreover, the feeling that she gave Ye Futian was extremely peculiar.


    "What happened?" Hua Jieyu asked softly.


    "Take a look." Ye Futian stopped and did not leave, but turned around and looked at the two figures who had squeezed their way in. The two of them were actually heading towards the Law Bell.


    "What do the two of you want?" someone looked at them and asked.


    "Yaya here wants to participate in the Nine State Forum," the elder replied.


    Many people heard his words and had skeptical expressions. Could this old man be mad? Yaya? What an unrefined name, yet how fitting the name was. Moreover, this naive girl wanted to take part in the Nine State Forum?


    Even Xihua Sacred Mountain''s expert standing by the Law Bell said with displeasure, "This is no place for tomfoolery, please leave."


    "Isn''t this the rule that Xihua Sacred Mountain set? Anyone who wants to participate in the Nine State Forum can come here. As long as they are able to sound the Law Bell, they will be allowed to participate, isn''t that right?" the elder glared at the other party and asked.


    "Elder, it is indeed a rule set by Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, the Nine State Forum is not a joke, I hope that you can respect us and yourself," Liu Zong replied, still with a courteous tone, but his words showed his displeasure. A teenage girl of only 15 years participating in the Nine State Forum? This was evidently a joke, they were treating the Nine State Forum and the Law Bell like child''s play.


    "Since they want to sound the Law Bell, why not let them try?" At that moment, a voice sounded. Liu Zong looked towards Ye Futian, and the rest of the crowd also looked towards him. What was the Barren State''s Palace Lord thinking?


    Letting a young girl sound the Law Bell?


    "You''re not willing to sound the bell, but you interfere with other people''s affairs?" Zhou Ziyi looked coldly at Ye Futian and said. Liu Zong had already rejected them, what was Ye Futian interrupting for?


    "Princess Ziyi, Palace Lord Ye''s words hold reason. It will not take long. Elder, go ahead," Liu Zong smiled and said.


    The elder glared at him and replied, "That''s more like it. Go ahead, Yaya."


    "Okay." The young girl nodded and walked to the Law Bell. All of a sudden, her eyes looked like meteors had glided past and were extremely brilliant. She raised her palm and her little fist punched the Law Bell. Many people saw the scene and thought This little girl isn''t going to injure her fist by punching on the Law Bell, is she?


    Clang. At that moment, a crisp sound echoed in everyone''s ears, causing their gazes to freeze as they faltered.


    In the world of cultivation, was there anyone who could comprehend rule power at the age of 15 or 16? Perhaps there was, but they had thought that they would never meet someone like that. Could it be that she had cultivated in some secret arts? Recovering her vitality?


    Along the path of cultivation, the first 20 years of one''s life was a growing stage. Even if one had exceptional potential, they would keep growing older until a certain age. As long as a cultivator continued their cultivation, they would be able to maintain eternal youth. In fact, many Saints looked like teenagers. However, no matter how fast one''s cultivation was or how high their potential was, they would still grow up. So, it was impossible for anyone to stop growing at the age of 15. So, they could not understand.


    Even Liu Zong and the Nine States'' experts could not understand.


    The people from the Nine States were all knowledgeable and had seen many geniuses. However, they had never heard of someone who could comprehend rule power at 15 or 16 years of age. Could it be that she had started cultivating in her mother''s womb?


    "What are you looking at, where is the token?" The elder''s voice brought all of them back. The expert beside the Law Bell then passed the token to the young girl.


    "Yaya, let''s go," the elder said. The young girl turned around and walked to his side and both of them started leaving.


    "Please wait a minute, elder." Liu Zong asked, "Could I know your name?" Could such a figure be an expert in seclusion who had decided to re-enter the secular world?


    "Nameless," the elder replied without turning his head.


    "Nameless." Liu Zong muttered and continued, "Elder''s name stands out from the rest."


    "Nameless means I don''t have a name, idiot. How pretentious." The elder squeezed through the crowd while his words made Liu Zong freeze.


    Everyone in the vast area had awkward expressions. The Xihua Sacred Mountain''s Liu Zong had been called an idiot.


    Nameless meant that he did not have a name.


    Pch. Zhuge Mingyue laughed. Liu Zong''s gaze turned towards her with displeasure.


    "Second Sister, let''s go," Ye Futian said. His followers nodded and they turned around to leave. Along the way, Zhuge Mingyue could not stop herself from laughing and commented, "That elder sure is interesting."


    "Indeed." Ye Futian thought about the young girl''s gaze and had a pensive look on his face.


    "Little girl, who are you talking about?" At that moment, a voice sounded. Sage Wanxiang and Zhuge Qingfeng looked forward and saw the two of them appear and walk towards them.


    "Elder, please forgive me," Zhuge Mingyue smiled and replied.


    The elder looked at her coolly, then turned to look at Ye Futian. The young girl beside him also looked at Ye Futian. Evidently, she had told the elder what had happened.


    "Who are you?" the elder asked.


    "I am the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace Lord, Ye Futian," Ye Futian saluted and replied.


    "Ridiculous. The Holy Zhi Palace is the Barren State''s holy land, after all. Even though it is declining, how could they have such a weak Palace Lord?" The elder evidently knew about the Holy Zhi Palace, but his information was outdated.


    "Everything I''m saying is the truth," Ye Futian replied.


    "He is the Palace''s new Lord indeed. Elder must not care much about news from the outside world?" Sage Wanxiang asked.


    "Is that so?" The elder showed an interested expression and scrutinized Ye Futian from head to toe, causing Ye Futian''s hair to stand on end.


    "Interesting," the elder said softly before leaving with the young girl. Ye Futian looked at his back with a curious expression. This elder was evidently very strong, but nobody in the Nine States knew his identity. Was he really someone in seclusion?


    After the elder and the little girl had left, they held hands and walked on the street. The little girl asked, "Village Chief, what are we here for?"


    "Trying to look for someone who can defeat you," the elder replied.


    "Oh." The little girl looked forward and said softly, "Then won''t this trip be pointless?"


    "..." The elder glared at the young girl speechlessly. Would their trip be pointless?!

 754 Entering the Sacred Mountain

    In the following days, there would be people heading to the foot of Xihua Sacred Mountain every day to attempt to sound the Law Bell. Among them were geniuses from the Nine States who wanted to participate in the Nine State Forum. There were also Sage Plane cultivators from all around who wanted to use the Law Bell to test the level of their rule power.


    Every day, a batch of outstanding figures would emerge and win the amazement of the onlookers. The people from Huatian City even created a list for the most outstanding prodigies in the Nine States. Of course, this list disregarded those who did not give their best effort when sounding the Law Bell and only did it for the Nine State Forum Token, so as to not be embroiled in the chaos.


    Ye Futian did not go and watch the proceedings in the past few days. He did not even go and participate in the bustling qualification rounds for the Nine State Forum. However, Zhuge Qingfeng, Yan Jun, and many of the Barren State''s experts went to watch it. After they came back, they were rather overwhelmed. These people were all unable to ring the Law Bell unless they had special abilities, it was difficult for them to defeat the elite Nobles who had comprehended complete rule powers and could sound the Law Bell.


    Li Futu had obtained the right to enter the Nine State Forum, the Zhuge Family also had a person from the younger generation who had entered. There were also many elite Nobles from the Palace and the Barren State who had passed the qualification rounds.


    As the Nine State Forum approached, the mood in Huatian City had reached a climax. Surrounding Xihua Sacred Mountain, the vast region was full of people and almost all of them were extraordinary figures. Every day, the foot of the Xihua Sacred Mountain was full of people, all admiring the holy land that had integrated with the mountain.


    Finally, the day that countless Eastern State people had been waiting for finally arrived.


    At dawn, at the foot of Xihua Sacred Mountain, the area was full of countless figures. They raised their heads and looked at the sacred land above the 3,000 steps. The light from the sunrise fell on the holy land, making it look even more divine, as though the entire Sacred Mountain was enveloped by holy light.


    At that moment, at the top of the Xihua Sacred Mountain''s 3.000 steps, two rows of figures lined up neatly, heading downwards. They looked like a group of people moving down the steps, creating a grandiose sight. Soon, the two sides of the 3,000 steps had people standing to welcome them. This was a huge visual impact on the crowd.


    At the top of the 3,000 steps, an elderly figure stood there, his gaze looking downwards. He said in a bright voice, "This time''s Nine State Forum is organized on the Eastern State''s Xihua Sacred Mountain. The people from the Eastern State are all the hosts of this time''s Nine State Forum and are inviting all of you into the Sacred Mountain."


    The Eastern State had eight Saints and five holy lands. They were Xihua Sacred Mountain, where the three Saints were, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty that had two Saints, and the other three places were the Floating Mountain, where the Sky Saint was, and the Lapiz Lazuli Holy Temple where the Glass Saint was. A place where a Saint was would be considered a holy land. Even though the Floating Mountain only had two people, the Sky Saint and his disciple Han Yu, it was still considered a holy land because of the presence of a Saint.


    Holy lands became famous because of Saints. Only a faction that had a Saint could be referred to as a holy land. As such, the people from the Nine States all felt that at current, the Barren State''s holy lands were not worthy of the name.


    At that moment, phoenix cries could be heard in the skies as phoenixes flew in from the distance with golden carriages, sprinkling light onto the area. On the carriage in the middle, there was a figure dressed in magnificent golden robes. His eyes looked as though they could pierce the air as he sat there quietly, causing others to feel the urge to pay homage to him. On both sides of the brilliant phoenix carriage, there were two rows of armored warriors standing in line. Although there were not many of them, each one of them gave off an extremely sharp feeling.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Majesty has come personally." Many people were alarmed. The person in the carriage was the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    A Saint had come.


    Is this the reputed Golden Phoenix Army that dominated the entire Eastern State? the crowd was shocked as they thought. The Golden Phoenix Army was the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s royal troops. Only those who were part of the royal bloodline were qualified to enter. Not only did they have to be part of the royal bloodline, but they also had to awaken the Golden Phoenix Life Spirit and have the blood of the Golden Phoenix. The Golden Phoenix was the symbol of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The phoenix carriages flew in the air towards Xihua Sacred Mountain. A Saint had personally come, so he naturally did not need to get off and walk. He had the right to ride into the Sacred Mountain.


    At that moment, a ray of golden light flashed in the sky. The Great Zhou Sacred King looked to the side, and in the next moment, two figures appeared in the air. One of them was Han Yu, the person who had sounded the Law Bell a few days ago, and the other did not have a speck of dust on him. His eyes were deep and boundless.


    The Sky Saint. The crowd was astounded. This was the charm of the Nine State Forum; it could make Saints attend it personally. Who would be able to see the Great Zhou Sacred King or Sky Saint up close usually? However, they had both appeared today.


    At that moment, a brilliant glow lit up in the air again. It was blindingly beautiful, like colored glass. Then, a group of ravishing beauties descended from the sky onto the air above the steps.


    "The Lapiz Lazuli Holy Temple has arrived." Countless gazes turned towards those figures, as though searching for something. Soon, their gazes all landed on the lady at the front. The lady had an ethereal feeling, as though she did not belong to the mortal world. She looked like she was barely past 20. Her skin was youthful and her looks were breathtaking. Her aura was exceptionally divine, causing nobody to dare to even think of defiling her.


    "Glass Saint. I''ve actually met the Glass Saint while I am alive." Many cultivators had crazed expressions as they proclaimed. That was the Glass Saint, a lady with a legendary story, and also the most beautiful woman in the Eastern State. Even when the Great Zhou Sacred King''s gaze met the Glass Saint''s, he did not disguise the desire in his eyes. The Glass Saint was the woman he had wanted the most in his life, ever since he was young.


    The Eastern State''s number one beauty. Her beauty transcended a generation and was unrivaled, even now. As her cultivation level got stronger, not only did she not show signs of aging, but she became even more outstanding.


    "What a beautiful woman," Ye Futian said softly from the crowd. Hearing the exclamations from the crowd, he already knew her identity. She was actually the Glass Saint from the 72 Saints.


    Goddess Qingni already had ravishing looks, but now that she was standing beside her master, the Glass Saint, her looks paled in comparison.


    "That''s a Saint, don''t think too much," Hua Jieyu snickered at Ye Futian in a soft voice.


    "I only have admiration for her, what are you talking about, Jieyu?" Ye Futian''s gaze landed on Hua Jieyu. She blinked and asked, "What are you looking at?"


    "If cultivators with outstanding potential are able to cultivate fast enough, they will be able to maintain their everlasting youthful looks, and their aura will become even more phenomenal. Jieyu, after you become a Saint, you''ll definitely become a ravishing female Saint," Ye Futian said with a smirk. He was excited just thinking about it.


    Hua Jieyu stepped on his foot forcefully. This fellow was already the owner of the Palace, what thoughts were his head filled with?


    Ye Futian had a profound smile. What a beautiful life he had.


    He raised his head and looked into the air. Apart from the Chess Saint, the other Saint representatives from the Eastern State were all here. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty only needed to have one representative. Moreover, the Chess Saint''s nine disciples were all on the Xihua Sacred Mountain at the moment.


    The appearance of the Eastern State''s Saints should be to show the importance of the Nine State Forum. After all, the Eastern State was the host of this time''s Nine State Forum, so it was natural for them to be present while the other states'' Saints would probably not attend the forum.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King, Sky Saint, and Great Zhou Sacred King all entered Xihua Sacred Mountain. Then, the figures on the 3,000 steps all said together, "Can the Summer State''s holy lands step forward and enter the Sacred Mountain." As they finished, multiple figures flew into the air from the crowd. Each of them had extraordinary auras, and after looking at each other, they all headed forward.


    Like the crowd had expected, the Summer State did not have any Saints attending the forum. They only had elite Sages acting as a guide, but they were all figures on the Nine States'' Sage and Saint Ranking.


    The crowd faintly realized that there was a group of people who were at the front and the rest gave way to them. However, the Eastern State''s Saints had all descended at the same time and entered the Sacred Mountain together, unlike the situation now.


    "They''re from the Xia Clan," the crowd''s gazes turned towards the group of people at the front as they muttered. They had exceptional auras.


    There had been rumors in the Nine States that the Xia Clan were the descendants of Emperor Xia, carrying on his bloodline. However, they were only one out of many, but they were respected in the Summer State. Of course, the rumor had never been proven, because neither Emperor Xia nor the Xia Clan had confirmed it. However, from the Xia Clan''s position in the Summer State and the holy lands'' attitudes towards the Summer State, it was likely to be true.


    "Can the Qi State''s holy lands step forward and enter the Sacred Mountain."


    "Can the Cloud State''s holy lands step forward and enter the Sacred Mountain."


    "Can the War State''s holy lands step forward and enter the Sacred Mountain."


    "Can the Feng State''s holy lands step forward and enter the Sacred Mountain."


    "Can the Ocean State''s holy lands step forward and enter the Sacred Mountain."


    "Can the Yu State''s holy lands step forward and enter the Sacred Mountain."


    Voices sounded one after the other, sounding throughout the foot of Xihua Sacred Mountain. How grand it was for the Nine States to have gathered, as experts from the Nine States'' holy lands walked through the air and entered the Sacred Mountain. Those who were not from holy lands did not have the right to enter the Sacred Mountain. Only those from the Nine States'' holy lands had the right to have a seat and watch the Nine State Forum.


    Seeing the experts from all the holy lands entering the Sacred Mountain, the crowd bustled as the event began.


    "Can the Barren State''s holy lands step forward and enter the Sacred Mountain." Another voice sounded and many people whispered secretly among themselves that the rumor had been real. The Xihua Sacred Mountain had invited the Barren State, who had been absent from the Nine State Forum for a very long time, to participate. However, the Barren State was the last to be invited, so they were probably just invited to emphasize the other states'' brilliance.


    At that moment, within the crowd, beside Ye Futian, Sage Wanxiang, Yuan Hong, Zhuge Qingfeng, and many others were unhappy, but they did not say anything. A cold glint flashed in Yu Sheng''s eyes.


    "Jieyu, we''re going ahead first," Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu. She had also decided to participate in the Nine State Forum. Although there was a Saint within her body guiding her now, she still wanted to gather more experiences for herself.


    "Yu Sheng, Wuchen, Seventh Brother, Yuan Zhan, Xu Que. Do your best," Ye Futian looked at the people preparing for the Nine State Forum and said to them. They all nodded, then flew into the air towards Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Many people''s gazes landed on Ye Futian''s group. Were these people from the Barren State?

 755 Disrespected

    There were more and more guests arriving at the Sacred Mountain from sacred grounds of all of the nine states, yet the elder remained standing at the top of the 3,000 steps.


    He looked down and said, "The ones who will participate in the Nine State Forum shall enter the Sacred Mountain. All from the Eastern State who currently possess the right to participate in the Nine State Forum shall enter with the Nine State Forum Token in their hand."


    One figure after another walked out as soon as the elder finished his announcement; all of them were participants of the forum from Eastern State. It was only natural for the number of participants from the Eastern State to be the most numerous, as the forum was held in the Eastern State. There were some from the other eight states who were reluctant to cross the Endless Regions to get there. The Eastern State was the hosting state and closest to those who were currently entering the mountain, as such, there were simply too many of the proud sons and daughters from Eastern State participating in the event.


    "Father, I''ll be going up the mountain."


    "Go. I''ll be watching from outside the Sacred Mountain later. I look forward to your performance."


    "Teacher, I''ll be off."


    Sounds were heard from the crowd as many exceptional people stepped forth.


    "Village chief, I''m going up." There was one young girl who seemed to be 15 or 16 years of age and very eye-catching. She was the mysterious girl, Yaya, who sounded the bell that day. Many were able to recognize her as they saw her walking up the stairs. It was apparent that she was really going to participate in the forum, and many wonder how she trained.


    The figures seen walking up the steps in droves all had their tokens in hand. Servant girls lined up beside the steps, escorting them into the Sacred Mountain. Participants from Summer State, Qi State, Cloud State, and others all walked on the steps to enter the Sacred Mountain in order.


    The ones from the Barren State were the last to walk. Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and the others stepped onto the steps only once everyone else went up. The rather scattered-looking group of people, numbering a little over 30, looked rather dismal.


    The ones who earned the right to participate in the forum numbered in hundreds, while there were 3,000 who entered through the Sky Stairwell Battle, which meant that out of the total number of over 3,000 participants in the Nine State Forum, only about 30 came from the Barren State. The number truly seemed pitiful in comparison.


    However, it had been many years since the last time the Barren State participated in the Nine State Forum. Other than the handful of elites who gathered around Ye Futian, there were probably few who came all the way from the Barren State. Everyone felt at ease at that thought, as the Barren State had only participated out of respect for Xihua Sacred Mountain''s invitation. They were actually there as little more than decorations and tokens for the event.


    The elder looked at those below him after the ones from the Barren State entered the Sacred Mountain, then said, "Xihua Sacred Mountain is holding the Nine State Forum today and has prepared grandstand areas outside the stage for the event. All are welcomed to watch the event from there. However, as saints are present today and the event is a gathering of representatives of sacred grounds from all nine states, any who wish to watch the event will be required to observe the rules and refrain from wrecking havoc in any form, and are forbidden to venture outside the grandstand area and take to the air. Anyone who finds the terms acceptable shall enter the Sacred Mountain and watch the event."


    ��


    In another corner, Ye Futian walked all the way through the mountain and soon arrived at the place where the forum was held. It was an enormous forum stage which was built at the hillside. The east corner was the noblest place and had the best view for people from all over sacred grounds of all nine states to watch the event. The three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain were seen there, while Liu Zong and other students of Xihua Sacred Mountain stood behind the saints. People from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, as well as the Sky Saint and Han Yu, all took their spots near that eastern corner of the three saints, standing in the same line. People from other states all had their own independent areas, which were extremely wide.


    The ones from Summer State were assigned to the eastern corner, which made them stand on the same line as the host of the event, the people of the Eastern State.


    The southern side of the grandstands of the forum state was taken by people of the sacred grounds from the three major states: Qi State, Cloud State, and War State. The northern corner was also divided into three areas, occupied by people from sacred grounds of Feng State, Ocean State, and Yu State.


    Ye Futian and the ones from the Barren State were assigned to the west side of the forum stage. As the Barren State had only one sacred ground participating, there was then only one force in that area��the one from the Barren State, which made them stand out very much.


    Ye Futian glanced at the mighty ones of sacred grounds in other corners. Throughout the continent of the nine states and out of the four corners of east, south, west, and north, the east was thought to be the noblest; the south and north considered the next after the east; while the west was taken to be the most mediocre, which was considered a place for servants. Such notions would have hardly mattered if the areas were not divided deliberately in such a manner. However, Xihua Sacred Mountain had divided the areas as such. The Eastern State and Summer State had to be the noblest, which was normal given that Summer State had always reigned supreme among all nine states.


    The south and the north were facing each other, which meant that all the other six states had nothing to say. The Barren State, however, was assigned to the west, as if they were little more than redundant accessories. Furthermore, at the rear of the west corner was an even greater grandstand area. The rest of the people of Eastern State who went to watch the event were all assigned there, that place right behind the place assigned to the Barren State.


    Barren State was considered to be of the same level as people of Eastern State not from the sacred grounds. It was probable that Xihua Sacred Mountain had never actually prepared a place for the Barren State, as they were only invited last minute.


    Ye Futian, of course, felt some dissatisfaction, but he came to understand where they stood from the happenings in Chess Saint Villa, and he had gradually gotten used to it. He had thus, decided not to give it much thought, as it was probably very difficult for them to get ample respect from others before the Barren State would truly become a force to be reckoned with.


    The Barren State had no saints. Other than the representatives of the hosting Eastern State, Ye Futian was probably the only one throughout all nine states who came to watch the event as a Palace Lord of a sacred ground, and it was expected for him to be assigned to the worst possible corner.


    Sage Wanxiang, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others were all, without a doubt, upset, but like Ye Futian, they knew deep down how things actually were, and they had no right to actually voice their dissatisfaction. If Ye Futian had not been here, there would have had nothing to say even if the Barren State was assigned to be at the bottom. They knew well that the Barren State was the weakest, after all.


    However, things were different with Ye Futian around. He was the Palace Lord of a sacred ground in the Barren State, which meant that he should have been seen at the same level as saints of other sacred grounds, and had the right to be assigned to the noblest seat at the east. But they knew that ''same level'' was meaningless, as there was simply no way for a sage to be of the same level as a saint. Still, Ye Futian was still a Palace Lord of a sacred ground, and with the rest of them around, they should have at least been assigned to the same seats as that of the other states. The eventual outcome, however, had them assigned the worst corner, which spoke volumes of how insignificant they were in the eyes of other states.


    They naturally understood these differences deep down, but it was still impossible for them to not actually harbor any dissatisfaction about how things. It was still irksome to be disrespected, after all.


    Ye Futian did not think much about it. He came to understand how things worked back when the Chess Saint chose Liu Zong in the Chess Saint Villa. In the eyes of saints of the Eastern State, he, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, could not even have been compared to heirs of sacred grounds, let alone at the same level as lords of other sacred grounds. As such, there was simply nothing surprising as to how things were arranged that day. It was all the same with the three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    They needed to get used to all that.


    Most importantly, it was now the Nine State Forum.


    Ye Futian gazed forward. There was a wide area at the edge of the very vast forum stage, which too was being divided into nine areas and carved with the names of all nine state, which went in the order of Summer, Qi, Cloud�� Barren. The order which the nine areas were arranged corresponded to the statuses of sacred grounds throughout all states.


    At that very moment, the mighty ones from the Eastern State were being escorted forth, arriving at that area assigned to the Eastern State at the edge of the forum stage.


    Mighty ones who were participating in the Nine State Forum then arrived one after another. The order they entered was the same as how the ones from sacred grounds entered before. The participants of the forum also entered in order, and they entered from the corner the spectators of their states were assigned to.


    The ones from the Eastern and Summer States emerged from the east. The ones from Barren State entered last and from the west. Due to the small number appearing below Ye Futian and how they took one entire corner for themselves, they looked lonesome and dismal.


    Countless people were escorted to the grandstands behind Ye Futian, filling that place up. While Ye Futian was somewhat in front of where those people were, he felt as if he was being surrounded by the spectators behind him, becoming part of the crowd. It was a far cry from the other eight states, which actually took one noble area and sat on high platforms, looking regal and imposing.


    Things were getting very rowdy behind them. While the spectators all observed the rules closely, with such a massive number of people being admitted to such a wide area, even a tiny bit of sound made by one person would have been able to drown the place in an uproar due to the massive number of people. However, due to the forum stage being so enormous, those from other corners would have hardly been affected, with only Ye Futian and his peoples'' ears ringing from the noise. Sage Wanxiang and the others looked even more irked as a result. They came to think more and more that they were in an awkward situation.


    Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and the others stood below. They were all able to see what was happening just by lifting their heads. They looked at the people of the other states. All of those from sacred grounds looked regal, with the exception of those from the Barren State. The Barren State was the only state that looked incredibly peculiar and awkward.


    "They seem to be looking down on us," Xu Que said lazily. He squinted his eyes into a line and looked rather displeased. He was able to tolerate the time when they entered the mountain, but the scene before him made him struggle to hide his displeasure.


    Coldness was seen in Hua Jieyu''s eyes as she lifted her head to look at Ye Futian, yet Ye Futian simply smiled beamingly at her, as if he had no regard about all that. She pouted a bit at Ye Futian, showing her displeasure.


    Yu Sheng had always been rather short-fused. Probably due to the fact that he was practicing demonic arts, he always had a quick temper. Ye Futian was still a leader of the Barren State. It was bad enough that they were being assigned last. The scene unfolding before them made him even more irked than him. He began walking forward, leaving the area assigned to the Barren State, heading for the center of the forum stage. The spot faced Xihua Sacred Mountain of the Eastern State at the east corner.


    "Back off." At the east corner, there were several elders who were standing at the edge, managing the event. The saint lord of Xihua Sacred Mountain had yet to announce the beginning of the Nine State Forum and Yu Sheng had already walked out. Does he know anything about manners?


    "Yu Sheng, get back here." Ye Futian frowned, looking at Yu Sheng''s antics. What is this guy up to now? This is the Nine State Forum and people of sacred grounds of all the nine states are here. There is simply no meaning to offending Xihua Sacred Mountain over something so trivial.


    Ye Futian knew very well that respect had to be earned through showing capability and that the Barren State, as they were, lacked such capabilities.


    Yu Sheng turned around and glanced at Ye Futian. He did not return as told. He would have been fine if he was the one getting insulted. The Nine State Forum would have been the first time Ye Futian would have appeared on the stage of the nine states as a leader of the Barren State. Yu Sheng was compelled to retrieve all the face Ye Futian deserved but lost.


    "Yu Sheng, student of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, greets all elders and seniors from sacred grounds," Yu Sheng said with a powerful voice. Ye Futian took one look at Yu Sheng and stopped worrying somewhat. It seemed that Yu Sheng had changed a bit after spending so much time with him. He would no longer do something without any regard for consequences, and he knew what he stood for!

 756 Familiar Techniques

    Countless eyes fell onto Yu Sheng in an instant.


    The forum stage was incredibly enormous. It was naturally eye-catching as Yu Sheng was the only one out of all nine groups to walk out. Even those from the sacred grounds of the nine states went to look at him.


    The saints from Xihua Sacred Mountain of Eastern State also looked at Yu Sheng. One of them said, "What is the matter?"


    "The Barren State was invited to participate in the Nine State Forum and the Palace Lord of our sacred ground himself has attended the event personally as to show his respect. As Xihua Sacred Mountain had extended an invitation to the Barren State, it should be natural to afford the Barren State a certain measure of respect. The corner at the west was reserved for servants. I feel ashamed as a student of the Holy Zhi Palace to see our Palace Lord treated in such a way. If all the elders and seniors present feel that the Barren State is weak enough to be beneath being treated as equals, I am willing to withdraw from the event." Yu Sheng spoke eloquently, and his voice reached to all areas where the event was held. He held the Nine State Forum Token before him with both his hands extended, as to demonstrate that he meant what he said.


    The grandstands became eerily quiet. Yu Sheng''s voice was neither aloof nor subservient. The insult to the Holy Zhi Palace was akin to one directed at him as a student of the sacred ground, and he intended to withdraw from the Nine State Forum. No one expected to see such a spectacular scene right before the Nine State Forum even began.


    Yu Sheng''s words were proper and courteous, said without explicit disrespect nor to chastise Xihua Sacred Mountain. It was an undeniable fact that the Barren State was weak. The west corner was reserved for servants and it was a fact that the Holy Zhi Palace was disrespected. He had no right to ask for anything, but no one was able to say anything about him feeling insulted and wanting to quit the event.


    There were even some elders and seniors who found his actions impressive. That stout young man has an exceptional bearing and some guts indeed.


    There was an old saying that went, "when a monarch is put to shame, the ministers die for it." While the relationship between him and the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace was not that between a monarch and a minister, he was nonetheless a student of the Holy Zhi Palace. His actions, while rather feeble and futile, were a show of admirable integrity.


    The people from the Holy Zhi Palace and Ye Futian all went to look at Yu Sheng. At that moment, Ye Futian felt that he did not know Yu Sheng well enough. He had been accustomed to having Yu Sheng, who was by his side all the time, around, yet the Yu Sheng he saw before him was not the same Yu Sheng. He sat and watched everything unfolding in silence, no longer asking Yu Sheng to back away. Yu Sheng was probably right. Despite the fact that the Barren State was weak, they should have made their stance known regardless.


    The people from the sacred grounds looked in the direction of Xihua Sacred Mountain, wanting to see how they, as the host, would deal with that matter at hand.


    While Yu Sheng was only one of the students who participated in the Nine State Forum and was entirely negligible, so much so that it would not have mattered if he quit the event, something like that had happened right at the beginning of the Nine State Forum. It would have been entirely proper, principally-speaking, if they were to let Yu Sheng quit the event. However, the people of the other states would have then doubted Xihua Sacred Mountain''s competence, losing their bearing before the event even started.


    Yu Sheng''s action of walking out and speaking his mind was troubling for Xihua Sacred Mountain. Such words were not something seniors, elders, or the Palace Lord himself could have said, as that would have been akin to inviting humiliation. Yet, there was hardly anything wrong for a student of the Holy Zhi Palace to come out and say such words.


    The students of Xihua Sacred Mountain looked at Yu Sheng with rather malicious eyes. The three saints looked at Yu Sheng as well. The saint who was sitting at the left was somewhat younger, sporting a light complexion and a bearing like none other. His clothes were free from any dirt and dust. When he went to look at Yu Sheng, an extremely heavy pressure fell onto Yu Sheng. He was the youngest of the saints and had demonstrated himself as the most outstanding genius in all of the Eastern State in the previous Battle of Saints. He had now proven his worth as a saint and was known as the Rain Saint.


    "The Barren State has been absent in the Nine State Forum for many years. As such, Xihua Sacred Mountain had not taken Barren State''s attendance into consideration during the preparation stages for holding the event. We later heard that the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State visited the Eastern State, and as such, I had someone extend an invitation to the Palace Lord, as to make the event of Nine State Forum whole again, per its namesake.


    "The forum stage was one that had been planned before that and the seats had already been assigned. We added a corner in the west hastily after having to take the Barren State''s attendance into consideration. But of course, your words claiming that Xihua Sacred Mountain has not afforded ample respect to the sacred ground of the Barren State are something that I cannot deny."


    The Rain Saint did not stop. He added, "There has not been a saint emerge from the Barren State for many years, and as such, the Barren State had not been invited to attend the Nine State Forum for many years. Would you consider this a gesture of respect to the Barren State instead? We at Xihua Sacred Mountain invited the Barren State to participate in the event after many years. As a student of the sacred ground of the Barren State, if you intend to earn respect for the sacred ground of the Barren State, you should let everyone from all other states see for themselves if the sacred ground of the Barren State has what it takes to earn such respect."


    "Bravo." many looked at the Rain Saint. The air of pride around the proud genius, who had earned the admiration of countless in the Eastern State and was titled as a saint, washed all over them. Furthermore, he returned the initiative to the hands of the hosts in the case, turning the tables of the argument with words alone.


    He admitted freely to indeed not having afforded Barren State ample respect. However, it was not just something that Xihua Sacred Mountain had been doing. For the many years the Nine State Forum had been held, there was hardly ever any respect for the Barren State.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain retaliated with one such forceful attitude.


    Yu Sheng stared at the saint and wanted to say something before hearing Ye Futian say behind him, "You are right indeed, senior."


    Yu Sheng turned around and saw Ye Futian on the grandstand, who then continued, "There hasn''t been a saint in the Barren State for many years. As such, the Barren State has no right to demand respect. I''m the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace and I know where we stand. If it hadn''t been for Xihua Sacred Mountain''s invitation, we of the Holy Zhi Palace wouldn''t have attended the Nine State Forum."


    Many went to look at Ye Futian. Is the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace someone so spineless?


    The students of Xihua Sacred Mountain were snickering coldly at the forum stage. People of the Barren State doubting Xihua Sacred Mountain? You people have really outdone yourselves.


    The Rain Saint, however, looked at Ye Futian calmly. He had heard that the newly appointed Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace had fought for the right to the lineage of the Chess Saint with Liu Zong, a student of Xihua Sacred Mountain. They both broke the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, and Liu Zong was the Chess Saint''s eventual choice. Regardless, being able to accomplish what Liu Zong had done was in itself, something to be proud of on the young Palace Lord''s part.


    "Not only do we not have a saint among us in the Barren State, but our students of later generations also do not have guidance from saints to further their training. As such, few of us came and it was quite a shame. That was also the main objective behind my participation in the Nine State Forum, so as to allow the younger generations of the Barren State to see for themselves how capable those from other states are," Ye Futian yapped away with an incredibly humble attitude, talking as if those from the Barren State was truly cheaper than dirt. Even those around Ye Futian found his actions startling.


    That really doesn''t quite seem like Ye Futian.


    Kong Yao, Qin Zhong, and the others from Zhisheng Cliffs stared at Ye Futian as well. They were acquainted with Ye Futian and they all knew that he was anything but humble back in the Barren State. He behaved nothing like that when he fought Qin Zhong and brought people into the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "To be conscious of shame is to be close to fortitude. It''s a good thing that you understand that," the saint sitting in the middle of the three said. The person who spoke was none other than the Head Saint of Xihua Sacred Mountain��Saint Xihua.


    "To be conscious of shame is near to fortitude. Wise words to take to heart, elder." Ye Futian nodded and turned his eyes at Yu Sheng, saying, "Yu Sheng, I brought you here to participate in the Nine State Forum held at Xihua Sacred Mountain to have you open your eyes to the world. There are so many legendary figures here in Xihua Sacred Mountain who are of supreme talents, let alone those from other states. If you see any of them, you should ask them for guidance and reflect on yourself humbly instead of behaving in such an insolent manner."


    ��


    Yu Sheng was completely dumbfounded. His bronze, bell-like eyes blinked as he looked at Ye Futian. Just why do those words sound so fake and pretentious?


    Huang Jiuge, who was sitting right behind Ye Futian, was thoroughly exasperated, looking at Ye Futian before him, feeling rather speechless.


    Yu Sheng stood up and made his dissatisfaction known when Xihua Sacred Mountain went disrespecting the sacred ground of the Barren State. Ye Futian went in the opposite direction instead. The others went about disrespecting them and Ye Futian went agreeing with the other party instead, talking as if their side was truly cheaper than dirt, then went on to make Xihua Sacred Mountain holy and mighty.


    This is just��indescribably shameless! Huang Jiuge naturally knew what Ye Futian was trying to pull, yet people from the other states were unable to fathom all that. The spectators looked at Ye Futian, feeling rather puzzled, thinking that the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State did know where they stood and knew how to make themselves look weak. While such actions seemed rather spineless, they did know how to keep their thoughts to themselves.


    The Barren State, as they were now, truly had no right to argue with Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "Indeed," Yu Sheng said. The others then turned their eyes to Yu Sheng. So you''re giving up now?


    "What are you still standing there for?" Ye Futian asked. Yu Sheng glared at Ye Futian with rather irksome eyes, but he did as he was told. He knew from Ye Futian''s words what the best course of action for him to prove himself, to reclaim the lost respect and dignity for Ye Futian, and for the Barren State as a whole was.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes to the east corner where the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain were after Yu Sheng returned, saying, "The insolence demonstrated by the student of the Holy Zhi Palace is my fault as the Palace Lord. The elders here have taught us that if we are to gain respect, we need to prove ourselves to all from the other states if we deserve such respect. Few truer words have been said. If one does not have the power to win such respect, one does not have the right to stand out and make demands. As such, I have decided that if no one from the Barren State is capable of making it to the top ten of the Nine State Forum, the Holy Zhi Palace will present a ritual implement of the saints to one from Xihua Sacred Mountain with the highest rank in the Nine State Forum. This will be my apology for the insolence demonstrated today, as to make the incident a lesson to myself as well as to encourage students of the Barren State to work harder in their training."


    Everyone was dumbfounded hearing those words. Isn''t the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State the one to have the least number of holy items? Yet this guy is offering to give one out as an apology to the one from Xihua Sacred Mountain with the highest rank in the Nine State Forum this time?


    As for the top ten, nobody even considered the possibility. The event is called Nine State Forum, yet just how many sacred grounds are there from all over the nine states? The ones from Barren State bagging a place in the top ten? That is utterly ridiculous.


    Or rather, as Ye Futian put it himself, he is willing to pay such a price to remember the insult he suffered today? So as to encourage the students of the Barren State to move forward?


    The saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain looked at Ye Futian. The young man was actually humble enough to present a holy item as a token of his apology, and that gesture made them feel rather awkward about the whole thing. They did not expect that the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State had such an impressive bearing after all.


    "In that case, if there are any students from the Barren State who are able to make it to the top ten, Xihua Sacred Mountain will present a holy item as a gesture of encouragement as well as a token of apology to where we have placed the Barren State," Saint Xihua said calmly. There was no way for them of Xihua Sacred Mountain to lose to the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State in any way. Furthermore, he saw the words he had spoken as impossible to be true, meaning that Ye Futian was destined to present a holy item to them. In that case, why not demonstrate how generous Xihua Sacred Mountain can be?


    "I do not deserve such a generous token of goodwill and an apology from saints. I hope you will not rescind those words, elder," Ye Futian said, remaining humble throughout.


    "It''s fine. If the Barren State is indeed able to make it to the top ten, then you would have proven yourself to be deserving of such a gesture of respect," Saint Xihua said plainly.


    "In that case, you have my thanks, elder." Ye Futian lowered his head. Beaming smiles were seen from his eyes!


    In that case, thank you very, very much indeed!

 757 Nine State Forum

    A small incident like that dissolved to nothing. While they were others who jabbed sarcastically at the Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State not knowing where they stood, neither Xihua Sacred Mountain nor the Holy Zhi Palace actually behaved disrespectfully in that incident. However, the Holy Zhi Palace was probably doomed to give one holy item away, which would have been a windfall for one of the geniuses from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Sage Wanxiang, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others from the Holy Zhi Palace looked at Ye Futian and felt rather speechless. However, the incident was nonetheless handled well. If the students of the Barren State were to perform admirably in the event, it would have been earned them respect.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian did not directly challenge Xihua Sacred Mountain to a gamble. Yu Sheng might be able to make it to the top ten, with holy items as bets. He instead went to politely claim that if Yu Sheng was unable to make it to the top ten, he was willing to offer a holy item for the highest ranked student of Xihua Sacred Mountain. As such, Xihua Sacred Mountain would have been compelled to do something in return, as they were dealing with the Barren State, which was the weakest in the first place.


    Ye Futian even politely declined Xihua Sacred Mountain''s generosity of the saints when Saint Xihua made his stance. Ye Futian had been as humble and as polite as he could have possibly been. If Xihua Sacred Mountain ended up actually losing a holy item, no one would have been able to blame Ye Futian for anything.


    It was a move well played indeed.


    Saint Xihua then turned his eyes to the crowd. The boundless space went gradually quiet in an instant. Everyone was able to feel plain might exuding from Saint Xihua, as if he was able to cover the entire space with one look alone. Even the grandstands behind Ye Futian, where noise was endless, went completely silent.


    Everyone turned their eyes in the same direction��the corner where the Eastern State was assigned; where the three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain was.


    The Nine State Forum finally began.


    "The Nine State Forum of this year is hosted by Xihua Sacred Mountain. Almost every single sacred ground from all over the nine states has gathered here today. Even the Sky Saint, who does not have a successor, attended this event. As the lord of Xihua Sacred Mountain, I''m truly honored." Saint Xihua continued with a brimming voice, "All nine states hailed from Emperor Xia''s Orthodoxy. The Nine State Forum has been held for many years, implementing the will of Emperor Xia. There have been many legendary figures emerge from each generation past, and I believe there will still be countless remarkable people who will emerge this time.


    "As the host for this year''s event, Xihua Sacred Mountain intends to reward those who perform admirably in the Nine State Forum. While the rewards might be a small gesture, they are a form of encouragement.


    Everyone listened to the speech quietly, and what was said was a tradition that had been executed in every Nine State Forum held. Many wondered what Xihua Sacred Mountain had prepared as a reward this time.


    Saint Xihua extended his hand, and a dazzling ax appeared. The air around them changed as soon as Saint Xihua took the ax in his hand. Streaks of golden lightning gathered on the battleax, which went on to devour the powers of its surroundings in a frenzy. The air emanating from the weapon seemed intent on cleaving the space before it apart.


    "A holy item."


    "The Battleaxe of Judgment," The eyes of those who had heard of the holy item were glittering.


    "This holy item is something that belonged to the previous Head Saint of Xihua Sacred Mountain. It was passed down through the generations. Now, I present this item as a reward to the champion of the Nine State Forum. The one who ranks number one in the Nine State Forum will take the holy item away," Saint Xihua said. The eyes of many geniuses from all over the nine states glittered. It would have been a very beautiful thing to be able to bag that holy item, as it would become a personal possession of whoever ended up taking it away, not having to present it to the sacred ground they belonged to.


    Ye Futian lifted his head and eyed the Battleaxe of Judgment. The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State was probably the place with the least amount of holy items out of all sacred grounds, and any item they had with them was to be used for the future Battle of Saints.


    Saint Xihua put the Battleaxe of Judgment away and took out a catalog, waving it in the air. Images glittered and flew out of the catalog in dazzling lights, with incredibly terrible air emanating from them.


    "This is the Catalogue of Saints." Saint Xihua said, "This item has been passed down through the generations of Xihua Sacred Mountain for many years, and it was a treasured piece for Xihua Sacred Mountain''s students for generations, for it was used to develop comprehension of how the saints trained. Experiences and knowledge of the training of many saints from Xihua Sacred Mountain are housed within. This piece will be gifted to the one who ranks second in the Nine State Forum."


    The eyes of many top-notch sages present glittered with sharp intent. That treasured piece would have helped them a lot in furthering their training.


    Saint Xihua then put the catalog away and took out a decorated box. Shimmering lights danced in the air the very instant it was opened, with a fragrance washing all over the place. It was just a pill, yet greed started to well up inside many of those who witnessed it. It was as if everyone wanted another whiff of the pill''s fragrance.


    "The Holy Pill, to be gifted to the one who ranks third in Nine State Forum." Saint Xihua closed the box and many looked rather dejected, but then quickly shuddered at the fact that they had been smelling the pill greedily, a testament to how terrifying the Holy Pill was.


    Saint Xihua went on to announce the prizes to be given to the ones ranked in the rest of the top ten places. All of the items had one thing or another to do with saints, which meant that they were all holy items. Even though some might not have actually had saint-level powers, they were items used by saints before, or they had deep connections with saints. There were many who lamented their lack of power, which robbed them of their right to even participate in the event itself.


    Saint Xihua was not done. He went on to announce, "Other than that, for those who rank in the top ten in the Nine State Forum, should they be willing to become a student of Xihua Sacred Mountain, they will be taught by the three of us. Those who ranked within the top 100 will also be welcomed to study under Xihua Sacred Mountain, with the three of us to provide frequent guidance."


    Everyone had, of course, understood that many of those who participated in the event came from sacred grounds of other states, which meant that they would not have wanted to study under Xihua Sacred Mountain. Those words were probably meant for some of the geniuses from Eastern State who came to participate in the Nine State Forum. After all, participants from the Eastern State were still the most numerous, and there would have been some exceptionally powerful ones among them.


    "Without further ado, we will hand the stage to the young geniuses from all of the nine states." Saint Xihua smiled and looked at the people from other states. "The rules of the Nine State Forum remain as they have always been, with one to come out from each of the nine states in each round. This goes on until there are but a hundred left on the forum stage. How about that?"


    "Fine."


    "No problem."


    The ones from other sacred grounds of the nine states nodded. That was how things had gone on in all of the past Nine State Forums. One from each of the nine states were to come forward, which, in principle, made the battle of each round fought between nine people. In actual fact, however, with the Barren State absent, every battle had been one fought between eight participants.


    The battles this time would be restored to ones fought between nine participants. However, as there were only over 30 participants from the Barren State, it was feared that Barren State would not last for long before running out of participants. Everyone would be disqualified early. Even getting into the top 100 would have been incredibly difficult for the Barren State, let alone getting a place in the top ten. Due to being the smallest, they would have encountered geniuses from all over the nine states. They would have the opportunities to fight people from all sacred grounds.


    Saint Xihua nodded. "Well then. The rules of the event are the same as every past Nine State Forum. Every battle will have one participant from each of the nine states, with the final victor remaining while the other eight are disqualified. The rounds will continue, and every single participant will be required to fight. As the sacred ground of the Barren State was in the opinion that they deserved to be respected as well, we will make no exceptions for them even though they have the smallest number of participants. Every participant shall be treated fairly, with the last one remaining in every round or becoming one of the top ten."


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded and went to look at Yu Sheng and the others below.


    The pressure was indeed huge.


    The Eastern State had the most participants, and many were only required to fight one battle. Such was the home advantage of the hosting state. The Barren State, on the other hand, all were required to fight round after round before making it to the top 100. However, there was little to lament over. The qualification rounds of the Nine State Forum had always been executed fairly. It was the Barren State''s fault for fielding so few participants in the first place.


    The people of all nine states agreed to the rule in silence.


    "Let the rounds begin," Saint Xihua said plainly. Several elders walked onto the forum stage to the edges right afterward, saying, "The Nine State Forum does not allow for participants to fight using external implements. Those who violate the rule will be severely punished. The battle stops when one party loses fighting capacity or yields. If both sides choose to fight to the death, the consequences will be borne by the participants, and the nine states shall not pursue such matters further.


    "Furthermore, as this year''s Nine State Forum is held in the Eastern State, the hosting state shall be given priority in selecting their combatants. The selection shall be executed in the following order: The Eastern State, Summer State, Qi State, Cloud State, War State, Feng State, Ocean State, Yu State and finally, the Barren State." The elder continued, "The rounds shall begin."


    The eyes of many were on the forum stage at that very moment.


    The Nine State Forum had officially begun.


    The air in the vast space seemed to have changed. The nonchalant, relaxed feeling was no longer around. The air had gone thick with solemnity instead. With geniuses from all nine states gathered, many wondered which state would have had the most number of participants making it to the top 100. And then, there were speculations about who would be able to make it to the top ten.


    And finally, who would reign supreme in all of the nine states?


    Many were excited at the event.


    The forum stage was basked in mild sunlight as a breeze blew by. A figure was seen walking out from the side of the Eastern State. That figure was one from Xihua Sacred Mountain. As the host of the event and the very first battle to be fought in Eastern State, the one who emerged first had to be one from the Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "That''s Xu Shi." Many from the grandstands gasped in surprise.


    Xu Shi, from the Xihua Sacred Mountain of Eastern State, was to fight the battle.


    Xu Shi''s powers ranked at the forefront when compared with those from Xihua Sacred Mountain participating in the forum. As such, he was made to fight the first battle, and it was apparent that Xihua Sacred Mountain was hoping to take the very first round.


    Summer State was next.


    "One from the Xia clan." A youth was seen walking onto the stage, making many who were watching shudder. It seemed that the Summer State had the same idea.


    Mighty ones from Qi State, Cloud State, Battle State emerged and walked to the middle of the forum stage. Every single participant who emerged made the hearts of spectators shudder somewhat.


    The one who walked out from Qi State hailed from the Qi clan. The history of the Qi clan was similar to that of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty of the Eastern State. Qi State had been ruled by the Qi clan before, and Qi state was once known as the Qi Kingdom and had established the Jixia Holy Palace, recruiting capable people from all over the world.


    Currently, the Jixia Holy Palace was at a level of power, comparable to that of the Qi clan, and both were sacred grounds for training in Qi State. Regardless, the Qi clan had incredible depth.


    Each of the participants of the eight states who walked out was exceptional. It seemed that the upcoming battle would be incredibly intense. A battle that was fought between titans.


    Such was the stage of the Nine State Forum, and many already felt their blood boiling in anticipation.


    "Who will be the first one in the Barren State to fight?" The eyes of many turned in the direction of the Barren State, who was the last to select their participants. A figure was seen walking out of the handful.


    It was someone already very familiar, for it was none other than that stout youth who went questioning Xihua Sacred Mountain alone.


    Many looked amused at the moment, as they would be able to see how powerful he actually was in the very first battle. That person might actually be disqualified in the very first battle for having to fight such an incredible group. As such, there was probably nothing left for the Barren State in that round.


    Yu Sheng, the first from Barren State, to join the fight!

 758 First Battle, the Might of One Punch

    The nine mighty ones of the nine states stood in the battlefield area on the forum stage. Countless eyes from the grandstands, be it from those from the sacred grounds or common people, all turned to the direction of the stage center.


    The first battle was the start of the Nine State Forum and all nine states saw it to be a very important battle. All who were standing there had sounded the Law Bell before without any exception. All of them were nobles at the pinnacle of their planes who had developed matured rules, and the battle would be a clash of titans.


    "The Eastern State. Student of Xihua Sacred Mountain, Xu Shi. Pleased to meet you all," Xu Shi of Xihua Sacred Mountain said.


    "Summer State. Xia Li of Xia clan, pleased to meet you all," the young proud son of Qi clan said.


    "Qi State. Qi Ao of Qi clan, pleased to meet you all."


    "Cloud State. Su He of Li Palace, pleased to meet you all."


    "War State. Mo Gong of Holy Temple of Ten Corners, pleased to meet you all."


    "Feng State. Yan Zhan of Fengdu House, pleased to meet you all."


    "Ocean State. Lan Yu of Celestial Cliffs, pleased to meet you all."


    "Yu State. Zhan Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs, pleased to meet you all."


    "Barren State. Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace,"


    With the words spoken by Yu Sheng marking the conclusion, all nine mighty ones were done announcing their names and backgrounds, and as predicted by everyone present, all hailed from the top sacred ground to be found in the respective state.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at the crowd and felt his mind stirring. He had gone searching for materials regarding the nine states, and each one announced earlier were from forces that stood at the very top of the hierarchy in their respective states. They were all gathered on one stage. Although Yu Sheng was undoubtedly powerful, he probably would face immense pressure at the final battle. As for the others, Ye Futian had no certainty if they were able to get good rankings themselves.


    "Zhisheng Cliffs, Zhan Yao." Ye Futian eyed that young man from Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State and he found him to resemble Zhan Xiao somewhat. At that moment, Zhan Yao turned his eyes to look at Ye Futian with an incredibly cold expression. His elder brother, one of the nine Sons of Zhisheng Cliffs, ended up being killed in the Barren State. It was a vengeance that Zhisheng Cliffs was unable to do anything about, due to Emperor Xia''s decree. On that very day, Zhan Yao vowed to kill Yu Sheng on the very stage of the Nine State Forum.


    It was entirely compliant with the rules of Nine State Forum to kill one''s opponent outright before they lost combat capacity or yield. However, it needed to be a one-shot kill that could only be pulled with extreme advantage. There would be no second chance to pull anything like that on the stage. Furthermore, many of those who participated in the Nine State Forum hailed from sacred grounds, which meant that they would not go too far in attacking their opponents. However, there was no way Zhan Yao would have pulled punches against people from the Barren State.


    It was only natural for Yu Sheng to feel the murderous intent from Zhan Yao. Yu Sheng had fought Zhan Xiao at Taihang Mountain back then, and there was no way he would not have recognized Zhan Xiao''s younger brother, who was standing right before him.


    At the side of the grandstands where Zhisheng Cliffs was, Kong Yao looked down with a cold expression and said in a low voice, "Zhan Yao will reap some interest for his brother in this battle.


    "Zhan Yao''s talent is no weaker than that of his brother. I wonder if he will be able to emerge as the number one of this battle," Qin Zhong, who was beside Kong Yao, said. Only the number one among all nine was allowed to remain. All the other eight were to be eliminated. Even if a clash of titans were to happen, it would have changed nothing. If one were to be eliminated early, one only had their luck or one''s lack of strength, to blame.


    The rules were incredibly cruel, as no one knew who their opponent would have been and how strong they actually were.


    The air of different rules permeated the nine corners on the forum stage. Violent gales erupted on the stage all of a sudden. Worldly Spiritual Qi ran amok and formed a terrible whirlpool. However, all nine participants remained standing where they were without budging.


    At the moment, Xu Shi lifted his head a bit and eyed Yu Sheng, who was standing opposite him, and said "You said that you intended to withdraw from the Nine State Forum. You remain standing on the stage now, but I still feel compelled to grant your wish. As such, you will be the first one to be eliminated in the Nine State Forum."


    The Nine State Forum this year was hosted by Xihua Sacred Mountain, yet Yu Sheng went out to cause trouble before Saint Xihua even announced for the forum to begin. As the host, the saints were required to keep their composure while dealing with one of the younger generations. However, Xu Shi was a student of Xihua Sacred Mountain, and they were then standing on the stage of the battle of the Nine State Forum. As such, there was no need for him to hold back and there was no need for him to talk about keeping composure. He would be the one to eliminate Yu Sheng from that round, fair and square.


    Be it Yu Sheng or the Barren State, doubting Xihua Sacred Mountain and wanting to prove their pride through demonstrating one''s power, eh? I''ll let everyone from the Barren State know with my power, what ''overextending oneself'' means.


    "He is mine." A cold voice was heard. It was Zhan Yao''s voice. His eyes were as sharp as blades as he looked at Yu Sheng. He was reminded of the time when his brother taught him the Void-tearing Blade Techniques when they made a promise to each other to reach the peak of Zhisheng Cliffs together, becoming one of the most powerful figures in all of Yu State. Yet his brother ended up leaving him for good on that trip to the Barren State.


    "I do not care who will be the one doing the deed so long as he gets eliminated before everyone else," Xu Shi said plainly. All of them were prideful people.


    A dazzling light shimmered and a blade appeared. The blade, which was the materialization of Zhan Yao''s Life Spirit, landed in his hand. A terrifying flash of blades went tearing apart the space they were in, his body at the center. Streak after streak of blade will of rules went tearing at Yu Sheng.


    Zhan Yao put his blade behind him and walked towards him step by step. Blade flashes filled the air, breathing terrifying power of rules and tearing at the space between them. There was also another powerful pressure bearing on Yu Sheng.


    "Two-layered rules." Everyone stared at Zhan Yao, thinking that he was indeed a proud genius from the sacred ground of Zhisheng Cliffs to fight the first battle. Kong Yao''s expression was a sharp one. He had been anticipating Zhan Yao''s performance with the Void-tearing Blade Techniques.


    As Zhan Yao walked closer and closer to his target, the blade wills became stronger and stronger. Blade flashes shimmered through the air, encompassing the space surrounding Yu Sheng, as if he found himself in a world of blades.


    "He actually remains standing there. Many went on to look at Yu Sheng, who was then being surrounded by the power of two-layered rules. But he is just standing there. Does he have a death wish or what?


    Zhan Yao''s steps were incredibly steady. He did not speed up, as the power of the blades grew stronger with every step. If Yu Sheng wants to die so badly, I''ll be glad to grant that for him.


    Power rules of gravity bore on Yu Sheng''s body. Zhan Yao moved. It was as if he had fused with his blade. He leaped into the air and went straight for Yu Sheng without bothering to make any redundant moves. There were also no flashy blade techniques to be had. The Void-tearing Blade Techniques simply cut through the air.


    A blade sliced air, looking like a straight line, as the move was executed. The thousand-meter blade flash went straight for the forum stage in a terrible might. Everything before the blade flash was cut in half.


    "Is he crazy?" Many could not help themselves but yell as Yu Sheng did not even budge. He simply went looking at the move coming at him.


    The move of the Void-tearing Blade Techniques was so fast that many could not help but shy away, as if they were about to see the bloody scene of Yu Sheng being bisected right there and then. However, at that very moment, a terrifying air current emanated from Yu Sheng''s body. He lifted his left arm and blocked the trajectory of the move.


    The move did not stop. Zhan Yao''s murderous intent was terrifying and that move would have simply cut down Yu Sheng''s arm before bisecting him.


    A sharp, deafening sound was heard. Zhan Yao did not feel his blade cut down on a body of flesh and blood; he felt an extremely powerful force blocking his blade instead. He looked down and found Yu Sheng''s elbow blocking the edge of the blade. The cold, bone-chilling blade did not go on to easily cut Yu Sheng''s arm and kill him right as expected.


    Dark golden air current of rules coursed throughout Yu Sheng''s arm and covered his entire body like ferocious armor. The power of that rules seemed to have merged with his body of flesh and blood into a single being. The surrounding air current coursed through Yu Sheng''s body in a frenzy as the light of the armor of rules grew increasingly terrifying.


    Zhan Yao''s blade was stuck there.


    Many shuddered violently deep down. Blocking the Void-tearing Blade Technique with a flesh-and-blood arm.


    Crack. Kong Yao''s fists tightened and his expression changed slightly, looking grim instantly. He knew without a doubt what that scene meant. The genius of Zhisheng Cliffs, Zhan Yao, was unable to break Yu Sheng''s defense. What hope will he have in continuing the battle?


    Zhan Yao had, of course, knew what it meant as well. The pride and arrogance displayed earlier were torn to shreds in that very instant. He glared at the scene before him, feeling a shock deep down that he had never felt in his life before. He knew what he was capable of with a blade. There were hardly any sages who dared to take on his blade head-on like that.


    Yet, Yu Sheng did just that.


    Yu Sheng''s elbow slid along the edge of his blade as Zhan Yao was still dazed. He then bent his hand and took hold of Zhan Yao''s wrist, which was holding the blade. Zhan Yao snapped back to reality and wanted to back away, but he soon found the force of the hand that clamped onto his wrist was something he was unable to do anything about. His body remained suspended in midair, unable to retreat.


    Yu Sheng''s right hand moved. It lifted and threw one punch forward.


    The wind whooshed about and dark golden flowing lights shimmered, driven by the arm flung at Zhan Yao''s body.


    The minds of many tensed up as they stared at that scene.


    Boom! There was little left to the imagination. Yu Sheng''s fist landed directly on Zhan Yao''s chest. The sound of bones breaking and shattering was heard with unnerving clarity. It seemed as if the internal organs were torn apart as well. Zhan Yao bent his body a bit as the fist will penetrated right through him, emerging from his back, as if a fist had actually just gone right through him. His body was sent flying, spouting blood in midair, like an arrow, before crashing onto the ground.


    The space was silent. Many looked at Zhan Yao, who was lying on the floor as blood oozed out from his mouth. Zhan Yao looked at the sky with dazed, lifeless eyes. He knew without a doubt that the insides of his body thoroughly shattered. He would be rendered a cripple even if he ended up surviving the ordeal. His heart felt as if it was being torn to shreds. He had come so far with his training, becoming one of the proud geniuses of Zhisheng Cliffs. Why did the first battle turn out to be like this?


    One punch was all it took.


    That punch did not just hit Zhan Yao''s body; it had also hit Zhisheng Cliffs'' face. Kong Yao and Qin Zhong both looked incredibly awkward. Ye Futian had not been the only terrifying one, as it turned out that Yu Sheng, whom nobody noticed before, was surprisingly terrifying as well.


    Yu Sheng did not look at Zhan Yao. He had, of course, felt Zhan Yao''s murderous intent and knew that Zhan Yao wanted revenge, but he too recalled the bloody scenes back in Taihang Mountain that day. Many of the golden great apes of Taihang Mountain perished. Even he and Ye Futian had almost died at Zhan Xiao''s hands. As such, he saw no need to hold back with that punch.


    Doom. A footstep was heard and many eyes returned to Yu Sheng. He was seen taking one step after another, walking forward. At the end of the straight line he was walking on, there was Xu Shi of Xihua Sacred Mountain of the Eastern State.


    Xu Shi had claimed that he would make Yu Sheng the first one to be eliminated!

 759 One Holding Off a Thousand

    Xu Shi frowned slightly, seeing Yu Sheng taking one step after another towards him. It was apparent that he had vastly underestimated what Yu Sheng was capable of.


    Zhan Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs would not have had appeared weak before Yu Sheng. His blade work had incorporated the vast power of rules and boasted incredible killing power. However, Yu Sheng simply blocked it with his arms alone. It was something done by merging rules with one''s flesh and blood body. It was apparent then that Yu Sheng trained his body to the extreme. If one was unable to take him down while fighting in close combat, they were as good as dead.


    Despite being able to feel Yu Sheng''s incredible might, Xu Shi was a proud son of Xihua Sacred Mountain. He was not going to lose just like that, but his expression turned incredibly serious and solemn nonetheless. He apparently knew that his opponent was powerful.


    Xu Shi put his arms forward and a tremendously glittering golden beast appeared behind Xu Shi. A terrifying golden storm erupted in the air with his body at the center.


    "Spell, Demonic Prison, Shackle." Xu Shi''s voice was incredibly cold. The terrifying golden storm tore at Yu Sheng''s body, drowning the space where Yu Sheng was, manifesting as a terribly huge metal demonic beast, and its terrifyingly huge body went to imprison Yu Sheng right beneath it.


    When one developed matured rules, the spell unleashed would become a rule spell, boasting greater power. However, at that moment, Yu Sheng''s body went on to forcefully move outside the prison of that demonic beast. He barged through the construct, and with a loud boom, the prison blew apart. Yu Sheng took a huge leap ahead and continued going after Xu Shi.


    "His body is that powerful?" The hearts of many shuddered. In the world of cultivators, rules were powers employed by sages. Technically-speaking, there was no doubt that top-notch nobles who had developed matured rules were more powerful than nobles who had not, but there were still some peculiar exceptions. Those people had different talents, enabling them to break such conventions.


    Yu Sheng''s power was at a level where not even conventional top-notch nobles who had developed the use of rules would have been able to do anything against him, even if he were to not rely on rules.


    Xu Shi''s expression turned ugly. The Life Spirit behind him took a tangible form and his body merged directly with that huge beast. It was apparent that Xu Shi had learned martial arts before. The incredibly huge beast lifted its claws and slapped at Yu Sheng. One finger on that set of claws alone would have been enough to pierce Yu Sheng''s body, killing him right there and then.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stomped onto the ground and his battle form came into being with a huge rumble. An enormous golden shadow appeared and it was of the same size as the huge beast before him. There was no doubt that it was the Douzhan body. His battle form went on to launch a punch straight for the beast, landing on the incredibly sharp claws. The claws were shattered immediately with a rumble. That huge fist continued its path, bringing terrible might to bear, penetrating all before it and landing hard on the beast''s body. Xu Shi grunted within the huge beast''s body and spat up blood. His body was sent retreating violently, and the shadow of the beast dissipated.


    Doom. Xu Shi''s body crashed onto the ground. Yu Sheng''s battle form continued walking towards him, then he leapt into the air as if to step on Xu Shi.


    Seeing that godly shadow above, Xu Shi went pale and shouted, "I surrender."


    Boom. A loud rumble reverberated in Xu Shi''s eardrums and his eyes were closed. His face went pale as he shuddered on the ground. Xu Shi''s eyes flew wide open, noting that he remained unharmed, seeing the godlike shadow landing right beside him, looking down on him. Yu Sheng took a look at him with nasty eyes before turning around and walking away without saying anything else.


    Xu Shi felt his heart bleeding at that very moment. While no words had been spoken, he felt indescribably shameful. He felt all from the nine states were looking at him so pitifully.


    That was the very first battle of the Nine State Forum.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain had hoped that he would be able to emerge as number one and make it into the subsequent rounds. He had enough confidence in himself to be able to do so and had gone on to boast about eliminating Yu Sheng first. However, reality was cold and cruel. He was not even able to fight against Yu Sheng and ended up being defeated by such an overwhelming difference in power, suffering a thoroughly humiliating defeat. He shouted the words that he never thought he would say.


    The students of Xihua Sacred Mountain all looked at the battlefield; their eyes were on Xu Shi and Yu Sheng. The stout body, which had walked out before the event even began, went about proving the worth of the Barren State to avenge the humiliation and frustration he and the Barren State suffered in his very own way.


    Many turned around to look at Ye Futian of the Barren State. He was sitting there quietly without any hint of tension or worry. It was as if everything that had happened was how things should have happened.


    A feeling of ridiculousness welled up in many peoples'' minds. Does Ye Futian truly think that Yu Sheng has what it takes to make it to top ten? Was he deliberately acting humble and lowering himself so as to prepare for the upcoming battles?


    "Impossible." People of Xihua Sacred Mountain denied their own thoughts. There were tens of sacred grounds from all over the nine states participating in the Nine State Forum.


    What does this mean?


    It meant that most sacred grounds would not have been able to get a shot at the top ten and only a very small amount of sacred grounds would be able to do so.


    While Yu Sheng indeed demonstrated that he has terrifyingly powerful combat power, is it possible for him to bag one a spot in the top ten?


    Those who ranked on the top ten would have needed to overwhelm the strongest of geniuses many sacred grounds had to offer before getting the right to such a high ranking. While Xu Shi had been powerful, the most remarkable ones of Xihua Sacred Mountain were able to overwhelm Xu Shi all the same.


    At the moment, the eyes of the others from the remaining six states were all on Yu Sheng. All of them were looking at him with a very strong sense of dread.


    He overwhelmed the proud sons of Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State and Xihua Sacred Mountain of Eastern State. What if I end up having to face him?


    "Will you all select the strongest among yourselves? Or do you intend to come at me all at once?" Yu Sheng scanned all six of them. The grandstands went totally silent as soon as he finished.


    That fellow actually provoked all mighty ones of the remaining six states.


    He is trying to take on the geniuses of all eight other states by himself.


    He intends to take on all of them alone.


    "What overwhelming power." Many in the grandstand areas felt rather elated. All of them had thought that the first battle of the Nine State Forum would have been a clash of titans where mighty ones would butt heads with each other. Their speculations were half correct, as all nine states sent out incredibly remarkable people who had all developed matured rules for the battle.


    Yet they had not expected there to be one capable of overwhelming all of the other mighty ones on his own, emerging in the very first battle between the nine states. Furthermore, it was one from the Barren State, and he went on to sweep all the others from other states with absolute, indisputable might.


    All six mighty ones took different corners and unleashed vague aura of rules, eyeing at that stout figure before them. Yu Sheng remained standing where he was as if he felt nothing. He looked like a tall, regal mountain that could not be moved by anything. He had been suppressing his annoyance for quite a while. If all of the other states went bullying and ridiculing the Barren State, claiming that they had no one and did not bother affording them with basic respect, then all he had to do was simply announce, with force, the Barren State''s existence to all.


    Boom, boom�� One aura of rules after another burst forth. All six mighty ones moved at the same time. They were fighting on the stage of the Nine State Forum, and they saw no reason to hold back against Yu Sheng. They were all from sacred grounds, and they saw it unforgivable to get eliminated on the very first round.


    Everyone had very strong attachments. At the moment, all of them found Yu Sheng to be the greatest threat, and as such, they had to eliminate Yu Sheng before anyone else.


    Xia Li, Qi Ao, Su He, Mo Gong, Yan Zhan, and Lan Yu; all six geniuses from sacred grounds came straight for Yu Sheng.


    A dragon emerged, a Roc went about tearing everything apart and swooping down in an instant, as well as divine weapons coalesced from violent rules swooshing about with killing intent. All illusions of attack rules drown the space they were in, and all of them went with lethal intent at Yu Sheng. It was apparent that all six mighty ones chose the later��moving against Yu Sheng all at once in hopes of clearing out the most powerful threat before them.


    Yu Sheng remained standing, like a mountain, where he was. He took one step forward all of a sudden as the others attacked. The ground shook with a loud rumble and the Douzhan Body seemed to stand between the heavens and the earth like a devil of some sort. Its unnervingly powerful dark golden flowing lights coursed throughout his battle form, materializing as the most powerful defense possible. Streaks of terrifying attacks landed on his battle form one after another. The battle form shook violently. Lan Yu threw a punch with the force of a tsunami behind it, hidden might capable of penetrating everything in its path intending to shatter that battle form.


    "He''s still standing?" Everyone saw the attacks of all six mighty ones land hard on the battle form, yet the construct did not crumble. The Douzhan Body went on to even unleash blindingly strong light, making everyone''s eyes hurt.


    Yu Sheng lifted his head and scanned all six of them before him. He moved his other leg and planted it solidly onto the ground.


    "Get lost." A loud roar was heard and Yu Sheng threw two punches at the air. Thousands of golden fists erupted from within the battle form in that very instant, striking everything before it, drowning all six of them within. Every fist carried sheer power like no other.


    Boom, boom, boom, boom�� The fist will crushed the attacks and defenses of all six mighty ones in a frenzy. The sheer might penetrated the air and struck them with the most direct and overbearing force. All six ended up being thrown off without exception. There were some grunting while some had blood at the corner of their mouths, looking pale.


    "Some power indeed!" Many trembled violently deep down. Just what kind of power is this?


    The might of the flesh and blood body synchronized with the battle form then went on to bring the purest rules of sheer power to bear. Such an approach went on to yield power enabling one to take on thousands, overwhelming everything before him.


    There were several monks who sat in honored seats at the area assigned to War State at the moment. Their bodies looked as if they were made of gold. They watched Yu Sheng. A mighty one who looked like a golden buddha said, "If he had trained in the ways of Buddhism, he would have reached incredible heights."


    They all hailed from a sacred ground of War State, the Vajra Region.


    Yu Sheng''s punch made them feel as if it was something resembling the Palm of Mahavairocana, which was incredibly hard, powerful, and loaded with sheer force.


    Yu Sheng''s eyes scanned at all six of them standing at the six corners on the stage. He then said, "Do you all want to fight still?"


    Xia Li of Summer State went on to stare at Yu Sheng and cursed under his breath, "What the hell." He then turned around and leave in frustration. All six of them were thrown back, and there was just no point to keep on fighting. He had only his own luck to blame for encountering a monster of such power in his very first battle.


    Qi Ao''s mouth quivered and he too turned around and left, feeling incredibly vexed.


    The stage of the first battle of the Nine State Forum was all his. All the others did not even have the chance to show what they were capable of. All of the others eyed Yu Sheng before walking off one after another.


    Everyone looked at that one figure who remained on the forum stage, feeling awed. This is the true charm of the Nine State Forum. A battle that shakes the hearts of many, right from the very first one.


    Elders looked at Yu Sheng from the edge of the forum stage and announced, "The winner of the round, Yu Sheng."


    Yu Sheng lifted his head and eyed the elder, before saying, "Yu Sheng, student of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State." He turned around and walked away as soon as he finished!

 760 Overbearing

    In just one battle, Yu Sheng had been remembered by the people from all Nine States. After all, this was the first battle on the Nine State Forum and Yu Sheng had appeared in a dominant fashion.


    The Barren State and Holy Zhi Palace''s Yu Sheng definitely had its place on the stage of the Nine State Forum. If he was not unlucky enough to meet the most elite figures in the Nine States, it would not be a problem for him to enter the top 100.


    "The second battle will continue in the order that the Nine States entered in. Battle," the elder announced at the edge of the stage. Next, the Eastern State and the Summer State''s experts stepped out. On the Barren State''s side, they all looked at each other. They had fewer participants, so it was convenient for them to discuss who would battle.


    "I''ll go," the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciple Zhong Li said. He was a genius who had entered the Palace in the same batch as Ye Futian and was also considered an outstanding figure in their batch. Back then, he was eliminated by Yuan Zhan, but he had since stepped into the pinnacle of the Noble Plane and comprehended a semblance of suppression rule power.


    When it was the Barren State''s turn, Zhong Li stepped onto the battle platform. Ye Futian looked at Zhong Li and said, "Zhong Li''s cultivation is pure and free from distractions. His focus is on his martial arts cultivation and it is commendable for him to be able to reach such a level so quickly. He can be allowed into the Sage Hall to cultivate."


    "Yes," Sage Wanxiang nodded and added, "however, the Nine State Forum requires one to defeat the participants from the other eight states to advance. Moreover, there is a high chance that they will meet a strong adversary when in a battle of nine. It is even more prevalent in these early battles, so Zhong Li''s chances might be slim."


    "It''s the same whether he''s eliminated earlier or later. What''s most important is the experience. We can also see how strong the participants from the other states are at the same time." Ye Futian took it in his stride. He knew that the Barren State''s strength was fundamentally weaker than the other states. Apart from those who entered the Sage Hall with him, it would be nearly impossible for anyone else to enter the top 100.


    There were dozens of holy lands here. Only a handful of people from each holy land could enter the top 100. His Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace was merely one of the holy lands. Moreover, all the other holy lands had more participants than them; this was something he was aware of.


    Just like Sage Wanxiang had predicted, someone who was evidently stronger than the other nine in the battle arena had appeared. She was from the Summer State''s Yue Clan. The Yue Clan''s strongest ability was sealing techniques.


    At that moment, on the battle arena, a girl in a white dress floated like an immortal in the middle of the crowd. After she had defeated her first opponent, many people could feel her strength and started to surround her to deal with her first. However, as her body floated in the air, a moon appeared behind her. The moonlight scattered onto the other opponents and they could feel their Spiritual Wills being sealed. Zhong Li released his Life Spirit and the tripod released a blinding glow and rushed forward rapidly, resisting the opponent''s sealing technique.


    The girl''s body became brighter as the moon became even more brilliant. Rule power fused with the moonlight as it scattered down, and at that moment, all those who were attacking her fell into an illusion. It was as though they were in the moon''s world and their Spiritual Will was unable to sense the outside world, making them unable to use their rule power. At that moment, their bodies started to become surrounded by frost. Bit by bit, they were completely encased in ice and unable to move. All the other experts were all frozen in the air, but their Spiritual Wills were still in the moon''s world.


    How strong. Many people shuddered as they thought to themselves. They could feel sweat running down their spine.


    "Among the Nine States, the Summer State is the strongest. Apart from the Xia Clan, the Yue Clan''s sealing techniques can seal one''s Spiritual Will as well as their bodies. It is indeed terrifying." On the viewing area, the crowd was already discussing. There was no doubt about the outcome of this battle. The Yue Clan''s expert had crushed all her opponents.


    "Not just the Yue Clan, but the Summer State also has the number one academy in the Nine States: the Nine State College and the Yi Clan. It is rumored that one of the Yi Clan''s ancestors was at the level of the Renhuang." There were also others who were discussing the other major factions in the Summer State.


    Ye Futian''s gaze looked towards the battle arena with surprise.


    This girl''s ability was special and extremely strong.


    The Nine States were indeed filled with experts.


    The battle ended like everyone had expected. Zhong Li had his head held low as he left the forum''s battle arena. He had not expected to be defeated so pitifully. His Spiritual Will had been sealed and he could not even resist. In the first battle, Yu Sheng had defeated his opponents in dominant fashion. In the second battle, the Yue Clan''s experts had crushed.


    "The Barren State has too few people," Ye Futian looked down and commented. There were numerous holy lands in the Nine States and plenty of experts. The Barren State had few people and they needed to participate in battles continually. Every time they went out to battle, there was a chance they would be battling prodigies. It was no wonder nobody had high hopes for the Barren State.


    In the third battle, they all appeared to be more cautious. The participants from the Nine States were all hesitant to step out. The combatant from the Barren State was Li Futu. In this battle, an extremely strong figure from Xihua Sacred Mountain stepped out and defeated everyone in a similar fashion to the past two battles. As the host, Xihua Sacred Mountain evidently needed a victory to establish their position. Otherwise, they would not send their disciples consecutively into these battles.


    Li Futu was rather unlucky. He was by no means weak and could hold his own even against an expert who had comprehended complete rule power, but Lady Luck was not on his side. After three battles, all the holy lands probably were not so obsessed with victory anymore.


    The fourth battle was started by the Eastern State again. The participant from the Eastern State was a beautiful lady��the princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Zhou Ziyi.


    The other states also sent their experts out one after the other. The Great Zhou Sacred King looked towards the forum''s battle arena and said, smiling. "Ziyi will probably go through some hard knocks in this Nine State Forum."


    "Younger sister''s potential is not weak and she has comprehended complete rule power. As long as she does not meet any particularly strong opponents, she should be able to advance and have a chance to enter the top 100," Zhou Zichao replied.


    "That''s a tall order," the Great Zhou Sacred King said calmly. One needed to be extremely strong to enter the top 100 of the Nine State Forum.


    "Princess Ziyi will have a chance," an archmage beside the Great Zhou Sacred King smiled and said.


    "Let''s just see how it goes." The Great Zhou Sacred King smiled and did not say anything more.


    In the Barren State''s direction, they all looked towards each other and Xu Que said lazily, "I''ll go."


    "Let me." A voice interrupted Xu Que. He looked at the person who had spoken and saw that it was Hua Jieyu. He then nodded and replied, "Sure." The rest of the participants did not have any objections. Although Hua Jieyu was participating in the Nine State Forum, her real identity was the Palace Lord''s wife.


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian saw Hua Jieyu walking out and had a strange expression on his face. He then let out a bitter smile and shook his head. This Fox, it seemed that she still held a grudge over what happened in the Chess Saint Villa. Zhou Ziyi had belittled him through her words multiple times in the Chess Saint Villa. Although he had already proven himself, evidently, Jieyu could not take Zhou Ziyi''s actions lying down.


    Zhou Ziyi was also looking in the direction of the Barren State. When she saw Hua Jieyu walking out, a sharp glint appeared in her eyes. In the Chess Saint Villa, Hua Jieyu had also embarrassed her.


    The nine people all stood in their own corners. Seeing Hua Jieyu still wearing a veil over her face, Zhou Ziyi quipped, "This is the Nine State Forum, why aren''t you facing us with your true face?"


    The influential figures on the viewing stand all watched silently. There were no rules against wearing veils. However, this Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s princess appeared to be provoking her. It seemed that she was prejudiced against this Barren State girl. The crowd was naturally delighted to see such a scene on the Nine State Forum.


    Hua Jieyu stared at the other party and Zhou Ziyi humphed. "Perhaps you think that you have stunning looks and that you''re superior to us?"


    Ye Futian frowned. It was one thing for this woman to invite trouble in the Chess Saint Villa, but she was still this overbearing on the Nine State Forum. If so, there was no need to be courteous to her.


    "Jieyu, since the princess wants to have a look, let her," Ye Futian said. Hua Jieyu turned back and looked at Ye Futian, then nodded softly and removed the veil covering her face.


    Seeing Hua Jieyu''s looks, Zhou Ziyi''s expression became particularly colorful. She was the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s princess and was a beauty; however, the face before her made her looks pale in comparison.


    What a beautiful lady, many people thought to themselves. On the viewing gallery, many people involuntarily turned to look at the Eastern State''s number one beauty, the Glass Saint. They all secretly compared these two''s looks. The Glass Saint naturally felt numerous gazes on her, but she did not take notice. As the Eastern State''s number one beauty, she was naturally used to it.


    This Great Zhou Sacred King''s descendant Zhou Ziyi had brought misfortune on herself.


    "The Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace Lord''s wife is personally attending the Nine State Forum?" Feeling embarrassed, Zhou Ziyi continued to barrage Hua Jieyu.


    "Before my husband took over as the Palace Lord, I was already a disciple of the Palace. Now, my cultivation level is also at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane, so why not?" Hua Jieyu looked at Zhou Ziyi and continued, "On the other hand, the princess is so domineering on the Nine State Forum. The Barren State''s Hua Jieyu invites princess to spar."


    "Okay," Zhou Ziyi replied unceremoniously. As her voice landed, a brilliant light surrounded her body and a ravishing golden phoenix appeared behind her. In an instant, Zhou Ziyi looked like she was shielded by divine light and appeared noble and holy.


    Hua Jieyu also released her Life Spirit, the crown materializing from its shadow. Immediately, Hua Jieyu was surrounded in holy light and looked like a queen. A dominant Spiritual Energy surrounded the area, as though it could control all the forces in the surrounding.


    The phoenix let out a screech and in an instant, the skies filled with the shadows of countless Golden Phoenixes, all diving towards Hua Jieyu at the same time. The area felt as though it would ignite at any time.


    Zhou Ziyi''s expression was cold. She wanted to see what gave this lowly woman the gall to humiliate her.


    Hua Jieyu stood in the air quietly, the light from her crown scattering down in the area, which was under the control of her Spiritual Will. When the phoenixes rushed towards her, an extremely brilliant glow lit up in her eyes and with crushing sounds, the crowd saw the Golden Phoenixes being crushed to pieces!

 761 Telekinetic Attacks

    Zhou Ziyi''s expression paled, not because the phoenix shadows had been crushed, but because she could feel that Hua Jieyu''s attack was not targeting the phoenix shadows, but the Spiritual Will that she had fused with the area.


    Noble Plane experts could fuse their Spiritual Will into the area''s Spiritual Qi and launch devastating attacks. The Sage Plane''s rule power was an evolution of the Noble Plane''s Spiritual Will, fusing more perfectly with the power in the area and creating rule power. As such, all their attacks used their Spiritual Will as a foundation.


    Just now, her phoenix shadows had been destroyed because the Spiritual Will that she had fused with the area had suffered a destructive blow and had been eradicated. Naturally, the phoenix shadows would disintegrate into nothingness.


    A Spirit Elementalist. Zhou Ziyi glared at the beautiful queen-like figure in the air. There was a divine light surrounding her body, making Hua Jieyu more brilliant than her. This caused her to feel a tinge of envy. Her Spiritual Will rapidly spread out and became one with the heavens. Numerous Golden Phoenixes appeared in every corner of the area, as though there was a huge divine phoenix enveloping the area. In the world of golden flames, the continually falling golden flames that seemed like they could incinerate everything flew towards Hua Jieyu. However, when the flames landed, they would extinguish and fade to nothingness. Zhou Ziyi frowned. Her feeling had not been wrong.


    The giant golden phoenix started to become corporeal, the burning golden flames turning into a dazzling phoenix blade, slashing towards Hua Jieyu''s body. Hua Jieyu did not dodge or shield herself. She stretched out her arms and her crown Life Spirit let out a blinding glow. Her eyes became exceptionally bewitching, as though a divine light shot out from them.


    "Seal," Hua Jieyu said. In an instant, the giant phoenix shadow stopped in its tracks, becoming silent and floating in the air.


    Zhou Ziyi''s shadow appeared in the phoenix''s shadow. It was the manifestation of her Spiritual Will. It had now appeared under the force of some mysterious power. Moreover, it was imprisoned in mid-air like it was being controlled by an invisible force, causing the rampaging Golden Phoenix to stop its attacks. Terrifying lightning flooded the area, landing on the Spiritual Will shadow. It disintegrated into nothingness and the phoenix shadow exploded at the same time.


    Zhou Ziyi humphed, her expression grim. Behind her, wind and fire raged as phoenix wings appeared. She glared daggers at Hua Jieyu. However, the glow on Hua Jieyu''s body became even more brilliant as it surrounded her body. At that moment, Zhou Ziyi felt strong telekinetic energy invading her body, corrupting her Spiritual Will.


    Her Spiritual Will transformed into a Golden Phoenix to attempt to ward off the invasion, but Hua Jieyu looked coldly at her and stretched her palm out. In an instant, an invisible force turned into a telekinetic palm strike and crushed downwards.


    At that moment, Zhou Ziyi''s body shuddered vigorously and her expression became pale. To her horror, she found that she could not move her body freely and was being lifted by a telekinetic palm. Her Spiritual Will had been imprisoned and captured, and the person had obtained control of her body that way.


    "So you were this weak." A soft voice sounded as Hua Jieyu''s palm struck across the air, her telekinesis striking on the other party''s Spiritual Will. Zhou Ziyi groaned and spat out a mouthful of blood, her aura becoming weaker as she fell to the ground. She panted rapidly. The feeling that she had just felt was like her spirit had been imprisoned. The feeling of not being able to control her body was too scary.


    Her expression was steely as she raised her head to look at Hua Jieyu. However, the latter did not even look at her as though she was not worthy of attention.


    So you were this weak. This was Hua Jieyu''s judgment of her. She had been prideful in front of the people from the Barren State. After all, she was the Sacred Dynasty''s princess, noble and holy. However, be it in terms of appearance or strength, she had been crushed and publicly humiliated. The people that she had looked down upon was now speaking to her in a condescending tone. She had participated in the Nine State Forum, but she was unable to even get past the first round.


    This made Zhou Ziyi feel as though her heart was being torn to shreds.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King looked at Zhou Ziyi calmly. Although he also knew that Zhou Ziyi would be eliminated sooner or later, he was still surprised to see her defeated in the first round. This young lady from the Barren State actually specialized in telekinesis rule power.


    "Attacking the Spiritual Will directly, huh." On the viewing gallery, many influential figures had naturally perceived Hua Jieyu''s ability and were commenting. Using telekinesis as her means of attacking and changing it into telekinesis rule power to attack other''s Spiritual Will. There was no way to defend against it.


    In the Barren State''s direction, Ye Futian looked at everything that had unfolded calmly. He naturally knew Jieyu''s abilities. When they were cultivating in the Sage Hall, they often discussed their cultivation together and shared their experiences. Moreover, Jieyu had told him that there was a Saint within her body guiding her.


    Divine Spiritual Sorcerers could do anything with their telekinesis. To unleash a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer''s abilities, one needed to find out what that Sorcerer truly specialized in.


    The rule power that Jieyu had comprehended was the rare telekinesis rule power. It could launch an attack using telekinesis on another person''s Spiritual Will. Moreover, Jieyu could even integrate her spells into her telekinetic attacks and attack the other party''s Spiritual Energy, just like the Saint instrument God-beating Whip. Jieyu had not even given her all to defeat Zhou Ziyi.


    Sometimes, Ye Futian felt conflicted. He was resentful that back then. His godfather had found a Saint to possess Jieyu, causing her to nearly die in battle. However, he now knew that his godfather had found a Saint-level Divine Spiritual Sorcerer for Jieyu in the hopes that Jieyu could grow rapidly. This was undoubtedly the most suitable for Jieyu. If it was Sage Daozang who was teaching her, Jieyu would definitely not be able to improve so quickly and her potential would not be able to be unleashed.


    The title of the Ultimate Sorcerer meant that they could use rule powers and spells, bypassing the physical body and attacking others'' Spiritual Will directly. To any cultivator, this would definitely be a catastrophe.


    At that moment, the other states'' experts also felt the pressure from Hua Jieyu after watching the battle. Would this battle be a repeat of one person dominating the other eight?


    At that moment, a figure suddenly disappeared from the ground and turned into an afterimage, heading towards Hua Jieyu like a phantom. Hua Jieyu continued standing there quietly, the light of her Life Spirit illuminating the entire area. She did not look to see where the person had gone. Nothing could hide from her telekinesis, even though the other party was indeed very speedy.


    Suddenly, an invisible force reverberated in a certain direction and the phantom''s movements stopped. That person was from the Feng State''s holy land Si clan. He was the Feng State''s Si Saint descendant. His body struggled, trying to move. However, Hua Jieyu''s body floated in the air, releasing a brilliant light and her telekinesis constantly descended on him, rendering him immobile.


    "Everyone''s cultivation level is the same on the forum battle arena, but none of us have comprehended the telekinesis rule power. We are naturally at a disadvantage when facing the telekinesis rule power that none of us have any defense against. Unless we can take her down before she strikes, we are all going to be suppressed," one of the other contestants shouted out.


    At that moment, the others also moved, firing their attacks at Hua Jieyu. When facing someone with such an oppressive ability, their only way out was to take the person down fast.


    A glint appeared in Hua Jieyu''s eyes. In an instant, devastating lightning strikes shone and struck towards all directions of the battle arena. The lightning had no form or shape, as though it had assimilated into the air. Following a few grunts, the violent attacks in the area quietened down as they had all been quelled. The experts'' expressions all changed, they had faced the same fate as Zhou Ziyi and their Spiritual Wills controlling their attacks had been eliminated.


    Just as they were thinking about how to continue battling, they felt something and their expressions changed. They saw countless thunder whips lashing down from the air, however, they were not aimed at their physical bodies.


    Lashing sounds could be heard as they grunted. A few of them had blood trickling down the side of their mouths. Soon, the seven other battlers fled from Hua Jieyu. Looking at the stunning lady, they sighed in their hearts and turned around, leaving the battle.


    Hua Jieyu saw them leaving the battle arena and retracted her telekinesis. She lowered her head and glanced at Zhou Ziyi, then turned towards the elder at the edge of the battle arena, awaiting his declaration of the victor.


    It seems that the Barren State has its fair share of talents, many people looked at Hua Jieyu''s figure and thought to themselves. Of course, Hua Jieyu''s opponents in this round were relatively weaker and she did not meet anyone with a strong Spiritual Will. If she met those prodigies specializing in Spirit Elementals, the battle would not be that one-sided.


    Returning to her area, Hua Jieyu raised her head and looked at Ye Futian with a faint, proud smile on her face.


    This Fox. Ye Futian also had a smile on his face. However, although Hua Jieyu had crushed her opponents in this round, it would not be that simple in the later rounds of the Nine State Forum. Just like he had expected, as the Nine State Forum continued, round after round of intense battles broke out and many experts started to rise up. After all, the people from the Barren State had gone through one round of battling, there were only ten or so left from the lineup of over 30. Apart from those who had come from the Sage Hall with him, the others were almost all eliminated. What a tragic outcome. Moreover, they had only gone through about 30 battles. With each battle eliminating eight people, only about 200-300 had been eliminated.


    If they wanted to enter the top 100, this meant that the remaining 10 people from the Barren State had to repeatedly battle and could not lose even one battle.


    The further into the forum they got, the Barren State''s disadvantage would become even more evident!

 762 Breaking the Rules?

    As the Nine State Forum continued, Ye Futian also realized a subtle trend. The other eight states apart from the Barren State had all their holy lands taking turns to battle. Even when a certain holy land repeatedly battled, they would eventually maintain an equal number of participants as the other holy lands, as though there was some form of tacit understanding between them.


    "Uncle-Master, it seems like the holy lands in the Nine States all have similar numbers," Ye Futian looked at Sage Wanxiang and said in a small voice.


    "They are very similar. The difference between them is very small. Apart from the Eastern State and the Barren State, the other seven states all have around 400 people. The Summer State has the most people at 405 while the Yu State has the least at 397 people," Sage Wanxiang replied. Ye Futian looked at him. This old fellow had actually counted them?


    "Not just that, but the only holy land from the Eastern State participating in this time''s Nine State Forum is only Xihua Sacred Mountain. Adding on to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Glass Saint''s disciples, the three factions have about 400 people in total as well. As for the extra 100 or so people, they are from all over the Eastern State and have snatched these 100 over seats from the many holy lands in the Nine State Forum," Sage Wanxiang said with an unperturbed expression. "As for our Barren State, they were not wrong to say that they did not consider us as part of the Nine State Forum. Perhaps they just invited us on a whim. To them, the Barren State is destined to be eliminated, we''re just a foil to them, which is why we were allocated this location."


    Ye Futian nodded. He had already noticed it when he looked at the remaining ten people in the Barren State. If the Barren State wanted to continue in the Nine State Forum, they would have to obtain consecutive victories. This would mean that the other eight states would not have any victors. Would this even be possible?


    Although he was very confident in those who had stepped out of the Sage Hall with him, under these rules, he only had confidence that one person would stay, and that was Yu Sheng. Moreover, if there was only Yu Sheng left to battle to the end, what did it mean for him? It meant that from then on, none of the other eight states could advance. Many prodigies in the Nine States would be stopped by him.


    "I only thought about it briefly just now, but hearing it from Uncle-Master now, doesn''t that make it even more interesting?" Ye Futian replied. Under these rules, it was no wonder that nobody expected Ye Futian to be able to enter the top ten. In fact, if he was not prodigious enough, he might not even make the top 100.


    "So, there are only two possibilities from now on. First, the Barren State is eliminated. Second, the Nine State Forum will be forced to change its rules," Sage Wanxiang said. Ye Futian had a strange expression on his face. Previously, the elder had claimed that he would treat everyone similarly. Now that he thought about it, it seemed that his words were like a death sentence to the Barren State. There was no hope for them to enter the top 100. However, this made things all the more interesting.


    "The holy lands having similar numbers seems to be something that is agreed upon. The host''s advantage is actually all those who are not disciples of holy lands." Ye Futian continued, "The Xihua Sacred Mountain should be trying to recruit these people then."


    "Indeed, the Nine State Forum has been conducted for many years and already has a set of implicit rules in place. With the holy lands'' numbers being about even, after the next 400 battles, everyone from the holy lands should have battled. After all the holy lands in the Nine States have done battle, we will come to a section in the Nine State Forum where there will be some changes in the rules," Sage Wanxiang replied.


    Ye Futian nodded as his gaze landed on the forum''s battle arena. The Barren State had already gone through a round of battles and had the most outstanding performance among the Nine States. Even if there were only ten left out of the 30, this was still a battle of nine where only one would proceed.


    In actuality, the proceedings also shocked many people from the Nine States. However, when they remembered that these were the most outstanding people by gathering the entire Barren State''s strength, they understood why.


    In the Eastern State''s direction, a figure stepped out. The figure was showered in a golden glow, even his hair was golden and his eyes had an exceedingly prideful look in them.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Zhou Xian." The people from the Eastern State saw the person who was battling and their eyes lit up.


    Zhou Xian was extremely famous within the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s younger generation. He was the Sovereign Family''s descendant and had exceptional strength. In the lineup that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had brought this time, his strength was definitely in the top three.


    They''re targeting the Barren State in this battle. This thought appeared in many people''s minds. The other states appeared to have reached a consensus and did not send out any experts to prevent them from clashing with Zhou Xian.


    Since the Barren State was invited by the Eastern State and the Eastern State''s Xihua Sacred Mountain and Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty appeared to have some conflict with the Barren State, let them settle it by themselves.


    The disciples from the other seven states'' holy lands were only there to spar. All the holy lands knew that the majority of participants in the Nine State Forum were only there to gain some experience. After all, only the prodigies from the various holy lands could hope to reach the pinnacle of the Nine State Forum.


    Zhou Xian''s gaze was razor-sharp as he glared at Yu Sheng. They had evidently noticed that the Barren State had already gone through a round of battles. If they followed the order from the previous round, the person who was battling now should be Yu Sheng, who dominated the other eight opponents in the first round.


    Yu Sheng seemed to have noticed Zhou Xian''s gaze. After the rest walked out, he stepped forward with no hesitation. He naturally knew that he was being targeted, but so what?


    Zhou Ziyi was now sitting in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s viewing gallery. Her gaze moved towards them and she said, "Zhou Xian should be able to defeat him."


    "Zhou Xian is very strong, but the Barren State''s Yu Sheng also showed off his dominance in the previous battle. Moreover, that probably was not his full strength. Zhou Xian is not fully confident in winning this battle," the Great Zhou Sacred King replied.


    "A person that can step out and fight for the pride of the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace is definitely extraordinary. I''m looking forward to it," Saint Xihua smiled and commented.


    The Sky Saint looked calmly in the air. He only had one disciple, Han Yu, who was already in the Sage Plane. Therefore, he was here today purely as a spectator. He did not belong to any clan, so he naturally did not recruit people under his wing to participate in the Nine State Forum.


    On the forum''s battle arena, a brilliant Golden Phoenix appeared behind Zhou Xian''s body. The Golden Phoenix Life Spirit shone blindingly in the air, like a divine bird descending on the mortal realm, combining as one with his body. Its wings flapped as a golden sheen erupted around it. Its body floated in the air and in the next moment, it had disappeared like a flash of golden lightning and appeared next to an expert.


    "How fast," the crowd said as their gazes followed it. They saw a Golden Phoenix diving downwards, but the face of the Phoenix was Zhou Xian''s. The Qi State''s expert attempted to block it, but with a giant thud, his body was sent flying and he spat out a mouthful of blood.


    The golden phoenix flew across the air without stopping and swept across the battle arena. Soon, all the other experts except Yu Sheng had been defeated.


    The brilliant glow drooped downwards in a beautiful arc and Zhou Xian appeared above Yu Sheng, looking down on him, then said, "Let me see how strong you are."


    Yu Sheng raised his head and looked calmly at Zhou Xian. A dark golden light was flowing around his body and a rampant strength was being released form every part of his body. Standing there, he had an aura that was dismissive of Zhou Xian.


    Hum. Zhou Xian''s body disappeared and in the next moment, Yu Sheng saw a flash of light rushing down. It was a terrifying Golden Phoenix, and countless rays of light turned into phoenix blades, piercing down towards Yu Sheng''s head.


    Blinding light flooded the area as Yu Sheng used his Douzhan Body. A huge body appeared, blocking the phoenix blades when they pierced downwards. However, the blades continued to penetrate through gradually, as though they would be able to pierce through any defense.


    Yu Sheng acted as though he did not feel anything, the giant body stretching out its palms and grabbing the phoenix blade. Zhou Xian''s expression changed as the phoenix screeched, the blades continuing to pierce downwards while his body flew up into the air.


    Bang. Launching off with his right foot, Yu Sheng''s body rushed into the air like a bolt of lightning. He stretched out his hand and grabbed one of the phoenix''s wings, causing Zhou Xian to struggle vigorously. His other hand stretched out and similarly grabbed the wing. His right arm continued upwards and the giant Douzhan Body''s palm gripped the phoenix by the neck, rushing downwards to the ground and slamming the phoenix.


    Every feather on the golden phoenix''s wings was as sharp as blades and cut through Yu Sheng''s body. However, it was like they were slicing the hardest metal. The phoenix flapped its other wing forcefully, but it was unable to break free form the giant hand''s grip.


    Bang. With a thunderous sound, feathers flew into the sky as the golden phoenix was slammed hard into the ground. It then became ethereal and Zhou Xian''s body could be seen coughing up copious amounts of blood. However, Zhou Xian also cultivated his physique and glared at Yu Sheng while struggling to get up. When he saw this, Yu Sheng slammed his fist down again onto Zhou Xian. At that moment, Zhou Xian recoiled and curled up his body, no longer able to battle.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s gazes all froze. It was still as violent as before, there was absolutely no doubt about the outcome. Even Zhou Xian''s strength was insufficient to threaten Yu Sheng.


    "The victor, Yu Sheng," the elder announced. As Yu Sheng turned and left, the three Saints of the Xihua Sacred Mountain looked at him with peculiar expressions. What would happen if he continued to dominate like this? Would they let the elites from the Xihua Sacred Mountain and other factions continue battling with him? What if they were still eliminated? What should they do then?


    It shouldn''t be that bad, they thought to themselves. There were many elite figures in the Nine States who had not gotten their chance to battle.


    "Next," the elder continued to announce.


    The people from the Nine States walked out in succession. This time, the person from the Barren State was Ye Wuchen. They had all gone through a round of battling. When a new round began, they did not need to follow the order they had previously.

 763 Spirit Cutter

    People from all the other eight states looked at the one-armed Ye Wuchen. After rounds of battles, the one state that caught the attention of everyone with their mighty ones fielded was surprising, the Barren State.


    That was something that no one had expected before. Before the Nine State Forum was held, everyone thought the over 30 who came from the Barren State were little more than accessories to complete the event. Under such rules, all from the Barren State, which everyone thought was only for show, would be eliminated soon. Yet, the Barren State managed to take more than a dozen places after over 30 battles fought, the winners of the remaining 20 or so battles were divided between the other eight states instead.


    The Barren State alone bagged more than half the victories to be had thus far. That, coupled with how Yu Sheng went about overwhelming Zhou Xian in the previous battle, Ye Wuchen became the center of attention as soon as he walked out. That was his second battle.


    "No one would know how powerful he is without fighting him head on. But he''s good with a sword, and coupling that with illusions, he''s one incredible threat to be taken seriously indeed," many on the grandstands said.


    "Luohou Palace should be able to take this one." A mighty one from the Vajra Region of War State, who sat the southern corner, said and turned to look at the ones from Luohou Palace. They were all from War State, so they knew each other better than they did most others. The one from Luohou Palace that time was truly someone formidable.


    "What use would it be taking just one battle," a mighty one of Luohou Palace quipped nonchalantly. They too were confident, as if they would have easily bagged the victory for that round.


    Saint Xihua heard the conversation, then smiled and said, "It seems that the one from Luohou Palace who is going to fight this time is an exceptional one indeed. In that case, I look forward to it."


    The one from the Eastern State to fight in that round was still a student of Xihua Sacred Mountain. Just as Sage Wanxiang predicted, the ones from sacred grounds would have finished the rounds of battles first. The highest number of participants to remain would have been the ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain, after fighting about 400 battles. As such, Xihua Sacred Mountain of the Eastern State fielded more participants than everyone else.


    That person turned their eyes at Ye Wuchen and said, "The Barren State still has over a dozen people left after that one round. I''m curious to see how long those from the Barren State will last."


    Shoop�� A streak of sword will descended from above. That one-armed silhouette moved as soon as they finished talking. Ye Wuchen rushed at them at breakneck speed. He actually went in action just like that. Very determined indeed.


    Boom. That person took one step containing tremendously overbearing power, which burst in their surroundings. Extremely thick power of rules of defense appeared around them. That was the rules of the earth, preventing anyone from getting near. It was apparent that that person was also a mighty one who had a high comprehension of rules. They would not have provoked Ye Wuchen otherwise.


    Ye Wuchen pointed at the air before him and thousands of sword wills gushed in the air in an instant. "Break." Ye Wuchen extended his arm forward and pointed at the mighty one from Xihua Sacred Mountain below, the pressing with his finger. Thousands of sword will manifested as a spiral whirlpool in an instant, and a black hole of swords seemed to have appeared in the space before him. Explosions were heard continuously. The expression of the mighty one from Xihua Sacred Mountain flinched. They stepped out once again, and a tremendously overbearing shadow appeared right behind them.


    Walls of the earth emerged one after another with that figure at the center. Powerful powers of rules of defense flowed on the walls, making them indestructible. However, that spiral sword aura storm continued on its path, descending from above like a storm of the galaxy, which then penetrated through everything right away. It made dark holes at the center of the defensive spell and went all the way forward.


    "Shredding rules." Many looked startled. Ye Wuchen''s power of the sword contained the power of Shredding rules, known for its offensive capacity, which was merged with that storm of sword aura. Apparently, it was of a higher level than the rules of the earth. It was no surprise that the attack tore right through his opponent''s defense and went straight for target��the mighty one from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    That mighty one from Xihua Sacred Mountain changed all of a sudden, and slivers of rules coursed throughout his body, as if their body had become part of the earth itself, melding with his surroundings. All powers of the heavens and the earth became part of his defense. Yet, when that terrifying spiral storm arrived, it tore right through the crust and threw their body along with everything around it. The defense of the earth''s crust was completely shattered. Streaks of sword aura pierced through their body yet they were not killed. It was apparent that Ye Wuchen pulled punches.


    Their face blanched as they crashed to the ground. They glanced at Ye Wuchen before bowing slightly, turning around and leaving afterward. It was apparent that they were thanking Ye Wuchen for sparing them instead of killing them.


    "Other than the Illusive Sword rules, there is still matured Shredding rules in it then. He is truly a rare type of genius indeed. It seems like all those from the Barren State are not to be taken lightly," a mighty one said. Many in the grandstands were aware of that. When Ye Futian''s people went knocking on the Law Bell at the bottom of Xihua Sacred Mountain, they all did so without paying it much mind, lightning up images on the bell one after another. It was apparent that they had treated that to be an act of getting the ticket into the Nine State Forum early, and had no intentions of showing off back then. They had only come to show their true colors on the stage of the forum at the moment.


    All the other mighty ones fixed their gaze at the one-armed silhouette in the air, emanating stable aura from his body. There were quite a number of others who had not yet developed matured rules. They knew they stood no chance against Ye Wuchen. As such, they tried banding up instead.


    Ye Wuchen took a look at the space below, activating his thoughts and extending his hand. Terrifying sword aura storm whipped up in the air in an instant. Countless sword aura filled their surroundings before manifesting a seven sword aura storms; there were seven mighty ones below him still.


    "Go," Ye Wuchen uttered the word and all seven sword auras headed straight for the seven mighty ones below. The air was filled with sword aura, with Shredding rules imbued within every single one of the storms.


    Boom, boom, boom! Rumbles were heard one after another. Everyone saw one after another of those mighty ones being thrown off.


    There is yet another from the Barren State who overwhelms everyone present? Many looked at the one-armed silhouette standing tall and proud. His white shirt flowing as sword will circled around him as if he was a one-armed god of the sword.


    "Wait."


    "There is one more."


    Many peoples'' pupils contracted somewhat at that very moment as they looked at a particular spot. There was still a mighty one who had not been defeated by the sword aura. That person remained standing below while terrifying dark aura appeared around his body. Many were shocked to find that that mighty one had actually opened his mouth and allowed the terrifying sword aura to come at them in a frenzy. He swallowed the storm whole. The sword auras were devoured and nowhere to be found.


    "Devouring rules." Many eyes were fixed on that silhouette. Devouring rules were also a type of incredibly rare rules. There were very few capable of developing comprehension of such rules. It was said that when trained to the extreme, they allowed one to devour everything in existence.


    "Who is that?" many in the grandstands asked. They had thought Ye Wuchen would have been capable of overwhelming the mighty ones from all other eight states. They never thought they were able to see such changes right there.


    That guy is very powerful.


    "Someone from War State. From the Luohou Palace, to be specific."


    "It is said that Luohou Palace of War State is incredibly terrifying and they are adept at eerie unpredictable powers. That guy is probably a genius nurtured within Luohou Palace then." Other than students who studied in sacred grounds, there were still quite a number of others from all nine states who did not study in sacred grounds. If they wanted to participate in the Nine State Forum, they would have had to pass the elimination rounds organized by sacred grounds back home, just like how Ye Futian gathered Li Futu and cultivators from all other top clans to participate in the Forum.


    But the one who stood right there was probably a student of Luohou Palace itself. Furthermore, he was probably one of the most fearsome geniuses among their ranks.


    "Sword." Ye Wuchen''s expression hardly changed. He extended his hand and called thousands of sword will to gather above him, howling in a frenzy as they coalesced into a dazzling giant sword. Every single streak of sword will contained the power of Shredding rules. The giant sword exuded an imposing might as if it was a sword to break all swords.


    "Go."


    The giant sword streaked through the air with the command and fell straight down. The space seemed as if it was about to be torn apart. At that same time, an extremely huge demonic shadow appeared behind that mighty one from Luohou Palace, looking terrifying and ferocious. It extended four arms and charged at the Shredding Sword in the air. Its mouth remained open to swallow the sword up. An incredibly dazzling light burst within that body of the demonic shadow. The demonic shadow then burst and shattered, taking the might of that giant sword along with it.


    "A clash of the power of rules. A clash of titans indeed." The eyes of many sparkled, and another demonic shadow appeared on that mighty one from Luohou Palace, continuing to devour the powers of the heavens and the earth. That huge shadow extended even more arms, and its body continued to grow in size as if it was out to devour everything around it to make itself strong.


    The demon''s arms went for Ye Wuchen. The sword aura around him burst and went cutting at the arms while growing at the same time.


    A terrifying devouring power was all over the place and Ye Wuchen felt his body being pulled at by some intense power as if he found himself in a whirlpool. He looked at the sky and his expression turned extremely serious. It was the first time he fought someone of such caliber after he trained in the Sage Hall. It was also the very reason Ye Futian took them outside the Barren State, allowing them to meet stronger opponents and therefore progress further with their training.


    "This..." Many trembled at the sight of that demonic shadow continuing to grow in size. Ye Wuchen was at a disadvantage. Will there be yet another genius getting eliminated then?


    Ye Wuchen lowered his head and looked beneath him at that moment. That mighty one of Luohou Palace looked on with a cold expression. He felt some kind of changes about to happen in that very moment, yet he was unable to make anything out of it.


    He was unable to spend much time pondering on it. Ye Wuchen called the thousands of sword aura to rush at him instead. He remained cold while bringing the devouring powers to the fullest. All the arms of that demon went on to snuff out the storm of swords. Yet, Ye Wuchen was seen rushing at him instead. The demonic shadow''s head went after Ye Wuchen and terrifying devouring whirlpool emerged. It eventually went to chomp down on Ye Wuchen.


    Yet, at that very moment, the mighty one from Luohou Palace felt an intense sense of crisis. Ye Wuchen''s silhouette, which the demonic shadow devoured, dissipated right there and then while high above the ground, a gust of sword aura out to shred everything descended.


    "Illusory Sword." His expression changed drastically knowing that he fell into the trap of that technique.


    Ye Wuchen brought earth-shattering sword wills to bear at the very next moment. The huge demon howled and went to clash with Ye Wuchen head on. The giant sword and the demon clashed and a gust of overbearing shredding power went on to tear the demon''s body apart. At the same time, overbearing devouring power was about to swallow Ye Wuchen whole.


    "Damn it." The mighty one from Luohou Palace changed once again, and an even stronger sense of crisis was felt. A beam of incredibly brilliant silver light emerged from Ye Wuchen and burst straight through the demon''s body. The Devouring rules were unable to resist, and the beam of light burst into his mind, tearing at his spiritual will power.


    Boom. The brain of that mighty one shuddered violently, and his vision turned blurry. The demon''s body disintegrated and turned to dust at the very next moment. While he was still rather conscious, he saw Ye Wuchen''s sword bearing on his throat; it felt bone-chilling cold.


    He stared at Ye Wuchen and said, "Melding the rules of the sword into spiritual will attacks. What is this move called?"


    "The move has no name," Ye Wuchen said. It was something he had comprehended and developed himself.


    "It has the ability to cut off spiritual will. I''ll call it ''Spirit Cutter''." He then added, "You won." He then turned around and left the stage.


    He was someone rather renowned in Luohou Palace of War State. He came to the Nine State Forum with intentions of growing his fame. He did not expect to be eliminated right in the first round. However, his defeat was not a humiliating one. That swordsman from the Barren State sure is powerful.


    Everyone on the grandstand turned to fix their eyes at Ye Wuchen after seeing a student of Luohou Palace leave.


    Ye Wuchen actually beat such a powerful student of Luohou Palace.


    The ones from the War State were the most shocked. The Barren State had once again overwhelmed the other eight states and emerged victoriously. This time, a very powerful genius level figure from Luohou Palace was eliminated.


    At this point, it seemed difficult to eliminate the ones from the Barren State!

 764 Rules of Light and Darkness

    In the following battles, the Barren State continued to win at a great margin. The ones who were eliminated were all people who had not developed matured rules.


    After a dozen rounds of battles. The ones from the Barren State fought hard again, with the eventual eight mighty ones who remained being Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que, Yi XIaoshi, Yuan Zhan, Phoenix, and Zui Qianchou. All eight of them were people who followed Ye Futian to train in the Sage Hall till that very day and had yet to become sages. All others had either been training in the Sage Hall as sages, or they had broken into Sage Plane while they were training in the Sage Hall.


    There were many in the Barren State''s grandstand area who were great figures from the Barren State. Zhuge Qingfeng, Yan Jun, and the others looked at the remaining eight and felt rather surreal. The ones who had been with Ye Futian now all surpassed their peers back, slightly or considerably. Even the likes of Li Futu, who was Yan Jun''s heir, was surpassed by a considerable margin. It was more so in the case of Ye Futian himself.


    "I wonder how many of them will be able to keep being in the game with rules like that," Yan Jun said in a low voice. Those rules did seem to be a little too brutal for the ones from the Barren State.


    "So long as there is even one who is able to hold out, those rules will be little more than a joke," Xue Ye said coldly. If Yu Sheng is truly the only one left and goes on to overwhelm everyone till the very end, while there is no one else from the Barren State capable of going any further, what will they make of that?


    "We''ll see," Gu Dongliu said calmly. Yu Sheng won the next round of battles and he remained winning by overwhelming all he fought. Hua Jieyu and Ye Wuchen were too victorious.


    Three out of the eight won three consecutive rounds while there was no one else from other states making it through. The scenario made the stage of the forum look rather odd.


    If things are to go on like that, all the other states but the Barren State seem to be losing face.


    "It was totally unexpected to see the Barren State with so many capable people. A voice was heard, and many turned in the direction of that voice. It was the corner where Qi State was assigned to. It was a silhouette in luxurious clothes, who exuded an exceptional air. The man looked to be in his 30s, yet he exuded a formless brilliance and looked rather mystical.


    The man was a mighty one of Hall of Holy Light from Qi State, who was ranked at the forefront of the Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Rankings of the Nine States, which made him a very formidable figure.


    "It is indeed a rare thing to see consecutive victories in such a place where sacred grounds of nine states gather," a mighty one from Yue House nodded and said.


    "But if things keep going like this, things will look pretty awkward for the rest of the sacred grounds of the nine states." The mighty one of the Hall of Holy Light smiled and said, "Shi Xuan, how about you go see what the mighty ones from the nine states are capable of?"


    "Indeed." A young man nodded at the Qi State''s corner. Many turned to look at him. Shi Xuan of Hall of Holy Light, the student of the one who just spoke. He was a formidable one, capable enough to be ranked among the top three of the students from Hall of Holy Light who participated in the forum. In the next round where participants from the nine states emerged, Shi Xuan of Hall of Holy Light stood out.


    The one who emerged from the Barren State was Xu Que.


    "Hall of Holy Light," Xu Que said to himself. He had some impression of the man. There was an extremely exceptional figure who sounded the Law Bell back at the bottom of Xihua Sacred Mountain, who moved like a beam of light, and it impressed Xu Que. That man was from the Hall of Holy Light.


    It seems like this battle will be a tough one.


    With a mighty one of the Hall of Holy Light of Qi State participating in that round, all the other states saw fit to be wary, refraining from fielding people who were too powerful in order to avoid a clash of titans situation. Furthermore, they knew that battle was targeted at the Barren State. Yet, it was not that the Hall of Holy Light had anything against the Barren State; it was just that the Barren State''s consecutive victories meant that there was no one else from other state''s sacred grounds going into the next round.


    All nine of them introduced themselves and a burst of dazzling lights was seen on the battlefield. The eyes of everyone were on Shi Xuan. The golden lines flowing about his body seemed like holy light, shooting at the eyes of the other eight. The piercing light had some of them turn their eyes away, yet an incredible sense of danger loomed at the very next moment. They all retreated but then saw shafts of spears of light shooting out, streaking the space at breakneck speeds.


    Boom, boom�� Violent clashes were heard again and again. All eight of them were attacked at the same time. Their bodies were thrown off. At the same time, Shi Xuan slowly rose to the air, standing at the center of the eight. He came to be clad in holy light that was even more dazzling and blinding, shining on all the others. Everyone was able to feel that one thought was all it would take for him to launch an attack.


    "Rules of light then?" Ye Futian said in a low voice on the grandstands where the Barren State was assigned to. Yet another rare power of rules.


    "Indeed, the Hall of Holy Light''s ancestors created a new year all those years ago with the rules of light, making the status of the Hall of Holy Light surpass all the other old royalties and Jixia Holy Palace. Even to this very day, the Hall of Holy Light is still one extremely terrifying force of sacred grounds. However, there are few true core students of the Hall of Holy Light. Only those with very formidable talent are able to inherit the power of the Hall of Holy Light. The ones they picked to fill the ranks of the Hall of Holy Light were also core figures nurtured one in a thousand," Sage Wanxiang elaborated.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. It would be a hard battle for Xu Que indeed.


    The Sky Saint took only one student in all of the Eastern State, and one definite reason why was due to people with talents in manipulating space were incredibly rare.


    Streaks of holy light crosses crisscrossed with each other on the battlefield. Rules of light were a type of very mystical rules. The rules themselves did not contain any offensive capacity at all, yet when used in conjunction with attacks, things would turn very terrifying for the one on the receiving end.


    A sword would not have been threatening when pushed slowly with little to no power behind it. Yet, if the sword was thrust at the speed of light, it was anyone''s guess how powerful the thrust would have been. Even a leaf would have been enough to kill when backed with such power, let alone a sword.


    "Holy light, judgment," Shi Xuan said coldly. The holy light cross merged with the killing spears as soon as he finished. He sent it straight at the eight mighty ones. Stabbing noises were heard, and there were people who had their bodies penetrated in an instant.


    "I yield." Voices were heard one after another. Seven mighty ones fell soon enough, with only one left who was evading at extreme speeds. That person was Xu Que, who was also the one Shi Xuan targeted for that very battle. He was determined to end the Barren State''s winning streak.


    The criss-crossing Holy Light of Judgment chased after Xu Que at terrifying speeds. It was as if beams of light were shooting down at him. However, Xu Que was just as quick with his evasion, as if he was a shadow. There were multiple times where his afterimage was pierced by the spear, and many thought that he had been hit.


    "Some speed indeed." Many gasped at the scene. The speed demonstrated was simply too much to take in.


    "Hnggh," Shi Xuan snorted coldly. He extended his hands and even more blinding holy lights covered all corners of the place. The beams shone right onto Xu Que''s body, exposing him from all angles.


    "KIll," Shi Xuan uttered coldly. Countless spears descended along the holy light, blocking out the sky above. Xu Que kept his eyes forward, and terrifying murderous intent filled the air around him. One killing sword after another was unleashed and lashed out at his front.


    The killing art of light clashed with the killing swords. A devastating burst of power spread through the entire forum stage. Shi Xuan''s body was seen moving in that instant, descending like a beam of light. His dazzling, divine body was honed to extreme sharpness and penetrated Xu Que right below him.


    That shadow of Xu Que exploded and dissipated, turning into streaks of grey aura. Shi Xuan frowned for a bit, and many auras flowed about behind his back, enveloping him within and turned into a shadow space. Shi Xuan''s body was frozen, and the mighty ones on the grandstands looked on with peculiar reactions.


    "That is..." At the corner where Feng State was, the people of Si clan looked troubled. Streaks of holy light spears continued to be unleashed and went straight for the shadow space, yet they were quickly dissipated.


    Countless killing swords burst within that shadow space and went streaking about in the air. Shi Xuan''s expression changed and his body turned into a beam of light, intending to leave that space. He quickly saw a silhouette emerging from the darkness. Immense amounts of murderous intent coalesced into a sword and appeared right before him, lashing out at the direction he moved in.


    Shi Xuan''s speed was mystically fast, making that attack devastatingly lethal even if Shi Xuan was to crash into the sword itself. His opponent was using his own speed to lash out that attack.


    The spear of light lashed out, and yet, it was quickly turned to dust by that sword attack. The killing sword went straight for the throat. Shi Xuan''s body was turning in different directions in the air at blinding speeds; however, the killing sword went right through his body nonetheless, piercing it hard. Shi Xuan appeared in another corner with a grunt. His shirt was blood-stained and his face looked unusually pale.


    "Rules of darkness," Shi Xuan said as he stared at Xu Que. It was a power directly opposite to his rules of light. When such rules were used in conjunction with the way of the killing sword, it made Xu Que a natural-born killer.


    Many at the management platform could not help but look at the mighty one from Si clan. The main saint of Si Clan, Si Ming, was the Killing Saint of Feng State. The powers that Xu Que specialized in made him look as if he was a successor of Si Ming, yet the young man was from the Barren State, which apparently made it impossible for him to have any connection to the Killing Saint.


    There was no saint in the Barren State, yet Xu Que had come to comprehend and develop such powers of rules on his own. If the Killing Saint had encountered him earlier, he would have been tempted to take him in.


    "The rules of light. It is indeed dangerous fighting like that. As such, I went a little bit too hard," Xu Que said lazily, looking at Shi Xuan.


    "You won." Shi Xuan said nothing else. He lost and that was all that mattered. He naturally would not have held it against Xu Que. If Xu Que was the one who was hit, the result would have been the same.


    "Winner, Xu Que of the Barren State," the elder announced. Many wore peculiar expressions on their faces. The Barren State went on to bag another victory, making it their fourth consecutive win.


    The Barren State had only eight participants left. A mighty one of Luohou Palace of War State and a genius of Hall of Holy Light of Qi State were defeated by Ye Wuchen and Xu Que, one after another. Both had been not so eye-catching before. It seemed that not only did all of them from the Barren State develop the use of the power of rules, but all of them seemed to have developed exceptional ones as well.


    "Is the Barren State really going to bag eight victories from here on out?" Some began to have rather ridiculous thoughts. If the Barren State was able to win all eight battles, it meant that the Barren State would win all of the eight Nine State Forum battles without anyone else from other states advancing. If that was the case, even Saint Xihua would have felt awkward to keep the ones from the Barren State from fighting in the qualifying rounds then.


    If the Barren State had been weak, all of them would have been eliminated in no time, and no one would have felt anything about it. But if the Barren State was strong enough to keep avoiding elimination, the battles would apparently turn into tag matches, which the other states had to field their best in order to break.

 765 Progressing Prematurely

    After Xu Que returned to his corner, Sage Wanxiang, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others, who were at the grandstands, all went to look at Ye Futian. Even they were hardly clear about how strong their own people were, the one who knew all the participants best was Ye Futian.


    The young Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace trained with them in the Sage Hall and emerged from the hall after training for one whole year in isolation. No one knew what they had been through in the Sage Hall for one whole year or what have they learned. Ye Futian was the only one who fought right after he emerged from the Sage Hall, beating Ximen Hanjiang.


    On that stage of the Nine State Forum, the powers of those eight continued to be showcased to all present.


    If they are so powerful, what about the others who had gone into the Sage Hall as well? The Sword Saint, Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu, Xue Ye, Luo Fan, Huang Jiuge, Yun Shuisheng, and the others. What are their powers like now?


    But then again, it was a given that they were most curious about Ye Futian. He had demonstrated genius talents unlike any other even when he was in the Noble Plane, and had yet to enter the Sage Hall. The young leader of the Barren State had broken into the Sage Plane right after he emerged from the Sage Hall. How much power had he come to develop at this moment?


    No one knew for sure at the moment.


    Huang Jiuge looked at the forum stage. Xihua Sacred Mountain had wanted the Barren State to be little more than accessories and have them be eliminated soon after letting them announce their presence. But things were probably not so easy for them anymore.


    Huang Jiuge was one who emerged from the Sage Hall and naturally knew how much those eight had progressed over that one year. They trained together more often than not and had shared what they had come to comprehend and develop in the Sage Hall with each other. Furthermore, Ye Futian helped all who trained within with his special talents by finding out key points within the lineages left behind by the ancient saints in the Sage Hall, which he then went on to discuss and share with everyone within, guiding them in their respective paths of training. He had heard that before he arrived in the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian had often helped students of the Holy Zhi Palace train. As such, he had earned himself an incredible reputation and many looked up to him.


    Ye Futian hardly thought much about all that. His gaze remained on the forum stage. The Barren State had bagged four consecutive victories and it was the turn for the extreme geniuses of all sacred grounds of the other states to fight them. It would either be a clash of titans or they would have simply gone evading the Barren State. If they chose to evade, there would be eight from the Barren State remaining in the next round still. A clash of titans would happen sooner or later.


    When the elder announced for the battles to continue, the air turned rather peculiar. After all, the Barren State had just seen a streak of four consecutive victories.


    It was Xihua Sacred Mountain''s idea, so we''ll just let Saint Xihua take care of the problem then. Many members of sacred grounds thought silently. Both Luohou Palace and Hall of Holy Light had dispatched geniuses to fight in the previous rounds, and both of them ended up eliminated. In truth, however, both of them were people with very high chances of making it to the top hundred.


    The capabilities of those remaining from the Barren State were almost unknown, but they were probably tougher than imagined. None wanted to field their own capable of making to the top hundred to fight those eight from the Barren State. If they were to clash head-on, it should be done so on the stage of battles between the top hundred. It would have been rather vexing to be eliminated so early. As such, it was up to Xihua Sacred Mountain to deal with the problem.


    They were mighty ones who walked into battle. The one from the Eastern State this time was one studying under the Glass Saint clan. It was obvious that Xihua Sacred Mountain did not deliberately try to make a move.


    The one from the Barren State to fight this time was Phoenix. After Hua Jieyu''s veil was taken off by Zhou Ziyi in the previous battle, Phoenix stopped wearing one herself. Her stunning looks attracted the attention of many when she emerged onto the forum stage. Beautiful girls drew attention easily, after all.


    Power of rules of flames flowed about on Phoenix. Dazzling light emanated from her body, and the aura of rules of flames spread throughout the entire place. A huge shadow of a fire phoenix appeared on the forum stage.


    The shadow of that dazzling phoenix continued to grow increasingly large until it was able to block out the sky. The air went to be filled with terrifying fire aura, and the others felt their bodies about to combust.


    The one from Glass Saint clan had a directly opposite specialization. They were versed in the power of rules of ice. The icy aura emanated and went to cover the entire area as well. Two powers that were direct opposites of the other clashed; one hot and one cold. All the others on the stage had yet to develop matured rules and they suffered immensely, being caught in the middle.


    "It seems like this battle will be fought between two people then," many said to themselves silently.


    There were over 3,000 nobles from all nine states participating in the Nine State Forum this time, but there were only hundreds who developed matured rules and went on to acquire access rights early, which meant that the ones who had developed matured rules were still a minority. However, even calculated from the average, there would have been one or two emerging from the nine nonetheless.


    Phoenix and that student of the Glass Saint clan did not fight up close. They went at the battle by unleashing powers of rules instead. Hot and cold powers traded blows, and the powers quickly came to tangle with each other. However, the rules of flames went to encroach the icy force like undying fires, yet the icy power was unable to break through the fire''s defense.


    "I lost." The student from the Glass Saint clan admitted defeat soon after. That battle was set with little left to the imagination by then. That was the easiest battle out of the five fought. The Barren State continued with its streak, bagging five consecutive victories.


    Everyone from Xihua Sacred Mountain naturally knew what such a simple battle meant. All those from other sacred grounds grew reluctant to clash head-on with the ones from the Barren State. It was apparent that all of them had their own thoughts and plans about the situation.


    In the next battle, Xihua Sacred Mountain sent out a student who had developed matured rules to gauge their opponent, but the ending was as expected. The student was defeated by that golden ape.


    The Barren State bagged six consecutive victories.


    "In previous Nine State Forums, all other states, except the hosts, had been rather close in power difference with each other. Such situations seen today would have never happened. But now, there are six of the Barren State who fought three rounds each, and all of them won. The other two bagged two victories themselves. All of them probably have what it takes to fight for the top hundred," a leader from Xia clan said.


    "Indeed, while the selection battles were fair and it was the Barren State''s problem for fielding so little of their own, they have proven themselves nonetheless," someone from a Nine State College said in agreement.


    Saint Xihua turned his eyes at the forum stage and said, "What do you all think?"


    The ones from the Xia clan and the Nine State College had enough weight to give suggestions. Furthermore, if he had wanted to eliminate those from the Barren State, he would have needed to field the most powerful few from Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, the Barren State had only eight participants, and Xihua Sacred Mountain was incapable of fielding many who were capable of steadily overwhelming those eight.


    "The Nine State Forum has been divided into three great rounds. The first being all nine states fielding one student to battle; the second is an extension of the first, which is a free-for-all; and the third are duels between the top hundred. How about we have those from the Barren State who won three battles progress to the second great round then?" the soothing voice of the Glass Saint suggested.


    "The Glass Saint made a good point, and I agree," the Great Zhou Sacred King said in agreement. Saint Xihua took a look at both of them. The Great Zhou Sacred King indeed has a thing for the number one beauty in all of the Eastern State.


    "Alright, since both the Sacred King and Glass Saint put it that way, we''ll then give those younger generations one more opportunity. If they are able to win for the third time, we will stop the battles in such rounds and let them progress into the next round. That way, the students of the Barren State will then be able to stay within the Nine State Forum and have opportunities to make it to the top hundred," Saint Xihua said as he went with the flow. He turned his eyes at Ye Futian and said, "What do the ones from the Barren State think about this?"


    "If you are willing to give the Barren State such an opportunity, senior, then I, as the junior, have no objections to it. I thank you, saint, on behalf of all students of the Barren State." Ye Futian smiled and nodded, behaving just as polite and humble as he had been.


    If Saint Xihua said to give them a chance, then give them a chance it is then. He never thought things would have worked out as Sage Wanxiang had predicted. Just three rounds and the Barren State went breaking the old rules, having the forum make an exception and letting the ones from the Barren State make it to the second round of battles.


    It was a good thing for all of them. Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu could not be so exhausted. They could now sit around, resting and watching the fights taking place between the other eight states.


    "If no one objects to it, that shall be the decision. The Barren State already has six participants who won three battles, and the six do not need to continue battling. If the remaining two are able to emerge victorious in the upcoming battles, they will progress to the free-for-all round immediately," Saint Xihua said.


    Behind Saint Xihua, Liu Zong took a look where Ye Futian was at. The Barren State performed surprisingly and interesting this time indeed.


    There was little left to the imagination in the upcoming two battles. Yi Xiaoshi and Zui Qianchou were both able to easily win. If it had been decided for the ones from the Barren State to move to the next round, there was simply no need to clash with them head-on.


    With that, the Barren State''s first great round of the battles between the nine states was concluded. The remaining eight states continued battling.


    "There are quite a number of people from all nine states who have developed matured rules. Yu Sheng, while you have no need to battle for now, do keep your eyes on the battlefield, because your upcoming opponents will be among these people," Ye Futian said to remind the eight of them below.


    In the previous battles, there were people who had developed sealing powers, rules of light, devouring rules, and many other rare powers of rules. There would definitely be more to come. There had only been over 50 battles fought in the Nine State Forum so far. It could be said that the Nine State Forum was still at the beginning.


    "Indeed." Yu Sheng nodded, and all the others understood Ye Futian''s intentions. They sat in the Barren State area of the forum stage and watched the battles going on in silence. As expected, there were very powerful people seen in the upcoming battles every now and then. Exceptional people emerged from Nine State College of Summer State, Jixia Holy Palace of Qi State, Holy Temple of Ten Corners of War State, and other sacred grounds for training.


    A tremendously powerful figure had emerged from the Hundred Thousand Great Mountain of Cloud State.


    A mighty one from the Vajra Region of War State unleashed the Palm of Mahavairocana, which boosted frightening power. Furthermore, that mighty one had an indestructible body, making them terrifyingly formidable.


    The battles went on for three days. Too many powerful people emerged within those three days. Many from all over the Eastern State in the grandstand area were incredibly excited. They would not have believed battles between nobles could be so frightening if they had not seen it with their own eyes. There were many top-class geniuses who had an intimate understanding of wielding the power of rules.


    There were fewer and fewer participants left from all of nine states. Other than the Eastern State, Summer State, Qi State, and War State had more remaining than the others. It was a given that the Barren State had the least number remaining. Other than the Barren State, Yu State and Ocean State were the ones with fewer participants remaining.


    All participants from the eight states, other than the Eastern State, had participated in the rounds of battles, which meant that the great round of battles came to an end. There were still over a hundred participants who had yet to battle. Those people were those who had come from other places in the Eastern State to participate in the Nine State Forum, and they made it past the selection rounds prior.


    "I''m sure all of you know the rules for the next round well. The remaining ones from Eastern State will challenge mighty ones of other states. The winners were to remain while losers are eliminated. When they have all finished challenging the other states'' participants, all participants throughout the nine states will continue to fight, taking turns to fight, challenging others to one-on-one battles, starting with the Eastern State. The round will go on until a hundred participants remain," the elder at the edge of the forum stage announced. That was also a rule in all previous Nine State Forums. The host had an advantage. The extra ones were allowed to take turns to make challenges, eliminating participants of other states!


    "Other than that, the Barren State is to continue being a part of this ground." The elder looked at the eight from the Barren State. It was inevitable for Barren State to fight those one-on-one battles.


    The remaining eight from the Barren State continued with the odds stacked against them.

 766 Mystical Girl

    People from all nine states felt rather lethargic. The next hundred or so battles would be easier to deal with. After all, all who remained after a round of battles were already elites, and it would have been easier to fight the remaining mighty ones of the Eastern State who were not students of sacred grounds. Those fights were done one-on-one instead of as a free-for-all between nine participants until there was a last man standing, which would have been easier than the battles before. As such, the next hundred or so battles would have been comparatively easy. However, the selection rounds for making it to the top hundred after that would have been rather stressful.


    "Those of the Eastern State who have not fought before, begin challenging cultivators who you think should be eliminated," the elder at the edge of the forum stage announced.


    Mighty ones from all corners looked at the remaining hundred or so from the Eastern State, and many wore plain smiles on their faces. It was obvious that they were not all that concerned.


    A silhouette was seen walking out slowly then. Many froze at the sight of that silhouette walking out of the crowd and began to look rather troubled. While all of them had seen her before, it still felt very weird to see her getting on the stage in person.


    The one who walked out was none other than that girl at the bottom of Xihua Sacred Mountain. She looked rather childish still, and it seemed that she had washed her face before participating in the Nine State Forum, looking a lot cleaner. She had a fair complexion and she tied her hair in a ponytail, making her look rather adorable.


    "It''s that little girl." Many at the grandstands gasped at the sight of her. So she is the first one to come out then. While she sounded the Law Bell that day, how can a girl like her, who''s still in her teens, fight any of the geniuses from sacred grounds here?


    "Yaya, go beat them up," an old man from the crowd shouted loudly. Many looked at the old man with disgust. That old fart is actually shouting at the grandstand of the Nine State Forum? Is he a barbarian or something?


    The little girl seemed to have heard the old man''s shout, and she looked up in that direction, wearing a serious expression as she nodded and said, "Will do, village chief." She then turned her eyes at the mighty ones from the other eight states, tilting her head and said, "Now who among you will come out and face me?"


    Many great figures at the grandstands could not help but smile at the little girl''s antics. What a girl indeed��


    "How did she pass the selections and make it to the Nine State Forum?" someone asked people sitting beside them, curiously, wondering if the little girl had what it took to kick the others off the stage.


    The three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain all wore peculiar expressions. A 15-year-old girl having developed power of rules, and then, there was that village chief.


    Does someone like that really exist in the Eastern State?


    There was no answer from the participants of the other eight states. It would have been a good victory beating up and bullying such a little girl, but if they were to lose against her, the shame would be too unbearable.


    Ye Futian looked at her, feeling rather amused. Many looked down on that little girl just like how they looked down on the Barren State. It was a common pattern of thought among many. She was just a young girl, after all. At her age, even if she had begun training when she was still in the womb, her strength would have been limited, just like how every one of the nine states thought that the Barren State was definitely the weakest. However, he deemed that the little girl was not someone to be trifled with. She was someone who was aware that he was looking into her details using Freedom Meditation. Her perception was like none other.


    Or rather, to put it more aptly, she has some kind of innate special ability.


    The little girl looked around the crowd after seeing no one answering her call and laid her eyes on one person. She pointed at them and said, "Well, I''ll take you then."


    The one whom she had pointed at was a mighty one from Daluo Sacred Mountain of Feng State. Furthermore, they were a top genius from Daluo Sacred Mountain who had developed matured rules and was tremendously powerful.


    "What is that girl..." Many felt speechless. Is she here to just to play or what? She should have been observing the prior battles closely and remembered who is the weakest. That genius from Daluo Sacred Mountain is certainly not the weakest. That fellow might actually be above average instead.


    That mighty one of Daluo Sacred Mountain walked out. His eyes looked sharp like those of an eagle, his nose hook-shaped, and he gave off the feeling of being cold and shrewd, which probably meant that he was an unscrupulous, vile person.


    "Why me?" the student from Daluo Sacred Mountain asked the little girl.


    "Because you''re ugly," the little girl said with a deadpan face.


    "..." Many looked at her dumbfounded. That reason that she just uttered made them speechless. Cultivators, especially men, cared little about looks, but it was nonetheless true that out of all who were present there, that person from Daluo Sacred Mountain was indeed the ugliest.


    This is why the little girl picked him?


    The man narrowed his eyes to a slit and he looked even colder, like he was scheming against her. A brutal smirk was seen in his narrowed eyes, and he said, "So you found that out then. But, little girl, while you aren''t all that good-looking yourself, you''re still young and your skin looks soft and supple. It''s really a pity."


    "Can we start now?" The little girl seemed rather bored hearing him talk. He turned around, looking at the elder.


    "You may." The elder at the forum stage nodded.


    "Little girl, you''re way in over your head." The mighty one from Daluo Sacred Mountain slowly rose to the air and hovered right on top of the little girl''s head. A terrifying pressure descended in an instant.


    "Bury." A cold voice was heard, and the little girl''s surroundings seemed to be filled with countless huge boulders. He clenched his fist and the hovering boulders went straight for her in an instant, intending to bury her within. Loud, violent rumbles were heard. The huge boulders mashed at each other with extremely overbearing force. The little girl tilted her head up and took a look. Intensely sharp flashes were seen in her eyes, which looked rather demonic. At that very instant, the surrounding boulders were stopped dead in their tracks, incapable of pressing further, and all of them were evidently repelled by her body.


    A stifling noise was heard in the air as more and more boulders appeared. That mighty one from Daluo Sacred Mountain stood high in the air. He moved his hand. All of the huge boulders seemed to be within the control of his hand, and a formless power of rules descended upon them, merging all the boulders into one single piece. They continued pressing on the little girl, intending to crush her.


    However, the girl''s eyes seemed to look increasingly demonic. Her ponytail swayed in the air and an extremely sharp aura exuded with her body at the center, resisting the power of that pressure.


    Boom! A huge rumble was heard as devastating light swept all over the place. All of the surrounding boulders exploded and shattered. The girl was seen shooting for the skies, going straight for the mighty one from Daluo Sacred Mountain at an extreme speed.


    The mighty one from Daluo Sacred Mountain frowned a little and sent one terrifying boulder after another crashing down at her, as if throwing barriers of defense at the girl charging at him. However, all that was left in the air around her was sand and rubble as the boulders simply exploded and shattered around her. The mighty one from Daluo Sacred Mountain continued changing patterns. He slapped his hand downward and sent a huge ancient mountain crashing down from the sky. The terrifying power of rules circled above the mountain, making it capable of molding landscapes with sheer force.


    Yet, the girl simply charged at the mountain, bursting through it and emerging from the other end at the very next moment. The mountain crumbled, and the little girl was seen appearing right before the mighty one of Daluo Sacred Mountain. She simply hovered there and stared into the eyes of her opponent with her demonic eyes.


    "Arrghh..." The mighty one of Daluo Sacred Mountain covered his eyes after a shrill shriek was heard. His screams made many within earshot shudder.


    What happened?


    "Relax, you aren''t going to go blind." The little girl hovered back to the ground, her ponytail swaying as she turned around to leave. The mighty one of Daluo Sacred Mountain moved his hands away and found blood coming out of his eyes. He retained his vision just like the girl said, instead of going blind. It was apparent that his opponent showed mercy, which was a relief to him. However, a sense of fear welled up within his mind.


    Is that little girl a devil?


    "What just happened?" many said to themselves silently.


    Is that an eye spell? They were unable to get a clear look at the little girl''s abilities from that battle even when she walked away. However, it was clear that she had beaten that mighty one from Daluo Sacred Mountain.


    How did a girl of 15 or so manage to pull off something like that? That little girl surprised everyone right in the first battle.


    All the other mighty ones from the other eight states who had let their guard down were alert. It seemed that it was not yet time for them to relax.


    The remaining ones from the Eastern State continued challenging afterward. There were victories and defeats on both side, but the Eastern State side lost more than they won. After all, the remaining participants of the eight states had been top geniuses who had made it through the first rounds, which meant that they would not be so easily eliminated.


    The mighty ones from the Eastern State who managed to win were usually those who had developed matured rules. They picked on the handful remaining from the eight states who had yet to develop matured rules yet had progressed from the previous great round, beating them.


    Yi Xiaoshi had also been challenged later. The fat guy felt exasperated. You look down on me because of my size? As such, he went to defeat his challenger with overwhelming force. Eight from the Barren State remained on the battlefield still.


    The battles went on until the remaining hundred or so from the Eastern State had all finished challenging and fighting. However, the round of battles was far from complete. Everyone from all nine states had fought at least once, yet there were still over 300 of them left on the forum stage. More than 200 were required to be eliminated to get the top hundred set.


    It was obvious that all who remained were elites, and the great majority of those people had developed matured powers of rules and sounded the Law Bell. A handful were ones whose comprehension of rules were immature yet possessed special talent.


    It was a given that the ones from the hosting Eastern State were the most numerous among the remaining 300 or so; there were over 50 of them left. The numbers were followed by Summer State and Qi State, both having over 40 people left. The Barren State still had its eight. None of those from the Barren State were eliminated from the hundred or so battles fought previously, which apparently meant that all of the others were wary of the powers of those from the Barren State.


    "The next round of battles will determine who makes it to the top hundred. I wonder how many among Yu Sheng and the others will remain," Ye Futian looked downward and said. He naturally hoped that all eight were able to remain, yet such hopes had a very low chance of happening. All who remained were nothing but elites. In the upcoming selection processes, it would be a clash of titans in every round. It was next to impossible for all eight from the Barren State to make it into top hundred.


    The participants from sacred grounds of all nine states looked rather serious. The upcoming battles were the true battles of the Nine State Forum.


    "The upcoming battles will be held in the same order as before, beginning with the Eastern State, Summer State, Qi State�� the Barren State. Participants are to pick the ones they will challenge on their own. Victors from the challenges are not allowed to continue challenging others or be challenged until all present have fought once," the elder announced. It was to avoid mighty ones from continuously challenging others or having someone being continuously picked on.


    "Begin," the elder said. Everyone turned their eyes to the Eastern State''s direction at that very moment. A silhouette was seen walking out.


    "Huh?" Many wore peculiar expressions on their faces. So he is the one to fight in the first battle?


    It was the strongest student of the Xihua Sacred Mountain in this year''s Nine State Forum: Hua Yunshu. It was one who was deemed qualified to be among the top ten in this year''s Nine State Forum, sporting frightening powers. At that moment, it was he who went making the first move in the selection battles for setting the top hundred.


    Hua Yunshu scanned the crowd around him and then stopped where the Barren State was. There were over 300 remaining from all nine states, and all eight from Barren State were still there.


    There are too many from the Barren State left. Time to kick some of them out.

 767 Eliminated

    Hua Yunshu eventually laid his eyes on Zui Qianchou and said, "I will challenge Zui Qianchou of the Barren State."


    On the grandstands, Ye Futian locked his gaze onto Hua Yunshu. The seat he was sitting in was that of a servant''s, and as such, it seemed rather disrespectful. However, there was one advantage to be seated there��he was able to hear all the chatter of those in the grandstand area behind him very clearly. The people of Huatian City naturally knew that student from Xihua Sacred Mountain better than he did.


    Hua Yunshu was lauded by everyone to be the number one among the participants of Xihua Sacred Mountain this year. Many talked about him when Hua Yunshu went up to fight, but Ye Futian had little memory and impression of that fight, as Hua Yunshu was able to easily defeat the other eight and win.


    There were many who were still talking about Hua Yunshu behind Ye Futian.


    "All eight of the Barren State stayed till this very moment. But since Hua Yunshu is making a move, it seems like someone from the Barren State will finally get eliminated."


    "Indeed. All eight participants from the Barren State comprehend matured rules and are very powerful, but Hua Yunshu is indeed the very pinnacle of Xihua Sacred Mountain participants in this year''s Nine State Forum. There is little left to the imagination."


    "Actually, I look forward to seeing him fight against Yu Sheng of the Barren State, but he apparently won''t be challenging Yu Sheng this early. He probably is thinking about saving the fight for the top hundred."


    Many talked, and it was apparent that Hua Yunshu enjoyed great prestige among the younger generations of Xihua Sacred Mountain. While he did not possess a one-in-a-million talent like Liu Zong, he was extremely focused and dedicated to his training, capable of achieving the finest results with everything he did. This was why he was able to stand out and become the representative for all students below Sage Plane, earning the favor of the saints.


    Zui Qianchou''s eyes turned to the person who had just challenged him, and he knew how powerful his would-be opponent was. However, he walked out nonchalantly, seemingly paying no heed to it all.


    "Hua Yunshu of Xihua Sacred Mountain of the Eastern State. Pleased to make your acquaintance," Hua Yunshu said to Zui Qianchou in a very proper and polite manner. While he did think that there should be someone among the eight remaining from the Barren State get eliminated, he maintained a facade of composure and courtesy. He was, after all, a symbol of those from Xihua Sacred Mountain participating in the Nine State Forum. As Xihua Sacred Mountain served as the host, he deemed it unacceptable to behave discourteously.


    "Zui Qianchou of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. Pleased to make your acquaintance," Zui Qianchou said, returning the courtesy.


    An aura emanated from Hua Yunshu.


    "Please hold on," Zui Qianchou gestured as he said so, before taking out a jug of wine and pouring it into his mouth.


    Many froze at Zui Qianchou''s antics. Is this fellow a drunkard or what?


    Hua Yunshu did not mind at all and simply waited while standing. Zui Qianchou shook his jug a little after a moment before smiling at Hua Yunshu. He said, "Sorry, we can begin now."


    "Indeed," Hua Yunshu replied.


    Zui Qianchou disappeared right from where he stood as soon as Hua Yunshu finished replying, shooting for his opponent like an extremely dazzling sword. That lazy and laid-back drunkard seemed to have become someone else within an instant, shimmering with blinding sword will all over him.


    Hua Yunshu lifted his hand and clenched it in Zui Qianchou''s direction. Incredibly powerful rules of power manifested from their surroundings and rushed at Zui Qianchou. The man thought to be a drunkard had flashes of rocks continuously appearing all over him, turning stiff and hard. Furthermore, the space that Zui Qianchou occupied seemed to have been fossilized and became extremely heavy.


    Hua Yunshu specialized in earth elemental powers. He had achieved extreme heights with the use of earth elemental powers. He went deep in the subject, developing several types of rules of power derived from the element of earth: Fossilization rules, Gravity rules, and Force rules. All those power of rules were derivations with the element of earth serving as the base.


    At that very moment, a blinding light burst from Zui Qianchou, unleashing his Sword Life Spirit. It looked to be as thin as wings of cicadas and there seemed to be the power of rules fusing with that sword.


    "Cut." Zui Qianchou moved his will, and that dazzling sword shot through the space, cutting down all that power of fossilization. His body seemed as if it was overflowing with the power of rules, shattering all the Fossilization rules imposed on him. It was some spell of rules he had developed from his own training: the ability to cut rules.


    The light of rocks shattered and flashes of swords as thin as wings of cicadas shot for Hua Yunshu with very lethal force. Hua Yunshu activated his will and had the vast space encased in it. Light of rocks continued to be manifested all around Zui Qianchou. While it was impossible to fossilize him, Zui Qianchou''s movements were severely affected, making him look rather sluggish, when the rocks were used in conjunction with Gravity rules. When Zui Qianchou got near Hua Yushu, both Fossilization and Gravity rules turned even greater, holding him back.


    At the same time, Hua Yunshu lifted his arm and slapped at the swords that Zui Qianchou sent at him. Hua Yunshu burst out in dazzling light all over him when he launched that strike, like a great mountain. His palm felt like mountains, emanating incredible power. It seemed to conjure a shadow of mountains, making it feel as if the palm strikes that Hua Yunshu sent at Zui Qianchou was not simple strikes; they felt as if Hua Yunshu had thrown out mountains.


    Zui Qianchou''s cutting sword turned incredibly overbearing as well, manifesting as a huge sword. It cutting through the air, cleaving a path through the mountains with overbearing force. The mountains were cut open, yet oppressive forces of tremendous magnitude still bore on Zui Qianchou''s body, sending him flying.


    Zui Qianchou hovered in the air after he steadied himself, looking at Hua Yunshu. Hua Yunshu''s rules were not some rare power of rules, as all of them were very simple ones. Yet simplicity did not necessarily imply weakness. There were many top-notch figures who were able to do the very best with very simple powers, bringing unbelievably frightening might to bear.


    Zui Qianchou flashed as the wind blew and kept moving forward. At that very moment, he split into multiple illusions. There were many silhouettes of Zui Qianchou seen rushing towards Hua Yunshu. He was the heir of the Ghost Sword, and both his movements and sword techniques felt like specters. His techniques turned to bear unforgivable, ferocious might after he trained under the Sword Demon.


    Hua Yunshu lifted his head and took a look. His expression remained as calm as he had been and his mind remained unfettered. As the publically acknowledged number one figure among the participants from Xihua Sacred Mountain, his confidence was based on his own formidable abilities. If any one of the eight from the Barren State were able to make him lose composure, that title of number one noble of Xihua Sacred Mountain would have been little more than a joke.


    He then looked at the afterimages rushing at him. Hua Yunshu extended his right hand in front of him and a very terrifying storm of rocks whipped up in the air in the very next second. The light of rocks coalesced maniacally, as if it was out to bury that space itself. At the same time, a tremendously powerful Gravity rules worked on that space, making it an entity in itself.


    The storm of rocks sealed the space in an instant instead of fossilizing Zui Qianchou. He placed the entire space in a lockdown with fossilization. That space became like a fossilized mountain. There was sword aura lashing out, cutting the mountain apart, yet that storm remained and went on to keep burying the gashes. He knew without a doubt that those attacks were far from enough to hurt Zui Qianchou, as they were just there to trap Zui Qianchou and the afterimages within.


    Hua Yunshu slowly took to the air and a terrifying power coursed all over him. Hua Yunshu kept his gaze on that stone mountain before him, pulling his arm back slowly.


    His body then shot for the mountain like a bolt of lightning in the very next second, moving at unbelievable speeds.


    Ye Futian''s expression changed at that very scene at that very moment. He felt Hua Yunshu''s strength and that Qianchou was in a ditch.


    Boom! A thunderous rumble was heard as Hua Yunshu''s fist landed on the very moment he had fossilized. The space trembled violently for a bit. Formless storms penetrated the inside of the mountain, and the wild, unruly power made the hearts of many present tremble. The mountain was blown to pieces, shattering completely.


    Many saw a blinding flash of the sword when the mountain blew up. The sword flash was then seen retreating. A silhouette was retreating with it to the edge of the forum stage, and that silhouette was none other than Zui Qianchou.


    The sword flash dissipated and Zui Qianchou''s figure appeared. A streak of blood was seen at the corner of his mouth while he still felt his insides rattling. Hua Yunshu was able to actually ignore all of his attacks. There was no chance for him at all.


    He knew he had been defeated and that he had no way of winning.


    "You won," Zui Qianchou smiled and said, before turning around and leaving in a dashing manner, without giving much thought about winning or losing. It was, however, a battle that he would keep in mind.


    Hua Yunshu stood calmly without any hint of elation seen. It was as if things simply worked out as they should.


    "That''s Hua Yunshu indeed. The number one among nobles of Xihua Sacred Mountain," many said to themselves. The hearts of many trembled when Hua Yunshu lashed out with that strike. It was as if they were able to feel how formidable that power was themselves.


    Zui Qianchou''s defeat was an honorable one, as he was eliminated by Hua Yunshu. The student from the Holy Zhi Palace did benefit from this trip after all.


    "That was some formidable power indeed," Ye Futian said in a low voice on the grandstands. Zui Qianchou''s defeat meant that there was finally someone who trained in the Sage Hall get eliminated. However, he was not surprised as it was something bound to happen sooner or later. It was near-impossible to have all eight of them make it to the top hundred. The participants from sacred grounds all over the nine states did not just show up for fun, after all.


    "Well, Yu Sheng is probably the only one at this point capable of competing with him in terms of raw strength." Sage Wanxiang nodded at the side. He was able to feel Hua Yunshu''s power. Someone capable of bringing that much power to bear simply using rules was nothing short of being among the highest class of geniuses.


    "Yu Sheng, huh." Ye Futian then turned his eyes and took a look at Yu Sheng and the others, looking forward to it.


    I wonder how many of the remaining seven are capable of making it to the top hundred.


    Yu Sheng and the others all saw Hua Yunshu walking away as well. While Hua Yunshu presented himself politely, that overwhelming sense of pride from him at that moment was hardly suppressed.


    So the number one of Xihua Sacred Mountain is now picking on the Barren State.

 768 The Zhisheng Cliffss Tragedy

    The battles continued, and in the next battle, an expert from the Summer State selected an opponent and defeated him.


    Next, the Qi State and Cloud State''s experts battled in succession. There was one similarity in the opponents they picked: they all had not comprehended complete rule powers. Among those remaining, there were a group of people who had not comprehended complete rule powers. These people naturally became the target for many. Moreover, in these battles, the challengers all emerged victoriously.


    After all, the challengers had all selected who they would challenge. Before the battle, they had already observed their opponents and hiccups were unusual. After seven battles, only Yu State and the Barren State had not issued a challenge. At that moment, a person from Yu State stepped out.


    Ye Futian''s gaze looked towards this person from Yu State. The person''s name was Kong Qing, and his Life Spirit was a Demon Elephant. This naturally made Ye Futian recall someone��Zhisheng Cliffs'' Kong Yao, ninth on the Nine States Sage Ranking.


    Kong Yao had cultivated the strength of the divine elephant to the limit and dominated in his generation. Due to the difference in cultivation level, Kong Qing was not as strong as Kong Yao, but he was still very strong. It was likely that he was Zhisheng Cliffs'' strongest person in this Nine State Forum. Zhisheng Cliffs only had one other person who could match him in strength.


    Kong Qing was Kong Yao''s disciple. He had changed his surname to Kong and recognized Kong Yao as his godfather. Due to Kong Yao''s status in Zhisheng Cliffs, Kong Qing also received the best grooming, and Zhisheng Cliffs'' Saints would personally teach him.


    At that moment, Kong Qing''s gaze also landed in the Barren State''s direction. Back then, Zhisheng Cliffs had suffered a loss in the Barren State, and his godfather Kong Yao was forced to retreat without achieving his objective. He had held a grudge all this while and was extremely unhappy. On the first day of the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng had disabled his Zhisheng Cliffs'' Zhan Yao.


    Now, it was time to settle the score.


    He had heard that Brother Zhan Xiao had died on Taihang Mountain while heading to eliminate the ape clan. Today, he would use the Taihang Mountain''s demonic beast''s blood to pay homage to his brother Zhan Xiao and take revenge for Zhan Yao.


    "I challenge the Barren State''s Yuan Zhan," Kong Qing said. The opponent was an ape while his Life Spirit was a Demon Elephant. They both specialized in power and had some similarities, so it was as though this battle was destined.


    Zhisheng Cliffs seem to have something against the Barren State, the crowd thought. They had heard a little about the enmity between Yu State''s holy land Zhisheng Cliffs and the Barren State, it was rumored that even the Renhuang had appeared.


    "Kong Qing''s strength is one of the best among Zhisheng Cliffs'' disciples. Yuan Zhan is probably going to be eliminated," someone commented.


    The Barren State has maintained its eight-man strong lineup for so long. One of them was eliminated in the first battle by Hua Yunshu. After this battle, there will only be six left. It looks like they still have too little people. After this round, who knows how many people the Barren State will have in the top 100, the crowd thought to themselves.


    When Ye Futian heard Kong Qing''s words, he appeared very calm. From the previous battles, he could deduce that in this Nine State Forum, the Yu State would be the weakest state. Zhisheng Cliffs'' younger generation was evidently weaker than the Summer State, War State, Qi State, and the other states. Although Kong Qing was by no means weak, he could not be considered strong. He would probably not be successful in trying to eliminate Yuan Zhan.


    In Zhisheng Cliffs'' direction, Kong Yao and Qin Zhong also looked towards them.


    "Brother Kong actually picked someone from the Barren State. However, with his strength, he should be able to defeat Ye Futian," Qin Zhong said. Back then, when he descended on the Holy Zhi Palace, he had dominated all the Palace''s disciples, until he had met Ye Futian.


    However, the number of people that Ye Futian had brought to the Nine State Forum today was much more than when he had challenged the Palace. In the short span of a year after Ye Futian had become the Palace Lord, a batch of geniuses had emerged from the Barren State.


    "That is only natural. Although the Golden Ape clan has outstanding potential, they are savages that only know how to rely on brute force, after all," Kong Yao said nonchalantly. He did not lower his voice, causing many experts from other holy lands to look at him.


    Kong Yao was publicly humiliating the Golden Ape clan. However, his strength was ninth on the Sage Ranking, so he did not need to fear anything. If Sage Chunyang had not summoned Emperor Xia back then, that battle would be the Barren State''s last.


    Ye Futian and Yuan Hong also heard Kong Yao''s words and looked towards him at the same time. However, Kong Yao ignored their gazes and continued looking at the battle arena. Ye Futian''s gaze was cold as he turned back towards the forum''s battle arena.


    Yuan Zhan stepped forward with huge steps. The Golden Ape''s body was burly and was surrounded by a golden glow as if it was created with gold. Its body was filled with a wild strength.


    "Zhisheng Cliffs, Kong Qing." When Kong Qing spoke, he did not look at Yuan Zhan, but lowered his head and played with his fingers instead. He seemed to be intentionally showing his contempt for Yuan Zhan by doing that.


    Yuan Zhan''s gaze swept across him and he did not say anything. He turned to the elder at the edge of the battle platform and asked, "Can we start?"


    "Yes." The elder nodded.


    Kong Qing raised his head, his gaze becoming sharp all of a sudden. An elephant''s cry could be heard as a giant Demon Elephant appeared behind Kong Qing, its hulking body filled with boundless strength.


    Yuan Zhan also let out a roar, and in an instant, his body became even burlier and larger. The Golden Ape went into a rampaging state and stepped forward, causing the forum''s battle arena to let out rumbling sounds.


    Bang. Kong Qing also stepped forward. Like a divine elephant taking steps, an unparalleled force descended on the battle arena as multiple giant Demon Elephant shadows appeared. They rushed forward at the same time, creating a massive stampede.


    The two of them had not even clashed but had both displayed unrestrained strength.


    Yuan Zhan raised his giant fist and punched forward with a terrifying force. The golden fist tore through the air and crushed all the Demon Elephant shadows. However, Kong Qing''s fist reached at the same time. When he punched out, his fist will was like a divine elephant rushing forward and trampling through the air, crushing everything. It was the divine elephant rule power, created by combining suppression rule power and force rule power, making it even more wild and strong.


    A deafening explosion sounded as the two of them split after the clash. The giant Golden Ape was sent flying and crashed into the ground with a giant crash. Yuan Zhan''s foot landed on the ground. He looked towards Kong Qing, who had slid back a short distance. In the clash of strength, he was at a disadvantage.


    The divine elephant rule power combined with strong techniques. It is no wonder that Yuan Zhan cannot match up to it, many people saw the scene and thought. They saw Kong Qing retract his fist and look at Yuan Zhan with contempt.


    Yuan Zhan stared at the opponent, the aura on his body still wild. With a roar, his body became even larger, like a giant beast. Not just that, terrifying golden rays shot through his body, causing his strength to skyrocket.


    When Yuan Hong saw this, a glint appeared in his eyes and he looked at Ye Futian. In fact, he was unsure of Yuan Zhan''s battle ability, even now. This should be Sage Douzhan''s body-enhancing technique. Now, he had also taught it to Yuan Zhan. He was a demonic beast and his battle form was his physical body. By opening the Seven Star acupoints and linking the entire body, every muscle on his body should be even stronger.


    A golden light fell on his body, and a golden storm started to brew in front of Yuan Zhan, becoming a giant golden polearm.


    Bang. The golden polearm slammed in front of Yuan Zhan and the ground shook. Yuan Zhan stretched out both arms and held it in his hands. When he held it, a terrifying aura engulfed the area and his golden fur stood on end. His demonic eyes swept towards Kong Qing and at that moment. Yuan Zhan was filled with a savage demonic Qi, as though he had completely released his nature.


    He was a Golden Ape, a vicious ape that could rock the heavens.


    Thud. With a huge sound, Yuan Zhan launched off the ground into the air like a bolt of golden lightning above Kong Qing. He brandished the golden polearm in his hands and slammed it downwards. In an instant, Kong Qing felt as though the sky was collapsing.


    Yuan Zhan was much stronger than before.


    Clenching his fists, the divine elephant shadow behind Kong Qing merged with his body, turning into a rampaging giant elephant. He raised his fist and punched towards the golden polearm, the divine elephant attempting to suppress the heavens.


    A roaring sound could be heard as the divine elephant shadow was obliterated. Yuan Zhan''s body flew in the air, polearm shadows appearing throughout the skies, shadowing it. Kong Qing also flew into the air as martial arts mirages appeared around him. The divine elephant that could suppress the skies rushed forward.


    In the next moment, the two of their attacks clashed again. The polearm shadows and divine elephant figures clashed and the area they were in became terrifyingly rampant.


    What a terrifying force. The crowd was stunned.


    "It seems that this Zhisheng Cliffs disciple picked a tough opponent to challenge," an influential figure from a holy land said softly. At that moment, the crowd could naturally see that Yuan Zhan had not used his full strength before.


    Kong Qing seemed to have picked the wrong opponent.


    The air seemed to be bellowing as a terrifying shock wave blasted past. The divine elephant and polearm shadows flooded the area and after countless clashes, everyone could feel the horrifying omnipresent force.


    Yuan Hong was astounded. Yuan Zhan''s strength now was much stronger than he was before. If he continued following Ye Futian, Yuan Zhan''s achievements in the future would definitely exceed what he had achieved now. However, when he thought about the scene that Ye Futian had once shown him, he did not feel that it was strange. All this was only natural.


    At that moment, in the air above the battle arena, a golden polearm shadow encompassed the entire forum battle arena and cleaved downwards. Many people felt their hearts clench. The force behind this strike was shocking.


    Clang! A deafening voice was heard as the crowd saw the polearm shadows in the air disappear. At the same time, a figure landed on the ground like lightning and crashed into the battle arena with a thud.


    That figure was the Zhisheng Cliffs'' Kong Qing.


    Kong Qing has been defeated. Many people were shocked, and Kong Yao''s expression was grim.


    Looking at Yuan Zhan again, he was like a wild Demon God, holding a giant golden polearm in his hand and standing proud in the air. He looked coldly at Kong Qing on the ground. At that moment, he was at his wildest, his demonic Qi overwhelming the area.

 769 The Holy Lands Early Demise

    Evidently, Yuan Zhan had the capability to enter the top 100. He was extremely strong. Kong Qing was one of the Zhisheng Cliffs'' strongest figures in this Nine State Forum, but he was dominated by Yuan Zhan and eliminated.


    The Barren State is mystical indeed, many people thought to themselves. The Barren State was only left with seven people, and many people thought that Yuan Zhan was slightly weaker. However, after this battle, not many people would continue thinking that way.


    "The victor, Barren State, Yuan Zhan," the elder announced the result, and Zhisheng Cliffs'' experts lifted Kong Qing off the battle arena. He was in terrible condition.


    "Barren State, battle," the elder continued. After Yu State was the Barren State''s turn.


    Yuan Zhan had already been challenged, so he could not participate before everyone had battled once. Therefore, he kept his wild aura and retreated to the edge to rest.


    Many people looked at the Barren State. Who would step out from the Barren State next?


    "Zhisheng Cliffs is indeed the Yu State''s holy land. Its disciples are very strong," Ye Futian said from the viewing gallery, causing many people to look towards him. For Ye Futian to say something like that after Yuan Zhan had defeated Kong Qing sounded like sarcasm.


    As expected, after hearing his words, Kong Yao''s expression became bitter as he stared at him. However, Ye Futian acted as though he did not see it and turned towards Yu Sheng and the rest, saying, "Back then, Zhisheng Cliffs'' disciple Qin Zhong descended on the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace and dominated the Palace''s disciples. Nobody could stop him then. Now, things have changed, many of the Barren State''s disciples have grown. Since Zhisheng Cliffs'' geniuses want to spar with the Barren State''s disciples on the Nine State Forum, go ahead and challenge the Zhisheng Cliffs'' disciples."


    "This..." When the crowd heard Ye Futian''s words, they gasped. Was Ye Futian targeting Zhisheng Cliffs?


    Behind Ye Futian, Huang Jiuge, Xue Ye, and the others all had triumphant expressions. They could naturally see that this batch of Zhisheng Cliff''s disciples was not strong, but they dared to emulate Xihua Sacred Mountain''s example to target the Barren State? If so, they would grant Zhisheng Cliffs their wish and let them know their place.


    "Yes, Palace Lord," Xu Que''s voice still sounded lazy as he replied. He smiled and looked towards Zhisheng Cliffs'' disciples with a look of ridicule on his face.


    The others also nodded and Yu Sheng stepped forward.


    Seeing Yu Sheng step out, Zhisheng Cliffs'' disciples all tensed up and had an ominous premonition. Kong Yao''s expression became even more bitter. Yu Sheng was evidently the leader of the Barren State''s disciples. Based on the dominance that he had shown up until now, he was likely to be the Holy Zhi Palace''s strongest disciple.


    Now that Kong Qing had been defeated by Yuan Zhan, who in the Zhisheng Cliffs could stop Yu Sheng?


    Probably no one.


    Yu Sheng''s finger pointed towards a person in the Zhisheng Cliffs'' direction. He said, "Yuan Chen."


    On the Zhisheng Cliffs viewing gallery, Kong Yao and the rest clenched their fists as crackling sounds could be heard. Although they had already guessed it, they still had an ominous feeling when Yu Sheng challenged Yuan Chen.


    Yuan Chen and Kong Qing were the two strongest disciples from Zhisheng Cliffs taking part in the Nine State Forum. Although the others did not know, Kong Yao and the other higher-ups knew that Yuan Chen was even stronger than Kong Qing. He had already replaced Zhan Xiao and had been crowned one of Zhisheng Cliffs'' nine Sons as a Noble because of his exceptional potential.


    If Yu Sheng defeated Yuan Chen in this battle, Zhisheng Cliffs'' journey in the Nine State Forum would come to a premature end.


    Yuan Chen will definitely defeat Yu Sheng, many people thought, as though to give themselves solace. If the previous battle had not happened, they might have more confidence, but the battle between Yuan Zhan and Kong Qing was a huge blow to their morale.


    Yuan Chen himself stepped forward calmly and his gaze landed on Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng had left a deep impression on them in the first battle of the Nine State Forum, so much so that they had all forgotten that he had not taken part in many battles. However, his dominance was unparalleled, making it hard for the crowd to forget him. However, he would show them in this battle that the Barren State''s Yu Sheng was not as strong as they had thought.


    Yu Sheng did not think too much. His thoughts were much simpler. Since Ye Futian wanted to eliminate Zhisheng Cliffs, the first thing he needed to do was to eliminate Zhisheng Cliffs'' strongest cultivator. As to whether he could do it, he never even thought about it.


    "Please," Yuan Chen turned towards Yu Sheng and said.


    "Make your move." Yu Sheng did not say much. Since the opponent was one of Zhisheng Cliffs'' disciple, he did not need to be courteous.


    Yuan Chen''s eyes became demonic all of a sudden, purple lightning shining within his eyes. A shocking purple light suddenly appeared in the skies, causing a stifling feeling.


    A dark golden light flowed around Yu Sheng''s body as he stared forward. The purple lightning surrounded Yuan Chen''s body, and he slowly rose into the air, endless lightning being emitted from his eyes. In an extremely short while, the area had transformed into a lightning dimension.


    Ray after ray of terrifying light shot towards Yu Sheng''s eyes. Yu Sheng did not close his eyes and allowed the light rays to rush into his Spiritual Will and attack it. However, Yuan Chen saw a cold demon statue in Yu Sheng''s Spiritual Will.


    "What is this?" Yuan Chen frowned as he muttered to himself. Didn''t Yu Sheng cultivate in his physique? Why would his Spiritual Will become a demon statue that was impenetrable?


    At the same time, streaks of lightning shot from Yuan Chen''s body towards Yu Sheng. In an instant, thousands of lightning bolts surrounded Yu Sheng''s body, overwhelming him. The lightning had numbing and adhering powers, so it was rooted to his body. Yu Sheng lowered his head and looked at the thousands of lightning bolts. Although they were rooted to his body, their offense seemed to be on the weaker side.


    However, a cold glint flashed across Yuan Chen''s eyes at that moment. Following the lightning, boundless energy from the area rushed towards Yu Sheng. The lightning bolts flowed around his body, creating many pictures.


    "You''re courting death!" Yuan Chen''s expression was ruthless as he declared. Gradually, the lightning bolts on Yu Sheng''s body turned into a lightning beast, the Kui. At the same time, a giant Kui shadow appeared behind Yuan Chen.


    This Yu Sheng is too arrogant, many people saw the scene and thought. At that moment, the Kui surrounding his body let out a terrifying destructive aura.


    "Kill." A gleaming purple glow shot out from Yuan Chen''s eyes with intense killing intent. No matter how strong Yu Sheng''s body was, he would pay the price for underestimating him.


    As his voice landed, the Kui let out an earth-shattering roar. Lightning flashed with its roar and strands of destructive power erupted in the area. Many people around the battle arena could feel their ears ringing and their Spiritual Wills shuddering, as though they were about to explode. There were even people who closed their eyes to try and resist it.


    The destructive lightning flooded Yu Sheng''s body. Standing within the terrifying rule power, he felt as though his Spiritual Will and body were about to be shattered. Yu Sheng closed his eyes as he felt the demon statue in his head receiving powerful blows and quaking. Moreover, the explosive destructive power rushed into his body, attempting to tear him apart.


    All the forces erupted in an instant, crushing everything.


    However, at the moment when the force erupted, the golden light on Yu Sheng''s body turned into a golden whirlpool. Many people looked towards Yu Sheng''s body, and a sharp glint flashed across his eyes.


    "What''s going on?" The crowd faintly saw the burly figure standing steadily, not fazed at all. The eruption of destruction rule power was actually rushing into his body and getting stronger. It caused the lightning''s destructive power to become a torrent, quickly vanishing within the area after rushing into Yu Sheng''s body.


    It was as though it had been devoured by his body. Countless gazes froze there, staring at Yu Sheng''s figure. This was devouring rule power? Yu Sheng did not just specialize in strength, he also specialized in devouring rule power.


    Before this, the Luohou Palace''s experts had demonstrated this rare rule power. Now that Yu Sheng had also used this devouring rule power, he gave people the impression of an even stronger, even more overbearing feeling by directly devouring the attacks on his body. He used his body to use the rule power. He already had a resilient physique. Coupled with this rule power, how would they defeat him?


    Just as Yuan Chen was spacing out, Yu Sheng stepped forward and the battle arena quaked.


    Seeing Yu Sheng walk towards him, the strongest person in Zhisheng Cliffs'', Yuan Chen had a feeling of helplessness. He knew that his attack just now did not just strike his opponent''s body, but also his Spiritual Will. However, it was all pointless.


    He had no weak points.


    Boom, boom�� Yu Sheng''s body sped up and his body flew into the air, his body filled with boundless energy. Seeing the demon-like figure, Yuan Chen was in despair. If his body collided with Yu Sheng''s, what would the outcome be? Would he be disabled just like Zhan Yao?


    Yuan Chen clenched his fists and was in a dilemma. He knew that victory was impossible. The question now was, in what way would he lose?


    Would he be defeated, or concede? Could he handle the price of defeat?


    Yu Sheng''s figure got closer.


    Yuan Chen took a deep breath, saying, "I concede."


    The fist that had already swung out stopped in mid-air. Yu Sheng''s body stopped in the air, and he glanced coldly at Yuan Chen, then turned towards Zhisheng Cliffs. He ignored the grim faces and turned to walk back to the Barren State.


    Looking at his figure, many people thought that they would need to re-estimate Yu Sheng''s strength. It seemed that his strength was not just worthy of the top 100.


    Zhisheng Cliffs'' strongest disciple Yuan Chen had conceded without Yu Sheng even launching an attack at him.


    To Zhisheng Cliffs, this was a humiliation.


    Not just that, but what did Yuan Chen''s defeat mean?


    This meant that Zhisheng Cliffs had prematurely been eliminated from the Nine State Forum. Moreover, they would continue to be targeted by the other members of the Barren State!

 770 Trample Him

    On the viewing gallery, many influential figures revealed enthusiastic expressions.


    Before the Nine State Forum had begun, everyone thought that the Barren State was just here as a formality and would be eliminated quickly, becoming a witness to the Nine State Forum. The people from the Eastern State had also felt that the Barren State was only here to make up the numbers. However, at this moment, the Barren State had shown an extremely strong side. Although they had the least people, they were very resilient.


    On the other hand, the holy land from Yu State, Zhisheng Cliffs, had fallen into an awkward position. They were very likely to be the first holy land to be eliminated from the Nine State Forum. Even if some of their disciples managed to enter the top 100 because of luck, they would probably not do well. Moreover, they could have no one in the top 100.


    If that was so, the Zhisheng Cliffs'' reputation would suffer on the Nine State Forum.


    The crowd knew the enmity between Zhisheng Cliffs and the Barren State was because of the Zhisheng Cliffs bullying the Barren State. However, on the Nine State Forum, they were suppressed by the Saint-less Barren State. They wondered how the ninth on the Sage Ranking, Kong Yao, would feel.


    After a round of battles, the Barren State had participated in three of the nine battles and won two of them. Their only defeat was Zui Qianchou losing to Xihua Sacred Mountain''s strongest person, Hua Yunshu. This was already a very good result. After all, their opponents were all prodigies and they had defeated the two strongest members of the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Next, it would be the Eastern State''s turn to battle again. This time, the Eastern State did not challenge the Barren State. In reality, since the start of the battle until now, the seven people remaining in the Barren State had all proven themselves. Although Phoenix and Yi Xiaoshi''s strength were not that convincing, the others all had battles that proved themselves, such as Yuan Zhan defeating Kong Qing. If that was so, it was unwise to target the Barren State. At least, among those remaining, there were still people weaker than the Barren State.


    Moreover, the battle between the Barren State and Zhisheng Cliffs was not likely to end soon. The other holy lands were unwilling to be a part of it and would rather be onlookers.


    What was interesting was when it was Yu State''s turn to battle, it was not Zhisheng Cliffs'' disciples that battled, but the Stone Saint''s. However, when it was the Barren State''s turn, Yi Xiaoshi stepped forward and looked in the direction of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    On the viewing gallery, Ye Futian and the rest all looked towards Yi Xiaoshi, and they saw the fatty raise his head and point at one of the disciples of the Zhisheng Cliffs and say, "I challenge him."


    "Cough, cough." Ye Futian supported his head with his right hand and turned around. The others also had speechless expressions. They had thought that the arrogant fatty would challenge one of the strongest remaining disciples in the Zhisheng Cliffs. However, they did not expect that the fatty would select one of the weakest disciples.


    This�� What an interesting fatty. The Barren State''s styles were too different.


    "Second Sister, Seventh Brother is smart indeed. He found the weakest opponent in the Zhisheng Cliffs with one look, ensuring that he can defeat the opponent. He has learned well from Teacher to develop such good vision," Ye Futian looked at Zhuge Mingyue beside him and said.


    "Yes, little Seventh is smart indeed. His skin is also getting thicker. It seems as though he is in need of a lesson," Zhuge Mingyue grinned and replied.


    I said nothing, Ye Futian secretly thought to himself and turned back to watch Yi Xiaoshi.


    On the battle arena, Yi Xiaoshi had the chills all of a sudden and thought, could it be that someone is talking bad about me?


    However, on the battle arena, Yi Xiaoshi defeated his opponent decisively.


    In the next few rounds of battles.


    Hua Jieyu challenged a Zhisheng Cliffs disciple and won.


    Ye Wuchen challenged a Zhisheng Cliffs disciple and won.


    Xu Que challenged a Zhisheng Cliffs disciple and won.


    Phoenix challenged a Zhisheng Cliffs disciple and won.


    The four challenges were all victories. Moreover, all their victories were based upon Zhisheng Cliffs'' defeat.


    On the viewing gallery, Zhisheng Cliffs'' disciples all had grim expressions, especially the leading Kong Yao. He felt that he had lost all face in front of the people from the Nine States. Moreover, they had gone through six rounds of battling. In the 54 battles, 108 people had participated and 54 had been eliminated.


    The remaining seven people in the Barren State had all participated in the battles. According to the rules, before all 300 remaining participants had battled once, they would not be able to battle again.


    The Barren State was the first to make it to the next round.


    The holy lands from the other eight states continued to battle, and many confrontations between experts broke out. A few experts started to reveal their hidden strengths. Evidently, they had not given their all in the previous battles.


    Yu Sheng and the rest looked quietly, observing everyone''s strength.


    As time passed, the atmosphere became tense, even solemn. The battles also became more exciting, with each battle thrilling the crowd even more. When everyone had participated in the battles, the number of people on the Nine State Forum had decreased by half. Only 180 people remained.


    There were about 30 holy lands participating in the Nine State Forum. Adding on those from the Eastern State who were not from a holy land, every faction had about six people.


    Next, about half of them would be eliminated.


    The Summer State, Qi State, and War State had the most people remaining on average. Yu State''s Zhisheng Cliffs had the least people remaining among all the holy lands with two people.


    Previously, when the Barren State had targeted Zhisheng Cliffs, the other factions had seen that Zhisheng Cliffs was weak and had challenged them. The two remaining people had challenged others and won in order to stay in the forum. However, everyone knew that in the following battles, everyone would rush to challenge the weakest few. Zhisheng Cliffs was likely to be the prime target. There was an extremely high chance that they would be eliminated without a single person entering the top 100.


    What was even more interesting was that the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace had more people than the average amount of all the holy states remaining.


    Although the Barren State was a state, it had only one holy land participating. If they were calculating purely by holy lands, the Holy Zhi Palace still had seven people remaining. As long as they won another battle, they would enter the top 100.


    Not just them, but it was the same for everyone else. As long as they won another round, they would enter the top 100. Only 80 battles were needed for the 180 people, so 20 people could automatically enter the top 100 without battling.


    However, even without anyone challenging the remaining seven people from the Barren State, they only needed 63 battles to complete a round. So, it was impossible for the participants from the Barren State to automatically advance. They needed to obtain a victory to enter the top 100.


    "Continue," the elder announced. Without selecting the top 100, the battles would not stop. Countless people waited in anticipation. Now, every battle would decide a person in the top 100.


    An expert walked out from the Eastern State and challenged one of the remaining two from Zhisheng Cliffs. He did not have a grudge against Zhisheng Cliffs, but under the current scenario, it was naturally best to challenge the easiest person to defeat now and secure himself a spot in the top 100.


    The Eastern State''s expert was victorious.


    An expert form the Summer State also challenged Zhisheng Cliffs'' expert and won.


    As such, the participants from Zhisheng Cliffs were all eliminated.


    Zhisheng Cliffs was also the first holy land to have no disciples in the top 100, and it was very likely that they would be the only one.


    Next, an expert from the Qi State stepped forward. The person who stepped forward had an elegant demeanor and was dressed in a red robe. He had shoulder-length red and black hair to express his personality.


    He was the Jixia Holy Palace''s disciple, Wang Yu. He was extremely strong.


    After Wang Yu had stepped out, his gaze landed in the Barren State''s direction, and he said, "I challenge the Barren State''s Yi Xiaoshi."


    Previously, the fatty had challenged one of the weakest participants in the Zhisheng Cliffs and had been extremely wretched. Many people had remembered him, so Yi Xiaoshi was naturally a prime target for this round. If they could defeat this fatty, they could enter the top 100 of the Nine State Forum.


    The fatty appeared lacking in self-confidence and no longer had the arrogant attitude he had when he dealt with Zhisheng Cliffs. He walked out slowly and stared at Wang Yu.


    "The Jixia Holy Palace''s Wang Yu wishes to spar," Wang Yu said.


    Yi Xiaoshi stood upright and said in a solemn voice, "The Holy Zhi Palace''s disciple, Yi Xiaoshi wishes to spar."


    Wang Yu''s body rose slowly into the air. In an instant, an invisible flame current wafted in the air. The area suddenly became extremely hot and Wang Yu looked at Yi Xiaoshi, saying, "My specialization is fire while yours is wood." He had previously noticed that Yi Xiaoshi''s Life Spirit was an ancient tree, and fire countered wood.


    "The Tree of Emperors," Yi Xiaoshi added.


    "It''s the same," Wang Yu smiled and replied. As his voice landed, the dark flames suddenly started burning everywhere, surrounding Yi Xiaoshi within. The flame current even rushed towards Yi Xiaoshi. The entire world had turned into a hell-like flame dimension.


    Behind Yi Xiaoshi, his Life Spirit the Emperor''s Vine flourished and golden vines surged forth rapidly towards all directions, constricting Wang Yu. Wang Yu''s eyes appeared to have flames in them as boundless flame currents flowed. A giant flame pattern had formed under Yi Xiaoshi.


    "Hellfire, burn!" Wang Yu spat in a cold voice. As his voice landed, the flame pattern engulfed the entire area, turning into a flame whirlpool, submerging the area, surrounding Yi Xiaoshi''s body within. The Emperor''s Vines were destroyed and reborn under the Hellfire and were extremely resilient.


    Yi Xiaoshi was surrounded by Hellfire and let out a sigh of dejection, mumbling to himself, "The fatty is easy to bully?" His eyes turned golden and a mysterious golden glow surrounded his body. At the same time, boundless energy started to gather above him.


    "Godly Creation of All Things," Yi Xiaoshi said out loud. In an instant, boundless golden light gathered at one point and a strong Spiritual Will energy merged with Yi Xiaoshi''s body.


    Gradually, a golden ancient God appeared around his body. However, compared to the Godly Creation of All Things that Bai Luli had used during his battle with Gu Dongliu, the ancient God was much smaller.


    "A miniature?" Zhuge Mingyue saw the scene and had a strange expression.


    "Grow," Yi Xiaoshi spat. In an instant, the golden ancient God grew rapidly.


    Zhuge Mingyue looked at the rapidly growing ancient God that had exceeded Bai Luli''s back then and blinked. However, Yi Xiaoshi seemed to have no intention of stopping and continued saying, "Grow, grow, grow!"


    The ancient God got even larger, blocking out the skies like a real god. The crowd on the viewing gallery looked at the giant figure and their gazes all froze.


    Wang Yu also looked at this scene in astonishment. This was the rule of growth that was created by the wood element.


    "Trample him." At that moment, Yi Xiaoshi''s dissatisfied voice sounded out. See if you dare to bully fatties again.


    Wang Yu''s expression appeared stiff as he looked at the giant ancient God raising its leg and stomping down. His heart clenched as its foot encompassed the entire area.


    How was he going to burn this with his flames?

 771 Top Hundred

    "This..." The spectators felt speechless seeing the enormous golden ancient god figure that was unable to be burned down by Hellfire.


    "You fat*ss." Zhuge Mingyue smirked looking at the battlefield. That fat*ss had what it took to best a mighty one of Zhisheng Cliffs, yet he chose the weakest one to fight against nonetheless. Very dirty indeed.


    Wang Yu evaded and retreated. The golden huge leg stomped, causing a rumble throughout the entire forum stage. If the stage had not been one forged using matrixes by the mighty ones of the Xihua Sacred Mountain, it would have crumbled right there and then.


    The golden ancient god continued to press forward. It was something that exuded intense pressure by simply standing around. The power of rules that Wang Yu was skilled at wielding were derived from flames. It was a type of rules useful against wood elemental powers, but it was unable to do anything against the huge golden body.


    "Stomp, stomp, stomp!" Yi Xiaoshi yelled while hiding behind the ancient god''s body.


    Wang Yu stared coldly in his direction. That fat*ss sure is one goddamn *sshole.


    The ground continued to shake and Wang Yu looked awful. He eventually yelled, "I quit."


    The ancient god figure had only ceased after the line was spoken. It gradually dissipated into countless blots of light, and Yi Xiaoshi leaped from the air, saying to Wang Yu while looking at him, "Too weak. Waste of my time." Yi Xiaoshi then turned around and left in a dashing manner, leaving Wang Yu to stare at his fat silhouette.


    Too weak? Wang Yu''s fists popped loudly and clearly. He gritted his teeth and wished he could have kicked the fat guy hard right there and then. That fat*ss is just too much.


    "What the hell." Many great figures in the grandstands felt rather speechless. They were thinking that the fat participant from the Barren State really deserved to be called an *sshole.


    Regardless, Yi Xiaoshi was able to make it to the top hundred after that battle, and he also happened to be the first participant from the Barren State to make it to the top hundred.


    "The Barren State." Many turned to look in their direction, and their opinion of the Barren State gradually changed. They had thought the Barren State to be little more than just decoration, yet, the Barren State had just as many participants as the other participants from other sacred grounds at the moment. One could have easily seen that there would be at least three participants from the Barren State capable of making it to the top hundred. With that turn of events, the Barren State''s sacred ground began to look like something befitting their status.


    It was important to note that none from Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State was capable of making it to the top hundred. Such a comparison was a form of disastrous irony to many.


    The spectators at the grandstands began to look amused. They began to look forward to the top hundred places being filled and the eventual matches between the top hundred candidates, wondering how brilliant the fights would be.


    Mighty ones from Cloud State, War State, and the others continued to step forward and fight. None dared to challenge the participants from the Barren State anymore.


    Even Yi Xiaoshi had proven his strength. The one among the remaining participants from the Barren State who could be considered weak was none other than Phoenix.


    But what if she is just like the others who haven''t brought their full powers to the game just yet?


    As such, no one dared to challenge her.


    When it was the Barren State''s turn again, Phoenix was the first one to step out. Ye Futian nodded to himself, getting what Yu Sheng and the others were trying to pull with that.


    That round of eliminations had just begun, and if they were to make a move to challenge others first, there would be some weak ones available for picking. If they were to be challenged or if the rounds continued, the chances of doing so would lessen. As such, they simply let Phoenix seize the chance to make it to the top hundred.


    Phoenix did not disappoint as she ended up defeating the one she challenged. She became the second participant from the Barren State who made it to the top hundred after Yi Xiaoshi. Both of them had been thought to be the weakest before that round of battles began, yet both were able to make it to the top hundred nonetheless.


    It would be difficult to eliminate the remaining five: Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que, and Yuan Zhan.


    It was especially so in the case of Yu Sheng. There was no one who dared to challenge him unprovoked.


    That man is definitely worthy of being ranked in the top thirty. It was apparent that no top-class genius wanted to challenge him at the moment. The risk was simply too great and there was no need to do something like that so soon.


    The rounds of battles continued, with every battle ending with a participant reaching the top hundred. The spectators were especially excited. Everyone felt that every battle was even more interesting as many geniuses brought their hidden powers to bear on their opponents.


    There were participants from the Barren State who continued to step out and fight, with every single one of them winning. Yu Sheng was the last to step out. He was deemed the strongest of the one remaining. As such, he was able to defeat his opponent without a doubt, even if he was not the one picking the fight.


    When all seven participants from the Barren State were done with their respective battles, the result was all seven of them won and made it to the top hundred. With fewer and fewer participants left on the forum stage, the seven from the Barren State grew increasingly eye-catching.


    With all entire nine states taken into consideration, having seven participants from one state ranked among the top hundred was not bad. If things were considered based on sacred grounds instead, there were about 30 sacred grounds remaining, and, on average, there were only three or four representatives among each. The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, a place without a saint, took seven places instead.


    Everyone''s attention, whoever they might have been from the nine states, was fully on the Barren State. It was something that none had anticipated.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain had not anticipated such a turn of events when they invited the Barren State, nor did Zhisheng Cliffs when they went to provoke the Barren State. It made one wonder if the humility that Ye Futian had demonstrated previously when he talked to Saint Xihua was genuine.


    "The nine states aside, just look at Xihua Sacred Mountain. How many legendary figures have there been who sported immense talent? If you saw any of them, you should be humble and seek their guidance instead. Who allowed you to be so insolent?!" It was something Ye Futian said to Yu Sheng when the Nine State Forum was about to begin.


    Be humble and seek guidance?


    Handing over a holy item if none from the Barren State is able to make it to top ten?


    Is this humility?


    No, that is confidence.


    Everyone from the nine states was aware of that, but nobody spoke about that explicitly. No one would have made a scene with that knowledge, as that would have made the host, Xihua Sacred Mountain, look bad. Furthermore, Ye Futian''s behavior had been courteous. Everyone''s attitude towards the Barren State decided what the atmosphere was like at that time. His humility did not seem out of place back then.


    If anything, it was the people of the other eight states and the mighty ones of Xihua Sacred Mountain to be blamed, for looking down on the Barren State. None from the other eight states expected things to turn out this way. Even the ones from the Barren State and Ye Futian felt surprised at how things turned out. Everyone made it to the top hundred except Zui Qianchou.


    Many top-class figures who came all the way from the Barren State to witness the event felt tremendously shaken. There was no way any of them would have expected that when Ye Futian took over as Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace and ventured outside of the Barren State, he and his peers would shine so brilliantly the very first time they stood on a stage outside of the Barren State.


    Who would have thought something like this was possible?


    Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs alone had greatly embarrassed the Holy Zhi Palace once. What was more ridiculous was that there were still those in the Holy Zhi Palace who doubted Ye Futian''s decision to allow his friends to train in the Sage Hall.


    Ye Futian hardly thought much about it all. He simply thought himself to be rather lucky. With the exception of Zui Qianchou, who apparently was down on his luck, all the others had yet to meet top-class figures from other sacred grounds. The strongest Zhisheng Cliffs had to offer had also been kicked out by Yu Sheng.


    But then again, such luck was something that Yu Sheng and the others had earned with their indisputable prowess. If it had not been the participants of the Barren State bringing surprise and shock to everyone present with every single battle they fought, they would not have been treated as such. In the last round, no one other than Yi Xiaoshi had been challenged. All the others from the Barren State went to challenge the participants of other states instead, allowing them to pick comparatively weak opponents. If it had not been for their impressive show of force, they would not have been thought of as such. For instance, all from Zhisheng Cliffs were stomped on and bullied like ants, and every single one of them ended up eliminated. In conclusion, luck stemmed from and was one''s own prowess.


    The battles of the others continued while the Barren State participants were done with theirs. The rounds continued until all of the top hundred places were taken 80 battles later.


    Countless eyes turned to the forum stage. There were only 100 people standing on the vast stage, taking their places at the nine states'' corners. By then, the number of remaining participants from the Eastern State no longer proved to be of an edge when compared to Summer State and Qi State.


    The top hundred places were as such:


    The Eastern State held 13 places.


    Summer State held 15 places.


    Qi State held 14 places.


    Cloud State held 12 places.


    War State held 12 places.


    Feng State held 11 places.


    Ocean State held ten places.


    Yu State held six places.


    Barren State taking seven places.


    With the utter elimination of Zhisheng Cliffs, Yu State turned out to be the worst performer of all nine states, with one participant fewer than the Barren State. Summer State and Qi State, on the other hand, due to their formidable strength in general, turned out greater than the Eastern State, the host of the event. Of course, when things were considered only from the perspective of sacred ground forces, many would have been even more surprised. The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State had taken the most number of places of the top hundred among all other sacred grounds of the other eight states.


    It was a marvelous scene to behold.


    The most underestimated sacred ground, the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, turned out to have the most participants among the top hundred. Other than the sacred grounds, there were only three participants from the Eastern State who were not a student of a sacred ground. Furthermore, those places were taken from by top-class geniuses of sacred grounds. Every single one of those three remaining signified the elimination of a top-class genius from a sacred ground.


    That young girl, Yaya, was one of those three.


    "Congratulations to all who remain." At the moment, Saint Xihua addressed the top hundred on the forum stage from the main seat of the Eastern State. "Top-class figures of Noble Plane gathered at the Nine State Forum. Being ranked among the top hundred means that all of you are the most remarkable nobles of the younger generations throughout the nine states. There may be many who, in the future, have the right to sit at the forefront of the grandstands to witness the event."


    The people from all nine states nodded with a smile. Saint Xihua was apt with his words. Exceptional ones emerged from those top hundred and they would be qualified to be ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking in the future.


    "The Nine State Forum this year has very high standards, so much so that even I look forward to seeing the battles fought at the very end," the Great Zhou Sacred King said with a smile. Zhou Ziyi, who was sitting behind him looked rather displeased. She was eliminated right from the very first round, defeated by Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu and the other six from the Barren State, on the other hand, all made it to the top hundred, which meant that she, as a princess of a sacred dynasty, paled in comparison to Hua Jieyu. She even lost to Hua Jieyu in terms of looks.


    "What is more surprising is that the Barren State, which has not participated in the event for so many years, was surprisingly able to have seven ranked among the top hundred for the first time in a long time. This is truly surprising, and I guess my opinion is shared by many here," the Sky Saint said with a smile, and others nodded in agreement. The Glass Saint added with a smile, "Indeed. No one would have thought this would have happened when the Nine State Forum began. This also proves that Xihua Sacred Mountain had been wise to invite the Barren State to participate in the event this year."


    "It was they who had proved what they were capable of," Saint Xihua shook his head as he clarified. Everyone was able to see what was before their eyes, and that was something that even he had not anticipated. As such, he did not see fit to take credit for any of it.

 772 Banque

    Saint Xihua scanned the forum stage area after taking a look at the seven from the Barren State. He then smiled and said, "After spending so many days battling continuously, I''m sure most of our guests from all over the nine states are rather worn now. I propose to bring this segment of the Nine State Forum to a close. What do you all think?"


    Everyone nodded with a smile and had no opinion about it.


    As per tradition, the host of the Nine State Forum would throw a banquet for the guests and participants when the top hundred participants were finalized. The participants would be given three days to recuperate and prepare for the ultimate battles of the later stages of the event.


    "I''ve ordered for a banquet to be prepared, and all present here may make a move. All who hail from sacred grounds, as well as friends and family members of the top hundred, are welcomed to join," Saint Xihua said. They were obligated to treat all of the guests throughout all nine states regardless if they were able to make it to the top hundred, as they had all come a long way. As for those who were not of sacred grounds from the Eastern State, there were actually only three who made it to the top hundred, and they were invited to the banquet as well.


    Saint Xihua stood as soon as he finished, and everyone present at the event stood as well, walking towards the inner parts of the Xihua Sacred Mountain. The mighty ones from all over the Eastern State at the grandstands felt rather disappointed for not being able to witness the fights between the top hundred in one go. It made them feel rather dissatisfied but they were unable to do anything but wait.


    The Nine State Forum''s ultimate battles were to be held three days later. The clashes between top-class geniuses were ones to be looked forward to by all.


    Ye Futian and his people stood as well. Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu and the others flashed and came before him.


    "You guys did well," Ye Futian smiled and said. Their performances had given him, the Palace Lord, quite a lot of prestige.


    "We''re not done yet," Yu Sheng said. The people of the other eight states looked down on the Barren State, and Xihua Sacred Mountain never afforded them with ample respect. The top hundred was not yet enough, and they saw themselves needing to go further and higher in the ranks before they were able to stand tall for all from the other eight states to see.


    "I look forward to it." Ye Futian smiled and took a look at him. This guy has been fighting, feeling irked about things from the very beginning. His goal is, of course, higher than just the top hundred.


    "Things were awful," Zui Qianchou said rather dejectedly at the side.


    Ye Futian looked at him and smiled. "You''ve your luck to blame. It wasn''t that you were weak."


    "I''m weak and that''s the truth. It has nothing to do with luck. If I had been strong enough, I wouldn''t have lost." Zui Qianchou turned around and looked at the side where the ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain were. If Hua Yunshu had picked Yu Sheng instead, the outcome would have been unknown.


    "Stop feeling sad for yourself and let''s go party," Ye Futian smiled and said, feeling better than he had been before.


    The Nine State Forum was off to a good start. The Barren State would be able to stand on equal footing with other states in the future, and they may even be higher.


    "Let''s go," Sage Wanxiang said. Everyone walked, heading for the depths of Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    ��


    Xihua Sacred Mountain had thrown a huge banquet. The vast venue of the banquet was divided into nine separate areas. The banquet, which was capable of holding over ten thousand people, was intricately and elegantly done.


    People from all nine states arrived, and the Barren State, naturally, was still the one arranged the furthest from the host, being assigned to the very rear. However, Ye Futian and the others cared little about the arrangement as they had gotten used to it. They had to accept things due to them having no saints among them. While they still did not feel comfortable about it all, the only way to remedy the situation was for all of them to get stronger.


    The banquet was filled with fine drinks, and Zui Qianchou helped himself to it without any reservations. He did not forget to delicately savor them as he kept saying, "Good stuff indeed."


    Servant girls passed through the seats time and again; all of them pretty girls. There was also an area at the center where the beauties danced, accompanied by beautiful music, making the scene looked splendid and elegant.


    As a sacred ground of the Eastern State, Xihua Sacred Mountain had three saints. Being of such a prestigious status meant that their words held great significance, wielding unimaginable power in all sense of the word. Furthermore, those pretty servant girls were not ordinary folk. They were all cultivators, and some among them were even daughters of renowned clans in Huatian City. Such was the power wielded by people of great prestige.


    Ye Futian arrived at his seat quietly, admiring the lively scene before his eyes, thinking to himself that the sacred grounds from all over the nine states might have been at each other''s throats under the table, but they still put on a friendly, peaceful facade. The sacred grounds had only been fighting each other moments ago in the event, yet the scene before him felt like a gathering of good friends instead.


    "We cultivators don''t go out a lot. It''s a rare chance for us to be able to meet so many geniuses of the younger generations from all nine states. We''ve all gathered here today and there is no need for reservations. Treat the banquet as you would in a family gathering. Chat and drink to your hearts'' content. Discuss anything throughout the nine states. No status differences, no separation between sages and saints at this moment," Saint Xihua held his cup and said with a smile. His voice was calm and gentle. Everyone toasted. After all, it was a saint proposing a toast, and no one dared to not give face to a saint.


    "Sky Saint, we were all like them once upon a time. We were young and full of life, but time flew and here we are," Saint Xihua smiled and said.


    "It is quite amusing to see that even a saint, a being envied by countless throughout all nine states, has something to say about the passage of time," the leader of the Xia clan quipped with a smile. He knew that Saint Xihua was simply being polite. There was no one who did not want to break into the Saint Plane; a plane where one''s own powers and lifespan would undergo drastic changes. It was also a plane enabling those who reached it to become the most powerful of all men throughout the nine states. A single word from those people would affect the lives of countless people.


    "How is Senior Xia doing?" Saint Xihua asked the mighty one from Xia clan.


    "The old man is doing fine." The mighty one from Xia clan nodded. Saint Xihua might have been ranked high in seniority, but the old man in Xia clan was someone who was practically a living relic, so much so that even Saint Xihua had to address the old man as his senior.


    "I''d like to pay the old man a visit if the chance presents itself," Saint Xihua smiled and said.


    "You''re being too kind, saint," the mighty one from Xia clan said.


    On the other side, the Great Zhou Sacred King''s eyes fell onto the Glass Saint, who was sitting right beside him. He said, with his cup held up, "Glass Saint, how have you been doing all these years?"


    The Glass Saint took a look at the king with a smile and said, "I''ve been training in the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple all this while, and I''m doing fine."


    The Glass Saint''s students all turned their eyes at the Great Zhou Sacred King. They all heard the rumor about the king having gone after their teacher once upon a time, and the rumor seemed to be true after all. Their teacher was unparalleled in terms of appearance and was known to be the number one beauty throughout the Eastern State. She had turned to become more beautiful with an air of holiness about her after becoming a saint, looking like a goddess who cared not for the mundane world. However, their teacher had been training alone for years, and there seemed to be no chance for the king to do anything further with her.


    Saint Xihua, who sat beside them, had naturally heard the king ask how the Glass Saint was doing, and he smiled inside. Despite the Great Zhou Sacred King having the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in his grasp and the title of Sacred King, enjoying a level of prestige and power unimaginable to many, there were still people that he was unable to get his hands on. The Glass Saint had probably become something the king clung to.


    "Sacred King, the Glass Saint has always been renowned for her astounding beauty. Now that she has achieved sainthood, how can she be anything else but fine?" Saint Xihua added with a smile, "She is now just like you, Sacred King, a glorious symbol of a generation."


    Saint Xihua was more senior than the two of them as he hailed from an earlier time.


    "Please, Saint Xihua, we''re all of such advanced age now," the Glass Saint smiled and said. Her voice sounded crisp clear and gentle, hardly different from a girl who was in her twenties.


    "Since when did cultivators care about age?" Saint Xihua shook his head and said.


    "While that is indeed true, the time now belongs to them." The Glass Saint turned her eyes at the young geniuses from all over the nine states.


    Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King, as well as the mighty ones with them, turned to look at the ones from all over the nine states. Saint Xihua smiled and said, "Every era has its own symbol. Many performed astoundingly well in this year''s Nine State Forum. The Xia clan, Yue clan, Yi clan and the Nine State College of Summer State; the Qi clan, Jixia Holy Palace, Hall of Holy Light, and Yue House of Qi State; the Vajra Region, Luohou Palace, and Holy Temple of Ten Corners of War State; and the many other sacred ground geniuses of Yun State and the others; all of them shone brilliantly, and it seems that our Battleax of Judgment won''t be staying with Xihua Sacred Mountain for long."


    Everyone naturally knew that Saint Xihua was half-joking. If he had taken out such a holy item to serve as a prize, he was naturally prepared to part with it sooner or later.


    "Hua Yunshu of Xihua Sacred Mountain and Zhou You of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty are people who will become the champion in the end. Maybe, the holy item will stay with the Eastern State or Xihua Sacred Mountain," some mighty ones smiled and said


    "There are indeed many mighty ones to be found in this year''s event. Even I have grown excited about it all." The Sky Saint smiled and said, "Speaking of which, there is the previously underestimated Barren State. Those youngsters have indeed demonstrated uncommon prowess, especially Yu Sheng. He might actually be a dark horse."


    Many turned their eyes to where the Barren State was assigned. Yu Sheng had indeed left quite an impression. He might have actually been able to go further now that he was ranked among the top hundred. However, all who remained in the event at the moment were truly the best that the sacred grounds of all nine states had to offer, especially when it came to the later stages of the event. If Yu Sheng wanted to make it to the top ten, he would be met with the most powerful figures from many sacred grounds. The difficulty remained great. It remained to be seen if the dark horse had cards up his sleeve, and how powerful such cards were.


    "I guess we can indeed look forward to the growth of this batch''s younger generations from the Barren State," someone smiled and said.


    "I have heard that Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, was a successor appointed by the previous Palace Lord��Sage Chunyang��personally. He paid a great price having the young man take over the place, going so far as to call upon Emperor Xia. If the students from the Barren State were able to perform so well this year, the Palace Lord himself must be someone more exceptional," someone looked at Ye Futian and said.


    They were not the only ones with such a thought. Many shared the same opinion. Yu Sheng had proven himself as someone incredibly exceptional. Other than him, there were Hua Jieyu, Xu Que and the rest. All of them were proud sons and daughters, and all of them were willing to simply play at the sides. The Palace Lord from the Barren State, Ye Futian, was someone of the same generation, and all those people were willing to follow his lead. As such, it was anyone''s guess what the Palace Lord of a sacred ground of the Barren State, who currently was seen sitting quietly, would be like.


    Many felt curious about him.


    "I have heard from Qingni, a student of mine, that Ye Futian led the students of the Holy Zhi Palace to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game at the Chess Saint Villa, capable of playing nine different play styles all on his own." The Glass Saint turned to look at Ye Futian and smiled faintly. "If he had not broken into Sage Plane, he would have participated in the Nine State Forum, and we would have gotten to see what he is truly made of."


    "You''re being too kind, Glass Saint. My plane is still weak and there are so many talented people to be found in all the other eight states. I dare not speak of my own talents in such a place," Ye Futian lowered his head and said, not looking at the eyes of the Glass Saint. While the Glass Saint was a saint, she was, nonetheless, a beauty like none other. If he were to somehow end up leering at her, he would have gravely offended a saint.


    "You''re too humble," the Glass Saint smiled and said.


    "All nine of the students of Chess Saint Villa are here." Someone looked behind Saint Xihua. All nine of those students were standing beside Liu Zong.


    "While Ye Futian demonstrated his uncanny talents by breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, the Chess Saint chose Liu Zong. It seems that Liu Zong will perhaps become a successor of the saints," the Great Zhou Sacred King smiled and said.


    "You''re being too kind, Sacred King. I was only the earlier one to break the game instead of Palace Lord Ye. His prowess at chess is in no way inferior to mine," Liu Zong said with a smile, in a dashing manner.


    Many praised him in their hearts. That is Liu Zong indeed.

 773 Provocation and Retaliation

    The Great Zhou Sacred King looked at Liu Zong and smiled, saying, "Well, we have so many proud sons and daughters here today, all in such a good mood. Are there any of the young people who''d like to show what they''ve got for a little bit?"


    "Sacred King, while it is true that many here are our juniors, many of them are already sages. It would be rather unsuitable to have them perform. Wouldn''t it be fun to simply admire the dance and the music while chatting and drinking away?"


    "Speaking of dance and music, I heard that there''re people from Yue House today. The ones that you hired pale in comparison," the Great Zhou Sacred King then took a look at the Qi State''s corner.


    "True words indeed. Who in the nine states doesn''t know that the Yue House excels in such performing arts, better than anyone else throughout the nine states?" Saint Xihua said.


    "Please, you''re being too kind," the people from Yue House bowed and said to Saint Xihua. "Since both Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King are in such a pleasant mood, Liuyun, how about you play something for everyone?" He looked at a young man who was dressed in a clean white robe beside him. The young man looked pleasant and dashing, with a hint of air of sorrow about him.


    "Yue Liuyun." An elder from the Jixia Holy Palace said, "One among the younger generation of Yue House known to be incredibly talented in the art of music, and the personal student of the Music Saint. Everyone here is in for a treat today indeed."


    "Is that so?" The people of the other states all looked rather amused, and their interests were piqued as they looked at the young man. He had not participated in the Nine State Forum, which meant that he was probably a young age, who happened to look incredibly dashing.


    "You''re dismissed." Saint Xihua waved at the girl who was playing music at the moment. The troupe all rose and bowed, leaving the stage shortly after.


    Yue Liuyun stepped onto the stage slowly, cupping his hands and saying, "I hope you''ll find my performance to your liking."


    "Please," Saint Xihua smiled and said in a friendly manner.


    Yue Liuyun sat before the guqin and put all of his fingers on the strings. He looked as if he had turned into someone else in an instant. A crisp sound was heard from the strings as his fingers moved, playing a bright and light-hearted tune. The music from the guqin slowly rose in volume, bringing a powerful air with it, easily enabling all within earshot to steep into the scene illustrated by the sound of the instrument. The guqin''s sound was loud and sonorous, like a high and mighty song. It was as if heroes had gathered there. Figures of legends were everywhere, steeping themselves in martial arts, fighting each other on the battlefield. There were dragons howling in the sea and phoenixes crying in the sky.


    Many vaguely saw silhouettes of elusive figures, with the shadows of true dragons and phoenixes appearing. At that moment, everyone felt as if they had been brought back to the forum stage of the Nine State Forum, fighting on the stage and seeing who among the geniuses from all nine states would be crowned champion.


    The power of the sound was incredibly penetrative, enabling one to feel as if they were in the scene itself. There was no noise of any kind heard in the banquet but the sound of the guqin. Many looked at Yue Liuyun and found the young man looking incredibly dashing while performing with astounding skills.


    The loud music gradually took a more tranquil tone. The elders chatted away, and things had calmed. It was as if the battlefield scenes had turned into that of a banquet. The song had a hint of flightiness in it, as if the song was one from the heavens, with clouds floating around and spreading all over the banquet, making it seem like a banquet held among the gods. Colorful phoenixes soared above the clouds and danced about. The scene looked incredibly peaceful and prosperous.


    "Splendid." Many lifted their heads and could not help but gasped. The young man is indeed a capable student of Yue House. His music indeed sounds like its from the heavens.


    The sound of the song gradually ebbed, but many were still steeped within that mood. Many great figures throughout the nine states smiled, and Saint Xihua did not hold anything back when singing praises to the young man, saying, "The Yue House is indeed the number one in the art of song and dance throughout the nine states. Be it guqin or flutes or anything else; all are known throughout the nine states. I have experienced it and tell that it is all true today."


    "You''re too kind, senior." Yue Liuyun behaved in a composed manner. He slowly rose and bowed, returning to the area assigned to Yue House of Qi State shortly after.


    "I think the song has probably gotten quite a number of girls falling in love with him," the Great Zhou Sacred King said with a smile. There was something charismatic about performances by musical sorcerers indeed. Yue Liuyun was among the best of them, which made his performance even more exceptional and charming.


    "Do you know that other than the Yue House, there is another one of the younger generations from the nine states who is incredibly capable in the musical arts, Saint Xihua? His aptitude at the art is, I dare say, comparable to that of the students of Yue House," a voice said. Many turned to look at the one who spoke, and it was none other than Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State.


    Many wore peculiar looks on their faces. Participants of Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State had all been eliminated, and it was an incredibly embarrassing matter. As such, none expected Kong Yao to actually speak at the banquet.


    "And who might that be?" Saint Xihua asked with a smile. Kong Yao''s words piqued the interests of many. One whose aptitude in the musical arts is comparable to that of the students of Yue House? That''s probably quite an exaggeration.


    "Have you all heard of the Ukiyo Song?" Kong Yao said.


    "The Ukiyo Song composed by Donghuang the Great?" Saint Xihua''s expression turned solemn. The higher one''s plane was, the greater one''s respect became for someone at a level like Donghuang the Great from the bottom of their heart, so much so the mention of Donghuang the Great''s name required one to behave seriously and solemnly.


    "Indeed." Kong Yao nodded. "There is one of the young generation among us capable of playing the song left by such a great figure."


    "Who would that be?" Saint Xihua asked, and many turned to look at Kong Yao. Even the people of Yue House were rather interested.


    "It is none other than Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State," Kong Yao said. Everyone was stunned for a moment when he finished speaking, before turning their eyes at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian sat quietly where he was and felt rather cold inside, hearing Kong Yao''s words. Zhisheng Cliffs and the Barren State, in general, were enemies. If it had not been for the appearance of Emperor Xia, Zhisheng Cliffs would have had Ye Futian killed. With the beef between them having worsened during the Nine State Forum, Kong Yao would probably want nothing more than to kill Ye Futian where he sat.


    As such, it was apparent that Kong Yao had ill intentions mentioning Ye Futian at such a place, wanting to embarrass him in front of the crowd. When Saint Xihua said that Yue House of Qi State was number one in the musical arts, Kong Yao went on to immediately tell everyone that Ye Futian knew the Ukiyo Song.


    Ye Futian had played a song during the battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace. Kong Yao would have easily found out a lot if he really wanted to dig for information. Furthermore, the Ukiyo Song was not a secret. However, Kong Yao''s action of mentioning that at a time and place like this spoke volumes of his ill intentions.


    Everyone from the other states looked on with curious expressions. Ye Futian was chosen as a leader of a sacred ground of the Barren State when he was still just a noble. The Glass Saint had also said that he broke the Celestial Dragon Chess Game a short while ago, which naturally meant that he had exceptional skills in chess. Now, Kong Yao came up and told everyone that Ye Futian knew the Ukiyo Song, the song that an emperor composed.


    Is there anything that this Palace Lord of Barren State isn''t good at?


    "Is it true?" Saint Xihua asked with a smile.


    "I had come across the score of the Ukiyo Song by chance in the past, and I have been practicing it since. Yet, I''ve been unable to understand more than what is on the surface, even now. My skills are currently unfit for a performance." Ye Futian said humbly, "The Ukiyo Song is a song of emperors. My plane is low, and I''m still unable to grasp the key parts of the piece."


    "You''ve played marvelously outside the Holy Zhi Palace in the place, Ye Futian, why so humble now?" Kong Yao said plainly, "Everyone is in a mood for a song right now, why not play the song of emperors and entertain everyone for a bit?"


    Many from the Barren State side went to glare at Kong Yao when he said those words. Unlike Yue Liuyun, Ye Futian''s current status was a leader of the Barren State. Are you really telling Ye Futian to play and entertain everyone, the people of other sacred grounds here, Kong Yao?


    It would not have mattered if Ye Futian was just one of the younger generations from a sacred ground like Yue Liuyun, but his current status was a Palace Lord, so it was obvious that Kong Yao was deliberately insulting Ye Futian.


    Many looked at Ye Futian, but none said anything. Ye Futian smiled and said, "I dare not show off in front of the seniors of the nine states, but since you put it that way, I''d be willing to play a song. It would naturally be better if someone could accompany the song with a martial arts performance. Would you be in the mood to perform for us, Senior Kong?"


    "There are so many geniuses from the Barren State and there are also many from the Holy Zhi Palace. As such, I don''t see any need for me to perform." Kong Yao then added plainly, "Given your reluctant attitude about the matter, Palace Lord Ye, would I be wrong to assume that you think no one from the nine states is worthy enough to hear you play?" Kong Yao''s words were as sharp as blades, cornering Ye Futian at every turn.


    Ye Futian looked at Kong Yao and then saw many looking at him. He then smiled and said, "Well, since there are so many who are in such a mood, I hope my performance is to your liking."


    He stood up right after he finished and walked to the guqin. Many eyes were on him. Ye Futian sat down quietly, and just like Yue Liuyun, the air emanating from him felt different within an instant. He was quiet and tranquil, no longer looking like the exceptionally capable young Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. At the moment, he was simply a musical sorcerer.


    Ye Futian was handsome and had an exceptional bearing. When his slender ten fingers began to pluck at the strings, the sound of the guqin penetrated the minds of many, enabling all to enter the scenes illustrated by the song of his music. Many were able to tell right from the second he started playing, that his proficiency at the art was not inferior to Yue Liuyun''s.


    The sound of the music was winding, crisp, and pleasant to the ear. The tone was low, and it seemed as if he was telling a story with music. It was an ancient tale. The main characters of the tale were two young men who were growing, witnessing the fickleness of human nature and how the strong preyed on the weak, yet they persevered with the initial intentions and grew along the way. Ye Futian''s emotions at the moment were infused within the song, which made it felt as if he was telling a story about how he was being treated in the Nine State Forum, prompting many to wear peculiar expressions. However, no one interrupted him. The illustrations of the song resonated within the minds of many. It presented the images right before them, enabling them to witness the growth of legendary figures.


    At the moment, someone was seen walking out, and many turned in that direction. That someone turned out to be Huang Jiuge, a student of the Holy Zhi Palace. Huang Jiuge bowed to Saint Xihua and said, "The Palace Lord claimed that it would be best to have someone accompany the song with a martial arts performance. My name is Huang Jiuge, and I''m a young student of the Holy Zhi Palace. I would like to perform with the song."


    "You may." Saint Xihua nodded. Huang Jiuge walked out and came to stand behind Ye Futian. He turned around to face Zhisheng Cliffs and said, "Before I came to become a student of the Holy Zhi Palace, I heard that the Son of Zhisheng Cliffs, Qin Zhong, had been to the Holy Zhi Palace and bested many of the students. I''d like to spar with a student of your sacred ground as a way to accompany the song."


    Kong Yao frowned. Is the Holy Zhi Palace retaliating now?


    At the moment, the sound of the guqin gradually grew louder and came to sound more penetrative. If there were people to accompany the song with martial arts, things would indeed be more interesting.


    "This is the banquet of the Nine State Forum and ill-suited for sparring," Kong Yao said plainly.


    "I''ve acquired permission from the saint. Given how you''re so reluctant to perform as requested, would I be wrong to assume that you deem the people of the nine states unworthy of witnessing a Son of Zhisheng Cliffs perform?" Huang Jiuge said, returning the words of Kong Yao right back at him.


    Kong Yao glared at Huang Jiuge with cold eyes. He had never expected a student his junior would actually dare speak to him like that.


    Qin Zhong turned his eyes at Huang Jiuge. As one of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs, he saw fit to rise up, seeing how they were being challenged by a student of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "If you''re in such a mood, I''d be willing to oblige." Qin Zhong walked out slowly and came to stand somewhere not far away from Ye Futian. He then said, "Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs, pleased to make your acquaintance."


    "Huang Jiuge of the Holy Zhi Palace, pleased to make your acquaintance."


    Both gestured courteously at each other in a dashing manner, yet there was a formless aura clashing in the space right before them!

 774 Curiosity

    Qin Zhong, one of the Nine Warriors of the Zhisheng Cliffs, had always been known as the most talented fighter amongst the youngest generation. He was the Vanquisher of Sage in the Noble Peak Realm, the strongest amongst his peers at the Cliffs, but had lost at the hands of Ye Futian.


    Huang Jiuge, descendent of the Sovereign Family, placed second in the Law Battle of Holy Zhi Palace. Ye Futian, being the winner, later entered the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate.


    Huang Juige and Qin Zhong were individuals with refined temperament, and when they stood face to face an invisible current began to course around them. As if to accentuate the moment''s tension, Ye Futian''s musical notes gradually became higher and higher; the Emperor had started his journey to conquer the world.


    Massive air spheres began to collide, the ensuing gusts running wildly over Huang Jiuge and Qin Zhong until their clothing was tattered and windblown. Qin Zhong immediately perceived a great aura of suppression, and faintly observed that the area was being repressed by a massive shadow; he knew that Huang Jiuge was releasing his rule power.


    Buzz. Inconceivable, brilliant rays of gold flashed down from the skies, pulverizing all other power. With a long, shrill cry a divine bird appeared. A Dragon Eagle, its golden torso sparkling and each feather sharp. A forceful cyclone formed, the shadow of the Dragon Eagle continued to expand, and a golden hurricane manifested between heaven and earth. A countless number of feathers shot out, sailing across the space towards Huang Jiuge.


    It was truly a battle of the sages; those stronger than the nobles, with minds that could kill across sheer space.


    Boom! An equally shocking wave exploded upon Huang Jiuge''s body, and illusions of combat began to appear, simulating a battlefield. Knights with war spears upon chariots swept across the field.


    Spears stretched out and clashed with the feathers of the golden Dragon Eagle mid-air, creating a terrible storm. The two entities poised in the midst of this dreadful battlefield with the music soaring ever higher, piercing the battlefield and reaching the ears of all involved. At this moment, the dignitaries of Nine State felt less like they were at a banquet, and more like they were in the middle of a battlefield filled with spears and horses.


    Just then Qin Zhong''s body began to slowly levitate, the great wings of the Dragon Eagle spreading. From the firmament came an even more frightful storm; some dignitaries at the banquet even began to set up defenses to isolate the interference of the battlefield.


    Many looked up toward Qin Zhong; he appeared brilliantly beautiful at this moment.


    The Dragon Eagle glided in the sky, while Qin Zhong stretched out his palms and pointed toward the sky. Sudden deadly streams of gold shot through the air, each one resembling a glittering and arrogant Dragon Eagle soaring towards Huang Jiuge.


    A Renhuang Bow appeared abruptly in front of Huang Jiuge. With the Renhuang Bow in his hand, an immensely powerful spiritual energy locked onto the incoming attacks. Threads of rule power turned into arrows, propelled by the bowstring to pierce through the space with incredible speed. The sound of continuous blasts announced the simultaneous destruction of every Dragon Eagle illusion headed his way.


    The glittering arrows even locked onto Qin Zhong, descending upon him. Qin Zhong was surrounded by a moving, destructive storm, the shining golden feathers of the Dragon Eagle shielding his front. When the arrows contacted the Eagle''s feathers, there were clear sounds of impact that signaled their intention to punch through. But the great feathers trembled violently and sent streams of destructive golden rays to crush the arrows.


    As the beautiful feathers fluttered through the space, Qin Zhong''s eyes focused on Huang Jiuge, and the feathers trembled again. Qin Zhong''s body became a shining arc and the golden feathers of the Dragon Eagle slashed through the sky, sharper than any sword blade. Shrieking, the feathers flew through the expanse like golden lightning, as if to bisect Huang Jiuge''s body.


    Almost at the same instant, an impressive shadow appeared behind Huang Jiuge resembling the Absolute Renhuang and wielding the Renhuang Sword. It cleaved toward the expanse with piercing lightning as it slashed towards the descending Dragon Eagle.


    BOOM!


    A blinding light exploded from where the two entities collided, destructive waves coiling around the surrounding area as the immense Dragon Eagle was propelled upward toward the firmament by the shock.


    "How strong!" The onlookers felt the exhilaration of the collision, and silently applauded. Such strength would indicate the character of an unmatched genius.


    Within the battlefield, Huang Jiuge''s body rose gradually into the air, the solemnity radiating from the Renhuang Body enveloping the earth and sky. Dreadful illusions of war instantly appeared, surrounding the area and suppressing the firmament.


    Suppression rule power, and an exceptionally unusual one at that, many people thought. Huang Jiuge was a Spirit Elemental Mandate Sorcerer, but he mainly trained in martial arts. This rule of Martial Will took command of the expanse, turning the space into his own arena.


    Racing chariots and other martial illusions swept out across the field as Qin Zhong''s body became one with the Life Spirit of the Dragon Eagle circling above, its gnashing wings turning into a golden storm that immolated the powers that attacked him.


    "Cut and pulverize." Qin Zhong''s rule power was equally devastating. After all, he was known to be the most naturally gifted among the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Just then, the piercing power of the string music became even greater, as if the battle between the two had no bearing on the contagious power of the music. It made the blood boil, and as if to witness the coming of the Emperor the music endowed rays of holiness upon Huang Jiuge. Naturally, everyone could sense that there were no additional powers afoot; it would be impossible for Ye Futian to play tricks in front of the saints.


    "There have always been rumors that the Sovereign Family of the Barren State was also the descendant of the ancient Renhuang clan, so this Huang Jiuge should be the descendant of the Barren State Sovereign Family. This kind of power indeed resembles that of Renhuang''s descendants," commented the cultivator of the Xia Clan. Many looked at him with smile. Nine State had even more successors; Xia Clan itself was a branch from the Emperor Xia.


    In the meantime, the Renhuang Body took possession of Huang Jiuge. He appeared as the true Renhuang now, stepping out wielding the Renhuang Sword while the power of his suppression rule crushed the space nearby. At the same time, behind Qin Zhong, all the feathers on the Dragon Eagle shone brightly, bursting with power as wild winds blew across the expanse.


    Huang Jiuge stepped across the field, the shadow of Renhuang wielding its sword slashing down towards Qin Zhong. But the Dragon Eagle behind him flapped and expanded its wings furiously, every feather continually extending and turning into two sharp blades that cut through the expanse.


    An even more powerful collision than the last was now at hand; Renhuang smashed straight down and the Dragon Eagle''s wings covered the sky.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Again and again the attacks exploded against each other, the destructive power surging up from the earth and towards the sky. In front of the banquet the dignitaries set up an even stronger light screen to guard against the waves of battle.


    BAM! Another loud blast. The current of destruction remained, but the battle had finally stopped.


    Everyone turned their gaze to the battlefield and saw that Qin Zhong had been blasted into the ground, the feathers of the Dragon Eagle scattered and broken while Huang Jiuge held the Renhuang Sword aloft, in front of Ye Futian. Even now Ye Futian continued playing as the climax of the piece approached its end, slowly bringing closure to the piece. He controlled the rhythm of the music skillfully, keeping it hidden in the background, and allowing the music to revolve around the cadence of the battle.


    In this fight, Qin Zhong of Zhisheng Cliffs had been defeated.


    Qin Zhong looked at Huang Jiuge, the breath in his body fluttered. He lay defeated by a great suppressive power. No tricks, just an incredibly aggressive offensive. And then he turned to look at Ye Futian. In the past when he stepped into the Barren State Law Palace, the public opinion of Law Battle Platform swept the disciples of the Law Palace, and all thought that the Barren State had no talent. But Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge both defeated him. And then there was Yu Sheng, who, if at the same plane as he, the outcome would be unknown.


    Cultivators were abundant in the land of the Nine States, but Qin Zhong was defeated by several from the Barren State alone. He thought of his past pride and found it foolish. From now on he needed to reflect upon himself and concentrate on training.


    Then Ye Futian stood up, bowed slightly to Xihua Saint and said, "I beg your indulgence." Ye Futian turned and walked towards his seat, followed by Huang Jiuge. Nothing more was said, and nothing more needed to be said.


    Kong Yao had wanted to make a fuss at the banquet; this battle had been enough of a response to him.


    In the direction of Zhisheng Cliffs, Kong Yao''s countenance was extremely foul. This time at the Nine States Forum, not only were all the disciples of Zhisheng Cliffs eliminated, but Qin Zhong had been defeated again by the Barren State at the banquet. All the geniuses at Zhisheng Cliffs were crushed by disciples of the Barren State; this was an unimaginable humiliation.


    "Spectacular," Xihua Saint lauded approvingly.


    "Indeed, spectacular," nodded the Glass Saint, smiling. "both the martial arts, and the music."


    Everyone nodded in agreement. In this battle there was one more person from the Barren State who had demonstrated his strength, and even in such a battle, the brilliance of the music could not be overshadowed. Praise given towards the music was therefore considerable.


    Many watched Ye Futian as he sat down, while Huang Jiuge quietly sat behind him and the thought from before had started to manifest again. Yu Sheng, Xu Que, and many other extraordinary individuals were incredibly distinguished but the leader of the younger generation of the Barren State was Ye Futian. These people all gathered together around him. No one, young or old, would dissent.


    The same praise was heaped upon Huang Jiuge, who had truly fought the battle for Ye Futian to spite Kong Yao. So many excellent figures had gathered around that handsome youth. Just exactly what was his attraction? Or just how mighty was Ye Futian''s talent?


    "I''m so curious about the strength of this young Lord Ye." Great Zhou Sacred King laughed. The curiosity was not merely from him, but many others at the banquet.


    In chess, he could crack the Divine Dragon Board.


    In music, he could play the Emperor''s Ukiyo with unparalleled excellence.


    In martial arts, he had defeated Qi Zhong, had surpassed all his peers in the Barren State, and had been elected as Palace Lord by many top sages as the leader of the Barren State.


    Such a figure would indeed ignite the curiosity of many, especially after Yu Sheng, Huang Jiuge, and all of the others had already showcased their excellence!

 775 Beholden by All

    Ye Futian glanced at the Great Zhou Sacred King, whose eyes sparkled with mirth despite the imperial authority that radiated from him. Amongst all the saints, he seemed the hardest to approach. He was the King of the Sacred Dynasty and ruled an empire; his authority was undisputed and a word from him could determine the lives and deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.


    "I am young, my cultivation is unrefined, and I have not belonged to the Sages for long. I dare not speak of my strength in the presence of such illustrious company," said Ye Futian with humility.


    Great Zhou Sacred King looked at him, and he could see that this young lord was not as modest as he appeared but was quite the opposite. Judging from the later performance of Yu Sheng and the others, Ye Futian was extremely confident and proud.


    Ye Futian had stated that if Yu Sheng could not enter the top ten, he would bequeath a divine implement to Xihua Sacred Mountain. Great Zhou Sacred King had not quite understood the offer, but now realized that this offer was a demonstration of Ye Futian''s extreme confidence. He had thought that Yu Sheng, a disciple of the Law Palace, was certain to be among the top ten. But the Great Zhou Sacred King was also a confident and proud individual since his youth; he could feel that he and Ye Futian were two of a kind. However, he was still young, a fledgling.


    "You ought to know that what I meant wasn''t just about the Plane," said the Great Zhou Sacred King with a laugh, looking at Ye Futian. "Modesty in excess is hypocrisy."


    Many of the others looked at the Great Zhou Sacred King and saw a nonchalant smile on his face. A slight shock flickered in Ye Futian''s eyes, but he quickly smiled and nodded. "Rightly so, Sacred King," he replied.


    Behind the Great Zhou Sacred King, Zhou Ziyi watched Ye Futian coolly. She felt that Ye Futian was being insincere, only pretending to be humble and polite. And now that he had been admonished, the man was speechless.


    "The Barren State has no saints and is ranked last among the Nine States. Because talented individuals are few and far in between, this explosive confluence of the Barren State''s youngest generation is particularly interesting," said another strong cultivator. Many agreed, understanding the reasoning: the contrast of their previous slight and the current rise of Barren State astonished everyone.


    "Look at the Battle of the Hundred at the Nine State Forum��seven are from the Barren State; the most out of all the holy lands. How many of the seven will make it to the top ten?" another piped up.


    "If they make it to the top ten, perhaps the venerated Saint will need to prepare another divine implement," someone joked.


    Saint Xihua idly regarded Ye Futian, and then smiled. "Drink everyone, as you please."


    The banquet continued, and the mood was festive, but people from the Nine State Holy Land had thoughts of their own. At this moment, everyone anticipated that their own holy land would rank high in the Battle of the Hundred at the Nine State Forum. Ye Futian and the others were still minding themselves. The cultivators from the Barren State seemed a bit dull, as if they did not truly belong. They understood that the lack of saints in the Barren State was an original sin, which justified the superiority of all other holy lands of the Nine States above them. But for the many cultivators who came from the Barren State, to be able to have a seat here and witness Ye Futian had caused the geniuses of the younger generation from the Barren State to shine on the stage of the Nine State Forum; it was vindication itself.


    Perhaps now the Barren State only needed a little more time.


    As the relaxed atmosphere was maintained within the banquet, many people started to mingle and drink. Ye Futian stayed where he was but a group headed towards him, led by none other than Liu Zong, who raised a goblet in front of him and smiled. "To Lord Ye," he toasted.


    Ye Futian smiled and raised his cup, and the two drank together. Behind Liu Zong was the disciple of the Chess Saint, Yang Xiao, who laughingly said, "Lord Ye led the disciples of the Barren State to excel at the Nine State Forum! Congratulations!"


    "Overstated, elder," said Ye Futian, spying Jiu Gongzi behind the crowd as he continued, "Jiu Gongzi, we meet again."


    Jiu Gongzi shrugged. He liked Ye Futian, who was generally easygoing and free-spirited but most dedicated while cultivating. He observed that quality when Ye Futian had first started with Chess, but unfortunately the master chose Liu Zong as his apprentice instead.


    "Clan leader Ye, perhaps you will consider my suggestion at Chess Saint Villa," Liu Zong said with a grin.


    "I have considered it," replied Ye Futian.


    "Good." Liu Zong raised his cup in acknowledgment before turning to leave.


    Just then another man arrived, arrayed in elaborate gold with phoenixes magnificently embroidered upon his clothing. He walked beside Ye Futian and said, "Zhou Ya of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Perhaps there will be an opportunity to be advised by Lord Ye''s talent."


    Many people watched attentively; Liu Zong and Zhou Ya were both from the Sage Plane: one was even valued by the Three Saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain, and very likely to be named as a saint in the future. Zhou Ya, also prestigious, was rumored to possibly be the heir of the Great Zhou Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    And both approached Ye Futian inquisitively, apparently quite curious about him. Not only them, but many other notable noble geniuses at the Nine State Forum were in attendance, with a significant number of them hailing from other holy lands. They were extremely fascinated by geniuses from other holy lands, especially those who had missed the original Nine State Forum.


    After the banquet ended, everyone from the Nine States dissipated. Ye Futian and the others returned to their lodging in Huatian City.


    Huatian City was now a picture of prosperity, with everyone discussing the strongest 100 in the impending and explosive Battle of the Hundred. Some gambling dens even started odds for the top ten, with the most intense interest landing on who would be the first of the Nine State Forum. Those who were in attendance of the Nine State Forum wondered who would stand on the summit of the Nine State Forum.


    Hua Yunshu of Xihua Sacred Mountain?


    The genius, Zhou You of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty?


    Or even that unparalleled figure from the Xia Clan?


    Of course, the Qi Clan, Vajra Region, Hall of Holy Light, Yue Clan, and every other principality would have at least one powerful figure, and these figures would all be possible candidates at the summit. Until the final battle, all there was to do was guess, and everyone had their own opinion.


    Aside from that, there was one other who was mentioned frequently, and that was Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace from the Barren State. Yu Sheng plowed through his opponents in every battle even though he was from the Barren State, but until today, no one could truly fathom the depth of his strength.


    Could it really be as Ye Futian had hoped, that he would step into the top ten?


    Nine States had nearly 30 holy lands competing for the top ten; its power was unimaginable. No one could claim absolute confidence in Yu Sheng, even if his performance was extremely solid. No one could dare to declare his place among the top ten; they could only say that such a possibility existed.


    For many people and their expectations, three days was an indeterminably long time.


    Inside their palace, Ye Futian''s Barren State congregation were all present and ready to depart. Looking up at the sky, Ye Futian focused his attention to those in front of him. He surveyed Yu Sheng and the rest, then smiled. "Do you have the confidence?"


    The Battle of the Hundred that followed would only be the strong versus the strong, there would be no more weak links, so any battle fought would be hard won. Out of the seven, how many would last until the end?


    Even Ye Futian himself could not be sure. He knew that when he stepped out of the Sage Hall there would be no weaklings amongst them. The hundred strongest were from all holy lands in the Nine States and would be equal to them in strength.


    It would be a matter of who was the strongest.


    "Just wait and see." Xu Que seemed distracted. Confidence was not something of great practicality. Naturally, the competitors all felt themselves to be the strongest, but that did not mean the others were weak.


    Ye Futian glared at him, the lily-livered jellyfish.


    "Seventh Brother, do not weaken the reputation of our Cottage, " Ye Futian said to Yi Xiaoshi with a smile. Fatty puckered as he spoke, "Yu Sheng is only half a disciple of the Cottage." So long as Yu Sheng was in the front, he did not feel overly pressured.


    "Yu Sheng." Ye Futian looked at the massive frame standing before him and laughed. "People from the Nine States are all prideful, prizing their own holy land geniuses. Let us give them a surprise."


    Naturally, Yu Sheng wasn''t concerned, but he wished the others could advance as well.


    "No matter what happens at the Nine State Forum this time, we of the Barren States will not fall weaker than any other state. That is enough," said Sage Wanxiang. His goal was simple: The Barren State had been slighted by the Nine States, and his only wish was that the Barren State wouldn''t lose to its competitors. The rest needed time; proceeding forwards would not simply be a matter of days.


    "Of course not." Ye Futian said, "Very well, it''s time. Let''s go."


    Everyone nodded and proceeded to depart, in quite a formation, towards the direction of Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Many gathered at the foot of Xihua Sacred Mountain, moving upward along the stairs. This day, all of Huatian City was exuberant thanks to the gathering of the cultivators.


    Nine State Forum, the final Battle of the Hundred, was finally about to begin.


    When Ye Futian and the others arrived many were already present, and cultivators from the Nine States gradually began to enter. Still at the seat he occupied the previous day, Ye Futian could hear discussions behind him about today''s Battle of the Hundred.


    "Delegates from the Barren State have arrived. I heard that three days ago, Saint Xihua hosted a banquet where Lord Ye Futian performed an Imperial Ode, and Huang Jiuge, disciple of the Law Palace, challenged and defeated Qin Zhong of the Zhisheng Cliffs."


    "I heard. Zhisheng Cliffs was disgraced this time. This young generation of the Barren State is indeed excellent. If Yu Sheng can take one of the top ten, that would be an ideal result."


    "Exactly. If he can enter the top ten, Saint Xihua even agreed to apologize. But even though Yu Sheng is magnificent, entering the top ten is still a tough proposition. Perhaps he has some hidden strength that we have not yet seen."


    The crowd continued to speculate, and while many voices entered Ye Futian''s ears he only smiled indifferently.


    Yu Sheng, top ten? After this battle, everyone from the Nine State would forever remember Yu Sheng''s name.


    In the opposite direction, Saint Xihua arrived with the cultivators of the Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Xia State holy land. Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Glass Saint, and Sky Saint arrived from the expanse, and landed in the east, inciting great excitement amongst the people.


    The peak battle of the Nine State Forum was about to begin!

 776 Tit-for-ta

    After waiting for some time, the sun hung in the east and shone on the battle arena. Saint Xihua, the Great Zhou Sacred King, the Sky Saint, the Glass Saint, and the other Saints sat high up, looking at the crowd. At that moment, the elder hosting the Nine State Forum stood at the east edge of the battle arena and announced, "The top 100 from the Nine State Forum, enter the arena." As his voice landed, the top 100 cultivators from the Nine States forum stepped forward onto the battle arena. Beside Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu looked at him and stood up.


    "Don''t feel pressured, the ranking is unimportant," Ye Futian smiled and reminded her.


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu nodded softly and replied, then turned around and walked off. Although Ye Futian had claimed that the ranking was not important, she knew that it was definitely important. If the Barren State''s disciples did not obtain a good ranking, the already ostracized Barren State would be even more underestimated by others and be unable to gain respect. As such, the four of them would do their best to obtain a good ranking in the battle.


    Ye Futian looked at their figures and felt a sense of pensiveness. He had a bitter smile as he shook his head, what were these fellows thinking? The Nine States'' top 100 stood on the enormous battle arena. At that moment, the battle arena appeared extremely spacious.


    Immediately, the viewing gallery fell silent. Everyone looked towards the battle arena, anticipating the start of the final battle.


    "In the Nine State Forum top 100 battle, the rules are simple. Challenge someone, the victor stays, the loser is eliminated. There is no order, anyone who wishes to challenge, step forward and point at the person you wish to challenge. If you win, you will enter the top 50," the elder announced the rules of the final battle.


    They were simple. There was no lot-drawing among the top 100, as it would cause some of the strongest cultivators to battle prematurely. For example, what if the two strongest people in the Nine State Forum were made to battle because of the lots they drew? Under this type of unrestrained challenge rules, if the strongest two people willingly fought each other, they would accept the unavoidable.


    Generally, this kind of scenario would not happen. These people would try their best to avoid those who were too strong and leave their toughest opponents last. Of course, this was unfair too. There were people who would be targeted by the strongest elites. However, since this was a battle, there could not be absolute fairness. Nobody would care about fairness anyways. The world only looked at the results.


    In the battle of the top 100, winning one battle would allow someone to enter the top 50.


    "Begin," the elder announced. As his voice landed, a solemn atmosphere shrouded the battle arena. The Nine State Forum''s most elite confrontation had begun.


    An invisible wind blew on the forum''s battle arena. When the elder announced the start, nobody stepped forward and it was exceptionally silent. According to the rules, it was time to challenge the weakest. However, among those who managed to enter the top 100, there were no weaklings. Apart from some of the most elite, it was not easy for them to determine who was strong or weak, so it was not easy to pick an opponent.


    At that moment, a figure stepped forward.


    The person was from the Eastern State''s Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and he had an arrogant look in his eyes. The robe with golden phoenix patterns embroidered on it swayed in the wind. The mark of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was also embroidered on his robe.


    Zhou You. Countless gazes froze as the people in the viewing gallery looked at the figure that had walked out.


    Zhou You was the strongest cultivator from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in this Nine State Forum. He had an extremely high position in the Sovereign Family''s younger generation. In the past three days, it was established that he was a figure who had the ability to enter the top ten, and there were even people who wondered if Zhou You could be crowned as the winner of the Nine State Forum.


    One could imagine how strong Zhou You was. The Eastern State was the host of this time''s Nine State Forum and more attention would be placed on the Xihua Sacred Mountain and Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s younger generation, so there would be certain bias towards the guessing of the rankings. Even so, if Zhou You was not strong enough, there would not even be such a conjecture.


    His opponent is really unlucky, many people thought to themselves. Even in the battle arena, many people were nervous. It was hard to be confident when facing Zhou You. If they were challenged, the likelihood of being eliminated was too high. They could only hope that Zhou You would not challenge them.


    Of course, there were also a few people who were extremely confident in their abilities and did not mind. To them, the first battle was merely a course of events.


    Zhou You''s gaze looked around the crowd and finally stopped in one direction. Everyone immediately turned towards his gaze and the seven people there stood out. Each of them had their own place in the Barren State''s direction.


    "Since your Life Spirit is also a phoenix, I''ll challenge you," Zhou You said. Evidently, he was saying that to Phoenix.


    Many people did not expect that the first person that Zhou You challenged would be a girl. She was the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace''s disciple, Phoenix. The other people from the Barren State all looked at Zhou You. Could it be that the people from the Barren State stood out? Why did they always like to target the people from the Barren State?


    Ye Futian also had a perplexed expression. Could it be that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty disliked him? First Zhou Ziyi, now it seemed like the Great Zhou Sacred King had something against him. Now, the strongest person from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Zhou You, was the first one to step out, and the person he was challenging was from the Barren State.


    Phoenix was likely in danger. However, this was uncontrollable and unavoidable.


    Phoenix appeared very calm. She stepped forward and stood opposite Zhou You.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Zhou You."


    "The Holy Zhi Palace''s Phoenix."


    As they finished, flames lit up around both their bodies. The flames around Zhou You''s body were golden phoenix flames and were extremely overbearing. The flames around Phoenix''s body were milder, but also had a terrifying aura and had a faint inextinguishable feeling. Their flames clashed in the air, making two giant phoenix shadows appear in the skies.


    The golden phoenix flames on Zhou You''s body seemed capable of incinerating all forces in existence and started to devour Phoenix''s flames, converting it into his own flames. This caused the golden phoenix shadow to become even larger and suppress Phoenix''s flames.


    The huge phoenix flapped its wings and they turned into golden phoenix blades, slashing down towards Phoenix. A giant crimson sycamore tree appeared behind Phoenix amidst the crashing sounds of the blades. The ancient sycamore''s leaves spread rapidly towards the slashing blades in the air and were continually sliced apart. The flames raged on but were eventually smothered, unable to escape the grasp of the sycamore.


    Hum. Zhou You''s body turned into a flash of golden lightning and reached unbelievable speeds. He tore through the air and descended, his palm stretched out. In an instant, the surrounding phoenix flames seemed to have been siphoned by him. He then fired it from his palm towards the area where Phoenix was. Feeling the terrifying destructive power, the sycamore engulfed the surrounding area and Phoenix hid within it. At the same time, countless vines rushed towards Zhou You.


    "Cut," Zhou You said in a cold voice. The golden phoenix slashed down and severed all the vines. At the same time, the energy fired from his hand turned into a seething flame dimension, gradually melting the giant sycamore.


    The sycamore also turned golden as a decaying aura appeared around it. Zhou You raised his hand and stepped forward, the phoenix shadow flying into the air and diving down. With a slash, the sycamore rapidly exploded and turned into countless golden wisps. The destructive figure rushed into it with overbearing force.


    Phoenix''s figure appeared within his sights, and the sycamore''s vines continued to rush towards the opponent''s body. A golden light flashed across Zhou You''s eyes as he maintained his dive downwards.


    Thud. The Golden Phoenix figure tore through the air towards Phoenix. Phoenix did not dodge, and the phoenix figure shot right through her. Phoenix spat out a mouthful of blood and her expression was pale, but the sycamore entangled Zhou You at the same time.


    Zhou You frowned. Phoenix did not dodge intentionally?


    "Are you courting death?" Zhou You looked at the beautiful lady in front of him and asked without much tenderness. The golden light glowed as it promptly destroyed the sycamore on his body. He waved his palm again and the Golden Phoenix continued to rush into Phoenix''s body, causing her to glide backward, blood spewing from her mouth.


    Zhou You wanted to continue attacking, but at that moment, he frowned. There was a wisp of undying flame burning within his body and causing havoc in his bloodstream. A strong force flowed within his blood, attempting to remove it. However, he felt the resilience of the flame. Every wisp appeared to be like a tiny phoenix, nibbling away at his body slowly, causing him to reveal a pained expression.


    "Undying Flames." Zhou You''s expression was grim as he raised his head and looked at Phoenix. He saw her wiping away the blood from her mouth, looking at him. She said, "I concede." After saying that, she dragged her injured body back to the Barren State''s seats.


    "Are you alright?" Ye Futian looked at Phoenix with worry. Why was this woman going so far?


    "I''m fine," Phoenix replied, ate a pill, and sat down cross-legged. When Ye Futian saw this, he was slightly relieved. Phoenix''s self-regeneration ability was very strong, so he would not have to worry. However, she was really obstinate, injuring Zhou You at the expense of getting injured.


    At that moment, Zhou You had also returned to his position but was also sitting on the ground. He bathed in golden flames, evidently still trying to neutralize the force in his body and was suffering.


    In the first battle, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Zhou You had won. The Barren State finally had one more person eliminated. However, this battle also gave people a deep impression of Phoenix. She had injured Zhou You and made him pay the price even though she was eliminated.


    The Barren State''s participants were really resilient.


    Now, there were only six Barren State disciples left.


    The crowd had not collected their thoughts before another person walked out, causing them to all stare.


    The person who had stepped out was the Barren State''s Xu Que.


    "It is rude to not reciprocate, I''ll challenge you then." Xu Que''s finger pointed in the Eastern State''s direction as he spoke. He had pointed at a person beside Zhou You, a descendant of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty!

 777 Smell of Gunpowder

    The eyes of everyone at the grandstands fell onto Xu Que as soon as he finished.


    Xu Que challenged Zhou Yan of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Zhou You had defeated Phoenix of the Barren State in the previous battle. Xu Que had, of course, set his sights at the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty because of that battle.


    However, Zhou Yan was not weak. Or rather, he could have been said to be very powerful. It was anyone''s guess if Xu Que, who specialized in killing powers and the Rules of Darkness, was capable of beating Zhou Yan.


    At the same time, Zhou Yan''s eyes fell onto Xu Que as well. He walked, and his robe with golden phoenix designs on it billowed, making him look incredibly dashing.


    The Barren State had seven ranked among the top hundred while there were only four from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The two previous battles were fought between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Barren State. They were already at a disadvantage in terms of numbers at the moment, so it was not an option for Zhou Yan to lose to someone from the Barren State.


    The Sky Saint looked at the sacred king on the grandstands at the Eastern State''s corner. He smiled and said, "Who do you think will win this battle, Sacred King?"


    The sacred king glanced the two at the forum stage with a cold expression, exuding the might of a ruler, then said calmly, "Zhou Yan, of course."


    "Is that so?" The Sky Saint smiled and added, "You''re indeed confident, Sacred King." While there were none of the Sky Saint''s students participating in the event, he remained interested nonetheless.


    Zhou You was the most powerful of the students from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty participating in the Nine State Forum. He had challenged Phoenix of the Barren State right from the first battle. However, Zhou You had definitely not anticipated that the Barren State was so forceful, challenging someone from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in the very next battle. As such, it felt as if the previous battles had become a showdown between the students of the two major forces: the Barren State and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    It would have been fine if the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was able to win. If they were to lose, however, it would have reflected badly on the sacred king.


    Zhou You naturally had formidable powers, but then again, Xu Que was not the most powerful one from the Barren State. Yu Sheng still had not fought yet. If the showdown were to continue, it was anyone''s guess how it would end up.


    The Sky Saint smiled at the thought, becoming rather intrigued by the battles between the younger generations, which seemed to be getting rather amusing.


    The sacred king was not the only one interested in the upcoming battle; every great figure sitting at the grandstands was just as interested, looking forward to seeing those two fight.


    First the Zhisheng Cliffs and now the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The students of the Barren State sure are tough.


    "Xu Que, of the Holy Zhi Palace." A lazy voice was heard. Xu Que stood around nonchalantly, seeming to pose no threat to anyone. However, his previous battle had left a deep impression on those who saw it. As one capable of lurking in the shadow, disposing of his targets in silence, he might not have been the strongest, but when it came to a life and death battle, he would definitely was among the deadliest.


    "Zhou Yan." A cold yet forceful voice was heard from the man himself. Golden phoenix shadows appeared brilliantly just like with Zhou You. He was basking in the light of golden flames. As a descendant of the royalty of the sacred dynasty, his awakened blood of the golden phoenix and his natural talents made him a terrifying figure.


    The golden flames swept through their surroundings. The aura bursting from Zhou Yan''s body seemed capable of burning everything down. A cry of the phoenix was heard, and a shadow of the golden phoenix launched at Xu Que at blinding speed, as if to drown Xu Que right there and then with its golden flames.


    Voom�� An extremely ferocious aura descended in an instant and took up a corner. The phoenix came down with intimidating force. However, a grey afterimage was seen, and Xu Que''s body disappeared right from where he stood.


    The eyes of the spectators followed where the afterimage went. Streaks of grey currents filled the forum stage. Xu Que''s silhouette seemed to have been extended, making it seem like he was everywhere. Grey auras flowed within that space, coiling around Zhou Yan. That place gradually turned dark, as if the entire place would meld into the shadows.


    "Power of Rules of Darkness." Everyone''s eyes were fixed on the battlefield, trying to discern what was happening. While the Rules of Light and Darkness had no inherent offensive capacities, they nonetheless remained one of the most terrifying rules to be found. It was especially so for those capable of manipulating such rules perfectly, enabling them to bring the power of said rules to the extreme.


    At the moment, Xu Que seemed to have immersed himself within that dark space. There was not a tinge of his aura to be found. Many sage level figures who were not of very high training were not even able to tell where he had hidden.


    Zhou Yan was caught in the darkness. He continued to bask in boundless golden light. The phoenix''s shadow grew increasingly large, shining light in that place, attempting to penetrate the darkness. However, the dazzling bright light of the phoenix was devoured right as it touched the darkness. The light dissipated into the darkness.


    The light of golden flames did not originate from the power of rules, and as such, it was only natural that it was incapable of penetrating the Rules of Darkness.


    The cry of the phoenix grew even louder, and with a violent flap of its golden fiery wings, Zhou Yan gradually took to the air. Beams of golden light seemed to burst from his body, shooting at the dark space around him. The expression of the spectators changed as they saw the beams penetrate into the darkness. The attack had apparently seeped into the dark space, attempting to kill Xu Que, who was lurking within.


    Voom. A huge dark current lashed out at Zhou Yan like a dark shadow, exuding terrifying killing aura. Zhou Yan turned around and the wings of his phoenix vibrated and flapped forward. Wisps of golden fire feathers imbued with immense devastating power burst forth, penetrating the dark current heading for him. The dark current exploded. Slivers of killing aura extended from within, but Xu Que was nowhere to be found.


    At the same time, in the surrounding dark spaces, an intense sense of danger emanated and slivers of killing aura wandered in the darkness, coalescing into a killing storm.


    Zhou Yan took a look at the space around him that grew increasingly dark. He frowned as the dark currently seemed intent on drowning him. If he was further caught in the darkness, his defeat would be inevitable.


    The brilliant wings flapped harder and faster. A hurricane whipped up, and golden lightning burst. A golden phoenix appeared on the battlefield and headed straight for the darkness. Terrifying golden flames burned the darkness, intending to burst out of it. Zhou Yan''s eyes seemed to have failed him at the very moment he burst into the darkness. There was nothing but pitch black darkness before him, and not even his spiritual will was able to pierce through it. Being able to only sense his immediate surroundings, his only choice was to go forward.


    An intense sense of danger loomed as thousands of killing aura descended upon him. The phoenix''s wings flapped. Intense golden light burst from it, clashing with the incoming killing aura.


    Yet, at that very moment, the hairs on Zhou Yan''s body all stood up, and he felt a bone-chilling cold. It was an intuition like no other. An incredibly cold sword fell above him in the dark. Zhou Yan seemed to have been clad in phoenix armor, yet the sword was still able to burst with the most powerful killing intent without making a sound. All the killing aura within the darkness seemed to coalesce into a single sword, which burst through the armor and shattered it.


    Zhou Yan felt himself freezing to the bone as he sensed the killing aura seeping into his body.


    "I yield." Zhou Yan''s reaction was incredibly fast, and he was able to yell in time. Regardless, if Xu Que dared continue his course, Zhou Yan dared not make the gamble.


    The dark current dissipated right as soon Zhou Yan''s voice was heard. He fell from the sky and dropped to the ground in an unceremonious manner. He was clouded in a layer of dark aura, losing all the brilliance about him from before.


    "Cough..." Zhou Yan spat up black blood with a slight cough. He lifted his head and stared at the silhouette that just made it to the ground.


    Xu Que returned to looking lazy and nonchalant, making it appear as if he did not care about what just happened.


    "While Zhou Yan is powerful, but he was completely overwhelmed in this battle. He was unable to bring his powers to bear at all." Many who watched the battle were trembling. So this is the Rules of Darkness, and it seems that Xu Que has developed matured use of it.


    The Sky Saint smiled as he glanced at the sacred king at the grandstands. At the moment, the sacred king was staring at the battlefield as well. His eyes were on Xu Que.


    A descendant of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s royalty was defeated in that battle. Worse still, it was a crushing defeat.


    While Zhou You had indeed been able to overwhelm Phoenix, he had been injured by her nonetheless. On the other hand, Zhou Yan was unable to even touch Xu Que.


    Furthermore, Zhou You had been the most powerful of the ones from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty participating in the event. When compared in this wat, the sacred dynasty looked rather awkward.


    Xu Que returned to his corner at the Barren State after the elder announced the outcome. He lifted his head and took a look at Phoenix, who was near Ye Futian at the grandstands. He smirked, looking rather pleased with himself. Phoenix looked at him and smiled while covering her mouth.


    "Show off," Ye Futian chuckled and said. Regardless, Xu Que had been able to avenge Phoenix in that battle.


    "Continue." The elder''s voice was heard, and another figure was seen walking out. Many looked on with amused expression. The one who walked out was also from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    His eyes were still on the remaining six from the Barren State.


    "This..." Many looked at the scene puzzled. Both sides already seemed to be at each other''s throats while the battle for the top hundred just began. None seemed to yield to each other in terms of show of force. But then again, it was very normal. The Nine State Forum had always been a battlefield fought between sacred grounds. It was inevitable to have sacred grounds go tit-for-tat with each other. All from sacred grounds were proud people, after all.


    "I challenge Hua Jieyu of the Barren State." A voice was heard. This time, the one from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty challenged the wife of the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    Hua Jieyu walked out calmly. The other five glanced at her would-be opponent coldly. Their eyes were a clear indication that the battle was still being fought between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Barren State. Furthermore, if Yu Sheng were to battle in the next round, the Sacred Dynasty''s defeat was almost inevitable.


    As such, it was imperative for the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to win that battle. It would have been three losses out of four battles for them, completely overwhelmed by the Barren State. Worse still, if the outcome were to be such, there would be only one from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty left in the top 50��Zhou You. On the other hand, there would be at least three from the Barren State remaining in the top 50.

 778 Overwhelm

    On the forum stage, Zhou Luoyun''s eyes were on Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu had defeated Zhou Ziyi, a member of the sacred dynasty''s royalty, right in the very first battle she fought. She was a cultivator with very powerful psychic powers, capable of attacking spiritual will powers of others. Someone like that would be incredibly troublesome, not to mention, dangerous.


    But at the moment, people from both the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Barren State were at each other''s throats. There had been one win and one loss in the two previous battles. Even Zhou You, the most powerful among the sacred dynasty''s remaining participants, had fought and sustained damage, making it seem like they were being overpowered by the Barren State. As such, Zhou Luoyun, as one of the two remaining participants from the sacred dynasty, had to come out to fight someone from the Barren State.


    The best course of action was, of course, to defeat Yu Sheng. However, he apparently was not confident enough to beat Yu Sheng, whose true power was still unknown. As such, he picked the girl who had exceptionally stunning looks instead, the girl who also happened to be the wife of the leader of the Barren State, Ye Futian. As for Yu Sheng, Zhou You would be there to take care of him.


    "After you." Zhou Luoyun exuded faint air of royalty. He deemed it necessary to keep his bearing, as he was challenging an exceptionally beautiful woman.


    Hua Jieyu looked at her opponent calmly and did not bother with pleasantries. She let her Life Spirit burst right away. A crown hovered above her head and a sliver of powerful spiritual will power covered the entire place. In that very instant, Zhou Luoyun was able to feel incredibly powerful telekinetic power invading his spiritual will. The feeling was very unpleasant. There was simply no one who would have felt fine having their spiritual will invaded by others.


    The power of rules all over him burst in an instant. His spiritual will seemed to have taken the form of a golden phoenix, shining with brilliance like no other. His spiritual will''s defense had turned incredibly powerful, stopping the invading powers from going further into his head.


    "If you''re thinking psychic powers will be enough to take me out, I''m afraid you''re clearly mistaken," Zhou Luoyun said.


    Hua Jieyu''s deep, dark eyes turned exceptionally demonic, as if tainted with mystical colors. Her hair billowed without a wind blowing about, flapping wildly in the air. A formless aura coursed about in a frenzy in their surroundings, flowing from all directions at Zhou Luoyun.


    "Hmm?" Zhou Luoyun frowned as he sensed her psychic powers had grown far more potent all of a sudden, and her powers were everywhere. The phoenix that manifested from his spiritual will seemed to have been isolated, fully exposed to any incoming attacks. That felt very different from what Zhou Ziyi had experienced before.


    Voom. The wings of the phoenix burst and terrifying flowing golden lights coursed in their surroundings. Zhou Luoyun stepped out and charged at Hua Jieyu all of a sudden, like a bolt of lightning. He deemed it necessary to not just sit around and let his will keep being invaded, as it would be imminent that he lose the round.


    The telekinetic powers around them seemed to have been imbued with elemental offensive powers at the very moment he accelerated. Slivers of lightning flashed about, blocking out the sky around him. He felt his spiritual will getting numbed, as if the telekinetic attack had been imbued with elemental powers, which, worse still, seemed to be growing increasingly strong. That powerful spiritual will protection in the form of a golden phoenix seemed to be caught in a terrifying storm of will of lightning.


    "How is it that her telekinetic powers are growing so strong all of a sudden?" Many sitting at the grandstands questioned. They were able to tell the change taking place clearly even though they had not been subjected to such attacks themselves. As such, the effect was even more apparent on Zhou Luoyun, who was caught in the middle of the storm.


    "Lightning Thought, descend." A voice was heard from Hua Jieyu. Her hair danced around wildly as a flamboyant beauty was seen in her at the moment. Her body, which was seen hovering the midair at the moment, made her look like a goddess. Boundless Lightning Thought flashed about with her at the center of it all.


    Boom. At that very moment, Zhou Luoyun''s body, which had taken the form of a golden phoenix, halted all of a sudden as his mind went blank. It was like he had been struck by lightning. His thoughts seemed to have stopped, his body and his soul all seemed to be trembling at the moment, having sustained a terrifying blow.


    The eyes of the sacred king froze. He stared at the forum stage, knowing clearly what happened on the battlefield due to his plane level. A Divine Spiritual Sorcerer''s attacks are special indeed.


    It was said that a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer at their pinnacle would be an ultimate sorcerer and a nightmare for any cultivator who had to fight them. However, there was no Divine Spiritual Sorcerer at the Saint plane to be found among the 72 saints ranked on the Sage and Saint Rankings in all of the nine states. As such, most were utterly unfamiliar with Divine Spiritual Sorcerers, knowing little about the powers they wielded.


    That day was a day where many came to know what Divine Spiritual Sorcerers were like.


    One strike was all it took to rob Zhou Luoyun of his combat capacity. If Hua Jieyu had pressed on with her attacks, Zhou Luoyun''s spiritual will would have crumbled and he would have died soon after.


    At that moment, Hua Jieyu''s aura returned to her usual calm state. The frightening telekinetic powers in the air around them dissipated, as if nothing had happened in the first place.


    Zhou Luoyun stood in a dumbfounded manner. He lifted his head and looked at the incredibly beautiful silhouette in the air, feeling rather dazed about what happened.


    I was overwhelmed in one go? How could this have happened?


    It was not only he who had not anticipated any of that. None on the grandstands would have predicted such an outcome as well. Zhou Luoyun did not even get a chance to strike. The battle ended more cleanly than the previous battle between Xu Que and Zhou Yan, and crueler as well.


    A proud son of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty lost without even knowing why.


    The eyes of all the others on the forum stage were on Hua Jieyu. The crushing and quick victory seemed to be a statement saying that, Yu Sheng was not the only powerful one from the Barren State.


    "Hua Jieyu wins." A voice was heard. The elder at the edge of the forum stage announced the outcome. Everyone had only just come to their senses.


    "Such power," many at the grandstands said.


    Hua Jieyu turned around and walked towards the corner where the people from the Barren State were seated.


    The Sky Saint looked at her and said, "The students of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty seem to have gotten themselves in trouble, O'' Sacred King." He teased the sacred king in an amusing manner.


    None had anticipated the ones from the Barren State to be so powerful and forceful before the battles began.


    "A Divine Spiritual Sorcerer. Not bad indeed," the Sacred King said. His tone seemed to be calm.


    "Indeed. I wonder who her teacher is," the Glass Saint added. Women who had both exceptional looks and talents, with powers at such levels, were but a handful in the Barren State. She took a look at Goddess Qingni beside her and said, "I''m sure you can already tell, that this girl''s talents are not below that of yours, Qingni. You''ll need to train harder from here on out."


    "Understood." Goddess Qingni nodded.


    Hua Jieyu returned to her people and did not forget to take a look at Ye Futian, showing a proud smile. Many at the grandstands behind Ye Futian felt rather dazed. That cold, uncaring goddess on the battlefield who had overwhelmed Zhou Luoyun without saying a word showed such a side in front of Ye Futian.


    "You''re good," Ye Futian smiled at Hua Jieyu and said.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyelashes fluttered a little. She looked rather pleased with herself. She then turned around to look at the forum stage as if nothing happened.


    Another figure was seen walking out from the Barren State at that moment. Many were astonished. It was as everyone had anticipated. However, the one who walked out was not Yu Sheng; it was Yi Xiaoshi, the fatty.


    The students from the Barren State had probably thought that they had no need to field Yu Sheng to take care of the remaining student from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The only one from the sacred dynasty who had yet to fight was thoroughly frightened. They had suffered two losses already. If they were to lose again, it would make it seem like the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had been crushed by the Barren State.


    The fat guy narrowed his eyes and looked at his opponent while smiling sheepishly. He threw his head back and said, "I''m giving you a chance. If you refuse, I''ll go challenge someone else."


    "..." The eyes of the spectators froze. The fat guy is insulting the student from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty!

 779 Number One of the Hall of Holy Ligh

    "That *ss..." Many looked at Yi Xiaoshi and thought he was asking for a beating.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had provoked the ones from the Barren State before, and now they were being run over. It was truly vexing with Yi Xiaoshi being able to speak in such a nonchalant tone. Furthermore, they all had come that far. If the last one standing from Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were to shirk from a fight, the dynasty would be severely embarrassed, more so than if they were to lose a battle.


    Zhou Qing was the only one left from the four of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty who had yet to come out and fight. He glared at Yi Xiaoshi before him coldly, then walked out. Of the remaining four from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, he was the weakest. If the dynasty side was said to be brimming with confidence before Zhou You challenged Phoenix, when Zhou You had sustained injuries despite defeating Phoenix, and both Zhou Yan and Zhou Luoyun were defeated, Zhou Qing really had lost all confidence facing one from the Barren State. However, it was not permissible for him to shirk from the fight.


    "After you," Zhou Qing said coldly.


    The fat guy held his head high and had a brimming smile on his face, lashing out with the Emperor''s Vines, shinning brilliantly. Zhou Qing became bathed in golden fire all over his body. A brilliant Phoenix''s shadow appeared and when the vines came near, its fires burned them. However, the vines simply became golden fires and continued to lash out at their intended target instead.


    Boom�� An even more violent aura burst, and the Phoenix''s shadow on Zhou Qing appeared in a glittering manner. The vines, which were unable to be burned by fire, were snuffed out and turned into ashes by the golden fires on Zhou Qing when the vines came near. Yet at the very same time, everyone''s eyes looked at the other corner. There was a boundlessly huge golden shadow continuing to grow over there.


    "Grow, grow, grow!" the fat guy stared at the huge body and yelled.


    "This again?" Everyone''s eyes froze and they witness the golden body of an ancient god continuing to grow, feeling rather speechless. The near-hundred-meter-tall giant that looked like a god came to stand before Zhou Qing shortly after. It did not continue to grow. Boundless brilliant golden light showered below and melded with the giant. The ancient god''s body lifted its leg and stomped on Zhou Qing. If the move had been a hit, it would probably have killed Zhou Qing right there and then.


    Winds howled and golden fires swept all over the place. The Phoenix''s shadow behind Zhou Qing flapped its wings hard and retreated backward like a bolt of lightning.


    Boom! With a loud rumble, the ancient god''s foot stepped onto the forum stage, but the golden lightning had fled its range and escaped from being stomped. Winds tore through the air as Zhou Qing cranked his speed to the limit. Golden Lightning streaked through the air, heading for Yi Xiaoshi.


    At that very moment, the incredibly huge arm of the ancient god was extended and reached for Zhou Qing, but Zhou Qing''s speed was so fast that the hand would probably have a hard time catching up. However, Zhou Qing saw countless hands split out from the huge palm all of a sudden instead, blocking out the sky like vine-like tentacles. The move blocked the space out right there and then and went for Zhou Qing, making escape impossible.


    Zhou Qing''s eyes became tremendously sharp. He, who was clad in golden fires and the body of a Phoenix, zapped to a corner, tearing the vines as he continued to shoot outside. But then, he quickly saw that the vines seemed to be endless, seeming to continue to grow in numbers. He was still accelerating as the tremendously hot glow of the Phoenix, which he clad himself in, continued to cut everything in his path.


    Everyone outside saw Yi Xiaoshi still growing his vines furiously and knew that he was unleashing his most versed power of rules: Rules of Growth. The ancient god''s body had an arm that turned completely into vines, which shone with terrifying glow seen penetrating from within. Everything knew that it was Zhou Qing in there.


    Boom. The huge ancient god''s arm was torn off right. The shoulder connecting to the arm yanked, and a new giant arm grew out from the stub immediately. Incredibly hot golden glow burst and lashed out with the might of the heavens. At almost the very same time, Zhou Qing''s body turned into golden lightning and shot out, shattering the arm that was torn earlier, yet, a huge golden fist soon came for him.


    Zhou Qing''s face looked extremely pale at that very instant. He knew that there was no retreat. His only way left was forward.


    The fist and the golden Phoenix clashed. The huge fist cracked with a strong light bursting. Cracking noises were heard from the arm of the ancient god at the same time, which crumbled shortly after. There was even terrifying golden light shooting right through the giant, making its body tremble.


    Zhou Qing''s body was similarly rattled. The Phoenix''s shadow turned pale and he spat up blood. His face looked pale as he felt his internal organs being ruptured, staring the one before him with cold eyes.


    "Zhou Qing lost." Many took a deep breath. The grandstands appeared extremely quiet. However, the aura on Zhou Qing burst again, as if to say that he had no intention of backing out yet.


    "You want to fight some more?" Yi Xiaoshi''s voice was heard, and golden light shimmered. The torn arm of the ancient god coalesced and became whole again, shining with golden light. Zhou Qing''s face went utterly pale at the scene. He only realized at that moment that he had not been battling Yi Xiaoshi himself, but the shadow of a giant that fat guy summoned. The shadow contained Yi Xiaoshi''s powers.


    Despair was written all over Zhou Qing''s face.


    Its strong shimmering light dimmed again, and Zhou Qing looked on with an awful expression. He then turned around to leave, making it clear that he was giving up on the fight. The huge ancient god''s body gradually dissipated, and Yi Xiaoshi rubbed his brow, feeling his spiritual powers being exhausted.


    But then again, there is probably no other sacred ground that would dare look down on the Barren State anymore, eh?


    The four battles between the ones from Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the ones from the Barren State resulted in three losses for the dynasty. The only one who won was the number one from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Zhou You, fighting Phoenix, who was not deemed all that strong amongst the ones from the Barren State. If it had been a fight between the two major sacred grounds, then the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would have suffered a crushing defeat.


    From their fights with Zhisheng Cliffs to the ones with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, the ones from the Barren State proved their worth again and again even as they were only six of them left on the forum stage. Furthermore, three among them had made it to the next stage.


    Yu Sheng''s powers definitely qualified for him to move to the next stage, which meant that in the upcoming top 50, there would be at least four emerging from Barren State, and they remained the most numerous compared to the other sacred grounds.


    Where is their limit? Many turned their eyes at the Zhou Sacred King, wondering what was going on in his head at the moment. However, the king looked calm and nothing was able to be told from his face. Instead, the Sky Saint who sat beside him smiled and said, "We''ve had dark horses emerge from every Nine State Forum held in the past. Sacred Grounds fought against each other and mighty ones were many. But there has never been a Nine State Forum in the past like this one. The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State has not participated in the Nine State Forum for many years, yet they became the one with the most number of participants remaining in the top hundred, maybe even the top 50. I guess no one saw that coming, eh?"


    "It is rather surprising," the leading figure from the Xia clan of Summer State said. After all, the Holy Zhi Palace did not even have saints, to begin with.


    The Zhou Sacred King turned to look at Ye Futian''s direction and said, "Being able to beat three mighty ones from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Ye Futian, your people from the Barren State really surprised me. Everyone was fooled by your appearance before the Nine State Forum was held. Even Saint Xihua thought you to be low-profiled and humble. From the looks of things now, it seems that you''ve got quite an ambition."


    Everyone turned their eyes to look at Ye Futian. Thinking about it now, Ye Futian had fooled everyone present.


    "Please, senior. This is the first time the Barren State is participating in a gathering of nine states like this and appearing one such stage. Hell, this is the first time I''ve been outside the Barren State. I''ve only been to Eastern State for less than half a year, and there was no way I would have been able to tell how strong the students of sacred grounds from the other states were. I''ve participated in the Nine State Forum to learn, and the very reason I ventured outside the Barren State was so that we could grow, hoping that we will eventually have a saint among us, preventing the sacred ground of Barren State from being taken apart. It just so happens that some students of the Barren State come to surprise me." Ye Futian looked at the king with a calm, collected expression, appearing neither submissive nor proud. Everyone looked at the exchange with a peculiar expression. Ye Futian did sound sincere with his words, and there was nothing anyone was able to say to retort.


    Ye Futian was participating in the Nine State Forum and venturing outside the Barren State for the first time, after all. They were simply unable to say anything about that.


    "We jumped the gun and thought the people of Barren State to be weak just because they had no saint. You seem to have overstated things, claiming to be fooled by Palace Lord Ye, Sacred King." The Glass Saint smiled and added, "The students of the Barren State had a hard time coming this far from the very beginning."


    Ye Futian looked at the Glass Saint. zshe happened to look at him as well. There was a faint smile in her eyes, which looked incredibly alluring. Ye Futian smiled and nodded in gratitude, not anticipating the Glass Saint to be speaking on his behalf.


    The king took a look at the Glass Saint and thought that the girl he had been seeing in his dreams was still just as charming after all those years. He smiled and said, "You''re right. It is indeed my fault for appearing so small-minded."


    "Speaking of which, the mistake that the Glass Saint spoke of was one that I have made before as well. I never thought the students of the Barren State to be able to make it this far. People really shouldn''t be bound only by what they know. We''re now fooled by ourselves." Saint Xihua smiled and said, "But then again, the Zhou Sacred King has always been frank, and it is not that he has anything against Ye Futian. With the students fighting in the Nine State Forum, it is inevitable that students of sacred grounds clash with each other. As the clashes only happen once in three years, it goes without saying that the more intense the clashes, the better. We old people should just sit back and watch the show."


    "Indeed." The Glass Saint smiled.


    "Speaking of which, I''m rather curious now. With the group from the Barren State being able to make it this far, the students of sacred grounds from the other eight states are now evidently overshadowed by the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. We should really reflect on ourselves and think of better ways to teach our students," Saint Xihua said with a smile and looked at the forum stage below, adding, "Don''t mind us, just carry on."


    At that moment, a figure was seen walking out, and many wore peculiar expressions before their eyes turned to sparkle with excitement. "Ji Hua of the Hall of Holy Light."


    Ji Hua''s powers were extremely formidable, and each of his battles before ended in mere seconds. He forged through with incredible force. No one was able to stand in his way for long, making him a very popular candidate in this year''s Nine State Forum. Many thought he would definitely make it to the top ten and that he might actually be ranked in the top three. All of that spoke volume of his prowess.


    The first participant to walk out from the Hall of Holy Light in this year''s Nine State Forum was none other than Ji Hua, the strongest among them.


    Ji Hua turned his eyes at the direction where the Barren State participants were. There were three who had yet to do battle: Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and Yuan Zhan. All three of them had formidable powers, and Yu Sheng was the strongest among them all. He was most curious about how far Yu Sheng, among the ones remaining from the Barren State, would be able to go and whether or not Yu Sheng had what it took to stand before him in the top ten battles.


    "You then," Ji Hua said as his eyes turned towards Yuan Zhan.


    "Yet another one to challenge the Barren State." Many in the grandstands talked. Ji Hua of the Hall of Holy Light challenged Yuan Zhan of the Barren State. It seemed that Barren State was simply too eye-catching at the moment. There were still six of them on the forum stage, and none of the top class geniuses wanted to be overshadowed by them, as it would have made all the other sacred grounds look rather bad. While the participants from the Barren State this year were indeed very formidable, none of those from the other sacred grounds wanted to be overshadowed by the Barren State''s brilliance. As such, Ji Hua chose to challenge someone from the Barren State.


    There are too many of them from the Barren State left.


    Yuan Zhan walked out. His stout body still felt imposing and brought pressure to bear on others. His aura was immensely thick. However, Ji Hua burst with brilliant light at that moment, and beams of blinding light shot around them, shining into Yuan Zhan''s eyes. He was unable to help but shut his eyes, shielding them with his arm.


    The light was just too blinding. It was not only Yuan Zhan who felt so. All who sat on the grandstands looked at Ji Hua and felt blinding light emanating from him. Ji Hua''s body slowly took to the air and shone brilliantly, like he was a descendant of the gods, shimmering with overwhelmingly dazzling light.


    Even though Yuan Zhan''s aura was incredibly formidable, when Ji Hua''s light was brought to bear, it became clear that he was the main character of that battlefield. No one else could have stolen Ji Hua''s thunder.


    Ye Futian sat on the Barren State''s area of grandstands and looked at Ji Hua. While the Rules of Light of the Hall of Holy Light did not possess inherent offensive capabilities, it was still a terrifying type of power of rules. It was said that the Hall of Holy Light''s Holy Light spell was capable of melding all types of power within the Rules of Light, bringing greater power to bear. The minimum requirement for learning the Holy Light spell was to develop comprehension of the power of rules of light. As such, the Hall of Holy Light had very few true core students, but all of their core students were impressive geniuses with exceedingly rare talents, making them tremendously terrifying beings.


    It seems like Yuan Zhan will have a tough fight ahead of him, Ye Futian thought. However, he was hardly surprised. Among the top hundred and participants from nearly 30 remaining sacred grounds, the strongest students of all those sacred grounds were present. The Barren State had seven making it to the top hundred, so it was normal for them to run into opponents of such classes.


    Blinding light was shot at Yuan Zhan, making it difficult for him to open his eyes. He was able to see nothing but light when he opened his eyes. His opponent had developed very proficient use of the Rules of Light.


    Yuan Zhan lowered his arm while still having his eyes shut. His consciousness was also filled with holy, dazzling light. At the source of the light stood an incredibly bright figure, who was none other than Ji Hua.


    Boom. Yuan Zhan stepped forward and rushed to that spot where Ji Hua stood. The light turned even more intense. A row of swords appeared before Ji Hua: Swords of Light. The offensive capacity of swords had always been formidable. It was anyone''s guess how powerful such attacks were when they were melded with light.


    Boom. Yuan Zhan''s body turned even stouter and larger. Beams of golden light pierced through his body as he opened his acupoints. He extended his hand and a golden staff materialized. The ape went straight into berserk mode before the battle had actually begun. It was apparent that he knew that his opponent this time was very powerful as well.


    Ji Hua remained standing where he was. Extremely dazzling light continued to encase the space he was in. He waved his hand nonchalantly. In an instant, the Swords of Holy Light shot out. A row of streaks of light cut through the space as they came for Yuan Zhan. The speed at which at the attacks moved made it nearly impossible for him to evade.


    Yuan Zhan roared and swept his golden staff, clashing on the Swords of Light. Golden light coursed through his body at the same time, laying sturdy physical defense, as his opponent''s attacks were incredibly dangerous.


    The light from the swords rampaged with a loud rumble. The staff was unable to catch all of the attacks of the Swords of Holy Light. They were many that landed on Yuan Zhan''s body, making lacerations on his golden physical body, cutting his defenses open.


    Yuan Zhan continued moving forward as if he had felt nothing. He wanted to end the fight as soon as possible, and there was nothing else for him to do so. However, at that very moment, the holy light grew even more blinding as it encased Ji Hua''s body. He extended his hand and swords of light and shadow of untold numbers appeared. He opened his palm and countless swords of light rushed at Yuan Zhan''s body. Yuan Zhan returned with an angry roar and stopped moving forward, swiping his staff before him, laying down a screen of shadows of the staff.


    "Holy Light Sword, Judgment," Ji Hua said, and everyone saw countless swords of light gushed at Yuan Zhan. The ape''s screen of shadows of the staff blocked many of the swords'' advance, but there was still quite a number that made it through the openings.


    Yuan Zhan swung his staff around trying to resist the attacks, but then he heard Ye Futian say, "Yuan Zhan, that''s enough." Ye Futian knew from watching the attacks that Yuan Zhan would be pinned without any way to retaliate, making it impossible for the ape to win against Ji Hua.


    Yuan Zhan swiped one last attack with a rumble and backed away. Countless lacerations were seen on his golden body. He was covered in blood as well, making it obvious that he was injured. Ye Futian had him retreat so as to not have him fight any further, as there was no such need.


    The light dissipated and Ji Hua remained hovering in midair like some kind of god.


    "Invincible." The word emerged from the minds of many as they watched Ji Hua hovering in the air. The Holy Light spell of the Hall of Holy Light was simply too terrifying. Ji Hua, who had developed extremely proficient use of the Rules of Light, looked utterly invincible. There was no one so far who was able to pose even the slight threat to him.


    Yuan Zhan''s powers had been incredibly formidable, and it was evident to everyone who saw his previous battles. However, there was still left to the imagination as to who would come out on top when they faced Ji Hua. That battle seemed to showcase Ji Hua''s immense strength.


    "That is indeed the strongest figure from the Hall of Holy Light," Saint Xihua said. The Hall of Holy Light of Qi State was an immensely fearsome sacred ground.


    "This year''s Nine State Forum is really getting more and more interesting." The Sky Saint smiled. The clashes of titans were getting increasingly close with one extremely formidable figures being eliminated one after another.

 780 Top 50

    Many at the grandstands took a look at Ji Hua. His combat capacity was such that it was entirely possible that he had what it took to take one place in the top three.


    Yuan Zhan''s powers reflected that of the Barren State''s general performance. They were generally strong and there were no weaklings among them, which was why there were seven of them getting into the top hundred.


    That one battle had also proven that while th3 Barren State was formidable as a whole, there were not quite there to be compared with the top-class figures just yet. Yuan Zhan''s attacks did not even manage to pose a threat to Ji Hua. With that said, despite being the one with the most participants remaining, it was difficult for the participants from the Barren State to advance to the very forefront, and there would be others eliminated still.


    The situation was just like how it had been with the Eastern State. They had the most number of participants when the Nine State Forum had just begun, but when it came to the stage of top hundred, participants from Summer State had overtaken those of the Eastern State in terms of numbers.


    Yuan Zhan retreated from the battlefield and came to the grandstands, taking a seat behind Ye Futian. Yuan Hong said to him, "Your attacks were formidable, but you didn''t even manage to attack your opponent. Do you know the difference in power now?"


    Yuan Zhan looked rather dejected and his head was hanging low. That battle had been a frustrating one.


    "Grandpa Yuan, Yuan Zhan has done a very good job so far." Ye Futian smiled and praised him instead, "If the rampage had been able to get to Ji Hua, there is no telling that he would have been able to take it. But it was a pity that Ji Hua was versed in Rules of Light, which he incorporated in his attacks. In such a scenario, Ji Hua''s attacks would definitely reach Yuan Zhan first. Besides, the power that results from attacks being melded with Rules of Light is probably something that not even Yuan Zhan''s defenses could withstand. In actual fact, the difference is not actually as great as shown in the previous battle."


    Yuan Hong nodded slightly. Ji Hua was indeed capable of holding Yuan Zhan back. Yuan Zhan had a pondering look on his face. He scratched his head for a bit and looked rather puzzled.


    "Besides, this Ji Hua is one of the very best the Nine State Forum has to offer this year. The strongest in the Hall of Holy Light, so there was no doubt that he would be very powerful. But there is no need to feel dejected. Focus on your own training. Victories and defeats in battles for a time won''t say much," Ye Futian said. Yuan Zhan was a demonic beast with a straightforward temperament, and he required a lot of encouragement.


    "Yeah." Yuan Zhan nodded, taking Ye Futian''s words to heart.


    Many turned to the forum stage again. There were still five from the Barren State left. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen had not fought yet.


    At the moment, Ye Wuchen walked out on his own and stood at the center of the forum stage. The first five battles among the top hundred saw the participants from the Barren State fighting in every single one of them. It remained as such for the sixth one.


    The one-armed figure remained as quiet as he had always been. He stood tall and firm at the forum stage. He turned his eyes to the direction of the Hall of Holy Light.


    Many wore peculiar looks on their faces. Zhou You had challenged Phoenix before, and that triggered the head-on clashes between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the students of the Barren State. Said students had almost overwhelmed the dynasty by defeating three out of four of their people, making it so that only Zhou You remained standing on the forum stage. The number one figure of the Hall of Holy Light walked out and defeated Yuan Zhan right after.


    Ye Wuchen then turned to look at those from the Hall of Holy Light��


    Is Barren State trying to take on all who dare to challenge them?


    "I challenge Wang Qing of the Hall of Holy Light," Ye Wuchen''s voice said, making all tremble. From the battles fought so far, everyone was able to sense that the students of the Barren State seemed to have a unique bearing.


    The sacred grounds of the other eight states looked down on the Barren State. As such, all who dared to challenge the students of the Barren State would suffer retaliation. They stood at the very bottom of ranks among all sacred grounds, yet they feared none of the formidable figures from the sacred grounds of the other eight states. All who dared to challenge them were to be met with fierce retaliation, and they had no intention to give into anything.


    Many on the grandstands seemed to have, for one reason or another, felt a mild whiff of sorrow emanating from the students of the Barren State when they saw the figure clad in white standing on the forum stage. While they were the most numerous among all who made it to the top hundred, they shouldered an exceptional amount of pressure instead just because they came from the Barren State. If renowned sacred grounds from Summer State or Qi State had many make it to the top hundred, the scene would have looked very different.


    Wang Qing walked to face Ye Wuchen. A sliver of light will flowed throughout his body. His eyes were incredibly bright, harboring will of light. While his powers were not comparable to Ji Hua''s, he was a very formidable figure and had also developed comprehension of the power of rules of light.


    Ye Wuchen, a student of the Barren State, would like to go against the Hall of Holy Light, like they had done with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty? Wang Qing thought.


    There were few students from the Hall of Holy Light, but everyone who managed to make it far were all top class geniuses. The genius who had been beaten by Xu Que before was very good as well, but he would have made it to the top hundred if he had not encountered the Rules of Darkness.


    "Ye Wuchen of the Barren State, pleased to make your acquaintance," Ye Wuchen said.


    "Wang Qing of the Hall of Holy Light." Will of light emanated from Wang Qing as soon as he finished. Holy Light emerged from all over his body, and extremely terrifying will of light shot from his eyes, heading straight for Ye Wuchen''s eyes.


    The dazzling light had Ye Wuchen close his eyes, but an extremely bright light emanated from the center of his brow nonetheless: the flash of the sword. An eye seemed to have emerged from the center of Ye Wuchen''s brow, which looked like the eye of a sword, sharp and dazzling.


    Wang Qing felt his eyes in an instant, sensing slivers of sword will shooting right into his eyes, traveling through his brow and entering his brain. At the very next moment, he felt as if his body had disappeared from the forum stage, appearing in a word of swords: the Sword Realm.


    "Illusive Sword rules, Spiritual Illusion." Wang Qing''s brow became incredibly sharp all of a sudden. He felt a tinge of threat and lashed out with powerful Holy Light Swords, sending them straight towards Ye Wuchen''s silhouette. He then saw Ye Wuchen make a move. Terrifying whirlpool of swords appeared on Ye Wuchen''s hand and as he pointed his finger forward. Sword aura coalesced into terrifying storms, bringing shredding will, clashing with the swords of light of his opponent in the air.


    Streaks of illusions flashed and disappeared. The silhouette of the one-armed swordsman disappeared. Wang Qing looked up and saw Ye Wuchen''s body appear above. A powerful Spiritual Sword will shot into Wang Qing''s mind, making it so that he had to split his spiritual powers to resisting the invading force. His eyes turned rather hazy. In the very next moment, he saw many one-armed silhouettes appearing in the air. All of them were Ye Wuchen.


    The one-armed figures all had outstretched hands. In an instant, boundless sword aura coalesced, landing before their hands, and terrifying sword aura poured below with the Shredding rules to bear. At the moment, Wang Qing was no longer able to tell the true person from the illusions. It seemed to him that all of those silhouettes were Ye Wuchen himself.


    Giant swords of terrifying might gathered and appeared one after another, bringing will of shredding swords to bear. Wang Qing''s expression turned solemn at that very scene. Holy light coursed throughout his body, and the Holy Light Swords enveloped him. He then pointed at the air. Both of them were shining with immensely brilliant light.


    At the very next moment, sword will showered down from above, and the shredding giant swords shot forth. Wang Qing cranked his powers to the extreme and sent his Holy Light Swords in the air. Blinding light drowned the space they were in.


    Wang Qing''s eyes remained staring at the air within that terrifying light. He felt an incredible sense of danger all of a sudden, so much so that he felt his hairs standing up. He turned around and unleashed holy light. At the very next moment, a one-armed figure continued to grow in his eyes, and the figure was armed with a sword. He felt like backing off like a streak of light, but the sense of danger simply grew stronger. A streak of terrifying sword will fell from behind. He went totally pale and stopped retreating. He did not even dare to move.


    Ye Wuchen''s silhouettes appeared in front of and behind him. There were lots of other silhouettes of Ye Wuchen found in the air as well. It was as if he was truly everywhere.


    But which is real and which are not? Wang Qing was unable to tell anymore. As such, he dared not move. Be it forward or backward, he would have sent himself flying into a true killing sword. He then felt the cold tip of a sword being put right before his throat. Wang Qing then said, "I yield." There was a bit of blood dripping from the skin of his throat as he spoke. The sword was cold.


    The illusions vanished. Ye Wuchen stood quietly before him, holding a sword in his hand, looking as calm as he had always been.


    "You attacked me with spiritual powers so that I wasn''t able to split my attention to sense what was going on outside, fooling both my eyes and my senses, thrusting me deep into the realm of illusions, no?" Wang Qing asked. He ended up as the one being pinned in that battle. Being affected by Illusory Sword rules, he was unable to tell which sword was real and which sword was an illusion.


    The sword before his throat disappeared, dissipating into sword will. Ye Wuchen did not answer him, simply walking back to where his people were.


    Wang Qing took a deep breath, watching his back. He had not expected to lose to a student from the Barren State as well.


    The people at the grandstands looked at the one-armed swordsman who was walking back to his corner and thought him to look rather cool. He and Xu Que both excelled in swordsmanship, yet their ways of the sword were completely different. The only commonality shared between their swords was that both were just as dangerous.


    The Barren State had won four rounds, and two participants were defeated. Yu Sheng, who was deemed the strongest, had yet to battle. It was no surprise that there would be five from Barren State who would make it to the top 50.


    Yu Sheng walked out right after Ye Wuchen was done, casting his sight at the Hall of Holy Light.


    The eyes of many froze once again. Even though everyone was able to guess at the possibility of that happening, they were still unable to help but feel shaken inside. After Ye Wuchen was done besting a student of the Hall of Holy Light, Yu Sheng was going to challenge a student of the Hall of Holy Light as well.


    Is the Hall of Holy Light going to suffer the same outcome as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty?


    When Yu Sheng and the student of the Hall of Holy Light came to stand on the forum stage, dazzling light shone onto Yu Sheng''s body. Golden lights coursed throughout his body like a whirlpool, sucking up all will of light that was cast on his body.


    The student brought even greater killing power of light to bear on him, but that student''s powers were still devoured right away by the power of rules coursing throughout Yu Sheng''s body. It was as if that student was unable to do anything to move Yu Sheng.


    "He remains immovable." Many shuddered deep inside. Ji Hua was probably the only one out of all the remaining participants of the Hall of Holy Light capable of making Yu Sheng budge.


    Boom. A cracking rumble was heard as Yu Sheng stepped forward. He then took to the air and headed towards his opponent, who retreated at breakneck speeds like a streak of light.


    Yu Sheng''s expression was cold. Two beams of light shot through his body. In that instant, blinding light shone from his torso and his feet. He leaped at the air, and his stout body actually approached his opponent at an even greater speed, bringing massive devastating power to bear.


    That student continued to move backward, not daring to clash head-on with Yu Sheng. That guy is truly a human-shaped monster, even more ferocious than the golden great ape who is an actual demon beast. His powers are even more terrifying. God knows what happens if he manages to hit me.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng swiped at the air with his hand. Dark golden light flowed through his fist in a frenzy, and his body continued to chase after his opponent like a beam of light. He then shouted and launched his fist forward. Streaks of huge golden fists shot through the air in an instant, encasing the space they were in. His opponent continued to evade while cutting the fists with holy light powers.


    At that very instant, Yu Sheng''s body showed up right before the student and punched out like a god of war. His opponent went pale as he took the strike head-on.


    Boom... Golden flowing light shot through the air. The body of that student of the Hall of Holy Light was sent flying very far away, crashing onto the edge of the forum stage, then dropping hard on the floor as he continued to spit up blood.


    Boom. Yu Sheng''s body landed heavily on the ground, shaking the forum stage. Many looked at the stout figure, feeling speechless.


    An overwhelming finish, just like before. Like Ji Hua, no one so far has been able to take his attacks.


    At the Hall of Holy Light''s corner, Ji Hua''s expression was sharp. He emanated a very strong will of battle. He was hoping that Yu Sheng, a student of the Barren State, would make it to the very end, standing right before him just as he did then.


    "That was really something." Many were rattled. Yu Sheng is really probably going to be fighting in the top ten. It is entirely possible that even the number ones of many sacred grounds will be unable to fight him at equal footing.


    "Three battles, the Hall of Holy Light bagged one win and suffered two losses," many said to themselves. The clash between the Hall of Holy Light, a sacred ground of Qi State, and the Holy Zhi Palace, a sacred ground of the Barren State, ended up with the Barren State coming out on top.


    The Barren State students really walk out with no hesitation and fight any who dare move against the Barren State head on. They seem to really earn the respect that the Barren State deserves, using their very own powers.


    Yu Sheng returned to his place and looked at the other five remaining on his side. After that battle, the students of the Barren State had all fought in the battles among the top hundred, taking five victories out of seven battles.


    Five students making it to top 50!

 781 Fist as It Had Always Been

    While the participants from the Barren State were done with their rounds of battles, the clash between other mighty ones continued. One mighty one after another continued to bring frightening powers to bear. Evidently, many had hidden what they were truly capable of in earlier rounds and were actually pulling punches. As the battles went on, those people began to reveal what they were truly capable of.


    Top-class students of sacred grounds from other eight states continued to shine with their prowess in their rounds of battles, making it to the top 50. Some sacred grounds had only one participant left on the battlefield.


    Other than those from sacred grounds, those three from the Eastern State who were not members of sacred grounds only had one remaining. It was none other than the mystical girl, Yaya. Like Yu Sheng, she caught a tremendous amount of attention.


    A girl of around 15 years of age standing on the stage of the Nine State Forum, never once defeated. Furthermore, there was no one who was able to tell how powerful she actually was. All of her opponents suffered a crushing defeat. She never needed to use more than three moves to end her fights. She and Yu Sheng were deemed the most surprising dark horses in that year''s event. Everyone looked on with anticipation, wondering how they were able to do so and who would be able to stop them.


    Ye Futian, at the grandstands, scanned the five remaining from his side. All who were left were the strongest all sacred grounds had to offer at the moment, which meant it was inevitable that most who remained on the forum stage would have to fight the strongest people from other sacred grounds. There was simply no running away at that point.


    The Nine State Forum had entered a very dire stage. Even the number ones of sacred grounds had to be wary, as there were definitely some among them would be kicked out in those rounds.


    "Carry on with the battles. The rules remain the same as before," the elder hosting the event announced.


    A stout monk walked out as soon as the elder finished. He was clad in a golden kasaya, emanating a layer of golden brilliance all over him. It was apparent that it was a change, resulting from training some sort of methods for prolonged periods, so much so that the result was apparent in both his appearance and his air. He was one of the students of Vajra Region of War State, of a generation who bore the word ''Wu'' in his name, which was ''Wuliang.''


    "Even Wuliang of Vajra Region has gone out to fight now. I wonder who he will challenge." Many looked at him. There were only two mighty ones from Vajra Region left on the battlefield. Master Wuliang was somewhat inferior to his junior, Wubei, but he was still an extremely terrifying figure. He trained in the sacred methods of Vajra Region: the Dharma Body of the Vajra. He had trained his dharma body to the level of being unbreakable, so much so that no weapon was deemed capable of piercing his body. As such, no one wanted to face off against him.


    The two remaining figures from Vajra Region were incredibly fearsome.


    Wuliang cast his gaze at a direction and said, "Benefactor Yu Sheng, I see that you''ve attained a powerful physical body and that you excel in the body refining techniques, which I find to resemble the training methods of the Vajra Region somewhat. As such, I wish to ask for a session with you and see how far both of us have progressed in our respective training."


    Many wore peculiar looks on their faces. The very first person whom Wuliang of Vajra Region challenged was none other than Yu Sheng.


    Many sitting in the grandstands talked as soon as Wuliang finished. "Wuliang is known to have acquired an unbreakable body, and his physical body holds frightening power. Yu Sheng is just the same, and now, Wuliang is going to challenge Yu Sheng."


    "I wonder who among them has a stronger body."


    Many were talking. Even those great figures who were sitting on the grandstands looked on, feeling amused. It seemed that the ones from Vajra Region liked true challenges, evident from how one went to challenge Yu Sheng right off the bat.


    Hua Yunshu, Zhou You, Ji Hua, and many others looked on, feeling intrigued. The battle should be able to show how powerful Yu Sheng''s physical body actually was. Wuliang would definitely give his all when facing such an opponent.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward. He seemed to have grown used to being challenged right off the bat in the first battle fought in any stage.


    Two stout figures stood facing each other. Wuliang looked calm and composed as he put his palms together and said, "After you." Golden brilliance shone as soon as he finished and he looked incredible. Boundless golden light spread throughout his entire body, and the air rang with crisp clear sound of bells. Wuliang''s body turned into an incredibly pure golden body in an instant. Dazzling golden lights shone on top of that golden body.


    "Dharma Body of the Vajra of the Vajra Region." Many saints on the grandstands looked at the battle with immense interest. The physical body that resulted from training in the Dharma Body of the Vajra was also known as the unbreakable body. It was said that when the training reached its pinnacle, one''s body would achieve the state of the unbreakable sacred body, a state where one''s body would not rot, age, die, or be rendered broken in any way, even if the one who trained passed away.


    At that moment, golden lights shone around Wuliang''s body, seemingly turning into a ring of golden light screens, making him seem like an unbreakable ancient Buddha, melding with his own physical body.


    Dong. A loud rumble was heard as Wuliang stepped forward, heading in Yu Sheng''s direction.


    Yu Sheng''s eyes remained on his opponent. Raging aura coursed throughout his body. Dark golden lights shone all over him. Two acupoints of the Seven Star acupoints were opened at the same time, making the overflowing power of his body course through both of his arms. At that moment, Yu Sheng''s right arm was filled with raging power as he continued to look at his opponent, waiting for the monk to come.


    The Dharma Body of the Vajra was blindingly bright. Wuliang descended from the air, lifting his hand and striking out a streak of golden handprint that engulfed the air before him.


    "The Invincible Vajra Mark." Many set their eyes on that incredibly huge mudra. The golden handprint engulfed Yu Sheng''s body right there and then. The golden mudra made of pure gold lashed out. The air shook, speaking volumes of the move''s terrifying power.


    At the very same time, Yu Sheng stepped forward aggressively, arching his back and lifting up his arms with great force, hitting the Invincible Vajra Mark that came for him. His fist looked like golden flowing lights in that instant, tearing through the space. At the point where the mudra and the fist met, blinding golden light burst and clashed with each other.


    Boom! Many felt their eardrums shaking violently, their hearts about to jump out of their chests, yet their eyes remained on the point where the clash happened. What will the outcome of the clash of formidable power between the Dharma Body of the Vajra that Master Wuliang from Vajra Region trained in and Yu Sheng be?


    Many trembled. They saw the point where the clash happened, and they saw a fist punch right through the mudra, shattering it right there and then. Yu Sheng continued and landed his fist on Master Wuliang''s unbreakable body.


    Boom! Another rumble was heard, and a crisp cracking noise was heard. Cracks were seen on the golden dharma body.


    At the very next moment, Wuliang''s body was sent flying out while the dharma body crumbled shortly after. Wuliang spit up blood after crashing to the ground.


    The Nine State Forum''s stage became incredibly silent as everyone set their eyes on that very scene. The hearts of many continued to tremble.


    Was that really what they called the unbreakable body?


    Was Wuliang truly a young genius from Vajra Region?


    Their eyes were not fooling them. The fight ended with one punch. Even against someone with incredible power like Wuliang, it still took only one punch.


    "Why did you want to put yourself through this?" Ye Futian shook his head in silence. Engaging in a power match with Yu Sheng? Regardless of what body refining methods he was training in, how could he compare to Yu Sheng?


    Yu Sheng had been put through hell since young by Ye Futian''s godfather to train in the demonic methods to build up his body, shouldering pain and suffering that few were able to withstand. He had gained an incredibly powerful body as a result. Furthermore, Yu Sheng differed from Ye Futian in that he had been taking the path of pure body refinement and training in only physical arts. That, coupled with Yu Sheng''s naturally inhuman strength, brought him to his frightening state today.


    The methods that the students of Vajra Region might be very powerful and might even exceed those of our teacher, Sage Douzhan, but are they able to compare with the demonic methods of godfather?


    If a match of pure power was concerned, none would be qualified enough to clash head-on with Yu Sheng.


    Even Wubei, the number one in Vajra Region wouldn''t be qualified enough to do so, let alone Wuliang.


    "So even Wuliang of the Vajra Region proved inadequate. It seems that Wubei, the number one of Vajra Region will be needed before they even have any chance of doing anything," the Sky Saint said calmly.


    Many great figures from Vajra Region paid close attention to the battlefield, deeming Yu Sheng a suitable person for training in the arts of the Vajra Region. They were able to tell that he was an uncanny genius with an immense affinity for physical arts.


    As for Wubei�� They looked at the last remaining student from Vajra Region. If Wubei is to act, there wouldn''t be many on the Nine State Forum stage capable of standing off against him, no? They were still wondering if Yu Sheng would have been able to stop Wubei dead in his tracks.


    A figure was seen walking up the stage after Yu Sheng retreated. It was Ji Hua. Due to repeated challenges made by students of the Barren State in the last stage of battles, Ji Hua had become the only remaining participant from the Hall of Holy Light on the stage of the event. Everyone else from his palace was eliminated. In contrast, there were still five from the Barren State remaining. As such, Ji Hua challenged yet another from Barren State. The target that he picked that time was Yi Xiaoshi.


    The fat guy''s expression turned grim. Yuan Zhan lost to Ji Hua before, and Ji Hua''s attacks were such that not even Yuan Zhan''s defenses had proven adequate. The golden ancient god body was summoned again, but Ji Hua did nothing to stop him. He simply let the ancient god continue to grow in size. Ji Hua, who was then clad in boundless holy light, charged forward like a beam of true light.


    The ancient god''s arm was turned into countless vines again, lashing out at Ji Hua, but he simply kept his arms behind him and stood, not even bothering to evade. Streaks of holy swords around him cut through the air, and the vines continued to be shredded in an instant, blowing the arm of the ancient god in repeated explosions.


    New arms lashed out at Ji Hua, but he seemed to have not even seen the attack, unwilling to evade the coming attacks. He then turned into an intense beam and charged straight into the ancient god''s fist, punching through it.


    In the next moment, a blinding light shot out from within the giant ancient god''s arm, which crumbled in a frenzy afterward. The beam shot right through the head of the ancient god. Ji Hua was seen emerging once again, keeping his arms behind his back as he looked down on Yi Xiaoshi. His body was clad in holy light, making him look like a god.


    The fat guy shrugged exasperatingly. With attacks of light being utilized to such an extent, things turned out as he had guessed. If Yuan Zhan, whose defense was greater than his, was incapable of withstanding such attacks, there simply was no way Yi Xiaoshi would have been able to win.


    "I quit," Yi Xiaoshi said before he left the battlefield glumly, ending his advances at the top 50.


    There were four students from the Barren State remaining by then. Even so, they still had higher numbers than other sacred grounds, who only had one or two participants left on the stage by then.


    Another figure was seen walking out. Many mumbled, seeing who the one who emerged this time.


    The number one of the Si clan, the successor of the Saint of Killers��Si Ming. He walked out and cast his gaze at Xu Que. Both of them trained in rather similar arts.


    "Seems like Xu Que will get eliminated soon." Many thought to themselves, Worse still, the remaining participants of the Barren State will probably be kicked out one after another later!

 782 Honorable Departure

    Yin Qi, disciple of the Si clan in Feng state, walked in silence and moved as if he were completely weightless. Clad in a form-fitting black suit, he exuded an icy aura of darkness. As the student of the Saint of Killers, Yin Qi practiced a particularly malicious method of execution; he killed invisibly, without ever being seen. Xu Que''s rules of darkness were comparable to the Si clan''s methods of cultivation.


    "Please," said Yin Qi. Xu Que gathered up his languid attitude, staring at his opponent. Yin Qi was extremely dangerous; cold darkness emanated from the man, and his hands were undoubtedly stained by the blood of many. Xu Que had observed Yin Qi''s techniques in the previous battles, and knew he was adept in exercising the rules of darkness; Yin Qi could morph into shadows without sound.


    "Please," responded Xu Que. Just as his voice faded, Yin Qi''s life spirit appeared. It was a shadow into which he melted, his body now turning to shade. The transformation did not stop there. The shade stretched, becoming longer and longer until a multitude of shadows began to spill forth from it. They appeared just as any other shadow would�� quiet and without breath��moving without a sound to surround Xu Que.


    "Bondage of Shadow."


    The eyes of those from Feng State lit up. Perhaps Xu Que did not comprehend the techniques of the Si clan; the Bondage of Shadow was an exceptionally well-known rule spell of theirs.


    Xu Que felt the shadows stretch towards him, forming tethers as if to limit his movements. He dodged away and shot up towards the sky as if he were a bolt of lightning. At the same time, the shadow stretched alongside Xu Que, remaining unbroken.


    Buzz. An elongated shadow shot forwards with thunderous speed, diving in front of Xu Que and presenting an incredible threat. Noting the shadow''s approach, Xu Que''s finger turned into a Slaughter Sword, pointed forward; the murderous Sword Qi abruptly exploded, instantly pulverizing the shadow.


    More shadows burst concurrently towards Xu Que across the expanse. Xu Que faced this with a cool countenance, and the life spirit of his Slaughter Sword blossomed. When he held the weapon, a murderous aura coursed through the space.


    Holding the sword with both hands, Xu Que thrust it down and allowed the bloodthirsty Sword Spirit to burst forth. It slashed against the power of the Bondage of Shadow and, at the same time, Xu Que''s body rotated in a series of deadly whirls; he himself turned into a mournful shade, and faded shadows appeared in the expanse to vanquish the one that had intended to kill him. However, just as he was about to step downward, Xu Que found a countless number of shadows covering the skies and swarming in his direction.


    "Shadow Transformation," said the cultivators from Feng State. This would be a challenge for Xu Que. The Killing Saint, Si Ming''s successor, would not be easy to defeat.


    A wild draft began to gather, and the power of shadow rule flowed between the heaven and the earth until suddenly a storm of shadows descended upon the battlefield. It seemed to have turned into a dark void, swallowing Xu Que entirely. But Xu Que discovered that the shadows had followed him into that void, hiding within the shadow rule''s power and melding directly with the dark. It was as if these shadows survived better in his darkness.


    Xu Que began to feel uneasy. Underneath the shadows there was nothing but stillness; he couldn''t locate his opponent. The power of the Bondage of Shadow moved forward in the darkness as if to extend to every corner of the battlefield. Soon Xu Que could feel the shadows homing in on him as Yin Qi''s power descended upon him. He could sense countless shadows surging silently towards him as if they were an army of ghosts.


    The rules of darkness were completely useless to them.


    Xu Que''s countenance became grave, and instantly, he steeled himself with resolve. He was from the Tingxue House, and his specialty was assassination. That was why he could understand the rules of darkness and recognize the most effective strategies to counter opponents wielding similar abilities.


    "Still not giving up?" a ghostly voice spoke from the dark. Many at the grandstand looked unsure. Was Xu Que at a disadvantage in the darkness?


    "I wouldn''t mind if you admitted defeat," Xu Que replied lazily, still nonchalant. The voice did not respond, but an even colder power of will began to rise from the darkness. A shadow rose from the dark, appearing in front of Xu Que, thrusting an icy blade towards his throat, but the man did not move. A killing storm grew around Xu Que and enveloped him; when the shadow reached him, it was torn apart by the storm.


    Xu Que was motionless. He closed his eyes, like a hunter. Even as shadows rained down, continuing to fragmentize and disappear, Xu Que remained motionless.


    The two seemed to be engaged in a contest of patience.


    The highest state for the assassins was death from a singular strike.


    At the same time, a menacing feeling descended upon Xu Que. He tensed up. Amidst the darkness a shadow appeared behind Xu Que, wielding a destructive dark spear intended to lance through his throat from behind. Fast as lightning, Xu Que moved to the side. Despite his maneuver, the attack still pierced through the Slaughtering Sword Will and pierced his shoulder. A terrifying and destructive power entered Xu Que''s body, and blood seeped from the wound. After landing his attack Xu Que''s opponent disappeared, once again submerged beneath the shadows. Xu Que ignored the injury, standing unfazed by the blood.


    Afterward, the combat proceeded with different attacks and after what seemed to be an eternity, the battle still raged. In the dark, Xu Que''s clothing was stained with blood; he was heavily wounded.


    "These two are indeed patient," some dignitaries from the Nine States commented.


    In the direction of Feng State, members of the Si clan observed the engagement inside the darkness with sharp focus. Xu Que truly grasped the essence of assassination; his endurance was unbelievable.


    Ye Futian and the others also stared into the darkening space of the battlefield, using the Freedom Meditation so that their eyes could bore through the darkness and observe what occurred within. Ye Futian saw that Xu Que was under constant attack but had no intention of giving up, so he did not interfere. This fight was different from the fight with Yuan Zhan; this was a faceoff between two assassins. Xu Que may have appeared unenthusiastic and without restraint, but he had his own mind and could judge for himself.


    The center of the darkness abruptly burst forth with murderous intention. Ye Futian''s eyes sharpened to focus on the disturbance within and saw that Yin Qi had lost his patience to tarry any further, exploding towards his opponent with a flurry of attacks. An Apparition Lancet pierced through the defense of the Slaughter Sword and entered Xu Que''s body. At that same moment, Xu Que buried his body into the darkness, as if to become one with it.


    The Apparition Lancet punctured the darkness, but Yin Qi detected an alarming sensation. Within the darkness, there were endless waves of annihilation. A shadow darted across and soon disappeared; Yin Qi had forged too deep into the darkness and found himself unable to retreat.


    Boom! Many shadows split and shattered, the dark space howling wildly. Soon a pair of bodies appeared from the expanse, back to back and dripping with blood. Xu Que was soaked in gore, but Yin Qi had blades of light running through his body as his body plummeted towards the earth. He landed prostrate and coughed out blood, the breath within his body slowly fading. He couldn''t even rise to his feet.


    Xu Que also landed, standing, albeit unsteadily.


    Clearly, he was the victor.


    The forerunner of Feng State''s Si clan was defeated and eliminated. From then on, no one from the Si clan would remain on the Forum, each one now disqualified. This was the second sacred land since Zhisheng Cliffs to have suffered a total loss. And this round of battle had only just begun. There would undoubtedly be situations where entire sacred land would be expelled. However, no one would have thought that the one to defeat the Si clan would be Xu Que of the Barren State. He wasn''t the leader of the Barren State, yet he had been able to terminate the leader of the Si clan.


    "Xu Que won. Someone from the Si clan please take Yin Qi away," the hosting elder commanded, and a cultivator from the Si clan immediately removed his leader from the battlefield.


    From the same direction, an elder clad entirely in black stared intently at Xu Que. He knew how Yin Qi had been defeated, as assassins preferred one move to yield one kill. Where Yin Qi was incapable, Xu Que had executed his technique. He endured much, remaining calm and suffering the pain of ceaseless attacks before seizing the opportune moment to deal a final blow. Obviously, Xu Que was a more qualified assassin than Yin Qi. Within their Plane, results were better proof of skill than strength. If this had been a real battle, Yin Qi would already be dead.


    Dragging his worn body towards the Barren State, Xu Que only shrugged as Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and Ye Wuchen looked at him. "I''m fine."


    "Why?" Ye Futian looked down and said.


    Xu Que looked up at Ye Futian, who stood upon the grandstand, and smiled. "At least, we didn''t lose, right?"


    Ye Futian looked at Xu Que and smiled, understanding his meaning. Xu Que could not lose against those who possessed ability equal to his not just for the honor of the Barren State, but for the pride of the Tingxue House.


    "Forfeit the ensuing battles," said Ye Futian. Xu Que was unfit to continue fighting. In his severely wounded state, would he be able to triumph over the strongest of the Nine States'' other sacred lands and advance?


    "Alright," Xu Que agreed. To continue battling as he was would make no sense, but at least he had done his best at the Nine States Forum.


    "Xu Que of the Barren State requests to forfeit." Ye Futian looked in the direction of the Eastern State.


    "Granted." The Elder nodded. Even in forfeiture, Xu Que was now amongst the top 25 strongest competitors. He could leave with his head held high. After this battle, the Barren State only had three people remaining!

 783 Twenty-Four

    After the Battle of the 50, the next round would normally have 25 contestants left, but Xu Que''s forfeiture meant that the next round would only have 24 cultivators left on the stage of the Nine States Forum.


    Within the Nine States, there were more than 24 sacred lands, which meant that even if each sacred land had one person remaining, the next round would not accommodate everyone. Ultimately the strongest of many sacred lands would be eliminated, such as Yin Qi of Feng State. But if an extremely prolific sacred land had two candidates advanced to the next round, then it would mean that a cultivator from another sacred land would be excluded.


    The Barren State had three people remaining: Yu Sheng, who defeated Wu Liang in the first battle, and Xu Que who, though forfeited counted as an advance, thus lowering the space by one. If Hua Jieyu and Ye Wuchen wished to advance, that would only translate to two fewer spaces. Consequently, even these three remaining contestants from the Barren State were being closely watched by everyone.


    A sacred land, especially one such as the Barren State, would have occupied four allotments. For Barren State to compete, other sacred lands of the Nine States would have to sacrifice those four spaces; it would be hard for Barren State not to be closely scrutinized as such.


    Just now, in the direction of the Ocean State, a youth clad in silver armor stepped forward. He was well-built and handsome, tall in stature with smooth skin that radiated with unusual beauty. His eyes shone with a blue glimmer, as deep as the ocean.


    This was Ao Kun, noble prince of the Ocean Palace from the Ocean State. Ao Kun was also the strongest amongst all nobles of the Ocean Palace. Aggressive and forceful, he was known for his mastery of many martial techniques.


    The Ocean State was located at the Endless Sea and included three major sacred lands: The Celestial Cliffs, the Ocean Palace, and The North Deep. Amongst the three, the Ocean Palace carried the greatest sense of mystery. Rumor had it that the palace was built underneath the sea, with its people possessing unique talents and bloodlines. However, because Ocean Palace was located at the easternmost boundary of Endless Sea, its relationship with the Nine States was not a close one. Ocean Palace had the least interaction with the Nine States, aside only from the Barren State. One reason for this was due to the sheer distance and the second was because of its location beneath Endless Sea.


    "I challenge Ye Wuchen of Barren State," Ao Kun announced. Everyone''s eyes gleamed. The Barren State had been chosen again.


    The least favored Barren State already had a difficult journey so far. They were the black horse of the Nine States Forum, yet the most spectacular. It was precisely because of this distinction that they were pursued by the Nine States'' other sacred lands as a target. From the Battle of the Hundred, the Opening Battle, and each of the battles that came before, all were battles for the Barren State.


    Ye Wuchen glanced at Ao Kun of Ocean Palace and immediately strode up to the battle stage. Before he even arrived, Ye Wuchen asked, "May we start now?"


    "As you please." Just as Ao Kun finished the sentence, a trident appeared, forming from his outstretched hand. Surrounding Ye Wuchen was an acute Sword Will. His pupils took on a ferocious appearance and a massive Will of Swordsman, disregarding distance and space, shot out toward Ao Kun''s eyes. Despite the attack, Ao Kun''s pupils exuded an incredibly powerful Spiritual Will so that when Ye Wuchen''s Sword Will plunged towards him, it sank as if falling into an endless ocean.


    At the same time, Ao Kun stepped toward Ye Wuchen. Spiritual Qi gathered between heaven and earth, first giving birth to waves, and then an ocean that spilled forth as if to engulf the martial arts platform. Because Ocean State was located within the Endless Sea, their cultivators were especially talented with water affinity and could cultivate through ocean waves while perceiving different powers from it.


    The forum stage was now flooded with vicious waves, all howling toward Ye Wuchen, who seemed to be completely unaware. Horrific currents surrounded the man, yet he walked directly into the water and continued forwards without regard for its punishing waves.


    This was the first time that Ye Wuchen had started the offensive before he was ready. Clearly, the Barren State had been targeted in the challenges, so even if he had been in a tranquil state of mind, he still felt anger now. Everyone present could feel it from the one-armed swordsman in training.


    The Sword Qi swirled forwards into the ocean and through the giant waves, attacking Ao Kun. Ao Kun''s body shuddered suddenly, seeming to morph into a fish before swimming swift as lightning towards Ye Wuchen, trident in hand.


    The Sword Will''s power upon Ye Wuchen intensified, the sword appearing within his palm, shredding rule power permeated and fracturing the waves. Ye Wuchen''s sword pierced the waves with a terrifying whistle, creating a massive funnel of water. The Unending Sword Qi focused, turning into a Shredding Sword aimed straight ahead.


    The trident in Ao Kun''s hand simultaneously launched an aggressive attack; his arms were covered with what looked like the scales of a dragon as his body ripped through the giant waves to land in front of Ye Wuchen. As his trident attacked, waves piled upon one another with tremendous force, as if to crush the shore.


    Before the attacks even made contact, an unimaginable force crashed into Ye Wuchen. The waves were harder than even the strongest rocks, tossing Ye Wuchen about. The man felt as if every organ in his body was about to be smashed. But his sword remained pointed forwards, clashing with the trident. The Sword Qi continued to shred forwards even as the pulverizing momentum struck wildly against Ye Wuchen; both opponents endured the incredible pressure.


    Between Ye Wuchen''s brows, a silver ray arced through the expanse and stabbed into Ao Kun''s pupils while Ye Wuchen began to back up. A mirage suddenly appeared amidst the sea, before many images of Ye Wuchen began to manifest simultaneously. Ye Wuchen could sense Ao Kun''s Spiritual Will transforming into the massive shape of a Whale Dragon, and almost instantly, a colossal illusion, that of a Whale Dragon, appeared behind Ao Kun. Its large mouth opened with a bellow and a sudden sharp, shrilling sound began to reverberate with the waves, shaking the very firmament itself.


    The mirror images of Ye Wuchen scattered about the water were shattered, and even the Spiritual Will in Ye Futian''s head was cast out and broken. The shrieking sounds forced Ye Wuchen to retreat into the ocean along with the waves, the Spiritual Will within him continuously assaulted to the point of collapsing.


    Obviously, Ao Kun was a formidable Spiritual cultivator, specializing in soundwave-based attacks.


    In the grandstand area, cultivators below the Sage level felt a sharp pain from their Spiritual power. Some even covered their ears to no avail. They saw that the forum stage ahead had been transformed into an ocean��familiar territory for Ao Kun.


    This top disciple of the Ocean Palace in the Ocean State was frightfully strong.


    Perhaps Ye Wuchen will be eliminated, many of the onlookers thought. It was suggested that Ao Kun''s strength could overcome Ye Wuchen. Even if his illusion spell proved to be useless, Ao Kun wouldn''t be weaker than Ye Wuchen in a face to face battle.


    Ye Futian could see that Ye Wuchen was indeed in danger during this fight and could possibly be eliminated. Winning or losing aside, to be where they were now was already an achievement by itself.


    Years ago, they stepped out of the Cangye Kingdom, from the land of the hundred kingdoms. They strove and toiled, for their journey was not easy. And now to see an even more expansive world, to exchange with stronger opponents and push forwards. Even losing would be an encouragement to Wuchen.


    "Your Spiritual Elemental Illusions are useless against me," Ao Kun said. The enormous Whale Dragon morphed into what seemed like a monstrous riding beast underneath him. Ao Kun, with his trident in hand, resembled the King of the Seas and a natural warrior of the ocean.


    The Whale Dragon let out another piercing scream and its enormous body broke the waves, like lightning within the sea. It created giant, terrible waves that crashed towards Ye Wuchen.


    With his sword in hand, Ye Wuchen''s Endless Sword Qi flowed and coursed into the swordsman''s whirlpool, making similar waves. Ye Wuchen did not flinch when he saw his opponent. Instead, his body shot forward like a sharpened sword, slashing again.


    Trident and sword collided once more and tides of storming shock waves surged, forcing back Ye Wuchen and his sword. The opponent''s attack embodied rule that was conceived from the rhythm of the ocean, encompassing its boundless concussive power.


    As Ye Wuchen stepped backward, Ao Kun continued forward, riding his Whale Dragon with unimaginable speed directly at Ye Wuchen. The two men clashed in the water, causing great waves to slam against the Forum grandstand. Many cultivators moved to defend against the waves, attempting to avert disaster.


    In the ocean that had once been the battlefield, a tsunami began to form alongside a dreadful whirlpool, and as Ye Wuchen''s body continued to be knocked and thrown backward, his organs on the verge of shattering, he closed his eyes to feel his body moving with the water. The sea was turning into a terrifying funnel, surrounding their bodies like a storm.


    Ao Kun once again descending as the Whale Dragon and, growling, launched his trident with unfathomable power. Ye Wuchen''s sword blocked the trident with a clang.


    At once, Ye Wuchen opened his eyes. They were a pair of sword eyes, and now, the brilliant blade of light stabbed into Ao Kun''s eyes. Ao Kun ignored the attack, his trident continuing its rapid, violent slashing.


    This onslaught could very well end the fight.


    Bang! The trident once again collided with the sword, but this time the sword shattered. Cruelty flashed through Ao Kun''s eyes as he pushed forward with the trident, piercing Ye Wuchen''s body. The water trembled violently and Ye Wuchen''s shadow fragmented, but Ao Kun''s brows remained knitted. He saw a one-armed figure following the direction of the whirlpool in a nearly perfect arc, returning once again to the waves.


    One sword began, thousand swords began.


    Giant waves cloaked Ye Wuchen, along with an immense Sword Will that moved faster than the eye could see. Ao Kun had just launched his attack, but his momentum decreased.


    "Retreat." Ao Kun''s mind manifested the command and the Whale Dragon began to back paddle against the waves. In front of him, Ye Wuchen was carried forth by the waves of the whirlpool, the sword within his pupils expanding.


    The trident was raised again, offensively, attacking the image that Ao Kun saw, but this time, he was too slow. The sword came and left in a flash, his trident pierced nothing but its afterimage. Once again, his eyes had been fooled.


    The two combatants collided in passing, and Ao Kun saw red in the sea. He felt a coolness on his neck and raised a hand to it, uncertain whether water or blood flowed across his skin. As Ao Kun''s breath calmed, the water soon dissipated. He looked at his palm, red with his seemingly thin blood, still mixed with the sea water.


    He turned to regard the one-armed swordsman.


    "Was my Spiritual Spell effective?" Ye Wuchen slowly turned around and asked him.


    "Within my ocean territory, you were able to utilize the advantage of an ocean funnel and accounted for it within your strategy." Ao Kun focused on Ye Wuchen. "Congratulations, you''ve won." As he finished speaking, Ao Kun turned to leave and walked out of the Forum.


    In this fight, Ye Wuchen of the Barren State was victorious. The number one disciple of the Ocean Palace in the Ocean State, Ao Kun, had been eliminated.


    The Barren State was able to grab yet another seat from the other sacred lands.


    "Jieyu, you are next." Before Ye Wuchen even left, Ye Futian secretly transmitted his voice to Hua Jieyu. The stronger sacred lands were intentionally blocking the advancement of those from the Barren State. As such, it was better to be more proactive by challenging those who were weaker to procure opportunities instead of facing the top competitors.


    Hua Jieyu lightly nodded. As Ye Wuchen walked back, she stepped out and challenged the disciple of the Stone saint of the Yu State, who was rich in attack but poor in Spiritual Will. Hua Jieyu would use her own extremely powerful Will to subdue the opponent, thus advancing again.


    When Hua Jieyu walked back to the area occupied by the Barren State, many eyes accompanied her in interest. Even if they backed out now, three of the top 24 spots were now occupied by one single sacred land from the Barren State: The Holy Zhi Palace.


    "The 24 strongest," laughed the Sky Saint. " The Barren State surprised everyone. Saint Xihua, three were able to advance from the Barren State, and if Xu Que was not wounded, it would be four. They are not far from the top ten." Previously Saint Xihua had agreed to bestow a divine implement if someone from Barren State could include themselves in the top ten. At the time, no one took it as anything other than a joke, viewing it as Ye Futian offering Xihua Sacred Mountain the implement. But now looking back, they had a completely different perspective.


    Upon the grandstand, many dignitaries surveyed those left standing; they were all proud sons and daughters from the sacred lands of the Nine States, but the three from the Barren State outshined them all.


    "Let''s wait and see," Saint Xihua said, his eyes fixed upon the field.


    The ensuing battles were still extremely exciting, still the strong versus strong. And at the end, excepting the disciples from the Barren State, 21 more would still advance. For Yu State, aside from the Zhisheng Cliffs, everyone had been eliminated.


    Of the last 24, no other sacred land had been able to procure two spaces aside from the Barren State. Even the Xia clan was no exception; the other notable contestant among them encountered an incredible character from Luohou Palace. Likewise, other scared lands had also encountered formidable opponents.


    Once many of them had been targeting the Barren State, but looking back, those who had targeted the Barren State seemed weaker in comparison to those that remained. So it was actually the Barren State that had taken the placements from them instead.


    Now, amongst the 24 strongest, all would be the top geniuses from all the sacred lands!

 784 A Violent Battle

    Among the top 24, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen and Hua Jieyu came from the Barren State. While Yaya came from the Eastern State, she was not a member of a sacred ground.


    There was one participant remaining from the 20 sacred grounds from the other eight states beside the Barren State. They were:


    Eastern State: Hua Yunshu of the Xihua Sacred Mountain, and Zhou You of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Summer State: Xia Yi of the Xia clan, Ye Guhong of the Nine State College, Yi Jiuyang of the Yi clan, and Yue Mengqi of the Yue clan.


    Qi State: Qi Haoran of the Qi clan, Zhuge Yi of the Jixia Holy Palace, Ji Hua of the Hall of Holy Light, and Yue Yang of Yue House.


    Cloud State: Chu Xiang of the Great Chu clan, Su Tu of the Li Palace, Tantai Bashan of the Hundred Thousand Great Mountain, and Bai Yu of Yunmeng City.


    War State: Wubei of Vajra Region, Moluo of Luohou Palace, and Shi Yan of Holy Temple of Ten Corners.


    Feng State: Song Chi of Fengdu House, and Tai Guang of Daluo Sacred Mountain.


    Ocean State: Mo Li of Celestial Cliffs.


    Yu State: none


    All 24 were top-class geniuses, the best of the best to be found among those at the pinnacle of the Noble plane.


    The Eastern State, which was the host of that year''s event, only had three participants left, even with Yaya included. The Summer State, Qi State, and Cloud State all had four participants remaining, respectively. The overall powers of the nine states were vaguely reflected on the number of remaining participants of each state. But then again, the Barren State was an exception. There were actually three who made it to the top 24. If Xu Que had not been injured, it would have been four participants from the Barren State in the top 25.


    The crowd in the grandstands behind Ye Futian was all quiet and tense. Every single battle that would follow was to be a clash of the mightiest titans.


    The top ten would be out soon. What rules will await the participants in the upcoming battles?


    At that moment, the elder on the edge of the forum stage hosting the event said, "There are 24 remaining participants in the Nine State Forum. The top ten in this year''s event will be determined in the upcoming battles. The rules are as follows: every participant is free to choose who to challenge until there are ten left on the forum stage. For the purpose of fairness, a participant who already makes a challenge will allow others the opportunity to issue challenges. If no one emerges with three seconds, the one who issued a challenge before will be free to continue issuing challenges. There is no limit to the number of challenges to be made."


    Many gasped after the elder finished. There were no more rules limiting the number of times one would be able to issue challenges. The one who won in a challenge was free to continue challenging others to kick them out. Such rules were set in place to allow the strongest to eliminate the relatively weaker ones. Of course, they were also allowed to challenge the ones who looked to be the strongest.


    "You may begin," the elder added. The air on the forum stage became heavy and solemn.


    It would be a battle determining the top ten.


    Several participants wanted to make a move before, suddenly, a silhouette stepped out right after the elder finished. The others halted their steps after seeing the person step out, not proceeding to fight for the chance to make the first challenge.


    The spectators on the grandstands were all shaken. Under such rules of issuing challenges, the place would be dead silent if no dared to challenge anyone. Furthermore, even if one were to issue a challenge and came out victorious, the others were to challenge said one.


    As such, wouldn''t it be more prudent to refrain from making challenges? It is obviously more risky to issue a challenge, some thought.


    However, when the elder finished elaborating, many became eager to make the first move instead. It was an intriguing scene to behold.


    The eyes of everyone present were on the figure who stepped out.


    It was none other than Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    "The hell..." Ye Futian knew right away what Yu Sheng intended to do when he saw Yu Sheng make the first move. Someone is going to get hurt real bad here.


    "Zhou You of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty." Yu Sheng''s eyes were incredibly sharp as he looked at the Eastern State''s corner, locking onto Zhou You. A golden sheen of incredible sharpness was seen in the eyes of Zhou You, who was wearing an extravagant golden phoenix robe, as he looked at Yu Sheng.


    You challenge him in the very first battle? Do you have a death wish or what?


    Boom! A golden bolt of lightning flashed in the air, and Zhou You came to stand right before Yu Sheng. He was emanating incredibly sharp aura all over him. He had been injured by Phoenix in his last battle and it was a mistake he would never make again.


    Yu Sheng of the Barren State would be the first true stepping stone on his path to becoming the champion of the Nine State Forum. That battle was the only true battle that posed a threat to him.


    "Who do you all think will emerge victorious in this one?" the Sky Saint looked at the battlefield and asked. The battles from here on out would be ones that even saints would find intriguing, as they looked forward to the performance of the best the younger generations had to offer. Even the Sky Saint, who did not have one of his own on the forum stage, found some in the event to have performed very admirably.


    "Zhou You is the strongest of the participants from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty this time. While Yu Sheng is incredibly powerful, he has too little in the way of offensive tricks. If Zhou You is able to tear down his defense, his defeat will be set. It is very possible that Zhou You''s offensive capacities prove sufficient to tear down Yu Sheng''s defenses," the Rain Saint of the Xihua Sacred Mountain said. He looked forward to Zhou You''s performance. If Yu Sheng were to win yet again, he would simply be one step away from entering the top ten. If that were to happen, Xihua Sacred Mountain would have to apologize by offering a holy item. These were the words said by Saint Xihua himself, and there was no way he could have backed out.


    "From the looks of things, it seems that none are capable of threatening Yu Sheng. Zhou You had been injured by Phoenix, and I think Yu Sheng stands a better chance here instead," the Glass Saint chuckled and said. She looked at the battlefield instead of the corner where the ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain were seated.


    "Zhou You underestimated his opponent, and his body was invaded by the Undying Flames. Zhou You was not able to bring his best in that battle. In this one, it will be impossible for Zhou You of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to lose," Zhou Ya, who was standing behind the sacred king, said plainly. His sharp eyes went all the way to look at Ye Futian. He said, "What do you think, Palace Lord Ye?"


    Ye Futian lifted his head to look at Zhou Ya, a young man who had toasted to him in the banquet, and the one who was known to be the sacred king''s heir. His talents were greater than that of Zhou You, but given that he was already a sage, it was only natural that he was not allowed to participate in the event.


    Ye Futian grinned and said, "Would you like to hear what I really have in mind?"


    "Of course," Zhou Ya smiled and said.


    "From the looks of things so far... " Ye Futian turned his eyes at Zhou Ya and a proud smirk was seen on his face. He then said, "Zhou You is not good enough."


    Zhou Ya was stunned. The Great Zhou Sacred King, Saint Xihua, the Glass Saint, and many others turned to look at Ye Futian. They saw his plain smile, and he seemed to have absolute faith in Yu Sheng''s powers.


    The humble leader of the Barren State finally drops his act and reveals his pride then? Zhou You is not good enough.


    The words were so direct that they sounded insolent, as if he did not bother with the upcoming battle at all.


    Zhou You will end up losing?


    Many at the grandstands behind Ye Futian turned to look at the palace lord of a sacred ground in the Barren State. It was the very first time that Ye Futian spoke with such confidence about a battle on the stage of the Nine State Forum.


    As Zhou You was someone from the Eastern State, there were many more who had heard of his name, and many came to name him as one of the top contenders from the top three places.


    But as the Nine State Forum went on, and geniuses all over the nine states came to bring their best to the game, they knew that the chances of Zhou You being ranked in the top three would be very slim. Even so, the fact that he was incredibly powerful did not change. Yet, Ye Futian spoke as if he never considered Zhou You to be able to pose any threat at all, as if he was unqualified to even be discussed alongside Yu Sheng. His words seemed to have reversed the impression Ye Futian had left on the minds of all present. He was still the youngest palace lord of a sacred ground in the history of the nine states.


    So underneath that humble facade, lies sharpness and pride after all.


    Zhou Ya laughed and said to Ye Futian loudly, "You''re indeed confident, Palace Lord Ye. Well, we''ll see."


    It was a given that both Zhou You and Yu Sheng heard the conversation between the ones at the grandstands. Zhou You gradually took to the air, and a shadow of golden phoenix covered his body, bursting with boundless golden light. Zhou You seemed to have taken the form of a divine bird. An extremely terrifying golden storm whipped around him.


    Ye Futian, you dare to say that I''m not good enough.


    Boom. Dark golden lights coursed throughout Yu Sheng''s body. His Douzhan Body burst in an instant, turning into an impressively stout and golden vague figure, covering his body. Terrifying golden lights coursed all over the Douzhan Body, making him nigh-invincible.


    A cry of the phoenix was heard in the air. Zhou You''s body turned into a combat divine bird in an instant. Golden lights shone brilliantly in their surroundings and came before Yu Sheng, descending from above.


    Many felt stunned seeing the scene before them. The one that was attacking did not seem to be Zhou You, but an incredibly magnificent divine bird instead. It tore through the space, and golden lights showered everywhere, lashing out like a straight golden blade, flowing through Zhou You''s hand as he attacked. It turned into the sharpest of phoenix claws, coming down hard on the Douzhan Body.


    Dark golden lights coursed all over Yu Sheng''s Douzhan Body in a frenzy, which trembled with a loud boom. However, it remained shinning and unfazed.


    Zhou You immersed himself into the phoenix. His eyes turned demonic and he turned incredibly wild as his body moved against the flow. He struck from above yet again, turning into an extremely fast beam of golden light.


    "Boom, boom, boom..." One attack after another burst and countless shadows of golden phoenixes appeared in that place, striking down hard at the Douzhan Body, which continuously trembled, and cracks were vaguely seen.


    "Some defense indeed." The minds of many trembled. The scene was too shocking, be it about Zhou You''s attacks or Yu Sheng''s defense. It still stays intact after all that?


    At that very moment, even greater beams of light burst from Yu Sheng''s body. His arms trembled violently and sent the beam coursing through the top of his arms. The beams of light penetrated right through his body, opening up his acupoints.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stepped forward and saw that golden phoenix''s shadow about to strike again. His golden arm lashed out at the incoming attack. The boundlessly huge battle form moved in synch with his body, lashing out with an incredibly violent golden fist. The golden phoenix clashed with the fist. Zhou You''s body trembled, and the fist shattered and dissipated.


    Yu Sheng took to the air in the very next moment, lashing out with both arms. The huge Douzhan Body lashed out with countless golden fists, blocking out the sky as they struck in a particular area.


    Zhou You''s eyes focused and a streak of extravagant arc flashed by him. The wings of the phoenix turned into nigh-invincible blades and lashed out at the air before him, cutting at the punches flying at him. The claws kept destroying the fists before him as well.


    But at the same time, Yu Sheng''s body took to the air again, and his entire battle form came crashing down. His arm lashed out at the body of that huge phoenix itself.


    Zhou You shouted and kept moving forward. The phoenix clashed with the Douzhan body. Claws and fists came into violent contact.


    Boom. The air before them rumbled. The phoenix''s shadow was thrown behind and its wings spread open. It remained extremely elegant in its retreat.


    Doom! Yu Sheng stepped forward in mid-air, the light on his arms turned even more dazzling as he chased down the phoenix and lashed out with yet another punch.


    Everyone saw an incredibly terrifying scene in the next moment. Both men were countering each other''s offense with offense. They clashed hard with each other. The phoenix''s shadow continued to be beaten and thrown backward, rumbling violently all the way.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Rumbles continued to be heard in the minds of the spectators. Every single clash seemed to make their hearts about to leap out of their chests. The phoenix''s overbearing silhouette was sent all the way from the air down to the ground, being pummeled as it continued to retreat.


    Pfftt.


    Zhou You spat up blood and no longer able to lash out with attacks to defend. It was obvious that he was at his limit.


    At that very moment, a huge leg was seen stepping down from the sky onto the phoenix''s shadow.


    Boom. Yet another rumble was heard. The leg came crashing down from the sky, and the phoenix''s shadow was seen crashing to the ground, floundering for a bit on the forum stage. The phoenix''s shadow ceased shining and dissipated soon. Zhou You was seen where the phoenix was. His breathing was weak and blood kept spurting out from his mouth. He looked at Yu Sheng, whose body remained hovering in the air above Zhou You like a god of war, incredibly unruly and imposing. The figure above remained strong and completely unfettered, as if it was effortless for it to dish out such attacks.


    The place of the event turned silent, dead silent.


    Zhou You had been known to have what it took to be ranked among the top ten, and some claimed that he had the opportunity to be among the top three. However, presently, he was completely overwhelmed. He had no way of retaliating when Yu Sheng went offensive and ended up seriously injured, being stepped on by his opponent.


    Zhou You''s face was completely ashen, losing all traces of the insolence and pride from before.


    Had the stage of the Nine State Forum truly been his?


    He had undergone his darkest, most humiliating defeat in his life at the moment.


    The saints of the Xihua Sacred Mountain were speechless at the scene.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King was not even able to conceal the shock he felt. His eyes were incredibly sharp as he stared at the battlefield.


    "Take him away," the Great Zhou Sacred King said. Some people from the sacred dynasty went to carry the severely injured Zhou You away from the forum stage.


    The Sky Saint, the Glass Saint, and many other great figures remained watching Yu Sheng.


    That kid has what it takes to be ranked among the top ten. There is no doubt about it, seeing how he just stepped over Zhou You to advance.


    No one would have made any challenges if he did not come out to challenge the strongest. He would have made it to top ten if he just stood there and did nothing.


    Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    The one who had walked out from the very beginning was a figure that even saints would remember!

 785 Apologies

    Many turned their eyes at the corner where the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were seated. Zhou Ya had declared with absolute confidence that Zhou You was capable of winning, so much so that he dared to ask for Ye Futian''s opinion.


    None of the students of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty remained on the forum stage. Every single of them had been eliminated.


    Zhou Ziyi and Zhou Zichao looked on with soured faces. Those who had earned Zhou Ziyi''s ire back in the Chess Saint Villa were still being able to shine on the stage of the Nine State Forum, and even Zhou You ended up severely injured by one of those people.


    "Impressive." Zhou Ya grinned all of a sudden and looked towards Ye Futian. "It seems that you know well where Yu Sheng''s powers stand among all in the nine states, Palace Lord Ye."


    "I didn''t know much before, but it was only natural I learn a thing or two after watching so many battles being fought," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "If that should be the case, where would you think Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State will end up in the event, Palace Lord Ye?" Zhou Ya asked with a sharp look in his eyes.


    "Yu Sheng shouldn''t have any problems making to top ten. As for specific rankings, we''ll see," Ye Futian answered plainly.


    Zhou Ya stared at Ye Futian and then smiled. "With you being able to take over as the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace at such an age, there is no doubt that you''re possibly the number one among the younger generations of the Barren State. With Yu Sheng being that exceptional already, I''m sure your talent will be something of an even higher caliber. Should the opportunity presents itself, I''d love to spar with you."


    "There are many among the current generation in the Barren State who prove to be top-class geniuses. If you''d like to try your hand, I''m sure there''d be someone who''d be willing to oblige," Gu Dongliu, who was sitting beside Ye Futian, answered.


    Zhou Ya took a look at Gu Dongliu. That man had been sitting there without making a sound all the while he had been around. Upon a closer look, however, Zhou Ya nonetheless found him to be an exceptional figure, looking like a dashing scholar.


    "I look forward to it," Zhou Ya said plainly.


    The Nine State Forum no longer had anything to do with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. They became little else than mere spectators from there on out.


    Yu Sheng remained standing where he was, seemingly having no intentions of leaving. Many stared at him looking amused or troubled. Yu Sheng''s powers were of such caliber that, barring unforeseen circumstances, no one would dare to make a move against him in the next round, even if he were to step down. That would make him a sure candidate among the top ten. There was no need for him to continue challenging others.


    "Do you intend to continue?" the elder at the edge of the forum stage asked Yu Sheng.


    "Indeed." Yu Sheng nodded.


    "You''ll be allowed to continue if no one comes out to challenge anyone in three seconds." The elder then added, "Starting now."


    Many counted silently as soon as the elder finished.


    Three seconds were brief moments.


    Many at the forum stage continued to look at Yu Sheng. Who does he intend to challenge?


    "You may continue," the elder declared. No one stepped forward, and according to the rules, Yu Sheng was allowed to continue issuing challenges.


    "Hua Yunshu of Xihua Sacred Mountain of the Eastern State," Yu Sheng said slowly, making many freeze. Yu Sheng challenged the number one noble of Xihua Sacred Mountain, as well as the only remaining participant from a sacred ground in the Eastern State: Hua Yunshu.


    While Yaya was also from the Eastern State, she was not a member of any sacred grounds.


    Even the pupils of the elder who hosted the event contracted as he took a look at Yu Sheng. The elder was someone from the Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "Hua Yunshu." Many at the grandstands stared at the stout figure standing on the forum stage. Yu Sheng would have been able to make it to the next round without having to do anything, yet he just challenged the strongest person from the Eastern State. Is he nuts or something?


    The Sky Saint looked amused. Everyone from all over the nine states knew how Xihua Sacred Mountain treated the people from the Barren State before the event began. None from the other eight states paid any heed to the ones from the Barren State. The host of that year''s event, Xihua Sacred Mountain, did not pay heed to them as well, arranging for them to be seated at the corner for servants.


    Yu Sheng was displeased and there he was. He went on to challenge Hua Yunshu before making it to top ten. It would look intriguing if Hua Yunshu was defeated.


    Everyone from the Xihua Sacred Mountain looked at Yu Sheng and thought him to truly be crazy.


    Hua Yunshu stepped forward and came before Yu Sheng. He did not anticipate Yu Sheng to challenge him.


    The streak of miracles created by the Barren State ends here. I will eliminate everyone from the Barren State, making none of them capable of being ranked among the top ten.


    "The Barren State behaved disrespectfully in many ways while participating in the Nine State Forum. We fought and learned of what the others from the other states were capable of. Finally, I''m now fortunate enough stand before the strongest student of Xihua Sacred Mountain." Yu Sheng''s voice was serious, and his words sounded solemn. He then added, "Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. Pleased to make your acquaintance."


    Many looked at him and found his words to be humble. They were unable to find any fault with him. However, everyone was able to sense that the humility belied his unruly, wild emotions looking for an exit.


    Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State was finally been able to stand at the forum stage, facing and challenging the only remaining, as well as the strongest, participant from the Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Hua Yunshu turned his eyes at Yu Sheng and said, "Hua Yunshu of Xihua Sacred Mountain. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Both finished greeting each other and lifted their heads to look at each other, sending extremely intense battle will at each other.


    Hua Yunshu stepped forward and, within an instant, thunderous rumbles were heard all around them. Rock-like sheen appeared on Yu Sheng''s body as if he was about to be petrified and be made a state.


    Dark golden light coursed throughout Yu Sheng''s body. A whirlpool seemed to have emerged from his body, devouring the invading powers, which was the rock-like sheen all over him, in a frenzy.


    "Devouring Rules." Hua Yunshu extended his hand, and a terrifying rocky storm whipped up in the air. Magnificent rocky mountains appeared and hovered above Yu Sheng''s head. Every single mountain felt extremely heavy, which, when combined with the power of Gravity Rules, made them capable of crushing a wide area. Even spectators who watched the battle from afar was able to sense the stifling pressure on the stage.


    Yu Sheng activated his battle form. Terrifying golden lights circled around his body, making his stout battle form look like a god of war.


    The mountains in the air landed heavily on him. The mountains crumbled with thunderous rumbles, but his battle form was withstanding the intensely terrifying power and shook violently.


    Boom, boom, boom�� One mountain after another fell onto him, pinning down Yu Sheng''s battle form and cracking it. At that moment, Hua Yunshu stepped forward, and he transformed into a mountain himself, stepping on Yu Sheng''s body.


    Cracking noises were heard as cracks were seen on the Douzhan Body. Yu Sheng looked up at Hua Yunshu, who was, at the same time, looking down on him. Cracks on the Douzhan Body grew in numbers. Rocks fell onto the man below in a frenzy, burying the Douzhan Body.


    In the very next moment, Hua Yunshu took to the sky and burst with his Life Spirit. Boundless power of the heavens gathered into his body and a boundlessly huge golem appeared behind him. Hua Yunshu turned to look like a god.


    "Some power indeed." Many looked at Hua Yunshu, feeling stunned. Is this what Hua Yunshu is truly capable of? This is really something indeed.


    Hua Yunshu then swooped down below, lashing out with a punch powered by unbelievable powers of the heaven and the earth, like a devil, landing on the huge rocks that covered Yu Sheng''s body. A stifling noise was heard around in an instant. Crazed rocks swept all over the forum stage.


    Many who did not participate in the battle, who were all standing at the edge of the stage, came to be covered in rocks, as if the aftershock itself was enough to petrify people.


    "Wha..." The hearts of many raced at the scene, at the performance of the number one in the Xihua Sacred Mountain, Hua Yunshu.


    The ones at the Xihua Sacred Mountain looked confident and proud. Yu Sheng might be powerful, but does he really intend to take on Hua Yunshu?


    As the host of that year''s Nine State Forum, it was simply impossible for Xihua Sacred Mountain to not nurture a top-class figure for the event. Hua Yunshu had actually been able to make it into Sage Plane, but he had suppressed his plane at the pinnacle of Noble Plane nonetheless, all for that year''s Nine State Forum.


    Does Yu Sheng intend to bar Hua Yunshu from being ranked among the top ten?


    How is that even possible?


    The rocks exploded wildly, and Yu Sheng''s battle form was seen, which shattered shortly after. Hua Yunshu charged with his fist readied to punch, bringing intense strength capable of crushing everything to bear. Yu Sheng''s body was covered with rocks as well, as if he had been turned into a statue. Hua Yunshu did not pull his punch back and kept his course instead.


    Boom... A terrifying rumble was heard and the rocks on Yu Sheng''s body crumbled. That punch seemed to land on Yu Sheng''s chest like that of a god. The crumbled rocks covered him yet again, as if intending to petrify him all over. The strike should have been able to shatter a petrified person. Despite Yu Sheng''s apparently strong body, it seemed to have proven inadequate.


    "How are you able to stop me?" Hua Yunshu asked proudly. His voice reverberated in their surroundings, while his eyes remained cold. He looked at Yu Sheng with extremely sharp eyes.


    Time seemed to have stopped, and the hearts of many continued to race. Hua Yunshu''s proud voice reverberated in the ears of the spectators, sounding immensely arrogant.


    It had been a battle to crush Yu Sheng.


    The battle should have been over.


    Are the ones from a sacred ground in the Barren State, who had cooked up a storm like a miracle in the event, going to meet their end right?


    Time seemed to pass very slowly. The place was dead silent.


    Hua Yunshu then found that Yu Sheng continued to look at him.


    He frowned as he seemed to feel something from Yu Sheng''s eyes. How are his internal organs still intact?


    "Is this the best you''ve got?" Yu Sheng said calmly at Hua Yunshu, who was about a foot away from him. His words, however, sounded incredibly cold in Hua Yunshu''s ears.


    The hearts of the spectators pounded hard against their chests.


    "Is this the best you''ve got?" He actually said something like that as if nothing happened?


    What does he mean by that?


    Was that attack not enough to crush his physical body?


    Boom. Boundless Fossilization Rules emerged from Hua Yunshu''s fist and rushed into Yu Sheng''s body, intending to petrify all of his internal organs. At that moment, however, he sensed a terrifying devouring power. Yu Sheng''s body seemed to have turned into a frightening whirlpool, devouring Hua Yunshu''s power of rules. The whirlpool turned increasingly intense, seemingly about to devour everything before him.


    Hua Yunshu''s face changed altogether. He wanted to retreat, yet a terrifying light seemed to flow onto his body, like a sheen of darkness. Slivers of dark rocky light covered his body and he soon found his body turning stiff. He felt immensely heavy and hardly able to move.


    "How is this possible?" Hua Yunshu looked thoroughly frightened. He was not the only one who felt so. Every single great figure of Xihua Sacred Mountain trembled at the scene.


    That is not the Devouring Rules. The eyes of all mighty ones from all over the nine states stared at Yu Sheng. A wild, unruly storm emerged from Yu Sheng''s body. Hua Yunshu''s body was drowned in an instant. The dark, rocky light covered and buried his body, as if Yu Sheng had thrown all of Hua Yunshu''s powers back at him.


    Yu Sheng lifted his arm before Hua Yunshu''s despaired eyes. That cold eyes from a devil seemed to have locked onto him.


    The elder, who was hosting the event, was somewhat frightened when he saw Yu Sheng lifting his arm. He said immediately, "He lost fighting capacity. Spare him."


    Yu Sheng took a look at the elder and brought his arm down still. Hua Yunshu was sent flying with a thunderous rumble, heading towards where the Eastern State people were seated.


    Boom. Hua Yunshu crashed onto the edge of the forum stage. His body trembled violently and then fell flat on the floor. He spat up blood, feeling his internal organs had all been ruptured.


    Yu Sheng threw that punch, a punch that he had held back for a very long time. However, he had spared his opponent; that punch would have completely crippled Hua Yunshu otherwise.


    But Yu Sheng did not go that far, as he knew whose turf he was on.


    In that silent battlefield, many turned their eyes at Hua Yunshu, who was slowly getting up. The number one student of the Xihua Sacred Mountain, immensely proud and confident, so much so that some claimed him to have been able to become the champion of the Nine State Forum, was eliminated.


    He was not even ranked among the top ten.


    Every single powerful one from sacred grounds of the Eastern State had been eliminated.


    The strongest from Xihua Sacred Moutain and the strongest from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, had been kicked out of the stage of the event by the same person: Yu Sheng, a student from the Barren State.


    No one cared about those who came from the Barren State before the event was held, and yet those very people had kicked the participants of the hosting force out of the event. With that, there was only one participant from the Eastern State left��Yaya, who was not a student of a sacred ground.


    It was a scenario that none had seen coming.


    None had imagined that it would take Yu Sheng just a single punch, yet again, to defeat Hua Yunshu.


    "Thank you," Yu Sheng looked at Hua Yunshu and said. He then turned to the elder and apologized, "I beg your forgiveness for injuring a student of the sacred mountain."


    "It''s alright." The elder''s heart flinched. There was nothing he could have done about it, as it was all within the rules.


    "It was something bound to happen on a battlefield, so I don''t see anything wrong with your actions." The Sky Saint looked at Yu Sheng and smiled. "Students from sacred grounds of all over the nine states are here to fight. It is the most intense of clashes to be had in all of the nine states. Winning or losing, that all depends on one''s powers. There is no need for you to fret about it. If any of the seniors or elders find fault with you, they have truly underestimated the bearings of the elders of sacred grounds indeed."


    The Sky Saint was not wrong. There was no one that could always emerge victorious in the fights between students of sacred grounds in the Nine State Forum.


    If any sacred ground were to hold grudges and went about settling scores after the event, they would have been looked down on and ridiculed by all of the nine states.


    Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng calmly. While those words held true, there was simply no sacred ground in all of the other eight states, that had experienced what the Barren State was going through.


    The Barren State was weak for having no saints among them.


    The Sky Saint was actually siding with the Barren State with his words.


    "What is the power of rules that you have come to develop?" Saint Xihua looked at Yu Sheng and asked. He naturally knew what the Sky Saint meant. As the lord of Xihua Sacred Mountain, it was inappropriate for him to hold grudges against a junior for such matters, no matter how irked he felt inside. His students had been inferior to others, and there was nothing he was able to say about it. He had lost face. Regardless of how uncomfortable he felt, he was not allowed to say a word about it.


    "Demonization," Yu Sheng looked at Saint Xihua and said.


    Saint Xihua''s expression turned sharp. It had not been merely Devouring Rules; it was the Demonizing Rules that were even more overbearing. He had demonized the Fossilization Rules that he had devoured and made those powers his own, before sending it back onto his opponent. Hua Yunshu, who had been on the receiving end of the demonized Fossilization Rules, was rendered completely immobile. Furthermore, Yu Sheng''s Force Rules had definitely been stronger than that of Hua Yunshu.


    It was only natural that Hua Yunshu had lost that battle.


    Saint Xihua looked at Yu Sheng for quite a while before turning his eyes to Ye Futian and saying, "I did not expect myself to have trained for so long and come this far to still hold prejudices. I''ve underestimated the students of the Barren State before the event began because the Barren State had been weak.


    "Yu Sheng has earned the respect that the Barren State deserved. He will definitely be ranked among the top ten, and it was my mistake for arranging such seats for the Barren State."


    Countless eyes froze as Saint Xihua finished his statement.


    Saint Xihua, the lord of a sacred ground, had apologized!


    Yu Sheng had stepped out to earn respect for the Barren State. Saint Xihua had promised that if any of the students from the Barren State would be able to make it to top ten, he would offer a holy item and apologize.


    The top ten participants had not been determined just yet, but Yu Sheng had already defeated Zhou You and Hua Yunshu consecutively. There was simply no further need to prove such powers. As such, Saint Xihua kept his promise and apologized.


    No one felt that to be an insult in Saint Xihua''s part. Many had instead come to be impressed. Such is the bearing of a saint!

 786 Explosive Strength

    Ye Futian was stunned. He looked toward the direction of Saint Xihua and bowed. "I admire the Saint''s generosity. Yu Sheng had previously disrespected you, and we are already indebted for your forgiveness. Now that the Saint has made this admission, how could the likes of us bear such grave ?"


    Whether it was sincere or not, if Saint Xihua had admitted fault, Ye Futian was obligated to express his position, otherwise, he would be perceived as insolent and ignorant.


    Yu Sheng had only just won on the battlefield of Nine States Forum, and only the battle of the nobles. He still had quite a ways to reach the holy lands. Ye Futian understood clearly that their status was much like the seats they sat��the distance was still too great. Naturally, he could not afford to act ungraciously even if he was right.


    Saint Xihua waved. "I am the host of the Nine States Forum for this year. I cannot speak without keeping my word, and whatever I promised before, I will fulfill. I am not happy that Yu Sheng defeated my disciple Hua Yunshu, but it''s what it is. We have nothing further to say except that our skill was not up to par. I will fulfill my previous promises."


    Ye Futian was speechless, then without another word, bowed slightly again.


    "This year at the Nine States Forum, everyone misjudged and did not expect such an excellent candidate from Barren State. Then let us see how far he can go." Rain Saint, who stood next to the Saint Xihua also jumped in and cast a meaningful look at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng still did not get off the stage.


    "You would like to continue?" asked the host from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "Yes." Yu Sheng nodded, and many people were speechless, vaguely knowing who he wanted to challenge. Without surprise, it should be Ji Hua of the Hall of Holy Light. Ji Hua, who was previously uncivil towards the disciples from Barren State.


    "Anyone else who would like to fight?" The elder looked at the crowd.


    "Yes," a voice answered. Many followed the sound and saw it was in the direction of Hall of Holy Light, as Ji Hua was already stepping out. Clearly, he knew that Yu Sheng would challenge him.


    "Elder, according to the rules, he already battled consecutively twice. So, if no one else will rise up to the call, I can also battle twice in a row, is that correct?" Ji Hua looked up and asked the elder.


    "Yes," the elder nodded.


    Ji Hua nodded lightly and glanced at the Yu Sheng. "You wish to challenge me?"


    Yu Sheng looked at him without a word, but his eyes said everything.


    "You have excellent strength, and it should be within the top ten, or maybe even higher, so you are definitely qualified to continue. Of course, the premise is that you can beat me. However, before that happens, there are two others from the Barren State who should be eliminated," Ji Hua said without much emotion. His eyes were fixed on Ye Wuchen and Hua Jieyu. "I challenge Ye Wuchen."


    Now, even Ji Hua himself did not have absolute certainty that he could defeat Yu Sheng. But what was certain was that before the two of them meet in the final confrontation, he would wipe out the other two from the Barren State. If Yu Sheng and he were destined to battle for a place, then by what right did the other two from the Barren State have to stay in the competition? Therefore, before he battled Yu Sheng, he would eliminate the competitors from Barren State.


    Yu Sheng regarded Ji Hua with frigid intensity.


    "You can exit now," the elder said to Yu Sheng, who retreated to the edge at the same time Ye Wuchen stepped forward to meet Ji Hua.


    "Illusory Sword, Shredding Sword?" Ji Hua looked at Ye Wuchen, on whose body the sacred radiance shone in bursts with a blinding light. His body dazzled.


    "Let the Sword of Holy Light teach you a lesson." As Ji Hua finished, the sword of light radiated brilliant light. Ye Wuchen''s expression was grave. He closed his eyes, and a dazzling light shot out from his brow chakra. A terrible storm of Sword Qi appeared all around him.


    "Judgment," Ji Hua commanded indifferently. As soon as he finished, the sword of endless light descended upon Ye Wuchen, like streams of light swiftly passing through with unimaginable speed. A sword veil now surrounded Ye Wuchen, guarding him, covering his body.


    Slashes of Sword of Holy Light crossed the void to attack, rocking the sword veil which now quickly begin to show cracks and fissures, on the verge of disintegration at any moment.


    Just then, Ye Wuchen seemed to have transformed his body into a sword, a sword that could shatter all things. With a flash, he shuttled through the expanse, a sword light that penetrated the Holy Light, shattering all the attacks that blocked in front of him. He then started his attack on Ji Hua.


    Ji Hua''s eyes were full of blinding light. Under the gaze of everyone, his body moved, like streams of light, moving forward in multiple folds so incredibly fast, it was impossible to see which stream of light was actually him.


    Ye Wuchen swept his sword across, cut through the void, chopping off the streams of light. But in the next moment, a light suddenly appeared in the sky above him and turned into Ji Hua.


    Ji Hua extended his hand, and the Sword of Holy Light shrouded Ye Wuchen, falling through the sky like rays of light shooting out. The sword in Ye Wuchen''s hands danced and once again formed a sword veil as a guard, but the Sword of Holy Light was relentless, and in a short instant, shattered the light curtain and pierced through.


    "Get off on your own now," Ji Hua stood proudly in the void and said. In front of Ye Wuchen, there was the sword of endless light. Suspended at the moment, but with a turning of Ji Hua''s mind, it could be turned into the sword of endless slaughtering light.


    Ye Wuchen looked at Ji Hua and felt a sense of powerlessness. Even if he wanted to fight to the end like Xu Que did, he was unable to do so. His opponent was an expert on the power of light rules and had integrated that into the sword and its moves. There was no solution to that.


    On the stage of Nine States Forum, he was still quite a ways from the top ten. He turned around to step down. All eyes were on Ji Hua, the number one from the Hall of Holy Light, whose strength was beyond measure.


    If Yu Sheng could not diffuse the attacks wielded by his Sword of Holy Light, it would be difficult to defeat Ji Hua. After all, Yu Sheng could not possibly match the speed Ji Hua had demonstrated.


    Ji Hua would be even more difficult than Hua Yunshu and Zhou You.


    Ye Futian looked at the battle, and there was nothing to say. Wuchen''s foundation was just a tad weaker. He had made great progress since the days of Cangye Kingdom and had realized two extraordinary rule powers. Of course, the nobles were not the focus of cultivation, and rule power could still be improved upon after entering the realm of the sage. As long as Wuchen''s heart was still in it, he could continue moving forward. For now, an opponent such as Ji Hua was just too thorny for Ye Wuchen.


    "Anyone else wishes to fight?" The elder looked out to the crowd. Ji Hua had said that he would continue to answer the challenge.


    "Hmm." A sound was heard, and a young girl emerged out of the crowd. It was Yaya.


    Yaya walked to the center of the battlefield and glanced at Ji Hua. "Your strength is fair, but Nine States Forum has more than just the two of you. So stay back now and I''ll deal with you later. I challenge Mo Li of the Celestial Cliffs," she remarked with the ease of a breeze, full of self-confidence as if she was not even worried about facing Yu Sheng and Ji Hua.


    Her comment surprised many. Just how powerful was this little girl?


    Mo Li walked up to the battle stage and looked at the girl in front of him, sensing a strange vibe. The girl in front of him was so petite, although she seemed to be very powerful.


    "Are you ready?" the girl asked.


    "Mhmm." Mo Li nodded. The next moment, he saw a pair of terrible eyes, and in his mind, there appeared a bloodcurdling scene. His look rapidly changed as the aura of his body exploded, as if he had felt how truly dangerous this seemingly harmless girl was.


    Suddenly, the girl disappeared, and it was almost with an unbelievable speed that she reappeared right in front of Mo Li. She pointed a white and delicate finger at Mo Li, while he released a powerful defensive force to try to shake off the girl, but that finger pierced through everything and landed right in front of Mo Li''s chest. Instantly, Mo Li felt his whole body turning stiff, as if with a single thought from the other, his body would be torn into pieces.


    "I admit defeat," Mo Li said, looking pallid.


    "Boring." The girl released her finger and turned around to leave. Mo Li was left alone there soaked and in shock. Was there really such terrible genius existing in this world?


    Not just him, but everyone else also fixed their attention there. The only remaining noble of the Celestial Cliffs from Ocean State, Mo Li, could not even bear one strike. Just as with previous battles, even now the girl was putting away her opponents easily.


    Yu Sheng, Ji Hua, Yaya, who was the weakest? Moreover, there were other extremely powerful practitioners who had yet to fully unleash their strengths. The battle of the top ten would be beyond imagination.


    "I will also join in for a bit of fun." Another figure emerged, it''s the sorcerer Wubei of the Temple Vajra. He challenged Qin Guang of the Daluo Sacred Mountain in Feng State.


    Many were speechless. This round was unnecessary and had no advantage at all, but these top geniuses were still eager to show off one after the other.


    This was perhaps what they meant by the spirit of the real cultivator. They loathed to enter the top ten by simple elimination; what they wanted was more than rankings.


    Wubei and Qin Guang each allowed their own power to effloresce. Wubei, chanting the name of Buddha, the sound lingered between heaven and earth. Behind him, there appeared an enormous Buddha, golden and ancient. Along with the reverberation of the Buddha sounds between heaven and earth, there appeared statues of Buddha in the firmament, who stood in the void and overlooked the ground below, rendering an endless oppressive power, suppressing all evils in the world.


    The strength of Qin Guang was equally terrible. There was a gargantuan figure appearing behind him, like a ghost, the dark air of destruction flowing, along with terrifying power.


    But at this instant, a sun appeared above the sky, right on the top of the ancient Buddha. The golden Buddha morphed into gods of all heavens, and countless palms slammed down for the kill with extreme aggression.


    The ultimate move of the Vajra Realm, the Palm of Mahavairocana.


    "So mighty." The hearts of many trembled. Qin Guang let out a roar and tried to resist the Palm of Mahavairocana, but he was quashed nonetheless. He spat out a mouthful of blood on the ground and was crushed and defeated.


    Outstanding. Ye Futian also praised what he had just witnessed. Seeing the top geniuses of Nine States gradually showcasing their real power, Ye Futian felt that the battle for the top ten would be very interesting indeed.


    Now, four competitors had demonstrated their superior strength and crushed the top 20 geniuses.


    In the grandstand area, many people felt excitement in their hearts. It turned out that neither Hua Yunshu nor Zhou You were the stars of the show!

 787 Top Ten

    The Nine State Forum continued, and in the following battles, the Summer State took over as the dominant force in the forum stage.


    Xia Yi of Xia clan overwhelmed Bai Yu from Yunmeng City of Cloud State.


    Yi Jiuyang of Yi clan won against Song Chi of Fengdu House of Feng State. All from Ocean State and Feng State were eliminated by then, without a single participant left.


    Yue Mengqi of Yue clan had also defeated Yue Yang of Yue House of Qi State.


    Ye Guhong of Nine State College won in the challenge brought forth by Qi Haoran, a member of Qi clan, the old royalty of Qi State, showing unparalleled might and elegance.


    Summer State won in all four of their battles, demonstrating their prowess as the number one state in all nine states.


    Zhuge Yi of Jixia Holy Palace of Qi State had also demonstrated incredibly overwhelming prowess, defeating Tantai Bashan of Hundred Thousand Great Mountain of Cloud State.


    Moluo of Luohou Palace had also brought incredible powers to bear by defeating Su Tu of Li Palace of Cloud State.


    Chu Xiang of Great Chu clan walked out when Cloud State was down to last man standing, defeating Shi Yan of Holy Temple of Ten Corners of War State.


    Every single battle was incredibly intense.


    After those battles were over, only 12 were left in the top 24. Among those battles, as Yu Sheng had defeated both Zhou You and Hua Yunshu, there was then only one participant who had yet to fight.


    That last person was none other than Hua Jieyu of the Barren State.


    It was unknown if it had anything to do with Yu Sheng, but all who went up to choose their opponents avoided challenging Hua Jieyu. As such, Hua Jieyu became one of the remaining 12 at the end.


    Two more battles and the top ten participants would emerge.


    At that time, another figure walked out. It was Zhuge Yi of Jixia Holy Palace of Qi State. He had been the one challenged before. As such, he was able to pick his own opponent without having to wait for others.


    "Who will you challenge?" the elder asked. Every single participant of the remaining 12 was tremendously powerful.


    "No one from the Summer State has been eliminated so far, and I''d like to try them out." Zhuge Yi continued and said, "I challenge Yi Jiuyang, a member of the Yi clan of the Summer State."


    The Nine State Forum was a grand event throughout all nine states. If the Summer State was able to take four places out of the top ten, it would reflect rather badly on the other states.


    The pupils of all the spectators dilated somewhat. Yi Jiuyang was tremendously powerful.


    But then again, Zhuge Yi was just as powerful.


    Both of them stepped onto the forum stage. Bright flames burst from Yi Jiuyang''s body. Suns seemed to have appeared on top of his head, making him look like a fire god.


    A whirlpool of flames was found in all of those suns, and sun arrows appeared within the whirlpool, pointing at Zhuge Yi. At that moment, the light of the suns showered everything, despite both participants being so close to each other, making it seemed like the ground below was bathing in the light of fires. Zhuge Yi''s body shimmered with light. Sizzling sounds were heard. He extended both arms. In an instant, rings of light spun and five ancient symbols appeared behind his back.


    Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth! All five major ancient symbols turned into five beams of light, absorbing spiritual qi from the air in an instant. Furthermore, the power of the five elements in their surroundings seemed to have resonated with Zhuge Yi''s body. The light from his body encompassed the entire forum stage as if he was able to mobilize the power of all five of those elements with his will alone.


    "Life Spirit." Many turned to look on with peculiar looks. That was the very first time Zhuge Yi unleashed his Five Element Spirit. He had never even used the power of his Life Spirit in all of his previous battles.


    "Five Element Spirit." Many great figures looked on feeling amused. There were many among cultivators who were versed in wielding multiple elemental powers. There were even those capable of wielding all elements including wind and thunder, aside from the five elements. But then again, being adept at wielding the elements and being born with Five Element Spirit were two totally different concepts.


    The later was a type of physique.


    Many looked at the corner where Jixia Holy Palace was assigned. Every one of the great figures of Jixia Holy Palace was looking at the scene with calm expressions. Zhuge Yi was the most powerful one in Jixia Holy Palace for the past century, making him a rare genius seen only once a century. Having a body born with five elemental powers meant that he was destined to become a saint.


    Jixia Holy Palace had to bring Zhuge Yi along in that year''s Nine State Forum.


    That action alone said a lot, as they knew who would become the champion of that year''s Nine State Forum. They believed, without a doubt, that it would be none other but Zhuge Yi.


    "You people from Jixia Holy Palace have been hiding Zhuge Yi for so long. Now, you finally found the right time to unleash him," someone from Qi clan of Qi state said to the people of Jixia Holy Palace. They were both from the same state, and Jixia Holy Palace had been founded by the Qi Kingdom. As such, the Qi clan knew him better than others. Zhuge Yi had been training in Jixia Holy Palace for a long time, and yet the palace never let him outside on a pilgrimage. Even people from Qi State did not know what Zhuge Yi''s true powers were like. The stage of the Nine State Forum was truly the first time Zhuge Yi went to train in the outside world.


    "Divine birds do not cry for three years, and when they do, their cries will definitely shock all who hear them. Zhuge Yi had been spending so long training in Jixia Holy Palace, and he finally had to come out to the world to train," a mighty one from Jixia Holy Palace said calmly.


    "So this is to say that Jixia Holy Palace is confident in taking the title of champion of this year''s Nine State Forum then," a mighty one from the Hall of Holy Light said. Ji Hua from the Hall of Holy Light was a genius who was just as brilliant.


    "The powers of the participating students in this year''s Nine State Forum exceed those from three years ago. Let us wait and see," a mighty one from Jixia Holy Palace said calmly, and everyone nodded in silence. While the top ten had yet to emerge, everyone felt the same about the situation. The top ten participants of that year''s Nine State Forum were more powerful than participants from all past events.


    The battle had erupted on the stage. Beams of dazzling arrows shot at Zhuge Yi, who then performed mudras with his hands and conjured a ring of light, which turned into a golden disk spinning before him. Zhuge Yi went on to create further seals on the disk, making the disk burst in power all of a sudden. Patterns emerged on the disk, seemingly containing art of rules.


    The arrows streaked through the air and collided with the disk, rattling it violently. Fearsome explosions were heard. Those arrows were apparently more than simple projectile attacks. They were imbued power of rules. However, the attacks proved inadequate to pierce the disk.


    Yi Jiuyang''s body turned to look even more massive all of a sudden. A silhouette looking a fire god appeared behind him, and countless arrows appeared, blocking out the sky and rained down his opponent.


    Zhuge Yi cranked the powers of the risk up to ridiculous levels, but cracks continued to appear. However, Zhuge Yi continued to look calm. The five elemental symbols behind him burst with light looking even more brilliant, resonating with the powers of his surroundings and doors seemed to begin to appear before him. Every door was dazzling, and the marks in them surrounded the spaces around them.


    Zhuge Yi waved his hand and the golden disk before him disappeared. He gestured with both hands and took control of the marked doors hovering in the air instead. Countless arrows streaked through the air intending to render everything before them to ashes, but Zhuge Yi looked very calm still, gesturing with both hands. The doors combined before him and formed a wall, extending to the skies. The sides covered the entire forum stage, like a godly door standing between the earth and the heavens, blocking everything in its path.


    The thousands of arrows streaked through the air imbued with frightening power of penetration, violently shaking that godly door. However, the door shimmered with tremendously dazzling golden light and was impenetrable. It also unleashed a cold will capable of freezing everything before it, rendering all the arrows frozen, before cycling to flow with devastating fire of lava, melting all arrows into nothing.


    "He is uncannily versed with the use of the Five Element Rules."


    Everyone looked at Zhuge Yi. His eyes were closed and his black hair billowed in the wind. His handsome appearance shone with mystical light. His body hovered in the air as if he was one with his surroundings. Both hands waved around and the door moved again, splitting up into separate smaller doors again, flying towards Yi Jiuyang, zipping about before him and caging him within.


    The aura around Yi Jiuyang grew even more fearsome. A regal silhouette of fire seemed to have merged with him. The fire god-like figure he had become struck with a palm attack, but the doors simply circled around him in a frenzy to avoid his attack. The doors soon stuck with one another once again, forming a tower and descended from above, intending to pin Yi Jiuyang down below.


    Boom. A rumble was heard, and the boundlessly huge tower landed on the ground. Yi Jiuyang was trapped within, and fearsome noises of collisions were heard. It was apparent that he was attempting to break free, yet the power of five elements continued to rush into the tower, making the colors of the tower shift constantly and the change of the Five Element Rules unpredictable. Eventually, a voice was heard from within the tower, "You won."


    Jiuyang apparently gave up the fight.


    Zhuge Yi dispersed the tower with a thought and the doors dissipated.


    Many turned their eyes at Zhuge Yi. He won the round very easily and his breath was completely still, without any unrest felt from within. It was obvious that he was having it easy. Zhuge Yi ended up kicked out one of the four mighty ones remaining from the Summer State, with his overwhelming power.


    Yet another terrifying being, many thought. What will the clash between the top ten be like?


    There were only eleven remaining by then. One more person being eliminated and the top ten would be decided.


    "Who will fight in the last round?" the elder at the edge of the forum stage asked.


    There were only 11 left behind on the vast stage. There were nine who were not allowed to be challenged, and thus did not need to fight any further to make it to the top ten.


    At that moment, a person walked out, and many looked troubled upon seeing her.


    Hua Jieyu of the Barren State.


    She was the only one who had not fought in the rounds deciding the top ten. She might have made it to top ten without having to fight at all if she simply waited, but she walked out on her own instead.


    It is a battlefield of the Nine Stage Forum. There is simply no meaning to winning without fighting. Ye Futian was not taking students to participate in the Nine State Forum to merely rank themselves, but to allow students to experience the true prowess of the mighty ones from other states. As Ye Futian himself put it, before the battles, he had no idea what the top-class geniuses of the other eight states were like.


    Ye Futian smiled on the grandstands, seeing Hua Jieyu walk out. The outcome of the fight did not matter.


    "I challenge Yue Mengqi of Summer State," Hua Jieyu said. They were both the only two adult women left on the stage of the Nine State Forum. Hua Jieyu chose Yue Mengqi of the Yue clan as her opponent in her quest to make it to the top ten.


    Yue Mengqi stepped onto the battlefield. She was also a top-class beauty, cold and emanating an inviolable sense of beauty.


    "Pleased to make your acquaintance," Hua Jieyu said with a bow.


    "Likewise." Yue Mengqi returned the gesture. They both emanated incredibly power auras right after. Both unleashed their Life Spirits at the same time. A crown shone with dazzling light, a moon rose into the air, basking the ground below with its light.


    Both participants were able to feel the other''s tremendous spiritual will within that instant.


    Hua Jieyu was a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer while Yue Mengqi was adept at sealing powers. Her spiritual will was equally as powerful.


    The moonlight shone on Hua Jieyu''s body. She was able to vaguely feel a powerful spiritual will power from within the light, isolating her from her surroundings and preventing her will from sensing her surroundings, intending to put a seal on the connection between her and her surroundings. As such, she was prevented from unleashing her powers altogether, regardless of how powerful she actually was.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes looked deep and dark as terrifying telekinesis power emanated from within and wandered in the space around her. Streaks of lightning shimmered in the air and zipped across the space, blasting the moon. Slivers of formless power were blasted to pieces right there and then.


    The moonlight continued to bask and shine around Hua Jieyu. Cold will struck and icy powers continued to form under her legs, spreading through her body. That was the power of the Seal of Cold, invading her body.


    "A spiritual will that permeates everywhere?" Hua Jieyu''s black hair billowed and brought greater telekinetic powers to bear. Streaks of lightning will power wandered around her surroundings. She looked up and blue light shone from her eyes. Countless bolts of lightning burst in an instant. The spiritual will around Hua Jieyu''s body crumbled, and the sealing icy power stopped covering her body. Within Hua Jieyu''s perception, there was simply no spiritual will power capable of getting to her through using sealing powers.


    The moonlight being, Yue Mengqi, shone with an even more brilliant light and continued to rise, becoming a huge moon. Yue Mengqi''s body melded with it, making her look like a goddess appearing in the moon. Moonlight of greater intensity shone, and countless ravens flew from within the moon, blocking out the sky, forming into storms of darkness as the moonlight continued to shine, making their surroundings looked dim and dark. Hua Jieyu felt her powers unable to pierce through, being isolated by the area encased in the moonlight.


    The darkness shrouded the space around Hua Jieyu, and the ravens blocked out the sky. Hua Jieyu''s body remained hovering in the air. The Crown Life Spirit continued to shine with dazzling light. She turned her eyes at the sky, and spiritual qi throughout the space coalesced at a certain point. Her powers were focused within that point at the same time.


    An incredibly huge figure appeared before Hua Jieyu like an ancient god of lightning, filled with raging power of devastation.


    Godly Creation of All Things was a power that had been passed down through the lineage in the Wanxiang Hall of the Sage Hall of the Holy Zhi Palace. It had been a power that Bai Luli had been most versed in years ago. Hua Jieyu was a spirit elemental type cultivator and she was also suited to learn Godly Creation of All Things, directing the powers of her surroundings with her spiritual will, taking the form of an ancient god of Wanxiang.


    Countless ravens flew in an attempt to drown out Hua Jieyu, turning her surroundings pitch black, making it very difficult for even spiritual powers to penetrate. However, that ancient god of Wanxiang extended countless arms, each imbued with the terrifying power of lightning, which was also infused with incredibly powerful telekinetic powers.


    The arms of lightning and the dark ravens clashed, penetrating the dark area. Bursts of lightning erupted in an instant, tearing the dark space apart. Hua Jieyu''s body was then infused within the ancient god of Wanxiang, and lightning continued to flash around on the outside. The ancient god stepped out, and countless arms of lightning lashed out where Yue Mengqi was like whips.


    The dark ravens were torn apart in a frenzy, and a frozen sky river appeared before Yue Mengqi, cutting off the space between them. But the whips seemed to be directly lashed out at Yue Mengqi''s spiritual will, and the river crumbled.


    The ancient god of lightning then shone with boundless flashes of lightning as it stepped through the air. Lightning of even greater intensity coalesced, and they grew incredibly powerful, spreading out throughout even the entire forum stage. The wandering power of lightning seemed to intend to cage Yue Mengqi within.


    The sealing arts were directed using spiritual powers, but Hua Jieyu''s attacks were directed at said spiritual powers, extending to even those attempting to keep her sealed. Yue Mengqi was then being suppressed by Hua Jieyu''s powers.


    Yue Mengqi took a look at the beautiful silhouette while sensing the telekinetic powers all around her. She then said, "Congratulations, you are qualified to make it to the top ten." The moonlight dissipated as soon as she finished. Hua Jieyu looked at her and rescinded all the telekinetic powers she had been spreading out in her surroundings. Her breath was rather unstable and she was being washed over by overwhelming exhaustion. In truth, it had been incredibly difficult for her to sustain herself in such a battle, as it was tremendously taxing to her spiritual powers. But she prevailed nonetheless. There were two from the Barren State making it to the top ten in the Nine State Forum.


    Hua Jieyu turned around and looked at the grandstands where the people of the Barren State were assigned to, and she smiled brightly. Her beauty was stifling.


    "You idiot." Ye Futian smiled, looking at Hua Jieyu.


    With two participants from the Barren State making it to the top ten of Nine State Forum, no one dared question the powers of those from the Barren State anymore.


    Hua Jieyu returned to where the Barren State was, and everyone turned their eyes to the remaining top ten.


    They were:


    Xia Yi and Ye Guhong of the Summer State.


    Zhuge Yi and Ji Hua of Qi State.


    Yaya of Eastern State.


    Chu Xiang of Cloud State.


    Wubei and Moluo of War State.


    Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu of the Barren State.


    Participants from Feng State, Ocean State, and Yu State were all eliminated!

 788 Unparalleled Physique

    Everyone from all over the nine states on the grandstands watched the last remaining ten, feeling ripples in their minds.


    "It''s really unexpected that the only one remaining from the Eastern State in the top ten is actually one not from a sacred ground, and furthermore, it''s a brat," Saint Xihua looked at Yaya and said in exasperation. Both Hua Yunshu of Xihua Sacred Mountain and Zhou You of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were both hopefuls meant to take two spots in top three, but they were unable to even make it to the top ten.


    "The Barren State, which hasn''t participated in the Nine State Forum for many years, actually has two in the top ten now," the Sky Saint smiled and said.


    "Geniuses are born all over the nine states all the time. It wouldn''t be spectacular if the state of affairs wasn''t as such," Liu Zong, who was standing behind Saint Xihua, said with a smile. He took a look at Yu Sheng. No one back in the Chess Saint Villa had anticipated that both he and Hua Jieyu, people who stood right beside Ye Futian, were so exceptional.


    He was not the only who hadn''t anticipated it; all nine students of the Chess Saint had not expected this either. They thought Ye Futian''s breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game had been a miracle in itself. However, Yu Sheng had taken one place in the top ten of the Nine State Forum as an incredibly powerful fighter. Such immense talent was deeply moving. It seemed that there was to be another important figure discovered in the future.


    "With the last ten remaining in the Nine State Forum, who do you think will be able to make it to the top three, and who will be the champion?" the Sky Saint smiled and asked the people of all nine states. The final battle was right around the corner, so the Sky Saint thought it would be rather amusing to guess the final rankings of that year''s Nine State Forum.


    "What do you think, Sky Saint?" the Great Zhou Sacred King asked.


    "The top three will probably people include Xia Yi, Zhuge Yi, Yu Sheng, Yaya, and Wubei. As for the champion, that would be a tough guess," the Sky Saint replied with a smile. It was apparent that he looked forward to the performance of the five he mentioned. Xia Yi was a member of the Xia clan, while Zhuge Yi was a member of the Jixia Holy Palace. He, like Yu Sheng, had eliminated two people from their last rounds. Yu Sheng and Yaya were obvious enough as well, while Wubei''s Palm of Mahavairocana was insanely strong and powerful.


    Ji Hua was powerful as well, but the conflict between Yu Sheng and Ji Hua meant only one of them capable of making it any further, and the Sky Saint had higher hopes for Yu Sheng.


    "Yu Sheng, huh. Why not Ye Guhong or Ji Hua?" The king asked. Ye Guhong was an incredible genius of the Nine State College while Ji Hua''s light powers meant that despite Yu Sheng''s powerful defense, the overwhelming difference in speed meant that he would end up being suppressed by Ji Hua.


    "I also agree with the words of the king. Why don''t you think my junior, Ji Hua, has a better chance?" A slender young man with a brilliant bearing and an incredible genius at the Hall of Holy Light''s corner, who seemed to be shining with a sliver of holy light all about him, looked at the Sky Saint and asked, "The Sword of Holy Light is unparalleled in terms of offense, capable of breaking any physical defense. Yu Sheng might be very powerful, but I still believe that my junior, Ji Hua, will come out on top. He might even be one of the top three."


    As a student of the Hall of Holy Light and one training in the Rules of Light, it was only a given for him to be confident of his own powers.


    "Is that so?" The Sky Saint smiled and looked at the Xia State corner. He asked, "What do you think?"


    "Xia Yi will probably be able to make it to top three," a mighty one from the Xia clan smiled and said.


    "For the top three, I''d be more partial to Xia Yi, Ye Guhong, and Zhuge Yi," an elder from the Nine State College said. Ye Guhong was one of their own, and Xia Yi was a member of the Xia clan, while Zhuge Yi was from the Jixia Holy Palace. All of those places were incredibly renowned sacred grounds, and he thought them to have better chances.


    "Don''t you think you''ve underestimated the student of our Luohou Palace a little too much?" a mighty one from the Luohou Palace said plainly. Moluo''s powers are by no means weak, and he just got overlooked like that?


    "That''s bullsh*t." A rude voice was heard at the same time. Many looked rather irritated, and the great figures of the nine states discussed. There is actually someone here talking in such a rude manner? What would that be?


    Everyone''s eyes turned to look at the grandstands behind the people of the Barren State. An old man was seen blowing his beard and glaring. "Our Yaya will be number one."


    The people of the nine states turned to look at the old man. Yaya, number one? He really knows how to talk big indeed. Yaya might be powerful, but she is still a brat. Becoming number one won''t be that easy.


    "You seem very confident," Saint Xihua smiled and said, having no intention of being petty with that old man.


    "Yaya, if you get anything but number one, I''ll marry you off to someone when we get back to the village," the old man threatened Yaya.


    "..." Everyone looked at the old man, feeling speechless. Back to the village? Marrying her off?


    While Yaya was not actually pretty, she was quite good-looking, and her talents were undoubtedly frightening, being so powerful at the tender age of around 15. If she were to be married off to someone, sacred grounds from all over the nine states would have probably fought for her.


    "Chief, even if I''d agree to that, someone would have to be willing to marry me," Yaya looked at the old man and said.


    "Ahem..." The old man blew his beard and glared again. That truly is a problem indeed.


    "Man, those two..." Many were speechless. Where did these two weirdos come from? And what village is that old man a chief of?


    "What do you think, Palace Lord Ye?" Zhou Ya from the corner of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty asked Ye Futian. When Zhou You and Yu Sheng fought before, he thought Zhou You would have been able to win against Yu Sheng, but Zhou You was quite literally crushed instead.


    Ye Futian took a look at the battlefield, shaking his head and said, "Hard to say indeed."


    "Are you afraid of offending the guests from other states, Palace Lord Ye?" Zhou Ya smiled and said. Ye Futian should be incredibly faithful in Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian looked up at Zhou Ya. The king asked as well, "It''s alright to voice your speculations. Let us all hear it. It''s all in good fun, after all."


    "Alright." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "I think the final battle of this year''s Nine State Forum will be fought between Yu Sheng and Yaya. The one who wins will become the champion. As for the third place, everyone else has a fair chance at it."


    Many were dumbfounded hearing Ye Futian''s words. He truly is confident.


    Yu Sheng and Yaya fighting for number and the winner to become the champion. So, he''s overlooking everyone else?


    While Yu Sheng was indeed incredibly powerful, it was still unknown if he was truly powerful enough to become the champion. The same went for Yaya. Ye Futian had actually speculated that the two of them would be the ones fighting in the final battle.


    "It seems that you, Palace Lord Ye, are getting increasingly confident in Yu Sheng''s powers." A mighty one from the Xia clan looked at Ye Futian and smiled. Ye Futian''s words, while not enough to actually anger the great figures of the nine states, showed their opinions were different.


    "Well then, let the final stage begin," Saint Xihua said at that moment.


    The atmosphere seemed to have changed when he announced that. Countless eyes turned to stare at the forum stage.


    The ultimate battles in the Nine State Forum had finally arrived.


    Even the elder who had been hosting the event at the edge of the forum stage looked solemn and serious as he looked at the last ten remaining in the vast battlefield. He then said, "Stand up and circle the stage. Take your places in the battle area."


    The ten all walked up and circled the forum stage as soon as he finished. The ten mighty ones all took their corners, which were no longer divided by where they were from.


    "The battles between the top ten are no longer how battles were done before. All participants may fight anyone they wish. There is only one rule: no forming any massive alliances to gang up on one particular participant. You are free to do as you wish otherwise, and there is no order in the battles. You are even free to withdraw should you see yourself unable to continue. The rest are free to continue battling right away. The first to be eliminated will be ranked last while the last one standing on the forum stage will be the champion." The elder announced the rules of the final battles officially.


    Everybody held their breath. A battle royale between ten without rules other than not ganging up on one participant. It''s a free for all, and everyone can all fight at the same time if they wish. If they are unable to take down their opponents, they are even allowed to stop.


    "When I announce for the battles to begin, enter your fighting states. The round is only considered finished once you all have fought to the last man standing." The elder looked at everyone else and continued, "Now, let the final battles of the Nine State Forum begin."


    A formless air shrouded the entire vast space as soon as he finished. The forum stage looked incredibly empty. Ten participants stood in ten corners and their clothes billowed with the wind. Every one of them had powerful aura shimmering, as if fights were about to happen at any second.


    Boom. An incredibly heavy sound was heard. Everyone turned their eyes and saw Yu Sheng step onto the forum stage. Dark golden lights coursed through his body and an incredibly violent aura emanated from him. His Douzhan body coalesced, making him look like a god of war.


    Yu Sheng was the first one to come out and fight.


    The eyes of many turned to another corner, where Ji Hua of the Hall of Holy Light stood. It was apparent that Yu Sheng''s target was Ji Hua. Both of them were to have a clash of titans showdown right there in the final round.


    Dazzling light coursed about Ji Hua''s body, blinding the eyes of others. He waved his hand and a row of Swords of Holy Light appeared before him, encasing his surroundings.


    Boom. Yu Sheng''s arms trembled and streaks of light burst through his body as he opened his acupoints, flowing through his arms, legs, and torso. His blood boiled and he was in very high spirits. However, the Swords of Holy Light appeared right before Yu Sheng before he was able to make a move, cutting his body like streaks of light.


    The light around Yu Sheng''s body coursed, and he shouted as he raised both of his arms, blasting golden flashes of his fists, which tore through the space and shattered all the Swords of Holy Light. However, there were still a few that made it past and managed to crack him.


    Ji Hua''s expression was cold. Seeing how the Swords of Holy Light were incapable of breaking Yu Sheng''s battle form, he extended both arms. Rules of Light coalesced in a frenzy before him instantly, shining with incredibly dazzling light as swords materialized in the air, ringing loudly between his arms.


    "Go," Ji Hua uttered a single, cold line. The beams of light tore through the space as soon as he finished. Yu Sheng''s body was blasted by tremendously powerful attacks in the form of beams of intense light at the very next moment. The beams shone intensely as the swords kept blasting onto Yu Sheng, and cracks grew increasingly numerous.


    His battle form finally blew up with a huge boom, making many of the spectators tremble. The people of the Hall of Holy Light had their reasons for being so confident in Ji Hua.


    Ji Hua then infused the Rules of Light within the swords, bringing frightening power to bear. What was more terrifying was that those attacks were simply unavoidable, as no one could have moved faster than light. Only tremendously exceptional defense and attack would be able to contend with such attacks and carve a way out. The one on the receiving end of such attacks would definitely lose otherwise.


    The Hall of Holy Light naturally had its own strengths for being able to stand at the top of the nine states for so many years and being renowned through the entire Qi State.


    The Swords of Holy Light continued to blast on Yu Sheng. Many were shivering deep down. Will Yu Sheng lose this battle?


    At that moment, Yu Sheng''s body seemed to be clad in a layer of dark golden armor. Slivers of terrifying dark aura circled his surroundings with his body at the center, devouring the powers around him in a frenzy. The Swords of Light continued to blast on his physical body, and violent metal-like clashes were heard. Yu Sheng''s body was violently rattled and was being pushed backward, speaking volumes of the terrifying power of the attacks.


    Demonic aura swept throughout the place and devoured all powers around him, rendering the surrounding powers demonic. At that moment, Ji Hua felt as if he was fighting a devil. He felt as if he was able to see a tall, imposing shadow of a devil appearing in his mind, and there was no way he was able to resist it.


    "Kill, kill, kill!" Ji Hua shouted furiously, and his eyes were cold. His body was still blindingly gleaming. He refused to believe that he was unable to bring Yu Sheng down.


    The Swords of Holy Light continued hit Yu Sheng, and the swords dissipated bit by bit before they were able to actually pierce Yu Sheng''s body. It was as if his body was devouring all the incoming attacks.


    Ji Hua''s expression turned extremely ugly. He saw a terrifying power of storm whipped up around Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng''s battle form was materialized once again in his image, growing increasingly huge. Dark golden light coursed above his battle form, with Rules of Light vaguely seen imbued in it.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stepped forward with a loud rumble. Ji Hua looked incredibly troubled as his body continued to emanate dazzling light, yet he was seen backing off. At that moment, terrifying aura flowed about in the air, and Devil Halberds imbued with incredible power streaked through the air from above, locking the space around Ji Hua.


    Ji Hua responded by bursting with even brighter holy light, yet Yu Sheng took another step on the ground, his arms extended in the air. His huge battle form lashed out with two punches. In an instant, thousands of flashes of the fist burst through the air, blocking out the sky and encasing a huge part of the space within. The golden fists were surprisingly covered with power of Rules of Light and were extremely fast. It seemed as if Ji Hua''s Swords of Holy Light attacks were being used on the fists coming at him.


    Many were shocked to see the dazzling scene unfolding before them. Swords of Holy Light manifested in a frenzy around Ji Hua, yet he was still entirely drowned by the shadows of the fists. The light on Yu Sheng''s battle form shot to the heavens, and the boundless flashes of his fists continued to pummel their intended target.


    Eventually, a flash of the first managed to land on Ji Hua''s body, rattling him violently and making him spit blood from his mouth.


    Ji Hua was shocked at the moment. His attacks had been incredibly powerful, yet they proved incapable of busting his opponent''s defenses. In contrast, his opponent was able to severely injure him with just one strike. So this is what a cultivator who dedicates himself to body refinement looks like?


    "I yield," Ji Hua said. However, even with the words said, he continued to be pummeled by the punches and was sent flying to the edge of the forum stage, falling hard to ground while continuing to spew blood.


    Yu Sheng had only stopped attacking by then, and his battle form dissipated. However, everyone who watched the fight continued to be rattled deep within.


    The first battle among the top ten ended with Yu Sheng winning. His tremendously overbearing power enabled him to defeat Ji Hua of the Hall of Holy Light.


    "He truly defies all conventions, having refined his body to such extents," many great figures said to themselves looking at Yu Sheng. It was not that one could simply achieve such levels of strength by dedicating themselves to body refinement; Ji Hua''s Swords of Holy Light were so powerful that even the most genius of body refinement cultivators would have been defeated. It was, however, unfortunate that he encountered Yu Sheng, one whose art in body refinement was simply godlike.


    The mighty ones of the Hall of Holy Light were completely speechless. Ji Hua''s powers had been tremendous, but still, he had been thrown off the stage of the top ten by Yu Sheng in the very first battle!

 789 A Terrifying Scene

    Countless eyes at the grandstands turned to look at Yusheng. Ji Hua was yet another top-class genius to be thrown off the forum stage by Yu Sheng. Just how many formidable geniuses have lost to Yu Sheng already? Yu Sheng is just like a walking embodiment of malice. Anyone who dares to mess with him will end up being thrown out of the stage.


    Hua Yunshu, Zhou You, Ji Hua, all of whom were unparalleled figures of their generation; all of whom were crushed by Yu Sheng.


    Who will be the next to fall by his hands?


    A pair of cold eyes were seen glaring at Yu Sheng on the forum stage. His body was clad in terrifying aura, and he was none other than the most powerful student of the Luohou Palace��Moluo. His powers were incredibly frightening as well, and the arts he practiced were similar to Yu Sheng''s in the sense that it was demonic: Demonic arts, Devouring Rules.


    However, Yu Sheng''s rules were a mutated form of Devouring Rules��Demonizing Rules��which was even more overbearing and violent.


    The battle between Yu Sheng and Ji Hua made Mo Luo extremely excited, as if he had found his prey.


    Aside from wanting to be crowned champion of the event, a person like him was on the stage wanting to fight the most powerful of participants in all of the nine states, clashing with the very best. An extremely powerful being would only make them extremely excited, and Moluo was indeed in such a state of excitement. He would not have felt fear just because Yu Sheng was powerful. The way he behaved was like a beast that smelled blood. His shivering cold eyes were focused on Yu Sheng as he clad himself in demonic might. Slivers of dark aura swept through his surroundings as Moluo approached Yu Sheng.


    The elder had made it clear in the announcement before the final stage of the Nine State Forum began that the process of battling would continue until there was the last man standing. There was no need for salutations and greetings. So long as none of the participants were allying with each other to gang up on a participant, he was allowed to kick Yu Sheng out anytime he wished, even if Yu Sheng was severely injured. As such, he simply approached Yu Sheng.


    "Moluo is going to fight Yu Sheng." Many turned their eyes to the forum stage. Every single remaining participant on that stage was the most terrifyingly talented of geniuses to be found, and that one had a particular crazed fixation for martial arts. Moluo knew well what Yu Sheng was capable of, but he did not hesitate for a single second to pick Yu Sheng as his opponent.


    Yu Sheng burst forth with his dispersed powers once again. Dark golden lights shimmered, and his battle form appeared. Beams of light shot through his body and filled him with boundless power.


    Ye Futian, who was on the grandstands, felt rather speechless. Even a being like Yu Sheng must have been exhausted having to fight consecutive battles like that. None of those whom he fought before��Zhou You, Hua Yunshu, Ji Hua��had been weaklings; all of them had been the best the nine states had to offer.


    And at that very moment, Moluo went up to Yu Sheng. Dark demonic aura extended to his surroundings and turned into arms. A terrifying, ferocious-looking demonic figure appeared behind Moluo, making him look like a demon king with three heads and six arms, which looked extremely ugly. The arms of that horrific figure all went to grab Yu Sheng at the same time. Yu Sheng extended his hand with a cold expression, and a dark golden battleax appeared, carrying terrifying power of rules.


    The arms reached out to grab Yu Sheng, yet he was seen taking a single step forward, shaking the ground as he took flight. He swung his battleax right afterward, and as how one would split logs, an arm was split down the middle by the attack, leaving little to the imagination. However, Moluo seemed unfazed, sending more arms to grab Yu Sheng''s body. Yu Sheng charged straight into the mass of arms and kept swinging about with the ax in his hands, creating a bloodbath right there and then.


    At the very same time, Wubei of the Vajra Region of War State put his hands together and said, "We shouldn''t be sitting around and looking." He stepped out as soon as he finished and walked towards Chu Xiang of the Great Chu clan of Cloud State. Incredibly dazzling golden ancient Buddha appeared as Wubei lowered his head, chanting his mantras. Buddhist voices were heard throughout the air soon, and the shadows of Buddhas appeared in the air, blocking out the sky and shrouding the entire space.


    Chu Xiang continued walking out, looking imposing and dashing with his robe billowing, even without any wind. Streams of formidable power burst and an incredibly huge thing appeared behind him��a Demon Ape of Great Strength. The demon beast had truly existed, possessing great strength and was a natural born king of sheer power. Members of the Great Chu clan were versed in such godly powers. Their sheer strength was known to be indisputable.


    The Buddhist voice was getting increasingly intense, shaking the entire space while that Demon Ape of Great Strength roared, shaking its surroundings with its voice. The entire space was vibrating as one Buddha after another descended from above, bringing their palm attacks to bear on the ground below, heading for Chu Xiang.


    Chu Xiang was entirely unfazed. The Demon Ape of Great Strength extended its hand and shook its surroundings by clashing with the palms of the Buddhas, and the two sides crumbled at the same time.


    The Buddhist voice, however, got increasingly loud. The light of the ancient Buddha shone brightly behind Wubei, and a sun appeared; a signal of the All Buddhas Returning to the Source.


    Of course, other than them, Wubei''s immensely strong and forceful attacks were also incredibly formidable as well. Their surroundings shook violently and intense fires burned. The Palm of Mahavairocana descended from the heavens with a force to crush everything beneath it as it went for Chu Xiang.


    Chu Xiang seemed to have merged with the Demon Ape of Great Strength��his Life Spirit��as a single being, wielding a spear in his hand. Streaks of flashes of the spear tore through the space before him.


    Boom. Chu Xiang stepped forward with a loud rumble, and his body charged forward. The Overlord Spear in his hand was wielded in an imposing manner and lashed out at the incoming Palm of Mahavairocana. The Demon Ape roared, shaking the air, and cracks appeared. The Palm of Mahavairocana crumbled and Chu Xiang''s body was thrown back to the ground.


    Even so, the spectators from the nine states felt themselves trembling. These people are indeed the top ten.


    Wubei''s Palm of Mahavairocana was blocked. The sheer godly strength of Chu Xiang of the Great Chu clan and the overbearing art of the Overlord Spear proved capable of fighting Wubei toe to toe.


    The others in the other corners moved.


    Xia Yi stood before Zhuge Yi and said, "Your reputation as a member of the Jixia Holy Palace precedes you in all of Qi State, and I''d like to have a match with you."


    "After you," Zhuge Yi returned the courtesy.


    Power aura emanated from both of them. Xia Yi''s body was encircled by nine dragons. The air of the true dragons shrouded the air and the roar of the dragons resonated with the heavens and the earth. Five huge ancient symbols appeared behind Zhuge Yi and took their respective corners, turning into powers of the five elements. He waved both arms and all powers of the five elements in his surroundings were rendered under his control and made their mark in the air. Five elemental doors appeared one after another and flew towards Xia Yi at breakneck speed.


    Xia Yi moved his arms and lashed out with a martial art technique. Every single move melded with the great ways of the world as he mobilized the powers of his surroundings. Dragon roars were heard, and one shadow of dragons after another circled in the air around Xia Yi, giving birth to extremely frightening power of rules.


    Shadows of treasured towers appeared on the marked doors surrounding them, flying downwards with the doors, heading for Xia Yi.


    When the marked doors were near Xia Yi, the circling aura of dragons formed an extreme form of repelling power, stunning off the marked doors which were about to attack, rattling the doors enough to make crisp creaking noises.


    "Xia Yi''s Repelling Rules." The spectators'' eyes sparkled. Xia Yi was versed in two rules of powers: attracting and repelling, which were capable of bringing frightening power to bear when used proficiently in battle. At the moment, Zhuge Yi''s attacks using the five elements were utterly incapable of getting close.


    The battle between both of them attracted countless eyes from the audience. Those two are Xia Yi of Xia clan and Zhuge Yi, the hidden genius of Jixia Holy Palace. Who among them will win the fight?


    Zhuge Yi continued to craft marks with his hands, and the marked doors surrounding Xia Yi in the air continued to emanate dazzling lights as they formed a unified formation.


    Xia Yi raised his arm all of a sudden. A dragon shadow descended from above with a roar. The huge dragon shadow appeared in the air and snatched several of the doors in the air. The dragon clapped and the snatched doors shattered in an instant.


    Zhuge Yi remained unfazed. The ring of light of the five elements shone even more brilliantly. More doors appeared in the air in an instant. Doors appeared beneath Xia Yi''s legs, which were materialized from the power of the five elements. Xia Yi became surrounded by dazzling marked doors quickly, isolating him from his surroundings.


    An incredibly terrifying holy dragon''s shadow shot up when Xia Yi saw that happen. He waved his arms and an even more terrifying might burst. Storms of dragon shadows whipped up, encasing the entire space. The marked doors seemed to be shrouded by that power as well, flying towards Xia Yi''s body after being put under control by the Attracting Rules.


    "This aura..." Many were shaking deep down. It was just too powerful. It was said that the great figures of the Xia clan had practiced their methods to the extreme, enabling both attracting and repelling forces to complement each other, controlling everything in the world. It was said that the methods they trained in were taught by Emperor Xia himself, a form of qigong capable of manipulating the surroundings, with every breath, shaking the world around them.


    "Ye Guhong and Yaya are fighting as well." The pupils of many grew wide as Ye Guhong was seen attacking Yaya in another corner of the battlefield. Many great figures said before that the people of the nine states were in the opinion that Yaya had a better chance of coming out on top instead of the top class genius of the Nine State College, Ye Guhong.


    Ye Guhong intended to show the world just what kind of a place the Nine State College was.


    His eyes were locked onto Yaya. His eyes emanated intensely frightening power, as if he was able to cut things down just by casting his gaze alone. When Yaya turned to look at him, she surprisingly felt a kind of power encroaching her spiritual will, bringing formidable force to bear.


    Her eyes sparkled, and in the next moment, the face that had looked rather naive turned bone-chillingly cold. Her eyes looked incredibly deep, as if she intended to swallow Ye Guhong''s eyes with her Eye Sorcery Zone.


    Ye Guhong''s body shivered all of a sudden as if he had seen something frightening. His eyes could not help but contract, staring straight ahead. A doomsday scene was unfolding in his mind. There was a cemetery with countless swords were stabbed into the ground, as if the place was a cemetery of swords.


    A blood-colored sword was seen in front. Yaya''s silhouette seemed to be standing there and staring at him. The blood-colored sword swung straight at Ye Guhong. He felt as if his body had been cut into two by the sword, from top to bottom.


    "No..." Ye Guhong yelled and broke free of the realm he was trapped in, preventing himself from getting completely shackled within. He would have died with that Eye Sorcery Zone otherwise. At that moment, Ye Guhong came to truly realize how terrifying it had been for those who had been defeated by Yaya before.


    That brat is a demon!

 790 Undefeatable Duo

    Upon the Forum Stage, four battles erupted simultaneously, which caused a flurry of excitement so that no one knew just which one to focus on.


    Yu Sheng and Moluo; Wubei versus Chu Xiang; Xia Yi of the Xia clan against Zhuge Yi of Jixia Holy Palace; the fight between Ye Guhong, the top contender from Nine State College, and Yaya.


    Any one of these battles would rock the audience to the core, much less all four happening at once.


    "What''s wrong with Ye Guhong? His attacks seemed to have stopped, and he doesn''t look so good," many looked at Ye Guhong and marveled.


    "Eye Sorcery. The two of them are fighting using Eye Sorcery. Ye Guhong might be under some terrible attacks," some guessed. Was Yaya really that dangerous?


    In the grandstand area, the old Village Chief was the picture of calm as he watched the battle between Yaya and Ye Guhong. Even though there were many excellent candidates in this year''s Nine State Forum, and there were some top geniuses within the top ten, to find someone who would subdue Yaya was still a tough task. After all, from a theoretical perspective, this girl was unbeaten by all the nobles and was literally invincible.


    "Careful!" In the direction of Xia State, someone from Nine State College let out a low cry. They saw Yaya disappear right where she was standing and reappear in front of Ye Guhong, still pointing with just the one finger. Ye Guhong concentrated all his power to defend against the power of this one finger, nevertheless, his defense crumbled to nothing, and the instant the fingertip landed on his brow chakra, Ye Guhong''s face paled. If Yaya had willed, this one fingertip could end him for good.


    Ye Guhong lifted his head to look at the girl and saw that her pupils were abysmal and dreadful. He felt a coldness penetrating through him, so unshakably strong.


    "Spatial rule." So many people on the grandstand moved their attention to Yaya. She hopped through the expanse with one step, not with speed but with the power of spatial rules, just like shifting in space, disregarding distance and space to descend in from of Ye Guhong.


    Who was this girl? Many eyes were attracted by the battle between Yaya and Ye Guhong, and all shared an expression of misgiving. Was there already a winner and loser? Could someone as strong as Ye Guhong be defeated so quickly?


    Yaya still appeared indifferent. After defeating Ye Guhong, she turned around and glanced the battlefield. She Hua Jieyu alone without any challengers. Yaya levitated and drifted toward Hua Jieyu. Likewise, Hua Jieyu stared at the oncoming opponent. Life Spirit bloomed and exploded with tremendous Telekinesis, encompassing the expanse. But when her eyes met Yaya, she felt as she was sinking, just as Ye Guhong had, into a horrific scene. The sword mound stood like Armageddon; the boundless sharp sword thrust in the grave. The bloody sword stared at her, slowly chopping away her will.


    Hua Jieyu released her Telekinesis rule power to the utmost, controlling the powers between heaven and earth, and the spell of Godly Creation of All Things unfolded once again. An ancient god stood skyward, and this ancient Thunder god seemed to have thousands of arms, reaching through the expanse to launch an attack at Yaya.


    A scene of the apocalypse manifested between heaven and earth. The hands of the ancient god turned into thundering lightning and landed on Yaya, thrusting through her body, aimed toward her crown. Hua Jieyu intended to strike her Will, but all she found was that bloody sword.


    "Cut," Yaya spit, and the sword erected upon the grave started to chime. At the same time, boundless Sword Qi traversed the expanse, hacking at the ancient god. Immediately, Hua Jieyu paled; her will power was being smashed and chopped. The body of the ancient god shook violently and started to crack. With a loud boom, the ancient god burst open, the spell of Godly Creation of All Thing was repelled.


    "Nay, you better get off," said Yaya to Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu looked at the girl in front of her, feeling a slight sense of defeat. She glanced at Yu Sheng, wondering if he could win against this magical girl. She turned and swiftly joined Ye Futian at the grandstand area.


    Ye Futian looked up and smiled at her, pulling her to sit next to him. "Don''t be discouraged. This girl is a bit tricky, you did well." If Hua Jieyu were to fight against others, she had a chance. But with Yaya, there was no doubt of the outcome, which he already knew. Otherwise, he would not have predicted that the final battle would be between Yaya and Yu Sheng.


    Hua Jieyu nodded lightly, glanced at the girl on the Forum Stage, then directed her beautiful eyes at Ye Futian. "Her Spiritual Will is very unusual."


    "How?" Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu.


    A flash went through Hua Jieyu''s eyes. She secretly transmitted her voice to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s pupils contracted imperceptibly, and he turned his attention once again to Yaya on the Forum Stage. He certainly knew Yaya was exceptional, but he didn''t expect that it would be her Spiritual Will.


    Then, it was possible that she��


    At this time on the Forum, another battle has come to an end. Moluo was knocked to the edge of the Forum by Yu Sheng. There was a frightful trail of blood upon him. He was defeated.


    Turning around, Yu Sheng''s eyes fixed upon Yaya. He was about to step forward.


    "Yu Sheng." Just then, a voice was transmitted into his ears. It was Ye Futian. Yu Sheng looked up at the grandstand area, and heard Ye Futian say, "Leave her for the end."


    In the final battlefield of Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng and Yaya ought to be the strongest two; there was no need to hasten the final conflict.


    A terribly loud clanging was heard. Wubei and Chu Xiang separated. Both possessed secret yet dreadful offensive powers and techniques. It turned out they were equal in prowess, and there was not yet a winner.


    There was still an ancient Buddha standing behind Wubei, and various illusions of the Divine Buddha appeared. Behind Chu Xiang, there was an unimaginably savage forceful Demonic Ape, with the Overlord Spear in hand, looking indomitable.


    They glared at each other, unsure if one could vanquish the other, and then they scanned the other battle stage; even as they were battling, they were aware of the results of the other battles. Yaya was a bit demonic; Yu Sheng defeated Moluo; Zhege Yi was still fighting with Xia Yi.


    Bang! A loud sound, Chu Xiang abandoned Wubei and went directly towards Yu Sheng; he wanted to feel which one of them was stronger.


    From the firmament, the terrifying Demonic Ape behind Chu Xiang descended from the sky, holding the Overlord Spear like a deity coming down to earth. An immense power of pressure descended along with it. A savage storm surrounded Yu Sheng, his clothing fluttering wildly.


    A dreadful Demonic Might surged forth. Gloomy golden rays weaved with Demonic Might upon Yu Sheng. At once, Yu Sheng appeared to have donned the Demonic Armor, an illusion of the demon manifested and merged with Yu Sheng''s body, and he seemed to have become even taller, muscular, and omnipotent.


    Yu Sheng''s arms trembled, and rays pierced through his body. An endless power exploded. The devilish illusion raised both arms, aiming at the Overlord Spear that was heading toward him. The Spear crushed down with immense vigor, but a pair of demonic mighty hand prints plunged down and then closed together, accompanied by a horrendously loud boom. The Overlord Spear was thus clamped by the palms.


    Suspended in the expanse, Chu Xiang watched the scene unfolded with chills. His terrible strike was blocked by the opponent''s palms. The palms suddenly clapped abruptly, and the Overlord Spear continued its momentum downward, grinding along the palms. Chu Xiang seemed to have transformed into the Mighty Demonic Ape, smashing down from the firmament.


    Bang! With the loud boom, the Overlord Spear found its way to the front of Yu Sheng, but Yu Sheng had shot up with the Wings of Devil appearing behind him. The next instant, both of his arms punched forward and collided with the incoming Chu Xiang.


    The hearts of many pounded; the scene before them resembled the collision between a humongous invincible Demon Ape and a Demon god. The instant they made contact, a frightening hurricane started between heaven and earth, sweeping through the surrounding area.


    Everyone saw Chu Xiang hurled toward the sky, and the Wings of Devil fluttered behind Yu Sheng, taking him up, chasing after Chu Xiang. His two arms cleft open the firmament, attacking with madness. Palm after palm of Devil Fist tore through the space, heading straight toward Chu Xiang. Chu Xiang growled and confronted Yu Sheng''s power straight ahead.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Heavy loud booms exploded between heaven and earth. Everyone saw Chu Xiang go higher until finally, an aurora from the fist pierced through the expanse and blasted Chu Xiang toward even higher altitude.


    "Chu Xiang''s strength still failed." The hearts of many quivered; that figure of Demon god had peerless power


    The Wings of Devil vibrated, and without stopping, Yu Sheng hurled his terrible body toward Wubei. Webei seemed to have anticipated that, waiting for this moment.


    The Sound of Buddha enfolded the space. The gods of heaven appeared upon the firmament and blasted out the great Buddha Handprint. Yu Sheng stopped in the expanse arrogantly, wings vibrating, eyes fixed upon the blazing Buddha Handprint with terrifying Demonic Will lingering in his eyes. With gloomy, golden rays coursing within his body, Yu Sheng stood in the expanse quietly, without evasion. Presently, his body melted with the Buddha pure body and became Demonic pure body, with dreadful light screens flowing around him. When the palms blasted down, loud booms were heard, and everyone beheld the enormous body of the Demonic god remained standing like an unbreakable statue.


    Everyone''s pupils contracted. Wubei''s body seemed to be engraved in gold��the Vajra Incorruptible body from the Vajra Region, widely known as indestructible. However, Yu Sheng, standing opposite of Wubei, seemed to also be in possession of an indestructible body, but his was the gloomy, golden Demonic pure body, a strength completely opposite to that of Wubei''s.


    Wubei''s strength was comparable to Chu Xiang, and Chu Xiang was defeated by Yu Sheng, so Wubei has almost no chance of winning, many thought. The prowess of Yu Sheng was shocking. Undoubtedly he would be included into the top four strongest, and even the top three was now just a step away.


    Countless Buddhas appeared and prayed along with the Candle Buddha, chanting in Sound of Buddha. The great sun was suspended in the sky, burning it all. The apotropaic Palm of Mahavairocana radiated intense light, swooping down on Yu Sheng. Palms together, eyes closed, Wubei continued to chant in Sound of Buddha, as if to concentrate all his power within this one strike, in an attempt to upend Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng''s arms tremored, dark air streams coursing through the space, the endless power of heaven and earth seeming to have gathered within him. He lifted his arms, and monstrous demonic light concentrated upon them. When the Palm of Mahavairocana slaughtered toward him, his wings trembled, and his body turned into a ray of light fluxed toward the Palm.


    His arms raised to attack and brought the countless demonic air currents between heaven and earth with them. It settled upon the fists, blasting forth as if to blast apart the space. A terrible hurricane formed ahead, resembling a black hole that could swallow everything.


    The masculine and bright Palm of Mahavairocana collided with Yu Sheng''s fists. Glaring rays made it hard for the eyes to open. Dark and bright lights effloresced. Everyone scrutinizing the battlefield saw that the figure of the demonic god penetrated through the Palm of Mahavairocana, like a dark ray rushing against Wubei, and with that momentum, dispatched a strike.


    As the fist made contact, Wubei felt the entire power of the universe land with it. Cracks started appearing on the brilliant Vajra pure body and then broken into pieces. Wubei''s body was thrown as he spit up blood.


    "It''s still the same method of battle, but stronger than before." On the grandstand, everyone''s attention was fixated on Yu Sheng. In the battle of the top ten, Yu Sheng alone defeated four of them��Ji Hua, Moluo, Chu Xiang, and Wubei.


    Four geniuses were all defeated by him alone. This signified his powerful stance.


    Ultimate body, ultimate power.


    Even the talented cultivators of the Vajra Region and Chu Xiang of the Great Chu clan were all beneath him. One power expelled all methods. It was the ultimate power that could create the universe.


    "Natural cultivator for body enhancement and natural possessor of the Juggernaut," said some dignitaries from the grandstand, amazed that such incredible talent was born out of the Barren State and not theirs.


    Many notable figures among the Nine State sacred lands had a mind to treasure such talent, wondering if they could recruit him to join their own sacred land.


    Indeed, it was a bit of a waste for Yu Sheng to cultivate in the Barren State, which was weak and disadvantaged. It would make his journey to becoming a saint a difficult one. His chance would be augmented if he choose to cultivate in a prestigious sacred land.


    Now, upon the Forum stage, only four remained.


    Yaya, Yu Sheng, and Xia Yi still battling Zhuge Yi. If their battle would yield a winner, then the top three would present itself.


    The top three would be standing on the apex.


    Would the final battle really be as Ye Futian predicted, between Yu Sheng and Yaya?


    Many looked toward the direction of the Barren State grandstand, staring at Ye Futian. Yu Sheng was already exhibiting an aptitude for the Divine Path and could very well be sainted while still remaining in a physical body. Such rare talents were hard to come by in other sacred lands of the Nine State; to reach the apex of Nine State Forum.


    By what good fortune should the Barren State possess such disciple?


    Many also remembered the interest surrounding Ye Futian, the leader of the Barren State. Could his talent really tower over that of Yu Sheng? Many had their doubts. After all, Yu Sheng was certainly powerful.


    Suppose Ye Futian could not overpower Yu Sheng, then there was no reason for Yu Sheng to remain in the Holy Zhi Palace at the Barren State to cultivate.


    "The result is almost here." At this instant, in the midst of the battlefield, the battle between Xia Yi and Zhuge Yi exploded in luminous light, as if to announce the final confrontation!

 791 Who Was More Arrogant?

    Xia Yi and Zhuge Yi were both extremely strong competitors, especially Xia Yi. Because he hailed from the Xia clan, many counted Xia Yi as a possible candidate in the contest for the Nine State Forum. However, after his exhibition of strength, Zhuge Yi of the Jixia Holy Palace was also considered to be a likely contender.


    The clash between those two might prove to be the most provocative battle of all. Yaya and Yu Sheng, though strong, were paired with opponents that were obviously weaker than them. But if a fight were to erupt between Yaya and Yu Sheng, it would certainly surpass the battle between Xia Yi and Zhuge Yi. But for now, neither Yaya nor Yu Sheng moved. They stood in their own positions and watched the engagement between their peers take place.


    At this instant, the stage upon which the combatants stood had been violently changed. A multitude of true dragons surrounded Xia Yi''s body, enveloping a vast void while Gravity and Repelling Rules simultaneously activated between heaven and earth. Behind Xia Yi, there appeared an immense divine dragon, its sharp claws grasping towards the void. Suddenly the Marked Door that Zhuge Yi had released rushed towards Xia Yi from the skies, only to be shredded by the dragon''s talons. Xia Yi seemed to have morphed the entire battlefield into the space of Tailfeather Rules, and the area now looked to be completely under his control.


    "Xia Yi''s strength grows as the fight draws on." Many of the onlookers trembled at the sight before their eyes. This was the Xia clan''s All Universe Flowing Method, and it was extremely powerful. If the fight continued in this manner Zhuge Yi would most likely be defeated, and Xia Yi would progress into the top three to compete with Yaya and Yu Sheng for the Nine States Forum''s top position.


    From the Qi State''s delegation, the elderly man of the Jixia Holy Palace looked on calmly, unfazed by the proceedings.


    Perhaps many favored Xia Yi of the Xia clan. But there was still Yu Sheng and Yaya, both of whom many regarded as the strongest.


    This rare, once in a lifetime prodigy who possessed the physique of the Divine Path from the Jixia Holy Palace would allow everyone present to witness what it meant to be a naturally born saint.


    Both of Zhuge Yi''s hands crystallized to form the Mark, and a wave of sound instantly began to echo between the earth and sky. %he power of the five elements coursed wildly through the battlefield. Behind Zhuge Yi, the halo around the ancient symbols of the five elements became even more brilliant, and lines formed to connect the five rows of characters.


    "Wood generates fire, fire generates earth, earth generates gold, gold generates water, water generates wood, thus the five elements are born. Thus, life is endless." The radiant light behind Zhuge Yi became brighter and brighter, and the five elements integrated into one before emitting a dazzling elemental halo. As the halo increased in size it exuded the power of the five elements that could devour heaven and earth. Linear beams of light crossed and overlapped with one another, resembling the power of the Five Elements Grand Way.


    "Huh?" The spectators looked surprised as Zhuge Yi''s breath became stronger. The essence of his spirit seemed to transform. There was a flame flickering upon his brow chakra. Scintillating rays of light shot forth from his hands, feet, and chest.


    "The five elements are born of heaven. There is no imperfection in the Grand Way," the elder of the Jixia Holy Palace said proudly. This was the genius that had not been seen in Jixia Holy Palace for more than a hundred years. This time, at the Nine States Forum, there would be a stage for Zhuge Yi.


    "Heaven, Earth, Thunder, Wind, Fire, Water, Mountain, Lake." Zhuge Yi solidified the mark between his hands, and suddenly, the eight great ancient characters were branded into a pattern with evermore dazzling rays, the patterns transforming and evolving with feverish speed as if to contain endless conversions.


    "The five elements and the eight trigrams." The hearts of the people trembled again. The pattern continued evolving, containing not only the power of the five elements��Heaven, Earth, Thunder, Wind��but also the power birthed from their interactions with one another. The eight trigrams evolved as well, causing the engraved pattern to bloom endlessly with light, illuminating the entire area.


    Many people of the Nine States changed their countenance. Everyone could feel the transformation of Zhuge Yi. At this moment, with the Qi rising and sublimating from his body, Zhuge Yi''s very existence seemed unstoppable. He was layered in glory. With the engraved patterns of the five elements and eight trigrams suspended in the sky, Zhuge Yi seemed like an elected privileged of the Heavens who ruled over all. Even Xia Yi''s aura seemed dim in comparison to Zhuge Yi''s.


    "Body of Perfection," Saint Xihua said, his eyes sharp.


    Divine Path was perfection, and the body of perfection was the body of a saint.


    Zhuge Yi gathered the elements together, and with life everlasting, created the eight trigrams. Because the Grand Way was perfection, the five elements embodied a saint.


    "The natural physique of a saint! It''s unexpected that such a character should appear in Jixia Holy Palace. It seems that the battle between the top three will be more interesting," Sky Saint said with a smile.


    This session''s Nine States Forum was indeed strong beyond doubt.


    Xia Yi''s strength alone should have been enough to compete for the top spot of the Nine States Forum, but this time, Xia Yi''s position within the Top Three was uncertain.


    "Metal, Heaven hexagram, Sword of Innocence." A voice sounded��it was Zhuge Yi. As his voice fell, the boundless pattern behind him bloomed with an infinite golden brilliance, falling on top of Xia Yi as if the sword of heaven itself had descended to slay him.


    Xia Yi reacted, and his dragon screamed behind him. Sky and earth were shaken, and the ruthless Rule of Exclusion broke out. Golden rays fell from the sky to either part or crest backward but cascaded without bound to eventually cover the entire battlefield.


    With a loud roar, the true dragon leaped towards the sky, and Xia Yi rushed toward Zhuge Yi. Wherever he passed, the rule power reached its limit. Even the swords of the heavens were forced to divert away from him.


    "Earth, Earth hexagram, Prison of Terra." Zhuge Yi''s black hair was flying as he spoke again, a pattern of light shining upon him while the power of the five elements within heaven and earth bloomed wildly. Around Xia Yi, a prison of light manifested itself and bound the space, trapping him within.


    Xia Yi continued to skyrocket within the prison with the All Universe Flow Method working, his arms blasting heaven and earth with intent to pierce through the prison while he rocked and shook the expanse.


    "Earth, Mountain hexagram..." Zhuge Yi continued to engrave, and the light of the pattern continued to bloom, dropping down like endless mountains to penetrate the field. Finally, the prison was broken, and Xia Yi was seen within, his long hair strewn about his shoulders, appearing slightly flustered. There was blood at the corner of his mouth, and even his breath sounded weaker.


    Zhuge Yi gazed at Xia Yi; he did not continue the attack. Xia Yi returned the look. After a moment of thought, he finally said, "You won." He never thought that he would lose and be eliminated outside of the top three. Nevertheless, he was truly defeated and there was no more doubt. Zhuge Yi''s power was obviously greater than his. Therefore, he was more qualified to enter the top three. It seemed that he made the mistake of underestimating the geniuses of the Nine States. When he returned home, he would need to reflect upon that.


    After this battle, the top three contenders of the Nine State Forum had emerged.


    Yu Sheng, Yaya, and Zhuge Yi.


    Countless eyes gazed at the three that remained upon the forum stage; three stunning, talented geniuses stood on the highest stage of the Nine States.


    "I didn''t expect there to be someone with the perfect Divine Path physique in Jixia Holy Palace. It seems that in the future, another figure of the Saint Plane will arise," a cultivator of the Xia clan commented.


    "The five elements are perfect, but to be elevated to the Saint Plane, there still needs to be understanding and feeling, which all depend on his fortune," the cultivator of Jixia Holy Palace said with a smile. "But of course, Zhuge Yi is indeed a genius not to be had for centuries at our Jixia Holy Palace."


    Everyone at the grandstand area was shocked to hear the dialogue between these two. In the Eastern State, Liu Zong was taught at Xihua Sacred Mountain by the three saints and was praised as the future saint whose Divine Path was long expected. Now, when Zhuge Yi of the Jixia Holy Palace only qualified in the Noble Plane, could he deserve such high praise? Could it be that now Zhuge Yi had the power to vanquish Yu Sheng and Yaya to triumph at the Nine State Forum?


    All three were incredibly strong.


    "Congratulations to the Jixia Holy Palace for housing such a disciple." Saint Xihua smiled. "It has been wonderful to see so many amazing talents here at the Nine State Forum. In this Forum''s final battle, who do you all favor?"


    "Zhuge Yi was able to defeat Xia Yi, so he has the opportunity to win, of course. But he must be able to defeat that magical girl," a cultivator of Xia clan said, apparently optimistic about Zhuge Yi and Yaya battling for first place at Forum.


    Many of the others silently agreed. They thought that as incredibly strong as Yu Sheng was, and even given his great talent, Yaya''s genius was nearly demonic. Even Ye Guhong had been defeated by her. Zhuge Yi also exhibited unparalleled qualifications. As strong as he was, perhaps Yu Sheng would still be able to rank third.


    "My thoughts also," the Sacred King of Zhou piped up, and his eyes drifted toward Ye Futian. Behind him, Zhou Ya and Zhou Ziyi also looked in the direction of the Barren State.


    This time around at the Nine States Forum, the Barren State had been basking in the limelight. Were Yu Sheng to emerge as the winner, it might encourage Ye Futian to be even more imperious.


    But now it might be difficult for Yu Sheng to win.


    Ye Futian looked on as he usually did, calmly watching the three contestants on the battle platform. At his side, Gu Dongliu said, "It''s hard to imagine the Noble Plane to possess this kind of strength. By comparison, I was far from it."


    "Cultivation is an endlessly growing practice. Once Third Brother was only in the Eastern Barren Territory. The situation was not the same. Zhuge Yi has been cultivating at Jixia Holy Palace since birth. As for Yaya," Ye Futian continued dispassionately, "if we were all to stay in the Eastern Barren Territory, we would not be here today."


    Gu Dongliu nodded. All those from the Barren State behind him agreed that the Nine State Forum this time affected them greatly.


    "Zhuge Yi is a rare genius. If it wasn''t for Yaya and Yu Sheng showing up, he would be first place already." Gu Dongliu whispered, "But not many are optimistic about Yu Sheng''s chances."


    "Which disciples of the Barren State participating in this session''s Nine States Forum have been favored?" Ye Futian said casually. The facts would be the best proof. Even if Zhuge Yi possessed the natural born Body of Perfection for the Divine Path, what of it?


    As they were speaking, the three on the stage assembled into a triangular formation. Zhuge Yi stood proudly in the air. The power that had bloomed from his previous battle with Xia Yi had not dissipated. He looked at the other two, obviously prepared to continue fighting without reactivating the power.


    A terrible storm swept through the stage, gradually enclosing Yaya and Yu Sheng within. Yaya glanced up at Zhuge Yi while Yu Sheng stood quietly. None of them were moved.


    "What does Zhuge Yi want to do?" Many looked on intently. Could it be that he wanted to attack both opponents at the same time?


    Incomparably luminous patterns of the five elements and eight trigrams encased Yaya and Yu Sheng before surging downwards: Metal, Heaven hexagram, Sword of Innocence.


    Zhuge Yi launched a simultaneous attack on both. The rules of the battle stated that two should not be against one. Now that there were only three left, Zhuge Yi would rather let his opponents pick; let Yaya and Yu Sheng choose. Whoever decided to move first would be the one he''d fight.


    The Sword of Innocence fell, and neither Yaya nor Yu Sheng moved. They stood quietly as if they did not see it.


    Brilliant energy emerged from Yaya''s eyes as her hands stretched outwards, and the Sword of Innocence descended only to suddenly stop its movement before her; time and space seemed to solidify.


    "This..." Many trembled in their hearts. This girl was too demonic.


    A terrible dark golden gust of air circulated around Yu Sheng. Demonic light lingered around him, and then the True Body emerged. The Sword of Innocence continuously blasted the True Body before being engulfed and demonized.


    Just then, Yaya''s hands stretched out, her shirt fluttering. The endless Sword Will between heaven and earth plunged, and the void seemed to darken. An ancient atmosphere began to manifest, and her eyes became evermore enchanted. When Zhuge Yi saw her eyes, he seemed to have sunk into the world of Eye Sorcery, and the bloody sword slammed into his Spiritual Will.


    Zhuge Yi''s attitude changed slightly, the light of the five elements becoming even more resplendent, and his spirit was powered to the limit. In his mind, the Spiritual Will transformed into the pattern of the five elements, becoming indestructible. But then, Yaya stepped forward instinctively and that primordial breath descended; the endless sword ignored space and distance, landing in front of Zhuge Yi.


    Zhuge Yi''s pupils contracted and his intent moved. Presently the pattern of the five elements flew directly in front of him, frantically rotating and expanding. It turned into a giant golden disc, impossible to evade.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! The sword penetrated, and cracks appeared on the disc, but they were constantly repaired by Zhuge Yi''s astonishing defenses.


    Yaya did not continue the attack, but looked at Zhuge Yi instead and said, "Whichever one of you wins can fight me."


    "This girl..." Many were speechless and deeply shocked. Zhuge Yi had been similarly arrogant but still seemed unable to subdue her.


    Yaya had issued a direct challenge to whoever won between Zhuge Yi and Yu Sheng; how presumptuous.


    Zhuge Yi took a long look at her, then turned his eyes to Yu Sheng.


    "Get off the stage yourself," Yu Sheng looked up and said to Zhuge Yi.


    As soon as he finished, the countless people at the grandstand area once again gathered their attention to the combatants.


    This�� Was each one of them more impetuous than the last?


    Zhuge Yi possessed the naturally born saint''s body of the five elements, with the Grand Way of Perfection; he was praised by the illustrious of the Nine States as a future saint.


    Yaya told him to fight with Yu Sheng so the victor could then battle her.


    Yu Sheng told him to get off the stage.


    Was the saint of the Grand Way of Perfection to be belittled in such a manner?


    "Madness." Even those from Jixia Holy Palace on the grandstand couldn''t tolerate it anymore. However strong Yu Sheng was, his tone was too disparaging.


    For Zhuge Yi to get off on his own?


    Was this was to announce again that the final showdown of the Nine State Forum would be between him and Yaya?


    Zhuge Yi''s faced turned green, his handsome countenance distorted by rage. As he walked, strength and force exploded from within him.


    He had eliminated Xia Yi, the strongest of the Xia State, and entered into the top three of the Nine State Forum for the ultimate battle. His move to directly attack the two and, by doing so, select his next opponent was a demonstration of his strong self-confidence by declaring war on Yu Sheng and Yaya, both strong competitors.


    But now, what was this? He was being completely ignored by these two.


    This was simply intolerable!


    Boom! Even more violent breaths bloomed, and the vastness of the universe''s power exploded on the forum stage, with Zhuge''s body at the center from which it was concentrated. At this instant, Zhuge Yi seemed to be the only one between heaven and earth.


    Nine State Forum would be his stage!

 792 The Final Battle

    Zhuge Yi gazed at Yu Sheng. The vastness of the atmosphere roared between heaven and earth, echoing with the pattern of the five elements and eight trigrams hanging behind him. Endless airflow coursed around Yu Sheng and rumbled. The pattern behind him was getting brighter and brighter, and there were even patterns of light projecting down and falling on Yu Sheng.


    "Earth, earth hexagram, Prison of Earth," Zhuge Yi spat out the command in a cold voice. His spells used the formation of the five elements and the eight trigrams as bases. Its power was great and oppressive. Instantly, prison appeared around Yu Sheng, with his body as the center, intending on burying him, enclosing him within the Prison of Earth.


    Yu Sheng stood without moving, but dark golden light flowing within his eyes, containing terrifying and tyrannical force. At this moment, his hands stretched out, and dark golden air currents swept through the space, with incredibly horrifying rule will shrouding the vast void. All the endless power between heaven and earth now turned into dark golden rays and flowed toward him.


    In an instant, Yu Sheng''s body seemed to become gradually more imposing. Soon, he had grown to over a hundred feet in height, the pure body now merged with his own physical body, just like a true demon god.


    The terrible dark golden airflow crystallized into a halberd of the demon god, appearing in the hands of the demon god that was Yu Sheng. It was equally incomparably enormous, just under a hundred feet long, and the terrifying light of darkness billowed out from it.


    The scene shocked many deeply who witnessed it. Was this the ultimate manifestation of his pure body?


    The body of a demon god, devouring the power of the universe.


    Clomp. The forum stage trembled with the footsteps. The halberd of the demon god smashed out toward the Prison of Earth, hitting the dazzling barrier made by the earth-earth hexagram. Suddenly an unimaginable violent power exploded, and endless cracks spread like spider webs to every corner of the prison. With a loud boom, the prison blasted and shattered.


    "Power, invincible." Many people stare at Yu Sheng on the battle platform, hearts pounding. Could this really be the battle of the nobles?


    Even the cultivators from Jixia Holy Palace were not so confident anymore at the moment. Yu Sheng was simply too terrifying. Before, he did not exert all his power. Perhaps it was because Yu Sheng felt his opponents were too weak and did not require the use of his full strength.


    Was this then, his ultimate form?


    Immensely strong.


    Zhuge Yi''s countenance changed, his face solemn and with a slight turning of his mind, he suddenly the engraved diagram behind him flew right out and over above Yu Sheng. A radiance of light shining down from the pattern, covering Yu Sheng''s entire body.


    Metal, wood, water, fire, earth, heaven hexagram, earth hexagram�� The five elements and the eight trigrams were all clear and bedazzling, too bright to behold. Every ancient hieroglyph flowed with a domineering power.


    "Sword of Innocence," Zhuge Yi said coldly, and an even stronger Sword of Innocence bloomed forth. Golden blade of light rained down, sheltering the sun and the sky, enveloping the demonic body of Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng looked up at the pattern in the sky, made a gripping gesture with his hand, and dark golden brilliance erupted above the halberd of the demon god. With his body as the center, halberds of darkness appeared, and flared up towards the sky, aiming for the Sword of Innocence. Beautiful and radiant gold and dark rays collided, causing unimaginable devastating power within the space.


    "Water hexagram." Zhuge Yi once again spat out the command, and heaven and earth were frozen, the vast forum stage turned into the shade of frost with an iciness that reached the limit. Anyone at the grandstand that was below the rank of Sage plane was shaking with such severe coldness as if every cell in their bodies were going to be frozen.


    "Fire hexagram." Zhuge Yi did not stop his attack. The fiery fire of the magma flowed and melded with the power of the ice, eroding Yu Sheng''s body. The demon-like figure seemed to be frozen between heaven and earth and then horribly burned by the flames. Hot and cold were the ultimate strengths of the five elements.


    Countless eyes focused on Yu Sheng. A bang was heard, and his body moved. The next moment, cracks continued to appear within the frozen heaven and earth, incessant sounds of crisp squeaking were heard. Yu Sheng stepped forward, and the universe trembled. As the power of ice was crushed by him, the demon-like body of Yu Sheng seemed to be bathed in the flaming fire. The power that attacked him seemed to have been engulfed by him. At this moment, he looked even more terrible, like a demon god from hell.


    Zhuge Yi''s eyes twitched. This guy, can I really shake him? Even with these attacks, there is no chance of moving him?


    Xia Yi was already extremely ruthless, but when he released the spell with the five elements and the eight trigrams, he was still able to quickly suppress Xia Yi and defeat him. But Yu Sheng, like an undefeatable demon god, could not be destroyed, as if no power could ever stir him out of his existence.


    Clomp! The step that Yu Sheng took trembled in Zhuge Yi''s heart. His handsome face slightly twitched. He lifted his head to look at the pattern suspended above Yu Sheng, then he closed his eyes.


    At this moment, Zhuge Yi''s body seemed to be burning. The ancient hieroglyphs of the five elements and the eight trigrams emerged from his body, resonated with the pattern, and the infinite power of the universe flowed into the pattern.


    Suddenly, the pattern grew ever larger, covering the sky, and sheltering the entire forum stage. The power of the five elements in the universe, even the power of wind and thunder were surfacing from this pattern. The forum stage seemed to be facing the apocalypse.


    Glittering lights sprinkling, the rays shined upon Yu Sheng. The next moment, the pattern appeared its infinitely changes, with the mountains and rivers of earth hexagram crashing down, like mountains of destruction, attacking Yu Sheng presently.


    Yu Sheng, like a demon god, looked up at the sky. The hundred-foot halberd of the demon god in his hand, piercing the void. Suddenly, the mountains and rivers were punctured and collapsed. But then, chains of thunder surged his way. Destructive patterns continuously falling down on him, their infinite power seemed to destroy all existence, and keeping the demon-like figure in place.


    The cultivators from Jixia Holy Place looked grave. They knew that Zhuge Yi meant business. Endowed with perfect five elements, this naturally gifted genius in the saint plane had exercised his talents to the extreme. This rare, talented genius possessed extremely high comprehension in cultivation. While he was studying at Jixia Holy Palace, he was taught personally by the saints, so that Zhuge Yi practiced a lot of brutal and domineering abilities, and they were thoroughly integrated. Now it erupted with tremendously terrible power.


    In this battle, those from the Jixia Holy Palace were not so concerned with winning anymore; Zhuge Yi had done his best.


    Ye Futian stared at the battlefield and looked at Zhuge Yi thoughtfully. For him to be able to get to this point, Zhuge Yi was indeed a genius, and his natural sage talent was legitimate. If it was not for Yu Sheng and Yaya, these two oddities participating in Nine States Forum, Zhuge Yi would have taken the first place in Nine States Forum without a doubt. But unfortunately, Zhuge Yi met Yu Sheng and Yaya, these two anomalies at this year''s Nine States Forum. It was untimely.


    Yu Sheng looked up at the devastating attack that fell down. Every part of the body of the demon god turned into dreadful whirlpools, madly engulfing the power of the universe, even the power of the attack was engulfed and demonized. His body became greater and mightier, and horrifying demonic halberds now surround him.


    Boom! As his foot touched the ground, the halberd of the demon god in Yu Sheng''s hand smashed toward the sky. In that instant, the sky changed its color, and countless demonic halberds gathered together, moving as one with the halberd of the demon god, and attacking the same direction. A destructive black hole appeared, swallowing up all the forces in the world; mountains and rivers collapsed, the prison shattered, and the pattern pulverized.


    Yu Sheng was like a colossal demon god standing from heaven to earth. In his hand, the halberd of demon god blasted the diagram of five elements and eight trigrams out of the void.


    Whoosh! A storm of incomparable horror swept out, and the airflow over the sky was madly changing. Horrible streams of breathes bloomed toward the grandstand, and many powerful cultivators acted quickly to block the oncoming force.


    In the void, the light from pattern of the five elements and eight trigrams became dimmer and dimmer, and the light continued to shrink until it finally turned into a single beam and returned inside of Zhuge Yi.


    Puh! A mouthful of blood spat out, and the aura of the ancient hieroglyphs on Zhuge Yi''s body became tarnished. He looked at Yu Sheng somewhat desperately. Is such an attack still of no avail?


    "Still lost." The people from Jixia Holy Palace sighed under their breaths. Even with the perfection of the five elements and natural divine talent, he was still unable to overcome Yu Sheng.


    The grandstand platform was very quiet. Although Zhuge Yi was defeated, no one had thought of him as weak. On the contrary, he was strong; it was just that he encountered someone even stronger.


    Zhuge Yi smiled bitterly. He looked at the Yu Sheng and Yaya, then said, "I thought that at the Nine States Forum, I would take the first place. I never expected to be in the third place. However, it is worthwhile to experience the strengths of both of you. This trip was not in vain."


    Yu Sheng looked at Zhuge Yi and remarked coldly, "You are already exceptional."


    Zhuge Yi was slightly shocked; he did not expect praises from this guy. He smiled, "It''s all yours now." As he finished, he turned and left, leaving the highest stage of the Nine States Forum to Yu Sheng and Yaya.


    At this moment, all eyes were on the last two standing. So far no one had really been able to threaten these two genius characters. Even someone as strong as Zhuge Yi still could not touch them.


    Finally, it was time to watch their final showdown.


    The most tenacious battle of the Nine States Forum.


    Winner would take first place.


    "Finally, we are getting started." At the viewing platform behind Ye Futian, the old Village Chief looked at the battlefield. He brought Yaya to the Nine States Forum, but in reality, he did not have much hope that there would be people who could defeat her. But the Nine States Form had gave him a hint of surprise. This guy, Yu Sheng, was indeed strong, extremely strong. Maybe he could fight with Yaya. He was looking forward to it.


    Ye Futian was also very expectant. He had already detected that Yaya was of a demonic genius and not at all ordinary. She could even detect it when he tried to use the Freedom Meditation to peer into her thoughts. Jieyu''s comments to him later further convinced him of her rarity.


    But Yu Sheng also belonged to monster level, and within the same realm, it was almost impossible to discern winning or losing, even he would be reluctant to battle Yu Sheng. What would happen if Yaya battled Yu Sheng? Even if he was looking forward to the battle very much, he still could not say that Yu Sheng would definitely win.


    Many were looking at Ye Futian, surprised that his prediction had now come true. The final decisive battle really would be between Yaya and Yu Sheng, and the winner would take first place.


    On the immense forum stage, the two stood in mid-air, quietly, and no one spoke.


    A breeze passed through and ruffled Yaya''s hair. Her eyes were extremely demonic, while Yu Sheng still remained in battle form as he was before, like a demon god. The two of them, one great and one small, creating visual impact.


    Just then, an invisible wind blew, but with extreme sharpness, started on the forum stage. Yaya''s clothes fluttered. Her body slowly rose to gain the same altitude as Yu Sheng, who was like a demon-god.


    She directed her eyes toward Yu Sheng, piercing through to him. In the blink of an eye, Yu Sheng also saw the terrible scene: the demon sword mound, the graveyard, and the bloody sword!

 793 Limitless Magic

    Yu Sheng''s body, demon-like, stood there still, with his eyes deeply staring to the front, not avoiding the eye sorcery of Yaya.


    In the spiritual will, the sword mound and the bloody sword existed as if in the end of time; the bloody sword was so sharp, and from it permeated a terrible Way of the sword will as if the swords of all heavens were also controlled by it, severing the spiritual will of Yu Sheng bit by bit.


    However, at this time, in the world of eye sorcery there gathered streams of unlimited demonic magic, gradually morphing them into a statue of gigantic demon god. Ancient, solemn, emanating an essence that overpowered this world, as tyrannical as could be. In the depth of those eyes there was a terrifying disdain, like a real demon.


    The will of the sword descended, but it did not affect Yu Sheng one bit. The demonic magic that he had cultivated was unique; when his cultivation reached a certain level, astonishing abilities would began to manifest themselves. He concentrated in the Way of the Demon and practiced the Unparalleled Body, but neither did he abandon cultivating the power of spiritual will. The Demonic Meditation could cast the will of the demon, and it was an extremely forceful spiritual defensive that could not be destroyed.


    Yaya''s lashes fluttered, revealing a shade of surprise. Clearly, she was shocked inside. This statue of the demon god appeared in the world of the Sword Mound cemetery, but it was not at all out of place.


    Obviously, the attack of spiritual will could not shake Yu Sheng.


    Yaya''s long hair danced in the wind, and the wind upon the forum stage became ever sharper. She stretched out her hands, and endless airflow between heaven and earth gathered around her. Above the firmament, the Sword of No Limit appeared, her sword seemed to be different from all of the previous swordsman, as if it was summoned from ancient times, fierce and solemn.


    Everyone on the grandstand platform felt the uniqueness of this sword, and quietly observing at the battlefield. Before this, Yaya had not fought seriously.


    Would Yu Sheng be enough reason to force her revealing her real strength?


    Heaven and earth seemed to have solidified. The swords that seemed to have come from time immemorial did not make sharp and harsh sound, but were surprisingly quiet, but the pressure they gave was even more pronounced.


    Yaya moved her arms, and in the next moment, the sword from the sky suddenly disappeared from where it was, and instead, penetrated through space regardless of the distance and landed in front of Yu Sheng.


    "Spatial rule power."


    Everyone''s pupils contracted. Before when Yaya used her ability there were some who were aware that it was the power of spatial rule. At this moment, they were even more convinced that the way of sword had been integrated into spatial rule, able to disregard distance and kill at will; just how horrendous would that be?


    With Yaya''s strength, on the stage of Nine States Forum, as long as she was willing, a swing of her sword could kill a genius.


    At this moment, Yu Sheng was facing the horrible scene of countless swords coming at him.


    Many were sweating profusely on Yu Sheng''s behalf, wondering if his body, no matter how seemingly invincible, could withstand these terrible swords.


    Bang!


    Yu Sheng stepped out the moment before the sword landed, both arms trembling, and rays of light on his body flashed simultaneously, which seemed to have penetrated his body. His Seven Star acupoints have opened six, spirit, breath, essence and the flesh have all elevated to their limits. The dark golden air flowing around rushed into his body and turned into his power, causing his body to continue its change, as if the demon god had reincarnated.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! The sword arrived, as if piercing through the defense of the true body of the demon god, directly hitting the body of Yu Sheng. Shaken, he stumbled back several steps. The swords of all heavens, when simultaneously attacking was a terrifying scene to behold, even the invincible flesh was unsettled at the moment.


    Many took a deep breath. Since Nine States Forum began, Yu Sheng had been undefeated, and this seemed to be the first time that he had retreated?


    Even genius such as Zhuge Yi had not been able to make Yu Sheng retreat. But Yaya with just one blow, the ancient sword crossed the expanse and repelled Yu Sheng.


    Countless people held their breath, and they knew that the confrontations at Nine States Forum had reached its peak. Yaya and Yu Sheng both would be invariably shaken.


    The body of the demon god rubbed against the ground, then stopped. Yu Sheng stood there, head raised, his cold eyes stared at Yaya deeply. As his extended his hands, everyone felt an even more dreadful demonic magic pressuring down at that moment, centered from the body of the demon god, spreading outward toward the entire forum stage.


    Thump! Yu Sheng walked out and the whole earth shook. Just one step, he crossed the expanse, unimaginably fast, like a god moving toward Yaya.


    The petite body of Yaya seemed even more insignificant in front of the demon god that was Yu Sheng, but she did not evade him. She looked up at Yu Sheng. Heaven and earth seemed to have darkened and ushered in a world of doomsday. An ancient atmosphere descended upon the battlefield. Many looked up at the sky, revealing a strange look.


    Zhuge Yi and Ye Guhong both contracted their pupils slightly. This is�� the scene of the bloody place in Yaya''s eyes.


    Would that scene appear in the real world?


    Under the shocked gaze of everyone, Yaya''s petite body raised her fist that made the hearts of many beat wildly.


    Did she want to collide hand to hand with Yu Sheng?


    Was she crazy?


    The ancient sword appeared out of thin air behind Yaya, and her small fists blasted out to Yu Sheng. Without knowing why, many felt that for once, in the face of Yu Sheng''s overbearing power, perhaps her petite fists could really even the score.


    Bang! The fists of the two collided. Yaya''s body flew out to the far distance, hitting the edge of the forum platform, while Yu Sheng likewise fell back, not by the power of the fist, but a sword. The endless sword will penetrated the fists and rushed into his body, wreaking havoc.


    Both of them retreated.


    Just then, Yaya''s body floated forward, as if nothing had happened, her long hair flying. For the first time, the invincible fist of Yu Sheng did not cause harm. Prior to that, those who dared to collide with Yu Sheng had met with unfortunate end.


    Was this really flesh and blood?


    Yaya looked up at the void, her eyes were bloody and witchy. In an instant, the sky darkened, the space was covered in gloominess, and that ancient sword. Zhuge Yi and Ye Guhong both trembled in their hearts; that scene really was going to appear.


    Above the firmament, there were countless swords that cover the expanse.


    Yu Sheng looked up and the demonic prowess on his body radiated and enveloped the entire forum stage. Horrible demonic airflow raged and gradually turned into countless halberds of the demon god, pointing toward the sky.


    "Down." In Yaya''s eye, a bloody brilliance flashed, and the swords above the sky fell down, once again ignoring the distance and slayed toward Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng roared, and endless halberd of the demon god flew upward to the void, and collided with the swords of all heavens that seemed infinite and eternal.


    Yaya continued to direct her stare toward him, so that there were ancient swords continuous crossing the void to attack. If it was anyone less than Yu Sheng, they would have been annihilated already, and only Yu Sheng could withstand such attack.


    Even so, the swords that defied spatial distance were simply unstoppable, and landed directly on the true body of the demon god, causing the body to shudder constantly.


    If allowed to go on, even the true body of the demon god would collapse, and his body was not in fact invincible, merely extended to the limit of the realm of the nobles.


    He had to end the battle soon.


    Along with a loud boom, the demon-like body, marching on in the apocalyptic rain of swords, allowing the swords of all heavens continue its assault on the body; the scene was astounding to behold.


    Yu Sheng alighted in front of the Yaya, and threw a punch that seemed to burst open the expanse. But a ray of light suddenly effloresced, and Yaya had disappeared with it.


    Next, Yu Sheng felt a strong attack behind him as Yaya appeared, pressing down a finger behind him, and the horrible Way of Sword penetrated through the true body.


    Boom! An extremely strong reactive force transmitted out, and shocked Yaya into retreat. Yu Sheng turned to look at her, only to see that Yaya was already at a distance. No matter how fast he was, facing Yaya''s ability in space and distance, he would never be able to attack her if she intended to evade.


    "Your ability is still not enough; how long can you withstand such attacks?" Yaya said to Yu Sheng. Even though Yu Sheng was extremely powerful, but if the Village Chief wished for her to find someone who could defeat her in the realm of the nobles, he would most likely be disappointed.


    Everyone who heard her on the grandstand platform was speechless. Yaya had demonstrate unbeatable abilities, even with Yu Sheng''s Unparalleled Body, it was only a matter of time before it would break down. Yaya''s attacks clearly were capable to hurt him; continuous battle would eventually overwhelm him.


    Yu Sheng''s demonic eyes casted a glance at Yaya, he did not respond, but the rule power within his body was released to the fullest. A more horrifying air flow now coursed between heaven and earth, the body of the demon god became ever more massive, starting with his body as the center, many towering halberds of the demon god appeared in the void.


    When Yaya saw what was happening before her, she released an extremely sharp light from her eyes. She took a step and disappeared again.


    This time, Yu Sheng did not bother checking where she was, and called down the halberds from above, not to attack Yaya, but madly smote down, all embedded on the forum stage.


    At the same time, Yaya appeared once again behind him, again with one finger pointing down. The true body of the demon god shook and cracks seemed to appear.


    However, Yu Sheng''s eyes were still controlling the descent of the halberds of the demon god. In no time, this space was turned into a world of demonic magic, and the halberds of demon god clamped the space shut.


    "Do you really think this will work?" Yaya glanced at the space that was clamped shut, and the swords of all heavens likewise fell from the sky, turning this dark world into a scene of the end days with extreme horror.


    Yu Sheng raised his head and looked at her. With just one look, Yaya felt that the heaven and earth seemed to resonate with Yu Sheng, as if the world of the ends days was now controlled by him.


    An even more terrifying demonic will emerged, and the halberds of the demon god trembled on the ground, and ghostlike shadows of the demon god appeared between heaven and earth.


    "With this as the boundary, here is my world," Yu Sheng''s cold eyes stared at Yaya, and his voice was solemn and ice cold, which made Yaya''s heart quiver. She felt that she was now within the space of the demon god, and in her mind''s eye, she saw endless demonic shadows, walking toward her, step by step.


    At this moment, Yaya was shaken.


    Someone had actually made her shook.


    She looked up, staring at Yu Sheng with bloody eyes, like a sharp bloody sword, the swords of all heavens came down on the forum stage. Above the sky, there was a terrible storm that resonated with the sword of heaven and earth.


    At this instant, all the swordsmen viewing at the grandstand, some actually felt their own swords chiming in response behind them, as if they too, wanted to breakout of the sheaths. This phenomenon shocked them, and they now had their eyes fixed on Yaya.


    How did she do it?


    "No, this is my world," Yaya responded coldly. No matter where she was, it would always be her world, the world of the swords.


    Above the firmament, there was an endless sword descending within the terrible storm. The swords upon the forum stage chimed, and a storm of destruction enveloped this space, the real horror of the slaughtering technique.


    "Is this really the battle of the nobles?" The delegates of the Nine States stared at the battlefield; even the battle of the sages was just about as intense as this ?


    Those who had just entered the realm of the sages, if encountered these two geniuses, perhaps would not be up to par to take them.


    "I felt the essence of the Lord of the Way of the Sword, as if that girl could hold the sword of the world," a powerful swordsman looked at Yaya and commented. Although Yaya''s essence was not yet strong, it was enough to move him.


    "The same with Yu Sheng," someone said. It was the spirit that could overcome the world, demon god incarnate, ruling it all.


    At this point, Yu Sheng exercise the method to the strongest level. Had Yaya not been powerful enough, he would not have done so. After the demonic attack was initiated, a terrible scene appeared in his mind: a demon-like figure sat on the throne, overlooking all beings, the demon god lord over the world.


    "Do you admit defeat?" Yaya stared at Yu Sheng, still stubborn.


    Yu Sheng casted a cocky look at her, said coldly ,"Little girl, you are in no position to ask me that."


    "Sword Burial."


    When Yaya heard what Yu Sheng had to say she spat out the command in an extremely cold voice. As soon as she finished, a bloody blade of light fell from the sky. The next moment, the swords of all heavens broke through the sky and took aim at Yu Sheng.


    Bury Yu Sheng with the Sword Way of All Heavens.


    "Limitless magic," a voice sounded inside of Yu Sheng. He looked up and his eyes released a ray of dark light. An immense shadow of demon appeared in the space now, the sword that penetrated the emptiness for the kill suddenly appeared in mid-air, as if the spatial rules were forcibly interrupted, unable to continue its direct attack toward Yu Sheng.


    Many beheld this scene with trembling hearts.


    Could the power of spatial rule be forcibly interrupted?


    Yu Sheng had said that this was his world.


    The expanse oscillated, and the swords of all heavens chimed and continued their paths to kill. But Yu Sheng stepped out, and suddenly the Eternal Demon Shadow hauling the halberd of the demon god to slaughter toward the sky, colliding with the falling swords of all heavens, exploding and bursting like crazy.


    Throughout the firmament, streams of air flew madly into Yu Sheng''s body, as if he was devouring and demonizing all the power of this world.


    Immediately after, Yu Sheng raised his arms and smashing toward the firmament, violent sounds boomed and rumbled. Eternal Devil''s Fist seemed to blast open the void, running through heaven and earth, destroying the swords of all heavens, and blast toward Yaya who was above the expanse.


    Yaya looked at the scene before her, with disbelief in her eyes. How could her world of Sword Way be crushed!

 794 The Champion

    Looking at that endless aurora of the fists rushing toward her through the expanse, Yaya''s body seemed to melt into the void and headed toward the sky, avoiding the attack.


    However, she saw that within the endless fist, there was another giant fist opening into a palm, grabbing in the void, and instantly a terrible power of bondage was born, oppressing the space. She wanted to cross the expanse again but the power of spatial rule was again disrupted.


    As if it was indeed as Yu Sheng had said, this was his world.


    The aurora of the fists drenched her body, and Yaya seemed to turn her body into a sword, demolishing all the attacking forces that were coming at her. But at this instant, a fist of the demon god punched, and the expanse seemed to burst open. She felt her body flew up toward the sky, her sword-like body was about to break when it was blown to the firmament.


    At the grandstand platform, countless people looked up at the battlefield, Sword Qi and demonic prowess were still colliding. Yaya''s body flew toward the vault above; everyone''s hearts quivered.


    So powerful it was beyond imagination.


    They finally understood why Zhuge Yi, though claiming the possession of the perfect five elements of the Divine Path was still defeated and could not compete with these two. They were unbelievably strong, even those who were in the saint plane had never seen any two nobles broke out in a fight on this level.


    Some of them had attended many of the Nine States Forums in the past, and there was no doubt that the final battle of this year was definitely the strongest.


    In the grandstand, the old Village Chief looked at the scene playing out in front of him and revealed a strange look.


    He did not expect that at the Nine States Forum, there really would exist someone who could actually beat Yaya.


    Just as they were trembling, a blade of light was born above the firmament, a bloody blade of light, joining the swords of all heavens and unified into one sword. Hundreds of thousands of Way of the Sword smashing down as airflows, cleaved toward Yu Sheng who was below.


    Seeing this scene, the hearts of many beat again; was it not over yet?


    How strong was that attack from Yu Sheng?


    Sages on lower plane probably could not even endure it. Previously whenever Yu Sheng impacted the opponent directly, was it not the end the battle?


    Only freaks like Yaya would still continue to flight in this state.


    The demon-like figure stood tall, and saw the bloody blade of light traversing the void coming toward him. He clenched his fists, and the pressure of an extreme horror shrouded heaven and earth, until the speed of the bloody sword seemed to start slowing down under the effect of the demonic power. Endless demonic air streams flew toward Yu Sheng; he was like a demon god who was in control of earth and sky, and a turning of his mind could move everything within this space.


    A humongous halberd of the demon god appeared, and Yu Sheng aimed it toward the void, and the endless demonic power in the void rushed upward in counter-currents. The halberd seemed to break the void, colliding with the sword that came through with murderous intent, and wheels of destructive lights blooming toward the surroundings. The halberd of demon god continued rushing to the front, carrying the power of all heavens with it. The Sword Qi collapsed and shattered; the Way of the Sword of all heavens could not surpass the demonic magic in this space.


    The blood-colored sword blasted high up into the sky, but very quickly, the brilliant light appeared once again. A girl stood above the void, with blood on the corner of her lips, her breath fluttered, and she watched Yu Sheng coldly.


    She clenched her fists and suddenly an ancient atmosphere descended; there seemed to be an even more terrible storm looming above the sky.


    Yu Sheng felt it, and frowned at the threatening atmosphere. He glanced at Yaya coldly, "If you still want to fight, I will beat you until you want to stop."


    Boom! Blood boiled inside, and the demonic power was overwhelming and seemingly getting stronger.


    Everyone at the grandstand were completely speechless when witnessing this scene.


    Could it be any stronger?


    These two, were they even human?


    Ye Futian was also in a bit of shock; they wanted to continue?


    This was just too much... how embarrassing it would be for everyone else who fought at the Nine States Forum.


    "Yaya, that''s enough." A voice was heard, and all eyes turned to the old Village Chief.


    Yaya raised her head to look at the grandstand, the corner of her mouth lifted slightly, showing some stubbornness. But when she saw the stern look in the eyes of the Village Chief, she nodded, and gave Yu Sheng a dirty look, "Fine, you won. But, how dare you hit me."


    "Uh..."


    Yaya''s remark attracted everyone''s attention again. This did not seem right.


    The battle that had just occurred was on an epic scale. Now that the battle was over, how come it felt like a little spoiled girl pouting?


    How dare you hit me... What!


    Numerous eyes fell on Yaya, but she was really just a girl of fifteen, so everyone could only remain silent.


    Yu Sheng also looked at her with shock. When he saw the look in her eyes, he suddenly felt the air went out of him, and that mighty demonic magic dissipated. The true body of the demon god also disappeared as well, and heaven and earth returned to normal. Seeing Yaya was still staring at him, Yu Sheng scratched his head. How come it felt more troublesome than actual fighting?


    "It''s finished."


    Seeing that the remaining aura on the forum stage had dissipated, many let out a sigh of relief. From more than 3,000 competitors until the final battle so the strongest could emerge, Nine States Forum finally came to a close.


    Moreover, there was no disappointment.


    Looking at the two figures that were finally standing on the stage, they were the generation to watch out. In the future, there may yet be stories from them.


    Nine States Forum, Yu Sheng won.


    Barren State, the Holy Zhi Palace, Yu Sheng, all stood at the peak of Nine States Forum, and vanquished the geniuses of all the holy lands of Nine States, and took the top place with deciding victory.


    No one dared to question the validity of his placement as champion. No one dared to question the strength and talent of Yu Sheng. His way of battle and his domination conquered everyone who came to watch, even those who were saints, whether they liked him or not, they had to admit that he was magnificently strong. Not only was he unquestionably the champion of this Nine States Forum, even placed in the many Nine State Forums in the past, he could very possibly be the only one who stood at the top.


    Strong as Ji Hua, or Wubei, or Chu Xiang and these other strong competitors, all of them were crushed by him. Zhuge Yi with his natural gifted talent to Divine Path, exhibited unparalleled genius, who had defeated Xia Yi of Summer State, but in the face of Yu Sheng, Zhuge Yi still did not show much resistance.


    If Xia Yi was destined for the Divine Path, then what about Yaya?


    What about Yu Sheng?


    This year''s Nine States Forum, there appeared at least three qualifiers who demonstrated gifts to the Divine Path; one can only imagine how glorious this generation would be.


    People who came from all walks of life from Eastern State felt extremely excited and satisfied. The two people who finally stood at the peak of the battle were the ones that no one had ever thought of before Nine States Forum began.


    No one even knew who they were.


    When Yu Sheng came out to speak for Barren State before Nine States Forum started, how many people gave him the boot, and who took him seriously?


    On what basis would a disciple from Barren State dare to question the arrangement of Xihua Sacred Mountain?


    That was him asking to be embarrassed.


    Now, that stubborn burly youth stood there, but who dared to make fun of him?


    As long as Yu Sheng was willing, he can enter any holy lands of Nine States, and choose any saint from Nine States as his mentor; who would refuse such a disciple as he?


    However, some people were displeased. Great Zhou Sacred King was somewhat unhappy. He did not like the people of Barren State, and there was no particular reasons for that dislike. Perhaps it was because the people from Barren State had gone head to head with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty from the beginning, or perhaps because in his eyes, the people from Barren State appeared modest just to cover their air of superiority which seemed insincere.


    In short, he was displeased, so he observed it all with a cold detachment, and did not bother to cover up his displeasure. After all, he was a saint, and there was no need for him to pretend for anyone''s benefit.


    Zhou Ziyi and many others were unhappy as well. Of course, there was also Kong Yao of the Celestial Cliffs, who never though that there was a freaky genius from Barren State named Ye Futian, and then there was also Yu Sheng.


    He had looked into Ye Futian and his cohort. Yu Sheng seemed to have been with Ye Futian from very early on, both entered Barren State from Eastern Barren Territory, and both were so strong.


    In fact, not only the two of them, but Ye Wuchen and Hua Jieyu also could not be ignored.


    Unexpectedly from the declining Barren State, its younger generation was so dazzling. It was undeniable that Sage Chunyang made a good move before his death by making Ye Futian the Palace Lord.


    "Spectacular." At this point, Sky Saint let out a praise; there was genuine appreciation in his eyes, for both Yu Sheng or Yaya.


    Everyone from the holy lands of Nine States nodded. It was indeed spectacular. Those geniuses who had tasted defeat at their hands could not claim it was undeserved.


    "I never expected that I would feel so thrilled by the battle between the young ones; this is a first." Glass Saint laughed daintily, her voice crisp and gentle. She spoke the truth; as a cultivator of saint plane, she had seen it all. However, Yu Sheng and Yaya''s battle really moved her, because she felt the courage of this epic collision. Even if none of her disciples made it into the top ten, she still felt that the overall experience was worthwhile.


    "At the Nine States Forum this year, Yu Sheng, disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace from Barren State, is the champion." At this time, Saint Xihua announced with a clear voice that reverberated between heaven and earth, echoing in the area of Nine States Forum.


    Held once every three years, the stage that brought the geniuses of all holy lands of the Nine States, Yu Sheng, a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace from Barren State took the championship.


    "Second place, Yaya."


    "Third place, Zhuge Yi."


    Saint Xihua personally announced the top ten ranking one by one and said, "Go back to the battlefield, you top ten of Nine States Forum, this glory is yours."


    Zhuge Yi, Xia Yi and the others walked back onto the forum stage, their hearts were also disquieted. They were the top geniuses from all the holy lands, and were by nature extremely proud and confident. They wanted to exhibit their prowess at Nine States Forum by crushing other geniuses. But this time, these few freaks had taken away all the attention.


    Even figures such as Zhuge Yi seemed to have his glow dimmed in comparison. Only Yu Sheng and Yaya would be remembered.


    Yu Sheng turned his head to look in the direction of Barren State, and his gaze landed on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled at him and returned his gaze, "Although you took the first place, but don''t be too full of yourself."


    At this moment, he was happy for Yu Sheng. He had thought before that after this battle, the people of Nine States would remember the name of Yu Sheng.


    However, this battle still exceeded his wildest imagination. Such battle was enough even for the most powerful figures of Nine States to remember.


    Yu Sheng nodded and looked away. First place at Nine States Forum, he had won back the respect for Barren State.


    At the moment, many looked at Ye Futian; such a rare genius came from the Holy Zhi Palace and Ye Futian seemed none too disturbed!

 795 Robbing Talented People?

    They all looked at the young, handsome leader of the Barren State, and many felt impressed one way or another.


    The Barren State, who had not had saints among them for many years, had a young leader bring a group of people to participate in the Nine State Forum and ended up achieving a very surprising, miraculous, glorious result.


    It could even be said that the students of the Barren State were the strongest in this year''s Nine State Forum.


    Among the top ten who stood on the forum stage at that moment, there were two from the Barren State, two from the Summer State, and two from Qi State. Furthermore, Yu Sheng emerged as the champion of the event.


    No one had even anticipated before the Nine State Forum was held, that the Barren State would emerge on top of everyone else.


    Many wondered before, that with the ones from the Barren State being so exceptional, just how capable the new young palace lord from the Holy Zhi Palace truly was. Many had been curious about it, but such curiosity reached new heights with Yu Sheng being crowned champion of the event. After seeing how Yu Sheng fought, many were in the opinion that it would be impossible for Ye Futian to overpower Yu Sheng, no matter how powerful the young palace lord was.


    Yu Sheng was one specimen of top-notch, a cutting-edge genius that was difficult to find in all of the nine states. There were even some who wondered if it was possible to take Yu Sheng in and have him train in their sacred ground instead.


    "I have said before that all top ten participants in this year''s Nine State Forum are to be rewarded." Saint Xihua''s voice was heard, and he turned to look at the ten. "Yu Sheng, the champion of Nine State Forum, bestowed with the holy item, the Battleaxe of Judgment." He waved his hand as soon as he finished, and a battleax gleaming with terrifying aura throughout its entire form appeared and floated before Yu Sheng.


    Everyone looked at that holy item. While none of the sacred grounds lacked such equipment, a holy item was still something incredibly precious, and every one of the geniuses throughout the nine states wanted one for themselves. The holy item now belonged to Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng extended his hand and held the ax. Terrifying aura pulsed, but he did not rush to feel its might, putting it away instead. He said to Saint Xihua, "Thank you, senior."


    "You deserve it," Saint Xihua smiled and said. He then waved again and the Catalogue of Saints floated before Yaya, saying, "First runner-up of the Nine State Forum, Yaya, bestowed with the Catalogue of Saints."


    Yaya took it without any hint of reservation and said, "Thanks."


    "Which village are you from, young one?" Saint Xihua asked with a smile. All eyes suddenly shifted to Yaya. Ye Futian''s talent and Yaya''s background were perhaps what everyone present was most curious about.


    "The Nameless Village."


    "Nameless Village?" Saint Xihua looked puzzled.


    "You know, just a village without a name," Yaya said again. Saint Xihua looked stunned and took a good look at the young girl, but there was no way he would have gotten into a petty argument with a 15-year-old girl.


    "Ahem..." Ye Futian looked at the scene feeling awkward. The girl actually dares tease a saint. She is something, alright; almost every bit like that village chief of hers.


    "Second runner-up of Nine State Forum, Zhuge Yi, bestowed with the Holy Pill," Saint Xihua continued. All remaining seven of the top ten were rewarded one after another.


    Saint Xihua looked at everyone present. After all ten were rewarded, he smiled and said, "I have said before that if any of the top ten would like to train in Xihua Sacred Mountain, they would be welcomed as my student and would be tutored by all three saints of ours. Would of you be willing to take the offer?"


    Many peoples'' eyes sparkled as they looked at Saint Xihua. Seven out of the ten were tutored by saints and they all hailed from other renowned sacred grounds. In truth, Saint Xihua''s words were meant for three people: Yu Sheng, Yaya, and Hua Jieyu. There was still hope for the three of them to train under saints.


    There was no reply. It was naturally impossible for Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu to train in Xihua Sacred Mountain. As for Yaya, she was simply looking around the place without much care, making it apparent that she had not given it any thought.


    Saint Xihua felt somewhat disappointed at the response. Any sacred ground in the nine states would have wanted someone with talents like Yu Sheng and Yaya among their ranks. Hua Jieyu was just as exceptional, and her potential had yet to be truly brought to light. Telekinetic powers capable of attacking and controlling spiritual wills were signs of her being the ultimate sorcerer, which meant that she had incredible achievements waiting for her in the future.


    Saint Xihua did not respond immediately. He turned around to look at Ye Futian and said, "Ye Futian, I promised you that if there were to be any from the Barren State in the top ten, I would reward the Barren State with a holy item."


    Saint Xihua knew by then, without a doubt, that he had fallen into Ye Futian''s trap. That boy knew Yu Sheng was incredibly exceptional right from the beginning and deliberately led me into a trap. He was incredibly humble and polite, so far so as to offer a holy item from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    As a saint, there was simply no way Saint Xihua would have lost his bearing right there and then. As such, he had to respond to Ye Futian''s offer, but by doing so, he had fallen into Ye Futian''s trap. Worse still, there was no way he could have blamed Ye Futian for anything, as the young man had not behaved inappropriately before. Ye Futian had been so polite and humble that he even refused the counter offer at his own will, making him look like a humble member of the young generation like no other.


    Besides, Ye Futian said it himself. This is his first time venturing outside the Barren State and he has no idea how powerful the others from other states are. What more can I say to that?


    Saint Xihua had no choice but to admit defeat in front of everyone.


    Many wore bewildered looks on their faces after hearing Saint Xihua''s words. The Sky Saint wore a faint smile. It was quite surprising for Saint Xihua, the lord of the sacred mountain, to be set up by a member of the younger generation, and, worse still, rendered utterly incapable of retorting.


    Many turned to look at Ye Futian with amused looks. Kong Yao turned to look at him with cold eyes. While Saint Xihua had indeed lost in this battle of wits, will Ye Futian be able to stomach an extra holy item like that?


    Ye Futian stood and bowed slightly at Saint Xihua, saying politely, "I beg your forgiveness, senior."


    Many looked puzzled at Ye Futian''s reaction.


    "What do you mean?" Saint Xihua felt puzzled as well, looking at Ye Futian.


    "I was somewhat looked down on when I came to participate in the Nine State Forum after taking over as the Palace Lord of the Holy Zh Palace of the Barren State, and I couldn''t help but feel rather dissatisfied. As such, despite knowing how immensely talented Yu Sheng was, I went on to incite you with words, Great Saint, so as to vent my frustration. With Yu Sheng emerging as the champion of the Nine State Forum, we from the Barren State share the glory as well. Furthermore, Yu Sheng has been bestowed with a holy item by you. I''m afraid I dare not accept yet another gift from you, and I hope you don''t bear a grudge against me for my trespasses," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Many great figures throughout the nine states looked at him with great interest, rather surprised by his actions. The level of proficiency in dealing with social matters is nothing like that of a member of the younger generation who is still in his twenties. Not only did he not ask for the promised holy item, but he even went on to apologize to Saint Xihua, speaking his mind about everything related to the matter.


    In truth, everyone knew by then that Saint Xihua had been set up by Ye Futian. If Ye Futian had truly taken that holy item, it would have been anyone''s guess if that item would have been boon or his bane. However, the words he had just spoken gave ample face to Saint Xihua.


    Saint Xihua felt rather surprised as his deep eyes stared at Ye Futian. He continued, "I''ve made my promise and I cannot back out of it."


    "And that promise was my fault, senior. There is no need for you to behave as such with me. If you insist, I''d be more than willing to hand the holy item to Xihua Sacred Mountain for safekeeping. Should I need help with anything in the future, I''d like to exchange a favor for the holy item. What do you think?" Ye Futian smiled.


    "This kid..." Many stared at Ye Futian, surprised at how clever he actually was. This guy is trading the holy item for a favor from Saint Xihua.


    A favor from a saint was no small matter. Furthermore, not only had his actions given face to Saint Xihua, but there was also no need to take out a holy item. There was no way the saint would be petty with him about what happened before, which had rid Ye Futian of any loose ends.


    Saint Xihua took a look at Ye Futian with eyes of admiration. He had indeed misjudged things, as he should not have underestimated the people of the Barren State simply because the state had no saints.


    This young palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace is sure not someone to be trifled with. Furthermore, there are people like Yu Sheng and the others by his side. The Barren State might truly be able to achieve a great deal in the future.


    Saint Xihua naturally would not argue any further since Ye Futian was willing to give him face in the matter. He smiled and said, "Ye Futian, I look forward to the future achievements of the Barren State. If you should need help with anything, you are welcome at Xihua Sacred Mountain."


    "Thank you," Ye Futian bowed and said.


    The Sky Saint and the Glass Saint both looked at Ye Futian with eyes of admiration. Not only did he not offend Saint Xihua, but he had also actually forged closer ties with him, wiping off the friction on the battlefield without a trace. The kid sure knows his way with things.


    Things were, at the moment, very much in Ye Futian''s favor.


    Sage Wanxiang, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others beside Ye Futian also looked at Ye Futian with eyes of praise. There had been quite a number of people waiting for him to take the place of Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace back then, yet he simply went off to the Eastern Barren Territory to train alone, only agreeing to the arrangement several months later. It seemed that he was truly prepared at the very moment when he agreed to become the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The Barren State was deemed weak, and they had attracted too much attention in the Nine State Forum. A nail that stuck out was to get hammered. If Ye Futian had really gone on to take an extra holy item from Xihua Sacred Mountain, it would have worried Ye Futian''s elders. However, Ye Futian''s actions right there were impeccable, tying up all loose ends and ending all troubles that would have come.


    Saint Xihua turned his eyes to everyone present. His eyes were smiling and he seemed to be in a very good mood. He raised his voice and said, "Any who made it to the top hundred in the Nine State Forum are welcomed to train in Xihua Sacred Mountain. I''ll tutor them when I''m able to."


    "Thank you, Great Saint." Many bowed slightly at Saint Xihua.


    Saint Xihua continued with a smile, "With that, I conclude the Nine State Forum for this year. Thank you all for coming here from all over the nine states. It is my honor, as well as that of Xihua Sacred Mountain, to be able to hold this event."


    "It''s finally over." Voices were heard from the western side of the grandstands, with many feeling that they had not yet had enough. Those people had witnessed what the best among the young from all over the nine states were truly capable of. Some of those people would make it to the Sage and Saint Rankings of the Nine States in the future.


    "Hey kid, you''re training in the power of Rules of Space. Do you mind coming to train with me for a while?" The Sky Saint''s eyes turned to Yaya, who was still on the forum stage, making the place silent once again.


    The Sky Saint was versed in space-related powers, and the Sky Saint felt rather itchy seeing Yaya, wanting to take in another student.


    "I''m not going nowhere." Yaya shook her head and turned to look at the village chief, seemingly having no interest in training under a saint.


    "Alright." The Sky Saint did not push her and smiled, nodding instead. The kid sure has an attitude.


    "Yu Sheng." Someone was shouting at that moment. Everyone turned their head and found it was someone from Vajra Region. A high monk draped in a kasaya looked at Yu Sheng and said, "You''ve trained your body well and are unparalleled in the physical arts. The Vajra Region has many arts to train the body with and is most suitable to further your training. Besides, you train in the demonic arts. While it is indeed extremely powerful, it will make you succumb to your demons, thus losing yourself. The Buddhist methods of Vajra Region would be able to help complement that weakness and make you stronger. Would you like to like to train in the Vajra Region?"


    "Even the monks go about fighting for talented ones now?" Many looked at the high monk from Vajra Region. It seemed that they were unable to sit still. Yu Sheng''s talents were indeed enough to prompt them to do so, and the high monk was right. Vajra Region was indeed very suitable for Yu Sheng to train in.


    The Sky Saint and the Glass Saint smiled at each other. What the monks were doing was akin to trying to rob the Barren State, and they did so without reservations. If it were other sacred grounds, they might have argued and fought the Vajra Region right there and then. For instance, would Vajra Region even try to rob Jixia Holy Palace and the Xia clan of Zhuge Yi and Xia Yi?


    "Yu Sheng. The Great Chu clan has the most suitable holy arts for you to train with, and we have holy items that would benefit your training as well. What do you think?" s mighty one from the Great Chu clan of Cloud State said without any reservations.


    "The Nine State College is versed in many arts, we are also the number college in all of the nine states..."


    "The Jixia Holy Palace..."


    One mighty one after another opened their mouths. Representatives from many sacred grounds actually made offers to Yu Sheng at the same time. All the conditions were very good, throwing out holy arts and holy items like they cost nothing. All of those were things that students of sacred grounds could have only dreamed of, and they were easily within Yu Sheng''s reach, so long as he said yes to any of them.


    "They really have no reservations," Ye Futian saw the scene and said. If someone from some sacred ground were to take the lead and ask, it was only natural for others to follow suit. They did not care if Yu Sheng actually agreed to it, but they owed it to themselves to at least try.


    Yu Sheng scratched his head, hearing all the invitations thrown at him. The offers were indeed enticing. He turned around and took a look at Ye Futian, before shaking his head, saying, "I''m a student of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, so it is only natural that I cannot train in other places. Thank you for your offers."


    "There is no saint to tutor you and their resources are limited. Your training will be hindered," someone said.


    "Are you concerned with how the Barren State thinks of you?" someone else said, and their eyes were on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian waved his hands, seeing the eyes of everyone on him, and said, "Please do whatever you wish. If Yu Sheng is willing, the Barren State would be willing to let me go any time. Please, do continue!"


    "..." Many looked at Ye Futian feeling rather speechless. Is he�� welcoming others to come rob him? Something sure is wrong with his brain.


    However, Ye Futian was actually taking it all like he was watching a circus performance. They were welcomed to do whatever they pleased while he simply sat back and watched.


    Robbing Yu Sheng from the Holy Zhi Palace, eh? This looks amusing. Many continued to throw offers about without reservations after hearing what Ye Futian said.


    Yu Sheng turned around and glared at Ye Futian. This sh*thead is doing this on purpose!


    "I''m sorry." Yu Sheng simply broke through the noise at the moment, bowed, turned around and left with those from the Barren State. You had to be direct at times like this!

 796 I, the Palace Lord

    Everyone was dumbfounded at Yu Sheng''s antics, who returned to sit behind Ye Futian. He was completely unfazed by all the invitations thrown at him.


    The scene made everyone understand that Yu Sheng shared a very deep bond with Ye Futian. Despite all the invitations from the sacred grounds of the nine states, there was not the slightest hint of interest seen on his face. His attitude said it all��all of them had no hopes of roping him in.


    "Such a pity." Many thought that Yu Sheng had a surreal fate in being able to train in such unreal demonic methods. It would have done him a lot of good if he were to be able to train in other sacred grounds, such as the Vajra Region and the Nine State College. At the very least, he would have been able to grow faster and set his path on becoming a saint sooner.


    Many turned to look at Ye Futian, who simply shrugged, a gesture telling them that he had nothing to do with Yu Sheng''s decision.


    "That brat..." Everyone glared at Ye Futian, knowing that he had full confidence that there was simply no way Yu Sheng would have left the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    "Xu Que." Another voice was heard at that moment. It was from the Si clan of Feng State''s corner.


    An elder with a dark complexion from Si clan, who looked rather spooky, looked at Xu Que and said, "The arts you train it fit what we do at Si clan very well. If you''d be willing to train under us, I''d be happy to recommend you to our leader, the Si Saint, and have you study under him."


    Many turned to look at the elder from Si clan. It seemed that someone had extended an invitation to Xu Que of the Barren State after being unable to get Yu Sheng to join them.


    Xu Que was versed the power of rules of darkness. While he was unable to make it to the top ten, he was nonetheless an incredibly talented student, especially as his training fit that of the Si clan very well, which made him eligible to be a personal student of the Saint of Killers. It was deemed the best path for Xu Que to take.


    Xu Que''s eyes sparkled as he turned to look at the one speaking to him. As someone who came from the Tingxue House, it was a given that he knew of the Saint of Killers. The figure was like a manifestation of his people''s faith, so he would have been lying if he said that he was uninterested. It was a dream opportunity for a cultivator like him to train under the Saint of Killers.


    He turned his eyes to Ye Futian, shrugged and asked, "What do you think?"


    "Have it your way," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "Shouldn''t you at least try to keep me?" Xu Que looked at Ye Futian, feeling rather speechless. He actually didn''t try to hold me back.


    "Get lost." Ye Futian rolled his eyes at Xu Que.


    "..." It was the people of all nine states'' turn to be speechless at their antics.


    Xu Que scoffed at Ye Futian and gestured exasperatingly at the elder at Si clan, saying, "You can see for yourself, elder. Somebody here is already getting upset here. If I were to leave right now, I''d break his heart. As such, I''ll be staying back at the Holy Zhi Palace to train for the time being. I''ll pay Elder Si Saint at Feng State a visit, should the opportunity presents itself in the future."


    Ye Futian was completely baffled. Me? Getting upset? Breaking my heart if you leave? Gosh, this guy is shameless!


    Everyone else from the other states was speechless yet again. Another refusal.


    Furthermore, the conversation between Xu Que and Ye Futian felt like friendly jabs and banter with one another. While their relationship was that of a palace lord and a student, they were of the same generation, and it would seem that they had trained together before Ye Futian took over as the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Yu Sheng and Xu Que both declined offers of becoming students of saints. Does Ye Futian have that much charisma about him? Are there really things in the Barren State that they deem worthy of staying behind for?


    However, everyone else from the Holy Zhi Palace, such as Sage Wanxiang, felt rather impressed, and the scene had them thinking. Ye Futian had caused dissatisfaction among many when he listed the candidates to train with him in the Sage Hall. Back then, Ye Futian had said that the ones needed to be nurtured in the Barren State then had to be more than just those with exceptional talents; there were other factors to be taken into consideration.


    What he said was proven at that very moment. If students like Ximen Hanjiang were in Xu Que''s shoes, would they have just taken the offer of other sacred grounds right there and then?


    After all, it would have been overwhelmingly easy to choose a path that would have suited one''s interests best at times like that, and that would have been joining a more power sacred ground and learning under a true saint.


    "Very well." The elder from the Feng State nodded and did not pursue the matter further. While a talented one like Xu Que was indeed rare, it was not exceptionally so. The Nine State Forum was held once in three years, and the ones participating in the event were simply the most talented at the pinnacle of Noble Plane. There were other top-notch talented ones in other planes.


    But then again, the ones like Yu Sheng and Yaya were truly, exceptionally rare people. The talents of those two were probably some of the best ever seen for the past several decades throughout all of the nine states, let alone the event that was held once in three years. Zhuge Yi was known to be a genius that appeared once in a hundred years in Jixia Holy Palace, but he was beaten by those two nonetheless, a feat which spoke volumes of their talents. However, both of them were completely unfazed by the invitations of the many sacred ground representatives present.


    "The people of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State sure have an attitude," the Zhou Sacred King said nonchalantly. His somewhat golden eyes turned to Ye Futian of the Barren State''s direction and said, "On the path of cultivation, there are those who are born with uncommon talents, there are those who train and know much but reveal little, and there are those who move indomitably forward with a firm mind. It is a good thing to have an attitude, just so long as it doesn''t get in the way of developing one''s talents."


    "Thank you for your guidance, elder." Ye Futian nodded at the Zhou Sacred King. The king turned his eyes away, his expression cold, without saying anything more.


    Zhou Ya, who was standing behind the king, said, "I heard that the previous Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace gave his life and called upon Emperor Xia to have you, Palace Lord Ye, take your current position. He went through all that just to keep you safe from Zhisheng Cliffs. Under such a background and you taking the students of the Holy Zhi Palace outside the Barren State, showing everyone from the states your mettle, it would be safe to assume that your talents are even more exceptional than those of the students of the Barren State, which is why you were chosen as the successor."


    Countless eyes turned to look at Ye Futian as soon as Zhou Ya finished.


    Everyone was curious about Ye Futian''s background. After all, Ye Futian''s status at his place was different from the other sacred grounds. He was peers with Yu Sheng and the rest of the students. It was also said that he was but a noble when he was chosen to take the place of Palace Lord. If he were chosen under such circumstances, it would then be within reason that his talents were more immense than that of his peers.


    "Yu Sheng was crowned champion of the Nine State Forum. As the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, shouldn''t your talents be even more exceptional than Yu Sheng''s, Palace Lord Ye?" a mighty one from the Hall of Holy Light asked. Since someone started the topic, everyone became eager to see what the young palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace was truly made of.


    "Our students at Zhisheng Cliffs have had firsthand experience with Palace Lord Ye''s talents, and they might actually be more exceptional than what many expected of him," Kong Yao of the Zhisheng Cliffs said nonchalantly, showering praise to Ye Futian without reserve. Kong Yao was up to something, and he did not mind Ye Futian displaying his talent in front of the crowd.


    "Is that so? Are Palace Lord Ye''s talents peerless in all of the nine states then?" Many had gotten even more curious. Everyone in the grandstands behind Ye Futian all looked the handsome figure sitting before them.


    Saint Xihua, the Sky Saint, and other saints from the Eastern State did not do anything to stop them. They simply sat back and watched the fiasco instead. Even the Glass Saint turned to smile at Ye Futian.


    They too were curious.


    The Barren State''s participation that year had given them too many surprises, after all.


    The Barren State''s corner in the grandstands became the focus of everyone present in that vast space, and Ye Futian, who was sitting at the forefront, became the very center of attention.


    Ye Futian smiled and looked completely composed as he addressed everyone present, "I''m truly flattered by all the praises you shower me with. While I do admittedly have decent talent, I dare not claim to be peerless in all of the nine states. Furthermore, in today''s event, Yu Sheng, a student of ours from the Holy Zhi Palace, truly displayed that his physical prowess is indeed peerless, while I''m nothing close that. Yaya is capable of taking care of her opponents using space manipulation, while I''m utterly incapable of such feats. Zhuge Yi was born with complete five elements, and his manipulation of said elements is truly perfect, while I do not have such abilities. There is simply no way to say that my talents are peerless in all of the nine states."


    "You''re being too humble, Palace Lord Ye. Yu Sheng''s case aside, I''d like to know why it was you who was chosen to take the place of Palace Lord instead of Yu Sheng and the others then," Zhou Ya continued.


    "Perhaps it was due to my luck, having many of my elders have high expectations of me," Ye Futian simply smiled and said.


    "You are indeed humble, Palace Lord Ye." Zhou Ya continued calmly, "As it is the Nine State Forum today and there are so many geniuses hailing from all nine states, with top-class figures from even the Sage Plane present instead of just nobles, how about you take the opportunity to show a thing or two to everyone from all nine states, Palace Lord Ye?" Zhou Ya''s voice was heard all over the place, and countless eyes stared at Ye Futian. Zhou Ya was attempting to get Ye Futian to make a move.


    Most from the other states were perhaps displeased at how Yu Sheng of the Barren State ended up as the champion of that year''s Nine State Forum. As such, they wanted to know what Ye Futian was capable of.


    "If you''d like to see a spar between sages, we''ve got quite a number of sages from the Barren State as well. If anyone from the other states would like to try us out, we from the Barren State would be happy to oblige," Zhuge Mingyue, who was beside Ye Futian, smiled and said. Zhou Ya or even the prince of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty might have been immensely talented, but they were not the king himself. There is no way Ye Futian, the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, will act just because someone told him to. Does Ye Futian have to fight all of the genius sages from the other states?


    "I''m addressing Palace Lord Ye, you..." Zhou Ya turned his eyes at Zhuge Mingyue. While he was still smiling, his words turned rather sharp. What he truly meant was someone like Zhuge Mingyue had no place interrupting the conversation. He was talking to Ye Futian, not her.


    Countless in the grandstands turned to look at Zhou Ya.


    Zhou Ya was no ordinary figure in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. He was hailed to be the successor of the Great Zhou Sacred King. Even Zhou You was deemed below him in the sacred dynasty. Zhou Ya''s status and talents made him worthy of addressing Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, directly.


    At the moment, Zhou Ya was showing his forceful side. Zhuge Mingyue''s smile turned rather stiff, and the eyes of Gu Dongliu, who was sitting right beside her, turned cold.


    But then, Ye Futian said, "What my second sister said was what I meant." He glared at Zhou Ya with sharp eyes. He was without a doubt, able to sense Zhou Ya''s pride, but there were simply people Ye Futian would not tolerate being insulted by anyone.


    "Is that so?" Zhou Ya stood and walked out. He then looked at Ye Futian and said, "I, Zhou Ya, would like to spar with you, Palace Lord Ye, just so to learn a thing or two." Zhou Ya shone brilliantly. Countless eyes from the geniuses of the sacred dynasty fell onto him. Zhou Ya walked out and was asking for a friendly match in name, but what he meant to do was simply to challenge Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The place where the event was held was dead silent once again. Everyone''s eyes turned to look at Ye Futian.


    Will he accept the challenge?


    At that moment, everyone saw a faint smile appearing on Ye Futian''s face. He stood up and looked at Zhou Ya, saying, "Since you''d like to have a friendly spar, Prince, I, as the Palace Lord, would be happy to teach you a thing or two!"

 797 Teaching Someone a Thing or Two

    @@


    Countless eyes were frozen right there, looking at the figure dressed in white as Ye Futian was done with his words.


    I, as the Palace Lord, would be happy to teach you a thing or two!


    Palace Lord Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, referring to himself as "palace lord" for the first time, said to teach a thing or two to Zhou Ya, in a holier-than-thou tone.


    What he meant there was: since you begged me, I will oblige.


    It seemed as if those words were spoken by an elder to their juniors. The pride and attitude were very obvious. However, the fact was that he had probably been a sage not long ago, and Zhou Ya was considered his peer. Zhou Ya''s powers were probably no weaker than his.


    As for status, Zhou Ya was a prince of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and a figure known to be the successor of the sacred king. If they were to speak in terms of the status of sacred grounds, Ye Futian would have easily been higher, given that he was a palace @@

 798 The Village

    @@


    The eyes of all those from the Nine States were directed at Ye Futian, the young leader of the Barren State. At this moment everyone truly felt as if he was also the Palace Lord of the sacred land. Although he was still young, the spirit Ye Futian exuded was already that of a Head Saint.


    Zhou Ya''s provocation of Ye Futian was thought of as a potentially exhilarating showdown. However, against expectations, it turned out to be no more than a lesson akin to an experienced elder giving guidance to a young underling.


    Strong as he was, Zhou Ya could offer no resistance at all.


    Humble, unassuming, polite, but arrogant at this moment. Which attitude was that of the real Ye Futian?


    "It was unexpected that his martial arts would be so powerful." The Chess Saint''s ninth disciple praised from the direction of the Eastern State. He only knew that at the Chess Saint''s Villa, Ye Futian displayed extraordinary comprehension and cultivated diligently. However, on this day, h@@

 799 Champion Sword of Nine States

    The old man''s eyes suddenly became sharp as he stared at Liu Zong, but they quickly turned calm again as he remarked nonchalantly, "You are the one they call Liu Zong."


    "Yours truly," Liu Zong nodded. Behind him, the nine disciples of the Chess Saint fixed their attention upon the old man.


    "The two people who ever cracked the Celestial Dragon Chess Game at Chess Saint Villa were you and Ye Futian." The old Village Chief cast a glance at Ye Futian again, looking amused. What a coincidence.


    Likewise, Ye Futian showed a look of surprise. The old Village Chief appeared to be a hermit. Even the saints did not know where he came from and what village this was.


    But how did Liu Zong know about it?


    Moreover, the old Village Chief knew of Liu Zong and knew of him.


    Could there be a connection with Chess Saint Villa?


    "Yes." Liu Zong nodded.


    "Chess Saint chose you as his successor and not him." The old Village Chief smiled. "That being the case, if you want to save Chess Saint, you ought to go by yourself; I am an old man and cannot really help."


    Liu Zong looked at the old man, as well as the people around him. Some did not understand the meaning of the dialogues between them.


    Save the Chess Saint? Wasn''t it rumored that because Chess Saint planned to sit for peaceful death [1], Liu Zong was chosen as the successor?


    What exactly was going on? The nine disciples of the Chess Saint were now following Liu Zong, what was the secret behind it?


    And where was Tomb Village?


    They had never heard of this village.


    "Tomb village is isolated from the outside world. Even its existence is unknown. However, these many years, Tomb Village has always existed outside the Forbidden Land of the Nether Sword Mound. Chess Saint went to the Forbidden Land of the Nether Sword Mound and was trapped. How would Liu Zong save Chess Saint? Surely you jest, sir." Just then, Saint Xihua himself stepped forward and addressed the old Village Chief.


    As his voice fell, the hearts of the crowd around him trembled, and all eyes were now on the old man.


    Nether Sword Mound!


    Could this old man and Yaya be from outside of Nether Sword Mound?


    The Nether Sword was known as the premier restricted area in the Eastern State. There were countless swords that were hidden within the mound, along with countless bones. For many years, many had ventured to the Nether Sword Mound, but none had returned, losing their lives in the process, hence its notoriety. Gradually, this forbidden land was slowly forgotten and no one dared to approach. It was subsequently rarely mentioned.


    There were also many rumors about the Nether Sword Mound. Some said that within the Nether Sword Mound, a matchless, ferocious sword was gestating within, slaughtering all who dared to invade. Some said that there were supreme beings practicing within the mound, murdering many. Some even said that the Nether Sword Mound had buried an extraordinary strongman. But these rumors could not be confirmed nor denied. Perhaps only those who are of the holy land would know the truth.


    Could it be that Tomb Village was tasked to guard the Nether Sword Mound?


    Rumor had it that the Nether Sword Mound was a place of nothingness, extremely difficult to reach. No one had ever thought that those who guarded the Forbidden Land at Tomb Village would come here.


    Ye Futian also showed a look astonishment. He had known about all the holy lands of the Nine States but had never heard of the Tomb Village or the Nether Sword Mound. But if this place would even cause Saint Xihua to pay attention, then, clearly, it was not ordinary.


    The old Village Chief looked at Saint Xihua and said, "That is his own business." He then looked at Yaya, "Yaya, let''s go."


    "Yes." Yaya nodded and once again gave Ye Futian and Yu Sheng a dirty look.


    The old Village Chief also turned to look at Yu Sheng and said, "It was an extraordinary feat to defeat Yaya. You are welcome to come to my village as guests when you have time." As soon as he finished, the two figures turned into two swords, broke through the air, and disappeared instantly.


    At the same time, a voice secretly transmitted into Ye Futian''s ear, which made Ye Futian reveal a look of shock.


    Saint Xihua looked at the disappearing shadows of the swords, and his countenance was uncertain. He did not expect that a seemingly worthless Tomb Village outside the forbidden land would turn out to be not so simple.


    There would be troubles again in the Nine States, and those who had left would hear about it soon enough.


    Of course, there was a purpose for him to deliberately pointed out the origin of the other party. After all, this was the Nether Sword Mound that trapped even the Chess Saint. Xihua Sacred Mountain did not have so many strong cultivators to sacrifice in vain. Naturally, it would be better to have others along to investigate.


    News about the Nether Sword Mound was enough to alarm the holy lands of Nine States. Liu Zong, as the successor of Chess Saint, knew a bit more than the others, which was an advantage for Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "I shall bid my farewell as well." Ye Futian put his hands together in respect for Saint Xihua.


    Saint Xihua looked a Ye Futian, smiled, and nodded. "This time at the Nine State Forum, Barren State had the most dazzling performance, and I look forward to your future. If you ever want to cultivate in the holy land, Xihua Sacred Mountain welcomes you anytime."


    "Thank you, Saint, I will remember that." Ye Futian bowed slightly and then turned away with the rest of the delegates from the Barren State.


    After Ye Futian left, Liu Zong stared at his disappearing figure and said, "Master, according to the information Chess Saint passed on to me, and in addition to the fact that the people from Tomb Village have been out and about, perhaps they are looking for successors."


    A flash flitted across the eyes of Saint Xihua. Even though the old Village Chief deliberately evaded him, the fact that they had sought out Ye Futian and Yu Sheng prior to that was enough for him to connect the dots. Especially since Yu Sheng had taken first place at this year''s Nine State Forum. And in the battle pursuant of the Nine States Forum, Ye Futian had also exhibited exceptional brilliance. Thus, Liu Zong''s comment was enough to infer a lot of information.


    "Send the word," Saint Xihua said lightly, then turned to leave.


    The curtain had drawn on the Nine State Forum, and when the news came out, all of Huatian City was shaken. No one ever thought that the Barren State, which had not participated in Nine State Forum for many years, would turn out to be the black horse, showing the most dazzling light on the stage.


    Perhaps this was what they meant by heroes came from all places.


    As for the news of the Nether Sword Mound and the Tomb Village, the response in Huatian City was not as strong. After all, because of the distance to places such as the Forbidden Land of the Nether Sword Mound was far from them, their knowledge of it was limited.


    Just after everyone had left Xihua Sacred Mountain, a carriage of phoenix descended from the sky in the area above Xihua Sacred Mountain. It rained down brilliant rays of incomparable glory, heading directly to the center of the mountain. The one upon the carriage was Great Zhou Sacred King, who had actually left and came back.


    Great Zhou Sacred King stepped down from the carriage. Behind him, the strongest of the Golden Phoenix Legion, Zhou Ya and other descendants followed.


    "Is there something I can be of service for the Saint to call on me?" Great Zhou Sacred King landed on the ground, where Saint Xihua, Rain Saint, and Liu Zong were.


    "Happy news. Please sit down, Sacred King," Saint Xihua said with a smile as he walked over to a seat, a chessboard in front of him. He made a gesture to Great Zhou Sacred King.


    Great Zhou Sacred King walked over and sat down. He looked at the chessboard and said, "What kind of happy news would strike such fancy in the Saint today?"


    "I assume the name of Nether Swordsman is one that is known by the Sacred King?" Saint Xihua placed a pawn on the chessboard and smiled.


    "The champion sword of Nine States," Great Zhou Sacred King replied solemnly as he placed a piece on the board. That was a legendary figure. Just knowing a few of his deeds was enough to make one''s blood boil. Even the Great Zhou Sacred King was full of admiration for this forebear.


    "Indeed, a legend who, in the lore, slew saints with one sword, and invincible in the holy war, and was named the champion sword of Nine States by Emperor Xia himself. One, who once upon a time, could stand next to Emperor Xia." Saint Xihua looked intense. That legendary figure of Nine States was probably approaching the level of an emperor in status.


    "The ancient annals of the Great Zhou Dynasty recorded that the Nether Swordsman created the Nether Sword Matrix as the premier matrix of Nine States, and it was said that it was an emperor slayer." Great Zhou Sacred King looked at the chessboard and dropped a piece. When he looked up again, his eyes suddenly became extremely acute. He focused on Saint Xihua. "Such a legendary figure, how did he die, and why did he create the Nether Sword Mound and chose to be buried within?"


    "At our level, we should know that cultivation is the appropriation of the spirit of the world. Even the Saint Plane still has too many unknowns, so who truly knows?" Saint Xihua seemed to want to avoid the subject, so he smiled and answered aimlessly.


    Great Zhou Sacred King gazed at him with sharpened intensity. "You haven''t said what the happy news is?"


    "Where is Chess Saint? You, Sacred King, should know."


    "Yes. The Nether Sword Mound." Great Zhou Sacred King lowered his head and placed another piece. Chess Saint was fascinated by chess and incorporating the matrix of the world within it, so he could not possibly pass the opportunity to take on this premier Nether Matrix of Nine States.


    "Chess Saint is trapped at Nether Sword Mound, but at the Chess Villa, they were conducting the selection of its successor. You know very well what that means. Now, Liu Zong knows something." Saint Xihua glanced at Liu Zong, who stood behind him. "Presently, even those from Tomb Village are out and about. Isn''t it clear to you what this all means?"


    "It''s been many years. Is it true that the Nether Swords Mound still contains the secret inheritance of the Nether Swordsman? Even if it were true, how much of it is still there now?" asked the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    "The people in Tomb Village should be the most knowledgeable," Saint Xihua said. "I think that old Village Chief seems intent on recruiting the top talents. They invited the people from the Barren State for a visit."


    Great Zhou Sacred King looked at Saint Xihua. He disliked the people of the Barren State and certainly did not hope that the people of Barren State would be the ones inheriting the champion sword of the Nine States.


    "The people of Nine States should hear the news eventually. The Nether Sword Mound will not have peace for long. Among the land of Nine States, the Barren State is the weakest, followed by Yu State and Ocean State. Our Eastern State, though not the weakest, is only below average. On top, there are Summer State, Qi State, War State, and Cloud State, who are all stronger than us. Therefore, if the Nether Sword Mound truly still contains the inheritance of the champion sword of Nine States, I hope that the one who receives it will be from our Eastern State."


    Great Zhou Sacred King looked up at Liu Zong and sarcastically said, "The Saint has already chosen a candidate."


    "Liu Zong is a talented genius, the most naturally talented of the younger generation of Xihua Sacred Mountain. He is more outstanding than the Sacred King could imagine." Saint Xihua said with a smile, "Does the Great Zhou Dynasty care to consider Liu Zong as consort?"


    Next to them, Zhou Ziyi suddenly lifted her head and looked in the direction of Liu Zong, and her heart slightly throbbed!


    [1] Sit for peaceful death is a Buddhist way of passing reserved for high ranking monks who had obtained great understanding. Prior to their passing, they would normally fast for a long while and then while still alive, be sealed into a large urn for a number of days or months before their disciples would open the urn again. The monks would be already mummified and often times yielded relics in the form of beads as an indication that they have indeed obtained nirvana.

 800 Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

    Although the influence of the Nether Sword Mound in Eastern State was far less than that of the Nine State Forum, the rumors regarding the Nether Sword Mound increased as time went by. Moreover, there were even whispers that the Chess Saint did not sit for a peaceful death, but was imprisoned in the Forbidden Land of Nether Sword Mound instead.


    There were even claims that the Nether Sword Mound was the where the Nether Swordsman, who was named by the Lord of Nine States�� the Xia Emperor��as the Champion Sword, buried his sword.


    Presently, there was once again excitement in the air.


    At the end of the Divine Prefecture Calendar Year 10011, the area bordering the four states of Eastern State, Summer State, Qi State, and Feng State was a vast and abandoned area, mountainous and rarely inhabited.


    Because the borderland of these four states was ungoverned, the cultivators from this area would unlikely be strong, but occasionally, there would be hermits and recluses who were exceptions.


    The area close to the borders of the Eastern State was surrounded by mountains, and nested within was a quiet and otherworldly village. This was the Tomb Village that was little known to the outside world.


    Tomb Village was isolated, and there were hardly any interactions between the village and the outside world. Even those who cultivated in the holy lands had hardly ever heard of it, much less ordinary civilians. In the vast and boundless Nine States area, place such as Tomb Village was like a speck of dust, unnoticed by anyone. More recently, this isolated village had been visited more often. Since nothing of consequence ever happened, they seemed to be merely passing by.


    At this moment, outside the village, a procession came from the sky. The leader was a young man in white, extraordinarily handsome. It was Ye Futian and his companions from Huatian City.


    After leaving Xihua Sacred Mountain that day, the old man left a map for him to let him choose whether or not to come to the village after secretly transmitting the message. Ye Futian allowed some from the Barren State to return and then led the rest along with Zhuge Qingfeng to the village.


    "So quiet." Ye Futian directed his gaze downward. No tall buildings or ancient temples, just simple houses built with stones, scattered below.


    The village was not small. With about a thousand or so households, it was more like a small town. Accustomed to the excitement of the city, Ye Futian rarely experienced this kind of tranquility.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said, as the party landed on a small gravel road, moving forward.


    Occasionally, some residents would poke their heads out and look at them, but then they would go about their business as if they had not seen them at all. However, Ye Futian could detect that someone had already secretly reported their arrival to other villagers.


    After all, there were quite a few people within their party.


    "People coming again. Looks like there is going to be trouble in the village." an old man who sat next to a house grumbled.


    Ye Futian looked at him and asked, "Sir, we are here for the Village Chief. Do you know where we can find him?"


    "What business do you have with the Village Chief?" The old man looked up and looked at Ye Futian alarmingly.


    "The Village Chief invited us to visit the village as guests." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Mr. Ye?" the old man asked, apparently with knowledge of him.


    "Ye Futian, at your service," Ye Futian greeted him.


    "All right." The old man stroked his goatee and stood up. His seemingly hunchbacked body instantly straightened up, and the gaze that seemed cloudy suddenly gained spirit; the entire aura of his person seemed to have transformed swiftly. Ye Futian and company all showed a touch of amazement.


    The ability of hiding his aura was remarkable. It was hard to imagine that an ordinary old man would transform into the one standing in front of them at this moment.


    "Please, Mr. Ye," the old man gestured.


    "You first, sir." Ye Futian nodded as the old man led the way to the village.


    Many then came out and watched Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and the rest of them, with curiosity.


    They all knew that a few months ago, the old Village Chief left with Yaya.


    And the Village Chief also said that there would be outsiders visiting.


    Now, they had arrived.


    In the open space right in front of them, there was a procession coming towards Ye Futian and his party. A girl of about 15 years of age was walking in front with great pride, staring at Ye Futian and his companions with menace.


    Ye Futian revealed an odd look at this event. He stopped and watched Yaya coming towards them with her group. Those coming toward them wore simple and plain clothing. Some were shirtless and some were even wearing animal skins. As they continued forward, they subtly surrounded Ye Futian and his group.


    "Yaya, who bullied you?" Next to Yaya, there was a strong young man clad in a fur coat, whose eye swept towards Ye Futian as he asked.


    "Him." Yaya pointed at Yu Sheng, and then at Ye Futian. "And he''s not much better."


    Ye Futian looking at the girl, speechless. Is she complaining?


    Do they mean to brawl?


    It seems like that now she''s on her turf, the girl is becoming audacious.


    "You two, come out." Just then, a burly young man came out from behind Yaya. He was shirtless, revealing his muscular build, and he exuded savage power.


    Ye Futian felt that the barbaric aura from the other was affecting the power of the surrounding people, and his eyes showed a slight surprise.


    It seemed that the villagers in Tomb Village were not ordinary.


    Boom! A figure stepping out, and it was Yuan Zhan. From his body, a barbaric aura also exploded forth. Golden radiance flowed above him.


    "A Demon Ape?" The shirtless youth looked at Yuan Zhan and let out a roar. Behind him, there appeared an huge black shadow; it was a humongous yak. Wind and thunder danced between heaven and earth, while an even more fierce aura bloomed. Immediately, he started towards Yuan Zhan. Dust flew and the ground shook. He rushed towards Yuan Zhan.


    Yuan Zhan also stepped forward and sprinted. There was no magic being used between the two; merely an explosion of their own unfettered strengths, charging each other.


    With a loud bang, the instant the two collided. A violent exhalation raged, and cracks appeared on the ground, along with houses collapsing in the distance. A demonic wind swirled in the surrounding area. Yuan Zhan and the shirtless youth both stumbled a few steps backward, rubbing against the ground.


    "Big Ox brother," Yaya shouted.


    "I''m okay." The shirtless figure steadied himself and shook his head at Yaya.


    A dazzling golden light flashed across Yuan Zhan''s eyes. The physical strength of his opponent was no lesser than his; this individual possessed compelling brute force.


    Likewise, Ye Futian displayed a strange look. Even though Yuan Zhan did not enter the top ten of the Nine State Forum, he was still able to enter the top tier. Even if he did not employ any combat technique and relied only on his own strength, the fortitude of the Golden Ape Clan was still phenomenal. For the youth to have checked Yuan Zhan, he obviously also possessed considerable brute force.


    Could any random young man from the village be this strong? Also, "Big Ox" brother?


    Yaya? What kind of names are these? and what willful person gave them such names?


    At this juncture, Ye Futian glanced around and could detect many streams of consciousness spying on the unfolding scene, and it felt like those were other villagers from the village.


    There were more to the people of this village.


    "Little girl, who taught you that if you don''t win, you should come back and complain?" Ye Futian said to Yaya with a smile.


    Yaya looked at Ye Futian hatefully, then pointed to Yu Sheng. "You, come out and we will fight again. That last time didn''t count."


    Yu Sheng looked at Yaya contemptuously. A powerful aura spilled out, and suddenly, intimidation of the sage rank flourished. Yaya''s expression altered.


    "I am afraid you will cry if you are beaten again," Ye Futian said with scorn. This little punk was too arrogant.


    After the Nine State Forum, all those from the Barren State who participated in the battles had a realization. Yu Sheng battled the most, so his realization was the deepest. Soon after the conclusion of Nine States Forum, he had a breakthrough and entered the Sage Plane.


    Yu Sheng was now in the realm of the sages.


    "You..." Yaya pointed at Ye Futian and gnashed her teeth. "I will fight you then."


    "And if you lost?" Ye Futian asked Yaya. This girl seemed really stubborn, and it looked like she would need to be taught a lesson.


    "Then I will take you to the Village Chief," said Yaya.


    "That''s not enough. After you lose, you''ll have to call me ''Older Brother'' whenever you see me." Ye Futian laughed.


    Yaya stared at Ye Futian.


    "If you dare not, then forget it," Ye Futian said. "Why don''t you just take us to see the Village Chief now?"


    "All right, but if you lose, you have to obey my commands," Yaya squeezed out between her teeth. She must torture these two pompous guys.


    "Sure, if you volunteer. Don''t say that I bully little punks." Ye Futian walked forward with a smile. He did not really intend on fighting; it was just that he found this little girl very interesting.


    Yaya stared at Ye Futian. A powerful atmosphere broke out, and suddenly, there seemed to be endless Sword Will hidden within heaven and earth. Yaya seemed to be the sharpest of all swords. She directed her eyes to Ye Futian, and he instantly saw that dreadful picture of a bloody sword cutting away at his spiritual will.


    Ye Futian''s pupils sharpened at once, turning into a terrible storm as if to devour that frightening Sword Will. Yaya disappeared in a flash, and all Ye Futian felt was a strong sense of impending danger, as if that endless Sword Will was descending on him.


    With a turn of the mind, the space-freezing rules bloomed, slowing down the velocity of the entire space. Yaya''s shadowy figure suddenly reappeared in front of his eyes, and one finger fell down towards him. It seemed that the way of the sword of all heavens dropped down simultaneously and traversed the void.


    But the space seemed to be frozen, and there was extremely powerful starry rule power surrounding Ye Futian. When the Sword Will came down, it burst into a brilliant radiance. At the same time, Yaya also felt forceful pressure land on her body, making it difficult for her to move.


    An extremely sharp bloody Sword Will flashed across Yaya''s eyes. In an instant, that monstrous Sword Will seemed to break down all defenses, tearing through everything to get to Ye Futian.


    Between heaven and earth, countless swords descended in All Heavens Sword Matrix.


    Sensing this scene, Ye Futian reached out with both hands, and with his body as the center, an even more powerful force now manifested, turning into an absolute starry zone. All Heavens Sword Matrix fell down like a bomb on the starry light screens, unable to break through. And inside, a thick purple-golden Thundering Ancient Vines stretched out like an arm, smashing towards Yaya.


    Instantly, Yaya was held down. She growled, and an even stronger Sword Will exploded, intending to smash through. But the power of the Thunder was attacking her, sapping away her strength little by little, until she was wrapped up tightly in midair.


    "Girl, even though your offensive power is strong, you have not yet entered the Sage Plane, therefore, the rule power you are able to use is different from mine, especially when I am specialized in spells of all kinds and multiple rules, and can use many abilities with a mere thought. It was impossible for you to win," Ye Futian said to Yaya. The girl was still struggling; she was very stubborn.


    Boom! Just then, the ground trembled, and a violent force broke out. The young man who was clad in a fur coat and stood previously next to Yaya sprinted towards Ye Futian with incredible speed.


    With a loud scream, a humongous great beast appeared in the firmament; it was the monstrous Hou, a fierce creature.


    The wind raged, and a storm of destruction swept through the area. Ye Futian only felt the ceaseless shaking of his spiritual will. With a loud sound, the starry light screens burst and shattered. A figure landed in front of Ye Futian like lightning, and delivered a swift punch, more violently than a wild beast.


    Ye Futian looked up at the person coming at him, and space-freezing rule once again bloomed, affecting the speed of his opponent. Then, he raised his fist and delivered a punch that was like a meteor.


    The shadow of Hou appeared behind the other man, whose roar could pulverize the one''s spiritual will. The incomparable savage power collided with Ye Futian''s. Futian took a couple of steps back while the other man was sent flying by the impact. While stepping back, Ye Futian also took Yaya''s body with him and returned them both to where they were before.


    Ye Futian looked up at the other with an amused look in his eyes. This person could move mountains and rivers with a roar that contained unparalleled momentum as well as the ability of spirit attack, in addition to shattering the will of man. Such power was indeed frightening.


    Certainly, Tomb Village was a lair of crouching tigers and hidden dragons!

 801 The Secret of the Nether Sword Mound

    The Hou was an extremely rare demonic beast that only existed in legends. It was rumored that the Hou fed on dragons, while other rumors claimed that the Hou was the ancestor of the Qilin.


    Now, a teen from the Tombkeeper Village actually claimed to have the Hou as his Life Spirit.


    "Brother Hou, are you alright?" Yaya looked at the teen beside her and asked.


    "I''m fine. What about you, Yaya?" The teen looked back and asked as well.


    "How could anything happen to me." Yaya shook her head, then glared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s expression became even more odd. The previous person''s Life Spirit was the Kui, so he was called Da Niu.


    Now, this teen''s Life Spirit was the Hou, so Yaya addressed him as Brother Hou.


    How wilful.


    "Lass, fulfill your end of the wager." Ye Futian smirked at Yaya and said.


    Yaya glared at Ye Futian hatefully, then said, "How could you believe a child''s words?"


    "...." Ye Futian did a double take and looked at Yaya, speechless. Really?


    "Brother Hou, beat him up." Yaya glared at Ye Futian and said, falling out at will. Calling him brother? Dream on.


    "Okay." The teen stared at Ye Futian and stepped forward. A giant Hou shadow appeared in the air and a violent demonic Qi rampaged in the air. The teen was at the sage cultivation level, one level higher than Ye Futian and had a terrifying aura.


    Ye Futian had the feeling that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Zhou Ya would not be able to defeat this teen if they were at the same cultivation level.


    The people from this village appeared to have an inborn wildness and had a primal Qi around them, perhaps closely related to their cultivation environment.


    However, he was curious. If the people of the village cultivated in seclusion, how could they comprehend the Sage Plane''s rule power?


    Living in seclusion did not mean that they were actually cut off from the mortal world. Those who were in seclusion usually meant people with very high cultivation levels who stayed concealed in the mortal world to continue their cultivation in peace. However, if one was in seclusion since birth, it would not be easy for their cultivation level to increase and they would approach bottlenecks much more easily.


    Without giving Ye Futian any time to think, the other party flew into the air with a loud roar that shook the earth. The giant Hou shadow in the air spat out a horrifying shock wave, synchronizing with the heavens and reverberated into Ye Futian''s ears, attempting to shatter his Spiritual Will.


    At that moment, the skies changed as the area seemed to transform into the Hou''s dimension. The intense pressure crushed down as Ye Futian stood within it. The people in the surrounding area all stepped back to avoid the pressure.


    Ye Futian''s Spiritual Will transformed into a vigorous whirlpool, a destructive Spiritual Will spewing forth from within, unaffected by the roar. His gaze swept across the figure rushing towards him as he emitted a formless rule power.


    In the next moment, the teen felt as though the area was coming to a halt. The energies in the skies appeared to have stopped flowing, and even his body was stopping still. However, an alarming rule power flowed around him, forcefully breaking through the Space-freezing rule power and continuing towards Ye Futian.


    However, as he got closer to Ye Futian''s body, his speed started to decrease. Apart from the Space-freezing rule power, there was also another extremely strong rule power pressure around Ye Futian. Waves of light screens circulated around Ye Futian, giving the teen a feeling as though there were constellations around Ye Futian.


    It was the starry laws rule power.


    The starry laws was an extraordinary rule power with multiple forms. It could be used in offense, defense and even to pressure others.


    "Be careful, Brother Hou." Yaya''s expression paled. Although she had yet to enter the Sage Plane, she could still feel the strength of rule power. Ye Futian specialized in multiple rule powers and could inhibit others to a large extent.


    At that moment, Ye Futian moved. He clenched both his fists and stepped forward towards the teen, raising his fists and punching forward. With the starry laws contained in his fists, his punches were like a meteorite crashing down, shattering the earth.


    In the area where the two of them clashed, a giant Hou shadow and a meteorite shadow appeared. The destructive force engulfed the entire area and a hurricane billowed on those watching the battle. Many houses in the village collapsed into ruins, but there were some others that were shielded by an invisible rule power, saving them from ending up as debris.


    Bang, bang, bang��


    Consecutive clashing sounds could be heard as the two of them fought from the ground into the air. The earth split apart as the Meteor Punch and Hou''s force clashed against each other. The teen was knocked back by the impact and he looked coldly at Ye Futian as though he wanted to continue battling.


    "That''s enough, I''m not here to battle. Where is the Village Chief?" Ye Futian asked.


    Hum. At that moment, winds gathered in the distance. Ye Futian raised his head and looked towards it and saw a brilliant golden light appear in the distant sky.


    "The Roc." A glint appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes as he looked towards it and exclaimed. The blinding light shone towards him, as a human that looked like the Divine Roc flew towards him. It was a handsome teen with Roc wings flapping behind him. His sharp gaze looked towards Ye Futian as he flew towards them at breathtaking speed.


    It''s Ying. The people from the Tombkeeper Village looked towards the devilishly-handsome teen and thought. However, Ye Futian suddenly felt a strong sense of danger.


    He used his Space-freezing rule power and a terrifying starry light screen surrounded his body, as though a real constellation had appeared.


    The glaring golden light darted across the air as the other party''s figure disappeared, ignoring the Space-freezing rule power. Ying narrowed the distance and descended, the dazzling golden rays turning into feathers, slashing down onto the starry light screens. In an instant, a crack appeared and the starry light screen was split from the middle. The dazzling attack slashed towards Ye Futian''s body, attempting to slice him in half.


    "Space-manipulation, space-ripping."


    The Barren State''s experts saw the scene and their expressions changed. Sage Wanxiang shouted, "Be careful!"


    As his voice landed, Ye Futian had already set up his defenses again. He raised his fist and struck forward. As it was slashed apart, he made use of the force to quickly retreat, moving back towards where the Barren State was like a gust of wind.


    The dazzling teen floated in the air, his wings flapping behind him. His sharp gaze had an arrogance in it as he stared at Ye Futian and his friends.


    Gu Dongliu and the Sword Saint stepped forward with displeased expressions. The Sword Saint said, "If the elder has invited us here only to treat us like this, we will have to leave."


    The teen''s cultivation level was much higher than Ye Futian''s. He was already a Magi, with his cultivation level, coupled with the Space-manipulation and space-ripping rule power, how strong would he be?


    Yaya was merely a small girl, so they would forgive her tomfoolery. However, the teen in the air had an arrogant expression and did not pull his punches.


    Ying continued to float in the air, looking at the Sword Saint and Gu Dongliu with his insufferable expression and said coldly, "Go ahead."


    Evidently, he did not care whether Ye Futian and his friends stayed or left.


    "Ying, step down." A voice sounded from afar as a group of people walked towards them. The person at the front was the Village Chief.


    Ying lowered his head and looked towards the voice, then glanced coldly at Ye Futian before flapping his wings and stepping back.


    "Lass, enough of your mischief." The Village Chief glared at Yaya and chided.


    "Village Chief." Yaya lowered her head, like a child who had done something wrong.


    "This lass is too immature, please forgive her actions." The Village Chief looked at the Sword Saint, then turned towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, saying, "I''ve waited a long time for you."


    "You''re too courteous." Ye Futian cupped his fists and saluted, saying, "I wonder what elder has invited us here for?"


    The Village Chief looked at the people around and said, "Well, time for the party to end."


    The crowd started to leave, but there were a few who stayed, like Yaya.


    "Please follow me." The Village Chief extended his hand to guide them as he said. Ye Futian walked alongside the Village Chief and in the air, Ying''s gaze swept across Ye Futian one final time before he flapped his wings and flew off into the sky.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the disappearing figure, surprised at how fast he was. Space-manipulation was indeed very scary. The teen was extremely strong and could definitely be classified among the elite prodigies in the Nine States.


    When his gaze moved back, he saw Yaya still glaring at him and felt dejected. He stretched out his hand and tapped on her head, saying, "You lost, aren''t you going to call me brother?"


    "Humph." Yaya snorted and turned away with an expression of refusal.


    Seeing the little girl''s expression made Ye Futian think of Ling''er. He shook his head and smiled to himself, Ling''er was much smarter than Yaya, probably because of the environment she grew up in. Ling''er was born into a prestigious family and was doted on while growing up, while Yaya lived in a village, so although she was extremely powerful, she was simple-minded.


    Ye Futian smiled and put his hand on her head, rubbing it. He did not really mind the little girl''s willfulness, he was not that petty.


    Yaya jerked her head away, avoiding him. She glared at Ye Futian. Why did this fellow like rubbing others'' heads so much?


    "The person just now is called Ying and has an extremely proud personality. Apart from Yaya, his potential is the highest in the village. If he had participated in the Nine State Forum, he would definitely have the strength to go all the way. There are not many people in the same generation in the Nine States that can defeat him." The Village Chief explained, evidently also extremely confident in Ying''s abilities.


    "He has comprehended both space-ripping and space-manipulation in the space rule power. Adding on his offensive power, he is indeed very strong." Ye Futian nodded and replied. He had already bore witness to Ying''s strength just now.


    "He also specializes in swordsmanship." The Village Chief continued, causing Ye Futian to have a surprised expression. It seemed like he was a genius indeed.


    "He seems to have something against me?" Ye Futian remembered Ying''s expression and asked. He could feel the chilling intent in the other party''s eyes and it was unusual for people who were meeting for the first time.


    The Village Chief looked in the distance and said softly, "Ying dotes on Yaya the most, he probably saw you bullying her."


    Yaya looked proudly at Ye Futian. He thought to himself, it seems like this little girl is the apple of everyone''s eyes in this village.


    The group of them chatted while walking further into the village. In the Village Chief''s house, there were a few stone tables and chairs. The Village Chief looked at Ye Futian''s group and said, "Have a seat."


    Ye Futian nodded and they all found a seat. The Village Chief had yet to say anything about why he invited them.


    "Recently, many people have entered the village and are now situated all around the village. There should be many legends about the village in the outside world now, I suppose?" The Village Chief looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "What is the most popularly accepted rumor?" The Village Chief asked.


    "The Nether Sword Mound has the Sword Saint of the Void''s teachings. The Tombkeeper Village is likely to be able to affect the teachings." Ye Futian looked at the elderly Village Chief and said.


    The Village Chief smiled and asked, "Is that what you think too?"


    "Elder brought Yaya to participate in the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng defeated her and the Village Chief invited me and Yu Sheng here. So, I feel that that is indeed possible." Ye Futian did not deny his conjecture.


    "I did not invite you here to bestow any teachings upon you." The Village Chief shook his head as he clarified. A shocked expression appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes.


    "Disappointed?" The Village Chief smiled and asked.


    "Not really, just curious." Ye Futian replied. What then, was the Village Chief''s motive?


    "The Nether Sword Mound is not simply the Sword Saint of the Void''s teachings, but it does have some items that the Sword Saint of the Void has left behind." The Village Chief looked at Ye Futian and continued, "For example, the Nine States'' number one sword matrix, the Sword Matrix of the Void."


    The Village Chief''s eyes lit up as he saw Ye Futian''s reaction. He then continued, "If the matrix were to be activated, it can pursue any Saint from the Nine States. Nobody can escape from it."


    A sword matrix that can kill a Saint. The people from the Barren State all had astounded expressions as they stared at the Village Chief.


    The Forbidden Land of the Nether Sword Mound contained the Nine States'' number one killing matrix, a matrix capable of killing any Saint Plane cultivator in existence. How terrifying it would be if someone obtained control of the matrix. Wouldn''t that person be unparalleled in the Nine States?


    Ye Futian suddenly wondered if the Chess Saint had entered the Nether Sword Mound for the Nine States'' number one matrix!

 802 Two Signs

    Ye Futian looked at the old village chief and continued, "What does the first sword matrix of the Nine States has to do with your invitation to me to the Tombkeeper Village?"


    What is Tombkeeper Village guarding?


    Was it really just to guard a sword matrix?


    Naturally he would not believe everything that the old village chief had said.


    "Within the Nether Sword Mound there engraved with a magical sword matrix that can kill any intruders unless there is someone who can breach the matrix." The old Village Chief continued, "Chess Saint was unparalleled in the way of matrix and had already destroyed its formation. Although he was trapped by the sword matrix but he had learned some secrets about the Nether Sword Mound and the Tombkeeper Village, and spread the news about. This has to do with the survival of the Tombkeeper Village. You saw it before that the people of Tombkeeper Village were unusually accomplished. Do you know why?"


    "I don''t know," Ye Futian shook his head and listening to the old Village Chief, it sounded like he went out this time to Nine States Forum was in fact, a preemptive precautionary move.


    He had experienced in person what happened at Chess Saint Villa. If the news was spread by Chess Saint, then Liu Zong must be the recipient of it. On that day, he also saw that both Liu Zong and Saint Xihua intentionally let the news be known, otherwise there was no need to point out the identity of the old man in public. The intention was self-evident.


    Then the old Village Chief''s fear was understandable. Even if they did not leave, sooner or later Liu Zong would come with others, and not just by himself.


    The old Village Chief took Yaya to participate in Nine States Forum and moved all this ahead of time.


    "The Nether Sword Mound was right behind Tombkeeper Village, and inside the Nether Sword Mound, there nurtured many rule powers. People of Tombkeeper Village can enter the outer sector inside the Nether Sword Mound to cultivate, and they have perceived and adapted to the power of rules since birth. With the elevation of cultivation, they naturally comprehend some of these rules." Said the old Village Chief.


    Ye Futian''s heart beat wildly; could the Nether Sword Mound really be so amazing?


    This was equivalent to the cultivation area inside the Holy Zhi Palace, and it was a more advanced version. With the natural breeding ground of rules within it, this kind of cultivation conditions were so coveted that it was enough to upend all the holy lands of Nine States.


    "The Nether Sword Mound is known as a vicious place, no one dared to set foot, as invaders all perished in it. Chess Saint was an exception, and knew its secret. Do yu understand it now?" The old Village Chief looked at Ye Futian.


    The innocent man was only guilty because of the precious jade in his possession.


    Such conditions for cultivation were enough to attract even the saints to plunder.


    If holy land could be built here and let the people of holy land cultivate, what a glorious future that would be?


    Ye Futian understood even more why Chess Saint chose Liu Zong and not him; Liu Zong''s identity was very important.


    Ye Futian, Palace Lord of Holy Zhi Palace in Barren State, holy land in name only, naturally was not worth much in the eyes of Chess Saint.


    This may have affected the life and death of Chess Saint, so he pinned his hopes on Liu Zong. Rather than saying that Chess Saint chose Liu Zong as his heir, It might be more fitting to say that Chess Saint chose Liu Zong as an ally for mutual benefit.


    Ye Futian did not speak, just watching the old Village Chief and waiting for him to continue.


    The old Village Chief had not touched upon what he wanted to know. What did all this have to do with him?


    "I hope that you can enter the Nether Sword Mound, help to activate the Nether Sword Matrix to shock and awe the people of Nine States." The old Village Chief stared at Ye Futian, "this has to do with the survival of Tombkeeper Village, so here I am pleading with Palace Lord Ye for help."


    While speaking, the old Village Chief got up and bowed slightly to Ye Futian.


    "Sir," Ye Futian got up to steady the Village Chief, "the sword matrix in the Nether Sword Mound can kill all invaders; how can I enter it?"


    "Perhaps this is the will of heaven," The old Village Chief looked at Ye Futian, "the sword matrix inside the Nether Sword Mound is very magical; its strength mirrors that of the intruder. The stronger the intruder''s strength, the stronger the power of the sword matrix. Only the real genius can have a chance to break into it. I went to Nine States Forum because I wanted to find someone who could overcome Yaya and without any faults and then let him familiarize the sword matrix. But by chance or design, Yu Sheng and Palace Lord Ye were together. Moreover, Palace Lord Ye, like Liu Zong, had also solved Chess Saint''s Celestial Dragon Chess Game."


    Ye Futian''s eyes flickered, and he stared intently at the old Village Chief, "do you mean that the Celestial Dragon Chess Games of the Chess Saint is in fact..."


    "If I am not mistaken, the Celestial Dragon Chess Game is a matrix that was evolved by Chess Saint from the sword matrix in the Nether Sword Mound. When he was searching for someone who could breach it, it was in fact a setup." The old Village Chief said.


    Ye Futian revealed a surprised look; if so, he did seem to be a most suitable candidate.


    "Never mind the danger of entering the Nether Sword Mound; suppose we were really able to enter, and having me block the way of the rest of the people of all the holy lands of Nine States, doesn''t that spell death for me?" Ye Futian looked at the village chief and remarked.


    "After you have familiarized with the sword diagram, I will let Yaya and others follow you in, so you should be reassured." The old Village Chief continued, "the people here today are all at the core in the village, as long as Palace Lord Ye says nothing, no one would know about today''s conversation, and will not know who activated the Nether Sword Matrix. What''s more, I heard that the last Palace Lord had invited Emperor Xia, that before the conclusion of the next Battle of Saints, anyone from other holy lands whose intent is to make a move on Palace Lord Ye would have to think it through."


    "This matter is of great importance, and the survival of Tombkeeper Village depends on it. If Palace Lord Ye can help, Tombkeeper Village would be forever grateful. Henceforth, people of Barren State can all come here to cultivate. And, perhaps Palace Lord Ye would find other fortune inside the Nether Sword Mound," the old Village Chief continued.


    Ye Futian looked at the old Village Chief and glanced at the others. But just then Zhuge Mingyue could be heard saying, "precisely as you have stated, this matter is of great importance so we beg your indulgence for some time to think it over."


    "No hurry, the people of Nine States won''t act so fast. You can all cultivate at Tombkeeper Village for some time. If Palace Lord Ye agrees, I will hand over the sword diagram to Palace Lord Ye for his perusal and enlightenment."


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Girl, take Palace Lord Ye and the others to their rooms to rest. These few days you will take care of Palace Lord Ye and no more nonsense." The old Village Chief instructed Yaya.


    Yaya looked at Ye Futian, pouting, seemingly reluctant.


    "Palace Lord Ye, this girl lacks discipline, please excuse her," said the old Village Chief.


    "It''s nothing," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Let''s go." Yaya said begrudgingly, and then led the way in front. Ye Futian shook his head with a wry smile, but just then Hua Jieyu came to the front to be at Yaya''s side.


    Looking at her and seeing the smile on Hua Jieyu, Yaya couldn''t help but felt a sense of familiarity.


    "That guy is terrible, don''t mind him," Hua Jieyu said with a soft smile. Yaya looked her and express a look of surprise, and then gently nodded, "older sister, sorry about that day."


    "Isn''t it normal for there to be winning or losing in competition? I don''t know how you cultivated, but it was powerful." Hua Jieyu replied with a smile.


    Yaya felt a little embarrassed, whispered, "I don''t know either."


    Then they started chatting while walking in front. Ye Futian looked at the two with a shocked look. This... she was addressing Hua Jieyu as sister?


    He massaged his furled brow and wondered, am I not charming enough?


    This nymph could even bewitch little girls.


    But seeing the two chatting, Ye Futian also smiled. Although Yaya repeatedly defy him, he did not mind, and not only because she was incredibly talented.


    But because he detected that this girl was a child who endured hardships.


    He had talked about it with Jieyu so she knew.


    But perhaps even Yaya herself did not know.


    "Little brother, do you believe what the Village Chief said?" Close by, Zhuge Mingyue secretly transmitted the sound to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned his attention to second sister. Earlier second sister rushed to respond that they need more time to evaluate, presumably it was because she did not entirely trust the words of the old Village Chief.


    "Second sister, we''ve just met and the implication was so great, naturally we can''t believe everything." Ye Futian replied by secret transmission, "The old Village Chief''s words, should be taken with a grain of salt."


    After all, the existence of Yaya itself was a secret, and the old Village Chief did not reveal any of it.


    However, everything regarding Chess Saint should be true; Chess Saint spreaded the news, and sooner or later it was going to lead to chaos at Tombkeeper Village, but the old Village Chief took the initiative to preempt it.


    "Then, do we promise him?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    Ye Futian looked at the Sage Wanxiang in the other direction and smiled to transmit the message, " Does Uncle-Master want to divine the signs first?"


    "Sure," Sage Wanxiang nodded; to divine the signs of favorability was a relatively simple process and did not require much time.


    Yaya set up a living space for Ye Futian and the rest, so that the people of Barren State temporarily settled down in the Tombkeeper Village.


    Whether it was himself, Jieyu, Wuchen and the rest of them, they all need to cultivate for a period of time to overcome the sage plane. After the Nine States Forum, the use of the rule powers had become more mature, and the time for level up the plane had also arrived.


    At evening time, a red glow appeared on the west side of the sky, and the afterglow of the setting sun reflected on the village from the distant mountains, making the village looked even more peaceful and serene.


    In front of a cottage in the village, Ye Futian quietly lay on the wicker chair, rocking, with Jieyu resting quietly by his side, enjoying the rare tranquility.


    "Woman, what do you say that we go away from the world and just cultivate like this?" Ye Futian whispered softly.


    "Whenever you want to, I am with you." Hua Jieyu laughed softly.


    "Well, and couple more babies," Ye Futian smiled, "no, three or four..."


    Hua Jieyu blinked, and then rolled her eyes at Ye Futian, "keep dreaming, at most two."


    "That won''t do. You see that I am so perfect, the children would also be excellent, so we must have a few more." Ye Futian joked.


    Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded, "There is some truth in it...."


    "Since you agree, shall we go make babies now?" Ye Futian looked at the beautiful woman reclining on the wicker chair, the glory of the setting sun shined upon her perfect body, made her especially attractive.


    "What are you thinking about?" Hua Jieyu''s face reddened; this lascivious guy, the day was not yet dark.


    "What do you say?" Ye Futian stretched out his talons toward Hua Jieyu, and she hit the hand that was coming at her, and moved her body slightly to evade.


    "Sister," at this moment, a voice was heard, and Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu both turned their eyes toward the girl who was coming.


    "Sister, let''s go eat." Yaya said again.


    "Coming," Hua Jieyu said with a smile and got up and together with Ye Futian, walking toward Yaya and took her hand to leave together.


    Yaya looked at Ye Futian and whispered: "Punk."


    "I..." Ye Futian looked at Yaya with a blank look. This little girl, what did she know about punk?


    Standing up, Ye Futian was ready to go with them, but heard a voice calling him, "Palace Lord."


    Ye Futian turned and saw that Sage Wanxiang coming, and asked, "what is it, Uncle-Master?"


    "The signs are more evil than auspicious." Sage Wanxiang spoke; the divinatory signs were more evil than good.


    Ye Futian felt a headache coming on and rubbed between his brows.


    "But there are also some hidden opportunities." Sage Wanxiang added. Ye Futian nodded gently, how to choose!


    "What about the other sign?" Ye Futian asked again. He had also asked Sage Wanxiang to divine another sign for fortune.


    Sage Wanxiang looked at Ye Futian and said: "If we leave, her sign is the worst of worst, it is certainly death. If we enter, there is a chance."


    Ye Futian''s brows knitted when he heard Sage Wanxiang, this is indeed troublesome!

 803 Decision

    On the last day of the 10011th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, majority of the cultivators in the Nine States would return home to have a reunion with their family.


    Even in a remote area like the Tombkeeper Village, as night fell, there was a semblance of a year-end feast.


    Ye Futian''s group would celebrate the end of the year in this remote village this year. At that moment, the quiet village appeared exceptionally crowded as all the families were preparing for the feast.


    In one of the families in the village, the aroma of freshly-cooked food wafted out. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu walked to the door and said, smiling, "What a nice smell."


    "Yaya, what delicious food have Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang made?" Ye Futian looked at the girl standing at the door and asked.


    "Heh, die of gluttony." Yaya rolled her eyes at Ye Futian as she replied. She then walked up and grabbed Hua Jieyu''s hand, saying, "Sister, dad and mom made you a lot of delicious food."


    "Hmm, it smells great already." Hua Jieyu smiled as she replied. In this period of time, they had gotten to know the village a little better, especially Yaya''s parents and were already on good terms.


    Yaya and Jieyu''s relationship was becoming more intimate, like they were biological sisters. Now, she would not want to fight Ye Futian and Yu Sheng at a moment''s notice. Of course, bickering was inevitable.


    The three of them walked into the house and saw a sumptuous feast prepared on the table. A middle-aged man with rough skin was sitting there waiting for them while a lady was busy serving up dishes.


    "Uncle Zhang." Ye Futian smiled and addressed him while Hua Jieyu walked up and said, "Aunt Zhang, let me help you."


    "No need, don''t dirty your hands." Aunt Zhang smiled and replied. How could she bear to let a Goddess-like maiden like Hua Jieyu do such chores.


    Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang were normal people. Although they also cultivated, but their cultivation level was at the basic level. They were not even Mandate cultivators, so they would age.


    Yaya lived in the village and was still young, so there were many things that she did not understand. However, how could Ye Futian not know that Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang were incapable of giving birth to a natural prodigy like Yaya.


    "Uncle Zhang, your complexion has gotten better again." Ye Futian smiled and commented.


    "It should be the effect of the pill that you gave me previously. The pill''s effect is really strong, I feel like all my organs and meridians have rejuvenated. Futian, I should really thank you for that." Uncle Zhang said with a happy expression. The pill was Phoenix''s, it could strengthen one''s body and improve one''s constitution. Although it was not an extremely valuable pill, it was enough for Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang.


    "Don''t stand on ceremony, Uncle Zhang." Ye Futian replied. "After all, I''m Yaya''s brother."


    "Don''t spout nonsense, when did I admit it?" Yaya pouted and said to Ye Futian.


    "It''s been so long and you still don''t admit it?" Ye Futian looked at Yaya and replied, smiling.


    "I forgot." Yaya turned away.


    "This lass." Uncle Zhang knocked her on the head and said, "It''s your luck to have Futian to be your brother, what do you have to lose."


    "Dad, even you''re helping him." Yaya said dejectedly.


    "Your father is correct. You''re so lucky to have this happen to you." Aunt Zhang smiled and said too. They had been observing how Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu treated Yaya the past few days, they had really treated her like a younger sister.


    However, this lass was really immature to not acknowledge this brother.


    Yaya pouted. Whose house were they in?


    "Futian, don''t mind this lass, she''s been spoiled by the Village Chief and the villagers since young." Aunt Zhang said.


    "Of course not, she''s cute this way too." Ye Futian said without minding too much. He then asked, "Aunt Zhang, do the Village Chief and villagers dote on Yaya a lot?"


    "They''ve already spoiled her rotten. Those that are older than her all protect her like their treasure." Aunt Zhang smiled and replied happily.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and continued, "This little girl is so mischievous. She has probably brought you a lot of trouble in these 15 years?"


    "You''re the one that''s a lot of trouble." Yaya chipped in from the side with a displeased tone.


    "That''s only natural. This lass is so playful, thankfully the Village Chief has always helped to keep an eye on her, asking the villagers to take care of this lass. That''s why, this lass has a good life." Aunt Zhang''s smile was full of sincerity. As Ye Futian observed her, he smiled and nodded.


    "Come, the dishes are getting cold. Futian, Jieyu, let''s eat." Uncle Zhang pointed at the dishes on the table and said.


    "Okay, let''s chat while eating." Ye Futian nodded. On the dining table, he intentionally asked a few questions. As the sky got darker, they finished eating and Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu left the house.


    Yaya came out to send them off. Hua Jieyu smiled and said, "Yaya, you can go back now."


    Yaya nodded and replied, "I''ll watch you leave."


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian turned around and walked away. In the next moment, a soft voice sounded from behind them, "Brother."


    Ye Futian''s footsteps stopped and he turned back. However, he saw a figure dart like lightning into the house and shut the door.


    "This lass can also feel shy?" A gleaming smile appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes. He smiled and said, "I heard that."


    As he said that, he held Hua Jieyu''s hands and the two of them left happily.


    "How was it?" Hua Jieyu transmitted her voice to Ye Futian and asked.


    "Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang''s words were from the heart and it did not seem like they were lying. Seeing Yaya''s attitude, there should be no ulterior motive behind the Village Chief and the villagers treating her well." Ye Futian replied, then continued, "However, there is one thing that I don''t really understand. Why does Aunt Zhang believe that Yaya was truly born by her, even though it''s impossible!"


    The Freedom Meditation was extremely mysterious, with their low cultivation levels, they shouldn''t have been able to lie to him. He did not deliberately observe Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang, however, before he made a decision, he had hoped to make some things clear. However, he was now even more confused.


    "Everyone is still waiting for us, let''s not think about it for now." Hua Jieyu smiled and said.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and the two of them reached their destination. In front of them, a group of people were seated together. They were the people from the Barren State.


    It was rare for everyone to not be cultivating. After all, there was only one such day in the year, so it was a fine occasion for them to gather and have a chat.


    However, there were a few people missing. After all, they had left the Barren State to train themselves, so they would not bring their family members along.


    "They''re here." The crowd saw Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu walking over and gave up two seats for them.


    The two of them sat down with the rest and there was a fire in the middle. The aroma of barbecued meat wafted towards them. In Zui Qianchou''s direction, there was the smell of wine as well. No matter where the fellow went, he could make wine appear. Perhaps he had an unlimited supply of wine with him, who knows how much wine he had hidden.


    At that moment, Xu Que walked forward with a dagger in his hand, slicing the barbecued meat off. In an instant, the aroma became even more fragrant. Beside him, the Black Wind Condor flapped its wings and its eyes lit up as it salivated. What a temptation to Mister Condor here.


    "Here, have a drink." Zui Qianchou took out a few wine glasses and poured out the wine for them. Next, Xu Que gave out the meat that they had gotten from the demonic beasts on the surrounding mountains.


    Finally, this gave them the feeling of a year-end feast.


    After all, there were some traditions that had to be fulfilled.


    Ye Futian raised his wine glass and said to everyone, "After becoming the Palace Lord, I spent the first year cultivating in the Sage Hall. Now, at the end of the year, we have such a shabby celebration again. My elders, wife, brothers are all here, so I will not say anything emotional. Let''s drink."


    As he said that, Ye Futian finished his wine. The others all raised their glasses and finished their wine as well.


    "If a cultivator wants to become strong, he should not be tied down to a single place. In this world, you have to lose something to gain something else, so why worry if it''s shabby." Zhuge Qingfeng said nonchalantly. "Compared to the Palace of the past, I prefer the current Palace''s atmosphere. What does Sage Wanxiang think?"


    "Indeed." Sage Wanxiang nodded. "In the past, the Palace was a holy land. Although it did not have the strength of a holy land, it continued to call itself one and act like one. Now, it is more human-like and has more elements of discovery."


    The prophecy claimed that without destruction, there can be no construction. This was probably what it meant.


    Now, the current Palace Lord Ye Futian had brought the Barren State''s citizens out. It seemed as though they were expanding and digging deeper into their potential.


    "It''s too early to talk about expanding." Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. Now, their purpose was cultivation, to become strong, to create a Saint, so that they could stand up against other holy lands.


    "Every step that we have taken leaves a print. Perhaps we will not feel the process, but the accumulation of every step is extremely valuable." The Sword Saint continued, "Little Brother, back then in the Barren State, did you ever imagine a scenario where all the Cottage''s disciples would enter the Sage Plane?"


    Ye Futian reeled back and looked at his Big Brother, then turned to Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu, Xue Ye, Luo Fan and Yi Xiaoshi.


    Apart from Sister Xing''er who was still in the Zhuge Family, the rest of the Cottage''s disciples were all beside him all this while and had never left.


    "That''s right, in the past, in the Eastern Barren Territory, the Sage Plane was but a legend." Ye Futian smiled and raised his glass, saying, "Big Brother, Second Sister, Third Brother... Let''s have a cheers for the Cottage. One day, the Cottage''s disciples will all be Sages and Saints."


    The Cottage''s disciples all raised their glasses. Gu Dongliu did not drink his wine, but said, "Little Brother, teacher''s expectations for you might not simply be the Saint Plane."


    "Yes." Ye Futian looked at his Third Brother and nodded, saying, "Me too. Not just me, it goes for all the Cottage''s disciples."


    "Bravo." Huang Jiuge smiled and said, "People always seem to set a limit for themselves, thinking that reaching a certain level denotes a legend and cannot be surpassed. Perhaps, it really might be insurmountable, but they have never tried to put in more effort to attempt to surpass that level. That is why my father once told me that only by being with the most elite people will one''s vision be different."


    The Barren State always treated the Saint Plane like a legend. Perhaps they felt that the Saint Plane was something they could never reach, but Ye Futian did not care that much. Although he was currently struggling, he still viewed the Saint Plane as part of the process and not the destination.


    Sage Wanxiang looked at the group of lively figures. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Hua Jieyu, Huang Jiuge, Gu Dongliu and the rest. It was as though he could see the Barren State''s future.


    If they could make it past the most difficult times, perhaps the Barren State would become even stronger than he imagined.


    After all, Yu Sheng had obtained first in the Nine State Forum. So, nothing was impossible.


    Yuan Hong and Yuan Zhan stood silently at the side without saying anything. Occasionally, Yuan Hong would turn his gaze to Ye Futian. The Saint Plane?


    Naturally, that would not be his future. He was someone who the Ape Emperor had knelt down to.


    As the group drank and ate, the sky started to turn dark. The flames lit up their faces and they seemed to be a little drunk.


    Perhaps it was the mood that was causing them to become drunk. After some more chatting, they started to leave and return to their abodes to rest.


    When the sun rose again, it was the 10012th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar.


    In the new year, the village appeared the same as before, with the same silence. However, as the days passed, more people came to the vicinity of the village and many came in groups.


    Evidently, the people from the Nine States who had received the news had started coming to the Tombkeeper Village.


    One day, Ye Futian sat at the door of the house, sunbathing leisurely.


    Jieyu and Yaya were not far away as well. At that moment, a group of people walked towards them with Ying at the forefront.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at them. He saw Ying walking towards them and turned to Yaya, shouting, "Yaya."


    "Brother Ying, why have you come?" Yaya asked.


    Ying''s gaze turned around and landed on Ye Futian with a cold expression. He said, "After being here for so long and not doing anything, do you agree?"


    The past few days, Ye Futian had been laid back and did not agree or reject, as though nothing had happened.


    He was waiting.


    "I haven''t decided yet." Ye Futian replied lazily.


    "If you don''t dare to, leave while you still can." Ying said coldly.


    Ye Futian looked at the other party with a curious expression. How much did this Ying know?


    "The Village Chief is looking for you." After saying that in a frigid tone, Ying turned around and left.


    "Finally, he can''t bear it anymore huh." Ye Futian stood up as he muttered. Yaya walked forward and said, "I''ll accompany you."


    "Stay here with your sister." Ye Futian rubbed Yaya''s head and started to leave.


    After he had left, Sage Wanxiang and many others came over, as though waiting for Ye Futian to return.


    Not long after, Ye Futian returned and looked at the crowd.


    "How was it?" Sage Wanxiang asked. What did the Village Chief look for Ye Futian for?


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "I had thought that I was a chess player in this game. However, it seems that I am but a piece in someone else''s game."


    Sage Wanxiang looked confused and Hua Jieyu also walked up and looked at him.


    "So, have you come to a decision?" Sage Wanxiang asked.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, "Even if I am a chess piece, I will be a piece that can affect the entire game!"

 804 To Act According to Ones Ability

    Time passed, and more and more people were seen at Tombkeeper Village. The tranquility of the village seemed to have been broken, and many kept their guard up. They seemed prepared and knew something would have happened to the village.


    One sword diagram after another hovered before Ye Futian in the small house that he stayed in. The diagrams were handed to him by the Village Chief that day, which were the sword matrix diagram in the Nether Sword Mound. The Chief had handed them to him to allow him to comprehend them beforehand.


    Ye Futian felt a sense of familiarity from those sword diagrams, which originated from the time when he was breaking the game back in the Chess Saint Villa. The ten sword diagrams seemed to be the Ten Major Sword Matrixes, corresponding to the nine matrixes and the eventual nine interconnected matrixes of the Celestial Dragon Chess Game at the Chess Saint Villa.


    While the Chess Saint was able to get familiar with the sword matrixes of the Nether Sword Mound, he was unable to completely fathom the entire thing and replicate them in the Chess Saint Villa. Compared to the ones at the villa, the one Ye Futian was seeing there was the actual source, which might be more powerful. While Ye Futian had broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game before, he nonetheless had to be cautious, and so he spent his days working on comprehending the matrix.


    At the very moment, his spiritual will was completely immersed within the sword diagrams. The ten diagrams seemed to be ten different ultimate arts of the sword, bringing terrifying power to bear. He had even allowed his Third Brother, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que, and Zui Qianchou to sense the diagrams. They all were trained in the way of the sword, and their experience verified Ye Futian''s guess. Those matrixes imbued within the sword diagrams were incredibly powerful art of the sword.


    Ye Futian then heard footsteps and waved his hand, making the diagrams disappear. He peered outside the door and saw the figure who walked in simply looked at him, without saying anything. She seemed to be in a rather bad mood as well.


    "What is it, little girl?" Ye Futian smiled and asked.


    "There are quite a lot of people from all over the nine states here in the village. Some are pretty awesome. Do you want to reconsider going in for the moment?" Yaya looked at Ye Futian and said.


    Ye Futian looked puzzled before a beaming smile appeared in his eyes. He looked at her and answered, "You''re worried about your brother then?"


    "Worried about you? Sheesh!" Yaya turned her head away, but she quickly found something off with that action. Wait, am I admitting that he''s my brother now?


    She turned around and saw Ye Futian looking at her with a half smile. She could not help but glare at him. This guy sure knows how to play me. Sister Jieyu was right about him after all.


    "You don''t look like that girl who went to beat everyone at the Nine State Forum at all now." Ye Futian smiled and added. Yaya deemed everyone from the Nine States unworthy of fighting her during the Nine State Forum. She deemed herself the supreme one until she was beaten by Yu Sheng eventually. And now, she was worried about Ye Futian.


    "Things were different back then." Yaya looked at Ye Futian and added, "The Village Chief said that this time, the fate of the village is concerned and he had us prepare. You''re not from the village, so this has nothing to do with you. So what are you staying here for?"


    Ye Futian, of course, knew that things were indeed different. The Nine State Forum was an event to test the skills of the sacred grounds of all Nine States. It was a grand event that involved all Nine States and whatever happened, all sacred grounds would have demonstrated a good measure of decent attitude. However, things this time was concerned about the Number One Sword of the Nine States, the unparalleled sword matrix of the Sword Saint of the Void, as well as a fearsome training ground.


    Ye Futian walked up and knocked Yaya on the head. The little girl simply glared at him without resisting.


    She has gotten used to it!


    "Well, I''ll still have to take care of you." Ye Futian walked out of the room and asked, "Are there many in the village now?"


    "Yeah." Yaya nodded. "Many went to look for the Chief."


    "Well, that''s to say that we don''t have much time left," Ye Futian said lightly. It was a given that he needed to completely master the sword diagrams before going into the Nether Sword Mound, so as to have a chance of coming out alive. He might have had a death wish if he were to simply walk in there at his current plane level, unprepared. The place was able to trap even saints, after all.


    At that moment, footsteps were heard from afar. Ye Futian turned his eyes at the sound and saw a group of people with exceptional bearing walking in his direction. The one taking the lead was none other than Liu Zong, whom he had seen several times.


    "So you''re here at the Tombkeeper Village as well, Palace Lord Ye," Liu Zong said with a smile.


    Ye Futian peered at the people behind Liu Zong and found all nine students of the Chess Saint to be present. There were also mighty ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, Liu Zong was the one taking the lead instead, which spoke volumes of his status at that sacred ground.


    Other than that, Liu Zong had also acquired the Chess Saint''s lineage, and he was possibly the one who knew the Nether Sword Mound best, other than the chief. The Chess Saint was, after all, trapped within the sword mound.


    Yang Xiao, a student of the Chess Saint, also nodded casually at Ye Futian. Ye Futian had good impressions of the students of the Chess Saint. They had their own stances in this case, as it concerned their teacher. However, he was rather puzzled about Li Kaishan, who was known to be an honest man. Even his brothers and sisters felt rather surprised at what he did before. But then again, not of that mattered now, and none of that had anything to do with Ye Futian.


    "The Chief asked me to come, and I''ve been here for quite some time." Ye Futian continued with a smile, "So, why is the Xihua Sacred Mountain entourage here?"


    Ye Futian''s presence alone served as an answer to some questions, and there was no need to hide anything by then. Many would have guessed that it was either Ye Futian or Yu Sheng chosen as the successor by the Tombkeeper Village.


    "I''m sure you know, Palace Lord Ye, that senior Chess Saint was now trapped within the Nether Sword Mound. We are here to rescue him." Liu Zong smiled and said, "You also broke the Celestial Dragon Chess Game back at the Chess Saint Villa, Palace Lord Ye. Would you mind giving us a hand? I''m thinking that if the rescue is a success, the Chess Saint will have immense gratitude for you and will be sure to reward you handsomely, Palace Lord Ye."


    "I''m, of course, willing, but since the Chess Saint has chosen you, I''m sure that it naturally means that he trusts you and the Xihua Sacred Mountain more. My plane level is still low, and the Barren State lacks mighty ones as well. I''m afraid that we cannot be of much help," Ye Futian replied humbly.


    Liu Zong took a good look at Ye Futian and nodded lightly. "If the opportunity presents itself, I do wish that you will be able to help us out, Palace Lord Ye. At the very least, be it me or Xihua Sacred Mountain, we look forward to your performance, and we do not wish to see ourselves at opposing sides with you, Palace Lord Ye." He finished and left with a smile.


    All of the Chess Saint''s students walked past Ye Futian. Jiu Gongzi walked up to Ye Futian and patted his shoulder, leaving with a bitter smile. He was an acquaintance of Ye Futian back at the Chess Saint Villa, and he was not hoping to see both of them standing at opposing sides.


    However, both he and Ye Futian knew what Liu Zong meant. If the Tombkeeper Village had indeed chosen Ye Futian and his group to be the successor, as speculated by many outside, then what Liu Zong and the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain were required to do would definitely clash with Ye Futian''s objective. It would then be inevitable for them to be on opposing sides.


    Liu Zong was simply persuading Ye Futian at a roundabout manner.


    Ye Futian saw them leave, and Yaya showed up behind him. A tinge of worry was seen in his eyes.


    That was precisely the reason. The thing that she worried would happen happened, and that motivated her to persuade Ye Futian to leave. While she did not know much, she was nonetheless capable of sensing the simplest of dangers, just like how she was able to sense that both Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were genuinely nice to her.


    A sound of something streaking through the air was heard from afar. Ye Futian lifted his head and saw silhouettes appearing in various corners in the air. Furthermore, they appeared in groups of tens. They looked down and saw Ye Futian. Someone among them asked, "So he''s Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State?"


    "Indeed." Someone nodded.


    "We''ll spar for a bit when we have the chance," someone said to Ye Futian from the air before quickly disappearing from sight.


    Palace Lord Ye Futian and Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State had both become incredibly renowned figures after the Nine State Forum. Even geniuses from all sacred grounds of the nine states had at least heard of them. Not many participated in the Nine State Forum, and many from the sacred grounds who showed up did not participate in the Nine State Forum. As such, they were all very curious about the group from the Barren State. But then again, their goal for this trip was not Ye Futian; they were there for the Nether Sword Mound.


    Ye Futian continued to hear many more zipping about in the sky after those other groups left. More and more people showed up in the village.


    "It seems that they will be working at the same time," Ye Futian said in a low voice. He knew many from all over the nine states would show up. However, most of them were only present outside the village, and there were few who came to look at what happened at the village.


    That day, however, it became obvious that someone was taking the lead, and many from sacred grounds all over the nine states began moving into the village en masse, no longer hiding their presence.


    Bright lights dazzled in the air, and Ye Futian looked up. He saw a phoenix carriage arriving and knew right away where those people came from.


    It was the Golden Phoenix Army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The phoenix designs on their clothes were incredibly dazzling and eye-catching.


    "Halt," someone from the carriage said and the army halted.


    An elegantly dressed youth turned around and asked, "What is it, Ziyi?"


    "I saw a familiar face. I''m going to take a look." Zhou Ziyi walked out of the carriage, and Ye Futian turned his head at her direction. What is this woman up to now?


    Zhou Ya, Zhou You, and Zhou Zichao were all on that carriage in the air as well. Their expressions all seemed cold, looking at Ye Futian. A youth with powerful aura on the carriage asked, "He is?"


    "Ye Futian," Zhou Ya answered. That youth''s expression turned incredibly sharp. So that is him.


    Zhou Ziyi descended from above and stood right above Ye Futian. The people of the Barren State all came to Ye Futian''s side seeing the scene, sweeping their eyes at the Golden Phoenix Army in the air.


    "Why are you here at Tombkeeper Village?" Zhou Ziyi looked down and asked Ye Futian.


    "What does that have to do with you?" Ye Futian answered with a puzzled look. Hasn''t this woman learned anything?


    "It indeed has nothing to do with me, but a word of advice nonetheless: while you people performed admirably in the Nine State Forum, the Barren State is still the Barren State. That event represents nothing here. Whatever you''re up to, it''s best to act according to your ability." Zhou Ziyi flew up as soon as she was done talking.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were discussing a marriage alliance. Liu Zong was to marry a princess from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and that princess would most certainly be her.


    Liu Zong shouldered the expectations of three major forces: Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and the Chess Saint Villa. He alone almost represented more than half of the Eastern State. He was unable to afford to lose on this trip.


    According to what Zhou Ziyi knew, the chess game at the Chess Saint Villa had something to do with the Nether Sword Mound. As such, Ye Futian, who had broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game before, became a variable in this case. It was for that very reason that she reminded Ye Futian to act according to his ability. Ye Futian was still unworthy of fighting with Liu Zong over anything!

 805 Nether Sword Mound

    The people of the Barren State glared at Zhou Ziyi leaving with cold expressions.


    Zhou Ziyi had indeed sounded very overbearing. They all knew what Zhou Ziyi meant by those words. She wanted Ye Futian to back out and stay out of the competition, regardless if he was the designated successor of the Tombkeeper Village. The Barren State was still the Barren State. Regardless of how well they performed in the Nine State Forum, they were, at the moment, unworthy of the fight at hand.


    Yu Sheng swept the Golden Phoenix Army in the air with cold eyes. He grew to resent Zhou Ziyi immensely back in the Chess Saint Villa. Despite being repeatedly humiliated, she had no intention of toning down her abrasive, arrogant attitude.


    Ye Futian watched on with cold eyes. She had probably only been able to do what she did due to the backing from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. He understood as well that Zhou Ziyi''s words were not without reason. Regardless of how well the Barren State performed in the Nine State Forum, the Barren State was still the Barren State and nothing had changed. The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State would remain the weakest sacred ground in all of the Nine States until they had a saint among them.


    Even though many great figures admired the students of the Barren State, and many had even extended invitations to Yu Sheng and Xu Que to become students of saints, but that was hardly more than just admiration.


    Be it Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, or any other sacred grounds for that matter, none of their people cared if he was the one chosen by the Tombkeeper Village. It was as if he had been automatically ignored.


    "We are all here and there is no more time to comprehend the diagrams. Let''s go then." Ye Futian stepped out and went in that same direction. They were heading to where the Chief was.


    Ye Futian and his people arrived before the Chief moments later. Many mighty ones had gathered there. A good number of them were from sacred grounds, and mighty ones were aplenty. Some among them even exuded powerful auras.


    Many villagers were there as well, gathering around the village chief and looking at the outside guests with cold eyes. The chief said that this scuffle had the survival of Tombkeeper Village on the line. It was possible that their village would have no longer exist after this.


    Many spared a look at Ye Futian when he came. The very eye-catching palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State was there earlier than all of them. They were curious to see if he would choose to resign or to fight by them.


    Zhou Ziyi had a cold look in her eyes seeing Ye Futian and his people arrive. So, they are prepared to fight Liu Zong over this?


    "Elder, I hope you''ll be able to help us out in this," Liu Zong said to the village chief.


    "It''s not that I don''t want to help. Tombkeeper Village has been around since the Nether Sword Mound existed. We do not interfere with the affairs of those who choose to enter the Sword Mound. You are all to try your luck in the Sword Mound, and there is no reason for us to interfere. I''m sorry to say that I can''t be of help to what you propose," the Village Chief replied calmly.


    "There is no need to be so humble, elder. I know from the Chess Saint that he had witnessed people of Tombkeeper Village train within the Nether Sword Mound. I''m certain that the people from all Nine States have been careless enough not to notice that the people of Tombkeeper Village have always been the protectors of the Nether Sword Mound." Liu Zong continued, "Since you''re the protectors, I''m sure you know the place like the back of your hand. As such, you will definitely be of help."


    "Tombkeeper Village has always been here. While we do have knowledge of the Sword Mound, we do not know the place like the back of our hand, as you put it. Many of you have sent people to look at how things are in the Village after the Nine State Forum, and I''m certain that you know a thing or two about the village," the Chief said coldly. It was apparent that he knew well that sacred grounds of the Nine States had been keeping a close eye on Tombkeeper Village. Furthermore, many of those people had gotten there earlier than Ye Futian.


    Since all of them had speculated that the village was probably about to choose a successor, there was simply no way they would sit by and do nothing while the lineage of the Sword Mound fell into the hands of others. If Ye Futian had made a move earlier, they would have acted earlier as well.


    "The Nether Sword Mound is within the Eastern State, and both Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty placed a lot of importance on it. Furthermore, the Chess Saint is also trapped within. I''m sure that you know how much that means to the Eastern State as a whole, so we have to be cautious with the matter," Liu Zong said.


    Yaya came to the Village Chief''s side and looked at Liu Zong and the others, saying, "Why do you think you have the right to force the Village Chief to do something for you?"


    Liu Zong looked at Yaya with a peculiar sheen in his eyes. The Old Village chief had taken Yaya to participate in the Nine State Forum, and the girl had been able to become number two of the event at the tender age of 15. Her top-notch talent and her monstrous performance were probably due to training in the Sword Mound.


    She is probably very important to Tombkeeper Village, no?


    "If the Chief is unwilling, it is best that we do not pursue the matter further. However, we would like to ask for guides to lead us into the Nether Sword Mound. I''m sure the Village Chief would not oppose that?" Liu Zong asked.


    "Who would you like to be your guide?" The chief looked at Liu Zong.


    "Yaya has immense talent, and I like her. She will be one of the candidates. Other than that, I have heard that Ying and Hou are also very capable people among the younger generations of Tombkeeper Village. I''d like them to join as well," Liu Zong added.


    "You''ve really done your research." The Village Chief smiled. Liu Zong had chosen the best three young people in the village.


    "Can''t do." A voice was heard, and everyone turned their eyes around. They all looked at the one who spoke. It was none other than Ye Futian.


    Liu Zong turned his eyes around and smiled, saying to Ye Futian, "What do you mean by that, Palace Lord Ye?"


    "I mean you can''t have Yaya as your guide," Ye Futian answered.


    "Why not?" Liu Zong asked.


    "She''s my little sister and she''ll be going into the Nether Sword Mound with me," Ye Futian answered calmly.


    Liu Zong stared at Ye Futian. That was a clear statement that meant Ye Futian intended to enter the Sword Mound as well.


    The people of the sacred grounds looked amused. So the Barren State people are going to fight over her with Liu Zong?


    A cold glare was seen in Zhou Ziyi''s eyes. It was apparent that he had not listened to her words.


    "So, you did not hear what I said to you earlier?" Zhou Ziyi looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian spared a glance at Zhou Ziyi and asked, "Who are you again?"


    "You..." Zhou Ziyi''s eyes turned bone-chillingly cold.


    "What place were you in the Nine State Forum?" Zhuge Mingyue, who was standing beside Zhou Ziyi, glared at the princess as she asked coldly.


    Zhou Ziyi became embarrassed immediately. She lost to Hua Jieyu in the very first battle and was eliminated right away in the Nine State Forum.


    "While the Barren State is indeed weak, we have the number one of the event among us. So, who are you to talk like that to the Palace Lord of a sacred ground of the Barren State?" Zhuge Mingyue smirked coldly at Zhou Ziyi and said, "If you''re doing so as the princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, I''d advise you, Princess, to be careful of your actions. It is best that you not throw your weight around despite not having the power to back your action. You risk embarrassing the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty by doing so."


    "You..." Zhou Ziyi looked increasingly frustrated. So this b*tch is humiliating me now?


    "Then who are you to speak to the princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in such a manner?" Someone of formidable training from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty walked out and glared at Zhuge Mingyue coldly.


    Zhuge Qingfeng, the Sword Saint, and Gu Dongliu all walked up at the same time. Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said, "As the elder sister of the Palace Lord of a sacred ground of the Barren State. You have any problem with that?"


    Ye Futian quietly watched from the side without doing anything to stop his second sister. Zhou Ziyi indeed needed to be taught some manners. She was arrogant and lacked tact in her way with people. She was far inferior to Liu Zong in that regard.


    Ye Futian, of course, knew that the sacred king of the sacred dynasty did not like him much, but he was not concerned enough to fear offending some members of the younger generation of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, like Zhou Ziyi.


    Should I just be listening to every word Zhou Ziyi is going to tell me? Ye Futian thought to himself, amused. Furthermore, since he had decided to enter the Nether Sword Mound, there were some people whom he deemed necessary to offend.


    "The Nether Sword Mound is undoubtedly within the Eastern State, but it is still a place of the Nine States. Its existence said that it belongs to no one and no force. Many people from many sacred grounds are here for it now, and we of the Barren State are no different. If Saint Xihua and the Sacred King are here today, forbidding everyone else but you people from entering the Sword Mound, then I shall give up." Ye Futian then continued calmly, "Or else, we of the Barren State will enter the Nether Sword Mound."


    Someone like Saint Xihua and the Sacred King would not have said something like that in the first place. As such, Ye Futian made his stance firmly and forcefully. The Barren State would enter the Sword Mound.


    The Old Village chief watched everything from the side, quietly. He was very satisfied with Ye Futian''s attitude. The Chess Saint had entered the Nether Sword Mound and had spread the news of its existence, attracting the attention of sacred grounds from all Nine States. That was why he needed to make preparations in advance, and that was why he had someone participate in the Nine State Forum. It was fortunate for him to not only encounter Yu Sheng but Ye Futian as well.


    Ye Futian played a key role in his plans. Furthermore, Ye Futian played said role in a splendid, even perfect, manner.


    The place turned silent all of a sudden. Many from Tombkeeper Village looked at Ye Futian and grew to like him more. Ye Futian was standing up to protect Yaya, preventing Liu Zong and the others from taking her.


    "If Palace Lord Ye wants to try, I see no problem with it." A voice was heard, and many turned around to see Liu Zong say, "I do not mind Yaya going into the Sword Mound with Palace Lord Ye. You have also broken the Celestial Dragon Chess Game at the Chess Saint Villa, so I''m sure you are very adept in matrixes. I think it''d be splendid to have you come along into the Nether Sword Mound. Maybe we all will have something waiting for us within." Liu Zong finished and turned to face the Village Chief, saying, "What do you think, elder?"


    "Alright, since you want someone from Tombkeeper Village to show you the way within, I hereby allow Ying, Hou, and Yaya to take all of you into the Sword Mound. But I have to remind you that the dangers lying within are not something that they''re capable of handling," the Chief elaborated.


    "I understand, and I have no intentions of troubling them," Liu Zong smiled and said.


    "In that case, better make a move then." The Village Chief turned and said, "I''ll send all of you into the Sword Mound personally. What awaits any of you within is up to you. Beware that the Sword Mound is not a friendly place, so please do keep your guard up at all times."


    "Thank you for reminding us," Liu Zong replied. He then followed the Village Chief with his entourage behind, walking in the same direction.


    Yaya came to stand beside Ye Futian and glanced at him.


    Ye Futian patted her shoulder and said, "Relax, I''m here."


    "Yeah." Yaya nodded lightly.


    All of them arrived at the back of the Village and kept walking. The shadows of the mountains shrouded the ground between them. There was no sunlight to be found.


    The place was incredibly cold, just like a graveyard. Many stood outside and looked at the graveyard before them, feeling a chilling cold seeping into their bones. They could not help but shivered. There was also a faint, sharp aura seeping out of the place. The shadows before them stretched far, and no one was able to see to their end. Even their spiritual will was blocked out in that place.


    "This is the forbidden ground: the Nether Sword Mound. Countless swords were buried and hidden within. Please remember to be careful," the old man reminded everyone and looked forward with a cold expression. He seemed to be able to see into the terrifying sword matrix deep within the Sword Mound, as well as the very core of the place itself.


    A figure sat right there, trapped by extremely fearsome sword matrixes. A blood-colored sword was stabbed into the ground, with a terrifying storm whirling around, capable of tearing everything in its path apart.


    At the very moment, the figure opened his eyes all of a sudden and looked sharp.


    The one that he had chosen had arrived!

 806 The Village Chiefs Eyes

    Many from sacred grounds all over the Nine States arrived outside the Nether Sword Mound and finally entered.


    "Someone from Tombkeeper Village, please lead the way," a mighty one from the Hall of Holy Light said. This time, it was more than just Yaya, Ying, and some others coming in. There were also many elders from the village who were with them.


    Two elders nodded and took the lead. One of them said, "The Nether Sword Mound is filled with danger. One misstep could lead to your death, and not even saints would be spared from such a fate. Anyone who is not adept in the matrices should not enter. If any one of you is not proficient in the art of matrices, it is not too late to back out now."


    "It''s fine. If we run into any danger, we believe that the people of Tombkeeper Village will have ways to get us out," a mighty one from Daluo Sacred Mountain said coldly. That was the very reason they insisted on having people of the village inside the Sword Mound.


    "Be careful," Yaya stood beside Ye Futian and reminded him. He nodded, and everyone stepped into the dark place, feeling increasingly cold as if a formless cold wind was everywhere around them. The cold wind had the sharpness of swords.


    "Whose graves would these be?" someone asked. They passed by a graveyard as they walked.


    "The followers of the Sword Saint of the Void are all buried here. This is what Tombkeeper Village has been protecting all this while," the elder leading the way answered.


    "Is it? Then what lies within the depths of the Sword Mound?" someone from Qi clan asked. It was apparent that they did not believe what that elder said completely. You''re telling me that the people of Tombkeeper Village trained here for years, away from the outside world, just to look after a graveyard? Who''s going to buy that?


    "Unknown. We''ve never ventured deep into the Sword Mound. No one has been able to go that far. The Village Chief said that the body of the Sword Saint of the Void was buried there. It is said to be a terrifying place out to kill anyone who disturbs the Sword Saint of the Void''s slumber," another answered.


    Many mighty ones from sacred grounds frowned. These people have been going on about terrifying dangers and little else. Are they trying to dissuade us from going further?


    "According to my knowledge, the Chess Saint saw the Nether Sword Mound personally, and there were people from the Village training within. May I ask what that is?" Liu Zong asked plainly.


    "That is not considered to be the deeper part just yet. It is said that the deepest part of the Sword Mound has sword aura originating from the void, capable of tearing space itself. There is also a blood-colored crevice with powers to destroy everything," the villager answered.


    The old man kept repeating the horrifying things to be found within, and even the ones from sacred grounds found things to be eerie. Furthermore, they were able to sense the growing, unforgiving cold coming from the grave, and that made them feel anxious. However, they were still mighty people who came from sacred grounds. Their minds were stable enough to not back out so easily.


    There had never been such a massive attempt by sacred grounds of the Nine States at venturing into the Nether Sword Mound. They deemed it necessary to reveal the secrets lying within.


    They knew that Liu Zong and the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain had concerns about the place. As such, they did not choose to simply venture into the Sword Mound on their own and had instead spread news to inform other sacred grounds. But at the same time, they deemed the attempt to be too important to miss. It could prove to be some turning point, after all.


    All of them had ventured rather deep into the Sword Mound after a while. They were no longer able to see the Village when they turned around. Their spiritual powers had no way of penetrating into the place, which was a sure sign that they were already inside the Nether Sword Mound.


    The number of graves grew, and a sword was found sticking into each and every one of them in an orderly, neat manner. The unforgiving coldness had grown more intense as well.


    There were many who even became able to vaguely feel the aura of rules about, as if the Sword Mound had such inherent power of rules in it, instead of merely having spiritual qi.


    Liu Zong did not lie. The inside of the Sword Mound was indeed a sacred training ground like none other. No rule matrices laid in the outside world were even able to compare with the training conditions present in the Sword Mound. Furthermore, the aura of rules grew increasingly clear as they ventured deeper into the place. There were even different wills of rules of different natures found within.


    "What happens if we were to take flight?" someone asked.


    "We''re now inside the matrixes'' area. Anyone who dares take flight will surely die," someone from the Village said.


    "Beware, something is coming." Someone from the Tombkeeper Village lifted their head and saw a killing will descend upon them all of a sudden. Dazzling lights burst, and streaks of sword aura fell on them like rains of swords. Everyone looked up and guarded themselves.


    "Be careful," Ye Futian said in a low voice. Countless dazzling swords descended straight from above, stabbing into the ground. Everyone dodged. Sword will filled the air around, and ringing noises of swords were heard. The ground in that vast space became filled with swords, surrounding all of them within.


    A dazzling picture appeared in the air, shrouding the place below. Boundless sword will rained down from the picture, resonating with the swords on the ground, making the sword will increasingly strong.


    "A sword diagram." Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled, knowing that a matrix had appeared.


    "We''re now within a sword matrix, and all of you should be able to sense it by now. The sword matrix is gathering power continuously. The further we go from here, the greater the killing power of the sword matrix, and the greater of the difficulty of breaking said matrix. When the power of the sword matrix reaches a certain point, there will be no way of breaking the matrix, so long as one has insufficient training. Even if one were to find a way to do so, they would die as a result," the people of Tombkeeper Villager reminded. The greater training a master of matrices had, the better their chances at survival.


    "So what if I were to forcefully barge outside?" a mighty one of the Hall of Holy Light asked arrogantly. They were able to sense that the power of the sword matrix was not strong enough just yet, and they wondered what would happen if they were to force themselves out.


    "You''re welcome to try," the elder from the Village replied calmly.


    Liu Zong looked up at the air above him. What was depicted in the sword diagram was indeed identical to the images that the Chess Saint had sent him. The Chess Saint had adapted the sword matrix into his art of chess. There were few in the Nine States who had an understanding of matrices on par with him.


    "Follow my lead to break the matrix," Liu Zong said and acted to break the matrix. All nine students of the Chess Saint followed his lead. They were all masters at matrices and knew such matrices well. It was only natural that they were the ones to break the matrix before them.


    "Don''t make any sudden moves," Ye Futian said to Ye Wuchen, who was right behind him. "Wuchen, I''ll do it per the way of chess. You put your Shredding Rules where I dropped the pieces."


    "Will do." Ye Wuchen nodded. A brilliant light appeared behind Ye Futian, and a chessboard appeared. The projection appeared above the matrix and was overlaid right on top of it. The countless swords looked as if they were stabbed into the chessboard itself, corresponding the way of chess. Furthermore, everyone was able to vaguely see that the swords of the matrix turned to look like symbols saying "kill."


    "The Killing Sword Matrix."


    "The Chess Spirit."


    Liu Zong glanced at Ye Futian, and all nine students of the Chess Saint looked surprised. Ye Futian did not unleash the Chess Spirit at the Chess Saint Villa back then, but he was able to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game nonetheless.


    Yang Xiao''s expression brightened. If his teacher were looking for a successor, no one would have been more suitable than Ye Futian. However, his teacher was not simply looking for a successor; he was looking to escape the Sword Mound.


    Ye Futian willed and many chess pieces dropped onto the board. Ye Wuchen waved his hand almost at the same time, dropping countless swords of rules on the spots where Ye Futian placed his pieces. When all of the swords appeared, a symbol was surprisingly shown, saying "break."


    "Wuchen, get on with it," Ye Futian said. Ye Wuchen''s mind was still like the surface of a mirror, bringing will power of the sword to bear with his will. The swords turned into a terrifying matrix of destruction in an instant, clashing with the killing matrix. A terrifying storm whipped up in the air, and two symbols, the "kill" and the "break" symbols, seemed to have clashed with each other.


    A dazzling light flashed. The "kill" symbol was dissipated, and the swords before Ye Futian and the others disappeared altogether. A path appears instead.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian stepped forward and moved.


    "What incredible speed." Many looked on, feeling impressed.


    "Have you memorized it?" someone from other sacred grounds asked, attempting to mimic Ye Futian''s way of breaking the matrix. Every single sacred ground had dispatched masters at matrixes on the trip to the Nether Sword Mound. None of them had come unprepared.


    "Indeed." Those who were proficient in matrices all nodded and mimicked Ye Futian''s way of breaking the matrix. They too were able to quickly break the matrices before them.


    "Go after them," someone said and chased after Ye Futian. Liu Zong and his people were also done breaking the matrix before them. They glanced forward and moved.


    The aura of rules grew somewhat more intense after breaking the sword matrixes. But at the same time, the killing will grew more intense as well. Everyone from the sacred grounds knew that they had stepped into the Nether Sword Mound, and they were fighting the place they were in.


    The second sword matrix appeared soon, and Ye Futian was able to still easily break it. The third and fourth followed. Everyone was somewhat startled but they followed Ye Futian closely nonetheless. It became apparent that Ye Futian seemed to be more reliable than the people from Tombkeeper Village.


    Ye Futian might have gotten the ways of breaking the matrix from the village chief.


    Ye Futian had been able to easily break the nine matrices back in Chess Saint Villa last year, and he then went on to break the Celestial Dragon Chess Game as well. He was given the sword diagrams by the Village Chief. Regardless of the changes in the sword diagrams, Ye Futian remained totally unfazed. He went on to easily break one sword matrix after another, making it seem like he was having a good time in the Sword Mound, like the place was his playground. And so, the people from the sacred grounds gradually forgotten that they were inside a forbidden place.


    They continued moving deeper and deeper, so much so that they no longer knew where they actually were, and how far were they from Tombkeeper Village. The place''s ability to block their spiritual power made them lose their sense of judgment.


    At the moment, the Village Chief stood quietly all by himself at the entrance of the Nether Sword Mound. His eyes grew to look increasingly demonic in the dark space. His pupils were silver, like they were made of a pair of swords, penetrating the air and gazing at everything happening within the Sword Mound. He saw Ye Futian and his people, and he was even able to see how they went about breaking the matrix. It was as if his eyes allowed him to penetrate the restricted area directly.


    No one from a sacred ground probably thought that there was actually someone capable of ignoring the blocking powers of the restricted area, that there was someone capable of seeing everything happening within the restricted area.


    "Well done," a line was heard from the Village Chief''s mouth. Ye Futian was indeed a genius like no other, performing way better than he had expected. Things will go well if he can keep this up!

 807 The Same Scenario

    Ye Futian and his companions had breached eight matrices, and finally penetrated the Nether Sword Mound. No one was killed and no one was injured, and all the sacred lands were represented by matrix sorcerers, who followed Ye Futian to breach the matrix. It was without difficulty, and they moved easily within this restricted area.


    At the moment, the sky was even dimmer in the space they were in. Inside, it seemed to be somewhat different from the outside world, as if it was an independent space. This area was populated with whiffs of different rules, extremely rich ones at that. If one was to comprehend and cultivate here, as long as the talent was fair, it would definitely be easy to break into the Sage Plane. This realization made the hearts of many from sacred lands quiver. Certainly after returning from this place, it would be a priority to take over its control. It would be an ideal sacred land for cultivation.


    As Ye Futian walked along, he breached eight matrices. If assumed correctly, one more breach and they should be entering the core of the Nether Sword Mound. Chess Saint Villa contained ten matrixes, with ten sword diagrams. The last matrix was known as the Final Analysis, meaning that there would be nine sword matrices in front, with one left.


    "Everyone, be careful. There may be one last sword matrix before the real Nether Sword Mound is revealed," Liu Zong said. He reckoned that everything they passed until now was just the cemetery outside the Nether Sword Mound, and they had not yet arrived at their true destination. The real Nether Sword Mound could very possibly be behind the last sword matrix.


    "This restricted area is known as a most deadly place, but so far it looks like nothing special," said a young cultivator from the Hall of Holy Light. They had breached eight matrices, and so far, everyone was all right.


    Just then Ye Futian came to a halt and waved to everyone to stop them from moving forward.


    A brilliant light abruptly flashed from the ground, and a pattern appeared brightly. Then, from the darkened earth, an eye-catching blade of light arose.


    Zing! Ahead of them, a sword emerged from the ground, thrust into the earth, blooming terrible Sword Will.


    "Watch your feet," Ye Futian cautioned. By now, there were dazzling blade of lights blazing everywhere, and swords rising continuously from the ground, sweeping the place with terrible Sword Will. Everyone evaded and jumped, shifting and changing positions immediately when they felt the Sword Will underneath their feet. Out of nowhere and in no time, there were countless swords in the ground. They turned into a terrifying sword matrix, surrounding everyone. Above the firmament, there was a sword diagram projected downward, but this time, the sword upon the diagram was flowing madly, constantly changing positions.


    "Changeable sword matrix," Ye Futian glanced at the sword matrix above the void. This sword matrix was still evolving from the other nine sword diagrams, but it was continuously modifying the nine sword diagrams. It was elusive. The difficulty of breaching the matrix had increased exponentially.


    "Jieyu, will to connect." Ye Futian said, "Release your spiritual energy and listen to my commands."


    Hua Jieyu understood Ye Futian''s intention immediately, and her spirit crown bloomed. Instantly, a surge of invisible telekinetic power transformed into countless invisible silk threads, moving toward everyone. At the same time, everyone released their own spiritual energy, and did not block the invasion of Hua Jieyu''s telekinesis power. Soon, everyone''s spiritual energy seemed to be linked together through Hua Jieyu''s will. They emptied their minds, waiting to receive Ye Futian''s commands.


    Will to connect was a special technique of Hua Jieyu''s. Ye Futian was also capable of it, but needed to rely on the sounds of guqin.


    No need for Ye Futian to speak, but with the turning of his mind, everyone understood him instantly. The group dispersed their positions, and the aura of rules dispersed from them.


    In Ye Futian''s mind, the spirit chessboard emerged, projecting everything from the outside onto the board, using it to breach the matrix.


    The eyes of everyone else from the other holy lands were focused on Ye Futian and his companions. All they could see was that everyone was moving, and the rule powers animated in different directions. Within the sword matrix, there appeared many other different, interconnecting matrices.


    Liu Zong glanced with disinterest, then said to the nine disciples of the Chess Saint, who were around him, "We should also set about breaching the matrix. This one is different from the ones before. Imitating him won''t work."


    Yang Xiao and the rest were master matrix sorcerers. They understood that for this particular sword matrix, with its ceaseless evolutions, everyone would face different, constantly changing sword matrix.


    But for the other holy lands, some were still imitating the actions of Ye Futian''s.


    "No." Some master matrix sorcerers quickly realized the problem. "You need to breach it on your own." Before they could react, those from the Barren State had already formed the matrix where they stood, with Ye Futian in the middle, like a Divine Tree, and those from the Barren State, branches and leaves that spread from the Divine Tree. Some branches and leaves turned into sharp swords, while others turned into swaggering broad swords, and some even became demonic shadows that shrouded all things. From different directions, they began to advance forward, constantly interrupting the sword matrix, slowly pushing into the area canvassed by the sword matrix.


    The swords screamed, shattered, and were destroyed bit by bit. Many watched Ye Futian and his companions break through the area covered by the sword matrix then walk out.


    The positions of the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light changed constantly, but the Sword Will that surrounded them became stronger and stronger, intertwined with the sword diagram suspended in the void, forming an unbreakable stronghold.


    "How is it?" someone asked the master matrix sorcerer in the center.


    "It''s troublesome. The matrix is constantly changing." The master matrix sorcerer seemed strained. Many staffs materialized and were setting up the matrix as well, but the matrix of the staffs was swallowed up gradually, some were even ripped apart by the Sword Qi.


    "At our speed, we should be able to penetrate the sword matrix," a cultivator said. As he stepped forward, a dazzling brilliance burst forth from his body��it was the rule power of light.


    As soon as he finished, a sharp radiance flashed across his eyes, and he turned into a beam of light and disappeared, rushing forward between the gaps of the sword matrix. The sword matrix that surrounded the front gave forth a light screen, cutting through the expanse, blocking him from moving further. But the cultivator from the Hall of Holy Light threw a punch forward, and suddenly broke through the sword veil, as a charging lightning. But at this moment, the sword diagram that hung in the void abruptly exploded into great radiance. Countless swords shot up from the ground on his path, instantly covering the void.


    Witnessing this scene, many cultivators from the Hall of Holy Lights changed their expressions. Someone shouted, "Be careful, big brother." Just as he finished, above the sword diagram in the void, a light disappeared, and all that was left of it was just a residual shadow.


    Zing! With a crisp sound, everyone saw a sword falling from the sky, plunging into the other''s body, nailing him to the ground. The next instant, endless Sword Will ruptured and tore him to pieces until nothing was left.


    Those who witnessed this scene now understood the reason why so many who had ventured into the restricted area and perished at the Nether Sword Mound had left no traces.


    People from the Hall of Holy Light only felt a coldness. The sword diagram in the void contained the real horror.


    "You were warned not to try to force your way through the sword matrix. Unless you belong to a holy land, you may give it a try," someone from Tombkeeper Village said up ahead.


    "You come and breach this matrix," the cultivator from the Hall of Holy Light said, looking at them with razor sharp focus.


    "When we are here, we can''t protect ourselves either. The matrix here is just as difficult for us." People from Tombkeeper Village did not bother with the request, as they were also figuring out a way to breach the matrix.


    Those from the Hall of Holy Light looked worried. Not long ago, some among them had thought that the Nether Sword Mound had a hollow reputation, but at this moment, they were trapped within.


    "The power of the matrix is getting stronger," some cultivators of holy lands said. As time went on, the power of the matrix would only become stronger until even when they had ways to breach the matrix, they would be unable to do so.


    The Nether Sword Mound was located at the junction of Summer State, Qi State, Feng State, and Eastern State. Therefore, the holy lands of these four states were almost all present. Coupled with those from Barren State, there were the strongest of the five states gathered here. But now, all the holy lands were trapped.


    Yaya looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian returned the look. "What are you looking at me for?"


    "Big brother," Yaya cried out.


    "You won," Ye Futian hurled the words at her and was gone in a flash. He turned around, heading towards the matrix of Tombkeeper Village. He actually was able to walk straight into the matrix from the outside.


    "What are you doing in here?" Ying swept a sideways glance at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at him nonchalantly, then looked at the others. "I will lead you to breach the matrix. Its power is increasing, we have to be quick."


    "Yes," the people of Tombkeeper Village nodded. They all knew that this young man was chosen by the Village Chief.


    "No need," Ying said coldly, looking on edge, but Ye Futian ignored him and began to lead the people to breach the matrix. It didn''t take long for the matrix to be cracked, and the people of Tombkeeper Village reached safety.


    "Thank you so much," an elder thanked Ye Futian.


    "My pleasure," Ye Futian replied casually.


    "We could have breached the matrix without him," Ying gave Ye Futian another sideways glance.


    The people of Tombkeeper Village looked at Ying and knew that this guy was prejudiced against Ye Futian. Being the second most talented person in Tombkeeper Village, besides Yaya, the Village Chief chose Ye Futian instead of him to inherit the sword diagram, and this rubbed Ying the wrong way.


    Just then, screams could be heard intermittently. Within the sword matrix, there were people continuously losing their lives. Ye Futian looked back and shuddered inside. These were all people from the holy lands, who were powerful in their own right in the outside world. But now, they had lost their lives here, perishing without a trace.


    At this juncture, a group of people dashed out of the sword matrix. It was Liu Zong and his party, the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Dynasty. When Ye Futian saw this, he couldn''t help but be surprised. These two major forces seemed to have united. Together, and in addition to the nine disciples of the Chess Saint, that was equivalent to three holy lands of the Eastern State.


    Glass Saint and Sky Saint did not participate, therefore all the power of the Eastern State was on Liu Zong''s side.


    At this time, a dreadful aura descended. Ye Futian looked in that direction and saw blinding beams of light bursting out. The next moment, a line of figures forced its way through the matrix. In the midst of the void, a terrible Slaughtering Sword exploded from the sky. It was a sword that could slaughter everything. However, beams of rays pierced the sky and turned into a Sword of Holy Light that went straight to heaven and penetrated the void. It collided with the Slaughtering Sword. Afterward, both disappeared, and a storm of destruction raging above the firmament.


    Next, a group of people scrambled out of the scope of the sword matrix, away from the confines of the sword diagram. They were the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light. They reappeared unhinged and flustered. One of them held a sword, whose blade bloomed immense glory. A holy sword.


    Forcible breach. Ye Futian revealed an air of surprise. This was to disregard the balance of the sword matrix and forcing a way out with the help of a divine implement. However by the look of it, the Hall of Holy Light paid a heavy price and lost almost half of its people.


    After that, all holy lands came out one after the other. Xia clan, Nine State College, Jixia Holy Palace, Qi clan, and Yue clan were all able to breach the matrix. Clearly, there were true masters of matrices among them. Other holy lands, like the Hall of Holy Light, forced their way out. For the latter, they suffered heavy losses, and many cultivators lost their lives within the matrix. Even those who were able to breach the matrix had lost their people in the process.


    Everyone had a terrible look on their faces. They had speculated that this matrix was the last one before reaching the heart of Nether Sword Mound, but it was also here that they paid a painful price. If it was as they thought, they should have reached the heart of the Nether Sword Mound by now.


    An extremely chilled air enveloped everyone. Upon the land, as far as the eye could see, there was nothing but swords. It seemed that this was Sword Mound, the place where swords were buried.


    "Let''s go," someone said. Ye Futian, also looking forward, started heading that way.


    This time, they walked for a long time, and in the great boundless land, there was an endless sword.


    "I feel the power of space rules," some cultivator commented.


    "Indeed, it''s the power of space rules." Someone nodded.


    "How familiar," next to Ye Futian, Yaya whispered under her breath. Why did she feel this place to be so familiar, as if she had been here before? Even though she had cultivated at the Nether Sword Mound, she had never traveled so deep inside to such place. When she was a child, she had asked the Village Chief what was there, But the Village Chief told her that she would know when she grew up.


    "Look." Someone looked up ahead. Many slowed down, and some even stopped all together. Their hearts trembled wildly.


    Not only were there swords thrust into the ground, but in the sky above, there were also countless swords hanging and pointing directly below, as if aimed toward them. Moreover, there was the immense Sword Will flowing above, as if this was the place of the real horror. Those who were at the top of the realm of the Sage Plane actually felt sick at the moment.


    Right then, there was a power that made them fearful.


    Ye Futian''s heart also pounded. He slowed down but continued to move forward. In the distance, besides the swords that were hanging from the sky, he saw a glimmer of brilliance, alluringly bloody and shocking to behold.


    It was like a sword but it somehow resembled a sword eye.


    The Sword Will that coursed continuously between heaven and earth, seemed to have originated from there.


    Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu both cast a glance at Yaya, and their eyes flashed a sharp spark.


    They had seen the same scenario when they fought Yaya.


    "Look there," someone pointed towards the distance. What they saw made everyone''s heart beat violently.


    "Master." Yang Xiao and other nine disciples hailed!

 808 Invited by Chess Saint Sain

    Everyone who was there looked in that direction, and it was a terrifying scenario.


    Above the firmament, there was an incredibly dreadful matrix diagram, shielding the sky. Endless Sword Will came falling down and there were terrifying swords from the void above to the earth below, as far as the eye could see.


    There were nine ancient nether swords, each about 100 meters high, that traversed between heaven and earth, slamming down. It was a super tenacious sword matrix that reached the sky, and underneath it, the figure of Chess Saint was trapped within. Around his body, there seem to be millions of chess pieces distributed in every corner of that world. Each piece contained appalling power, equivalent to that of a sword.


    A great and boundless chess board floated within the expanse, with Chess Saint sitting upon the chess board. His body was 100-meters-tall, akin to a statue of an ancient god in situ, but unable to move, as if with the slightest carelessness, he would meet his end.


    Even more frightening was that the Sword Will within the sword diagram seemed to be without end, with a constant flow of Sword Will pouring downward that rendered its power stronger and stronger. Chess Saint was able to utilize the strength of saint plane to set up a super-structure to keep himself from being annihilated by the sword matrix. However, the longer it went, even a saint would be exhausted eventually and die inside the matrix.


    People from all the holy lands were shaken to the core. Truly, even a strong practitioner of the saint plane was trapped here, unable to extricate himself from such a predicament. Hence the pretext of sitting for a peaceful death, was in fact, all but a cry for help.


    Yang Xiao and his party of nine stepped forward, but just then the Chess Saint opened his eyes. Though the eyes were still spirited and dazzling like that of the gods, there was now fatigue showing in them.


    "Stop," a voice said, like thunder in clear sky, causing Yang Xiao and the others to stand still.


    "Look underneath your feet. Any further will cost you your lives," the voice of Chess Saint chimed again. Yang Xiao and the others looked at each other solemnly and looked down. They then felt a wretched aura fostering.


    "Be careful." Ye Futian was working the Freedom Meditation that sharpened his perception greatly. He warned those around him as he sensed the impending danger.


    This place would be deadlier than all they had experienced before.


    People from all the holy lands were solemnly waiting. They had lost the ease they had previously when they were able to breeze through the past eight matrices. The profound lesson they learned from the ninth sword matrix was still fresh in their memory. Chess Saint, who may be the most powerful master matrix sorcerer in all of the Nine States, had been trapped by this place, so it was not hard to conceive how mighty this sword matrix really was.


    "Look there." Someone followed the sword matrix that had trapped the Chess Saint and saw that the Sword Will, along with the sword diagram were from the same origin��the bloody sword eye. A giant sword was inserted into the ground, and all about the sword there permeated an extremely ancient air, faintly smelling of blood, as if the sword had been stained with interminable gore.


    The Sword Will from the sword eye flowed to the giant sword, and the giant sword released the airflow of the endless way of the sword, where it went on to imbue the entire Nether Sword Mound. Even the sword matrix that had trapped the Chess Saint, seemed to be born out of that giant sword.


    Just then, a pair of frightening frosty gleam shot out from the sword, and everyone felt bone-chilling frigidity.


    They actually saw a pair of eyes. Eyes on the giant sword.


    In that instant, they felt that the sword was not just a sword but held life within it.


    "Is that sword alive or am I hallucinating?" someone whispered.


    "No, you are not, " someone replied. Everyone''s heart was beating wildly, and they felt they were being watched by a pair of eyes.


    Then, blades of light of incomparable splendor shone and bloomed, appearing in every corner around them. Where they stood was the location of the sword matrix. In the expanse above them, clouds were twisting and changing color. At the location of the bloody sword eye, endless streams of the way of the sword flowed in that void, as if to lock everyone in place.


    "Is it too late to quit now?" someone asked quite seriously. Many had the idea that this might be where they would bury their bones.


    At this point, someone took a step back. Just one step, and instantly it seemed to have caught the attention of the giant sword. In a moment, he only felt a biting coldness piercing through him; an acute murderous intent had already locked unto him.


    "Oops."


    A thought manifested in his mind, and his body instantly retreated. But above the void, in the slow-moving airflow of the way of the sword, a sword diagram suddenly materialized, and a sword plunged from the sky.


    Zing! The sword penetrated the void and slashed through thin air. The practitioner who belonged in the rank of Magi did not even have the chance to scream before he was nailed in place, and his body immediately torn to pieces by the Sword Qi.


    The hearts of people beat violently, and no one dared to move again, their feet firmly rooted in the ground.


    "This sword matrix will not take the initiative to attack, but every step is an opportunity for a kill; one wrong step means death." Chess Saint eyed everyone, his voice came out of the sword matrix, sending chills to those who heard him.


    Every step was an opportunity for a kill.


    Perhaps Chess Saint also took the wrong step. Even a saint could be trapped by the sword matrix after taking the wrong step. Although he was not killed on the spot, neither could he leave, and if he did not get out soon, death was imminent.


    "Master, how can we help you to get out?" Yang Xiao asked. He was not concerned about his own safety, but that of the Chess Saint.


    "I have already transformed the sword matrix into a chess game. Help Liu Zong to take that sword." Chess Saint eyes drifted toward the giant sword underneath the sword eyes. "This sword rules all the sword matrices within the Nether Sword Mound. Gain control of the sword, and the matrices may disappear."


    Yang Xiao and the others nodded. Back when they laid out the Celestial Dragon Chess Game to find the one who could solve it, they understood that whoever solved the game that the nine of them had laid out, would imply that person''s chess ability surpassed them. So now that the master asked them to assist Liu Zong was not an unreasonable request.


    All nine of them looked at Liu Zong and saw that a golden light bloomed behind him. There was the faint shadow of a golden Buddha that superimposed over him and then integrated as one with his body. His hands were together to form a Buddha''s seal; it was a seal of wisdom.


    Suddenly, Liu Zong was able to understand all things on the outside world and gained a clearer understanding of the laws and the ways of the matrix within the universe.


    "This matrix harbored the eight trigrams and five elements of the ancient mystic of divination, concealing the way of heaven and earth, and have integrated all the ways of the matrix. You will need to use everything you have learned to breach the matrix, do not throw your lives away." Chess Saint regarded Liu Zong deeply and said, "Liu Zong, you are in charge."


    "I will do everything I can," Liu Zong replied. He then took a step forward, and when this step fell, a dazzling blade of light appeared but then dimmed. The position was taken over by Liu Zong.


    "All right," the eyes of many sparked. For this matrix, one wrong step meant death. And now, Liu Zong took a step with such confidence. It seemed that because he had solved the Celestial Dragon Chess Game cast by Chess Saint. He was already familiar with this matrix. The reason for his coming today was to breach the matrix.


    "Gate of Life," Ye Futian looked at the position where Liu Zong walked to and commented. He had cultivated diligently at the Chess Saint Villa to study the way of the matrix, so all this was familiar to him. Naturally, he recognized the step and the position that Liu Zong took was the Gate of Life in the mystic divination.


    "Uncle, the divinatory symbols can predict good or evil. If so, can''t you also speculate if that step is the right one or not?" Ye Futian asked Sage Wanxiang. They both stood in the same place, without moving.


    "Simple predictions of good and evil are meaningless. For example, if the pace you take can avoid the evil, but what of it after? Even if it is auspicious, the entire layout can still collapse, because this is a matrix, after all. It''s different than astrology." Sage Wanxiang continued, "Of course, we can also combine your matrix with my divination, and we will have a more certain chance of winning."


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded. "The sword is moving, the matrix is constantly evolving, you are right, to breach it would require the overview of the whole picture and to control the overall situation. One good step means nothing. Even if you walked many steps safely, if, in the end, you could not breach it and get stuck, it would still be death."


    People from all the holy lands had not moved, or rather, they dare not move. In fact, they had truly experienced the danger of the place, and now, the thought of retreat was on their mind.


    But they were stuck in the middle, already in the midst of the matrix with no way to turn back. Finally, they understood why Nether Sword Mound was known as the most murderous place and that no one ever returned alive, unless it was someone like Liu Zong, who had been mentored by Chess Saint, who transformed sword matrix into a chess matrix and passed it on to him, therefore giving him the chance to retreat. For the rest of them, it was impossible.


    "You came too." Chess Saint, who was trapped by the sword matrix, looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked up at that figure of the saint, enormous as the gods and called out, "Sir." He had entered the ancient hall of the Chess Saint to cultivate before, so it was natural that Chess Saint recognized him.


    "You cracked the Celestial Dragon Chess Game, so it''s no wonder you can enter this place." Chess Saint continued, "You and Liu Zong join forces. Assisting him in breaching the matrix. If I get out of this one, I will not forget your role in it."


    Ye Futian looked at the Chess Saint and responded, " Liu Zong and I each have our own ideas about the solutions to the matrix, and they may be in conflict and cause confusion. But Liu Zong is unparalleled in the arts of the matrix and solved the Celestial Dragon Chess Game left by you, in addition to being your true successor. He will surely have the best chance to breach the matrix. I am here, respectfully awaiting your release." His voice was calm and there was no falseness in it. If he and Liu Zong were to breach and matrix together and they had a difference in opinion, who was to listen to whom?


    Would Liu Zong be willing to ask people from the Barren State to give the breach a try?


    Because of this, it was impossible to join forces.


    And he was also sure that many would lose their lives in the process during Liu Zong''s attempt to breach.


    Even so, the matrix was still a hard one to crack.


    That day at the Chess Saint Villa, Liu Zong was able to crack the Celestial Dragon Chess Game because Li Kaishan deliberately made a wrong move. If it were not so, it would still be unknown whether the Celestial Dragon Chess Game would have been solved.


    Now, the power of this sword matrix was obviously stronger than the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. The difficulty of breaking the matrix was greater, and there could be no mistakes.


    A false step would cost a person''s life.


    Under the circumstances, it would be impossible to make such a promise to Chess Saint, to disregard the lives of the people of the Barren State in order to save Chess Saint. Even if Ye Futian were to breach the matrix himself, if he was without confidence, he would retreat.


    Compared to breach the matrix, the lives of the people of the Barren State were far more important to him!

 809 Chess Saint’s Chess Se

    Chess Saint cast an indifferent gaze at Ye Futian, said nothing, and looking at Liu Zong. He was unparalleled in the art of matrix, but at the moment, he was trapped under the sword diagram with a horrifying great matrix bearing pressure on top of him that could take his life at any moment. He could not divert his attention to instructing Liu Zong on how to breach the matrix. Moreover, the matrix was constantly evolving, and not being within the matrix, along with having his spiritual will blocked prevented him from peering into the matrix, leaving him on the sidelines with nothing to do but watch.


    Even so, being a strong cultivator of the saint plane, Chess Saint was able to face this predicament while remaining cool and collected. His godlike body implanted in the midst of the destructive sword matrix, that terrifying sword matrix seemed to be able to destroy all but had not been able to consume him yet.


    Liu Zong had begun the breach of the matrix, leading the groups from Xihua Sacred Mountain, Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and the nine disciples of Chess Saint into the matrix, step by step.


    Liu Zong was quite accomplished in the ways of the matrix, and with the support of the nine disciples of Chess Saint, it seemed that even this impossible sword matrix, where every step could spell death, could not stop them from moving forward. Everyone was advancing, standing in different positions, and seemed to be in the formation of the matrix also.


    Ye Futian observed quietly. He was in no hurry. He would let Liu Zong go and try it first.


    People from other holy lands stood in the same place without moving. Although each holy land had master matrix sorcerers present, at times such as this, without absolute certainty, who dared to take the risk?


    They even hoped that Liu Zong would be able to breach the matrix, so that they would have the opportunity to extricate themselves instead of being trapped here, unable to move.


    There was an elder who led the cultivators of the Xia clan because he wanted to investigate the Nether Sword Mound. He was also a powerful cultivator within the Saint and Sage Ranking.


    "Have you observed something strange about the sword?" the elder of the Xia clan asked those around him.


    "Yes." Everyone nodded. "It''s as if it''s alive and can detect our movements. All the sword matrixes seemed to be set up by this sword."


    "Have you ever heard of the rumors regarding the Nether Swordsman?" the elder asked again, and everyone shook their heads as they continued to listen to the old man. "There were rumors that there were two sword slaves under the Nether Swordsman, both were of the saint plane. One died and the other sacrificed to the word and became the body of the sword.


    "Sword slaves are all of the saint plane." Many trembled at the thought.


    "There are different ranks within the saint plane. The Nether Swordsman was known as possessing an unparalleled method of saint plane. So how is it strange?" The old man spoke lightly. The sages were above many others and treated them as subordinates, which was the same in all holy lands of the Nine States.


    "You mean..." Somebody stared at the giant sword, their heart pounding fiercely.


    Sacrifice the body to the sword and turn it into the sword itself.


    Then to feel the aura emanated from the sword, ancient and lethal, as if stained with endless blood. The master of all swords that could control all the Sword Will of heaven and earth and turned it into sword diagrams and sword matrices.


    If it was really as people had surmised, that such a sword was located in this place, then what would that mean?


    No one knew, and perhaps no one would be able to solve the mystery.


    "They''ve breached one Sword Realm," someone said, looking at Liu Zong. Liu Zong could be seen leading the cultivators of all three parties, solidifying a matrix of their own, breaking into the depths of the sword matrix. Where they passed, a field of sword matrix had been annihilated and turned safe.


    "Is it true that he can breach this staunch sword matrix?" Many trembled inside.


    The space was enclosed with endless murderous Sword Will. Liu Zong and his group continued pushing forward, but there was still a long way to go.


    Right then, a cultivator of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty took a step, and just when his foot touched the ground, a devastating exhalation descended from the sky above. His heart violently beat, and as he looked up, a streak of horrifying Sword Will fell on him like lightning. A soft hiss and he was pulverized without a trace. Dead.


    "One wrong step means death." Liu Zong and the others stared, and the air suddenly became incomparably heavy.


    Apparently, in this terrifying matrix, even someone as accomplished as Liu Zong could still make a mistake.


    Liu Zong stood there, looking slightly awkward. He looked in the direction of the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. "This is the real core of the sword matrix here at Nether Sword Mound. If it can be breached, there''s a chance to take the Divine Sword, or even taking control of the Nether Sword Mound, as well as help to rescue our Eastern State forebear, Chess Saint. But every step here is full of danger, and even I do not have absolute certainty. Although Saint and the Sacred King made a pact, if the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Dynasty wishes to withdraw now, I will not object."


    The countenance on those from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was gloomy. After all, the one who died was one of their own, a member of the Golden Phoenix Army, whose bloodline was that of the nobles of the Sacred Dynasty.


    "Of course, if this matrix is not breached, I''m afraid we will all perish here," Liu Zong continued.


    "Go ahead, then," Zhou Du of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty said. Zhou Du was the older half-brother of Zhou Ya and Zhou You, son of the Great Zhou Sacred King, who was of the top-ranking magi plane, and only one step from sage plane. Because his spiritual talent was extremely elevated and his strength unyielding, he was the leader of the delegates from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and he had volunteered.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King was a king of the sacred dynasty and had many sons. Even so, he was reluctant to put his children at risk, so the task of entering the forbidden land was on a voluntary basis. However, Zhou Du and the others ventured into the Nether Sword Mound because the order was issued by the Sacred King himself, and was therefore of great importance. He clearly took the matter of the Nether Sword Mound extremely seriously, and so, they were willing to give it a try here.


    "Very well." Liu Zong nodded. "We will take turns, one step each so the chances are equal. If the step is wrong, then it was only fate."


    Everyone nodded, but Zhou Du had some reservations. The person who led the mission was Liu Zong. Naturally, the disciples of Chess Saint could not afford to die. Between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Liu Zong might be more inclined to protect Xihua Sacred Mountain. With Liu Zong''s accomplishment in matrices, he would be able to detect which step was more dangerous than others.


    But he obviously could not voice his suspicions out loud.


    Liu Zong continued with the breach of the matrix, and the group continued pushing forward. They had now gone deep into the belly of the matrix, step by step, moving toward the giant sword. Their objective was clear.


    In the process of the breach, there were fatalities in succession. Among them, the death rate of those from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was significantly higher than that of Xihua Sacred Mountain. The nine disciples of Chess Saint were experts of matrices themselves, so they were able to make some calculations and stayed safe. Incidentally, the fallen were weaker cultivators and not the most pivotal of the party.


    Under such circumstances, it was clear to everyone what was happening, but no one could pin the blame on anyone. Between life and death, who would not make the most beneficial action and the smallest sacrifice?


    "I quit," a voice called out. It was a young strong cultivator from the Golden Phoenix Army. As soon as he finished speaking, he felt stares on him, giving him a great sense of pressure.


    "Zhou Yan, how dare you," Zhou Ziyi scolded.


    "I give up continuing the breach. If I don''t, I don''t know how many of us from Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty will be able to walk out of here, so I opt to retreat." Zhou Yan looked at Zhou Ziyi firmly. Not long ago before this, his brother had perished in the sword matrix. Besides, he could feel that it would soon be his turn to be used to explore and test the most dangerous places.


    Even if the matrix would finally be breached, he would still be dead.


    Obviously, he was not willing to be expandable.


    "I agree with Zhou Yan," someone else piped up, also a member of the Golden Phoenix Army. He looked sharply at Liu Zong, with a clear sense of disapproval. Thereafter, the voices of dissent continued. Many from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty declined to continue.


    What did they have anything to do with the mission of rescuing Chess Saint? Even though the Sacred King had assigned tasks to them, compared to their lives, what could be more important?


    It''s falling apart, everyone thought to themselves. Liu Zong had already advanced more than halfway, which was extraordinary, but even so, people''s hearts were no longer in it.


    Not only had those from the Great Sacred Zhou Dynasty began to give up, but even the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain began to tire.


    They should have never come here.


    This mission was too dangerous. They had thought that with all the holy lands banding together, they could vanquish even the forbidden land. But now, it seemed that they made a grievous mistake.


    Liu Zong looked perturbed and said, "We have already lasted this long, why give up now? But I won''t force anyone who''s not willing to continue." After that, he continued with the breach. Some followed, and some did not.


    Ye Futian quietly took everything in. His eyes had a strange luster to them. He was working the Freedom Meditation. At the same time, in his mind, there was a humongous chess board playing the moves deduced by Liu Zong, trying to find the solution to breach the matrix, but it was so far unsuccessful.


    Time passed by bit by bit. This murderous space seemed especially silent, only the whistling of the Sword Qi could be heard in the sky.


    After a while, Zhou Du stopped, a look of humiliation on his face. He said, "We can give up now."


    Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had suffered great and painful losses. He distinctly felt that the more they approached the end, the stronger the pressure from Liu Zong would become. Even if the matrix was really breached, it might very well be on the lives of all the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Liu Zong still did not give up and continued with Yang Xiao and the others. They stepped closer and closer to the giant sword, but the terrifying swords matrix was surrounding them, turning into an immensely powerful will to slay.


    "I can''t get through." Liu Zong closed his eyes and was disappointed to the core.


    Yang Xiao and the rest also felt that they had been mistaken.


    This method could not breach the matrix.


    Chess Saint also revealed a look of disappointment. Just as anticipated, there was no miracle. When he was here, he too, took a wrong step, so that he lost everything. Even though Liu Zong was outstanding, the matrix was still beyond him.


    Then, on to the second method as a last resort.


    "Liu Zong, Yang Xiao, come back and see if you can open a gap in the sword matrix that trapped me. I will try to use matrix against matrix," Chess Saint said.


    A flash crossed Liu Zong''s eyes, but he nodded nonetheless.


    "Yes, Master." Yang Xiao and others complied.


    Li Kaishan bowed his head slightly; a keen look in his eyes.


    Liu Zong and the rest had begun to retreat. At the moment, a safe area emerged in the matrix. In addition to Liu Zong''s expertise in matrices, retreat was not a problem.


    But right then, Ye Futian stepped out toward the matrix.


    Behind Ye Futian and Sage Wanxiang, starlight twinkled, and a star wheel rotated, revealing a resplendent astrological phenomenon of divinatory symbols in the void. Suddenly, all eyes were now on Sage Wanxiang, the master astrologer.


    But astrologers were known for their short life span, so it was fitting that an astrologer should be involved at this point of the breach.


    Soon, there was a region where the Sword Qi had been smashed, and the swords that were in the earth dissipated, which made many people look especially relieved. Ye Futian and his companions stood in different positions, moving forward in formation.


    Obviously, Ye Futian was as equally accomplished in the art of matrices as Liu Zong.


    "No." Quickly, Ye Futian returned to where he was before, and abruptly, the sword matrix evolved once again, as if everything he had done before was in vain.


    "Again." Ye Futian continued his attempt to move forward, cautiously letting Sage Wanxiang reveal good or evil before taking each step. It was not that he was not confident in himself, but he would not gamble with the lives of those from the Barren State, so he would only step into the matrix if he was absolutely certain.


    "It''s still not right." Ye Futian attempted a few more times in a row and turned back each time. The chess board in his mind calculated wildly, but the outcome of each one was a failure.


    "It''s impossible for you to breach this matrix. Come over and help me." At this instant, a voice called out, causing Ye Futian to turn his eyes to the direction of Chess Saint.


    At the moment, Yang Xiao and the others, the cultivators from Xihua Sacred Mountain, and the people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty stood in different positions under the sword diagram that trapped Chess Saint.


    Ye Futian''s pupils contracted slightly. He was preoccupied with breaching the matrix before and did not pay much attention to the situation there. But now perceiving the scene in front of him, he had a slight premonition of something going terribly wrong.


    Looking at the sword diagram above Chess Saint, and in his mind, the chess board continued its calculations, and the situation was presented in the spirit chess board. His expression changed quickly.


    "Allow the people of the Barren State to help rescue me, and you can be a successor of mine. I will pass the way of the matrix onto you and keep an eye on the welfare of the Barren State." Chess Saint continued, "With the capabilities of Liu Zong and Yang Xiao, coupled with your expertise in matrices and the strong practitioners of the Barren State, I have a 90 percent certainty to be freed."


    "Naturally I believe you. With all due respect, at this moment, I am deep in the matrix, so I will try to breach this one first, and perhaps then there will an opportunity to extricate you," Ye Futian refused diplomatically.


    "Insolence!" Chess Saint''s voice was icy, and he gazed at Ye Futian. "I already said that it''s impossible for you to breach that sword matrix. Except for me, no one can do it. Now help me quickly." Like a god, his voice conveyed the absolute authority of a saint, and no one dared to disobey his tyrannical command.


    Those from the Barren State frowned. Chess Saint was the one trapped, and yet he dared to be this demanding? As if the people of the Barren State were in debt to him?


    "Unfortunately I am unable to comply," Ye Futian replied. He looked at Jiu Gongzi, wondering if he should warn him. But the Chess Saint was his master, if he chose not to heed it, what then?


    "How dare you!" The Chess Saint spoke coldly, "Do you know the consequences for disobeying my orders?" As soon as he finished speaking, the air was filled with a subtle fear that made peoples'' hearts palpitate.


    Ye Futian looked extremely conflicted. His eyes swept toward those from Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Yang Xiao, and the others. He said, "If you want to live, retreat quickly now."


    Everyone was stunned and looked at Ye Futian.


    What did it mean?


    Chess Saint''s eyes flashed an exceedingly cold intent to kill when he heard what was said.


    "Brother Ye," Jiu Gongzi called out. He did not understand.


    "Jiu Gongzi, you should know that I have read extensively in the field of matrix formations, and I have integrated that knowledge and comprehended its ways. There is a lesser-known matrix called ''Sacrificial Matrix''. In the calculation I just made, where you are all standing is roughly in the formation of a Sacrificial Matrix." Ye Futian said, "Your master, Chess Saint, set you up to come here, to make you a sacrifice, so he can be freed!"

 810 Spiritual Body

    Ye Futian''s words were like a jolt of lightning, causing Yang Xiao and the others to feel confused.


    Their master wanted to use them as a sacrifice?


    Presently, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain had experts standing in the matrix where the Chess Saint was trapped in. Their expressions all paled, and they looked towards the Chess Saint. Even though they were prejudiced against Ye Futian, they still took his words in and were cautious.


    "Master," Yang Xiao''s wife, the Chess Saint''s third disciple, called out. She looked towards the Chess Saint with a pale expression. In reality, she had been practicing the art of the matrix with her master since young. Although her master had never taught them these kinds of sacrificial matrices, she had felt that the location that their group was standing was ominous.


    The people from the various holy lands looked towards the Chess Saint. At that moment, it was like time had stopped.


    Ye Futian''s expression was extremely piercing. It turned out that from the start, the Chess Saint had never trusted that anyone could help him break free from this extraordinary sword matrix, even if they could solve the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. How could someone do what he could not? So, the Chess Saint had created a setup in the Chess Saint Villa to select a suitable candidate.


    Under those circumstances, he did not even need to consider who he should pick between him and Liu Zong.


    Liu Zong was someone with ambition, and he could bring Xihua Sacred Mountain''s experts into the sacrificial matrix.


    From Liu Zong''s current position, Ye Futian knew that the Chess Saint and Liu Zong must have had come to an agreement. Otherwise, he would not sacrifice the Xihua Sacred Mountain and Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s experts.


    Of course, just like when they were solving the matrix previously, the most crucial few like Zhou Du and Zhou Ya were all in safe locations. Evidently, Liu Zong did not dare to make too reckless moves.


    Ye Futian even wondered if Saint Xihua knew about this setup. If he did not, how was Liu Zong to account for the death of the Xihua Sacred Mountain''s experts after the Chess Saint was released?


    Ye Futian knew that once he said those words, he had offended the Chess Saint completely. However, how could he agree to letting the Chess Saint use the Barren State as a sacrifice?


    Since that was the case, he could only fall out with the Chess Saint and make Yang Xiao and the rest escape, not allowing the Chess Saint''s plan to come to fruition.


    "Nonsense. Look clearly, what is this matrix?" A terrifying light shot out of the Chess Saint''s eyes, and instantly, the surrounding people felt a formless force, as though a strong magnetic force was pulling them in. A frightening force flowed from the Chess Saint onto their bodies.


    "Why are you not retreating, do you want to die?" Ye Futian shouted.


    "Retreat." The people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were the most decisive and retreated immediately. Regardless of whether it was a sacrificial matrix, they had no obligation to help the Chess Saint escape.


    The people from Xihua Sacred Mountain also started to retreat. However, just as they were about to leave, the Sword Matrix of the Void surrounded them. All of them were trapped in the matrix.


    The giant chess board descended from the skies. At that moment, they were like pieces on the board. The sword diagram''s force that had targeted the Chess Saint all rushed towards them.


    "Master, why?" Yang Xiao''s expression was pale as he stared at his master. How could he not understand what he had been caught up in?


    The nine of them had always been proud of their master. Even after their master had been trapped, they continued to follow his orders and follow Liu Zong into the Forbidden Land to save him despite the danger.


    The holy lands had come for the secret of the Nether Sword Mound while they had come to save the Chess Saint.


    However, their master had set up a ploy to use them as a sacrifice.


    "The heavens are the chessboard and the masses are its pieces. I am willing to become a chess player, this is the way of Chess." The Chess Saint''s voice was solemn and there was no trace of hesitation in his eyes. He had cultivated for many years to become a Saint that was revered by the masses. He entered the Forbidden Land of the Nether Sword Mound for the Nine States'' number one matrix, but he was not willing to be trapped in the Nether Sword Mound.


    "I do not understand," Yang Xiao replied.


    "That is why you cannot become a Saint," the Chess Saint said coolly. "Yang Xiao, master has always had high expectations for you, but your disposition is weak. If you enter the Saint Plane, you could have lent me a hand without me having to do this. Cultivation is to plunder, plundering the Dao of the heavens."


    Many experts from holy lands reeled at the Chess Saint''s words. Was cultivation really to plunder?


    If the Chess Saint felt that cultivation was plundering the Dao of the heavens, what else would he not plunder?


    The heavens were the chess board, but he wanted to be the player.


    "What is the point of cultivating in such a heartless Dao?" Ye Futian had an ashen expression as he asked. He was slower in the end. He did not expect the Chess Saint to be so decisive and activate the matrix immediately, causing those who tried to retreat to be trapped. Evidently, the Chess Saint had made adequate preparations.


    "The Path of Dao is originally heartless. Do you even know cultivation?" The Chess Saint glanced at Ye Futian with a frigid expression. This b*stard could actually see through the sacrificial matrix. It was no wonder that he did not end up as his chess piece. Without the people of the Barren State, the strength of the sacrificial matrix would weaken significantly and he was much less confident. Moreover, he had no choice but to activate it prematurely because of Ye Futian.


    At that moment, through his icy stare, Ye Futian was like a dead man to him.


    Seeing the Chess Saint''s stare full of killing intent, Ye Futian casually turned around and did not look at the Chess Saint. He knew what he had to do. If the Chess Saint really broke loose, he would die a terrible death. He needed to find a way to break through the matrix in order to have a chance at survival.


    "Yang Xiao, for all of you to die for me, you have nothing to regret." The Chess Saint''s voice sounded throughout the area, causing many people from the various holy lands to feel chills down their spine. If it had not been for the Chess Saint''s order to not attack the Barren State''s people, or perhaps he had done it to borrow their strength for the sacrificial matrix, his threats and temptation towards Ye Futian was to make the people from the Barren State enter the sacrificial matrix.


    Rumbling sounds could be heard as the Chess Saint moved. He wanted to rush out of the matrix diagram, but the sword diagram''s force crushed down with terrifying swordsmanship towards a direction. Over there, one of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s experts shouted in agony as he was crushed to smithereens and a chess piece replaced him to withstand the attack for the Chess Saint.


    "Chess Saint, you dare kill the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty? Even if you escape today, the Sacred King will not let you off," another person from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty said coldly. As his voice landed, a terrifying force rushed towards him, killing him off. At the same time, more pressure was lifted off the Chess Saint.


    To the Chess Saint, his number one priority now was to get out; everything else was secondary. Moreover, he had tried his best to keep the sacrifices to a minimum. However, if it came down to it, he could kill everyone.


    If he did not, he would end up dead in the matrix.


    "He really has the chance to destroy the matrix." The people from the various holy lands stared at the Chess Saint. His mastery in matrices was originally already unrivaled in the Nine States. Even though he was trapped in the sword matrix, he did not die and was able to confront the sword matrix. Now that many experts had entered the sacrificial matrix, he could divert the sword matrix''s force towards them and break the balance, allowing him a chance to escape.


    What would happen if the Chess Saint managed to escape?


    Would he be able to destroy the sword matrix?


    Their gazes turned towards Ye Futian. They saw Ye Futian also attempting to destroy the matrix, but he did not borrow Sage Wanxiang''s strength any longer. There was no more time; he could not afford to use divination for every step he took.


    His speed was fast, but he had repeatedly returned to the starting point with a grim expression.


    He could not destroy it, there were no weak points in the matrix. There was no flaw in the matrix. It was even more terrifying than the Celestial Dragon Chess Game.


    Although he had the sword diagram, he had not completely comprehended the tenth sword diagram. Otherwise, he would have entered the forbidden land a long time ago and not waited so long. However, the arrival of the people from the various holy lands forced his hand and he could only enter.


    In his head, he advanced the movements of the chess board at a terrifying pace, but it was pointless.


    At that moment, he turned around.


    Yi. A heart-wrenching sound was heard as a terrifying Sword Will impaled Yang Xiao''s wife''s body. The number one beauty of Yujing City gradually became ethereal. She looked at the figure in the air that was emitting boundless light with a vengeance. That was the person that she respected the most, but he had ended her life in such a way.


    Tears trickled down her face as she took one final look at Yang Xiao before disappearing.


    "Sister!" the other shouted, but in the next moment, Sword Wills descended one after the other, and the Chess Saint''s disciples all died and crumbled to dust.


    Soon, there were only three people left among the nine disciples. They were Yang Xiao, Li Kaishan, and Jiu Gongzi.


    Yang Xiao was an expert on the Sage and Saint Ranking, so his resilience was the strongest. Jiu Gongzi was the weakest, so he could not provide much strength, even if he was sacrificed. As such, the Chess Saint could not be bothered to sacrifice him, so he was spared. Conversely, Li Kaishan actually retreated from the matrix.


    "You knew!" Yang Xiao shouted at Li Kaishan with a cold tone.


    "Big Brother, for master, die with no regrets," Li Kaishan looked at Yang Xiao and said.


    "Why don''t you die instead!" Jiu Gongzi shouted out. With his personality, seeing his brothers and sisters die in front of him was enough to send him into a frenzy. When he looked at his imposing master, it was like looking at a demon.


    How awful. The people from the various holy lands saw the scene and thought, incredulous. Those who entered the matrix had died with the exception of Liu Zong and a few others. The vast majority had not died in attempting to destroy the matrix, but to the sacrificial matrix.


    The Chess Saint was really ruthless. He could kill his own disciples without a shred of hesitation, he was decisive, strong-willed and could not be moved.


    Crackle. Cracks appeared in the terrifying sword diagram as the Chess Saint flew higher and higher. All of a sudden, countless chess pieces flew forward and a fearsome shadow passed through the matrix, escaping from it and flying forward.


    "Materialization of Spiritual Will." Everyone was stunned. The Chess Saint had not escaped, as his physical body was still trapped in the matrix, but another Chess Saint had rushed out and was heading towards the giant sword.


    The giant sword howled and a cold gaze looked towards the Chess Saint. In the skies, under the blood-colored sword eyes, flowed a terrifying Sword Will. The sword diagram in the skies rolled around in a frenzy, then descended from the sky onto the Chess Saint like blades from another dimension.


    "The Path as a Chessboard." A cold voice sounded, and countless chess pieces appeared in the area and flew towards the heavens, turning it into a chessboard.


    Crash. With a thunderous sound, a blade that was slashing down was blocked by a chess piece in the sky.


    Crash, crash, crash�� The violent clashes continued, causing the air to quiver and the earth to shake. In the skies, countless black chess pieces turned into a chess board. The Great Path Chessboard managed to block all the falling swords.


    Even so, cracks appeared on the Great Path Chessboard. The pieces looked as though they were about to fall apart, but they had created enough time for the Chess Saint. His body was already landing where the giant sword was and his hand stretching out to grab it.


    Liu Zong looked towards his direction with a gleam in his eyes. That sword was the key to the Nether Sword Mound and was likely to be able to control all the Sword Wills.


    Just as the Chess Saint''s palm landed, an extremely sharp force that could slice through everything emerged from the sword. In the next moment, a towering killing light burst forth from the giant sword. The sword then disappeared and was replaced by a human figure. The human figure felt as though it had been forged by countless swords. His gaze was like swords, his arms were like swords, his body was like a sword, and even his silver hairs were swords.


    "It''s really him?" The experts from the Xia Clan gasped. Could it be that his conjecture was correct? The giant sword was a sword slave that followed the Sword Saint of the Void back then and had sacrificed himself to his sword to protect the Sword Saint of the Void.


    Could it be that the Sword Saint of the Void was really buried here?


    At that moment, the sword matrix in the air suddenly rampaged, and countless Sword Qi rushed downwards with even more force. However, the Chess Saint turned around and looked coldly in Ye Futian''s direction. Immediately, one of the chess pieces in the air was destroyed and a Sword Qi descended from the sky.


    "Watch out!" Ye Futian shouted. However, in front of him, a person from Tombkeeper Village was killed on the spot, causing Ye Futian''s expression to become pale.


    The rustling sword currents were unbelievably wild as the Chess Saint and the sword figure were at a stalemate. Around the two of them, an alarming whirlpool appeared and the chess pieces cut off the earth while the sword veil blocked off the air. The destructive air current rampaged in the area, but even so, the Chess Saint still wanted to kill Ye Futian and his friends.


    "Uncle Fang!" Yaya''s expression was pale as she shouted


    "If you enter the sacrificial matrix, perhaps you might not die," the Chess Saint said in a cold voice.


    Yaya''s gaze turned icy as her eyes turned crimson, like blood, and it was as though there was a sword in her eyes. Around her body, a terrifying Sword Will flowed and her body gradually rose into the air with an ancient aura.


    At that moment, the Sword Will in the air seemed to resonate with the one around her body.


    The sense of familiarity was becoming even stronger.


    Yaya raised her head and looked at the blood-colored sword in the air. The same scene also appeared in her eyes, and at that moment, her blood-colored eyes let out a gleaming light that was extremely brilliant. Behind her eyes, countless Sword Wills appeared in the air and turned into a horrifying storm that moved towards Yaya.


    Not just that, but the sword matrix in the air seemed to have formed a resonance with her. The matrix let out a brilliant light as though it had been activated.


    "Yaya." Ye Futian raised his head and looked towards Yaya. He was not too shocked as he had his conjectures previously.


    The Chess Saint looked towards Yaya, and an extremely sharp glint appeared in his eyes.


    The matrix had been activated.


    So that was why. No wonder he could not destroy the matrix, as the matrix in this area was a dead matrix.


    "Liu Zong, she''s a spiritual body. Take her down and stand in her position to destroy the matrix!" the Chess Saint shouted. Yaya was likely to be the sword spiritual body or the matrix spiritual body, so she was the crux of the matrix.


    The Nether Sword Mound actually had two foundations��the main sword matrix and this lass, who was the core of the matrix!

 811 Scram

    Liu Zong looked towards Yaya, but he saw Ye Futian look at him, then said, "Xihua Sacred Mountain''s Liu Zong should have no part in the Chess Saint''s escape?" He intentionally said this because he wanted to see if Liu Zong actually dared to do it.


    If he stepped in, it would mean that he had actually participated in the Chess Saint''s escape plan. If that was so, would Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty let him off?


    Liu Zong''s gaze landed on Ye Futian as he said, "The Chess Saint is a Saint. How many Saints are there in the Nine States? Every Saint Plane cultivator is a treasure to the Nine States. Since the situation is like it is now, the most important thing to do is to help senior Chess Saint break free. Palace Lord Ye, if you help out in cracking the matrix now, perhaps senior will not begrudge you."


    "In that case, the people from Xihua Sacred Mountain, Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and the Chess Saint Villa''s disciples all deserved to die?" Ye Futian''s expression was frigid as he replied.


    "In the Nine States, how many people are on the Saint Ranking?" Liu Zong stepped forward as he retorted. A few experts from the Xihua Sacred Mountain followed him. These were the important people in Xihua Sacred Mountain and were not sacrificed. Of course, Li Kaishan was there as well.


    "Go crack the matrix," the Sword Saint looked at Ye Futian and said as he took out his broadsword.


    "Go," Zhuge Qingfeng and Sage Wanxiang chipped in as well. The situation at hand was extremely dire. At least the Chess Saint was being restricted now. Once the Chess Saint completely broke free, they would all die.


    The Chess Saint had already made his choice and would not stop.


    Ye Futian nodded and looked at Yaya, then turned and walked towards the matrix, saying, "Follow me."


    Gu Dongliu, Hua Jieyu, and the others followed Ye Futian even though they were of no help. Yuan Hong also followed Ye Futian. At that moment, he had transformed into a giant Golden Ape and stood tall like a Demon God, standing guard at the side. He would protect Ye Futian. To him, Ye Futian''s life was more important than anything else.


    In this chaotic matrix, danger was in every corner.


    "You guys, deal with them. Li Kaishan will accompany me in cracking the matrix," Liu Zong said as he left the Sword Saint to Xihua Sacred Mountain''s experts. The opportunity to crack the matrix had already appeared, so he needed to crack it before Ye Futian. Otherwise, once Ye Futian cracked the matrix, they did not know what changes would appear.


    Liu Zong exerted his Spiritual Energy to the limit. A Buddhist light glowed as he formed the hand of wisdom and he started to decipher in his head. Signs of cracking finally appeared in the terrifying sword matrix. Yaya''s appearance had activated the matrix, it was no longer a dead matrix and could be cracked.


    In his head, the sword diagram in the sky let out a boundless glow and the Sword Wills in the area filled the vast area. The center was filled with killing intent and the five elements and eight trigrams appeared in the matrix. Cracking the matrix would require technique, not cultivation level.


    "Li Kaishan, follow my instructions," Liu Zong said as he pointed to a location. "Go there."


    A glint appeared in Li Kaishan''s eyes. His mastery in matrices was also extraordinary, even among the nine disciples of the Chess Saint. His mastery in matrices could be ranked first alongside Yang Xiao.


    He could naturally see that the step that Liu Zong had chosen was extremely exquisite. attempting to destroy the life of the matrix. He had chosen the location where the matrix was born, and Liu Zong had asked him to destroy one of the cores of the matrix.


    However, he was still hesitant. Seeing that, Liu Zong frowned and transmitted his voice, saying, "Li Kaishan, if we are successful today, there will be a place for you in the battle for the Divine Path."


    Li Kaishan''s expression lit up. Why did he look for Liu Zong initially?


    The masses thought that he was an honest person, but in reality, he had already understood the truth of the world. When his master had taught them, he had once said that the masses were mere chess pieces. He was unwilling to accept his fate as a chess piece and wanted to become a chess player.


    His Big Brother and Third Sister were in love, but he was single and understood his master the most. Although he had taken in nine disciples, it was for the purpose of advancing his own Path. By teaching disciples, he could comprehend the deeper meaning behind the Path. Although the Chess Saint usually treated them extremely well, he was actually a heartless person. In all his years of cultivation, he had no Path Companion and no children, only focusing on his cultivation.


    He, Li Kaishan, was the person who was most like his master��the Chess Saint.


    He would naturally leave a way out for himself and also for the battle for the Divine Path in the future.


    Now, Liu Zong had a way out, but he did not.


    Stepping forward, Li Kaishan had no choice but to become Liu Zong''s chess piece. He released an extremely strong aura as his footsteps landed heavily on the ground, trampling the swords beneath his feet. There were no other swords that flew towards him from the air, meaning that he had chosen the correct path. This step was exceptionally important.


    I have a chance. Liu Zong''s expression was sharp as he continued to observe the matrix. He then pointed out another step for Li Kaishan to continue walking.


    Li Kaishan continued forward, moving through the matrix, continuously destroying it. The direction that Li Kaishan was walking in was the direction where the giant sword was.


    Liu Zong did not move and stood still, occasionally looking at Yaya, as though waiting for a chance. If he wanted to destroy the matrix, Yaya was an important element.


    Many people watched the scene with gleaming expressions. Perhaps, there really was a way to destroy the matrix.


    On the other end, a battle had already erupted between the Sword Saint and Liu Zong''s men. They did not dare to move recklessly as the terrifying demonic blade slashed through the air towards them. The other party struck out with his palm with the force of a mountain to counter.


    Ying, Hou, and the other people from Tombkeeper Village all stood around Yaya, looking cautiously at the various factions.


    The people from the various holy lands had it the worst, completely becoming onlookers that were at risk within the trap that the Chess Saint had set. They had no way of resisting against the matrix. Perhaps a Saint could do so, but Saint Plane cultivators would not put themselves in danger easily. After all, even the Chess Saint had been trapped here.


    At this moment, Ye Futian also started to crack the matrix. He closed his eyes and released his Spiritual Energy. The sight from the outside world was imprinted into his head as he started deciphering the matrix.


    Hua Jieyu released her Life Spirit and used her telekinesis to fuse everyone''s Spiritual Energy together. However, Ye Futian did not give the command after a long time and continued deciphering.


    Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu all looked towards Ye Futian, waiting patiently.


    "Whoo��" Taking a deep breath, Ye Futian opened his eyes again and looked at the people beside him, saying, "Let me test the matrix personally."


    "Among us, only you can decipher the matrix. If you test the matrix and something goes wrong, all of us will die here." Gu Dongliu looked at Ye Futian with a sharp expression and said, "Be decisive when you need to."


    As cultivators, their mindsets were firm. The Chess Saint did not even have a shred of hesitation when sacrificing his disciples.


    As for Ye Futian, he hesitated even when his friends were willing to test the matrix for him. This was Ye Futian''s weakness.


    His emotions could be a weakness as well.


    Although the Chess Saint was ruthless, he was decisive and had no weaknesses. That was why he could immediately make a decision that was most beneficial for him at any time.


    "There is no time to hesitate." Ye Wuchen also attempted to persuade Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at the friends in front of him. He did not know whether it was the correct decision to enter the trap. Sage Wanxiang had once divined that this trip would be ominous. However, if they grabbed the opportunity, it could be a blessing.


    "The Barren State''s Palace has made it through every battle so far. So what if we''re in this trap today, it is merely a repetition of history," Xu Que said lazily, as though he did not care. Since they had chosen to leave the Barren State, since they had chosen to enter the Nether Sword Mound, there was nothing to hesitate about.


    Taking a look at the Chess Saint, Yaya, and his Big Brother''s battle, Ye Futian''s expression became more determined all of a sudden. He closed his eyes and fused his consciousness with the others. In an instant, a terrifying sword diagram appeared in everyone''s heads. The sword diagram appeared huge, with yin and yang supporting each other, the five elements all present, the eight trigrams imprinted. The swords hovered in the air with an unyielding aura.


    All of them appeared to have seen through the giant formation. Everything that was in Ye Futian''s head was presented before them. They even saw Liu Zong ordering Li Kaishan to weave through the sword matrix. Every step he took was a breach in the matrix, attempting to walk out from the matrix to retrieve the giant sword. This was Liu Zong''s method of destroying the matrix.


    "Dao begets one, one begets two, two begets three; three begets all things." A voice sounded from Ye Futian''s head and said to them, "Enter from the Kun position."


    As his voice landed, the ancient directions��Qian, Kun, Li, Kan��all appeared on the giant sword diagram. There were also the yin and yang formation as well as the five elements. They all fit into the formation and the sword matrix surrounded the sword diagram with endless life, creating countless Sword Wills.


    "I''ll go," Gu Dongliu said. As he said that, he stepped forward, and Ye Futian clenched his fists tightly. Every movement by his Third Brother was played in slow motion in his head. There was even a bead of sweat on his forehead.


    The ending that he had deciphered was completely different from before and the complete opposite of what Liu Zong was doing. He was not attempting to destroy the matrix. If his conjecture was wrong, it would be fatal. His Third Brother could end up dying, so naturally, he was scared.


    Not just him, Zhuge Mingyue and the others also watched intently. Time appeared to have slowed down; this first step was extremely crucial. If this step was wrong, Ye Futian would know that he was wrong, but his Third Brother might have to pay with his life. He had wanted to take the step himself, but Gu Dongliu had said that he was the only one with the mastery to decipher the matrix. If anything happened to him, all of them would end up dying here.


    Then, Gu Dongliu was the first to step out and test the matrix. This was his resolve.


    Time passed slowly as Ye Futian''s heart pounded. At that moment, nine words surrounded Gu Dongliu, emitting a brilliant light. He had already released his Life Spirit, as though he was preparing to ward off a killing strike at any time. Finally, his foot landed in the direction, and immediately Sword Wills passed by his body with no killing intent. The formation in the sky appeared to have lit up even more.


    "Success." Ye Futian heaved a sigh of relief. He did not dare to imagine what would have happened if his Third Brother had taken the wrong step. How would he be able to face himself then? It was no wonder he was that nervous.


    He opened his eyes and looked at Yaya, his gaze becoming resolute.


    When Yaya communicated with the blood-colored sword eye, adding on what the Village Chief had said to him, he had an extremely crazy thought. Since there was a chance of survival, that chance of survival was the opportunity. Why did they have to destroy the matrix?


    The sword matrix was only able to be activated because of Yaya.


    It had been activated from a dead matrix.


    Since that was so, why did they need to destroy it?


    Perhaps, the Chess Saint was wrong from the start. As such, he had misled the Chess Saint Villa, Liu Zong and everyone else.


    Liu Zong had also seen Gu Dongliu''s movements. An astonished expression appeared in his eyes. What was Ye Futian trying to do?


    He was not destroying the matrix, he was guiding the matrix.


    Was he out of his mind?


    Li Kaishan was destroying the matrix''s momentum while he was accumulating it.


    Ye Futian''s method of destroying the matrix was the complete opposite of his.


    Did Ye Futian really want to destroy the matrix?


    "Kun position." Since his Third Brother was fine, Ye Futian''s expression became even more determined and he closed his eyes again. He did not let anyone else take the next step. The people around him were all close to him, he would not make a decision or sacrifice anyone.


    If he decided to sacrifice someone, his mind would waver and he would feel guilty.


    Zhuge Mingyue took the second step, following in Gu Dongliu''s footsteps and landing in the Kun position.


    "Li position," Ye Futian continued. Following that, Hua Jieyu and Yu Sheng stepped forward one after the other to gain momentum for the matrix, causing it to become even brighter. The entire sword matrix appeared to have been activated, becoming stronger.


    In the skies, where the blood-colored sword eye was, countless Sword Wills flowed and landed on Yaya''s body, circulating within her body. Yaya closed her eyes and her ordinary aura had disappeared and the current her had a razor-sharp aura.


    It was as though she had become a sword.


    At that moment, the Chess Saint, who was facing off against the figure that the giant sword had transformed into, looked in Ye Futian''s direction and realized what Ye Futian was trying to do.


    The god-like figure frowned. Ye Futian''s every step was restoring the matrix''s momentum, rejuvenating the parts of the matrix that had been destroyed by Li Kaishan and creating a complete matrix. Moreover, he made the people around him stand in the key positions, causing force to gather there and guide the matrix. They had caused the sword diagram to become even more brilliant, as though it was going to be restored completely.


    Impossible. The Chess Saint was astounded as he thought. His heart had wavered.


    For the Nine States'' number one matrix, the Sword Matrix of the Void, he had put himself in danger and stepped foot into the Forbidden Land of the Nether Sword Mound. He was the strongest matrix sorcerer in the Nine States, he was in the Saint Plane, excelled in matrices, and could create impressive chess games, that was why he dared to enter.


    Even when he was trapped, he still believed that he could escape and had planned a scheme on the Chess Saint Villa for today when hope would reappear.


    His heart had never wavered.


    However, at this moment, it had wavered.


    As the Nine States'' number one matrix sorcerer, could it be that what he previously thought was wrong? He had easily deciphered the matrix on the periphery and reached here. Could it be that the matrices outside were all misleading him, making him feel that he was naturally destroying the matrix and limiting his frame of mind?


    However, when he saw Ye Futian''s movements, he suddenly realized that there was another option apart from destroying the matrix.


    This option was related to the reason he came here, the Nine States'' number one matrix, the Sword Matrix of the Void.


    Why could it not be to guide the matrix?


    If he could continue to expedite the matrix and activate it completely, what would happen?


    As he felt the rushing Sword Will from the blood-colored sword eye, he looked at Yaya again. This was not his fault. Previously, when Yaya had not appeared, the matrix was a dead matrix.


    But why could Ye Futian think of that?


    At that moment, the matrix became even stronger. In the area, countless Sword Wills flowed into the matrix, and Yaya stood in the center of the matrix, absorbing the countless Sword Wills.


    At that moment, the Chess Saint understood that he had been wrong.


    Ye Futian might be on the right track.


    This was a genius. Ye Futian had actually thought of a method to decipher the matrix that he had not.


    Moreover, this was his initial aim.


    "Liu Zong, take down that girl!" The Chess Saint shouted. Yaya was the crux of the matrix. Since he was already wrong, he would go all the way.


    The Chess Saint attempted to activate the chess pieces in the air to descend and attack Ye Futian, but he saw countless Sword Wills rushing towards him. The figure that was fighting with him appeared to come alive, its body moving and creating an even stronger Sword Will, crushing the descending chess pieces and depriving him of the chance to attack.


    At that moment, Liu Zong also realized that Ye Futian could be on the right track, while he had been wasting his time all along.


    Stepping forward, Liu Zong headed towards Yaya, a Buddhist palm striking forward with frightening power. However, an eye-catching figure descended in front of him like a Roc. It was Ying, who had appeared in front of Yaya, his palm grabbing towards the front like an invincible claw. His palm had Sword Will and spatial rule power in it and crushed the Buddhist palm.


    At the same time, the two experts from Tombkeeper Village protecting Yaya released their aura, and it descended onto Liu Zong.


    However, Li Kaishan had also retreated and appeared behind Yaya. As Li Kaishan cleaved down with his ax, the ax''s light gleamed and traveled forward. He was the Chess Saint''s second disciple and an archmage, so he was extremely strong. The ax''s cleave seemed as though it would kill Yaya.


    The two experts from Tombkeeper Village immediately turned around and struck out with their fists. Ferocious beasts appeared and let out earth-shattering howls, but they were still cleaved apart by Li Kaishan''s ax.


    The two of them stepped forward at the same time and a wild aura erupted from them, stopping Li Kaishan in his tracks.


    With Yaya at the center, a huge battle broke out.


    Ying tore through the air and reached Liu Zong, his brilliant Roc blade slashing down. The two of them were at similar cultivation levels and a terrifying fight broke out.


    Liu Zong was extremely strong. He was the most outstanding cultivator of the young generation in Xihua Sacred Mountain and was reputed as the next successor. He was taught by three Saints and they pinned their hopes on him. As such, everyone could see how high their expectations for Liu Zong were. Liu Zong also had huge ambitions and had even wanted Ye Futian to follow his orders and serve him, to make the Barren State''s Palace Lord work under him.


    However, at that moment, Ying, at the same cultivation level as him, had stopped him and erupted with an astonishing battle ability.


    This caused Liu Zong to be shocked. Tombkeeper Village actually had such a prodigy that could battle with him in the same cultivation level?


    Ye Futian was still deciphering the matrix and exerted his mastery of matrices to the limit. In the sky, the blood-colored sword became even more demonic and the sword eye gradually opened and was becoming stronger as though Sword Wills were coming to it from the Void.


    The Chess Saint naturally felt the aura and he raised his head and looked at it. His expression changed, and he said, "Ye Futian, your mastery in the matrices is extraordinary. No matter what happened in the past, I will not dwell over it. If you lend me a helping hand today, I can help you to enter the Divine Path in the future."


    Ye Futian heard the Chess Saint''s words and opened his eyes, looking at the Chess Saint. He said coldly, "Scram!"


    Now that the Chess Saint had already tried to kill him, he still had the gall to open his mouth?


    The Great Path has no place for sentiments. In order to break free, the Chess Saint had sacrificed his own disciples. He could sacrifice everyone''s lives in order to break free. If he agreed, what could the Chess Saint not do to break free and obtain the Sword Matrix of the Void?


    His promise?


    What a joke. He was devoid of even kinship and humanity. Under these circumstances, after seeing him decipher the matrix, the Chess Saint actually had the face to open his mouth and ask him for assistance. As for helping him to enter the Divine Path?


    He could enter the Divine Path himself. He had his own Path.


    Since their Paths were different, there was no room for cooperation. That was why he had only one word for the Chess Saint: scram!

 812 I Choose, Saint Killing

    A gleam appeared in the Chess Saint''s eyes alongside killing intent.


    He was a Saint. A younger generation cultivator actually dared to ask him to scram?


    "You''re asking for trouble." The Chess Saint''s voice was emotionless. Even though he was trapped, he would not take Ye Futian''s insult lying down. In the sky, the Great Path Chessboard shook and a terrifying rule power descended. Next, the chess pieces descended from the sky and assaulted Ye Futian, even breaking through the restraint of the Sword Wills.


    Yuan Hong, who was standing beside Ye Futian, let out a deafening roar and emitted a golden light. He held the Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hand and swung it towards the air. The polearm clashed with the chess pieces and a roaring sound could be heard. Each chess piece had rule power within it and was extremely powerful.


    Yuan Hong''s body continued to grow as he roared. The Nine Heavenly Attacks struck out towards the continually falling black chess pieces. The terrifying residual force swept across the air but was drowned out by the sword matrix.


    Pshhhh. Soon, Yuan Hong vomited blood as he was injured by the chess pieces.


    At the same time, the Chess Saint did not have it good either. When he was distracted when dealing with Ye Futian, the force that he had used to combat the giant sword figure was weakened, causing Sword Qi to penetrate the body that he had created using his will and making it illusory. However, the Chess Saint treated it as though nothing had happened and had not felt anything. It was as though he really wanted to kill Ye Futian.


    Before this, he would not do that. However, his killing intent towards Ye Futian had now escalated, not just because Ye Futian had humiliated him, but also because Ye Futian''s mastery over matrices had threatened his existence.


    He had dared to make him scram. If Ye Futian really took control of the matrix, what would happen?


    The setup that he had planned would be for naught.


    That was why the Chess Saint wanted to kill Ye Futian by any means possible and let Liu Zong take over the matrix.


    Suddenly, a thought appeared in his head. If he had not picked Liu Zong because of his identity back then and had selected Ye Futian, what kind of situation would he be in now?


    However, the Chess Saint soon dismissed the thought. As a Saint, he had a firm mindset and a resolute belief. He believed that he had not made the wrong decision back then, Liu Zong was definitely the most suitable candidate. Even if Ye Futian had proven today that he was stronger than Liu Zong in terms of matrices, the past was the past.


    Leaving the past aside, what he needed to do now was to find a way to destroy the matrix and kill Ye Futian.


    "Grandfather Ape." Ye Futian saw Yuan Hong injured and had a grim expression. He did not think that the Chess Saint still had the excess energy to deal with him. It seemed to him, deciphering the matrix meant that he would be mortal with the Chess Saint. Today, the Chess Saint would only be able to break free if he was dead.


    Otherwise, he would have a tragic end.


    Sword Wills continued to circulate wildly in the sword matrix as chess pieces infused with a horrifying might descended from the sky. However, a sword veil appeared around Ye Futian''s body.


    Bang. With a loud sound, cracks appeared in the sword veil. Ye Futian''s expression was grim as he said, "Third Brother, the next step." It was at these kinds of moments that he could not afford to be frazzled. Time was of the essence.


    Chess pieces circled above the sword matrix, breaking through the Sword Wills'' shroud. The Chess Saint ignored the attacks towards him and made the chess pieces descend, crushing down on everything.


    "You dare to humiliate a Saint. Die," the Chess Saint declared coldly, as though his words were deciding Ye Futian''s sentence.


    As his voice landed, the black chess pieces all descended in a flurry and with a thunderous sound, the sword veil was shattered. Hua Jieyu, Zhuge Mingyue, Yu Sheng, and the rest all looked towards Ye Futian''s direction. When they saw the destructive chess pieces, their faces all went pale.


    At that moment, a blood-colored light appeared above Ye Futian''s head. It was a weaker figure, but it was like a blade. When the chess pieces crashed on her body, they shattered into dust, but her face also went pale and spat out mouths of blood.


    In the sky, the blood-colored sword eye sent countless Sword Wills onto her body, strengthening her.


    "Brother." Yaya stretched out her hand towards Ye Futian and said, "Channel your Sword Will towards me."


    "Yaya." Ye Futian stretched out his hand and grabbed her tiny hand. The two of them flew into the air and in an instant, a terrifying whirlpool surrounded them. The entire matrix was gathering with them at the center.


    Clang! At that moment, the Chess Saint''s Spiritual Will was finally unable to withstand the damage and he was sent flying back into the sword matrix where he was trapped in.


    His expression was grim as his huge body stepped forward, attempting to break free. The giant sword and Yaya were the foundations of the sword matrix, but Yaya seemed to be the absolute crux of the matrix.


    Ye Futian''s gaze moved towards the Chess Saint, then towards Liu Zong and the rest who were battling. He then closed his eyes again and the giant sword matrix seemed to be completely activated. The regions that were destroyed by Liu Zong also started to repair themselves, causing Liu Zong and his men to stop battling and retreat.


    Liu Zong frowned as he could feel that the sword matrix had completely been restored and was no longer a dead matrix.


    In an instant, in the void beyond the sky, countless Sword Wills flowed. One begets two, two begets three; three begets all things. The giant sword matrix rose to life and everyone could feel a destructive force.


    The people from the various holy lands did not dare to move. There was a reverent force that was awakening.


    "This could be the real Sword Matrix of the Void," someone said. Many people felt astonished, but also acknowledged that the possibility was very high.


    At that moment, in the area of the matrix where they were, the real Sword Matrix of the Void was being activated from a dead matrix.


    Bang, bang, bang! The Chess Saint struggled fervently, attempting to break free from within. He had also felt the awakening force, it was enough to destroy him, not just trap him within. Once Ye Futian had taken control of the matrix, with their current relationship, he would definitely use the matrix to kill him.


    The Chess Saint would not allow that to happen.


    On the blood-colored sword eye, its eye appeared to be tearing apart and a terrifying gap appeared. An ancient sword was being summoned from the blood-colored sword eye, which integrated with the sword matrix, encircling around Ye Futian and Yaya. Strands of Sword Will even entered Yaya''s body.


    "Li Kaishan, destroy her!" the Chess Saint hollered.


    When Li Kaishan heard his master''s order, he was hesitant. At that moment, the scene in front of him was exceedingly scary. Cracks had appeared in the earth, the blood-colored sword eye had opened and an ancient sword had been summoned while the sword matrix was becoming stronger. In the sky, countless swords appeared. They were sufficient to destroy the entire Nether Sword Mound.


    The Sword Matrix of the Void. Li Kaishan was dumbfounded. How could this happen?


    Why was the person who rejuvenated the Sword Matrix of the Void and took control of it Ye Futian?


    Would everything that he had planned be for naught?


    Back then, he had chosen Liu Zong and allowed him to decipher the matrix because he was going with the flow. Ye Futian deciphering the matrix was merely an accident, but why had today''s situation become like this?


    Why was the Barren State''s Ye Futian able to deal with his master''s setup as well as Xihua Sacred Mountain''s Liu Zong?


    However, Li Kaishan already had no other choice. He raised the battle-ax in his hand and released his Life Spirit. Countless rule power erupted and assimilated into his battle ax. He cleaved down at Yaya through the air, penetrating the sword matrix.


    Ye Futian stretched out both his arms and in an instant, the sword in the matrix materialized in front of him and Yaya, turning into a sword diagram. The battle ax''s cleaving strike was unable to cleave it apart.


    At the same time, the giant sword in the distance hummed and turned into a ray of light and floated in front of Ye Futian. It was as though the sword was able to sense everything that happened.


    Ye Futian stretched out his hand and grabbed the sword with both hands. In an instant, waves of Sword Will emanated from his body.


    "Harming your own kin, die," Ye Futian said coldly as a brilliant light erupted from the sword matrix and countless Sword Will flew towards Li Kaishan, impaling him.


    "No��" Li Kaishan''s expression was pale as a sheet and his eyes were filled with horror.


    The sword light drowned out everything and Li Kaishan''s body faded to nothingness. Nothing was left of his corpse.


    Many people watched the scene with pounding hearts. Li Kaishan had died.


    Ye Futian had activated the sword matrix and with Yaya''s cooperation, he had taken control of the sword matrix.


    Rumble. A terrifying sound was heard as the Chess Saint''s huge body broke free bit by bit from the sword matrix. As it looked like he was about to break free, a shocking force erupted and he looked coldly at Ye Futian. At the same time, a giant chessboard appeared behind him; it was the Great Path Chessboard.


    Ye Futian and Yaya flew into the air, the sword diagram following alongside them. Soon, a sword diagram capable of blotting out the sun appeared in the air and grew bigger, engulfing the entire area.


    "The Sword Matrix of the Void has appeared," someone commented.


    Rays of blinding light scattered down, but the sword lights instilled the feeling of death in them.


    "Go!" someone shouted and immediately retreated. Now, the entire sword matrix had been moved into the air, allowing them temporary relief from danger. Not just that, all the Sword Qi in the Nether Sword Mound had assimilated into the matrix in the air, its light shining down on the earth.


    "How could this be?" Zhou Ziyi and the others had extremely grim expressions. The Sword Matrix of the Void being controlled by Ye Futian was definitely not a situation they wanted to see.


    Although many people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had died, they still hoped that Liu Zong would be able to take control of the Sword Matrix of the Void and assist the Chess Saint in escaping.


    "Go," Zhou Du also said. If they did not leave, there would not be another chance.


    This sword matrix was strong enough to destroy the entire Nether Sword Mound.


    Liu Zong also turned around and left. He was incapable of turning the current situation around.


    "Ye Futian, you can sacrifice Tombkeeper Village. Use the Sword Matrix of the Void to assist the Chess Saint and establish good relations with Xihua Sacred Mountain and Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Alternatively, you could continue what you are doing. What is your choice?" Liu Zong said.


    At this moment, the Chess Saint was completely free. The sword matrix beside him had also been devoured by the Sword Matrix of the Void so he no longer needed to destroy the matrix to break free.


    The Great Path Chessboard appeared behind his body and he stared at Ye Futian. A blade of light shone on him and locked onto him.


    "I choose, saint killing," Ye Futian said coldly. As his voice landed, a blade of light appeared from the Sword Matrix of the Void in the air. It shot through the air and lit up all the blades of light in the area. Billions of swords seemed to follow along the blade of light''s descend, destroying everything in its path!

 813 Blood Deb

    Tombkeeper Village, outside of the Nether Sword Mound.


    Many in the village looked up and cast their gaze in the direction of the Nether Sword Mound in awe. A huge, seemingly boundless sword diagram appeared in midair, covering the place that was usually gloomy and dark.


    One look was all it took to make their hearts tremble.


    "This is..." The hearts of the villagers of Tombkeeper Village almost leaped out of their chests. Many mighty ones from sacred grounds outside were just as taken aback as those from the village when they saw the frightening sight before then.


    What is that?


    Does the Nether Sword Mound actually have a Sword Matrix of the Void?


    So the Nether Sword Mound has actually been activated?


    An ancient aura permeated the place. Terrifying might shrouded the entire village, covering a huge swath of area.


    "Look out!" someone said. If such terrifying powers were to burst, no one knew what would have happened afterwards. It would have been fine if the direction of the attack was controlled, but if the attack was to lose control and come for them, there was probably no one capable of fending off such attacks.


    The Village Chief remained standing quietly at the entrance of the Sword Mound. His hands shook slightly as he looked at the events unfolding far away. He took a deep breath after closing his eyes. His eyes turned to look rather manic when they opened again.


    After all these years, the Sword Matrix of the Void is finally activated again.


    This is all just so perfect.


    He had incredible luck for being able to find someone capable of beating Yaya in the Nine State Forum. Better still, there was someone even more suitable for the task other than Yu Sheng, and that was none other than Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian came to his village, completing all that he had expected to accomplish.


    He looked forward eagerly to the future.


    ��


    At the Nether Sword Mound, the Chess Saint came to feel the unforgiving, earth-shaking, devastating power. He finally felt fear for the first time. He never felt such fear, even when he had been trapped by the sword matrixes back then. But at the moment, he felt pure fear.


    It was a power that was more than enough to destroy him.


    Everything before his eyes was covered by swords. He shouted in anger and sent the Great Path Chessboard forward. At the same time, he fled by streaking through the space at terrifying speed. However, that intense sword beam and the billions of swords in the air destroyed the chessboard effortlessly. The swords, which were capable of destroying everything in their path, ignored the distance between them and their target. Streaks of boundlessly terrifying sword beams penetrated the Chess Saint''s body, striking him right through his head.


    The Chess Saint stopped right there and then. The ones running below turned around and saw that scene that was shining brilliantly.


    The matrix diagram emanated endless light in the sky. An unparalleled beam of light of the sword gathered at the center of the Great Path Sword Diagram, streaking through the space and penetrating the Chess Saint''s huge saintly body. At that moment, the saint''s body was lit up by the light of the sword. Incredible terror and despair were seen on his usually composed face.


    Even a saint would have felt fear.


    The god of death had paid him a visit. The Chess Saint, one of the handfuls of saints to be found in his generation, would soon perish right there and then. He had never expected the one to break the matrix would be Ye Futian. If he knew all that, there would have been no need to choose Liu Zong to lay out the chess game and have his own students killed.


    If he knew what would have happened, he would have chosen Ye Futian, the man who would have freed him. The Chess Saint might have even been able to catch a glimpse of the true secrets of the Sword Matrix of the Void.


    Everything in the world was a game of chess, and he wanted to be the one placing the pieces.


    But right now, who is the one ended up being the piece indeed?


    And who is the one to lay out the game?


    Who is that Yaya?


    Why would Ye Futian and Yaya appear at the same time in the Nether Sword Mound?


    Is all of this just a coincidence?


    No, it can''t be. This is a game and there must be someone playing the game behind the scenes. I''m not a player. I''m now but a piece on the board.


    Thoughts poured into the Chess Saint''s mind. Those were his last thoughts. His body gradually turned into light and dissipated under the incredibly bright light of the sword.


    The only Saint of Chess of his time, the number one master in matrices in all of the nine states, perished in the Nether Sword Mound, killed by one of the younger generations using the Sword Matrix of the Void.


    The Chess Saint had perished. Countless Sword Will continued to rain from the sword diagram hovering in midair. It covered the entire Nether Sword Mound. Swords rained from the sky and stabbed into the ground. The ones fleeing below brought everything they had as their defense to prevent getting caught up in the crossfire. The Sword Matrix of the Void''s only target was the Chess Saint, and whatever was raining down on the others was simply aftershock. Despite the aftershock having only a very small amount of power, it was still frightening for those that had to deal with it.


    "Golden Phoenix Protection!" Zhou Du shouted. The people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty gathered around and activated their ritual implements, bringing their greatest power to bear. A boundlessly huge golden phoenix shadow appeared above their heads, serving as a shield.


    The people of the other sacred grounds went on to do the same. Some had even brought holy items to defend against incoming attacks. Even so, there were still those who were unable to flee in time, killed by the rain of swords from above.


    Swords rained down over the vast interior of the Nether Sword Mound. Everyone from Tombkeeper Village was able to see the rain of swords, and they trembled violently within.


    That light of the sword that cleaved through the heavens, was that the power of the Nether Sword Mound? Who did that sword attack kill?


    Ye Futian remained standing in midair. He felt the power of the Nether Sword Mound dissipating, turning into boundless Sword Will, which was then turned into a rain of swords, falling down onto the Sword Mound itself. The light of the Sword Matrix Diagram gradually dimmed. Yaya''s body floated down below, and she surprisingly sat at the center of the sword matrix. In the sky behind her, ancient Sword Will was seen coursing in the eye of the blood-colored sword. A sword matrix was reforged yet again with her at the center. Frightening Sword Will emanated from within and flowed into Yaya''s body.


    Everything seemed to have quieted down, returning to the prime point.


    Ye Futian turned around and took a look at the sword''s eye. His eyes were incredibly sharp as he activated Freedom Meditation as if he were to see everything there was inside the sword''s eye. However, he only sensed a frightening, ancient power within, as if yet another sword matrix lied within the eye.


    Where is the true Nether Sword Mound?


    He flashed and went down to a corner. Two figures were seen lying there: the eldest student of the Chess Saint, Yang Xiao, and the youngest, Jiu Gongzi.


    The Chess Saint eventually sacrificed Yang Xiao and the others in order to escape, but his action triggered the ultimate sword matrix, devouring the one that had him trapped. As such, Yang Xiao was not killed right on the spot. When the Sword Matrix of the Void attacked, that corner had been in a blind spot, which spared Yang Xiao from being hit by the aftershock.


    In actuality, if the people of the other sacred grounds did not scamper outside in a panic and had instead, hid beneath Yang Xiao, they would have been safer. But then again, there was simply no one who dared to stay around in that kind of situation.


    "They''ve still got a chance. Phoenix!" Ye Futian sensed their lifeforce and called. Phoenix came to his side to check on the extent of their injuries. Yang Xiao''s injuries were incredibly severe. Worse still, his body had been penetrated all over by the Sword Will. The actions of the Chess Saint, which resulted in his wife''s death, had practically sent him over the edge psychologically. He was in a bad shape, both body and mind.


    Jiu Gongzi, on the other hand, was deemed too weak to be worth being used by the Chess Saint. As such, his condition was better than his eldest brother.


    "He is the one in the worse state," Phoenix said in a low voice.


    "Do whatever you can," Ye Futian said. Seven of the nine students of the Chess Saint were killed by their teacher. The remaining eldest and youngest were gravely injured.


    Yang Xiao was an incredibly renowned figure. He was the City Lord of the City Lord Office of Yujing City, as well as a mighty one ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking. His powers were, as such, formidable, and he was definitely one of the top figures at the Sage Plane. He had been unable to hold on for long in the matrix of the Chess Saint, but he would not have survived if he lesser training and power.


    But at the moment, he had been used as a sacrifice by his teacher, and his wife was dead. All his other brothers and sisters were gone. It was a harrowing catastrophe that would have dealt a huge blow to anyone.


    "Yeah." Phoenix nodded and took out a pill, feeding it to Yang Xiao. Strong life signs manifested within her body. Jade-green light covered Yang Xiao and seeped into his body bit by bit.


    "My power of Rules of Life is rather weak," Phoenix said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian placed his hands on Yang Xiao''s body as well. Streaks of green ancient branches glittered as they appeared, covering Yang Xiao''s body. Ye Futian''s Life Spirit��the World Tree��had saved him from death once, and he hoped it would work on Yang Xiao as well.


    "Senior Yang, while your teacher and Li Kaishan might be dead, this perhaps might not be the end of your vengeance," Ye Futian said to Yang Xiao. If Yang Xiao had no intention to come back to the living, there might be no way to actually bring him back.


    Yang Xiao''s arm shuddered. Ye Futian felt that and his eyes sparkled. He then continued, "Because of his status, I was unable to kill him then. I beg your forgiveness."


    If Yang Xiao was able to hear Ye Futian, he would know who Ye Futian was talking about.


    Who was it who brought Yang Xiao and the others to break the matrix?


    Who was it who led the nine students of the Chess Saint into the sacrificial matrix?


    At the moment, both Liu Zong and Zhou Ziyi, great figures of the major sacred grounds, were completely unscathed. Anyone who had been following the events knew that it had been Liu Zong''s ploy all along.


    He knew what would happen and laid out everything. If he proved incapable of breaking the matrix, he planned to sacrifice the others to help the Chess Saint escape.


    Although Ye Futian knew what happened, there was simply no way he could have killed Liu Zong in front of all those from the other sacred grounds.


    Unless he was willing to kill everyone else.


    But if he were to do so, there was no way his party would have survived.


    If he were to do so, it would not just be them in trouble, but the entire Holy Zhi Palace would have probably suffered the wrath of other sacred grounds, bringing about their doom.


    There were things that no matter how much one wanted to do it, they just could not bring themselves to do it.


    There would perhaps be answers when they were able to make it outside.


    Yang Xiao''s eyes opened after a while, staring at the sky. His eyes were filled with blood and were incredibly cold. There was no emotion in them, only a thirst for revenge.


    "Senior," Ye Futian called.


    "You''re right. I will live." Yang Xiao''s voice sounded very calm, but Ye Futian knew what that calmness meant. It was a manifestation of his mind''s resolve and nothing else.


    Yang Xiao wanted to live. He wanted revenge. The Chess Saint died. Li Kaishan died. But Liu Zong was still alive. His teacher was the one who set them up, and Liu Zong had been an accomplice. It was a blood debt that he was determined to claim.

 814 The Overbearing Zhou Sacred King

    Both Yang Xiao and Jiu Gongzi woke up.


    Ye Futian did not console them and did not know how to go about it. The only thing that could wash away their pain was time. However, he stayed, and Yaya remained seated under the Sword Eye to train. The huge sword fell behind her. Boundless Sword Will emanating from the Sword Eye coursed through her body, seemingly cleansing her.


    Ye Futian came behind the huge sword and took to the air. He put his hand on the sword and closed his eyes, beginning to sense one sword matrix after another.


    The sword was capable of shamanic arts.


    "Wuchen, Xu Que, this place is very suitable for you swordsmen to train in. Get a good feel of the place. That big sword will help you further your progress in the art of the sword." Ye Futian then added, "Other than that, this space is one of rules. Everyone will benefit from training through sensing the powers all over the place."


    As speculated by everyone from the sacred grounds, the place was definitely a sacred place for training. Yaya had entered a mystical state, and there was no need for him to be in a hurry to leave. He wanted to stay behind and see what would happen to Yaya.


    He had some speculations about things himself, and he thought his speculations to be correct. But from the looks of things at the moment, he was not completely right about things.


    He might have actually been wrong.


    Things were more complicated than he had anticipated. The words the Village Chief said to him remained seeming to be half-truths.


    Everyone present nodded. After experiencing the ordeals in the Nine State Forum and everything in the Nether Sword Mound, everyone had developed a deep comprehension of things. Even those who had not broken into the Sage Plane were only a step away from doing so.


    What a cultivator experienced during battle, as well as in life and death situations, served to further their comprehension in a lot of things. That was why pilgrimages were an essential part of every cultivator''s training.


    Ye Futian turned to look at the direction outside the Sword Mound. The Chess Saint''s death seemed to have marked the end to their ordeal.


    But has everything about this truly ended?


    No, it can''t be this easy. Why are the people of the other sacred grounds here?


    None of the ones from the other sacred grounds got what they came for. They suffered grave losses instead. Some from the various sacred grounds remained behind after exiting the Sword Mound while others left, returning to whence they came. The Tombkeeper Village''s peace seemed to have been restored. However, such peace seemed to be the calm before a storm more than anything else.


    Mighty ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty came to Tombkeeper Village a month later. Furthermore, the entourage this time was far larger than the last.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had mobilized an elite Golden Phoenix Army and had the village surrounded. At the same time, elegant phoenix carriages descended above Xihua Sacred Mountain of Huatian City of the Eastern State. Some mighty ones of the Xihua Sacred Mountain attempted to stop them, but they were unable to help but make way, seeing who was on the vehicle, letting the carriage into the mountain.


    Saint Xihua and the Rain Saint were playing chess within the mountain. The carriage was seen descending from above, and the Zhou Sacred King stepped out. His eyes were sharp and his bearing stern and magnificent. He glanced at Saint Xihua with cold eyes and said, "I take it that you knew what Liu Zong did before the fact, Saint Xihua."


    The Rain Saint stood up and yielded his seat to the Sacred King. Saint Xihua said to the Zhou Sacred King, "Have a seat, Sacred King."


    The Sacred King''s eyes shone with golden flashes as he glared at Saint Xihua before taking the seat across him.


    "Sacred king, sacrifices are inevitable to accomplish great things. The Chess Saint was trapped in the matrix, and he was the one who knew the Nether Sword Mound best. Rescuing the Chess Saint would have made him owe his life to us. Furthermore, the Chess Saint had promised certain things as well. That, coupled with the Nether Sword Mound that he would have gotten, would have made the Sky Saint and the Glass Saint irrelevant in the Eastern State." Saint Xihua added further, "I take it that you intend to restore the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to its former glory, no?"


    "You have deceived me, Saint. Are you saying that you do not have any personal agendas with this matter?" The Sacred King said coldly.


    "I promised, here in the Sacred Mountain, back then that Liu Zong would become your son-in-law. With you of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty working with me, we would build a stronger Eastern State. Other than not having told you about the sacrifices that might have incurred, what else do you think I would not tell you?" Saint Xihua then added, "It was a pity that the operation ended in failure. I''m sure you know what happened in the Nether Sword Mound. The place is truly a sacred ground for training, and there is the Sword Matrix of the Void in it. Liu Zong''s plans would have succeeded, but it was ruined when things were going well."


    The Great Zhou Sacred King''s expression turned sharp. He knew that Ye Futian had activated the Sword Matrix of the Void, killing the Chess Saint inside the Sword Mound, almost killing everyone from the Nine States in it as well.


    The people of the Barren State had first showed their mettle in the Nine State Forum, and then they went on to take control of the Nether Sword Mound. It was truly an ironic turn of events.


    The Barren State, which was almost forgotten, accomplished what the ones from the Eastern State set out to accomplish but failed.


    The Sacred King did not speak, but the cold emanating from his body said everything.


    "I know that you want to keep this under wraps and that the Golden Phoenix Army consisted of the royalty of the Sacred Dynasty. But we from the Xihua Sacred Mountain suffered losses as well, and they too were formidable and important people. But then again, Liu Zong knew what he was doing nonetheless." Saint Xihua continued, "If you think that you''re getting the short end of the deal in this, how about you take care of this from here on out, Sacred King?"


    The Sacred King glanced at Saint Xihua and said, "Alright." He took to the sky and returned to his carriage as soon as he finished. He then left without delay.


    Saint Xihua smiled as he watched the Sacred King leave. The Sacred King is still the sacred king I know. He never really changed at all.


    "The Sacred King seems to like to throw his weight around," the Rain Saint at the side said.


    "It''s normal. We didn''t tell him everything, after all, so it''s only natural for him to find it hard to trust me," Saint Xihua said.


    "You''d really have the Sacred King take care of things from here on out?" the Rain Saint asked.


    "I keep having the feeling that the Chief of that Tombkeeper Village is not someone to be trifled with." Saint Xihua said, "Have both of the sword saints serving beneath the Sword Saint of the Void died?"


    The Rain Saint''s eyes sparkled.


    Saint Xihua then added, "We''ll see. From the way the Sacred King goes about things, the Village won''t be able to hide whatever secrets they have from him."


    ��


    More and more people came to Tombkeeper Village. The Sword Matrix of the Void reemerged in the world, and many major sacred grounds sent people to the remote place, which also happened to lie at the borders of four different states.


    The village had never seen such a huge crowd. Many were worried. Things really turned out to be as the Village Chief said��Tombkeeper Village was truly at its life or death moment.


    Several months passed since the Chess Saint perished, and many from sacred grounds of all Nine States were exasperated. The Saint had died a truly unceremonious death.


    At the moment, the entrance to the Nether Sword Mound had been taken over by people from various sacred grounds, yet none dared to venture into the Sword Mound itself. What happened several months ago became common knowledge. Almost everyone died within. The Sword Matrix of the Void had been activated, and the survivors were only able to make it out within the brief window when the matrix dissipated, after appearing for a brief moment. However, many were still almost killed by the aftershock of the terrifying matrix.


    A brilliant, dazzling phoenix carriage descended from the sky on that day. One figure after another took to the skies. All of them wore glittering golden phoenix robes and greeted the one who came from the sky.


    "All hail the sacred king." Solemn voices were heard above Tombkeeper Village, which made the people of the Village tremble.


    A saint had descended upon the Tombkeeper Village.


    The Sacred King walked out from the carriage and scanned the ground below. Many from other sacred grounds cupped their hands and greeted, "Greetings, Sacred King."


    It was common for people of sacred grounds to greet a saint, even if said saint was not of their own.


    The Sacred King nodded and shrouded the village with his will. He then turned his eyes in a particular direction. He took one step forward and disappeared in a beam of golden light from where he was standing. The carriage moved towards the direction the beam disappeared, following the Sacred King.


    Many stood outside the compound where the Village Chief lived.


    A beam flashed and the Sacred King descended, appearing above where the old Village Chief was. The Sacred King cast his gaze at the chief.


    "I did not expect to be graced with your presence, Sacred King," the old Chief said as he looked at the Sacred King, but his tone lacked respect despite his words.


    The eyes of the Sacred King glittered with golden, sharp flashes, seeming about to penetrate everything. An extremely terrifying power fell onto the old Chief, who frowned but showed little changes in his expression otherwise. He stared at the Sacred King and asked, "What would you mean by this, Sacred King?"


    "You are indeed something," the sacred king said coldly. He dropped from the sky and came to stand before the old chief and asked, "Who''s that brat? And what''s with that sword?"


    "If you want to know, you''d only need to venture inside the Nether Sword Mound. I''ve never been inside, so I''d never know," the Chief said plainly.


    "I''ve heard that there were two formidable servants of the sword serving the Sword Saint of the Void all those years ago, and both of them were saints themselves. Where would they be now?" The sacred king continued to ask, "Would they be right before me, or would they be within the Sword Mound?"


    The old Chief stared at the Sacred King with sharp eyes. That''s really the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty indeed. A holier-than-thou lord of a sacred dynasty, ruling vast territories and demanding worship from all living beings.


    "Do you think everything will be fine if you say nothing and they keep themselves inside?" The Sacred King added coldly, "There were many from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty who died in the Nether Sword Mound."


    "But what does that have to do with Tombkeeper Village?" the Village Chief asked.


    "It has something to do with that brat, and that sword as well," the Sacred King answered coldly. He then turned around to look at those who came from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and said coldly, "You''ve all been here for many days. What have you all done?"


    "My King, we''ve looked through everyone in the village. Many are formidable people but the Village Chief remains an unknown. No one knew anything about his training. The parents of that brat are common people, knowing little of cultivation," someone from the side bowed and said.


    "Are they taken?" the sacred king asked.


    "It can be done anytime," the one at the side bowed and answered.


    "Could you have them come out on their own?" the sacred king asked the old Chief coldly.


    "The magnificent Great Zhou Sacred King would threaten the younger generations of others with the lives of common folk then?" The old Chief glared at the sacred king coldly.


    "Threaten?" The Sacred King glared at the old chief with extremely sharp eyes and added, "I, the Great Zhou Sacred King, will need to resort to threats with you people?


    "Kill them." A cold shout reverberated throughout the surroundings with incredible killing intent, horrifying all of the villagers and making their hearts jump.


    "Indeed, Sacred King," s reply came from afar, and shrieks were heard from elsewhere.


    The Village Chief''s expression turned extremely cold as he glared at the figure before him.


    The people from various sacred grounds trembled. The sovereign of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was indeed a brutal, overbearing one.


    "I''ll ask you one more time, are they coming out or not?" the Great Zhou Sacred King glared at the old chief and asked.

 815 The First Saint of the Barren State

    Two dead bodies lay covered in blood outside a small house somewhere in Tombkeeper Village.


    At the same time, one figure after another flashed. They were all dressed plainly but burst with incredibly powerful auras at the same time, surrounding the mighty ones who had just killed the two.


    At the same time, hundreds of people burst with powerful auras. One figure after another took to the air with intimidating force. However, none from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were fettered. The Golden Phoenix Army took to the sky, and golden lights burst in their surroundings. One shadow of phoenixes after another burst with brilliant light as they stood off against the villagers.


    A mere village would not have been able to stand up against the invincible army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, no matter how powerful those villagers were.


    The intruders held back and dared not move against the villagers as the Sacred King was not there yet. However, with the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty himself appearing in the village and giving orders, there was simply no one among the intruders who dared defy him.


    The mighty ones from the various sacred grounds watched the incident within Tombkeeper Village unfold with troubled looks. The Village was indeed formidable for daring to stand against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in such a manner. Do these villagers have any idea how powerful the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is?


    The Sacred Dynasty had a long, deep history and had once ruled all over the Eastern State. They were a force reigning supreme all over the Eastern State and they would not be so easily intimidated. Furthermore, there were also mighty ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain there. They seemed to have formed an alliance with the Golden Phoenix Army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, surrounding the mighty ones from the Village.


    Of course, more people were more concerned with how things with the Village Chief would unfold.


    Tombkeeper Village was formidable, and coupled with the Sword Matrix of the Void that killed the Chess Saint from before, there was no one from all over the Nine States who did not know that the Village had secrets. The Village probably had someone with formidable powers, and he might be someone who served the Sword Saint of the Void all those years ago.


    At the moment in that compound, the Village Chief and the Great Zhou Sacred King were glaring at each other. Peculiar winds appeared around them, sweeping up the leaves on the ground.


    While mighty ones from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had infiltrated the Village and monitored the movements of the villagers, they did not do anything that was really over-the-edge. However, the Sacred King himself had ordered his men to kill people as soon as he came. He was forcing Ye Futian, Yaya, and the others to come out immediately.


    "You know that I''m a saint then, yet you behave so insolently nonetheless." The Village Chief''s expression was incredibly cold. A saintly aura emanated from his body and shrouded all of Tombkeeper Village in an instant. Everyone was able to feel the saint will at that very moment.


    The people from the Sacred Dynasty all looked on with sharp expressions. They had already guessed so.


    The Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village hidden at the borders of four states was truly a saint. But then again, there was nothing to be feared as their Sacred King was with them. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty feared no one and no force in all of the vast lands of the Eastern State. Such confidence stemmed from their bearing as royalties of the Sacred Dynasty.


    The people from all over the Nine States were somewhat shaken, but they remained largely unfettered.


    The Sacred King was completely unfazed. His eyes remained sharp as he glared at the one before him metamorphosing. The bearing of the Village Chief was thoroughly transformed. The plain, unassuming, and even somewhat ragged image from before had completely disappeared, now replaced with boundless might and sharpness. His robe billowed in the wind, and boundless Sword Will was seen in his eyes, lashing out at the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    "You might be a saint, but so what?" The Sacred King''s tone remained unflinching and overbearing. An all-encompassing might swept all over their surroundings and overpowered the entire Village. He said coldly, "A mere Sword servant of the Sword Saint of the Void from back then dares to defy me. If they are to remain cooped up inside the Nether Sword Mound, I will have no qualms about slaughtering the entire Village. By the way, have you readied a grave for yourself?"


    The more powerful one''s training became, the greater the difference between each plane became. Even small differences within the same level became very apparent. As such, the power differences between saints were extremely huge. It was for that reason that Xihua Sacred Mountain silently allowed Liu Zong to help the Chess Saint get out of his predicament, having no fear of the Chess Saint turning back on his word later. That was because the Chess Saint did not have what it would take to stand against Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Due to such reasons, it was impossible for the Great Zhou Sacred King to fear a mere Sword servant, even if the Sword servant was one who had once served the Sword Saint of the Void.


    He was a Sacred King while his opponent was but a sword servant.


    "You''re right indeed. I''m a saint, so what? The Chess Saint was a saint, and where is he now?" the Chief said coldly.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King smirked as he glanced at his opponent. Is he trying to threaten me?


    "While I do not know what secrets lie between Tombkeeper Village and the Sword Mound of the Saint, I''m able to speculate from past events, that even if the Sword Saint of the Void was to be reborn, he wouldn''t have been able to continuously activate the Sword Matrix of the Void, no? Just how much power had accumulated in the Nether Sword Mound that Ye Futian was able to use the Sword Matrix of the Void in such a manner?"


    The Great Zhou Sacred King then said coldly, "So you were there at the Nine State Forum to search for one worthy of succeeding the Sword Matrix of the Void? Or did you have something else in mind?"


    "You want to know?" the chief glared at the Sacred King and asked.


    "I must know," the Sacred King answered in an overbearing tone. He wanted more than just knowing; he wanted to take the ones inside the Sword Mound.


    "They''re already out. You''ll have your answer soon enough," the chief said while glaring at the Sacred King.


    The eyes of the Sacred King sparkled as his will traveled through the space, heading straight for the entrance of the Sword Mound. A group of people was indeed seen making their way out of there, heading elsewhere.


    The group of people was none other than Ye Futian and his party. Yaya was there as well. They seemed to catch wind of what was happening outside and were traveling somewhere with extreme speed. That somewhere was none other than the place where the murder of the two villagers happened.


    Ye Futian and his people appeared outside the small house soon enough, seeing the dead bodies lying in a pool of blood.


    "Dad, mom." While Yaya already knew something bad had happened, she felt as if she had been struck by lightning after seeing the dead bodies. Her mind turned blank, and she walked up to them in a dazed manner before kneeling down, tears streaking down from her eyes uncontrollably.


    Ye Futian also walked up, feeling dazed, and looked at the dead bodies with a dumbfounded look on his face. He had spent the end of last year ushering in the new year and had a great time with them. Yet, at that moment, both of them were reduced to cold, dead bodies lying on the ground.


    Blood filled Ye Futian''s eyes as he clenched his fists, exuding murderous intent all over. Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang knew little of cultivation and they were common villagers of Tombkeeper Village. Why do this to them?


    Ye Futian looked up and cast a cold glance at the Golden Phoenix Army in the air above him and asked coldly, "Who did this?"


    "I did." A voice was heard, and two figures were seen descending from above at the same time. They were none other than the Sacred King and the Village Chief.


    The Sacred King glanced at Ye Futian and Yaya. According to Zhou Du and the others, it was they who activated the Sword Matrix of the Void. Ye Futian and Yaya were both keys to the situation at hand, as well as the sword.


    Ye Futian was in charge of the matrix and activated it. The sword summoned boundless Sword Will while Yaya served as the core of the matrix like a spiritual body.


    Ye Futian looked up at the Sacred King and asked, "Why?"


    "You''re questioning me?" The Sacred King glanced at Ye Futian coldly. His eyes were filled with incredible might.


    Ye Futian looked at the Sacred King, who was clad in an overbearing might, emanating an aura of supreme rulers all over him, intimidating all who looked at him.


    During the Nine State Forum, be it the saints or the mighty ones from all sacred grounds, all of them sat politely on their seats. This caused many to have the misconception that the top-class figures of all Nine States were peaceful beings.


    However, what happened at that very moment seemed to be telling him that the Nine State Forum was but a ceremony held jointly by all Nine States. The Nine States themselves were actually cruel. The Chess Saint was willing to kill his students just so to set himself free. The Sacred King had no qualms about massacring innocents to reach his goals. Those the top figures in their most real state.


    Just like the Chess Saint said, the Great Path has no place for sentiment.


    The Sacred King, a ruler of a sacred dynasty, had little regard for life and did not care about the lives of two common folks.


    "You killed the Chess Saint in the Nether Sword Mound and cared nothing for the people from other sacred grounds, while you had your way with breaking the matrices. That caused many from the sacred grounds to lose their lives, no?" the Sacred King asked coldly.


    "Everyone who ventured into the Nether Sword Mound was from sacred grounds. They put their lives on the line to do so, and everyone did what they had to do to break the matrices. We, from the Barren State, were the same. It was only natural that I could not have simply sat around and done nothing while the Chess Saint wanted my life." Ye Futian answered coldly and then asked, "What does any of this have to do with you, Sacred King?"


    "The Eastern State had several saints, and you behaved as if nothing happened after killing a saint yourself. Those from the sacred grounds who perished were all people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. What do you think?" the Sacred King answered coldly.


    "The Chess Saint was a saint of the Eastern State. You, as the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, dared to use the matrix to kill a saint of the Eastern State. You were being utterly insolent," some mighty ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain said.


    Ye Futian found Liu Zong and the rest were among the crowd from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "You unleashed the Sword Matrix of the Void and ended up killing many yourself," some mighty ones from the Hall of Holy Light said, trying to intimidate Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian scanned the crowd before him and smirked all of a sudden, feeling the irony of it all.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State is part of the orthodoxy of Emperor Xia, just like you all are. So you''re telling me that the Chess Saint wants my life, the life of a palace lord, and yet I''m not allowed to retaliate? Furthermore, are you all saying that I, as the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, venturing into the Nether Sword Mound, had to ensure the safety of the people of other sacred grounds to do so?"


    Ye Futian glanced at the crowd again and said, "You people could really say anything to put all the blame on me. The Chess Saint said that cultivation along the Great Path means taking from others. It seems that every one of you believes that with every fiber of your being, but you all differ from the Chess Saint by being more pretentious than he was."


    He knew without a doubt what those people wanted to take.


    "Take him." The Sacred King no longer bothered talking to Ye Futian and gave his order coldly. Mighty ones from the Golden Phoenix Army stepped forward as soon as he finished.


    One figure after another stepped forward beside Ye Futian. Zhuge Qingfeng, Yuan Zhan, and the others came before Ye Futian.


    "As fellow members of the sacred grounds of the nine states, I don''t think you have the right to take the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, Sacred King," the Village Chief, who had been standing at the side, said.


    "The Barren State has no saint. Can the Holy Zhi Palace even be called a sacred ground?" the Sacred King said coldly, "I will call upon Emperor Xia personally. As for you, I''ll deal with you later."


    The Village Chief glanced at the Sacred King and said, "The people of sacred grounds of all Nine States ventured into the ruins left behind by the Sword Saint of the Void. None of you were capable of breaking the matrices back then, so it was only a given that none of you had the right to inherit the ruins. I followed the sacred order given to me by the Sword Saint of the Void, that the one capable of breaking the matrix would be given the right to inherit the Sword Matrix of the Void. We of Tombkeeper Village will follow the successor of the matrix. From this moment forth, the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State will have a saint among them. Tombkeeper Village is part of the Holy Zhi Palace."

 816 Execution for the Murderers

    As the Village Chief finished speaking, it suddenly grew quiet.


    Tombkeeper Village had joined the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    Ye Futian, who had become an apostle of the Sword Saint of the Void, inherited the first sword matrix of the Nine States��the Nether Sword Matrix.


    Just as everyone had guessed, the old Village Chief had departed from the Barren State to select an heir. Now all the cultivators of the saint plane who belonged to the Sword Saint of the Void followed Ye Futian. From this point onwards, the Barren State had saints.


    The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State was a holy land, and therefore eligible to attract cultivators from across the lands. The Barren State would become the first holy land in history whose Palace Lord was not of the saint plane yet ruled over saints in his dominion.


    In all of the Nine States, those in charge of the holy lands were cultivators of the saint plane. After all, this was the world of cultivators.


    The Village Chief''s words affirmed Ye Futian''s inheritance and also sanctified the Barren State. Other holy places would no longer have any reason to mess with Ye Futian.


    As the palace lord, he and other parties of the holy land had come together to breach the matrix. He had been successful and inherited the Nether Sword Matrix. What more could the others say?


    Ye Futian did not feel anything out of the ordinary and was not surprised that the Village Chief was a saint. The day before the decision was made, the Village Chief had talked to him. He wanted to know everything before he decided whether or not to enter the restricted area, and while the Village Chief had not told him everything, he told him about the saint plane.


    He had promised that as long Ye Futian participated in the rescue and breach the matrix within the Nether Sword Mound, the Barren State would have saints and benefit from his protection. So Ye Futian made the executive decision to participate in the rescue.


    Just like Sage Wanxiang''s Divinatory Symbols had foretold, the odds were unfavorable. But there was a chance of misfortune.


    The odds were unfavorable not only because of the dangers inside the restricted area but also because of the pressure from other holy lands after they came out of the matrix.


    Ye Futian had already considered this. He dared not decide the fate of those around him with such ease. If not for the words of Village Chief, it would still be difficult for Ye Futian to make a decision.


    There was nothing wrong with what Zhou Ziyi had said before. Without saints, the Baren State would never have the right to speak and therefore would never gain any respect.


    Ye Futian had not just participated in the rescue to influence it, but also to fight for the future of Barren State.


    And he had done so.


    Although Ye Futian was almost killed by the Chess Saint, he had survived by using one of his nine lives and dispatched his opponent. But he had not expected the Great Zhou Sacred King to be so despotic and cold-blooded, murdering Yaya''s parents, who were no more than ordinary citizens.


    "I, Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, announce that Tombkeeper Village is henceforth under the jurisdiction of the Holy Zhi Palace. The Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village is now an Elder of the Holy Zhi Palace," Ye Futian coldly announced, while staring at the Great Zhou Sacred King with indifference.


    From now on, the Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State would no longer be the only holy land without saints.


    The Barren State and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were now of equal status.


    "This is the border of the Eastern State. Tombkeeper Village is on the land of the Eastern State," Great Zhou Sacred King said, his eyes fixed on Ye Futian.


    "All of the Nine States are the Orthodoxy of Emperor Xia, even the Eastern State and the Barren State." Ye Futian continued to watch Great Zhou Sacred King. "Tombkeeper Village will be relocated to the Barren State."


    "You expect this matter to be so easily settled just because you say Tombkeeper Village will join the Barren State?" Zhou Ya remarked icily.


    Ye Futian cast an indifferent look ar Zhou Ya and said: "When I, the Palace Lord, speak with the Great Zhou Sacred King, there is no place for you to comment."


    Zhou Ya''s expression stiffened and he regarded Ye Futian with a steely glare. When he had challenged Ye Futian, he''d simply been dismissed due to his inferior rank. Now, Ye Futian once again arrogantly referred to himself as a palace lord. Did he really believe that just because the Barren State now had saints, his position would be equal to theirs? Or that he could further compare himself to the Great Zhou Sacred King?


    At that moment another figure walked to Ye Futian''s side, and all eyes turned to the new arrival. It was Yang Xiao, the strong sage cultivator of Sage and Saint Ranking.


    "A disciple does not speak of his master''s faults. However, my master, the Chess Saint, lost his humanity and sacrificed the lives of my wife and brothers to save himself. My wife and younger brothers, as well as other cultivators from Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Dynasty, died because of him. He was not fit to be a saint, and his death meant nothing. What Palace Lord Ye did was righteous. I believe that even if Palace Lord Ye had not taken action, Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred King would have put an end to the Chess Saint. If the Great Zhou Sacred King would like to pursue the person responsible, it should be the Chess Saint."


    Yang Xiao continued, "From today on, I, Yang Xiao, wish to cultivate at the Holy Zhi Palace at the Barren State. If Emperor Xia does not understand, I will follow Palace Lord Ye to testify about what happened. Everyone who entered the Nether Sword Mound from the Nine States also witnessed what happened with their own eyes."


    Yang Xiao''s voice was stern and emotionless, and as he spoke he cast a cold glance at Liu Zong, who stood amongst the crowd.


    Yang Xiao did not blame anyone except the Chess Saint, and it was clear to all who watched that if Great Zhou Sacred King wished to use the Chess Saint''s death as an excuse to detain Ye Futian, it was unlikely to work.


    Yang Xiao would also join the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Many watched in awe. After this, the power of the Barren State would increase greatly with the addition of saints, the powerful disciples of Tombkeeper Village, and cultivators such as Yang Xiao from the Sage and Saint Ranking.


    "No one from the Barren State nor Tombkeeper Village wished harm upon anyone from the Great Zhou Dynasty. The deaths of those from the Great Zhou Dynasty were caused by Chess Saint. If Great Zhou Sacred King wants to trace culpability in the matter, perhaps speaking to Liu Zong of the Xihua Sacred Mountain would be a good start. He was the one who advised we help rescue the Chess Saint," Ye Futian remarked without care. He then looked at those from the other holy lands. "All of you are from the holy lands of the Nine States, and many of you are highly regarded elders. Have I made any false statements?"


    The onlookers'' eyes flickered. When Ye Futian activated the Nether Sword Matrix, he hadn''t just possessed the power to kill the Chess Saint; Ye Futian could have killed everyone around him in the process. People of Xihua Sacred Mountain and people of the Great Zhou Dynasty had all been possible targets, but Ye Futian had not attacked them. He must have known that if he did that it would have been an excuse for all the holy lands to oppose him.


    "Palace Lord Ye spoke the truth. I can testify," someone from Jixia Holy Palace in Qi State said. Ye Futian looked at the speaker and saw that it was Zhuge Yi, the cultivator who participated in Nine States Forum last year as the Second Runner Up.


    "It is true." Seeing that Zhuge Yi had spoken, other strong cultivators of the Jixia Holy Palace also agreed.


    "The deaths of the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty really weren''t on account of Palace Lord Ye''s action. Emperor Xia should send someone to investigate the matter." At this point, those from the Xia Clan also spoke up.


    The people of Xia Clan have spoken, many secretly thought. In the Nine States, the Xia Clan held a special place. Since they had spoken on the topic now, it was likely that the Great Zhou Sacred King would have no more excuses to deal with Ye Futian.


    "That sword and that girl caused most of the deaths during the battle!" Great Zhou Sacred King still refused to relent.


    Ye Futian looked indifferently toward the others, closed his eyes, and moved his mind. In an instant, a magnificent Sword Will was transmitted through the void of the faraway distance. Many people looked towards the Sword Will and their hearts trembled fiercely. This is the spirit of the Divine Sword.


    Soon an enormous sword had traversed the void, hurtling towards the Earth with unbelievable speed. It fell straight down, causing many to quickly move out of its way before the sword landed directly in front of Ye Futian.


    "Saint Elder." Ye Futian looked at the old Village Chief next to him. The old Village Chief levitated with both hands on the giant sword, and in an instant, there was a terrible holy authority that circled around his body. Invisible Sword Will instantly swept across heaven and the earth, and a sword diagram appeared to abruptly cover this vast space.


    "If you want to know all of it, I will tell you. This sword was formed by my brother, and he was in charge of the sword matrix in the Nether Sword Mound. Yaya is the sword spirit nurtured out of the Nether Sword Matrix. They appeared together, and along with Ye Futian, were able to activate the Nether Sword. The people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty trespassed into the restricted area, and now blame the sword? What a joke." The voice of the Village Chief could be heard clearly by everyone, and suddenly everything seemed to be clear. So this was how it was.


    The Sword Saint of the Void placed the Nether Sword Matrix here, seeking an heir, with Tombkeeper Village tasked to guard it. Ye Futian was the successor.


    "So, is the Sacred King satisfied now?" Ye Futian said while looking at the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    The eyes of Great Zhou Sacred King glanced coldly at him. He then turned his eyes to the Village Chief again. When the Village Chief held the sword, it felt stronger. The sword was morphed by another sword slave, and both of them had been followers of the Sword Saint of the Void. Now that they were one again, the atmosphere became increasingly intense.


    With a frigid snort, Great Zhou Sacred King abruptly turned and said: "Let''s go."


    As soon as he finished and turned to leave, the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty all looked icily to Ye Futian, ready to vacate. Unexpectedly, all of this had been just to make Ye Futian look better.


    "Did I say that you could leave?" Ye Futian suddenly spoke, causing everyone to freeze.


    The eyes of everyone from the Nine States widened in shock. Today, Great Zhou Sacred King had been domineering and unrelenting in his pursuit of a reason to do away with Ye Futian and his party, attempting to forcibly seize everything that Ye Futian had gained. But everything that had happened afterward made it impossible for him to find an excuse to do so. Furthermore, he undoubtedly felt the authority and pressure that were released when the Village Chief held the Divine Sword, yielding in the face of an unwinnable fight.


    But now Ye Futian dared to try to detain them?


    Great Zhou Sacred King slowly turned his eyes, and they suddenly burst with incomparably sharp lights. A dreadful pressure of the Divine Path descended upon Ye Futian, heavy enough to suffocate.


    "Who do you think you are talking to?" Great Zhou Sacred King spoke with a cold voice, and the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty stared at Ye Futian as well. Was he asking for trouble?


    "Although the world of cultivation believes that the fist rules everything, in the end, we still have to be reasonable." Ye Futian looked at Zhou Sacred King, and then his gaze returned to Yaya and the two corpses on the ground. "Did the Sacred King forget to give an account for the deaths of these two?"


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian. Could this man want Great Zhou Sacred King to give him an answer?


    The look of many present reflected surprise. He was right that in the world of cultivators, the fist was greater than anything else, including reason. What kind of figure was Great Zhou Sacred King that he needed to give an account for ordering the execution of two civilians?


    "What kind of account do you want?" Great Zhou Sacred King stared tightly and emotionlessly at Ye Futian.


    "It''s a pity that I can''t kill the Great Zhou Sacred King, and am not qualified to ask the Sacred King to repay this with blood," Ye Futian calmly stated, and the hearts of many trembled. Ye Futian dared to say that he wanted to kill the Great Zhou Sacred King. This was madness like none other. On the other hand, everyone also knew that Great Zhou Sacred King would like to have Ye Futian''s life if he could.


    "But the killers will have to leave their lives here," Ye Futian slowly said, and a flash crossed the eyes of the two cultivators of the Great Zhou Dynasty, their eyes sharp with concern. They had carried out the execution, and now Ye Futian wanted their lives in return?


    "How dare you?" Great Zhou Sacred King questioned, eyes fixed on Ye Futian.


    To execute the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty in front of him?


    "Saint Elder, if I died at the hands of the Sacred King, would you end the lives of all who are present from the Great Zhou Dynasty?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes," the Village Chief responded indifferently.


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded calmly. "People of all the holy lands of the Nine States shall bear witness today. Those who kill, shall, in turn, be killed.


    "Execute!" As his voice fell, incomparably radiant streams of light rained down from within the sword diagram, too fast to react to. Two loud crunches were heard, and in the direction of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the bodies of the two strong cultivators were torn to pieces!

 817 Sacred War

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 818 Impending Storm

    Once news of Tombkeeper Village''s recent allegiance spread, shock filled the Eastern State and continued to spread throughout the entirety of the Nine States.


    Palace Lord Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State had activated the Nether Sword Matrix within the Nether Sword Mound and slaughtered the Chess Saint. In doing so he had gained the inheritance of the Sword Saint of the Void.


    From then on, Tombkeeper Village would be subordinate to the Barren State. The Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village was a saint and entered the Holy Zhi Palace as a Holy Elder so that the Barren State could now possess saints.


    Ye Futian, the young leader of Barren State, left the Barren State, and in a year''s time had left his name in the memories of the Nine States while also recruiting saints for the Barren State. It was no wonder that the previous palace lord had not hesitated to sacrifice himself and protect Ye Futian in that battle so that he could inherit the position of palace lord.


    There was further news that shocked Nine State. Ye Futian had openly insulted the Great Zhou Sacred King and had executed the King''s deputies in front of him for the sake of two commoners.


    For this, Great Zhou Sacred King would launch the Sacred War.


    According to some, after Great Zhou Sacred King returned, he sent an envoy to the Xia State, where the people of Emperor Xia dwelled. To start a real Sacred War between two holy lands, he would need to inform Emperor Xia. After all, Emperor Xia was the ruler of the Nine States, and all holy lands within the Nine State were under his dominion.


    Now that the Barren State had saints and caused such great turmoil, it was no longer the Barren State of before. Even the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty could not have its army directly advance on the Holy Zhi Palace and eradicate it.


    Despite that fact, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had begun to organize its army; an invisible storm was brewing.


    The Nine States had not had a Sacred War for many years. Just how devastating could this one be?


    After everyone had left Tombkeeper Village, there were some who tried to enter the Nether Sword Mound but discovered that the matrix of the Nether Sword Mound had altered to such a degree of extreme danger that they were unable to enter. Tombkeeper Village''s migration to the Barren State seemed to indicate that the Nether Sword Mound had now lost its significance. Under such circumstances, people naturally left it alone, as there was no incentive for them to risk their lives.


    ��


    Qi State and Jixia Holy Palace had gotten wind of the upcoming war. The battles at the Nine State Forum has already shocked them. Jixia Holy Palace had produced a once-in-a-century genius, Zhuge Yi, who was naturally endowed with the five elements of the saint body.


    But even so, Zhuge Yi was ranked behind two people from the Nine State Forum, one of whom had already been confirmed as a spirit body. Yu Sheng was this person, and it was no wonder that at the age of 15 he was already so ingenious that he could even conquer spiritual bodies, which indicated the immensity of his power.


    At this time, in a manor not far from Jixia Holy Palace, a young man in white sat quietly drinking tea, surrounded by some friends who were also discussing this matter.


    "Ye Futian and Yu Sheng from the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State are truly rare geniuses, hard to find in a hundred years, and well known in the Nine State at such a young age. Perhaps, when Ye Futian inherited the title of palace lord, there were many who were waiting to see him make a mistake, but in just two years'' time, the Barren State has absorbed saints and cultivators of the sage ranking. If it were not for Ye Futian''s notorious challenge against the Great Zhou Sacred King, the rise of the Barren State would be unstoppable."


    "Indeed, Zhou Ya was known to be the heir to the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and challenged Ye Futian after the Nine State Forum. Ye Futian leveraged his position as a palace lord in their exchanges with great arrogance, but in the end, Zhou Ya was at a disadvantage and had nothing to fight back with. If he was not of the sage plane and had had to participate in the Nine State Forum, then he probably would have had to fight Yu Sheng. Between the two it''s hard to tell who''s more exceptional."


    Many people praised and acknowledged that the reputation of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were now beginning to spread to every corner of the Nine States.


    "Brother Bai, it was said that you came from the Barren State and traveled in the Nine States. Did you know Ye Futian and Yu Sheng?" someone looked at the youth in white and asked. This young man was extraordinary in his stature, sitting quietly with refinement and gentility.


    "I know them." The young man nodded.


    "Oh?" Everyone showed some interest and asked, "What does Brother Bai think of their talents?"


    "The Nine State Forum has already proved that they are rare finds in the Nine States." The youth appeared calm, but his heart palpitated.


    In just two short years, had he already grown to this degree? It seemed that the decision made by the palace lord and the master before their deaths was the correct one.


    He thought that once upon a time, he was hailed as the first genius of Barren State, the future saint of Barren State, and the succeeding palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "That''s right." Everyone smiled. On the side of the youth, a beautiful woman leaned over and poured tea for him. This woman was extremely attractive and known for her looks in the area. She smiled lightly. "You are equally talented. In time, people in the Nine States will also know your name."


    "Yes, Brother Bai is the most talented person that we have ever seen." The person next to him smiled and continued, "What are your plans? Will you continue to stay in the Nine States?"


    The young man shook his head gently and said, "I plan to cultivate at Jixia Holy Palace."


    Having traveled throughout the land of the Nine State and reflected on all matters in the world, his perception was different from before.


    Back in the day, he was the chosen one and the focus of all in the Barren State. His every move was scrutinized because he was being trained as a saint, and there was no room for any mistakes. On his end, he worked hard to fulfill the hopes of the elders and to be the heir of the holy land. He had perfected himself so that he was worthy of the people''s love.


    But just as he had said, there was no one perfect in the world. Looking at the world from different angles, there would be discoveries of different landscapes, so he left to experience the world in ways that might appear to be ordinary and insignificant.


    Now that he had comprehended certain things, Bai decided he ought to pursue other routes, such as cultivating with those who were the best in their field.


    "We will congratulate Brother Bai in advance." Everyone laughed. If an ordinary person had mentioned his intention to go to Jixia Holy Palace to cultivate, he might be ridiculed. But since he was the one who breached the subject first, given his talent, there naturally would be no problem for him to enter Jixia Holy Palace.


    "I want to go with you," the beautiful girl next to him said softly, and everyone who saw this smiled and then said their goodbyes.


    The young man felt the woman''s gaze. His eyes focused somewhere far away, and his thoughts seemed to have been pulled back into the past, to a time when he once had feelings for a woman; a radiant woman whose temperament was different from his and who dared to challenge existing rules.


    "I knew a woman who had captured my heart. We were betrothed when we were young, but she reneged. I didn''t hold it against her. Later, our elders once again arranged a wedding for us, but on the day of the wedding, the man she loved showed up, and they both came to me, holding hands." The young man recalled the past and smiled.


    The woman stared at him with languor. "Have you still not let it go?"


    "I have already let it go, but in my heart, there can be no more romantic feelings," the young man said to the woman.


    "It doesn''t matter, I can always keep you company." The woman smiled gently.


    "I will hold you back," said the youth.


    "I don''t mind." The woman shook her head.


    The young man could only smile with resignation.


    ��


    Summer State, Xia Clan.


    The prosperous Xia Clan had been praised by many as the strongest force in the Nine States. Its familial branches meandered through countless regions, standing like the imperial palace within Summer State City.


    The Xia Clan itself was like a castle. No one dared to offend this ancient and venerable family. All holy lands of the Nine State had always maintained respect towards the Xia Clan, because the Xia Clan had the surname of Xia.


    However, above the sprawling complex of the Xia residence, there was a procession of shadows coming from the air with a carriage amongst them.


    Many figures rose up, intending to intercept the procession, but the person in front of the carriage took out a token, and everyone immediately backed away to stand respectfully on either side.


    The carriage kept going forward, heading toward the location of the Xia residence.


    Right then, at the Xia residence, a line of figures levitated toward the sky in a mighty procession. The man leading exuded an air of superiority, suggesting the status of the saint plane. This was the family head of the Xia Clan, who led everyone to stand quietly, waiting for the arrival of the carriage.


    Soon, the carriage landed in front of them, and everyone looked at the figure inside the carriage. No one knew who the supervising inspector making their appearance was.


    Emperor Xia had established the Nine State Guards in the land of Summer State to monitor the Nine State. But even if the Commander of the Nine State Guards himself came before Saint Xia, he was the head of the Xia Clan and would not need to pay his respects. So, he just stood there quietly, watching.


    At this point, a figure came out of the carriage and stepped forward.


    It looked to be a very handsome young man, around 20 or so, dressed in men''s clothing, but with skin was so radiant and lovely that it surpassed the luster of a woman''s. He certainly appeared more beautiful than any woman. If he were a woman dressed in a woman''s clothing, she would have been an exceptional beauty.


    "A woman disguised in men''s clothing." Saint Xia was uncommon, and as a cultivator of the saint plane, this kind of disguise could not escape his eyes.


    Of all the supervising inspectors, there did not seem to be such a person.


    Who was she?


    "What will be the business for the inspector''s visit?" Saint Xia asked, but the woman did not bother to speak. Instead, she took out a token and showed it to him.


    When Saint Xia saw the token, his heart jumped violently, and his mind raced quickly. He soon guessed the identity of the person.


    "Kneel," Saint Xia commanded to everyone behind him, and then started bowing to greet the guest.


    Everyone from Xia Clan who witnessed this scene was extremely shocked inside.


    What could command such obeisance from even their master?


    What was the meaning of that token?


    One after the other, they all knelt on one knee and bowed to the young man.


    "No need, as you were," the young man said. "Great Zhou Sacred King has sent words regarding his intention to start a Sacred War, so let the witness explain in detail what happened between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace."


    "Yes." Saint Xia nodded and turned back to look at one person, the cultivator from Xia Clan who had gone through the Nine State Forum and the Nether Sword Mound. He went forward and explained the entire ordeal. After listening, the youth maintained a tranquil demeanor with no outward signs of turmoil, but a decision was made.


    "Send words to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State to announce the rules of the Sacred War," the youth commanded the people behind him.


    "Yes." Someone nodded, and suddenly, a party of cultivators levitated and departed.


    The youth returned to the carriage without another word, and the group left in the mighty formation just as they had come.


    Saint Xia looked at the departing figure, and there was trouble in his heart. Emperor Xia had let her come to the land of Nine State as a precursor What kind of storm would this entail?

 819 Commencement of Sacred War

    Barren State, Holy Zhi Palace.


    From the expanse, a mighty procession came in, and behind them, the cultivators of Thousand Holy Islands followed.


    The palace lord of Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian, had returned.


    Moreover, they have already learned that at Nine State Forum, the Barren State had achieved brilliant records and placed first in all of the Nine States.


    Yu Sheng took the first place in Nine State Forum. The Barren State had also performed brilliantly as well, making the top 100 and the top 50.


    When those who went to Nine State Forum had brought back the news to the Barren State, it caused a great commotion. Those who had questioned Ye Futian before abandoned their old prejudices against him.


    That kind of achievement was a first in the Nine States, and Yu Sheng was sure to have a saintly existence in the future.


    The choice of the old palace lord had been correct; Ye Futian could indeed lead Holy Zhi Palace to a new height.


    "The palace lord is back." At this time, inside the Holy Zhi Palace, voices were heard, and many figures suddenly levitated in the air. Some young disciples showed fervent enthusiasm and worship on their faces. These were youths who were of the same age, but when they were still cultivating at the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian had already led the people of Holy Zhi Palace to compete with all the geniuses of the Nine States.


    "Greetings to the palace lord," said many people.


    Ye Futian looked at the ground below and nodded slightly at the crowd. Sage Wanxiang and others who were on his side, upon witnessing this scene, also felt a great sense of comfort. Now, Ye Futian''s reputation in the Holy Zhi Palace had reached a new height; there were no longer those voices of doubt when he first took over the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Who are those people?" Many noticed the people from Tombkeeper Village, a great troop that followed behind Ye Futian.


    An old man was standing almost by Ye Futian''s side. Even Sage Wanxiang and Zhuge Qingfeng were standing behind him.


    One''s stance and position often indicated their status.


    At this time, there were a few more figures coming out of the air. It was Sage Douzhan, Sword Demon, Sage Daozang, and a few others who smiled and walked toward this direction. The mighty cultivators formed a welcoming party, like welcoming the triumphant return of heroes.


    However, Ye Futian, at this moment, did not have the joy of triumph. On the contrary, his mood was rather somber. The trip to the Eastern State was extremely rewarding, but at the same time, they would be facing an unprecedented strong enemy��the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "Master, Uncle-Master." Ye Futian called out, "Summon every one in the Holy Zhi Palace, I have an announcement to make."


    Sage Douzhan and Sword Demon had a strange look on their faces and seemed to have felt the strangeness in Ye Futian''s voice. They look at Sage Wanxiang and Zhuge Qingfeng and understood that something grave may have happened.


    "Okay." Several of them nodded immediately and began to summon all the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace, and even brought together the island master of the Thousand Holy Islands.


    It did not take long. On the impressive steps of the Holy Sage Pavilion at the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian and the others stood quietly, staring at the gathering crowd, and everyone at the palace was coming at an extremely fast speed.


    Gradually, there were fewer and fewer people coming, and Ye Futian took a step forward and gestured to everyone. Immediately, they quieted down.


    "A year ago, I took our people from the Barren State to the Eastern State to broaden our experiences, and some things happened, of which you must have heard about. At the Nine State Forum, our Barren State disciples achieved extremely brilliant results, no less brilliant than any other state in the Nine States." As Ye Futian spoke, everyone saw the determination in his eyes, and they slightly balled their fists. Their achievements at Nine State Forum this time had really turned them into believers.


    The Barren State had not been in contact with the Nine States for many years. Because there were no saints, many of them had felt inferior and did not feel they were equals. When Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State arrived, with how dazzling Qin Zhong was, even the Holy Zhi Palace seemed somewhat less impressive in front of Zhisheng Cliffs. Thus, many principalities had chosen to attach themselves to Zhisheng Cliffs. However, Ye Futian''s appearance changed everything and proved some other things.


    "Of course, I''m gathering you here today not to boast about the achievements of the Barren State disciples in the Nine State Forum, but to announce a few things," Ye Futian continued and looked at the Village Chief.


    The old Village Chief took a step forward and suddenly, countless people were looking at him, trying to guess his identity.


    "The Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village in the Eastern State is of the saint plane. Now, he will lead Tombkeeper Village into the Holy Zhi Palace and be conferred as a Holy Elder," Ye Futian said with a calm voice, but just this sentence had shaken to their core.


    Saint.


    This old man was the cultivator of saint plane in the legends.


    Moreover, he was to be part of the Holy Zhi Palace?


    Even Sword Demon, Sage Douzhan, and others trembled in their hearts. Although they felt he was extraordinary, they did not expect that he was of the saint plane.


    "Palace lord, saint plane?" someone asked with trembling voice. Ye Futian looked at the Village Chief and, in an instant, his temperament changed suddenly; a holy power swept out, and the world seemed to be under the pressure of this great power.


    The entire Holy Zhi Palace, in every corner, could feel this holy power.


    "It''s a real saint." Many had a fervent look on their faces. Ye Futian brought a cultivator of the saint plane to the Barren State.


    "You can greet the elder now," Ye Futian said, and everyone responded by bowing and calling out, "Greetings to Holy Elder."


    For many years, the dream of the Barren State, with the efforts of several generations, was to have a saint. But today, a cultivator of the saint plane had actually appeared in front of them as a Holy Elder; one could only imagine how this had impacted everyone.


    Even Sword Demon and Sage Douzhan stepped out to pay their respects. "Greetings, Holy Elder," they said.


    Even top sages had to pay respect to saints.


    Sainthood was not only a plane but also a status symbol.


    "In addition, the Holy Zhi Palace will create the Nether Palace, and the Holy Elder will also serve as the Palace Lord of the Nether Palace, and the people of Tombkeeper Village will become disciples of the Nether Palace," Ye Futian continued. Tombkeeper Village had descended from Sword Saint of the Void, hence the name.


    Everyone took a deep breath. Not only was he conferred as elder, but a special palace had been set up for him. Obviously, the palace lord was serious; this saint was really going to cultivate here.


    How did the palace lord achieve this?


    "Senior Yang." At this time, Ye Futian looked at another, and Yang Xiao stepped out.


    Many showed a look of curiosity. Who might this be?


    The palace lord had addressed him as "senior."


    "Yang Xiao, the City Lord of Yujing City in the Eastern State, also a sage plane cultivator of the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States, has led some of his people from Yujing City to come here and enter our palace to cultivate. Therefore, the Holy Zhi Palace will create the Matrix Palace, with senior Yang Xiao serving as the palace lord of Matrix Palace, with the study of matrixes as the main subject. Afterward, anyone talented in the way of matrices will enter this palace to cultivate."


    Everyone''s hearts trembled again. The strongest in the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States, with levels existing below the saint plane, was enough to be at the forefront of the Barren Sky Rank.


    The strength of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State had greatly increased, and it was comparable to some of the holy lands in the Nine States.


    "This is the good news. Next, there is bad news to announce," Ye Futian continued to speak to the excited crowd, and suddenly, everyone focused on him.


    Sword Demon, Sage Douzhan, and the others flashed a look of concern on their faces. Ye Futian had returned with saints, yet he was still very solemn; it must have been terrible news.


    "Our Holy Zhi Palace, in the very near future, could be at war with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in the holy land of the Eastern State. Therefore, everyone must be mentally prepared, as this battle will be a matter of life or death. Even the survival of Holy Zhi Palace depends on it. This is not a threat." As Ye Futian spoke, the excitement that was felt by the people turned into a sinking feeling.


    Ye Futian paused for a moment and did not continue until everyone had time to digest what he had to say. "This war concerns life or death, and I don''t want to force anyone, so I will give everyone some time to think things over. Before the start of the war, you may choose to leave, but from then on, you will no longer be a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace and won''t be affected by this war. However, once this war is announced, you must strictly obey the order. If you leave the Palace, you will be considered a deserter, your cultivation will be forfeited."


    Extreme times required extreme measures; this Sacred War would also be a baptism by fire for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    This was the same thought as when he was choosing who to bring to the holy temple to cultivate. When the Sacred War began, only those who were willing to move in tandem with the Palace would be kept around, and those who lacked determination would be sifted out. There was no sense in forcing these people to stay; it would be counterproductive.


    "Today, I just wanted to give you a choice regarding this news. You are dismissed," Ye Futian said, then turned to leave, leaving behind countless shocked cultivators.


    These few words from Ye Futian caused a strong impact in their hearts, a feeling that could not be expressed.


    The Palace had finally been sanctified, but the Holy Zhi Palace would be at war with a holy land of the Eastern State.


    Sage Douzhan and Sword Demon followed behind Ye Futian, and Sword Demon asked, "Is it really so serious?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "All matters here at the palace, including Holy Elder and Palace Lord Yang, will require your attention, and I''m handing them over to you. I have been exhausted these days and I want to rest. If you have any questions, you can consult Master-Uncle Wanxiang. All that''s left to do now is to wait."


    "No problem." Sage Douzhan nodded. "We will take care of things from here. Go do what you need to do."


    "Much indebted." Ye Futian smiled and left with Jieyu and the others.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng returned to their residence and saw a group standing quietly, waiting.


    Yi Qingxuan walked to Yu Sheng''s side and stood on her toes to adjust his shirt for him. Then she smiled and looked at Ye Futian. "Did our Yu Sheng give you a long face?"


    "Yes, but look who are we talking about," Ye Futian responded with a smile. In the Palace, only those who were close to him did not treat him as the palace lord.


    "Tired?" Nandou Wenyin regarded Ye Futian gently.


    "I''m all right, masteress." Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    "When he agreed to become the palace lord, he was destined to face all these issues," Hua Fengliu whispered. Of course, he understood that Ye Futian had considered things carefully before agreeing to serve as the palace lord. This was not just about power, but truly a chore. Given that Barren State had no saints, he shouldered missions and responsibilities.


    "The Master is right, now that I have chosen this road, I can only move forward." Ye Futian nodded, and looked at Loulan Xue next to him and said, "You''ve worked hard."


    Loulan Xue was looking after Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin. She shook her head gently.


    "Brother Futian." Just then a voice was heard, and Ye Futian turned and saw Long Ling''er and Mu Zhiqiu coming toward him. Everyone in the palace knew that these two were good friends of Ye Futian, so the guards would not have stopped them from entering.


    Ye Futian looked at Long Ling''er and thought that time went by so fast. This girl was now 20, and she was had become more graceful than ever.


    Looking at her reminded Ye Futian of Yaya. When he first got to know Ling''er, she was the same age as Yaya. However, she was a little more fortunate than Yaya. Even though her older uncle was gone, she had parents who treated her like a princess, and Yaya was the more pitiful one in comparison.


    When his thoughts turned to this, his hatred for the Great Zhou Sacred King intensified.


    He rubbed Long Linger''s head. Long Ling''er habitually gave him a look of annoyance but did not make a big deal, letting him messing up her hair.


    "Did you cultivate well?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes, brother Futian, I am pretty good now," Long Ling''er said a little proudly.


    "Go ahead and be boastful." Ye Futian smiled. "Ling''er, go home and do not come to the Palace for the time being."


    "No." Long Ling''er shook her head and looked at Ye Futian. "Brother Futian, you are the Palace Lord, you can''t give me preferential treatment."


    "You little girl..." Ye Futian tapped on her head. This girl was way too shrewd, even for him.


    "Zhiqiu, when can you get on the Law Rank?" Ye Futian looked at Mu Zhiqiu and asked with a smile


    "I..." Mu Zhiqiu was caught off guard and then smiled with a little bitterness. She had fought with Ye Futian once, but now, looking at everything that Ye Futian had done, she could only look from the sidelines; he had advanced too quickly.


    "Don''t make fun of me," Mu Zhiqiu replied.


    "Your natural talent is very strong, so sooner or later, it will happen." Ye Futian smiled, but Mu Zhiqiu did not say much.


    "Loulan, have dinner prepared. I haven''t had a good meal for a long time." Ye Futian smiled. Loulan Xue nodded, and the group enjoyed a peaceful dinner.


    But in the world outside, because of what Ye Futian had said, everything was chaos.


    Everything that Ye Futian had done spread toward in the Barren State. After a few days, the shockwave reached the Barren State.


    Ye Futian had slaughtered a saint.


    Even though it was done with the help of the matrix, it was still a slaughtering of a saint, a legendary figure. And the young leader of the Palace in the Barren State had done so to a legendary figure that the Barren State needed to look up to.


    The Sovereign Family of Zhongzhou City, Tingxue House, the Zhuge family of the Northern Territory, Alchemy city in the south of the Barren State, and many other countless top forces were rocked by the news.


    This time, the Barren State would face an unprecedented storm.


    Ye Futian and his people cultivated quietly; he was waiting for a message.


    A month later, finally, there was a procession of majestic figures appearing above the Holy Zhi Palace, and they came directly above the Holy Sage Pavilion.


    Ye Futian took many of his people and levitated to meet those who were above.


    "Where is Ye Futian?" someone in the expanse asked.


    "Who wants to know?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Nine States Supervising Inspector," yhe person headed the group in the expanse replied.


    Ye Futian''s eyes lit up. They finally came.


    "What business does the supervising inspector have with us?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Great Zhou Sacred King sent a message to Emperor Xia, saying that he desired to initiate Sacred War. He said that if Palace Lord Ye is willing to go to Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to repent on his knees and send the Divine Sword and Yaya into the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, the Sacred War can be avoided. Does Palace Lord Ye desire war or peace?" the supervising inspector announced.


    As his voice faded, everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace revealed an angry look.


    "It''s outrageous." Several of the palace lords looked incredibly offended after hearing the proposal.


    Ye Futian gazed at the supervising inspector in the expanse, a spirited look on his face. He replied, "War."


    "Very well." The supervising inspector nodded. "From this moment forward, between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace, the Sacred War has been permitted according to the regulations of Sacred War. Cultivators of the saint plane can only battle equals and are not permitted to kill anyone below the saint plane. Cultivators of the sage plane are not permitted to kill anyone below the sage plane. Families of cultivators who are outside of both domains are exempt from the war; Nine States Guards will monitor this Sacred War.


    "Do you remember it all?" the supervising inspector asked.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Farewell." The supervising inspector nodded, and then the group left.


    Here was the declaration that the Sacred War had now started.


    From this moment forward, Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace, following the rules, could kill anyone from the other side, unlimited by time, place, and means!


    It was easy to understand why such rules were put in place; if saints could slaughter anyone below the saint plane, then both sides may exhaust all of their people except for cultivators of the saint plane!

 820 Preparations for Battle

    Countless people from the Holy Zhi Palace raised their head and looked at the figure disappearing into the air. The Nine States Supervising Inspector was a term that was unfamiliar to the majority of them. The Barren State had very little interaction with the Nine States and was nearly forgotten in the past. It was only until Ye Futian stepped out of the Barren State that they entered the vision of the Nine States again.


    However, they also understood that the Nine States Supervising Inspector was the subordinate of Emperor Xia, the ruler of the Nine States.


    Battles between holy lands needed the approval of Emperor Xia and for him to set the rules before it could begin.


    Emperor Xia had approved the battle between the two holy lands, but to prevent those of higher cultivation indiscriminately killing those of lower cultivation level, he had set this rule to prevent harm from coming to the loved ones of those in battle. This was a tacit agreement in the cultivation world.


    Ye Futian stood in the air above the Sage Palace, looking at the disappearing figure with a serious expression.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was once the ruler of the Eastern State and had a strong heritage of ruling over boundless regions.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was different from the Holy Zhi Palace. The Holy Zhi Palace was more devoted to imparting knowledge and skills while the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was an imperial faction, so it would naturally have stricter control over regions under its dominion.


    For example, even though Ye Futian was the Palace Lord, he was unable to command the Barren State''s elite factions to battle for him. However, the Great Zhou Sacred King could. With a single command, he could assemble a huge army from all the factions in the regions under his control.


    Coupled with the fact that the Barren State had been weakened for many years, even though their performance in the Nine State Forum was brilliant, their overall strength was definitely inferior to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, no matter which cultivation level they considered.


    The start of the Sacred War was a matter of life and death for the Barren State.


    Moreover, once the Sacred War started, any methods could be used, assassinations and interceptions for example.


    This also meant that from the moment the Supervising Inspector had announced the start of the Sacred War, the people from the Palace could be attacked at any moment.


    Ye Futian looked at the ground and said in a clear voice, "From now on, the Holy Zhi Palace will enter a state of battle. All disciples cultivating in the Palace are to be on alert and no one will leave without orders."


    As his voice sounded, everyone felt the tension in the air.


    In this period of time, about one-third of the disciples in the Holy Zhi Palace had left. After all, to many people, they had only come to the Palace to cultivate and did not have too much emotional attachment to it. Since Ye Futian had given them a choice, they would naturally leave.


    Among those who left, the majority were under the Sage Plane. Their wills were not firm and had only come to the Palace in pursuit of higher cultivation level and were unwilling to fight for the Palace to the death.


    "Apart from that, the Palace will now have Sage Hall disciples. As the name suggests, they will be the core of the Palace. In this Sacred War, those who have achieved feats will be promoted to Sage Hall disciples and can enter the Sage Hall to cultivate," Ye Futian continued. Seeing the serious expressions on the faces of the disciples below, he had an astute expression as he delivered the rest of his speech.


    "When I brought the Palace''s disciples to participate in the Nine State Forum, we suffered the cold shoulder from many holy lands. However, the Palace''s disciples had the most outstanding performance in the Nine State Forum. As such, although this Sacred War may be a crisis, it is also an opportunity. If the Holy Zhi Palace can stand tall after the Sacred War, from then on, nobody can stop the Palace''s uprising in the Nine States. All the disciples that participate in this Sacred War will shake the Nine States alongside me in the future."


    Many people felt their blood boil as they heard Ye Futian''s words. Ye Futian had already done what they had thought to be impossible in the past. The group that followed Ye Futian, namely Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que, and the rest had shone brightly in the Nine State Forum.


    They also hoped that they would one day be able to head out towards the Nine States.


    "Relay the news to the various factions," Ye Futian looked towards the people beside him and said. Sage Douzhan and the rest nodded. They knew Ye Futian''s intentions. Although he did not say it, he was asking for assistance from the rest of the Barren State''s factions.


    Relying on the Holy Zhi Palace''s strength alone was insufficient to stop the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army. There were too few experts in the Palace.


    However, this was a matter of life and death. Ye Futian could not force the other factions in the Barren State to participate, so he could only let them choose. Even if they were unwilling to participate in the war, Ye Futian would not hold a grudge against them.


    "Holy Elder, Palace Lord Yang, let us formulate a few battle matrices for group battles." Ye Futian looked at the Village Chief and Yang Xiao. In a battle between armies, battle matrices would be very important as it could increase one party''s strength drastically.


    "Okay." The two of them nodded. In a Sacred War, battle matrices were essential. Moreover, they needed other matrices to adapt to different circumstances.


    "Okay, let''s all make preparations for battle," Ye Futian said and the crowd started to disperse. The Holy Zhi Palace started to become busy.


    Ye Futian looked into the air. At that moment, he felt as though he could understand why Liu Chan was so radical back then. The Barren State was weak, so if it could not rise up, it would face destruction in the face of these kinds of situations.


    ��


    At the same time the Supervising Inspector descended upon the Holy Zhi Palace, another Supervising Inspector also descended upon the capital of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, where countless factions had gathered.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King had an overbearing personality. With his character, he would not give Ye Futian the luxury of time. He evidently had no plans to fight a drawn-out fight against the Holy Zhi Palace, but instead, he had planned to lead his army towards the Barren State and take down the Holy Zhi Palace in one fell swoop.


    Ye Futian would pay for his actions.


    All the holy lands in the Nine States were paying close attention to the Sacred War. After the news had spread, some factions in the Nine States had already started making their way towards the Battle Sage Palace. They knew that the first battle in the Sacred War would take place in the Barren State. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army would directly descend from the air. For someone of the Great Zhou Sacred King''s stature, Ye Futian had not given him any face when he had killed his underling in front of him that day, so he would definitely not allow Ye Futian to live.


    No matter how outstanding Ye Futian was or how likely he was to enter the Divine Path, once he was killed, all of that would no longer matter.


    It was rumored that he had entered the Sage Plane not long ago and was still at the lowest level of the Sage Plane. Under these circumstances, Ye Futian would pose no threat in the Sage Plane''s battles and would even need the protection of others.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain and Zhisheng Cliffs were the first to reach the Barren State.


    At that moment, in a restaurant in the Barren State''s Zhongzhou City, a group of experts from Zhisheng Cliffs had arrived. Kong Yao had come personally and was drinking wine in the restaurant.


    Everything that had happened in the Nine State Forum and in the Nether Sword Mound had made Zhisheng Cliffs feel threatened by the Barren State''s existence. However, before they had the chance to do anything, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had already initiated the Sacred War. This had saved the Zhisheng Cliffs much effort.


    Now, they only needed to watch the unfolding war in silence.


    There had been no Sacred War in the Nine States for a long time. Hopefully, this Sacred War would not be disappointing.


    At the same time, the Barren State''s factions had also received the news.


    Alchemy City''s City Lord Office, Armorer Pavilion.


    You Chi was personally creating a ritual implement. As he was topless, the muscles on his body were scorched by the flames. Not just him, but many elite experts from the City Lord Office were creating ritual implements with him.


    At that moment, a middle-aged figure walked in and said, "Father, why are you doing this? Just leave this to the Uncle-Masters."


    "In armory, if I claim to be second in the Barren State, nobody will dare to claim to be first. If we want to create elite Sage ritual implements as soon as possible, I will definitely need to do it personally," You Chi said. The middle-aged person he was replying to was his eldest son, You Mu.


    "Father, you have decided to participate in this time''s Sacred War?" You Mu asked.


    "Your younger sister and that *sshole Xue Ye are still in the Palace, how can I sit around?" You Chi glared at him and replied. He then stopped the actions on his hand and ordered, "You all will finish the final step of creating the ritual implement." As he said that, he turned around and left, casually putting on a shirt that was drenched in his sweat and walking out of the Armorer Pavilion.


    "Order some men to gather all the best ritual implements in Alchemy City," You Chi said to You Mu. A glint appeared in You Mu''s eyes, and he asked, "It seems like father is preparing to muster all our forces. What if we lose the Sacred War?"


    "With Alchemy City''s current position, even if the Holy Zhi Palace and all the other factions in the Barren State are replaced, Alchemy City will continue to stand tall," You Chi said with confidence. Because they specialized in armory, there would be no faction that would not welcome strong armorers with open arms.


    "However, it is also our limiter. After cultivating for a long period of time, we start to lack the passion that youngsters have. Look at many of the older people in the Barren State, they don''t even dare to participate in the Sacred War. Aren''t they just waiting to die? Look at Ye Futian, he brought the Barren State out and obtained first in the Nine State Forum. Do you understand what that means?" You Chi looked at You Mu and asked.


    "Ye Futian is indeed an extraordinary genius. If given enough time, he will definitely be able to enter the Divine Path," You Mu replied.


    "Someone who dares to stand proudly in front of Saints and kill the Great Zhou Sacred King''s descendants in front of him will definitely enter the Divine Path. Not just him, Yu Sheng, even Ye Wuchen and the others will also have a chance," You Chi continued coolly. "When things reach an extreme, they can only continue in the opposite direction. The Barren State has had no Saints for many years. Now, we have ushered in an explosive era. This will be a huge era, if we are able to overcome these obstacles, the Barren State''s future will be limitless.


    "Ye Futian was sent up to the position of Palace Lord by the entire Barren State. Then, let us escort him this time." You Chi continued, "Also, go and inform the citizens of Alchemy City to gather their families'' elites from each Plane."


    "Father." You Mu was stunned. He was preparing to make all the families and factions of Alchemy City participate in the Sacred War?


    "What if they do not agree?" You Mu asked. After all, the opponent was after the Holy Zhi Palace; it was a Sacred War.


    "Even I, the City Lord will participate. If they want to stay out of it, I''ll kill them first," You Chi said nonchalantly. "Send people to the Fire Emperor Palace and Goddess Pavilion as well. I do not have control over the other regions of the Barren State, but in the southwest region, I have the final say."


    "Okay." You Mu nodded as he replied. It seemed like his father was serious this time.


    At the same time, in the Barren State''s eastern region, the Divine Sky City''s Top Three Schools had already been unified and were under Chen Yuan''s control. When news of the Sacred War reached them, Chen Yuan had also gathered the experts from the Top Three Schools and the Divine Sky City''s forces. He gathered the experts from each Plane and prepared to head towards the Palace to participate in the war.


    The current leader of the Barren State was the Son from his Starry School!

 821 Reinforcements from All Around

    In the Holy Zhi Palace, everyone was preparing their best for the upcoming battle.


    At that moment, in Ye Futian''s quarters in the Sage Palace, the Sword Demon and Sage Daozang were there, looking towards the front.


    Ye Futian stood there and, in front of him, there were flocks of avian demonic beasts. These demonic beasts had one similarity, and that was their speed. Among them were wind rocs, gale eagles, and golden-winged condors.


    Even the weakest of these demonic beasts were at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane. There were even a few of them who had entered the Sage Plane and were mounts that had been trained by the Palace''s experts. However, at that moment, all of the demonic beasts were being engulfed by a terrifying aura. Ye Futian''s eyes appeared to have become a terrifying storm, endlessly deep and demonic. His gaze shot directly into the beasts'' eyes, into their brains, where he imprinted his Spiritual Will on them.


    All the beasts shivered uncontrollably. Long after, they finally regained their composure, lining up in a row and bowing to Ye Futian.


    "Go," Ye Futian gave an order, and the beasts flew into the air, flying towards different directions once they were in the sky.


    At that moment, many fields of view appeared in Ye Futian''s head. Through the eyes of the demonic beasts, he could see everything that they could.


    The Sword Demon and Sage Daozang looked at each other. They did not expect Ye Futian to have the ability to control demonic beasts. There seemed to be nothing this fellow did not know. This way, the demonic beasts could replace cultivators in providing reconnaissance for them and keep watch over the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s movements.


    "Uncle-Masters," Ye Futian looked at Sage Daozang and the Sword Demon and asked, "do the two of you feel that we should adopt a full defensive strategy or send experts to assault the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in this Sacred War?"


    They had already received news that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was assembling its army and preparing to head towards the Barren State.


    This sacred war was initiated by the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, so they would take the initiative to attack. However, to Ye Futian, he would have the advantage of staying in the Palace. Battling in the Barren State would be battling on their home ground.


    As the weaker party in the war, the Holy Zhi Palace, evidently, could not send out their full force to attack the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, so they only had two options now. Just like Ye Futian had said, they could either focus on defense, or send experts to launch a sneak attack on the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty while defending.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was once the ruler of the Eastern State and has a strong foundation. Since they have initiated the Sacred War, they will be prepared. How could they easily let us launch an attack on their headquarters?" Sage Daozang continued, "If we only send out a portion of our forces to launch an attack on the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, it might be pointless. If we send out a huge army, the Palace''s defenses will be weak and unable to withstand the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s invasion. So, I do not suggest a sneak attack."


    "I think so too." The Sword Demon nodded lightly. Sage Daozang''s analysis was valid; the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had traveled far to conquer the Barren State, so they would definitely leave people to stand guard. This meant that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would not bring its full strength. They had the home ground advantage, so they needed to utilize it fully. If they split their forces to launch a sneak attack, that would be tantamount to giving up their advantageous position and taking unnecessary risks.


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded and replied, "Palace Lord Yang and I have thought of some battle matrices, but there is still a lack of experts in the Holy Zhi Palace."


    In the Sacred War, battle matrices with little power were useless. Only higher-level matrices would work, but they needed many experts to activate.


    "The Palace indeed lacks elite experts, that will be a huge disparity between us and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. If they clash during the war, we might..." The Sword Demon''s tone was pessimistic. After all, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s foundation was evident for all to see. The army that they had assembled this time would definitely be filled with experts.


    At that moment, the Sword Demon and Sage Daozang raised their heads and looked into the distance. A strong aura emanated from the direction they were looking at and Ye Futian also looked towards there. Soon, a group of figures flew rapidly towards them, the Palace''s disciples leading the way.


    "Reporting to the Palace Lord, City Lord You has led a group of people to participate in the Sacred War," a voice said from the air.


    Ye Futian then replied, "City Lord You, please."


    "Palace Lord Ye." You Chi''s voice sounded, and he brought a group of people towards Ye Futian''s direction.


    Apart from him, Ye Futian also saw the Fire Emperor Palace''s Yan Jun, the Goddess Pavilion''s unparalleled Goddess, Chu Ji, and the few family heads from the Alchemy Conference that Ye Futian had met in the past.


    "Uncle," Ye Futian called out to him. You Chi was his brother Xue Ye''s father-in-law, so it was only appropriate for him to address him as "uncle."


    "Yan Jun, Palace Lord Chu, elders." Ye Futian then turned to the others and saluted them. They had all come to provide assistance to the Palace, so he would naturally not put on the air of a Palace Lord. He bowed to them as one from a younger generation would.


    "Palace Lord Ye." They returned the salute, and a glint flashed across Chu Ji''s eyes. This little fellow had unwittingly brought the Barren State to such a position that even Saints were willing to enter the Palace.


    "Futian, I have brought Alchemy City''s experts. I have also brought the ritual implements that my Alchemy City has stored over the years, do take stock of them." You Chi also smiled and changed his tone. When he came, addressing him as "Palace Lord Ye" was etiquette, but since he was already here, he did not need to regard Ye Futian as an outsider.


    A glint appeared in Ye Futian''s eyes as he saw You Mu step forward and pass two storage rings to him and say, "One of them contains elite Sage Plane ritual implements while the other contains weaker ritual implements, but they are all for Sage Plane cultivators."


    Nodding his head, Ye Futian''s Spiritual Energy entered the rings as he took a look. An exciting glow appeared in his eyes. As expected of Alchemy City, the two storage rings were the equivalent of a treasure vault.


    "Uncle, do not pretend to be a stranger." Ye Futian did not express his thanks. He did not need to; You Chi leading the south-west''s experts to participate in the war was equivalent to giving his life for the Palace. This was a favor far more valuable than the previous battle in the Palace.


    "I haven''t been fighting much these few years. Now that I have the opportunity to fight against the experts from the other states, it''s a good thing," You Chi smiled and said.


    "Do you want to spar with me first to warm up?" A voice sounded. They all looked into the air and saw two groups of experts flying towards them.


    The person who had spoken was Tingxue House''s Xu Shang. On the Barren Sky Ranking, You Chi was ranked eighth while Xu Shang was ninth.


    "Fighting you is boring," You Chi said coolly. Xu Shang''s specialization was slaughter, and Xu Que had inherited that.


    "This is a rare opportunity. In the Sacred War, we will be able to see what level we are at now," a person smiled and said. It was the Sovereign Family''s Huang Xi. Huang Jiuge stood behind him.


    The Sovereign Family and Tingxue House both resided in Zhongzhou City, and the two of them had led their experts to assist the Palace.


    "Long time no see, seniors. You still look as stylish as before," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "What style can we have when compared to you? Standing out in the Nine State Forum, killing a Saint in the Nether Sword Mound, that is a Saint! You could brag about it for a lifetime," Xu Shang replied. Ye Futian had killed a Saint.


    This fellow could really bear to do it.


    How decisive.


    "Do you have confidence in this Sacred War?" Huang Xi looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "Not much." Ye Futian shook his head and did not attempt to hide it.


    "I guessed so," Huang Xi said.


    "But senior still came," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "Just like You Chi said in his letter, you are the leading figure selected by the Barren State''s will. Now, the Barren State''s factions prosper together with the Palace. How can we survive if the Palace is gone?" Huang Xi said.


    In the Sacred War, once the Palace was eliminated, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would definitely enter the Barren State as the winning party and rule over the entire Barren State.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was an imperial faction. By then, the various factions in the Barren State would only be able to bow down and take orders from them.


    Ye Futian was a little ashamed. He was indeed the Palace Lord selected by the Barren State''s common will. Now, the responsibility on his shoulders seemed to have become even larger.


    This was a war they could not afford to lose.


    "Don''t push it on me. You came because you wanted to, not because of a letter," You Chi retorted. What he said was the truth, with Huang Xi and Xu Shang''s status, if they were unwilling to come, a letter would definitely be insufficient to persuade them.


    Ye Futian felt his heart warm. He turned around to the people behind him and said, "Prepare a banquet."


    "With the Sacred War ahead of us, let us do away with these formalities," You Chi said. It was not important whether they had a banquet or not.


    "It''s fine, I can discuss the matter of the Sacred War with Uncle and the seniors over a banquet as well," Ye Futian replied.


    "Okay." You Chi nodded. Thereafter, the Palace started to set up a banquet. Soon, it was prepared. The influential figures in the Holy Zhi Palace all arrived, and the Village Chief also attended. Many people saluted him as he entered.


    "Chief Chen has arrived," during the banquet, a voice sounded from outside.


    Ye Futian said in a loud voice, "Please enter."


    Soon, Chen Yuan and Mu Chuan entered. Alongside them were the Blazing Sun School''s chief Yang Ding and the Starry Moon School''s chief Gong Kui. The family heads of the Divine Sky City were also there. The West Mountain Dragon Clan''s Long Ling''er and her father Long Ao, as well as Gu Yunxi''s father, had also arrived.


    Ye Futian stood up to welcome them.


    After that, Zhuge Qingfeng led the Zhuge Family''s experts in. However, there were not many people from the Zhuge Family this time, even less than the Sovereign Family''s experts. When Zhuge Qingfeng had gone to gather experts, there had been objections from within the family. Certain factions within the family were unwilling to participate in the Sacred War and fight for Ye Futian.


    "Previously, while I was discussing with my two Uncle-Masters, I had commented that the Palace did not have enough experts. Now that seniors have arrived, we can set up some formidable battle matrices." Ye Futian said to the rest, "My initial plan was to set up a few battle matrices, and I will need seniors and your men to help in setting up these battle matrices. Different cultivators can contribute in different ways."


    "Just go ahead. Give us the order if you need us to do anything. In this Sacred War, you are the commander," You Chi replied.


    The Sacred War was a war between holy lands, so it naturally needed someone to have absolute control. As the Palace Lord, Ye Futian had assembled the strength of the entire Barren State, so it was only fit for him to be in control.


    At this time, they needed to be of one mind and ignore personal benefit, otherwise, many people would die.


    The rest of them all nodded. Ye Futian did not need to be modest and started assigning roles.


    The Village Chief watched everything silently. The scene before his eyes made him surprised. He had not expected that Ye Futian, who was only in the Sage Plane, had such rallying power in the Barren State!

 822 The Sacred Kings Obsession

    The Great Phoenix Hall stood proudly at the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty of the Eastern State.


    The Sacred King was draped in a golden phoenix robe above the very high steps outside the Great Phoenix Hall. His black hair draped over his shoulders as he kept his hands behind his back. A clear aura of pride exuded from his person.


    Many mighty ones stood at the steps beneath him, which had images of phoenixes carved on them. They were all top-class sages coming from all corners of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. There were many square matrices beneath the steps, looking as if they were armies standing by awaiting orders.


    Their surroundings were unnervingly quiet. Everyone''s eyes were on the Sacred King, waiting for his orders.


    "How many major forces are not here yet?" the Sacred King asked.


    "My king, the Black Thunder Clan and the Flying Snow Sword Clan are not here yet. There were several other nobles who needed to gather their men, so they are late. However, everything is underway," someone reported.


    "Tell them they are to show within a month no matter what. They don''t need to be here if they aren''t able to do so," the Sacred King said plainly. As speculated by the people of the Holy Zhi Palace, while the Holy Zhi Palace was merely a sacred ground for training, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was a sovereignty, which meant that they held absolute rulership.


    The Sacred King was the absolute king of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. No one dared to defy him.


    "Yes, my king." Someone took the order.


    "I have another matter to report. There is news from the Barren State that many forces gathered and are heading to the Holy Zhi Palace to serve as reinforcements. Should we interfere?" someone else reported.


    "No need for that." The Sacred King said plainly, "If they intend to cause a storm, then we''ll simply crush them all."


    "Yes, my King."


    None were surprised. When Zhisheng Cliffs had imposed themselves in the Barren State, they had tried means of gathering forces of the Barren State to achieve their goals. However, the Sacred King was, after all, a king. His bearing dictated that he should not have to resort to tricks like those executed by Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Anyone who dared stand in his way was to be crushed.


    The Sacred King''s wrath called forth a bloodbath that would stain the lands of the Barren State.


    "There are more sages than nobles coming from all of the forces this time. However, I need more than an army of sages. I need an army of nobles as well," the Sacred King said plainly. Everyone was startled. Their king had indeed intended to raze the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, from the sages to every last one of the nobles.


    Nobles were to serve as reserves in this case. If even the nobles were all dead, the Barren State would turn worthless and powerless, and there would be no way for them to rise again.


    "Yes, my King." All of the Sacred King''s people had their orders. However, the forces participating in this assault had their own agendas. As they were fighting a sacred war, massive casualties among their own were inevitable, even if they were able to raze the entire Barren State. As such, they left as many of their future generations behind as possible. However, the Sacred King disagreed. He had them brought their nobles to bear on their enemies as well.


    Everything was deemed to be the fault of Ye Futian, the idiot. He might have been a rare genius, but a genius who had yet to blossom was nothing. What he did, which infuriated the Sacred King, was akin to digging his own grave.


    "We will gather here again, a month from now, to attack the Barren State," the Sacred King said and then left.


    "All hail the Sacred King." Everyone present bowed to pay their respects. They only dispersed after the Sacred King was no longer seen.


    The Sacred King came to one of the bedchambers, which had been lavishly decorated and was named the Lapis Lazuli Palace. It was the bedchamber of Si, a favorite concubine of the Sacred King. With the exception of some servant girls, no one else was allowed to step foot in there.


    Many who were close to the Sacred King didn''t even know who Si actually was. They only speculated that she was a beauty like none other, whose unparalleled charm mesmerized the Sacred King.


    At the moment, a woman wearing lavish clothes was seen in the Lapis Lazuli Palace. Her clothing shone like Lapis Lazuli yet seemed to be as thin as a cicada''s wings. The vague style of clothing made the woman''s perfect figure look all the more alluring.


    "Sacred King." The woman walked forward. Her slender legs and skin that showed between the fabric looked incredibly seductive. Even her eyes seemed to be capable of sucking people''s souls away.


    However, the Sacred King simply stood quietly as he looked at her. If anyone from the outside were able to see her, they would have thought her looks to somewhat resemble the Glass Saint, the number one beauty in the Eastern State. Furthermore, the way her hair was done and the accessories she wore on them were near identical to those worn by the Glass Saint. However, she lacked the graceful, regal air of the Glass Saint, and was overflowing with seductive charm capable of poisoning the hearts of men.


    Regardless of how striking the resemblance between her and the Glass Saint was, and how pretty she was, she was still not the Glass Saint. She was little more than a replacement.


    The woman leaned onto the Sacred King. Her fragrant scent and fiery body were more than capable of making a man''s blood boil. However, the Sacred King was calm and composed still. He looked at her eyes and took her by the hips, walking towards the bed.


    When the Barren State was no more and he had gotten his hands on the Sword Matrix of the Void, making him the man to master the number one matrix in all of the Nine States, he would set out to complete a wish that he had been unable to act upon a long time ago.


    He might have had the world in his hands, but there was one lingering obsession in his mind, which had stalled his training for a considerable amount of time.


    That obsession was none other than to make the Glass Saint, the number beauty of the Eastern State, his.


    ��


    Ye Futian was high above a training ground in the Holy Zhi Palace, looking at the people train below.


    The Sword Demon and Xu Shang had taken some of the mighty ones from the Sword Palace and several top-notch swordsmen from Tingxue House to train there. Other than that, there was also a swordsman from Tombkeeper Village, who was at the pinnacle of the Sage plane. They were training to use a sword matrix. The Village Chief and Yang Xiao were present to guide training.


    There were nine of them, with the weakest being at a lower archmage level. There were three who were at an upper archmage level, four at a middle archmage level, and two at the lower archmage level.


    They all took their corners and formed a matrix. There was a huge sword in the middle. That was the Divine Sword. A sword diagram appeared in their surroundings, and there was a true sword-type ritual implement in every corner in the diagram ringing about.


    All of those swords were top-notch sage ritual implements, and all of them were given by You Chi.


    The sword diagram grew increasingly bright as they went about activating the matrix. Beams of light from the swords shot into the heavens. Sword aura gathered in a frenzy around them, looking incredibly dazzling.


    The sword matrix originated from nine sword diagrams. They were being trained by nine swordsmen, and with the help of the Divine Sword and many top-notch sage ritual implements used, the matrix would definitely bring frightening power to bear.


    There was no use fretting about the numbers of mighty ones in the sacred war, as they were already at a disadvantage. As such, the only way for them to level the playing field was by amplifying each individual''s power, bringing out the greatest potential in every single fighter on their side.


    Yang Xiao flashed and came to Ye Futian''s side, saying, "They''re all top-class cultivators and have an unparalleled capacity for comprehension. They should be able to master changes of the sword matrix soon enough. Let''s go see how the others are doing."


    "Thank you for your effort," Ye Futian said. The ones who were most versed in the art of matrices were Yang Xiao, him, and the Village Chief. The Chess Saint had been the one who was most versed in the art of matrices in all of the Nine States, and Yang Xiao had been his eldest student. His background, coupled with his impressive abilities in the art of matrices, had given them an edge over the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in terms of use of matrices.


    Wars were to be fought using what was most advantageous to one''s side and bringing that advantage to greatest use. As such, Ye Futian tasked Yang Xiao mainly with teaching the art of matrices to the sages. Jiu Gongzi, on the other hand, was made to guide the nobles.


    Both took to the air and Ye Futian said, "The people of Xihua Sacred Mountain have arrived in the Barren State. They are at Zhongzhou City. Liu Zong is there as well."


    "Yeah." Yang Xiao nodded quietly as if Liu Zong was but the name of a stranger.


    "The Barren State is now faced with a sacred war and we''ve gotten our hands full with that alone. We cannot afford to fight Liu Zong now," Ye Futian elaborated honestly. He knew well why Yang Xiao had come to train in the Barren State.


    Yang Xiao knew that. He hated Liu Zong immensely, and only by joining hands with Ye Futian would he get his chance at revenge in the future.


    "There''s no need for more words. I know well enough," Yang Xiao replied. The incident did not only involve Liu Zong. Xihua Sacred Mountain had given its consent to Liu Zong to do what he did as well. There was only one thing Yang Xiao needed to do at the moment, and that was to have the Barren State win the sacred war, and with that, to have the Holy Zhi Palace be renowned throughout the Nine States, so much so that it would surpass both the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain in status.


    He would then have his chance of taking revenge.


    Currently, "vengeance" was the last thing in Yang Xiao''s mind.


    "Futian." A voice was heard. Ye Futian turned around and saw a girl was coming his way.


    "Phoenix," Ye Futian called.


    "My teacher is here," Phoenix said.


    Ye Futian was stunned for a bit, before smiling and said, "Thank you, Phoenix."


    With the Undying Old Man around, casualties in the Barren State would be reduced somewhat. So long as an injured one did not end up dying immediately on the battlefield, the Undying Old Man''s expertise in related rules would be enough to save them.


    Such abilities were of utmost importance in the sacred war.


    "What''s with the formalities?" Phoenix replied.


    "You have a point. We''re family, after all." Ye Futian smiled and said, "Come with us to see how my teacher and the others are doing with their training. We''ll go meet your teacher after that."


    "Sure." Phoenix nodded and they came to a training ground. Sage Douzhan, Sage Jingang, Yuan Hong, and others who were of exceptional physical prowess all were seen training there.


    There were even more people to be found in that training ground. There were 36 of them, and they were all training in the art of martial arts matrix.


    The matrix was known as the Heavenly Battle Matrix, a matrix capable of melding the force of 36 people into a single entity, which was transformed into an immensely powerful Heavenly Battle Aura. The burst of power was controlled by three core members. Its power was unmatched and it was capable of both offense and defense.


    Almost all of the top-class members of the Battle Sage Palace and the Golden Great Apes were found there. There were also several mighty ones from Tombkeeper Village who excelled in physical arts joining the ones to form the Heavenly Battle Matrix.


    Sage Douzhan and Yuan Hong were among the ones who were capable of shaking the heavens and the earth when they battled. With the Heavenly Battle Matrix being formed by 36 very powerful mighty ones, Ye Futian came to look forward to the power that the matrix was capable of bringing to bear on their enemies.


    They visited Sage Daozang next.


    Ye Futian and Phoenix left after checking them out for a while. Yang Xiao remained there to guide them in their training in matrices.


    Ye Futian returned to the Holy Sage Pavilion. Sage Wanxiang was seen greeting the Undying Old Man.


    "Elder," Ye Futian went up and greeted the old man with a smile. He owed a huge favor to the Undying Old Man. When Hua Jieyu was in a coma, it was the Undying Old Man who attended to her.


    The Undying Old Man looked at Ye Futian, then smiled and said, "It seems that I''ve made the right decision to have Phoenix come to the Holy Zhi Palace to train all those years ago. Her talents are exceptional, and her training would only be held back if she continued to train with me. It puts me at great ease to have her roam the Nine States with you. Now, I''m just hoping that we can get through this ordeal."


    It was apparent that he knew about the Nine State Forum.


    "I grow increasingly confident with all of you coming from all corners of the Barren State, seniors. The Holy Zhi Palace will definitely prevail against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty," Ye Futian said.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty called all forces within their territory. We cannot afford to be careless." A voice was heard from afar. Ye Futian looked in their direction. He saw a group of people coming to him, and he smiled in response.


    "Now that even you are here, Palace Lord Yun, my confidence grows even more," Ye Futian smiled and said. The one who showed was none other than the lord of the Ice Temple, who brought mighty ones from their temple with her. Yun Shuisheng was there with them as well.

 823 Enemy at Ones Gates

    Time passed, and all of the theNine States were observing the Sacred War happening at this time.


    The war would most probably result in the utter destruction of the Holy Zhi Palace, and that holy land of the Barren State would forfeit. However, if the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State was somehow able to repel the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, the rise of the Barren State would then be deemed unstoppable.


    That very Sacred War would have probably ended up taking the history of the Nine States to a new level. It would have served as a turning point with an incredibly significant meaning to it.


    As such, everyone from all over the States was watching the war unfold in silence. All holy lands had dispatched powerful ones to Zhongzhou City.


    But then again, it was also a given that some forces from the Barren State paid more attention to the outcome of the Sacred War than others. That Sacred War would have a direct influence on how the future of the Barren State was to be shaped.


    For instance, the Ximen clan and the Lightning Court of Zhongzhou City, Mortal World of the eastern regions, Taixuan Mountain of the northern regions, and many others; none of them had participated in the Sacred War.


    They had not been a part of that scuffle back then, after all, and they knew that from a certain perspective, the reason why Ye Futian was able to become a leader of the Barren State was that he had the backings of many top-notch forces. Those forces consisted of Alchemy City, Tingxue House, the Sovereign Family, and others. All of those forces had a very close and friendly relationship with Ye Futian, and all of them shared his glory.


    However, the Ximen clan had little relations with Ye Futian. They saw no need to be a part of a battle that hung the lives of its participants on a thread; they saw no need to risk their lives for Ye Futian.


    Regardless of how exceptional Ye Futian was and the heights of his achievements in the Nine State Forum, it had nothing to do with them.


    But then again, while they were unwilling to participate in that war, they had nonetheless paid close attention to it, as it was a war that would determine the future of the Barren State.


    At the moment, there was a group of people discussing some matters in the compound of the Ximen clan in Zhongzhou City.


    "I heard rumors from outside that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty has amassed an army of tens of thousands and that they are heading for the Barren State. I''m afraid that the Holy Zhi Palace is done for in this Sacred War. What do you think?" the chief of the Ximen clan asked.


    "Hanjiang trained in the Holy Zhi Palace before. Ask him." Someone looked at Ximen Hanjiang, on the side. He had chosen to leave the Holy Zhi Palace before. Ximen Hanjiang, one who had once been the champion of the Law Rank for a brief period of time, had not only failed to become the pride of the Holy Zhi Palace, he had also clashed with Ye Futian before as well.


    It was only natural that he was unwilling to fight for Ye Futian.


    "31 cultivators have left the Holy Zhi Palace, unwilling to be a part of the war. I''m afraid that even Ye Futian himself is not sure about how to win this war," Ximen Hanjiang said.


    Everyone present nodded in agreement. "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty ruled over vast lands. Every single force found within the sacred realm was under the Sacred Dynasty''s rule. There would definitely be some among these forces that are more powerful than the top-notch forces in the Barren State. There is no way the Holy Zhi Palace would come out on top in this one."


    "Shouldn''t we do something for ourselves then?" someone asked. They meant drafting out contingency plans for themselves. If the Holy Zhi Palace was to be destroyed, it was anyone''s guess what future would await the Barren State.


    Would the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty set their sights on us next?


    "Let''s just sit around and watch how everything unfolds. We''ve no say in the matter and our choices are limited. If we were to get ourselves involved in anything and we ended up on the losing side, things would be very precarious for us all." The chief of the Ximen clan said plainly, "Furthermore, even if the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were to take the Holy Zhi Palace apart, we would still be the top force in Zhongzhou City. We''d just submit to the Sacred Dynasty and we would do just fine."


    Everyone nodded without saying much.


    The Ximen clan was not the only one that had thought about the problem. Every single force that stayed out of the war was thinking about the same problem.


    "Report!" someone shouted loudly, heading towards them at great speed. The Ximen clan chief then asked, "What''s the matter?"


    "Sir, there is news saying that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army has arrived at Zhongzhou City," the one who came to deliver the news said. Everyone in the Ximen clan looked sharp immediately.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was at their doorstep.


    The Ximen clan was not the only one who had caught wind of the news; every single top-notch force within the city knew about it as well. Furthermore, the news was spreading like wildfire to all corners of the city. Every single restaurant and inn within the city was raving.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army had arrived at Zhongzhou City.


    The Sacred War was just around the corner.


    There was a very renowned restaurant not that far away from the Holy Zhi Palace. If the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were to head for the Holy Zhi Palace, their army would definitely pass by that restaurant.


    There were many people in that restaurant, and Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain was among them. Furthermore, the ones of Xihua Sacred Mountain happened to come across the ones from Zhisheng Cliffs. People from both sides were found in that same restaurant.


    They knew of the Sacred Dynasty''s army''s arrival as well. The army would pass by the restaurant soon enough.


    The vast, tens of thousands-strong army of the Sacred Dynasty was commanded by none other than the Sacred King himself. The Sacred King had led the expedition and waged the war personally.


    "They''re here!" someone on the topmost floor of the restaurant yelled in awe.


    "The army is here." Shocked voices were heard everywhere. A figure after another took to the skies. Countless came outside and looked up.


    An earth-shaking scene was seen. Golden lights scattered about the sky. Golden colors streaked the air wherever the lights passed.


    The army came in three layers. The bottommost layer had the greatest amount of people. Squadrons rode on the backs of huge monsters and took to the air. That army consisted of nobles, yet their steeds were that of sages. Nobles traveled too slowly by themselves.


    The middle layer consisted of an army of sages. Their overbearing might was felt all over the place.


    The topmost layer consisted of the royal army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It was none other than the Golden Phoenix Army renowned all over the Eastern State.


    Great phoenixes were seen all over the skies. The generals of the Golden Phoenix Army were all the most powerful figures, at the pinnacle of Sage Plane, and they rode on phoenixes as they came.


    There was a golden phoenix with a crown at the very center of the Golden Phoenix Army. The phoenix radiated might like bolts of lightning. Its eyes gleamed with sharpness as if it was the king of all birds and the leader of the phoenixes.


    An indescribably luxurious carriage was seen on its back. Members of the royal family were seen on both sides of the carriage. Zhou Ya, Zhou You, Zhou Ziyi, and the others were all there.


    The Sacred King had many concubines, and through them, he came to have many children.


    The one who sat on the carriage was none other than the Sacred King himself. He carried himself as if he stood on top of all living beings. The scene was so extravagant that they were hardly anyone capable of bringing about such an entourage in all of the theNine States, let alone the ones from the Barren State.


    The Sacred King was the supreme ruler of the Sacred Dynasty instead of being just the head of a renowned clan.


    None from the Barren State had seen anything like that. When the army approached and passed by above their heads, a powerful aura swept the place around them. The imposing bearing was one that even those far away were able to clearly sense it.


    The Holy Zhi Palace is done for. Such thoughts welled up in the minds of many. The scene was all too shocking for them.


    The grand army zipped past them in mere moments, leaving behind many awestruck people.


    The people of Xihua Sacred Mountain and Zhisheng Cliffs watched silently. Liu Zong grinned and said, "The Sacred King is indeed a supreme ruler. What imposing air indeed. Let''s go and have a better look." His group all took to the air and followed the army, getting ready to see the battle up close.


    They were not the only ones to do so. Many mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs and elsewhere all followed the army. As such, the rear of the army looked incredibly dazzling. The ones who were tailing the army came to have enough numbers to form something like a tidal wave, which ironically, looked even grander than the army they were following.


    However, those people were a scattered bunch, instead of moving in a perfectly neat order, like the army of the Sacred Dynasty.


    At that moment, everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace was still being busy training. Ye Futian was training the Holy Sage Pavilion as well.


    He looked up far away in the sky and took to the air, coming right above the Holy Sage Pavilion. Many below turned to look at him. Ye Futian went higher and higher. He then stood in the air and gave a clear order, "Gather the students of the Holy Zhi Palace immediately and prepare for war."


    Many were stunned hearing his words. They all knew what he meant.


    One figure after another streaked through the air in mere moments. The lords of all palaces and pavilions had given their orders, telling their students to gather.


    One figure after another took to the skies shortly after, forming a tidal wave gushing at the Holy Sage Pavilion.


    All mighty ones from many top-notch forces, as well as the Holy Zhi Palace itself, gathered quickly. Their eyes were all set on Ye Futian in the air.


    "The tens of thousands-strong army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty has arrived at Zhongzhou City. They''re now heading towards the Holy Zhi Palace," Ye Futian said. While everyone had guessed that was the case, they still shuddered.


    Their enemy was finally upon them.


    Many students, while sages and nobles, felt rather anxious. That was a Sacred War that they had never anticipated facing.


    Ye Futian''s eyes scanned below with an incredible sharpness as he said, "Today''s battle will determine the fate of the Holy Zhi Palace, and in extension, the fates of all of you, as well as all in the Barren State. We all from the Barren State have been shunned by all of the other states for many years. When Zhisheng Cliffs arrived back then, they came throwing their weight around, and thought lowly of the Holy Zhi Palace. I felt such discrimination even more strongly after I ventured outside of the Barren State. As such, this battle at the Holy Zhi Palace is one o destiny. We shall defeat the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and the Barren State shall never be looked down on ever again.


    "Of course, I''m not speaking out of blind faith and baseless confidence. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is a holy land in the Eastern State. Their prowess is indeed unparalleled. What I can promise you all is that if we were to end up being defeated in this battle, I shall live if the Holy Zhi Palace stays intact, and I shall die if the Holy Zhi Palace is no more," Ye Futian continued.


    Many shuddered at his words. It was indeed a last stand with their backs against the wall. If they were unable to repel the enemy, then they would die trying.


    "But then again, I still hope that all of you come out alive from this battle with me. It''s, of course, important to kill your enemies on the battlefield, but surviving is just as important. No matter how dire things become, please keep a strong resolve and live on." Ye Futian then added, "We shall have hope, so long as we''re still alive."


    Ye Futian''s voice resounded in the silent space. Many even came to think that despite being in his twenties, Ye Futian had indeed come to bear a lot on his shoulders. The Sacred War would be upon them soon, and yet he was able to stay composed. It was a feat that many sages, who had far higher training, found difficult.


    Ye Futian looked up far away and grinned. He then said, "That battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace all those years ago had the entire Barren State thinking that I was done for. But, I lived, and I even became the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. No one thought the Barren State would have achieved much in the Nine State Forum, yet we bagged the most brilliant of results. Our student became a champion of the event. The saint inside the Nether Sword Mound of Eastern State wanted to kill me, yet I activated the Sword Matrix of the Void and cut down the Chess Saint."


    "Nothing in this world is impossible. We all go through all manners of hardships in our lives, and one day, when you look back, you''ll find that all the suffering you''ve been through has all become stepping stones on your path to achieve greater strength."


    Ye Futian''s voice reverberated in the minds of all within earshot, as if his voice itself possessed some kind of mystical power. Countless looked at that handsome figure. At the moment, Ye Futian looked incredibly dashing and exceptional.


    It was as if he had been born for such grand scenes.


    "Onward, to battle!" Ye Futian stepped out as soon as he gave the order!

 824 Beginning of the Sacred War

    All of the students of the Holy Zhi Palace stepped outside and came to the entrance of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Everyone took their positions and was looking far away. The Thousand Holy Islands looked as they always did��archipelagos consisting of islands hanging midair, making them look like somewhere in the heavens. Soon, that heaven-like place would become the battlefield of the Sacred War, and the place might end up being taken over by the invaders from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    That Sacred War was fought for the Holy Zhi Palace and, in extension, for the Barren State.


    The air was dead silent and the mood was incredibly solemn. However, what was seen in the eyes of everyone present was indomitable resolve and nothing else.


    The upcoming war would serve as a test of sorts.


    Dazzling golden lights shimmered faraway, turning the sky golden. The eyes of the people of the Barren State never looked sharper.


    The army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was finally upon them.


    Stifling might was sensed coming from far away. It was so powerful that even though the source of that might was extremely far from where the students of the Holy Zhi Palace stood, they were still able to sense how terrifying it was.


    Dazzling shadows of golden phoenixes spread their wings high above the sky. The Golden Phoenix Army, clad in golden phoenix robes, looked just as brilliant. The phoenix carriage was high up in the sky, looking down like a god.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred King." Many clenched their fists. They were about to go up against the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, the king who had absolute say within the Sacred Dynasty.


    The army came increasingly close. The army from the Sacred Dynasty scanned all of the mighty ones standing before the Holy Zhi Palace as well with cold expressions. There was nothing but bone-chillingly cold murderous intent seen in their eyes.


    "Halt." A leader of the Golden Phoenix Army, standing next to the carriage that carried the Sacred King, signaled. The army halted immediately. Both sides were very far away from each other, but it was nonetheless a distance that any powerful cultivators were able to cross within mere moments.


    A young mighty one who was dressed in elegant, lavish garb of high ranking officers of the Golden Phoenix Army walked out. He held a halberd with golden phoenix symbol on it and pointed it at the army of the Barren State and shouted coldly, "The Sacred King is before you. All of you from the Barren State shall bow down." His voice was loud and bright, reverberating throughout the air. He was throwing the might of the Great Zhou Sacred King about, using it to diminish the morale of the opposing army.


    "I have heard that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was once the supreme force that ruled all of the Eastern State." A voice was heard from the Barren State''s side. The one who spoke was none other than Gu Dongliu.


    The ones from the Sacred Dynasty showed prideful looks at those words. The Golden Phoenix Army had swept all over the Eastern State like a tidal wave. It had once been the holy army of the Eastern State.


    "It''s a pity that today, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was reduced to something that bullies villagers, a force that asks for Emperor Xia''s permission just to wage war against the Barren State, the state that endured hard times for a while now. You all take such actions with pride instead of shame. How pathetic indeed." Gu Dongliu continued, "I''m afraid that in the near future, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty will be less than what it is today."


    At that moment, the Sacred King was seen walking out of the carriage, standing in the air like a god, looking down on everyone below him. He took a look at Gu Dongliu and did not bother with him. His temperament was such that he would never be angered by Gu Dongliu''s words alone. Furthermore, he deemed all who were against him to be people who were about to die soon anyway.


    He took a look at the one beside Ye Futian. It was none other than the old Village Chief. He then said, "Zhou Mian."


    "My King." The supreme general of the Golden Phoenix Army, Zhou Mian, bowed.


    "You will be in charge of this battle," The Sacred King said and then looked at the Village Chief. "Let''s have a game of chess elsewhere."


    "Sure." The Village Chief nodded. The rules of the Sacred War were dictated by Emperor Xia, and those rules were ones that even someone like the Sacred King dared not disobey. Even though he was the supreme ruler of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Emperor Xia was the ruler of all Nine States, and the status of the Sacred King paled in comparison. If he were to get on Emperor Xia''s bad side, there would be nowhere for him to run to in all of the Nine States.


    The rules set by Emperor Xia were a decree from the heavens, and no one was deemed qualified enough to defy them.


    As such, the Great Zhou Sacred King was actually allowed to take on one opponent��the old Village Chief. But then again, the Sacred King had no intentions of fighting the Village Chief outright. He wanted to see the Holy Zhi Palace being razed by his army before that.


    The Sacred King took to the sky and came high above. He waved, and golden clouds gathered around him in the air. He sat on the clouds and a chessboard appeared before him.


    The Village Chief came to sit across the Sacred King, as if he cared for no one.


    Many looked up. Those who came to witness the battle shuddered at that scene far away. Those two saints were about to play a game of chess with the ground below at stake, while their forces fought on the battlefield below.


    Ye Futian took a look above, before turning his eyes forward again. Zhou Mian, the supreme general of the Golden Phoenix Army, was the younger brother of the Sacred King. He was a figure who ranked 16th on the Sage and Saint Ranking, which meant that he was indeed among the top figures.


    The Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Ranking consisted of the mightiest 81 sages to be found in all of the Nine States. Due to the power difference between the those who ranked at the very top being very small, thus, they were all top-notch figures. While Kong Yao of the Zhisheng Cliffs ranked ninth and Zhou Mian 16th, the truth was that Zhou Mian was not all that much weaker than Kong Yao.


    Other than that, there were three other mighty ones from the Sage Ranking amidst the great army gathered by the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    All four sages ranked on the Sage Ranking were at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane. Other than that, lords and heads of supreme clans and sects within the borders of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were all people at the pinnacle of Sage Plane. There was no way they were weaker than those who ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking. In fact, they were, in general, more powerful.


    Furthermore, the invading army had a far larger number than the defending one. There was little left to the imagination regarding the outcome, judging just from the lineup of both sides.


    Zhou Mian stepped forward. His air was incredibly sharp, and his eyes glittered with golden light as he looked at the ones at the Holy Zhi Palace and said, "Nobles take the lower ground while sages take the higher ground. Get to your positions."


    Ye Futian looked at the other side and called, "Yu Sheng."


    "Yes," Yu Sheng shouted.


    "Come here," Ye Futian said.


    Yu Sheng stepped out and cast his glance to the other side. The people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty glared at him with sharp eyes.


    So he is the champion of the Nine State Forum.


    "Yu Sheng of the Barren State, first level of Sage Plane, hereby issues a challenge to Zhou Ya, prince of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Would you take the challenge?" Yu Sheng roared as he made his challenge before everyone.


    His brimming voice reverberated in the air.


    It was a commonly seen sight in wars: issuing challenges before one''s own served to boost morale.


    Yu Sheng was the champion of the Nine State Forum and he had broken into the Sage Plane. If Zhou Ya were to take the challenge, there was no doubt that he would lose. But if he were to shirk from the challenge, that would mean that the prince of the Sacred Dynasty was running from a fight before his own people, and that would have been an incredible insult. Furthermore, that was the Sacred War and not the Nine State Forum. If they were to fight, they would go for the killing blows.


    Zhou Ya''s face was ashen. He was lauded as the successor of the Sacred King and his talents were extremely exceptional as well. However, the battle between him and not confident of being able to beat Yu Sheng, the champion of the Nine State Forum.


    "Will you fight or not?" Yu Sheng shouted, seeing how the one he challenged remain silent. Zhou Ya continued to clench his fists with an ashen face.


    "Who are you to challenge the prince of the Sacred Dynasty?" A mighty one from the Golden Phoenix Army stepped out. He was a genius and an upper-level sage. He glared at Yu Sheng and said, "I''m Zhou Yao of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. I''m a sage and I will fight you." He simply said that he was a sage and did not bother to mention anything about his level. Yu Sheng was new to Sage Plane, which would make him a lower-level sage.


    Voom. Devilish wings shimmered as they manifested. Yu Sheng channeled power to his legs and stepped out. The air trembled as he leaped forward like a devil.


    Dazzling wings of a golden phoenix appeared behind Zhou Yao. The Golden Phoenix Army consisted of members of the royal bloodline, making them extremely powerful.


    Two figures shot at each other head-on at breakneck speeds. A golden phoenix halberd appeared in Zhou Yao''s hand and golden lights emanated in the air. The shadow of the golden phoenix blocked out the sky as the halberd went straight for Yu Sheng. A golden flash streaked through the air, looking extremely terrifying.


    An ax appeared in Yu Sheng''s hand all of a sudden. Holy will coursed about, and Yu Sheng brought it above his head and then brought it down, wasting no time with flashy moves.


    A crisp clear sound was heard, like an ax being brought down on wood. The golden phoenix halberd was split in the middle by the ax. The flash of the ax was seen coming down, and then the body before it was split into two right there and then.


    The devilish wings flapped, and Yu Sheng turned around in an arc, heading back towards the Barren State''s side.


    It took only one move with the ax to cut down his enemy.


    "A holy item." Cold expressions were seen in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army.


    The move was dealt by none other than Yu Sheng, the champion of the Nine State Forum.


    The mighty ones at the side of the Holy Zhi Palace watched with burning eyes and boiling blood. That was Yu Sheng, ending his opponent with one move with his ax.


    "Noble army, stand forward and fight," Zhou Mian said coldly. They had a superior number of mighty ones on their side, and thus had no need to play games of challenges with Ye Futian.


    This is the Sacred War. Fair duels have no place in this.


    Wars had always been brutal and cold-blooded. There was only one goal for anyone who fought in wars��to kill their enemies.


    The great army of the nobles of the Sacred Dynasty moved forward as soon as Zhou Mian was done speaking. Their ordered formations brought about terrifying aura. Every single top-notch force formed into a square formation.


    Those outside of the formations scattered throughout the air. Everyone took different positions depending on whether they majored in martial arts or sorcery.


    Dazzling Life Spirits of all kinds shimmered in the air within mere moments, making the scene blindingly brilliant.


    The rules of the Sacred War stated that sages were not allowed to fight nobles. The Holy Zhi Palace''s side had no choice but to field their nobles, as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had brought their nobles into the war.

 825 Battle of the Two Armies

    The people from the Holy Zhi Palace stared at the oncoming Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty army. The Sword Demon and Sage Wanxiang stepped forward and commanded, "Noble Plane cultivators, set up the matrix."


    As their voices landed, all the Noble Plane experts stepped forward and stepped into an array.


    However, the Palace''s Noble Plane army was not as large as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s. They only had four large arrays, located in the front, back, left and right.


    In the matrix at the front were cultivators who specialized in martial arts, as well as sorcerers. The martial arts cultivators stood at the front while the sorcerers stood at the back. The person at the front of the matrix was the Golden Ape, Yuan Zhan.


    The experts from the Ice Temple and Sovereign Family were at the back. They had already taken out their bows.


    Yuan Zhan''s burly body stood at the forefront, larger than any human being and surrounded by an imposing aura. He was topless, revealing his golden body that was rushing with power.


    At the matrix on the left, Yi Xiaoshi was there. After the visit to the Eastern State, many of them had deep insights and many of them broke through to the Sage Plane.


    Now, the only three people who had not entered the Sage Plane were Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi and Zui Qianchou.


    Moreover, if it had not been for the sacred war, they would be in seclusion, attempting to break through to the Sage Plane. Especially for Yi Xiaoshi and Zui Qianchou,


    The Noble Plane''s battle needed them.


    Since that was so, they would naturally do it.


    Yi Xiaoshi''s matrix had the most experts. Apart from Yi Xiaoshi, there was another famous person from the Palace, the Law Rank expert Lian Yuqing.


    Initially, when Ye Futian started to rise up in the Palace, he was among those that tried to trample him. Ye Futian''s existence was also the reason that Lian Yuqing had yet to break through to the Sage Plane.


    However, as Ye Futian''s achievements increased, he finally accepted that he was not of the same level as Ye Futian. He had tried to let go of some of his obsessions, but it was not that easy for him and his mindset was unable to achieve inner peace.


    Before the sacred war, Ye Futian had looked for him for a chat and asked him if he wanted to prove himself.


    Lian Yuqing naturally wanted to prove himself, so he did not leave and agreed to fight in the sacred war.


    Ye Futian had imparted the Guqin pieces that he had learnt in the Guqin Valley to him and given him the Soul Guqin that Liu Kuangsheng had once used to him.


    His mission would be to support Yi Xiaoshi in unleashing his strongest battle ability.


    This time, Lian Yuqing did not question if Ye Futian was looking down on him. Yi Xiaoshi was one of the top few in the Nine State Forum, which was something that he could not have done.


    So, he did not have any other purpose this time. He only wanted to use Liu Kuangsheng''s Guqin to prove himself. The Nine-fingered Guqin Demon and Guqin Valley were once his biggest ambitions in the Palace.


    Since Ye Futian had let go of everything that happened in the past, he could as well.


    At the matrix on the right, the main fighter was Zui Qianchou. All the Sword Palace''s swordsmen were there, coupled with the support of sorcerers.


    The matrix at the back was the same. It was a mixed lineup with swordsmen, martial artists and sorcerers. All the swordsmen from the Tingxue Sword were here.


    The two armies got closer and everyone released their aura, not daring to hold back.


    This was not a man-to-man battle, but a war.


    No matter how strong their personal ability was, faced with a battle of such scale, they could be killed with the smallest careless move. Who would dare to lose their focus?


    "Summon lightning." At that moment, a voice sounded from within the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army. At the forefront, a group of figures summoned the power of lightning at a rapid speed. In an instant, countless thunderbolts had gathered and a terrifying scene appeared in the area. Boundless lightning gathered in the area and let out an alarming amount of destructive force.


    The lightning flew rapidly and expanded to the entire area, descending upon the Barren State''s people, causing the sky to resemble an apocalypse.


    Terrifying dark lightning birds appeared in the sky. With a deafening screech of lightning, the dark lightning birds rushed down towards the four matrices. The giant lightning birds'' bodies could shroud an entire army as it dived down.


    This was the Black Thunder Clan''s lightning summoning matrix. It could merge the power of lightning from the heavens and fire a Thunderbolt Spell that could destroy everything. Its power was beyond measure.


    While they were firing the attack, the Barren State''s army had also made their moves. Yuan Zhan and the others had created a formidable matrix, the golden glow lit up the skies and Yuan Zhan opened his Seven Star acupoints. With a fierce roar, the surrounding experts'' aura had all gathered onto his body. His body became even more burly as he stood tall like a battle God.


    The golden veil shone and Yuan Zhan held the Polearm of Divine Destruction in his hand as he swung it towards the thunderbolt in the air.


    Ye Futian had lent his Polearm of Divine Destruction to Yuan Zhan temporarily. In this battle, Yuan Zhan''s impact was crucial.


    The giant divine birds disappeared under the Polearm of Divine Destruction''s attack. However, there were still rays of lightning striking downwards and crashing onto the light screen, causing many people to vomit blood. The power of the combined spell was evident for all to see.


    "Attack." In the air, the Sword Demon said with a powerful voice. He and Sage Wanxiang were the commanders of the Noble Plane battle.


    They were at an absolute disadvantage in numbers. As such, the strategy they had planned was to assemble their experts into four major camps and rush into enemy''s encampment, breaking the ranks of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army.


    As long as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army was scattered, they would have a fighting chance.


    This battle was meant to be a decisive one from the start. They had resolved to do so.


    The four camps from the Barren State sped up at the same time as an unbearable frost aura permeated the air, freezing the entire area. The experts from the Ice Temple had cast their spells.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty army''s explosive power tore through the freezing force, but what awaited them next were waves of powerful arrows that shot towards them.


    Humph. Zhou You let out a cold sneer. These people were trying to throw their battle matrices into disorder?


    "Golden Phoenix battle matrix." Zhou You said coldly. As his voice landed, countless people''s strength flowed into the skies. A huge Golden Phoenix appeared in the air with terrifying flame power and defensive power. It expelled the frost and shielded the arrows that were flying towards them.


    Thump, thump... Yuan Zhan stepped across the air, the Barren State''s army started their charge forward, casting spells at a rapid rate. At the same time, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army also constantly cast spells, sending mountains towards the Barren State''s army, attempting to crush them. It was a sight to behold.


    Crash. At the front, Yuan Zhan''s body was extremely resilient. Many experts had transferred their strength onto his body and the Polearm of Divine Destruction had transformed into a hundred-meter long polearm and had unparalleled strength. The Nine Heavenly Attacks erupted and they could only see a rod smashing down from the air.


    "Kill." Zhou You let out a furious roar and controlled the Golden Phoenix battle matrix, sending the terrifying Golden Phoenix towards Yuan Zhan. The polearm clashed with the giant Phoenix and the Golden Phoenix was knocked back while Yuan Zhan also felt as though the Polearm of Divine Destruction had struck on an invincible defense.


    "Send out the demonic beast army." In the air, Zhou Mian said coldly. As his voice landed, wild demonic beasts appeared above the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army. They were all demonic beasts in the Noble Plane and did not use any battle matrices and rushed forward, ramming into everything in their way.


    The people from the Barren State wanted to scatter their formation, but they had the same thoughts as well.


    Zhou Mian was the commander for the battle and he could see the Holy Zhi Palace''s intentions in one look.


    War was different from the usual sparring. Strategies were required during war, even if they had multiple times of the other party''s numbers, once their army was scattered, they would be massacred by the other party''s battle matrix.


    "Left and right battle matrix, charge." The Sword Demon''s tone was solemn as he commanded. The Golden Phoenix Army''s experts were all on the same level and should be one of the strongest forces in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, so there was no need for a direct confrontation. Attempting to defeat the Golden Phoenix Army was too difficult and they would definitely lose in a drawn-out fight.


    Lian Yuqing''s expression was serious. At that moment, he was playing the Guqin with both hands and strumming the Guqin''s strings with all his fingers. The experts around him had all released their Spiritual Energy and assimilated into the Guqin melody. Suddenly, many different Spiritual Energies merged with the Guqin and became even stronger, causing Lian Yuqing to be under immense pressure. At that moment, he felt people establishing a connection with him through the Guqin melody and achieving resonance.


    I can do it. Lian Yuqing''s gaze became extremely sharp as he thought to himself. He closed his eyes and immersed himself in the melody.


    The melody was loud and sonorous. It was one of the Guqin Devil''s famous pieces, the High Song. It could merge the Spiritual Energies of the cultivators in the surroundings, causing them to become one.


    At that moment, the Guqin melody was rushing into Yi Xiaoshi''s brain, causing Yi Xiaoshi''s Spiritual Energy to become extraordinarily terrifying.


    "Godly Creation of All Things." Yi Xiaoshi''s gaze was sharp as a giant ancient God appeared in front of him and grew continually.


    The overwhelming Spiritual Energy rushed into Yi Xiaoshi''s brain and then flowed onto the golden ancient God, causing him to become bigger. It actually grew to a hundred Zhang and it seemed as though it could trample the earth beneath its foot.


    "Grow, grow, grow!" Yi Xiaoshi continued saying. He had already closed his eyes and was showering in the endless rays. The Guqin melody combined more experts Spiritual Energy with his, causing him to withstand a dreadful burden. However, he continued persevering as he was one of the few elites among the Noble Plane battle. If Ye Futian had known there was going to be a sacred war back then, he would not have let Yu Sheng and the rest break through to the Sage Plane.


    "Disrupt him." Zhou Mian said coldly. The power that Yi Xiaoshi was storing had become far too strong.


    As Zhou Mian''s voice landed, a giant Golden Phoenix wing slashed towards the ancient God''s arm with the destructive power of lightning. It engulfed the air above ancient God and huge ancient mountains landed from the air, crushing towards the ancient God.


    The ancient God that had been created by the Godly Creation of All Things seemed to have been created out of pure gold. The golden wing was unable to slash through it and as for the lightning striking their direction, many experts stepped in to defend against it. However, under the destructive lightning, some people were killed.


    However, the giant ancient God erupted with unparalleled strength.


    It stepped forward, across the air and struck down with both arms. Instantly, its arms transformed into two ancient Divine trees, golden vines engulfing the people below. The golden vines were as sharp as razor blades while at the same time, the ancient God''s feet trampled on the Golden Phoenix.


    On the right, Zui Qianchou led the swordsmanship battle matrix into offense headed for the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army.


    "Kill." A giant blade hovered in the air and slashed down.


    The Noble Plane was in full-blown mode now!

 826 A Fierce Battle

    Ye Futian looked at the battleground in front of him. The Palace''s disciples had went all out to disrupt the enemy''s formation.


    They were all very clear of the Holy Zhi Palace''s strengths and weaknesses. If they fought separately, they would be defeated without a doubt. The enemy had the absolute advantage in terms of numbers and experts while they had the home ground advantage. This was their territory and the Palace''s disciples had no way out. All the experts who had gathered here had cultivated in the battle matrix with a firm will.


    However, it was different for the enemy. Although the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had absolute control over the factions in their territory, the factions under them were unwilling to fight to the death for them. They were only following orders; the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s strongest forces was still the Golden Phoenix Army.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army was more scattered and was not as united as them. As such, he believed that the moment they posed a threat to the enemy, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s morale would fall and be unwilling to continue the battle. That was why, from the start of the war, the Sword Demon and Sage Wanxiang had commanded the four battle matrices to launch their strongest assault.


    In this battle, they had no way out. They needed to crush the enemy''s morale in one fell swoop.


    When the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty arrived, they had felt that they would definitely crush the Holy Zhi Palace and level it to the ground. The first thing they needed to do was to crush that confidence and stir fear in the hearts of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s factions.


    Nobody could be fearless in the face of a war and in the face of death. He was the same as well.


    Yuan Zhan''s roar sounded out and he gathered the power of the battle matrix in his body and he seemed to have went into a rampage. His body had grown to its limit, when he struck out with the Nine Heavenly Strikes, the experts behind him all fired their spells to increase his speed, offense and defense alongside gathering the speed of power accumulation.


    Bang�� A deafening sound could be heard as the Golden Phoenix created by the Golden Phoenix battle matrix was shattered under the Demon Ape''s polearm shadow. The rampaging Yuan Zhan was like a God, trampling down from the heavens. All of them followed him and rushed into the heart of the Golden Phoenix army.


    "Adjust the matrix and kill him." Zhou You''s tone was cold as he said. He had lost all face on the Nine State Forum and now, Yuan Zhan dared to show off in front of him.


    The Golden Phoenix Army spread out and surrounded Yuan Zhan and the rest. Golden Phoenixes slashed towards them with their deadly claws and in an instant, many people were cut and blood started spurting.


    At the same time, Yuan Zhan swung his polearm and following multiple explosions, many Noble Plane cultivators form the Golden Phoenix Army exploded and died in a horrific fashion.


    Yi Xiaoshi''s battle matrix also rushed forward into the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army without hesitation, even at the expense of being trapped.


    It was do or die.


    At the back, many nine-man matrices started to move. They started to scatter at a rapid pace with wind spells surrounding their bodies, increasing their speed. In an instant, they moved to different directions like after-images.


    With a flash of their blade, blood was drawn. The objective of the matrix at the back was to kill.


    In the air, Zhou Mian looked at the battlefield with a cold gaze and said, "You dare to surround my Great Zhou''s army with a numbers disadvantage. How reckless. Ye Futian, you are looking down on the Palace''s disciples lives."


    His voice was thunderous as it traveled across the air. The people around Ye Futian stared daggers at Zhou Mian.


    In reality, this type of strategy was extremely strong. Zhou Mian could naturally see that as well, but he was attempting to affect their morale and cause their wills to waver. Once the disciples in the battle matrices wavered and doubted Ye Futian, there would be no doubt about the outcome of the battle.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept across Zhou Mian, then he stepped forward and sat cross-legged in the air.


    A beam of light shone as the Guqin Spirit appeared in front of him. Ye Futian looked at the battlefield, many of the Palace''s disciples had died in battle. Moreover, this was just the start, there would be more casualties in this war.


    Retracting his gaze, he looked at the Guqin Spirit and started to strum the Guqin''s strings.


    The Guqin melody was loud and clear and had an extremely strong penetrating force. As the notes bounced in the area, the Guqin melody permeated the battlefield and sounded in everybody''s ears.


    In this period of time, he had also broken through his cultivation level. During the expedition to the Nether Sword Mound, he had already stepped into the second level of the Sage Plane and his mastery in the Guqin had increased.


    The Guqin tune instantly sent the listeners into an illusion. On a bleak battlefield, a general led his troops into a battle where they barely survived.


    In the illusion, the setting sun was like blood. The soldiers fought for their lives, valiantly killing the enemies. All of them had the same conviction.


    The tune, Decree of the General had been taught to Ye Futian by Elder Qin. Now, Ye Futian had improved on it and strengthened the illusion. The Guqin melody had the power to enter one''s heart. Ye Futian did not use any Guqin spells and was only using the Guqin melody, so it could not be considered participating in the battle. Even so, his Guqin melody could make others resonate with him.


    At that moment, the Palace''s disciples could feel Ye Futian''s conviction. It was the same as theirs, unafraid of death.


    Just like he had previously said, if the Palace existed, he would. If the Palace collapsed, he would die.


    At that moment, in the Holy Zhi Palace, Hua Fengliu stood in one of the Palaces. The Guqin melody sounded from afar into his ears. He knew it was his disciple playing the Guqin. The Decree of the General seemed to paint an imposing scene before his eyes.


    He believed that they would definitely win this battle.


    Affected by the Guqin melody, the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciples fought even more valiantly, especially Yuan Zhan. He took the lead and annihilated everyone in his way, there were already over 100 Nobles from the Golden Phoenix Army who had died under his polearm. His rampaging golden body seemed to be dripping with golden blood under the light.


    Yuan Zhan''s frenzy also infected the others. There was much to fear in the face of death, but there was also courage and determination.


    With another deafening sound, many experts from the Golden Phoenix Army were eliminated by another swing of his polearm and the battle matrix nearly fell apart.


    In the air, Zhou Mian and the others had grim expressions. As compared to the Barren State disciples'' bravery, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s factions had way worse performance. There were even people who intentionally hid behind the crowd and did not dare to battle. Evidently, they were afraid.


    Zhou Mian and many other experts looked towards Ye Futian. They had not expected Ye Futian''s mastery in the Guqin to be this strong. Even a normal Guqin tune could penetrate the hearts of others and influence them.


    "Uncle, if this continues, the battle matrices will be destroyed." At that moment, a person beside Zhou Mian said in a small voice. His name was Zhou Huang and he was also an expert on the Sage and Saint Ranking. He was the Great Zhou Sacred King''s eldest son and was very strong. In this battle, the Great Zhou Sacred King''s younger brother Zhou Mian was the commander while he was the vice-commander.


    "We need to interrupt his Guqin tune." Zhou Huang looked at Ye Futian as he thought of methods to assassinate Ye Futian.


    If they killed Ye Futian, the war would come to an end as the Barren State would have no leader.


    However, there were tons of experts near Ye Futian. It was not an easy task to assassinate him.


    "Yes." Zhou Mian nodded and said, "Feint an attack on him."


    "Understood." Zhou Huang nodded, then turned around. He motioned with his hand and immediately, a group of Sage Plane cultivators from the Golden Phoenix Army stepped forward and stared at Ye Futian coldly. At the same time, wind rule power flowed around a few of the experts.


    A Golden Phoenix was created and flew towards Ye Futian at an incredible speed. Behind Ye Futian, Yuan Hong stepped forward, his golden body was gargantuan as he punched the oncoming Golden Phoenix, shattering it.


    However, the Golden Phoenix Army moved towards Ye Futian. Yuan Hong looked at Ye Futian, it seemed the other party wanted to launch an assault.


    Ye Futian did not stop. He did not even bother looking at them and continued playing the Guqin, his gaze looking at the battlefield below.


    In the battle of the two armies, the majority of the Barren State''s disciples had rushed into the other army and were surrounded. The group of people from the fourth battle matrix were on the outside killing people. Among this group, there were experts from the Tingxue House and Fire Emperor Palace. The strongest person among them was Li Futu.


    Seeing many people die, Ye Futian felt pain in his heart too. These people were not fighting for themselves, but for him, for the Palace, for the Barren State.


    The Guqin melody changed abruptly. The solemn illusion suddenly vanished as the Guqin melody became resounding, magnificent and ambitious, as though attempting to tower over the skies. Another image appeared in many people''s heads. The general who had fought hard led his soldiers who had fought alongside him and stormed the castle, pointing his blade at the emperor.


    Ye Futian had used his Guqin to paint an image.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King, who was playing chess suddenly looked down at Ye Futian. A chilly killing intent flashed across his eyes, was the blade meant to be pointed at him?


    "In this sacred war, if the Palace is not destroyed. I promise all of you that in the future, I will lead everyone who has participated in the war to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and level all their imperial palaces to the ground." Ye Futian''s voice sounded throughout the area and echoed in the battlefield. The Guqin melody finally stopped, but the notes seemed to still resound in everybody''s heads.


    "What impudence." The Great Zhou Sacred King humphed and his voice also traveled across the and sounded throughout the area.


    "The Chess Saint also said that as well." Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the Great Zhou Sacred King, who was in the air, then continued, "After that, he died."


    The Great Zhou Sacred King lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian. His pair of golden eyes stared at Ye Futian with a terrifying killing intent.


    If not for Emperor Xia''s rules, he would immediately crush Ye Futian under his palm.


    How dare a person who just entered the Sage Plane speak to him like this.


    Roar... The roar of a demon ape dragged Ye Futian''s gaze back to the battlefield. Yuan Zhan''s body had been impaled by an extremely sharp Golden Phoenix spear, but he had also swept out with his polearm, smashing the Golden Phoenix battle matrix. Zhou You''s body was struck back and he vomited blood.


    Yuan Zhan''s left hand grabbed the golden flaming spear and pulled it out of his body. Blood flowed from his body, but he paid it no heed and roared, "Kill!"


    "Kill, kill, kill!" The shouts echoed throughout the heavens. What courage, what unyielding tenacity!

 827 The Sage Plane’s Battle

    The battle continued to erupt, and people were dying at every moment.


    There were people who were torn apart by spells or Sword Qi, left without a complete body. There were people whose body fell to the ground. Looking down from the air, one could see many corpses lying there, painting the entire floor red.


    "The battle matrix has been breached!" the experts in the air looked down and exclaimed. The Golden Phoenix battle matrix had been destroyed and the Golden Phoenix Army was scattered. However, the other factions'' experts continued to rush towards Yuan Zhan, Yi Xiaoshi, and Zui Qianchou. Everyone could tell that the three of them were in charge of the matrices, gathering the power of the matrix and using rule power to fire their strongest attacks.


    Lian Yuqing was also a priority target of the Great Zhou''s army. His Guqin melody allowed Yi Xiaoshi to expend his Spiritual Energy without regard, creating the ancient God which rampaged in the crowd, causing numerous deaths.


    Ye Futian looked down from the air. From his location, he could see that the experts from the Barren State''s three battle matrices were surrounded by a sea of people. They were surrounded by people from all directions who were attempting to surround and kill them. At the same time, they had sent out many people to deal with those on the outside.


    At that moment, the Great Zhou Sacred King, who was playing chess in the air, looked down emotionlessly at the ground. He appeared to be unfazed by such a tragic battle.


    As the Great Zhou''s King, he had weathered many storms to reach where he was today. He had countless lives under his belt. The war on the Divine Path alone had caused many elite Sage Plane cultivators to die.


    How could he be wavered by the death of Noble Plane cultivators?


    "Acting on impulse, how heroic of you to kill someone in front of me." The Great Zhou Sacred King looked callously at Ye Futian and said, "They all died because of you. As the Palace''s leader, now, the Palace is going to be ruined because of you."


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the Great Zhou Sacred King, then at the corpses. Did they die because of him?


    At that moment, he recalled the scene in Tombkeeper Village. Yaya''s parents died in front of him because of the Great Zhou Sacred King''s orders. They were only ordinary people, even the scene in front of them right now would not move the Great Zhou Sacred King, not to mention the lives of ordinary people.


    In his eyes, they were only ants.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King did not even care about the few people that he killed. The only thing that the King cared about was that someone dared to kill his men in front of him.


    A younger generation Sage Plane cultivator had no right to oppose him, even if he was the Barren State''s Palace Lord.


    At that moment, he thought of many things. He remembered when he took over as the Palace Lord and the Barren State all came to congratulate him. He remembered stepping foot into the Nether Sword Mound at the risk of his life. The ominous premonition in the prophecy did not only refer to what happened in the Nether Sword Mound, but also the danger lurking outside.


    At that moment, Gu Dongliu walked to Ye Futian''s side and raised his head to look at the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King was attempting to shake Ye Futian''s mental state with just words? He naturally understood that the death of the Palace''s disciples had a huge impact on Ye Futian. After all, all this started because of him.


    "As we live, there are some beliefs that we have to stand by. If we can stand by indifferently while the people around us are killed with cowardice and forbearance, one day, when the Palace''s disciples are bullied or killed by the outside world, we will have the same cowardice. If our blood no longer boils, what is the purpose of being the Palace Lord, what is the purpose of cultivation, what is the purpose of living?" Gu Dongliu retorted.


    He had witnessed all of the choices that Ye Futian had made. He felt that they were not wrong.


    "If the Palace wants to rise up, even if there is no sacred war today, it will definitely happen in the future," Sage Wanxiang added.


    The Barren State was a region marginalized by the Nine States and was nearly removed from the Nine States. Moreover, it had offended the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    If the Barren State wanted to rise up and become strong, there were some things that were unavoidable.


    Ye Futian had only caused all this to happen earlier. Moreover, Ye Futian had brought a Saint to the Barren State and ended the Barren State''s Saint-less era.


    Ye Futian continued looking at the Great Zhou Sacred King and replied, "That day, in the Nether Sword Mound, the Chess Saint asked me to decide between the Sword Matrix of the Void and Tombkeeper Village or him.


    "I chose the belief that I have always stood by." Ye Futian''s expression was determined as he stared into the air and continued, "In your eyes, the lives of the masses are like mere ants. However, in my eyes, Yaya''s parents are no different from the Great Zhou Sacred King. The Palace''s disciples are the same. Since I have taken on the role of the Palace Lord, I will do my best to defend the Palace. As for the deaths of the Palace''s disciples, the blood that they have spilled will be honored by the blood of the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty."


    As he said that, he looked towards the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army and said in a loud voice, "All those from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty who have participated in the war, I will remember you all."


    Even if these people could not kill him today, in the future, the god of death would descend upon them one day.


    "Palace''s disciples, hear my order." Ye Futian''s voice resounded throughout the heavens. Immediately, many experts from the Barren State looked solemnly at Ye Futian.


    "Form the Heavenly Battle Matrix," Ye Futian said.


    "Acknowledged." The replies resounded throughout the heavens as well. As their voices landed, the experts stepped forward. The person at the forefront was Ye Futian''s teacher, Sage Douzhan. He had personally stepped on the battlefield.


    Apart from Sage Douzhan, Yuan Zhan, and Sage Jingang from the Barren Sky Ranking were also there.


    36 extremely strong cultivators gathered together and the martial arts aura on their bodies flowed in the area, creating a resonance. In an instant, a brilliant light was emitted.


    Sage Douzhan stood at the front of all of them, his Douzhan Body in full force. A 100 Zhang high figure appeared in the area, standing tall like a war god. Rays of light shot through the war god''s body and instantly, eye-catching rays of light shot out from the 100 Zhang figure and it erupted with unparalleled force.


    Behind them, there were many other martial arts cultivators who had formed the Heavenly Battle Matrix with 36 people.


    "The four commanders, hear my order. Set up the matrix," Zhou Mian commanded with a clear voice. Immediately, four experts stepped out from the crowd. Among the four of them, one was an elderly person while the other three were middle-aged, but all four of them had dignified auras.


    Apart from the Golden Phoenix Army, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty also had four extremely strong armies. They were stationed in the four directions of the Sacred Dynasty to deter the clans and sects. After all, these matters were too trivial for the Sacred King to bother doing. The four commanders were elite figures in the Sage Plane. The elderly commander''s name was Nie Gai, and he had been conferred the title of King Nie. He was also an expert on the Sage Ranking.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s four experts on the Sage Ranking were the Golden Phoenix Army''s commander Zhou Mian, the vice-commander Zhou Huang, and King Nie. These three people were from the sovereignty and served the Sacred Dynasty. The last expert was the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s number one clan, the Infinite Palace''s Palace Lord.


    The four commanders led their army into formation. Zhou Mian looked at the Infinite Palace Lord and asked, "This person excels in his physique. The Infinite Palace Lord''s Infinite Body is unparalleled in the Eastern State. Are you willing to battle him?"


    "Sure." The Infinite Palace Lord nodded and accepted the request. In an instant, he led the Infinite Palace''s experts forward into formation.


    Zhou Mian then looked at the other factions from the Eastern State and said, "The rest of you are in charge of surrounding the people from the Barren State. Don''t let a single person escape."


    The Sacred King had personally given the order to eliminate the Holy Zhi Palace and raze it to the ground.


    The different factions all acknowledged the command. No matter how strong Ye Futian''s conviction and determination were, he could not overcome the difference in strength.


    At least for now, there was still a huge disparity between the Barren State and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The royal army that had come today was not the entirety of their strength. There were still experts staying back to keep guard. Even so, it was not something the Holy Zhi Palace could contend against.


    "Sword matrix, gather," Ye Futian continued. As his voice landed, the Sword Demon stopped commanding the Noble Plane battle and personally stepped into the battlefield alongside Xu Shang, forming the matrix with the nine strongest swordsmen.


    At the same time, the Sword Saint stood on the right flank of the army. He held his demonic blade in his hand and a terrifying aura emanated from the blade. Soon, his entire body had almost been demonized and devoured by Demonic Will. His entire body looked like it was covered by a demonic armor.


    In an instant, the Barren State''s army had been surrounded.


    The Heavenly Battle Matrix was in the front, the sword matrix on the left, the Sword Saint on the right, Zhuge Qingfeng and You Chi were at the back.


    The Ice Temple and Ye Futian were in the same location. The formation had Ye Futian at the center.


    At that moment, in front of Ye Futian, the Heavenly Battle Matrix had already been formed. The 100 Zhang figure stood tall in the area. With a furious roar from Sage Douzhan, the figure punched out with tens of millions of auroras from its fists, firing across the air towards the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army.


    However, in front of him, another gargantuan figure appeared. The Infinite Palace''s experts had gathered together to form the Infinite Matrix.


    The Infinite Palace Lord stood at the front of the matrix, revolving his hands. Instantly, countless arms appeared on the giant figure. The countless hands revolved at the same time, like a Thousand Hand Buddha. A giant Infinite Diagram appeared behind him and floated in the air. When the aurora from the fists landed on the diagram, they were all blocked.


    "Infinite Body." Ye Futian looked at the other party and guessed his identity. He had some understanding of the Nine States Sage and Saint Ranking. He knew the names of the experts on the Ranking. The person before them should be the 64th ranked on the Nine States Sage Ranking, Sage Wuliang.


    Bang. The 100 Zhang body stepped through the air and the ground underneath it trembled. The Nobles battling on the ground felt their bodies shaking unstably.


    Zhou Mian immediately gave the order, "Noble Plane army, retreat."


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army had its formation scattered. Although they had surrounded the enemy, they did not obtain a huge advantage and the casualties on both sides were high. Now that the Sage Plane battle had begun, the army on the ground would be implicated as well. If they could not obtain a decisive victory, it was better to end the Noble Plane''s battle. Since Ye Futian was rushing to start the war, they would wait until after the Sage Plane battle to kill off the Nobles.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army retreated while fighting. The Barren State''s disciples continued to chase them down frantically, but they heard Ye Futian say, "On my order, the Barren State''s Noble Plane disciples, retreat."


    It was not easy to force the enemy to retreat. He did not want any more of the Barren State''s disciples to die.


    After Ye Futian''s order, even the rampaging Yuan Zhan broke out of his frenzy and retreated while battling.


    Soon, the two armies had separated and created some distance. They continually retreated and gave up the space on the battlefield!

 828 Infinite Ruler—Golden Phoenix Sword

    The Heavenly Battle Matrix and the Infinite Battle Matrix appeared at the forefront of the warzone, facing each other. The two immensely gigantic bodies stood between heaven and earth, and their sense of power and authority was suffocating.


    "Someone of the Barren Sky Ranking?" Sage Wuliang glanced at the other. He also knew something of the Barren State and knew of Sage Douzhan. But just how could the Barren Sky Ranking compare to the Sage ranking of the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States?


    Even if his ranking was only 64 on the Sage ranking, his strength was still not something that could be overcome by people of the Barren Sky Ranking.


    The battle form before him, was it the Douzhan Body?


    Then let it be known by all exactly what his battle form was.


    Sage Wuliang''s body was full of glory, and his body became more massive. The Infinite Palace was the premier force of principality within the jurisdiction of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in the Eastern State. Even the royal family of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had to afford them respect. If it was not because the Great Zhou Sacred King had launched this Sacred War, it was impossible to get him involved.


    "Infinite, by definition, means endless, limitless," Sage Wuliang stared at his opponent and said. Within the Infinite Matrix, all the Qi of the Infinite Palace''s cultivators flowed into his battle form and suddenly, the Infinite Body expanded madly, soon greatly surpassing the height of the Douzhan Body, as if it were a god overlooking a mortal.


    The rule power that Sage Wuliang cultivated and comprehended was the Infinite Rule. Zhou Mian surveyed the battlefield coldly. Their Army of Sages from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, compared to the Army of Nobles, were much stronger because they were the true elite of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "Infinite Sword." Sage Wuliang surveyed the cultivators of the Barren State below from within the battle form. His battle form was comparable to thousands of people; it was truly a horror. One blow from him could cover the entire army of the Barren State. This was the horror of these figures who were at the pinnacle of their plane. Therefore, the higher the plane, the greater the difference in power. Once entering the saint plane, one stood above all the Nine States.


    And the Sovereign Renhuang, who had established the orthodoxy of the Nine States, was even more legendary. One word from him was equivalent to the will of heaven and its destiny. Even saints dared not disobey.


    As the voice of Sage Wuliang faded, the Infinite Sword appeared in front of the Infinite Body. It rotated in front of the body as if to spin out a sword diagram, with swords constantly manifesting, covering both the sky and the entire army of the Barren State.


    "All nobles return to the palace," Ye Futian immediately ordered, and at once, everyone from the noble plane evacuated. The scope of this kind of attack was terrifying. When they looked up at the sky, they couldn''t help but tremble.


    "The Great Heavenly Battle Matrix," Ye Futian commanded, and suddenly with Sage Douzhan at the center, all 36 Great Heavenly Battle Matrixes combined into one. A superior battle matrix of 1296 people manifested, still with Sage Douzhan at the center. An even more terrible atmosphere arose. The Douzhan Body was also expanding, growing larger and turning into the God of War.


    The 36 Heavenly Battle Matrixes had gathered the strongest cultivators, those who made up the strongest martial forces of the Barren State Army.


    "Smite." Sage Wuliang''s finger pressed down, and suddenly, the Infinite Sword above the sky was falling down. Each sword now turned gigantic and pierced downwards, as if to destroy everything in the world below.


    Sage Douzhan let out a scream, and his huge boundless battle form stepped into the void, with its enormous body and two fists bursting into the air. In an instant, the battle form turned into some endless shadow with fists of unimaginable speed, punching so quickly that there were only faded shadows of a golden afterimage.


    For just a brief moment, a huge boundless golden fist above the sky ran through the void, rushing toward the giant swords that were falling down. The swords above the sky suddenly burst and were destroyed, and by its own power, the fist was able to block the endless, gigantic swords.


    Just then, a brilliant, dazzling ray appeared, and upon the fist of the Douzhan Body appeared a dazzling golden glove. When the glove covered its fist an invisible radiance began to flow, covering the arm and the body of the battle form with all the endless power between heaven and earth; all of it flowed into the glove. An unparalleled battle will appeared, as if it could break open the sky.


    This was a sacred implement that was passed down from the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State. It was used by the palace lord Battle Sage of the Battle Sage Palace and had been incorporated into the fist will of Battle Sage, the predecessor of Holy Zhi Palace.


    Boom. Sage Douzhan stepped into the void, and rays of light pierced his chest, abdomen, and arms. He drew back his right arm, the enormous, incomparable battle form resembling a tightly wound string that could be set off at the slightest touch.


    The gloves seemed to be alight with the endless, limitless power and battle will integrated into it, with rays of golden brilliance that penetrated the void. At this moment, even Sage Wuliang expressed a grave look, as if he had also felt the terrible power that it held within.


    He took out the Infinite Ruler, which suddenly began to increase and augment at a maddening rate. This Infinite Ruler had exhausted the energy of generations of the Infinite Palace''s ancestors and was a divine implement. The impact of the ruler was capable of crushing anything in the world.


    Bang! A strained noise came from the earth, and the hearts of many trembled fiercely. The right arm of the Douzhan Body stretched forward, with its fist aimed straight out. This time, there was only one punch, but as this punch blasted outward, there was a golden beam of light running through the void between heaven and earth. At the forefront of the beam was the fist, which contained the power of the Great Path and destroyed everything before it.


    The Infinite Ruler was becoming greater and greater, and Sage Wuliang struck downwards with it, aiming directly at the fist.


    The Infinite Ruler and the fist collided midair, and a dazzling ray of light exploded. The fist continued to push against the ruler, moving forward and emitting light that painfully stung the eyes of those who beheld it.


    Boom! With a shockingly loud bang, the fist fragmented, becoming smaller but failing to collapse completely. It changed direction, blasting towards other places in the direction of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Legion, the seat of a great sector.


    "Watch out!" A loud cry came forth, but many did not have time to respond at all before they saw the fist smashing into the crowd and pulverizing anything in its path. The fist''s momentum carried it forward, not stopping until it had gone through the bodies of about a hundred people.


    The hundred or so people who were hit were either pulverized into dust or had their bodies pierced through; all were annihilated on the spot.


    Only a few sages at the very front responded in time to avoid this blow, but their hearts skipped a beat. Such an attack was too powerful, and those from the sage plane would have died just by its touch.


    Sage Wuliang looked displeased, as his Infinite Ruler ruler had not smashed the other''s attack, causing many people to be killed.


    The incredibly immense Infinite Body suddenly moved at this moment. With the Infinite Ruler in hand, it began walking toward the Douzhan body. He raised the Infinite Ruler, which grew ever larger, and a tremendous destructive rule power burst from within it. Then, the Infinite Ruler crashed from the sky and slammed into the Barren State Army, as if to smash the entire Barren State Army under the Infinite Ruler.


    The Douzhan Body rocketed toward the sky, the boundless body raising both fists and intercepting the crushing Infinite Ruler without any hesitation. The Battle Sage gloves collided with the Infinite Ruler. An indescribable horrific power erupted from the collision of the ruler and the gloves, rushing to impact both the Infinite Body and the Douzhan Body as the power of the Great Path Rule Power swept over everyone who was in the battle matrix.


    Suddenly, many people spat out blood. Many of the strongest cultivators in the Heavenly War felt their innards shatter. They died with screams still on their lips. Similarly, many cultivators from the Infinite Palace were crushed by the power and died.


    The battle matrix was one, with everyone''s power linked to become a greater whole. If the attack was too strong, it would flow into everyone in the battle matrix.


    "Sword matrix, smite," Ye Futian saw what was in from of him and commanded indifferently. Suddenly, above the firmament, the Sword Demon, Xu Shang and the others turned into streams of light before disappearing from where they had stood. With impossible speed, they rushed directly toward the Infinite Body.


    The nine people had integrated into one, turning into a circular sword matrix with one at each of the eight directions and one operating the matrix in the middle.


    The person who manned the matrix at the center caused a sword diagram to appear between heaven and the earth, with each position in the sword diagram containing a sword. In the center was the Divine Sword.


    At this moment, the person holding the Divine Sword in the middle and controlling the battle matrix was Xu Shang.


    "Intercept him," Zhou Mian commanded emotionlessly. Suddenly, all four commanders attacked simultaneously. Some commanders reached into the void, and a horrible force immediately descended from the air to envelop the space.


    But at this moment, the Divine Sword within the sword matrix exploded with a great brilliance that penetrated all the rule powers and traveled through the void at a tremendous speed. It did not collide with the Infinite Body but instead snaked behind it.


    Xu Shang was expert of the Slaughter Sword Way, and his speed was naturally unparalleled. At the moment, he manned the sword matrix, and the sword matrix exuded his expertise.


    The cultivators of the Infinite Palace were still gathering the battle matrix, and suddenly, the massive Sword Will exploded from the sword diagram in the void, plunging downwards.


    The countenance of Sage Wuliang changed slightly, and he retracted his arms, wanting to direct the Infinite Ruler backward, but Sage Douzhan did not give him the chance. Both of his legs burst with incomparable brilliance before stepping into the void. The Douzhan Body charged towards its opponent, both fists brimming with great force that shook the heaven and earth. Sage Wuliang did not have the time to react and was forced to blast out the Infinite Ruler once more.


    At almost the same time, many strong cultivators of the Infinite Palace were stabbed and killed by the sword, and the power of the Infinite Body seemed to diminish. When the fists blasted out once again, the Infinite Body rocked a little, and many cultivators from the Infinite Palace spat up blood and died.


    "Zhou Huang." Zhou Mian looked cold and indifferent. He spat his words in a cold voice. Zhou Huang, a cultivator of the Sage and Saint Ranking and the eldest son of Great Zhou Sacred King, charged forward, and a Golden Phoenix Army slashed through the void while an immense golden phoenix appeared between heaven and earth. The Golden Phoenix Sword pierced through the expanse to attack, hiding an incomparably savage attack power.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had a real Golden Phoenix Sword, cast by the ancestors of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and formed by infusing the blood of the sacred beasts. When the Golden Phoenix Sword stabbed out, it seemed that there was a real sacred beast of golden phoenixes attacking them.


    Xu Shang attacked with the Divine Sword in hand, and as the two swords collided, a storm swept out. Xu Shang and others retreated instantly then separated. By their numbers, the Barren State Army was at a disadvantage, so their purpose was not a frontal attack, but rather a surprise attack aimed to weaken the force of the opponent.


    "It''s death you are seeking." Zhou Mian glanced in the direction of Ye Futian, the sword matrix taking the initiative to attack. There appeared to be an unguarded position on the left of Ye Futian. He immediately ordered, "Take down Ye Futian."


    Without him pointing it out, the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had also discovered the spot, and strong cultivators were already advancing towards Ye Futian.

 829 The Duo

    Pang Mu, commander of the Xuanwu Army from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the peak figure of the sage plane, was held in high regard within the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Currently, the force attacking Ye Futian and his party was the Xuanwu Army led by Pang Mu. Although Pang Mu was extremely powerful, he was not impulsive, so he did not attack alone. Ye Futian was the leader of the Holy Zhi Palace, so naturally, there were many powerful cultivators protecting him from an ambush.


    The Xuanwu Matrix gathered and condensed, and a great Xuanwu beast came down towards Ye Futian from the sky. An incredibly heavy force came toward them and, at the same time, an endless iciness seemed to cover the skies with heavy frost.


    Behind Ye Futian stood many cultivators of the Ice Temple, including the lord of the temple, Yun Shang.


    In her hand, Yun Shang held an Ice Scepter, which emitted a surprising chill. She lifted the scepter, and suddenly, all the spirit will of the cultivators of the Ice Temple poured into it. At that instant, a frosty storm enveloped the endless battlefield. Even Sage Douzhan and Sage Wuliang, who were deep in battle, felt the chill that swept over them; it was an incoming snow storm.


    "Ice, eternity!" Yun Shang spat. The rate at which space-time flowed in that space seemed to slow down until reaching a near standstill so that everything was encased in freezing ice. Those of the low planes only felt that they had fallen into endless frigidity, but the great Xuanwu beast had also started to move more slowly.


    In this world of ice, terrible icy thorns sprouted forth and pierced towards the crowd of people within the Xuanwu Matrix.


    Pang Mu felt the extreme chill, but his countenance was indifferent. Even if the flow of time and space had slowed down, it could not affect him at all.


    Was that instrument a divine implement?


    Even though he was one of the four commanders of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, he did not have a divine implement. The Infinite Palace was the inheritance of the ancestors; the Golden Phoenix Sword of Zhou Huang was a thing of the sacred dynasty. Although he was strong, Zhou Mian and Zhou Huang were two sovereigns before him, and Nie Gai was a superior cultivator of the sage ranking. As such, it would never be his turn to receive a divine implement.


    But in this war, the Barren State seemed to possess many divine implements. If he could take them, they would be his. Moreover, he cultivated in water abilities, so this scepter would be greatly suited for him.


    "Break." The power of a horrible Great Path rule was released, and a terrible rule power circulating within the Xuanwu Battle Matrix. Four limbs and a long tail began to move, and the frozen void constantly showed cracks, slowly collapsing little by little.


    The mighty ice storm still affected this space, and the power of the sorcery that erupted from the divine implement was not so easy to eliminate. Rumbling sounds could be heard, and the immense body of the great Xuanwu beast moved downward, pressing against Ye Futian.


    At this moment, the space in which Ye Futian was located seemed to be independent of the world so that the ice storm would not attack him. He sat cross-legged while the Guqin Spirit appeared in front of him, playing in the void.


    At the same time, from Hua Jieyu''s body behind him, there exploded an incredibly strong force. Her long hair danced wildly and frantically, her eyes were beautiful and bewitching, and within them, there was a tremendous telekinetic storm, barely contained. Her spirit melded into one with Ye Futian and further integrated into the sound of Guqin, transforming into thousands of silky threads that began to shroud everyone in the space.


    Near Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were sorcerers. Even Sage Daozang from the palace was standing next to them, ready to contribute his spiritual energy.


    Thousands of radiant threads shone and bloomed, releasing from all of the cultivators and finally gathering upon Hua Jieyu as if they were each integrated into that terrible storm of telekinesis. Hua Jieyu''s eyes became ever more bewitching, and the storm inside her body ever stronger.


    This storm of Spiritual Energy was shared by Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    The battle matrix in which they resided was manned by Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, both of whom belonged to the lower plane. Of course, the Hua Jieyu of the moment was not of her own power but one that relied upon the strength within her body and thus, from a certain angle, her plane was not low at all; only Ye Futian''s plane was low.


    The sound of the music spread to heaven and the earth, and time and space seemed to have blended into one with the sound of Guqin. All the Spiritual Qi below the firmament aggregated towards the battle matrix where they were, crossing the power of the rules.


    With the help of that incomparable spiritual will, Ye Futian''s melody radiated an incomparably vast landscape. He manifested a thought as if at this moment he was everywhere, omnipotent.


    This was the feeling brought on by such immense power.


    "Jieyu," Ye Futian transmitted his voice.


    "Mmm," Hua Jieyu whispered softly in reply, and the two synced their thoughts, understanding each other''s wishes.


    "Space, freeze." All things were still at this moment, and above Ye Futian''s head the Spiritual Qi stopped flowing. The great Xuanwu beast temporarily stopped its oppressive steps. Not only them, but even those in the distance felt the power of space freezing, as if everything was coming to a stop.


    At the same time, a long whip appeared in the hand of Hua Jieyu, and from it exuded a terrible authority of the Great Path, as if it could make the soul tremble. It was one of the divine implements that had been passed down in the Holy Zhi Palace��the God-beating Whip.


    In this Sacred War, its use belonged to Hua Jieyu. She was a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer, and with a Divine Spiritual Sorcerer of the saint plane assisting her, the God-beating Whip was undoubtedly the most suitable ritual implement for her.


    As Hua Jieyu raised her head, a terrible rule power erupted, and in that instant, she seemed to feel the spiritual will of the great Xuanwu beast, which was formed by the spiritual will of all the people in that army. It was extremely powerful and indestructible.


    Hua Jieyu''s expression was indifferent, and she simply lashed out the God-beating Whip. This lash seemed to have cracked open the void and swept towards the great Xuanwu beast.


    Although Pang Mu was limited by the power of Two-layered rules at the moment, he was still able to clearly perceive everything outside. When Hua Jieyu cracked the whip at the Xuanwu battle matrix, he could feel the tremor of his own soul.


    Retreat. Pang Mu manifested a thought. As he had guessed, because Ye Futian was the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, it would be impossible for there to be no defensive power, but he hadn''t expected the power here to be this strong.


    He wanted to retreat, but his speed was suppressed, and it was impossible to withdraw in time. The Xuanwu battle matrix changed. Suddenly a boundless, giant Xuanwu turtle shell covered everyone; the most powerful aspect of the Xuanwu battle matrix was not its attack, but its defense.


    However, Hua Jieyu was cracking the God-beating Whip.


    Whoosh! A crisp sound trembled between the heaven and earth, slapping onto the spiritual will that was gathered upon the great Xuanwu beast. The shadow of the great Xuanwu beast trembled, and many spiritual wills collapsed and were destroyed. In the battle matrix, many cultivators collapsed and separated from the matrix, falling below.


    "Retreat," Zhou Mian also detected something was very wrong and immediately ordered Pang Mu to evacuate. However, the sound of the music was still as before, and the space where Pang Mu was located was shrouded by invisible rule power, as if it was frozen not only because of the rules released by Ye Futian but also by the rule sorcery released by Yun Shang; the two powers worked together to constrain the Xuanwu Battle Matrix.


    And the God-beating Whip once again swayed with incredible speed.


    Whoosh! It was only for a short time, but the whip in Hua Jieyu''s hand continued lashing out, and every lash of the whip made the great Xuanwu beast tremble. Cultivators continued to collapse and die because their spiritual will was being destroyed. They could not withstand such direct attacks against their spiritual energy.


    "Nie Gai!" Zhou Mian shouted and immediately commanded the other legions to support him. He instinctually realized that the Xuanwu Matrix of Pang Mu was trapped by the power of the other party and being abused. Given time, Pang Mu would not be able to last.


    "What kind of music is this?" Many people in the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty felt its power. All things were restricted, the space frozen, and the sorcery was integrated into the music.


    And Ye Futian''s wife, Hua Jieyu, a delicate beauty who was not of this world, why was she so frightening at this moment?


    The army of sorcerers from the Barren State was not there to protect them, but, with them as the center and the core of the matrix to explode with terrible power.


    "The Ukiyo Song." Far away from the battlefield, countless people stood in the void to watch the battling legions in the distance. Kong Yao naturally recognized what song this was.


    In that battle long ago, Ye Futian had also performed the song, but its power was not as strong as it was today. This time, he borrowed the spirit will of the cultivators of the Barren State, merging into one, to play the Ukiyo Song, fully allowing his rule power to bloom.


    Although the power of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was strong, it would not be an easy feat to take the Barren State without shedding blood.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King must have been very angry at the moment.


    Nie Gai and the other two commanders also led armies to come to the rescue. Seeing their movements, Zhuge Qingfeng and You Chi who were behind Ye Futian also started to move, stepping into the void, prepared to stop the reinforcements from the other side.


    If they could destroy and pull apart the army within a short time, it would, no doubt, be the most ideal situation!

 830 Battle of Will

    Zhou Mian still stood upon the high ground and observed the battlefield. When he saw Zhuge Qingfeng and You Chi providing support to Ye Futian and intercepting the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, he realized that they wanted to finish off the great army of Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in the shortest amount of time possible.


    No one expected the battle matrix from Ye Futian to be this powerful; the control system rules sorcery exploded and put the Xuanwu army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in danger. But to try demolishing the Xuanwu army when the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was at an advantage was a little too ambitious.


    "Cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, hear ye this order: obliterate Ye Futian and his cohort," Zhou Mian ordered. Suddenly all the top clan principalities within the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty started moving towards Futian. In no time at all, the army pressed forward, the forces of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the sage army of the Holy Zhi Palace now engaged in a full-blown war.


    The onlookers, who came with the armies to watch the battle from afar, felt their hearts beating. They were merely watching from the sidelines, but they were extremely nervous and clenched their fists.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace must win," someone whispered. This was the thought of many from the Barren State. Although they did not have the ability to participate in the battle, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was ultimately an intruder. As cultivators of the Barren State, their natural desire was for the Barren State to emerge victorious.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian was now an iconic figure within the Barren State. He had inherited lordship of the Holy Zhi Palace while still in the noble plane, and all principalities within the Barren State had unified their wills and submitted to him. Rumor had it that when Ye Futian held his wedding in the Eastern Barren Territory and made the announcement that he would take over the position of the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, he was congratulated by all the powerful figures of the Barren State, who came and witnessed the birth of a legend.


    But even before that, Ye Futian had not disappointed the people of the Barren State. In just two years, he led the people of the Barren State to venture forth and take first place in the Nine State Forum and had given the most dazzling performance there. He had even defeated a saint of legends, whose existence was looked upon by the world, and brought a cultivator of the saint plane to the Barren State.


    All of this was a sign prophesizing the rise of a legend. As long as he was given time, the people of the Barren State were willing to believe that on the bleak and impoverished soil of the Barren State, there would rise a hero known throughout the Nine States.


    Perhaps not just one.


    It was precisely because of this that when the Holy Zhi Palace faced this great adversity, and when the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty launched a Sacred War, prolific figures of the land were willing to come and lend their support in the bloody battle; it was a belief.


    Now that they witnessed this battle, they were all moved deeply and hoped that the Holy Zhi Palace could defeat the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "It will," someone answered.


    The cultivators led by Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs and the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain, led by Liu Zong, were somewhat dismissive. Indeed, the resilience of the Barren State had surprised them, but the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty still retained an obvious advantage on the battlefield. With their great army pressing toward Ye Futian, even if Ye Futian were to demolish the Xuanwu Army he would still be at a disadvantage.


    What was more, at this time, the Golden Phoenix Army led by Zhou Mian had entered the scene; they did not attack Ye Futian to support the Xuanwu Army, but instead moved in the direction of the Heavenly Battle Matrix. If they wanted to make a move on the Xuanwu Army, he would first destroy the tenacious Heavenly Army.


    At this moment, above the void, Great Zhou Sacred King and the old Village Chief were separated from the battlefield, playing chess quietly.


    Great Zhou Sacred King dropped a chess piece. His style of chess was sharp and domineering, sweeping through the game with extremely strong posture, intent to take the pawn of the old Village Chief.


    "Although I have never seen it, I am still in awe of the legendary Sword Saint of the Void, who was called to be the first person under Emperor Xia. Just exactly what was she like back in those days?" Great Zhou Sacred King asked nonchalantly while putting down a chess piece. "However, since she has already died, as sword slave, shouldn''t you be looking for the strongest successor to the master? There were many saints in the Nine States, as it was with the Eastern State. You don''t need to bother looking afar to select an heir. There are many within the generations of the Nine States for you to choose from and a few others who can prove the Divine Path."


    "If this is the case, then the Chess Saint should have been selected. After all, he was the first person in the Nine States matrix." The old Village Chief lightly put a chess piece to defuse the other''s fierce offensive. He quietly said, "Unfortunately, the Chess Saint did not solve the secret of the sword matrix, but Ye Futian did, so this is the reason."


    "It''s an old story." Great Zhou Sacred King smiled sarcastically. "What can it prove?"


    "As one grows older, this is the story one likes." The old Village Chief smiled.


    "I don''t like it." Great Zhou Sacred King slammed down his chess piece and sounded extremely cross.


    "Whether you like it or not has nothing to do with me." The old Village Chief still looked calm, but both of them exuded traces of sacred authority that were extremely terrifying.


    "Do you think I can''t kill you?" Great Zhou Sacred King looked up and stared at the other.


    "Naturally, you can''t." The old Village Chief looked up. "Never mind if you are stronger than me, even within the two great saint planes of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, if I want to leave, you cannot stop me." A strong spatial volatility permeated upon him. He was different from Great Zhou Sacred King. He did not care about dignity and did not care about winning or losing. All he cared about was that what he wanted to accomplish was being manifested step by step.


    "Old fool." Great Zhou Sacred King admonished, "Then witness their total destruction."


    In the battlefield below, Zhou Mian led the Golden Phoenix Army towards an attack in the direction of Sage Douzhan. Sword Demon, who was currently engaged with Zhou Huang, swung out in a fierce blow. He wanted to stop Zhou Mian''s attack toward Sage Douzhan.


    "Leave this to us. Don''t forget your mission," Sage Douzhan said clearly and loudly. The eyes of Sword Demon, Xu Shang, and the others lit up; Sage Douzhan wanted them to leave this battlefield.


    Before the Sacred War, they had already decided upon the tactics, and in this tactic, Sage Douzhan and his team would be in the most dangerous position. It was possible they''d be sacrificed. The sword matrix, which was condensed by the swordsman of the nine great peaks, had its own mission.


    "Go!" Yuan Hong also shouted, and the countenance of Sword Demon suddenly became extremely determined. When they had reached this plane, their temperament became extremely resolute. Even when they knew that some decisions may lead to terrible conclusions, they would still stay the course.


    "I''ll man the matrix," a voice called out. It was one of the nine people within the sword matrix, the peak swordsman from Tombkeeper Village, Qin Zhuang. His strength was definitely no less than Sword Demon or Xu Shang, and was, perhaps, even stronger.


    "Very well." Sword Demon and Xu Shang knew Qin Zhuang''s strength and vacated the main position of the battle matrix for Qin Zhuang.


    When Qin Zhuang stood in the middle with the Divine Sword in hand, the entire sword diagram changed and madly evolved. In an instant, a trace of the tremendously powerful space sword way undulated between heaven and earth.


    Zhou Huang held the Golden Phoenix Sword and struck. A dazzling golden ray penetrated the void, aimed toward the center of the sword matrix. However, just at the moment the Sword Will was about to descend, a blinding glare burst forth and the sword matrix suddenly disappeared.


    In another direction, the forces of the major clans besieged the army led by Ye Futian, but in one position there suddenly came an explosion of a terrifying atmosphere.


    "Watch out!" someone cried out, but there was no time to react. A space Sword Will had pierced through everything, and where the blade of light had passed through, there was a great brilliance that threw many sages back.


    This time, the sword matrix that formed by the nine had only one task: to slaughter and continuously diffuse the strength of the opponent, disintegrating their defense.


    The Golden Phoenix Army led by Zhou Mian and Zhou Huang was the most elite army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It was impossible to destroy. If they got into a war of attrition, they would only impede their own progress with an unfavorable outcome.


    "Set up the matrix to intercept them!" someone screamed loudly, but the sword matrix could be seen hurtling through the army. Wherever it passed, a rain of blood splattered, and their shadows could hardly be seen. Even though these clans were some of the most powerful in the Eastern State, they lacked strong and comprehensive battle matrices. It was impossible for them to resist the power of the sword matrix formed by the nine-person team.


    Only in a short while, they had charged into the belly of a clan formation. Qin Zhuang waved with both hands, and just like that, the Sword Will that surrounded the sword diagram around the sword was sky high. Within the sword diagram, a divine implement of sage level could be seen vaguely looming and resonating with the Divine Sword.


    "Destroy them," Qin Zhuang said. Many sages with divine implements combined with the Sword Will of the Divine Sword penetrated this place. Wherever it passed, no one could stop it.


    "Retreat!" The clan leader of this clan saw this scene and barked out the order loudly; the dead were all his people.


    Even if the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was to win, there would be no benefit to them, and this is why they were reluctant to participate in the Sacred War. No one dared to disobey the order of Great Zhou Sacred King. But now, seeing the people of their clan being slaughtered by the sword matrix, their dismay was not hard to imagine.


    At the same time, in another position, the Sword Saint with a demonic blade in hand had also charged into the crowd, not allowing any clan forces to reinforce the Xuanwu Army in order to provide an opportunity to engulf one of the opponent''s legions.


    Zhou Mian glanced indifferently at the battlefield, then looked down at the Heavenly Battle Matrix below. This group included Ye Futian''s teacher, Sage Douzhan, and Yu Hong, who were both the top figures on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    They would sacrifice the Heavenly Battle Matrix for the sake of destroying the Xuanwu army?


    Indeed, all means were fair in war, and the Barren State was no exception.


    If so, then let it be destroyed.


    "Attack!" Zhou Mian commanded. He and Zhou Huang each led a large battle matrix, along with the Infinite Body cast by Sage Wuliang. Three superior camps surrounded the Douzhan Body and launched the fiercest attack yet.


    Sage Douzhan watched the attack coming down from the void, but did not fight back. His body exploded with endless radiance; the Seven Star acupoints were fully open, and there was armor from a divine implement upon his body. This was the divine implement that Yu Hong had borrowed from You Chi, and this time, it was relegated to be used by Sage Douzhan.


    The Heavenly Battle Matrix was unparalleled in attack, but their mission this time was not to attack but rather defend and sap away the strength of the opponent.


    When the three major attacks came at the same time, it was a terrible sight to behold. The Douzhan Body collapsed and was destroyed. Sage Douzhan spat out a mouthful of blood. The bronzed body under the divine implement seemed to crack, for this time he bore the full brunt of the attack. To concentrate all the power of the Heavenly Battle Matrix upon himself, even with the protection of the divine implement, was still too much to bear.


    The cultivators in the void gathered again when they saw this scene. Sage Douzhan was seeking his own death.


    "Allow me," Yuan Hong said to Sage Douzhan, wanting to replace him and pilot the Superior Heavenly Battle Matrix. With Sage Douzhan alone, it was very possible that he would perish under the attack.


    "No need." Sage Douzhan looked up at the firmament, his body once again shrouded in dazzling brilliance, and his eyes showing extreme determination. Back when he was the lord of the Battle Sage Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace, and when he was caught in the middle of the battle of life and death between the Palace and Ye Futian, he chose to follow his own belief and stood by Ye Futian. The Palace saw it as a kind of betrayal, but because it was not the Palace, he wanted all to see that he did not regret his choice.


    The Holy Zhi Palace of today was the palace that he had always hoped for, so he had to be firm in his own beliefs and protect all of them!

 831 Questioning the Heavens

    In the part of the battlefield where Ye Futian was, both the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace''s armies came rushing out.


    The Xuanwu army was still being surrounded and hiding in the Xuanwu Shell. Each time the God-beating Whip landed, it would kill many people in the Xuanwu Battle Matrix, but the matrix was not destroyed and continued awaiting assistance from outside.


    Ye Futian continued to sit cross-legged, strumming the Guqin with both hands. The Guqin melody engulfed the area and his Spiritual Energy also engulfed the vast area. Every scene on the battlefield was engraved into his brain.


    Everyone from the Holy Zhi Palace was in a tough battle for their beliefs.


    His master was fulfilling his promise. He had led the Heavenly Battle Matrix and fended off the Great Zhou''s strongest army.


    The sword matrix that the Sword Demon and Xu Shang had formed, as well as his Big Brother, had rushed into the interior of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army and were battling without regard for their lives.


    This was a fight to the death.


    An even more frenzied Spiritual Energy rushed into his head, as though merging with his Spiritual Will. However, he was only a mid-level Sage, so such a terrifying Spiritual Energy was close to the limit he could withstand. His Spiritual Will seemed as though it would crumble. This was like the time when Hua Jieyu borrowed a Saint''s Spiritual Will to battle and fainted right after the battle.


    Now, he was facing a similar situation.


    However, he did not have the luxury of considering the consequences at that moment. The unparalleled Spiritual Energy nearly broke free of his control. He put in all his effort to steady himself and ensure that he was still steadily playing the Guqin melody. Wisps of Guqin notes gathered together and transformed into a terrifying spiritual storm. Gradually, an omniscient being resembling an ancient God started to form.


    It was the Sage Hall''s teachings, the Godly Creation of All Things.


    At that moment, it was being summoned from Ye Futian''s Guqin melody.


    The ancient God that had appeared continued to take form and became large enough to block out the sun. It appeared in the middle of the two armies, and many people who were in battle all raised their heads and looked at it, astonished. A horrifying Spiritual Will emanated from the ancient God.


    The giant ancient God had unparalleled rule power flowing around its body. Wisps of purple lightning flashed across the heavens and destructive thunderbolts circulated around the ancient God''s ten fingers. Every strand of lightning was like a God-beating Whip.


    The ancient God stretched out its arm and descended with boundless purple lightning. Thunder whips entangled the Xuanwu Matrix and pounded down like the apocalypse, striking the strong Spiritual Will that had been formed by the battle matrix, causing the giant Xuanwu to tremble.


    "Jieyu!" Ye Futian, who was in the middle of playing the Guqin called out to her. Hua Jieyu''s mind was interlinked with his at that moment and she flew into the air, the God-beating Whip in her hand unleashing its strongest force towards the Xuanwu Battle Matrix. It struck the center of the boundless lightning and it was as though it had activated a terrifying matrix.


    In an instant, figures were shot out from the Xuanwu Battle Matrix with screams of agony. The entire battle matrix, with its countless experts, was all sent flying back, and the giant Xuanwu shattered into multiple pieces. The battle matrix had been completely nullified.


    Pang Mu stood in the area, watching the surrounding people being sent flying. He felt a terrifying force assaulting his Spiritual Will and his face became pale. He had not expected that he would be in such danger after he had launched the attack on Ye Futian.


    Crash. Pang Mu stepped back, attempting to escape. The Xuanwu Life Spirit appeared, surrounding him within. At that moment, the only thought in his head was to escape.


    "Where are you going?" An icy voice sounded out, like the voice of judgment. As the voice landed, Pang Mu raised his head and looked at the ancient God. He saw a pair of intimidating eyes; they were like Ye Futian''s, deep and bottomless, causing others to lose themselves within. In an instant, a terrifying spiritual storm rushed into his head and he was overwhelmed by purple lightning. The next thing he felt was a stinging pain in his Spiritual Energy.


    Crash�� With a blaring sound, the ancient God in the air punched out and it landed on the Xuanwu like a giant meteorite. With a deafening sound, cracks appeared on the Xuanwu''s body. Pang Mu spat out a mouthful of blood and his expression was death itself.


    "I withdraw from this battle," Pang Mu declared, terrified He felt that he would definitely die if he continued battling.


    A gust of wind blew past, and Hua Jieyu''s God-beating Whip continued lashing down. With another deafening sound, Pang Mu fell into numbness, like he had struck by lightning. His Spiritual Will was nearly destroyed and he was on his last leg.


    "Die." Ye Futian raised his head and looked towards Pang Mu with wintry killing intent in his eyes.


    He would kill everyone who had come to destroy the Palace.


    Bang! With another heavy strike, Pang Mu''s Life Spirit was shattered along with his body. As the God-beating Whip descended yet again, a wretched scream could be heard as Pang Mu''s Spiritual Will was destroyed and his body fell lifelessly to the ground.


    As they saw this scene, the people who had been severely injured in the Xuanwu Battle Matrix were all filled with terror.


    One of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s four commanders, the Xuanwu army''s commander Pang Mu, had died in battle in the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace.


    Bang. In the air, the Great Zhou Sacred King slammed one of his chess pieces down heavily on the chessboard. There was an imposing aura around his body. Although Pang Mu was not royalty, he was one of the four commanders outside of the Golden Phoenix Army. His position in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was by no means low, but today, he had died in battle in the Holy Zhi Palace. Moreover, the sacred war had not turned out like he had imagined. The Barren State''s strength and determination had far exceeded his expectations.


    "What do you think?" The Village Chief moved his piece and raised his head, looking at the Great Zhou Sacred King. He was surprised as well; the performance of Ye Futian and the experts from the Holy Zhi Palace had moved him.


    "Although one of my armies has been killed, that battle matrix will accompany it." the Great Zhou Sacred King said coldly and played another piece, devouring a portion of the Village Chief''s pieces.


    What the Great Zhou Sacred King was referring to was naturally the Heavenly Battle Matrix with Sage Douzhan at the forefront.


    The Village Chief looked down at the Heavenly Battle Matrix.


    At the same time, Sage Douzhan had gathered the force of the Battle Matrix onto himself and he shone brilliantly. However, Zhou Mian, Zhou Huang, and Sage Wuliang fired attacks from him from three different directions again.


    With a furious roar, Sage Douzhan''s Douzhan Body started to form again. The giant figure erupted with tens of thousands of Zhang of light and raised its arms, which were filled with boundless energy, and fired fist auroras with the force of the Battle Saint Gauntlets, attempting to shatter the heavens.


    However, in front of the three experts, who all had Saint instruments, they all used the force of their Saint instruments to break through the fist will, and their attacks landed on the Douzhan Body. The Golden Phoenix Sword pierced through everything. The Infinite Ruler crushed the air and the Douzhan Body crumbled yet again. The terrifying attacks landed heavily on Sage Douzhan''s burly body, shattering his bones and tearing his meridians apart. The Golden Phoenix Sword''s Sword Will tore through the Saint instrument armor and assaulted his body, causing his body to feel like it was being torn to shreds.


    The Saint instrument was stained with blood and Sage Douzhan''s aura fluctuated shakily. Even his sturdy body seemed to be unable to continue withstanding the attacks.


    "Brother, let me." Sage Jingang was in turmoil. That sturdy body was giving everything it had to fight for time on that piece of the battlefield.


    "Pang Mu is dead." At that moment, Zhou Mian turned and looked in another direction. His expression was frigid. The Xuanwu army''s commander had died in battle.


    Ye Futian had actually created a giant figure that rushed into the other armies. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s armies were at a disadvantage at the other area of the battlefield.


    Sage Douzhan had evidently seen it too. He turned around and looked at that part of the battlefield, and a smile appeared on his face. They had already eliminated a part of the enemies. If that was so, the Palace''s chances of winning were even higher. Of course, he still had to defend the Heavenly Battle Matrix from destruction.


    "You two, kill him." Zhou Mian looked towards Zhou Huang and Sage Wuliang. He then turned and attempted to lead his army to the other part of the battlefield.


    "Where do you think you''re going." Sage Douzhan stepped forward, and the battle matrix moved with him. He walked towards Zhou Mian, and his overbearing fist punched forward yet again.


    "You''re courting death," Zhou Mian said angrily. A wing slashed down and nearly tore through space-time, slicing the fist apart. However, Sage Douzhan did not even think of giving up. His fists broke through space-time as well and countless fists rained down on the other party. The giant wings behind Zhou Mian slashed down rapidly and their attacks clashed vigorously.


    "Brother, watch out!" Sage Jingang shouted as a blinding ray of light shot towards him. Sage Douzhan was warding off Zhou Mian''s attacks and had no excess energy to dodge. The Golden Phoenix Sword pierced Sage Douzhan''s body with terrifying force. Although it was blocked by the Saint instrument, the Golden Phoenix Sword was unable to pierce his body, but the sharp Sword Will still rushed into his body.


    Sage Douzhan vomited blood continuously and felt as though his organs were about to rip apart.


    At that moment, he remembered the teachings that he had given Ye Futian and Yu Sheng when he first met them. He had said that the reason why body cultivators were strong was that when others attacked, they could withstand their attacks. However, others cannot withstand a body cultivator''s attacks.


    However, this time was different; even he was unable to withstand any more attacks.


    "Brother." Sage Jingang''s face was pale. Even if they wanted to exchange control of the matrix now, it was hard to do so.


    The other party would not give up a chance to kill his brother.


    "If I die, all of you continue!" Sage Douzhan said loudly. As his voice landed, it was like his entire body ignited as seven rays of light shot through his body. Instantly, light passed through his entire body, from his fists, legs, stomach, and even his head, giving off a brilliant glow.


    The Incomplete Heavenly Manual was the technique that he cultivated in.


    What did incomplete mean?


    Actually, there was one technique that he did not teach Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. It was the final technique of the Incomplete Heavenly Manual��the Broken Heaven Technique.


    It allowed one to exceed the limit of the physical body by exhausting one''s potential.


    In that instant, boundless energy rushed into his body from the Heavenly Battle Matrix with no reservation. The energy rushed ferociously around his body, and the seven rays of light shone up to the skies.


    At that moment, Sage Douzhan''s frame of mind was clear and flawless. An exceedingly terrifying Will enveloped the area.


    In the vast area, there seemed to be a force that was resonating with it. Formidable storms suddenly started to blow in the skies. The storms ravaged the area like rule power, then headed straight for Sage Douzhan, passing through his body, causing Sage Douzhan''s expression to change as he raised his head and looked towards the sky.


    Were the heavens playing tricks on him too?


    At that moment, in the sky, the Great Zhou Sacred King and the Village Chief''s chess pieces fell to the ground. Their gazes were intently focused on Sage Douzhan on the ground. His frame of mind had no flaws, so the Saint disaster had arrived for him to enter the Saint Plane?


    "Hahaha��" Laughter roared throughout the area. Sage Douzhan stared at the sky and said solemnly, "I would like to ask the heavens, how many times can I truly follow my heart in this life? Since I have managed to do it, there is nothing to fear about death."


    Since the heavens had allowed him to experience the Divine Path before he died, he had no regrets in this life!

 832 Tragic Battle

    The sound that came from Sage Douzhan could be heard from the heaven to the earth, full of grief.


    At this moment, in the Heavenly Battle Matrix, Sage Jingang, Yuan Hong and the others all pushed their own strength to the limit and poured it into the body of Sage Douzhan.


    If it was what the heart desired, there was no regret in death.


    Above the sky an ever more horrifying storm of rule powers had started, almost drowning the space. Zhou Mian, Zhou Huang and the others changed their expressions as they looked up at the changes occurring between heaven and earth; their hearts shook violently.


    This was the baptism of the Great Path, and the catastrophe of the Divine Path.


    But how was this possible?


    In the void, Great Zhou Sacred King and the old Village Chief stopped playing chess, standing up and staring at the changes between heaven and earth.


    How could there be a Divine Catastrophe?


    Although Sage Douzhan was at the peak of the sage plane, there were many in the Nine States who were more outstanding than him. But even they could not rely on themselves to break the constraint of the Great Path from the outside world, hence there was grounds to prove sainthood.


    But, Sage Douzhan, by what means was he deserving of this?


    "Great Zhou Sacred King, did you see?" The old Village Chief said. "You launched the Sacred War and forced out the Divine Catastrophe. After this war there will be a cleansing within the Barren State. All those who participated in the war will elevate their state of mind, especially those who were in the battle matrix."


    Great Zhou Sacred King regarded the Heavenly Battle Matrix with disdain, but vaguely understood how Sage Douzhan could instigate the Divine Catastrophe.


    The battle matrix was of one mind and body, rendering the will of Sage Douzhan extremely strong and resilient. Coupled with him surpassing the limits of the flesh and willing to burn his own life to ignite his potential, he broke the constraint of the Great Path.


    Of course, the premise of all this was that Sage Douzhan himself had sublimated his own state of mind with no lack in the ways of the Great Path, which made evoking the truth of the world possible.


    The will, the state of mind, and the power were all integrated into one, which broke the limit and led the Divine Path.


    So, he did it.


    Almost no one had been able to achieve it in the land of the Nine States.


    How ironic it was that a Sacred War had forced out the Divine Path.


    The universe had a sense of humor.


    "So what? The Divine Catastrophe is here. Death is the only outcome." Great Zhou Sacred King said with a cold voice. Even in his prime, Sage Douzhan would not have been able to withstand the power of the Divine Catastrophe, much less in his current state of serious injury. Besides, he had forcibly surpassed the limits of his flesh and burned his own potential. Under the Divine Catastrophe, he would surely die.


    At this moment, Great Zhou Sacred King actually felt some pity. Even if this was an enemy, he had to admit that he was quite a character.


    The Barren State was truly a magical land, but since it was the enemy it could only be destroyed.


    In that battle was Ye Futian. He had observed the situation of Sage Douzhan, and his heart trembled fiercely.


    He had once asked what the Divine Path was after the Divine Catastrophe and the purge of the Great Path rules. With perfection of mind the Divine Path could be proved.


    The Divine Path was extremely difficult.


    It was just that the Divine Catastrophe had the power to annihilate everything.


    For the Master, his catastrophe was a physical one. Using the physical body to testify the Divine Path he cast the sacred body of rules, and thus became sainted.


    However, the Sacred War was at this moment. The Master did not hesitate to burn all the power, breaking the limit and instigating the Divine Catastrophe. Under such circumstances, it was impossible for him to survive this catastrophe.


    Seeing the endless cultivators around him, Ye Futian''s eyes turned the color of blood. At this moment, he was fighting in the midst of?? major legions.


    Whether it was the Holy Zhi Palace or the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, many from both sides had perished, but the number of combatants remaining to the opponent was still greater.


    He knew that the Mater was fighting to give an opportunity to them by stalling the strongest force of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. He waged his own life to fulfill his promise and mission. He had considered the matter already.


    At this time, traces of the Great Path rules storm flooded into the body of Sage Douzhan, rocking his body until its flesh seemed ready to tear apart.


    But at this moment he was not afraid. He never thought about continuing to live, so what was there to fear about dying?


    Both fists clenched within Heavenly Battle Matrix, an incomparably immense force poured into his body and Sage Douzhan revealed a smile on his face. He was not alone in this fight. Everyone was fighting with him side by side, and he was proud of such a united Palace.


    His spirit touched all the cultivators, and equally, the will of these cultivators were also touching him.


    Sounds of terror were heard and the body of Sage Douzhan continued to increase, expanding toward heaven and earth as if he himself was the battle form.


    An even more powerful storm came over them, and even the divine implement of an armor could not resist it. In this moment, Sage Douzhan took off the divine implement and threw it to Yu Hong, "Take it."


    His bronzed skin was exposed between heaven and earth, baptized by the rules of the Great Path. His body seemed to be cracking open, and yet filled with sacred luster.


    These were two extremes: either it would be cast into the body of a saint or it would be broken into pieces.


    At the moment, Sage Douzhan was enduring the impact of the Great Path that no one could have imagined, but he still stood there, like a mountain, incomparable.


    "When the Way has been known in the morning, there is no need to see the end of the day."


    Sage Douzhan declared with a clear voice, and as soon as he was done, he took a step with his immense body across the space, headed in the direction of Zhou Mian.


    Although death was certain, he would experience the power of the Dharma body endowed with the Great Path before that.


    Zhou Mian and the others did not alter their look much, but their hearts were extremely shocked.


    Saint plane was their strongest pursuit when they reached this level of cultivation.


    However, at this moment, right in front of them, Sage Douzhan was leading the Divine Path.


    But under the circumstance, Sage Douzhan was not fighting against the purge of the Divine Catastrophe, but launching attack toward them?


    This was a complete abandonment of hope, just to oppose them.


    That was an opportunity for sanctification. Although everyone understood that there was almost no chance of survival in this situation for Sage Douzhan, the opportunity of the Divine Path was still within reach. Even if the chance was small, who would not fight for it?


    Even if that meant giving it all, the goal was to live and to prove sainthood.


    But Sage Douzhan had no plan to do so.


    Seeing that massive figure coming down, Zhou Mian gathered in the power of the battle matrix, and a terrifiying golden phoenix appeared in the sky. Like a demon god, its giant golden phoenix wings slashed out toward Sage Douzhan.


    The catastrophe of the Divine Path fell down, but Sage Douzhan did not pay attention to it. He extended his hands and caught the huge golden phoenix wings that came in for the kill.


    A loud scream echoed as his arms opened wide to the sides, the immense body of the golden phoenix''s body tearing apart with a force that could pass through the sky.


    Boom!


    Sage Douzhan stepped into the void, his colossal body landing directly in front of Zhou Mian. His arms retracted, and then punched out, like an ancient god who could penetrate heaven and earth.


    Zhou Mian looked incredibly irritated. The huge boundless golden phoenix wings closed, and from them emitted the authority of a divine implement. But the fist of Sage Douzhan was also clad in a divine implement. Moreover, his body had already undergone the baptism of the Divine Path at the moment; within the attack there was already a trace of saintly authority integrated into the divine implement which rendered it indomitable.


    Boom!


    The heaven and the earth seemed to burst open, and the great army behind Zhou Mian was shocked into disintegration. He himself turned into a stream of light and flew in retreat, spitting out a mouthful of blood. If there was no protection from the divine implement and the battle matrix, this one punch alone would be enough to shatter his internal organs.


    He had not become saint, yet was already so powerful?


    Then when proved in the Divine Path, what kind of unearthly power would that be.


    There was a strong desire in Zhou Mian''s heart.


    Sage Douzhan took a step once again, and this time he stepped into the middle of the disintegrating army.


    Above the firmament, there was a terrible storm of the Divine Catastrophe, which was without end and limit.


    "Puh!" with a muted sound Sage Douzhan spat out a mouthful of blood, the endless Divine Path rules coursing over the surface of his body, the cracks on the bronze body vaguely showing as if to pulverize his body.


    "Come on."


    Sage Douzhan looked up at the storm of the Divine Catastrophe that gathered in the sky. He clenched his fists and screamed, and the endless fist will burst from his body, carrying the ruinous catastrophe across the land.


    "Run!" Zhou Mian screamed, as the army collapsed. If they wanted to use their own strength now to counter an already transformed Sage Douzhen, death would be the only outcome.


    Everyone escaped at all locations, but the endless fist will had descended upon them.


    "Bang! Bang! Bang!" Terrible sounds were heard, and in an instant, many cultivators were hit by the fist will, their bodies were pierced through, dead on the spot.


    Above the void, Great Zhou Sacred King saw this scene with indifference, "Does this count as a saint?"


    "Without Divine Catastrophe there is no real means to cast the sacred body, so how can it be considered sacred?" The old Village Chief responded indifferently, but detecting the released atmosphere from the Great Zhou Sacred King, he reminded him, "The Sacred King must not forget the rules set by the Nine States supervising inspector and that they will be monitoring the Sacred War. Perhaps at this moment they are among the crowds. If the Sacred King violates the will of Emperor Xia, what would be the consequences?"


    When Great Zhou Sacred King heard these words, the look in his eyes were extremely sharp. Who could have imagined that Sage Douzhan would experience Divine Catastrophe in the Sacred War, and that he would attack the cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty regardless of his own life or death.


    Just then, Zhou Mian came to the army where Zhou Huang was located, and once again integrated into the battle matrix, Golden Phoenix Sword and Golden Phoenix Wings seemed to want to unify together, melding offense and defense in one. Zhou Mian said coldly, "Under the Divine Catastrophe it''s already the end for him. Sage Wuliang, join the attack."


    Sage Wuliang''s face changed slightly; he really did not want to continue fighting under these circumstances. Sage Douzhan in this state of madness was entirely too dangerous, attacking with catastrophe of the Divine Path and completely ignoring his own life or death.


    If he left Sage Douzhan would succumb to the catastrophe so there was no need to fight it out, but for the nobles like Zhou Mian it was quite different. If they were miserable, Zhou Mian wanted Sage Douzhan to lose his fighting power so as not to directly endanger the victory of the Sacred War.


    In this Sacred War, Zhou Mian was the Commander-in-Chief. If defeated, he would naturally shoulder the responsibility.


    However, with Great Zhou Sacred King himself supervising the battle and watch over it all, he dared not refuse.


    "Very well." Sage Wuliang nodded, controlling the Infinite Body forward, and all three strong cultivators stood side by side, watching Sage Douzhan coming toward them.


    The colossal body of Sage Douzhan stepped forward, above the sky as even stronger storms of rules fell, impacting his body. Blood trailed down from the corner of his mouth, but it seemed like he did not feel it and continued onward toward Zhou Mian.


    Sage Douzhan at this moment was like a true saint!

 833 Living

    His sturdy body was like that of a god of war.


    Sage Douzhan stretched out his arms and clenched his fist. With his body as the center between heaven and earth, the power of the law of the Great Path rushed into him. His form was incomparably majestic. His bronze skin and his arms and legs were covered by the calamitous light of the Great Path, and his body was tempered.


    Was this calamitous light destruction or rebirth?


    But no matter what it was, it was definitely the most deadly force for Zhou Mian.


    Zhou Mian entered the battle matrix where Zhou huang was. The Golden Phoenix''s wings covered the sky. In a flash countless afterimages appeared. Each golden afterimage was made of golden wings. They were like the most terrible blades in the world, capable of cutting through the void.


    The endless afterimages overlapped over everything, and they attacked Sage Douzhan.


    Sage Douzhan seemed to not see them. He screamed, and his huge majestic figure and he stepped towards the void. He raised his arms towards the void and the light of the Great Path flowed over them, blocking the attacking wings and a harsh, sharp sound.


    Thump. Sage Douzhan stepped out, rubbing his arms against the wings. He was eager for close combat.


    At this time he only had one conviction: to completely destroy this army so they could not affect the sacred war.


    Zhou Huang lashed out with his Golden Phoenix Sword, and a bolt of golden electricity pierced through the void. In addition to the sword shadow, a huge golden phoenix appeared. It carried incomparable majesty, and it attacked Sage Douzhan.


    On the other side, countless sages brandished the Infinite Ruler, and its shadow covered the sky. As they slammed down the void was shaken.


    The Golden Phoenix Sword stabbed into Sage Douzhan''s chest, and the Infinite Ruler slammed into his back. This kind of power was enough to destroy any cultivator under the Saint Plane. No one would dare endure such a terrible attack, but Sage Douzhan managed to bear it with his own strength.


    The space seemed quiet, and Sage Douzhan seemed to be quieted down as well. A terrible power rushed into his body, and blood spurted out of his mouth. There also seemed to be blood permeating through his bronze muscles.


    Zhou Mian stared at Sage Douzhan. Would this power be enough to kill him?


    Also, the power of the Divine Catastrophe itself caused him great injury. He knew that a body tempered by the Divine Catastrophe would be absolutely disastrous to him now.


    "Brother." Sage Jinggan looked over at Sage Douzhan and his heart was filled with grief and indignation.


    The chaotic slaughter still continued on the other battlefield. Ye Futian played his music with bloodshot eyes. He certainly saw everything that happened to Sage Douzhan.


    "Teacher!" shouted Ye Futian. His heart hurt, and infinite power burst out from within him. The World Tree spirit made a rustling sound, and a glimmer of light spread out from him. It was the branches and leaves of the World Tree. They shrouded the whole area.


    The endless power rushed into his body, and a hint of madness flashed in his eyes. The spiritual will power of the cultivators around him turned into thousands of links and rushed madly into his mind. The Worldly Spiritual Qi was completely out of control, and he was breathing rapidly.


    "Futian." Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian shared the same mind at the moment, and she faintly realized what Ye Futian wanted to do. She could not help but gently shake her head. "You won''t be able to bear it."


    He wanted to turn everyone''s spiritual will power into his own power, seal it in his spiritual will, and use this to induce the power of the heavens and the earth to achieve a certain balance between his physical strength and his spiritual will.


    But Hua Jieyu fully understood the terrible consequences of this. At first she almost didn''t snap out of it. If Ye Futian just used his music and her power to accumulate matrix power he could withstand it, but if he borrowed it completely he would likely be killed by the spiritual will.


    After all, the power did not belong to him.


    "Godly Creation of All Things," Ye Futian spat. Suddenly the body of an ancient god gathered around him. He and everyone in the matrix were enveloped in this towering body.


    This ancient god that was born of cohesion seemed to be formed out of all of their wills.


    Golden blood burned in Ye Futian''s body. He used the borrowed power to motivate the will of the emperor within him. In an instant, all the power within him seemed to be sucked out. Even the power within his Life Palace was burning up crazily.


    The will of the emperor transformed into a formless light screen. The ancient god''s body was boundless and vast. At that moment everyone seemed to truly have been integrated into one.


    "Are you all willing to fight with me?" Ye Futian''s voice appeared in everyone''s mind.


    "We are."


    "Then let''s fight."


    Their will came back to Ye Futian. They were all as determined to fight as Lingtian.


    A burst of warmth flowed through Ye Futian''s heart. He secretly swore that after that battle he would not disappoint them.


    The shape of the ancient god''s body changed. Wings sprung out of it and unfolded fiercely, turning into an incomparably destructive figure of a golden roc.


    It flapped its wings and the gold-winged roc suddenly moved forward. It spread its wings like a monarch in the sky.


    Everyone was subjected to an unparalleled pressure, friends and foes sharing a common fate.


    "Guard your will, do not waver." Sage Daozang''s will was transmitted to everyone. They all closed their eyes and gave all their power to Ye Futian.


    Everyone gave their life to Ye Futian.


    An extremely sharp wind blew between heaven and earth. The gold-winged roc crossed through the void, and many people attacked it. However, everywhere the golden feathers passed by an endless stream of blood flew between heaven and earth, and no one could stop it.


    The crashing sound continued. Along the way people continuously perished. Many people trembled fiercely as they saw the divine bird that shuttled back in forth in all the blood.


    Were they crazy?


    If Douzhan was, than Ye Futian was too.


    They did not believe that Ye Futian''s outburst of power would come without a cost.


    Even the Great Zhou Sacred King, who was in the void, was distracted by this. His eyes were drawn away from Douzhan as they were attracted by Ye Futian. He looked at the huge roc, that incomparable monarch of the sky, as if he could see through it with a glance.


    What kind of battle matrix was this?


    The power that erupted in the Holy Zhi Palace was beyond his imagination, especially since Douzhan had summoned the catastrophe. No one could have imagined this.


    Ye Futian smashed through the crowd towards where Sage Douzhan was.


    At that moment Sage Douzhan was under heavy attack. The Golden Phoenix Sword cut into his mighty body bit by bit. Blood flowed out from the cuts, and Zhou Huang''s eyes were full of cold killing intent. Even though he had summoned the Divine Catastrophe he would still die.


    "Bring it on!" Douzhan lifted his head and shouted. Suddenly, the calamity of the laws of the Great Path attacked. Zhou Mian and Zhou Huang''s expressions changed slightly as a destructive force flowed from the sky and entered Sage Douzhan''s body.


    Crack! Sage Douzhan seemed about to burst. He clenched both fists together and the calamitous light of the Great Path flowed through his arms. He rushed directly for Zhou Huang in front of him.


    Zhou Huang seemed to have turned into a sacred golden phoenix. He was huge beyond compare, and all the power of a battle matrix was integrated within him. As the double fists fell, the calamitous light pierced through the phoenix body, completely destroying it. The calamity of the Great Path cut through everything, and a devestating destructive force exploded where Zhou Huang was.


    One of the powerful cultivators of the Sage Plane was hit, and he fell down. Many people were completely crushed.


    The battle matrix instantly collapsed. Zhou Huang was also thrown far away, and he vomited blood. A destructive force was ravaging his internal organs.


    Smash! Zhou Mian made a quick decision, and a huge golden phoenix flapped its wings and smashed into Douzhan''s head.


    Sage Douzhan raise one arm to stop the flapping wings. Suddenly blood flew out of his arm as the wings cut through his flesh. He tried as best he could to block the wings with his arm as he drove himself forward with his legs. His left arm slammed out in front of him, as fist will smashed into the void. Zhou Mian closed his wings suddenly to block the blow, but the fist will fell wildly. If the wings were not divine implements, they would probably destroyed immediately.


    Even so, Zhou Mian was sent flying just like Zhou Huang. Or even worse. After all, his battle matrix had been broken and so he suffered the blow with only his own personal strength. The fist will slammed into him, destroying his body.


    When Sage Wuliang saw this his face took on a ghastly expression, but with his incomparable perseverance his Infinite Ruler grew until its shadow covered the sky and struck forth.


    Crack! A terrible crack rang out, and Douzhan''s mighty body trembled and faltered as if he could barely hold it up.


    The calamitous light of the rules of the Divine Path descended once again. Sage Douzhan felt that he had reached his limit, and he had no more time.


    A line of light pierced through him, and Sage Douzhan turned around and stepped forward, his fists rushing towards Sage Wuliang.


    "Die." The Infinite Body was mighty and huge. Sage Wuliang struck out with the Infinite Ruler and thousands of shadows overlapped.


    But he only saw Douzhan cry out and his fists continued rushing forward. In but a moment it seemed like there were thousands of fists.


    Smash! Smash! Smash!


    A line of fists smashed into the Infinite Ruler, and Douzhan seemed like he would never stop attacking. His power ran along the Infinite Ruler towards the Infinite Body and the Infinite Battle Matrix.


    One punch, then another.


    The Infinite Ruler smashed down, but it seemed to have no power, and countless punches hit the massive Infinite Body and pierced through it. The body collapsed and burst.


    The power of each of these punches eventually fell upon Sage Wuliang and his battle array.


    Bang! A cultivator''s body burst.


    And then another. The cultivators'' bodies collapsed wildly in the battle matrix. Sage Wuliang''s body shook without stopping and blood poured continuously from his mouth. The fist will that rumbled towards him seemed to be immersed in the power of the Divine Catastrophe.


    Sage Douzhan''s movements gradually became slower. Sage Wuliang''s body bent and was on the verge of collapse.


    Finally the fist will disappeared. Sage Douzhan''s arms dropped powerlessly to his side. Another beam of calamitous light descended and his body trembled fiercely. He fell backward like a fallen god of war.


    But Sage Jingang''s form flashed and he caught Douzhan''s huge body and carried it on his shoulder.


    "Hold on, brother," Sage Jingang shouted.


    There was no strength left in Sage Douzhan''s eyes. He had exhausted his power. He saw that the rules of the Great Path were still gathering in the void. "Go!" he shouted weakly.


    "No..." Sage Jingang shook his head.


    "That''s an order," said Sage Douzhan somewhat weakly. Sage Jingang still carried him, as he looked up at the rules of the Great Path in the void.


    The Divine Catastrophe came together and descended once again. Sage Douzhan closed his eyes.


    He had done all he could in this battle. He hoped that the Barren State could beat back the other side.


    Crash!


    A loud sound rang out. The Divine Catastrophe had not fallen. Sage Douzhan opened his eyes and saw a huge golden-winged roc in the air above his body, blocking the Divine Path Calamity.


    The huge-gold feathered roc looked down at him and said, "Teacher."


    He looked through the roc''s eyes and seemed to see a more familiar pair of eyes. A faint look of gratitude crossed his face.


    His accidental disciple would perhaps become the most dazzling character in the Nine States in the future.


    He anxiously awaited the coming of that day, but he did not know if he''d have the chance to see it.


    "Stay alive." Sage Douzhan closed his eyes after that last utterance.


    The gold-winged roc still looked at him and whispered, "You too, teacher."

 834 Retrea

    The Roc''s eyes were extremely sharp and expressed strong emotions.


    Sage Douzhan had overcome the limits of the physical body but had now exhausted the strength because of it.


    How would he continue to bear the catastrophe?


    This catastrophe was inadvertently caused when Sage Douzhan was crystallizing the battle matrix and not relying on his own strength, which meant that even in Sage Douzhan''s prime, he might not have been able to bear the catastrophe of the Great Path.


    Above the sky, the horrific light of catastrophe of the Great Path wandered between heaven and earth, as if trying to discern the whereabouts of Sage Douzhan.


    The Roc looked up and watched the horrific light of catastrophe of the Great Path coming in its direction. Its eyes were extremely sharp.


    Within the Roc, Ye Futian stood quietly. The Roc was an ancient god that he had created by borrowing everyone''s spiritual will, controlled by him, just as if it were an incarnation of him.


    The Master fought for the Palace, and he did so at the risk of his own destruction.


    Now that the Master had fallen, he would be the one to block the catastrophe.


    Incomparably brilliant golden glow of light flowed over the large body of the Roc and lightly veiled it with the dazzling light of the stars, all of which were superior defense rules power.


    The violent light of the catastrophe came towards them, and with a loud bang, the light of the stars was broken in an instant, and the body of the Roc trembled fiercely. All Ye Futian could feel was that his will would collapse and he would be destroyed. But as the will of the emperor was burning, his eyes showed extreme determination.


    If he fell, the Master would undoubtedly die.


    Boom! Boom! The raging light of catastrophe of the Great Path that had not yet scattered was now madly bombarding the Roc. Its body started to show cracks, and the immense body of the ancient demon god seemed on the verge of destruction. Inside, Ye Futian''s will was interrupted, and his clothes were stained with blood, but he was unshaken in his determination.


    "Battle matrix formation." A loud cry came from the Heavenly Battle Matrix that was led by Yuan Hong and other powerful cultivators. They had positioned themselves above the Roc and formed the battle matrix. Yuan Hong, now clad in the divine implement armor that was discarded by Sage Douzhan, stood at the highest position.


    Still, horrible light of catastrophe showered down and penetrated the battle matrix. Yuan Hong''s body trembled, but he still stood there; the entire Heavenly battle matrix shuddered.


    In the void, the light of catastrophe of the Great Path was diminishing; just a few more waves of impact and the catastrophe would pass.


    Boom! With yet another loud bang, the Heavenly Battle Matrix collapsed. Yuan Hong''s body fell from the sky, and the light of catastrophe continued to impact Wang Xiang and hit the body of the Roc. Even more cracks now appeared on the Roc, making it look as if it was on the verge of destruction.


    "Allow me." A voice was heard, and another figure could be seen coming forward; it was the royal cultivators led by Huang Xi. They had also formed a battle matrix. An immense Sovereign Aura exploded and the gigantic battle form of Renhuang appeared.


    "Be gone." Huang Xi looked up and glanced at the catastrophe of the Great Path, then took the initiative to attack. A mighty force swept heaven and earth, and legions of an army clad in armor rushed out to strike. It was an extremely strong martial arts rules illusion, but the army of apparitions was lost in the light of catastrophe, and the horrible light blasted on the battle form of Renhuang, violently rocking the bodies of Huang Xi and the others.


    "It''s almost disappearing." Those who watched the battle from afar seemed to stop breathing. Their hearts beat wildly and their fists clenched tightly, as if it were they who were experiencing the catastrophe.


    All the people from the Barren State, even those who were just watching, were extremely nervous.


    They must hold the line.


    In this Sacred War, the beliefs exhibited by the powerful cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace had a strong impact on them.


    The Holy Zhi Palace must win.


    "If this catastrophe can be overcome, Sage Douzhan will be transformed, and so will the Holy Zhi Palace," someone in the crowd said with a solemn but clear voice.


    The speaker was an old man, great in age, with a very powerful presence. He was also a well-known figure in the Barren State��Sage Deadwood��who was numbered 29th on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    "Indeed, in this Sacred War, the Holy Zhi Palace is unified in its conviction, with the participation of all the principalities in the Barren State, fighting side by side, unconcerned with life or death. This spirit is worthy of those listed on the Barren Sky Ranking, we ought to be ashamed." Another walked out, and many people exclaimed, recognizing the person as another cultivator on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Among those who came to observe the battle, many were the strong cultivators and well-known figures from all sectors of the Barren State.


    "If so, do you dare to fight?" someone spoke.


    Sage Deadwood turned his sight to the rear and said clearly, "Many of you are top cultivators from the Barren State, enough to form a super army of sages and nobles. This time, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty led cultivators to invade and instigated the Sacred War, intending on destroying the Holy Zhi Palace and establishing themselves in the Barren State. Now the battle is heating up with hefty costs. If we participate in the war, we can change the tide. Would anyone be willing to join me in driving the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty out of the Barren State?"


    "I wish to battle."


    "Barren State cultivators do not fear battle."


    "Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, get out of the Barren State!"


    Voices were heard in response, and suddenly, everyone was affected by this sentiment. As they stepped forward, a majestic army started to form.


    The cultivators of Zhisheng Cliffs and Xihua Sacred Mountain stood amongst the crowd, and their faces revealed a slight shock.


    "If so, then get on with it." All cultivators stepped forward with awesome momentum, its magnificence pressuring those around it.


    On the other side, the Great Zhou Sacred King blinked and looked into the distance. He saw the army heading for him, and with an extremely cold look, he said to them icily, "You dare challenge me?"


    His voice trembled between heaven and earth, like thunder in a clear sky, wanting to break the force of these strong cultivators. He knew that these people were affected by the passion for this war, and joined in the heat of the moment. As long as he could jolt them out of it, it would be enough to stop them.


    Sure enough, as he finished his sentence, many had stopped in their track, plagued by doubts. After all, this was the Sacred King, with the legendary existence of the saint plane.


    "The cultivation of the Great Path should be determinate in heart and mind before there is the opportunity for enlightenment, such as in the case of Sage Douzhan." The old Village Chief surveyed the cultivators and declared, "Cultivation is the cultivation of the heart, regardless of sanctification. If one cannot face the world with honesty, enlightenment is meaningless."


    Many people who heard the words from the old Village Chief felt moved in their hearts, and boiling blood coursed through their bodies. This wisdom was also from a saint, and the words of saints were enlightening.


    "Fight."


    The army continued forward. Great Zhou Sacred King looked extremely upset. The old Village Chief looked at him and said, "Great Zhou Sacred King, do you see? In this battle, the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty will surely be defeated."


    Clearly, Great Zhou Sacred King never expected this turn of events in the Sacred War. He had guessed that the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would be able to raze the Holy Zhi Palace in no time.


    But at the moment, everything had deviated from how he had imagined.


    At the moment, the light of the catastrophe of the Great Path below descended again, with Huang Xi, Yuan Zhan, Ye Futian, and the others resisting this last bit of force.


    Finally, the light of the catastrophe of the Great Path above the firmament gradually subsided; they had blocked it successfully.


    The faces of those within the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were extremely disturbed. The Divine Catastrophe had not annihilated their opponents.


    The Roc looked down at the body of Sage Douzhan, and upon the golden body, there was still a sacred brilliance flowing about. At the moment, he felt that all his spiritual will seemed to have collapsed, but on Ye Futian''s face, there was a smile.


    Afterward, when he looked up, he saw an army coming from the distance and declared loudly, "We are the cultivators of the Barren State, coming to your aid."


    "Smite." The voice trembled between heaven and earth, and the mighty army of sages was now striking the scattered Golden Phoenix Army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Ye Futian felt warmth in his heart, but when he looked at the people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, he felt chills all over.


    "Guard the Master," Ye Futian commanded. The Roc floated in mid-air, and with a flash of its wings, it dragged on with extremely exhausted spiritual will and headed towards Zhou Huang with a renewed attack.


    Zhou Huang''s state, at this time, was no better than Ye Futian''s. He was wounded by Sage Douzhan and was seriously injured. If it were not for the battle matrix, he probably would have already died.


    The Golden Phoenix Sword lifted and Zhou Huang''s body seemed to be burning as the golden blade of light moved between heaven and earth.


    Buzz! Golden brilliance shone between heaven and earth, and the space seemed to have come to a standstill. Zhou Huang felt the space-freezing rules power and looked terrible. He lifted the Golden Phoenix Sword with great difficulty, and the power of the rules that could tear all powers tore through the space-freezing rules, and the Golden Phoenix Sword stabbed the Roc that was descending.


    Boom! The body of the Roc did not hesitate as it dove and continued swooping down, its claws grabbing downward. While the Golden Phoenix Sword was still on top of it, terrible rule powers could be felt blocking its way, even though it continued to keep going. Incredible brilliance penetrated the claws of the Roc, but at the same time, the other claw tore down and slammed on Zhou Huang''s body.


    Zhou Huang''s body shook violently, and it felt like all his internal organs were shattered.


    "Be gone." Zhou Mian and Sage Wuliang attacked at the same time. Even though they were also seriously injured, they could not watch Zhou Huang being slaughtered without a good explanation for Great Zhou Sacred King, so they would strike back at all costs.


    The Roc split open its wings and collided with the attack of the two. In an instant, the Roc, Zhou Mian, and Sage Wuliang were simultaneously bounced off, and the huge body of the Roc seemed to be on the verge of falling.


    Having suffered from the catastrophic light of the Divine Path, the concentrated power of the Roc had already been greatly impacted, but Ye Futian just wanted to continue the velocity of the attack and put down the Great Zhou Sacred King''s eldest son.


    "Retreat." In the void, Great Zhou Sacred King had a frosty look in his eyes and ordered the retreat. He knew that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had lost all advantages and the momentum was now completely reversed.


    The people of the Barren State were ferocious and unafraid of death; even the onlookers had participated in the Sacred War.


    His eldest, Zhou Huang, almost died at the hands of Ye Futian. Zhou Mian and Sage Wuliang were almost at their end. If he did not withdraw now, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would pay a very hefty price.


    In the other direction, other cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty started to disengage after hearing the command from Great Zhou Sacred King, fighting as they withdrew.


    "Let''s go." The divine implement wings behind Zhou Mian opened up, taking Zhou Huang and Sage Wuliang, and quickly galloping away in retreat.


    The body of the Roc was once again suspended in the sky, watching the hurriedly retreating Zhou Mian, its eyes gave out a frosty look.


    Buzz! Both wings tremored, and in an instant, the endless golden radiance of the wings slashed downward, madly chopping at the Golden Phoenix Army and those who did not retreat in time. In a flash, screams after screams were heard, and many had left their lives on the battlefield.


    Soon, the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty receded like the tide. After a brief chase by the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace, they returned to Ye Futian and gathered at the side of the Roc.


    At this time, the body of the Roc disappeared, and the figures of Ye Futian and the others appeared. He looked up and stared at Great Zhou Sacred King in the void; his look remained frigid.


    "This is only the beginning," Great Zhou Sacred King spoke coldly. His eyes swept across the cultivators who were present.


    "Of course," Ye Futian responded. "The day the Sacred War ends will be the day the Great Zhou Sacred King dies."


    "You don''t know what you are talking about." The Sacred King huffed and left.


    Ye Futian looked at the figure that gradually faded, and his eyes showed his extreme determination. Afterward, his body fell weakly from the sky. Not just him, but many of the strong cultivators participated in the battle matrix were exhausted and started to fall!

 835 Planning

    Figures flashed and caught Ye Futian and the others'' bodies before landing on the ground.


    Sage Jingang also carried Sage Douzhan''s body and landed on the ground. Everyone looked at Ye Futian and Sage Douzhan, although they had repelled the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s experts and the Great Zhou Sacred King had given the order to retreat, they could not bring themselves to be happy.


    The entire floor of corpses were the backbone of the Barren State. Sage Douzhan had fought with every ounce of his strength to exchange this victory. All the experts in the Barren State had been summoned to repel the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army.


    This victory, although short, was way too difficult to achieve. It had left mountains of corpses and was a tragic victory.


    The influential figures like the Alchemy City Lord You Chi, the Ice Temple Lord Yun Shang and the Zhuge Family''s Zhuge Qingfeng had all put in their largest efforts to battle with the experts in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army.


    There were no winners in this war.


    If they continued battling, the results would be even more tragic and more people would die. The same would happen for the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, previously, even the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s eldest prince had nearly died under Ye Futian''s hand.


    Figures flashed as they moved towards Ye Futian and Douzhan. Ye Futian opened his eyes, but he had used up all his strength and drained his Spiritual Energy completely, so he was extremely fatigued.


    "Uncle, how is Master?" Ye Futian asked with difficulty. The person who had caught him was Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "You all have risked everything to shield the remaining Divine Catastrophe for him. Although he suffered heavy injuries, his life should not be at risk." Zhuge Qingfeng replied.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded lightly and saw the Undying Old Man walking towards him. He said weakly, "Senior, please treat Master first."


    After saying that, he closed his eyes. It was this final obsession that finally expended the last of his Spiritual Energy.


    Now, he was really running empty.


    Many other people were also like Ye Futian. Hua Jieyu and the people in the battle matrices had lent their Spiritual Energy to Ye Futian. Moreover, there was a divine Spiritual Will that had appeared and drained their Spiritual Energy completely.


    Now, they had all collapsed and fallen into a deep sleep.


    The Village Chief also landed on the ground, the battle had stirred up his emotions.


    The Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace had repelled the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army.


    This battle was enough to rile up the Nine States.


    In the distance, the Zhisheng Cliffs'' Kong Yao had a grim expression. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army was actually unable to trample the Holy Zhi Palace and was repelled. This conclusion was definitely not what he had wanted to see. Now, the Holy Zhi Palace''s cohesiveness was becoming stronger and towards the end of the battle, even those watching the war had participated. If that was so, the Holy Zhi Palace''s growth in the future would be extraordinary.


    In the long run, it would be detrimental for the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Liu Zong was also shocked, but he then laughed it off. Back then, in the Chess Saint Villa, he had already felt that Ye Futian was extraordinary. Afterwards, in the Nether Sword Mound, Ye Futian had activated the Sword Matrix of the Void to kill the Chess Saint and revealed his unprecedented potential.


    It seemed like he had the potential to become one of his strongest adversaries.


    The Barren State''s experts all heaved a sigh of relief. They had finally won.


    The Holy Zhi Palace had repelled the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The Barren State not only had a Saint, they had also won the sacred war.


    This battle would likely go down in history. If the Barren State rose up among the Nine States, this battle would be recorded in history as the awakening battle. This battle had given them courage and character.


    Thinking back to when they were bullied by the Zhisheng Cliffs, who would have thought that the Barren State would have dared to go to war with the Sacred Dynasty.


    The people in the distance started to leave and return to the Palace. Long after, the crowd had finally dissipated.


    News of the sacred war spread at a horrifying speed throughout Zhongzhou City, then all across the Barren State and towards the Nine States.


    The Barren State was in an uproar and many of the holy lands in the Nine States were also surprised.


    ....


    In the blink of an eye, several months had passed.


    The aftermath of the sacred war still remained. Moreover, the sacred war that had erupted in the Palace was only the first confrontation between the two holy lands. Evidently, it was still far from over.


    In this period of time, the Holy Zhi Palace had been keeping guard, not daring to be lax. Many covert guards had been arranged around the periphery of the Palace and there were even demonic beasts patrolling the skies to prevent sneak attacks.


    If the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army suddenly attacked and they were unprepared, it would be a disaster.


    At that moment, in the Palace, before an ancient mountain, there was a graveyard. There were many tombstones in there, each with a person''s name.


    These were the names of all the people who had died in the sacred war. Even those whose corpses had not been found would still be remembered.


    At that moment, before the tombstones, Ye Futian was there. He had a wine glass in his hand and he overturned the wine glass, pouring the wine in it onto the earth in front of the tombstones.


    He did not say anything, turned around and left. His footsteps appeared to be exceptionally heavy.


    "I''ll go and visit Master." Ye Futian said. Beside him, Zhuge Qingfeng and Yuan Hong nodded.


    Ye Futian had just recovered and could barely move freely. The injuries that he had suffered this time were very severe. Even with the help of the Undying Old Man, he had been in a coma for many days.


    In the Battle Sage Palace, Ye Futian came to Sage Douzhan''s abode. The Undying Old Man and Sage Jingang were also there, as they saw Ye Futian walk over, the Undying Old Man asked, "How are you feeling?"


    "Much better, thank you Senior." Ye Futian replied and asked, "How is Master?"


    "He''s in the medicated bath, I''ll bring you in to have a look." The Undying Old Man replied and brought Ye Futian into a medicated pool. The water in the pool was steaming hot and a medicinal scent radiated from it. Sage Douzhan was sitting in it naked, leaning against the edge of the medicated bath with his eyes closed.


    "Has Master been unconscious all this while?" Ye Futian asked.


    The Undying Old Man shook his head and replied, "He withstood forces beyond what he could withstand during that battle and went past his body''s limit. Not just on his physical body, but also his Spiritual Will. Adding on the Divine Catastrophe, if it had not been for his frame of mind''s transformation, he probably could not have made it out alive. After that battle, the damage to his physical body was too serious and he has not completed the baptism of the Divine Path. Now, what we need to do is to help him recover as best as we can."


    "The Divine Catastrophe has already descended, can''t he become a Saint?" Ye Futian asked.


    The Undying Old Man shook his head and replied, "You should be very clear. If you all had not helped him to withstand the remainder of the Divine Catastrophe that day, he would definitely not have made it through with in his state. Although the Divine Catastrophe is a trial, it is also a blessing. If he wants to become a Saint through his physical body, his body needs to experience the blessing of the Divine Path, allowing his body to become a Saint''s body. Only then will he be considered a complete Saint. Your Master''s situation is rather complicated, with regards to these, the Palace''s Holy Elder should know more than me, you can ask him about it."


    Ye Futian understood what the Undying Old Man meant. The catastrophe was also the Great Path''s rule power tempering one''s body.


    Since his Master had not experienced the entire process of tempering, his body had not completed its metamorphosis and he could not be considered to have entered the Saint Plane through his physical body. Only his frame of mind had reached the Saint Plane.


    "Are there any methods to make up for it?" Ye Futian asked. He understood that his Master''s condition was rather unique.


    However, if he could not become a Saint after withstanding the Divine Catastrophe, it would be a pity.


    "There is, he needs to redo it again." The Undying Old Man replied, then continued, "Of course, the most urgent task at hand is to help him recover from his injuries. With his current body, there is no way he can withstand the Divine Catastrophe."


    Ye Futian nodded. He also understood that his Master''s breakthrough was by coincidence. However, it was also because of his frame of mind''s sublimation.


    As long as there was hope, it was enough. His Master would definitely be able to do it. He knew that entering the Saint Plane through his physical body was his Master''s entire life pursuit.


    "I''ll have to trouble Senior for this period of time." Ye Futian said, then left.


    After he returned to the Sage Palace, Ye Futian summoned the Palace Lords and the leaders of the Barren State''s factions for a meeting.


    The Sword Demon, Sage Daozang and Sage Wanxiang were there.


    Along with them were Huang Xi, You Chi, Yun Shang. Yang Xiao and the elite experts from the Tombkeeper Village were also there.


    "Futian, how do you feel now?" You Chi asked. There were all concerned about Ye Futian''s injuries.


    "I am quite tough, so I''ll be fine." Ye Futian replied. "What are everyone''s thoughts about the previous battle?"


    "There is still a large disparity between the Palace and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. If not for Douzhan''s outburst, it would still be too dangerous for us to stop the Golden Phoenix Army and the three experts on the Sage Ranking." The Sword Demon said. "In the area of the battlefield where we were, our sword matrix, as well as Yang Xiao, You Chi and the rest were stalled by them. The army led by Nie Gai was extremely strong, the other elite clans from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty can also hold their own against the Sovereign Family and the Ice Temple."


    Ye Futian nodded. Back then, he had mixed feelings about that area of the battlefield back then. The Sovereign Family, Ice Temple and Alchemy City were all the elite factions of the Barren State, but the enemies were similarly the elite factions in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s territory. However, the only difference was that the other party had been ordered to come and their conviction to battle was not strong. As such, when the Great Zhou Sacred King had given the order to retreat, they had been quick to do so."


    "The previous battle is only the start of the sacred war. As long as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is not destroyed, the sacred war will continue. Now, our strength is still too weak." Ye Futian said. "As such, I have decided to open up the Sage Hall. Everyone who has participated in the war will be allowed into the Sage Hall to cultivate, including the cultivators from the Barren State who participate in future battles. What do Seniors think?"


    Everyone had glints in their eyes. The Sage Hall had always been the most sacred place in the Holy Zhi Palace, containing the most important teachings of the Palace. Only the most outstanding people in the era could receive the recognition of the six Palaces to enter the Sage Hall to cultivate.


    Now, Ye Futian wanted to completely open up the Sage Hall.


    "I agree." The Sword Demon replied. In the previous battle, everyone had gone through thick and thin together. The cultivators from the Barren State who had participated in the war afterwards were also courageous individuals or they would not have participated in the sacred war."


    "I agree as well." Sage Wanxiang also nodded. At this moment, they should let go of some of the obstinate thoughts they had in their heads.


    Many people nodded in agreement to Ye Futian''s decision.


    "Okay." Ye Futian saw everyone agreeing and nodded, saying, "Apart from that, send out recruitment orders to the Barren State to invite more experts to join the Holy Zhi Palace."


    His decision to allow those who participated in the sacred war later on into the Sage Hall to cultivate was also a form of motivation.


    The current Holy Zhi Palace''s strength was still insufficient. They needed to expand and unite the entire Barren State as one to confront the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "We will do it right after this." The Sword Demon replied. He would naturally not object to Ye Futian''s opinions.


    "Apart from that, we need to weaken the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. We cannot afford to wait for them to strike again." Ye Futian continued to say, "The Barren State will not be pushed around."


    "How does the Palace Lord plan to do that?" Someone asked.


    "Progressive elimination." Ye Futian''s gaze was sharp. The clans that took part in the war could not permanently stay in the capital of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, could they?

 836 Infinite Palace III

    The Holy Zhi Palace entered a period of cultivation and rectification under some of the top forces of the Barren State.


    The Sovereing Family, the Ice Temple, the Alchemy City and many other martial arts cultivators officially moved into the palace to cultivate themselves, and thus they became a part of it. Because of the Sacred War all the power of the Barren State had gathered together.


    There were also many cultivators of the Barren Sky Ranking. They responded to the call and descended upon the palace. The last sacred war had let them see the hope of the rise of the Barren State''s holy land. Ye Futian would likely lead the Holy Zhi Palace into a new era.


    Therefore, they were making this gamble.


    The Barren State was heavily impacted. Those top forces that did not enter the palace, like the Ximen clan, and the forces of the Mortal World appeared quite isolated.


    Now the Barren State seemed to have entered an era of great unity.


    No one would have thought that this era of unification would have happened due to the sacred war.


    Although the Holy Zhi Palace had experienced catastrophe, it seemed to have opened up a new epoch.


    The palace disciples were all cultivating diligently. They entered the palace to study, to become enlightened, and to practice their battle matrices. Yang Xiao, the master of the Matrix Palace, was also bustling about busily. Those who he led were even arranging matrices within the palace.


    In the past the Holy Zhi Palace had lacked top-level matrix masters. In the holy land forces of the Eastern State, all of them had Mountain Guarding Matrices. It was extremely frightening. That holy land even had Sacred Matrices. Even if a saint invaded he would have a hard time shaking them off.


    The palace now had the Matrix Palace, so naturally they would keep up with them.


    Countless people were now talking about the changes within the Barren State. At this time, many people at open-air restaurants in Zhongzhou City were drinking and chatting.


    "I heard that after the sacred war six renegade cultivators of above the Barren Sky Ranking entered the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. I never would have thought that after the war the palace''s power would not have declined, but would in fact increase."


    "Mhm, the wills of the Barren State are now united. This war brought out the righteous ardor of the Barren State. I hope that one day Ye Futian will be able to lead them all to the Great Sacred Zhou Dynasty''s capital.


    Many people were speaking passionately.


    At one of the restaurants, three figures were sitting quietly. Someone frowned, "How can the Great Sacred Zhou Dynasty be so tyrannical? Although they repelled that attack, the Barren State can protect itself. But if they want to attack the Zhou Dynasty''s Barren City, there will inevitably be fools who will say they are dreaming."


    Someone swept over to the person who was speaking and said coldly, "Is His Excellency raising his ambitions here?"


    "Don''t say so much," the person next to him reminded him, and glanced at the person who spoke. The man just snorted and didn''t say anything.


    Woosh!


    A gust of wind blew through, and everyone in the restaurant looked up at the void and saw a giant roc spreading its wings. It cast its sharp eyes over the restaurant.


    The three people at the table where the person had just spoken frowned. One of them asked, "Another roc?"


    They had seen rocs many times, but they didn''t know if they were all the same one. But they had never been so close to one.


    Just as they were frowning, the roc swept its eyes over them. One of them suddenly felt all the hair on their body stand up on end. "Not good," he said in a stern voice.


    He stood up after saying this, and he felt his whole body go cold. "Withdraw."


    The other two also seemed to realize what was happening. Their figures flashed as they tried to find a way to escape.


    But at this moment a massive breath descended and a figure came from afar and appeared before them, blocking their way.


    "Do you seniors have any wise advice?" asked the figure that appeared.


    The one who had come was Qin Zhuang, the first swordsman of Tombkeeper village.


    "Die," Qin Zhuang spat, and his body turned into afterimages.


    Three lines of Sword Qi burst forth, and the afterimages gathered together and formed into Qin Zhuang''s figure which appeared behind the three people.


    Lines of blood appeared on those three cultivators'' throats and their bodies fell.


    A sword sealed their lips.


    At the same time, a similar scene was staged in many places in Zhongzhou. Many people were killed by those who had come out of Holy Zhi Palace. Before they died they realized that after the day the army had retreated they had been watched by passing demonic beasts.


    However, they remembered that many of the demonic beasts had just flashed by them as they flew far away. How did they do it?


    Could it be that those demonic beasts that had inadvertently passed by were all part of a whole?


    These murdered cultivators were informers that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had left behind in the Barren State who could check up on the movements of the Barren State at any time.


    ........


    In the skies above the capital city of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty one or two demons would whisk by from time to time, and one of them was a sage level demon.


    The Infinite Palace was built in the Infinite Mountains far away from the Holy Capital.


    There were even towns around the mountains, and with the Infinite Palace as their center they were quite prosperous.


    The Infinite Palace was like a reclining dragon in the mountains. It was spectacular and had a great atmosphere.


    As clansmen of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty the people here held great status within the Zhou lands, even when the Sovereign family came to visit.


    The Lord of the Infinite Palace also appeared on the Sage and Saint ranking.


    But now there were a group of people marching straight into the palace.


    "Who goes there?" The guard outside the palace intercepted the people. The head guards were all at the sage level. He let out a difficult to detect gasp as he stared at the line of people before him.


    None of the dozens of people in this lime seemed to have an ordinary temperament. He didn''t know if they were cultivators from some place.


    "Sages," a lazy voice sounded. It was a middle-aged man in gray. His eyes were as sharp as a sword, and although they were full of laughter they were still cold.


    "Kill him," came another voice, and suddenly a terrible sword will burst forth. The sage''s expression changed as he stepped back.


    However, he only saw an incomparably destructive golden blade of light that seemed to be faster than light. His eyes widened crazily as it chopped into the space between his eyebrows, but there was no pain.


    Puff! A sound rang out as a line of blood appeared between his eyebrows, and his body fell. Next to him, a prince''s expression changed greatly and he jumped back as he arrogantly said, "Enemy attack."


    This sounds pierced through space and went up the stairs towards the palace. In an instant a line of figures rose into the air. Many of them were people at the sage level. The inside information of the First Clan of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were all revealed.


    Was someone invading the Infinite Palace?


    Everyone in the line of people who had risen into the sky outside the palace let out a strong gasp as they glanced up.


    "Qin Zhuang, how about you kill someone just as quickly?" said the man in gray from before.


    "Okay." Qing Zhuang nodded, and the next two people''s bodies disappeared, turning into two afterimages.


    "They''re from the Holy Zhi Palace." In the air was a cultivator who had gone to the Barren State to participate in the war. He recognized these people, and his expression suddenly changed.


    "People from the Barren State have invaded." His voice rang through the void. Just as it did, a golden radiance pierced through the void and passed through him. There was still fear in his eyes as his head flew through the air.


    Qin Zhuang''s speciality was spatial swordsmanship. He had to power to control the movement of space, and thus his speed was frightening. He was the first person under the Village Chief in Tombkeeper village.


    A golden light sword shot up into the sky. Next to it was a terrible killing sword will.


    "Impudent!" came a roaring voice. At the peak of the mountain, a mighty body stood high above the palace. It was full of endless majesty. It was the Master of the Infinite Palace, Sage Wuliang.


    The Infinite Body broke out directly. His imposing manner was without equal. He lifted his hand and an Infinite Sword appeared, and thousands more giant swords appeared in front of him. When he pointed forward the Infinite Sword suddenly pierced through the void and raced towards Qin Zhuang and Xu Shang.


    Sage Wuliang''s expression was magnificent and cold. The people from the Barren State dared attack his Infinite Palace. Truly impudent.


    Several top figures appeared beside him, all of whom were at the sage level and at the pinnacle of human achievement.


    The Infinite Palace, the first clan of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    When Qin Zhuang saw the Infinite Sword that covered the sky coming, he pointed forward and an incomparably destructive huge golden sword appeared. It exploded against the Infinite Sword, sending forth a blazing light that tore through the void and crushed the Infinite Sword.


    "Spatial swordsmanship." Everyone in the Infinite Palace felt Qin Zhuang''s strength. In the battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace there hadn''t been a chance to carefully feel out everyone''s power. But now the power that burst forth from Qin Zhuang when he was fighting alone shocked them all.


    "Array," said Sage Wuliang, and countless cultivators in the Infinite Palace flashed towards him. A similar burst of air erupted from him.


    It was clear that even someone like Sage Wuliang who was on the Sage and Saint Ranking did not dare to be careless when facing the cultivators of the Barren State.


    On that day of battle he had experienced the power and tenacity of the Barren State, and had even come back with a serious injury.


    The swordsmen in front of him formed a strong sword matrix. He would not underestimate his enemy.


    "Yuan Hong, I leave the battle matrix to you," said the sword demon to Yuan Hong on the other side. They had dozens of cultivators to deal with the Infinite Palace this time.


    Nine sword path cultivators, and thirty-six martial arts cultivators.


    "Alright." Yuan Hong nodded. He saw nine light swords rising into the sky. The beautiful picture of a sword suddenly appeared high above, and the nine cultivators stood upon it. At the same time countless sage ritual implement swords appeared and blended into it.


    At that moment, a monstrous sword erupted out of the sky behind the nine of them and swallowed up the light swords.


    Qin Zhuang was in the middle, holding the Divine Sword and wielding the sword matrix.


    In front of the nine of them, a huge devastating space sword appeared. An incomparably brilliant light burst forth, and a huge sword pierced through the void and descended. The people of the Infinite Palace trembled when they felt the majesty of that sword. They all faintly had a bad premonition about this.

 837 Unrest in the Sacred Dynasty

    A fearsome aura erupted from Sage Wuliang. The giant battle form held the Infinite Ruler and turned into countless ruler shadows, slapping towards the giant spatial sword that was hanging down from the air.


    In the sword matrix, Qin Zhuang''s expression was sharp. He pointed at the space below with his finger and in an instant, the giant spatial sword had transcended the distance and passed through the countless ruler shadows and appeared below the battle form, crushing down upon it.


    "Watch out." The elite figures beside Sage Wuliang shouted out, but the giant spatial sword was extremely quick.


    Bang, bang, bang! The giant sword descended from the heavens, landing in the area around Sage Wuliang, creating an explosion of sword rule power. In an instant, many of the experts forming the matrix were torn to shreds and the matrix was destroyed.


    Evidently, Qin Zhuang and the rest did not wish to see Sage Wuliang activating the power of the Infinite Matrix. Otherwise, it would be much more difficult to eliminate the Infinite Palace.


    This time, the nine strongest swordsmen and the strongest 36 people to form the Heavenly Battle Matrix had come. They had only one objective, to eliminate the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s number one clan, the Infinite Palace.


    Crash. The air vibrated vigorously and the 36-man Heavenly Battle Matrix had been formed. They had few people, so they could form the battle matrix quickly.


    A giant Golden Ape stood tall and stepped forward, walking towards where Sage Wuliang was. At that moment, Yuan Hong seemed to have entered a rampaging state. His whole body was filled with a frenzied aura, wearing a Saint instrument armor and holding the Battleaxe of Judgment. It was the Saint instrument that Yu Sheng had obtained from the Nine State Forum, he had temporarily lent it to Yuan Hong. One could see their determination from that.


    In this battle, they had sent 45 people and brought three Saint instruments and countless elite Sage ritual implement swords to form the sword matrix.


    At that moment, Sage Wuliang''s expression was exceedingly grim, he could naturally see that they really wanted him dead.


    "Infinite law power." Sage Wuliang shouted and merged his body into his Infinite Body. That was also his Life Spirit, instantly, his body became exceptionally large, like a God. The Infinite Ruler in his hand also grew and slammed towards the air. The heavens roared as though it would be split apart.


    As an expert on the Sage Ranking, apart from the Infinite rule power, he had also comprehended the shredding rule power.


    However, Qin Zhuang and the eight other swordsmen had brought a Saint-level sword ritual implement and many other elite Sage-level sword ritual implements to forge the sword matrix. There was no reason for them to be afraid of Sage Wuliang.


    Within the sword diagram, the Great Path rule power sword plunged down, stabbing into the area around Sage Wuliang, isolating the area with swordsmanship. They would not allow the opponent''s matrix to take form.


    At the same time, Qin Zhuang moved in a flash and swung his blade towards the Infinite Ruler. No matter how imposing the opponent''s aura was, he was unafraid.


    In that moment, the sword diagram burst forth with tens of thousands of Zhang of blades of light. The entire sword matrix and the Saint-level sword ritual implement seemed to transform into a giant holy blade that attempted to kill off the Infinite Ruler.


    Crash... A blinding light erupted as Sword Qi filled the skies, blinding everyone. On the ground, many people from the Infinite Palace closed their eyes and retreated frantically. Many palaces were torn apart and leveled to the ground as successive sword strikes slashed on the ground.


    The Infinite Body wavered. The giant battle form seemed to have countless Sword Qi penetrating it. Sage Wuliang humphed and spat out a mouthful of blood.


    "Assist me." Sage Wuliang roared to the Infinite Palace''s elders beside him. He was unable to match up to the opponent''s sword matrix by himself.


    The elites beside him all had pounding hearts and pale expressions. They had naturally experienced the power of that sword. If they could not summon the Infinite Matrix, they would be completely incapable of blocking the wrath of the sword matrix.


    Behind them, the experts who were forming the matrix were still trying to destroy the sword that had isolated time-space. However, the giant Golden Ape''s body descended upon them with an imperial aura, the Battleaxe of Judgment in its hand swinging like a polearm. When it slashed down, it was like the earth would split apart.


    "Run." A huge outcry sounded out. How were they supposed to block the battleaxe?


    Yuan Hong had gathered the power of the 36-man Heavenly Battle Matrix and swung the Saint instrument, the Battleaxe of Judgment down on them.


    A brilliant holy light in the shape of a battleaxe appeared in the sky and crushed down on them. Wherever it passed by, the experts'' bodies were sliced in half and the Infinite Palace was split apart. A horrifying fissure appeared in the middle.


    The weaker Infinite Palace''s disciples all escaped frantically, trying to get as far away as they could. They looked at the God-like figure in the air with only despair in their eyes.


    As the number one clan in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, were they going to be eliminated today?


    This time, they had been ruined by a single order by the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    Thump. Yuan Hong stepped across the air with a shocking aura. He walked right into the middle of all the experts, preventing them from forming the matrix. At that moment, he scared them out of their wits and had crushed the experts'' morale in an instant.


    The feeling he gave them was that he could not be defeated.


    "Form the matrix and attack, crush them with numbers." An influential figure from the Infinite Palace bellowed. He understood that if they were scared and did not have the courage to battle, the Infinite Palace would be eliminated from the Infinite Palace without a doubt.


    Yuan Hong''s gaze coldly looked towards the person who had spoken. He slashed out with the battleaxe and its shadow sealed off the area. The expert quickly retreated, but under the battleaxe''s slash, his body was split in half. He was completely powerless before it.


    "Even the Palace Lord cannot withstand it anymore." At that moment, someone noticed the area that had been sealed off by the sword matrix and blurted. Within the battlefield, Sage Wuliang had been repeatedly pushed back. The blades of light flourished and a light screen of swords had surrounded the Infinite Palace, leaving them in despair.


    "I am willing to step out of the sacred war." Sage Wuliang shouted. He was on the verge of cracking under the frenzy of attacks that the opponent had initiated.


    "You thought that you could choose when to battle or retreat?" A person replied mockingly. Sage Wuliang was treating the sacred war too much like a game. Perhaps, he had thought that when the army descended upon the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace, they could achieve a convincing victory against the Holy Zhi Palace and level it to the ground.


    Back then, the Infinite Palace was the main attacking force in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army and Sage Douzhan had nearly died in battle while trying to stop them.


    In the sky, Qin Zhuang waved both his arms. In an instant, the nine people in the sword matrix transformed into nine swords.


    "Kill." Under his order, the nine blades of light fired at the same time and shot through the air. In the sky, countless Sword Wills plunged down.


    Sage Wuliang let out a roar and slammed out with the Infinite Ruler, attempting to seal off the swords'' advance. The Saint-level sword transformed into a 100 Zhang sword, crushing down and blocking the Infinite Ruler. The nine blades of light slashed across the air at different speeds towards Sage Wuliang.


    A figure flashed by and Sage Wuliang pushed out with his left palm. Instantly, it turned into an Infinite Matrix and crushed down.


    However, in another direction, a blade had rushed towards him. Sage Wuliang''s battle form exhaled and it transformed into an Infinite ancient mountain.


    However, there were also blades firing from other directions. The Infinite Body erupted with a formidable aura, as though pushing itself to the limit.


    The swords howled in the sky and the Sword Qi flooded the area. Many swords impaled the battle form, causing it to collapse under the countless Swordsmanship. Sage Wuliang appeared there with an extremely grim expression.


    In the skies, a blade of light flew by and with a swift slash, the blade impaled Sage Wuliang''s brain all the way to his body.


    At that moment, Sage Wuliang felt his body go cold. An intense fear appeared in his eyes.


    He, Sage Wuliang, expert on the Sage Ranking and ruler of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s number one clan was an important figure even among the entire Eastern State. Below the Saint Plane, there were only a few people who could be compared with him.


    Now, he had actually died in the hands of people from the Barren State.


    Within the Infinite Palace, countless people saw the blade impale Sage Wuliang''s head and fear rushed into their heads and showed on their faces.


    Rays of intense light fired and Sword Qi erupted, tearing Sage Wuliang''s body to shreds, which then crumbled to dust.


    "Keep the Infinite Ruler." Qin Zhuang said. It was a Saint instrument, in the sacred war, every Saint instrument was exceptionally valuable.


    After he said that, Qin Zhuang looked at the people on the ground. The Sword Demon, Xu Shang and the rest of the people had come to his side.


    The Infinite Palace''s disciples all had pale expressions. Someone shouted abruptly, "Run."


    Their Palace Lord, Sage Wuliang had been killed.


    "Run." The voices sounded successively and everyone started to escape. The Infinite Palace was doomed.


    "The Infinite Palace participated in the sacred war and killed our comrades from the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace. Today, we will kill all the Sages from the Infinite Palace." The Sword Demon''s expression was cold as he said mercilessly. As his voice landed, they all rushed towards the ground and joined Yuan Hong in killing the Sages.


    ....


    Two hours later, many figures appeared in the air around the Infinite Palace. They were all from the surrounding regions.


    At that moment, they were all astonished and there were even people who were shivering.


    Before them, the once glorious Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s number one clan had been reduced to rubble. Many corpses were left on the ground, they were all Sage Plane cultivators.


    The Infinite Palace Lord Sage Wuliang had been killed and nothing was left of him.


    This was what the sacred war meant.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had attempted to eliminate the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace in one fell swoop, but failed. Now, the Holy Zhi Palace had started their counterattack.


    "Sage Wuliang had been killed and the Infinite Ruler has been taken away." Someone mumbled. It all felt surreal.


    The news soon spread throughout the entire Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It even spread to the entire Eastern State, shocking the entire state.


    Soon, another piece of news started to spread. Two elite factions that had participated in the sacred war and were of relatively close proximity to the Infinite Palace had been eliminated as well. After the news spread, the clans that had participated in the attack on the Holy Zhi Palace all started to move towards the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s capital to take refuge.


    At that moment, in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s royal palace, the Great Zhou Sacred King sat on the palace''s throne, listening to the reports from his men. His expression was frosty and his killing intent engulfed the entire royal palace.


    Ye Futian had actually ordered his men to come to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and eliminate three factions that had participated in the sacred war.


    "A bunch of useless garbage." The Great Zhou Sacred King said coldly. Sage Wuliang was an expert on the Sage Ranking and had the Saint instrument Infinite Ruler. He was actually killed by them and did not even have the ability to escape. How useless.


    "Sacred King, what should we do?" Zhou Mian asked.


    "Conscript the factions within the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty into the Great Zhou''s army." The Great Zhou Sacred King said coldly.


    "Understood." Zhou Mian nodded, then turned and left. However, he was extremely perturbed!


    Before the sacred war had begun, who could have imagined everything that had happened today?

 838 Saint Ranking 12

    Eastern State, Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    In a courtyard, Saint Xihua was playing chess with Rain Saint as Liu Zong and some cultivators from Xihua Sacred Mountain came to visit and brought the news from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "Ye Futian had sent people to destroy the Infinite Palace?" Saint Xihua showed a look of surprise.


    "Not only the Infinite Palace, but Black Thunder Clan and Thousand Leave Clan were also razed to the ground; their peak figures of sage plane were all annihilated. This chain of events has shocked the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and anyone who were involved in the Sacred War feared for their own safety and went to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty for refuge. The Great Zhou Sacred King had ordered them to be incorporated into their army." An old man responded.


    Saint Xihua smiled and continued playing chess. He looked at Rain Saint, "what do you think?"


    "Ye Futian appears to be humble, but he is in fact extremely arrogant. He is not afraid to challenge existing rules of the secular world, and as he is extraordinarily gifted, he is capable of great achievements. If such a person was to become an enemy, it is imperative that he be destroyed completely." Landing a pawn on the board, Rain Saint showed great acuity.


    Saint Xihua smiled and nodded, "it seems that you have a high opinion of him."


    Judging from the words of Rain Saint, it is obvious that he had also become aware what a dangerous character Ye Futian really was. He was still young and only in the sage plane, yet he had slaughtered a saint, causing the turmoil in the Eastern State. Not only was he not content with just guarding the Barren State, but he had invaded the three most powerful clans and destroyed them. His actions from the past had marked him as a ruthless leader; once he had decided what to do, there was no hesitation in its execution.


    And Yuan Hong, who went to destroy the three major clans did so with the divine implement from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, the Battleaxe of Judgment," the person continued. Saint Xihua continued with the game, commented with nonchalance, "since it was a gift, it no longer belongs to Xihua Sacred Mountain. What was unfortunate was that what he thought would be an easy Sacred War, had now turned into quite a headache for Great Zhou Sacred King."


    As he finished, he looked up at Liu Zong, "Liu Zong, you have to focus on cultivating. There are many extraordinary characters of your generation in the land of Nine States; even the Barren State had raised strongmen who wanted to break free from their constraints and march into Nine States. I know you have ambitions, but ambition needs be backed up with great strength. In the next generation of fighting for the Nine States, I hope you can stand out amongst these geniuses and lord over them."


    "I will remember the words of the Master," Liu Zong nodded and then bowed to leave.


    Not just Xihua Sacred Mountain, but there were too many cultivators in Eastern State who also talked about this battle.


    ......


    In the Barren State, in the Holy Sage Pavilion at the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian gradually returned to his former self and spirit, with a deeper understanding of the way of the rules between heaven and earth. These days he had been hard at work in cultivation and hoped to break through the plane as soon as possible.


    Not only did everyone at the Holy Zhi Palace was affected by the war, but many also retreated to focus on cultivation, or entered into the sacred temple for contemplation. During this time, many people had broken through the bottleneck of the plane that they had been staying for a long time.


    Sword Demon and Yuan Hong had also returned. This kind of ambush and attack was enough of a warning to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, that it was impossible for them to continue throwing their weight around. The destruction of the three clans was enough to weaken part the power of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty so that it would not lightly make war on the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Moreover, this was also a shock to other clan forces in the Eastern State.


    "Futian," at this moment, a voice was heard and Phoenix came in a flash.


    "Phoenix," Ye Futian called out.


    "Palace lord Douzhan is awaken," Phoenix said to Ye Futian, and her master, the Undying Old Man, had instructed her to inform Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian blanked for a second and then let out a breath. With a smile on his face he said, "let''s go."


    As he finished speaking, he levitated and flashed toward the Battle Sage Palace.


    Soon, many in the Holy Zhi Palace had also received news, and went straight to the Battle Sage Palace.


    In a short time, the Battle Sage Palace was receiving an influx of cultivators.


    In the meantime, in the Battle Sage Palace, Sage Douzhan appeared very peaceful. When he saw Ye Futian, he showed a smile and called out, "Futian."


    "Master," Ye Futian saw Sage Douzhan standing in front of him, as if in a dream, that massive form which stood between heaven and earth and suppressed the most elite army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty on his own, now stood in front of him peacefully.


    "All is well," Sage Douzhan smiled.


    "Douzhan." At this time, many people, such as Sword Demon, Sage Daozang, You Chi, Huang Xi, and many others, descended from the sky, and assessing Sage Douzhan.


    "What are you doing?" Sage Douzhan felt the reaction a bit odd; everyone was staring at him.


    "Many thanks to you," everyone said again toward the Undying Old Man.


    "I didn''t expect you to endure the baptism of the Divine Path; it was like a dream." Sage Daozang said with emotion, "You must not allow the power to bloom right now."


    "I know, the Holy Elder had cautioned me."


    "Mmm," Sage Daozang nodded, "although your situation is extremely rare, almost unheard of, but there were still such records in the ancient annals. Your body had been through the Divine Catastrophe, but not been baptized completely, so if you release the power of the rules, you may attract the catastrophe of the Great Path."


    "How is Master''s physical body now, could he cross the catastrophe?" Ye Futian asked, he did not understand the process very well.


    The Undying Old Man shook his head, "No, that day the Divine Catastrophe almost destroyed his body; even though the Divine Catastrophe is a baptism, but it was also a two-fold destruction. Your Master''s situation is very complicated, but in his current state it''s absolutely impossible to survive the catastrophe of the Great Path."


    Ye Futian''s expression suddenly changed, and it did not look good.


    The inability to cross the Divine Catastrophe meant that the Master could no longer use his own power. If so, wouldn''t it mean that he was disabled?


    That was absolutely unacceptable to him.


    "Whether I''m able to cross it or not, I have to try." Sage Douzhan spoke proudly; he had already reached this step, whether it was life or death, he must gave it a try.


    "Douzhan, don''t be impulsive." Sage Daozang implored, "You have already experienced the catastrophe of the Great Path, you should know how terrible it is, even in your best state, you may not be able to survive it, not to mention the fact that your physical condition is very complicated right now."


    Naturally Sage Douzhan understood, but he was still reluctant.


    "Is there a solution?" Ye Futian asked the Undying Old Man; he was already on the threshold of the Divine Path with one step short. If he stepped over, he would be sanctified in the flesh, but it was just that he could not use his own power to do so. Never mind what Sage Douzhan felt, even he could not accept this predicament.


    "Yes." The Undying Old Man nodded.


    "How?" Ye Futian stared at the Undying Old Man.


    "Do you know the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States?" asked the Undying Old Man.


    "Yes, I know," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Do you know who ranked 12th on the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States?" asked the Undying Old Man.


    "Saint Jiang," Ye Futian replied.


    "And what are Saint Jiang''s other monikers?" asked the Undying Old Man.


    "Medicine Saint, Poison Lord." Ye Futian replied. According to the record of the Sage and Saint Rankings of the Nine States, Saint Jiang, ranked 12th, was apparently a legendary figure, some called him Medicine Saint, while others called him Poison Lord.


    Rumor was that he had saved countless people and poisoned countless more.


    Later, Saint Jiang retired.


    And the place where he retired to was the premier academy of the Nine States, the Nine State College.


    "My cultivation is too shallow to do anything about your Master''s condition. But Saint Jiang is the number one pharmacist in Nine States, if he is willing to help, he could reform the body of your Master and stimulate its strongest potential to cross the catastrophe of the Great Path. This is the most likely chance of success." The Undying Old Man said.


    Ye Futian''s heart beat wildly; Saint Jiang, who was the superior figure ranked 12th on the Sage and Saint Rankings of the Nine States, stood on the peak of Nine States; even Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua were ranked behind him.


    Although he was the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, but to request Saint Jiang for his help, the title still seemed to be insufficient in weight.


    On the other hand, if he could move Saint Jiang to help, the Master may metamorphose and entered the saint plane, not only as a wish come true, but the Barren State would have a second saint.


    On the contrary, if this action was not taken, the Master would probably still try forcibly to cross the catastrophe of the Great Path and would most likely die from such attempt.


    "Let''s go to the Summer State," Ye Futian clenched his fists, eyes sharp, without any hesitation.


    How could he live with himself without at least an attempt.


    The eyes of everyone gather on him and they all felt the determination in Ye Futian''s eyes.


    Indeed, not entering the Divine Path would possibly meant death; trying is a natural choice.


    "Last time we got rid of the spies from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, after which they would no doubt dispatch others to hide within Zhongzhou City to monitor our movements. If we were to go to Nine State College, how many should go?" The Sword Demon said, "This still needs planning."


    Ye Futian and the others understood what Sword Demon meant. They had destroyed the three major forces including the Infinite Palace. If the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty knew that they were going to the Nine State College, if there were too few, they would most definitely be intercepted and immolated. If they dispatch too many people and left the palace defenseless, if the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were to launch the attack there, how would they defend it?


    After a moment of consideration, Ye Futian said, "Yang Xiao was leading his people to set up the matrixes in the Matrix Palace; we can set off after the matrixes have been completed. Not to mention Xihua Sacred Mountain still owes me a favor."


    Sword Demon and the others showed a look of surprise. They remembered that during Nine State Forum when Yu Sheng took the first place, but did not ask for the divine implement that was promised by Saint Xihua. This meant that if Ye Futian made a demand, he would agree.


    However, everything that happened at Tombkeeper Village seemed to have Xihua Sacred Mountain''s influence lurking behind; Liu Zong entered into the Nether Sword Mound to rescue Chess Saint and made Ye Futian an enemy.


    They didn''t think about it until Ye Futian had mentioned it.


    "Since we cannot hide it, we will make a public announcement when the time comes, and then send envoy publicly to Xihua Sacred Mountain so everyone will know. I like to see if Saint Xihua would swallow the promise he had made at Nine State Forum." Ye Futian said lightly; clearly, he had some unflattering thoughts regarding Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain had owed a doubt at Nine State Form, and it was time to collect.


    "This guy..." Many looked at Ye Futian. Indeed, if they openly announce the matter and let it be known to the world, if Saint Xihua did not agree to fulfill what he had promised at the Nine State Forum, it would be very embarrassing.


    Ye Futian was exploiting the weakness of the human heart.


    "Master, use this time to rest and recover, and leave everything to us." Ye Futian said to Sage Douzhan. In that battle, Sage Douzhan waged everything to protect the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Now, it was their turn to do something for the Master.


    Barren State would have its second saint!

 839 Nine State College

    As time went by, the forces of the Barren State were twisted into a group. They were all cultivating in the palace, and so they all advanced rapidly.


    Hua Jieyu was the first to make a breakthrough, catching up with Ye Futian and stepping up to the level of mid-level sages. In that battle she and Ye Futian had joined forces. Her understanding had become the deepest it had ever been, and she was able to use the power of a saint within her. After the battle she had once again collapsed. Fortune and misfortune depended on one another, and she made her breakthrough less than a year later.


    Of course, Ye Futian himself also advanced quite a lot, and his understanding of rule power grew a bit deeper. He felt that he was not far away from the upper-sage level.


    During this time, Yang Xiao and the people in the Matrix Palace devoted all their energy to arranging the palace''s matrices. Over the past several months they had formed a large matrix in the Holy Zhi Palace. Although they did not threaten the existence of the Saint Plane, if the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army of sages descended upon them, they could directly use the matrix to destroy their cultivators and gain the upper hand.


    A matrix was a little different than a battle matrix. A truly powerful matrix, when combined with cultivators, would only get stronger.


    "Senior Yang." Ye Futian came up to Yang Xiao while he was busily bustling about.


    "Palace Lord," yelled Yang Xiao.


    "You may call me Futian," said Ye Futian. Yang Xiao nodded gently. "I''m planning to ask Qin Zhuang to go to Xihua Sacred Mountain and have him ask the guardian teacher there to go with us to the Summer State." He looked straight forward as he said this.


    Yang Xiao naturally understood what he meant. He hated Liu Zong for everything that had happened at Nether Sword Mound, and all of it might have to do with that figure from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "I understand," said Yang Xiao. "If you send someone to Xihua Sacred Mountain, it will seem like we are joining forces with them, but in fact it will leave Saint Xihua dissatisfied."


    Ye Futian smiled. Of course he knew.


    "When Liu Zong and Xihua Sacred Mountain did things, they never thought about whether I would be satisfied or not," laughed Ye Futian. In the beginning he had not accepted Saint Xihua''s divine implement. Saint Xihua had promised if he got into trouble he could go to Xihua Holy Mountain.


    He could have never gone, as if nothing had happened. If he went it would be to make sure Xihua Holy Mountain paid their debt to protect them as they resisted the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and to find out if they had been allied with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty that time at Nether Sword Mound.


    Thus, once he made this request it would be like he was offending Saint Xihua.


    "Be careful," said Yang Xiao.


    "Mhm," Ye Futian smiled and nodded. It was good that Yang Xiao understood and he did not have to say it directly. The two of them had a tacit understanding.


    ......


    A while later, in Huatian City in the Eastern State, a top swordsman wearing robes appeared at the bottom of the stairs to the Sacred Mountain. It was difficult to tell if he was really there or not, giving everyone a terrible feeling.


    This was the swordsman from the Holy Zhi Palace, Qin Zhuang.


    Qin Zhuang was now the top swordsman from the Barren State. He was good at Spatial Swordsmanship and arrogant in his might. Sword Demon and Xu Shang had resigned themselves to never being his equal. If the Barren Sky Ranking was based on actual power, he would be near the top.


    After the Infinite Palace was destroyed it was even said that the first swordsman under the Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village, the swordsman of the Holy Zhi Palace Qin Zhuang, was powerful enough to be entered into the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States.


    Now he had come as a messenger from the Barren State. No one below the Sage Plane could kill him, so he was the most appropriate choice.


    In the area surrounding the steps of Xihua Sacred Mountain many people looked at him and after learning his identity they began talking.


    Now that war had broken out between the Holy Zhi Palace and the Great Zhou Sacred State, why was Qin Zhuang not at the palace? Why had he come to Xihua Sacred Mountain?


    Qin Zhuang looked up the stairs and called out in a loud, clear voice, "Qin Zhuang of the Holy Zhi Palace, under orders from the Palace Lord, has come to pay a call to Saint Xihua on his behalf."


    His voice rolled all around him, and many people looked shocked.


    He had said that he had come on behalf of Ye Futian.


    Someone from Xihua Sacred Mountain appeared on the steps. He looked at Qin Zhuang and said, "Why has Lord Ye ordered you to come?"


    As Ye Futian''s representative, Qin Zhuang should have been invited into Xihua Sacred Mountain, but he was not. It was very subtle, but everyone knew why this was.


    It was rumored that Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty intended to form a marriage alliance.


    And since the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace were at war, things were sensitive.


    "Lord Ye said that he should have come himself, but it is difficult for him to get away due to the sacred war, so he ordered me to come in his place," continued Qin Zhuang. "Lord Ye is preparing to go to Nine State College in the Summer State to meet with Saint Jiang. He has some misgivings about the road, and so he would like to request an escort from Saint Xihua."


    The cultivator on the steps gazed at him for a moment, then he immediately understood what Qin Zhuang meant. He had come seeking a fulfillment of Saint Xihua''s promise.


    He wanted Xihua Sacred Mountain to guard him on the way to Nine State College.


    And the reason he was going to visit Saint Jiang was obviously to heal a wound. Whose injury needed Saint Jiang''s help?


    Without a doubt it was Sage Douzhan.


    He wanted to bring Sage Douzhan to the Summer State to seek Saint Jiang''s help in letting Sage Douzhan once again pass through the Divine Catastrophe.


    "I will go ask the Saint," said the Xihua Holy Mountain cultivator. He turned to leave, ignoring Qin Zhuang as he stood there.


    Qin Zhuang didn''t care. He just stood there straight as a sword.


    Behind him people started to talk. They were all shocked to the core. Although he had said he came to request aid, in reality he had come to collect a debt that Xihua Holy Mountain owed as recorded in the Nine State Forum.


    Ye Futian really dared to do this?


    In Xihua Holy Mountain, after hearing the report, a touch of coldness flashed in Saint Xihua''s eyes. "Qin Zhuang has done this deliberately in front of others," he said. "He wants the whole world to see."


    "How do we handle this, Saint?" someone asked.


    "All that is promised in the Nine States is in the Nine State Forum. Since they ask us for help, I will naturally keep my promise. Go and tell him that whenever he is ready we will send someone to the Barren State to act as an escort." Saint Xihua spoke coldy. Although it was something he had promised, he was clearly unhappy about it.


    "Of course," came the reply, and the cultivator stepped back.


    "This Ye Futian is really arrogant," someone next to Saint Xihua said.


    "The young man''s talent has truly come to light." Saint Xihua looked at the Rain Saint. "As you said, we must act decisively."


    The cultivator returned to Qin Zhuang. All along he had not invited Qin Zhuang into Xihua Sacred Mountain. Qin Zhuang did not care. Upon hearing the reply he immediately left to return to the palace.


    The news quickly spread throughout the Eastern State, causing large repercussions.


    Soon everyone in the Eastern State knew that they wanted to ask Saint Jiang, number twelve on the Saint Ranking, to help them cross through the Divine Catastrophe.


    Once they were successful, a second Saint would appear in the Barren State.


    Under these circumstances, how could the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty agree?


    If they did something to counter the Holy Zhi Palace, what would the Xihua Sacred Mountain do?


    It was all very interesting.


    Ye Futian did not care what Saint Xihua thought. His position was determined by what was of the greatest benefit. Since some things were unavoidable, then, to put it simply, he would fight for the things that he had to.


    The Master would have to go to the Summer State. Even though the Holy Zhi Palace had great matrices defending it, they still needed cultivators stationed there, otherwise the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would invade and destroy the palace, and it would all be his fault.


    Therefore, this time not many people would be going to the Summer State.


    In that way they would rely on the power of Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    On this day some cultivators from Xihua Sacred Mountain descended upon the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian went out to meet them himself. More than a hundred cultivators had come, and all were top-class. Two of them were extremely famous, the only two sages amongst Xihua Sacred Mountain''s cultivators. There was also one more person who had come to escort that Ye Futian was familiar with: Liu Zong.


    Seeing this battle array, Ye Futian realized that Saint Xihua was really trying to save face.


    As for whether they would overtly agree but covertly oppose him, Ye Futian was not worried. This time the Village Chief would accompany them. If Sage Xihua broke his promise then the old Village Chief would naturally see no more need to be polite.


    "Go on," said Ye Futian. This time the Barren State had a full battle array as they proceeded.


    The Village Chief, Qin Zhuang and the rest of the Nine Swordsmen, Yuan Hong, the Undying Old Man, and Sage Douzhan.


    There were only two in the rearguard: Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    This time Ye Futian just brought Yu Sheng along beside him.


    The rest of the cultivators stayed to guard the palace against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The Village Chief waved his hand and suddenly the Divine Sword screamed and turned into a huge sword in the sky. "Let''s go," he said.


    Ye Futian stepped out, and the cultivators of the Barren State set foot on the sword. The cultivators from Xihua Sacred Mountain followed them, and the sword suddenly whistled and pierced through the sky.


    Many people watched from below and silently said a blessing.


    They hoped that Sage Douzhan would come back as a Saint.


    .......


    In the Summer State, the strongest of the Nine States, Nine State College, known as the premier school in the Nine States, was a fair place that produced outstanding people.


    Many people powerful enough to command the winds and the clouds had come out of there.


    And nowadays it was still the same. Many of its disciples were talented, and some of them were even extremely famous.


    Its participation in the Nine States Forum every three years was only a small part of what they did. Qia Feng was one of the people at the peak of the nobility because besides the monsters Yu Sheng and Yaya there were not that many dazzling people.


    But in fact, among the forces with the highest average strength among the Nine States they were definitely able to rank in the top three.


    At this time Nine States College was quite lively as many people were all talking about one thing.


    It was rumored that the Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian, was coming to visit.


    Ye Futian''s name had spread throughout the Summer State. His was no small name. Countless people passed on the things that he had done that those characters from the older generation could not do.


    This young leader of the holy land, had cut a Saint, had the Holy Zhi Palace and had repelled the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. He was so famous that for the past decade none of the youths of the Nine Kingdoms had been able to steal his thunder, and even the seniors had difficulty comparing to him.


    Many of the younger generation were curious about Ye Futian and wanted to see this legendary figure.


    Soon they would have a chance to see him.

 840 Confrontation Outside the College

    The Nine State City was one of the oldest cities in the Nine States. It was rumored that this was the place where the Nine States originated from. According to historical records, in ancient times, the names of the Nine States were determined in this city.


    The Nine State College was the symbol of the Nine State City. It had countless years of heritage and had weathered many storms. Now, it still stood tall within the magnificent city.


    The Wind Cloud Inn was one of the renowned inns within the Nine State City.


    One day, a blade of light suddenly steered into the Wind Cloud Inn. The surrounding people all saw the blade of light, it was extremely brilliant. Even someone who was tens of kilometers away could feel a strong Sword Will. As such, before the sword had arrived, many experts had already raised their heads and looked into the air, causing them to see the flashy scene.


    Afterwards, news spread from the Wind Cloud Inn that the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace Lord Ye Futian and the Palace''s Holy Elder had brought a Saint-level sword with them. Now, they were residing within the Wind Cloud Inn.


    Once the news started to spread, it caused a huge commotion.


    The legendary figure, the young leader that had led the Barren State to confront the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had arrived.


    It was rumored that apart from the Saint-level Tombkeeper Village Chief and the nine swordsmen, the number one person on the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng had also accompanied Ye Futian here.


    For a period of time, all the younger generation cultivators were all eager to meet them.


    The number one person on the Nine State Forum meant that the person was once first in the entire Nine States. It had extraordinary meaning.


    Many people flocked to the Wind Cloud Inn, but soon, another piece of news started spreading. The Holy Zhi Palace''s Qin Zhuang had personally headed to the Nine State College to submit a visiting letter. The Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace Lord Ye Futian would pay a visit to the Nine State College the next day.


    They had not descended upon the Nine State College directly and had chosen to reside at an inn and send a visiting letter. This was a show of their respect to the Nine State College, by ensuring they did everything with decorum.


    After all, they were here with a request. Moreover, it was an extremely important matter to Ye Futian and he would not allow any mishaps. No matter how large of a price he had to pay, he would do it.


    If he succeeded, the Barren State would have another Saint; If he failed, his Master would likely die under the Divine Catastrophe.


    There was no need to further discuss the pros and cons of the matter.


    The Wind Cloud Inn soon reached maximum capacity. Many people within the city had come after hearing the news.


    At that moment, in the open-air wine cellar in the inn, many people were drinking and chatting. Among them were many descendants of major clans.


    "That is the Mu Clan''s Mu Feng. He is also in the Sage Plane, did he come for Ye Futian?"


    "The Yu Clan''s daughter has also arrived. I did not expect Ye Futian to have such appeal, even the descendants of some of the Nine State City''s major clans are here to see him."


    "It is rumored that the Holy Zhi Palace Lord Ye Futian does not just have exceptional potential, his looks and demeanor are also remarkable. With his dashing looks, he is really worthy to be called a peerless talent. If he was not married, he would probably attract the daughters of many major clans."


    The crowd whispered among themselves. Although Ye Futian was born in the Barren State, he had shook the Nine States before he was even 30. How could such a talent not move the hearts of women, not to mention his dashing looks.


    "So what if he''s married, many influential figures in the Nine States have many concubines. Just look at the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty that is at war with the Holy Zhi Palace, it is rumored that the Great Zhou Sacred King''s harem is full of beauties." Someone smiled and said. Many people nodded with smiles, it was true indeed.


    If they could become an elite figure, they would not mind being surrounded by beauties either.


    After all, wasn''t the point of cultivation to enjoy themselves?


    They all did not guess that there were already many people who had already tried to visit Ye Futian. However, they were all rejected with the reason that Ye Futian needed to shower and rest so that he could be in his best condition when he visited the Nine State College the next day. Although they knew that it was an excuse, they could not refute it.


    ....


    At dawn the next morning, the morning sunlight sprinkled onto the Nine State City, giving the ancient city a holy feel.


    The Nine State College was located in the middle of the Nine State City, at the end of the Nine State Street.


    Outside the Nine State College, there was a plaza with many statues. Each statue was of a famous person in the Nine States, they were all Saint Plane cultivators that had been groomed by the Nine State College.


    These statues were the hallmark of the Nine State College''s prosperity.


    Today, many of the College''s disciples had gathered in this area, especially the younger generation. They knew that not long after, two of the legends in their generation would arrive. They all wanted to see how outstanding Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were.


    However, before they could see Ye Futian, they heard a phoenix''s cries from the distance. In the distant sky, a giant Golden Phoenix bathing in golden flames landed at the end of the Nine State Street. From the back of the Golden Phoenix, a few experts stepped down.


    Each one of them had an exceptional aura.


    "This..." Many people were shocked and mumbled. These people seemed like they were not from the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace?


    "Golden Phoenix." Many people looked at the Divine Bird, then towards the pattern embroidered on their clothes and blurted out their identity.


    They were from the holy land that was in a sacred war with the Holy Zhi Palace, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    They had descended onto the Nine State College before the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Evidently, they had come prepared.


    Many experts from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had come. The person leading them was the Great Zhou Sacred King''s eldest son, the Sage Ranking expert Zhou Huang.


    His identity was sufficient to represent the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty stepped forward, bowing to the statues that were standing in the plaza. They then walked to the door of the Nine State College and said, "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Zhou Huang has come to the Nine State College to visit."


    "Allow me to go in and report this." The guard at the door replied. He then turned around and went in to report.


    He had thought that he would welcome Ye Futian, but he had not expected the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to come first.


    In a moment, another group of experts came out. The person leading them was the person who had gone to the Eastern State to participate in the Nine State Forum, the Sage Ranking''s Sage Liuyun.


    After Sage Liuyun arrived, he exchanged salutes with Zhou Huang. Both of them were experts on the Sage Ranking but Sage Liuyun''s ranking was higher and he was older, so he could be considered Zhou Huang''s senior.


    "Apologies for visiting abruptly." Zhou Huang offered his apology.


    "Don''t be, what is the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s purpose for visiting?" Sage Liuyun smiled and replied. He faintly understood that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was probably here for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "These are my younger brothers Zhou Ya and Zhou You. Senior should have met them before." Zhou Huang smiled and said, addressing the other party as senior as a show of respect.


    "I have met them during Nine State Forum." Sage Liuyun smiled as he nodded.


    "The two of them have decent potential, but have faced some setbacks during the Nine State Forum that might be beneficial to their growth. Now, they have faced a bottleneck while cultivating in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Father has instructed me to bring them to the Nine State College to cultivate."


    Zhou Huang continued saying, "The Nine State City is full of outstanding people and the Nine State College is the congregation of the Summer State''s most outstanding talents. If they can enter the College, their improvement will definitely be immense."


    Sage Liuyun had a knowing expression on his face. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s objective for choosing to send Zhou Ya and Zhou You to the Nine State College to cultivate at this point in time was obvious.


    They wanted to get on the Nine State College''s good side and prevent Ye Futian from achieving his goal.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King had evidently guessed what Ye Futian wanted to do. Sage Douzhan had experienced the Divine Catastrophe and lived through it. Now, the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace wanted to create their second Saint.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would naturally not allow Ye Futian to achieve that easily.


    Sage Liuyun had a pensive expression. Under the circumstances, he would not agree haphazardly.


    This matter involved the sacred war between the two holy lands.


    It was not wise for the Nine State College to get involved in it.


    "Do you think they are worthy?" At that moment, a voice sounded from a distance. A cold glint appeared in Zhou Huang''s eyes. He did not need to turn back to know who had arrived.


    In reality, before Ye Futian had opened his mouth, he had already known.


    Zhou Ya, Zhou You and the others turned around and glared coldly at the group of people who had arrived. The person leading them was none other than Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was wearing a white robe that was spotless and a crown on his head. Coupled with his ravishing looks, he was really peerless.


    Ye Futian continued walking forward. Yu Sheng was on his left while the Village Chief was on his right.


    Behind Ye Futian, Qin Zhuang, Xu Shang and the rest had their swords around their waists. Their hands were on the handle while a sharp aura emanated from them. The group of them walked by Zhou Huang and rest without even a side glance to the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s people just stared at Ye Futian and the rest walking by without even a single glance at them.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace''s Ye Futian meets senior." Ye Futian saluted him.


    "Palace Lord Ye, you''re too courteous." Sage Liuyun returned the salute, then turned to the Village Chief and bowed, saying, "Respects to you, senior."


    Bowing was a sign of respect when meeting a Saint.


    The Village Chief bowed slightly as a reply.


    "The Nine State College has the reputation as the Nine States'' number one college. More than half of the Summer State''s experts have graduated from the Nine State College. Since ancient times, it has been offering its teachings and groomed countless Sages and Saints." Ye Futian said slowly, praising the Nine State College. Sage Liuyun smiled and looked at Ye Futian, he was naturally happy that someone was complimenting the College.


    Ye Futian continued to say, "Who are Zhou Ya and Zhou You? Insufferably arrogant during the Nine State Forum, full of themselves and zero self-awareness. Now, they want to enter the Nine State College to cultivate just by asking. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty thinks that Zhou Ya and Zhou You can enter the Nine State College to cultivate as and when they like?"


    Sage Liuyun had a smile in his eyes. Zhou Ya and Zhou You had frigid expressions. Ye Futian was humiliating them in public!


    Zhou Huang''s expression also became one of embarrassment.


    Zhou Ya was reputed by many to be the Sacred Dynasty''s successor, even more so than him. Zhou You also had exceptional potential, although he had suffered defeat on the Nine State College, it was only because his opponent was too strong. In reality, with their potential, it would not be a problem to enter the Nine State College to cultivate.


    So, he had said it bluntly without thinking too much.


    However, once Ye Futian had said his piece, it sounded like the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was undermining the Nine State College.


    Especially when he praised the Nine State College highly first, then contrasted it against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s actions. That made it all the more obvious!

 841 Welcome

    Zhou Huang saluted Sage Liuyun and said, "I did not have such intentions. Zhou Ya and Zhou You sincerely wish to enter the Nine State College to cultivate and pursue the Great Path with the geniuses in the College. If the Nine State College has any examination, the two of them will gladly take it."


    "Like brother has said, it would be my honor to enter the Nine State College through an examination." Zhou Ya also bowed to Sage Liuyun and said courteously. He then turned to Ye Futian and rebutted, "However, what is your motive behind your words, Ye Futian."


    "Watch your manners to your elders." Ye Futian looked coldly at Zhou Ya and said, "We''re at the Nine State College, I do not wish to give you pointers here."


    Zhou Ya clenched his fists. Back then, on the Nine State Forum, Ye Futian''s pointers to him were a huge humiliation to him.


    Not turning around to look at Zhou Ya, Ye Futian bowed to Sage Liuyun and continued saying, "In last year''s Nine State Forum, senior had invited Yu Sheng to the Nine State College to cultivate. However, this ungrateful fellow did not agree. After he got back, I have scolded him and now, Yu Sheng has already stepped into the Sage Plane. This time, we have come to visit the Nine State College and I would like to have Yu Sheng interact with the College''s geniuses for a period of time. He can also learn from seniors to broaden his horizons."


    Beside him, Yu Sheng was stunned. He was being sold off?


    This�� He was dispirited after he finally knew the reason why Ye Futian brought him along.


    Sage Liuyun smiled and replied, "Yu Sheng has obtained first on the Nine State Forum and many of the College''s disciples would like to meet him. Since Palace Lord Ye is willing to let Yu Sheng interact with the Nine State College''s disciples, we welcome you with open arms."


    The Nine State College had an open learning atmosphere, so they were naturally willing to accept Yu Sheng into the College to exchange knowledge. As the number one person on the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng''s strength would naturally be able to inspire many of the College''s geniuses.


    Beside them, the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty saw Sage Liuyun''s immediate acceptance and were unhappy. Of course, Zhou Ya and Zhou You could not be compared with the first on the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng. They could see that from the difference in attitude that Sage Liuyun treated them with.


    "Thank you senior." Ye Futian smiled. They were seeking help from Saint Jiang, so they naturally needed to stay in the Nine State College for a period of time. Letting Yu Sheng join the Nine State College was indeed to bridge some of the distance.


    They knew that as the number one college in the Nine States, the Nine State College would definitely have the magnanimity to accept him.


    "Apart from that, I have also come to the College for my master. I would like to visit senior Saint Jiang." Ye Futian continued saying. He was honest and did not hide anything.


    Even if he did not say it, everyone would be able to guess his motive for coming.


    Sage Liuyun looked at Sage Douzhan, who was standing behind Ye Futian and replied, "I have heard that Sage Douzhan was able to summon the Divine Path''s rule power during battle. He is indeed worthy of respect and I am willing to refer him to Saint Jiang. However, senior Saint Jiang''s identity is rather unique. I believe that Palace Lord Ye has some understanding about that as well. He is cultivating in seclusion within the College and even I am not able to meet him freely."


    Ye Futian nodded lightly. He had done his due diligence before coming. Saint Jiang was referred to both as the Medicine Saint and Poison Lord and was both benevolent and cruel. He operated alone and later went into seclusion in the Nine State College, but did not take on any position in the Nine State College. His position in the College was beyond handling worldly affairs.


    Moreover, as the 12th on the Saint Ranking, there were only barely more than 10 people in the entire Nine States that could be ranked above him. How esteemed was his position?


    Naturally, Saint Jiang did not have to give anyone face.


    Even the Nine State College''s College Chief might not even be able to make Saint Jiang do anything.


    As such, Ye Futian had to come personally to show his respect in order to obtain the slightest chance of meeting him.


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded in understanding and continued saying, "Could I stay in the Nine State College for a short period of time?"


    Sage Liuyun looked at Ye Futian. It seemed like Ye Futian wanted to visit Saint Jiang personally.


    As he smiled, Sage Liuyun nodded and replied, "If Palace Lord Ye would like to stay in the College as a guest, I would be more than happy to oblige."


    If Saint Jiang was willing to help Ye Futian, he would naturally have no objections. It was Saint Jiang''s decision to make and he could not interfere. He also wanted to see if Ye Futian could request that lone wolf to help him.


    "I''ll be intruding on your hospitality then." Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    He would only take yes for an answer.


    "Please." Sage Liuyun beckoned to him.


    At that moment, a group of people stepped forward. They were the people from the Xihua Sacred Mountain who had escorted Ye Futian here.


    Liu Zong stepped forward and saluted Sage Liuyun, saying, "I am Liu Zong and have been ordered by my Master to escort Palace Lord Ye to the Nine State College. However, I have long heard of the reputation of the Nine State College. I would like to take this chance to enter the College to cultivate for a period of time as well. I hope senior will allow it."


    Liu Zong was suave with an extraordinary aura. Sage Liuyun smiled and replied, "The Xihua Sacred Mountain''s disciple taught personally by all three Saints is definitely most welcome by the Nine State College."


    "Thank you senior." Liu Zong smiled and replied. He then turned to Ye Futian and said, "Palace Lord Ye, since we have already escorted you here, I have completed my Master''s orders. In the future, the Xihua Sacred Mountain will not participate in the Holy Zhi Palace and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s affairs."


    "Okay." Ye Futian looked nonchalantly at Liu Zong and replied. It had been a smooth and uneventful journey thus far. However, just as they had arrived in the Nine State City, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was one step ahead of them in coming to the Nine State College. What transpired behind closed doors was worth pondering.


    Now, they had not even entered the Nine State College and Liu Zong was absolving the Xihua Sacred Mountain of any responsibility.


    However, since they had already arrived, they would not have to worry about the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty for now.


    No matter how overbearing the Great Zhou Sacred King was, he would not dare to deal with them while they were in the Nine State College. What position would the Nine State College be placed in if he did that?


    "Please follow me, I''ll arrange for a welcome for all of you." Sage Liuyun invited them in. They all nodded and stepped into the Nine State College.


    The Nine State College had boundless land and it was extremely spacious in the College. At that moment, many people looked at Ye Futian and the rest, scrutinizing them.


    "That person is Ye Futian, the man of the moment in the Nine States. Beside him is Yu Sheng, the number one person in the Nine State Forum organized by the Xihua Sacred Mountain."


    "It was rumored that during the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng and Yaya were both unrivaled. No one could even stand up to them, and after it was confirmed that Yaya was a spiritual body, it further showed Yu Sheng''s strength."


    Countless people discussed among themselves. They were all young people and many of them were in the Noble Plane. Occasionally, some Sage Plane teenagers would walk by and look towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "Not just Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, there are too many outstanding figures in that group. The Tombkeeper Village Chief, who is a Saint. Zhou Huang, an expert on the Sage Ranking. The Xihua Sacred Mountain also has two people on the Sage Ranking as well as Liu Zong, the disciple of the three Saints. Zhou Ya, the reputed successor to the Great Zhou Sacred King appeared less impactful because of his defeat on the Nine State Forum."


    Many of the College''s disciples followed along as they mumbled to themselves. Someone asked, "Where is Sage Liuyun bringing them to?"


    Within the College, a figure walked towards them. The person looked like a scholar and had a suave demeanor. He bowed to Sage Liuyun and addressed him, "Uncle-Master."


    "Mu Chen, today the Holy Zhi Palace Lord Ye, a few of the princes from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty as well as the Xihua Sacred Mountain''s Liu Zong and a few others are entering the College. They will be staying in the College to cultivate for a period of time. I am preparing to bring them to the Qingyun Building to give them a welcome. Since you''re here, go inform a few of your brothers to come and pay respects to them." Sage Liuyun smiled and told him.


    "Yes." Mu Chen nodded his head lightly, then turned to Ye Futian and the rest, bowing slightly before turning around and leaving.


    The surrounding people all had shocked expressions. The place that Sage Liuyun had chosen to give them a welcome was the Qingyun Building.


    The Qingyun Building got its name from a phrase meaning to rise up rapidly and was one of the four major buildings in the Nine State College. It had always been the place for the most outstanding talents from the Nine State College to pursue the Great Path or to receive influential figures.


    Today, Sage Liuyun had decided to give Ye Futian a welcome in the Qingyun Building. His purpose for doing it was obvious, he wanted the elites of the Nine State College to see the prodigies of the three holy lands for themselves.


    Especially Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and Liu Zong. The three of them were the most outstanding young generation among the Nine States'' holy lands.


    The Qingyun Building was located in a central location within the Nine State College. There was a loft there and it looked more like a decoration. There were many seats in front of the building in the formation of a ring. At that moment, Sage Liuyun, Ye Futian and the rest were taking their seats.


    The Nine State College took the main seat while Ye Futian and the rest were in the secondary seat. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain took the left and right respectively.


    From the seating arrangement, it seemed that the Holy Zhi Palace was the most important of the three holy lands this time.


    Of course, this was because the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace Lord had personally come and also had a Saint, so it was only natural for them to take the most esteemed position. However, even so, it was a huge surprise when compared to the Nine State Forum.


    If this was before the Nine State Forum, the Holy Zhi Palace would not receive such respect.


    In the area in front of them, there was an empty space for sparring. On the other end, there were experts from the Nine State College arriving in succession. They all had remarkable auras.


    After they arrived, they all paid their respects to Ye Futian and the rest before taking their seats.


    Behind them, many disciples from the Nine State College started to gather. However, they only stood where they were and did not step forward. Evidently, the Qingyun Building was not a place where all the disciples could have a seat. They only had the right to watch from a distance.


    "Zhu Yan is here too." At that moment, a soft outburst sounded from the crowd. A disciple from the College stepped into the Qingyun Building, bowed to Sage Liuyun, Ye Futian and the others before taking a seat.


    "Jiang Chuan." Someone''s gaze froze as they saw another person. Although the person had no aura around his body and looked like an ordinary scholar, he had a glow around his body and many of the College''s disciples looked at him with admiration.

 842 Sparring Session

    In front of the Qingyun Building, more and more of the Nine State College''s disciples started to gather and took their places.


    Ye Futian saw a few familiar faces that he had previously seen on the Nine State Forum. For example, one of the top ten in the Nine State Forum, Ye Guhong. Now, Ye Guhong had already stepped into the Sage Plane. He sat cross-legged on the ground and looked at Yu Sheng in the guest seat, thinking to himself, He should have entered the Sage Plane by now.


    Back then, on the Nine State Forum''s stage, Ye Guhong had been defeated by Yaya and did not even enter the top five. He had personally experienced Yaya''s strength, but after he heard that Yaya was a spiritual body, he felt that his defeat was not unjustified. However, how strong was Yu Sheng to be able to defeat Yaya?


    Back then, he did not have a chance to fight with Yu Sheng on the Nine State Forum.


    Countless disciples surrounded the outer ring of the Qingyun Building, looking up at the Qingyun Building as though observing a ceremony. The people sitting in the Qingyun Building, apart from the people from the three holy lands, were all already very famous within the Nine State College.


    At that moment, Sage Liuyun looked around at everyone and said, smiling, "Today, I am glad to introduce the people from the three holy lands to all of you. This is the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace Lord Ye Futian, as well as its Holy Elder and the number one person on the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng. I am sure you have heard of them. This is the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Zhou Huang, he is an expert on the Sage Ranking. With him are Zhou Ya and Zhou You, they are both princes from the Sacred Dynasty. This is Liu Zong, the disciple of the three Saints from Xihua Sacred Mountain."


    After Sage Liuyun''s simple introduction, the College''s disciples all paid their respects. They all had elegant demeanors and outstanding auras.


    "This time, from the three holy lands, Yu Sheng, Liu Zong, Zhou Ya, and Zhou You have agreed to enter the Nine State College to cultivate for a period of time. As such, I have gathered all of you here. You are the elites of the College, and this is a rare opportunity that you can have a chance to learn from Palace Lord Ye, the first on the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng, and the three Saints'' disciple, Liu Zong, and take cultivation pointers from them," Sage Liuyun said to those in the building.


    "Yes." They all nodded as beside them, Ye Futian replied, "Senior, you are being too courteous. The Nine State College is full of talented people and has the best teachers in the Nine States to teach them. We have come to seek answers to our cultivation, how could we be qualified to teach the Nine State College''s geniuses? At best, we are only exchanging cultivation tips."


    "Palace Lord Ye, there is no need to be humble. Although you only battled once on the Nine State Forum, entering the Nether Sword Mound and Palace Lord Ye''s performance in the Holy Zhi Palace''s sacred war was excellent. For the younger generation, it is not too much to say that they are learning from you. Even those with higher cultivation levels than Palace Lord might not understand cultivation as well as Palace Lord Ye," Sage Liuyun said.


    It was not purely flattery. Ye Futian had activated the Sword Matrix of the Void to kill the Chess Saint and had shouldered Sage Douzhan''s Divine Catastrophe during the sacred war, then nearly killed Zhou Huang. To Ye Futian, his only flaw was his age.


    Now, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had come to the Nine State College, so they would naturally make good use of this opportunity to temper the Nine State College''s disciples. They could also see how the College''s geniuses fared against Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    The people from the Nine State College were all very quiet. Sage Liuyun looked at them again and asked, "Today, so many extraordinary figures from the three holy lands are here, why are you so quiet? There is no need to conceal anything. Anyone who has a question in cultivation, go ahead and ask."


    "Yes." The disciples nodded.


    At that moment, a person stood up and bowed to them and said, "I am the Nine State College''s disciple Mu Chen."


    The people from the three holy lands looked towards him. Mu Chen had an elegant disposition and was handsome with a scholarly aura, giving off a pleasant feeling.


    "Palace Lord Ye has ascended to the Palace Lord of a holy land at such a young age, and Liu Zong is the disciple of Xihua Sacred Mountain''s three Saints and is reputed to become a Saint in the future. I would like to ask the two of you, why do we cultivate?" Mu Chen asked. He had directed his question towards Ye Futian and Liu Zong.


    Everyone''s gaze landed on the two of them. Liu Zong smiled and said, "Palace Lord Ye, why don''t you go first?"


    Ye Futian looked at Mu Chen and smiled, asking, "When I was younger, my elders claimed that I was chosen by the gods and was born extraordinary. Therefore, I also believed that I was destined to change the world. Have you ever had a similar experience?"


    Many people had smiles on their faces. Evidently, many of them had experienced similar situations.


    "After I grew up, I found out," Ye Futian smiled, "that elder of mine was absolutely right."


    Many people heard Ye Futian''s joking tone and started laughing. In rumors, Ye Futian was extremely outstanding. They did not expect him to have such a humorous side.


    "Everyone will experience many things in their life, I am the same as well. You will have a mission in every phase of your life, and what I need to do is to make sure I do the best for every phase," Ye Futian replied. "So, if you ask me why I cultivate, I don''t know, but I know why I cultivate now��to eliminate the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and let the Barren State rise among the Nine States. From the day I inherited the position of Palace Lord, that has been my mission," Ye Futian said slowly. Although he still smiled while saying it, the expressions of the people around him had turned solemn. They felt a sense of respect for him.


    The people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were sitting right beside him, but he had no reservations in saying that it was his mission.


    "So, cultivation is to make good of the present," Ye Futian replied.


    Mu Chen bowed slightly towards Ye Futian and said, "Thank you for your wisdom."


    Sage Liuyun also commended him in his heart. As expected of the Palace Lord of a holy land, this was the magnanimity of a Palace Lord.


    At that moment, the crowd turned to look at Liu Zong. Liu Zong said, "Cultivation is like climbing a mountain. Why do we all climb this mountain? There are some people who give up at the foot of the mountain, some who are unable to continue along the way. However, I want to see the view at the top of the mountain."


    Many people looked at Liu Zong with a newfound respect. Although the disciple of Xihua Sacred Mountain''s three saints had a completely different answer from Ye Futian, he had his own spirit of wanting to reach the top to see the entire world''s scenery.


    "Thank you for your answer." Mu Chen smiled and nodded, then took a seat. Evidently, he liked Ye Futian''s answer more, as seen by his reply to the two of them.


    "I would like to ask Palace Lord Ye, what is the difference between a weak and a strong cultivator?" Zhu Yan looked at Ye Futian. He did not stand up but continued sitting down.


    "Potential," Ye Futian replied.


    "Palace Lord Ye thinks that potential can determine everything?" Zhu Yan asked. "If that is so, effort and frame of mind are all meaningless?"


    "If it is like Palace Lord Ye has said, isn''t one''s cultivation determined from birth?" someone beside Zhu Yan asked while looking at Ye Futian. Not just them, but many of the surrounding Nine State College disciples all looked at Ye Futian.


    In the world of cultivation, potential was predetermined, so many cultivators believed in hard work and improving one''s frame of mind.


    "I grew up in a small island city far away. Where I grew up, Mandate Sorcerers are considered geniuses and have outstanding potential. In many small cities, many people are diligently cultivating, and there are also others with a firm will to protect their homeland. However, why is it that the ones cultivating in the Nine State College are all of you here and not them?" Ye Futian looked at the crowd and asked. All of a sudden, the crowd fell silent. In the Nine States, it was impossible for someone who was not a Mandate Sorcerer without a Life Spirit to have high achievements.


    "However, I did not say that potential determines everything. Potential is only the starting line for a cultivator. Only when you start at this starting line can you put in effort, determination, and frame of mind into the equation. However, nobody can deny that those with outstanding potential have to put in less effort to achieve results. That is exactly why those with less potential have to put in more effort and have a more determined frame of mind. However, those that reach the end will definitely have more outstanding potential than others. However, their potential might not be the most outstanding, but their determination and frame of mind will definitely be the most resilient," Ye Futian said slowly.


    Many people who had doubted him previously were all in awe.


    Some people with higher cultivation levels also secretly agreed. Ye Futian''s understanding of cultivation was indeed thorough.


    One''s potential was only the starting line of cultivation, but could not determine one''s eventual achievement.


    "Is there a difference in strength between rules and laws?" Zhu Yan asked again.


    "Of course. Some rare rule powers are the combination of multiple rule powers, so they are naturally stronger than singular rule powers. However, although there are strong and weak rule powers, its strength still depends on its user," Ye Futian replied and many people nodded in agreement.


    Although there were differences in the strength of rule power, it was eventually up to the user.


    "I have heard that Palace Lord Ye cultivates in spatial rule power and specializes in Space-freezing. I cultivate in shredding rule power and specialize in both shredding rule power and force rule power. Does Palace Lord Ye feel that the spatial rule power or the shredding rule power is stronger?" As his voice landed, everyone in the area had shocked expressions.


    Zhu Yan was asking for a duel.


    "They are both not simplistic rule powers and can counter each other. It all depends on the user," Ye Futian replied.


    "Then, who does Palace Lord Ye think is stronger?" Zhu Yan asked again. There was a hint of aggression in his voice and he had bared his fangs.


    Many of the Nine State College''s elites naturally wanted to challenge the man of the moment in the Nine States, Ye Futian.


    "Zhu Yan wants to challenge the Holy Zhi Palace Lord Ye Futian," the disciples in the outer ring mumbled in astonishment. They also wanted to see Ye Futian''s strength for themselves.


    Zhu Yan was an extremely famous figure in the Nine State College and had exceptional combat ability.


    "What do you feel?" Ye Futian suddenly smiled and asked him.


    Zhu Yan smiled as well and replied, "Me."


    "Since that is so, why do you need to ask?" Ye Futian answered.


    Zhu Yan nodded, then stood up and stepped towards the empty sparring area in front of them. He saluted Ye Futian and said, "The Nine State College''s disciple Zhu Yan, mid-level Sage, wishes to challenge Palace Lord Ye."


    Many of the College''s disciples had a glint in their eyes. As expected, Zhu Yan had challenged Ye Futian.


    Many people from the Nine State College were excited. One of them was the Nine States'' legendary figure, the young Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, while the other was an extremely outstanding genius from the Nine State College. They had high hopes for the battle.

 843 Hallowed Disciple of the Divine Path

    Ye Futian looked at Sage Liuyun and saw him say with a smile, "If Palace Lord Ye wouldn''t mind, please help me instruct these youngsters of the Nine State College, lest they are unaware that there are more powerful ones out there."


    Upon hearing the words of Sage Liuyun, Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He got up and walked down the steps, his gaze falling upon Zhu Ya as he said, "If it''s just a sparring session, then we won''t go all out. There is no winning or losing, so don''t take the outcome too seriously and let it affect your heart and mind."


    Everyone who heard Ye Futian expressed an odd look because although he said that the outcome was unimportant, his tone obviously implied that Zhu Yan would lose, reminding him not to let the loss influence his heart.


    This��


    "Please," Zhu Yan said calmly to Ye Futian while he got up and came to the center of the stage, slightly releasing his aura.


    The rules power now coursed between heaven and earth, and behind Ye Futian, there appeared the shape of a demon ape, gradually solidifying its massive body, great like a mountain.


    From the body of the demon ape, there came an extremely unbridled force, with rules power descending and pouring into its body.


    Bang! With a loud boom, the demon ape crossed the void with horrifying momentum towards Zhu Yan.


    Zhu Yan glanced at the Demon Ape and felt its dominating aura. His body suddenly released a flow of blazing brilliance, and as his entire body was reddened with heat, extremely wild energy exploded. Suddenly, a savage beast appeared behind him that was somewhat apelike.


    He Ran was a creature called by Zhu Yan "the Fierce Beast," and this one was extremely wild. With a long flaming stick in hand, his forcefulness rocketed skyward, and he howled to the Demon Ape that was coming towards him from the void.


    "Is this the collision of spirits?" Many people showed a look of surprise. Rules power integrated into the spirit, as if the real great demon had been made flesh.


    The Divine Ape trampled on the void, brandishing a long stick in hand with great might. A powerful force came down from the sky, and the clouds suddenly changed color. Occasional flickers of light radiated onto their bodies of the cultivators below, but many immediately retreated because the pressure they felt gave them a sense of suffocation.


    With a growl, fire and magma seemed to be flowing through Zhu Yan''s body as his body continued to expand and increase. Like a demon god standing between heaven and earth, the strength of the Infinite rules power between heaven and earth was being integrated into that primordial and savage body.


    "Space-freezing rules power is not my forte. This is the other rule that I have comprehended, starry laws; something for you to experience." Ye Futian still stood on the steps with his hands behind his back, an invisible radiance coursing along his body and climbing upward.


    Just as he finished speaking, starry laws of the Great Path shredded the void, blasting down with all its might. In an instant, a wave of incomparably violent storms rolled out. Those geniuses who sat cross-legged had to release their own power to resist this wild force so that they could remain sitting, but the robes on their bodies made sounds in the storm and danced in the wind.


    Zhu Yan''s countenance changed slightly. Behind him, the gigantic body of the Fierce Beast had raised the long stick in his hand and smashed it into the Demon Ape that was descending from the sky. As one stick landed, the two sticks collided, and for a moment, Zhu Yan felt the stars fall down while the gravel and dust flew at his feet, cracks appearing on the ground. The body of Zhu Yan the Fierce Beast was crushed along with Zhu Yan himself, both legs bent, unable to bear the force on top of him.


    But at this moment, the body of the Demon Ape rocketed into the sky, its wild power dissipating. The Demon Ape stood above the void, glanced downwards, and then returned inside of Ye Futian.


    "You cultivated in the shredding rules power. Its power for destruction is very strong while the power of starry laws is boundless. You chose to counter the starry laws head-on, suffering a natural disadvantage. You should not have battled me head on, but should have found an opportunity to concentrate your rules power to one weakness in the starry laws to destroy it," Ye Futian said to a stunned Zhu Yan. "Of course, these are all theories. The reality of combat still depends on people."


    Numerous people at the Nine States College looked up at Ye Futian on the steps. He continued standing there. He had defeated Zhu Yan just like that, as if to confirm what he had said before: the strength of the person could overpower all.


    Clearly, Ye Futian was stronger than Zhu Yan. It has been said that no prestige was vainly earned. Ye Futian''s reputation was known throughout the land of the Nine States, and it was unlikely that it was undeserved. Space-freezing rules and starry laws were all rare and powerful forces of the Great Path.


    Zhu Yan stood there, speechless. He was considered an excellent disciple at the Nine States College, so naturally, he had pride and thought highly of himself. Therefore, he believed that he at least had a chance in the battle.


    But in the end he suffered total defeat.


    "I am unworthy." Zhu Yan turned to return to his own seat and sat cross-legged. He may have appeared calm, but there were waves inside his heart.


    At this time, another figure appeared. This person was clad in white, without a speck of dust anywhere on him. Even though he was not handsome, he gave out a pleasing aura. Because of the special cultivation that he practiced, his body seemed to flicker with some magical brilliance that caught the eye.


    "Jiang Chuan from the Nine States College requests teachings from Palace Lord Ye."


    All the disciples of the Nine State College on the periphery looked surprised. Jiang Chuan was also going to take a shot, wanting a taste of Ye Futian''s strength.


    "As you please." Ye Futian replied without moving.


    Jiang Chuan nodded, his shirt fluttering in the wind. In the next moment, he disappeared. Suddenly there was endless thunder and lightning between heaven and earth, and flashes of lightning bloomed above the firmament. Their strong glare was blinding.


    Ye Futian glanced up and saw that Jiang Chuan''s body seemed to have disappeared and integrated into the power of lightning and thunder. With every flash of lightning, his shadow could be seen vaguely within as if he was omnipresent.


    Boom! Crack! Another loud sound, and in front of Ye Futian, there appeared a blade of lightning cutting through the void. Their entire area then became even more terrible, with lightning and thunder completely drowning the area of the Qingyun Building. The clouds and wind had changed their color.


    Another loud boom and the real blade of thunder fell down and chopped towards Ye Futian''s head. It was unbelievably swift, and the gazes of many were glued to the scene, their hearts beating rapidly.


    Jiang Chuan was known for his explosive attacks, killing in the blink of an eye, and his rules sorcery attacks were very strong. However, at this time, an invisible power of rules shrouded the vast void, and everyone faintly felt that the flow between heaven and earth had slowed down so that time and space seemed to come to a stop.


    That blade of thunder started to condense and appeared in front of Ye Futian.


    In front of Ye Futian, a terrible rules light screen appeared, the blade of light chopping down and emitting a piercing, sharp, sizzling sound.


    Ye Futian looked up and saw that there was a terrible thunderstorm gathering in the void, cutting through the space where he was. A figure appeared in the sky above; it was Jiang Chuan.


    Ye Futian raised his hand toward the void and made a grabbing gesture. In an instant, a frightening storm rolled out, and the space in which he grasped in his palm seemed to solidify into a star sphere. The thunderstorm raged within but was unable to destroy its confines. Jiang Chuan was trapped in it.


    Then his palm slammed forward, and suddenly the star sphere was broken. Jiang Chuan''s body, likewise, was pushed back by the shock. Suspended in the air, his eyes gazed at Ye Futian, and he said, "What sorcery is this?"


    "You integrated speed into lightning, rendering it shapeless and invisible. You have also integrated rules into your attacks. Rule sorcery can rupture everything. Its power is frightening. Those on the same plane as you within the Nine States College who can beat you probably does not exceed ten people," Ye Futian said to Jiang Chuan. "It was just that I comprehended space-freezing rules and starry laws. The sorcery that resulted in the combination of these two different rules was named starry prison, and it was meant for entrapment."


    "I submit." Jiang Chuan put his hands together and bowed to back down, but his heart was incredibly turbulent. Just as Ye Futian had said, even at the Nine State College, not many could compete with him in this plane except for a select few.


    But in front of Ye Futian, he was still no competition.


    Ye Futian was only in the mid-range of the sage plane and he already had begun to create rules sorceries with different rules. This kind of talent, which was rarely seen, could not simply be described by the term "genius."


    No wonder he was this well-known in the Nine States at such a young age.


    "Who else would like to give it a try?" Ye Futian smiled and surveyed the crowd. Although he was not high in plane, he gave out the eminence of a master.


    "I would also like to request instruction from Palace Lord Ye." Another got up and stepped forward. Naturally, Ye Futian granted the request. After that, several consecutive cultivators came forward to spar, some even higher in level than him, but all within the sage plane. Without exception, they were all easily defeated by Ye Futian. The techniques he employed were many and various. It was amazing that he always seemed to find the easiest way to defeat his opponent.


    At this time, Qingyun Building was quiet. The people who had tried before, although they were not the most outstanding figures of the Nine States College, were excellent among the disciples of the College, and they were crushed by Ye Futian, which showed his prowess.


    Never mind the Barren State, even in the lands of Nine States, Ye Futian''s genius could be considered the apex of a pyramid.


    Some people wondered, How would Ye Futian compare with others at the Nine States College?


    "I have long heard of the renowned Palace Lord Ye in the Barren State. Today, since you are at our college, I would like to experience it." At this time, a voice came from afar, and the crowd quickly separated to give way.


    As everyone turned to look, they saw a handsome young man with long flowing hair coming their way. The disciples who had parted way for him expressed looks of admiration. Finally, a truly excellent figure had arrived.


    Out of those who cultivated at the Nine State College, the strongest group was called the hallowed disciples of the Divine Path.


    At Nine State College, there were very few hallowed disciples of the Divine Path, but they were all once-in-a-lifetime geniuses able to cultivate under the saints.


    Each one was extremely powerful.


    Strong disciples such as Zhu Yan and Jiang Chuan occupied extraordinary places at the Nine State College, but they were only candidates for hallowed disciples of the Divine Path and had yet to obtain the qualification.


    For example, Jiang Chuan, who possessed special status, was just a boy under Saint Jiang, but his status was still far beneath that of the two disciples under Saint Jiang.


    And the person who had arrived at the moment was a hallowed disciple of the Divine Path!

 844 The Defeat of the Hallowed Disciple of the Divine Path

    Ye Futian bowed his head and looked out into the crowd. He saw that the person who had come had an invisible airflow on his body, which turned into a powerful aura. His supernatural influence on earth seemed to flow with miraculous properties, using his body as the center. Moreover, this young man did not actively draw upon this power. It was as if it were completely natural.


    When a cultivator reached the Sage Plane, their will encompassed all creation. They were integrated into the heavens and the earth and gave rise to laws. Thus, even if they did not release their own power, they still had an aura that was different from normal people, changing their human qualities. So if it were not for them intentionally hiding, then generally speaking the people who were higher up on the Cultivator Plane would have more outstanding qualities and more powerful auras.


    The brilliant figure that came now did not hide his aura.


    Duan Qinghe, the hallowed disciple of the divine path of Nine States College, was incredibly strong. Before he stepped into Qingyun Building, the crowd surrounding them was put into an uproar. Duan Qinghe had actually gotten involved.


    Previously, cultivators had said that Ye Futian''s talent was among the best. His name shook the Nine States, and he was the Lord of the holy land, and thus all cultivators could come to him for advice. It was also a fact that those as strong as Zhu Yan, Jiang Chuan and that sort of people were no match for him.


    But Duan Qinghe was so strong. The hallowed disciple of the divine path of Nine States College was finely tempered. Any of the hallowed disciples of the divine path were some of the strongest geniuses.


    In Nine States College, many people had been taught by hallowed disciples of the divine path, but they were not true hallowed disciple of the divine paths themselves.


    The hallowed disciples of the divine path were the top geniuses selected for the best college in the Nine States, and there were very few of them in total. Any one of them could be regarded as having been trained by a Saint.


    It was even said that hallowed disciples of the divine path were preparing to be Saints. As long as they were given the title of hallowed disciple of the divine path of Nine States College, it meant they had the qualifications to become a Saint.


    This showed the status of the hallowed disciples of the divine path of Nine States College.


    Now Duan Qinghe had come, desiring to ask Ye Futian for advice. This was a clash between the top geniuses in the truest sense.


    "I am Duan Qinghe of Nine States College. I have cultivated myself into a top level Sage. If you think my level is a little too high, you may decline," said Duan Qinghe. Ye Futian was a mid level Sage, he wanted to go up a level.


    However, in the previous battle he had already defeated a top level Sage from Nine States College.


    "Please," Ye Futian said calmly.


    Duan Qinghe''s body slowly rose into the air. He went higher and higher and actually went into the void, and his terrible aura appeared around him. In a flash, the airflows between heaven and earth rushed wildly towards him and over Qingyun Building.


    In Ye Futian''s previous battles, where he had been training, power outbursts had been suppressed, and there were certain limits. After all, the side effects of a battle between Sages would be too widespread.


    Duan Qinghe obviously wanted a real confrontation. Thus, he was no longer on the wide ground of a sparring session, but had soared into the air into the void.


    The terrible airflow suddenly turned into a crimson flame, and the sky seemed to be dyed red. The horrible flaming airflow covered the sky, suspended above Duan Qinghe like a magnificent pattern. An incomparably hot airflow flowed down. Everyone felt they were very hot, as if their bodies were burning.


    Countless people are Nine States College looked up into the sky, and they all saw that the air came from the direction of Qingyun Building.


    "It''s Duan Qinghe!" Many people saw the figure in the void and cried out in alarm.


    "Who is he fighting?" Someone saw Ye Futian slowly rising into the air. Did Duan Qinghe really place so much importance on this brilliant young figure?


    "It''s Ye Futian of the Barren State. He''s already defeated many powerful figures from our college," someone said. Suddenly, more people rushed over from the direction of Qingyun Building, and their hearts trembled.


    The Lord of the holy land of the Barren State, that proud son of heaven who did as he saw fit, was fighting their college''s hallowed disciple of the divine path?


    Which one of them was stronger, and which was weaker?


    For a time, countless people in Nine States College watched them. Even some seniors looked up at the battle.


    The flame pattern in the void continued to twist and flow. A ring appeared in the middle of the pattern. Divine birds appeared within it. A phoenix and the Golden Raven hovered in the sky.


    There was a long cry and the phoenix and the Golden Raven swooped down like rays of light directly towards Ye Futian. In a flash the sky seemed to be burning.


    Ye Futian stood calmly in the void as he watched that fearsome power descending. A starry light screen appeared around him. The stars were resplendent, making it impossible to reach him.


    The extremely violent phoenix and Golden Raven rushed down, but they could not burn through the stars.


    "Cultivating the Dao, cultivating the Dao. What is the Dao?" Duan Qinghe spat. He stood proudly in the sky as he stared at Ye Futian.


    "My cultivation is very narrow. I do not understand what the Dao is," answered Ye Futian.


    "The Dao begets one, one begets two, two begets three, and three begets all things. Everything moves in cycles. The Dao is the operation of all the laws of the world. Cultivating the Dao is to understand and utilize the laws of the world." Duan Qinghe seemed to be answering himself. The airflow in the sky changed, and the blazing flames dissipated and turned into a starry radiance. It now looked like the sky was full of stars.


    "Hm?" Ye Futian was currently using the power of the starry laws. Duan Qinghe''s flame rule power was still bursting forth, but in the blink of an eye his law power changed and the flames turned into stars.


    What laws was Duan Qinghe good at?


    "I control the laws of the operation of the world. The Great Path is interconnected. I can use all powers," continued Duan Qinghe. The stars flowed between heaven and earth, and then fell like meteors from the sky, smashing wildly into the place where Ye Futian was.


    The earth roared. Even though the two of them were high up those on the ground still felt the shock, showing how terrible was the power that descended.


    Ye Futian stood still. The aura around him grew stronger, and the stars flowed with radiance. It was like there were huge stars flowing around his body, forming an astonishing defensive force.


    Bang! There was a loud noise as stars collided with each other, violently shaking the void.


    Loud noises rang out one after another, making everyone''s hearts jump.


    Duan Qinghe''s attack was already amazing enough, but Ye Futian''s defense was so formidable that he could not be moved.


    Duan Qinghe stepped out below his pattern. A brilliant radiance descended from the sky with his body as its center. It seemed to contain the power of the Great Path, and all the forces of all the heavens were integrated in it.


    He stood under the pattern of stars and his fists fell towards Ye Futian. A line of star radiance suddenly pierced through the void, ran between heaven and earth and rushed towards Ye Futian.


    Crash! The incomparably wild energy pierced through the surrounding defenses. The starry light curtain was broken, and the fists continued to fall as they tried to smash Ye Futian''s head.


    "So strong." Many people''s hearts were beating wildly. He was so strong, truly worthy of being a hallowed disciple of the divine path of Nine States College.


    None of the previous disciples of Nine States College could shake Ye Futian. Even those who were top rank Sages who were higher ranked than Ye Futian had never been able to move him. It was like he was not on any level.


    Now Duan Qinghe had gotten involved and sparred with him in the void.


    What was the Dao?


    The operation of all the laws in the world was the Dao, and he wanted to control the operation of all the laws in the world.


    He punched through the Great Path, wanting to crush this figure who was famous throughout the Nine States.


    Ye Futian looked up at the terrible punches, but his face was still calm. A golden stream of air flowed around him.


    In an instant, his battle form appeared, transforming him into a roc. The incomparably golden brilliance burst open, beautiful to the extreme. In that terrible airflow a huge gold winged roc appeared, slamming directly into the void. Its wings collided with the fists, breaking them apart.


    Duan Qinghe''s expression did not change when he saw this. The pattern in the void twisted slowly. A golden radiance bloomed between the endless stars. It turned into a dragon that spiraled around his body and looked down upon the golden winged roc.


    Duan Qinghe swept his eyes downward, and in an instant, a dazzling radiance pierced the void and rushed towards Ye Futian.


    At the same time, a huge golden stick appeared in the stormy sky, which was picked up by the golden winged roc. A vortex rose up against the air currents. The golden winged roc''s feathers flashed as it rose into the sky.


    The golden stick split everything apart, even the dazzling radiance. Ye Futian gazed disdainfully at the void and said, "The Great Path is multitudinous, and yet we can only understand it at the surface level. How can we dare to evaluate what it is? Even if the Dao is the operation of the laws of heaven and earth, we only understand a part of these laws. Therefore I do not understand the Dao."


    His voice ran through the heavens and the earth and resounded in everyone''s ears. In the next moment, everyone saw the golden winged roc had already rushed in front of Duan Qinghe and towards the stick.


    A bolt of radiance ran through the void and fell into Duan Qinghe, making it seem like he was bearing the power of all the heavens. There was an earth shattering dragon''s roar as the dragon''s figure collided with Ye Futian''s attack.


    A loud noise burst forth. Everyone could see only the wild collision between the two people in the sky. The void shook, and the pattern of all heavens seemed to collapse.


    The two figures separated once again. Air drifted over Duan Qinghe''s as the power of heaven and earth was integrated into his body, and the wind and clouds danced wildly.


    "You are worthy of being called the hallowed disciple of the divine path of Nine States College since you were able to stimulate my power to this level," Ye Futian said with a smile. "Let''s end this now."


    As he spoke, time and space seemed to freeze. The stick rose up and smashed into the pattern. The starry radiance flowed over the stick. Ye Futian reached forward with both arms and suddenly, the stick split the pattern apart. Supreme power descended, and the Great Path was broken, and the heavens and the earth collapsed.


    Duan Qinghe''s expression changed slightly. He wanted to retreat, but space rules covered his body. And the stick seemed to be slow at times, and at others quick as a flash.


    A loud rumbling sound rang out and everything was shattered. The stick slammed down and Duan Qinghe screamed. The dragon''s figure shook the sky, but it was shattered under the stick.


    Crash! A figure fell down directly, crashing into the crowd of people on the ground. The heavens became clear once again, and sunlight fell once again. The people looked up at Ye Futian in the sky and felt like they were in a dream.


    The hallowed disciple of the divine path, Duan Qinghe, had been defeated at his hands.


    This proud son of heaven who had come from the Barren State truly had the potential to stand at the peak of this generation of the Nine States. Previously, they had only heard rumors of Ye Futian. After today''s battle, his reputation would not be limited to the Barren State and the Eastern State.


    There was a place for him amongst the most brilliant figures of the Nine States in this generation.


    "The hallowed disciple of the divine path has been defeated." Countless people in Nine States College looked up at the figure in the sky. They trembled internally. The hallowed disciple of the divine path had extraordinary significance for the college.

 845 Go Easy

    Ye Futian''s body dropped lightly on the steps. Duan Qinghe stood up at that moment as well while coughing blood.


    "Powers of a disciple of the divine path is indeed exceptional. I was unable to keep my powers in check in the heat of battle, for that, I sincerely apologize. Ye Futian nodded to Duan Qinghe.


    Duan Qinghe took a good look at Ye Futian, who, as a mid level sage had bested him, a upper level sage. There was simply no need to talk about his powers being exceptional and all.


    "That is something inevitable in battle and there is no need to feel sorry about it. Few in all of the nine states could hardly match your powers indeed, Palace Lord Ye." Duan Qinghe cupped his hand and said, "I shall take my leave."


    He turned around and left as soon as he was finished. As a disciple of the divine path in the Nine State College, he represented the pinnacle of the college, and so there was no need for him to listen to Ye Futian and the others talk.


    Ye Futian would have only been considered qualified enough to lecture a disciple of the divine path, if he was a true saint.


    The people of the Nine State College shuddered somewhat. While Duan Qinghe looked rather bad having lost to Ye Futian, but he nonetheless held Ye Futian in extremely high regard.


    However, they knew well that as someone who was capable of besting Duan Qinghe using wild, unchecked means, Ye Futian was indeed qualified to stand toe to toe with pinnacle figures throughout the nine states.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes to Sage Liuyun and said with a smile, "I''ve fought enough for a day and I''m not fighting anymore today."


    In the world of cultivators, one earned respect solely through one''s own powers. The Nine State College was the top college in all of nine states, and top notch geniuses were aplenty. Ye Futian might have been a leader of the Barren State and enjoyed great renown in the Eastern State, but he was in Summer State at the moment, and he was in the Nine State College. It was inadequate for him to carve his place there with only his past glories, and the Nine State College would not have afforded him with ample respect.


    As such, he needed to show his mettle at times, but he knew enough to keep himself in check. He was not there to seek revenge after al. If he were to actually end up besting every single genius to be found in the Nine State College, that would have reflected badly on both parties.


    Sage Liuyun smiled and nodded, saying, "Seeing how you fought at the Qingyun Building today, I''m sure those people would now know that there is always someone better out there. That should keep their ego in check from here on out."


    Ye Futian returned to his spot and Sage Liuyun added, "Other than Ye Futian, there is also Yu Sheng, Liu Zong and others here today with us. Should any of you intend to seek guidance, now is your chance."


    Yu Sheng and Liu Zong were of different plane from Ye Futian, and it was only natural that there were someone who were of similar plane to them among the students of the Nine State College. At that moment, someone walked out and said, "I''d like to seek guidance from the champion of the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng."


    "Go easy on him." Ye Futian did not avert his gaze and smiled while he was looking below, yet he said that to Yu Sheng telepathically nonetheless.


    "I''ll go easy then." It was unknown if Yu Sheng was unable to react in time. He blurted it out of his mouth instead of answering the call telepathically, and then he walked out.


    Everyone present sported peculiar looks after he finished his line.


    Go easy?


    Everyone turned their eyes at Ye Futian, who was seen looking at Yu Sheng with peculiar expressions. They knew exactly what had transpired, and that was Ye Futian telling Yu Sheng to go easy on his opponent.


    "Wha..." Everyone rolled their eyes and gone speechless.


    These two has gone too far indeed.


    The student who had just walked looked glum as well. He was, after all, a genius and a candidate to become a disciple of the divine path. If he had not broken into Sage Plane before the Nine State Forum had been held, he would have participated in the Nine State Forum as well.


    As such, Yu Sheng saying out loud that he would go easy before the fight even began made things look very awkward.


    "There is no need for you to go easy, Brother Yu Sheng." The student said with a severe expression.


    Yu Sheng looked at him and found his eyes to be determined ones, as such, Yu Sheng nodded and said, "Noted."


    He stepped out as soon as he finished and the ground shook violently. That student then saw Yu Sheng pounced at him like a demonic beast with a human form. The air around them was filled with terrifying aura, as if Yu Sheng''s power had shrouded the air around them.


    The student brought all he had gotten to defend against the attack, Life Spirit, power of rules, and the likes. It looked incredibly stunning, but Yu Sheng brought an end to everything with little more than a straight jab.


    That student''s body was sent flying outside the area with a loud boom, hitting the spectators watching from outside. Blood poured from his mouth.


    "Wha..."


    Everyone went speechless. All eyes were on Yu Sheng. Do you have to bully people like that?


    You said you would go easy and then you ended the fight with one punch?


    Ye Futian looked very awkward and explained in a rather speechless manner, "This guy is born with great strength and he can''t keep his power in check."


    "It''s fine." Sage Liuyun was speechless as well. Yu Sheng was still the person he was back in the Nine State Forum. The temper he was renowned hadn''t changed one bit.


    That punch would have left quite a trauma on that poor kid.


    Yu Sheng scratched his head for a little bit and looked at everyone around him, saying, "I''d still be spending quite some time training during the Nine State Forum. If anyone feels like sparring, I''d definitely give it my all and experience what the students of the college has to offer."


    "Ahem..."


    Ye Futian glared at Yu Sheng. Revenge. That as**ole was taking his revenge on me, for selling him out like that.


    The students of the Nine State College were all speechless. There were some who felt very indignant and walked out to challenge Yu Sheng again. The fight was ended yet again with just one punch, and it looked awful.


    Everyone of the same plane felt a chill running through their spine. Is that fellow a human or a demonic beast?


    It''s better that we just stay out of this.


    A non-disciple of the divine path simply stands no chance against the insane attack of that fellow.


    No one challenged Yu Sheng any furhter, but there were others who challenged Liu Zong. However, Liu Zong brought his own powers to bear and his was practically invincible. No one was able to best him.


    He was, after all, the only student who received tutelage from all three saints and one who was lauded to be a future saint. It was only natural that he lived up to the hype around him.


    The sparring sessions at Qingyun Building ended after a while. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and Liu Zong never lost a single fight. Zhou Ya won against several challengers while Zhou You lost once. However, there was no other disciple of the divine path fighting other than Duan Qinghe.


    Sage Liuyun threw a banquet for his guests and then had his people saw to the needs of the ones who came from three distinct holy lands.


    Mighty ones from all three holy lands were staying in the palaces of the Nine State College.


    ...


    What happened in Qingyun Building spread like wildfire throughout the entire Nine State College after everyone dispersed.


    Everyone in the college was talking, and the person who was most talked about was none other than Ye Futian.


    The palace lord of a holy land from the Barren State, who took the nine states by storm, was staying right inside the college at the moment. Other than that, Yu Sheng, champion of the Nine State Forum, Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain and the others were also scheduled to be staying and training in the college for the time being.


    It seemed that the peaceful days of the college was over.


    The few taking on the students of Qingyun Building were almost undefeated, and Ye Futian had even defeated a disciple of the divine path. It was anyone''s guess what the other disciples of the divine path would have thought about that.


    At that moment, a young man was seen carving something in a building within the college. He was very focused when someone came up and said, "Something interesting happened in the college today. Now everyone here is talking about it. Do you want to know something about it?"


    The young man looked as if he had not heard anything. He continued to focus on his work quietly, as if he was finishing a masterpiece of some sort.


    The ones around felt rather speechless and the scene and continued, "Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace from the Barren State who seemed to have shot to fame recently, came to the college, along with the champion of the Nine State Forum, Yu Sheng, and Liu Zong of the Xihua Sacred Mountain."


    The young man continued to ignore them and focus on his work.


    "Many students sparred with them before the Qingyun Building and almost all of them lost. Not even Duan Qinghe was able to beat Ye Futian. Many claimed that the talents of Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and the others would have made them peers among the best of all holy lands from the nine states had to offer. Are you telling me that you have no interest about it at all?" The one who came up earlier elaborated rather exasperatedly.


    The young man before his eyes was the top notch genius in the Nine State College. There were only two or three who were deemed possessing powers comparable to his.


    "I''ve heard of Ye Futian activating the Sword Matrix of the Void and killed a saint. He was lauded to be the savior of the Barren State and the one who would have brought about the ailing state''s renaissance. Many seniors of his were more than happy to serve as his aid. The will of the Barren State was unified during the sacred war. Duan Qinghe mignt have been powerful, but he had not been truly tested in any manner and he was immensely arrogant. Wasn''t it quite normal for him to have ended up losing?"


    The young man put down his chisel and looked at the one who came, asking, "So what''s there to be worth getting excited over?"


    The man who came was dumbfounded and added exasperatedly, "So you have a keen sense on what is going on after all, and here I thought you are not interested in anything going on out there. But then again, if you''ve such high opinion of Ye Futian, doesn''t someone like that pique your interest even a little bit?"


    "Time shall be the judge of everything. It would naturally kick some so-called geniuses generations after generations. The true cream-of-the-crop figures would naturally be at the pinnacle of the nine states. They would all be leading symbols of their time, and if Ye Futian proves to be one such figure, is there any need to rush into anything at all?" The young man elaborated.


    The man he was speaking to was dumbfounded yet again and said in a speechless manner, "I really have no idea what your types are thinking."


    He shook his head and left.


    Many other places within the vicinity of the college were talking about everything related to Ye Futian, and it was all because he had defeated a disciple of the divine path of the college.


    ...


    At that moment, Ye Futian was heard playing the guqin in one of the compounds of the college''s palaces. He was tranquil yet focused, refining his spiritual energy with music. It was a habit that had never changed throughout the years.


    Qin Zhuang came in and stood quietly aside, listening to the music. When the playing stopped moments later, Ye Futian looked up and said to Qin Zhuang, "How was it?"


    "We know that Saint Jiang is now living as a hermit and training in the Nine State College''s Herb Garden, and usually only a handful get to see him. The only ones who truly know of his whereabouts would probably be his two students." Qin Zhuang then answered.


    "Right." Ye Futian nodded lightly and said, "The hour is late. We shall visit Saint Jiang tomorrow."


    "Will do." Qin Zhuang nodded.


    Footsteps were heard and Ye Futian looked. He smiled and called when he saw the person coming, "Teacher."


    "Futian, everything has its time and place. There is no need for you to be overly concerned about this. If Saint Jiang is reluctant to help, there is no need for us to force anything," Sage Douzhan said to Ye Futian. He knew that his student put a lot of hopes in this trip, intending to have Saint Jiang help him.


    However, Saint Jiang was ranked 12th on the Sage and Saint Rankings and was not an acquaintance of theirs. The saint was not someone that would have easily helped them just becasue they wished for him to do so.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian smiled and added, "Relax, teacher. I won''t be too obsessed with this. But I owe it to myself to at least try my best. One needed to go through a lot to gain the opportunity to become a saint. We''re now simply one step away. This might be difficult, but there is no way it is more difficult than our own training in the first place."

 846 Great Teacher Xu

    Early next morning in the Herb Garden of the Nine State College.


    There had not been a Herb Garden in the Nine State College before. It was something that was built specifically for Saint Jiang, after he became a hermit in the Nine State College.


    There was someone coming from outside the Herb Garden. It was not Ye Futian and his people, but Zhou Huang and his.


    A figure was seen walking out of the Herb Garden, and it was none other than Jiang Chuan, who was a formidable who had been sparring in the Qingyun Building the day before.


    "To what do I owe the pleasure of being graced with your presence, your highness?" Jiang Chuan cupped his hands and bowed at Zhou Huang and the others. If Zhou Huang had only been the emperor of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Jiang Chuan would have not needed to go that far. However, Zhou Huang was considered his senior, and a mighty one ranked in the Sage and Saint Ranking.


    "Nothing major. I''m just here because I''ve long heard of Saint Jiang''s renown and I feel like taking a look where the renowned senior resides." Zhou Huang smiled and added, "A small gift, please hand it to Great Teacher Xu for me, and let him greet Saint Jiang in my father''s stead."


    "Will do. If it''s a greeting from the Sacred King, I''d personally hand this to the Great Teacher." Jiang Chuan nodded and took the box containing the gift over, then asked, "Would there be any word you would like to send as well, your highness?"


    "That wouldn''t be necessary." Zhou Huang shook his head and said, "If you''d excuse me."


    "Please." Jiang Chuan sent Zhou Huang off and returned to the Herb Garden, arriving before a spot with some herbs planted.


    Jiang Chuan was a Herb Garden Caretaker, which made his status at the Nine State College rather special. He studied under Saint Jiang and thus, he was considered a candidate to become a disciple of the Divine Path.


    Other than the Herb Garden, he was allowed to study in the college itself as well.


    Jiang Chuan arrived at one of the gardens and there was a black-robed figure standing right before him. The figure had one of his hand placed behind his back. He was tall and exuded an air of exceptionality by simply standing there.


    It was none other than the Great Teacher Xu that Zhou Huang mentioned, and the eldest student of Saint Jiang, Xu Chehan.


    Saint Jiang, who ranked 12th on the Sage and Saint Ranking, had only taken two students. The eldest was Xu Chehan, who inherited Saint Jiang''s ways as the Poison Lord. Some claimed that if he were to become a saint in the future, he could be titled as the Poison Saint. It was also noted that it was best to not get near him if one was not all that familiar with him. That alone spoke volumes about Xu Chehan''s notoriety.


    The second student of Saint Jiang was a woman, who was also at the garden at the moment, and she was plucking some flora. In contrast to Xu Chehan''s black robe, she was dressed in white instead and seemed completely clean. Her delicate hands were exposed and her skin looked supple. Her back was alluring enough to make anyone determine that she would have been a beautiful lady when seen from the front as well.


    No one at the Nine State College knew her name. Everyone simply addressed her as Goddess Die, alluding that she was as flighty and light as butterflies, as well as looking just as beautiful. There was no doubt that Goddess Die was indeed a beauty, and furthermore, the most beautiful to be found in the Nine State College. She inherited Saint Jiang''s medicinal ways, which was the complete opposite of Xu Chehan.


    Jiang Chuan turned his eyes at Xu Chehan''s back and then at the goddess before the flowers. He quickly dodged by lowering his head, not daring to defile her further with his sight.


    While Jiang Chuan himself was of exceptional status in the Nine State Forum and a candidate of becoming a hallowed disciple, as well as the Herb Garden Caretaker, but within the vicinity of the garden, he was little more than a caretaker who was studying under Xu Chehan and one who was training in the Herb Garden. He had no doubt knew of the Great Teacher Xu''s notoriety. Few among the younger generations in all of the nine states were as terrifying as Xu Chehan.


    Xu Chehan had been training for over 30 years and he was near the rank of Archmage within the Sage Plane. He was considered a formidable figure for being able to reach such a level at his age.


    Xu Chehan simply remained standing with his hand behind his back and said nothing, while he watched Goddess Die''s movements.


    He said nothing, and Jiang Chuan dared not speak first, as if the later feared interrupting something the former was doing.


    No one in the Nine State College would have probably expected that Jiang Chuan, who had been such a dazzling figure outside, looked so mediocre and cautious around Xu Chehan.


    Goddess Die had finally finished her plucking after a while and stood. It was only then that Xu Chehan turned around and looked at Jiang Chuan. His black-robed image gave off an exceptionally cold image. The sharp features on his appearance exuding an equally sharp feeling. He was still incredibly handsome nonetheless, but there was no mistaking his coldness, per his namesake.


    "What is it?" Xu Chehan asked.


    "Zhou Huang of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had requested me to hand this over to you, Great Teacher." Jiang Chuan added, "He said to have you greet Saint Jiang in his father, the Sacred King''s stead."


    Xu Chehan''s brow frown slightly and appeared even colder. Goddess Die came up and said in a low voice, "I thought our teacher and the Zhou Sacred King had not been acquaintances."


    "My lady." Jiang Chuan bowed to Goddess Die. Both of them were personal disciples of Saint Jiang, which made them his heirs. Jiang Chuan ritualistically addressed her as ''my lady'', while addressing her Goddess Die when he was around others from outside.


    Goddess Die smiled and nodded at Jiang Chuan, who lowered his head after seeing her eyes, not daring to look at her beautiful eyes directly.


    "I see." Xu Chehan nodded and opened the box. A cold sheen shone on his face immediately. Xu Chehan''s expression turned as sharp as a blade. It seemed that Zhou Huang had made quite an effort with the gift. The item was very suitable for further his training.


    He closed the box and asked, "What is happening out there? Why would Zhou Huang give me such a gift?"


    "I''m sure you''ve heard of the sacred war outside." Jiang Chuan continued, "Sage Douzhan invoked the Divine Catastrophe but had not suffered its entirety. Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State is now in the college, and he would visit the Herb Garden soon enough."


    Jiang Chuan did not spell everything out, but Xu Chehan got it immediately nonetheless. Barren State needed something from Saint Jiang. Ye Futian needed something to create a saint, but since the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was at war with the Holy Zhi Palace, it was only natural that the former did not wish to see a second saint come into being in Barren State.


    Xu Chehan handed the box to Jiang Chuan and said, "Return this to Zhou Huang."


    Jiang Chuan was dumbfounded but took it nonetheless and nodded. He did not know what was going on in Xu Chehan''s mind, but he knew enough to do as told.


    "I''d be off then." Jiang Chuan turned around and left. Xu Chehan looked at the direction he left at with plain eyes and said, "I totally did not expect the Great Zhou Sacred King to be so wary of the Barren State. It seems that the sacred war is not going as well as he expect it to be."


    It was apparent that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was wary of yet another saint emerging among the ranks of the Barren State.


    At the Saint Plane, one person would have sufficed to determine the fates of hundreds of thousands. A mindless saint would have became nothing less than a calamity, and that was because no one but a saint could have stopped a saint, even matrixes would have proved inadequate.


    Ye Futian and his people came as soon as Jiang Chuan walked out of the Herb Garden, and was preparing to head towards the place where the ones from the sacred dynasty was resting.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded as he saw Jiang Chuan coming out.


    "Palace Lord Ye." Jiang Chuan cupped his hands. They both fought the day before and Jiang Chuan was defeated yet impressed. While Jiang Chuan was indeed exceptional, there was quite a gap between him and Ye Futian.


    "Brother Jiang, I''d like to pay a visit to Senior Saint Jiang. Would you mind informing Great Teacher Xu for us?" Ye Futian asked. It was apparent that he caught wind of the fact that the Herb Garden was tended to by two students of Saint Jiang. It would have been difficult if he were to simply look for the saint on his own.


    "Yes, please hold on for a moment, Palace Lord Ye." Jiang Chuan went back into the Herb Garden.


    Xu Chehan frowned and asked, seeing how Jiang Chuan came to him again, "What is it now?"


    "Palace Lord Ye of the Barren State has come to pay you a visit," Jiang Chuan said.


    Xu Chehan took a look at Jiang Chuan and said, "Tell him that teacher is now training in isolation and is no state to receive guests, so he may leave."


    Jiang Chuan looked up at Xu Chehan and said, "Great Teacher, Ye Futian is quite renowned now in all of nine states, and furthermore, he''s a palace lord from a holy land. Wouldn''t it be rather inappropriate to just have him leave like that?"


    Xu Chehan frowned and took a look at Jiang Chuan. He felt a shiver running all over his body all of a sudden and said, "I''ve said too much. I''ll inform him at once."


    He turned around and left after he was done.


    Goddess Die turned to Xu Chehan and said, "Brother, Jiang Chuan was correct. Ye Futian is indeed quite renowned these days. According to legend, he''s quite a rare genius and a leader of a holy land of the Barren State. It would indeed look inappropriate if we were to just shut our doors at his face."


    "Since when did you care about such mortal affairs, sister?" Xu Chehan smiled and asked. His smile was warm and polite. It was an expression that would have warmed the hearts of those who have seen it, a far cry from the coldness displayed in front of Jiang Chuan.


    "But you''ve declined both sides, brother. Why is that?" Goddess Die asked.


    If Xu Chehan had intentions of declining Ye Futian, he could have simply just take Zhou Huang''s gift.


    "If we were to take gifts of others, we would then need to dedicate ourselves to their cause. I didn''t decline Ye Futian due to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It''s that I don''t want teacher to be embroiled in the feud between the sacred dynasty and the Barren State, so as to not interrupt our teacher''s training. While it is entirely in our capacity to entertain them, but there is also need to get ourselves involved in petty affairs like that." Xu Chehan added further in elaboration, "As for who Ye Futian is, that matters little."


    "Right." Goddess Die did not say much after that. She had a mild temperament and was dedicated to her training under her teacher''s tutelage. It was just that she got curious about things occasionally nonetheless.


    Jiang Chuan arrived outside the Herb Garden again to meet Ye Futian and his people.


    Ye Futian had been waiting for quite a while and it was a surprise that he had grown rather restless. But then again, it was something that concerned his teacher''s fate after all.


    "How about it?" Ye Futian walked up and asked Jiang Chuan, with a hint of anxiousness.


    "Palace Lord Ye." A tinge of apology was seen in Jiang Chuan''s eyes as he said, "The Great Teacher said that Saint Jiang is training in isolation at the moment and is not in a state ready to receive guest. I''m sorry."


    Ye Futian looked rather disappointed and then asked, "How about the Great Teacher then? Would it be alright if we pay him a visit?"


    "The Great Teacher doesn''t like to be disturbed." Jiang Chuan shook his head slightly. He knew well that Xu Chehan did not want to see Ye Futian.


    Both parties were no acquaintance of each other and Xu Chehan''s cold temperament said that he was not one who would have helped others.


    One''s training would have affected one''s temperament. Xu Chehan trained in the art of poisons, and as such, his temperament was naturally colder than most.


    "I''ll come again tomorrow then," Ye Futian said with a smile after hearing the answer, before turning around and left.


    The party did not expect to have doors shut in their faces. They were not even able to get into the Herb Garden, let alone see Saint Jiang.


    They were not even able to see Xu Chehan, the eldest student of Saint Jiang.


    "What an arrogant prick." Xu Shang said rather lazily, "So what''s this Great Teacher''s training is like?"


    "At the pinnacle of magi, near to archmage, I heard," Qin Zhuang said.


    "So he''s not an archmage yet then." Xu Shang smirked and said, "While he''s indeed the eldest student of the Medicine Saint, but he just simply dismissed a leader of the Barren State who came to see him personally. He really knows how to put on airs."


    Ye Futian notwithstanding, all of them in the party were of higher training than Xu Chehan. Furthermore, given Ye Futian''s renown and status as a palace lord of a holy land, the least Xu Chehan could have done was to invite them into the Herb Garden. Dismissing them in such a manner meant that he paid no heed to their presence.


    "We''re the ones who''re paying them a visit after all. If they don''t want to see us, then they naturally wouldn''t do so. There''s no need to blame them for anything," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Good state of mind you''ve there." Xu Shang smiled.


    "We''ll come again tomorrow," Ye Futian said. They needed help from someone else, and it was precisely the kind of state of mind he needed to be in!

 847 Goddess Die

    Ye Futian had paid visits to the Herb Garden for seven consecutive days, and he had doors shut in his face every single day. Great Teacher Xu remained reluctant to see them.


    Yuan Hong and the others were very irked about the treatment, so much so that they wanted to trespass into the garden and look for Saint Jiang themselves. However, Ye Futian stopped them from doing so. While their level of training would have permitted them to simply shout outside, which would have made them heard throughout the entire garden, if Saint Jiang was truly training in isolation, such an act of extreme rudeness would have cost them their hope of saving his teacher. That was not something Ye Futian wanted to see. He was very displeased as well, but there was little he was able to do about it.


    Yu Sheng spent those seven days training in the Nine State College. There were moments where people wanted to spar with him, and he beat every single person who came up to him without mercy. The number of people asking for fights dwindled, and those who were of levels far above him were reluctant to make a move as it would have simply been an act of bullying. The people of the Holy Zhi Palace were guests. They had no one else to blame but themselves for challenging others and losing.


    Yu Sheng''s temper was considered very well known throughout the College by then.


    Liu Zong, Zhou Ya, and the others were training at the Nine State College as well. They would occasionally listen to lectures from mighty ones, as those who were qualified to do so were all of the archmage level and above. Some were even at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane.


    There was still quite a lot of talk regarding Ye Futian. He overwhelmed all students he came to face as soon as he entered the College. Even a disciple of the divine path ended up defeated by him, showing his incredibly forceful side and his immense bearing as a Palace Lord. As such, many came to be surprised at how he spent seven consecutive days visiting the Herb Garden. He was still a Palace Lord of a holy land and was renowned throughout the Nine States. It was surely very frustrating for him to keep getting the door shut in his face for seven days straight.


    If it had been someone else, they would have long lost their patience, but Ye Futian was doing all he was able to for the sake of his teacher.


    Many were speculating if Ye Futian would be able to continue doing so.


    That Great Teacher Xu was not giving him any face.


    However, that was deemed normal. The Great Teacher of the Herb Garden hardly concerned himself with anyone but his sister-in-training. He was known to be extremely cold. Even with all disciples of the divine path in the Nine State College considered, he was probably deemed the most apathetic among all of them.


    Other than visiting the Herb Garden, Ye Futian spent his days training in the palace. There were times where some students of the college came to visit him due to his fame, asking for guidance. He too welcomed all who sought guidance from him and sparred with them if they wished. If someone asked about his thoughts, he openly shared his experiences and thoughts about training as well.


    Many students in the College gradually came to respect Ye Futian, and the number of visitors gradually grew.


    Many speculated that Ye Futian would not pay the Herb Garden another visit after seven consecutive days of getting the door shut in his face; however, Ye Futian showed up punctually on the eighth day nonetheless. Even Jiang Chuan grew rather exasperated and reluctant to refuse Ye Futian anymore.


    However, the Great Teacher simply told Jiang Chuan to stop informing him when Ye Futian showed. He was told to just refuse the Palace Lord outright instead.


    It became apparent that the saying "faith will move mountains" was little more than a lie. Ye Futian''s consecutive visits did nothing to move the Great Teacher in any way.


    Ye Futian seemed to know nothing about that. He showed up at the Herb Garden every day and then left, as if he was completing some kind of task. There were many students in the College who advised him to give up, yet Ye Futian replied with little more than a faint smile.


    Time passed and Ye Futian had been at the Nine State College for almost a month. All the students of the College knew what Ye Futian had been doing all that while. There were many who came to remind him about things, and those reminders proved rather useful.


    The palace that Ye Futian took up residence in was filled to the brim that day. Many cultivators from the College were found there, all different levels of training. Sages, magi, even people from the Noble Plane.


    Many, even those at the level of magi, came to be impressed by Ye Futian''s thoughts about training. The more they came to know him, the more they came to understand his charisma.


    Other than that, Ye Futian was very adept at playing the guqin, and both his tune and his playing were pleasing to the ear and the eye. Few were capable of matching his abilities with a guqin, even when those who were training in the Music Palace of the College were taken into consideration.


    At that moment, a tune was heard from the palace. Ye Futian was sitting at a master''s position on the floor in the compound of the palace. He wore a simple robe and his long fingers plucked and danced on the strings. The music was surreal as it danced in the minds of those within earshot.


    The tune he played seemed to be imbued with a tinge of peculiar colors, which made him look exceptionally handsome. It was a sight that enamored many girls who watched and heard him play, especially those who were versed in and liked music.


    Lin Xi was one of the students training in the Music Palace of the college. His proficiency in the art was impeccable. She was born in a family of musicians in Nine State City. As such, she was naturally able to sense the strong determination imbued with Ye Futian''s tunes. He had usually only been playing simple tunes, but his music nonetheless touched the hearts of those who heard. If he were to play famous tunes, it would have resonated immensely with his audience.


    One was able to tell what the person who played the guqin was like through the tunes they played. Lin Xi was able to tell from Ye Futian''s tunes that he was extremely confident, even proud, yet this person had been paying visits to the Herb Garden for a month but getting doors shut in his face every day. It was a testament that he held his relationships close to his heart and that he had an immensely stubborn side to him.


    He probably would not rest until he was able to see Saint Jiang.


    The music stopped and Ye Futian looked up and smiled faintly, which made his face look even more radiant than it usually was.


    "I''ve heard that you are very adept at the Ukiyo Song, which is one of the top ten renowned tunes in existance, Palace Lord Ye. Why do you only play common tunes?" Lin Xi asked in a gentle voice.


    "Music requires the right state of mind to be played in order to achieve perfection in its delivery. The Ukiyo Song is ill-suited for the moment," Ye Futian smiled and answered.


    "Your illustration was a powerful one. How do you practice playing the guqin usually?" Lin Xi asked again.


    "If I can find the time, I''ll play every day. Instead of treating the sessions as deliberate practices, I''m simply melding what I feel at the moment in the tunes I play. The spiritual energy resonates with the tune and with that, my skills improve and playing the songs is a pleasure. It also serves as part of my training," he answered.


    Lin Xi nodded and said, "It seems that I havn''t been doing it right in the past since I was merely steeped in the notion of practice. Thank you for your guidance, Palace Lord Ye."


    "That can hardly be considered as guidance. I was simply sharing my thoughts. What I said about music, the same goes with training in general," Ye Futian smiled and added.


    Someone smiled and said, "Lin Xi''s tunes are so extremely beautiful that it would make phoenixes cry out. How about both of you play a song together? That would be lovely."


    "Please, stop teasing me," Ye Futian smiled and said. He showed no sign of the demeanor of someone who was a palace lord of a holy land. One''s status was something that should be at the forefront or put aside depending on the situation. He was simply chatting with students of the college, and there was no need for him to make his status known at a time like that.


    "Indeed. Palace Lord Ye is married after all. It would have been very lovely indeed," someone else smiled and added.


    Ye Futian glared at the one who just talked and said, "Man, it''s okay for you people to tease me, but don''t go about doing anything that will affect her reputation."


    "Alright, alright." That person nodded and took a look at Lin Xi. She simply smiled and said, "It was all in good fun. No bother. Would you mind if I bring a friend with me tomorrow, Palace Lord Ye?"


    Ye Futian looked at Lin Xi''s eyes. They were very beautiful eyes and a spark of wit was seen in them. She gazed at Ye Futian, seemingly aware of his thoughts.


    "Thank you," Ye Futian smiled and answered. Lin Xi intended to bring a friend and she asked for his permission. He, in turn, answered with "thank you," which seemed completely out of place. However, no one present at the scene found anything weird about the exchange. They traded looks and smiled.


    "It is very kind of you, Palace Lord Ye." Lin Xi smiled and got up, then said, "If you''d excuse me."


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded and saw Lin Xi off.


    ��


    Ye Futian went to the Herb Garden, as usual, the next day, before returning to the palace. He practiced a set of martial arts movements and spent some time meditating before more and more people showed up to visit him. Those people from the day before seemed to have arrived very early. Ye Futian received his guests and found that they all seemed to be waiting for something.


    "They''re here," someone smiled and said. Everyone turned their eyes and saw two figures walking in their direction. Both figures were extremely beautiful and possessed an extraordinary aura. They were both stunning people, especially the woman on the left. Her bearing was out of this world and her face seemed to be chiseled artwork. Everything looked to be in the right place, as if she had emerged from some painting.


    The woman who was right beside her was none other than Lin Xi. It was apparent that the woman was the friend that she had mentioned before.


    Many stood up and cupped their hands with a smile at both of them, saying, "Pleasure to meet you, Goddess Die."


    The friend that Lin Xi had been talking about was none other than Goddess Die, the younger student of Saint Jiang. While both students spent the majority of their time training in the Herb Garden, they occasionally trained in the College as well. As such, they were familiar with a select few. Lin Xi knew Goddess Die personally and they were both good friends. This was something that someone told Ye Futian before, and they told him that Lin Xi liked music.


    It was apparent that the people Ye Futian came to be acquainted with wanted to lend him a hand.


    Goddess Die smiled and nodded at everyone present before turning her eyes at Ye Futian, who was right before her. He was different from what she had expected, as he was simply too young. While she had heard of him before, when she saw the face right before her to be the Palace Lord of a holy land in the Barren State, renowned throughout the Nine States, she was still somewhat taken aback.


    She had expected such a legendary figure to be somewhat solemn, but from what she was seeing at the moment, he hardly looked any different from a polite, handsome scholar. The air he exuded was far from solemn; it was upright and dashing instead. Her brother in training, Xu Chehan, had been a very handsome man, yet Ye Futian seemed to be somewhat more handsome than her brother.


    "Palace Lord Ye." Goddess Die smiled and nodded. Ye Futian was, after all, a Palace Lord of a holy land. While it was true that he had a favor to ask from her, she nonetheless saw it fitting to be polite.


    Ye Futian rose and smiled. "I''ve long heard of your beauty being unparalleled in all of the Nine State College, so much so that it was impossible to find anyone like you in all of Nine State City. Seeing you right before me today, I''d say you definitely live up to your reputation."


    If common folk were to shower a woman they met for the first time with praises about their beauty, it would have seemed frivolous. However, when Ye Futian said those words, he sounded natural, and there was no hint of insincerity in his delivery.


    "That was too flattering, Palace Lord Ye." Goddess Die answered gently and said, "I''m here today because Lin Xi asked me to come admire your music."


    "Please take a seat, Goddess Die," Ye Futian extended his hand and said. Lin Xi and Goddess Die took their seats and Ye Futian sat cross-legged on the floor. His Guqin Spirit appeared and music was heard.


    He knew that since Goddess Die was willing to come with Lin Xi, it meant that she agreed to help. She would not have bothered showing up otherwise.


    What he had been doing for the past month had finally yielded some kind of result!

 848 Meeting Saint Jiang

    The sound of music filled the entire palace. Ye Futian was the one playing while everyone else listened quietly.


    A tinge of tranquil beauty was heard within the tune. A serene image filled the minds of those who listened. A sea of flowers was found somewhere within the image, with vibrant blossoms found all over the land as fragrant scents filled the air.


    There seemed to be a woman dressed in white walking in the painting. She walked among the sea of flowers, immersed in the atmosphere as she plucked flowers and smelled them. Butterflies of all colors flocked from far away, circling and dancing around the woman in the sea of flowers.


    It was an incredibly tranquil tune, illustrating a very beautiful, peaceful picture. However, for some reason, many pictured the woman in the painting to be Goddess Die without them realizing it. It was as if she had always been the woman in the painting. She looked serene and beautiful, like she belonged somewhere else instead of this world.


    Many still had their eyes closed after the song ended, seemingly still immersed within the beautiful illustration brought forth by the music.


    "Bravo," someone commented. Their eyes turned towards Goddess Die. Ye Futian''s impromptu performance seemed to be one played specifically for her.


    A peculiar look was seen in Goddess Die''s eyes as she turned to look at Ye Futian. He seemed unreal and out-of-this-world as the strings stopped moving, and he pulled his slender fingers back. The Guqin Spirit disappeared and he looked up. A brilliant, clear smile was seen in that pair of very beautiful eyes. He then said, "I''m actually here at the Nine State College to pay a visit to Saint Jiang, and I think you know of that, Goddess Die. This is the first time I got to meet you, and the impression you left seems to be like the woman illustrated in the song. It is as if you don''t belong to this world. As such, I present the song to you, Goddess Die. If I happened to offend you in any way, I beg for your forgiveness."


    Ye Futian spelled out the very objective he came to achieve on that trip, and he needed her help to fulfill it. If it had not been such, it would have been rather frivolous to present a song to a woman that a man had just met. However, if one were to have a favor to ask, it was within reason to first present a gift. But then again, if he were to give her some other treasures, it would have looked rather boorish in his part, and Goddess Die would probably not have taken such a gift.


    As such, a song like that looked to be in the right spot. It did not look out of place and frivolous while getting his point across without a doubt.


    Goddess Die smiled faintly hearing his words. She looked at Ye Futian with a surprised look and said, "I like the illustration of the song. Thank you indeed, Palace Lord Ye."


    Ye Futian knew from her reply that his request had been answered. He played her a tune as a gift and she accepted it, which meant that she accepted his request as well.


    "Please name the song, Goddess Die," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "It shall be named ''Butterflies in love with the Flowers''," Goddess Die replied.


    "Butterflies in love with the Flowers. Splendid." Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    "It is splendid indeed. The name suits the song''s illustration just fine." Everyone present nodded. They looked at Ye Futian and thought that the Palace Lord was not only powerful in his training, but he had exceptional talents in other aspects. A song that fit the mood just fine not only enabled him to achieve his goal, but also made their relationship closer, and that was all done in the first meeting.


    What happened that day probably be made into a lovely tale in the future.


    They were both renowned figures after all.


    "I accept your gift, Palace Lord Ye. However, my teacher is indeed training in isolation. Please don''t blame my brother. If my teacher emerges from his training, I''ll be sure to inform you and lead you to him," Goddess Die elaborated with a smile.


    "And I thank you for that, Goddess Die." Ye Futian cupped his hands slightly in gratitude. The first step was considered a success. With Goddess Die''s recommendation, it would at least enable him to meet Saint Jiang himself.


    "You''re too kind, Palace Lord Ye. Thank you again for the song. I''ll be taking my leave now." Goddess Die got up and bowed slightly. Ye Futian and all the others stood and gestured as well. He then said, "Lin Xi, sorry to trouble you but I''d like to ask you to see Goddess Die off."


    "You owe me a song as well then." Lin Xi looked at Ye Futian and smiled.


    "No problem." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. He did not ask for Lin Xi''s help, but she invited Goddess Die on her own, which meant that she wanted to help him. Both Ye Futian and Goddess Die understood that. There was no problem with returning the favor with a song.


    "If it happens to be something less than ''Butterflies in love with the Flowers,'' I''m not taking it," Lin Xi jested. She then left with Goddess Die.


    Many put a thumbs-up to Ye Futian after both of them left. Someone smiled and said, "The world knows that you''re renowned throughout the Nine States for your impeccable talents, but few probably know that you''re equally as exceptional in some other aspects. I''m very deeply impressed."


    "Indeed. Very impressed indeed," someone said with a smile again, a tinge of joking in their voice. They had been there for some time and they had all gotten somewhat familiar with each other. As such, they saw no need to restrain themselves, as Ye Futian had always been friendly with them.


    "Gosh, you people." Ye Futian shook his head with a smile. If it had not been for the need to see Saint Jiang, he would not have gotten himself into such trouble.


    Saint Jiang had two students. Xu Chehan ignored him, so the only way in was through Goddess Die.


    "What''s the ruckus about? You guys want to be like Palace Lord Ye? Do you have the requirements, fame, and talent to boot?" A woman swept everyone present with a look at that moment.


    "Or looks for the matter?" the woman jested.


    "Xi, don''t go too far."


    "While it is true that Palace Lord Ye is married, he doesn''t have a concubine. Are you telling us that you''re considering it?" someone else retaliated. Everyone was having a good time and the mood was very relaxed.


    ��


    What happened with Ye Futian quickly spread throughout the entire Nine State College. Many were surprised as no one had expected Goddess Die to walk outside the Herb Garden and agree to introduce Ye Futian to her teacher.


    Ye Futian had spent one whole month paying visits to the Herb Garden. It seemed like he had finally gotten his wish.


    Ye Futian''s reputation in the College throughout those days was stellar. Be it those who went to spar with him or simply asked for his guidance in things, every single one of them held him in high regard and were impressed with his character. It was apparent why he had been able to become a leader of the Barren State, unified the will of the entire Barren State��something that had never been done before��and went against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    An impressively capable leader, both in terms of talents and bearing, had emerged in The Barren State. If Ye Futian managed to emerge from the Sacred War alive, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would have had a lot to deal with in the future.


    It was precisely because of that that mighty ones from the Sacred Dynasty were there at the College in an attempt to prevent Sage Douzhan from attaining sainthood.


    In the next day, Xu Chehan caught wind of some news in the Herb Garden. He came to the place where she took up residence.


    "Sister."


    "Brother, I have something to tell you." Goddess Die said, "Ye Futian has been visiting the Herb Garden every day for the past month. I intend to introduce him to Teacher if the opportunity presents itself."


    "Didn''t Jiang Chuan tell you before when he was here? Why involve our teacher in the feud between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Barren State?" Xu Chehan asked.


    "Ye Futian is a Palace Lord of a holy land in the Barren State, and he has been consistently visiting for a month. He has shown such sincerity for the sake of his teacher. Be it from the standpoint of sentiment or reason, we shouldn''t just keep him outside the door." Goddess Die then elaborated with a smile, "As for whether should our teacher get involved, it''s not our decision to make; it''s our teacher''s. I''m certain that he will have his own thoughts about the matter, and we will simply need to do the introductions."


    Xu Chehan nodded lightly after hearing her words and said, "If you say so, sister. If he comes again, we shall go see him."


    "Right." Goddess Die nodded with a faint smile. Xu Chehan left and found Jiang Chuan and asked, "Is Ye Futian here today?"


    "No, he isn''t," Jiang Chuan shook his head and answered.


    "If he''s here again, tell him to come see me," Xu Chehan said. Jiang Chuan nodded.


    However, Ye Futian stopped visiting altogether. Since Goddess Die had already agreed to help, there was simply no need for him to go visit the Herb Garden every day anymore.


    As for those visits, there was not a show for Xu Chehan to see. If Xu Chehan refused to entertain him, there was naturally no need for him to waste any more of his time on Xu Chehan. If it had not been for Saint Jiang, Ye Futian''s status meant that he would not have been the one to ask to see Xu Chehan in the first place.


    Half a month passed quickly, and Lin Xi found Ye Futian, telling him that he could now go to the Herb Garden. Ye Futian sighed and gathered his teacher, Sage Douzhan, and the others. They then made their way to the Herb Garden.


    There was a servant girl waiting outside. She asked as soon as she saw him, "Are you Palace Lord Ye?"


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Our mistress asked me to lead you into the garden, Palace Lord Ye," the servant girl answered with a bow. The mistress she meant was none other than Goddess Die.


    "Thank you." Ye Futian nodded and walked into the Herb Garden.


    The Herb Garden was a huge place brimming with spiritual energy. The fragrance of medicinal herbs filled the place. There were few buildings found within, and there were herbs to be found everywhere.


    The servant girl led them to a corridor of a compound. Goddess Die was seen standing there. She smiled upon seeing Ye Futian coming.


    "I have explained the matter to my teacher. Please come with me," Goddess Die said.


    "Thank you, Goddess Die," Ye Futian said. They then passed through the corridor and came before a building. There was a cold figure standing beside the steps, dressed in black. He took a faint look at Ye Futian and the others.


    The figure was none other than Xu Chehan. He stood silently and said nothing. Ye Futian took a look at him and was able to guess his identity. He nodded faintly and said nothing as well.


    Goddess Die walked the steps and said, "Teacher, Palace Lord Ye is here."


    A figure was seen walking from the hall.


    Ye Futian cast his gaze at the figure and found the figure to look to be 30 to 40 years of age. The figure''s hair had both grey and black, but he was incredibly handsome. If he had been younger, he definitely would have been a dashing man. However, the most exceptional part of his features was his eyes. They seemed like eyes that had seen many things happen in the world, able to see into someone''s mind. The very second he locked gazes with Ye Futian made the young Palace Lord feel as if he was being seen through.


    Ye Futian averted his gaze and bowed, saying, "Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, here to greet you, senior."


    "Greetings, Saint Jiang." Sage Douzhan and the others bowed as well in respect. The figure before them was one who was ranked 12th on the Saint Ranking, which meant that he stood at the pinnacle of the Nine States.


    Saint Jiang turned to look at Sage Douzhan and scanned his body. His will descended right upon the sage''s body. He then said, "You''re lucky indeed."


    To cultivators, the breakthrough into Saint Plane was a baptism as well as a calamity. If one was unable to make the breakthrough completely, death was almost certain. Sage Douzhan suffered the might of said calamity, yet he was still able to stay alive. He was indeed tough and lucky.


    "I sincerely hope that you will help us in this, senior," Ye Futian bowed and said.

 849 Medicine Testing

    Saint Jiang stared at Ye Futian and a faint pressure landed on Ye Futian. He looked a little nervous and his fists were clenched.


    Saint Jiang''s answer would determine his Master''s fate.


    Xu Chehan and Goddess Die stood at one side and did not say anything. Although they were Saint Jiang''s disciples, they were evidently unable to influence his decision.


    The people from the Barren State were all nervous. If it went through, the Barren State might have its second Saint.


    "Now, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is in a Sacred War with the Barren State. If I help him enter the Saint Plane, I will offend another holy land. Even if it doesn''t affect me much, there is still another issue. Have you ever thought about what kind of herbs I need to use to help him temper his body to enter the Saint Plane?" Saint Jiang said coolly. "Give me a reason to help you."


    Ye Futian fell silent upon hearing Saint Jiang''s words. He knew that he could not argue with Saint Jiang''s words. They were unrelated and had only just met each other. Even his position as the Holy Zhi Palace Lord was unimportant to Saint Jiang.


    Saint Jiang did not have a reason to help him.


    Perhaps Saint Jiang did not care about the Great Zhou Sacred King, but he did not have any need to offend another Saint Plane cultivator for a stranger. Moreover, he would need to expend a lot of resources to help out Sage Douzhan.


    Taking a deep breath, Ye Futian bowed and replied, "I know that I have nothing that can move senior. Any talk about the future is only a vague promise and is pointless to senior. The most valuable thing that the Holy Zhi Palace can give are Saint instruments. I am willing to use Saint instruments to make up for senior''s resources. If senior has any other conditions, feel free to say them. As long as I can do it, I will."


    "I don''t need Saint instruments," Saint Jiang said nonchalantly, then asked, "I heard that on the Nine State Forum, the Holy Zhi Palace''s disciple Yu Sheng came in first and has an unparalleled body. Is that you?" As he said that, his gaze looked towards Ye Futian''s side where Yu Sheng was sitting quietly.


    "Yes." Yu Sheng nodded and replied.


    "I can help Douzhan to remodel his body and make his physique even stronger, strong enough to withstand the Divine Catastrophe," Saint Jiang said. "However, I lack a person to help me test medicine. You could also see it as testing poison."


    Ye Futian''s expression paled and he asked, "How dangerous is it?"


    "I will not force you. In the past, there have been people who have tried it. They were all exceptional individuals, but they all failed. The price of failure is death," Saint Jiang said calmly.


    Ye Futian stared at Saint Jiang. In rumors, Saint Jiang had saved countless people and killed countless people as well. He could be both good and evil. Today, Ye Futian had witnessed it for himself. He actually used people to test his medicine. How cruel.


    "With his current condition, he is almost certain to die in the Divine Catastrophe. Treat it as a life for a life. However, I will not force you. You can come to a decision yourself," Saint Jiang said in a tranquil tone, as though he was talking about an insignificant matter.


    "No way."


    "Okay."


    Two voices sounded out at almost the same time. A surprised expression appeared on Saint Jiang''s face and he looked at the two of them, astonished. The person who had said no was Ye Futian, but the person who had agreed was Yu Sheng.


    "No," Sage Douzhan also said. "My body is already decaying, it is not worth it to trade Yu Sheng''s life for mine. In the future, Yu Sheng will also become a Saint through his physical body. It is only a matter of time. The Barren State can wait. Futian, let us go."


    Ye Futian''s expression was grim. For his Master, he was willing to pay any price, but Saint Jiang wanted to use Yu Sheng to test medicine. How could he agree to that?


    "Master, I might not fail," Yu Sheng said to Sage Douzhan. "Let me try it."


    "No," Sage Douzhan rejected him firmly.


    "Senior, could you change this to another condition?" Ye Futian asked.


    Saint Jiang shook his head and said, "The world has its ebb and flow. Your Master has already felt it before. If one wishes to attain the Divine Path, they must withstand the Divine Catastrophe. That is the price. Since you want him to become a Saint, you must pay a similar price. Since you are not willing, you may leave."


    Ye Futian''s gaze trembled. He clenched his fists in indignation and said, "I can replace Yu Sheng to test medicine for senior."


    "You?" Saint Jiang looked at Ye Futian and replied, "Firstly, the prerequisite for testing medicine is a strong physique. If your body is not strong enough, you will die easily. There is no need to test the medicine."


    "I am a body-refining cultivator as well. My physique is as strong as Yu Sheng," Ye Futian replied. He clenched his fists and his hair flew in a flurry. A wild aura erupted from him. In an instant, the shirt on his body turned to shreds and revealed his white skin. However, his body was surrounded by a golden glow at that moment, and his entire body had a golden sheen on it.


    The blood in his body roared, sounding like a dragon and an ape. The lightning shone on his body and let out a magnificent light.


    Saint Jiang looked at Ye Futian in surprise. He had only heard that Yu Sheng had come in first on the Nine State Forum and had an unrivaled physique. He had also heard of Ye Futian''s name, but he had heard more about how strong his rule power was and did not know that Ye Futian also had such a strong physique.


    If that was so, Ye Futian was more suitable than Yu Sheng to test his medicine with his strong physique and Spiritual Energy.


    Beside him, Xu Chehan and Goddess Die also looked at Ye Futian with a shocked expression, especially Goddess Die. She had heard that Ye Futian had once activated the Sword Matrix of the Void and excelled in matrices. His mastery in the Guqin melody had also caused Lin Xi to respect him. What kind of monster was he?


    "Okay." Saint Jiang nodded and agreed to Ye Futian replacing Yu Sheng.


    "I disagree," Sage Douzhan said. "We don''t need your help anymore." As he said that, he turned around and tried to leave. He had already disagreed to Yu Sheng testing medicine, not to mention Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was now the leading figure of the Barren State and represented the collective will of the entire Barren State. He embodied the hopes of countless people from the Barren State and shouldered a critical mission. Moreover, Ye Futian''s future achievements would far exceed his as a Saint. Letting Ye Futian test medicine in exchange for letting him enter the Saint Plane?


    If something happened to Ye Futian, what point would there be?


    He would be a sinner.


    The Sword Demon and the others were speechless and sighed silently.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were the future hope for the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace. They were almost certain to enter the Divine Path and could surpass the Great Zhou Sacred King. If they needed to sacrifice one of them for Douzhan to enter the Saint Plane, it was not worth it indeed.


    This was not a decision from their personal viewpoints, but one considering the benefit of the entire Barren State. After all, they were in a Sacred War now and the Barren State could face a crisis at any point in time.


    "Master, wait a moment," Ye Futian called out to him. Sage Douzhan stopped and turned around, looking at Ye Futian and saying, "Futian, why did I go all out in the battle outside the Palace that day? Wasn''t it for that glimmer of hope? You are the Palace''s hope. If you go and test medicine in exchange my entering the Saint Plane, what point will there be?"


    "Master, Saint Jiang''s intention of medicine testing is not to kill people. Otherwise, he would ask for my life in exchange. Since it is to test medicine, he will not surpass my tolerance by too much," Ye Futian replied. He looked at Saint Jiang and asked, "Senior, am I right?"


    "It will constantly surpass the limit of your tolerance," Saint Jiang replied.


    "That''s right." Ye Futian smiled, then looked at Sage Douzhan and said, "Master, if you ask the Starry School''s Chief Chen, you will know that back in the Divine Sky City, I had all my meridians destroyed by someone. Everyone thought that I would die for sure, but I eventually made it through with my body''s healing ability and remodeled my body to become even stronger than it was.


    "If it is just surpassing the limit of my tolerance, it is not my first time. Master, you think too little of your disciple." Ye Futian tried to sound as relaxed as possible when he said that.


    "No way," Sage Douzhan said firmly. Even though Ye Futian sounded relaxed, he knew that Saint Jiang''s medicine testing would not be that simple and it would definitely be very dangerous.


    Ye Futian''s expression became solemn. He stared at Sage Douzhan and said, "Are you the Palace Lord or am I?"


    Sage Douzhan''s expression froze. He looked at the solemn Ye Futian, it was the first time Ye Futian had spoken to him with this tone.


    "I command you as Palace Lord, you must accept it." There was a hint of superiority in Ye Futian''s tone.


    "Futian!" Sage Douzhan looked at Ye Futian and called out.


    "You will agree no matter what. I will stay here and accept the medical testing." Ye Futian''s tone was still commanding. He had no choice but to do this. With his Master''s personality, he would definitely not agree, so he had to be more headstrong than him.


    This matter was not about whether Douzhan could become a Saint, but about Sage Douzhan''s life.


    There were two options that Sage Douzhan could make: enter the Saint Plane or die.


    All this was because of the Sacred War. He could not simply watch his Master die.


    Before he had come, he had already thought it through. No matter what price he had to pay, he was willing.


    Moreover, he might not necessarily die from testing medicine. Since Saint Jiang wanted to look for people with strong physiques to test his medicine, he was not doing it to kill them. He had confidence in himself, with his sturdy body and strong Spiritual Will. Moreover, he had his Life Spirit as his trump card.


    "It is decided. Nobody is to object," Ye Futian looked around at the others and declared with a firm tone. His attitude was unyielding.


    The crowd''s expressions paled as Ye Futian turned to Saint Jiang and said, "Senior, it is decided. I will help senior test your medicine, so please help my Master."


    "Okay." Saint Jiang nodded faintly. Ye Futian is a decisive person, he thought to himself.

 850 The First Time

    "I have an issue with that." Just as everyone thought that it had been decided, another voice sounded out. It was Yu Sheng. He stared at Ye Futian indignantly. Previously, the person that Saint Jiang had selected to test medicine was him.


    "What are you looking at? So what if you refuse to accept it?" Ye Futian glared and him and chided him, "Are you the boss or am I? Do you feel that you are more capable than me?"


    Yu Sheng did not retort but continued to look at him obstinately.


    Ye Futian glared at him, then turned to Saint Jiang and said, "Senior, there is no need to bother with him. How confident are you that my Master''s remodeled body will be able to withstand the Divine Catastrophe?"


    "Since I have already promised you, I will do my best to restore his body to its peak state and surpass its previous condition. He will be able to feel it for himself, and I think that there will be no problems. Of course, if his body is already too weak, that is beyond my control," Saint Jiang said coolly.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. Saint Jiang was 12th on the Saint Ranking, so his words were naturally trustworthy.


    "From today, you will stay in the Herb Garden. Prepare to test medicine at any time," Saint Jiang said. Ye Futian nodded lightly.


    "I will prepare medicine to temper his body at the same time. You can wait at the College. Once there is news, I will inform you." Saint Jiang continued, "Little Butterfly, find Ye Futian a place to stay, the rest can leave."


    "I want to stay." Yu Sheng looked at Saint Jiang and said, "I hope senior will allow it."


    "Okay," Saint Jiang said coolly, then turned around and left.


    "Let us go." Goddess Die looked towards Ye Futian and the rest.


    "Alright, thank you for your trouble." Ye Futian smiled as he nodded and replied. Saint Jiang had accepted his request, so he could finally heave a sigh of relief. He had suffered a few setbacks on his way from the Barren State to the Nine State College, but he had finally obtained Saint Jiang''s promise.


    "Why do all of you have such sullen faces. The Barren State will soon have its second Saint, you should all be happy," Ye Futian looked at the people behind him and said.


    The Sword Demon, Xu Shang, and the rest all shook their heads with a wry smile. The Barren State having its second Saint was definitely something to celebrate and paying any price would have been worth it, except for Ye Futian. They did not know how dangerous Saint Jiang''s medicine testing would be, so there was a shadow looming over their hearts. They could not bring themselves to be happy.


    "Miss Butterfly, how dangerous is the medicine testing?" Sage Douzhan asked Goddess Die.


    Goddess Die shook her head with a bitter smile and replied, "I don''t know either, it depends on what medicine Master is testing."


    "Thank you for introducing us this time, Miss Butterfly. However, there are too many peoples'' hopes on my disciple''s shoulder. I hope that Miss Butterfly will be able to help look out for him. If anything happens to him, please lend him a hand." Sage Douzhan pleaded, "I beg of you."


    "Senior, there is no need to do so. If anything happens, I will naturally help Palace Lord," Goddess Die replied.


    "I thank you in advance then," Sage Douzhan replied.


    "Master, do you know what your biggest strength is?" Ye Futian asked.


    Sage Douzhan looked at Ye Futian and shook his head, replying, "I don''t know."


    "You have a good eye for picking disciples," Ye Futian smiled and replied. Sage Douzhan glared at him, this fellow still dared to be this flippant.


    "So, be at ease. I am not as weak as you think." Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. Sage Douzhan could only sigh and follow the rest out of the Herb Garden.


    Only Little Butterfly, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng remained.


    "Why do you go to this extent. Medical testing is indeed very dangerous. Master has tried it in the past numerous times and they have all failed." Goddess Die shook her head as she spoke. She did not understand why her Master did it sometimes.


    "There is no problem, I am tough enough." Ye Futian smiled and replied, "Saint Jiang is known as the Poison Lord and the Medicine Saint, why does he need someone of my cultivation level to test medicine?"


    He did not understand.


    "Master has always wanted to prove something." Goddess Die replied, "However, I have no idea what it is exactly."


    "In the future, I will have to trouble Goddess quite a lot. Do you regret helping out?" Ye Futian smiled and asked.


    "If I had known that Palace Lord Ye would test medicine, I would not have introduced you to Master," Goddess Die shook her head lightly and replied.


    Ye Futian blinked and said, smiling, "You do not need to take it to heart. Everyone has something that they will give their everything for. This is the decision that I made, even if anything happens to me, it is of no relation to you."


    "Even so..." Goddess Die shook her head lightly and retorted. If anything happened to Ye Futian while he was testing medicine, she would feel guilty about it.


    "Also, don''t address me as Palace Lord Ye unless you regard me as an outsider. I have already treated Goddess Die as a friend, just call me by name," Ye Futian interrupted Goddess Die and said.


    Goddess Die fell silent for a moment, then nodded her head and said, "Then you should also call me ''Little Butterfly''."


    "Okay," Ye Futian smiled and replied. Before they knew it, they had already reached a place to stay. Goddess Die said to him, "You two can stay here for now, I''ll inform you if there''s anything new."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded.


    "I''m leaving then." Goddess Die smiled as she bid them goodbye. Ye Futian watched as she left and Yu Sheng looked at him and asked, "Enjoying yourself?"


    "..." Ye Futian glared at him and said, "Are you blind?" As he said that, he stepped away and left.


    "You wouldn''t dare to anyway." Yu Sheng mumbled to himself. Ye Futian stumbled and had an urge to beat Yu Sheng up. However, when he thought that it would only hurt his own hand, he stopped himself.


    ...


    News spread across the Nine State College from the Herb Garden that Goddess Die had introduced Ye Futian to Saint Jiang and Saint Jiang had agreed to his request to help Sage Douzhan temper his body.


    Many people felt happy for Ye Futian. His request had finally been fulfilled after visiting every day for a month.


    Sage Douzhan would be able to step into the Saint Plane.


    However, the rumors also claimed that in order for Saint Jiang to help out, Ye Futian had paid a certain price. However, the details of the price had not spread out, so nobody knew what it was.


    In the Pavilion where the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were, when Zhou Huang received the news, his expression was grim. That day, when he went to deliver a gift, he had been sent back by Xu Chehan and was rather displeased. However, after he heard that Ye Futian had also been rejected by Xu Chehan, he understood that Xu Chehan did not want to be involved in the matter. However, he did not expect that Ye Futian would go through Goddess Die to meet Saint Jiang.


    "I heard that Sage Douzhan and the rest had grim expressions after leaving the Herb Garden. Instead of looking relaxed, they looked troubled. It could have something to do with the price that the Barren State had to pay. The Barren State must have paid a heavy price to help Douzhan enter the Saint Plane." The informant reported, "After all, Saint Jiang doesn''t know them well, so he would not help them for no reason."


    "No price is worth more than a Saint''s existence." Zhou Huang did not exaggerate when he said that. Saint instruments and other treasures were merely additions to one''s strength. A Saint Plane cultivator''s strength was the real deal.


    "Then why did Douzhan and the others have such grim expressions? Moreover, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng did not leave the Herb Garden," the informant continued.


    "Go and inquire about the matter, make sure you get to the bottom of it," Zhou Huang ordered and the person bowed and left.


    "Inform the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to make preparations," Zhou Huang continued. If Sage Douzhan becoming a Saint is unavoidable, they need to have countermeasures in place.


    The best countermeasure would be to eliminate him. A dead Saint would be no good to anyone.


    Soon, the person returned yet again with excitement in his eyes. He walked quickly before Zhou Huang and bowed, saying, "Your Highness, I bear good news."


    "What news?" Zhou Huang asked, surprised.


    "Ye Futian has agreed to help Saint Jiang test medicine in exchange for Saint Jiang helping Douzhan." The person reported, "In the past, Saint Jiang had found others to test medicine for him. Everyone who did so was unable to withstand it and ended up dying."


    Crackle. Zhou Huang clenched his fists and they made a crisp crackling sound. His brows smoothened and a smile appeared on his face as he said, "I can''t believe this Ye Futian is courting his own demise."


    "Many other people think so too." The informant laughed.


    Once Ye Futian died, the Barren State that had been united because of him would collapse. From then on, the Holy Zhi Palace would be unable to resist their attacks and there would be no doubt about the result of the sacred war.


    He had thought that no matter what price Ye Futian had paid, it would not bode well for him. However, he had not expected that it would actually excite him this much instead.


    What a pity that he could not see an elite prodigy rise up.


    From the enemy''s point of view, Zhou Huang acknowledged Ye Futian''s potential but hoped that Ye Futian would die as well. If he did not die, he would become a threat.


    As expected of Saint Jiang, holder of both the titles of Poison Lord and Medicine Saint. He was no Samaritan.


    However, at that moment, in the Herb Garden, Saint Jiang had found Xu Chehan and Goddess Die. Waving his hand, a golden glow appeared in front of the two of them, opening up like a drawing with many words on it.


    "You two, go collect the herbs you see," Saint Jiang ordered the two of them.


    Xu Chehan memorized the herbs in silence. He knew that the herbs included in those words were for Sage Douzhan. His Master, Saint Jiang would personally help Sage Douzhan temper his body.


    Since his herbs were for Sage Douzhan, the words that appeared in front of Little Butterfly were for Ye Futian. However, Little Butterfly''s expression paled as she asked, "Master, even Magis are unable to withstand some of the herbs in here. Isn''t this a bit too much for Ye Futian''s cultivation level?"


    "Just collect the herbs based on what is written. You will create a medicated bath with it. I will give you the method, but you are not to show any mercy," Saint Jiang looked at Little Butterfly and instructed her.


    A worried look appeared on Little Butterfly''s face. After all, she was familiar with herbs, so she naturally knew how potent the bath would be after all these herbs were combined together. Moreover, some of the herbs written here were rare treasures. Any one of them could easily be a valuable asset.


    Letting Ye Futian test medicine would also deplete a huge amount of resources.


    "Little Butterfly, since Master has ordered it, just follow his instructions," Xu Chehan said. Little Butterfly nodded lightly, she knew she could not go against her Master.


    "I''m going then," Little Butterfly said as she left.


    ��


    Two days later, Little Butterfly brought Ye Futian to the medicated pool, located within the Herb Garden. Yu Sheng had come along as well.


    The herbs for the medicated bath were already in the pool. Ye Futian stepped before the medicated pool and saw that the liquid in the bubbling pool had a fiery sheen. Wisps of terrifying mist wafted above the medicated pool and bubbling sounds sounded from within. It seemed to contain a mysterious power.


    "Brother is preparing the herbs for your Master''s body-tempering. Master will refine the herbs personally," Little Butterfly said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly and replied, "Naturally, I trust Saint Jiang."


    "Okay." Little Butterfly nodded and said, "Take off your shirt then."


    Uh�� Ye Futian had cold sweat trickling down his face as he thought. This...


    He turned back and looked at Little Butterfly and was greeted with a calm explanation, "The medicated bath requires you to have physical contact with it. The first time might be a little painful, bear with it."


    "Cough, cough!" Ye Futian''s face went beet-red.


    "What''s wrong?" Little Butterfly stared at him and asked. "Is it the medicated pool?"


    "No, nothing." Ye Futian shook his head awkwardly and took off his shirt. He blinked at Little Butterfly and asked, "Aren''t you leaving?"


    "I''m staying here in case you can''t take it," Little Butterfly shook her head lightly and replied.


    "Okay." Ye Futian turned around and took a deep breath, looked at the medicated pool and stepped into it. His entire body sank into the medicated pool.


    Sizzle, sizzle...


    In just a moment, Ye Futian could feel the skin on his body experiencing a horrible burning sensation which permeated into his bones.


    Instantly, cries of agony resounded throughout the medicated pool. At that moment, Ye Futian finally understood why Little Butterfly had reminded him before he entered.


    How was this a little painful?


    This was awfully painful!


    Strands of air entered his limbs, and the air current that was created by the liquid in the medicated pool seemed to be embalmed with destructive rule power, burning every part of his body.


    If he had to describe it, he felt as though every organ, every drop of blood, every atom of his body was on fire, bearing the force alongside him.


    It was painful beyond belief!


    Little Butterfly stood at the side, watching him with a nervous expression, her fists slightly clenched. She naturally knew how terrifying the medicated bath was. After all, she had refined it personally. She was very clear how strong it was, if it was an ordinary Sage, his body would have been destroyed instantly.


    However, after Ye Futian shouted once, he closed his eyes and a divine light flowed around his body, as though it was resisting the force. Evidently, he had resistance to it.


    Yu Sheng also stood at the side watching. He did not say anything and continued staring at Ye Futian. If Ye Futian was unable to bear it, he would bring him out!

 851 Saint Jiang

    In the medicine pool, Ye Futian quieted down and settled his mind.


    Before entering the medicine pool, the small talk was intended to ease his nervousness, but he knew that testing the medicine would not be an easy task. Feeling the boiling hot air, it seemed intent on destroying every part of his body.


    Ye Futian even began feeling that he seemed to be no longer a person, but was deconstructed into countless particles; he could feel the pain of every particle in his limbs and organs.


    His body trembled slightly. It was not the kind of trembling that Ye Futian himself could control, but the tremor of every particle in the body, which was the cause.


    At this moment, Ye Futian wondered if this was the feeling that Yu Sheng experienced when he practiced the demonic art. It was too painful. The body was like countless particles, and those endless particles seemed also to tear apart.


    Next to the medicine pool, Little Butterfly was somewhat nervous. Her tightly clenched hands were damp with sweat, and it was uncertain whether this was because of the heat radiating from the medicine pool or because of her own anxiety.


    The first medicine bath was not the strongest, and that was precisely because this was his first time experiencing this type of pain before. Thus a total collapse was likely, and the danger was great.


    The boiling potion made clear and crisp sounds and mist hovered above the medicine pool, obscuring Ye Futian''s body.


    As time passed his body trembled less and less, until a long while later it gradually calmed down. It was not because it was painless, but rather that Ye Futian had become somewhat numb.


    After a while longer, he finally adjusted to the pain and regained a sense of self. His body felt whole, and radiance flowed on top of it. Inside the body, where it had been burnt and torn, he was healed bit by bit, and rustling sounds came from the spirit. Glimmers of green light shrouded his body, and there was a magical glow on his skin.


    His eyes opened and Ye Futian exhaled and smiled at Little Butterfly, who was next to the medicine pool. Seeing his smile, Little Butterfly finally released the worries in her heart and showed a brilliant smile, beautiful and stunning. She whispered, "You can come up now."


    "Mmm." As Ye Futian walked out of the medicine pool, topless, Little Butterfly blushed, then turned around. Because of the worry and tension beforehand, there was no time to worry about much else. But at this moment, because Ye Futian was safe and sound. Concerns for proper etiquette returned.


    Ye Futian saw the embarrassment from Little Butterfly and winked. "You have already seen it."


    When Little Butterfly heard this, her face became as red as blood. She whispered, "The Master has said that the first round of trials was divided 81 times and subdivided into nine stages. In each of the nine stages, the same medicine will be used, but each time will be more intense than the last. This is the first time in the first stage, but since you were able to withstand this, the first stage of the trial should not be dangerous."


    "Well, Little Butterfly, thank you for your hard work," Ye Futian whispered.


    "Come tomorrow for the second testing. I''ll go to let the Master know now," Little Butterfly said and left.


    Ye Futian put on his clothes and tried to feel his body. Amazingly he felt every pore in the body opening. After the trial, he actually felt very comfortable, and his body seemed to be more sensitive in perceiving the energy in the surrounding environment.


    "Go," Ye Futian said to Yu Sheng. He was fine this time, which meant that the first stage of testing would be no problem.


    After leaving the medicine pool, Little Butterfly came to the place where Saint Jiang was cultivating.


    "Master," Little Butterfly whispered.


    "Little Butterfly, how is he?" Saint Jiang turned to look at Little Butterfly.


    "The first trial was no problem, and there should be no danger at this stage," Little Butterfly responded.


    "How is he recovering?" Saint Jiang asked again.


    Little Butterfly''s eyes revealed a strange color, and she whispered, "Very well."


    Saint Jiang nodded lightly and said, "I hoped that the youngest lord of a holy land in the Nine States would not let me down." As he finished speaking, with a wave of his hand, a scroll of painting appeared in front of Little Butterfly with copious handwriting engraved on it. They were refined methods of medicine.


    "This pertains to the methods and materials of the second phase of medicinal baths. You should collect them in advance and wait until the end of the first phase to carry out the second phase of the trial," Saint Jiang instructed.


    Little Butterfly looked at the engraved handwriting and her face altered its expression slightly. "Master, it is only the second stage and such strong medicine is to be used? And this black quicksand is highly toxic, isn''t it a bit too much?"


    Saint Jiang looked at Little Butterfly, but Little Butterfly did not avoid his gaze. She met his eyes. "Master, I would like to know the purpose of the trial. Judging from the level of cultivation of the Master, there seems to be no reason to do so. What exactly is there to prove?"


    Saint Jiang looked at his disciple. He knew Little Butterfly was kind and pure. Because of this, he taught her medicine and treated her as his own.


    "Do you think Master is vicious?" Saint Jiang asked.


    "I dare not." Little Butterfly bowed her head.


    "The world calls me Medicine Saint and Poison Lord. I am a vicious person by nature, so none of this is strange. Certain things, after all, need to be done by certain people." Jiang Sheng seemed to be talking to himself and then said, "Go now. Do as I say."


    Little Butterfly bit her lip lightly, and there was some stubbornness in those beautiful eyes. But when she saw Saint Jiang''s authoritative gaze, she nodded and said, "With your permission." Then she turned and left.


    Saint Jiang looked at the back of Little Butterfly and whispered, "The girl really is like you." As he said so, he turned and walked toward the ancient hall. A door opened from the middle, and he stepped inside; there seemed to be another world inside.


    The space inside was a courtyard with ancient furnishings, and everything seemed very old. Moreover, it was very cold here, extremely cold, and the ground was covered with a layer of frost. All the furnishings were covered by a transparent layer of ice. In front of a pavilion, there was an ice sculpture with a very beautiful woman inside. Her brows were gentle. She sat there quietly. The statue was so lifelike. It was as if it was a real person.


    Saint Jiang touched the ice sculpture gently. Before the ice sculpture, the long salt and peppered hair seemed to be whiter. His eyes showed tenderness.


    Many years ago, Nine States did not have Saint Jiang, nor the titles of Medicine Saint or Poison Lord. At that time, he did not understand medicine, only poison. One day, he met her, who practiced the refinement of medicine.


    "Little Butterfly''s temperament now resembles yours more and more," Saint Jiang said to no one in particular. "The ruthless Great Path took you away. I won''t let the same thing happen to Little Butterfly."


    ��


    For the following period of time, Ye Futian had a medicinal bath every day. After the medicinal bath, he would return to his courtyard to cultivate and felt his body changing. After each medicinal bath, his tolerance would increase, which meant that his physical capacity was stronger, and the body had changed bit by bit.


    In the first nine days, the first phase of the medicinal baths had been completed, and Ye Futian could clearly feel the changes within his body. According to Little Butterfly, he would be subjected to an even stronger medicinal bath the next day so that he could be psychologically prepared.


    After a round, Ye Futian had some confidence in the process.


    It was already night, and in the middle of the courtyard, Ye Futian sat cross-legged to cultivate. All around Ye Futian, Spiritual Qi, and rules power flowed, and Ye Futian''s eyes were closed tightly, quietly feeling the rules force flowing between heaven and earth.


    Brilliance bloomed and shrouded his body. The flame rule power turned into a blaze of fire, diffusing around the body, while the thunder rule power turned into the power of lightning, flickering over the body.


    Single attribute rule was the simplest of all rules, which Ye Futian had comprehended very early on and would normally integrate it into battles. But for him, the main means of combat was still extraordinary rules, because the power of a single attribute rule was limited.


    However, at this time, Ye Futian introduced the airflow of rules into his body and integrated it into every part of the body. When he thought about the feeling in the medicinal bath, he tried to reduce the airflow of rules and merge it into the particles.


    The way of cultivation had its own rationality. The Great Paths were connected as yin and yang coexisted. It was not that the power of yin was strong so that the power of yang was weak.


    By the same reasoning, the Douzhan Body, Infinite Body, and Godly Creation of All Things were able to create immense battle forms as the gods, to increase their power many folds.


    Increase in size and it could strengthen your power.


    Then what about decrease?


    How strong would its attacking and penetrating power be by concentrating the same amount of strong rules power into one point?


    Ye Futian had come to a certain awareness when he was in the medicine bath, so he wanted to comprehend this power.


    Gleaming starry lights shone brightly. Around Ye Futian, there seemed to be a starry sky forming, with the stars flowing and turning around. Moreover, the stars were constantly shrinking to concentrate their power into an even smaller space. However, when it reached a limit, Ye Futian was not able to continue. Constantly absorbing more power could make anything bigger, but to become smaller would be against the rules.


    For a long time, Ye Futian was not able to continue the breakthrough, so he opened his eyes. Cultivation was not achievable in one try, so sometimes a lack of comprehension was normal.


    Feeling the consumption of his spiritual energy, Ye Futian took out a guqin, playing slowly, and let the calming song permeate the night sky. Quiet and elegant, it could bring one into an absolutely quiet environment and let go of everything.


    At this time, there were light footsteps. It was Little Butterfly who had come this way. She slowed down and moved softly. Then she sat quietly and listened to the music without disturbing Ye Futian.


    Looking at that handsome face, it seemed to glow with strange radiance while playing the music. Unconsciously, her heart had quieted down.


    After a song, Ye Futian looked up and said, "Little Butterfly, it''s late. Is something the matter?"


    "Yes." Little Butterfly nodded gently and continued, "Tomorrow you will start the second phase of the test, and the medicine will be stronger. Also, your Master''s medicine has been made, so tomorrow he can be let into the Herb Garden for the medicinal bath and reinvent his body. However, my Master said that he would like to help your Master form an even stronger body, and that will take some time. Perhaps both of you will have to receive the medicinal bath at the same time every day."


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded. To construct a body that could resist holiness was not something that could be achieved in a short time.


    "I will leave you now," Little Butterfly said. She had come just to inform Ye Futian!

 852 The Sacred King is Here

    Ye Futian and Sage Douzhan came to the medicated pool area the next day.


    Saint Jiang, Little Butterfly and Xu Chehan were all there. Ye Futian went up and called out to Saint Jiang, "Senior."


    "Let Sage Douzhan be the first to go," Saint Jiang said. Everyone nodded as they came before a pool.


    That pool was the deepest pool in the area and there was actually a terrifying vortex found in it. Ye Futian reached out with his senses and quickly shuddered in response.


    "Remember, you''re only there to temper your body. Use your powers and you''ll invoke the Divine Catastrophe." Saint Jiang reminded, "You''d probably feel quite an amount of pressure at the beginning, but every single time you feel so, it would be to an effort to reforge your body. You''d need time to get this done."


    "Understood." Sage Douzhan nodded. He himself was not what he had been most concerned about; he was most concerned about Ye Futian testing out the medicines personally instead. But from the current looks of things, his student would probably be able to withstand the effects.


    "Go on in then," Saint Jiang said. Sage Douzahn nodded and stepped into the medicated pool. He breathed a deep cold breath and a crisp crack was heard. He wanted to resist it using his powers, but then he recalled Saint Jiang''s reminder. As such, he had no choice but to tough it out the hard way.


    He had once invoked the Divine Catastrophe; an act which served as a solid testament to his indomitable will. He lowered his head and closed his eyes, then went on to sit in the pool like an ancient god.


    "Senior, would anything happen to my teacher?" Ye Futian recalled what he had been through seeing what his teacher was going through then, and was unable to help but ask.


    "Rest assured, you''re testing out the medicines and he is using them for healing. While there would definitely be a certain measure of pain involved, but that was simply just to reforge the parts of his body which decayed in the calamity. It would make his body stronger after this rebirth." Saint Jiang then added, "Get in there yourself too."


    "Right." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Stay here and watch him," Saint Jiang told Xu Chehan and he left together with Ye Futian and Little Butterfly, heading to the pool where Ye Futian was supposed to bathe in.


    That was the second stage of testing out the medicines. The liquids were of totally different color from the ones before. There was actually slivers of black, terrifying currents in it. Ye Futian shuddered after just sensing what they were.


    Little Butterfly said nothing beside him and her smile disappeared altogether; she turned to look rather solemn instead.


    Every single test in every stage was a trial in itself. She had no certainty if Ye Futian would have been able to survive through that test.


    To Ye Futian, every single test felt like a visit to the gates of death.


    "If you happen to die, I''d still continue to help your teacher complete his body''s refinement," Saint Jiang said. Ye Futian let out a bitter laugh in response. What the hell...


    "Thank you, senior. But, death. I''ve never thought of that," Ye Futian said and leapt into the pool. A surge of liquid with an even greater ferocity rushed into his body. Ye Futian felt at that very second that his skin was about to rot and fall off. Unspeakable devastating power was imbued with that black current, seemingly out to destroy every single part of his body.


    He vaguely felt that slivers of black currents coursed throughout his entire body. His veins, nerves, limbs and organs, every single spot was accounted for. The currents even surged right up to his brain. If he had been watching from outside the pool, he would have quickly found that his skin had turned pitch black.


    "Is this the power of rules imbued within the art of poison?" A sliver of thought emerged from within his mind. His entire body no longer felt like his as it was getting continuously invaded by the poisons, which were eroding his spiritual will and devouring every part of his body.


    "Crack." Yu Sheng clenched his fists. He was able to feel how terrifying the powers that Ye Futian was resisting at the moment.


    Little Butterfly shut her eyes altogether, not daring to look at what was going on. She had a part in the preparations of those medicines. The testing of medicines was actually a test of poisons.


    While her major had been the art of medicines, but she was nonetheless studying under Saint Jiang. As such, it was only natural that she knew about poisons. In the situation where ready ingredients were around, she was even able to craft poisons on her own.


    Saint Jiang, on the other hand, simply looked at Ye Futian unfazed. There was no hint of emotion to be found in his expression. He had no intentions of going easy at all. There had been many tests before and they all ended in failure. If the test failed with Ye Futian, that would have meant that his track of thought had always been erroneous and impractical. It was never something possible and there was simply no way he could have reversed the effects of the cruel great path.


    Ye Futian was quiet this time instead of shrieking in pain like he last did, which seemed as if he was fighting a battle silently.


    The more his spiritual will got eroded, the tougher he got. There seemed to be a sovereign-like figure sitting cross-legged in his consciousness. The figure was immutable as he simply sat against the erosion of the black currents without lifting a finger, yet the currents failed to dismantle his will.


    The eroded, decayed parts of his body was healing at breakneck speed. A sliver of green light flowed within his Life Palace, coursing down into his limbs and shrouded his entire body. Two powers continued to clash against each other, as if a very intense battle was being fought within his body.


    Ye Futian truly felt that every single part of his body was being torn apart when the destructive powers invaded him. The destroyed parts recovered and the cycle began anew. All of his moments were spent suffering unspeakable pain, which was far more terrifying than what he had last suffered.


    He finally understood why Little Butterfly looked so severe and kept reminding him with a serious tone.


    Yu Sheng''s fists clenched increasingly hard and the veins popped. Little Butterfly opened her eyes and saw Ye Futian''s body seemed to shaking slightly. He was probably shivering from pain.


    Every second felt excruciating.


    Time seemed to passed at a very slow pace.


    Ye Futian''s movement seemed to ease after being at it for a very long time. The invading powers gradually subsided and the effects of the medicines weakened. However, his body''s regenerative abilities did not seem to weaken one bit. It was continued being shrouded in light, which grew increasingly bright.


    No one knew how much time had passed. Ye Futian was still in the pool. Sage Douzhan''s session had ended and he came to his student''s pool. Xu Chehan was there as well, but he said nothing.


    Sage Douzhan felt incredibly restless. Is this how he had been testing the medicines?


    His student seemed to be putting his life on the line, just so that he was able to become a saint.


    Eventually, the light on Ye Futian''s body finally overcame the black currents. His eyes opened all of a sudden, but they remained clear and bright.


    "Is it okay if all of you just stare at me like that?" Ye Futian said with a smile. His sudden words surprised everyone present. A beaming smile was seen in Little Butterfly''s eyes. Man, he can really joke even at a time like this.


    The test was finally over.


    "It''s not we haven''t seen it before." Little Butterfly replied, seemingly having relaxed. But she immediately felt that her words sounded weird, and she blushed as a result.


    "Umm..." Ye Futian was dumbfounded as well. That was what he said that day.


    Saint Jiang took a look at Little Butterfly, and Xu Chehan looked at her as well.


    Sage Douzhan sported a rather peculiar expression himself. This student of mine really knows how to get the girls everywhere he goes. Come to think of it, he is surrounded by all manner of beautiful girls even back in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Young and handsome, so he can fool around all he like.


    "Teacehr, I''ll go prepare the herbs for tomorrow," Little Butterfly said and left. Saint Jiang took a good look at Ye Futian and said, "The first round of tests would take 81 days. If you could really survive the whole ordeal, your body would undergo rebirth of sorts. If you''re able to make it through all three stages, you would gain a body of saints. I hope you''d live to see that come true."


    Saint Jiang left as soon as he finished. Xu Chehan continued to look as cold as he had always been as he left with his teacher.


    Ye Futian probably would not have been able to make it that far.


    Xu Chehan was the person who knew best what Ye Futian had suffered in the medicinal bath, as he had similar experiences himself.


    Ye Futian did not walk out of the pool. He was still pondering Saint Jiang''s words. When they first came to see Saint Jiang, the saint said that everything in the world has their own rules. If one were to become a saint, one would have needed to endure Divine Catastrophes. The achievements that one gained needed to be equal to the price that one has paid.


    If he was able to endure the pain of the medicine testing and succeeded in emerging alive, he would have gained rewards equal to what he suffered. In truth, he was able to feel it as soon as the first stage of medicine testing ended.


    Weal and woe were two sides of a coin. What he had undergone in that medicine testing was probably not a bad thing. But then again, it was a given that he needed to be alive to reap its benefits.


    He took one look at the medicinal pool and thought that the herbs required for testing every day probably cost a lot.


    "Teacher, how do you feel?" Ye Futian asked Sage Douzhan after walking out of the pool moments later.


    "Incredible." Sage Douzhan added, "I hear from Saint Jiang that if you were able to endure the medicinal bath, your body would undergo rebirth."


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded, "Same goes with you, teacher. When you''re done tempering your body, you would''ve passed through the catastrophe and be on your way to become a saint."


    "A promise between both of us, as teacher and student then," Sage Douzhan replied with a booming voice.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded with a smile, and they left the place together.


    ...


    Time flew. Autumn passed and winter came. Year 10012 of Divine Prefecture Calendar came near its end.


    The Nine State College grew increasingly rowdy. Many students who went out on pilgrimages came back one after another. The end of every year was the time to test one''s training.


    Many continued to talk about Ye Futian within the college.


    Rumor had it that Ye Futian remained just fine even then. He had been doing his tests for 72 days straight. According to news from the Herb Garden, Ye Futian would have finished the first round of tests after another final round. It was something that none who went to do medicine testing had achieved before.


    Furthermore, according to Jiang Chuan. The one who was at Ye Futian''s side when he was doing said tests was none other than Goddess Die, Saint Jiang''s student. Both of them shared an amicable bond, which became the talk of the place. Is Ye Futian, the young leader from the Barren State, and the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, going to have a romantic story to tell between him and Goddess Die?


    Love blossoming between two who shared considerable time together was common after all.


    But then again, no one knows what the eldest student of Saint Jiang, Xu Chehan, would think if he hears all the buzz going about.


    There was another news. Sage Douzhan had finished tempering his body, and it would have probably been a matter of time before he were to undergo the catastrophe yet again.


    The Barren State would have very probably gained themselves another saint in time.


    Just when the news was spreading about, a phoenix carriage came outside the college from the skies. The golden phoenix wore a crown and there was only one person who was fit to ride on one such carriage; it was none other than the Zhou Sacred King.


    The sacred king was upon the Nine State College!

 853 Bad News

    The Zhou Sacred King went to visit the College Chief as soon as he arrived at the Nine State College.


    As the sacred king of the Great Zhou Sacred King, his status was definitely not something Ye Futian, as he was then, could have matched. It was difficult for Ye Futian to see Saint Jiang or the college chief, but the sacred king was easily able to see both. That would have lasted unless Ye Futian became a saint.


    By then, Ye Futian would have been more than simply a lord of a holy land. Once he truly became a saint, his status would have equaled to that of any lords of holy lands from a certain perspective. The awkward treatment they have received back in Nine State Forum would have naturally been no more.


    He would have finished his first stage of medicine tests if he would last for another nine days. Sage Douzhan''s passing of his divine catastrophe was near as well. Furthermore, it was near the end of the year and the Nine State City seemed to be brewing a storm in secret, and it was only a matter of time before something was about to happen in said city.


    Ye Futian, while he was in the Herb Garden, knew of the sacred king''s arrival and was able to feel something brewing.


    His teacher would have passed the ordeal soon and once Sage Douzhan became a saint, the sacred king would have been allowed to kill his teacher personally, per the rules of the sacred war.


    The sacred king was there for Ye Futian''s teacher.


    Ye Futian performed a set of martial arts movements in the early morning. His Imperial Fist was massively powerful. While he had only perform the set with their forms instead of invoking their true powers, but the vague force imbued within was unmistakable. Dazzling sheen glowed throughout his body, making him look regal and holy.


    A sonic boom was heard in the air. Ye Futian clenched his fist and a powerful current of rules flowed around his body, as if the light of the stars enclosed his fist. However, the light seemed to have been transformed into particles, yet every single particle bore immense mass. The air trembled when a punch was launched.


    It was apparent that he had developed a new kind of power��the Rule of Particles. The particles themselves were devoid of any offensive powers. They could have only been devastating when combined with powers of other types.


    Booming trembles were heard in the compound and Ye Futian only stopped after going on for a while. There were sweat all over his body, yet he had never felt so refreshed before.


    He took a deep breath and his expression looked electrified. His body seemed to be filled with immense power. The testing processes that he had been enduring for 72 days had rendered his body and spiritual will far more powerful that they had ever been. Every single test brought forth considerable change, and the end of every stage marked a rebirth.


    There was only the last stage of tests remained. The round of tests were considered complete after another nine days.


    "Futian." A figure was seen walking by and it was none other than Little Butterfly.


    Having gone through 72 days of medicine tests meant that he became very familiar with Little Butterfly. They have spent 72 days being near each other after all.


    "You''re early," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "You''re at the last stage now. The stage would be over if you would be able to last this day," Little Butterfly said to Ye Futian. It seemed as if she had been more concerned than Ye Futian for over the past two months, as she was by his side as he went through the tests.


    She was finally able to get the mental burden off her shoulders after today.


    As with before, the first day of every stage was the most difficult. So long as he was able to make it past the first day, his life would have no longer been in danger.


    As such, that day with the most important.


    "The preparations are done?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yeah, I''m just waiting for you to get there," Little Butterlfy answered.


    "Let''s go then." Ye Futian smiled and called, "Yu Sheng."


    Yu Sheng stepped out and followed them. He had been by Ye Futian''s side every day as Ye Futian went for the tests.


    Both of them came to the pool and Little Butterfly stopped moving altogether. Ye Futian turned around and asked, "What''s wrong?"


    "I''m not going in. I''ll be waiting for you outside instead," Little Butterfly smiled and said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was puzzled, but he quickly nodded after seeing the smile in her eyes. "Alright, I''d be off then."


    "Right." Little Butterfly smiled and nodded.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng walked inside and made it to the pool.


    Little Butterfly simply sat at the steps outside with her back facing the pool. She did not look at what was going on, but she was able to peer with her spiritual powers nonetheless.


    Her eyes were locked forward while her hands were on her knees, as she stood quietly at the steps.


    A painful grunt was heard from the pool and she shuddered in response. However, she struggled to keep herself from turning around to look, as she dared not see what was actually happening.


    That was the last life and death ordeal, and furthermore, one that was far more forceful than any of the tests that came before.


    She was simply pretending to be relaxed when she was talking to him earlier. Even though Ye Futian had been able to endure the eight stages prior, she still did not have absolute certainty of his survivability in the one he was about to face.


    She grew reluctant to face the test, and it was probably due exactly to it being the last stage. If he was unable to make it, that would have been a cruel twist of fate.


    Voices continued to be heard, and they were all suppressed grunts of pain from Ye Futian. Despite sitting outside, she nonetheless felt very tense. Every single voice she heard wound her tighter.


    Time passed very slowly.


    Voices were still heard from Ye Futian, which was a good sign as it proved that he was still alive and well. That was until everything turned silent all of a sudden.


    Little Butterfly felt tense when she heard voices, yet when everything turned silent, she had gotten even more tense instead. Her hands were held together tightly.


    "Boom!" At that moment, a huge boom was heard and it seemed as if the medicinal pool was boiling in rage as well, as if a storm was whipped up.


    She was unable to sit around any longer and stood up, turning around and headed straight for the medicinal pool.


    She was then dumbfounded at the edge of the pool before what she saw.


    Her breathing was somewhat rushed. She seemed to have thought that something bad had happened to him right before that.


    However, a terrifying storm was seen brewing within the pool. Spiritual Qi ran amok and boundless power gushed into his body, which became to very center of a frightening vortex.


    The power of the pool was being devoured by his body in a frenzy, refining it and making it increasingly perfect. His entire body glowed as a result.


    Ye Futian''s breath was getting stronger.


    That was the sign of him breaking into the next plane.


    A beaming smile was seen in her eyes. Her eyes were still reddened, but she was smiling and they looked beautiful.


    She knew that all of that ordeal was behind them now.


    That round of tests did not end up taking away Ye Futian''s life. That mental burden she had been shouldering for so long was finally lifted.


    It was a sense of relief like no other.


    After spending so many days together, she came to consider Ye Futian, the sunny and funny man he was, to be a good friend of hers. If he were to die in the medicinal pool that she concocted personally, the resulting suffering that she would have had to endure would have been unimaginable.


    It was fortunate that everything turned out just fine.


    Not only did Ye Futian not die during the process of medicine testing, he had actually broken into the next plane, becoming a upper level sage. Coupled with refinement of his body during the months he had spent in the Herb Garden, his powers had grown to a totally new level compared what they were before he came to the Herb Garden.


    Yu Sheng''s fists loosened unconsciously. He knew that if Ye Futian was able to make it through that day, there was nothing to be worried about in the next eight. Ye Futian''s life would have no longer been in any danger.


    The violent currents within the pool subsided after some time and Ye Futian walked out from the pool. He got himself dressed and smiled at both Yu Sheng and Little Butterfly.


    That round of medicine tests did not claim his life; it had enabled him to break into the next plane instead. His body had undergone rebirths throughout the processes as well.


    At the level of Sage Plane he was then, even if he were to simply stand around and do nothing, there were few at his current plane that were capable of harming him.


    "You did it," Little Burtterfly smiled and said.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded and continued, "Thank you for everything so far."


    Little Butterfly had been around all the while when he was undergoing those tests. She even had to craft the medicines personally.


    "Your teacher would soon make it pass his ordeal as well. When this stage is over, I''d tell teacher to allow you to leave, and maybe he would forget about the next two rounds," Little Butterfly said.


    "Well, it''s been quite a ride and I''m going to miss it." Ye Futian shrugged and said with a smile, "Spending my days here bathing and having someone pretty to attend to me. Some treatment indeed, eh?"


    "Well then, I''d tell teacher to continue with the rest then. You don''t look like you need any rests given how much you''re enjoying the experience," Little Butterfly smiled and replied.


    "Nonononono..." Ye Futian shuddered at the thought of it. He looked at her sheepish expression and wondered when did she learn how to do that.


    "Let''s go. We''ll go see teacher," Little Butterfly said.


    "Alright." He nodded. He had ended up getting something beneficial from the calamities that he had to endure, and he was wondering if he should thank Saint Jiang personally.


    All three of them came to Saint Jiang''s side. Sage Douzhan and Xu Chehan were there as well.


    Xu Chehan knew at the very instant he saw Ye Futian that the Palace Lord from the Barren State had successfully made it past that round of tests. Ye Futian had accomplished something that no one had been able to accomplish before.


    Saint Jiang took a good look at Ye Futian and said, "It seems that this round of tests would no longer be able to threaten you in any way. Congratulations."


    "Thank you for taking of me and my teacher for so long," Ye Futian said as he bowed slightly.


    "Don''t get excited so early." Saint Jiang continued, "Your teacher is now fully capable of making it through his ordeal now, and of course, he can continue to refine his body to have even better chances at it. However, I''m calling him here to deliver a bad news. Since you''re here now, I might as well tell you at the same time."


    Ye Futian''s eyes grew severe. Bad news?


    "The sacred king was here at the Nine State College and he had paid a visit to the college chief. Said chief came to see me just moments ago," Saint Jiang said.


    Ye Futian''s expression went cold. What did the sacred king do?


    "You should know well that the sacred war between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Barren State was sanctioned by Emperor Xia. The Nine State College was in an inconvenient position to interfere, but I was helping Douzhan because you agreed to undergo the medicine tests. The sacred king did not interfere with how I went about my business as well." Saint Jiang continued further, "However, if I were to help Douzhan refine his body further, that would have meant that I interfered in the affairs between you people and the sacred dynasty. The college chief said that if you wanted to still stay around as guests, you were more than welcomed to do so. But if Douzhan intends to continue making it through the divine catastrophe, it would be inconvenient for him to continue doing so in the college."


    Ye Futian knew what Saint Jiang meant with his words. The sacred king was a sovereign after all, and he would not have been stupid enough to interfere with what Saint Jiang was doing. He had no right to do so and Saint Jiang would not have entertained him as well.


    However, it was inconvenient for the college chief to refuse Sage Douzhan and tell him not to pass his ordeal outside of the college''s grounds. It was unthinkable for the college to deliberately cover for them while the war was still ongoing after all.


    It was as Ye Futian had expected. The sacred king was here for his teacher!

 854 I Will Kill You

    As the end of the year approached, the Nine State College became livelier.


    However, there were rumors circulating within the college recently about Ye Futian and the Goddess Die.


    Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, came to visit the Nine State College and stayed for several months. During this time, he and his teacher, Sage Douzhan, received care from Saint Jiang. Sage Douzhan would be able to cross the Divine Catastrophe on his way to be sanctified.


    Ye Futian himself was rumored to have also broken through the plane. As to the success he had in the medicinal trial, some people thought that Little Butterfly had been particularly gentle in her approach.


    Moreover, many began to gossip about Ye Futian''s many visits to Great Teacher Xu when he first arrived at the college, and that Xu Chehan had refused his visits. Afterwards Ye Futian started to get close to Goddess Die, and many people now felt that Ye Futian clearly had ulterior motives.


    So now Ye Futian had not only gained great benefits in the Herb Garden but may even win the heart of the beauty.


    But the irony was that Ye Futian was already married to a woman who was said to be extremely beautiful. If Goddess Die was to join with Ye Futian, she could only be a concubine.


    These gossips seemed to be spread intentionally, and they had some repercussions. For the past few months Ye Futian had enjoyed a good reputation in the Nine State College and many people had come to his defense, even perceiving his relationship with Goddess Die as an auspicious news. But naturally there were many who were not fans of his.


    An outsider, on the first day of his arrival, had defeated all the geniuses in the college, including the hallowed disciple of the Divine Path and later used Goddess Die to get close to Saint Jiang. Those who disliked Ye Futian naturally were drawn to these rumors, hence the repercussions.


    Ye Futian''s reputation was also polarized.


    At this time, there were many gathered together at a place inside the Nine State College. Among them there were even a few hallowed disciples of the Divine Path. Duan Qinghe, who was defeated by Ye Futian, was also present. It seemed to be a meeting.


    The person who sat at the head was a young man who looked to be around 30, but his actual age naturally exceeded that. This person had an extraordinary appearance. There was a faint smile on his face, and his eyes were extremely spirited.


    Lin Shubai, the direct disciple of the Chief of the Nine State College, was hailed as the dominant figure in his generation of hallowed disciples of the Divine Path and the representative of all the disciples of the Nine State College, possessing a distinguished position in the college.


    Many outsiders believed that between Lin Shubai and Tong He, one of them would inherit the position of future Chief of the Nine State College, which demonstrated the high opinions that were bestowed upon these two.


    Lin Shubai was a few years older than Tong He, so he was in a higher plane of cultivation, and was already at the arch mage plane. In the next Battle of Saints, he would certainly be the leader of the Nine State College.


    The group of people chatted casually. At this time, Lin Shubai''s eyes fell on one of the people below. The man was concentrated on carving, and the slender fingers that held the knife were perfect and there was no error done to the engraving.


    "Younger brother Tong, I haven''t seen you for a year; how is your cultivation?" Lin Shubai asked with a smile. The person who was doing the carving was Tong He.


    "Mid-level magi." Tong He continued, carving without looking up at Lin Shubai. Among all the disciples of the college, perhaps he was the only one who dared not to look at Lin Shubai while talking to him.


    However, Lin Shubai did not seem to mind. He but smiled and said, "You have progressed again, and it won''t be long before you get to the plane of archmage."


    "How is the progression of cultivation of senior brother this past year?" Tong He asked softly.


    "Some slight comprehension, but nothing to elevate the level of the plane." Lin Shubai responded, "I heard that there have been some things happening within the college this year. The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, Xihua Sacred Mountain of the Eastern State, and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty have all sent envoys to visit, cultivate, and exchange here at the college. How do you all feel about that?"


    Duan Qinghe was a little embarrassed. He had lost to Ye Futian.


    "Except for junior brother Qinghe who had battled, there was not very much understanding," someone said.


    "Lin Shubai."


    At this moment a voice was heard, and everyone''s eyed landed on the handsome figure clad in a black robe that was walking toward them. His appearance was cold, and his chiseled face was slightly stern. Even when facing the hallowed disciples of Divine Path, there was no smile on his face.


    This person was the eldest disciple of Saint Jiang, Xu Chehan.


    "Coming," Lin Shubai smiled at Xu Chehan. "How come Little Butterfly is not here?"


    "She''s busy." Xu Chehan replied, then went next to Lin Shubai to sit down. Saint Jiang enjoyed an eminent status within the Nine State College. Likewise, his eldest disciple enjoyed an equally extraordinary position amongst all the disciples at the college.


    Of course, he did not come because he was also a hallowed disciple of Divine Path, but only because he had a good relationship with Lin Shubai.


    "I heard that Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, is cultivating in the Herb Garden. You should have quite a bit of contact with him; what do you think?" Lin Shubai asked. He was also curious about this infamous Palace Lord of that holy land.


    "There is not much contact, but this person is truly talented. After a few days, he would be able to pass Master''s medicinal testing." Xu Chehan said casually.


    "There are some malicious rumors circulating in the college, saying that Little Butterfly had intentionally shown him mercy. What do you think?" Lin Shubai asked.


    Xu Chehan said coldly, "All nonsense. Whatever the Master has commanded, Little Butterfly will only follow. Ye Futian was indeed relying on his own strength to pass the testing of the medicine. As a disciple of the Nine State College, to spread such rumor is either borne of our jealousy of others or lack of confidence in ourselves."


    "My thoughts exactly. Ye Futian''s reputation is widely known as an unusual character. I didn''t think Little Butterfly would be so superficial either." Lin Shubai said, "I will order a prohibition of these rumors momentarily, to avoid embarrassing the college."


    "Yes." Xu Chehan nodded.


    "But I have also learned a few things. In the beginning when Ye Futian asked to see Saint Jiang, he must have intentionally approached Little Butterfly. Now he is testing medicine in the Herb Garden. He must have had a lot of contact with Little Butterfly, hence these rumors in the college." Lin Shubai continued, "When you have time, remind Little Butterfly. After all, Ye Futian is married. Such rumors would have negative effect on Little Butterfly''s reputation."


    Xu Chehan frowned, slightly displeased, but still he nodded. He knew there were some basis in what Lin Shubai was saying.


    "Chehan, you and Little Butterfly are the only two disciples of Saint Jiang, almost like childhood sweethearts. If you can come together it would be a perfect ending." Lin Shubai said with a smile. He was indeed thinking of Xu Chehan.


    Xu Chehan looked at him and said lightly," As long as Little Butterfly is happy."


    "If there is nothing else, I am going back." Xu Chehan seemed to be somewhat reluctant to continue the topic, leaving just moments after he had arrived.


    "Go, and I will visit Saint Jiang on another day." Lin Shubai said as Xu Chehan turned to leave.


    Back to the Herb Garden, Xu Chehan was still thinking about what Lin Shubai had said. He was a little older than Little Butterfly, so it could be said that he watched Little Butterfly growing up. He had witnessed the most innocent stage of Little Butterfly''s life; the most beautiful soul in the world was probably just like the one that Little Butterfly had.


    The Master had always commanded him to guard this junior sister of his, and he had always done precisely that, especially because he did not consider his own cultivation particularly unsoiled, so he was more careful to guard the pure beauty of his heart.


    As for what kind of feeling this was, perhaps even he himself did not know.


    However, Lin Shubai was right about some things.


    "Senior brother." a voice interrupted Xu Chehan''s thoughts. He looked up and saw a beautiful figure walking toward him with a smile, "What is senior brother thinking?"


    "Nothing." Xu Chehan looked at the medicine in Little Butterfly''s hands, "Is it for him?"


    "Yes." Little Butterfly nodded. "Another few days and I can relax."


    "Senior brother, I will go now."


    "Very well." Xu Chehan nodded, but as Little Butterfly was leaving Xu Chehan spoke again, "Junior sister."


    Little Butterfly turned around, "Yes?"


    "What do you think of him?" Xu Chehan asked.


    "Him?"


    "Ye Futian."


    "The youngest palace lord of all holy lands in the Nine States, whose name is known through the Nine States. He went through the medicinal trial for his Master''s sake and endured it all. Whether it is talent, achievement, or character, he should be considered extremely exceptional." Little Butterfly smiled in reply.


    Xu Chehan gently nodded, so it seemed that Ye Futian was indeed quite perfect.


    "If it wasn''t that he was already married, he is indeed someone to whom one could be entrusted." Xu Chehan whispered.


    "Senior brother, what are you talking about?" Upon hearing his comment, Little Butterfly revealed a look of surprise on her face, then turned to walk away.


    But Xu Chehan still stood there, watching her figure disappear.


    Turning around, Xu Chehan also left and walked in the direction of Ye Futian.


    At this time in the courtyard where Ye Futian was were Sage Douzhan, Qin Zhuang, Sword Demon and others, discussing the matter of Sage Douzhan crossing the Divine Catastrophe.


    Saint Jiang''s words made Ye Futian feel a sense of danger. Great Zhou Sacred King had come in person, and there seemed to be some movement in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It appeared that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was preparing to send troops again.


    As for the destination, it was still uncertain. Would it be the Holy Zhi Palace, or Nine States City?


    The sound of footsteps was heard. As Ye Futian and the others turned their eyes toward the sound, they saw Xu Chehan.


    Xu Chehan also looked at him, only to hear Ye Futian asking, "What brings the Great Teacher here?"


    "I want to have a word with you." Xu Chehan replied.


    "Please." Ye Futian nodded.


    Xu Chehan cast a glance at those around Ye Futian, and everyone immediately understood his meaning and left them alone.


    "A few more days and the testing will be over. I thought you would have died but you''ve persisted better than I thought." Xu Chehan said. Even in praise he still sounded icy cold.


    "The Great Teacher didn''t just come here to praise me?" Ye Futian said.


    "Have you ever thought of using Little Butterfly?" Xu Chehan''s eyes suddenly became sharp and focused on Ye Futian.


    "I don''t understand what you mean." Ye Futian''s expression cooled down a few degrees.


    "In the past, in order to see our Master, you got to know Little Butterfly from Lin Xi and then gained access to the Master through Little Butterfly. Isn''t that considered using?" Xu Chehan ''s voice was accompanied by a faint dominant authority directed at Ye Futian.


    "I was outside the Herb Garden for a month begging to see your Master. If Great Teacher Xu had had accepted my plead, why would I have to resort to that?" Ye Futian said nonchalantly. "If Great Teacher Xu believes that this is considered using then I have nothing to say."


    "What about after you got into the Herb Garden? Was there any deliberate..." Xu Chehan looked very cold and stared at Ye Futian. Although he did not finish the sentence, Ye Futian understood what he meant.


    "If Great Teacher Xu came here to question me, then please leave." Ye Futian''s voice also cooled. Since Xu Chehan was not being cordial, there was no need for him to be polite.


    The two stared at each other, an invisible current coursing between them.


    Xu Chehan stared at Ye Futian without blinking, and after a long time, he said coldly "I hope that you haven''t tried to, and that you won''t in the future. If Little Butterfly is hurt because of you, I will kill you."


    Ye Futian stared at the other and said coldly, "Do you think you can?"


    "Try me." Xu Chehan said and left.


    Ye Futian looked at the departing figure and thought, Great Teacher Xu lives up to his icy reputation!

 855 Army Mobilization

    After Xu Chehan left, Qin Zhuang, Sword Demon and the others returned to Ye Futian.


    Some rumors about Ye Futian and Little Butterfly in the college had reached their ears. It seemed like although this Mr. Xu was naturally very cold, he cared a lot about his fellow apprentice Little Butterfly.


    "Saint Jiang''s disciple seems a little bit unfeeling," said Xu Shang. Last time Ye Futian had paid a call on the Herb Garden for a month. With Ye Futian being who he was, whether there was a promise or not it was still right for them to meet. It could only be said that this person was a little unsociable and did not care at all about outsiders.


    "It probably has to do with his cultivation," said Sword Demon. Xu Chehan had inherited the poisonous path of Saint Jiang.


    When practicing poison sorcery it was quite normal to be unfeeling.


    "Don''t talk about him. I have been watching the activities in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s capital through the demonic beasts. In the past few days many of the beasts have been hunted down. However, the remaining ones could still observe their movements. This time the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army has undergone unusual changes. We need to think of countermeasures," said Ye Futian.


    "If you were the Great Zhou Sacred King, where would you send your army? Nine State City where we are, or to the Holy Zhi Palace?" Xu Shang asked Ye Futian.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred King''s talents have come to light. He has the power of a thunderbolt and the speed of lightning, and he is very arrogant and conceited. Now that he has the opportunity he will have only one thought, destroy both the Master and me," said Ye Futian. "So, if the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty dispatches their army, they will definitely come to Nine State City."


    If it was only the Great Zhou Sacred King taking action, it would be directed at the Master. If there were other strong men from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, then it would be directed at them.


    If they were killed in Nine State City, the power of the Barren State would disintegrate, and the outcome of the holy war would be in no doubt, unlike if they attacked the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Therefore, he speculated that with the Great Zhou Sacred King''s strong character he would not go to the Holy Zhi Palace but would instead go to Nine State City.


    "I think so too. Last time he went to the Holy Zhi Palace the Great Zhou Sacred King had to withdraw. This time I''m afraid he will concentrate his power on destroying us here," said Xu Shang. In this holy war, the Holy Elder and Sage Douzhan were at the peak of their power, and they were among the most powerful sages, whereas Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were the future.


    If they were destroyed, it would be equivalent to the holy war ending early.


    "Holy Elder." Ye Futian looked at the Village Chief and said, "How sure are you that you can face Zhou Yanwang of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty?"


    Zhou Yanwang was another cultivator of the Sage Plane in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. He was ranked behind the Great Zhou Sacred King even though he was his senior. He had been shut off from the world, cultivating himself for a long time.


    "I''m not sure how powerful Zhou Yanwang is now. However, no matter if I win or lose, I will certainly be able to get through it in one piece," said the Village Chief. He would certainly not boast when he was unsure of his opponent''s strength.


    "Good." Ye Futian nodded. "Then might I trouble you to make a journey? Take Qin Zhuang, Xu Shang and the others of the nine seniors to the capital. Act when the opportunity arises. Your goal is not to kill your enemy, but to watch them. If there are any changes I will have the demonic beasts let you know."


    "In that case there will only be a few of you here," Sword Demon frowned. If they left, all that would remain here would be Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Yuan Hong, Sage Douzhan and the Undying Old Man.


    They had not brought anyone else to Nine State City this time.


    "No problem, I will be in the Herb Garden," said Ye Futian.


    "When should we set out?" asked the Village Chief.


    "Now," answered Ye Futian.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred King is at the college. If we leave directly I''m afraid we won''t be able to conceal it from him," said the Village Chief.


    "No matter when you leave you won''t be able to conceal it from him. You are good at the spatial arts. If the Great Zhou Sacred King wants to pursue you, let him," said Ye Futian.


    "I understand." The Village Chief nodded, then looked at Qin Zhuang and the others. He wielded the Divine Sword, placed it in the air and then stepped onto it. "Get on," he said.


    The nine of them stepped on the Divine Sword together, and suddenly a brilliant blade of light crossed through the void, traversing the space in an instant and heading for the sky.


    At that moment, everyone in Nine States College felt that extremely powerful sword will. They looked up into the void and saw the sword that pierced through the air.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King suddenly opened his eyes and looked out into the void. His expression was cold, but he closed his eyes again as if he had seen nothing.


    The old Village Chief was not the purpose for his journey. It would not be easy to kill a cultivator of the Saint Plane who was skilled at the spatial arts.


    As for where they went, he did not care. He had Zhou Yanwang stationed in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, as well as the Golden Phoenix matrix. It was impregnable. Would only a few people be able to attack it?


    Even if the Holy Zhi Palace''s whole army attacked his palace it would be all in vain. It would be nothing more than them seeking out their own destruction.


    The group of elites of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had already set out, and that plan would not change.


    Several days later the year was near its end. Nine States College welcomed in its Year-End Sparring Session. This was a test of the disciples'' cultivation over the year. It was very grand, and most of the disciples would attend. Every year at this time it was possible that new Saints would emerge.


    The beginning and end of each year were the most lively times for the college.


    This time, the Great Zhou Sacred King went to observe the ceremony. The cultivators from Xihua Sacred Mountain also went, and Ye Futian in Herb Garden naturally also received an invitation.


    People of the three holy lands exchanged their cultivation at Nine States College. As a guest, the college would naturally treat him with excellent courtesy, but Ye Futian did not participate. The last few days of the medicine test had finished, and there would probably soon be violence. He had no interest in this ceremony.


    Because of his refusal, many at the college said that Ye Futian was somewhat rude. Had he had directly refused an invitation to such a grand event because he looked down on Nine States College''s cultivators'' strength?


    Nine States College''s grand events were extremely lively, but Ye Futian continued to peacefully cultivate in Herb Garden. At the same time, a true holy battle broke out in the capital of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The Sacred Elder of the Holy Zhi Palace descended upon the palace of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and fought an astonishing battle with Zhou Yanwang. Zhou Yanwang was suppressed and retreated into the palace to set off the Golden Phoenix battle matrix, just barely blocking the Village Chief''s attack and repelling him.


    This battle shocked the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The former sword servant of the Sword Saint of the Void was so powerful that he could suppress Zhou Yanwang.


    Qin Zhuang and the others also appeared in the capital. When the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army attacked them they withdrew, but they never left the Holy Capital. Just as Ye Futian ordered, their goal was to watch the people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and pin them down.


    With Qin Zhuang controlling the spatial sword matrix, as long as they were a bit careful they wouldn''t be trapped by their opponents. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s cultivators had no way to kill them.


    In the Holy Zhi Palace, during the time that Ye Futian was gone everyone was cultivating diligently and increasing their power.


    The palace had gathered the strongmen from around the Barren State, and was increasing the matrices set up by Yang Xiao. There was no need to worry about being attacked.


    A demonic beast circled in the sky above the palace and then landed on the highest tower in Holy Sage Pavillion. It said, "The Palace Lord orders all the cultivators to gather at Holy Sage Pavilion for a discussion."


    Everyone looked up at the demonic beast. It was the Black Wind Condor. They all knew this was Ye Futian''s demonic beast, and that it was of one mind with him and so could directly transmit his orders.


    Soon all the cultivators in the Holy Zhi Palace gathered together at Holy Sage Pavilion.


    Hua Jieyu also came. She looked up at the Black Wind Condor. Was there finally news of that guy?


    "Other than those garrisoned at Matrix Palace, you are free to send Sages as crack troops towards Nine State City. However, you need to leave half your force here to assist and guard the palace," said the Black Wind Condor. Although Ye Futian had asked the Village Chief and Qin Zhuang to watch the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, he still asked half his forces to stay behind and guard and cooperate with the Matrix Palace. That way if there were unforeseen circumstances they could support them. In any case, the palace''s foundations could not be moved.


    "Fine." Everyone nodded in succession. Suddenly the Holy Zhi Palace burst into activity. They began to dispatch their army and discuss who was going to Nine State City.


    Obviously there was going to be a battle there.


    After a while the army set out for Nine State City. Many demonic beasts also proceeded from different directions.


    In the Herb Garden at Nine States College Ye Futian walked out of the medicinal pool. His muscles rippled after undergoing repeated transformations. His skin was like jade, just like a baby''s except not as soft, and its lines seemed to be full of power.


    This was the last day of year 10,012 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, and he had finally completed the tests.


    For eighty-one full days he had transformed his physical body. After cleansing it, it was stronger than before and he had broken through the plane. He now understood the law of particles.


    This medicine test had not only not cost him his life, it had even made him stronger.


    Saint Jiang, Little Butterfly, Sage Douzhan, Yu Sheng and the rest were all there and personally witnessed Ye Futian complete the test.


    Ye Futian walked up to Saint Jiang and bowed slightly. "Thank you, senior."


    "It is your own creation. There''s no need to thank me. If you couldn''t bear it your body would have already rotted," Saint Jiang said indifferently. What he said was the truth. Ye Futian did not need to thank him.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "Senior, today is the last day of the year. Why don''t we have a banquet together?"


    "You can celebrate by yourself," answered Saint Jiang, who then turned and left.


    "Well at least I gave you a reason to refuse, so you can save a little face." Ye Futian snorted and shrugged. In truth he had not saved any face.


    But Little Butterfly said with a chuckle, "The Master always celebrates the end of the year by himself. We''ve never celebrated with him, so don''t mind him."


    "Really?" whispered Ye Futian.


    Saint Jiang''s voice came from afar, "If you live, after you enter the Sage Plane you can start the second round of tests."


    Ye Futian shuddered at his words. This round of tests had been torture. If he had to do it again he did not know what kind of pain he would have to endure.

 856 Cut Off

    At the beginning of year 10,013 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, many powerful cultivators from the Summer State set off on their journey to Nine State City.


    Nine State College was very active at the beginning and end of each year, especially the beginning. That was the time when it recruited new disciples.


    It caused a sensation every year. The cultivators from the Summer State would come together, and even those from other states would come, all to pass the assessment.


    This year the cultivators who had come from all over the Nine States were particularly numerous. Even cultivators from other holy lands in the Summer State had come out, like the Yi clan, the Yue clan, and the Xia clan.


    They were of course not coming only because Nine State College was recruiting disciples. In fact, Nine State Colleges recruited disciples every year, so it was quite frequent and the holy lands wouldn''t come to the ceremony. But this time the sacred war between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace Barren State raged from the Barren State to Nine State City. They had all received news that both sides had sent out troops.


    And in the capital a battle had even broken out between cultivators of the Saint Plane.


    At the same time, Sage Douzhan was breaking through the Divine Catastrophe in Nine State City. It was very likely that soon a new Saint would emerge, and the Great Zhou Sacred King would want to hunt him down. This background had attracted many cultivators to come. It could truly be called a stormy meeting.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty did not have a New Year''s sort of atmosphere. Before the sacred war broke out, the dynasty''s cultivators had not thought the war would be this difficult. They thought the Great Zhou Sacred King could directly lead the army to the Holy Zhi Palace and raze it to the ground and occupy the Barren State. They had never thought they''d be defeated, and never thought that Sage Wuliang would be killed and the three great forces wiped out.


    And even less had they thought that the other side would one day launch an attack on the capital.


    At that time, in the majestic palace in the Holy Capital, Zhou Yanwang stood before the great hall. Although he was a little old, his manner was still imposing. His long beard flowed, and his phoenix patterned robe fluttered in the wind.


    "My Lord, we''ve looked all over for them and have found no traces. And there is news from the Barren State. The Holy Zhi Palace has sent out its troops. They are probably going to Nine State City. How should we respond?" A cultivator stood before Zhou Yanwang making his report.


    "No wonder they were wandering around the Holy Capital. Their goal wasn''t to fight, but to contain us." Zhou Yanwang looked cold and indifferent. He finally understood the Village Chief and Qin Zhuang''s intentions.


    Moreover, they could withdraw to Nine State City for support at any time.


    "Convey my order, leave a few legions to guard the matrix and resist them making a sneak attack. Prepare the rest of the army to move out towards Nine State City."


    His opponents wanted to distract his army while they advanced and retreated as they pleased, offering support to their army in Nine State City whenever they wanted. How could he let them do as they please?


    "I will be one step ahead."


    As he spoke he turned into a lightning bolt and shot into the sky as fast as possible.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army was not afraird of Qin Zhuang and his trivial nine cultivators. Instead they would be contained by the Village Chief, and thus Zhou Yanwang chose to get one step ahead and bypass him.


    When one was alone, his goals should be small.


    His body continued on towards the sky until he reached the clouds, at which point he changed direction and shot forward.


    But he gradually began to feel uneasy. The powerful Divine Path Will covered the vast world, but did not catch a trace of his opponents'' auras.


    He frowned slightly. An aura seemed to be spreading. Suddenly Zhou Yangwang''s expression hardened as a boundlessly powerful aura burst forth. Suddenly the space between the heavens and the earth became crimson like blood. It was like the sky was burning.


    Suddenly a terrible Sword Qi appeared in the sky. It seemed to be spatial swordsmanship.


    The sword turned into the power of the Great Path. It moved between heaven and earth, ignoring the spatial distance as it shot towards him.


    "The ghost lingers on!" screamed Zhou Yanwang. The power of the laws of the Great Path flowed forth, and a huge golden phoenix appeared in the sky. As he lifted his hand a void-smashing talon descended upon the sword diagram, causing the void sword to shake and fall.


    Divine majesty, from beginning to end, had always descended upon the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Many people looked up into the void. There seemed to be a sword diagram there that would swallow the heavens and the earth as well as a phoenix that had condensed after it had torn through the void. As that monstrous battle broke out, there was a descending aura that made them all feel uneasy.


    "They never left." Zhou Yanwang''s face went cold. The Holy Elder of the Holy Zhi Palace had been hiding in the dark and he had not discovered him.


    Obviously his opponent was good at hiding and could hide among the crowds of the Holy Capital.


    Countless people in the capital looked up into the sky. That terrible battle shook the void. The Sword Qi swept over thousands of miles. Golden flames burned the heavens. This Battle of Saints was truly a spectacle.


    The incomparably terrible wave of turbulence spread towards the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty palace like a devastating beam of light descending from the sky. It was accompanied by a loud noise like a collision between divine implements. A beam of red light shot down from the sky. But the Sword Qi kept moving through the air as the sound of collisions continued to spread.


    Finally, a line of light descended upon the palace, completely destroying one of the halls. At the same time the light of the matrix shone out.


    The Village Chief stood in the void wielding the Divine Sword. He cast a cold glance below him, then turned to leave.


    Zhou Yanwang stood up from the rubble and slowly rose into the air. His face was hideous.


    This time there were even marks left upon his body. His opponent was determined to leave him there. He was not permitted to have any thoughts of leaving here to go to Nine State City for support.


    "Yanwang." A cultivator''s figure flickered into being. He noticed the bloody sword mark left on Zhou Yanwang''s body. If he had not had a divine implement body he would be afraid that he was seriously wounded.


    Zhou Yanwang had been completely suppressed by the Holy Elder of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Don''t worry about me. The Sage Army is ready to go. If Qin Zhuang and his nine swordsmen dare to fight us face to face we will be able to completely slaughter them," said Zhou Yanwang coldly.


    "Yanwang, that time when Qin Zhuang and the others killed three powerful forces from The Infinite Palace it was to prevent their battle arrays from combining together and to sweep away three top forces with their power. If we rush to Nine State City we can only weaves matrices along the way, otherwise Qin Zhuang will ambush us," someone bowed and said.


    Qin Zhuang and the others would of course not face them head on, but would want to break them one by one. Once they left the battle matrix they would become their opponents'' prey.


    "Then weave matrices along the way, and don''t leave any weak points," Zhou Yanwang said coldly. He obviously had no way to travel with them, as that guy from Tombkeeper village was guarding him.


    "Of course." The man in front of him nodded. This was the only way. They would lay out matrices all the way to Nine State City. This time it was said that the Holy Zhi Palace had dispatched half their army. If they didn''t go to support the dynasty''s army in Nine State City they might not be able to cope with the situation.


    Soon the army gathered, opened up a large matrix and then marched splendidly out of the palace and hurried towards Nine State City.


    Outside the palace, countless people looked at the spectacular scene taking place in the void. The army had been sent out. Would they destroy Ye Futian in one fell swoop?


    The army passed through the sky like a black cloud over the city. All along the way a demonic beast followed along at a distance.


    "Go over there and destroy it," a Sage mounted on a demonic beast ordered his mount. Suddenly the mount rushed towards the demonic beast. Just a moment later a demonic best fell from the sky.


    Over the past few days they had seen traces of demonic beasts and they suspected their opponents were using beastmasters to monitor their movements.


    Behind them, Qin Zhuang and the others followed them on the sword. The people Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty found this out, but they did not care. Qin Zhuang and the others would not directly face them.


    A demonic beast swooped down in front of Qin Zhuang and the others.


    "What do we do?" Qin Zhuang asked the beast.


    A strange light flashed in its eyes. "Follow them," it said in a human voice.


    "Alright." Qin Zhuang and the others nodded. Their figures flashed, and they continued to follow the cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Their opponents had sent out their army and their goal was great. It was absolutely impossible to shake them off.


    ........


    At that time, Ye Futian, who was cultivating at Nine State College, opened his eyes and a little bit of talent flashed out.


    Did the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty have another army to send out?


    If so, they should fight the first battle earlier.


    He closed his eyes again, and perceived where the Black Wind Condor was. He conveyed an order.


    The Black Wind Condor was accompanying the Barren State''s army. They were heading for Nine State City, and powerful cultivators such as Sword Saint, Huang Xi, Yun Shang and You Chi were leading the army.


    The Black Wind Condor spread its wings and flew before Sword Saint and You Chi and said, "Change directions. Don''t go to Nine State City."


    Everyone''s eyes flashed as they looked at the Black Wind Condor.


    They naturally understood this was not the will of the Black Wind Condor, but Ye Futian''s.


    "Where do we go?" asked You Chi.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty has sent out another army towards Nine State City. We will go to cut them off. We will fight them before they get to Nine State City to join up with the Great Zhou Sacred King. Get ready to fight. Qin Zhuang and the others are there and will fight with you," continued the Black Wind Condor, but the words were spoken with Ye Futian''s tone.


    "Very well." You Chi and the others all nodded.


    The reason why Ye Futian was prepared to cut them off in advance was very simple. Both the Holy Zhi Palace and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had left behind a strong garrison.


    They had almost no strength in Nine State City. Sage Douzhan, the Undying Old Man, Yuan Hong and the rest were not equal to the forces of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Therefore, it would be beneficial to cut them off before the two sides met!

 857 Witnessing the Even

    The Nine State College was the symbol of the Nine State City and renowned throughout the world.


    As such, when the Nine State College was recruiting students, it was not only a major thing for the college itself; it was also a grand event for the Nine State City.


    The entire city would be at its rowdiest at that time every year.


    The event was of such importance that examinations for intake was not held within the college''s grounds, but at the platform stage at the central area of the city.


    Countless mighty ones from the Summer State gathered at the start of the year. As such, rounds and rounds of elimination processes needed to be carried out by mighty ones from both the city and the college itself at the stage. It was not until the very last stages of such processes that great figures from the college appeared, being there for selecting candidates with the most potential.


    The Nine State City was incredibly lively as the event was held. The Nine State Platform area was practically filled with people and countless were looking forward to see if any noteworthy candidates would have made it into the college and become a hallowed disciple of the divine path of the college.


    While the Nine State City was having its time of the year, mighty ones from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty of the Eastern State and the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State were still on their way. As both sides were having great army expeditions, it was inevitable that they moved slower than usual. Crossing a vast state was not something that could have been done in a day or two, as both sides consisted of mighty ones from all level of Sage Plane. Those who were of lower training would have definitely slowed everyone else down.


    Things inside the college itself were just as rowdy. However, Ye Futian did not feel anything different from his other days. He was still training diligently in the new year and he was busy planning for the war.


    The sacred king''s ill intentions were definitely a crisis for his teacher. However, unless they have decided to shut themselves inside the college for good, it was something that they would have had to face sooner or later. The sacred king was watching them at the college after all.


    There were students from the college coming to visit the palace where Ye Futian took up residence.


    Ye Futian left the Herb Garden after he was done with the medicine tests and returned to his arranged residence in the college.


    Ye Futian received his visitors from the college there.


    "Pleased to meet you, Palace Lord Ye." Those students were of exceptional bearing as they bowed to Ye Futian. They were all unfamiliar faces, which apparently meant that they were not people that he knew from the college before.


    "The pleasure is mine. May I ask what brought all of you here today?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Nine State College is holding its recruitment this year and people from all over the Summer State is here to witness the event. The elders of the college would be there personally to select the new students tomorrow. We have extended invitations to all from other holy lands who''re here at the college as guests. Uncle Liuyun has asked me to extend the invitation to you, Palace Lord Ye. Would you be able to make time to witness the event at the Nine State Platform?" The one who was extending the invitation was very well-mannered and polite.


    Ye Futian pondered as he continued to look at them. The recruitment was not carried out within the grounds of the Nine State College. It was held at the Nine State Platform area of the Nine State City, which was considered outside the college. It was a given that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would not have tried anything that would have affected the college''s grand event.


    However, once the event has ended, what would have happened was entirely predictable.


    Ye Futian''s deep eyes continued to gaze on the visitors, which surprisingly made them feel somewhat pressure. They averted Ye Futian''s gaze as a result.


    A moment later, Ye Futian smiled and the formless pressure disappeared without a trace.


    "I see. I would be there tomorrow." Ye Futian smiled and agreed to attend the event.


    Is the Nine State College trying to make the event more rowdy than it already is?


    The students bowed slightly and said, "Thank you, Palace Lord Ye. We shall head back and report immediately."


    "Please do." Ye Futian waved as he said. The visitors left soon after.


    After they left, Sage Douzhan, Yuan Hong, the Undying Old Man and others came to Ye Futian''s side and said, "It seems like we''ve overstayed our welcome, and now the college wants to send us and the ones from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty off as soon as possible."


    "It was entirely within reason for them to do so," Ye Futian smiled and said. It was not a sustainable idea for people from three holy lands to keep holing up in the Nine State College. Furthermore, the Nine State College knew well why mighty ones from all corners of the Summer State had gathered in the city.


    It was obviously more than just to attend the college''s recruitment event. As such, the college naturally needed to give face to those mighty ones and invite them to witness the event.


    "They should be here soon, eh?" Sage Douzhan asked.


    "We should be able to see them tomorrow. They''re already within Summer State territory as we speak," Ye Futian answered. The Summer State was incredibly vast. It was located west of the Eastern State and southwest of the Barren State. As such, even though mighty ones from the Barren State intended to intercept the ones from the Eastern State on their way, but the route taken hardly changed and they would have needed to enter the Summer State still.


    "Well then, that''s quite a coincidence indeed," Sage Douzhan siad.


    "The village chief should be returning soon enough," Ye Futian added. As speculated by Zhou Yanwang, the village chief had been loitering around the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Holy Capital with Qin Zhuang and others, precisely because he wanted to check them out, while diverting reinforcements away at the same time.


    It was due precisely to having been able to speculate the village chief''s intentions, that Zhou Yanwang had decided to order the army to head for the Nine State City. However, he himself remained trapped within the palace. Every time he ventured outside, there would definitely have been interception attempts waiting for him. He no longer dared to venture too far after several attempts of breaking the interceptions. He nonetheless came out to see what the old man had been up to time and again.


    ...


    The Nine State City was incredibly lively at the next day. Countless mighty ones gathered at the same spot: the Nine State Platform.


    Great figures from the Nine State College were present that day to select their students. They have even extended invitations to people from other holy lands to come witness the event.


    Many mighty ones ranked on the Sage and Saint Rankings were seen that day, as well as some of the younger generations who had grown quite famous throughout the nine states. For example, Ye Futian who had been the talk of people from everywhere as of late, as well as Yu Sheng, the champion of the Nine State Forum.


    Of course, there were also those hallowed disciples of the divine path from the Nine State College. In the eyes of countless people, those names all belonged to figures of legends.


    The college itself was equally as lively. Many mighty ones ventured outside the college in droves, heading for the Nine State Platform.


    Ye Futian and his people were preparing to depart as well. While their numbers were thin, they nonetheless represented a holy land from the Barren State.


    However, they were someone else from the Herb Garden coming out to see them before they departed. It was none other than Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly. They were instructed by their teacher, Saint Jiang, to witness the event, as well as to bring a gift to Sage Douzhan.


    "This is something that I was told by my teacher to present to senior Douzhan. It is something capable of invoking one''s inner potential for a short period of time. Should you meet any trouble with passing the divine catastrophe, it would come in handy by amplifying your chances." Little Butterfly passed a pill to Ye Futian and said.


    Ye Futian took it and said, "Please send my regards and gratitude to Saint Jiang."


    He then turned around and handed it over to Sage Douzhan.


    It seemed that Saint Jiang knew that the time for Sage Douzhan to face his ordeal would soon come.


    "Right. Teacher has asked us to witness the event in his stead. Let''s head out together then," Little Butterfly said gently.


    "Will do." Ye Futian nodded and took a look at Xu Chehan, who was right behind her, saying with a smile, "I take it that you won''t have anything against the arrangement, Great Teacher Xu?"


    Xu Chehan glanced at him coldly, then turned around and said, "Let''s go."


    Ye Futian took a look at his back. It seemed that he did not mention anything about him looking for Ye Futian before to Little Butterfly.


    "Let''s head out," Ye Futian said. The group went outside the palace and joined the massive horde in the journey. There were eyes looking at them occasionally.


    There were quite a lot of talk regarding Ye Futian in the Nine State College as of late.


    ...


    The Nine State Platform was a place of great importance of meaning to the Nine State City. The recruitment event of the Nine State College was held there every year.


    It was rumored that in ancient times, immensely powerful figures throughout the nine states had gathered there for meetings.


    The Nine State Platform was divided into nine major areas. Every single area had a huge stone tablet carving on it, which was huge symbols of the names of the nine states: Summer, Qi, Cloud...Barren.


    Every single ancient symbol had a distinct style.


    The symbol of Summer State felt grim, solemn, and imposing.


    The symbol of Qi State felt sharp in a sky-scrapping manner.


    The symbol of Barren State felt thick and powerful


    There was a throne of sorts under every single tablet with the image of an ancient word symbol. It was said that leaders of the nine states used to sit on them. There were many seats below the thrones, and there were even steps leading downward.


    A vast platform which served as a stage was right before the nine word tablets. The scene looked incredibly magnificent.


    People filled the areas surrounding the stage and whichever direction one looked in, one would have found only people.


    "The mighty ones from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is here the earliest."


    Many turned their eyes at a direction. The sacred king was there and he walked to the throne beneath the Eastern State symbol, not hesitating to sit on it.


    The throne had once been that of a leader of the Eastern State. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had once reigned all over the Eastern State, so it was only natural that the sacred king would have been the leader. Even though the Eastern State was now fractured into multiple forces, but he was nonetheless the only lord of a holy land that came to the event that time. As such, he was of course more than qualified to sit on that throne.


    That nine thrones had a historical meaning and one did not need to actually be a leader reigning all over a state to sit there after all.


    "Mighty ones from the Xihua Sacred Mountain are here."


    Many saw that there were quite a number of people heading there, and many gestured respectfully to the sacred king.


    "That''s Liu Zong, the student of three saints." One of those in the crowd looked at one of the young people.


    "Mighty ones from the Yue clan." Someone else looked at the other corner. The Yue clan was a holy land in the Summer State who was versed in the art of sealing. Those who studied in Yue clan were incredibly terrifying.


    "Mighty ones from the Yi clan are here too." Yet another person looked somewhere else.


    "The mighty ones from the college are here."


    It came as to no surprise that the people from the college were the most numerous. Many came in droves one after another.


    "Lin Shubai"


    "Tong He."


    Many continued to gasp as the most renowned of the two hallowed disciples in the college, the two who were lauded to be the successor to the chief of the Nine State College, were there as well.


    Both of them exhibited extraordinary bearing. Lin Shubai was receiving guests who came while Tong He remained unfettered as he sat down quietly, making his carvings.


    Many from the Yue clan and the Yi clan turned their eyes to look at both of them. Many extraordinary students from those two forces had come to witness the event as well.


    At that moment, several figures were seen walking towards the tablet of the Barren State and many turned their heads immediately. Even mighty ones from other holy lands turned to look at them as well.


    Many pairs of eyes were looking at the handsome young man. He walked the steps in a composed manner and came before the throne. He turned around and sat while scanning the crowd, looking regal and imposing.


    It was none other than the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, Ye Futian.


    He was currently the most legendary figure of the younger generation at the moment throughout the nine states!

 858 Ambush

    In the Nine States, geniuses would emerge in every generation. The pride of every holy land, hallowed disciples and Sons, these were all people who were born from time to time.


    However, they were still the younger generation and suppressed by the aura of the previous generation. There was nobody who was like Ye Futian, becoming the leader of a holy land as a Noble Plane. Of course, this was also due to the unique position the Barren State was in. If it was merely the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace having a new Palace Lord, the people from the Nine States would not care as much. However, since the Holy Zhi Palace had been under Ye Futian''s leadership, the Barren State had been transforming and creating one miracle after another.


    The first time they stepped out of the Barren State, they had cracked the Celestial Dragon Chess Game in the Chess Saint Villa.


    On the Nine State Forum, the Barren State came in first among all the holy lands.


    In the Nether Sword Mound, he had activated the Sword Matrix of the Void and killed a Saint.


    He had made a Saint appear in the long weakened Barren State and united the wills of the Barren State''s army in the sacred war to fend off the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Now, Douzhan was about to become a Saint. The Barren State would have its second Saint, even the Great Zhou Sacred King would not be able to take that lying down.


    That was why Ye Futian was deemed the most dazzling figure within his generation. It was no exaggeration, nobody had ever created such miracles.


    Looking at the teenage figure sitting on by the stone tablet with Barren written on it, he was indeed qualified to sit there.


    Moreover, Ye Futian already had the aura of a holy land''s leader. Even though his cultivation level was not high, it was by no means inferior to that of the influential figures from the other holy lands in the Nine States.


    It was as though he was born to take that position.


    Many people also noticed that not far away from Ye Futian, Little Butterfly smiled and nodded towards Ye Futian before walking over to the Nine State College''s position. After all, she was from the College, so she could not be seated in the Barren State''s position.


    Xu Chehan was also with Little Butterfly. When they saw this scene, many people thought to themselves, it seems like the rumors spreading around the Nine State College recently might be true.


    "The Xia Clan''s experts have arrived." Someone announced.


    At that moment, another group of people had arrived. Many people stood up and saluted the incoming Xia Clan members. In the Summer State, although the Nine State College had a reputation as the number one College in the Nine States, the Xia Clan was the strongest faction in the Summer State.


    After the Xia Clan''s experts had arrived, another group of people walked forward from a distance. In an instant, the people from the College all stood up. Countless experts around the Nine States'' platforms all had serious expressions on their faces as they stared at the oncoming white-bearded elder.


    The Nine State College Chief, Saint Li had personally come.


    Saint Li would usually not appear on these kinds of occasions, but today, many holy lands had come for the ceremony and there were also leaders from holy lands like the Great Zhou Sacred King as well as the Xia Clan''s experts. If he did not come out, the others would not be able to handle the situation.


    "Greetings to the College Chief." The College''s disciples all stood up to greet him. The experts from the holy lands all stood up to greet him as well.


    Even the Great Zhou Sacred King stood up to show his respect. Ye Futian naturally stood up as well.


    Saint Li was the 10th on the Nine States'' Saint Ranking and was highly respected. His position in the Nine States was also extremely reverent, even the Great Zhou Sacred King would have to call him senior when visiting him.


    Saint Li walked to the throne before the Summer tablet and took a seat. Although his age was high, his eyes were still full of life. With just a single gaze, everyone could feel the aura emanating from Saint Li.


    The vast area fell silent all of a sudden.


    Just by sitting there, it felt as though Saint Li had blended in with the Great Path. The force in the heavens could be used by him and he could awe countless people with his aura.


    "Today, it is once again time for the Nine State College to select their disciples. There are people from different holy lands that have come to watch, it is my Nine State College''s honor to have you. Let us all witness it together then." Saint Li said slowly. His voice was not loud, but the people within tens of miles could all hear him clearly.


    "Let us begin, please don''t hold back." Saint Li announced. In an instant, the invisible aura disappeared and the host stepped forward. The selected geniuses stepped forward in succession and started the paper examination.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King looked forward. Since Ye Futian had arrived, he had not taken a single glance at him, as though he did not know about his existence.


    At that moment, the Great Zhou Sacred King only looked at the battle platform, admiring the battles among the geniuses.


    Ye Futian was also the same as he sat quietly.


    One after another, experts stepped forward and revealed their extraordinary strength and potential. After all, they had gone through many rounds of selection to reach this step and they were all elites.


    ....


    While the Nine State City was having its celebration, in a location within the countless territories of the Summer State, there was a group of experts traversing across the air with a terrifying aura.


    This group of people was the army that had come from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. They moved in formation and the people who passed by them all avoided them, afraid of being caught up in something they were uninvolved in.


    Far behind them, Qin Zhuang and the others continued to follow them, not breaking away from the team.


    At that moment, the accompanying demonic beast had a glint flash across its eyes. The army was about to converge.


    "Prepare yourselves." A voice sounded from the demonic beast. Qin Zhuang and the others all had the glint of swords in their expressions and it looked brilliant.


    "After so many days, we can finally loosen up." Xu Shang smiled and said. The atmosphere was completely unlike the graveness before a war.


    There seemed to be a fog in the air. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army frowned as they felt their Spiritual Will being affected. The fog started to become denser and their Spiritual Wills were unable to penetrate it.


    "Watch out, it seems to be illusion sorcery." An expert from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty waved his hand and in an instant, the army slowed down. However, they had already stepped into the ethereal fog. Experts stepped forward and a blinding light shot out from their eyes. Their Spiritual Will and rule power shot through the air and forcefully penetrated the fog.


    The fog seemed endless, but the Spiritual Will penetrated through it rapidly and opened a path. Finally, when the outside world appeared to them, their expressions changed.


    "There''s an ambush, prepare for battle!" A roar sounded out. Instantly, all of them burst forth with strong auras and it engulfed the area in a split second. Their might was so strong that it scattered the fog.


    The fog continually scattered as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army felt two contrasting sensations simultaneously, heat and frost.


    Raising their heads, they saw a group of experts appear before them. They were refining the Divine Sun Furnace and there was a terrifying flame in the Divine Sun Furnace, engulfing the skies and turning even the air bright red.


    The person at the front was You Chi. He was topless and sweat trickled down his bronze-colored skin. He held a giant Divine Sun Hammer in his hands and the hammer let out a faint Saint aura. Countless Spiritual Qi in the area rushed towards him and became a terrifying flame hurricane.


    This was his Alchemy City''s most important Saint instrument and had unparalleled offensive ability.


    On the other side, the experts from the Ice Temple appeared. Their ice matrix caused frost to constantly appear in the air. The contrasting rule powers of ice and fire engulfed the battlefield from both sides.


    As for the front, there were Sovereign Family experts led by Huang Xi and the Heavenly Battle Matrix led by Sage Jingang.


    Behind them, a terrifying sword aura emanated and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army knew that it was Qin Zhuang and the other swordsmen activating their sword matrix.


    "Defense matrix." A voice sounded out within the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army. In an instant, the experts within the army all started to form a defensive matrix. When being ambushed, the best course of action was to defend and assess the enemy''s strength before counterattacking.


    The army from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was equally terrifying. Otherwise, they would not have dared to provide assistance in the presence of Qin Zhuang. They were made up of extremely strong forces.


    As the battle erupted, giant demonic beast shadows appeared. A giant Golden Phoenix appeared and covered the skies, spreading out above them. A green dragon roared and also stood above their heads.


    The flames from the Divine Sun Furnace sank down with a destructive force and ignited the air, creating a destructive fire that gradually melted the giant battle matrix.


    In the air, the topless You Chi used the Divine Sun Hammer in his hand to siphon the strength of the experts behind him. The boundless fire in the area gathered and the Divine Sun Hammer grew bigger. You Chi lifted it and smashed it downwards.


    With a thunderous sound, a destructive pattern appeared where the Divine Sun Furnace crashed down on and the battle matrix below shook.


    In the moment that You Chi attacked, the experts all burst forth with their attacks. Sage Jingang let out a roar and gathered the force of the Heavenly Battle Matrix on his body. At that moment, he appeared to have a golden body and his fists tore through the air and the shadow fists traveled across the air towards the enemy.


    Huang Xi also moved. In front of him, a giant bow appeared and he nocked it. 81 arrows shot through the air with a terrifying force.


    There were also many other experts who fired their attacks. In a split second, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army was barraged by countless attacks in the air.


    Crash, crash, crash! Wave after wave of explosions sounded as the defensive matrix was repeatedly impacted.


    As the matrix collapsed, an icy wind blew past and a cold current engulfed them. Many people turned into ice statues under the current, one could see how terrifying its force was.


    The Ice Temple Lord Yun Shang had cast a spell using her staff.


    "Break." Yun Shang said in an icy voice. The ice statues on the outer ring cracked and the people inside died.


    "All formations spread out and find your individual enemy to battle." Another voice sounded out. They had been ambushed and trapped in the middle, the Barren State''s army attacked with them at the center and that had left them in a reactive position.


    At that moment, You Chi let out another furious roar and smashed down yet again with his Divine Sun Hammer. The sun flare that could melt everything was brought down along with it as well.


    The battle on this side had completely broken out.


    Far away on the Nine State City''s Nine State Platform, it was still bustling and Ye Futian and the Great Zhou Sacred King were still admiring the battles on the platform.


    However, at that moment, Ye Futian raised his head and looked into the distance.


    The battle had begun.


    It was up to You Chi, Huang Xi, Qin Zhuang, Xu Shang and the rest!

 859 You Chis Decision

    On the Nine State Platform, there were many geniuses appearing successively and selected by the influential figures from the Nine State College and taking them under their wing.


    There were people from all cultivation levels. Among them, there were a few extremely strong figures with the potential to become a hallowed disciple.


    "The Summer State has countless prodigies appearing every generation. Today, the Nine State College is accepting disciples and countless extraordinary people have appeared. It seems like many people did not participate in this year''s Eastern State Xihua Sacred Mountain''s Nine State Forum." An elder from the Xia Clan smiled and said.


    "That''s right, the splendor of the Nine State College accepting disciples is not inferior to the Nine State Forum." Another person laughed as he echoed. Evidently, he was just saying it because of the occasion.


    "Previously, the Nine State Forum was held on the Xihua Sacred Mountain. The cultivators from the other states needed to follow their holy lands there, so some non-holy land cultivators were naturally unwilling to go there. Of course, majority of the people from the holy lands had participated in it, so it can definitely show the strength of the younger generation from the various holy lands." The Nine State College Chief Saint Li smiled and replied.


    "Now that you mention it, I''ve heard that the Barren State''s performance was the most eye-catching during the Nine State Forum. Today, the Nine State Forum''s number one person Yu Sheng seems to be here." Someone commented.


    As he said that, many people turned to look at Yu Sheng, who was beside Ye Futian.


    If it was not for Ye Futian''s existence, perhaps Yu Sheng would be the mascot of the younger generation. The number one person on the Nine State Forum meant a huge deal to the Nine States.


    Moreover, it was rumored that Yu Sheng obtaining first on the Nine State Forum was truly well deserved.


    There were people who claimed that even when compared to other generations, Yu Sheng would still be able to obtain first. Of course, the other geniuses from the previous Nine State Forums were unwilling to accept that.


    "Senior has praised him too highly. Although Yu Sheng is indeed not bad, he has some flaws that need polishing. As such, I have intentionally brought him to the Nine State College to learn." Ye Futian said to Saint Li. Since Saint Li had such high praise, it was only respectful of him to reply.


    Learn. Many of the Nine State College''s disciples cursed in their hearts when they heard that. While this b*stard was ''learning'' in the College, he had beat up many people and caused them to not dare to provoke him.


    "It is commendable that Palace Lord Ye can humbly ask for advice. Each generation has its own geniuses and today, in the younger generation, there are the previous firsts of the Nine State Forum." An expert from the Xia Clan smiled as he said. On the previous Nine State Forum, the number one had been a disciple from the Nine State College. He was now within the crowd and his name was Tong He.


    Moreover, it was rumored that Tong He''s cultivation speed was terrifyingly fast and his cultivation level increased extremely rapidly. In only five years, he was already a mid-level Magi. His cultivation speed was shocking and there were few people who could compete with him in the Nine States.


    As such, his reputation within the Nine State College was widespread and he was known as the Nine State College''s successor alongside Lin Shubai.


    "Every generation has its own geniuses, there are also many other people who missed this time''s Nine State Forum because of their cultivation level, but that does not mean that they are weak." An expert from the Yi Clan said. "Perhaps if the Nine State Forum was held at a different time, the ending might have been different. Even someone as strong as Yu Sheng might not be able to come in first."


    Many people looked towards the Yi Clan''s expert. The influential figures from the Summer State naturally knew why he said that. The Yi Clan had an elite figure who had missed out on the Nine State Forum as he had broken through to the Sage Plane before the Nine State Forum.


    "That is only natural. If Yu Sheng had missed it, he would definitely not be first. However, if Yu Sheng happened to be in that cultivation level, he would easily obtain first even in another generation." Ye Futian smiled and replied, causing many people to be shocked and look towards the young figure sitting on the Barren State''s tablet throne.


    Although he said it with his usual joking tone, the arrogance in his tone was unmistakable.


    The Yi Clan''s expert had claimed that in another generation, Yu Sheng might not be able to come in first, but he had replied that in another generation, obtaining first might be even simpler.


    In any generation, Yu Sheng would be able to obtain first, as long as he was within the cultivation level limitation.


    Some people scoffed at Ye Futian''s words, but there were also people who had personally watched the Nine State Forum who agreed. They had seen how strong Yaya was, in their eyes, in another generation, perhaps Yu Sheng''s strongest opponent would be someone on Zhuge Yi''s level.


    "Hypothetical situations are pointless, let us continue watching the battles." Saint Li said coolly and the crowd ceased their discussion and looked towards the battle platform.


    However, Ye Futian''s heart was not on the battles. There was another battlefield being projected in his head.


    His frame of mind was not as relaxed as it looked.


    The ambush''s lineup included more than half of the Palace''s strength and had Qin Zhuang and the others join in as well. Their objective was to eliminate the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army to the best of their ability.


    However, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty evidently knew that the Palace had sent out reinforcements and had sent an equally strong lineup.


    This battle would not be easy.


    ....


    At that moment, in the battlefield far away from the Nine State City, the battle continued.


    In the life-and-death battle, both sides used overbearing methods to destroy the opponent''s battle matrix. The Holy Zhi Palace''s people used an ambush to surround them, but following that, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s experts launched a strong counterattack by splitting their army and attacking their battle matrix.


    Experts died unceasingly from both sides and the battle was extremely fierce.


    Moreover, as the battle continued, the battlefield repeatedly expanded and the scope of battle expanded rapidly.


    At that moment, in one location, there were two extremely strong experts facing off.


    On the Holy Zhi Palace''s side, it was the Alchemy City Lord You Chi. He was one of the leading figures for the Holy Zhi Palace''s army. He had led the Barren State''s south-west region factions to battle. The Fire Emperor Palace, Goddess Pavilion and other elite factions had all followed him into battle. The illusionary magic that had been cast just now was the work of the Goddess Pavilion''s Chu Ji and her disciples.


    Standing opposite You Chi was one of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s elite factions, the Flaming Prison Clan''s Leader. The Flaming Prison Clan was the strongest faction after the Infinite Palace. Back then, when the Infinite Palace had been eradicated, the Flaming Prison Clan''s disciples were all in a panic and moved into the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s capital and had now been taken in by the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    Towards this, the Flaming Prison Clan Leader Sage Yanyu was extremely displeased. As the leader of his own faction, he had freedom, but now, he needed to act based on others'' opinions in the Great Zhou''s Palace and even had to take orders from them. For example, Zhou Mian, Zhou Huang and Nie Gai all had authority over him.


    There were also many other royalty within the Sacred Dynasty that had weaker cultivation levels than him that had higher positions than him, so he felt repressed.


    The origin of all this was because the Great Zhou Sacred King had initiated the sacred war. However, he did not dare to begrudge the Great Zhou Sacred King, so he could only direct his hatred towards the people of the Barren State.


    "You Chi, I''ve heard that you are in the top 10 of the Barren Sky Ranking and the Alchemy City has a few Saint instruments. Let me witness today the strength of the Barren Sky Ranking''s top 10." Sage Yanyu said coldly. There was a flame dimension around the two of them and the boundless flames had shrouded the entire area.


    However, their flames were different. You Chi''s flames was the Divine Fire of the Sun that could melt everything. After he released his Life Spirit, he looked like a fire war god.


    Sage Yanyu''s flames had a terrifying dark glow and contained an alarming destructive force, as though it had come from the pits of hell.


    The two flames clashed and created a zone that nobody dared to come near.


    Sage Yanyu also had a Saint instrument that he had inherited like some of the elite factions in the Barren State. It was the Flaming Prison Spear that caused the dark flames in the air to gather rapidly. Many giant dark fireballs appeared in the vast area and rushed towards You Chi. Behind You Chi, the sun''s glow was extremely brilliant and surrounded his body, melting the hellfire.


    Behind Sage Yanyu, a huge dark flame shadow appeared. It looked like a demon from hell and it was the manifestation of his Life Spirit. It donned a hell armor and looked menacing.


    The demonic figure stretched out its arm and grabbed the Flaming Prison Spear. The spear grew swiftly as the demonic figure stepped forward and walked towards You Chi.


    You Chi felt the destructiveness of the force, but he did not step back. His grip on the Divine Sun Hammer tightened and he stared coldly at the oncoming demon.


    The sacred war directly affected the Barren State''s future. As someone with a Saint instrument, he was one of the elites within the Barren State''s battle force and he could not afford to fall here.


    Although Ye Futian''s Big Brother was strong, but once he borrowed the strength of the demonic blade, he would suffer an intense backlash. Their elite battle force did not differ too much from the opponent''s. Among the people who had come, the Sword Saint, Yun Shang, Huang Xi, Qin Zhuang and him were the most elite. He would only accept victory as the result.


    The demon-like figure stretched out its left arm and instantly, a terrifying force engulfed his body, like a part of hell was crushing down on him. At the same time, it pierced towards him with the Flaming Prison Spear and dark flames tore through the air, burning everything in its path.


    You Chi moved, entering a state of Enlightenment, as though he was making a ritual implement. He swung the Divine Sun Hammer in his hand and it smashed down with boundless force. The heavens roared and the space seemed as though it was going to rip. The rule power that was crushing down upon him was neutralized in an instant.


    At the same time, the demon-like figure had descended upon him and pierced forward with the Flaming Prison Spear. The dark flames penetrated through and the area seemed to have been frozen and turned into a part of hell. The spear attempted to pierce through the area, which included You Chi''s body.


    You Chi waved his Divine Sun Hammer frantically and it turned into a terrifying flame hurricane with shocking power.


    The Flaming Prison Spear pierced through the air and a cold killing intent flashed across You Chi''s eyes. When the Flaming Prison Spear rushed across the air towards him, Sage Yanyu''s expression was frigid. He wanted to see whose offensive ability was stronger.


    However, he saw the brilliant light that the Divine Sun Hammer emitted becoming larger, bypassing the spear without colliding. It destroyed the hell dimension and smashed towards the demon with boundless force.


    "You''re courting death." Sage Yanyu saw the scene and said coldly. The spear pierced onto You Chi''s burning body, but the Divine Sun Hammer also smashed on his head.


    Two huge sounds were heard at the same time. You Chi''s bronze-colored skin was torn apart but there was an explosion of extremely brilliant light. It was a Saint instrument armor that had assimilated into his skin. His body was sent flying and he coughed up mouthfuls of blood while his organs felt like they were being torn apart.


    However, at the same time, the demon''s brain split apart and Sage Yanyu also coughed up a mouthful of blood. The Life Spirit was destroyed and his spirit had suffered heavy injuries that was near fatal.


    What was even more terrifying was that You Chi had released the Divine Sun Hammer when he attacked. The Divine Sun Hammer flew in an arc and smashed down on him.


    "No..." Letting out a loud roar, Sage Yanyu''s face was filled with despair. The Divine Sun Hammer crushed him with the force of You Chi''s strike, causing his brain to immediately be shattered.


    With just one strike, Sage Yanyu had been killed. He would never have imagined this in his wildest dreams, only because he did not expect that You Chi would be this ruthless.


    Pff. You Chi spat out a mouthful of blood and looked at Sage Yanyu''s shattered body and said coldly, "I have staked the entire Alchemy City, there is no way you can match my determination."


    You Chi naturally knew that his opponent was not weaker than him. If it was a normal duel, the outcome would be unknown.


    He knew clearly what his advantage was, the Saint instrument. Within his bronze-colored skin lied a Saint instrument.


    That was why when his opponent charged up his attack, he had made up his mind to gamble for his opponent''s life.


    Sage Yanyu had been ordered by the Great Zhou Sacred King to participate in the sacred war. He was different, he had staked the Alchemy City''s future on the sacred war. Their resolutions were on completely different levels!

 860 Cause for the Battle

    Everyone from the Flaming Prison Clan saw the death of Sage Yanyu on the battlefield, and every one of them looked pale. Although their clan leader was not listed on the sage and saint ranking, he was nevertheless a well-known figure with extraordinary strength.


    In the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, except for the direct power belonging to the Sacred Dynasty and Sage Wuliang, their clan leader was the strongest amongst the realm.


    But he was killed with a single blow. It was unimaginable.


    There were a few people belonging to the sage-level who rushed in the direction of You Chi; they were the elders of the Flaming Prison Clan, who were extremely strong.


    You Chi''s breath was weak but his cold glance surveyed those people. Horrifying flames fell and attacked all things. Even now, when his body had suffered great injury, he could still battle using rules sorcery.


    There were many sun furnaces appearing, burning the void and blasting at the oncoming cultivators who rushed in for the kill. Those whose plane were inferior were burned to death, and their screams could be heard.


    However, there were also two sage-level people who had broken through the attack, and presently one of them rushed towards the Spear of Flaming Prison, intending to snatch the divine implement.


    You Chi''s eyes fixed in that direction, his eyes like flames burning to create a terrible flaming space that directly shone upon the cultivator who went for the divine implement.


    "Refining."


    You Chi commanded icily, and that cultivator was suddenly drowning in flames. An explosion of rules powers attempted to expel the flames released by You Chi, but the flaming rules power increased in force until the space seemed to be entirely refined. The body of the cultivator turned into a liquid fire, and then dispersed in ashes; it was not just burning but melting.


    Another person who was close to You Chi blasted him with a terrible hit using his palm, covering the sky. You Chi looked up and focused the flames of his eyes at the palm. Suddenly the palm melted immediately, followed by the body. The man expressed infinite fear as he was melted bit by bit, his shrill screams echoing between the heaven and earth.


    Puh!


    You Chi continued slaughtering several more opponents and spat out a mouthful of blood. Not only had he suffered terrible internal damage, but the consumption of his spiritual energy was also extremely exhausting. Although he also cultivated in martial arts, as an armorer it required an extreme strength; a simple reliance on the flame was not enough.


    The rules sorcery that was exercised was at a great cost to his already wounded body.


    Dragging his tired body, You Chi got the Spear of Flaming Prison, his memento of war. To rob him of the divine implement that he fought for, and try to vanquish him?


    "City Lord." At this time Yan Jun, the Palace Lord of Fire Emperor Palace, had arrived.


    "Don''t mind me, continue to fight." You Chi commanded. He glanced the battlefield, then dragged his heavily injured body toward another part of the battle. To gain the final victory of the Sacred War, all efforts had to be exerted in every battle to destroy the opponent as much as possible so that the power of the Holy Zhi Palace might last.


    As You Chi moved forward, every cultivator in his path was destroyed under the flame. He came to the center of the battlefield and stood next to a few people. This battlefield was attacked by many cultivators; the people that were standing next to him were members of the Sovereign Family. The head of the Sovereign Family, Huang Xi, was also trapped here, his breath shallow. He was already injured.


    Across from them, the leading cultivator was surrounded by a demonic dragon, looking menacing.


    The opponent of the Sovereign Family was the Black Dragon Legion, one of the four major legions of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The opposite figure was the leader of the Black Dragon, and his strength would only be superior to Sage Yanyu''s.


    "What are you doing here with your injured self?" Huang Xi gave You Chi a sideways glance.


    "This is nothing. If I''m not dead, I can still fight." You Chi said.


    Huang Xi smiled and said, "Old man, why?"


    Of course he could see that You Chi was badly injured.


    "Why?" You Chi muttered, "Who knows? It seems insincere if I said it was completely for the Barren State, but my daughter was snatched away by that punk who helped his brother so what else could be done? As for the other reasons, maybe it''s just to witness a different era. Everything we did is perhaps a legend in the making."


    "And you, is it because of my letter?" asked You Chi.


    "Dog shit," Huang Xi said, his eyes becoming extremely sharp, "The ancestor said that the Sovereign Family was the descendant of Renhuang. I almost do not believe it myself anymore, but still I wanted to see the scenery above. How can I be willing to be ruled by the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and live like a refugee in the Barren State? So, let us witness an era together."


    As soon as he finished, he stepped out and above the sky, an infinitely brilliant heavy sword swooped down and smashed into the Black Dragon, pulverizing it to powder.


    At this time, Huang Xi was filled with indescribable majesty, the long robe on his body fluttering wildly. Infinite power seemed to be pouring from his body, resonating with the heaven and earth. Renhuang Swords continued to fall, so that numerous Renhuang great swords had appeared all around. Not only that, but a large army emerged from nothing, and thousands of troops rushed out to fight with Huang Xi.


    At this moment, he was like the real Renhuang descending on earth.


    In other battlefields, Sword Saint, Yun Shang, Zhuge Qingfeng, and Qin Zhuang were all engaged in intense fights for their beliefs.


    The last time at the Holy Zhi Palace, their army was at a disadvantage and relied on Sage Douzhan to turn the tide. This time, they were not in a weakened position.


    ...


    Nine States City, Nine States Platform, Ye Futian did not go to witness the battle at the platform but closed his eyes instead.


    In his mind, scenes in the battlefield were revealed before his eyes.


    He saw that despite being seriously wounded You Chi still managed to get rid of a person wielding supreme strength, and heard the conversation between Huang Xi and You Chi.


    This era was not only written by him, but by everyone who could write it with him.


    He believed that this would certainly be a magnificent era, belonging to the Barren State. He would work hard for this and would not disappoint those who fought for their beliefs.


    "Uncle-Master."


    Right then, his heart tightened, and he saw that Uncle-Master Sage Jingang was hit with a heavy blow. In his mind, Sage Jingang''s chest and abdomen were pierced, and countless bones were broken, but he still remained standing. Back then, Sage Douzhan was chased and hunted by the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty until he almost lost his life. Now, Sage Douzhan nearly crossed over the Divine Catastrophe, but Great Zhou Sacred King would not allow it, and wanted him dead. He remembered it all.


    "Elder Uncle."


    Zhuge Qingfeng was also wounded, suffering in order to protect Yun Shang and the others in the legion of sorcerers.


    Scenes of battle continued and gradually the great army of the Holy Zhi Palace finally gained an advantage, oppressing the other side and breaching all the battle matrixes. The sword matrix of nine, led by Qin Zhuang, continually slaughtered people from the opposite side with unstoppable momentum. And the sword of senior brother landed each time, spilling the blood of cultivators from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Many people around had noticed that Ye Futian had been keeping his eyes closed. Many in the Nine States College felt displeased. They were now recruiting disciples for the Nine States College, and Ye Futian sat at a very distinguished position to observe the ceremony. What kind of attitude was this that he kept his eyes closed?


    Could it be that he was looking down on these geniuses who participated in the assessment?


    At this time, a man from the crowd squeezed toward the east side of the stone tablet, until he was at the side of Great Zhou Sacred King. After bowing, he then secretly transmitted his voice to Great Zhou Sacred King.


    When Great Zhou Sacred King heard what he said, his eyes suddenly became sharp and swept toward Ye Futian.


    As he had predicted, the Village Chief led Qin Zhuang and the others to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to contain the cultivators from the Palace of the Sacred Dynasty. At the same time, people from the Holy Zhi Palace at the Barren State had already set off, and according to the reports he had received they had probably reached the borders of the Summer State.


    Obviously Great Zhou Sacred King did not know that the armies on both sides had already started fighting. Instead, Zhou Yanwang, who guarded the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, learned of the onset of war because the Spirit Jade Scroll that had melted the spiritual energy of many cultivators was now broken.


    As if no one was around, Ye Futian still had his eyes closed. Finally, he saw the victory of this battle. The cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty began to withdraw and flee while Qin Zhuang and the other gave chase, slaying many on the field. But many strong cultivators were still able to retreat and escape.


    In frontal confrontation, the army of the Holy Zhi Palace defeated the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    However, Ye Futian did not feel joy. He saw the fall of many, and his heart was heavy.


    At this time, another battle had ended on the platform. An extraordinary candidate was selected by the Nine States College, and many people toasted and congratulated the candidate.


    "Palace Lord Ye." At this moment, a voice was heard and interrupted Ye Futian''s thoughts.


    Even though Ye Futian heard it, he did not immediately open his eyes. He watched the army begin to regroup and his heart was heavy. He then slowly opened his eyes and looked at the direction of the voice.


    Not far from the Nine State College, cultivators of Yi Clan were seated. A young man amongst them looked toward the direction of Ye Futian. The voice that was heard came from him.


    A spark flashed through many people''s eyes; this young man was a known character among the Yi Clan, enjoying a great reputation among the young generation of Summer State.


    Yi Clan, Yi Sheng.


    "What is it?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Nine States College is recruiting disciples, and geniuses have emerged one after the other, but Palace Lord Ye seems not to be interested and continues to keep his eyes closed to rest. Is it because he thought that none of these geniuses were worth his scrutiny?" Yi Sheng said with a smile. Many looked at Ye Futian, though with a faint smile, the atmosphere was subtly curious.


    Ye Futian stared at the other and said, "In the Nine States College geniuses are many and I have already experienced it. I even made some friends among them; the disciples recruited by the Nine States College would naturally be equally exceptional."


    "Everyone knows that Palace Lord Ye is extremely talented, and today''s examiners are all outstanding geniuses themselves. But it seems it is still difficult to be viewed worthy by Palace Lord Ye." Yi Sheng lowered his head with a laugh.


    Ye Futian still stared at him. He understood it was the tallest trees in the woods that got their tops blown off. During this period of time the Barren State and he had shocked the Nine States with strong performances, and they had been catching too much attention.


    Coupled with the reputation of him and Yu Sheng together, many geniuses from other holy lands naturally had thoughts of their own. When they arrived today, they were the focus of countless stares.


    Yi Sheng was not stupid. The provocative words spoken now were probably intended to provoke him.


    Not only did Ye Futian see through it, everyone present could see that Yi Sheng from the Yi Clan seemed not to be content leaving things alone and was deliberately provoking Ye Futian.


    "Cultivation is about the heart and mind. When the heart and mind are clear, there is nothing to hide. Although I don''t know who you are nor do I have any interest in knowing who you are, those who don''t obey the rules and think that they are smarter than all others would not escape my scrutiny." Ye Futian said coldly, "If you want to ask for wisdom, first let your elders teach you how to behave before you return."

 861 Platform Convergence

    Ye Futian''s forceful comment rendered silence amongst the crowd, and they understood his meaning. He was the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. Even if his behavior was deemed improper, it ought to have been addressed by the elders of Nine States College.


    Viewed from any angle, it would never be up to a descendant of the Yi Clan to point that out. Even more, Yi Sheng''s comment claiming that the disciples of the Nine States College could not have withstood Ye Futian''s scrutiny was obviously provocative in nature. Therefore, Ye Futian told him that his elders ought to have taught him some manners.


    Yi Sheng also fixed his gaze on Ye Futian from across the space. From where he was, although Ye Futian was the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, he was ultimately considered one of his peers.


    With a faint smile, Yi Sheng said, "Indeed I might be meddlesome, but Palace Lord Ye showed a lack of respect first and expects others to be silent? I heard that to make the acquaintance of Saint Jiang at the Nine States College, Palace Lord Ye deliberately approached Goddess Die for the sake of his own purpose. Now that he has enjoyed favors within the college but acted so disrespectfully in such an occasion, it seems that his manner should be the one called into question.


    "As for seeking instruction, the assessment of the Nine States College has not yet concluded. I would not be so insolent. Moreover, although Palace Lord Ye is well-known I am afraid that you do not yet have the pleasure of seeking instruction from you." Yi Sheng''s words were extremely sharp, and could be said to be contentious. When he finished, he moved his eyes away and no longer focused on Ye Futian.


    Clearly, as a valued son of the Yi Clan Yi Sheng was also very proud, and naturally would not suffer such insult by Ye Futian in silence.


    In the direction of the Nine States College, Little Butterfly frowned at the words of Yi Sheng and said, "There have been rumors circulating in the college, but Palace Lord Ye, in order to aid his Master, lowered himself outside the Herb Garden for an entire month to beg for a meeting before I invited him inside. In order to help Sage Douzhan, Palace Lord Ye even tested the medicine himself, and why such a noble character would cause these unspeakable words is beyond me. A known figure of the holy lands believing such base rumors and using it for attack is indeed not befitting of the stature."


    Many looked at Little Butterfly with some surprise. It was rumored that Goddess Die was quite close to Ye Futian in the Herb Garden and had a good relationship with him. It seemed that it was true. Goddess Die had personally spoken for Ye Futian.


    "Because Palace Lord Ye showed little respect for the assessment, I had to speak up. Goddess Die is a hallowed disciple of the College. I have nothing to say against your words," Yi Sheng gave a casual response.


    Ye Futian cast a cold glance at Yi Sheng, then focused on Saint Li, slightly bowing. "I just received word that the disciples of our palace have started the battle with the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, so I was a little distracted. I beg your forgiveness."


    Many people showed surprise in their eyes, and the eyes of the Great Zhou Sacred King were even more brilliant.


    The people of the Holy Zhi Palace and the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had started a fight?


    If there was indeed a battle, the news would soon spread, and it was impossible to lie about such things so they did not doubt the truthfulness of what Ye Futian had disclosed. In this circumstance, it was unlikely that Ye Futian would lower himself so as to use lies to cover himself. It could only be surmised that what he said about the battle was true.


    If this was the case, Ye Futian previously closing his eyes with a frown was understandable, and no one could have said anything.


    Was the battle that involved his Palace more important than the college choosing disciples?


    However, Great Zhou Sacred King had not yet received the news. How did Ye Futian know?


    "Palace Lord Ye does not need to explain so deliberately," Saint Li responded with a smile. This was not a big deal. If it was not for Yi Sheng''s provocation, they would not have said anything.


    "I should." Ye Futian nodded slightly. "Please, continue the assessment. Many apologies for disrupting everything because of my own personal business."


    Saint Li said nothing more, letting the assessment continue. Many people casually glanced in the direction of Yi Sheng. After Yi Sheng''s strong response Ye Futian paid no more attention to him but chose to explain to Saint Li instead and took the blame on himself. In comparison with Yi Sheng, the difference in magnanimity was obvious.


    If Ye Futian was engaging with Yi Sheng in petty arguments, he would have done himself a disservice. After all, he was the Palace Lord of Holy Zhi Palace. However, those around the platform were slightly disappointed. They wanted to see the battle between these top geniuses, and it was best that they battle it out in person.


    Although the strength of those being assessed in the Nine States College was very strong, compared to the top geniuses such as the hallowed disciples of holy lands there was still a large gap in capability.


    The assessment went on for several days with a very small number of people who emerged as truly excellent. Many of the prominent figures within the Nine States College had chosen their favorites to be accepted as disciples.


    At this point, a person came to the side of Great Zhou Sacred King and secretly transmitted something to him. Suddenly the face of Great Zhou Sacred King changed slightly, and from him exuded an invisible pressure of authority, which made many look towards him. On the throne, his eyes now turned their icy gaze to Ye Futian.


    Later there were people arriving intermittently to deliver the news to all holy lands. Upon hearing the news, they all showed surprises and focused their attention on Ye Futian.


    What Ye Futian said on that day was true. At the boundary of the Summer State, a major battle had exploded several days ago. The army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was waylaid by the army of the Barren State and suffered heavy losses. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was defeated.


    Many peoples'' hearts beat fast, feeling disquieted. In the last battle at their home base, the Holy Zhi Palace was able to repel the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty with the tragic sacrificial action of Sage Douzhan risking the Divine Catastrophe. The victory gained by the Holy Palace this time, on the turf outside of their own, held extraordinary meaning.


    Had the Barren State actually suppressed the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in return?


    The prior destruction of the three major forces within the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, including the Infinite Palace, had caused the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to lose considerable strength. The defeat again this time cost them dearly, but the news had it that in the Barren State the Holy Zhi Palace was expanding with many cultivators of the Barren State willing to enter the palace and join the fight. With such imbalance, it seemed that the scales of the Sacred War were gradually tilting.


    This was absolutely unthinkable to people of all holy lands that the Barren State could actually suppress the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in the Sacred War.


    "What''s happening?" Countless people around the platform felt the subtle change in the air. It seemed that many prominent figures were looking a little off.


    Ye Futian was still sitting there with indifference, his eyes directed at the battle on the stage. After all, he had witnessed the ending of the battle and its entire process.


    Great Zhou Sacred King''s eyes were extremely sharp. Ye Futian had asked the Village Chief to bring Qin Zhuang and the others to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Although he knew their purpose, he had paid it no mind. Zhou Yanwang was in command and he could make his own decisions. However, the people of the Holy Zhi Palace had converged with Qin Zhuang to intercept the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and they had defeated it.


    According to the news, among the army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, the three top leaders were killed in battle, and there were even more sages who were killed or wounded with the rest dispersed in retreat, fleeing for fear that they would be caught.


    That battle was a total defeat.


    His eyes glanced at Sage Douzhan, and there was murderous intent brewing within. The matters of war had already concluded, and it was meaningless to mull over it further. After the assessment at the Nine States College, it would be time for Sage Douzhan and his cohorts to die.


    The air at the Nine States Platform was slightly curious. People from all the holy lands were very clear that they had not come only to see the Nine States College recruiting disciples, but more importantly what would happen thereafter.


    There were many prominent sage figures present on this day. They all wanted to see for themselves the baptism of the Divine Path.


    Time passed. In the void, there was a blade of light shining through, catching the attention of many people. They saw this blade of light crossing the void and it landed directly on the platform of the Barren State, appearing next to Ye Futian. That blade of light gradually gathered into the shape of a person.


    "Saint." Many eyes gazed at the incoming figure. It was the Holy Elder of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State, the Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village, who had arrived. Before, he probably had gone to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "Holy Elder, how did it go?" Ye Futian asked softly.


    "Zhou Yangwang couldn''t make it," the Village Chief responded. He had repeatedly ambushed Zhou Yanwang until he lost his nerve to come out without serious cause. Zhou Yanwang was also aware of his intentions, so he continued to test the limit. However, receiving several injuries only reinforced his sense of caution. After another provocation the Village Chief rushed back here, counting that Zhou Yanwang would not dare to act rashly. Not to mention that Zhou Yanwang was not as speedy as him.


    Ye Futian nodded. The purpose of the Village Chief going to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was not only to keep an eye on them, but also to inhibit the other saint in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Since Great Zhou Sacred King was staying here to guard Sage Douzhan, he could only stop the coming of the other saint.


    Upon hearing the conversation between the two, Great Zhou Sacred King flashed a cold look in his eyes. Did they intend to fight two against one?


    Everyone from all the holy lands had a fascinated look. Today, they would witness the true battle between saints.


    After a while, the Nine States College''s recruiting process was nearing the end. Outside around the platform, there were cultivators arriving, marching mightily into the crowd and headed toward the stone monuments of the Nine States Platform.


    As if the crowd had guessed the identities of these people, many parted way to let them through.


    Sword Saint, Yun Shang, Qin Zhuang, Xu Shang, You Chi, and Huang Xi all appeared, coming to the stone tablet that bore the name "Barren." The procession of these mighty cultivators and their arrival energized the previously empty space.


    Ye Futian stood up from the throne and walked toward You Chi and the others. You Chi, Sage Jingang, and Zhuge Qingfeng were all injured and rode in on demon beasts.


    "Uncle and Uncle-Master." Ye Futian stepped up to greet them, and the Undying Old Man behind him also came over to check everyone''s injuries. His expression was grave. "All were heavily wounded, especially Sage Jingang."


    Sage Jingang came lying down.


    "Junior brother." Sage Douzhan greeted him with clenched fists. His junior brother''s chest and abdomen seemed to have been punched through, looking extremely wretched.


    Little Butterfly also came over and saw their injuries. She said to Ye Futian, "They need immediate treatment, the longer the delay, the more trouble they will be in."


    "Little Butterfly, can you take them to the Herb Garden?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Very well, I will go ask the Master," replied Little Butterfly.


    "Holy Elder, Qin Zhuang, please escort them," Ye Futian said. Nine States College was a short distance away and could be reached in a few moments.


    "Very well." The Village Chief nodded, and then took out the Divine Sword. Little Butterfly, the Undying Old Man and the others helped the wounded to the Divine Sword. The Divine Sword then broke through and crossed the void, headed for the Nine States College.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King was looking greatly displeased. Ye Futian seemed to enjoy a good relationship with Little Butterfly and Saint Jiang in the Herb Garden. Even though Saint Jiang did not participate in the Sacred War, whatever assistance he was willing to lend would be a great help!

 862 Get Out Here

    Many students of the Nine State College held grudges against Ye Futian and they even took a look at Xu Chehan.


    Ye Futian came to the college, defeated a hallowed disciple of the divine path and went to do medicine tests in the Herb Garden. Not only was he able to survive the ordeal, he was able to even develop an unusual bond with Goddess Die, and it was said that Saint Jiang liked him very much.


    It was worth noting many in the Nine State College wanted to become a personal student of Saint Jiang and yet failed to do so. Countless asked to see the saint himself and none of them was able to get their wishes fulfilled.


    Regardless of how extraordinary Ye Futian was, he was still, to many of the college''s students, an outsider.


    A legendary figure from the Barren State whose prowess was able to outshine all of his peers throughout the nine states and reign supreme.


    However, Ye Futian himself cared little of what others thought about him. In his perspective, Little Butterfly was pure and kind, and furthermore, extremely compatible with his ways of cultivation, making her someone worth taking the trouble to befriend. He deemed what outsiders thought of their relationship to be inconsequential.


    His gaze turned towards Huang Xi and the others and said, "good work."


    The interception attempt had to end in success, for they were unable to afford to fail. If they were to fail the attempt, it would have created ripples having direct effects of what they were to face from then on out.


    He witness that battle personally. Chi You, Huang Xi and the others gave it all that they have gotten, in order to secure the key battle that was influential enough to effect the entire sacred war.


    "I''m just glad that we were able to fulfill our missions," Huang Xi smiled and said. While he was somewhat injured, it was not anything serious and he could still fight, which meant that he did not need to pay a visit to the Herb Garden.


    Cultivators at their level were anything but frail and weak, unless they sustained considerable injuries.


    Ye Futian looked at Huang Xi and recalled the conversation he had with Chi You, making him burn with a sense of mission. He vowed to strive harder and enable Chi You to see the birth of a truly new era. He would also strive to let Huang Xi witness the far, unknown future that he had envisioned.


    Ye Futian turned to look at the beautiful woman right beside him and his eyes turned tender, but then quickly turned his expression stern and glared at her, saying, "Who allowed you to come here?"


    Hua Jieyu gazed at him and Ye Futian felt rather exasperated as he took her hand. He then turned around to see familiar faces at his side. His seniors were there and so were Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, Yuan Zhan and others. It became apparent that they participated in the battle at their own will. Even though they might have ended up being able to do little, they joined the fight nonetheless.


    "Take a seat."


    The Nine State College''s examination has yet to end and it was not the time for catching up on things.


    Everyone took their seats right before the throne while Ye Futian took Hua Jieyu to the throne. She looked rather reluctant and tugged at his arm. It seemed inappropriate for her to sit on the throne in such an occasion.


    However, Ye Futian insisted on taking her to the throne iwth him. The Palace Lord and the First Lady of the Holy Zhi Palace should have sat together after all.


    Countless eyes were fixed on Hua Jieyu, who was right beside Ye Futian and they were all in awe of her beauty. Those from the college who did not have a good opinion on him to begin with grew to resent him even more.


    Hua Jieyu shuddered a little bit at the attention that she had attracted, and she was unable to help but getting somewhat nervous. She knew well that everyone who sat around the platform all hailed from holy lands and there were even saints sitting on the thrones.


    For some unknown reasons, the scene reminded her of a prophecy told to her by Minister Zuo of the Nandou Nation many years ago.


    While she still believed Minister Zuo''s words to be little more than nonsense even after going through so much, but she believed firmly that her man was born for great, extraordinary things. However, the path leading to the fulfillment of that fate would have been filled with obstacles, and one would have died a horrible death if one was not careful enough.


    Regardless, if her man were to become an emperor, then she shall reign by his side. On the other hand, if he were to perish in his journey, then she shall go into eternal slumber by his side.


    A smile was seen in her eyes by then as she scanned everyone around her. She had a somewhat mystical gleam about her.


    "Let''s continue," Saint Li said, seeing how everyone''s attention was taken away by what was happening at Ye Futian''s side. The remaining handful of participants got up the stage and brought the prowess to ebar.


    Eventually, all who had participated in the recruitment event of the Nine State College went on the stage, and showed what they were capable of to the audience around them.


    Every selected participated walked onto the platform by then and there were hundreds of geniuses from all planes. The college held the recruitment event only once a year, but they did not set any plane restrictions or requirements.


    Many mighty ones from holy lands were intrigued. While all of those who were on the stage then had all been deemed qualified, but there was yet another round that would have proven the most important. There were to be a select few among the hundreds would have earned the chance to become personal students of saints.


    As such, even the ones on the stage could not have helped but felt rather nervous.


    It would have been a great honor to be able to study directly under a saint after all. Furthermore, they would have had the chance to become a hallowed disciple in the future.


    "Who do you think would have a chance at the next round?" There were people from holy lands who began discussing among themselves.


    "Lin Xuan."


    "There''s no need to say much in Lin Xuan''s case. He stands out as a hard-to-come-by exceptional one, even among the most exceptional of cultivators in the holy lands." Many nodded. Lin Xuan was the most exceptional student that the college had recruited that year without a doubt. His display of talents was nothing short of extremely extraordinary.


    "Lin Xuan would probably be made a hallowed disciple of the divine path some time in the future."


    "Other than Lin Xuan, I guess that rascal stands a chance as well." Someone added and many nodded in agreement as well.


    "The announcement is about to be made." Many turned to look at the college''s direction. An elder scanned the crowd surrounding the stage and then said, "Lin Xuan, from this year''s new recruits, shall be made a hallowed disciple and permitted to study directly under the college chief."


    Many looked surprised and baffled as the announcement was made, which were then replaced by feelings of awe. What Lin Xuan showed that day definitely qualified him for such treatment, but no one expected it to be taking place so quickly. Saint Li took him in personally and made him a hallowed disciple right there and then. It was an honor that few from the college''s history had experienced.


    It seemed that Saint Li had his own thoughts about the rise of the Barren State. While his privileged status prevented him from being too affected or concerned, he had probably wanted to nurture someone capable of becoming absolute top geniuses throughout the nine states nonetheless; someone capable of standing side by side with the likes of Lin Shubai and Tong He, rivaling Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and the others from the Barren State.


    Lin Xuan was the only one who had the honor of being named directly and taken in as a saint''s student right there and then.


    Countless eyes fell onto him and they knew that it was only a matter of time, before he became someone with immense influence in the future.


    Lin Xuan stood tall and proud as he took a deep breath on the stage. While he long had confidence of being named as a saint''s personal student, but being appointed as a hallowed disciple right there and then nonetheless caught him by surprise. He was seen bowing to Saint Li and said, "Greetings, my teacher."


    Saint Li nodded slightly and said, "While I made an exception this time in making you a hallowed disciple right away, but it''d still be necessary for you to learn from your seniors, once you enter the college."


    "Your words shall remain with me always, teacher." Lin Xuan bowed solemnly.


    "Congratulations, Saint Li." Many cupped their hands and congratulated the saint at that moment. How many were even able to make it to become Saint Li''s students? It is indeed an auspicious event for him being able to take a personal student indeed.


    Saint Li smiled and nodded. "The recruitment event of the Nine State College this year has come to an end. To all who came all the way here to witness the way, you have my gratitute."


    "You''re too kind, Saint Li. The honor is ours for being able to witness such a grand event personally." Many from other holy lands said politely. While the recruitment event had ended, but they all knew that the show had just begun, and that show was why they showed up there in the first place.


    "You''re dismissed." The college chief said to the students on the stage. They dispersed but Lin Xuan remained standing where he was; an act that puzzled many in the crowd.


    "Anything bothering you, Lin Xuan?" The college chief asked him. As Lin Xuan had been made a hallowed disciple, the college chief''s attitude towards him softened somewhat.


    Lin Xuan bowed slightly and said to Saint Li, "When the Nine State Forum was held, I was spending my time training in isolation in order to make a breakthrough. As such, it is my regret of having missed the event. However, I''m nonetheless fortunate to be able to see so many peers of my generation who had participated in the Nine State Forum here today. Furthermore, the champion of the event, Yu Sheng, is here. As such, I''d like to ask, if I may spar with him for a little bit."


    Many were baffled by Lin Xuan''s words. He had just been made a hallowed disciple and he went straight to challenging Yu Sheng; an act that barely concealed his arrogance beneath.


    "You shall ask Palace Lord Ye about that yourself," Saint Li smiled and said, not denying his request outright.


    Lin Xuan nodded and turned to face the side of the Barren State, asking, "Would I be given the honor to do so, Palace Lord Ye?"


    "It''s a rare opportunity today and there are many geniuses from holy lands around. It''d be quite a tale to tell if both of you are able to fight on this stage." An elder from the Yi clan smiled and said.


    Many turned their eyes at Ye Futian at that moment, even Yu Sheng turned around and looked as if he was asking for his opinion. Lin Xuan had only been made a hallowed disciple after all. If Yu Sheng were to simply act and beat him to a pulp, the consequences might have been dire.


    Ye Futian sensed the eyes around him and knew well that Lin Xuan was not the only one who wanted to see Yu Sheng, maybe even he himself, fight; many in the crowd probably shared Yu Sheng''s thoughts.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "If one were to be able to meet someone capable of verifying one''s way in cultivation, it would prove to be a helpful opportunity for growth after all. Yu Sheng, you may go."


    If everyone wants to see the show so badly, they shall have their wishes granted then.


    If Saint Li is able to give silent permission to such a request, then it''s only natural that he cares little of the outcome of the fight.


    Yu Sheng nodded and stepped forward, walking up to the stage and eyeing Lin Xuan. He then said, "Make your move then."


    Lin Xuan nodded and summoned a gust of terrifying current of rules about him. The sky above the stage changed. True dragons roamed, phoenixes danced, qilins howled, and the white tigers roared. It seemed as if Lin Xuan was able to take forms of a myriad of beasts.


    An extremely terrifying gleam was seen bursting from Lin Xuan''s eyes all of a sudden. He leapt into the air and came above Yu Sheng like a golden-winged roc. His arms seemed as if they were possessed by true dragons and in an instant, enormous demon dragon howls were heard as he shot below with claws clad in terrifying power of rules at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng looked up and took a look at Lin Xuan. An imposing aura burst from his body and stood his ground like a mountain. Terrifying demonic currents shot above and made him look incredibly regal, like a peerless devil.


    "Boom." The demon dragon shot down with lethal intent, seemingly aiming to tear Yu Sheng apart. However, a loud boom was heard as Yu Sheng''s body became clad with terrifying aura. He simply let the dragon come at him and penetrate his body.


    Many were startled to find that the demon dragon was slowly being devoured by Yu Sheng''s body, growing increasingly weak.


    Lin Xuan''s expression hardly changed. He shot beneath along the dragon''s body, with frightening killing light coursing about him. The white tiger coiled around his body as he brought his all-wrecking palm attack to bear.


    The huge white tiger''s body shot down with lethal intent, banging hard on Yu Sheng''s body, but still it failed to break Yu Sheng''s physical defense.


    Lin Xuan''s expression wavered somewhat, but at that moment, an imposing gleam was seen in Yu Sheng''s eyes as he held his arm high and launched a punch at the air. Lin Xuan dodged and shot up like a roc at blinding speeds.


    However, with that punch from Yu Sheng, came an incredibly powerful might, which seemed to have swallowed the space before him. Nothing was able to escape the punch''s power. The resulting aura was incredibly frightening.


    The demonic punch traveled through the air and landed hard on Lin Xuan''s body. An explosion was heard in the air and many saw Lin Xuan''s body flying even faster, heading for the edge of the stage before crashing down hard. He stood and looked pale.


    Blood was seen from Lin Xuan''s mouth as he grunted. He was thoroughly shuddered. He had always taken himself to be peerlessly talented, yet that punch he just took seemed to have shrouded the entire space around him. Its power was so immense that it seemed like it was able to break space itself.


    So that''s the prowess of the champion of the Nine State Forum then?


    Saint Li looked completely calm and hardly found that to be surprising. While he had indeed made Lin Xuan a hallowed disciple, but he were to be able to best the champion of the Nine State Forum just like that, the title of champion would have been worthless.


    Yu Sheng took a look at Lin Xuan with calm expression and then turned around to look at the crowd of the Yi clan. His eyes fell onto Yi Sheng and then said, "What level of training are you at?"


    Yi Sheng''s pupils dilated somewhat as he locked gazes with Yu Sheng. Is he trying to challenge me here?


    "Mid-level sage." Yi SHeng said coldly and added, "You want to challenge me?"


    "Challenge? You''re far from worthy of that." Yu Sheng then said plainly, "get out there in this instance."


    Yu Sheng''s words made many froze. It was apparent that Yi Sheng''s show of utter disrespect to Ye Futian early remained a thorn at Yu Sheng''s side.


    He intended to make that so-called genius from the Yi clan get out of there in shame!

 863 Yi Shengs Honor

    Many looked at Yi Sheng with amused looks. That genius from the Yi clan had verbally provoked Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian did not take him seriously and simply claimed that he was far from qualified.


    And now, the champion of the Nine State Forum asked for him to get out personally.


    Yu Sheng''s prowess and status made him far more eligible to do so.


    Yi Sheng was seen getting up. He looked nonchalant and unperturbed while doing so, yet his eyes were sharp and unforgiving. A sliver of formless aura expanded and his robe billowed as he walked out. A very sharp will was shot at the direction of the stage.


    Golden brilliance was seen gleaming from his body as soon as he took the first step. Searing fires danced about him as if he was burning under the hot sun. When Yi Sheng stepped up to the stage, his bearing was cranked to the extreme as terrifying currents washed about in his surroundings.


    A golden gleam was seen his eyes as if he was able to see through everything. He went on to lock Yu Sheng down right there and then, displaying his impressively powerful spiritual will.


    "The champion of the Nine State Forum?" Yi Sheng glared at Yu Sheng and continued with incredibly pointy words. "We''ll if this number one title of yours is worth anything."


    He extended his arms as soon as he finished talking. Currents of Worldly Rules coalesced between his hands and slivers of golden aura from within his body coalesced into a bow. Golden dragon boa seemed to be howling as dragon boa qi gathered and materialized into the bow string. Many were able to see that a golden dragon boa seemed to be baring its fangs at the bow between his hands, which was then shot out in a frenzied roar.


    The dragon boa made its presence known before the arrow was even shot. It brought its impressive might to bear while lashing out at Yu Sheng.


    Slivers of golden fiery aura permeated the air, as if the arrow was meant to tear through space and take down mountains, rivers, and even the sun.


    Yu Sheng stood firmly like a mountain. Demonic might circled around his body and expanded around the stage. The space seemed to be at the verge of being devoured by that very demonic might. It was a terribly imposing scene to behold. Yu Sheng seemed to have grown taller and even more imposing, as if he was possessed by a devil. The golden dragon boa was infused with terrifying offensive powers as it crashed onto Yu Sheng''s body. However, dark golden demonic currents seemed to have eroded the golden boa''s currents bit by bit like a black hole.


    "Devouring Rules?"


    Someone asked under their breath.


    "No, not Devouring Rules. Demonizing Rules. He displayed that before during the Nine State Forum," someone answered. It was a power that was even more imposing than Devouring Rules.


    Yi Sheng was seen bursting with greater brilliance. Countless golden boas danced and bared their fangs as they circled the bow and arrow. The resulting aura was frightening. Yi Sheng was being shrouded by the towering force, making him look like a god of archery.


    His eyes were incredibly sharp as his spiritual will was infused into the bow and arrow. The bowstring moved, the dragon boa howled and his surroundings trembled.


    A golden beam of light shot through the air and came right before its target. The golden dragon boa lashed out at full force, seemingly bringing the might of the heavens and earth to crush everything before it.


    Yu Sheng seemed to have hallucinated at the moment. The arrow did not only penetrate his physical body, but an arrow seemed to have formed in his spiritual will, seemingly out to destroy his will power. It felt terrifying.


    However, he simply remained standing where he was, unmoved as his incredibly frightening devil battle form materialized. Its huge palm lashed out, causing all who witnessed it to tremble. Is he trying to take on Yi Sheng''s Arrow of Destruction with his very own body?


    The arrows of the Yi clan were weapons capable of penetrating everything. Everything, regardless of physical body or spiritual will, were doomed to crumble as soon as the arrow was released. Few were capable of rivaling such might.


    However, Yu Sheng simply extended his hand to take the arrow.


    While there was no doubt about his status as the champion of the Nine State Forum and his body, tempered by the ways of the demons, was nigh-indestructible, many were still thinking nonetheless if he was overestimating himself, and had thought too little of Yi Sheng''s powers.


    "Boom."


    A loud boom was heard, reverberating in the minds of all within earshot. The arrow reached its target. An incredibly blinding beam seemed to have penetrated the battle form''s hand and tore through Yu Sheng''s body, as the might of the arrow was felt.


    However, that scene proved to be little more than an illusion of their expectations. A piercing, screeching noise was heard as the dragon boa howled in frenzy. That arrow, which supposedly was imbued with terrifying power of rules capable of penetrating everything, simply rubbed against the hand, incapable of breaking through. Furthermore, the arrow''s golden light seemed to gradually dim, until the arrow disintegrated into dots of light.


    "Some power indeed."


    Many shuddered at the scene.


    Yi Sheng''s expression flinched slightly. Currents of greater might coalesced but at that very moment, Yu Sheng was seen stepping forward.


    "Boom."


    The stage shook and the step''s might rang within Yi Sheng''s mind. He felt incredibly terrifying power of the great rules throwing its weight about his surrounding, shrouding his body and omnipresent.


    "What kind of power is this?" Distress welled within Yi Sheng''s heart. Yu Sheng''s impossible might seemed to have thoroughly exceeded his expectations.


    He was not the only one who felt shocked, as even his seniors were shocked at what had transpired.


    The very reason why Saint Li had not stop Lin Xuan from challenging Yu Sheng, was because he wanted to see if the champion of the Nine State Forum truly deserved his title, and how far said champion would have been able to go. There was no way the saint would have expected Lin Xuan to be able to defeat Yu Sheng right there and then.


    Lin Xuan failed to do so and Yi Sheng fell short as well. While he was a genius hailing from the Yi clan, but there were still a handful from the clan who were capable of overpowering Yi Sheng. If he was indeed capable of defeating Yu Sheng, the title of champion would have been far less worthy than he had expected from what was told in the rumors.


    However, it was common for geniuses training in the holy lands to have faith reaching the skies in themselves. There was simply no way for Yi Sheng to know where he stood if he were to not be put in his place in such a manner.


    "Boom." Yet another step was taken. Yi Sheng felt his heart was trembling and his veins howling. His spiritual will was completely overpowered by then. The figure that stood in front of him was no longer a junior of the younger generations, but a devil of unparalleled might. It was a being that hailed straight from ancient battlefields, bringing all-encompassing, invincible demonic might to bear on everything around it.


    Yi Sheng never felt such power emanating from any of his peers and was never overpowered in the realm of martial will. Even the most powerful few from his clan were probably unable to bring that much to bear, if they were to be at the same plane as he was.


    Many from the Yi clan frowned at that moment. The elder generations looked sharp. None of them stepped out to stop Yi Sheng when he provoked Ye Futian, and they shared Saint Li''s intentions in their inaction��they wanted Yi Sheng to test for himself. If he was able to win, then his opponent would have been wholly undeserving of the lauded title; if he were to lose, it would have enabled Yi Sheng to learn his lesson.


    However, they all felt at the moment that Yu Sheng''s powers might have exceeded their expectations. It seemed that those who had attended the Nine State Forum event before were truthful with their words. Yu Sheng was indeed a genius like no other, and one that was hard to come by in generations.


    "Yi Sheng''s spiritual will seemed to have been completely suppressed by his opponent," some mighty ones from the Yi clan siad. They felt Yu Sheng''s aura to be very imposing. However, they were not standing in Yi Sheng''s shoes, and thus were unable to actually sense how powerful that fearsome might was.


    "Boom."


    Yet another step was taken, and Yi Sheng felt his mind to have been completely shaken. The hands that grasped the bow and arrow wavered. His undoubted belief of victory was gradually being gnawed away.


    The wavering of faith in himself made Yi Sheng feel completely ashamed. There were many legendary figures hailing from his clan. While he was far from being the most brilliant example, he nonetheless had few rivals among his peers and was quite prestigious in the Summer State. He had beaten a good number of geniuses before, yet his mind actually wavered before the result was even determined. He deemed it to be unforgivable.


    His eyes turned incredibly determined at that thought. The golden dragon boas howled as they were shot out. The arrow streaked through the air yet again. Beams of light tore through the space as they lashed out at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng''s pitch black eyes seemed to have harbored a devil within. His expression was incredibly cold as he took a look at Yi Sheng. If your mind and faith are still intact, then I would simply tear everything apart and leave nothing behind.


    Yu Sheng lifted his arm and clenched his fist hard. His surrounding space seemed to have been put into lockdown by that imposing might. Yi Sheng felt as if he was looking at devils when he looked into Yu Sheng''s eyes, with full intent of bringing down the sky on them. A demon lord seemed to be reigning over the devils within those eyes, who demanded all beneath to worship and submit unconditionally to it.


    Yi Sheng had no idea why he was seeing a scene like that. It might have something to do with the methods he was training with. However, the methods that the Yi clan trained in were just as powerful and imposing, yet he was unable to fathom why Yu Sheng''s methods alone were able to achieve such sky-reaching might, a might that seemed to have demanded everything in existence to submit to said demon lord within.


    Yu Sheng punched and tore through the space before him. The arrow disintegrated right there and then. Yi Sheng felt as if his chest was being punctured. His body rattled violently and then dropped like a duckweed with its roots severed. Blood spluttered from his mouth and the scene was harrowing.


    Yi Sheng was unable to even withstand one punch from Yu Sheng. His challenge rendered completely meaningless.


    The vast space around them turned completely silent. Everyone was finally able to see the champion of the Nine State Forum fight. They wanted to see how capable those who emerged from that year''s Nine State Forum were, and they got their wish fulfilled right there and then.


    The champion was invincible.


    Ye Futian sat solemnly on the throne below the Barren State symbol as he stared at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng''s prowess at the demonic powers which he trained in, turned even more imposing after he broke into Sage Plane. It was as Ye Futian had expected. The further Yu Sheng went and the higher his plane became, the more apparent of the fearsome might of the demonic methods became. The force that he brought to bear grew increasingly powerful as well/


    But then again, that had a lot to do with the methods that he trained with. It was how all methods and techniques worked. Regardless of how powerful and impossible a certain method inherently was, it had little to bring to the table during initial stages. The force exuding from such methods was what one was able to tell the difference in power with.


    The higher one''s plane became, the more destructive one''s powers became, and it was only natural that one''s display of might became more fearsome as a result. The pain and suffering that Yu Sheng had endured all those years from training in the demonic methods, were all displayed in the powers he brought to his fights.


    Yu Sheng took another step on the stage and took to the air. He then came down and stepped on Yi Sheng''s body. The force was so frightening that the floor caved in, yet Yu Sheng did not stop there.


    Yi Sheng''s body shuddered as he spit out blood again. He felt incredibly helpless before the imposing figure who was stepping on him. His pride, confidence and dignity, were crushed to the ground before the eyes of everyone around the stage.


    Yu Sheng stood imposingly over Yi Sheng with uncaring, cold eyes and said, "You think you''re qualified to ask for a fight from him?"


    Many shuddered as they knew what Yu Sheng meant with those words.


    Yi Sheng had said that Ye Futian was far less qualified to teach him anything.


    Yu Sheng was telling Yi Sheng with his actions, who was the one who was unqualified there.


    Yi Sheng was nothing.


    There were many mighty ones from Yi clan who frowned and some commented, "Palace Lord Ye, I think your people had gone too far here."


    They did not stop Yi Sheng from provoking Ye Futian and did not mind Yi Sheng emerging as the loser. However, Yi Sheng ended up worse than losing the fight. Yu Sheng was destroying Yi Sheng''s mind and crushing his beliefs. It was a worse fate than losing a fight to most cultivators.


    Ye Futian looked at the mighty ones from Yi clan with calm eyes and he looked hardly fettered.


    While Yu Sheng had indeed been a little too much on the brutal side, but he did not stop him, just like how the ones from Yi clan did not stop Yi Sheng.


    If all from the nine states wanted to see how powerful the champion was, then they shall have their wish fulfilled.


    It was just as how Huang Xi put it. What they were doing was to create a new era. If one were to be simply be unconditionally patient and humble throughout the entire process of doing so, it would have simply showed others that they were pushovers. Only with true might and determined blood, would they have been able to shock the titans. The sacred war with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had erupted in such a background after all.


    There was first Zhisheng Cliffs and then the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. If a true sacred war were to not be fought, they would have been other people and holy lands coming out to ask for trouble.


    If the Barren State were to stand, then there was no doubt that some holy lands needed to fall.


    If there were to be anyone who intended to step on them to achieve their goals, then they shall be stepped on in turn.


    "Yu Sheng''s temper is indeed a little much and he has indeed gone a little too far. For that, I ask for your forgiveness." Ye Futian smiled at the mighty ones from Yi clan and added plainly, "But then again, it was Yi Sheng who had been disrespectful to me at first. I never wanted further quarrel with him, but if he insisted in his provocations nonetheless, and he only did so because he wanted a fight. I would consider Yu Sheng fulfilling his wish here, and teach him a lesson while Yu Sheng is at it as well. I said before that Yu Sheng was more than just the champion of the Nine State Forum; he would have reigned supreme in such competitions in any era. However, Yi Sheng seemed to have overestimated his own capabilities despite being mediocre. I''d say that it was his honor to have been able to fight Yu Sheng."


    The eyes of many froze as Ye Futian finished talking.


    Yi Sheng had been thoroughly humiliated through his crushing defeat at Yu Sheng''s hands, yet Ye Futian called it to be Yi Sheng''s honor instead!

 864 Suppress the Proud Son of Heaven of the Yi Clan

    His skill was slightly considerable?


    The foot stepped down, crushing Yi Sheng into the ground. The sound of bones breaking was clearly audible. It was definitely a serious injury. And his skill was only slightly considerable? His natural talents were merely average?


    The Yi clan was in the Summer State, the strongest of the Nine States. Their profound lore had been passed down for many years. There were many influential figures within the Yi clan, and Yi Sheng stood out among them. He was even famous among the youths of the Nine States. And his natural talents were merely average?


    Puff! Yi Sheng spat out a mouthful of blood as he lay on the ground, feeling only pain. This battle was too embarrassing for him.


    Ye Futian''s carefree words had left him no place to stand. From now on, when the common people thought of Yu Sheng, who ranked number one on the Nine States Forum, they would think of this battle.


    Yu Sheng stepped on him, bringing his reputation from the Eastern State''s Nine States Forum to the Summer State.


    "This is how Lord Ye disciplines his disciples?" One of the Yi clan sneered. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng wanted to destroy the Proud Son of Heaven of the Yi clan, Yi Sheng.


    Ye Futian glanced at the person who had just spoken. Before, Yi Sheng had challenged him and the people of the Yi clan had not opened their mouths, indulging his impudence. Naturally, he knew what the Yi clan were thinking: victory would prove the name of the Proud Son of Heaven of the Yi clan. Trampling him would make a name for him. Defeat would mean they would learn from each other, which would temper their Proud Son of Heaven.


    If it was like the Nine States College, Sage Liuyun would declare a sparring session. He did not mind, but Yi Sheng had deliberately provoked him, sowing discord between him and the Nine States College and ruining Little Butterfly''s reputation.


    Could defeat really just be taken as a lesson?


    Before they had said nothing, but now they stood up to criticize him?


    Ye Futian stared at the man who had spoken. Before he could say anything, beside him Sage Douzhan spoke coldly and arrogantly, "Since when have you had the right to comment on how my Palace Lord disciplines his disciples? You Yi clan and Yi Sheng were insolent to the Palace Lord, and now you''ve all shut up and pretend to be deaf and dumb. Since you won''t do it, we''ll have to be the ones to teach him how to be a man."


    The man who had spoken''s face went cold. Now Douzhan was about to pass through the catastrophe. He could become a Saint, or he could lose his life. But in either case as both an elder of the holy land and someone preparing to be a Saint, he was, of course, qualified to question him.


    At the moment the crowd was silent. No one had thought that the Barren State, which had already faced a crisis, would fight the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. But facing the Yi clan showed their strong side.


    This subverted many people''s intrinsic ideas. They believed that the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State was too shallow. How could they dare to compete with the Yi clan in the holy land of the Summer State, especially since they already had a great enemy?


    Even though many people in Nine States College were slightly uneasy, Ye Futian and his people were not like they had been that time at the college.


    Before, Ye Futian had been a guest at the college and had asked for help. Now he sat upon a throne, was a Palace Lord, and represented the entire Barren State.


    Heroes of the Barren State like Huang Xi, You Chi, and others fought and shed blood, and did not hesitate to sacrifice their lives. Why?


    In order to witness a different era, in order to see the rise of the Barren State, instead of letting other holy lands bully them.


    The proud son of heaven of a holy land dared humiliate and provoke the Lord of a holy land.


    "Yi Sheng has been defeated. His skill was not good enough. But my disciples of the Yi clan will not bother those from the Holy Zhi Palace to teach them." A heroic figure stood up and walked out. Suddenly the wind and clouds surged, and his body was covered in radiance. The will of the laws of heaven and earth flowed, wrapping around his body as he moved towards the platform.


    "I, Yi Kong of the Yi clan, thank you for this demonstration of power." He stepped across the void in a single step and descended upon the platform. The mighty airflow covered the sky, and the laws turned into law power. A golden dragon roared into the sky, and thousands of arrows came into being at once.


    A golden bow appeared before him.


    "Yi Kong." Many eyes gazed at the brilliant figure who stood proudly upon the platform. In the last period, he had been the third-ranked person in the Nine State Forum. The only people ranked above him had been Tong He of Nine State College and one of the supernatural talents of the Xia clan.


    Now Yi Kong was a lower-level Sage and had already reached the second level of the Sage Plane. Although he was not as good as Tong He, his speed of advancing through the planes was unparalleled.


    Yu Sheng looked up at Yi Kong and saw him pulling the bowstring. In a flash, all the bowstrings that appeared in the sky trembled at once, and a terrible shocking force swept out and pressed down on Yu Sheng.


    Twang! A sound rang out as the bowstrings trembled. A great deal of power gathered together into a ray of light. It arced across the sun and pierced through the void. As he felt its power, Yu Sheng''s power became monstrous. His Buddha pure body was like a demon and was indestructible.


    A burst of sound rang out. The magnificent brilliance shot towards Yu Sheng without the slightest deviation, and all the power fell upon him. None of it was lost on the way and it thereby spread down to Yi Sheng.


    Yu Sheng only felt a horrible shock on his body, driving him back. In a flash, his body seemed to have born thousands of shock attacks, and cracks appeared on it, and then it collapsed.


    Boom! Yu Sheng''s foot fell once again. He had retreated 100 meters, and the power of the arrows dissipated.


    Yi Kong floated down and gave Yi Sheng to the cultivators of the Yi clan. Then he looked at Yu Sheng once again.


    Yu Sheng held his fists together, and then an even wilder force swept out. Even though his opponent was on the Sage plane, he was still not afraid of him at all. He wanted to challenge him face to face.


    "The gap between you and me is quite large." Yi Sheng dusted off his sleeves and looked at the stone tablet upon the platform. "Lord Ye, how is your cultivation coming along?"


    Ye Futian looked at Yi Kong and then saw that Yu Sheng wanted to fight again. "Yu Sheng," he said.


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian and only saw him nod slightly. Ye Futian then looked at the person in front of him and said, "Ying."


    Ying looked back at Ye Futian with eyes shining with stubbornness. Although he had followed the rest of Tombkeeper Village into the palace, that didn''t mean that he would surrender to Ye Futian and obey his orders. He had come just because his teacher was there. Qin Zhuang was his master, and the Village Chief had also taught him.


    "Go," Ye Futian said indifferently. He looked into his eyes. At that moment, as Ye Futian sat on the throne, his talent was revealed. Ying only felt a powerful aura emanating. He was like a mountain and like an emperor. There was no refusing him.


    "Let me see your pride," said Ye Futian, and he continued to look forward.


    Ying looked deeply at Ye Futian, but he still got up and turned around. When he saw Yi Kong, his stubborn eyes flashed.


    Since he wanted to see it, let him see his pride. Ying was the most talented cultivator from Tombkeeper Village beside Yaya. This was recognized by the Village Chief.


    Ying stepped onto the platform and the gold feathered roc appeared. It wrapped around him and golden light pierced everyone''s eyes. A terrible spatial storm swept out, and it was extremely sharp. In a flash, Yi Kong felt bursts of pressure. He looked into Ying''s eyes which had suddenly become imposing.


    He felt the power of space laws. This person was very strong.


    The power of the laws of heaven and earth roared, resonated, and transformed into bows and arrows. The bowstrings trembled. Countless bows clanked around Yi Kong''s body. They were ready for action after having accumulated power.


    Ying''s figure disappeared from where it had been. Yi Kong frowned. He slapped at the void without hesitation, and the bows around him trembled. A burst of shocking rule power swept out, trying to shatter everything in that space.


    Ying suddenly appeared close to him, as if he had been suppressed by that terrible shocking rule power. His hand shot forward and seemed to turn into a real golden roc which tore through the air. An incomparably brilliant radiance bloomed, and Ying''s body spiraled upwards. He spread his wings and soared.


    Yi Kong''s expression was unchanged and he continued to wave his hands. His mighty rule power covered the sky and countless arrows crossed through the void, shooting towards Ying. Each arrow contained terrible penetrating power and shocking power.


    The golden-winged roc crossed the void like a golden afterimage. Suddenly it disappeared. The next time it appeared, it was directly above Yi Kong''s head, and it swooped down, trying to split the space apart.


    Yi Kong''s life spirit turned into a bow and arrow, and the bowstring was drawn back in an instant. A dazzling brilliance shot through everything, and all the arrows followed it. His archery annihilated everything. Everything in the void was destroyed.


    But then a giant golden sword appeared in front of the roc. It was shaped like a golden roc and was divided into nine parts. The sword sliced down, colliding with Yi Kong''s attack.


    The dazzling brilliance made it difficult for people to see the battle, but they all had one thought in their mind: these two were very strong, both Yi Kong, and Ying of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Had the Holy Zhi Palace really grown this powerful? Any one of their cultivators chosen at random were at the top of their generation and could be at the top of the rankings of the Nine States.


    Both of them attacked with everything they had. They collided countless times in an instant. Another dazzling radiance spiraled into the air as the golden roc shot across the void once again. It pierced through the destructive rule power of the arrows and shot towards Yi Kong. The sword and the bow collided. They both shook as the roc''s claws continued forward without any hesitation, hitting Yi Kong''s body.


    There was a cutting sound and blood burst forth. Yi Kong''s body flew backward, and his clothing was torn. Blood spurted out, it was truly a terrible sight. The golden light spiraled up into the air and the roc turned back into Ying. He cast a cold glance at Yi Kong, then spread his wings and flew back to the crowd of people from the Holy Zhi Palace, landing back in his seat.


    Yi Kong of the Yi clan had come out and repelled Yu Sheng.


    And then Ying had appeared and defeated him once again.


    Two great proud sons of heaven of the Yi clan had been defeated that day. They had been suppressed by the powers of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Even though their foundations were deep, because Yi Sheng had looked down on the Barren State and provoked the Palace Lord, they had suffered a terrible defeat.


    Ye Futian still sat on his throne, looking quite normal. The Holy Zhi Palace still lacked some depth, but some of the people that they did have were top talents.


    In time, the disciples of the Barren State would rebuke the Nine States. By then a single wave of his sleeve would be enough to move the wind and clouds of the Nine States!

 865 Train Together

    Yi Kong stood upon the platform, as unmoving as a statue.


    The wind blew upon his wounds, making him feel cold.


    He had come out strong, only to be defeated by some no-name from the Barren State.


    Before this, no one had heard the name Ying before.


    However, his opponent could control many kinds of rule powers. He had a lot of power, as he had personally experienced. His defeat was not unfair. Just he had said of Yi Sheng before, he was simply not good enough.


    Countless gazes were fixed on Yi Kong as he stood there unmoving. The Summer State was the strongest of the Nine States. The four top holy land forces of the Summer State were all in the top ten of the Nine States.


    The Yi clan was the same way.


    But today, when the Yi clan fought the Holy Zhi Palace, they had lost twice.


    Many people looked at Ying again. His name would soon be well known.


    Ying, a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State.


    It could truly be said that this time, the Yi clan had hurt their own reputation. Both battles had been open and aboveboard, and they had been directly suppressed. What could they complain about?


    At this time, several figures descended quietly and landed in front of Ye Futian. It was the Village Chief, Qin Zhuang, and the others who had returned. They had escorted You Chi and the others to the Herb Garden and had just gotten back. They noticed that the atmosphere was a bit strange.


    "Did Saint Jiang''s senior promise to help?" Ye Futian did not look at Yi Kong anymore as he questioned the Village Chief. Little Butterfly and the Undying Old Man had not come back. They were probably in the Herb Garden looking after the wounded.


    "Yeah." The Village Elder nodded slightly, and Ye Futian relaxed. If Saint Jiang got involved, even if he got seriously injured again, he could be saved.


    Saint Jiang was a Saint. The power of the Divine Path to heal Sages naturally did not need to be mentioned.


    Many people heard the conversation between Ye Futian and the Village Chief. Although it was a simple inquiry, they all knew what Saint Jiang''s attitude was like. He had already promised to treat him. With Saint Jiang''s habit of not asking about outside affairs too much, it was only because he admired Ye Futian a little bit that he had agreed to help. Otherwise, Saint Jiang had no need to show compassion to anyone.


    The Holy Zhi Palace, which had once been neglected and looked down upon, had quietly risen and entered the field of vision of the people of the NIne States. It was even possible to say that them sitting on an equal level with any of the other holy lands was not blasphemy.


    "You still haven''t withdrawn." A voice came towards Yi Kong, who still stood on the platform.


    Yi Kong trembled when he heard this voice. Even when he turned back to where the Yi clan was, he still did not calm down. After this battle, he would make a thorough inspection of his cultivation.


    "I had heard that the Barren State was number one in the Nine State Forum, with the most overall strength. I see now that this reputation was well deserved. Yi Sheng was wildly arrogant and provoked Lord Ye. Lord Ye''s man taught him a lesson, as he should." The voice came out from the Yi clan once again, making everyone look uneasy.


    The one who would dare to speak like this was naturally an important figure in the Yi clan. It was the one who was generally acknowledged as the number one of the young generation��Yi Yang.


    In his time, Yi yang had defeated countless talents in the Summer State. There were only a few people of the same generation who were as revered as him. One example was Lin Shubai, a contender to succeed the president of Nine State College.


    The two of them were of the same generation.


    Yi Yang was now on the Sage Plane. However, most people would not have thought that Yi Yang of the Yi clan would stand before Ye Futian and admit Yi Sheng''s fault.


    Ye Futian also wore a different expression. He looked at Yi Yang. The Yi clan''s attitude had changed. What was this man''s intent?


    "In the land of the Nine States, the Barren State was quite weak and its name was almost expunged from the lists. However, ever since Lord Ye burst onto the scene, the power of the Barren State has been revealed. His name is known throughout the Nine States, and he commands the wind and clouds with a wave of his hand. Now that Lord Ye has come to the Summer State, many people, including my disciples of the Yi clan, are very curious about what kind of person Lord Ye is." Yi Yang continued, "At the Nine State Forum, you instructed the Prince of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Zhou Ya, and at Nine State College you defeated the disciple Duan Qinghe. You have only personally gotten involved a few times, but every time you have, it has been astonishing. Now all of us from the Summer State happen to be here at just the right time. There are countless refined and tasteful characters here, and presumably, they all want to see on the Noble Plane what level is this Lord Ye who has risen to become the leader of the Barren State''s talent at."


    Yi Yang had unintentionally said what many people had held in their hearts. Many people of refinement had come from the four holy lands, but Ye Futian had not revealed his skill. Yu Sheng and then Ying had defeated the proud sons of heaven.


    Ye Futian, the true ruler of the Barren State, was not even 30. How strong was he really? How did he compare to the top talents of the four great holy lands?


    When Yi Yang finished speaking, many powerful figures looked at Ye Futian. They indeed wanted him to show his skills.


    "What do you all think?" Yi Yang looked indifferently at the people from the various holy lands.


    Obviously, it hadn''t been Yi Yang who had gotten tangled up with Ye Futian, because it had been Yi Sheng who had been unreasonable at first. And since he had lost both battles, what was there to say?


    Now he wanted to see what kind of person this Palace Lord who had revealed his talents was.


    As Yi Yang finished speaking, he saw a figure from the direction of Nine State College say, "When Lord Ye descended upon the college, I was practicing outside, and so I missed that sparring match. If I have the opportunity today I would like to spar with him."


    Many people looked towards Nine State College. The speaker was a hallowed disciple of the divine path of the college, Su He. Although he was only on the Sage Plane, his reputation was great. The people of Nine State College said that besides Tong He and Lin Shubai, Su He was the most talented in the college. And if he advanced just a little, he would have a chance to compete with Tong He.


    One could see Su He''s talent by the fact that Duan Qinghe, who Ye Futian had defeated, was weaker than him.


    "When cultivating the Great Path, to have an opponent of the same generation can be regarded as quite lucky," another voice rang out. Many people looked towards the Summer State. A peerless proud son of heaven was the one speaking. He was clearly also interested in Ye Futian.


    "Xia Hong would also like to fight with Ye Futian."


    Everyone''s heart skipped a beat. Xia Hong was famous when he was on the Noble Plane. The Xia Clan had high hopes for him, and he had not disappointed them. He had never met an enemy at the same level as him and lost. Now he was also on the Sage Plane. Otherwise, he would not have spoken.


    Today these people all wanted to show their strength on the same stage.


    "If I have a chance, I''d like to learn from Lord Ye''s power as well." A cultivator spoke from the direction of the Yue Clan. Everyone looked at him and felt only a bit of numbness. He was also an extraordinary figure. Of course, would someone who was not an extraordinary figure who wanted to spar with Ye Futian have the courage to speak up? Even these top talents would have difficulty achieving victory against Ye Futian. But even so, they wanted to fight, no matter if they won or lost.


    People''s hearts were beating fast. They had thought today Nine States College would call its disciples to fight. In addition, it was possible that Sage Douzhan of the Barren State would break through the Divine Catastrophe, and therefore all eyes were fixed on Nine State City.


    But no one had thought that before this there would be an astonishing interlude.


    "Does everyone want me to show my hand so badly?" Ye Futian saw a line of figures walking out of the crowd. He was ready to make trouble, but he still sat in his throne. He swept his gaze over all of them.


    Their words were putting pressure on him.


    No one said anything, they just walked towards the battle platform. There was nothing that could be said.


    Looking at those extremely famous figures, those surrounding the platform began to breathe rapidly. It seemed that they would force Ye Futian to fight.


    They''re here, Ye Futian. Are you going to fight?


    An invisible pressure descended upon the Barren State''s place.


    The disciples of the Barren State looked cold and detached, and really quite impressive. They could naturally see that the cultivators from the various holy lands were putting pressure on Ye Futian with their challenges.


    But Ye Futian still smiled with his eyes, his expression as light as the breeze. He got up slowly and stepped forward, and everyone''s eyes moved with him. His every step seemed to touch people''s hearts.


    Would the legendary Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace fight?


    Looking at the powerful figures on the platform, even a legendary Palace Lord might feel a bit uneasy.


    Ye Futian walked out step by step and then stepped on the platform. He looked around at the warriors from the holy lands and slowly said, "Although I am of the same generation as you all, I am the Palace Lord of a holy land. That makes me a higher rank than you. If I were to fight you, it would be like the strong bullying the weak. Thus, anyone who wants to train can step out. Today, we will all train together."


    Everyone was shocked by his words. He would face them all alone.


    They looked at that proud figure that had left the world of men. He seemed to be saying that of everyone in his generation in the vast land of the Nine States, he stood on his own level. Everyone else was on a different level!

 866 Admirable Spiri

    At that moment, on the battle platform, Ye Futian stood alone in one corner while the other holy lands'' geniuses stood in another corner, all staring at him. Ye Futian''s words had not been wrong. They were born in the same generation, but from their statuses, Ye Futian was a Palace Lord, so he was naturally their senior. As such, it was only to be expected that Ye Futian would not stoop down to battle with them.


    It would be demeaning to him.


    However, Ye Futian had proudly claimed that he would teach the geniuses today. That way, he could display the dignity of a holy land''s leader. However, from the holy lands'' geniuses perspectives, it was a display of insufferable arrogance!


    Xia Hong, the Xia Clan''s elite genius.


    Su He, the Nine State College''s hallowed disciple.


    Yue Yunsheng, a peerless figure from the Yue Clan. His Great Path sealing rule power was matchless and had sealed off many geniuses from the same generation in the past, rendering them powerless.


    Yi Xing, a Sage Plane genius, also stepped out from the Yi Clan. He was also a figurehead of the Yi Clan''s younger generation.


    Any one of these people would be enough to shake up a region. However, Ye Futian would spar with all of them by himself.


    As the strongest State in the Nine States, the Summer State''s four holy lands all had one representative step out and stand before Ye Futian.


    "Who else is there?" Ye Futian looked around at the people from the various holy lands and said nonchalantly, "I have already said, since you want to see me in action, I will spar with you all at once. However, this is the last chance. I do not want to see anyone come forward after this battle." He would not bother to further partake in the Summer State''s geniuses'' charades.


    "The four of them represent the Summer State''s four holy lands'' strongest Sages. There is no need for anyone else," an expert from the Xia Clan said. Everyone nodded their heads in agreement, the four geniuses were enough to represent them. If Ye Futian could crush them, even if they sent people with higher cultivation levels into battle, it would just be the holy lands bullying him.


    "Who does Palace Lord Ye wish to challenge first?" The Xia Clan''s genius Xia Hong looked at Ye Futian and asked. His shirt puffed up as his aura was imposing.


    Ye Futian looked casually at Xia Hong and replied, "Since I started cultivating, I have been undefeated not just in my own cultivation level but even one level higher. Now that I am an upper-level Sage, it would be too much of a handicap to challenge Sages one by one. Previously, I said that I will take you all on together, don''t worry too much about the result."


    The surrounding crowd all held their breaths in anticipation. Ye Futian was going to challenge all four geniuses from the holy lands by himself. What made them speechless was the confidence in his voice. Undefeated even by cultivators one level higher and not worrying about the result.


    He was hinting the four geniuses that even the four of them together stood no chance. He would teach them today that the outcome was already predetermined and they need not take it to heart.


    Their reputations all preceded them. As geniuses that dominated their generation, they were hard-pressed to even find an opponent. Even by standing there, they could stir the hearts of countless people. However, in Ye Futian''s eyes, geniuses in the same generation were not even worthy of his attention.


    No matter how unparalleled and dominant over their generation they were in the Summer State, they were all not worth mentioning before the Holy Zhi Palace Lord.


    He himself was the pinnacle. No person in his generation could stand alongside him.


    How many people in the Nine States could have the same pride that he had?


    "Since Palace Lord Ye put it this way, there is no need for you all to be held down by your statuses. Go forth and unleash your greatest strength," Saint Li also said calmly. As the leader of a holy land, Yu Sheng, Ying, and many other extraordinary figures were willing to take orders from him. The Barren State''s will was united and even the Saint Plane Tombkeeper Village Chief was willing to follow by his side.


    It was a given that he was matchless in the Barren State. Even within his generation, he would be hard-pressed to find an opponent in the Nine States.


    Since Ye Futian was already an upper-level Sage, one person was probably not enough to deal with him.


    Although the four geniuses were unhappy, feeling the pride emitting from Ye Futian, they understood that they could not afford to underestimate him. The person before them was likely the strongest person on the same plane they would ever meet.


    Wisps of threatening aura erupted as the Yi Clan''s Yi Xing released his Life Spirit. Countless arrows appeared before him and a terrifying aura locked onto Ye Futian.


    Before this, the Yi Clan had lost both battles, so he could not afford to take this battle lightly. Golden dragon boas coiled around the bows like real-blooded dragons, and the entire area turned golden. As the bows vibrated, the arrows shot through the air and the dragon arrows tore through everything, rushing towards Ye Futian. The golden dragon boas bared their sharp teeth and attempted to swallow Ye Futian in one gulp.


    Around Ye Futian, wisps of light flowed like Starry Brilliance. The golden dragon boas reached him in an instant, their giant bodies swallowing him up. However, Ye Futian stood their calmly as though he did not see anything.


    With a thunderous sound, the arrows shot through the air onto Ye Futian''s body, the dragon boas drowning out his body. Many people''s hearts pounded furiously, did he just withstand it with his body?


    Was he out of his mind?


    Although they knew that Ye Futian was very strong, underestimating Yi Xing this much was being too overconfident.


    The destructive rule power overwhelmed Ye Futian in an instant. However, at that moment, there was light flowing around his body, and every part of his body contained a terrifying force, resisting the invasion of the rule power. It caused the rule power within his body to dissipate into nothingness, just like the time when he had tested medicine.


    A blinding light emitted as the arrows disappeared along with the golden dragon boas. In the brilliant golden light, a figure continued to stand silently with a glow around his body, looking like a God.


    Ye Futian originally cultivated in body-enhancement techniques and his body was already extremely strong. In the 81 days of testing medicine, he had gone through nine rites of passage and each time, a different force tempered his body. His bone, flesh and every atom in his body had been activated and contained extremely strong resistance and recovery abilities.


    Now, with his body, it was difficult for anyone to stand up to him in the same cultivation level. There was probably only one person in the Nine States who was his equal in physique and that person would never battle against him.


    "If the three of you don''t strike now, you won''t have another chance." Ye Futian looked at the other three geniuses and said indifferently.


    Around the battle platform, countless people were astonished. Was he really that strong? He had fended off Yi Xing''s attacks with his body and completely ignored them.


    The other three experts were also shocked, but they were not shaken. As the elites of their holy land, their frame of mind was naturally very firm.


    The stronger Ye Futian was, the more meaningful this battle would be.


    The Yue Clan''s expert Yue Yunsheng stepped forward and looked towards Ye Futian. In an instant, Ye Futian felt the scenery around him change and everything in the world seemed to be flowing. Boundless Spiritual Qi gathered and roared at him while five elemental gods of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth appeared in the five major directions, surrounding him. In an instant, Ye Futian felt the Spiritual Qi around him being drained while a layer of frost covered the earth, giant mountains crashed down on him and golden pillars trapped him in.


    "The five elements sealing techniques." The crowd was all in dismay as they mumbled. The area that Ye Futian was trapped in looked like an apocalypse as all forces were sealed within it.


    Yue Yunsheng was already able to use the Yue Clan''s sealing techniques to such a terrifying extent. Not just that, but Ye Futian also felt the use of Eye Sorcery as the same image appeared in his brain. The opponent was attempting to seal his Spiritual Energy as well.


    A terrifying storm appeared in his eyes as though there was a thunder raid going on. It pierced through the air and Yue Yunsheng''s Spiritual Will was uneasy, and his eyes looked as though they were about to be swallowed by Ye Futian''s eyes. He retracted his strength and did not continue using his Will to attack.


    Ye Futian clenched his fists and the light around his body flowed. The area around him started to slow down, as though everything was about to come to a halt. He stretched out his arm and clenched his fist. Instantly, a tremendous pressure swept in front of him and without hesitation, Ye Futian punched out into the air.


    The Great Path''s rule power fist fired in an arc and every atom of light turned into a Starry fist, heading towards every corner of the sealed area. The heavens trembled as the space exploded and everything turned to dust.


    At that moment, the Xia Clan''s expert Xia Hong stepped forward with pure-blooded dragons surrounding him. He stretched out his arm and grabbed into the air. In an instant, a domineering Attracting rule power latched onto Ye Futian.


    The golden dragon rushed towards Ye Futian, tearing through the air.


    Ye Futian looked coldly at Xia Hong and did not resist the Attraction rule power, allowing it to attract him and travel at rapid speeds towards Xia Hong. Seeing the divine dragon bellowing towards him, he struck out with his fist and the dragon''s body shattered while the divine aurora from the fist continued to head towards Xia Hong.


    Xia Hong''s expression paled as a Repelling rule power erupted, keeping Ye Futian at bay. At the same time, Yi Xing''s arrows shot through the air again. The geniuses had finally started to attack together.


    In an instant, the entire area fell to a halt. The arrows became exceptionally slow and Ye Futian''s left hand stretched out towards Yi Xing. Clenching his hand, the arrows were all buried within his Starry Brilliance.


    His right hand changed direction and moved towards the sealed area. It crashed into one of his stars and a huge explosion happened in the air. A figure was sent flying by the impact, spurting out blood. It was Yi Xing.


    Turning around, Ye Futian looked at the other three experts and they were all standing in one place. Seeing this, Ye Futian stepped forward and an invisible pressure engulfed the area.


    "Imprison," Xia Hong said coldly. The Attracting and Repelling rule powers erupted at the same time on Ye Futian''s body. In that instant, Ye Futian felt his body being imprisoned and found it hard to even move.


    At the same time, the hallowed disciple Su He let out a formidable glow from his eyes. Ye Futian felt a God-like figure standing before him, putting immense pressure on him and trying to stop his movements. It was a Spiritual attack.


    Yue Yunsheng''s sealing techniques activated once again and sealed off the area Ye Futian was in. The three experts had struck at the same time to keep Ye Futian rooted to his location.


    Ye Futian was too overbearing. His physique and offensive ability were all matchless.


    However, at that moment, a blinding light shot out from Ye Futian''s eyes and he looked towards the three of them. In an instant, they felt as though a god had appeared in their heads. It was dignified, tall and arrogant. They needed to prostrate themselves as though they were facing an emperor.


    A terrifying Spiritual Will attack rushed into their heads and clashed with their Spiritual Wills, causing their expressions to pale. Next, Ye Futian, who was supposed to be frozen in place stepped forward. Just that one step was enough to cause their hearts to pound furiously.


    Ye Futian continued stepping forward and the three of them felt an immense pressure crushing down on them.


    "In the Nine States, heroes are born in every generation and geniuses are aplenty. Every generation has its figures that are famous throughout the world. I look forward to seeing who will be able to leave their name throughout the Nine States in this generation and stand above his generation to enter the Saint Plane," Ye Futian said calmly, then continued stepping forward. He then said in a loud voice, "These geniuses, I wonder which State, which holy land, they will come from. The Xia Clan, the Nine State College, or my Barren State. I will witness all this as the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace Lord."


    As his voice landed, he took another step forward and punched out into the air. It landed on the sealed area and the heavens shook and transformed into a terrifying wave, sweeping across the air. The three geniuses humphed and coughed up a mouthful of blood as they were sent flying.


    The vast area fell silent. The four geniuses were no match for Ye Futian, if they were truly battling, they would definitely be crushed.


    The three of them had joined forces but had been imprisoned by Ye Futian and injured with one punch.


    Ye Futian had claimed that heroes were born in the Nine States every generation and he would witness who they were as the Holy Zhi Palace Lord.


    This meant that in the fight to see who could dominate their generation, he would only witness and not participate.


    What admirable spirit.

 867 Douzhans Divine Catastrophe

    What did it mean to be a witness?


    People like Saint Li, Saint Xia, and the Great Zhou Sacred King, who had entered the Saint Plane and controlled a holy land. They were fit to be witnesses, to watch the ever-changing world and witness the rising up of geniuses in the generation.


    Although Ye Futian was the Palace Lord of a holy land, he had yet to enter the Saint Plane and was considered part of the younger generation. If it was the former, he would be a witness. If it was the latter, he would be competing against his generation.


    Evidently, the majority of the people in the Nine States saw Ye Futian as the latter and not the Palace Lord of a holy land. As such, they had incited Ye Futian to spar. The geniuses wanted to personally spar with Ye Futian and the older generation wanted to see how strong Ye Futian was compared to the geniuses from their holy lands.


    Everyone had treated Ye Futian as part of the younger generation. However, at that moment, Ye Futian was proclaiming to them that he was the Lord of a holy land and only needed to watch the changes and watch the geniuses battle it out.


    He was a generation by himself, so he did not need to duke it out with the Nine States'' geniuses.


    Around the battle platform, countless gazes fixed on Ye Futian. There was a light flowing around him and he looked unparalleled, as though nobody could rival him. There were many geniuses who felt that Ye Futian was too arrogant, but they had no way to disprove him. It was true that he was the Palace Lord of a holy land. When he took over the reins of the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace, it had been weak and Zhisheng Cliffs could easily push it around.


    Now, facing the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, they went into a Sacred War and in their two confrontations, had fought them off once and obtained victory in the other.


    He had made his claim as the Holy Zhi Palace Lord, so who could refute him? Moreover, he had swept the four holy lands'' geniuses by himself. Who could match that?


    If fighting Zhou Ya on the Nine State Forum was not proof enough, he had shown his mastery in the matrix in the Nether Sword Mound and today, on the Nine State Platform, Ye Futian had shown the world that he had what it took to stand at the pinnacle of the Nine States. How many people in the Nine States could stand up to him?


    Today''s battles had seen the uprising of two other prodigies in the Nine States, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Even Ying had earned himself that right as well.


    Ye Futian turned around and went back to the Barren tablet throne. The four geniuses also stepped back into their own holy lands.


    Previously, Ye Futian had given them all a chance and agreed to one battle. Since nobody stood out, there would naturally be no one else who would challenge him today.


    The Nine State Platform was a huge event for the Nine State College to take in disciples, but it had helped Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to attain fame instead.


    The Barren State had once again shown its incredible potential.


    At that moment, the Barren State''s experts all stood around the throne with solemn expressions, sharing in the glory.


    In the past, the Barren State was alienated from the Nine States. When facing people from other holy states in the Nine States, they would not have confidence. This was evident back then when the Zhisheng Cliffs'' Kong Yao brought Qin Zhong to the Holy Zhi Palace. However, at present, no matter where they were, they could confidently say where they were from.


    Although there would be a fierce battle coming up in the near future, the Barren State''s people were not afraid.


    With their current lineup of cultivators under the Saint Plane, the Holy Zhi Palace was confident that they would not be weaker than the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. No longer would they have the panic they had before the Sacred War.


    They had an extremely strong belief that the Barren State would definitely win the Sacred War.


    At that moment, their greatest crisis was Sage Douzhan. The Great Zhou Sacred King was already keeping a close watch on them, now the Holy Zhi Palace was standing out so much as well, the Great Zhou Sacred King would definitely not let them go and would definitely aim to kill Sage Douzhan.


    However, even if misfortune befell Sage Douzhan, the Holy Zhi Palace would not collapse. It would rise up one day under Ye Futian''s leadership and trample the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    In the two battles of the Sacred War, how many people died? Who could be sure that they would not die? Even people as strong as You Chi and Sage Jingang had been seriously injured.


    They naturally hoped that the Barren State would have a second Saint to watch over the Palace. However, even if things turned out for the worst, it would not waver their conviction.


    Sage Douzhan must have had the same conviction. Back then, in the battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace, he had said something along these lines.


    Around the battle platform, all the holy lands looked towards the Barren State''s direction. The figures beside Ye Futian all had determined expressions. War was sometimes the best motivation. The sacred war had caused a transformation in the Barren State. Their wills had united and everyone fought for a common belief.


    The experts around the Nine State Platform could feel the atmosphere around the people from the Barren State. Saint Li opened his mouth and said, "Today has come to an end, you may leave now." As Saint Li''s voice landed, there was a slight bustle among the crowd, but many people continued sitting there, as though waiting for something.


    In the outer regions, many experts moved towards the center like an army, heading towards where the Great Zhou Sacred King was.


    A subtle mood was spreading, signaling the coming of a storm.


    Many experts stepped back and vacated their positions.


    In the Barren State''s direction, there were people moving as well. Many experts started to move into position, gathering near Ye Futian. The elite figures stood beside Ye Futian and Sage Douzhan, taking precautions against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s experts.


    Saint Li had already announced that the Nine State College''s matters had ended. What would happen next would be the grudge between the two holy lands.


    "Master, if you want to return to the Palace before summoning the Divine Catastrophe, we will escort you back," Ye Futian said in a soft voice.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had received news that his Master had come to the Nine State College, so the Great Zhou Sacred King had personally led his men and moved his army to the Nine State City, evidently trying to keep them all here. Therefore, everything after that had happened. The Village Chief and Qin Zhuang had gone to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to impede them and the Holy Zhi Palace had sent troops to ambush them.


    All his plans had been for today.


    Now, they all knew his Master''s condition. He was unable to use any strength. Once he used any rule power, the Divine Catastrophe would be summoned. Since the Great Zhou Sacred King had set up an inescapable net, he naturally wanted to force Sage Douzhan to summon the Divine Catastrophe and enter the Saint Plane to kill him.


    "No need, since they want to see it, I''ll do it here," Sage Douzhan replied. With the Great Zhou Sacred King keeping watch, clashing was inevitable. There would be no point in stalling, moreover, once they stalled, the opponent''s two Saints would gather and the situation would become worse.


    Therefore, there was no need to.


    He would summon the Divine Catastrophe right here, right now.


    If the Divine Catastrophe was destined to be his downfall, he would have no complaints. However, before that, he had some things to do.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and his expression became exceptionally determined.


    No harm would befall his Master.


    At that moment, Qin Zhuang walked up to Douzhan and handed a Saint instrument to him, saying, "You Chi took this off and asked me to pass it to you."


    Sage Douzhan looked at the Saint instrument armor with a solemn expression, then took it and stepped forward onto the central region of the Nine State Platform.


    In an instant, countless gazes turned towards him.


    Was the Holy Zhi Palace''s Battle Sage Palace Lord Sage Douzhan going to summon the Divine Catastrophe and enter the Saint Plane?


    "Senior." At that moment, Ye Futian looked towards Saint Li and asked, "Could you ask everyone to leave this area?"


    Saint Li knew what Ye Futian meant. He looked around and said, "All uninvolved people, step back 50 kilometers."


    The Sacred War was about to erupt here.


    Everyone started to leave the area. They also knew that what was happening next would impact a huge radius. Those with lower cultivation levels could die just by being hit by the residual attacks.


    Even the experts from the Summer State''s holy lands also stepped back, away from the Nine State Platform. They stopped in the distance and set up camp in mid-air, looking towards the Nine State Platform.


    Saint Li waved his hand and personally brought the Nine State College''s people to retreat. Soon, two factions could be distinctly seen around the Nine State Platform. They were the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Holy Zhi Palace.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army that had descended upon the Nine State City finally showed themselves. The Great Zhou Sacred King''s strongest army, the Golden Phoenix Army had arrived.


    Apart from that, there was also the army led by the Sage Ranking expert Nie Gai. These were the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s two strongest armies. These two armies were prepared for Ye Futian, in attempts of killing them all in the Nine State City.


    Other than that, the people who had been ambushed by Qin Zhuang and You Chi had also made their way to the Nine State City. At that moment, they were regrouping with the Great Zhou Sacred King. Although they suffered heavy losses, they still gathered together to form a huge army.


    "Form the matrix," Ye Futian said. Instantly, the Barren State''s experts all started to move and form their matrices.


    In the center of the battle platform, Sage Douzhan took a deep breath, then looked up towards the sky. His arm shuddered as he clenched his fists. In an instant, a terrifying force appeared on his body.


    The wind billowed as the force on Sage Douzhan''s body gradually became stronger. The wind echoed and became wilder.


    In the sky, the wind bellowed and a fearsome Great Path rule power streamed in the area. Soon, all the experts around the battle platform could feel the suffocating aura, as though it could crush all of them.


    Thud. An imposing aura emitted from Sage Douzhan and headed straight for the heavens. The elements circulated in the heavens and the Great Path rule power was created. In that instant, countless people from the Nine State City raised their heads and looked at the brewing storm in the sky, as though the heavens was crushing down on the mortal realm.


    Is this the Divine Catastrophe? countless people thought in astonishment. Just the pressure was enough to make people want to grovel and worship it.


    It was too strong. No wonder the Saint Plane experts detached themselves from the mortal world, away from the masses. They were not on the same level, that was why they were called Saints.


    "Bring it on!" Sage Douzhan raised his head and shouted out. The skies shook as air currents engulfed him. His body became towering like a war god. He did not wear the Saint instrument before summoning the Divine Catastrophe but was topless instead. His bronze-colored skin felt full of power.


    Within the terrifying storm, a ray of light descended from the sky. The Great Path''s pressure descended and many people felt suffocated. Among the experts who had backed off, some of the people with lower cultivation levels felt their legs shaking.


    Crash! The light of the Divine Catastrophe struck down, causing the light around Sage Douzhan''s body to become even more dazzling. Around his body, an immeasurable amount of light circulated around him and an alarming force rushed into his body.


    However, this time, Sage Douzhan felt boundless energy in every part of his body. Even the light of the Divine Catastrophe could not move him.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King stared at Sage Douzhan. He knew what Douzhan wanted to do the moment he heard that he had come to the Nine State College. The Barren State wanted to create another Saint, but it would not be that simple. The eventual outcome of the sacred war would be determined by the strongest people. So, each time the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace had a Saint, he would kill that Saint.


    So what if the Barren State''s disciples all had exceptional potential? He would be the gatekeeper keeping them away from the Saint Plane.


    Once they entered, they would die.


    Ye Futian was also looking at Sage Douzhan. Today, his Master would enter the Saint Plane and nobody would be able to stop him.


    "Convey my command, surround them!" Ye Futian stepped forward and ordered the army!

 868 Breaching the Matrix

    "Matrix formation!" Ye Futian commanded, and the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace marched forwards in formation.


    Sage Douzhan was in the midst of passing over the catastrophe, but naturally, it was Yuan Hong leading the Heavenly Battle Matrix. With the mighty and powerful cultivators marching forwards, a horrible air of war swept through the space.


    At the same time, the cultivators from the Sovereign Family and the Ice Temple were all taking part in the battle matrix. They had long been practicing it in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Great Zhou Sacred King still sat on the throne, his demeanor authoritative. His eyes surveyed the powerful cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace who surrounded him. His gaze went to Ye Futian, and the eyes of Great Zhou Sacred King reflected strong murderous intent.


    "Get back," the Great Zhou Sacred King commanded indifferently, and the cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty withdrew accordingly.


    All who were observing the battle were surprised. It seemed that the Great Zhou Sacred King was uneasy with the assemblage from the Barren State, and chose not to have a head-on confrontation.


    Within the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix, all the cultivators of the Golden Phoenix Army levitated with their golden wings opened, shielding the sky. The battle matrix formed by the Golden Phoenix Army turned into a gigantic golden phoenix crossing the boundless void, manned by Zhou Mian and Zhou Huang who were cultivators on the Sage and Saint Ranking.


    The giant wings of the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix flapped, setting off a strong gust of wind, and then smashed down as to split open the void.


    In the Heavenly Battle Matrix, Yuan Hong held a divine implement��the Battleaxe of Judgment��and smashed towards the wings that swooped down. The sound of a violent collision was heard. Immediately afterward, the wings of the Golden Phoenix Army fluttered and drew an arc in the sky as it retreated. The army led by Nie Gai also retreated simultaneously.


    Still, Great Zhou Sacred King sat on the throne, alone. The purpose of the army to enter Nine State City was Ye Futian and his party. But what he was truly afraid of was not Ye Futian and his cohort.


    It was Sage Douzhan, who was in the midst of passing through the Catastrophe of the Divine Path.


    Before Sage Douzhan was even sanctified, he already had the ability to counter the Golden Phoenix Army. Sage Douzhan''s strength combined with the army of the Holy Zhi Palace would be a great threat, so he ordered a temporary withdrawal. After Sage Douzhan had passed through the Catastrophe of the Divine Path, he could then be the one to deal with him.


    If it was Sage Douzhan alone, the Golden Phoenix Army and the army led by Nie Gai was sufficient to counter him. But the situation had changed with the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace arriving as reinforcement and intercepting their people. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had experienced a total loss at the border of the Summer State, which made the support of the other side even more obviously at an advantage, so he could only choose evasion for now.


    In the center of the Nine State Platform, Sage Douzhan''s spirit transformed into battle form and blended into one with it. The massive body, boundlessly stalwart, was amazing.


    Above the firmament, the rules of the Great Path fell, turning into countless catastrophes of the Divine path that landed on his body, madly impacting it which made his body tremble. If this was before he had the medicinal baths, before he arrived at the Nine State College, or even in his prime, such terrifying attack of the Great Path was enough to cause a considerable threat to his body.


    With a swipe of his sight, Sage Douzhan looked toward the Golden Phoenix Army, and a chilling intent to kill flashed through his eyes. He was not yet a saint, not until the Catastrophe of the Great Path was behind him.


    Boom! His footstep landed on the ground and instantly shook the entire Nine State Platform. A violent torso straddled the void and headed toward the retreating Golden Phoenix Army.


    "Sage Douzhan is making his move." The hearts of many trembled. Before, outside of the Holy Zhi Palace, Sage Douzhan had lent a hand in saving the palace despite the fact he was facing the catastrophe of the Great Path himself. This time, he had the chance to successfully pass the catastrophe, but would he really choose not to concentrate on that task, but rather to attack again?


    If he made a move to counter the Golden Phoenix Army, he would inevitably lose the power to resist the Divine Catastrophe.


    Above the sky, the authoritative pressure of the Great Path slammed down and Sage Douzhan stepped into the void. With every step, he crossed the space and came to the place above the Golden Phoenix Army so that all the cultivators of the Golden Phoenix Army looked up, their looks frosty. They too felt the authority of the Great Path.


    "Come on." Sage Douzhan abruptly tightened both fists, and then his majestic body descended from the sky, as a god of war. The heaven and the earth roared, the rule power of the Great Path pursuing him as if intending to destroy and kill him.


    Zhou Mian looked up, and swept a cold glance at that godlike figure descending from the void. His look was extremely frosty.


    This time, the Golden Phoenix Army had deployed its most elite members and coalesced into the strongest Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix yet. If Sage Douzhan thought that he could destroy them like the last time, it would be pure nonsense. As long as he had not yet finished the catastrophe of the Great Path, he was not a saint.


    "Hacking." Seeing Sage Douzhan''s mighty body descending, Zhou Mian commanded the divine implement. Suddenly within the battle matrix, countless flaming golden wings slashing toward the sky. The boundless brilliance seemed to split the void into countless segments, but Sage Douzhan continued the momentum downwards as if he had not seen it, descending as a god.


    With a loud bang, the light of the wings broke apart in a frenzy, and the body of Sage Douzhan rushed into the wings that had hacked apart the void. Both legs erupted with horrifying power, trampling it underfoot.


    A pair of even more dazzling wings came forwards, like two flaming golden swords, slashing toward his body. There was a terrible power exploding from the body of Sage Douzhan. All his Seven Star acupoints were opened, and a brilliant light emitted between his chest and abdomen. With a roar, both hands that were clad in Battle Saint Gauntlets directly grabbed toward the incoming wings, smashing them under.


    As both of Sage Douzhan''s hands buckled the wings down the catastrophe of the Great Path that was above the sky descended, causing his body to tremble. The horror of the catastrophe of the Great Path even attacked the wings, and then moved toward the Golden Phoenix Army, causing many to tremble violently. Just as if the catastrophe of the Great Path also descended on them, many people vomited blood.


    The humongous golden phoenix danced above the firmament, and an infinitely beautiful Golden Phoenix Sword flew out aimed toward Sage Douzhan. The void seemed to be split open.


    Sage Douzhan slapped both wings and his body shot to the sky.


    Boom! Along with several loud booms, the endless light of catastrophe continued to descend, penetrating his body, which bathed under the light of the catastrophe of the Great Path. There seemed to be a force of infinite horror generating within his body. He trembled in the void. Endless brilliance exploded from both his legs and fists, then the body suddenly tilted, the arms shook, and the fists pierced through the sky.


    In an instant, above the sky, the endless fists of the golden war god smashed down. Each shadow of a fist seemed to contain the might of Great Path, piercing through heaven and earth, rushing toward the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix.


    The Golden Phoenix Sword madly slashed out and split open the aura of the fist. But the aura of the fist was endless and covered the sky and buried the space.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Consecutive loud bangs were heard, and bystanders, who watched the battle from afar, saw the endless golden war god''s fists piercing through the void, blasting on the body of the phoenix that was swaying above the void. The body of the phoenix shook violently, and several figures separated from the battle matrix and fell to certain death.


    Using his own strength to fight against the most elite Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty while he was still in the midst of the catastrophe of Divine Path. It was indeed too frightening.


    After the catastrophe was over, the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix most likely would not be able to withstand his attack. No one could have imagined that a mere cultivator from the Barren Sky Ranking of the Barren State could perform with such skill. The Sacred War had given Sage Douzhan his opportunity, but at the same time, it was also a great catastrophe.


    Boom. A loud noise, the clouds above the sky changed, the rules of the Great Path in this void madly impacted the body of Sage Douzhan so that he was heard making a sound in the midst of battle, likewise spitting out a mouthful of blood.


    "Douzhan, enough," Sword Demon said to Sage Douzhan, who was in the void. If this continued, it would affect his ability to pass the catastrophe.


    Sage Douzhan''s body was bathed in holy light. After the baptism of the Divine Catastrophe, the light of the Great Path coursed around his entire body. Clearly, this time, he fared much better than the last.


    He took out a medicinal pill and swallowed it. Many who saw this revealed a look of surprise. Great Zhou Sacred King looked extremely cold. The medicine must have been prepared for him by Saint Jiang.


    Very soon, the body of Sage Douzhan became more crystalline, as if every part of the body was burning, inspiring all his potential.


    Above the sky, more terrible lights of the Great Path catastrophe fell down. As long as the body had not been completely forged into the body of a saint, the catastrophe would not dissipate; it was either become a saint or die.


    An incomparably sharp ray exploded in his eyes, and Sage Douzhan said to Sword Demon, "I will breach the battle matrix, you can handle the rest." His voice faded as both of his arms stretched out to welcome the catastrophe of the Great Path. There was a terrible storm of catastrophe over the sky, piercing throughout heaven and earth, descending on Sage Douzhan. An unparalleled force exploded from his body and at this moment, he stepped into the void and went for the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix.


    What was even more frightening was that behind Sage Douzhan, the catastrophe of the Great Path was still falling, chasing after him, and descending with him.


    In the midst of the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix, countless people trembled in their hearts and were extremely unsettled.


    "Ready!" Sage Douzhan shouted. Sword Demon, Qin Zhuang and the others waited solemnly, knew that those words were for them.


    Sage Douzhan would breach the matrix and then rely on them to prevent the matrix to form again.


    Countless people looking above the firmament at Sage Douzhan, who was bathed in the destructive light of the Great Path Catastrophe, surrounded by shadows of illusion and countless auras of the fist of a war god, sheltering the sky and blasting toward the battle matrix below, covering it all.


    Who would dare to resist such an attack head-on?


    Even cultivators of the sage and saint ranking would be annihilated.


    The Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix entered a defensive mode. In an instant, it was like a boundlessly radiant armor had covered the sky and shielded the battle matrix.


    Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom... The infinite aurora of the fist covered the entire matrix, blasting it. The battle matrix rocked violently, and many spat out blood.


    Bang! Another loud crash came from the middle of the battle matrix. Sage Douzhan descended from above the battle matrix, along with the catastrophe of the Great Path rushing through his body and pouring into his fist will.


    At this moment, a horrific light of the rules of the Great Path swept through the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix, accompanied by a loud bang, and the battle matrix collapsed from the middle. Countless people spat out blood, and many others were killed instantly by the shock.


    "Attack." Qin Zhuang and the others were already prepared. The sword slashed across the void and chopped forwards, and the cultivators led by Yuhong, Huang Xi, and the others also launched the attack.


    At this time Sage Douzhan, who was in the void, also spat out a mouthful of blood, his face slightly pale but his body, like a god of war. He was still standing straight in the sky welcoming the catastrophe of the Great Path!

 869 Sage Douzhan Became Sain

    "Relentless."


    Countless gazes fixed on that mighty figure in the void; people across the Nine States had all heard of the battle at the Holy Zhi Palace. Sage Douzhan employed the power of the Heavenly Battle Matrix, burning his body to release all its potential to the limit, thus attracting the Divine Catastrophe that almost killed him. It was because of countless people in the Barren State who had banded together to shoulder the catastrophe for him that the Divine Catastrophe dissipated.


    Although Sage Douzhan had made great progress, passing the Divine Catastrophe was still a difficult task and he was even turning his attention towards breaching the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix to alleviate the pressure of the battle for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Sage Douzhan had done everything he could for the Holy Zhi Palace. He was indeed a person worthy of respect, whose belief was so strong it was no wonder that he could impact the Divine Path.


    In the vast Nine States, among the Sage and Saint Ranking, there were merely seventy-two saints.


    Above the sky the storm was growing stronger, as if to cover thousands of miles of space just like an apocalypse.


    The endless storm contained the indomitable power of the rules of the Great Path. Although this force would not attack the bystanders, by standing on the ground beneath one could still experience the frightening feeling of the authority of heaven.


    Countless members of the Nine State City looked up toward the sky. They seemed to have no interest in the great battle that was taking place next to them.


    Although the Sacred War was fierce, the Divine Catastrophe could be the only one that they would ever witness in their lifetime.


    For the sages, even though the catastrophe of the Great Path was horrific, it was their lifelong pursuit.


    Feeling the power of catastrophe above the sky, they were even somewhat envious of Douzhan and held some expectations, hoping that one day they would also be able to attract that change of the world; for the rules of the Great Path descending from the sky to refine their bodies, transcending them so they could become saints.


    Under the horror of the authority of heaven, the Great Zhou Sacred King still sat there, as if he had never moved since the beginning. He stared at Sage Douzhan coldly, and that gaze was as if he was watching a dead man.


    Proving Holiness was such a rare chance, but for Douzhan to become saint would be his undoing.


    "Boom!" Even more horrible Great Path rules descended. This time Sage Douzhan was no longer distracted and attempted to leverage the power of the catastrophe to fight, but instead endured all of it with his body, allowing it to wash over his body.


    There was no shortcut to the Catastrophe of the Divine Path. Only by bearing enough catastrophe could transformation be possible. For his body to be sanctified, it must first undergo the true test of the Divine Path. If he relied on borrowing the power of battle instead of the true strength of the body, then he would continue to suffer from the catastrophe in the future, which meant that all the many tests before were borne in vain.


    Divine light was shining all over the body of Douzhan. The rules of the Great Path entered the body, refining it, impacting all the organs and limbs of Douzhan. He could clearly feel every part of his body bursting as they withstood the impact of the terrible rules of the Great Path and metamorphosed at the same time.


    Sage Douzhan thought that the medicinal baths prescribed by Saint Jiang those days in the Herb Garden were not only to heal his injuries, but also to strengthen his body. At the same time, it was more as if the medicinal bath was preparing him for this sacred cleansing.


    Saint Jiang''s understanding of the Divine Catastrophe was frightening, especially with such strong ability to target. Even if he was ranked 12th on the Sage and Saint Ranking, it was not something that could have been done in a short time.


    As if from the beginning, Saint Jiang knew what to do.


    Without thinking too much, Douzhan concentrated all his energy for the catastrophe of the Great Path above the Seven Star acupoints, with even more terrible power flowing and rays of light running through his body. He let out a great shout, stepped into the void, his body went toward the catastrophe of the Great Path and rose into the sky.


    He had already died once under the Divine Catastrophe. He had nothing else to fear.


    "Boom!"


    Under the impact of even more terrifying forces, Sage Douzhan shot to the sky against the Divine Catastrophe, like a god of war with shocking impact.


    Although his body was gigantic and stood proudly above the sky, compared to the Divine Catastrophe he still appeared small and insubstantial.


    The authority of heaven was too strong.


    Sage Douzhan already felt that many parts inside his body had already been torn apart by the rules power, but his eyes still conveyed total determination without any hesitation. He looked up to the void and continued to step into the sky.


    For him to be able to experience the catastrophe in person in this lifetime, he had no more regret.


    What was more, putting his life or death aside, the Holy Zhi Palace was no longer the palace of the past. With the saint, it could compete as equals with the Great Zhou Dynasty.


    Even if he really died this day, the Holy Zhi Palace would still exist and his two disciples already had their names known in the land of Nine States. In the future, their names would make Nine States shudder.


    If so, what else did he have to fear?


    He could consider himself to have lived his entire life spirited and to its fullest.


    Raising his head, proudly surveying the Great Path of the firmament, his arms trembled, and lights coursed all around. He rushed to meet the catastrophe, allowing the endless Great Path to impact his flesh; his heart was calm without waves, his spiritual will strong and unshaken.


    Terrible rays circulated above his body, and there were faint blood stains as his skin and muscles broke open. Even with the strength of his body, it was still unbearable for Sage Douzhan at the moment, and the body seemed to be on the verge of complete destruction.


    However, Sage Douzhan was resolute in his determination, and could not be swayed.


    Without regret in his heart, fully complete without blemishes, and with a will as strong as the rock of ages, he would welcome the catastrophe of the Great Path in his best state so long as he had breath within him.


    The rules of the Great Path continued falling and kept shaking the body of Sage Douzhan. He looked as if on the verge of crumbling, but his eyes were determined as ever and continued staring at the storm.


    "This catastrophe is terrible." many sages were appalled. Even those at the peak of sage plane felt the same way. They all wanted to step into the saint plane but seeing the scenes before them they understood that if they were facing the catastrophe of the Divine Path at the moment themselves, their chances were not much better.


    This meant that they were not yet strong enough, and the plane was yet beyond their reach.


    Perhaps the first few on the Sage and Saint Ranking of Nine States were infinitely closer than the others.


    Sage Douzhan was not as strong as before, but he was still holding on, no matter what he would be facing after the catastrophe of the Great Path. However, there was the ancient saying that if one had known the Way in the morning, then there would be no regretting death in the evening.


    Since he had no regrets in his heart, he would give his greatest to do everything he could to follow his heart. As to the ending, no matter what it turned out to be, he would have no regrets.


    "The power of the catastrophe is weakening." many were shocked.


    Not only that, the brilliance that was coursing above the body of Sage Douzhan was becoming more and more dazzling. The bronzed skin seemed to be washed by the divine light, and faintly reflected a crystalline luster as if he had been re-sculpted.


    "Douzhan may be about to succeed."


    The hearts of many people were beating; the land of Nine States would soon have one more saint.


    However, Great Zhou Sacred King watched closely. It was still a question whether this saint could leave with his life intact.


    It was highly probable that Sage Douzhan would be the shortest-lived saint in the history of Nine States.


    Great Zhou Sacred King had the intention of killing him.


    Between the saints, there was still matters of levels within the plane. The Great Zhou Sacred King had been in the saint plane for many years; even if Sage Douzhan entered the saint plane, he would not be in a position of contention. It was very perilous.


    "He''s about to succeed."


    Saint Li looked up at the void, and he already felt that Sage Douzhan was only a step away from being a saint.


    Not only him, but all notable figures were watching at the moment as well, including Saint Jiang, who was at the Nine State College. They looked up to the sky, a place of infinite changes, to see Douzhan standing above the sky. His stature, like a god of war, could be clearly seen.


    Little Butterfly stood by his side. In the Herb Garden many people, including the injured You Chi, Undying Sage were all looking up, watching Douzhan who was above the void.


    "Master, if the Great Zhou Sacred King wants to kill Sage Douzhan, would he have a chance to block it?" Little Butterfly asked.


    Saint Jiang shook his head and said mildly, "Great Zhou Sacred King''s ranking is also on the top of the list. For the saint plane, the difference of one plane can mean a world of difference. If it''s just the two of them, there is no doubt that Douzhan will definitely die. But we don''t yet know at what level the other saint from Barren State is. However, it will probably be difficult to stop the Great Zhou Sacred King from killing Douzhan."


    Little Butterfly looked a little pale, saying, "Master, you helped Sage Douzhan cross the most difficult hurdle. Could you help him again?"


    Her Master, Saint Jiang, ranked number 12 on the Sage and Saint Ranking, before the Great Zhou Sacred King would be capable of helping Sage Douzhan.


    Saint Jiang casted a glance at Little Butterfly and shook his head.


    The Sacred War between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace was permitted by Emperor Xia, and personally monitored by the Nine States Supervising Inspector. Moreover, the Nine States Supervising Inspector was located at the Nine State Guard, and it was likely to be located around the Nine States Platform. After all, Nine States were under the rule of Emperor Xia. His power could be everywhere.


    Both sides have suffered heavy casualties in the Sacred War. What reason did he have to intervene?


    Furthermore, Sage Douzhan and he were neither friends nor relatives; he granted Ye Futian''s request to help Sage Douzhan pass the Divine Catastrophe. Now it was not possible for him to intervene in the Sacred War at will.


    Little Butterfly''s eyes revealed some disappointment. She knew that her request was a little overboard. The Master had no reason to grant it.


    Now, one could only hope that Sage Douzhan would be able to survive the next catastrophe.


    At this moment, in the area below Sage Douzhan, on the area of the Nine State Platform area, the sound of a guqin could be heard.


    The sound of the guqin was magnificent, revealing a sense of pride, but also concealed within it a sense of heroics. Many looked toward it and saw that it was Ye Futian playing in the void. Hua Jieyu stood behind him, while Yun Shang and many other cultivators formed a battle matrix beside him and lent their Spiritual Energy to Ye Futian.


    The sound of the guqin pierced the void, resounded between heaven and earth. There was a great battle taking place in front of them, that under this atmosphere appeared extremely solemn.


    At this time, among the disintegrated army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, many cultivators now marched towards him, their attention fixed on him to try to take him down.


    However, when they came to the battle matrix, they felt the terrible rules power descending, shrouding their bodies as if this space was frozen. Time and space seemed to have stopped.


    The fingers plucked the strings, and in an instant the sound of guqin turned into sparkles of light that swept out. In a moment, brilliant rays of light rushed toward those people, emitting violent sounds of collision. The skulls of some were shattered while the bodies of others were smashed. It was impossible to get close to Ye Futian.


    At this time, Ye Futian looked up slightly and glanced towards his Master. A brilliant light erupted from the Master, and holy lights coursed around his entire body and chased away the light of catastrophe that was between heaven and earth. The storm that was within the void disappeared, the might of Heaven nowhere to be found.


    And Sage Douzhan, whose body was as if re-sculpted, bloomed with endless brilliance in the sky above.


    With the Divine Catastrophe behind him, the Sacred Body was now complete.


    Sage Douzhan had entered the Divine Path!

 870 Battle between the Saints

    "A saint."


    Countless looked up at the sky. Holy light coursed Douzhan''s body��a sign of him breaking into Saint Plane.


    There were 72 recorded saints throughout the nine states. The Chess Saint perished and the village chief of the Tombkeeper''s status as a saint was exposed, which evened the score eventually. As such, there were still 72 saints up till that point.


    However, with Douzhan becoming a saint at the moment, he became the 73rd saint throughout the entire nine states.


    It was actually a very bad timing for Douzhan to become a saint. However, everyone knew that if he were to make it past his divine catastrophe and become a saint, he needed Saint Jiang''s help, which was why they came to the Nine State College. The Zhou Sacred King arrived at the college later and kept a close eye on him.


    If Douzhan refused to advance further, the sacred king would have brought his army to bear, forcing Douzhan to advance and become a saint. Douzhan had no choice in the matter.


    The sacred king did all he could to take Douzhan''s life.


    Chi You, Sage Jingang and the others in the Herb Garden; Huang Yi, Yun Shang and other mighty ones in the battlefield, all turned to look at Douzhan, who was suspended in midair.


    With Douzhan becoming a saint, it meant that the Barren State finally had a saint emerging from their ranks after many years, and it was one that truly emerged from the Barren State. While the village chief was a saint, but he originated from the Tombkeeper Village and had only joined the Holy Zhi Palace later.


    The two palace lords all those years ago practically did everything in their power and paid a hefty cost, all for the sake of having a saint emerging from the ranks of the Barren State.


    At that moment, the very first saint had truly emerged from their ranks. However, it was not a joyous occasion. Everyone only felt a heavy burden being put in their minds.


    Douzhan had only made it through his first catastrophe. The ones that he were about to face in the future might have actually been worse than the divine catastrophe.


    A figure in the Xia clan''s direction, among the onlookers of the battle, was staring at Douzhan. There was yet another saint emerging in the nine states. It was a difficult thing to achieve, but since Emperor Xia had agreed for the sacred war to commence, then it was only natural for him to not interfere.


    The figure was no other a mighty one from the Nine State Guard, who mingled among the mighty ones from the Xia clan to monitor the sacred war.


    An extremely powerful might of the great path was sensed, shrouding the air around them.


    The sacred king who had been sitting at the throne at the Nine State Platform, stood and took to the air. He, who had been sitting quietly all along before, burst with true might of the great path. He gleamed with dazzling holy light, like a supreme emperor of the entire humanity itself.


    The sacred king had truly came to look like a being befitting his status, standing tall in the sky overlooking the people beneath. The holy brilliance emanating from him alone shrouded the entire space around. Countless felt their breaths getting heavy as the might of the great path showered below, making them feel as if they needed to kneel and worship him.


    Many shuddered seeing the incredibly dazzling figure. The rules of the sacred war were put in place to avoid the powers and forces of both holy lands from being eradicated by the other. Emperor Xia forbade saints from acting against anyone below Saint Plane, and the sacred king had probably felt tired of holding himself back.


    Now that Douzhan became a saint, he finally had the opportunity to bring his might to bear and cut down Douzhan, who had just became a saint, establishing the supremacy of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    A boundlessly huge golden phoenix appeared in the air, which truly blocked out the sky. Countless eyes looked up and saw the face of a phoenix bearing incredibly sharp and cold eyes. Immensely fearsome rules of the great path coursed in the sky, enveloping everywhere the eye could see.


    Many shuddered somewhat at the scene. Is this the true might of saints?


    A thought was what it took to command the skies and their surroundings, rendering all powers between the heavens and the earth under their control.


    All below Saint Plane were mortals, and they were able to do nothing but worship those at saint plane.


    Everyone knew why Emperor Xia set the rules of the sacred war as they had been. The powers of saint needed to be kept in check as their powers were simply too devastating. Countless cultivators from both holy lands would have been eliminated and it would have been a calamity like no other, affecting the entire nine states, as all were under the orthodoxy of Emperor Xia after all.


    "Teacher." Ye Futian, who was fighting below looked up at the scene in the sky and his mind was washed with immense worry. The sacred king ranked high on the Sage and Saint Ranking, which meant that his powers were beyond doubt. As one who had been training for many years, he naturally understood that the higher one''s plane was, the greater the power difference within said plane. His teacher had only broke into Saint Plane, which meant that there was no way he could have rivaled the sacred king in terms of powers.


    As a result, Ye Futian''s tune became enraged and unsettling. The weather changed around him as terrifying spiritual powers coalesced, enveloping the space he occupied and everyone within the battle matrix.


    Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian were spiritually connected enough to enable her to understand his thoughts. He was cranking up his own will to the limit like he last did, turning himself into an ancient god to do battle. The action that the sacred king just took made Ye Futian felt an intense sense of danger.


    Shuffling noises were heard within Ye Futian''s Life Palace. Boundlessly dazzling light shone within his body. His imperial burned and cranked his powers to the limit, sealing all spiritual powers that he had borrowed within his will.


    A regal, godly ape figure appeared, looking like a true demon god, standing tall between the heavens and the earth. Ye Futian and all with him were buried within, turning into a single being, as if they have all turned into the divine ape.


    The eyes of the divine ape was incredibly fearsome. Its imposing, violent body turned to face all those opposite it, and then stepped forward to walk in the air, charging at the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army.


    Douzhan''s arms shuddered and holy light coursed about him high in the sky. His towering body turned to look like a god of war. He took one step in the air, and everything around him trembled. It was then that Douzhan truly felt the might of a saint. His body became the rules of the great path, which enabled him to resonate with the powers of great path between the heavens and the earth. Every single action he took was a manifestation of the great path.


    Such power was beyond the comprehension of mortals and had reached a whole new level. Such beings no longer borrowed from the rules of the world around them, as they themselves became manifestations of the rules of the great path.


    Douzhan lifted his arm and he felt as if the powers of the worldly great path were all embodied in his fist.


    He shouted and punched with the fist clad in Battle Saint Gauntlets. The air around him resonated strongly in an instant, as if his fist had tore through the space before him as it headed for the sacred king.


    That one punch carried boundless powers of the worldly great path, which seemed to be out to crush the sacred king once and for all.


    "Know your place."


    The sacred king took a bland look at Douzhan. You just got into Saint Plane and you want to fight me already?


    You really are reckless and thoughtless.


    It was entirely possible that Douzhan knew nothing of the Saint Plane and how terrifyingly different power levels between saints could be.


    He extended his arms and slapped at the air before him. The air shook in an instant, tearing the punch of the great path thrown at him to bits and pieces. The space in between shook violently, as if it was about to collapse.


    A cry of the phoenix was heard in the air at that moment. The golden phoenix, which was huge enough to literally blocked out the sky, lashed out with its golden phoenix claws. The entire sky seemed to have shrouded within.


    Countless who were watching the battle trembled at the scene. Their minds shuddered violently. The claws were literally the sky striking down. Douzhan was tall and regal like a god, but he looked hopeless small before their claws.


    Douzhan looked up at the attack striking downward as if to tear the sky apart and lifted his arm, shooting out with another punch. The fist of the great path tore through the air before him and shot at the claws. The two attacks clashed and the punch was torn to shreds in an instant, while the claws continued coming down at Douzhan.


    A figure appeared right above Douzhan''s body at that very moment. A dazzling sword diagram appeared in the air, breathing towering beams of swords.


    The figure was none other than the village chief.


    He waved his arms and the sword diagram at the air behind him turned incredibly brilliant. Sword will coursed throughout the skies, completely in control by the sword diagram. The holy sword was sticking right at the middle of the sword diagram, pulsing with sword will out to tear the sky apart.


    "Go."


    His finger pointed at the sky. Boundless sword aura currents controlled by the sword diagram flushed at the claws in the air. The boundless claws clashed onto the sword diagram, cracking it, while the claws were similarly torn.


    The claws dissipated and the sword diagram crumbled with a loud boom. The holy sword returned to its place behind the village chief.


    "Three saints." Many felt their hearts pumping uncontrollably. Everyone was watching the battle. There was hardly anyone paying any attention to the battle between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army and the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The battle between saints were something that many would have gotten to witness once in their lifetimes.


    The battle between saints in the air was far above the ground, yet it felt that the battle was happening right before their eyes, so much so that everyone was able to see it if they were to just look up.


    Untold numbers of people in the Nine State City looked up in the sky.


    The sacred king''s holy light shone brightly in the sky like an unparalleled sacred king he was supposed to be. His sharp eyes held tinges of contempt in them as he said, "If the Sword Saint of the Void was still in this world, I''d admit that I''m the inferior one. But you, a mere sword servant, dare to actually stand against me?"


    He stepped forward as soon as he finished. The power of the great path shrouded the air and the sky was tightly wound, as if it would have crumbled at any given moment.


    Sage Douzhan felt the might of the great path and felt immensely that he no longer had any regrets as he had been able to break into Saint Plane. However, he was nonetheless truly able to feel that the power difference within Saint Plane was frighteningly huge. People would have given anything to reach ever greater heights in the great path. Their minds of the path were indomitable as they all yearned for the promised supreme power.


    Why did the Chess Saint risked it all to enter the Nether Sword Mound?


    Why did the sacred king went so far as to wage a sacred war?


    "I might be a sword servant and I still am able to stand before you, sacred king. Are you trying to insult yourself?" The village chief said plainly. He waved both of his arms and great path flowed between the heavens and the earth. An incredibly dazzling image hovered in the sky, appearing right behind the old village chief.


    "Voom, voom, voom!" Swords zipped about as they were fused within the image, which spun about the air, breathing sword beams capable of tearing space apart.


    "Kill." The village chief pointed at the sacred king and the spinning image disappeared altogether in an instant. At the same time, tremendously fearsome sword beams of destruction came right before the sacred king.


    Huge figures of golden phoenixes appeared right before the sacred king, which stacked in layers and fused with the world around them, shining with tower golden light as the sword aura continued to crumble around it.


    The sacred king basked in boundless golden light as he stepped out, freely letting the destructive sword attacks destroy the golden phoenixes, as if none of that had any effect on him.


    His body continued to pass through the sword matrix''s killing light one step at a time. He turned to look like a god once he passed through all that.


    The holy light on the sacred king''s body looked even more dazzling and towering in comparison to the village chief''s. The might of the great path shrouded the sky, as if to declare to all in the world, that he was the Great Zhou Sacred King!

 871 Violence

    At a place very, very far from the Nine State City, a place at the border of four states: Summer, Eastern, Qi and Feng, lied a tranquil, quiet village, free from disturbance from anyone else.


    That village was none other than the Tombkeeper Village. What differed between then and now with the place was that all dwellers of the village had moved out and settled in the Holy Zhi Palace instead. After the incident with the village previously, many from holy lands attempted to explore the Nether Sword Mound still, yet none of them were able to achieve anything as they were reluctant to risk themselves going deep with the place.


    At the moment, with the exception of some who would occasionally visit the place just to check things out, the Tombkeeper Village had essentially been thoroughly rendered a ghost village.


    Countless graves lied within the forbidden ground that was the Nether Sword Mound, nested within the quiet mountains at the end of the village. Swords were stabbed throughout the graveyard, symbolizing the entire place itself being buried.


    The depths of the mysterious forbidden ground was where the Chess Saint perished. There seemed to be a terrifying fissure in the sky with a pair of blood-colored sword eyes seen there. Immensely terrifying sword aura seeped from within the pair of eyes, basking a frail body sitting cross-legged beneath.


    The frail body belonged to a girl who looked to be 16 years of age. Sword will coursed throughout her body and holy light of swords emanated from her.


    The swords all over the place stayed motionless for her alone.


    The girl was none other than Yaya, who had elected to stay behind in the Nether Sword Mound, to watch over her parents'' grave.


    Her appearance seemed to have changed somewhat throughout the past year. There were fewer hints of childishness on her and her plain looks had turned to become more chiseled. All that, coupled with the light of swords coursing about her, made her shine with a mystical gleam, causing her to look rather holy.


    Her appearance and bearing changed considerably.


    However, the most apparent change about her was her plane. Within the short span of a year, she had actually advanced considerably, breaking through from her pinnacle Noble Plane state into near the level of a magi, as indicated by her aura. The speed of her advancement was unnaturally quick, just like how she came to be at the pinnacle of Noble Plane at 15 years old, a fact that went against conventions.


    Her eyelashes twitched, as if she had sensed something at the moment. Her eyes opened and light of the swords streaked past, turning into a screen and an image manifested before her eyes.


    A war was seen happening within the image��the war that had erupted at the Nine State Platform at the moment.


    The image seemed to have been delivered by the village chief''s holy sword. She first saw the village chief, and then the target of her vengeance��the sacred king��in the image. Her eyes turned bone-chilling cold at the sight of him.


    The number of people grew within the image, and she seemed to catch sight of Ye Futian among the crowd, who had turned into an enormous demon ape. However, she was nonetheless able to see the ape for what it was despite its form.


    "Brother," Yaya muttered silently. Her eyes went cold seeing how imposing and regal the sacred king looked. Boundless sword will shuddered within the space she occupied. Tens of thousands of swords rang in resonance and the air howled, as if the swords were attempting to break free of their shackles.


    ...


    Countless at the Nine State City looked up at the sacred king, who looked impossibly sharp and intimidating.


    The sacred king was the sovereign of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and held the title of sacred king, which naturally meant that his powers were beyond mortal comprehension and far above the old village chief and Douzhan.


    "Do you think you could stop me?" The sacred king asked with cold eyes, glaring at the village chief. The golden phoenix shone brilliantly high in the sky.


    The sacred king had been training for ages and had climbed the Sacred Ladder once. He was no longer at the first plane of Saint Plane.


    The power difference between a single plane level at Sage Plane had already been one near impossible to bridge. It was more so in the case of saints. Furthermore, his talents had already been unnervingly exceptional, which meant that he was definitely above the village chief in terms of powers. The village chief, on the other hand, had only been a sword servant who had been following the Sword Saint of the Void. What he was at the moment, he probably owed it all to the Sword Saint of the Void.


    As for Douzhan, he had only broke into Saint Plane mere moments ago, meaning that there was definitely no way he could have rivaled the sacred king.


    "Douzhan, leave." The village chief knew how powerful his opponent was when he saw the sacred king walking out of the sword matrix completely unscathed. He was only able to buy time to have Sage Douzhan leave. He was versed in the art of space manipulation. Even if there was no way for him to win against the sacred king, he would probably have had no problems getting out in one piece.


    That was, so long as he was able to last until Sage Douzhan left.


    "Leave?" A sarcastic look was seen in the sacred king''s eyes. He had been there at Nine State City to eliminate Douzhan, Ye Futian and all who were with them, so as to destroy the Barren State once and for all. However, he fell into the trap laid by Ye Futian and ended up having many of his forces crushed instead.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was at a disadvantage in the battle fought between the sages. There was simply no way the sacred king would have allowed to Douzhan to leave under such state of affairs.


    The sacred king shook his arms and slivers of boundlessly dazzling holy light shot from behind him. A dazzling, elegant and huge demonic beast shot into the air. It was a true golden phoenix, shooting for the skies and merging with the shadow of phoenix high in the air, which had been a manifestation of his Life Spirit.


    His Life Spirit took a very solid form at the moment.


    The sacred king lashed out all of a sudden. He grasped at the air and boundless, terrifying rules of the great path''s power flowed about. He manifested right before the village chief and an enormous golden phoenix emerged, lashing out with its claws and shrouding the surrounding air with its impervious might.


    The village chief burst with a strong, blinding light, disappearing from where he stood right there and then. It was the power of the great path rules of space. His silhouette appeared right beside Douzhan, intending to leave the battlefield with the former sage.


    Yet at that very moment, the golden phoenix in the sky cried and lashed out with a pair of claws below. A storm of rules of the great path whipped up right there and then, with the air seemed to be at verge of collapse as destructive powers were everywhere around them.


    The holy sword hovered in the air and rang. The sword diagram appeared and sword aura in the air coursed in a frenzy as they filled the sky with maniacal offensive powers out to tear everything apart.


    "Voom."


    The enormous golden phoenix flapped its wings and boundless golden feathers shot at the space below in an instant. Great Path Rules shot down together with the feathers. Every single feather turned to beams harboring immensely destructive powers.


    The sacred king stepped forward, appearing before the phoenix and he extended his arm, attempting to lock both of his targets in the storm.


    The village chief grew worried as swords in the air rang in resonance. He saw the attack from above and evaded. In an instant, the swords in the sky zipped above and clashed with the incoming attack, crushing the killing feathers raining downwards. He took the sword diagram and headed straight for the sky, charging at the phoenix''s shadow and intending to penetrate its body.


    The golden phoenix closed its wings and opened again. Every single feather unleashed turned into the sharpest blade to be found in the world, as they cut through space and headed for the swords. The phoenix''s claws were lashed out straight at the village chief''s head as well.


    While there was no doubt that the great path powers of space were powerful, but being of inferior level meant that the village chief was doomed to lose in a straight up fight against the sacred king.


    At that moment, the sacred king himself walked and headed towards Douzhan. Blazing fire rules of great path manifested and shrouded the entire place, burning the space they occupied up. He glared at Douzhan and said coldly, "If you had refuse to make it past your divine catastrophe, you wouldn''t this catastrophe in your hands to deal with now."


    He extended his hand as soon as he finished, with frightening powers coursing in his hand.


    Douzhan''s eyes were completely calm as Great Path Rules coursed about him. His physical body had became saintly and the battle form he took was that of the Great Path. Even the sacred king''s flames of the Great Path were unable to easy singe him.


    "My mind is whole and therefore I''m able to become a saint. Regardless if I end up surviving the war or perishing in it, the Barren State would emerge as victors in this war and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would become history." He burned his battle form of the Great Path as soon as he finished, bringing all the potential he had within his body, unleashing all powers within as he stepped forward and walked towards the sacred king.


    One had nothing to fear once one held their beliefs firm. The calamity outside the Holy Zhi Palace determined the course of the latter half of the sacred war, and the Barren State was able to turn the tables.


    A blinding light was seen bursting in the air. Douzhan''s regal, god-of-war-like battle form charged at the sacred king, making all who witnessed it shudder.


    Douzhan stayed true to his title.


    He had once been known as Sage Douzhan. Now that he had became a saint, he could be named Saint Douzhan instead.


    Indomitable and unwavering.


    Douzhan''s body charged straight at the sacred king. He became incredibly regal and imposing, throwing a punch that tore through space and made their surroundings tremble as it headed for the sacred king.


    The terrifying Great Path Rules in his hand coalesced and turned into a boundlessly huge golden phoenix''s shadow, heading straight for Douzhan.


    Both individuals clashed head on, making the heavens tremble and all everyone was able to see was a blinding light. Both sides shone brilliantly with the holy light of saints.


    A ring of light appeared around Douzhan''s body, making him look like a god dedicating itself to war. The sky trembled as both arms were brought to bear on the sacred king with thousands of light of the fist.


    The sacred king became basked in boundless glitter of the saints at that very moment. The light coursing about his body turned fiery and brimming as the golden phoenix assimilated with him.


    Both individuals clashed over and over within a single moment. All the spectators saw was the repeated attacks the tall, regal, imposing body of Douzhan was enduring, with every clash bringing about a terrifying tremble. Even if he had been clad in holy armor, but the attacks he was withstand came from a saint nonetheless.


    Eventually, both individuals separated as a blinding flash of light was seen. Everything saw a tearing boom in the air. The holy armor was broken and blood spluttered from Douzhan''s body. However, the Great Path Rules coursing about his body quickly mended his injuries.


    The sacred king''s breath was unsettling as well, as he glared at Douzhan. You''re not afraid to die, are you?


    You''d still die regardless.


    The extremely sharp beam coursing about the sacred king seemed to be shooting up at the sky. The golden phoenix wings behind him spread wide open, while he shot at Douzhan like meteor.


    Douzhan did not back down. He glared at the beam while steadying himself in the air. His battle form of rules seemed to hae burned and all of his powers were focused on his arm. When the meteor got near, he stepped forward and did not bother to defend, throwing a straight jab at the attack instead.


    "Crack..." A terrifying tearing sound was heard.


    "Boom." A terrible clashing sound was heard.


    Both sides separated from each other in an instant. Many saw Douzhan''s battle form crumbled and blood dripping from it. However, it did not get destroyed outright. His body had been elevated to sainthood and became a battle form of the Great Path. His body was nigh invincible. If it had not been for the sacred king''s level being higher than his, it would have been more difficult to damage him to such extent.


    The sacred king coughed and felt fluids about to spurt from his throat, but he gulped it back down. The bones at his torso fractured and his internal organs rattled. The punch which Douzhan gave everything to throw had actually managed to damage him.


    "Teacher."


    At that moment within another battlefield, the fights taking place were just as intense. Ye Futian had turned the battle matrix he commanded into a boundless huge and violent godly ape, charging straight at the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army and going on a killing spree. He had been paying attention to the battle at the other side while he was at it, and his mind shuddered. We still couldn''t beat the sacred king even with the village chief added to the fray?


    "Boom." The ape took a heavy step all of a sudden and many sages spit blood right there and then, as if their bodies had been suppressed by extremely fearsome power of the great path, making it near-impossible for them to move.


    Ye Futian continued to charge at high speed and many mighty ones charged at him as well, intending to stop him dead in his tracks.


    He extended his hand and the power of the Space-freezing Rules was unleashed. The surrounding space-time seemed to have grinded to a halt while he lifted his fist and continued to charge forward. Streaks of flashes of the fist rained down like stars and many were thrown off. They were spitting blood and some even died right there and then from completely destroyed innards.


    "Some power indeed."


    The spectators watched with a terrifying fear as the extremely violent ape went on a rampage against all those who would stop it, heading at a single direction one step at a time.


    That was where the core of the sacred dynasty''s army was. Zhou Huang, Zhou Ya and other offsprings of the sacred king were all there.


    They were all Ye Futian''s targets.


    "Any who dare stands in my way, dies." Ye Futian''s voice was bone-chilling cold, as if he hailed from hell. The space around him was put in a lockdown with every step he took. The steps he had taken in the air seemed to become stars capable of crushing everything!

 872 Beast of War

    There was chaos all over the battlefield, but the Divine Ape who strode forward through the armies like a Beast of War suppressed all the cultivators.


    Many people trembled with shock. Ye Futian had once used the power of the battle matrix to transform into the Roc, and that was incredibly strong.


    Now the aura that burst forth from him was all strength and no weakness. After all, last time when Ye Futian had helped Douzhan bear the Divine Catastrophe, he had been seriously wounded, and as far as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty cultivators who had gotten involved had been concerned he was a spent arrow at the end of its flight.


    But this time he was at full power, and the Great Zhou Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix had been destroyed by Douzhan, so they could only form a small matrix.


    Zhou Huang stood in the army, looking cold and indifferent as he stared in Ye Futian''s direction. They had been obeying his father''s orders to withdraw the army, but they had been interrupted by Douzhan, Qin Zhuang, and the others'' attack. They had completely destroyed their formation. Retreating as a whole group would be nearly impossible. They were forced to fight.


    He swept his gaze over the vast battlefield. Zhou Mian wielded a divine implement as he battled with Qin Zhuang. The army that Nie Gai was leading was resisting Yuan Hong''s Heavenly Battle Array. He was the only one that was available, and he was feeling a strong threat from the Divine Ape body that Ye Futian had transformed into.


    "Form up." The cultivators around Zhou Huang gathered together. All of them were all scions of the Zhou family. They could clearly see Ye Futian coming towards them.


    "Kill him, no matter the cost," Zhou Huang ordered the cultivators beside him. A brilliant radiance flashed by, like a golden phoenix had split the void in two, and rushed wildly towards Ye Futian''s Divine Ape.


    As long as they killed Ye Futian, Douzhan would also die, and the Holy Zhi Palace would be destroyed. Thus, as far as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was concerned, killing Ye Futian was worth any price.


    They would have never thought that in one short year, their thinking could have changed so much. The cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had once thought that killing Ye Futian would be like crushing an ant. What was the difference between daring to face the Great Zhou Sacred King and his followers and seeking one''s own death?


    But now they were willing to pay any price as long as they killed Ye Futian.


    Watching many cultivators rushing towards him, a huge starry polearm appeared in the Divine Ape''s hands. Radiance bloomed from it; it was a ritual implement of destruction. It was like it was meant to be wielded by the Divine Ape.


    He stepped across the void and slashed with the Polearm of Divine Destruction. The void trembled. Thousands of shadows of the polearm swept out. Boundless power appeared, destroying everything. It was like a star had actually fallen to earth and swept out over everything.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Loud noises rang out as the phoenix figures were smashed. The polearm''s shadow smashed into many cultivators, and blood rained from the sky. Even top-level sages suffered the polearm''s power as they fell helplessly from the sky.


    "Refined by fire!" a scream rang out as golden fire burned the earth and the sky, burying the Divine Ape''s body within it. However, the Divine Ape continued forward as it was bathed in flames, looking even wilder. Every step it took across the void brought it closer, and the Polearm of Divine Destruction continued to slash forward, killing many cultivators with its forceful pressure.


    This violent battle made many people turn their attention away from the battle at the palace. They saw the army being constantly battered. Everywhere the Divine Ape went devastation followed. It seemed to want to kill the commander of the opposing army.


    "So strong." Many people''s hearts trembled. Although they had the power of a battle matrix, this was Ye Futian, one of the top-level Sages. When he truly set foot on this field, he could probably wipe away the entire army by himself. As a gatekeeper, he was more than a match for thousands of men.


    "If he really can take down Zhou Huang..." Many people could guess what Ye Futian wanted to do. Once he was successful he could directly hinder the battle at the palace.


    Numerous cultivators were still charging at Ye Futian, but it was no use. The Divine Ape that he had turned into could not be stopped. Every cultivator who tried to stop him was completely put down by the Polearm of Divine Destruction. If they were not killed, they were seriously injured.


    Soon, Ye Futian had smashed a bloody road through the army and appeared before Zhou Huang.


    Zhou Huang and his men were already standing in full battle array. A line of nobles gathered together to form a battle matrix that hung in the sky. Many golden phoenixes flapped their wings. Suddenly the figure of a huge phoenix broke through and flew across the sky. Zhou Huang still wielded the Golden Phoenix Sword, and he stared coldly at the towering Divine Ape.


    The Divine Ape''s eyes were extremely cold. It had been Zhou Mian, Zhou Huang, and Sage Wuliang who had nearly hounded the Master to death. The desire to kill them had grown in him outside the palace. He had already ordered Qin Zhuang to kill Sage Wuliang. The two who were left, Zhou Mian and Zhou Huang, would certainly die too.


    Boom! The Beast of War stepped forward and the sky trembled. The Divine Ape''s arms were filled with limitless power, and the radiance of the starry laws filled heaven and earth as it followed the Polearm of Divine Destruction.


    When the Polearm of Divine Destruction descended from the sky, it seemed to carry with it the light of the stars. Each individual star''s light was insignificant, but they all seemed to contain the full power of the starry laws. Each particle seemed like an entire star.


    Zhou Huang felt Ye Futian''s attack and his heart trembled, but his gaze was still cold and severe. The Golden Phoenix Sword swallowed up the brilliant radiance. Upon the blade of light, a figure of a phoenix broke through the void and rushed forward.


    The sky thrust forward, and the sky seemed about to split. Many of the star particles that were rushing forward were smashed by the sword and turned into a terrible storm. But the particles seemed endless. Zhou Huang and the others had a strange feeling, as if they were in the starry sky and countless meteors were falling towards them. Even so, his sword kept moving forward. Even if a starry sky was pressing down on him, he would still shatter it.


    Finally, the Polearm of Divine Destruction collided with the sword, giving off a loud bang. The Golden Phoenix Sword trembled fiercely. Zhou Huang and the others retreated, and one of them even coughed up blood. This attack was too fierce; it would collapse all the heavens.


    The Divine Ape stared coldly at its opponent. It extended its giant left hand grabbed something from the void. In an instant, a horrible storm of stars spread out. Space seemed to be still, and Zhou Huang and the others felt that time and space had come to a stop. Everything was getting slow, but at the same time, the terrible stars were trying to bury them.


    It was a spell created by the fusion of two rule powers, the Star Prison. This spell''s power lay in the fact that it incorporated the rules of space solidification. There was no way to escape it as it directly imprisoned you within the stars.


    Zhou Huang and the others released unbelievable amounts of rule power towards the Golden Phoenix Sword, making it swallow up the incomparable brilliance. It broke through the rule power released by their opponent and rushed towards it, but they saw the huge Divine Ape body wielding its polearm. It descended from the sky, shocking them.


    "Hehe..." The Star Prison was broken, and the polearm filled the sky as it rushed down. It covered everything, and the Golden Phoenix Sword could not intercept all of it. The terrible attack hit the back of the Golden Phoenix, and the horrendous power shocked the cultivators within the battle matrix until they spat up blood.


    Zhou Huang''s body also fell from the sky. Everyone who saw the battlefield was shaken. Zhou Huang had certainly suffered a disaster.


    The Divine Ape descended from the sky and its polearm slashed out again with a violent sound. The Golden Phoenix that was guarding the battle matrix broke apart, and the battle matrix was destroyed. Many people were sent flying and spat up blood. Zhou Ya and Zhou You were also among them. The two of them were extremely weak compared to the rest of the army, but they still played a role in the battle matrix. However, since they were hidden in the center of the matrix, they suffered the least amount of force from the attack.


    When they saw the Beast of War that was like a god descended to the world of man, Zhou Ya and Zhou You felt a little bit hopeless. The polearm covered the sky again, and Zhou Ya and Zhou You stood under it, only feeling their bodies trembling uncontrollably.


    Bang! A loud sound rang out, and someone as strong as Zhou Huang still trembled and coughed up blood. His body fell from the sky, but the Divine Ape still did not stop. The polearm descended once again and many people felt their courage fail.


    It slammed down, and Zhou Huang dropped his Golden Phoenix Sword. His arm bones shattered, and his Golden Phoenix body was seriously damaged. He spat up blood wildly.


    In the next moment, he felt an extremely dangerous aura. He looked up and saw a Beast of War before him. It stretched out its huge hand, grabbed his head, and pinched it. This Sage Ranking cultivator of the Sages and Saints Ranking had his head pinched, and whether he lived or died was no longer up to him to control.


    Everyone on the battlefield looked over at him and felt hopeless. How could the beast be so strong?


    Zhou Ya and Zhou You went pale. They didn''t have time to worry about Zhou Huang, the Divine Ape was descending from the sky, and its other hand grabbed them. They had no power to resist it as it lifted them into the air.


    "Everyone stop fighting." A loud voice came from the Divine Ape, shaking the endless void. Everyone who was fighting separated, and soon the battle stopped. Everyone looked at Ye Futian.


    The cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were a bit hopeless. Their army had been completely suppressed by the army of the Barren State?


    Zhou Huang, the eldest son of the Sacred King, a Sage of the Sages and Saints Ranking, and the deputy commander of the Golden Phoenix Army had his head pinched by Ye Futian, and Zhou Ya and Zhou You, both of them princes, were captured.


    What did this mean?


    It meant that even though both sides had brought the forces stationed in the palace and in the Holy Capital to this battle, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s army had still been defeated by the Barren State. At the very least it would not be like it had been one year ago.


    "Great Zhou Sacred King."


    Another cold voice shook the earth and sky. The Great Zhou Sacred King, who was fighting in the most violent part of the battlefield, stopped. His perception was so strong that he saw everything Ye Futian was doing over there, and now his face was gloomy to the extreme.


    For the first time, he truly felt embarrassed!

 873 Impasse

    At that moment, the void suddenly quieted down, not seeming at all like a terrible battle had just happened there. But the area was still filled with terrible rule power, and the corpses on the ground where like a testimony that this had indeed been a battlefield.


    Although Douzhan was still standing proudly, and his stalwart body seemed like it would never fall, in fact, his actual situation was only known to himself. He had used a great deal of his inner strength in his battle with the Great Zhou Sacred King, and now his body was overwhelmed. If it wasn''t for the divine light that flowed over him, one would be able to see that his body was now riddled with holes.


    Although Ye Futian had rushed towards Zhou Huang in such a short time, the Great Zhou Sacred King had still been able to launch countless attacks on him. When he saw Ye Futian capture Zhou Huang, Douzhan understood why his disciple had arranged things the way he had these past few days.


    He had ordered the Village Chief and Qin Zhuang to pin down the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and at the same time, observe their movements. He had calculated a good time to have the Village Chief return and wait until he had finished things so the two of them could face the Great Zhou Sacred King. But before this, there had been no certainty that anyone could block the King. In fact, it was sure they no one could. The Village Chief could use his command of space to escape but he couldn''t bring him with him.


    Thus, Ye Futian had ordered the army of the Holy Zhi Palace to cut off the Great Zhou Sacred King''s army. You Chi and the others had fought hard and achieved a brilliant victory, and this had laid the foundation for today''s battle, allowing Ye Futian to grab Zhou Huang and deter the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    Ever since he had come to Nine State City seeking Saint Jiang, everything had been for his Master.


    Ye Futian had used this kind of power last time outside the palace. After that fight, he had collapsed for a while before he had woken up. Today, he had once again relied on power beyond what he could bear. His counterattacking power was still quite formidable. He didn''t know how a disciple like him could still be alive.


    According to common practice, he had forced himself to use more than his own Spiritual Energy. Although for a short time he had wielded incredible power, it was likely that his Spiritual Will would collapse and he would either die or become disabled.


    Douzhan did not want him to pay any price like that.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King felt the same way. Why was Ye Futian able to mobilize such power twice? But now was obviously not the time to pursue this question. His eyes were extremely cold as he stared at Ye Futian.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King said nothing. In these circumstances, nothing he said would carry any weight.


    A threat? A command?


    They would all be meaningless. He waited for Ye Futian to speak.


    "If you return to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, I will let them live," the Divine Ape spat in a cold voice. He could directly kill Zhou Huang and the others. Under Emperor Xia''s rule, the Great Zhou Sacred King could not stop him. However, for Ye Futian, when comparing Zhou Huang and the others'' lives to that of his Master, there was no need to consider. Sooner or later, he would wipe out the Great Zhou Sacred King, but right now, he wanted the Master to live. And not only to live, but to be completely sanctified.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King''s expression was extremely cold. When he heard Ye Futian''s words, he knew the place that Douzhan held in his heart.


    "Are you afraid of death?" The Great Zhou Sacred King swept his gaze over Zhou Huang, Zhou Ya, and Zhou You.


    Everyone went cold at the King''s words. He had asked his own son if he feared death.


    Of course he was afraid.


    In this world, there was no one who was completely unafraid of death.


    If someone was so-called "unafraid of death," it was because in their heart there was something more important than death that transcended their fear.


    But it was clear that there was nothing like this for Zhou Huang and the others, so they were very afraid.


    But when they saw the Great Zhou Sacred King''s piercing golden eyes, they did not say that they were.


    The King had many sons. He was tyrannical and ruthless, but none of them could be unfilial to him. He would truly abandon any weak and incompetent son.


    "If they also lose a cultivator of the Sage Plane, then this is no loss," said Zhou Ya coldly. Although he spoke courageously, his heart trembled slightly. The Great Zhou Sacred King had not said it clearly, but he was hailed as the one most likely to inherit the throne. He very keenly understood his father''s intention. If his father acceded to Ye Futian''s threats, then he would have truly lost.


    "If anything happens to you, Douzhan and the people of the Barren State will be buried with you." The Great Zhou Sacred King''s gaze swept over to where Ye Futian was. The rules of the Great Path flowed between heaven and earth, and a terrible aura burst out from him. He reached out towards Douzhan below him without any hesitation, and the radiance of the Golden Phoenix shined through the void.


    Douzhan roared and stepped into the sky as he launched his counterattack, but he saw the infinite light pierce through his body. His sturdy body trembled fiercely, and he spat out a mouthful of blood as the aura grew more fierce.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King''s pressure became even more terrible. It covered the heavens and the earth and it wrapped Douzhan up within it.


    When Ye Futian saw this, his heart grew cold. The most ruthless of the Imperial family, the Great Zhou Sacred King, could even not care if his own son lived or died?


    And it wasn''t just one son.


    Zhou Huang was a Sage of the Sages and Saints Ranking. Zhou Ya was known as the heir to the throne, and was thus highly regarded. These two sons could not have any value in his mind. And the Great Zhou Sacred King had said that if one hair on their heads was harmed, he would destroy the Master.


    This meant that the Great Zhou Sacred King was not really ignoring them, it was just that he did not want to fall into passivity.


    The Divine Ape''s hand suddenly clenched hard, and a crisp snapping sound rang out. The expression on the beast''s face was Ye Futian''s, cold and full of desire to kill.


    A few miserable cries came out. Zhou Ya and the others wanted to resist, but a force penetrated into their bodies and crushed their bones bit by bit, like the cruelest form of torture.


    "Any attack that my Master suffers, they will suffer twice as much." A cold voice once more came forth from the Divine Ape. Ye Futian had not given in; he had joined the game.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King stared coldly at the Demonic Ape. Ye Futian was more troublsome than he had imagined, and more ruthless.


    "If you come back to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty with me, I''ll let him go." The Great Zhou Sacred King''s radiance covered Douzhan as he raised this condition. If he had just directly agreed to Ye Futian''s offer and gone back to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, that would be completely passive. Who would be able to guarantee if Zhou Huang and the others would survive? And even if they did live, would they become disabled?


    How could he let Ye Futian threaten him?


    "No!" Before Ye Futian could answer, he heard Douzhan''s categorical refusal. He looked over at Ye Futian. "There will be no discussion about this." The Great Zhou Sacred King had initiated this holy war to get Ye Futian. Could they now trade him for Ye Futian?


    He would rather die here.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King glanced coldly at Douzhan. He had not really thought that Ye Futian would agree, he was just testing him.


    "Then I want that girl, and the Sword Matrix of the Void," he said coldly.


    The girl that he was talking about was naturally Yaya.


    This condition was also very demanding. Ye Futian would probably not agree to this requirement, but that girl''s position in Tombkeeper Village was a bit unusual. Plus, Tombkeeper Village had always guarded the Sword Matrix of the Void, so if Ye Futian wavered on this point, it would undoubtedly cause a rift between him and Tombkeeper Village.


    At this time, the Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village was the most powerful force in the Barren State. If he let Douzhan go but was able to split up his opponents it would be even more to his advantage.


    "I can''t do that," spat the Divine Ape in a cold voice. Ye Futian did not hesitate. He really couldn''t do it. This question did not need to be considered at all.


    The condition that the Great Zhou Sacred King had raised was the reason why the Village Chief had followed him into the Holy Zhi Palace. If he accepted the King''s offer, would the Village Chief still be the Holy Elder? If he was afraid to directly oppose him, how could he let someone else? Moreover, even if it hadn''t been for all that, trading Yaya for the Master was not something he could do.


    "So you want him to die?" The Great Zhou Sacred King''s expression suddenly went cold, and his majesty filled the air.


    "Master, your disciple is unfilial. If something happens to you, all I can do is destroy everyone here, and then mobilize all the forces of the Barren State and march them towards the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to avenge you." Ye Futian''s voice rang out, revealing his solemn and stirring intentions.


    Everything he did these days was to help his Master achieve the Divine Path and leave his body. But now he could not leave himself at the mercy of the Great Zhou Sacred King for him. He knew that the King was constantly testing him and playing with him.


    "Good." Douzhan nodded in agreement. His aura soared into the sky. His back was still quite straight as he said, "Futian, you''ve done all you can. As for me, I''m fortunate that I''ve been able to do all that I''ve done. I barely escaped death outside the palace, and moreover, now I fully understand the landscape of the Divine Path, so this is no loss. On the day when you level the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, remember to offer a sacrifice to me."


    "Of course," Ye Futian said coldly. The dialoge between the two of them was far more tragic and heroic than the one between the Great Zhou Sacred King and Zhou Ya. Douzhan and Zhou Ya were different. In this holy war, the one who had experienced the greatest harm was Douzhan. He had indeed put all thoughts of life and death aside. In his heart, persevering in his beliefs was more important than life.


    All was silent. In the vast space, everyone was in extremely low spirits. Countless people in Nine State City were watching the game between the two Saints.


    The great game between The Great Zhou Sacred King and Ye Futian, Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The wind blew with a sorrowful feeling, and a bit of coolness.


    Then another figure stepped out, making everyone in Nine State City look at him. He was a cultivator of the Xia clan. He looked at everyone in the void and said, "The holy war has become so fierce, and you''ve come back to the same situation. Why don''t you sit down and talk?"


    Anyone with a discerning eye could tell that they were at an impasse. They were sticking to their bottom lines and did not dare to break.


    They didn''t want to pay the price.


    The price that the Holy Zhi Palace would pay was Douzhan''s life, and the price that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would have to pay was the lives of the King''s son and many others.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King and Ye Futian said nothing, and the atmosphere was still tense.


    "The holy lands of the Nine States all fight to the death under the Orthodoxy of Emperor Xia, and countless people have been killed. The Xia clan is willing to mediate this holy war, and moreover, invite a Nine State Supervising Inspector to guarantee that everything is aboveboard. Are you both willing to do this?" the old man from the Xia clan continued.


    But in reality, everyone understood that since the holy war had reached this stage, mediation was useless.


    The situation between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace would never end.


    With the Great Zhou Sacred King''s personality, he could not let Ye Futian and the Holy Zhi Palace go, and Ye Futian''s way of doing things was also very ruthless. Also, he had displayed his talent; if he one day entered the Saint Plane, anything could happen!

 874 The Xia Clans Invitation

    The holy lands from the Nine States all knew that the Xia Clan''s surname had special meaning. Everyone had guessed that they might be related to Emperor Xia. The Xia Clan''s position in the Nine States was extremely special. As such, it was not abrupt for the people from the Xia Clan to step out.


    The two holy lands had entered a deadlock. Although the Xia Clan elder''s mediation did not have any part in ending the Sacred War, it did not mean that both parties would not take a step back.


    Unless they were willing to watch their Master or children die in front of them��


    "As long as my Master is fine, I can stop here, but I will definitely not agree to any other conditions," Ye Futian said. He agreed to the mediation, but his stance was firm. Anyone could understand that this was only a temporary compromise, but only Ye Futian himself knew that he could not last in his current condition for much longer. Every moment was a huge burden on the people in the battle matrix. Moreover, what did he set up all this for? His Master to enter the Saint Plane.


    As long as his Master was safe, the Barren State would have its second Saint. He was not in a hurry to take Zhou Huang and the others'' lives. After all, he had captured them to save his Master.


    Everyone understood why Ye Futian agreed first. After all, they all knew what Ye Futian''s objective was for coming to the Nine State College. It was the Great Zhou Sacred King who had led the Sacred Dynasty''s army to pressure them, attempting to kill Douzhan and Ye Futian. However, the Great Zhou Sacred King had not predicted what would happen afterward. As such, as long as Douzhan was able to become a Saint and leave, it would be the Barren State''s victory.


    "Sacred King, what do you think?" the Xia Clan elder looked at the Great Zhou Sacred King and asked. His name was Xia Shen, and he was one of the higher-ranked figures on the Sage Ranking, so he had quite an esteemed position.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King''s faint golden eyes had an extremely sharp look in them. Although Ye Futian''s attitude was unyielding, he could still see his impatience. No matter how mature his frame of mind was, he was still a teenager. His emotions were naturally his weakness.


    Not agreeing to any added conditions? He would see about that.


    "Go ahead and kill them," The Great Zhou Sacred King looked coldly in Ye Futian''s direction and said, his tone icy.


    He taunted Ye Futian to kill them.


    He wanted to see if Ye Futian dared to do it.


    Evidently, the Great Zhou Sacred King was unwilling to accept Ye Futian''s terms.


    On the Divine Ape, a violent killing intent emerged. Zhou Huang and the other two had pained expressions on their faces as their hearts fell cold. Their father was ruthless indeed. Although they knew that the Great Zhou Sacred King was only testing Ye Futian, what if Ye Futian really decided to do it?


    The Great Zhou Sacred King was testing Ye Futian. At that moment, they were competing to see who cared less.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King similarly released a savage aura that engulfed Douzhan, as though once Ye Futian struck, he would as well.


    The tense mood continued to remain. Ye Futian''s heart fell as he saw the Great Zhou Sacred King''s emotionless expression. He knew that he had lost the battle.


    "If you want me to agree to your two conditions, forget it," Ye Futian said. Neither he nor Yaya could be allowed to land into their hands. If he fell into the enemy''s hands, he would not be the only person who died. He would implicate the entire Barren State and his Master would also not be able to live.


    This was not a simple one-for-one exchange.


    "Sacred King, maintaining this deadlock is pointless," Xia Shen continued to say.


    "In this Sacred War, many of my Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s people died. Before this, the Holy Zhi Palace sent men to assassinate the Infinite Palace and two other major factions, killing multiple elite Sage Plane figures from the Sacred Dynasty, including the Sage Ranking''s Sage Wuliang. It''s time to settle the score," The Great Zhou Sacred King retorted.


    "The Palace will not use anyone as a bargaining chip," Sage Douzhan glared at the Great Zhou Sacred King and said coldly.


    "Then it shall end with your death," The Great Zhou Sacred King looked mockingly at Douzhan and replied.


    "In three months'' time, Saint Xia will organize his birthday banquet in the Xia Clan," Xia Shen suddenly said. This irrelevant information caused many people to be shocked. Saint Xia''s position in the Nine States was extremely high and had a huge reputation.


    "Today, I would like to take the opportunity to invite all of you to join us. How about the Sacred King and Palace Lord Ye join us?" Xia Shen continued.


    "Since it is senior Xia''s birthday banquet, I will definitely be there," The Great Zhou Sacred King replied. He had to give Saint Xia respect.


    "I will definitely be there to pay my respects," Ye Futian replied. He would naturally not reject, an invitation from the Xia Clan could not be rejected. Moreover, the host of the birthday banquet was Saint Xia, one of the people standing at the pinnacle of the Nine States.


    "Okay." Xia Shen smiled as he nodded. "Since that is so, today, both parties are unable to come to an agreement. Why not sit down and have a discussion instead? I have previously said that the Xia Clan is willing to mediate the sacred war. Why not both parties stop today and three months later, Saint Xia will personally mediate the matter. How about it?"


    If it had been someone else, the crowd would definitely scoff. However, the Xia Clan had the makings to become the leader of the Nine States. As such, there was nothing wrong with them doing so.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King fell silent. Xia Shen had already said this much, if he continued to refute him, it would not be giving him face. Although Xia Shen was only an expert on the Sage Ranking and he did not need to care, but he was apprehensive about the clan behind him.


    "What about them and my Master?" Ye Futian asked. He was naturally referring to Zhou Huang and Douzhan. What would happen to them?


    "Since both parties have previously stayed in the Nine State College, why not stay in the College for a while longer? I will ensure that both parties will not mistreat them in this period, and we can head towards the Xia Clan together. I have not seen Saint Xia for a very long time as well." Saint Li also chipped in, stepping in as a guarantor.


    Ye Futian did not say anything else. If Saint Li personally guaranteed it, both parties would naturally be at ease. Both the Great Zhou Sacred King and Ye Futian did not have the courage to disrespect Saint Li.


    "I''m okay with that," Ye Futian replied. He could only accept it for now. His sight turned towards his Master''s direction. He would put in his best effort to bring his Master back to the Barren State in one piece.


    "Okay, since we have an agreement, let us stop here for today." Saint Li waved his hand and continued, "Everyone, please return to the College."


    "I will leave first. I have to go and report to Saint Xia and invite the other holy lands and the Supervising Inspector," Xia Shen said. He understood very well that this time''s Nine States Supervising Inspector was different. Saint Xia''s birthday banquet would invite all the holy lands in the Nine States. This was not Saint Xia''s intention but that person''s.


    "Okay," Saint Li nodded and replied.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King retracted his aura and stared at Douzhan, saying, "Let''s go."


    His Life Spirit returning to his body, the Village Chief looked at the Great Zhou Sacred King before moving in a flash to Ye Futian''s side.


    Ye Futian also released Zhou Huang and the others and released the battle matrix. Many figures appeared in the air and Hua Jieyu went up to support Ye Futian, seeing as he was a little pale. In reality, Hua Jieyu''s current condition was not good as well.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King stared at Ye Futian. Seeing Ye Futian''s condition, he instantly understood. As expected, it took Ye Futian a lot of effort to maintain the battle matrix and he was unable to withstand it for much longer.


    Douzhan also looked at Ye Futian and the two of them looked at each other and understood what they were thinking. Douzhan nodded lightly, then stepped forward boldly with no fear.


    "Holy Elder, keep a tight watch on them," Ye Futian said in a soft voice. He then used his remaining strength to walk towards the Nine State College.


    A massive confrontation had faded to nothingness, but it had left a lasting impression on the people of the Nine State City, especially the Holy Zhi Palace Lord Ye Futian. A younger generation figure standing up against the Great Zhou Sacred King, he was probably the only person in the Nine States who dared to do so.


    If the Great Zhou Sacred King was unable to kill him, there would probably be another legendary figure in the Nine States in the future.


    This generation''s Barren State had shown signs of rising up. Now, the Great Zhou Sacred King was probably intimidated, or he would not have remained that headstrong even after his children had been captured.


    However, at that moment, a pair of brilliant yet sharp eyes closed in the Nether Sword Mound. The Sword Will in the air also stopped its humming and the area fell to silence yet again. However, the Sword Will within the sword eyes appeared to be endlessly flowing through the young girl''s body, tempering her body.


    ��


    Soon, news spread throughout the Nine States, causing a huge uproar.


    The Barren State Holy Zhi Palace''s Sage Douzhan had become a Saint. This was the first Saint that had appeared in the Barren State for many years. From now on, the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace would have two Saints.


    However, Sage Douzhan was still under the Great Zhou Sacred King''s control and had yet to escape danger. Conversely, Zhou Huang and his two other sons were still in Ye Futian''s hands. With Saint Xia mediating personally, it was very likely that both parties would take a step back and reach a compromise. Apart from Douzhan entering the Saint Plane, the masses focused more on the insinuation behind this battle.


    The once prosperous Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, apart from the Great Zhou Sacred King, seemed unable to suppress the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace any longer. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty that had once ruled the Eastern State was weakening once again, while the Holy Zhi Palace was rising up within the storm.


    It was as though the Nine States was ushering in an era of change. The flow of history could not be stopped.


    When the news spread back to the Barren State, countless people were excited and worried. They were excited to witness the rise of a new era and the Barren State was on an unstoppable streak. However, they were worried as their problems had yet to end.


    The people who had stayed in the Holy Zhi Palace to stand guard were apprehensive. They were waiting for Ye Futian to bring the Barren State''s second Saint back.


    Apart from that, another huge piece of news was spreading.


    Saint Xia was going to organize his birthday banquet, and the Xia Clan''s experts had headed to all the holy lands in the Nine States to send out invitations. They had invited people from every holy land to the Summer State to join in the celebrations. Nobody knew why the Xia Clan was going to such an extent, but regardless, Saint Xia had personally invited them to his birthday banquet, so no holy land would reject. Even if the holy land''s lord was unable to attend, he would send a representative.


    For the time being, the Summer State, central state of the Nine States was bustling with activity, and not just because of the mediation between the sacred war between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace!


    No matter what, the Xia Clan had the entire Nine States'' attention focused on them!

 875 Jieyus Thoughts

    In the Nine State College''s Herb Garden, it was quiet as always.


    In the yard that Ye Futian had once lived in, a figure lay quietly on the bed, breathing regularly. Beside him, a figure sat watching his handsome face.


    The person sitting also had a beautiful face. It could even be called exquisite. Her eyes were like stars, but there was a tinge of sadness in its brilliance. There was a gentle smile on her face as her slim fingers slid across his handsome face. The tender movements contained countless happy memories.


    On the last day of the 9999th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, they had held hands and gotten together. Now, they had spent about 14 years together. His face was still as good-looking, but compared to his past juvenile-looking self, there were traces of maturity on it now. Of course, more of it was from the heavy responsibilities that he had taken up.


    After this year, he would only be 30. It was considered extremely young for a cultivator at Ye Futian''s level, but he already carried the entire Barren State''s hopes on his shoulders. Moreover, her man would have even greater responsibilities and missions to fulfill in the future.


    She had once thought that the two of them would go on hand-in-hand forever, but after experiencing so much, she faintly understood how far forever was. She did not know how the wheels of fate operated, but at least they were together now and she could see his face. That was enough to satisfy her.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s lashes moved and he opened his bright and charming eyes. Seeing Hua Jieyu sitting beside him, his eyes filled with warmth, and a faint smile appeared on his face, one that could capture any woman''s heart.


    "What are you thinking about?" Ye Futian asked softly.


    "I was thinking about why some people look so good no matter how long I look at them." Hua Jieyu also showed her most beautiful smile. When she smiled, although they were in the room, Ye Futian felt as though flowers were blooming.


    "That''s because I already looked good to begin with," Ye Futian replied softly. The two of them stared at each other, as though they were able to feel how close their hearts were.


    "Is everyone alright?" After Ye Futian had fallen into a coma, he did not know what happened afterward. Although he knew that with Saint Li''s guarantee, nothing should happen, he still asked.


    "Yes," Hua Jieyu nodded her head gently and said, "With Saint Li''s words, the Great Zhou Sacred King did not dare to do anything in the Nine State College. Senior You Chi and Uncle-Master Jingang have recovered well and are all waiting for you to wake up."


    Ye Futian heaved a sigh of relief. These days, he had been tense because of his Master''s issue. Now, with Saint Li''s guarantee and Saint Xia''s mediation, the outcome would probably not be that bad.


    He then looked around the surroundings, realized that they were in the Herb Garden. He asked, "Have I been in the Herb Garden the past few days?"


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu answered. "Your issue is on the spiritual level, so Saint Jiang personally gave you some pills to recover. These few days, Miss Little Butterfly has also come by several times, but you did not wake up."


    "I owe Saint Jiang and Little Butterfly favors again," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes, Miss Little Butterfly was worried these past few days about why you were in a coma. She was more relieved after I told her that this was not the first time. I heard that Miss Little Butterfly has been preparing your medicated bath for the past few days," Hua Jieyu smiled and said.


    Ye Futian felt a chill down his spine and looked at Hua Jieyu, saying, "That was Senior Saint Jiang''s intention."


    "I know." Hua Jieyu smiled and looked at Ye Futian, continuing to say, "Miss Little Butterfly is kind and beautiful. How do you feel about her?"


    Ye Futian did a double-take. This was a loaded question!


    "I seem to have not yet recovered. Let me rest a while more," Ye Futian said as he laid down.


    Hua Jieyu looked at the fellow in front of her acting asleep and glared at him coquettishly.


    "Jieyu." At that moment, a gentle voice sounded from outside.


    Hua Jieyu smiled at Ye Futian and said, "Here she is." After she said that, she ignored Ye Futian and went out into the courtyard. Little Butterfly was dressed in a clean white dress and had a pleasant scent on her, like a Goddess. Everything about her made others feel comfortable.


    The two beauties standing together was like something out of a picture.


    "Jieyu, I have boiled medicine for the two of you. It is useful in recovering Spiritual Energy. Try it," Little Butterfly lifted the medicine pot in her hand and said to Hua Jieyu. The two of them had become familiar over the past few days.


    "He has already woken up, but he has not recovered completely and is still lying down. The medicine will definitely work, why don''t you go in and give it to him. I''m sure he wants to thank you too," Hua Jieyu said softly.


    "Since he is still resting, I don''t want to disturb him. Jieyu, you can give it to him," Little Butterfly replied with an innocent smile.


    "Then let''s go together." Hua Jieyu grabbed Little Butterfly''s arm and walked towards the room. At that moment, Ye Futian coincidentally walked out and saw their intimate interaction and had a strange look on his face. This fox could even charm women? However, why did this image look so beautiful?


    What a sight for sore eyes��


    "You''re finally awake." Little Butterfly saw Ye Futian walk out, and a smile appeared on her face. It seemed like he was recovering well.


    "Thank you, Little Butterfly," Ye Futian said.


    "I didn''t do anything." Little Butterfly smiled and replied, "These few days, Jieyu has been guarding by your side. Her own Spiritual Energy has also suffered injury, but she did not rest. Since you have woken up, take good care of her. This medicine was originally prepared for the two of you, but since it looks like you''re fine, give it to Jieyu." As she said that, she handed the medicine pot to Ye Futian, then smiled and said, "I won''t disturb the two of you then."


    After saying that, she turned around and left. Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu angrily. She lowered her head like she had done something wrong, then smiled and said, "I recovered a long time ago."


    "Come over and drink the medicine," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay," Hua Jieyu mumbled, then walked obediently to Ye Futian''s side. Ye Futian made her sit, then retrieved a spoon to feed her. Hua Jieyu looked at the handsome figure in front of her and felt a warm, fuzzy feeling in her heart.


    "Own up, what devilish plan do you have for dragging Little Butterfly along?" Ye Futian asked. Evidently, he knew what had happened outside.


    Hua Jieyu tilted her head and blinked her eyes cutely, saying, "Little Butterfly is kind and beautiful. I like her a lot."


    Ye Futian glared at her and said, "You always have this expression whenever you are guilty. Although it is charming, after so many years, I have seen all your expressions. It''s useless."


    Hua Jieyu blushed as she glared at Ye Futian, then lowered her head slightly and said, "I''m not lying. Little Butterfly is not bad, and she''s also Saint Jiang''s disciple."


    "Your emphasis should be on the last line," Ye Futian said as he put the spoon down, then put his hand on Hua Jieyu''s head, knocking it. He then said, "What are you thinking in that brain of yours? I am the Barren State''s Holy Zhi Palace Lord after all, do I need to resort to these methods? That is also dishonoring Little Butterfly, you are not to have such thoughts in the future."


    "Okay." Hua Jieyu lowered her head like a little girl who had done something wrong.


    Ye Futian picked up the spoon again and said softly, "Raise your head and open your mouth." Hua Jieyu did so obediently. Ye Futian fed her the medicine again, then said softly, "Although Little Butterfly is beautiful, my Jieyu is the most beautiful."


    Hua Jieyu''s beautiful eyes brightened up and the bitter medicine became sweet as honey.


    ��


    In the Nine State College''s pavilion where the people from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were, Douzhan sat cross-legged, bathing in a golden glow. Rule power flowed around his body and the divine light shone brilliantly. He had entered the Saint Plane through his body, so he had achieved the rule power body. When he cultivated, a divine light appeared on his body and looked dazzling.


    At that moment, a figure stood with his back facing Douzhan. Even standing there, he casually gave others immense pressure as he gave off a majestic aura.


    "Will you not consider my words? Since you have already entered the Saint Plane, you should understand how strong a Saint''s strength is. No matter what happens during the sacred war, the strongest powers will determine everything. Even if I am bound by the rules, even if the people under the Saint Plane lose terribly, as long as I am around, anyone who enters the Saint Plane from the Barren State will be suppressed."


    The Great Zhou Sacred King continued coldly, "If you enter my Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, not only will you be able to stay safe, but I will also crown you as Lord."


    Douzhan ignored the voice and continued to close his eyes and cultivate. There was no way that his heart would waver.


    "The higher our cultivation level, the clearer we see this world. The Great Path has no place for sentiment. Only by cutting off all obsessions from our heart can we forge the strongest will. Your emotions towards the Barren State will only become an impediment that can even get you killed, why not cut it off? Moreover, I have already stepped into the Saint Plane and can teach you how to cultivate after you enter the Saint Plane." The Great Zhou Sacred King continued to tempt him.


    The light around Douzhan continued to circulate without any pause.


    He had his own cultivation path; everyone''s path was different.


    Moreover, the Great Zhou Sacred King was very clear that it was impossible to waver a Saint''s cultivation, but he continued to tempt him anyways. He did not really want Douzhan to join him, but he was only trying to create a rift in his heart that could affect his cultivation in the future.


    As he saw that Douzhan did not react, the Great Zhou Sacred King turned around and shrouded Douzhan with an overbearing aura and walked towards him. He said coldly, "I am speaking to you, do you really think that I would not dare to deal with you?"


    "It was a mere accident for me to enter the Saint Plane. Outside the Palace, I should have died in battle. Therefore, this life of mine was extended accidentally, and I entered the Saint Plane." Douzhan''s eyes were still closed as he replied coldly, "So you should know better than anyone that I don''t really care about dying, just like how you do not care for your children. So, if you dare to touch me, I do not mind battling here in the College. As for the consequences, I do not care." As he said that, he opened his eyes. They were filled with determination and arrogance. He said, "If you do not believe me, you can try it for yourself."


    The Great Zhou Sacred King looked at Douzhan with his golden eyes, staring at him with an expression as sharp as daggers, as though he was trying to look inside those arrogant eyes.


    When did he ever care about the Barren State? Not to mention figures on the Barren Sky Ranking. Douzhan was once the seventh on the Barren Sky Ranking. However, he had personally seen Douzhan fight to the death outside the Palace and enter the Saint Plane.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King had been prideful his entire life, but towards Douzhan, even though he was on the enemy''s side, even though he wanted to kill him, it did not stop his heart from having a trace of admiration for Douzhan.


    When a person''s belief was so strong that even death could not shake it, he indeed deserved the admiration of others. Douzhan was evidently that sort of person. Therefore, Douzhan had said that he had entered the Saint Plane by luck, by coincidence. However, it was also inevitable.


    Nobody in the world could enter the Saint Plane through luck.


    However, the Great Zhou Sacred King still wanted to kill Douzhan no matter what.


    Leaving only an icy gaze, the Great Zhou Sacred King left with a frigid aura around him.


    Sage Douzhan closed his eyes and continued his cultivation, as though the Great Zhou Sacred King''s arrival had not affected him whatsoever. He felt that the only reason he was alive was that his value was higher than Zhou Huang and the others.


    The Barren State had been dispirited and weak for many years. Now, a leading figure had appeared. Ye Futian was destined to bring the Barren State into an age of glory. He represented the future and he represented hope. However, he was still too young. He needed time.


    The Barren State also needed a Saint that truly belonged to the Barren State to appear now. It would become their belief going forward.


    So, he was still alive!

 876 Hints

    A few months was a fairly short time for cultivators. It passed by in the blink of an eye.


    The battle of Nine State Platform had spread throughout the territory of Summer State; Central Plains City in Summer State, one of the largest main cities of Nine States, was equally known as the Nine State City. Because it was located in the middle of the Nine States, it held the name "Central Plains."


    In this glorious ancient city, there were many prestigious families and clans. Any random person in the city could be an extraordinary character. This city could be described as weather-stricken, having witnessed many families rising and falling.


    However, in the Central Plains, there was an ancient family that had a history of thousands of years. No matter how history evolved, it was always standing at the apex of this city and controlled the land of the Central Plains. Not only that, but this ancient family, even among all of Nine States, was still one of the most powerful families, so recognizable that even one or two words in its name could be removed.


    This family, of course, was the longest withstanding family of the land of Nine States��the Xia family.


    Saint Xia, the head of the Xia family, possessed a lofty status in the land of Nine States. The elder had lived for many years and was highly respected. He witnessed the rise and fall of history and had even experienced the glorious era of the unification of the Divine Prefectures a few hundred years ago.


    More than 300 years ago, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing unified the lands, but the fact was that, even before then, the Divine Prefectures had experienced a long period of war until it was finally unified.


    For the younger generation, the history of hundreds of years ago was far and seemed as if it had nothing to do with them because it was not their era. But perhaps to people ranked close to the elderly Saint Xia, he was considered a witness of history.


    Now, all holy lands of the Nine States were invited to attend Saint Xia''s birthday banquet. So in a short time, the Central Plains City were trafficked with well-known figures and celebrities; countless top families and clans were coming together in one place.


    The cultivators of all holy places also came under the leadership of commanders of the saint plane, crossing through boundless regions even as remote as the three holy places of Ocean State and arriving in succession into the Central Plains City.


    For the time being, Central Plains City was truly the gathering place of all the important figures of the holy lands of Nine States, making this ancient city more lively and prosperous. Even the Nine State Forum did not have such a robust gathering.


    Even the Nine State Forum, held once every three years, would not see the saints from other states other than the state where the host was located. But this time it was different. All the saints were arriving personally to celebrate the birthday banquet of Saint Xia.


    In this endless territory of Nine States, there were no more than three people who had such influence. Moreover, at the banquet of Saint Xia, there would also be mediation between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace regarding the Sacred War. The battle three months ago shocked the Summer State, and the news quickly traveled to the Central Plains City in Summer State. Rumor had it that the palace lord of Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian, was a truly impressive figure of the times. Many would also like to see for themselves just how dazzling this young legend was. Top clans aside, even those others from all the holy lands, were looking forward to seeing him.


    At this time, in a pavilion in the Central Plains City, the cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light in Qi State were resting. In that battle at the Nine State Forum, the Hall of Holy Light suffered a great loss in the front of the people from the Holy Zhi Palace. Ji Hua was their shining star that they used to direct at the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace, but later, he was humiliated and defeated by Yu Sheng, and his pride was shattered.


    Now that time had passed. In only a short period of two years, Yu Sheng''s fame as the winner of the Nine States Forum grew, and he enjoyed an even greater reputation. The palace lord of Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian, topped his peers in the Nine States.


    At this time, the cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light sat and chatted together, and Ji Hua was also there. Although he was crushed by Yu Sheng, he was able to resolve it with his own extraordinary nature and entered the Sage Plane. Still, to him, Yu Sheng was a shadow of the past.


    "I heard that three months ago on the stage of the Nine State Platform, Ye Futian swept the four holy lands of Summer State of all their top geniuses of the same generation, and they were all Sons and hallowed disciples of the Divine Path. But they were all defeated. Ye Futian then let it be known that he would witness the competitions of all the geniuses of the Nine States, see who would come out on top, but he would not participate, only witness." A cultivator sat in the upper position said, " Any of you who went to the Nine State Forum and have seen him in action, how strong is this young one?"


    Some people who went to Xihua Sacred Mountain to participate in the Nine State Forum in the Eastern State recalled, "Zhou Ya had provoked Ye Futian, but he had no power in front of Ye Futian to fight back, so it was hard to judge Ye Futian''s true strength based on that. But he was able to vanquish those from the four holy lands. His power has to be considerable."


    "The same generation of people of the four holy lands were suppressed. Ye Futian obviously has the talent to stand at the peak of Nine States. However, what he said was full of pride and arrogance," the cultivator occupying the upper position said quietly, his sight landing on a figure not far from his side. The man sat quietly, seemingly unaware of the conversation taking place.


    The Hall of Holy Light was placed within the top five holy lands of Nine States, so one could only imagine how powerful it was. The power of light rule was one of the most powerful rule forces. And he, as the most ingenious of the Hall of Holy Light, even in all of the Nine States, could only be matched by a few.


    Not only had the Hall of Holy Light arrived, but other holy places in the land of Qi State were also there. Jixia Holy Palace was stationed in another pavilion not far from the one occupied by Hall of Holy Light. This time, Jixia Holy Palace also had many powerful cultivators coming to participate. In the courtyard, an extremely handsome young man stood next to an ancient tree and looked into the distance pensively.


    "What are you thinking?" a beautiful woman walked toward him and asked softly.


    "I used to think that I would be the main player in this world. I was born to be different and shouldered different missions. However, one day, you suddenly discover that you are not so important. The world works according to its own rules. Sometimes, an inconsequential person turns out to stand at the center of the stage one day. What exactly are we pursuing when we cultivate?" the young man said softly.


    "Although I don''t know what you are trying to express, the world is a big place. There''s no telling who can become an absolute main player, but at least in your world, I believe that you will be the most dazzling person." The girl''s voice was soft, and she spoke with a smile.


    "But perhaps that''s no longer what I want to pursue," the young man whispered. A wind gently blew past him, but he seemed to be in a state of deep thoughts.


    In a few days, he might see familiar people from his past. Once, he was the absolute focus amongst them, but now he was cultivating at Jixia Holy Palace. He thought that if he was to face the past, he could be completely undisturbed. But when that day really arrived, he found that it was still impossible to do.


    After all, it was still not enough.


    Perhaps cultivating was a process of seeking knowledge.


    Everyone had their own way of cultivating, and he was also seeking his own way.


    ��


    Ye Futian and company had already arrived in Central Plains City, and they came with the Nine States College, with Saint Li leading the group. After all, the friction between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace had not yet been resolved. With Saint Li as a personal guarantor, nothing could go wrong, and with him there, both sides would not be able to make unnecessary movements. Although Great Zhou Sacred King was extremely proud, in front of Saint Li, he was still obligated to show respect.


    After they had arrived, Ye Futian and his party settled in a pavilion. There were people visiting on and odd. Most of them came to visit Saint Li, who represented the Nine State College. Outside the pavilion, there were always many people gathering, wanting to meet the figures from the College and the other two holy lands, especially Ye Futian.


    At this time, Sage Wanxiang came to the courtyard where Ye Futian was and said, "Palace Lord, an envoy from the Yue clan is here."


    Ye Futian revealed a look of doubt. He and the Yue clan did not have any prior interaction.


    "Who is it?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Yue clan''s Yue Jiangliu," Sage Wanxiang replied. Ye Futian''s eyes showed a look of surprise. He had heard of the name. Yue Jiangliu, a sage on the Sage and Saint Ranking.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. Even though he was a palace lord of a holy land, when a sage of the Yue clan personally came to visit, he was obligated to show respect. Otherwise, he would come across as rude and crass.


    Yue Jiangliu was middle-aged, seemingly around 40. His body exuded an extraordinary temperament. His eyes smiled when he saw that Ye Futian personally came to welcome him, and he put his hands together to greet him in return. " I just visited Saint Li and thought that I would also pay a visit to Palace Lord Ye. Did I disturb Palace Lord Ye?"


    Saint Li''s position was recognized by all, and it was only natural that he should be visited first, so Ye Futian did not mind that. He replied, "You are too courteous. Your visit is an honor for us, there is no disturbance whatsoever."


    "Palace Lord Ye is the lord of holy lands, renowned throughout the Nine States. I should visit you in person." Yue Jiangliu sounded very humble, and his eyes remained focused on Ye Futian, full of joy. The Ye Futian at the moment and the one that was at the Nine States Platform were different. He appeared humble and courteous, not at all like the sharp and jagged one at Zhongzhou City.


    "Please, formalities are not necessary." Ye Futian smiled and said," Is there some way I could be of service?"


    "It was nothing urgent." Yue Jiangliu glanced at the person standing beside him. Ye Futian''s eyes followed his and saw a woman wearing a long blue skirt. Her figure was graceful and her curves elegant. Even though she was not wearing makeup, her beauty was undeniable.


    "Lingshuang, come and meet Palace Lord Ye," Yue Jiangliu said.


    Yue Lingshuang''s eyes were a strange color, and her beautiful eyes that looked towards Ye Futian revealed some curiosity and shyness, which confused Ye Futian.


    "Yue Lingshuang here, paying respect to Palace Lord Ye."


    "Miss Yue is too polite." Ye Futian returned the greeting.


    "Lingshuang had heard many legends about Palace Lord Ye and always wanted to meet this legendary figure of Nine States, so I''m taking her to visit. Now that Palace Lord Ye is the ideal pursued by many of our peers in the Nine States, Lingshuang has a lot more to learn from Palace Lord Ye." Yue Jiangliu smiled.


    "Miss Yue is beautiful and refined, a most excellent figure among her peers and bound to be outstanding in her own right. There is no need to learn from the likes of me," Ye Futian replied politely.


    "Although her natural talent is fair, there is still left much to desire compared to Palace Lord Ye. If Palace Lord Ye does not mind, perhaps in the future, Lingshuang could come to Palace Lord Ye for advice," Yue Jiangliu continued, and many around Ye Futian showed a look of surprise.


    This suggestion was full of obvious hints!

 877 Thoughts, Not Actions

    The Yue clan was one of the four holy lands in Summer State, and it was a familial force with a history passed down by many generations. It had a deep-rooted foundation. Although not quite on the level of the Xia clan and Nine State College, it was definitely one of the top ten powers of the holy lands in the Nine States. Its power was not inconsiderable.


    When such a family of power engaged in talk, naturally there was always more hidden meaning than what met the eye. Why would a lady from the Yue clan, with such a prestigious background and whose clan had a number of cultivators of the Saint Plane, need to come to Ye Futian often for instruction? Looking at the age and beauty of Yue Lingshuang, it was easy to understand their intentions.


    Of course, in their position, it would be impossible for the Yue clan to make their intentions known the first time. Therefore, it was only hinted at that if Ye Futian was willing, he could try to contact them. If not, then there would be no harm done at all.


    Behind Ye Futian, Sage Wanxiang, Sword Demon, and others looked at each other, and some thoughts started to materialize in their hearts. Obviously, the Yue Clan had noticed ??Ye Futian''s potential and wanted to use marriage to unite their powers by having one of their daughters marry into the Holy Zhi Palace and become Ye Futian''s woman, thus tightening the relationship of both parties.


    They assumed that the Yue clan knew Ye Futian already had a wife, so a marriage would only yield the position of a concubine. Therefore, Yue Lingshuang must not have been the most important daughter of the clan. After all, Yue clan had a status formed over the past thousands of years.


    Even so, the Holy Zhi Palace was now famous in the Nine States and had the potential to rise, but compared to the Yue clan, at least presently, it was still insignificant. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had been difficult to deal with for the Holy Zhi Place, so the Yue clan was very sincere. It was obvious that they valued Ye Futian''s future potential so that they acted in this way, with cultivators in the Sage Plane visiting him in person.


    Naturally, Ye Futian understood Yue Jiangliu''s hint. He looked at Yue Lingshuang. He had praised Yue Lingshuang''s beauty as being outstanding and it was no lie; she was indeed a very beautiful woman. He also detected curiosity and some shyness in those pretty eyes. Clearly, she was in the know but she did not reject him. Perhaps a woman born into such a family knew that marriage was one of her fates.


    Yue Lingshuang understood that although she was resistant before, because, after all, although she was not the most excellent woman of the clan, she was within the top three among her peers and had her pride. If she was to be a wife, she would not have minded. After all, Ye Futian was now known throughout the lands and he could be described as the most legendary figure in recent years.


    But everyone in the clan who had seen Ye Futian all agreed that he would become a peerless figure in the future and that he was incredibly handsome and young. He would one day lord over many leaders of the holy land. When she thought about that, she was not so resistant. Many of the great men in the Nine States had wives and concubines, and those concubines were all outstanding women in their own right.


    Now that she had seen Ye Futian in person, he was indeed an incomparable gentleman, so the resistance in her heart was weakened and instead replaced by some coyness. There was a momentary silence in the courtyard, and many thoughts were swirling in the minds of everyone in such a short moment. Ye Futian was thinking about how to respond.


    "Yue clan is a clan of a holy land with a long history, whose art of sealing is well-known in the Nine States. There is no need to ask for my advice." Ye Futian smiled in reply. His tone was warm and let those who heard it feel very comfortable. People of the Yue clan looked a little surprised, but Ye Futian continued, "Of course, if Miss Lingshuang would like to ask questions regarding cultivation, I would happy to oblige, but I may return to the palace in Barren State when things are finished here." Ye Futian''s words were humble and courteous. Although it was a rejection, he was still polite.


    There was still a smile in Yue Jiangliu''s eyes, and it was hard to decipher what he was really thinking and not revealing. In fact, he also understood Ye Futian''s polite rejection.


    When Yue Lingshuang heard what Ye Futian had said, she felt a faint loss. She had put down her pride, but she did not expect Ye Futian to refuse, so it was inevitable that she felt disappointed. Of course, her self-esteem was not trampled just because of the rejection. The two had only met for the first time, and she was resistant before. How could she ask Ye Futian to accept her at first sight?


    Perhaps this was normal. As the most legendary genius in the Barren State, it should not be so easy for him to be distracted by mere beauty. With Ye Futian''s talent, position, and looks, it would not be difficult to procure any kind of beauty if he wanted to.


    "The ways of cultivation all have their own strength. Palace Lord Ye single-handedly fought geniuses of all four holy lands of your generation. Naturally, there is much to learn from you." At this time, Yue Lingshuang smiled and said, "The Barren State is far from the Summer State. If there is an opportunity to visit in the future, we hope Palace Lord Ye would not avoid meeting again."


    Yue Lingshuang seemed not to have minded, and her smile was even more attractive. When Yue Jiangliu heard what she had said, he was silent and just smiled. If Yue Lingshuang was only a superficial girl with a pretty face, he would not have brought her.


    "If Miss Lingshuang visits me at the Holy Zhi Place, I will definitely host her personally." Ye Futian smiled.


    "It seems that you young people have much to talk about." Yue Jiangliu smiled at the two. "I will not tarry further. If you have time, Palace Lord Ye can come to our place to chat."


    "For sure." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Farewell." Yue Jiangliu put his hands together, bowing to leave. Ye Futian returned the gesture with equal courtesy.


    After the departure of the Yue clan, everyone''s attention turned to Ye Futian. Xu Shang smiled lazily. "It is a pity that the feelings were not mutual."


    Ye Futian gave Xu Shang a dirty look and replied, "We just met for the first time, what feelings are there to speak of? It''s just first impressions and the obedience to family arrangements." The purpose of marriage was ultimately a consideration of interests.


    "The timing of the Yue clan''s proposition is just right. For us, this is extremely beneficial. From the perspective of the Holy Zhi Palace, I actually hoped you would consent," the Sword Demon said. Within the context of the Sacred War, the proposition of marriage by the Yue clan would mean that as long as Ye Futian consented to the marriage, the Yue clan would help Ye Futian, which would help the Holy Zhi Palace overcome this difficulty. They might even protect Ye Futian going forward and witness him step into the Divine Path.


    "You actually turned down this kind of wonderful proposition." Xu Shang shrugged. To acquire a beauty as a concubine and also empower the Holy Zhi Palace, no matter how one looked at it, it was a great deal. At least until Ye Futian was strong enough, to a certain extent. However, Ye Futian was his own person. If no such idea existed in his mind, they could make a joke or two about it.


    "Why don''t you agree?" at this moment, a voice came from behind, and suddenly the space became quiet. Everyone turned around and saw a beautiful figure appear, like a beautiful landscape, pleasing to the eye. However, everyone was keen enough to leave the two of them alone, leaving only Ye Futian there.


    Hua Jieyu walked to Ye Futian and tilted her head up slightly. Those delicate and beautiful eyes looked into Ye Futian''s and said, "You know their intentions perfectly well, and since the matter with the Master has not yet been settled, if you agree, the Yue clan would lend a helping hand. Not to mention, she is very beautiful."


    Ye Futian looked at the perfect face that was so close to him. They could feel each other''s breathing. Jieyu very rarely talked to him so seriously. Previously, when she took Little Butterfly in the Herb Garden, even though she was in a joking mood, Ye Futian could not understand what was on her mind. Little Butterfly was the disciple of Saint Jiang, and Saint Jiang was ranked 12th on the Sage and Saint Ranking. There was a little selfishness on her part.


    Ever since they left the Barren State, although they now enjoyed fame in the lands, it was a long and difficult journey. Especially the Sacred War. Several times, Ye Futian faced a crisis, and twice he had fallen into a coma for many days and he even took the risk to test out medicines, all of which Hua Jieyu had watched with tears and heartache. However, with her cultivation level, even if she had fully committed to stimulating power that did not belong to her, it was still just a drop in the bucket, completely powerless to those who were in the Saint Plane. Therefore, she did not want Ye Futian to be so tired and often encounter life-threatening dangers.


    Previously, she did not know whether or not Little Butterfly was interested in Ye Futian, but since Ye Futian did not express interest, she had let it go. Now that the Yue clan had come forward preemptively and Ye Futian once again refused, she would come forward and discuss it seriously.


    "Judging from the attitude of the Great Zhou Sacred King, he did not want to lose everything. Otherwise, he would have already done it that day. Now the Xia clan has come forward to mediate. As long as the Great Zhou Sacred King proposes conditions that do not go past the bottom line, I am willing to agree." Ye Futian said, "Not to mention, this is the Sacred War. It is impossible for Yue clan to directly interfere with Great Zhou Sacred King''s decision. At most, they could only affect it, but certainly not make a definite decision."


    "But..." Hua Jieyu still wanted to say something, but Ye Futian covered her mouth, smiled, and said, "This is you allowing me to have concubines and girlfriends, don''t regret it."


    Hua Jieyu stepped hard on Ye Futian''s foot. How could this guy be in the mood to make jokes?


    "However, the arrival of the Yue Clan did remind me that this time, all the holy lands are here in the Central Plains City. Let''s take the opportunity to visit some principalities." Ye Futian said, "Jieyu, come with me." Hua Jieyu could not say anything but nodded gently in agreement.


    The next day, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu led many notable people from the Holy Zhi Place and went to visit the pavilion where the Yue clan was residing. The cultivators of the Saint Plane of the Yue clan had personally set up the banquet. Yue Lingshuang was also in attendance. When she saw Hua Jieyu next to Ye Futian, like an elven nymph, she vaguely understood in her heart why Ye Futian did not agree to the proposition. Even though she was also considered a rare beauty, when Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu sat together, they looked like a golden couple.


    Ye Futian did not talk about the matter regarding Yue Lingshuang, keeping the intention of the visit as purely paying respect to the elders of the clan. Ye Futian''s humility was much appreciated by the Yue clan.


    After leaving the Yue clan, Ye Futian went on to visit the Sky Saint. He had already had his people inquire about the whereabouts of where all the people of the holy lands were staying. This time, Sky Saint and his disciple, Han Yu, had also arrived. During the Nine State Forum, Sky Saint and Glass Saint of the Eastern State gave him a great feeling, and they had expressed their care in words, so he decided to visit. After Sky Saint, it was time to visit Glass Saint where the people from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple were staying.


    It was not until evening time when Ye Futian finally returned with Hua Jieyu.


    "Rumor has it that when he was young, the Great Zhou Sacred King once pursued the Glass Saint. We don''t whether this is true or not," Ye Futian whispered. In truth, the Great Zhou Sacred King had good taste.


    In the land of Nine States, he had seen many beautiful women. However, in terms of appearance and temperament, Glass Saint was the number one beauty of the Eastern State and was definitely the most outstanding. After all, having cultivated to the Saint Plane, she possessed a unique allure that was also holy and pure, so that no one dared to dishonor her.


    "Of course it''s true. A beautiful woman such as the Glass Saint would naturally incite similar thoughts in all the top geniuses of the Eastern State at the time." Hua Jieyu said, "Even today, the Glass Saint still looks like a girl. The years have not left any traces on her."


    "You cultivate so fast, you will soon be the same as the Glass Saint." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Who do you think is better looking, me or Glass Saint?" Hua Jieyu said with a smile and looked at Ye Futian, her beautiful eyes concealing a hint of playfulness.


    "Glass Saint is the first beauty of the Eastern State, but looking at all of the Nine States, I am afraid it is difficult to find a second," Ye Futian said with a smile. "Of course, the premise is that the present company is excluded."


    A sweet smile came onto Hua Jieyu''s face, but she whispered in Ye Futian''s ear, "If you could win the heart of the Glass Saint, do you think the Great Zhou Sacred King would have his heart broken?"


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu with a shocked look. This girl was getting naughtier, and even dared to have such an idea? This was Glass Saint they were talking about, the lord of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple.


    Blinking, Ye Futian seemed to consider the matter seriously for a moment, then nodded. "What a good idea."


    "Go die!" Hua Jieyu gave Ye Futian a look of feint irritation. This guy had actually dared to consider it!


    "That was your idea." Ye Futian was a little surprised. Was this change in opinion a bit too fast?


    "Yes, I said it, but would you dare?" Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian with a smile, and Ye Futian suddenly shuddered for no reason. Thoughts and no action might be the best route. If the Glass Saint knew what the two of them talked about, she would probably kill them with a single slap!

 878 Saint Xias Birthday Banque

    @@


    Saint Xia''s Birthday Banquet was finally here.


    Countless gathered outside the Xia clan at early morning that day, waiting somewhere far outside their gates. They knew that legendary figures throughout the Nine States'' holy lands would be there to attend the event that day.


    The Xia clan was the most powerful holy land belonging to a clan in the entire Nine States. Their territory was sprawling, so much so that even the clan''s outer walls looked like that of a city''s, grand and magnificent.


    Many servant girls were busy receiving guests from all over the Nine States at the moment. Mighty ones continued to descend from the sky afar, landing near the outskirts of the clan before walking up to their gates and handing up their invitations, which allowed them passage into the Xia clan.


    Most of those who arrived hailed from top-notch forces from Central Plains City. While the city itself was not a holy land, the city was nonetheless second only to holy lands in terms @@

 879 Peacemaking

    @@


    Mighty ones from holy lands all over the Nine States arrived one after another, and leaders all took their seats above the steps, looking down from above and enabling them to see the guests from the Nine States very clearly.


    Ye Futian caught sight of some familiar faces, such as Kong Yao and Qin Zhong from Zhisheng Cliffs, as well as many mighty ones from said holy land who participated in the battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Kong Yao and Qin Zhong naturally saw Ye Futian as well. They took their seats and Kong Yao''s eyes looked cold. Ye Futian was actually able to sit above with the saints. There was a time where he never bothered even looking at Ye Futian.


    Qin Zhong felt rather curious as well; however, he held no enmity against Ye Futian. While he had once lost at Ye Futian''s hands, the ordeal simply stimulated him to move forward. But then again, he quickly found another brutal truth��the harder he tried, the further the gap between him and Ye Futian became.<@@

 880 Reach an Agreemen

    @@


    Saint Xia enjoyed high prestige and commanded universal respect within the Nine States. The Xia clan also had the prestige of having the number one holy land in the Nine States. Therefore, even if there was a Sacred War between two holy lands, Saint Xia was still qualified to mediate between them.


    Of course, in many people''s eyes, even if Saint Xia personally came forward, at most, the two sides would take a step back from the current stalemate. It would be basically impossible to write off all the grievances of the holy war at one stroke.


    Saint Xia continued, "Since both the Great Zhou Sacred King and Lord Ye are sitting here today, why not talk things out and see if you can resolve this grudge so as to avoid any more bloodshed." After he said this, he looked at both Ye Futian and the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King put down his wine but did not say anything. No one could tell what he was thinking. Ye Futian also sat quietly.


    A brief silen@@

 881 Xia Qingyuan

    @@


    Saint Xia saw that they both agreed, and nodded with a smile, saying, "My original intention was to calm the Sacred War. After all, a continuous battle will only hurt both sides. But since the two sides can''t see eye to eye, you will have to abide by the agreement you just reached."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    He looked to Xia Qingyuan sitting beside him and said, "Do you have any objections, Supervising Inspector?"


    Xia Qingyuan had been sitting there quietly all along. Seeing that Saint Xia had asked her opinion, she remained very calm, without the least bit of perturbation.


    "Since both sides have agreed, you will be given a chance to amend the rules of the Sacred War. The rules of the Sacred War will be re-established according to what you have said, and they cannot be changed in the future. If anyone violates them, the Nine State Guard will arrest them," said Xia Qingyuan calmly. Her voice was clear, cold, and feminine. Although she was dressed as a man, she did not hide the fact that she @@

 882 Ye Futians Plans

    @@


    The people from the Nine States did not walk out immediately. Although they were extremely taken back after hearing Xia Qingyuan''s words, all the people present were extraordinary figures with a strong frame of mind. They were all thinking about it.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "I would like to ask the Supervising Inspector, if lighting up the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda only gives us the right to take the test, where will the test be held?" a handsome teen asked. The person was the Nine State College''s prodigy Lin Shubai, Saint Li''s disciple.


    "It will not be in the Nine States," Xia Qingyuan replied.


    "If we pass, will we still be able to return to the Nine States? What happens if we fail?" Lin Shubai asked again. The questions he was asking were questions that many people had wanted to ask.


    "If you pass the test, you can cultivate in the Upper Worlds and you can return to the Nine States. As for failure, you are asking how dangerous it will be?" Xia Qingyuan stared at Lin Shubai with a deep exp@@

 883 Picked On

    @@


    Gu Dongliu walked to the bottom of the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda and also felt a strong attracting force. His Spiritual Will seemed to move out of his control. The Lapis Lazuli Pagoda spun as it let out a dazzling light. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    In an instant, nine words surrounded an illusory figure that was surrounded by light, rushing into the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda like an immortal''s shadow.


    Hum. The nine words let out a dazzling light, causing a Zhang to light up on the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda. Next, Gu Dongliu retracted his strength, and a strong light sank down as his Life Spirit returned to his body. He then stepped out of the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda''s radius.


    As more people took the test, the people after them had started to figure out some of the workings of the pagoda. As such, there would not be a repeat of what had happened to Lin Shubai. Gu Dongliu was evidently very composed when he went in and out.


    Lighting up one Zhang on the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda was considered a pass, but it was not@@

 884 Hidden Currents

    Ye Futian naturally felt the subtle change in the atmosphere. Previously, the Glass Saint had spoken on his behalf and relaxed the tension, but clearly, someone was not happy with him.


    Ye Futian raised his wine cup and toasted in the direction of Saint Xia and said, "Today is the feast of Saint Xia, who has been meditating on behalf of the Holy Zhi Palace. We are forever grateful. It is completely my fault for interrupting the festive mood of the banquet for such a small thing. I will drink up as a penalty." As he was speaking, Ye Futian drank the wine in the cup.


    Saint Xia''s status in the Nine States was highly respected, lofty, and peerless. He also knew that Saint Xia was not deliberately targeting him, so there was no need to offend Saint Xia over such a trivial matter.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s action, Saint Xia eased up a bit. Twice he had invited Ye Futian and twice Ye Futian had refused, and his reason was clearly a pretext to evade which naturally displeased him.


    "Ye Futian, the reputation of the supervising inspector in the Upper Worlds is not less than yours in the Nine States, and within the lands of Nine States, it is hard-pressed to find people who can compete with you in your generation. Following the supervising inspector to cultivate and test together would only be good for you. Don''t waste your talent," Saint Xia looked at Ye Futian and said.


    Ye Futian nodded. "I understand. But since I have declined, I have my reason for declining. Of course, if Saint Xia and the supervising inspector wanted me to participate in the assessment, then I would go. The test at Lapis Lazuli Pagoda would not be necessary."


    Everyone understood that with Ye Futian''s talent, the test at the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda would just be a formality, and there was no doubt about other things. In truth, Ye Futian just didn''t want to expose his spirit.


    "Indeed, such self-importance." Saint Ji smiled and drank.


    "Everyone in the Nine States must go through the test at the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda. It seems that Palace Lord Ye thinks differently about himself than of others," said the Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs. Saint Xia was being too nice about it.


    The Sacred War between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace made the Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs feel greatly threatened. He knew very well that the strength of Zhisheng Cliffs was not far from that of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "Previously, someone said that today is Saint Xia''s birthday banquet, so why keep repeating such unpleasant talk to spoil the mood?" Ye Futian''s eyes now also became sharp. He did not respond to Saint Ji before because he felt that it was unnecessary. The other was in Saint Plane; there was not much power in his verbal response, so he simply chose to ignore it. However, the other party did not want to let him go so easily.


    "Since you commented that I feel self-important, then let''s just say it is so." Ye Futian continued, "If both of you think that I am not qualified, the Hall of Holy Light and Zhisheng Cliffs both have the most talented people in attendance today. I am an upper-level sage, so feel free to pick someone of that plane. If I am not up to par, I will resign my position as the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace."���� Ye Futian''s sudden aggression silenced the crowd at the banquet. He wanted to challenge both the Hall of Holy Light and Zhisheng Cliffs by himself.


    The air now became cool, and the eyes of those from these two holy lands were extremely cold when they were fixed on Ye Futian.


    Saint Ji slightly looked up. His radiant eyes stared at Ye Futian. This genius once crushed his equals from the four major holy lands in the Nine States Forum. The Hall of Holy Light was hard-pressed to find someone in this plane to compete with Ye Futian and as far as Zhisheng Cliffs was concerned, it would be even harder.


    "You..." Saint Ji wanted to refute.


    "Talk is cheap. You have commented that I feel self-important and I have admitted it. If you have any questions, just send out the geniuses of the Hall of Holy Light." Ye Futian cut Saint Ji off and continued, "Otherwise, feel free to enjoy the birthday banquet. There is no need to worry about me and the Holy Zhi Palace."


    It would have been better if that last sentence was expressed in a different way, otherwise, simple silence would have done. But Ye Futian''s temper was not so mild. Among the Saint''s seats, he was the only one who was not yet a saint. He thought that he had already made concessions towards all the saints, but if someone was going to challenge him, then he would need to return the favor.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King was very pleased to see this conflict unfold. Although he said nothing at the moment, he was very leisurely tasting the fine wine. Truly aggressive. Saint Ji, ranked fifth on the Sage and Saint Ranking, was someone that even he was unwilling to confront. Not to mention, Saint Ji was equally aggressive.


    Most of the saints in the Saint''s seats all looked at Ye Futian with great interest. They seldom paid any attention to those of the younger generations, but Ye Futian was an exception. Today was the first time that many of them had seen a palace lord of a holy land who was not a saint, and he was indeed different.


    The Sky Saint smiled imperceptibly. It was unexpected that Saint Ji was actually rebuked by a young one today. The defiance initiated by Ye Futian was not as simple as its literal meaning. He said that if he should lose, he would forfeit the position of Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, and that was a bet equivalent to an outright challenge.


    If Saint Ji were to really send someone to fight, in his position, it was unlikely that even if his person from the Hall of Holy Light were defeated that they would get off scot-free. At the very least, there would be a need to apologize. But this was clearly unacceptable to Saint Ji, so at the moment, even Saint Ji could only stare at Ye Futian in silence.


    The quiet atmosphere of the banquet once again subtly charged. Saint Ji''s eyes were like a beam of light that penetrated everything, piercing into Ye Futian''s eyes.


    "That''s enough." Saint Xia spoke softly, breaking the awkwardness.


    Saint Xia gazed deeply at Ye Futian. He finally understood the cause of the Sacred War between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace. Not only was the Great Zhou Sacred King domineering, but Ye Futian, though only a sage, was almost excessively aggressive. This was probably also the reason why some people in the holy lands of the Nine States could not stand the Barren State. The legends of the past had always been the same, but Ye Futian, in his present state, was still a bit weaker. Too much inflexibility would only cause one an early demise.


    "What are the thoughts of the supervising inspector?" Saint Xia''s gaze turned to Xia Qingyuan. Among those in attendance, only those in the Xia clan knew about the true identity of Xia Qingyuan, and he knew about it the most.


    Xia Qingyuan''s status was definitely more terrible than those in attendance could have imagined. This was someone who lived in the close attention of others since birth, whose talent in cultivation was unparalleled in the world. If any of these cultivators of the Saint Plane in the Nine States had gone to the Upper Worlds in the past ten years, they would definitely know of her. But clearly, these cultivators currently sitting in the Saint''s seats had not.


    Never mind Ye Futian. One word from Xia Qingyuan could decide the fate of anyone present. Even those of the Saint Plane were of no exception, and it certainly included him.


    Xia Qingyuan waved a hand and put away the Lapis Lazuli Pagoda. She did not look at Saint Xia, but instead looked at the people below and said, "Start preparing. We will leave after the banquet." Everyone looked surprised. Moving so fast?


    It seemed that this supervising inspector was all action, and was prepared to leave right after the banquet.


    As she finished, Xia Qingyuan turned and walked towards her seat. When she reached to Ye Futian, she paused and said, "I won''t force you. Since you don''t want to go, you don''t have to go." She did not look at Ye Futian after that and continued moving forward.


    Ye Futian said nothing. From Xia Qingyuan''s person, he felt a cold arrogance. This was a person who was proud to the extreme.


    Saint Xia did not comment on the matter again. He looked at Ye Futian and secretly lamented that Ye Futian had missed an opportunity through no fault but his own. Among the people who came from the Nine States this time, there were only a few who could really pass the assessment. If Ye Futian was willing to try, he should have a chance.


    He might even have gained the favor of Xia Qingyuan.


    Suppose it could really be like that, following Xia Qingyuan to cultivate together. The title of palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace would count for very little then. Even if he gave it up, it would not have mattered.


    Saint Xia raised his cup to those facing him. "Our business has concluded today. Everyone can now enjoy the banquet in peace. Feel free to move about and mingle without restraint."


    "To Saint Xia." Everyone raised their cups in toast and drank.


    The mood of the place noticeably relaxed. Many people got up to walk around and chatted. On the side of the Saint''s seats, Ye Futian saw that Xia Qingyuan got up and left. All the saints still chatted casually. He felt that he was somewhat out of place, so he got up and walked toward the bottom of the stairs.


    Ye Futian went to the side occupied by the Holy Zhi Palace. Hua Jieyu stood with Zhuge Mingyue, Yun Shuisheng, and Phoenix. Ye Futian glared at Hua Jieyu, but she seemed not to care at all. She smiled brightly at him and there was nothing Ye Futian could say.


    "Second sister, I''m leaving her in your care," Ye Futian said to Zhuge Mingyue.


    "What, you two have been together too long, so it''s hard for you to separate? I heard that you have been doing very well at Nine State College." Zhuge Mingyue smiled and seemed to suggest something.


    Ye Futian was confused and complained slightly, "Just exactly whose sister are you?"


    People such as Yun Shang, Undying Old Man, Huang Xi, Xu Shang, and Zhuge Qingfeng bid everyone to watch out for their own safety. These people, who were on their way to gain experience, were almost all the top figures of the younger generation in the Barren State, and they were also the future of the Barren State.


    "Palace Lord Ye," a gentle voice spoke, and Ye Futian saw a beautiful woman coming to him. It was Yue Lingshuang, and there were many young people of the Yue clan around her.


    "Miss Lingshuang," Ye Futian called out.


    "These are the people from our clan who will go to the assessment. This time, they go to the trial with the people from the Barren State, and they can take care of each other," Yue Lingshuang said. She did not qualify for the trip.


    Ye Futian glanced in the direction of Moon Saint, and when he saw the other nod to him, he smiled and said, "Well, this is my Big Brother, and we can take care of each other while we are on the road."


    The head of the Yue clan nodded slightly to Sword Saint and then bid goodbye. It was a good idea to pay a visit to get acquainted. After all, no one knew what danger would lie ahead.


    "Big brother and second sister, people from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple are reliable and can be trusted. If there is danger, you can try to join forces with them," Ye Futian said.


    "Will do." Sword Saint and Zhuge Mingyue both nodded slightly.


    "Palace Lord Ye is very thoughtful and thinks a few steps ahead," a voice said, and Ye Futian turned his attention that way and saw a group looking at them from a distance. It was the people from the Hall of Holy Light. Ye Futian simply cast a casual glance toward the person, then looked away without much attention.


    "Unfortunately, Palace Lord Ye will not go this time or else it would be more interesting," a young man from the Hall of Holy Light said nonchalantly.


    "Whether he goes or not, it will still be interesting." Ye Futian paid no attention to it, but Gu Dongliu looked toward the other side and spoke.


    "Ji Mo, of the Hall of Holy Light," the young man picked up the wine cup and greeted Gu Dongliu.


    "Gu Dongliu, of the Holy Zhi Palace," Gu Dongliu responded.


    "I remember." Ji Mo merely smiled and didn''t continue to say anything more, then looked away.


    Many who witnessed this scene thought that the trial this time should be very exciting.


    At the birthday banquet, there naturally would be no conflicts, but underneath it all, there was an undercurrent. All those in the Saint Plane had lectured the young generation that was about to go on trial. Some of them were full of expectations and wondered what the situation would be like after these people returned!

 885 Fantasy

    In the Barren State at the Holy Zhi Palace, a group of mighty figures appeared in the sky above the palace.


    At this moment in the palace, many disciples already levitated so as to welcome their return.


    Apparently, the palace had received the news. Ye Futian and his party had returned from Summer State.


    Since the Ice Temple, the Sovereign Family, the Alchemy City, the Zhuge family, and many other elite principalities had moved into the Holy Zhi Palace, the number of cultivators in the Holy Zhi Palace had not been the same as it was before. Not to mention that after the last battle outside the palace there were people in the Barren State who continued to join in.


    Therefore, looking at the sky above the palace, it was all these cultivators that welcomed the triumphant return of the heroes.


    Even though Ye Futian and his party had a victory, as long as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was not destroyed there would be no triumph.


    However, the Barren State had finally produced a saint. For many years what the Holy Zhi Palace and even the entire Barren State had been expecting was finally a reality.


    Palace Lord of the Battle Sage Palace, Sage Douzhan, was now entering the Saint Plane.


    The Barren State not only gave birth to its first cultivator of Saint Plane, but also possessed two great saints, and was now truly a holy land.


    "Greetings to the Palace Lord." Voices were heard calling out and mighty figures bowed in respect one after another. Now the people of Holy Zhi Palace truly admired Ye Futian from the bottom of their hearts.


    The young man who became palace lord while he was still in the Noble Plane had first brought to the palace a Holy Elder of the Saint Plane and the many cultivators from the Tombkeeper Village and Chess Saint Villa, later remaining unbeaten in the Sacred War instigated by the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and personally bringing Sage Douzhan to the Nine State College to make possible the first saint truly from the Barren State, and the creation of Holy Zhi Palace as it was today.


    Although the pressure of the Sacred War was still there, the people of the Holy Zhi Palace were full of confidence that they would certainly be victorious in this Sacred War.


    Ye Futian nodded with a smile and then all eyes turned to Sage Douzhan, who was next to Ye Futian. Its indomitable figure, now, stepped into the Saint Plane.


    "In the future the Master will not only serve as the Palace Lord of the Battle Sage Palace, but he will also serve as the Holy Elder of the Holy Zhi Palace." Ye Futian announced. Holy Elder was just a honorary title, because as palace lord he was not a saint so the saints appearing in the Barren State would be more appropriately known as the Holy Elders.


    "Greetings to the Holy Elder." Countless people of the Holy Zhi Palace bowed in respect. This was a saint. Even if Sage Douzhan was not Holy Elder, they had to greet the saint.


    Sage Douzhan stood on the void looking down at the people below, his heart filled with emotions. If the old palace lord and Liu Chan could see the Holy Zhi Palace today, perhaps they would be happy too.


    He knew that his sainthood was full of significance. To the Barren State it was an encouragement.


    For many years, the Barren State had only produced one being of the Saint Plane, which was him.


    "I will still continue to cultivate at the Battle Sage Palace. Anyone at the Holy Zhi Palace who was at the sage plane and has questions about cultivation or wants to feel the power of the saints are welcome to come and ask me at the Battle Sage Palace." Sage Douzhan said, and suddenly the eyes of many showed a glimmer of light.


    To cultivators of Sage Plane, being saint was their ultimate dream.


    Although the Village Chief was also a saint, Ye Futian had brought him in. They were not familiar with him and dared not disturb him unnecessarily. But Sage Douzhan was different. He had always been the palace lord of the Battle Sage Palace. Later, the outstanding people of the palace could be taught by saints.


    "Then, don''t feel like we are bothersome." Next to him, You Chi spoke half-jokingly. But really, he was actually somewhat jealous of Douzhan.


    Saint Plane- who would not want to be saint?


    That was the plane of his dreams. In the future he would really have to go to Douzhan and ask for advice, even if he thought it was embarrassing.


    Many people around Ye Futian laughed, especially Sword Demon and others. They were even more familiar with Douzhan, but once Douzhan became saint they were in the position of asking him for instruction. Even thinking about it was a little awkward.


    "Are you guys going to let me return to the palace?" Ye Futian said laughingly, looking at those blocking their way.


    Those people were stunned momentarily, and then they made way, somewhat embarrassed, "Please, Palace Lord."


    "Let it be known throughout the Barren State the news of the Master''s sanctification," Ye Futian''s voice roared, heard throughout the Holy Zhi Palace. He then walked towards the direction of Holy Sage Pavilion.


    "Yea." someone responded. It seemed that the palace lord was so pleased that he wanted to inform the whole Barren State.


    The Barren State, perhaps would be causing some shocks.


    As they expected, the news of Sage Douzhan becoming a saint caused quite a strong commotion in the Barren State, and shocked countless cultivators.


    Those principalities that had not been fighting side by side with the Holy Zhi Palace felt some regrets deep down inside. They felt that they might have missed out on something. Although they could still join the Holy Zhi Palace, the respect they would receive would not be the same as those who joined the Sacred War.


    After Ye Futian returned to the Holy Sage Pavilion, he first visited the Master, the mistress, Liu Chenyu, Qingxuan, and the others let them know the news of Jieyu, Wuchen, and Yu Shang.


    Yu Shang did not follow Xia Qingyuan for the trial, but he went to the Vajra Region instead.


    On the birthday banquet of Saint Xia, the Vajra Region Lord, who ranked within the top ten of the Saint and Sage Ranking of the Nine States, had invited Yu Shang to cultivate at the Vajra Region for a period of time. This kind of display of goodwill was not refused by Ye Futian, so he had permitted Yu Shang go to the Vajra Region to cultivate.


    Vajra Region''s expertise was in Buddhist power, strong and masculine, similar to the strength of Yu Sheng''s cultivation, but it could also be considered oppositional. However, Ye Futian believed that Yu Shang could try to cultivate both strengths and see whether it could add to his own cultivation. It was with the guarantee of the Vajra Region Lord that he agreed to it.


    The top ten ranking of the Nine States would not lower themselves just to deal with a young person, not even at Saint Xia banquet in front of other saints so Ye Futian was very reassured.


    For a time that followed, the Battle Sage Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace had been particularly festive, with many people going to the Holy Zhi Palace for advice every day.


    Moreover, with the spread of the news, those with great accomplishments in cultivation in the Barren State had continuously come to the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate there.


    This holy land in the Barren State was now full of vitality.


    Ye Futian delegated many trivial matters to the others while he himself was happy to get some quiet time and practiced in peace.


    Of course, occasionally there was the vexation from Long Ling''er and her various ruses.


    Although Long Ling''er was already over twenty in age, reaching the most beautiful age as a young woman, in front of Ye Futian she still did not show any of the self-restraint of an adult and behaved like a child.


    However, it also added a little vigor to Ye Futian''s life.


    When he returned this time, almost all of the most familiar people around Ye Futian had left so occasionally even he himself was somewhat unaccustomed to the feeling.


    While cultivating in peace and quiet, time also passed unawares.


    In the twinkling of an eye, half a year had already passed and the Holy Zhi Palace had gradually returned to the tranquillity of the past.


    On a quiet ancient mountain peak of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian sat cross-legged with eyes closed, cultivating. The surrounding heaven and earth were enveloped by curious rules. The wind swept gently past, lightly caressing his clothes.


    Not far from Ye Futian there sat a figure, feeling the air coming from Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s eyes slowly opened, and the air that pervaded around the body disappeared. He stood up and felt the wind blowing on him. He walked to the edge of the cliff, his thoughts seemed to be pulled into the distance.


    It had been half a year. He wondered where Jieyu and the others were, and how was the trial going.


    Since entering the cottage, whether it was brother, sister, or Jieyu as well as others, there was always someone around. Especially Yu Shang, who almost never left his side. And now that all of them had gone, he would sometimes feel lonely by himself.


    Behind him, a figure walked over and put a coat over his shoulders. Ye Futian reached out and saw the quiet figure put his coat on him.


    Ye Futian looked down at the woman in front of him; she seemed to be always so quiet, to the point that she seemed non-existent.


    As if she felt the gaze from Ye Futian, the woman looked up slightly, her silvery eyes revealing stunning beauty. She diverted her gaze and did not look into Ye Futian''s eyes.


    "Loulan, you have been with me for ten years?" Ye Futian asked in whisper. Loulan Xue had been following him since the beginning of the cottage, and in a blink of an eye it was now more than ten years.


    "Mmmm." Loulan Xue nodded lightly.


    Ye Futian, feeling emotional, asked, "These days you were cultivating alongside me, because I wanted to let you feel the atmosphere of the rules and how it is, so you can comprehend. In the future you will understand when the time comes. The celestial empress had always hoped that Loulan would have a sage future. You will be that."


    The celestial empress that he talked about was naturally referring to the mother of Loulan Xue, the celestial empress of Loulan.


    "Mmmm." Loulan Xue was still just nodding.


    Ye Futian did not say much. Wait until she reached the Sage Plane, then she would be considered as a stronghold in her own right besides the holy lands and principalities of Nine States, and her mentality would also change. And by then she should know how to choose her own life.


    "Palace Lord." at this moment, a voice called out, and Ye Futian looked in its direction and saw two beautiful women who looked quite alike. Only their temperaments were slightly different. The woman on the left appeared more naive.


    These two were sisters, Xiang Zhiqin and Xiang Zhiyan. The people of Fire Emperor Palace had already moved into the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. Xiang Zhiyan was the wife of Li Futu and had always been at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    When he saw the looks of the pair, Ye Futian knew that Xiang Zhiyan was probably only accompanying her sister.


    "What is it?" asked Ye Futian.


    Xiang Zhiqin evaded Ye Futian''s gaze, but Xiang Zhiyan said, "We have some questions regarding cultivation that we would like to ask the Palace Lord."


    "Very well," Ye Futian nodded, "come over and sit down."


    Xiang Zhiyan dragged Xiang Zhiqin to come this way and then the two asked some questions about cultivation, all of which Ye Futian answered one by one.


    "Compared to the Noble Plane it means to feel more of everything between heaven and earth; mentality, spirit, and comprehension of the power of the world, and to be one with it to give birth of rules. But just how can we get out of that step?"


    "Everyone''s way of cultivation is different, and so are their mentalities. I feel to become a sage, it is essential to first understand oneself. Only then could one clearly understand the power between heaven and earth and thus integrate with it." Ye Futian said.


    "Many thanks to the Palace Lord." Xiang Zhiqin said.


    "Not at all, are there any other questions?" Ye Futian asked.


    Xiang Zhiqin shook her head.


    "Then go back and concentrate on cultivating." Ye Futian reminded them. Xiang Zhiqin lowered her head slightly and stood up, "Well the, Palace Lord, we will bid you goodbye."


    "Go then." Ye Futian laughed.


    As the two turned to leave, Xiang Zhiqin took a few steps, then took a deep breath and turned to bow slightly toward Ye Futian, "I am sorry for what happened back then."


    "I have already forgotten it." Ye Futian said with a smile. Right now, he was already the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. How could he care about the conflicts between them back then? They were young and stubborn; it was best to let the past be gone with the wind.


    "Mmmm." Somehow seeing Ye Futian''s smile, Xiang Zhiqin felt it was all a little hard to bear. Turning around, she pulled Xiang Zhiyan to walk away.


    Her beautiful eyes were slightly moist. Everyone had to pay for the decisions of their youth.


    Once upon a time, Daozang Palace had four great beauties: Yun Shuisheng, Phoenix, Hua Jieyu, and her. Now, since Hua Jieyu was already Ye Futian''s wife, there was no need to say anything further. Yun Shuisheng and Phoenix were also friends of Ye Futian, and they had both already entered the Sage Plane. Their talents were outstanding. And now there was only her, dim and lackluster.


    Moreover, that small and weak youth who had just entered the Holy Zhi Palace was now already shining brightly, illuminating the entire Barren State and becoming the faith of countless people.


    Xiang Zhiyan silently sighed in her heart. She had also heard from her sister about the conflict between her and Ye Futian and even if there was once resentment and hatred, when such a true legend appeared in one''s world, watching him progress step by step to where he is today- how could one not ruminate on what was in the past?


    But even if she encouraged Xiang Zhiqin to bravely pursue and take the opportunity now that Hua Jieyu was now absent, she understood that in reality, even with a pretty face, her sister would still not have a chance. After all, there were too many outstanding beauties at his side.


    At this moment, there were two people coming their way to this side and passed them by.


    "Brother Futian." Behind him came the sound of Long Ling''er''s bell-like voice, and then Ye Futian''s voice was heard, full of smiles. "Ling''er, you come again to bother your brother."


    "I am only concerned that you will be lonely alone so I came. You see, I also brought a great beauty, like sister Zhiqiu, who is very understanding." Long Ling''er pointed to Mu Zhiqiu and smiled.


    "I only have some questions about cultivation." Mu Zhiqiu said, somewhat tongue-tied, looking at Long Ling''er.


    "Zhiqiu, forget about her." Ye Futian smiled. As they mindlessly chatted, the sound drifted with the wind into the ear of Xiang Zhiqin in the distance, which made her even sadder.


    Obviously, Ye Futian treated her differently than Long Ling''er and Mu Zhiqiu.


    Even though Ye Futian had said that all was forgotten and now only treated her as a disciple of the Holy Zhi Palace, that sense of distance was an undeniable fact laying in front of her. Perhaps she should never had unrealistic fantasies!

 886 Saint Rankings and Divine Implement Rankings

    Two years quickly passed.


    It was the Year 10015 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. Ye Futian came to the Nine State College to train again after three years passed.


    Ye Futian first paid a visit to Saint Li when he arrived at the college. Saint Li greeted him personally this time and both sides talked for quite a while. It was said that the conversations were joyous for both of them. Saint Li then issued an order, allowing Ye Futian to come and go from the College''s library as he pleased.


    The Nine State College had a long history, and all sorts of books and classics were found within the library, making it a treasure chest of sorts. There were even parts of the library which were restricted to the students of the College, yet it was all open for Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace. It t became the talk of the College, and many felt displeased at the privileged treatment he received.


    While there was no doubt that Ye Futian''s talents were exceptional, others deemed it to be senseless to open parts that were even restricted for them, students of the college itself, to an outsider. While the order spoke volume of Saint Li''s generosity, it was seen to be rather unfair to the students of the college.


    Many grew to resent Ye Futian more, seeing him entering the Herb Garden to train again. That fellow has indeed made the Nine State College his personal training ground.


    Many came to be jealous and envious at how Saint Li and Saint Jiang, the towering figures of the college, actively helped him in his training. Many cursed at Ye Futian deep down, resenting him for being so adept at using other people''s resources to further his own ends.


    There were also those who recalled the scandal involving him and Goddess Die several years ago and mocked him as a shameless playboy for daring to show up again. But then again, there were also those who were impressed at Ye Futian''s prowess at wooing people, wondering how he had tricked Saint Li, Saint Jiang, and Goddess Die.


    Ye Futian turned a blind eye to all the noise outside. Excellent people always drew the ire of others after all. At the moment, Ye Futian was chatting away with Goddess Die, who many from the Nine State College came to admire.


    "Is it going to be more dangerous this time?" Ye Futian asked.


    Little Butterfly rolled her eyes and said, "Of course. I haven''t even got the required herbs together yet. It will take some time. You know how terrifying those medicines will be. You should''ve come later, or maybe you wouldn''t need to show up at all. My teacher can''t go all the way to the Barren State and kidnap you." She sounded rather resentful with her words. The medicine tests those years ago, which lasted for 81 days, had her living in fright all the time. I don''t get it. Your teacher has already become a saint. What the hell would you show up here to get tortured for?


    "I promised Saint Jiang to go through the tests and I intend to keep my word." Ye Futian added, "Besides, while the tests look rather frightening, I kind of look forward to it at the same time."


    The rounds of tests years ago made him understand that Saint Jiang was not looking for medical testing candidates for destruction. Instead, Saint Jiang had wanted to make breakthroughs in expanding the limitations of training. The last rounds of medicine tests yielded fantastic results, which was why he showed up at his own will now. If he were to be able to go through all three rounds of medical tests, his defense would grow exponentially.


    "Right, look forward to it all you want then. Brother said that he will be the one supervising your baths this time. What do you think of that?" Little Butterfly glared at Ye Futian. She had been worried sick for him the last time he went through the test, and he had the gall to claim that he enjoyed it. To her, those tests were hell.


    "Please, no." Ye Futian recalled Xu Chehan''s bone-chillingly cold face. It would be torturous to have someone like that watching him.


    "Little Butterfly, you know well that your brother doesn''t get along with me. I''d rather have you around. Being stared at by a man will make me feel antsy." Ye Futian rubbed his nose and felt rather embarrassed.


    "So you''re saying you''re fine with me watching you instead?" Little Butterfly said exasperatedly to Ye Futian. Just what kind of excuse is this? But she quickly blushed as soon as she finished, feeling that her words had come out all wrong.


    "Well, you''ve seen everything, and I''ve gotten used to it," Ye Futian said rather meekly. Little Butterfly got even more embarrassed before turning around and saying, "I''ll get the herbs ready. And by the way, that''s how brother is. Don''t take it to heart."


    "Little Butterfly," Ye Futian called, "I''m thinking of going to the library tomorrow. I''ve got permission from senior Saint Li but I don''t know where it is. Lead the way, will you?"


    "Nice." Little Butterfly stopped walking and turned around, then said, "Let''s go then."


    Ye Futian came beside her and said, "As for your brother, I won''t be petty with him. Speaking of which, your brother is rather nice to you." Xu Chehan came all the way to warn him before, and he had done so for Little Butterfly. While Ye Futian felt rather irked at the treatment he received, he saw no reason to take it to heart.


    "Yeah, he has always been nice to me." Little Butterfly nodded slightly and both of them chatted while walking quite a distance, heading towards the library.


    The Nine State College was a huge place, and the sight of Ye Futian walking with Goddess Die in their place students'' hearts'' ache even more. It was, after all, Goddess Die, the prettiest girl found in the college. The b*stard is already married and he dares to come here to woo and trick our kind, pure Goddess Die. He is lower than an animal.


    Many discussed ganging up on him and beating him to a pulp. Yet, they quickly realized that they were probably no match for him.


    The library in the Nine State College was huge and it contained up to a million books covering all aspects of training, including introductions to professions and Life Spirits seen before, as well as powers of rules. Needless to say, the place did not lack books regarding training methods and spells. It had everything from low planes to high planes and there were even experiences left behind by seniors of the college, carved into jade scrolls.


    Ye Futian entered the library and was immediately lost at where to begin. He had made great strides in his training for the past two years or so but had encountered some problems nonetheless. Other than to ask for guidance from figures of higher planes and spar with them, looking into books was another sensible option. As such, he came all the way to the Nine State College and asked Saint Li if he was permitted to enter the library. The saint agreed without hesitation, and Ye Futian felt very grateful.


    "Introduction to Saint Rankings and the saints." Ye Futian caught sight of a book by chance and stopped. He had done his share of research back in the Barren State but the details had been lacking.


    The Village Chief and teacher should be on the Saint Ranking of the Nine State''s Sage and Saint Ranking, eh?


    Ye Futian took the book and flipped to the first page. There were but several words on it.


    First Place of the Saint Rankings: The Great Shaman.


    There were no names and no further titles; there were only three words to describe the person who was number one.


    "Who is this Great Shaman guy?" Ye Futian asked quietly.


    "My teacher says that the Great Shaman is a very old and powerful saint. He was of the same era as the Sword Saint of the Void." Little Butterfly then added, "I''m guessing that he is no longer in the Nine States, but somehow, his name is retained in the Saint Rankings."


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and continued flipping through the pages.


    Second Place of the Saint Rankings: Ji Yuan, also known as the Reaper.


    There were some introductions of the person below. Ji Yuan the Reaper trained in the Great Path of Death and it was extremely gruesome, so much so that he had invoked Emperor Xia''s ire, and the emperor, in turn, ordered someone to destroy his holy land, the Abyss of Death, forbidding him from carving out his divine path in the Nine States. However, the emperor spared him due to knowing that Ji Yuan''s training had been arduous. But after that, news regarding Ji Yuan the Reaper was seldom heard. There were rumors about him having left quite a while ago, and there were also rumors about him training in seclusion.


    The two who were ranked at the top two places of the Saint Rankings were extremely frightening people. As for Saint Xia, who was ranked third, he was comparatively weaker. However, due to the first two having practically disappeared, Saint Xia came to become the number one in the Nine States in a way. It was due to such circumstances that he enjoyed an extremely prestigious status throughout the Nine States.


    Ye Futian continued flipping the pages and, as expected, he found the Village Chief''s and his teacher''s names on the Saint Rankings. The Village Chief was ranked 30th, as he was probably the only one who was able to fight the Sacred King and bolt unscathed at his level. At the first plane of the Saint Plane, there seemed to be no one who ranked higher than the Village Chief, so the ranking was hardly surprising.


    As for his teacher, he had never achieved any gleaming success as a saint, and the last battle with the Sacred King had him completely overpowered. As such, he was at the bottom of the Saint Rankings��73rd.


    The Saint Rankings had 72 people on it, but with the Chess Saint dead and the Village Chief appearing out of nowhere, the numbers were made even. Then, his teacher became a saint, which made the ranking consist of 73 people in total.


    Ye Futian was done flipping the pages and put the book back to its place, before finding another book right beside it, with the title reading, Divine Implements of the Nine States Rankings.


    "There is a ranking like this?" Ye Futian sported a peculiar expression and took the book out of curiosity.


    Every single holy land found in the Nine States had a handful of divine implements. However, due to there being many holy lands throughout the Nine States and some top forces having divine implements of their own, the total number of divine implements in existence was actually quite a huge sum. But then again, there were only 36 listed in the rankings, which presumably were the most renowned ones to be found.


    The number one divine implement on the rankings was called the Scepter of Control, which was the divine implement used by the Great Shaman, the number one on the Saint Rankings.


    The divine implement ranked second was the Eye of the Abyss, a spiritual type of devastating divine implement, which, coincidentally, was used by Ji Yuan, second on the Saint Rankings.


    The most powerful being wielding the most powerful divine implement seemed to fit the rules of the cultivators. It was quite common to see divine implements being fought over and taken. However, the third divine implement on the ranking was no longer one controlled by the third-ranked saint on the Saint Rankings. It was the Halberd of Time and Space named "Nothingness." According to the records, it was currently lost in the Endless Ocean of the Ocean State and did not have an owner.


    Ye Futian continued to flip the pages and read about the Divine Implement Rankings. A lot of powerful divine implements were recorded, and it deepened Ye Futian''s understanding about the Nine States!

 887 Space-tearing

    Ye Futian spent his time in the library when he was not training, during the days when the herbs were being prepared. There were quite a number of books regarding training methods, as well as rules and spells, which proved useful for his training.


    Due to him often spending his time with Little Butterfly, many in the College saw him as a walking disaster of sorts. However, given how the most exceptional ones from the College had departed, there was no one who went to look for trouble with Ye Futian, as they all knew where they stood compared to him.


    At that day, Ye Futian came to the pools again after several years. He sat near a pool and gazed forward. The pool was still filled with liquid, yet a ring of mist surrounded the pool itself. He was more than aware of the insanely destructive aura emanating from the pool just from sitting beside it. He actually felt restless and insecure just being around it, which was an apparent sign that he knew trouble was coming.


    The second round of medical tests was performed over the same duration as the first round��81 days. It was the first day he was to enter the pool, and he looked very grim. The memory of his first try several years ago was still fresh in his mind.


    "The herbs that I was asked to prepare this time were ones meant to attack the spiritual will, which makes it different from the previous round," Little Butterfly explained with a gentle voice. While she had often joked about the tests with Ye Futian before, when the time came for the tests to be performed, she was still very nervous. As she was the one who prepared the herbs, she knew exactly what was in the pool.


    "I get it, Little Butterfly. This is the seventh time you reminded me about it," Ye Futian replied with a smile in a seemingly nonchalant manner.


    "Begin then." Little Butterfly did not bother saying anything else afterward.


    Ye Futian nodded and took a deep breath before walking to the pool with his shirt off and then stepping right into it. He was completely submerged shortly after.


    A low grunt was heard and Little Butterfly clenched her fists tightly as she looked at Ye Futian in the pool. He was tilting his head up slightly with his eyes closed as if he was experiencing immense pain.


    Ye Futian felt his soul shudder at the moment. His spiritual will seemed to be drowned by a terrifying power. He seemed to have lost possession of his entire body and became transparent. He was stripped of any defense and was laid bare before the onslaught of the terrifying power.


    It was just as Little Butterfly had reminded him. The tests this time were not meant to attack the body; they were tests meant to attack one''s spiritual will.


    He felt as if his spiritual will was being thoroughly torn apart, corroded, and crushed. The light of his Life Spirit gleamed, and his spiritual will took the form of a stout, magnificent, and godly ape. The light of the stars coursed around him, protecting him. However, the dark aura simply drowned the ape in its entirety, gradually eroding it as continuous streams of the dark aura continued to encroach his mind.


    ��


    In the place within the Herb Garden where Saint Jiang lived, he came before that statue once again and sat there quietly, staring at the beautiful silhouette and spacing out.


    It was the day when Ye Futian''s second round of medicine tests began, and it was anyone''s guess if he would be able to withstand it. None who took the tests before had been able to make it to the very end, but he had faith in Ye Futian. As someone who was of incredible renown throughout the Nine States and of supreme talents, if even he were to fail, then there would be little meaning to the tests after that, and that meant that his thoughts had been erroneous from the very beginning.


    Saint Jiang moved after spending quite some time standing around doing nothing. He turned around and walked outside. The test should have been over by then. He came before the hall and stood there quietly. Two figures were seen walking in his direction shortly after.


    "Teacher," Little Butterfly called with a smile, and she seemed to be in a good mood. Ye Futian, who had just finished the test, was right beside her. However, he felt rather ill at the moment and very exhausted, as if his spiritual powers had been completely used up. His head felt like it was going to crack open, and the experience proved to be more terrifying than any of the previous rounds.


    Saint Jiang laid his eyes on Ye Futian and looked rather calm. He then asked, "How do you feel?"


    "Not good." Ye Futian looked at Saint Jiang and wore a bitter smile on his face. "Why are you doing all those tests, senior, if I may ask?" He had become quite familiar with Saint Jiang after spending so many days around him, and as such, he went straight to the point with his question. He was not quite sure of the objectives of the tests.


    "I''ll tell if you''re able to make it through all of them," Saint Jiang replied.


    "Yeah, well, I''ll go get some rest then," Ye Futian replied curtly and left. If Saint Jiang was reluctant to tell him, there was simply nothing he could do to make the saint talk.


    Ye Futian trained for a bit after returning and restored his powers for a bit. When the sky turned dark, he took out the guqin and began practicing. The flowing sound of his tune reverberated about the Herb Garden, and it sounded rather lonesome.


    Ye Futian stopped after playing for quite a bit, and it was only then that he felt his spiritual powers were restored. He closed his eyes and expanded his spiritual powers outwards and felt immediately that everything around him seemed to be clearer than before. He was able to sense minute changes in the wind and the fragrances of herbs planted faraway.


    Ye Futian''s brow twitched and he opened his eyes, looking rather puzzled. While his spiritual powers had indeed improved somewhat, the improvement was considerable. However, he was nonetheless able to feel that his spiritual powers had become sharper, enabling him to better immerse himself in his surroundings.


    "This is something," Ye Futian mumbled to himself quietly before continuing to train. He went for tests again on the very next day. It marked the day when his days spent doing medical tests in the Herb Garden truly began. Every day was an excruciating one for the entire 81 days.


    There were still quite a lot of people talking about his relationship with Little Butterfly. He spent some of his time in the College''s library to read up on training methods. As such, most of his time was spent in tranquility. Other than Little Butterfly being tense during the test processes, there was little stimulation to his days.


    Ye Futian finished the excruciating 81-day ordeal before he knew it. With that, the second round of tests was cleared.


    When Ye Futian walked out of the pool unscathed, Little Butterfly hung her head low. The hair on her forehead seemed wet from the surrounding mist. When she looked up at Ye Futian, there was a smile in her beautiful eyes. She looked less sacred and more pure at that moment.


    "Put this on." Little Butterfly smiled and went to put a coat on Ye Futian.


    "I''ll do it myself," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "Don''t go having thoughts about this. It''s just a present for making it through the tests," she said as she put the coat on him. Her smile was pure and flawless. There was nothing else on her mind.


    "Even if you had some thoughts, I guess you came too late. I''m a married man after all." Ye Futian looked relaxed and joked with her. It made her blush somewhat and she glared at him, "You said it as if I am the one taking advantage of you."


    "That''s a given," Ye Futian replied seriously. Little Butterfly kicked his leg lightly in response before turning around and saying, "I''ll go report to my teacher."


    "I''ll go with you." Ye Futian rushed up to her.


    The two rounds of tests enabled Ye Futian and Little Butterfly to become very familiar with each other. Other than matters pertaining to the tests, they would also spend their time talking about other things. They were good friends and knew each other well, which was why they were able to joke like that with each other.


    "Do you know what I was thinking when you came up?" Little Butterfly asked gently.


    Ye Futian shook his head and asked, "What were you thinking then?"


    "You survived." Little Butterfly then added, "It kind of felt like I had just been through a life and death situation with you and came back."


    "Is it that terrifying?" Ye Futian shrugged casually although the 81-day ordeal had indeed been rather terrifying.


    "Yeah." Little Butterfly nodded. Her head hung low and she did not seem excited. She knew well what he had gone through.


    "It''s fine. Everything is in the past now. I have one last round to go and I''ll make it," Ye Futian said, as if he was sure of himself.


    Little Butterfly lifted her head and looked forward. A gleam was seen in her eyes. He had made it through the last two rounds of medicine tests and he would definitely make it through the last one.


    Before both of them reached Saint Jiang''s residence, a voice was heard from far away. "I know. Come to me again when you''re at an Archmage level, and a middle-level one to boot."


    Ye Futian stopped dead in his tracks and bowed slightly in Saint Jiang''s direction, before turning around and leaving.


    "Where are you going?" Little Butterfly turned around and asked.


    "Back to my place," Ye Futian answered.


    "Yeah." She looked puzzled at the answer. She then glared at him after seeing him smiling rather sheepishly at her.


    "Relax, I''m not going to leave before saying my goodbyes," Ye Futian said and took his leave, waving at her for a bit.


    Ye Futian did not leave the Nine State College immediately after the medical tests were done. Instead, he spent some more time training in the College. He developed some realizations after spending days doing the tests, and he needed some more time to regain his peace through training.


    Another month passed and Ye Futian was seen sitting cross-legged at his place in the Herb Garden. His spiritual powers expanded through his surroundings. The wind blew and there were slivers of currents flowing around him. Swishing sounds were heard within Ye Futian''s Life Spirit, enabling his body to shine with a holy sheen, as though his spiritual powers had melded with his surroundings.


    In the space where his spiritual powers permeated, everything looked crystal clear, as if he was able to control everything within with just one thought. A formless Rules of Wind flowed, and pieces of rocks in the compound he was in were lifted into the air. Minute pieces seemed to have been lifted in the air as well.


    Ye Futian willed and a formless power of rules washed throughout the entire space. Everything seemed to have been rendered motionless. The wind was no longer around, yet the rocks and minute pieces remained hovering mid-air.


    "Split." Ye Futian''s lips moved and a word was heard. The hovering rocks and pieces were crushed right then and there. All of them were destroyed by some unseen power at the same time, turning to dust. A terrifying aura continued to shroud the entire place. Ye Futian opened his eyes and they shimmered as if they held powers capable of tearing space apart.


    A silhouette appeared without making a sound, and it was none other than Qin Zhuang. While there had not been a war breaking out between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace for the past several years, they were gathering their forces and amassing power in whatever form. However, there was no way Ye Futian would have ventured anywhere far without escorts. Qin Zhuang had been by his side all that while.


    Qin Zhuang''s expression was sharp and solemn as he felt the power of rules in the air. He turned around to look at Ye Futian and said, "Space-tearing." Qin Zhuang was versed in Space Rules as well.


    Ye Futian stood and nodded lightly. Space-tearing was a type of Space Rules. He had developed Space-freezing before and through his training in the College, he finally developed the power of Space-tearing, which sharpened his offensive powers somewhat. Space-tearing shared some similarities with Shredding Rules, but Space-tearing was stronger. Furthermore, he was able to imbue that power into both rule spells and martial powers.


    He became a mid-level Magi after spending three years in training. The 81 days spent doing medicine tests enabled his spiritual will to grow stronger, as well as augmenting his comprehension abilities. He became able to even fight against lower-level Archmage as he was then. If he were to stack something more on top of all he had at the moment, he could become even stronger!

 888 Endless Sea

    The next morning, Ye Futian found Little Butterfly in the Herb Garden to say goodbye to her.


    Little Butterfly looked up at Ye Futian, smiled, and said, "I knew this day would come, but when it comes time to actually say goodbye, I can''t do it. It seems like I''ve gotten used to you these past few days. See you next time, although I don''t know how many years it''ll be."


    "I''m the same way. If you have a chance, come visit me in the Barren State," Ye Futian responded.


    "Mm." Little Butterfly nodded. "Are you going to return directly to the Barren State?"


    "No, I''ll probably go out and see the world a bit. Once they get back, I will return." The "they" he was talking about were those who had left with Xia Qingyuan. Little Condor was in the palace. As soon as they got back, he would know.


    "Where do you want to go?" asked Little Butterfly?


    "The Endless Sea in the Ocean State," said Ye Futian.


    Little Butterfly was stunned. "So far?" There were many places to train in the Nine States, and the Summer State was vast. Qi State, Cloud State, and War State all surrounded the Summer State, and all of them were very strong. To get to the Ocean State, you had to cross through the Eastern State. It was even farther than the Barren State. Thus, she had some misgivings. She didn''t know why Ye Futian had chosen the Ocean State.


    "I''ll go around Qi State and Feng State. I can cultivate on the road. The whole road is a trial road. The Nine States is so vast, there are still many places I haven''t been to." Ye Futian smiled and said, "Later, I will return to the Barren State by way of the Ocean State."


    Little Butterfly understood what he meant. This was a roundabout way to return to the Barren State. According to Ye Futian, these past two or three years, he had been always been shut away, cultivating. In Nine State College, he had also been cultivating with the medical trials. He should take the time to get out and experience the world.


    "I''ve heard that the Ocean State is the biggest in the Nine States. It is located beside the Endless Sea. There are no boundaries there. If I had a chance, I''d also like to go see it." Little Butterfly smiled and said, "Why don''t you go check it out for me first?"


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Have a good trip!" said Little Butterfly with a smile.


    "Say to goodbye to Saint Jiang for me. I don''t want to bother him."


    "Mm." Little Butterfly nodded.


    "I''m off," Ye Futian said lightly. He turned to leave, waving as he went. Little Butterfly watched him leave, wondering if the Endless Sea could hide his lofty ambitions. She hoped to one day see him standing at the peak of the cultivators of the Nine States.


    Ye Futian left quietly, not disturbing anyone in Nine State College other than Little Butterfly. He and Qin Zhuang had small goals, and with Qin Zhuang''s incredible speed, it was hard to see them. Thus, they were able to leave without anyone knowing.


    It was not until a few days later that the people at Nine State College realized that Ye Futian had left. Although many people had been talking badly about him those last few days, after he left, the College seemed a little less fun, and everyone felt very strange.


    Later, some people said they had seen Ye Futian in the southern part of the Summer State. It was said that after the Great Zhou Sacred King''s people found out that Ye Futian had left Nine State College, they sent out many people to look for him, wanting to kill him outside, but they could find no trace of him.


    Afterward, there was news from Qi State that people from the holy land there had seen him. He had played music in the area controlled by Yue House, attracting many of the women there, leaving behind a story, and then disappearing quietly. Later, there was news that Ye Futian had appeared in Ghost City, but no one knew if this was true or not.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    In the year 10,016 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, countless island towns were situated on the Endless Sea. Some of the towns had almost no people, and some of them had populations so large they were almost uncountable. But no matter how big the island towns were, they were only a part of the Endless Sea.


    With its clear sky that was so strikingly blue, it could make people open their hearts, the Endless Sea was like a holy land on earth. But in reality, the Endless Sea was not a holy land. On the contrary, it was the most inhospitable place in the Nine States, even worse than the thousands of mountains in the Cloud State. This was because there were too many sea monsters in the waters, and some of them had even formed groups.


    In the Endless Sea, human cultivators hunted sea monsters, and sea monsters also hunted cultivators. Thus, this beautiful Endless Ocean hid unimaginable dangers. The extremely harsh conditions also gave cultivators a stronger desire for power. Now, in one place in the Endless Ocean, there was no blue sky, only a terrible dark storm that engulfed everything. Vast waves rolled and screamed as the terrible storm formed by a hurricane broke everything. In the center of the dark storm, you could occasionally hear dragon roars.


    Inside the dark vortex, there was a terrible sight. Here, a dark dragon, hundreds of meters in length, circled in the air, its eyes full of violence and ferocity. It stared coldly at the small human before it. As the storm swept by, the human was engulfed and seemed insignificant. But he stood so calmly in the storm, with a bit of a sarcastic smile on his lips as he looked at the huge dragon before him.


    This figure was Ye Futian, who had come to Ocean State to train. He had experienced many attacks on the Endless Sea, but this opponent was the strongest. It was a dark dragon that was almost at the Sage level.


    The dragon shot forward with a roar, opened its ferocious mouth, and breathed at Ye Futian. Terrible dark flames consumed the spot where Ye Futian was and seemed to burn his body. The dark flames contained terrible destructive power, and ferocity flashed in the dragon''s eyes.


    Ye Futian seemed to not feel it. He still stood there calmly, letting the dark flames burn his body as he stood steadfastly.


    "Roar!" The dark dragon felt humiliated. Its several hundred-meter body rolled up into the sky, and it whipped its tail with incomparable power at Ye Futian, causing the waves to roar. A star curtain appeared around Ye Futian, and it was like there were real stars protecting his body.


    Boom! The sound of a violent collision rang out. The star curtain was broken, but the power of the dark dragon''s attack also disintegrated.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over his opponent indifferently. "If you want me to take action, don''t be so polite."


    "Roar!" With another loud bellow, the dragon''s claws shot out towards Ye Futian. This puny human had ordered him to be his mount. That was unforgivable.


    "Impenetrably stupid," Ye Futian said indifferently, then stepped forward into the storm. A terrible rule power appeared in a flash. Ye Futian stretched out his hand and clenched it into a fist. Suddenly there was a terrific stream of rule power flowing around his fist.


    As soon as he stepped forward, he flashed towards the huge dragon like a bolt of lightning. His opponent''s claws were bigger than him, and they slashed downwards, trying to tear him to pieces. The endless stream flowed across Ye Futian''s arm and gathered on his fist. When the dragon slashed his claws at him, Ye Futian thrust out his own fist like a flash of lightning. The scene was like an ant trying to topple a tree. He looked like he had a deathwish.


    However, a pained roar came out of the dark storm. The dark dragon''s claws were covered in blood. But he seemed not to have felt it. His head swooped down at Ye Futian as he opened his mouth. It seemed like he wanted to swallow him in one gulp.


    Ye Futian did not dodge, but the star curtain around him became like actual stars. As the dragon''s giant maw came down, they blocked him at the corners of his mouth. His incredibly sharp teeth were smashed by the star curtain.


    "You''re too weak," said Ye Futian, and he punched once again. Suddenly, the rest of the dragon''s teeth shattered, and his roar of pain shook the storm. The dragon fluttered wildly. He wanted to spit Ye Futian out.


    Bang, bang, bang... A string out sounds rang out. With each attack, the dragon''s teeth were smashed even further.


    "I submit." A human voice came forth from the dragon. Ye Futian rushed forward and brought his fist down on the descending dragon''s head. The dragon''s body trembled fiercely as it plunged downwards towards the sea.


    "Take me to a bigger island city nearby," ordered Ye Futian. The dark dragon righted himself up and flew up into the storm.


    Ye Futian had a goal besides training on the road. He wanted to try his luck and see if he would have a chance to get the third divine implement on the Divine Implement Ranking��the Halberd of Time and Space.


    Three years ago at Saint Xia''s banquet, he had sensed a crisis. His Sacred War with the Great Zhou Sacred King was his current dilemma, but potential opponents he might face also included the Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State and even Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Saint Ji had also shown hostility towards him. Although he was the Palace Lord of a holy land, and they would not dare to trifle with him, that did not mean they wouldn''t pose a threat to him in the future.


    There was nothing wrong with taking precautions. Besides lacking top-notch military power, the Barren State also lacked divine implements. Most of the top divine implements on the Divine Implement Ranking had owners. Only the Halberd of Time and Space had been lost in the Endless Sea. Thus, he had come here to try and find it. If he did not find it, it didn''t matter, as this was only a trial.

 889 Cliff State City

    Cliff State City was an island city located in the eastern part of the Endless Sea. It was the most powerful city within 100,000 miles. The strongest cultivators of this island city were at the Sage Level, and there were several of them.


    The winds of war blew very strongly in Cliff State City. At this time there, were many cultivators on the beaches preparing to go into the sea and hunt monsters. This was a common trial for Cliff State City cultivators. If they didn''t hunt the monsters in the sea around them, the monsters would gather in greater numbers and attack the city. Additionally, many powerful monsters had treasure all over their bodies.


    A huge wave crashed upon the shore, knocking many people back. The waves were huge, and they were hitting one after another. Everyone felt this was quite strange. What was going on?


    "Come quickly!" came someone''s surprised yell. Someone looked up and saw a huge monster in the distance.


    "A monster is attacking, prepare to fight."


    "Go tell the guards, quickly." The yells came one after another. Cliff State had stationed troops on the coast specifically to repel monster invasions. A line of figures rose into the air in full battle array.


    "It''s a dragon." The large figure in the distance gradually became clearer. Many people trembled in their hearts. This dragon was hundreds of meters long. It was at least a King-level monster, and those were top-level.


    The dark dragon broke through the water, sending out huge waves, and approached the coastline. Many people who had cultivated weakly were forced to retreat, showing their nervousness.


    "There''s someone on it," a noble-level cultivator said. Everyone was shocked when they heard this, and then they saw a white-robed figure standing calmly on top of the dragon. He let the wind and waves blow on him, but he stood there steadfast.


    Someone was coming out of the sea, riding on a dragon. This scene was visually shocking.


    "No need to worry, he''s probably a monster hunter," a middle-aged man standing in mid-air said. Everyone relaxed. It didn''t look like a monster attack.


    Soon, the dragon flew up into the sky on the wind, and then slowly landed on the beach. Many people''s gazes were drawn to its giant figure, and their hearts trembled.


    "This must be a king-level dragon," someone guessed. If that was the case, what level was the young man?


    "He''s so handsome," a female cultivator exclaimed. His robes were white as snow, his hair black as ink. He stood up straight as he stepped on the dragon''s head, fascinating everyone.


    Ye Futian cast his gaze around the group of people. He had gleaned a rough understanding of the situation in lower Ocean State from the collection in the Nine State College library. But the Endless Ocean was so big, and there were so many island cities that he could not possibly know them all. Even the books in the library did not document them well. Thus, he had grabbed a dragon to lead the way for him.


    Now, an upper-noble level middle-aged man came forward and bowed to him. "I am Liu Yuan of Cliff State. Are you from Cliff State?" The others couldn''t see it, but he had a feeling this dragon might be a great monster of the Sage level. This meant that this cultivator, who looked quite young, must also be a Sage. Of course, it was also possible that he was not as young as he seemed.


    "Cliff State," Ye Futian whispered. He looked at the middle-aged man. "My name is Ye Huang. I am not from Cliff State, but have come from far away to train." He did not use his real name. After all, the name Ye Futian was too famous, and there were too many people in the Nine States who knew it. If he was recognized, it would affect his journey and could attract the Great Zhou Sacred King''s attention.


    Liu Yuan nodded slightly. This kind of situation was common in the Endless Sea.


    "Father, isn''t this dragon is a high-level demon king?" A young man and a young woman came over. They were 18 or 19 years old. When they saw Ye Futian standing atop the dragon, their eyes were full of curiosity.


    The dark dragon''s massive eyes swept over the young people. A demon king? I am one step away from the Sage level! My rage can shake Cliff State City. But I ran into this monstrous human.


    "You''ll have to ask Master Ye." Liu Yuan pointed to Ye Futian.


    "Senior, you''re so cool! I want you to teach me!" The youth looked at Ye Futian with faces full of worship. He had ridden a dragon to get there. He was so cool!


    "Liu Qing, you''re too unruly," the woman beside him sneered. Then she looked at Ye Futian. "Brother Ye, he is not worthy. It would be better for you to take me as a disciple."


    "Who''s not worthy, Liu Yan?" the youth said angrily.


    "Shut up, you two," Liu Yuan scolded them. The two of them seemed to not understand that the one before them was at the Sage level. "My son and daughter are stubborn and stupid, please don''t blame them," he said to Ye Futian.


    "No problem." Ye Futian looked at the two of them indifferently, like he was a master.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "Liu Qing, Liu Yan," he said to them.


    "Yes." They nodded.


    "I won''t take you as disciples, but I''ll be staying in Cliff State for a little while. I don''t know for how long, but while I''m here, I can give you some pointers," said Ye Futian. Liu Yuan had cultivated to the peak of the Noble level, and he probably knew many things about this island city. He was ready to start looking for information about the Halberd of Time and Space.


    The two of them were stunned and then looked excited.


    "Thank you, Master." They both bowed.


    "I said you''re not my disciples. Call me ''Brother Ye''." Ye Futian smiled as he said this.


    "A teacher for a day is a father for life," said Liu Qing with a smile.


    "Ah, I still haven''t invited you in for a rest." Liu Yuan obviously had no objections. To have a Sage be willing to instruct his children was all that he could wish for.


    Ye Futian floated up and cast a cold glance at the dragon. "Go," he said. The dragon looked at him with his huge eyes, then turned away and rushed into the sea, sending up a huge wave.


    Those around him twitched when they saw this scene. He just let a king level dragon go? Liu Yuan also looked at him deeply. He wanted to say something but didn''t.


    "Brother Ye, you let such a strong mount go." Liu Qing looked a bit disappointed. "That dragon was a top-level demon king."


    "Sort of." Ye Futian nodded. Actually, he already controlled that dragon. If he didn''t achieve his goal in Cliff State City, he would call back the dragon to take him somewhere else.


    "You''re so nosy, Liu Qing. Brother Ye must be tired from training out there. Come back to our house to rest and I''ll personally cook something for you."


    "With what cooking skills?"


    "You don''t get to eat any." The two of them kept bickering. Ye Futian smiled. Youth was a good time, full of vitality.


    As the group started forward, Liu Yuan asked Ye Futian, "Master Ye, do you have any plans for this trip?" Although he was happy to have a Sage teaching his children, he was still a little nervous. He was a stranger after all, and he didn''t know what kind of a person he was.


    "I plan on going to the ruins of where the Halberd of Time and Space was to go through trials. I''m going to look for them in Cliff State City. Do you have any information about this?" Ye Futian asked Liu Yuan.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words put Liu Yuan''s mind at ease, and he said, "In that case, you''re very clever to have come here. There is news of this in Cliff State City. The Liu family is one of the top families in the city. Although I am just from a branch of the family, there are two members of the direct line who are powerful figures and have been recognized by the Ocean Palace. It is said that they are going to the lost ruins together to undergo trials, and this place is also where the Halberd of Time and Space is."


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed. It seemed that his luck was quite good. In this case, he wouldn''t have to waste too much time.


    "Unfortunately, I don''t think it will be easy for you to go with them." Liu Yuan frowned as he thought of something. "I will go mingle with them and see if I can recommend you to them." After all, he was only a member of a branch of the Liu family and had no right to speak. Especially since those two were so dazzling, and would have a chance to cultivate on the Saint plane. They might just completely ignore him.


    "Father, are you talking about Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan?" asked Liu Yan.


    "Mm." Liu Yuan nodded. Liu Yan suddenly looked fascinated. These two powerful members of the Liu Clan who were in their thirties were on the Sage plane. Liu Zixuan, in particular, was a mid-level Sage and was almost a mythical figure in Cliff State City. Her father had said that even if you looked all around Ocean State, this cultivation speed was frightening.


    It was no wonder that the Ocean Palace had made an exception and wanted to accept them into the holy land to cultivate. However, if they ran into these two legendary figures from the Liu clan on the road, they would probably not even stop to look at them. They lived in two different worlds. If Ye Futian wanted to journey with them, it wouldn''t be easy.


    Although Ye Futian had shocked them by riding in on a dragon, some ideas were ingrained in them. The names Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan were legendary in Cliff State City.


    They didn''t know that the man before them who had agreed to train them was legendary in all of the Nine States.


    Liu Yuan had not lied to Ye Futian. The Liu Clan was the most powerful in Cliff State City. They were located in the center of the city, and their residence towered like an imperial palace. Now, many people had gathered outside one of their great halls. The clan leader had called all the branches of the family together to discuss official business.


    "I have received word that not only will the Ocean Palace participate in this journey to the ruins, two other great holy lands of the Ocean State, the Celestial Cliffs, and the North Deep will also participate," said the clan chief of the Liu clan. There was suddenly a wave of uproar.


    Three great holy lands of the Ocean State journeying together? Could it be that the holy lands of the Ocean State really wanted the Halberd of Time and Space to go out into the world?


    They had never succeeded at this for many years. And now it would still be difficult.


    "I don''t know the details, but it must be a trial for the three holy lands. You all should know that in a month people from the Ocean Palace will come here to Cliff State City. At that time, Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan will journey together to the Ocean Palace to cultivate. I called you here today to choose the best people to send along with them."

 890 Teachings

    Liu Yuan was from a side family of the Liu Clan that lived north-west of the Liu Clan, far away from the central region. Their location was a direct representation of how their family was faring. However, although they were not in the central region, they also owned a compound. Ye Futian lived here for a few days, waiting for news from Liu Yuan.


    Liu Qing and Liu Yan would often pester Ye Futian to teach them in his free time. The two kids were filled with energy and would call him ''Big Brother Ye'' and occasionally praise him, making even Ye Futian a little smug. He secretly thought to himself that they got familiar with him too easily.


    With his current cultivation level, teaching two little fellows in the Arcana Plane was no problem to him. Just casually teaching them was enough for the two of them to benefit greatly.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "Mister Ye, good news." At that moment, in the courtyard that Ye Futian resided in, Liu Yuan walked in. Ye Futian looked towards him as he heard Liu Yuan say, "The Clan Leader has given the order that the Liu Clan''s outstanding figures can follow along. When the Ocean Palace''s experts descend, we can follow them into the ruins."


    Ye Futian nodded and said, "If that''s the case, I''ll have to trouble Brother Liu."


    "Okay, my eldest girl''s potential is extraordinary and she has a say within the clan. I will ask her to interact with you and submit your name for a slot," Liu Yuan said. In the past few days, apart from cultivating, Ye Futian had taught his daughters to cultivate, so he probably had no other motives. He was also completely at ease and was willing to try and help Ye Futian.


    "If that''s the case, thank you, Brother Liu." Ye Futian nodded his head towards Liu Yuan. He could save himself some trouble by following the people from the holy lands. After all, the Ocean State''s holy lands knew much more about the ruins than him, so he could leverage on them.


    "I won''t disturb Mister Ye then." Liu Yuan saluted him and left. He then looked towards Liu Qing and Liu Yan on the side and said, "Learn from your Big Brother Ye, remember to ask him if you have any questions."


    "We know." Liu Yan was a little disgusted with her father''s nagging and replied in an annoyed tone. Liu Yuan glared at her before leaving.


    "The seniority in the family is all messed up," Liu Yan mumbled to herself before walking to Ye Futian''s side and hugging his arm and asking, "Big Brother Ye, what cultivation level are you at now?" She could naturally see that her father''s attitude towards Ye Futian was special, so she faintly felt that Ye Futian might be stronger than her father.


    "There should be an acceptable distance between men and women. Is this appropriate?" Ye Futian looked at his hand; the lass had already clung onto him. As a lady 18 years of age, she was already completely developed.


    "I''m still young. Moreover, Big Brother Ye is not a stranger." Liu Yan grabbed Ye Futian arm and swung around. Ye Futian thought to himself, It''s really a woman''s nature to act like a spoiled child.


    He looked at her, speechless, and said, "Don''t be too ambitious. Try your best to reach the Noble Plane first."


    Liu Yan made a face at Ye Futian after he refused to tell her. She then continued to say, "Big Brother Ye, be careful of my sister. She''s a beauty."


    "So?" Ye Futian replied, speechless. Her sister was most likely the eldest girl that Liu Yuan was talking about.


    "I''m just reminding you out of goodwill, don''t get charmed by her," Liu Yan continued.


    "Don''t worry." Ye Futian glared at her and said, "Go and cultivate." For someone who had been used to Fox being beside him since he was 15, how could he be charmed by someone else?


    However, when he met Liu Yu the next day, he was still a little taken aback. Ye Futian was cultivating in the courtyard when he saw a figure walking towards him. She was wearing a red body-hugging dress that showed her beautiful figure and highlighted her curves. The side view of her body also showed her stunning hourglass figure.


    Liu Yu''s facial features were also exceptionally exquisite. Although she was extremely sexy, she did not give others an enchanting feel. Instead, she had an elegant aura. Her looks were outstanding and she was definitely worthy of being called a beauty. Of course, compared to beauties like Jieyu, Little Butterfly, and the Glass Saint, she was still a far cry away.


    Liu Yan walked to Ye Futian''s side. Seeing Liu Yu walk over, she smiled and said in a soft voice to Ye Futian, "Beautiful, right?"


    Liu Yu seemed to have heard her and glared at her, saying, "Go and cultivate."


    "Okay," Liu Yan replied weakly and stood up to leave. She even winked at Ye Futian before leaving. Ye Futian was speechless. This lass had too many tricks up her sleeves.


    "Mister Ye, don''t mind her. This girl has always been like that," Liu Yu said to Ye Futian.


    "I have already experienced it." Ye Futian smiled and said, "Have a seat."


    Liu Yu looked at Ye Futian only to see his calm expression. There was no wavering in his eyes, it seemed like he was a cultivator in the Sage Plane and had a firm frame of mind.


    "I heard from father that Mister Ye wishes to go to the ruins to train yourself?" Liu Yu casually laid out her slender legs, giving others a captivating feeling.


    "Yes." Ye Futian did not admire her looks and seemed to care more about the ruins as he asked, "Is there any way to do so?"


    "In a few days, the people from the holy land the Ocean Palace will be here. There will be a chance to follow them, but I have to warn you that this time, the three holy lands will descend together. If Mister Ye wishes to obtain the treasure in the ruins, you will probably not get a chance, and the ruins will be very dangerous. Have you thought it through?" Liu Yu asked. These were all the things she had to make clear to let Ye Futian consider going for himself.


    "I understand," Ye Futian nodded as he replied.


    "Since that is so, I will submit Mister Ye''s name as Liu Qing and Liu Yan''s master to fight for a slot. Please wait for news from me," Liu Yu replied. Ye Futian was not from the clan so he needed an identity.


    "Okay." Ye Futian did not care about the details.


    "Finally, I have to ask Mister Ye, is your cultivation in the Noble Plane or higher?" Liu Yu asked.


    "Higher," Ye Futian replied.


    "I understand. I''ll take my leave then." Liu Yu stood up and left. If a Sage Plane cultivator was willing to follow them, the family would probably not reject him.


    Just as she was walking out, a figure walked towards her with his head held low and called out to her, "Sister."


    "What happened?" Liu Yu looked at the oncoming Liu Qing and asked.


    "Nothing," Liu Qing said, attempting to walk by her, but was grabbed by Liu Yu. He raised his head and she could see the bloodstains at the edge of his mouth. His shirt had also been torn and he was evidently injured.


    Liu Yu stared at Liu Qing. Feeling the pressure from her gaze, Liu Qing said, "I met Liu Yun outside just now."


    "You went to provoke him again?" Liu Yu asked.


    "I didn''t." Liu Qing raised his head, then looked towards Ye Futian and said, "He was the one who poked fun at me..."


    "What did he say?" Liu Yu asked.


    Liu Qing had a shifty expression and did not reply. Ye Futian felt his gaze just now and asked, "It''s related to me?"


    "It doesn''t involve Big Brother Ye," Liu Qing shook his head and denied it.


    "Liu Yun is also part of the family, but he''s from another branch that has ongoing disputes with our branch. That''s why conflicts break out often," Liu Yan stood beside Ye Futian and explained softly.


    Ye Futian smiled, shaking his head. With his current frame of mind, it was merely children fighting to him.


    "What cultivation level is he?" Ye Futian asked Liu Qing.


    "He''s the same level as me, but he found himself a strong Master half a year ago and has been improving rapidly. His combat ability is much stronger than before," Liu Qing replied.


    "The most important aspect of the Arcana Plane is feeling one''s connection with the heavens. If your comprehension ability is strong, you will be able to assimilate the will of the world into your attacks and not have to rely on techniques," Ye Futian said. "However, if you wish to learn, I''ll teach you one move. After cultivating it for a period of time, you will be able to defeat him." With his current level, he naturally had a more thorough understanding of lower-level cultivation.


    "Really?" Liu Qing was stunned as he asked.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded and replied. He would just treat it as helping the little guy vent his anger.


    "I''ll take my leave then." Liu Yu nodded at Ye Futian, then left.


    "Big Brother Ye, can you teach me now?" Liu Qing appeared anxious as he requested.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. He stood up and, in an instant, the Spiritual Qi in the air materialized into a spear. Liu Qing cultivated in the art of the spear.


    "I will demonstrate this strike using the ability you specialize in. Watch closely," Ye Futian said. He stepped forward and the spear pierced forward in Liu Qing''s direction. He did not use any rule power, but the plain strike seemed to contort space-time. A terrifying might rushed forth from the spear.


    In that instant, Liu Qing felt as though he was suffocating. The spear had yet to reach him, but he had already felt waves of force rushing towards him with overwhelming power.


    He stood there blankly as the spear stopped in front of him and did not continue forward. Next, there was a fearsome sound wave that engulfed him, and Liu Qing''s body was sent flying. He humphed as he felt an alarming force slamming into his body. He was hit purely by the residual might of the strike as Ye Futian did not continue attacking.


    Liu Qing stood up from the ground with an excited expression on his face.


    "Did you see it clearly?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes." Liu Qing nodded animatedly and asked, "Big Brother Ye, what spear move is that?"


    "It was just a casual strike, it doesn''t have a name. If you can''t replicate it in one try, then do it ten times, and 100 times to comprehend it. This one strike should be enough for you to deal with opponents on the same cultivation level as you," Ye Futian said.


    As an Arcana Plane cultivator, Liu Qing naturally understood that and he felt his breathing become hasty. Big Brother Ye was really strong, much stronger than his father.


    "Go and cultivate then," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes." Liu Qing nodded, then started to cultivate as though in a trance.


    "Big Brother Ye, you can''t play favorites." Beside him, Liu Yan grabbed onto his sleeve and looked at him pitifully, as though she was suffering.


    Ye Futian pinched between his brows as he thought, This lass is always up to her antics.


    "Fine, fine." Ye Futian was speechless as he sighed. He then taught Liu Yan some offensive techniques before she happily went off to cultivate on her own.


    Ye Futian sat quietly, watching the two of them cultivating seriously. A faint smile gradually appeared on his face. He remembered his own cultivation in the Cottage when he was their age. That period of time was one of the most precious memories of his life.


    Ye Futian being in the Cliff State City did not cause any commotion, and in the blink of an eye, a month had passed. It was now the day when the experts from the holy land, the Ocean Palace, would descend. Liu Yu had invited Ye Futian to the Liu Clan to watch!

 891 Experience it for Yourself

    In the central region of the Liu Clan, there was a castle that stood tall.Crossing the flight of steps in front of the castle revealed a wide area. This was where the Liu Clan would invite people for discussions.


    At the moment, many people were arriving in the area. As the Cliff State City''s number one clan, the Liu Clan had many cultivators. As it flourished, even those from the main branch could not know all the people from the side branches. As such, the various branches'' positions were all determined by their strength.


    Ye Futian and the others had also arrived. He stood together with Liu Yuan''s family.


    "I have already reported the main branch about you wanting to join us. However, as you are not from the family, I will introduce you to an elder later. He will test you to qualify you," Liu Yu said softly beside Ye Futian,


    "Okay, thank you." Ye Futian nodded in acknowledgment.


    "No need. I also want to have a look this time, so we can head there together," Liu Yu said.


    "Liu Yu, you didn''t tell me about that," a glint flashed across Liu Yuan''s eyes as he said, staring at his daughter.


    "Father, my cultivation level is not lower than yours now. I should go out and wander the world. Usually, you worry when I travel alone, but now I have the people from the holy lands leading the way, why can''t I go out and explore? Moreover, Big Brother Ye can also take care of me," Liu Yu looked at her father and said. It seemed that she had made the decision by herself.


    Ye Futian knew about the situation in the Endless Ocean. Due to the overwhelming amount of sea-dwelling demonic beasts, cultivators below the Sage Plane did not dare to traverse the ocean individually, as it was too dangerous. Ye Futian himself had encountered numerous attacks from demonic beasts on the Endless Ocean.


    Liu Yu''s potential was outstanding. Although she was already an upper-grade Noble, she had probably never stepped out of the Cliff State City, and her experience was limited to merely hunting in the nearby regions. It was understandable that she would want to explore the outside world.


    "But this is a relic exploration," Liu Yuan stared at her and said. Nobody knew what they would encounter there.


    "I''m not alone. The family will have many experts going as well," Liu Yu replied obstinately.


    "No," Liu Yuan rejected her firmly.


    "I''ve already submitted my request and it''s been approved," Liu Yu replied. Liu Yuan''s expression instantly turned grim.


    "We''ll go walk around." Liu Qing and Liu Yan saw their father and sister arguing and immediately slipped away. They did not want to be caught up in the crossfire.


    Ye Futian had a bitter smile and shook his head at Liu Yuan and Liu Yu''s argument. However, he could understand both of their feelings. There was nobody in the wrong and he naturally would not interfere with their personal decisions. He would not say anything like he would protect Liu Yu. After all, the relic was unknown to him. If Liu Yu really went, he would do his best, but he would not promise anything about matters unknown to him. Moreover, his plan was to hide within the crowd in the relic and not attract attention. Otherwise, if others knew about his identity, they would keep a close eye on him.


    At that moment, a commotion started and countless gazes looked towards it. A group of figures had appeared above the stairs outside the castle. Ye Futian also looked in that direction and saw a majestic elder standing in the middle. He had a superior aura around him. He was likely the Liu Clan Leader.


    More people were looking at the two people beside him. On his left was a handsome teenage man with an elegant aura. He was one of the two most outstanding people in the Liu Clan''s younger generation, Liu Shi. However, it was the woman on the right that attracted the most attention. The first impression that she gave others was one of extreme pride. She looked to be in her twenties and her looks were flawless. Just by standing there casually, she gave people a holy feel. She was the Liu Clan''s most outstanding young generation member in 100 years, Liu Zixuan.


    Be it her cultivation potential or her looks, she was the epitome of the Liu Clan. Before her, everyone in the Liu Clan paled in comparison. Even Liu Yu, beside Ye Futian, was dwarfed by her looks.


    Liu Yu looked at her and thought to herself, A person like Liu Zixuan would probably feel right at home in the Ocean State''s holy land.


    Sometimes, Liu Yu was jealous of Liu Zixuan. She was born with a halo, born into the main family, and had exceptional potential. When she was young, the Clan''s elders had brought her to see the outside world and adventure far beyond, traveling to many of the island cities within the Endless Ocean, while Liu Yu had been born to a branch family and her father was only an elite Noble. Therefore, she had not been to any island cities outside of Cliff State City.


    "Isn''t someone who was born with a halo dazzling?" Liu Yu asked softly, looking at Ye Futian. She saw Ye Futian also looking in that direction, as though he was attracted to Liu Zixuan.


    "She''s fine." Ye Futian felt Liu Yu looking at him and nodded lightly as he replied.


    Liu Zixuan was indeed exceptional. Liu Yu smiled. Previously, when Ye Futian had seen her, he had been very calm. However, it seemed that he was now being fascinated by Liu Zixuan.


    "Although she is exceptional, don''t have any wishful thoughts about her. A genius like her has been blessed by God since birth. The only people who could be a match for her are probably prodigies from holy lands," Liu Yu said in a soft voice. She was not belittling Ye Futian, as she said so in a playful tone.


    "I don''t have any thought about her," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "Really?" Liu Yu replied with a knowing smile, looking at Ye Futian. Evidently, she did not believe him. Any man would have fantasies when seeing a woman like Liu Zixuan, it was only natural.


    "I have come from very far away to Cliff State City to have an adventure. I have met more outstanding women than her in the outside world," Ye Futian smiled and replied. He did not tell Liu Yu that he had not only met them but had also been in a relationship with them.


    Ye Futian naturally understood that a person''s thoughts were limited by their environment. To Liu Yu, Liu Zixuan was the most perfect woman that she had ever seen. She had a brilliant halo around her that nobody could compete with.


    Liu Zixuan was the same as well. She had been the most brilliant existence in Cliff State City since she was born. As such, just by standing there, others could feel her extreme pride, as though commoners were unfit to be near her. Naturally, Ye Futian would not think about going near her. He had no lack of outstanding women around him.


    "Is that so?" Liu Yu smiled and replied. Evidently, she did not believe Ye Futian''s words. She felt that he was probably speaking against his will. Even if Ye Futian had really met more perfect women, it would not stop him from being attracted to a woman like Liu Zixuan.


    "I have also heard stories about the outside world. It is rumored that the Nine States all have their holy lands with Summer State being the strongest. Every holy land is supposed to have its own geniuses that can hold their own against the prodigies in the Ocean Palace. Is the outside world really that fascinating?" Liu Yu seemed to be muttering to herself as she asked Ye Futian.


    "It should be," Ye Futian nodded and replied.


    "I even heard from the people within the clan that the Nine States'' most outstanding person in the younger generation is named Ye Futian. He ascended to the position of a holy land''s Palace Lord in the Noble Plane and led the Barren State towards glory. He initiated a Sacred War and is unparalleled in his generation. I would really like to see what he looks like and what demeanor he has as to be unparalleled," Liu Yu said passionately. It was exactly because she had never stepped out into the outside world that she was curious. She loved to ask elders from the clan about happenings in the Nine States.


    Ye Futian had a weird expression as he heard Liu Yu''s words. He replied, "Perhaps he looks like me?"


    Liu Yu looked at Ye Futian and did a double-take. She then burst into charming laughter.


    "Although Big Brother Ye also has the surname Ye and is very handsome, you''re still a distance away from my imagination of unparalleled," Liu Yu laughed as she said. Evidently, she had treated his words like a joke.


    "Perhaps it''s the lack of a halo around me," Ye Futian shrugged and replied, smiling.


    While the two of them were chatting, an argument had broken out in the distance.


    "It sounds like Liu Qing," Liu Yu said. She turned around and looked into the distance, only to see Liu Qing and Liu Yan arguing with someone. There was a group of teens around their age standing opposite them. The person at the forefront was Liu Yun, who often clashed with Liu Qing.


    Liu Yun was slightly taller than Liu Qing and his eyes had a cold look in them. He said mockingly, "Why aren''t you saying anything? Weren''t you showing off a month ago, saying that you found yourself a strong master? He was riding a Flood Dragon and descending from the sky? Really strong people must be idiots to want to teach the two of you."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    Positions in the Liu Clan had always been determined by strength. Although he was from a branch family as well, he was much stronger than Liu Qing. The real strong figures would naturally choose higher-ranking members of the younger generation to teach. From a certain perspective, Liu Yun''s thinking was not wrong.


    "Liu Yun, who are you calling an idiot?" Liu Yan''s face turned red in anger as she glared at Liu Yun.


    "Whoever you''re thinking about, that''s the one." Liu Yun looked at Liu Yan and said, "The one you call Big Brother Ye is probably unfit to even carry my master''s shoes."


    Many people around heard the few of them arguing, however, they all had no intention of interfering. The Liu Clan had many branches, and competition was fierce, so arguments between the younger generation were commonplace. It was fine as long as nothing major happened.


    "I won''t allow you to insult Big Brother Ye." Liu Yan''s voice was cold. At the side, Liu Qing had already released his Life Spirit, and a silver spear appeared. There was a veil of water surrounding it, and he reached out to grab the spear.


    "Again?" Liu Yun laughed mockingly and released his Life Spirit as well. His Life Spirit was a Flood Dragon and it looked terrifying. It was because of this that he had been displeased when Liu Qing said that his master had appeared riding a Flood Dragon.


    Thump. Liu Qing stepped forward and upon seeing this, Liu Yun''s mouth turned into a cruel smile. Today, many people from the clan were watching and he did not mind showing off his strength using Liu Qing. However, when Liu Qing pierced forward with his spear, he suddenly felt a dangerous feeling. Why did his spear technique appear different? Before the spear had reached him, waves of force had already engulfed him, like raging waves slamming against the shore.


    The Flood Dragon let out a furious roar as he pushed forward with his fist. In an instant, the Flood Dragon flew up but collided with the raging waves. The silver spear appeared at that moment, tearing through everything. It penetrated the Flood Dragon and flew towards Liu Yun.


    A Flood Dragon armor appeared around Liu Yun''s body, and when the spear struck him, it knocked him back. Liu Qing''s spear continued forward, and many people were surprised to see his spear technique.


    Just as Liu Qing''s silver spear was about to break through Liu Yun''s armor, an invisible force landed on him, causing him to be unable to move. Raising his head, Liu Qing saw a man with an elegant aura slowly walking towards him. Every step felt as though it was trampling on his heart.


    "That''s enough," the man said softly. As his voice landed, Liu Yun bellowed and the Flood Dragon passed through the silver spear, rushing towards Liu Qing and sending him flying, blood spurting from his mouth.


    Liu Yun still wanted to continue attacking, but the man said, "That''s enough."


    He then stopped and bowed to the man, saying, "Master."


    The man looked coolly at him, then turned to Liu Qing and asked, "You''ve won this match, but your technique was far too cruel, so I had to stop you. However, your spear technique is quite good, did your master teach you that?"


    Liu Qing raised his head and looked angrily at the man. However, he knew that the person before him was extremely strong and a Sage Plane cultivator that he could not afford to offend.


    "Big Brother Ye taught me." Even though the other party was very strong, he continued to look obstinately at him and said, "You also admit that Big Brother Ye''s spear technique is strong."


    "It''s quite good, but it''s not something that a cultivator of your level should pursue. It''s clever but has no actual skill. In the future, you will understand that techniques that rely on tricks have no actual use," the man said calmly, as though he was teaching someone of a younger generation.


    "Since that is so, do you wish to experience it for yourself?" At that moment, a cold voice sounded from behind Liu Qing!

 892 Onward to Ruins

    Liu Clan- the attentions of many were aimed in the same direction where the sound came from.


    They saw a young and handsome face. Although the air exuding from his person was restrained, one could still feel his extraordinary temperament.


    It was said that Liu Yuan, the extended side of the Liu Clan, had found a teacher for his children. Perhaps it was this person?


    Ye Futian, Liu Yuan, and Liu Yu walked to Liu Qing''s side. All three of them wore a look of coldness. They had seen everything that happened before. Liu Yun intentionally provoked Liu Qing and started the fight, leading to the man who interfered.


    He spoke words that seemed innocuous, as if to ask Liu Qing for advice, but just now he had stopped Liu Qing from hurting Liu Yun, restricting Liu Qing''s actions but doing nothing to stop Liu Yun''s counterattack, which injured Liu Qing.


    This was clearly protecting and interfering; a person of sage-level was involved in a conflict between the young, and with an obvious inclination to one side.


    The man''s name was Yan Lu, who was also not a member of the Liu Clan, but was a sage of Cliff State City. He was the teacher employed by Liu Yun''s elders to teach Liu Yun cultivation.


    Yan Lu would also go along this time.


    At this point Yan Lu''s gaze turned to Ye Futian. Seeing that the other was looking back at him, he smiled and asked, "Your student?"


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Do you think there is a problem with what I said?" Yan Lu asked.


    "There is a problem." Ye Futian nodded.


    "What was the problem?" Yan Lu laughingly asked.


    "You arrived very early, watched the fight taking place, but you did not stop it until your disciple was losing. Then you stopped Liu Qing but did not stop your disciple in return. Because of your interference the loser injured the winner. Your own conduct was dishonorable. You have no qualification to teach others." Ye Futian''s voice was very calm, but there was a trace of coldness in that calm.


    This was bluntly stating that Yan Lu was in the wrong, had no right to preach, and there was no further need to discuss right or wrong.


    More people''s attentions were directed to this side. Yan Lu was a sage, and even though he was not a top contender at the Liu Clan, as a sage he was considered a very strong figure indeed.


    Even Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan, who were standing on the steps outside the castle, were also looking this way.


    Yan Lu''s eyes stared at the man in front of him but still did not seem to be angered and appeared quite calm. However, there was a faint pressure that filled the air. Smiling, Yan Lu said, "What did you want to say before that?"


    "Do you want to try it?" Ye Futian repeated.


    "Good." Yan Lu nodded, and he immediately levitated into the air.


    "The matter about the spear does not require so much trouble. Right here is enough." Ye Futian''s calmly said, and Yan Lu was stunned for a second.


    "Older Brother Ye, he is a sage." Liu Qing walked behind Ye Futian and whispered softly.


    "Liu Qing, I told you before that at this stage of cultivation you should focus more energy on comprehending the power of heaven and earth. However, skills are not completely useless. When skills are cultivated to their extreme, they can be evolved into rules. Watch carefully." Ye Futian reached out and the Spiritual Qi immediately condensed into a long spear, held in his hand.


    Liu Qing nodded emphatically and looked solemn.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s movements, an incredibly large Flood Dragon appeared behind Yan Lu, because his Natal Spirit was also a Flood Dragon. That was why Liu Yun''s elders employed him.


    A terrible rules power coursed, surrounding Yan Lu''s body. The breath of his body that was blooming from him indicated he was a mid-level sage.


    "Please." Yan Lu said.


    There still wasn''t a detectable breath coming from Ye Futian, controlling the rules power that flowed between heaven and earth above the spear and giving out the feeling that his power was quite similar to that of Yan Lu.


    The wind swept through. Ye Futian disappeared from where he was standing, and like a residual shadow appeared in front of the Yan Lu with the long spear stabbed straight out, similarly to the shot that came from Liu Qing.


    However, it was merely similar.


    When the spear got close to Yan Lu''s body a heavenly force slammed down, and there seemed to be shadows of spears everywhere accompanying the impending horror, the oppressing space where Yan Lu was.


    Suppression rules power.


    Skill in its extremity became rules, and Ye Futian turned the spear into rules.


    Liu Qing''s eyes stared at the one shot that Ye Futian stabbed out. His breathing seemed to have stopped, and there was only the shadows of the spears in his eyes.


    Under that one shot, the immense Flood Dragon was forcibly suppressed. It roared and screamed, crushing and breaking the rules powers. A terrible wave swept out. The surrounding crowd also felt that they were unable to breathe, and they were being oppressed without quarter.


    However, it was just for a moment. Yan Lu''s body was knocked out and flew away, falling toward the distance.


    Only one shot, and there was not much difference from the fight that took place between the two youngsters.


    Liu Yun was pressed to the ground by the remnant wave of suppression. He looked up at Ye Futian and shivered. The one that he had called an idiot had knocked out his teacher in one shot, and he was completed embarrassed.


    After this, his teacher probably would not appear again in the Liu Clan, and would not instruct him again.


    Ye Futian did not look at Liu Yun. He acted as a natural response to help Liu Qing get back at these two. Aside from that, he should not need to be assessed to be able to join the group to the ruins.


    Ye Futian walked back to Liu Qing''s side, and Liu Qing''s face was blushed furiously at the moment. As if because of the emotions, his eyes fixed on at Ye Futian.


    "Brother Ye." Liu Yan also called out, her heart beating violently.


    One move and Brother Ye had defeated Yan Lu with one shot, like a god descending down to earth.


    "Cultivate well and you could be like me in the future." Ye Futian smiled.


    "Mmmm." Liu Qing nodded solemnly.


    On the side, Liu Yuan looked at Ye Futian with gratitude. Supposing that today Liu Qing was bullied and unable to resist, it would affect him mentally. However, Ye Futian''s action was an encouragement, and incentive for Liu Qing to remember forever.


    Unfortunately, after going to the ruins it was unlikely that he would return here.


    Yan Lu left quietly, no face to continue his stay. The Liu Clan did not suffer much and continued chatting casually. For them, this was just a slight ripple. After all, the Liu Clan was very extensive, and only Liu Yun''s family was really affected this time.


    "Will this affect you?" Ye Futian asked Liu Yuan. If it would, he would remedy it.


    "Not at all, we are also members of the Liu Clan and conflicts are not a big deal. Not to mention Liu Yu is highly regarded by the family." Liu Yuan responded, and Ye Futian nodded slightly and said nothing.


    It didn''t take long for a person to come and talk to Liu Yu and allow Ye Futian to come with them. This was not unexpected.


    The people were still waiting quietly. Finally, there was a procession of mighty figures descending in the distant sky. All of them wore silvery clothes, extremely radiant and beautiful.


    "Prepare to welcome." the head of the Liu Clan moved forwards and levitated into the air. Next to him Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan also followed suit, standing in the air to watch the arrival of the other party.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    Silvery beams descended from the sky. The cultivators of the Ocean Palace holy land appeared like gods in the sky above the Liu Clan. For a time, the pressure of authority shrouded the void, and many felt the need to kneel on the ground and worship.


    "People of Liu Clan, welcome the visitors of holy land." The head of the Liu Clan bowed in greeting, and suddenly the people below also bowed deeply in greeting.


    Countless many were excited beyond words. To them, the three holy lands in Ocean State were a myth.


    Now they had seen the people from the holy land descending from the sky and coming to their clan. This was an honor.


    "As you were." the head leading the delegates of Ocean Palace commanded indifferently and asked, "Where are Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan."


    Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan stepped out, and when those from the Ocean Palace saw the two, they had a look of great satisfaction and said, "From this moment on, you two are the cultivators of Ocean Palace. Return to your place."


    "Thank you, honorable ones." The two men bowed slightly, and then walked toward the midst of the cultivators from Ocean Palace.


    All eyes from the Liu Clan stared into the sky above. The two stood amongst the cultivators from the Ocean Palace and looked so harmonious, as if they were where they always should have been, as one of them.


    "In the future, I also want go to the Holy land to cultivate." Liu Qing only felt a sense of fascination, and next to him, Liu Yu and Liu Yan also revealed a look of longing. The holy land was the dream of all cultivators.


    Ye Futian stood in the crowd and observed it all calmly. The influence of the holy land to the outside was greater than he had thought.


    As for him, as the Palace Lord of the Holy land, it was naturally that he did not feel anything.


    "Let''s go." The cultivator of the Ocean Palace had no intention to stay, and spoke directly


    The Chief of Liu Clan looked at them, and suddenly they levitated into the air. Those were the ones going.


    "Father, I am leaving." Liu Yu said, looking at Liu Yuan, apparently not giving up the idea.


    Liu Yuan looked at her deeply and knew that it was useless to say anything more, so he looked at Ye Futian, "On the road, please look after this girl."


    "I will do my best." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Brother Ye, will you come back?" Liu Yan looked at Ye Futian. Although they only knew each other for a short month, the goodbye was still difficult.


    "If there are opportunities in the future, I will take you guys to see the world outside." Ye Futian ruffled the hair of Liu Yan.


    "Promise." Liu Yan looked up at Ye Futian, fearing that he would go back on his word.


    "Yes, I promise." Ye Futian nodded with a smile and turned to Liu Qing, "Work hard on cultivation."


    Liu Qing nodded his head emphatically and said nothing.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian said to Liu Yu, then he levitated into the air. A silver mask appeared in his hand and he put it on his face.


    Although there were not many who had seen him in the holy land of Ocean State, only twice at the Nine State forum and the Xia Clan, and it was only the best from the Ocean State holy land, there was still a chance he might be recognized. So, he put on the mask that he had prepared very early on, just for such an occasion.


    "What does it mean, Brother Ye?" Liu Yu asked curiously.


    "When outside going through the trial, sometimes it is inevitable to offend some people. Ye Futian found an excuse and said to Liu Yu.


    "Understood." Liu Yu nodded and had no doubt.


    Soon, the group went skywards under the leadership of the cultivators of Ocean Palace, and gradually disappeared from their sight.


    Below, Liu Yan quietly wiped the tears at the corners of her eyes, silently praying for them in her heart.


    Ye Futian, at this time, had a heart was full of expectation. The lost relic, Halberd of Time and Space, ranking third on the Divine Implement Rankings, would hopefully be retrieve on this trip and be brought back to the Barren State!

 893 Nine States Will Change

    The sky above the Endless Ocean, bright blue and cloudless.


    The group was travelling upon Kunpeng, moving forward mightily. It was the group from Ocean Palace that departed from Cliff State City.


    The horrifying Kunpeng beast and the powerful conglomeration of more than 100 people scared away even the monsters in the Endless Ocean. Just that faint air of pressure was daunting enough.


    As indicated in the name, the Endless Ocean was immense. Although the location of Lost Ruins was not a secret, it would still not be easy for Ye Futian to find it alone. Above the Endless Ocean, there was no way to clearly identify any directions.


    The Ocean Palace was one of the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean. They even had cultivators who were stationed at the Lost Ruins, so they would most likely know how to travel there.


    At this point, a person walked to Ye Futian on the back of Kunpeng and put his hands together, bowing slightly in greeting, "Senior."


    Ye Futian''s eyes landed on the other party. It was a young man who looked about twenty-five or so. He was handsome and elegant, and his temperament was extraordinary.


    "I am Liu Han. The shot of spear before by you seemed simple, but it had integrated the world of heaven and earth, turning into rules attack to suppress Yan Lu all in single maneuver. I had seen many sages of the family in action but had never seen such stunning move with a spear." Liu Han said softly, somewhat curious about the silver mask on Ye Futian''s face, which gave a chilling sensation to those who beheld it.


    "It is the grandson of the clan leader from the main branch, the younger brother of Liu Zixuan, whose cultivation level is closer to mine, superior Noble Plane." Liu Yu transmitted her voice to Ye Futian. Ye Futian replied to Liu Han, "That move was passable, but is not considered a high-level maneuver."


    "Precisely because the maneuver was so simple and yet was able to release such power, that it was even more unusual. Presumably, that move did not truly display senior''s the real strength." Liu Han still appeared polite and said, "Would you return to Cliff State City after this trip?"


    Ye Futian shook his head gently, eyes forward. The descendants of many clans were arrogant by nature, but if your own strength could be recognized by them, they were often also very respectful and polite.


    Although Liu Han was only of superior Noble Plane, he had a good eye and was able to detect that one shot was not as simple as it had appeared.


    "Unfortunate, but I would still like to ask for instructions in the future." Liu Han said.


    Next to them, Liu Yu''s beautiful eyes revealed a special spirit; it was a good opportunity for Ye Futian, and gave him the opportunity to enter the core of the Liu Clan.


    However, Ye Futian''s gaze was still directed ahead, seemingly uninterested in any of this. He just said casually, "Since the family allowed you go to trial, they must have the intention to let you perform. Your goal should be the Ocean Palace. "


    Liu Han smiled a little bitterly and shook his head, " You should know by now what kind of place Lost Ruins is. In my plane, even if our clan has such an idea there will be no opportunity of performance."


    "I just read some records regarding the Lost Ruins in ancient books. The rumor has it that it was the palace of the Ocean King. Then when the Ocean King died that most splendid palace of Endless Ocean also sank to the bottom of the sea, along with the entire island city." Ye Futian said.


    Since it was his intention to get the Halberd of Time and Space, he had done some research before coming.


    The Halberd of Time and Space was now a divine implement without owner, but many years ago it was a weapon of notoriety and the weapon of choice of the Ocean King, who was the strongest cultivator of the Endless Ocean. It was rumored that in that era, the Ocean King ruled the Endless Ocean, and there were not yet the three holy lands as it was today. Today''s Ocean Palace was created by those who later claimed to be the descendants of the Ocean King.


    "Hmmm." Liu Han nodded. "Until this day, the palace in the Lost Ruins was still standing like a god in the Endless Ocean, even the saints cannot step into it. Some have said that the statue of the Ocean King outside contained the soul left by the Ocean King and had not dissipated even today."


    If the gods of many years ago were able to stop the cultivators of the Saint Plane even now, then it was indeed amazingly powerful, and in turn Ye Futian was looking forward to it even more.


    "For many years the three holy lands have not been successful, so why try again this time?" Ye Futian asked, "And as far as I know, many disciples of the Nine States holy lands are not in the holy lands at the moment."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "I am not really sure either, l think we are better off asking the people from Ocean Palace." Liu Han said.


    "Just because there was no success before does not mean I''m unable to this time." In front of Kunpeng a voice was heard, and then a young man who was dressed in a silver garment and emitted a sharp and proud intention from himself. He turned around, his eyes landing on Ye Futian.


    In an instant, countless eyes looked toward the man. He stood in the middle of those from the Ocean Palace. Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan were both also standing at his side at the moment, which further accentuated his transcendental temperament. The majority of the people knew who he was.


    "Lin Yu was said to be a saint disciple of the Ocean Palace. He participated in the Nine State Forum two years ago and actually entered into the top ten. Supposedly he was now a mid-level sage." Liu Han transmitted his voice to Ye Futian. Ye Futian suddenly understood that he seemed to have misspoke.


    Because of the Sacred War, the Barren State did not participate in the Nine State Forum two years ago, so he had not seen Lin Yu. But he was able to enter within the top ten in Nine State Forum. It must have been that his talent was extremely outstanding. It was especially precious because it was from the Ocean Palace holy land of the Ocean State, so it was even rarer.


    He had said that many disciples in the Nine States holy lands were not in position, but the other must have thought that he had said that geniuses of the Nine States had all left and naturally there was no hope of getting the Helberd of Time and Space.


    "Apologize." next to Lin Yu, Liu Shi''s eyes fell on Ye Futian and he spoke calmly.


    Ye Futian came with the people of Liu Clan. Although he did not know who Ye Futian was, by deduction he must have been a cultivator of the Liu Clan.


    His careless speech had led to the displeasure of Lin Yu of the Ocean Palace, so he was required to apologize.


    Ye Futian''s eyes landed on Liu Shi. Under the mask those eyes were calm, and without too much concern simply regarded Liu Shi nonchalantly.


    He was within the top ten of Nine States Forum, and he was asked to apologize?


    What was more, even though what he had just said would cause some misunderstanding, there was in fact nothing wrong with it. The Nine States holy lands were currently missing quite a few people.


    "Older sister." Liu Han looked at his sister, Liu Zixuan, and secretly transmitted his voice. After all, Ye Futian had drawn the displeasure of Lin Yu because he was chatting with him. He did not want Ye Futian to get in trouble.


    The other party was the people from Ocean Palace.


    Liu Yu''s face was slightly pale. Lin Yu, who had great standing, just by simply standing there, gave an invisible pressure to the cultivators of the Liu Clan.


    "He didn''t mean anything." Liu Zixuan whispered. After all, Ye Futian was with the Liu Clan.


    Lin Yu''s gaze still fixed on Ye Futian, and then he smiled faintly "It''s okay, there was no issue with what he said."


    As soon as his voice trailed off, everyone from the Liu Clan felt the pressure suddenly disappear. Many looked at Ye Futian, and thought that he had secretly escaped disaster.


    Liu Shi simply cast a sideway glance at Ye Futian. He had just entered the Ocean Palace. Naturally he did not wish to see his clansman offend the geniuses of Ocean Palace.


    "The Nine States today has geniuses emerging one after the other. In recent years, there have been many with the talent of Saint Plane. Zixuan, have you heard about it?" Lin Yu said gently.


    Liu Zixuan nodded. Although she was extremely cool and proud, even her arrogant self knew that Cliff State City did not represent the whole world. It was no more than an island city within the Endless Ocean. Her goal was set in an even more distant place.


    "I heard that the disciples of the Nine State First College, Lin Shubai and Tong He, both possessed the talent to the Divine Path. Tong He once took the first place at Nine State Forum, and the son of Saint Ji of the Hall of Holy Light, Ji Mo, is widely believed to be the next Lord of the Hall. And then Liu Zhong of Xihua Sacred Mountain, disciple of Three Saints." Liu Zixuan said slowly, "And then there is Ye Futian of Barren State, whose meteoric rising is unparalleled, and enough to dominate an entire generation."


    Even though her voice was still calm when she spoke, there was a sense of soberness. Those people were her goals.


    Liu Han, who was next to Ye Futian, was also a little excited. He transmitted his voice to Ye Futian, "My sister once told me the story of Ye Futian, the genius of a generation that came out of nowhere, with such indescribable style and talent. Although I have never witnessed it, Ye Futian is the idol of my sister and I, and also our goal."


    The look under Ye Futian''s mask was even stranger. Was his reputation really this great?


    Even in the distant land of Ocean State stories about him circulated, but in recent years, there was indeed no one who could compare with him in the younger generation in terms of fame. However, he often heard of his name when he was in the Endless Ocean, and still felt surprised.


    "Yes, these people are indeed the most outstanding of this generation in Nine States. However, the times are constantly changing. Before Ye Futian became famous overnight, no one knew of him, and in the future others would also replace him. Although no one had taken the Halberd of Time and Space in the Ruins for many years, it didn''t mean that those would not get it in the future."


    Lin Yu spoke slowly, as if he had hidden limitless ambitions like mountains and rivers within his chest.


    "And, the reason for the three holy lands to explore the Lost Ruins again is precisely because so many in the Nine States have left. Now that everything that had happened in the Nine States signified the ushering in of a new era. The Nine States holy lands may face another upheaval. The Halberd of Time and Space must show itself." Lin Yu continued; this was not a false statement.


    The rise of the Barren State, the explosion of Sacred War, and the mysterious supervising inspector who led all the geniuses of the Nine States. Everything pointed to the possibility that there would be great turmoil in Nine States. The historical annals also recorded that every time Nine States turned over, it was an earth-shattering event: prosperous holy lands buried in ruins, and legendary figures who were saints had fallen like meteors.


    But it was also a sign that there would be extraordinary figures who would lord over the mountains and rivers.


    Lin Yu, of course also dreamt of a stage such as this could have his name.


    On the top of the Kunpeng, the people of the Liu Clan could only feel fascinated looking at those rare and attractive figures, such Lin Yu and Liu Zixuan standing together. They were the real geniuses who had the opportunity to step onto the stage of an era.


    Ye Futian''s heart was somewhat unsettled. In fact, he also had the feeling that Nine States may yet be in chaos, and that Barren State would encounter a greater danger. This is why he came to the Endless Ocean.


    It could be inferred from the dialogue of Lin Yu that the saints of the Ocean Palace had the same feeling as him. All three holy lands were eager for the Halberd of Time and Space to appear so they could get ahold of it.


    Would this mean that Nine States will change!

 894 Undersea Palace

    Ye Futian and his people traveled on the Endless Ocean for five days before finally reaching an island. There was no city to be found on it, which made it an uninhabited island. However, when the mighty ones from the Ocean Palace came, many others gathered around.


    Ye Futian apparently sensed that the number of demonic beasts in the area grew exponentially, so much so that they even dared to provoke him and the others. All that made him speculate that the Lost Ruins were somewhere nearby, and those people were probably mighty ones from holy lands who were stationed there.


    "So the ones from the North Deep and the Celestial Cliffs are here then?" A figure was seen walking out of the crowd from the Ocean Palace, asking the ones who gathered around. The figure was stout and brimming with power. His name was Pang Kun. Ye Futian and the others saw him on their way there, and he was probably the leader of those people. Pang Kun was of the archmage level in training.


    Many genius figures from holy lands all over the Nine States left with Xia Qingyuan at Saint Xia''s birthday banquet, but there were also some who did not attend the banquet in the first place, especially those from somewhere as far as the Ocean State. Pang Kun was one of those people. His status at the Ocean Palace was unquestionably supreme and he had great powers.


    "We were already here yesterday," someone from below answered. Two groups of people were seen coming from afar as soon as he spoke.


    "Pang Kun, I knew you would be the one coming from the Ocean Palace." Voices were heard. Ye Futian lifted his head and looked far away. The two groups were very distinct and both groups were over a hundred-strong. All of those people had an exceptional bearing. The ones on the left were dressed in black robes and exuded coldness, while the ones on the right were dressed in blue robes. Ye Futian had seen those clad in blue before; they were mighty ones from Celestial Cliffs.


    "North Deep Eagle." Pang Kun turned his eyes to the one who spoke. It was a man with deep eyes, which emanated immense pressure. The North Deep were a race of people who inherited the powers of the Endless Ocean for generations, and they were extremely powerful.


    "We''re all here now, let''s go," a middle-aged man dressed in blue at the Celestial Cliffs'' direction said. His tone was bone-chillingly cold, making him unapproachable.


    "Fang Tu, are you unhappy to see an old friend?" North Deep Eagle smiled and said to the middle-aged man dressed in blue, but his smile was rather cold. Fang Tu, was an archmage level figure from the Celestial Cliffs, who had exceptional talents, and he missed Saint Xia''s birthday banquet as well.


    "I heard that the Ocean Palace took in a very capable female student as of late. I guess she was the reason for the detour then." North Deep Eagle''s sharp eyes looked at Liu Zixuan, who was standing beside Lin Yu. He smiled, baring his white teeth and asked, "You''re quite the beauty, how about you come train with us at the North Deep instead?"


    Liu Zixuan frowned slightly. Mighty ones from the North Deep all exuded thick heretical auras all the while. Even if she were to not join the Ocean Palace, she would have picked the Celestial Cliffs instead.


    "Thank you for your kind offer, senior, but I''ve joined the Ocean Palace." Liu Zixuan was naturally reluctant to offend North Deep Eagle, and as such, resorted to simply declining politely. North Deep Eagle''s eyes continued to linger on her, however, gauging her figure from top to bottom, making her shudder.


    "North Deep Eagle, are you here for the ruins or here to ask for trouble?" Pang Kun asked coldly.


    North Deep Eagle smiled for a bit before turning his eyes away. He answered, "The ruins of course, but since you guys have taken in such a beautiful one, I was just wondering who would the lucky boy be."


    Pang Kun frowned and looked even more irked. It was only then that North Deep Eagle said, "Let''s go." He turned around and took to the air. They did not take their steads, the Kunpeng, with them. They left them where they were, as they needed them when they returned.


    "Let''s go." Mighty ones from all three holy lands took to the air one after another in an instant, continuing to make their way forward.


    Later, Ye Futian sensed a mysterious aura far away. There seemed to be a terrifying vortex appearing from the ocean. What was even more frightening was that there was a terrifying demonic aura expanding from the ocean. The aura was so thick that not even the waves were able to conceal it.


    "We''re here. The Lost Ruins are right beneath the ocean. We''ll need to go through the surface, as there are packs of demonic beasts surrounding the ruins. Stick close to me," Lin Yu said to Liu Zixuan. It was obvious that he had a thing for her. She was stunning in both looks and talents after all.


    "Brace yourselves," a mighty one from the Liu clan said. Everyone looked sharp and solemn. They had all heard of the legend of the Lost Ruins, which had once been the palace of the most powerful being of the Endless Ocean��the Ocean King. The place held mysterious powers.


    There had been a time when all three of the holy lands wanted to just take the ruins for themselves, but quickly found endless waves of demonic beasts coming one after another, endlessly assaulting any who approached. There was simply no way for them to take the place. As such, they took the nearby islands instead.


    "You two, stick close," Ye Futian said to both Liu Yu and Liu Han. He was able to tell from the demonic aura emanating from the ocean that people at Noble Planes should not have come. The ones from the three holy lands consisted almost entirely of sages. However, the Ocean Palace did not stop the Liu clan. They simply did not care about their presence, and as such, did not bother to even ask about them.


    "Yeah." Liu Yu nodded. She was rather nervous, but at the same time, excited. That was the first time she had been this far from Cliff State City. Furthermore, she was able to see the legendary Endless Ocean up close.


    One figure after another dived straight into the Endless Ocean. The water washed all over them. However, cultivators were unaffected by such an environment. Furthermore, most of the cultivators from the Endless Ocean were trained in water type powers, and some were even capable of wielding seawater as a weapon.


    Ye Futian dived into the ocean and soon found the demonic aura washing over him with the seawater. He looked down and focused on the depths, quickly finding one demonic beast after another coming for them. All mighty ones from the three holy lands cast auras of rules and simply went about to carry out an onslaught in the depths. Ye Futian was at the rear. Several mighty ones came up to protect Liu Han, as he was the heir of the Liu clan.


    "Take care of Senior Ye and Liu Yu," Liu Han said to them.


    "No need for that. Just take care of yourself," Ye Futian replied and then took Liu Yu to the depth below. He then saw demonic beasts coming to attack him. Liu Yu, whose hand was taken by Ye Futian, felt rather embarrassed, but she was nonetheless able to quickly cast aside unnecessary thoughts, as she too saw sea pythons heading their way.


    Ye Futian''s eyes changed and looked rather demonic. There seemed to be a terrifying storm being whipped up, lashing out at the demonic beasts coming at them. One look was all it took to deter the beasts, making them change course. They became reluctant to attack Ye Futian and went to pick on some other targets around instead.


    Liu Yu, who was all prepped for battle, looked puzzled. What the hell just happened?


    Liu Han, who was right behind, knew right away that Ye Futian was capable of handling himself and said, "Let''s go." He then moved forward as well.


    Extremely violent rule spells erupted about them and made the sea howl. Terrifying waves were kicked up as a result. They went all the way down. It was a given that the demonic beasts were incapable of stopping the advance of mighty ones from all three holy lands.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    Ye Futian kept his speed steady and was a fair distance away from the others in front. He did not have to fight at all. It took little more than a look from his eyes to deter any nearby demonic beast.


    Liu Yu''s eyes looked at his face and saw nothing but a cold silver mask. Her heart raced, and she was able to feel that his powers far exceeded her expectations, so much so that no demonic beast dared to come near them.


    Golden light shone on Liu Yu''s face. Ye Futian looked below and saw a golden palace sitting at the bottom of the ocean. The palace was tall and regal, shimmering with boundless holy light. There was a huge golden statue in front of the palace, standing tall like some kind of god. A set of steps that seemed to be made of gold was seen before the statue, which led straight to the palace.


    "We''re here." All the mighty ones from all three holy lands shuddered deep down at the miraculous sight before them. Even those who had been there before could not help but felt shaken.


    The Ocean King had once been the king of the Endless Ocean. His palace was buried deep within the ocean, with the Halberd of Space and Time held within, and it was something that many from the Nine States would have killed for.


    Other than the miraculous place, the palace''s surrounding areas seemed to be surrounded by countless huge monsters, which all were seen looking up. Countless pairs of cold eyes gazed at the ones from the holy lands coming down. All of those monsters were intelligent, some even wise. There were quite a number of them who were of the archmage level as well. It helped with their growth, simply by being around the ruins and feeling the aura emanating from within.


    "You people again?" a boundlessly huge black dragon said in a cold voice. It was apparent that it knew about the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean.


    "We''re not here looking for a fight. Please just make way. There is no need for us to be killing each other," Pang Kun said coldly to the monster standing in their way.


    "It seems that you haven''t brought enough men with you this time," the black dragon retorted with a ferocious look.


    "More than enough to take on you all." North Deep Eagle''s tone was frosty. He then asked, "So you people want to be trashed again?"


    The black dragon below grinned ferociously. It was not powerful enough to take on the three holy lands, as there were saints among them. However, the people from the holy lands were unable to get a hold of it nonetheless, as the Endless Ocean was simply too huge. However, it had no intentions of leaving, for there was no need to fight to the death with those from the three holy lands.


    "Make way," the black dragon uttered. Those humans were there for the halberd, and it actually hoped they were able to find it, as that meant that the monsters could simply kill all of them and take the weapon when they came out later.


    The black dragon seemed to be the king of the monsters down there. It took only one line from it to make them make way. The mighty ones, however, continued to keep their guard up by releasing the power of rules as they went downward, arriving at the golden path. Their group was hundreds-strong, yet it seemed insignificant at that moment. All the monsters around had their eyes pinned on the humans, making them shudder.


    Ye Futian could not help but count his blessings deep down. If he had been there alone, he might have ended up as food for the monsters, and still, it would have taken a lot more to fill even one of the monsters'' bellies. He never expected the outside of the Lost Ruins to be so terrifying. He kept his eyes forward, looking at the magnificent statue at the golden steps, the statue of the Ocean King.


    Holy light shrouded his entire body, and at that moment, Ye Futian felt as if the Ocean King''s statue was filled with life. A terrifying will washed over him and the entire palace lit up with dazzling gold holy light. Vast and unparalleled might seemed to be descending from the heavens, making the monsters shudder in fear.


    Ye Futian heard during his journey that the Ocean King statue had gotten in the way of the saints from the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean, forbidding the saints from entering. Legend had it that it would take a saint stronger than the Ocean King to forcefully break into his palace and take away his divine implement!

 895 Statue Destroyed

    The Ocean King Statue served as the entrance to the palace. A heavy pressure shrouded everyone, and golden shimmers fell upon them. Ye Futian felt a powerful will power invading his mind. He looked at the statue and seemed to have seen a godlike figure walking towards him, walking into his mind and overpowering him.


    He was not alone; everyone around him felt the same way. It was the first trial of the ruins. If one wished to enter the ruins, they needed to be able to bear the powerful pressure of will from the statue. The higher one''s training was, the stronger the pressure. If a saint was present, the statue would have brought its greatest will to bear. There were some who had witnessed the phenomenon before, where a beam of golden light simply shot out of the sea.


    The mighty ones from the three holy lands naturally knew what to do. They continued to move forward with the will pressure bearing on their minds. The ones at the forefront already made it to the golden steps and were walking towards the light emanating from the center of the statue. Once they made it past, they were able to enter the ruins.


    Liu Yu, who was right beside Ye Futian, felt the pressure as well. However, the pressure on her was the weakest, as she was of the weakest in training out of all who were present. However, Ye Futian''s will could not help but resisted the pressure. It was something of an instinct. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    As the god continued to walk into his mind, the pressure he bore became increasingly strong. A stronger will of resistance erupted from within his mind to resist that pressure. His spiritual will seemed to be burning, and it had gotten more and more powerful.


    Ye Futian shook his head for a bit and sensed something strange. The powerful Ocean King''s will invading his mind had invoked the imperial will deep within his being. The Ocean King statue seemed to have become even more dazzling, as it seemed to have sensed the power coming from within Ye Futian''s. The Ocean King''s silhouette was regal and imposing within Ye Futian''s mind. He held a golden divine halberd in his hand while walking into his mind. The Ocean King''s powers were overbearing, intending to crush any power resisting him.


    Ye Futian''s eyes looked straight at the Ocean King statue and his spiritual will seemed to have burned as well. Divine Fire of Emperors manifested, and the imperial will within Ye Futian''s mind seemed to have been provoked, which was returned in kind.


    At that very moment, an incredibly holy figure appeared in his mind. It took Ye Futian''s form yet it burned within Divine Fire and basked in imperial essence, behaving in an overpowering manner like a true emperor. Everyone was to bow to him, even the Ocean King.


    Boom! Several of the mighty ones on the golden steps were thrown away where they stood and crashed down below. They grunted as their spiritual will seemed to have been maimed, and they looked pale.


    "What happened?" Pang Kun had been there before and he had entered the ruins. Why does it fail this time? He looked up and saw the golden statue shining with glittering, towering light, blinding those who saw it, making them unable to open their eyes. Furthermore, boundless light flowed about above the palace, and streaks of flowing light gathered on top of the statue in a frenzy, making it seem as if the statue had come to life, as if the Ocean King had appeared in person.


    Indomitable pressure continued to sweep through the entire area in the sea. It was the true holy might. All who were below the golden steps and were on the golden ancient path shuddered under the might, making them felt as if they were to kneel. They were not the only ones being overpowered; even the proud black dragon''s body felt restless, and the demonic beasts around howled and roared. The entire undersea area was shaking.


    "What is happening?" The mighty ones from the three holy lands were all pale. The pressure was so heavy that even a sliver felt unbearable. How the hell is this happening? There should be no saints here today.


    A sliver of terrifying will swept through the entire undersea area. A golden light shot through the sea from the depth, rising up to heavens from the surface. One could see the golden light emanating from the sea from the surrounding areas.


    Many mighty ones from the three holy lands had already gone to the ground. Their eyes were shut while their bodies shuddered. No one dared to let their guard down and brought their all to resist that pressure. No one had time to care about anyone else.


    The human cultivators were not alone in their suffering; the demonic beasts suffered just as badly. All went prostrate and seemed to be worshipping the Ocean King''s statue.


    Ye Futian''s body continued to shudder. He felt as if his soul itself was shuddering, and he never expected something like that to happen. The Ocean King certainly had been a very overbearing person when he was alive. It sensed the imperial will within Ye Futian''s mind and intended to wipe it clean with all he had.


    He finally understood why no saint had been able to enter the ruins. A saint''s will proved to be more powerful than the Ocean King''s when he was alive, suppressing it in order to gain entry.


    There was no way Ye Futian could have been capable of such a feat. While he had imperial will in his being, there was no way for him to thoroughly bring that power to the forefront, and burning it simply invoked part of its powers. If the Ocean King had been pinning down just his own will power, it would have wiped his mind clean without any problem. However, the Ocean King sensed Ye Futian''s imperial will, and he intended to wipe that from Ye Futian''s mind, which was why the current phenomenon happened.


    Ye Futian felt as if his head was about to split apart. His brain seemed to be on the verge of exploding. There seemed to be two gods fighting inside his mind, which was so terrifying that he was about to crumble.


    The entire palace was shaking. Boundless light seemed to have been invoked by the matrix. A god seemed to have walked out of that supremely divine statue, leaving an imprint in Ye Futian''s mind. Ye Futian was incredibly pissed off at the treatment. This Ocean King guy is just too much.


    His imperial will seemed to have been angered as well. Its tremendously divine light of emperors dazzled, and a blinding light burst out of Ye Futian''s body. However, no one was there to pay any heed to him, as everyone was lying flat on the ground. Furthermore, the light bursting from the statue seemed to be enough to cover all other light sources.


    The statue trembled alongside the palace.


    Boom... A loud rumble was heard, and the godlike golden statue exploded into bits right, coalescing into a golden rock. Boundless light flowed inside Ye Futian''s mind and then disappeared altogether. The extremely terrifying pressure was lifted all of a sudden.


    Ye Futian was thoroughly exhausted at that moment, sitting on the ground listlessly. The surrounding seawater invaded and drenched him from top to bottom. He was not alone. Everyone had been resisting the seawater using Spiritual Qi prior, and they were all drenched at the moment. All of them had been laid bare before the seawater around them. However, none of them were in any mood to pay attention to such details. They all looked at the broken rock and the remaining lower half of the statue. Everyone shuddered somewhat.


    The Ocean King''s statue was gone.


    Everyone knew what that meant.


    The Halberd of Space and Time��Nothingness��was finally going to be seen throughout the Nine States again.


    Even if none of them happened to be powerful enough to take the weapon away, the statue''s destruction meant that the palace no longer had anything to stand in the saints'' way. If the saints were to come claim the weapon personally, everyone knew how that would turn out.


    "You all, get back to the Ocean Palace. Immediately," Pang Kun ordered the mighty ones around him. All of them darted to the surface without question. The mighty ones from the Celestial Cliffs and the North Deep responded as well, sending people to inform their superiors.


    If they were unable to claim the halberd, they could at least buy time. The saint who came the earliest would be the first to get their hands on the divine implement.


    "Come, let''s go inside." Pang Kun and his remaining people stepped through the screen of light and went inside the palace. People stepped inside one after another afterward. Without the statue getting in their way, the only notable obstacle to their quest was gone.


    Everyone was able to get inside the palace effortlessly.


    Ye Futian arrived before the broken statue as well. There was no seawater around him there. While the statue had indeed been broken, a formless screen of light continued to block the seawater. He peered forward and saw many broken pillars in the bright and vast golden palace, sprawled out all over the place. Intricate images filled the walls and the floor, but all of that was dull and tarnished.


    "The matrix was destroyed," Fang Tu commented. It looked completely different from how it was when they last came. The entire palace had been incredibly lavish and the light of the matrix flowed about.


    "The collapse of the statue seems to be the reason of the matrix''s destruction. Any one of you know what happened earlier?" Pang Kun looked at the crowd behind him. "Who was the one who invoked the statue''s power?"


    "You think it''s one of us here?" Fang Tu asked.


    "Who else could it be other than us?" Pang Kun looked at him and added, "The statue only attacks those in front of the palace, so it has to be one of us. But then again, the statue was so powerful that it could even overpower saints. Who was it that broke the statue?" He was unable to fathom it all. The notion of someone more powerful than saints in their ranks was utterly ridiculous.


    "With the matrix destroyed, things in the ruins are no longer what they once were. Everyone, be careful," Fang Tu added. Everyone nodded in response and moved forward.


    At that moment, Liu Zixuan found many pairs of eyes lingering on her, and she looked rather grim. It was especially so with those from the North Deep. They had no qualms staring at her voluptuous body. Due to having been drenched by seawater earlier, her clothes were sticking to her body, and her alluring figure was exposed. There were even parts that vaguely showed through the fabrics.


    She did not pay any attention to that due to the shock experienced before, but she quickly took clothes out from her storage ring right to cover her body, wrapping everything inside. Even Lin Yu could not help but steal a glance at her before looking away. Liu Zixuan simply looked too tempting for a moment there.


    It was the same with Liu Yu. She had a very alluring figure, and that naturally attracted looks. However, due to Liu Zixuan being around, the eyes around her were comparatively few. She nonetheless took out a coat and wrapped it around herself.


    "Careful," a voice said. A terrifying aura was sensed in an instant. Cold eyes turned to the direction where the voice was heard from. One frightening demonic beast after another from within the palace''s depth walked out.


    "Welcome again to the Ocean King''s palace." A voice was heard from deep within the palace, sending shivers down the spines of all those within earshot. Everyone felt as if they were being watched by a pair of eyes, which seemed to be able to bypass all distance, coming right before them.


    Ye Futian looked far away and followed his senses. He seemed to be able to see an incredibly huge beast that behaved like a devil. Furthermore, terrifying aura emanated from that being.


    "Liu Yu, Liu Han, let''s get out of here," Ye Futian said to them telepathically. He took Liu Yu''s hand and stepped backward, intending to leave the palace.


    He had just discovered something very terrifying!

 896 The Sacred Beast Jiuying

    "Brother Ye," said Liu Yu. She looked at him with her beautiful eyes, looking a bit puzzled. Liu Han also looked at him, seeing only his back. However, at that moment several huge demon guards appeared at the entrance: a dragon, a beast covered in golden spikes, and a huge tortoise. They guarded the exit, and their auras were terrible.


    Ye Futian frowned. It seemed that they couldn''t get out. Moreover, the demons seemed to be staring at him. He could only walk forward quietly into the crowd. Liu Han said, "What happened, Senior Ye?"


    "Liu Han, have you ever heard of the demons that guard the palace?" Ye Futian asked.


    "No, but my sister should know. I''ll ask her," Liu Han responded, and then passed it on to Liu Zixuan.


    After a while, Liu Zixuan looked back at Ye Futian and said, "There is a legendary guardian sacred beast in the lost ruins, a Jiuying [1]. It once ravaged the Endless Sea, and sought to dominate all the monsters therein. Later, it was subjugated by the Ocean King and became his mount. It was said that before the Ocean King fell, he sealed the Jiuying in the ruins in order to prevent it from rampaging across the Endless Sea, and thus, it guards the Halberd of Time and Space."


    Ye Futian''s face suddenly hardened. It was a sacred beast, and moreover, it was the legendary, diabolical Jiuying. The people of the three holy lands all knew this. They continued onwards. More and more demonic beasts were appearing in the hall. The cultivators of the holy lands frowned. This was different than before.


    Suddenly, a wild demonic aura swept out. A group of golden bat demons rushed out like bolts of lightning, and an invisible sound wave shot out from it. An ear-piercing shriek sounded in everyone''s ears, and they felt like their Spiritual Wills were about to be destroyed.


    "The Golden Bat Demon is good at sonic attacks, and it is also a very capable melee fighter, be careful," the cultivator in front reminded everyone. The bat demons had bloodshot eyes. They seemed to want to fill the hall, and at the same time attack the people in it.


    Liu Yu''s face went pale, and her Spiritual Will seemed to be about to collapse under the harsh sonic attack. She closed her eyes in pain but felt a strong hand pull her. Ye Futian''s eyes became stormy again. When the Golden Bat Demons met his gaze, they turned around and fled, as if they felt his threat.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were stronger than before. A terrible spiritual storm pierced through the bats'' spiritual wills, and some of them struggled fiercely. Soon their bloodshot eyes became calm and they retreated. He had taken control of the retreating demonic beasts and had confirmed his conjecture.


    The other cultivators launched their own attacks, and the Sage Plane cultivators'' power was astonishing. Violent rule power raged through the hall, and many Golden Bat Demons were killed on the spot, but some of the cultivators from the holy lands were wounded as well. The bats had different levels of power; some were strong and some were weak.


    In front of them, a huge Golden Bat Demon with wings as sharp as sickles and bloodshot eyes rose into the air and stared at those who had come. Golden Bat Demons were a type of demonic beast with strong reproductive abilities. They liked dark places and were addicted to blood and death, but their growth was limited and they rarely reached the Sage level. However, in these lost ruins, this one had grown surprisingly big. The Golden Bat Demon King''s demon aura was that of a top-level Sage. Beside him were several other Sage level Golden Bat Demons, all of them with killing intent in their eyes.


    The sound of flapping wings came over, as well as a sharp shrieking sound, and everyone in the densely packed hall got goosebumps. The cultivators of the holy lands'' faces also changed. There had never been so many Golden Bat Demons in the past. What had happened?


    "Kill that Golden Bat Demon King first. There''s something strange about the ruins right now. Everyone, go all out, don''t hold anything back," said Pang Kun to the people from the other two holy lands. They nodded. They could both feel that this was going to be a tricky battle, which made them feel that there was a real threat. The ones from the North Deep and the ones from the Celestial Cliffs nodded, and they looked imposing.


    "Let''s go." Pang Kun''s figure flashed, and a long silver halberd appeared in his hands. He thrust it forward, and in a flash, a silver vortex swept out. The Golden Bat Demon King''s body flashed, and his mouth opened. A formless soundwave split the air, breaking the vortex. At the same time, ear-piercing sounds rang out In the vast, ancient hall and the Golden Bat Demons all rushed forward.


    "Evil creatures." The cultivators from the North Deep stood together, their faces cold and imposing. A deep chill emanated from their bodies, and as the Golden Bat Demons rushed towards, them their golden bodies were slowly covered in ice. A strong cultivator from the North Deep reached out and produced a powerful whirlwind. It slowly swallowed up the bodies of the Golden Bat Demons.


    "Protect the mistress." The Liu clan cultivators rushed towards Liu Zixuan and Liu Shi, and a chaotic battle broke out.


    "Brother Ye." Liu Yu bowed slightly. Before she had come, she had wanted to see the outside world. But now she realized she had been wrong. Coming to the ruins would be nothing but a nuisance. If it hadn''t been for Ye Futian, she would not even be able to think of escaping with her life.


    "It''s nothing. Follow me," Ye Futian whispered. Liu Yu looked at his back and had a strong feeling of confidence. She looked all around. A terrible battle had broken out that shook the heavens and the earth, but Ye Futian was walking forward step by step. No demonic beasts attacked him. Even when they were next to him, they would go around him to attack someone else.


    The great hall was filled with the torn bodies of bats, and people were rushing towards the palace.


    With a great cry, the Golden Bat Demon King was jointly killed by the cultivators from the holy lands. The Golden Bat Demons suddenly retreated like a tide and disappeared in the blink of an eye, leaving behind a ground full of corpses.


    The people from the three holy lands looked around. Some of their people had also fallen. At that moment, someone turned around and their gaze fell upon Ye Futian. He stared at him and asked, "Who are you?"


    Suddenly everyone looked at Ye Futian. Lin Yu said, "He looks like he''s from the Liu clan. How did you do it?"


    Ye Futian was the only one who had not been attacked.


    "I''ve cultivated my spirit elemental power to be able to affect demonic beasts," Ye Futian answered indifferently.


    "Why don''t you show us your true face?" asked Lin Yu.


    "Force of habit," Ye Futian answered.


    "Remove your mask." Next to Lin Yu, Liu Shi looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian frowned and glanced at Liu Shi. This was the second time.


    "I''m talking to you." Liu Shi also frowned when he saw that Ye Futian did not answer him. At the same time, he glanced at Liu Yu beside him.


    "Let''s not worry about this trifling matter," Liu Zixuan said from beside Liu Shi.


    Lin Yu smiled and said, "Fine, let''s forget it."


    "Let''s keep going," said Fang Tu. "The ruins are a bit strange this time."


    Everyone felt it. One by one they stepped out and continued forward. The huge palace had collapsed into many ruins, and each of the ruins had demonic beasts standing on them, glaring at them coldly. But they did not move.


    They walked through the long palace hall and came to a stairway. Suddenly, more demonic beasts appeared up ahead on both sides, growling quietly.


    "Let them pass." The voice from before came out of the depths of the palace, and the demonic beasts moved aside.


    Their feeling of being watched grew stronger. Invisible pressure covered everyone. They walked along the gold-colored floor as many more demonic beasts appeared around them. Finally, they came to the end of the hall. A huge design appeared on the floor. It looked like a terrifying matrix. The matrix connected every part of the palace and even extended deeper into it. It extended away into an endless chain that suppressed the design.


    And at that moment, there was a white-robed figure standing calmly in the middle of the pattern. He seemed to be a middle-aged scholar. There was a hint of a smile in his eyes, but also a bit of evil.


    Beside him, many demonic beasts appeared on the edges of the design. There was another flight of stairs behind the design, and from there you could faintly see a huge statue of a god holding a divine halberd.


    "The Halberd of Time and Space." When everyone saw the divine halberd in the Ocean King''s carved hands, their hearts trembled fiercely. It was the third-ranked divine implement on the Divine Implement Ranking.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "Welcome, everyone." The middle-aged scholar stood in the center of the design and seemed to be wrapped in the endless chain. He smiled at the group of them.


    "Thank you for letting us pass, senior." The people of the three holy lands bowed slightly to the middle-aged scholar.


    "Think nothing of it. This is my thanks to you." He smiled. "Next, as long as you can get past me, you can go to the final stage and get the Halberd of Time and Space. Who will try first?"


    Everyone''s eyes flashed. A top-level Sage stepped out from the back and said, "I will try, senior."


    "Excellent. Go ahead," the middle-aged scholar said politely.


    A pair of wings appeared behind the cultivator, along with a great wind. He shot forward, turning into countless afterimages. In a flash, he had rushed past the middle-aged scholar and went deeper into the hall.


    He made it, everyone thought.


    However, at that moment, an astonishing aura descended. There was a bang, and the middle-aged scholar disappeared, and in his place was a huge, ferocious nine-headed demon.


    Everyone''s hearts were beating fiercely. One of the nine-headed demon''s heads struck out, and though the Sage wanted to go that way he was stopped.


    There was a miserable cry. The beast had bitten into the Sage. A Sage level cultivator had been bitten around the waist. The bloody scene made everyone''s hearts tremble fiercely. The fierce beast''s heads moved through the air. Its nine pairs of eyes were filled with malice. The endless chain in the design seemed to have disappeared. In the silent hall, there was only a plaintive cry. The cultivator had not died yet.


    "Jiuying." Everyone''s faces went pale. The Ocean King''s mount��the Sacred Beast Jiuying.


    What was more frightening was that its seal was broken.


    "I haven''t tasted human blood in so long," came the voice. The huge Jiuying disappeared. He had transformed back into the middle-aged scholar, but the eyes of those who saw him were filled with fear.


    "Don''t be afraid." The middle-aged scholar looked at everyone. "The rules are still the same as before. If you can pass by me, I''ll let you go. This was the rule set by my great master. I will certainly follow it." When he spoke of his great master, his voice seemed to come from the depths of hell.


    [1]: A Jiuying is a nine-headed snake monster from Chinese mythology, similar in some ways to a hydra. "Jiu-ying" means "nine infants," and it was called that due to the fact that its cry sounded like that of a baby.

 897 Game of Death

    Everyone''s faces went completely white. This Jiuying was a Sacred Beast, how could they get passed him? His tone was full of infinite resentment. Anyone who had been sealed away for many years would be the same, not to mention a naturally cruel and murderous beast.


    "Let''s begin." The middle-aged scholar''s gaze was full of malice. In his eyes, they were all like ants. They were nothing but playthings to him. He would let them slowly feel their fear, and feel their deaths.


    For so many years, the people from the three holy lands had come into the ruins and looked at him as a decoration, like he was only a demon slave that guarded the divine implement. No one remembered that he was the Demon King Jiuying, who had ravaged the Endless Sea.


    At this moment, no one in the hall dared to step forward. Everyone was deeply afraid.


    "Since you are so inactive, I will come to you." The middle-aged scholar swept his gaze over everyone with eyes full of humor. He reached out and pointed at the North Deep Eagle and said, "You seem pretty strong, why don''t you try it?"


    The North Deep Eagle''s face went pale. Although he was extremely proud and confident, the one in front of him was a Sacred Beast that had broken its seal.


    "Senior, I will take these people away from here. We won''t disturb you again," North Deep Eagle said with a bow.


    "I''ll give you one more chance. If you pass by me, you may live." The middle-aged scholar''s voice was still calm. The blood drained from North Deep Eagle''s face. He was very stiff, but he still stepped forward. His whole body was tense. His life spirit blossomed, and his incomparably large wings opened.


    He said to the middle-aged scholar, "Since you''re on the Saint Plane, please show your inferiors some mercy." In the instant that he finished speaking, he shot forward and his wings slashed out directly towards the middle-aged scholar as his body rushed in the other direction.


    The middle-aged scholar glanced at him calmly and reached into the air. In a flash, his arm turned into nine heads, each of them fiercer than the last. They shot forward, accurately targeting North Deep Eagle and biting into him. With a scream, North Deep Eagle''s body was torn into nine pieces, and the nine heads swallowed the pieces before turning back into an arm.


    "No..." The faces of the people from the North Deep were ashen, and their whole bodies trembled. They saw the middle-aged scholar bring his arm back. He stuck out his tongue and licked his lips. They felt only an infinite sorrow.


    "Hahaha..." The middle-aged scholar threw back his head and laughed. His smile was full of malice, and his eyes were cold as he stared at everyone. "For so many years, the three holy lands have treated me like a pet. Now it''s your turn. Next, you."


    He pointed at Pang Kun of the Ocean King Palace. Apparently, he had seen everything before, and those he chose were all leaders.


    "Senior, we have always regarded you as a guardian Sacred Beast. We absolutely never disrespected you," said Pang Kun.


    "A guardian Sacred Beast? What am I guarding?" The Jiuying stared coldly at Pang Kun. "This is the greatest shame of my life," he said slowly.


    Pang Kun realized he had made a mistake. The Jiuying was full of resentment towards the Ocean King.


    "Come on." His cold voice was like a note that urged him on to his death. Pang Kun suddenly shot forward, trying to escape. Even if he wanted to pass the Jiuying''s test, at his level, there was no chance of success. It was better to flee in the opposite direction.


    The Jiuying reached out with both arms, and in a flash, the nine ferocious heads rushed out along the hall. They quickly caught up to Pang Kun and barred his path, revealing their bloodthirsty fangs.


    "No..." Pang Kun did not want to die there, but that did not mean anything. The evil heads rushed forward and engulfed him without hesitation. There was not even a skeleton left behind. Everyone''s face went ashen as they saw this bloody scene. It was as if they had seen their own dooms.


    Ye Futian stood amid the crowd and also felt a bit of sorrow. This was the reason he had wanted to retreat before. He had sensed this. Moreover, he had most likely been the reason why the Jiuying was able to break the seal. Of course, he had not intended it, but the will of the Ocean King statue wanted to completely wipe out the will of the emperor. This had led to the statue destroying the matrix and being destroyed, which had affected the seal.


    "Hundreds of years. I followed him for hundreds of years. I fought in the Endless Sea for him and unified it," the middle-aged scholar slowly said to everyone. "But in exchange for all this, he made me guard this divine implement? When the divine implement leaves is when I will be free from my toil. What''s funny is he was so conceited that he would never let anyone get the Halberd of Time and Space. He just wanted to prove that no one was stronger than him. He surpassed all others both in the past and in the future. For hundreds of years, none of the worthless forces of the Nine States have succeeded. And so for this impossible task, I have been sealed here for generations to come, forever and ever." His voice grew louder and louder until he was almost yelling the last words. They echoed throughout the hall. His resentment was endless.


    "However, he never thought that this day would come. The seal has been broken. There was no omen that this would happen. Who did it?" the Jiuying asked everyone with a smile.


    No one answered, even Ye Futian. He knew the Jiuying''s mental state had been thoroughly twisted. He only wanted revenge, revenge on everything.


    "No one will admit it?" The Jiuying smiled at the group and said, "No matter. Let''s continue."


    He looked at Fang Tu. Fang Tu looked desperate.


    Soon, he followed in North Deep Eagle and Pang Kun''s footsteps.


    This was a game of death, a game that everyone in the hall would lose. And the price of death was their lives.


    Cultivator after cultivator died at the Jiuying''s hands. He seemed to enjoy this process very much. Perhaps he had been alone for too many years. He kept hunting and kept talking to himself.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    A madman on the Saint Plane was a disaster.


    Almost all the top figures of the three holy lands were killed by the Jiuying.


    "Brother Ye," Liu Yu came up by Ye Futian''s side and whispered, "It looks like we''re going to die here today. I shouldn''t have brought you." She looked at Ye Futian with a despairing gaze. She knew without a doubt that she would die today. If she hadn''t agreed to Ye Futian''s request and hadn''t let him follow the Liu clan, he would not have to die with them.


    "I was the one who wanted to come. It''s not your fault," Ye Futian said to Liu Yu. He sighed inwardly. At this point, he was also in despair.


    This was a dead end; a dead end with no way out. He did not think that if he broke the statue that the Jiuying would be grateful and let him go, not when the Jiuying was as twisted as he was. If he stood there and voluntarily admitted that he had the will of the emperor, he would, no doubt, die even faster.


    Liu Yu was also regretting that she had been so headstrong. Her father had tried to stop her, but she had been bent on getting her own way.


    "No one has taken the initiative yet?" asked the Jiuying. His gaze fell upon Liu Zixuan, and the evil in his eyes was still there.


    "Such a beautiful human woman will probably taste very good." The Jiuying smiled evilly.


    Liu Zixuan''s face went deathly pale, and her heart was filled with sadness.


    "Sister." Liu Han looked pale as well. He rushed forward and said, "I''ll go."


    "Get back." Liu Zixuan swept her gaze over Liu Han.


    "We''re all dead anyway, sister. I''m a man, so I should die first," said Liu Han. Liu Zixuan said nothing.


    "You have a backbone. In that case, I''ll fulfill your wish." The Jiuying looked at Liu Han.


    Ye Futian looked at Liu Han and stepped forward with sorrow in his heart. He took a deep breath and said, "Senior, I have something I''d like to say."


    The Jiuying smiled evilly. "Why? You want to go first?"


    Ye Futian looked at the Jiuying and said, "I have asked about your story before, and so I naturally understand the resentment you hold in your heart. You were a beast that could sweep through the Endless Sea, but you were sealed up for so many years due to the Ocean Kings selfishness, and you could not bear the pain of not having control over your fate. At this moment we have already experienced your pain."


    The Jiuying looked at Ye Futian. Indeed, he wanted these humans to suffer his pain, fear, and powerlessness, and watch as they moved step by step closer to death.


    "Are you going to beg?" The Jiuying asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head. "We''ve already felt the pain of not having control over our fates, the fear, and the helplessness. Under these rules, there''s no more suspense. The ending is already predetermined. Why don''t you just give us a reprieve and kill us all at once?"


    Everyone gazed coldly at Ye Futian. Did he want to die sooner?


    "Oh?" The Jiuying looked interested.


    "Or, perhaps you''d like to change one of the rules?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Let''s hear it." The Jiuying was not in a hurry. He still looked calmly at Ye Futian. If Ye Futian tried some petty trick, he would die a painful death.


    "You said that the Ocean King left behind a task that was impossible to complete. We came here for the Halberd of Time and Space, and we''re not willing to die like this. Why don''t you let us try? If one of us can get the Halberd of Time and Space within a certain time and hand it over to you, they can trade it for their life. You can freely execute the others. At least, in this desperation, there will be a chance to live, not like now when there is no chance at all," Ye Futian continued.


    A strange excitement flashed in the Jiuying''s eyes. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "That indeed seems a little more interesting. Then I will change this one rule. If someone can get the Halberd of Time and Space, they can not only trade it for their life, but for two other lives as well. If you can''t get it, I will give you one more chance to live, but only one of you. Isn''t this a bit more interesting?" The Jiuying smiled evilly. He had just killed many people and was a bit numb. It was indeed quite boring.


    Ye Futian''s words had revived him.


    "You have one day," the Jiuying said, and then he moved to the side, letting them pass.


    Everyone took a deep breath. They could live for one more day?


    Within one day they couldn''t get back to the holy lands to send out news, nor could they get the Halberd of Time and Space, but at least with one more day, there was a little hope.


    Liu Zixuan and Liu Han just felt a burst of coldness. They had escaped death, but for how long?

 898 In the Nine States, Only I Am Unparalleled

    The crowd walked forward numbly. When they walked by Jiuying, they felt their bodies tense up. It was a demon. The middle-aged man that Jiuying had transformed into stood at the side, smiling. Looking at him now, it was impossible to imagine that he could be such a ruthless killer.


    Ye Futian and Liu Yu also walked to his side. They heard Jiuying laughing as he said, "You are very smart. If you had asked me to let you off just now, you would have died a terrible death. However, you came up with a very interesting suggestion to win yourself a chance at survival. However, with your cultivation level, you will probably not be the person to live until the end."


    Evidently, he did not think that these people were capable of obtaining the Halberd of Time and Space. He had followed the Ocean King for so many years that he understood his master''s arrogance too well. His master was an extreme narcissist. He had set up all this before he died not to search for a successor to his legacy, otherwise, he would have used a more gentle approach, but rather, his master had done all this to ensure that the people of the Endless Ocean would remember him forever. He wanted them to remember his greatness and that nobody would ever be able to surpass him.


    Even in death, he wanted his name to forever live within the Endless Ocean.


    That was why these people''s only outcome was to fight to the death until one remained.


    Ye Futian would evidently not be that person.


    "Since Senior has set this rule, what use is there is begging for mercy? As long as there hope for survival, I will fight for it," Ye Futian said to Jiuying.


    A crooked smile appeared on Jiuying''s face as he looked at Ye Futian and said, "I almost can''t bear to kill you now."


    Ye Futian naturally did not believe it and said, "I''ll be going ahead then." As he said that, he raised his foot and stepped forward. He would not be that foolish to beg for mercy. To a demonic beast that had been imprisoned for countless years and had a seething vengeance, he was only using slaughter to excite himself. Ye Futian was very clear that the only hope for survival in that scenario would be to satisfy it by coming up with an even more exciting rule. After killing so many experts, Jiuying had also become numb to it. So, he would naturally not reject a more exciting rule to the game.


    Climbing up the stairway, they came to the final palace. The palace was littered with gold, and the spacious hallway had gold diagrams etched onto the walls on both sides. The diagrams showed a person cultivating and a strong aura emanated from the diagrams.


    In front of them, they could see a towering statue of the Ocean King and the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand. However, a golden light screen stood in between the statue and the Halberd of Time and Space. This was the last barrier. On the golden light screen, they could see a diagram of a majestic figure holding the Halberd of Time and Space and piercing forward with it. Just by watching the diagram, they could feel an overwhelming aura.


    There was a sentence inscribed on the diagram. It read: I am the only owner of the Endless Ocean. Who can be unparalleled in the Nine States?


    A proud aura could be felt from those words. Although it was a question, it also implied that the Ocean King, who had controlled the Endless Ocean, would also be unparalleled in the Nine States.


    Ye Futian looked at the words and recalled what Jiuying had said before they had entered the palace. He knew that the Ocean King was indeed an extremely arrogant person. His gaze turned towards the diagrams around them again. These diagrams had a certain grace to them, like a halberd technique had been inscribed into them. The crux of obtaining the Halberd of Time and Space would probably lie in these diagrams.


    An arrogant person like the Ocean King, who wanted to prove his superiority, would definitely not leave a mystery that could not be resolved. If it was really like what Jiuying said, the Ocean King had left the Ocean Palace here to show that nobody would be able to surpass him, he would leave an obvious hint. However, even with the hint, it would be so difficult that nobody would be able to solve it. Only then would he be unparalleled in the Nine States.


    "Thank you." At that moment, a gentle voice sounded out. Ye Futian turned around and saw Liu Zixuan and Liu Han walking over. The person who had spoken was Liu Zixuan. If it was not for Ye Futian''s suggestion just now, Liu Han and her would have been dead.


    Ye Futian looked at Liu Zixuan. At that moment, there was no trace of that untouchable demeanor that she had in the Liu Clan. Although she was still calm, he could see a hint of weakness under her ravishing beauty. No matter how much of a prodigy one was here, it seemed that only death awaited them. She had stepped foot into the holy land the Ocean Palace not long ago. However, she was staring death in the eye so soon. How ironic.


    "No need, I didn''t do it for you," Ye Futian said nonchalantly with a casual tone. In reality, he did not do it to save Liu Zixuan and Liu Han. Under those circumstances, he could not even ensure his own survival, not to mention caring about others. It just happened that the time was right. If he had brought it up earlier, Jiuying would not have vented enough and would ignore his suggestion. Just as Jiuying picked Liu Zixuan, bringing it up then would make Jiuying think that he wanted to save the damsel in distress and fight for a chance at survival.


    Liu Zixuan nodded gently. Ye Futian seemed to be different from the others. He had followed the Liu Clan here, but he did not have the same admiration and respect for her that the others had. There was only indifference, as though she was no different from anyone else. Of course, she did not have the leisure to think about that now, it was only a fleeting thought. At that moment, there was probably nothing else more important than their lives.


    "One day is completely insufficient to solve this last barrier," someone exclaimed. The people from the three holy lands looked forward with grim expressions.


    "I heard from my elders that some prodigies had come here before, but they were totally unable to comprehend it and could only back out. Moreover, we only have one day," a despairing voice said. It seemed like they could only wait for death to creep up on them.


    Now, there were not many archmages left in the crowd. They all had glints in their eyes as they looked across the area, causing many people to feel threatened. Previously, Jiuying had said that even if they did not obtain the Halberd of Time and Space, one person among them could live.


    "We are all cultivators in the holy lands. If you are thinking of killing each other before we even try, then I advise you to think twice. If someone starts killing others to try and survive, those with lower cultivation levels will team up to kill those of higher cultivation level," Ye Futian said coolly. Instantly, the few archmages had piercing gazes as they glared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian continued speaking as though he did not feel their gazes, his gaze sweeping across everyone as he said, "At least we have one day to fight for our survival." As he said that, he stepped forward and walked to a wall, utilizing his Freedom Meditation. His eyes seemed to turn golden as the diagrams on the stone wall appeared to come to life. In an instant, he seemed to see a drawing of a majestic figure floating above the sea with the Halberd in his hand. He struck out and the Halberd pierced through the air.


    It did not seem to be that difficult.


    The other people also started to look at the diagrams on the stone pillars. The people here were all geniuses, so their frame of mind would not crumble even though they were faced with a desperate situation. As such, they were all trying.


    Ye Futian would look at each diagram for a long time as he comprehended each one, his footsteps slowly moving.


    Liu Yu also attempted to comprehend the diagrams, but with her cultivation level, she could not even comprehend the first diagram. She looked at Ye Futian and thought to herself, Big Brother Ye must have been an extraordinary genius in the past. His frame of mind and concentration was not inferior to any holy land genius. What a pity that they were about to die here. Otherwise, she would even consider pursuing him. As she thought about it, Liu Yu smiled mockingly at herself. At this moment, the fact that she could still think about this was probably proof that she had resigned herself to her fate.


    As time passed, some people started to become uneasy. Only a few geniuses with determined mindsets could carry on comprehending fearlessly. At the same time, there were people who tried to attack the Ocean King''s statue. However, it was pointless as they were unable to destroy it. Their only chance was with the diagrams on the stone pillars.


    Ye Futian had already completed one pillar and had started comprehending the second pillar. The diagrams on the pillars recorded a complete halberd technique that was extremely strong. It required one to comprehend the spirit of the pillars to understand it, but to Ye Futian, it was not hard. He not only cultivated in the Freedom Meditation, he also specialized in spatial abilities. Coincidentally, the Ocean King also specialized in spatial rule power, thus the halberd technique was linked with spatial powers.


    One day was too short for them. At that moment, footsteps sounded and many people turned around, shivering. They saw the middle-aged man that Jiuying had transformed into, standing there, smiling as he said to them, "You still have one hour left."


    "Let''s all work together to see if we can break through it," someone suggested. The crowd all nodded and fired their attacks towards the golden light screen at the same time. However, the golden light screen did not budge in the slightest. The words "Who can be unparalleled in the Nine States" continued to float there.


    "I don''t believe it, continue," Lin Yu''s expression was pale as he said, feeling bleak. The vicious attacks continued and the crowd attacked the light screen in front of the statue wildly. However, their attacks did not even leave a dent.


    "You only have one hour left." An evil voice sounded, "Perhaps, you could try another way out?" The middle-aged man looked at them with an interested expression, watching them fall into madness and despair.


    At that moment, his gaze landed on Ye Futian. He saw Ye Futian continuing to stand calmly at one side and looking at all this as though it had nothing to do with him.


    "Interesting," Jiuying said, smiling.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes. In his head, the pictures on the pillars seemed to come alive as brilliant figures appeared, holding the halberd in their hand and attacking, attempting and failing to break through the light screen, just as many of them had tried to do just now.


    "You have a last joss stick''s worth of time." Jiuying''s voice sounded like a deadly countdown. Ye Futian ran through all the diagrams in his head rapidly, halberd in hand, piercing forth with the halberd technique. Rays of light shone as all the halberd strikes gradually combined and the countless diagrams overlapped with his figure.


    Crash. Ye Futian''s brain shook vehemently and everything became clear to him.


    The Ocean King was indeed self-absorbed and cruel and had already planned everything. Jiuying understood him but he had underestimated his master''s cruelty.


    "Time is almost up, are you all ready?" the young man that Jiuying had transformed into said again. His voice sent many people into despair.


    "Are we really going to die?" Liu Yu raised her head and saw Ye Futian opening his eyes and walking towards the statue.


    "Big Brother Ye," Liu Yu called out softly to him.


    "Don''t worry, you won''t die." A voice sounded in her head. Liu Yu looked at his expression under his mask, it was a confident expression filled with charisma, as if she would not die as long as he said so.


    "I don''t want to die," Liu Shi said with a pale expression. He had just entered the holy land and his bright future had just started. How could he die here?


    Many people had crazed expressions as they attacked the golden light screen frantically. There were also others who looked coldly at the others, as though they wanted to choose the other way out.


    Liu Zixuan stood at the back of the crowd, looking at the crazed crowd with a desolate expression. At that moment, she lifted her head slightly and saw Ye Futian walking towards the crowd with steady steps. She could not see his face under the mask, but his dark eyes were filled with determination. They were filled with a belief that he could survive.


    "There is no more time left. Enjoy your final rampage." Jiuying put both arms behind him and tilted his head slightly, his face contorted with cruelty. His voice made them despair even more. They were helpless and could only wait for their death.


    "Move aside." At that moment, an indifferent yet powerful voice sounded and everyone looked towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stepped forward, walking to the center of the crowd. The crowd stared coldly at Ye Futian in madness with mocking expressions. Moving aside, did he want to try? However, feeling the aura around Ye Futian''s body, many people involuntarily made way for him.


    "Big Brother Ye," Liu Yu saw Ye Futian walking into the crowd and called out to him. The aura around his body seemed to have changed and a formless light surrounded his body. The aura that emanated from his body was that of a Magi''s.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    So Big Brother Ye''s cultivation level was actually this strong.


    They all saw Ye Futian''s body floating in the air and a terrifying current flowed around his body. His Spiritual Energy entered the stone pillars and in that moment, the diagrams on the pillars seemed to light up, turning into rays and moving towards Ye Futian''s body.


    The light around Ye Futian''s body became brighter and blinded many people. They all stared at the scene, astounded.


    Could it be that he had really solved the Ocean King''s mystery?


    Jiuying also had a surprised expression. Could it be that it was really possible?


    Liu Yu also watched the scene in amazement, looking at his unparalleled figure.


    Countless currents gathered around his body. Ye Futian stretched out his arm and a halberd appeared in his palm with a brilliant light. All the diagrams in the palace lit up and resonated with him. Apart from that, the light screen in front of Ye Futian lit up as well. The words on the light screen also lit up, as though attempting to imprint itself into everyone''s heads.


    Who can be unparalleled in the Nine States?


    Ye Futian''s body moved. The countless currents followed him and with a single strike of the halberd, the heavens shook and the entire palace shuddered.


    "In the Nine States, only I am unparalleled." A proud voice sounded out, as though replying to the question. The halberd that was covered in light struck the light screen!

 899 The Death of the Jiuying

    That incomparably arrogant voice made everyone''s hearts beat faster. At this moment, in their eyes there seemed to be nothing but the halberd and the brilliant figure.


    Everyone saw the light flowing in a curtain. The light flashed into veined lines, and an illusory figure appeared on the edge of the light curtain. It was the figure of the Ocean King. It seemed that a fragment of his will had been left in this light curtain before he died. Only by appearing this way could he get the Halberd of Time and Space.


    Behind the light curtain, the statue of the Ocean King also lit up, like the Ocean King was being resurrected. It flashed with a multitude of colors, and the Halberd of Time and Space in its hands swallowed up all the light. It resonated with the halberd that Ye Futian had thrust forward. The two of them seemed to be separated by an epoch as they stared at each other.


    The Ocean King had asked who in the Nine States was without match.


    And he had answered that only he was.


    The whole hall lit up as dazzling beams of light gathered together. The powers on both sides of the light curtain resonated, and then that incomparably brilliant light curtain dissipated into nothingness. It was broken and disappeared.


    All of this happened in a flash. No one had yet recovered from this dazzling scene. They were all in shock.


    The cultivators from the three holy lands had not been able to break the light curtain. For many years, no one had been able to do this. But today, someone that none of them knew had done it. In their moment of desperation he had realized the secret of the stone wall, and in only a day, he had broken through the strongest test left behind by the Ocean King.


    In that moment, they felt a sacred power coming from inside where the light curtain had been. They doubted that without understanding the secret of the stone wall, even a cultivator of the Saint Plane could not have broken through that light curtain.


    But he had done it.


    Who on earth was he?


    Liu Yu looked at him and her heart beat fiercely. She suddenly remembered that back at home, she had said to Ye Futian that in the Holy Zhi Palace in the land of the Barren State there was a Palace Lord who was unparalleled anywhere on earth. She wanted to go and see what kind of person could be called unparalleled. Ye Futian had laughed and said that maybe this person was like him.


    At the time she had thought it was a joke, but now she was truly looking at what could be called unparalleled power. And then she couldn''t help but recall that joking conversation.


    She realized that she knew who he was, and her beautiful eyes became slightly wet.


    Ye Huang.


    Ye Futian of the Barren State [1].


    Apparently, this unparalleled person had been right by her side these past few days. When she remembered that she had even wanted to pursue Ye Futian. she could not help but flush a little red. Her heart beat loudly. She was so embarrassed.


    How could she deserve someone like him? He was destined to only be a passerby in her life.


    Liu Zixuan and Liu Han also watched this scene with shock, their hearts beating rapidly. How could he be so strong? Who was this man who had followed the Liu Clan here?


    The evil smile in the Jiuying''s eyes disappeared. It frowned slightly, as if it had started to feel threatened. It may have made a mistake.


    Ye Futian naturally did not pay any attention to anyone else''s thoughts. He had already appeared before the statue of the Ocean King, which seemed to be coming to life. Brilliant light covered Ye Futian''s body and streamed throughout the hall. The pattern on the stone wall lit up, as well as the patterns outside that had been extinguished before.


    Ye Futian reached out and grasped the divine golden halberd, the Halberd of Time and Space. Nothingness.


    "You can go." Ye Futian looked at the illusionary opening on the statue of the Ocean King. The statue collapsed, and the illusion gradually disappeared. It seemed to symbolize the glory of the Ocean King��completely disappeared into the past. Lost relics became ruins. The Ocean King could only exist in history, and would eventually be forgotten.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    Ye Futian gripped the Halberd of Time and Space and turned to look at everyone. Divine light covered his body. At this moment he looked like a god. After so many years, someone had finally gotten the Halberd of Time and Space. The number three divine implement on the Divine Implement Ranking would once again appear in the world.


    But who would own it?


    "Congratulations," came a sincere voice. Everyone turned around and saw the Jiuying standing there, looking at Ye Futian. It smiled and said, "Give me the Halberd of Time and Space and I will honor the rules of the game. You can leave with two other people. Those two beauties seem pretty good. If I were you, I would choose them."


    Everyone''s faces contorted as they suddenly remembered the rules. Liu Shi said, "You came here with my Liu Clan. If you promise to get me out of here, I will fulfill any condition that you have."


    "I am Lin Yu of the Ocean Palace, in the top ten of the Nine State Forum and a disciple of the Saint of Ocean Palace. If you get me out of here I will recommend you to my Master," said Lin Yu.


    Suddenly everybody began talking in succession, begging Ye Futian to get them out of there.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over everyone, then finally looked at the Jiuying. He saw the Jiuying reach out to him and smile, saying, "Come on." His voice was full of temptation, but Ye Futian stood where he was, looking at it calmly and saying, "If I were you, I would be begging right now."


    His words shocked everyone. Was this guy crazy?


    The Jiuying''s smile disappeared, and his face grew very cold as it gazed at Ye Futian.


    "I forgive you for your impulsiveness," it said to him.


    "Even if you begged me, I wouldn''t let you go." Ye Futian seemed not to hear it and he continued, "At your level you should have felt it, and you should have understood why you could only be the Ocean King''s mount, why you were enslaved by him."


    The Jiuying''s face darkened, becoming fierce and twisted. An evil aura emanated from him.


    "You think you understood your master. You thought that no one would ever break through these ruins and that you would be sealed up in here forever. But even though the Ocean King was arrogant, he still always followed the rules. He never planned to release you. Even if someone broke through the ruins and got the Halberd of Time and Space, this was still a dead end for you." Ye Futian''s voice grew colder and colder. As he spoke, the hall was filled with a terrible, seemingly divine, pressure. Countless lines flowed and the broken seal lit up once again. All of the power in the room gathered into the Halberd of Time and Space, where the image of the Ocean King could be faintly seen.


    "The destruction of the statues outside was only an accident. When the Halberd of Time and Space goes out into the world, another huge killing matrix targeted at you will start up. No matter who gets the halberd, you shouldn''t think of breaking the seal. Killing the person who has the Halberd of Time and Space won''t let you get it either. The Ocean King planned all of this. How could he let a cruel beast, his mount, obtain his divine implement?" Ye Futian''s voice made everyone''s hearts beat faster. When they looked at the Jiuying''s darkening face, they understood.


    Everything that Ye Futian said was true. The Jiuying''s fate had been fixed from the start. Either it would be sealed up forever or it would die.


    The Ocean King had never given it a chance.


    Even though someone stronger than the Ocean King had forcibly smashed the statue outside, and thus was stronger than the Jiuying, luckily, there was someone among them there was someone who had broken the statue and thus rescued the Jiuying from his situation. He could leave, or he could kill Ye Futian and everyone there.


    But he had played a game with Ye Futian.


    And that had led to this scene.


    "You already knew this before?" the Jiuying stared at Ye Futian with its dark eyes as it asked this coldly.


    "You don''t understand matrices. But I do," said Ye Futian to the Jiuying. "Of course, before I was just guessing. It wasn''t until I sensed this pattern that I knew. Everything here is connected, and the statue inside and the Halberd of Time and Space are another part of the matrix."


    "So you watched all those people die until the right time came to share your thoughts?" The Jiuying stared fixedly at Ye Futian. It had actually been figured out by this weak human. Moreover, it never would have thought that someone could crack the Ocean King''s secret within a day.


    That was absolutely impossible, but someone had done it. It was as if this was fated to happen.


    It hated him.


    It had been fooled by the Ocean King, and now it had been fooled by this junior.


    Its face grew more and more distorted, and its desire to kill him grew shockingly clear.


    "This was in order to not let you release the evil in your heart. If I had brought it up, it would have led to a dead end. Of course, even though you agreed to only give me one day, this was a gamble that you lost." Ye Futian raised the Halberd of Time and Space, and the dazzling radiance bloomed even brighter. The whole hall shook as the endless pattern lit up. The whole hall seemed to form a complete matrix.


    "Thank you for giving me time to start the matrix." Suddenly, Ye Futian smiled brightly under his mask.


    The Jiuying froze, and then became even more furious.


    "Roar!" Its loud voice rang out as its extremely fierce bestial nature appeared and its terrible power reached out towards Ye Futian. But Ye Futian''s Halberd of Time and Space shot forward at the same time. The matrix had converged on the halberd, and space seemed to be distorted. An unimaginable frightening vortex appeared and struck towards the Jiuying''s large body.


    The palace began to be destroyed as all of its wild destructive power was gathered into the halberd. The entire palace was a huge matrix. The walls of the palace were swallowed up and destroyed. The crowd of people before Ye Futian saw the walls disappear, then the palace disappear, and then the vortex swallow up everything. All of the Jiuying''s heads were sucked inside of it and torn to pieces. It tried to escape, but that storm of time and space swallowed everything. It was annihilating it.


    The beast''s giant body gradually became an illusion. It grew fainter and fainter until finally it disappeared. From that place came an incomparably bitter voice, "I hate you!"


    Of course it did. He had been tricked by his master, the Ocean King. And now, just when he had seen a way out, had seen a way to see the sun and sky again, a weak human cultivator had buried him alive. The cry echoed throughout the sea, full of endless bitterness and making the depths of the sea roar.


    A sacred beast had been annihilated on the spot.


    [1] In Chinese, "huang" means "barren."

 900 Decision

    When everything was gone, the ocean waves were coming in, and all the cultivators were still stiffly standing in the same place. The palace had disappeared, and it had turned into a ruin at the bottom of the seabed, completely gone.


    That one halberd turned the whole Ocean Palace into a matrix and destroyed everything. The proud owner, the cruel and bloodthirsty mount�� In the end, Jiuying still died at the cruel calculations of the Ocean King. Although this stroke of the halberd was initiated by Ye Futian, it was the Ocean king who killed Jiuying.


    Just as Ye Futian had said, from the beginning to the end, the Ocean king had never given Jiuying any chance to survive.


    Ye Futian was thinking. These saints, when their cultivations reached a certain plane, their attitude would become more cold and indifferent. If it was him, it was one thing if he had not chosen Jiuying as a mount. But since the choice was made, and it had been through wars for many years, it would not be seemly to choose such a way to trap and kill it. Although the two were separated by time and generations, he could still feel the cruelty of the Ocean King.


    The water of the ocean washed their bodies, and those in the ruins pulled their thoughts back to the present and took a deep breath. The sacred beast that had made them desperate was dead. This was an unexpected turn of events for them. They had completely lost hope and thought that for sure they would die, but no one expected that Ye Futian would succeed and spur the Palace Matrix to kill Jiuying.


    This ending was truly invigorating.


    Their eyes were directed to Ye Futian, and the face under the silvery mask was still invisible. Of course, compared with Ye Futian''s true identity, at this moment, they were more interested in the divine implement that Ye Futian held in his hand, ranking third on the divine implements ranking, the Halberd of Time and Space��Nothingness.


    Moreover, the top three on the divine implement ranking had never actually faced one another, it was merely deduced by the people of Nine States according to the strength of their masters and the power of the device itself.


    Ranking third, was, in reality, already at the peak.


    Ye Futian could crack the secret of the stone wall left by Ocean King. Naturally, his talent was incomparable. However, his cultivation seemed to be only that of a mid-level sage, and at the moment, the palace was crumbling, and there were no more matrices involved, so the cultivators of the three holy lands now had some ideas in their heads.


    Although Jiuying had killed a lot of them, even those who were most capable, there were still many sages remaining from the three holy lands, and even a few mid-level sages had survived. So that even if the other had the Halberd of Time and Space in hand, it would be easy for them to grab it.


    They did not consider the identity of Ye Futian much. After all, it was the territory of the Endless Sea, and all three holy lands of the Endless Sea were here. Unless it was a saint, it would be a useless struggle, no matter who the other person was.


    "Your excellency has an extraordinary talent, to kill the evil beast. Would you be willing to enter the Ocean Palace to cultivate?" At this time, Lin Yu of the Ocean Palace offered Ye Futian this opportunity. Pang Kun and many of the top cultivators of the Ocean Palace were dead. Among the remaining cultivators, he was the highest-ranking from the Ocean Palace. He was a disciple of a saint. If he could help the Ocean Palace to bring back the Halberd of Time and Space, the Masters would certainly reward him handsomely, and his position in the Ocean Palace would be further elevated.


    Ye Futian casually cast a glance at Lin Yu, and the cultivators of the other two holy lands also sneered inside.


    Ye Futian invited to cultivate at the Ocean Palace? Perhaps there was more to it than just that.


    Ye Futian understood clearly. He coldly replied, "No need."


    Lin Yu did not seem to mind, and continued smiling. "It''s a pity. Just one thing. Ocean Palace was created by the descendants of the Ocean King of yore, so if the Halberd of Time and Space can be returned to the original owner, the Ocean Palace will reward you greatly, and you will not suffer any losses."


    Underneath the mask, the eyes of Ye Futian cooled a few degrees. He wouldn''t suffer losses, really? Ocean Palace, what did it have to exchange for the Halberd of Time and Space? At least it was also a divine implement of rank. Was Lin Yu really qualified to decide on this level of treasure? As for the descendants of the Ocean King...


    "Before, why didn''t you tell Jiuying, you were the descendant of Ocean King." Ye Futian looked at Lin Yu coldly.


    "That''s right, Ocean King was the master of the Endless Sea. The Halberd of Time and Space cannot be said to belong to the Ocean Palace alone. All three holy lands have a share of it," the cultivator of the North Deep spoke up, obviously sharing the same ideas as Lin Yu.


    The third-ranking divine implement was being held in the hands of a mid-level sage, and he was by himself, so how could they not thinking about the alternative?Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "Your Excellency, it would be best if you hand this divine implement over to us, the three holy lands of the Endless Sea," the cultivator of the Celestial Cliffs also said to Ye Futian. They moved and subtly intending to surround Ye Futian.


    "Clearly, you had the ability to move against Jiuying, but you waited deliberately after Jiuying had killed many cultivators of the three great holy lands. I can ignore that fact, so long as you hand over the Halberd of Time and Space," Lin Yu continued to speak, no longer civil and reconciliatory, and his tone seemed more combative.


    When Liu Yu heard the words of these people, she felt a coldness inside. She looked at them and wondered, was this how a holy land was? How disappointing.


    "Under those circumstances, if he came out earlier, he would have been dead also. Who dared to fight against Jiuying? Anyway, he saved everyone''s life, and ungratefulness aside, everyone here came for the Halberd of Time and Space, and those who are the most capable should get it. Ye Huang killed Jiuying and saved everyone in order to get the Halberd of Time and Space in hand. Now you all say the Halberd should belong to the three holy lands. That sounds beyond unreasonable." Although she had already guessed Ye Futian''s identity, at this moment in the Endless Sea, Ye Futian was alone and unsupported. If the three holy lands really wanted to make a move on Ye Futian, it would be difficult for him to escape.


    These people had faced desperate situations not so long ago. Now that Jiuying had just died, they all owed their lives to Ye Futian. In a blink of an eye, they had turned against him all for the Halberd of Time and Space.


    On Ye Futian''s part, he actually never expected these people to be grateful. He was not trying to save their lives but was trying to save himself. Even though he did save them, but to be grateful? It was absurd.


    Human nature was always the most complicated. Not long ago, they were trembling and feared they would die. As soon as Jiuying died, immediately, all they could think about was the divine implement in his hands.


    The reason why human nature was complicated was because of cleverness and the ability to see all the pros and cons so clearly, so thoroughly. To avoid disadvantages and exploit opportunities, that was the nature of men. Naturally, he was the same himself, but at least he had his own principles.


    "How dare you. Take her," a cold voice was heard, and immediately, several cultivators descended next to Liu Yu, and a strong breath landed on her, and Liu Yu paled. Those who made a moved on her were family members, and the person who gave the order was Liu Shi.


    Liu Shi was a smart man, so he knew very well what choices to make were the best for him at the moment. Prior to this, he had already regarded Ye Futian with displeasure; he did not expect him to be so clandestine.


    "What are you doing?" Liu Yu stared at Liu Shi and asked in an icy tone.


    "Liu Yu, you colluded with outsiders to infiltrate the family. Your intention was already doubtful, and now you dare to question the holy land, do you not know your place?" Liu Shi spoke coldly and looked at Ye Futian. "You infiltrated our family just so you could enter the ruins. Hand the Halberd of Time and Space to the Ocean Palace, and I will pretend as if nothing happened, and Liu Yu will be safe too."


    Ye Futian''s brow knitted together. Liu Shi was taking on his own family member to threaten him?


    "Let her go." Liu Zixuan surveyed those who surrounded Liu Yu.


    "Miss." These people found themselves in a difficult situation; Liu Shi and Liu Zixuan were paternal cousins ??and grandchildren of the family. They could not afford to offend either one of them.


    "Zixuan, this is for the benefit of you, me, and the family," Liu Shi said, then looked at those few people and said, "Just listen to my orders."


    "For the benefit of the family, you can go get it yourself." Liu Zixuan looked coldly at Liu Shi.


    "Zixuan, even though you are talented, you are too soft. How can you achieve anything?" Liu Shi continued. He was very happy to see Liu Zixuan''s reactive. He and Liu Zixuan entered the Ocean Palace holy land, but his talent was lesser than Liu Zixuan. From Lin Yu''s previous attitude toward both of them, it was obvious that he valued Liu Zixuan more. And now, here was his chance.


    "You, have you made your decision?" Liu Shi looked at Ye Futian and asked aggressively.


    Underneath the mask, Ye Futian''s eyes were still very calm. He had not spoken because he had been thinking. He was thinking about how to handle the situation today so there would not be repercussions later.


    "If I don''t hand it over, what are you going to do?" Ye Futian asked the people of the three holy lands.


    "Do you think you have a choice?" The cultivator of the North Deep circled behind Ye Futian, a powerful atmosphere snaking out, cold and indifferent.


    "You have great talent, you should take your life seriously," the cultivators of the Celestial Cliffs also joined in.


    "My previous promise is still valid. If you give hand over the Halberd of Time and Space to the Ocean Palace, I can introduce the Palace Lord of the Ocean Palace to accept you as a direct disciple, otherwise..." Lin Yu was using both favors and threats on Ye Futian.


    The situation now was not between them and Ye Futian and who would get their hands on the divine implement the Halberd of Time and Space, but the battle between the three holy lands.


    There was only one divine implement.


    "You will accept me as a disciple?" Ye Futian looked at Lin Yu.


    "Yes, my own," Lin Yu said very seriously.


    "Even if the Palace Lord of the Ocean Palace is standing in front of me, he is not qualified to speak to me like this," Ye Futian spit out his reply with fierce defiance, which made Lin Yu frown.


    "How dare you," Lin Yu said chillingly.


    "I was hesitating as to how to deal with this matter," Ye Futian looked at Lin Yu and continued, "now, you have given me the answer."


    The people of the three holy lands frowned. Ye Futian''s tone seemed to be different than before.


    "Didn''t you ask me who I was before?" Ye Futian stared at Lin Yu, then placed his hand on his face and slowly removed the mask.


    At this moment, the heartbeats of the people of the three holy lands involuntarily spiked. Could it be that this person had a special identity? Their eyes were all fixed on Ye Futian''s face. As the mask fell, a very handsome face was revealed.


    "Recognize me?" Ye Futian asked icily.


    Many looked at each other in silence, and no one had seen Ye Futian before.


    "How could it be you," at this moment, a shocked voice asked. It was a cultivator from the Ocean Palace, his face suddenly pale, and he had an ominous feeling of foreboding.


    This person''s reputation in the Nine States was monumental.


    If he dared to take off his mask, what could this mean?


    "Who is he?" Lin Yu looked at the man and asked, his voice was inexplicably nervous.


    Liu Shi also stared at the man; who was it exactly?


    The cultivator looked at Lin Yu, his face pale, and said, "Barren State, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian."


    Lin Yu''s heart trembled. The most prestigious Palace Lord of the Holy Zi Palace, whose name was known throughout the Nine States, and a symbol of the generation, Ye Futian, stood in front of him. He had repeatedly imagined that he would replace Ye Futian, but when Ye Futian really appeared in front of him, he felt a mountain of pressure, as if he could not breathe.


    Just as Ye Futian had said, even the Palace Lord of the Ocean Palace was not qualified to take him on as a disciple. Likewise, Liu Zixuan''s heart felt as if it was being hit, and her beautiful eyes drifted to him. Ye Futian, whose name was so strange, and yet so familiar. In this manner, he appeared in front of her.


    "Even if you are Ye Futian, you are alone in my turf, the Endless Ocean, what can you do?" Lin Yu, felt a little humiliated. He was scared off by the name of Ye Futian.


    "Is it so?" Ye Futian took the Halberd of Time and Space and moved forward step by step, as Lin Yu continued to retreat, step by step.


    Buzz. A shadow flashed, and Ye Futian''s body suddenly moved. Lin Yu''s body retreated with an explosion and he shouted, "Block him."


    With a whisper, Lin Yu physically moved into the distance, and he was fine. In the other direction, Liu Shi''s eyes were round and surprised. His shaky hands covered his throat, where the Halberd of Time and Space had pierced into it. Blood flowed out into the sea.


    At this moment, Liu Shi had endless sadness in his heart. The great ups and downs of life, he had experienced them all during this time. Why was fate so cruel to him? He should have cultivated in the holy land, and his future was boundless. However, he survived the Jiuying only to have his throat pierced by the Halberd.


    Liu Shi looked at the profile of that handsome face and realized that Ye Futian did not even look at him. In the endless sadness, Liu Shi slowly closed his eyes.


    Proud genius? He did even warrant a look from the person who had killed him, so what could be sadder than this!?

 901 Vanish Like Smoke

    Lin Yu''s face went pale as he watched Ye Futian pull out the Halberd of Time and Space. He seemed to feel the ridicule in Ye Futian''s gaze. Just one movement had made him take a frightened step back.


    At that moment, the cultivators of the three holy lands were all hesitant. They did not know what to do. Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the holy land of the Barren State had come from the Barren State, cracked the secret of the Ocean King, killed the sacred beast known as the Jiuying, and obtained the Halberd of Time and Space, which for so many years, no one in the Endless Sea could obtain.


    It seemed that this was not Ye Futian''s first time killing something sacred. It was rumored that Chess Saint had also died at his hands.


    "Take him and bring him to the Palace Lord to be dealt with." Lin Yu felt the strong threat in Ye Futian''s eyes, but with the situation as it was he could not allow him to get away.


    A cultivator of the lower Sage Level from the Ocean Palace flashed forward with a silver spear in his hands towards Ye Futian. The ocean water roared and turned into an ice dragon that breathed wildly at Ye Futian. The water froze and turned into a huge crystal, and the endless cold stretched towards Ye Futian. The ice dragon was incomparably fierce as it rushed towards him.


    Ye Futian''s hands trembled slightly. The Halberd of Time and Space had consumed a huge amount of space rule power, and his body was surrounded by brilliant light. He stepped forward and thrust the halberd forward and a ray of light pierced through the ice, smashing it into nothingness.


    Space was torn by the space rule power.


    Everyone saw the ice and the ice dragon be completely destroyed. The brilliant golden light pierced through everything as it crossed over the sea in a beautiful arc. A scream rang out as the Halberd of Time and Space cut into the Sage''s body. In the next instant, his form was completely torn apart, and then vanished into nothingness.


    Ye Futian floated in the sea with glorious radiance blooming from him. He was like a god, unstoppable. His eyes had turned golden, and when anyone met his gaze they felt a burst of trembling.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "We''ll do it together," said Lin Yu. He couldn''t kill all the Sage level cultivators with one attack.


    Ye Futian raised the Halberd of Time and Space, and light rained down, covering everyone.


    "Freeze space," Ye Futian said coldly. In that instant everyone felt that their bodies were restricted. The cultivators at the same level as Lin Yu were frozen in place, and could not move even a finger. Only people at the Sage level could still move, but they were still subject to certain restrictions. Their hearts all beat faster.


    He was so strong.


    Even with a divine implement, a mid level Magi could not reach this level of power. Even though the Halberd of Time and Space was number three on the Divine Implements Ranking, with Ye Futian''s level as low as it was, he should not be able to wield this kind of power.


    A rain of terrible space rule particles flowed out of time and space, giving everyone a strong sense of danger. "Be careful," said a Sage, and he retreated backwards. But he saw Ye Futian''s eyes suddenly turn gold and his body glow with a brilliant radiance. He was like an emperor bathing in divine light. His aura was still increasing, and the aura that permeated the Halberd of Time and Space was becoming even more terrible.


    "Let''s get out of here!" yelled a mid-level Sage. His rule power burst forth and he broke free of his bondage and turned to escape. He had a feeling that they could not compete with Ye Futian at this moment.


    "No need to run," said Ye Futian coldly. An even stronger rule power covered the sea around him. The ferocious space rules were raging, and even the mid-level Sages were restrained. He seemed to have been driven by the will of the emperor. The light blooming from the Halberd of Space and Time grew stronger, and covered everything around him.


    "Kill." Ye Futian''s body moved, and the halberd shot out towards the cultivators from the North Deep. In that instant, more brilliant light erupted, and the halberd swallowed up the endless flowing golden light. It was as dazzling as the sun, and all the water in that area dried up, evaporating into nothingness. The light descended upon the cultivators from the North Deep and pierced through them.


    In the next instant, their bodies exploded.


    All that was left was one mid-level Sage retreating. Ye Futian glanced at him and thrust the Halberd of Time and Space straight out, piercing directly through his body, tearing him to pieces.


    The cultivators from the North Deep had all been killed.


    The cultivators from Ocean King Palace and Zhisheng Cliffs were struck dumb with amazement by this scene. They felt that their breathing had stopped and their faces went pale.


    Ye Futian was now like an emperor that they must prostrate themselves before.


    They all wondered if the statue outside had been broken because of Ye Futian.


    "Lord Ye, the holy lands of the Endless Sea and the Holy Zhi Palace are all holy lands of the Nine States. If you slaughter us all here, what will the consequences be?" asked a Sage from Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "The Lost Ruins completely disappeared, along with all the cultivators who went there. The Halberd of Time and Space was lost, and Ye Futian was never there."


    The cultivator from the Zhitian Cliffs looked hopeless. They had just been saved from the Jiuying, but due to their greed for the Halberd of Time and Space, they had once again sent themselves into the abyss.


    "If we had known you were Lord Ye, we would not have done this," said someone.


    "No, you would have." Ye Futian looked at him coldly. "You would have as long as you could have gotten the Halberd of Time and Space. After you killed Ye Futian, the Holy Zhi Palace would have collapsed. You are all cultivators, what could the palace do to you?"


    The reason why they now said nothing was that he now had their lives in his hands.


    "Now, I have just made the same choice as you." When he finished speaking his godlike figure shot forward and brilliant light descended like a fire of destruction. Everything was annihilated. In an instant the cultivators from Zhisheng Cliffs had disappeared.


    With the will of the emperor bursting out of him, Ye Futian was too strong. His level right now was no less than that of a Sage.


    Ye Futian looked at Lin Yu and saw him trembling. Could he really overcome Ye Futian, the heroic figure of the Nine States?


    Right now, Ye Futian was like an emperor, like a god. In his eyes Lin Yu was probably nothing more than an ant. Ye Futian stepped towards Lin Yu. Under the space freezing rules, he could not even move a finger as he watched the god of death descend upon him step by step.


    Woosh. The Halberd of Time and Space rushed towards him, ending his life.


    Ye Futian did not stop. His figure continued to flash from place to place. All the Sages were killed by the halberd. None of them were a match for it.


    In the end, there were only three people left alive other than Ye Futian.


    Liu Yu, Liu Han, and Liu Zixuan.


    He had killed all the other members of the Liu Clan.


    The three of them stared at Ye Futian, their hearts in turmoil. Even the Liu Clan had not been able to escape death.


    Ye Futian said nothing. Perhaps cultivating really did make people colder. He could not help but remember Chess Saint''s words: "The Great Path has no place for sentiments, and cultivating is akin to plundering."


    Of course, Ye Futian did not regret it. The cultivators from the three holy lands had wanted to kill him and take the Halberd of Time and Space. He had just made the same choice that they had.


    He turned, and his two brilliant eyes swept across the sea, looking at the huge black dragon in the distance. Many large demons were behind the dragon, and they were looking at him coldly.


    "Have you seen enough?" Ye Futian''s voice reached across the sea.


    A huge wave broke out of the sea as the black dragon flew over. It started coldly at him with its two giant eyes. He was followed by a group of huge demons.


    "Wonderful," said the black dragon. What had just happened had been a great show.


    Ye Futian floated up until he was level with the dragon''s head.


    "I''ve been waiting for you," he said with a smile.


    A strange look came over the dragon. "Do you really think you can deal with me?"


    He was the tyrant of the sea.


    Ye Futian clenched the Halberd of Time and Space. The imperial fire burned within him. Suddenly, an even stronger light shot out of his body and into the sea. The terrible will of the emperor entered the halberd and resonated with it. An unparalleled brilliance burst forth. At this moment Ye Futian''s aura was that of someone at the Sage level.


    "Submit to me." Ye Futian gazed coldly at the black dragon. A terrible spiritual storm appeared in his majestic eyes, directly penetrating into the dragon''s mind.


    "Roar!" The dragon suddenly became frantic as a figure appeared in his mind. It was Ye Futian''s imperial figure, trying to plant its mark in his mind. He regretted coming forward. How could this human be so strong? He was a top Sage level demonic beast, the tyrant of the sea. All the sea monsters in the area submitted to him.


    "Submit to me." Ye Futian stepped onto the water, and the imperial light shone from him. The black dragon roared, trying to get rid of his feelings of unease.


    The Halberd of Time and Space swallowed up all the light, making the space rules around Ye Futian brilliant to the extreme. Finally, Ye Futian moved, and the Halberd of Time and Space smashed through the sea. The black dragon roared, and shot forward with his claws extended, wanting to tear Ye Futian''s small body to pieces.


    Slice! The Halberd of Time and Space pierced right through the dragon''s claw. Blood flowed as he roared in pain.


    Ye Futian pulled the halberd out. He stood in front of the dragon''s head. It seemed as though all the dragon had to do was bit down and he could destroy Ye Futian''s head. But he hesitated.


    "This is the third time. Give up your resistance. Submit or die," said Ye Futian. The black dragon roared, and the waves rose up and swept out across the sea. Ye Futian still stared at him coldly. Finally, the dragon lowered his head and gave up his resistance. He had been branded by Ye Futian''s spiritual will.


    "Summon all the sea monsters in the area," Ye Futian ordered. The black dragon roared again, and suddenly the sea began to stir as countless huge beasts burst forth.


    "Come here." Ye Futian looked at a few top Sage level demonic beasts. They all came forward and were dominated by Ye Futian one by one.


    He stepped onto the dragon''s back and looked at Liu Zixuan and the other two. "Get on." Liu Zixuan, Liu Yu and Liu Han looked at this imposing figure and their hearts were in turmoil. They stepped onto the dragon''s back.


    "Clear out this area of the sea, and have all the demonic beasts leave. Let''s go," Ye Futian ordered.


    Everything that had happened here would be buried in the depths of the sea!

 902 Returning to the Holy Zhi Palace

    16 hours later, two figures appeared above the Lost Ruins.


    One of them kept their hands behind their back and simply hovered in the sky above the waters, yet they emanated immense power and authority. Their eyes were incredibly terrifying as they looked at the ocean surface. It was as if they were able to see through the water and could gaze at the ocean floor.


    The strange phenomenon in the surrounding waters subsided and everything was calm again. The place was not any different from the other areas of the Endless Ocean. If there was anything different about the place, it was how there was not a single demonic beast to be found within the hundreds of miles radius within the area. Furthermore, not even common sea life, like fish and shrimp, were found anywhere nearby. The place was eerily clean. Other than all that, there was a broken palace lying at the bottom of the ocean. Besides the sound of a breeze blowing through the ocean surface, there was nothing else. The waters were frighteningly quiet.


    Of the two who stood far above the waters, one was a sage from the Ocean Palace while the other was someone who went back to deliver the report that day. He met the saint on the way back to the Ocean Palace and ended up bringing the saint here without returning to the Ocean Palace. There was no way he could have brought him there so quickly otherwise.


    Cultivators of the Ocean Palace found the Jade Scroll of Life of their mighty ones, who ventured broken one after another. They all thought it was something that happened due to crashing into ruins, as the same phenomenon happened the last time they did sol. However, one day later, the living ones, whom the broken jade scrolls belonged to, all perished in an instant, and they finally found something was wrong, which prompted them to report to their superiors, and that led to a saint personally venturing outside.


    "What happened?" That sage''s mind was shuddering violently. The ruins were gone and there were no signs of life found within hundreds of miles radius. The sage turned his eyes to the saint. The saint closed his eyes and then said, "We''ll wait."


    If everyone had indeed perished, he believed that saints from the other two holy lands would also be there soon enough. As speculated, saints from the North Deep and the Celestial Cliffs were there as well.


    Mighty ones from three holy lands had all perished. Not a single person who went on that expedition survived.


    "What do you all think about this?" the saint from the Ocean Palace asked.


    "That statue was broken, and we''ve all experienced the power of the statue first hand. Looking at the entire Nine States as they are now, this kind of phenomenon could have only happened with the top two saints on the Saint Ranking being present, but it was obvious that they didn''t show up." The saint from the Celestial Cliffs elaborated, "There is another possibility. The Jiuying within broke the seal and the statue collapsed from the pressure within."


    "According to those who ventured inside, the seal that was put in place by the Ocean King is extremely powerful. How could the Jiuying have been able to escape?" the saint from the North Deep asked.


    "Perhaps the Jiuying had made a breakthrough," the saint from the Ocean Palace answered. There was nothing but silence for a while after that, as if there were no other possibilities than that.


    "Even if there were other possibilities, we can''t find out just by standing here and speculating. If the ruins are gone and the Halberd of Time and Space was taken away, that means that the one who is responsible will appear sooner or later, be it the Jiuying or someone else," the saint from the Ocean Palace added. The others nodded in acknowledgment. They had no choice but to wait for the halberd to appear again. By then, they would know who w took the divine implement that ranked third throughout the Nine States.


    "We''ll take our leave then." The saint from the North Deep turned around and left. The saint from the Celestial Cliffs followed suit shortly after.


    "There were people from the Cliff State City''s Liu clan on this trip as well. Should we go ask?" the sage from the Ocean Palace asked.


    "No need for that. If not even the people from all three holy lands were able to survive this, how could people from a small clan like that make it through? They would go to the Ocean Palace themselves," the saint answered plainly and the sage nodded in agreement.


    The people from the Liu clan had actually paid a visit to the Ocean Palace. The clan leader informed them that three young geniuses of the clan actually survived, knowing that all others on the trip had perished, hoping the Ocean Palace would continue to look into the matter in order to save Liu Zixuan. After all, Liu Zixuan was the hope of their clan.


    The saint asked the clan leader to keep their hopes low after hearing the news. Of the three who survived, two were beautiful young women and the other was the little brother of the most beautiful woman in the clan. It affirmed the saint''s speculation about the Jiuying breaking its seal. The evil beast, Jiuying, probably took a liking to beautiful women and wanted to vent all its evil fire from being imprisoned all those years. The two beautiful women were probably beyond saving. But then again, the saint from the Ocean Palace would not have bothered about it much.


    The clan leader returned in a dejected manner. As for the common sage, who had appeared in the Liu clan, no one would have paid any attention to him. Not even the clan leader would have known about Ye Huang''s existence.


    ��


    The Endless Ocean was vast and seemingly endless, per its namesake. There were countless island cities and many more uninhabited islands. At that moment, a white-robed figure was seen training on a huge rock at the side of an uninhabited island. The winds blew and the waves crashed. He was seen holding a halberd and launched one attack after another, with every strike harboring terrifying might. A boom after another was heard, and the surrounding rocks blew up one after another.


    Three figures stood not far behind the one who was training and they looked at him train. The three were none other than Liu Zixuan and the other two from the Liu clan. The white-robed figure was Ye Futian.


    A boundlessly huge black dragon was seen coming their way from far above the ocean. There were many other monsters besides the black dragon, and they were all at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane.


    Ye Futian had spent the past three months at the Endless Ocean. He spent his time taming beasts when he was not training. He no longer even needed to do so himself. He simply had to tell the black dragon and the other monsters to go hunt for top-notch demonic beasts in the surrounding waters, which were then brought to him to be put under his control. He was a beastmaster, and all beasts who had been branded with a spiritual branding could not rebel; they had no choice but to follow his orders.


    The reason why he did so was to prepare himself further for the Sacred War. While the sages of the Holy Zhi Palace were no longer inferior to the sages of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, they nonetheless lacked a decisive edge. They were more or less equal in terms of might. However, if they had an army of powerful demonic beasts lying in wait that could be deployed at any moment, it would turn the tables in their favor.


    The very reason why he dared to brandish the Halberd of Time and Space and train in the open was that the surrounding areas were filled with his beast informants, be it in the sky or on the ground.


    At that moment, Ye Futian came to subdue yet another monster. He patted the black dragon''s head and said, "Good work. Are there any top-class demonic beasts in any other areas of the Endless Ocean? I''m thinking of getting out there myself."


    "The Endless Ocean is too vast. Not even I get to know everything," the black dragon answered while shaking its head. It had been at the area of the Lost Ruins all the while before.


    "Well then." Ye Futian nodded and continued, "How about we take a spin somewhere else then?" However, a message from the Black Wind Condor popped up in Ye Futian''s mind, which made him frown.


    The Holy Zhi Palace caught wind of a piece of news, saying that Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain had finished his pilgrimage and returned to Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, the ones from the Barren State had yet to return.


    Ye Futian looked up at the blue sky and thought he needed to head home earlier than expected, as he was rather concerned about the news. He turned around and came before Liu Zixuan and the others.


    "Brother Ye," Liu Yu called. While Ye Futian had killed someone from the Liu clan, it had been someone from the clan who had been acting against her, per Liu Shi''s orders. As such, Liu Yu had little thoughts about what Ye Futian did and harbored no resentment against him.


    "I''m going home." Ye Futian then said to all three of them, "But the three of you can''t head back to Cliff State City just yet."


    "I understand." Liu Yu nodded.


    Liu Zixuan''s eyes were fixed on Ye Futian and her expression looked rather complicated. The legendary figure was more exceptional than she had anticipated. However, those who were killed by Ye Futian were still the people of the clan.


    "You''ve got two choices here: one, you stay in the Endless Ocean and continue training, but you need to stay further away from Cliff State City, and I''ll have the demonic beasts keep a close eye on you." Ye Futian then looked at Liu Zixuan and the others, saying, "Two, you all train in the Holy Zhi Palace, but you won''t be able to head out for the time being."


    The Holy Zhi Palace was still at war with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and he did not want to jeopardize his relations with the three holy lands of the Ocean State. It would endanger the Holy Zhi Palace''s position.


    If Liu Zixuan and the others were to return to Cliff State City, all parties involved, be it the Liu clan or the three holy lands, would definitely look into the matter. Liu Zixuan and the others would have had to talk even if they did not want to. It was something that Ye Futian knew for sure that the three holy lands would pull. But if Liu Zixuan and the others were to simply go missing, even if they were not dead, no one would pay any attention to Ye Huang, his alter ego.


    "To the Holy Zhi Palace then." Liu Yu did not hesitate. The Holy Zhi Palace was a holy land after all.


    "Sis." Liu Han turned to look at Liu Zixuan.


    Liu Zixuan turned to look at Ye Futian with complicated eyes. She was struggling inside. If Ye Futian had not killed someone from her family, he would have been someone near perfection, and being able to watch him grow as she trained, would have been a dream come true. She eventually came to a decision and her eyes looked determined as she said, "I''m going to the Holy Zhi Palace with you."


    Ye Futian looked at Liu Zixuan and said, "You should know very well that if the Liu clan or Lin Yu were to give the order, those people would have had no qualms about killing me to preserve their clan''s interests. Them taking Liu Yu back then was a good enough proof, as such, there is no need for you to hate me."


    "I don''t hate you." Liu Zixuan replied in a gentle voice, "It''s just that, I don''t feel good inside."


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded and said, "Let''s go then."


    They then turned around and walked towards the sea. They stepped onto the black dragon, who then took to the skies, and all of the monsters around them headed in the same direction. It was a magnificent sight to behold on the water.


    ��


    Many felt restless for quite a while back in the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. They found out later from their scouts that Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain was not the only one who returned; Lin Shubai, Tong He, and the others of the Nine State College returned as well. Mighty ones of other holy lands had returned to their respective holy lands one after another.


    The whereabouts of the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace, who left with Xia Qingyuan, however, remained unknown. The elders of those who left, Huang Xi, Xu Shang, and the others, were still back in the Holy Zhi Palace. They were all worried sick. Relationships aside, their descendants were the most powerful and talented bunch from the Holy Zhi Palace, other than Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. They were the future of the place.


    While Huang Xi and You Chi were still holding on with the Sacred War, the future remained with those who had left. Furthermore, Ye Futian had been training outside all that while, and even Qin Zhuang was ordered to return first by Ye Futian himself. Without the backbone of the Holy Zhi Palace around, everyone grew restless easily.


    A bird-type demonic beast zipped past above the Holy Zhi Palace at the moment. The Holy Zhi Palace turned rowdy all of a sudden. Their Palace Lord had returned. One figure after another took to the air, and many others walked out, all of them were heading towards the direction where Ye Futian made his appearance.


    Ye Futian landed in the Holy Sage Pavilion. You Chi, Huang Xi, Yun Shang, the Sword Demon, and the others came up and cupped their hands at Ye Futian. "Palace Lord." They found that Ye Futian looked even more refined. The time he had spent training outside had definitely yielded considerable results. Ye Futian had also brought several people back, but no one paid any attention to them.


    "How many from the holy lands have returned?" Ye Futian asked. While he got to know a thing or two from his bird friend, he still saw the need to ask for further details.


    "There was news just a while ago that almost all members of the holy lands have returned to their respective holy lands," Qin Zhuang answered.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and said, "My big brother and Jieyu are on this trip out there after all. If the others were able to return safe and sound, there is no way big brother and the others would be in trouble. Something must be holding them up. There is no need to worry for the time being. We''ll await further news."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "Will do." Everyone nodded, but they all understood that Ye Futian was probably more worried than they were.


    "Futian." Douzhan came to his side at that moment.


    "Teacher," Ye Futian called.


    "Is there anything you need of me?" Douzhan asked.


    "Please make a trip to the War State and bring Yu Sheng home," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng had been training for more than three years outside.


    "Alright." Douzhan nodded and said, "I''ll be off then." He then turned around and walked right after that!

 903 Sky Stairwell and Decree of Ascension

    The return of the geniuses to their respective holy lands kicked up quite a ruckus throughout the Nine States.


    The news of what happened in the Xia clan back then made it public knowledge that the Supervising Inspector of the Nine States had brought the geniuses out for pilgrimages. Furthermore, it was said that they were able to earn eligibility for training in Upper Worlds. While many were puzzled by what that actually meant, it was said throughout the Nine States that it had been a privilege reserved only for saints. As such, the return of the geniuses naturally attracted the attention of the masses.


    On the contrary, no one cared about the news regarding Ye Futian''s return to the Holy Zhi Palace, as no one knew what he had been up to for the past several years, and there was no way that they knew that a great incident that shook all three holy lands of the Ocean State had taken place there. After all, the Endless Ocean had been the place with the least contact with other states, not taking into account the Barren State of old. Right now, the attention that the Barren State had attracted far exceeded that of the Endless Ocean. The Endless Ocean was impossibly huge and it was a huge body of water after all.


    Douzhan took Yu Sheng, who was training in the Vajra Region, home, several days after Ye Futian returned to the Holy Zhi Palace. There were quite a number of people gathering at the Holy Sage Pavilion at that moment. Yu Sheng was the most renowned figure after Ye Futian in the Holy Zhi Palace. Everyone knew that the one who was said to have grown up with Ye Futian would one day become the most powerful figure, second only to Ye Futian, throughout the Barren State. He had been like a devil back in the Nine State Forum. Even the rumored sword spirit, Yaya, of the Tombkeeper Village, lost to him.


    At that moment, Ye Futian and many others in the Holy Zhi Palace were gauging Yu Sheng from head to toe. He seemed to have changed little over the years. His stout frame continued to exude a faint pressure to those around him. He was still the guy who clearly oozed with brimming power.


    "How was training in the Vajra Region?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "Great, the Vajra Region Lord instructed me personally," Yu Sheng answered. Ye Futian nodded with a smile. It was the Vajra Region Lord himself who extended a personal invitation to Yu Sheng, asking him to train in the Vajra Region. It was obvious that the lord saw something in Yu Sheng.


    "What about the students of the Vajra Region then? Do they not envy you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Why would they? They were all so reluctant to see me off and many of them actually came to send me off," Yu Sheng shook his head and answered.


    "..." Ye Futian''s expression looked rather peculiar and asked, "You sure they were reluctant?"


    "Sure seems so." Yu Sheng nodded. "The people who train in Buddhism look real sincere."


    "They sure were sincere, alright. There were actually students who were saying their goodbyes in tears when I was bringing Yu Sheng home," Douzhan added with a sheepish smile. Ye Futian imagined the scene and struggled to keep himself from laughing and then asked, "Any progress with your level?"


    "Currently at Magi level, will be reaching middle-level soon." Yu Sheng then asked, "Care to see for yourself?"


    "No need for that. I''m almost an upper-level myself. No way you can beat me," Ye Futian answered rather nonchalantly.


    Everyone laughed while Yu Sheng shot a despised look at him.


    "Futian," Douzhan called and Ye Futian turned his eyes to Douzhan. "Teacher, are the students who went to study at the Vajra back too?"


    "Yeah." Douzhan nodded and added, "I''ve asked them about that as well."


    "Any news then?" Ye Futian''s chest tightened somewhat. The others rescinded their mood for jokes as they turned to look at Douzhan.


    "According to the returning students of the Vajra Region, Xia Qingyuan had brought them to many places to train for the past several years. Furthermore, there were not only people of the Nine States around. There were also some supremely talented people from the Upper Worlds, and they were more numerous than those from the Nine States," Douzhan elaborated.


    Ye Futian''s expression looked somber. The Nine States were all of Emperor Xia''s Orthodoxy. But Emperor Xia seemed to have control over the Upper Worlds as well instead of just the Nine States alone. The Nine States simply served as the foundation of the Lower Worlds. It was also an enigma as to why Xia Qingyuan brought so many mighty ones for training.


    "According to the people of the Vajra Region, our people seemed to have offended someone during the process and there were scuffles. They should be in the Upper Worlds right now." Douzhan continued, "As for specific news, even the Vajra Region ones know little. They suggested for me to go ask about the Xia clan, as they would probably know more."


    Ye Futian''s frown tightened listening to Douzhan''s words. He knew that those from the Holy Zhi Palace who went out would have been very united. If one were to run into any trouble, the others would have helped settle it. That was probably the reason why none of their people had returned. As for specific details regarding what took place, there was no way he could have known anything from where he was.


    "But then again, if the ones from the Vajra Region did not say much about specifics, then there shouldn''t be any huge problems. So, the news wasn''t all that bad and we don''t have to worry too much," Douzhan added. The news at least proved that those from the Holy Zhi Palace were safe.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. But then again, how could we not worry?


    "I''ll venture outside with the Village Chief a little," Douzhan continued. Saints were allowed free passage to the Upper Worlds after all.


    "No, get to the Xia clan and ask about specifics. We''ll decide from there," Ye Futian said.


    "I''ve something to report, Palace Lord." Someone came at that moment. Ye Futian turned around at them and asked, "What is it?"


    "News from the Summer State said that those who passed the training were known as the Heavenly Chosen Ones, and the list of those who made it was announced." The messenger bowed and added, "The list was, of course, about those who passed the training."


    "Heavenly Chosen Ones." Ye Futian''s eyes turned sharp. Heavenly Chosen Ones, eh? So Xia Qingyuan is saying that the Upper Worlds are heaven then?


    "Any specifics?" Ye Futian asked.


    "There were many from holy lands who made it, and the Holy Zhi Palace was the only holy land without any qualifying candidate," the messenger continued, but they sounded somewhat unnatural.


    All the eyes around were on the messenger in an instant.


    No one from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State made the cut?


    Among those who ventured outside, there was Ye Futian''s Third Brother, Jieyu, Huang Jiuge, and the others. All of them were exceptionally talented people.


    None of them made it?


    The matter apparently seemed very off.


    Did the people of the Holy Zhi Palace happen to offend Xia Qingyuan then?


    "There is another piece of news," the messenger continued.


    "Carry on," Ye Futian said.


    "News from the Eastern State said that Liu Zong was on the list of the Heavenly Chosen Ones. Xihua Sacred Mountain made the announcement in the Eastern State. Furthermore, there is news about a marriage alliance about to take place between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The two who are scheduled to be married are Liu Zong and Zhou Ziyi of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty," the messenger continued.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    The eyes of everyone turned sharp in mere moments.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is at war with the Holy Zhi Palace and Xihua Sacred Mountain is planning a wedding with the Sacred Dynasty? What is the meaning of this?


    Yang Xiao''s expression turned sharp instantly and he said, "Xihua Sacred Mountain has been staying behind the scenes with everything. Their shadows were actually in just about everything. With Liu Zong being made a Heavenly Chosen One and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty suffering heavy casualties, it seems that it is the Sacred Dynasty benefitting from this marriage alliance at first glance, but Xihua Sacred Mountain probably has their own ideas about things."


    Ye Futian nodded. While he did not like Liu Zong, he at least acknowledged that Zhou Ziyi was not a good fit for him. Back in the Chess Saint Villa, Liu Zong seemed to have been plotting something like that. He had great ambitions, wanting to unify the Eastern State and all.


    "Futian, I will go to the Upper Worlds with the Village Chief and see what is actually happening," Douzhan said.


    Ye Futian shook his head. "No, stay here in the palace, teacher. I''ll have the Village Chief take me up there instead."


    "You going to the Upper Worlds?" Douzhan looked at Ye Futian and continued, "According to what I know, non-saints are not able to have free passage in the Upper Worlds, unless..."


    "The Sky Stairwell and the Decree of Ascension," Ye Futian said. The eyes of Douzhan and the others flashed. It was apparent that Ye Futian had deliberately looked into how to get to the Upper Worlds.


    Ye Futian had indeed done his homework. With Jieyu and his brothers and sisters off on their pilgrimages, it was only natural that he felt the need to learn more. As such, he went to learn more about the Upper Worlds when he was training in the Nine State College.


    "Getting up the Sky Stairwell exists only in the legends of the Nine States. It was said that there had been people who tried it before. You might be the most exceptional figure there is, but if you fail to make it, the price might be death. The difficulty of obtaining the Decree of Ascension through the Sky Stairwell is said to be far higher than becoming a saint. It has been almost forgotten throughout the Nine States and you don''t see anything about it other than in old texts." Many looked severely worried as Sage Wanxiang elaborated. It seemed that core figures of the Holy Zhi Palace knew quite a lot.


    "The world is a big place and there is no saying that there are places you can''t go," Ye Futian said casually.


    The Heavenly Chosen Ones are allowed to train in the Upper Worlds yet none of the students of the Holy Zhi Palace made it. If that is the case, we''ll just do it the hard way, he thought.


    "Count me in," Yu Sheng said as well.


    Ye Futian took a look at him and did not refuse. He nodded and said, "Alright."


    "Fine then. When shall we depart?" Douzhan asked. The Village Chief''s speed greatly surpassed his, making him a better choice to take Ye Futian.


    "Right now. We''ll make a trip to the Xia clan before that," Ye Futian said.


    A figure was seen walking from afar as soon as he finished. Ye Futian turned around and saw the Village Chief, who said, "If that''s the case, let''s go then." Sword will was invoked as soon as he finished and a huge sword appeared beneath his feet.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng stepped onto it and looked at everyone else. Ye Futian then said, "I''ll be off then."


    "Be careful." Everyone looked at him.


    He really thinks he can get to the Upper Worlds just like that? Well, only Ye Futian would be capable of something like that, it seems.

 904 The Flames of Fury Rise to the Sky

    In the Summer State, a destructive blade of light streaked across the sky and landed outside the Xia clan.


    A figure appeared in thin air and saw the Village Chief, Ye Futian, and Ye Sheng. The three of them had been to the Summer State before. The other naturally recognized them.


    "What have you come for, Lord Ye?" the one who had come said with a bow.


    "We have come to see Saint Xia." Ye Futian bowed slightly.


    The person from the Xia clan looked Ye Futian over and said, "Please come in, Lord Ye. I''ve sent someone to announce your arrival. I can''t be sure if Saint Xia will see you though."


    "Alright, thank you." Ye Futian nodded and once again followed the other into the Xia clan.


    Before long, there was word that Saint Xia had agreed to see Ye Futian, whereupon Ye Futian was brought to wait outside the hall.


    "Lord Ye." At this time, many people were walking out of the hall, all of them youths of the Xia clan. Moreover, all of them were those who had gone to undergo trials and returned.


    "Have you come to undergo a trial?" a youth asked Ye Futian.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "Have you had any news of my people from the Barren State?"


    The youth smiled faintly. "At first, the Master asked you to undergo a trial and you refused. Now you''ve come to ask for one."


    Ye Futian furrowed his brow but did not say anything. After all, he had come to ask for a favor.


    "It''s already been three years since the banquet. How has your cultivation in the palace been going?" the youth asked.


    Ye Futian looked at him and said, "I am a mid-level magi."


    "Excellent, I am also on this plane. For the past three years, I have been quite conscientious about cultivating. Could you give me a tip or two?" asked the youth with a smile. Over these past three years of trials, he had made a lot of progress, gone to many places: ruins, ancient temples, training fields, and even places of slaughter. Although he had not obtained the qualifications to be chosen by the heavens, he still felt that of those on the same plane as him, other than those few had undergone the trials, there were very few who were a match for him.


    Ye Futian was, without a doubt, the best touchstone in the Nine States.


    "I did not come to the Xia clan to teach." Ye Futian shook his head.


    "If you defeat me, I will tell you some things that I know," the youth said with a smile.


    Ye Futian suddenly turned and looked at him, his hair flowing in the wind. "Are you ready?" he asked suddenly.


    Xia Yan''s face froze, and then he smiled. He stepped forward and a mighty aura swept out from him. The powerful aura covered a vast area. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "I''m ready."


    The people around Xia Yan parted, and they looked at the two of them with great interest. They wanted to see who was stronger between Xia Yan and Ye Futian.


    Woosh. The wind blew past. Ye Futian stepped out, and an invisible airflow covered his body. At the same time, Xia Yan''s aura became stronger and stronger. It seemed like there was a dragon-shaped airflow around his body. It turned into a billowing force and swept out towards Ye Futian. But as Ye Futian stepped forward, it seemed that he was not hindered at all. He continued forward, and then suddenly accelerated like a bolt of lightning.


    "Retreat." Xia Yan thrust his hand into the air and suddenly, a terrible airflow wildly rushed towards Ye Futian like a real dragon.


    But golden radiance shone on Ye Futian''s body. As his long hair flowed in the wind, his body was not hindered in any way. He crossed through all the airflow and continued forward as if there was no power in the world that could stop him.


    Xia Yan saw him coming closer and closer and his face suddenly changed. He saw Ye Futian raise his hand and thrust it through the air towards him. The air seemed to split and his terrible Qi power was directly split. The fist got closer and closer until it finally hit him. Xia Yan only felt an astonishing tearing force descend upon his body as if Ye Futian could have torn him apart if he wanted to.


    Boom. A loud sound rang out and Xia Yan went flying. He fell to the ground and spat up blood. His face was pale. This was the result of Ye Futian''s mercy. It could have been much worse.


    "Thank you for letting me win," said Ye Futian. Xia Yan stood up. His face was pale and his previous pride and self-confidence had completely disappeared.


    How could this be? After more than three years of trials, he had progressed so much. He had even learned of the powers of upper-level cultivators from outside the Nine States. Although he was not a top player, he was still very good.


    He had thought that once he returned to the Nine States, he would have few rivals on the same Plane as him.


    Today, he had happened to run into Ye Futian and so he wanted to test his past three years of cultivation.


    However, there had only been one blow.


    But the blow had been too much for him.


    "Xia Yan." A voice came out from the hall. A figure walked out. It was Saint Xia.


    "A talent like Lord Ye is rare in the Nine States. You have cultivated for three years, but do you think that he did nothing?" Saint Xia said indifferently, and there was a bit of disapproval in his tone.


    Xia Yan bowed his head and said, "I was too arrogant."


    "You can cultivate your body and your mind, but if you don''t change your state of mind, you will never be a match for Lord Ye. Step back," Saint Xia said. Xia Yan nodded and stepped to the side.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    Saint Xia looked at Ye Futian. Beside him were several cultivators who had also returned.


    "I have come to see you." Ye Futian bowed.


    "After three years it seems that your strength is even more extraordinary. What you just did was the spatial rule power Space-tearing, right?" Saint Xia asked. He had naturally sensed the previous battle. The punch that Ye Futian had just thrown contained tearing power. If not for him showing mercy, Xia Yan would have died after one blow and would have had no place to be buried.


    "I learned it from the spatial rule power not long ago." Ye Futian nodded slightly.


    "No wonder you didn''t go to the trials. It was probably your absolute self-confidence. Even though you didn''t go, you''ve still advanced so much," Saint Xia praised him. Ye Futian had been good at Space-freezing Rule Power, and now he understood Space-tearing. This was reaching harmony between the different Spatial Rule Powers.


    "I didn''t go to the trials, but I didn''t waste the last three years. I spent a period of time cultivating in Nine State College and made some progress," said Ye Futian.


    "Mm." Saint Xia nodded slightly. "Have you come because the disciples of the Barren State have not returned?"


    "And to ask you to notify me." Ye Futian bowed slightly. Although he wanted to go to the Upper Worlds, he also wanted to know what had happened. Otherwise, what would he do after he went there? Where would he go?


    "Xia Nan, tell Lord Ye," Saint Xia said to a youth next to him.


    Xia Nan was one of the chosen, having qualified to cultivate in the Upper Worlds.


    Xia Nan''s looks and bearing were extraordinary. His gaze fell upon Ye Futian and he said, "When the people of the Nine States went with the Supervising Inspector to the trials, they went to many places, even places far from the Nine States. In these trials, the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State performed very well. Moreover, they worked as a team and were highly regarded. However, they were too persistent and tenacious. In the process of exploring some ruins, the disciples from the Holy Zhi Palace and some upper-level forces had a conflict. Something was stolen by Ye Wuchen, who had highly cultivated his Life Spirit in the Holy Zhi Palace. However, the others were also extremely proud and powerful. They would not let the matter drop, and so there was a fierce struggle."


    Ye Futian did not interrupt. He listened quietly, but he could not help but be a little nervous.


    "I''m not sure what happened in the end. I only heard a general outline. It seems that Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit was removed," said Xia Nan.


    Rumble... Ye Futian''s head trembled fiercely. A violent aura filled his body which he could not control in any way, and it burst forth. With his level, it should not have been like this, but at this moment he could not control it. A terrible airflow swept out from his entire body.


    It was not only him. Next to him, a burst of wild air also burst out from Yu Sheng. It seemed like the flames of fury were burning.


    His Life Spirit had been removed?


    The Life Spirit of a cultivator was extremely important. Ye Futian knew this especially well. Wuchen had cultivated his Spirit Elemental System and had connected his LIfe Spirit to his spiritual energy through a silver sword. If his Life Spirit was removed, what would the consequences be?


    Saint Xia looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng strangely. Why had they reacted so strongly? This was not like these two proud figures of the Nine States.


    Xia Nan was also a bit taken aback. These people from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State were really united.


    In the process of undergoing trials, he had asked for advice. Ye Wuchen of the Barren State did not seem to have a strong presence among the cultivators of the Barren State. He was always very low-key and spoke very little. But he had never thought that upon hearing that something had happened to him, Ye Futian would have such a strong reaction. And it wasn''t just him; Yu Sheng was the same.


    "Where are they now?" Ye Futian''s voice trembled a little bit. He blamed himself somewhat. He should have accompanied them on their trials from the start. Of course, it was more from anger. The treasure had been found by Wuchen and refined into his Life Spirit, so it should have been his.


    But his Life Spirit had been removed!


    When he thought of this, he felt uncontrollable anger.


    "As for the performance of the people from the Holy Zhi Palace, there will be those who will be chosen and qualify to enter the Upper Worlds. But they probably gave up on that and asked the Supervising Inspector to give them some other opportunity. It probably had to do with Ye Wuchen," said Saint Xia. "Later we came back, and the people from the Holy Zhi Palace are probably in the Upper Worlds."


    "Specifically, who were the others?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Lord Ye, even though those of the Saint Plane can go to the Upper Worlds, I must remind you that the others'' must be very strong. At the very least they are no weaker than the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty," said Saint Xia. He meant to remind Ye Futian that if the two Saints from the palace went to the Upper Worlds and there was a conflict, it would not be beneficial to them.


    "Please tell me," Ye Futian asked.


    "If your Saints want to, they can go to Jiutian Palace to see," said Xia Nan.


    "Thank you." Ye Futian bowed slightly, then looked at Saint Xia and said, "Forgive me for bothering you."


    "No problem," said Saint Xia indifferently. Although he had been a bit dissatisfied with Ye Futian at his banquet, it was not anything too major. It was just that Ye Futian was a little too proud. The disciples of the palace were the same. It seemed that they had come to grief in the process of undergoing the trials.


    After Ye Futian left, Saint Xia asked Xia Nan, "Do you think Ye Futian will let his Saints go?" Xia Nan looked up at Saint Xia and saw him smile and say, "Did you not see that there were only three of them this time? A Saint, plus him and Yu Sheng."


    "What do you mean?" A strange look came over Xia Nan''s face. That shouldn''t have been possible.


    "The people of the Nine States have gradually forgotten that there is a road to the Upper Worlds, the Path that Ascends to Heaven," whispered Saint Xia as he looked in the direction that Ye Futian had disappeared. "But how long has it been since anyone has dared to try that road? It is rumored that the Path that Ascends to Heaven is even more difficult than the Battle of Proving Holiness. Although this child appears to be humble, he is prouder than anyone else. He might think that there is no one like him in the Nine States. That was clear from what he said at the Nine States Platform. From his past style, it seems that there is nothing he won''t dare to try."

 905 Sky Stairwell

    If you traveled all the way to the western part of the Nine States and passed through the Summer State, you would come to the border of the Nine States.


    Here laid a city of wonders.


    This city was not large, and it did not have many cultivators, but visitors from the Nine States would often come to see the marvelous city.


    Now, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and the Village Chief had come.


    Before them lay a white-jade staircase that led up into the sky. If they looked up, they could faintly see that this staircase led through the clouds and reached up into the vaults of heaven. It was rumored that this was the road to the Upper Worlds, the Path that Ascended to Heaven.


    This white-jade staircase that stretched into the sky was almost 60,000 meters high. If you wanted to get to the sky, it could not be ignored.


    Countless people had tried to fly up. They flew up into the sky and then went in the direction of the staircase, but they could not get close to it. It was rumored that the Upper Realms had a marvelous power that made it so that unless you had set foot upon the Saint Plane and mastered the rule power of the Great Path, you could not break through the barrier that separated the sky from the Upper Worlds. Otherwise, if you wanted to go to the Upper Worlds, there was only this Path that Ascended to Heaven.


    There were many legends in the Nine States. It was said that there was an abode of immortals up there, that it was the abode of Emperor Xia, and that there was a peerless Divine Chamber. The rumors that had circulated through the Nine States were half true and half false. Only those from the holy lands and the top powers were faintly aware of the truth.


    "The Sky Stairwell, the path to the Decree of Ascension." Ye Futian looked at the beautifully made staircase and sighed inwardly. The powers of the world were really marvelous. Those who sought to rebel against heaven had no way to capture the creations of heaven and earth.


    Those who went up this 60,000-meter staircase could obtain a Decree of Ascension and gain access to the Upper Worlds for cultivation, and moreover, could travel freely between the Upper and Lower Worlds. However, some of the rumors said that the success rate for the Sky Stairwell was even lower than that of the Battle for Proving Holiness, so much so that the people of the Nine States had gradually forgotten that this method for entering the Upper Worlds existed.


    "Holy Elder, wait for us in the Upper Worlds," Ye Futian said to the Village Chief.


    The Village Chief nodded. "Be careful." After he said this, he shot up into the sky like a sword of light, passing through the clouds in the blink of an eye and disappearing without a trace.


    "Let''s go, Yu Sheng," said Ye Futian, and the two of them walked to the staircase.


    There were many people below the stairs looking at the two of them. Two more guys wanted to try the stairway, but they were wasting their time. They might not even be qualified to deal with dangers they might meet. They would be shocked by what they would run into up there.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng ignored them. They began to walk up extremely quickly.


    Soon, if you looked up into the sky, you could see that the two of them had pierced through the clouds and were gradually disappearing. They had already made it to high up in the sky.


    Clouds and mist drifted across the stairway, revealing its magical atmosphere. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng felt an invisible pressure pressing down on them, but they looked like they didn''t care. The two of them were shooting up into the sky at an incredible speed.


    Rumble. Suddenly, an incredibly strong gravitational force pressed on them, making it feel like they were bearing ten thousand pounds of pressure on their bodies. It was Gravity Rule Power, and it stifled them. They slowed down a bit, but they did not stop. They continued to climb.


    The pressure grew stronger and stronger. A terrible airflow flowed down the staircase. It hit them like a ferocious wave, making their clothes flutter, and the sound of it impacting their bodies was frightful.


    At the end of the staircase was a majestic palace. If one stood in the air above the palace they could overlook the entire staircase. The entire palace formed a pitch arc, and a soaring celestial gate stood in front of it.


    In front of the palace and on the promenade on top of it, there were many cultivators standing guard. They were all wearing armor of the same color and looked very grave. At that time, there were two figures at the very top of the palace who were eating and drinking, appearing at ease.


    "Don''t worry too much, Qingyun. Although guarding the Sky Stairwell is a leisurely job, you can use the opportunity to train your temperament. Isn''t this period of peaceful cultivation great? You only have a year, and I have to guard here for three." At that moment a middle-aged man was smiling as he said this, and clinking glasses with the youth sitting before him.


    "Please don''t try to comfort me, Commander. How can I train my temperament here? There''s nothing here but boredom." Li Qingyun smiled bitterly and shook his head as he took a sip of wine.


    "Haha, it is because of the boredom that you are able to train your temperament," the middle-aged commander laughed. Just as he spoke, a sword of light flashed and he saw a figure standing outside the palace waiting quietly.


    "Hmm?" A strange look came over the middle-aged commander''s face. It was a cultivator of the Saint Plane. He didn''t know from which power of the Nine States he had come.


    "There have been very few cultivators from the Nine States who have come to the Upper Worlds these past few years," the middle-aged commander said. "But more than three years ago, Princess Qingyuan summoned them together for a trial. At that time, there were many people from the Nine States who qualified to come to the Upper Worlds, and even to cultivate with the Princess. Speaking of which, you come from a great household, Qingyun. You will probably have a chance to cultivate with the Princess, but you will have to grasp the opportunity when it comes."


    When Li Qingyun heard Xia Qingyuan''s name his manner became a bit more dignified. She was the unparalleled princess born of Emperor Xia and the foremost beauty of the realm whose beauty shocked the world. Emperor Xia said that her talent surpassed his own, and one day she may surpass his achievements. She was destined for greatness from birth. She was like a goddess. Who in the realm had not thought this?


    But he was afraid that it was nearly impossible to gain her attention. Even if one was exceedingly talented, she had so many heroic figures around her. Moreover, it seemed like she did not have any thoughts along those lines. Her whole heart was set on cultivation, and she even traveled wearing men''s clothing. And Emperor Xia doted on her.


    To become Xia Qingyuan''s lover would be glorious.


    He could only say that he had a chance.


    "Most of the heroes of the realm don''t understand what the Princess went down to the Lower World for. Although the Nine States occasionally produces some talents, how can they be compared with those of the Upper Worlds?" There was a sense of superiority in Li Qingyun''s voice. He came from a famous family, and his ancestors had followed Emperor Xia, and so he naturally looked down on the Nine States, the so-called land of orthodoxy.


    "Although this is the case, there are occasionally some shockingly brilliant talents. There is a Saint Ranking in the Lower World, and the top three on it are all outstanding figures. Moreover, there are some people who have great fame in the Upper Worlds. You probably have heard of them," said the middle-aged commander.


    "But in the end, they are as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns," said Li Qingyun. "There was a group of people from the Lower World who went to Jiutian Temple. I really don''t know if they lived or died. If the Princess gave them a fair chance they might have survived."


    "That''s true." The middle-aged commander nodded. "Let''s keep drinking."


    Far away, the Village Chief furrowed his eyebrows. Even here people knew about what had happened at Jiutian Temple. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    At that moment, there was a violent shaking from the stairway below them. The middle-aged commander''s eyes flashed, and he said, "There seems to be some movement on the stairway. Let''s go see."


    "Could it be that there was someone who couldn''t climb the stairway?" An interesting look came over Li Qingyun''s face. It seemed to be a bit disdainful. He picked up his wine glass and walked over to the edge of the palace. He looked up into the sky and saw the violent fluctuations in the airflow. A wild sound echoed faintly through the air.


    Their eyes suddenly became sharp. Their spiritual energy went down the stairway and they saw two figures walking up step by step.


    "It seems that no one has made it this far on the stairway in a long time," the middle-aged commander said softly. And moreover, this time, it was two people.


    "They probably didn''t know that it would have been safer to not come here." Li Qingyun lifted the wineglass and took a sip. Because he had been sent here to guard, he had had a bit of a bad attitude all along.


    And now, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were walking up the stairway. When they looked up they could see the end of the stairway. A magnificent palace stood there, and celestial soldiers wearing armor. Brilliant rays of sunlight shone down from above. Their steps were heavy, but they continued steadily on towards the top.


    "Who goes there?" A voice rolled out, full of billowing power, echoing endlessly in their ears.


    "Ye Futian, from the Barren State."


    "Yu Sheng, from the Barren State."


    Their voices pierced the air and swept up into the sky.


    "If you turn back now, we will not attack," another voice said from the direction of the palace.


    Thump. The response was the sound of footsteps.


    In the palace, the middle-aged commander said indifferently, "Magis, sound the drum matrices." As he was speaking, a cultivator of the Magi Plane suddenly walked to the war drums in front of the palace. An incomparably solemn invisible force swept out.


    Boom. The fierce sound of drums rang out. The cultivators beat the drums and, in a flash, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng felt their hearts tremble. An extremely powerful force pressed down on them from the sky. The war drums seemed to carry the Great Path Rules as the power struck them, making Ye Futian''s hair dance wildly and tearing his clothes.


    Ye Futian''s steps slowed, but he still continued forward. There was a loud bang and a violent force descended, penetrating everything like a death knell.


    "Do you think they can withstand a few drums?" asked Li Qingyuan calmly as he leisurely lifted his wine.


    "Their temperament is extraordinary, they can probably withstand the sound of five drums," said the middle-aged commander. The sound of the third drum swept out like a huge wave billowing into the sky. Each time a drum sounded, it was like facing the force of all of them overlapping, becoming more and more terrible.


    Cracking sounds came from Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s bodies, but they continued upward. The fourth and fifth drums sounded in turn, and each time, the power became more violent.


    A demonic light seemed to flow over Yu Sheng''s body with dark yet golden radiance.


    Boom. Another drum sounded, penetrating his body and piercing inside of him.


    "The sixth drum." A strange look came over the middle-aged commander''s face. "These two are very strong."


    "Anyone who dares climb the Sky Stairwell can''t be too weak. Let''s see if they can get through this next one," said Li Qingyun indifferently.


    The sounds of the sixth and seventh drums rushed out and attacked Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Their bodies were extremely strong, and their Spiritual Wills were equally as unshakeable.


    Boom. As the sound of the ninth drum swept down, the music overlapped like a mighty pressure overwhelming everything and rushing towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian relied on the power of his flesh to resolve the attack, whereas Yu Sheng directly absorbed it.


    Suddenly, a boundless golden glow shone out, and a halo blazed.


    "Roar!" Yu Sheng opened his mouth and a loud noise swept out. A huge golden lion appeared behind him, hundreds of meters tall. The world trembled at this roar, and the sound of the war drums seemed to break against it as he pressed upwards.


    Boom...boom...boom... The cultivators who were beating the war drums went pale. Their bodies shook and they spat up blood. The surfaces of the drums trembled without stopping.


    The drums echoed through the air, and the golden lion gradually dissipated. Yu Sheng glanced into the sky and continued forward like a demon.


    A strange look came over the faces of the middle-aged commander and Li Qingyun on the palace. They were naturally shocked. In the process of climbing the Sky Stairwell, they had actually launched a counterattack?

 906 I Come as I Wish

    The middle-aged leader smiled and asked, "Qingyun, these two from the Nine States fared pretty well, didn''t they?"


    Li Qingyun recovered from his shock and nodded lightly, replying, "They are indeed outstanding to be able to send the shock back from the rule power and destroy the war drum matrix. However, if they wish to obtain the Decree of Ascension to enter the Upper Worlds, it is still far from enough."


    "Let''s continue watching." The middle-aged commander smiled as he continued saying, "Perhaps the people from the Nine States will surprise us."


    As his voice landed, the wall of the palace suddenly let out a blinding golden light. The light was extremely brilliant and it flowed down the stairwell, heading towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    The two of them who were still a far distance from the palace raised their heads and looked towards the boundless glow. They had the illusion that every ray of light had transformed into shadows of Sage Plane cultivators and were rushing towards them.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could naturally feel that the shadows were at the Magi level. The Path that Ascends to Heaven had its own rules as well.


    Since they were at the Magi cultivation level, there were countless Magis rushing towards them. Coupled with the pressure of the stairwell, it was enough to overrun everything. They would not feel this much pressure even if they were facing an archmage.


    Ye Futian continued as though he did not feel anything, taking step after step. Each step he took caused the stairwell to shake. Previously, although the two of them had faced immense pressure on the way up, it did not affect their speed much. They were only forced to stop when the war drum matrix appeared.


    Thump. Ye Futian took another step and an invisible wave spread around his body. The rays of light that were rushing towards him were shattered and could not faze him.


    Yu Sheng looked like a half-Buddha, half-demon and huge sounds erupted from his body. He was experiencing more pressure than Ye Futian since his cultivation level was lower than Ye Futian''s


    Even so, Yu Sheng did not step back an inch. He moved forward step by step, allowing the rampaging force to strike his body.


    From the palace, they could see two figures walking through the army with steady steps and an exceptional aura.


    "Even in the Upper Worlds, these people would be prodigious. I am really curious what their identities in the Lower Worlds are. Would they be the geniuses of the Orthodoxy holy lands." The middle-aged commander commented.


    The pressure from the stairwell was multiplied with the matrix''s pressure. Although the two of them appeared composed, they were under immense pressure. However, they continued forward steadily and did not waver in the slightest. They were indeed extremely outstanding.


    "Commander." At that moment, figures flashed and appeared behind the middle-aged commander and Li Qingyun. The group of people all had impressive auras and they looked down and saw two figures walking up the Path that Ascends to Heaven.


    "We had thought that it was our error, but there are people on the Path that Ascends to Heaven indeed."


    "I thought that there would be nothing interesting this year. How unexpected, these people are from the Lower Worlds'' Nine States."


    Voices sounded from within the group. These people were all under Emperor Xia''s command and were tasked with guarding the Path that Ascends to Heaven. To those in Emperor Xia''s army, this was an insignificant task that would be rotated every once in a while, usually annually.


    "Yes, the two of them are Magis. Does anyone among you with the same cultivation level wish to test them?" The middle-aged commander smiled and asked.


    "Can they withstand the illusion attack?" "If we step it, we would be bullying them too much." Someone commented coolly.


    "From the looks of it, it should be fine. These two should be the most outstanding people from the Nine States. If you wish to, you can step in." The middle-aged commander replied, smiling.


    "Since that is so, I will send them back." A voice sounded out as a figure flashed across, moving towards the Path that Ascends to Heaven. Following that, there were people moving forward in succession. In the blink of an eye, nine Magis had stepped onto the Path that Ascends to Heaven, standing opposite Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "Gentlemen." At that moment, a young Magi lowered his gaze and looked towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, saying, "Will you two go back yourselves or will we have to force you to?"


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng raised their heads and looked at the nine people in the air. However, they ignored them and continued walking.


    "This is the Path that Ascends to Heaven, ascending it is a tribulation. You two have exceptional potential to be able to reach this far. Turn back, don''t hurt yourself." A middle-aged figure crossed his arms around his body and advised them.


    "The Path that Ascends to Heaven is a tribulation?" Ye Futian looked at the people in the air and stepped forward as he replied, allowing the rampaging force to rush onto his body.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "Where is the difficulty in this?" Ye Futian said coolly, taking another step upwards.


    A smirk appeared on the middle-aged man''s face as he replied, "As you wish, experience its difficulty for yourself."


    As he said that, his body moved forward like and he appeared in front of Ye Futian instantly, like a phantom.


    As his sword appeared, Sword Qi flooded the area as countless swords slashed towards Ye Futian.


    The Great Path''s swords could eradicate everything.


    Amidst the blades of light, the people in the air could not bear to look at Ye Futian. The Great Path sword had already slashed down and countless blades descended upon Ye Futian.


    However, at that moment, their expressions became astounded. It was as though the middle-aged man had stopped moving as he held the blade and pointed it towards Ye Futian''s head, but did not pierce forward.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the other party as the sword was unable to pierce forward. The middle-aged man''s expression was pale, as if he were the one withstanding the pressure of the Path that Ascends to Heaven, not Ye Futian.


    "Where is the difficulty?" Ye Futian asked again. He stretched his finger forward and flicked the sword lightly. He then waved his sleeve and the middle-aged swordsman was sent flying without any struggle.


    "This..." The crowd looked at Ye Futian and mumbled in bewilderment.


    "It''s spatial rule power." The middle-aged commander''s expression was sharp. At that moment, an extremely strong spatial rule power had appeared around Ye Futian, freezing the space around them, especially the region that was near his body. The rule power was so strong that it had caused the other party to be unable to even move.


    Thump. Ye Futian continued stepping up and said nonchalantly, "Get out of the way."


    There was an absolute pressure in his voice, causing even the middle-aged commander and Li Qingyun to shudder. His tone was like that of a superior being, with a commanding feeling.


    This Magi must have been someone who gave orders in the Lower Worlds and had a high position.


    However, no matter who he was, he still dared to be this arrogant in the Upper Worlds.


    Daring to make them get out of the way, how impudent.


    The eight experts on the stairway all looked down at the same time. They had been ignored by a person from the Lower Worlds.


    The rule power on their bodies erupted. The light from the mirror caused immense pressure to Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, but to them, it boosted their power.


    When the eight of them attacked, countless spears descended from the air.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng stepped in front of Ye Futian. He changed into his battle form and looked like a Buddha. Boundless rays of light burst forth from him and tens of thousands of arms appeared on his battle form, like a thousand-hand Buddha, blocking out the entire area, allowing the rule power to land on it. They caused the Buddha form to shake, but Yu Sheng appeared unfazed and a terrifying demonizing rule power flowed around his body, devouring the oncoming attacks.


    With Yu Sheng shielding him, Ye Futian casually continued forward. He did not step in, he also wanted to see how far Yu Sheng had come after the three years of cultivation.


    The eight experts'' attacks landed at the same time, but at that moment, the thousands of arms on the battle form moved. They flooded the area, releasing the force that they had devoured. It was as if the attacks it had suffered only made it stronger.


    A catastrophic attack erupted on the Path that Ascends to Heaven, causing the air to vibrate vigorously.


    "Beat the drums." Li Qingyun saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng walking forward as though nothing was happening and said coolly.


    These two people were treating them as though they did not exist. He could not have that.


    Figures flashed as they beat the war drums. In a split second, the sound of the drums resonated throughout the area and the pressure crushed down onto the Path that Ascends to Heaven again.


    "Form the matrix." Li Qingyun continued to say. Immediately, a huge Magi army stepped forward and appeared in front of the palace. They looked at the area below and to their surprise, the two of them had already made it this far.


    "Commander, I will personally step in." Li Qingyun said as he stepped in front of the palace and floated in the air.


    The aura on their bodies resonated with the drums and applied tremendous pressure.


    "Suppress." Li Qingyun said. On his command, the experts all struck at the same time. It was as though they had combined to become a single battle matrix.


    A giant burly figure appeared at the back of the battle matrix. He stepped across the air and launched a formidable attack that rushed towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Bang, bang, bang!


    Yu Sheng''s body shook violently and the battle form looked like it would collapse anytime.


    The other party had summoned experts to form a matrix and borrowed the strength of the war drums as well as the pressure from the Path that Ascends to Heaven. The combined strength had far exceeded the level of a Magi cultivator.


    "Yu Sheng, let me." Ye Futian said.


    "No need." Yu Sheng continued forward as he replied, allowing the dreadful force to rush into his body. Cracks sounded from within his body as rays of light passed through it.


    Ye Futian had a surprised expression as he watched the scene. Yu Sheng was using their attacks to strengthen his body.


    A holy Buddhist light emerged and it seemed all-encompassing. As it tempered Yu Sheng''s body, some parts of his body gradually turned golden like pure gold.


    Crash. With another deafening sound, the force entered Yu Sheng''s body and turned into a blinding light. His chest was also gradually turning golden.


    It seemed like his entire body would turn golden.


    Dark rays flowed around his golden body, like a demonic light, causing his golden body to be even more overbearing.


    Buddhist hymns sounded as brilliant golden rays appeared around Yu Sheng''s body. Statues of ancient Buddhas appeared and Yu Sheng''s battle form also transformed to an ancient Buddha. An even more tyrannical force erupted from his body as the aura around him reflected his cultivation level to be a mid-level Magi.


    He had actually used the pressure to breakthrough the bottleneck of his physical body, forging a golden body and breaking through his cultivation level.


    The golden ancient Buddha struck out with its hand, just like the Buddha''s palm strike, but it contained less heat intent, but was fiercer.


    The other party''s battle matrix also fired a fist that tore through the air and clashed with the Buddha''s palm. In an instant, the palm was torn apart and the fist exploded, causing the experts within the battle matrix to be sent flying.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward and with a loud roar, the golden lion''s roar clashed with the war drums'' sound, causing the air to vibrate vehemently.


    At that moment, a figure stepped in the middle of the war drums'' and lion roar''s sound waves, causing his robe to flap frantically. It was Li Qingyun.


    The force of the war drums gathered within his body. Even the roar was unable to waver his Spiritual Will as he looked down at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng with a cold expression.


    "No matter what your identity is in the Lower Worlds, keep your arrogance to yourself in the Upper Worlds. There are too many people that you can only look up to in the Upper Worlds." Li Qingyun said proudly. He stretched out his hand and the rule power in the area all transformed into his strength. A stunning current flowed around his arm as a terrifying thunderstorm appeared. The lightning flashed in the area and the current on the Path that Ascends to Heaven became extremely violent, as though it would destroy them at anytime.


    A storm hammer appeared in Li Qingyun''s hand.


    "Is that so?" Ye Futian replied. He stretched out his arm and a halberd appeared in his palm. Terrifying rule power flowed around the halberd and every atom seemed to have limitless power.


    Thump. Ye Futian stepped forward and floated into the air, ignoring the pressure and moving into the air towards Li Qingyun.


    The thundering sound of the war drums reverberated around the area as Li Qingyun raised his arm. Waves of pressure engulfed the Path that Ascends to Heaven.


    Seeing Ye Futian approaching him, he smashed down with the storm hammer, crushing everything in its way.


    However, it was as if Ye Futian did not feel the destructive force as he pierced forward with the halberd in his hands. A destructive current rushed forward like a black hole, shattering every ounce of force in its way.


    In the area, a destructive force rampaged and many people could not even open their eyes as they witnessed the two clashing.


    With the humming of thunder, the storm hammer disappeared and the crowd was shocked to see Ye Futian''s halberd pointing at Li Qingyun''s throat.


    "In the Nine States, under the Saint Plane, I do not need to look up to anyone. In the Upper Worlds, it is the same." Ye Futian replied proudly to Li Qingyun''s words.


    The halberd disappeared and Ye Futian walked past him, with Yu Sheng following behind. Apart from those who had been knocked down by him, the others did not dare to stop them and watched as they ascended the Path that Ascends to Heaven.


    They were thinking how there could be people from the Nine States who could ascend the stairway to the Upper Worlds in such arrogant fashion!


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng walked towards the Village Chief, then started to leave.


    A surprised expression appeared on the middle-aged commander''s face as he said, "You still haven''t taken the Decree of Ascension."


    "Within the rules, I can come as I wish to the Upper Worlds. Why do I need the Decree of Ascension." A voice sounded from the distance. The middle-aged commander stood in the palace and the expression on his face froze.

 907 Jiutian Temple

    Above the ancient palace on the Path that Ascends to Heaven, the middle-aged commander looked at the disappearing figures and smiled.


    The Nine States'' Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Since the little princess had gone to the Lower Worlds to select prodigies to look for the Heavenly Chosen Ones, there would definitely be people from the Nine States who would become famous in the Upper Worlds. However, since the two of them had chosen to scale the Path that Ascends to Heaven, they evidently did not follow the little princess in the trials.


    However, they had taken the Path that Ascends to Heaven in such a dominating fashion. Evidently, to the two of them, there was no difference between the Lower and Upper Worlds.


    In Emperor Xia''s Realm, he had seen too many geniuses, but such confident and arrogant people were few and far beyond. He claimed that he was unparalleled in the Nine States and would not need to look up to anyone even in the Upper Worlds.


    He wondered if the little princess had met the two of them in the Nine States. What was their purpose for entering the Upper Worlds?


    Li Qingyun stood rooted to the spot as the wind blew past, rustling his sleeve. There was still a stinging sensation at his throat.


    He had gathered the force of the battle matrix, war drums and the pressure of the Path that Ascends to Heaven, but that one halberd strike had caused him to feel a force that would destroy anything in its way.


    A person from the Lower Worlds had caused him to end up in such a sorry state.


    "Qingyun." At that moment, a voice sounded. Li Qingyun looked towards the middle-aged commander with a complicated expression. Not just him, the people around them had also been overwhelmed. Although there would usually be nothing to do when guarding the Path that Ascends to Heaven, but it was the first time that someone had ascended the Path that Ascends to Heaven in such dominating fashion and it had startled them.


    "Don''t think too much about it. That person claims to be unparalleled in the Nine States, he must be one of the prodigies at the pinnacle of the Nine States. Every generation of the Nine States has been known to have a few geniuses that have startled the Upper Worlds. This generation will not be an exception as well." The middle-aged commander consoled him, afraid that Li Qingyun''s frame of mind would suffer a blow.


    "A loss is a loss. There is no need to comfort me, commander." Li Qingyun replied.


    Hearing his reply, the middle-aged commander knew that there was no impairment to his frame of mind and continued saying, "The two of them have taken the Path that Ascends to Heaven, but don''t even want the Decree of Ascension. It seems like they are rushing for something important, but what important matters can there be for them to come to the Upper Worlds from the Lower Worlds?"


    "Commander, you mean?" Li Qingyun looked at him and asked.


    "Didn''t you previously mention about the matters in the Lower Worlds?" The middle-aged commander commented.


    A surprised expression appeared on Li Qingyun''s face as he thought of something. He replied, "The Jiutian Temple?"


    "Yes. Those people following the little princess in her trials are from the Nine States and are likely from holy lands. The two of them just now had a Saint Plane figure accompanying them and are evidently the same. If they came to the Upper Worlds for an emergency, it is very likely that they know those people and have come from the same holy land." The middle-aged commander deduced. He was an elite archmage and was the commander in charge of guarding the Path that Ascends to Heaven. Naturally, he was an extremely clever person and soon linked the two incidents together.


    "Commander, I would like to take a few days off." Li Qingyun requested.


    "Okay, go ahead." The middle-aged commander smiled and replied, as though he had already anticipated it.


    "Commander, we want to have a look as well." Many people with strong backgrounds started to ask as well.


    The middle-aged commander glared at them. These fellows just didn''t have the patience.


    "Scram." The middle-aged commander waved his hand. The crowd all broke into laughter and replied, "We''ll be on our way then, commander."


    As they said that, their figures flashed and they left.


    Seeing them leave, the middle-aged commander smiled while shaking his head. He wanted to go and watch as well, but as the commander, he could not leave his post. If guarding the Path that Ascends to Heaven was not such a free job, he would not let them leave either. After all, there was some risk to doing so.


    "The Jiutian Temple is probably going to be bustling now." The middle-aged commander looked into the distance and mumbled to himself. With the strength that the two of them had revealed, they would at least be able to make it to the Eighth Layer of Heaven or even all the way to the Ninth Layer.


    ....


    Ye Futian would naturally not care about what the people on the Path that Ascends to Heaven thought. They had rushed the moment they reached the Upper Worlds. First, they found a map and got some information about the Jiutian Temple, then made their way there quickly.


    At that moment, a blade of light traveled in the air speedily as though it could teleport through space.


    Ye Futian stood on the blade as winds billowed towards him. He did not block it completely with Spiritual Qi and felt the violent winds beating on his body. His shirt billowed in the wind and his hair fluttered wildly.


    "What rich Spiritual Qi, I can even feel the rule power." Ye Futian said softly as he closed his eyes, feeling the air. Was this how it was like in the Upper Worlds.


    The Village Chief stood quietly behind him and Ye Futian asked, "Village Chief, have you been here before?"


    "Yes, but only for a short while. I am not familiar with it." The Village Chief nodded and replied. Back then, the Sword Saint of the Void''s name was known throughout the world, not just in the Nine States, but also in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Ye Futian nodded and replied, "Cultivating here is far better than the Nine States. Even breaking through the Sage Plane would not be that difficult."


    However, the people from the Nine States could not enter Emperor Xia''s Realm as and when they liked.


    Yu Sheng and him had forcefully taken the Path that Ascends to Heaven, but the two of them were not good representations of the Nine States'' strength. Anyone else, even the elites from the other holy lands could probably not do it.


    Apart from taking the Path that Ascends to Heaven, the only other way to the Upper Worlds was to enter the Saint Plane. This would make the Nine States filter only their most outstanding individuals to the Upper Worlds.


    After many generations, the people in Emperor Xia''s Realm were all the most outstanding cultivators.


    Ye Futian naturally knew that the Upper Worlds actually referred to Emperor Xia''s Realm, which was under Emperor Xia''s rule.


    Apart from that, the other Renhuangs also had their reign in the Divine Prefecture and created their own realms, ruling over boundless Lower World regions.


    Ye Futian would sometimes think to himself, how big is the Divine Prefecture exactly?


    At his level, he had gradually started to come in touch with the world. He also understood how strong the Twin Great Emperors were to be able to be able to rule over the entire Divine Prefecture.


    Of course, Ye Futian had no time to think about this at the moment. His mind was occupied with the Jiutian Temple.


    The Jiutian Temple was not the sacred force that he had thought and was instead a battle arena that was split into nine layers. It was a battle arena that was extremely famous in Emperor Xia''s Realm. The majority of the cultivators in Emperor Xia''s Realm would come to the Jiutian Temple to battle and try to make their way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and enter the Jiutian Ranking.


    Those who were able to enter the Jiutian Ranking were all unparalleled figures in Emperor Xia''s Realm and could freely enter any sacred force to cultivate. Of course, it was likely that these people were originally outstanding figures from these sacred forces.


    The Emperor Xia''s Realm little princess, Xia Qingyuan was the youngest cultivator to enter the Jiutian Ranking in the history of the Jiutian Temple. When she had entered the Jiutian Temple, she had been watched by the entire Emperor Xia''s Realm. The Jiutian Temple was packed full of people and such a scene had not appeared since Xia Qingyuan.


    Even on a normal day, the Jiutian Temple continued to be the most populated place in the Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm was extremely vast and the Jiutian Temple was situated in the center of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Even with the Village Chief''s speed, they still took a few hours to reach the region where the Jiutian Temple was.


    The Jiutian Temple was full of people at the moment. The battles in the temple had already started for the day and Ye Futian stood at the foot of the stairs to the temple, raising his head and looking up. He saw stairs leading up each level and countless cultivators had split into the nine battle regions. These were the nine Layers of Heaven.


    The Ninth Layer of Heaven in the Jiutian Temple was located 1000 Zhang away from the ground. Even with Ye Futian''s vision, he could only see a blurry image.


    Ye Futian did not enter the Jiutian Temple directly, but stayed in the vicinity to obtain some information. They then went to the Tianji Pavilion not far away from the Jiutian Temple.


    The Tianji Pavilion was the top information brokerage in the Emperor Xia''s Realm and claimed to know everything.


    The three of them entered the Tianji Pavilion and someone received them.


    "What information would the three of you like to know?" An elder smiled towards Ye Futian, asking.


    "Xia Qingyuan once brought people from the Lower Worlds into some trials. There was a batch of people from the Lower Worlds that had a conflict with some Upper World cultivators. Does the Tianji Pavilion know about that matter?" Ye Futian asked.


    The elder smiled at him and replied, "There is nothing that the Tianji Pavilion doesn''t know."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    As he said that, he said a name, "Ye Wuchen."


    Ye Futian''s expression suddenly became sharp and looked straight at the elder and said, "I want all information about them."


    "All?" The elder asked.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and replied.


    "The matter involves many parties, so the price will be high." The elder''s eyes squinted as he replied with a smile.


    Ye Futian waved his hand and an elite Sage ritual implement appeared. He asked the elder, "Is this enough?"


    "Please." The elder gestured with his hand and replied. In reality, although some factions were linked to this piece of information, it was not a huge secret. As such, one elite Sage ritual implement was enough.


    Ye Futian was brought into an inner chamber. There were many people here but it was as though they did not see Ye Futian. They were all looking through different case files. Not long after, a teenager walked towards the three of them with a smile and asked, "Sir, are you from the Lower Worlds?"


    "The information I want." Ye Futian did not reply and said instead.


    "Yes." The teenager smiled and nodded, then flipped through the case file and replied, "The person you are asking about has followed the little princess Xia Qingyuan into her trials. They went to an abandoned sword emperor''s realm. There, the Lower Worlds'' cultivator Ye Wuchen absorbed a few Sword Wills into his Life Spirit. According to the Tianji Pavilion''s conjecture, the Sword Wills he absorbed were at least of the Saint-level and could even be Sword Wills left behind by a Renhuang."


    "However, someone from Emperor Xia''s Realm wants that Sword Will. Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit has been extracted and he has fallen into a coma after suffering severe injuries." The teenager continued to say.


    "Who did it?" Ye Futian asked. A cold aura emanated from him after hearing the other party''s words.


    "The information you wanted was regarding the people from the Lower Worlds." The teenager replied, smiling. Evidently, what he meant was the information that Ye Futian had purchased did not include the other group of people.


    Ye Futian looked coldly at him and with a wave of his hand, another ritual implement appeared.


    The teenager kept it and replied with a smile, "Since you have already come here, you should know some of the matters. The person who has extracted Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit is the cultivator on the Jiutian Ranking, Pei Qianying."

 908 Enter the Temple

    "Pei Qianying." In the depth of Ye Futian''s eyes, there flashed a cold ray. "That ritual implement should not be a name only."


    "Of course not," the young man said with a smile. "I will then tell you some other news. Pei Qianying was born into a well-known family, the descendant of Jueying Sword Saint. Furthermore, Pei Qianying is the cultivator of Jiutian Ranking and he is close to the young master of Jiutian Temple. If you want to pick a fight with Pei Qianying it won''t be easy, especially in the Jiutian Temple. Even if there are saints present, I would encourage you not to."


    This was just polite talk, and it wasn''t just that it was not easy. If Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen were the same as cultivators of the Lower Worlds, this grudge had to be let go or Ye Wuchen would surely die. In fact, if it wasn''t for Xia Qingyuan, Jueying Sword Saint would probably have already destroyed his spirit and stripped him of the sword will that he had obtained from refining.


    "Jueying Sword Saint." Next to Ye Futian, the Village Chief''s eyes showed a strange light, and Ye Futian looked at him, asking, "You recognize him?"


    The Village Chief nodded slightly. "He visited in the past and was refused."


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled and knew who the visitor meant to see��the Sword Saint of the Void.


    Back in the days when the Sword Saint of the Void was invincible in the Nine States and the Nether Sword Mound claimed to be able to annihilate all holy lands, one could only imagine how powerful the Sword Saint of the Void was. This Jueying Sword Saint was also a sword saint that cultivated in the art of the sword, so it was not surprising that he had visited the Sword Saint of the Void.


    The young man looked up at the Village Chief. Tianji Pavilion claimed to know all things but had limited knowledge of the things in the Lower Worlds of the Nine States because information of the Lower Worlds was of little value, at least for the Tianji Pavilion.


    "Where are the people of the Lower Worlds now?" Ye Futian continued to ask.


    "The cultivators within Emperor Xia''s Realm were beyond count. Tianji Pavilion will not pay attention to where everyone is. After all, this is not valuable information. However, it must be around the vicinity of the Jiutian Temple. In fact, in the past few days, they have been coming to Jiutian Temple. Now that Gu Dongliu has gotten to the Eighth Layer of Heaven, pay attention to the Law Battle of the Eighth Layer of Heaven and you will see him sooner or later," the young man said.


    "Why do you want to charge Jiutian Temple?" Ye Futian asked again. Ye Wuchen was stripped of his spirit by Pei Qianying, but what was its connection with Jiutian Temple?


    "It was said that after Pei Qianying stripped Ye Wuchen''s spirit, he returned to the Upper Worlds. The people of Nine States refused to let the matter rest and paid a price for the Little Princess to intervene. Pei Qianying replied that to get the spirit of Ye Wuchen back, he could be found in the Ninth Layer of Heaven in the Jiutian Temple, otherwise, get the hell back to the Lower Worlds." The youth looked at Ye Futian and continued, "So the princess, Xia Qingyuan, made a guarantee and gave the people of Nine States three months. Afterward, the people of the Lower Worlds began to venture into Jiutian Temple. However, until now, only Gu Dongliu was able to enter the Eighth Layer of Heaven. One more step and he will be able to enter the Ninth Layer of Heaven and formally challenge Pei Qianying on the Jiutian Ranking. Of course, the distance of this step is as difficult as stepping into heaven," the young man said, smiling.


    Ye Futian''s expression was still indifferent, and he cast a glimpse at the young man. The news was simple and, in fact, was not worth the price he paid, but to him, it was extremely important. After inquiring about some other matters Ye Futian left Tianji Pavilion.


    After walking out of Tianji Pavilion, a coldness exuded from Ye Futian. Although Wuchen''s talent was limited, his mind was extremely firm and he was clear about that all along. If all was as the people of Tianji Pavilion had said, the sword will that Wuchen obtained was at least the sword will of the saint and may have even been the Renhuang Sword Will. It was completely within Wuchen''s character to make every effort to integrate it into his own spirit. This was Wuchen''s chance, but this chance had become a disaster and caused him to be stripped of his spirit.


    To cultivators, the stripping of the spirit was equivalent to the deprivation of an extremely important part of the soul. If it was destroyed, it would directly lead to Wuchen''s rapid deterioration from the planes and loss of mental power. Never mind progressing forward, he would probably unable to even reach the height achieved previously.


    Once upon a time his Master, Hua Fengliu was a good example.


    Pei Qianying was unforgivable.


    Returning beneath Jiutian Temple, Ye Futian looked up and glanced at the endless figures in the sky above and the beautiful radiant Law Battlefield. He said, "Yu Sheng and I will participate in the Law Battle of Jiutian Temple."


    "Very well." The Village Chief nodded, and then all three walked toward the Jiutian Temple. The first level of Jiutian Temple could be entered without any cost. Everyone was watching the battle below and could even see into the battlefield platform that was even higher into the sky. The Nine States Platform had only set up the battle platform of the three realms of the Sages. For Emperor Xia''s Realm, the Noble Plane was too low and lacked attraction, the Saint Plane was too strong, and who would be participating in the Law Battle?


    The level of the sage was suitable for all cultivators to observe, even for the saints who would sometimes come to watch the battles between the youngsters. The First Layer of Heaven of Jiutian Temple had nine battle platforms and nine regions; the Worthy, the Magi, and the Sage, each had three.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were separated and not together, but were in the two adjacent Law Battle platforms.


    Sitting on the grandstands, Ye Futian looked up, and he could see the battle platforms in the air, surrounded by the light of the matrix. The steps up and down, and all around him were surrounded by people, and each layer leading all the way up. The tendency to practice martial arts in Emperor Xia''s Realm was far stronger than in the Nine States.


    There were many people battling at the same time on the battle platform, and each battle had a hundred people on the same stage at the same time battling for ranking until the last person, and according to the ranking to continue participating in the following Law Battle.


    Therefore, every battle was extremely fierce, and this was only the First Layer of Heaven. The battles for the Third Layer of Heaven were all battles between the top geniuses, where each match was enough to make one''s blood boil. Of course, the battles for the Third Layer of Heaven were far less frequent than those for the First Layer of Heaven, the rules were also different so that there were not many who could make it to the Third Layer of Heaven.


    After a long time, the hundred-person matchup concluded. The person in the first place was naturally the focus of all attention, was qualified to participate in the Law Battle of the Fourth Layer of Heaven, and skipped over the Second and Third Layers of Heavens.


    "Continue to the next round, who is willing to challenge?" At this time, on the battle platform, an elder looked down to the stand. As his voice trailed off, shadows suddenly flashed out. They were all the cultivators who came to participate in the Law Battle.


    Jiutian Platform was a place suitable for tempering one''s own combative power and appreciate the strength of various rules power from other cultivators. It was of great benefit to one''s own cultivation. Of course, to get on the Jiutian Ranking was the dream of countless cultivators in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Ye Futian stood up, and with one quick flash, he took a step into the void and soon descended upon the Law Battle Platform that was in the void. The Law Battle of the First Layer of Heaven, as long as it conformed to the plane, anyone could participate.


    "Wang Yin." At this time, countless eyes from the grandstand landed on one person. That young man wore a gorgeous golden robe, and he exuded an unusual and outstanding spirit. When he appeared on the battle platform, everyone around him was eclipsed.


    "Sure enough, Wang Yin also came to Nine States Platform; this is his first time at Jiutian Temple. I wonder which layer of heaven he will be able to reach."


    "There''s no doubt who''s going to be first in this battle. After the first battle, he will directly advance to the Fourth Layer of Heaven."


    Many people on the view stand discussing and gossiping. Clearly, this Wang Yin was well-recognized, but because he had never participated in the Law Battle, this would be his first showing in Jiutian Temple. On the viewing stand, even some of Wang Yin''s elders had come to cheer him on, observing the battle.


    This would be the first step for Wang Yin to impact the Jiutian Ranking.


    On the platform, a beautiful woman smiled at Wang Yin. "Senior Brother, you have to be merciful."


    "It will not be a problem for you to go to the Third Layer of Heaven," Wang Yin said. The second and third place in each round could skip over the Second Layer of Heaven and were qualified to battle in the Third Layer of Heaven.


    Many looked at Wang Yin and the woman and murmured to themselves about their bad luck. Wang Yin was one of the most outstanding disciples of the third generation of the sacred forces, quite famous. He had only begun to enter the Jiutian Temple after he became a top-level Magi, clearly wanting to impact the Jiutian Ranking.


    Since the woman was the Junior Sister of Wang Yin, it was obvious that she was also from the Qianshen Clan, and she must also be very strong, and with Wang Yin backing her, the first three slots may have already been decided by this duo.


    It appeared that this Law Battle was quite unlucky, and all that could be done was to give it one''s best so as to continue to participate in the following Law Battles.


    After some time, 100 cultivators of the Magi Plane appeared on the battle platform and the matrix was initiated, surrounding them all, shrouding them with a huge light screen so as to protect the observers in the grandstand.


    "You may begin now," the elder announced, and as soon as his voice drifted away, a terrible atmosphere suddenly exploded in the vastness of the battlefield platform. The battlefield area was hundreds of thousands of meters high and was immensely wide, so that even when the sages battled, it would not appear narrow.


    Like Wang Yin, Lin Yuxiu also came from Qianshen Clan and had just entered the plane of top-level Magi. A radiance emitted from her and suddenly, hundreds of swords appeared all around her, chiming like real magical ritual implements. Her figure flickered, and hundreds of swords rushed forward in different trajectories. She stood in the middle of the sword, impressive with her prowess.


    In an instant, hundreds of swords aimed towards a single cultivator spat out fearful sword will until the space was filled with terrifying thoughts of murder. Suddenly, the cultivator who was under attack only felt that his spiritual will was about to be torn to pieces by the Sword Qi.


    The cultivator put his hands together, and suddenly a huge golden light screen appeared in front of him, blocking the onslaught of the swords, but the swords went directly to the same place. The golden light screen broke apart, and all the swords turned into one, and quickly morphed into brilliant lightening, flashed, and were gone. In an instant, blood bloomed on the body of that cultivator as the Sword Qi penetrated his body. He fell from the sky and unwillingly withdrew from the battlefield.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    In other areas, there were also powerful battles taking place. Wang Yin stood there quietly, watching Lin Yuxiu fighting and thought that with her strength, even without his backing, she could reach the top three.


    "YuXiu''s strength could pass the Fourth Layer of Heaven," someone in the stands said. They were a sage level cultivator from Qianshen Clan who came to cheer for Wang Yin. However, the battle at the First Layer of Heaven was meaningless. The key was the follow-up battles at the topmost three layers of heaven.


    Ye Futian stood quietly, calmly watching the battle on the platform. In regards to the cultivators of the Upper Worlds, their strength was not necessarily stronger than those from the Nine States, just that as a whole. Their sages were much younger, possibly because Emperor Xia''s Realm contained the richer aura of heaven and earth, and also the rules atmosphere, and a greater spiritual environment in general.


    At this moment, sharp breaths came toward Ye Futian. His eyes turned and he saw just in time that Lin Yuxiu came at him with the sword. Lin Yuxiu stared at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. This person emitted an air that was extraordinary and he was handsome in looks. However, he did not participate in the battle like Wang Yin, standing aside and looking on as the others struck out one by one. How could she just let him get away with it?


    Wang Yin also turned his attention in the same direction. Before, he had noticed Ye Futian standing there casually, as if he was an outsider. However, unless he was so strong that no others dared to challenge him, was it really possible to watch like an outsider?


    The powerful Sword Will made Ye Futian feel a stinging in his spiritual will. He looked up and glanced at Lin Yuxiu, and remained standing quietly without moving.


    "Presumptuous." Seeing Ye Futian had ignored her, Lin Yuxiu spit out her displeasure coldly, and all the swords came at him, fast as lightning, and they were almost piercing through Ye Futian''s body. However, when the swords reached the front of Ye Futian, they all suddenly stopped and screamed and seemed to be shaking. Not only the sword, but Lin Yuxiu felt that her body seemed difficult to move as if controlled by an invisible force.


    "Sister," Wang Yin shouted.


    "I can''t move." Lin Yuxiu was pale and knew that she had encountered a very powerful person. As her voice trailed off, everyone on the stand and was shocked; countless eyes were fixed on Ye Futian. They had thought that this matchup would not have much uncertainty, but it seemed that there were still some twists and turns.


    Wang Yin stepped out into the void toward Ye Futian, then commanded, "Let go."


    Ye Futian glanced at him, and the rule power disappeared. Lin Yuxiu, who had been struggling to move forward, now suddenly catapulted to the front, sharp swords piercing at Ye Futian''s body. Instead, they made crisp sounds, and none of them were able to stab through his skin.


    Lin Yuxiu herself rushed toward Ye Futian, propelled by momentum, but Ye Futian simply pushed his palm forward and a palm print directly impacted on Lin Yuxiu''s chest and her body flew back as a result.


    It seemed that the two of them were not on the same plane at all.


    Lin Yuxiu, looking pale, could only feel the sharp pain in her chest. Wang Yin looked at her, then turned his icy stare to Ye Futian, walking toward him, step by step. Every step was like a sharp sword that pierced at Ye Futian, attempting to break down the power of his Spiritual will.


    "Defeat the others and you can get within the top three," Ye Futian said to Wang Yin.


    Wang Yin''s expression altered, and then, in a very cold voice, he said, "How arrogant." What Ye Futian meant was that it was not even worth it for him to make a move himself, because he was certain he would be first.


    In an instant, an extremely sharp atmosphere swept out and there was a terrible silver storm appearing behind Wang Yin, releasing the spirit.


    Ye Futian cast a casual glance at him, then took a step out and, like lightning, he rushed into the incomparably sharp rules of the storm, allowing the violent and extreme rules to attack his body, remaining unmoving.


    Wang Yin felt a strong threat and he wanted to retreat, but his body seemed to have solidified, making it difficult to move.


    Bang! A loud sound was heard. The bones of the chest burst instantly, and Wang Yin''s body flew backward!

 909 Unmovable

    On the grandstand countless eyes gathered, staring at the defeat of Wang Yin.


    Previously when they saw Ye Futian''s crush Lin Yuxiu with tremendous force, they knew that it was going to be good. This person would definitely anger Wang Yin, but no one had thought that the ending of this battle would be like this.


    Wang Yin was crushed in a single blow, defeated.


    "Wang Yin of Qianshen Clan was subdued in seconds."


    "Who was that?" Many looked to Ye Futian in shock. Someone who could subdue Wang Yin in seconds must not some nameless unknown. At the very least, the Seventh Layer of Heaven was definitely possible.


    Many top cultivators in Emperor Xia''s Realm were able to get to the Third Layer of Heaven in Jiutian Temple. In other words, those that were able to advance beyond the Seventh Layer of Heaven were all proud sons and daughters of the Realm, extremely extraordinary characters.


    "How could it be?" The people of Qianshen Clan were at a loss for a while, stiffly looking at the scene before them. The debut of Qianshen Clan''s Wang Yin and Lin Yuxiu at Jiutian Temple ended in terrible defeat. Never mind first place, right now they were completely out of the top ten. This meant that they were not even qualified for the Second Layer of Heaven and must join the battles later.


    This debut ended tragically.


    In the area above the battle platform, many looked at Ye Futian with uneasiness. This person was a force to be reckoned with. Ye Futian paid no attention to the thoughts of these people. He glanced at the many cultivators still left in the void. His body slowly levitated, and a force of the rules swept out covering the heavens and everyone within it.


    The expression of many changed. This guy wanted to challenge everyone head-on with his own strength?


    All the cultivators stopped battling and turned to face Ye Futian. The rules power bloomed, and his look was cold. Ye Futian raised his palm and made a grabbing gesture in the void. In an instant, the space storm was born. Everyone felt that their bodies seemed to be imprisoned, and the light of the endless starry laws shone forth.


    "Make your move!" a cultivator called out harshly, and the Broadsword of Spirit in his hand hacked through everything and split toward Ye Futian''s body. But as if he did not see it coming, Ye Futian simply allowed these many rules power landing on him without moving. After two rounds of medicinal testing and refining, both his physical and spiritual will had been transformed greatly to resist rules powers and the ability to ignore the rules power and attack remotely.


    On the vast battle platform with its endless space, an immensely large star sphere seemed to have appeared. As Ye Futian closed his hand, the space was completely restrained and turned into Star Prison. All the movements of the people stopped and slowed down. They madly compelled their own rules power to try to tear down the rule power that bound them. However, as Ye Futian raised his right hand and struck toward the void, in an instant, countless Star Fists pierced through the space and pulverized the void.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! With violent and turbulent sounds, many vomited blood as they were hit by the fists and lost their ability to combat upon impact.


    The bodies of all the cultivators rolled back like streams of light. On the battle platform, this radiant scene shocked anyone who beheld it. Many people''s heartbeat increased, their eyes glued to the battle platform.


    Way too forceful. With his own strength, all the cultivators who participated in the same battle were defeated.


    However, there were still some cultivators who were able to block the attack from Ye Futian, but their hearts were trembling violently. If the cultivation was great to a certain extent and there was enough of a gap, it was not something that could be made up simply by number of people. The power of the rules force was enough to trample over everything.


    "You will fight to determine the rest of the ranking." Ye Futian glanced at the people who were still standing.


    He had already locked in first place in advance.


    This time, no one disagreed, and the battle erupted. On the battle platform, Ye Futian stood with both hands behind his back, as if none of this had anything to do with him.


    His goal was not here��it was the Ninth Layer of Heaven on the Jiutian Ranking.


    "Who is this guy?"


    "Does anyone know him?"


    The people in the grandstand watching Ye Futian stood there quietly, but that presence was so much more than Wang Yin previously as if even he had not just been battling and was just standing there. No one could surpass his glory. He had locked in the first place in advance for the rest of the people to compete for the rankings behind him, and no one dared to disagree.


    Just now there was a violent noise coming from the battle platform next to them, and many suddenly turned their attention that way. All they could see was an immensely dominant sturdy body that stood above the void. The glory of Buddha radiated from him, the Palm of Mahavairocan crushed the firmament suppressed all things, no cultivators were spared and were all subdued on the spot. The one not only had conquered all but left no room for even the second or third place to the others.


    "This..." The people witnessing this scene were completely speechless. What was happening today? This was only the First Layer of Heaven, and there were two such strong cultivators appearing at the same time.


    Wang Yin of the Qianshen Clan debuted at the Jiutian Temple but ended up just as a side note. Because of the existence of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, the two battles ended very quickly. The elder in the void bestowed the Jiutian Order Token, and on it was engraved one word only: Four.


    The First Layer of Heaven of Jiutian Temple was the battle of general selections. The person in the first place could skip the Second and Third Layer of Heavens and enter the Fourth Layer of Heaven of Jiutian Temple. Those in the second and third place could directly enter the battle platform of the Third layer of Heaven. People in fourth to tenth place may only step onto the battle platform of the Second Layer of Heaven. As for the others, in order to continue, they must stay and continue to battle in the First Layer of Heaven until they could get within the top ten.


    Ye Futian left the battle platform after he had received the Jiutian Order Token, and immediately headed toward the stairs on the side. He looked up and looked up, and saw that each layer of the nine heavens was thousands of feet high, so magnificent that the building at the very top was like a temple of the gods.


    The lord of the Jiutian Temple was also an extremely powerful figure, well-known in the Emperor Xia''s Realm and was someone who could actually meet Emperor Xia face-to-face.


    Lifting his feet, Ye Futian walked towards the top, and Yu Sheng also came to Ye Futian''s side, walking up the steps. They both possessed the Jiutian Order Token and could advance directly.


    "They will go straight away to the Fourth Layer of Heaven."


    "The two of them were together?"


    Many people had the same thought across their eyes, thinking that today, there may be a good show to see. With two such formidable cultivators at Jiutian Temple, who had just crushed all the cultivators with incomparable force to step onto the Fourth Layer of Heaven, their goal would definitely not simply be the Fourth Layer of Heaven. It was highly probable that the younger disciples of great and influential figures came to Jiutian Temple for the first time, and such participants would have only one goal in mind, and that would be the top three layers of heavens. A higher goal might even be the Jiutian Ranking. Regardless of which was their goal, it was worth paying attention to.


    "Let''s go and purchase seats in the Fourth Layer of Heaven." Many got up and wanted to see the following battles with these two.


    "Let''s go and watch as well," people from the Qianshen Clan said. Wang Yin and Lin Yuxiu looked at Ye Futian, who was departing, then gave up the thought to continue battling and decided to observe Ye Futian''s battle instead.


    The seats at the Fourth Layer of Heaven were not cheap and the seats of the Seventh Layer of Heaven were nearly priceless. In fact, the battle could be faintly observed from below, but they were not clear and lacked the live experience when observing the combat in close range.


    This was how the Jiutian Temple became one of the richest principalities in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Nevertheless, people were still willing to come. The people who cultivated could learn and fight with countless others in their same planes, thus judging where their strength may be among their peers. The Jiutian Temple provided an unparalleled platform for all fight-lovers.


    In particular, the influence of the Jiutian Ranking was recognized by Emperor Xia''s Realm, therefore countless generations of geniuses had set their eyes on the Jiutian Ranking. Even the Little Princess, Xia Qingyuan, had come to the Jiutian Temple to battle and entered on the Jiutian Ranking with decisive gestures. This demonstrated just how much influence Jiutian Temple had.


    As he sat down on the seat in the Fourth Layer of Heaven, Ye Futian looked up at the battle platform. At the Fourth Layer of Heaven, the battle was no longer that of 100 people. There would only be ten cultivators involved in the battle.


    The rule at this stage was that the first three could advance, with the person in first place directly skipping the Fifth Layer of Heaven to enter the Sixth Layer of Heaven. The second and third place could enter the Fifth Layer of Heaven. Under this rule, eventually more people were able to gather to the top and they would be the strongest and the most powerful.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were still occupying adjacent battle platforms. Naturally, they would not appear together on the same platform.


    The number grandstands here were obviously a lot less than at the First Layer of Heaven. The First Layer of Heaven was open to everyone. There was no need to pay, so every day, there would be countless people coming to watch the battles. If there were very powerful competitors, or the possibility of exciting battles in the Seventh Layer of Heaven or above, then they would consider coming up to watch the battle.


    For example, at this time, many followed Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to come up, which surprised many who were in the Fourth Layer of Heaven. After some inquiry, many looked in the direction of Ye Futian, who came directly from the First Layer of Heaven directly to the Fourth. It seemed that the following battle would be quite interesting.


    Soon, after the battle above ended, Ye Futian did not wait any longer and stepped on the battle platform right away and displayed the Order Token, which signified that he was eligible to participate. Shadows of figures levitated into the air. It didn''t take long before there were ten cultivators appear on the battle platform.


    "Who do you think will take first place?" someone in the stand asked.


    "Xu Tu. In the previous battle, he lost to the strongest fighter, but in fact, he had the strength to compete for first place, so in this battle, he should have a chance," someone said.


    "Shan Zhi. She was equally strong in her battle, and her Spiritual Will was terrifying," someone else said while looking at a woman.


    "None of them have any chance," someone laughingly said. "Ye Futian. It''s the first time he came to Jiutian Temple, and in the first battle, he defeated all the strongest cultivators of the First Layer of Heaven, so he will be likely to continue to skip the Fifth Layer of Heaven and enter directly into the Sixth, and then launch his offensive in the Seventh."


    "He''s only first in the First Layer of Heaven, and those who can set their foothold in the Fourth were all coming from the First Layer of Heaven. It doesn''t mean anything," someone else commented casually.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "Watch," many said, and the voices of various discussion did not escape the ears of the top ten cultivators on the battle platform. Xu Tu cast a glance at Ye Futian and Shan Zhi, then walked toward Ye Futian. Aggressive sword will swept out, a Shredding Sword appeared in his hand, his spirit also turned into a broadsword with boundless brilliance that wanted to chop off everything.


    Buzz. A residual shadow appeared. Although Xu Tu''s body looked heavy and awkward, he was an expert at the rules of the wind, with extreme speed. His whole person was like the sharpest sword.


    "Look closely. Storm Blade Techniques blended with the powers of wind rules and Shredding rules," someone who favored Xu Tu said. Xu Tu, along with a horrible sword will, landed in front of Ye Futian. The sword light came down as if to split the void open, and that pressure was simply chilling. Many who were watching were sweating for Ye Futian.


    The sword light disappeared in a flash and was about to smash down, but Ye Futian stood there and still did not move. Xu Tu revealed a look of coldness and had no intention to restrain his force. If Futian was asking for it, then he would oblige.


    But just as the sword light was getting close to Ye Futian, suddenly, there was an extremely strong conception which seemed to solidify the sword, making it difficult to continue moving forward and slowing down its speed.


    Psst, psst�� sharp and shrill sounds pierced the eardrums, and the sword was still slashing downward, seeming to break the rules defense and hacking toward the shoulder of Ye Futian.


    Chop. a cold look flashed across Xu Tu''s eyes. Was he not able to counter his attack?


    Above the body of Ye Futian there was a layer of starry radiance shining, and the sword light landed on his shoulder, but it only made a crystal-clear sound. The rules powers were broken and could not continue its way down.


    "This..." The countless eyes on the grandstand were glued to them. Even those who were waiting to see Ye Futian being taught a lesson were speechless. Even the cultivator from the Fourth layer of Heaven could not break down his defense, so much so that he couldn''t even have the power to make him move?

 910 Chapter 910 Unlucky Guy

    Xu Tu''s Storm Blade Techniques were a set of techniques incorporating two different powers of rules and was extremely overbearing. However, such a set of blade techniques remained incapable of breaking that youth''s defense. The difference in power levels was apparent.


    Even though the blade''s power of rules had been weakened, it should not have performed in such a mediocre manner. One could have said that Ye Futian''s physical defense was just so great that not even rules were capable of breaking it.


    Xu Tu''s stared at Ye Futian with wide, dumbfounded eyes. Ye Futian simply took a look at him before throwing a punch at him. Xu Tu retreated like a gust of wind, but as the punch connected, the will imbued within it penetrated him and made him feel as if his innards were torn to shreds by the fearsome power of the punch. He was sent flying like a ragdoll in midair while spitting up blood.


    "What the hell." Those who followed him to train from the First Layer of Heaven watched with burning eyes. They deemed him to be one would definitely make it to the Seventh Layer.


    "Which force does Ye Futian belong to?" There were those who felt curious about his background and began speculating.


    "No idea." No one had any clue. However, given that there were a huge number of mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm, it was quite normal that none of them had no clue about his identity. They only knew that there was one immensely talented cultivator beginning to make his way through the Jiutian Temple. Ye Futian''s sight might have been set on reaching the eighth or even the Jiutian Ranking, which was the Ninth. As for his eligibility to move to the next round, there was little to be left to the imagination. He was able to simply pulverize Xu Tu and that meant that there was no doubt that he would be able to make it to the stage at the Sixth Layer of Heaven.


    Wang Yin shuddered restlessly and Lin Yuxiu bit his lips. It seemed that the problem did not lie with their powers, but their luck. They just happened to come across a human-shaped monster right from the first stage of the Jiutian Temple, and said monster was a genius-level figure who was fighting in the Jiutian Temple for the first time, just like they were.


    An unspoken consensus was reached between the others at the stage and no one else dared to make a move against Ye Futian. They fought each other until, eventually, Shan Zhi was the only one left.


    Shan Zhi''s eyes were crystal clear when she looked at Ye Futian. A powerful spiritual will power burst forth and Ye Futian felt as if a mystical power was attempting to take control of his will. The woman before him trained in similar ways to Hua Jieyu.


    "I''m not going to do you any harm. Yield if you know what I mean," Ye Futian said plainly. His voice sounded like a bell, ringing in Shan Zhi''s mind. The magnitude of the power imbued within made her realize that it was not something she was able to control. It became clear right there was little left to the imagination with the battle between them; he was not someone she could defeat.


    "I yield." Shan Zhi gave up and rescinded her powers. As expected, one fight was all it took for Ye Futian to emerge as the champion of that round of fights. The elder who was hosting the fights announced the result and bestowed Ye Futian with a Jiutian Order Token. The word "six" was carved on the token, as well as his name: Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian walked down the stage with the token in his hand. Yu Sheng had been waiting for him down there and Ye Futian felt rather exasperated. Those who shared the stage with him were indeed out of luck. Both of them walked towards the steps and continued going up.


    "Let''s get to the Sixth Layer of Heaven." Many followed and the huge group was quickly formed behind them. Ye Futian naturally realized the ruckus but he did not pay it any heed. It would have been even better if the ruckus had been bigger. If Hua Jieyu and the others happened to see it, then they would know that he came.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng did not separate at the Sixth Layer of Heaven, as there was only one stage for every plane. There were considerably fewer combatants left there and there was simply no need for three stages to be around. There would have been few battles fought on one stage if the stages were still arranged in such ways. Furthermore, their tokens were taken as soon as they reached the Sixth Layer of Heaven. The rules of the battles there were different; the battles were arranged by the ones working at the Jiutian Temple instead of free-for-alls.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng came to a stage and took their seats, and many sat in the area around them. The phenomenon attracted the attention of many and there were people asking, "What''s going on?"


    "There were some guys who managed to reach the Sixth Layer of Heaven fighting only two battles. Those guys might actually make it to the Seventh with just three battles," someone from the crowd answered.


    "Who are those people?"


    Everyone pointed at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, saying, "Both of them fought only two battles each. If they are able to become number one in the coming battles, they can make it straight to the Seventh."


    "Is it all that difficult to reach the Sixth with just two battles?" A cold, aloof voice was heard and many turned their eyes around. An impossibly handsome young man scanned everyone around and said, "Many on this Sixth Layer of Heaven are capable of what you just said, but many of them fell right here. Only one out of ten will be able to make it to the Seventh, and they won''t be fighting people of those levels anymore."


    The young man was too an exceptional figure, but he had been trying to reach the Seventh and he failed every single attempt. Furthermore, one was only given an opportunity to try their hand once a day. If they were to fail, they were required to come the next day instead.


    Many nodded and knew what he said to be true. All who were able to make it to the Sixth Layer of Heaven were people who made it through rounds of selection processes. Furthermore, in the coming battles between ten combatants, only one would make it through and was granted the right to step onto the Seventh Layer.


    It was worth noting that other than the ones who had just made it through back in the Fifth, the mighty ones on the Sixth Layer also consisted of those who failed to make it to the Seventh. Those were also people who emerged from the Fifth before. Furthermore, according to the records of the Jiutian Temple regarding those who fought their way through, combatants to fight in the Sixth were arranged to be carried out between newcomers and veterans, each side of equal numbers.


    "It''s alright if they fail. I''ve been trying to make it to the Seventh for 100 days straight now. If I lose today, I will have lost 100 battles already. Hopefully, you''ll be lucky enough to not be arranged to fight me," a huge fat guy at the side quipped jokingly.


    Many laughed in response. The fat guy had been incredibly famous around those parts. His name was Lu Chong, and while he was not actually weak and could even be said to be very powerful, he was really down on his luck. The one he was arranged to fight when he came to make his challenge every day had been unnervingly powerful people. Out of the 99 losses he suffered prior, there had been over 30 times where he had emerged as number two. His uncanny lack of luck was very obvious.


    Ye Futian took a look at Lu Chong after finding the chatter around him to sound peculiar. He and Lu Chong were on the same stage, and Yu Sheng was there as well. That meant that Lu Chong had a very high probability of being arranged to fight either him or Yu Sheng, or maybe even fighting them both.


    "You''re really down on your luck indeed," Ye Futian said.


    "I know, but I think I''ll have better luck today as there doesn''t seem to be anyone particularly powerful around today. That pale, clean guy might have some tricks up his sleeve, but he will still be an easy job," Lu Chong elaborated with a smile. He was talking about the handsome young man named He Liu.


    Ye Futian did not say anything further. At that moment, a voice was heard from the stage announcing, "Lu Chong, Wang Ye, Jiang He, Ye Futian, He Liu are to get up on the stage.


    Yu Sheng''s name was not on the list. He had deliberately asked to be separated from Ye Futian when he handed his token in, and it seemed that the ones at the Jiutian Temple did as he wished.


    One figure after another took to the air and ten mighty ones came to stand on the stage soon.


    Boom. A tremendously wild aura burst forth and Lu Chong''s plump body quickly petrified in an instant. A stone god-like Life Spirit was unleashed and he quickly transformed. His body continued to expand and he became like a stone giant.


    "Kid, you''re down on your luck then," Lu Chong said to Ye Futian and brought a wild power of rules to bear on him. The other nine mighty ones bloomed with Light of Petrification, and their bodies started to become petrified bit by bit.


    Lu Chong went on to attack all the other nine around him, which served as a testament to his confidence in his power. The other mighty ones brought their own power of rules to bear one after another, stopping the encroaching Fossilization Rules. But then again, Lu Chong''s arms quickly extended in a frenzy and manifested many more stone arms, striking all nine mighty ones at the same time.


    Ye Futian came to understand somewhat why Lu Chong''s luck had been so bad. He had been aiming to attack everyone right from the start. Such a high-profile way of going about things meant that it would end in a tragedy for him if he did not have what it took to overpower everyone else. But then again, he seemed to have a healthy attitude about things.


    The arms struck down like mountains with incredible force. Ye Futian simply threw a punch. His power of the Starry Laws clashed with the stony powers of his opponent, and the powers of both sides were quickly reduced to dust.


    "Haha, good one, kid," Lu Chong laughed and said. His terrifying arms continued to sweep through the stage, and two mighty ones were soon hit and suffered internal injuries.


    "Everyone stop where you are!" Lu Chong shouted and mountains began to spring on the vast stage, attempting to seal the space they occupied within the rock. There were some whose bodies were completely buried by the Light of Petrification. They attempted to break free before Lu Chong''s attacks were seen descending from above, throwing them back again soon.


    Ye Futian saw powerful Fossilization Rules turning into rock and encroaching onto his body. Powers of rules out to tear everything apart flowed around him. It seemed that Lu Chong''s powers were indeed formidable, yet he truly was down on his luck.


    Ye Futian did not bother doing anything and simply stood by, watching how Lu Chong went on to crush all the other eight all on his own.


    "It seems like Lu Chong will finally be making it to the Seventh then," some around the stage laughed and said.


    "That guy you just mentioned doesn''t seem to be all that capable. The battles down there sure lacked punch," some laughed and jested, seeing how Ye Futian''s body was all covered in rock.


    "Just wait and see," those who came with Ye Futian replied. All who had seen Ye Futian fight knew without a doubt how powerful he truly was. While Lu Chong was indeed incredibly powerful, Ye Futian was still able to beat him.


    "What do you think?" Lu Chong took a look at Ye Futian and continued, "You seem to be capable enough. How about you come with me then?"


    Ye Futian took a look at him and said, "You''re formidable, but it''s a shame."


    "Shame? How so?" Lu Chong looked at Ye Futian, who was covered in rocks, and asked laughingly.


    Boom. The rocks covering Ye Futian were blown to pieces with a loud boom and he streaked at Lu Chong like a bolt of lightning.


    Lu Chong was dumbfounded, but quickly laughed and said, "Good one indeed." Countless arms of rock fell down on Ye Futian as soon as Lu Chong finished his line. However, Ye Futian did not bother resisting. The light of the stars basked about his body while he took the rocky arms head-on.


    "You have a death wish or something?" Lu Chong was puzzled but quickly found at the next moment that his arms were blasted to dust. He responded immediately by bringing even greater power to bear on Ye Futian, but his attempts proved futile. A streak of dazzling light shot straight through, followed by a finger bringing boundless light to bear on his huge body. The great rocky body blew up in an instant, and Lu Chong''s body was soon exposed, shuddering as he looked at Ye Futian before him.


    "I hope you have better luck tomorrow." A smile was seen on Ye Futian''s face.


    "I..." Lu Chong wanted very much to pummel Ye Futian, but he seemed to know that the odds were stacked against him.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    He had actually lost 100 battles in a row.


    Another monster? Many around the stage looked at the scene, their jaws dropping. All of them were rendered speechless. Just as speculated by those who came up with him, Ye Futian fought only three battles before making it to the Seventh Layer of Heaven. Even those who were as powerful as Lu Chong were done for within seconds.


    Lu Chong''s misfortune was really unnatural, as he even encountered one like Ye Futian even on his hundredth battle.


    Ye Futian looked up at the figure who was hosting the battles. They took out a Jiutian Order Token and carved Ye Futian''s name as well as the word "seven" on it before throwing it to Ye Futian, saying, "Ye Futian, you made it to the next round. From this moment on, you''re eligible for challenges at the Seventh Layer of Heaven."


    He made it to the Seventh Layer of Heaven. Three layers within a single day!

 911 Third Brothers Battle

    Ye Futian walked off the stage as soon as he had gotten the Jiutian Order Token to the Seventh Layer of Heaven. Lu Chong walked off, looking dejected as well. Countless eyes were on Lu Chong, who was hanging his head low, and felt rather impressed by his unnerving streak of bad luck.


    But then again, Ye Futian was indeed really, really powerful. Lu Chong''s powers definitely qualified him for the Seventh Layer of Heaven, but he was severely lacking in luck. If Ye Futian was capable of taking down the likes of Lu Chong in mere seconds, it meant that he had secured a place even in the Seventh Layer of Heaven.


    However, no one was certain if he would be able to make it past the Seventh. The rules in the Seventh and the Eighth Layers of Heaven in the Jiutian Temple were far more terrifying than that of the sixth. The rules were such that they were known to be devilish.


    Every battle fought in the Sixth leading to the Seventh would definitely yield one winner. Even if there were a few battles fought within a day, there would be many mighty ones gaining access to the Seventh as time passed. However, things were different in the Eighth Layer of Heaven. If one were to advance into the Eighth from the Seventh, one had to face greater challenges. It was the same going from Eighth to Ninth.


    As such, even though Ye Futian was extremely exceptional and it seemed guaranteed that he would be able to get a shining result at the Seventh Layer of Heaven. He would have still face unnerving difficulty making to the Eighth. As such, there were no guarantees about anything. Furthermore, one needed good timing to do so as well.


    Ye Futian took a seat instead of leaving immediately, as Yu Sheng had yet to fight. It seemed that the ten combatants in his round had yet to be gathered. The host was still waiting.


    There were times where people would come to the stage he fought on, and other times, someone coming up from below. After waiting for quite a while, the host finally announced that the battles would continue, and Yu Sheng stepped onto the stage.


    Ye Futian did not bother thinking about whether or Yu Sheng would be able to make it, as there simply was no need to do so.


    As expected, when the battle started, Yu Sheng brought his overpowering might to bear and threw one of his opponents off, looking invincible as he was doing so. When Yu Sheng was battling, a dazzling beam of light showered down from above. Countless people around the stage looked up and saw glittering light way above the ground. At the same time, two beams appeared on the stage, shinning onto two different figures.


    Ye Futian was able to see things clearer from his seat at the Sixth Layer of Heaven, catching sight of a figure standing from their seat, with eyes looking sharp as swords and piercing through the air, looking at the Eighth Layer of Heaven. That figure was clad in a white robe that looked as clean and flawless as snow. He wore headgear that made him look dashing. He might have looked like a scholar and was simply standing where he was, yet he looked mighty nonetheless.


    "Third Brother." Ye Futian shouted deep within his mind. His Third Brother was actually at the Jiutian Temple and was actually at the Eighth Layer of Heaven. If his Third Brother was around, then Jieyu and the others should be around as well.


    "Mu Fanchen." At that moment, one shocked voice after another was heard saying a name. It was apparent that they were able to recognize the one who was standing beside Gu Dongliu, an unparalleled genius named Mu Fanchen.


    Among the super mighty ones at the Jiutian Temple''s Eighth Layer of Heaven, it was said that he had secured a stellar record of eight consecutive victories, which meant that it would simply take him two more consecutive victories to earn a place at the Ninth Layer of Heaven, and subsequently be ranked in the Jiutian Ranking. That would put him to be on par with those legendary figures, becoming known as someone like those people. Furthermore, Mu Fanchen definitely had what it took to be recognized as such.


    "That''s Gu Dongliu, no?" One voice after another was heard.


    "Yes. He appeared in the last showdown at the Seventh Layer of Heaven," someone said. Ye Futian finally understood from the surrounding chatter that in the key battles of the Seventh and Eighth Layers of Heaven, the stage above projected stronger light, enabling all within the Jiutian Temple to witness those battles.


    "He is something indeed. Just look at how many days it took for Gu Dongliu to get eight consecutive victories in the Eighth Layer of Heaven," many quipped with a shocked and impressed voice.


    "It was said that Gu Dongliu came from the Lower Worlds. That kind of talent is eerie indeed."


    In the rules of combat of the Seventh and Eighth Layer of Heaven, mighty ones who managed to secure eight consecutive victories were arranged to fight another who had secured eight consecutive victories as well. One of them would definitely end up losing and was required to start all over again. It worked this way for everyone else. If Mu Fanchen had secured eight consecutive victories, that meant that Gu Dongliu, who was standing opposite him, had also secured eight consecutive victories.


    That would be their ninth battle, and the winner of that battle would be granted the right to challenge another who secured nine consecutive victories at the Eighth Layer of Heaven. The winner of that tenth battle would then be granted passage to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and be ranked on the Jiutian Ranking.


    "Powerful indeed, but I heard that Gu Dongliu and the others from the Lower Worlds have become enemies with Pei Qianying. The very reason why Gu Dongliu fought in the Jiutian Temple is to be able to challenge Pei Qianying, who is ranked on the Jiutian Ranking. He sure is going to be disappointed after this."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please clickfor visiting.


    "I''ve also heard news about the Little Princess in this matter. If Gu Dongliu is truly able to make it to the Ninth, I want to get a seat at the Ninth regardless of the price I have to pay, just to witness the battle between him and Pei Qianying for myself."


    The people around were growing restless and a voice was heard in the air, "Gu Dongliu, who has secured eight consecutive victories, will be battling against Mu Fanchen, who has also secured eight consecutive victories, at the Eighth Layer of Heaven of the Jiutian Temple, an hour from now." The voice was cast from the Eighth Layer of Heaven, and everyone was able to hear it clearly.


    Ye Futian''s eyes turned incredibly sharp. He had familiarized himself with the rules of the Jiutian Temple''s battles and, as such, knew what was to come very well. His Third Brother had secured eight consecutive victories at the Eighth Layer of Heaven and was making the way to the Ninth one step at a time.


    "Third Brother, wait for me," Ye Futian said to himself. He would be able to simply get up there and watch the battle as a spectator, but he apparently wanted to be more than a spectator. He wanted to see for himself, at the Jiutian Temple''s Ninth Layer of Heaven, what that Pei Qianying, someone who dared to tear Wuchen''s Life Spirit away, was like.


    It would have been easier to do with Xia Qingyuan around, as the name of Emperor Xia was not allowed to be tarnished, and the same went for Xia Qingyuan as well. With Xia Qingyuan around, he could do anything and there was nothing anyone could do about him, a lord of a holy land of the Nine States of the Lower Worlds, so long as he played by the rules. As such, Ye Futian would have stuck to the rules and would not have challenged them. While he was a Palace Lord, he was in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and his status fell rather short.


    Yu Sheng heard the voice from the Eighth Layer of Heaven as well. He went to overpower all of the mighty ones on the stage with extreme might, taking the Jiutian Order Token granting him passage to the Seventh, then walked off the stage.


    He came to stand beside Ye Futian and looked up. Gu Dongliu and Mu Fanchen were both standing at the forum up in the Eighth Layer of Heaven, but they had yet to fight. It was the rules of the Jiutian Temple. A noteworthy battle like that naturally needed more eyes on it, and it was one that would make some pay a hefty price just to witness it at the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    At that moment, none in the Jiutian Temple seemed to be in the mood to watch the battles in the stages before them anymore. They all looked up at the dazzling light at the Eighth Layer of Heaven. Those at the bottom layers hated being at such a low place and wanted to watch the upcoming battle up close to the Eight Layer of Heaven.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said to Yu Sheng, who nodded in response. They both walked to the steps at the side.


    "They''re going up to the Seventh." Those who had been paying attention to the battles fought by Ye Futian and Yu Sheng took a look at the air before turning their attention back to the two of them. Some got up and decided to head over to the Seventh Layer of Heaven, as that enabled them to watch the battle between Gu Dongliu and Mu Fanchen closer.


    At the same time, they wanted to watch the performance of both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng at the Seventh Layer of Heaven. They wanted to see if those two, who fought only three battles before making it to the Seventh Layer of Heaven of the Jiutian Temple, were able to continue to shine in their next stages.


    At that moment, a group of people appeared at the steps. It was none other than Li Qingyun and his people, who were tasked to guard the Sky Stairwell. Li Qingyun was formidable and he had a divine implement with him. It was due to said divine implement that he was able to make it to the Jiutian Temple from the Sky Stairwell in such a short period of time. He was rather shocked to see Gu Dongliu and Mu Fanchen appearing in the sky. He was rather surprised at how far Gu Dongliu had been able to go.


    "It''s them." Li Qingyun saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, who were heading towards the steps to the Seventh Layer of Heaven, and was somewhat shocked.


    "They''re fast." The ones behind him were impressed. They all made it there due to the powers of their divine implements. They had not been spending much time on their journey and were all shocked to find Ye Futian and Yu Sheng already at the Seventh Layer of Heaven.


    Li Qingyun felt somewhat like a loser. He had been a very proud person once, but was quickly taken down by a strike from Ye Futian''s halberd. They saw the obstacles of the Sky Stairwell to be non-existent, coming and going as they pleased. Li Qingyun and his people pursued them and found Ye Futian already at the Seventh Layer of Heaven. They were such geniuses that it filled him with envy. Ye Futian might actually be one who could make it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    "Follow them," Li Qingyun said, and they tailed Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, arriving at the stands of the Seventh Layer of Heaven.


    Ye Futian had already handed his token to the person in charge at the Jiutian Temple and had them arrange his battles. However, no one was battling at the Seventh Layer of Heaven at the moment, and no one seemed to be in the mood of doing battle. Their eyes were all on Gu Dongliu and Mu Fanchen, ready to see who among them would emerge victorious.


    There were fewer seats at the Seventh Layer of Heaven, and those who were able to sit there were all notable people. Many of them hailed from renowned clans of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Mu Fanchen will win his ninth consecutive battle in this one, and he is but a step away from the Jiutian Ranking," someone commented.


    "This Gu Dongliu fellow is not weak by any means. His Life Spirit is rather special as well. He wouldn''t have been able to make it this far otherwise."


    "He''s definitely strong, alright, but he''s still from the Lower Worlds. Mu Fanchen isn''t someone he can win against. This battle will be Gu Dongliu''s last at the Jiutian Temple. It''s hopeless for him to be able to challenge Pei Qianying," a woman with exceptional looks said.


    "Mu Fanchen gave you instructions before, so do you have a thing for him now?" a young man jested at the side.


    "Quit spouting nonsense." The woman looked rather embarrassed and continued, "I''m just telling the truth as it is. Those from the Lower Worlds were taken by the princess for training, but some didn''t know their place and actually wanted to make it to the Jiutian Ranking."


    "The insignificant one from the Lower Worlds that you speak of now stands at the Eighth Layer of Heaven and all eyes are on him. Where are you now, if I may ask?" a cold voice was said!

 912 Absolute Advantage

    Zhao Shi looked back and saw a handsome face, but the eyes were extremely piercing, and there was a touch of coldness about his figure. This person seemed extremely young, but he made those around him feel a lot of pressure.


    Her face changed slightly. She had belittled Gu Dongliu in order to raise up Mu Fanchen. But in reality, Gu Dongliu had had an eight battle winning streak and was only two victories away from getting onto the Jiutian Ranking. This was extraordinary and was obviously not something that she could do.


    However, she naturally could not admit this, and so she frowned and said, "I said that people from the Lower World do not have any kind of profound understanding. Do you have a problem with that?"


    "The chick mocks the phoenix, but in its self-satisfaction, it doesn''t even know how high the sky is." Ye Futian glanced at Zhao Shi coldly. Afterwards, he didn''t look at her but looked at the two figures in the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    "You..." Zhao Shi''s face changed. He had actually used an insulting word like "chick" to describe her. The youth beside her cast his gaze upon Ye Futian. His eyes were sharp, and there was an air of threat about him.


    A Saint had come into the Zhao clan decades ago, which meant that they had a place in Emperor Xia''s realm. They were a power that was at the Saint level, so they were able to get in touch with Mu Fanchen. They were close to Mu Fanchen''s family, and Zhao Shi was indeed interested in him, so she would naturally speak up for him and belittle Gu Dongliu, but she did not want to be mocked and humiliated like this.


    "Take back what you just said and apologize." Beside her, Zhao Ci''s eyes were cold as he glanced at Ye Futian. He was filled with a cold, invisible pressure.


    Ye Futian looked back and glanced coldly at Zhao Ci. These two obviously came from the same force. However, here on the Seventh Layer of Heaven, they had mocked Gu Dongliu in order to raise up Mu Fanchen, thus revealing their low breeding and humble origins.


    Yu Sheng took a step forward. His burly body carried a compelling force with it. Several people were standing by Zhao Shi and Zhao Ci, all of whom had a faint force around them that then fell upon Yu Sheng and Ye Futian. There were even Sages among them, all of whom were cultivators from their clan.


    "Get out of here," Yu Sheng said coldly to Zhao Ci. Ye Futian averted his gaze, looking at him no more. Someone who had shown himself to be so petty was not worth looking at anymore, let alone apologizing to. If it had not been for him insulting his Third Brother, he would not have paid any attention to him.


    Zhao Shi and the others'' faces all changed. These two were so supercilious. Ye Futian seemed to be disdaining them by his actions, as if he were too lazy to even look at them. They had never seen anyone so pretentious. Even Mu Fanchen was modest and polite; when had he ever been like Ye Futian?


    The more lowborn someone was, the more they liked to embody their own uniqueness in such an independent way. They thought they were a cut above everyone else, but they didn''t know how stupid they were.


    Now, a cultivator looked over at them and said, "You must know the rules of Jiutian Temple. If there is a problem you can solve it on the Law Battle Platform."


    "I understand." Zhao Ci nodded, then looked at Ye Futian. "Have you come to participate in the Law Battle of the Seventh Layer of Heaven?" Since they had displayed themselves so ostentatiously, they must have some power, and thus had come to fight in the Seventh Layer of Heaven.


    Ye Futian still ignored him, but the one who had come with him said, "We''ve already fought here in the Seventh Layer of Heaven."


    Everyone looked interested and watched with excitement.


    This Ye Futian was exceedingly arrogant. He had been disdainful to the Zhao clan. Zhao Ci had fought many times in the Seventh Layer of Heaven. His record winning-streak was seven victories, so he could be said to be very strong. Although, as he had approached his eighth victory in a row, he had been defeated and had to start all over again, his strength was undoubtable. Moreover, it seemed that he was once again on a five-match winning streak.


    "In that case, why don''t we learn from each other on the Law Battle Platform?" asked Zhao Ci.


    "Can you shut up?" Ye Futian still did not look at Zhao Ci but looked at the two figures in the sky.


    The battle was about to begin.


    "This..." the people around them were speechless. He was so arrogant that Zhao Ci was simply not in his line of sight.


    "You express your extraordinariness in this way, yet avoid a direct confrontation? That''s ridiculous." Zhao Ci''s eyes were cold.


    Ye Futian turned and finally looked at Zhao Ci and Zhao Shi. Coldness flashed in his eyes and he said, "If the people of Jiutian Temple arrange it, then I have no objections."


    "Good." Zhao Ci nodded, then looked at the person who presided over the Law Battles up on the Law Battle Platform. "Could you arrange a Law Battle for us?"


    He looked at Zhao Ci and said, "You already have five victories in a row."


    People who had five victories in a row would usually face cultivators who also had five victories in a row, so the farther they went the higher the difficulty became. Most people could never get through it and would stay on the Seventh Layer of Heaven.


    "This battle doesn''t have to go on my record," said Zhao Ci indifferently.


    "Fine." The cultivator did not say much. There was a touch of coldness about Zhao Ci''s mouth. Before, when Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had released their power, he had naturally felt their cultivation. They were mid-level Magi, while he stood at the peak of the Magi Plane. The best he had done upon the Law Battle Platform of the Seventh Layer of Heaven was a seven battle winning streak.


    How could someone who was just stepping onto the Law Battle Platform for the first time hope to fight him?


    Zhao Ci sat on the platform that looked up to the Eighth Layer of Heaven, and he looked very indifferent.


    "Let''s begin." At that moment a voice rang out. Up in the Eighth Layer of Heaven, Gu Dongliu and Mu Fanchen stood up and faced each other.


    At that moment, in all the vast and high Jiutian Temple, other than the endless Law Battles, all other fights were temporarily suspended, and everyone''s eyes were fixed on the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    An eight-battle winning streak was the most impressive accomplishment aside from a nine-battle winning streak. Thus, the audience was obviously engrossed in it. An endless brilliance was released from the Eighth Layer of Heaven''s Law Battle Platform, making it easier to see and invoking the emotions of the cultivators of Jiutian Temple.


    The reason why Jiutian Temple was so famous in Emperor Xia''s realm was because of the hardships and bloodshed experienced there. This was what every cultivator yearned for.


    The radiance was extremely dazzling. Gu Dongliu''s Life Spirit bloomed, and in a flash, the Nine Word Ring surrounded him, swallowing up the brilliance. A Celestial Shadow also appeared on him, the Celestial Shadow of the Nine Word Ring, making Celestial Light flow across his body. It was glorious to behold.


    I never would have imagined there were such peerless figures in the Lower World, many people in the Jiutian Temple stands thought secretly. The battle had not yet begun, but they could already feel the brilliance.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    At the same time, a figure appeared behind Mu Fanchen. Afterward, he split into several different bodies that stood in different positions upon the Law Battle Platform. Each one of them was based on Mu Fanchen, but each had a different temperament, and the auras that came from them were different.


    A deafening roar sounded around Jiutian Temple. Mu Fanchen obviously enjoyed a great reputation, and many of the people clustered around believed he would win this battle.


    "Each of Mu Fanchen''s exterior incarnations has different abilities. He has already produced six exterior incarnations. It is said that he practiced so hard that he can produce up to nine. Each one is different. With such a powerful ability how can Gu Dongliu win?" Zhao Ci said indifferently.


    Ye Futian also saw Mu Fanchen''s body changing. These exterior incarnations were much stronger than the Zhuge Family''s. Since Mu Fanchen was able to win eight matches in a row in the Eighth Layer of Heaven, he was hailed as the next one to fight his way into the Jiutian Ranking. He was quite outstanding.


    But even so, Ye Futian was not greatly disturbed. When Third Brother''s Life Spirit had undergone its transformation he had become much stronger than before. Now after more than three years of trials, it was naturally impossible for him to fail to achieve results.


    Third Brother would definitely fight his way into the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    Suddenly, a group of figures that looked like gods of war was summoned around Gu Dongliu. An ancient word was engraved on each figure, and in total, there were nine words. When the nine figures were lined up, there were more of them than there were of Mu Fanchen''s exterior incarnations. This scene made everyone even more excited, as if they were the ones fighting in this battle.


    Although Gu Dongliu and Mu Fanchen''s abilities were different, the effects were somewhat similar.


    So, who was stronger?


    At that moment, a boundless Celestial Light seemed to bloom from Gu Dongliu''s body, covering the nine summoned gods of war. They seemed to resonate with his Life Spirit. In that instant, the rays of his radiance covered the Law Battle Platform.


    It seemed that the power of heaven and earth on that platform resonated with him and was there for him to use.


    Ye Futian sometimes wondered why Third Brother''s Life Spirit could awaken. He had never heard Third Brother mention his family. According to the Master, at first, after seeing Second Sister, Third Brother would not follow him. But it seemed that the Master must have deliberately abducted him, although he was not clear on the details. But the source of a Life Spirit, generally speaking, came from one''s heritage, especially extremely powerful Life Spirits.


    The nine gods of war with words carved into them moved as one, and they descended like a flash of lighting upon their opponent, giving birth to an incomparably dazzling, invincible mudra.


    Mu Fanchen''s exterior incarnations did not shirk their duties and directly collided with the gods of war. In an instant, the airflow on the Law Battle Platform was dancing wildly.


    "Soldier," spat Gu Dongliu, and the god of war with "soldier" carved on it cut forward like a knife through bamboo. It was so sharp that it was like a sword slicing down. It turned into the Milky Way Sword and sought to destroy everything in front of it.


    "So strong." Everyone''s hearts beat faster. Gu Dongliu had taken the initiative and attacked. He had stepped out with the nine gods of war. Each god of war was good at a different mudra and even used different rule powers. This level of ability was simply terrifying, and thus everyone''s hearts were beating faster.


    "Mu Fanchen has not attacked. He has chosen defense."


    The incomparably beautiful battle on the Eighth Layer of Heaven made everyone in Jiutian Temple quiet. This was somewhat different from what they had imagined.


    Mu Fanchen seemed to be feeling Gu Dongliu''s power, as he took the initiative to defend, not to attack. There was a strange look in Zhao Shi and Zhao Ci''s eyes as they watched the battle with amazement.


    "Mu Fanchen must not have used all his power yet. He''s observing his opponent," said Zhao Shi.


    Everyone ignored her. The battle in the sky continued. The nine gods of war attacked at once, and at the same time, they resonated with Gu Dongliu. The light of his Life Spirit covered the nine gods of war, combining the nine into one.


    Mu Fanchen had still not counterattacked. Or perhaps, he could not counterattack.


    Everyone''s hearts beat wildly. How could this be?


    Gu Dongliu was suppressing Mu Fanchen!

 913 All For Piercing Through to the Ninth Layer of Heaven

    Upon the incomparably beautiful Law Battle Platform of the Eighth Layer of Heaven, Gu Dongliu had seized the initiative.


    The more the nine war god-like figures fought, the more powerful they became. Endless rays of light connected them together, turning the nine bodies into one. Each of their attacks was more powerful than the last, and they supressed Mu Fanchen''s exterior incarnations.


    At this moment, even Zhao Shi was speechless, and her face was slightly pale. Although her level was much lower, she could at least understand what was going on in the battle. It was very obvious that Mu Fanchen was not merely observing Gu Dongliu, but had indeed been firmly suppressed by him and had absolutely no chance to counterattack.


    One as strong as Mu Fanchen had been suppressed.


    Many people in Jiutian Temple watched the showdown. They had thought that this would be another chance for Mu Fanchen to show off. No one had thought it would end like this. The crowd was silent. The cultivators who used to scream and cheer for Mu Fanchen watched the battle without a sound.


    Finally, an incomparable brilliance bloomed upon the Law Battle Platform. Mu Fanchen was hit. He coughed up a stream of blood as he was sent flying. He wanted to keep fighting, but Gu Dongliu did not give him the chance. His fists struck repeatedly, causing him to shake wildly and continuously spit up blood. It was quite brutal.


    A dazzling radiance shone out. Mu Fanchen was once again sent flying. He had finally stopped resisting. He looked up at Gu Dongliu. He did not have the same countenance as before, and seemed a little dazed, and even a bit unsure of himself. He had been defeated by a proud son of heaven from the Nine States of the Lower World. It could even be said that he had been crushed by him.


    He had only needed two more battles to enter the Ninth Layer of Heaven. Now he had been stopped here and would have to start again. He believed he was strong enough to fight his way back to this point at any time, but this defeat was still a blemish on his reputation.


    "Gu Dongliu has won nine victories in a row," at that moment a voice rang throughout Jiutian Temple, making everyone tremble.


    He had won nine consecutive victories on the Eighth Layer of Heaven. With just one more victory Gu Dongliu would enter the Ninth Layer of Heaven, ascend to the Jiutian Ranking, and would have his name engraved within Jiutian Temple.


    Those who could get on the Jiutian Ranking were all prodigies of the Divine Path and would stand shoulder to shoulder with many of the top talents of Emperor Xia''s realm.


    Upon the Law Battle Platform, the light dimmed, and everything in the Eighth Layer of Heaven gradually became blurry. Afterward, Jiutian Temple was in an uproar as everyone discussed the battle.


    This fight had obviously been shocking to many of them.


    Ye Futian looked away from the Eighth Layer of Heaven and towards the Law Battle Platform before him. His next step should be to go to the Eighth Layer of Heaven to reconvene with Third Brother.


    But according to the rules, he would have to win ten victories in a row, and each victory would have to be against an opponent with an equal number of victories. Moreover, he would have to wait for someone from Jiutian Temple to arrange it. In general, they would arrange one battle per day.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    He didn''t have time to wait.


    Not far from him, Zhao Shi thought that Ye Futian would say something sarcastic. But Ye Futian did not look back at her at all, making her face feel hot with embarrassment.


    This kind of disregard was ever so shameful.


    Yu Sheng glanced at her coldly, making her feel very uncomfortable. His contemptuous eyes seemed to regard her as an idiot.


    "Could you arrange our battle first?" Zhao Ci asked the cultivator on the Law Battle Platform.


    The cultivator looked at Ye Futian. Jiutian Temple had its own rules, but if someone asked, and it didn''t affect the rules too much, he had no objection. Some battles would attract more attention, and people would be happy to watch.


    "You don''t have to accept," he said to Ye Futian.


    "I accept," Ye Futian said calmly.


    "Fine. If you win, it will be counted in the record. If Zhao Ci wins, it won''t be," said the man indifferently.


    Zhao Ci''s figure flashed as he shot up into the sky. He then descended upon the Law Battle Platform. He stood there and looked down on Ye Futian. He had never seen someone as arrogant as him. It seemed as if, in his eyes, he could not tolerate anyone else.


    "What are you waiting for?" Zhao Shi still stared at Ye Futian. Gu Dongliu had defeated Mu Fanchen, making the joy leave her face. Thus, in this battle, Zhao Ci must humiliate Ye Futian.


    In the stands, Li Qingyun looked at Zhao Ci and Zhao Shi with a bit of sympathy. He had just seen Gu Dongliu''s battle and felt that he was very strong. Ye Futian had come up the Sky Stairwell. He was probably no weaker than Gu Dongliu.


    Zhao Ci would probably come to grief in this battle.


    Many eyes were upon Ye Futian. They saw him step forward onto the Law Battle Platform. He did not look at Zhao Ci and his gaze drifted as if he were thinking about something.


    "You first," Zhao Ci said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian finally looked up at Zhao Ci. He stretched out his arm and suddenly, a stream of glittering particles flowed out from it. Although they were just particles, the aura that came from them made Zhao Ci feel threatened. His Life Spirit bloomed, and at the same time, he released his Law Will as he readied for battle.


    But when he saw this, Ye Futian crossed through the air like the wind and turned into a beam of light that directly descended upon where he was. He was too fast. He was there in an instant.


    Zhao Ci''s aura burst out wildly, but Ye Futian''s arm shot forward. The endless stream of particles pierced Zhao Ci''s defenses and crushed everything. In that instant, the Law Battle Platform trembled fiercely. Each particle was like a star and carried unmatched power.


    Boom�� A loud sound rang out, and everyone''s hearts leapt. They all stared at the Law Battle Platform and saw Ye Futian''s arm piercing through all the defenses and slamming into Zhao Ci.


    Zhao Ci was bending at the waist as if he could no longer stand up straight. His eyes were wide as if he had experienced something terrible, and his face was so white as to not have a trace of color left in it.


    With just one blow everything had come to a stop.


    Ye Futian removed his hand from Zhao Ci''s chest and put it around his throat. He lifted him into the air and said, "You want me to apologize?"


    Zhao Ci was lifted up like a corpse. He looked at Ye Futian, feeling endless humiliation. However, Ye Futian''s eyes were the same as before, full of contempt and disdain, as if he had never held any respect for him.


    "Can he bear it?" Ye Futian asked indifferently, and he looked at Zhao Shi.


    Zhao Shi''s face went white as paper. Several cultivators beside her stepped forward and shot cold glances at Ye Futian. "Release him," they said. "Immediately."


    "Who are you talking to?" A sharp, cold voice rang out. The Zhao family cultivators saw an old man walking towards them. In an instant, the Lingtian Sword Will descended. They suddenly felt that if this man wished it, they would be sliced to pieces by the sword.


    This was the power of a Saint.


    Their faces became extremely troubled. Who was this Ye Futian?


    Zhao Shi''s face had lost all color. How could this be?


    All the cultivators looked at Ye Futian and their hearts beat rapidly.


    This guy was too strong, and he had a Saint following him.


    So why did no one know about him?


    A figure like this could not be anonymous in Emperor Xia''s realm.


    "Who are you, my lord?" one of the Zhao family cultivators asked Ye Futian. He had a Saint following him. Even those of one of the clans could not dare to offend him.


    "I come from the Nine States, so I am from the Lower World, just as she said," said Ye Futian. A strange look came over everyone''s faces. It was rumored that Gu Dongliu also came from the Lower World, and today, he had shown his brilliance. And now Ye Futian said he had come from there as well.


    "Gu Dongliu is my brother," continued Ye Futian. Everyone''s hearts beat faster. The two brothers were both outstanding. Zhao Shi finally understood how she had offended Ye Futian. The one she had disdained was Ye Futian''s brother.


    "When I came to the Upper Worlds from the Nine States, some people dismissed me. Now, in Jiutian Temple, it is the same." Ye Futian swept his gaze over the crowd. He saw that Li Qingyun was also there. Upon hearing Ye Futian''s words, he went red. Previously, he had indeed dismissed Ye Futian.


    "However, from Jiutian Temple to the Seventh Layer of Heaven, there has not been one person who could bear even a single attack from me. Is this where your pride comes from?" Ye Futian''s eyes gradually became sharper, and his tone was full of arrogance.


    "I did not come from the Lower World to prove how many layers of heaven I could fight my way through, nor to get on the Jiutian Ranking. My brothers and I came to find someone. It is said that he is on the Jiutian Ranking, and thus I had to fight my way up through the Ranking." Ye Futian''s calm words made everyone''s hearts beat faster.


    Everyone knew who he had come for. Just like those others from the Lower World, he had come for Pei Qianying. He had come to Jiutian Temple not for anything else but to break through to the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    What a wild gesture this was.


    "The battles on the Seventh Layer of Heaven are meaningless to me. If there are those with different winning streaks here, can I fight them all together? I''m in a hurry," Ye Futian continued. Everyone''s gaze froze upon him. They understood what he said this for.


    He was in a hurry, so he didn''t want to wait.


    According to Jiutian Temple''s rules, he would probably have to wait many days before he could get to the Eighth Layer of Heaven. He was not that patient and had directly challenged people with different winning streaks.


    And he had challenged them all at once.


    This was simply...


    Before, when little Princess Xia Qingyuan had dashed off to Jiutian Temple, the abbot had personally accompanied her. The rules were directly revised to allow her to fight her way into the Ninth Layer of Heaven and climb onto the Jiutian Ranking.


    Now, Ye Futian who had come from the Nine States wanted to challenge all the cultivators in the Seventh Layer of Heaven with different winning streaks, making Jiutian Temple change their rules once again.

 914 The Shadow of the Staff Blots out the Sky

    On the Seventh Layer of Heaven, everyone looked at Ye Futian upon the Law Battle Platform. Those who had been following Ye Futian''s battles all along were speechless. They had followed him because they had seen his power and wanted to see what layer he could get to. They had thought that getting to the Eighth Layer of Heaven would be too difficult. But they had never thought that Ye Futian''s goal was not the Eighth Layer of Heaven; instead, he wanted to fight his way up to the ninth to find Pei Qianying.


    Some of them were also a little angry. Those supernatural figures who had made it to the Seventh Level of Heaven but not the eighth were already extraordinarily strong. Since Ye Futian had crushed Zhao Ci his strength was naturally beyond doubt, but by threatening to crush all the cultivators of the Seventh Layer of Heaven he had shown himself to be arrogant beyond words.


    At this moment, the cultivator who presided over the Law Battles swept his gaze over Ye Futian and said, "When the Princess forged her way onto the Jiutian Ranking, the rules were changed for her. What will you rely on?" He could see that Ye Futian had crushed Zhao Ci so powerfully not only to give vent to his grievances, but also to show off his own arrogance. Taking pains to reveal his power to crush everything and provoke the powers of the Seventh Layer of Heaven would make Jiutian Temple change the rules for him and let him directly fight his way to the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    Zhao Ci had jumped at this provocation and had been made into a tool for Ye Futian. It was truly tragic. However, Xia Qingyuan had so much status, so of course, they had changed the rules for her. Although Ye Futian''s talent was outstanding, what could he rely on to make Jiutian Temple make an exception for him?


    Ye Futian looked back at the cultivator on the platform and said, "I have been cultivating for more than 30 years. I have never been defeated by someone on the same Plane as me. I advanced to the position of Palace Lord of one of the holy lands of the Nine States while on the Noble Plane. I unified the Barren State. All the Sages obey my orders, and both the Saints assist me in governing. In all the Nine States I am the only leader who is not on the Saint Plane. I came from the Nine States, ascended the Sky Stairwell, and no one could stop me. And no one will stop me from getting onto the Jiutian Ranking. Is that enough?" Ye Futian looked calmly at the cultivator on the platform. However, outside this calmness, his proud spirit was clear for all to see.


    Everyone''s hearts beat faster as they looked at this heroic figure.


    They finally understood why know one knew him, and why he was so strong.


    He was unknown in Emperor Xia''s realm, but in the Lower World, his name was known everywhere. He was the only leader of a holy land who was not a Saint, with two Saints who willingly aided him in ruling. This was a talent that defied the natural order. To be able to make Saints help him was putting the cart before the horse. What was more frightening was that he had become a Palace Lord while in the Noble Plane.


    How glorious was this man in the Nine States? No one doubted the truth of Ye Futian''s words. After all, they had all just witnessed a Saint following his orders.


    Zhao Shi''s face grew as white as paper. Many people were thinking, Ye Futian ascended the Sky Stairwell and fought his way to this Layer of Heaven. And he is a Palace Lord. Could it be that he''s stronger than Gu Dongliu?


    Gu Dongliu had won nine times in a row. With just one more victory, he could enter the Jiutian Ranking. And judging by the strength with which he had crushed Mu Fanchen, it seemed that his success was highly likely.


    Anything that Gu Dongliu could do, Ye Futian could probably do as well.


    Would there be two people from the Nine States who fought their way onto the Jiutian Ranking today?


    The cultivator on the Law Battle Platform stared at Ye Futian. His heart was also in turmoil. Xia Qingyuan was hailed as the most outstanding figure of Emperor Xia''s realm. Coupled with her high status, this had made Jiutian Temple change the rules for her. Now, the most dazzling figure of the Lower World had come here as well, wanting to fight his way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    Although the most outstanding figures of the Lower World could not be mentioned in the same breath as the Princess, he still wanted to see just how strong this man who boasted of his prowess was.


    "Wait here." The cultivator on the Law Battle Platform stepped away. Obviously, he could not be the one to make the decision.


    "Can you let me go?" Ye Futian was still carrying Zhao Ci. The blood had all drained from his face, and in his heart, there was nothing but humiliation. He was nothing more than a clown. Ye Futian had carried him here, making the contrast between them very clear. Ye Futian tossed him on the ground. He started bleeding from the mouth as he hit the floor.


    Zhao Shi ran over to him and helped him up. Her face was also extremely pale. When she looked up at Ye Futian, she saw that he was not looking at her. It seemed that from the start he had not cared about either of them at all.


    Not long after, a group of cultivators broke through the sky. The cultivator who had previously been standing on the Law Battle Platform was among them. Their eyes fell upon Ye Futian, and they all stood around the Law Battle Platform. Someone turned around and said to them, "Someone wants to challenge all the cultivators of the Seventh Layer of Heaven of different winning streaks. Is anyone here willing to fight him?"


    Obviously, Jiutian Temple had agreed to his request and changed the Law Battle rules.


    "I''ll try," came a voice. Everyone turned to look and saw a figure wearing a blue robe walk out. He looked to be over 30 years old. His eyes shone brightly, but there was also a depth to them, as if he had a charm that could pierce one''s heart.


    "Zhang Lie." Everyone''s hearts trembled. He was the cultivator with the greatest reputation on the Seventh Layer of Heaven. He already had a nine-battle winning streak. With only one more victory he could advance to the Eighth Layer of Heaven, so he did not need to take the risk and participate in this battle.


    But he was the first to come out. Obviously, for many people, the reason they had come to Jiutian Temple was to feel out other cultivators at the same level as them, not just to reach the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    Ye Futian was a tempting opponent, and so Zhang Lie had come out.


    "I''ll try as well," came another voice. Everyone saw another cultivator walk out.


    "Yu Chifeng." Everyone''s hearts were once again shaken by the burly figure that walked out. Yu Chifeng was also one of the most highly regarded cultivators of the Seventh Layer of Heaven. He already had won eight battles in a row, and he greatly desired to one day join the ranks of the Eight Layer of Heaven.


    Zhang Lie and Yu Chifeng took the lead, and suddenly a group of others walked out. Soon there were nine of them. Moreover, all of them had at least a three-battle winning streak.


    The cultivator who was in charge of the Law Battles called out their names and records, then asked Ye Futian, "Do you have any objections?"


    "No," said Ye Futian.


    "Good." The man nodded, then said, "Everyone come up." As he spoke, the group shot up into the sky and then descended upon the Law Battle Platform and surrounded Ye Futian.


    The matrix was started up. In an instant the light curtain on the platform began to turn, becoming brighter and brighter. Dazzling light flowed from the sky, falling down like quicksilver into the Sixth Layer of Heaven.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Down in the Sixth Layer of Heaven, a group of figures looked up to the seventh. Not long before, there had been a great battle in the Eighth Layer of Heaven. Would there be another one in the seventh?


    Many people''s hearts beat faster as they became excited. Never before had two astonishing battles happened on the same day. But they were shocked when they saw the situation on the Law Battle Platform in the Seventh Layer of Heaven. What was going on?


    Ten great cultivators?


    On the Seventh Layer of Heaven, all battles were one on one. More than one person could not fight at once. Why were ten of them there?


    "Isn''t that Ye Futian who rose through the ranks so confidently?" On the First, Fourth and Sixth Layers of Heaven, those who saw Ye Futian had a strange look come over their faces. The people on the first layer were especially shaken. He had already made it to the Seventh Layer of Heaven in such a short time and had gotten involved in a battle that was attracting so much attention.


    This speed�� was simply frightening.


    "Zhang Lie, with nine victories in a row; Yu Chifeng, with eight victories in a row; Han Jiang, with seven victories in a row..." a series of voices floated down from the Seventh Layer of Heaven and spread throughout the Nine Heavens, making everyone''s hearts beat faster. What was going on? People with nine victories in a row, eight victories in a row, and seven victories in a row had all stepped onto the Law Battle Platform. They didn''t understand.


    When the nine names were all called out, the cultivator paused. Only the man in the middle had not reported his surname.


    "Ye Futian challenges the nine great cultivators." His voice fell, and everyone''s hearts beat wildly.


    Ye Futian had challenged nine cultivators. Jiutian Temple had changed the rules for him and let him challenge nine people. What did this mean?


    Who was this Ye Futian?


    "Begin," announced the cultivator, and the nine cultivators released their strong rule power.


    Zhang Lie''s eyes suddenly turned purple. A destructive thunderstorm suddenly erupted all around him. Bolts of lightning fell. His eyes were like the center of a storm. As he swept his gaze over Ye Futian, an invisible chain of thunder swept out and turned into a terrible thunder monster that rushed towards him.


    Ye Futian glanced at Zhang Lie. He felt that he was going to be absorbed into his opponent''s world of thunder.


    Boom! The terrible thunderclap''s power drowned everything as it fell upon Ye Futian, but it did not shake his body. Ye Futian stood there, surrounded by brilliant stars. The thunderbolt smashed into them, causing cracks to appear in the starry light curtain.


    At the same time, a tyrannical power fell down from the sky. Yu Chifeng struck down from the sky with a wolf-tooth cudgel. The golden cudgel continued to grow bigger and bigger until it grew to 30 meters. It slashed down and its boundless power seemed as if it would split the sky.


    An invisible rule power appeared around Ye Futian, reducing the wolf-tooth cudgel''s speed. It seemed as if the space there had been frozen. But Yu Chifeng roared and the cudgel continued to slash forward. There was an astonishingly loud noise as it smashed into the starry light curtain, making more cracks.


    Thousands of impossibly sharp swords also flew down from the sky towards him.


    In a flash, the nine cultivators launched both rule spells and close combat attacks. Ye Futian seemed to be buried by all of it. Everyone''s hearts beat faster. It was too violent. Could he really block such fierce attacks?


    Ye Futian still stood at the center of the Law Battle Platform. At that moment everyone saw him nod slightly. That motion made everyone''s hearts tremble.


    The light coming from Ye Futian''s body grew brighter, and brilliant particles of light bloomed from him, turning into a particle storm. They wound wildly around his body, and each of the attacks was shattered and destroyed in the vortex. Ye Futian spiraled up through the cyclone, seeming to bathe in his apotheosis. He thrust his hand forward and suddenly the particle storm coalesced into a long golden staff that he held in his hand.


    In the next moment, Ye Futian flew up and the particle storm wrapped around the golden staff. His aura grew stronger and stronger, and the nine cultivators around felt a strong threat from him.


    Woosh! A strong wind swept out as the golden staff slashed down with endless brilliance, smashing through the nine of them.


    Boom...boom...boom... the shadow of the staff blotted out the sun as the nine cultivators were sent flying. The staff seemed to split the battle platform. He had come from the Nine States and sought to fight his way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven!

 915 In the Eighth Layer of Heaven

    "Too strong." In the Jiutian Temple above and under the Seventh Layer of Heaven, countless people saw the brilliant scene on the Law Battle Platform and felt as if they were about to stop breathing


    When the golden long rod swept down, seven cultivators were blasted and injured. The only two who were able to remain standing were the holder of nine straight victories, Zhang Lie, and the holder of the eight straight victories, Wei Chifeng.


    However, Ye Futian did not stop. The golden long rod sliced through the void with a radiant arc, endless particle storms still surrounding the long rod. Wei Chifeng, who was holding the Wolf Fang Bat, felt his heart beating fiercely. The next moment he saw the rod coming at him, and under the long rod, the ray of each particle contained an incomparable force of suppression, and with the power of the strike before, Wei Chifeng felt that even the sky were falling.


    There was an incomparable brilliance bursting from his body, and both hands holding the Wolf Fang Bat blasted forwards without looking back. Even if he knew it was unstoppable, he must try and see the strength of this blow.


    Bang! An incredibly loud noise was heard, and without any doubt, Wei Chifeng was blasted and flew out, hitting the matrix light screen that was on the Law Battle Platform. There was blood at the corner of his mouth. At the same time, the violent light of thunder and lightning descended upon Ye Futian, and that horrible thunderstorm rushed into his spiritual will, which contained a terrible power of destruction.


    When Ye Futian turned around, he saw Zhang Lie''s purple pupils cave in deeply, turning into a terrible whirlpool to swallow his spiritual will. Ye Futian snorted with disdain. The rod disappeared, and he moved toward Zhang Lie. His eyes also became extremely magical, like a terrible spiritual storm. Golden lightning shot out from his eyes and aimed straight for Zhang Lie''s pupils. The two stared at each other from a distance.


    A scream came out. Zhang Lie closed his eyes and blood came out of his pupils, but just at that time, Ye Futian also retrieved his power.


    Even so, this scene was still too shocking.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Ye Futian was too powerful and invincible. As he had said before once he stepped into the Jiutian Temple, so far no one could oppose him. Neither Zhang Lie nor Wei Chifeng could bear even one blow from him.


    When his eyes opened, Zhang Lie wiped the blood from the corner of his eyes and looked at Ye Futian. "Many thanks for your mercy." Just then, he felt a spiritual tearing force rush directly into his pupils with extreme aggressiveness. If Ye Futian insisted on continuing his attack, he would have met a miserable end. At the very least, those eyes would be lost.


    On the Law Battle Platform, others were also silent. They had also realized that although Ye Futian crushed them with imminent force, he was still merciful and did not seek to annihilate them. For one man to sweep nine opponents, this kind of power made them felt helpless.


    Ye Futian indeed had the strength to fight in the Ninth Layer of Heaven, but it was unknown whether he could defeat those listed on the Jiutian Ranking.


    The cultivator who presided over the Law Battle took out the Jiutian Order Token, engraved the name of Ye Futian and the word "eight" on it, and then threw it towards Ye Futian. In a loud and clear voice, he declared, "Ye Futian won this battle, and that counts as ten consecutive victories. He''s eligible to enter the Eighth Layer of Heaven of the Jiutian Temple."


    Ye Futian took the Jiutian Order Token. He had achieved his goal. He could now step into the Eighth Layer of Heaven and join the third senior brother and others.


    "Go then," the cultivator said, but Ye Futian did not move, still standing there.


    "Anything else?" asked the cultivator. Just as he finished his question, he saw that in the view stands below, a figure stepped out and walked toward the Law Battle Platform. It was Yu Sheng.


    "I will also challenge nine people," Yu Sheng said. As he finished speaking, countless eyes focused on him. Ye Futian had just suppressed nine great cultivators, and now this guy next to Ye Futian also wanted to challenge nine at the same time?


    This�� Was everyone in the Lower Worlds of the Nine States this crazy?


    The eyes of the cultivators in Jiutian Temple fastened onto Yu Sheng. They were somewhat surprised in the previous battle. However, the battle had just ended and now Yu Sheng stepped out and also demanded a fight.


    "Even though they lost, their previous records were based on real strength. They suffered some injuries in this battle. I can give them some time to recover. In addition, from the Seventh Layer of Heaven, those who wish to fight may come together with them," Yu Sheng said.


    "Ye Futian claimed to be unparalleled in all of Nine States and has already made an exception in the Jiutian Ranking. Are you also unparalleled in the Nine States?" the cultivator asked Yu Sheng.


    "Yes," Ye Futian replied.


    That cultivator asked with a cold sneer, his eyes on Ye Futian, "What exactly is the meaning of unparalleled?"


    "He cultivated with me since childhood and was equally invincible in battles that were of the same plane, with no defeat. He will step onto the Sky Stairwell to enter Jiutian Temple. If someone in the Nine States can defeat me, it could only be him." Ye Futian casually said, "He will follow me and enter the Ninth Layer of Heaven."


    "Very well," the cultivator responded, "let him fight again then." When he finished speaking, he surveyed the others on the Law Battle Platform and said, "Do any of you dare to continue?"


    All nine cultivators nodded, and at this moment, Zhang Lie, Wei Chi, and the others finally understood. This, was the reason why Ye Futian chose mercy rather than finishing them off?


    Because there was still one person left.


    This b*stard�� Ye Futian walked down the Law Battle Platform and Yu Sheng went up, replacing him. He cast a glance at the nine and said, "In order to win ten games in a row, there still needs to be one more. They just fought, and I don''t want to take advantage of them. Who else wishes to come up?"


    In the view stands of Seventh Layer of Heaven, everyone was speechless. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng simply did not respect the so-called geniuses of the Seventh Layer of Heaven.


    "Since they have invited, whoever wishes to experience it may come up directly," the cultivator who presided over the Law Battles said lightly, and suddenly, several men stepped forward and descended onto the Law Battle Platform. They also wanted to experience the strength of those who were unparalleled in Nine States.


    The nine who were defeated instantly released a very strong and aggressive rule power. They would never allow what happened in the previous battle to occur again, where they were powerless to strike back.


    Boom! In the middle of the cultivators, the light of the Buddha and demon from Yu Sheng rocketed to the sky with incomparable golden glory seeming to contain a darker golden luster. The battle form erupted, and rays of light directly ran through his body, making his body even more immense and majestic. Above the body, the endless golden light coursed, turning it into an indestructible golden body, the light of Buddha fiercely blazing.


    The sword arrived, falling down like a river from heaven, stabbing toward the body of Yu Sheng. But that Shredding Sword, extremely sharp and moving forward, brushed against the burly battle form of Yu Sheng and was unable to penetrate him.


    "It''s such a strong physical body." Many peoples'' hearts trembled. Just as Ye Futian was before, now Yu Sheng was the same, both with such amazing defenses.


    Wei Chifeng''s Wolf Fang Bat smashed down, and within it, there were hundreds of thousands of tons of divine power blasting upon his battle form. The indestructible golden body started to show cracks, and terrifying attacks now invaded Yu Sheng''s body, but he was still standing there steadily, much to the surprise of everyone.


    "He can''t be moved." In the Jiutian Temple, countless people had their eyes fixed and thought of what Ye Futian had said before. If anyone could beat him, it might have only been Yu Sheng. The dual cultivation of Buddhism and magic had rendered his physical body invincible and immovable.


    A series of rules spells blasted, and the golden glow upon Yu Sheng became more and more radiant. There were even the sounds of Buddha lingering, and above the firmament images of Buddha appeared. With Yu Sheng''s body as the center, a giant Buddha appeared and manifested a thousand arms like shadows.


    Bang! With a loud noise, Yu Sheng''s arms trembled, the darkened golden light flowing wildly. The domineering demonic power and the yin and yang forces of the Buddha now exploded from him, accompanied by the trembling of his arms, rushing to the front for the kill.


    In an instant, the Buddha with a thousand hands blasted out the full aurora of the fist, piercing through the void. Wei Chifeng saw an incomparably giant fist coming at him through the air. He picked up the Wolf Fang Bat and smashed at it and shattered the fist. But in the moment immediately following, his gaze was completely glued there. Both arms of Yu Sheng were throwing out violent attacks so that the thousand hands of Buddha bloomed into an endless aurora of fists, drowning the entire Law Battle Platform with nowhere to run and nowhere to hide.


    If it was only a large-scale attack it would have been meaningless because a simple release of spell could have blocked it. But the fists thrown by Yu Sheng, each seemed to be able to pulverize the void. With the endless aurora of fists erupting at the same time, just how terrible would it be? It was like the apocalypse.


    All the cultivators gathered all their strengths in defense, but the great rumbling of noises could still be heard. Shadows of bodies successively flew out and hit the light screen of the matrix, and spat out a mouthful of blood.


    Soon, except for Wei Chifeng, whose battle power was extremely strong, everyone else had fallen.�� At this time, Wei Chifeng was still madly smashing the Wolf Fang Bat, but he saw a shadow of a figure coming from the void. When his Wolf Fang Bats smashed down, Yu Sheng reached out and caught it, and in the next moment, his body was being swung into the air.


    "I''m not fighting anymore," Wei Chifeng said loudly, and then his body flew right out.


    From the Seventh Layer of Heaven down, there was a silence in the view stands. In the two matchups, both battles had initiated great matrices so that even those below the Seventh Layer of Heaven could see the two battles.


    The ending was shocking.


    The two, with absolute power, swept the Seventh Layer of Heaven.


    Who could oppose them in the Jiutian Temple?


    "Take it." The cultivator who presided over the Law Battle engraved the Jiutian Order Token with the Eighth Layer of Heaven and gave it to Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng took it and walked back to the view stands. Ye Futian turned and walked toward the stairwell, with Yu Sheng following behind and the Village Chief following.


    They were going to the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    "Let''s go." from the Seventh Layer of Heaven, many were following them. Not only the Seventh Layer of Heaven but even people from below were crazily rushing toward the top, ready to see with their own eyes the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    ��


    At this time, people in the Eighth Layer of Heaven did not know what happened below.


    In the Jiutian Temple, Jiutian was the most supreme level. The battle of the Ninth Layer of Heaven was the battle of the Jiutian Ranking. Any battle would be projected to the vast Jiutian Temple, which was immense.�� Secondly, it was the key battle of Eighth Layer of Heaven, the battle of eight consecutive victories, and the battle of nine consecutive victories.


    The battle for advancement in the Seventh Layer of Heaven, likewise, would also be projected downwards, but it was impossible to move up. Above, it was a more advanced battlefield.


    At this time in the Eighth Layer of Heaven, there was a group who was particularly dazzling. It was Gu Dongliu and the others who had defeated Mu Fanchen not too long ago. Gu Dongliu sat in place and there were many people surrounding him, all of whom were from the Holy Zhi Palace in Barren State.


    Among the people, there was someone lying there quietly, and it was Ye Wuchen. There was a last battle, and then the Ninth Layer of Heaven would be a reality, so they had brought Ye Wuchen with them. Even if they could participate in the battle of nine-game victories today, they would not leave. They would be here waiting for the coming of the last battle.


    They must get to Jiutian, defeat Pei Qianying, or they would never return.


    All around them, countless eyes were looking at them. From this procession of people, all could feel the determination that exuded from them and the confidence to move straight ahead.


    Right then, some loud noises came from the direction of the stairs, and there was a group of cultivators climbing upward magnanimously.


    At the forefront, there were three people, and they stepped into the Eighth Layer of Heaven!

 916 Difference

    "Who is it?" There were less people on the Eighth Layer of Heaven, and anyone who could get here was extraordinary.


    They looked strangely at the crowd of people coming up the stairs. They did not recognize the three people in front, but they must have achieved a brilliant record on the Seventh Layer of Heaven to attract such a following.


    The three people in front looked all around, and then their gazes fell upon the group of people sitting quietly far away. They walked over there, and everyone moved aside to let them pass.


    They seemed to sense something. Those who were sitting there quietly looked up slightly and saw the heroic figures in front of them.


    At that moment, the figures stood up solemnly as they stared at the ones coming towards them.


    Ye Futian had come.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    He had come from the Nine States and fought his way to the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    Ye Futian had obviously heard the news and rushed here to find them.


    They wanted to say something, but when they saw his eyes fall upon Wuchen, they did not know what to say. They had all come here to train with Xia Qingyuan, but Ye Wuchen was the only one who had met with misfortune. They were all responsible for it. They all felt guilty. So they had not returned to the Nine States, instead coming here to Jiutian Temple.


    The others on the Eights Layer of Heaven could feel that something was going on. It seemed that these people who had come to the Eighth Layer of Heaven knew Gu Dongliu and the others.


    Three of them walked over to where Gu Dongliu was.


    Gu Dongliu looked up at Ye Futian as he walked over to him. Ye Futian walked to Ye Wuchen''s side. He was lying there quietly with Phoenix beside him. She was the only one there good at healing.


    Ye Futian reached out with his spiritual energy and felt that Ye Wuchen''s spiritual will was still fluctuating. He did not seem like someone who was sleeping, especially when looking at the space between his eyebrows. Invisible waves were still flowing out of him, and he was still shockingly bloody. He seemed to be in great pain, and his spiritual energy seemed to be tightly stretched. He did not dare to slacken it at all. Even though it had already come to this point, he still held on.


    Crack! Beside Ye Futian, Yu Sheng clenched his fists, making a crisp sound. In that quiet space, one could faintly feel the fury hidden within the silence.


    "Someone removed his life spirit," Phoenix said to Ye Futian.


    "I know." Ye Futian looked at Wuchen. There was no wild aura coming from him. He seemed very calm. No one was surprised. Since Ye Futian had already come this far, then it was not surprising that he already knew everything.


    "After Wuchen''s life spirit was taken away, he never let go of his connection with it. He kept trying to control it and summon it back. I assume that he wanted to use the sword will that had been immersed into his life spirit," said Phoenix softly. "However, the one who took his life spirit sealed it away and may be trying to refine the sword will. If the one who did this is unscrupulous, they may directly destroy his life spirit."


    Ye Futian knew that Phoenix had said "unscrupulous" because of Xia Qingyuan. Xia Qingyuan had given them three months to fight their way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and challenge Pei Qianying.


    "He has always been a persistent person," said Ye Futian. He naturally knew Wuchen''s persistence and tenacity better than anyone. So he would definitely not give up easily.


    "I only need to win one more battle to make it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. I will pay him back for this," said Gu Dongliu.


    "Third Brother," Ye Futian looked up at Gu Dongliu, "I will go with you."


    Pei Qianying would pay for this.


    "Big Brother, Second Sister..." Ye Futian looked at the familiar figures around him. He had not seen them for more than three years. They had all become more mature, and their presence was more imposing. They had clearly reached a higher level than before. Big Brother had already reached the lower Sage Plane, and thus had no way to enter Jiutian Temple. After all, his opponents would be sages, even top-level ones.


    Third Brother had cultivated up to the higher Magi Plane. Thus he had made it all the way to the Eighth Layer of Heaven. He only needed to win one more before he could enter the Ninth. The others had all improved as well, almost all of them having made it to the Magi Plane. But most of them were mid and lower level Magi.


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian finally looked at Hua Jieyu. She was the one he was closest to, but she was the last one he called, but she naturally understood him. She walked to his side and nodded slightly. She blamed herself a little bit, and said, "It''s my fault that I couldn''t protect Wuchen." Among them, she and Sword Saint had the most combat capability.


    "Jieyu, this has nothing to do with you. We were all held up in the ruins, and we had no chance to stop what Pei Qianying''s people did to Wuchen," said Zhuge Mingyue to Hua Jieyu.


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu, who was still feeling guilty. He took her hand and looked at her, saying, "Since Wuchen is still in contact with his life spirit, we still have time. When he wakes up, we will go back to the Barren State."


    "Mm." Everyone nodded. Ye Futian''s calm words had given them fierce determination.


    When Wuchen woke up, they would return to the Barren State.


    The people on the Eighth Layer of Heaven looked at this group of people and one by one they guessed Ye Futian''s identity. The most beautiful woman of the Barren State seemed to be his woman. These people had come to train with Princess Xia Qingyuan, but Ye Futian had not taken part, so many people wondered who he was.


    At that moment, the people who presided over the Law Battle Platform in the Seventh Layer of Heaven followed them up. They talked with the ones who presided over the Law Battle Platform of the Eighth Layer of Heaven, making them look over at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng with amazement. These two had fought through a group of heroes to enter the Eighth Layer of Heaven by their own strength.


    Ye Futian looked up at them and said, "I wanted to prove everything when I was in the Seventh Layer of Heaven. I have no time to wait, can I directly challenge those with winning streaks?"


    A strange look came over the faces of all the cultivators of the Eighth Layer of Heaven. What had happened on the Seventh Layer?


    "There aren''t that many people on the Eighth Layer of Heaven, and they don''t all come to Jiutian Temple every day. Those who have a winning-streak are particularly rare. Once you have a seven or eight victory streak you have to wait a long time to get a battle. Even if I agree to your request, there aren''t enough people on the Eighth Layer of Heaven right now," answered one of the cultivators.


    "I heard that the Princess fought her way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven in a single day," said Ye Futian. Everyone looked at him in surprise.


    Could it be that this guy had made it all the way to the Eighth Layer of Heaven in a single day? Moreover, was he really comparing himself to the Princess?


    Was he crazy?


    In Emperor Xia''s realm, Princess Xia Qingyuan was hailed as the foremost talent of the younger generation. Emperor Xia had even said that Xia Qingyuan was more talented than he was at her age. There was no one of the same age as her in Emperor Xia''s realm who could compete with her.


    "Such arrogance!" one of the cultivators on the platform berated him. "With the Princess''s status, of course when she made her challenge to Jiutian Temple, all the heroes gathered together to witness her peerless style. That was how she was able to fight her way to the Ninth Level of Heaven in one day."


    "In that case, if we spread the news that I wish to fight my way to the Ninth Level of Heaven throughout Jiutian Temple, will that speed things up?" asked Ye Futian.


    The cultivators on the Law Battle Platform looked at him sharply. Ye Futian''s incredible strength had been confirmed by what he had done on the Seventh Layer of Heaven. But he was simply too arrogant. He looked down on the cultivators of Jiutian Temple as if he, matchless in the Nine States, was also able to achieve invincibility in Emperor Xia''s realm. He was insane!


    "What if we schedule it for seven days from now?" said a cultivator coldly. Since Ye Futian wanted to promote himself, Jiutian Temple was willing to accommodate him. This also had benefits for Jiutian Temple. It would attract attention as crowds would gather to feast their eyes on the group of heroes gathered there.


    "Considering Jiutian Temple''s power, shouldn''t one day be enough?" said Ye Futian. Seven days was too long.


    "Three days. That''s the bottom line," answered the cultivator indifferently. Ye Futian stared at him. He understood Jiutian Temple''s intention. One day was too hasty, and then news would not ferment quickly enough. They obviously wanted to attract the greatest number of spectators possible and have innumerable people come.


    So they hoped for seven days.


    "Fine," answered Ye Futian. He knew that even if he persisted it would be of no use; Jiutian Temple would not agree.


    Still looking at the cultivator, he said, "By the way, also let Pei Qianying know to be ready and waiting in three days on the Ninth Layer of Heaven."


    Everyone''s hearts pounded in their chests. Ye Futian had called out Pei Qianying of the Jiutian Ranking.


    Now it was not just Gu Dongliu.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian to his three brothers. They nodded, and then carried Ye Wuchen out.


    After they left, the news spread quickly throughout Jiutian Temple, which immediately triggered an enormous uproar and shocked many cultivators.


    Jueying Palace in Emperor Xia''s realm was where the Jueying Sword Saint cultivated. It was also the home of the Pei family. At this moment, the Jueying Sword Saint was in one of the palace halls surrounded by countless sword wills. In front of him was a small silver sword. But this weak, small silver sword was filled with three terrifying sword wills that were connected to it.


    He wanted to refine the sword wills, but that small silver sword was not willing to let go of them. They were one with the sword, and if he wanted to refine them out he would have to destroy the sword. But to do this would be to disobey Xia Qingyuan. Obviously, even though he was a Sword Saint, he couldn''t offend Xia Qingyuan. He would rather wait three months.


    At that moment, in a courtyard outside the palace, there was an unusual, handsome young man sitting quietly, listening to reports. One man had fought his way to the Seventh Layer of Heaven and challenged nine great cultivators at once there? And he was said to be peerless within the Nine States?


    His eyes became as sharp as a sword pulled out of its sheath. He said coldly, "In three days, he will learn the difference between the Seventh Layer of Heaven and the Ninth, as well as the difference between the cultivators of the Upper Worlds and the Lower!"

 917 Boiling Poin

    In Emperor Xia''s Realm, there was a palace, complex and without boundaries, reaching high into the sky. It stood like a temple of the gods in Emperor Xia''s Realm. It was also the tallest building in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm that even the Ninth Layer of Heaven of Jiutian Temple dared not surpass in height.


    This place was where Emperor Xia cultivated��the Renhuang Palace of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    At this time in this Renhuang Palace, a person clad in men''s clothing yet appearing more beautiful than a woman, stood on the step of a staircase listening to the news brought by the people below.


    "Ye Futian, palace lord of the Barren State Holy Zhi Palace in the Nine States, brought Yu Sheng, and both of them came up through the Sky Stairwell to the Upper Worlds, and no one was able to stop them. Later, the two went to Jiutian Temple and reached the Eighth Layer of Heaven in a single day. Furthermore, in the Seventh Layer of Heaven, it was one battling nine opponents who promised in three days'' time to challenge everyone in the Eighth Layer of Heaven and told Pei Qianying to wait for him in the Ninth Layer of Heaven."


    Xia Qingyuan quietly listened to the reports made by the people below. Her eyes were steady and calm. She remembered the young man who did not want to follow her to begin the trials during Saint Xia birthday feast in Nine States. While she was the Supervising Inspector in the Lower Worlds of Nine States, she had heard that Ye Futian had extreme talent, which was the reason for her invitation, but it was refused.


    It appeared that he was absolutely confident in his own power. Even if he did not receive the qualification as one of the Heavenly Chosen Ones to cultivate in the Upper Worlds, he was still able to climb the Sky Stairwell and had fought his way to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Send a messenger to Jueying Palace and have Jueying Sword Saint bring the stripped and controlled life spirit of Ye Wuchen to the Jiutian Temple in three days'' time. If the people of Nine States should win, the life spirit must be returned," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "Yes." The person bowed and answered, then asked, "Will princess be going?" If Xia Qingyuan was to go along, he would also need to go to Jiutian Temple and let Jiutian Temple Lord know in advance to arrange everything.


    "I''m thinking about it. You may go," Xia Qingyuan said calmly, and immediately the man withdrew and left. This news quickly spread within the Emperor Xia''s Realm, and as it gained momentum, it set off great commotion amongst the people.


    The battle of the Jiutian Ranking had always been the grandest event in Emperor Xia''s Realm. The battles of each season of the Jiutian Ranking would always cause a stir. What was more, this time around, someone from the Lower Worlds of Nine States had boldly announced they would conquer the Ninth Layer of Heaven and challenged Pei Qianying, who was on the Jiutian Ranking.


    The news spread from Jiutian Temple. This person from the Lower Worlds of the Nine States, who claimed to have no equal in the Nine States, was invincible in his plane and was the only palace lord of a holy land who was not of the Saint Plane and yet commanded saints. His talent and influence were obvious.


    Many concluded that Ye Futian and his group should have no problem getting through the Eighth Layer of Heaven. After all, Gu Dongliu had already gotten nine consecutive victories, after one more he would be able to get to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and Ye Futian should be able to do the same.


    The battle that was to take place three days from this time was labeled by everyone in the Emperor Xia''s Realm as the fight between the geniuses of the Lower Worlds and those of Emperor Xia''s Realm. With the Jiutian Temple''s intention to fan the flames of excitement, the waves that this had created could only be imagined.


    It was rumored that several people who were on the Jiutian Ranking were highly interested in this battle and would personally attend Jiutian Temple that day to witness someone step up to the Jiutian Ranking to challenge Pei Qianying.


    Those who had a record of consecutive victories in the Eight Layer of Heaven of the Jiutian Ranking were appearing one after the other, stating that they would also participate in Jiutian Temple. Everyone was optimistic that Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu would be able to enter the Ninth Layer of Heaven. It was as if these top players in the Eighth Layer of Heaven were just their stepping stones. Therefore, one could only imagine how they felt at the moment. They wanted to see just how strong this unparalleled figure of the Nine States really was, how he dared to make such audacious claims.


    For the practitioners of Emperor Xia''s Realm, three days passed by in the blink of an eye. On this day, Jiutian Temple was sizzling. Early in the morning, the bottom layer of the Jiutian Temple was already full of people, occupied by those who arrived in advance, as this was the layer that everyone could enter. Although the view would not be as clear as the ones above, it was still possible to see the projection of the battles for the Jiutian Ranking. Therefore, a seat there was highly desirable. Other than that, countless people walked toward every layer of heaven in Jiutian Temple.


    Even in the Eight Layer of Heaven, there were already many people who had arrived, and the view stands were full. Even some of the well-known saints had already come to Jiutian Temple to observe the battle today. This demonstrated how much attention was garnered by this battle.


    Outside Jiutian Temple, countless people were waiting.


    "Wang Jin!" many exclaimed.


    Wang Jin, the cultivator of the Eighth Layer of Heaven in Jiutian Temple, had not appeared in Jiutian Temple for a long time. His most brilliant record was nine straight wins, but he was defeated when he took on the battle of the Jiutian Ranking. His opponent entered the Ninth Layer of Heaven and he had to start again from the beginning.


    Right now, he had accrued a seven-game winning streak, but in fact, he had been a cultivator who had won nine consecutive victories. As such, Wang Jin''s strength was definitely at the pinnacle of the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    "Mu Fanchen." At this moment, another figure descended. It was Mu Fanchen, who lost to Gu Dongliu the day before and had come to fight again today.


    After eight consecutive victories, he was defeated the day before. At the moment, he had no winning streak to his name, and that was equivalent to no streak at all. If Ye Futian and Yu Sheng wanted to take on the Jiutian Ranking, they must take him on in the first battle and defeat him.


    "It''s Yu Zhan, that battle madman." Another figure arrived and it was Yu Zhan, the owner of the eight-game winning record at the moment. But like Wang Jin, he had a nine-game winning streak before, was defeated, and had to start over again. If Mu Fanchen and Gu Dongliu did not match up the day before, it was very possible that Gu Dongliu would have matched up with him.


    "This time, everyone is here?"


    "This lineup��"


    The hearts of many beat wildly, but they were excited inside. This was too crazy. Those famous top fighters who were defeated in the Eight Layer of Heaven were all coming today. Some even wondered if Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could get to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and meet Pei Qianying.


    The arrival of these people meant that anyone who had a winning streak had a brilliant record before and that they had gathered in Jiutian Temple today. There was no doubt that since they were present, Jiutian Temple would choose this group to battle to make the fights even more captivating.


    So, what would be the outcome?


    It was crazy.


    The last Jiutian Temple competitions were crazy. It was Little Princess Xia Qingyuan who ran through the gauntlet of the Jiutian Temple and went all the way through to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. Today, they seemed to witness the same madness from when Little Princess Xia Qingyuan challenged Jiutian Temple last time around.


    Of course, this would only make the crowd more excited. It was just that they never expected someone from the Lower Worlds to have caused such a great sensation. They only hoped that he was truly strong, otherwise, he would be a joke if he could not even enter the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    At this time, a procession of cultivators appeared in the void. When they were close to arriving at Jiutian Temple, they then began descending.


    "It''s the people from Jueying Palace."


    "Even the Jueying Sword Saint has personally arrived."


    All eyes were focused on the handsome and slender young man with incomparable grace next to Jueying Sword Saint. This battle started because of him.


    Pei Qianying, son of Jueying Sword Saint, cultivator on the Jiutian Ranking.


    The talent of Pei Qianying could be described as extremely exceptional. Back then, he entered the Ninth Layer of Heaven as an upper-level sage and gained a spot on the Jiutian Ranking to allow everyone to witness his rare talent. Even the lord of the Jiutian Temple had said that in the future, when Pei Qianying was in the magi and sage plane, he would be able to enter the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    It was said that at the moment, Pei Qianying had already reached the peak of the Magi Plane and was only one step away from the Sage Plane. At the pinnacle of the Magi Plane on the Jiutian Ranking, in this plane, he was the top contender.


    "Pei Qianying, three days ago Ye Futian told you to wait for him in the Ninth Layer of Heaven, what do you think about that?" a voice said from the crowd. Before the fight, such trash talking undoubtedly fueled more excitement, but most would choose to ignore such distraction. But at this time, Pei Qianying stopped in his tracks. His attention turned to somewhere in the crowd, his eyes as sharp as a sword. The person who spoke in the crowd felt Pei Qianying''s gaze and felt a tingling pain in their eyes. Immediately, he lowered his head and did not dare to engage with those eyes.


    "When I was young, my father never demonstrated his true strength in front of me. I cultivated in swordsmanship, and as I was expert in at all kinds of methods, I thought I was superb in swordsmanship, that I was equal with my father. It was not until later on that I realized how foolish I was. When cultivation reaches a higher level, this truth will be more apparent," Pei Qianying said slowly and everyone was momentarily stunned. They seemed to understand that he was inferring something.


    "I heard that they were from the Lower Worlds of Nine States and think of themselves as incomparable, as if there are no talents in Jiutian Temple. They want to enter the Ninth Layer of Heaven and even compare themselves with the Little Princess." Pei Qianying continued to speak slowly, "Perhaps, after today, they will know more about the meaning of respect."


    After that, Pei Qianying picked up his feet and moved forward. Everyone watched his departing figure, and then an explosion, like a terrible wave, washed over Jiutian Temple. They had thought that Pei Qianying would be quiet, but this time not only did Pei Qianying answer the question, but he had also publicly mocked Ye Futian from the Lower Worlds as being ignorant and without respect. Undoubtedly, this would only make everyone even more excited and increase their expectations for the upcoming battle. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    After that, there were extraordinary characters arriving gradually. The crowd had even seen several who were already on the Jiutian Ranking. Some even openly asked them about their views on Pei Qianying. Most of these people just smiled without comment and chose to walk toward the Ninth Layer of Heaven instead.


    They would witness this battle in the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    Many people were waiting, waiting for the arrival of Ye Futian and the others. Finally, when a procession of people came with the sword, the moment they landed on the ground, the emotion of the crowd had reached the boiling point.


    Finally, Ye Futian and his people had arrived. And today, they once again brought Ye Wuchen again. At this point, from Ye Wuchen''s brow chakra, there seemed to be an even more intense spiritual fluctuation, apparently perceiving something.


    The Jueying Sword Saint had brought his life spirit, and Ye Wuchen had never given up his spirit, refusing to detach the connection to his life spirit. If it was detached, he would only lose his life spirit, making it difficult to move forward in cultivation. But if he persisted, the consequence could very well be the complete collapse of his spiritual will, leading to his eventual death.


    But he had chosen the latter.


    Ye Futian and his group moved forward step by step, ascending the stairs toward Jiutian Temple. Watching them leave, everyone felt a strong sense of determination and belief!

 918 He Who Hailed from the Nine States

    Roaring cheers were heard everywhere in the Jiutian Temple, and every single stand in every single Layer of Heaven was packed. The event was of such fame that no battles were fought in any of the stages in the Jiutian Temple, which was over ten thousand feet tall. No one bothered fighting as no one would have been in the mood to watch any other fights.


    Everyone was simply there for the battle at the Eighth Layer of Heaven that day.


    They were there to bear witness and see if that unparalleled monster of a person would be able to make it to the Ninth, the one who might have subsequently gone off to challenge Pei Qianying.


    Many looked up at the Eighth Layer of Heaven''s direction, but they were able to see little other than vague shadows. They were all waiting for the projections of that battle at the stage of the Eighth Layer of Heaven''s fight.


    It was a day that captured everyone''s attention, and the Jiutian Temple went out of its way to promote the event. Regardless of who came, there was no doubt that the fight was one that was needed to be projected from the Eighth Layer of Heaven for all to witness together.


    "What''s the hold-up?" Many took their seats and began to feel restless.


    "They just got here not long ago, and the temple needs time to field the candidates as well," someone replied.


    "Well, among the three, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu, who do you think will be able to make it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven, or maybe they will all make it."


    "There are just too many legendary figures who you don''t get to see much elsewhere here in the Eighth Layer of Heaven today. They have all secured many consecutive victories. I don''t think it''d be easy for the three of them to all make it up to the Ninth."


    "Just wait and see. Gu Dongliu was able to overpower Mu Fanchen, while both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng have been able to take out everyone in their way at the Seventh back then. That shocking scene might actually happen; the scene where all three of them make it to the Ninth."


    Everyone chatted and had high hopes about the battle that was about to happen.


    Streaks of immensely dazzling, blinding even, light showered from above. However, no one averted their eyes as they were all at the peak of excitement. They were all too familiar with the light of that matrix. They knew the show was about to start.


    Their eyes pierced right through the air and their gaze locked at the Eighth Layer of Heaven. Dazzling light was projected below. Many were taken aback when they finally were able to see what was happening at the Eighth Layer of Heaven clearly, before erupting into sky-reaching shouts and cheers in a frenzy. Their voices heard even at the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    "This is crazy."


    "It is indeed. Even the temple itself has gone crazy." Everyone was shocked to find that there was more than one stage being projected from the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    All three stages at the Eighth Layer of Heaven lit up. The three stages represented battles from three different planes: Sage, Magi, and Archmage.


    At that moment, people were seen on all three stages at the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Gu Dongliu appeared in three different stages. That meant there would be three eye-catching battles taking place at the Eighth Layer of Heaven at the same time. Jiutian Temple had never been so crazy before.


    The temple was actually crazy enough that time to project three different stages at the same time. When Xia Qingyuan fought in the Jiutian Temple, she was only fighting alone and as such, there had only been one stage projected. What was happening that day was noteworthy enough to be recorded in the Jiutian Temple''s annals.


    Everyone saw another person appearing on the stage where Gu Dongliu was. It was the top-notch figure at the Eighth Layer of Heaven��Li Feng��one who had secured nine consecutive victories. He was one victory short from making it into the Jiutian Ranking.


    Regardless of who emerged victorious from that battle, be it him or Gu Dongliu, the winner would be ranked on the Jiutian Ranking.


    Li Feng was also the only magi capable of winning nine consecutive battles at the Eighth Layer of Heaven thus far. Few at the Eighth Layer of Heaven were capable of winning multiple consecutive battles. When two cultivators secured nine victories each, the Jiutian Temple would then arrange for them to have a showdown. The winner would then be granted access to the Ninth Layer of Heaven, while the loser would have had to start all over again.


    The Jiutian Temple arranged for Li Feng to face off against Gu Dongliu.


    Ye Futian was facing off against Wang Jing, Mu Fanchen, and other top ten mighty ones. While there were no nine consecutive winners at the moment, Wang Jing had secured nine consecutive victories once. His streak was broken and he was forced to start all over again. Mu Fanchen had been winning eight consecutive battles until three days ago. All the others had winning streaks as well, with the weakest having secured seven consecutive victories.


    With the top ten fighters of such caliber facing off against Ye Futian at the same time, if he was able to emerge victorious, fighting all of them at the same time, there was no doubt that he was qualified to be at the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    The same went with the stage where Yu Sheng was. Yu Zhan had once secured nine consecutive victories and everyone else around him were extremely renowned figures at the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    The fighters banded together on that day as they appeared on the stages, to face off against three top-notch geniuses from the Nine States.


    It was a sight that would have rendered anyone crazy.


    There were no cheers at the Eighth Layer of Heaven, and things were considerably quieter there. Those who were at the stands there were renowned people after all. However, they nonetheless looked up at the three stages, looking at the mighty ones coming from the Lower Worlds.


    Pei Qianying declared with overwhelming force that Ye Futian and the others would learn to fear the greater ones from that day onwards. However, Pei Qianying did not come to watch the battles. He was waiting for Ye Futian at the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    Pei Qianying was not alone in this; many other renowned figures were waiting at the Ninth Layer of heaven as well. In their perspective, if Ye Futian was unable to make it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven, then he lacked the right to even see them, for humiliating himself.


    The Zhao siblings, Zhao Shi and Zhao Ci, were there as well, gazing at the stage where Ye Futian was. Cold hatred was seen in Zhao Ci''s eyes.


    Li Qingyun and his people, who were guarding the Sky Stairwell, were there as well. They looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, the two who had been blitzing their way at the Sky Stairwell and made it to the Jiutian Temple. Those two could not have been more unruly.


    The Sword Saint, Zhuge Mingyue, Hua Jieyu, Huang Jiuge, Phoenix, and many others were watching as well. Ye Wuchen was among them as well.


    It was a battle fought in Ye Wuchen''s honor.


    They had immense faith in Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Gu Dongliu. All of them had unwavering faith that the three would emerge victoriously. The battle between Gu Dongliu and Li Feng erupted alongside the cheers from below, making the spectators'' blood boil.


    Mu Fanchen stepped out at Ye Futian''s stage before everyone else. He had been defeated by Gu Dongliu three days ago, and he was eager to see just how capable Ye Futian of the Nine States was.


    No one else budged. They were all top-notch figures at the Eighth Layer of Heaven and extremely prideful people. While they were standing at the same stage at the same time, it did not mean that they were ready to join hands. They simply watched as Mu Fanchen walked towards Ye Futian.


    "You have to win this," Zhao Shi whispered to herself deep down as she watched Mu Fanchen walking out. She did not want to see Mu Fanchen lose again.


    One exterior incarnation after another emerged. Six of them had Ye Futian surrounded while emanating different auras in different forms. With Mu Fanchen added to the list, it felt as if Ye Futian was fighting seven mighty ones at the same time.


    Ye Futian took a look at the exterior incarnations nonchalantly and said to the other mighty ones at the stage, "It''s better that you all just come at me together."


    All within earshot frowned at his words. This fellow who is from the Nine States is simply too much. It''s no wonder that Pei Qianying would comment that they have no respect.


    Mu Fanchen sent his exterior incarnations at Ye Futian at the same time, seeing how Ye Futian simply ignored him. Dazzling light burst from Ye Futian''s body. A golden roc took to the air with its wild, unruly eyes watching its opponent, emanating incredibly sharp aura.


    "He''s bringing out his Life Spirit?" The eyes of the spectators flashed. He never unleashed his Life Spirit in any of his previous battles.


    A wild, unruly aura burst from behind Ye Futian at that moment. An incredibly huge godly ape appeared and walked out, taking guard at a corner.


    "Two Life Spirits." The eyes of the spectators glittered as they found that both Life Spirits were fighting beasts. But then again, it was not actually all that rare and surprising.


    A dragon roar shook the air as yet another incredibly huge dragon appeared, circling Ye Futian as if he was looking down the mortals below.


    "Godly Creation of All Things." A cold line was uttered from his mouth. Extremely terrifying spiritual power burst as a huge entity coalesced through the power of rules, appearing before him as if an ancient god had just emerged and guarding Ye Futian.


    Countless particles seemed to be coursing around the huge ancient god''s body looking like glittering stars, as if a very old god had taken its place among the stars.


    "I said, come at me at once. Stop wasting my time." Ye Futian''s body slowly took to the air with the roc and the ape at his flank, the dragon circling around him and the ancient god before him. It was quite a dazzling sight to behold, striking the hearts of all who witnessed it, awestruck.


    Is Ye Futian, as he is now, truly at his fullest?


    He was the number one genius from the Nine States of the Lower Worlds after all.


    The scene was just too shocking to many.


    The minds of everyone but Mu Fanchen shuddered at the scene. They all felt the extreme threat looming right before them. Extremely overbearing power rules emanated from Ye Futian''s glittering body, shrouding the entire stage.


    Under the light of the formless rules, the space seemed to have frozen over at the very next moment. Mu Fanchen and his exterior incarnations all felt an extremely powerful might attempting to fix them where they were, making the space-time right there and then completely still.


    Boom, boom, boom... All of Mu Fanchen''s exterior incarnations burst with extremely heavy might, breaking the bonds of the rules. There was simply no way they would have been able to fight if their bodies were all fixed into place. However, a golden halberd appeared on the roc''s claws, drawing a dazzling arc and lashing out at one of the exterior incarnations.


    At the same time, the huge godly ape took hold of an immensely huge staff and brought it down hard. The ancient god before Ye Futian stomped and the force seemed like that of stars falling from the heavens, crushing everything beneath.


    All manners of powers burst at the same time.


    Mu Fanchen''s face went rather pale. He felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness washing over him again, more so than the battle between him and Gu Dongliu. However, he continued to bring his greatest attacks with the exterior incarnations, clashing with the roc and the godly ape.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The roc streaked through the air at blazing speeds, bringing the halberd down hard. Mu Fanchen felt a terrifying shredding power above, or rather, the power of space being torn apart. That exterior incarnation blew into pieces bit by bit within an instant.


    Another exterior incarnation withstood a violent hit from the ape. The staff was brought down with might out to crush the heavens, and that exterior incarnation was no more soon enough.


    Countless watched at the Jiutian Temple that the unparalleled figure of the Eighth Layer of Heaven named Mu Fanchen, had his exterior incarnations being crushed one after another without any means of retaliating. All of the spectators went speechless as they watched the truly peerless figure at work.


    The figure who was named Ye Futian, who hailed from the Nine States!

 919 To the Ninth Layer of Heaven together

    Countless looked at the stage at the Eighth Layer of Heaven at the Jiutian Temple. The roc and the ape crushed every single exterior incarnation there was. That ancient god-like figure took to the air and lashed out with its hand, bringing boundless light of particles downward. Many felt at the moment as if the stars had been brought down upon Mu Fanchen.


    Mu Fanchen''s efforts of defending against the onslaught with all he had proved futile. He was quickly overwhelmed and ended up spitting blood, dropping limply on the stage. Someone as powerful as Mu Fanchen was completely powerless against Ye Futian and was thoroughly overpowered in a one-on-one battle.


    The difference was so huge that Ye Futian had only been standing where he was throughout the fight, commanding his powers while standing proud. His tall and proud silhouette in the air enabled everyone to feel the true might of the peerless one of the Nine States. He, a cultivator from the Nine States, crushed every single doubt cast upon him with his unquestionable powers.


    Countless were shocked at the Eighth Layer of Heaven. Zhao Shi hung her head low and dared not look at the outcome. Her eyes were slightly reddened and she felt endlessly pathetic. The person whom she had seen to be her destined one, was insignificant and utterly powerless before the foreigner.


    She felt as if something had been broken and sadness welled from her heart. She had no idea if she was feeling sad for herself or for Mu Fanchen.


    Ye Futian did not pay any heed to the emotions of the spectators. His eyes remained eerily sharp while the roc and the ape continued to attack the other nine mighty ones around him. The ancient god''s body invoked an even more terrifying star particle energies around its body.


    Boom. Two booms were heard as the roc lashed out with the halberd at its target. The sky seemed to have been torn with the attack. The ape brandished its staff and lashed out with the Nine Heavenly Attacks, causing two mighty ones internal injuries.


    "Let''s go," Wang Jing said. He apparently knew that his powers alone were utterly inadequate to move against Ye Futian. Pride had no little to no place before absolute power. The fact that one was weak remained.


    The others shimmered at great speeds seeing the ancient god brought its hand down on them. Powerful attacks burst and they slithered through the boundless particles, lashing out at Ye Futian like streams of light.


    However, Ye Futian had complete control of everything with that attack. Ye Futian remained totally unfettered seeing the mighty ones coming at him. He lifted his hand up in the air and unleashed his Space-freezing Rules. At the same time, he brought his rule spell to bear��the Star Prison.


    The stage seemed to have been buried by the stars in an instant. Every single mighty one who lashed out at Ye Futian was trapped within the Star Prison, feeling utterly incapable of moving.


    "Break." Dazzling light burst from Wang Jing''s body, tearing the prison apart and lashing out at Ye Futian. There was another who dissipated into hundreds of thousands of mirages and reconfigured themselves again, bringing massive destructive powers at Ye Futian.


    They were all top-notch figures at the Eighth Layer of Heaven after all and were at the pinnacle of Magi Plane, which meant that they still had tricks up their sleeves to resist Ye Futian. Ye Futian extended his hand and an incredibly dazzling golden halberd appeared. It was a weapon materialized by coalescing the power of rules. Terrifying storm of rules circled around the halberd and he moved at the very next moment.


    One mighty one dissolved into a massive number of mirages and came at him with overwhelming force. Ye Futian was totally doubtless in his movements. He flashed and lashed out with a straight thrust with the golden halberd. A terrifying vortex of destruction manifested at the tip of the weapon like a blackhole. The mirages were torn to shreds in an instant and penetrated.


    The halberd hit flesh and blood with a crisp stabbing noise. A figure stopped moving in the air, looking at the spot below their shoulder, where power capable of tearing everything was waiting to burst, as if their entire body would have been torn to shreds if Ye Futian so willed it.


    Ye Futian flicked his arm and threw that person''s body away. He continued moving forward with the halberd in his hand. Seeing the others have broken out of their predicament, he extended his left arm once again. Space-time around all seemed to have ground to a halt as the Space Prison was brought to bear.


    Voom. Ye Futian''s body accelerated all of a sudden. Boundless light coursed on the halberd in his hand, while slivers of will of rules shrouded the place.


    The halberd shot forward. A beam of blinding light streaked through the air and crashed straight onto the Star Prison. The rule spell that he had laid in place exploded and all the mighty ones who were trapped within felt as if their bodies were about to be torn apart. They all let out subdued grunts.


    Ye Futian flicked his arm as he saw Wang Jing coming at him. He threw the halberd with extreme force. A beam of light tore through the space and shredded Wang Jing''s attack completely. The halberd was totally unstoppable.


    Wang Jing was utterly startled one as he gathered all he was able to muster to block the attack. However, the halberd broke through his defense nonetheless and he felt as if his body was going to explode. Blood shot from his mouth as he crashed hard onto the edge of the stage. Blood still dripped at the corner of his mouth as he hit the ground.


    The roc, the ape, and the dragon all shot out with a massive force to clear the battlefield. Crashing booms were heard everywhere. Soon enough, everyone on that stage but Ye Futian was panting without exception as they were all injured. Every single one of them looked at Ye Futian with pale faces.


    Ye Futian, who was basking in boundless glory at the moment, stood proudly in the air above the stage like some undefeatable god, looking down on his opponents. He overpowered all top ten mighty ones of the Eighth Layer of Heaven with his powers alone, breaking through the Eighth Layer of Heaven.


    "This is really something." Countless at the Jiutian Temple gazed at the figure who looked invincible.


    "Ye Futian of the Nine States making it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and will be ranked on the Jiutian Ranking."


    The host of the battle presented Ye Futian with the Jiutian Order Token for passage into the Ninth on the stage. Ye Futian''s name would be listed on the Jiutian Ranking and etched on the Ninth Layer of Heaven. However, Ye Futian did not care for any of that. He looked up at the Ninth Layer of Heaven and held the halberd in his hand high, pointing at the Ninth. His next battle would be fought between him and Pei Qianying, who was listed on the Jiutian Ranking.


    Everyone went insane at his deliberately provocative move. Cheers boomed throughout the place. It was a crazy show of force. If one were to simply boast without having the power to back it, that would have been little more than arrogance. However, Ye Futian demonstrated his prowess like none other, and that made everyone crazy about him.


    Pei Qianying stated that Ye Futian and the others would have learned fear and respect from that day on and that he would wait for Ye Futian at the Ninth Layer of Heaven. At that very moment, Ye Futian''s halberd was pointed at the Ninth.


    It was a move that made everyone go crazy.


    "Look at Yu Sheng''s stage." Many turned their eyes at the other two stages. Yu Sheng brought both demonic and Buddhist powers to bear at the same time, overpowering all of his opponents. Like Ye Futian, he went on to attack all ten of his opponents, with every strike being earth-shaking.


    There were some among the ten who were able to hit him but utterly failed to make him budge. On the other hand, one strike from Yu Sheng rendered them utterly incapable of even getting up, robbing them of any fighting capacity. Such insane levels of both offense and defense inspired nothing but despair in his opponents.


    "Yu Sheng will win as well." Many shuddered deep down. Both of them were about to step into the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    "The tables are in Gu Dongliu''s favor and he is attacking furiously." In yet another battlefield, Gu Dongliu was seen pummeling his opponent.


    The scene made the hearts of the spectators pump hard. Are there going to be three mighty ones making to the Ninth Layer of Heaven today?


    "The powers of Little Brother and Yu Sheng are getting increasingly strong. While they did not go on pilgrimages with us for the past three years or so, it seemed that they never slacked in their training." Zhuge Mingyue looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng and felt rather pleased with their combat capacity. They had been coming here all the way from the Nine States, making it past the Sky Stairwell and fighting their way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    Pei Qianying needed to pay for what he did.


    "Yeah." The Sword Saint nodded slightly. They all hoped to nurture their Little Brother back in the day, but Ye Futian''s powers were no longer any weaker than his elder brother''s and sister''s.


    Both the Sword Saint and Zhuge Mingyue were pleased and proud at the same time. No one below the Saint Plane could rival Ye Futian''s powers within another few years. It would have been the doom for those from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty who were not at Saint Plane.


    With yet another boom, Yu Sheng sent the last of his opponent flying. His stout, unyielding frame stood proud at the stage while shining brilliantly, looking invincible and unsurmountable.


    The second person to make it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven was born that day.


    On Gu Dongliu''s stage, Li Feng eventually became unable to withstand Gu Dongliu''s relentless attacks and was hit. His body crashed into the light of the matrix of the stage and spat up blood. Li Feng lost the battle.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The Jiutian Temple went quiet for a moment when that happened. The crazy cheers subsided. But at the very next moment, the uproar went even more insane, resounding through the heavens.


    Three mighty victors stood on three different stages as if they had been fighting side by side all along. Every one of them brought unquestionable power to their battles. Within the span of a single day, they, from the Lower Worlds, made it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven at the same time and were all ranked on the Jiutian Ranking.


    There had never been a scene where three cultivators made it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven at the same time within a day since the founding of the Jiutian Temple.


    All three of them made history that day.


    They made good on their words, fighting all the way up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. Furthermore, they did not stumble throughout their journey and had instead looked brilliant, invincible, and utterly unstoppable while they were at it. If they were to win against Pei Qianying, who was ranked on the Jiutian Ranking, they would have broken through the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    It would have been enough to make one burn just imagining the scene.


    Many came to support the three who came from the Lower Worlds one way or another. Pei Qianying had been the one in the wrong for stripping others of their Life Spirit in the first place. Gu Dongliu would make it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and gain the chance to fight him face to face. However, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng came before Gu Dongliu finished what he came to do. Both of them came all the way through the Nine States.


    Ye Futian and the others did not care about what the spectators of the Jiutian Temple thought about them and paid no heed to the cheers. They came with one specific purpose, and that was to fight Pei Qianying, not get onto the Jiutian Ranking.


    If Pei Qianying was waiting for them at the Ninth Layer of Heaven of the Jiutian Temple, then they would have only needed to make it all the way there.


    The projections of the stages at the Eighth Layer of Heaven disappeared and the lights dimmed. Countless went on to wait again at the Jiutian Temple.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Gu Dongliu walked towards the stands and took a look at Ye Wuchen, then said, "Let''s go." They then turned around and headed for the steps.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Gu Dongliu were at the forefront, making their way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven of the Jiutian Temple one step at a time!

 920 Inheritor of Lihen Sword Palace

    Jiutian Temple on the Ninth Layer of Heaven embodied the glorious history of Emperor Xia''s realm. The countless heroic figures in the Upper Worlds had all made names for themselves here. So far, each of the names inscribed in the Celestial Ranking was dazzling.


    The Ninth Layer of Heaven was completely different from the Eighth. It had a much broader magnificence. This was not only a place of Law Battles but also where the abbot cultivated himself. Behind the Law Battle Platform were incomparably spectacular palaces that were just as imposing as an imperial palace. Moreover, the arrangement and placement of the stands were completely different from down below.


    As you went up the stairs to the Eighth Layer of Heaven, you could set foot upon the Ninth Layer. There were seats on both sides, but far less than on the Eighth Layer.


    The battles that took place on the Ninth Layer of Heaven were all battles for the Jiutian Ranking. Few battles took place. Even when a battle did happen, everyone who came to watch were all extraordinary figures. Ordinary people couldn''t afford the admission, and those who were qualified to come didn''t need to pay admission.


    In front of the stairs was a caved-in Law Battle Platform. There were no rays of light on it, nor matrices. It seemed to be dark and lightless. Continuing forward, there was another high platform, which was a very honorable seat. In front of it was a lofty palace built on top of the palaces of the Ninth Layer of Heaven. There was also a huge stone tablet there with names carved into it. It was the Jiutian Ranking.


    At the moment, there were three places open on the tablet, left for Ye Futian and the others. They had fought their way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and had earned the right to enter the Jiutian Ranking. They would have their names engraved alongside many of the powerful figures of Emperor Xia''s realm.


    At that moment, Pei Qianying sat upon that noble seat. Cultivators of the Jiutian Ranking who came there all had the right to sit upon that seat. This was a way of showing respect to them. And Pei Qianying wasn''t the only one sitting there; many people were there as well.


    Today''s battle had surprised many people in Emperor Xia''s realm and some of the cultivators of the Jiutian Ranking had personally come to observe it. There were not many seats on both sides of the platform, and they were all full. Some people were even standing. They all looked towards the stairs. They had naturally just heard that shocking scream.


    The people who had come from the Nine States were about to enter the Jiutian Ranking on the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    A young man with an imposing manner dressed in blue robes walked up behind Pei Qianying and said, "The three of them have entered the Jiutian Ranking, and they have just set foot on the stairs up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven."


    Gu Mu, the young master of Jiutian Temple, was extremely strong. He had cultivated to the Sage Plane and was well acquainted with Pei Qianying. After all, Pei Qianying''s talent was outstanding. He was not only on the Jiutian Ranking, but he had two other identities. He was the young master of Jueying Palace and the son of the Jueying Sword Saint. Of course, had it only been for these identities, Pei Qianying would not be worthy of his friendship.


    Pei Qianying had also been sent to the Lihen Sword Palace to cultivate by the Jueying Sword Saint. That place was known as the premier holy land for swordsmanship in Emperor Xia''s realm. The Lihen Sword Palace was at the same level as Jiutian Temple.


    Today, some people from the Lihen Sword Palace had come to watch the battle and cheer for Pei Qianying, the celestial companions Mo Li and Feng Yu. These two were both on the Jiutian Ranking and were peerless masters. They were Pei Qianying''s brother and sister in training.


    "Since they were able to climb the Sky Stairwell, it is not surprising that they would boast that they are unrivalled in the Nine States," Pei Qianying said calmly. "It''s just that worthy opponents rarely come from the Nine States, and they still think they can be unrivalled in Emperor Xia''s realm?"


    "In the next battle, they will understand. When Ye Futian arrived and rushed into Jiutian Temple, this could be described as revealing his talent. And by making them change their rules he could be compared to the little Princess." Gu Mu smiled as he spoke. He was the young master of Jiutian Temple, so naturally, he knew everything that had happened before. "There are so many powerful figures in Jiutian Temple, but that guy from the Lower World is the most arrogant that I have ever seen. He''s like an arrogant prince of the Nine Heavens, and he thinks that in all the world only he can stand shoulder to shoulder with the Princess," continued Gu Mu. He seemed kind of interested in all of this. He had seen all kinds of people in Jiutian Temple. But Ye Futian was the first of his kind that he had seen.


    "So, after today, he will learn about respect." Pei Qianying''s eyes were as sharp as swords.


    How could the three of them be equal to the Ninth Layer of Heaven? Many years ago when he was still at the Sage Plane, he had fought his way onto the Jiutian Ranking. Many years had passed and he had only gotten stronger. Now that he could get back on it on the Magi Plane, he would do so in a sweeping manner.


    Over the past few years, he had fought with people on the Jiutian Ranking, had cultivated at the Lihen Sword Palace, and had practiced swordsmanship with his fellow disciples. As for his sword technique, even his father said he was far beyond him.


    Even if the three of them came at him at once, what could they do?


    "Brother, they came up the Sky Stairwell from the Nine States and reached the Ninth Layer of Heaven along the way. Their power must be extraordinary. Even though you''re confident, you can''t be too careless. You have practiced swordsmanship, you know the cost of underestimating your opponent," beside him, Mo Li from the Lihen Sword Palace whispered to him lightly. His voice was soft, like a gentle drizzle. He was refined and cultivated, and such a gentle person that it was hard to imagine that he was an outstanding swordsman. Of course, besides studying swordsmanship he had also studied Rhythmic Sorcery and the Guqin Path.


    "I understand." Pei Qianying nodded. In a swordfight, a single blow could be fatal.


    He would not give his opponent a chance.


    To climb up the Sky Stairwell and fight your way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven was quite brilliant. If he defeated him it would doubtless become a legendary story that people would pass along. However, the story was not destined to end that way.


    "I want to see this man who comes from the Nine States and boasts that he has no equal too," said a swift and fierce youth beside him with a smile. He was a cultivator of the Jiutian Ranking, Qin Qi, who was born in one of the most prestigious holy places in Emperor Xia''s realm, Qin Palace.


    In reality, there were extremely few people of common birth on the Jiutian Ranking. They all had extraordinary status. Even if they were less well-born, they had later joined powerful forces.


    The sound of footsteps came from the stairs, and then there was the sound of clamoring. The sound of footsteps grew clearer and clearer, and suddenly a beam of light shot towards the stairs, and the Ninth Layer of Heaven became quiet.


    Soon a face appeared in their line of sight. He was extremely handsome and looked to be only in his twenties, extremely young. Whether or not he was truly young they couldn''t be sure.


    His eyes were deep, like a starry sky, and his long hair reached his shoulders. At that moment, he stared straight ahead, as if his gaze could pierce through the air. A majestic and cold aura emanated from him. Although he had only cultivated to the Magi Plane, his aura gave people a feeling of detachment, as if he was in a high place overlooking everything.


    It was said that he had come from the Nine States in the Lower World, and was the Palace Lord of a holy land. Since he was a Palace Lord, it was only natural that he would have such a superior aura.


    Beside Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu''s auras were equally incredible. One was vigorous and spirited, and the other was sturdy and strong.


    The three cultivators stepped onto the stairs.


    At that moment, some cultivators of the Jiutian Ranking blocked their way and swept their gaze over the three of them.


    "Let them come up," Gu Mu said indifferently. The others suddenly let them pass, letting Hua Jieyu and the others step into the Ninth Layer of Heaven. They also carried Ye Wuchen''s body.


    Many people followed them into the Ninth Layer of Heaven. Of course, they were all people with extraordinary identities. For example, Li Qingyun came up as well, but he had to pay a lot to do so.


    Ye Futian and the others walked up step by step. They came to the end of the stairs and in front of them was the caved-in Law Battle Platform. In front of that was the high platform upon which sat many figures.


    One of them had eyes as sharp as swords. He seemed to have a Sword Will with him, and he cast his sharp gaze towards them. Even though this was the first time seeing him, it was obviously Pei Qianying.


    Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, and the others looked coldly at Pei Qianying. They had naturally met him in the process of undergoing trials.


    Gu Mu stood up and said to Ye Futian, "Congratulations to the three of you for entering the Ninth Layer of Heaven. You may follow me to the stone tablet and personally inscribe your names onto the Jiutian Ranking, leaving your seal there."


    "That won''t be necessary," Ye Futian said as he looked at Mu Gu.


    Gu Mu stood next to Pei Qianying. He had heard that the young master of Jiutian Temple had a good relationship with Pei Qianying, and where he was standing now proved that was true.


    Ye Futian naturally did not think that if he managed to fight his way through the Ninth Layer of Heaven Gu Mu would consider his viewpoint. Fighting through the Nine Layers of Heaven was really just a martial trial for the people of Emperor Xia''s realm and a way to prove oneself, and didn''t have much relationship with Jiutian Temple itself. Therefore, no one needed to consider their opponents. Moreover, he had come from the Lower World.


    Gu Mu smiled carelessly. He was really an interesting character, which was also expected. Ye Futian and the others had not come from the Lower World and fought their way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven to get on the Jiutian Ranking.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Writing your name on the Jiutian Ranking has centuries of history. Are you scorning this history?" asked Qin Qi with a smile. Sure enough, he really was too arrogant and did not even care about the Jiutian Ranking.


    Ye Futian glanced at Qin Qi. If Pei Qianying and Xia Qinyuan had not set this rule, he would not have come to the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    "I came to find him." Ye Futian looked at Pei Qianying and said, "Where is the Life Spirit?"


    At that moment Ye Wuchen''s face contorted as his Spiritual Energy fluctuated and became stronger. His Life Spirit was still in his opponent''s hands.


    "What does the Sword Saint of the Void have to do with you?" At that moment a sharp Sword Will filled the air. Ye Futian looked at the person beside Pei Qianying. It was someone on the Saint Plane, similar to Pei Qianying.


    It was obviously the Jueying Sword Saint. The Jueying Sword Saint looked at the Village Chief behind Ye Futian. He had seen him before.


    "The Sword Saint of the Void?" Mo Li and Feng Xiao''s eyes flashed. They had been born in the Lihen Sword Palace, so they naturally knew of the Sword Saint of the Void. He was the old rival of their master. After the Sword Saint of the Void had fallen, the Lihen Swordmaster had become the top swordsman of Emperor Xia.


    Ye Futian looked at his opponents. He felt coldness emanate from the Jueying Sword Saint. He had heard the Village Chief say that in the past the Jueying Sword Saint had called upon the Sword Saint of the Void and been rejected.


    "Senior." Mo Li and Feng Xiao looked at the Jueying Sword Saint.


    "The person behind him is the Sword Saint of the Void''s sword servant from all those years ago," said the Jueying Sword Saint. The two of them looked at the Village Chief, and then their gaze once again fell upon Ye Futian. No wonder someone from the Lower World was so outstanding, he had a connection to the Sword Saint of the Void.


    "Since you have a connection to the Sword Saint of the Void, you will leave on your own, and depart from the Ninth Level of Heaven," Feng Xiao said coldly to Ye Futian. She respected the Sword Saint of the Void whose name had once shaken the heavens and the earth. If Ye Futian was to fight today, he could not bear the cost of defeat!

 921 In the Nine Heavens

    Ye Futian turned his gaze to Feng Xiao.


    Leave the Ninth Layer of Heaven? He had come from the Nine States, climbed the Sky Stairwell, and entered Jiutian Temple to come here and see the person who had stripped Wuchen of his Life Spirit.


    Feng Xiao had asked him to leave the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    But Feng Xiao''s face was calm and unperturbed, as if she was only thinking of Ye Futian''s benefit. To say the name of the Sword Saint of the Void and then ask him to leave was the height of arrogance.


    However, if he was able to sit up there, then this Feng Xiao must be a powerful figure in the Upper Worlds. Facing someone who came from the Lower World, he would naturally feel a strong sense of superiority. Even though he had fought his way into the Ninth Layer of Heaven, it seemed like that was still not enough for them to take him seriously. After all, those who sat up above had all done that before.


    Those people''s names shook the Upper Worlds.


    As far as they were concerned, these guys fighting their way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and wanting to break through Jiutian Temple was just a case of some crazy disciples from the Lower World who were too big for their boots.


    In that case, let them be too big for their boots.


    "Why don''t you make Pei Qianying give back the Life Spirit, and at the same time remove your own Life Spirit in penance." Ye Futian glanced at Feng Xiao, his arrogant spirit seeming to blow against his face.


    Feng Xiao frowned. Those on the seats up above looked interested in their conversation. Three days ago, they had heard that someone from the Nine States in the Lower World had broken into the Nine Heavens and that he was arrogant and overbearing. Today they discovered that he deserved that reputation.


    "Pei Qianying is a disciple of the Lihen Sword Palace. Who do you think you are asking him to give back the Life Spirit and remove his own as penance?" Feng Xiao saw how impolite Ye Futian was, and so her tone became colder. She respected the Sword Saint of the Void, and so when she remembered that he had a connection to her opponent she tried to persuade him.


    Ye Futian had fought his way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and challenged Pei Qianying. If he was defeated, Pei Qianying would let him go. At that time, the cost would not just be leaving the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    Ye Futian stepped forward. Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu followed him, moving forward step by step. Ye Futian''s eyes were extremely sharp as he stared at Feng Xiao and said, "I have come from the Nine States, climbed the Sky Stairwell, and arrived here. Who do you think you are to ask me to leave?"


    Feng Xiao''s face became even colder, but she saw Ye Futian''s gaze shift. He did not look at her anymore but instead looked at Pei Qianying.


    "People from the Barren State came here with Xia Qingyuan to undergo trials, along with some people from the Upper Worlds. Together they went to the ruins for the trials. The Sword Will was refined and taken by Wuchen, and for this, you took the opportunity to strip him of his Life Spirit?" Ye Futian''s eyes were extremely sharp as he advanced step by step towards Pei Qianying.


    Pei Qianying stared back at Ye Futian. A terrible Sword Will could be seen in his eyes, and he said, "During trials, cultivators must take the chances offered to them by the Great Path. If one is powerless and cannot take the chance, why not seize it from them?"


    "You trapped us in the ruins, sent people to rob and kill us and strip the Life Spirit. You call this taking the chances offered by the Great Path?" Gu Dongliu stepped forward, his eyes cold.


    "Do you have any idea how insignificant you are? Ye Wuchen forcibly molded the Sword Will of the ruins, but did he really think he could hold onto it?" said someone beside Pei Qianying coldly. "If not for the Princess, do you think you could have survived coming here? Now you have brought two helpers from the Lower World, do you think that will let you turn the tables and reclaim the Life Spirit?" This was Xing Sen, a cultivator of the Jiutian Ranking and a friend of Pei Qianying.


    Gu Dongliu glanced at him sharply and said, "When Pei Qianying removed Wuchen''s Life Spirit, this one had a part in it. He has acted against us."


    "He comes up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and looks upon us Upper Worlders as nothing. What confidence!" Qin Qi said with a smile as he looked at these newly arrived cultivators with interest. He looked forward to seeing how much combat capability these people from the Nine States had.


    Would they be able to leave here alive?


    In the stands, everyone calmly watched what was happening. It looked like these figures of the Jiutian Ranking were very dissatisfied with Ye Futian''s arrogance, as many of them had already expressed.


    Of course, many of them were just sitting there and watching the excitement without saying anything. Today they had come only to watch a battle. They wanted to see if these people who boasted of the excellence of the Nine States could shake Pei Qianying of the Jiutian Ranking.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over those who had spoken as he walked up to the edge of the steps. The caved-in Law Battle Platform was in front of him.


    The wind blew through his white robe. He looked up at the figures sitting there proudly. They were all cultivators on the Jiutian Ranking, the heroic figures of the Upper Worlds. Of course, they were proud and confident. Why would they care about someone who had come from the Lower World?


    Any struggle by words was pale and powerless. Blood. Only blood could repay.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "You are correct." Ye Futian swept his gaze across the cultivators in the honored seats. "Forget the Nine Layers of Heaven. Even if there were ten, if Pei Qianying was on the tenth, I would still break through to that one."


    An invisible pressure pervaded the Ninth Layer of Heaven. The silence was a little frightening. No one made a sound. Even the cultivators in the stands maintained their silence as they watched that figure standing proudly on the stairs. His robe fluttered in the wind and his black hair flowed down to his shoulders as he looked at those cultivators of the Jiutian Ranking. He had come up the Sky Stairwell from the Nine States. Forget nine layers; if there had been a Tenth Layer of Heaven he would have broken through to it.


    How arrogant.


    They all looked at Ye Futian as well. The young master of Jiutian Temple, Gu Mu, Mo Li of the Lihen Sword Palace, Feng Xiao, Pei Qianying, Qin Qi, Xing Sen , and many others'' eyes all fell upon Ye Futian. He had admitted that he did not care about the Jiutian Ranking. He would have even fought his way up to the Tenth Layer of Heaven.


    The figures on the Jiutian Ranking were the top talents of Emperor Xia''s realm. Ye Futian''s words were indeed unprecedented.


    Princess Xia Qingyuan was proud, but hers was a reserved sort of pride.


    "Do you want to try me?" Ye Futian swept his gaze over Qin Qi and Xing Sen, as he continued to speak with pride and dignity. There was another burst of silence. This was the cultivator who wanted to skip over the Jiutian Ranking?


    At that moment a noise came from the sky. Everyone in Jiutian Temple looked up and saw an incomparably beautiful Divine Bird flying in the air above them. Jiutian Temple was a restricted airspace. There were few in Emperor Xia''s realm who would dare fly there. However, when everyone saw that beast, they did not feel that something was wrong, rather, they felt their hearts beating faster.


    Princess Xia Qingyuan had arrived.


    This legendary figure of Emperor Xia''s realm had come to personally observe the battle.


    A burst of wild noise rang out from Jiutian Temple as they saw her descend from the sky towards the Ninth Layer of Heaven. A frightening aura emanated from her. She was a Sacred Beast.


    On the Ninth Layer of Heaven, everyone looked up with solemn expressions.


    Qingyuan descended as a Sacred Beast, but a beautiful woman dressed in men''s clothing stepped down towards the seats of honor. Everyone made way for her and left the highest seat for her. No one dared to sit near her.


    "Welcome, Princess." Gu Mu. Mo Li, Feng Xiao , and the others stood and bowed in greeting. Everyone in the stands stood up as well.


    Ye Futian looked at her. Although she was dressed as a man, she was still more beautiful than any other woman.


    In the Lower World, she was a Supervising Inspector. In the Upper Worlds, she was Emperor Xia''s little princess, whom everyone respected. Ye Futian could understand Saint Xia''s initial attitude towards her. In front of her, even ordinary figures of the Saint Plane must bow their heads.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian as well. She was still quite impressed by him. He had refused to go to the trials with her but had climbed the Sky Stairwell through his own power. Moreover, he had fought his way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. His talent was not only unparalleled in the Lower World.


    "Ye Futian, of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State, greets you, Princess," said Ye Futian. But he did not bow in greeting. The Nine States were Emperor Xia''s land of orthodoxy. He was the Palace Lord of a holy land and was naturally under Emperor Xia''s command. He greeted the Princess as normal, but as a Palace Lord of a holy land, he did not need to bow.


    Xia Qingyuan still stared at him. She sensed a hint of arrogance and coldness from his eyes. She knew why. It must be because Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit was removed.


    "You may continue," said Xia Qingyuan. She sat down as if she was just an outsider who had come to watch the battle.


    "If that''s the case, then let''s get started." Gu Mu stepped forward and said in a loud clear voice, "Raise the Jiutian Law Battle Platform." When he said this, numerous cultivators suddenly stepped forward towards the caved-in platform and started up the matrix.


    In a flash, the Law Battle Platform began to shake. The floor seemed to move, accompanied by a brilliant light blooming. The Law Battle Platform began to rise. Not only this but the seats where Xia Qingyuan and the others began to rise as well, getting higher and higher, staying higher than the Law Battle Platform.


    Battles on the Ninth Layer of Heaven were all battles of the Jiutian Ranking. Everyone who sat up there was on the Jiutian Ranking or was an extraordinary person. For example, Xia Qingyuan was up there, so, the observation stands always had to be higher than the platform.


    The Jiutian Law Battle Platform rose into the air, and suddenly, a brilliant radiance bloomed. At this moment, everyone there could see everything on the platform and could see Xia Qingyuan sitting in her place of honor.


    A loud sound came from the Law Battle Platform and shot into the sky.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Gu Dongliu stepped forward and walked up to the platform. When they saw three figures walking up, Jiutian Temple was once again thrown into an uproar.


    Three people fighting at the same time?


    Could it be that Pei Qianying was going to fight all three of them?


    Pei Qianying had said before that today he would teach Ye Futian and the others respect. Could he do it?


    High up in the stands, Pei Qianying rose to his feet. Sword Qi wrapped around him, making him look extremely brilliant. Then, as everyone watched breathlessly, Qin Qi and Xing Sen rose as well.


    Everyone''s hearts beat faster.


    Pei Qianying, Qin Qi and Xing Sen were all cultivators of the Jiutian Ranking.


    Today, in the Ninth Layer of Heaven, the three men who had come from the Nine States��Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Gu Dongliu��were going to fight three great cultivators of the Jiutian Ranking?


    Everyone held their breath as they watched this shocking scene. Nothing this crazy had ever happened in Jiutian Temple before!

 922 The Battle of the Ninth Layer of Heaven Part II

    In Jiutian Temple, everyone looked up at the Law Battle Platform in the air.


    That sacred Law Battle Platform had borne witness to a multitude of glorious battles.


    Now there were six cultivators standing atop it.


    Pei Qianying, the son of the Jueying Sword Saint and disciple of the Lihen Sword Palace, was a master swordsman. It was said that he had melded the Lihen Heaven Sword Technique and the Jueying Palace Sword Technique together, giving him incredible power.


    Qin Qi of Qin Palace had cultivated in the Overbearing Style. This extremely arrogant style took all the power of heaven and earth and the Great Path into itself and was said to resound throughout the ages. In the vast heavens, the founder of Qin Palace was said to be someone at the Renhuang level, and the Overbearing Style had been started at Qin Palace.


    Xing Sen was also extraordinary. He had cultivated his flesh until it could be said that it was unparalleled. His arrogance was unsurpassed. The rule power of his body could not be broken, and he was indestructible. He could break ritual implements with his flesh and blood body.


    All of the figures standing on the Law Battle Platform had glorious histories. However, other than the people on the Ninth Layer of Heaven, everyone in Jiutian Temple had seen how the three cultivators from the Nine States had fought their way through the heavens. Could they really be weaker than them?


    This battle would change the character and history of Jiutian Temple.


    In today''s battle, would the heroes of the Upper Worlds teach the cultivators of the Lower World respect?


    Or would they break through the Ninth Layer of Heaven?


    Everyone would have to wait and see.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The earth-shaking clamor gradually subsided as everyone held their breath and stared at the Ninth Layer of Heaven. Finally, the three cultivators in the air above the Law Battle Platform moved. The three cultivators, Qin Qi, Xing Sen , and Pei Qianying seemed to have a tacit understanding. They stepped forward at the same time towards Ye Futian and the others.


    Pei Qianying stood in the middle, facing Ye Futian.


    Qin Qi walked towards Gu Dongliu.


    Xing Sen walked towards Yu Sheng.


    There was only one battle platform, but it was big enough to accommodate three great battles. The three of them walked slowly towards the steps, and with every step, a thunderstorm seemed to sweep out towards Ye Futian and the others.


    Ye Futian stood there feeling a terrible current of swordsmanship flowing around him. It seemed like there was an infinite sword will falling towards him, but he still stood there calmly, watching the figure walking towards him.


    His eyes were full of pride, and he looked extremely indifferent.


    Xing Sen''s footsteps made the stairs tremble. A powerful aura came from him and pressed towards Yu Sheng. The aura reached Yu Sheng before he did, making him seem like a god of war. But Yu Sheng gazed at him coldly, not moving at all. He stood there as firmly as a mountain. Even if the sky fell before him his face would not change.


    Gu Dongliu had said that Ye Wuchen''s life spirit had been taken away, and this person had had a hand in it. He clenched his fists and a cracking sound rang out. He was full of an overbearing power, and dark golden light flowed out and covered his hands, making it seem like they had been cast in gold.


    Boom! At that moment, the sky trembled, and everyone in Jiutian Temple looked to Qin Qi and saw that he had set foot upon the staircase. An unparalleled overbearing airflow flowed out from his body as he stared at Gu Dongliu.


    "Those from the Nine States in the Lower World seek to fight their way through the Nine Heavens?" asked Qin Qi. His voice rolled out into the sky. His body was bathed in endless light. As he spoke, he stepped forward. In a flash, a rule power swept out. It came down from the sky and crashed into Gu Dongliu. His life spirit flashed behind him, and sunlight bloomed. A brilliant nine-layer pagoda appeared, with a golden dragon wrapped around it. It flew upwards, and it overlooked Gu Dongliu with its massive eyes.


    At this moment, Qin Qi seemed like a true son of the dragon, unmatched in this world.


    "How many people in the Nine Heavens are as strong as the Princess and have not claimed to be peerless?" continued Qin Qi. Suddenly a burst of brilliance swept out from the nine-layer pagoda. The power of heaven and earth was suppressed, and everyone saw multiple illusory pagodas falling onto Gu Dongliu, seeking to crush him into the platform.


    The countless people in Jiutian Temple looked at Qin Qi. With his arrogant manner, he sought to kill Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu naturally felt the overwhelming pressure. He was much stronger than any opponent he had faced before.


    The Nine Word Ring wrapped around him, and a Celestial Shadow appeared. His thoughts swept out and he felt the power of all the heavens. But he discovered that all the power of heaven and earth here was being used by his opponent, and he was using it to suppress him.


    The Overbearing Style took all the power of heaven and earth and the Great Path into itself.


    Rumble�� A terrible power swept out, blowing Gu Dongliu''s robes and hair. He felt his body being pressed down. Qin Qi continued to step into the sky, and the image of a true dragon descended. The nine-layer pagoda glowed as bright as the heavens. In all the world, it seemed that only he existed.


    With every step, his aura grew stronger and pressed down on the heavens.


    This was Qin Qi of the Qin Palace.


    "People from the Lower World dared to boast that they were unmatched." An extremely arrogant voice came forth from Qin Qi as he stepped forward once more. In that instant, a huge gold dragon swooped down and the endless pagoda collapsed. The sky shook.


    At this moment, he was the only one on the battle platform who was unmatched.


    The Nine Word Ring wrapped around Gu Dongliu''s body. He summoned the nine gods of war and they appeared all around him. The Light of Nine Words flashed brilliantly, resisting the pressure that pressed down on him. It seemed like the Great Path of heaven and earth was collapsing.


    Qin Qi was not the only one launching an attack at the moment. On the other side, Xing Sen stepped towards Yu Sheng. His sturdy body was full of explosive power, and his physical form was not any weaker than Yu Sheng''s.


    He did not step through the air like Qin Qi but came directly down onto the Law Battle Platform. He walked towards Yu Sheng, and each step was filled with earth shaking power, making him seem like a god of war, unmatched within his generation.


    Boom! A loud noise rang out. Xing Sen stepped forward and all the power of heaven and earth seemed to press down on Yu Sheng as Xing Sen alighted upon the platform. His body grew bigger and his robe ripped open. His muscles exploded in size. He raised his arms and struck out towards Yu Sheng. In that instant, there were a series of loud sounds, and the air seemed to have been pierced. The weight of the sky pressed down on Yu Sheng.


    Bang! Yu Sheng stepped out and slammed his fist into his opponent''s. His dark golden fist was filled with incomparable power as it came together with Xing Sen''s.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng felt an incredible dark power. The power coming from Xing Sen''s arms seemed endless as they struck at him in quick succession, each strike accompanied by a loud noise. The two of them retreated at the same time.


    Rumble! Xing Sen stepped onto the ground and a huge, burly shadow appeared behind him, standing there like a god of war. Suddenly, Xing Sen''s body melded into it, and a billowing airflow rose up around him, devouring all the power of the heavens.


    He stepped out once again to attack Yu Sheng. He said coldly, "In the world of cultivators the weak have no right to take away the gifts of the Great Path." He was obviously talking about Ye Wuchen''s theft.


    In the instant that he spoke, he launched another assault. Everything was broken as the battle platform shook.


    "Such power..." Everything was extremely quiet in Jiutian Temple. Everyone held their breath as they watched the battle. They were so strong. Were these the cultivators of the Jiutian Ranking?


    This was truly a battle of the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    At the center of the platform, Pei Qianying cast a glance at the battles taking place on both sides. Then, he walked proudly towards Ye Futian. He walked through the air, and with each step, an extremely sharp sword will descended towards Ye Futian.


    However, at that moment starry laws appeared around Ye Futian, letting him stand his ground even as the sword wills fell. He still stood there calmly. He looked up and shot a cold glance at Pei Qianying as he walked towards him.


    Pei Qianying''s eyes were as sharp as his swords. The shrieking sword wills flowed around Ye Futian. He could feel his spirit shuddering.


    Pei Qianying stretched out his hand, and suddenly, all the sword wills gathered above Ye Futian''s head and turned into a Sword of the Great Path. The Sword Qi swallowed up everything. Standing under the sword, Ye Futian felt like his spiritual will was about to be broken. He felt a strong sense of threat, as if this sword could cleave his soul in two.


    "Someone like him was not suitable for cultivating the Great Path, nor should he have taken what he did. I stripped him of his life spirit because he did not know his place." Pei Qianying looked at Ye Futian and coldly said, "You are the same. You say that you are without peers in the Nine States and can run about freely in the Lower World. But you have come from the Lower World to the Ninth Layer of Heaven without knowing your place. I will help you learn it." As he spoke, a huge sword descended from the sky, carrying a monstrous sword will and cutting through the air. In that instant, the spiritual will that filled Ye Futian seemed to be torn and shattered. The sword will covered the battlefield, breaking all spiritual willpower.


    Ye Futian looked to the sky and suddenly the starry light bloomed, forming a star prison. However, the star broke right through it, tearing it bit by bit. His spiritual will could not be integrated into heaven and earth, and began to break.


    This Sword Technique was known as the Lihen Sword.


    In the stands, Feng Xiao looked coldly at Ye Futian. She naturally knew that since he had fought his way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven he was extremely talented, but could the people of the Jiutian Ranking be weaker than him? These three cultivators from the Lower World wanted to break through the Jiutian Ranking. How naive.


    Ye Futian struck out with his fist. The Lihen Sword was breaking everything. Huge explosions sounded continuously through the air, and Ye Futian''s body drifted backward.


    "Is this your so-called ''''peerlessness?'''' Pei Qianying walked forward, pursuing and attacking Ye Futian. An even stronger sword will appeared, covering the sky.


    Everyone in Jiutian Temple watched the battle unfold. All the cultivators from the Lower World were being suppressed. This was the extraordinary power of the Jiutian Ranking. Even though Ye Futian and the others had used their extraordinary abilities to fight their way up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven, they would not be able to get through here!

 923 How Should I Deal with You

    Pei Qianying, Qin Qi, Xing Sen. These geniuses on the Jiutian Ranking naturally had more trump cards.


    Ye Futian and the others had fought their way up from the Lower Worlds, but they would probably meet a tragic end.


    Seeing Ye Futian being knocked back, Pei Qianying would naturally not let him off. Countless Sword Wills descended and he continued forward. On the battle arena, shadow blades appeared with void glows around them.


    "Go." Pei Qianying pointed towards Ye Futian and instantly, tens of thousands of illusory blades of light slashed towards Ye Futian. There was no way he could block them all.


    Starry Brilliance shone around Ye Futian and continued to shield him. He repeatedly stepped back, and thunderous sounds could be heard as the blades slashed over and over, eventually penetrating through the Starry Brilliance and tearing it to shreds.


    He''s being suppressed. There were countless experts on the Ninth Layer of Heaven watching the match, and they were stunned when they saw the scene. The Jueying Sword Saint''s son, Lihen Heaven''s disciple, Pei Qianying, was not someone that could be defeated by a person from the Lower Worlds, even if Ye Futian claimed that he was unparalleled in the Lower Worlds.


    Was the difference between the Eighth and Ninth Layer of Heaven really that huge?


    At that moment, Li Qingyun who was watching on the Ninth Layer of Heaven frowned. He had seen how Ye Futian had fought his way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and he had personally experienced Ye Futian''s strength for himself. He was definitely not that weak. Although the battle arena had a matrix that concealed the two of their auras and they could only see but not feel it, he still felt that something was off.


    On the battle arena, Starry Brilliance lit up around Ye Futian and gathered around him. The countless Sword Qi slashed towards him. Pei Qianying stood above Ye Futian, looking down at his opponent. The sharp sword in his hand moved as tens of thousands of Sword Wills slashed in the surrounding area, landing on the Starry Brilliance and shattering it repeatedly.


    Seeing the exploding light screen and the struggling Ye Futian, Pei Qianying walked across the air and said proudly, "You are much weaker than I expected. Let''s end this." As his voice landed, a brilliant light flashed from behind Pei Qianying and a blade appeared. Like a shadow, the blade could pass through the void and move through reality. It accumulated all the Sword Wills in the area and landed above Ye Futian''s head, releasing tens of thousands of sword shadows.


    A wave of destructive force emanated and shattered all the force from his Spiritual Will. The blades hummed as they floated above Ye Futian''s head and created brilliant phantoms.


    "Descend." As Pei Qianying''s voice landed, he looked coldly at Ye Futian with a disparaging expression. It was as if he was looking at a dead man.


    The crowd only saw a ray of light descending from the heavens like a flash of lightning. The entire battle arena lit up with blades of light and many people could not bear to watch.


    How was Ye Futian to block this falling sword?


    The blinding light shone as the blade of light slashed through the Starry Brilliance, causing the area where Ye Futian was to be flooded by light. Perhaps, he would disappear forever in the next moment.


    Many people thought so. However, the Sword Saint, Zhuge Mingyue, Hua Jieyu, and the other Barren State''s disciples all watched calmly. There was absolute trust in their expressions.


    Nobody understood and trusted Ye Futian''s strength more than them.


    So what if this was the Ninth Layer of Heaven in the Jiutian Temple?


    Even if there was a Tenth Layer of Heaven, he would clear it easily.


    The blinding light erupted on the battle arena and countless people in the Jiutian Temple stared at where the blade of light had been. Pei Qianying stood in the sky with absolute confidence. Once his blade struck, the self-proclaimed unparalleled person in the Nine States would be dead.


    "Oh?" At that moment, Pei Qianying raised his eyebrows. He seemed to have noticed something as his expression became sharp. With a single thought, Sword Qi rampaged in the heavens, tearing through everything. However, it seemed like his Life Spirit sword had been bound.


    Under the blade of light, Ye Futian''s figure gradually became clearer. He still stood there calmly, raising his head into the air. Above his head, there was a sword, but at that moment, it was swaying rapidly with a humming sound.


    Around the sword, Starry Brilliance had lit up and the space appeared to have frozen. It had been imprisoned by starry laws and the sword had been buried alongside the space.


    "What''s happening?" Countless people in the Jiutian Temple saw the scene and gasped. They stared at the direction where Ye Futian was in, only to see him raise his hand. At that moment, the seemingly indomitable shadow sword vibrated rapidly, unable to break free.


    It appeared to be trapped.


    Killing intent gushed from Pei Qianying''s eyes. He stepped forward and pointed at Ye Futian. Immediately, Sword Wills flooded the area and shattered the Spiritual Will. The shadow sword that had broken free continued its descend.


    However, at that moment, a starry illusion appeared behind Ye Futian, as though all the constellations in the sky were surrounding him while the brilliance from the stars erupted. The sword and light rays clashed and drowned each other out rapidly, but the Sword Will was unable to reach Ye Futian.


    At that moment, on the viewing gallery of the battle arena, the Jueying Sword Saint had a sharp expression while Mo Li and Fengxiao also had similar expressions.


    Ye Futian had concealed his true strength. Moreover, he had done it to lure Pei Qianying into releasing his Life Spirit.


    Why did he do so?


    The experts on the Ninth Layer of Heaven all had shocked expressions. They had recalled the enmity between Pei Qianying and Ye Futian was because of Ye Wuchen.


    Pei Qianying had extracted Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit.


    As they recalled this, many peoples'' hearts started pounding.


    A deafening roar sounded out as a giant Divine Ape appeared behind Ye Futian. Its giant arms stretched out towards Pei Qianying''s sword Life Spirit, grasping the entire area in its palm.


    The sword Life Spirit was also grasped into its palm.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s body started to float. The countless Sword Wills that were rushing towards him seemed to slow down and were then blocked by the light from the stars. It was as though fending off the opponent''s blows was an insignificant task to Ye Futian, completely different from his prior attempts.


    Soon, Ye Futian had risen to the same height as Pei Qianying. The sword Life Spirit was being held by the Divine Ape beside him.


    "I''m done," Ye Futian said. However, it was naturally not meant for Pei Qianying.


    "Okay." In the adjacent battle arena, Gu Dongliu nodded in acknowledgment.


    At that moment, Qin Qi still stood proudly in the air, releasing his Supremacy Technique and crushing everything. The pure-blooded dragon and Nine-Tiered Pagoda pressured down, smashing everything in their way. He had been defending all the while, just like Ye Futian, as though he was dominated.


    At that moment, Gu Dongliu''s Life Spirit became even more dazzling, as though a celestial light was being released to engulf the area. The nine war gods stood in the nine major directions, but at that moment, they had merged to form one and appeared behind Gu Dongliu, assimilating into his Life Spirit.


    At that moment, the aura on Gu Dongliu erupted and the heavens resonated with him. He raised his head and looked at Qin Qi in the air. His Kuji-In Nine Seals of Spiritual Power were extremely brilliant as they floated into the air, seemingly everywhere.


    Qin Qi frowned and his expression changed. At that moment, he had a feeling as though Gu Dongliu was everywhere in the area. He naturally understood that this was the result of Gu Dongliu''s Spiritual Will resonating with the heavens. It was as if all the energy in the area could be used by him.


    What was this ability?


    Exerting the Supremacy Technique to its limit, Qin Qi stepped forward again, trampling the earth and suppressing time-space. The pure-blooded dragon and pagoda''s light screen rushed towards Gu Dongliu, the nine words around Gu Dongliu transformed into a light screen and rose upwards. The two forces clashed and with a deafening sound, they were both eradicated.


    Gu Dongliu raised his head. At that moment, he was omniscient and omnipresent. The Great Path had resonated with him and his will was absolute. In the skies, countless rays of light emanated from the nine words and descended from the heavens.


    "Go," Gu Dongliu said. Instantly, Qin Qi felt like there were countless copies of Gu Dongliu in the surrounding area. The light from the nine words crashed down on him with suppression rule power, force rule power, shredding rule power and many other rule powers.


    Qin Qi''s expression became extremely grim. The pure-blooded dragon surrounded his body, and boundless rays of light burst forth from the Nine-Tiered Pagoda. However, the light from the nine words rushed towards him without end.


    At that moment, Gu Dongliu was like a celestial god and floated in front of Qin Qi, striking out with his palm. Behind him, the celestial shadow rose and the energy around them seemed to strike out as well. Countless words crushed down on Qin Qi and he let out a thunderous roar and tried to fend it off, but the palm prints descended upon him.


    Bang! With a loud sound, Qin Qi was slammed towards the viewing gallery and his organs ruptured as he coughed up blood.


    "There is no boundary in cultivation. Why can''t people from the Lower Worlds dominate the Nine Layers of Heaven?" Gu Dongliu''s voice sounded throughout the Jiutian Temple as countless gazes looked towards his peerless figure.


    They had all been tricked. The Jiutian Ranking''s Qin Qi had been crushed.


    At the same time, in the other battle arena, Yu Sheng no longer retreated after Ye Futian''s words. An eye-catching light lit up around his body as he entered his battle form. Golden rays pierced through his body and he looked like an unparalleled war god.


    Crash. A roaring sound could be heard as Xing Sen''s fist landed on Yu Sheng''s battle form. However, this time, Yu Sheng only faltered slightly as he stood steadily and looked at Xing Sen in front of him.


    "How could this be?" Xing Sen let out a gasp as he looked at Yu Sheng. However, Yu Sheng stared at him and said, "Weaklings have no right to obtain opportunities and even less right to take it from others." As his voice landed, Yu Sheng''s golden fist punched out. On his fist, a brilliant light appeared. It seemed to have the light of the gods and the roar of demons at the same time.


    Xing Sen retreated as he struck out with his fist again. Both of their fists clashed as a crisp crackling sound could be heard. Even though Xing Sen''s fist will came in waves, but at that moment, the waves of his fist will had all been shattered and an overbearing force engulfed him, devouring all his force. The fist will penetrated his body and shattered his bones.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Blood trickled down the side of Xing Sen''s mouth.


    Bang. Yu Sheng stepped forward and struck out yet again with his fist. Just one fist was enough to send Xing Sen flying towards the edge of the battle arena. He felt as though his organs had been pulverized. His burly figure slumped over as his bones had been shattered.


    In the Jiutian Temple, countless gazes froze as they stared intently at the battles in the two arenas.


    The situations had been reversed in an instant.


    Ye Futian had risen into the air while Gu Dongliu and Yu Sheng had defeated Qin Qi and Xing Sen in dominating fashion.


    Their hearts pounded vigorously as they looked at the final battle in the middle. Pei Qianying''s sword Life Spirit was still struggling to no avail. At that moment, the confidence on Pei Qianying''s face finally disappeared. The battles in the other two arenas had made him understand that Ye Futian had been toying with him all along.


    Pei Qianying looked towards Ye Futian but only saw scorn and coldness in his eyes. It was as if he had never been treated seriously.


    "So, how should I deal with you?" Ye Futian asked calmly.


    Pei Qianying had claimed that he would know respect after the battle. He had claimed that Ye Wuchen had not been self-aware, so he had his Life Spirit extracted. He was also not self-aware, so Ye Futian would do the same for him.

 924 What Is Meant by Peerless?

    Everyone in Jiutian Temple looked at the two figures who stood on the Law Battle Platform.


    Gu Dongliu and Yu Sheng had both defeated their opponents, leaving only the final battle. And from those battles, people could already infer that Pei Qianying would come to tragedy in this fight. Ye Futian had purposely given ground to him for the purpose of restraining his spirit and to make him let go of his control.


    What was he trying to do?


    All was silent in Jiutian Temple, even in the highest stands. Everyone had become aware of something.


    The Jueying Sword Saint''s face grew unusually ugly. Pei Qianying was in danger.


    Pei Qianying''s spiritual will had been released, and the sound of it smashing between the Divine Ape''s fists rang out continuously. The Sword Spirit tried to break the restraints, but the Divine Ape''s spirit held Ye Futian''s spiritual willpower. When the rule power was released his two fists were like the sturdiest prison, as they pressed down firmly on the Sword Spirit.


    At that moment, Ye Futian reached out and suddenly, the Starry Brilliance flowed, turning into a long staff that he held in his hand. Starry rule power flowed around the staff. A surging pressure swept out towards Pei Qianying.


    Everyone watched Ye Futian''s movements. It seemed that now he was really getting serious


    Boom! Ye Futian stepped forward and the clouds and wind moved. His rule power roared, and the situation was wildly in his favor.


    "When cultivating the Great Path the weak have no right to take the gifts that heaven offers?" asked Ye Futian coldly. His majestic aura swept out, and time and space seemed to freeze. Pei Qianying felt the sword will around him begin to slow down.


    As he waved his hands, a sword will flowed down from the sky. The Lihen Sword cut through the Space Will and broke him free of his restraints.


    "Those who don''t know their place should lose their life spirits?" continued Ye Futian. He stepped forward again. The air trembled as his incomparable spiritual will swept out. The Great Path Rules covered the sky and were not destroyed. At this moment he was like a god that everyone should pay homage to.


    Pei Qianying made the sword will wrap around his body, breaking the Space Rule Power and not letting it freeze him in place. Otherwise, he would have no hope in this battle.


    "The cultivators of the Upper Worlds disdain everything, and the ants of the Lower World have no way to break through the Ninth Layer of Heaven?" Ye Futian''s voice shook the Nine Heavens, and with each step, he shook the ground. The power of the Great Path was growing stronger and stronger, and the shadow of the staff blotted out the sky. It was as if his staff technique had been integrated into his power.


    Pei Qianying felt that pressure that was so powerful it could collapse the sky and his face went pale. The sword will in front of him gathered together, forming a huge Lihen Sword. It tore through all the Rule Power around him as a Light Sword, also destroying shadow of the staff.


    "You are as insignificant as an ant. You do not even know how weak you are, and yet you dared take my brother''s life spirit? You plundered the good fortune of the Great Path. Do you think this is right?" Ye Futian''s voice was extremely cold. He put his physical strength into play, and the hand that held the staff was filled with limitless power. A terrible brilliance passed through him like it was drilling a hole, making his power grow even stronger.


    He likely did not just want to defeat Pei Qianying.


    He had taken Wuchen''s life spirit, made Jieyu and the others fight their way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven, and had regarded his sworn brothers as ants.


    In this battle, he would let Pei Qianying know what was meant by an infinite abyss.


    Pei Qianying saw his imposing figure. Ye Futian had terrorized him with force. His mind was shaken, and the confidence had disappeared from his face. His eyes were turning bloodshot.


    Lingtian Sword Will burst out from him, and Pei Qianying''s Lihen Sword sliced through space, cutting the Rule Power and splitting the Space Freezing Rules. The sharp sword shot up into the sky towards Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian stood there without moving. He swept his gaze over Pei Qianying, and a monstrous power covered his body, imprisoning all the power in the space around him.


    A sharp crashing sound rang out. The sharp sword still shot forward, but its power grew weaker and weaker until it nearly stopped. The sword was smashed in the Starry Brilliance, and Ye Futian''s mighty power pressed down on both Pei Qianying and the sword. The power of heaven and earth was integrated into Ye Futian''s Rule Power, but the Lihen Sword continued to cut down.


    Pei Qianying''s face went pale and his heart pounded. He clearly felt the Rule Power that his spiritual will had created, and the Lihen Will could not destroy it. The willpower was too firm, it could not be shaken even by the pounding of a thousand hammers.


    When Ye Futian had tested Saint Jiang''s medicine at Nine State College, he had not only tempered his flesh; his spiritual will was extremely stable. Even if Pei Qianying''s Lihen Will could target his spiritual willpower, thus breaking the rules, breaking his accumulated Rule Power would not be easy.


    "I came from the Nine States in the Lower World, climbed the Sky Stairwell, and made it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. Everyone here thinks they are the best in all the Upper and Lower Worlds." Ye Futian stared at Pei Qianying as he said proudly, "But are you worthy of that title?" He continued forward as he spoke, waving his long staff. It covered the sky and blotted out the sun. Pei Qianying went pale. He wanted to retreat, but how could he under Ye Futian''s rules?


    Bang! There was a loud noise as Ye Futian''s staff swept Pei Qianying''s sword away, shattering it, and continued down, smashing into Pei Qianying and sending him falling to the ground below. But Ye Futian did not stop. His figure flashed as he pursued him. He smashed him with the staff again.


    Bang! Another loud noise rang out. Pei Qianying spat up blood as all his bones were broken. His face was deathly pale.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! The staff''s shadow continued to rise and fall. The two men danced upon the platform. With every bang, the people in Jiutian Temple''s hearts beat faster.


    Was this really a Law Battle of the Nine Heavens?


    This battle that everyone had come to watch, that countless people in Jiutian Temple paid rapt attention to, had been gathering interest for three days. Pei Qianying saying that he would teach them respect had pushed the excitement for this battle to the top. Many important people had personally come to watch, even Princess Xia Qingyuan.


    The three enchanting figures from the Lower World had finally made it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. But, as Ye Futian had said, was this really a battle between the top figures of the Upper and Lower Worlds? Was Pei Qianying worthy of that title?


    As they watched the staff fall upon Pei Qianying''s body, everyone''s hearts beat rapidly.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    What did it mean to be peerless? What did it mean to be without a match?


    Even though they were on the Jiutian Ranking, even though one of them was the son of a Saint and had cultivated in the Lihen Heaven, Ye Futian had only a staff.


    If Pei Qianying had not harmed Pei Qianying, Ye Futian would not have come from the Lower World. The two of them were not at the same level.


    Ye Futian did not care about the Jiutian Ranking. He had come from the Lower World only because of Ye Wuchen.


    "Enough," a voice rang out. The Jueying Sword Saint''s face was extremely cold and as sharp as a sword. Seeing how grievously Pei Qianying had been harmed, even a Saint could not hold himself back.


    Bang! There was another loud noise as Ye Futian smashed his staff directly into Pei Qianying''s chest. He flew into the air and then landed back on the Law Battle Platform. Ye Futian stepped on his staff, pressing it into the platform.


    The arrogant son of heaven of the Jiutian Ranking now lay there like a dead man. He had no power left in his body, and his organs all felt like they had been shattered. Only his eyes could still move and he could still think. But he would have rather fainted.


    Watching Ye Futian stepping on his proud figure he felt endless hopelessness and sorrow. Everyone in Jiutian Temple had seen this battle. After this battle, he would become an object of ridicule in Emperor Xia''s realm. Whenever anyone saw him they would think of this battle and of Ye Futian who had come from the Nine States, boasted of his unmatched prowess and then trampled all over him.


    After this battle, he would have no way to truly enter the core of the Lihen Heaven. They would not be willing to train a disciple who had suffered such humiliation. He would have no way to come into contact with the best swordsman in Emperor Xia''s realm, the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    There was only endless hopelessness in his eyes.


    How could someone from the Lower World be this strong? He didn''t understand.


    How had he dared come from the Lower World and fight his way here, and do this to him?


    Ye Futian was standing on Pei Qianying, but he did not care what he was thinking, just as he had not cared what Ye Wuchen was thinking when he had taken his life spirit.


    Only blood could repay blood.


    Ye Futian looked up at the Jueying Sword Saint, and his face became cold. He said, "Your son has stripped another of his life spirit. Did you ever think of that when you were training him?" Everyone saw that Ye Futian still looked very strong when facing the Jueying Sword Saint.


    "The weak are not worthy of the gifts of the Great Path. Was it you who taught him to strip others of their life spirit?" Without waiting for him to answer, Ye Futian said, "Now Pei Qianying is the weak one. What do you say?"


    The Jueying Sword Saint waved, and suddenly a silver sword went flying. It screamed through the air. It was Ye Wuchen''s life spirit. His spiritual will began to fluctuate more strongly.


    But the Jueying Sword Saint still controlled his life spirit, and he said, "Take the life spirit and stop this now."


    Ye Futian cast a cold glance at the Jueying Sword Saint. Stop this now? His agreement with Xia Qingyuan had been that as long as he defeated Pei Qianying he could have the life spirit. But the Jueying Sword Saint was taking things as they came. Would he dare to not return it?


    "Do you not care about the Princess''s words?" Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan glanced at Ye Futian and then looked to the Jueying Sword Saint. "These are the rules that Pei Qianying set himself. Return the life spirit."


    The Jueying Sword Saint''s face grew ugly when he heard the Princess''s words. He looked at her and saw that she was still calm.


    In the past, Pei Qianying had removed Ye Wuchen''s life spirit. He had been arrogant like no other. Now he had to pay the price. No one could complain.


    "Fine." The Jueying Sword Saint looked into Xia Qingyuan''s indifferent eyes. In the end, he did not dare disobey her. Suddenly the light of the silver sword turned into a flash of lightning and flew towards Ye Wuchen''s body, entering it between his eyebrows!

 925 Second Refusal

    Ye Futian turned his head. The Sword Spirit had returned to its place. Ye Wuchen''s brow chakra released a strong fluctuation of the spirit, and the aura of heaven and earth flowed in through the brow chakra. But these days, his spiritual will was greatly traumatized. It was obvious that it would not wake up so fast and that he was healing himself. Phoenix bent down and put an herbal medicine into Ye Wuchen''s mouth. It was a remedy for restoring mental strength, which would allow him to heal faster.


    "Princess, the life spirit has been returned and Qianying was defeated, so let it all end here." Jueying Sword Saint looked to Xia Qingyuan, apparently worried that Ye Futian would continue his offensive. However, in the beginning, when Pei Qianying allowed Gu Dongliu and the others to challenge him in the Ninth Layer of Heaven, it was sanctioned by Xia Qingyuan. Now that Xia Qingyuan was personally present as the witness of this battle, he did not dare to jump in to stop the fight. All he could do was inquire with Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan did not look at Jueying Sword Saint. Her eyes were still on the battle platform, fixed on Ye Futian.


    "Stripping the others of life spirit, and now, in defeat, would merely returning it be enough?" Yu Sheng stepped forward, and his angry eyes stared at Jueying Sword Saint. If they had not come, or if they were defeated, what would the ending be?


    "Was it not enough that he already made his move?" Jueying Sword Saint cast a glance at Yu Sheng, and his eyes seemed to contain sword will within.


    "Of course it was not enough," Ye Futian responded. He moved his foot away from the body of Pei Qianying, his palms extended, and the long rod landed on his palm as he was heading towards the location of the life spirit of the Divine Ape.


    At this moment, the Divine Ape held out his hands, holding the Sword Spirit at both ends so that the Sword Spirit was laying across in the air. In the Jiutian Temple, countless many were shocked to witness the scene before them.


    Ye Futian, what was he going to do?


    "You are out of control." Jueying Sword Saint stood up and a terrifying sword will pulsed out, but Ye Futian ignored him and continued to Mo Live, towards the Divine Ape.


    Pei Qianying laid on the ground, his eyes still open, and when he saw Ye Futian''s action, his face turned ashy gray. His powerless body lay there, shivering slightly.


    He was already so miserable and fell into hell.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Would Ye Futian not spare him?


    This was a life spirit, complete in its entirety. If it was destroyed directly there would be no chance of recovery. His cultivation would regress, impossible to advance in any way. His path of cultivation would end right here, and he would be useless from now on.


    On the view stands, many people on the Jiutian Ranking watched Ye Futian''s action, and their hearts quietly shuddered. This guy was entirely too crazy.


    Did he desire to have an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth?


    Zing. At this time, the sound of music was heard, so powerful that it rocked Ye Futian''s spiritual will. Ye Futian stopped and turned to look at the person who plucked the strings from the view stands, and saw that it was Mo Li of Lihen Sword Palace


    "Enough, stop here." Mo Li looked at Ye Futian, seeming not to have too much emotion. His voice was not loud, but there was a strange magic that could not be resisted. Mo Li also understood that Pei Qianying had stripped Ye Wuchen of his life spirit, and now that he had lost, he deserved the punishment. His strength was less, and for that, he must pay the price.


    But Pei Qianying was still his junior brother. If Ye Futian wanted to kill Pei Qianying in front of him, he still could not stand by and say nothing.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were very cold. When Pei Qianying was stripping Ye Wuchen of his life spirit, no one had admonished him. Pei Qianying did not even care and had asked his three senior brothers to come to the Ninth Layer of Heaven to qualify for battle with him for the life spirit. These people who were sitting in the view stands were probably waiting to see the visitors from the Nine States to make a fool of themselves.


    As for Wuchen, who cared about whether he lived or died?


    When his life spirit was stripped, who had cared?


    And now, Mo Li said to stop because it was enough!


    "If you are willing to exchange your life spirit for his, I will stop." Ye Futian looked at Mo Li.


    Mo Li slightly raised his eyebrow, and next to him, Fengxiao''s eyes flashed coldly. "You are much too arrogant."


    Ye Futian gave Fengxiao a sarcastic look, then turned around and continued his walk towards the Divine Ape.


    "Princess." Jueying Sword Saint looked extremely upset. He looked to Xia Qingyuan next to him, and there was even pleading in his voice. Now, only if Xia Qingyuan was willing would his child, Pei Qianying, be saved.


    Watching Ye Futian walk step by step until he stopped in front of the Divine Ape, he lifted the long rod in his hands and a horrible breath rule permeated along the long rod. Xia Qingyuan called out, "Ye Futian."


    "When Pei Qianying stripped the life spirit of Ye Wuchen, the princess did not intervene and thus silently condoned it. Now I have challenged Pei Qianying according to the agreement, and with the princess as a witness to this. Wasn''t it so?" Before Xia Qingyuan could say anything, Ye Futian had interjected to stop her.


    Even though he was extremely upset, the position of Xia Qingyuan as the daughter of Emperor Xia was superior and above all. He had not wasted the three days and had acquired some important information in the Upper Worlds. This Xia Qingyuan was Emperor Xia''s youngest and most beloved daughter, born to the first beauty of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Incredibly talented, her position in Emperor Xia''s Realm was unparalleled.


    And Ye Futian was a mere palace lord of holy lands that were within the jurisdiction of the Lower Worlds ruled by Emperor Xia. Even if he was upset, it was impossible for him to launch any accusation against Xia Qingyuan.


    When Xia Qingyuan heard those words from Ye Futian, she was silent and could not refute.


    "Right," Xia Qingyuan said, looking at Ye Futian.


    "In this case, I would like to thank the princess for bearing witness to this." As Ye Futian''s voice trailed off, the long rod in his hand was lifted, exploding with the terrifying power of the power of the rules this instant in the Jiutian Temple, countless eyes looked above Jiutian, staring at Ye Futian. His body became a beautiful arc, and the long rod in his hands split toward the Sword Spirit between the two hands of the Divine Ape. At this moment, countless people were holding their breath and stared at the scene.


    "No..." Pei Qianying shouted weakly, his eyes full of despair.


    Boom! A loud bang was heard, and the long rod exploded with the power of the rules of the sky and blasted on the Sword Spirit. In an instant, the Sword Spirit was pulverized in the explosion.


    Lying there, Pei Qianying made a muted sound and spat out a mouthful of blood. His breath was diminishing madly as if all the planes were digressing. But at this moment, it was as if he could not feel the pain. At this moment, he only felt that his soul was tearing and the pain went directly to his heart.


    He recalled his glorious life until now, born into an extraordinary family, the proud son who was treasured and praised. He was the son of a Sword Saint, the disciple of Lihen Heaven. He stepped onto the Jiutian Ranking with dazzling and incomparable stance. Even in Emperor Xia''s Realm, there was a place for him, and in the future when he entered the Saint Plane, he would undoubtedly become a pivotal figure in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    But now, all of it was like a dream.


    This dream was now broken.


    Now everything was gone. He was now a handicap. A handicap who could not move forward on the road of cultivation, an object of jokes, to be made fun of by the world. Everyone would remember the battle of today. That unparalleled figure of the Nine States, who climbed the Sky Stairwell and reached the Ninth Layer of Heaven and laid waste of Pei Qianying who was on the Jiutian Ranking. What a brilliant story.


    And the name of Pei Qianying, now became the footnote of this story, to complete the fame of Ye Futian.


    How ironic.


    He just couldn''t abide. Was it really all just because he had stolen the life spirit of someone from the Lower Worlds? And he had to pay such a painful price for it?


    Tears slid down the corners of Pei Qianying''s eyes. They seemed to be tears for his own future predicament. In this instant, his heart felt like it was being stabbed by a knife, worse than death.


    The Divine Ape returned to its place inside Ye Futian''s body. In Jiutian, it was silent, and not just in the Ninth Layer of Heaven, but even the Jiutian Temple. At this moment, it was exceptionally quiet.


    Ye Futian, a man from the Nine States, not only got through to the Ninth Layer of Heaven but also destroyed the life spirit of Pei Qianying in the Ninth Layer of Heaven, and in front of the disciples of Lihen Heaven and Jueying Sword Saint.


    Pei Qianying, who was on the Jiutian Ranking, was now a handicap.


    This battle, although somewhat different from what they had imagined, shocked them to the core.


    Other than Jueying Sword Saint, no one cared about the life or death of Pei Qianying. The winner was a king and the loser was a fugitive. He had stripped the life spirit of others, and now that he was defeated, no one would sympathize with him. This is the price he had to pay.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian and said nothing.


    From Jueying Sword Saint, there was a terrible sword will permeating the space, and his eyes revealed murderous intent, but ultimately, he kept it inside.


    Ye Futian, in front of him, had destroyed his favorite child.


    Mo Li and Fengxiao also stared at Ye Futian with indifference, but they were also silent. The conversation before between Ye Futian and the Little Princess before was a silent consent.


    Gu Mu, the young master of the Jiutian Temple, also kept quiet, so that there was a strange silence in the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    "This battle stops here," Xia Qingyuan said.


    Gu Mu transmitted the message to the people around the battle platform, and immediately, the matrix was extinguished; the lights disappeared, and the Jiutian Law Battle Platform sank below.


    In a flash, Jueying Sword Saint landed on the battle platform, and almost at the same moment, the Village Chief descended next to Ye Futian and the others.


    Although Xia Qingyuan was present, Jueying Sword Saint would not dare to make a wrong move, but it was a necessary measure that was still needed. What if he had gone crazy? His cold gaze swept over Ye Futian, and Jueying Sword Saint took off with the body of Pei Qianying. Those eyes that were filled with murder.


    Mo Li and Fengxiao also stood up, looked at Ye Futian indifferently, then walked away without continuing to stay there.


    Xia Qingyuan still sat there looking at Ye Futian, and said, "Will you be willing to follow me to cultivate?"


    The hearts of the people in the Ninth Layer of Heaven trembled. The Little Princess had personally invited Ye Futian to cultivate with her. Clearly, the dominant strength as exhibited by Ye Futian had even touched the Little Princess.


    Even Gu Mu''s eyes flashed sharply. As long as Ye Futian was willing, he could now fly high. Not only was his talent superior, but with the Little Princess Xia Qingyuan at his side, who would dare touch him?


    "The Princess is being too kind, but I am the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State, so naturally my place of cultivation is at the palace," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan, apparently refusing.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian deeply. This was already the second time that Ye Futian had refused her offer. Last time at the birthday banquet of Saint Xia, Ye Futian had already refused to go with her to the trial.


    She still said nothing, and simply stepped out and landed on the back of the sacred beast, the Blue Phoenix. With a long cry, the Blue Phoenix swung upward and left for the void.


    "We go back to the Barren State," Ye Futian said, watching the departing figure of Xia Qingyuan.

 926 Good Times

    Ye Futian and the others left with the Village Chief by riding on the sword. Their silhouettes quickly disappeared from the Jiutian Temple.


    There were countless at the Jiutian Temple who remained shocked and their minds still felt restless. All stages except for the ones at the Eighth and Ninth Layer of Heaven were closed, just so that everyone present would be able to witness those three from the Nine States get to the Ninth Layer of Heaven, and then challenge Pei Qianying.


    They saw what they came to see. However, instead of a clash between titans as they had imagined it, the fight turned out to be a one-sided slaughter. Ye Futian, Yu-Sheng, and Gu Dongliu fought their way up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and overpowered Pei Qianying and the other two mighty ones. They went so far as to destroy Pei Qianying''s Life Spirit.


    Pei Qianying, who had been an unparalleled genius, ranked on the Jiutian Ranking, was thoroughly reduced to a product of a tragedy like none other. It was a harrowing sight to behold. No one had expected the Lower Worlds to have some mighty ones who were of such caliber.


    Pei Qianying was the favorite son of the Jueying Sword Saint and he was about to send him to Lihen Heaven for training, having high hopes for that son of his, hopes that ended up utterly crushed. The Jueying Sword Saint probably harbored intense resentment over the outcome, but then again, it was Pei Qianying''s fault for robbing others of their Life Spirits in the first place, and he permitted and attempted to refine the stolen Life Spirits as well. With Pei Qianying being defeated and destroyed in a fair fight, as well as having Princess Xia Qingyuan as the witness, there was simply nothing he could do.


    Even if the Jueying Sword Saint were to simply go down to the Lower Worlds and commence a killing spree down there, ignoring the princess'' stance in this altogether, he would be fighting a holy land and saints, and they , in??turn, could simply come up and wage a war against the Jueying Palace.


    As for Lihen Heaven, which was the number one swordsman training ground in the Emperor Xia''s Realm, it went without saying that it was an insult like none other for one of the students from the Lihen Sword Palace to be crushed in such a manner. But then again, it had been a battle that Pei Qianying fixed himself and also one that Princess Xia Qingyuan bore witness to. Countless at the Jiutian Temple also witnessed the fair fight, which Pei Qianying ended up losing and gotten crippled. If Lihen Heaven were to exact revenge by mobilizing their saints, it would be an insult to their status as the number one holy land of swordsmanship.


    Lihen Heaven was incapable of bearing such a loss and while they resented the outcome, the most they could have done was to simply have their own from Ye Futian''s generation to fight him in order to regain their lost face. If they were able to cripple Ye Futian in return, no one else would have been able to say anything but to acknowledge the strength of Lihen Heaven. As for someone of such a high status as the Swordmaster of Lihen, he would not have cared for something like that, as it was little petty squabbles between insects.


    The truly pathetic one from the incident remained to be Pei Qianying himself. If he had known that Ye Futian from the Nine States was of such prowess, he would not have set up one such battle at the Jiutian Temple.


    The battle became the talk of the Emperor Xia''s Realm, but it would eventually subside with time, as Emperor Xia''s Realm was simply too huge and there were too many legendary figures around. Something major took place every single day.


    However, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng , and Gu Dongliu would remain names etched in the memories of many. At the very least, those who had been present at the Jiutian Temple that day would remember them.


    ��


    Sword qi filled the Holy Zhi Palace at the Barren State, streaking about like a bolt of lightning above the holy land. Countless below looked up at the sword flash and caught sight of many standing on top of the giant sword.


    Ye Futian the Palace Lord, Hua Jieyu, the saint, and the others were all home.


    Those who went to study outside were there as well.


    Where did the Palace Lord go to get all of them back? Many guessed but no one had expected Ye Futian to spend his days in the Upper Worlds, fighting all the way up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    A sword flash glimmered above the Holy Sage Pavilion and many came down. Many elders from the palace came to greet them. Douzhan, the Sword Demon, Huang Xi, Yun Shang, You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others were all there.


    "Dongliu, Mingyue, I see that you''re home," Zhuge Qingfeng said to his daughter and son-in-law.


    "Father." Zhuge Mingyue nodded.


    "Father-in-law." Gu Dongliu nodded as well.


    "So, did you two rascals grow during your days out there?" You Chi said to Xue Ye and Luo Fan. Xue Yue was his son-in-law while Luo Fan was something like a student to him.


    "Of course," Xue Ye smiled and answered.


    "Jiuge."


    "Xu Que."


    "Shuisheng."


    "Huang Xi, Xu Shang, Yun Shang , and the others came up, feeling relieved to see their sons and daughters return. Before that, many who ventured out from the other holy lands of the Nine States returned one after another, with only those from the Holy Zhi Palace not home yet. All of the elders of the Barren State worried sick about their offspring. As such, they came as soon as they saw Ye Futian bring them all home.


    It seemed that all had been well.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin went up and pulled Hua Jieyu aside.


    "Dad, mom, I''m fine." Hua Jieyu took both of their hands and smiled.


    "Yeah." Nandou Wenyin nodded.


    At that moment, Liu Chenyu came beside Ye Wuchen and held his hand.


    "I''m fine." Ye Wuchen smiled at her. He had come to during the journey. While he still felt rather weak, the Undying Old Man was around to tend to him and his own regenerative powers would have him restored before long. As for what Ye Futian did, Ye Wuchen knew everything.


    "Right." Liu Chenyu nodded lightly and leaned on him.


    "Hey, you just got home and it''s a bad idea to pull a public display of affection, you know," Ye Futian teased. Liu Chenyu glared at him, saying, "Your Jieyu is here. No need to get jealous of us."


    "Me? Jealous?" Ye Futian said in a rather disgusted tone.


    "I''m taking him home to rest." Liu Chenyu took Ye Wuchen away, ignoring Ye Futian altogether.


    "Yeah, yeah, a short period of separation beats being newlyweds and all that. Have fun," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "You two, go get some rest yourselves. You''ve been apart for more than three years. I''m sure you two have a lot to talk about," Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said.


    "Right. Save anything else for some other time. Right now, these fellows need a few days of rest." Everyone departed, leaving for their own residences.


    The Holy Zhi Palace became a far more lively place than it had been before. In the compound of the Holy Sage Pavilion, Ye Futian was having a simple but warm dinner with his teacher and the others. They did not talk about what was happening outside and it seemed as if no one cared. Nobody asked anything about the progress of their training as well. Such simple, heart-warming moments were hard to come by with the Sacred War still going on. It was Ye Futian''s biggest wish to simply have everyone around him safe and sound.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu returned to their bedchambers. They went to the balcony, leaning against the fence and gazing at the scene before them. Ye Futian took Hua Jieyu''s hand and said gently, "Jieyu, I haven''t been able to talk to you much these days. I sure hope you won''t hold it against me."


    Hua Jieyu turned around and tidied the hair before Ye Futian''s forehead and said gently, "Right, I''m really mad about that." She naturally knew what was on Ye Futian''s shoulders at the moment. As the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, it was only natural for him to have little time to attend to her when they were out there. As the wife of the Palace Lord, she had the duty to share his burden, and there was no way she would have cared little else for anything but their moments alone.


    "Is that so? Well, how should I make it up to you then?" Ye Futian smiled sheepishly at her. Hua Jieyu knew what he was thinking when she saw that face, so she stepped on his foot hard.


    "Ouch, easy there, honey." Ye Futian smiled and said, "You must have gone through a lot the past several years."


    "Not at all, actually." Hua Jieyu shook her head lightly and turned her eyes forward. "But the world outside is sure a big place. I always thought the Nine States were big enough, but Xia Qingyuan brought us places for the past three years or so. Vast lands lie beyond the Nine States, and there are more dynasties and clans and whatever than you could possibly count. There were many more places like Emperor Xia''s Realm. Renhuang''s Realm was at the Upper Worlds, and we even made it to the Renhuang Ruins. Do you know that some places like the Emperor Xia''s Realm and the entire part of its Upper Worlds were reduced to a wasteland? There was a war that wiped out the entire realm and only ruins remain. We even managed to find mighty ones from other realms there.


    "We always thought that the world that we live in was everything, but the Divine Prefecture was actually far larger than we imagined it to be. Some were simply born different from all others, like Xia Qingyuan. Her birth designated her vista to be higher than ours. While she is indeed arrogant, but she is truly exceptional," Hua Jieyu said, smiling.


    "You''d be better than her some day in the future." Ye Futian took her hand and said gently, "Don''t forget that you''re my empress."


    The line from Ye Futian reminded Hua Jieyu of the crackpot called Minister Zuo. She smiled and added, "Futian, do you know what came to mind when I saw everything in the outside world?"


    "What indeed?" Ye Futian shook his head and saw Hua Jieyu''s beautiful eyes gazing at him fondly. She then added, "I was thinking that it was your world out there. You were born to be a supreme emperor, destined to conquer one Renhuang Realm after another. One day, you''ll truly stand above the Nine Heavens and gaze upon all of the worlds below." Hua Jieyu''s eyes shimmered as she uttered those words. Her unparalleled looks appeared even more glittering. The vast, boundless world out there was where Ye Futian belonged.


    Ye Futian''s hands caressed Hua Jieyu''s face. He looked at her brimming eyes, then said, "Well then, guess what I''m thinking at the moment."


    Their eyes were on each other and Hua Jieyu blushed when she saw the smile in Ye Futian''s eyes.


    She apparently knew the answer.


    "I''m going to take a bath." Hua Jieyu attempted to escape Ye Futian''s devilish grasp.


    Ye Futian gazed at her alluring figure and patted at the dirt off him, then said, "It seems like I need to get washed up myself."


    Ye Futian then headed for the back of the compound as well. The rear of the bedchambers was sealed off and there was an independent space. There was a bathing pool at the front and an alluring figure was seen walking into it. Splashes were soon heard, and Ye Futian came to the side of the pool. The flawless figure in the water looked like a goddess bathing under the moonlight.


    "Take your eyes elsewhere." Hua Jieyu turned around and looked embarrassed. Her face was all red.


    "It''s not like I haven''t seen any of this before." Ye Futian sounded nonchalant but his eyes remained true. He took off his clothes and walked into the water. The silhouette with flawless curves and supple skin before him seemed like something that was made in heaven, so much so that it was enough to make any mortal go crazy. There was little doubt as to why many cultivators found it difficult to see past beauty despite their more adamant minds.


    "Don''t come any closer." Hua Jieyu''s heart beat wildly when she saw Ye Futian doing the exact opposite. He actually came all the way here. He really has no shame.


    "Darling, let your husband scrub your back for a bit." Ye Futian''s voice was heard and she felt his claws on her skin. It rendered her face burning red hot.


    Everything went in the expected direction afterward and it was beautiful!

 927 Marriage Alliance

    The warm embrace of a woman serves as the bane of heroes.


    Many legendary figures who had been kicking up a storm at the Upper Worlds just a while ago had all put their training aside.


    The night was pitch black and Ye Futian held his wife in his arms in the quiet bedchamber, enjoying the peaceful, beautiful moment. The figure in Ye Futian''s arms moved and he pulled his arms away. Hua Jieyu sat up quietly and put on some robes, walking outside with light steps.


    "Jieyu, what''s the matter?" Ye Futian, who was lying on the bed, opened his eyes and followed the beautiful silhouette walking away. Moonlight showered onto Hua Jieyu. Her slender body was alluring and the pair of legs looked like sculptures made of white jade. The skirt of the pajamas that she had casually draped over her swayed, looking very enticing.


    "I''ll be going to train." Hua Jieyu turned around and smiled at Ye Futian.


    "So you''re fine with leaving me alone in the room?" Ye Futian added, "Jieyu, you''ve spent more than three years out there. Get some rest."


    "It''s exactly due to having trained out there and seeing many, many excellent figures that I need to work even harder. You were the one who said that one day I need to be more exceptional than Xia Qingyuan, no? She trained really hard and there''s no way I can just slack off." Hua Jieyu then added, "Have a good night''s sleep. No need to worry about me."


    "Well, I''ll go train with you then." Ye Futian got up, came to Hua Jieyu''s side, and took her hand. He knew Hua Jieyu had been feeling stressed.


    "Yeah, but I need to work on my psychic powers at the training platform and I cannot be disturbed, so sorry, but you have to train at the compound instead," Hua Jieyu said to Ye Futian with a smile.


    "Have it your way." Ye Futian nodded. There was no one to disturb them there. It did not matter which spot he had to train at.


    Both of them walked outside, and Ye Futian arrived at the compound while Hua Jieyu went up to the training platform on her own. It was an independent space that looked like a sealed room. Matrixes had been laid to ensure absolute silence. Hua Jieyu sat cross-legged and saw a shadow floating about. It was none other than the saint residing within Hua Jieyu''s body.


    "Why didn''t you tell him?" the woman asked Hua Jieyu.


    "Teacher, I don''t want him to be worried," Hua Jieyu answered. The saint had been residing in her body for years and she had been instructing Hua Jieyu. It was only natural for Hua Jieyu to address her as "teacher."


    "I''m against you continuing to train. Lots of unknown factors at play here and you need to talk to him about it," the saint added.


    "It''ll be fine." Hua Jieyu smiled and said, "The fact that she chose me meant that I was a good fit for the training." Hua Jieyu finished and closed her eyes. The saint looked at her and sighed deep down before disappearing and returning to Hua Jieyu''s body.


    Spots of light emanated from her body and shot for the skies. She felt as if her powers reached a faraway place, traversing the space between the heavens and the earth. Every sliver of Spiritual Qi felt crystal clear, so clear that she had never known it to be clearer before.


    Dazzling light glimmered around her, which gradually enveloped her body, making her look like a fairy. Boundless spots of light gathered behind Hua Jieyu and they coalesced into a visceral form. The glittering silhouette looked incredibly sacred as if it was a sculpture of a goddess. The appearance of the sculpture resulted in more and more spots of light gathered from her surroundings.


    Hua Jieyu''s appearance had always been unparalleled. With her basking under the holy light, she looked like a goddess of the heavens, utterly flawless and peerless.


    ��


    It had been a month since Futian and the others'' return. All of the holy lands throughout the Nine States caught wind that the ones from the Barren State had returned. They were all rather surprised but they knew little specifics. News hardly traveled between the Upper and Lower Worlds after all.


    Saint Xia was surprisingly one of the few who caught wind of the news and had their saints visit the Upper Worlds. When Ye Futian left after paying a visit to the Xia clan back then, he had speculated that Ye Futian would go to try his luck at the Sky Stairwell.


    With Ye Futian and the others from the Barren State back, he grew rather curious about what happened and wondered if something happened at the Upper Worlds. It was a given that he held little hopes about getting much from the saints visiting the Upper Worlds. Even if Ye Futian were to succeed at the Sky Stairwell, he would have been able to do little there, and news regarding Ye Futian would have been limited.


    Saint Xia was not the only one who was concerned about Ye Futian, as the ones who were most keen on anything regarding the Barren State would have been the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It was a given that none at the Sacred Dynasty knew where Ye Futian went. It was just that Ye Futian had been keeping an unusually low profile after Saint Xia''s birthday banquet three years ago. He hardly showed himself outside other than paying a visit to the Nine State College. There had been news every now and then regarding appearances in various places throughout the Nine States, but hardly any of that was verified.


    As for Ye Futian himself, he had been training quietly at the Holy Zhi Palace with the students after returning. After the continuous battles at the Upper Worlds and the time he spent training after returning, he finally made a breakthrough and stepped into the Upper-level Magi Plane. He was a step away from the Archmage Plane.


    At one of the training grounds of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian was seen standing somewhere high above. The wind blew and his clothes billowed. He cast his glance below and felt rather relieved to see cultivators training in all corners. The students of the Holy Zhi Palace had been hard at work and their powers had grown considerably. It was but a matter of time that the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State became the number one holy land in all of the Nine States.


    As such, he was in no hurry with the Sacred War. The more time they had, the greater their chances of coming out on top. When both he and Yu Sheng made it into the Archmage Plane, he would cease using his imperial will powers. There was simply no one throughout the Nine States below Saint Plane capable of standing in their way by then. What concerned him more was the power struggle at Saint Plane. The five-year ceasefire agreement between saints was little more than a year away from expiring.


    A fierce sword will burst somewhere below. Ye Futian then saw a one-armed figure coming up to him. It was none other than Ye Wuchen.


    "It seems like your sword will has grown considerably, Wuchen," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "It''s a given. Try asking him about the level he is at now with the three types of sword will he had been hard at work to refine." Xu Que and Zui Qianchou came on their swords and dropped beside Ye Futian.


    "Are you guys jealous?" Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "I sure am envious," Zui Qianchou said as he took a gulp from the gourd in his hand.


    "Renhuang Sword Will," Ye Wuchen said with a gentle voice.


    "Some words are better left unspoken, Wuchen," Ye Futian said in a rather serious manner. He was naturally happy for Ye Wuchen, but the Renhuang Sword Will had a lot of symbolic importance, so much so that even the Sword Saint up in the Upper Worlds wanted to take it for himself. If the news of him possessing the Renhuang Sword Will were to spread, many would come to target Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit.


    If it had not been for Xia Qingyuan being a descendant of Renhuang and, as such, having little interest in the Renhuang Sword Will, even she would have had thoughts about that particular Life Spirit. But then again, if Xia Qingyuan had not been of such high status in the first place, she would not have been able to get all of them to train in the Renhuang Ruins.


    "But this particular sword will is just too powerful. While I have succeeded in melding it to become my Life Spirit, but I''m still unable to fully make it become mine, and I''ve only been able to comprehend something from it. Even the Jueying Sword Saint would not have been able to truly assimilate this sword will," Ye Wuchen elaborated. He had little to hide from Ye Futian and the others.


    "You''re one hell of a crazy fellow indeed. When you were about to refine the sword will, I thought that your Life Spirit would burst trying to do so. It''s a good thing that you made it through," Xu Que said. It was apparent that Ye Wuchen had been putting his life on the line to refine the Renhuang Sword Will.


    "What about you two? Didn''t any of you get anything out of your ordeals?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "Of course we do, but they aren''t worth mentioning compared to what this guy has. But then again, all who had been able to survive during their pilgrimages would have gotten something one way or another. That Heavenly Chosen list was filled with people of unparalleled talents with great things ahead of them after all. Xia Qingyuan had probably titled them to be Heavenly Chosen Ones so to have them train in the Upper Worlds in the future, who would , in??turn, come to serve her," Xu Que said.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Are you saying that Emperor Xia intends to pass his throne down to Xia Qingyuan?" Ye Futian mumbled. Bringing people from both the Upper and Lower Worlds to train, is she trying to nurture her future power base? However, all from the Barren State had relinquished their status as Heavenly Chosen Ones due to the case with Ye Wuchen. According to them, Xia Qingyuan was rather irked by their decision. Ye Futian hardly concerned himself over that, as both Upper and Lower Worlds made little difference to him.


    Every single one who returned had grown by a considerable margin. Oftentimes, a cultivator''s growth was stunted not by their lack of talents, but their lack of exposure to the greater world outside. All cultivators possessed immense potentials. For example, if Ye Wuchen had only been staying behind at the Cangye Kingdom within the Hundred Lands, there was no way he could have achieved what he had achieved then. The highest plane there was to be seen there was little more than the Noble Planes.


    "Uncle Ye." A tiny, childish voice was heard. Ye Futian looked up and saw a little condor gliding about and swooping down. A tiny figure was seen leaping down from the Black Wind Condor.


    Ye Futian took her in his arms.


    "You''ve grown up and gotten heavier and heavier, Little Grass. Your Uncle Ye won''t be able to hold you soon." Ye Futian looked at the little girl in his arms and smiled. The girl was about six or seven years of age and looked like a porcelain doll. She was very good-looking, as her father, Xue Ye, had been a handsome man, and You Xi had been a renowned beauty at the Alchemy City.


    "Well, I''ll come down then," the little girl said.


    "No need for that. Your uncle can still carry you now." Ye Futian squeezed her nose.


    "You''ve been sneaking out and disturbing your Uncle Ye again, Little Grass." Xue Ye and You Xi appeared. You Xi glared at the little girl, and she tucked her head away in response.


    "Little Grass is still a kid. Just let her play." Ye Futian knew that his Fourth Brother and You Xi were strict with Little Grass and had been exposing her to all sorts of books at a very young age.


    "Don''t spoil the kid." Xue Ye felt rather exasperated. The little girl was more friendly to Ye Futian than to her own father. But then again, he had not been around Little Grass much, having been gone for three years.


    "If she gets spoiled, then so be it. I''ll teach her in the future," Ye Futian smiled and said. When You Xi was pregnant with Little Grass, Ye Futian had been wreaking havoc at Alchemy City. He then went through dark times for a while, but You Xi did a lot for him and even got You Chi to help him when she was still pregnant.


    The little girl had been born during shaky times. The Holy Zhi Palace was never stable after that particular storm passed still. It was only natural for Little Grass to follow her parents and move to the Holy Zhi Palace. The truth was, if it had not been for Ye Futian, his Fourth Brother and You Chi would have been able to live very comfortably at Alchemy City. Little Grass would have grown up being doted by many at the city.


    The City Lord Office of the Alchemy City had been moved into the Holy Zhi Palace and the young Little Grass had been running all over the place with her parents since then. Ye Futian saw her as his own daughter, and the little condor often played with her.


    "Alright, spoil the brat all you want." You Xi shook her head in exasperation, eliciting a smug look from Little Grass.


    "Of course, she''s the first daughter of the Cottage after all," Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    "Palace Lord." A silhouette was seen coming from the air. Ye Futian turned around and asked the one who came, "What''s the matter?"


    The messenger handed an invitation to him with both hands.


    Ye Futian took the invitation and scanned it. His eyes had a peculiar look after that.


    "Where did this thing come from?" Xu Que asked.


    "Xihua Sacred Mountain." Ye Futian closed the invitation and added, "Liu Zong is about to marry Zhou Ziyi. Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty are planning a marriage alliance, and I''m being invited to the event."


    "Liu Zong is one hell of a fake and he is very ambitious. He is very powerful and gained a lot from the pilgrimage, now titled as a Heavenly Chosen One. I guess both Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty are piling their hopes onto Liu Zong now." Xu Que then added, "With the relations between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace considered, this marriage alliance is apparently one that is made against us. This banquet isn''t going to be a good one."


    "With the ways things going between us and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, there is no need for us to attend the event," Ye Wuchen added. Xihua Sacred Mountain might be planning something against the Holy Zhi Palace!

 928 Attending the Banque

    The news that the third disciple of Xihua Sacred Mountain, Liu Zong, would marry the princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Zhou Ziyi, led to a great stir in the Nine States. Invitations from Xihua Sacred Mountain were sent out all over.


    Everyone understood that this marriage alliance was of great significance. Liu Zong was the third disciple and could represent the will of Xihua Sacred Mountain, while Zhou Ziyi was a princess. This was almost equal to the two top holy lands in the Eastern State forming an alliance.


    In the Eastern State, the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple was relatively weak, and although Sky Saint was himself quite powerful, he was only one person, plus his one disciple.


    A marriage alliance between these two great holy lands would certainly make Glass Saint feel a lot of pressure. After all, the Great Zhou Sacred King had always been interested in Glass Saint. This was no secret. As for Sky Saint, there was nothing he could do by himself, and so he was nothing to worry about.


    Of course, the people of the Nine States understood that the ones feeling the greatest pressure where not Glass Saint and Sky Saint. Instead, they were the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State and Ye Futian. Taking the Sacred War into account, this marriage alliance would undoubtedly be a disaster for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Moreover, it was said that Liu Zong had had great luck in his trials with Xia Qingyuan, and he was a Heavenly Chosen One. Adding that to his identity as the third disciple of Xihua Sacred Mountain, his name was widespread throughout the Nine States and had been pushed to the top.


    More than three years earlier, Ye Futian had refused to go to the trials with Xia Qingyuan. Now, those who had gone had made great progress and had had great luck. Now, Ye Futian did not know if he could withstand the might of those who had undergone the trials.


    After Xihua Sacred Mountain had convoked the Nine States Forum, the eyes of the Nine States had once again been upon them. Many people set off for Xihua Sacred Mountain, and many holy lands had sent out people as well. And within Holy Sage Pavilion in the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian summoned everyone together to discuss this matter.


    With a marriage alliance between these two great holy lands, it would be impossible to say that there would be no pressure on the Holy Zhi Palace. And due to the Sacred War, this involved the life or death of the palace.


    Sword Demon, Qin Zhuang, You Chi, Huang Xi, Yang Xiao, and the others of the palace each looked over their invitations and frowned slightly. Although rumors of this had already made its way through the Nine States, when the day finally came, they still felt the pressure.


    "What do you think of this, seniors?" asked Ye Futian.


    "More than three years ago, we reached an agreement at Saint Xia''s banquet. Those of us at the Saint Plane would not get involved in the Sacred War. But those of us below the Saint Plane, other than the fact that we could not get the assistance of battle matrices, were unaffected. Although this is only a wedding banquet, the Sacred War concerns the life or death of the people of the holy land. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty arranging some grand strategy there is not impossible," You Chi analyzed. "I suggest that we decline and then wait and see. What we need is time."


    Everyone naturally understood what You Chi meant. Ye Futian''s people were the most talented, and they were all growing quickly. In five or six years they would all be top Sages. So, the Holy Zhi Palace had been conservative for the past three years and not provoked the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in order to let their powerful figures improve.


    "Moreover, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty might not care about the cost to kill the Palace Lord," said Sage Daozang. He also recommended not going.


    "I have entered the upper levels of the Magi Plane. If the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty wants to kill me, it won''t be easy," said Ye Futian. Last time he was only on the Sage Plane, so any Sage could threaten him. Other than being able to call upon battle matrices, it was quite burdensome. Now he had the power to protect himself. It would not be like before when every time he went out he was in danger.


    "Moreover, Xihua Sacred Mountain has invited me to the wedding feast, they would not go so far as to shamelessly try to kill me there," he continued. If they did that then that holy land would lose a lot of face.


    "That depends on how determined the Great Zhou Sacred King is to kill you," said Sage Douzang. Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. The Great Zhou Sacred King naturally hated him, a Sage Level figure, and had several times lost face to him, even though he was a holy king.


    "I agree with the Palace Lord. Although the two holy lands want him dead, they have invited us to a wedding feast, and have moreover sent invitations all over the Nine States. This is not the time for them to try their schemes. Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King still want to keep face, and the Holy Zhi Palace is now famous throughout the Nine States. We have finally been recognized, something that we won for ourselves through the Sacred War. We have the initiative. Since they invited us, why not go?" Sword Demon supported the opposing opinion. As a swordsman, he was very direct by nature.


    "They mostly want to stop our momentum. If we go, they will deliberately provoke and suppress us. If we don''t, it will be equivalent to weakening our momentum. If they let other holy lands see this, it will awe those that are friendly to us and at the same time, letting those holy lands that covet the Holy Zhi Palace see our power. Don''t forget, the Yu State and Zhisheng Cliffs have been watching us all along. If they have an opportunity to act against us, they will absolutely not hesitate," said Huang Xi.


    When Zhisheng Cliffs and the Yu State had suppressed the Barren State, the top forces of the Barren State had all experienced it personally. That battle had changed the Barren State''s future. Because of that battle, Ye Futian had become the Palace Lord.


    "Since everyone has different opinions, why don''t we have Uncle Master Wanxiang perform divination?" Ye Futian looked over at Sage Wanxiang.


    "I did that before you came. This trip may cause turmoil, but it will present no great obstacles," said Wanxiang.


    "Uncle Master was well prepared," said Ye Futian with a smile. This kind of fortune-telling was relatively simple and would not waste too much of Wanxiang''s energy.


    "However, I also divined the fate of the Nine States during this period. There were signs of turmoil," continued Sage Wanxiang. Ye Futian looked at him, then nodded. He had felt that long ago, and now Wanxiang''s prophecy confirmed it. It looked like with the background of the Sacred War, there would be a storm in the Nine States sooner or later. He only hoped that this storm would come a little later. It would be best if it could wait until he had entered the Saint Plane. At that time, he would have no need to fear anything.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "In that case, I have decided to go." As Ye Futian spoke, everyone nodded. Although they all had different opinions, once Ye Futian had decided something no one would gainsay him.


    At that time, Yang Xiao said, "My Lord, I''d like to accompany you to the banquet."


    Ye Futian looked at Yang Xiao. Although it had been several years, Yang Xiao''s hatred for Liu Zong had not diminished at all.


    "Don''t worry, I have a sense of propriety," said Yang Xiao.


    "Fine." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Thank you, my lord." Yang Xiao bowed and left. Ye Futian watched his back. Liu Zong and Chess Saint had ordered his wife and several disciples to be buried alive in Nether Sword Mound. If this was not avenged, he would not be able to die happily.


    Now, Liu Zong''s glory was seemingly limitless. He was a Heavenly Chosen One and was famous throughout the Nine States. Now his marriage was being celebrated by everyone in the Nine States.


    It was obvious how Yang Xiao felt.


    Afterward, Ye Futian selected the rest of his entourage. Everyone wanted to go with him, but Ye Futian selected only the strongest companions as well as those who had gone to the trials.


    Several days later, a group of cultivators set off from the palace. The Village Chief personally escorted them. In addition to Ye Futian, there were Yuan Hong, You Chi, Qin Zhuang, Xu Shang, Yang Xiao, Gu Dongliu, Sword Saint, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge , and other cultivators. Moreover, many top level Sages and Demonic Beasts set out from the Endless Sea. They headed towards the Eastern State through the sky in order to avoid presenting too big a target. The demons all moved forward by themselves so that even if they were discovered people would not raise an alarm.


    This gathering of Demonic Beasts was done just to be prepared for all contingencies. This way, even if the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was willing to lose face and kill him, he could use the army of monsters that he had hidden.


    ��


    Huatian City in the Eastern State was once again receiving attention from all of the Nine States. Many cultivators from the holy lands had arrived. Some of them had settled there in advance. This time, the lineup was far stronger than the last Nine State Forum since people on the Saint Plane had come too.


    The Saints of the Nine States had felt that the land was not peaceful, and thus they had personally come to the wedding feast to see the marriage alliance between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and to see how far this alliance would go.


    Would they really ally together in a war against the Holy Zhi Palace?


    This time, the famous Huatian Tower of Huatian City was not as lively as it had once been, seeming to be quite quiet. But at the top of the tower, a group of figures was eating and chatting. The people sitting here were all Saints. Almost all the Saints of the Nine States had come here personally.


    "I''ve invited you all here to bring up a matter. I assume everyone has heard of the events in the Lost Ruins in the Endless Sea?" The Palace Lord of the Ocean Palace looked at all the others as he spoke. Everyone nodded. They had indeed heard of this.


    "The Halberd of Time and Space really wasn''t taken away by you three holy lands?" A Saint from the Hall of Holy Light''s eyes were sharp as he stared at the Saints from the Endless Sea. They still had some doubts after the news had gotten out, and still suspected the three holy lands.


    "The Halberd of Time and Space is number three on the Divine Implement Rankings. But there is only one, how could our three holy lands divide it up?" the Saint from the Celestial Cliffs said unhappily.


    "But there have been no movements from the Jiuying for many days. It''s like it disappeared," someone said.


    "The Jiuying is a Sacred Beast. It is treacherous and murderous. If it turned into a human and hid in the Nine States, no one would recognize it on the street. But if it got the Halberd of Time and Space, it would not walk around carelessly but would cultivate vigorously. If we wait until it is strong enough to completely control the Halberd of Time and Space I''m afraid there will be a bloodbath throughout the Nine States. If there is any news of the Jiuying, the holy lands must be notified so that we may join together to annihilate it."


    Everyone looked evasive. They all had their own ideas. If they found a trace of the Jiuying, their first thought would be to kill it and seize the Halberd of Time and Space for themselves. But now, no one knew where the Jiuying had taken the Halberd of Time and Space. They could only wait for it to reveal itself!

 929 Sarcastic

    The people from the Holy Zhi Palace arrived two days in advance and settled in the temporary imperial residence. They were very low-key and did not cause any disturbances outside. They remained quietly in the palace.


    Huatian City was under the control of Xihua Sacred Mountain, and now Xihua Sacred Mountain was entering into a marriage alliance with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The people from the Holy Zhi Palace naturally understood that this was not the time to cause a scene.


    Even so, the people of the city quickly found out that Ye Futian and his entourage were there. Many people had been discussing him recently. Many of them said that Ye Futian had missed his chance to go to the Upper Worlds. Many of the top talents of the Nine States had become Celestial Chosen Ones. Could things still be the same for Ye Futian as they had in the past? It was madness to think that one person could suppress all the geniuses of that generation. And now he was seeing the proof of that. After more than three years, they did not know what level Ye Futian was at. But Liu Zong had already reached the Sage Level, so he must be stronger than him.


    On this day, some people came to visit the temporary imperial residence where Ye Futian was staying. They were from the Yue Clan of the Summer State, including two cultivators of the Sages and Saints Ranking who had had occasion to meet Ye Futian before, Yue Jiangliu and the daughter of Yue Clan Yue Lingshuang. Although Ye Futian had not agreed to a marriage alliance with the Yue Clan, they still maintained a good friendship, and so he naturally received them personally.


    They met in the courtyard of the residence. Ye Futian sent someone to bring food and wine as he entertained them.


    Everyone took their seats. Yue Lingshuang''s eyes never left Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu beside him. She smiled lightly and said, "I have not had any news of you in over three years, Lord Ye. There have only been rumors that traces of you have been seen all over the Nine States. Are these rumors true?"


    "Probably." Ye Futian smiled at her and nodded. At the start, he had gone from Nine State College to the Endless Sea and had indeed left his footprints in many places.


    "Then your experiences these past three years must have been very rich indeed." Yue Lingshuang smiled again.


    "There''s not much to say. I have spent most of these past three years cultivating. I went through several dangerous situations but managed to get through them unharmed. All in all, I''ve made a lot of gains," said Ye Futian.


    Yue Lingshuang''s mouth hung open.


    "Lingshuang, you''re so curious. You''re not going to let the matter drop until Lord Ye sits down and details all his experiences over the past few years for you, are you?" said Yue Jiangliu jokingly.


    Yue Lingshuang''s face went red. She realized that she had said too much, and she apologized to Ye Futian, "I''m being too forward."


    Before Ye Futian could speak, Hua Jieyu said with a smile, "Not at all. Don''t hesitate to ask anything you want, no need to stand on ceremony. After my husband returned, he often praised your beauty and gentle temperament."


    Yue Jiangliu and Yue Lingshuang were obviously shocked, and they looked at Hua Jieyu in astonishment. Yue Jiangliu was the more mature of the two of them, and obviously thought much more of this than Yue Lingshuang. Sitting next to Ye Futian with her noble bearing and exquisite features, Hua Jieyu was truly the kind of beauty that came once in a generation. She now had the attitude of a wife of a Palace Lord.


    The intent behind Hua Jieyu''s words afforded food for thought.


    "No need to praise me, madame. Before you, I can only feel unworthy. It is only because I admire Lord Ye''s heroic manner that I am so curious about him and asked these questions. Please don''t blame me." Yue Lingshuang lowered her head as she spoke. Although she was also a rare beauty, in front of Hua Jieyu, she was indeed inferior.


    "Why would I blame you, Miss Yue? From now on if there''s anything you want to know, sister, you may ask me directly. I will tell you anything that I know. My husband is honored indeed to be worthy of your admiration." Hua Jieyu smiled lightly. She had already gone from calling her Miss to calling her sister.


    Hua Jieyu calling her this made Yue Lingshuang''s heart beat heavily. She did not dare look Hua Jieyu in the eyes. How could she not understand Hua Jieyu''s meaning? No wonder she was able to become Ye Futian''s wife, she thought. She''s an extraordinary woman.


    "Mm. Then if I have a chance I will certainly call upon you, madame," Yue Lingshuang said quietly.


    Ye Futian had listened quietly to the two women talking. He flushed a little bit. It was like he wasn''t even there.


    What was Hua Jieyu thinking?


    "How do you feel about the marriage alliance that is taking place, Lord Ye?" asked Yue Jiangliu, leading the conversation away from Yue Lingshuang''s awkwardness.


    "I have no opinion." Ye Futian lifted his cup and took a drink. "I obviously have no say in whether or not the marriage alliance between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty goes ahead. However, I am a little curious if Liu Zong will go to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty or if Zhou Ziyi will go to Xihua Sacred Mountain."


    "You''re quite calm about this! People from the Saint Plane from every holy land have come here for the wedding. Liu Zong and Zhou Ziyi themselves are not important enough to merit this, what''s important is their backgrounds. Everyone thinks that this is no ordinary marriage alliance, especially for the Barren State. You should take care, Lord Ye."


    "I will keep that in mind, senior." Ye Futian nodded.


    "One more thing. I heard that the people from Zhisheng Cliffs came here to Huatian City many days early. Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs is frequently in contact with Xihua Sacred Mountain. You should pay close attention to this," said Yue Jiangliu.


    A touch of coldness flashed in the depths of Ye Futian''s eyes. Of course, Zhisheng Cliffs could not stand to be alone. Over the years, Zhisheng Cliffs had always kept an eye on him and the Holy Zhi Palace rising to prominence. There had been no actions taken, but the enmity between the two sides was clear for all to see, especially that of Kong Yao. Thus, if there was a chance to destroy the Barren State, Zhisheng Cliffs would certainly jump at it.


    Ye Futian had no doubts about this. However, now Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were providing them with a perfect opportunity.


    "Thank you," said Ye Futian to Yue Jiangliu.


    There was so much pressure on the Barren State. Now that he was at the Magi Level, the Holy Zhi Palace was not weaker than the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. And as time went by, the palace would only get stronger and stronger. But if they also had to face Xihua Sacred Mountain and Zhisheng Cliffs it would be a disaster. Moreover, there was still the Saint Level that he had not thought too much about. If he could reach it in five years, what should he do?


    There was still no one who could contend with the Great Zhou Sacred King. Although the Master had cultivated for more than three years, he was afraid that it was still not enough. At that level, it was not something that could be achieved within a few years.


    Yue Jiangliu chatted for a while and then said farewell. Although he had not said it, it was clear that if Ye Futian was willing to form a marriage alliance with the Yue Clan they would still agree to it. But they had been refused last time, and Ye Futian had not brought it up, so the Yue Clan would naturally not bring it up either. Even though they maintained a good relationship, the Yue Clan was an ancient holy land, and they had their own pride.


    "Lingshuang is an intelligent, beautiful and kind person, and she admires you so much. If she was by your side she would certainly be obedient," Hua Jieyu said into Ye Futian''s ear.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian pulled Hua Jieyu away.


    "Where?" Hua Jieyu fluttered her eyelashes.


    "Your husband needs to discipline you."


    ��


    Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and in these two days, Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty did not harass them. On the third day, Huatian City was completely shaken. In the early morning, countless people rushed to the foot of Xihua Sacred Mountain and looked up at it.


    Today, the most outstanding disciple of Xihua Sacred Mountain, Liu Zong, was going to marry the princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It was rumored that all the holy lands of the Nine States had come to congratulate him, and even many of the saints from these holy lands had come.


    How could such news not cause a stir? This was why so many people had come here so early.


    Beautiful maids stood on both sides of the steps up the mountain in an impressive battle array. At that moment, a line of figures descended from the sky. Anyone who could directly descend from the sky on a day like today must be people from the holy lands. Out of respect, even the Saints did not directly descend on the mountain, but instead descended towards the steps outside the mountain gates and then walked up the stairs.


    Today, all the people of the Nine States were guests.


    "Those are the cultivators from the three holy lands of the Endless Sea."


    "The people from the holy land of Qi State are here too. Look, that''s Saint Ji, number five on the Sages and Saints Ranking," said someone, looking at Saint Ji, the owner of the Hall of Holy Light. But as he looked at him, Saint Ji looked back and suddenly, everyone who was talking about him felt his extremely sharp eyes on them, as if they had crossed through space towards them. Their hearts suddenly beat faster.


    He was number five on the Sages and Saints Ranking. So strong.


    "The cultivators from the Holy Temple of Ten Corners in the Vajra Region have arrived as well." A group of huge men descended from the sky. The people of Huatian City had never seen such a grand occasion.


    "And Glass Saint from the Eastern State." At that moment there seemed to be a burst of color in the sky. Everyone''s eyes were attracted by the graceful figure that descended.


    It was the foremost beauty of the Eastern State��Glass Saint.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Senior Glass Saint." A voice rang came from a distance, and a line of figures riding on a sword came over. On the giant sword, there was a carefree, handsome man calling out to Glass Saint.


    Glass Saint turned, and saw Ye Futian and the others coming. She smiled and said, "What a coincidence, Lord Ye."


    "I haven''t seen you for years. You have become even more radiant. I feel quite inferior standing next to you," said Ye Futian as he looked at her with a smile.


    "You were not so modest at the Nine State Platform, Lord Ye," said Glass Saint with a smile. The noble and holy Glass Saint was so beautiful as to make one lose their breath. Even now talking and laughing, she was far beyond the realm of mortals.


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian in shock. This guy was confident enough to stop and chat with Glass Saint. There were so many holy land cultivators here, and he had sought out the most beautiful of them. Moreover, Glass Saint was willing to chat with a junior.


    "On the Nine State Platform, I was facing the Great Zhou Sacred King, who is only good at bullying others and forming marriage alliances. How can he be mentioned in the same breath as the most beautiful woman in the Nine States?" said Ye Futian loudly and clearly. People froze when they heard his words. It was no secret that the Great Zhou Sacred King had an interest for Glass Saint, and now Ye Futian was mocking him in front of Glass Saint''s face, saying that he was not worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as her, let alone pursuing her.


    This guy was too much!

 930 Crisis

    Glass Saint smiled and said nothing. With Ye Futian openly antagonizing Great Zhou Sacred King, there was not much she could have said.


    On the side, Goddess Qingni took a deep look at Ye Futian. When she first saw Ye Futian at the Chess Saint Villa, it was the first time that the feeble Holy Zhi Palace had gone anywhere outside the Barren State. Even if Ye Futian held the title of the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, no one cared about him. At the time, Liu Zong was obviously more important in the eyes of everyone than Ye Futian, and Chess Saint had also chosen Liu Zong.


    Now, that time had passed. Ye Futian''s name was known throughout the world and now he was even audacious enough to joke with her Master. One could see just how confident Ye Futian was.


    "I heard Qingni said that the people from Barren State who went to the trial had encountered some trouble. Is everything all right now?" Glass Saint asked those around Ye Futian.


    "There was some trouble, but everything was resolved," Ye Futian replied.


    "That''s good to hear." Glass Saint nodded gently.


    "Many thanks to all the senior sisters at the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple for watching out for us along the way," next to Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu said to Glass Saint. During the trial, they had enjoyed a good relationship with those from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. This was why Ye Futian had told them that if there was to be trouble, they could join forces.


    "I had heard them mention it. At any rate, while we were out there during the trial, it was good that we supported each other." Glass Saint looked at Hua Jieyu and said with a smile, "But Palace Lord Ye could have allowed such exceptional beauty to go on trial by herself, I dare say he was far too trusting."


    "My husband has his own affairs to settle and as for the word ''exceptional,'' in front of the Glass Saint, no one is qualified to be described by it," Hua Jieyu said gently.


    "Naturally you are a good match," Glass Saint looked at Hua Jieyu and said, laughing.


    Ye Futian watched the two women chatting and seemed to have forgotten the position of the Glass Saint at the moment. He just felt what he was seeing was pleasing to the eyes.


    Eastern State''s premier beauty, Glass Saint, had been in that position since her youth, so it was not hard to imagine her amazing beauty. With the pure and holy temperament of being a saint, it was enough for lesser people to look upon her and feel their own unworthiness. No wonder even the likes of Great Zhou Sacred King and other holy and kingly figures found her hard to forget.


    The group chatted mindlessly and soon, they were already entering Xihua Sacred Mountain. All the characters of the holy lands had come, and the banquet area of Xihua Sacred Mountain was had a very luxurious feast. When Ye Futian and Glass Saint arrived, the eyes of many cultivators from the holy lands were looking at them. Although Ye Futian was not yet sanctified, his reputation in the Nine States was no less prominent than that of the saints. Especially in recent years, no one could have compared to him in fame.


    And a woman like the Glass Saint, among all the saints of the Nine States, was rare, not to mention one with such beauty. At the moment, as they came together, it was inevitable that they attracted the attention of most people.


    Many people revealed an expression of intrigue. Ye Futian had really come to attend the banquet. Everyone knew that the marriage between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was aimed at the Holy Zhi Palace. Not only had he come, but he came with the Glass Saint, laughing and talking. Was this deliberately done to make Great Zhou Sacred King angry?


    Ye Futian and Glass Saint sat next to each other. Not far away, the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light looked straight at them, their eyes sharp and focused. Ji Mo in particular, with a faint smile in his eyes, took a sip of the wine, then put down the glass and said, "You came back alive."


    The fact that Ye Wuchen and the others had some conflicts with the people from the Upper Worlds was known by everyone who went to the trial previously.


    Gu Dongliu and the others looked at the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light sharply. During the trial, they were allies with the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, which meant that they were on extremely unfriendly terms with the Hall of Holy Light and even had conflicts with them on many occasions. If it was not because the trial process itself was fraught with danger and they were worried about mishaps, there would probably already have been great battles between them. But even so, in some of the conflicts that had occurred between them the side of the Holy Zhi Palace from Barren State still seemed to have suffered from some sneaky sabotage.


    In this trial, there were not many who were from the Hall of Holy Light, but they were all elites. Ji Mo''s talent was unprecedented with great strength, but the real terrifying character from the Hall of Holy Light was not Ji Mo, but rather Ji Ya, also known as Saint Ya, whose level was second only to those of Saint Plane.


    Ji Ya, on the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States, was ranked second on the Sage list. It was not hard to imagine what a terrible existence he was. Ji Ya was relatively young, and his talent was extremely remarkable. His name was also on the list of Heavenly Chosen Ones.


    "You guys are not dead, of course, we are fine," Xu Que said lazily. As he finished speaking, the eyes of those from the Hall of Holy Light became even more frosty. The corners of Ji Mo''s mouth raised slightly, and the cold sneer was sharp like a knife.


    "To implore the princess?" Ji Mo said with a sneer. It was a surprise that Ye Wuchen could make it back alive, but it must have been on account of the Little Princess Xia Qingyuan that the people of the Upper Worlds made a concession. By now, naturally, the people in the Nine States knew of the true identity of Xia Qingyuan.


    "When the incident involving Wuchen happened, the people of the Hall of Holy Light poured oil into the fire and stopped us," Hua Jieyu said softly to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s gaze drifted in the direction of the Hall of Holy Light, and his eyes were very cold. Except that, there were no other grievances with Hall of Holy Light. But the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light were all show-offs, even the lord of the Hall of Holy Light was the same, and they had issues with him. If it was merely that, he could let it go, but it appeared that the Hall of Holy Light had already made a move on those at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Glass Saint." The Glass Saint turned her eyes and looked to the direction of the Hall of Holy Light. The person speaking was the Lord of the Hall of Holy Light, Saint Ji, ranking fifth on the Saint Ranking.


    "What is Saint Ji''s advice?" asked Glass Saint.


    "Among all the well-known figures among the Nine States, the Glass Saint is not only unparalleled in looks, but the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple under the command of the Glass Saint occupies a place amongst the holy lands of Nine States. However, be mindful not to be used by those who have ulterior motives," Saint Ji said. Ye Futian and the others looked at him, and it was obvious who Saint Ji was referring to. Moreover, he spoke openly and did not leave any room for the people of the Barren State. Even more, the tone Ji Saint used was meant to embarrass Glass Saint. But in reality, Saint Ji of the Hall of Holy Light was indeed senior to the Glass Saint, so no one could really say anything about his attitude.


    "I act on my own accord, so how could I be used by others?" Glass Saint still appeared calm and without emotion.


    "That is good to hear. Glass Saint has a reputation for beauty and gentle temperament, but on the matter of disciplined disciples, it is still better to be strict lest they cross the boundaries," Saint Ji again said.


    "I will be disciplining the disciple of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple." Although the Glass Saint was still smiling, she was quite displeased at the moment. Saint Ji had already crossed the line, accusing her of being unable to control her disciples. It was most likely because of conflicts between the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple and the Hall of Holy Light.


    Saint Ji nodded lightly and said no more, merely suggesting and not preaching. He did not care about what Glass Saint really thought. It was just to remind her, nothing more.


    In the land of Nine States, there were only a handful of people who could make him care. Moreover, the current power structure of the Nine States had not changed for many years. In attempts to upset the balance with a singular strength, endurance was key. Only by quietly cultivating until certain strength had been accumulated could one qualify to command a corner of the kingdom. It was certainly not showing off, describing oneself as unparalleled. A person who did not understand the protocol and wanted to take the advantage to elevate one''s own position, no matter how incredibly talented he was, would eventually get to taste the indifference and cruelty of the world of cultivation.


    Today, the marriage between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was proof, and time would make him understand.


    Saint Ji quieted down the banquet quite a bit. As fifth on the saint list, his words still weighed a lot, and everyone knew who he was talking about. Many people looked at Ye Futian. Xihua Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty formed an alliance in marriage, with Zhisheng Cliffs of Yu State still on the side. And now there was also Saint Ji of the Hall of Holy Light, who regarded him with great disdain.


    Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State could be described as in a state of crisis. The wedding banquet today was most likely to be a turning point for the situation in Nine States. In the land of Nine States, there may be major events happening.


    The people of the Zhisheng Cliffs were in attendance as well. Kong Yao looked at Ye Futian. This young man was extraordinarily talented, hard to find in all of Nine States, but talent was talent after all. But if Ye Futian intended to rule Nine States out of nowhere, he still had a ways to go.


    Many people would not wait for him to rise.


    "Yu Sheng," a voice called out, and everyone turned to look at the person who spoke. At a time such as this, was there still someone looking for those from the Barren State? However, when they saw the person who spoke, they were relieved.


    "How has your cultivation been since you returned?" a dignified monk clad in a cassock, with great big ears, sitting on a seat, smiled at Yu Sheng and asked.


    "Region Lord." Yu Sheng got up and put his hands together in greeting, showing a tremendous sign of respect to the monk, and answered, "The teachings of Buddhism are broad and profound. I''ve continued to cultivate."


    That monk was precisely the one who ranked number sixth on the saint list��the Vajra Region Lord, the premier cultivator of War State.


    "Well, even though you cultivate in demonic magic, your talent is not limited only to that path. Cultivating with Buddhism would minimize some of the drawbacks of the cultivation in demonic magic. Do not forego it later," Vajra Region Lord continued.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Yu Sheng understands." Yu Sheng nodded.


    Ye Futian also stood up and said to Vajra Region Lord, "Much gratitude to the Master who taught Yu Sheng for the past few years. I will make sure that he continues his cultivation in the future."


    "I am reassured now that I have the word of Palace Lord Ye." Vajra Region Lord smiled and nodded.


    Many who witnessed this scene revealed a look of surprise. At the birthday banquet of Saint Xia, the Vajra Region Lord had asked Ye Futian to allow Yu Sheng to cultivate in the Vajira Region. Now it seemed that the Vajra Region Lord held Yu Sheng in great importance and their relationship was quite deep.


    Although Yu Sheng was a disciple from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, now that he had forged a relationship with the Vajra Region Lord, he considered Yu Sheng to be half a disciple of his. Especially under this circumstance, with the Vajra Region Lord boundary openly calling out for Yu Sheng, was there some other meaning behind it?


    Every sentence from these major players was worthy of close scrutiny, such as Saint Ji''s reminder to the Glass Saint. It was a kind of test. Now, these words from the Vajra Region Lord, were they also meant to remind some people don''t touch Yu Sheng!

 931 Saint Xia’s Secret Transmission

    The mood at the banquet was slightly charged. Neither Saint Xihua nor the Great Zhou Sacred King appeared. Instead, it was Rain Saint of Xihua Sacred Mountain who welcomed all the saints. Presumably, the hosts of the two holy lands were preparing for the upcoming ceremony.


    The guest list of those who arrived today was extremely impressive, much more so than the Nine State Forum that was held at Xihua Sacred Mountain. Many commanding figures had personally arrived to show their respect. Liu Zong and Zhou Ziyi were only of the younger generations, and should not have had such influence.


    At this time, there was another group of cultivators coming from the void. They did not walk into the Sacred Mountain but instead went straight into the air. However, after seeing who these people were, no one said much.


    Those ranked before Saint Xihua on the Saint Ranking could enter Xihua Sacred Mountain via air and no one could comment. Strength signified status. Moreover, the person arriving at the moment was Saint Xia. Many regarded Saint Xia as the leader of today''s Nine States holy lands, someone who was highly respected.


    "Saint Xia came in person." Many were a little surprised. The people from Nine State College arrived earlier, but Saint Li did not appear. No one had said anything because Saint Li''s status was undisputable. But now, Saint Xia had personally arrived. Could it be that Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were held in such importance?


    Everyone got up. Even the saints stood up, and suddenly, there were a whole lot of people standing up at the banquet and greeting Saint Xia, who came from the void. "Saint Xia."


    Rain Saint of Xihua Sacred Mountain took a step forward and bowed slightly. "Saint Xia coming in person is a great honor for Xihua Sacred Mountain."


    "No need to be like this. I just came to partake in a cup of wine at the wedding feast. Please, sit yourselves down." Saint Xia waved to the people. As he landed, everyone finally returned to their seats.


    "Saint Xia, please." Rain Saint welcomed him personally and led Saint Xia to the most respected position in the front. Saint Xia and everyone from the family settled down gladly.


    "Go about your business, don''t worry about me," Saint Xia said to Rain Saint.


    "Very well. If Saint Xia has any needs, please do not hesitate to let me know." Rain Saint put his hands together in obeisance and stepped back.


    At this time, Ye Futian was a little surprised. He had felt Saint Xia''s status in the Nine States in the past at the birthday banquet, that he seemed to be the premier figure in the Nine States and even had some relationships with the Upper Worlds. Even when Xian Qingyuan came to the Nine States, she was there to find Saint Xia.


    Rumor in the Nine States had it that Saint Xia was from the bloodline of Emperor Xia. Perhaps such a possibility really existed.


    Not far away, the beautiful eyes of Glass Saint also flashed a look of surprise. The fact remained that the marriage between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, even for her as the owner of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, had exerted pressure.


    Nine States had been quiet for many years, but the events that happened in these recent years all indicated that a time of upheaval might come to the Nine States.


    Ye Futian was likely to be a catalyst.


    After Saint Xia sat down, his eyes surveyed the crowd. Soon, his attention was fixed in one direction. Ye Futian, who sat slightly back, was stunned momentarily, and as he looked up and followed the eyes of Saint Xia, it seemed that Saint Xia was looking in his direction. Glass Saint, who was next to him, also noticed this, and could not help but look at Ye Futian.


    Could it be that Saint Xia still held a grudge about what happened at the birthday banquet? But with Saint Xia''s position, he should not have minded. After all, in the eyes of saints, it was only regarded as a small matter.


    In an instant, Saint Xia turned his gaze away, but at the same time, Ye Futian heard a voice in his head, "Ye Futian."


    "Mmm?" Ye Futian looked surprised. Saint Xia was secretly transmitting his voice to him.


    "Sir," Ye Futian responded with a secret voice transmission.


    "You were really out of line." The voice from Saint Xia seemed to be somewhat displeased.


    Ye Futian furrowed his brows and responded, "I do not understand."


    "Did you know who the supervising inspector was?" Saint Xia asked.


    Ye Futian glanced at Saint Xia. Saint Xia mentioned the supervising inspector at the moment indicated that he must have known what happened in the Upper Worlds.


    "I know," Ye Futian admitted freely. They had overcome the Ninth Layer of Heaven in Jiutian Temple in the Upper Worlds, so how could he have not known who Xia Qingyuan was? What was more, even Jieyu and the others had known what happened when they came back.


    "Then do you know that the Little Princess is the most talented among all of Xia Emperor''s descendants and that she was most favored and spoiled by Emperor Xia?" Saint Xia seemed a little angry.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "I heard some of it, I also heard that Xia Qingyuan was born by the first beauty of Emperor Xia''s Realm with Emperor Xia. Emperor Xia even said that her talent surpasses his own," Ye Futian said.


    "You knew and yet you dared to refuse the Little Princess the second time." Saint Xia spoke with great displeasure. "Princess Qingyuan may even become the next generation Renhuang in Emperor Xia''s Realm. At Jiutain Temple, in front of everyone, she personally invited you. Do you know what that means? All you had to do was nod your head, and maybe you could be next to the Little Princess, following her in cultivation. You might''ve gotten to see Emperor Xia often and would have the chance to receive instruction from Emperor Xia, and you actually refused such an opportunity." Saint Xia was really angry. Even the saints did not have such an opportunity, and Ye Futian refused without hesitation when such an opportunity was within reach. When Saint Xia learned of the news, he had wanted to beat him violently.


    It had not been easy for the Nine States to produce such a remarkable character. The stronger the Nine States, the more likely it was for Emperor Xia to hold the Nine States in higher regard. For Ye Futian, it had been easy. It was said that he had refused without any hesitation.


    Ye Futian was speechless, but he was not angry. Though Saint Xia''s tone seemed upset, the truth was that he felt sorry for him. But he did not respond. Could it be that he was very unhappy with Xia Qingyuan because of Ye Wuchen? Or did he think that Xia Qingyuan was not qualified for him to follow? Xia Qingyuan, after all, was only his peer. Naturally, this he could not have said to Saint Xia.


    However, Saint Xia seemed to know his thoughts and continued, "I know that you think highly of yourself; you were able to overcome the Ninth Layer of Heaven. Of course, you have the right to be proud. Looking at it today, your refusal to go to the trial now seems not to matter too much, but even if you are proud, don''t forget where you are cultivating now. Nine States is under the rule of Emperor Xia. If you had agreed to follow the Little Princess in cultivation, even the marriage of Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would not have meant much. One word from the Little Princess within the lands of Nine States, and who would dare to touch you?


    "But now? If they knew that you had climbed the Sky Stairwell, entered the Ninth Layer of Heaven, yet refused the Little Princess, their thoughts would still be that of eradicating you as soon as possible in order to eliminate any future concerns."


    When Ye Futian heard what Saint Xia had to say, he was embarrassed, and he understood why Saint Xia chose to communicate with him secretly. These words were not appropriate to communicate publically. If it was not for him having climbed the Sky Stairwells and getting into the Ninth Layer of Heaven, even Saint Xia would probably not tell him this much. After all, Saint Xia''s position was there to be respected.


    He also knew that Saint Xia was right. Even if he held himself in high esteem, in the land ruled by Emperor Xia, following Xia Qingyuan was the most favorable choice. However, those who cultivated had their own personalities to contend with, and it wasn''t just the considerations of the pros and cons. With his character, asking him to follow Xia Qingyuan to cultivate and asking Xia Qingyuan to protect him was something he could never have done, and wouldn''t even think about doing it. Perhaps it could also be said that this was a disadvantage.


    As for some of the saints in the Nine States who knew of this news, they would indeed want to kill him as soon as possible, especially the Great Zhou Sacred King. The greater his talent, the greater the threat he posed. Therefore, it was natural to want to eliminate him early. Therefore, if Saint Xia had publically revealed the news from the Upper Worlds, it would only be disadvantageous to him. It was obvious that Saint Xia was still being considerate.


    "Sir, now none of this will make any difference." Ye Futian''s voice was tinged with a bit of bitterness. He could not refute Saint Xia''s reprimand, and after all, Saint Xia was not being malicious.


    "If you are willing to change your mind and lower your stance, I can assist you in contacting the Little Princess, and there is still the opportunity," Saint Xia said again.


    Ye Futian was speechless. Asking him to beg Xia Qingyuan now just to follow her in cultivation? If it would give the Barren State an advantage, it might be worth it to consider putting himself in this servile position.


    Whenever he thought about that person dressed in men''s attire but who had a prettier face than women, looking cold and proud, Ye Futian wondered how he could have such evil thoughts.


    "Sir, I appreciate your kindness, but, I think it''s better to forget it," Ye Futian responded with a helpless smile.


    "You are stubborn," Saint Xia said hatefully. "Watch yourself."


    And there was no more voice transmission to Ye Futian. In fact, Saint Xia had already suspected that Ye Futian would not agree. After all, a person who could penetrate the Ninth Layer of Heaven in the Jiutian Temple naturally had his own pride. What truly shocked Saint Xia was that Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu were able to get through the Ninth Layer of Heaven along with Ye Futian. It appeared that the future potential of the Barren State was indeed a bit intimidating. In the future, he might be able to become someone like the Sword Saint of the Void or The Great Shaman.


    Next to Ye Futian, the Glass Saint had felt that Saint Xia was looking to this side, specifically at Ye Futian. Afterward, Ye Futian''s eyes were full of interesting expressions. Could it be that he was in a secret exchange with Saint Xia? Because she was attentive on the matter, she had observed Ye Futian''s expression very closely.


    "Saint Xia was looking for you?" Glass Saint transmitted her voice to Ye Futian in whispers, curious.


    Supposing that Saint Xia really was secretly exchanging messages with Ye Futian, could Ye Futian figure into the reason for his trip?


    Ye Futian looked at the Glass Saint and nodded gently. The Glass Saint smiled lightly with a beauty that was dazzling. She continued to transmit her voice and asked, "What business does Saint Xia have with you?"


    Saint Xia deliberately communicated with Ye Futian. It must not have been anything ordinary, otherwise, there was no need to do so.


    Seeing the stunning beauty of Glass Saint, Ye Futian thought that no wonder she was the first beauty in Eastern State. When she smiled, there seemed to be a strange magical power coming out of her, which made it impossible to refuse her question.


    "Because of the matters involving the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace during the trial, I went to the Upper Worlds and made some trouble. Because of it, Saint Xia wanted to ask me something regarding it." Ye Futian said to the Glass Saint, "But I''m hoping you will keep it secret for me."


    Clearly, it was not because he was seduced by the beauty of the Glass Saint; it was only that he and the Glass Saint had always maintained a friendly relationship. Under the circumstances, even if his talent was outstanding, there would be no malice from her, and she may even aid him. So, for him, there was no downside.


    When she heard what Ye Futian had to say, astonishment that flashed through the beautiful eyes of the Glass Saint. Those casual and easy words of Ye Futian actually contained too much information. He did not participate in the trial but went to the Upper Worlds anyways, which meant that he went by the Sky Stairwell. Moreover, he must have made a lot of ruckus in the Upper Worlds, thereby attracting Saint Xia''s attention.


    Thinking of the previous comment from Ji Mo, the Glass Saint was thinking, What exactly did Ye Futian do in the Upper World?

 932 Main Subjec

    Glass Saint was growing more and more curious. She smiled at Ye Futian and said, "I don''t want to go the Upper Worlds, so why don''t you tell me what you did?"


    Ye Futian looked at Glass Saint. Although she had cultivated for many years, she looked to be not even 30 years old. She was young, beautiful, and had a dignified bearing that made it so that people were on their best behavior in her presence. But her smiles and frowns right now seemed to make him forget that she was on the Saint Plane. Of course, her temperament was still engraved in her bones. Even if it was not revealed in the form of her smile, it still carried with it an invisible nobility.


    Ye Futian rubbed his forehead and said, "It was nothing. I just fought my way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven in Jiutian Temple and refused Xia Qingyuan''s invitation. It''s not even worth mentioning to you."


    Glass Saint was stunned. She had naturally heard of Jiutian Temple. A strange look came into her beautiful eyes, and she smiled at Ye Futian.


    "No wonder Saint Xia came personally." She shifted her gaze. She already knew what had happened, so there was no need to pursue this line of questioning.


    The Goddess Qingni saw the strange look on her master''s face. She had just seen Glass Saint smile at Ye Futian, and moreover, it was not just a polite smile like she had seen before.


    What was wrong with her master? Had she just been flirting with Ye Futian?


    Since the Goddess Qingni had noticed, Hua Jieyu naturally noticed it as well. She leaned on Ye Futian''s shoulder and said with a smile, "You must be making preparations for your plan to take a concubine."


    Ye Futian shuddered and took her hand. "What are you talking about? I was just talking to Glass Saint."


    "Don''t worry about it. I will support my husband," Hua Jieyu said with an ambiguous smile.


    Ye Futian''s tone did not change. "I think there is a misunderstanding, Jieyu."


    "I''ve already agreed to it and you still don''t dare. You have the heart of a thief but not his courage," Hua Jieyu said with disdain.


    "But..." Ye Futian was speechless. He couldn''t bear this. "Don''t regret this." He was getting angry.


    "Hmph," Hua Jieyu snorted. If the Saints present knew what the couple was talking about, who knew what they would think? They were talking about taking Glass Saint, whom the Great Zhou Sacred King dreamed of pursuing, the foremost beauty in the Easter State, the lord of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, as a concubine...


    At that moment there was a splendid brilliance in the sky and the sound of a dragon''s roar could be heard, followed by a phoenix''s cry. The dragon and phoenix cried together, and the holy mountain was shaken. Everyone there looked up and saw a beautiful golden dragon gliding through the clouds. It danced up through the sky, tracing a magnificent arc. On the other side, a golden phoenix descended. The sky was incomparably radiant. After the dragon and phoenix came hundreds of beautiful birds.


    Even the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain''s hearts were swayed when they saw this beautiful scene. This was truly worthy of the wedding between Liu Zong of Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Palace Lord of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The dragon and phoenix descended, and Liu Zong''s figure appeared atop its head, looking magnificent. Zhou Ziyi was atop the golden phoenix. She wore a phoenix crown and an embroidered tasseled cape. She had been dressed exceedingly carefully and looked holy and pure, and three times more beautiful than normal.


    Zhou Ziyi''s bright eyes were full of smiles, making her even more beautiful. She had always admired Liu Zong, and now she was finally realizing her heart''s desire of marrying someone that she liked. Moreover, Liu Zong was a disciple of a Saint, a Heavenly Chosen One, and a genius talent. She was naturally quite happy with such a desirable groom.


    After today, she would be Liu Zong''s wife.


    Many of the top figures of the Nine States had personally come. It would be quite difficult for another wedding in the Nine States to top today''s. She was most satisfied.


    As Ye Futian watched this scene and saw Zhou Ziyi''s happy face, he didn''t know if he should feel the same as her. As a Princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Zhou Ziyi was usually arrogant and rude. How could Liu Zong like her? She was nothing more than a tool to him. She thought she had found her perfect match, but she wouldn''t know what kind of man the person sharing her pillow really was.


    Considering that Liu Zong had used the cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Xihua Sacred Mountain, and Chess Saint Villa in a sacrificial matrix to try and free Chess Saint, it could be said that Liu Zong would stop at nothing to achieve his aims. But in any case, this would be the most glorious moment of Zhou Ziyi''s life.


    "Jieyu, our wedding was a little bit shabby compared to this. If we have a chance in the future, we should do it again." Ye Futian took her hand in his and rubbed it. Ever since this great beauty of Qingzhou Academy had taken his hand at 15, they had passed through many trials together. Now, seeing that Liu Zong and Zhou Ziyi''s wedding was more lavish than theirs, Ye Futian felt a little bit embarrassed before Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu felt the heat of Ye Futian''s hand, and her heart warmed. She smiled beautifully and said, "At that time, you were on the Noble Plane, and the top figures of the Barren State still came to witness our wedding. You call that shabby? That was the most satisfying moment of my life."


    "But you deserve more. At least more than them." Ye Futian still smiled.


    "But Zhou Ziyi is a Princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty." Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian. He also deserved more than them.


    "What are you thinking?" Ye Futian rubbed her hand.


    "I''m thinking that when you take a concubine, she can be no worse than her. That way I can save some face," she said with a smile. Ye Futian shook his head, speechless.


    The dragon and phoenix made their appearance on top of the ceremonial platform. Liu Zong and Zhou Ziyi stood facing each other and then walked towards each other. The dragon and the phoenix touched heads, and the two people took each other''s hand. Zhou Ziyi looked at Liu Zong, her eyes beaming.


    "My wife," said Liu Zong with a smile.


    Zhou Ziyi blushed at his voice. She nodded slightly and whispered, "My husband."


    As the two of them spoke, the dragon and phoenix rose into the sky. The two people stepped down and walked to the front of the platform and bowed slightly to the audience.


    "Congratulations," said Saint Xia with a grin. Suddenly everyone from the holy lands began congratulating them.


    Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King appeared on the ceremonial platform. They walked to the couple''s side. Saint Xihua looked out over the crowd and said, "It is my honor that all the Saints and members of holy lands have come to witness this wedding."


    "So polite! On such a joyous day we should only be speaking of the wine!" said someone with a laugh.


    "Then none of you may leave until you are thoroughly drunk," said Saint Xihua with a smile.


    "Of course."


    "I would also like to take this chance to make an announcement. Liu Zong''s talents are extraordinary. I have been teaching him all along with the three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain. Now, he is already at the Sage level. The Princess chose him as a Celestial Chosen One, and so we at Xihua Sacred Mountain have decided to make him a son of Xihua. From now on he will be able to inherit my position," continued Saint Xihua.


    Everyone was visibly moved by this speech. Although Liu Zong had always been known as the most outstanding disciple of Xihua Sacred Mountain, and he had always been regarded as the future leader, there were always variables. This would lead to the other powerful figures of Xihua Sacred Mountain considering their own positions. And now, Saint Xihua had announced to everyone that Liu Zong had been confirmed as his heir. It seemed that he had great faith in his talent.


    "Congratulations," everyone said once again. Their eyes all fell upon Liu Zong, including those who had gone to the trials with him. His performance in the trials had indeed been amazing, and he had had great luck. Xihua Sacred Mountain would find no one else in this generation who could stand shoulder to shoulder with him.


    Crack! Behind Ye Futian, Yang Xiao clenched his fists. He stared at the ceremonial platform, and there was an unmistakable desire to kill in his eyes. But he controlled his emotions and did not give into them. But this patience was extremely unbearable.


    The man who had buried his wife and several of his fellow disciples alive was now being watched by everyone as he was enshrined as the heir to Xihua Sacred Mountain. Moreover, Liu Zong had reached the Sage level. Given Liu Zong''s talent, it would be more and more difficult to kill him as time went on.


    Ye Futian heard the sound and looked back at Yang Xiao. "Senior Yang, the reason we came here today was to see what Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty will do and to observe the situation. I, of course, understand your desire for revenge, but we should not act rashly here."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "I understand," answered Yang Xiao. He naturally knew the meaning of patience. If he acted now, who knew who would die? Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had invited the Barren State to attend, and so they would not take action in order to maintain face. If they acted first they would give their opponents an excuse to make trouble.


    "In addition, I have one more thing to say," continued Saint Xihua. He looked towards Ye Futian and smiled. "Lord Ye has also come today."


    "Since you invited me, of course, I came." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He was very polite, just like they were old friends.


    "I''m so happy that you came. And there is something I want to discuss with you," Saint Xihua said with a smile.


    "What is it?" asked Ye Futian. He had finally come to the main subject.


    Everyone''s eyes also turned to Saint Xihua, waiting for him to begin.


    "A holy war broke out between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace, leading to much loss of life. Now that Liu Zong from Xihua Sacred Mountain has married a Princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, he is now like a son to them. In order to avoid conflict, Xihua Sacred Mountain will act as a peacemaker," he said to Ye Futian.


    A strange look came over everyone''s face. A peacemaker? Could it be that Saint Xihua would mediate between the two of them?


    They couldn''t believe it. Neither could Ye Futian.


    "What do you propose?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Since the Great Zhou Sacred King is the elder, why don''t you make a concession and turn over the Sword Matrix of the Void to him, and then apologize for your mistake in public? I think that that way the Great Zhou Sacred King will stop pursuing the matter. What do you think of this, Lord Ye?" asked Saint Xihua with a smile!

 933 The Three Great Holy Lands Join Hands

    Ye Futian looked up at Saint Xihua and narrowed his eyes a bit. He was still smiling, but inside, he was cold.


    Were they finally ready to make a move?


    Ever since the events at Nether Sword Mound, Ye Futian had suspected that the specter of Saint Xihua had been looming behind Liu Zong. Without Saint Xihua''s support, Liu Zong would not have been so bold as to even bury alive people from Xihua Sacred Mountain in his sacrifice.


    Now, Saint Xihua was asking him to surrender the Sword Matrix of the Void and admit his mistakes. He clearly knew this was impossible. If he really had the Sword Matrix of the Void and gave it to his opponent he would be under his control. Would the Barren State survive that? But Saint Xihua had still proposed this. It was really just an excuse to get things started. Behind this marriage alliance must be the fact that these two great holy lands of the Eastern State had already allocated the benefits. As for the specifics, he did not know.


    "If I had the Sword Matrix of the Void, do you think that there would be a wedding today?" said Ye Futian with a smile. All eyes fell on him. They naturally knew what he meant. If he really controlled the Sword Matrix of the Void, then the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty might no longer exist.


    "Perhaps your level is not high enough to wield the Sword Matrix of the Void, and you can only control its techniques," said Saint Xihua with a smile. "Of course, if you say you don''t have it, I''m willing to believe you. But as long as you are sincere about this, it is no problem. For example, you could give that sword spirit girl. Or, I have heard that Ye Wuchen, the disciple of the Barren State, has obtained a few sword wills. Moreover, they were obtained in Renhuang''s ruins, so they may have been his sword wills. These can take the place of the Sword Matrix of the Void."


    As Saint Xihua spoke, everyone''s eyes fell on the one-armed figure behind Ye Futian.


    Had Ye Wuchen obtained Renhuang''s sword wills? Although this was only a conjecture, if these were really Renhuang''s sword wills, they would be enough to interest the Saints of the Barren State.


    Ye Futian''s heart grew colder as he heard Saint Xihua''s words. These light and airy words were pushing Ye Wuchen into a vortex.


    "You must be joking. If Wuchen had really obtained Renhuang''s sword wills, how could he have returned to the Barren State? I heard that Liu Zong also obtained some of Renhuang''s treasures in the ruins, which made him stronger. No wonder you have made him your heir. It looks like the Great Zhou Sacred King married him to the Princess in order to prepare for him inheriting both great holy lands," said Ye Futian. He had heard that Liu Zong had had great luck, but he didn''t know what he had specifically found. But since Saint Xihua had mentioned the Renhuang sword wills, he could naturally use this topic to retaliate against his opponent.


    "As for surrendering treasures and apologizing, I think that perhaps you have not figured out who started this Sacred War. The Barren State has taken a thrashing all along, and our casualties have been heavy. The one who should apologize is the Great Zhou Sacred King," continued Ye Futian. "I think that with your high status, you should be able to make a clear distinction between right and wrong and will not show partiality due to a marriage alliance by bullying my weak Barren State."


    When everyone heard Ye Futian''s words they could not help but blush with shame. The Barren State had taken a thrashing all along? In the largest battles, had it not been the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty who had come to grief?


    Bully the weak Barren State? At the moment the Barren State could not be said to be weak.


    Ye Futian was quite eloquent. He had said that he believed that Saint Xihua could distinguish between right and wrong. This would block him from doing anything underhanded.


    "The Barren State seems to have not lost much in the Sacred War between the Holy Zhi Palace and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Instead, the three top forces of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were torn up by the roots. For you to say that the Barren State is weak and is being bullied is too modest," said Saint Xihua calmly. "Our marriage alliance was not done deliberately to bully the Holy Zhi Palace. After all, I still have a lot of appreciation for you, which is why I deliberately invited you here for a mediation. I hope there will not be any unhappiness in the future."


    "You say it''s mediation, but all that will happen is that we will apologize," said Ye Futian.


    "You said that the Barren State is weak. If it had not been for the Supervising Inspector saying that Saint-level figures could not get involved in the war, who knows what would have happened to the Holy Zhi Palace? Now, the Great Zhou Sacred King has given the Princess in marriage to Xihua Sacred Mountain. If Liu Zong, the son of Xihua Sacred Mountain sees that Zhou Ziyi is in peril, can he just stand by and watch? What a dilemma for Xihua Sacred Mountain!" Saint Xihua''s manner grew colder, and he said with a little bit of severity, "Is it so hard for you to admit a mistake, Lord Ye?" As he said this, a bit of saintly presence suffused him, making the banquet extraordinarily silent.


    Everyone ate and drank quietly. No one intervened. Saint Xihua was obviously looking for an excuse to participate in the Sacred War.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    This was a disaster for the Barren State.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had put the Holy Zhi Palace in a terrible fix.


    Ye Futian stared at Saint Xihua and said, "You are trying to force me to do something I am unwilling to do. The Great Zhou Sacred King should be the one making a concession."


    "By saying this, are you determined to persist in your selfishness?" Saint Xihua said coldly.


    Everyone from the Barren State''s face was cold as they looked up at Saint Xihua.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. He smiled and raised his glass, then drained it. He put it down and then once again looked at Saint Xihua. He asked, "This is my second time coming to Xihua Sacred Mountain, do you remember the circumstances of the first time?"


    Saint Xihua frowned. Everyone thought back several years to the Nine State Forum. That must be what Ye Futian was talking about.


    "At that time, the Barren State was weak and was written off by all the holy lands of the Nine States. Even when we attended the Nine State Forum, it was only in the servant seats. Yu Sheng did not accept this, and so he walked onto the platform to question this. At that time, you disdained him. Before the war, no one cared about the Barren State''s feelings," said Ye Futian slowly. "At that time, it must be that all the holy lands thought that the disciples of the Barren State must be unbridled to dare to ask such questions. At the next Nine State Forum, most of the power of the holy lands were targeted at us. But how did it end that time?" Ye Futian''s eyes burned as he stared at Saint Xihua.


    Saint Xihua''s face sank, and his eyes went cold. The result of that Nine State Forum was that he had personally apologized and forfeited a divine implement. The Barren State had taken first place, and on the whole, was the most dazzling.


    At that time, although he had apologized, Ye Futian was still very polite and respectful, so no one had said anything.


    But now he had brought it up again.


    This situation was similar to the one all those years ago.


    "This Sacred War was caused by the Great Zhou Sacred King being too overbearing, but now you want me to apologize? Weakness was the original sin," continued Ye Futian. "Liu Zong buried many cultivators alive at Nether Sword Mound, even Sages from Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, as well as many of Chess Saint''s disciples. Is Liu Zong guilty? Has he ever apologized?"


    Everyone looked up at Liu Zong. He had not only never apologized; he had even been made the son of Xihua Sacred Mountain and its future inheritor. Now he was marrying the Princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and had invited all the holy lands of the Nine States to his wedding.


    "You are too arrogant." At that moment, Rain Saint stepped forward from below the platform, and the pressure of the Divine Path swept out. His face was extremely cold. Today was meant to be Liu Zong''s day of joy, and Ye Futian had accused him of a crime.


    Ye Futian glanced at Rain Saint. He had understood what Saint Xihua had meant. He clearly intended to enter the Sacred War. In that case, he would be a little bit arrogant. All those years ago, he had let Saint Xihua keep face at the Nine State Forum, but now he was preparing to harm the Barren State. He had no more reason to let him keep face.


    "After this marriage, what do you plan to do next, Saint Xihua?" asked Ye Futian. He was too lazy to ask in a roundabout way, so he was direct.


    "I have already said all I need to say, Ye Futian. Do you insist on this path?" Saint Xihua''s voice was low.


    "You''ve already said it? Are you saying that if the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty has problems you can''t just stand by with folded arms?" asked Ye Futian with a smile. "You and the Great Zhou Sacred King must have discussed this before the marriage."


    Saint Xihua looked at him coldly. This Ye Futian was really a thorn in his side. He was not letting him keep any face.


    "If this is why you invited me here today, I am here now. Whatever Xihua Sacred Mountain is planning to do, please do it," said Ye Futian. "As for the feast, I''m afraid I can no longer participate, so I will leave." Upon saying this, he stood to leave. Behind and beside him, the others from the Barren State got up and followed him.


    "Such arrogance!" came a cold voice. Ye Futian turned around and saw a man put his glass down and look up at him. It was the Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs in Yu State, who had been given the title of Saint Zhi.


    "If the palace had not invited Emperor Xia to get involved all those years ago, the Holy Zhi Palace would no longer exist, and we would not have this arrogant man at our feast," said Saint Zhi coldly. He looked at Ye Futian. "I want to remind you of something, Ye Futian. When the Holy Zhi Palace invited Emperor Xia, he said that after the next Battle of Proving Holiness if there were no Saints in the Barren State, the palace would be outlawed. Zhisheng Cliffs must not do anything against you, but since a Saint has come to the Barren State, you can no longer say that you are being bullied."


    Everyone''s hearts trembled as they heard Saint Zhi''s words. Another holy land had declared themselves against the Barren State. Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and the Zhisheng Cliffs. If the three holy lands joined hands, it would be enough to wipe out the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was possibly about to face its doom.


    Ye Futian looked at Saint Zhi. Previously, Yue Jiangliu had reminded him that Kong Yao had arrived at Xihua Sacred Mountain a few days in advance. Zhisheng Cliffs and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had possibly also reached some sort of agreement. By targeting the Barren State, they each distributed their advantages.


    He thought that with Zhisheng Cliffs'' strength being behind that of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain, the benefit that they would get was probably the chance to occupy the Barren State''s holy land and take the Sage Hall for their own. As for Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, what would they get?


    At this moment, Ye Futian had Little Condor give an order at the palace!

 934 The Sword Points at Zhisheng Cliffs

    Saint Zhi''s words had instantly put the Barren State into an extremely dangerous situation. Because of this, the Holy Zhi Palace would be facing three great holy lands. Three holy lands had allied in order to send the Barren State to their deaths, not giving them any chance of survival. After the wedding banquet, they would probably be thrown into turmoil.


    "Zhisheng Cliffs are really kicking us while we''re down," said Ye Futian sarcastically. "Since Xihua Sacred Mountain invited me to come for this, I will not even finish my wine before leaving." On saying this, he rose into the air, preparing to leave. He did not plan to walk down Xihua Sacred Mountain. The others from the Barren State rose into the air behind him and started down the mountain.


    "Hold on, Lord Ye," came a voice. Ye Futian stopped and turned around to see a figure walking forward on the ceremonial platform. The person walking forward wore ceremonial robes and was the main figure of the banquet, Liu Zong.


    "What is it?" asked Ye Futian coldly.


    "I have already explained the events at Nether Sword Mound. Chess Saint is the Saint of the Eastern State. In order to save him, some sacrifices were inevitable. If I were to face the same situation again, I would make the same choice." Liu Zong stepped into the air, full of righteousness, as if he were in the right. Those who did not know Liu Zong would probably be deceived by him. When he talked like this, his face did not betray him at all.


    "However, you have repeatedly tried to humiliate me. Even though you are a guest today, and your talent is the crown of the Nine States, I still wish to teach you a thing or two." Liu Zong continued forward, and suddenly, his power coalesced in the air. The rule power of heaven and earth surged, the weather shifted and the Great Path resonated. All of this happened with Liu Zong at the center as he released an amazing amount of power towards Ye Futian.


    "I''m not interested," said Ye Futian quietly as he continued to move away.


    "Then you may do as you please." Liu Zong continued forward, and many afterimages appeared. Sound came from all of the images of him, as if he were everywhere at once, occupying every space. A strange look came over everyone''s faces. Even the Saints felt the incredible power there and were slightly surprised. This disciple, who had been taught by the three Saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain, was indeed worthy of his reputation.


    "Go ahead, Ye Futian," came an endless chorus of voices. The heavens and the earth trembled as the Great Path resonated. Liu Zong''s endless figures reformed into one, forming a terrible storm. He descended in front of Ye Futian like a gigantic god. Golden light bloomed and pressed down from the sky. The godlike figure struck out with his fist and pressed it towards Ye Futian. With his strength, he seemed to crack the very air.


    Ye Futian turned around and faced the godlike figure. He seemed extraordinarily small, and it seemed as if this falling fist could crush him into nothing.


    An invisible airflow shot out around Ye Futian and he raised his fist. The starry laws crushed everything as they collided with Liu Zong''s falling fist. His violent airflow swept out with a great roar, and many of the Saints below waved their hands to relieve the pressure and block the aftershock of that attack. The airflow swept down from the sky, creating a hurricane.


    Ye Futian had been thrown back quite a ways, and Liu Zong was still standing in his original position. He did not move as his gorgeous robe fluttered in the wind. He truly looked like a hero.


    "Has Ye Futian been forced back?" Everyone below''s hearts trembled as they watched this scene. Ye Futian was so strong that he was said to be peerless in the Nine States. This seemed to be the first time that he had been beaten back by someone of the same generation in a face to face confrontation.


    Of course, Liu Zong was on a higher plane than him, so being able to push someone back was quite normal. But this was Ye Futian. In many people''s minds, this proud son of heaven should not be able to be defeated.


    Zhou Ziyi gazed at her husband Liu Zong, and her eyes were full of pride. This was her man; he could even defeat Ye Futian.


    "In all the Nine States, no one can dominate an entire generation. I will witness all of this," said Ji Mo of the Hall of Holy Light with a hint of irony in his eyes.


    Witness? He himself had been dominated.


    "So this is the hospitality of Xihua Sacred Mountain." Ye Futian seemed very angry. "We will meet again." On saying this, he walked away. All the people of the Barren State cast a cold glance at Liu Zong, and then followed him. Soon they had all disappeared into the distance.


    Everyone at the banquet watched Ye Futian as he left. Their eyes revealed their thoughts.


    "It seems that this man who went to undergo trials with the Princess has improved greatly," said someone.


    "Ye Futian considers himself so extraordinary that he refused the Princess''s invitation, and yet still thought he could be peerless in the Nine States."


    Saint Zhi and Kong Yao both smiled coldly. Although this was only a casual confrontation, Liu Zong had still pushed Ye Futian back. This was extremely significant. Because of this, those forces that Ye Futian had pulled into a closer relationship would stop and reconsider. For example, the Yue clan of the Summer State.


    But at that moment, Saint Xia raised his glass and swirled it. His eyes revealed his thoughts. Just now, he had felt Ye Futian''s aura. He was an upper-level Magi. According to the Xia Clan''s news, when he had fought his way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven he was a mid-level Magi. Those he had defeated were all upper-level Magi.


    Could those at Jiutian Temple really be so weak? Even if the people below were weaker, what about those on the Ninth Layer of Heaven?


    Pei Qianying, the son of a Sword Saint and a cultivator of the Lihen Heaven, had also gone to the trials with the Princess, just like Liu Zong. But it was said that Ye Futian had crushed him in a humiliating way, crippling his life spirit. With that in mind, Ye Futian should not have been defeated by Liu Zong.


    There was only one possibility��Ye Futian was deliberately pretending to be weak.


    But why would he do that?


    Could it be that he was feeling the pressure of the alliance between the three great holy lands, and thus was pretending to not be very outstanding in order to prevent the three holy lands from going all out against him?


    He feigned weakness to paralyze his opponents.


    In addition to Saint Xia, Glass Saint also felt that Ye Futian was doing this. Ye Futian had personally told her that Saint Xia had come for him when he was in Jiutian Temple. In addition, he had told her something before he left.


    Emperor Xia''s will was present in all the holy lands of the Nine States.


    She wondered what he meant by this.


    Liu Zong seemed calm after repelling Ye Futian. He returned to the ceremonial platform and bowed to everyone. "I apologize for disturbing you. My wife and I will raise a toast to you all." As he said this, two people stepped down onto the platform from the sides.


    Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King had come personally. After all, all the Saints and important figures of the Nine States were here today. Since he had been respectful, they naturally had to return the compliment.


    "After the banquet, the Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Zhi should return to their homes to prevent Ye Futian from mobilizing his army when he returns to the Barren State and making a sneak attack on the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Zhisheng Cliffs. Given the current situation, it is possible that he now sees this as a case of ''either the fish dies or the net gets torn,''" said Saint Xihua.


    "When he gets back to the Barren State, we will already be back in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. And even if I''m not there, we have a battle matrix there that the people from the Barren State cannot break through," said the Great Zhou Sacred King confidently.


    Saint Zhi sat there calmly drinking his wine. He was not worried either. What could Ye Futian do? Would he dare to attack Zhisheng Cliffs? After today, the three of them were on the same side. In their discussion about how to destroy the Holy Zhi Palace and swallow up the Barren State, the Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua had already agreed with him. After taking the Barren State, Zhisheng Cliffs could occupy the Holy Zhi Palace, and the Sage Hall would be brought back to his home. They would also get half the divine implements. This was enough to convince him. Moreover, there was bad blood between Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace. They could not bear to see the Holy Zhi Palace rise.


    ��


    After Ye Futian left Xihua Sacred Mountain, he traveled upon the sword. The sword pierced through the sky at high speeds. Ye Futian and the others stood upon it.


    Huang Jiuge asked, "Why did you let him do it?" He naturally knew how strong Ye Futian was. How could Liu Zong have possibly struck him back with one blow?


    "This is Xihua Sacred Mountain. They wanted to see me lose, so why not let them?" Ye Futian answered casually. He had no interest in fighting Liu Zong. If he defeated him, would he have been able to kill him?


    Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had invited him, so they naturally would not move against him. But if he killed Liu Zong, murdering the son of Xihua Sacred Mountain while at Xihua Sacred Mountain, this would give them an excuse to act.


    "Go that way, Village Chief." Ye Futian pointed to the northwest.


    A strange look came over the Village Chief''s face. "That is not the way to the Barren State."


    The Barren State was directly to the north of the Eastern State.


    "Go to Yu State," said Ye Futian.


    "Yu State." Everyone''s eyes became sharp as they looked at Ye Futian.


    "Zhisheng Cliffs," continued Ye Futian. Everyone''s hearts trembled.


    The sword pointed towards Zhisheng Cliffs in Yu State.


    "Fine." The Village Chief did not ask why. He just changed direction towards Yu State. After a while, he frowned and said, "There is a large demon nearby."


    "Don''t worry, it''s mine. All the demons that I have on the road are going with us," said Ye Futian. A demon descended from the sky. The sword flashed over to the demon, meeting it, and the demon landed on it.


    As they moved forward, demons kept appearing, making everyone''s hearts tremble. They would never have thought that Ye Futian would arrange this to guard against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s attack.


    "You are probably faster than Saint Zhi, Village Chief. The Barren State is closer to Yu State, and you are already taking people there," said Ye Futian.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "No problem." The Village Chief nodded and increased the sword''s speed as they crossed the sky.


    It looked like Ye Futian had let Liu Zong defeat him to give others the impression that he was retreating. As they calmly retreated, it was likely that the three holy lands were still smug and self-satisfied.


    Behind Ye Futian, Sword Demon, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others all looked forward with sharp eyes. They would get revenge for what had happened in the past.


    "What about Emperor Xia?" Zhuge Qingfeng was still a little worried.


    "When Zhisheng Cliffs acted against us, they did not notify Emperor Xia. He already knows of the enmity between Zhisheng Cliffs and us. Moreover, the three holy lands have formed an alliance against us, but I still have to follow the rules set between us?" Ye Futian''s voice was cold. Was he looking for death?


    "And we''re not going to destroy Zhisheng Cliffs. We are just getting payback for what they did to us. We''re just requesting instructions from Emperor Xia, we''re asking that he personally set the rules for this Sacred War." Ye Futian looked off into the distance.

 935 An Eye for an Eye

    Yu State had two great holy lands and three great Saints.


    Zhisheng Cliffs had two of the Saints��Saint Zhi and Flame Saint. Zhisheng Cliff fully deserved the title as the top holy land of Yu State. Despite this, Yu State, the Barren State, and Ocean State, located in the Endless Sea, were the three weakest states in the Nine States. The Summer State, Qi State, War State, and Cloud State were the strongest.


    Thus, Zhisheng Cliffs had always been concerned about a place with no Saints, like the Barren State. If they could occupy it, take the Sage Hall of the Holy Zhi Palace along with its divine implements, and select the most outstanding people from the Barren State to come to their holy land for training, in time, they would grow stronger.


    That was the context behind the battle that had taken place outside the Holy Zhi Palace. Although it was caused by the enmity between Zhan Xiao and Gu Dongliu, Saint Zhi''s true desire had been revealed in the battle. It could be seen that Saint Zhi had inspired the conflict. It was only because the Palace Lord and Vice Headmaster Liu Chan had not hesitated to sacrifice themselves that had attracted Emperor Xia''s will and made it so that Saint Zhi could not take the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Zhisheng Cliffs was built on a series of cliffs. It was a place where countless people from Yu State came for pilgrimage. At this moment, all was quiet there. Behind the mountain, a figure sat there cultivating by a steep precipice. This was Ge Feng, the head of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs. He was a cultivator of the Sage and Saint Ranking. He had been shut up here cultivating for a while, trying to make himself stronger to prepare for the next Orthodoxy Battle.


    There was not long left before the next Battle of the Saints. At that time, all the top Sages of the Nine States would be going wild. Even though he was a Sage, there was still a lot of pressure. Every Battle of Saints, there were very few who could prove themselves worthy of becoming a Saint, few enough to count on one hand.


    Also, Zhisheng Cliffs had decided to go to war with the Holy Zhi Palace. He could use the cultivators of the Barren State to temper himself. The battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace several years ago had not gone well for him.


    The wind blew upon the cliffside, and Ge Feng opened his eyes. There was a brilliant lightning flash, and he could feel his heartbeat in his eyelids. He could not calm himself down. Something was making him uneasy. He did not know where this feeling came from.


    Ge Feng stopped his cultivation and he left the place with a flash. Those who were cultivating could feel the Path of heaven and earth, and in the midst of it, could seize onto some unknown things. Even with his level of cultivation what he had felt made him uneasy. He did not know why, but he felt that something was going to happen.


    Soon, Ge Feng came to a great hall and found another Sage, Nie Yan. There were three cultivators in Zhisheng Cliffs on the Sage Ranking��Kong Yao, Nie Yan, and Ge Feng. All of them had participated in the battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Senior brother," shouted Ge Feng.


    Nie Yan looked at him and asked, "Shouldn''t you be shut away cultivating?"


    "I don''t know why, but I feel uneasy. The Master has gone to Xihua Sacred Mountain. Could something have happened to him?" asked Ge Feng.


    "The Head Saint''s level is so high, and he has never offended the cultivators there. How could something have happened? You shouldn''t worry about it," said Nie Yan.


    "I''m still a little uneasy. Why don''t you go see Uncle-Master?" said Ge Feng. Flame Saint was Nie Yan''s Master.


    "The Master is concentrating on cultivation right now, so I shouldn''t disturb him. Even if something does happen, the Head Saint and Zhisheng Cliffs can handle it," said Nie Yan.


    Ge Feng nodded faintly as he stared off into the distance. Maybe he was just worrying too much. He didn''t know what would happen.


    ��


    At that moment, a line of figures was moving through the air from the Barren State towards Yu State. The person at the head was huge and as brilliant as a god. His body was full of the light of the Divine Path, and it covered the cultivators around him as well. He opened up an acupoint and light burst from his foot. He stepped across the sky. Though he was now a Saint, Douzhan''s speed was still astonishing.


    Ye Futian had ordered him to bring people to Zhisheng Cliffs. It went without saying that he had waited for this day for a long time. When Zhisheng Cliffs had suppressed the Barren State, Crouching Dragon Mountain had been in imminent danger. After the battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace, the two great Palace Lords had been killed. Although he did not agree with their ideas, everything they had done had been for the palace. If Zhisheng Cliffs had not shown up, things would not have gotten to that point.


    This matter would finally be brought to an end.


    Black Wind Condor was also following him. When he was there, you could always get news from Ye Futian.


    Yu State was much closer to the Barren State than the Eastern State. But even so, the Village Chief had still gotten there first. He was waiting in a place far away from Zhisheng Cliffs. In the end, Douzhan led the cultivators from the palace. There weren''t many of them, but they were all the top fighters of the Holy Zhi Palace, and they could form a battle matrix.


    Battle matrices could not be used in battles between the Holy Zhi Palace and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, but a surprise attack like this didn''t count.


    "Master," called Ye Futian as he saw Douzhan coming.


    Douzhan looked at Ye Futian, then at Sword Demon, Zhuge Qingfeng, You Chi, and the others. A cold desire to kill flashed in all their eyes. They had thought their conflict with Zhisheng Cliffs would be in an Orthodoxy Battle. They had not thought it would come this early.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian. Everyone set out towards Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Zhisheng Cliffs was the foremost holy land in Yu State. It had been unchallenged in Yu State for many years and thus had been at peace for too long. Other than their attack on the Holy Zhi Palace, they had not fought in a very long time, so they would naturally not have a strong sense of crisis. Therefore, Zhisheng Cliffs had absolutely no defenses at this time.


    In a palace hall in Zhisheng Cliffs, a stalwart old man with a fiery aura suddenly opened his eyes. He suddenly felt alert as he sensed a strong threat. An invisible airflow permeated the room. His spiritual will stretched out and covered all of Zhisheng Cliffs. He could now see what everyone was doing. It continued to spread out. A terrible power filled the sky, and suddenly his spiritual rushed in that direction. He sensed a mighty army descending.


    In an instant, Flame Saint was filled with shock.


    "Who goes there?" Flame Saint''s spiritual will turned into a huge fiery dragon that roared and rushed out. It contained the power of the Divine Path.


    The Village Chief glanced at it, and his terrible swordsman''s will turned into a huge sword that sliced down, piercing through the dragon and destroying his opponent''s will. The fiery dragon burst apart and disappeared.


    Flame Saint''s figure suddenly appeared outside the great hall of Zhisheng Cliffs. He looked up into the sky and screamed, "Everyone in Zhisheng Cliffs, hear my command. An enemy is invading, prepare for battle." His voice rang throughout Zhisheng Cliffs, and everyone''s hearts trembled fiercely at it. Zhisheng Cliffs, which had been peaceful for so long, was now being invaded.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    What had happened?


    In an instant, countless auras bloomed and a line of figures rose into the sky. They appeared outside the cliffs and looked up. They all felt an amazingly powerful aura coming towards them.


    Ge Feng also appeared in the sky. He flickered towards Flame Saint, looking embarrassed. Had his uneasy feeling not been because his Master had gone to Xihua Sacred Mountain, but because Zhisheng Cliffs was in danger?


    A strong space rule power came from high in the sky. An incomparably terrible space storm descended, followed by a group of figures that appeared in the air above Zhisheng Cliffs. Of the first three, the one on the left was an old man with the Lingtian Sword Will, and the one on the right was a burly man who stood there like a god. The one in the middle was an extremely handsome young man. His robes were as white as snow. He swept his cold eyes over them.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State." Flame Saint''s face grew ugly. Both the Saints of the Barren State were here, and Saint Zhi was not. He was the only one guarding Zhisheng Cliffs. Moreover, Saint Zhi had taken Kong Yao and many of the cultivators of the Zhisheng Cliffs with him.


    "What is the meaning of this?" Flames burned in Flame Saint''s eyes. Everything around him was extremely hot.


    "When Zhisheng Cliffs attacked the Barren State, they first attacked Crouching Dragon Mountain and then Taihang Mountain. Our casualties were great. After that, you attacked the Holy Zhi Palace, killing two of our Palace Lords. Now that we have Saints, we have come naturally come to pay you a visit," yelled Ye Futian. "I am attacking you in accordance with the rules of the Sacred War. Those on the Saint Plane will do battle with Saints, Sages with Sages, and the Nobles will not fight. But if you break the rules, don''t blame us if we completely level Zhisheng Cliffs."


    "The rules of a Sacred War?" Flame Saint said coldly. "There is no Sacred War between us. You dare to surprise attack us, and don''t fear Emperor Xia''s reproach?" He couldn''t handle both of the Barren State''s Saints, especially not the Village Chief. He was someone who could fight the Great Zhou Sacred King, and Flame Saint was at the bottom of the Saint Ranking. How could he compete with him?


    "When you attacked the Holy Zhi Palace, I notified Emperor Xia. He knows of the enmity between us. He will not reproach us. Moreover, your Head Saint, Saint Xia, announced at Xihua Sacred Mountain, that he would launch a Sacred War against the Holy Zhi Palace. Emperor Xia will find out about that."


    The people of Zhisheng Cliff''s faces fell. Saint Xia had personally declared a Sacred War against the Holy Zhi Palace?


    But how could the Barren State have mobilized their army so quickly?


    "Attack!" called Ye Futian in a harsh voice. He did not have a great desire for revenge for the deaths of the two Palace Lords. But he could not forget everything that happened at Taihang Mountain. On that day, a group of demon apes had lain in a pool of blood, staining the mountain. Yu Sheng and Jieyu had almost been killed. Those were the two most important people in his life. Even if it had not been for the two of them, the blood debt of Taihang Mountain could only be repaid by blood.


    Today, blood would stain Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Boom! A loud noise rang out as Ye Futian shot forward. Divine radiance burst from Douzhan''s sturdy figure. His life spirit and that of the Douzhan body were one, and he grew dozens of meters. He descended like a god, trampling towards Flame Saint.


    Flame Saint looked up, and his flames leapt up to the sky, rushing fiercely towards Douzhan. However, his godlike body was fearless. He let the flames burn upon him, bathing in the holy fire. The fire reached across the sky, turning into a fiery Qilin. It devoured the heavens and the earth as it rushed towards Douzhan.


    Douzhan continued downward. He descended in a flash, and he opened the Seven Star Acupoints. Divine light poured out from within him, and he smashed his fists down toward the earth. There was a loud noise as Douzhan pierced through that all-devouring Qilin. His terrible attack made Zhisheng Cliffs shake, and many cracks appeared. Many buildings collapsed and shattered.


    "Do you want to fight up above or directly on Zhisheng Cliffs?" Douzhan''s godlike body stepped where Flame Saint had just been standing. Flame Saint soared far away, looking coldly at the violent Douzhan.

 936 Emperor Xias Wrath

    The body of the Flame Saint moved all of a sudden and retreated backward. Douzhan caught up to him and the Village Chief followed suit. With the Village Chief holding the fort, there was no way the Flame Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs would have been able to run.


    At that moment, terrifying dark red will burst from the Flame Saint''s body, heading towards the tablet at the highest point of the Zhisheng Cliffs. When the dark red will fell below, the entire place seemed to have been stained in red. Frightening aura exuded from within the tablet, staining the sky. At that moment, immense pressure descended from the sky, shrouding Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "I call upon Emperor Xia." The Flame Saint''s voice resounded throughout the sky. With the Barren State''s people assaulting Zhisheng Cliffs, the two saints knew well that they would not have been able to deal with the intruders. As such, they made a snap decision and called upon Emperor Xia.


    Douzhan and the Village Chief halted and Ye Futian went up. It was something that he had never expected, however, it was also what he came for.


    With three holy lands declaring that they would work together to fight against the Holy Zhi Palace, if the saints from those enemies were to simply invade the Barren State, there would have been no doubt that the Holy Zhi Palace would have been wiped out. If he was able to cheat, it would have been the same for the other side.


    As such, he needed Emperor Xia to be present personally and set the rules of the Sacred War, in order to decide what would have been the course of action to take from then on out. It was the very reason why he had attended Liu Zong''s wedding��to be clear of the situation that the Barren State was facing, in order to lay out plans for breakthrough.


    Immense pressure came from above. Renhuang needed only a sliver of will to subjugate all living beings. Emperor Xia''s silhouette appeared once again. The solemn and imposing face appeared in the sky and said, "Zhisheng Cliffs of the Yu State, what would be the matter?"


    "Emperor Xia, Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace led an ambush against Zhisheng Cliffs without gaining permission first, in order to wipe out Zhisheng Cliffs, a holy land of the Orthodox," the Flame Saint reported as he bowed to Emperor Xia, presenting himself to be immensely respectful.


    Emperor Xia looked up and turned his eyes at Ye Futian.


    "It''s you." It was in the Barren State during the last time his will manifested. The previous Palace Lord of the Barren State passed down his position to Ye Futian. The little guy who was still in Noble Plane back then was of formidable training at the moment. Furthermore, said guy seemed to have refused Xia Qingyuan. Someone had actually reported that incident to Emperor Xia, which he found to be rather amusing.


    "Greetings, Emperor Xia. I''m Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State." Ye Futian bowed solemnly and continued, "The Flame Saint is deceiving you, Emperor Xia, and I would like to implore you to punish him accordingly."


    "B*llshit." The Flame Saint turned his eyes at Ye Futian. The flaring red eyes seemed to almost wanted to burn Ye Futian down right there and then. Emperor Xia was the master of the Nine States, and no one was able to answer to a crime as severe as to deceive Emperor Xia.


    A word from the Emperor Xia back all those years ago had razed the holy land led by Ji Yuan, a figure ranked second on the Saint Ranking who was known as the Reaper. Ji Yuan disappeared without a trace. Emperor Xia was the absolute overlord of the Nine States, and the shared master of both the Upper and Lower Worlds.


    "Elaborate," Emperor Xia looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "Emperor Xia, you were present to judge the matter regarding the Holy Zhi Palace back then, and it was only natural that you knew what happened. Zhisheng Cliffs had killed their way into the Barren State all those years ago, and they had not bothered to ask for your permission to do that. I''m now simply here to settle the score. Is it so that while the Zhisheng Cliffs of the Yu State is allowed to bully the Holy Zhi Palace, we''re not allowed to retaliate?"


    Ye Futian continued, "Furthermore, not long before the marriage alliance between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was sealed and all from the Nine States were invited to the wedding, Saint Xihua had declared, with Saint Zhi, that they were to join the Sacred War in an effort to eliminate the Holy Zhi Palace. We of the Holy Zhi Palace just began to show signs of rising when three holy lands came to attack us, in an effort to suppress our rising by eliminating us outright. That infuriated me and thus, I brought my people to attack Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "Emperor Xia, if the three holy lands were ally themselves and bully us like that, the Holy Zhi Palace will be wiped out without a doubt. Saint Zhi of Zhisheng Cliffs declared that he would join the Sacred War personally in order to raze the Holy Zhi Palace. Is the Holy Zhi Palace not allowed to retaliate then? Are we of the Barren State to simply roll over and die? This is not an ambush, and if it were to be ambush, it would have sufficed for the two of our saints to massacre Zhisheng Cliffs. However, we know Zhisheng Cliffs to be a holy land of your Orthodoxy, and as such, we dared not overstep our border, resorting to fighting in accordance to the rules of the Sacred War laid out previously."


    Ye Futian''s voice was filled with sorrow and rage, heard throughout the entire place, so much so that he seemed he would soon break down in tears. The way he put it, the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State was in an extremely miserable predicament, as if they were at the brink of total extermination. The three holy lands were shameless bullies, and Zhisheng Cliffs of the Yu State had gone out of its way to wipe the Holy Zhi Palace out. They of the Holy Zhi Palace were only out to set things right and they had been right to retaliate. Even the ones from Zhisheng Cliffs were rendered speechless by his words.


    The Flame Saint glared with wide-opened, angry eyes. It had been Ye Futian who had led two saints, bringing a whole army to bear upon Zhisheng Cliffs, and now it was the Holy Zhi Palace that was wronged instead.


    That moment marked death for Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "Emperor Xia, he is distorting the truth," the Flame Saint retaliated furiously.


    "If any of my words prove to be a lie, please sentence me to death, Emperor Xia." Ye Futian''s voice drowned the Flame Saint''s angry shout, putting his life on the line to set the matter right.


    Emperor Xia did not doubt Ye Futian at all. No one throughout the Nine States dared to deceive Emperor Xia. Furthermore, what Ye Futian had said was something that could have been verified with just a bit of digging.


    Emperor Xia then turned his eyes to the Flame Saint and asked, "Which part of his words is a lie?"


    The Flame Saint looked deplorable. None of Ye Futian''s words had been refutable. If the master saint of Zhisheng Cliffs had declared that they would join the Sacred War against the Barren State, Emperor Xia would not have stopped them. In truth, Saint Zhi never said that they were to join the Sacred War, but the meaning was close enough, and Ye Futian had interpreted it that way. If Emperor Xia were to actually investigate the matter, it would have easily gone in Ye Futian''s favor, as everyone knew from what was said very clearly��Zhisheng Cliffs would act against the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Emperor Xia knew what was going from the Flame Saint''s expression. He looked at everyone beneath him and said coldly, "The odds were stacked against the Barren State and three holy lands joined hands to bully them. If that was so, on what grounds do you see yourself fit to call upon me?" Emperor Xia flared in anger and brought his might down on everyone below. Countless from Zhisheng Cliffs were so terrified that they dared not look up.


    "I''m only doing it for the sake of Zhisheng Cliffs." The Flame Saint''s face was ashen.


    None throughout the Nine States would be capable of standing against Emperor Xia''s wrath. It was clear that Emperor Xia was convinced by Ye Futian''s words and would not interfere in what happened that day.


    "You have disturbed me twice within just a few years. If you''re so eager to fight each other, then from this day on, if anyone throughout the Nine States'' holy lands intends to wage a Sacred War, there will be no more need to ask for my permission. However, given the holy lands throughout the Nine States are of my Orthodoxy, you''re forbidden to kill indiscriminately. Per the rules of the divine path stated prior, saints are not allowed to move against anyone below the saint plane. The same goes with sages. You can inform the Nine State Guards when you''re done fighting each other."


    Emperor Xia scoffed coldly and seemed very displeased. Countless were shivering beneath. Someone of Emperor Xia''s status would not have been bothered much even if the Nine States were to be overturned.


    Emperor Xia''s true base and roots were at the Upper Worlds, but given that the Orthodoxies of the Nine States were capable of supplying him continuously with saints, Battle of Proving Holiness was set in place, providing the people of the Nine States with opportunities to attain sainthood and become truly exceptional figures. Only such people would have been noticed by Emperor Xia, such as the Sword Saint of the Void and the Great Shaman.


    Given how the Nine States kept getting into trouble with each other and waging Sacred Wars, he saw it fit to just let them duke it out, letting only the truly worthy ones remain. How far Ye Futian would be able to grow was entirely dependent on his luck and ability.


    "As you wish, Emperor Xia," Ye Futian bowed and said. It was his plan to invoke Emperor Xia''s appearance. The Flame Saint had been but a chess piece in this round of his game. He would have had no way to call upon Emperor Xia to set the rules down otherwise.


    If Emperor Xia did not show himself, and if the ones at Xihua Sacred Mountain decided to not play by the rules, he would have died without knowing how he died. As such, before he left Xihua Sacred Mountain, he asked the Glass Saint if the holy lands of the Nine States had the will of Emperor Xia remaining in place.


    "Relay my orders to all of the Nine States." Emperor Xia was heard saying before the heavenly pressure dissipated gradually until the emperor''s silhouette was no longer seen. It was clear that he sanctioned what was going on in Zhisheng Cliffs.


    The Flame Saint''s face was ashen. With Douzhan and the Village Chief being present, there was simply no way he could win.


    The rule laid out by Emperor Xia was clear��only saints were allowed to fight saints.


    The Flame Saint waved his hands and brought a terrifying firestorm seemingly out to burn everything to ashes, going straight for Douzhan and the Village Chief. His body turned around, intending to leave as he said, "The saints can''t lift a finger against you all, get into fighting formation and give it your all."


    "You want to run?" The Village Chief snickered. His body turned into a sword and punched straight through the flames, flying straight for the Flame Saint. Douzhan stepped out with gigantic steps, making craters on the ground explosively as his stout body chased after the Flame Saint like some heavenly god. With Saint Zhi not being around, they would not let the Flame Saint live.


    The score of the past had to be settled.


    Ye Futian scanned the mighty ones of the Zhisheng Cliffs with cold eyes, before seeing a dazzling beam of light heading straight for him. It was Ge Feng, a mighty one ranked on the Sage and Saint Rankings. He held a trident in his hand, which was a holy item used in the battles outside the Holy Zhi Place back then. The sky turned and a devastating storm brewed as if the apocalypse was near, raining down straight from above and bombarding the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    As a student of Saint Zhi and a figure ranked in the Sage and Saint Ranking, there was no way he would have shirked from a true crisis. His mind had been wavering before, but presently, he had steeled his mind and wanted nothing more than to kill Ye Futian right there and then.


    The Celestial Thunder coming from the heavens was a large scale rule spell which was of terrifying magnitude. Zhuge Qingfeng moved and the Eight Trigrams Matrix appeared around him. The holy item was activated and the eight trigrams image appeared in the air, blocking the Celestial Thunder.


    Ge Feng himself had gotten near his target and the holy item in his hand pointed at Ye Futian, a terrifying lightning storm burst with powers out to tear everything apart.


    "Streaking Cloud." The trident lashed out before him. The apocalyptic thunder turned into a blinding beam of devastating light.


    Nine figures appeared before Ye Futian: Qin Zhuang, the Sword Demon, Xu Shang, and the other six major swordsmen formed a sword matrix. Even though the holy sword was not there to boost the matrix, the power of the resulting matrix was still able to emanate boundless sword might and coalesced into a sword, under the joint effort of the nine. The sword clashed with the lightning coming at them. Devastating light flashed about in the air, so blinding that many were unable to open their eyes.


    Countless mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs took to the air high in the sky and burst with their Life Spirits, bringing raging auras of rules.


    Yet another figure stepped forward��Nie Yan��a mighty one ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking. His pupils were crimson, as if he would have only taken one look to kill anyone. He extended his hand forward, bringing the will of ashes and seemingly about to turn everything around him to dust.


    Another brilliant figure flew towards him. It was none other than Yun Shang, who held a holy item in the form of a scepter. She sealed the air around her with ice, blocking the will of ashes.


    Roar. A frightening angry roar was heard. The Heavenly Battle Matrix was seen being formed in another corner. The one who took the lead in the matrix was no longer Douzhan, but Yuan Hong instead. He brought the power of the battle matrix and launched himself downward in a wild, unruly manner. Golden sheen shone brightly in the air. He held a ritual implement in his hand, a holy item instead of the Polearm of Divine Destruction. The holy item used was none other than the Infinite Ruler, borrowed from Sage Wuliang.


    When Zhan Xiao killed his way into Taihang Mountain, the place became practically soaked in the blood of Yuan Hong''s people. As such, no one else hated Zhisheng Cliffs more than Yuan Hong.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The wild unruly figure descended from above, and the Infinite Ruler in his hand burst with holy might. The shadow of the ruler appeared and slapped hard downward. It worked like a staff despite being a holy ruler, blocking out the sky with its might.


    "Evade!" a voice shouted. Yuan Hong took the might of the Heavenly Battle Matrix in his own hands, and one could have imagined how terrifying that would have been. Ruler shadows filled the air and shrouded the space they were in. One instant was all it took to evoke the pain shrieks of his enemies. Those who were hit by the ruler were killed immediately.

 937 Returning the Deb

    At the side of the Holy Zhi Palace, Yuan Hong was seen leading the Heavenly Battle Matrix while wielding the holy item, the Infinite Ruler. His offensive capacity at the moment was the strongest under the Saint Plane.


    Worse still, Yuan Hong was backed with intense anger to avenge all those of his own who fell at Taihang Mountain, meaning that he had no mercy whatsoever for his opponents. Many mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs were squished in an instant right there and then.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Get into formation." Ge Feng did not forget to shout when doing battle with the nine at Qin Zhuang''s side. When Qin Zhuang and the other eight brought the holy sword with him, no one was able to stand in their way. Despite not having the holy sword at the moment, he was still capable enough to deal with Ge Feng, who was wielding a holy item.


    The sages of the Zhisheng Cliffs joined the fray without falling into a mess and began to take their formations.


    Roar! Yuan Hong''s roar resounded throughout the sky. His golden ape body became even larger. One step shook the air around them. He held the incredibly huge Infinite Ruler high, which continued to extend, then turned into a seemingly endless weapon. While Yuan Hong was not versed in Wuliang Rules, the ruler itself held the power of the great path of Wuliang, which enabled the resulting attack to manifest as Wuliang itself, rendering it practically limitless in power.


    The mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs felt as if the sky was blocked out. The Infinite Ruler was brought down hard from above, making it seem like an apocalypse for everything below. Even top notch sages wielding holy items would not have been able to withstand the force of such an attack.


    A thundering boom was heard as yet another group of mighty ones was reduced to dust by the ruler, killed right there and then.


    A group of mighty ones gathered at another spot of the peaks of Zhisheng Cliffs faraway, getting a matrix prepped and charged. The one taking the lead was an elder with silver hair and beard, who was apparently a member of the elder generation who had been training hard for many years at Zhisheng Cliffs. He gave up after challenging the divine path and failing, giving up entirely and resorting to simply isolate himself in Zhisheng Cliffs and training. While he was not ranked in the Sage and Saint Ranking, his actual powers were not all that far behind the ones who ranked near the end of the ranking.


    Light gathered at the center of his brow, infinite spiritual power emanating from within. Spiritual-type holy items were imbued at the spot, and it was the most treasured of holy items in Zhisheng Cliff''s inventory. Many mighty ones stood behind him and siphoned their spiritual powers at the silver-haired elder''s brow. Frightening sura soon gathered in the space around him; its might encompassing Zhisheng Cliffs.


    The ley lines shifted, and the boulders at the crust of the earth moved, extending countless boulders, blocking all the buildings and palaces at the lower side of the Zhisheng Cliffs, sealing them below ground. The sages were fighting hard while the nobles were unable to do anything. He isolated the entire lower side of Zhisheng Cliffs from the battlefield, protecting all of them within.


    "Earthly Guardian." A line was heard uttered by the elder. The aura was incredibly frightening. Yuan Hong took a look in their direction before heading towards them. One terrifying massive monster after another appeared in the air. The black dragon howled, a massive python spitting black mist, the black turtle emitting icy powers, with many other top-class monsters bringing their might to the battlefield.


    Ye Futian brought more than just the mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace in that assault that time; he brought a powerful army of demonic beasts as well. The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State had someone who was adept in taming beasts.


    "Humanoid Guardians," the elder shouted once again and one massive golem clad in rocky armor after another emerged, guarding Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Boom. The earth shook as Yuan Hong took one step after another, crushing everything beneath his feet. Seeing that Yuan Hong was bringing the Heavenly Battle Matrix and closing in, the silver-haired elder cranked his spiritual will power to the limit. Terrifying storms whipped up in the sky and divine light shone. One gigantic figure after another emerged from the storm as if they were being summoned from the heavens, descending like gods.


    "Heavenly Guardian." The elder''s voice shook, sounding as if the move had taken a severe toll on him. The figure summoned glimmered in dazzling light as if it was shining with true holy light.


    The elder''s eyes turned extremely demonic. The Heavenly Guardian had opened its eyes, looking just as demonic. The elder extended his hand behind him. Dazzling light shone from within Zhisheng Cliffs, raining down onto the Heavenly Guardian. A holy hammer appeared in his hand, bursting with terrifying holy light.


    "Some aura indeed." Ye Futian took a look at the massive, majestic Heavenly Guardian and the holy hammer. Zhisheng Cliffs was the number one land of lineage in the Yu State, which meant that they were anything but weak. While they might have paled in comparison to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Ye Futian did not underestimate them. As such, not only did he had his teacher, Douzhan, led the figures from the Barren State to meet up with him, but he had also mobilized his demonic beast army. It would have been very difficult to take down Zhisheng Cliffs otherwise.


    Things at the Saint Level were easy in comparison, but Ye Futian had not planned that the Village Chief would join in the fray. If he were to do so, Emperor Xia might have declared that there were to be no rules in the fights in the Nine States, and the saints would have been free to act against anyone as they wished. It would have easily turned into a disaster for the Barren State if that were to happen.


    While Zhisheng Cliffs was by no means weak, the Holy Zhi Palace was not what it used to be either. After the Sacred War broke out, many who were ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking joined the ranks of the Holy Zhi Palace and trained there, furthering their training at the Sage Hall. Zhisheng Cliffs, on the other hand, had yet to be able to gather the top forces in all of Yu State to join in the fight. As such, the Barren State would certainly come out on top in this battle.


    At that moment, the summoned Heavenly Guardian wielding a holy item descended upon Yuan Hong. Thunder flashed in the heavens as it happened, and the might of the great path descended along with the holy hammer, seemingly about to crush everything beneath it.


    Yuan Hong did not dodge. The golden great ape continued to stand tall like a mountain while the power of the matrix continued to course all over his body in a frenzy. His stout body drew an arc in the space as he streaked by, bringing the Infinite Ruler onto the holy hammer. The two holy items clashed in midair. Devastating light rained down from above like beams foretelling the advent of an apocalypse. Zhisheng Cliffs was caught in the calamity. The earth within a several hundred miles radius shook.


    Outside Zhisheng Cliffs, there were who came on pilgrimages saw the fight above Zhisheng Cliffs, feeling shivers running through their spines as their minds rattled. They had never seen battles of such a frightening scale and had never thought that there were actually people who would have assaulted Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Those were the mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. It was said that Zhisheng Cliffs had invaded the Barren State years ago, and now, the Holy Zhi Palace was retaliating with extreme prejudice.


    Zhisheng Cliffs of the Yu State was, at the moment, dealing with a life and death crisis.


    The Sword Saint at Ye Futian''s side stepped out and the demonic blade appeared in his hand. Terrifying demonic aura coursed about the air in an instant, manifesting as boundless demonic blade will, sweeping the place about while gushing into the Sword Saint''s body.


    The Sword Saint seemed to have metamorphosed right there and then. His calm and collected silhouette turned incredibly imposing, while his eyes shone with a dark, demonic light. It was as if his entire being had demonized. His body had merged completely with the blade as well as demonic powers around him.


    He had wielded the demonic blade in a fight against Kong Yao back in the battle of the Holy Zhi Palace all those years ago. He had broken into Archmage Plane in the present day. The power unleashed by the blade was more powerful than it had been all those years ago.


    The blade howled as murderous intent gushed from within. The space around him seemed to have turned into a dark world, devoid of life, with him at the center. Even though he had broken into Archmage Plane, he still felt that he was not the one who was wielding the demonic blade when it was activated; rather, it felt more like it was the blade that was wielding him instead.


    The Sword Saint looked like a devil as he entered such a state.


    The light of darkness coursed above Zhisheng Cliffs and a dark beam of the blade fell from the sky, like a blade wielded by a devil. One strike and it already seemed as if the space before the Sword Saint was cleaved open. One mighty one after another from Zhisheng Cliffs was killed on the spot. Many mighty ones were shocked by what was happening before their eyes. Their minds shuddered at the terrifying blade technique.


    One Humanoid Guardian after another soon came, intending to stop the Sword Saint, who continued to move forward like a devil with unparalleled blade will around him. No tricks were played. Yet another wave of the blade and the space was cleaved again.


    The frighteningly imposing Humanoid Guardian was bisected right there and then before turning into nothingness. The sight frightened countless mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs, as they came to feel the fear of death.


    True battles were never about numbers. In the world of cultivators, truly powerful beings were able to take on armies of thousands alone. Emperor Xia would not have forbidden saints from acting against those below them in the rules of the Sacred War otherwise. When a saint made a move, everyone below Saint Plane would have be wiped clean without any chance of survival.


    It became apparent that the Sword Saint became a being at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane. No army could stand for long before him.


    Other than battle matrixes, Ge Feng and Nie Yan, who were wielding holy items, were the only ones who were capable of standing in their way. However, at the moment, both of them had their hands full and were unable to turn their attention elsewhere. Furthermore, the number one figure below the saints at the Zhisheng Cliffs, Kong Yao, was not in Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "Big brother sure has become more powerful than before." Ye Futian turned to look at the Sword Saint. He first saw the Sword Saint use the demonic blade during the battle of the Holy Zhi Palace. Ye Futian''s big brother felt as if he was consumed by the blade as he struggled to control it. Several years later, said big brother had grown more powerful and had trained outside as well. While he was still incapable of controlling the blade, he was able to use it in a more fitting manner.


    It was practically a free-for-all at Zhisheng Cliffs. The Heavenly Guardian summoned by the elder was extremely powerful. It clashed with Yuan Hong in a frenzy, with every strike seemingly able to bring down the sky.


    Ge Feng was stopped by Qin Zhuang and the other eight. The battle between both sides looked terribly dangerous, so much so that one mistake could have been fatal.


    Nie Yan, yet another mighty one ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking, was taken on by both Yun Shang, the lord of the Ice Temple, and Huang Xi, preventing them from being overwhelmed. Other than that, You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng, and other mighty ones joined the fray alongside many of the enormous monsters.


    All of Zhisheng Cliffs was embroiled in a bloody battle at the moment. There was yet another group of mighty ones outside the battlefield who did not make a move. They were all of the elder generations of Zhisheng Cliffs, staying hidden while their eyes followed Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian naturally took notice and noted that those people were formidable. Their goal was apparent from the fact that they did not join the fight��they were finding openings to target him. As soon as the Palace Lord was taken down, the fight would be over.


    They were entirely unfettered by the fact that the odds were overwhelmingly stacked against Zhisheng Cliffs, and many continued to perish. They had no intentions of intervening, and that said a lot about their temperament. However, Ye Futian behaved as if he had not noticed. He sat cross-legged in midair and the Guqin spirit manifested before him. He lowered his land and began to play the instrument. A tune was soon heard throughout the battlefield.


    It was a tune that was full of rage yet was lined with a tinge of sorrow. Many were able to feel the vague underlying sorrow and brutality, with the place being washed by a bloodbath. The illustration seemed to have merged with the battlefield, becoming a part of the battle.


    Ye Futian continued to pluck at the strings as he recalled what had taken place in Crouching Dragon Mountain, Taihang Mountain, and the Holy Zhi Palace. All of his thoughts translated to his fingers as he played, making the attacks of Yuan Hong, the Sword Demon, and many others become increasingly pointed and overwhelming. Their minds were reminded of what took place all those years ago.


    That day, Zhisheng Cliffs was made to settle the blood debt they created all those years. With the three holy lands joining hands to eliminate the Holy Zhi Palace, then they would pay for such a course of action with blood!

 938 A Ranked Sage Perished

    18 elders of the Zhisheng Cliffs hovered within the chaotic battlefield.


    They did not emanate any aura and their bodies were light and their actions silent. They did not pay any heed to the battlefield and had instead, hovered to where Ye Futian and the others were.


    An enormous demonic beast��an orochi��headed straight for that group of elders and black mists blasted from its nine heads. The terrifying dark mist possessed Corrosion Rule power, so much so that even the air turned into mucous material.


    However, none of the elders stopped at all and they continued forward. They had even shut their eyes and a formless spiritual power surrounded the space they occupied.


    The black mist seemed to have been put under lockdown all of a sudden. Worse still, even the orochi sensed an incredibly dangerous aura and let out a low-pitched roar in a frenzy.


    Formless spiritual will powers invaded and the orochi turned around, intending to escape, feeling that its soul had been tangled by countless threads.


    At that moment, the elders, who had been shutting their eyes, chanted with obscure voices, bringing a formless spiritual storm in their surroundings.


    The elder who took the lead opened his eyes all of a sudden and the obscure voices swept out like a formless force. The black mist that had been shrouding the area was all cleared out in an instant without making any noises. The orochi growled painfully. All nine of its heads howled and then its enormous body quickly dropped below in a limp manner.


    The 18 elders continued hovering forward. Their white garb totally unscathed, without so much even a speck of dust found on them. The leading elder closed his eyes again, yet the formless spiritual will power continued to permeate their surroundings.


    "Spirit elementalists are here. Be on your guard," Sage Daozang said. He and many mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace stood guard at Ye Futian''s side.


    Hua Jieyu focused her eyes at her incoming enemies and from the methods they employed, she was able to tell that they wielded powers similar to hers, and that they were indeed spirit elementalist type rule powers. All 18 of them shared their spiritual powers and formed a spirit elementalist matrix, with the strongest individual leading the attack.


    All 18 of them were veterans of many, many years in Zhisheng Cliffs and they were adept at wielding secret methods of the spirit elementalist, capable of killing without leaving a trace and making them frighteningly formidable. If it had not been for the Zhisheng Cliffs being at the brink of total annihilation, they would not have appeared at all.


    At that moment, a formless spiritual will power descended upon the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Here they come," Sage Daozang said. Ye Futian, who had been playing his music, felt a formless spiritual will power invading him, and it was very overpowering.


    His tune turned in an instant, coalescing the spiritual powers of the mighty ones around him and turned it into a formless spiritual storm, resisting the invading spiritual powers.


    Spiritual power attacks were formless and traceless. Spiritual type power of rules were exceptionally terrifying as they were capable of killing without leaving a trace, forcing any who were on the receiving end to be on high alert.


    "I''ll take them on." Hua Jieyu stepped up and powerful psychic powers emanated from her. Her dress and her hair billowed. She looked very dashing when she was doing battle, making her alluring in a different sense.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. Sliver of guqin music reverberated in Hua Jieyu''s mind. The musical matrix''s spiritual powers were all imbued within her spiritual will, giving her total control.


    A force of spiritual power of even greater magnitude burst from Hua Jieyu, a sliver of saintly pressure emanated from her and a shadow began to manifest itself.


    Hua Jieyu was currently a mid-level magi, enabling her to borrow power of saints easier. Furthermore, she had the musical matrix to amplify her powers. The God-beating Whip appeared in her hand and she whipped at the air without hesitation. A crisp crack was heard and the invading spiritual power seemed to have retreated in an instant, as if it had taken a hit.


    The elders at the other end continued to chant with obscure voices. A force of spiritual will rule powers of even greater magnitude burst forth. An incredibly huge demonic shadow appeared in the air��a Bi''an. It opened its mouth and let out a gust of sound wave of earth-shattering force. Many mighty ones who were doing battle around them felt their souls were on the verge of being ripped apart.


    Hua Jieyu''s royal crown Life Spirit burst with dazzling light. Specks of light hovered about her and a gust of mystical power manifested around her. A impressively holy and regal shadow appeared behind Hua Jieyu. The shadow was blurred while emanating holy light. Terrifying roars were heard and the formless sound wave continued to strike Hua Jieyu''s spiritual power, yet she remained unfazed.


    At that moment, Hua Jieyu''s body hovered forward and she lifted her head slightly. In that very instant, her beautiful, bright eyes turned into frightening spiritual storm of incredible beauty. The boundless spiritual storm struck and in that very moment, the spiritual will power of the elders were completely exposed. The expression of the elders changed as they realized a force of irresistible power was felt. They were unable to even recall their spiritual will.


    Hua Jieyu''s demonic eyes lashed out with spiritual type lightning storm in an instant, bringing incredible might to bear on her opponents. The attack hit the spiritual powers of the elders and the humongous Bi''an in the air trembled violently.


    The eyes of the 18 elders changed drastically. They all looked at Hua Jieyu as if they have all been captivated by her incredibly demonic and beautiful eyes, incapable of looking away. Those eyes seemed to have contained irresistible will power.


    At the very next moment, they felt as if their spiritual will have been invaded. The pair of eyes seemed to be able to pierce through the middle of their brow and bore straight into their minds. The purple lightning spiritual storm seeped in directly, making them feel like lotuses with their roots severed, laid bare before their opponent.


    "Kill." A cold voice was heard from Hua Jieyu and devastating beams emanated from her eyes at the very next moment, striking at the minds of the 18 elders directly. All of them suffered devastating attacks in their spiritual will in just an instant, their souls felt as if they were being cut to pieces.


    All of them fell limply below right afterwards.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes returned to normal. Both her Life Spirit and the shadow behind her disappeared. Ye Futian''s tune was lifted from her as well.


    A interesting light was seen in Ye Futian''s eyes. Jieyu had been extraordinarily hardworking ever since she returned from her pilgrimage. She insisted to even train while he was taking breaks. The battle at that moment was a testament that her powers have grown considerably compared to what they had been. Furthermore, when she conjured her powers, Ye Futian had been able to sense an incredibly powerful will pressure, and it did not seem to be something of Hua Jieyu herself.


    It seemed that Jieyu was like Wuchen, and she had her own encounters. It was something to be happy about and he did not feel the need to inquire further. It could have been a surprise that Jieyu wanted to give him.


    "It would suffice to have Jieyu and Uncle Daozang staying at my side. All of you shall go fight elsewhere." Ye Futian said to the others around him. His Third Brother and all the others have grown incredibly powerful after coming back from their pilgrimages. It qualified them to participate in battles of even such scales. The battle of Zhisheng Cliffs could have been used as a means to temper their powers.


    As for Ye Futian himself, he had no intentions fighting.


    He had deliberately gone easy and lost to Liu Zong back in Xihua Sacred Mountain, just so that they would have let their guard down and head straight for Zhisheng Cliffs.


    At that day, he continued to not show his true combat capacity. It was a better move to have both the Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty continue to have a wrong idea about his powers. Even if they were to suspect something afoul, they would not have been able to determine what his true level of combat capacity would have been like.


    Doing so enabled him to retain an element of surprise in the future battles of the sacred war.


    The other reason that he did not intend to make any moves was because the Holy Zhi Palace apparently had a decisive edge over the Zhisheng Cliffs in that battle. Every single battlefield had guarantees of important figures on their sides remain unscathed, while they set out to overpower and kill their opponents.


    The fall of the 18 elders dealt an extremely overwhelming blow to the ones from the Zhisheng Cliffs. All 18 of them were hidden cultivators of the Zhisheng Cliffs and they were adept at a single type of power��spirit elementalist powers��and they were extremely terrifying when they joined hands.


    However, the fact remained that they were all killed by the tremendously beautiful young woman, who appeared to be the wife of Ye Futian.


    At the same time, there was no one who had been capable of stopping the Sword Saint dead in his tracks as he went on his killing spree. Every single battle he fought ended up with his opponents being overpowered. If things were to go on as such, Zhisheng Cliffs could have truly been annihilated.


    Ge Feng roared in another battlefield, sending Qin Zhuang and the other eight around him retreating. The divine instrument in his hand, a silver trident, was seen pointed to the heavens and boundless lightning rules fell from above. Ring-like storms lashed out before the divine instrument with forces capable of wiping everything out, as if the storms were out to devour everything in their path.


    He was the head of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs and one who was ranked on the Sage Ranking. There were only 81 names on the Sage Ranking and there were little more than 60 names who were ranked before him. At the moment, he was overpowered by the nine swordsmen despite wielding a divine instrument. It was an insult like no other to him.


    A terrifying cracking sound was heard and lightning descended from the heavens in an apocalyptic manner. The lightning power swept through the entire battlefield, yet only the nine before him suffered the greatest amount of pressure.


    Qin Zhuang and the other eight stood in a ring formation. Countless swords materialized before them and every single blade was a solid one, turning into spinning sword diagram and pulsing with dazzling flash of the sword.


    Qin Zhuang stood at the center of the sword matrix. He was the strongest of the nine swordsmen. As such, it was only a given that he was taking the helm of the matrix.


    His expression was a solemn one. Ge Feng seemed to have gone berserk and had intended to strike with his strongest attack. A sliver of saintly might was sensed from the devastating lightning storm before them, which originated from the divine instrument.


    The amplification afforded to top notch sages were incredibly frightening, especially one that resonated with one''s powers. Zhuge Qingfeng had been able to stand against Kong Yao, who ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking, by wielding a divine instrument, enabling him to protect Crouching Dragon Mountain.


    Ge Feng had been one who was ranked on Sage Ranking himself, and that divine instrument was one that was more powerful than the one belonging to the Zhuge family. One could have only imagined how powerful that instrument would have been.


    "Sword Combination," Qin Zhuang said. The sword will all around them coalesced into a single entity and merged within the sword matrix. The sword will of the other eight swordsmen were all infused within his body. At that moment, the sword diagram before Qin Zhuang seemed to be capable of cleaving the skies apart.


    "Destroy." Ge Feng roared as he stepped out, thrusting the trident in his hand forward. He seemed to have given up entirely on defense at that moment, gathering all of his power in that one single attack, capable of destroying everything in its path.


    That devastating storm devoured the surroundings around him. Apocalyptic lightning calamity struck, yet at that very moment Ge Feng attacked, Qin Zhuang made a move. His body seemed to have been merged with the sword diagram, lashing out with a flash of the sword. The sparkling flash pierced through the space before them, drawing a dazzling line in the air.


    The dazzling straight line charged straight into the storm and disappeared just as soon as it appeared. Ge Feng''s expression was a ferocious, unforgiving one. His eyes emanated a will to kill everything before him, yet he saw a flash of light came and went in an instant. Ge Feng''s pupils dilated at the very next moment. His ferocious eyes came to be tainted with extreme fear.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Ge Feng lowered his head and saw a dazzling flash of the sword pulsing with terrifying sword will at his chest, tearing away at his body bit by bit. The light on him grew increasingly bright and Ge Feng''s pupils expanded as he shouted, "Nooo..."


    His body dissipated in beams of dazzling flash of the sword together with that voice of extreme fear, blooming away at his surroundings before dissipating altogether.


    A silhouette was seen behind Ge Feng and it was none other than Qin Zhuang. He had merged with the sword matrix in that very instant, bringing a killing move of extreme speed and lethality.


    Devastating flashes of lightning coursed about Qin Zhuang''s body. Blood was seen at the corner of his mouth and his entire body darkened. It was a harrowing experience charging through a lightning storm out to tear everything apart.


    However, it ended up with Ge Feng, a mighty one of the Zhisheng Cliffs ranked on the Sage Ranking, perishing.


    Qin Zhuang appeared before the spot where Ge Feng perished with a flash, catching the trident that was dropping below.


    The battles fought that day was not only one where the Holy Zhi Palace were to strip Zhisheng Cliffs entirely of their combat capacity, but they were also taking every single piece of divine instruments to be found there as well!

 939 Saint Zhis Howl

    It had been a while since Ye Futian left the Xihua Sacred Mountain and yet, things remained lively there.


    It was a rare occasion with so many of the Nine State''s saints gathering in one place, so it was only natural that they had a lot to talk about. Be it about the younger generations of the various holy lands, or something about training and whatnot, at their level as saints, only people of the same plane as they were, would have been able to verify and discuss each other''s way of training.


    Other than that, they still had to let the genius among the younger generations of the Nine States to spar with each other, which without doubt, were only strictly for learning and no harm were to be done. Time flew and things at the banquet remained harmonious and lively.


    There was without doubt that they were also those who left. For example, Saint Xia did not stay for long before returning to the Summer State. The Moon Saint had brought his people and left the place early as well.


    Saint Zhi had of course remained. He had allied with the Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, which meant that he had to stay behind and chat for a bit. However, the hour was late and he had to leave.


    Yet, just when he was about to leave, a drastic change was seen in his expression. He extended his palm and a jade scroll materialized in his hand, which had a name carved on it: Ge Feng.


    Ge Feng, who was personal student and the leader of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs of that generation.


    His spirit jade scroll was shattered, which meant that he perished.


    "Invaders at Zhisheng Cliffs." Saint Zhi''s expression ashen and saintly might emanated from his body. It was terrifying.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    There was no way Ge Feng would have been harmed in any way training in the Zhisheng Cliffs. Furthermore, he was tremendously powerful and was armed with a divine instrument. If he had ended up dead, that could have only meant one thing: extremely powerful beings had invaded Zhisheng Cliffs.


    He recalled the people of the Holy Zhi Palace, who had left the place early, immediately and uttered a line coldly, "The Holy Zhi Palace."


    I''ve been set up.


    Ye Futian had left the place angry, seemingly due to the insult he suffered. From the looks of things currently, however, it seemed that he had been doing so on purpose. But why did the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace dare to invade the Zhisheng Cliffs? He was unable to fathom as Ye Futian''s power was entirely inadequate, unless it was the village chief of the Tombkeeper Village going on a killing spree there. But then again, wouldn''t they fear that I''d just head straight to the Holy Zhi Palace and kill everyone there?


    "Saint Zhi," Saint Xihua called at the moment. The eyes of every saint who stayed turned to look at Saint Zhi. They were able to tell from the aura emanated from him that something happened.


    Furthermore, it definitely had to be something dire to get Saint Zhi being so aghast.


    The Glass Saint had yet to leave. She sat there quietly and turned her bright eyes at Saint Zhi. Ye Futian''s telepathic words to her made her curious as to what the young sage would have been up to. At the moment, she was able to somehow guess the answer to that from Saint Zhi''s reaction alone.


    "The Zhisheng Cliffs was invaded." Saint Zhi looked up and cold aura burst from him. Yet another broken piece of jade scroll appeared on his palm, which was that of the third warrior of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs. He too, was Saint Zhi''s personal student, and a very exceptional genius.


    The expressions of Kong Yao and many who were around Saint Zhi turned pale. They all stood up as their hearts beat violently.


    "How could this have happened?" Qin Zhong''s heart ached when he heard Saint Zhi''s words. Did he bring his people to go on a killing spree at Zhisheng Cliffs?


    "Excuse me, I''d be off." Saint Zhi took to the air in an instant, heading straight in one direction like a gust of wind. He left without taking Kong Yao and other mighty ones from the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    If the village chief of the Tombkeeper Village had indeed went on a killing spree, then it would have been a burden for Saint Zhi taking the others with him. His mind was ice-cold at the moment. He was determined to raze the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Other than strong murderous intent, Saint Zhi also felt a faint tinge of fear. He was wondering if the number one holy land of the Yu State would have been rendered on the brink of total annihilation, and he dared not speculate further.


    How did Ye Futian dare to do such a thing? Did he have no concern for the lives of the people of the Holy Zhi Palace then? Letting the village go on a killing spree without any warning signs. How dare he? Not even Emperor Xia would have forgiven him.


    The Nine States were all under the rule of Emperor Xia''s Orthodoxy. Emperor Xia would have found nothing more repugnant than saints going on killing sprees without a care.


    Saint Xihua told the Rain Saint and the others back in the Xihua Sacred Mountain, "Take care of Xihua Sacred Mountain. I''d be off for a while."


    "I''d come with you." The sacred king went up as well. Their minds were incredibly cold at the moment and they speculated the same thing as Saint Zhi. There were no other possibilities to be had. Other than the village chief going on a killing spree, there was no way Ye Futian and his people would have been capable of such feats at the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    The Zhisheng Cliffs was a holy land and the most powerful force to be had in the Yu State after all.


    "Everyone, I fear that I would be unable to be the host of this banquet any longer. If any of you wish to stay, Liu Zong and the others would attend to you. Please excuse me," Saint Xihua said to address the crowd before leaving with the sacred king.


    "We''d go with you." One silhouette after another took to the air at the moment. The saints all headed towards the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    They were all wondering that with the three holy lands declaring that they were to be allies, would Ye Futian would have done something so illogical and unthinkable?


    If the village chief had indeed went on a killing spree, then the saints of the three holy lands would have been permitted to head straight for the Holy Zhi Palace and kill everyone there. It was an action akin to digging one''s grave, as not even Emperor Xia would have saved them.


    That would have probably been the way things the sacred king wanted to see turn out.


    The Glass was thinking as well, if Ye Futian would have acted so impulsively. Her alluring figure was seen taking to the air and she flew away like a fairy.


    ...


    The sky at a corner of the Yu State several hundred miles away from the Zhisheng Cliffs were tainted fiery red, as if a firestorm had lit the sky.


    Countless at the vast lands below looked up and shuddered violently within. It was the heaven''s might.


    A battle between saints were taking place high in the sky. It was terrifying, for those below were actually witnessing a battle between saints taking place.


    The elder who was manipulating fires of his surroundings and was capable of burning the sky with just his thoughts, would have probably been the Flame Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    The one who stands before the Flame Saint, the silhouette looking like a stout, sky scraping god. Who would that saint be?


    It was said that Douzhan of the Holy Zhi Palace had attained sainthood due to his exceptional physical might. Furthermore, Zhisheng Cliffs of the Yu State and the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State were sworn enemies. Would it be him?


    At that moment, the stout god-like figure was bathed in fire. His body had been burned flaming red and yet, he seemed as if he felt nothing. He stood where he was with the might of the great path coursing all over him. His achieved sainthood through physical feats, and his body itself was a rule of the great path.


    Other than both of them, there was yet another elder clad in unparalleled might of the sword taking care of things in another corner. It was none other than the village chief.


    He did not participate in the battle between saints. Douzhan had fought the sacred king as soon as he became a saint, which naturally meant that he was overpowered. That battle at the moment served well to allow Douzhan to get used to battles fought at Saint Plane. The village chief would have only acted when things turn dire.


    There was no way the Flame Saint would have been able to run with the village chief around. Be it attack or speed, he was way above the Flame Saint.


    "Is the Holy Zhi Palace really going to kill everyone then?" The Flame Saint''s voice was heard saying coldly in the sky, "You people came trampling when Saint Zhi was absent. Do you think the Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Saint Zhi would have let you off easy after this?"


    "Are you saying if we spare you and the Zhisheng Cliffs, Saint Xihua, the sacred king and Saint Zhi would just stand by and do nothing then?" The village chief said sarcastically. The lords of the three holy lands were now allies as declared at Xihua Sacred Mountain, and that could have only been meant for one thing��the annihilation of the Holy Zhi Palace. There was no way they could have gone easy, so much so that the three holy lands would have came for the Holy Zhi Palace right away, as soon as Ye Futian and his people returned to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    It was entirely fine for Ye Futian to make such a decision at the moment, to shave off certain powers of his enemies. They were to cut down any they would have been able to at the moment, and it would have made their enemies much easier to deal with in the future.


    "Douzhan, let''s join hands and get rid of him. We don''t have much time," the village chief said. They were definitely there sooner than Saint Zhi, but that did not mean that they have a lot of time to spare. When Saint Zhi was alerted and he were to return to Zhisheng Cliffs not long after they left, they would have had little time to do what needed to be done.


    Saint Zhi''s powers would have probably been stronger after all.


    "Alright." Douzhan nodded. He stepped forward as soon as he finished saying that. The might of the great path descended upon him and a powerful pressure descended upon his opponent. He stepped forward and threw a frightening punch of the saint in an instant, tearing the air before the punch apart.


    The Flame Saint''s eyes remained burning. Giants of magma manifested around him all of a sudden, throwing themselves at the incoming flash of the punch. A firestorm burst before him at the same time, Ashfire with the power to burn everything down was brought to bear in an instant.


    At that moment, the Flame Saint sensed looming crisis. The sword of the great path descended from above, shrouding his surroundings in it.


    The village chief made his move as well.


    The Flame Saint pulsed with boundless fires and his expression completely ashen. The village chief was considerably more powerful than he was. There was simply no way he would have been able to take the village chief on, especially now that the village chief attacked together with Douzhan.


    While the Flame Saint indeed possess a divine instrument, but the level of the thing in his hand was not high and the amplification effect was limited.


    It was as if top notch sage ritual implements would have been of limited use to top notch archmage level sages. Common divine instruments operated in the same manner with saints, unless it was some high level divine instrument that surpassed their own levels.


    In the case of Douzhan, who had achieved sainthood through physical feats, his body itself was comparable to common divine instruments.


    Seeing the boundless sword aura descending from above, the Flame Saint looked up and the Great Path of Boundless Rules was transformed into a special fiery image. He burst with sky-burning flames in an instant, shrouding the sky and the flames even headed straight for the village chief''s body.


    When the sword reached him, it disappeared entirely within the image.


    Boom, boom, boom! The air shook violently and Douzhan stepped forward in great leaps. His Seven Star acupoints were all opened and his arm was thrown straight at the Flame Saint, who was gathering his powers to resist the village chief''s attacks. He turned rather despair sensing Douzhan''s incoming attack.


    He intended to retreat, but quickly saw a beam of powerful light shot forth. A beam of holy light appeared in the air. Sword matrix diagrams showered down, heading straight for the Flame Saint.


    The Flame Saint''s body seemed to have been burned. Screens of terrifying flames appeared with his body at the center. When the sword will reached him and immersed in the fires, it would have dissipated bit by bit.


    However, Douzhan did not seem to even be aware of the power of the flames. His arm bashed right through the screen of flames and headed straight for the Flame Saint''s body.


    Boom. A loud boom was heard. Douzhan felt the arm of his saintly body scalded and seemingly felt like it was about to be reduced to ashes. However, the terrifying shock also sent the Flame Saint flying.


    The Flame Saint intended to just turn around and escape using the force from the shock. He had no intentions of fighting any longer.


    The sword diagrams continued to press on him. The looming sense of crisis grew increasingly strong and at the very next moment, a flash of the sword came and went like a bolt of lightning. The space seemed to have been torn and the Flame Saint was stopped dead in his tracks. Extreme fear was seen in his eyes.


    At that moment, the village chief and the Flame Saint had their backs facing each other, as if both of them just happened to brush past each other.


    At the very next moment, despair was written all over the Flame Saint''s face. His body split apart in the middle right away.


    The village chief''s body disappeared right away. Streaks of lightning flashes of the sword boomed in the air. The Flame Saint completely dissipated from the space he occupied soon. It was difficult for saints to die. As such, he had to end the Flame Saint completely, leaving his opponent with no chance of emerging alive.


    A saint of the Zhisheng Cliffs perished.


    "I, Saint Zhi, swears to cut down every single person from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State." A voice voicing out a murderous intent like no other reverberated in the air during the journey between the Xihua Sacred Mountain to the Zhisheng Cliffs, causing all from the holy lands to tremble.

 940 Situation

    Zhisheng Cliffs. Now, the outcome of the battle became even clearer.


    No one could block Sword Saint''s demonic blade, and after Qin Zhuang and his party killed Ge Feng, they moved in on Nie Yan for the kill.


    This was war, and there was no fairness in it.


    Qin Zhuang and his group of nine were able to kill Ge Feng, and in addition to Yunshang and Huang Xi, who were armed with divine implements, Nie Yan had no chance to block it and was soon exhausted, his body sealed by ice. When the sword arrived, his body was pulverized instantly, and his divine implement was taken away.


    Out of the three great sages of Zhisheng Cliffs, two were killed with the 18 elders who had perished before. Their battle power had been diminished again and again. Zhisheng Cliffs was washed in blood. On the other hand, on the side of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, there was no such catastrophe, so the situation of the battle was clearly one-sided.


    "It''s finished." Those from Zhisheng Cliffs, who were still battling, felt hopeless inside. They clearly understood that there was no hope in the battle of Zhisheng Cliffs. Since when could these people of the Holy Zhi Palace from the Barren State, who had no saints and were greatly despised, now slaughter Zhisheng Cliffs, destroying them all?


    Those who had participated in the Battle of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State were feeling particularly bitter. Back in the day, Zhan Xiao of the younger generation of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs had descended to the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State. He had been enough to stir up a storm of blood and guts, making the Holy Zhi Palace agree to everything they had asked for, on account that they did not dare to offend Zhisheng Cliffs. However, once a weakling of a character from the Noble Plane became the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, an army was now at Zhisheng Cliffs for the kill. How ironic.


    If this was known before, they would have killed Ye Futian, no matter the cost, and would not have allowed him to go to the Palace to participate in the battle so that he had the opportunity to become the lord of the palace before Emperor Xia.


    However, there was no such thing as "if."


    Above the firmament, violent bursting sounds of explosions could be heard. Yuan Hong and the Heavenly Guardian collided once again, and this time, Yuan Hong''s attack was so shocking and powerful that everyone could see that although he was using the Infinite Ruler, it was clearly the staff method in disguise. The power of each strike was stronger than the previous one. It gathered the power of the heavens and attacked with the might of the matrix.


    Along with this terrible bursting sound, many people''s eardrums shook. The god-like body of the Heavenly Guardian was now fraught with cracks. The elder who was controlling it made a muted sound, and blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.


    "Go now, leave Zhisheng Cliffs," on the cliff, the white-haired elder shouted. Obviously, he knew that there was no more hope, so he was allowing the sages of Zhisheng Cliffs to retreat and give up. Otherwise, they would all die here.


    Boom. Another shockingly loud noise was heard. Yuan Hong''s staff techniques directly split open the body of the Heavenly Guardian. The elder spat out blood, and the people behind him also had their breath diminished, and the divine implement of a hammer dropped straight into the hands of Yuan Hong.


    "The White Elder was also defeated. Let''s go." Another loud scream came from Zhisheng Cliffs and suddenly, all the sages fled, abandoning the battle.


    Bang! Yuan Hong''s Infinite Ruler slammed down, sweeping endless areas, killing many cultivators instantly.


    Sword Saint''s blade was also madly cutting down the enemies. Once upon a time, Zhisheng Cliffs nearly killed his third junior brother, Gu Dongliu, and their younger brother. Today, this debt would be repaid. Moreover, those who escaped today would come back again with Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in alliance to fight the Holy Zhi Palace, so it went without saying that they could not allow these people a second chance.


    The body of Qin Zhuang also moved, but this time, he did not gather the sword matrix. Instead, he crossed the void by himself, continuing the slaughter.


    The same was true of Xu Shang. His body was like a wind, killing those who tried to escape.


    The demonic beast let out a roar, tearing at the all the cultivators who were guarding different areas of the Zhisheng Cliffs and trying to escape.


    In this battle, Zhisheng Cliffs completely gave up and the massacre was a one-sided affair.


    The immense body of the golden Demon Ape came to a cliff, and Yuan Hong lowered his head to stare coldly at a group of elders of the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    The White Elder looked up at that incomparably violent golden body, and said coldly, "Evil beast, your massacre today will one day be the demise of your clan."


    Yuan Hong put away the Infinite Ruler but picked up the hammer of divine implement that the other party had just used. His arm lifted high, and a knowing pressure cascaded down. The White Elder and the others looked extremely pale. The Heavenly and Earthly Guardians were all eliminated, which caused great injuries to their spiritual will, and it was now impossible to resist Yuan Hong. It was the end for them.


    "That day when the people of Zhisheng Cliffs went to Taihang Mountain for the massacre, not only did you not stop them, but instead sent people to help. Have you ever thought that this day of retribution would come for you?" The golden eyes of Yuan Hong were full of murderous intent. Without waiting for a response, the huge hammer of the divine implement smashed down. With a great loud boom, the mountains burst and shattered, and those cultivators disappeared right where they stood.


    Next, of course, was to clean up the mess.


    Ye Futian was still playing the guqin. A sunset was now at the edge of the sky, red like blood, eerily similar to the scene that happened on Taihang Mountain in the past, as if this was the retribution that had been a long time coming.


    The sound of the guqin stopped. The Village Chief and Douzhan had also returned. They stood beside Ye Futian. The Earthly Guardian had disappeared, and the countless people at Zhisheng Cliffs below shuddered in fear.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian glanced at the place below indifferently, then turned to leave. The army withdrew and the demonic beasts levitated, and soon they had all left Zhisheng Cliff and headed for the distance.


    "Village Chief, Master, now that Emperor Xia has permitted the Nine States Sacred War with no requirement to warn the others, the concern here is that Saint Xihua and Saint Zhi will join forces. What are your thoughts?" Ye Futian asked the Village Chief and Douzhan.


    "Futian, what are your thoughts?" Douzhan asked. In this context, he automatically understood what he was facing. He could not return to the Holy Zhi Palace, otherwise, it was as if he was waiting for the opponent to come and kill him. Having cultivated to the Saint Plane, naturally, he would not sacrifice himself lightly.


    "The Endless Ocean is vast and without end, with countless islands that no one has any knowledge of, which will be great for concentrating on cultivation. Of course, Master could also go to the Upper Worlds and bring a demonic beast so I can always contact Master," Ye Futian said. He had gone to the Zhisheng Cliffs to force Flame Saint to summon Emperor Xia and formulate the rules of the Sacred War so that no one dared to disobey them in the land of Nine States. Naturally, he would use those rules to his own advantage and avoid what would not benefit him.


    "Fine." Douzhan nodded. "What are the plans for the Village Chief?"


    "I don''t care. Let''s send Futian and the others back to the palace first. Only I won''t confront them head-on, they can''t catch up with me," the Village Chief replied, apparently very confident with his speed.


    "That''s great. Master can go now, lest the other party go directly to the palace to end us," Ye Futian said.


    "Very well." Douzhan nodded. "Be careful, don''t start the fight."


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded, and he had a plan in his heart.


    Douzhan stepped onto a demon beast and left. When a saint chose to intentionally remain hidden, he would not be easy to find. The Village Chief summoned the giant sword and took Ye Futian and the others, heading toward the Barren State.


    ��


    When Saint Zhi rushed back to Zhisheng Cliffs, the battle was already over and Ye Futian and his people had been gone for a while. Those below the Sage Plane level at Zhisheng Cliffs were cleaning up the mess. The vast and endless Zhisheng Cliffs of the holy land of Yu State was now in total ruin. Mountain ridges had collapsed and been destroyed, and there were cracks on the ground. Numerous bodies were laid out on the field, bright red blood colored Zhisheng Cliffs.


    From Saint Zhi, an immeasurable murderous aura coursed out of him and permeated the air. Its pressure was so heavy that the people below could hardly breathe. When they looked up, they saw Saint Zhi, and yet no one greeted him; there was only a sense of sorrow.


    In the space, there was nothing but silence. What happened to Zhisheng Cliffs today was the demise of their elders. As the Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs, could Saint Zhi shirk the responsibilities of any of it? He did not guard the Zhisheng Cliffs well, and as Ye Futian had said at the banquet in Xihua Sacred Mountain, Saint Zhi announced his decision to participate in the Sacred War, thus bringing on the annihilation of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    When Ye Futian led his people here, what was Saint Zhi doing? Perhaps still enjoying the feast.


    The vendetta between Zhisheng Cliffs and the Holy Zhi Palace started because of the order issued by Saint Zhi. He even used his will on the Holy Zhi Palace and suppressed the Barren State by force. Now he had announced his intention to participate in the Sacred War; a mixture of new hatred and old debt had resulted in the ending before his eyes.


    At this moment, there was resentment in the hearts of many. The Zhisheng Cliffs of the present had been completely finished, and the first holy land in Yu State was no more.


    Shadows of figures descended one after another. They were saints rushing over from Xihua Sacred Mountain. When they saw the scene in front of them, all were silent.


    Ye Futian had really destroyed Zhisheng Cliffs.


    "What exactly happened?" Saint Zhi was still immersed in deep hatred when Saint Xihua inquired coldly.


    Great Zhou Sacred King''s eyes were sharp and indifferent; the intent to kill was extremely strong. But in reality, none of what happened was a disadvantage to him. Now, Saint Zhi was probably going to kill Ye Futian no matter the cost.


    "Ye Futian led the army of the Holy Zhi Palace from the Barren State and annihilated us," a man said and looked up at the void.


    "An army from the Holy Zhi Palace?" All the saints who were present had an indifferent look. How could that even be possible? Unless, before attending the birthday banquet, Ye Futian had already ordered the army to ambush Zhisheng Cliffs?


    "Emperor Xia appeared?" Saint Zhi glanced at the stone monument at Zhisheng Peak. He could already sense something.


    "Yes, the army of the Holy Zhi Palace came with the saints of the other two holy lands. Flame Saint summoned the will of Emperor Xia." The people from below continued, "However, Ye Futian claimed that the Head Saint announced their participation in the Sacred War at Xihua Sacred Mountain, and with three major holy lands joining forces to bully the Barren State, he had no choice but to strike back. Emperor Xia did not stop it, but issued an order saying that any holy lands within the Nine States desiring to battle no longer need to ask him for permission again, but just need to obey the rules governing the Sacred War��saints to saints, and sages to sages, so that those below the Sage Plane will live."


    Kaching! Saint Zhi clenched both fists, blue veins bulging, and the thought of killing gathered around him and turned into a hurricane, extremely frightening.


    "Ye Futian." His eyes were directed at the void and murderous thoughts swept up toward it. He understood now that Zhisheng Cliffs was set up by Ye Futian, who had laid out the plan in advance to annihilate them.


    Nowadays, there was the edict of Emperor Xia, and he could not even go straight to the Holy Zhi Palace to take his revenge and could only target the two saints from the Holy Zhi Palace. But how could it be that the other party was not prepared to wait for them?


    Zhisheng Cliffs was destroyed, but he could not avenge it by bringing slaughter to the Holy Zhi Palace. Ye Futian was exploiting the rules of Emperor Xia. He could disregard Emperor Xia''s command and go over there to massacre them, but then he would be daring to exchange his own life. If he violated Emperor Xia''s order, then the question was whether or not Emperor Xia would kill him as the Head Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs.


    In the Nine States, no one could disobey the command of Renhuang; the words of the Xia Emperor were the words of heaven.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Glass Saint was quite shocked when she witnessed this scene in her heart, and she finally understood the meaning of Ye Futian''s question to her before he left. Even before any of this, he had already planned to use Xia Emperor to give orders for the Sacred War. Although it seemed that Holy Zhi Palace Palace of Barren State was still in a position of absolute disadvantage, this was already the best possible outcome.


    To upend the power of Zhisheng Cliffs, as long as the two saints temporarily evaded the attention at the moment, the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State would only face the army of sages from two major two holy lands. Leveraging the advantage of their location, they still had a chance to win the battle!


    All the saints looked on quietly, and they thought that Ye Futian was truly a tough character. Saint Zhi was fooled by a youngster and in the land of the Nine States, which had been calm for many years. The first holy land to be wiped out was actually not the Holy Zhi Palace but Zhisheng Cliffs!

 941 Yue Lingshuang’s Visi

    Zhisheng Cliffs, under the cover of the night''s darkness, was desolate, and as the cold wind blew, it chilled Saint Zhi, who was just stepping into Zhisheng Cliffs. Those who had perished had completely disappeared, including their divine implements, which had been taken away. He had wild thoughts about capturing the sacred hall of the Holy Zhi Palace and their divine implements to fortify Zhisheng Cliffs, but Ye Futian had acted first and exterminated Zhisheng Cliffs. How many years would it take for them to recover?


    50 years? A hundred years?


    Or even longer.


    And after this battle, who dared to enter Zhisheng Cliffs to cultivate? He, Saint Zhi, as the Head Saint had allowed Zhisheng Cliffs to suffer such catastrophe. Who would be willing to submit to him?


    Of course, he could feel that even those in the Noble Plane did not regard him quite with as much fear as before, but he had no one to blame. He was the master of Zhisheng Cliffs, and this was a responsibility that he could not shirk. As he had enjoyed the supreme power and the status that came with it, the responsibility was also his. But he had pushed Zhisheng Cliffs to the abyss.


    "Saint Xihua, Great Zhou Sacred King, could you immediately mobilize the army to the Barren State?" Saint Zhi looked up to the two men in the void and said, "Since Emperor Xia has re-established the rules for the Nine States Sacred War, participants in the Sacred War in the Nine States no longer need to report for permission. Therefore, the agreement between the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Holy Zhi Palace is no longer valid, and Great Zhou Sacred King can strike back."


    "Saint Zhi, Ye Futian left Xihua Sacred Mountain but led the army to massacre Zhisheng Cliffs. It must have been premeditated. If so, he is extremely cunning and would never allow the two saints from Holy Zhi Palace to return for us to slaughter. Most likely, the saints have already escaped. As for those below Saint Plane yet dealing such a blow to Zhisheng Cliffs, their people must not be weaklings and we need to give the whole matter more consideration," Saint Xihua replied.


    Ye Futian was certainly not stupid. How could he not know to use the rules to his advantage? Would the saints of the Holy Zhi Palace wait for them to come for the kill?


    As for the Sage Plane, seeing the outcome at Zhisheng Cliffs, it was most likely that both Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would have to pour in all of their best to destroy the Holy Zhi Palace for good.


    It was said that Yang Xiao had arranged many matrixes in the Holy Zhi Palace. It had geographical advantages, and even if they were able to annihilate the Holy Zhi Palace, it would probably be at the great expense of their own people, so rushing into action would do them no good at all. Previously, they had planned to pressure the Holy Zhi Palace with the forces of all three holy lands and let some cultivators leave on their own out of fear, thus lessening its resistance. But now, the sages of the Zhisheng Cliffs were swept away. In reality, Zhisheng Cliffs no longer held much value, and the remaining combative powers would probably come from Saint Zhi himself and Kong Yao.


    When Saint Zhi heard what Saint Xihua had to say, he felt an extremely coldness, but he said nothing. The space seemed even more oppressed, and the saints all around looked on quietly.


    Who would have thought? They were even wondering if Ye Futian had planned to use Flame Saint to call out Emperor Xia to mandate the rules so that the Holy Zhi Palace would avoid being hunted by all the saints.


    As for the rules set by Emperor Xia, they were not surprised. Although Emperor Xia was not so concerned about the Nine States, it was ultimately under his jurisdiction. Each generation would yield some powerful figures. He had already opened up the Sacred War in the Nine States. If the saints were not prohibited from taking revenge on the people of lower planes, once the Nine States was mired in a state of chaos, the real end of days would come when people would slaughter each other without any fear or restrictions.


    Under the rules, all the holy lands would inevitably be somewhat restrained.�� In fact, even without the rules from Emperor Xia, in the past, most saints would not attack people of lower planes from other holy lands, so it could be said to be an unwritten rule followed by all.


    The reason why there was such a special case with the Barren State was that they had no saints in the past, so Zhisheng Cliffs thought that it could be bullied. Great Zhou Sacred King had thought so before as well.


    "Understood," Saint Zhi replied coolly.


    "Saint Zhi," Saint Xihua continued, "I can understand your anger at the moment. The cruelty and bloodthirst demonstrated by the Holy Zhi Palace gives everyone in the Nine States a right to judge them. However, under the rules, we still have to act according to the Emperor''s will. The Nine States is far too large and there are also endless territories outside of it. If saints deliberately evade us, who can find them? Not only couldn''t we, but even those in the Renhuang Plane would find it difficult."


    Those beautiful eyes of Glass Saint suddenly flashed a look of surprise; her eyes were directed at Xihua Sacred Mountain. This sentence seemed simple enough, but behind it, there was deep meaning.


    Saint Xihua had thought deep and hard. Outside of the Nine States, there were endless territories. The saints could avoid them, and even those in the Renhuang Plane would deem them hard to find.


    What did this mean? Saint Zhi needed to avoid it, so would it also be difficult for Emperor Xia to find it.


    The other saints also raised their eyebrows. They were all crafty old souls who had been cultivating for many years. Naturally, they understood that this seemingly random sentence had a hidden meaning behind it, though on the surface nothing seemed to be amiss.


    Now that Zhisheng Cliffs had been bathed in blood, if Saint Zhi was tough enough... However, this was equivalent to gambling with his own life. They did not really know just how much power Emperor Xia had, but in reality, there was a great possibility that Saint Zhi would never be able to walk out of the Nine States.


    Such determination was not easy.


    "Please, everyone, go back." Saint Zhi did not respond to Saint Xihua but instead had asked everyone to leave. Everyone around said nothing more and started to move away, but there was turmoil in their hearts. After all, Zhisheng Cliff was a holy land in Yu State.


    That handsome young man from the Barren State, who had seemed so harmless in the birthday banquet, was, in the end, quite ruthless.


    Saint Xihua and Great Zhou Sacred King left as well, and they returned to Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty respectively. They were reminded by today''s event that Ye Futian, ruthless and tough, should never be underestimated. If they were not careful, they would be swallowed whole by this formidable opponent.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    ��


    The Battle of Zhisheng Cliffs quickly spread throughout the territories of the Nine States and shocked countless people. Just as everyone was still thinking about the marriage between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, another great event happened on the same day: Zhisheng Cliffs had suffered a bloodbath. Many people had forgotten about the focus of that day, Liu Zong and Zhou Ziyi, to whom the day should have belonged.


    After all, Ye Futian was still Ye Futian within the land of the Nine States. No one seemed to be able to deprive him of the spotlight. It was rumored that on the day of the wedding banquet, Liu Zong and Ye Futian had a sparring session that had made Ye Futian retreat, and afterwards, there was the battle of Zhisheng Cliff.


    Could this mean that Liu Zong was now stronger than Ye Futian within the same generation? Of course, there were also many who wondered if Ye Futian had withdrawn deliberately and had not exerted his full power.


    At the battle of Zhisheng Cliffs, it was said that Ye Futian did not participate in the fight. Only the people from the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State were fighting. Was Ye Futian still unable to participate in this level of battle? There was also an army of demonic beasts in that battle. There was a powerful beastmaster at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Various rumors now spread throughout the Nine States, and the news had also entered into the Barren State and stirred up a storm there. When Zhisheng Cliffs was wreaking havoc in the Barren State, people in the Barren State knew. But in just a few years'' time, no one could have thought that the young man who was in the Noble Plane would now lead an army from Holy Zhi Palace to annihilate Zhisheng Cliffs. It was truly shocking. Many people felt their blood boiling and wanted to join the Holy Zhi Palace, even if the palace was now in the midst of a Sacred War. If they could survive this Sacred War, the land of the Nine States and the rise of the Holy Zhi Palace would be unstoppable.


    At this time, at the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State, Ye Futian had ordered everyone to be fully prepared, ready to fight. At the same time, he had dispatched the demonic beasts to monitor the movements of Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. In the present situation, there was always the possibility that the opponent would send troops to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian wanted to delay for as much time as possible. When he and Yu Sheng were both in the Sage Plane, the Sacred War would be a lot easier. There was also the third senior brother, Jieyu, Wuchen, and Jiuge, who all needed more time to become stronger.


    Although in the battle with Zhisheng Cliffs he had destroyed them, Ye Futian was not proud and still had a very strong sense of crisis. Though Emperor Xia had declared the rules, there was no guarantee that the other party would abide by the agreement. If they were desperate, there was a definite possibility that the other party would violate Emperor Xia''s order. Therefore, the Holy Zhi Palace was constantly facing a crisis.


    At this time, in the Holy Sage Pavilion, Ye Futian was cultivating, but someone came with a word.


    "What is it?" Ye Futian asked the person.


    "Palace Lord, someone from the Yue Clan of Summer State came to visit," the person replied.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed a strange color, and he said, "Who is the visitor?"


    "A lady of the Yue Clan. Her name is Yue Lingshuang."


    Ye Futian looked surprised, and then walked out and said, "Let''s go see." In a moment, Ye Futian saw that it was indeed Yue Lingshuang, along with some cultivators of the Yue Clan.


    "Palace Lord Ye." Everyone bowed in greeting.


    "No need." Ye Futian nodded in return, then looked at Yue Lingshuang and smiled. "To what do I owe Miss Lingshuang this visit?"


    "Didn''t you invite me to visit the palace? Didn''t you mean it?" Yue Lingshuang smiled jokingly.


    "Of course you are welcome to visit, it''s just that we are in the middle of a mess. I didn''t expect any visitors." Ye Futian smiled and continued, "Let me order a feast for you."


    "No need, but could Palace Lord Ye take me to see the rest of the Holy Zhi Palace?" Yue Lingshuang smiled.


    Ye Futian looked at her and saw that her beautiful eyes stared back at him. He nodded gently. "Very well, I will give you a tour." As he was speaking, he walked forward, Yue Lingshuang following behind, not letting anyone else follow them.


    The two levitated and came to the place above the Holy Zhi Palace. Ye Futian said to Yue Lingshuang, "This is the Holy Sage Pavilion, the place where palace lord resides. The Holy Zhi Palace is the holy land of cultivation in the Barren State. There used to be six palaces, but I have I added some more."


    "I know. And I heard that when Palace Lord Ye first entered the Holy Zhi Palace, he was not favored. The Holy Sage Pavilion chose Bai Ze, the son of the lord of White Cloud City, and Sage Douzhan of the Battle Sage Palace chose you as a disciple. And now, Sage Douzhan is already Saint Douzhan," Yue Lingshuang said with a smile.


    "It was so." Ye Futian laughed. Apparently, Yue Lingshuang had learned some of his past and even knew things that happened when he entered the palace.


    "You had also been exiled from the palace because of that thing with Zhisheng Cliffs. The previous palace lord saw your talent and sacrificed himself to pass on the position to you, even though you were only at the Nobel Plane at the time." Yue Lingshuang continued, "And now that you have brought an army into Zhisheng Cliffs, it could be considered revenge for the two previous palace lords. Payback for all the wrongs that happened before. If the two palace lords knew now, they would be proud of their decision, same as your Master."


    "Even so, the Holy Zhi Palace is also facing a crisis of survival," Ye Futian replied.


    "You could resolve it," Yue Lingshuang said. "Just as your Master and the two palace lords valued you, now, my clan feels the same way. I believe we are not wrong to believe this, so why did you not consider the proposal last time?"


    Ye Futian looked at Yue Lingshuang and saw that this bright and attractive woman did not appear bashful. Her clear and beautiful eyes stared back at him. From her eyes, Ye Futian instinctively understood certain feelings, and could not help but give a forlorn smile.


    "I don''t want to mess with people''s emotions, and besides, it would not be fair to you." Ye Futian sighed.


    "But I don''t mind," Yue Lingshuang said, still looking at him. She smiled and continued, "Since I met Palace Lord Ye for the first time, I inquired a lot about him. The situation that currently faces the Holy Zhi Palace, you should know better than me. If Palace Lord Ye really does not want to accept me, I don''t mind acting in a play. Our family values ??the talent and potential of Palace Lord Ye, but in the end, we need a reason for our liaison, otherwise, it is impossible to take the risk, and I can give the family that reason to intervene, but also ease the crisis facing the Holy Zhi Palace. So why not do it? Wait until the Holy Zhi Palace gets through the crisis, and after everything has ended, you can declare that it was all just false. No one will care by then."

 942 Undercurrents

    Ye Futian looked at Yue Lingshuang in surprise. How had he not seen the faint emotion in this beautiful woman''s eyes? And she understood his past. She was obviously an attentive woman.


    But the two of them had only met a few times, and the first time was at the suggestion of Yue Jiangliu. Ye Futian naturally could not have any feelings towards her. This was not the way that he wanted to obtain the Yue Clan''s power. And if he just pretended in order to gain their favor, and then abandoned her once he had gotten what he needed, that would seem rather mean. Even though she said she didn''t mind, this wasn''t fair to her at all. He was already married. If he said it was all just a game, who would believe him?


    He couldn''t stand it if Yue Lingshuang was kicked out due to rumors and suspicion.


    So, once a marriage had taken place, it was too hypocritical to say it was all a game. He could only officially take her as a concubine. It was only in the interest of the palace, but it was still a little unfair to Yue Lingshuang.


    But it would be a lie if he said he was not tempted. He understood what the palace faced now more than anyone. It could be said to be a stormy situation. A little carelessness could bring about a catastrophe. With Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and Saint Zhi, there were six Saint Plane cultivators in total. How could the Village Chief and the Master withstand them all? They could only run. And he did not know how many years it would be before he reached the Saint Plane. Therefore, this marriage would not be about himself. It was about the palace''s benefit and the life and death of many people. He could not be indifferent to their plight. Having the Yue Clan join them would give Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty pause, and they would not dare do anything rash.


    When she saw Ye Futian''s expression, Lingshuang bowed her head slightly, and a touch of gloominess flashed in her eyes. She knew that Ye Futian didn''t have any romantic feelings for her, and so she restrained her own emotions. Her beauty was outstanding, but she was not beautiful enough to cause the fall of a city or a nation. She was much less beautiful than Ye Futian''s wife. How could a peerless figure like Ye Futian have feelings for her? After all, she was not some sort of goddess; she was not even the most outstanding in the Yue Clan.


    And she knew of Ye Futian''s legendary past. He was indeed a god. It was as if he was destined for greatness from birth. Even among the endless heroic figures of the Nine States he still stood out.


    She raised her head and looked at Ye Futian. She smiled and said, "I already know what''s on your mind, Lord Ye. I''m just passing through. Can I stay here and visit for a while?"


    "Of course." Ye Futian saw that Lingshuang had changed the subject. He smiled and nodded.


    "Then I''ll ask my family to go back without me." The two of them went to the Sage Hall, where Yue Lingshuang asked the cultivators of the Yue Clan to leave. A strange light flashed in their eyes. Miss Yue was staying at the palace. What did that mean?


    They would go back and report to the family first.


    Ye Futian made arrangements for Yue Lingshuang to stay in the Sage Hall. Many seniors came to visit Ye Futian for the real purpose of seeing Yue Lingshuang. This guy had a beautiful woman willing to throw herself into his arms, and he was indifferent to her. However, his restraint also had a certain charm to it. When they thought about it carefully, they realized that he had never lacked for beautiful women beside him, like Yun Shuisheng, the daughter of Ice Temple, Phoenix, the Undying Old Man''s heir, Mu Zhiqiu of Zhaixing House, and even his maid was beautiful, the slim and graceful, yet coquettish, Long Ling''er. The last time he had gone out to train, he had also taken two beautiful women with him. He truly could be called a playboy.


    Atop Holy Sage Pavilion sat a beautiful woman gazing at the distant scenery. When she heard footsteps, Hua Jieyu turned and smiled at Ye Futian, saying, "Have you disappointed the beauty again?"


    Ye Futian shrugged and walked to Hua Jieyu''s side. He wrapped his arms around her slender waist and rested his head on her shoulder. "I''ve disappointed a few along the way." He knew that when he was in Divine Sky City, Gu Yunxi had been interested in him, as well as Loulan Xue. He knew how difficult it was to suffer their favor.


    Hua Jieyu turned her face, and Ye Futian could feel her breath. Her face that was beautiful enough to bring about the fall of a city was so close it was intoxicating.


    "You weren''t like this at Qingzhou Academy," said Hua Jieyu softly. "Didn''t you really like to flirt with Miss Qin then?"


    "You still remember that after all these years." Ye Futian''s face darkened. When they were cultivating at Qingzhou Academy, they were only 15. At that time, he didn''t know anything about feelings. Many people in the Academy dreamed of Qin Yi. And he had been young, so naturally, he would have been attracted to someone as beautiful, sexy, and kind as her.


    "Hmph. I remember it well," said Hua Jieyu smilingly.


    "Ah, unfortunately later I was enchanted by a witch. My one false step has brought me everlasting grief," said Ye Futian with a sigh.


    Hua Jieyu stamped on his foot. She turned around, her eyes revealing her intoxicating beauty. She whispered, "Is that witch really so charming?"


    "She is. So charming that I just want to eat her up." Ye Futian bowed his head and kissed her intoxicating red lips. The witch was charming, but he had her in the palm of his hand. Holding onto her intoxicating body, he led her into the bedroom. It was a wonderful spring night.


    ...


    With Yue Lingshuang staying in the Holy Sage Pavilion, many people thought that the Lady of the palace would be unhappy. They never would have imagined that Hua Jieyu could often be seen with her all around the palace, chatting and laughing. They seemed to be as close as sisters.


    This made the disciples worship Ye Futian even more. He was truly the model of a man. He had a wife who was like a goddess, and she did not mind the presence of another woman. And she could even fight side by side with him. She was perfect.


    However, on that day a group of cultivators came to the Holy Zhi Palace. They were actually from the Yue Clan in the Summer State, so Ye Futian went out to greet them, along with Yue Lingshuang. Yue Jiangliu was among them.


    "Lord Ye, Lingshuang," Yue Jiangliu called to the two of them.


    "How is it that you have the time to come visit us?" asked Ye Futian. He felt that something was slightly off. Yue Jiangliu and the others looked solemn.


    "Lingshuang, where did your uncle and the guards go?" asked Yue Jiangliu.


    "After I arrived at the palace, I asked them to return home. What''s wrong?" asked Lingshuang. She also felt that something was going on.


    "Your uncle and the others, every one of them was killed," said Yue Jiangliu. Yue Lingshuang''s face changed in an instant, as did Ye Futian''s.


    The people from the Yue Clan had all been killed after they left the palace?


    Who�� who had done this?


    "How could that be?" Yue Lingshuang''s face went pale. She felt guilty. Had she killed them by coming here? And if she had gone back with them, would she have ended up the same way?


    "Do you have any leads?" asked Ye Futian.


    Yue Jiangliu shook his head and then asked Yue Lingshuang some questions. He speculated they had died on the day that they left the palace, and not too far away from the palace either. In fact, they had still been in the Barren State, in Zhongzhou City.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was in the Barren State, but it had obviously not been them who had killed the people from the Yue Clan. They had a good relationship, and so Ye Futian had no reason to do it, otherwise, Yue Jiangliu would not have been so polite when he came to the palace. He knew that this affair was not their doing.


    "Lord Ye, are there any forces in the Barren State that bear enmity towards the palace?" asked Yue Jiangliu.


    "That can''t be it. Even if there were, they wouldn''t dare to do this." Ye Futian shook his head. "Given the current situation we''re being watched by everyone, and Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty probably have many informers in Zhongzhou City. But even they don''t seem to have had a good reason to do it."


    "Perhaps they ordered someone to kill them when they saw that we had a desire to form a marriage alliance with you, in the hopes of killing Yue Lingshuang? And since she wasn''t there, they killed the others?" guessed Yue Jiangliu.


    "We can''t rule out that possibility." Ye Futian looked thoughtful. But if Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had really done this, once they were found out, it would push the Yue Clan and the palace into an alliance, and they would be offending a powerful enemy. Therefore, he wasn''t sure it was them.


    The death of the Yue Clan cultivators was quite fishy.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "What about Saint Zhi?" said Yue Jiangliu. Saint Zhi probably now hated the Holy Zhi Palace for the battle at Zhisheng Cliffs, and since Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were not willing to act, he was probably quite dissatisfied, and so had caused this to happen the Yue Clan cultivators.


    "I''m not sure." Ye Futian shook his head. This was all very confusing. Could it be that this Sacred War and Emperor Xia''s command had drawn out a secret holy land?


    If it wasn''t Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, or Saint Zhi, then this affair was not a simple one. Another holy land must be involved. If so, what was their goal?


    "May we stay in the palace while we investigate this matter?" Yue Jiangliu asked Ye Futian.


    "Of course, and I will put all the power of the palace to work helping you in your investigation," said Ye Futian. The people from the Yue Clan had been killed after leaving the Holy Zhi Palace, and it had happened in Zhongzhou City, which was their land. He was partially responsible for what had happened.


    "Thank you, Lord Ye." Yue Jiangliu bowed slightly, then said to Yue Lingshuang, "How are you getting on here at the palace?"


    "Lord Ye and his wife have been most considerate," said Yue Lingshuang.


    "Excellent." Yue Jiangliu finally smiled. Yue Lingshuang looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian sighed inwardly. Lingshuang''s decision to stay in the palace had helped him and had created an illusion for the people of the Nine States.


    The Yue Clan mobilized people from their families to come to the palace and start investigating the deaths of their cultivators. This case quickly attracted the attention of many people from around the Nine States. People from the Yue Clan had been assassinated; this was extremely unusual.


    In addition to the clear Sacred War, there were apparently undercurrents in the Nine States!

 943 Huang Clan

    Everyone in the Nine States paid close attention to the Holy Zhi Palace and the Yue Clan working together to investigate the murders of the Yue Clan cultivators.


    Who had dared to do this? What was their goal?


    Several days later, the two holy lands discovered the site of the Yue Clan cultivators'' final battle. It was indeed in Zhongzhou City, but it was in a part of the city with no people.


    At this moment, Ye Futian and Yue Jiangliu had just arrived there. There were traces of the destruction of battle there, and even some bloodstains. The last place that people had seen the cultivators was not far from here, and the investigators had followed the road to here. There was still some sealing rule power will left over, which was probably a trace left by the Yue Clan cultivators.


    The people from the two holy lands blocked off the area. Even Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were tactful enough to not use this opportunity to move against Ye Futian.


    Many people suspected they were responsible for the deaths of the Yue Clan cultivators. If they attacked now, it would completely force the Yue Clan to run into the arms of the Holy Zhi Palace. It would be disadvantageous for them to do this.


    There were traces of the battle, and a rule power aura was left behind, but other than the fact that they knew this was the place where the Yue Clan cultivators had come to grief, there were no other clues.


    Ye Futian ran through his Freedom Meditation, looking all around the area, trying to find clues. At this time his perception was extremely sharp, and as he landed in the battle area, he felt that there was a faint aura besides the leftover sealing rule power will.


    "It''s so cold," he whispered and then walked over to a different trace of the battle.


    After a while, he looked up at Yue Jiangliu and said, "The aura from the battle has nearly disappeared, but there is still a bit of one left over from the battle between top-level Sages. My perception is extraordinary, so I can still sense it. It seems that one person did this, and they seemed to be skilled at Ice Rule Power."


    "There are many top level Sages in the Nine States who are good at that. Every holy land has one," said Yue Jiangliu. This meant that Ye Futian''s discovery did not mean too much, and it wouldn''t help them find the killer.


    Perhaps the Yue Clan cultivators had been too careless and had fallen afoul of a plot against them. They had probably never thought that someone would assassinate them.


    After searching for a while, Yue Jiangliu said, "It looks like we won''t find any more clues. Let''s go back to the palace."


    "Alright," said Ye Futian, and the group of them returned to the Holy Zhi Palace. They had not found the killer, leaving the situation very clouded. However, the fact that there were Yue Clan cultivators staying in the Holy Zhi Palace, added to the fact that the Yue Clan was working together with them, made it so that Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty did not act rashly.


    There had been a slaughter at Zhisheng Cliffs by Ye Futian''s army, and now the Yue Clan had come in, upsetting their schemes. They were very unhappy about all this. But even though they were unhappy, all they could do was restrain themselves and continue to wait for a good opportunity.


    Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King even felt in their hearts that Saint Zhi was a gutless coward. He was lucky he was a Saint, otherwise, he would have been slaughtered along with the rest of his disciples. Everyone mocked him now. He would not recover his former position in a hundred years, and he now did not even have the imposing manner of a dead fish in a broken net.


    With Saint Zhi''s power, he could have slaughtered everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace, and not even the two Saints there could have stopped him. After destroying the Holy Zhi Palace he would have had to avoid Emperor Xia''s wrath, but that wasn''t so bad compared to the alternative. Now it looked like there were two more potential Saints among the ranks of the juniors of the Holy Zhi Palace. One of them was the crown jewel of the Nine States, Ye Futian, and the other was number one in the Nine States Forum, Yu Sheng.


    Of course, they thought that way, but if Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King had done that themselves they would be not worthy of the dignity of Saints. It was not easy to cultivate up to their level.


    There was nothing in the world more important than cultivation. If you had that, then it must be fate. If it wasn''t fated, then what use was it to pursue the Great Path?


    ��


    Ye Futian returned to the Holy Zhi Palace, and then took out the file pertaining to the Sages and Saints Ranking to thumb through it.


    He did not look at the 72 Saints but at the eighty-one Sages. Of course, a lot of the Sages in the list no longer existed, thanks to him and the Holy Zhi Palace. But he still attentively looked through the rest of them.


    There were many people in the Nine States who were good at Ice Rule Power, but someone who was confident enough to kill all those Yue Clan cultivators by themselves must be quite powerful. And they had not given their opponents any chance to escape. Therefore, it was worth taking a look at the Sages Ranking. But Ye Futian did not gain much from looking at it.


    Just as Ye Futian was investigating the deaths of the Yue Clan cultivators, a group of uninvited guests came quietly to Zhongzhou City. Zhongzhou City was the largest city in the Barren State, and the Holy Zhi Palace was located on the edge of it.


    At that moment, a group of cultivators moved confidently through the ancient city. They all wore a detached attitude. One of them had white hair and a ruddy complexion, and a celestial wind blew across his body. His aura poured out from him carelessly, shocking everyone who felt it. The other cultivators were incredible as well. They seemed to be looking for something as they walked along.


    In the center of them stood a young man wearing a beautiful brocade. Beside him was a middle-aged man with a picture scroll floating in front of him with light shining from it. This scroll was actually a map, which guided them through the city.


    "We should be almost there," said the middle-aged man. He looked up with bright and piercing eyes. His face was as sharp as a blade, and there was a hint of power about his form.


    "Where are we?" asked the young man.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "In one of the Nine States, the land under Emperor Xia''s jurisdiction," answered the middle-aged man.


    "Previously, Xia Qingyuan brought people to train in our realm. I never would have thought we would have come to Emperor Xia''s realm so soon after. But I''m afraid that it will be inconvenient to act here. Keep things as inconspicuous as possible, we don''t want to cause trouble," ordered the young man. Everyone nodded. They all knew the purpose of their trip.


    If traces of Renhuang really appeared in this remote Barren State, it would be difficult to obtain the benefits. So they would try not to provoke any trouble in Emperor Xia''s lands in possible. They hoped the traces of Renhuang were not hidden too deep, so they had a chance of getting their hands on them. They had paid a high price for this map. They didn''t want to waste it.


    The floating map gradually lit up, as if it had sensed something, making everyone''s eyes flash towards it sharply. It looked like they were going the right way.


    Not long after, they came to a large household. A palace stood there mightily. It was towering and imposing, and a real dragon''s breath blew out from it.


    This must be one of the top forces in the region. However, there was no one there. It was completely empty.


    The light from the map grew brighter, but a strange look came over everyone''s faces. There was no one here?


    Many people were walking along outside the palace, looking curiously at the group of powerful figures in the sky. Their aura was quite frightening, and they did not know where they had come from. Could they be from one of the holy lands?


    As Ye Futian had made the Holy Zhi Palace''s fame rise, the people of Zhongzhou City''s knowledge of the world had grown as well. Now, even seeing people from a holy land did not surprise them.


    Up in the sky, the group of people gazed at the empty palace. It seemed like it had belonged to a Clan, but they had all migrated away. There was a dragon-shaped staircase at the entrance, and a single, powerful character was engraved there: Huang!


    It seemed that the people who had once lived there had some connection to this character, Huang.


    The young man smiled when he saw this character. This was most interesting. He turned and looked at the vigorous old man. "Do you sense anything?"


    The old man''s spiritual will was already covering the whole area. He shook his head softly and said, "This Clan was quite imposing, but they were very small. Even though their family name was "Huang," [1] they weren''t worthy of that title. They can''t be the ones we are looking for."


    Everyone who heard his words felt their hearts grow cold. The palace was empty now, but it had once been the home of one of the most prominent forces in the Barren State. Other than the palace, they were able to command the most power.


    The Huang Clan of Zhongzhou City.


    But in the old man''s mouth, they sounded like some unimportant family, not worthy of the name "Huang."


    "But the map reacted to it. It can''t be a mistake. There must be another mystery here. Let''s level the palace buildings," ordered the young man.


    "Yes, sir." Beside him, a well-dressed middle-aged scholar stepped forward. A terrible storm blew out from him. The winds gathered together and slashed forward like the sharpest blade in the world. The weather changed in an instant as the storm covered everything, swallowing up the mighty palace of the Huang Clan.


    Those who were watching from afar went pale. They seemed to see the storm sweep out, each of the palace buildings uprooted, turning to dust in the raging wind that was blown far away. Soon, the storm disappeared, and when they looked at the once magnificent palace, all that was left was a ruin.


    "A Saint!" Everyone''s hearts beat rapidly. Why would a Saint come to Zhongzhou City? Which of the holy lands was he from? And why had they leveled the Huang Clan''s palace?


    Could it be that they had come to attack the Holy Zhi Palace? But if so, there seemed to be no reason to destroy the Huang Clan''s home where nobody lived. What did it mean?


    The young man looked at the brightening map beside him and said, "It must be here. Today, even if you have to dig down 1000 meters, you will find it for me."


    "Yes, sir." Everyone beside him nodded. They had traveled far to find this place. Now they would achieve their goal. They had found the right place, how could they fail?


    [1] In Chinese, "Huang" means "Emperor."

 944 Two Worlds Shake

    On that day, there was an earthquake in Zhongzhou City.


    In the old home of the Huang Clan��the top power of Zhongzhou City��a beam of light shot up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. The whole city could see the light piercing through the clouds. The mighty Qi cut through the sky, a natural yet extraordinary sight.


    The countless cultivators of Zhongzhou City looked up to the sky, and their hearts were as turbulent as the stormy seas. Then, the news swept through the ancient city. There were massive matrices beneath the Huang Clan palace, and an Imperial tomb was buried there. Now the matrices had been started up, and the tomb had been found. They had dug down very far, turning all the buildings nearby into rubble, and only the Imperial tomb remained standing. It was said that the Imperial tomb was surrounded by a Sovereign Aura and that they were the Renhuang Ruins.


    The news swept throughout the Barren State, and even throughout the vast land of the Nine States, causing a great disturbance.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was in Zhongzhou City.


    At that moment, Ye Futian stood in the air above the Holy Zhi Palace. Many figures appeared beside him, looking far up into the sky, which was glowing red. A magnificent tableau was presented there. Magnificent figures stood in the sky, riding dragons and surrounded by armored soldiers and chariots. They looked like they could conquer the world.


    This scene seemed to have been created by Martial Will but had been projected into the sky. They were struck dumb with amazement. What kind of level would one need to do something like this?


    Something had happened there.


    At that moment, a blade of light flashed, and Qin Zhuang appeared riding on a sword in front of Ye Futian and the others. "There is a matrix under the Huang Clan mansion that has been broken open. That''s where that image is coming from," said Qin Zhuang to Ye Futian. Qin Zhuang was so fast that going there and coming back with the news took very little time.


    Beside Ye Futian, Huang Xi trembled slightly. He gazed fixedly on the image in the sky, and he had a faint feeling that it was familiar. This was clearly an illusion created by the martial cultivation of the Huang Clan.


    "Father," called Huang Jiuge to Huang Xi. He walked over to his side, and his heart was clearly trembling. There was an array below the Huang Clan home, and the imperial tomb had been unearthed. It was said that the Huang Clan were descendants of Renhuang, which had always made them proud. But in reality, Huang Xi, who had been worn down by the years and who had killed many of the cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in battle, did not think of himself as a descendant of any d*mn Renhuang.


    But now...


    Was God playing a joke on him?


    Ye Futian also looked at Huang Xi. Huang Jiuge''s life spirits were extraordinary. He had three powerful ones��the Renhuang Body, the Renhuang Bow, and the Renhuang Sword��all of which used Renhuang''s name.


    In the past, many people had thought that the Huang Clan regarded themselves too highly. How could they be descendants of Renhuang? He was an unattainable legend. Now it seemed that the names of his life spirits were no coincidence.


    Most common people had no life spirits because their ancestors did not have them. Most life spirits were passed down. And now it looked like the three great life spirits of the Huang Clan had a superhuman progenitor.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Who broke open the matrix?" Ye Futian asked Qin Zhuang.


    For many years, the Huang Clan had never found the matrices beneath their home. Now that it had been broken open, they could tell that the ones who had done it were more familiar with it than they were. They were probably no ordinary people.


    "It was a group of outsiders. Their identities are unknown, but there are several Saints among them," said Qin Zhuang. Ye Futian''s face became serious.


    "If that is truly the Renhuang Ruins, this will shock both the Upper and Lower Worlds. Emperor Xia will send someone here," said Ye Futian. He did not even entertain the idea of taking up arms against them. He knew better than anyone how much strength the Holy Zhi Palace had, and besides, they were already engaged in a Sacred War.


    Even if the Renhuang Ruins were there, they wouldn''t fall into his hands. Besides, even if the Huang Clan found them, it wouldn''t be a good thing for them. The Huang Family was the top force in Zhongzhou City, but that was it. Any of the holy lands of the Nine States could easily wipe them out and take the Imperial tomb from them. Moreover, the Nine States were all under Emperor Xia''s control. None of the holy lands of the Nine States would get any share of the Renhuang Ruins unless he willed it.


    Huang Xi naturally thought that same as Ye Futian. A touch of coldness and unwillingness flashed in his eyes as he stared into the sky. There was no more hope in the members of the Huang Clan. They no longer thought of themselves as the descendants of Renhuang, but suddenly, this day had proved that they were and that his ruins were left. But they were not entitled to a share of what he had left behind.


    They could not avoid a little sadness at this.


    "I want to go see," said Huang Xi. Those who were not of the Huang Clan could probably not understand their state of mind right now.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded and called everyone together.


    Before long, another group of powerful cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace gathered together and set off towards the Huang Clan palace. With the power of the group that set out, enemies could not ambush them as they pleased. If Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty wanted to deal with them they would have to lead their armies from their holy lands. More importantly, Ye Futian now had the power to protect himself, so there was not too much need for concern.


    The Huang Clan''s palace was not far from the Holy Zhi Palace. After all, they were both in Zhongzhou City. Nowadays, the community that had lived in the Huang Clan palace had disappeared, and they had been replaced by a vast mausoleum that spanned a great distance. One day, it had appeared out of thin air.


    The cultivators of Zhongzhou City had all gathered together, including the top forces. Of what had once been the top four forces of the city, the Huang Clan and Tingxue House had entered the Holy Zhi Palace, but the Ximen Clan and the Thunder Courtyard had not.


    The cultivators of these two clans had also come today, and their hearts trembled at the sight of this mausoleum.


    The head of Ximen house wore a white robe and carried a sword on his back. Looking at the Imperial tomb made him thoughtful. Nowadays, the Holy Zhi Palace dominated the Barren State, and their prestige was unparalleled. The power of the other top forces had been destroyed and they had entered the palace. Now they had no voice. Soon, it would be like they didn''t exist at all.


    Nowadays, the Holy Zhi Palace was the only thing that outsiders cared about in the Barren State. But if a Saint appeared in their family, things would be different.


    Ximen Hanjiang stood beside him, and his eyes shone. He had once made a name for himself in the Holy Zhi Palace and had been ranked number one in the Law Rank. But the palace had already forgotten that he existed. He had always been persistent, but Ye Futian''s fame had always been like a mountain pressing down on him until he couldn''t breathe.


    At that moment, there was a confused hubbub all around and a sound could be faintly heard.


    "The people from the Holy Zhi Palace are here."


    "That''s Ye Futian, who revitalized the palace and led the army that destroyed Zhisheng Cliffs."


    Their voices rang out, and the Ximen House turned to look at the figures far away in the sky. The two in the lead stood shoulder to shoulder, one of them extraordinarily handsome with an unparalleled aura, and the other with a face that could cause cities and countries to fall. They were like a pair of immortals.


    Cultivators gathered around them like clouds.


    Ximen Hanjiang''s eyes became extremely sharp, and he clenched his fists. But he had been unable to defeat the one-armed swordsman beside Ye Futian, and nowadays it would still be difficult.


    "Let''s go." The head of Ximen House stepped forward and bowed to Ye Futian. "Ximen House greets Ye Futian and his wife."


    Ye Futian did not look at him. He still stared at the Imperial tomb that had appeared out of thin air. It was extremely majestic. It was covered in golden light. It was not an ordinary tomb but was a golden necropolis. Within the tomb were countless armored soldiers wielding golden spears. Although they were covered with dust, they still gave people a sense of solemnity, as if once this army was set in motion none could stand in its way.


    Huang Xi and the other members of the Huang Clan were trembling with awe. This was their ancestral glory. What powerful figures their ancestors had been!


    When Ximen House saw the Ye Futian did not look at them, they felt greatly humiliated. Their faces turned ugly, but they did not dare to attack. The head of their family had personally greeted Ye Futian, and he had not even looked at him.


    Ximen Hanjiang clenched his fists and looked up at that handsome face. Ye Futian no longer even took him seriously.


    Ye Futian slowly looked back and swept his gaze over Ximen House. He said nothing, but they all took a step back and felt ashamed. Of course, Ye Futian ignored them. Ximen Hanjiang had left the palace when they faced a Sacred War. Although he had said that he would not argue with him and that the people of the Holy Zhi Palace had the right to choose, could he really be expected to let him keep face? Nowadays, Ximen House was still considered a top force in the Barren State until the end of the Sacred War when power would need to be re-divided.


    At that moment, an extremely cold killing will covered everything. Ye Futian turned and saw a figure standing calmly in the distance. There was just one figure, dressed in a black robe. His aura was extremely cold, and his killing power could not be hidden.


    "Saint Zhi," said Ye Futian. It looked like after he had led the attack on Zhisheng Cliffs, Saint Zhi had come to the Barren State. He may have been watching their movements all along. Unfortunately, under Emperor Xia''s orders, no matter how much he wanted to kill them, he could not attack them.


    At this time, there was a beautiful radiance in the sky, and a strong aura descended. Everyone looked up and saw a group of figures break through the clouds, descending in rays of sunlight.


    At their head was a figure wearing white men''s clothing, but who had a face more beautiful than any woman''s, making everyone who was looking a little dumbfounded. If one were to say that this looked like an immortal descending to the human world it would not be an exaggeration.


    Saint Zhi looked up, and when he saw who was coming his face changed slightly, becoming a little bit unsightly.


    They were coming quickly.


    It seemed like the Upper Worlds were not satisfied with any great disturbances in the Nine States, and could come to deal with them in a very short time.


    Saint Xihua had encouraged him to act against the Holy Zhi Palace in secret. Now, it seemed like if he had really done so he would not have been able to escape.


    Emperor Xia''s power was even greater than he had imagined.


    Ye Futian also looked at the figures descending from the sky. The young person who was dressed as a man and yet more beautiful than any woman was naturally Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan had not cared that Ye Wuchen had taken the Renhuang Sword Will, since Renhuang was her father she could sense it at any time. So although it would have been useful, there was no need for her to take it from her subordinate.


    But the Renhuang Ruins were different. They were not comparable to the Renhuang Sword Will at all!

 945 Imperial Mausoleum Map

    Outside the Imperial Mausoleum, Li Yao looked up at Xia Qingyuan as she descended from the sky. She had gotten here so quickly.


    This was, after all, the land controlled by Emperor Xia, and so it was difficult not to attract his attention. He would never have thought that the moment the mausoleum appeared there would be such a strange phenomenon. Now it seemed that it would be very difficult to take control of these Imperial ruins.


    While floating in the air, Li Yao said to Xia Qingyuan, "I trust you have been well since we last parted, Princess?"


    Xia Qingyuan looked to Li Yao. She naturally recognized him. He was a prince from Emperor Li''s realm.


    Emperor Li''s realm and Emperor Xia''s realm bordered each other. The Lower World that Emperor Li controlled was different than the Nine States, as there was only one faction: the Dali Dynasty. All the schools and families were under Emperor Li''s control, and all of them could be traced back to him as the progenitor.


    In Cloud State, there was a holy land known as Li Palace. The people of this palace came from the Dali Dynasty. Their ancestors had committed a sin and been banished, and thus had come to the Nine States. Once one of their members had reached the Saint level, they had built the Li Palace in Cloud State.


    The Dali Dynasty did not pursue this matter. After all, they had banished them, which was equivalent to breaking off their relationship with them.


    "Li Yao, the Nine States are under the jurisdiction of Emperor Xia." Xia Qingyuan glanced at Li Yao. Her tone was cold.


    "The last time you brought people to the Dali Dynasty, we received you warmly and politely. I was the one who unearthed the Imperial Mausoleum. Do I not at least have the right to fight for it?" asked Li Yao with a smile. He looked at the beautiful face before him. If Xia Qingyuan would just wear women''s clothing, whole cities and nations would fall before her beauty.


    However, it was rumored that Emperor Xia''s favorite daughter had never dressed as a woman. It was said that only if someone could defeat this proud princess, would she wear a long dress and appear before him, revealing her brilliance.


    Xia Qingyuan ignored Li Yao, looking very indifferent. She looked at the solemn Imperial Mausoleum. As long as he was in Emperor Xia''s realm, no matter how much right he had to fight for the mausoleum, could Li Yao do it?


    "Go and take a look," Xia Qingyuan said to someone beside her. The Renhuang Ruins were in the Nine States. This meant that they had existed since before her father ruled these lands, and had at least a thousand years of history. Probably even Renhuang''s descendants did not know of the existence of this tomb.


    "This Imperial Mausoleum was buried in the ground by a matrix. The matrix was opened, and the mausoleum appeared. Now it stretches a vast distance, and even though the mausoleum has appeared, the power of the matrix is still here. Light pierces through to the Nine Heavens. I''m afraid we can''t get in now, you''ll have to be patient," said Li Yao.


    Xia Qingyuan continued to ignore him as she stared at the silent mausoleum. It did indeed look like a golden city. The aura that came from it coalesced into a terrible flow of golden Qi that reached up to the Nine Heavens and caused the strange phenomenon that everyone in Zhongzhou City could see.


    "Princess." The Saint who had gone over to investigate returned quickly and bowed to Xia Qingyuan. "The Imperial Mausoleum has been sealed for many years, and an extremely perilous aura has formed there that won''t dissipate. Even a Saint would be torn apart upon entering it. I''m afraid we''ll have to wait a while before we can enter."


    After hearing this report, Xia Qingyuan stepped towards the Imperial Mausoleum, with the others following close behind. She waved her hand and suddenly a brilliant ritual implement filled with divine power went shrieking out, piercing through the air towards the tomb.


    The divine implement made it to the tomb, but then a stream of golden Qi flowed over it, and as everyone watched in horror it flowed through the ritual implement rather than wrapping around it. Afterward, the brilliant divine implement was shattered.


    Everyone''s hearts trembled. The perilous aura must be so powerful if it could form a Qi flow that terrible. There must be something terrifying in the Imperial Mausoleum. Of course, there were also those whose hearts trembled at Xia Qingyuan''s plan. She had casually tossed a divine implement to its destruction, and she did not so much as frown. She truly was the descendant of Renhuang. It was just like a Saint throwing away a Sage level ritual implement. She did not mind at all.


    But divine implements were so precious in the Nine States.


    Many people wondered if, since this was Renhuang''s tomb, there might be an imperial implement within?


    Everyone''s hearts beat faster when they thought of this, but when they saw Xia Qingyuan they once again looked dejected. Even if there was something like that, they would not be able to get it.


    Only the most powerful figures in the Nine States had the right to take the most powerful divine implements. This was even more true for an imperial implement. If you didn''t have the strength or the background, how could you get it? That was a dead end.


    The people of the Huang clan were extremely uneasy. As the current head of the clan, Huang Xi was conflicted. The Huang clan''s claim that they were descendants of the Sovereign Family was not self-proclaimed but had been passed down to them through the generations. But as time went by, that era grew further and further away until even they did not fully believe it. But now they had discovered that it was all true. They were descendants of Renhuang, which was absolutely a cause for pride. The blood of Renhuang flowed in their veins.


    When they saw that the tomb''s Qi flow was enough to destroy a divine implement, their hearts surged. How powerful their ancestors must have been! But now they were like outsiders. They could only watch it all from the sidelines, not daring to speak up. This was the ruins of their ancestors, and it belonged to them. They were afraid that others would look at them as idiots who didn''t even know how to die properly.


    Ye Futian looked at Huang Xi beside him. He could understand what he was feeling right now. This must be hard for him to bear.


    "On the day that the Huang clan appears, use my blood to dye the Imperial Mausoleum Map." As Huang Xi thought of his past memories, there was suddenly something like a flash of lightning in his mind, and an ancient voice appeared in the depths of his memories. This voice was just like their identity as descendants of Renhuang, it had been passed down from generation to generation.


    "On the day that the Huang clan appears, on the day that the Huang clan appears..." This sentence repeated over and over again in Huang Xi''s mind as he stared at the Imperial Mausoleum before him. His heart trembled slightly. Before, he had not known what these words meant. Now he thought he understood.


    He looked back at the Huang clan disciples, then at Huang Jiuge, and then finally at Ye Futian. He hesitated. He had pledged his life to Ye Futian and had fought hard for the palace, but when the inheritance of his ancestors was involved, he still struggled inwardly.


    "Palace Lord," he said suddenly. Ye Futian looked at him questioningly.


    "I think that the Huang clan ancestors left something behind. I wish to return to the palace, then we can look over it together," said Huang Xi.


    Ye Futian looked at the Imperial Mausoleum. Had its appearance made him think of something?


    "Fine," he said. "Let''s return to the palace." Upon saying this, he turned around. Everyone looked at him with some disappointment, but they still followed him back to the Holy Zhi Palace.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Once they returned, Ye Futian ordered everyone to withdraw from a hall in Holy Sage Pavilion. There were only three people there: him, Huang Xi, and Huang Jiuge. Huang Xi had a secret to tell him, so he naturally did not want a lot of people around.


    "Uncle, does this have to do with the Imperial Mausoleum?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Mm." Huang Xi nodded. "My family has passed down a clue from generation to generation. But probably because our family has declined, many things have been gradually forgotten as time passed, and we have even stopped believing some of them. I was even prepared to tell Jiuge to not mention the fact that we are descendants of Renhuang to our descendants. I thought that this was purely imaginary."


    "Then you must have thought of something?" asked Ye Futian.


    Huang Xi nodded. He waved his hand and suddenly a map scroll floated in front of him. "This is a mountain and river map, called the Imperial Map. It''s a powerful ritual implement. It can be used for combat, but now it looks like that''s not all." Huang Xi reached out and using his Spiritual Qi as a knife he cut his finger, letting the blood flow. He put his finger on the map, letting the blood stain it. But there seemed to be no change.


    Huang Xi frowned. The blood from his finger flowed directly onto the map, completely staining it. His Spiritual Qi continued to infiltrate it, and suddenly the map gradually began to change.


    A blood-colored light shone from it, growing brighter and brighter. The blood-red color turned to gold and soon covered the entire hall. The projection of a huge map appeared.


    Their hearts all beat faster as they beheld this huge map.


    "The Imperial Mausoleum Map." Ye Futian''s heart trembled. It looked like the Huang clan ancestors had passed down not only the meaningless title of "descendants of Renhuang."


    The Imperial Mausoleum Map shone brilliantly, becoming clearer and clearer in their eyes. Then it turned into a stream of light that entered into their foreheads, and the map appeared in their minds. The map was lifelike in their minds, with even some important information presented.


    Obviously, the Huang clan ancestors had waited for the day when their descendants could personally claim their inheritance. It was still not clear what had happened all those years ago, and why they could not directly pass their inheritance down. Perhaps at the time, they had encountered a crisis and thus did not dare to do so.


    Soon the brilliant map darkened and floated back to Huang Xi''s hand.


    Ye Futian looked at him. He was moved.


    "Uncle, if you were to present this to Xia Qingyuan, it would be enough to make her allow Jiuge to go with her to the Upper Worlds to cultivate. At the very least, you wouldn''t have to follow me into a crisis," he said with a sigh.


    "I don''t know Xia Qingyuan, but I do know you. With Xia Qingyuan and that strange cultivator there, it will be difficult to take the food from the tiger''s mouth," said Huang Xi.


    "The Holy Zhi Palace is the number one holy land in the Nine States, but we still don''t have the power to challenge Xia Qingyuan. This turbulence in the Upper and Lower Worlds will attract many tyrants. We can hide as much as possible, and reap the benefits of the confusion. We should not mention this to anyone," said Ye Futian. Huang Xi understood.


    As Ye Futian expected, over the next few days, all the cultivators waited for the perilous aura to dissipate, and cultivators from all the holy lands arrived after having heard the news. This time, almost all the holy lands were represented, including their Saints.


    All of the powerful characters from across the Nine States met in Zhongzhou City. This many cultivators had never before appeared at once in the Barren State. Countless powerful figures were gathered outside the Imperial Mausoleum.


    And not only that, but people from the Upper Worlds had arrived as well. They had come from the Upper Worlds for the Imperial Mausoleum!

 946 Having Difficulty Bowing

    Mighty people gathered outside the imperial mausoleum where the royalty used to be. Everyone from Zhongzhou City gathered there. It was some grand event they deemed necessary to attend, given how the representatives from holy lands from all over the Nine States were there.


    The Barren State never had an event as massive and as grand. Some of those who came from top-notch clans and forces even dreamed that members of their clan from the younger generations would be lucky enough to catch the attention of the elders and big shots from said holy lands and be taken in as students.


    Xia Qingyuan sat at the top of a restaurant quietly, surrounded by mighty figures. Top-notch figures from holy lands from all over the Nine States were literally everywhere beneath her. Even Saint Xia himself was present, as well as Saint Li from the Nine State College and Saint Ji from the Hall of Holy Light. Those three were three most powerful on the rankings, right below the Great Shaman and Ji Yuan the Reaper, and all three were there. It was a testament to how significant and grand the event was.


    Saint Xihua, the Zhou Sacred King, and many others were naturally there as well. Xia Qingyuan''s identity was common knowledge now��the princess who was most doted upon by Emperor Xia��and she came all the way to the Lower Worlds. As such, none of the top figures saw a reason to not show up. Other than that, all saints throughout the Nine States wanted to move forward with their training. Not even the saints would easily be able to meet Emperor Xia. With the imperial mausoleum revealed to the world and the rumor about it being a ruin of Renhuang, it was all the more reason for the attendees to explore the place.


    While there was no certainty that they would be able to return home with something, especially with Xia Qingyuan around, they did not see that to be good enough a reason to miss the event. Other than that, everyone brought the best among the younger generations of their respective clans and forces, especially those who had been listed by Xia Qingyuan as Heavenly Chosen Ones. Getting familiar with the princess would benefit their future in many ways, and the members of the younger generations who got lucky would definitely be able to go further than their predecessors.


    "The princess is here in the Lower Worlds as the Supervising Inspector. The Renhuang Ruins were found as soon as she got here. It sure looks like the princess has a knack for bringing luck with her," Saint Xia said with a smile.


    "Peril awaits in the imperial mausoleum. It''s not yet known if the emergence of the place is a good or bad thing just yet," Xia Qingyuan said. If it had been something left behind by Renhuang, it was anything but simple and straightforward.


    "With the people of many holy lands gathered here today and the blessing of your luck on all of us, the perils will be insignificant in comparison. We shall enter the mausoleum once that part of the place is clear," Saint Xia said.


    "Are all holy lands throughout the Nine States here today? From what I can tell, there are some who are not yet here." A group of people was sitting not far away from Xia Qingyuan. These words were uttered by a woman with an exceptional bearing and striking appearance. Many, including Saint Xia, turned around to look at the woman, who looked elegant and aloof. She was from the Upper Worlds, and because she was able to sit near the princess, her status was just as exceptional as her features.


    Few saints from the Upper Worlds came. Most who were present from the Upper Worlds were of the younger generations. It was not to say that they had no personal agendas with the mausoleum, but given how the princess was there, it was puzzling as to what else they could be doing.


    Fight with Xia Qingyuan over the place? Who dares to do something like that? The older generations from the Upper Worlds were reluctant to just come and make Xia Qingyuan look good, as the old monsters were all prideful people, unlike Saint Xia, who was an amiable old fellow. Regardless of how exceptional Xia Qingyuan was, she was just the daughter of Emperor Xia, and that was far less than enough to put the old monsters in their place. Only Emperor Xia''s direct subordinates were willing to follow her. For instance, the few beside Xia Qingyuan all definitely had exceptional powers.


    Saint Xia looked at the woman who had spoken. He knew that she came from Lihen Heaven of the Upper Worlds, which was the number one holy land in terms of swordsmanship in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "What are you referring to?" Saint Xia asked with a smile.


    "This place seems to be the turf of the Barren State of the Nine States. Why is the lord of the state not here?" The woman was Fengxiao from Lihen Heaven, the student of Lihen Heaven who had made Ye Futian at the Ninth Layer of Heaven, which meant that the man by her side was Mo Li.


    Saint Xia naturally knew what she meant. She had sent people to look into what Ye Futian had done in the Upper Worlds. It was hardly surprising that she knew Ye Futian, but the ones from other holy lands of the Nine States were left feeling puzzled instead.


    How does someone from the Upper Worlds know that the master of the Barren State isn''t here? Saint Xia took a look at Xia Qingyuan. Her cold expression showed no signs of her being fettered. A face came to mind, an impossibly arrogant face who dared to refuse her twice.


    All major representatives of the holy lands of the Nine States were all there, except those of the Barren State. Furthermore, they were precisely somewhere within the Barren State. It was a testament of how pompous Ye Futian was. He had never bothered bowing and greeting her when he last saw her and had left just like that.


    Many drank silently, listening to Fengxiao talk about the Barren State. That guy from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State? Since when did he know anything about manners? He had refused Xia Qingyuan after all.


    "That b*stard Ye Futian. He actually dared to refuse you, the princess, and didn''t bother with manners. I''ll send someone to get him here right away," Saint Xia shouted and spoke to one person beside him telepathically, who stepped away and took their leave, heading for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Saint Xia was feeling rather exasperated. They were at the Barren State at the moment and it was a golden opportunity for Ye Futian. He could have even invited the princess to visit the Holy Zhi Palace. Regardless of whether she would have agreed to it, it was required of him as a host to be connected with the princess in some ways.


    That b*stard sure has his way of offending people. The princess asked for him to follow her for further training and he refused. The princess came all this way to the Barren State and he didn''t even bother showing up. That is...I want to beat that b*stard up so bad.


    "Why do you see the need to do that, Saint Xia?" Saint Ji jested sarcastically. "He went to wipe out Zhisheng Cliffs and that is something no sage dared to do. And you actually see any use of talking about manners to him?"


    Kong Yao and Saint Zhi sat somewhere with a cold expression. Saint Zhi drank with cold eyes and Kong Yao behaved in a similarly cold manner. His murderous intent shot to the heavens when he caught wind of the news that Ye Futian had wiped Zhisheng Cliffs out. That insignificant punk all those years ago dared pull off something like that?


    "The Holy Zhi Palace was in the middle of a Sacred War and Zhisheng Cliffs was about to join in the fray. Are you saying that the Holy Zhi Palace should have just rolled over without doing anything?" the Moon Saint added calmly.


    Saint Ji turned his very sharp eyes at the Moon Saint and smirked as he answered, "I heard that you sent a girl from your clan into the Holy Zhi Palace as a concubine. What generosity you''ve there indeed. But I seem to recall that he has yet to agree to it."


    Saint Ji was ranked fifth on the Saint Ranking, which meant that he had little need to care about the feelings of anyone else. He did not see anything wrong with taking a jab at the Moon Saint like that.


    The Moon Saint''s face turned cold. Saint Ji did not only take a jab at the Moon saint but also attempted to ruin the relationship between the Yue clan and Ye Futian with just one line.


    "Palace Lord Ye is married and he might have refused the proposal on accounts of the girl''s status as a daughter of the Yue clan. By the way, I''ve heard that Palace Lord Ye and his wife are a match made in heaven who have been through thick and thin together. Maybe he really is that loyal to his wife," the Glass Saint elaborated in good fun. Her smile was dazzlingly beautiful, so much so that the Zhou Sacred King went on to take a good look at her.


    Saint Ji''s expression remained cold. He had no appreciation for beautiful women and the Glass Saint''s charm had little sway over him. He had warned the Glass Saint once and it seemed that the woman paid no heed to his words, getting rather close to Ye Futian instead.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Hearing the conversation between them all, Fengxiao and the others from the Upper Worlds recalled how insufferably arrogant Ye Futian had been at the Jiutian Temple, getting to know the guy who seemed to see himself above everything. He was only an upper-level mage, but even saints split into factions over him. It was no wonder why he had deemed himself peerless in the Nine States, as he was actually that renowned in the Nine States.


    "I heard that Ye Futian of the Barren State is peerless in the Nine States. There are many from holy lands all over the Nine States who were out with the princess for further training and are listed as Heavenly Chosen Ones. Is it true that none of his peers are able to surpass him?" Fengxiao asked.


    Those who had been titled Heavenly Chosen Ones were all there.


    "Peerless in the Nine States?" A voice speaking with an ironic tone was heard. A beautiful woman added, "My husband was one who beat him."


    Fengxiao turned to look at the woman who spoke. It was Zhou Ziyi, the princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, who became Liu Zong''s wife. Liu Zong was sitting right beside Zhou Ziyi.


    Many in the lower portion of the restaurant took a great interest in the conversation. None of those people up there had bothered lowering their volume, and all in Zhongzhou City were able to clearly hear them discussing Ye Futian. They never expected the leader of their Barren State had become someone who was the talk of big shots of both the Lower and Upper Worlds, many of whom were saints. The phenomenon itself was deemed a kind of honor. No common, average folk would have been qualified enough to get talked about like that.


    The people of Zhongzhou City doubted Zhou Ziyi''s claim about Liu Zong being able to beat the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. They knew little of the battles that had taken place in Xihua Sacred Mountain, but it was not like they knew nothing at all. Can Liu Zong actually beat Ye Futian?


    "Is that so?" Fengxiao caught the look of pride in Zhou Ziyi''s eyes. She then turned her eyes to Liu Zong, who was right beside his wife. Liu Zong looked at Fengxiao as well. The woman from the Upper Worlds had a far more striking appearance than his wife. He felt rather surprised at how Fengxiao came to know who Ye Futian was. So even people from the Upper Worlds came to hear about Ye Futian as well?


    "The battle back in Xihua Sacred Mountain was but a friendly match. No wins or loses accounted for." Liu Zong smiled and nodded at Fengxiao, looking rather humble.


    Fengxiao took a look at Liu Zong and said, "Well, that is to mean that you got the upper hand in that battle. If any of his peers are capable of beating him, I could introduce and recommend them to train in Lihen Heaven, the number one force for swordsmanship in Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    If there was someone who was able to defeat that one person, who had been able to make it all the way up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven and completely overwhelm her younger brother in training, Pei Qianying, there was no problem of getting said someone into Lihen Heaven at all.


    Many gasped. The number one force in swordsmanship in Emperor Xia''s Realm, eh? They were rather curious as to why the woman believed in Ye Futian''s powers so firmly. What was it that made her do so. Did she actually witness Ye Futian''s fights? Other than the ones from the Upper Worlds, only Saint Xia and the Glass Saint had an idea as to why.


    Many in the lower portion of the restaurant felt rather antsy after hearing all that but soon felt dejected after the thought of Ye Futian''s fame came to mind. He was one who lived up to his reputation, and Ye Futian was currently a legendary figure throughout the Nine States. There was no way he could have been weak.


    Those people continued to chat away. Sometime later, a group of people came. The one who took the lead looked extraordinarily dashing, catching the eyes of everyone present in an instant. The fame of said person was one that overshadowed even saints in the Nine States.


    Ye Futian took his people from the Holy Zhi Palace there and arrived at the restaurant, before walking up to Xia Qingyuan and cupping his hands. "Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. Greetings, princess."


    As Xia Qingyuan had come all the way as a princess, he, as a palace lord, was naturally required to come and greet her. With even Saint Xia getting someone to fetch him, there was simply no reason for him not to show up.


    Saint Xia, who was watching from the side, felt very much like beating him up for being so carefree and nonchalant.


    Is it so hard to just bow to the princess?

 947 Entering the Imperial Mausoleum

    Xia Qingyuan glared at the youth who was standing not far away. He had refused her invitation twice, and now, he had only cupped his hands and greeted her in a nonchalant manner. In both the Lower and Upper Worlds, not even saints would behave as flippantly as he did with her.


    Fengxiao of Lihen Heaven''s eyes narrowed and glared at Ye Futian as well. None whom she had seen around during her training at Lihen Heaven had been anyone less than an extremely formidable figure. However, Ye Futian had definitely been the most prideful of all that she had seen. He had been throwing his weight around at the Jiutian Temple''s Ninth Layer of Heaven and crippled Pei Qianying.


    Some swordsmen from Lihen Heaven at Fengxiao''s side looked on with daring gazes. None of them bothered to conceal the sword wills shooting out of their eyes, and they apparently resented him for what happened at Jiutian Temple. Other than that, everyone from the holy lands throughout the Nine States all turned to look at Ye Futian. Some snickered while some wore a bitter smile deep down. This fellow is really stubborn, proud *sshole.


    However, there was no other like Ye Futian throughout the vast Nine States.


    "Ye Futian, the imperial mausoleum appeared within the Barren State''s territory. The princess and all saints from the Nine States are here, yet you, as a host, simply throw your weight around, showing up only after I sent someone to look for you." Seeing how Xia Qingyuan was saying nothing while Ye Futian simply stood and looked at him, Saint Xia cursed under his breath and had to say something to break the awkward silence.


    "You''re being too kind, Saint Xia. It is due precisely to the imperial mausoleum appearing and that the princess and every one of the saints are here that I dare not join the fray in order to avoid any misunderstandings. So I thought it''d be best that I stay out of this and let the princess take it," Ye Futian said.


    "..." Saint Xia looked at Ye Futian, gasping in fright. What is this sh*thead up to now?


    Xia Qingyuan glared at Ye Futian with cold eyes. Let me take it?


    Everyone else snickered as they looked at Ye Futian. While the saints who had appeared looked to be on amicable terms with each other, and all seemed to look as if they would simply let the princess take everything within the ruins, not daring to fight her over anything, in truth, everyone had their own thoughts about what was inside. They simply did not want to burst the bubble like that. However, Ye Futian simply spoke his mind, telling everyone that while he had thoughts, Xia Qingyuan was the princess and that he dared not fight her.


    Is he trying to retreat for the sake of advancing here?


    Does he think that the princess is stupid?


    Xia Qingyuan knew well that Ye Futian was simply agitating her.


    "If you can get into the imperial mausoleum and take whatever without me noticing, whatever you take shall be yours." Xia Qingyuan''s voice sounded cold and aloof. She knew Ye Futian deliberately said what he said, yet she simply played along. However, in the eyes of all who were present, she was just as prideful as Ye Futian was.


    "I dare not do so," Ye Futian replied loudly.


    "Is there anything you dare not do?" Xia Qingyuan jabbed sarcastically at him.


    "In that case, I sincerely thank you for your generosity, princess," Ye Futian said while Saint Xihua and the Zhou Sacred King glanced at Ye Futian with cold eyes.


    Ye Futian behaved in an extremely disrespectful manner to the princess. However, the princess, who was just as arrogant, wanted to play his game nonetheless. It became apparent that Ye Futian''s bold and haughty personality left quite an impression on the princess.


    Ye Futian excused himself and greeted Saint Xia, Saint Li, and other seniors. Saint Xia glared ferociously at him. This *sshole really knows no bounds. He actually dared play the princess like that.


    The Glass Saint, who was at the side, looked at Ye Futian with a smile and said to him telepathically, "Some guts you''ve got. But if you were to truly enter the imperial mausoleum, it''d be more than just between you and her. Many here came specifically for you after all. Getting in there won''t be as easy as you think."


    Ye Futian looked up at the Glass Saint and nodded with a smile. He then replied telepathically, "Thank you, sister Glass Saint, for the reminder. I''ll be careful. But with the princess around, even if someone were to actually do something, they wouldn''t dare to do it themselves and break the rules."


    "What did you call me?" The Glass Saint was caught by surprise by how Ye Futian addressed her. She looked at Ye Futian with an intrigued expression. This kid is really getting more and more out of line just because he is now familiar with me. He actually calls me "sister." Like the princess herself put it, is there anything this fellow won''t do?


    "Well, you''re like a goddess, Glass Saint, soft-spoken and able to put people at ease all the time. I find it weird to keep addressing you as elder or senior, and ''sister'' sounds better. If you happen to find this to be out of place, I shall address you as ''elder'' or ''senior'' going forward," Ye Futian replied telepathically.


    The Glass Saint looked at Ye Futian with a smile. This fellow is not only extremely talented in cultivation, but is really, really good with words as well.


    Ye Futian''s explanation simply made it impossible for her to chastise him for it, and it seemed that "sister" did indeed sound better.


    The Glass Saint glared at Ye Futian but did not berate him. Ye Futian knew what that meant and smiled. With that, their relationship had gotten somewhat closer. Calling her "senior Glass Saint" did make it sound like they were strangers after all.


    Seeing the Glass Saint flashing such a brilliant smile, the Sacred King traced her line of sight and found Ye Futian. It was apparent that both of them were conversing telepathically.


    The Sacred King''s eyes turned extremely cold, shooting pointed, unconcealed murderous intent at Ye Futian. The beef between him and Ye Futian was very serious.


    Ye Futian naturally noticed the Sacred King''s eyes and returned a look at him, looking indifferent. It was not the first day that the Sacred King thought about killing him. If the Sacred King was permitted to do so, he would not have had hesitated to end Ye Futian right on the spot.


    Hua Jieyu smiled and stepped on her husband''s foot as if to remind the guy that his wife was right by his side.


    A figure was seen descending onto the restaurant, arriving beside Xia Qingyuan. He said in a low voice, "Princess, the perilous aura lingers, similar to tying something with a steel rope across the river and sealing the whole place down. It works like a matrix and we probably cannot live until the aura is dispersed. However, the perilous aura is a hollow one. The aura within the place is not that strong. The people from Dali are about to enter the imperial mausoleum."


    Xia Qingyuan took a look at the place far away before standing up. She had a slender body and her skin was as white as snow. Her face impeccably chiseled yet looked very cold. She flashed and left the restaurant quickly, heading for the imperial mausoleum.


    If even Li Yao of the Dali Dynasty was getting ready to enter the mausoleum, there was no way that she could have stayed behind any longer. They were at Emperor Xia''s Realm and Li Yao came all the way there despite knowing that his chances were slim. That meant that he intended to simply get in there before anyone else. If it was something that Li Yao dared to do, it would not have been something that she would shirk from.


    As Xia Qingyuan took her leave, one figure after another took to the air, heading for the imperial mausoleum. They all wore solemn looks and it was apparent that they knew what was about to happen.


    The imperial mausoleum was Renhuang Ruins, which meant that it harbored thousands of possibilities. No one knew what they would be up against. They knew that the perilous aura was capable of reducing holy items to dust, a testament of its ferocity.


    Many came outside the imperial mausoleum soon enough. They all saw slivers of the perilous aura hanging in the air before them, coalescing into an extremely frightening perilous light in the air, shrouding the mausoleum like a city. Likening the scene to something being bound with a steel rope, held across a river, as the imperial mausoleum was cut off from air around it. However, the perilous aura dwindled considerably at lower ground, as if most of it had coalesced in midair. It was a truly baffling and peculiar phenomenon.


    The mighty ones from the Dali Dynasty had entered the mausoleum. What was terrifying was, however, that once they stepped into the place, the armored soldiers within the mausoleum seemed to have come alive, blocking their way. It was apparent that it was not easy to enter the imperial mausoleum.


    "A mystical sight indeed. So is this mausoleum army all going to come alive or something?" Ye Futian asked as he saw what was happening in the mausoleum. Huang Xi and Huang Jiuge looked with solemn expressions. All of that within was left behind by their ancestors.


    "Puppet Guardians," the Glass Saint, who was not far away, said. It was truly mystical indeed, as one would have expected from someone like Renhuang.


    Ye Futian turned around and took a look at the Glass Saint. There were a few more people behind her. He knew Goddess Qingni, yet there was another whose appearance rivaled Goddess Qingni''s. She was dressed in plain clothes and had brows like a crescent moon. She exuded a plain, cold air about her. It was as if it was something she was born with.


    "What are you looking at, Palace Lord Ye?" The Glass Saint smiled and said, "Sister Glass Saint, does the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple consist only of goddesses?"


    Many sported peculiar expressions after hearing Ye Futian addressing the Glass Saint as "Sister Glass Saint." Many saints around them turned around to look at Ye Futian. He actually called her that?


    Even Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian with an amused expression. He apparently was not afraid of anything, daring to address the saint like that. It seemed that he had addressed her in such a manner during the telepathic conversation they had earlier. He had only dared to do so in public because the Glass Saint did not chastise him.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Greetings, Palace Lord Ye, my name is Yuechan," the woman beside the Glass Saint said to Ye Futian.


    "Yuechan." Ye Futian sported a puzzled expression as he recalled a name on the Sage and Saint Rankings. Jiang Yuechan of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, the eldest student of the Glass Saint.


    "You''re welcomed, Goddess Yuechan," Ye Futian returned the courtesy while taking a good look at her, before turning his eyes away and focusing on the imperial mausoleum.


    "Let''s get inside." Xia Qingyuan''s voice was heard as she stepped inside the mausoleum right away. Li Yao and his men were already inside the place. There was no way they could have just stayed outside any longer.


    Xia Qingyuan stepped into the mausoleum first and everyone followed suit. They felt the dangerous aura everywhere as soon as they stepped into the place. The air above seemed to have been completely sealed off, and there was probably no one who could have descended from above.


    The imperial mausoleum, which looked like an ancient city, had an entrance at the front like city gates. Puppets lined up there, guarding the place. Every single one of those puppets exuded perilous aura in different levels, making them incredibly formidable.


    "Let''s go." Xia Qingyuan took the lead and did not bother having anyone scout ahead, walking straight inside without fear. The puppets shot straight at her, exuding terrifying aura and lashing out with the spears in their hands at her. The violent aura burst as they launched at her.


    Xia Qingyuan felt that their aura did not seem all that strong. She simply pointed with one finger. The burst of power felt like the rivers of heaven had reversed its flow and turned into a terrifying torrent, tearing the perilous aura into shreds and bombarding the puppets.


    Boom. A loud boom was heard and the puppets exploded, showing how powerful one simple strike from Xia Qingyuan had been. There were guardians behind Xia Qingyuan, who, naturally, would not allow her to be injured.


    Seeing how the princess made her move, everyone came forward. Ye Futian did the same and entered the mausoleum with everyone else. Saint Zhi and Kong Yao followed behind Ye Futian. Many mighty ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty kept a close eye on him as they entered.

 948 Zhou Sacred King and the Glass Sain

    Ye Futian naturally saw Saint Zhi and the others. With the ongoing Sacred War, if they were able to get anything from the imperial mausoleum, those people definitely would not hesitate to kill him there.


    To those people, it was a chance like none other.


    He spent most of his time training in the Holy Zhi Palace and the place had matrixes laid everywhere. If anyone wanted to attack the place, it would have been far more difficult than moving against him in the mausoleum.


    The mighty ones from the Barren State surrounded Ye Futian, apparently guarding him against the ones from the three holy lands.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian moved forward. There were many puppets coming at them in the mausoleum and they seemed to have come alive as soon as they stepped into the place.


    Qin Zhuang and the others stood at the front armed with swords. The puppets were cut down by space tears from the swords. However, Qin Zhuang then said, "The place was put under lockdown by the perilous aura, making it an independent space completely cut off from the outside."


    Ye Futian nodded as he felt so as well. The upper part of the mausoleum was filled with perilous aura, cutting them off from the outside world and affecting their powers. Cultivators used their powers by communicating and resonating with the power of their surroundings. If they were unable to do so, they would be forced to rely on the stock within their bodies to do so. While the skills used might be just as powerful, it was incredibly taxing and their powers would be severely weakened. Those who did not train in martial arts would be affected even further, as their spiritual powers were rendered almost useless.


    "Conserve your powers and let the martial artists attack," Ye Futian said. Qin Zhuang and Yuan Hong opened the path for the others. Sword flashes cut down every obstacle while Yuan Hong''s golden body stepped through the air with overbearing might, toppling everything in its path and putting down countless puppets.


    At that moment, there were saints absorbing the powers of their surroundings in a frenzy, like a whale. Terrifying storms of spiritual qi whipped up in the mausoleum as they attempted to hog all of the spiritual qi within for themselves. It was apparent that the saints also found that the limitations imposed by the mausoleum had affected their powers as well.


    Spiritual qi within the thousand-mile wide mausoleum reversed as they were absorbed by the saints, making the spiritual qi concentration within the place increasingly thin. Many had trouble even sensing the presence of spiritual qi, making it immensely difficult for invoking the powers of their surroundings. A lot of mighty ones felt out of place in such an environment.


    They looked up at the golden space within perilous aura ebbing. It felt a boat being affixed in the middle of a river by steel ropes. The great sealing matrix-like construct sealed the imperial mausoleum within.


    Ye Futian felt rather dejected and thought it was a pity not having his teacher around. It would have been a considerable edge for them if his teacher, who had achieved sainthood through considerable martial and physical feats, were in there with them.


    Boom. At that moment, Ye Futian''s body worked like running thunder, throwing a punch at a puppet and destroying it as he continued to press forward, sprinting within the imperial mausoleum. He was not the only one to do so. All of the mighty ones were moving incredibly quickly without stopping. The puppets out to get in their way stood no chance of stopping them. However, the puppets that came had gotten increasingly powerful. There was a terrifying storm of will coming at them from the front at the moment.


    Xia Qingyuan and her people were the fastest as they arrived at a flatland somewhere at the front. There was a golden staircase at the forefront and there was already a silhouette standing at the top. It was a huge puppet holding a spear, whipping up terrifying storms around it and coming at the crowd beneath. Terrifying illusions appeared around them and an army of puppets came down at them. There were even golden carriages on a rampage.


    The huge puppet seemed like a general of an army of thousands.


    Huang Xi saw the scene before him and clenched his fists. Despite his training level, his eyes were red. That was the method that they, the Sovereign family, trained in. Its power was immense in the hands of their ancestors, so much so that even when they were buried in the mausoleum, their will still reached the heavens and remained intact throughout the ages. Be it saints or sages, they all had to halt before such powers.


    Li Yao and his people moved forward slowly at the front. A middle-aged man held a long blade in his hand, drawing straight sword gash in the air. However, the immense will of the heavens remained unfettered, forcing them to move on foot one step at a time.


    Ye Futian and the others naturally felt the terrifying force of the martial will. Furthermore, the stronger one''s training was, the greater the force felt. Sages and saints were all halted and forced to move forward slowly. He sensed the immense will sweeping about and stood before Hua Jieyu and slowly stepped forward. Despite being pressured by the immense martial will, he remained unmoved. One puppet after another crashed at him and they crumbled one after another.


    Huang Jiuge was at his side, casting similar martial will as he moved forward, feeling the rush deep in his mind. He wondered if he would ever see the day where he would have be able to command armies with only his will, stopping all manner of saints and sages in their tracks.


    Boom. A stifling rumble was heard and Ye Futian felt his heart race. Someone from the Holy Zhi Palace was seen spitting blood. Their face ashen and their steps completely halted.


    That mighty one from the Holy Zhi Palace was a sage from the Battle Sage Palace and had considerable power. They were attacked by someone standing not far away from where they stood.


    It was none other than Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs, a sage ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking.


    Kong Yao was clad in divine implement armor and emanated terrifying martial rules will. He brought unparalleled offensive powers to bear with every step he took while resisting the storm as if a divine elephant had stomped on the ground. The mighty ones from all over the Barren State stopped, their expressions extremely cold.


    One who was ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking was not someone to be trifled with. The Sword Saint had only been able to fight toe-to-toe with him back then by cranking his powers to the pinnacle by using the demonic blade. Presently, Kong Yao was still confident that no one would be able to stand against him if it was a one-on-one fight. In the imperial mausoleum, matrix powers were difficult to conjure, and as such, it was the perfect timing to attack.


    Kong Yao was not alone. Three formidable sages of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty ranked on the Sage Ranking��Zhou Mian, Zhou Huang, and Nie Gai��had all closed in on Ye Futian and his people, ready to kill him on the spot. Other than them, the ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain made their move as well. They were Zhong Kui��a sage who ranked among the top 20 of the Sage Ranking��and Li Daoqiu��an immense talented talent whose importance in the Xihua Sacred Mountain was second only to Liu Zong.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain had three figures ranked on the Sage Ranking before, but the Rain Saint had been able to achieve sainthood in the Battle of Proving Holiness in the Upper Worlds, giving birth to the third saint of Xihua Sacred Mountain. As such, there was one more saint of theirs on the Saint Ranking while one less sage on the Sage Ranking.


    It was truly the first time Xihua Sacred Mountain acted against the people of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. They apparently did not bother concealing their motives anymore. The razing of Zhisheng Cliffs by Ye Futian''s men was a testament to the man''s ferocity. If he was not taken out soon, it would be too late when he became far more powerful. With how things were presently, even if the ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain were to do nothing against him, they would have already earned his ire all the same.


    With six sages ranked on the Sage Ranking of the Nine States and other top-notch figures present at the same time, it became apparent that they intended to finish off Ye Futian and his men as soon as they entered the imperial mausoleum and save them of further troubles.


    The Moon Saint said as everyone saw what happened, "Today is the day where the princess brought us all in to explore the imperial mausoleum. What are Saint Xihua and the Sacred King trying to do here?"Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "The princess has long known of the feud between us, so we''ll just let the young ones duke it out. We''ll just keep pressing forward," Saint Xihua said plainly and continued to move in the storm, not batting an eye at the battles taking place at his rear.


    Xia Qingyuan did not turn her eyes in their direction and she kept pressing forward. She had little concern over the feud between the Nine States'' holy lands. The Sword Saint, Qin Zhuang, Yuan Hong, and many other mighty ones halted their steps and walked to the rear. In a space where everyone was taking on immense pressure, no one expected their enemy to make a move at that time. People of somewhat weaker training were unable to fight in such a state. If they were attacked during such a time, they would probably die.


    As such, both Saint Xihua and the Sacred King mobilized the best of their forces, as they were very much needed on this trip. Those who were with Ye Futian in the mausoleum were the absolute elite forces within the Holy Zhi Palace. They consisted of the most powerful of sages in their holy land.


    "Continue pressing forward, little brother," the Sword Saint said. His blade was drawn and demonic will was activated, sweeping the sealed space about them. Demonic light shot forth and manifested as terrifying blade will, heading towards the mighty ones. Other than him, Yang Xiao, Qin Zhuang, and some top-notch figures stopped as well, turning to face the top forces from both Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It was an enemy they had to deal with right there and then.


    "Where are you going?" Some other mighty ones walked out as well. There were many formidable mighty ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty present.


    "Three holy lands joining hands against one Holy Zhi Palace. Some expense indeed," the Moon Saint said plainly, then said to Yue Jiangliu and the others, "Stay behind and see what the sages of Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Dynasty are capable of."


    "Will do." Yue Jiangliu nodded. Another group of mighty ones emerged and joined the fight. Mighty ones from the Yue clan were assassinated in the Barren State and their true culprit had yet to be found. As such, they saw fit to join the fray and see what would happen.


    "Thank you, senior," Ye Futian said to the Moon Saint. Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King looked rather glum.


    "The Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple is a holy land of the Eastern State as well. Get down there and test your mettle," the Glass Saint said to her people. Many mighty ones from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple moved forward and joined the fray.


    Three holy lands��the Yue clan, the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple and the Holy Zhi Palace��joined hands, and both the opposing holy lands lost their edge altogether. Zhisheng Cliffs only had Kong Yao left after all. However, Jiang Yuechan, who was beside the Glass Saint, had no intention of making a move, sticking close to the Glass Saint.


    "Thank you, sister Glass Saint," Ye Futian smiled and said. With the help of the other two holy lands, their powers were more than even to that of their enemies.


    "Boosting your powers forcefully through reversed demonic means, eh? I''ll see how powerful you''ve gotten compared to all those years ago." Kong Yao stepped forward and his divine elephant stomped the ground, bringing immense pressure to the Sword Saint.


    The Sword Saint was wrapped in an intense demonic blade. He lifted his demonic blade and burst with a tremendous blade will, cutting down the shadow of the divine elephant coming at him.


    "Big brother and seniors, be careful," Ye Futian said as he continued pressing forward. The Imperial Mausoleum Map was clear in his mind and they had yet to reach the center of the mausoleum. The Yue clan and the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple joined hands, so the battles would not have been much a problem. As such, he had to keep up with the others from the other holy lands. He accelerated all of a sudden, tearing through the pressing martial will. The puppets were sent flying from his immense speed.


    The saints walked in the front. The Zhou Sacred King turned his eyes to the Glass Saint by his side, saying, "You know, the position of queen of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty has remained open for you. Why do you need to hold what happened all those years ago against me?"


    The Glass Saint continued to wear a plain, warm smile as she turned her eyes to the Sacred King. Her words were like blades. "Zhou Zhiming, I won''t rest until you''re dead."


    The Sacred King looked at the most beautiful face in the Eastern State and said, "I built the Lapis Lazuli Palace at my place specifically for you."


    The Glass Saint''s eyes turned even colder and the cold emanating from her was frightening. Those around them looked at the two saints and thought that they finally dropped their facade!

 949 Inner Demon

    All from the Nine States had heard of the Sacred King''s infatuation with the Glass Saint and that he had been chasing after her since young. However, the true feud between both figures was only known to the older generations who had been training for a long time, as well as people of the Eastern State. It went all the way back to the decline of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the rise of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple seemed to be on friendly terms and had maintained peace for many years. In actuality, however, the relations between the holy lands of the Nine States were rather peculiar and complicated. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had been the absolute force in all of the Eastern State once upon a time. The rise of both Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple had taken considerable influence from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. There was no way that there was no beef between them. However, their temperaments as saints were exceptional. No one would have been able to guess what was really going on when all of them sat at the same table. But then again, with the ongoing Sacred War, the old scores were dug out as well.


    The alliance between Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty involved terms regarding the Glass Saint. The two forces were move against the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. They would not have yielded the Holy Zhi Palace to Zhisheng Cliffs just like that otherwise. All three holy lands had their own agendas, and the Zhou Sacred King''s involved the Glass Saint and the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple.


    Similarly, the Glass Saint had chosen to turn against the Zhou Sacred King and take Ye Futian''s side not only because she admired Ye Futian''s talents. She was doing it because she knew well that if the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State were to fall under the alliance of the three holy lands, the Zhou Sacred King would come for her next. It was not just a year or two that the Sacred King had been eyeing her.


    Many had little idea of what happened in the Eastern State a very long time ago, and they stared at the two saints with puzzled eyes. The two saints, who stood at the pinnacle of the Eastern State, turned hostile against each other in an instant, and the language used was extremely unflinching and pointed.


    The Sacred King said that he had built a Lapis Lazuli Palace within the royal palace of the Sacred Dynasty, specifically for the Glass Saint, while the Glass said that she would not rest until the Sacred King was dead. The ones around them were puzzled as to what that meant.


    Ye Futian shot a puzzled look at their direction as well, and came to realize something. The Barren State had been isolated from the Nine States for too long to know much about what happened in the Eastern State. It was something that not even the elders of the Barren State would have known, and there was no way Ye Futian would have known as well.


    He only heard that the Zhou Sacred King has had a thing for the number one beauty of the Eastern State��the Glass Saint��for a long time, and that it had been so since they were young.


    The Glass Saint''s expression turned even colder after hearing that the Sacred King had built her a Lapis Lazuli Palace in the royal palace, losing all the warmth and beauty that she usually had. She exuded intense murderous intent and her hair billowed. An extremely cold will burst from her as she stepped forward, freezing her surroundings, seemingly about to freeze the perilous aura in the imperial mausoleum as well. She did not tangle with the Sacred King any further and continued to move forward.


    The mighty ones led by Xia Qingyuan and Li Yao at the forefront rushed at the huge puppet at the top of the stairs at the moment. A flash of sword seemingly shot out of nowhere and a strike from the palm blocking the sky, heading straight for the huge puppet, destroying it. The sweeping pressure disappeared in an instant, and all straightened themselves up as they moved.


    The Sacred King walked beside the Glass Saint and did not care about the coldness being exuded from her. He intended to walk abreast with her. He then said, "I know that it is hard for you to put what happened all those years ago behind us and it affected your thoughts. I, too, have never forgotten you all these years. If you''re able to let go of your obsession and become my queen, we will be able to reach further heights by training together. You and me once stood at the top of Eastern State and we were known to be a match made in heaven. I, Zhou Zhiming, reigned supreme among a generation in the Eastern State, and you were the only one who was able to stand by my side. Many wished for us to become a couple like none other."


    The disgust within the Glass Saint''s cold eyes was even more intense than it had been before. She was born into a renowned clan of the Eastern State, and she reigned supreme in both talent and appearance. The lord of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple had held her in great regard when she was young, taking her into the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple and making her a personal student. It had been something that shook the Eastern State all those years ago.


    She had been engaged back then, and her fiance had been an extremely well-known genius as well. Their families had been friends for generations and it seemed that they were truly a match made in heaven. But then again, while they might have been of great renown, they still paled in comparison to the prince of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, who was known everywhere��Zhou Zhiming.


    The Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple''s lord intended to take her as a personal student after she became famous, and that attracted Zhou Zhiming''s attention. He began to pursue her madly after he first saw her, asking for her hand in marriage from her family, intending to make her his queen. However, the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was actually at odds with the lord of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple back then. Their feud ran very deep. The very reason why the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had taken notice of her was because of said feud as well. Under such circumstances, there was no way she would have agreed to the proposal. In order to avoid further trouble, she and her family had decided to get things over with quickly by getting the wedding over with and having her marrying her fiance.


    She was in her wedding attire that day and she looked absolutely stunning. She had great hopes for the future. While she did not exactly like her fiance in that way, their families had been good friends for generations, and as such, she did not resent the arrangement. Furthermore, she was to enter the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple to train after the wedding. However, she had not expected that day to be her nightmare.


    She was taken away from her family by the ones who were there to pick her up for the wedding, yet she entered the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty instead of her fiance''s home. Her fiance and the family that her family had been friends with for generations sold her to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    She still remembered the time when Zhou Zhiming was all high and mighty in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and bestowed her with the title of her would-be queen in the future, promising her great wealth and intended to marry her. Her response was simply to take one of the dowry that her family had prepared for her��a divine implement��and thrust it into her heart, refusing to suffer such humiliation and chose death instead.


    It was fortunate for her that her teacher heard of the news and crashed into the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty demanding her returning, taking her away right in front of Zhou Zhiming''s father back to the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. She was revived and she lived. However, while she lived, her family, including the guests, guards and subordinates��over 3000 of them��were killed, dying at the hands of the Golden Phoenix Armies'' hands. None of them from her family survived except one woman: the servant girl that accompanied her when she was married. Said servant girl was none other than Jiang Yuechan, the mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking, who was at her side.


    When her training bore solid fruit in later days, she took Jiang Yuechan with her and eliminated her former fiance''s family. She cut down the head of her former fiance without any mercy. In the days that followed, she became the Glass Saint that she was known as in the present day.


    "The incident that happened back then caused the lives of both my father and your teacher. Two of the greatest figures of the Eastern State perished in a clash of the titans battle. Wouldn''t that be enough to put the feud we had behind us?" The Sacred King looked calm as he continued, "Furthermore, you wanted me dead back then and severed my path to sainthood, causing me to break into the Saint Plane tens of years later. You almost killed mem, yet did I ever blame you for that?"Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Get lost," the Glass Saint said coldly. Her body turned as cold as frost after being reminded by Zhou Zhiming of their past. She was not naive enough to think that someone like Zhou Zhiming had truly been obsessed over her out of love. He was only doing it because she had refused his advances many times back then. Her utter refusal to submit to him hit the unparalleled genius who had been titled "crown prince" at a very young age. It all led to her family being slaughtered. It was all a testament to his determination to see what he set out to do done and that no one shall stand in his way.


    She had once got in the way of him attaining sainthood and she had also almost ended up killing him several times. Zhou Zhiming probably came to fear her more than he loved her. She knew very well that to Zhou Zhiming, she was but an obsession; an obsession he would never be able to truly rid himself of.


    If she had actually agreed to his proposal, moving into the Lapis Lazuli Palace of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and becoming his woman, his wish would have been fulfilled and his head cleared by then. As he came to possess her, he would have cut her down soon after. Zhou Zhiming was her inner demon, and in the same vein, she was, too, Zhou Zhiming''s inner demon.


    She was unable to truly rest until Zhou Zhiming ended up dead.


    Zhou Zhiming''s expression turned cold after hearing her scornful word. He, who was still in the air, turned to shoot a cold stare at Ye Futian, who was not far away. He said, "Do you think you''ll be able to take me on just by participating in this Sacred War? Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State? He will be dead before long and your wish of driving a wedge in how things are now, it will be nothing more than a dream. It''s truly a pity that you, the number beauty in the Eastern State, one that will remain stunning even when compared to the rest of the Nine States, and furthermore, extremely talented, will have to lower yourself to get along with a runt. Are you really thinking of borrowing his power to achieve your goal?


    "He can hardly keep himself alive and the saints of the Holy Zhi Palace are nowhere to be found. How will you get out of the predicament you find yourself in now?" the Sacred King said coldly. In another direction, Saint Xihua slowed down as well, and many felt something was about to happen. Are the two saints really getting ready to take on the Glass Saint right here in the imperial mausoleum?


    The Sacred King''s eyes were incredibly intense as he took a look at Ye Futian. "Sister Glass Saint?" Don''t make me laugh.


    Ye Futian naturally sensed the Sacred King''s eyes on him and heard their conversation. Apparently, the feud between the Zhou Sacred King and the Glass Saint ran deeper than he had expected. Hua Jieyu had once joked that the Sacred King would suffer an emotional trauma so terrifying that it would ruin his training if Ye Futian could actually make the Glass Saint his. Ye Futian had thought it to be little more than a joke. But from the way things looked at the moment, it seemed to be something that might actually happen.


    The Sacred King seemed determined to make the Glass Saint his, one way or another. That was something that he had kept well hidden and did not show in his daily facade. As for the sarcastic jab from the Sacred King, Ye Futian hardly took it to heart and he felt next to nothing about it.


    "Zhou Zhiming," Ye Futian smiled and said, "Sacred King, you really have one hell of an imposing name. But I wonder if you''re really living up to it?"


    The Sacred King turned his eyes to Ye Futian. His eyes were filled with murderous intent, as if he was looking at a dead man. If it had not been for the presence of Xia Qingyuan and the people from other holy lands, he might have actually snapped and ended Ye Futian right there and then. Saint Zhi looked rather pathetic in comparison, as he was really reluctant to do anything substantial.


    "So, are the leaders of two holy lands today are going to gang up on a girl?" Ye Futian saw Saint Xihua and the Sacred King at the Glass Saint''s flanks, as if they were having her surrounded. He did not expect the two to actually be so brutal, getting down to business right there in the imperial mausoleum.


    Both Saint Xihua and the Sacred King were of a higher rank than the Glass Saint on the Saint Ranking. If both of them were to act against her at the same time, she would definitely be at a severe disadvantage.


    "Since when do I need to heed your opinion about my way of going about things?" Saint Xihua took a look at Ye Futian and said coldly, "Although Emperor Xia declared that saints are forbidden to move against people below the Saint Plane, if someone actively provokes the saints, then I guess Emperor Xia will be able to understand what happens afterward."


    They were already on bad terms with each other and there was no need for facades. If the Glass Saint was determined to get herself into this, then they would simply ally themselves and take on the Glass Saint, showing decisiveness like none other!

 950 Setting the Trap

    The power of pressure brought on by the two great saints was terrible. Even if their strengths were constrained inside the imperial mausoleum, the power of the saints was still pressing down in this space. Ye Futian cast a glimpse at Saint Xihua. It was unexpected that some of the accumulated grievances would now explode within this imperial mausoleum.


    A sword appeared in the hand of the Glass Saint. The sword was cold, like the moon in winter, seemingly capable of freezing anyone''s soul. At this moment, all the gentleness and kindness had gone out of the eyes of the Glass Saint. There was only coldness remaining, warning strangers not to get close.


    It was as if this was the other side of Glass Saint.


    Many saints in the Nine States only knew that the Glass Saint cultivated in ice affinity but did not know that she was also an expert in swords.


    "Love Destroyer." Great Zhou Sacred King glanced at the sword in the hand of the Glass Saint. It was with this sacred sword that the Glass Saint chopped off the head of her betrothed. The name of the sword was Love Destroyer. It could hack away all emotions. Moreover, it could hack away the law.


    She did not look at Great Zhou Sacred King or Saint Xihua but continued to move forward, sword in hand, seemingly without fear, facing the two saints who ranked above her.


    Upon the body of Great Zhou Sacred King, the illusion of a Golden Phoenix appeared. It was as if it had melded with his body, surrounded by holy light as the dazzling golden radiance flowed, augmenting the body of this Golden Phoenix until it had covered the sky, creating the Jiutian Sacred Phoenix. Even if they were limited by the rules of the Imperial mausoleums, the saints were born of the rules of the Great Path and were a law onto themselves.


    Raising his hand, Great Zhou Sacred King slammed in the direction of the Glass Saint, and the Jiutian Sacred Phoenix screamed as it flew out to attack. A radiant light appeared between heaven and earth, aiming at the seemingly frail body of the Glass Saint.


    In the hand of the Glass Saint, the Love Destroyer was unleashed to cut off strands of love and emotions and to cut off the Great Path. There was a silvery-white light, frosty and cold, appearing in the space and slicing through the shadow of the Jiutian Sacred Phoenix. The momentum headed toward Great Zhou Sacred King''s majestic and authoritative body.


    Great Zhou Sacred King sent out another palm strike and blocked the blade of light, but he faintly felt that the sacred sword had directly entered into his mind, cutting off his spiritual will and breaking the path of his cultivation. Back then, he could have entered the Saint Plane decades earlier, but he was stopped by the Glass Saint, who had hacked away the basis of his sacred path, intending on obstructing his path to sainthood.


    After what she had experienced, the Glass Saint was no longer as gentle as she normally appeared but was extremely determined and resilient in her heart. Everything she had done was to one day lead to his demise.


    The two broke out in an immense battle, and, in a moment, caused a terrible storm in the space. Many cultivators retreated. Even though the two were suppressing their true strengths, the rippling effect of the battle was still frightening. However, those inside the imperial mausoleum were not common characters themselves.


    The speed of the group did not stop as they were moving forward, and they were extremely fast. Even in the midst of battle, Great Zhou Sacred King and Glass Saint were battling and moving at the same time.


    In front of the Imperial mausoleum, there was an ancient temple that was three stories high. In front of the ancient temple, there were two statue-like puppets guarding on each side. Above the ancient temple, there was also an enormous golden bell that was extremely radiant all over. The bell kept spinning, releasing brilliant rays like a Renhuang bell.


    Underneath the ancient temple, there were countless puppets, like an army guarding the place. In front of them, there was a huge space occupied by a pattern of the Eight Trigrams, like a matrix, and this pattern was the only gateway to the ancient temple.


    Xia Qingyuan, Li Yao and the others walked straight forward and followed the formation of the matrix, intending on stepping into the ancient temple of the imperial mausoleum. However, the two puppets stood there guarding the left and the right, like gods from heaven. The middle-aged scribe, who was next to Li Yao, was holding the sword that could split the heaven and earth. He hacked toward at puppets that had moved to the middle to block their way.


    The sword fell, and the sword that could cut through the void did not split the puppets apart. The two puppets were surrounded by a perilous aura that subtly turned into armor. They raised their hands and slammed toward the middle-aged scribe. Out of the sky, giant handprints fell down, and the middle-aged scribe felt a huge threat, and his body moved backward rapidly. But the handprint seemed to follow him like his shadow, covering the sky. He let out a scream, and his body spun and instantly released three thousand blades of light. Among the vast world, only this sword seemed to exist.


    Bang! A loud noise was heard, and the arms of the two puppets came down with destructive sword light. The middle-aged scribe felt that something was amiss and morphed his body into the sword, rapidly retreating.


    Another violent sound came out, and the body of the middle-aged scribe was struck down. With a shrill scream, he fell to the ground. His legs had been pierced through by the perilous aura and were eaten bit by bit into nothingness. It was an extremely wretched scene.


    The two puppets then separated, one on each side, still guarding the antiquities inside the imperial mausoleum.


    Glass Saint and Great Zhou Sacred King were still in battle, the two being equal in strength, erupting into an even fiercer battle. Just then, a terrible aura was exuded from Saint Xihua.


    "Watch out," Ye Futian called out in caution, and just as his voice faded, Saint Xihua finally made his move. His speed was extremely fast. The moment when he made his move, he turned into partial shadows, and his radiant body descended behind Glass Saint. The imperial mausoleum had limited their power of the Great Path, so an attack up close was the most suitable strategy.


    A terrible suffocating pressure descended, and at this moment, the Glass Saint could only feel the violent beating of her heart, and it was difficult to breathe. In her spiritual will, the figure of Saint Xihua had even appeared.


    Her left hand reached out and hit behind her. Heaven and the earth were frozen, and everything was turning into ice. But Saint Xihua still dealt his blow, using his palm, without any hesitation. Thousands of palm prints overlapped and forcibly shattered the power of the ice. At this moment, Glass Saint felt her insides shatter, and with a muffled sound, she spat out a mouthful of blood. As her sword slashed downward, Great Zhou Sacred King was forced back and his body flew back, leveraging the attack of Saint Xihua.


    There were stains of blood at the corner of her mouth, and her long black hair was slightly disheveled. With her iciness at this moment, the Glass Saint appeared to exude a sense of abject beauty.


    Many people around them thought that Saint Xihua was truly malevolent. In spite of his own reputation, he would join in the attack with the Great Zhou Sacred King and had seized the opportunity for a strike.


    "Glass Saint, Great Zhou Sacred King has loved you for many years. If you agree to marry into the Great Zhou Dynasty as a Sacred Queen, it could be a beautiful thing." Saint Xihua looked at the Glass Saint while she looked as calm as undisturbed water. Her slender hand stretched out with sword in hand, but her slight body stood firm. A few strands of long hair around her forehead were flying, and her eyes revealed her determination.


    "Princess, the giant bell on the ancient temple seems curious, why not give it a try?" Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan, who turned her head to look at Ye Futian, then looked up at that rotating ancient bell.


    "Sister Glass Saint, when the ancient bell rings, everyone will be attacked. You can take the opportunity to strike back." Ye Futian secretly transmitted the message to Glass Saint. A picture of the imperial mausoleum appeared in his mind. This place should be the book''s hiding place in the imperial mausoleum, and it was already close to the belly of the land, and this ancient bell could initiate the matrix.


    Xia Qingyuan gave an order to the people beside her, and suddenly, a cultivator of the Saint Plane levitated and knocked on the enormous ancient bell.


    Dong! Along with the bell ringing, an incomparable radiant glow bloomed from the ancient bell. In an instant, a tremendous pressure of the Great Path descended from the sky. Saints and sages alike felt as if they were shocked by electricity, the sounds of the Renhuang bell rocked inside their heads fiercely.


    The sound of the bell, like the sound of the Great Path, penetrated through the years, and seemed to come from the millennium. Those who cultivated longer felt a greater impact.


    Many from the Saint Plane on the scene groaned, and their heads were suddenly shaky. The saint who knocked on the ancient bell was shocked to the ground, his head humming and droning. Only the bell sounds of the Great Path continued lingering.


    The same was true for Great Zhou Sacred King. The illusions of the Golden Phoenix that were upon his body seemed to be shattered, and for a moment, there was only emptiness in his mind. But at this time, Glass Saint felt a strong sense of danger. She raised her head abruptly to look up and saw that his body was being covered with ice bit by bit, a bone-chilling coldness, and the soul seemed to be enclosed in ice. The sword came for Great Zhou Scared King, appearing directly in his mind, causing him to stop thinking. It was a sword that would destroy the law.


    At this moment, the brilliant light rushed towards ninth heaven, and the horrible Golden Phoenix lingered in the air. The blood inside his body was burning up and turned into golden sacred blood, stimulating the strength inside the body, unrestricted by the force of the other party. The sacred beast, a golden phoenix, flew out and seized the sword, but where the sword landed, it would destroy with the power of the Great Path.


    The figure of the Golden Phoenix shattered, and with a slushy sound, the sword penetrated the body of Great Zhou Sacred King. The destructive force of the Great Path that would kill everything exploded with madness. The inside of the Great Zhou Sacred King was burning. His eyes were fully opened and round, and his palms slammed forward. The sacred Golden Phoenix penetrated through them.


    With a loud bang, Glass Saint was knocked over and flew back, the sword in her hand dripping with golden blood. This sudden event shocked many and they did not have time to respond. They looked at the two engrossed in fighting and saw the breath of Great Zhou Sacred King quickly weaken. His wounds were constantly repairing, but they could see from his pale face that he had been grievously injured by the attack.


    The cultivators of the Great Zhou Dynasty came to him in a flash, and Jiang Yuechan caught Glass Saint. At the moment, the Glass Saint was in no better shape. Her clothes were blood-stained and it was a shocking sight to behold, but her injury was obviously less than that of Great Zhou Sacred King.


    Great Zhou Sacred King looked at Ye Futian coldly. Why did the Glass Saint attack at that precise moment? Obviously, Ye Futian knew something. He and Saint Xihua knew that this imperial mausoleum may have been left behind by the royal ancestors of the Holy Zhi Palace. It seemed that Ye Futian indeed knew of the secrets within the Imperial mausoleum.


    Not only him, but Saint Xihua also cast a glance at Ye Futian. Saint Ji, who was in the void, did so as well. It seemed that Saint Xihua and Great Zhou Sacred King did not deceive him.


    "Follow him." Saint Ji transmitted his voice to Ji Ya. Ji Ya nodded lightly, knowing what he should do. As the second existence of the sages on the Saint and Sage Ranking, and under the current situation where all the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace were detained by Kong Yao in battle, it would easy for him to kill Ye Futian. He was privy to the agreement between Saint Ji and Saint Xihua. Since Saint Xihua did not deceive his Master, he would fulfill his part of the bargain and not allow Ye Futian to walk out of the imperial mausoleum.


    This was also the reason why Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua already regarded Ye Futian as a dead man walking. They had already set up a trap to ensure his death! Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.

 951 Renhuang Tomb

    Just as the bell rang, the Glass Saint and Great Zhou Sacred King were injured at the same time. Saint Xihua''s body turned into a shadow and moved instantly towards the Glass Saint, so quickly that there was no time to react.


    Jiang Yuechan, who caught the body of Glass Saint, did not hesitate when she swung her sword at Saint Xihua. Everything she knew was taught to her by the Glass Saint, therefore their abilities were similar in nature. This sword was cold and biting, but when the attack of Saint Xihua countered it, the sword was broken inch by inch and the horrible turbulent force impacted her arms and body.


    Blood blossomed, and Jiang Yuechan''s arm was pulverized instantly. She flew back along with the body of the Glass Saint. Her clothes were bloody and shocking to behold, but her beautiful face was not shaken one bit.


    "Yuechan." Glass Saint was looking pale. With this hit, Jiang Yuechan was injured more severely than her. If not for the space greatly restraining the strengths of the cultivators of the holy lands and that ringing of the bell just now, Jiang Yuechan would not have survived going up against Saint Xihua.


    "My lady, I am fine." Jiang Yuechan looked at Glass Saint and appeared just as firm as always. She did not call the Glass Saint "Master," but referred to her as "My Lady" because she had followed the Glass Saint since she was a child and was her lady in waiting. She had accompanied Glass Saint as part of her dowry when she was to be married. They did not expect to be sent to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and she had watched her lady nearly commit suicide to avoid the shame of being humiliated.


    Later, when she and the lady were rescued by the previous lord of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, they were saved, but the entire family of her lady was exterminated, and her own family along with them. She made a blood oath then that she would seek revenge one day, even if her talent was not particularly outstanding. But today, she was on the Sage and Saint Ranking. For revenge, she would do anything.


    When Xihua Sacred Mountain and Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty teamed up to deal with the Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State, both of them knew that Great Zhou Sacred King would make his move on them. Today, at the imperial mausoleum, it was just an early arrival of the inevitable. Those two saints, who stood at the top of the Eastern State, would attack Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple sooner rather than later.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "That was because you interfered," Saint Xihua said indifferently. This could not be regarded as an attack to the sage.


    Dong! Another bell rang out. The radiant ancient bell kept spinning, releasing terrifying lights. The bell sounds were like the sound of the Great Path, once again rocking the minds of those who heard it. Everyone groaned, especially those on the Saint Plane as their Divine Paths were being suppressed.


    At the same time, in the place where they stood, the brilliant light of the matrix seemed to resonate with the ancient bell and gave birth to a tremendous pressure of the Great Path. Those saints frowned and felt their power had been suppressed, forcing them to stand down from the Divine Path.


    Dong! The bells were still ringing ceaslessly. As every bell rang out, it banged hard in the minds of all Saints. The cultivator next to Xia Qingyuan said, "Princess, our plane has been suppressed and we can no longer exercise the power of the Saint Plane."


    A touch of coolness flashed between Xia Qingyuan''s brows. She turned back and gave Ye Futian a look, but Ye Futian just said, "Princess, the puppets of the ancient temple were blocking the path with the ancient bell hanging in the sky. I could venture such a guess. The matrix is changing at the moment, perhaps we have an opportunity." Just as he finished speaking, lanes of ancient paths appeared in front of the matrix, leading to the ancient temple in the front. Upon the ancient paths, strong and powerful puppets appeared.


    "He guessed correctly?" Many looked at Ye Futian with amazement. Xia Qingyuan was a decisive person, so she ignored the descending pressure of the Great Path and went straight ahead toward the ancient path. Since the path had appeared to the ancient temple, then it had to be the right way.


    Bang! There was a loud noise. Xia Qingyuan''s attack landed on the puppet but did not break it. She felt that this puppet seemed to be created by the matrix according to her plane so that it was extremely strong and indestructible.


    A terrible vortex suddenly appeared on top of her palm. When the attack came, she raised her slender fingers and pointed forward. In a flash, the terrible vortex shattered everything, and the body of the puppet exploded.


    Xia Qingyuan continued to move forward, the bell still ringing and the glory of the Great Path continuing to rain down, which put her under great pressure. Still, she moved forward steadily, pushing open the door of the ancient temple where there was an enormous golden glow reflected upon everyone''s face.


    Huang Xi was extremely emotional. According to the mark on the map, the cache of the sutras within the Imperial mausoleum was here. It could contain many powerful methods, and it could be a treasure trove.


    With Xia Qingyuan taking the lead, the rest followed close behind. The matrix was constantly slowing down, and puppets appeared one after another. The stronger the cultivator, the stronger the puppet, and the bell never stopped its pressure so that the saints were also suppressed and moving step by step inside.


    "I will go in to take a look. Keep tabs on him." Saint Ji transmitted his voice to Ji Ya and went forward. Most of the people from the holy lands in the Nine States and the cultivators of the Upper Worlds also wanted to enter and look inside.


    Huang Xi also had this impulse, but Ye Futian had told them to give up. He knew the reason behind Ye Futian''s decision. Many cultivators were here. If they were going along with them, there would be no chance of survival at all.


    This ancient temple was excellent bait.


    At this time, the Glass Saint was still confronting Saint Xihua and Great Zhou Sacred King. Ye Futian observed the situation in front of him and realized that this matrix was self-contained and therefore impossible to take advantage of. Although it could suppress the power of the Divine Path, it was impossible for a sage to overcome the existence of a saint even if the other party''s strength was suppressed.


    "Move," Saint Xihua said and joined forces once again with Great Zhou Sacred King to continue the attack on Glass Saint.


    Ye Futian realized that it was not only Saint Xihua and Great Zhou Sacred King, but there were also many cultivators of the Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty who also did not venture into the ancient temple, but instead were focused on him.


    Aside from that, there was also Saint Zhi to consider. Saint Zhi hated him to the bone. Since they entered the imperial mausoleum, he had focused his attention on him. And then there were some who surprised Ye Futian. People of the Hall of Holy Light and many holy lands in the Nine States had left some people who also did not enter the ancient temple.


    Saint Ji had already stepped toward the ancient temple, but several cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light paid no mind to it, as if they had not noticed at all. Instead, they were focusing all their attention on his side. Among them, there were the two topmost gifted talents from the Hall of Holy Light��Ji Ya, and Ji Mo��and one other with a very strong presence, very possibly one of the sages from the Hall of Holy Light. As for other cultivators, they were also the top figures of all the holy lands.


    It seemed that this time, his opponents were not just the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "Don''t you want to go inside the ancient temple and take a look?" Ye Futian glanced at the cultivators in the matrix.


    No one answered him, which made Ye Futian faintly get the feeling that the two holy lands in the Eastern State had investigated the background of the imperial mausoleum and suspected certain things. Not only them, but the other holy lands also vaguely knew of these things, but they should all just be suspicion without confirmation. If this was the case, he would like to see if Saint Xihua and Great Zhou Sacred King would be willing to give him up.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. When his voice faded, he abandoned the ancient temple and led the people of the Barren State to step back and went around the matrix, moving forward from another direction. This matrix was the only way to the ancient temple in front, but there were no more obstructions preventing them from moving toward it.


    Sure enough, as Ye Futian started to move, many shadows now came out of the sky, and Saint Xihua had a look of hesitation. The exchange with Glass Saint before gave him an understanding of her true strength. Under the condition that all three of them had their powers suppressed, it would be difficult for the two of them to overcome the Glass Saint in a short time.


    "The imperial mausoleum is important," Saint Xihua said to Great Zhou Sacred King, and then immediately gave up his attack on the Glass Saint and instead pursued in the direction of Ye Futian.


    Now it was ascertained that Ye Futian knew of the secret of the imperial mausoleum, and with his understanding of Ye Futian, who was a tough character, if he had given up the ancient temple, it must be because the real treasure of the imperial mausoleum was not here. He would keep a close eye on Ye Futian, and perhaps there were also treasures in the ancient temple, but there was no gain without risk.


    Ye Futian and his party were extremely fast. They were running like mad inside the imperial mausoleum. The ancient temple had attracted many people, but they did not expect that there were so many cultivators following, which was rather thorny. Soon they would reach the entrance to the place of the inheritance of the Imperial mausoleum. It would be best if everything went well.


    Finally, there was an immensely powerful pressure of the Great Path coming toward them, and they could faintly make out many large statues that extended high into the sky. Both Saint Xihua and Great Zhou Sacred King were moved, and their looks were solemn as they moved forward step by step.


    Ye Futian gradually reduced his speed and slowed down to take in the magnificent scenery in front of him. Although he had already seen the map of the imperial mausoleum in advance, it was still deeply shocking when he beheld the scene in person.


    This was an enormous mausoleum. In front of the mausoleum there was a stone wall, immensely large and laid across the imperial mausoleum. On the huge stone wall, there were engravings of enormous statues that were lifelike. Every statue could be that of a man of great importance in life.


    There was a total of 37 statues, with 18 on each side, completely symmetrical. The statue in the middle was radiant all over, and its eyes seemed to regard the world with great authority.


    Everyone felt that their breathing had become quick and difficult, and there was a kind of suffocating pressure descending upon them. Even saints, such as the Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua, were no exception.


    The statue in the middle was most likely the statue of Renhuang. And the 36 statues on both sides each contained a terrible will of the Great Path, and this realization was the true realization of the Great Path.


    "This is the real imperial mausoleum, the tomb of Renhuang." Saint Xihua''s heart was incredibly turbulent as he stared at everything in front of him. Glass Saint also stared ahead with her beautiful eyes. She entered the imperial mausoleum because she also wanted to get to the treasures hidden within and use them to squash the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    This imperial mausoleum was not complicated, and there was no murderous matrix. It was very likely that the master of the Imperial mausoleum was preparing for the inheritance of his descendants. Then perhaps, Ye Futian and his people would have a way to enter this true tomb of Renhuang.


    Saint Zhi walked towards Ye Futian and stopped not far behind him. His eyes were fixed on him. If there was a chance, it was certain that he would let Ye Futian meet his maker. However, Ye Futian appeared not to have noticed. His eyes remained on the statue in front. He knew that behind this was the inheritance left by Renhuang, and this statue was the entrance. However, the premise was to open it.


    "Ye Futian, how do we get in?" Saint Xihua said as he moved forward step by step, the pressure of the Great Path emitted by the statues inside the mausoleum descended on his body, and Saint Xihua just felt the entire burden of heaven upon him.


    But right now, inside of him, there was only greed.


    The rest of the cultivators had also moved toward Ye Futian and the others. They all felt that they were now close to the real destination!

 952 Swim or Sink

    Ye Futian did not bother answering Saint Xihua. His eyes stayed fixed on the mausoleum statues that exuded the might of the great path. Every single statue exuded different types of might; that of the sword, power, the five elements, destruction, and so on. The power of all manner of mighty pressure filled the air, which, when leaned onto one''s body, felt like the pressure from the heavens out to crush everything.


    Furthermore, the greater one''s training, the stronger the pressure one felt. While Saint Xihua and the Zhou Sacred King, for instance, were still standing tall and proud as all of them were, only they knew how much pressure they were dealing with at the moment.


    Saint Xihua''s expression was cold and Ye Futian ignored him altogether.


    "Everyone, the mausoleum is very possibly the tomb of Renhuang, I think you''re all following him because you''ve caught wind of some news. Only they know the secret of the entrance, and if we continue to stand here and do nothing, there won''t be anything left for us later." Saint Xihua continued, "Furthermore if the others realize what is happening, we won''t need to be here any longer."


    Xia Qingyuan and the others were all currently drawn to the palace at the front. If the princess were to arrive, there was definitely no way they would be able to get anything out from this trip.


    A figure was seen stepping forward at the moment. He had a slender body and was dressed in white. Holy light images were present on his body and his long eyes felt sharp. His body shot at Ye Futian like a beam of light after turning into a mirage. He was none other the figure who ranked second on the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States, as well as the top-notch figure on the Hall of Holy Light, Ji Ya.


    A strike from his sword brought light to his surroundings as if he was opening up the heavens. The Sword of Holy Light was unnervingly fast and sharp, reaching the target in mere moments. However, Ye Futian simply stood there without moving. Several figures appeared behind him. Huang Xi and Yu Sheng blocked Ye Futian''s back, launching attacks at Ji Ya.


    Boom. Huang Xi''s shirt was torn in that clash, with several holes seen. Yu Sheng, who was wielding the Battleaxe of Judgment, was unable to block the power of that thrust. Several gashes appeared on his stout, imposing body. Terrifying sword will lingered and coursed about in his body.


    Ji Ya was known as a demi-saint and ranked second on the Sage Ranking. In the planes beneath the Saint Plane, there was only one person who proved to be more powerful than he was. The sword of light in his hand was also a divine implement. Saint Ji had ordered Ji Ya to keep a close eye on Ye Futian and his people, without any doubt of Ji Ya''s powers. The people before Ji Ya at the moment notwithstanding, even if Kong Yao and his people were to get in Ji Ya''s way, there was still no way Ji Ya could have been stopped.


    "Where is the entrance?" Ji Ya''s piercing eyes gazed forward as he held a sword in his hand. The mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace all had their eyes on him. Ji Ya was not the only one who was ready to pounce, as many other mighty ones also surrounded the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian did not bother turning around. He kept his eyes on one of the statues. An imposing great path will swept all over the place. He seemed to have immersed himself in it, comprehending the power of the great path.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward at the moment, coming to stand before Ji Ya. An extremely wild demonic might coiled around him. His injuries quickly healed and a demonic storm whipped about with his body at the center. Crisp cracking sounds were heard from his body as he continued to expand, growing even more imposing and wild. A demonic shadow appeared and his eyes looked like that of a demon.


    Boom. A loud boom was heard as Yu Sheng stepped forward. Ji Ya frowned as he actually felt threatened by Yu Sheng''s presence. Furthermore, he clearly sensed Yu Sheng''s power was rising exponentially, reaching into the level of archmages. His eyes remained incredibly pointed as he gazed into Yu Sheng''s eyes. He seemed to be looking at a devil who reigned supreme throughout all realms. One look from the devil seemed to be more than enough to subjugate all living beings.


    Yet another boom was heard as Yu Sheng continued to step forward. The pressure grew with every step taken and it seemed as if the space was being taken control of by him.


    The holy sword in Ji Ya''s hand hovered before him. His hands twirled about with the holy sword at the center. Holy light images appeared before him as the extremely dazzling light of holiness merged with his sword will. The image breathed terrifying sword of light. Beams of light shot out and all of them were imbued with unparalleled sharpness. One look at the beams would make one feel as if they were about to go blind, a testament of how frightening the rules within were. The boundless light was targeted at Yu Sheng. If the light managed to pierce him, it would have riddled him with holes and reduced him to specks of light.


    Boom. Another boom was heard and Yu Sheng did not evade the attack. He continued to move forward as Buddhas appeared around him, shinning sky-reaching golden light. Dark golden shimmers coursed about the Buddhas as all of them exuded ferocious killing intent. The demonic and buddhist ways were merged into one, as if a buddhist king of slaughter had appeared.


    The dazzling holy light sword will flashed in an instant.


    Clang�� A crisp sound reverberated throughout the space around them. Boundless swords of holy light pierced at the golden screen of light as two types of powers clashed. The sword wills adamant in piercing the screen while the screen, on the other hand, seemed to be devouring the sword will bit by bit, merging it into the screen.


    Ji Ya''s expression remained cold. His sword of light was of frightening, limitless power, yet he was utterly incapable of piercing Yu Sheng''s defense. Ji Ya''s opponent seemed to have activated his potential using secret means, evolving his powers and blocking Ji Ya''s way.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Ji Ya extended his hand and held the holy sword. A beam flashed and Yu Sheng brought down his ax without hesitation. The attack seemed to have cleaved a crevice in space. The light of the sword burst, drawing a terrifying arc in the space before it as the ax did. The space they occupied seemed to have exploded as devastating storms appeared. Ji Ya was thrown behind and his body hovered in midair.


    The mighty ones around them looked stunned. Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace had actually been able to stand his ground against Ji Ya, who was ranked second on the Sage Ranking and was known to be a demi-saint. Other mighty ones from the Hall of Holy Light walked towards Ye Futian''s side. They were Ji Mo and Ji Mu, yet other mighty ones ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking.


    Huang Xi intended to make a move when Ye Futian told him telepathically, "Uncle, the entrance is at the Renhuang statue in the middle. I''m unable to resonate with it, and if I''m not mistaken, it is probably meant for someone with the blood of Sovereign family in their veins. Don''t get into battle."


    It was an imperial mausoleum left by the Sovereign family and the Imperial Mausoleum Map had been passed down in the family throughout the generations. It was only natural that the place was meant for the descendants of the family. Ye Futian had tried to activate the Renhuang statue in the middle using the imperial will, but it did not work. As such, he implored Huang Xi to seize the opportunity as they were running out of time. With mighty ones from both the Upper and Lower Worlds and Xia Qingyuan, the princess, present, the handful of saints before them hardly mattered in this case. Such opportunities would not stay for long.


    Huang Xi nodded and walked to the statue in the middle. Unparalleled pressure bore onto him and Huang Xi''s eyes were all solemn and seemed even devoted, wondering if that was his ancestor��the ancestor of the Sovereign family.


    He had no idea what happened 1,000 years ago. It was too long ago and the Sovereign family had fallen so much that they did not even have a saint among them. He had even been on the verge of forgetting that he was a descendant of Renhuang, wondering if it was all a sham. It was irony like none other. With the lineage of his ancestors presented right before him, he was willing to pay any price to inherit the true Renhuang bloodline.


    "Uncle, Life Spirits and bloodlines are all that matter with lineages. Try communicating with the statue and see if it works," Ye Futian said while standing beside Huang Xi, who was standing before the statue. Ye Futian had been able to connect with the wills of all the other statues but that particular one, which meant that only someone of Renhuang blood was able to do so. If it was truly something left behind by Renhuang, then the most direct way to prove it would be through Life Spirit and bloodline.


    Huang Xi nodded and unleashed his Life Spirit. Dazzling light appeared and he did not bother concealing it. He naturally knew what Ye Futian meant, and with things as they were at the moment, it was sink or swim.


    "It doesn''t work." Huang Xi''s expression turned even more severe, seeing the statue not responding. He walked towards the statue and pricked his finger. A drop of blood appeared and Huang Xi pointed it at the statue. A line of blood shot forth and landed on the statue''s grooves.


    The blood coursed along the statue''s grooves and disappeared as if it had been absorbed by the statue. Huang Xi was able to feel it clearly. The statue seemed to have been imbued with life and exuded greater pressure.


    "There''s still hope." Huang Xi''s heart raced. The line of blood from his finger zipped at the statue and he held nothing back. The grooves gradually lit up and dazzling light was seen emitted from the statue as if Renhuang himself had revived.


    Everyone present knew what was happening after seeing all that. One figure after another shot into the air and headed straight for Renhuang. The fastest of the two in the crowd were two who were from the Hall of Holy Light, who wielded the Rules of Light.


    Hua Jieyu stepped forward and Ji Mu''s body seemed to stop in midair. He felt that his spiritual will seemed to have shrouded by some formless power. He looked up and stared at Hua Jieyu, who seemed to be emanating saintly power.


    Ji Mo''s speed was incredibly fast as well, yet at that very moment, another dazzling sword swooped by. Ji Mo''s body dodged the flying sword in an instant. When he finally felt that the beam of the sword had passed, a cutting noise was heard and blood sprayed. Ji Mo was dazed for a brief moment before looking down at his left arm, which had been severed. His face turned incredibly ferocious. He looked up at the one who took his arm, and it was none other than Ye Wuchen, who had embarked on a pilgrimage led by Xia Qingyuan along with him. Ye Wuchen''s plane was lower than his, yet he had been able to cut off one of his arms.


    Ye Wuchen''s cold eyes remained gazing forward. He stood before a statue and his Life Spirit burst. It was a silver sword, which rang as it exuded vaguely stifling sword will. What was more terrifying was that it seemed to have resonated with the statue, which had been emanating sword pressure. The might of the sword emanated from the statue seemed to have merged into a single being with the sword of his Life Spirit. The resulting power had shrouded Ji Mo and the strike took Ji Mo''s arm.


    "The imperial mausoleum is a tomb of an ancestor of the Sovereign family, whose member now studies in the Holy Zhi Palace. As such, it shall be inherited by said member of the Sovereign family. If all of you intend to force your way in, you''ll have to get through me and I won''t show any mercy," Ye Futian said as he stood before a statue, turning his eyes to the surrounding mighty ones.

 953 Ism the Descendant of Renhuang

    Everyone turned their eyes to look at Ye Futian. The statue behind him seemed to have come alive, exuding the terrifying power of the great path. It seemed to have taken the form of an incredibly huge shadow, merging with the will of Ye Futian, who was standing before it. It was apparent that the 36 statues of the tomb were not only capable of exuding pressure on people, but also could lend their power to those they identified with and bring great pressure to bear. Ye Wuchen of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State had been able to do so, and at the moment, Ye Futian became able to do so as well.


    Saint Xihua walked forward as if he had not heard him. He turned his eyes to Huang Xi, and the Renhuang statue before Huang Xi grew increasingly bright. It became clear that that was where the entrance to the mausoleum might be.


    Saint Xihua unleashed powerful pressure of the great path as well. While his powers might have been suppressed in the imperial mausoleum, he was nonetheless still a saint and was capable of anything a saint was capable of. Even though the statue might have exuded immense pressure that originated from the great path, it was still nonetheless the power of the great path. Being a saint himself, he saw no reason to fear it.


    He was forbidden to attack Ye Futian, but if Ye Futian dared to use the borrowed power against him, then he would naturally need to retaliate. Even if Emperor Xia were to learned of what he did, he would have still played by the rules nonetheless.


    "Any lineage of the ancients are up for grabs by any who are capable of doing so. You really think what you said qualified the Holy Zhi Palace to take the lineage of the imperial mausoleum?" Saint Xihua walked slowly to where Huang Xi was and said, "What a joke."


    With a saint taking the lead, none of the others saw the need to hold themselves back. They all attacked Huang Xi, and while there were many powerful ones from the Holy Zhi Palace present, it was still insufficient.


    "Would you lend me a hand, sister Glass Saint?" Ye Futian said telepathically to the Glass Saint, who was standing not far away. The Glass Saint nodded and flashed, arriving before the statue and turning around to face Saint Xihua and the others. Her hair billowed as she held the Love Destroyer in her hand and looked incredibly dashing. Her stance with the sword looked stifling beautiful.


    "Glass Saint, I''m afraid you won''t be able to take us all on your own." Saint Xihua continued to move forward. The Sacred King and Saint Zhi stepped forward at the same time. Saint Zhi had kept a close eye on Ye Futian and it was finally the time to move, waiting for Ye Futian to hit him first.


    It was indeed a good opportunity.


    All three of them emanated immense pressure from the great path. Their spiritual will unnervingly strong. A formless force seemed to be fighting against the pressure of great path emanated from the statues.


    "Sacred King, we''ll take the woman out first," Saint Xihua said. He knew that there was no time to wait.


    "Do it," the Sacred King said with a sharp voice. Three saints moved at the same time, heading straight for the Glass Saint.


    "Wuchen!" Ye Futian shouted. He cranked the statue''s will to the extreme and hovered before the statue. A huge shadow appeared as if the statue''s power had taken form. He punched and the space shook. Terrifying star power rained down at the three saints. Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit sword rang and a sliver of terrifying sword will merged with the statue''s will, before launching out as sword pressure of the great path, cleaving the space apart.


    A phoenix''s shadow appeared on the Sacred King and an extremely sharp golden phoenix sword appeared before the bird, launching forward with murderous intent.


    "An ant trying to shake a tree, I see." Saint Xihua and Saint Zhi attacked at the same time. Even though their powers were suppressed, their attacks were still frighteningly formidable nonetheless.


    Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen were simply borrowing the power of saints while the three they were fighting were saints. The confrontation felt ridiculous.


    Wild aura coursed. The attacks of both Ye Wuchen and Ye Futian were easily shot down right there and then. However, at that very moment, the Glass Saint''s sword moved. The ice powers of the great path made one''s blood feel like it was about to stop flowing. The chill seeped deep into the bone while the flash of the sword felt like a cold moon. It was an attack that tore through the spirit and any emotions, cutting the holy will as well as the body of flesh and blood carrying it.


    None of the three saints let their guard down against the Glass Saint''s attacks and fought earnestly, fighting the power coming at them. However, they felt as if the statue had burst with even greater might of the great path. Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen did not expect themselves to be able to beat saints using only borrowed will of the statues, but if they were able to cut down the three saints'' powers considerably, it would have helped with the Glass Saints attack and stopped them.


    The Renhuang statue at Huang Xi''s side grew increasingly bright and his body hovered before the statue. His spiritual will merged with the construct. The huge mausoleum shook and everyone''s eyes looked extremely intense. The tomb of Renhuang was possibly about to be opened.


    All mighty ones moved quickly and headed for where Huang Xi was. However, at that moment, the might of the great path fell onto them. The ring of the nine symbols flashed and was brought down with the power of the great path, heading straight for Ji Mo, who had just lost an arm.


    Boom. A loud boom was heard and Ji Mo''s body was so rattled that he spat up blood and looked ashen. His first attack ended up with him being taken an arm by Ye Wuchen. The next attack was launched by Gu Dongliu, and it was just as damaging.


    "Get lost." Gu Dongliu uttered a line and the nine symbols burst with intense light at the same time, merging with the power of the great path and shooting at the ones trying to get near Huang Xi. One mighty one after another was thrown back by the attack.


    Ji Mo''s expression was extremely pale. He was one of the top geniuses in the Hall of Holy Light and had been titled a Heavenly Chosen One during the pilgrimage, yet he suffered such humiliation nonetheless. Furthermore, Gu Dongliu had never gotten along well with him during the pilgrimage.


    Seeing how many insisted on moving forward, Gu Dongliu''s handsome face was filled to the brim with murderous intent. Many of them were from holy lands and he knew well that Ye Futian was in a bad position to act against them, as it would have ended with the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State suffering pressure that would break them. However, in such a situation, it became apparent that reasoning would not do if they wanted to keep the lineage of the Sovereign family; they needed to kill. As such, they saw no choice but kill one of them to serve as a warning.


    He turned his eyes to Ji Mo and the nine symbols circled, merging the might of the great path from the statue into it. Sword will was imbued within the nine symbols. Ji Mo seemed to have noticed Gu Dongliu looking at him and felt the murderous intent from Gu Dongliu''s eyes. His expression turned grim all of a sudden.


    "Anyone who dares move forward shall be cut down," Gu Dongliu declared. The nine symbols seemed to have disappeared like extremely sharp swords. Ji Mo sensed the pressure and retreated hastily, giving up the ruins of Renhuang altogether.


    The light of the nine symbols penetrated his body immediately, and at the very next moment, everyone saw Ji Mo''s body twitch lethargically for a bit in the air, before dropping from above. The top-notch genius from the Hall of Holy Light had been killed right there and then, before he was truly able to shine in the Nine States.


    Ji Ya and Ji Mu were still fighting and their faces went pale as they saw Ji Mo perish. What they found even more baffling was that despite being ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking, they had no edge whatsoever to speak of while fighting Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu of the Holy Zhi Palace. It was especially apparent in the case of Ji Ya, as he was ranked second on the Sage Ranking.


    One wondered how insane the power of the sages from the Holy Zhi Palace could be if they were to bring out their all.


    "Open."


    Dazzling light sparkled and the place rumbled. Everyone turned their eyes to the center of the mausoleum and saw the incredibly huge Renhuang statue. A crack opened up in the middle and a door appeared. It was as they had speculated��that Renhuang statue was the true entrance to the tomb.


    "Get in there, quick," Huang Xi said. Ye Futian then gave the order, "Retreat." The ones from the Holy Zhi Palace flashed in the Renhuang statue''s direction.


    Roar. An earth-shattering roar was heard and the terrifying sound reverberated in the air. Huang Jiuge and many others from the Holy Zhi Palace were thrown behind and spat up blood.


    They turned their heads and looked at another direction. One of the statues looked like an angry guardian. A ferocious shadow appeared in the air and there stood Liu Zong, with his Life Spirit merging with the shadow. Seeing how Ye Wuchen had communicated with the statues as well how Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu followed, he knew Ye Futian and the others knew something. As such, he tried to communicate with the statues instead of joining the fight, and he succeeded.


    "Liu Zong." Saint Xihua smirked. This was indeed someone fit to become a successor to Xihua Sacred Mountain. Liu Zong had succeeded in doing what Ye Futian and the others had done.


    Ye Futian''s expression was grim. He had no time to deal with Liu Zong as he and Ye Wuchen had to work together with the Glass Saint. The attacks of the three enemy saints grew increasingly strong, especially the Zhou Sacred King. He fought up close with the Glass Saint, and a terrifying storm whipped up in the air.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "I''ll take care of him," Gu Dongliu said. The light of the nine symbols streaked and went straight for Liu Zong, who looked back at Gu Dongliu. The light of Buddhahood coursed around him. He trained in multiple powers and the Buddhist skills were one of them. Boundless ancient mudra appeared and clashed with Gu Dongliu''s symbols. Both of them borrowed the power of the saints from the statues to fight each other.


    "Jiuge, get in quick," Ye Futian called. He had no thoughts of inheriting the lineage of the ruins. When he was in trouble all those years ago, many in the Barren State went to his aid and fought for him at the Holy Zhi Palace, and one of them being Huang Xi of the Sovereign family. When the Sacred War broke out later, Huang Xi brought his clan with him and moved into the Holy Zhi Palace. It was a relationship that needed no words to be spoken.


    The simple line caused Huang Jiuge''s eyes to become somewhat red. He said nothing as he rushed for the place where Huang Xi was at.


    Boom. Another boom was heard as the Glass Saint was thrown back. She borrowed the force from the shock and retreated like a flash of lightning to where the statue was at. The Sacred King burst with equal speed as he saw that, moving at an impossible speed.


    Two beams of light disappeared and went inside the imperial mausoleum. Saint Xihua and Saint Zhi, who were slower due to fighting alongside the Zhou Sacred King, realized what happened and were about to leave, but Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen launched an attack at them. However, the two of them paid no heed, simply cranking up their imposing saintly powers then disposed of said attacks where they stood.


    Ye Futian streaked through the air like a flash of lightning, seemingly having merged with the statue and launched with an attack. Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit sword was shot out at the same time, forcing both Saint Xihua and Saint Zhi to slow down and deal with the attacks.


    A boom was heard and Ye Futian slammed onto the statue, spitting out blood. Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit was rattled enough that it retreated into his body, with blood seen at the corner of his mouth.


    "Do you really think that the Glass Saint, the number one beauty of the Eastern State, needed your help at all?" Saint Xihua took a look at Ye Futian and said sarcastically.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were ice-cold. It was apparent that the Glass Saint sold him out. The Glass Saint was the prettiest among the great figures of the Nine States and the lord of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. She was not as meek and affectionate as she usually appeared to be. There was no way she could have simply let a chance like this slip by. If she was able to gain the lineage of Renhuang, she would be able to advance further and raze the entire Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "Futian, get in there with Jiuge. Leave this to me." At that moment, Huang Xi''s body was seen hovering before the Renhuang statue, seemingly having merged with the statue. He was addressing both Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge, who had just gotten to where they were.


    "Uncle." Ye Futian looked up.


    "No time for debating. I''ll look after the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace," Huang Xi said as he saw both Saint Xihua and Saint Zhi coming.


    Ye Futian took a look at Huang Xi and clenched his fist, before calling, "Jiuge."


    "Father." Huang Jiuge took a look at Huang Xi.


    "Close." Huang Xi''s voice was solemn and in an instant, the gate of the tomb was seen closing slowly.


    "Go." Ye Futian did not hesitate any further, taking Huang Jiuge and dashing for it. The faces of Saint Xihua and Saint Zhi changed slightly as they sped up, but they quickly saw a dazzling gigantic sword falling from above, right before the entrance. Both of them slowed as a result and saw the crack slowly closing. Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge took one last look outside.


    "Huang Jiuge, the Sovereign family will be yours to oversee now. Don''t drag us through the mud." Huang Xi''s voice was heard from inside the crack. He wore a smile and said, "Futian, I wanted to see you stand at the top of the Nine States personally, but it seems that I won''t be able to do so after all. I don''t regret siding with the Holy Zhi Palace." The crack disappeared before he finished, and he had no idea if the two inside heard what he said. He had initially been able to get inside himself, but someone had to look after things outside. With the door staying open otherwise, they would have stood no chance. Saints were seen coming from far away.


    Huang Xi''s spiritual will continued to burn and his body gradually grew intangible, as if he was about to completely merge with the statue. The entire mausoleum was shaking and the Renhuang statue looked as if it was about to be revived. True might of the great path showered the place. It was no longer a might of the great path, but the might of Renhuang.


    Saint Xihua headed straight for Huang Xi. His body glowed with dazzling holy light and lashed out with a palm strike in danger, seemingly about to break the space before him as he hit the statue. At that very moment, the statue''s eyes opened all of a sudden and a fierce roar was heard.


    "I''m the descendant of Renhuang." An incredibly huge palm print launched as the line was heard. Saint Xihua''s body was thrown back and there were sounds of bones breaking in a crisp, clear manner.

 954 Borrowing the Sword of Ancestor

    Huang Xi''s voice exploded like thunder, causing the hearts of everyone before the mausoleum''s walls to shudder violently. They then saw the saints from Xihua Sacred Mountain being clapped hard and crashing to the ground, spitting blood as they got up. Saint Zhi, who had wanted to have a closer look, halted his steps altogether, keeping his eyes forward.


    Huang Xi''s silhouette had been completely merged into the statue. His flesh, blood, bone, and even his will seemed to have totally merged with the statue. It was as if he had returned as his ancestor Renhuang.


    When his blood merged with that of the statue, Huang Xi clearly sensed that the statue had been carved with refined blood of Renhuang. That thing left behind by his ancestor resonated with his blood and activated the will contained within. He clearly felt the connection between them, and furthermore, despite being of the same bloodline, the blood of the statue never dried and degraded. Such was the might of his ancestor. Even a statue left behind since ancient times was more than able to stun the saints.


    The Sovereign family had truly been the descendants of Renhuang. Huang Xi had no regrets about his life, as he was now able to feel the might of his ancestor. As for Jiuge and Ye Futian, everything depended on their luck. At the very least, he would guard the place, not letting any of the saints get inside. He and Ye Futian had taken a look at the Imperial Mausoleum Map and knew it was truly at the center of the ruins. He wished that his ancestors would watch over Jiuge.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and all the others stopped fighting and retreated back before the statue. Everyone from the Holy Zhi Palace who came was fighting for the Sovereign family. With Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge already inside and Huang Xi sealing the tomb up, there was little point for the battles there to continue.


    At that moment, the statue that Huang Xi was merged with opened its huge eyes slowly and looked at Liu Zong''s direction. "Get lost." The roar was an earth-shattering one. The statue trembled violently, bringing the pressure of Renhuang to bear. Liu Zong took control of the power of sainthood and resisted like mad, retreating from the statue at breakneck speed.


    Boom. Another rumble was heard and Liu Zong was sent flying thousands of meters back, crashing onto the ground. Blood oozed from his mouth. He laid there and his spiritual will seemed as if it was about to be broken, his life hanging by a thread.


    Huang Xi turned his eyes at the others and everyone retreated without hesitation. No one dared approach the statue after what had happened. Huang Xi was only a sage and it meant that he was free to fight anyone. Furthermore, he was most probably about to die and had nothing to lose. If the chance presented itself, he would have killed the saints as well.


    It seemed that no one was able to enter anymore.


    More saints came from afar, with the first to arrive being Saint Ji. He knew Ji Mo was killed, and as such, left the ancient hall and came at once. His face went pale after seeing what happened. Extremely dazzling light burst and his body seemed to have turned to light, appearing like a god. Though his powers were suppressed, Saint Ji showed what it meant to be ranked fifth on the Saint Ranking nonetheless.


    The boundless light transformed into a huge sword, pulsing with brilliant light as if the space it occupied was about to be torn apart. Saint Ji stepped forward and his hands clapped. A flash of the sword burst through the air in an instant, heading straight for that Renhuang statue.


    The eyes of the statue looked like those of Renhuang''s. The might of the heavens showered and the speed of the dazzling sword was suppressed. A pair of spectral hands appeared��Huang Xi''s hands��and a Renhuang Sword burst brilliantly, suppressing everything before it as it launched forward, clashing with the sword of light. The sword of light was crushed right there, and then and the huge sword continued moving forward, lashing out at Saint Ji.


    However, Saint Ji possessed immense speed. Even though he was still suppressed with the overwhelming pressure, he was nonetheless able to disappear from where he stood with just one step, appearing in midair. However, he looked severely frustrated, discovering that he was unable to do anything against a statue. Even though it had been something left behind by Renhuang, a statue that had been standing around for over a thousand years was still a dead object. He burst with light that was even more brilliant, showing no fear whatsoever.


    The walls of the mausoleum shuddered maniacally. All 36 statues shook at the same time. True might of the heavens descended from above, raining down on Saint Ji''s body. He frowned as he found that those objects actually attempted to suppress his saintly powers. Many figures before the walls quickly retreated and did not dare to approach any further in order to keep from getting caught in the crossfire.


    Huang Xi''s expression was incredibly solemn. An imposing imperial pressure seemed to have manifested before the statue. A huge shadow appeared as if Renhuang himself had been revived.


    Voom. A Renhuang Sword materialized yet again. It was the Life Spirit of Huang Xi, yet at that moment, the sword seemed to have become a true Renhuang Sword. It continued to grow in a size and a terrifying storm whipped up in the air around them. The place they stood turned very deadly. The sword shot high above the sky, coming to the very top of the sealed space. The vast area seemed to have been put under lockdown. Devastating storms rained down from above. Saint Ji''s expression looked pained as he finally felt the pressure.


    "Huang Xi of the Sovereign family shall borrow a sword from the ancestors!" Huang Xi roared and a Renhuang shadow seemed to have appeared in midair, holding the holy Renhuang Sword. Its hands pressed down on the blade, and in an instant, the sword came down as if Renhuang had been wielding it, bringing terrible might to bear.


    The sword of his ancestor was borrowed.


    Saint Ji resisted like mad as the sword came down. Devastating storms of the great path whipped up in the air around them. His clothes were torn and his body retreated in a frenzy.


    The sword seemed to be inescapable as it pressed down onto the area below. With a loud boom, everyone saw Saint Ji, who was ranked fifth on the Saint Ranking, being thrown away as well, crashing down with a whimper. His internal organs felt they were about to tear apart.


    Killing intent filled Huang Xi''s eyes as he continued to borrow the might of Renhuang. Yet, at that very moment, a figure came and went like a flash of lightning, taking Saint Ji away and retreating faraway. That figure was none other than Ji Ya.


    The scene caused countless present to shudder.


    Huang Xi of the Holy Zhi Palace had only been a sage at the pinnacle of his training. Yet, on that very day, he had borrowed the Renhuang Sword of his ancestors and almost ended up killing Saint Ji, the Saint Ji who was ranked fifth on the Saint Ranking of the Nine States.


    The ones from the Holy Zhi Palace watched Huang Xi solemnly. They were all naturally able to tell that the battle would be Huang Xi''s last. However, it was a battle that he could be proud of. Saints continued to come from afar, but none were able to do anything against Huang Xi.


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    Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge stepped inside the tomb. It was an empty world and did not look like a tomb at all. The place was filled with holiness. They were able to see incredibly faraway inside. They looked up and cast their gaze forward. Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge shuddered deep down.


    There was a holy figure that looked even taller than the statue outside. It looked like a body of true flesh and blood instead of a statue. It looked like none other than Renhuang in the flesh. They almost thought it was truly Renhuang in the flesh. The shadow was so real that it was able to fool the eyes. That Renhuang from several thousand years ago seemed to have traveled through time and space, now standing before them, bringing the true might of Renhuang to bear.


    Ye Futian was unable to help but recall the statue of Emperor Ye Qing. Back then, Emperor Ye Qing''s last sliver of will was imbued within that statue in Qingzhou City, which was awakened due to Ye Futian.


    That Renhuang construct pressed down on the hilt of a sword with both hands, shining with brilliant light, emanating brilliance like none other. It was as if it had stayed pristine throughout the ages. There was also a bow somewhere at his side. The bow simply sat there without emanating anything. However, it was nonetheless something left behind by Renhuang, and they wondered what kind of ritual implement it was.


    The Glass Saint had gambled everything just to get inside the mausoleum, for none other than a chance. Saint Xihua and the Zhou Sacred King had allied through a marriage alliance. Saint Zhi had declared that he would join the Sacred War as well, seemingly to work against Ye Futian.


    The Glass Saint might have looked unperturbed, but no one else knew what was going through her mind. She knew then that between her and the Zhou Sacred King, only one of them would be able to emerge alive from the Sacred War.


    As such, before the Sacred War truly broke out and the Sacred King had yet to move against the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, she had already sent Yuechan to investigate the Holy Zhi Palace. Jiang Yuechan had been staying at Zhongzhou City, the place where the Holy Zhi Palace was, all that while. As such, she did not blame the servant girl, who had been following her for years, despite knowing that she killed the mighty ones from the Yue clan. Jiang Yuechan was her servant girl as well as her student and sister. She knew that everything Yuechan did was for her sake.


    At that moment, Ye Futian looked below the statue and saw two figures in their own corners. Aura ebbing around them. Those two were none other than the Glass Saint and the Zhou Sacred King, who had stepped into the tomb before everyone else. They both seemed to have been severely injured.


    Both of them had dealt severe damage to each other. The Glass Saint''s Love Destroyer had even penetrated the sacred king''s body. Even saints could not simply ignore damages dealt by people of the same plane. As such, they had been fighting each other while sustaining injuries.


    Both of them naturally continued to fight, seeing what lied before them after crashing into the tomb. For that brief moment, both figures seemed to have fought a terrifying battle with their lives on the line. However, at that moment, both of them simply sat quietly.


    Ye Futian saw the two figures and walked towards them slowly. Despite sensing that both of them had sustained heavy injuries, he dared not let his guard down. They were both saints after all. There were huge, irreconcilable differences in power between saints and sages. Even though they had borrowed the power of the great path from the statues, they remained incapable of resisting Saint Xihua''s attacks. Such was the difference between them.


    "Renhuang Ruins is right before your eyes, why aren''t any of you taking it?" Ye Futian said as he saw both of them. "Are you hurt, Sister Glass Saint?" He sounded rather cold when he said that, apparently very displeased with what she did before. When she had seen Jiang Yuechan and sensed her aura, Ye Futian already had some speculations, and what happened afterward confirmed them. It was too bad he had let his guard down. However, at that moment, he had to ally with the Glass Saint, as she was the only one at their side who was capable of resisting both Saint Xihua and the Sacred King. It did not help that Saint Zhi was also waiting to pounce.


    The Glass Saint turned her eyes and looked at Ye Futian. In that very instant, Ye Futian saw her very beautiful eyes look rather devilish as if they had been tainted with terrible red light, looking very eerie.

 955 Who Is More Brutal?

    Ye Futian was puzzled. Both the Glass Saint and the Sacred King did not move at all; they simply sat where they were sitting. The Glass Saint turned her eyes away and no longer looked at Ye Futian. She was working hard at maintaining her mind, as if she was being put under serious pressure.


    The eerie scene made Ye Futian frown. He stepped forward slowly and Huang Jiuge followed suit. They were moving at a very slow speed with their auras engaged, being on guard against those two saints. At that time, pulsing pressure fell onto them, which grew increasingly heavy as they continued to move forward.


    Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge looked up at that very tall and imposing Renhuang shadow faraway. In an instant, the figure became imprinted in their minds directly, making them struggle to breath. That Renhuang figure faraway seemed to be right before their eyes.


    Boom. Their spiritual will shook. Ye Futian felt as if his will was on the verge of being snuffed out. He grunted as his body came down, sitting on the ground. Everything in the world seemed to have changed, and that Renhuang shadow seemed to be standing right before them like a god.


    "Is your mind firm and unyielding enough to inherit my will?" A voice seemed to be heard from a thousand years ago, seeping into Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge''s mind, as if they were being interrogated.


    Ye Futian only knew right there and then that despite how they came, the lineage of Renhuang was right before their eyes. There were still challenges that needed to be faced. Even a descendant of Renhuang had to be tested despite coming so far. Is your mind firm and unyielding enough to inherit my will?


    If the one to inherit the Renhuang''s will proved to be of weak mind, then such person would be deemed unqualified to take the lineage, as it would be a waste. Renhuang, who had been a legend like none other in his time over a thousand years ago, left behind a tomb that could only be opened by his descendants. However, if his descendants were to be of bad stock, then they would be deemed unqualified to inherit what he had left behind. He would have rather find someone who was truly determined to walk the path of cultivation.


    Ye Futian felt he had entered a realm of illusion, as if he had no secrets and everything was laid bare before the will of Renhuang. He felt a shadow hovering in the air, as if that was where he should be. His mind recalled all that he had been through for the past 30 years and more. He recalled Qin Yi, the big sister, and Feng Qingxue, the twerp, wondering how they were doing presently. He liked that big sister figure of hers. No one would have not liked a sexy, beautiful big sister like that after all. However, the little fox named Hua Jieyu was just simply too stunning back then. The question of missing out on that big sister might have been a regret, but his mind answered with a definite "no." His mind might have wavered a little bit, but he was hardly affected.


    He recalled old man Ye Baichuan and his mother. There was no news of them and he had no idea if they still lived. It was something that affected his mind, but his will remained firm.


    He recalled Emperor Ye Qing and the crying Snow Ape King, as well as the Nandou clan''s advent, the empire being muddled with just one song. It was only then that Ye Futian''s heart began to ache. It felt like a terrible pressure fell onto him, as if a catastrophe of the Great Path had struck his mind. It was painful. He grunted as his face turned pale. It was apparently something that stayed deep within his mind still, and he still had trouble letting go.


    "So you''re trying to make me review my life, eh?" A sarcastic smirk was seen on his face. His eyes were determined as he glared at the shadow of Renhuang that seemed to be right before him. It was said that one''s mind needed to be whole before one could achieve sainthood. So, you''re testing my mind out right now then?


    While his heart ached, the old man dying in battle was not something that would sway him from his path. He stood up slowly and walked forward. His white garb and long hair billowed in the wind. Flashes continued to appear in his mind. In the cottage of the Eastern Barren Territory of Cangye Kingdom, his brothers and sisters treated him like family. The battle at the Heaven Mountains brought an end to everything. The reason as to why that old man was taken away remained a thorn in his side, but he remained diligent in his training in order to someday meet that princess of the Divine Prefecture that he had only seen twice, to talk to her about the Snow Ape King and that old man.


    The battles fought at the Crouching Dragon Mountain, Taihang Mountain, and the Holy Zhi Palace flashed in his mind. He had never been perfect and had done a lot of wrong, being haughty and inflexible, just like how he was before Xia Qingyuan. If he would have simply lowered his head and followed Xia Qingyuan, many things would have turned out better, maybe even turning out to be the results he sought, but even if he had been missing out on things, his mind remained firm.


    The answer to the question of whether or not his mind had been firm and unyielding was a natural yes. He did not dare to claim that his mind was whole and flawless, but at the very least, his beliefs were firm and nigh-indestructible.


    Boom. His took one step forward, which sounded like a step on the path he sought. Cracks were hard and the shadow of Renhuang, that had been weighing on his mind, disappeared altogether.


    One step, and he was gone.


    Formless power flowed with the wind around him. His will seemed to have been strengthened somewhat. Even within that sealed space, he was still able to sense a stronger willpower.


    With one step, he came to Archmage Plane.


    His white garb billowed without wind. Ye Futian cast his gaze at the shadow of Renhuang faraway, as if nothing had changed. He turned to look at Huang Jiuge beside him. Huang Jiuge was steeped in all that as well and there seemed to be tears at the corner of his eyes. His body shuddered a bit, as if he was locked in a struggle.


    Ye Futian was able to relate to Huang Jiuge''s struggle. Huang Xi, the leader of the Sovereign family, and Huang Jiuge''s father blocked the gates by putting his life on the line. That stage alone had been enough to make Huang Jiuge''s mind waver.


    Hopefully, he will be able to get over it. Ye Futian could have simply gone up to the shadow of Renhuang right there and then. He would have been able to acquire the lineage so long as he was willing. However, he did not, as that was something left behind for Huang Jiuge, and he was in no position to take it.


    Not doing was risky, as both the Glass Saint and the Sacred King were still around, but he was determined to keep his belief, as that was his way. He would have never been able to face Huang Xi and the Sovereign family, who fought by his side, again if he were to take the lineage for himself.


    He stepped forward and walked to where the two saints were. The Glass Saint turned her eyes to look at Ye Futian again.


    "Zhou Zhiming sustained severe injuries and his mind is being interrogated. This is your chance." The Glass Saint''s eyes shone with a red glow. It was apparent that her situation was not any better compared to the Sacred King''s.


    Ye Futian simply looked at her without saying anything.


    "Zhou Zhiming massacred my clan, all 3,000 of them. I''m determined to avenge my family and I''m after the Renhuang lineage just so that I can kill him. Futian, you call me ''sister.'' Other than what happened outside, have I ever acted against you with ill intentions?" the Glass Saint continued.


    "Should I trust you, Sister Glass Saint, or should I not?" Ye Futian looked at the Glass Saint and asked, "The death of those of the Yue clan was your doing, no?"


    "Indeed." The Glass Saint did not deny it. If Yuechan had killed them, it was as if she was the one doing it. There were no differences and she owned up to it.


    "The Yue clan wanted to forge a marriage alliance with you because they saw your potential. The deaths of those from the Yue clan would have undoubtedly aroused the Yue clan''s suspicion, and it was not someone from Xihua Sacred Mountain or the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty doing the deed. But if they had wanted in on this, they knew what they had to do, and things indeed turned out that way. Would all of that have been in yours and the Holy Zhi Palace''s favor or against it?"


    "Aren''t you afraid of dragging the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple to hell with you for what you have done?" Ye Futian asked.


    "If the Yue clan was involved, then I shall be on your side. The Yue clan could come settle their scores with me, just so long as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty falls." The Glass Saint then added, "Regardless of how you look at things, at this very moment, will you be going against me or against Zhou Zhiming?"


    The Sacred King remained sitting where he was, unbudging. He apparently knew his priorities and what he needed to do at the moment. He needed to restore his powers and break through Renhuang''s pressure.


    Ye Futian admitted that what the Glass Saint said made sense. To him, the Sacred King was obviously the true enemy.


    "You''re willing to leave the lineage to the Sovereign family, and I definitely won''t lay a finger on it so long as Zhou Zhiming ends up dead. You can ask anything of me to make it up to you," the Glass Saint continued.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at the Sacred King, and his eyes were filled with murderous intent. It was not because he was convinced by the Glass Saint, but because there was no way he and the Sacred King could coexist. He had that thought as soon as he entered. He was simply thinking if he should have taken the risk. It was an opportunity like none other after all.


    The Polearm of Divine Destruction appeared in his hand, and the powers within Ye Futian''s body gushed into the ritual implement. Terrifying pressure manifested. There was no doubt that the Sacred King had sustained severe injuries. Furthermore, he had to endure the pressure of the Great Path. It was a chance that he felt reluctant to miss.


    Boom. He stepped forward and brought the divine implement in his hand down. His surroundings felt like they were about to collapse in that very instant. Boundless shadow of the staff fell from the heavens, heading straight for the Sacred King.


    The Sacred King, who had stayed silent all the while, looked up at Ye Futian all of a sudden. A bright, dazzling light burst from his body and the phoenix shot forth with lethal intent. It was apparently his Life Spirit, heading straight for Ye Futian.


    The Polearm of Divine Destruction clashed with the divine bird with a boom and Ye Futian felt as if his body was about to be penetrated. The terrifying power stunned him and sent him flying. Bones all over his body seemed to have cracked, but at that very moment, a dazzling sword flashed by, heading straight for the Sacred King''s head.


    The Sacred King slapped at the ground and retreated backwards. The phoenix turned away to intercept the attack, and with a loud boom, the wings of the phoenix seemed to have been broken right there and then. The bird was damaged and returned to the Sacred King''s body with a wail. However, that sword attack was blocked. The Love Destroyer returned back to the Glass Saint''s body as well.


    Pfftt. Blood splattered from the Sacred King''s mouth, staining the ground red and his face turned ashen. He looked up and said to Ye Futian coldly, "You really don''t know your place. The Glass Saint trains in the ways of emotional suppression. She killed her own fiance back then and she doesn''t care about your life."


    "He deserved to die," the Glass Saint said coldly.


    "He indeed deserved to die for giving his woman to me. But please, you and I had been only one step away from becoming husband and wife. Why do you need to do this?" the Sacred King added.


    "Shut up, Zhou Zhiming." Coldness emanated from the Glass Saint.


    "Am I telling the truth or not? You''d rather die than marry me back then. Why? You killed the man that sent you into my palace. Was your mind broken?" the Sacred King continued. The Glass Saint did not care. She naturally understood that the Sacred King wanted to make her mind waver. At that moment, they were all undergoing the Great Path''s test.


    Seeing that the Glass Saint remained silent, the Sacred King continued, "I built the Lapis Lazuli Palace in my place, and I have a concubine named Si, who looks rather similar to you. Every time I go inside, I think of her to be you and have her please me. How that soothes my mind, just like how it would have been if you were by my side. If you''re willing, I''ll head straight home and kill her. You''ve spent years being alone. Why do you need to do so? The way of emotional suppression kills your humanity. How could it be able to compare to the joy of training with me?"


    "Zhou Zhiming." The Glass Saint''s body trembled and another splatter of blood came out of her mouth. Terrifying pressure rained down on her mind. Her face turned ashen and she slumped, feeling as if her mind was about to collapse.


    The Sacred King snickered at the scene. Ye Futian knew what was going on between both of them. He took a look at the Sacred King. He was indeed willing to go to extreme lengths. He knew well what was going on with the Glass Saint, as he was going through the same thing at the moment. The Sacred King''s words proved more sharp than blades. But then again, the Glass Saint was not a pushover.


    Ye Futian came to the Glass Saint''s side and looked at that beautiful face. She looked rather pitiful, but her eyes remained determined as she looked at Ye Futian. "I''m willing to pay any price just for you to kill the Sacred King. If you hate me, then kill Zhou Zhiming. I''m all yours when that is done."


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded and carried the saint up, having her lean close to him. Her soft, voluptuous figure was incredibly seductive, but Ye Futian had nothing else on his mind at the moment.


    The Sacred King shot a pointed look at Ye Futian, seeing him do that. Ye Futian then looked at the number one beauty in the Eastern State in his arms and said, "Sister Glass Saint, he was right. Even though you''ve been betrayed, you shouldn''t have trained in ways to kill your emotions. There''re all manners of sentiments in the world that are worth being cherished. Me, for instance, I''ve always had a liking for you."


    Ye Futian lowered his head as soon as he finished. The Glass Saint''s eyes were wide open as she stared at Ye Futian getting increasingly close. She had a dazed look. It was anyone''s guess if she was too weak to do anything or if she had simply forgotten to do so, but she did not resist. At the very next moment, she felt her lips being invaded and her mind felt like it was being blown to pieces as it turned completely blank.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "How dare you!" Tremendous murderous intent filled the Sacred King''s eyes. Yet, at that moment, terrifying pressure fell onto him like a catastrophe of the Great Path, pounding his mind. The Sacred King''s face turned pale like the Glass Saint''s, and he spat up blood. His aura had never been so weak.


    Ye Futian lifted his head and looked at the dazed, beautiful eyes and said, "You said that you were willing to pay any price for killing Zhou Zhiming. I''ll definitely kill him. I take it that you won''t mind then."


    Ye Futian''s hands were in places where they should not have been. The sensation was soft and the Glass Saint looked at him with dazed eyes. There were tears at the corner of her eyes and then she spat up blood again, turning even paler before blacking out altogether.


    Ye Futian looked at all of that calmly and extended his hand to caress the beautiful face of hers, smiled and turned to look at the Sacred King. "She''s indeed the number one beauty in Eastern State indeed, poised and beautiful like none other. What do you think, Sacred King?"


    The Sacred King continued to glare at Ye Futian while blood oozed out of the corner of his mouth. He shut his eyes and turned away. Both the Sacred King and the Glass Saint had been brutal figures, and it was totally unexpected that Ye Futian was just as brutal. He was actually trying to kill both the Sacred King and the Glass Saint at the same time.

 956 Chapter 956 The Princess’s Instructions

    Zhou Zhiming was the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and could have any woman he wanted. But he had built the Lapis Lazuli Palace and had placed Si, who looked a lot like Glass Saint, in there, showing how deep his obsession with Glass Saint was.


    He had become famous as a young man and had been enfeoffed as Prince of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty very early. His talent was outstanding, and nothing was denied to him. When Glass Saint was seen by the Lord of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, the rumor had gone out that her looks were extraordinary, without parallel in the Eastern State. After he had seen her, the consequences were shocking. He tried to pursue her, but could not. He had spent a lot of energy on this, even devising a scheme by which Glass Saint would be taken to his palace on the day of her wedding, but Glass Saint would rather die than marry him.


    After entering the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, she had opposed him everywhere, breaking his Holy Road, blocking his attempt to become a Saint. Even his father had suffered the same fate as Glass Saint''s master due to this enmity. The Great Zhou Sacred King swore that he would have her, that she would submit her body to him. He would see how the foremost beauty in the Eastern State faced him then.


    But at that moment, the woman that he had tried so hard to get was embraced by Ye Futian. The beauty that he had never even touched had been kissed by Ye Futian. And that scoundrel''s hand was even touching her holy body. It was easy to imagine what the Great Zhou Sacred King''s mental state was at that moment.


    And where was this place? Renhuang had asked if you want to become the Emperor, can your heart be hardened to the path?


    Right now, the power of the Great Path pressed down on him, and he wavered. He had already been injured, and now he had suffered a catastrophe of the Great Path. The power of Renhuang''s Great Path descended, threatening to destroy his mindfulness towards the Path. Therefore, he would rather close his eyes than look at what was happening. But his desire to kill Ye Futian had never been stronger, even stronger than when Ye Futian had taken his son Zhou Huang during the Sacred War. He would make it so that Ye Futian would seek life but be unable to obtain it, and so that he would strive to die but would not be able to do so.


    Ye Futian cast a cold glance at Zhou Zhiming. He was also in great pain. The Great Zhou Sacred King''s last attack had been so strong. The Saint Level power had accumulated and then he had used his life spirit to launch an attack, wounding him greatly. Moreover, Saint Xihua had wounded him in the outside world. His situation was not much better than the Great Zhou Sacred King and Glass Saint''s.


    However, in this way, all the obstacles had been cleared for Huang Jiuge. As long as he could pass Renhuang''s questioning, the inheritance would be in the palm of his hand. The Great Zhou Sacred King and Glass Saint''s mindfulness of the path had been damaged, and so they had no way to pass the questioning.


    Ye Futian looked down at the beautiful face that he held. Tears had appeared on her cheeks, and he wiped them away. Her skin was so delicate that you could break it by blowing on it, and her face did not have a single blemish. She had cultivated herself to the Saint-level and transcended her physical form. Now her skin was soft and tender, and her body was the same. She was so delicate all over. Anyone would have trouble holding on to this woman, who was considered the foremost beauty in the Eastern State and was the Master of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. This was human nature.


    But he did not feel guilty. Glass Saint was not a good person. Although everything she had done had been done out of her intense desire for revenge, her recent attack on the Great Zhou Sacred King had been done without any regard for how it would affect him. He had used Renhuang''s questioning to break both of their mindfulness of the Path. But it was an eye for an eye. There was no essential difference between the two of them.


    He had never been a good man.


    If he wanted to, he could kill this beautiful woman who had fainted into his arms. But he would not do this. Glass Saint had been ruthless in her revenge, but it had all been for the purpose of killing her two enemies. He had learned a bit about her miserable past from her conversation with the Great Zhou Sacred King. As for the Yue clan, he would not interfere. It was up to them to decide.


    But as far as Ye Futian was concerned, a kiss had taken place, and the place that should not be touched had been touched. His fury had catalyzed in an instant, but he had stayed his hand. He was ruthless, but not that ruthless. Perhaps he was just not resolute enough.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    He looked at the Great Zhou Sacred King and saw him begin to cultivate once again. He held Glass Saint in front of him. He pulled out a ritual implement and tied it around her waist just in case. He did not want to become part of her plan again if she woke up. Even though she had been wounded, since she was a Saint, he could take no chances.


    A rustling sound rang out in the Life Palace as the World Tree swayed. Emerald green light shone, flooding the palace and rushing towards every part of his body. It repaired his injuries as quickly as possible. The three of them had all been injured, and Glass Saint had fainted. He had an advantage over the Great Zhou Sacred King in terms of recovery, as in addition to recovering, the Great Zhou Sacred King also had to resist Renhuang''s power, so he would not recover very quickly.


    Now the two of them were at the end of their strength and were no better off than their opponent. They did not dare to make a move. Ye Futian had learned his lesson.


    "Great Zhou Sacred King, Glass Saint and I have now touched. When she wakes up, she will enter my harem and become my woman. Why don''t you demolish the Lapis Lazuli Pavilion?" said Ye Futian as he was recuperating. He saw the Great Zhou Sacred King''s arms were shaking, but his eyes were closed as if he had not heard him.


    "Her hands and skin are so soft. Although she has cultivated for so many years, she is as soft as water and is as pure as ice." Ye Futian ran his hand over her tender arm as he spoke. The Great Zhou Sacred King clenched his fists, and his aura began to leak from him. He could not help but groan. He was fighting against the power of the Path, but Ye Futian was slashing at his heart. But he was a king. His eyes remained closed, and he did not move at all. His heart was as strong as iron. Ye Futian stopped stroking her arm. He did not continue provoking the Great Zhou Sacred King, and instead focused on recovering.


    Time passed in silence. Ye Futian''s wounds healed quickly. He kept his eyes open, staring at the Great Zhou Sacred King. He wondered if he could put an end to him if he struck now. But would the Great Zhou Sacred King be the same as before? Would he recover all his energy for one strike? Would he heal as much as possible so he could kill him?


    Just as Ye Futian was hesitating, a sound rang out. He turned and saw Huang Jiuge walking forward.


    He had obviously defeated himself.


    "He succeeded." Ye Futian sighed with relief. Huang Jiuge had received his inheritance. This trip had been completely successful.


    Xia Qingyuan had promised that if they could get it, it was theirs.


    At the same time, Huang Xi was blocking many Saint Plane cultivators outside the cliff statue. A group of figures appeared. At the head was Xia Qingyuan. She walked in front of Huang Xi, followed by several powerful Saints. She looked up at the statue.


    Huang Xi had thought that he could hold back all comers, but when he looked into her eyes, he trembled. If this Princess wanted to fight, he did not know if even Jiuge could handle her after receiving his inheritance.


    With a single sentence, she could strip them of everything. She did not even have to get involved. All she had to do was change the rules of the Sacred War to let Saints get involved and the Barren State would be lost.


    "The Imperial Mausoleum was left behind by my ancestors. I hope that you will help me," said Huang Xi. He could hold back all the Saints of the Nine States. After the incident, they all had to abide by Emperor Xia''s rules, but fighting Xia Qingyuan by himself would be impossible.


    She stepped forward a few paces, still staring at the statue. She said nothing.


    But her eyes explained it all��no one in the Nine States could stop her.


    When he saw that look in her eyes, Huang Xi felt only sorrow. Yu Sheng stepped forward with magic light shining in his eyes. Behind Xia Qingyuan, the other Saints also stepped forward, their auras blazing forth.


    "Only the Princess may enter. How about that?" said Huang Xi.


    Still looking up at the statue, Xia Qingyuan said, "Fine."


    "I hope that you will not forget your promise." As Huang Xi spoke, the statue blazed with light, and the gate that led to the mausoleum opened once again. Everyone''s hearts pounded as Xia Qingyuan walked in. Li Yao tried to rush in as well, but was stopped by Xia Qingyuan''s people.


    Xia Qingyuan walked in the gate. No one in the Nine States could stop her. The gate closed once again, cutting them all off. They had no way of knowing what would take place inside.


    Huang Xi could only pray. There were five great cultivators inside. Did Jiuge have any hope?


    Ye Futian saw Xia Qingyuan enter as the gate opened. A cold light flashed in his eyes. Xia Qingyuan saw him as well. She took in the situation inside the Imperial Mausoleum in a glance, then looked up at the figure of Renhuang as she stepped forward. She soon felt the power of the Great Path, but she did not stop. She kept walking forward step by step. She had already felt this kind of power from her father. Her mindfulness of the Path was firm and could not be shaken.


    Ye Futian put down Glass Saint and stood up, blocking Xia Qingyuan.


    "The Imperial Mausoleum was left behind by the Huang clan ancestors and should be inherited by their descendants. You promised that if I could take it, it would be mine. It should be the same for the other members of my palace," he said.


    "Yes," said Xia Qingyuan. Then she looked at Huang Jiuge and said, "That''s assuming he can take it." On saying this, she continued forward, passing by Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s figure flashed and he appeared in a space not far from Renhuang. His back was to the statue of Renhuang, and he faced Xia Qingyuan.


    "You think you can stop me?" Xia Qingyuan glanced at Ye Futian, and suddenly a Sage level aura bloomed. Ye Futian felt the fierce wind. This terrible aura was coming forth from the body of this delicate beauty in men''s clothing. It seemed that everything in the world would be forced to crawl at her feet.


    Ye Futian''s white robes flapped in the wind. He fixed his gaze on Xia Qingyuan. She was the foremost talent of the Upper Worlds, the favorite daughter of Emperor Xia, and was hailed as a woman whose talent surpassed even her father''s.


    "Your highness, Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State, asks for your instruction!" His voice rang out throughout the Imperial Mausoleum. The echo lingered on and on.

 957 Unmatched Battle

    Ye Futian''s voice was bright and clear. In the space of the Imperial Mausoleum, Glass Saint slowly opened her eyes. She sat up and looked at Ye Futian. In fact, she had woken up before, but she had closed off her senses, not letting herself think so that she could slowly recover from her injury.


    However, there was nowhere she could go to hide from the feeling of those claws touching her skin. Even separated by a thin layer of clothing, it was still so clear. His hand had even moved to the most sacred, soft place on her body. What was even worse was that he had seemed to feel good about it, and he could not help but grasp it.


    Such humiliation almost made her wake up to fight him, but when she remembered her vast sea of hatred for the Sacred King, she was able to bear it. She got up and bit her lip. She stared at Ye Futian with eyes as cold as ice, hoping that he would die at Xia Qingyuan''s hands.


    Xia Qingyuan fixed her gaze on the figure before her. As the daughter of Emperor Xia, she had been born extraordinary. She was without parallel among those of her generation in the Upper Worlds, and no one could oppose her. Who would dare stand before her? Who had the right to? But the man who had refused to follow her twice, who had boasted that he was without parallel at the Jiutian Forum, now stood before her and asked her to fight!


    Xia Qingyuan stepped forward and divine light flowed from her. She glowed as brightly as an immortal. She stepped forward, and the Great Path moved with her as if what she was stepping on was the Path itself.


    Ye Futian knew that Xia Qingyuan was the strongest opponent he had ever faced. He claimed to be unbeaten by any opponent at the same level as him, unparalleled in the Nine States, but none of the people that he had beaten could match Xia Qingyuan. This woman, who was hailed as the strongest in Emperor Xia''s realm, had the blood of Renhuang flowing through her veins. Moreover, she had mastered hundreds of schools had a broad body of knowledge. She had cultivated herself to know all kinds of powerful magic, becoming the most powerful magic-user in Emperor Xia''s realm.


    At this moment, even though their strength was limited in the Imperial Mausoleum, and they were not able to expand their will into the heavens and the earth, Xia Qingyuan''s steps were still full of the Worldly Great Path. Ye Futian could not take her for an ordinary weak woman. This was clearly a wild beast.


    A powerful airflow came out from her body. It was like heaven and earth had become one. Ye Futian stepped forward, and his power burst forth from him like thunder, fighting against Xia Qingyuan''s airflow. The two of them stood facing each other, setting off a violent storm in that place.


    Boom! With another step forward, his power swept out. Light bloomed from Xia Qingyuan, and more sacred power condensed on her arms. In a flash, she descended in front of Ye Futian as quickly as lightning. She raised her arm and struck out with a fist, clenching her slender, jade-like hand. Her fist was not big, but the power it contained seemed like it could collapse the sky and fight with a true dragon or an ancient phoenix. The sacred light wrapped around her fist and a suffocating power burst forth from it, piercing through heaven and earth as it rushed towards Ye Futian''s chest.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Ye Futian also stepped forward, and his power shone like a rainbow. He did not retreat at all. No matter how strong Xia Qingyuan was, he would not fear her. Today, he would look at this princess, who was hailed as the strongest in both worlds, and see how strong she was.


    A rhythm started as he lifted his hand. It was completely natural and fit into the Worldly Great Path. An imperial fist will gathered and flowed on his arms, and radiant particles flowed from him. As he plunged his arm down, it all gathered together into a fist and smashed down like a star towards his opponent''s fist.


    He used a fist to fight a fist.


    Both of their arms went to the same point, and finally, their fists collided together. Their skin did not touch, only their fist wills did, but a loud sound like a clap of thunder rang out. The space around them trembled fiercely, and two brilliant rays of light shot out from where their fists collided.


    Xia Qingyuan was shocked and retreated. A strange look flashed in her eyes. Her fist style contained imperial power. It melded with the Worldly Great Path and could put forth an extreme amount of rule power. And Ye Futian had defeated it, showing how strong he was.


    Ye Futian had refined his body and had washed his body in the medicine pool. He had melded the Rule of Particles and rule power into his fist, making it extremely strong. Anyone on the same level of him in the Nine States would have been wounded by that one attack.


    Of course, Xia Qingyuan was also slightly different in that moment. The Huangting Fist Will had 33 layers. It resonated with the Worldly Great Path, and each layer was stronger than the last. If Ye Futian could not crack even the first layer, how could he call himself unparalleled in the Nine States?


    Her mighty power gathered together once again, and she flashed toward Ye Futian. The second layer of her fist will burst forth, even stronger than before. Ye Futian stepped forward again, and his power gathered together even more strongly than before. He struck out with his fist without hesitation, matching Xia Qingyuan attack for attack. This kind of attack was an incredible tempering for his body. He would never find an opponent like this in the Nine States.


    As the two of them collided wildly and loud sounds rang out continuously. The wind raged as an extremely strong and domineering atmosphere burst forth. A terrible storm raged between the two of them, like a tornado that swallowed everything.


    Glass Saint watched the battle. She was a Saint-level cultivator, but this battle between two Sages was still thrilling. Their power was amazing. That shameless disciple was still extremely strong.


    After striking 11 times, Xia Qingyuan''s fist will seemed to be completely transformed. As her heavy fists slammed forth, heaven and earth cracked. Ye Futian also felt that his arms would crack. If a fist entered his body, it would crush him from within. It was extremely oppressive. If his body had not been strong, he would already have been destroyed.


    Ye Futian was forced back with a loud noise. But Xia Qingyuan followed him like a shadow and attacked again. She was wrapped in an incomparably powerful fist will that destroyed everything. Rays of brilliant light burst forth from Ye Futian''s body as he opened the Seven Star Acupoints. Suddenly, his aura surged more powerfully. He could feel that Xia Qingyuan was growing stronger and stronger. Her martial arts were extremely advanced and could even be compared to the Nine Heavenly Attacks in some places.


    Boom! Ye Futian stepped into the air, and his body became like a dragon. He raised his hand and pressed it against the sky. Xia Qingyuan shot towards him, her fist will piercing through the stars towards Ye Futian. The two of them continued to fight fiercely, shaking the heavens and the earth. But it seemed that neither could crush the other.


    Finally, after 20 attacks, Xia Qingyuan could not continue. It was said that when one cultivated up to the Huangting Fist Will''s 33rd attack, one could pierce the heavens and the earth, and could break the world with a single punch. She was still far off from this, and there were only a dozen or so layers that she truly comprehended.


    She glanced at Huang Jiuge and saw him still standing before Renhuang. Light fell on his body, and he seemed to have already received the inheritance. The whole tomb started to shake as sunlight fell.


    She looked back at Ye Futian, and the pressure on her grew more intense. She stepped into the air like a goddess. Her pale face was so beautiful it was suffocating. A sword will extended continuously from her finger, seeming to want to cut through the space in the Imperial Mausoleum. Even though her power was restricted, the sword will that she released at this moment was still astonishing.


    Ye Futian''s face grew solemn as he gazed at Xia Qingyuan. As the daughter of Renhuang, and as someone who was unparalleled in the Upper Worlds, she would naturally not just be good at one thing.


    Xia Qingyuan''s figure flashed as she tried to get past Ye Futian, and he felt a suffocating pressure on him, seeking to destroy him. He still stood in her way, shining brightly. Xia Qingyuan raised her finger, and with this attack, a catastrophic sword will seemed to pierce into his chest, cutting through his will and wiping away his soul. The sword will continued towards his body, seeking to cleave him in two.


    Xia Qingyuan had once gone to the Lihen Heaven and learned from the foremost swordsman of the Upper Worlds. She had integrated many types of swordsmanship into her own: Catastrophe Swordsmanship. With her status, it was not only Emperor Xia who had taught her, but all the great figures of the Upper Worlds. In both the Upper and Lower Worlds, only Xia Qingyuan could be called illustrious.


    Ye Futian felt that his spiritual will was under attack, and it seemed like it would soon collapse. He kept it together to resist, and at the same time, starry rule power flowed from his body. His body became like a star that protected his flesh.


    Crack! A sharp cracking sound rang out. A single slice broke through his defenses and cut through all his rule power. It slashed towards his body. Fortunately, his body was immensely powerful, but his clothes were still ripped.


    Catastrophe Swordsmanship was different than Huangting Fist Will. Huangting Fist Will grew stronger and stronger. When you reached the end, no one could stand against it. But Catastrophe Swordsmanship struck all at once like thunder, cutting through everything. It was extremely powerful.


    The sword went for the kill.


    Xia Qingyuan stepped forward, surrounded by powerful sword will. She was like a goddess of death approaching. She could truly be described as ultimately powerful. She stepped on the sword and flew directly towards Renhuang. An incomparably brilliant light shone around Ye Futian. Powerful rule power flowed from him and gathered together into a halberd.


    He stepped forward and transformed into a beam of light. A sword appeared in Xia Qingyuan''s hand, and it whistled through the air as she slashed it. Ye Futian raised his long halberd to strike, and the brilliant light flashed. It pierced through the air and cut through the sword.


    He stepped through the air and descended in front of Xia Qingyuan. He struck with his long halberd. Suddenly, a terrible vortex appeared, and everything in the area seemed like it would be completely destroyed. The sword will collapsed.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned and pressed her finger forward. Suddenly, her mighty sword will all gathered together and crossed through the air and collided with the halberd. In a flash, a destructive power raged wildly. The halberd smashed through space and pierced downwards. Xia Qingyuan''s Sword Qi blocked it. As the power in front of her was blocked, she was thrown flying backward.


    Ye Futian stood there with his halberd staring at her. He said, "Why don''t you take this a little bit more seriously, Princess!"

 958 Can You Fight Harder?

    Xia Qingyuan was blocked once again. She gazed at Ye Futian. It seemed that there was indeed someone in the Nine States of the same level as her who could stop her. She had just felt an incredibly strong space rule power from the halberd, and it had the ability to break through space. Its attack power was incredible.


    At that moment, Huang Jiuge had already received Renhuang''s inheritance, and brilliant light shone all around. The mausoleum shook as the beautiful light fell upon the two people fighting, adding a bit of sacred color to the scene. Outside the mausoleum, everyone felt the cliff shaking. They all sensed that the inheritance had reappeared in the world.


    But who had gotten it?


    This situation had occurred not long after the Princess had entered, so it was extremely likely that she was the one who had gotten it. However, there was nothing strange about that. Although there were two Saint-level figures inside, how could they dare to compete with Xia Qingyuan? As for Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge, even if they wanted to fight, would they be able to?


    All of the Nine States were under Emperor Xia''s command. Even though the Imperial Mausoleum had been left behind by the Huang clan ancestors, it still belonged to Emperor Xia. If Xia Qingyuan wanted it, it would be hers without a doubt.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    They all thought of the extremely arrogant Ye Futian. With his personality, he had previously dared to trick the Princess. He might actually fight her. They didn''t know if he would be able to leave the tomb.


    As they expected, Ye Futian was indeed fighting. But he was not fighting for himself, but for Huang Xi and Huang Jiuge. If Xia Qingyuan used Emperor Xia to suppress him, he would give up. If Huang Jiuge got the inheritance and then died, Xia Qingyuan would have no remorse over the promise that she made in public. Therefore, he had nothing to worry about.


    What was the orthodoxy that Emperor Xia had founded in the Nine States?


    Why had Xia Qingyuan sought out the Heavenly Chosen Ones?


    The Nine States were Emperor Xia''s, including the Holy Zhi Palace. Thus, when he had challenged Xia Qingyuan, he had called himself a vassal of Emperor Xia. He had not said this casually. He was reminding Xia Qingyuan that he was her father''s subject.


    Emperor Xia naturally hoped that there would be talented figures among his subjects that could assist him in the future. Although Emperor Xia''s Realm was in the Upper Worlds, it was only one of the realms of the Divine Prefecture. Hua Jieyu had told him that she had taken them to many Upper Worlds. Thus, he could fight as hard as he could in this battle. With Emperor Xia''s status, he didn''t need to fear him coming to settle accounts.


    With his halberd in hand, brilliant light flowed over Ye Futian. He pointed it at Xia Qingyuan, and his will of battle surged. It seemed like while he was there, Xia Qingyuan would not be able to pass him.


    An even stronger sword will flowed from Xia Qingyuan, much different from the ones that Ye Futian had seen before. This was the first time he had felt Catastrophe Swordsmanship. The sword gave birth to catastrophes and had terrible destructive power. He felt the sword will, and it felt like his spiritual will would be destroyed. If he was hit, he couldn''t imagine how much damage it would do.


    The sword will grew stronger and an ear-piercing shriek rang out through the air. Even if all the power in the Imperial Mausoleum was bound up together, the aura coming from Xia Qingyuan would still be stronger. The sword will flowed towards all the heavens. It seemed to be everywhere, and there was an invisible sword in it.


    Xia Qingyuan stepped forward, and it felt like a terrible catastrophe sword was piercing Ye Futian''s spiritual will. It was like a catastrophe of the Great Path was cutting through his spiritual willpower. He had naturally taken precautions against this, and so he was unmoved. At that same time, a sword fell from the heavens like a bolt of lighting.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as a starry curtain appeared around Ye Futian. Although he could not communicate with the power of the Imperial Mausoleum, he was still able to form a powerful force field around himself. It was like time had stopped in that space. Everything slowed down, except for the overbearing sword, which cut through his rule power force field and pierced the body of one of the stars, causing it to crack.


    Xia Qingyuan continued forward. If anyone had been standing around her they would have been suffocated. Her sword will was too strong. She gripped her sword and brought it down again, as quickly and forcefully as possible. There was another loud noise as more cracks appeared in the star, breaking down Ye Futian''s defenses.


    More swords began to descend wildly, one following another. Each sword was extremely forceful. The star had already cracked to its edges, but Ye Futian''s life spirit bloomed and the Divine Ape roared as he transformed into his Buddha pure body and melded into it.


    Bang! The stars cracked, the sword descended, and the Divine Ape roared. He struck out with a fist will and destroyed the oncoming sword. The violent momentum was earth-shattering. However, Xia Qingyuan seemed to not even see it. There was no change in her cold eyes.


    More and more swords appeared, and the space where Ye Futian was in seemed to collapse. There were 3,000 swords. Without using a divine implement, how could anyone below the Saint Plane in the Nine States withstand this?


    The Divine Ape attacked wildly, and it roared into the sky. Every attack made the air tremble. Heaven and earth seemed like they would shatter under the Divine Ape''s attacks, but they could not destroy the light of the catastrophe swords. Many of the swords had already pierced the Divine Ape''s body, making it tremble.


    Even Glass Saint, who was sitting nearby, felt her heart tremble as she beheld this battle. This was Emperor Xia''s favorite daughter. She was only on the lower Sage Plane, but with the combat ability that she put forth, even someone on the Sage Ranking would not dare to say they could defeat her. And Ye Futian, who was on the same plane as her, was still fighting her.


    It seemed that the Divine Ape''s body could bear no more, and so Ye Futian lifted his arm and the halberd appeared there. A burst of radiant particles emerged from it and swallowed it up.


    Rumble! Brilliant golden light shone as the image of a golden roc appeared. Wind rules covered his body. At this moment Ye Futian was like a god of war. A powerful wind blew, and Ye Futian instantly disappeared from where he had been as he moved towards Xia Qingyuan. Xia Qingyuan pointed forward without any hesitation. A sword burst forth and destroyed everything as it raced towards Ye Futian.


    Smash! Ye Futian stabbed straight out with his halberd, smashing it into the catastrophe sword, causing cracks to appear in it. Under his brilliant wings, he crossed through the air and continued to get closer to his opponent. His power was rising.


    After cultivating his skill with a halberd in the Lost Ruins, he had spent a period of time cultivating in the Endless Sea. He trained with it every day in every part of the Endless Sea. The billowing ocean waves helped him understand how to wield it. Now his attacks grew fiercer and fiercer, just like the ocean waves. But now more catastrophe swords descended. They seemed to be endless.


    Brilliant light bloomed from him, and his golden wings shrieked past. He thrust his halberd forward once again, and as he did many halberds of light appeared beside it. They crashed wildly into the catastrophe swords. Ye Futian''s body seemed to be buried in the devastating storm it caused.


    Xia Qingyuan was as unmoving as a mountain. Three thousand catastrophe swords wrapped around her like a storm. Her expression was as sharp as one of her swords. She continued to walk closer to Ye Futian as if there was nothing for her to fear. No matter how strong she was, her state of mind was not affected.


    The storm of catastrophe swords shrieked like the light of the catastrophe of the Great Path. It descended towards Ye Futian. He could not avoid it. If he was not strong enough to withstand it, he could only die. This forceful attack was enough to kill any enemy. Her swords covered the sky.


    Ye Futian did not dodge. The Divine Ape roared, and he opened the Seven Star Acupoints. Beams of golden light pierced through his body, and the golden roc shot forward with invincible speed towards the onrushing swords as if it was going to enter into that endless abyss.


    His body trembled. Suddenly, a bunch of residual images appeared around him. Each one seemed to carry a halberd until they eventually all merged into one. They faced forward in a straight line. A devastating vortex appeared on the halberd that seemed like it would really tear space apart.


    The 3,000 catastrophe swords pierced towards him, but a broken hole appeared in the middle of them. A halberd pierced through space and fell towards Xia Qingyuan who was at the center of the swords. At that moment, Ye Futian swayed violently. Xia Qingyuan was sent flying once again.


    The destructive storm still raged. Ye Futian''s Buddha pure body had been destroyed, and his life spirit had been damaged. He felt a sweetness in his throat as if there was blood that he needed to spit out, but he swallowed it back.


    Xia Qingyuan was not in good shape either. Her clothes were in disarray and her hair that had been tied back had come loose. As the wind danced, she even looked to be a bit more feminine. Looking at her now, she was even more incredible. She was like an immortal in the human world, untouched by the dust of the mortal world.


    Xia Qingyuan had apparently not thought that Ye Futian would force her into such a difficult situation. She did not even care that much about Renhuang''s inheritance anymore. She just watched Ye Futian.


    She was not only hailed as unparalleled in Emperor Xia''s Realm. When she was young, her father had brought her to another one of Renhuang''s realms to let her experience the world and understand the Worldly Great Path. Even though she was extremely young, she had still gone to many places and met many powerful figures. Even in these other realms, she had never met someone who could be a true opponent to her who was of the same generation as her. Now, in the Nine States in the Lower World, she seemed to have met one.


    "Can you fight harder?" Xia Qingyuan asked unexpectedly.


    Ye Futian was stunned, then said, "If you can, so can I."


    Beside them, Glass Saint was speechless. They could still fight harder? How hard would these two lower-level Sages fight?


    The Great Zhou Sacred King had now also opened his eyes to watch the battle. As he watched, his desire to kill Ye Futian only grew stronger. He could not rest easy until Ye Futian died.


    "Then let me see," said Xia Qingyuan slowly. Her life spirit bloomed behind her, and in a flash, a divine light covered the whole area. An incomparably beautiful golden lotus bloomed. It was rumored that there was a female Buddha beneath the golden lotus.


    Xia Qingyuan stepped onto the golden lotus and bathed in the divine light. She truly seemed like an immortal.


    The shaking of the Imperial Mausoleum grew stronger and stronger, but Xia Qingyuan did not care. At that moment, Ye Futian was far more interesting than Renhuang''s inheritance!

 959 Shameless Ruffian

    Ye Futian fixed his gaze on the woman who now looked as holy as an immortal. Xia Qingyuan stood on the golden lotus. The lotus''s six petals continued to open, causing it to look like there were endless images of more lotuses around her. The lotus gave rise to all things and gave rise to the Great Path.


    Ye Futian had once read ancient records in the library of Nine State Academy that said that once you had cultivated up to the supreme level, you could forge the Path. The Path gave rise to the soul, and your life spirit would develop along with it. Therefore, the true top forces, those whose life spirits contained the Path, were those whose perception of the world stretched out far and was thus passed on to future generations.


    His World Tree was endlessly marvelous and was a kind of supreme Path, but his plane was not high. He was not yet close enough to touch that level, nor understand its mysteries. He was only able to see a life spirit birthed from it, and see how extraordinary it was.


    Huang Jiuge had inherited three great life spirits, all of which were extraordinary. Now he was truly the descendant of Renhuang, but since his level was not high enough, he only understood these life spirits at the surface level. But now that he had the inheritance, the life spirits could probably transform along with him.


    The road to cultivation was slow, but some people were extraordinary. Their life spirits could get stronger and stronger along with the things that they had cultivated themselves to be good at. Others still relied on their own perception, constantly reinventing their life spirits with their own power from weak to strong, causing it to constantly evolve. Either way, life spirits followed the process of the cultivator growing stronger.


    Xia Qingyuan''s forefather was Renhuang, and her father had cultivated beside him. Her own life spirit was magnificent and could be said to be abundant in natural gifts. At that moment, her life spirit lotus was unleashed, and her whole aura grew stronger, and her perception of Law Power grew deeper as well. Her prestigious name was well deserved��that of the greatest talent in Emperor Xia''s realm.


    In Ye Futian''s Life Palace, the World Tree swayed with a rustling sound. He sucked in his breath and a terrible storm blossomed from within him. The life spirit of the Divine Ape appeared once again, forming the Buddha pure body. Ye Futian seemed to be melded within it as his power grew even wilder.


    His halberd disappeared as his rule power condensed into a staff in the Divine Ape''s hands. Different rule powers permeated his body. A curtain of starry particles flashed around the staff, and an astonishing aura burst forth from it. Ye Futian stood there like a true god of war, emitting enough pressure to suffocate anyone near him.


    Cultivation was an orderly and gradual process. As you grew stronger, your life spirits continued to change. Your understanding of martial arts and rule spells was the same. When Ye Futian had begun cultivating, he had studied the Nine Heavenly Attacks, but how many had he actually learned?


    Only once the strength of his cultivation increased could he exert greater power with the Nine Heavenly Attacks. And now they were not the simple attacks of when he had started out. Now they were integrated into his perception of rule power. Two people cultivating the same techniques would have very different results.


    Ye Futian had cultivated the Rule of Particles, Force Rules, Starry Laws, and Space Tearing Rules. He had integrated these rule powers into the Nine Heavenly Attacks, making them much more powerful. If he truly reached the level of the Snow Ape, his power would be no weaker than his.


    Xia Qingyuan still stood calmly on the lotus, holding a sword mudra. More and more lotuses blossomed around her. Suddenly, she was bathed in brilliance. She looked like a divine immortal, incorruptible. But Ye Futian had no wish to appreciate her beauty. He could only feel her dangerous aura.


    The Divine Ape stepped into the sky, and the air trembled. A terrible force swept out. Ye Futian grasped the staff. Infinite Law Power seemed to bloom from Xia Qingyuan, and it seemed like Ye Futian was trying to smash through the Great Path of heaven and earth itself. She had all that Law Power, and he had only a stick.


    Brilliance bloomed from the blossoming lotuses, and a catastrophe sword was born from each one. The lotuses gave rise to the Path. The lotuses gave rise to everything. Endless sword wills surrounded each catastrophe sword, all of them pointing at Ye Futian.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Cut him," said Xia Qingyuan. The swords in the lotuses flashed as they pierced through the air. The 3,000 swords descended, and a lightning bolt that was much stronger than the swords pierced through the air in that space.


    Ye Futian raised his arms and brought the staff crashing down, causing a burst of particles to shoot outward. It was like thousands of stars tearing through the air. They crashed into the catastrophe swords from the lotuses, and a destructive airflow appeared. Even if there was a top-level Sage there, they would still be astonished by this scene, and shocked by the power of the two of them.


    In the instant that Ye Futian brought the staff down, the second catastrophe sword bloomed from a lotus. It flashed towards him, even stronger than the one before it. The power of Ye Futian''s staff was not diminished; it continued to sweep out and destroy things, but the arm that was holding it felt a tremendous force. The starry particles began to crack. He could see how strong his opponent''s sword was.


    The third sword, the fourth sword�� the eleventh sword.


    The swords were inexhaustible, and the sword will was not extinguished. Ye Futian was wrapped up in Sword Qi, and an endless amount of swords flew around him, cutting through the air. If he let down his guard even a little, he would be beyond saving.


    But it seemed like he did not feel threatened at all. He walked forward, each step shaking the ground. The Divine Ape roared, and a storm appeared all around him that seemed powerful enough to smash the heavens.


    Ye Futian had cultivated for more than ten years and experienced many battles. Other than when he had faced opponents whose levels he could not compete with, he had never experienced a situation like today, where he was still in danger despite using the Nine Heavenly Attacks.


    He knew that Xia Qingxuan''s life spirit was full of strength and that she had used the lotuses to give rise to her Law Power. She had integrated her Huangting Fist Will into the catastrophe swords, making each one stronger than the last. These were two different rule powers, but she had achieved mastery over both of them and combined them into a single attack. The lotuses gave birth to swords that cut through everything.


    But his staff technique was completely different, and his accumulated power was more than that of his opponent''s catastrophe swords. At this moment, his staff resonated with heaven and earth. This meant that if two people were fighting outside the Imperial Mausoleum and sought to seize the power of heaven and earth for themselves, they would unleash a terrible storm.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at him as she stood firm. Nine lotuses flew all around her, with sacred light blooming from them. Powerful catastrophe swords were hidden in each lotus. The nine catastrophes were linked together. When the swords were born, everything would wither.


    She pointed forward and the nine swords shot out. Ye Futian had already struck six times, and at that moment a powerful storm appeared around him. He stepped forward again but did not strike a seventh time.


    The swords reached him.


    A destructive sound rang out as the air was torn and the stars were shattered. The swords came at him one by one, slicing towards his chest and destroying his will. But Ye Futian seemed to not even see them. He continued forward. The terrible storm of swords seemed to swallow him up, but his momentum grew even stronger. It seemed that he was the only person in the world at that moment.


    The Divine Ape''s body bore the sword strikes, and it seemed to be riddled with holes. However, at that moment, it grew bigger as if the true Divine Ape had finally arrived. It gave a loud roar that shook the heavens. Ye Futian lifted his arm and struck forward with it.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Loud noises rang out as the swords collided with the staff. The sounds were like thunder, and the sky trembled at them. The swords of the Great Path all seemed to be annihilated. All that was left was the staff. It broke through all the swords and slammed through the air towards Xia Qingyuan.


    The lotuses bloomed majestically, forming a barrier around Xia Qingyuan''s body. She watched what was happening calmly. There was a loud noise as the lotuses broke and their petals were sent flying. Xia Qingyuan was also sent flying. There was a loud crash as she hit the cliff wall, and blood flowed from her mouth, staining her white clothes. The immortal was bleeding, which was truly astonishing.


    The destructive storm still raged, but then it gradually dissipated. Ye Futian stood there calmly like a god. The Divine Ape and his life spirit disappeared, and the staff had also been annihilated by the swords. But his deep black eyes were still firm as they stared at Xia Qingyuan. She was the Princess of Emperor Xia''s realm, the foremost talent of the Upper Worlds. She had three thousand swords, and lotuses that gave birth to matter, and all he had was a stick.


    The Imperial Mausoleum trembled more fiercely. Xia Qingyuan shook as she stepped forward. She stood in front of Ye Futian, gazing at the one person of the same generation as her who had ever defeated her.


    Glass Saint and the Great Zhou Sacred King watched this battle and trembled. Ye Futian had defeated the descendant of Renhuang, Xia Qingyuan, the proud daughter of heaven.


    Xia Qingyuan wiped the blood away from her mouth. She looked at Ye Futian, and there seemed to still be an unyielding arrogance in her beautiful eyes. "If we continue to fight, I still have tricks up my sleeve," she said. "You will lose. But since you managed to knock me back, I will not fight for the inheritance anymore."


    She had said that if Ye Futian could get it, he could take it. Of course, Ye Futian had not taken it himself but had given it to Huang Jiuge and now stood blocking her way. But it was all the same. However, she was confident that if she used her trump card, Ye Futian would have no way to resist her. But she did not intend to do so.


    "Thank you very much, Princess." Ye Futian smiled at Xia Qingyuan and said, "In all the time I''ve been cultivating, I''ve never encountered anyone at the same level as me who could fight with me to this extent. You are very strong, but if we must talk about tricks up our sleeves, you are not the only one who has them."


    Xia Qingyuan narrowed her eyes as she stared at him. This guy truly was extremely arrogant. Did he mean that she should be proud of having lost to him? Also, he said that he had a trick up his sleeve as well. Did he mean that if they kept fighting he could continue to defeat her?


    "I accidentally hurt you in the battle. I hope you won''t hold it against me?" Ye Futian asked her. Xia Qingyuan regarded him coldly. Who did this b*stard think he was? Did he think that just because he had knocked her back she wouldn''t send someone to kill him? Why shouldn''t she?


    "I did not originally mean to hold it against you, but after listening to you talk, I want to cut you now," said Xia Qingyuan coldly.


    "If you can hit me with your sword, I will die without complaints," he answered her with a smile.


    "This shameless ruffian..." Hearing the conversation between the two of them, Glass Saint also wished she could stab Ye Futian. Not long ago, he had been flirting with her, and now he even dared to do so with the Princess!

 960 Leaving with a Smile

    Xia Qingyuan seemed to have been accustomed to Ye Futian''s daring antics, even before, there did not appear to be anything that Ye Futian dared not do in front of her.


    However, at this time, Ye Futian seemed to be even more arrogant.


    But still she did not seem to mind it. She used to think that Ye Futian''s daring was unwarranted arrogance, but now Ye Futian had proven his strength that could even defeat her. Naturally he had the right to be proud.


    This battle had demonstrated that Ye Futian''s talent was hard to match among the Upper and Lower Worlds. Even if she thought that she could still beat Ye Futian with her full strength, it did not mean that others could achieve it in the same situation.


    When such a person appeared in the land of Nine States, even if he was arrogant in speech, she could still tolerate it.


    Otherwise, what if any other useless person would dare to pull such a stunt in front of her?


    She would probably execute them with a wave of her hand.


    Of course, this did not mean that Xia Qingyuan, the precious princess, had a good impression of Ye Futian. She acknowledged the talent of Ye Futian, but it affirmed her feeling that Ye Futian was arrogant and unreasonable, disrespectful.


    "Princess, this guy is arrogant and disrespectful to the princess. I am willing to serve the princess." At this time, Great Zhou Sacred King stood up with a cold look. The eyes that regarded at Ye Futian were full of murder.


    At this moment, Huang Jiuge was receiving the inheritance. The great hall madly trembled, causing the power of Renhuang to disappear. He and the Glass Saint no longer felt that pressure, and their injuries started to recover considerably. No matter how outstanding Ye Futian''s talent was, he would surely die in the face of Saint Plane.


    Ye Futian frowned, and his eyes drifted to Xia Qingyuan. Xia Qingyuan was here, but there were also the rules of Emperor Xia. Great Zhou Sacred King had no way to take his revenge on him. But Great Zhou Sacred King actually thought of using Xia Qingyuan to get rid of him.


    As long as Xia Qingyuan gave her consent, the Great Zhou Sacred King would have no more concerns.


    Xia Qingyuan did not respond to the words of Great Zhou Sacred King, but merely cast a cold glance at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian saw that Xia Qingyuan''s eyes conveyed a faint sense of threat, and thought to himself that might this woman take this opportunity to deliberately exact revenge because she was beaten by him?


    "Sister Glass Saint, can you really bear to see Zhou Zhiming to kill me?" Ye Futian transmitted his voice to Glass Saint.


    Glass Saint, who had also recovered some of her energy, was now looking at Ye Futian. In this moment, Ye Futian could clearly feel the murderous sense in those beautiful eyes, and he could not help but shuddered a little.


    "Sister Glass Saint, even if you don''t care about what happened between us, if I die, who do you think will be Zhou Zhiming''s next target?" Ye Futian continued to transmit his voice.


    Glass Saint clenched the Love Destroyer in her hand even harder, strands of her hair flying in the air. How she wished she could slay this shameless hoodlum before the Great Zhou Sacred King.


    But she still got up, walked in front of Great Zhou Sacred King casually, her body releasing a coldness, with Love Destroyer in hand, blocking Zhou Zhiming.


    Although she wanted nothing more than to end Ye Futian with her sword, she understood the current situation. If Ye Futian died, the Holy Zhi Palace would fall apart, and the alliance of the Yue Clan and the Holy Zhi Palace would fall through. Once the Holy Zhi Palace had been destroyed, who would be the next target for Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King?


    Great Zhou Sacred King had said before, he already built the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple within his palace, waiting for her to move in.


    No matter what a bastard Ye Futian was, it was also true that her plot against him in the first place had resulted in his deliberate retaliation, causing her and Great Zhou Sacred King to be grievously injured under the pressure of Renhuang.


    This grudge was not as deep as the sea of bloody debts between her and Great Zhou Sacred King.


    When Ye Futian saw what the Glass Saint did, he knew that she was, after all, a person of the Saint Plane. She would not wish him to die in the heat of the moment.


    "After Zhou Zhiming is dead, I swear I''ll kill you with my sword." Glass Saint threatened Ye Futian in a voice cold as ice.


    "Sister Glass Saint, we have already been intimate. You wouldn''t really be so unfeeling, would you?" Ye Futian responded with voice transmission. Had she tried to threaten him?


    Before when the Glass Saint had used him, he remembered it in his heart.


    The Glass Saint bit down on her lips, her face was frosty and looked as if she could kill, but it gave her another kind of beauty. For the first beauty of Eastern State, no matter her expression, she would always be lovely to behold.


    She did not threaten Ye Futian again. At this moment, she clearly knew that this extraordinary man who had just defeated Xia Qingyuan was in fact a shameless boor.


    Xia Qingyuan clearly saw the actions of Glass Saint, but what she was not clear on was what had happened between the three of them. After all, she''d arrived later.


    "Inheritance has been made known to the world, and all holy lands of the Nine States can go for it amongst themselves as they wish. However, the rules of the Sacred War are still in effect. Violators will be executed."


    At this time, Xia Qingyuan said that coldly, which meant that the Great Zhou Sacred King''s thoughts about killing Ye Futian could not be a reality. Besides, Xia Qingyuan had just acknowledged the fact that Huang Jiuge was the recipient of the inheritance.


    Nine States could fight, but they still need to follow the rules of the Sacred War.


    When Ye Futian heard Xia Qingyuan''s authoritative words, he stole a look at her. He couldn''t help but feel better about her when he looked at her. He thought that this little princess who preferred to dress like a man was actually quite pretty. Maybe he could consider her after all?


    He had just formed this thought when he felt a cold gaze, and it was none other than the eyes of Xia Qingyuan. He shuddered and gave up the idea, which could prove to be too dangerous.


    Xia Qingyuan obvious did not know the fleeting thought that had passed in Ye Futian''s mind, otherwise she might really have let Great Zhou Sacred King end Ye Futian right then and there.


    She was only thinking that, with Ye Futian''s strength as demonstrated in the battle with her. Under the rules of Sacred War, it would not be that easy to die.


    Whether one could hold on to the inheritance after receiving it, would depend on one''s own skills.


    The rule was set by her father, and naturally it was not her place to interfere. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The inheritance of Emperor Xia appeared in the land of Nine States. If anyone else other than her had received the inheritance, it was probably not a good thing.


    Within the space of the mausoleum brilliant blazing rays bloomed, causing the shaking stone wall inside the mausoleum to gradually crack, and it appeared on the verge of collapse.


    The Glass Saint and the Great Zhou Sacred King stood on the ground and could clearly feel the vibration of the earth.


    Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan turned their attention to Huang Jiuge.


    Because Ye Futian was plotting against the Glass Saint and Great Zhou Sacred King, and also blocked Xia Qingyuan, no one was disturbing Huang Jiuge and this allowed him to quietly receive the power of Renhuang.


    At this time, Huang Jiuge stood under the body of Renhuang, and that body seemed to have turned into illusory golden sands, slowly sifting into the body of Huang Jiuge.


    Huang Jiuge bathed in the endless glow of the setting sun, and as the body of Renhuang gradually disintegrated, the light upon his body became brighter and brighter. The three great life spirits were released at the same time, and further washed. Even the Renhuang Sword and the Renhuang Bow were all blooming with unparalleled brilliance, gradually blending with the life spirit of Huang Jiuge, and seemed to be integrated into one.


    Ye Futian saw this scene, secretly shocked. After today, Huang Jiuge would be transformed.


    The ancestor of the sovereign family was the true Renhuang, and now the inheritance had been passed down to the descendants. It would transform and remake Huang Jiuge.


    Great Zhou Sacred King''s heart was filled with even more murderous intent, while the Glass Saint felt something alarming in her heart. She had heard about the story when Zhisheng Cliffs bullied the Barren State. Now in only a few years'' time, Ye Futian had led an army to wash Zhisheng Cliffs in blood. In Ye Futian''s generation, outstanding talents had risen one after another. In a few more years, what would things look like then?


    Xia Qingyuan thought different from what they were thinking. Nine States was governed by her father, so it didn''t matter to her who was stronger or who was weaker.


    However, Ye Futian was willing to give the inheritance of Renhuang to Huang Jiuge, guarding in front of him. He had also gone to the Ninth Layer of Heaven through the Sky Stairwell on account of Ye Wuchen of the Holy Zhi Palace. Just what kind of a person was he?


    Did he not value the inheritance of Renhuang, or did he feel that it was not as valuable as friendship?


    ...


    At this time, outside the mausoleum cultivators from the Nine States and the Upper Worlds were still here. When they saw cracks appearing on the stone wall of the mausoleum, they knew everything was soon to come to an end.


    The Little Princess, Xia Qingyuan, should have received the inheritance.


    Golden rays pierced through the mausoleum, and the light radiated toward the entire imperial mausoleum. In this instant, all the puppets turned into golden sands that flew away, and the matrix was constantly disintegrating. Above the firmament, the perilous aura that had blocked the void was gradually dissipating. At this moment, all the cultivators breathed deeply and felt a little intoxicated by the pure aura of heaven and earth.


    However, at this time, there were terrifying rules of the Great Path gathering above the firmament, and the void had changed its color, and turned into a threat of catastrophe. Many showed a look of surprise for a moment.


    Was this the Divine Catastrophe?


    Just when the matrix had been breached, there was already someone who needed to pass the Divine Catastrophe?


    Who had attracted the Divine Catastrophe?


    Suddenly, there was a great laughter heard, and when the eyes of many turned that way, they saw that Huang Xi, who had already merged with the statue, said aloud, "I didn''t expect that I would have a similar encounter as Douzhan, but it was a pity that Douzhan was far more fortunate than me. But that I could experience the Divine Catastrophe before I die, it was a life worth living."


    He understood that it was not his own power that had attracted the Divine Catastrophe, but it was because he had borrowed the glory of his ancestors and transformed his mind that he''d succeeded. Unfortunately, he had already burned through his spiritual will and could no longer live.


    Everyone had said that princess Xia Qingyuan would receive the inheritance of Renhuang, but he still held out a sliver of hope that he could witness Jiuge inherit the glory of their ancestor.


    Then he would have no more regrets in this life.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Violent sounds were heard, the stone wall was shattered and pulverized, and statues were also crushed and broken. In an instant, countless people were looking in the direction of the mausoleum.


    Over yonder, the Glass Saint and the Great Zhou Sacred King stood opposite each other, as if the two were at an impasse.


    Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan stood face to face. It seemed like Ye Futian had blocked the way of Xia Qingyuan.


    Further forward, a figure was bathed in endless brilliance, the light of Renhuang. That figure was in fact Huang Jiuge.


    At this moment, everyone''s eyes were concentrated there.


    The one who received the inheritance of Renhuang was not the Glass Saint, not the Great Zhou Sacred King, nor Xia Qingyuan, whom they all thought as the the most promising.


    Instead, it was Huang Jiuge of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Hahahaha!" There was sound of great laughs, and Huang Jiuqe turned his eyes toward it and a figure that had blended into the stone wall. Tears were flowing down from his eyes.


    However, at this time, Huang Xi was also in tears, just as if the statue was crying.


    "I, Huang Xi, had a perfect life." Huang Xi looked up at the Divine Catastrophe in the firmament, and seeing it descend, he said clearly, "Palace lord, please take care of Jiuge for me."


    In his last words, he did not call the name of Ye Futian, but referred to him as the palace lord.


    As his voice faded the Divine Catastrophe came down, and Huang Xi, who had already burned up his spiritual will could no longer resist it.


    The Divine Catastrophe landed, and in the land of the Barren State, Huang Xi was no more. He left with smiles on his face!

 961 Who Will Take the Inheritance

    The statue was shattered under the Divine Catastrophe and turned to dust.


    Huang Xi, who had exhausted everything like an oil lamp run dry, integrated into the statue and could no longer bear the authority of the Divine Catastrophe. Just one blow and he had completely disappeared from the world. Only his voice was still reverberating.


    Take Nine States as a whole and Huang Xi was really just a minor character, but it was he who blocked all the saints of the Nine States. His death made Huang Xi a memorable name in the Nine States.


    At this time, everyone from the Barren State arrived. Sword Demon, Zhuge Qingfeng, You Chi, Xu Shang and the others stared at the disappearing shadow of Huang Xi, and they sighed in their hearts.


    In the past on the Barren Sky Ranking, Huang Xi ranked fifth, Zhuge Qingfeng sixth, Douzhan seventh, You Chi eighth, and Xu Shang ninth. Now, all of those old timers had come together and cultivated in the Holy Zhi Palace. Douzhan had already stepped into Saint Plane and fulfilled his dream, and now Huang Xi had finally ushered in his own Divine Catastrophe, but he had gone with it instead.


    They could feel that Huang Xi went very calmly, knowing that he was indeed a descendant of Renhuang and that his own descendant had received the inheritance of Renhuang and he had a chance to experience the Divine Path, it was true that he had no more regrets.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Furthermore, as a sage he had prevented the saints from coming forwards and even seriously injured Saint Ji, who ranked fifth on the Sage and Saint Ranking of the Nine States. It was also a notable record. From this day forward in Barren State the name of Huang Xi as the master of the Huang Clan would surely resound throughout the Barren State.


    "Old man, be at peace." they said in their hearts. Looking at the direction of Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge they felt gratified, but at the same time a touch of sadness.


    These young people had finally caught up with them, and would replace them soon, and old guys such as themselves may end up like Huang Xi. If there was such a day one day, would they leave this world as calmly as Huang Xi?


    The imperial mausoleum collapsed, the heavens and the earth returned its clarity, and a gentle breeze was blowing. Shadows came out of the sky, and it was the saints who marched toward Huang Jiuge.


    The cultivator who came with the princess was the first to be at her side, and his eyes glanced at Ye Futian coldly. They didn''t know what had happened, but this guy had dared to confront the princess. Was it he who blocked the princess''s way to receive the inheritance?


    As if he had not seen it, Huang Jiuge came to the place where Huang Xi had disappeared. There was no more trace of Huang Xi.


    Ye Futian walked quietly next to him and said nothing, he felt the same pain in his heart. When the old man was at Crouching Dragon Mountain, the third senior brother Gu Dongliu was ascending the mountain and they had opposed the marriage between Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue. Huang Xi had advocated for them. And after the war outside the palace, how he had moved the clan into the palace. All of these he had remembered in his mind.


    Now, that man whose name was known throughout the Barren State was now gone.


    "Elder uncle, I am here. The Huang Clan is also here," Ye Futian said silently in his heart. With Xia Qingyuan''s words, no one from the Upper and Lower Worlds could take away the inheritance that belonged to the Huang Clan or the Sovereign Family.


    All the cultivators of Nine States wanted to move on it. However, Xia Qingyuan said nothing, so they dared not to make a move first.


    The inheritance of Renhuang should have belonged to Xia Qingyuan. So, until the princess expressed her position, they were in no place to contest for it.


    Saint Xia was also in the crowd. His eyes landed on princess Xia Qingyuan. When he saw that she was watching Ye Futian, he couldn''t help but secretly sweat for Ye Futian. This bastard did not really, as rumor had it, battle with the princess outside the mausoleum to compete for the inheritance?


    To fight, one needed to be alive, just as one also needed to be alive in order to hold on to something.


    "The dispute between the holy lands of Nine States will still follow the same rules set by my father." Xia Qingyuan''s sight came back to her people and she said something to them. Suddenly, countless cultivators concentrated their sights as well. They had not known what had happened in the mausoleum.


    Did this mean that the princess had abandoned the inheritance?


    Moreover, what was her intention to remind everyone Emperor Xia''s rules? Was she concerned that there would be blood flowing like rivers in the Nine States?


    Xia Qingyuan did not care about the thoughts of these people, and she did not need to care either. She looked at Li Yao and said, "Since the inheritance of Renhuang has already found an owner, it is time for you to go back."


    Li Yao smiled and said, "The princess is not very hospitable. I was thinking of traveling within the realm of Emperor Xia."


    He waved his hand toward his people and left, choosing not to get into the fray here.


    The imperial mausoleum was discovered by them, but they did not get what they came for. They had lost.


    Since they had lost, if they now wanted to seize the inheritance forcibly, Xia Qingyuan would probably not look upon it kindly.


    After all, this was still the territory of Emperor Xia. No matter how strong he was, he would not be able to overrule Xia Qingyuan.


    "Let''s go." Xia Qingyuan said, and took her leave with her people. Many from the Upper Worlds left with her, and a number of cultivators from Lihen Heaven cast a cold glance at Ye Futian. The Little Princess was really generous. She did not even care to fight for it.


    Soon, this space was left only with the cultivators from the Nine States.


    Because the imperial mausoleum had collapsed, many cultivators from the Barren State in the distance had moved closer to this area. Looking at it, all cultivators of the Nine States had gathered here. The magnificent sight would likely not be repeated in this lifetime.


    Although Xia Qingyuan had left, the atmosphere of this space was even more oppressed. Although no one spoke, everyone could feel the subtlety in the air.


    The abandonment of Xia Qingyuan meant that the real chaos was yet to come. Holy lands of the Nine States could all now fight for it.


    For Ye Futian to attempt to keep the inheritance, everyone at the Holy Zhi Palace might die without a burial place.


    Which holy land could withstand the anger of all the holy lands of the Nine States?


    Huang Xi had previously offended many people, and Huang Jiuge actually wanted to be able to keep the inheritance?


    "Great Zhou Sacred King, you missed." Saint Xihua looked at Zhou Zhiming. The Great Zhou Sacred King and Glass Saint were the first two people who entered the mausoleum, but in the end, the inheritance was obtained by Huang Jiuge. Saint Xihu was rather puzzled.


    Great Zhou Sacred King revealed a strong murderous intent, his eyes sweeping toward Ye Futian.


    As for what happened in the mausoleum, he did not say, and for what Ye Futian did to the Glass Saint, he was too ashamed to tell.


    As for Ye Futian''s defeat of Xia Qingyuan, he would not divulge, because one, he was leery of Xia Qingyuan''s position, and second, he did not want the people of Nine States to know that Ye Futian was so outstanding. Because once they knew, inevitably some would want to start hedging their bets much like the Yue Clan.


    Now that Huang Jiuge had received the inheritance, if Ye Futian wanted to keep it, then he was destined to be enemies with all of Nine States. No matter how strong he was, there was only death in his future.


    With Ye Futian''s temperament, he would never surrender the inheritance.


    So, this would be a dead end, and he wanted to see just how would Ye Futian resolve this.


    "The princess''s words have already been made very clear. No matter how you fight, if the rules set by the Emperor Xia were not followed, don''t complain when I discipline you." Saint Xia suddenly spoke and surprised everyone.


    This leader of the Nine States had always been a gentle old man, who did not fight for much of anything. He himself already stood at the top of Nine States.


    What was the meaning behind what he said?


    But at least it indicated that Saint Xia himself had given up the competition for the inheritance, which was a good thing.


    "Blessings and disasters often depend on each other, don''t fight for it." Saint Li of the Nine State College said to those of the college. The disciples of the Nine State College all nodded and came next to Saint Li to observe the scene unfolding.


    The inheritance of Renhuang, no matter who took possession of it, would be too hot to handle.


    Since the two top most figures in Nine States had withdrawn, among the people present, Saint Ji was the strongest.


    Saint Ji suffered serious injury previously to Huang Xi. He couldn''t take it out on Huang Xi now, so for sure Saint Ji would not let Huang Jiuge off the hook.


    What was more, he had not avenged the death of Ji Mo with the people of Holy Zhi Palace.


    At this time, Saint Ji stood in the void, his eyes looked around at the crowd, and pointed to Huang Jiuge, saying, "There is only one of him, how would you fight for it?"


    Saint Ji spoke as if he did not regard Huang Jiuge as a person, but an item who deserved this because he had received the inheritance of Renhuang.


    Everyone understood what Saint Ji was saying. Even someone as strong as Saint Ji dared not say that he would directly swallow Huang Jiuge. No principality here could afford to make enemies with the forces of the Nine States.


    The instant when Xia Qingyuan gave it up, it was destined to be a complicated situation.


    "What advice does Saint Ji have?" said the Clan Chief of the Yi Clan, not caring at all about his position, and of course caring even less how the people of the Holy Zhi Palace in Barren State would view him.


    Right now, in this situation, how many from the Holy Zhi Palace could leave alive?


    Even if Ye Futian surrendered Huang Jiuge, Saint Ji would not so easily let go of the power that killed Ji Mo.


    With the tendency of the lord of the Hall of Holy Light to protect the bully, and with sworn enemies such as Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, how could the Holy Zhi Palace survive?


    And should they fasten their hopes on the Yue Clan, who was also of the Summer State?


    Under such circumstances, it was difficult to say if the Yue Clan had the courage to intervene.


    Or, with the temptation of the inheritance of Renhuang, could the Yue Clan not be seduced themselves?


    "Those holy lands that are interested to fight for it, send one man in. Whoever killed him may claim him, how is that?" Saint Ji pointed to Huang Jiuge and continued, using Huang Jiuge''s life as a bet. Whosoever killed Huang Jiuge may claim his dead body.


    "He has the inheritance of Renhuang, Saint Ji would really be willing to kill him?" The Clan Chief of Yi Clan asked casually.


    Many agreed that at the moment, they were somewhat reluctant to kill Huang Jiuge because they wanted him alive.


    "Then how about him?" Saint Ji change the direction of his finger slowly and it landed in the direction of Ye Futian.


    The one who killed Ye Futian would get Huang Jiuge.


    Everyone from the holy lands were silent, considering whether it was any merit in what Saint Ji had just said?


    First of all, this rule favored Saint Ji. Everyone knew Ji Ya, who ranked second on the Sage list, was present here. If all the cultivators of holy lands were to make a move at the same time, it would be easiest for Ji Ya to kill Ye Futian.


    What was more, even if someone was really about to get rid of Ye Futian, would other holy lands really be willing to give up Huang Jiuge?


    In this game, Ye Futian and his people were in the center of the vortex, but everyone also had a stake in it.


    At this time, below in the crowd, Ye Futian looked up calmly at Saint Ji who was floating in the void.


    Just exactly what did Saint Ji think he and Huang Jiuge would do? Merely be pawns of their bets?


    He wanted to see, today, who could come and take the inheritance!

 962 Death Wish

    Ye Futina looked down from the sky at the mighty ones from the holy lands and said, "I''ve told you that the Renhuang ruins are left behind by the ancestors of the Sovereign family, who studies in the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. I''m not taking the lineage and the princess isn''t taking it either. With Huang Jiuge, a descendant of Renhuang having obtained the lineage left behind by his ancestor, we shall call it a day with the matter of the Renhuang ruins."


    All the others wore peculiar expressions hearing Ye Futian''s words. While Xia Qingyuan had indeed been generous enough not to take the lineage, yet Ye Futian was not a saint despite being immensely talent, and he had dared to tell the top notch figures of the Nine States to call it a day as a sage.


    No one cares.


    Saint Xihua snickered sarcastically and the sacred king was in no hurry as well. While he had personally witnessed how peerless Ye Futian''s powers truly were, but that mattered little as over half of mighty ones ranked on the Sage Ranking from all holy lands throughout the Nine States gathered there, and all of them held divine implements.


    While Ye Futian was indeed peerless below the Saint Plane, but if he intended to protect Huang Jiuge''s lineage, none there would have let him walked out alive.


    Saint Ji took a plain look at Ye Futian and paid him no heed. From his perspective, Ye Futian and the ones from the Barren State were all dead people. He would have seen to it that the Holy Zhi Palace perish to avenge Ji Mo.


    "You''re not making sense, Palace Lord Ye. The ruins belong to anyone capable enough of taking it, and the place shall belong to the one who would take it first. Wouldn''t it be easier if we just see who shall be the one who take it first before everyone else? Why do we need to fight about this?" The current Palace Lord of the Ocean Palace, the Ocean Saint said. Ye Futian took a look at him and saw the saints from the three major holy lands from the Endless Ocean stood together. They would have probably reached a consensus telepathically earlier.


    While the three holy lands from the Endless Ocean were not exactly at friendly terms with each other and they tried to one-up each other all the time, but none of that prevented them from allying with each other at the moment.


    It would have been splendid for them to just take Huang Jiuge and decide what to do with him after returning to the Endless Ocean. Fighting among themselves internally was deemed a better option than fighting the holy lands from all over the Nine States after all.


    "I agree to Saint Ji''s suggestion," the Nether Saint from the North Deep said plainly. The three holy lands from the Ocean State had no edge over those from the Summer State, Qi State and War State. If they were to simply fight in a free-for-all manner, the holy lands from the Ocean State had a slim chance of coming out on top. If they were to ally with each other per Saint Ji''s rules, then they would have still stood a chance.


    The lineage of Renhuang was very tempting after all.


    Both the Upper and Lower Worlds of Emperor Xia''s Realm had only one master��Emperor Xia.


    The sight one would have been able to see at Renhuang Plane was a dream shared by all saints and none dared claim themselves to be totally uninterested. Huang Jiuge was but a sage and a common student in the Holy Zhi Palace, and none there deemed him fit to take the Renhuang lineage.


    While they would have called Ye Futian''s demise a waste, but they would have not minded much. If Ye Futian were to take such a route, then he shall simply die for it.


    "Very well." Saint Ji nodded.


    "With that said, that''s how it shall go then," the clan leader of the Yi clan said in agreement to Saint Ji''s opinion��kill Ye Futian and take Huang Jiuge.


    The saints from all other holy lands said nothing, but their eyes were all on Ye Futian and they all had their own agendas.


    Many sage stepped out at that moment and sealed the space off completely. Escape was no longer an option for those from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    It was a scene that the people from the Barren State found harrowing and they gathered around Ye Futian, looking at the mighty ones from all over the Nine States in the sky with determined eyes.


    They had never expected that there would have been a day where they would make enemies out of everyone else in the Nine States.


    All of them were wondering if they would have simply perished that day.


    Ye Futian looked up at the people from other holy lands in the sky and he smirked all of a sudden. Becoming enemies of the entire Nine States eh?


    The three holy lands of the Endless Ocean, the Yi clan and Saint Ji had all made their stand. It was apparent that they deemed Ye Futian little more than a dead man by then, having no qualms of offending him.


    The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State has had to deal with the Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Zhisheng Cliffs, and now more were added to the list of their enemies.


    Such was the temptation of Renhuang''s lineage. If Xia Qingyuan had not relinquished, no one would have dared to fight against her. Lineages might have been important, but their lives more so. But since Xia Qingyuan had given up on it, they saw it fit to fight instead.


    Treasures had ways of messing with the minds of people, and the saints were no exceptions.


    "Students of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, fight alongside me," Ye Futian said. His voice sounded calm yet very solemn.


    All of those from the Holy Zhi Palace stood behind him without making a sound. It was a sight that impressed many. The unity of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State was fearsome like no other. They knew they would have died fighting and they still chose to fight.


    In the perspective of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, they saw no other choice but to fight at the moment.


    While their actions were commendable, the others at the other side deemed that they must die nonetheless. The others from holy lands all over the Nine States did not sympathize with them just because they were commendable.


    The spectators of the battles from Zhongzhou City from afar were thoroughly impressed. So that''s how determined the Holy Zhi Palace, the holy land of our Barren State truly is then.


    Since the day the young man took charge of the Holy Zhi Palace, that holy land of the Barren State became firm and unyielding, so much so that they were willing to take on the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and massacred the Zhisheng Cliffs.


    Even at the moment when they came to make enemies out of the Nine States, they did not flinch.


    Some of the top forces like the Ximen clan looked from afar and feared that the battle might have simply brought an end to the Barren State.


    "That kid has to go this far..." Saint Xia cursed beneath his breath. So he''s going to do it even though he knows that he stands no chance then?


    While Ye Futian had went all the way up to the Ninth Layer of Heaven, but things at present were far more dire than it had been at the Ninth Layer of Heaven. That b**tard sure doesn''t know where he stands.


    However, the unyielding determination displayed impressed him nonetheless. The young is truly fearsome.


    Jiang Yuechan came to the side of the Glass Saint in another corner. It was an ending that she had never expected would have happened.


    If Ye Futian were to perish there, it would have been the end of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple.


    "Madam, why is he able to get the lineage?" Jiang Yuechan asked the Glass Saint telepathically, feeling rather vexed.


    The Glass Saint looked at Ye Futian and felt complicated. Would Ye Futian be able to kill his way out of this?


    "He defeated Xia Qingyuan." The Glass Saint continued to reply Jiang Yuechan telepathically, "If it hadn''t been for the fact that he had just made enemies out of the entire Nine States, no one would have been able to stop him from leaving."


    Jiang Yuechan shuddered. Is Ye Futian really that powerful?


    If such a person were to become a saint, he would have struck fear into the minds of the Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua.


    Jiang Yuechan''s eyes flashed with determination.


    There was still hope for miracles.


    It made sense that they chose to stand their ground and fight.


    Jiang Yuechan stepped out looking determined.


    "Yuechan," the Glass Saint called as she saw the girl walking out.


    "Madam, saints are forbidden from fighting. There is still a chance." Jiang Yuechan continued to step forward and said to the Moon Saint telepathically, "Saint Yue, I''m the one who killed the people of Yue clan."


    The Moon Saint was unable to help but look down at Jiang Yuechan, but there was hardly any surprise found in his eyes. The Glass Saint fell out with the Zhou Sacred King right after they entered the imperial mausoleum. He came to realize that something was going on. As such, he did not interfere when Saint Xihua and the Zhou Sacred King allied themselves against the Glass Saint.


    He felt rather peculiar as to why Jiang Yuechan owned up to that.


    "Do you know why the princess had been able to let Huang Jiuge take the lineage right before the princess, Senior Moon Saint?" Jang Yuechan continued to speak to him telepathically. The Moon Saint felt peculiar as well. Having two saints and Xia Qingyuan around meant that Ye Futian''s chance of getting it being the smallest.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Yet, the lineage of Renhuang was taken by Huang Jiuge nonetheless.


    "Ye Futian had defeated the princess." Jiang Yuechan continued telepathically, "Not only that, it was thanks to Ye Futian taking on the Sky Stairwell that Ye Wuchen had been able to come back alive. He tore through the entire Jiutian Temple at the Upper Worlds and made short work of the geniuses up there, taking back Ye Wuchen alive. Didn''t you find it odd that Saint Xia, the princess and those from the Upper Worlds were treating Ye Futian in a rather peculiar manner.


    The Moon Saint''s eyes became pointed. Jiang Yuechan''s words were able to make sense of many things and everything seemed clear by then.


    Saint Xia seemed to have been helping Ye Futian one way or another inconspicuously.


    The princess'' attitude towards Ye Futian seemed rather peculiar as well, claiming that there was nothing Ye Futian dared not do.


    "The Yue clan had wanted to form a marriage alliance with Ye Futian almost exclusively due to his potential. With the Barren State facing enemies from all side from the Nine States at present, if the Yue clan is able to provide assistance, it would be a far better option than a marriage alliance." Jiang Yuechan continued, "Further, despite things looking grim for the Barren State at the moment, it is clear that Saint Xia admired Ye Futian immensely and Saint Li of the Nine State College had some relations with him as well. Ye Futian had visited the college several times and had a rather peculiar relationship with Saint Jiang. Furthermore, the lord of the Vajra Region taught Yu Sheng personally as well. If you''re to making your stand here, Senior Moon Saint, and the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple backing him up, things would actually look less severe than they seem at the moment. I believe many holy lands are simply sitting on the fence at the moment."


    "What has all of that have to do with you then?" The Moon Saint finally spoke and replied coldly. Since Jiang Yuechan had killed people from the Yue clan, there was hardly any way he would have left her alive.


    "I''ve been staying at Zhongzhou City after Zhisheng Cliffs was wiped out. The assassination attempt was something that I''ve planned and it had nothing to do with the Glass Saint. You should be able to realize that I was unable to wait for the Glass Saint''s orders given how things were moving so fast, and I did not expect mighty ones from the Yue clan would have visited the Holy Zhi Palace. As such, there is no need for you to be angry at the Glass Saint. She would stand alongside you and the side of the Holy Zhi Palace, as that is the trend of things at present."


    Jiang Yuechan continued to spoke to the Moon Saint telepathically when she reached the side where Ye Futian and the others stood. Shen then said, "That is all that I''ve to say and I believe you''d have your thoughts about it all, senior. Ye Futian might die here today, but if he were to survive today, it would have been anyone''s guess, how far someone who had been willing to relinquish his right to fight for Renhuang''s lineage and defeated Xia Qingyuan, who was thought to be more talent than Emperor Xia, would be able to go. I dare not think and I probably wouldn''t get to see it anyway."


    "I''m willing to offer my life for make up for the deaths of the Yue clan''s people. I would not be walking out of here alive. The truth of that assassination shall never be known. The world shall remember that when Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State made enemies out of the Nine States, you, the Moon Saint, stood by him through thick and thin. As for me, Jiang Yuechan, is a nobody and no one would have even remembered my death. I do not have the luxury of being remembered anyway."


    After Jiang Yuechan was done with her telepathic conversation, she turned her eyes at all in the air and said with a brimming voice, "The lineage has found its master and there is no need to fight any further for it. You''re all saints of the Nine States nonetheless and it is rather despicable seeing how you bully the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. I''ve long admired Palace Lord Ye''s bearing, and I shall stand by the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The mighty ones in the air looked at Jiang Yuechan with peculiar eyes, finding it baffling that Jiang Yuechan was walking to her death just like that.


    But then again, they deemed such an incident unworthy of further thought. Since she had a death wish, then they shall oblige her!

 963 No One but Saints Remaining

    Ye Futian, who was about to do battle, looked at her feeling rather surprised.


    Jiang Yuechan admires me?


    Both of them hardly talked to each other and he was not arrogant enough, to think that a beautiful woman who was ranked on the Sage Ranking would have loved him so much, that she was willing to die for him. That would have sounded too far-fetched.


    Furthermore, he knew that Jiang Yuechan had her reasons for killing the ones from the Yue clan, and she had probably been doing it for the Glass Saint.


    He was able to sense the air of a martyr from Jiang Yuechan.


    He and the people of the Yue clan had investigated the deaths of those mighty ones from the Yue clan, sensing a sliver of aura left behind. The Yue clan probably was able to see something from how the Glass Saint had turned on the Zhou Sacred King after entering the imperial mausoleum.


    If things were indeed like that, Jiang Yuechan was indeed having a death wish.


    None of those in the air paid any heed to Jiang Yuechan''s words. Her status as one ranked in the Sage Ranking remained unimportant in front of the saints. Furthermore, what was at hand involved acquiring the lineage of Renhuang, and they would have cared nothing about Jiang Yuechan''s wish.


    Ji Ya walked out first before everyone else and took a cold at Jiang Yuechan below. "Nothing wrong with adding one more to the list."


    Yu Sheng of the Holy Zhi Palace had driven a wedge in his plans using the power of demonization, and Ji Mo was killed right before his eyes. He was determined to not let a single one from the Holy Zhi Palace leave the place alive. If Jiang Yuechan wanted to fight alongside the Holy Zhi Palace, then she shall simply die together with them.


    "Yuechan, get back here," the Glass Saint said coldly. She knew without a doubt that everything Jiang Yuechan had been doing was for her sake. They had been supporting each other while shouldering the vengeance of their clan being obliterated and came all the way to where they were at present. While Jiang Yuechan''s talents were not exceptional, but she had nonetheless made it all the way to become a mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking with indomitable belief and will.


    There was no way the Glass Saint would have simply let Jiang Yuechan send herself to death''s door like that.


    "Madam, I apologize for being unable to take your orders this once." Jiang Yuechan replied the Glass Saint telepathically, "If Ye Futian is able to leave this place alive today, you can further the relations with Ye Futian. Please take good care of yourself after I''m gone. I shall serve you again in the next life.


    She took a look at the Moon Saint''s direction after she was done talking and took one step towards him.


    She knew that she had to die one way or another. A life for a life. She owned up to her actions and knew that day would have came when she acted against those mighty ones from the Yue clan. However, she had no regrets. The truth paled in comparison to getting the Yue clan to side with Ye Futian.


    No one would have cared about the truth when she died.


    Ye Futian did not get in Jiang Yuechan''s way. It was her own choice. Her fate was sealed when she decided to assassinate the Yue clan''s people. Even if there was not such a scuffle taking place at present, there was no way the mighty ones of the Yue clan would have spared her.


    "Kill her," Saint Ji said plainly without any sign of emotion. Seeing how Jiang Yuechan continued walking, several mighty ones ranked on the Sage Ranking made their move.


    Kong Yao of Zhisheng Cliffs moved. His divine elephant brought immense pressure to their surroundings. Jiang Yuechan shuddered, but remained staying in the air and continued moving.


    Zhong Kui of the Xihua Sacred Mountain walked. Sounds of the bell rang in their surroundings and Jiang Yuechan''s speed slowed. Li Daoqiu extended his arm and grabbed at the air, seemingly about to freeze the space. Jiang Yuechan''s speed got increasingly slow.


    Two beams of light flashed. Ji Ya and Ji Mu of the Hall of Holy Light acted at the same time. The swords of holy light flashed in their hands and they drew a dazzling arc. Jiang Yuechan''s body was pierced and blinding light emerged from her body. She was torn to blinding shreds at the very next moment, reduced to nothing right there and then.


    Five mighty ones ranked on the Sage Ranking attacked her at the same time and one of them had been Ji Ya, ranked second, and Kong Yao, ranked ninth. There was simply no way Jiang Yuechan would have been able to stand against such attacks. Furthermore, she had a death wish to begin with and never intended to come out alive.


    Many throughout the Nine States had no idea why Jiang Yuechan wanted to die, but the Glass Saint was not one of them.


    A streak of tears rolled from her eyes, a sight that would have broken the hearts of many. While she was trained in the ways of cutting off emotions, there was no way she would have been able to rid herself of all emotions nonetheless. The woman who had been following her and calling her madam since young left her for good right there and then, and that woman died for her.


    She recalled her younger days when a servant girl stood behind her and helped her with makeup, looking at the mirror saying, "Madam, your looks is such that even I as a girl would have fallen for you. I wonder who would be the lucky man to become your husband. He would definitely be the happiest man in the world."


    Jiang Yuechan was unable to see that day realized. She only saw her master being betrayed and sold out by the man who was to be her master''s husband. Her clan obliterated and she lived a hard life ever since. The Glass Saint put all her time and effort into her training in order to avenge her clan''s destruction, and Jiang Yuechan herself became a mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking.


    Beautiful women were doom-bringers, and she was indeed a doom-bringer. Her clan was killed because of her and she ended her fiance''s family personally. She had even brought doom to her teacher and at present, to Yuechan.


    It was something that would have probably ended only when she died.


    However, it was not her time to die yet, because Zhou Zhiming still lived.


    Despite telling Yuechan to return to her, but she knew without doubt that there was no way Yuechan would have been able to come out of this alive. As such, she never tried to earnestly get in the Jiang Yuechan''s way, making a pathetic and selfish woman.


    She did not wipe her tears and whatever tears she shed quickly dried. She did not shed any further tears and simply looked at Ji Ya, Kong Yao, Zhong Kui and the others. Those people were backed by Saint Ji, Saint Zhi and Saint Xihua.


    At present, she seemed to have cared for more than just taking her revenge against Zhou Zhiming.


    Ye Futian took a look at the Glass Saint''s direction and saw the streak of tears at the corner of her eyes, looking deplorable yet beautiful. The Glass Saint seemed to look even more despaired than when she was bullied, a despair that was utterly silent.


    She probably knew that there was no way she would have been able to keep Yuechan alive.


    He sighed deep down and her resentment towards both the Glass Saint and Jiang Yuechan reduced somewhat. Every single person had something they treasure more than anything else. While Jiang Yuechan''s methods were rather despicable, she nonetheless ended up atoning with her life.


    He was able to relate to how the Glass Saint was feeling at the moment. The current predicament with the Holy Zhi Palace looked just as despair-inducing.


    They have just made enemies with the Nine States and their chance of emerging in one piece was slim.


    However, all who stood by him were willing to fight to the death by his side. They, like Jiang Yuechan, had their own beliefs which they had to see through.


    He would have never let himself ended up like the Glass Saint, who had been unable to protect her own.


    It was fine to make enemies out of the Nine States. If the people of the Nine States were out to take the lives of the students of the Holy Zhi Palace, then he shall slaughter his enemies until a river of blood flowed.


    Ye Futian gradually took to the air.


    Countless eyes were fixed on Ye Futian at that moment, seemingly having forgotten about Jiang Yuechan''s death.


    Jiang Yuechan remained insignificant. While she was a mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking, but that status meant nothing in the predicament they found themselves in. How she died and her reason of death were things that no one cared about.


    Everyone cared only about one thing at the moment��who shall be the one to take Renhuang''s lineage.


    Many mighty ones from holy lands made a move as they saw Ye Futian rose to the air. Ji Ya held the sword of holy light in his hand as he reeked murderous intent.


    Kong Yao stood in the air like a god, looking down at Ye Futian.


    The two top mighty ones on the Sage Ranking from Xihua Sacred Mountain were incredibly cold, and their killing intent just as strong.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Zhou Huang and Zhou Mian of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty moved. A will of heat spread throughout their surroundings as they launched themselves at Ye Futian.


    Mighty ones ranked on the Sage Ranking from the three holy lands from the Endless Ocean made a move, locking down the space.


    Mighty ones from the Yi clan moved as they carried bows and arrows in their hands, pointed at Ye Futian and emanating killing light.


    The actions taken by all those mighty ones alone were more than enough to end the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State right there and then.


    With everyone in the Nine States becoming enemies, it was a luxury for anyone below Saint Plane hoping to emerge out of it all alive.


    Tremendous pressure was cast on Ye Futian and a terrifying gale whipped out. Someone dressed in white garb billowed and the air became filled with murderous intent.


    The people of the Holy Zhi Palace behind Ye Futian mobilized and every single one of them unleashed their own powers, ready to fight to the death.


    The air was silent, save for the cold wind blowing. It was a stifling scene.


    Many from the Zhongzhou City far away had their eyes locked onto the battlefield, while sighing deep down.


    Is the Holy Zhi Palace really going to perish at last on this day?


    If Ye Futian were to perish, the Holy Zhi Palace was no longer the Holy Zhi Palace even if the organization and place were to remain intact.


    "The one to kill me shall acquire the lineage?"


    Ye Futian lifted his head and scanned the mighty ones in the air. He stepped out and faced the mighty ones from the Nine States alone.


    He extended his hand and dazzling light emerged. A ritual implement appeared on Ye Futian''s palm.


    It was a halberd, shining with a golden glimmer that made it seem like it was made of pure gold, emanating brilliant sparkle. Terrifying power of space ebbed on the weapon; it was the might of the saints.


    It became clear that the weapon he held was a divine implement.


    Many from the holy lands did not catch on. It was hardly surprising that Ye Futian came to possess a divine implement. However, the saints from the three holy lands at the Endless Ocean froze at the sight of the weapon, locking their gaze on the halberd and nothing else.


    The Ocean Saint, Palace Lord of the Ocean Palace stepped forward with wide-opened eyes and said coldly, "The Halberd of Space and Time."


    The saints from all over the Nine States wore peculiar looks. Is that really the weapon that ranked third on the Divine Implements Ranking��the Halberd of Space and Time, Nothingness?


    Saints from the Endless Ocean claimed not long ago that the lost ruins were broken and the Halberd of Space and Time disappeared. The one who had taken the weapon was Jiuying, a divine beast.


    Yet at present, the weapon appeared in Ye Futian''s hand.


    The saints of the North Deep and the Celestial Cliffs wore similarly cold expressions as they glared at Ye Futian.


    "So this is to say that you''re the one who killed the people of the three major holy lands of the Ocean State, and the one who took the Halberd of Space and Time that belonged to the Ocean Palace then," the Ocean Saint said as power of the saints emanated from him.


    Ye Futian held his right hand up and pointed at the Ocean Saint, "Lineages of ruins shall belong to those who are able to take it. I believe those are your words. Have you forgotten them already?"


    It hardly mattered if he had killed the people from the three holy lands, and him taking out the Halberd of Space and Time was just as irrelevant.


    If the Nine States were to become his enemies, then so be it.


    "Brilliant," Saint Ji said. He did not expect to not only find the Renhuang lineage on that day, but also the Halberd of Space and Time, Nothingness, which was ranked third on the Divine Implements Ranking, appeared as well. Things turned out to be very nice.


    The two divine implements ranked first and second were probably still in the hands of their masters��the top two on the Saint Ranking. They were nowhere to be found. With the third divine implement appearing and both Saint Xia and Saint Li not fighting over it, then it would have belonged to him.


    "Brilliant indeed." Ye Futian took a look at Saint Ji and said coldly, while pointing the weapon at him, "If there is anyone from any holy land were to kill even a single person from the Holy Zhi Palace, and if I were to emerge alive, I would make sure that said holy land would have no one else remaining but their saints."

 964 Power of the Halberd

    Ye Futian''s proud voice reverberated throughout that space and everyone was able to sense the killing intent oozing from him.


    They were unable to fathom how someone who was about to die was able to be so unrestrained with his words.


    Not going to die?


    How is Ye Futian not going to die facing off so many from the other states?


    Boom.


    Ye Futian took one step in the air, walking out to see who dare stands in his way.


    The ones from the Barren State stepped out together with Ye Futian. All of them brought their auras to bear. Qin Zhuang and the other eight took their stations forming the matrix. Huang Jiuge emanated with dazzling light. His Life Spirit burst from behind him��the Renhuang Bow, a weapon which corresponded to Renhuang level ritual implements. The aura emanating from the Renhuang Bow was not any weaker compared to the Halberd of Time and Space.


    In that very instant, the saints'' greed grew.


    That was a Renhuang level ritual implement after all.


    The Renhuang Bow pointed to the air and the aura bursting from Huang Jiuge grew extremely intense.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. He stepped out in the air and had full intentions to leave the place just like that. Anyone who dared to stand in their way shall be cut down.


    Boom. A raging pressure fell from above. Kong Yao, a sage ranked ninth of the Sage and Saint Rankings stood in the air. He was surrounded by divine elephants out to trample everything in their path, as he glared at Ye Futian and the others.


    You intend to leave?


    Let''s see where you''d end up in then.


    An extremely raging aura burst from Ye Futian and golden sparkling light burst. The Roc appeared and a pair of wings were seen on his back. The Seven Star acupoints were all opened and beams of light pierced through his body. The World Tree within his Life Palace shook and the spiritual qi around him seemed to be resonating with his body.


    In that very instant, Ye Futian felt as if his will was everywhere.


    Ji Ya and Ji Mu held their swords of holy light while the elders of the Yi clan held their longbows. The ones who had killed Jiang Yuechan earlier brought their immense might to bear.


    As Jiang Yuechan, a sage who ranked of the Sage Ranking was unable to withstand one blow from them, they intended to see how long Ye Futian would have lasted against them.


    Boom.


    Ye Futian made a move and shot out like a streak of lightning. He held tight to the halberd in his hand and terrifying Space-tearing rule power appeared around him. All forms of might and pressure were torn away by his body itself as he carved a path in their midst, like a golden lightning bolt headed straight for one direction.


    It was where Zhou Huang, the crown prince of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty stood.


    Kong Yao took a step on the air and brought the might of his divine elephant rule power down onto his enemies. However, Ye Futian did not seem to be all that fettered. A golden, sparkling ancient path appeared in the air.


    Zhou Huang''s expression was ice-cold. Ye Futian had taken him using the power of the matrix, and that remained to be the greatest insult suffered in his life.


    And at that moment, Ye Futian chose to attack him first.


    He fully intended to see how Ye Futian, someone who had just became an archmage, would have been able to deal with him.


    The Golden Phoenix Sword shimmered with dazzling light in his hand and an extremely dazzling golden phoenix appeared above him. Its wings flapped and a tornado was formed, as he turned into a bolt of golden lightning and headed straight for Ye Futian.


    "Zhou Huang, do not fight him head on." The Zhou Sacred King had witnessed the battle between Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan, and he naturally knew how powerful Ye Futian was. As such, he reminded Zhou Huang telepathically and he sounded extraordinarily serious with his advice.


    Zhou Huang did not stop doing what he did even after hearing his father''s voice. Even father thought that I''d lose to Ye Futian then?Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    An even more brilliant light burst as Zhou Huang moved forward fearlessly. The shadow of the phoenix blocked out the sky and a huge Golden Phoenix Sword appeared in the air, emanating towering beams of light, seemingly out to tear the space apart as it moved straight for Ye Futian.


    No other mighty ones helped Zhou Huang out. All of them wanted to see how powerful Ye Futian''s combat prowess would have gotten, with that Halberd of Space and Time in his hand.


    And Zhou Huang served as a convenient guinea pig.


    The light of the giant sword cleaved through the air towards Ye Futian. However, he did not budge and had simply let the blade come down onto him. He had only Zhou Huang in mind at the moment and nothing else.


    Two dazzling silhouette clashed with each other in breakneck speed. Ye Futian lashed out with the Halberd of Time and Space as they neared each other.


    A blackhole seemed to have appeared in the space before the weapon, tearing everything before it apart.


    The light of the giant sword was disintegrated right there and then as it was cleaved in the middle. The thrust of the halberd tore on the Golden Phoenix Sword and the sword aura was torn to shreds in an instant. A huge force went straight for Zhou Huang''s arm. The Halberd of Time and Space grazed through the sword and kept moving forward. Time seemed to have grinded to a halt at that very moment.


    Zhou Huang''s expression finally changed. The storm that tore through everything before it seemed to be the most terrifying vortex to have existed in the world, capable of devouring everything in existence, including his life.


    He intended to retreat, but found his movements getting extraordinarily sluggish, so much so that even his thoughts seemed to have stopped altogether.


    Pfftt!


    A crisp sound was heard and Zhou Huang stopped thinking altogether. The halberd went through his throat right there and then.


    No...


    Zhou Huang''s mind screamed in a frenzy. His appearance turned increasingly ethereal and under the gaze of countless, his brain exploded to bits and reduced to nothing.


    The space around them seemed to have stopped and turned completely silent. Many even stopped thinking altogether.


    The eldest son of the Zhou Sacred King, a sage ranked on the Sage Ranking, was killed with a single thrust from the halberd.


    Such was the prowess of Ye Futian, who claimed to be peerless in all of the Nine States.


    The ones from the Barren State looked at that figure clad in white while their minds trembled.


    That figure was none other than their Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    There had been rumors throughout the Nine States saying that Ye Futian lost to Liu Zong of the Xihua Sacred Mountain and ran.


    However, at that very day, Ye Futian faced off against the mighty ones of the other states and it took him one thrust with the halberd, to kill a mighty one ranked on the Sage and Saint Rankings��Zhou Huang.


    None other in the Nine States could have claimed to be peerless.


    None other in the Nine States, but Ye Futian of the Barren State.


    At that very moment, everyone recalled the weight of his words back then. If Ye Futian were to come out alive, any from a holy land who dared to kill even one person of the Holy Zhi Palace, he would have then rendered said holy land to have no one but their saints remaining.


    The sacred king flashed and caught Zhou Huang''s dropping body. A vast killing intent emanated from him, pointed specifically at Ye Futian.


    "Zhou Sacred King," Saint Xia said plainly while sounding rather cold, seemingly to remind the sacred king to not forget the rules.


    The sacred king rescinded his aura and turned to look at Zhou Huang who had lost a head. The sacred king felt his heart bleeding.


    He knew that Zhou Huang would not have been a match to Ye Futian, but he had never expected things to turn out like that. One thrust was all it took to kill his son, Zhou Huang.


    That insignificant ant of a member of the younger generation that he had once underestimated, had not only waged a sacred war against him, but had also, at the moment, ended up killing his heir.


    Ye Futian did not look at the sacred king. He took the Golden Phoenix Sword and put it away.


    He looked up and pointed the halberd in his hand at the mighty ones of the other states, saying plainly, "Who dares to fight me!"


    His hair billowed in the air and many from the Barren State who had watched that battle, felt their eyes reddened and about to shed tears.


    Such was the bearing of the one who claimed to be truly unparalleled.


    The figure who pointed with his halberd, asking the ones from the other states, who dares to fight him!


    It would not have mattered if they had enemies all over the Nine States, if none dare fight them!


    Kill one from the Holy Zhi Palace and I shall have reduce his place to have no one but the saints remaining.


    All from the other states, including even the saints, were shocked by that one thrust of his.


    One thrust was all it took to kill a mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking, and that one thrust came from a sage who had just broke into Archmage Plane.


    Would anyone throughout the Nine States be able to hold him back?


    Saint Xia looked at that youth clad in the white in the air. Any who dared to refuse the princess would have definitely had what it took to behave so arrogantly, and Ye Futian was more than qualified to do so.


    It was no wonder that the princess had instructed Saint Xia telepathically, to have him keep a close eye on the ones from the other holy lands, to prevent any from breaking the rules.


    The princess indeed came to believe that Ye Futian would have been able to kill his way out of the barricade.


    If even the princess thought so, then what actually happened in that tomb?


    Did Ye Futian fight the princess in there?


    Is that considered a test to Ye Futian by the princess? If Ye Futian is truly able to come out alive, his future would have lied beyond the Nine States.


    Ye Futian then turned his eyes at Zhong Kui and Li Daoqiu, two mighty ones ranked on the Sage and Saint Ranking from the Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "Why are you two waiting for? Do you want him to take you both out one by one?" Saint Xihua shouted as he caught Ye Futian''s eyes. Ye Futian had been able to kill Zhou Huang with one strike because everyone else had apparently wanted to see how capable Ye Futian would have became, and Zhou Huang died for it.


    "Move," Kong Yao said coldly and he stepped out as soon as he finished. The divine elephants trampled as he headed for Ye Futian.


    There was no room for reconciliation between him and Ye Futian. The young sage would not have minded if many others did not end up fighting him. But his feud with Kong Yao went a long way back and they were nothing short of archenemies.


    Zhong Kui burst with his Life Spirit��an ancient bell. The sound of the bell rang and the air around it shook. Everyone within earshot felt their spiritual will about to collapse. At the same time, Li Daoqiu grabbed the air with his hand and Ye Futian felt as if he was about to be petrified by huge rocks around him, as terrifying gravity closed in on him.


    Zhou Mian burst with dazzling golden phoenix wings, cleaving through the air as he headed for Ye Futian.


    Boundless light emanated from above Ji Ya. A huge light of a giant sword appeared above him, capable of cleaving the sky apart.


    Sages ranked on the Sage Ranking, including even Ji Ya, who ranked second, joined hands with the others without question, in order to kill just one sage.


    Ye Futian was probably the only one throughout the Nine States who received such treatment.


    At the same time, a group of figures stepped out and came behind Ye Futian. Their Life Spirits burst and power of rules coursed throughout the bodies��the Sealing Rules.


    Boundless light of sealing fell from above like screens of light, materializing as Sealing Barrier around him. Extremely powerful attacks hit the barrier and were stopped dead in their tracks entirely.


    Many were shocked at that scene.


    The mighty ones of the Yue clan had sided with Ye Futian.


    The situation at present said that Ye Futian would have made enemies throughout the Nine States, and it absolutely was not wise for the Yue clan to take his side at the moment.


    The Glass Saint understood what that meant. It was a turn of events that Yuechan had exchanged for with her life��the possibility of Ye Futian emerging alive.


    The Yue clan finally gotten themselves completely involved after her death, declaring their support for Ye Futian.


    It was then to see if there were any from the other holy lands deciding to make a move, and if any dared to move against Ye Futian.


    Many holy lands did not take a stand prior and thus, were afforded different options. If Ye Futian would have definitely ended up dead that day, none of those other holy lands would have gone easy on him!

 965 Bloody Battle

    Saint Ji''s eyes turned incredibly pointed in an instant as he looked in the Moon Saint''s direction, saying, "What do you mean by this?"


    "All of you are figures standing at the pinnacle of the Nine States, and I find it rather despicable for you all to bully a member of the younger generation like that. With the lineage of Renhuang taken by the Holy Zhi Palace and the princess acknowledging their possession. I''d say you shall issue a formal challenge and fight for it in an honorable manner." The Moon Saint then scanned the crowd and said, "What the hell is with you all from holy lands, ranked on the Sage Ranking, ganging up on them?"


    Saint Ji continued glaring at him with cold eyes. Everyone coveted the Renhuang lineage, and no one saw anything wrong with ganging up like that.


    He was wondering if the Moon Saint intended to take everything for himself standing out like that, or that the Moon Saint saw potential in Ye Futian.


    That extraordinary thrust with the halberd earlier had indeed been attractive enough to have holy lands side with Ye Futian.


    "If you people of the Yue clan wanted to die so badly, then we shall simply oblige," Saint Ji said coldly. Ji Ya''s sword shot forth as soon as he finished. The giant sword of light came down like a mountain, splitting the air in two and crashed onto the screen of light, shattering it.


    Kong Yao and the others did not go easy. With the fight already in full swing, there was simply no reason to hold back. If the Yue clan insisted on getting in their way, then they were to simply be dealt with.


    "Voom." Dazzling light burst and arrows were seen penetrating the space, heading straight for Ye Futian at impeccable speed.


    The space seemed as if they were torn apart as the arrows passed, locking Ye Futian down tightly.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The mighty ones from the Yi clan moved as well. Their arrows were all intended to end Ye Futian right where he stood.


    At almost the very same moment, Huang Jiuge shot an arrow as well. The arrow shot from the Renhuang Bow streaked through the space and was targeted at the incoming enemy arrows. His arrow proved to be faster and it zipped past Ye Futian as it clashed with the incoming arrows, crumbling together.


    Ye Futian seemed to have not taken notice of any of that. Even when Huang Jiuge''s arrow zipped right past his side, his expression remained utterly unfazed.


    He stepped out and cast his pressure downwards at Zhong Kui and Li Daoqiu below. The ones from the Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were top on his to-be-killed list. Those two had allied with the Zhisheng Cliffs and waged the sacred war against the Holy Zhi Palace after all.


    The Roc streaked through the sky and charged forward. Kong Yao stepped forward and brought a huge divine elephant stepping, shrouding the sky and intending to stomp on Ye Futian.


    Dazzling screens of starlight appeared around Ye Futian, as if a star was wrapped within. The divine elephant crushed the stars with a loud boom and continued to come down on him, crashing onto the Roc''s humungous body.


    Ye Futian''s speed forward seemed to have been slowed and dropped quite a distance below, but it continued to streak forward, letting Kong Yao''s powers dropped onto him without a care.


    The expressions of Zhong Kui and Li Daoqiu changed somewhat. The ancient bell rang with intentions to overpower everything around it. Sound waves swept forth and crashed onto the Roc''s body. Li Daoqiu launched attacks that were just as fearsome, as if an ancient mountain had bashed onto Ye Futian''s body.


    The Roc seemed to have became his battle form as he continued to charge forward. Rumbles continued to be heard around him. The Roc was shattered and the battle form was no more, yet Ye Futian himself tore right through the mountain, lashing out with the halberd in his hand at the incoming storm of rocks. The light of countless particles shone and zipped out like bolts of lightning, bringing the power to tear everything in the path apart to bear.


    Dong.


    A sound of the bell rang with enough magnitude to tear people''s souls apart, yet Zhong Kui himself suffered the recoil. Seeing the figure clad in white descending upon him with the Halberd of Space and Time in his hand like a god of war, the space around him seemingly frozen thoroughly, he finally came to understand how Zhou Huang felt moments before the prince died.


    The lockdown was absolute and indisputable. The space around him seemed to have grinded to a complete halt. The space that was shrouded by the holy light of the Halberd of Space and Time was completely put under the weapon''s control. It was the divine implement ranked third on the Divine Implement Ranking, and Ye Futian himself was adept at wielding Space-freezing rule powers.


    Once he had gotten close, even mighty ones ranked on the Sage Ranking would have been put under temporarily space-time halt status.


    And that temporary moments were more than enough to decide their fates.


    Nothingness, the Halberd of Space and Time, was named for its ability to reduce everything to nothing when it landed on its target. Devastating storms raged and Zhong Kui, a mighty one of the Xihua Sacred Mountain ranked on the Sage Ranking, exploded to pieces. Like Zhou Huang, he was not given a single moment to struggle. The killing was clean and done in a single blow.


    Ye Futian''s charge did not stop after killing Zhong Kui, as he headed straight for Li Daoqiu, who was retreating.


    The halberd transformed into a bolt of golden lightning, piercing through the space before him in an unstoppable manner.


    The third mighty one ranked on the Sage Ranking was killed with a splattering sound heard, dying right on the spot.


    Ye Futian stopped and scanned the top notch sages from the Xihua Sacred Mountain. Everyone retreated at the very same time. One look from him was all it took to spook them all.


    Extremely dazzling Holy Light Swords streaked at him, but Qin Zhuang and the others appeared right behind Ye Futian, conjuring the sword diagrams before him. Hundreds of thousands of swords burst forth at the same time, clashing with the swords coming at him. Sword aura storms whipped up in the air before him.


    Ye Futian did not turn around. Blood was seen at the corner of his mouth. He continued streaking forward without paying any heed to attacks from Kong Yao and the others. Regardless of how formidable his defenses were and how peerless his body was, there was simply no way he could have emerged completely unscathed. He forgone resistance and simply charged forward, bearing the brunt of the attacks and killed the only two mighty ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain ranked on the Sage Ranking.


    It was anyone''s guess what Saint Xihua would have thought of what transpired.


    Ye Futian kept his gaze forward. Liu Zong was among the mighty ones of the Xihua Sacred Mountain. He pointed the Halberd of Time and Space forward and said, "Who dares to come and kill me?"


    The saints murmured in discussion. The one to kill Ye Futian shall take Huang Jiuge.


    At the moment, it was a wonder who would have emerged to kill Ye Futian.


    Two attacks from him ended with three deaths of sages ranked on the Sage Ranking. Other than Ji Ya and Kong Yao, both of whom were ranked at the top ten of the Sage Ranking, who perhaps had a chance against him, no one else dared to move against Ye Futian at the moment.


    "Let''s go."


    Ye Futian continued to stepped forward in the air. While he might have been peerless in battle, his powers were still limited nonetheless, which meant that there was no way he could have brought down everyone standing against him with his power alone. Furthermore, there were many from the Holy Zhi Palace present.


    Many holy lands were still sitting on the fence at the moment. The feat of killing three sages who ranked on the Sage Ranking, was to shock the people of the other holy lands into inaction.


    The score was to be settled once they returned to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Think about the consequences if you all were to let the tiger return to the mountain," Kong Yao said coldly. He was alone and had little to lose. The Zhisheng Cliffs was almost annihilated by Ye Futian, and he wanted to see how many of the holy lands who had acted against Ye Futian, dared to let the Palace Lord sage leave just like that.


    Kong Yao stepped forward against Ye Futian, bringing countless divine elephants to bear. Every step that Kong Yao took seemed to be out to bring down the sky. The figure who was ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking was not one to be trifled with. Kong Yao trained in few rules, yet he had trained to the extreme with every single one that he mastered.


    A humungous shadow of the divine elephant appeared as he burst forth with his Life Spirit, stepping forward and intending to stomp onto Ye Futian. The Palace Lord had led others to carry out a bloodbath in the Zhisheng Cliffs, and he intended to settle the score by taking Ye Futian''s life.


    An earth-shattering roar was heard and a divine ape appeared behind Ye Futian, taking the place of the Roc. He merged with the ape and burst with wild, unfettered powers. Ye Futian stepped forward and shook the air about him. He began attacking and devastating storms were whipped up, piercing the huge divine elephant, shattering it to pieces.


    Ye Futian, who was clad in boundless overwhelming power, headed straight for Kong Yao.


    He stepped forward with terrifying steps, just like the divine elephant stomping the air about it. Every single step beat hard on Ye Futian''s mind, yet he simply shrugged off all of that. The divine ape roared as it resisted the power of every single step. Blood was seen at the corner of Ye Futian''s mouth, yet he continued to press forward. So long as he was able to get close, there would have been no problem for him to kill Kong Yao, regardless if he was ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking.


    The Halberd of Time and Space tore through all manner of powers. The divine elephant Life Spirit behind Kong Yao stomped, yet Ye Futian continued to press forward. The Halberd of Space and Time was thrust and the space around him frozen. In that very instant, Kong Yao felt it very difficult for the divine elephant to lift its leg, as if its movements were about to grind to a complete halt. He sensed that something was wrong and burst with rule power in a frenzy, breaking that shackling power through sheer brute force as he brought the elephant''s leg down.


    Boom. The divine elephant''s shadow shattered with a rumble. The Halberd of Space and Time brought a devastating storm right onto Kong Yao. Kong Yao roared and brought his arms down to resist. Thousands of elephants seemed to have trumpeted as they stomped the air.


    Ye Futian did not retreat. His halberd burst with towering light, intending to bring the sky down. One elephant after another was destroyed. Kong Yao''s arms were put before him, his divine implement gauntlet blocking the halberd. His arms trembled violently. His body was about to be torn apart as it was thrown high in the sky.


    At that very moment, Zhou Mian''s golden phoenix flapped its wings, blocking the sky as it headed straight for Ye Futian. Ji Mu''s sword of light came onto him as well.


    Ye Futian''s surroundings seemed to have been turned into an absolute space, as space and time felt like they were about to stop altogether. The phoenix''s Cutting Rules and the sword of light tore through the lockdown and crashed hard onto Ye Futiaan''s body.


    Ye Futian was sent flying with a rumble. Yet, the two incredibly ferocious attacks did not fazed Ye Futian much.


    Be it the tremendously sharp wings of the phoenix or the sword of light, none of them were able to pierce his body.


    It seemed as if Ye Futian did not only possess incredible defense. His physical body itself was also unnervingly strong.


    However, regardless of how strong his body was, his innards were still rattled after bearing the brunt of such ferocious attacks. It seemed as if he was about spit blood, yet he simply snickered coldly.


    You want to kill me?


    Then you shall pay with your blood.


    He stepped forward and this time, he handed straight for the Hall of Holy Light, at Ji Mu who had lashed out with a blinding sword at him.


    Ji Ya was being held back by Qin Zhuang and the other eight. The mighty ones of the Yi clan were being dealt with by the Yue clan''s mighty ones and Huang Jiuge. Those who were capable of the fastest and the most ferocious attacks were incapable of getting in the way of Ye Futian.


    At that very moment, Ji Mu of the Hall of Holy Light who was ranked on the Sage Ranking, saw Ye Futian snickering at him. He actually felt a tinge of fear. The youth clad in white came to possess such overwhelming aura.

 966 Change in the Situation

    Ji Mu looked solemn as several cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light walked to his side. Suddenly, a sword of light flashed across the sky. Beautiful light shot out, piercing everyone''s eyes.


    Ye Futian felt that his eyes stung to the point where he could not keep them open as he walked towards Ji Mu and the others. There was a sword will contained in that light. It stung his eyes and drilled into his chest.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes. The World Tree still swayed in his Life Palace. A magnificent aura filled the whole space. Everything was clearly presented in his mind. He seemed to be able to see everyone''s movements, and even their expressions.


    He saw that Qin Zhuang and the nine others had forced Ji Ya, number two on the Sage Ranking, to retreat with their sword matrix, making him unable to participate in the battle.


    He saw the Yue clan cultivators staring at the people from the Yi clan, guarding against them taking action. Both the Yue clan and the Yi clan were among the top forces of the Nine States. Perhaps there was some enmity between them, but Ye Futian wasn''t sure. All he was sure about was who his friends were and who his enemies were.


    Big Brother stood there with his sword, staring at the cultivators from the three great holy lands of the Ocean State. Yang Xiao and Yuan Hong stood beside him, and Huang Jiuge''s arrows faced them as well. If the cultivators from the three holy lands made a move, they would be blocked. Given the current situation, they were at an absolute disadvantage in a direct conflict. There were too few of them, and some of the holy lands had not gotten involved. What they would do today would make Ye Futian kill his opponents without remorse, and the other holy lands had not dared to get involved.


    Kong Yao was extremely angry. The power of his Divine Elephant could not suppress Ye Futian. Ye Futian had killed two of Saint Xihua''s cultivators right in front of him, shocking him and making him hesitate. Moreover, when the two of them had collided he had felt just how threatening Ye Futian really was. It was as if he could restrict the space and time around him and kill him with the halberd.


    More images of the Divine Elephant descended from the sky, crushing everything. But with his current strength, Kong Yao did not dare to get closer to Ye Futian. He stepped into the sky, and one of the Divine Elephants expanded rapidly. It crashed through the heavens, trying to crush Ye Futian under its foot. The ability that Kong Yao had cultivated was extremely forceful. It was a Saint level ability from Zhisheng Cliffs. It used the power of heaven and earth to crush anyone who fell under its feet. At the last Battle of Proving Holiness, he had trampled many cultivators to death with it.


    "Go."


    At almost the same time, Chen Mu and the other cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light got involved. Their light swords shot out towards Ye Futian, but he weaved back and forth through them, letting the attacks hit his body. When the Divine Ape had stepped into the air, it not only covered his body, but also the bodies of the cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light, combining them all together.


    Their expressions turned ugly. They were angry at this, but they couldn''t deal with Ye Futian coming for them with so much force. They turned into beams of light and disappeared from wear they were, shooting directly towards Ye Futian.


    They were fast, so fast that they merged with the light. Even though Ye Futian''s close combat skills were exceptional, they had no fear as they prepared to strike the arrogant scoundrel.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were still closed, but their movements were extremely clear in his mind. He had advanced his space controlling powers to an astonishing degree. He clutched the Halberd of Time and Space tightly, a divine power spread out from within it.


    At the instant when the cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light approached him, the space around him fell into absolute stillness. As the Divine Elephant crashed down, even the cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light were hit. As they were stuck in the frozen space, they could not retreat.


    "The annihilation of light."


    The cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light slashed out with their swords, and with Ji Mu''s at the front, they all resonated together, cutting through space. Endless light shone out, turning the space into nothingness. Everything was annihilated by that extremely beautiful light.


    Ye Futian thrust the Halberd of Space and Time forward, and the light seemed to change. As he did so, everything seemed to stop, and Ji Mu and the others seemed to slow down. They saw a terrible black hole storm that swallowed up the light. It was like there were two very different but powerful forces colliding in mid air.


    In the next moment, the two forces crossed over each other, and Ye Futian traded places with Ji Mu and the others. Ye Futian''s clothing was riddled with holes, and he was bleeding. Even his incredibly sturdy body could not bear an attack like that.


    Poof! Poof! Poof!


    There was a series of sounds as Ji Mu''s body cracked and burst, followed by the other cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light turning into dust as they completely disappeared from the world.


    Boom! There was another loud noise as the Divine Elephant stepped down, pressing down on Ye Futian, making him spit up a mouthful of blood. His aura fluctuated.


    At this moment, Ye Futian''s white clothes were stained with blood, and his hair flew around his face.


    Although he had the Halberd of Time and Space with its nearly invincible attack, his defenses could not also be invincible. After all, his level was still a bit lower than theirs. Of course, if he had faced his opponents after just barely reaching the Sage plane, he would have been dead many times over. Although his defenses were weaker than the attack, they were still quite extraordinary in the Nine States.


    Four people had already died at Ye Futian''s hands, causing many of the others to be frightened of him. Even the Saints'' hearts trembled fiercely. If Ye Futian''s level got any higher, who besides a Saint could stop him?


    If he made it to the top of the Saint level, would he sweep through the Nine States with his own power?


    Saint Ji, the Great Zhou Sacred King, Saint Xihua, Saint Zhi and the other cultivators looked upon Ye Futian with despair. They saw his bloodstained clothes and the murder in his eyes. They all wanted to personally put an end to him, but they could only endure.


    "What are you waiting for?" Saint Ji swept his gaze over the cultivators from the three great holy lands of the Ocean State.


    The Hall of Holy Light had suffered heavy losses on this trip to the Imperial Mausoleum. Ji Mu had died, and Ji Mo had fallen as well. Now, the only one in the Hall of Holy Light who could inherit Saint Ji''s position was Ji Ya.


    But even after the loss of so many cultivators, Ye Futian still stood there.


    Given the present situation, not killing Ye Futian now would be sowing the seeds for future disasters. The consequences would be unimaginable.


    If they waited a few years until he reached the top of the Sage plane, he would be able to destroy holy lands by himself.


    Sword Saint gripped his demonic blade, and a fierce demonic air flow swept out. Yang Xiao, Yuan Hong, and Zhuge Qingfeng all stood there.


    But there were many cultivators there from the Endless Sea. Once they entered the battle they would be in great danger.


    "Attack!" said Ocean Saint, and suddenly the cultivators from the three great holy lands broke through the air with terrible power.


    Ye Futian was strong, but at this moment his aura wavered. He must have been wounded terribly. No matter what, he would give his life here today if need be.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Sword Saint saw the cultivators coming through the air, and a demonic power swept out from him. When he had used the power of the demonic blade in the past, it had only been for a single battle, afterwards his power would be exhausted. Now that he had cultivated himself into a Sage, he did not have to stop there.


    The demonic blade seemed to be integrated into him, and as he slashed out with it, a blade of darkness appeared in the air. It cut through everything, and the cultivators from the three great holy lands of the Endless Sea were stopped and forced to retreat. Even Sages who faced that blade had to avoid its edges.


    Woosh! Sword Saint stepped out and swung the blade once again towards his opponents. He dispersed their formation all by himself, making it so they had to scatter as he attacked them.


    "Saint Xia and Saint Li are highly respected in the Nine States. Nowadays, so many holy lands have joined together to bully the Barren State, and hope that they will come out to administer justice." At that moment, Moon Saint looked to Saint Xia and Saint Li. What Saint Jiang had said had not been wrong. Saint Xia seemed to really appreciate Ye Futian. Saint Li and Ye Futian also had a prior relationship, as Ye Futian had visited Nine State College several times.


    Thus, this level of relationship could be put to good use. Now that everyone was frightened of Ye Futian since he had killed so many by his own hand, the other holy lands did not dare to get involved for the time being. If Saint Xia and Saint Li said something, the situation would be different. These two old people stood at the top of all the figures in the Nine States.


    Saint Xia indeed appreciated Ye Futian. Before Princess Xia Qingyuan had left she had asked him to protect the Saints. He thought that this might be a test for Ye Futian, to see if he had the ability to disrupt his own plans.


    Moreover, with their position in the Nine States, if they got involved it would cause great turmoil. A storm would begin.


    Saint Ji''s people would not listen to him if he told them to stop.


    "The various holy lands joining together is indeed undesirable, but the College is only a place of teaching. I cannot order the students to take part in this battle." Saint Li shook his head slightly. Moon Saint naturally understood him. Saint Li did not use Nine State College as his power, he only taught there and helped disciples cultivate. He did not participate in disputes.


    This was a battle to the death. If he ordered his disciples to get involved, that would be equivalent to pushing them to the edge of life and death. This went contrary to his intentions. Therefore, even though he appreciated Ye Futian, he would not order his disciples to get involved, just as he did not let them go to steal Huang Jiuge''s inheritance. If they had forcibly appropriated it, it would have led to disaster.


    When compared to Jixia Holy Palace and other holy lands, the power of Nine State College was a bit different.


    Saint Ji saw Moon Saint stirring up Saint Xia and Saint Li and his expression grew cold. He said, "When did you become so righteous?"


    Moon Saint ignored him.


    "Are the holy lands of Cloud State and War State so indifferent as well? If you don''t want Renhuang''s inheritance, then simply retreat." Saing Ji glanced around him. The four great holy lands of Cloud State and the three great holy lands of War State had not gotten involved either.


    "Retreat?" someone laughed. "You boasted that the disciples of the Hall of Holy Light were unmatched throughout the Nine States in their martial prowess, but even when allied with many other holy lands they still can''t take on the Holy Zhi Palace. Now you''re trying to get other people to join you. Are you scared?"


    Everyone''s eyes turned towards the speaker.


    It was Saint Qi, head of the Qi clan in Qi State, and number seven on the Saint Ranking.


    The Qi clan had once been in charge of Qi State, similar to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, but nowadays the Hall of Holy Light had turned the tables on them. Saint Ji had always regarded the Hall as the foremost power in Qi State. When his talent was revealed, Saint Qi did not look on him with a favorable light.


    Moon Saint smiled. All of the Nine States were their enemies? Not necessarily!

 967 The Wind Rises Par

    Saint Ji narrowed his eyes. They were like a thin crevice from which a cold light shot out as they swept over Saint Qi.


    Of the four great holy lands of Qi State, Jixia Palace was of the same type as Nine State College, and ignored disputes. Yue House was good at Rhythmic Sorcery, but since they were the weakest of the four great holy lands of Qi State, they rarely made noise as they quietly studied their music. They did not seek trouble.


    Thus, the Qi State was split between the Qi Family, the oldest one of the holy lands, and the Hall of Holy Light struggling for the position of top force. In reality, it wasn''t even a struggle, they just both thought of themselves as the strongest holy land in Qi State. There was often friction between their disciples. Saint Qi was reserved by nature, which was exactly opposite to Saint Ji''s character. Although the two sides had never been in harmony, there had been no friction between them for a long time as they cultivated separately.


    But now, Saint Qi''s attitude as he spoke seemed very subtle.


    "Are you trying to meddle in this?" spat Saint Ji in a cold voice.


    "Lord Ye''s talent is outstanding, unmatched in the Nine States. In time he may become the most powerful figure here. Just like the Sword Saint of the Void and the Great Shaman, you, the fifth name on the Saint Ranking, have targeted Ye Futian. This is not fitting for someone of your status. Saint Xia and Saint Li are warm and unobtrusive by nature, and yet you will not let your juniors rise up? Are you worried about your place on the Saint Ranking?"


    Saint Qi ignored Saint Ji''s cold voice. As the seventh name on the Saint Ranking, he was lower than Saint Ji, but he was not afraid of him. The Qi clan had a lot of hidden strengths. The Hall of Holy Light boasted of being the most powerful force in Qi State, but they would not dare move against the Qi clan.


    "As for Renhuang''s inheritance, it has already been taken by your junior. Lord Ye does not contest this, nor does the Princess. That makes you seem a little petty," continued Saint Qi.


    Saint Ji said nothing as he stared at Saint Qi. He knew what he was up to.


    If Ye Futian had been easily killed by them in today''s battle, Saint Qi would not have spoken up. He might have even joined in the struggle for Renhuang''s inheritance.


    But in the battle that had just happened, Ye Futian had proven himself. Of course, this seemed to have nothing to do with Saint Qi, but in fact this was not the case. If Ye Futian did not die, he would seek vengeance, and would seek to kill the disciples of the Hall of Holy Light.


    Ji Mu and Ji Mo, two promising disciples, had already been killed at his hands.


    If the disciples of the Hall of Holy Light suffered terrible losses, how could the next generation fight the Qi clan?


    This was the reason that Saint Qi had stood up to speak. As for his so-called magnanimity, could anyone speak of such a thing before Renhuang''s inheritance?


    Cultivation of the Path meant being tolerant of the heavens and the earth, but it also meant struggling with them. The essence of cultivation was plundering. It was not to never struggle with the world. Thus, why bother to cultivate unless you were someone exceptional?


    Saint Qi seemed generous, but really he wanted ever so much to fight the Hall of Holy Light.


    "What does everyone think?" Saint Ji swept his gaze over the expressionless cultivators from the other holy lands. They had been watching all along. Did they think to collect the spoils of victory without lifting a finger?


    Of course, he had previously never thought that Ye Futian would become so strong and kill four cultivators of the Sage Ranking.


    "Let him go," came a voice. Everyone turned to look at the speaker. It was the Vajra Region Lord.


    The number six and number seven cultivators on the Saint Ranking had successively made their declarations. In this way, the cultivators who had stood there watching would not make their moves. Under the current situation, even if they acted, the likelihood of them getting the Halberd of Time and Space and Renhuang''s inheritance was very low. Even though Ye Futian had been seriously hurt, with the strength that he had shown, none of them could guarantee that they could kill him in close combat.


    Obviously, the potential loss outweighed the gains.


    This situation made it so that the cultivators from the three great holy lands of the Ocean State were not willing to risk their lives. If they tried to kill anyone from the palace, Ye Futian would stop at nothing to kill them. The power that he had just displayed was quite shocking to anyone on the Sage level.


    Ye Futian was currently facing Kong Yao, Zhou Mian, and Nie Gai. But if they wanted to kill him, it would be quite difficult.


    At that moment a beautiful light bloomed, and Ye Futian shot towards Zhou Mian like a bolt of lighting. Suddenly the image of the golden phoenix behind Zhou Mian shook as it struck out with its feathers. Zhou Mian pulled back, widening the distance between himself and Ye Futian.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise as Ye Futian disintegrated his attack. He appeared right in front of Zhou Mian and shot him a piercing glance.


    "Leave," said Ye Futian. Below them, the people from the palace flashed upwards. Sword Saint, Qin Zhuang, and the others fought and retreated towards where Ye Futian was. Ji Ya and the cultivators from the Ocean State''s attacks were not as strong anymore. After a while, the cultivators from the palace gathered together in the air, and no one was able to intercept them.


    "Thank you all," said Ye Futian. He stepped away as Kong Yao and Ji Ya moved forward with faces held hard.


    "No need to chase them," said Saint Ji with a gloomy look. Ji Ya stopped with a dark look on his face.


    They had let Ye Futian get away with his life, and with the inheritance.


    "There will be time for that later," came a cold voice from far away. It was Ye Futian. Everyone looked at his back as he left, and their hearts were still unsettled. They would probably never forget the battle that had just taken place.


    He had smashed through Sages and killed four cultivators of the Sage Ranking by his own power. Who in the Nine States had such a brilliant record?


    A huge sword crossed through the sky and fell before Ye Futian. Ye Futian and the others stepped onto it, and suddenly the sword sped away in a winding arc.


    No one pursued them. All the Saints of the Nine States naturally felt a bit of Saintly power. It was the Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village. He had been nearby the whole time, and had taken the people from the Barren State away on his huge sword in order to avoid being intercepted.


    The sword pierced through the sky, and soon reunited with the Village Chief. Ye Futian stood upon it with the wind blowing wildly upon him, making his hair flow. He coughed and a little blood came out. Facing the attack of so many allied Sages would have hurt him even if his body had been stronger. After all, he had just entered the Sage Plane. He had obviously been seriously wounded, he had just not shown it.


    "Are you alright?" Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu and Yu Sheng behind him. They had fought Ji Ya and Ji Mu outside the Imperial Mausoleum. Yu Sheng had demonized and used up all his power in a single battle. Hua Jieyu had also received some wounds.


    This trip to the Imperial Mausoleum had been extremely dangerous. Huang Xi had perished, but he had done so very calmly. He had obviously thought that his death had been worth it.


    Huang Jiuge had received their ancestor''s inheritance.


    "We''re fine." Everyone nodded. Although they had all suffered different injuries, it was no matter.


    "After we return to the palace we must immediately prepare for war. Mobilize the matrices as quickly as possible," said Ye Futian. He knew that this war had just begun. Saint Ji, the Great Zhou Sacred King, and Saint Xihua would definitely not give up.


    ...........


    Back at the Imperial Mausoleum, Saint Xihua looked up into the sky. Ye Futian had already disappeared from view.


    He had never thought the battle would be so fierce. He had thought that after the marriage alliance, they could easily destroy the palace.


    But first there had been the slaughter at Zhisheng Cliffs, and today two Sages from Xihua Sacred Mountain had been killed, as well as the Great Zhou Sacred King''s son, Zhou Huang.


    His figure flashed as he stepped towards Glass Saint.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King looked at her as well. But he heard Moon Saint say, "Are the two holy lands of the Eastern State still planning to ally together to bully Glass Saint? If so, I''d like to benefit from your instruction as well."


    Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King stopped and looked at Moon Saint.


    Moon Saint was obviously thoroughly involved in this sacred war. He wanted to protect Glass Saint as well.


    As for the other Saints, they bore no grudge towards Glass Saint. Ye Futian had taken the Halberd of Time and Space and Huang Jiuge had taken Renhuang''s inheritance, so there was no reason to stay here anymore.


    Glass Saint was the Great Zhou Sacred King''s affair. She had nothing to do with them.


    To put it bluntly, they had only gotten involved in order to steal Renhuang''s inheritance. It was not really a joint effort. If one of them had gotten it, they would probably have all turned on him.


    "None of you are returning home to prepare your armies? Are you going to wait a few years until Ye Futian has cultivated to the point where he can come and settle the score?" asked Saint Ji coldly.


    Leave?


    Where could he have gone to?


    Even though Ye Futian had gotten out of there alive, where could he go? He probably did not want to go back to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian had revealed his astonishing martial prowess. He could not keep fighting anymore, but the only people who had come here today were the top figures of their respective holy lands, so the actual number of cultivators was quite small.


    And once they went back and called together their armies, they would have to see if Ye Futian was alive or dead.


    Would Moon Saint and Saint Qi participate in the war?


    If they did, it would not be a small scale battle like this had been.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King looked at Glass Saint, then turned around, his figure flashing as he left. The cultivators from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty followed him.


    Afterwards, Saint Xihua also took his people and left.


    The storm seemed to have ended. But it also seemed like it had just begun.


    Perhaps there would be an even greater storm.


    Saint Ji shot a glance at Saint Qi and Moon Saint, and then turned into a beam of light and shot away with Ji Ya following him.


    Each of the Saints of the various holy lands had their own ideas. Their figures broke through the sky as they left one by one, not even calling out farewells to each other.


    "The Nine States will be thrown into chaos," whispered Saint Xia.


    "We have been at peace for so many years. It makes sense that we would be thrown into chaos when a figure like Ye Futian appeared," said Saint Li.


    They both looked forward at the beautiful figure who still stood there. It was Glass Saint.


    She stared forward in a daze. Moon Saint had protected her, but there was no joy in her. She knew why Yuechan had died.


    Before her death, she must have made contact with Moon Saint, otherwise she would not have been able to die so calmly.


    And it was all for her.


    Her blue silk swayed in the wind, crossing over her beautiful face. She turned and left.


    There were only a few people left. Saint Xia and Saint Li also left together.


    "The wind is rising," said Saint Xia.


    "Mm, yes it is," replied Saint Li. The wind blew past. Many people came from around the Barren State as they were leaving to see the battlefield.


    This battle would go down in history!

 968 Removed Piece

    The Holy Zhi Palace was in Zhongzhou City, and with the Village Chief''s speed they made it back in there in a short period of time.


    The huge sword returned, and descended towards Holy Sage Pavilionl, following which a voice swept out through the palace, "All disciples, prepare for war."


    The voice was solemn, and suddenly everyone throughout the palace felt their hearts tremble.


    What had happened on the trip to the Imperial Mausoleum?


    Yang Xiao and the others'' figures flashed as they went to make their arrangements. Soon everyone in the palace knew what had happened, and they were all astonished.


    Lord Ye Futian had slain four Sages in one battle, including the Great Zhou Sacred King''s son Zhou Huang.


    The Halberd of Time and Space, the number three divine implement on the Nine States Divine Implement Ranking, was in his hands.


    He had helped Huang Jiuge obtain his ancestors'' inheritance. Huang Xi had died in battle.


    Each piece of news was just as shocking. At the Imperial Mausoleum, all of the Nine States had been their enemy, and Ye Futian had led the people of the palace to attack them.


    Everyone was kicking themselves that they hadn''t been there to witness it personally.


    Ye Futian and the other wounded were recovering in Holy Sage Pavilion. The Undying Old Man came to visit them and give them medicine, and they all recovered very quickly.


    Ye Futian had the World Tree life spirit, and so he recovered the fastest. Although his injuries had been severe, he was able to Holy Sage Pavilion very quickly.


    Somewhere in the Holy Zhi Palace, three people were cultivating quietly. It was Liu Zixuan and the other two from the Endless Sea. They looked up and saw a figure coming. It was Ye Futian.


    Just now they had heard the news from the other people in the palace. Ye Futian had finally obtained the Halberd of Time and Space.


    "You can leave," Ye Futian said to them.


    Liu Zixuan looked at him. Even in the palace she was still an outstanding beauty, but in Cliff State City she had been the most beautiful woman, and had been extraordinarily talented, someone who Saints regarded highly.


    "Can I stay in the palace to cultivate?" She bit her lip as she asked this.


    Even though they had not been allowed to leave the palace during this time, they found it a much better place for cultivation than Cliff State City. Even Ocean King Palace did not have as good an environment for cultivation.


    A strange look came over Ye Futian''s face. He said, "Right now the palace is facing a dire situation, and it is very possible that we will be destroyed. Are you not afraid of death?"


    Liu Zixuan shook her head. "Where can a cultivator find an absolutely safe place? I am willing to face this war alongside the palace. But afterwards, I hope that I will no longer be under house arrest, but a part of the palace."


    Ye Futian looked at Liu Zixuan''s exquisite features. She was indeed a very assertive woman. The Liu clan must be very strong in Cliff State City to raise an outstanding woman like this.


    "Fine." He nodded. "What about Liu Yu and Liu Han?"


    "Brother Ye, I will also continue cultivating in the palace." Liu Yu and Ye Futian''s relationship was actually quite good, as Ye Futian had taken care of her during the journey to the Lost Ruins.


    "I will follow my sister," said Liu Han.


    "Go back," said Liu Zixuan to Liu Han. "Our family doesn''t know if we are alive or dead. Go back and tell them everything. If I die, the family should know where."


    "Sister." Liu Han looked at her.


    "Do as I say." Liu Zixuan stared at him until Liu Han nodded slightly and said, "Alright."


    Ye Futian looked at the three of them and said, "This is your own decision."


    On saying this, he left, and flew into the air above the Holy Zhi Palace.


    A line of figures flashed into the sky. Yang Xiao, Sword Demon, You Chi and other cultivators appeared beside Ye Futian. You Chi said, "Futian, I fear that a fierce battle is coming."


    "Mm." Ye Futian nodded. Everyone could see that clearly.


    Not long ago in the Imperial Mausoleum they had forced their opponents to let them go.


    But if their opponents had pressed the attack, it was not certain that those holy lands who had spoken up for them would have gotten involved.


    Their enemies, the Hall of Holy Light, Xihua Sacred Mountain, and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, would doubtless go to war with them.


    Ye Futian looked down at the palace and said, "Will the terrain around the palace affect our matrices?"


    "A little bit." Yang Xiao nodded. "Our matrices will have to bypass some places."


    "Mm." Ye Futian nodded slightly, then said, "All disciples of the palace, hear my orders: everyone stop cultivating immediately and head to the palace."


    His voice rolled out through the entire Holy Zhi Palace. Everyone looked up at him and stopped their cultivation and flashed towards the main palace.


    "Village Chief," shouted Ye Futian in another direction.


    A sword flashed through the air, and the Village Chief appeared before Ye Futian.


    "Once all the disciples are in the main palace, level the rest of it," said Ye Futian.


    Everyone trembled at these words. Would he really level the rest of the palace?


    There were many hidden places in the palace, many of them left behind by their ancestors, and there were ruins scattered throughout, many of which were good places for cultivation.


    And now Ye Futian had ordered for it all to be demolished.


    All of it would disappear.


    But no one objected. At this moment, no one could doubt Ye Futian''s position within the palace.


    Previously, he had entered the palace on the basis of nobility, and everyone had assisted him and had high hopes for him. But now he had brought two Saints to the palace and led them on an attack against the Zhisheng Cliffs. He now stood at the highest point just below the Saint Plane.


    Ye Futian had become the symbol of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    He was even symbolic of the whole Barren State.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Whenever the Barren State was mentioned, the first thing that anyone would think of was its Palace Lord, Ye Futian.


    A group of figures flashed over as more of the elders arrived. After hearing Ye Futian''s decision, they merely sighed to themselves and looked at the palace as if they could not bear to part with it.


    Not long after, an incomparable storm of Sword Qi appeared in the palace like a giant sword, flattening the earth. The buildings, mountains and ruins were crushed into dust.


    The disciples of the palace looked on from above with unease in their hearts.


    Before long, everything except for the main palace had been flattened.


    And, of course, Sage Hall was still there.


    "Lord Yang, please lead the disciples to work even harder," Ye Futian said to Yang Xiao. He nodded, and led some men down to the ground to begin preparations for the matrices.


    "Send this order throughout the Barren State. As Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, I call upon all swords in the Barren State of the Sage level or higher," continued Ye Futian.


    "Do we need so many swords?" asked You Chi. He had brought many ritual implements from Alchemy City, as well as many swords.


    "Yes, and Uncle is also forging more swords. Have the people of the palace go out to collect materials. When I activated the Sword Matrix of the Void at Nether Sword Mound, I couldn''t control it, but I remembered some things. I can carve out a sword matrix," said Ye Futian.


    He had studied matrices at Chess Saint Villa, and had consolidated his studies at Nether Sword Mound. Now that he had reached the Sage level he could carve out his own sword matrix.


    "Okay, we will do this." You Chi nodded. Sword Demon, Xu Shang and some others left to make ready for this.


    Soon the news spread all around the Barren State.


    Ye Futian was calling all the swords in the Barren State.


    For a time, countless cultivators set out towards the Holy Zhi Palace.


    ..........


    The news did not only sweep through the Barren State, but through every part of the Nine States as the cultivators returned home.


    But the places that were shaken the most fiercely were the Hall of Holy Light, Xihua Sacred Mountain, and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    At the Hall of Holy Light, Saint Ji sent out an order, summoning the top forces from the area to launch an attack on the Barren State.


    At Xihua Sacred Mountain, the order was given for all forces under their jurisdiction to gather together at the mountain.


    Obviously, after the events at the Imperial Mausoleum, both the Hall of Holy Light and Xihua Sacred Mountain were paying close attention to the Barren State. And they were not simply summoning their forces for an attack, they were convening their holy lands.


    For a time, there was a terrible storm in Qi State and the Eastern State.


    It seemed that the Holy Zhi Palace would not be able to escape disaster.


    In the past, who would have thought that sending a punitive expedition against the declining Barren State would have required such care?


    Only a few years before, it had only taken Kong Yao and a few other cultivators to ravage the Barren State.


    .........


    In Jixia Palace in Qi State two figures were playing chess. One was wearing white clothes and playing as white, while the other was wearing black and also playing as black.


    Both of them looked quite extraordinary. Behind the handsome white robed youth sat a gentle woman quietly watching the game.


    "Brother, your heart doesn''t seem to be in the game." The black robed figure smiled slightly as he moved his piece, then looked up at the white robed figure.


    The white robed youth stared at the board, then smiled as he moved a piece. "I''ve lost three games in a row."


    "Is it because of the news from the Barren State?"


    The white robed figure smiled at him and said, "If I was a piece in this game, I''ve already been taken off the board. Why worry about it?"


    "Why has this piece been removed?" said the man in black with a smile.


    "Naturally, it was in order to join a better game," answered the white robed youth.


    "In that case, if the new game really is better, then this piece has a reason for being. At the very least, making the decision to be removed in order to change games is not altogether blameless, but is at least forgivable," said the figure in black.


    On hearing this, the white robed youth trembled slightly. He looked at the figure in front of him, then turned and left.


    He had changed games?


    Since he had left, the Barren State''s game had changed indeed.


    After the white robed youth left, another person came in. It was the number three person at the Nine States Forum at Xihua Sacred Mountain, Zhuge Yi.


    "Did you intend to provoke Brother Bai?" asked Zhuge Yi.


    "Brother Bai''s talent is outstanding, but he has demons that he needs to face. He is like a dead chess piece," said the man in black.


    "But isn''t it dangerous to let him go?"


    "There is no making without breaking. To seek the Great Path, one''s heart must be without lack. If he does not take this step, then he will be lacking something, and it will be impossible for him to take the next step," said the man in black. Zhuge Yi nodded gently.


    The man in white returned to his residence and sat in front of an old tree for three days. He cultivated until he broke through his level, and then turned and left the palace!

 969 Storm in the Nine States

    Moon Saint from the Moon clan came to pay a visit on the Yi clan in the Summer State.


    Since he had come personally, Saint Yi came personally to greet him.


    At that moment, the two top figures of the Summer State sat drinking tea and chatting in one of the Yi clan''s pavilions like they were friends who had not seen each other in many years.


    "I''ve heard that Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Hall of Holy Light have mustered their armies in preparation to attack the Barren State. With the strength of these three holy lands, there''s no question that the Barren State can''t match the. Especially the Hall of Holy Light. They''ve lost a lot of their cultivators recently, but they still rank in the top five of the Nine States, and that is not an empty reputation. And then you have the forces of the Endless Sea on top of that. Are you really planning to join in this war?" said Saint Yi to Moon Saint. It seemed that he wanted to convince Moon Saint to abandon this course of action.


    "Are you planning to get involved?" asked Moon Saint.


    "Whether I get involved or not, the palace will be destroyed." Saint Yi took a sip of tea as he spoke. Saint Ji was cruel by nature. They would not wait for Ye Futian to grow stronger and thus threaten them.


    When their armies descended, no matter how strong Ye Futian was he would have no way to save the palace.


    "What if the palace is destroyed but Ye Futian survives?" asked Moon Saint. "Does Ye Futian have a chance of breaking out of their encirclement?"


    Saint Yi thought of the battle that had taken place, and was silent for a while. "There''s not much hope," he said finally, "but it is possible."


    "If that time really comes, and if the palace is really destroyed, the Yue clan will die fighting to let Ye Futian escape the encirclement. Even Renhuang''s inheritance is not necessary as long as he lives." Moon Saint smiled. "If he reaches the top level of the Sage Plane, you have to admit that he could take on an army by himself."


    Saint Yi looked at his guest. Moon Saint was resolute.


    He thought back to that day, and how Ye Futian had seemed peerless. If he truly reached the top level of the Sage Plane, then Kong Yao would not have been able to withstand even a single blow from the halberd, and he would sweep away all before him. It would truly be possible that a single person could be compared to an army.


    "If Ye Futian lives, he''ll get revenge for the palace, and who will be able to survive?" Moon Saint took a sip from his cup and then put it down. "Speaking of which, even though you shot a few arrows at him that day, this is no great problem. If you just stand by idly and send someone to make your apologies, Ye Futian will not count it against you. No matter what kind of storms rage in the Nine States, as long as the Yi clan stays out of the way, what danger will come to them? After all, even if you had gotten Renhuang''s inheritance, could you even have kept it away from Saint Ji? You know what he''s like."


    "If the Nine States falls into chaos, non-action is the best strategy. Why did so many holy lands observe passively on that day? First, the Great Zhou Sacred King was arrogant and harrassed Ye Futian. How is the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty now? Their power has been declining continuously. And how about Zhisheng Cliffs? Now that Saint Ji and Saint Xihua have entered the game, can they guarantee that they will force Ye Futian into total retreat? And the Qi clan is watching them like a hungry tiger, just waiting for the Hall of Holy Light to fall. Do you really want to jump into these troubled waters?" continued Moon Saint.


    A thoughtful look came over Saint Yi''s face. What Moon Saint was saying made sense.


    He also knew that if they could have really killed Ye Futian that day, the various holy lands would not have hesitated to kick him while he was down. After all, Renhuang''s inheritance had been there. If they didn''t try for it, how could they know what the result would have been?


    Now were Ye Futian and the Holy Zhi Palace in a hopeless situation?


    "Since you know that non-action is the best strategy, why are you getting involved?" Saint Yi stared at Moon Saint. Moreover, he had aided Ye Futian when all the Nine States had been against him. Now he had come to persuade him to stand by passively.


    "You must know that before this affair there was friendship between Ye Futian and the Yue clan. Moreover, with his outstanding talent he may one day reach beyond even the Saint plane. In any case, at that time it was better to assist him than to try and wrest Renhuang''s inheritance away. And now that we''ve gotten involved, we can only see things through." Moon Saint smiled. "Moreover, you must see that Saint Xia values Ye Futian as well. It won''t be so easy to kill him."


    On saying this, he stood up and said, "I''ve said my piece. If you still decide to join the war, then we will meet on the field of battle. Farewell."


    He turned and left.


    After he left, Saint Yi still sat there with a thoughtful expression, as if he had not yet made up his mind.


    "Send cultivators to all the holy lands to observe their movements. Send a few more throughout the Barren State to see what the Holy Zhi Palace is doing," he said.


    "Yes, sir." The people outside the pavilion left to carry out his orders.


    .........


    The Vajra Region was on a holy mountain in War State. It was known as the strongest of martial holy lands.


    The cultivators of the Vajra Region cultivated Buddhist combat techniques. They were extremely tough and strong, their bodies were unmatched, and their attack power was extremely high. The lord of the Vajra Region therefore respected Yu Sheng''s talent, and had invited him to cultivate there for three years.


    At this moment, the kasaya wearing monks were sitting cross legged on their cattail hassocks. In front of them all was the Vajra Region Lord, who was preaching at the altar.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    His voice was like a Buddha''s, and was also like the Great Path. It resonated with the 108 enlightened ones behind him and made all who listened to it feel refreshed.


    He stopped preaching after a while, and fingered his prayer beads. He looked at everyone and said, "You have listened to me preach the Great Path for many years, but have rarely left the mountain. Now that there is chaos in the Nine States, I want you to leave and attain enlightenment there."


    "Who should we help, Lord?" asked a monk.


    "Help whoever you want to," answered the Vajra Region Lord.


    "Alright." Everyone nodded and then left.


    On this day, 108 warrior monks left their mountain seeking the Great Path and headed towards the Nine States.


    ..........


    At that moment, a figure wearing a long green dress stood quietly on a suspended platform outside Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, gazing out into the distance.


    The wind blew through her hair, gently stroking her exquisite features. Her dress fluttered in the wind. She was like an immortal who had come down to the world of mortals.


    "Master." At that moment, Goddess Qingni walked up behind her.


    Glass Saint had said very little for the past few days. Yuechan''s death had affected her greatly.


    "What is the situation like outside?" asked Glass Saint without turning to look at Qingni.


    "The Hall of Holy Light, Xihua Sacred Mountain, and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty have all called their armies together. They can attack the Barren State at any time," answere Goddess Qingni.


    "Anything else?" asked Glass Saint.


    "Each of the forces in the area under our control have sent people to beg you to excuse them," continued Goddess Qingni. Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple had also summoned all their cultivators, but none of them had obeyed.


    The situation in the Barren State was known throughout the Nine States, and would likely lead to catastrophe.


    After the Barren State, the next place to be destroyed would probably be Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. Under these circumstances, none of the forces in the area dared get involved in the war, and instead only sent people to beg for mercy.


    Glass Saint was silent, still looking off into the distance. She said, "Summon everyone in the temple who is of the Sage level or above. We will go to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Have everyone else leave temporarily. If something happens to me, they are to never return."


    "Master." Goddess Qingni''s heart trembled slightly.


    "Do as I say," said Glass Saint. Goddess Qingni nodded and left.


    The news spread quickly. The cultivators of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple all left within a day. A group of them went to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, but they took no action, seeming to only be there to contain the Dynasty''s forces.


    Glass Saint was not there. She naturally left Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple as well, but no one knew where she went. Some said that she had gone to the capital of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and was preparing to fight the Great Zhou Sacred King to the death. Anyone who was perceptive enough could see the enmity between the two of them.


    .........


    The storms that had swept out across the Nine States began to gather together. And, there in the center of the storm, the Barren State was the most active of all the Nine States.


    These past few days many people from throughout the Barren State had come to Zhongzhou City, and many of them had even come to the Holy Zhi Palace to offer their swords.


    The Holy Zhi Palace had been leveled. Ye Futian had been setting up matrices all along while using Chess Spirit to calculate more of them. Now, there was a chain of interlocking patterns in the vast land where the palace had been. There was a group of swords at the center, and each sword was a Sage level ritual implement.


    At that moment, a group of figures broke through the sky, and a voice rang out, "Futian."


    "Why have you come?" Ye Futian looked up at the figures in the air and saw that one of them was the College Chief of Starry School in Divine Sky City. He was now the College Chief of three colleges.


    "I heard that you have called together all the swords in the Barren State, so I brought you the swords from Divine Sky City," said the College Chief with a smile.


    "And not only us. The Long family, the Gu family, and other forces from Divine Sky City have also come. Although we don''t have many swords, us old folks have a bit of combat experience," said Chen Yuan with a smile. Beside him was Mu Chuan of Zhaixing House.


    Ye Futian was moved as he looked at all these familiar faces. He smiled and said, "Thank you all for your help. But Yunxi and Ling''er shouldn''t join in the fun. Have them return to Divine Sky City."


    He naturally saw that Gu Yunxi and Long Ling''er were in the crowd behind Chen Yuan.


    Gu Yunxi looked at Ye Futian. There was still some faint affection in her gentle eyes. She had heard that he was now able to sweep away all the cultivators in the Nine States. He was a legend.


    "I was a disciple of the palace. Why shouldn''t I fight? Don''t think you can kick me out, Brother Ye," said Long Ling''er.


    "You can stay if you want, but once the fighting starts you must go into Holy Sage Pavilion with everyone else," said Ye Futian with a smile and a shake of the head. On the day of battle he would have everyone under the Sage level go into Holy Sage Pavilion to arrange matrices. Even if they lost, those people would be safe.


    At that moment, more people appeared in the sky.


    "Futian."


    A gentle voice rang out. Ye Futian looked up and saw two figures. A strange look came over his face. "Why have you come, Little Butterfly?"


    "Master said that you promised that before you tried his medicine..." Little Butterfly paused.


    "I can''t die?" said Ye Futian with a smile.


    Little Butterfly smiled softly and said, "Master said that your last round of trials can be done at the palace, so he ordered me and my brother to come."


    "Saint Jiang is too relentless." Ye Futian was silent for a while. So many people had come to the palace!

 970 Flight of the Divine Sword

    Ye Futian had already experienced two rounds of medicinal trials in succession, so he knew that if the testing was successful it would greatly progress his own strength, whether physical or spiritual in will.


    In the previous trial process, he had even comprehended the Rule of Particles.


    Now that the Holy Zhi Palace was facing a great calamity, going to the Nine State College was clearly out of the question for him, so Saint Jiang had sent Little Butterfly to the Holy Zhi Palace personally.


    However, this last round of trial was the most dangerous. At the time Saint Jiang had reminded him to go to the Nine State College after he was at least a mid-level sage. However, he was still only a lower-level sage, so he wondered whether he could bear it.


    But under the current circumstances, he had to give it a try no matter what. As long as the trial was successful his strength would rise to another level so that Kong Yao, who ranked ninth, could be crushed.


    Ye Futian saw that Xu Chehan was behind Little Butterfly, and he offered a faint smile. Xu Chehan looked at him indifferently, "I just came by the command of the Master."


    Ye Futian smiled and said nothing. This guy used to guard him like a thief in the Herb Garden.


    "Little Butterfly." A laughter was heard, and it was Hua Jieyu coming over.


    "Jieyu." Little Butterfly also responded with a smile, then walked over to the direction of Hua Jieyu and the two chatted. The two of them, fairy-like, standing together, formed a rare but beautiful sight to behold.


    "Chief and uncles, I will not be entertaining you then. You have seen the situation here at the palace. I can only beg your indulgence." Ye Futian said with a smile, "Ling''er, you are a disciple of Holy Zhi Palace, so you are almost a host too. You should take everyone on a walk around."


    Long Ling''er pouted and mumbled, "Beauty has made you forget your duties."


    "You are asking for it." Ye Futian rubbed the head of Long Ling''er. Seeing so many old friends coming before the time of war for the Holy Zhi Palace put him in a much better mood.


    When he ventured into the Holy Zhi Palace, help came from all directions.


    Today, the situation was completely different from before. This time it was to defend against the invasion of the Hall of Holy Light and Xihua Sacred Mountain. But what remained the same were these old friends gathered once again to support him.


    Naturally he felt a great warmth in his heart.


    "Let''s not delay the testing then." Ye Futian said to Little Butterfly and Xu Chehan. The war was just around the corner and the testing would not been done in a single day, so the earlier the better.


    Little Butterfly nodded, and then several of them stepped away.


    Watching them leave, Gu Yunxi bowed her head slightly, and there was a slight sense of loss reflected in those beautiful eyes of hers, but then she had a bright smile on her face. He was now the lord of Holy Zhi Palace and the fate of the palace, and even that of the Barren State was tethered on him. So how could he find time to chat a word or two with her? Seeing that he was now getting more excellent by the day, she should be happy for him, and hope that he could sail through this coming calamity.


    "That girl has no filter, don''t hold what she said to heart." The four of them walked and he caught up with Little Butterfly and Jieyu, with Xu Chehan behind.


    "Not at all." Little Butterfly gently shook her head.


    Hua Jieyu smiled at Ye Futian. "But maybe Ling''er was right."


    "Uh..." Ye Futian blinked his eyes, and Little Butterfly blushed and said, "Jieyu, don''t think so much."


    "Little Butterfly, you don''t know this guy. He''s tempted when he sees pretty girls. Especially you, so you must be careful around him." Hua Jieyue said to Little Butterfly, smiling.


    Little Butterfly''s face was a little redder, and Ye Futian was on the verge of tears. With a wife like this, who needed enemies?


    "Jieyu, if you continue like this someone behind me will probably poison me." Ye Futian joked.


    Xu Chehan looked at the three who were chatting in front of him and could not quite get the meaning right away.


    "Senior brother wouldn''t do that." Little Butterfly said.


    "You didn''t know that when I was in the Herb Garden your senior brother threatened me to watch my step?" Ye Futian smiled and responded. Xu Chehan''s footsteps slowed and he gave Ye Futian a frosty look.


    "Because of his cultivation, that is the temperament of my senior brother. Don''t take it to heart." Little Butterfly did not look at Xu Chehan, but just explained it.


    "Mmm." Ye Futian nodded, then stopped to wait for Xu Chehan to catch up. Little Butterfly turned to look at the two men. Jieyu pulled her hand and said, "We''ll go first."


    "Even if Great Teacher Xu wants to kill me now, I''m afraid it won''t be easy." Ye Futian smiled and looked at Xu Chehan.


    Xu Chehan''s gray pupils looked at Ye Futian, and a faint coldness exuded from him. He had heard of the battle of Zhongzhou City. In the past few years his strength had improved greatly, and he had already become a high-level sage not long ago. However, Ye Futian killed four great sages in the siege, so defeating him wouldn''t be easy. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "You can try." Xu Chehan''s voice was still cold.


    "I know that Great Teacher Xu is an expert at poison, but I have already experienced two rounds of trials, and am resistant to poison. Moreover, Great Teacher Xu is our guest, so why the long face? I will not be inhospitable like Great Teacher Xu." Ye Futian, referring to the time when his visits were rejected.


    Xu Chehan gave Ye Futian a look, "If you didn''t have a wife, I wouldn''t mind if you pursued Little Butterfly. But if you want Little Butterfly to be your concubine, you have another thing coming to you."


    "You are so boring. It is much more fun to be with Little Butterfly." Ye Futian patted his shoulder and then accelerated to catch up with Hua Jieyu and Little Butterfly in front.


    Xu Chehan stiffened a bit, watching Ye Futian move forward and quickening his steps to catch up to the others.


    ...


    Ye Futian and the others were at the medicinal pool in the Holy Sage Pavilion, and this time it was an enclosed space.


    When Ye Futian entered the medicinal pool, Little Butterfly and Xu Chehan were sweating.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu went together inside, and there was a terrible storm hovering above the medicinal pool in front of them. There was lightning that was constantly flashing, emitting a suffocating pressure.


    "This..."


    Ye Futian''s heart beat wildly. Was this really a medicinal bath?


    But how was it that the medicine pool in front felt like a catastrophe that was enough to make one disappear into it?


    The face of Hua Jieyu had also changed, and she could feel the terrible aura that came from it and permeated the space.


    Little Butterfly was not as relaxed as she was before. Her beautiful eyes were solemn. Before she deliberately tried to appear relaxed in an attempt to relax herself. But in fact, she clearly knew that the medicinal bath that her Master had personally prepared this time was truly terrible.


    Hua Jieyu''s dainty hand that was holding Ye Futian''s sweated, and exerted a little force as if she did not to want Ye Futian to try. Before she had just heard about it, but she did not think that the medicinal trial would be so terrifying.


    "The Master said that this round of trials should have started when you become a top-level sage, or at the very least a mid-level sage. Considering your current plane, the master has reduced the potency of the medicinal bath." Little Butterfly looked at Ye Futian and said softly.


    "Got it." Ye Futian nodded and walked forward, but the hand that held the hand of Hua Jieyu did not loosen, still holding on tightly.


    Turning his head, Ye Futian smiled at Hua Jieyu, "It was the same as the two previous trials. I just have to tough it out, and all will be well."


    Hua Jieyu looked at Little Butterfly, and Little Butterfly squeezed out a smile, "It should be fine."


    It was only then that Hua Jieyu released her hand and helped Ye Futian to take off his coat.


    Ye Futian looked at Xu Chehan, "Could Great Teacher Xu step aside? I am not used to being watched by a grown man."


    Xu Chehan gave Ye Futian a cold look and then went away.


    "I will go out too." Little Butterfly whispered.


    "Little Butterfly, stay and help. I am afraid of any unexpected situations." Hua Jieyua said to her, so that Little Butterfly nodded as an agreement.


    On the body of Ye Futian there was a dazzling brilliance, and there were the sounds of dragons and apes coming out from his body. Even the faint shadow of the Roc seemed to have appeared. At the same time, keeping a tight hold to his spiritual will, he stepped into the medicinal pool.


    ...


    In the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, Great Zhou Sacred King sat in the great hall and listened to a messenger''s report.


    The cultivators of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple had appeared in the territory of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Their whereabouts were unknown, and it seemed they had broken up into cells, and many may have already infiltrated the Holy Capital.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty mobilized many cultivators to search and had made several arrests, but on the same token, some also died.


    The Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple seemed to have them pegged. It was said that the Glass Saint had disbanded the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, and now there was no one left at the temple.


    "Glassie," Great Zhou Sacred King looked indifferently towards the distance and remembered the scene in the Imperial mausoleum when Ye Futian held the sacred Glass Saint in his arms and had his way with her, and his eyes filled with endless thoughts of murder.


    Ye Futian treated her thusly, so why would she still help the Barren State?


    "I and Zhou Yanwang will embark, leading the Golden Phoenix Army. Other cultivators, stay and guard the palace." Great Zhou Sacred King commanded coldly. He would lead the most powerful army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to conquer, and the others would be more than enough to defend the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple.


    Boom! Boom!


    At this time, there were violent trembling sounds coming from the great hall in the rear. Many people looked up over yonder, including the Great Zhou Sacred King, and suddenly there was a dazzling light flashing through his eyes, and he started toward that direction.


    Boom!


    A loud noise was heard, and the great hall was breached. A beautiful and radiant blade of light went straight into the sky. Immediately afterward, everyone in the palace saw a sword, the Divine Sword.


    This Divine Sword went straight through the air, as if with a life of its own.


    Great Zhou Sacred King was extremely fast. In an instant, his palms extended, and a terrible golden phoenix appeared between heaven and earth. Its claws smacked down from the sky and grabbed toward the Divine Sword.


    However, at this moment the incomparable glory exploded from within the Divine Sword and it disappeared right where it was, crossing the void and appearing in the sky above.


    Great Zhou Sacred King looked extremely bad. Like a Divine Phoenix, he gave chase and wanted to waylay the Divine Sword.


    But that Divine Sword continued to shuttle through the void. Even the speed of Great Zhou Sacred King could not catch up with it.


    Very quickly, Great Zhou Sacred King gave up. He stood high in the sky, and a horrible air emitted from him, its power threatening the world.


    At the time, they used the life of Douzhan in exchange of Zhou Huang, the others, and also this Divine Sword. Now, the Divine Sword had taken flight on its own and disappeared.


    Clearly, he had been had.


    This Divine Sword had a spirit and could stay and go on its own. However, who was controlling the Divine Sword?


    And, where did the Divine Sword go


    On this day, in the land of Eastern State, many who were levitating in the sky saw that above the void there was a sword in flight on its own, continuing to cross the void until it disappeared at the edge of Eastern State.

 971 Descending

    At the end of the year 10016 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, Nine States did not have the holiday atmosphere of past years.


    In the Barren State outside of Zhongzhou City in the endless sky there was a black eagle flying about, wings widespread as if it were patrolling.


    Groups of cultivators travelling by levitation, entered the territory of Zhongzhou City.


    These were cultivators who had travelled from all over the Nine States.


    Just five or six years ago the people of Nine States had all but forgotten about the Barren State. There was no value in the holy land of the Barren State, so it was even excluded from Nine State Forum.


    But today, this city at the center of Barren State had become the eye of the storm in the Nine States. Countless powerful people came from far away in the past several months just to witness the battle that was forthcoming in Zhongzhou City.


    The Nine States had not had such a battle of this level for a hundred years, so how could it not attract this kind of attention?


    It was rumored that the Hall of Holy Light, Xihua Sacred Mountain, and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had all assembled an enormous army, but they did not immediately set off. According to some the Hall of Holy Light had dispatched saints to the three holy lands of Endless Ocean and urged them to send great armies in support and had agreed upon a time of action.


    As if they had reached some kind of agreement, the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean also started calling in the powers of the islands in the territory, ready to make war with the Barren State.


    Because several holy lands had agreed to send troops at the same time it also caused delays for some time. After all, the strength of the Holy Zhi Palace at the Barren State, along with the backings of the Yue Clan and the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, made even a principality as strong as the Hall of Holy Light dare not to challenge them alone. If only one force arrived, it was highly possible that the Holy Zhi Palace would welcome the fight straight away, and the ending would be highly unpredictable.


    Finally, on the first day of the the year 10017 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, the conglomerate of the great armies from the six holy lands of the Hall of Holy Light, the Xihua Sacred Mountain, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, the North Deep, the Ocean Palace, and the Celestial Cliffs, departed almost at the same time, clearly launching a pre-planned joint attack.


    In Nine States, the turbulence had started.


    As for the other holy lands, the speculation was that currently Zhongzhou City must be filled with people who were gathered from all the holy lands in Nine States, it was just that they had not reveal their identities.


    In addition to the great armies from the six great holy lands, Saint Zhi of Zhisheng Cliffs and Kong Yao had been staying at Zhongzhou City.


    At this time, in a wine cellar in Zhongzhou City, there were a few people sitting quietly, drinking. Among them, there was an extraordinary elder who looked about fifty, full of spirits and enthusiasm. His eyes were bright and alert, but full of gentle smiles that gave him a very comfortable presence.


    "Master, will the battle of the holy lands break out?" a young man asked the old man in front of him, who was another saint from the Yu State: Stone Saint.


    Stone Saint kept an extremely low profile, almost never interested in what went on in the outside world. In the Yu State, the Zhisheng Cliffs had always been known as its first holy land. Although Stone Saint was also a cultivator of the Saint Plane, he was not well-known. Many said that the Stone Saint had no quarrel with the world, just concentrating on cultivation.


    "The saints of Holy Zhi Palace have been evading the conflict, otherwise the Great Zhou Sacred King would have already made his move. As for this Sacred War, if the Yue Clan and the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple were involved, and the Moon Saint and Glass Saint both appeared on the battlefield, it is possible that it would erupt in a war of the saints." Stone Saint said calmly. If the Sacred War really broke out it would not be the fall of only one or two people, but the destruction of large-scale of cultivators. In that environment, even the cultivators of the Saint Plane would not be able to suppress the need to get involved.


    "Does the Master not have any thoughts on this?" the young man asked again.


    "Gods fighting, what more is there to think about? To participate as cannon fodder?" Stone Saint gave his disciple a harsh stare, and suddenly the young man gave a surrendering smile. Indeed, in a fight of this scale if they rushed into it, no matter which side one decided to take on, they would all be cannon fodder.


    Stone Saint drank up the wine in the cup, then looked up at the distance. He said: "The people from the holy lands of the Nine States should have all arrived. They also want the inheritance of Renhuang, but it is a hot potato, and not so easy to be had. Let''s go."


    As he finished speaking, he got up and walked out.


    "Where is the Master going?" Those around the table also got up and tried to catch up with him.


    "To the Holy Zhi Palace, of course," The voice of Stone Saint was heard. Not only them, but countless others in Zhongzhou City also rushed toward the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    People in Zhongzhou City had heard the news that the major holy lands would join forces today to attack the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Outside of Zhongzhou City there were demonic beasts patrolling every direction.


    At this time, along the border of Zhongzhou City in the westerly direction, a mighty army descended. This legion of tens of thousands were all riding upon divine implements, with the saints personally spending their power to control the implements to lead the way. Otherwise it would be totally impossible for this army to arrive at the Holy Zhi Palace in just one day.


    The person leading them was Saint Ji.


    At this time, Saint Ji looked up into the sky. The other holy lands must be coming soon.


    "Wait here." Saint Ji ordered. The six great holy lands had agreed to the time to move toward the Holy Zhi Palace at the same time. Now that they had already entered the Zhongzhou City there was no need to worry, just wait for the appointed time and they could march directly toward the Holy Zhi Palace.


    After some time, a beam of light shot from a distance with extreme speed, and it arrived in a blink of an eye. It was a cultivator of the Saint Plane.


    "What is so urgent?" Saint Ji saw the person who came and frowned. The saint who had arrived was the cultivator of the Hall of Holy Light.


    "A large number of cultivators from the Qi Clan came to the City of Holy Light, just in the area below the Hall of Holy Light, seemingly to box us in." the messenger replied. Upon hearing these words, Saint Ji''s eyes became sharp with a terrible coldness.


    Qi Clan of the Qi State, how dare they?


    "Was there any exchange?" Saint Ji asked.


    "Yes," the messenger nodded, "but the people of Qi Clan denied that they were boxing us in. They just said that the cultivators of Qi Clan have long admired the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light and have come to our Hall to visit the disciples of the Hall of Holy Light."


    Saint Ji''s eyes revealed great viciousness that was pure cold murder. The Qi Clan admiring the Hall of Holy Light for a long time? To pay tribute to the disciples of the Hall of Holy Light?


    This was a pile of nonsense.


    This was a naked threat from the Qi Clan, plain and simple.


    They did not send people directly to participate in the battle, and they did not want to make enemies with the holy lands at the same time, so they came up with such a plan to go for the quick.


    To distract the attention of the Hall of Holy Light from the battle.


    "I will leave some people here, you take the rest back," Saint Ji''s voice was extremely cold as his eyes passed through the army. He then divided them into groups and kept a group of elite cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light, and less than half of the cultivators from other areas in the region of ??the Hall of Holy Light.


    Those who turned back would at least be enough to cope with the cultivators from the Qi Clan who gathered in a hurry at the Hall of Holy Light.


    Saint Ji believed that the Qi Clan was more of a threatening force rather than one intent on attacking the Hall of Holy Light, otherwise it would have already happened.


    He understood what that old man, Saint Qi, was thinking about- to kill with a borrowed sword.


    As long as Ye Futian was alive, he would be a great threat to the Hall of Holy Light. Moreover, Qi Clan did not need to offend other holy land forces, and it did not even need to directly be involved on the battlefield. He was truly tricky old fox.


    In the southerly region of ??Zhongzhou City, there were many humongous divine golden phoenixes descending. On the back of every divine phoenix there was a group of cultivators. Likewise, the Great Zhou Sacred King also did not bring all his people, but he brought with him his most elite troop, the Golden Phoenix Army.


    In the southeastern region, the three great holy lands of the Endless Ocean had arrived together.


    The demonic beasts in the outer area of ??Zhongzhou City continued to hover and flew toward the sky. When the six holy lands had all arrived, they set foot in this central city of the Barren State and marched toward the same direction.


    The cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light continued to move forward. They passed by a Buddhist Mountain in Zhongzhou City, and on top of the mountain there was a famous temple. When they passed through, there was a golden glow on the top of mountain, and the light of Buddha was spreading far and wide. Many looked in that direction and saw a shocking scene: there were a hundred and eight Buddhists who turned into a giant Buddha, releasing a blazing light of Buddha like a big statue of Buddha.


    Saint Ji glanced at the Buddhist Mountain. In the land of the Barren State, there was never the presence of such powerful monks.


    Clearly, those were the people of the Vajra Region.


    It was just 108 people. Even if it was the 108 Battling Monks of the Vajra Region, what could they do? How could they dream to subvert the situation?


    When the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light passed by, an even more brilliant light of Buddha shone forth, and then the Buddha stepped into the void like an immense and boundless Buddha walking on top of Zhongzhou City, each step spanning a great distance, following the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light.


    This had made many cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light incredible displeased. What was the meaning of these Vajra Region cultivators? To follow them at every step.


    In different directions, the six great army went to the Holy Zhi Palace, which led to the complete madness of the people in Zhongzhou City, who gathered and moved toward the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace in great terrible manner.


    In this horrible flow of people, a handsome figure in white followed along.


    He was a symbolic figure in the Barren State, the future Palace Lord chosen by the Holy Zhi Palace. But now he was mixed in the crowd like a common disciple of the Barren State, heading for the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    His return today was but for his peace of mind.


    By the time he left, the two Palace Lords had died, so he left the Holy Zhi Palace and the Barren State to separate from the Nine States. He eventually went to the Jixia Holy Palace to cultivate, and then went to the Upper Worlds with Xia Qingyuan for the trial, and blessed with chance, he was chosen to be allowed to cultivate in the Upper Worlds.


    But no matter what the grievances were back in the days, he still owed a favor to the palace that taught him, and would never forget the teachings of his Master.


    Today, when the Holy Zhi Palace was in crisis, he could not stand by and do nothing.


    No matter the outcome of this battle, it would be him returning the favor to the palace.


    Barren State, the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian looked at the distance, and beside him, all the cultivators above the Sage Plane had gathered together, waiting.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    They already knew that the six great holy coalition forces had descended, and were on their way to the Holy Zhi Palace. It would not take long for them to step into the space above the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian slowly levitated, his eyes turning to look at everyone from the Holy Zhi Palace, there were many old friends and many new faces. He said, "The battle today may be more dangerous than the time when the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had descended. But what I have said remains: I am the Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. If I survive, so will the palace. If the palace should die, so will I."


    The eyes of the people fastened on Ye Futian, their eyes revealing extreme determination and a strong sense of war.


    "And one more thing: if we win this battle, from then on in the Nine States no one will dare to bully to the Holy Zhi Palace, or any of our disciples." Ye Futian''s voice was not loud, but everyone heard it clearly.

 972 Enemies at Ones Gates

    All eyes were on the young man who was hovering in the air at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    From that battle onwards, no one would have dared bully the Holy Zhi Palace and any students from that holy land.


    Ye Futian had brought the Holy Zhi Palace to lengths and achievements that the holy land of the Barren State had never seen before in all those he had been in charge. Be it the Nine State Forum or the skirmish at the imperial mausoleum, the Barren State had emerged victorious over all other holy lands of the Nine States. He came to possess the Halberd of Space and Time, a divine implement left behind by the Ocean King and ranked third on the Divine Implements Ranking. He had led them to victory against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and had reduced Zhisheng Cliffs to a mere shadow of its former form. He had also killed four major figures ranked highon the Sage Ranking all by himself.


    There was no one throughout the Nine States who did not know Ye Futian and the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    As such, while the current state where seven holy lands throughout the Nine States intended to ally themselves in an attempt to destroy the Holy Zhi Palace was indeed a disaster, but it was nonetheless also an achievement that the people of the Holy Zhi Palace were proud of as well.


    Seven major holy lands needed to ally themselves in order to take on the Holy Zhi Palace in present. There was simply no holy land that dared challenge the Holy Zhi Palace all on their own.


    Will battle rose and Ye Futian gazed at the faces in the air and continued, "I heard that there are some within the Holy Zhi Palace who claim that we would be safe so long as we hand over Jiuge. While it is true that the crisis could be averted if we would just hand Jiuge over, but if someone were to demand Huang Jiuge from the Holy Zhi Palace, then there would be people demanding me to hand over someone else from the Holy Zhi Palace in the future. Unless the Holy Zhi Palace is fine with being at the bottom end of holy lands throughout the Nine States, any talk would be futile given how we''re not even daring enough to fight for what is ours. If I''m unable to protect even just Huang Jiuge alone, then I wouldn''t be qualified to protect the holy land that had been around for ages."


    Ye Futian scanned everyone present and his voice roused his audience to high spirits. "I shall be fighting in this matter at the very forefront at any given moment. The battle fought today shall be fought in the Holy Zhi Palace''s honor."


    Countless students of the Holy Zhi Palace felt their heart burning.


    "For the Holy Zhi Palace," the Sword Demon, lord of the Sword Palace said in a brimming voice.


    "For the Holy Zhi Palace," the Sword Saint said solemnly.


    "For the Holy Zhi Palace." Voices were heard here and there.


    "For the Holy Zhi Palace..." Countless voices were heard from the sky. It was the only voice that reverberated throughout the entire Holy Zhi Palace. Morale had never been so high.


    Among the crowd, the Sword was seen sitting solemnly, guarding the area all on his own; Yuan Hong led an army garrisoning another area; Qin Zhuang and the other eight swordsmen sitting on the ground in formation; Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen and the others standing by, as well as the Palace Lord''s brothers and sisters in training.


    There was also Liu Zixuan, who had just joined the ranks of the Holy Zhi Palace. Her eyes were fixed on the silhouette in the air. He knew that the handsome figure was something god-like and worthy of worship in that holy land of the Barren State.


    There were Goddess Die and Great Teacher Xu from the Nine State College. Even they were inspired due to standing among the crowd and experiencing the heat from all the others around them. Goddess Die''s eyes reddened somewhat and said, "It''s truly my honor to be able to join this fight."


    Xu Chehan stared at the sky. While it was true that the figure above was a bit of a douche, he was nonetheless very charming at the moment. If it had not been for the fact that he was already married, Little Butterfly would have earned herself a good husband if she were to marry him. It would have at least been better than to have her following Xu Chehan.


    Ye Futian went on with medicine tests throughout the days. While the entire course of 81 days was not completed, but it was nonetheless considered a success for being able to get so far.


    Little Butterfly''s teacher said that if Ye Futian was able to make it through the first day, then they shall help Ye Futian out.


    As such, even though Xu Chehan had no liking for Ye Futian, he would have still joined the fight. But then again, even if his teacher did not give such an order, there was still no way he would have sat by and do nothing if Little Butterfly intended to fight.


    Demonic beasts circled around in the air and their eyes looked faraway. In the Holy Sage Pavilion, there were matrixes protecting those below Sage Plane. However, many in the air gazed at the silhouettes appearing above the Holy Sage Pavilion and everyone understood, that the upcoming battle was one that would have decided the fate of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    If the Holy Zhi Palace were to emerge victorious, few would have been able to shake Ye Futian in the future. He was nigh-invincible at Sage Plane, and if a saint of the Nine States intended to kill him when he became a saint one day, it would not have been easy as well.


    The Holy Zhi Palace stood as long as Ye Futian stood.


    If the Holy Zhi Palace were to lose, there would have been no holy lands left in the Barren State, and things would have looked bleaker than it used to be.


    Demonic beasts howled high up in the air and terrifying might was sensed from faraway. Although few were able to extend their spiritual powers that far, but they felt the immense pressure coming their way. The pressure of the army preceded the army itself.


    "They''re here."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Many quipped deep down and Ye Futian''s eyes looked faraway ahead. The deep eyes seemed to be able to penetrate the space and formless current ebbed in the air, growing increasingly powerful and the demonic beasts circling in the air continued to howl. They were very restless and Ye Futian was able to feel what they were feeling clearly. Even demonic beast at the pinnacle of Sage Plane felt so as well.


    They were about to face a 60 thousand-strong army, and things would have no longer been like how it was back in the imperial mausoleum, where there were only a handful of top notch figures from a myriad of holy lands.


    Eventually, brilliant shimmer was seen. Saint Ji and the mighty ones from the Hall of Holy Light reached first before everyone else, stopping outside the Holy Zhi Palace and stood high above the air, as if they were a celestial army.


    The howl of the phoenix was heard as well and bright flames were seen burning in the sky. The Zhou Sacred King and Zhou Yanwang, both saints, arrived as well as the Golden Phoenix Army. Their numbers were comparatively few, as many mighty ones were held back by the people of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple.


    Saint Xihua arrived shortly after. All three of the saints of the Xihua Sacred Mountain were there. Their numbers were the greatest among the three forces.


    Vast, powerful might was felt in another direction. The people of the Holy Zhi Palace turned around and found an allied force consisted of three armies from the Endless Ocean arrived, boosting the greatest number.


    The Ocean State was situated at the Endless Ocean. Their area was vast and cultivators aplenty. Countless islands were controlled by the three holy lands of the Ocean State. One could have only imagined how vast such an allied army would have been as they blocked out the sky.


    While spirits remained high among the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace, but they were unable to help but shudder nonetheless, after sensing the solid, undeniable might of the invaders.


    Doom! Golden light of the Buddha shimmered from faraway, ringing in the air. Many turned to look at that direction and found a powerful ancient Buddha-like figure running in the air.


    "Is Vajra Region getting themselves into this as well?" Saint Ji said coldly. The monks of the Vajra Region had been coming alongside them before, and it was obvious that the monks were not on their side. The lord of the Vajra Region advised them back in the imperial mausoleum to let their enemies go after all.


    "108 warrior monks from the Vajra Region has come seeking the path of enlightenment." A voice was heard rumbling in the air. The dazzling light of the Buddha got increasingly close to the Holy Zhi Palace. Ye Futian saw them heading towards the Holy Zhi Palace before descending to the ground at the same time. Many students of the Holy Zhi Palace was getting ready to fight, but Ye Futian waved and prevented them from activating the matrixes.


    Boom. A loud rumble was heard as dust was sent flying. 108 warrior monks seemed to have coalesced into a single Buddha as they stacked on top of one another. The monks stepped on the shoulders of each other. The higher the levels, the fewer the monks seen standing. Only one monk stood at the very top. He was dressed in a kasaya garb and looked very young. Despite being a monk, he looked very handsome and his eyes seemed to possess some mystical powers capable of seeing through people''s minds.


    He was seen closing his hands together and chanted a string of Buddhist chants at Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng stood up and stepped forward, bowing slightly to the monk at the very top, appearing very respectful.


    The one before them was the leader of the 108 warrior monks of Vajra Region.


    "Brother Tianxin," Yu Sheng called.


    Ye Futian heard Yu Sheng''s voice and took a look at the monk, before nodding and addressing him, "Master Tianxin."


    "Palace Lord Ye," the monk returned the gesture to Ye Futian. Everyone from the Holy Zhi Palace turned their eyes at the monk and they came to admire him somewhat.


    Number three on the Sage Ranking of the Sage and Saint Rankings of the Nine States��Monk Tianxin of the Vajra Region. He did not participate in the previous Orthodoxy Battles, or he might have became a saint over a decade ago.


    It was said throughout the Nine States that Monk Tianxin had no intentions of borrowing any external implements and wanted to come to enlightenment on his own. He was ranked third only because he did not participate in the last Orthodoxy Battles, while Ji Ya, who went about beating people up, went all the way to be ranked second. Many people held the belief that the powers of Monk Tianxin of the Vajra Region easily rivaled that of Ji Ya.


    "Yu Sheng, many of our younger brothers claimed to want to ask for guidance from you, and thus we came all the way here," Monk Tianxin smiled as he replied to Yu Sheng.


    "We shall have all the time in the world to do so after this battle," Yu Sheng said as he looked at the monks of the Vajra Region.


    "As pompous as always," some monk quipped.


    "Be careful, Yu Sheng. I''m not going to go easy on you this time," someone else said as well.


    "Very well, we shall fight to our hearts'' content after this." Yu Sheng nodded.


    "Tianxin, are you seeking enlightenment or death?" Ji Ya''s eyes were seen glaring at them from afar, at the Hall of Holy Light''s direction. His murderous intent was sharp and unmistakable.


    Tianxin turned around to look at Ji Ya, who continued, "If you''re seeking enlightenment, go elsewhere. If you''re seeking death, feel free to stay."


    Tianxin looked at him and close his hands. The light of the Buddha shimmered all over him and he said, "Your senses are corrupted and shall need Buddhist methods to cleanse them."


    "How do we go about that, big brother?" Monks from beneath asked.


    "Through expiating the soul," Monk Tianxin answered.


    "Mercy." The monk beneath nodded.


    Ji Ya''s eyes were incredibly cold. The number two and number three on the Sage Ranking seemed to be at each other''s throats before the army began fighting.


    Powerful aura was sensed from faraway. Saint Ji and Saint Xihua wore cold expressions. They knew the mighty ones from the Yue clan were three as well.


    With the mighty ones from the six holy lands about to raze the Holy Zhi Palace, the Yue clan at the rear would have been able to mess up the army''s formations once the fighting commenced.


    Saintly might flooded the place at the moment. Two figures were seen descending at the Holy Zhi Palace''s direction. It was Saint Xia and Saint Li, leading mighty ones from both the Xia clan and the Nine State College.


    "We''re here to watch," Saint Xia said. Their silhouette came before the Holy Sage Pavilion and said, "This is where the Holy Zhi Palace''s nobles are. Please don''t attack in this direction."


    "Saint Li, how about a game of chess?" Saint Xia said to Saint Li.


    "Sure." Saint Li nodded and they both set up the game high above the Holy Sage Pavilion. Students of the Xia clan and the Nine State College were behind them.


    Lin Shubai and Tong He, extremely renowned students of the Nine State College were there as well. Their eyes were on the battlefield. When the battle was over, the Sage and Saint Rankings would have been rearranged.


    They were not alone. Many throughout the Nine States were standing by to watch the battle from far away, not daring to get too close.


    A figure dressed in white descended quietly at the Holy Zhi Palace''s direction from the sky.


    Many eyes looked at the figure and even Ye Futian was rather startled to see him.


    The Sword Demon, Sage Daozang, You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng and many others looked at him. They were all very familiar to Bai Luli.


    Bai Luli simply watched the armies about while saying nothing.


    "Welcome back to the Holy Zhi Palace," Ye Futian looked at him and said. Since Bai Luli was willing to fight for the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian had no intentions of being petty with him over what happened in the past.

 973 The Sacred War Begins

    Saint Ji, Saint Xihua, the sacred king all took the respective corners, at the front of the three armies they led.


    They knew that the mighty ones of the Yue clan were at their rear, but they did not care. They took the same attitude with those from the Vajra Region. As for Bai Luli, few even paid any heed to him. The power of one individual was utterly insignificant in a sacred war at such a scale. Only the likes of Ye Futian would have been able to somehow affect the battles.


    However, if the power difference was too great. He still would not have been able to change anything.


    The battle that time was to be the true sacred war. Furthermore, one that had ten holy lands involved just from the surface alone. The scale was simply terrifying.


    In such sacred wars, the power of one was insignificant unless said one was a saint.


    "Get into formation," Saint Ji said.


    The armies of the Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had all gotten into formation, and there were a lot of battle matrixes used. The Hall of Holy Light and the Xihua Sacred Mountain were not the only forces available within their state after all; there were also other top forces within their territory.


    The allied forces of the three holy lands of the Ocean State had gotten into formation after all. At that very instant, the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State felt as if they were going to be drowned. The stifling pressure made the place difficult to draw breath.


    The battle matrixes of the six major holy lands moved in the Holy Zhi Palace''s direction. While they had blind confidence of being able to come out on top in that battle, they dared not underestimate their opponents nonetheless. All holy lands were on their guard, as it was a battle with one''s life on the line. Any mistake could have easily cost them huge casualties. They intended to win with little to no casualties after all.


    What they set out to do was to wipe out the Holy Zhi Palace with the least cost incurred.


    "Activate the matrix," Yang Xiao said loudly. Mighty ones activated the matrixes in all different directions as soon as he gave the order. Brilliant light burst from the ground of the Holy Zhi Palace in an instant. Boundless patterns appeared, devouring the spiritual qi around in a frenzy and converting them into power of rules, merging with the matrix diagram.


    The mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace took the upcoming fight with utmost seriousness.


    The stifling pressure grew increasingly strong. The ones from the six major holy lands came above the Holy Zhi Palace.


    One battle matrix after another lit up. Boundless light glimmered before the mighty ones of the Hall of Holy Light at their direction. A very tall celestial god appeared in the sky, shining with boundless light. Its light rained downward and turned incredibly sharp, as if it was raining swords of light onto the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Activate the black turtle matrix," Yang Xiao said loudly and beams of light shot up. A huge gigantic beast seemed to have sprung up from the earth. Loud rumbles were heard and the entire Holy Zhi Palace shook. A boundlessly huge black turtle appeared above the Holy Zhi Palace, enveloping everyone within the battle matrix.


    The mighty ones faraway shuddered at the scene. It was worth noting that the Holy Zhi Palace was of the size of a small city. One was only able to imagine how large the turtle would have been to envelop the entire Holy Zhi Palace. The scene before them was earth-shattering.


    The Holy Zhi Palace had given its all to manifest such a super matrix.


    The light raining down on the black turtle naturally was unable to do anything. However, the celestial god-like god of light continued to grow in size. An unnervingly holy sword of light appeared in its hand, showering the ground below with shimmering light. The sword was one that would have cleaved the heavens.


    A mountain god appeared at the Xihua Sacred Mountain''s corner. It s body was immensely huge as well and filled to the brim with power. The Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix was activated at the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s side. A golden phoenix out to block the sky out appeared in the air. The flames seemed to have burned the sky as its huge wings flapped. Waves of heat washed all over the place. Even those watching from afar found it unbearable if they were of weaker training.


    The three holy lands of the Endless Ocean brought their powers to bear as well. They either summoned huge beasts or activated super battle matrixes, bursting with unparalleled might.


    The mighty ones of the Yue clan appeared and looked at the battlefield before them, yet they did not make any move. The Moon Saint was the one taking the lead.


    If the Holy Zhi Palace was unable to even withstand the first wave of attack, it would have meant that they were simply too weak. If the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace were to be so easily eliminated, it would have been pointless for the Yue clan to join the battle as they would have simply walked to their deaths. They needed to see that the Holy Zhi Palace being able to survive through the attacks and get into very heated stage of the fights, before they saw it to be time to attack. They were to then went all the way to the core of the enemy''s camp and finished the enemy off in one go.


    In that direction, there were still others who watched the battle between the Yue clan and the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The number of such people were few, so much so that their numbers could have considered pathetic in comparison to the armies in the field. They were none other than the mighty ones from Zhisheng Cliffs.


    The figure taking the lead was none other than Saint Zhi and Kong Yao was standing by his side.


    However, there was still a group of people behind Saint Zhi who did not emanate any aura, yet possessed exceptional bearing. All of them wore cold, haughty looks on their faces as they watched the battlefield without being fettered by anything.


    Murderous intent was seen in Saint Zhi''s eyes. Ye Futian would have definitely perished on that day.


    The celestial god-like figure brought the sword of light in its hand down on the battlefield. Dropping from high above all the way down to the black turtle matrix. An earth-shattering noise was heard as the matrix cracked like a spider web.


    At the very next moment, the huge mountain god made its move and the entire Holy Zhi Palace shook. Saint Xia and Saint Li, who were playing chess at the moment, had to emanate faint auras to stabilize the game. Both men continued to place their pieces as if the battlefield did not exist.


    Boom, boom, boom...


    The continuous rumble rattled their surroundings and every rumble shook the hearts of all present.


    "Get the Kui up," Yang Xiao shouted his order. Another layer of matrix seemed to have been activated within the black turtle matrix. A Kui after another appeared and devastating storms built up within the matrix. The Kuis brought thunderous rumbles ringing about within the Holy Zhi Palace, bringing the devastating lightning storm to its critical point, as if the apocalypse was near.


    Boom!


    A rumble was heard and the black turtle broke. At the very next moment, the Kuis roared at the heavens and the previously suppressed devastating lightning storm was thicker than an ancient tree, shooting skywards. In that one instant, that space seemed to be on the verge of total collapse.


    Terrifying rumbles continued to be heard. The god of light and the mountain god were both torn to shreds right there and then. The golden phoenix was destroyed as well. However, the terrifying light of the lightning seemed to be out to destroy everything like a calamity of the great path, heading straight for the battle matrixes of the six holy lands, forcing the mighty ones to get into formation and activating defenses.


    "Carry on," Saint Ji said coldly. Since the Holy Zhi Palace had matrixes laid in place, then all they had to do was simply to bring their armies to bear, destroying the matrixes.


    The mighty ones continued descending as they focused their attacks, launching devastating might in the Holy Zhi Palace''s direction. Terrifying light of devastation appeared above the Holy Zhi Palace in an instant.


    The matrix of the Kui was still a work when the weather changed. Everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace shivered before a sheet of frost appeared in the air. Their surroundings turned pale white and extremely cold, as if everything was soon to be frozen.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Many felt as if the blood in their veins were about to stop flowing in the cold. Their bodies were hardly able to move. What was worse was that even during the cold, lightning and fire storms came nonetheless.


    "Press on," Saint Xihua said ordering his men. While there had been many who were injured from attacks, but neither Saint Ji nor Saint Xihua seemed to hesitate. They ordered their men to simply press on with attacks. If they were to be held back by the matrixes, they would have only suffered greater losses.


    They did not expect the Chess Saint''s eldest student to survive in the Nether Sword Mound all those years ago and came back to bite them. Those matrixes were definitely his work, which had enough weight to steer the direction of the war. But then again, it would have only been so when both sides were of comparable powers.


    The stifling pressure in the Holy Zhi Palace grew increasingly powerful. Their eyes turned towards one direction and Ye Futian was seen standing quietly, totally unfettered as he simply looked up at the battlefield in the air. He came to resemble a statue.


    Seeing mighty ones coming at them, Ye Futian stepped up and expanded his spiritual powers. A huge matrix diagram lit up within that spot of the Holy Zhi Palace, getting increasingly bright.


    Heaven-splitting sword will emerged from beneath the diagram in an instant. One sword aura after another shot through the ground and headed for the clouds.


    The entire Holy Zhi Palace was completely lit up at that moment.


    The swords rang and one sword after another shot through the diagram from underneath the Holy Zhi Palace, before hovering above the diagram.


    "Retreat."


    "Retreat."


    Saint Ji and Saint Xihua and many other mighty ones said at the same time. They all knew about the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State borrowing swords and they speculated it was for laying out sword matrixes. What they had no idea about was how powerful the matrix would have been.


    However, at that very moment, they felt a sword aura that was so intense that it could have killed everything in its path. At the very least, for anyone below Saint Plane, they would have definitely died if they were to be caught at the center of that storm.


    The mighty ones retreated to the sky. However, at that very instant, countless swords of the Holy Zhi Palace circled around the diagram, turning into terrifying vortex of the sword. The immense sword aura shot to the sky. If one were to view from afar, it would have looked as if countless swords were fighting upwards against the current, with full intentions of tearing the sky to shreds.


    At the same time, boundless sword will gathered at the same place. A giant sword capable of cleaving everything in its path appeared there.


    "Go."


    A cold word was uttered by Ye Futian. The sword flew straight to meet its target as soon as he finished. Blood splattered wherever the sword flew as no one had been able to fight it. Everyone retreated in a frenzy.


    The surroundings of the giant sword was filled with untold numbers of swords borrowed from all over the Barren State. Every single blade was filled with the power of the sword matrix, making them invincible.


    A rain of blood began to fall above the Holy Zhi Palace at that moment. Many were pierced and eerie shrieks were heard everywhere. Regardless of plane, even if one were to be at the pinnacle of Saint Plane, there was only one slash from the swords required if one were to find themselves at the center of the storm.


    Ye Futian slowly took to the air. The Halberd of Space and Time appeared in his hand, emitting terrifying killing light.


    "Kill," Ye Futian said as he turned into a beam of light, heading straight for the heavens. He was seemingly honoring his promise in a literal manner��always at the forefront at any given moment.


    "Kill."


    Thunderous noises were heard as the mighty ones of the Holy Zhi Palace took the sky. Their enemies'' formations were in shambles, and it was a chance as good as any other to launch attacks.


    The sacred war involving ten holy lands had finally, and thoroughly, commenced at full force!

 974 Palm of Mahavairocana

    Ye Futian rode hard with the Halberd of Time and Space in his hands emitting glorious radiance, smacking the powerful cultivators whose formation had been disrupted in the void.


    However, at the same moment Ye Futian took action, shadows levitated alongside him, following closely behind, vaguely suggesting a winged formation with Ye Futian out in front and people on both sides of him guarding his flanks.


    The two closest to him were Hua Jieyu on the left and Yu Sheng on the right.


    Behind them were Huang Jiuge on the left and Sword Saint on the right.


    Further back there were two battle matrixes: Qin Zhuang and the Nine Swordsmen, who were experts in offense, and the lord of the Ice Temple, who was excellent at control, were manning the Sorcerers'' Battle Matrix and were responsible for attacks and guarding Ye Futian.


    No matter how great Ye Futian''s personal strength was, this was a battle between great armies. In any case, nothing could happen to Ye Futian. If any mishaps should happen to Ye Futian, the morale of the army of the Holy Zhi Palace would disintegrate immediately, and what awaited them would be an apocalypse.


    At this time, an illusion of a saint faintly appeared behind Hua Jieyu. Gold-beating Whip in hand, her alluring beauty appeared in the battlefield like a unique landscape. But at this time her body exuded an extremely dangerous atmosphere, so that wherever she passed everyone felt that their spiritual will was extremely threatened.


    Behind Hua Jieyu a brilliant glory was upon the body of Huang Jiuge, and behind him the life spirit of Renhuang bloomed so that his element increased tremendously. With the Renhuang bow in hand, wherever the arrow pointed to those in the void felt that they had been locked onto.


    As for the other side, a great demonic power was permeating into the bodies of Yu Sheng and Sword Saint, sweeping through the sky and the void.


    The group moved swiftly and drove into the army of the opponent in an instant. Numerous cultivators formed a frightening mass, enough to cause fear in many of the beholders. However, under the observation of countless people Ye Futian rushed toward it without hesitation.


    The glory of the Halberd of Time and Space shrouded the vast void, and the halberd in Ye Futian''s hands pierced toward the sky. At this moment, the time and space of heaven and earth seemed to be imprisoned and the expressions of many changed slightly. Soon after, the void ruptured and the halberd pierced through the space, and wherever passed the bodies of cultivators were pulverized and exploded, opening a passage of blood by the Halberd of Time and Space.


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    "Move forward with the formation, they must be killed at all costs." Saint Ji stood above the sky, his eyes surveying the battlefield where Ye Futian was located. Even if he had to sacrifice large number of people today, he would bury Ye Futian here.


    People rushed in to attack from all directions at the same time, and Hua Jieyu followed Ye Futian closely, moving forwards step by step, her spirit crown beaming with radiant light just like a goddess. An invisible telekinesis power shrouded the spiritual will of many cultivators.


    "Thunder''s Mind, Heavenly Punishment." Hua Jieyu said, and suddenly many felt their spiritual will attacked by a thunder telekinetic power, causing their will to collapse, their bodies to tremble, and their minds stopped working.


    Buzz. Arrows penetrated the void and directly pierced through the heads of those cultivators. With Huang Jiuge''s Renhuang Bow supported by Hua Jieyu''s Telekinesis attack, its power was extremely forceful.


    From the side, there were cultivators who came to attack Hua Jieyu and Huang Jiuge. These two were also extremely important targets. Hua Jieyu was the wife of Ye Futian, and the Huang Jiuge was the reason for this Sacred War, who received the inheritance of Renhuang. As soon as this group was terminated, all this would end.


    Seeing that many had come in attack mode, the sword diagram appeared between heaven and earth, slaughtering all things. Qin Zhuang and the Nine Swordsmen marched forward in the matrix and brought with them the invincible authority of the Sacred Sword. Great Zhou Sacred King looked bad when he saw this. The Sacred Sword that was used within Qin Zhuang''s matrix was the Golden Phoenix Sword from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. When Zhou Huang was killed, the sword was taken by Ye Futian.


    On the right side were the Battleaxe of Judgment, wielded by Yu Sheng, and the demonic bladed used by Sword Saint. Wherever these weapons passed through, the heaven and earth seemed to have been split open, not to mention with the help of sorcerers such as Yun Shang, anyone who got too close was sealed in ice, affecting their speed. Cultivators who were lowly had their blood solidified, directly turned into ice sculptures. Individual power was insignificant and completely overwhelmed.


    Great Zhou Sacred King saw this, and the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix turned into an immense shadow of the golden phoenix attacking Ye Futian, intending on intercepting Ye Futian and the others. But a wild and brutal atmosphere came about, and Zhou Mian, who led the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix, saw an immensely large Golden Ape holding the Infinite Ruler come towards the void from underneath.


    Yuan Hong led a thousand or so martial cultivators from the palace, using the thirty-six Heavenly Battle Matrices as basis battles, forming a greater battle matrix manned by him, and the Infinite Ruler swept toward the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix.


    This divine implement was also plundered from the Infinite Palace in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    The golden phoenix wings, like the wings from the sky, smashed down with force. Zhou Mian manned the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix and collided directly against the Heavenly Battle Matrix.


    In the void Infinite Ruler and the Golden Phoenix wings collided, and a devastating storm swept across heaven and earth. The void seemed on the verge of being torn apart, and dull sounds were heard.


    The body of the Golden Ape was repelled. He leveraged the Heavenly Battle Matrix, and its strength was terrible. However, the Golden Phoenix Army was the most elite army of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, its royal army. At this time, the cultivators of the Golden Phoenix Army were released the natal spirit of the Golden Phoenix at the same time. The scene played out dazzlingly, and it was once again manned by Zhou Mian, one could only imagine how powerful it was.


    Booming sounds rumbled like suppressed thunder, the humongous body of the Golden Ape trembling as it was backing up, and the Infinite Ruler in its hand waved again, gathering the power of heaven and earth as endless shadows of rulers permeated the firmament, sheltering the sky and sun. Yuan Hong took a step and the Golden Ape let out a roar that shocked the sky. The Infinite Ruler, employing the stick method, once again slammed down, with the ruler as the stick, smashing with the power that would break the heavens.


    Boom! Another loud noise, shocking the void, and Yuan Hong was once again repelled, but he seemed unaware, still waving the Infinite Ruler again and again. The firmament seemed to have been made prisoner of the power that was released from him, hard to breathe.


    Continuous strokes of the ruler smacked down, and every collision seemed to tear the void into pieces. All that was left in this space was just the shadows of rulers, with the golden phoenix wings chopping down in frenzy, sharper than the sharpest sword, cutting the void, and breaking up the shadows of the ruler, slashing into the body of Yuan Hong.


    Within the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix and the Heavenly Battle Matrix, many cultivators had been killed outright, and many more cultivators spat out blood, their life signs weak.


    This was war, a Sacred War among the ten holy lands. In this war, it was unknown how many people would perish.


    After this war, it would change the future power structure of Nine States.


    Roar!


    Another snarl came out, and Yuan Hong''s body emitted an extremely demonic atmosphere. His body increased again. The Golden Ape, like a demonic god, shook the firmament with its steps.


    The Infinite Ruler that was in his hand swung wildly, and there was a terrible vortex appearing between the heaven and the earth, like a vortex of the Great Path.


    Finally, Infinite Ruler came down with all the force, enveloping the entire sky and covered the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix within.


    At the same time, the cultivators of the Golden Phoenix opened their wings almost at the same moment, and the endless infinite wings smashed down from above the sky, colliding madly with the shadows of the ruler that had populated the sky.


    The shocking sound of explosion spread throughout the land, destructive storm raged, and many cultivators spat blood at the same time, and many even fell, so the battle matrix had collapsed. The cultivators within the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix were instantly split apart and divided, along with the Heavenly Battle Matrix, which also split apart with all the cultivators disrupted. The battle was shocking to behold.


    Yuan Hong seemed to be not aware of it, the golden blood dripping from his body, but he continued to step towards Zhou Mian, unstoppable.


    Zhou Mian looked at Yuan Hong''s golden pupils that were burning red with demon blood. He had completely plunged into a state of maddened violence. Yuan Hong, at the moment, could probably only see murder in his eyes.


    When his hand made a grabbing motion, a cultivator of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was directly torn to pieces, but Yuan Hong did not even take a look at him, simply continuing to move forwards, trampling several top sages along the way.


    Zhou Mian looked solemn, his eyes equally cold, burning with flames that jumped forward. The two separated from the battle matrixes, once again colliding without any ceremony.


    In another battlefield, the battle matrix led by Ji Ya wanted to intercept Ye Futian personally, but there were cultivators who were continuously flew out in front of them by the shocks. The radiant golden light of the Buddha shone, and as Ji Ya''s eyes turned he saw that one hundred and eight battle monks had arrived in front of them. These hundred and eight battle monks stacked together, causing a brilliant halo to form around them, and faintly a shadow of an enormous Buddha loomed, thousands of feet high.


    All the battle monks put their hands together, with the Sound of Buddha lingering in chant, drilling into the eardrums of everyone around.


    "You bald donkeys are asking for it." Ji Ya looked incredibly frosty. A bright war god started to take shape at the battle matrix where he was, and the light that shone from it had hidden within it a terrible killing power.


    "I will now bless you into the otherworld." Monk Tianxin said. And as soon as his voice fell, the glory of the Buddha was even more blazingly bright.


    Ji Ya said nothing further. The bright war god figure released endless blinding light, and each ray was like an indestructible sharp sword. Even though it was not as powerful as before the matrix was breached, the battle matrix formed by Ji Ya''s gathering of the finest of Hall of Holy Light was equally terrible in strength.


    Ding!


    A crisp sound was heard. That Buddha, like the ancient Vajra Buddha, turned into a genuine invincible golden body, hands clasped together at the chest, with its head slightly bowed down, eyebrow chakra touching the palm like a special seal of the Buddha, so that when the endless killing light came to assassinate it was impossible to break the Buddha''s indestructible body.


    The reputation of Vajra Region was not gained in vain.


    At the moment, that golden body was the epitome of the Vajra Region.


    One hundred and eight battle monks moved in unison as if one, their lips trembling rapidly, and from the corners of their lips there was a constant stream of the Sound of Buddha that turned into Sanskrit and flew out, surrounding the Vajra Region so that the light of Buddha was ever more blazing, and the body of the Buddha also became more massive. Overhead, it seemed that a sun had appeared, shining upon the world: the Mahavairocana reincarnate.


    Monk Tianxin slowly retracted his right hand and then extended it forward, his movement extremely slow. Above the void, that boundless giant Buddha moved exactly the same as he. The palm slowly pressed downward from the sky, and there was a world between the heavens and the earth. There was no huge palm print, and between the heaven and earth there appeared an immense palm print, the Palm of Mahavairocana, extremely yang and masculine, that could slaughter all evils in the world!

 975 Lotus at Every Step

    Upon the Palm of Mahavairocana, great rays of sun bloomed and even overshadowed the light shooting out from the body of the bright god of war. The air seemed to be sucked of its moisture, and the palm that was full of Yang and masculine energy slammed down to crush heaven and earth.


    Ji Ya was looking solemn. It was rumored that the battle monks of the Vajra Region were experts of warfare. Now the 108 battle monks had turned into a matrix, everyone''s movements resonating with each other''s exactly the same. Obviously, this was the result of long and arduous practice, so skilled that no common battle matrixes could be compared.


    His hand Pinching Sword Techniques made the light even more brazen. The bright sacred sword slashed out as if to break open the void, like a beam of light that was shot through the sky.


    An incredibly heavy power descended, and the bright sacred sword and the Palm of Mahavairocana collided, creating terrifying light. Above the Palm of Mahavairocana there was endless golden glory that continued to press down. The bright sacred sword rubbed against the palm print and cracks appeared but did not pulverize it and instead it flew backward.


    "Fall." Monk Tianxin spat it out, the palm slammed down, and suddenly the Buddha on top acted in sync. The Palm of Mahavairocana, with such a force and sudden increased speed, plowed through everything as if they were just bamboo, and instantly fell on the body of the bright god of war. Great roaring sounds came out, and the body of the bright battle matrix exploded. The cultivators who manned the matrix were all shaken off, and many spat out blood.


    Ji Ya, who was in the lead, also quickly flew in retreat, the eyes that focused on the battle monks of the Vajra Region full of cold intent of murder.


    "Resentment and sorrow are both bitter, allow me to bless you into the Great Beyond, which would be a great contribution to the world." Monk Tianxin sounded solemn and the Light of Buddha was burning ever more brightly, but Ji Ya''s face was now more hateful. He ranked second on the Sage Ranking. That that was ahead of Monk Tianxin. If it were one-to-one combat, he felt he would not be weaker than the other, but the Buddha''s battle matrix was way too powerful. It was difficult for him to overcome it.


    "Bald donkey, you are full of nonsense. The Buddha has already known of your blasphemy, now go to hell." Ji Ya responded coldly. He extended his hand, and suddenly a sword appeared in his hand. The sword was rather curious, with sharp teeth on its body, frightening to behold. Even more terrifying was that when the sword came out, the power in Ji Ya''s body was swallowed madly by it.


    "Saint Ji was determined to want Ye Futian dead." Further away upon the Holy Sage Pavilion, Saint Li, who was playing chess, whispered.


    "Yes, he had handed over the Sword of Judgment to Ji Ya." Saint Xia nodded. With the talent that Ye Futian had demonstrated in the imperial mausoleum, if he was not dead, the one who would die might be Saint Ji. Ye Futian''s talent was no longer just simply limited to prove the Divine Path.


    Saint Ji, ranked fifth among the saints on the Sage and Saint Ranking, had a divine implement, though not of the top three in the Nine States, that was also a most tyrannical Sword of Judgment which ranked eighth on the Nine States Divine Implement Rankings.


    The strength of Ji Ya was impossible to control, and the tenacity of the Sword of Judgment was that it could swallow the rules of heaven and earth of its own accord and could cause great repercussions against Ji Ya. His power alone was far from enough.


    In the hands of Ye Futian, he wielded the third ranking divine implement, the Halberd of Time and Space, so Saint Ji handed the Sword of Judgment over to Ji Ya, apparently as a counter measure against Ye Futian.


    However, he was forced to use it in advance by the 108 battle monks of the Vajra Region.


    At this time, Ji Ya''s body shivered slightly, and the power of the endless light rushed into the Sword of Judgment creating a terrible vortex in the space surrounding it. Not just him, but many cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light gathered together and stood behind Ji Ya, their look solemn, even pious, allowing their own power to flow into the Sword of Judgment.


    The Sword of Judgment trembled in the void, shooting out endless light as if it could judge all the rules of the Great Path of the world, and the surrounding area already had a terrible intent of destruction.


    Seeing this, the Monk Tiaxin was no longer looking so relaxed. Once again, he clasped his hands to his chest, Sanskrit chanting came out from his mouth, and endless symbols surrounded him. The 108 battle monks seemed to be psychically connected to each other, and the power of the Great Path seeped out, and behind the monks and above them, 108 materialized. Chanting the sutra at the same time, they resonated with the heaven and earth with unspeakable prowess.


    These Buddha reached their hands downward at the same time, and their palms sheltering the sky and covered the sun.


    However, Ji Ya seemed to not have seen it, completely ignoring it.


    The tyranny of Sword of Judgment had its advantages and disadvantages. The disadvantage was that it was extremely difficult to invoke, and it could even consume the power of the holder as its own and cause great harm to the holder. But this disadvantage was also its advantage. For this reason alone, he could borrow the power of the sword and magnify his own, without being limited to his own strength.


    Furthermore, there were many cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light who were attacking with him.


    The muscles on Ji Ya''s face were faintly distorted, but his eyes were even more indifferent. With him and the Sword of Judgment as the center, a terrible airflow now manifested around them as if the Great Path of heaven and earth was also to be judged.


    Countless palm prints slammed towards him, but wherever they impacted the space where the Sword of Judgment was located the palm prints collapsed bit by bit until they were torn and pulverized.


    The sword of the judgment chimed and the light that was puffing out from it penetrated the void.


    "Go." Ji Ya''s palm pushed toward the void, and suddenly the Sword of Judgment turned into a light intending to kill, aiming towards the 108 battle monks. Ji Ya''s eyes were filled with rapacious thoughts of slaughter. If these people of Vajra Region were seeking death, he would gladly oblige.


    When the Sword of Judgment was unsheathed, the one who died should have been Ye Futian, but now it seemed that these bald donkeys would die in his place first.


    The Sword Qi spewed out far and wide, and people who were battling around it were now flying and backed out from the battlefield. The Sword of Judgment ran through the void to get to the monks.


    The sound of chanting was now even louder, resonating with the heaven and earth. Monk Tianxin''s lips moving rapidly, and the cassock upon his body swayed without wind and so were the beads hanging about his neck, flying and spinning, bursting with blinding glare.


    Along with clear sounds, the string of Buddha''s beads turned into individual beads, which numbered exactly one hundred and eight in total. Each of the beads had an ancient Buddhist symbol carved on it.


    One hundred and eight beads quickly hit the Vajra Region that was above the ancient Buddha, and almost at the same time, the Sword of Judgment shot out and hit right on the head of the ancient Buddha. Clearly Ji Ya had no respect for the Buddha, intending to cut off the head of Buddha.


    The Great Path seemed to be on the verge of collapse. From the head of the ancient Buddha cracks appeared and creeped downward and seemed to tear and pulverize the Vajra Region. However, the light released from the 108 beads was now integrated into the Vajra Region, so that despite the cracks, it was still unbroken. Even so, the 108 beads rapidly spun and flew above the head of the ancient Buddha of the Vajra Region, blocking the strikes of the Sword of Judgment.


    "Chop." Ji Ya pointed to the Sword of Judgment, his murderous intent rocketed to the sky, wanting to break the Buddhist beads and split open the head of the Buddha.


    "Om Mani Padme Hum!"


    A string of characters flew out of the Buddhist beads, and suddenly the Light of Buddha became more powerful. The Sword of Judgment collided with the Buddhist beads, and the heavens and the earth were all emblazoned with the Light of Buddha. At the moment, the Sound of Buddha that came out of the mouths of the 108 battle monks of the Vajra Region was the Avalokiteshvara mantra of compassion. The power of the recitation of the 108 battle monks resonated into one.


    The sound of continuous collisions was sharp and harsh, and the light of destruction turned into a horrible stream of light, radiating outwards. Ji Ya took a step back, and the Sword of Judgment flew back in front of him and chimed. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "It is no wonder that the Vajra Region Lord dared to let the battle monks come down the mountain. The Vajra Region battle monks are known for their combat power. This Monk Tianxin ranked second on the Sage Ranking. In one-to-on battle, his strength won''t be less than that of Ji Ya. Now even Ji Ya relies on the Sword of Judgment to gain an advantage, it won''t be easy to break through the Vajra Region battle monks." Saint Li said while still playing chess. Although their eyes were on the chessboard, their hearts were on the battlefield. And it seemed that the battles between the vast worlds were appearing in their minds, and there was no longer any need to look at them with their eyes.


    "The Yue Clan launched the offensive from the rear. The cultivators of the Xihua Sacred Mountain were the first to be impacted, and they have had enough. That Liu Zong was indeed the disciple of the three saints, because Saint Xihua really valued him ??it and allowed him to lead the battle matrix. His strength is indeed strong, but unfortunately, the Nine States already had such talents as Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, which was enough to overshadow all the others of the same generation."


    "Liu Zong''s ambition is not small, otherwise he wouldn not have married Zhou Ziyi, but unfortunately he was born at the wrong time, and it is no wonder that Xihua Sacred Mountain wanted Ye Futian dead." Saint Xia and Saint Li chatted casually. They knew that with Liu Zong''s qualifications it was unlikely that he had fell deeply in love with Zhou Ziyi. There were still many excellent women in the Nine States.


    Since he had taken Zhou Ziyi as wife, it was natural that he had his purpose and that was to leverage the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to serve him.


    "This is indeed the best of times. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng aside, look at the disciple of the palace. Gu Dongliu was also someone who had conquered the Jiutian Temple." Saint Xia continued with the game. At this time, in the battlefield, the cultivators from the Zhuge Family, Gu Dongliu, and Zhuge Mingyue were all fighting together and had now advanced into the crowd. Gu Dongliu, who had already entered the Sage Plane, with a borrowed divine implement, had strength that was actually not much less than that of Zhuge Qingfeng.


    "Where are these people from?" Saint Li asked.


    "A Cottage in the East Barren Territory, and the cultivator next to Ye Futian holding the demonic blade is also from there. The fat guy in the crowd who summoned the Tree of Emperor using the matrix, and the cultivator who use the books as his life spirit, they were all from there." Saint Xia apparently had investigated Ye Futian''s past.


    Among the crowds, Yi Xiaoshi had already taken charge of a battle matrix. Even though his own cultivation was not enough, this Sorcerer''s battle matrix was led by him and had lent its spiritual power to him, and the Godly Creation of All Things had called out an incomparable giant spirit of the Emperor tree, possessing extremely strong ability of control.


    Xue Ye and Luo Fan were at the same place as You Chi and the cultivators of the Alchemy City. Around Xue Ye, endless pages of books fluttered and turned into sorcery attacks.


    In the other direction, although the cultivators of the Sword Palace did not have Sword Demon with them, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que, and the others were able to stand on their own. Along with several top swordsmen assisting, they had also formed a nine-man sword matrix led by Ye Wuchen. The sword that contained the Sword Will of Renhuang would taste blood each time it lashed out. Although it was not on par with Qin Zhuang''s, it was still very strong.


    Outside the battlefield, a pure and innocent figure stepped forward, and there was not a touch of dust upon this person, just like a fairy out of this world. Every step that was taken, there were pure and innocent lotuses appearing. There were indeed lotuses at every step!

 976 Great Teacher Xu

    A strange look came over the faces of Saint Xia and Saint Li who were playing chess in Holy Sage Pavilion. They turned and looked at the woman who was coming towards them from the sky.


    "What a beautiful woman," said Saint Xia. "That seems to be a Buddhist technique. Although she''s dressed in plain clothes, it can''t hide her splendor. The Barren State is truly amazing."


    "Is she coming to help out?" asked Saint Li. The disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace had incredible potential in today''s battle, but were still at an absolute disadvantage in terms of numbers. If it had only been the Hall of Holy Light, Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty they could have probably handled it, since the Yue clan cultivators were there as well. But there were also the three great holy lands of the Endless Sea to contend with. Such an impressive lineup was enough to consume the palace.


    The woman who was coming was Hua Qingqing, one of the three beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory. Her life had been quite tragic. She had become a nun and studied Buddhism under Monk Qingdeng. At the battle of the palace all those years ago she had turned into a lotus lantern and had enhanced Ye Futian''s spiritual willpower and then left the world of mortals.


    This time Monk Qingdeng did not come with her. She came alone and barefoot, and her white feet were like jade. Everywhere she stepped lotuses bloomed. She was so beautiful it was suffocating, even in the midst of battle her beauty would drive those who beheld her to distraction.


    Her eyes were clear and pure, and her body shone with radiance and brilliance, illuminating everything. She was surrounded by lotuses in full bloom, and a divine light. She seemed to be burning in Buddha''s light, turning her into a lotus lantern. Her beautiful figure acted as the lantern''s wick, and her endless Buddha light radiated towards the battlefield.


    Soon, a line of figures were illuminated by the light.


    The lotus lantern grew brighter and brighter as it gradually lit up some of the cultivators from the palace. The line seemed to enter their heads, just like the light of Buddha was truly shining into the world.


    When the sacred war had broken out, everyone had an emblem that represented their holy land on their clothes. Otherwise, once this huge battle had become chaotic it would have been difficult to tell friend from foe. Thus, it was very easy for Hua Qingqing to find the cultivators from the palace.


    Soon, everyone from the palace felt that their spiritual will had been enhanced and now resonated with the entire world. Not only that, they could sense where all the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace were and what was happening to them.


    "Is that the Buddhist lotus lantern?" A strange look came over Saint Xia''s face. This kind of power was simply extraordinary. It connected all the disciples of the palace together and let them see the overall situation of the battle clearly. They could reinforce each other and avoid danger whenever they wanted, and their personal power had been increased. Although it was subtle, everyone on the battlefield''s power had been increased a little bit, and the effect was devastating.


    "A lamp in front of the Buddha illuminates the road of all beings," whispered Saint Li. He was also quite astonished. Who was this incredible woman?


    Ye Futian naturally felt Hua Qingqing''s arrival, along with her terrible power. The entire battlefield was clearly presented in his mind, as if they all had the perspective granted by Buddha''s lamp.


    He thrust the Halberd of Space and Time forward and pierced through several cultivators. He turned and looked at Hua Qingqing and there was a warm feeling in his heart. Last time she had also appeared at a time of great danger to help them.


    He saw that the fight with the cultivators from the Endless Sea was not going well. Since the Yue clan cultivators and the monks from the Vajra Region had joined, the place where he was now would be able to hold just fine.


    He turned around and flashed in the other direction, his body moving almost as fast as light.


    None could stand in his way. As they saw him flying through the air, several mighty cultivators from the three holy lands of the Endless Sea shot towards him.


    A cultivator from Ocean King Palace was riding a Kunpeng, and he swept over everything as he rushed towards Ye Futian. But the Kunpeng roared as Ye Futian''s eyes fell upon it and its massive body began to tremble as it tried to throw off the person on its back.


    "What''s going on?" The man riding the Kunpeng was a very famous figure in Ocean King Palace, and he was very strong. He had taken the beast as his mount, but once it saw Ye Futian it became wild. His beast taming skills were extremely powerful, and he could feel the beast''s mood.


    Its roar grew louder. A storm shot out from Ye Futian''s terrible eyes and entered the Kunpeng''s giant eyes, imprinting itself on the beast''s spiritual will. It threw off its rider, and then rushed towards the cultivators from the three great holy lands of the Endless Sea. It smashed through more than ten of the, splattering blood everywhere.


    "Evil beast!" A sea god halberd descended from the sky and pierced through the Kunpeng, making it scream. It fell towards the ground, but at the same time, that powerful figure from Ocean King Palace felt a strong sense of danger. He looked up and felt like his body had been imprisoned. He screamed as the Halberd of Time and Space pierced through him. His body burst apart as Ye Futian drove the halberd through his back.


    Many demonic beasts were taking part in the battle, but even so they were far from enough, and many of them had been slaughtered.


    "The Halberd of Time and Space!" The cultivators of the Endless Sea had a special feeling towards this weapon. It was a treasure that had been left in the Lost Ruins, the weapon of the one who had once controlled the Endless Sea. But now it was in Ye Futian''s hands.


    Many more cultivators rushed towards Ye Futian, and many attacks came his way. They hoped to bury him under the weight of their assault.


    Behind him, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Sword Saint, Huang Jiuge, Qin Zhuang, Yun Shang and others followed him all across the battlefield. Countless cultivators had fallen at their hands.


    The battle was becoming unimaginably chaotic. A destructive airflow raged all around the Holy Zhi Palace, killing countless cultivators.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The fighting was fiercest around Ye Futian. All of them were very good at killing, and they sent their enemies fleeing in all directions. They were even breaking through battle matrices. The three great holy lands of the Endless Sea were taking heavy losses.


    Many of the commanders had their attention focused on Ye Futian. They saw him killing endlessly with the Halberd of Time and Space. He was like a god of slaughter.


    Ao Feng of Ocean King Palace was a cultivator of the Sage Ranking, and was number seventeen on that list, which could be said to be very high. He was incredibly powerful. He fixed his gaze on Ye Futian and said, "Given Ye Futian''s strength and the strength of those around him, the three great holy lands of the Endless Sea will send countless cultivators to their deaths trying to wrest the Halberd of Time and Space from him."


    "Do you have any ideas?" asked a Sage from the North Deep.


    "There." Ao Feng pointed to where two cultivators were fighting, a man and a woman. The man was wearing black and giving off a poisonous aura. Every punch that he threw carried poison sorcery with it which could kill even a Sage in an instant. His manner was so cold that it made people tremble to behold.


    But the woman beside him was completely opposite. She was like a fairy. Countless colorful butterflies flew around her. But they were killing butterflies with wings sharper than knives, and they were highly poisonous. As a disciple of Saint Jiang, Little Butterfly had of course not only studied the healing arts. She was also good at killing people, otherwise she would be in big trouble whenever she ran into enemies.


    "Saint Jiang''s disciples, Xu Chehan and Goddess Die. If we take them we can force Ye Futian to hand over the Halberd of Time and Space. If he is really as magnanimous as the rumors say, that he could even give Renhuang''s inheritance to his sworn brother, then he will definitely give up the halberd." Ao Feng looked down at them coldly. "And if he doesn''t, Xu Chehan and Goddess Die will hate him for it, and may even turn against him. Either way it will be to our advantage."


    "Excellent." The cultivator from the North Deep swept his gaze over Little Butterfly and licked his lips. "Such a beautiful woman. We should take her away for some extra cultivation."


    "You''d best put that idea out of your mind. And we can only capture them, not kill them. Otherwise you will die without even knowing how," warned Ao Feng.


    "I understand," said the cultivator from the North Deep. Saint Jiang only had two disciples, and he ranked twelfth on the Saints Ranking. The three holy lands of the Endless Sea could not afford to provoke him. If he bore a grudge against them it would be a disaster.


    "Let''s go," said Ao Feng, and suddenly he swooped down, along with many other figures, towards where Little Butterfly was fighting. All of the ones who swooped down were extremely powerful.


    Xu Chehan had been by Little Butterfly''s side protecting her all along. This scene was a little embarrassing for them. They had originally been following Ye Futian, but as the battle had grown fiercer they had become separated.


    "Such a beautiful woman should be taken away for some extra cultivation," came a cold voice. A hand reached out for Little Butterfly. A terrible force swept out, swallowing up all the flying butterflies.


    A figure appeared before Little Butterfly. It was Xu Chehan. He went up with that devouring force, letting his opponent''s vortex pull him in. A poisonous fog poured out from him and was swallowed up by the vortex and his opponent. The cultivator from the North Deep''s face changed, turning ashen.


    "Be careful, Great Teacher Xu is an expert in poisons," Ao Feng reminded him. The cultivator from the North Deep suddenly stopped the storm coming from him, and he shot forward like a bolt of lightning, slamming out with his fist. There was no way a cultivator from the North Deep could be weak.


    There was an arcane secret hidden in his fist.


    Xu Chehan rushed towards his opponent and collided with him without hesitation. Now that he had cultivated to the top of the Sage level, he saw himself as worthy to enter the Saint Ranking.


    He had cultivated with his master in the Medicine Garden of Nine States College. Most people only knew him as Saint Jiang''s disciple, and did not know how strong he was.


    Boom! Their fists collided, and suddenly a mysterious darkness rushed over Xu Chehan''s arm. It seemed to freeze. A poison flame that contained extremely cold Qi had been thrust into his arm.


    "You''ve lost." The cultivator from the North Deep stared at Xu Chehan coldly. The mark that his opponent had left on him was quite soft, as if he did not pose a threat to him at all. Was this truly Xu Chehan, who was so skilled with poisons and was Saint Jiang''s disciple?


    He had overreached himself.


    The poison flame raged with the cold Qi within Xu Chehan. He looked at his opponent indifferently, not even breathing. He waved his hand and let the two forces erode his body until they finally extinguished each other.


    "How can this be?" The cultivator from the North Deep''s facial expression changed, and then went pale. The breath within him quickly withered away until he soon became a skeleton lying on the ground.


    Xu Chehan still had no expression as he swept a glance across his opponents.


    Little Butterfly was calm and undisturbed, as if this was something she took for granted. Only she knew how strong her sworn brother was and how much he had experienced these past few years!

 977 Saint Jiang’s Game

    Ao Feng saw the fall of the cultivator from the North Deep, then looked at Xu Chehan.


    The Nine States had been peaceful for many years. He had thought that would change during the Battle of Proving Holiness, but happened even earlier. People who were younger than him were already on the road to greatness.


    Xu Chehan had a special status at Nine States College. His reputation was not as good as that of Tong He or Lin Shubai. Now that he had entered the upper levels of the Sage plane, he would use this battle to amaze the world.


    Besides him, many others were displaying their incredible combat ability.


    But the cultivator from the North Deep whom Xu Chehan had killed was not ordinary. The North Deep would not just let him get away with it.


    The wind howled as a line of cultivators from the North Deep rose into the sky and looked down at the skeleton below them. Saint North Deep''s face fell, and a terrible killing intent burst out from him. The one whom Xu Chehan had killed was his son, the one whom he hoped would inherit his mantle and alms bowl in the future. But he had been poisoned to death by Xu Chehan. The divine implement armor that he wore had not helped at all.


    More and more cultivators gathered together until they covered the sky, trapping Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly. The cultivators from the North Deep all had wings, and an evil airflow came from them. It looked like the apocalypse.


    Little Butterfly''s face changed a little bit. How could this be? They were not important figures. Why had this army surrounded them? Was it because of the one that had been killed?


    She and her sworn brother Xu Chehan had been cultivating in the Medicine Garden with Saint Jiang all along, so they did not really understand what was going on in the outside world. They did not recognize the cultivator from the North Deep.


    People from the palace rushed over to help, but Ao Feng waved his hand and suddenly a bunch of cultivators from Ocean King Palace intercepted them, not letting them get closer. He would not act against Saint Jiang''s disciples, but if the people from the North Deep wanted to, that had nothing to do with him.


    The three great holy lands of the Endless Sea had formed an alliance, but all of them had their own intentions.


    What Ao Feng was doing could be said to be very sinister.


    "He is skilled with poisons. Don''t engage in close combat, use spells to attack him," said a cultivator from the North Deep. Terrible black lightning shot out from him. The space around him was covered in dark clouds, as if it was about to be destroyed. He was not the only one among them who was extremely powerful. Many of the other cultivators from the North Deep released spells into the sky with destructive power that would completely envelop Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly.


    Little Butterfly went pale, but she saw Xu Chehan standing before her, his black robe fluttering wildly, and with a cold, killing look in his dark eyes.


    He did not know why his master had asked him and Little Butterfly to help Ye Futian, but he had given an order, and so he would obey.


    Xu Chehan had been born into a noble family, and had been quite talented from a young age. His father was the head of the family, and had a very high reputation. His mother was a proud daughter of heaven, beautiful and graceful. When he was born he was destined to have a glorious future, until one day his father was poisoned by his brother, and his mother had killed herself out of shame. His father had used his dying breaths to carry him out to a deserted mountain. He still remembered his father kowtowing in front of a thatched hut on the mountain until the poison killed him.


    Afterwards, he had seen his master for the first time. Later he found out that his master was a famous Saint of medicine, and a master of poisons.


    His master had asked him if he wanted to study the way of medicine or the way of poison. He had chosen poison without hesitation. His master had told him that if he chose poison he would have to suffer unimaginable pain, but he still persisted.


    Thus, Xu Chehan was sent on the path of studying poison. He had studied it with his own body, and then killed all his enemies with it.


    He was so cold as to have almost no human feelings. Many people called him Great Teacher Xu, to which he made no reply.


    Everyone knew the great disciple of Saint Jiang, but only he knew how strict his master had been towards him, and how cruel. Perhaps in his master''s eyes, Little Butterfly was his only disciple.


    Everyone called him Great Teacher Xu, and were in even more in awe of him due to him being a disciple of the Medicine Garden. But in the depths of his soul, Xu Chehan felt inferior, especially when facing his master and Little Butterfly.


    He knew that although his master was known as a master of poisons, he had later learned to love medicine. He heard that it was the masteress who had changed him. So when he had chosen poisons from the start, the master was probably unhappy with him. Who could love someone who was filled with poison?


    The thing that had left the deepest impression on Xu Chehan was that his master had once warned him that he could die at any time, and that no harm was to ever come to Little Butterfly. He understood that in the master''s heart he could not compare to Little Butterfly. The master looked at her as his own daughter, and she probably reminded him of the masteress. He also knew that the master never let anyone go to the garden behind the house where the statue of the masteress was kept.


    But he did not hate his master, because he felt the same way. He could die, but no harm should come to Little Butterfly.


    There were only two people in the world worth protecting with all his might: the master, and Little Butterfly.


    "Little Butterfly, protect yourself. Don''t worry about the battle," whispered Xu Chehan. A burst of butterflies with wings as sharp as steel appeared around her, shining faintly with the light of a divine implement. Xu Chehan stepped forward into the air, blocking her off from the attacks coming from the sky.


    Apocalyptic dark lightning streaked down towards him. Xu Chehan stood in front of Little Butterfly, and his dark eyes were full of desire to kill. Everyone in the sky felt a burst of corrosion rule power.


    Boom! A dark lightning bolt slammed into Xu Chehan, causing him to shake. But he still stood firmly in the air as if he had felt nothing.


    Crack!


    A terrible cold light slashed down, turning into a dark storm that tore through the air. Xu Chehan did not dodge it, and even greeted its power, letting it all fall upon him.


    Another storm went around him and went towards Little Butterfly, tearing through her curtain of colored butterflies and causing her to tremble.


    Everyone looked at Xu Chehan with amazement. How strong was his body?


    An attack of this level would have killed even a top level Sage.


    Some of the people in the air''s bodies were eroded by poison fog, and their skin and muscles were eaten away. This poison sorcery could not be removed. It infiltrated into your internal organs, corroding everything inside. Those who had not cultivated up to the top of the Sage level would soon be killed.


    "Be careful." Everyone put up a light curtain around themselves, and even more violent attacks descended. Xu Chehan spat up a mouthful of blood. He looked down and saw that Little Butterfly had been sent flying. Even with a divine implement to protect her, she was still bleeding from the mouth and had gone pale.


    Xu Chehan flashed down to protect her. Powerful attacks descended once again, and his body continued to shake as blood poured from his mouth.


    "Don''t worry about me, brother. Attack them!" said Little Butterfly. She knew that he had the power to kill them all.


    She knew that there was one other person in the world besides Ye Futian he had withstood her master''s medicine trial: her sworn brother. But the medicine that he had taken was different than Ye Futian''s. Ye Futian''s was the medicine necessary to forge a perfect body.


    But her sworn brother''s was the medicine that would forge a poisonous body.


    "They all must die," whispered Xu Chehan. A cold light shone from his handsome face, but it became exceptionally warm when he looked at Little Butterfly. "Use what our master taught you to defend yourself. Don''t let my poison hurt you."


    "Brother, no." She shook her head. She seemed to sense what he was about to do. Tears filled her pure eyes. "The master said you would die."


    "My life isn''t worth your tears." Xu Chehan reached out as if to touch Little Butterfly''s face, but he hesitated and then took it back. He stood up and turned to look into the sky.


    He thought, Am I going to die? Will that disturb the master even a little bit?


    Probably not.


    As long as Little Butterfly lived, what did it matter if he died?


    Xu Chehan continued upward, as if he were purposely trying to go far away from Little Butterfly. He was worried that he might poison her. Rule power continued to rumble, and blood continued to flow, but Xu Chehan seemed not to care. He had endured thousands of poison baths, and life and death no longer mattered to him. What did this little bit of pain matter?


    He gazed indifferently at those in the sky. It was like he was looking at dead men.


    "Break the seal." He closed his eyes, and the blood roiled in his veins. A terrible black mist spread out from him and reached up into the sky like dark tentacles. His blood seemed to be integrated into it. Poison Qi exploded from his body as if a seal had been broken. At this moment he seemed to be a container from which years of accumulated poison was being released.


    Behind him appeared a dark figure like a god of poison that ignored everything.


    The world went dark as the poison mist filled the sky. Even rule spell defenses were gradually eroded.


    Their spiritual willpower went numb, and their thoughts stopped. Once a little bit of the poison gas got into their body, they began to turn black as their internal organs were eaten away little by little. Their bodies began to fall from the sky. There were no more violent attacks, just bodies falling.


    Xu Chehan''s face had also gone dark. There was no emotion in his eyes, but as he stood there no one could get close to Little Butterfly.


    "Brother," tears streamed from Little Butterfly''s eyes. Xu Chehan smiled when he heard her voice, and a tear rolled down from the corner of his eye.


    His whole body was poisonous. He could not be by her side.


    From the distance, Ye Futian shot over towards them. He had obviously seen the situation here. Saint Jiang had asked them to come and help him. He could not just watch them die.


    This part of the battlefield had attracted much attention, including that of Saint Xia and Saint Li.


    "Saint Jiang is quite severe." Saint Li shook his head.


    "What is going on? How could he let both of his disciples fall into this situation?" asked Saint Xia.


    Saint Jiang had always cultivated at Nine States College. Saint Li was the one who knew him best.


    "I''m afraid that Xu Chehan has always thought that Saint Jiang looked at Little Butterfly as his own daughter because she reminded him of his wife. But he does not realize who he himself reminds him of, nor what position he occupies in his heart," said Saint Li.


    A strange look came over Saint Xia''s face as he guessed the answer.


    "Saint Jiang?" he said.


    Saint Li nodded. "Yes. Is Xu Chehan not just a younger version of Saint Jiang? His severity towards Xu Chehan is really him being severe towards himself."


    "What is Saint Jiang trying to do?" asked Saint Xia.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Saint Li smiled bitterly and shook his head. "If the palace manages to get through this catastrophe due to this battle, then all the time I spent trying to get Saint Jiang to come to Nine State College will all be for that kid''s benefit!"


    What a clever trick! Xu Chehan did not see Saint Jiang''s game. How could he?

 978 Chapter 978

    The poison cloud spread over the battlefield with Xu Chehan at its center. It killed everything it came across. Bodies were piled up on the ground. More than a hundred cultivators had died at his hands. Among them were many Sage level cultivators. This type of large-scale poison sorcery attack was truly terrible.


    Of course, not many of those who were skilled at poison sorcery were good at defense, but Xu Chehan was. His body was incredibly strong, so much so that other people''s rule spells could not kill him. Moreover, at this moment, he could be said to be completely poisonous. No one dared get near him. That was why he could not grab Little Butterfly and break out of there. Otherwise, the poison bursting from him was enough to cut a bloody road through his enemies, and none of them could stop him.


    But he couldn''t leave, he could only stay and protect Little Butterfly. His face grew darker and darker as his handsome features grew horrible. His arms were turning black as well. This terrible poison sorcery was turning against him.


    "Brother." Tears streamed down Little Butterfly''s face continuously as the little details of her and her sworn brother''s life together flashed through her mind. She naturally understood his inner nature and knew that although others called him Great Teacher Xu, he was still very hard on himself. Once the situation involved her, he would always do the most important thing and stand before her to protect her. Just like now, as he stood before her in the air. Poison filled the air, but in her eyes, his figure was majestic, almost divine.


    "He can''t hold out for much longer," came a voice from the sky. He had killed so many cultivators from the North Deep that as far as they were concerned, they wanted to kill him despite the fact that he was Saint Jiang''s disciple. Terrible rule spells continued to descend upon him.


    Xu Chehan reached up and the poisonous mist reached out from him like a tentacle. It instantly turned into a terrible dark shadow that wrapped around his opponents. In a flash, there were more blackened corpses. Xu Chehan still stood there, weathering their attacks.


    Ye Futian was still rushing towards them, cutting a bloody road through his enemies. Yun Shang, Qin Zhuang, and the others had been intercepted by the cultivators from the Endless Sea, so Ye Futian was charging forward alone. He was coming extremely quickly, and his clothes were soaked in blood.


    Ao Feng watched him as he came. Ye Futian had been so strong at the Imperial Mausoleum. As one of the top 20 on the Sage Ranking, Ao Feng wanted to try him and see what level Ye Futian had reached. A trident appeared in his hands that seemed to have waves rolling over it. He thrust it forward and the air rushed past it with a sound like the ocean. Divine power spread out from the trident. It was clearly a divine implement.


    He looked ahead and saw Ye Futian rushing towards him. He stepped forward and the air trembled. An invisible power rushed out like a slap in the face. It was like thousands of huge waves were rolling over Ye Futian, slowing him down. He looked at Ao Feng and realized that he was facing a truly fearsome opponent.


    However, at the moment that he slowed down, Ye Futian stepped forward and a terrible storm wrapped around him, tearing through the air. It rushed forward and tore through the ocean wind. He rushed forward and stabbed out with the Halberd of Time and Space, making it collide with the silver trident.


    Time and space seemed to freeze as the halberd pressed forward with an indomitable will. Space and time were torn, and everything was about to be destroyed. But the silver trident had boundless power, and thousands of waves swept out. Its majestic power made Ye Futian tremble, as if his body were being beaten over and over again. Even the starry defense light curtain was broken.


    His rushed attack gave him a temporary advantage, but even so, Ao Feng felt a strong sense of danger. He was thrown backward at the instant of collision, and the space where he had stood was no exploding and tearing. Ye Futian rushed past him, not getting entangled with him.


    Ao Feng looked back at him angrily. At that moment he felt like he couldn''t move. A deadly attack had descended and time and space froze. This was enough to make him feel desperate. He did not want to feel like that again. Several figures rushed by him. Ye Futian broke through rows of enemies and finally reached Xu Chehan''s side, entering into the poison mist.


    A line of dark mist wrapped around him and seemed to enter him. At this moment Ye Futian could feel his breathing stop. He looked back and said, "Don''t come any closer." He then continued on toward Xu Chehan.


    Xu Chehan looked at Ye Futian with his dark eyes. His entire body had turned black, and it seemed that he could die at any moment. On seeing his condition, Ye Futian said, "You should cut off the poison and take a rest."


    Xu Chehan shook his head and said, "I can''t. Take care of Little Butterfly for me." On saying this, he fell out of the sky and the poison mist spread uncontrollably from him in all directions. But it was not as powerful as before. Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and the others who had dared to come this far were still following Ye Futian.


    "Brother!" Little Butterfly caught Xu Chehan''s body as tears fell. Xu Chehan looked at her and smiled. It was a tragic scene. "Little Butterfly, when I''m not here anymore, the master will have to take care of you."


    "That won''t happen." Little Butterfly shook her head.


    Xu Chehan looked at her, and then looked up at Ye Futian who was protecting them up in the sky. He whispered, "If you really love him, Little Butterfly, then let him give you a good status."


    "You idiot," scolded Ye Futian. As he said this, he reached into the air and the attacking cultivators were imprisoned by stars. He thrust out his right hand and a beam of light pierced the sky, destroying the starry prisons and making it so that the ones rushing towards them did not dare come closer.


    "Protect them both," said Ye Futian to Yu Sheng and the other three. They all nodded. They divided themselves up to protect Little Butterfly and Xu Chehan.


    More cultivators were coming. In addition to the ones from the North Deep who had come to deal with Xu Chehan, all the cultivators from the Endless Sea came. Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge were there, so that''s where the Halberd of Time and Space and Renhuang''s inheritance were.


    Ye Futian''s face grew ugly as he looked at them gathering together densely. He was strong, but if they restricted his movements he would be in trouble. It was just like it had been for Xu Chehan. No matter how strong you were, you could not endure limitless attacks by yourself. Violent attacks rained down, and Ye Futian stepped forward, guarding the air where he was. He truly became a chokepoint for the enemies.


    When he heard Ye Futian''s words, Xu Chehan looked angrily at him, but when he saw what was happening, the anger in his eyes disappeared. As he watched him standing resolutely there in the air he felt a warmth that he had not felt in a long time.


    Maybe that guy''s poison came only from his mouth.


    "Brother, you can''t be hurt." Little Butterfly looked at him and shook her head.


    "Little Butterfly, the poison pellet contained the poison that I had cultivated over dozens of years. Now that is has been released it cannot return." His voice seemed so weak. The poison sorcery had damaged his organs and every part of his body.


    "I have a medicine pellet." Little Butterfly smiled brightly through her tears. Then she lowered her head and kissed Xu Chehan on the lips. He looked stunned as if he had forgotten how to think. As he felt those tender red lips kissing him, he felt a powerful medicinal force enter his body.


    Their eyes were as close to each other as could be. Xu Chehan shook his head, wanting to stop Little Butterfly. He had a moment of fear. Doing this might kill her. But Little Butterfly held onto him, closed her eyes, and a black line appeared on her face. However, a sacred radiance shone from her body. Tears flowed from Xu Chehan''s eyes. At this moment, he could die without regret. He suddenly understood why Ye Futian had looked at him like that and said those cruel words to him. He had probably already seen what would happen.


    That d*mn guy. But at this moment, Xu Chehan could not hate him.


    Two pellets seemed to be suspended between their bodies, one black and one white. One was poison, and one was medicine. But now the two intersected, and black and white merged. Blackness flowed across Little Butterfly as the blackness on Xu Chehan''s body decreased. His skin turned white again as his body''s vitality was restored.


    The sound of a terrible collision came from the sky. It was the battle that Ye Futian was fighting. But Xu Chehan seemed not to feel it.


    Up in the air, a powerful figure stepped forward. Saint North Deep swept his gaze over the one who had come with an ugly look on his face. It was Saint Jiang.


    "North Deep, I wish to take away my disciples. Do you have any objections?" said Saint Jiang.


    "Look at all the corpses down there, Saint Jiang," said Saint North Deep.


    Sain Jiang seemed not to hear him. He said, "I hereby announce that I am entering the Sacred War. If the three holy lands of the Endless Sea will let me through, then I will not target them. Otherwise..."


    Saint North Deep''s face grew hard. As number 12 on the Saints Ranking, this man who had once been a master of poisons was still quite powerful.


    "Ocean King Palace will let you through," said Ocean Saint. Since the two people down there were leaving the battle, they had no need to make an enemy of Saint Jiang.


    The Celestial Cliffs were the same and said that they would let him through. Only Saint North Deep''s face remained firm. Most of the people that Xu Chehan had just killed had been his, including one of his sons. In his heart, he cursed the unruly b*stard. But Saint Jiang''s calm words had been so forceful. "If you don''t let me through, I will threaten the Saints of the Endless Sea. Do you dare to try and stop me?"


    Emperor Xia had said that anyone in the Nine States could freely launch a Sacred War. They did not need to notify him, and they did not need a reason.


    "I''ll let you through," said Saint North Deep with his face held hard. Saint Jiang would firmly fight him if it came to blows, even at great cost to himself.


    The cultivators in the air made a path, and Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly separated themselves. Xu Chehan was already much better as he looked up at Saint Jiang.


    "Master!" both of them called.


    Saint Jiang''s gaze fell upon Xu Chehan, and he said, "Chehan, from now on you will study the way of medicine." Xu Chehan looked like he had been struck by lightning. He knelt there for a while, then finally reacted. He bowed down and touched his head to the ground, and the sound of sobbing could be heard. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Thank you, master." When he looked up, his face was covered in tears. How could he not understand his master''s good intentions towards him now? His master had always cared for him. He let go of all the darkness he had accumulated over the years. His heart was clear, and his emotions had been released.


    Xu Chehan was the great disciple of Saint Jiang!

 979 Saint Jiang’s Wish

    Saint Jiang brought Little Butterfly and Xu Chehan to Holy Sage Pavilion, and no one dared to stand in his way. After all, he only had two disciples, and he was not a target for the six great holy lands, and so there was no need to anger him by killing Little Butterfly and Xu Chehan. After all, out of all of them, only Saint Ji was higher up on the Saint Ranking.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The three of them reached Holy Sage Pavilion, and Saint Jiang personally saw to his disciples'' wounds. He also integrated their powers together. Little Butterfly had practiced medicine and she was very fragile, while the poison all throughout Xu Chehan''s body had made him too forceful. Integrating their powers had benefits for both of them, and in the future, they would both be able to practice both kinds of power. This in and of itself was his expectations for his disciples.


    Saint Xia and Saint Li looked at Saint Jiang. Saint Li said, "Saint Jiang, you''re too harsh on your disciples." Xu Chehan was like a young Saint Jiang, and he knew that Saint Jiang saw him this way. So he didn''t really want him to die.


    "There is no making without breaking," responded Saint Jiang. He was the one who understood Xu Chehan best in the world. There had always been something lacking in him due to his harsh life. If he did not have a great awakening, then even with all his talent he would never set foot on the Divine Path. And so he had put pressure on Xu Chehan for all these years to try and have him make a breakthrough.


    "Hmph." Saint Li snorted with displeasure. "You can''t have done this just to test one person." Was the test for Xu Chehan not also a test for Ye Futian?


    Saint Jiang did not answer. Li Sheng looked out at Ye Futian as he fought and said, "If the palace can avoid this disaster, are you planning on cultivating in the Barren State in the future?" He had sent his disciples to fight in the Sacred War and had himself announced that he would join. Saint Li definitely understood Saint Jiang''s intentions. Moreover, he knew Saint Jiang''s wishes better than anyone. Saint Jiang knew where Saint Li''s resentment was coming from. He had lived at Nine States College for so many years and yet had never done anything for them.


    "I am like a drifting cloud or a wild crane. I seek to cultivate everywhere. I apologize for having imposed on you these past few years." Saint Jiang looked up into the sky, then whispered, "Moreover, you know what it is that I want."


    "Has he succeeded?" asked Saint Li, clearly talking about Ye Futian. He had previously said that bringing Saint Jiang to Nine States College was actually to Ye Futian''s benefit.


    "Very nearly. And he is only a lower level Sage. If he continues to improve, then there''s no doubt he will. In fact, even without me, he would doubtlessly become a Saint. But this is at least a start. From now on I will put all that I have into this," whispered Saint Jiang.


    "You wish that all the cultivators of the world would not be hampered by the divine catastrophe. The Great Path has no place for sentiments. That is against the rules of the Great Path," whispered Saint Li. He sighed, "This is easy enough to say, but it will take a long time."


    "If I do not live long enough, there are always Chehan and Little Butterfly." Saint Jiang looked off into the sky with a resolute look on his face. There was a magnificent figure there.


    The person who he loved the most had died due to the Great Path catastrophe. He did not want Little Butterfly to repeat the same mistake. In fact, he did not want anyone in the world to do so and experience the same despair that he had. This was the reason that he had agreed to help Douzhan avoid the Great Path catastrophe when Ye Futian had brought him to him all those years ago. He had proposed conditions for Ye Futian to undergo the medical trial. It was only one test, but he had never thought that Ye Futian would become as legendary as he was now.


    Saint Li said nothing. He looked out at Ye Futian. If Ye Futian did not die in the battle, then the Holy Zhi Palace would become the foremost holy land in the Nine States. Sometimes war could truly change many things: minds, beliefs, and even the moment of enlightenment between life and death. Of course, most of what war brought was just death.


    After Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly had left the battlefield, Ye Futian and his companions had become the new targets for the three great holy lands of the Endless Sea, especially the North Deep. Their armies pressed in and their commanders ordered all their forces to attack Ye Futian. It seemed that they were venting all their rage on him. Battle matrices filled the sky and surrounded Ye Futian and his companions, even sealing themselves in. Such determination was strong indeed.


    On the other side of the battlefield, the one who had slaughtered the most cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace was not Ji Ya. He had been pinned down by cultivators from the Vajra Region. Nor was it one of the top figures from Xihua Sacred Mountain. Most of their Sages had died at Ye Futian''s hand. Nor was it someone from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Zhou Ming was leading the Golden Phoenix Army and Yuan Hong commanded the Heavenly Battle Matrix.


    Instead, it was Liu Zong. Most of the cultivators from Xihua Sacred Mountain were fighting the Yue clan, but Liu Zong lead a team of elite cultivators to intercept Ye Futian''s men. Liu Zong was skilled at forming matrices, and the men behind him were in position. They looked like an ancient tree. Their power flowed and descended upon him. Liu Zong waved his hand, and it was like a willow branch slashing down. It seemed to have no strength, but it was the sharpest weapon in the world. It cut through several cultivators in front of him.


    "Liu Zong!" came a furious voice. He looked and saw a line of cultivators in formation rushing towards him. One of them was his old acquaintance��the disciple of Chess Saint Villa Yang Xiao.


    "The celestial dragon matrix?" Liu Zong looked over the matrix that Yang Xiao led with interest. His eyes gleamed with the desire to wreak havoc.


    "You''re all old men from Chess Saint Villa. When I cracked the celestial dragon matrix, I was invited to meet with Chess Saint, and you all followed by my side. Now you want to kill me?" asked Liu Zong mockingly.


    "If Li Kaishan had not deliberately let you, you would not have been the one to enter the villa." Every time Yang Xiao thought of this it hurt him so much that he no longer desired to live. If it had not been for Li Kaishan''s betrayal, only Ye Futian would have seen the master. And given Ye Futian''s character, would everything not be different? Moreover, Ye Futian had the ability to bring the master to Nether Sword Mound. His wife and his sworn brothers would not have died.


    "Is that so?" Liu Zong''s look became cold. "In that case, why don''t you see if I can break the matrix now!" He had been so strong back then, how much stronger must he be now! What was more, those who followed him today were comparable to those who had followed him then. This time he did not need to study how to break the matrix, he just had to force his way through and kill all of them.


    Two powerful auras rose up from this area of the battlefield. The two matrices were extremely strong. A huge golden dragon appeared with Yang Xiao at its center, and its eyes were full of majesty. The matrix that Liu Zong had formed looked like an ancient tree. Each of the cultivators hung there like a branch or a leaf. Crashing sounds rang out as endless vines covered the sky.


    The dragon roared and slashed out with its claws. Its five claws were like hooks. They were so sharp they seemed to be able to tear through space itself as they rushed towards Liu Zong. Numerous vines swept out from the ancient tree and wrapped around the claws, but the claws tore right through them. However, the vines were endless and they wrapped around the claws, slowing them down.


    "Yang Xiao, all the Sage Ranking cultivators of your generation should stand down." Liu Zong''s voice was cold. As he spoke, numerous crashing sounds came from the leaves and branches, and then there was a flash of radiance as they shot out towards the oncoming claws. Each branch and leaf seemed invincible. They all contained the rule power of the Great Path, and they tore through the dragon''s claws little by little.


    The cultivators of the younger generation had all grown up by now, and many of them were Sages. Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Gu Dongliu, Xu Chehan, Lin Shubai, and others. Many of the higher level Sages had been killed by Ye Futian, and so Liu Zong''s words were not wrong.


    Just as waves rose and fell, the Sage Ranking would have great changes. Many people would stand down and never reach the Sage level. And then they would be replaced. This was the cruelty of the world of cultivators. If you did not advance you must step down.


    The celestial dragon''s claws were torn, but Yang Xiao did not look disturbed. There was only fury in his eyes as he stared at Liu Zong, and a desire to kill. Golden light shone from the celestial dragon''s abdomen, and a giant sword appeared there��the Celestial Dragon Sword. Dazzling light shone from the sword, and it seemed to be invincible.


    Liu Zong glanced at it indifferently, with disdain showing in his eyes. He could bring to bear all the combat power of his battle matrix. With this much power, there were few in the Nine States who could match him. Among them were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Both of them were powerful enemies, and if he didn''t have the matrix they could sweep him aside. But besides them, there were very few people he had to worry about. Even though Yang Xiao was on the Sage Ranking, he was not worthy of Liu Zong''s attention.


    "A sword? I can do that too," Liu Zong said casually. As he spoke, countless images of him appeared on the leaves and branches of the ancient tree. A terrible power swept out, and the leaves and branches turned into swords. In a flash, thousands of sword wills pointed towards the Celestial Dragon Matrix, and there was a faint sound of shrieking Sword Qi.


    Liu Zong used the Pinching Sword Technique, and the language of Buddha rang out. Heaven and earth resonated, and the Sword Qi of thousands of swords shrieked. A terrible storm of Sword Qi appeared in front of him. The third disciple of Xihua Sacred Mountain was skilled at many things.


    The Celestial Dragon Sword slashed through the air, but a dazzling light appeared in Liu Zong''s eyes. His thousands of swords burst out at the same time, becoming a terrible vortex of Sword Qi. Thousands of sharp swords smashed into the Celestial Dragon Sword, creating an ear-piercing sound.


    The Celestial Dragon Sword was worn away bit by bit from tip to blade. In the end, it was completely destroyed. The terrible Sword Qi continued forward, and the dragon roared. Golden light bloomed, protecting that space. The thousands of swords struck the light, making the Celestial Dragon Matrix tremble. Cracks appeared in their defenses.


    "You want revenge, Yang Xiao, but you''re not good enough," Liu Zong said arrogantly. He stepped forward!

 980 Ruthless Liu Zong

    The moment when Liu Zong''s voice faded, the ancient tree that was centered near his body had numerous leaves flying between heaven and earth. There were no rules for the leaves that flew in the sky, shrouding this space, covering the sky, and instantly enclosing the space where the Celestial Dragon Matrix was located.


    Sharp sizzling sounds were heard, particularly grating to the ears. Every leaf turned into fierce shards of Sword Will. Each shard contained the ripping rule that was meant to cut all things, subtly intending to tear the entire space to pieces.


    Liu Zong still stood there quietly without the slightest bit of emotion on his face. A very barbaric spiritual power exuded from him, and numerous remnant illusions of Liu Zong appeared as if the world was filled with him.


    The Buddha said that each flower was a world in itself, and each leaf signified the entire tree. He had made these endless leaves turn into slaughtering debris, and even if the Celestial Dragon Matrix had unparalleled defense, it was still going to be crushed within. Yang Xiao clearly felt the immensity of this power. He looked up and saw that the whole world seemed to resonate with Liu Zong''s spiritual will power. Liu Zong, at this moment, was like the master of this space.


    Once, Yang Xiao had been quite impressed with Liu Zong. He was able to crack the Celestial Dragon Chess Game under those conditions. Even if Li Kaishan deliberately threw the game, it was still a remarkable accomplishment. So he chose not to say anything, but leave the choice to the Master. He had never thought that this seemingly insignificant detail would now change everything. But regret was too late now. All he could do was kill Liu Zong and take revenge.


    A muddled sound came out from the dragon, and the Celestial Dragon Matrix that was centered on Yang Xiao kept marching forwards like a golden divine dragon rushing forwards, its claws reaching forth intending to tear everything that was in front of him.


    Seeing what was in front of him, Liu Zong understood what Yang Xiao was trying to do��fight with him But, did Yang Xiao qualify?


    The endless leaves turned into a devastating storm, slaughtering toward the dragon. The Celestial Dragon made an incredible angry roar and kept moving forward in Liu Zong''s direction, aiming to kill.


    Liu Zong stretched out his palm and suddenly clenched it in Yang Xiao''s direction. With a cold voice he spat out, "Die." As soon as he finished speaking, the storm vortex slashed into the golden divine dragon and every leaf was turned into the sharpest blade in the world, cutting at the body of the Celestial Dragon and slowly chopping off the immense body of the dragon bit by bit. Within the Celestial Dragon Matrix, many had blood flowing out of their bodies, and those terrible leaves were cutting directly on their torsos. However, the people inside the Celestial Dragon Matrix seemed to have forfeited their lives and continued in the direction of Liu Zong without hesitation.


    A flash of coldness crossed Yang Xiao''s eyes, and he released his spiritual willpower to the maximum. The storm covered the world with destruction and annihilated everything within it. He did not believe that with this level of rules sorcery he couldn''t kill his sworn enemy.


    The body of the Celestial Dragon gradually shattered, and the leaves like sharp blades crossed the void, cutting toward the body of Yang Xiao. There were crunching sounds that were heard, and bright red blood bloomed. A sardonic smile emerged on Liu Zong''s face. This battle should have ended now, and the people of Chess Saint Villa should have all perished.


    Looking at the leaves flying toward Yang Xiao, his smile was somewhat evil, but at this time, there was suddenly an incomparable thunder clapping, sweeping through the sky. In front of him, a thundering authority suddenly exploded around Yang Xiao and everything was destroyed. After the Celestial Dragon Matrix was torn apart, Yang Xiao had even made a thundering war matrix that destroyed everything in front of him as easily as breaking bamboo. It was a matrix that would kill the enemy no matter the cost.


    In the hands of Yang Xiao, a divine implement appeared. It was a silver long halberd, which was the divine implement used by Ge Feng, who was the leader of the Nine Warriors of Zhisheng Cliffs


    "Kill." The divine implement moved forward, no matter the cost, just to kill Liu Zong. For this reason, Yang Xiao even deliberately feigned weakness, causing the illusion that he was about to be torn and shattered. He even had many wounds on his body, bleeding, demonstrating his strong determination to kill Liu Zong.


    "Condensate." Liu Zong''s palm moved forward, and the endless leaves formed a vortex that gathered in front of him, turning into a metallic defensive wall, blocking Yang Xiao. But how could such a hasty defense block the attack of this thunder?


    With a shockingly thundering boom, the defensive force was instantly torn apart and shattered. The long halberd pierced into the body of Liu Zong directly, and the destructive thunder extinguished all signs of life, completely cutting off Liu Zong''s escape.


    "Die," Yang Xiao screamed with anger He looked crazed at the moment, his eyes fixed on the figure in front of him. Liu Zong''s body became blurred as if he might be shred to pieces at any time, under the destructive lightning and thunder of the sky, killed by a single blow. However, at this moment, Yang Xiao seemed to have an illusion. Liu Zong''s face was changing constantly. Sometimes it was Liu Zong''s and sometimes it was another person''s. His facial expressions turned from leery to condescending as if to be sarcastic.


    "Why would it be me?" With a chilling scream, the body exploded and was annihilated under the rays of the thunder. Yang Xiao''s face was stern, and his eyes turned to look at the person on the side. It was Liu Zong who stood there. Not only him, but everyone currently within the matrix was staring at Liu Zong as well. He felt a coldness that bit through the bones.


    "How is it that he didn''t die?" Yang Xiao''s eyes stared at Liu Zong. How was this possible? He saw with his own eyes that the divine implement had pierced into Liu Zong''s body, but why was it another who died?


    Not only was Yang Xiao unable to understand it, but even those within the matrix could not understand it either. But at this time, they also felt very cold. The dead, like them, were all top figures from Xihua Sacred Mountain, but they took Liu Zong''s place to die. What in the world was going on?


    "Liu Zong, what is going on?" A cultivator questioned coldly. Liu Zong did not tell them anything about this situation.


    At Xihua Sacred Mountain, Liu Zong''s status was extremely high. He had been taught by all three saints, who prepared him to be the future master of the Xihua Sacred Mountain. They were also willing to assist, but that did not mean that they were willing to be set up by Liu Zong and die in his stead. After all, Liu Zong did not yet have the charisma for others to give up their lives for him.


    Ye Futian had elevated the status of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State so much that it now has its current appeal. Liu Zong merely enjoyed the success of the others, so it was impossible that there would be top figures who were willing to die for him.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Don''t blame me, senior brothers. This is the matrix sanctioned by the master for killing. As long as I am alive, this matrix will keep running and remain invincible, killing on the battlefield. So, I have to beg your pardon," Liu Zong said.


    The faces of those cultivators in the matrix had changed. Liu Zong''s meaning was easy to understand. In the matrix, they were his pawns. As long as he was there, keeping the matrix running, it meant that everyone else could die, except him?


    Then they remembered that in the Nether Sword Mound, this junior brother of theirs had used great capability to help the Chess Saint escape, and if it were not for it being destroyed by Ye Futian, he would have only been a step away from succeeding.


    At the time, Chess Saint had arranged a matrix, but it was a sacrificial matrix that used the disciples of the Chess Saint Villa as sacrifices. It was because of this that Yang Xiao and Liu Zong now had a vendetta. Furthermore, the sacrifice at the time was not only limited to the disciples of the Chess Saint Villa, but also included the cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. So today, this matrix�� When they thought of this, they felt a cold shudder.


    "No need to guess, senior brothers. This matrix is based on a tree. The roots of the ancient tree take all the nutrients and spread its branches and leaves. I am the root of the matrix, so naturally, you brothers can lend your power to me through the matrix; it is the same with your lives." Liu Zong continued, "This battle is very important for Xihua Sacred Mountain, and all you senior brothers are fighting for Xihua Sacred Mountain. If you die in the battle, Xihua Sacred Mountain will not forget you."


    Yang Xiao saw that this scene and did not immediately react. He stared hard at Liu Zong and the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain. How ironic. It seemed everything that had happened in the Nether Sword Mound was once again repeating, but this time Liu Zong was even more ruthless.


    There was a cultivator of Xihua Sacred Mountain who attempted to break away from the matrix, but found that he was unable to do so. His power was uncontrollably flowing to Liu Zong, even with his spiritual will. At the time of setting up the matrix, they did not have any hesitation and never doubted Liu Zong, voluntarily lending their strength to Liu Zong. They didn''t expect that it would be used to bind them now.


    "What a good junior brother," one person said coldly.


    "Senior brother, I have said that this battle is very important for Xihua Sacred Mountain, and this matrix was also sanctioned by the Master. If senior brother refuse to cooperate, then it is equivalent to betraying Xihua Sacred Mountain. Don''t be surprised when I discipline the traitors." Liu Zong was aggressive in his stance, and he waved his palm. The person who had spoken suddenly appeared pale in the face and was attacked by a powerful spiritual will. He couldn''t help but groan.


    "Sure, sure, of course, I will cooperate with my junior brother." That cultivator of the Xihua Sacred Mountain was filled with hate in his heart. Saint Xihua was so cold-blooded. Although they were not disciples of saints, it was not easy to cultivate to their level today. But in the eyes of Saint Xihua, none of them were as valuable as one Liu Zong, and they could all be sacrificed for Liu Zong.


    "In this case, first kill Yang Xiao, then go get Ye Futian," Liu Zong said. As his voice fell, his eyes once again looked toward Yang Xiao, his look filled with terrible killing intention. He was careless before. If he had already set up this matrix, that blow would have been enough to kill him. Yang Xiao wanted to butt heads with him.


    Rustling noises were heard, and the branches of the ancient tree covered the sky, covering the space. It fully wrapped Yang Xiao and the others inside. The branches and leaves swung in the void at will, but a terrible rules power of ripping permeated from them, as if once it chopped down, they would be able to chop through people.


    "You can die now," Liu Zong said, and suddenly, endless branches and leaves slashed toward Yang Xiao. Yang Xiao, who was covered in blood, had the coldest eyes. Although he still had a terrible intent to kill, he was beginning to understand that with Liu Zong''s setup of the matrix, he had no chance to kill him.


    This great vendetta, was there no way to avenge it? He was full of hate. He held the divine implement tightly in his hand. Even if he knew that he would die, Yang Xiao would still try his best with his last breath.


    "Kill!" With a loud scream, Yang Xiao rushed to the front, and the willow branch came down, pouncing on him.


    "Here," behind him, a voice came, and then an immense sword will swept from the sky. Behind Yang Xiao, there was a river of swords coming. At the same time, there was another force descending, and it was a powerful spiritual willpower that could control this entire space, affecting the speed of that branch that was coming down!

 981 The Alliance of Gu and Bai

    The willow branches that contained ripping rules were invincible, and the sound of rustling was heard between heaven and earth. But at this moment, it seemed to be bound by an invisible force. The sword river followed close behind, breaking all things and blocking the willow branches that continued to drop down. Seeing this, Yang Xiao did not waste the opportunity. The long halberd in his hand immediate extended, the lightning that annihilated all things bloomed and completely pulverized the willow branches.


    On each side of Yang Xiao, two people appeared. Both were handsome and striking, with extraordinary temperament. The one on the left was slightly huskier, while the one on the right seemed more on edge. These two looked at each other across Yang Xiao, and then looked away as if on cue and just focused on Liu Zong, who was in front.


    "Bai Luli, Gu Dongliu." Liu Zong looked at the two. They went on the trial with Xia Qingyuan. Bai Luli was the cultivator from Jixia Holy Palace, and Gu Dongliu was the third senior brother of Ye Futian. Both were extremely outstanding figures. Bai Luli qualified for the Heavenly Chosen Ones, and if Gu Dongliu did not forfeit, he also could have.


    He did not know that Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu could really be considered old friends. When Gu Dongliu entered the Barren State from the Eastern Barren Territory, the first thing he did was challenge Bai Luli, the most famous figure of Barren State at that time and the one who had entered into the top ten of the Barren Sky Ranking at a young age. Although he was defeated, the name of Gu Dongliu became known for the first time by people in the Barren State.


    The second time the two fought was at the Zhuge Family''s Crouching Dragon Mountain at the engagement banquet of Bai Luli and Zhuge Mingyue. Gu Dongliu had returned from traveling and cultivating and set foot on Crouching Dragon Mountain, disregarding his own life. In that battle, Gu Dongliu flat out beat Bai Luli, achieving thunderous fame in the Barren State.


    Interestingly, these two rivals had appeared here at the same time. Of course, it was not intentional. Bai Luli had seen how Liu Zong had chased and killed the people of Barren State, so he had followed him this way. Gu Dongliu saw that Yang Xiao was in danger, so he also followed him. So the two men glanced at each other with Yang Xiao in the middle, and then looked away again with great mutual understanding.


    "Palace Lord Yang, can you let us into the matrix?" Gu Dongliu asked. He had now entered the Sage Plane. Bai Luli broke through after three days and was now a mid-level sage, and both possessed holy items so they could be considered quite strong. Still, it was still foolish to think that Liu Zong, who now had the backing of the battle matrix, could be beaten by one''s own strength. They also saw previously that Liu Zong harvested the power of those within the Ancient Tree Battle Matrix so that he could even make others to die in his stead.


    "Fine." Yang Xiao nodded, and there was light flowing. Gu Dongliu and Bai Luli opened up their spiritual power to be led by Yang Xiao. Soon they could feel that they were integrated into the endless thunder world as if they were part of it themselves.


    "If you two want to attack, just let me know with your mind and I shall assist," Yang Xiao said. Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu both nodded.


    Liu Zong cast a glance at the few people in front of him, and there was a cold sneer flashing across his eyes. Both Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu were charming individuals, and it was too bad that they should die at his hands. How wonderful it would be if he could have used them for himself.


    Rustling sounds were heard again. Above the ancient tree in front, there were countless silhouettes of Bai Luli. The branches and leaves of the ancient tree extended toward the distance, the willow branches covered the sky, and once again wrapped the battle matrix within. The leaves fluttered and became extremely fierce sharp blades, cutting down towards Yang Xiao and the others.


    Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu took a step forward at the same time, and Yang Xiao received the thoughts from both of them in an instant. He could not help but reveal a surprised look, but he said nothing. All the power of the matrix now rushed toward Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu at the same time.


    The eyes of Bai Luli turned black, and the whole world and the void were turned gray. Behind him appeared a pair of terrible eyes. Its tyrannical spiritual will filled the entire void, which was precisely his life spirit, the Eye of Devastation.


    The leaves that were flying in the space seemed to be imprisoned as the devastating thunderstorm raged and slaughtered the entire space. At the same time, the nine characters behind Gu Dongliu circulated. There was also a terrible power of the spiritual will that covered the void, and a super strong Sword Qi circulated, turning into a sword river, overhanging, blooming from the body of Gu Dongliu, annihilating the void. The endless flying leaves were crushed through and through, and the fallen willow branches, likewise, were constantly being attacked and destroyed.


    "Godly Creation of All Things," Bai Luli spat out, and the terrible spiritual will had gathered into a thundering ancient god whose mere glance could destroy all things with lightning that not only attacked the physical body but also attacked the power of spiritual will. Gu Dongliu had summoned nine gods of war, surrounded by nine characters, all facing forward to launch their attack at Liu Zong.


    Once upon a time, Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu had used these two abilities, attacking each other as opponents. Now they were using this method to join forces to annihilate Liu Zong. And even more, both of them seemed to be intuitively connected to release their attacks, without any trace of hesitation or courtesy.


    Feeling the atmosphere coming from the two, Liu Zong sobered up. The huge ancient tree swayed, moving forward as if to turn into a tree spirit. Vines that were thick like mountains swept out. Its power was terrifying. It was like a mountain was being picked up and smashed towards Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu. On top of the thick vines, there even grew many sharp golden blades destroying everything in front of it.


    "Condensate," Gu Dongliu commanded, and nine gods of war turned into one. The aura of the nine character surrounded them, the heavens and the earth resonated. As the two echoed to each other, an infinite number of nine characters appeared around them, and each character turned into an ancient seal, accompanying Gu Dongliu palms forward.


    The ancient god that was born of Bai Luli held the Heaven-shaking Thunder Hammer and smashed it down, intending to destroy the ancient tree. The vines that were as thick as mountains were now exploding wildly, smashed, destroyed, pulverized and disappearing all the way through. But in the same way, the body of the ancient god also collapsed, and the shadow that Gu Dongliu had conjured was also destroyed. This space was filled with currents of devastation.


    "Is that all from you?" Liu Zong spoke arrogantly. The vines upon the ancient tree were destroyed and grew again, still covering the sky and sheltering everyone within it. Liu Zong''s power seemed still aplenty, but in his matrix, the breath of everyone else was consistently weakening. Apparently, he had been draining the power of others to launch those attacks.


    "To kill him we must breach his matrix," Bai Luli said. He did not look at Gu Dongliu, but Gu Dongliu knew who he was talking to.


    "This matrix is centered on him, and he could use those in it to replace him in death. To breach it, you need to kill all the others while breaching the matrix so that there is no replacement to be had." Gu Dongliu responded, "You want to breach it head-on or you want to lead the offensive?"


    "I will breach the matrix from the front, blocking its attack. You can concentrate on the offensive," Bai Luli responded.


    "Very well." Gu Dongliu nodded.


    The two seemed to have arranged everything in a few words, and now it was like there was nothing more for Yang Xiao to do. He looked at them with some surprise, obviously not knowing the relationship between the two. But none of this was important. As long as Liu Zong could be killed, Xihua Sacred Mountain could be destroyed. He was willing to do anything.


    Bai Luli''s expression was solemn, and behind him, in addition to the life spirit of the Eye of Devastation, there was yet another life spirit blooming. It was the immense life spirit of the Spell Scroll. This Spell Scroll flew out and burst into a terrible light. Bai Luli''s fingers landed on the Spell Scroll, and suddenly, traces of blood appeared, which caused bloody stripes to also appear in the life spirit and made it bloom with even more brilliance.


    The life spirit of Spell Scroll flew straight toward the front, suspended in the air, and a giant Spell Scroll hung from the void. A bloody Spell Scroll flew out of the life spirit, and went toward Liu Zong.


    "Blood sacrifice, God-killing Scroll," Bai Luli spat. At this moment, his spiritual will seemed to be drained. The Spell Scroll burst out a blood light that filled the sky, like the sorcery of Forbidden Rules spell, infinite bloody Spell Scrolls flew about and when they collided with the fallen leaves and the willow branches, the bloody scrolls were able to penetrate and pulverize them.


    The light of the life spirit of the Spell Scroll was directed at Liu Zong, and the God-killing scroll that was suspended in the sky had formed a rule spell from a spiritual will that was capable of destroying everything. Liu Zong''s look changed suddenly. Sacred sounds of chanting in Sanskrit were heard and the ancient tree made shaking sounds. Endless figures appeared at the same time, and in front of him was an incomparably beautiful glory of the sacred tree, and when the bloody Spell Scroll came down, there was blood-colored radiance dancing among the branches of the immense ancient tree. At this moment, Liu Zong had no time to care about anything else.


    Gu Dongliu had started his move at the same time Bai Luli made his attack. A painting floated behind him, and the life spirit melted into it. It was a sacred painting. Back then at Zhisheng Cliffs, it was for this painting that Zhan Xiao chased him, wanting to kill him for it. But in fact, this painting was invoked by his will and acknowledged only him as its master. The incomparable aggressive spiritual will flowed into the scroll. A holy authority faintly permeated, and then flying forward. The endless nine characters shone with glory and madly rushed into it.


    "Manifest," Gu Dongliu called out and suddenly a figure was summoned from the sacred painting, like an enchanted spirit surrounded by nine characters, exuding brilliance. This figure was based on Gu Dongliu himself, but its constitution was more outstanding than his. This time, he had summoned himself.


    Behind Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu, the faces of Yang Xiao and the others were somewhat distorted, their spiritual will mental power seeming to be drained. The attack of these two was too terrible to imagine. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Yang Xiao''s eyes were glued in front of him. He saw the immortal figure turn into lightning, moving forward, carrying the aura of the endless nine characters, destroying everything in its path. His body directly rushed within the Ancient Tree Battle Matrix set up by Liu Zong.


    "Pssst" sounds continued to be heard, and countless vine branches and leaves were snapped and broken. While Liu Zong resisted the attacks from Bai Luli, he was also controlling the branches and leaves to attack Gu Dongliu, but he could not block it. The god-like figure madly destroyed the immense ancient tree, and with another sound, a cultivator''s body was bisected and blood splashed everywhere.


    Puff, puff, puff�� The continuous sounds signified the continuous destruction of those in the way. They were wiped out by Gu Dongliu without any resistance, which made Liu Zong breath weaker and weaker, causing his face become somewhat mangled. Could such a great battle matrix be broken by the alliance of these two men? Although he had no time to ponder, the defense of the Ancient Tree Battle Matrix itself was surprisingly strong, and still, it could not stop the attack of Gu Dongliu and was constantly being destroyed!

 982 Yousre Not Qualified

    Saint Xihua had been paying close attention to the battlefield high above the sky, so it was only a given that he had also been able to watch Liu Zong''s position. He frowned and thought about where Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu came from, as well as why were they able to borrow Yang Xiao''s battle matrix and wielded it to such effect. Yang Xiao, who was ranked on the Sage Ranking, seemed to only support the other two.


    "Go and help Liu Zong out," Saint Xihua told the mighty ones of Xihua Sacred Mountain below.


    "Stay back." A shout was heard on the battlefield where Liu Zong was. It was from a mighty one from Xihua Sacred Mountain in the matrix.


    "How dare you," Saint Xihua said as he eyed the one who spoke. That person was trembling within the matrix as if he was to die at any moment. His expression was twisted and his cold eyes glared at Saint Xihua as he said, "I''m not afraid of death. We who have trained in Xihua Sacred Mountain became sages after training for so long. We dare not disobey any order from Xihua Sacred Mountain, but you have deceived us and let Liu Zong make one such sacrificial matrix, and I''m very not pleased. We''re all cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain, yet you see us all as disposable just for the sake of Liu Zong. I regret training in Xihua Sacred Mountain," that person shouted.


    Saint Xihua extended his hand below, conjuring a large hand and pinned down that person across the vast space. He then said coldly, "Treason in the battlefield shall be punished with death."


    "Xihua Sacred Mountain shall perish!" that person roared and his voice resounded on the battlefield right before his death. Saint Xihua pressed down with his hand. and with a splatter, that person died at Saint Xihua''s hand instead of Gu Dongliu''s.


    "What are the rest of you waiting for?" Saint Xihua said coldly, attempting to quell the doubts of those from Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, it became obvious that the minds of many mighty ones from the Xihua Sacred Mountain had been shaken.


    Saint Xia and Saint Li, who were still playing chess at the side, sighed. Saint Xia then said, "Liu Zong is indeed supremely talented and possesses incredible powers. But as a brutal one who can sacrifice anyone or anything just to further his own cause, he will either end up an ambitious hero if he succeeds or a despised loser if he fails. Xihua Sacred Mountain is indeed playing a dangerous game, and it seems that they are being caught in their own trap now."


    A cultivator trained their mind as well, and there was simply no one who reached Sage Plane yet had nor developed an incredibly strong sense of self. They would not simply allow themselves to be played by others, and blind loyalty generally did not exist with sages.


    "Saint Xia, you''re overestimating him. True heroes require unique charisma to enable others to give themselves entirely to their cause. Liu Zong is far from being able to achieve that," Saint Li shook his head and said.


    "Indeed." Saint Xia nodded and continued, "What about Ye Futian then?"


    "If he had been in Liu Zong''s place, I believe many from the Holy Zhi Palace would have thrown themselves into the matrix willingly," Saint Li smiled and said. Saint Xia smiled in reply and both of them continued to play chess.


    The game seemed to be a difficult one, and like the battlefield, where it seemed that the allied forces consisting of six holy lands had obtained an absolute edge, the ones from the Barren State had indomitable beliefs and were united throughout the ranks. They were ready to throw their lives away in their last stand, thus making it possible for them to push their enemies back despite being in a despairing state. That was not to say that victory was theirs, as the six holy lands came with an explicit purpose of eliminating the Holy Zhi Palace, and they probably had yet to bring out their trump card. Furthermore, there were some others, other than Kong Yao, who seemed very powerful as well. They were perhaps secret weapons of sorts. None of them moved in and killed anyone. They simply stayed behind and watched where Ye Futian was.


    Liu Zong was being attacked by Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu. The World Tree shook in a frenzy. A devouring power burst from him, and in an instant, countless branches of the tree withered at a frightening speed. Worse still, those mighty ones who had yet to be killed in the matrix by Gu Dongliu had their powers channeled in a frenzy into Liu Zong''s body. Screams were heard everywhere.


    Gu Dongliu quickly summoned the Celestial Shadow and the Light of the Nine Words, heading straight for Liu Zong himself. The dazzling light pierced through all and the sword river of the great path coalesced into a single sword, piercing through Liu Zong. A crisp rumble was heard and Liu Zong''s shadow gradually disappeared, yet vague saintly might emanated from that spot as if there was a spectral mirror there. Countless shadows of Liu Zong appeared there at the very next moment, spreading out in all directions. It was apparent that he had deflected the attack using divine implements.


    An incredibly huge pair of grey eyes appeared in the air as if they were Bai Luli''s. The power of rules coursed and countless runes hovered above the Blood Spell Scroll, locking down their surroundings. Shadows of ancient gods appeared in all directions. Terrifying blood lightning powers placed their surroundings in a lockdown. It was the power of the Sealing of All Creations, a power that Bai Luli had developed, but it was obviously far more powerful than what it had been years ago.


    "Kill." Killing intent was seen from Bai Luli''s eyes. There were many of the Holy Zhi Palace who had died at Liu Zong''s hands. Despite having spent years training in the Jixia Holy Palace, his heart remained with the Holy Zhi Palace nonetheless. Countless Blood Spell Scrolls came down and every single one of them turned into bolts of blood lightning.


    Gu Dongliu''s silhouette stood at the raging space. He formed seals with his hands and his garb billowed. Countless shadows of the Nine Words fell. In an instant, one silhouette of Liu Zong after another was destroyed. Both of them joined hands with the intention of killing everything within that space, and there was no way they could just let Liu Zong leave.


    Buddhist chants were heard in the air and immense mighty power of the Buddha emanated. A golden ancient tree burst forth, looking like a bodhi tree, growing in a frenzy and reaching out for the bodies of both Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu. The branches of the tree were torn and cut down in a frenzy. Liu Zong''s shadows continued to crumble, yet he seemed to have concentrated all power within one strike. A beam of dazzling light pierced the air, descending upon the matrix that Yang Xiao had laid.


    Heaven and the earth resonated as the Buddhist chants continued to reverberate around them. Saintly power emanated from the ancient tree with terrifying might out to overpower everything, extended at Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu in an unstoppable manner.


    Liu Zong had concentrated all of the powers that he had acquired from the Devouring Matrix in that single attack. He sacrificed a holy item and brought out everything he had, just so that that one strike would have been able to kill Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu.


    Yang Xiao saw the scene and turned into a bolt of lightning, lashing out with the silver halberd in his hand like a thunderous calamity of the great path and a thunder dragon, out to tear everything apart.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The Buddhist chants reverberated and all mirages disappeared at that very moment, coalescing into one strike from Liu Zong. The force was magnificent as an enormous palm struck down, clashing with the silver halberd. Yang Xiao spat up blood as the recoil from the strike hit him, sending him flying with a loud boom, but his attack nonetheless nullified Liu Zong''s attack.


    Blood Spell Scrolls descended from above and a bolt of blood lightning struck onto Liu Zong''s original body. Without other powers getting in the way, the mudra of the Nine Words struck him almost at the very same moment. Liu Zong''s body shook violently as he continued to spit up blood.


    Saint Xihua''s face went pale. No might ones from Xihua Sacred Mountain came in as reinforcements. He did not believe that with so many mighty ones available in Xihua Sacred Mountain, none were able to do so. It became apparent that morale of Xihua Sacred Mountain had been shaken due to Liu Zong''s previous actions. His aura was bone-chillingly cold. He had never expected Liu Zong, who had been borrowing the power of matrixes, would be caught in such a pinch.


    "Such talents in the way of Buddhism and yet the wrong path was chosen. You''ve been too anxious indeed, Saint Xihua," Saint Xia said plainly, causing Saint Xihua to feel speechless.


    Saint Li sighed deep down as well. Liu Zong had such rare talents and fated encounters. If he had been able to train in the Vajra Region, he would have been able to achieve more. Yet, Liu Zong seemed to have indeed taken the wrong path. He had been too anxious to fulfill his ambitions quickly.


    Liu Zong was the student of three saints, so there was no problem for Saint Xia to chastise Saint Xihua. It was naturally the teacher''s fault for not teaching the student correctly after all.


    Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu naturally would not have gone easy on Liu Zong, who had gone on a killing spree earlier. Waves of attacks landed on him without pause and he kept spitting up blood. Yet, at that moment, a voice was heard.


    "I''ll end him." Yang Xiao''s shirt was bloodstained as he stepped forward.


    "Very well." Gu Dongliu nodded. He and Bai Luli took the flanks, blocking any route of escape for Liu Zong. Without reinforcements from the matrix and having suffered such grave injuries, there was no way Liu Zong would have been able to come out alive, so there was no problem for Yang Xiao being the one to end him.


    Yang Xiao held the halberd in his hand while walking up to Liu Zong. He spared no time with words, and with a single step, he turned into a bolt of lightning, sticking the halberd right into Liu Zong''s abdomen. Devastating lightning coursed throughout Liu Zong''s body, but it did not kill him immediately, causing his body to tremble frantically instead. He looked up at Yang Xiao with despaired and frustrated eyes. He was going to die soon. He had immense talent and had been an esteemed student from the very first day he stepped into Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Liu Zong remembered the time when he sparred with a senior, who had beaten him due to being of greater plane, then boasted about putting him in his place. Rage got to his head and he brought everything he had to bear and killed that senior. None of his teachers reprimanded him and they took him in as their personal student instead, appreciating him even more. No one in Xihua Sacred Mountain dared to bully him from then on out. His status was unparalleled and his ambition grew considerably. He wanted to create a new era for Xihua Sacred Mountain and unify the entire Eastern State, then become the absolute best in all of the Nine States. His teachers acknowledged his goals and put everything they had into nurturing him. However, a young man named Ye Futian appeared in the stage of the Nine States, known to be peerless throughout the Nine States.


    On this day, he had brought an army with him, with the expressed purpose of killing Ye Futian, yet he died before Ye Futian was even harmed. Bai Luli and Gu Dongliu were both exceptional, but he was unable to fathom how they had been able to kill him.


    "Liu Zong, does it hurt?" Yang Xiao twisted the weapon in Liu Zong''s body, a testament to the sheer amount of hate he had for Liu Zong. He had personally watched as his wife, brothers, and sisters were sent into the sacrificial matrix and died in the Nether Sword Mound. He felt his heart bleed. He wanted nothing more than to let Liu Zong have a taste of that.


    Liu Zong glared at Yang Xiao and blood continued to ooze from his mouth. He smirked all of a sudden in a very demonic manner. He then said with a croaked voice, "Winner takes all. Your wife, brothers, and sisters were but pawns. Their deaths are hardly worth grieving over."


    "How about you then?" Yang Xiao shouted angrily, twisting the halberd in his hand again. Devastating powers raged in a frenzy and Liu Zong''s aura grew increasingly weak.


    "I didn''t lose to you. I lost��to you three ganging up on me. Pity that��I don''t get to truly fight Ye Futian." Liu Zong looked at Ye Futian''s direction. He had intended to kill Ye Futian himself.


    "You''re not qualified," Gu Dongliu said coldly.


    "That so?" Liu Zong glared at Gu Dongliu.


    "You''re not qualified indeed," Bai Luli said plainly. While Liu Zong was indeed powerful, he remembered the day he left the Holy Zhi Palace. That battle he had back then rendered him speechless indeed.


    "Who are you three to tell me that I''m not qualified?" Liu Zong roared. His eyes were filled with rage despite being moments away from death, seemingly feeling vexed.


    "Seven holy lands allied just to kill him, yet you, Liu Zong, died fighting right here. You''re, of course, unqualified," Yang Xiao said sarcastically and coldly. Liu Zong felt his heart turn into ice.


    "Die already," Yang Xiao roared and devastating lightning burst out. Liu Zong''s body turned into pieces in an instant, reduced to nothing. The student of the three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain was dead!

 983 Showdown

    Saint Xihua witnessed the death of Liu Zong from above. His aura grew increasingly restless and his killing intent increasingly thick. However, everyone throughout the Nine States had their eyes on that very battle. If he dared to interfere in the battles between the sages, it would have ended very badly for him. There was no way Emperor Xia would have forgiven him if he were to break the rules that Emperor Xia set out in the open and before the eyes of the public.


    There were enforcers who served Emperor Xia and they were terrifying people. It was said that Ji Yuan, who ranked second on the Saint Ranking, disappeared because of those enforcers. While the Upper Worlds seemed to be very far away, he believed that Emperor Xia would know everything happening on his turf. If Emperor Xia intended to watch the battle personally, he would have been able to do so from the Upper Worlds.


    Saint Xihua was unable to do anything but the watch as the genius that the three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain had painstakingly nurtured died miserably on the battlefield.


    Liu Zong had immense talent in the way of the Buddha, which enabled him to easily comprehend all manner of training methods, drawing inferences effortlessly from seemingly different methods. That, in turn, enabled him to master many types of powers. Even though he was taught by three different saints, he had learned everything taught to him. As such, Saint Xihua had great hopes for Liu Zong.


    "Gu Dongliu and Yang Xiao of the Holy Zhi Palace. Bai Luli of the Jixia Holy Palace." Saint Xihua''s expression was extremely cold. Yang Xiao was able to have closure and put behind something that had haunted him by killing Liu Zong. However, things were far from over. He intended to witness the utter destruction of Xihua Sacred Mountain, for Saint Xihua had definitely given his permission to carry out what ended up as a tragedy for him a long time ago.


    "Lord Yang, will you still be able to fight?" Gu Dongliu asked Yang Xiao.


    "I''m fine." Yang Xiao nodded and stepped forward, heading towards the battlefields with those from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Gu Dongliu and Bai Luli took a look at each other after seeing him leave. Both of them seemed to have reached a consensus and turned in the opposite direction instead. The scene puzzled the few mighty ones from the Chess Saint Villa who survived. Those two feel rather off.


    Things on the battlefield grew increasingly worse. The vast Holy Zhi Palace was filled with the raging aura of rules everywhere from top to bottom. Of all the battlefields there, the one where Ye Futian was was the most intense.


    The very targets of the seven holy lands in this Sacred War were Huang Jiuge and Ye Futian, and there were both on the same battlefield. As such, one could only imagine how intense these battlefields were. Layers of battle matrixes locked the space down with Ye Futian and the four mighty ones at the center. They were literally caged.


    It was a given that Qin Zhuang, Yun Shang, and the others were not having a good time, being trapped. Qin Zhuang and the other eight formed a matrix with him taking the lead. He was versed in space rules and his killing abilities were unparalleled, capable of moving like a gust of wind. Yun Shang and the others, however, were all sorcerers. They were quickly forced into passivity when surrounded by the mighty ones. Qin Zhuang and his people were only able to keep moving in that space, preventing Yun Shang and the other sorcerers from being taken out altogether.


    Even so, Yun Shang and the others continued to be in extreme danger. While she was the lord of the Ice Temple and was ranked second on the Barren Sky Ranking, she was only able to serve adequately as support. Being surrounded by the mighty ones from the many islands of the Endless Ocean''s three holy lands, things turned extremely dire for her. Many in her battle matrix had been killed.


    "Yu Sheng, big brother, get to Lord Yun," Ye Futian said to both Yu Sheng and the Sword Saint. Both of them coursed with raging demonic might and hesitated. Ye Futian was being surrounded as well. The ones from the Endless Ocean were the most numerous and it seemed that they kept coming, no matter how many of them were killed.


    "Get to it already," Ye Futian continued as he sensed how dire things were at Yun Shang''s side.


    "Be careful yourself." The Sword Saint nodded and a bolt of lightning flashed, carving a path from the blockade.


    "Let them," the mighty ones outside said, letting both the Sword Saint and Yu Sheng off the blockade.


    Those two demonic art practitioners were incredibly dangerous and many died in their hands. Their target in that battle was Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge. It would have sufficed just to have both of them remain there. Having the Sword Saint and Yu Sheng leave the battlefield had actually made things easier for them. Furthermore, other than Ye Futian and Huang Jiuge, Hua Jieyu��Ye Futian''s wife��was there as well. There was no way they could have escaped.


    At the far side of the Holy Zhi Palace, powerful saintly might was sensed and it seemed that a powerful force was growing near. The saints, who watched the battles from above, turned their eyes in that direction and quickly saw a group of goddesses dressed in the same color appearing. The dress billowed and everything else seemed to pale in comparison.


    "You." The Sacred King''s eyes sparkled when he saw the woman taking the lead. It was none other than the number one beauty of the Eastern State��the Glass Saint��entering the battle with mighty ones from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. They had been at the Holy Capital of the Sacred Dynasty, holding the forces of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty back, making it so that only the most powerful force of the Sacred Dynasty��the Golden Phoenix Army��could participate in the war in the Barren State. As such, the Glass Saint simply brought her people into the battlefield instead.


    "I never expected the Glass Saint to show up." The chess piece in Saint Xia''s hand remained in his hand as he looked at the Glass Saint''s direction. Her black hair billowed in the wind, and the usual warm and amicable Glass Saint was nowhere to be found. She looked extremely cold at that moment, but even that was not enough to shadow her immense beauty.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The Glass Saint took a look at the battlefield and cast her gaze at Ye Futian''s direction, then said, "Go help him out."


    "Yes, madam." The mighty ones from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple headed straight to where Ye Futian was.


    "What?" The Sacred King stared at the Glass Saint, never having expected her to lend a hand to Ye Futian, who had violated her back in the imperial mausoleum.


    "Don''t be anxious, Sacred King. When the battle below is over, you''ll have your woman," Saint Xihua said coldly, turning his eyes in the Glass Saint''s direction. She actually dares show up here today. Well then, we''ll just take care of them together afterwards.


    "Intercept them," the saints of the Endless Ocean ordered. Huge numbers of mighty ones went on to intercept the mighty ones from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. The Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple forces were of limited numbers, as the Glass Saint disbanded the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple itself, leaving only a group of elites behind. Furthermore, none of the topmost forces within the region of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple dared to follow them into the Sacred War. From their perspective, it was a losing battle and they would rather apologize to her for not going. The Glass Saint did not meet any of them, but she did not fault any of them either.


    "Ocean Saint, North Deep, isn''t it time for you people to pull your own weight?" Saint Ji said coldly. The most powerful force of the Hall of Holy Light, helmed by Ji Ya, was being held back by the warrior monks of the Vajra Region. The Golden Phoenix Army was being pushed back by Yuan Hong and his people, while the army of Xihua Sacred Mountain was being fought by the Yue clan. Liu Zong was dead. Furthermore, the main army of the Holy Zhi Palace was at their side, enabling the ones from the Endless Ocean to suppress Qin Zhuang, Yun Shang, and the others.


    Presently, only Ye Futian, Huang Jiuge, and Hua Jieyu were left at their side, and the ones from the Endless Ocean still stood by and did nothing. Things would only turn more dire for them if they continued to drag things out. The morale of Xihua Sacred Mountain was shaky. If it had not been for Saint Xihua being present, all of them would have probably left the battlefield. The Yue clan retaliated fiercely and Hua Qingqing turned into a buddhist lamp, shining light onto all of the mighty ones, enabling the army to gain endless power. With the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple joining the fray, no one knew what would happen if they were unable to take Ye Futian out quickly.


    "Will do," the Ocean Saint replied and turned his eyes to Ye Futian and the other two who were heavily surrounded. If it had not been for Xu Chehan holding them back, things would not have dragged on for so long.


    Mighty ones flashed by and arrived above where Ye Futian was. At that moment, Ye Futian and the other two stood in the air, and he had an enormous screen of the stars around him. Terrifying rule spells bombarded it and yet they were unable to shatter the screen.


    Three battle matrixes appeared in the air. While there were not actually many, they all consisted of the most elite, the absolute core figures of the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean. It was also the secret weapon prepared specifically for that battle and for taking down Ye Futian.


    The mighty ones from the Ocean Palace were right before Ye Futian. The one taking the lead was named Ao Feng, who ranked 17th on the Sage Ranking. He led an elite battle matrix. The ones at the left were of the North Deep, with the one taking the lead being Kun of the North Deep, who was also ranked on the Sage Ranking, the most powerful figure among the North Deep who was not a saint. The one at the right was Yang Qi of the Celestial Cliffs, also a sage ranked on the Sage Ranking.


    The most powerful Sage Plane figures of the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean led elite battle matrixes and stood before Ye Futian and the others. It was a testament to how determined they were.


    The three armies spread out and surrounded Ye Futian and the other two below in a triangular formation. The three mighty ones held divine implements and pulsed with terrifying holy light. They looked at Ye Futian with eyes saying that there was no way for him to escape. Ye Futian had actually let the Sword Saint and Yu Sheng go the aid of others despite his predicament. It was like he was digging his own grave.


    Ao Feng borrowed the power of the matrix, and the aura of the elite army behind him gushed into his body, making him look even taller and more imposing. His huge battle form was a towering height, and a huge divine beast Life Spirit appeared behind him. It was a silver dragon.


    Terrifying might swept through the place with him at the center. He held a trident divine implement in his hand. The pointed tip was thrust downwards, bringing terrifying waves with just a single move. Silver lightning bolts crackled and fell downward, bombarding the light screen of stars with raging force. Cracks were heard continuously as the starry defense continued to crumble.


    "Ye Futian, hand over the Halberd of Space and Time and Huang Jiuge. Surrender and I shall spare your wife." Ao Feng pointed the silver trident at Ye Futian like an ocean god. The huge silver dragon continued to circle above his huge body, overflowing with limitless power.


    Ye Futian felt the pressure and his expression was solemn. He held the Halberd of Space and Time and amplified his power using the battle matrix. Ao Feng, who was ranked in the top 20 of the Sage Ranking, felt even more overbearing than Ji Ya alone at the moment. Everyone who stood behind Ao Feng was an absolute elite from the Ocean Palace.


    Ye Futian''s aura boiled within his body and he took the battle form of a Roc. He seemed to have turned himself into a giant divine bird, imposing and proud. Beams of terrifying light shot through his body as he opened the Seven Star acupoints in his body. His blood howled with the might of the dragon as his body became filled with frightening power. He felt the upcoming battle to be the true showdown.


    Saint Zhi stood at the far side, and behind him, Kong Yao and a group of mighty ones were looking down on Ye Futian. They did not go to fight elsewhere and had instead chosen to keep an eye on Ye Futian. They were hoping that they were not so weak as to be taken down by the ones from the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean. It would have complicated things when it was their turn to rob Ye Futian.


    "We''ll call it a day." Saint Xia threw the piece in his hand on the chessboard, messing up the game. Saint Li looked up at Saint Xia feeling rather aghast. So you just give up when you''re about to lose?


    Saint Xia did not seem to be aware of Saint Li''s gaze. He was watching the battlefield where Ye Futian was. Not only that, but all of the Holy Zhi Palace''s armies were heading there as well due to them being able to sense each other regardless of position. The entire battlefield was shaken and the whole place seemed to begin to contract to a single point.

 984 Breach the Matrix

    "Stop them," Saint Ji and Saint Xihua both commanded, and suddenly the great army that had the advantage of numbers reverted from attack to defense, all for intercepting the cultivators who were moving in the direction of Ye Futian. Finally, Ye Futian was separated from the guardian circle of Qin Zhuang, Yun Shang, and Sword Saint. There were only the three of them now, surrounded by the great army. How could they allow Ye Futian the chance to escape? This time he would die.


    As soon as Ye Futian died, this Sacred War would be over. The great alliance of armies would collapse immediately. No one at the Holy Zhi Palace would be able to hold on to any of their convictions.


    At this time, Ao Feng saw that Ye Futian had the Halberd of Time and Space. Without a response, from his eyes there bloomed with a blue luster. He raised the divine implement, the silver trident and his giant body releasing a shocking force. Its momentum created violent waves that pushed downwards from the sky, and there were even sounds of tsunamis, like a storm full of shocking waves.


    "Ice," Ao Feng said indifferently. Heaven and earth were frozen. The whole world was turned snowy white, and just like that, ice sculptures appeared. Ye Futian''s body seemed to be also frozen between heaven and earth. Ao Feng stepped down, like a giant sea god, the trident in his hand slammed down, and a stunning spiral storm appeared in the void. The trident came down and the ice sculptures were broken. Everything inside seemed to be torn into pieces.


    There was a loud bang. The defensive light screen around Ye Futian was pulverized, and the brilliant shadow of the Roc crossed the void and attacked toward the sky. The Halberd of Time and Space vaguely emitted the rules of Time and Space, intending to solidify time and space.


    "Breach!" Ao Feng roared within the violent tsunami, silver rays piercing through the space and slamming down with immense power. In the eye of the storm, there was a trident that sped forward to pierce through the space, and upon the trident, there was a silver dragon hovering on top, swooping down along.


    At this time, Ye Futian, who was down below, had a hallucination. He felt like he was being crushed by heavy smashing waves that madly impacted his body. The Halberd of Time and Space in his hands lanced forward and made violent sounds of collision. It was clearly in the void, but it was like he had penetrated the huge waves in the sky, from which there was a boundless force that landed on the Halberd of Time and Space, shocking his arm. But the powerful force did not make his arm waver. He pierced through huge wave after wave, also forming a terrible spiral storm working upward.


    The Halberd of Time and Space and the Trident finally collided. A huge wave of horrible storms swept the surrounding area. A silver dragon and the Roc rushed out at the same time and turned toward each other. The firmament was shocked by it.


    Boom! A loud bang and the two separated. Ye Futian was shocked backward. Likewise, Ao Feng was also shocked by the void. The immense body continued to retreat, his arm shaking slightly, and he felt a subtle force of tearing that almost pulverized his arm. With one man''s strength, he faced off a small but elite army led by Ao Feng.


    Many cultivators were shocked and thought to themselves that it was no wonder he was considered unparalleled in the Nine States. Ao Feng alone was ranked 17th on the Sage and Saint Ranking. Ao Feng stared below, his heart extremely shocked, but quickly, it was once again composed. No matter how strong Ye Futian was, he would not leave here alive today.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    At the same time, Kun of the North Deep also gathered the power of the battle matrix. He held the dark spear, which emitted a terrible destructive power. The battle matrix also gathered into the shape of the Kunpeng, who opened both wings that seemed to want to swallow up mountains and rivers. Yang Qi, of Celestial Cliffs, dragged a golden Sacred Pagoda behind him that burst with dazzling brilliance and stunned the eyes.


    In the three major directions, three opponents of the Sage Plane all carried battle matrixes, ready to attack Ye Futian at the same time. A truly suffocating pressure had fallen from the void as if there was no power to deter it.


    At this time, there were streams of light flowed from afar to Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Huang Jiuge, like the light of the Buddha. A lotus lamp lit up at the brow chakra of each one. With the three of them as one, their spiritual power once again increased and expanded. Ye Futian knew that this was Hua Qingqing, who was trying to bestow more power upon the three of them. The other cultivators in the battlefield had pulled back some of their power.


    The Halberd of The Halberd of Time and Space was being clenched tightly in his hand. Ye Futian looked up at the cultivators in the void. The blood in his body boiled and he roared. As if affected by his thoughts, Hua Jieyu transmitted her voice to him, "Don''t." She knew what Ye Futian was trying to do, but until it was absolutely necessary, she did not want Ye Futian to reveal his strength. Especially at this moment, when all eyes of the Nine States were watching, and it was even possible that Emperor Xia had people who were observing this battle. If Ye Futian revealed his secrets, both the Upper and Lower Worlds would know and she did not know what the consequences might be, but it would very likely be disastrous.


    Ye Futian also understood that his life was no longer just his own, but belonged to the entire Holy Zhi Palace. If something happened to him, the entire Holy Zhi Palace would also perish. So, unless it was absolutely necessary he would not do so. But now the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean were dead set on killing him. The three super-max battle matrixes could not be breached, except by burning the will of the emperor.


    "We will have a chance," Hua Jieyu whispered softly. From her body came an immense telekinetic power, and her spirit crown bloomed. Threads of telekinetic force spread out between heaven and earth. She closed her eyes as if to completely let go of herself. Glimpses of glory sprinkled from the sky, falling upon Hua Jieyu''s body. Her mind seemed to perceive an unknown world where there was an unparalleled figure sitting above the sky, like the Jiutian Goddess.


    Behind Hua Jieyu, an illusion of the Jiutian Goddess gradually emerged, and it was extremely radiant. There was a powerful storm of telekinesis appearing in this world, with the wind whistling. Everyone could feel the existence of that power.


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu. What ability was this? He had never heard Jieyu mention it before.


    "Move!" Yang Qi spat. From that telekinetic power, he actually sensed danger. The golden Sacred Pagoda in his hand fell straight down, and in a flash, the Sacred Pagoda quickly enlarged and turned into a golden mountain. Many radiant light screens hung down from it and crushed everything. At the same time, the spiritual power of the cultivators of Celestial Cliffs transformed into one, and all of it was poured into the Sacred Pagoda. Endless glory poured down, suppressing and erasing all existence below.


    Ye Futian saw that the Sacred Pagoda blast towards Hua Jieyu, and in a flash, he walked into the void and appeared instantly in the sky above Hua Jieyu. The vast space created a horrible space solidification rule force, affecting the speed with which the Sacred Pagoda was traveling. But the golden brilliance that erased everything crushed the rules and smashed toward Ye Futian. Loud booming noises rumbled, and the brilliance of the stars was also shattered.


    Roar! A thunderous roar was heard and the Divine Ape appeared behind Ye Futian, whose body flew back. The Halberd of Time and Space in his hands turned into a long stick, and a golden star appeared around it aiming directly to the Sacred Pagoda. A loud dinging sound rang out, the Sacred Pagoda rocketed to the sky, but Ao Feng and Kun of the North Deep also launched their attack and did not intend to give Ye Futian another chance.


    There were turbulent waves coming, and the trident gathered a terrible storm. Where Kun of the North Deep was, a Kunpeng flew on widespread wings. Kun of the North Deep stood in front of the Kunpeng, Spear of Darkness in hand, and slammed it down. A destructive black hole that could swallow all things creeped out. All the storms of destruction now pushed toward Ye Futian, wanting to place him in despair without giving him any chance to fight back.


    Boom. At this time, the shadow of a saint appeared behind Hua Jieyu. Her long hair flew in the wind, her spiritual will released to the limit. Her beautiful and radiant eyes opened and turned skyward, and those deep eyes suggested an enchanted beauty as if every strand of will between heaven and earth was presented in her mind.


    At this moment, the cultivators of all three holy lands, who were attacking Ye Futian, felt an invisible power of telekinesis shroud them. It was as if it was everywhere, threatening their spiritual willpower. Moreover, that power of telekinesis had subtly converged into a savage spiritual storm.


    "Telekinesis of Thunder." Hua Jieyu''s eyes released purple lightning. In this instance, an invisible storm of destruction was born between heaven and earth, directly attacking all the cultivators from the three holy lands who were in the space just like the ravages of the Divine Path. All the cultivators'' minds experienced a fierce shock, and their spiritual will was unsteadied.


    Huang Jiuge also felt this power. His body also seemed to start burning up. The most sacred Renhuang bow shot through the void toward the cultivators, aiming to kill. Ye Futian''s palms stretched out toward the void, releasing his spiritual power all the way, and he shouted, "Star Prison." A star was directly buried in the void, as if drowning all the cultivators within it, and he turned himself into a lightning bolt and blasted directly into the prison.


    Boom. The stars exploded instantly and the trident and the spear of destruction appeared at the same time. However, Ye Futian had already rushed into it. This blow was not to prevent the opponent''s attack but to interfere with their judgment.


    The force of Time and Space solidification appeared as if to completely seal the space. The speed of the Spear of Darkness slowed, and Ye Futian rushed past the spear of destruction. A terrible black hole vortex was pierced by the Halberd of Time and Space, torn and pulverized, but that attack also madly hurt Ye Futian.


    Kun of the North Deep saw Ye Futian come straight for him and he pulled his body back. The Kunpeng''s sharp claws grabbed him back while Ye Futian continued his charge forward. However, he did not attack him. Instead, he attacked the belly of the Kunpeng battle matrix, the Halberd of Time and Space slashing out.


    Boom! The destructive power that smashed everything bloomed, and the body of Kunpeng shattered and the battle matrix collapsed. Naturally, Hua Jieyu would not let such an opportunity go to waste. Her eyes of enchanted beauty swept to that space, and at this moment, within the collapsed battle matrix of the Kunpeng, those cultivators only felt that their spirit had no defense and they were in the middle of a storm. Over yonder, there seemed to be a goddess appearing, staring at them. The brilliant lightning them right in their minds. The bodies of the cultivators swayed violently. Arrows crossed the sky, and with a sharp sound, they shot through the heads!

 985 Destruction

    In the void, the bodies of cultivators exploded and were blasted into dust, and The North Deep instantly lost many of its fighters. The battle matrix completely disintegrated and collapsed.


    How could Ye Futian miss such an opportunity? The alliance of three major battle matrixes had mighty powers, and now there was an opportunity to breach one of them. His speed was beyond fast, crossing the void and aiming for Kun of the North Deep.


    Kun of the North Deep was already attacked by the power of telekinesis, and in his mind appeared a Kunpeng that was guarding him. But the shadow of the goddess appeared directly in his mind as if a catastrophe of thunder rules had descended, madly attacking the power of his spiritual will. His head felt heavy and confused. He found it difficult to concentrate and detected a strong sense of danger from the outside world. His body quickly retreated, using pure instinct.


    The life spirit of the Kungpeng opened its wings fully, and in a flash, it was gone. But in that instant, he felt as if all of time and space seemed to have solidified. His body seemed to be trapped in the mud. Radiant lights burst into the air, and when he saw that the Halberd of Time and Space appeared in front of his eyes, it was impossible to escape the solidified space he was in. Without the battle matrix to expand his power, although Kun of the North Deep was in the ranks of the sages, under this force, it was still difficult for him to move. The two wings of the Kunpeng tried to close with great difficulty to shroud the body within.


    Ye Futian descended with the speed of lightning, and with a loud boom, the wings of the Kunpeng were torn apart. The horrible vortex of madness could turn everything into ruin. The wings were shredded, and the Halberd of Time and Space penetrated through them, sliding against the spear of the darkness and stabbing toward the other''s head, not giving any chance to Kun of the North Deep.


    "Die!" Kun of the North Deep roared, and the spear of darkness pierced towards Ye Futian''s heart. However, Ye Futian did not evade even slightly, and the movement was completed in one attempt, extremely fast.


    There was a popping sound, and the Halberd of Time and Space directly pierced through Kun of the North Deep''s head. His skull exploded and he was killed instantly. The spear of darkness swiped against Ye Futian''s body and made sharp sounds. As the spear was not able to pierce through his body, it only left traces of blood, showing how strong Ye Futian''s body had become.


    Saint Jiang was also looking at the battlefield. The third round of the medical trials had not been carried out for long, and Ye Futian''s own realm was only at the level of a low-level sage, yet his flesh had already reached this level. If Ye Futian stepped into the top sage level and completed the medical testing, then even if he was not a saint, he would be like a saint. The Divine Catastrophe, to Ye Futian, would have no destructive power whatsoever, and this was what he wanted to achieve. Those with enough talent to set foot in the Saint Plane would not be destroyed by the Divine Catastrophe.


    Crack! Saint North Deep clenched his fists, a chilling air exuding from him. The strongest cultivator from The North Deep just under the Saint Plane, Kun of the North Deep, had just died in the battle. The battle matrix disintegrated and the divine implement was plundered, with many dead at Huang Jiuge''s hands. It was the equivalent of an early strikeout for The North Deep. Before, Xu Chehan had also killed many of his cultivators from the North Deep. Among the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean, the North Deep suffered the most.


    "Kill," Hua Jieyu said coldly. Her slender finger pressed down in the void, and the figure of the goddess behind her seemed to follow her movements as well. Her eyes were unfathomable, like an abyss, and as this finger pressed down, it felt like a catastrophe. Those cultivators from the North Deep, who were still alive, actually felt that there was beautiful, purple-golden lightning running through their spiritual will power, piercing and destroying it with brutal and total disregard.


    "What is going on with this girl?" Saint Li looked at Hua Jieyu. There were two shadows of illusion behind her. One was the illusion of a saint, residing within the body of Hua Jieyu, but the other one seemed to have been summoned and shone with radiance. Just a simple look at that illusion was enough to give people a sense of holiness, in addition to a strong sense of slaughter, to compel those around it to worship her.


    Saint Xia also gazed at Hua Jieyu. He vaguely felt that the power Hua Jieyu used was not that of her own, but the ability of the one summoned. However, no matter how much spiritual will that he employed, he was still unable to clearly see who had been summoned. But the feeling and the energy that had been casually revealed was enough to let him know that it was unfathomable.


    This feeling, Saint Xia had only ever seen it on one person, and that was the master of the Upper and Lower Worlds��Emperor Xia. Could it be that this girl had some kind of a fortuitous opportunity?


    Hua Jieyu had also gone to the trial with the Little Princess, Xia Qingyuan, but he did not hear from anyone from the Xia Clan about anything that had happened there to Hua Jieyu.


    Bang! A loud noise brought back Saint Xia and Saint Li''s back. Ye Futian and the others had joined forces to destroy Kun of the North Deep. The cultivators of the Celestial Cliffs and the Ocean Palace were not sitting idly. The two battle matrixes launched attacks at the same time. The silver long spear turned into a dragon and blasted forward while the pagoda crushed and wiped out everything. After Ye Futian killed Kun, he rushed to resist the attack but his body was knocked away. He spat up a mouthful of blood and his breath was shallow.


    "How can his resistance be this strong?" All the saints were staring at this battlefield. Saint Ji and the others had a terrible look. Such an attack was incredibly overpowering. The light of the pagoda came down with force. Not only did it crush and suppress the flesh, but also the spiritual will. But Ye Futian only a spat out a mouthful of blood. Even peak-level sages did not have such defensive power. Apparently, the power of Ye Futian not only relied upon the attack ability of the Halberd of Time and Space.


    The pagoda was suspended in the air like a golden mountain. Layers of glory continued to press down, like rounds of golden ripples. Ye Futian had an illusion that his spiritual willpower was being strongly squeezed, and his spiritual defense seemed to be chipped away little by little. At the same time, a power, like a great mountain of horror, suppressed the space in which he was in so that he was unable to move.


    There seemed to be an invisible storm upon Hua Jieyu, a storm of spiritual will that moved the elements between heaven and earth. She walked in the void, toward the cultivators from Celestial Cliffs. Lin Qi''s eyes revealed his wariness. Although he was inside the battle matrix, Hua Jieyu had disregarded the battle matrix and invaded the power of spiritual will with the power of telekinesis. It was an extremely uncomfortable feeling.


    Ye Futian naturally knew what to do at this time. There was a sacred power in his mind that was guarding him. The sound of rustling in the Life Palace came out, the ancient tree of the world swaying, and a curious force spread out and extended to the entire area that immediately surrounded them as if everything in this world was under his control.


    An infinitely large shadow appeared, and the immense body of the Divine Ape seemed to turn into a demon god, surrounded by the power of infinite stars. This Divine Ape directly stepped out from behind Ye Futian.


    "Space Freezing." The ruthless rules sorcery were released, and suddenly, the space where Ye Futian was became a space of absolute stillness. The rotational speed of the giant golden pagoda slowed down overhead, and with one great roar, many were shocked to find that the demon-like figure rose to the sky, arms wide open, and directly grabbed the huge golden pagoda.


    All the cultivators showed a look of surprise. The pagoda madly rotated, releasing beams of light, slowly shattering the force of the rules that froze the void bit by bit. At the same time, the demon-like Divine Ape descended, and its arms grasped the Sacred Pagoda, starry laws exploding, locking it within its power.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! The power of starry rules was smashed in madness, but the great Divine Ape still had the Sacred Pagoda in a tight grip. In the other direction, Ao Feng of the Ocean Palace smashed down. The giant silver dragon with the trident fell. Its momentum was explosive, aiming straight at Ye Futian for the kill, that space being suppressed without ceasing.


    "Go!" Ye Futian let out a scream, and a sacred dragon swooped up and went straight to the silver dragon, bringing the thundering rule power with the space shattering rule hidden within, pulverizing everything. It collided with Ao Feng''s attack. The thunder dragon and the silver dragon collided, and the two dragons fought violently.


    Ye Futian himself had turned into the Roc, charging straight to Lin Qi and other cultivators from the Celestial Cliffs. The golden Roc spread its wings like brilliant lightning, faster than the eyes could behold.


    "Back!" Lin Qi yelled, wanting to recall the Sacred Pagoda. All of their spiritual wills were poured into the Sacred Pagoda, and within it was the core of the battle matrix. But at the moment, the Sacred Pagoda was bound, while the storm of telekinesis from Hua Jieyu was shrouding them. In addition, Ye Futian had now come to attack this side, and at this instant, Lin Qi felt a strong sense of danger.


    Brilliant glory exploded from the Sacred Pagoda and smashed everything, and the immense Divine Ape gave a shockingly loud scream. The enormous body contained unparalleled power, but at the moment, it was slowly torn into pieces.


    The roaring thunder dragon, likewise, was also undergoing a devastating attack, but at the same time, there seemed to be a divine telekinesis power descending from the void. Lin Qi and the others only felt that the catastrophe had fallen, blasting them in their minds, and the battle matrix was moving unsteadily.


    In the front, with the Halberd of Time and Space in hand, Ye Futian dashed straight ahead, his whole person wrapped up in the brilliance of the glory. The divine Roc ran through the void and slaughtered everything.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Boom! A loud bang and the Halberd of Time and Space descended, a direct hit to the front of the battle matrix. "Breach!" Lin Qi screamed. The pagoda spun and returned, and the body of the Divine Ape exploded. But the golden Roc turned into a light that annihilated all things, and went right through it, rushing into the battle matrix, and a golden path opened up, the space shattering and eliminating all obstacles in front.


    At this moment, bloody rain spread out from the sky, and many, without so much as a chance to scream, had their bodies torn into pieces. Even the strongest of them all, Lin Qi, who also had his body pierced by the halberd, died without any thought.


    On the battlefield, countless people witnessed the brilliant glory slaughtered from the front of the battle matrix to the back of it, destroying the battle matrix with the most brutal method possible. Even a few of the rest had been shot in the head by the arrows that came from below and were erased without a trace. This time, the cultivators in the battle matrix of the Celestial Cliffs were killed more simply than the cultivators of the North Deep.


    "Madness." The hearts of many beat violently. Ye Futian wagered his life spirit and used the most direct method to destroy the battle matrix of the Celestial Cliffs.


    But to take this route, wouldn''t he die for sure? Could he bear the cost of the destruction of his life spirit?

 986 Closing of the Ne

    Bang!


    With a loud bang, the thunder dragon was torn and destroyed by the silver trident. Ao Feng''s body emitted a terrible air, but there was no look of excitement on his face. He turned his eyes, and the cold swept toward Ye Futian.


    Over yonder, the cultivators of the Celestial Cliffs had been completely slaughtered. The three great holy lands of the Endless Ocean had assembled three battle matrices, and now two out of three elite battle matrices had been eliminated by the joint attack from Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. This was a major tactic prepared just for Ye Futian, with all the cultivators battling madly outside just to kill the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace, thus isolating Ye Futian inside.


    Under this absolute advantage, it could be said that anyone lower than the Saint Plane would undoubtedly die. Even cultivators on the Sage and Saint Ranking would suffer the same fate. But even so, to have the two battle matrices destroyed was evidence of the incredible offensive power that Ye Futian possessed. Once the battle matrix had been disintegrated, no one could resist, and any cultivator would be killed with a single blow, including those on the Sage ranking. Of course, the way of the telekinesis attack from Hua Jieyua was also extremely terrible, mysterious, and seemingly unsolvable.


    Not only Ao Feng but all the saints above the void and the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace on the battlefield were closely observing Ye Futian. Through Hua Qingqing''s ability, they could clearly see what was happening with Ye Futian. His life spirit had been destroyed, which was absolutely considered fatal for cultivators.


    Once Ye Futian was gravely injured, even his cultivation would regress and he would die a very horrible death. Even if by a miracle he survived, if his cultivation was limited in the future, what would the meaning of being unparalleled in the Nine States be?


    Everyone from the Holy Zhi Palace felt that their hearts were about to stop from extreme nervousness. Even those who were fighting were no exception, paying attention to what was currently happening to Ye Futian.


    Cough. A soft sound was heard, and this subtle sound actually affected the mood of the cultivators across the entire battlefield. When they saw that Ye Futian had coughed up blood, the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace felt their hearts shaking. Those who were of a weaker plane had already expressed a desperate look.


    That legendary palace lord, who had brought the palace to its present status, such that seven holy lands joined forces to fight against it, who caused turbulence across the entire Nine States, would today be the end of his legendary existence? If this legend was to wither, the palace would also follow along and cease to exist. As for Saint Ji, Saint Xihua, and the others, they wore a look of indifference and couldn''t wait for Ye Futian to die.


    In the vast palace, the storm of destruction on the battlefield remained, but many felt an incredible silence as if in the entire battlefield, there was only Ye Futian standing there. A frenzy of wind blew over, moving Ye Futian''s long hair. His white garments were stained with blood. His face seemed a little pale, but he still looked so handsome.


    At this time, Ye Futian wiped the blood from the lower corner of his mouth with his left hand. He extended his hand and reached into the void and took the ownerless Sacred Pagoda. Then, under the gaze of the people, he pointed the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand at Ao Feng, a cold smile appearing on the corner of his mouth. He asked, "Ready to die?"


    The golden-winged Roc shone with dazzling brilliance and seemed to announce to all that even if his two life spirits were destroyed, he still had others. He was still the unparalleled Ye Futian of the Nine States.


    "How is it possible that he is fine?" Ao Feng looked bad, his eyes fixed on Ye Futian, who was still exuding a very strong air, albeit with some fluctuations. But he had not been affected much at all, still as strong as before. However, even if he had a variety of life spirits, with two of them destroyed, how could it have no effect on him?


    People who were on the side of the Holy Zhi Palace were excited, and they seemed even more violent when battling. All of them were full of the great spirit of war.


    Two out of three battle matrices had been destroyed, and all of them had been slaughtered. Only one last battle matrix remained, unable to block Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. As long as Ye Futian came out to attack, he would still be the target, and everywhere he passed, except for the strongest battle matrix, no one could counter him.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Ye Futian was indeed injured. Although the thunder dragon and the demonic ape were born out of meditation, they were life spirits, after all, cast by the spiritual will. So it was impossible to be unaffected by their destruction, and the injury was not minor. But he was the keystone of the entire Holy Zhi Palace, so no matter how heavy his injuries were, he could not reveal the extent of it in order to protect the resolve of the entire Holy Zhi Palace.


    An injury so serious that it would hinder his ability to fight and cause the regression of his cultivation was naturally non-existent for him. These life spirits were born out of meditation and not his true life spirits, so the injury did not hurt his foundation or else he would not have risked it only to breach a battle matrix and slaughter the cultivators of the Celestial Cliffs. Right now, for the Endless Ocean, only the battle matrix headed by Ocean Palace led by Ao Feng was left, which could not really threaten them.


    The Halberd of Time and space exuded terrible space shredding rule power. The illusion of the golden-winged Roc shrouded his body and Ye Futian stepped forward. The body of Hua Jieyu floated in mid-air, appearing behind Ye Futian, her enchanting eyes regarding Ao Feng and the others coldly. An invisible storm of telekinesis coursed out, shrouding the space, and everyone''s face changed. They now began to understand just what the cultivators of Celestial Cliffs and The North Deep were facing.


    This ability completely ignored the defensive power of the battle matrix and seemed to be able to attack the spiritual will power of every cultivator. They even had an illusion as if what they were seeing was not just Hua Jieyu, but a queen who appeared directly in their minds and needed to be worshipped. That feeling was like being in an illusionary world, a world of spiritual will with countless destructive spiritual storms raging, turning into purple-golden lightning. It was like some punishment from the heavens so that their spiritual will had nowhere to hide.


    "Keep a hold on your Spiritual Will," Ao Feng said, and he could feel the threat. The will of the cultivators within the battle matrix seemed to integrate into one, resonating with one another, thus forming a spiritual barrier between heaven and earth to defend against Hua Jieyu''s spiritual attack.


    But precisely at this moment, the devastating spiritual storm swept through. Within the void, that devastating storm of spiritual telekinesis directly rushed into their minds. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were connected in their minds. At almost the same time, Ye Futian''s body moved. One step across the void and the golden-winged Roc pierced the space with its shadow. Countless particles of brilliance were in front of the Halberd of Time and Space. Every brilliant particle was like a star, not only possessing tyrannical starry laws but also the terrible power of shredding rules.


    Ao Feng let out an angry roar, the silver trident slashing through the air, and like a sea god, he swooped down and the attacks of the two once again collided. In the void, horrific light waves expanded toward the distance and then exploded. The bodies of many powerful cultivators, who were battling afar, were knocked over by the waves, demonstrating the severity of their attacks.


    Ye Futian''s body was knocked back, and as if he deliberately leveraged the momentum to fly backward, with wings open, the divine bird passed by in a beautiful arc, its body dancing in the void. There was a terrible storm gathering between heaven and earth as if all the power of this heaven and this earth were to be used by him.


    Ao Feng was not much better. He groaned and the battle matrix fluctuated and seemed a bit unstable. Hua Jieyu''s telekinetic attack was constant and they much mobilized great spiritual will to defend. Therefore, they were a little exhausted. Ye Futian himself was already so powerful that one could not completely concentrate when fighting with him. The consequences were unimaginable.


    The beautiful golden brilliance was blinding, and all that people could see was a golden-winged Roc swooping down again. Above the firmament, there was the illusion of a giant boundless bird, completely indomitable.


    The Halberd and Time and Space emitted an unparalleled brilliance and once again pierced down, stronger than the power of the previous attack. The expression on Ao Feng''s face lost the confidence it had before, and he looked bad. Even so, he still gathered the power of the battle matrix, carrying the momentum of the tide of the tsunami, and launched another attack. Again, it was a frontal collision.


    Boom! A terrible fissure appeared in the battle matrix, and Ao Feng''s body, even though it was like a sea god, was stunned into retreat. Many groaned, even spitting out blood. Everyone''s faces were pale as paper. Looking forward, they saw the golden-winged Roc still spinning in the void, the wind and clouds whistling with great power as if all the power of the heavens were to be gathered within Ye Futian.


    In the void, Ocean Saint looked blue in the face. They knew that the battle matrix could no longer withstand the force. Ye Futian was actually fighting more and more fiercely under the condition of his broken life spirit. How did the Nine States produce such an enchanting figure? If they couldn''t do away with Ye Futian today, for them, there would be a greater disaster in the future.


    Today, all seven holy lands had come in alliance to lay siege. It could be said that this signified a great grudge. If the seven holy lands could not destroy the Holy Zhi Palace, in the future, he would most certainly challenge each and every one of the holy lands. Which one of them could withstand it?


    At this moment, the wind whistled and the golden-winged Roc swooped down again. The beautiful light above the sky ran through it. The people seemed to see the space being torn from a slight gap, and then the gap increased, shredding everything.


    The battle matrix collapsed and many screamed, not only from the attack of Ye Futian but also from the powerful attack of the telekinetic power. With both forces attacking at the same time, it was absolutely destructive.


    Brilliant lightning flashed through, and everyone watched as Ao Feng''s head, the man ranked 17th on the Sage Ranking, exploded. It was pierced by a blow of the halberd as if Ye Futian had concentrated all his power into this one hit, aiming for an instant kill.


    "Three great battle matrices, all destroyed." The hearts of many trembled when they saw the beautiful golden-winged Roc, witnessing every one of the cultivators of the Ocean Palace destroyed under the Halberd of Time and Space. The husband and wife together were enough to destroy all three great battle matrices. Who else could stop them? Would the seven holy lands return in defeat today?


    In the void, Kong Yao, who had been observing the battlefield, wore an extremely frosty look. His eyes never left Ye Futian, and he hovered not far from them. They did not join forces with the three holy lands. They were just watching from the sideline.


    A cultivator behind Kong Yao said, "We can close the net." When the voice faded, they stepped forward at the same time!

 987 The Indomitable Nine

    As one among the top ten on the Sage Ranking, no matter if it was by true strength or judgment, Kong Yao was extremely sharp. He had been watching the previous battle. Although Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu had jointly defeated the three battle matrixes of the Endless Ocean, he could see that Hua Jieyu was leaning upon a powerful external force, and Ye Futian himself had expended a great deal of energy and suffered heavy injuries.


    Even if he had multiple life spirits, two were destroyed and he just could not believe that Ye Futian was not injured. Even if he was not fatally wounded, he was injured heavily and was hiding it. He had repeatedly erupted with the power of killing and destroyed Ao Feng and the others. But behind this great momentum of eruption, Ye Futian was absolutely in a state of exhaustion. His most powerful attack was released by the burning of his own power, thus destroying the cultivators of the three battle matrixes of the Endless Ocean.


    Moreover, although Ye Futian had expended a lot of energy, his injury was not overwhelming. With the strength of him and Hua Jieyu, it was not impossible for them to fight it out and converge with others from the Holy Zhi Palace. There was still no solution to block them.


    From the battle inside the imperial mausoleum to today''s great battle, even though they were enemies of life and death, Kong Yao had to admit that within the lands of Nine States, of those under the Saint Plane, no one could suppress Ye Futian, and he had not yet reached the peak of the Sage Plane. If he was allowed to continue to grow, he would only be even more invincible. However, no matter how strong Ye Futian was, he still couldn''t escape his fate today. He would die here.


    Kong Yao had felt just how strong these people behind him really were. Maybe in one-on-one combat, Ye Futian could not be suppressed, but with joined forces, they were truly invincible to anyone below the Saint Plane, enough to crush anyone. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu would be no exception. Therefore, they did not participate in the battle, just quietly watching as the three holy lands exhausted Ye Futian''s combat power. Now that the battle matrixes of the three holy lands were completely destroyed, they could finally make their move.


    As if detecting something, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu looked up at the same time and saw Kong Yao and the others stepping down from above. There were nine cultivators behind Kong Yao who scattered directly in nine different positions, vaguely in some formation. The ninth position covered the space of the battlefield where Ye Futian was located. Moreover, the same powerful instruments appeared in the hands of these nine powerful cultivators. They were similar to swords but resembled long needles, extremely thin and hard to detect at first glance, like a slender golden thread. What was shocking was that the swords of needle held in these nine powerful cultivators'' hands were filled with holy authority, as if they were all divine implements that were exactly the same.


    "Who are they?" Saint Li frowned and asked. Within the Nine States, there didn''t seem to be anyone who used such a weapon. These nine cultivators exuded the air of the top-level Sages. The nine seemed to be one. Though standing in nine different positions, their air was surprisingly similar.


    Saint Xia also frowned. Zhisheng Cliffs was recently annihilated by the great army led by Ye Futian, and almost everyone there of the Sage Plane was completely exterminated. Even the leader of the Nine Warriors, Ge Feng, was killed on the spot. Afterward, the only cultivator that mattered was Kong Yao. These cultivators obviously were not from Zhisheng Cliffs, but now they appeared with Kong Yao. Moreover, they had witnessed Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu destroy the cultivators within the three major battle matrixes, yet they were still dared to come forward. What did this mean? Obviously, these people did not harbor good intentions, so he couldn''t help but wonder what or who they were.


    "This divine implement seemed to be cast especially for this matrix. The nine divine implements are a set, and these nine people are similar in their air. It is very likely that they are cultivators specially groomed for killing." Saint Xia furled his brows tightly. He seemed to have smelled something unusual. He had lived a long time and had seen many things and had a great range of knowledge. But in the Lower Worlds of the Nine States, he had never seen anyone with such a grand stance.


    "Well." Saint Li gently nodded, and, of course, he also felt that when such formidable figures such as these nine joined forces, even the divine implements they used were in a set. They were absolutely people to be feared. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu had just destroyed the cultivators of the three great holy lands of the Endless Ocean, and the emergence of nine such strong cultivators was definitely not a good omen. Not just Saint Xia and Saint Li, but many cultivators had sensed the strangeness.


    At this time, horrible golden threads fell down from the swords of the needle, madly intertwining in that space, crisscrossing, and turning into straight lines shooting downwards. They did not touch Ye Futian and the others but just landed around their bodies with countless golden lines arranged like a great net, completely locking down this space.


    Nine in a matrix! Everyone looked at this scene with great shock. Jiang Sheng, who had been treating Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly, also stood up and stared at that space. He had a bad feeling.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Saint Xia, they may not be people from the Nine States," Saint Jiang said. Saint Xia nodded, but these people were indeed within the realm of the Sage and they came with Saint Zhi of Zhisheng Cliffs. So, as part of Zhisheng Cliffs, there was no fault they could pick as it was in observance with the rules set by Emperor Xia. And the war was erupting; they had no time to investigate it.


    Never mind the saints, even Ye Futian, who was within it, had felt a strong sense of crisis. He looked up at the nine cultivators. Although they were in different positions, there were endless golden threads connecting them so that the nine were one. Each golden line faintly emitted an extremely strong shredding rule, incredibly sharp, enough to cut through the space. Not only that, but Ye Futian even felt that his power of spiritual will was being greatly threatened. The spiritual willpower that he released, intending to mobilize the rules of heaven and earth, were cut off and annihilated when it rushed into that net.


    "Jieyu, Jiuge, watch out," Ye Futian said softly. Hua Jieyu''s enchanted eyes gazed at the void. She had been exercising the power of telekinesis and had also felt the power of shredding that disrupted her attempt to condense the telekinetic powers as they were constantly being cut and chopped.


    Ye Futian looked up at Kong Yao and Saint Zhi who were in the void. He looked terrible. He had thought that destroying the three battle matrixes of the three holy lands would be enough to decide a victorious outcome for the Sacred War, but he did not count on the intervention of such a group of mysterious cultivators. This kind of ability, whether it was spiritual or physical, attacking and destroying together, was without weakness.


    Saint Zhi and Kong Yao''s eyes were cold, sweeping toward Ye Futian as if regarding someone who was already dead. Even if Ye Futian had some energy that was greater than the sky, he would not escape today. These nine great cultivators indeed did not belong to the Zhisheng Cliffs, but their presence still abided by the rules. If these saints intervened, Saint Ji, Saint Xihua, and Great Zhou Sacred King were not kind and easy people to deal with and would definitely move to kill Ye Futian. But who dared to be the first one to break Emperor Xia''s rules? Even if Saint Xia favored Ye Futian, he would not dare to intervene.


    Watching more and more silk lines cutting and covering this space, Ye Futian''s body finally moved. The illusion of the golden-winged Roc bloomed brilliantly. Clenching The Halberd of Time and Space, he thrust it towards the sky, and the storm in the space was continually cut off and shredded the silk threads while Ye Futian aimed straight for the nine powerful cultivators in the void.


    The nine great cultivators stood in different positions in the void, holding the divine implements and making the same gestures. They lifted the divine implements that resonated with the heaven and the earth, and the endless golden lines fell down. Then they dropped their arms, and the divine implement pointed to Ye Futian. At this moment, endless lines cut through everything and cut towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian saw radiant golden lines in front of him, and the starry light screen appeared around his body, but as soon as it appeared, it was immediately chopped into countless pieces and had no use at all. This strong and powerful defense, at this instant, was completely useless. The Halberd of Time and Space madly destroyed the golden lines that slaughtered forth, but these golden lines seemed inexhaustible and the lines were cut from the blind spots of Ye Futian''s attacks and aimed toward his body.


    Psst. There was blood. No matter how great the strength of Ye Futian''s body, it was cut when the lines in the space hit it. The blood came out of the places where his clothes were torn, and the blood stained his clothes a bright red color. However, the lines were not able to cut through his body, which demonstrated the might of his physical defense. If it was any other person, they would probably already be chopped into countless pieces. Moreover, the other party did not only target Ye Futian but also launched an attack against Hua Jieyu and Huang Jiuge at the same time.


    There was a shocking power of telekinesis around Hua Jieyu. Her strong telekinetic power wanted to break through the defense but was constantly being cut and shattered, unable to break the siege laid by the nine cultivators and unable to attack those who stood in the void.


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian seemed to sense something. His body turned into golden lightning and rushed toward Hua Jieyu. The Halberd of Time and Space opened up a path, letting the attack cut his body, but moving forward without hesitation to get in front of Hua Jieyu with incredible speed. Seeing those golden lines attacking toward them, he let out a roar, and the golden-winged Roc turned into a real demonic beast and opened both wings to wrap Hua Jieyu inside.


    Psst! Psst! Sharp and harsh sounds were heard, and the body of the golden-winged Roc was cut and chopped to pieces little by little. The nine cultivators in the void gathered into a matrix to continue the attack. The nine divine implements pointed downward, intending to kill Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu on the spot. These two were not the main targets and could be eliminated directly. Their eyes were indifferent and without any trace of emotion. All this was just a mission for them. With their power, those under the Saint Plane, how could they not die?


    Countless people from the Holy Zhi Palace showed a look of despair. How could this be? Not long ago, Ye Futian had destroyed three elite battle matrixes of the Endless Ocean. Just when victory seemed apparent, how did it change so quickly with these nine terrible characters? Who were they? Any one of the nine alone would be a top contender, definitely ranked high on the Sage list.


    And these nine moving as one, along with a complete set of nine divine implements, were simply a killing machine. Anyone below the Saint Plane, no matter strong in spiritual will power or with an invincible body, would most likely perish just the same! Even Hua Qingqing, who wanted to use her power to help Ye Futian, was cut off by the network that covered the sky and earth. There was really no solution!

 988 Impasse

    In the vast battlefield of the Holy Zhi Palace, countless mighty ones rushed to the battlefield where Ye Futian was once again. Every single slash the Sword Saint dealt resulted in a rain of blood and gore. Yu Sheng did his best to break through the barricade at his side, intending to return to Ye Futian. The nine over there made them feel that they truly held the power to kill Ye Futian.


    "Get him." A cold voice was heard from the air. The mighty ones from the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean barricaded the place where Ye Futian was in layers, making that particular battlefield unusually packed. They cordoned the place off both in the air or on the ground, forbidding anyone from getting near.


    While those saints had no idea who those nine people that came with Saint Zhi were, the mighty ones from the battle matrixes consisted of members of the Endless Ocean that were all killed by Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. The consequences would be dire if they were to let Ye Futian and people successfully break out. With the people being able to kill Ye Futian, it was only a given that none of them minded. To those from the other holy lands, they were determined to kill Ye Futian even if the Renhuang lineage were to never fall into their hands. His survival would have posed a huge, lethal threat to all of those holy lands.


    Huang Jiuge became coiled by endless golden threads at the moment. His training had been somewhat lacking and there would have been no way he could just transform into something else altogether in such a short period of time, for he had yet to master the Renhuang lineage that he had just acquired. Not even Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu would have been able to deal with the nine mighty ones, which meant that he stood no chance at all.


    Ye Futian turned into the Roc and covered Hua Jieyu with his wings, protecting her. The countless golden threads continued to gnaw at the Roc''s body, intending to end both Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu right there on the battlefield, showing no mercy at all.


    Astounding sword will zipped by in the air from outside, streaking into the battlefield. Many saints turned their eyes in that direction and they frowned. They saw two figures riding holy swords and joining the battlefield. One of them was the saint of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State��the Village Chief of Tombkeeper Village.


    The other was a young woman who was about 18 years old. She tied her hair in a ponytail and came barefoot, looking young and rather immature. However, her eyes seemed to be the sharpest swords that the world had ever produced, seemingly able to pierce anyone with just one look. The young woman was apparently Yaya, who had spent several years training within the Nether Sword Mound at Tombkeeper Village. She swept the battlefield with one look and charged into the fray with the holy sword.


    Mighty ones at the outside sensed a powerful sword will and turned around, but were only able to see the holy sword streaked past like a bolt of lightning, zipping past the air and splattering sounds were heard in just one instant. The heads of tens of mighty ones rolled and were crushed. The saints in the air all turned their eyes to Yaya. The Sacred King and Saint Xihua frowned. She, who was suspected to be a sword spirit by the Tombkeeper Village, had unexpectedly returned. She had disappeared for several years and there were speculations about her isolating herself in training in the Holy Zhi Palace, as well as her having transformed into a sword spirit. She had then emerged as a sage at the pinnacle of her plane. Her speed at training was frighteningly fast, quicker than even Ye Futian. However, the Sacred King and the others knew that her case was not a case of a person''s speed at training, but the rate of growth of a sword spirit.


    "Take her down," the Sacred King said coldly. Speaking of which, it was due to her that he and Ye Futian went from resenting each other to becoming archenemies. He wanted to take the Nether Sword Mound and went to Tombkeeper Village personally, ordering his men to kill Yaya''s parents. Ye Futian killed mighty ones from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty on the spot in retaliation. The Sacred War broke out after that. The Sacred King thought it would be an easy feat to destroy the Holy Zhi Palace back then, never expecting things to turn out as they were at present.


    One figure after another charged in Yaya''s direction, trying to intercept her. The holy sword continued zipping forward in an unstoppable manner, heading straight for the spot where Ye Futian was. Many evaded the holy sword right away and came before Yaya herself. Some mighty ones from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty transformed into golden phoenixes, descending upon her with flaming golden claws.


    Yaya continued to move forward. Her deep eyes took one look at the mighty ones coming at her. They felt as if they had been thrust into the abyss within an instant. A blood-colored abyss with countless swords lying in wait. The blood-colored sword was hanging high in the air. Boundless sword will emanated from the sword, cutting up their spiritual will. Their faces turned pale and they felt their spiritual will being destroyed on the spot.


    The barefooted young woman took one step and zipped past the crowd before her. Wherever she happened to streak past, mighty ones dropped like flies to the ground one after another, reduced to dead bodies that did not even know how they died. As such, the battlefield turned extremely eerie. The holy sword flew before a barefooted young woman as she walked, carving out a bloody path in the extremely raging and chaotic battlefield. Furthermore, the rate at which it was done was frighteningly fast. Countless perished where she was present.


    "Take her down," Saint Ji and Saint Xihua said. They felt that the emergence of the barefooted young woman posed a threat to the nine mighty ones. If she was able to make it all the way there, Ye Futian might find an opening that he could exploit. They needed only mere moments more to kill Ye Futian. There was no way they would let any unforeseen circumstances get in the way of that happening.


    She must be stopped at all cost.


    Intense rumbling was heard from above. One huge mountain after another appeared on the battlefield, dropping onto the holy sword. The blade penetrated the mountains in mere moments. Thousands of sword will weaved about like spider webs. The mountains were crushed right there as the holy sword continued to move straight in its course. It rang intensely with the barefooted young woman in tow, and anyone who dared to stand in her way was quickly thrown into the blood-colored abyss with no way of escape. The seemingly long battles actually happened with a very short period of time. The barefooted young woman soon arrived near the battlefield that Ye Futian was in. It had only taken her mere moments to arrive on that battlefield itself.


    Saint Ji''s, Saint Xihua''s, and the sacred king''s expressions, as well as the saints from the Endless Ocean, turned sour. Things are actually still changing on the battlefield at this point?


    Saint Zhi turned his eyes to Yaya and shouted with an ashen face, "Kong Yao." Kong Yao stepped out and headed towards the holy sword as soon as he finished. There were few throughout the entire battlefield capable of intercepting Yaya, as everyone was fighting their own raging battles. They had been giving their all to intercept other mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace out to back up Ye Futian, meaning that none of them had much time nor power to spare for intercepting her.


    Kong Yao, who ranked ninth on the Sage Ranking, was no doubt one of the top figures left on that battlefield. Divine elephants appeared as he walked. The huge elephants pressed down on the place surrounding him as he was clad in armor-type divine implements. When the holy sword came at him, he launched a flash of the punch. The elephants moved and they went out to intercept the holy sword.


    Boom�� A rumble was heard and the entire place shook. The divine elephants were torn to shreds one after another as if no one would have been able to stand in the sword''s way at all. It went all the way before Kong Yao.


    Doom. Kong Yao took one step with a solemn expression. The step seemed to be harnessing endless power, the force of the divine elephants burst with him as the epicenter. While the holy sword was not blocked, its speed was somewhat slowed.


    Another punch was thrown to the air before him. Holy light burst and an extremely huge divine elephant walked, clashing with the holy sword coming at Kong Yao. The sword was finally halted that time, unleashing boundless sword will and tearing at the divine elephant''s body bit by bit, intending to destroy it altogether. Yaya then emerged from behind and cast her cold eyes at Kong Yao. One look from her made Kong Yao feel intensely threatened.


    "Take them out already." Saint Zhi frowned and took a look at Yaya, before addressing the nine mighty ones below. The light emanating from the divine implements in the nine mighty ones'' hands burst with greater intensity. The dazzling golden threads tearing at the air tore the Roc''s body bit by bit. Both wings were cut down and they were about to get to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, whose deaths seemed to be mere moments away.


    Countless held their breaths. None of the mighty ones who were fighting were in any mood to fight after sensing what was happening there. Both sides were actually very clear that the key to the Sacred War rested on whether Ye Futian ended up living or dying.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    If he were to survive, all seven holy lands that ganged up on the Holy Zhi Palace would be in great peril. If he were to die, the Holy Zhi Palace would be no more. The legend that spanned a short period of time would have been a piece in the annals of history that inspired regret.


    Powerful aura coursed around Ye Futian''s body. His arms were opened to embrace Hua Jieyu. The devastating threads cut his body, staining his white robe red with blood. Hua Jieyu felt the warmth in Ye Futian''s hands. There were tears at the corner of her eyes. She lowered her head and the crystal clear tears dropped onto Ye Futian''s bloodied robe like pearls.


    At that moment, she sensed the boiling power within Ye Futian''s body; she knew what he was about to do. There did not seem to be any other better option. If he continued to hold back, what awaited them would be the end of their journey, where there was no future to speak of. However, she did not know what would happen to Ye Futian if he were to do what he was planning to do, or whether or not he could bear the consequences of such things happening.


    She did not think about any of that, as there was simply no point to thinking about any of that at such a juncture. They gave their all and it was just them. The entire Holy Zhi Palace gave their all as well. Everyone held the same beliefs of protecting the holy land of the Barren State. Even the Yue clan, the Vajra Region, the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, and other forces participated in the Sacred War to help them.


    They had done their best to hold back the attacks of the seven opposing holy lands'' forces. They tore through the adversity at hand and things brightened bit by bit until they were able to break the barricade formed by the seven holy lands, taking out the strongest elites from three. The end of the Sacred War seemed to have been within their grasp. However, another nine mysterious mighty ones emerged all of a sudden, hunting them down. It was apparent that the nine were not of the seven holy lands, but outsiders coming from the Renhuang lineage that Huang Jiuge had inherited.


    They gave their all and their opponents returned fire with equal fervor. Their enemies did everything they have been able to just so Ye Futian would end up dead.


    If that''s the case, then all of you shall die right here, right now!

 989 Forbidden Ar

    There was a group of people sitting quietly at a restaurant outside of Zhongzhou City, drinking wine. The restaurant was empty and there was no one else around. All cultivators within Zhongzhou City came to the Holy Zhi Palace and went nowhere else that day. While they might not have been able to see the Sacred War taking place outside the Holy Zhi Palace, some who were of higher training among them were able to catch a glimpse somehow, so much so that they had a complete view of the battles taking place. As such, there was a possibility that they could learn of the Sacred War''s outcome as soon as it happened. It was an affair that would rock the entire Nine States.


    The restaurant was exceedingly quiet. The young man who took the lead was a dashing man with an exceptional bearing. All the others had to stand while he was drinking. The few cultivators who were standing behind him were exuding powers of unreadable depths simply by standing around.


    A figure was seen sitting before that young man, who did not even dare breathe loudly. There were a man and a woman, as well as an older yet beautiful lady, as well as a fairy young man who was of Noble Plane training. His face resembled Saint Zhi''s somewhat.


    "Sir, will they succeed?" the beautiful lady turned her eyes to the young man and asked in a rather alluring tone. The young man looked up at her. She was about 30 years old with supple skin and looked ravishing. She caught his eye and lowered her head somewhat in embarrassment, making her look even more attractive.


    The young man spun the cup in his head for a bit and sported a rather sheepish smile. He knew what the lady was up to. While she was indeed pretty, she was not enough to be able to seduce him. His status was such that he could have had any woman he wanted, and he would not have been so thirsty as to eye someone else''s wife.


    "No problem, if any accidents happen," the young man said plainly, "I''ve sent people there. When the deed is over, you all will be able to leave."


    "Thank you, sir," the young and beautiful woman said softly. She rescinded her previous thoughts after seeing that the young man wanted nothing from her. It was apparent that she knew what was going on, and she had actually only been doing that to stay alive. She was living under the roof of others at the moment after all, and it would only take a single word from the other party to decide her fate. As such, she deemed it necessary to at least try, as to enable herself to have a better life.


    The young man smiled as he took a look at the woman, saying nothing. In actuality, the rate of success of what he was pulling was incredibly high, making failure almost impossible.


    The key was what he would do with it after getting his hands on it. The rate of failure, in that case, was extremely high. In his case, the true battle for him probably lied elsewhere instead of with the Holy Zhi Palace. But then again, it was nonetheless the Renhuang lineage and he was the one who opened it personally. It was vexing for him to have done something only to benefit others. He could not rest well until he had tried getting it back at least. Furthermore, he would have attempted to do that while still playing by Emperor Xia''s rules, as angering Emperor Xia would have dire consequences. It was the Nine States that belonged to Emperor Xia instead of his own turf after all.


    ��


    Countless mighty ones either from Zhongzhou City or other places all over the Nine States gathered outside the Holy Zhi Palace. Other than a few top-notch figures who dared to get near the Holy Zhi Palace to watch the battles, most stayed far away at the border to watch as the battles unfolded. They still felt the weight of the raging battles in their minds nonetheless. They had just witnessed a saint of the Holy Zhi Palace bring a young woman to the place. The barefooted young woman streaked through the air and killed her way into the heart of the battlefield, shocking all who watched it.


    There were countless terrifying figures in the Sacred War that day. The battlefield was extremely fiery, and it seemed that the mighty ones on the outskirts had all gone to the center of the Holy Zhi Palace, packing the battlefield up. It was unknown what had actually caused a commotion of that scale.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu stood at the center of the battlefield with their arms around each other. The nine mighty ones pointed at both of them with divine implements. The devastating golden threads tore through everything and were about bring about the last slaughter, killing Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu on the spot.


    At that moment, they felt that Ye Futian''s aura seemed to be rising and growing stronger. The devastating golden threads were unable to completely cut his body. The blood in his body seemed to be howling and boiling, almost burning. Slivers of formless power coursed about his body, making his physical defense seem to increase in strength. The Halberd of Time and Space pulsed with light of greater intensity. The divine implement that ranked third on the Divine Implement Ranking burst with increasingly bright light.


    The nine mighty ones in the air seemed to have sensed the ever-increasing aura on Ye Futian and they frowned. What the hell is going on here? He''s actually still alive?


    Worse still, they seemed to be able to sense a terrifying telepathic storm emerging in the air. Their surroundings stirred and with their battlefield serving as the center, slivers of intent out to tear everything apart appeared.


    Is he trying to break through our spiritual power cutting arts? They turned their eyes to him again and saw that the woman in Ye Futian''s arms was hanging her head. That power actually came from her. Her psychic powers seemed to be burning. Her crown Life Spirit emitted a brilliant light, and even the shadow behind her seemed to be changing.


    "Jieyu." A voice was heard from within Hua Jieyu''s mind. It was the saint within her body conversing with her.


    "I''m sorry, teacher," Hua Jieyu replied telepathically. She leaned on Ye Futian''s body with tears rolling down her cheeks. The saint went silent and a sigh was heard from within Hua Jieyu''s mind.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Alright then." The sighing voice seemed to be harboring a bit of reluctance. At the very next moment, the shadow behind Hua Jieyu seemed to burn, emanating dazzling light. It quickly turned into countless spots of light, melding with Hua Jieyu''s spiritual powers.


    "I''m sorry," Hua Jieyu said gently. She recalled all that she had been through with her teacher in the past few years. While her teacher seemed to have never existed in the world and no one else knew of her, she trained quietly under said teacher''s tutelage nonetheless. While she knew that her teacher was simply doing as she was told, her teacher nonetheless was genuinely trying to help and protect her.


    If it had not been for her teacher when she was on her pilgrimage with Xia Qingyuan, she might have actually perished out there, and she would not have gained that encounter. Her teacher knew that it was wrong for her to train in those kinds of powers, yet her teacher did nothing to stop her. Presently, her teacher was actually willing to sacrifice herself just to keep Hua Jieyu in one piece, with no other intention than to protect Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu felt as if she was being stabbed and twisted at the moment. Her tears wet the bloodied robe on Ye Futian''s body. There was nothing else she could do. The one who was holding her in his arms to protect her at all costs was the love of her life.


    Ye Futian naturally felt the changes in Hua Jieyu''s body. Furthermore, there was a gust of extremely powerful psychic storm shrouding him, channeling spiritual powers to him. Extremely dazzling light shrouded both his and Hua Jieyu''s bodies, looking incredibly holy and regal, like the light of Renhuang, overpowering even the light emanated from him by burning imperial will.


    His heart shuddered violently. Jieyu, are you overpowering the imperial will for my sake?


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian lowered his head and looked at the person in his arms. Hua Jieyu slowly moved away from his arms and looked up. Her eyes were filled with tears and looked incredibly tender, which, in turn, belied formidable determination.


    "What are you doing?" Ye Futian''s voice sook somewhat. Hua Jieyu''s teary eyes shined with a tinge of an incredibly tender smile before she looked up at the heavens slowly. A terrifying psychic storm grew increasingly intense. Boundless light rained from above.


    "Forbidden Art��Divine Advent." Hua Jieyu''s voice was extremely solemn as she uttered those words. As her voice rang in her surroundings, a bolt of lightning split the heavens, bringing forth boundless spiritual powers as the sky was cleaved.


    Slivers of terrifying psychic powers descended and entered Hua Jieyu''s body. She stood with her hair billowing in the chaos as her eyes turned increasingly demonic. The shadow that she had summoned behind her gradually turned tangible and its light reached towering heights, looking like a queen of unparalleled regal bearing.


    "Kill them." Hua Jieyu turned her eyes to the nine mighty ones in the air. Her billowing hair and cold eyes were filled with endless killing intent. Slivers of devastating psychic light of calamity burst through the endless golden threads, heading straight for the heads of the nine mighty ones like a calamity of the great path.


    The nine mighty ones grunted at the same time and their attacks seemed to have been stifled. The divine implements in their hands shook at the same time, lashing out at Hua Jieyu. A streak of extreme spiritual cutting powers slashed at Hua Jieyu''s psychic attacks, shattering them.


    The power unleashed by Hua Jieyu had surpassed her limit. She was fighting the nine figures at the pinnacle of their training, and that served as the testament of the tremendous power she came to wield. It was at the very cutting edge of the planes below Saint Plane, as if she was borrowing powers that were not hers.


    "Why are you doing this?" Ye Futian paid no heed to the magnitude of power that Hua Jieyu had unleashed. The light emanating from her body overpowered the ones coursing through his. Ye Futian naturally knew that Hua Jieyu was fighting for her sake and that she was paying a hefty price to do so. He had no idea what doing so would cost, but being able to surpass his own power meant that the cost was extreme, more so than what he had to pay by burning his imperial will.


    Forbidden Art��Divine Advent!


    Ye Futian''s heart shook. He actually felt fear and his eyes looked pained. His spiritual will was cranked to its limit. Everything under the heavens seemed to be of impeccable clarity. Jieyu''s power seemed to be amplifying his own powers as well, and he was able to clearly sense how powerful her psychic powers were.


    The extension of spiritual psychic powers seemingly enabled him to see the faces of countless people in the battlefield. He saw every single golden thread, and was even aware of every single minute changes in the space. Spots of light coursed on the Halberd of Time and Space, seemingly having merged with his own spiritual powers. Boundless spiritual power oozed from within his mind, turning into thousands of spiritual particles. Every single particle seemed to emanate incredible destructive powers.


    A frightening spiritual power storm seemed to have gradually whipped up with Ye Futian at the center, tearing the golden threads around him apart.


    "Die!" Ye Futian lifted his head and howled. A devastating spiritual storm whipped up as his voice was heard. The devastating light of the particles was converted into golden lightning, streaking through the space and hitting the minds of the nine mighty ones.


    Boom! The nine shuddered violently, feeling as if their brains were about to explode, as if they were about to be torn to pieces!

 990 Attack

    Ye Futian was a martial artist and a cultivator, as well as a spiritual elementalist. He had two spirit elemental life spirits. The guqin and the life spirit that Ye Qingdi had given him in the past were both Spirit Elementals. He had always been good at spirit elemental attacks, but he had never tapped into this skill too deeply. More often, he still used his spiritual energy to communicate with the world''s rule power or use his powerful body. Hua Jieyu was good at spiritual energy attacks.


    But now Ye Futian felt his mental power increasing. As his mind blazed, his spiritual energy''s perception changed. He could do the same thing as Jieyu and directly integrate rule power into his spiritual will and attack his enemy''s spiritual energy in the most direct manner.


    He floated in the air, holding the Halberd of Time and Space. A violent all-consuming storm appeared around him. It pierced through the golden lines. He swept his gaze over the nine cultivators, and they all felt like they were sinking into his eyes and falling into Ye Futian''s mental prison. They all clung tightly to their spiritual will power, but they still trembled under Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu''s attack, making the attacks that they unleashed increasingly unsteady.


    Even more frightening, the image of a god appeared in the air. It looked like an empress had descended into the world. It made the mental storm rage even fiercer, continuously destroying their will. Even when they used their divine implements, they could not stand against the whole storm and could only block part of it.


    "What kind of power is this?" said Saint Li as he looked over the battlefield. His heart trembled.


    "The forbidden art of Divine Advent," whispered Saint Xia and his heart was troubled. "I heard that those with great abilities can project divine spirits onto themselves. Could this be it?"


    "That divine figure has a certain quality that even Saints can''t match. It''s like an empress. Do you mean that the divine spirit of the Empress has been projected onto Hua Jieyu? This is the forbidden art of Divine Advent?" said Saint Li.


    "It''s possible." Saint Xia nodded. "It looks like Hua Jieyu made great gains during the trials. But this is summoning a figure from the Upper Worlds from far away. Even though it is only a single thread of a divine spirit, what must it be costing Hua Jieyu to do this?" Saint Xia did not know if this power had already exceeded his expectations. Previously, the Saint behind Hua Jieyu had burned a divine spirit to help her. Perhaps this was in order to protect her?


    This Sacred War was truly thrilling. Even though they were Saints, they still felt every up and down. It was impossible to remain calm.


    All of this had happened in a flash. The battlefield around Ye Futian was extremely intense. Kong Yao gathered his divine power to block the barefoot girl. There was an incredibly strange look in her eyes as she looked at Kong Yao. Kong Yao felt the world change. It was as if he was no longer on the battlefield at the Holy Zhi Palace, but was instead in some blood-red space. A sword of blood was suspended in the sky. Countless swords gathered together and flew towards him, trying to annihilate his spiritual will.


    Kong Yao stepped forward and roared, and the divine spirit turned into a divine elephant. But the barefoot girl stepped forward at the same moment and the divine sword slashed forward with all the power of heaven and earth. There was a loud crash as it pierced through the image of the divine elephant. And not only that, but swords fell wildly from the heavens, piercing the divine elephant. Finally, the sword of blood fell and cut through the elephant that had been formed of Kong Yao''s spiritual will as well.


    The wind blew as the barefoot girl continued forward. With each step, the divine elephant was pierced by another sword, both in the outside world and within Kong Yao''s spiritual will. Cracks appeared in it as it was slowly cut apart. Blood flowed from Kong Yao''s mouth and his face was pale, but he still stepped forward, each step increasing his power. He would fight with his life just to stop the barefoot girl for a while. The nine cultivators did not need long to kill Ye Futian. He only needed to buy them a little time.


    The terrible storm caused the barefoot girl''s ponytail to sway in the wind. Even stronger sword wills burst forth as she continued forward. Kong Yao spat out a mouthful of blood, but his whole body seemed to be burning. This was the end. He had no way to retreat. If Ye Futian did not die, then he would.


    Boom!


    Kong Yao took a great step forward, and the divine elephant did as well, slamming its foot down on the barefoot girl. But it seemed like her frail body was not affected. In her eyes, a sword of blood pierced through Kong Yao''s spiritual willpower.


    At that moment many scenes flashed through Kong Yao''s mind. He remembered the first time he had set foot upon the soil of the Barren State. How arrogant he had been as he brought Qin Zhong to the Holy Zhi Palace. The Palace Lord Liu Chan had welcomed them, and yet he had ignored it all, believing in his heart of hearts that the Holy Zhi Palace was not worthy of his attention. He had attacked Crouching Dragon Mountain and surrounded Ye Futian, but had been blocked time and time again until Emperor Xia appeared. But even then he had thought that he would destroy the palace sooner or later. Did they think that delaying the Battle of Proving Holiness would change anything?Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    In that battle, he would slaughter the top powers of the Holy Zhi Palace. However, he had never thought that before the Battle of Proving Holiness came the Barren State would rise to prominence, and the Zhisheng Cliffs had been subjected to slaughter. Now even seven great holy lands joining together to overwhelm the Holy Zhi Palace had become mired in a terrible situation. He had never thought that the next time he fought on the soil of the Barren State would be the last battle of his life. And the one who killed him would be a young girl with a ponytail.


    Elsewhere, another fierce battle was raging. Yu Sheng seemed to have turned into a demon. As he moved forward a destructive dark airflow raged between heaven and earth, consuming all the power there. Below him were the countless corpses of cultivators from the Endless Sea. Before him was a huge battle matrix. It transformed into a huge black dragon that sprouted two gigantic wings, blocking his path.


    His body was covered in blood. Heaven and earth shook with every step that he took. Everyone in the dragon battle array felt their hearts tremble. A terrible dark halberd shot out, but the dragon swung its tail, shattering it.


    Boom! Yu Sheng took another step forward, and his demon body transformed again. It grew bigger and bigger and was about to turn into a true demon. The dragon roared and swept out its wings. Every scale on its wings turned into an extremely sharp dark blade, and they all slashed out towards Yu Sheng. But he seemed not to see them as he stepped forward once again.


    Boom! Demonic power filled the sky as he sucked in all the energy around him. His demonic form changed once again. His aura grew stronger and rippled out in powerful waves. With one step he had reached the Sage level.


    He watched the dark wings slashing towards him and stretched out his hands, grabbing them. He roared and began to tear them apart, causing everyone in the battle matrix to scream in pain.


    Boom! Yu Sheng seemed to feel nothing as he continued forward. The cultivators in the dark dragon battle matrix felt their hearts tremble with fear as they watched his still changing demonic form. They wanted to kneel before him and worship him. They saw him reach out with Battleaxe of Judgement, which suddenly demonized. It grew darker and darker and an astonishing power stretched out from within. All the cultivators in the battle matrix shook. Time seemed to stop.


    Ye Futian held the Halberd of Time and Space as the nine cultivators pointed divine implements at him. A giant net descended on him from the sky. But he seemed not to see them. He stepped into the air with golden lightning bursting from his brow, turning into a destructive spirit elemental storm. It collided with the encirclement, and he managed to break through the net. Blood stained his clothes, but he seemed to feel nothing as he rushed towards the nine people in the sky. Hua Jieyu followed behind him, her mental storm becoming a destructive power that rushed towards the nine cultivators.


    Freeze time and space, thought Ye Futian. The nine cultivators felt the area around them enter a static state, and in the next instant, Ye Futian appeared in front of them, thrusting the Halberd of Time and Space at one of them without hesitation.


    "Kill!" His murderous intent filled the skies as the halberd shot forward. The cultivator tried to flee but found that he could not control his body. Even though his will was under serious attack, he still thrust his sword forward and it flew out of his hand towards Ye Futian.


    The divine implement''s speed seemed to slow as it collided with the Halberd of Time and Space. It was shocked backward. The cultivator screamed as his chest was pierced, and he instantly burst into pieces.


    "Kill!" Seeming to have been infected by Ye Futian''s shout, Yaya stepped forward as well. With that step, the divine elephant''s body cracked open as it was pierced. Kong Yao''s spiritual will was also pierced by the sword of blood. Although he had already foreseen this ending, he still issued an angry roar. Kong Yao, number nine on the Sage Ranking, would really die like this?


    The divine sword pierced through and the divine elephant burst apart. The sword continued into Kong Yao''s body, making him break apart as well, finally turning into nothing more than dust. Kong Yao, number nine on the Sage Ranking, had died in battle.


    The barefoot girl continued forward. There was no one to stop her. There was a scream from the other side of the battlefield as Yu Sheng''s Battleaxe of Judgment fell. The cultivators in the battle matrix watched it fall helplessly. It cut through the black dragon from head to tail, and blood fell like rain as the cultivators within the matrix were cut open.


    Countless cultivators were lost in an instant.


    The dragon had been slain by the Battleaxe of Judgment. Yu Sheng stepped past it towards where Ye Futian was fighting!

 991 Heaven Has No Mercy

    The weather changed upon the battlefield. After he killed one of them, Ye Futian stared at the other eight cultivators. At the same time, Yaya and Yu Sheng arrived on the scene and swept a cold glance across them all. A suffocating pressure pressed down on all of them, making them feel a slight chill.


    They all glanced at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Could they still kill the two of them? They all looked at each other and seemed to have the same thought. They all moved at the same time, flashing towards Ye Futian with their swords held out towards him. Endless killing light shot towards him, seeking to tear apart the space around him.


    Hua Jieyu was still behind Ye Futian. Their spiritual energies had merged together and had transformed into golden lightning. It rushed into the minds of the eight cultivators like a divine catastrophe. Brilliant light burst from the Halberd of Time and Space, freezing the space around them. The eight cultivators were caught within and felt that their movements were constricted.


    Ye Futian swept the Halberd of Time and Space out in an arc, and endless space tearing power shot out towards the cultivators. Endless particles cut through the enemies'' golden lines. He had used an attack to meet an attack. The particles exploded in front of his opponents, and each one was transformed into a terrible killing force. The eight cultivators waved their swords, blocking the oncoming particles as they retreated.


    At that moment, a terrible aura descended. The sound of a swinging sword pierced through the air. One of them turned around and saw a divine sword coming towards them forcefully. He slashed out with his sword, turning it into a line that could cut through anything, but the huge divine sword continued forward, crushing everything. There was a loud noise as his body was pierced by the divine sword and he died.


    Although these nine great cultivators were strong, even stronger than Sages, what they were good at was attacking. Whether they were targeting the flesh or the mind they were formidable, especially when they had formed a matrix. At that point, it would take a god to stop them. But now their matrix had been broken, they were suffering mental attacks, and they had been knocked back by Ye Futian. How could they block Yaya''s attack? Thus, one of them had been killed.


    Yu Sheng had also arrived with his demonic form. He descended in front of one of the cultivators, letting his terrible sword will tear across his body. He seemed to not even feel them. He slashed out with his Battleaxe of Judgment, cutting his opponent in two.


    At the Imperial Mausoleum, Yu Sheng had used his upper Magi level demonization to block Ji Ya, the number two on the Sage Ranking. Now he was a Sage and had demonized again. How much stronger must he be? How could a single cultivator withstand his ax?Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Three of the cultivators had been killed in a flash.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yaya, and Yu Sheng surrounded the six remaining cultivators. It seems that the tables had turned completely. The six of them turned pale. Were they really going to be defeated?


    Ye Futian stepped forward with the Halberd of Time and Space. He tilted it and it reflected a brilliant light. He was filled with murderous intent. There was a strange look in his eyes, and golden lightning flashed out, trapping one of the cultivators within it.


    Woosh! A mighty wind rushed out, and Ye Futian stepped forward again. He seemed to ignore the distance between them as he appeared directly in front of his opponent. He struck out with the Halberd of Time and Space without hesitation, piercing his opponent''s throat. Another cultivator was dead.


    The sound of a whistling sword filled the sky as Yaya stepped forward. Her sword of blood pierced her opponent''s will, and the divine sword descended. The fifth cultivator was slain.


    Boom! Yu Sheng stepped forward with his intimidating demon form and brought down the Battleaxe of Judgment, cleaving through the sky and the sixth cultivator''s body. It cut him in two, and blood went flying.


    The battle seemed to stop as everyone''s eyes turned to this part of the battlefield. Everyone''s heart beat wildly. They had each been killed with one attack. Six of the nine great cultivators had been killed so cruelly and swiftly. The once unmatched nine cultivators were now powerless.


    "Can we finally tell who is going to win?" whispered Saint Xia. The battle had been too suspenseful. Just as Ye Futian had been on the brink of death, the barefoot girl had appeared, Yu Sheng had broken through, and Hua Jieyu had used her divine secret power. Ye Futian and those around him had truly shown that no one could match them. Their white clothes were now covered in blood. Who could stand in their way? Moreover, after the deaths of the nine great cultivators, the seven great holy lands'' morale would break since no one could kill Ye Futian.


    Saint Ji, Saint Xihua, and the Great Zhou Sacred King all looked extremely angry. All these attacks and they still had been unable to kill Ye Futian. Would Ye Futian really survive the attacks of the allied seven great holy lands?


    On the other hand, the cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace completely relaxed. Yaya and Yu Sheng had arrived. With them helping Ye Futian, no one could kill him.


    They would win this battle. They were filled with confidence. The seven great holy lands would not destroy the Holy Zhi Palace today. Thus, they would use the power they had shown today to make it so that there was no one left in the seven great holy lands below the Saint level.


    Boom! Ye Futian stepped forward again. He was not excited by this battle at all, he only felt an infinite coldness. He did not know what this battle would do to Jieyu. There were only three of the nine cultivators left. He did not even spare a single thought about letting them leave alive. No matter who they were, they would die for coming to this place.


    One of them saw Ye Futian coming and felt the all-consuming destructive power of the Halberd of Time and Space. He turned pale and roared, "You still won''t get involved?"


    Everyone paused when they heard this. Was there someone else? In this situation, no one could kill Ye Futian. There was no one in the seven holy lands who could do it.


    Who was going to get involved?


    Saint Xia frowned and looked up as if he had thought of something. His expression changed. He looked into the sky above Ye Futian and saw Saint Zhi coming down.


    "Careful, Saint Zhi!" shouted Saint Xia. A powerful divine force swept out, covering the space where Ye Futian was standing. His anger was clear on his face. A thought appeared in Saint Xia''s mind��Would Saint Zhi really dare?


    He was a Saint, would he really trade his life for Ye Futian''s?


    Saint Xia''s voice pierced through the clouds, making everyone on the battlefield''s hearts tremble. A strange look also appeared on Saint Ji''s face. He reacted quickly, turning into a beam of light and shooting over to Saint Xia.


    "Are you also planning to get involved in this Sacred War, Saint Xia?" came Saint Ji''s voice. He was deliberately intercepting Saint Xia. But as he spoke, Ye Futian felt a truly suffocating divine power in the sky above him. And not only him, but everyone in the same area of the battlefield that he was in felt it as well. They all looked up and saw Saint Zhi descending.


    A Saint had gotten involved.


    Everyone turned pale as they saw Saint Zhi coming towards Ye Futian. The people from the Holy Zhi Palace looked on with despair.


    Why would a Saint dare to get involved? By breaking Emperor Xia''s rule, Saint Zhi was on the path to destruction. They did not understand, and neither did Ye Futian. Even though he wanted to get revenge for the attack on Zhisheng Cliffs, was he really willing to trade his life for Ye Futian''s?


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and Yaya all looked up and saw Saint Zhi''s figure descending. They felt like their blood had ceased flowing and they could no longer breathe. They were truly despairing.


    Moon Saint, Saint Jiang, and even Glass Saint all stepped forward at the same time in that direction. An incomparably strong divine power swept out, but it seemed like they would be too late.


    Time seemed to stop.


    They were frozen in despair.


    Saint Zhi descended, and his huge hand came down with all the power of the Great Path. The air trembled as the hand covered the sky. It was about to destroy everything.


    Saint Zhi''s eyes were strangely calm, with a sense of determination. As a Saint, his mind was extremely firm. Once he had decided something he would not waver from that course of action. When the Prince of Emperor Li''s Realm had found him, his fate had already been decided. Perhaps today, Saint Xia and the others would not dare to make a decision without authorization, but when Emperor Xia sent people to investigate he would have no way to escape. Sometimes as a Saint, you really had no choice.


    His fate was fixed, but before he died, he would take Ye Futian with him. It seemed ironic to him. A powerful Sage like him would stoop to trade his life for that of a lowly Sage like Ye Futian. How tragic.


    A beam of brilliant light descended. Saint Zhi had not been the only one standing by, the Village Chief was there as well. When he saw Saint Zhi act, he had instantly flashed through the air and transformed into a sword as he shot towards Saint Zhi.


    Saint Ji wore no expression, and the look in his eyes did not change at all. Even as the sword pierced through his hand it continued downward. Blood stained his palm, but Saint Zhi seemed not to feel it as he continued to press down on the Village Chief. Even though the sword had pierced him, he did not cease his attack. His bloody palm covered the sky. There was a loud boom. Everything under his palm was destroyed, utterly crushed to dust.


    "Die!" yelled Saint Zhi. Heaven and earth shook and Ye Futian''s spiritual will trembled. Looking into Saint Zhi''s murderous eyes, he felt true despair. They had won everything and even defeated a true Saint. But could someone who had just entered the Saint Plane really compare to the master of Zhisheng Cliffs?


    "Retreat!" yelled Ye Futian. But he did not know if they would be able to. Moreover, Yu Sheng and Yaya did not retreat. At this moment they seemed to act from instinct. Not only did they not retreat, but they advanced.


    Yu Sheng raised his ax and slashed it into the sky. Yaya raised her sword to meet the attack coming from above. Hua Jieyu''s eyes were full of despair, true despair. They had already used all their power, killing powerful opponent after powerful opponent. But in the end, they had lost it all because a Saint had gotten personally involved. She turned into a mental storm and rushed up into the air. Just like Yaya and Yu Sheng, she did not only not retreat but instead went up to meet the attack.


    They seemed to have a single thought��block the attack from hitting Ye Futian. As for whether or not they could stop it, they did not think about it. Nor did they think about what would happen if they did stop it. They just hoped that Ye Futian could live.


    Boundless Imperial Brilliance swayed, with nothing to disguise it. Ye Futian saw his friends acting. How could he retreat? He lifted the Halberd of Time and Space and went to meet Saint Zhi''s destructive attack.


    This was what life was all about. What more could one ask for?


    If heaven would not have mercy on him, then he would die.


    He had done all he could!

 992 Only Ism Allowed to Bully You

    Everyone in the vast battlefield stopped fighting and turned their eyes in Ye Futian''s direction. Every single saint had undergone divine catastrophes and their attacks were imbued with the rules of the great path.


    Saint Zhi��the saint lord of Zhisheng Cliffs��had climbed to the second level of the Divine Path Steps, making him unpredictably formidable. He was ranked 30th on the Saint Ranking, so no one would have expected him to trade lives with Ye Futian.


    The Bloody Palm Print shrouded the heavens, and under countless watchful eyes, he continued to press down on the Village Chief, who had taken the form of a sword. The sky seemed to have been brought down along with the palm print. Blood stained Saint Zhi''s palm, yet he pressed forth as if he felt no pain. He had cast away concerns about his own life so that any small injuries did not faze him at all.


    He had to see the Holy Zhi Palace go down with him before he ended up dead. He had to kill Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Yaya, and Hua Jieyu. Regardless of what happened in the immediate or near future, the Holy Zhi Palace had to go down.


    Ye Futian and the others looked comparatively puny under the palm print. While they were indeed peerless under Saint Plane, the one who wanted to kill them was a saint. They saw Yu Sheng burst with overbearing demonic might and Yaya''s ponytail loosen up and billow in the air. They saw Hua Jieyu take the form of a queen, attempting to resist the falling palm print using her psychic powers.


    They also saw Ye Futian burst with blinding light; the light that was forcefully suppressed before. He rose like an emperor and fused himself with the Halberd of Time and Space as he lashed out as if he were to pierce the heavens.


    Boom. A stifled rumble was heard as the Bloody Palm Print fell onto their heads. Yaya held the holy sword in her hand as the palm print crashed onto them. Her hair billowed wildly as boundless sword will was shattered, which reversed and pierced into her body.


    Yu Sheng held the battleax in his hand and his devil-like body brought down the ax on the palm print. The axe was deflected back to his own body. However, he stood his ground tall and proud, striking both hands on the palm print, intending to prevent it from crashing down. Explosive rumbles were heard as his devil body continued to crumble and blood was seen dripping from his body.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes turned incredibly demonic. It was as if they were no longer her eyes. She fused into a single being with the shadow behind her, bringing a terrifying psychic storm to bear, resisting all powers against them in that space and intending to prevent the palm print from crashing down as well. That weak body of hers had no fear as it struck, lashing out with the storm.


    Boom�� The Halberd of Time and Space in Ye Futian''s hand struck, crashing onto the center of the palm print with boundless might as if it intended to tear the palm print apart. However, it was only able to tear a small crack before Ye Futian felt as if he was able to be squashed. All his internal organs felt like they were on the brink of collapse.


    Intense rumbling continued to be heard and the might of great path continued to fall onto them. However, the might of the Bloody Palm Print had been considerably weakened. The Village Chief was attacking the palm print with his sword form, after all, negating a good part of its power. However, that still proved inadequate to stop it. All of their bodies were pinned and they spat up blood as their bodies continued to suffer damage. Saint Zhi never intended to leave any of them alive.


    Hua Jieyu''s demonic eyes took one look at Ye Futian. Her eyes were teary before and her will seemed to begin burning. Boundless power in the heavens seeped into her body. A force that did not belong to her burst.


    "I offer my body as a sacrifice in exchange for the will of the queen." A solemn and despaired voice was heard and the might of the divine path seemed to burst from her body. A sliver of unparalleled imperial might was sensed and even her eyes seemed to have changed, becoming ones that cared for nothing around her as she looked above.


    Her will served as the catalyst and her body as the sacrifice in exchange for the will of the queen. The will invoked the catastrophe of the great path above the heavens. Hua Jieyu continued to resist the palm print as her body and even her will were burning. She invoked the catastrophe of the heavens as she continued to move upwards, shattering the palm print bit by bit as she tore through it.


    "Go to hell!" Saint Zhi roared furiously as he continued to press downward, giving up everything just to kill the ones before him.


    Yaya''s body seemed to have been torn by swords as boundless light of swords burst from her body. She turned around and saw Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, saying to herself, "Brother, Yaya is leaving." Dazzling light of the sword burst with her body in the middle as soon as she finished. A incredibly huge sword diagram appeared on the palm print. Boundless swords appeared in the air all of a sudden. The swords of countless swordsmen in the battlefield rang and flew out of their hands, heading towards Yaya.


    Countless were stunned as they witnessed the astonishing scene, feeling their minds being rattled. Saints finally made it there at that moment. Both Saint Li and Saint Jiang were there, filling the place with saintly might. However, that barefooted young woman''s hair continued to billow in a frenzy. Boundless sword will burst from her body as changes were seen. Even her face and bearing seemed to have changed. While Yaya''s face was still hers, it seemed to have grown incredibly fast and had matured, filled with saintly might. Her eyes took one look at Saint Zhi in the air, filled with overbearing pride and cold murderous intent.


    Boom�� The palm print finally shattered under the attack of the psychic powers and sword will. Countless swords in the air merged and became a single blade, pulsing with the flash of the sword capable of killing everything.


    The sword flew and Saint Zhi''s pupils dilated. At the very next moment, a beam of sword flash pierced him. Saint Zhi''s body was immediately shattered and reduced to nothing. In a single instant, his soul and mind had dissipated into nothing. The saint lord of Zhisheng Cliffs was thoroughly reduced to dust, scattered throughout the heavens and the earth.


    The towering sword will dispersed soon after and the young woman''s body fell limply. The holy sword appeared beneath the young woman''s body, lifting her up and hovering in the air. The Village Chief knelt down and prostrated in the air. Tears were seen in his aged eyes. It was unknown if those were tears shed for Yaya''s disappearance or for the return of his master, or maybe even both.


    Yu Sheng''s devil-like body dropped from the air and the same went for Ye Futian, who fell limply. Blood continued to shoot from his mouth as his teary eyes turned to look at Hua Jieyu and Yaya.


    "No," he said, his voice croaking. His heart ached very, very painfully. The very reason why he cherished Yaya and had taken her as his little sister was because he had long guessed that that would have been Yaya''s end. The end of the pitiful young woman.


    His speculations became reality. Yaya was gone. The one taking her place might be Yaya or maybe it was the Sword Saint of the Void, who had once been known throughout the world. He turned his eyes to Hua Jieyu and his heart felt like it was able to be torn apart.


    Hua Jieyu''s body continued to burn, being reduced to nothing bit by bit. Like him, she fell lifelessly and turned around arduously. Her demonic eyes turned clear as if she had regained her consciousness. Her eyes were teary and yet, there was a beaming smile in them.


    Everything had finally ended.


    Saint Zhi was dead and the saints came. No one in the entire Nine States would be able to kill him.


    Isn''t this ending beautiful?


    However, his imperial will continued to burn, and Emperor Xia�� he was hoping the emperor would let him off of that ordeal.


    Boom. Ye Futian''s body hit the ground. He extended his shivering hands, attempting to catch Hua Jieyu''s falling body. Her body was very light as if it weighed nothing, continuing to disappear bit by bit.


    "Jieyu." Ye Futian''s heart seemed to be bleeding. He looked up and shouted, "Senior Saint Jiang."


    Saint Jiang took one look down and remained standing where he was. It was too late.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes continued to smile. She extended her hand, intending to stroke Ye Futian''s face as she said, "I guess I can''t be your queen after all."


    "No," Ye Futian shook his head and said, "I disagree." Boundless emerald light was sent into Hua Jieyu''s body but it was entirely futile. Her body continued to disperse.


    "Keep in mind, your next wife cannot be someone as sh*tty as I''m. Your queen has to become some girl who is unparalleled, even in the heavens." Hua Jieyu''s spectral silhouette continued to smile, but somehow, she continued to shed tears.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "I promise you this, only you''ll be my queen."


    "You''re so dumb." Hua Jieyu then said softly, "But promise me this, don''t let her bully you, as I''m the only one allowed to do so in this world."


    "Only you''re allowed to bully me." Ye Futian burst into tears.


    "Right, I''ll be able to rest easy now. But somehow, despite no longer having a heart, I still feel heartache. Can souls cry too?" Her silhouette turned increasingly spectral. It gradually turned into a blurry shadow, yet the tears on her face were just as visible.


    Boundless light circled around Hua Jieyu''s body as it moved to the air around her. Hua Jieyu felt some formless power summoning her.


    Is this the call of the reaper?


    "Promise me, live." Her spectral silhouette dispersed into the air.


    "No..." Ye Futian attempted to catch the last bit of her but quickly found that he only grabbed nothing. He watched in despair as Hua Jieyu transformed into a beam of light and shot for the heavens. Ye Futian''s arms shivered. His eyes were filled with boundless despair.


    The battlefield was dead silent. Everyone was staring at him. A lotus lamp continued to burn in the air. A vague silhouette appeared on the lamp, and that silhouette was stunningly beautiful. She looked at Ye Futian, who was despairing, as tears filled her flawless face. She turned and look at that faraway silhouette and her body burned as well. Countless lotus lamps then took off to the air.


    One of the lamps came beside Ye Futian and a voice was heard in his mind: "I was once a lamp before the Buddha. My life came and went as my destiny willed it. I shall protect her in your stead." Hua Qingqing''s gentle voice was heard and Ye Futian watched as the tranquil light of the Buddha took off. He was unable to fathom anything, as he felt nothing but intense heartache at the moment.


    "That concludes the war." Saint Xia''s cold eyes swept across everyone on the battlefield. Saint Zhi went against the rules and had severely injured Ye Futian and the others. He should have been executed, but he had already perished.


    "I disagree." An extremely cold voice was heard. Saint Xia looked below and saw Ye Futian standing up. Dazzling imperial light shot forth into the heavens. His body was burning, and it seemed that his killing intent burned as well!

 993 Slaughter

    Ye Futian''s imperial light shot to towering heights and he held the Halberd of Space and Time as he took to the air, filled with thick murderous intent. His bloodstained clothes seemed to have turned golden and billowed wildly in the wind.


    Many on the battlefield turned their eyes in his direction. Even saints came to sense an aura that put them on edge. Even though Ye Futian''s own powers were limited, the imperial will inherent within his being was still something that demanded respect and worship from all living beings.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    He was the only supreme being in that place.


    Saint Xia''s heart raced. He thought that Saint Zhi''s attack would have rendered Ye Futian incapable of standing even though it did not kill him. With Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng, and Yaya��the most formidable forces��taken out of the equation, if the fighting were to continue, it would be a disaster for Ye Futian, as everyone wanted to kill him. Saint Zhi had broken the balance of the Sacred War. It went without saying that as a saint, Saint Xia would have naturally been able to prevent the war from raging on. However, Ye Futian disagreed and stood up again, seemingly burning his own life.


    What level is that aura that he is emanating now? Saint Xia was speechless. He thought that he would have been able to have some say in the Sacred War. He only came to realize then that the fighting on that day no longer had an outcome that he was able to decide. Emperor Xia needed to be the one to decide how things would end. Saint Zhi made a move against the rules, Hua Jieyu borrowed the queen''s will, the Sword Saint of the Void returned, and Ye Futian was burning with imperial light.


    Saint Xia was no longer able to control anything going on with the war.


    Saint Li, Saint Jiang, and the others watched as their hearts raced. That battle exceeded everyone''s expectations. Even Saint Ji, Saint Xihua, the Sacred King, and the saints of the Endless Ocean never predicted any of it to go this far. No one had expected the fighting to be that intense and brutal. No one anticipated Saint Zhi to trade lives with Ye Futian and to have still failed nonetheless.


    No one knew what would happen next.


    "He is at the end of his strength. Kill him." Saint Ji''s eyes were on Ye Futian. His intent to kill Ye Futian had been taken to another level. Ye Futian was just too dangerous. If he did not agree for the war to end, then he would die.


    He knew without a doubt that Ye Futian had sustained severe injuries in that day''s fighting, and the Palace Lord was burning all of his own powers to keep fighting. He did not care for the secrets of Ye Futian. He only wanted Ye Futian to die. Ye Futian''s survival would have been a disaster for the Hall of Holy Light.


    "Kill him," Saint North Deep said in a manner that was just as cold. The calm battlefield became frenzied once again. Countless mighty ones headed for Ye Futian. They apparently shared Saint Ji''s thoughts.


    With Ye Futian''s wife, Hua Jieyu, killed in the Sacred War, if he were to survive the war, none from the seven holy lands who participated in the battle would be able to get out unscathed. Everything had hit a critical point, so Ye Futian needed to die that day, regardless of the cost incurred.


    Technically-speaking, there were six, instead of seven, holy lands remaining. With the demise of both Saint Zhi and Kong Yao, Zhisheng Cliffs no longer existed outside of the annals of history. That holy land now ceased to exist.


    The army headed straight for Ye Futian. The Sword Saint, Qin Zhuang, and the others came to his side.


    "Take care of Yu Sheng and Jiuge," Ye Futian requested before his dazzling figure shot up, turning into a bolt of lightning and headed straight for a single direction.


    There were three in that direction who intended to leave the battlefield��the three remaining ones of the nine mighty ones that came from Emperor Li''s Realm. They turned around immediately after seeing Ye Futian coming for them, lashing out with the divine implements in their hands. Thousands of golden threads headed straight for Ye Futian.


    A beam pierced through the air and the head of one of them disappeared in a flash. The other two were astonished and shuddered. They turned around and retreated at breakneck speed. A terrifying spiritual power attack came straight for them. Their brains felt like they were about to explode and were no longer capable of thought. There was no longer any opportunity for thought as the Halberd of Time and Space pierced through both of their heads, killing them on the spot.


    Boom. The gathered mighty ones conjured battle matrixes and attacked him in the air. Ye Futian took one look at them and an irresistible power washed throughout the space��Space-freezing.


    Ye Futian took one step out and the Halberd of Time and Space pulsed with tremendous light. His imperial will fused with the halberd and brought even greater power to bear. He lifted his arm and lashed out with the halberd. His body turned into a beam of dazzling light. The light of countless particles burst and the space before him seemed like it was about to explode. The bodies of the mighty ones swept by as the force blew up. That beam of light zipped past and blood splattered all over the place, with dead bodies dropping like flies.


    One strike with the halberd was all it took to take them all down.


    The hearts of countless raced as they saw the rain of blood in that space. Him, at the end of his strength? No one was able to stand in Ye Futian''s way at the moment. All who had wanted to go up and kill him felt themselves shivering.


    "What are you all still looking at? Can''t any of you fight?" Saint Xia shouted at the battlefield below. His words were seemingly meant for those from the Holy Zhi Palace. Everyone came to their senses. They looked at Ye Futian''s crazed silhouette and they burned with intense killing intent as well.


    "Kill them all."


    "Kill..." Shouts were heard throughout the place. Every single mighty one on the Holy Zhi Palace''s side began to fight again.


    The mighty ones from the six remaining opposing holy lands felt a shiver run down their spines. Is Saint Xia making his stance clear?


    The golden great ape took to the air. Yuan Hong wielded the Infinite Ruler and swept at everything around him.


    The nine symbols circled around Gu Dongliu, with countless clones of the symbols lashing out at his enemies.


    Ye Wuchen''s Life Spirit hovered, seemingly bursting with Renhuang sword will, bringing the might of the battle matrix as he ran. Dead bodies of mighty ones before him continue to rise.


    All of them only had one intention at the moment��kill every single might one from the six holy lands.


    Saint Xia, Saint Li, Saint Jiang, and the Moon Saint stood in the air and kept a close watch on Ye Futian. They had to keep their guard up due to what happened previously.


    "I shall report what happened to Emperor Xia. If you were a part of what Saint Zhi did, Emperor Xia will sentence you himself," Saint Xia said plainly.


    "What do Saint Zhi''s actions have to do with me? I was only stopping, seeing you emerging onto the battlefield," Saint Ji replied coldly.


    "Explain to Emperor Xia yourself," Saint Xia said coldly without looking at him.


    Saint Ji''s expression was grim. He took a look below and saw Ye Futian on a killing spree, glittering with imperial light. The Palace Lord was actually heading for the mighty ones of the Hall of Holy Light.


    "He can''t keep doing this for long. Use ranged attacks," Saint Ji said coldly. Many mighty ones from the Hall of Holy Light appeared before Ye Futian, bringing their sword will of light at him in a frenzy.


    Ye Futian seemed to have not taken notice of any of them at all. He continued to charge into the fray, shinning with imperial light. All attacks that had gotten close to him were quickly reduced to nothing. His Halberd of Time and Space lashed out, causing yet another rainstorm of blood. No one was able to stand in his way.


    "Watch out, Ji Ya!" Saint Ji shouted at Ji Ya, who was fighting with Tianxin below.


    Ji Ya turned around and found Ye Futian heading straight for him. His body separated from Monk Tianxin with a rumble. He burst with the most brilliant of holy light after seeing Ye Futian coming for him, heading straight for Ye Futian. His body seemed to be burning as he transformed into a beam of light.


    A beam of golden light and a beam of white light clashed. Two beams merged together in an instant before separating. Both Ye Futian and Ji Ya had their backs against each other. The imperial light bursting from Ye Futian continued to shine brilliantly while the light on Ji Ya continued to disperse. Blood was seen oozing from his mouth and his body gradually came apart.


    "No..." Ji Ya''s body was destroyed as he shouted, turning into nothing. The mighty one who ranked second on the Sage Ranking was dead. There was simply no sage that Ye Futian was unable to kill.


    Many mighty ones from the Hall of Holy Light ganged up on him, yet when they saw the shimmering imperial light about Ye Futian, they stopped and forgot to attack altogether.


    Ye Futian had truly become invincible under the Saint Plane at the moment throughout the Nine States. Anyone who dared stand before him would be killed by one strike of his halberd.


    Ye Futian coughed once and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth. It was naturally not an injury dealt by Ji Ya, but one that he had sustained prior. If he had not been burning his imperial will, that attack from Saint Zhi would have taken his life. He was already burning power within his body in a frenzy just so that he could stand.


    The mighty ones from the Hall of Holy Light attempted to move against him after seeing him cough. Mighty aura swept the place and Ye Futian took one cold look at them. He put the Halberd of Time and Space away and sat cross-legged in the air. The Guqin spirit appeared below him. His fingers rested on the strings and as the first note was played, tears were seen at the corner of his eyes.


    He recalled the first time he learned to play the guqin. That was back in the little hut in Qingzhou Academy, where his teacher, Hua Fengliu, taught him to play the guqin. The little fox liked teasing him back then.


    He recalled the year where the love between them blossomed and as they held hands at Qingzhou Lake. Both of them confirmed their relationship there. He sent Jieyu home and stayed there. He was kicked out of the room by Jieyu, and so he sat outside the house and played the whole night.


    He remembered the time in Donghai Academy where the grandmaster instructed him in the art of the guqin. He played and Jieyu lied on his thighs for one whole night.


    The history between them flashed before his eyes. The tune of the guqin had always been around as both of them came to know each other and fell in love. He was still around and the guqin was still present, yet she was nowhere to be found.


    The Ukiyo song was played, and with the imperial will infused with it, the true imperial song was played. Limitless sentiments were infused within the tune. There was boundless sorrow as well as towering killing intent.


    The mighty ones from the Hall of Holy Light attacked, yet a terrifying storm of the guqin''s tune whipped up around Ye Futian. The rules of seemingly all methods were dispersed before the tune of the instrument.


    The tune became increasingly fierce as it rang throughout the entire battlefield. The mighty ones who had surrounded Ye Futian felt as if their spiritual will was no longer in their control. The spiritual qi around them was no longer controllable. Rules of Space-freezing were invoked and their bodies seemed to have been put under absolute lockdown.


    Ye Futian''s fingers stroked on the strings and a sharp clanging sound was heard. The tune seeped into the eardrums of the mighty ones around him, transforming into killing power that tore at their spiritual will.


    Boom! The face of one mighty one became pale as their thoughts ceased. The tune was upon them and their spiritual will was erased. Their body fell lifelessly to the ground. The guqin storm turned increasingly terrifying. Many mighty ones who surrounded Ye Futian trembled in a frenzy and they continued to drop, killed by the formless tune of the guqin.


    The bloodstained silhouette sat up straight in the air as the tune was played, piercing time and space. Even the saints were dazed at the moment. It was as if they were witnessing the legend of an emperor!

 994 The Command of Emperor Xia

    Emperor Xia''s Realm, Upper World.


    Emperor Xia''s Palace stood in the sky, above the clouds. Between the clouds, the palace seemed to be a fairyland on earth. A figure wearing a golden robe stood with his hands behind his back, his eyes looking forwards. Beside him, there was a handsome figure in man''s clothing who was extremely beautiful, and it was Xia Qingyuan.


    Both of them had their eyes on the picture in front of them where there was a huge scene: a palace on top of a mountain, countless cultivators fighting a great battle, but a blood-stained youth sat alone in the void, playing the guqin as if between heaven and earth there existed only him alone. Cultivators around them were continually falling, and the youth had the brilliance of the emperor upon him, extremely radiant.


    Seeing what happened in the picture, Xia Qingyuan''s extremely beautiful eyes showed a slight disturbance. It seemed to have reminded of her the words that Futian said to her that day in the imperial mausoleum. As if to say that she had secret weapons, it was not only her who had them.


    At the time, she thought that it was just Ye Futian being ignorant and arrogant, but now it seemed that if he had really shown his cards, the loser would still be her. This battle was truly earth-shattering. She did not expect to have such a battle in the Lower Worlds.


    "This one alone is better than all in the Nine States." Emperor Xia looked at the battle, then waved his hand and the picture disappeared.


    "Messenger," he said casually, and as soon as his voice was heard, a figure appeared in front of him, kneeling on one knee in extreme piety. "First and foremost, send someone to investigate the past of the palace of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, Ye Futian. From the time he was born until now, what he has done, who has been around him, what ability has he cultivated, I want an account of everything." Emperor Xia spoke in an indifferent voice, but there was an unquestionable authority behind it.


    "Secondly, take people to the Lower Worlds and keep tabs on everyone who was observing the battles inside and outside of the Holy Palace today, and monitor all of them. Tell them they are to return to their respective holy lands. Unless they have permission, they are not allowed to leave. Violators of the order will be killed without exception." The second instruction of Emperor Xia was equivalent to a total blockade of the news of the battle at the Holy Zhi Palace. Everyone inside and outside the palace would be put under lockdown.


    "Third, ask the people of Nine State Guard what they were doing. Who gave Saint Zhi the audacity to do what he did?" Emperor Xia continued to order.


    "Yes, Sir." The man said, "When investigating Ye Futian, should we control him?"


    "No need, just watch him." Emperor Xia said, "Do it as soon as possible."


    "I will go too," Xia Qingyuan said.


    Emperor Xia nodded. "Might as well."


    Then, the man with the command left with Xia Qingyuan. Soon, a group of cultivators in Emperor Xia''s Palace initiated the Spatial Matrix in Emperor Xia''s Realm and went straight across the space to the Lower Worlds.


    ��


    Outside the Holy Zhi Palace, there were countless cultivators on the outskirts, but they couldn''t see inside the battlefield and could only wait outside for the news. Only the top characters of the great holy lands could get closer to see something inside the battlefield.


    At this point, the battle had not completely concluded, and there was a middle-aged man who quietly retreated and walked away from the crowd in a flash. His speed was incredibly fast, and he was obviously someone in the Saint Plane. However, when he was still in the area of Thousand Holy Islands, he stopped and frowned. "Who is it?" As he finished speaking, several figures appeared, and their eyes fell on him.


    "Someone from Emperor Li''s Realm?" asked the person.


    The eyes of the middle-aged man were like a knife, sweeping toward the newcomer.


    "Where is Li Yao?" the other party continued to ask.


    The middle-aged man rose to the sky in a flash, trying to escape. He did not flee in the direction of Li Yao but went in the opposite direction. A group of people chased in the void, and it didn''t take long before a quiet Sacred War broke out in Thousand Holy Islands of the Barren State, and someone in the Saint Plane had fallen on the spot and was killed.


    In a bar, outside of Zhongzhou City, Li Yao was still drinking there. On the table in front of him were nine broken jade tokens. These nine people were the nine powerful cultivators who were the subordinates that were specially trained for his purpose. They were expert killers with great strength and were regarded as elite. For the inheritance of Renhuang, he used the nine powerful cultivators and the set of divine implements.


    But today, all nine were dead.


    In front of him, that beautiful woman was crying, but she did not seem to be inconsolably sad. As for the youth, he showed signs of great hatred. His father��Saint Zhi��had fallen.


    "Your Royal Highness," a cultivator came forward with a broken jade token in his hand and said, "something has gone wrong. Sir should withdraw."


    Li Yao immediately put the glass down, stood up, and made an executive decision, "Withdraw." He didn''t know what had happened, but if it caused the attention of Emperor Xia, it would be more troublesome. He had intended to end things quickly and leave Emperor Xia''s Realm. But now it seemed that Saint Zhi had failed, and even the people he sent to observe the battle were dead as well. This time, the loss was not a small one, but judging from his status, it was not a big deal.


    A top divine implement appeared, and a strong air of the void came out of it. It was a ship of the void. They stepped into it and suddenly, there was a light screen shining, wrapping them in it. It even covered up the atmosphere. Afterward, the ship crossed the void directly, disappearing right there in the bar, traveling through the air. There was no trace of them in the blink of an eye.


    Not long after they left, several figures descended. After a quick look at the bar, they looked up into the void, and the look on their faces was not a good one. It seemed that he was one step too late. Of course, even if they were really arriving on time, there was no chance they could have kept the other party. After all, the power of the Nine States was limited. And this was only because Emperor Xia wanted to observe the battle, otherwise, even the saint would not be staying. After all, Emperor Xia did not pay much attention to the lands of the Nine States and had always held a casual attitude toward them.


    ��


    At the Holy Palace, on the battlefield, with the Ukiyo song being played, almost all the cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light were terminated. Even as the music spread throughout the entire battlefield, people were constantly falling, and the cultivators of the six great holy lands were steadily killed. Under such circumstances, of course, the six holy lands were massacred by the powerful cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The Sacred War was now, without a doubt, over.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Withdraw," Saint Ji spat. Those from the Hall of Holy Light who were still alive tried to retreat. Those from the Temple of Light tried to evacuate, but the sound of the guqin played endlessly, and everywhere the sound passed, death followed. It intended to exterminate all the cultivators from the Hall of Holy light here today.


    Of course, the Hall of Holy Light was controlled by the Qi clan, and many cultivators had returned to Qi State to guard, so they were not all here. But even so, Ji Ya had died, as well as many of the top figures from the Hall of Holy Light. One could only imagine what kind of mood Saint Ji was in at this moment.


    "Withdraw," Saint Xihua ordered.


    "Withdraw." Great Zhou Sacred King and the saints of the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean successively ordered the withdrawal of the army. Even though they were greatly reluctant to do so, they could not watch all their cultivators be slaughtered. Thus, withdrawal was the only option.


    Today, the seven holy lands formed an alliance and came to the Holy Zhi Palace for war, but they did not capture Huang Jiuge, who owned the inheritance of Renhuang, they did not capture the Halberd of Time and Space, nor did not they kill Ye Futian. Instead, they left behind countless corpses.


    Saint Zhi, the master of Zhisheng Cliffs had died, so had Ji Ya, Kong Yao, and Liu Zong. So many who were known throughout the land of the Nine States had died here. The people of the Holy Zhi Palace were still madly chasing and killing, wanting to eliminate all those who tried to retreat.


    At this time, above the sky, a mighty authority of heaven descended. Countless eyes now watched the sky. It was as if the heavenly army had arrived and the hearts of many trembled.


    Emperor Xia''s people had arrived. And they came fast. Clearly, Emperor Xia himself was personally keeping tabs on the Battle of the Holy Zhi Palace. No one had ever thought, and no one dared to think, that for many years, no matter what kind of battle, it had never caused such a situation where Emperor Xia ordered a great army to come to the Nine States, even for the likes of Saint Xia, whose heart was beating fast.


    Was it because of the aura that was released by Ye Futian? How would Emperor Xia treat Ye Futian?


    Clearly Ye Futian did not release the power before. Because it was not a last resort, he did not dare to release it. Although he did not know what secrets were hidden, he knew this secret was very likely to attract the attention of Emperor Xia. Therefore, Ye Futian did not dare to. But under the attack of Saint Zhi, under the threat of death, he had no choice but to release the power. However, since Emperor Xia had personally sent people to come, there was no need for him to go to the Upper Worlds for an explanation.


    The great army descended, and the person who was out front was the Little Princess, Xia Qingyuan. Not long ago, his wife had also perished in this battle. Her gaze fell on Ye Futian and looked at the young man who was playing the Ukiyo.


    "By the command of Emperor Xia, everyone of all the holy lands should return to their own holy land immediately to await further orders. They are not to take a step outside without permission. Anyone who violates the order will be executed," next to Xia Qingyuan, a powerful cultivator of the Saint Plane said. His voice spread throughout the palace.


    Emperor Xia wanted to control everyone because of Saint Zhi''s move? Or because of Ye Futian?


    "Is it over?" Countless people looked up at the sky. At this moment, whether it was Saint Ji, Saint Xihua, or the Great Zhou Sacred King, they all understood that they were defeated and had been defeated thoroughly. They paid a great price for their failure. Even more frightening was that if Emperor Xia allowed Ye Futian to continue on his path, it would be their apocalypse one day.


    "Yes." Saint Ji nodded. Saint Xihua and Great Zhou Sacred King all nodded in agreement. Who dared to not obey Emperor Xia?


    The sound of the guqin suddenly stopped, the spirit of guqin disappeared, and Ye Futian seemed to have exhausted all his power as his body fell from the sky. Several shadows flashed toward him. Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue arrived first because of, and the two caught Ye Futian.


    "Second senior sister, third senior brother." Ye Futian had tears in the corner of his eyes. Zhuge Mingyue, likewise, was also in tears. Looking at Ye Futian''s eyes, her heart hurt for him. Gu Dongliu held Ye Futian''s hand. He didn''t say anything, because any words at this moment would be useless. He had tried his best, and so did everyone else.


    But who could have thought that Saint Zhi would intervene? And who could have stopped Saint Zhi? If it was not for Jieyu and Yaya, who fought without a thought for their lives, everyone there would have been doomed, including Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    In the distance, inside the Holy Sage Pavilion, there were many people coming toward them, and there were two among them that came onto the battlefield with tears on their faces. They came in front of Ye Futian, who was on the ground. These two people were Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin.


    "Master and Masteress." Ye Futian did not let Zhuge Mingyue help him but knelt on the ground. He owed his Master and Masteress something he could no longer repay. They had given Jieyu to him to care for, but he was not able to protect her.


    Nandou Wenyin pulled Ye Futian up, hugging him with tears in her eyes. "Futian, it was not your fault." Likewise, Hua Fengliu also pulled Ye Futian to him. He sat on the ground, and at this moment, he looked as if he aged a lot suddenly. He looked up at the direction in which Hua Jieyu had disappeared, and all their shared past rushed to his mind.


    At that time, at Qingzhou Academy, he lived with his daughter Hua Jieyu, just the two of them. The arrival of Ye Futian added some color to their lives. He took Ye Futian on as a disciple and taught him to play the guqin and the art of engraving. Later he matched his daughter and his disciple.


    These were all such beautiful memories. It seemed as if they happened just yesterday, but now it seemed to be far out of reach!

 995 Be Good

    Many people, such as Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, and Ye Wuchen, all descended next to Ye Futian. Seeing Ye Futian, Hua Fengliu and the others had tears in their eyes also.


    Ye Wuchen looked up and watched the cultivators of the six great holy lands, who had begun to retreat in the sky. There were tears falling down his cheeks. He knew Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu since their time in the Cangye Kingdom of the land of the hundred kingdoms. Today, those people had not yet been completely annihilated.


    Liu Chenyu came to Ye Wuchen''s side, pulling on his hand with the same painful tears. Yi Qingxuan and Loulan Xue also arrived and were saddened. All the palace lords at the Holy Zhi Palace came successively, one after another. There was blood on their bodies.


    At this time, Sage Wanxiang stopped not far from Ye Futian. He bowed and said "Palace Lord, the divine spirit of the lady has not dissipated. Perhaps there is still a chance to revive her."


    Ye Futian looked up with difficulty. It had already gotten this far, was it possible that there was still really a chance?


    Sage Wanxiang saw Ye Futian was still without movement, so he extended his hands and then kneeled and worshipped to the sky. He said clearly, "God bless the lady." He had made a divination of the outcome before the battle, but it was undetermined, and he was impacted in his heart and soul as a result of it. The celestial plane carried by this divination had exceeded his ability and he was not qualified to know its secret. The appearance of the will of the emperor, the descent of the divine spirit of the empress, and the command of Emperor Xia were not something that the likes of him could have deduced.


    Upon hearing the voice of Sage Wanxiang, countless people at the Holy Zhi Palace looked up at the sky. Sword Demon, Sage Daozang, and the other palace lords all kneeled down and shouted, "God bless the lady." All these voices were heard throughout the Holy Zhi Palace. Countless people fell to the ground in the direction where Hua Jieyu had disappeared and worshipped. At this moment, a voice was heard throughout heaven and earth.


    "God bless the lady."


    In the void, Xia Qingyuan, Saint Xia, Saint Li, Saint Jiang, and Moon Saint all witnessed this scene, and their hearts could not be calmed.


    To the palace, Ye Futian was the palace lord��its future and its faith. After the battle today, Ye Futian would be the god of the palace.


    Even Glass Saint, who held great resentment against Ye Futian, experienced a great disturbance inside her heart. She had thought about killing Ye Futian with her own hands, but after today, could she still do it?


    Everyone had their own lives to live. When she was young, she once dreamed of being like Hua Jieyu, finding someone who truly loved her, and offering everything to each other. But instead, she experienced the darkest part of her life, which had given birth to the Glass Saint of today. Then, after this battle, what would Ye Futian become?


    As the wind blew, her clothes fluttered, and her long hair flew in the wind. She looked at the sky above the battlefield. As Xia Emperor had ordered, all the holy lands had retreated. Even though their intent to kill him was as high as the sky, they still weren''t able to do it. Zhisheng Cliffs had been destroyed and the cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light were almost all annihilated, and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty also suffered heavy losses. The three holy lands of Endless Ocean lost more than half of their people with all of their top figures killed. Of course, the Holy Zhi Palace also had many who had fallen in this battle. Even the lady of the palace had perished in the battle. Therefore, the Holy Zhi Palace, at the moment, did not experience the joy of winning the Sacred War but was instead immersed in sorrow.


    In this battle, the blood of the palace was enough to create a river.


    "Return," Glass Saint said and led the cultivators of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple to leave. She had thought that the saints would have a chance to fight, but the arrival of Xia Qingyuan interrupted everything, so that saints, after all, did not have the opportunity.


    Since what happened today had attracted the attention of Emperor Xia, there was no doubt he would personally investigate. Just as Emperor Xia had commanded, before the order was lifted, all holy lands would not be allowed to make any move, so there would probably be a period of quietude. It was just unknown how long it would take Emperor Xia to investigate the matter.


    All the cultivators left in succession. Saint Xia, Saint Li, and Moon Saint had all left, as well as the people of the Vajra Region. Saint Jiang announced that he would join the Holy Zhi Palace and thereafter cultivate at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State now had one more saint added to it; a saint who ranked number twelve on the Saint Ranking no less.


    ��


    Half a month later, the news of the earthquake in the Nine States and the battle of the Holy Zhi Palace swept through the land of Nine States, and many were shocked. It was rumored that Saint Zhi had died and that the Zhisheng Cliffs was now under the control of Emperor Xia''s people. None of the cultivators were allowed to step out of Zhisheng Cliffs. No one knew what had happened or why Emperor Xiang was controlling Zhisheng Cliffs.


    In this battle, the seven holy lands joined forces to lay siege to the Holy Zhi Palace and were unable to take it down. It was rumored that blood flowed like a river at the Holy Zhi Palace and there were countless deaths and injuries. But what made people tremble the most was that no one knew which cultivators had died, as the news had been blocked.


    The world only knew the result of this battle, but the details were unknown. It was rumored that Emperor Xia had arrived and all the holy lands retreated and were ordered to stay within their own territory. They were all controlled by the cultivators sent by Emperor Xia, who guarded all of the holy lands.


    No one knew why, and those who knew the inside story were too afraid to say anything. Even Saint Xia had returned to the clan without so much a word of complaint, and Saint Li also returned to the Nine State College and did not talk about the battle.


    All of this shocked the people of Nine States. What had happened in this battle? Everyone in the Nine States wanted to know the inside story of the battle.


    At the Holy Zhi Palace, in the Holy Sage Pavilion, Ye Futian woke up from his coma, and when he opened his eyes, he saw many cultivators. Second senior sister, Little Butterfly, Phoenix, Loulan Xue, and Ling''er were all around him. As soon as they heard the news of him waking up, there were many more people who came from outside: the oldest and third senior brothers, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, and the like. All these familiar faces appeared. Master Douzhan had also returned.


    Ye Futian knew that they were worried about him, but at this time his heart was still in great pain. He asked, "How are Yu Sheng and Yaya?"


    "Yu Sheng''s injuries were not minor, but Saint Jiang is here, everything will be ok. Yaya is in retreat." Zhuge Mingyue said, "Futian, you should take care of your body."


    "Xia Qingyuan and Emperor Xia''s people, are they still here?" Ye Futian asked.


    Zhuge Mingyue nodded lightly. Ye Futian smiled bitterly. Many people did not understand why he did not release the will of the emperor earlier, but in fact, when he faced the nine great cultivators, he had released the will of the emperor with Jieyu helping him to disguise it. It wasn''t until Saint Zhi got involved that they could no longer hide it. Because only he and Jieyu knew what kind of secrets were involved in this will of the emperor.


    Back then, Donghuang the Great had sent people to Qingzhou City to destroy the statue and kill the Snow Ape Emperor. By releasing the will of the emperor, it was basically a death sentence. If he died, then the palace would also perish with him.


    Now, people at the palace only expected him to recover, but they did not know that Emperor Xia was probably already investigating this matter, and he was not likely to escape the consequences.


    As the Master of the Lower Worlds, Ye Futian did not believe that Emperor Xia did not know that Donghuang the Great had twice sent people here. It was just at the time he was an insignificant person, and those who were high above were too preoccupied to take a second look at him. For instance, when they took away Mr. Du, who paid any mind to the disciples of the college and the college? Some were of the Noble Plane or the even lower Arcana Plane. But now it was different. Looking at all of the Nine States, who could say that Ye Futian was insignificant?


    Moreover, he had released the will of the emperor in front of everyone. It was impossible for Emperor Xia to ignore it. He now would probably want a thorough investigation on him. The Nine States was under the jurisdiction of Emperor Xia. If Emperor Xia wanted to investigate him, there would be nothing that couldn''t be found. He was born in the city of Qingzhou and used to stay in the cottage. Even if there was no hard evidence, Emperor Xia Huang would be able to deduce a thing or two.


    "I am going for a walk." Ye Futian got up and went out. Everyone looked at him. Gu Dongliu whispered, "Let him have some quiet time." Everyone nodded and did not follow him, because all could understand the mood Ye Futian was in at the moment.


    Ye Futian just had a shirt on and walked in the Holy Sage Pavilion. With the wind blowing on him, he actually felt a little cool. Ahead of him, there were two people coming toward him. It was the Village Chief and Yaya. Perhaps, she could no longer be called Yaya.


    Ye Futian looked at the woman who had gone through so much change. She no longer wore pigtails and her eyes were not as clear as they were before. Although she had turned out beautiful, Ye Futian still seemed to prefer the simple girl from before.


    The woman, likewise, also looked at Ye Futian. There were some emotions in her eyes. Her lips were moving slightly as if she wanted to say something, but she did not say anything.


    Ye Futian looked at her and suddenly he smiled. He was dying, so what would he care anymore about status or identities of the world? It did not matter that she was the world-famous Sword Saint of the Void. She was still Yaya.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and reached out to try to rub her head. She leaned sideways slightly, and Ye Futian''s hand stopped for a moment. But he put his hand on her head and rubbed it, saying, "Call me brother."


    The woman''s eyes became sharp for a second and then became soft again. Her eyes revealed some struggle, her lips moved slightly, and then she said involuntarily, "Brother." Her voice was so very faint that it was almost hard to hear it.


    Once Ye Futian heard this subtle voice, his eyes reddened suddenly, even his palms were slightly trembling. Was Yaya still there?


    He held out both hands and held the woman''s face, then he took a step forward and held her in his arms. The woman''s body stiffened, but a warmth started from inside her body. This was the emotional instinct brought on by the life that lived for nearly two decades. It had penetrated deep into the soul and was not easily changed. She was the Sword Saint of the Void, but she was also Yaya. Perhaps there was no way that she could escape it.


    Her body gradually softened, allowing Ye Futian to hold her. Behind her, the Village Chief observed the scene with an awkward expression. This was perhaps the first time someone dared to hold her? Moreover, she did not even resist? He knew that although her current strength was far from the peak of before, it was still an easy task to kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian loosened his arms and smiled at Yaya. To see Yaya in sorrow and despair, one could imagine his mood at the moment.


    "Village Chief, there is something I want to ask you," Ye Futian said, looking at the Village Chief.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Yes." The Village Chief nodded.


    "If I die, please protect the palace for some years. I will let my master take over the palace. If there is nothing wrong with Yu Sheng, he will replace the master to be in charge of the palace as palace lord in the future," Ye Futian said to the Village Chief as if to dictate his last will and testament. There were too many people in the palace that he was worried about. If he died, everything would fall apart. His brothers and sisters, and Wuchen, where would they go?


    The Village Chief glanced at the woman in front of Ye Futian and saw her looking at Ye Futian, saying, "Okay."


    Ye Futian glanced at her and smiled. Stroking her cheek, he said, "Be good��" As he was speaking, he walked away. Of course, he knew that Yaya was still Yaya, but she was not only Yaya.


    When the Village Chief heard this, his emotions were conflicting. He looked at the woman in front of him somewhat fearfully. The woman turned around and looked at the Village Chief. The Village Chief instantly lowered his head. He did not see anything!

 996 Living as a Hermi

    Ye Futian took a look at Yu Sheng, and then came to where his teacher Hua Fengliu and his wife lived. Hua Fengliu had seemingly aged within the span of several days, losing his dashing looks of the past altogether. Wrinkles were seen on Nandou Wenyin''s face as well, making her look dejected.


    Both of them were playing the guqin when Ye Futian arrived. The sound of the tunes matched and melded with each other, but Ye Futian was only able to sense tinges of sorrow from the sounds. They stopped playing when they saw Ye Futian come and they smiled at him. However, Ye Futian felt that their smiles looked rather sorrowful.


    "Teacher, mastress," Ye Futian lowered his head and said.


    "Futian, how''re your injuries?" Hua Fengliu asked.


    "They''re a lot better now," Ye Futian nodded and said.


    "It''s been 17 years since we ran from Qingzhou City, eh." Hua Fengliu then added, "I still remember you carrying me, a cripple, on your back all those years ago. We crossed the East Sea, returning to Donghai City, and looked for your mistress here. I can''t believe it''s been such a long time ago. Time flies indeed."


    Ye Futian did not say anything further. He seemed to be that boy that he once was before Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin.


    "We''ve out for long enough and we''ve started getting homesick. Futian, me and your mistress here are thinking of returning to the East Sea," Hua Fengliu said. Ye Futian knelt on the ground with reddened eyes as soon as Hua Fengliu finished, lowering his head. He said, "I''ve failed you, teacher."


    He and Hua Jieyu were married in the Book Mountain of the Eastern Barren Territory back then. They both were the closest person to Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin, so both of the elders came with them. And now, his teacher said that he wanted to return to the East Sea. Such was his state of mind at the moment.


    "Futian." Nandou Wenyin went up and pulled Ye Futian his feet. She turned around and looked at Hua Fengliu, berating him, "Futian has just recovered, just what the hell are you talking about?"


    "I know." Ye Futian knew what was going through the minds of his teacher and mastress. None of the elders blamed him, yet the fact that Jieyu was the life of both of them remained.


    Hua Fengliu came to Ye Futian''s side and pulled him over, sitting on the ground with him, saying, "Do you remember that when Jieyu left all those years ago, it was just me and you, and then we went to Donghai City? But your teacher here seems to have better luck than you do. I still have your mastress here with me and Aunt Tang. So, with Jieyu gone now, I know that you''re definitely in more pain than me.


    "You have to get up on your feet regardless of how painful it is. Who did Jieyu end up passing away for after all? If something were to happen to you, it would have been a waste of her effort. You need to stay strong at this time. You know what you''ll be facing after all. Promise your teacher and your mastress, and this is the greatest hope that Jieyu had for you as well, live and thrive." Hua Fengliu knew certain secrets of Ye Futian, and so he definitely knew what Ye Futian would be up against.


    "Well, you know, teacher, it''s all up to fate for me this time," Ye Futian said beside Hua Fengliu. Emperor Xia had sent his people to guard the Holy Zhi Palace. If it was his life that the emperor wanted, it would have been all the same for him, be it at the moment or even after he became a saint.


    Hua Fengliu listened to Ye Futian''s words and went silent for a few moments. He shook his head with a bitter smile. He looked up at the sky far away and scolded Ye Futian in a low voice, "You said that you have no respect for your elders and traditions, then why would I have taken you as my student then? You called yourself a playboy, but you were not as dashing and good-looking as I was, so why the hell did I marry off my daughter to you? I''m really down on my luck for having met you."


    "Indeed. Why the hell were you so blind as to take a liking to me back then? If you hadn''t taken me in as your student and didn''t marry Jieyu off to me, things would have been better off," Ye Futian looked faraway and said lightly.


    Nandou Wenyin broke into tears within seconds, seeing the teacher and the student sitting down and talking.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    ��


    Several days passed and Ye Futian had settled some matters of the Holy Zhi Palace. That day, a sword flew out of the Holy Zhi Palace. The mighty ones sent by Emperor Xia appeared, blocking the sword that was about to leave. Xia Qingyuan stepped forward and her eyes were on Ye Futian. There was also the Village Chief, Hua Fengliu, Nandou Wenyin, and Tang Lan there with him.


    "I''m going to leave for a while. You''re welcome to join us, princess," Ye Futian said plainly to Xia Qingyuan before saying to the Village Chief, "Let''s go."


    Xia Qingyuan eyed Ye Futian coldly. What a b*stard.


    The sword will was activated and they left soon enough. The eyes behind Xia Qingyuan all turned in her direction. Xia Qingyuan then said, "Let me leave. Send someone to keep an eye on him. No need to get in his way. Just let him wherever he wants to."


    "Acknowledged." The one behind her nodded.


    Several figures looked up at the disappearing sword from the Holy Sage Pavilion of the Holy Zhi Palace. Yaya, Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu, and others saw Ye Futian off. The others in the Holy Zhi Palace did not know of the secret that Ye Futian kept close to his heart. They had no idea at all what awaited Ye Futian, thinking that Emperor Xia was just investigating the case of the Sacred War of the Nine States.


    After the holy sword left the Holy Zhi Palace, it headed east, passing Divine Sky City as they left Zhongzhou City, then passing by the Eastern Barren Territory, Book Mountain, Ancient Loulan... It was the journey that Ye Futian took when he first showed up.


    Ye Futian had no idea when Emperor Xia would act against him. His fate was no longer in his control. That was why he did not bring his teacher back. His speed was lacking and he was worried that he would be caught on the way, so he let the Village Chief escort them instead.


    They arrived at the border of the Hundred Lands and there were a lot of familiar memories Ye Futian had with the place. The Cangye Kingdom, the Nandou Nation, and many more. The holy sword kept flying forward, entering Donghai City. Within the small city below lied the Nandou clan and Donghai Academy. Those were places that held a lot of memories for him. Yi Xiang was probably still the headmaster of Donghai Academy.


    However, he did not stay at Donghai Academy. Nandou Wenyin did not even visit her brother at the royal palace of the Nandou Nation nor the Nandou clan. They passed through Donghai City and the holy sword went straight for East Sea, zipping by above the vast ocean, going all the way into Qingzhou City. The island city was where Ye Futian grew up. He thought he would never return after he last left.


    "You may return, Village Chief," Ye Futian said to the Village Chief after he arrived at the shore of Qingzhou City.


    "Will do." The Village Chief nodded, and as the sword tore through the sky, he vanished from sight altogether.


    "Teacher, mistress, where will we be staying?" Ye Futian asked. "Qingzhou Academy was probably long taken over by others. Should we pay a visit regardless?" His teacher and Jieyu had lived in Qingzhou Academy for three years. Ye Futian watched Jieyu grow up there, so he had special sentiments about the place.


    "It''s best not to disturb others. You decide, Futian. Anywhere would do," Hua Fengliu said. It was Ye Futian who sent them back after all, and he intended to stay with them for the last of his days. If Emperor Xia or Donghuang the Great wanted him dead, then he would die in Qingzhou City. It was his birthplace after all, and it seemed like a good choice to have his bones buried there. Hopefully, things would not turn out like how they had with the cottage''s teacher, where a group of people showed up out of nowhere and took him away.


    "Qingzhou Lake seems to have a good view. How about we just buy a place there?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Up to you." Hua Fengliu had no objections. They came back to live as hermits, with no intention of dealing with the messy affairs of the outside world, spending the rest of their days in peace and quiet. Hua Jieyu''s death had dealt a very heavy blow to them after all.


    "Alright then." Ye Futian nodded and they went into Qingzhou City. He thought of returning to the Ye''s residence from ages past, but that place had been bought by Uncle Feng Ruhai, a friend of his father. The last time he was back, Feng Qingxue was staying there, and Ye Futian had no intention of disturbing them. He did not wish to alert anyone of his presence as well, wishing to simply spend his days in quiet. These could very well be his last days, so there was no need to disturb others.


    Qingzhou City was a very small place to him, but to the common folk who lived there, it was a large place, just like it had felt to him all those years ago. Ye Futian quickly bought a small, elegant place by the lake. The place was simple and not large, but more than enough to accommodate them all. After they were done with settling done in the simple place, Ye Futian brought some chairs for Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin to sit. Tang Lan stood quietly at the side. Ye Futian then moved a chair to her side and said, "Have a seat, Aunt Tang."


    "Sure." Tang Lan nodded and saw Ye Futian sitting down, laying there lazily and closing his eyes, enjoying the sunlight.


    "Futian." Tang Lan stopped as she was about to say something. Ye Futian smiled and asked, "What''s the matter, Aunt Tang?" Tang Lan looked at him and said nothing as she shook her head. The three of them continued to talk as she wore a smile on their faces, seemingly without a hint of sadness, but she was nonetheless able to sense the emptiness and sorrow from the depths of their hearts. It seemed that everything was being covered by the smiles on their faces.


    "You really want to live here as well, Futian?" Nandou Wenyin asked.


    "Indeed. I''m here to keep you and teacher company." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Just let him do as he pleases," Hua Fengliu said to Nandou Wenyin, who then nodded.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked at the sky. Jieyu was no longer with him, so he would spend the last of his days by his teacher''s and mastress'' side.


    "Teacher, mastress, I''ll go take a stroll," Ye Futian got up and said.


    "Yeah." Hua Fengliu nodded.


    Ye Futian got up and left. The breeze by the lake was rather chilly. He walked aimlessly and before he realized it, he came to the place where he and Jieyu held hands all those years ago. There were many people laughing by the lake. Young boys and girls, as well as couples, making the scene look like a drawing.


    The wind blew past and Ye Futian remained standing there like a statue. A faint smile was seen in his eyes. The sky eventually turned red from the sun setting, with him having no idea how long he had been standing there. The night came as the sun set.


    The view of the lake at night looked even more beautiful. Boats of all sorts came and went without stop. Fireworks were seen occasionally; a work of the guests on the tourist boats. They admired the view as they laughed and cheered.


    Ye Futian looked at the fireworks and his eyes looked rather dazed. It was as if he had gone back in time, back to that day 18 years ago, when both of them held hands by the lake. They stood where he stood at the moment, looking at the fireworks blooming in the sky with astonishing beauty. She took his hand that year, looking at the fireworks in the sky and asked, "So are we a couple now then?"


    The fireworks looked incredibly beautiful that year. She looked even more beautiful that year.


    He smiled and a tear rolled down his cheeks. The wind blew, rustling his clothes and his hair billowed. Half of his full head of black hair turned grey in an instant!

 997 His Black Hair Was No More, When They Meet Again

    Pleasure boats and barges were all over the lake. There were girls standing outside said boats, admiring the fireworks. They turned their eyes and saw the man on the lake. His billowing hair turned half grey before becoming silver, dancing in the air. The girls were dazed by the scene. The man had a slender body and looked exceptional and dashing, as he was an incredibly handsome man. He seemed to have been merged with the scenery simply by standing around doing nothing. However, his standing silhouette seemed to be a lonesome one.


    "Quite a good-looking guy indeed." Many on the boats came to take notice of the man at the shore. Is that trick of turning hair grey some kind of spell?


    "What are you people looking at?" A young man on the boat came to the bow, following the eyes of the girls. He too caught sight of Ye Futian. The appearance and bearing of the man inspired envy in the men watching him.


    "He shed tears and his hair turned grey all of a sudden. I wonder who those tears were for." one of the girls asked.


    "Probably just some kind of trick," one of the men smiled and said. The man then took out an article of clothing and put it on the girl and said, "The wind outside is cold, let''s head inside."


    "Right." The girl nodded, turning her eyes away with a tinge of reluctance before returning to the boat.


    There were many on the lake who turned to look at Ye Futian. A woman with a bolder personality even smiled and asked when her boat passed by him, "Do you mind coming up for a bit?" However, the man did not seem to notice her and simply remained standing there alone. The woman felt bored and rowed away.


    Ye Futian then sat by the lakeside cross-legged, taking out a guqin and began playing at the side of the lake. It was a simple tune devoid of any power. There were illustrations within the flowing tune, which seemed to have blended with the scenery. There was no sadness, no tears, only joy, as if he was drawing an incredibly beautiful painting. He was illustrating the love between young couples, pure and beautiful.


    Many seemed to feel themselves taking a trip back in time as they heard the tune. It was as if they had returned to their younger days, recalling their love in ages past. The man who was playing the tune must have had quite a story to tell. The tune ended and Ye Futian stood up, walking back to his place.


    The lives of Ye Futian, Hua Fengliu, and the others were incredibly quiet in the following days. Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin spent their days basking in the sun within the compound and playing the guqin, seldom going out. It was as if they had truly become hermits. They did not bring Hua Jieyu up. No one wanted to bring her up. No one dared to. They simply hoped that time would wash away their pain.


    Ye Futian''s life was also a simple and orderly one. He spent his days talking with his teacher and mastress in their place and taking strolls along the lake at night. He seemed to have even forgotten about his training altogether.


    Time passed and everyone who lived near their place came to know them. An elder came to knock on their door, saying to Hua Fengliu with a smile, "I''ve grown used to hearing you people play your tune. Why would people like you come to Qingzhou City?" The old man was one who had been through a lot himself. He had ventured outside when he was young and had met renowned people of the Dharma and Arcana Plane before, but none of them exuded bearings like that of Hua Fengliu and the others. While he was old, he was able to guess that the lot of them were anything but simple folk.


    "Have a seat, elder," Hua Fengliu said. The elder did not refuse and entered their home.


    "We''re old, so we thought of coming home," Hua Fengliu smiled and replied to the old man.


    "Right. Qingzhou City is a small island, and quite a quiet one too." The old man then smiled and asked, "That handsome young man would be your son, I take it? Very good-looking indeed, and he seems to have surpassed you in looks." Hua Fengliu smiled and did not deny any of that. Ye Futian was like their own son to them.


    "But then again, a young man growing grey hair at such an age, eh. I wonder what he''s been through. I''m not sticking my nose where it doesn''t belong, but if he really has something that he can''t get over with, well, time shall be the remedy to all things," the old man said in an advisory tone. He was able to hear their tunes due to living so closeby. While the tunes were quiet, they had a tinge of sadness to them. The family seemed to have some stories to tell, so he came just to give them advice.


    "Thank you, elder." Hua Fengliu nodded.


    "Alright, I''ve overstayed my welcome and I shall leave you be." The old man left and Hua Fengliu sighed. Ye Futian''s hair had been grey every day for as long as they had been in the city. He had had a head of black hair when they came to Qingzhou City, yet his hair was all grey, almost as white as snow even. It was a sad thing for a young person to have a head of grey hair.


    Hua Fengliu had no thoughts on anything else at the moment. He had only hoped that there would be good news coming from the Holy Zhi Palace. He did not want to see people show up suddenly and take Ye Futian away by force. He had already lost his beloved daughter, and he dared not think about any mishaps happening to his student, who he came to see as his son.


    Qingzhou Lake had always been the most popular place in Qingzhou City. Ye Futian went to take strolls every day by the lakeside and play a tune there. Days passed and there seemed to be nothing much happening throughout the Nine States. But then again, he did not think about any of that as well.


    Many who liked to go to the lake heard of a grey-haired young man who had been playing tunes by the lake every day for quite some time. It was said that he was extremely handsome. His dashing looks and exceptional bearing worked well with his grey hair, so much so that women tended to fall for him.


    There had been girls from dubious places inviting the young man to come to their establishments often, yet he had never batted an eye for them. As a result, there had been many rumors regarding the grey-haired young man. Some claimed that he was missing some beloved who passed away or missing his first love, leading him to behave in such a manner. There were those who said that it was probably due to having been betrayed by someone he loved. He was so sad that he spent his days reminiscing the good old days, indulging himself in memories and refusing to move on.


    However, none of them had been able to recognize him. While he had once been incredibly famous in Qingzhou City, even causing an earthquake there, all that had been a long time ago. The last time he had been seen in Qingzhou City was more than ten years ago. Those who came to hear about him might not have known him. Even those who had actually seen him all those years before probably would not recognize him due to his full head of grey hair.


    Qingzhou Lake looked just as stunning that day. A boat moved along the water of the lake and a couple stood on the boat. The man was exceptionally handsome. He was over 30 years of age, exuding a unique charm. The woman was also extremely good-looking. While she was married, that had only added to her charm. Her long red dress showed her figure perfectly.


    "Teacher Yang, madam." Some who passed by recognized the two of them. It was obvious that they were rather renowned in Qingzhou City. The Yang clan and the Feng clan were both top-notch families in Qingzhou City. Yang Xiu had supreme talents and looked incredibly dashing, while the daughter of the Feng clan, Feng Qingxue, was just as exceptional in both her incredible looks and talent for training. Many were touched by the five years that Yang Xiu spent pursuing Feng Qingxue. Both of them were eventually married and it became quite a story in Qingzhou City.


    Both Yang Xiu and Feng Qingxue taught at Qingzhou Academy. The academy was no longer what it used to be. A lot of things had happened and its overall strength far surpassed what it had once been. Both of them were of Dharma Plane powers. Feng Qingxue had spent years studying elsewhere before returning to the Qingzhou Academy several years later. Both of them nodded at the person who greeted them, looking amicable.


    A tune was heard at the lake faraway. Both of them turned to the lake and saw a grey-haired figure playing the guqin, and many people gathered around to listen to him play.


    "Qingxue, it''s been said that there has been a mystical figure showing up at the lakeside these days and that he plays a tune by the lake before leaving. There have been a lot of rumors about him. Some even claimed to witness his hair turning grey in an instant." Yang Xiu said with a smile, "Furthermore, it seems that this guqin master is an exceptionally good-looking man, so much so that few in Qingzhou are able to compare. Many girls invited him to their boats and he never batted an eye. What do you think?"


    "Since when did you become interested in things like that?" Feng Qingxue asked with a smile.


    "Well, I''m still a dashing man myself. That man is said to be one whom none in Qingzhou City are able to compare to. I''d love to see if that is true," Yang Xiu smiled and said.


    "What if he actually is better-looking than you are?" Feng Qingxue asked with a smile.


    "You kind of make it sound as if there''s nothing I can do about that. Though he could be better looking than me, he''s not going to steal my wife," Yang Xiu smiled and said. The boat headed in that young man''s direction, reaching the shore gradually.


    Feng Qingxue looked rather indifferent. She did not think of such things to begin with. However, when she came to listen to the tune, she was gradually pulled into the illustration of the tune. It was as if she was able to sense the purity of her youth from the tune itself.


    The tune was flowing with a mystical charm, capable of bringing the thoughts of those within earshot back in time, reminiscing about their past. Feng Qingxue was unable to help but recall her youth. She was truly innocent back then, but stubborn and unruly as well, missing out on a good person. While she knew that said person would have blamed her for anything, she was nonetheless somewhat dejected whenever she recalled what happened between them.


    While time had washed the matter away considerably, and having been married, she ceased to recall those times as she once did. There were times when the thoughts hit her and she still had a bit of sadness in her. But then again, there was also a bit of the good times mixed in. Those had been the best time of her youth after all.


    "The guqin master has a very high skill indeed," Yang Xiu praised as he came to be attracted by the tune as well. He turned to look at Feng Qingxue, who had also been attracted by the tune. He grew curious about the person playing it. The boat gradually came closer and her eyes turned to the figure playing the tune. As the distance between them closed and her sight grew clear, she was actually able to sense some familiarity from the man playing the guqin.


    "Am I imagining things?" Feng Qingxue asked herself deep down. It was probably due to the memories being brought forth by the tune. However, her mind remained restless and she shuddered a bit.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The tune continued to flow into her ears. As the boat came increasingly close and she listened quietly, memories of bygone years that had never come to mind surfaced. The sense of familiarity filled her mind at the moment. Furthermore, as the boat got closer, the sense of familiarity grew increasingly intense. Feng Qingxue''s heart continued to race. She labored to see the face of the one who was playing the tune clearly.


    The young man continued to play with all ten of his fingers. Strands of gray hair dangled before his brow, blocking his face. It was not until the tune was over that he began to lift his head up. When Feng Qingxue finally saw his face, her heart shuddered violently and her eyes reddened. She was unable to keep her tears from rolling down her face when she saw the head of grey hair clearly.


    He was known all over the world. There was no one in the Nandou Nation who did not know his name, but she had no idea why his hair was all grey when she saw him again!

 998 The Ban Is Lifted

    Ten years ago Ye Futian had returned to Qingzhou City. Afterward, news about him had come out of Donghai City. When Feng Qingxue had left Qingzhou City and crossed the sea, she had already known of Ye Futian''s fame. She could easily tell what kind of man the Prince of Nandou was. At that time he had been so young and yet was already so famous. She had thought that he would live an even more glorious life.


    Although he had forgotten her along with many things from that time, when she thought of how high he had soared she was still gratified. She had no more illusions about one day marrying him. But why did she have to meet him after so long under these circumstances? Why had this impressive figure''s hair turned silver?


    At the moment, she finally realized the artistic conception of that melody. There was sorrow within the joy. If she had known that meeting him again would be like this, she would have rather not done so. She never would have dreamed that the handsome white-haired youth who was rumored to be on the shore of Qingzhou Lake was Ye Futian.


    What must he have gone through to look like this now? She did not know, but she still felt his pain in her heart. Tears stained her face.


    "Qingxue." Yang Xiu saw the dazed expression on her face. Why did she have such a strong reaction upon seeing this young man? Could it be that they knew each other? Feng Qingxue seemed not to hear him as she continued to stare at the white-haired youth.


    Seeming to sense something, the white-haired youth looked up at the small boat that she was in. His eyes were as calm as still water. He smiled slightly as he nodded at her, then turned and left.


    Feng Qingxue wanted to say something, but as he left she said nothing. She could not stop the tears from flowing. She was much more resolute now that she was married, she was not the same girl as before. But now, in this situation, it seemed that only tears could express her feelings.


    "What has happened to you?" Feng Qingxue whispered to the slowly disappearing figure. She knelt down and wept, seeming to be helpless. How had someone so young and famous ended up like this? He did not belong in Qingzhou City at all.


    Everyone fixed their attention on Feng Qingxue, and a strange look came over many of their faces. Feng Qingxue and Yang Xiu were slightly famous in Qingzhou City and knew many people. Why would she be so sad just from a single glance at this young man? Could he be a former lover of hers?


    That seemed to be the message of the music that the white-haired youth was playing. If so, would that not be an embarrassment for Yang Xiu?


    Yang Xiu kneeled beside Feng Qingxue and whispered, "Is that him?" He had pursued Feng Qingxue for five years. He naturally knew her past, knew that there had always been only one person in her heart; that unattainable genius.


    Feng Qingxue nodded slightly. Yang Xiu''s heart was in turmoil. He would never have thought that the mysterious young man on the shore of Qingzhou Lake was the most legendary figure in Qingzhou City. The funny thing was that the people of Qingzhou City had treated him as a joke. If they had known who he was, who knew what they would think?


    When the legend of Qingzhou City had returned, he had done so with white hair. Yang Xiu was uneasy. What had happened to him? Feng Qingxue did not spread the news, and so Ye Futian''s peace was not broken. He continued to live every day as usual.


    On the next day that he came to Qingzhou Lake, Feng Qingxue was already sitting in a boat, waiting for him with another familiar figure. Qin Yi had been at Qingzhou Academy all along with Feng Qingxue, and she was still single. She was still just as attractive as before, but she was no longer as immature. She was full of heroic spirit, but when she saw Ye Futian''s white hair, it evaporated. Feng Qingxue had told her, but when she saw what Ye Futian looked like with her own eyes, her beautiful eyes turned red. Ye Futian sighed inwardly as he saw Qin Yi. He stopped playing and stepped out onto the front of his boat.


    "Qin Yi, Qingxue," whispered Ye Futian. His silver hair danced in the slight breeze. He was much frailer than before. You could tell his story with a single glance. But he was no less handsome than before and was even better in some respects. But all that Qin Yi and Qingxue saw was the tragedy.


    Qin Yi saw him smiling and nodded slightly. She bowed her head as if she couldn''t bear to see him like this. He had come back alone, and with white hair, and that legendary girl from Qingzhou Academy was no longer by his side. She guessed some of what had happened, and her heart ached for him. She was so beautiful and outstanding; the embodiment of perfection. Back in the day, when she and Ye Futian had walked together, they seemed like a couple.


    "Jieyu is gone." Ye Futian spoke as if he was talking about something that had nothing to do with him. His tone was calm. That one sentence seemed to cover everything.


    Qin Yi''s tears continued to fall. She still did not look at Ye Futian but wiped away her tears. After taking a moment to compose herself, she turned to him and nodded, taking in his eyes and his white hair. There was a faint smile in his eyes, but they were still so sad.


    Qin Yi knew that anything she said would be meaningless, and so she said nothing. She just walked forward and embraced Ye Futian. Ye Futian was stiff at first, but he smiled and hugged her back. Her body was warm. For some people, no longer how long they had been apart, a single glance, a greeting, or a hug, and time would seem to go back. Their relationship seemed to have never changed.


    "How long are you planning on staying in Qingzhou City?" Qin Yi asked softly.


    "I don''t know," said Ye Futian with a smile. "Maybe for the rest of my life." If he was buried here, it would count as the rest of his life.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Well, no matter how long you stay, I''ll be here with you," said Qin Yi.


    Ye Futian smiled warmly. Qin Yi was still the same old Qin Yi. She had not changed a bit.


    "You''re still the same. You haven''t gotten married yet." Ye Futian was feeling a little better, and so he made a joke.


    "Then I won''t get married," she replied with a smile.


    Everyone who witnessed this scene was moved. Qin Yi was even more famous in Qingzhou City than Feng Qingxue. She was not only the Vice College Chief of Qingzhou Academy, but she was also the daughter of General Qin. Many men had pursued her over the years, but she had ignored them all. But now she was hugging that white-haired man in the boat.


    Feng Qingxue also seemed to have an uncommon relationship with him, but Yang Xiu did not seem to mind. This was simply strange. Everyone tried to guess who this white-haired man was.


    Soon there was shocking news. Someone finally recognized Ye Futian. This handsome white-haired youth who had lived by Qingzhou Lake for the past few days was the all-powerful Ye Futian. The legend had returned, but his hair had turned white. People gasped incessantly at the news.


    This shocking news swept through the city quickly. Many people guessed that something must have happened. He and his white hair had returned to Qingzhou City and taken up residence beside the lake. Many people speculated that he had met with disaster in the outside world, had been defeated by someone stronger and had thus been driven out. Others thought that it had something to do with Hua Jieyu, who they had not seen yet. Could it be that he had met a powerful foe?


    Some malicious people even speculated that someone had stolen Hua Jieyu away from him because she was so beautiful, which had led to Ye Futian''s current depression and to the deterioration of his cultivation. This had caused his white hair. The hero had entered the twilight of his life and had returned home.


    Most people did not believe these speculations, except for the fact that Ye Futian had abandoned his cultivation and thus was at the end of his career. As for Hua Jieyu, if something had happened to her, then that may indeed have caused Ye Futian to be like this.


    Ye Futian did not pay attention to any of their speculations. He didn''t care. Perhaps he had already developed a habit. He lived his life in a regulated manner, repeating his monotonous pattern every day. However, every day, when he went to Qingzhou City to play the guqin, Qin Yi was there. Sometimes Feng Qingxue would go as well, along with General Qin and Uncle Feng.


    Of course, more and more people were coming to listen to him play on the shores of Qingzhou Lake. They all wanted to see the former legend. But because it had already been ten years, some of the younger people only knew of his legend from the stories that their elders told.


    Time passed by without anyone noticing, until one day Ye Futian''s peace was shattered. A brilliant sword will descended into the courtyard of the house where he was staying. A divine sword appeared with the College Chief on it as well as two other figures��Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue. They had come with the Village Chief.


    Hua Fengliu gazed at the Village Chief. Since Yu Sheng and Loulan Xue had left the palace, what about the palace itself?


    "Emperor Xia summoned all the Saints who were there that day, and they all got to meet with him. I was there as well," said the Village Chief. "The ban has been lifted. All the Saints of the Nine States can act freely."


    Ye Futian frowned, and a strange look came over his face. Could the ban have been so silently lifted? Then what about him?


    "Emperor Xia ordered that the people who were at the palace that day must not let a single word get out. Otherwise, their holy land will disappear, just like Zhisheng Cliffs. Same with the palace," said the Village Chief.


    Now, all the Nine States were inquiring after news of the battle. But Emperor Xia''s order had completely locked down all news. If the news got out from one of the holy lands, Emperor Xia would send people to wipe them out.


    The people of the Nine States knew the outcome of the battle, but they did not know the process!

 999 Stirring Speech

    Upon hearing what the Village Chief said, Ye Futian was silent for a while. The ban had been lifted. Emperor Xia had personally summoned all the Saints to the Upper Realms and ordered them not to let any news of the battle get out. Otherwise, their holy land would be destroyed.


    The people from the holy lands may not have known the specific reason, but they knew that it had to be related to Emperor Xia, otherwise, why would it be worth it for him to take such an active stance on it?


    A Sacred War had broken out, and with merely a word, Emperor Xia had gotten rid of all the rules. Since Emperor Xia had summoned the Saints, everyone was paying close attention, but who would dare to spread rumors? This would not just affect an individual, but their entire holy land. Once Emperor Xia discovered which holy land the rumor had come from, he would make it disappear.


    Ye Futian did not understand why Emperor Xia would do this. Was the reason for him sealing off all the news that he did not want to kill him? He didn''t understand. What was behind all this?


    Although Emperor Xia controlled an entire realm, he could not be compared with Donghuang the Great. Twice in the past, Donghuang the Great had sent cultivators to seize people, and he did not believe that Emperor Xia did not know about those incidents. He couldn''t even say for sure if Emperor Xia had been involved or not. So why had no one come to seize him this time? Maybe they just hadn''t arrived yet? After all, if Emperor Xia wanted to seize him while he was in the Nine States, he could do it at any time he wanted.


    "In addition, Emperor Xia has disposed of Zhisheng Cliffs, striking its name from the holy lands of Yu State, and has given control over it to Stone Saint. Xia Sheng has also imprisoned Saint Ji for ten years. For those ten years, he will not be permitted to leave the Hall of Holy Light," continued the Village Chief. Zhisheng Cliffs had lost both their Saints and their status as a holy land. They had been punished for Saint Zhi''s betrayal of Emperor Xia''s rules.


    Saint Ji had blocked Emperor Xia when Saint Zhi had broken his rules. And for that, he had been imprisoned for ten years.


    "Then who were those nine people? And who asked Saint Zhi to get involved? Were they people from the Upper Realms?" Saint Zhi had been at the Saint Plane, and not the beginning of it either, so Ye Futian would not believe it if someone had said he had not had a reason to try and trade his life with his. Those nine cultivators must not have been from Zhisheng Cliffs.


    The Village Chief shook his head. "Emperor Xia has probably investigated this and already knows, but we haven''t had any concrete news of this."


    Ye Futian nodded and said nothing.


    "After the Saints returned from the Upper Worlds, the holy lands called together all those who had participated in the battle and did not let cultivators who do not belong to a holy land leave for several days. They had probably already gotten their stories straight for when Emperor Xia questioned them. Saint Ji, Saint Xihua, and the six great holy lands also gathered together, so they probably know the threat," continued the Village Chief. "The six holy lands lost a lot of their vitality in the battle. In Qi State, the Qi clan has grabbed a lot of land from the Hall of Holy Light. Some of the top forces in Qi State have begun moving closer to the Qi clan, which has alienated the Hall of Holy Light, purposefully or not. In addition, the forces that are near to the territories of the six great holy lands are nervous, so it will probably be impossible for them to raise an army to start a war like they did."


    Ye Futian naturally understood that when the seven great holy lands joined forces and surrounded the Holy Zhi Palace, the people of the Nine States had thought the palace would be destroyed. The forces under the control of the seven holy lands had followed along, hoping to gain some benefits for themselves.


    But after the battle, those that had fought knew what had gone wrong, and those that had not fought no longer dared to target the Holy Zhi Palace. Such was the influence of that battle.


    Many of the holy lands were now nervous, but some were ready to act. For example, the Qi clan saw that the Hall of Holy Light had lost a lot of power and had made an enemy of the palace, and Saint Ji had been imprisoned by Emperor Xia. Such an opportunity was a once in a lifetime event.


    Everyone could feel that the situation in the Nine States had changed, and these changes might spread throughout the world. Now, the Barren State, which had once been the weakest of the Nine States, had four Saints.


    There was number 12 on the Saints Ranking, Saint Jiang, and Yaya, who had started the sword matrix that had killed Saint Zhi. Those who had participated in the battle assumed that she possessed the spirit from Nether Sword Mound, and it was no simple sword spirit. In addition, there were the Village Chief and Douzhan. Only the Holy Zhi Palace had four saints.


    As for those under the Saint plane, Ye Futian had not been killed. He was worth an army by himself, as no one could stand against him on the battlefield.


    How could the six holy lands not be panicking?


    "When will you return?" asked the Village Chief.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes. When would he return? The ban had been lifted, but had the danger to him been lifted?


    He didn''t know.


    He looked at his master and his sworn sister and whispered, "You go on back. I want to spend a few days at peace."


    "The mastress asked me to follow you," said the Village Chief. Ye Futian had no one who could oppose him below the Saint level, but if those holy lands did something reckless like Saint Zhi had done, it wouldn''t be good. It would be safer to just watch him. Other than top forces like Saint Xihua and the Great Zhou Sacred King, who if they wanted to trade their lives for his he couldn''t stop them, he was probably safe. And even they would probably not do that.


    "Looks like Yaya still sees me as her brother," said Ye Futian with a warm smile. A strange look came over the Village Chief''s face.


    "There''s one more thing. After the Saints came back, the Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua took a trip to Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, but Glass Saint had protected it against them, so they left early. In addition, all the cultivators of the temple were nowhere to be found," he said.


    Ye Futian knew of the Great Zhou Sacred King''s obsession. Nowadays, they couldn''t easily defeat the palace. Even though they had Saints, with Yaya and Saint Jiang stationed in the palace, and them lacking Saint Ji, they wouldn''t dare make a move. After all, no one knew just how powerful Yaya was. So, they had to pick on the weakest Saint��Glass Saint.


    ��


    Ye Futian did not return but stayed in Qingzhou City. He lived just as he had before. Perhaps it had already become a habit to him. But what was different than before was that he finally once again started cultivating.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Every morning, he practiced martial arts, meditation, sensing the rule power of heaven and earth, and he would occasionally even practice with the halberd. During the day he would talk with his master and sworn sister, play chess, or take a leisurely walk around the city. At night he would go to the lake.


    He spent several months in this simple way. The master and his sworn sister were finally willing to go out into the city with him, and these trivial little strolls made him feel better bit by bit.


    Of course, he understood that his master and teacher would never forget about Jieyu. He was the same way, so he could understand their feelings. He didn''t leave because he had a good reason to stay: he hoped that one day he would not completely forget her, but would be able to let her go as much as possible and find another reason to live.


    The 10,017th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar gradually came to an end, and at the end of the year, the atmosphere of Qingzhou City became more lively. Many people who had left their homes to train gradually made their way there. The end of every year was the most beautiful time in Qingzhou City, and this year was no exception.


    Lanterns shone brightly around the lake as boats traveled back and forth across it. On the shores, commoners were selling fireworks and snacks. After all, Qingzhou City was not like the outside world where everyone was a powerful cultivator. There were many common folks here. The melodious sound of a guqin playing carried across the lake. By now people were used to it.


    From time to time a small, brightly painted boat would drift past Ye Futian. The women in the boat would jeer at the white-robed youth, but there would, of course, be no response. They were used to it as well, this had become a routine for many people.


    Nowadays, there were fewer people talking about Ye Futian. People are forgetful. No matter how legendary he had been in the past, Ye Futian now was like a commoner. People forgot the stories about him, they just sighed for the end of a hero. They believed that he had met some enemy in the outside world who had ruined his cultivation, and thus he had returned to Qingzhou City to live in seclusion.


    Qin Yi and Feng Qingxue often came to the lakeside to talk with him, which made people trust their initial judgment even more. Many people were moved by this. Qin Yi and Feng Qingxue must have once had feelings for Ye Futian, otherwise, why would they be spending so much time by his side now?


    But some people laughed and said that Yang Xiu must be really generous. He did not seem to mind and even came with his wife to sit and listen to Ye Futian play the guqin. Some people even secretly said that he was not afraid of being cuckolded by Ye Futian.


    His song ended and Ye Futian put away his instrument. Behind him, a woman stepped forward and gently draped a cloak over his shoulders. The people around Qingzhou Lake who saw this said that Ye Futian was truly a legend. Even having fallen into this state, he was still surrounded by beautiful women.


    The woman who had placed the cloak on him had an outstanding aura. She had been with him all along these past few days. It was Loulan Xue.


    "Futian, the moon and stars are shining, and they''re reflecting on the lake. Let''s go out in the boat, ok?" said Qin Yi with a smile.


    "Alright," said Ye Futian with a smile. Emperor Xia had not sent anyone to seize him, and it seemed like he did not plan to move against him. His mood had gradually improved over the past few days, and he was not as depressed as before.


    "Let''s go find a boat," said Feng Qingxue, and she pulled Yang Xiu along with her. After a while, the two of them rowed out while the whole group enjoyed the scenery of the lake.


    Ye Futian laid in the bow of the boat, looking at the sky that was bright with stars. A few of the stars were extraordinarily bright. Some old people said that when people died they became stars. If the legend was true, then Jieyu must have been the brightest star.


    Wind blew across the lake. Ye Futian frowned slightly, and then sat up. He looked forward and saw another boat coming towards them. A figure was standing at the front of the boat. Qin Yi and Feng Qingxue stopped talking when they saw this. It was a beautiful woman, so beautiful they could scarce believe it. She stood there calmly, and seemed to eclipse the entire world.


    The woman stepped out of her boat and came towards them. Yu Sheng stood up and started forward, but Ye Futian waved his hand. The woman came up to him.


    "You should all be getting back." Ye Futian made a slight bow to Qin Yi and the others.


    "Let''s go," whispered Yu Sheng. They were all worried, but they still got into the small boat and rowed away, looking at Ye Futian all the while.


    "When are you coming back?" the woman whispered as she sat beside Ye Futian.


    "How is is that you have time to come to this small city, Glass Saint?" Ye Futian looked at the enchanting beauty next to him. He was a little surprised. He had not expected Glass Saint to come here.


    "The Nine States are all waiting for news of you, but you are lying here in this small city, playing guqin and spending time with beautiful women. What a leisurely existence," said Glass Saint coldly.


    "What does that have to do with you?" said Ye Futian indifferently.


    "Nothing, of course. Many people died in the battle at the Holy Zhi Palace, and their corpses are not yet cold. Your wife died for you. What are you even doing here? Wallowing in your grief? Turning your hair white to show your deep feelings?" said Glass Saint coldly. "What a happy life you have, spending it with beauties by the lake."


    Ye Futian''s expression did not change, but the corner of his mouth hooked up in a sinister smile. He reached out and grabbed Glass Saint by her slender waist. She went stiff as she gazed at Ye Futian coldly.


    Ye Futian stared back at her and said, "Back at the Imperial Mausoleum I promised to take you into my harem. Are you so impatient for that?"

 1000 Eighteen Years

    The eyes of Glass Saint were cold, and she stared at Ye Futian. "You are so confident that I dare won''t kill you?"


    Ye Futian, with a sneer on the corner of his mouth, his body pressing closer a few more inches to the Glass Saint, said, "Suppose you want to enter my harem, do you think I am interested in you?"


    The two stared one to the other. The Glass Saint was filled with coldness, which made the surrounding temperature drop a few degrees. The lake under the boat even seemed to start freezing. Many people who were close to the lake couldn''t help but shudder. How could it suddenly become this cold?


    Ye Futian seemed to not feeling it at all, pressing his lips ever closer to Glass Saint. She was getting colder and colder. Ye Futian said coldly next to her ear, "If Sister Glass Saint is asking for a favor, please pay attention to your attitude." When he finished speaking, the boat he sat on shattered. The two bodies fell downward, and Ye Futian stood up and stepped out to leave.


    Glass Saint had traveled extensively from the Nine States to this remote Qingzhou City not just to goad him. Now in the Nine States, there were many who wanted to kill him, and also many who were watching. Probably there would also be many who were waiting for him to return for revenge. And Glass Saint was bound to be the most eager one.


    "Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua have left the Nine States for some time to go to the Upper Worlds. As for the reason for their visit, you should think about it yourself." Glass Saint also stood on top of the lake, coldly watching as Ye Futian gradually disappeared.


    The ban by Emperor Xia was lifted, and the dark tides rippled underneath the Nine States. Ye Futian retreated to the remotely located Qingzhou City because of the death of his wife and had refused to return to the Nine States. The people of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple were still in exile. Even she did not dare to show herself easily, so the only way was for her to come to Qingzhou City. After all, she was not qualified to let Saint Jiang or the reincarnated Sword Saint of the Void intervene on her behalf.


    "Isn''t this a much better attitude?" Ye Futian''s voice was transmitted into her ear, and the Glass Saint still appeared quite indifferent. However, although Ye Futian was extremely surly, she did not have any intention to kill him.


    In a flash, the Glass Saint disappeared but did not leave Qingzhou City, for she was still looking after the safety of Ye Futian. Not only could she not kill Ye Futian, but neither could anyone else.


    After they had left, there were boats travelling there, stunned by the sight of the smashed boat. The beauty of that woman was just breathtaking.


    Was Ye Futian that white-haired youth? Did they quarrel? Even though they were curious, but they could not see it clearly and did not know exactly what had happened.


    After Ye Futian received the message from the Glass Saint, he did not change his routine and disciplined life. It was still simple and without variation. Every night, he still went to the lakeshore to enjoy the beauty of Qingzhou City.


    In the past few days, he saw that many people had arrived in Qingzhou City, including many who were cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace. The ban imposed by Emperor Xia on the Nine States was not a great secret. People of the Upper Worlds would know about it if they came down. Even if Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua were willing to pay a great price, there would not be any saints who were willing to risk the displeasure of Emperor Xia to come down here to get rid of him.


    Then, the people who could be found by Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Xihua must have only been sages, and those in this plane were not feared by him because of his cultivation at present.


    In a flash, the year 1977 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar had come to an end. On this day, Qingzhou City was in a festive mood. Under the cover of night, Qingzhou City was illuminated as if it was daytime.


    For lower-level cultivators and civilians, each year''s New Year''s Eve was an extremely important day. They didn''t have an extraordinarily long life expectancy, and they were not in the habit of going into year-long retreats like those who were cultivating in the higher realm. One year.


    In the land of Nine States, it was not possible to have an atmosphere of Qingzhou City. Ye Futian dined with the Master, Masteress, Yu Sheng and the others, and once again came to the shore of Qingzhou Lake.


    This day, Qingzhou Lake was full of fireworks; its beauty was breathtaking. On this day at Qingzhou Lake, countless couples were holding hands to walk around the lake, enjoying this sweet but quiet time. Ye Futian walked casually. There were some who were playing the riddles, and others playing tricks. In this instant, he seemed to have crossed time and space and returned to 18 years ago. This scene was so familiar.


    "Auntie, I would like a wishing lamp." Ye Futian walked to a stall.


    "Okay," The woman at the stall smiled and nodded, handing the wishing lamp to Ye Futian, and glanced at him. "How come a young man like you has all these white hairs? Don''t think too much, it will age you."


    "Well, thank you, auntie." Ye Futian smiled and took the wishing lamp, then came to the lake, putting the lamp into the lake. He then closed his eyes and made a wish. That day in the Sacred War, Jieyu''s physical body was destroyed, and her spirit drifted away. Hua Qingqing transmitted the message to him that all this was fate and that she would take care of Jieyu for him. Therefore, even though he knew the hope was slim, still he made a wish, hoping that Jieyu was still in this world, even if it was just as a spirit.


    Opening his eyes, Ye Futian looked up into the sky, the fireworks bloomed and bloomed, crossing the night sky like it was the most beautiful picture in the world. At this moment, Ye Futian felt as if a person was still standing next to him, that girl seemed to have never left, forever in his heart.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Not far behind Ye Futian, Loulan Xue and Yu Sheng stood quietly there, keeping up with him. As a woman, Loulan Xue''s feelings were more delicate, and she could perceive the emotions within Ye Futian''s heart. She knew that Ye Futian must be reminiscing about the past between him and Hua Jieyu. Did they met each other here or did they fell in love here?


    It was indeed really beautiful here. Looking up at the fireworks, a tear was at the corner of her eye. Why did she leave like this, leaving that man alone by the shore? Although she really wanted to walk over at the moment, standing next to him and accompanying him to appreciate the sight before them, she knew that she was not worthy. Even though he was alone, right now in his heart, next to him, there could only be that woman who would never appear again.


    In Qingzhou Lake, Qin Yi, General Qin, Feng Qingxue, Yang Xiu, and Feng Ruhai were also present. They were here at Qingzhou Lake for New Year''s Eve, watching him, but did not disturb him. They all knew that this place contained memories that only belonged to him.


    "18 years ago today, we were at Uncle Ye''s family gathering, and it was on that day that she came alone to find Futian," Feng Ruhai said quietly and seemed to have sunk into the memory of the past.


    He still remembered that they had wanted to make a match between Feng Qingxue and Futian that day, but that 16-year-old girl appeared, surprised everyone with her beauty, and left with Ye Futian. Presumably, that was the day, she and Futian professed their love from one to the other.


    "Well, 18 years ago today, it may have been the day when they fell in love." Feng Qingxue nodded lightly.


    "Time passed by so quickly. Has it already been 18 years in a blink of an eye?" Feng Ruhai whispered to himself, "I hope that after today, he can come out of his grief. Qingxue, if you have the opportunity to persuade him, say his place is not here."


    "Yes." Feng Qingxue nodded in agreement.


    "How come I feel a little cold?" Feng Ruhai suddenly said, "Am I getting old?"


    "Dad, I feel it too, it must be that it is cooler at night," Feng Qingxue said softly, but she vaguely felt that the coolness was not only on the surface but an unspeakable, odd feeling.


    At this time, there were endless pleasure boats cruising in the midst of Qingzhou Lake. In one of the most luxurious boat, a drifter-looking middle-aged man laid there and enjoyed himself. There were beautiful women playing music in front of him, and each of his arms was around a woman. These women were dressed scantily, and the softness of their skin could be felt clearly.


    A woman put the wine glass to the man''s lips, and while he drank, his hands touched the woman without care. He even reached inside her skirt, which caused the woman to make a feigned protest, but her body leaned into him languidly.


    With a beauty in his arms, frolicking in the boat, it was tremendously delightful. With some lethargy, the middle-aged man carelessly looked up and glanced at a figure by the lakeside, where a white-haired youth stood there. In this instant, even though the middle-aged man was still smiling, his slightly squinted eyes seemed to have a flash of lightning, which the woman next to him was not aware of.


    The middle-aged man was an assassin code-named Wu Ming, a most powerful assassin from the Upper Worlds, ranked second in the Assassin''s Ranking list at the Sage Plane. Moreover, he was born of the Saint Plane in the Upper Worlds. Becoming an assassin was purely a challenge to himself in order to purify his own strength. He rarely accepted missions now, because there were too few targets who were worthy of his time, but he was greatly interested in the target of this mission.


    Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Nine States��holy land of the Lower Worlds��a low-level sage who ventured into Jiutian Temple and conquered the nine layers of heaven, dealt a crushing blow to defeat Pei Qianying, who was on the list of Jiutian Ranking.


    In addition, there was also a battle record that took place at the imperial mausoleum of the Lower Worlds where he faced many of the top sages of the Nine States and demolished the four major sages of the Lower Worlds. After the seven holy lands laid siege on the Holy Zhi Palace, he was still not killed, but the news about that battle seemed to have been blocked by Emperor Xia. No one knew what had happened.


    Such a target instantly caught his attention. Nowadays, for anyone below the Saint Plane that he intended on killing, few would live. Even those on the Jiutian Ranking of the Upper Worlds were the same. If it was not challenging enough, he would not be persuaded to come.


    Of course, besides being an interesting assignment, the rewards that the person who issued the mission was willing to pay were also shockingly rich. It broke the record of targets that were below Saint Plane and caused quite a stir.


    Wu Ming knew that he was the only one here today. In Qingzhou Lake, there were many who were here for the same purpose as him. But he was still confident that the person who killed Ye Futian would be him.


    At this time, on the shore of Qingzhou Lake, not only Feng Ruhai and the others had felt the coolness, many people did too.


    On the shore of the lake, Ye Futian looked at the fireworks in the sky and smiled brightly. Then he stopped smiling and looked down at Qingzhou Lake.


    Stepping out, Ye Futian had not played the guqin this day, but instead set foot on a boat. Tthe boat drifted forward, like an arrow from a string, shot toward the center of the lake.


    He wanted to see, just who could kill him?

 1001 Return of the Palace Lord

    Yu Sheng saw Ye Futian quickly moving away in a single boat. He stepped into the lake, chasing it quickly with unimaginable speed. At the same time, there was a suffocating pressure permeating Qingzhou Lake. Whether it was Feng Ruhai or other tourists, they all felt that bone-piercing, biting coldness. The atmosphere was gone in an instant.


    "What a terrible aura. It was directed at Futian." On a ship, General Qin looked worriedly in the direction of Ye Futian, and Qin Yi, who was next to him was the same. But under the aura of such a different level, they only felt their own powerlessness, unable to help in any way. The next moment, suffocating rules of pressure swept through Qingzhou Lake. Everyone felt it because this pressure was too great to ignore. Many figures crossed the void with a speed that was faster than the eyes could follow.


    "Close the lake. Those who have nothing to do with this, leave quickly." A voice was heard throughout Qingzhou Lake, and in all directions of Qingzhou Lake, there were cultivators in the void. In only a short moment, different figures had taken different positions above the lake. Like gods, they stood tall in the sky. Any one of them was so strong that they were breathtaking.


    The person who spoke was Sword Demon. He had also come to Qingzhou City. Not only him but many had also come to Qingzhou City today, including many elite figures. The Glass Saint knew that Saint Xihua and Great Zhou Sacred King had gone to the Upper Worlds, and so the Holy Zhi Palace also knew of it.


    Ye Futian stopped, and the small boat floated in the center of Qingzhou Lake. His spiritual power permeated throughout the vast Qingzhou Lake. A terrible rules force enveloped the endless space, covering Qingzhou Lake. Time and space seemed to stand completely still. Even the fireworks in the sky were stopped at the moment. The beautiful picture actually stood fixed in the air, as if time had stopped flowing.


    Countless people were watching this scene in shock. They seemed to be able to hear the sound of their own hearts beating. What a terrible ability this was��to be able to make time and space stand still. They felt that they could not move; it was as everything had stopped. Was this really a power that could be released by a human?


    Suddenly, an extreme chill bloomed, and where Ye Futian was, the lake slowly iced up little by little, turning into an ice sculpture. This icy force spread toward Ye Futian, and in the moment following, Ye Futian could clearly feel a terrible intent of murder from the bottom of the lake, which had been hidden very well until just now.


    Pssst. There was no loud sound, just a very subtle sound that came from the bottom of the lake. The water was split in two, and a blade of light that could cut through the void came from the lake. It was faster than light. When the sword came out, everything in the world seemed to have been cut by it. Before the sword even arrived, the sword will had already opened a gap in the space, annihilating everything.


    Ye Futian''s body flew high into the sky, and the space underneath his feet gave birth to a more powerful space freezing rules force that stopped everything. Even though this sword could cut through the space, it was still being slowed down. In that instant, Yu Sheng walked toward the blade of light, the ax in his hand directly smashing out. Another crack appeared in Qingzhou Lake, right down from the middle, and the water of the lake roared as it was being pushed on both sides. The blade of light was split opened by the ax, and the Battleaxe of Judgment continued to strike down, opening up the lake. With a crisp sound, blood spurted out and stained the lake red. Someone who was in the lake was chopped in two.


    Great reward always attracted those who were willing, not to mention those who were top assassins of the Upper Worlds. They were themselves also extremely prideful, so that even though they had heard of Ye Futian''s brilliant battle record, they still came. However, the first assassin who made a move was immediately chopped by Yu Sheng''s ax.


    Ye Futian descended, and suddenly there was a storm of destruction surrounding him. Thousands of sword wills mangled and ran towards him in a murderous frenzy, but at this time, there was another who whisked out, approaching with incredible speed from the void. It was Qin Zhuang. He appeared right in front of a swordsman and unsheathed his sword. The clash between the two instantly gave birth to terribly destructive power, dispersing toward Qingzhou Lake. Several cultivators were shocked, for the sword will itself was enough to kill them.


    Sword wills came at those who were in the lake, but at this time, a terrible spiritual will descended. Whenever the sword will was threatening their lives, the powerful telekinesis power descended and destroyed it.


    A number of cultivators appeared, and several rushed toward Ye Futian, but they saw that among those who visited the lake at this time, many cultivators now stepped out. Judging from their aura, they were all top-level sages whose powers were astounding.


    Loud booming sounds rumbled. In front of Ye Futian was a figure that quickly expanded and enlarged, turning into a huge golden giant ape. With a loud roar that shook the world, many boats were toppled over, and some even fell into the water. The lake roiled and roared like the end of days. As they looked toward the immense body of the golden ape, the shock in their hearts was boundless. A cultivator came forward and collided directly with the golden ape. The lake was rolling and howling.


    The people at Qingzhou Lake felt a little numb. Today was the last day of the year and countless people came to the lake to celebrate. Suddenly there were great figures all around, standing like demon gods, it was something that far exceeded their imagination.


    It seemed that they were here to kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s body landed back on the lake. He looked calmly at the battles that exploded around him. If it weren''t for the arrival of these assassins today, he would not have known that so many people from the Holy Zhi Palace had come to Qingzhou City, as they had not bothered him before.


    A glance at the battles revealed that a strong rule power shrouded the entire battlefield. These killers were not weaklings. Even at Qin Zhuang and Yuan Hong''s level, the opponents were not afraid of front confrontation.


    "Yu Sheng, clean it up," Ye Futian said and Yu Sheng nodded in acknowledgment, then walked out to join the battles that were all around them.


    Suddenly, there was a fog upon Qingzhou Lake. The fog was so dense that everyone''s line of sight became blurred and it was hard to see. A boat rushed toward Ye Futian, and a middle-aged man came from the sky. In the next moment, there were many shadows appearing in the fog around Ye Futian. Those shadows were all of one person, but they seemed to be everywhere.


    Ye Futian stretched his hand and waved. A terrible storm immediately swept out and annihilated those illusory shadows. However, he felt that these shadows seemed to have been branded in his mind everywhere at the same time and could not be expelled.


    "Spiritual illusion," Ye Futian said to himself and branded the picture into the spiritual will so that it could not be erased. His eyes suddenly became extremely sharp, like golden lightning blooming. An extremely powerful and destructive spiritual power shot out and collided with that invisible force. The power seemed to be able to break the other''s spiritual power��a disconnect with the outside world��and the lowered the perception of heaven and earth. Naturally, its full strength could not be exerted, and even more terribly, the reaction time slowed down considerably.


    Those illusions all drifted toward Ye Futian, who simply glanced at them with indifference. He still floated quietly upon the lake, without moving. A strong sense of danger came to him, and he knew that the killer move lay within the shadows that could not be erased, and the other would use them to approach him undetected. Being approached by a powerful killer was naturally a very dangerous matter. However, Ye Futian seemed not to feel the danger. In his hand, the Halberd of Time and Space appeared.


    Before Wu Ming arrived, the Halberd of Time and Space in Ye Futian''s hands had already slowly moved in front of him. Many of the illusions of Wu Ming had a sneer hung at the corner of his mouth. So, he thought he could hit him?


    A horrible storm was born. It was suffocating. The Halberd of Time and Space pierced straight ahead as if it were piercing into the void. In the next moment, Ye Futian took a step forward and his body disappeared right where he was. Space rules, moving in an instant, crossed the void in one step.


    The devastating storm stabbed at one of the figures, and the look on that figure suddenly turned in great horror. The Halberd of Time and Space had already struck out, and at the moment of Ye Futian''s arrival, it exploded with perfect timing.


    Boom! The storm of destruction bloomed, and the body of Wu Ming became illusory in the storm, and his eyes revealed extreme fear. With his strength, of cultivators who were below Saint Plane, there were few that couldn''t be killed by him. But today, why was he being killed in one blow without having released his own true strength?


    Space shredding, space shifting, space freezing�� Ye Futian seemed to have comprehended them all. Just how had he known his true location? Wu Ming did not understand. However, he did not need to understand. Ye Futian''s eyes were completely calm when Wu Ming''s body exploded and disappeared. It pulverized into nothingness. He put away the Halberd of Time and Space, the surrounding illusion disappeared, and Ye Futian once again landed on the lake, surveying the battles that were around him.


    This was hunting with an obvious outcome. These assassins thought that they were here to hunt and kill another, but they were, in turn, hunted by the people of the Holy Zhi Palace. As powerful as the palace was strong, even if they were cultivators from the Upper Worlds, top assassins right under the Saint Plane, how could they win?


    It didn''t take long for the battlefield to quiet down. As suddenly as it came, it quickly ended. Ye Futian stepped onto a simple boat in the lake and headed back. On Qingzhou Lake, many gazes fell on Ye Futian, and their hearts were extremely turbulent. Were all these cultivators here for Ye Futian?


    "Please, palace lord. Please return to the palace." A voice was heard and resounded above the land. Ye Futian stopped and looked up at Sword Demon.


    "Palace Lord, please return to the palace." Another voice spoke. It was Qin Zhuang. On Qingzhou Lake, except for this, it was completely silent.


    "Please, palace lord. Please return to the palace." In the void, another figure appeared in the sky, just like a god, and it was Douzhan. Across the sky, above Qingzhou Lake, there were over a hundred cultivators =. Among them, there were those that Ye Futian was familiar with and some with whom he was not so familiar, but they were all cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    At this time, these figures all kneeled on one knee, and their eyes looked down at Ye Futian below. They said loudly, "Palace Lord, please return to the palace."


    "Palace Lord, please return to the palace." All these voices sounded throughout heaven and earth. It was as if all of Qingzhou City, at this moment, was reduced to this thunderous voice.


    Ye Futian looked at them, and as he turned his head, he saw the people who came toward him. It was the Village Chief, the Master, and the Masteress.


    "Futian, go back," Hua Fengliu whispered. He knew that Ye Futian had stayed not only because of Jieyu but also because of him and Nandou Wenyin. On Qingzhou Lake, the white-haired youth looked at Hua Fengliu, then he kneeled on both knees and kowtowed three times to Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin. He then got up and looked up into the void, saying, "Back to the palace!" As he finished speaking, his body went straight into the sky!Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.

 1002 Two-pronged Assaul

    Spring, Year 10018 of Divine Prefecture Calendar. Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, had returned. Things became rather unsettling throughout the Nine States in an instant, and it was especially dire for the six holy lands that participated in the attempted razing of the Holy Zhi Palace. Many felt restless about the news.


    The saint of the Hall of Holy Light was probably the only one capable of suppressing the Holy Zhi Palace. The remaining five, even Xihua Sacred Mountain, which had three saints in their ranks, were probably incapable of going up against the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Presently, there were four saints in the Holy Zhi Palace. Yaya''s powers were unknown but Saint Jiang was ranked 12th on the Saint Ranking, capable of easily overpowering Saint Xihua. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had two saints and they were somewhat weaker. The saints of the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean were even less powerful than the two in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    That was how things were with Saint Plane figures. As for the sages, there was Ye Futian. No holy lands throughout the entire Nine States could say that they were capable of overpowering the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Many spies from the six holy lands gathered in Zhongzhou City, keeping a close eye on the movements of the Holy Zhi Palace. The six holy lands would make preparations as soon as anything funny from the Holy Zhi Palace was detected. However, nothing happened after Ye Futian returned to the Holy Zhi Palace. It was as if he had never returned in the first place. Things were as quiet as a still lake. There were no cases of mobilizing grand armies to take out the other six as imagined by all throughout the Nine States.


    The Holy Zhi Palace was already rebuilt and looked even grander and more magnificent than it had been before. Towering palaces stood proudly within the holy land''s vicinity. About a year had passed since the great battle had taken place at the palace. The Holy Zhi Palace was gradually restored in many ways. While there had been many people lost in that great battle, all the other key figures, with the exception of the Palace Lord''s wife, were still around. They had grown considerably since that great battle.


    War, as well as life and death situations, were the best form of baptism that a cultivator could receive. No one doubted the fact that the Holy Zhi Palace would get increasingly powerful in the coming days. Ye Futian and all the people closest to him were still growing after all. Furthermore, they had taken quite a number of divine implements from the Sacred War.


    Ye Futian settled down and began training in isolation after he returned. To him, the most important thing had always been training. He did not mobilize his forces to take out Xihua Sacred Mountain or the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty right away. The six holy lands would receive news of his return as soon as he returned, which would only make act on guard against him. If he were to mobilize his forces and strike them at such a juncture, he would probably end up achieving little to nothing.


    Time passed and it had been over half a year since his return. Autumn had a bleak feeling to it. A figure clad in white was seen sitting at a palace within the Holy Sage Pavilion. Mystical aura seemed to be in the air around him. It seemed as if one would also be shrouded in the aura as soon as they got near, sensing the mighty power of rules and be rendered under its control.


    Light footsteps were heard as two figures were seen standing not far away behind Ye Futian. They were a man and a woman. Both of them were of exceptional bearing. The man was handsome while the woman beautiful. They did not disturb Ye Futian and simply stood there, waiting without making a sound. Some time passed and the wind blew. Ye Futian opened his eyes and stood up.


    "The medicines are ready. You can begin testing with them now," Xu Chehan said while facing Ye Futian''s back. He then thought as he looked at Ye Futian''s silhouette that it was truly no longer possible for him to kill Ye Futian. But then again, he had no intentions of killing Ye Futian. Or rather, he held some feelings of gratitude for him. If it had not been for Ye Futian, Xu Chehan probably still would not understand his teacher''s good intentions as well as Little Butterfly''s thoughts.


    "How are Yu Sheng and the condor doing?" Ye Futian turned around and asked Xu Chehan.


    "Both of them are doing fine. The medicines that Yu Sheng is using were not of lesser strength compared to what you''ve tested with, but his physical body is incredibly strong. As for the condor, we''ve been finding out ways to boost his constitution," Xu Chehan replied.


    "Let''s go have a look then," Ye Futian said. Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly both nodded. They took the lead and came before the medicine pool area, a place that was built as soon as Saint Jiang announced his intention to join the Holy Zhi Palace''s ranks. Ye Futian had built a Herb Palace for Saint Jiang as soon as he returned. Saint Jiang was naturally granted with the position of a saint elder of the Holy Zhi Palace, enjoying a privileged status. Ye Futian had no reason to afford anything other than the highest form of respect for a mighty one who was ranked 12th on the Saint Ranking, who was willing to join the ranks of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Even though the Herb Palace consisted only of three members, it was a place all on its own. However, the medicine pools were already built while Ye Futian was still in Qingzhou City, and furthermore, the pools were inside the Holy Sage Pavilion. As such, the Herb Palace was actually found within the vicinity of the Holy Sage Pavilion. Ye Futian voiced his intentions to find another place to get the Herb Palace built but was quickly shot down by Saint Jiang as the later deemed it too much of a hassle to move again. Furthermore, the Herb Palace had only three members and they were not taking up much space in the first place. The place was mainly set up for growing herbs after all.


    They came to a pool and saw terrifying currents swirling within, like boundless lightning was flashing. A huge demonic beast was sitting in the pool, and it was none other than the Black Wind Condor. However, his black feathers were gleaming with a tinge of golden shimmer, every single feather looking as sharp as blades. Its eyes spoke of tremendous ferocity, like the eyes of demons. Its huge, sharp talons looked stout and powerful, shinning with a golden sheen as well. A common Black Wind Condor seemed to have been imbued with the power of the Roc.


    "The herbs that the bird is using are all overseen by teacher. Other than herbs serving to temper its physical body and its spiritual powers, there is also the blood of precious demonic beasts, the blood of the Roc, as well as the blood of the golden dragon mixed within the herbs. Pills that are meant to help with demonic beast advancement are also used. Furthermore, due to possessing development on par with yours due to sharing a mental connection with you, its current powers are probably unmatched by any below the Saint Plane," Little Butterfly elaborated.


    "Thank you for the hard work," Ye Futian said. It was not only him who was testing medicine in the Herb Palace. Yu Sheng, the bird, Jiuge, Wuchen, and all others were joining the ranks of medical testing, becoming the first batch of testers within the Holy Zhi Palace. It went without saying that they would not be tested using the most extreme herbs as Ye Futian had. Their individual conditions would be taken into consideration and strengthened accordingly. The pace of such strengthening was to be decided with the eventual results from Ye Futian''s sessions. Ye Futian was the first who succeeded. Saint Jiang needed to observe the final results of medical testing from him.


    "Let''s go then," Ye Futian said then walked to the pool prepped for him. His training was at mid-level Archmage Plane at the moment. The herbs used for testing had never been watered down even once, and they had been something that Saint Jiang had prepared a long time ago.


    Ye Futian walked into the pool and a thundering rumble was soon heard from within the pool, sounding very terrifying. Ye Futian went through a whole new round of medical testing within the next 81 days.


    Terrifying flashes of lightning were seen raging within the medicine pool area after the 81 days were over. Many looked in Ye Futian''s direction and saw destructive powers appearing above the area, like thundering calamity of the great path out to destroy everything as they were cast downwards. Many shuddered after sensing how terrifying said power was. Some power at work indeed.


    The noises disappeared after a while and a silhouette was seen shooting up to the sky. Terrifying lightning raged about the air around him like beams of calamity. His silver hair billowed and every single strand felt like blades.


    "It''s a success." The people of the Holy Zhi Palace naturally knew what Ye Futian had been doing for the past several months.


    Saint Jiang looked at Ye Futian''s silhouette from a tower and felt that there was finally one who succeeded. The medical testing processes were incredibly perilous. His final goal was to free all cultivators in the world from the looming danger of divine calamities, so he definitely had no intention of seeing anyone dying during the medical testing processes. The endeavors would have been utterly meaningless otherwise. As such, he needed to prove two matters: one, someone needed to be able to reach the goal limit that he had set, and two, it was to see if said someone who succeeded would have been able to ignore divine calamities as expected. Only by being able to prove those two matters that he would have been able to keep working in that direction, enabling the tester to keep breaking their personal limits and reaching the standard he set. At present, it was to see how far Ye Futian had come.


    Ye Futian''s eyes opened slightly while he was in the air and gave several orders. Within that instant, a demonic beast was circling above the place within the Summer State where the Yue clan mighty ones were, which then was heard saying, "Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace would like to invite senior Moon Saint to lead the army into Xihua Sacred Mountain."


    "Done," the Moon Saint replied with a single word and mobilized the forces of the Yue clan.


    At the very same moment, the Glass Saint and the mighty ones of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple were within a dilapidated palace within a small city in the Eastern State. There was a demonic beast flying from far away at that moment, circling high above. The Glass Saint took a look at that demonic beast and knew right away that it belonged to Ye Futian. She sent word to the Holy Zhi Palace after he returned, telling him of her whereabouts, and then a demonic beast found a way to her.


    "Let''s go. We''re heading to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty," the demonic beast uttered in human speech with a tinge of coldness in its voice, sounding like Ye Futian''s own voice.


    The Glass Saint''s hair billowed and her eyes were on the demonic beast. She then shut her eyes and felt mystical tranquility in her mind.


    So this day is finally here. Hopefully, Zhou Zhiming will end up dead today.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes wide within the Holy Zhi Palace. His body hovered high in the air within the palace as he said with a brimming voice, "I''d like Saint Jiang and teacher to lead an army of sages to Xihua Sacred Mountain."


    "Will do," Saint Jiang said plainly. At that moment, fighting spirit was sensed from every single person within the Holy Zhi Palace.


    It''s payback time, huh? They had all been waiting for that day to come for a very long time. One figure after another took to the air. The army was gathered and ready to head towards Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Ye Futian flashed and appeared somewhere else. Yaya and the Village Chief were seen standing there, looking up at Ye Futian.


    "How about a trip to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty?" Ye Futian said to Yaya. Yaya''s clear eyes gazed on the silver-haired figure in the air and nodded lightly. That was her reply. She quickly took to the air and the Village Chief followed right behind here.


    "Swordsmen of the Holy Zhi Palace, assemble," Ye Futian said with a brimming voice. Sword will that reached the skies was felt in an instant. One swordsman after another took to the air and gathered around. Qin Zhuang, the Sword Demon, Xu Shang, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que and other swordsmen of the Holy Zhi Palace were all there.


    "Let''s go. We''re heading to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty," Ye Futian then uttered.

 1003 The Great Zhou Ceases to Exist after this Day

    The regal, magnificent royal place stood tall in the Holy Capital of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Sunlight shone on the ancient buildings, casting holy, golden glimmer throughout the place. The place was vast, regal and solemn. The palace of the Sacred King stood tall above the steps. That was where the Zhou Sacred King, sovereign of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, trained.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    There were seraglios at the back of that palace. Things were getting rather exciting on the bed within the Lapis Lazuli Palace.


    The Sacred King was inside the palace and a white jade-like body was coiled around him like a water snake. Her alluring appearance, supple skin, and a pair of enticing eyes made her a fine specimen that few women could compare with. Few like her existed throughout the entire Eastern State, yet she was seen giving her all to serve the figure on the bed.


    "Am I not pretty?" a light, enticing voice said. The Sacred King looked at her calmly and his hands caressed her supple skin, as if he would have been able to squeeze the life out of her.


    "So you want another go then?" the Sacred King said plainly.


    "It would be my honor, your majesty." Her eyes were foxy and alluring.


    "Well then, I shall indulge you one last time," the Sacred King said plainly and Si looked puzzled. The king then turned around, looking at Si as if he was looking at the Glass Saint. Si ceased thinking as she descended into pleasurable frenzy with the Sacred King.


    The Sacred King walked out of the bedchambers after a while. Si remained lying quietly on the bed. A thin blanket covered her body. Her beautiful eyes were shut forever, and she would never awaken from her slumber again.


    The Sacred King came to the steps leading to the palace. He stood at the top of the steps and gazed upon the Sacred King Palace. Magnificent buildings stood tall within the vast vicinity of the royal palace, looking regal and solemn. The place had once been the most powerful seat in the entire Eastern State. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had once ruled all over the Eastern State.


    Zhou Zhiming gained renown at a young age and displayed unparalleled talents, getting titled as crown prince very young. He had an ambition of bringing a renaissance to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, uniting the entire Eastern State under one rule again.


    He was born as a leading figure of the Nine States. He was bold and unrestrained. No one was able to stand in his way if he intended to get something done. No one was able to escape if he intended to kill them. However, there was a woman that he intended to get his hands on, and he had never gotten her. Furthermore, the Sacred Dynasty suffered considerably due to that woman. His father perished and his own path to sainthood had once been blocked by that woman. He met obstacles for the first time at the hands of the Glass Saint, letting him know that he, Zhou Zhiming, had things that he was unable to get done and women that he was unable to get his hands on. As such, the Glass Saint became an obsession of his.


    He then encountered yet another person, Ye Futian��a sage who had once been little more than an ant before him and who dared to defy his wishes. That sage even ordered to kill the mighty ones of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty right before him.


    The Sacred King once thought that the ant of a person would have been plunged into regret for his life so long as the Sacred King gave the order. The Sacred War broke out and the Sacred King''s forces went out to destroy the Holy Zhi Palace. However, the first battle of the Sacred War failed. They lost. The first loss suffered by the Sacred Dynasty led to the string of events that followed. The Holy Zhi Palace grew in power in the following Sacred War battles.


    The sage, who had been like an ant before him, someone that he would have never even batted an eye for, came to become a threat to him and a threat to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. All of that sounded pathetically laughable, yet it was how things truly went.


    Two figures were seen at the Sacred King''s side. They were none other than the other saint of the Sacred Dynasty, Zhou Yanwang, and brother of the Sacred King, Zhou Mian. The three were currently the most powerful figures to be found in the Sacred Dynasty, both in terms of status and actual combat prowess.


    "Ye Futian brought only the swordsmen of the Holy Zhi Palace then?" the Sacred King asked.


    "Indeed." Zhou Yanwang nodded and continued, "All the others went to Xihua Sacred Mountain. The forces of the Holy Zhi Palace did not bother to cover their tracks."


    "So he''s trying to take on the sages of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty all on his own then?" the Sacred King said coldly. It had been a year since the last battle and Ye Futian had grown stronger. However, the Palace Lord remained just as unrestrained and boisterous, bringing only the swordsmen of the Holy Zhi Palace to attack the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    "It is extremely possible that the girl named Yaya is a reincarnation of the Sword Saint of the Void. Would you like to avoid them for the moment, Sacred King?" Zhou Mian advised. Both the Sacred King and Zhou Yanwang still had the option to flee. The Sacred King did not reply to Zhou Mian''s words. His eyes remained looking forward.


    "There are many holy lands throughout the Nine States and there are many saints as well. The saints of the Holy Zhi Palace could flee, the Glass Saint could flee, but not me, Zhou Zhiming." Intense pride and arrogance were seen within the Sacred King''s eyes as he continued, "I''m the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Everyone within the Sacred Dynasty can flee, but not me, Zhou Zhiming."


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty stood tall in the Eastern State for many years and had once reigned supreme throughout the Eastern State. The Glass Saint was able to disband the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple and flee, but it was not an option for him. A disbanded Sacred Dynasty could have no longer been called a Sacred Dynasty after all.


    Ye Futian came for the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty that day. If he were to run, the Zhou Sacred King would be rendered a pathetic loser. There were only two saints coming for him at the moment. There was no way that he, the Sacred King fighting with the home advantage, could have just run without a fight.


    "Relay my orders. All personnel of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty are to head to their stations and prepare for battle," the Sacred King said in a powerful voice, which resounded throughout the entire royal palace. Countless shook violently upon hearing his orders.


    So the battle is on then? many thought.


    "You all have only one mission in the upcoming battle, and that is to kill Ye Futian," the Sacred King said coldly with intense killing intent burning in his eyes. If the assassins were unable to get the job done, then the people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would be the ones to end him. If they proved incapable of doing so, then the Sacred King himself would finish the job.


    Even if he happened to fail, then there were still Zhou Ya, Zhou You, and the others who had begun their journey of leaving the Nine States. They were to leave the Nine States, the lands under the rule of Emperor Xia. If the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty were to perish, then Zhou Ya and the others would kill Ye Futian by borrowing the powers of others from Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Ye Futian needed to die, regardless of the cost.


    Ye Futian should have felt proud for being able to make Zhou Zhiming make such decisions.


    The wind blew and the golden robes on the Sacred King billowed. The golden dragon''s image on the robe looked as if it was baring its fangs and brandishing its claws, looking overbearing and unrestrained, just like how the Sacred King was at the moment.


    Ye Futian of the Holy Zhi Palace was able to face the allied forces of seven holy lands and stand his ground. He would have ended up dead if he had lost. If Zhou Zhiming were to run, it would have made him, the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, someone beneath Ye Futian. He wanted to see if Ye Futian would be able to leave the royal palace of the Sacred Dynasty alive.


    "Get into formation. I shall see if the return of the Sword Saint of the Void will be able to break the great matrix of the Sacred Dynasty," the Sacred King said with a cold, aloof voice.


    One figure after another flashed about within the royal palace, taking their stations and preparing for a fight. All sages were getting ready to fight. The aura of the sheer number of people getting ready for battle shot to the sky.


    The battle over a year ago had him sending only the elite Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix due to being harassed by the ones from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. As a result, he suffered the least losses among the participating forces, and he still possessed extremely powerful armies under his command.


    Will Ye Futian be able to kill them all with just a bunch of swordsmen?


    ��


    A sword flew by above the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s Holy Capital, drawing streaks that emanated terrifying sword will in the air. The speed of the sword was incredibly fast as they zipped by in the air, heading all the way into the Holy Capital. Countless watched with their hearts racing. Who is here? The sword seemed to be heading towards the royal palace.


    Yaya, the Village Chief, Ye Futian, Qin Zhuang, and others stood on the sword as it zipped past the air. Fierce winds beat on their bodies, rustling their clothes and making them sound as if they were howling.


    Ye Futian kept his eyes forward. A group of people appeared from another direction��the Glass Saints with her group of mighty ones from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. Ye Futian and the Glass Saint exchanged looks and turned their eyes forward again, heading straight for their shared destination. They arrived the royal palace shortly, with their eyes on the very ancient royal palace of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Extremely dazzling golden screens of light shrouded the space at the moment, turning into an incredibly huge shadow of the phoenix. It was none other than the great matrix of the Sacred Dynasty. The Sacred King stood before the hall of the royal palace, looking up at them.


    "Glass Saint." The Sacred King looked at the Glass Saint with cold eyes. She had actually come for his head with Ye Futian.


    "Zhou Zhiming." The Glass Saint''s hair billowed and the Love Destroyer appeared in her hand. The sword was as cold as frost as it emanated strong killing intent.


    Yaya moved forward and appeared above the matrix with the Village Chief right behind her. The Sacred King looked at Yaya and thought that all the ruckus now started with that one order that he gave all those years ago��to kill the girl''s parents.


    Yaya, too, looked at the Sacred King. Her eyes were filled with cold killing intent as well. Her eyes then turned extremely demonic. It was as if a bloody sword appeared in the air and swept up the place with thick sword will.


    A storm of sword aura whipped up with Yaya at the center. She looked up at the sky for a bit. There seemed to be a bloody sword within her blood-colored eyes. A Bloody Eye appeared in the sky. Boundless sword will from their surroundings coursed rapidly within that instant, gathering around her body and growing in strength. A sword diagram appeared in the air, devouring sword aura from all directions.


    The storm grew increasingly intense, sweeping about the place as it headed straight for the Holy Capital. Some people faraway felt the swords in their hands ringing, before shooting skyward.


    "The Sword Matrix of the Void, huh?" The Sacred King shot a cold look at Yaya. She actually came to be able to use the Sword Matrix of the Void.


    Brrooomm... A huge rumble was heard in the air. The Sacred King took control of the great matrix and a humungous pair of golden wings shot out, splitting the air before them and headed straight for Yaya.


    Yaya''s hair billowed as she continued to gain altitude. Storms of greater magnitude were whipped up. An enormous matrix diagram of the void appeared above the Holy Capital. The incoming wings were torn to shreds right away.


    Yaya stayed floating in the air and stood before the sword diagram. It was as if she had turned into the eye of the sword herself, merging with the sword diagram. Her eyes turned blood-red. Towering light of the sword pulsed and boundless aura swept about the place.


    "Kill," Yaya uttered a word coldly. The sword diagram in the air turned into a single sword as soon as she finished. She swooped down. The sword that tore through the space before it clashed with the matrix below. Countless cracks appeared on the matrix that protected the Sacred Dynasty within an instant. It crumbled altogether soon after.


    The Glass Saint and the Village Chief stepped forward at the same time. The Glass Saint walked towards the Sacred King while the Village Chief walked towards Zhou Yanwang.


    Ye Futian walked forward. Qin Zhuang, Ye Wuchen, and the others followed right behind him, entering the royal palace of the Sacred Dynasty. They were not moving at high speeds as they simply took one step after another forward. The Sacred King stood unflinchingly. He took a look and wondered if that was the Sword Matrix of the Void. Even if Yaya was still incapable of bringing the complete matrix to bear, its powers remained undeniably frightening. One hit was all it took to break the great matrix that had been protecting the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty for over 1000 years.


    "Zhou Zhiming." A voice was heard. The Sacred King lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian, who was walking into the royal palace. The young sage had no fear as he walked straight into the midst of the mighty ones waiting to fight him, as if none of the mighty ones of the Sacred Dynasty existed.


    "There shall no longer be a Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in the Nine States from this day forth." The Halberd of Time and Space appeared in his hand, as he stepped into the midst of the army of mighty ones ready to take him on!

 1004 The Power of a Halberd

    Ye Futian stepped into the air, and the Halberd of Time and Space devoured all the brilliant light. With every step, an invisible airflow swept through the palace. A great wind rose up around him, and the faint sound of it whistling through the air could be heard. His white hair blew in the wind as the dangerous airflow filled the sky. At this moment, the space around him was completely still and silent.


    Outside the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Palace, a group of figures in the air watched the airflow inside and their hearts were troubled. Today, Ye Futian had led the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace on an attack against the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. There were three Saints and a group of sword cultivators.


    With such a small group they had broken through to the inner palace. The young woman had summoned the Sword Matrix of All Heavens and had destroyed the matrix of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Palace with a single sword. This was truly the craziest thing to happen in the history of the Nine States. This palace had once controlled the vast Eastern State.


    And now, the Barren State, which had once been so weak that anyone could bully it, had been able to break into this holy palace with so few people under Ye Futian''s leadership. Even eight years ago, no one would have believed it to be possible.


    "Set up the matrix!" came a voice. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s two great figures of the Sage Ranking, Zhou Mian and Nie Gai, led the army to form a matrix. They surrounded Ye Futian in an arc. At the front was the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix, led by Zhou Mian, the most powerful battle matrix of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    Today, they had gathered all the noble blooded cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty into this matrix in order to kill Ye Futian. But somehow, Ye Futian still continued forward. Every single one of the battle matrices felt a strong sense of threat from him.


    This one man seemed like he could cut his way through an entire army.


    Perhaps it was because the shock they had felt from Ye Futian''s last couple battles was too strong. It left an unshakeable image in their minds. Outside of those on the Saint Plane, he had no rivals in the Nine States; he could destroy an army all on his own.


    On that day at the palace, Imperial Brilliance had shone upon him, and many cultivators had turned to ash. But this time, Ye Futian did not release that kind of power. So they still had a chance to kill him.


    Ye Futian advanced towards the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix, and everyone''s life spirit bloomed. Their golden phoenixes cried out as their endless power melded together, giving birth to a single golden bird that covered the skies. It screamed at Ye Futian, and a terrible airflow swept out towards him, turning into a destructive golden flame that glowed with sharp golden light. But Ye Futian seemed not to feel it. He continued forward, as the swordsmen behind him just watched. They had no intention of getting involved. It seemed like Ye Futian could handle this battle on his own. They had just come for the hunt. They would let none of them escape.


    The violent attack swept out towards Ye Futian, who was standing by himself. Suddenly, a destructive force appeared in the air above him, and cracking sounds rang out into the distance as apocalyptic golden thunder crashed. The world around him was transformed into a purgatory of destruction. The violent airflow shot towards him but was swallowed up by the destructive force.


    Ye Futian rose up slowly, higher and higher, just like a god. The destructive storm swept out, covering the sky, seeming to want to cover the entirety of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Palace. Every bit of destructive light in the storm contained within it the power to tear through space.


    Within the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, countless people looked up at Ye Futian where he floated in the sky like a god. The Great Zhou Sacred King was also watching, but he did not immediately attack. When he sensed Ye Futian''s power, a strong desire to kill flashed in his eyes.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and turned into a dazzling golden beam of light. He flashed through the sky towards the matrix where Zhou Mian was. He thrust the Halberd of Time and Space forward and a blinding radiance ran through the air, swallowing up all the light.


    Zhou Mian moved, and the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix released a powerful aura. Its huge wings trembled as the huge phoenix gathered together the power of all the nobles of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty into a single attack. It turned into a devastating divine phoenix and rushed towards Ye Futian.


    Countless golden figures appeared in the sky and streamed towards Ye Futian. But he ignored them all and pierced through the golden phoenix. The Halberd of Time and Space swallowed up all the light. His arms shook as the halberd shot forward.


    The Halberd of Time and Space brought nothingness.


    Everything turned into nothingness.


    A dull sound rose up from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Palace rose up, and a terrible glow shot out. The Halberd of Time and Space collided with the golden phoenix, and all the people below could see was a radiant glimmer.


    Boom! There was a sound that shook the heavens and the earth as the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix shattered and the cultivators within flew in different directions, spitting up blood. A single attack from his halberd had destroyed the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix.


    Outside the palace, people could faintly see the destructive light. They trembled as the halberd descended and the Golden Phoenix Battle Matrix was destroyed. Their hearts seemed to want to jump out of their chests. Was this the legendary Ye Futian from the Barren State?


    White hair and white clothes, and with a single thrust of the halberd could shock gods and ghosts. Besides the Saints, who could match him?


    He was, without a doubt, the most powerful figure in the Nine States below the Saint level.


    The destructive light swept out from Ye Futian, swallowing up every bolt of lightning in the sky. A group of figures fell down to the earth, their spiritual will having collapsed.


    At that moment, everyone knew true despair. The destructive light enveloped Zhou Mian. It raged across his body, making him tremble. Ye Futian floated over towards him, and the Halberd of Time and Space devoured the destructive light. Zhou Mian looked at the white-haired figure before him, and there was endless sorrow in his eyes.


    Was it possible that there was someone this powerful in the world?


    Ye Futian was not even a Saint. He was nothing more than a mid-level Sage. He had not even released as much power as he had last time, so how could he be this strong?


    In front of this kind of power, even a Sage of the Sages and Saints Ranking was like an ant. Even if the number one figure on the Sage Ranking appeared before him, he would be killed in a single blow.


    There was a look in Ye Futian''s eyes. It was as if he was indifferent to life. Zhou Mian could clearly feel that in those eyes he was already a dead man. And not only him...


    The Halberd of Space and Time thrust forward, and Zhou Mian, the brother of the Great Zhou Sacred King, was pierced through. This all-powerful Sage was killed as helplessly as an ant up there in the sky, bringing an end to his glorious life. He had once led an army to attack the Holy Zhi Palace, and in that battle had threatened to destroy it. But in the end, they had retreated. If he had a chance to do it again, he would have destroyed it, no matter the cost. He would have destroyed the palace instead of giving them a chance to breathe.


    Ye Futian pulled the Halberd of Time and Space out, and Zhou Mian''s body fell from the sky. He did not look at it but instead looked to the Great Zhou Sacred King and said, "Zhou Zhiming, do you know how many people are in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty?"


    The Great Zhou Sacred King looked at the white-haired youth. His eyes looked the same as they had that day outside of Nether Sword Mound. The difference was that back then, Ye Futian had not dared to look at him so arrogantly and stubbornly, or else he would have launched a Sacred War against the Holy Zhi Palace. But now, Ye Futian had invaded the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Palace, stood in front of him, and killed someone from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. He would not let him kill a second person.


    "Attack!" the Great Zhou Sacred King yelled coldly. Nie Gai and the other Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty cultivators attacked. In an instant, terrible storms swept across the sky. There were swords with the ability to kill anything, and great fists that broke through the air. A storm of rule power raged all around, and all of it rushed towards Ye Futian. This terrible storm seemed to want to swallow Ye Futian up and kill him.


    Some of these attacks were aimed at his flesh, and some sought to destroy his spiritual will. Everything was in chaos. But Ye Futian stood in the air above the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Palace, and the destructive light still shone around him. He let the endless attacks fall upon him. They enveloped him, but he seemed to not even see them.


    The destructive light blocked the devastating storm. It smashed into his body and into his spiritual will, but the white-robed figure still stood there calmly, letting all the destructive power fall upon him.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    He still stood there, unmoving. The storm dispersed, and his white hair flowed in the wind, dancing like a forest of sharp blades. He gripped the Halberd of Time and Space tightly and swept his gaze over everyone.


    At that moment, the people of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty truly knew what it was to despair. How could he be so strong? A mid-level Sage was strong enough to ignore the attacks of all the other Sages. Could the outcome of this battle be in any doubt? He could destroy everyone in the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty by himself. No wonder he had brought so few people.


    Qin Zhuang and the others flashed over and got in position, blocking off all avenues of retreat. They had not come to fight, but to kill.


    Ye Futian moved, stepping forward and ignoring the spatial distance between him and Nie Gai. He descended in front of him, thrusting the Halberd of Time and Space forward. Nie Gai had no power to resist, and it thrust through his forehead. He did not even have a chance to fight back.


    Sage level cultivators were like ants before him.


    The Great Zhou Sacred King closed his eyes, wishing to completely destroy him. Ye Futian''s strength made him realize that there was no chance of anyone under the Saint-level killing him. No chance at all. So, only he and Zhou Yanwang could do it.


    He did not order a retreat. This was the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Palace, where could they retreat to? He would fight to the death here today, and so would the others.


    "Attack!" yelled Ye Futian. He moved forward, transforming into a golden beam of light. Everywhere he passed, crashing sounds rang out as bodies fell from the sky!

 1005 Please Die

    The Great Zhou Sacred King did not order a retreat, but that did not mean that everyone from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty would die here today. Many of them were not nobles of the dynasty, and no noble blood flowed through their veins. In this hopeless situation, if they continued to fight they would surely die. Some of them began backing away. They had no more stomach for the fight. If Saints were on one level, and Sages on another, then Ye Futian was on his own level. There was no one below them who could challenge this Sage.


    Qin Zhuang and the others in the sword matrix turned into bolts of lightning. The sword matrix swallowed up all the blades of light and surrounded the area. A cultivator who tried to retreat was blocked by a sword. The swordsmen from the Holy Zhi Palace moved as one, hunting down those who tried to escape.


    Ye Futian slowly rose up in the air, and a terrible destructive light appeared behind him. It swept out like a storm of destruction, covering the entire area.


    Boom! A Sage was hit by the light and his spiritual will collapsed. He died there in the air, and his body fell to the earth.


    Boom! Another powerful Spirit Elementalist''s spiritual will was able to resist the light, but his body was crushed to pieces. Blood flew from him as his body fell to the ground.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! The devastating light destroyed everything it touched. It was like the end of days. Countless cultivators died at Ye Futian''s hands.


    Everyone''s hearts beat wildly as they watched with despair as Ye Futian rose higher and higher. He stood high in the sky like a god. The violent destructive power behind him was the life spirit that he had felt when he had tried Saint Jiang''s medicine. Forged of rule power, the life spirit bloomed, giving birth to the light of catastrophe of the Great Path and destroying everything. It seemed that no one could block its attacks.


    Zhou Zhiming glanced at Ye Futian. Up in the air, an image of a huge divine phoenix appeared. It covered the sky and contained immense power within it. As people watched this scene from far away, their hearts beat wildly. They felt that even though they were outside the palace, their safety still could not be guaranteed. If a Sacred War broke out, what would it be like?


    A long rumbling sound rang out as the golden divine phoenix rushed towards Glass Saint, and it seemed to cover the entire area. Glass Saint looked coldly at the Great Zhou Sacred King. Time and space froze. In an instant, The vast and mighty palace became a giant ice sculpture. Glass Saint held Love Destroyer, and her long hair danced in the wind. She slashed with her sword, and it cut through the sky, leaving long gashes in it. The light that glimmered from the sword could not be captured by the naked eye.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Elsewhere, Zhou Yanwang''s flames reached into the sky, covering it. He raised his hand and what appeared to be a sun wheel appeared in it. He pressed it down against the Village Chief, and the sun wheel began to spin, turning into a circle of destructive power. Below them, many buildings in the palace caught fire.


    A huge sword diagram appeared in front of the Village Chief. There was the sound of a slashing sword, and countless sword wills gathered together. The sword diagram grew larger and larger until, in the end, a giant sword came out of its scabbard. It flew out of the sword diagram. It slashed into the sun wheel.


    The four great Saintly beings collided at the same time. In the instant that they touched their opponent, a destructive light curtain swept across the sky. It seemed as if everything would soon turn to ash.


    Yaya still floated in the sky. Her long hair flew wildly. She inclined her head slightly and the Sword Will of All Heavens gathered together again. A powerful storm appeared around her, but she was moving a little slower than the first time she had acted, and she seemed to have used a lot of her strength.


    After all, her strength had recovered to its previous levels. She had used her power to spur on the Sword Saint of the Void, and with that one use she had used up most of it. So if she wanted to try and do it again, it would be an almost unbearable burden for her. But she still persisted. She looked at the Great Zhou Sacred King and saw that there was still murderous intent in his bloodshot eyes. Yaya''s parents had died at his command.


    Seeming to sense Yaya''s attitude, the Great Zhou Sacred King stepped into the sky and turned into a bolt of lightning and flashed towards her. Before he reached her his fist lashed out, and suddenly the giant phoenix struck down. The space around them seemed to be riddled with holes.


    Woosh! Sword Qi whistled through the air as Yaya rose up into the sky. The Great Zhou Sacred King once again turned into a bolt of lightning and flashed up into the sky. If he could kill Yaya and leave only the Village Chief and Glass Saint opposing him, they would have no chance to kill him.


    When she saw what he was doing, Glass Saint''s expression turned extremely cold. The sky seemed to freeze, and the Great Zhou Sacred King turned into an ice sculpture. She held her sword in both hands, and suddenly Love Destroyer flashed upwards against the flow of Qi.


    Love Destroyer shot up as fast as possible, and the one sword turned into seven. They surrounded the Great Zhou Sacred King. Whenever he tried to attack Yaya, one of the swords would strike at him. The sword of light stretched out, cutting through the seven emotions. The Great Zhou Sacred King felt that he could not control his own emotions, and his face twisted as the seven swords transformed into real Love Destroyers.


    A voice appeared in Glass Saint''s mind. "Glass, I''ve finally taken a concubine. She is a living embodiment of you. Every time I look at her, it''s like looking at you. But I have just killed her. Soon you will go into the Lapis Lazuli Palace to take her place." It was the Great Zhou Sacred King''s mind. He was trying to influence her.


    "Cut him!" Glass Saint refused to listen, and she spat this out in a cold voice as if she had not heard anything. Thousands of Love Destroyer sword wills shrieked around the Great Zhou Sacred King. His soul was under attack, as his seven emotions and six desires were forcefully pierced.


    The countless sword wills were like a terrible storm of Sword Qi. They wrapped around the Great Zhou Sacred King. His face grew more and more distorted. He knew that the kinds of attacks that Glass Saint had studied were Spirit Elemental attacks.


    The blood seethed in his veins as he continued into the sky. A terrible golden storm bloomed, accompanied by a loud scream. The Great Zhou Sacred King turned into a golden phoenix and flew right into the storm of Sword Qi. Endless swords smashed against his giant form, but he seemed not to feel them. The phoenix''s huge eyes were filled with incomparable arrogance.


    The sky burned as the phoenix''s golden flame wrapped around Glass Saint. The phoenix that the Great Zhou Sacred King had turned into rushed out. Glass Saint swept her gaze over its massive form. She did not dodge but brought Love Destroyer back to its original position. In the next instant, she charged into the Great Zhou Sacred King. At that moment, it seemed that she herself had turned into a sword, full of murderous intent. The two incredibly radiant beams of light collided and then separated, and the cultivators outside could not even tell what was happening. They were too fast, faster than the imagination. They were just two beams of light.


    The divine phoenix turned back into the Great Zhou Sacred King. His whole body was trembling slightly. His spiritual will was extremely unstable. He could clearly feel cracks appearing in it.


    Below them, the Village Chief''s sword pressed down on Zhou Yanwang. That was a one-sided battle. Zhou Yanwang was clearly weaker than the Village Chief.


    There was the sound of another collision. Zhou Yanwang was knocked back. He spat out a mouthful of blood. There was a scar from the sword across his body. He looked down at the battlefield below him. Ye Futian, Qin Zhuang, and the others were still engaged in a violent slaughter as they hunted down the cultivators from the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty.


    He looked up to where Glass Saint and the Great Zhou Sacred King were fighting and at Yaya or the Sword Saint of the Void. The terrible storm of destruction above him and the massive sword diagram were about to get involved in the fight once again. He never would have thought that such a terrible battle would befall the mighty Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. It was a battle that they had no chance of winning.


    "Attack!" a voice appeared in his mind. Zhou Yanwang moved without any hesitation. This time he did not attack the Village Chief, but Ye Futian.


    "Look out!" yelled the Village Chief. He turned into a heaven-piercing sword and shot towards Zhou Yanwang. But Zhou Yanwang seemed not to notice him as he continued towards Ye Futian.


    The sword crossed through the void. There was a loud noise as it pierced through Zhou Yanwang. But he seemed not to feel it. He lifted his hand to strike, wanting to bury Ye Futian right then and there. If he was doomed to die, then he would die and take Ye Futian with him.


    Ye Futian looked at Zhou Yanwang who was bearing down upon him. He did dodge, but moved forward, flying upwards. He roared, and the heavens and the earth shook. An endless stream of light appeared, flowing backward. He thrust the Halberd of Time and Space forward towards Zhou Yanwang.


    Boom! A devastating storm raged in the as Ye Futian was thrown to the ground. Stones flew into the sky as a great hall collapsed. The Village Chief arrived at where Zhou Yanwang was. He slashed down with the sword and cut through Zhou Yanwang''s head from top to bottom.


    Zhou Yanwang''s body trembled. He stared straight downward. And not only him, but the Great Zhou Sacred King was also looking downward.


    At that moment, several figures descended from the sky. They appeared all around with terrible auras. They stared coldly at Zhou Yanwang. They were all wearing the same color robes, marking them as Nine States Guards. But Zhou Yanwang no longer cared.


    A noise came from the ruins below, and suddenly a white-haired figure shot up into the sky. He swept his gaze cooly across Zhou Yanwang.


    "How can this be?" Zhou Yanwang stared at the unharmed Ye Futian. His heart sank and his eyes looked hollow. He wanted to trade his life for Ye Futian''s, but even as a Saint he could not kill him. He stood up once again.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as the Village Chief smashed Zhou Yanwang''s body to pieces.


    At that moment, the Great Zhou Sacred King up in the sky was all alone. It seemed that in the whole world he was the only one left fighting.


    "Great Zhou Sacred King, please die." Ye Futian looked up at the Great Zhou Sacred King up in the air. He had asked him to die!

 1006 The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty Is No More

    The Sacred King took one look at the broken palaces. The force that had once reigned supreme throughout the Eastern State was reduced to ruins on that day. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was going to be destroyed during his reign. Regardless if he were to remain alive or ended up dead, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was no more.


    He took one look at Ye Futian and turned to look at the Glass Saint, who was shinning in brilliant light all over her. His body turned golden and towering light burst from his body. The weather changed and the entire world seemed to have been turned golden, burning in flames. The Sacred King seemed to be burning as well.


    There seemed to be beams shooting down from above, raining down on the Sacred King''s body. A huge golden phoenix was seen hanging high above the air, looking down at the living beings below.


    Boundless aura rained on the Sacred King as his form grew increasingly enormous. He wore an incredibly dazzling robe of the golden phoenix and the phoenix images on the robe looked alive. His Life Spirit circled above him before charging downward, descending before the Sacred King and transformed into a dazzling sword, swallowing the might of the great path around him. The flash of the sword was hot and intense, shinning the space all over them and pulsing with towering light.


    That scene made everyone faraway, be it within or outside the royal palace, look at the sky. The scene at the Sacred King''s palace was simply too stunning.


    "Arrgghhh..." A voice was heard screaming in agony below.


    "My king," some others howled in pain. There were still many who were below the Sage Plane in the royal palace of the Sacred Dynasty. The rules of the Sacred War stated that Ye Futian was not allowed to do anything to them. Yet, at that moment, the sky turned extremely scorching and the bodies of many, who were being rained on by the light emanating from the Sacred King, burned right away and were reduced to dust within seconds.


    "Back off," Ye Futian said to Qin Zhuang and the others. They were also troubled by what the Sacred King did and left the battlefield. The Sacred King had gone insane.


    Shrieks continued to be heard from below and many continued to die by the might of the divine path. It was not something that sages had an easy time resisting, and it was, without doubt, more excruciating for the nobles. One palace after another burned. The palaces of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty turned into a sea of golden flames.


    The Sacred King continued to stand high in the air. Two beams of golden, divine flames burned in his eyes. His golden phoenix robe billowed in the wind. The Sacred King had truly become one who stood at the pinnacle of the Nine States. He was truly the Great Zhou Sacred King at that moment.


    Terrifying flames lashed out at the Glass Saint as an extremely huge divine phoenix pounced on the Glass Saint. However, an area of icy lapis lazuli formed with the Glass Saint at the center. Golden and silver light clashed and the scene looked stunning.


    The enormous golden phoenix continued to flap its wings. Boundless golden feathers lashed out at the Glass Saint''s direction. The terrifying golden feathers turned into devastating storms, drowning the Glass Saint where she stood. The Sacred King no longer bothered with her. He took one step to the air and headed straight for Yaya. The sword diagram in the air turned increasing huge, summoning boundless sword will and endless rules of the sword fell from above, descending onto the sword diagram.


    The Sacred King had to stop Yaya.


    Voom. A sword shot by, yet it was not Yaya''s sword; it was the Glass Saint''s Love Destroyer. She charged straight into the storm and zipped about in the golden currents. The Love Destroyer split into nine swords, spinning as they moved forward, conjuring terrifying a terrifying vortex. Everything in the vortex''s path was all turned to shreds.


    The Sacred King took one look at the Glass Saint below. The sword that appeared before him shot out right after. The nine swords were imbued with thousands of sword will and transformed into a screen of swords, clashing the Sacred King''s sword in an instant. Extremely terrifying aura swept through the place. A huge light screen of the divine phoenix appeared before the nine swords. That sword had been a manifestation of the Sacred King''s Life Spirit. The divine phoenix blocked the towering sword wills, yet there were countless cuts on the phoenix''s body. It was pierced by the sword aura as they rang as if they were howling as they attacked.


    However, the Glass Saint was having a hard time as well. A screen of lapis lazuli swords appeared before her, yet the power brought by the Sacred King''s sword was able to penetrate it right away. The golden flames wrapped the Love Destroyer and began to devour it as if the flames intended to just melt it down. The sword screen was turned golden as well. Rainbow light shimmered behind the Glass Saint, with every single beam seemingly becoming a part of her being and fused within the Love Destroyer.


    The Sacred King''s face was twisted. The rainbow light penetrated his defenses and headed straight for his spiritual will as if intending to break his divine path.


    "Break." The Sacred King''s eyes continued to burn with golden flames. The great phoenix sword before him continued forward, tearing the Love Destroyer apart bit by bit. At the same time, the sword that was conjured from his Life Spirit was shattering as well.


    Terrifying currents washed all over the place and blood continued to ooze from the Sacred King''s mouth. The Glass Saint looked pale as well. The Love Destroyer was a sword that she had been keeping and maintaining with her spiritual will for many years. It was more than a conventional divine implement, and at the moment, it was being destroyed. The Sacred King''s face looked increasingly disgusted. His eyes were fixed on the Glass Saint. If he was unable to have her, then no one could have her.


    Devastating golden flaming storm continued to rage at the Glass Saint''s body. The Sacred King shouted, "Kill!"


    The storm devoured everything, yet at the same time, he had a huge sense of crisis welling within him. The Village Chief attacked from behind. His sword pierced the Sacred King''s body, going right through his heart. The Sacred King''s heart continued to beat instead of being destroyed in an instant. It was a testament to his sheer strength.


    Boom. The Sacred King''s long hair billowed. His body seemed to have burned completely. Devastating currents tore everything around them apart. The Village Chief''s body seemed to be burning as he retreated right away.


    "Go to hell, all of you!" The Sacred King roared, causing just about everything in the world to burn. Ye Futian was caught as well. He clenched the Halberd of Time and the space around him seemed to have ground to a halt, yet he continued to feel the devastating power invading him.


    The mighty ones among the Nine State Guards were attacked as well. The Sacred King had gone totally insane. He stood high in the air, intending to destroy everything around him. An enormous sword diagram came into being in the air. Yaya took one step and fused within it. She took a look below and, with one step, caused a beam to shoot from the sword diagram. A beam of sword flash appeared in the air, shooting below. Countless looked up and saw a straight beam of sword flash in the air.


    The howling Sacred King quieted down all of a sudden and a flash of the sword was seen from his body shortly after. A beam of sword will out to tear everything apart penetrated his body, making it so that he was to crumble at any given moment.


    His eyes had only reclaimed their usual composure and poise. He took one look at the Glass Saint, then at Yaya, and finally, Ye Futian. He finally closed his eyes with a solemn expression and remained standing tall in the air. He, Zhou Zhiming, had to stand tall and proud overlooking the heavens and earth, even in death. His life had been full of extravagance in his actions. He did what he wanted and threw his weight around wherever he went. He eventually died a pitiful death, yet in his final moments, he asked himself if he regretted any of what he did.


    The answer was no.


    He had to get the woman he wanted, he had to wipe the one he deemed had to be killed, off the face of the world. No ant-like sage was allowed to go against his wishes.


    If time were to rewind and he was sent back there all those years ago, he would have still done what he did. However, he would have done it all in a more decisive and brutal manner, not letting the Glass Saint leave his side and not letting Ye Futian live till that very day. If anyone were to ask him what went wrong, his answer would have been that someone has had more luck than he did.


    As for hatred, his answer was clear. He did not hate any of them. Be it the Glass Saint, Yaya, or Ye Futian, all of them had their reasons to kill him. Winner takes all, nothing for the losers. It would have been the same if he were to end up as the winner.


    He did not regret and he did not hate.


    The Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s silhouette crumbled and disintegrated into dust as a beam of intense, hot glimmer burst out of his body, leaving no trace behind. Yaya''s body dropped limply and was caught by the Village Chief.


    The royal palace of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was still burning. The flames shot to the sky as if they were to mark the end of the Sacred Dynasty''s glorious history. Every single mighty one from the Sacred Dynasty perished in that battle. What was even more baffling was that there were actually more from the Sacred Dynasty, who died because of the actions of the Sacred King.


    Many came to ask, what was the Sacred King of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty actually like in the end?


    The Glass looked at the Sacred King disappear entirely and her mind was calm, without a single ripple. It was as if she had been hollow all the while, and no thoughts crossed her mind. She closed her eyes and let her bloodstained body fall as well.


    Ye Futian took one look at her and extended his hand. A force lifted her up. He walked towards the Glass Saint and picked her up. He looked at her face and was unable to place what he was feeling at the moment. The number one beauty of the Eastern State, Glass Saint of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, was indeed very pitiful.


    Mighty ones from the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple flashed and came towards the Glass Saint. Ye Futian handed her over to them and said, "Send her to the Holy Zhi Palace. Saint Jiang will attend to her injuries when he returns."


    "Yes, Palace Lord Ye." The people of the Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple bowed and nodded, a tinge of fear and respect seen in their eyes.


    Ye Futian took one look at the palace buildings burning below and said, "Let''s go."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    ��


    The extreme west of the Nine States was sparsely populated and the people there were generally of weaker training. There were many common folk there as well. That was the border of the Nine States after all, so prosperity and liveliness were not descriptions that applied.


    There was a small city at the border and with the city, there was a small restaurant. A group of people was in that restaurant. They were dressed plainly and wore conical hats. However, their faces revealed their exceptional bearing. The likes of Zhou Ya and Zhou You were all there. All of them were descendants of the Sacred King. All of them clenched their fists as they looked at the broken jade scroll on the table.


    Their father, the Sacred King, had perished. It was not only the Sacred King, as even their mother perished in the battle. Father really is brutal indeed.


    The very reason why they stayed as long as they did was that they still had hope, not believing that the Holy Zhi Palace would truly be able to wipe out the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. However, with the demise of their father, everything was set. As long as Ye Futian lived, then their goal would be to kill him.


    "Let''s go," one of them said and everyone stood up and went outside. They did not even bother using divine implements due to wanting to maintain secrecy. They simply ran all the way instead. They appeared at the walls of a small city, looking at the vast, desolate desert before them. It was said that the lands next to the Nine States were Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Unlike the Nine States, both the Upper and Lower Worlds of Emperor Li''s Realm was directly ruled by the Dali Dynasty. The Lower Worlds were ruled by people of the Dali Dynasty as well. All of those fugitives had one secret in their hand, which would have sufficed in getting them access to the Upper Worlds of the Dali Dynasty.


    "Let''s go." The figures took to the air, and their eyes looked determined. All of them fumed with extreme murderous intent.


    Not far away from where they stood, there was a figure covered in a cloak in the desert, looking extremely dangerous. No one had been aware of his presence before. That made Zhou Ya and the rest of the party stop. They put up their guard as they looked at him, saying, "Who are you?" They all had a bad feeling about this.


    "Do you people really think that you can go against Emperor Xia''s orders just like that?" That figure took his cloak off and looked at them with a pair of pitch-black eyes. Everyone in the party felt like they had been thrown into purgatory.


    "If you were willing to hide within the Nine States, you might have been able to survive." His voice sounded like the reaper''s. That man then turned into a blitzing mirage, leaving behind dead bodies on the sands shortly after.

 1007 Pathetic

    Many at the holy capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty of the Eastern State looked at the royal palace burning in golden flames after Ye Futian and the others left. All of them were speechless.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is no more," someone said, making everyone around shudder. The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, one of the three holy lands of the Eastern State, perished just like that. Furthermore, its demise was brought by just a handful of people. Both the Sacred King and Zhou Yanwang had perished in battle.


    "What happened to the others of the Holy Zhi Palace?" someone asked. Saint Jiang declared that he would join the Holy Zhi Palace in that battle about a year ago. Furthermore, Douzhan of the Holy Zhi Palace had also become a saint. The two of them were not present in an endeavor as impactful as wiping the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty off, and many were puzzled as to what that meant. Not only that, but the army of sages of the Holy Zhi Palace was nowhere to be seen as well. The only other possibility that came to their minds was none other than Xihua Sacred Mountain, the other holy land that was located in the Eastern State as well.


    If the Holy Zhi Palace wanted revenge, then they would have definitely picked the two located in the Eastern State at the same time. It would have made coordination easy, and if one side finished battle, they could then quickly join the battles on the other side.


    They did not guess wrong.


    At that moment, in Huatian City, where Xihua Sacred Mountain was located, countless gathered at the foot of Xihua Sacred Mountain, looking at the mountain before them in awe. A great army arrived outside Xihua Sacred Mountain. A raging pressure washed all over the holy land as the troops came right outside their gates. A terrifying lineup surrounded the entire mountain. There were mighty ones found standing guard in every single direction.


    Saint Jiang and Douzhan were standing above the 3,000 steps of Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, they did not give the order to attack. They simply waited for the fighting at the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to end.


    The Holy Zhi Palace''s forces were split two-ways at that time, with the blatant intention of intercepting the two holy lands at the very same time. But then again, they did not need to move immediately. They believed Ye Futian would be able to take care of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty before coming to join them at the mountain. They would have been able to gobble up the entire mountain after that.


    But of course, if the ones in Xihua Sacred Mountain were to make a move first, they would have had no fear as well. They had the entire mountain surrounded, which meant that they were ready to fight at any given moment. While the saints on their side were incapable of taking on the three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain, the sages on their side were more than capable of overpowering those from Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    The Black Wind Condor circled near Saint Jiang and Douzhan. The bird chirped and said, "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is no more. Both the Sacred King and Zhou Yanwang have perished."


    Saint Jiang listened with a calm expression and was hardly fettered. With the Sword Saint of the Void and the Village Chief taking the lead, as well as having the Glass Saint serving as a reinforcement, it was hardly surprising that Zhou Zhiming was dead. As for the sages, there was not even a need to doubt anything.


    Ye Futian had finished his third round of medical testing, and it was now complete. He had truly been rendered invincible under Saint Plane. No one under the Saint Plane throughout the entire Nine States could take him on.


    Douzhan shuddered all of a sudden. His state of mind was different from Saint Jiang''s. He was born in the Barren State and was the lord of the Battle Sage Palace. He had been training in the Holy Zhi Palace all the time and had experienced the time where everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace was looking forward to a saint emerging from their ranks.


    The Holy Zhi Palace came to the point of being able to have their forces splitting up and taking on two of the most powerful forces to be found in the Eastern State. He heard that his student had taken a group and wiped out the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Both of their saints were dead, so one could have only imagined what Douzhan felt like at the moment. Everything in the past ten years seemed like a dream. But then again, he did not spend a long time being dazed. He was, after all, a saint. His state of mind was stable and he would not have been rocked too hard.


    It was not only them who had gotten the news. At the peak of Xihua Sacred Mountain, three figures were seen standing together, looking at Saint Jiang and Douzhan, who were far away. A group of mighty ones stood behind them, and all of them were elites of the holy land. Other than that, there was also a beautiful woman, who was none other than Zhou Ziyi. She had been married to Xihua Sacred Mountain. Zhou Ziyi was shivering all over at the moment, as she came beside Saint Xihua and the others.


    "Dead?" Saint Xihua''s voice was cold. They were all waiting for the news from the Sacred Dynasty. He heard very bad news from the mouth of a demonic beast a moment ago, and he was simply waiting for Zhou Ziyi to confirm it.


    "My father is dead," Zhou Ziyi replied. Her eyes were reddened as she looked at the army of the Holy Zhi Palace faraway. Her eyes were filled with cold murderous intent.


    "I will kill Ye Futian." Zhou Ziyi''s voice was bone-chillingly cold. Her suffering had all been brought on by Ye Futian after all.


    "You?" Saint Xihua turned his eyes around and took a look at Zhou Ziyi.


    "Well, go kill him then," Saint Xihua said coldly. Kill Ye Futian? Who among us doesn''t want to kill Ye Futian? But you really think you''re fit to do so, Zhou Ziyi?


    Zhou Ziyi''s eyes were frozen as she looked up at Saint Xihua, finding his eyes filled with contempt. His eyes were filled with so much pride, it was as if he was looking at an ant, filled with indifference.


    She felt a chill run down her spine. It was an alien feeling. While Zhou Ziyi was stubborn, due to her birth, she was not actually stupid. Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had a marriage alliance. Saint Xihua had been kind to her due to both holy lands being allies, but that was the past. Her husband, Liu Zong, had died, and her father, the Sacred King, died as well. Zhou Ziyi was now a mere sage and she was nothing in Saint Xihua''s eyes.


    "Saint." Zhou Ziyi lowered her head under the saint''s gaze. One look made her feel immense pressure, a pressure which she was unable to shoulder. Saint Xihua would have never gazed at her like that before.


    "So Zhou Zhiming is really dead then. What a piece of trash." Saint Xihua''s voice was cold. The pressure upon them was immense as two of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty''s saints were dead. The Holy Zhi Palace had four saints, and with the addition of the Glass Saint, the enemy consisted of five saints. One could only imagine what was going through Saint Xihua''s mind in such a situation.


    "Saint, my father died in battle. How could you say such things?" Zhou Ziyi''s eyes got more red. She looked at Saint Xihua with rather cold eyes. She knew that she was nothing before Saint Xihua, but having suffered the death of both her husband and her father, the blow was simply too heavy for her to stay reasonable.


    Slap! A crisp sound was heard and Zhou Ziyi''s body was sent flying. It was not from Saint Xihua as he could not have cared less. An elder behind him slapped Zhou Ziyi by flinging his sleeve instead.


    "You''re too much, Zhou Ziyi," the elder said plainly with cold eyes. Blood was seen at the corner of Zhou Ziyi''s mouth. Her face was ashen as she sat on the ground. Tears were seen all over her face. She naturally recognized that elder. It was an elder from Xihua Sacred Mountain. When Liu Zong was still alive, he had been all smiles and polite. There was no way he would have treated her like that back then.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    She wiped the blood at the corner of her mouth with her white sleeve. Zhou Ziyi glared at the elder and said, "If my husband and father were still alive, they would have had your head." She paid no heed to consequences. She suffered one such humiliation as soon as her father died. As a princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, her status had been of unparalleled privilege, so one could have only imagined how much of a shock that was to her.


    The elder frowned and heard Saint Xihua said, "This is getting noisy."


    "I''ll take her away at once." The elder bowed and walked towards Zhou Ziyi. He burst with the power of rules and let the pressure wash over Zhou Ziyi.


    "How dare you touch me?" Zhou Ziyi''s eyes were bloodshot and filled with murderous intent. However, the elder could not have cared less. He picked her up by the collar and took her away.


    "Argghh..." Zhou Ziyi''s mind felt as if it was about to shatter from the humiliation she suffered. However, no one paid any heed to the scene. No one spoke up on her behalf. She was showered with nothing but coldness.


    Zhou Ziyi laughed loudly without care all of a sudden. "Saint Xihua, for better or worse, I''m the wife of your personal student, a princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. My husband is gone and my father is dead. You shall die a horrible death for treating me like that."


    "You''re indeed too much." The elder took one look at her and pressed his hand on her chest. A devastating power raged all over her body and blood spewed from her mouth, but she no longer cared.


    "Did you really think that Liu Zong liked you? You of all people?" the elder squatted down and whispered in Zhou Ziyi''s ear. He then took a look at her and said coldly, "If it had not been for your status as the princess of the Sacred Dynasty, you would have died many times over."


    Both Liu Zong and the Sacred King are dead and you are still unable to see the state of things clearly. You actually dared to talk back to Saint Xihua. You''ve been living too comfortably indeed, the elder thought.


    "Kill me then," Zhou Ziyi said in a low voice.


    "If you want to die, get off the mountain." The elder continued to haul her away. Zhou Ziyi was like the walking dead. She was thrown off the mountain soon enough by that elder. She never dreamed of the day where she, the high and mighty princess of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, would have met such an end. If her father was still alive, given his overbearing temperament, he would have come all the way to Xihua Sacred Mountain for her.


    Zhou Ziyi got up and straightened herself up. She flashed and made her way outside the mountain. She saw the army of the Holy Zhi Palace from afar, and she walked in their direction. The people of the Holy Zhi Palace looked at her walking with cold eyes. The one who stood at the very front of the army was Yu Sheng. He stood guard in that direction and led an army.


    Zhou Ziyi naturally recognized Yu Sheng. She knew him from the Chess Saint Villa eight years ago. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian appeared in the Chess Saint Villa back then, breaking the Celestial Dragon Chess Game. However, no one paid any heed to "small fries" like him and Ye Futian back then. Liu Zong, the student tutored by all three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain, was there after all. She, like the others, paid no heed to either Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Her eyes had been on Liu Zong.


    But when she came to think about it, she had probably been prejudiced right from the start, acknowledging Liu Zong''s exceptional qualities but never looking at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng properly. She found them repulsive despite both of them being extremely exceptional, not willing to acknowledge them.


    Her husband, Liu Zong, had died in battle while everyone throughout the Nine States came to know Ye Futian''s name. While Yu Sheng was not as renowned as Ye Futian, he stood there nonetheless, standing guard in a corner like a god. Those contemptuous eyes were filled with overbearing might.


    She had to acknowledge it despite not wanting to do so. She had to acknowledge the party led by Ye Futian, appearing in the Chess Saint Villa all those years ago, had been exceptional beings and they changed the power balance of the Nine States. They wiped out the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty as they wrote a legend that belonged to them.


    "Kill me," Zhou Ziyi looked at Yu Sheng and said.


    Yu Sheng''s cold eyes took one look at her and he did nothing. He simply said, "Kill her." A spear flew right at her as soon as he finished, piercing her heart right there and then.


    She looked before her intently but was unable to even determine who was it who had killed her. Yu Sheng did not bother to do it personally. She smirked and felt that she was pathetic. Her body dropped lifelessly to the ground soon enough.

 1008 Losing Without a Figh

    Up on the holy mountain, Saint Xihua looked at the holy land that had been passed down for many years and sighed in his heart.


    "I wanted to let Xihua Sacred Mountain reach the peak of all Eastern State before leaving to cultivate. Now it seems that this wish will never be fulfilled," Saint Xihua whispered as if talking to himself.


    "Senior brother has worked hard for the foundation of Xihua Sacred Mountain for many years and single-handedly made Xihua Sacred Mountain an unofficial number one holy place in the Eastern State. Liu Zong''s talent was outstanding, and he had the potential to be the one to unify the Eastern State. But what men plan, the heavens must bless. Ye Futian of the Barren State caused today''s situation. It is not your fault," beside Saint Xihua, a tall and massive man said.


    This person was the number two saint of the Xihua Sacred Mountain, the junior brother of Saint Xihua, Mad Saint. This moniker came from his fighting style, as he was the fighting madman of Xihua Sacred Mountain. The two brothers had laid the foundation for Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, no one had thought that things could have changed so fast. The Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State had risen at an unstoppable speed, even growing in chaos, facing annihilation more than once. But today, it stood firmly atop all the lands in the Nine States.


    During the time Ye Futian returned to Qingzhou City, all the saints dared not to invade the Holy Zhi Palace. The returning Sword Saint of the Void and Saint Jiang were all great threats. Under the circumstances of Saint Ji being under house arrest, none of them had enough confidence to act.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Saint Xihua looked up at the sky and sighed in his heart. They grew up on Xihua Sacred Mountain and had deep feelings for this sacred mountain. All they had wanted was to let Xihua Sacred Mountain stand on the top of Nine States with a firm foundation, which they could pass down from generation to generation. After all, in the world of cultivation, they all knew that once you were weak, it was easy to be replaced or destroyed. If you didn''t move forward, you would disappear in the torrent of history.


    And now, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was just such a fitting example.


    And now, it seemed it was Xihua Sacred Mountain''s time.


    No one could stop the march of time.


    Suddenly, he remembered the Nine State Forum that year. Who then, among all the holy lands of Nine States, would look at Ye Futian from the Barren State? After Nine State Forum, after Yu Sheng took first place, their attention was somewhat aroused, but those from the Noble Plane could never affect the overall situation of Nine States. And then at the Nether Sword Mound, because of what he and Liu Zong wanted to do, they caused a direct confrontation with Ye Futian that was doomed to be irreconcilable. Therefore, they had wanted to make the Holy Zhi Palace disappear for good. But at that time, they thought that the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was enough. They never expected that the outcome of the first Sacred War would cause everything that happened later.


    "It''s hard to let go," Saint Xihua whispered.


    "Master, do what is wise," the Rain Saint said, to which Saint Xihua gently nodded. Now that they were at an absolute disadvantage, the Moon Saint might come over and join in the fight, but under such circumstances, even the saint from the Hall of Holy Light may not be of much use. Especially now that Saint Ji was under house arrest and the Hall of Holy Light itself was well-protected by natural barriers, there was not much chance that anyone there would want to venture out.


    If they insisted on staying to battle, they would face the same consequences as the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. The Great Zhou Sacred King and Zhou Yanwang were an example that ought to be hearkened. That was the reason for him to reprimand the Great Zhou Sacred King as an idiot who did not know when to leave the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty behind before it was too late. But it was all for the best, and they were reminded early to have time to make a decision.


    Since a decision was made, Saint Xihua hesitated no more. He levitated slowly, and a faint pressure shrouded all of Xihua Sacred Mountain. In front of all the palaces of the Sacred Mountain, the army stood solemnly, fully taking advantage of its geographical location, waiting to launch the matrix, preparing for war. Feeling the pressure, they all looked up above the void and saw Saint Xihua.


    Saint Xihua looked at the sacred mountain. Liu Zong had died in battle, along with the other two sages who also died in the same battle. In the previous battle, Xihua Sacred Mountain had suffered great losses, and many hopefuls from the next generation were killed. Although today''s Xihua Sacred Mountain had many powerful sages, in fact, they could no longer support Xihua Sacred Mountain as a holy land.


    "Our Xihua Sacred Mountain has stood in the Eastern State for many years and has produced many generations of cultivators. Many of you have been cultivating at Xihua Sacred Mountain for many years to reach your achievements today. Now, Xihua Sacred Mountain is at the crossroad of life and death, but saints cannot touch you at all. Mad Saint, Rain Saint, and I will leave so that other saints will not make a move against you, not even in successive waves of attacks. Xihua Sacred Mountain is now relying on you to protect it." Saint Xihua spoke clearly and sounded tragic, but everyone who was listening closely understood the hidden meaning��Saint Xihua and the Three Saints were ready to abandon Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Suddenly, many people were pale, and they did not look well. Even the Lord of Xihua Sacred Mountain had given up?


    "At one point, the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State faced the same situation as you. That was the reason why the Holy Zhi Palace is where it is today. I am hoping that our disciples of Xihua Sacred Mountain can do the same," Saint Xihua continued. Originally, the saints of the Holy Zhi Palace did not dare to return precisely because they wished to avoid the ire of Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. But even when Saint Xihua said this, the hearts of many cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain were still shaken.


    "Ye Futian, palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State, always guarded the palace with the resolve to live and die with the palace. If the palace lived, so would he, and if the palace perished, then he would too. What do you have that can be compared to that?" When Douzhan heard that Saint Xihua was ready to run he could not help but make this sarcastic comment.


    Even at this time, Saint Xihua still wanted to incentivize the disciples of Xihua Sacred Mountain to fight to the death, not hesitating to sacrifice the lives of everyone at Xihua Sacred Mountain just to inflict deaths and injuries of those at the Holy Zhi Palace. It was extremely despicable.


    Clearly, Saint Xihua himself realized that the truth of the matter was that he could no longer keep Xihua Sacred Mountain safe and it was irreversible. Therefore, he decided that it was better to sacrifice the disciples of Xihua Sacred Mountain in exchange for an epic battle. To him, the cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain were like chess pieces.


    Douzhan''s voice sounded throughout Xihua Sacred Mountain. The hearts of many were stirred up, and there was no longer any motivation to fight. If it was indeed like Douzhan stated. When the Holy Zhi Palace was the one retreating back then, the person who really decided the life or death of the palace was not them, but Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian, the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, had always fought side by side with the palace. In contrast, the words of Saint Xihua appeared particularly hypocritical.


    "Xihua Sacred Mountain has the help of the matrix. It''s enough to allow our disciples of Xihua Sacred Mountain to have the power to battle. If you choose to listen to the lies of these people from the Holy Zhi Palace, you are responsible for the outcome." Saint Xihua snorted and continued, "This battle is controlled by you, and your destiny is in your own hands." When he finished, Saint Xihua rose up, and beside him, the Mad Saint and the Rain Saint followed suit, standing on either side of him. Their eyes glanced at Saint Jiang and Douzhan, ready to leave.


    "When you announced to join the Sacred War, what posture you had, but now you are no better than a dog that has no master, abandoning Xihua Sacred Mountain. How worthy you are." Yu Sheng looked up at Saint Xihua who was above the firmament, his voice was extremely cold. Saint Xihua was rebuked by a youngster, but he looked indifferently at Yu Sheng.


    "After you and Ye Futian became saints, remember not to walk around where you don''t belong," Saint Xihua said coldly, and then the three flashed away in retreat.


    Saint Jiang and Douzhan did not give chase. They had three saints. While Saint Xihua and Mad Saint were of the same realm as Saint Jiang, and although they ranked behind Saint Jiang, clearly, the two of them could not have stopped the retreat of all three of them.


    "If you knew that they would be sanctified sooner or later, where are you going?" Saint Jiang asked casually. They would not be able to walk out of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Emperor Xia would not tolerate betrayal. In this case, Ye Futian would grow to the point where he could kill him.


    Saint Xihua snorted, and the three saints left in the air. Outside of the sacred mountain, countless cultivators of Huatian City, who had witnessed this scene, only felt a sense of sarcasm. Saint Xihua, the master of Xihua Sacred Mountain, had, in fact, abandoned the sacred mountain and fled.


    Looking at the sacred mountain that was still standing in the sky, everyone in Huatian City understood one thing��the era that belonged to Xihua Sacred Mountain was over. The three saints had left. Xihua Sacred Mountain effectively had no leader, not even someone who could command the rest. At the moment, there were whispers among the cultivators. Their hearts were scattered.


    Even among cultivators, how many of them were not afraid of death? Now, even the Lord of the sacred mountain had escaped. It could be seen that the ending of Xihua Sacred Mountain had been determined, and how could there still be the will to fight?


    Their convictions had collapsed.


    Xihua Mountain was in a sad atmosphere.


    Just then, a person stepped out and said to Saint Jiang and Douzhan, "Revered elders, the Sacred War was initiated by Saint Xihua. We were just following orders. Now that Saint Xihua has abandoned Xihua Sacred Mountain, Xihua Sacred Mountain is in name only and we are willing to surrender." As he finished speaking, many figures levitated and looked at the sacred mountain, saying, "We would also like to surrender."


    "Not accepted," an indifferent and blunt voice interrupted the people of Xihua Sacred Mountain. Everyone looked at Yu Sheng, who was on the outset of the holy mountain. His body, like a demon god, his cold eyes swept to those who belonged to Xihua Sacred Mountain. When they were strong, they had wanted to exterminate the Holy Zhi Palace. How many disciples perished had perished in that battle, including Hua Jieyu? Ye Futian and him had also faced the crisis of life and death. Now, it was their turn to be under siege, and they wanted to surrender?


    Countless people of the Xihua Sacred Mountain looked ashen. Was battling the only way? An elder looked at everyone from Xihua Sacred Mountain and sighed. "If they want to fight, then with the support of our matrix, let them pay." Although their hope was gone, he was a sage after all. The state of mind was still stable. Since the situation was already desperate, then it would be a fight to the death.


    "The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty is now just a memory; its palace smoldering in ashes. Ye Futian and the cultivators of the Yue Clan are on their way here. Who are you going to make pay for all this?" Douzhan said coldly, and his words extinguished any motivation the cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain had.


    Had the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty indeed been exterminated? Ye Futian was not here, so he must have gone to the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Now, he would invade Xihua Sacred Mountain, along with the cultivators of the Yue Clan.


    Fight to the death? With what?


    It was only waiting for death to come.


    "Fight our way out. However, many people can still escape," some said desperately, not prepared to employ the matrix any longer. Instead of waiting to die, it was far better to fight their way out, which, at the very least, offered a chance of survival!

 1009 The End of Xihua Sacred Mountain

    Xihua Sacred Mountain was shrouded in a mood of desperation. Saint Xihua had abandoned the sacred mountain and escaped. They were now surrounded by the Holy Zhi Palace. They were truly at a dead end.


    Many people levitated skyward. What the man said was right. There were only two choices before them. They could wait for the other side to launch the attack and hope that with the power of the matrix, they may slaughter more people on the other side. The second choice was to fight their way out before Ye Futian arrived with powerful reinforcements. But the ending would remain the same��they would all perish on Xihua Sacred Mountain. Obviously, the second choice offered a little more chance to survive. To them, it was meaningless to kill anyone from the Holy Zhi Palace for any reason.


    All the forces now gathered to form the matrix. Even if they were prepared to flee, they had to do their utmost to increase their chances. Otherwise, like a plate of sand, they would all die with no possibility of survival.


    As if the movement upon Xihua Sacred Mountain had been detected, a great pressure descended from heaven and a demonic air permeated into the space. Immense demonic beasts guarded the sky above, preventing them from breaking through. Not only that, but the other four sides of Xihua Sacred Mountain surrounded. They continued to climb upward and appeared on the side in the sky. In case those from Xihua Sacred Mountain chose to escape from the top, they could instantly form a circle and cut them off.


    In these four directions, right in front were the cultivators led by Yu Sheng. The battle at the Holy Zhi Palace had left them dreading the power of Yu Sheng, making this route incredibly dangerous.


    The other three routes were Yuan Hong''s Heavenly Battle Matrix, guarding one direction, with cultivators who were even more expert at martial arts. After experiencing many Sacred Battles, Yuan Hong''s strength exceeded what it was in the past, and his fighting ability was getting stronger by leaps and bounds. It was enough to rank among the sages on the Sage and Saint Ranking of Nine States.


    Besides Yuan Hong, there was also the battle matrix headed by Yun Shang of the Ice Temple, which was good at control. With them assisting the great offensive of the Heavenly Battle Matrix, it was unstoppable.


    Sword Saint was also guarding one direction with a group of cultivators, such as Zhuge Qingfeng, You Chi, and others. Now the cultivation of Sword Saint was closer to a top-level sage. Aided by the strength of the demonic blade, his power was even more astounding. Coupled with the support of Zhuge Qingfeng and You Chi, he was well-equipped to guard this position.


    The last direction was defended by Yang Xiao and Gu Dongliu, who were both on the sage ranking and possessed equally amazing strength. Those who had experienced the battle at the Holy Zhi Palace knew how Liu Zong died. Gu Dongliu and Bai Luli of Jixia Holy Palace White Palace manned Yang Xiao''s battle matrix, killing Liu Zong. Now Gu Dongliu was already a mid-level sage, whose ability also caused people of Xihua Sacred Mountain to feel uncertain.


    Four major directions seemed to have been completely locked down. Which direction was the weakest?


    In those days, there were not many people who could really represent the Holy Zhi Palace. Qin Zhuang and the nine were the most well-known. Now, even those who were of the lower planes at the Holy Zhi Palace had risen, like Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu. They were now able to stand in their own power and call the shots on their own. Even in the absence of Ye Futian and Qin Zhuang, they could still suppress Xihua Sacred Mountain in their own right.


    In less than ten year''s time, since the last Nine States Forum, situations had been turned upside down. Back then, in all the holy lands of the Nine States, no one cared much about the cultivators from the Barren States.


    "Matrix, prepare for battle," someone said. Suddenly, on the top of Xihua Sacred Mountain, its mighty army gathered together to form a battle matrix. A tyrannical pressure swept through the sacred mountain. Faraway, the cultivators in Huatian City, who witnessed this scene, felt incredible fear in their hearts. Xihua Sacred Mountain was surrounded and forced deeper into an impossible situation.


    "Follow me!" the cultivator called out loudly and clearly, and as his voice fell, he embarked in one direction. It was the location right in front of them, where Yu Sheng was. They had chosen to escape from the front and had concentrated all their forces into this one position, hoping for an opportunity that would allow them to open up a gap in a short time.


    Their purpose was not to battle but to fight their way out. Naturally, the best choice was to gather all their power to direct at Yu Sheng. For Yu Sheng, although he was strong, it was only because he was massive.


    The army started and a suffocating power coursed in the direction of Yu Sheng and his party, and all the cultivators from the three major directions also stepped forward and headed over.


    Yu Sheng''s eyes coldly swept toward the mighty army. His eyes turned into demonic eyes with a blood-red glow, and mighty demonic power came out. The dark golden demonic light darkened the sky, with the demonic power covering the sky. His body increased in size, turning into a demon god. Wherever his eyes passed, they struck fear into the hearts of the cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain. They were a pair of terrible demon eyes.


    The Battleax of Judgment appeared in his hand, and the magic that poured into it made the ax to release a dark magical light as if it was now incarnated into a demonic battleax. Yu Sheng, after being demonized, had an aura that was closer to a top-level sage.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Behind Yu Sheng, there suddenly appeared many statues of demon gods, and it was the 108 demon gods who stood proudly in the universe, surveying all living creatures. Upon the body of Yu Sheng was a layer of dark gold armor, like the armor of the demon god. Immense and boundless demon wings appeared and flapped in the void.


    What was taking place before their eyes was so radiant and beautiful that it was terrifying. The cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain regretted to have chosen to try and get past Yu Sheng''s defense.


    Douzhan glanced at Yu Sheng. After breaking through the Sage Plane, Yu Sheng had become more powerful, tapping directly into the secret arts to motivate the strongest of all demonic magic and further integrated the technique of Buddhism into demonic magic, thus releasing the strongest fighting form. This was intended to entrap every single person of Xihua Sacred Mountain. Presumably, that first battle had not only infuriated Ye Futian, but also Yu Sheng.


    Douzhan looked again at the battle matrix behind Yu Sheng. At the center of the battle matrix was Huang Jiuge. At this time, he had gathered the power of everyone to allow his own power to climb to the epitome of the sage. The magnificent Renhuang Will bloomed out, its golden brilliance soaring to the sky in unspeakable radiance. The Renhuang Bow that had melted into the life spirit of the imperial implement now pulled back the bowstring. Suddenly, with his body as the center, there were thousands of shadows of the arrows that released a power that could penetrate everything. It locked onto all the cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    Was it not the same with Huang Jiuge? What was the reason for the seven holy lands to join forces together to invade the Holy Zhi Palace?


    The inheritance of Renhuang.


    Ye Futian once claimed that if he could not protect Huang Jiuge, he was not qualified to protect the Holy Zhi Palace. Such reasoning had carried with it an incredible price. Once at the Renhuang Ruins and once at the battle in the Holy Zhi Place was enough for him to entrust his life to Ye Futian.


    Boom! Like a demon god, Yu Sheng took a single step and the demonic wings flashed, descending in front of the crowd that was rushing at him. Using his own power, he had cut through in the midst of the army of Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    "Kill!" the cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain let out a roar. Suddenly, countless launched their attacks at Yu Sheng. The pressure seemed to be able to kill everything. Even the people of the Holy Zhi Palace felt fear in their hearts, concerned for Yu Sheng.


    But Yu Sheng seemed to not have felt it at all. The Battleax of Judgment came down from the sky and opened heaven and earth with a fissure. The giant mountains that had been smashed forward were shattered and pulverized from the middle, and the Battleax of Judgment was unstoppable. As it chopped from the sky, there was a dark demonic light of magic.


    In an instant, the battle matrix in front of him collapsed, and countless cultivators were split open by the ax. Blood stained the sky, but there were still countless attacks coming from the side and blasting on his demon god-like body. With all 108 illusions of demon gods protecting him with their magnificent demonic power, Yu Sheng did not budge at all. The Battleax of Judgment in his hand struck down. As the ax fell, another straight, dark magical light appeared, widening the scope of its attack further this time.


    The cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain condensed the strongest of their defensive power but the battle matrix was still insanely collapsing. One strong man charged. None could stop him.


    "Go." The great army now tried to flee in different directions. However, many people felt that they were being locked down, and in the next moment, the Renhuang bow shot out brilliant arrows, slashing through the sky.


    Psst! The golden arrow pierced through a head, which replayed itself again and again in many places, and they were all sages. The cultivators of Xihua Sacred Mountain had lost any will to remain in the battle matrix and continue fighting. Now, they were looking for any opening for an escape, and regardless of the cost, they were trying to break out in all directions. They knew they could ill afford the time, as the other three forces would soon be upon them.


    After Yu Sheng struck one more time with the ax, he levitated. Above the firmament, the power of destruction gathered into a demonic halberd, its power seemed to be without end.


    "Kill!" Yu Sheng shouted. The endless demonic halberd fell from the sky, intending to completely close off this space, but there were still individuals rushing out, attempting to escape.


    One of the top-level sages moved with insanely fast speed. It was someone who was an expert at the rules of the wind. It was like a hurricane. But at this moment, the same hurricane swept through. He looked up and saw a huge condor coming at him. Although it was technically a condor, it was more terrifying than the Roc. Its sharp claws and wings were shining with the luster of black gold.


    This top sage had set off a terrible hurricane storm and it attacked the Black Wind Condor. However, the eyes of the Black Wind Condor were full of scorn, its sharp claws came down, penetrating the hurricane storm, and the void seemed to be on the verge of being split in two. With a loud bang, the body of that cultivator was pulled apart, and the sharp claws of the Black Wind Condor tossed it out. With a flash of its wings, it continued to hunt cultivators in the other directions.


    This short time was enough for the cultivators to join the fight from the other three positions. The sword of Sword Saint struck from the rear, while the Infinite Ruler of Yuan Hong slammed down from the sky. They were also surrounded by the halo of the nine characters. The characters fell down from the sky and annihilated everything. They still had a number of cultivators guarding the other three major positions to prevent sneaky attacks from these three positions.


    There were indeed many in Xihua Sacred Mountain who had such thoughts. After seeing the army had launched its offensive, they were waiting for an opportunity to escape. But when they saw that all three positions were heavily guarded, they looked at the slaughter on the battlefield. It was clearly a one-sided massacre.


    The cultivators at Xihua Sacred Mountain were all just focused on escaping. There was no strong intent to fight this war. In addition, they had already lost several top fighters before, so it was impossible for them to stop the Holy Zhi Palace in its prime. Their only thought was to escape, but the Holy Zhi Palace seemed to not want any of them to slip through their fingers.


    Outside Xihua Sacred Mountain, some of the cultivators in Huatian City observed the battlefield from a distance and when they saw that no one had escaped, there were great emotions in their hearts. This sacred mountain, the holy land of Eastern State, would soon be a thing of history!

 1010 Have You No Manners?

    The fight at Xihua Sacred Mountain was already over when Ye Futian and the Moon Saint got there. The people of the Holy Zhi Palace were cleaning up the battlefield, picking up any leftovers and searching for any treasures in Xihua Sacred Mountain. However, they found that the divine implements and palace library had been almost emptied. It was apparent that Saint Xihua transported items away. He had long prepared to escape the place, and it had not been something he just decided on a whim.


    At that moment, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, the Moon Saint, Saint Jiang, and many others were at the highest peak of Xihua Sacred Mountain, casting their gaze down on many of the shuddering nobles and people of lower training.


    "Saint Xihua and the others probably won''t dare to stay behind in the Nine States any longer," the Moon Saint said coldly. He abandoned Xihua Sacred Mountain and left the holy land to its devices, escaping alone. He really was apathetic and heartless. But then again, it was not something unfathomable. When someone had reached a level as high as Saint Xihua, they would not want to die in battle alongside the holy land. Xihua Sacred Mountain was not the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Saint Xihua was not Zhou Zhiming.


    The Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was a sovereign and the lineage was passed down through blood. Zhou Zhiming was overbearing and ruthless, making it unthinkable for him to run like a loser. He would have rather died standing, perishing within the royal palace of the sacred dynasty. According to Ye Futian, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had been burned down by the Sacred King himself. Everyone from the Sacred Dynasty died. He was indeed ruthless, even at the very end.


    Ye Futian took one look at the sky, wondering if Saint Xihua had made for the Upper Worlds. "Is there a possibility of that he had left Emperor Xia''s Realm?" he asked.


    "Impossible." The Moon Saint shook his head and continued, "Emperor Xia reigned all over the Nine States and the masters of holy lands were all extensions of his power. If it had been the old times, it would have been possible for Saint Xihua to venture outside and train. But given the times, leaving Emperor Xia''s Realm would be tantamount to walking to his own death."


    Ye Futian knew well about the times that the Moon Saint mentioned. Emperor Xia would have sent people to monitor things in the Nine States. All who had participated in that Sacred War in the Holy Zhi Palace would be put under surveillance.


    The Sacred Dynasty was razed and there were only some nobles left in Xihua Sacred Mountain, posing little threat to the victors. Saint Xia had gathered the saints and intimidated them into putting lockdowns on news regarding that battle. The saints would not have dared spread the news as they feared for their own lives. Even if someone from Xihua Sacred Mountain actually learned about news regarding that battle, the level of their training meant that there would be no way for them to make it out of the Nine States alive.


    "We''ll deal with the Hall of Holy Light and the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean next," Ye Futian said with a low voice.


    "I''m afraid it''ll be difficult to take the Hall of Holy Light out," the Moon Saint said.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Why would that be?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Hall of Holy Light possessed the Grand Matrix of Holy Light Protection, absorbing the essence of powers of the heaven and the earth and boundless power of light, encasing the entire Hall of Holy Light within. With Saint Ji taking the helm, there was no way we would have been able to break the place, even with the saints collaborating to do so, unless the Sword Saint of the Void returned to what he had once been," the Moon Saint said.


    Ye Futian was silent for a bit. While Yaya had broken into Saint Plane, invoking the powers of the Sword Matrix of the Void would cost a lot of energy. She had almost exhausted her powers by breaking the grand matrix of the Sacred Dynasty. If the one at the Hall of Holy Light proved to be more powerful, then not even Yaya would be able to break it. But then again, Saint Ji was put under house arrest for ten years, which meant that he would not be able to pose a threat to the Holy Zhi Palace for the time being as well.


    "I''ll take a team with me to the Hall of Holy Light of the Qi State and sit right outside. We''ll take down any sages who dare step outside," Yu Sheng said. While his aura had been diminished, he was not all that spent and damaged from that battle. While he would not be able to continue doing great battles, he was anything but weak at the moment. He became able to resist recoil of demonization powers better after growing stronger after all.


    "We''re in no hurry," Ye Futian said. While the Hall of Holy Light was protected by a grand matrix, the fact that they had become a rat in a hole remained, robbing them of any ability to cause any further trouble. However, Ye Futian still felt incomplete deep down for not being able to kill Saint Xihua and Saint Ji right away. Saint Ji and Saint Xihua were both the masterminds and root cause for the formation of the alliance of the seven holy lands against the Holy Zhi Palace after all.


    One silhouette after another flashed and returned behind Ye Futian.


    "Palace Lord, we''re done cleaning up," the Sword Demon said.


    "Well then," Ye Futian nodded and said, "let''s head back." He stepped forward as soon as he finished.


    "We''re going home," one voice after another said. Mighty ones from the Holy Zhi Palace took to the air right away and gathered around. The Village Chief summoned huge swords and the grand army stepped onto them, streaking through the skies as they left. Many from Xihua Sacred Mountain had their knees on the ground crying after the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace left.


    Xihua Sacred Mountain was no more.


    One figure after another stepped forward from Huatian City into Xihua Sacred Mountain. They were just as sentimental and exasperated. Three holy lands stood tall in the Eastern State once. The Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple had disbanded, the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty was razed, and the Xihua Sacred Mountain was no more as well.


    But then again, those people''s minds were filled with greed as well. The place had once been somewhere they had wanted to step into. What the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace deemed worthless still meant something to common mages. Furthermore, with Xihua Sacred Mountain reigning over Huatian City for so many years, there would have definitely been many people and forces oppressed and bullied by Xihua Sacred Mountain.


    With Saint Xihua currently on the run, Xihua Sacred Mountain abandoned, and the sages dead. Any of Sage Plane training would have been able to do whatever they please with the place. It was only natural that many felt their hands itchy in such a situation.


    Many mighty ones flashed and charged right inside the mountain to keep pillaging the place. Furthermore, more and more people showed up from Huatian City, turning the place chaotic and there were many from Xihua Sacred Mountain ended up dead in the chaos.


    It seemed ironic that Xihua Sacred Mountain, which had been grand and imposing in its heyday, ended up in such tragedy.


    ��


    The news of the demise of both Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty of the Eastern State spread throughout the Nine States like wildfire. The news caused intense shock.


    Many were exasperated. No one had expected that the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State would be able to take out Zhisheng Cliffs, then the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and finally, Xihua Sacred Mountain. If it had not been for the Hall of Holy Light being protected by holy light, Ye Futian would have probably sent forces to wipe them out long ago as well.


    As for the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean, Ye Futian had no plans to go there. That was because he found from the surveillance of the demonic beasts of the sea, that all three of the holy lands disbanded after he took down the two at the Eastern State. All of the mighty ones from the three holy lands scattered throughout the Endless Ocean, and locating them one by one would have been immensely difficult.


    Out of the seven holy lands, three were razed and three disbanded, with the last one shutting its gates to the outside world. That was the outcome of the Sacred War that had been the talk of the Nine States all those years ago.


    Many claimed that the Sage and Saint Rankings of the Nine States should be rearranged. It was especially so in the case of the Sage Ranking, given so many had lost their lives in the war, Ye Futian should have been ranked first on the Sage Ranking, for none under the saints were able to beat him. It was also said that he was, at the moment, only a mid-level archmage instead of an upper-level one.


    Ye Futian, who had shaken the Nine States all over, was, at the moment, found sitting in a quiet corner of the Holy Sage Pavilion, playing a tune. The tune was a winding one with tinges of sadness in it. With so many of his enemies still alive, razing both the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain meant little to him. Furthermore, even if he had ended up killing all of his enemies, there was still no way Jieyu could be resurrected.


    Loulan Xue listened at the side quietly and did not disturb Ye Futian. She was able to hear the faint sadness in the tune. Though it had been over a year since his return to the Holy Zhi Palace, he was still unable to put the part of his past behind him.


    Loulan Xue saw them both being together for over a dozen years right until the end of the war. Those years had been the best years of their lives. While both of them jested a lot when they talked, the bond between the two of them was something that only they could understand. Hua Jieyu''s death was a huge blow to Ye Futian, and Loulan Xue probably knew that better than everyone else.


    Zhuge Mingyue and Beitang Xing''er came to her side and listened to Ye Futian play quietly, without any words to say. The tune finally stopped after some time. Ye Futian then looked up and smiled. "Second Sister, Sister Xing''er."


    "You''re still very good at playing the guqin, I see, just like how it was back in the cottage," Beitang Xing''er quipped. While she was already in her thirties, she still looked as pure and flawless as she had been. Her clear eyes had a simple, rustic feel to them. With the brothers and sisters at the cottage being the ones to take care of things, she had been the one with the least troubles. She was carefree and there had been no need to care about anything going on outside. While her talents were not superb, she had only needed to dedicate herself to her training.


    "The state of mind is now different though," Ye Futian said. He missed those years.


    "Don''t get too caught up with wild thoughts." Zhuge Mingyue then glared at him and said, "Yu Sheng brought a group of people with him and left the Holy Zhi Palace. He''s probably heading to the Hall of Holy Light."


    Ye Futian was dumbfounded for a bit before replying gently, "Let him be." Yu Sheng''s current level of training was such that no one would have been able to move him but saints. Saint Ji and the others would not have wanted to exchange lives with Yu Sheng unless the situation had been really dire. If it had been Ye Futian standing outside their gates instead, there was a possibility that they might have done so.


    "The Glass Saint is awake," Zhuge Mingyue said.


    Ye Futian was unfettered upon hearing that, with little changes in his expressions seen.


    "Well, this number one beauty of the Eastern State sure is beautiful indeed. She trained for many, many years and yet still looks like a maiden. If I were to become a saint, I wonder if I will grow younger." Zhuge Mingyue chuckled and continued, "So, now that the Glass Saint is already in the Holy Zhi Palace, how about you go take her in, little brother? We''ll have yet another saint in the Holy Zhi Palace then."


    Ye Futian wore a bitter smirk.


    "You''ve something against old people?" Zhuge Mingyue continued, "Well, Loulan served you for years and you can take her as your concubine, you know. There are a good number of pretty girls in the Holy Zhi Palace who have a thing for you, like Mu Zhiqiu. I''m sure she likes you too." Loulan Xue, who was behind Ye Futian, shuddered slightly and looked up at Zhuge Mingyue.


    "Second sister." Ye Futian turned to look at Zhuge Mingyue and found her Second Sister''s eyes staring at him as well. "It''s been more than a year. When do you plan to move on? Your hair has gone all grey and you still behave like that all the time. How would Jieyu feel if she were to see you like this?"


    "Second Sister, I understand." Ye Futian sighed. However, there was no way he could have simply let go of their relationship, which had seen more than a dozen years.


    Zhuge Mingyue softened up after seeing Ye Futian''s expression, sighing deep down as well. She was having a hard time as well. She had been the one who brought Jieyu to the Zhuge family back then and they had spent a lot of time together. To her, Hua Jieyu was her sister-in-law and someone like her own sister at the same time.


    A group of mighty ones came from above. Ye Futian frowned and looked, seeing a group of people dropping from the sky. The one who took the lead was none other than Xia Qingyuan.


    "Have you no manners, Princess?" Ye Futian said coldly.

 1011 Farewell, Princess

    That was where Ye Futian''s bedchambers were and only those he deemed the closest to him were allowed to visit directly. Even though Xia Qingyuan was a princess, she still needed to get someone to send word instead of simply barging into the place. Xia Qingyuan was not the sovereign of Emperor Xia''s Realm yet.


    Xia Qingyuan took one look at him after seeing his cold eyes. This ba*sard is still as cocky as ever. Doesn''t he know that he just returned from the gates of death?


    "I have some matters to discuss with you." Xia Qingyuan dropped to the ground and turned her eyes at everyone else, saying, "Leave us be." Zhuge Mingyue and Beitang Xing''er took one look at Xia Qingyuan before turning around and leaving. Loulan Xue left as well. Xia Qingyuan''s men stood guard outside.


    Ye Futian did not stand up. If Xia Qingyuan had sent someone to send word, he would have greeted her standing up, yet he saw no reason to be polite, given how rude Xia Qingyuan was.


    "You are really making yourself at home indeed, Princess," Ye Futian said plainly. He, the master of the place, had not even said anything before Xia Qingyuan dismissed his guests like she owned the place. Xia Qingyuan did not reply. While her contact with Ye Futian had been limited, she had gotten used to Ye Futian''s attitude. He was a man with extreme pride, just like her. However, he was indeed qualified to be so prideful.


    Xia Qingyuan walked before Ye Futian and sat down, saying, "Do you not want to know why Saint Zhi dared to exchange lives with you?"


    Ye Futian looked up. His eyes very sharp. Jieyu perished in that battle where the seven holy lands had the Holy Zhi Palace surrounded. However, if it had not been for the nine mysterious mighty ones appearing at the end of the battle and Saint Zhi making a move against him, Jieyu would not have died. He would not even have needed to reveal his imperial will to win that Sacred War. No one knew why a saint had wanted to exchange lives with him.


    If Saint Zhi had been cornered and there was no way he could have came out alive, then it would have made sense that he chose to die with Ye Futian. That was how things went with Zhou Yanwang. However, that was not the case with Saint Zhi. His move went against human nature. Ye Futian knew that there probably were people of the Upper Worlds involved. Ye Futian kept his eyes on Xia Qingyuan, waiting for her to continue.


    "Saint Zhi had a son who was of Noble Plane training, one who was born between Saint Zhi and one of his concubines. He did not die in the battle when the Holy Zhi Palace razed Zhisheng Cliffs. Both mother and son were gone," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "Who?" Ye Futian asked.


    "No one in Emperor Xia''s Realm has the gall to pull something like that. Do you know who found the imperial mausoleum in the first place?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "People from Emperor Li''s Realm," Ye Futian answered coldly.


    "Be it my father or Emperor Li, they have forces that answered only to them, and their descendants would have nurtured their own people. That nine mysterious mighty ones were the people of Li Yao, the prince of Emperor Li''s Realm." Xia Qingyuan then continued, "Li Yao found Saint Zhi and promised to take his son to Emperor Li''s Realm for further training. Saint Zhi had no way out of it, so he did what he did as he had nothing to lose. Li Yao is the one responsible for your wife''s death."


    "Emperor Li''s Realm, Li Yao." Ye Futian looked unusually calm, yet the names were etched deep into his bone. It was no wonder why that fight had been such a fanfare, with all nine of them being people at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane and armed with a set of divine implements. It would not be a surprise if they had been descendants of Renhuang as well. Those divine implements meant little to people like Li Yao.


    While Ye Futian''s current powers enabled him to claim to be invincible among the sages, there was no way he could have been able to kill Li Yao. It was not just him. Even if Xia Qingyuan wanted Li Yao dead, it would be incredibly difficult as well. Her opponent would have been the son of Renhuang after all, which meant that he was of similar status to Xia Qingyuan.


    "Do you feel exhilarated, having destroyed the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and the Xihua Sacred Mountain consecutively, then forcing the three holy lands of Endless Ocean to disband?" Xia Qingyuan continued to ask while looking at him.


    "What do you mean by that?" Ye Futian asked, looking at Xia Qingyuan.


    "The saints of the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean made a request to the Upper Worlds, offering compensation and suing for peace, apologizing for what they did in the Sacred War," Xia Qingyuan said.


    The three holy lands of the Endless Ocean balked. It was apparent that they were frightened after seeing what happened with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain. They had no choice but to disband, yet their lineages for ages would not be wiped with just one order to disband. Furthermore, judging from Emperor Xia''s attitude, he probably had high hopes for Ye Futian, which led him to place a lockdown on the news. As such, even though they were saints, they were incapable of getting out of Emperor Xia''s Realm, and they would have had to face retaliation from Ye Futian sooner or later.


    It would have been a better option to sue for peace instead of thinking of ways to kill Ye Futian. The risk with the former was just too great. It would have ended with their deaths instead of Ye Futian''s after all.


    There was another way to deal with such predicaments, and that was to attach themselves to other greater powers of the Upper Worlds. Still, it remained to be seen if those forces dared to take on Ye Futian, who seemed to have limitless potential.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    With things being as such, there was no doubt that suing for peace would have been the best option. They suffered huge losses in that Sacred War. There were too many of their mighty ones killed in that war. However, given how the war was something they started, they had no one to blame but themselves. Even though they might have resented Ye Futian deep down, they had to consider their futures.


    "Apologize and sue for peace?" Ye Futian smirked sarcastically. "Do you think I''ll agree to that, Princess?"


    "The three holy lands of the Endless Ocean had little enmity with the Holy Zhi Palace. From what I know, they participated in the Sacred War because Saint Ji promised to hand over the divine implement that watched over the Endless Ocean��the Halberd of Time and Space��back to the forces of the Endless Ocean, once they won the war. Furthermore, any holy land that acquired imperial implements agreed to compensate with some divine implements of theirs, letting the three holy lands of Endless Ocean decide among themselves how to distribute them. Do you really need to kill them all?" Xia Qingyuan elaborated coldly. Ye Futian had destroyed three holy lands and there was no way he would let the Hall of Holy Light off. If the ones from the Endless Ocean were to be added to the list, seven holy lands would have ended up razed. To the people of the Nine States, that would have been a great loss. But then again, her father did say that Ye Futian alone was worth more than those in throughout the Nine States. However, it was still a better option to keep more holy lands around intact.


    "There is one nameless cemetery built in the Holy Zhi Palace to commemorate those who have fallen in service to the Holy Zhi Palace in the war. Tell them what you told me instead, Princess," Ye Futian replied just as coldly. "But then again, if that was an order from Emperor Xia himself, then I have had to follow."


    Xia Qingyuan''s incredibly beautiful eyes stared at Ye Futian. He was indeed the first person who dared to talk back to her.


    "The Halberd of Time and Space once belonged to the Ocean King, the master of the Endless Ocean. Now that you''ve obtained it, it can be said that you''ve acquired the lineage of the Ocean King. What if I told you that you could become the master of the Endless Ocean and have the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean serve you?" Xia Qingyuan''s voice remained cold, but she had nonetheless made compromises as well. Having Ye Futian become the new overlord of the Endless Ocean would be better than having all of the Endless Ocean''s holy lands razed.


    "Not enough," Ye Futian replied plainly.


    "Any other conditions then?" Xia Qingyuan asked coldly.


    "I want the people of the three holy lands of Endless Ocean to come to the Holy Zhi Palace and declare their fealty. Furthermore, I want the saints of the holy lands of the Endless Ocean to lead the visit to that cemetery in the Holy Zhi Palace that I mentioned and make their apologies personally." Ye Futiant then continued coldly, "But then again, this is my personal opinion about things. I''d need to ask the people of the Holy Zhi Palace themselves if they agree to such an arrangement. If they do not find it agreeable, I do not see it correct for even me, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, to just impose my decision on them."


    Xia Qingyuan stared at Ye Futian and saw those deep eyes of his staring back at her without any hint of flinching at all.


    "One final matter. Due to the matter with the Sacred War, the Nine States Forum was not held last year. As such, we''d like to have one organized and let the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State serve as host. What do you think?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "No problem," Ye Futian answered without hesitation.


    The Barren State had been weak for many years. Even though they had now risen, that was solely at the top level of things, where the saints and the pinnacle of the sages lied. Exceptional ones among the lower levels were still in short supply. It was not something that could have been accomplished in a short span of time. Under such a background, accomplishing such a feat required the efforts of generations.


    There was no doubt that the Nine States Forum would have served as a very good environment to help the cultivators of the Barren State and the Holy Zhi Palace train better. It was something that would have benefited the Barren State, so he saw no reason to refuse.


    Other than that, he had his reasons to make compromises with Xia Qingyuan and let the holy lands of the Endless Ocean swear fealty to him. He intended to delve into the training resources of the Endless Ocean''s three holy lands and use them to further the training of those in the Holy Zhi Palace. With the help of Saint Jiang on top of all that, the Holy Zhi Palace would not have fallen behind the rest of the Nine States at any level, after working at it for decades.


    "If the three holy lands find my conditions agreeable and he people of the Holy Zhi Palace agree to such arrangements, then the day of the three holy lands swearing fealty to the Holy Zhi Palace shall be held on the same day, where the Nine States Forum is held," Ye Futian added.


    Xia Qingyuan then asked, "Don''t you think that would be too brutal?"


    "If they have the intention to swear loyalty, then they need to show that they mean business. There''s no point faking such matters after all," Ye Futian replied.


    Xia Qingyuan wanted to teach him a lesson very badly, seeing his calm expression. However, both the battle in the imperial mausoleum and that battle of the Sacred War seemed to have made it clear to her��she was no match for Ye Futian. Seeing how Hua Jieyu perished in that battle personally, she had originally come to pity Ye Futian. However, her conversation with the ba*sard before her stripped her of all compassion she had for him.


    "Time?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "The first day of next year," Ye Futian replied.


    Xia Qingyuan stood up and turned around, her back facing Ye Futian, saying, "If you weren''t so overbearing, you would have been more approachable."


    "Farewell, Princess," Ye Futian looked up and said plainly. Xia Qingyuan clenched her fists somewhat tightly, before walking off without turning around.


    Zhuge Mingyue and Beitang Xing''er did not actually leave; they were simply waiting outside. They saw Xia Qingyuan walked out with a frosty expression and then said, "Let''s go." She then took the sky and left.


    Zhuge Mingyue wore a puzzled look on her face. What did little brother do this time to piss Xia Qingyuan off like that? Damn, couldn''t he just make less trouble for others? It would be in everyone''s benefit if he were to just play nice with the Princess. She is Emperor Xia''s daughter after all.


    "Loulan, go gather the lords to the Holy Sage Pavilion. We have matters to discuss," Ye Futian said. Loulan Xue was not all that far away. She acknowledged her orders and headed for the other palaces and pavilions.


    Ye Futian stood up and walked outside the compound. Be it the matter of the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean or that of the Nine States Forum, he needed the advice and opinions from the other lords to get preparations done. He needed to ask the people of all the other palaces and pavilions to decide how to proceed with the aforementioned matters.

 1012 Glass Saint’s Transformation

    A woman sat quietly in Saint Jiang''s Herb Palace in the Holy Zhi Palace. She was wearing elegant, light clothing; very simple and clean but still beautiful enough to make one lose their breath. The only thing lacking was the expression on her pretty face, or rather her lack of expression. It was like still water without the slightest ripple. No joy or anger could be seen on her face, and thus, she looked extraordinarily lonely.


    At that moment, there was the sound of footsteps as Little Butterfly approached. When she saw that calm figure, she was amazed even though she herself was a very beautiful woman. The foremost beauty in the Easter State''s disposition was different than before. It was as if she was completely divorced from the world, and completely supernatural. It was as she was no longer of this world.


    "Senior Glass Saint, the people from Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple are still outside. They won''t leave," said Little Butterfly.


    "Let them come in," said Glass Saint. Even her voice was flat and even. Little Butterfly nodded slightly then turned to leave. She called the people from Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple to come in, and then she waited outside.


    At that moment, a figure came over to her and called, "Little Butterfly."


    "Have you come to see Glass Saint?" She smiled warmly as she saw Ye Futian walking towards her.


    "How is she?" he asked.


    "It seems that she''s not ready to rebuild Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple yet. Even though the people from there have begged her, she is still unmoved and indifferent. It''s just like the Master said, after the battle between Glass Saint and the Great Zhou Sacred King when she cut the Great Zhou Sacred King with Love Destroyer, she was wounded as well. She was put in a very difficult situation. She destroyed her own emotions, so she has no more feelings," said Little Butterfly.


    A strange look came over Ye Futian''s face. She had become emotionless? Glass Saint was obsessed with killing the Great Zhou Sacred King and destroying the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Now that she had achieved vengeance, she probably did not know what she should pursue anymore. If a Saint had no convictions to hold onto, could they really be called a Saint?


    There was once again the sound of footsteps. Ye Futian looked up and saw a line of women from Lapis Lazuli Holy Templecoming coming out. They could not hide the look of loss in their eyes. When they saw Ye Futian, one of them bowed and said, "Lord Ye, we have troubled you for so long. This is farewell."


    "Glass Saint is not going back with you?" asked Ye Futian.


    They shook their heads. "We don''t know what happened to our mistress, but we will respect her choice. But we''ll still think of a way to rebuild Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple."


    "If you want, you can stay at the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. Maybe one day Glass Saint will change her mind," said Ye Futian. They were all shocked and looked at each other in astonishment. They were clearly moved by his offer.


    Things were different now. The Holy Zhi Palace of today was glorious and would grow even stronger in the future. Cultivating there would be extremely advantageous for them. But when they thought of themselves as people from Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, the felt a bit lonely. The palace was rising while Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple would become history.


    Perhaps their mistress would one day change her mind.


    "We''ll discuss it," one of them said.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. They all bowed and then parted.


    Ye Futian walked into the courtyard. Glass Saint was still sitting there calmly like before with her back to him. He walked over to her side and stood there quietly. With his white hair and white clothes, the two of them looked like immortals.


    "I heard you''re not planning to leave the palace?" Ye Futian asked.


    Glass Saint sat there quietly for a while. After a while, she said, "I just haven''t thought about where to go."


    "Why?" He turned to her and said, "You don''t want to kill me, do you?"


    At the Imperial Mausoleum, Glass Saint and Zhou Zhiming had been oppressed by the Great Path. Ye Futian had been extremely flirtatious towards her, but because of Zhou Zhiming, she couldn''t break their alliance. She had even come to Qingzhou City to convince him to return. But now that Zhou Zhiming was dead, she probably hated him.


    He looked at her beautiful profile. Her temperament seemed to have changed. Although she had cultivated the path of Destroying Love, and after removing her mask she became extremely cold, but after all, she still had the seven emotions and six desires, and they could not be completely cut off. But now she seemed to truly have no emotions.


    There was a stir in Glass Saint''s still eyes as Ye Futian said this. Maybe it was because what Ye Futian had done to her had left such a deep impression, so deep that it touched her soul, and so there was actually a faint ripple in her heart. But her face was still as cold as before. She said nothing. She turned around and seemed about to leave.


    "Where are you going?" asked Ye Futian.


    "I haven''t decided," said Glass Saint.


    Ye Futian turned and said to her back, "Then why don''t you stay in the palace for a while?"


    Glass Saint did not step away. She turned to look at Ye Futian, but she did not refuse his suggestion. Ye Futian sighed inwardly as he looked at her impassive face. Although he had been extremely dissatisfied with her actions in the Imperial Mausoleum, the enmity between her and Zhou Zhiming, Jiang Yuchan''s death, and her help in the Sacred War, no matter what her goal had been, all helped to settle his grudge against her. He no longer bore her any enmity. He even pitied her. He could feel her sorrow, maybe it was the feeling of fellow sufferers sharing in their misery.


    He had paid a tragic price in the war.


    Glass Saint seemed to be the winner, but what had she really won? Her obsession for many years had come to an end. Zhou Zhiming was dead, but Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple had been scattered. She herself had no more emotions. If her emotions had truly been destroyed, then how was she any different than a walking corpse? So, Ye Futian felt a bit sad. He would rather see a Glass Saint that hated him. Did she really not even hate him?


    Humans'' seven emotions were happiness, anger, sorrow, pleasure, fear, love, and malice. Had the Love Destroyer cut through all seven of them?


    "If you never decide, and stay in the palace, I''ll have someone build a Lapis Lazuli Palace," said Ye Futian. He turned to leave.


    Glass Saint watched his retreating figure. Her eyes were still as calm as still water.


    ��


    The days passed, and the storm caused by the destruction of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain swept through the Nine States. For a long time, there was no way to calm things.


    The cultivators from the Hall of Holy Light could not dare to go out whenever they pleased, as Yu Sheng from the Holy Zhi Palace was on guard outside, waiting to cut down any of them who came out. So they were shut up in the hall. The fifth-ranked holy land in the Nine States had been suppressed to this level. This showed the power of the Barren State.


    Xia Qingyuan sent someone to the Holy Zhi Palace. This time, she did not go herself but sent someone to convey her message. The three great holy lands of the Endless Sea had agreed to her conditions, but they had a bottom line. Ye Futian must not have the Holy Zhi Palace replace them, and they must stay in the Endless Sea, passing down their teachings from generation to generation. But they were willing to have Ye Futian become the Ocean King, and they would submit to him. This would be equivalent to keeping the three great holy lands. They didn''t have to be scattered and hunted down. They could continue to pass on their teachings. Ye Futian would definitely leave one day. He couldn''t control them forever. Thus they were willing to take a step back and compromise.


    The Saints were willing to bow their heads. Of course, they had done this unwillingly. Given the situation, if they didn''t bow their heads, who could ensure that they would survive? Instead, they were willing to pay a price.


    Ye Futian accepted their conditions. He had never wanted to have the Holy Zhi Palace replace the three great holy lands of the Endless Sea, instead wanting to use them to grow the palace. But it was no problem.


    After the two sides reached an agreement, the news spread throughout the Nine States. There was another uproar. Another piece of news circulated at the same time��the Nine States Forum would be held on the first day of the next year. If that was all, it would not be worth the people of the Nine States'' attention. But this time, the Nine States Forum would take place in the Barren State, in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    This news instantly caused an uproar. In less than ten years, The Holy Zhi Palace had gone from not even having the right to participate in the Nine States forum and had been shut outside, to hosting it themselves. It was like a dream.


    Many people thought that the fact that the Nine States Forum was being held at the Holy Zhi Palace symbolized their rise in the world and the fact that they could not be stopped.


    This Nine States Forum would certainly have a special meaning.


    The 10,018th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar gradually came to a close. The Holy Zhi Palace became very busy. They summoned skilled laborers from the Barren State to completely rebuild the palace in order to prepare for the Nine States Forum.


    It was not only the Holy Zhi Palace that was busy, but all of the Barren State was also uncharacteristically lively. All the cultivators from around the Nine States were gathering in Qingzhou City. For a time, all the eyes of the Nine States were on the Holy Zhi Palace.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    After the events at the Imperial Mausoleum, the Barren State had once again attracted the attention of the Nine States. But at that previous time, the Barren State had seemed to be dispensable, and no one cared about it. But this time, the Barren State was an active participant.


    At this time, many cultivators had gathered in a famous restaurant in Qingzhou City. They were talking about the Nine States Forum. Most of them had come specifically for the Forum.


    "The palace has announced throughout the Barren State that anyone who can qualify for the Law Battles at the Nine States Forum can enter the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate. It doesn''t matter what you achieve at the Nine States Forum, you have to seize your chance to enter the palace," one of them said.


    "I''ve heard that Lord Ye is heartbroken. His hair went white because he misses his wife, but now his appearance has become even more natural and unrestrained. If we get into the palace, maybe we''ll have a chance to get closer to the legend of the Barren State," whispered a woman.


    "You can''t be thinking of entering the palace as the wife of the Palace Lord," someone said with a smile. "I urge you not to entertain this idea. Besides his late wife, who is there in the Nine States who could be a match for Lord Ye?"


    The woman who had spoken had not cultivated to a high level yet. She was just fantasizing. When she heard the other criticizing her she turned red and bowed her head.


    Elsewhere in the restaurant, a group of people was drinking wine in silence. One of them was a former disciple of the palace, Zhuge Xing. The rest of them were also of the Zhuge clan. Years ago the Zhuge clan had split into two factions. Zhuge Qingfeng''s faction had stayed with the palace to fight to the death, while Zhuge Xing''s faction stood on their own.


    Now, Ye Futian stood at the peak of the Barren State, and the people looked at him as a god. Everyone in the Nine States knew of him, and those under the Saint-level followed his orders. If someone in this restaurant had disrespected him, everyone in the restaurant would attack them. Zhuge Qingfeng''s faction would definitely have a glorious future.


    When they thought of this, they didn''t know how to feel!

 1013 Grand Occasion

    The people of the Nine States descended in succession upon Qingzhou City. The Thousand Holy Islands around the Holy Zhi Palace were opened to the world, and everyone was allowed to walk freely upon them.


    In a short time, the city that surrounded the Holy Zhi Palace had become the most prosperous and lively place in the Nine States. Not only had people come from other states, but cultivators from the Barren State itself had gathered there as well.


    Many cultivators had gathered at the foot of the palace, where the disciples of the palace had once been recruited. Some of the top figures from the palace would often come to the stone wall in front of the palace and carve their will into it. One could faintly perceive the rule power in the wall, a rule power that could penetrate into one''s mind.


    Most people didn''t dare look at it for too long. They couldn''t handle it. Many of them wondered what the stone wall was used for. Was it supposed to help the cultivators of the Thousand Holy Islands cultivate?


    Not only that, but there was a crack split through the middle of the wall, and there seemed to be a sky stairwell in the middle of it that led to the palace. At the end of the stairwell was a brilliantly shining gate that led into the palace. If they kept looking up, they could faintly see the rebuilt Holy Zhi Palace towering into the sky, magnificent beyond words.


    The Holy Zhi Palace had summoned skilled laborers, and they had responded from all over the Barren State. Many people who had cultivated to high levels came, including those who were good at forming matrices. Supplemented by cultivators from the palace, they had built this new palace.


    "There are many cultivators on both sides of the sky stairwell carving on the stone wall," said someone looking at the sky stairwell.


    "I see Zhuge Qingfeng, the head of the Zhuge clan," said someone.


    "That black-robed swordsman is Qin Zhuang. He definitely has the power to enter the Sage Ranking. He''s using his sword to carve words into the wall. What are they doing?" Some people sighed. So many powerful figures from the palace had shown up.


    At that moment, a group of figures came over and stood on the stairwell. They looked out over the vast crowd. Someone saw who was standing at the head of them and his heart trembled. "It''s Sword Demon." Nowadays, the people who came and went from the palace were all looked up to by the people of the Barren State. Those cultivators of the Barren Sky Ranking who entered the palace must have become much stronger after the chaos of the Sacred War.


    "The Palace Lord has decreed that the Nine States Forum will be held on the first day of the 10,019th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. Moreover, the Nine States will not be divided during it. Anyone who comes, even common Nobles, can participate in the Law Battles as long as they are able to make it up to the palace on this sky stairwell. The number of people who may participate is not limited," said Sword Demon as he looked out over the crowd. Everyone''s hearts shook as he announced the rules for this year''s Nine States Forum. All the cultivators from around the Nine States felt this way.


    Ye Futian had broken the rules once again. He was holding this Nine States Forum with a new set of regulations. It was not going to be like before when the cultivators had been split up by their respective states. This time they would all be mixed together. And anyone who could make it up the sky stairwell could participate in the Law Battles.


    Obviously, no one said anything. They just listened to their Senior talk. It was the Princess''s idea to hold the Nine States Forum at the Holy Zhi Palace this year. No matter what Ye Futian did, the people of the Nine States would not argue.


    The people from the core of the Nine States thought that Emperor Xia must place a lot of importance on Ye Futian. From the Sacred War it could be seen that even though Emperor Xia seemed neutral, he had favored Ye Futian slightly ever since the Sacred War.


    With the ruler of the Nine States feeling this way, Ye Futian''s future was obvious for everyone to see. The cultivators of the three great holy lands of the Endless Sea were no fools, and they could naturally see this. With that being the way things were, they had no choice but to bow to him.


    "Also, any of you may use this stone wall that has been carved here for cultivating. Moreover, anyone who is not participating in the Nine States Forum can go to the palace by other roads to watch. There will be people to lead you to the palace at that time." After making this announcement, Sword Demon turned to leave. After receiving confirmation, all the people outside were excited. They had not expected that they would be able to witness such a grand occasion as the Nine States Forum in their lifetimes. This was going to be a spectacular event, and in the past, the Barren State did not even have the right to participate.


    The 10,018th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar came to an end under the eager anticipation of many people. Countless people were in Zhongzhou City for the celebrations. The 10,019th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar had finally arrived as all the Nine States watched.


    On that day, a sea of people stood outside the Holy Zhi Palace. There were so many that they could not all be taken in at a glance. Most of them were all the cultivators who had come from around the Barren State, as well as those who had joined other top forces in the Barren State. All of them, even if they had previously had a grudge against Ye Futian, did not dare to not come and support the Forum.


    Even though Ye Futian had not given any orders, and had put forth no requirements, they still did not dare to not come. Today, a single word from Ye Futian would move all of the Nine States, especially the Barren State. A single word from him could change the structure of the Barren State, and turn a top force into nothing more than ashes.


    Many rumors were circulating throughout the Barren State at that time. For example, after the Nine State Forum, Ye Futian would re-establish the order of the Barren State, and change the existing pattern of the state.


    Those forces that did not go to the Holy Zhi Palace to participate in the Law Battles all trembled in fear. Even if Ye Futian did not hold a grudge against them and did not punish them, his will would still determine their future.


    As they looked at the sky stairwell in front of them, many people sighed in their hearts. Not even ten years had passed, but it seemed like a whole new era. Starting from today, the Barren State had entered a new age.


    At this time, there was an incomparably strong aura high in the sky. Everyone looked and saw a group of figures riding on dragons. They looked like celestial beings from the Nine Heavens. Especially the old man at their head. His bearing was extraordinary, and he seemed to be supernatural.


    "Saint Xia of the Summer State has come to visit the palace, and lead the Xia clan in the Nine State Forum," said a figure beside the leading old man. His voice spread throughout the palace.


    Everyone''s hearts trembled violently. The most powerful force in the Nine States had arrived. Moreover, Saint Xia, the man who was apparently hailed as the leading figure in the Nine States, had come himself to pay his respects. This was a great honor for the palace. Or rather, it was a great honor for Ye Futian.


    "Please come in, Saint Xia," came a voice from far away within the Holy Zhi Palace. Someone came out to welcome them.


    "That''s Lord Ye''s voice!" said someone in the crowd. Even though Ye Futian was famous throughout the Nine States, it was still appropriate for him to personally greet Saint Xia.


    "You got here so quickly, Saint Xia," came a laughing voice. A group of figures descended from the sky with the old man still at their head. He seemed like a celestial being in every way. He was accompanied by a couple of young men, heroic figures all of them.


    "Nine States College has come to participate in the Nine States Forum," came another voice.


    "Come in, Saint Li," came Ye Futian''s voice once again. Everyone''s hearts trembled. The head of Nine State College, and number four on the Saint Ranking, Saint Li, had come himself.


    At that moment, a holy light burned in the air and a group of Buddhist cultivators descended, solemn and wonderful. The person at their head was like an ancient Buddha. He was number six of the Saint Ranking, the Vajra Region Lord.


    "The Vajra Region has come to pay its respects."


    "The Qi clan of Qi State has come to participate in the Nine States Forum."


    "The Jixia Holy Palace has come to pay its respects."


    "The Holy Temple of Ten Corners has come to pay its respects to the palace."


    The voices came one after another, each one making everyone''s hearts shake. As they watched the arrays of cultivators entering the palace, the people of the Barren State felt their hearts gradually grow numb. Some of the old cultivators who had practiced on the Thousand Holy Islands even felt the urge to cry.


    One old man already had tears in his eyes. He watched the grand occasion that was taking place at that moment, then looked up to the sky and said, "Master, it would have been so wonderful if you could have seen this day!"


    Back then, the Palace Lord Sage Chunyang and Vice Headmaster Liu Chan had originally chosen Bai Luli as their heir. But at the last moment, at the expense of their lives, they had petitioned Emperor Xia to name Ye Futian the new Palace Lord. At that time, Ye Futian was only a Noble. At that time, the palace was under threat from Zhisheng Cliffs and was in danger of being destroyed.


    And now where was Zhisheng Cliffs? And where was the Saint of Zhisheng Cliffs? Where was Kong Yao who had so threatened the Holy Zhi Palace? And now the Holy Zhi Palace was hosting such a grand occasion.


    In the last hundred years of the Nine States'' history, and in what Nine States Forum, had the Holy Zhi Palace ever held such a grand occasion?


    All the top forces and all the Saints had come. However, two Palace Lords were not there. After this, the Holy Zhi Palace would not be oppressed by any holy lands. They would be the ones oppressing other holy lands. It was said that the three great holy lands of the Endless Sea had come to apologize for their crimes and submit to Ye Futian.


    "Father, I want to join the Holy Zhi Palace, no matter the cost," said a young man.


    "If you have that ambition, then you must work hard," said a middle-aged man with a smile. Many juniors watched this scene and promised themselves that they would enter the Holy Zhi Palace. The people of the Barren State would never have dared to imagine a situation like this. But now it was happening before their eyes.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    At this year''s Nine States Forum they would not only be able to see the legendary figures of the palace, but they could also see the most powerful figures in the Nine States with their own eyes. Almost all of the cultivators of the Sages and Saints Ranking had come. Some people made promises to themselves, some people''s blood boiled, some sighed to themselves a thousand times. At the same time, some people seemed deeply regretful.


    Some examples included the Ximen family of Zhongzhou City, the Thunder Courtyard, and some of the other top forces of the Barren State. They had all had the chance to join the Holy Zhi Palace in their sacred war and become members of the palace. They also could have had the chance to compete with the other forces of the Nine States. But now they could only watch.


    After seeing Zhuge Qingfeng, Xu Shang, You Chi, and others who were on the Barren Sky Ranking just like them, they could only bow their heads in respect. Moreover, after the experience of fighting in a Sacred War, those people''s power had far surpassed their own. They might even have a chance in the future to participate in the Battles of Proving Holiness. Was this not what they had dreamed of?


    And given the situation, the regretful people had no hope of entering the Battles of Proving Holiness. What right did they have to compete with the most powerful figures of the Holy Zhi Palace?


    They had made their mistake, now they had to live with it.


    Ximen Hanjiang was also among the crowd. He had once been number one on the Law Rank. Now he could only look up at the Holy Zhi Palace. Going inside had become a vain hope for him!

 1014 Legend

    In the land of Nine States, the cultivators of all the holy lands arrived one after another. All the saints had arrived at the palace, and those who were participating stayed in front of the stone wall, mixing into the large crowd.


    At the moment, above the sky, there were giant beasts such as Kunpengs and Black Dragons that came from the air. Countless people looked up and saw a black mass in the sky, and it was a large number of cultivators approaching. It was as if everyone from all holy lands had come.


    "The three holy lands of the Endless Ocean have arrived!" Many people shuddered secretly and had already guessed who was coming.


    "The Ocean Palace, coming to the Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State to beg your pardon."


    "The Clan of the North Deep, coming to the Holy Zhi Palace to beg your pardon."


    "Celestial Cliffs, coming to beg pardon."


    Three consecutive shocking voices were heard, and they were from the mouths of the masters of the three great holy lands to show their sincerity. This peace summit was brokered by the Little Princess Xia Qingyuan. They agreed to the conditions put forward by Ye Futian, and with the princess as a witness, they dared not fake it even if the thought had crossed their mind. They had to perform their duties to the utmost. Since the choice of compromise was already made, no matter what, they had to set aside their dignity for the time being.


    The situation was such that concessions must be made, or their holy lands would no longer exist. They had to admit defeat. And they were very clear that this was not only bowing down to Ye Futian but was in fact also bowing down to Emperor Xia. The Sacred War was instigated by them, and now that they had lost, it was only natural for them to bear the price, otherwise, Emperor Xia would only favor Ye Futian. Look at Great Zhou Sacred King, who had wanted to kill Ye Futian in return, but died trying. And they had never even thought of using their own lives just to smite Ye Futian.


    Suddenly, there was dead silence in the vast space. There was no welcoming sound from the palace. Just silence. The cultivators of the three holy lands landed in front of the stone walls, and many people even bowed their heads slightly and felt a mixture of emotions all at once. The seven great holy lands laid siege upon the Holy Zhi Palace and were defeated. Now, this was the price they had to pay.


    The saints have bowed their heads. Countless people in the Barren State stared at this scene, and their hearts were disquieted. Today, not only had all the saints of the Nine States come to visit, but the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean had come to ask forgiveness.


    A person walked forward, tall and broad like an ancient god standing upon the sky stairwell.


    "Saint Douzhan." The Barren State looked at the figure, and many suddenly showed a look of great emotion. Some even start to breathe quickly. They did not have such a strong feeling when they saw all the other saints of the Nine States. However, Douzhan was different. In the first battle of the Divine Path, he almost used his entire power to save the Holy Zhi Palace on his own, forcibly breaking the limits of his physical body and attracting the Divine Catastrophe. Instead of trying to overcome the catastrophe, he used it against the cultivators of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and did not hesitate to torch his own life in return. He continuously breaching the battle matrixes of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty until, on the verge of death, forcing the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty to withdraw their troops. This was also the beginning of a great era.


    The Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian, took him to the Nine State College, where he sought medical treatment from Saint Jiang, who cured him, and he finally passed the catastrophe and became a saint. This was the living legend of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, a person who was destined to be recorded in the annals.


    How could the people of the Barren State not revere and worship him?


    "Was it merely to ask for forgiveness?" Douzhan surveyed the people from the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean coldly, his voice heard loud and clear.


    "The three holy lands of the Endless Ocean are willing to serve the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian, as the Ocean King. And from this day forward, the Endless Ocean will be ruled by the Ocean King," said Ocean Saint of Ocean Palace. This was the title he had dreamt about. To become the master of Endless Ocean, this was the reason for his title as Ocean Saint after he had become saint. But now, Ye Futian would inherit the title of Ocean King.


    "There is more," Douzhan continued. His voice was still cold and distant.


    "All of us, when entered into the Holy Zhi Palace, will repent in front of the tombs of all those from the palace who died in the battles," Saint North Deep said, although he was reluctant. The princess had ordered them, and they had agreed, so no matter what happened today, they must bear all of it.


    Douzhan glanced at the crowd. He understood that the saint of the Endless Ocean was probably unwilling but had said what they said pressed by the present situation. Ye Futian had already warned him before, but it did not matter to him.


    "Since you have named Palace Lord Ye as the Ocean King, then the command of the Ocean King is that after Nine State Forum, the three holy lands are to bring their laws of cultivations to the Holy Zhi Palace for the Ocean King to peruse. Any objections?"Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The cultivators of the three holy lands were truly feeling torn, but still, they could only answer with as much conviction as they could, "We have no objections."


    "In addition, the Ocean King will often call on the cultivators of the Endless Ocean to cultivate at the Holy Zhi Palace, to practice with the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace. Any objections?" Douzhan continued.


    "No objections," they responded.


    "Very well then. Since the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean are sincere in their desire to belong with the Holy Zhi Palace, you may enter the palace now," Douzhan said. He turned around and led the cultivators of the Endless Ocean into the palace, leaving countless people shocked.


    The three holy lands of the Endless Ocean had surrendered, and from this day forward, the new Ocean King of the Endless Ocean was born, and it just so happened that the Halberd of Time and Space was in the hands of Ye Futian.


    Perhaps this was all fate.


    "Yi Clan of Summer State has come to pay respect to the Holy Zhi Palace." Above the firmament, there was a group of brilliant figures heading for the direction of the palace. However, there was no sound that was coming out of the palace, which forced the cultivators of Yi Clan to stop outside the palace.


    "Yi Clan of Summer State has come to participate in Nine State Forum." Another voice was heard, somewhat displeased.


    "Enter." An indifferent spoke. Even the word "please" was omitted.


    The cultivators from Yi Clan looked vexed, and Saint Yi was even more displeased in his heart. It seemed that Ye Futian still held a grudge about the battle at the Imperial mausoleum. That time, they had gone against Ye Futian. Later, Moon Saint had gone to persuade them not to participate in the War, and that was why they stayed on the sidelines. But even so, though Ye Futian would not deal against the Yi Clan, neither would he be warm to them, so this cold attitude was not unexpected.


    Today, Saint Yi came in person in an attempt to ease the mood, but Ye Futian did not give much appreciation. However, today''s Holy Zhi Palace, relying on its own strength alone, could suppress the Yi Clan with no problems. Therefore, Saint Yi could only toughen up and enter the Holy Zhi Palace.


    After a long while, all the other holy lands came one after another. Above the sky stairwell, Sword Demon appeared there, and looked downward, saying, "Nine State Forum now officially begins. All Nine States cultivators of the Noble Plane can dash through the sky stairwell. Those who successfully enter the palace through the sky stairwell may participate in the Law Battles. The rest of the people may enter the palace from both sides following the directions."


    "Finally, it''s starting." Countless cultivators of the Noble Plane who wanted to participate in the Nine State Forum took a deep breath. In an instant, thousands of cultivators stepped forward and walked toward the sky stairwell of the Great Path. There, for the other states in the Nine States, were held the qualification for the Law Battles. However, for the people of the Barren State, it was not only the admission ticket for the Law Battles, but it was also the sky stairwell that realized their dream of cultivating in the Holy Zhi Palace. As long as they could get up there, they would also become a member of the Barren State holy land, the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Standing above the palace, in one glance, countless people were marching forward, covering the sky as if they could flood this holy place.


    The crowds who entered the palace from the sides were led all the way forward. Today''s Holy Zhi Palace exuded a sense of sacred majesty. On both sides, there were many palace compounds. Right in front of them, there was a straight path. Looking into the distance, the terrain faintly to appear getting higher and higher. Nestled within the depths of the Holy Zhi Palace, there was a towering palace that was erected into the sky, ethereal and holy.


    As they moved forward, they were getting closer and closer to the palace and the mighty crowd voluntarily kept quiet, as if they could feel that solemn and sacred atmosphere, as if on a pilgrimage. For the people of the Barren State, the significance of coming today was not only to watch the Nine State Forum but a pilgrimage.


    After a long time, they finally came to the end of the road, a vast expanse of land to view the battles. In the order of first come first serve, they lined up all the way to the back. In front of them, there was an incomparably beautiful Law Battle Platform that was suspended in the air. In front of the platform was the sky stairwell that led to the majestic palace located in the void. At this time, above the sky stairwell, there was the viewing stand in the shape of an arc for all the holy lands of the Nine States. There were already many cultivators from the holy lands in the Nine States sitting there.


    Behind them, there were cultivators arriving in succession from the void. Their bodies landed on the platform that was suspended in the air. These were those who had passed the assessment and had obtained the qualifications to participate in the battle.


    Looking at those who were continuously landing on the platform, some were envious. The battle of the Noble Plane that was to be witnessed by the saints of the Nine States was tremendously rare, possibly only once in a centennial. However, compared with those who had obtained the qualifications for the law battle, the people of Nine States were even more curious about Ye Futian, especially those from the Barren State. They all looked up to the sky and looked forward to his arrival.


    Time passed by bit by bit, and there were now more and more cultivators on the battle platform, and there were more people gathering on the viewing stand out in front. The cultivators of the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean had arrived, but they were sitting at the end. In addition, the cultivators of the Yi Clan were also being arranged to sit at the end. Saint Yi sat there with extreme indignity, and yet he couldn''t very well leave, so he sat there with an uncomfortable exasperation.


    Sunlight sprinkled from the sky and landed on the beautiful law battle platform. Countless people still looked up skyward. They saw that above the sky stairwell, and in front of the magnificent palace, there finally appeared an extensive group of people walking down the steps.


    Among them were Saint Xia, Saint Li, Lord of Vajra Region, Moon Saint, and the others. They were those cultivators who had leaned toward the side of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Sacred War.


    Ye Futian welcomed them into the palace to chat and catch up. Countless eyes gazed at the same place. Among the congregation of people, the hearts of the people of Barren State were beating with excitement, looking at the white-haired youth who stood at the top of the sky stairwell, occupying the space right in the middle. That handsome and extraordinary white-haired youth was the most legendary figure in Barren State today��the palace lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian.


    Next to the white-haired youth, there were many others such as Sword Saint, Yu Sheng, Gu Dongliu, You Chi, Xu Shang, Zhuge Qingfeng, Yun Shang, Qin Zhuang, and Sword Demon. Among these people, some of them had risen later, while some of them had already been named on the Barren Sky Ranking, but all of them were now legends of the Barren State who would be remembered by the Barren State.


    At this moment, countless cultivators of the Barren State had the urge to cry, and some people, who were passionate, were already in tears. In this life, to be able to lay eyes on them here was what made this life worth living. However, it seemed that there was still someone missing by the side of Palace Lord Ye!

 1015 Prelude of an Era

    At the Holy Zhi Palace, the sunlight sprinkled on the sky stairwell. The legend of the Barren State bathed in its golden glow and walked down the steps. The people of the Barren State were solemn, as if in the presence of the holy.


    Ye Futian and the others walked down, and the white-haired youth was more extraordinary in his aura. He looked at the immense crowd underneath, and said to Saint Xia, Saint Li, and the rest of the people next to him, "Please sit down, honorable seniors." Saint Xia, Glass Saint and the rest then sat, and Ye Futian and other people from the palace also sat in their own seats. The Holy Zhi Palace in Barren State was the host, so it was natural that its people were sitting in the middle.


    Ye Futian occupied the middle, with Yaya at the left, the Village Chief was sitting next to him, and Saint Jiang and Douzhan were to the right, and all the cultivators from the four great holy lands were all sitting near Ye Futian. Such a display of power let the people of the Nine States truly feel the strength of the Barren State.


    On the side, there were palace lords such as Sword Saint, Yang Xiao, Sword Demon, Daozang, and many others. Every one of them was a well-known figure in the Barren State. In the Barren State, many of their legends had circulated.


    All the holy lands of Nine States sat in an arc, with the Xia Clan on the left, the Nine State College on the right, and behind them, the Vajra Region, the Yue Clan, and other principalities of the holy lands that sided with Ye Futian. Their positions were also toward the top, as they themselves already held high status in the Nine States. As for other holy lands, they sat according to their ranking. Since the saints were all arriving today, using the recognizing ranking for sitting, no one would have objected.�� The exception was the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean and the Yi Clan sitting at the end, and the reason was apparent to the people of Nine States.


    In the direction of Jixia Palace, Bai Luli also arrived. Witnessing the prosperity of the Barren State at this moment, his heart was equally filled with emotion and relief. And he released everything in the past to the wind. Ye Futian had not only completed the master''s long-time wish but also brought the Holy Zhi Palace to a new height.


    Bai Luli looked up at the white-haired figure who bathed in the sunlight. His eyes took in the people of Nine State.


    Ye Futian said slowly, "Nine State Forum is the highest stage for all the young people of the Nine States, proud sons and daughters of all holy lands competed here to witness the true strength of the cultivators of the Nine States. Therefore, the Nine State Forum is slightly different from the past. Instead of dividing the number of people participating in the battles in the Nine States, all the people who participated in the Nine States will be mixed and redistributed. My hope was that we would see the strongest of the Nine States and not about keeping the balance of the participants of the Nine States.


    "In the past few years, the Barren State was isolated from the rest of the Nine States and the strength of the outside world was unknown and lagged far behind the average strength of the Nine States. Even though this time the Nine State Forum is being held in the Holy Zhi Palace at Barren State, and perhaps the participants from Barren State were the fewest with the least finalists, it doesn''t matter. I only hope that people in the Barren State will witness the battles of the forum as motivation for them to work harder. The Great Path is long and treacherous, only the faithful will be able to see the scenery farther away."


    The calm voice of Ye Futian sounded in the eardrums of the people of the Barren State. Many even felt their blood boiling. The road to cultivation on the Great Path was long and winding, and only those whose belief was firm could go far. What if the Barren State lagged behind the average strength of the Nine States? Didn''t Ye Futian and these living legends bring the Barren State to a new height?


    This time at the Nine State Forum, there was no Yu Sheng and no Hua Jieyu, so it was not as brilliant as the one a few years back, but it did not matter, and no one would really mind. Today, the Nine States Forum took place at the Holy Zhi Palace in Barren State. With the arrival of all the saints, it obviously held historical meaning. Compared to that, the reality of the Nine State Forum was not that important. This year''s Nine State Forum was the grandest in a hundred years, and precisely because of this, the ranking of this time''s Nine State Forum was the most insignificant.


    After Ye Futian finished speaking, Douzhan who stood next to Ye Futian also said, "The reward for this year''s Nine State Forum for the top ten are all divine implements or holy items. I hope you will all do your best."


    In this mighty Sacred War, the Hall of Holy Light suffered heavy losses, and three holy lands were eradicated. After the war, the Holy Zhi Palace had obtained many divine implement and holy items as trophies. Today''s Holy Zhi Palace could be considered extremely wealthy, so it was not a big deal for them to put up ten holy items as prizes, but at Nine State Forum it showed extreme sincerity. It was also a sign of respect for all the saints of the Nine States who were present today, highlighting the importance that Holy Zhi Palace paid to Nine State Forum.


    "Announce the rules of the law battles, and let''s get started," Ye Futian said with a clear voice. Instantly, Sword Demon and the Sage Wanxiang stepped forward for the battle platform to preside over the Nine State Forum. Thus, the Nine State Forum hosted by the Holy Zhi Palace in Barren State was kicked off. Under the witness by all the saints of the Nine States, all the proud sons and daughters of Nine States gave their best, but with great sportsmanship, so that as much as it was a great showing, it did not damage the peace between the participants. This was also the current inclination of Nine States. After the turmoil caused by the Sacred War, all the saints hoped that there would be no more turbulence now.


    The cultivators in the Barren State were undoubtedly the most enthusiastic and excited among all the participants of this time''s Nine State Forum. Those cultivators from the Barren State, who participated in the law battles gave their all, and in the end, three were able to enter the top 100, but ultimately none of them were able to enter the top ten. Even though the ranking was not really ideal, it was not easy for them. For this, the people of the Barren State did not care much.


    The Nine State Form this time took a month to come to a close. Many people in the holy lands of Nine States had left, and the cultivators of the Yi Clan left the fastest. But Ye Futian had asked the people of the Barren State to stay behind. Saint Xia and Saint Li did not rush to leave either, wanting to see what Ye Futian had to say.


    The vast number of the people of the Barren State did not leave, staring at Ye Futian on the stairwell as if they wanted to stay in the palace forever.


    Ye Futian got up and looked at the people of the Barren State and said, "As everyone knows, our Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State experienced this Sacred War, and now it is finally able to stand firmly atop of all Nine States. This was the wish of the generations past of the Holy Zhi Palace, but it wasn''t just the Holy Zhi Palace I wished to be strong, but also that the cultivators of Barren State so that they could have the best conditions for cultivation. When I was cultivating at the cottage of the East Barren Territory, this was also how my master taught me. Cultivators need to keep an open mind and a great heart, not to be self-centered, but to share the way with the world. In the past, my master was like this, and so is the Holy Zhi Palace, and Saint Jiang also has such a wish. I am now the palace lord, and I will fulfill the wishes of my predecessors, and make them a reality.


    "I announce that the land of Zhongzhou City, in the Barren State, will establish Tingxue Palace with Xu Shang as the palace lord of Tingxue Palace. In the northern territory of the Barren State will be Zhuge Academic Palace with Zhuge Qingfeng as palace lord. In the western part of the Barren State, Alchemy Palace at Alchemy City, with You Chi as the palace lord. In the southern part of the Barren State, Ice Palace will be established with Yun Shang was the palace lord. In the east, the Starry Palace will be established with Chen Yuan was the palace lord.


    "The five palaces of the Barren State are all branches of the Holy Zhi Palace. I will be sending cultivators directly from the Holy Zhi Palace to the five palaces to share their wisdom, and distribute the spiritual resources to the people who cultivated in the Barren State. Every year, the palaces will meet with the Holy Zhi Palace to exchange. Those who cultivated with hardships, good moral, and outstanding talents can choose whether to enter the Holy Zhi Palace to cultivate, and those who excelled among them could even enter the holy temple and enjoy the resources of the Divine Path."


    Ye Futian''s voice was loud and clear and rang through heaven and earth, trembling in the ears of everyone in the Barren State. Countless felt the flow of their blood in their veins. This was the heart of Ye Futian, palace lord of Holy Zhi Palace. After the Sacred War, the Holy Zhi Palace suffered terrible losses, and his beloved wife died in battle. With the flame of revenge in his heart, he destroyed the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain on a roll. But to this day, he still cared for the people of the Barren State.


    You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng, Xu Shang, Yun Shang, Chen Yuan, and others stood by Ye Futian. They were all smiling. This was decided after they had discussed it together. Alchemist City, Tingxue House, and Zhuge Family would no longer exist but would be branches of the Holy Zhi Palace. It was just that from now on, instead of being forces of clans and family, they would have evangelical purposes rather than being self-centered.


    They were all willing to support Ye Futian and work hard for the same goal. It was also a wonderful thing that when they had cultivated to this level, that in addition to pursuing the Divine Path, they could also contribute to the world.


    Saint Xia and Saint Li both smiled and felt relief in their hearts. Saint Li looked at Saint Jiang and released that last trace of resistance about Saint Jiang joining the Holy Zhi Palace. All was well. But in the same way, among the crowds, the Ximen Clan and the other branch of the Zhuge family appeared pale, as if they had fallen into the abyss. They all understood that from this day forward, in the Barren State, there would only be the Holy Zhi Palace. They would all gradually disappear into the long river of history and be allowed to decline with time.


    Ye Futian did not take revenge against them, but this order was enough to change their destiny. Everything was over, and the Barren State would have a new landscape henceforth. This Nine State Forum, which was held at the Holy Zhi Palace, was indeed a marker between two eras.


    "Thank you, palace lord," a voice broke through the silence of the space and pulled back everyone''s thoughts. Suddenly, the same sound started to be heard everywhere. Soon, this sound was heard between heaven and earth, and the sound was soaring. Under the stairwell, in the vast palace, countless people bowed their heads and bowed down to Ye Futian. There was sincere respect in their eyes.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Saint Xia saw this and smiled, and said to Saint Li who was next to him, "We should go."


    "Well, let''s go." Saint Li nodded, and the two led their respective cultivators and left together.


    Ye Futian turned and walked up the stairwell, and the people around him followed him as well, climbing up the sky stairwell, step by step. Under the stairwell, countless many looked up behind him, seeing his white hair fluttering in the wind like a real immortal.


    Nine State Forum had ended, but it was just a prelude of a new era for the Barren State!

 1016 The Nine States Rumble

    The chaotic Nine States returned to the quiet state of the past after the Nine States Forum was over. The Barren State was, however, incredibly busy. Five palaces��the Alchemy Palace, The Zhuge Academic Palace, the Tingxue Palace, the Starry Palace and the Ice Palace��appeared in five regions of the Barren State, built i where Alchemy City and Crouching Dragon Mountain had been. They came to look even grander and magnificent than they had once been. The Holy Zhi Palace distributed resources, and every single palace had their own divine implements and methods of attaining sainthood to train with.


    The Holy Zhi Palace had also borrowed and copied the training methods from the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean before distributing them to the Holy Zhi Palace and the five palaces. The same went with sage ritual implements as well. Every single palace had grown far more powerful than they had once been. Many of the figures ranked in the Barren Sky Ranking had joined the ranks of the five palaces, willing to teach in the five palaces. Doing so would have served to further their training as well. The Battle of Proving Holiness of the Nine States would soon be upon them, and all of them wanted a chance at that.


    In the past, most of the participants from the Holy Zhi Palace would be reduced to cannon fodder in the Battle of Proving Holiness, as there was no way that they would have been able to fight the cultivators from the other eight states. However, things were different now. The sages of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State possessed the power to shake seven holy lands before. If Ye Futian were to participate in the event, few would have been able to match him in the Battle of Proving Holiness. But then again, it remained to be seen if Ye Futian would have participated at all. Some speculated that he would, while there were others who thought that Ye Futian wouldn''t bother. He would have definitely attain sainthood someday with his own power, and there was no reason for him to borrow external forces to do so.


    Time passed and Year 10020 of Divine Prefecture Calendar was upon them. It was the year of the Battle of Proving Holiness. Countless people at the pinnacle of the sage plane throughout the Nine States emerged from training in isolation. To most of them, they had been waiting for that day for a very long time.


    Many elderly cultivators who had secluded themselves from the world throughout the Nine States emerged, as well as top-notch figures of the younger generation from the past 20 years. They were the new powers and the geniuses who had rocked the Nine States. They were probably armed with powers comparable to that of their elders. No one had certainty of anything.


    Mighty ones gathered at the Holy Sage Pavilion of the Holy Zhi Palace. You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng, Yun Shang, Xu Shang, and many others came. They were all about to participate in the upcoming Battle of Proving Holiness. They were of inadequate powers 20 years ago, so much so that even the previous Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace sustained severe injuries from that event. 20 years later, all of the cultivators of the Barren State were more than capable of competing in the Battle of Proving Holiness and showing what they were made of.


    Yu Sheng walked up. Yu Sheng''s current bearing looked completely different from how it was when he had first joined the Holy Zhi Palace. He had once exuded wild, unrestrained power with just one look. While he still exuded power with his large, stout frame, his bearing had gotten more composed and internalized. His eyes were deep and emanated powerful pressure. Even sages at the pinnacle of their training would have felt vague pressure just by standing before him. Yu Sheng had broken into the mid-level archmage plane and was simply one step away from the final plane of the Sage Planes.


    The Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, and the others came from different directions and gathered around.


    "Where is the Palace Lord?" Sage Daozang asked.


    "He is not participating in the Battle of Proving Holiness. Let''s go." Everyone nodded and none of them found his decision to be peculiar. Ye Futian''s talents were such that he truly did not need to become a saint through the event. Furthermore, Ye Futian deemed his current plane inadequate, requiring years to temper his mind before he was ready. As such, the event was of little meaning to Ye Futian himself. As for the safety of the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace, their current lineup, with Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, and the others going with them, none of the holy lands would be much of a match for them. There was no doubt that the current powers of Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint, and the others stood at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane.


    "That guy is slacking off again," Zhuge Mingyue mumbled. Ye Futian had been gone for a long time. When the Nine States Forum was over, he went on a pilgrimage on his own. Or perhaps, he simply wanted to travel the Nine States.


    The massive lineup from the Holy Zhi Palace was frightening. Top figures gathered from throughout the Nine States and that time, it was a Battle of Proving Holiness hosted by Emperor Xia himself. Many wondered how many saints would emerge. However, none of that seemed to have anything to do with Ye Futian. He was at the vast Endless Ocean, which was located at the Ocean State, the furthest state away from the Barren State.


    A lone boat was floating on the vast, unending seas. There was a figure lying down quietly on the boat, swaying with the waves, thinking the sky to be his bed and the sea as his blanket. A dark golden huge bird circled above him in the blue skies. The bird was having a good time as well.


    There were powerful sea monsters emerging from the seas every now and then, The dark golden huge bird would then dive and tear them to shreds with its claws. None of the powerful sea monsters thought that a mutated Black Wind Condor possessed such terrifying powers. A king of a certain region of the seas went up to them the monsters were easily killed.


    The boat continued to sway in the waves. The figure dressed in white seemed to have fallen asleep, forgetting everything about the world, and even forgetting what year it was.


    Time passed day after day, and the figure dressed in white seemed to be in an eternal slumber where he would never wake. A terrifying storm was upon them. A frightening whirlpool of lightning appeared before them. The light of darkness swallowed everything as towering waves rushed. That boat continued to sway in the storm, tossing about in the huge waves, yet that figure seemed to have felt nothing at all. He remained lying down and his body was tossed around alongside the boat. Terrifying lightning shot for his body and hit it, yet he continued to seem to feel nothing. Not even the boat was destroyed in that terrifying storm. It simply continued to toss in the storm.


    The huge bird continued to fly high in the air amidst the dark storm as if it would never tire. The boat was swallowed by the waves, moving alongside them. Everything calmed several days later. The boat finally stopped after some time, blocked by a huge piece of rock. He had arrived at an uninhabited island.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The Black Wind Condor, flying in the air, dropped onto a huge rock and took a look at the young man on the boat. The sun shone on him and it was getting hot. The grey-haired young man finally opened his eyes slowly by then. He got used to the sunlight for a bit before sitting up. His hair was a mess and he had grown a beard. It was obvious that he had not been grooming himself for quite some time.


    The young man was none other than Ye Futian. He settled the Holy Zhi Palace''s affairs after the Nine States Forum before venturing out into the three holy lands of the Endless Ocean. He observed the training methods of the Endless Ocean and developed his own understanding, so he brought the Black Wind Condor with him and drifted at sea afterwards. He spent his days either training or simply let himself drift at sea.


    "Year 10020 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar," Ye Futian murmured. He and the Black Wind Condor''s mind was connected, so he was still able to keep track of time nonetheless.


    The Battle of Proving Holiness of the Nine States should have begun by now then. However, he was not in the least bit worried. With Yu Sheng, his Eldest Brother, and the others around, it did not matter if he participated in the event or not.


    Of all the figures who were at the front of the Barren Sky Ranking all those years ago, only his teacher, Douzhan, had been able to attain sainthood. As the participants from the Holy Zhi Palace had experienced the Sacred War firsthand, he wondered how many among them would be able to break into a new plane.


    The state of mind of You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others should have all undergone changes after the Sacred War. Their training should have been rock-solid as well. Furthermore, there were several saints in the Holy Zhi Palace whom they would have been able to learn from at any time.


    His body slowly rose to the air as he gazed at the island before him. He extended his hand and a halberd materialized. Formless current of rules coursed around Ye Futian, which he felt to be like wind and water, with no still form.


    Voom. Wind blew and Ye Futian disappeared from where he stood. The Black Wind Condor''s eyes were incredibly sharp, yet it was incapable of tracking him at all. It turned to look at that island and found a hole on it. Ye Futian''s body had penetrated the island right away, appearing on the other side. The power of space rules vibrated and Ye Futian''s silhouette returned to that spot where he stood before, as if he had appeared out of nowhere.


    "The first move, I shall call it the Extreme Shadow," Ye Futian mumbled to himself. He then owned the divine implement that ranked third on the Divine Implement Ranking��the Halberd of Space and Time��so he naturally had to bring out its greatest power. That was the reason why he had visited the three holy lands of Ocean State. He was combining the methods he learned from the cultivators of the three holy lands, with his own realizations and developments. His time spent adrift at sea allowed him to hone a mature way of the halberd, which belonged to him alone.


    The light of calamity shone on his body as soon as he finished speaking. The light of the rules coursed around the halberd in his hand. Devastating force seemed to emanate from his body.


    "The second move, Annihilation." The halberd in his hand was thrust like before at lightning speed as soon as he finished talking. However, the devastating light of calamity went on the shroud the entire island instead. At the very next moment, the entire island began to crumble. It was reduced to countless pieces of rocks.


    Ye Futian''s body spun in flight. He gathered devastating force about his body with the help from the speed of Extreme Shadow, as if that terrifying waves were about to bring down the sky. In that moment, space-time seemed to have grinded to a halt. The falling rocks were slowed considerably.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes forward and thrust the halberd slowly. "Third move, Unending Void." The space around them became extremely oppressive, as if the flow of space-time stopped altogether, yet a devastating force remained bearing down on them. The halberd was fully extended, and within just an instant, the rocks were shattered in an instant, reduced to a powdery dust. Ye Futian did not stop with the movements on his hands. The dust was blown away by the wind in that oppressive space. There was no longer an island before him.


    Ye Futian looked pleased with himself. His time spent training all that while was not wasted after all. The halberd disappeared and everything was blown away by the wind.


    "I have gained the Halberd of Time and Space��Nothingness��and I have created moves based on the movesets of the Ocean King and my own training, so I shall name the art after the weapon��Nothingness."


    The Black Wind Condor swooped down and Ye Futian leapt onto the bird with a single step. A man and a beast were flying high up in the blue skies with the ocean beneath.


    The Battle of Proving Holiness ended several months later and 12 saints emerged from the event, breaking the record of the past century. Five saints emerged from the Holy Zhi Palace, shaking the entire Nine States!

 1017 News From the Upper Worlds

    It was an old custom for the new saints to head to the Upper Worlds and pay a visit to Emperor Xia. Despite the Nine States being ruled under Emperor Xia''s orthodoxy, only those who had proved their worthiness and became saints were deemed qualified to meet Emperor Xia himself. It was also a ritual of sorts in itself.


    The news washed all over the Nine States before they returned. It was especially so in the case of the Barren State, where the news was all the rage at the moment. Five saints emerged from the Barren State and all of them hailed from the Holy Zhi Palace. It was deemed an insane achievement. The Holy Zhi Palace had once poured just about everything into nurturing one saint, as they had been forgotten by the rest of the Nine States for having no saints in their midst.


    There were now five new saints emerging from the Battle of Proving Holiness. That was further boosted with the addition of the four saints already residing within the Holy Zhi Palace, and the Glass Saint, who had now joined the ranks of the Lapis Lazuli Palace of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The Holy Zhi Palace had ten saints in their midst, making them the number one state in all of the Nine States. Furthermore, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, and the others had yet to become saints, yet they were nonetheless deemed to be people who would attain sainthood in the future. Many were wondering if their misfortunes had ended and if their glory days had finally come.


    A grand Sacred War fought before involved ten holy lands in it. Many mighty ones perished in that war, yet it nonetheless tempered and baptized the victors of the war. All the others who were not going to be proving holiness headed back to the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The five saints of the Barren State were:


    You Chi, City Lord of the Alchemy City, who formerly ranked eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Yun Shang, the Lord of the Ice Temple, who formerly ranked second on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Zhuge Qingfeng, clan leader of the Zhuge family, who formerly ranked sixth on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Xu Shang of the Tingxue House, who formerly ranked ninth on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    Yuan Hong, leader of the golden great apes, who formerly ranked 18th on the Barren Sky Ranking.


    It went without saying that all of the first four mentioned were lords of the Holy Zhi Palace, while Yuan Hong was a guardian elder of the Holy Sage Pavilion. Their former ranking on the Barren Sky Ranking was simply what their powers had been once. They had grown stronger since experiencing the Sacred War firsthand, especially Yuan Hong, who took control of the Heavenly Battle Matrix, which had been all fury and rage.


    Since then, among the former ten ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking, the ones who ranked first and third had been the two previous Palace Lords, who had perished. The City Lord of the White Cloud City and Bai Luli both had yet to become saints, while Huang Yi perished in the war.


    Four others and Douzhan had all became saints. It was an outcome that would have definitely caused a storm in the Barren State. It was also one that had rendered the ones who were ranked at the back end of the Barren Sky Ranking incredibly frustrated.


    They had also participated in the Battle of Proving Holiness, yet, in actual fact, those five from the Holy Zhi Palace were not actually the strongest. Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint, Qin Zhuang, and Gu Dongliu were just as powerful than any of the five. However, the path to sainthood was not one that was measured solely through combat capacity.


    All five of them had stopped at the pinnacle of Sage Plane for many years and their levels were stable. Their states of mind became increasingly whole and flawless after experiencing the Sacred War. Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint, and the others were able to get their hands on some encounters that would further their journey to sainthood, in the battlefield of the Battle of Proving Holiness, which enabled the older generations of the Holy Zhi Palace to truly get their hands on the key factors of becoming saints. Thus, the five saints from the Barren State emerged.


    Many mighty ones from the other holy lands cursed the Holy Zhi Palace after the event, for hoarding all sainthood resources to themselves, sharing between those who hailed from the Barren State. All of the other holy lands of the Nine States were bullied. It was especially so in the case of Yu Sheng, who happened to irk them the most.


    But then again, they had only grumbled and did not truly hold grudges against the Holy Zhi Palace. The ones from the Barren State had indeed brought overwhelming power onto the others in that year''s Battle of Proving Holiness after all. But then again, all of them had been merciful enough to go on to kill their opponents.


    Killing was common in the past Battle of Proving Holiness. Furthermore, none of the holy lands would have held grudges against anyone. It was an unwritten rule. The opportunity to sainthood was destined to be one filled with blood and gore. If one chose to be a part of it, one had to be ready to fight with blood on their hands.


    The lineup from the Holy Zhi Palace that time was truly invincible and the others had nothing to say about them. The emergence of the five saints had actually robbed the opportunities of attaining sainthood from other top-notch figures from other holy lands.


    The reason why the Barren State had not been able to have even one saint emerge in their midst probably had to do with some being unstable in mind or plane level. But that was not to say that it was the case for every single participant of theirs.


    The previous Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, Chunyang, actually had stable foundations for becoming a saint, yet he was unable to get his hands on such opportunities and was unable to make that one key step. He had even acquired irreparable injuries from the Battle of Proving Holiness. The opportunities for sainthood had been taken by and shared among the other holy lands of the Nine States.


    It was finally the time for the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State to reign supreme.


    When news of five saints emerging in the Battle of Proving Holiness spread throughout the Nine States, countless flocked to the five major palaces of the Holy Zhi Palace, wanting to train within the palaces. Four of the five palaces came to have a new saint among them as lords, making all of the palaces true holy lands. It was indeed an auspicious occasion like no other.


    The Crouching Dragon Mountain of the Barren State, which housed the Zhuge Family, had transformed into the Zhuge Academic Palace. Countless went up the mountain and came before the Zhuge Academic Palace, wanting to enroll and train within the palace. Among those people, there was a huge group coming before the academic palace. They said, "We''re of the Zhuge family in the past, and we would like to study in the academic palace." Their leader was named Zhuge Ji, who was one of the leaders of the branch. However, Zhuge Ji looked incredibly aged at the moment. He cupped his fists even when facing the guards of the Zhuge Academic Palace.


    "The people of the Zhuge family followed the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace to carve a new era of glory and prosperity. The clan leader of the Zhuge family, Zhuge Qingfeng, is now a saint and is on his way to visit Emperor Xia. So please do come again. The people of the clan are all studying within the academic palace and we have never heard of other branches of the family," a student outside the palace turned to look at Zhuge Ji and said plainly.


    "There were two branches of the Zhuge family. The clan leader being of one branch and we of the other. We truly are the people of the Zhuge family," Zhuge Ji was not angry and continued to explain.


    "Since the family has split into two branches, what are you people doing here?" the youth asked coldly. It was apparent that they knew of the history pertaining to the matter.


    "We intend to return to the family properly. We shall offer our apologies when the clan leader returns," Zhuge Ji said.


    "Well, you people just keep waiting outside then." The youth sounded rather disdainful. They had abandoned the clan leader when the family was in trouble all those years ago and had formed their own branch to save their own skin. With the Holy Zhi Palace now getting glorious and Zhuge Qingfeng becoming a saint, they wanted to come back and reap the benefits.


    If you people think that this is how things in the world work, think again. If I were Zhuge Qingfeng, I''d tell you people get the hell out of my face.


    "We shall wait outside then," Zhuge Ji said. The group sat somewhere not far away from the academic palace. Zhuge Xing was among the group. He lowered his head and said nothing. All of the others looked dejected.


    Sainthood, eh? While they had been shocked by the achievements of the Barren State at the Nine States Forum all those years ago, they still had no intention of returning. However, their former clan leader, Zhuge Qingfeng, had become a saint.


    It was the saint in the legends. If Zhuge Qingfeng was able to look after them in their training, some among their younger generations might have been able to grasp such opportunities as well. The shock of five saints emerging from the Holy Zhi Palace rocked not only them.


    "Zhuge Ji, there is only the Zhuge Academic Palace on the Crouching Dragon Mountain now and the Zhuge family is no more. There is no way the clan leader will let you people study within the palace due to what did in the past. The academic palace is a branch of the Holy Zhi Palace after all, and the Holy Zhi Palace won''t bother with people who forfeited honor and trust for their own benefit like you people. It''s best that you just get off the mountain."


    A voice was heard in the academic palace. It was from an old man of the Zhuge family. Zhuge Ji shuddered slightly hearing his words. He looked in that direction and finally realized that there was no hope for them. He stood up and took a good look at the Zhuge Academic Palace on the Crouching Dragon Mountain, before kneeling on the ground and bowing as if he was expressing all the pain and suffering in his heart.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Zhuge Ji stood up and then said, "It''s best that you all leave. There will only be the Zhuge Academic Palace from here on out." He knew that there was no hope for their branch. No one would have bothered with them and the world would only know the Zhuge Academic Palace of the Crouching Dragon Mountain, which was helmed by the leader of what was once the Zhuge family, Zhuge Qingfeng, who had attained sainthood.


    Zhuge Ji also knew that the ones from Zhuge Qingfeng''s branch would become the symbol of the Academic Palace, as Zhuge Qingfeng, who had become a saint, would be the gleaming symbol of the Academic Palace. The people of the Zhuge family would live better lives than before with him around.


    Furthermore, Zhuge Qingfeng had his daughter, Zhuge Mingyue, and his son-in-law, Gu Dongliu, by his side. They both were brothers and sisters in training to Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    ��


    A group of people was seen standing on the golden steps before the main mountain where the Holy Sage Pavilion was housed in the Holy Zhi Palace. The one who took the lead, who was dressed in white and had grey hair, was none other than Ye Futian. Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint, Qin Zhuang, Gu Dongliu and the others were at his side. They all looked at the sky and were seemingly waiting to receive someone.


    The presence of saintly might in the sky became increasingly clear as they neared the Holy Zhi Palace. A group of people was within sight, and they were none other than You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng and the others.


    A beaming smile was seen in Ye Futian''s eyes. Countless figures from the Holy Zhi Palace took to their sky and received the saints who had returned, saying loudly, "Welcome home, saints." The voice reverberated throughout the heavens and there were no words to describe how excited the people of the Holy Zhi Palace were at the moment.


    The five saints walked up to Ye Futian. Their bearing changed and they felt more surreal. Beaming smiles were seen from the eyes of all five of them, who then bowed and said, "Palace Lord." It was a surreal scene to have five saints bowing to the Palace Lord. Many of the Holy Zhi Palace looked in their direction, and there were some with tears in their eyes.


    It was respect that Ye Futian truly deserved.


    Ye Futian''s eyes reddened somewhat and he felt something welling up deep down. He looked at the five figures he was so familiar with and bowed while saying, "Good work, everyone." It was a line to express his gratitude for all they had done for him and for the Holy Zhi Palace. They spent the past years threading the line between life and death and they have finally attained sainthood. They truly deserved it indeed.


    Ye Futian walked up and opened his arms, hugging You Chi. He then hugged Zhuge Qingfeng, Xu Shang, Yuan Hong, and Yu Shang. They put the fates of the Zhuge family, the Alchemy City, the Ice Temple, the golden great apes, and the Tingxue House on the line and followed him to war. They finally managed to attain sainthood. It was a pity that Huang Yi of the Sovereign family had perished. There would have been six saints emerging.


    "Palace Lord, we have good news for you," You Chi looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "What news?" Ye Futian smiled and asked. The best news there was at the moment, to him, was seeing them return.


    "Princess Xia Qingyuan asked us to bring word to you when we were there to meet Emperor Xia. She looked into the places that she had brought the people of the Nine States on pilgrimages before, and the princess claimed that there was a chance that your wife lived," You Chi looked at Ye Futian and said.


    Ye Futian felt his body shuddering violently and his heart racing.


    "Is there more?" Ye Futian inquired with a shuddering voice.


    Is it true that Jieyu could still be alive?


    "The princess didn''t say much. I''m guessing that what she meant by all that was for you to ask her personally up in the Upper Worlds," Xu Shang smiled and said to Ye Futian.


    "Xia Qingyuan." Ye Futian''s heart continued to race and he felt like beating her to a pulp. He looked at the sky and wanted to head there right there and then.


    "Futian, get the matters of the Holy Zhi Palace settled first." Zhuge Qingfeng did not address him as Palace Lord but had instead addressed him by name. He knew that the day for Ye Futian to leave was near. He was too good to stay behind in the Nine States!

 1018 Return to the Upper Realms

    Ye Futian naturally knew what Zhuge Qingfeng meant. Although as far as he was concerned the Upper and Lower Worlds were connected, this was not an obstacle for him.


    The Nine States was no longer a suitable place for him to cultivate. In the future he would have to often cultivate in the Upper Worlds. He would probably have very little time to return to the Nine States. He would have to leave the palace''s affairs to others to handle.


    "Uncle, you have now started on the Divine Path. The Barren State is free from danger now, and five palaces stand in its five domains to preach the way of cultivation. I have left the Master in charge of the Holy Zhi Palace, with Grandfather Ape to assist him. There are also several Palace Lords garrisoned there. It doesn''t matter if I''m there or not," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    Five Saints had come into the world. Today, the Holy Zhi Palace was at the height of its power.


    Everyone smiled and shook their heads. Palace Lord Ye Futian had always been a hands-off leader. He was the symbol of the palace, a totemic figure for them. But the palace''s affairs were left to others to handle, and Ye Futian rarely took an active role in its day to day affairs.


    "Who are you planning to bring with you this time?" asked You Chi.


    "We''ll see who''s willing to come," answered Ye Futian.


    "You have us garrisoned here, but you also need some Saints by your side." You Chi was a little uneasy. The Upper Realms were much stronger and more responsible than the Nine States.


    Within the Nine States, Ye Futian was the Lord of one of the holy lands of the Barren State. There, everyone had to abide by certain rules. But in the Upper Realms it was different.


    Moreover, there were so many cultivators in the Upper Realms. Many of the top holy lands had more than a few Saints. Given that, if Ye Futian only brought a few Sages with him, that would be cause for concern.


    "Saint Jiang is naturally not going. He will stay in the palace and continue to stick to his beliefs. It may be a long time. I will go ask Yaya," said Ye Futian.


    Everyone nodded. If Yaya went with him they could relax a little.


    After all, Yaya was the inheritor of the Sword Saint of the Void. Not only was she already very strong, she would continue to grow stronger and reach her former peak. Even in the Upper Realms there were few rivals for her.


    In the past the Sword Saint of the Void had been without equal in the Nine States, and his name had shaken both realms.


    Ye Futian went to where Yaya was staying. He seemed a bit anxious. After all, after hearing the news about Jieyu he naturally wanted to go faster.


    However, he would not be that safe in the Upper Realms. At Jiutian Temple he had defeated the Jueying Sword Saint''s cherished disciple Pei Qianying, and his opponent had been a cultivator of Lihen Heaven. That had been witnessed by Xia Qingyuan, so no one dared to move against him. But if he spent a long time cultivating in the Upper Worlds he did not know what would happen.


    When Ye Futian came to see Yaya, her eyes were closed in cultivation. The Village Chief had come with him.


    She opened her eyes and stared deeply at him. Complicated emotions played across her face.


    The memories of cultivating in both worlds melded together. Souls mingled, influencing each other.


    Before she had transformed, everything that had happened in Tombkeeper Village had shocked her soul greatly. These events had also branded Ye Futian''s soul. Even though she was now the Sword Saint of the Void, the memories could not be erased.


    "I''m going to the Upper Realms to cultivate," said Ye Futian.


    Yaya stared at him and said nothing.


    Seeing her cold expression, Ye Futian smiled. "Take care of yourself, Yaya."


    On saying this, he turned to leave. In the end he did not say what he had come to say.


    His friendship towards her had already been repaid. She had helped him break the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and kill the Great Zhou Sacred King. He still thought of her as a sister, but she was different than before. She was now guided by the will of the Sword Saint of the Void, and he had no right to ask her for anything.


    As for the Village Chief, he would naturally follow Yaya.


    After he left, Ye Futian thought for a while. Someone else came to mind, someone who might be suitable for him to choose.


    Ye Futian came to Lapis Lazuli Palace and came across Glass Saint still standing there in deep meditation.


    She seemed detached from the world. As she stood there like that, her whole aura seemed non-existent.


    "Have you decided where to go?" asked Ye Futian.


    Glass Saint looked over at him. Her beautiful face held a cold and lonely expression, like a winter''s moon. There was not a trace of emotion.


    "If not, why don''t you come with me to the Upper Realms? Maybe you''ll find a path for yourself there," he said to her.


    She looked at him in the same way for a while, then said, "Fine."


    She did not vacillate at all, agreeing with him directly.


    This made a strange look come over Ye Futian''s face. He looked long and hard at Glass Saint. He had no way to know what she was thinking. Nowadays she kept a distance between her and everyone else, making her cold and beautiful.


    "I''ll let you know when we''re leaving." Ye Futian did not say too much, leaving her with that one last sentence.


    Afterwards, Ye Futian called together the various Palace Lords to confirm a few matters dealing with the palace''s resources and the requirements of the core disciples.


    At the same time, he confirmed who would be coming with him.


    This time the older generation would not go, especially those who had been with him all along.


    Three days later, many cultivators from the palace came to the main stairway to Holy Sage Pavilion. They knew that Lord Ye Futian was going to the Upper Realms to cultivate.


    Although he could come back whenever he wanted, he still would not come for a long time.


    He would keep his status as Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, since he could not be replaced. After all, in the Nine States Ye Futian''s name was still the symbol of the Barren State.


    One day, when the Holy Zhi Palace stood at the peak of the Nine States, he could pass down the title.


    Ye Futian stood upon the steps. All the cultivators of the palace had come to see him off.


    Beside him were those who would go with him.


    Among them, the Cottage disciples were obviously there. This time Xue Ye was not going, but would stay in the Barren State instead. Little Grass was still young, and he planned to accompany her until she grew up. After all, they had no foundation in the Upper Realms. If Ye Futian and the others could establish a stable foundation in the Upper Realms, he may bring Little Grass there sometime in the future.


    Beitang Xing''er would go with them. She had not cultivated to a high level, but she always followed Second Sister.


    When her Master had brought her back to the Cottage, Third Brother had gotten revenge for her, and Second Sister had taken care of her as she grew up. Thus, she was closest to Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu. She had spent the past few years with the Zhuge clan. She would go wherever they went.


    As for Sword Saint, Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu, Luo Fan, and Yi Xiaoshi, nothing more need be said.


    Besides the people from the Cottage, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, Yuan Zhan, Xu Que, Zui Qianchou, Phoenix, Yun Shuisheng, and Loulan Xue were all naturally going. The people from the older generation would not go, but their juniors would all follow Ye Futian from birth until death.


    The road ahead might be dangerous, but it would be full of opportunity. They had all had the opportunity to prove their holiness. Following Ye Futian, their juniors would never have a chance to go farther.


    "Don''t leave me too far behind, " said Xue Ye with a smile.


    Little Grass pulled on Ye Futian''s sleeve. "Don''t forget to come and see me, Uncle Ye."


    "Of course. You be good now, Little Grass." Ye Futian patted the little girl''s head.


    "Mmm." Little Grass nodded.


    "I''m ready brother. When do we leave?" came a voice. Ye Futian looked up and saw a slender figure walking over, her body full of the vigor of youth. It was Long Ling''er.


    "When did I say I was bringing you?" Ye Futian was stunned.


    "Is there something wrong with me? You don''t care about me anymore..." Long Ling''er''s eyes turned red. Her acting made everyone stare at her with mouth and eyes wide open.


    But Ye Futian did not blame her. This girl had been a little devil ever since she was a child.


    "What do Aunt and Uncle Long have to say about this?" Ye Futian asked dumbfoundedly.


    "That means you agree!" Long Ling''er suddenly smiled. She pulled Ye Futian'' arm and looked back at Long Ao and Mrs. Long, saying, "You see, mother and father? Brother Futian agreed. You said that if he agreed you had no objections."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "....." Ye Futian stared at her dumbfounded.


    Mrs. Long shook her head and smiled ruefully. "Futian, I must trouble you to look after this girl."


    "Alright." Ye Futian did not know whether to laugh or cry. This girl was a menace.


    Everyone came to see them off one by one. Glass Saint came as well and stood there quietly. Everyone glanced at the beautiful Saint. She was completely different than before. Her character had transformed.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over everyone, then slowly rose into the sky.


    "Let''s go," he said, and they all set out.


    "Farewell, Palace Lord." Everyone bowed as they called this out. Their voices reverberated between heaven and earth. They looked up and watched Ye Futian leave.


    Ye Futian rose up into the sky, but he seemed to sense something. He was stunned when he saw what was in front of them.


    He saw a huge floating sword coming towards them. A woman stood upon it, her long hair flowing in the wind. The Village Chief stood calmly behind her.


    Besides them were also Qin Zhuang and Ying.


    The Village Chief smiled at Ye Futian, and he and the others climbed aboard the sword. The sword flew off into the distance.


    Three Saints were with him, as well as forces who were unmatched below the Saint level. Even in the Upper Realms this battle array would form a Saint level force.


    The guardians of the Sky Stairwell roundly berated those who had come from the Lower Realm. When they first saw this group of different level cultivators coming up the Sky Stairwell at the same time, the weak among them did not even dare to act against them. Helping them along was simply against the rules.


    But what could they say?


    The Sage army that guarded Heaven''s Gate was swept through, and they could not stop them.


    A group of figures climbed up the Sky Stairwell, still cursing the group of b*stards who was rushing up.


    "Commander, should we send a report?" one of them did not want to accept this, and wished to complain.


    "Go do it yourself." The commander was the same one as last time. He replied indifferently. Lodge a complaint? Besides the fact that he would lose face by doing this, Ye Futian''s trip to the Upper Realm had been suggested by the higher ups. What was there to complain about?

 1019 Pei Qianying’s Revenge

    After arriving in the Upper Worlds, Ye Futian and the others found an inn to stay at.


    The Upper Worlds and the Lower World were different. Although the Upper Worlds were vast, the population was very closely crowded together, and there were endless grand palaces located there.


    After settling in, Ye Futian and the Village Chief went over to Emperor Xia''s Palace. The news about Jieyu had been hanging in his mind for the past few days, and now that the palace''s affairs had been properly arranged, the first thing he would do while in the Upper Worlds was go see Xia Qingyuan.


    The others all took the time to stroll around and become familiar with Emperor Xia''s realm, and at the same time learn about the distribution of the top forces in the Upper Worlds so they could form a complete map of them.


    But what Ye Futian did not know was that from the first moment when they had entered the inn they were staying at, they were already being watched.


    In Emperor Xia''s realm there was a grand community of palaces that an extremely sharp willpower emanated from.


    This was Jueying Palace, the place where the Jueying Sword Saint cultivated.


    At that moment, the Jueying Sword Saint was sitting upright in the middle of a giant diagram cultivating. Invisible sword wills flowed all around him. He opened his eyes and asked, "What is it?"


    "My Lord, someone from Tianji Pavilion is here, saying he has news of Ye Futian," said the person bowing in front of him. A sword will flashed in the Jueying Sword Saint''s eyes.


    "Show him in." His expression was cold. Ever since Pei Qianying''s defeat, he had paid close attention to Ye Futian''s movements. But the Nine States were directly governed by Emperor Xia, and he set the rules there. The Jueying Sword Saint did not dare do anything rash.


    But his most cherished disciple had been destroyed right in front of his face. How could he forget that?


    These days his sword was unstable, and often wavered, and he was getting tired of it. Thus he had paid Tianji Pavilion to inquire after news of Ye Futian.


    Tianji Pavilion did not originally worry about the affairs of the Lower World because it was not worth it. No one ever asked them to pay attention to them, and so there was no profit in it for them. Thus they would not do it. But the Jueying Sword Saint had paid them a lot, and so they had personally sent someone to the Lower World to observe the movements down there. They knew everything that happened in the Lower Worlds.


    Soon, a figure in a white robe embroidered with two fish representing Yin and Yang appeared. He squinted at the Jueying Sword Saint and then bowed, saying, "Greetings, Senior Jueying Sword Saint."


    The Jueying Sword Saint continued to sit there, and said, "Get to the point."


    "Ye Futian has arrived in the Upper Worlds along with many of the cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace. There are three Saints among them, including Yaya, the sword servant of the Sword Saint of the Void who may have inherited his position. You have seen her before. There is also the lord of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. Besides them, there are many Sages who are very powerful. Almost all of those who went to the trials with Xia Qingyuan are there. This group made it up the Sky Stairwell into the Upper Worlds." The man from Tianji Pavilion smiled slightly as he said this. His report was very detailed. He had investigated those who had come very thoroughly.


    The Jueying Sword Saint''s brow tightened suddenly. So there were three Saints with him, including the heir of the Sword Saint of the Void.


    He had no way of shaking such a powerful battle array.


    "Where are they now?" asked the Jueying Sword Saint.


    "They''ve taken up residence at an inn. You may not have heard, but Ye Futian has gone to Emperor Xia''s Palace with one of the Sword Saint of the Void''s sword servants, probably to pay his respects. As for the real reason for his visit, we don''t know yet, but we will find out as soon as possible," continued the man.


    The Jueying Sword Saint nodded as he listened to his visitor continue. "There is one more thing I must remind you of. Ye Futian''s performance in the sacred war in the Nine States was outstanding, and it is being said that there is no one who can match him below the Saint level, and in terms of combat prowess he is said to be without rival. Emperor Xia is probably already paying attention to him, and as far as we know, Princess Xia Qingyuan has paid a visit to the Holy Zhi Palace."


    The Jueying Sword Saint frowned. Ye Futian was a Palace Lord of a palace in the Lower World, a vassal of Emperor Xia. If what his visitor said was true and Ye Futian had indeed attracted Emperor Xia''s attention, then if he killed him it would displease the Emperor.


    But many cultivators from the Holy Zhi Palace had come. Perhaps he could start with them and find out Emperor Xia''s attitude that way?


    "Father," came a voice. He looked and saw Pei Qianying coming towards him. He no longer had the same temperament that he''d had before. His hair was messy and his eyes were hazy.


    After his life spirit had been destroyed, his path of cultivation had been interrupted. Everyone looked at each other coldly. His former fellow disciples of the Lihen Heaven looked at him and saw that his eyes were full of only sorrow. He had lost the right to cultivate with them.


    Even though he was a member of the Jueying Sword Saint''s family, you could see in his eyes that things were different now. Once everyone had worshipped and respected him, but now all that was left was contempt and pity.


    "I want him to die." Pei Qianying''s voice was full of poison.


    The Jueying Sword Saint looked at Pei Qianying with displeasure. But he did not say anything. He only sighed. He had after all once been his most cherished son. He could understand his pain.


    "Come with me to Lihen Heaven," he said.


    Pei Qianying saw his father''s intention at once. He nodded and said, "Alright."


    .....


    The Lihen Sword Palace in Lihen Heaven was the foremost holy land dedicated to swordsmanship in Emperor Xia''s realm.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Its current master was Emperor Xia''s foremost Sword Saint, the most powerful swordsman. His fame was not limited to Emperor Xia''s realm.


    From this it could be seen how high a position Lihen Heaven occupied in Emperor Xia''s realm.


    Lihen Heaven was like a fairyland. Clouds drifted by this place that looked like a home for immortals.


    At that moment there was a Saint cultivating in front of the palace. Pei Qianying knelt on the ground and kowtowed, weeping bitterly. In front of him was a man with an incredibly swift and sturdy aura about him. He was clearly also a Saint.


    "I have always practiced hard in order to strive for glory to repay the debt of gratitude I have for my Master. No matter where I was, I could always turn to you for guidance in my swordsmanship. Now my cultivation has been ruined, and I am no longer worthy to study under you. I did not dare to taint your vision, Master, and so I have not come to visit you these past few years. I hope that you can forgive me."


    Pei Qianying''s voice was sincere. In the past he would not have been able to do this, but now honor and dignity were worthless for him. All he wanted was revenge.


    "Rise and speak," said Pei Qianying''s master.


    But Pei Qianying stayed bowing. He said, "I am ashamed. I have come to you because I heard that the man who did this to me has come to the Upper Worlds. I was defeated in that battle at Jiutian Temple. I was weaker than him, so there was no dignity in me bringing up this matter, and even less dignity in asking you to deal with it. But because of this battle I have affected the reputation of Lihen Heaven. I was humiliated in front of a crowd, and my life spirit was destroyed. Many people have been talking about this. I hope to one day see a cultivator from Lihen Heaven crush Ye Futian and wipe away the shame that I have caused."


    After saying this, he touched his head to the floor again and said, "I have no power. I cannot wipe away my own shame. Please forgive me master."


    The man in front of him looked at him. Although Pei Qianying''s voice was sincere, and everything he said seemed to be for the benefit of Lihen Heaven''s reputation, he also knew that Pei Qianying was seeking revenge.


    But that was understandable.


    "What level has he cultivated to?"


    "He is an upper level Sage. This man considers everyone to be beneath his notice, and boasts that he has no rivals below the Saint level. He is called the foremost figure in the Nine States who is not a Saint. His combat ability is impressive, none in the Nine States can match it. The people of the Lower World say that even in Emperor Xia''s realm there is no one below the Saint level who can beat him," said Pei Qianying as he looked up at his master.


    The youths on both sides of him frowned and gazed at Pei Qianying coldly. There was a little bit of hatred in their eyes.


    Pei Qianying had once been the star of Lihen Heaven, and had entered Jiutian Temple.


    Now, he had abandoned all dignity just for a chance at revenge. He was deliberately provoking them, trying to make them take action.


    "Feng Xiao and Mo Li have been to the Lower World. They were there at the Imperial Mausoleum. Is this the person who won Renhuang''s Inheritance for his holy land?" asked an elder.


    "Yes. He possesses an extremely powerful divine implement, said to be number three on the Divine Implements Ranking of the Nine States. He was surrounded, and yet he managed to fight his way out of an encirclement of top Sages all by himself," answered someone beside him.


    "The one who stole Renhuang''s sword will, Ye Wuchen, and the one that received Renhuang''s inheritance have come with Ye Futian to the Upper Worlds," said Pei Qianying.


    The elder looked at Pei Qianying, then turned to the man beside him and said, "Since he was defeated at Jiutian Temple, let''s do this according to Jiutian Temple''s rules."


    When he heard these words, Pei Qianying clenched his fists and bowed to the floor again.


    The Jueying Sword Saint said nothing, standing there quietly all along. When he saw Pei Qianying bowing there he sighed to himself.


    However, he was giving up his dignity for the sake of revenge.


    He knew that no matter who won and who lost, the ending was already determined the moment that Lihen Heaven decided to act.


    ......


    Ye Futian did not know that he had been watched ever since he had set foot in the Upper Worlds. Of course, he knew that the Jueying Sword Saint and Lihen Heaven would send people against him. That was why he had brought Yaya and Glass Saint, to protect him.


    At that moment he had arrived in front of Emperor Xia''s Palace and was looking up at it. He was a bit uneasy. Was this really Renhuang''s palace? It was so impressive and dignified, truly supernatural.


    He stepped forward to the foot of the palace. Cultivators were guarding the gate, and when they saw Ye Futian and the Village Chief several of them stepped forward and blocked the path.


    "Who are you?" asked a guard.


    Ye Futian took a deep breath and said, "Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State, and a vassal of Emperor Xia. I''ve come to seek an audience with Princess Xia Qingyuan."


    The guard stared at him. There was no doubt that this was indeed Ye Futian. Who would dare stand in front of Emperor Xia''s Palace and tell lies? That would be looking for death.


    "Let me report to my superior," said one of the guards.


    "Alright," Ye Futian nodded. He stood there in front of the gate, quietly waiting.


    Emperor Xia''s Palace was so strict that even small matters needed to be reported from the lowest levels to the highest, all throughout the palace. Ye Futian was a little anxious, but he kept his eyes fixed ahead of him.


    After a while, a maid came out. She looked at Ye Futian extremely coldly and said, "You are Ye Futian."


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded.


    "The Princess says that she is not receiving guests today, and has asked me to personally see you off," said the maid.


    "........"

 1020 News Regarding Jieyu

    Ye Futian frowned. Xia Qingyuan intended to tell him the news yet she kept him outside the door. It was apparently to settle the score of him behaving disrespectfully to her at the Holy Zhi Palace that day.


    Xia Qingyuan crashed into his bedchambers and it irked him, as such, he behaved glumly to the princess back then.


    "Huu..." Ye Futian reminded himself of Jieyu and said to the servant girl, "Please inform the princess that I, Ye Futian, would be willing to come to her place to apologize for any disrespect I caused in the past."


    "The princess said she is not seeing anyone and that is final. Please come again, Palace Lord Ye." The servant girl''s attitude did not change one bit and replied.


    Ye Futian looked at that servant girl and his silver hair billowed in the wind. His pointed eyes came to bear a tinge of coldness in them. That servant girl sensed the coldness emanating from his and averted her eyes, not daring to look at them anymore.


    He turned and look at the tall palace tower and felt rather cold inside. If Xia Qingyuan were to take revenge on him with other matters, he would not have been bothered, but playing him using news regarding Jieyu was another matter altogether, and one could have imagined what he was going through.


    "Please inform the princess that I shall come again tomorrow," Ye Futian said to the servant girl, then turned around to address the village chief, "Let''s go."


    There was nothing he could have done about Xia Qingyuan''s antics. That place was Emperor Xia''s Palace after all. It was not just him; anyone who came from Emperor Xia''s Realm would have had to lower their heads at such a place. No one dared to get nasty there after all.


    "Bring him up here." A voice was heard from high above, which sounded rather fleeting. Ye Futian stopped dead in his tracks before turning around. He then saw the servant girl said to him, "Come with me."


    Ye Futian stepped forward and passed the Heaven''s Gate, heading into the Heavenly Palace.


    The village chief stayed waiting outside. Emperor Xia''s Palace was not a place that would have allowed entry with permission and that applied to even the saints. Xia Qingyuan had only asked for Ye Futian to be brought in after all.


    Ye Futian went upwards for the Heavenly Tower, coming before a mesmerizing palace with clouds everywhere, looking immensely beautiful. The place was immensely thick with spiritual qi, making it seemed as if it was indeed a fairyland.


    They stepped past a fairy bridge and came before a lotus pond. The silhouette of a man appeared there, yet when said silhouette turned around, the face of said figure was an extremely beautiful one.


    "Ye Futian, greets the princess." Ye Futian bowed and said.


    Xia Qingyuan simply looked at him coldly without saying anything.


    "You insist on maintaining such aloof attitude despite having favors to ask from others?" Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian. She was unable to sense one bit of sincerity from him.


    "There is no way I dare to behave in an aloof manner before you, princess. What happened in the Holy Zhi Palace in the past was all my fault, for not receiving you in a proper manner. I hereby sincerely apologize, and I hope you would not be holding a grudge against me," Ye Futian said with a low voice.


    "Such pretense indeed," Xia Qingyuan said coldly. Ye Futian looked at her and struggled to keep his emotions in check.


    Xia Qingyuan knew what was going through his mind just by looking at his expression. She then said coldly, "I''ve witnessed that battle of the sacred war three years ago in the Holy Zhi Palace. Hua Jieyu was apparently using external forces to invoke her powers. I looked into the places where they have studied in deliberately afterwards, finding a ruins with a supreme being in it. Her methods of training was also very exceptional."


    Ye Futian listened intently and felt rather tense. He then asked, "May I know what was so special about said method of training?"


    "You''re here in the Upper Worlds to train now. Do you know how many realms are there here?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "I do not." Ye Futian shook his head.


    "There are three thousand realms of the great path." Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian, "So I brought people of both Lower and Upper Worlds of Emperor Xia''s Realm to train outside. Although we''ve been to a myriad of places, the places that we''ve been to were only a handful in comparison."


    If it had been other days, Ye Futian might have been astounded by what he heard. However, at present, there was little more than a flutter in his mind, which disappeared as quickly it came. He then asked, "What does that have to do with my wife?"


    "That ruins was left behind by one of the top notch figures of the three thousand realms. One thought connecting the divine and the three thousand realms could have been reached. Your wife''s soul remained intact and it was possible that she was taken away by that supreme being. If that turned out to be the case, then there was a chance that she might have survived," Xia Qingyuan replied.


    Ye Futian''s heart raced. He had already given into despair. Despite Hua Qingqing''s words before she left, he still found that unbelievable.


    He had witnessed Jieyu disintegrating right in his arms back then after all. Her body disintegrated and her soul took flight into the heavens. Even if her soul had stayed intact at that moment, there was no way she could have stayed alive.


    As such, he did not have much hope before he came.


    However, upon hearing what Xia Qingyuan said, a flame of hope lit up within his mind.


    Three Thousand Worlds of the Great Path. One thought connecting the divine could reach the three thousand realms.


    If there was such massive forces existing in the world, then there was little else that was deemed impossible.


    The possibility of Jieyu''s soul being brought away was very, very real.


    An intense heat welled up within his mind at the thought of that. He had been despaired for three years and his hope was reignited. One could have only imagined what was going on in his mind at the moment.


    "Princess, may I know who that top notch figure might be?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It was too far away from you. You won''t be able to look for her even if that is what you intend to do right now. Remain diligent in your training and get to Saint Plane before you consider anything else." Xia Qingyuan did not tell Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stared at her and she replied coldly, "What I''ve told are nothing but the truth. It is up to you if you want to believe me. I would say no more about anything else."


    She then turned around to face the pond and paying no heed to Ye Futian.


    Seeing how she carried herself, Ye Futian knew that he would not have been able to get further answers. He bowed to her back and said sincerely, "Thank you, princess, for telling me all that. I''d be taking my leave."


    Ye Futian turned around and left after that.


    A silhouette appeared beside Xia Qingyuan without making a sound. It was none other than Emperor Xia himself.


    Xia Qingyuan eyed Emperor Xia and said, "You know that queen''s method of training was special, father. It is possible that there are countless throughout the three thousand realms acquiring her lineage. She was but training using the powers of that queen. Even if the queen had been capable of saving Hua Jieyu, the chance of her doing so would have been infinitely miniscule. Why do you tell me this and give him hope, father? Wouldn''t it be rather cruel if said hope bursts one day?"


    "Are you pitying him then?" Emperor Xia smiled and said to Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyes remained composed and simply looked at her father.


    Emperor Xia knew her daughter''s personality well and simply smiled, saying, "That guy is intensely sentimental, having his hand ended up bleached due to emotional trauma and all that. In that case, it would seem that emotions serve as good driving force to further his training without a doubt. Telling him this would prompt him to train more diligently. Do you believe that?"


    "If the day comes where his hope proves to be little more than a bubble, wouldn''t it have been a greater blow to his mind?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "If such a day truly comes, his state of mind would be even more strengthened. He isn''t someone so easily crushed. Don''t underestimate him, and don''t forget, he has beaten you once," Emperor Xia smiled and said. The supreme ruler of Emperor Xia'' Realm would have only been so tender when talking to his beloved daughter.


    "Do you find that he has quite a nasty temper?" Emperor Xia smiled and asked his daughter.


    Xia Qingyuan did not respond. Emperor Xia looked at his daughter and naturally knew how proud her daughter was as a person. Be it status or talents, she was peerless in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Anyone that she would have spoken to in such a soft-spoken manner, was probably someone who had beaten her.


    If it had been someone else, she might have been able to scare them until the legs give with just one look.


    "What is his actually? Xia Qingyuan asked curiously. She only knew that when his father was looking into Ye Futian, a mysterious figure visited Emperor Xia''s Palace one day.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The lockdown was lifted afterwards and her father summoned all of the saints below to the Upper Worlds, decreeing that the news regarding the sacred war shall not be leaked. Shadow guards were sent to the Lower Worlds and kept watch over all who had participated in that battle.


    She had never seen his father being concerned over anything since she began to remember things.


    "I''d like to know as well." Emperor Xia stroked her head, looking doting and tender. The coming of the mysterious figure that day, coupled with everything he found about him, made her deduce that Ye Futian''s background held earth-shattering secrets. Secrets that were utterly terrifying.


    Xia Qingyuan glared at her father rather furiously for patting her head like that.


    Emperor Xia laughed and continued patting after seeing her expression.


    If someone outside were to witness the exchange, they would have definitely been astounded. Rumor had it that Emperor Xia was extremely doting to his little princess, and the truth was more real than what was speculated.


    "But, regardless of who he is, he ends up irking you nonetheless. How about I give an order and have him serve you and listen to your every order?" Emperor Xia chuckled and continued, "I''d like to see if that guy dare refuse."


    Xia Qingyuan recalled the times she had invited Ye Futian and had been rejected all the same. She came to find that proposal rather tempting, but upon recalling that ''putrid'' face of his, she refused altogether. "No need for that."


    "Alright, if you come to need it done, then just let me know," Emperor Xia said with a smile before disappearing from the spot.


    ...


    The people from the Holy Zhi Palace arrived at an inn and everyone gathered.


    The three swordsmen, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que, Zui Qianchou, walked together. The three of them had been training together all the time back in the Holy Zhi Palace and they were very friendly with each other.


    "The Upper Worlds are very bustling indeed. I''m guessing that there''d really good booze around," Zui Qianchou mumbled. He intended to take his time and take a good look of the Upper Worlds.


    "Booze is boring. The girls on the Upper Worlds on the other hand, boy, beauties are everywhere." Xu Que at the side narrowed his eyes and saw a female cultivator not far away, looking rather stunning.


    People of the Upper Worlds were commonly of high training, so their bearing were all exceptional and it was a given that they all looked stunning.


    Ye Wuchen had long gotten used to the antics of both of them and did not pay any heed. Zui Qianchou really loved booze more than anything, yet Xu Que was just all talk.


    Xu Que stopped at that moment, then both Ye Wuchen and Zui Qianchou followed suit as they sensed something.


    Xu Que hailed from Tingxue House, so his senses were the sharpest of the three. He sensed killing intent headed for them.


    A group of people rode swords and came at them, dropping before them in an instant. All of them emanated startling sword will. It was apparent that they were all pure practitioners of the sword.


    They looked at Ye Wuchen and the other two with very, very cold eyes.


    "Do you people have business with us?" Xu Que narrowed his eyes as he looked at the group. They have not been arriving at the Upper Worlds for long, so there was no way they would have offended anyone.


    Unless, old scores to settle!


    All of those people were swordsmen, and the three of them have indeed had scores to settle with swordsmen!

 1021 Battle of the Swordsmen

    A group of swordsmen dropped from above, attracting the attention of people around them. There were people gasped in surprise seeing the garb the swordsmen wore.


    "Swordsmen of Lihen Heaven."


    The number one holy land of the sword in Emperor Xia''s Realm would have attracted attention wherever their people went. There were people gushing in from other places seeing the group of swordsmen from Lihen Heaven descending. Everyone looked in their direction.


    Those people then eyed Ye Wuchen and the other two beside him. Who are those three cultivators?


    "Lu Cheng, of Lihen Heaven." Someone recognized the leader of the group of swordsmen and they shuddered. Who are the hell are those three? Getting not only the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven to mobilize, but even Lu Cheng, who ranked ninth on the Jiutian Ranking as well.


    Lu Cheng had tested his mettle in the Jiutian Temple, being ranked on the Jiutian Ranking. It was said that he was already at the pinnacle of Sage Plane and was one step away from becoming a saint. Anyone who had seen him fight in the Jiutian Temple was able to recognize him right away.


    It seemed other than Lu Cheng, none of the swordsmen from Lihen Heaven right before them were weak people as well.


    But then again, someone who trained in the number one holy land of the sword in Emperor''s Realm would not have been anything less than a rare genius to begin with.


    "Lihen Heaven." All three of them knew what was going on immediately. It was said that Pei Qianying, the cultivator whom Ye Futian had crippled in the Jiutian Temple back then, was a cultivator from Lihen Heaven.


    Those people were from the number one holy land of the sword in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and all three of them stepped onto the Upper Worlds. It could have been said they were stepping into the turf of others.


    The Upper Worlds were not a part of the Nine States.


    "Let''s go." Xu Que said lightly and all three of them retreated like bolts of lightning.


    It was not a good thing to run into people from one such holy land as soon as they have gotten to the Upper Worlds. Regardless if they ended up winning or losing the fight, things would have turned out really messy.


    They, cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace, were fresh off the boat there, and so none of them wanted to make any trouble for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    But then again, that was their wish and the other party might not have shared their intentions. The cultivators of Lihen Heaven turned into swords immediately and blocked their way. All of them were capable of moving at extreme speeds. Formless sword will filled the air and reached the three of them, making them feel extremely unwell, and their spiritual will seemed pained.


    Lu Cheng turned his eyes at the three of them. He looked composed as he said, "The three of them are sages. We''ll play by the rules of the Jiutian Temple of old, challenging you three as fellow sages."


    It was an order from their teacher. As such, Lihen Heaven did not field a saint. They needed to win according to the rules, which they lost to back then. It was the pride of theirs as cultivators of the number one holy land of the sword in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    While they knew that the ones freshly arrived at the Upper Worlds had saints among them, but the people of Lihen Heaven were not concerned about them making a move.


    Lihen Heaven was the one calling the shots in Emperor Xia''s Realm in that regard. Anyone dared field a saint to take on their sages might as well be digging their own graves.


    Ye Wuchen, Xu Que and Zui Qianchou all burst with stunning sword will. Terrifying sword aura storms whipped up around them. If they were unable to leave, then they might as well fight.


    "Cripple them, and leave the one-armed swordsman''s Life Spirit behind."


    Lu Cheng''s voice was a cold one. Pei Qianying was his younger brother in training. While they hardly talked to each other and the relationship was more like that of an acquaintance, but they hailed from the same holy land nonetheless. The score of him having his Life Spirit crushed was something that had to be settled the hard way.


    "Get out as soon as possible, don''t linger." Xu Que said to Ye Wuchen and Zui Qianchou telepathically after sensing the powerful sword will around them. While all of the combatants present were sages, but their enemies consisted mostly of those at the pinnacle of Sage Plane, which differed considerably from the three.


    They were not dealing with the geniuses of the Nine States at the moment, but the top notch swordsmen from Lihen Heaven of the Upper Worlds.


    As such, it was immensely difficult to fight with such a visible plane difference.


    It was especially so that all three of them were isolated from the entire group.


    A swordsman from Lihen Heaven stepped forward in the air and light of flames seemed to glow from his clothes. His body became intensely hot like the sun. Divine fires of the sun shone from above and terrifying sword aura whipped around. In an instant, a sword of rules coalesced.


    That sword seemed to have been forged by the fires of the sun, burning with glittering light of flames and it seemed that the space around it burned as well.


    "Chu Qingyang, the Glaring Sun Flames."


    Many in the crowd who watched from far away reminded of a swordsman from Lihen Heaven as they looked at the handsome face of that one who attacked. It was a genius swordsman who went by the name, Chu Qingyang.


    Who are the Lihen Heaven dealing with this time?


    They were wondering who those three are for prompting the holy land to field such a lineup. Why is Lu Cheng mentioning about the rules of the Jiutian Temple?


    Another one from the left struck. That figure was armed with a thin sword, which was as thin as the wings of cicadas. The sword seemed to be devoid of weight altogether. The wielder seemed to be moving with the patterns of the rules of wind, emanating a flighty aura.


    "Li Qiufeng, the Autumn Wind Sword." The one who spoke before spoke again, seemingly very familiar with the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven, so much so that they seemed to recognize them simply by observing how they wielded their blades.


    The third person attacked, and he was different from the first two. He wielded a heavy blade which had no edge, looking like something that was incapable of cutting at all. He was tall and exuded power. He did not look like a swordsman yet no one dared to take him lightly.


    There were no weaklings among the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven. It was especially so in the case of Wang Mang, the Overbearing Sword.


    The three of them formed a triangle and stood high in the air, taking on the three below. Their aura was overpowering and the other swordsmen spread out, standing around to prevent the three from escaping.


    Everyone who saw that realized that that was the end for the three of them.


    Anyone that Lihen Heaven intended to cripple had no way of escaping, especially so when assaulted by such a lineup. It was apparent that Lihen Heaven had intentions of letting their prey escape.


    Boom.


    A stifling pressure swept the place and many felt as if a huge pressure had coiled around their chests. Those power of rules alone was enough to make a lot feeling they were about to suffocate.


    Wang Mang, the Overbearing Sword struck first. He stepped forward and held his sword with both hands, striking down hard from above. A stifling rumble was heard in an instant, as if the air had been split open. Boundless might of the heavy sword was brought down. A terrifying storm whipped about in the air, pressing onto the three of them.


    They looked up in the air and felt countless heavy swords raining down on them, as if slivers of souls of swords pierced the air and pinned their spiritual will down, intending to shatter them into pieces.


    The three of them felt immense pressure on them within an instant, so much so that they seemed to have trouble even walking. The ground beneath them continued to crack and the cracks spread out, as if intending to create a crater right there and then.


    The powerful ones far away all sensed the stifling pressure and they continued to retreat.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Ye Wuchen, Zui Qianchou and Xu Que were at the center of the storm. Their sword aura coalesced into a river and shot up at the heavy sword. While all of them were at Archmage Plane, they still paled in comparison to their opponents as they were at upper-level of said plane. If it had not been for having undergone the medicine baths that Saint Jiang had prepared for them for the past few years, that one strike would have injured all three of them. Lihen Heaven''s rules of the sword were capable of targeting mental powers.


    Chu Qingyang the Glaring Sun Flames struck, shooting down the light of the sun with just one stroke from above. A beam of sunlight packing intense heat shone on them. They felt as if the intense heat was about to tear their spiritual will powers apart before the sword was even about to reach them.


    Wang Mang, Chu Qingyang and Li Qiufeng were all at the pinnacle of Sage Plane after all.


    While the Lihen Heaven swordsmen were arrogant, they dared not underestimate their opponents nonetheless. The group of sages sent after the people of the one who claimed to be peerless in all of the Nine States, and had actually beaten the Jiutian Temple, would have definitely been extremely powerful.


    Any one of them would have been ranked at the forefront of the Sage Ranking, if they were to be cultivators of the Nine States of the Lower Worlds.


    Li Qiufeng struck as well. A storm seemed to have whipped as soon as he drew his sword, hitting all three of them. Thousands of currents conjured by the sword were fearsome enough, that every single current would have been able to cut down sages at the pinnacle of the plane.


    When all three of them lashed out, many sent their condolences to the ones at the receiving end silently. It was extremely difficult for anyone below Saint Plane to withstand such attacks. Even sages at the pinnacle of their training would have had a hard time, especially when the ones taking the attacks were sages who had yet to reach upper level of Archmage Plane.


    It seemed to have sufficed with each lashing out with one strike.


    Ye Wuchen, Zui Qianchou and Xu Que were caught in the middle of the storm. Brilliant light burst from Ye Wuchen''s body, the sword will coursing about his body seemed to have mystical powers and felt excessively overbearing.


    A silver sword shot out from the center of his brow. That sword spirit burst with dazzling glitter. Thousands of sword will raged and set out to tear everything apart. The attacks that were hammering on the spiritual will on all three of them were torn to shreds.


    The silver sword rang and terrifying storm of sword aura was conjured. A huge sword was materialized with the silver sword at the center. Brilliant golden light surrounded the giant sword. The two mystical beams crossed and looked incredibly dazzling.


    "Break." Ye Wuchen looked up and a beam of ferocious sword will shot from his eyes. He pointed at the air with a finger and the giant sword unleashed towering sword aura, shredding the might of the sword pinning them.


    All sword wills were torn to shreds within an instant.


    "Renhuang sword will." Lu Cheng took a look at Ye Wuchen. His younger brother-in-training has had a scuffle with that man over that Renhuang sword will, attempting to strip his Life Spirit to refine the Renhuang sword will. However, Pei Qianying was crippled before he was able to finish.


    Ye Wuchen, at present, seemed to have infused the Renhuang sword will within his Life Spirit, enabling him to borrow the might of the Renhuang sword will.


    The three who were attacking sensed it as well. They did not spend more than mere moments being stunned and quickly struck yet again.


    Wang Mang the Overbearing Sword conjured a sword mudra and the might of the Overbearing Sword grew even more terrifying. Boundless golden swords appeared above all three of them. Every single sword was branded with glittering patterns, enabling all of them to burst with greater might.


    "Cut," Wang Mang shouted coldly. The Overbearing Swords zipped down like bolts of lightning in an instant, dropping down onto the heads of the three below from above.


    Terrifying storms whipped up around Ye Wuchen. The Renhuang sword will was infused with his Life Spirit and countless swords appeared as well, shooting above and clashing with the sword aura that was raining down. The giant sword that was conjured by his Life Spirit clashed with the Overbearing Sword and frightening storms resulted. The Overbearing Sword shuddered and the patterns on it cracked and crumbled bit by bit. The sword eventually shattered as the cracks grew.


    "Run." A single word was heard from Ye Wuchen. He shot up like a bolt of lightning. The sword spirit was even quicker than he was, heading straight for Wang Mang.

 1022 Violent Fists

    Wang Mang saw Ye Wuchen attacking, his eyes sharp and imperious, and he stepped into the void, and a terrifying force of suppression rules swept out.


    Behind him, the life spirit bloomed instantly, and it was a giant golden Overbearing Sword. He held the Sword of Spirit and slammed it down from the sky, endless golden brilliance blooming while the Overbearing Sword slashed across the sky, killing everything below as its power was overwhelming.


    The brow chakra of Ye Wuchen lit up, and a beautiful and brilliant light shone out, connected with the Sword of Spirit, and it gave out an illusion between heaven and earth in an instant. At this moment Wang Mang only saw a sky full of swords and was unable to detect where he was. There was only an infinite sword sweeping over and competing with his.


    Others were not idle either. The speed of the battle of swordsmen was unimaginably fast. The forces of attack were extremely strong, and fast as lightning.


    The Flaming Sword of Chu Qingyang burned in the void. He stepped forward, wanting to attack, but he saw a gray afterimage came toward him. A dark air current appeared in the void, and Xu Que melted within the darkness, going for Chu Qingyang at an incredibly fast speed. The darkness ate away the flaming light bit by bit.


    Chu Qingyang lifted up his sword, the light of the sun shooting down and resonating with the sword. The light burned up everything, and terrible rays of the flaming sword light penetrated the darkness, piercing it.


    All the darkness seemed to be revealed under the flame.


    Xu Que''s figure appeared, and in his hand, he seemed to be holding a very thin sword, like a needle. When Xu was moving it was hard to see that there was any weapon in his hand, but it was a divine implement left over by the nine cultivators sent by Li Yao when they were slain. Xu Que possessed one of them.


    Zui Qianchou also had the same divine implement, and at this time he rushed toward Li Qiufeng. Both of their speeds were ghostly. All anyone could see was two shadowy images in the storm.


    The attack of the six swordsmen unleashed almost at the same instant. Ye Wuchen seemed to have opened his third eye, and his one arm stretched out, pointing to the void empty, and he spat out one word, "Open."


    The moment when his voice faded, the sword will of that upward motion was swallowed by the Sword of Spirit and turned into one sword, and there appeared a little dot above the void, as if one sword had opened up the sky. In this moment, the endless golden and giant sword that was falling down was shattered into nothingness, and the light slayed toward Wang Mang.


    As if detecting the danger, Wang Mang roared and a terrible sword armor appeared and surrounded his body, while the Overbearing Sword returned to its place and was held in his hands.


    Boom.


    When the sword arrived, the life spirit of the Overbearing Sword seemed to have cracked, and the sword will pierced though it. With a sound, Wang Mang''s body was propelled to the distant sky. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his face instantly turning pale.


    Ye Wuchen glanced at the direction of Xu Que and Zui Qianchou, the body suspended in the air, the Sword Spirit floated in front of him, humming and blooming endless air currents of Sword Way, rolled toward the vast battlefield.


    In this instant, all the will of heaven turned into swords while Chu Qingyang and Li Qiufeng were occupying the absolute advantage. They suddenly felt a great sense of danger, and then they saw the hand of Ye Wuchen placed before the Sword Spirit, and a storm of destruction appeared in this void.


    At this time, Lu Cheng also looked up and swiped a glance at Ye wuchen. He knew that Ye Wuchen was madly urging the Renhuang Sword Will, obviously having had some comprehension regarding the Renhuang Sword Will and could borrow from it to explode shocking power, injuring Wang Mang.


    Moreover, there was still some strength leftover from it, but upon observing the sword he understood that Ye Wuchen could not have urged such a sword once or twice without exhausting his own spiritual willpower. This was him forcing the Renhuang Sword Will, at a great cost to his own detriment.


    Ye Wuchen''s eyes were demonic, and endless sword will flowed between the heaven and the earth. His finger pressed once again, and in a flash a sword came instantly, locked onto Chu Qingyang for the kill. Chu Qingyang''s body retreated explosively, and a sword crossed the sky and cut off the flame. The sword light whizzed past and cut off the sword in his hand and caused his body to back off wildly. Afterward, another radiant arc crossed and arced toward Li Qiufeng.


    Li Qiufeng''s speed was fast to the limit, like a gust of wind that was retreating. His afterimages filled the space between heaven and earth. A radiant light now beamed between Ye Wuchen''s brows, connected with the sword, so that the Sword of Spirit reached equally fast speed. In the void, man and sword chased one another and created lines and lines of curvature.


    Boom.


    With a loud sound, the storm was cleaved through, and Li Qiufeng spat out a mouthful of blood, his body was injured by the piercing sword will, and he was covered in blood.


    Buzz.


    The sword returned, suspended in front of Ye Wuchen''s brow chakra, humming. However, the sword will between the heaven and the earth had weakened much. Obviously, after two moves of the sword, it was difficult for Ye Wuchen to sustain the power he had previously.


    Lu Cheng cast a glance at Ye Wuchen, and said nonchalantly, "Not bad for Renhuang Sword Will, even if when borrowed by a sage it can have such power. Block this."


    When his voice fell, he stepped out. For a moment, the Sword Qi swayed, and above the firmament, there was an immense sword will attempting to slammed down from the void.


    "Three Thousand Mile Sword," the hearts of the people in the distance trembled, the sword of Lu Cheng was the true inheritance of his master. A sword in which its sword will could traverse three thousand miles.


    Lihen Heaven was the premier holy land for Sword Way. In addition to Swordmaster of Lihen who had long stopped involving himself with the matters of the world, there were several other sword saint level characters whose cultivations were extremely terrifying. Lu Cheng and the others were the disciples of a sword saint, and he was also the one who taught Pei Qianying at Lihen Heaven.


    When Lu Cheng stepped out, there seemed to be a sword falling down from the sky. A sword condensed over his head, and the endless air flow of Sword Way now whistled into the sword.


    Lu Cheng''s palm made a grabbing motion in the void, and the sword was out, ditches forming in the sky, and with his body as the center, the Three Thousand Mile Sword seemed to be obliterating everything in front of him.


    Ye Wuchen''s eyes glanced at the sword wills that slashed from the void, the sword spirit in front of his brow chakra whistling, once again setting off a terrible storm.


    As if his spiritual will was burning, and endless spiritual will was integrated into the life spirit. Renhuang Sword Will was once again being urged and supreme aurora of the sword was blowing and puffing.


    Over the top of his head, traces of sword marks came slashing toward him, like doomsday, as if the void had been broken. Ye Wuchen''s finger pointed forward.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The sword came out, and traces of sword marks that traversed thousands of miles apart were cut off and madly pulverized by the sword light.


    But still, there were a few sword marks that came toward him, and Ye Wuchen was between a rock and a hard place; he had not another arm to deal with them. However, at this time, Xu Que and Zui Qiangchou descended by his side in a flash, and the sword smashed out at the same time blocking the sword marks.


    The swords of both sides collided, and Ye Wuchen spat out a mouthful of blood. The other two did not fare much better. Their spiritual will seemed to be torn to pieces, but they did not back off. Instead, they madly urged sword wills to destroy the sword of the opponent.


    Finally, the sword marks in the sky were all but destroyed. Zui Qianchou and Xu Que took a step back at the same time, and both spat out blood. They were experts at slaying, but not frontal attacks, and so they suffered.


    Lu Cheng continued moving forward, and there was a terrible storm of Sword Way appearing in front of him. He walked toward the trio and the endless sword will came together once again.


    "Get out of the way."


    At this time, there was a violent atmosphere coursing from afar, and a roar shook the earth. Suddenly many who were watching the battle in the distance retreated, and then they saw a figure, like lightning, shoot toward the battlefield.


    The person who was at the most front was brawny in size, and every step he took into the void was earth-shattering, and the heavens and the earth seemed to be shaking.


    Looking at the other side, Xu Que looked at Lu Cheng, and a cold light flashed through his eyes, saying, "You are finished."


    "Is that so?" Lu Cheng also glanced yonder. In fact, he didn''t know much about the situation in the Nine States Lower Worlds, at least not as much as the Jueying Sword Saint had known. He only knew that Pei Qianying was handicapped by Ye Futian who was known as the Unparalleled of the Nine States. The reason was because Pei Qianying had deprived the life spirit of Ye Wuchen, with whom he had just battled.


    He had also heard that in addition to Ye Futian, there were two other people who broke through the Ninth Layer of Heaven and entered the Jiutian Ranking. As for the other people at the Holy Zhi Palace, he had no idea who''s who.


    The man who was rushing toward them at this moment, was it one of the three who broke through the Ninth Layer of Heaven with Ye Futian?


    But yes or no, what does it matter?


    Immense sword will condensed, regardless of the figure that rushed forward, his sword smashed down, and the sword marks of destruction annihilated everything in front.


    The speed of the rushing figure was raised to the limit, and the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven who were surrounded outside suddenly released the aurora of the sword to attack Yu Sheng.


    However, Yu Sheng seemed to not have seen them. There seemed to be a layer of dark gold armor upon his body, allowing the Sword Qi blasting upon his body, without affecting him. Even a swordsman who was in front of him was slapped away by him when he was running.


    Bang! A loud sound was heard and he stepped out to close the distance in the space, appeared in front of Ye Wuchen and the others. He looked up and glanced at the sword marks that were falling down, and his body suddenly grew tall and stalwart, its dark gold body was indestructible, the sound of Sanskrit lingered. Suddenly the big handprints of Buddha slapped out at the same time, toward the sword marks that were coming down.


    Fierce bursts of sound came out, the sword marks were destroyed madly, and the palm prints were also splitting and breaking apart. Yu Sheng stabilized his body and covered the other three people by his own body. The sword will continued to blast onto his body, but was not able to break his dark gold armor.


    A number of people rushed into the battlefield, and Huang Jiuge also arrived.


    Bang! Yu Sheng took a step in the void and went to Lu Cheng, who was in front. At this moment, Lu Cheng could feel an immense and strong pressure from the other. The power of this person was terrifying.


    Another loud sound, and Yu Sheng continued to step forward, each step made the world tremble. Lu Cheng frowned. Today, everyone who came from Lihen Heaven were its most powerful swordsman, fully prepared to face Ye Futian and his cohort. Now before Ye Futian had even made an appearance, he had felt the pressure already.


    With sword in hand, the Sword Qi coursing, Lu Cheng''s body leapt forward, and the infinite airflow of the way of the sword roared wildly, forming a force with the sword.


    "Chop," Lu Cheng''s body descended from the sky, and the sword slashed out, crossing a great distance, and sword marks where they have cut through the void, like the most terrible storm of destruction, slashing toward Yu Sheng''s body.


    But Yu Sheng stepping into the sky, the dark golden light of the Buddha demon shined upon his body, and many people look at him moving forward in shock; did he not care for his life?


    The terrible Sword Qi slammed down and blasted on his immense and wild body, colliding with his defense, but was not able to breach it.


    The Buddha and the demon now as one, but also both. Under his body that ran wildly, the sword marks were bursting and exploding madly.


    Later, everyone saw a huge fist rushing down with might force of the sky, and the space seemed to suffocate under its strike.


    Lu Cheng''s sword once again slashed out, but before the Sword Qi could fully explode, the huge fist smashed on his sword, and the sound of destruction was heard. The sword exploded and pulverized, and Lu Cheng''s body quickly withdrew like a sword but the fist still fell on him and a terrifying force blasted on him through the space. Lu Cheng''s body was blasted toward the distance, and all the bones of his body made a clear cracking sound of explosion!

 1023 Sword Saint of Liyang

    At the moment when Lu Cheng was knocked away, the hearts of everyone present also jumped. That strike was too fierce, and how could it be resisted by mere flesh and blood?


    This strike probably cost half of Lu Cheng''s life force.


    The people who were observing the battle in the distance revealed a look of horror. This time the premier holy land of Sword Way in Emperor Xia''s Realm sent out such an impressive group to deal with several sages, and originally everyone thought the other party would definitely be at a disadvantage, but they never would have thought that following Ye Wuchen''s explosive actions, Yu Sheng descended like a demon god, so that even someone as strong as Lu Cheng was crushed.


    "I have seen him, a few years ago at the Jiutian Temple. His name was still on the list of the Jiutian Ranking, but at that time he only challenged at the Magi Plane." Some people exclaimed, shocked, and seeming to recall the haughtiness postures of the three, he continued, "He came from Nine States."


    "The three great cultivators who made a short-lived appearance a few years ago?" Many people had heard of the battle of the Jiutian Temple. At the time, it had caused some sensation in the Upper Worlds. After all, three people from the Nine States broke through the Ninth Layer of Heaven at the same time, and with Princess Xia Qingyuan attended the battle in person.


    "Yes, this person was one of them," that person said, and suddenly many people trembled in their hearts, and they understood why Lihen Heaven had dispatched such delegates to face them. Those who had conquered the Jiutian Temple would not likely be overcome by ordinary characters. As for the reason of their appearance it couldn''t be more clear.


    When Lihen Heaven disciple Pei Qianying was disabled at the Jiutian Temple, it was in front of several other disciples from Lihen Heaven.


    Although it was Pei Qianying who had instigated the grievance with the other party, and had challenged them at Ninth Layer of Heaven, he was, after all, a disciple of Lihen Heaven, and these disciples seemed to want to avenge him, so it was little wonder that Lu Cheng declared that he wanted to disable these three individuals.


    But perhaps he had never thought that those people who had conquered the Jiutian Temple, after these few years, were strong enough to crush someone as strong as he.


    Many in the Upper Worlds, like the cultivators of Lihen Heaven, had heard about the battle a few years back. Though they knew those three were powerful, they had no actual idea just how powerful they were.


    Today, however, they were seeing one of them.


    Compared to the rumors of a few years ago, he was only stronger than imagine, not weaker.


    Boom. Yu Sheng took a great step and continued to move toward the fallen figure. He was surrounded by a terrifying overbearing pressure, his demon god-like presence was giving out a suffocating pressure.


    Ye Futian led cultivators of Saint Plane to the Upper Worlds was because of what happened at that time, but as soon as they have arrived that trouble already was at their door suggested that someone was keeping tabs on them. Of course, Yu Sheng knew exactly what that meant.


    Otherwise, it would be impossible for them to come so quickly.


    When the disciples of Lihen Heaven saw Yu Sheng''s movements, they all came to Lu Cheng''s side, and the Sword Will flowed around their bodies. A sword net seemed to have appeared in this space, the Sword Will of Lihen permeating every corner.


    Boom.


    A loud bang, Buddha and Demon of all heavens appeared behind Yu Sheng, the Buddha and the Demon as one, its authority pressuring the world. Their palms struck forward at the same time, and the magnificent body of Yu Sheng also struck out, like the Mahavairocana, but it was the Palm of Mahavairocana with demonic attribute, blasting forward toward those cultivators.


    The swordsmen of Lihen Heaven swung their swords at the same time, and suddenly all the palm prints were torn and shattered. Yu Sheng stepped forward in great strides and the ground shook. The swords of the swordsmen pointed at Yu Sheng, intend to kill. All swords became one and stabbed on Yu Sheng''s torso.


    The body that was covered by the dark golden armor seemed to be indestructible, but even so, the armor was disintegrated bit by bit by that Sword Will of Lihen, and it was even slicing at the spiritual will, rushing into the mind of Yu Sheng. If it was another person, their body would probably be immediately separated into a million pieces.


    However, the body of Yu Sheng was already exceeding normal physical limit. After the Sacred War, he was also tempered by Saint Jiang''s medicinal bath, so that the strength of his body was only below the saints, and not something that could be surpassed by mere numbers of combatants. Because after all, even a large number of people was not an indication of the increased combat power of an individual, and without a strong enough offensive, they would never be able to overcome the defense, so a large number of people was simply useless. The increase in the battlefield matrix that would increase the damages of the single attack, was perhaps a little more hopeful.


    Roar! A loud holler came out, the lion''s roar shaking the sky, ringing through the eardrums of the people. The swordsmen from Lihen Heaven felt that their heads were about to burst, and then Yu Sheng threw a punch and the void seemed to be exploding, and many figures were knocked away.


    Even the strong swordsmen from Lihen Heaven could not block him; what strength was this?


    Boom.


    Another step, Yu Sheng continued to move forward, and ran straight toward Lu Cheng, who had already stood up, and the sword that Lu Cheng had used to smash at Ye Wuchen, showing its intent to kill.


    Seeing that body, like a demon god, coming toward him, Lu Cheng''s heart beating wildly, and his entire body was surrounded by shining and radiance sword light, his life spirit, bloomed. From the sky, there appeared a giant sword, and he felt an acute sense of fatal danger. Obviously, Lu Cheng never thought that anyone from the Nine States could be as strong as this.


    Upon Yu Sheng, the light of the Buddha and Demon was blazing, and when he saw the faint divine authority above Lu Cheng, and divine implement had been shown, he did not hesitate to take out the Battleaxe of Judgment and smash it toward Lu Cheng.


    "Slice," Lu Cheng put both hands above the top of his head, waving forward, and suddenly a giant sword from the top of his head smashed out, cutting a thick and incomparable sword mark in the sky, like a natural fissure cutting through the void, piercing through the sky.


    The Battleaxe of Judgment slammed down, and suddenly the sword mark exploded and was destroyed. The Sword Way continued to collapse and self-destruct, and Yu Sheng leveraged its momentum to smash toward Lu Cheng.


    With a loud boom, the Battleaxe of Judgment smashed on the Divine Sword, crushing Lu Cheng''s body. He let out an angry roar, still holding on, and the Sword Qi soared.


    The Buddha and Demon of all heavens appeared, and their power pressed the sky, and broke the Sword Qi once again. Lu Cheng''s knees slammed into the ground, and there was a loud bang. Terrible cracks appeared on the ground, which extended toward the four sides.


    "Enough." A loud commanding sound came from the sky, and there was an authority of the Divine Path falling down, rocking the firmament. The heart of many jumped, and when they looked up at the sky, they saw the clouds and wind moving, and there was an invisible pressure of the Divine Path that flowed above the sky, feeling extremely sharp.


    This air current pressed toward Yu Sheng and asked him to stop.


    Yu Sheng looked up at the void, his look indifferent, and the Battleaxe of Judgment continued its downward movement. The blood continued to come out of Lu Cheng''s mouth, his body collapsing, and all the innards were rocked to their limit, and he felt on the verge of destruction.


    "How dare you?"


    A cold reprimand came out, the wind above the sky blowing, and immense Sword Will started to gather. The next loud sound of rumbling was heard, a sword came from outside the sky, and cracks appeared in the void. A sword that passed three thousand miles, carrying the momentum of the thunder toward Yu Sheng.


    The heaven and the earth seemed to be annihilated by this one blow. In the distance, everyone was madly retreating, fearing that they would be caught in the peripheral of the attack. But obviously they worried overmuch; the opponent''s control over the sword was superb, and it was meant only for Yu Sheng, and not the rest of the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven.


    Yu Sheng looked up at the sword, and it came in an instant, forcing him to retract the Battleaxe of Judgment and smashed it toward the Sword Will in the void instead.


    This sword came from outside the sky, and when the sword fell, the space in which Yu Sheng was in seemed to be pierced, the ground madly bursting and smashing, and that sturdy, god-like body crazily backing up, his shirt was torn, and a sword stabbed onto the Battleaxe of Judgment, puffing out endless horrific authority of the sword, madly tearing at his body.


    An angry roar, the terrible defense of Yu Sheng was broken through by the Sword Qi, and blood flowed. His body flew out in reverse, and at that time, the sword stopped, flying back to the void, and everywhere the sword had pointed to, its qi was felt for miles.


    Boom.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    A loud sound, and everyone saw that Yu Sheng had fallen to the ground, covered in blood. The shocked crowd looked up to the sword, and the sword mark on the sky that ran a thousand miles.


    Three Thousand Mile Sword; they already knew who wielded the sword.


    Lihen Heaven, Sword Saint Liyang.


    Sword Saint of Liyang, even in the Upper Worlds, was considered a big deal, and he was also Lu Cheng''s master, cultivating in Lihen Heaven, whose actual strength was unfathomable.


    At this time, there was a faint shadow gathering on the sword that was suspended in the sky; it was the shadow of Sword Saint of Liyang, and it was also the person who Pei Qianying begged on the ground. Jueying Sword Saint knew that he couldn''t take care of the people from the Holy Zhi Palace, so he took Pei Qianying to Lihen Heaven, intended to us Lihen Heaven''s power for revenge.


    The Sword Saint of Liyang understood perfectly the idea of Jueying Sword Saint. But seeing his disciple kneeling and begging, and when he thought how he had been disabled, he still couldn''t resist sending out the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven, to allow them to take Ye Futian and his cohorts, following the rules of the Jiutian Temple.


    However, even though Sword Saint of Liyang had been cautious with the ability of Ye Futian and his cohort and had sent out the most powerful setup of Lihen Heaven, they were still crushed.


    He glanced at Yu Sheng. He did not expect that in the Lower Worlds in the land of Nine States such characters were possible.


    In this battle, they acknowledged defeat.


    "Since Lu Cheng was defeated, Lihen Heaven will no longer be bothering you in the future; this is the end of the matter." Sword Saint of Liyang said lightly. Lu Cheng was crushed, and there was probably no one on his side who could overcome Yu Sheng. If he made the move against these youngsters, he would appear petty and a laughing stock.


    The truth was that he should not have intervened. But when he saw that Yu Sheng had really wanted to kill Lu Cheng, he could not just sit by and watch Lu Cheng being killed.


    Yu Sheng was covered in blood, and his looked up angrily at the Sword Saint of Liyang in the void, but he also understood that his anger was meaningless.


    The premier holy land of Sword Way in the Upper Worlds. Even though the Holy Zhi Palace lorded over all of Nine States, it was still far off from Lihen Heaven. This was not Nine States. The rules of Sacred War did not apply.


    At this time, loud rumbling sounds were heard. Many people felt that their eardrums were shaking, making them extremely uncomfortable. They looked back at the distance and saw brilliant light coming toward this side. Sword Saint of Liyang looked up and glanced over there, and suddenly said, "All of you go back."


    When the voice fell, his body disappeared and turned into a sword, flying toward the void. In this instant, the authority of the sword of the Divine Path sheltering the sky and was far stronger than it was before.


    There were swords above the firmament, and in front, there was a sword diagram at the center of which, a sword ran through the void and slayed with a speed that was difficult for the eyes to perceive.


    Buzz! The sword of Sword Saint of Liyang puffed out infinite sword light, and directed toward the sword that was coming.


    The two swords collided in the void, and the horrible air currents of Sword Way now appeared in the sky.


    "Let''s go," Many screamed and retreated in a hurry, and buildings within hundreds of miles of radius had turned to dust in this moment. Many people below Sage Plane spat out blood, and even those of the Sage Plane were also madly withdrawing to escape.


    However, at the moment their hearts were beating wildly. Today they did not merely witness an exciting and aggressive battle.


    But in fact, they had witnessed the exchanges between swords saints in the air!

 1024 The Princesss Vale

    Sword will of the great path coursed about in the heavens, shooting throughout the vast area.


    Countless cultivators throughout the area looked up at the terrifying scene high up in the air at that moment. An oppressive light screen of the sword appeared in the heavens as the sword will coursed.


    That is saintly might.


    There are sword saints fighting.


    Who is it that is fighting?


    Sword will coursed about everywhere within an inn at that moment. Countless looked up at a compound hanging in the air and their minds shuddered. There was definitely a sword saint-level figure staying within.


    Yaya sat cross-legged and rings of sword will of the great path coursed about, streaking through the air around and shot far away. The sword diagram in the battlefield looked even more brilliant. Boundless sword will coursed about on that sword that was lashed out. Intense clashing was heard. Her sword had forced her opponent''s sword to keep backing away. Sword Gashes of the Void continued to crumble and the cultivators of Lihen Heaven backed away from the battlefield immediately after seeing that scene.


    So the one who made the move was supposedly the reincarnated Sword Saint of the Void told in the legends then. Is she already that strong now?


    Boom. A streak of extremely dazzling beam of sword flash came and went in an instant. The Sword of Liyang was penetrated right away and the Sword Gashes of the Heavens crumbled and reduced to dust. A cold voice was heard throughout the place shortly after.


    "If the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven continued to behave in such a manner, then it''d best to stop fighting others as swordsmen from here on out, as it would have only tainted the name of swordsmen."


    The voice was heard throughout thousands of miles in the air. Countless heard and their minds shuddered. There were actually people ridiculing swordsmen of Lihen Heaven and claiming them to have tainted the name of swordsmen. Those were incredibly bold words.


    A grunt was heard in one of the palaces of Lihen Heaven. Blood was seen at the corner of a person''s mouth. The sword will around the Sword Saint of Liyang was dispersed. He wiped the blood of the corner of his mouth and looked faraway with pointed eyes.


    The Sword Saint of the Void eh.


    Both the Sword Saint of the Void and the Swordmaster had been known to be the two greatest swordsmen in Emperor Xia''s Realm in the past, fighting to become the number one swordsman.


    So the Sword Saint of the Void has returned then.


    He had naturally heard that voice as well. They were indeed the ones who were in the wrong in that battle indeed, but it was simply impossible for him to do nothing while seeing his students killed. As such, he did not think much about it.


    As for the case with the name of swordsmen of Lihen Heaven, they had been venturing out as powerful swordsmen of Lihen Heaven for many years. It was not something that people would have been able to taint with just words alone, even the one uttering such words was the Sword Saint of the Void. At present, he, the Swordmaster of Lihen Heaven, was the number one swordsman in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Sword will gradually dissipated in that battlefield at the moment. The overbearing pressure was finally gone. Many took a deep breath as they suffered quite a lot earlier, feeling as if their bodies would have been torn to shreds by the sword will around at any given moment.


    Countless cracks appeared on the ground and the surrounding buildings were all destroyed. Many were caught in the crossfire and were hurt.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Yu Sheng''s raging body remained standing in the ruins, stained with blood all over him. Many looked shocked. He was able to take one strike throughout the void by the sword saint and still remained standing. His physical body was seen to be insanely strong by those around.


    Even though the Sword Saint of Liyang had only launched a strike remotely and had not been bringing his full power, it was nonetheless a strike imbued with the might of sainthood. If it had been common sages at the pinnacle of their training, they would have been rendered paralyzed on the ground even if they happened to survive. Yet, Yu Sheng was able to remain standing with blood all over him. It was a testament of the insane durability of his physical body.


    Many took a deep breath, as none of them had expected people from the Nine States of the Lower Worlds had actually been able to shame Lihen Heaven, the number one holy land of the swordsmen in the Upper Worlds.


    The very moment the Sword Saint of Liyang made a move, it had actually meant that Lihen Heaven had lost, and it was a crushing defeat in their part.


    The man from the Nine States had truly been powerful.


    Yu Sheng swept his cold eyes across. The ones from Lihen Heaven had already retreated when the two sword saints duked it out remotely.


    They suffered a crushing defeat, so much so that the Sword Saint of Liyang had to make a move to save their lives. As such, they had no face to remain staying.


    If it had not been for that one strike from the Sword Saint of Liyang, Lu Cheng would have probably ended up dead by the hands of Yu Sheng. He was truly brutal. The raging aura that burst from him earlier was a testament that he meant business.


    "You alright?" Yu Sheng turned around and said to Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen sat cross-legged. His Life Spirit had retreated back into his body. His aura was unstable. He had been exerting himself a lot before.


    "I''m fine," Ye Wuchen looked the bloodstained Yu Sheng and said. He had not been strong enough. Despite having borrowed the power of Renhuang Sword Will, he had only been barely able to defeat the three major swordsmen, before he became hardly able to continue fighting. If he was as capable as Yu Sheng, he would not have needed Yu Sheng to make a move.


    The short skirmish previously also made him understand that the cultivators of the Upper Worlds were indeed far stronger than those of the Nine States. Many of the top notch figures that he had met on the pilgrimage led by Xia Qingyuan years ago were of such standards. He was not all that talented, so he had to make up with hard work. The reason why he had been willing to give everything to meld the Renhuang Sword Will into his body, was precisely so to enable him to grow stronger.


    However, the Renhuang Sword Will was simply too powerful. He had only been able to refine a small part of it despite having spent years at it, but it had nonetheless helped him a lot in furthering his swordsmanship. Yet, it was clear to him that he had a long way to go.


    Powerful sword will was sensed coming from afar. A sword came together with the whooshing, hovering in midair and two figures were seen standing on it.


    "Yet another sword saint." Everyone was shocked to see the old man riding the sword. What the hell is with today?


    While there were many saints in the Upper Worlds, but the elder was nonetheless considered a major figure.


    The other figure seen standing on the sword was of exceptional bearing. His hair was snow-white and he looked extremely handsome. His eyes were brimming with spirit and his white garb billowed in the air.


    Who is that grey-haired young man?


    The grey-haired young man walked down and the sword saint followed behind him. The scene caused the pupils of many to dilate. Their eyes sparkling.


    The young man is the one taking the lead here?


    Ye Futian walked down. Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen looked at him.


    "What happened?" Ye Futian''s eyes felt rather cold. The village chief was able to sense Yaya''s sword aura when Ye Futian was on his way back, so they came here instead. The battle was over by the time they got there and there were only rubbles left. Other than that, there was Yu Sheng, who was bloodstained, Ye Wuchen, who was injured, and the others.


    "The ones from Lihen Heaven did this," Ye Wuchen said.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were very cold. While Pei Qianying was from Lihen Heaven, yet the feud in the past was due to Pei Qianying being conceited enough to strip Wuchen of his Life Spirit, and had them look for him at the Ninth Layer of Heaven. It was due to that he went about climbing the Sky Stairwell, beaten the Jiutian Temple and reduced Pei Qianying to a cripple.


    So despite being the number one holy land of swordsmanship, they are actually standing up for Pei Qianying then.


    Furthermore, the fact that they were able to come so fast meant that they had been monitoring the ones from the Lower Worlds all the time, right when they were still in the Nine States?


    "How did you end up getting hurt?" Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng and asked. Even if the ones who attacked them were cultivators of Lihen Heaven, Yu Sheng would have never gotten so severely injured, despite the same could not have been said for Ye Wuchen and the others.


    Unless a saint made a move against him.


    "An attack from a saint." Xu Que said coldly, "If it hadn''t been the case, all of them from Lihen Heaven would have stayed behind.


    Ye Futian''s expression had gotten even colder as things had indeed happened as speculated. Not only that Lihen Heaven acted against them, a saint had even lashed out at Yu Sheng.


    If they had not came prepared, having Yaya and some saints traveling along with them in the Upper Worlds, things would have turned out very grim for them.


    "We''ll head back and get you people patched up first," Ye Futian said. Everyone nodded and the village chief took all of them back riding on the sword. They were out of sight within mere moments.


    "Why did his hair turned grey?" Some mumbled to themselves and they were many who had actually been guessing at Ye Futian''s identity.


    There were those who had witnessed those battles fought in the Jiutian Temple, and they had not been able to recognize him at first. It was not until they had taken a good look, that they found him to be the genius who claimed to be peerless in the Nine States, Ye Futian.


    No one knew if Lihen Heaven would have made another move against them, seeing how that holy land suffered yet another defeat. However, with even Lu Cheng, who had studied under the Sword Saint of Liyang had been overwhelmed like that and the sword saint had to save him personally, claiming that the case was ended right there and then, even if the ones from Lihen Heaven wanted revenge, none of those who studied under the Sword Saint of Liyang would have been able to defeat Yu Sheng, more so given that Ye Futian was on their side.


    Unless, Lihen Heaven was ready to field a great number of mighty ones, with even the saint making a move.


    However, as the number one holy land of swordsmanship, there was no way Lihen Heaven would have done so, as it would not have been something they would have been able to boast about after all.


    The news of that battle was quickly spread throughout the Upper Worlds, as Lihen Heaven was simply too well-known in the Upper Worlds, making it impossible for the news to not spread.


    Many claimed that while Yu Sheng, who had defeated Lu Cheng, and Ye Futian, who had beaten the Ninth Layer of Heaven, were cultivators from the Nine States, but they nonetheless stood at the very pinnacle below Saint Plane, even at the Upper Worlds. They were worthy of being compared to the top few in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    There had not been people like that emerging from the Nine States for a very long time.


    When the news spread, the names of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng of the Nine States, once again spread throughout the Upper Worlds. Many linked that battle with the day where three from the Nine States being able to make it to the Ninth Layer of Heaven.


    At the 33rd layer of heaven of the Lihen Heaven, the clouds were fleeting and a figure was seen training with his eyes closed before a swordsman''s palace.


    Those who were training there were all of the bloodline of the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    A figure was seen carrying a sword on their backs as they walked, going up the Sky Stairwell. He then stopped before that figure and bowed, calling respectfully, "Brother."


    The young man who was seen training with his eyes closed took a look at the one who came. He then smiled and asked, "How did you get free enough to come here?"


    "Lu Cheng, a student of Uncle Liyang, intended to ask for guidance in swordsmanship from you," the one who came said.


    The young man wore a puzzled look and asked, "Lu Cheng was the best student studying under Uncle Liyang. If he needed teaching, he would have gone to Uncle Liyang instead. What is he doing here?"


    "A student who studied under Uncle Liyang, Pei Qianying, was rendered a cripple in the past. Lu Cheng stood up for him and was overwhelmed by his opponents. If it had not been for Uncle Liyang making a move, Lu Cheng might have been killed on the spot. As such, many chastised Uncle Liyang for that. It would seem that that battle had instigated Lu Cheng enough, that he wanted to learn what it was like to be the Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane."


    The man who came smiled and answered. The elder brother-in-training before him was the number one figure in Lihen Heaven, the true Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane, one of the few acknowledged by all in the Upper Worlds to be standing at the very top.


    As such, it was entirely within reason that Lu Cheng sought him out after being defeated by Yu Sheng.


    He was probably feeling vexed from being defeated.


    "There is actually someone capable of landing such a blow on Lu Cheng. A tough one indeed then. Who would that be?" The young man asked.


    "Someone from the Nine States named Yu Sheng. He was probably very powerful," the one who came answered.


    "Well then." The young man nodded and continued, "Tell Lu Cheng to come here."


    "Indeed, brother."


    ...


    A decree was sent from the Emperor Xia''s Palace when many were still talking about Ye Futian, shocking many people.


    The decree of Emperor Xia stated that Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State of the Nine States, was to be appointed as the princess'' valet and was permitted for the moment, to venture outside for training. He was also allowed to enter Emperor Xia''s Palace!

 1025 Get Los

    The appointment from Emperor Xia quickly whipped up a storm.


    While it had seemed to be an appointment that was of little importance in first glance. But becoming the princess'' valet meant that he was able to get near Princess Xia Qingyuan, serving by her side and protecting her from danger.


    Everyone in Emperor Xia''s Realm knew that Emperor Xia doted on Xia Qingyuan the most. The person that was to became her valet would have been of significant importance.


    It meant that Emperor Xia had absolute trust in him, be it in terms of birth, talents, or powers.


    It was worth noting that some geniuses at the very pinnacle had thoughts about the princess. While they did not dare to show such thoughts in public, but that most beloved daughter of Emperor Xia was lauded to be the most talented in Emperor Xia''s Realm. While she had often appeared in men''s clothing, yet it did not change the fact that she looked incredibly stunning. She was the princess born between Emperor Xia and the number one beauty in Emperor Xia''s Realm after that. There was no need to doubt about her appearance.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    No other young women in Emperor Xia''s Realm were deemed being worthy of being compared to Xia Qingyuan.


    No one would have batted an eye if Emperor Xia had appointed a saint from the previous generation to protect the princess, but the one appointed was none other than Ye Futian, who was said to be the most talented in the Nine States of the Lower Worlds. He served directly under Emperor Xia and it was that he was very young and extremely handsome. Such unparalleled specimen of a human being getting appointed as the princess'' valet would have surely became the talk of the place.


    Furthermore, the timing of the appointment was very coincidental, as it happened when Lihen Heaven had just clashed with the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace who ventured to the Upper Worlds for training. From that standpoint, it was entirely within reason to see that to be some kind of warning to some forces at the Upper Worlds.


    As such, regardless of how powerful such forces would have been in the Upper Worlds, they would have had to consider carefully if they wanted to move against Ye Futian.


    That appointment had far greater influence that when Ye Futian and the other two had beaten the Jiutian Temple back then. Many top notch sages and saints would not have paid any attention to what happened in the Jiutian Temple, thus many more came to hear of Ye Futian''s name at present.


    Furthermore, many would have known that he hailed from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State of the Nine States at the Lower Worlds. He was a palace lord of a holy land at the Lower Worlds, one who served directly under Emperor Xia.


    While the Upper Worlds were also under Emperor Xia''s rule, but forces like Lihen Heaven did not serve directly under the emperor. That point resembled the like of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty of the Nine States, which had a standing army and forces within the sacred dynasty''s territory serving it.


    At that moment, clouds circled around a mountain. There were some buildings built in a scattered manner on the mountain. Spiritual qi around there was incredibly thick and the scenery was very beautiful, with flowing rivers and waterfalls, as well as towers and pavilions found all about the place, making the mountain incredibly elegant.


    Many went out for activities as soon as they had gotten to the Upper Worlds. Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue went to find accommodations, as it was impossible for them to stay in inns where people were many and gossip flying about for prolonged periods. They found the villa as a result.


    There was a new plaque right outside the villa with two simple words on it: The Cottage.


    Those two words were written personally by Ye Futian himself and he was the one who named the villa. There was little need to explain why he had done so.


    The Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu and the others recalled a lot of memories as they saw Ye Futian writing the words down.


    With the exception of their teacher and Xue Ye, his Fourth Brother, being absent, all of the other students of the Cottage were there in the villa.


    Ye Futian stood quietly in the mountain at the moment, gazing at the scenery beneath.


    He had naturally received Emperor Xia''s appointment and he knew what the emperor meant with such a decree��the emperor was protecting him.


    Wuchen had been surrounded and beaten by mighty ones from Lihen Heaven and Yu Sheng was injured by the Sword Saint of Liyang. While Ye Futian was indeed angry, he did not let anger get to his head and headed to Lihen Heaven right away, seeking revenge.


    He knew well how powerful Lihen Heaven was and how powerful they were in comparison. His mind was clear enough to tell that even with Yaya present, if they were to clash with the number one holy land of swordsmanship without thought and armed with only that bit of power, they might have as well been walking to their graves.


    They were not at the Nine States and he would not have been naive enough to think that Lihen Heaven would have talked rules and honor with him, if he were to go to Lihen Heaven seeking revenge. The Sword Saint of Liyang had made a move against Yu Sheng after all.


    If he were to provoke Lihen Heaven, he would not have known how he had even ended up dead, when the saint of the other party simply went out and cut him down.


    While Emperor Xia ruled over both the Upper and Lower Worlds, yet most saints in the Nine States became saints by using sainthood resources of Emperor Xia. The holy lands of the Nine States were under Emperor Xia''s debt, making them the direct orthodoxy of Emperor Xia. As such, the emperor had absolute control of them. His orders were absolute and nobody dared to disobey them. Anyone who dared wage a sacred war would have needed to play by the rules.


    However, things were different in the Upper Worlds. Forces like Lihen Heaven trained entirely on their own, and they were powerful enough to have not borrowed any of Emperor Xia''s powers. While they belonged to territories under Emperor Xia''s rule, they were not considered serving directly under the emperor, and the emperor would not have interfered with their affairs much. If he were to clash with Lihen Heaven and that Emperor Xia sided with him out in the open, allowing him to kill students of Lihen Heaven, no top notch forces would have continued wanting to expand and develop in Emperor Xia''s Realm then.


    Said top notch figures would have left and headed towards other Renhuang''s Realms for training. If such a thing were to happen, Emperor Xia''s Realm would have fallen into decline.


    As such, even Emperor Xia would have had to strike a balance, appointing him to be the princess'' valet, protecting him in a roundabout manner and preventing him from any mishaps in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    A figure appeared quietly behind Ye Futian. It was none other than Loulan Xue.


    "How are things below the mountain?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Many people came often and some even wanted to challenge you, but were quickly sent home after Wuchen and the others overpowered them. Fewer and fewer came to disturb us in time, but this place had gotten very famous in the Upper Worlds," Loulan Xue said.


    Ye Futian nodded. The name of the Cottage would have resounded throughout the Upper Worlds.


    He believed that it had nothing to do with him being appointed as the princess'' valet, and it was the power of the Cottage itself. That was his vision for naming the villa ''The Cottage''.


    "What is the Glass Saint doing now?" Ye Futian asked.


    "She had been training in silence every day since she came to the Upper Worlds, thinking of nothing else," Loulan Xue answered.


    "Right." Ye Futian nodded and as he willed, a loud cry was heard. A dark golden condor dived from above, landing befor Ye Futian with its wings flapping about. It was none other than the Black Wind Condor.


    "I''ll go to the Emperor Xia''s Palace for a bit," Ye Futian said and stepped onto the Black Wind Condor, which took to the air immediately and they were both out of sight soon.


    Having Emperor Xia''s appointment meant that he no longer needed to fear for his own safety.


    Regardless of how capable Lihen Heaven was, they would not have dared to offend Emperor Xia.


    After flying for several hours, Ye Futian arrived before the gates of Emperor Xia''s Palace. The guard saw him and bowed, saying solemnly, "Emperor Xia''s orders stated that Guardian Ye shall be allowed to enter and exit Emperor Xia''s Palace as he pleased. There shall be no need for report. Please."


    "Thank you." Ye Futian nodded and brought the Black Wind Condor into the palace and headed for the princess'' residence.


    He had been there before and as such, he knew his way around.


    However, as soon as he entered the palace, a towering young man appeared before him. He stood there silently. The sun shone on his tanned skin and his eyes gazed faraway. However, Ye Futian nonetheless felt that the young man was waiting for him.


    "Ye Futian." The towering figure turned his eyes around and glanced at Ye Futian. He actually felt vague, yet extremely powerful pressure emanating from that young man.


    The man was incredibly powerful. At the very least, he was considerably more powerful than Ji Ya of the Nine States.


    Anyone who was able to show up in such a place would have been of exceptional status.


    "What business do you have with me, if I may ask?" Ye Futian asked calmly.


    "His majesty had appointed you personally, and I hope that you would not bring shame to such an honor." That figure kept his eyes on Ye Futian, looking somewhat jealous. He then walked from Ye Futian''s side. Every single step he took made Ye Futian feel as if the pressure had grown stronger.


    Ye Futian frowned, yet he did not end up saying anything. He continued forward without knowing who that was. He was reluctant to stir trouble within Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    There were naturally people guarding the princess'' training ground. He was allowed inside after reporting, and soon, Ye Futian saw Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him and said coldly, "It was not my idea."


    Ye Futian was dumbfounded, wearing a puzzled look.


    "Are you talking about my appointment, princess?" Ye Futian asked. He had never thought about things from her perspective and he naturally knew that it was the emperor''s own idea. Xia Qingyuan seemed to have thought about it a little bit too much, thinking that he had misunderstood.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyes shone with a tinge of embarrassment after seeing that Ye Futian had never thought of the appointment that way, yet such embarrassment vanished in a flash and she returned to normal in an instant. She then looked at Ye Futian and said, "What are you doing here?"


    "I''m appointed by Emperor Xia to be your valet, princess, so I saw fit to come take my orders. While I''m permitted to train outside, but if you were to have any orders for me, please do not hesitate to do so. Other than that, I''d like to ask if I''d be allowed a meeting with the emperor," Ye Futian said. He was actually curious about what the emperor thought of him. Why did Emperor Xia covered for him, and then take care of things for me in secret?


    "My father is busy with training and even I would not have disturbed him with good reasons. At ease. Since when did you learn manners, by the way?" Xia Qingyuan said. She had invited him twice to train with her and she was refused twice. She thought Ye Futian would have been against such an arrangement.


    "I know right from wrong at the very least, princess." Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan and said calmly, "The last time I was here, I was frustrated that I was being barred from entry by you, princess. As such, my emotions had been all over the place, and for that, I beg your forgiveness."


    Xia Qingyuan recalled what happened that day and felt rather irked. However, since Ye Futian came today to apologize, her mood had gotten somewhat better.


    "My father appointed you as my valet, yet he allowed you to train outside. It is but a post and you need not serve by my side, and there is no need for you to take orders here," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "I''m relieved to hear that from you, princess," Ye Futian said. It would have been a torture for him if she had indeed intended for him to serve by her side.


    "You..." Xia Qingyuan''s eyes grew increasingly cold, but she saw Ye Futian cupped his hands and said nonetheless, "If there''s nothing you''d need of me, princess, please allow me to take my leave."


    "If you''d fix your attitude for a bit, I might actually allow you to train within Emperor Xia''s Palace," Xia Qingyuan smiled and said all of a sudden.


    Ye Futian looked up at Xia Qingyuan and had to admit that she had an extremely pretty face with no flaws found. The only downside to her appearance would have probably been her dressed in men''s clothing.


    "If you''d be dressed in women''s clothing, princess, those words may sound more enticing," Ye Futian looked at her faint smile and said. It was the truth.


    Xia Qingyuan''s smile disappeared and she was actually fuming as she said coldly, "Get lost!"


    "I shall take my leave," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan with his hands cupped, before turning around and left.


    Xia Qingyuan clenched her fists as she saw him leave. Slivers of coldness coursed about her. A servant girl who saw her like that nearby trembled in fear. The princess had been calm and composed usually, and she had actually been angered by that fellow.


    However, even that servant girl felt like beating the sh** out of the him for uttering those words.


    He had actually resented having to serve the princess?


    But then again, the princess somehow seems rather off today, compared to how she usually is.

 1026 Set Ou

    @@


    After calling upon Xia Qingyuan, Ye Futian returned to the villa. Emperor Xia had personally conferred the title. Although he was only a valet to the Princess, it was still a kind of protection for him. No matter what, he should go and convey his gratitude. It was only polite.


    As for the fact that he hadn''t seen Emperor Xia, that wasn''t important.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Xia Qingyuan had been very cold to him, but that was just the way she was. She had been born a noble, with thousands of people doting on her. She was the most noble princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Indeed, no one was worthy of her notice. But in fact, Ye Futian knew that Xia Qingyuan had a sharp mouth but a soft heart. Back at the Imperial Mausoleum, her attitude had changed after he had beaten her. She had not been as cold and unattainable as she had been the last two times he had seen her. Instead she had spoken to him as an equal, showing him the respect he was due as a victor.


    He remembered the first time he had seen @@

 1027 The End of Jueying Palace

    @@


    At the top of Jueying Palace, sword will flowed through an ancient hall. The Jueying Sword Saint sat with his eyes closed in cultivation.


    Having cultivated to this level, it was extremely difficult for him to advance any more. It required perseverance, concentration, a firm state of mind, and outside luck in order to have a chance of moving forward.


    The Jueying Sword Sage had been disturbed these past few days due to Pei Qianying, and it had affected his cultivation.


    Now he needed to let go of distracting thoughts. The conflict between Ye Futian and Lihen Heaven had ended. In the future they would deal with him without having to spend too much energy on it.


    Sword will flowed around his body. Brilliant light shone through the hall like a wonderful sword matrix. The Jueying Sword Saint gradually calmed down.


    But at that moment his eye twitched slightly. He suddenly felt uneasy. He felt that something was about to happen.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "What is going on?" he whisp@@

 1028 The Xiao Clan

    @@


    After Ye Futian and the others left, Jueying Palace had turned into a ruin, and many people had fallen here.


    Everything in Jueying Palace was also looted. Many people stood above the ruins, and their hearts were extremely chaotic.


    Just like this, Jueying Palace was destroyed. Even though Jueying Palace was not considered a top holy land, but there was still a Jueying Sword Saint whose strength was not inconsiderable. In this area, Jueying Palace enjoyed extremely fame and popularity.


    And all of this was because of Pei Qianying.


    However, who would have ever thought that Pei Qianying''s transgression toward a person from the Lower Worlds would cause such great chaos and even brought disaster to Jueying Palace. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    When Pei Qianying stripped the life spirit of Ye Wuchen, and threatened to wait for Gu Dongliu and the others at the Ninth Layer of Heaven, no one had thought anything of it, as if that was the way it should be. The world of cultivation was a cruel @@

 1029 Top Principality of Emperor Xia’s Realm

    @@


    Xiao Sheng, Xiao Clan''s pulse, Princess Xiao''s nephew, Xiao Qingyuan''s cousin.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Never mind his God-given talent, just this status alone was something few could match in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Xia was his uncle by marriage.


    This kind of background was enough to be the envy in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Seeing that Ye Futian had arrived, Xiao Sheng smiled and said, " I have long heard of the name of Brother Ye, so I invited you to come together to get to know you, and your reputation was not in vain; please take a seat."


    "You are overly kind," Ye Futian nodded and greeted in return, then the servant girl took him to a seat to settle down, and Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen and the others sat down next to him. This time the three saints. such as Yaya, did not come. He did not want to bother them with everything, so he would rather spend time on the road.


    After Ye Futian sat down he glanced at the others in the other direction, and heard a cold voice that spoke,@@

 1030 Crazy One

    Yaoxi''s alluring eyes did not linger on Ye Futian for long. That one look was of an appropriate length of time, leaving a striking impression in his mind but not ending up appearing offensive.


    She turned her eyes on Xiao Sheng and chuckled, "Please, Mr. Xiao, you''re too flattering. Goddess Fengxiao of Lihen Heaven is here, so it makes no difference to the scenery regardless if I''m present. Furthermore, Ms. Gongsun of Divine Cloud Valley should be here today as well."


    Everyone naturally knew who Yaoxi meant: the sisters of the Gongsun family. The sisters were indeed rare beauties on their own.


    "We''ll have to ask Brother Gongsun about that," Xiao Sheng said as he turned his eyes at Gongsun Zhong.


    "They''re probably already here." Gongsun Zhong then added, "But, today is Old Man Xiao''s birthday banquet, so the queen should probably be here then. If both the queen and the princess are here, we''re all but side characters. Nobody dares to steal the thunder from the queen and the princess after all."


    Everyone naturally nodded in agreement.


    Queen Xiao was the number one beauty in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The princess liked to dress in men''s clothing and no one had actually seen her dressed in a woman. However, her stunning looks remained highly visible in the least. That, coupled with her status as the princess, would have definitely made her the most high profile woman in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm. No one would have been able to steal Xia Qingyuan''s thunder, including Virgin Yaoxi of Yaotai.


    Mo Wen of Tianji Pavilion sat quietly as he listened to the chatter. While the conversation had been a simple one, he was nonetheless able to acquire a lot of information from it.


    Tianji Pavilion was known for knowing everything in Emperor Xia''s Realm. No one present would have known more about Emperor Xia''s Realm than Mo Wen.


    His knowledge about the realm was so deep that he even knew all about the love affairs of Emperor Xia in the past. However, no one dared to bring such topics up. All who were present notwithstanding, even Mo Wen only came to know about those age old secrets from his teacher, to remind him who in Emperor Xia''s Realm should be deemed off-limits. It was the very reason why Tianji Pavilion was able to stay around for so long.


    Goddess Yaotai lost to Queen Xiao all those years ago, so there was little hope for Yaoxi to win against Xia Qingyuan.


    Furthermore, what Gongsun Zhong said earlier was rather inappropriate. Yaoxi was a stunning beauty herself with peerless appearance. It was fine for him not to compliment her, but mentioning Queen Xiao and the princess to overwhelm Yaoxi was rather unfriendly. If one were to take the ambitions of Divine Cloud Valley into consideration, it would have not seemed all that difficult to comprehend.


    "Please, have a seat, Goddess Yaoxi," Xiao Sheng said with a smile.


    Yaoxi nodded lightly. She scanned the place around and moved towards a direction with light steps. The place that she sat at caused a lot of the ones present to cast puzzled looks.


    While there were many seats available, Yaoxi did not sit at any of master seats, choosing to sit somewhere near Ye Futian instead. There were actually better seats elsewhere.


    While that move seemed insignificant, many looked at her with baffled looks nonetheless, wondering if she was doing so intentionally.


    "Yaoxi of Yaotai Divine Palace, please to make your acquaintance, Mr. Ye. You do live up to your reputation and look incredibly dashing indeed." She nodded politely to Ye Futian as her beautiful eyes seemed to be dancing as soon as she sat down. Her voice was as gentle as water, soothing the minds of anyone within earshot. Every single expression and move of hers were bound to strike the minds of men.


    Ye Futian looked at Yaoxi with a rather surprised looks, feeling rather weird as to how Yaoxi behaved in front of him.


    While he was extremely confident of his talents and appearance, he did not think for one second that all of that would have sufficed to make someone like Yaoxi fall for him at first sight and worse still, taking a liking for him simply by his reputation alone. That was some overused, rotten tropes written in some books, and would have never happened in reality.


    The reason why Fengxiao deliberately had Xiao Sheng elaborate on the identities of the ones present was to pressure Ye Futian, a way of telling him that all of them were of more exceptional status than him, a valet of the princess.


    Ye Futian admitted that much himself. He was at a gathering where the most brilliant of the later generations were found after all.


    Yaoxi hailed from Yaotai Divine Palace, so there was little need to talk about her privileged status. It looked rather unusual for someone like her to come up to him instead.


    Regardless of the reasons, since Yaoxi was showing good will to him, there was naturally no need for him to be unfriendly to the other party.


    "You''re too kind, goddess. I''m but a mortal man and there is no way I could be worthy of your praise. Speaking of which, it is my first time meeting you, goddess, and I must say that your appearance is so stunning that there is hardly even a handful of girls I know, who would be able to remotely compare," Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    "So you mean to say that there''re ones who would be able to compare nonetheless then, Mr. Ye. I wonder who would look so exceptional?" Yaoxi''s voice was fine and alluring. Her eyes were such that few men would have been able to resist.


    "My wife," Ye Futian replied simply. Yaoxi was stunned for a bit and actually looked rather dazed. It was apparent that she found the answer surprising.


    She thought that Ye Futian would have meant Xia Qingyuan, since he would have definitely known the princess better due to his status as her valet.


    That answer of his caught her off-guard, especially so when he actually mentioned his wife despite being in the presence of such a stunning beauty. She apparently knew what the answer meant and that made her feel a little defeated.


    However, she rescinded those thoughts quickly and her eyes remained having a warm smile in them.


    "I heard that you have beaten the Jiutian Temple for a friend once and stripped Pei Qianying of his Life Spirit, Mr. Ye, becoming known as peerless among the Lower Worlds. Yu Sheng had too defeated Lu Cheng of Lihen Heaven once. The people of Emperor Xia''s Realm now claim that until the day Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven emerge from his training, there would hardly be anyone below Saint Plane capable of defeating you, Mr. Ye." Yaoxi then asked with a smile, "What do you think about that, Mr. Ye?"


    "While I''ve no idea who Wang Chuan is, but it makes no difference if he emerges or not," Ye Futian answered with a smile while looking calm and composed. What he meant was there was still none in Lihen Heaven under Saint Plane, who would have been able to compare to him, even if Wang Chuan came to face him.


    "Big words indeed."


    "Another fellow whose arrogance knows no bounds."


    One angered comment after another emerged as soon as Ye Futian finished his sentence. All of that apparently came from the cultivators of Lihen Heaven. Fengxiao and Mo Li both turned their eyes to look at Ye Futian coldly.


    Their Brother Wang Chuan was the Edge of Pinnacle below Saint acknowledged by all.


    There were even elders in Lihen Heaven claiming that there were two planes right below Saint Plane, with Wang Chuan being alone in one while all the others in another plane. It was no secret that they held Wang Chuan in extremely high regard. Even the likes of Lu Cheng needed to ask for guidance from Wang Chuan at 33rd Layer of Heaven.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Lihen Heaven notwithstanding, even when compared throughout the entire Emperor Xia''s Realm, there were few below Saint Plane who were deemed qualified to fight Wang Chuan.


    Ye Futian actually boasted that it would not have made any difference even if Brother Wang Chuan were to emerge. His tone was so arrogant that it was apparent that he did not take Wang Chuan seriously at all. One could have imagined what was going through the minds of the cultivators from Lihen Heaven.


    Everyone present, including Yaoxi, sported puzzled looks and they were all surprised by Ye Futian. They apparently never expected such answers from him. There was no hint of doubt, as if Lihen Heaven cultivators have always been beneath him.


    Ye Futian behaved well since the very moment he arrived, sitting there quietly. He had few words to spare even when Yaoxi chatted with him.


    However, when the conversation came to involve training, what he said surprised everyone so much, that the cultivators of Lihen Heaven were barely able to keep themselves from drawing their swords.


    Ye Futian looked extremely composed and unfettered throughout the ruckus. It was as if that he said something insignificant.


    He naturally knew what kind of reactions his words would have garnered, yet he did not mind them at all. The cultivators of Lihen Heaven ganged up on Wuchen and when they lost, the Sword Saint of Liyang made a move and injured Yu Sheng. All of that meant that he had scores to settle with them.


    As such, Ye Futian actually wished that Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven would have actually emerged, so much so that Ye Futian did not mind fighting him on that very day.


    Lihen Heaven was a massive force and he was only able to obliterate Jueying Palace. It was far from enough to be able to shake Lihen Heaven. But then again, it was something entirely different if the students of Lihen Heaven were to look for him, instead of the other way around instead.


    "Please shut up if none of you are willing to fight." Ye Futian looked at a cultivator of Lihen Heaven who berated him, adding in a composed manner, "If any of you wish to fight, please take your pick. But then again, I''m sorry to say that I''ve no intentions of entertaining the notion of saints rescuing their students, when things do not go their way."


    He was obviously referring to the time when the Sword Saint of Liyang made his move last time.


    As expected, his words silenced all of those from Lihen Heaven and the ones who were subordinate to them. They simply glared at Ye Futian coldly as they were speechless about that battle. It was indeed considered a taint in the history of Lihen Heaven.


    Yaoxi felt rather surprised as she gazed at his handsome face from the side. He had never expected such sharp and pointed words coming out from the mouth of gentle, mild-mannered silver-haired young man. He had been able to anger every single one from Lihen Heaven with several simple lines alone.


    "Uncle Liyang had only acted to save Lu Cheng''s life when he lost in the last battle. While it was indeed somewhat inappropriate, but he had never intended to kill Yu Sheng. He would not have been able to sit here otherwise. You claimed to be peerless in the Nine States and while your talents were indeed extremely exceptional, you have respect for nothing and thought yourself invincible. I say that you''ve really underestimated the cultivators of the Upper Worlds," Mo Li commented. Due to his relatively mild-mannered temperament, his voice was a calm and composed one.


    "So, you''re saying that we should thank the saint of Lihen Heaven for not killing one of our own then?" Xu Que, who was sitting beside Ye Futian, smirked coldly as he continued, "The fact that your saint attacked remained. Whether it is to save a student''s life or not is irrelevant. The swordsmen of Lihen Heaven had no intentions of going easy on the three of us back then. So in conclusion, you''re saying that Lihen Heaven is allowed to attack with intentions to kill, be defeated, and then it is entirely appropriate and correct to have your saint attack then? Number one holy land of swordsmanship indeed."


    "I''ve never claimed to be invincible. But I''m able to beat every single one from Lihen Heaven who is not of the Saint Plane. Would you care to find out?" Ye Futian stared at Mo Li and said.


    The swordsmen of Lihen Heaven had sword will coiling around them as soon as he finished. Some even stood as they have had enough.


    Ye Futian was apparently ridiculing the number one holy land of swordsmanship in Emperor Xia''s Realm indeed.


    Beating everyone who is not a saint?


    All the others looked at Ye Futian without saying a word. Many who were present came to have some thoughts listening to Ye Futian''s words.


    "While Lu Cheng was ranked on the Jiutian Ranking, but he was not actually at the very top. To my knowledge, Lu Cheng of Lihen Heaven was not even qualified to be compared with Wang Chuan." Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley looked at Ye Futian and added calmly, "Furthermore, Wang Chuan had beaten every single sage at the pinnacle of their training of Lihen Heaven two years ago. I''m afraid he''s already half a saint now. Are you sure you''re able to beat him?"

 1031 The Well-fed Has No idea How The Starving Suffer

    Gongsun Zhong''s tone was a composed one and there was hardly any emotions found within. There was no need to talk about if he liked or disliked Ye Futian; he knew too little about that young upstart to have such concerns in the first place.


    While extreme geniuses like Ye Futian were not all that common, yet there was little need for Divine Cloud Valley to be concerned with him.


    As the number one armorer force in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm, the valley master''s relationship with Emperor Xia went a long way back. With the exception of top notch figures, Divine Cloud Valley had little need to be concerned about anyone.


    However, Ye Futian''s unbridled conceit displeased him somewhat. Despite being of peerless, exceptional talent, he was still just someone who came to train from the Lower Worlds. Emperor Xia appreciated him enough to make him the princess'' valet, so he should have known what he should and should not do. He should have laid low and train, staying within Emperor Xia''s Palace and doing his best to assist the princess, instead of throwing big words around, provoking Lihen Heaven.


    As the number one force of the sword in Emperor Xia''s Realm, it was only natural that that holy land''s wealth, history and powers were formidable in all sense. Even if Ye Futian was displeased with them, he had no right to vent his frustration at them. Does he really think that he could shake Lihen Heaven, just because Emperor Xia took a liking to him? He''s only causing trouble for the princess instead.


    Furthermore, Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven did not get where he was without substantial powers to back him. Gongsun Zhong was known to be a top notch figure below Saint Plane, yet he never dared to say that he was able to win against Wang Chuan.


    The way Ye Futian behaved with such condescendence and arrogance simply meant that he was able to overpower every single one who was at the very cutting edge of their training.


    As such, Gongsun Zhong asked what he asked.


    Ye Futian looked at Gongsun Zhong and said plainly, "I''m not talking about Wang Chuan alone; I''m talking about all below Saint Plane in Lihen Heaven."


    That flat, unfettered tone he took made Gongsun Zhong glare at him, staying silent for a moment, before an amused smirk was seen on his face.


    All below Saint Plane in Lihen Heaven eh? Truth is, you have never met Wang Chuan and you don''t know what he is capable of.


    Are you saying that you''re invincible among all below Saint Plane then?


    Are you saying that you''d have no need to concern yourself with the plane level of others, as no one would be able to beat you then?


    Ye Futian turned his eyes away. He was picking fights with Lihen Heaven, but if Gongsun Zhong insisted on feeling offended as one of those who were scorned, then he would not bother explaining anything, as there was little need for him to do so. As for Gongsun Zhong''s opinion of him, he saw that to have nothing to do with him.


    "What would you all be chatting about?" A woman''s voice was heard. Everyone turned their eyes around and saw two figures walking in their direction.


    The two women had extremely stunning appearances. Both of them were top notch figures and the one who spoke, while looking slightly inferior to Yaoxi in terms of appearance, but the difference were almost negligible and she could have easily been deemed a beauty few would have been able to compare to herself.


    The other woman looked somewhat younger. Her clear eyes scanned everyone around her, before coming to look at Ye Futian. She wore a puzzled look for a fleeting moment before recomposing herself, and not looking in his direction anymore.


    "Gongsun Xuan, she went onto pilgrimage with the princess back then. All I knew was the princess looked after her quite well back then. Never crossed my mind that she was of the number one armorer force in the Upper Worlds." Xu QUe looked rather amused as he spoke to Ye Futian telepathically, "Furthermore, Luo Fan had taking a liking to her and attempted to woo her. Her refusal had been quite a brutal one."


    Ye Futian looked speechless as he heard that. He knew what his Fifth Brother was like with that big mouth. It was entirely possible that Luo Fan flirted with that woman over there.


    He never asked about anything that happened in those years. The thing that he was most clear about was the feud between Wuchen and Pei Qianying. He knew next to nothing about anything else that had taken place.


    But then again, having gone on pilgrimage for several years, it was entirely for them to be acquainted with one another.


    "Ni." Xiao Sheng''s eyes turned to the woman who spoke, the beloved daughter of the Divine Cloud Valley, Gongsun Ni, who was also the elder sister of Gongsun Xuan. Both sisters looked extremely stunning while sporting exceptional talents.


    "We''re just chatting around. Brother Ye here claimed that he was capable of overpowering all who were below Saint Plane from Lihen Heaven. If there''s such a chance to see such fights, I''d be delighted indeed," Xiao Sheng said with a smile. He did not find Ye Futian''s big words all that believable.


    That''s probably just putting up airs anyway.


    Gongsun Ni took one look at Ye Futian''s direction and her expression was a calm, unfettered one. She knew little about Ye Futian and so, did not bother giving an opinion. She simply said, "The banquet is about to begin, shall we make a move?"


    "Very well." Xiao Sheng nodded with a smile. He turned his eyes at everyone present and said, "If the opportunity presents itself, I''d really like to see you spar indeed. Well then, to the banquet."


    He got up first and gestured politely. Everyone else stood up one after another.


    Xiao Sheng walked towards Gongsun Ni and said, "Let''s walk."


    Gongsun Ni nodded lightly. The Xiao clan was a relative of the imperial family and the relationship between Divine Cloud Valley and Emperor Xia was an exceptional one. Both forces shared a close relationship and kept close contact with each other. As such, she was naturally more familiar with Xiao Sheng.


    Gongsun Zhong walked but Gongsun Xuan stayed a little behind him instead.


    Ye Futian and his people walked together with Xiao Sheng while the cultivators of Lihen Heaven cast cold gazes at him. Many of them wore sheaths behind their backs, as if that was some habit of theirs. Those items were probably a symbol of pride of them being swordsmen.


    When Brother Wang Chuan emerges, Ye Futian would have to shut up whether he like it or not.


    "Shall we walk together, Mr. Ye?" Yaoxi, who was at Ye Futian''s side, seemed to be waiting for him, so she smiled and asked when he had gotten close.


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded and did not refuse. Both of them walked. The silver-haired young man was exceptionally handsome while Yaoxi looked absolutely stunning. They made quite a scenery just walking abreast.


    Ye Futian saw a beautiful silhouette standing around after walking for several steps, who was none other than Gongsun Xuan. Luo Fan shirked behind Ye Futian, as if he had done something wrong.


    "What now? So you don''t know me anymore?" Gongsun Xuan asked after seeing Luo Fan shirking, "You''ve had more guts all those years ago."


    Luo Fan lifted his head and smiled at Gongsun Xuan, saying, "Well, I knew you were someone exceptional at the very first time I saw you. I never knew you were from the Divine Cloud Valley of the Upper Worlds. It was little wonder why your skills with flame rules had been so exceptional."


    Ye Futian saw from the attitude displayed by both parties and knew that there had been little more than a scuffle between them. He left the scene and did not bother anymore with his Fifth Brother''s affairs.


    Gongsun Xuan took a good look at Luo Fan and said, "I never expected to see you coming up to the Upper Worlds to train. There has been lots of news regarding both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Which force did you all belong to? Why were those two not present in that pilgrimage?"


    "Little Brother and Yu Sheng were of exceptional talents, so it mattered little if they went on a pilgrimage or not," Luo Fan said.


    "Little Brother?" Gongsun Xuan looked puzzled as she asked. Both chatted as they walked.


    "Yeah." Luo Fan nodded. "Little Brother ranked last among the students of the Cottage. Our Eldest Brother, Second Sister, Third Brother and Fourth brother, you''ve seen them all."


    Gongsun Xuan nodded. She had seen every single person from the Lower Worlds who had been on that pilgrimage, but she was not familiar with any o fthem.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "Xuan." Gongsun Zhong called, after he and Gongsun Ni, who were at the front, found Gongsun Xuan walking behind and chatting with Luo Fan.


    "Excuse me then," Gongsun Xuan said to Luo Fan, who nodded. Gongsun Xuan sped up and moved past Ye Futian and the others, meeting up with his brother and sister.


    "You knew him?" Gongsun Zhong asked.


    "Indeed, during the pilgrimage," Gongsun Xuan answered.


    "It would have sufficed to just greet him. Don''t talk to him so much from here on out." Gongsun Zhong reminded her. As the daughter of Divine Cloud Valley, men who were to marry both Gongsun Ni and Gongsun Xuan needed to be of the best in Emperor Xia''s Realm, be it in terms of background, talent in training as well as appearance.


    For instance, Xiao Sheng had a liking for Gongsun Ni, and Gongsun Zhong had little to say about that. Xiao Sheng and Gongsun Ni were a good match after all, and Gongsun Zhong looked forward to seeing them together.


    Who the hell is that Luo Fan by the way?


    He dares to swoon at the daughter of Divine Cloud Valley?


    Furthermore, what Ye Futian said left a bad impression on him. Besides, Ye Futian had a score to settle with Lihen Heaven. Despite appreciated by Emperor Xia, his achievements in the future would have been limited regardless, let alone Luo Fan who was behind him.


    "I know what to do," Gongsun Xuan answered.


    Both of them did not bother concealing their voices as they spoke, so there were many around them hearing the conversation, and they cast amused looks at Ye Futian and his people.


    While Gongsun Zhong had never conversed with Ye Futian directly, but Ye Futian''s attitude was apparent nonetheless. Gongsun Zhong did not bother giving any face to that person who boasted that he would have been able to overpower all under Saint Plane from Lihen Heaven.


    Luo Fan turned his eyes at the front and he frowned a bit.


    Ye Futian caught Luo Fan''s expression as he turned his head around, asking telepathically, "So you''ve taking a liking to her then, Fifth Brother?"


    "Don''t be stupid. I''ve flirted with her with a few lines a few years ago, that''s all. We don''t know each other much." Luo Fan shrugged and looked indifferent, yet he seemed to be averting Ye Futian''s eyes nonetheless.


    "I find her not bad though." Ye Futian smiled and said, "She actually came up and chat to you. She might have actually taken a liking to you."


    "Yeah, stop overlaying Fourth Brother''s experiences on me, will you?" Luo Fan quipped exasperatedly.


    "Speaking of which, you and Fourth Brother seem to share similar likings." Ye Futian wore an amused look. His Fourth Brother had taken a liking to You Xi of Alchemy City all those years back, and his Fifth Brother came to like a daughter of an armorer force then.


    Both of those brothers are closest to each other and are always up to something together. So they come to like the same type of girls then?


    "I was just bored from training all those years back and seeing the awesome might of the flame rules, I just happened to flirt with her for a bit. But you know, your Fifth Brother here has incredibly charisma. It''s entirely normal for girls to like me," Luo Fan commented rather shamelessly.


    "Fourth Brother was better at it though, he ''sealed the deal'' right there and then after all. How about you try something similar yourself? You''d probably end up going home with the girl after winning an armorer competition or whatnot, like Fourth Brother," Ye Futian jested. However, even if there were to be such a competition in the Upper Worlds, Luo Fan would have had no part in it.


    "Shut up." Luo Fan closed the conversation with two words telepathically. What''s this little sh** going to be up to? ''Seal the deal'' my a**.


    It was due to You Xi having thoughts about running away from the arranged marriage in Alchemy City all those years ago, that their Fourth Brother had been able to end up with her with the first place. As with him and Gongsun Xuan, he was having fun with words and never given all that much thought to it all.


    The well-fed has no idea how the starving suffer. This dude at the front seems to be able to pick up pretty girls wherever he ends up in. See, another extreme beauty by his side.


    All who came to celebrate hailed from holy lands.


    Ye Futian looked inconspicuous at all among the crowd. There were cheers heard and carriages were seen with clouds up in the sky faraway. The entourage was a lavish one.


    "Queen Xiao has return to her home." A voice was heard from far away, heard all over the Xiao clan''s vicinity.


    Queen Xiao was Emperor Xia''s women and was titled queen. Her status was exceptional and even just returning to her ancestral home was considered quite a trip in itself.


    The family head of Xiao clan and other core figures appeared one after another, receiving her at the pedestal.


    The carriage moved in the air and there were two figures seen sitting on the carriage. They were none other than Queen Xiao and Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan cast her gaze below and saw a familiar figure among the crowd, looked slightly displeased. Why is he here?


    She then saw the extreme beauty at Ye Futian''s side shortly after, and both of them seemed to be having a good time chatting away.

 1032 Feas

    Xia Qingyuan glanced over there coldly, a faint look of unhappiness on her face. Then she averted her gaze.


    The carriage continued forward, and then landed softly in front of the platform.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Upon the platform, the host of the feast, Old Man Xiao, smiled. The people around him all bowed and said, "Welcome Queen, welcome Princess."


    The people here were all Queen Xiao and Xia Qingyuan''s elders, but they still had to show courtesy to them. That was proper etiquette.


    "Father, I have come to celebrate your birthday." Queen Xiao stepped out of the carriage with Xia Qingyuan following behind. Everyone''s eyes were suddenly drawn there. Just her silhouette was enough to give them an idea of her beauty.


    "Grandfather!" called Xia Qingyuan. Their guards presented their gifts. Queen Xiao smiled and said, "These are from the Emperor."


    "Excellent, excellent. We are honored by the Emperor''s graciousness." Old Man Xiao was all smiles. Renhuang had personally sent him gifts, the Queen and the Princess had come to his feast, and the top forces of Emperor Xia''s Realm were all there. At this moment, the Xiao clan was the most glorious place in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm, save Emperor Xia''s Palace itself.


    Below them, many people from the top forces in Emperor Xia''s realm sighed slightly. The Xiao clan itself was very powerful, but it did not stand at the top of Emperor Xia''s Realm by itself. At the very least, Xuanyuan Palace, Lihen Heaven and Divine Cloud Valley could all threaten them.


    However, ever since Queen Xiao had become queen, the Xiao clan''s destiny had become brighter, and they had started on the path of glory, ascending to the peak of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Countless people had come to their door seeking to enter their household.


    Now, the Xiao clan had the most favored queen and the best loved princess. This was truly a grand time for them.


    Moreover, with Queen Xiao''s wisdom and Xia Qingyuan''s talent, as long as the Xiao clan did not actively seek their own destruction they would continue to move forward, becoming more and more prosperous.


    After all, with Queen Xiao''s cultivation her looks had not deteriorated from age. And Emperor Xia had said that Xia Qingyuan''s talent exceeded his own. If there were no major changes, then the Xiao clan''s prosperity would be ensured for hundreds of years, or even longer.


    "I welcome you, my Queen." A middle-aged man to the side smiled. It was the Queen''s brother, Xiao Qianhe.


    "No need for such courtesy, brother," said Queen Xiao with a slight smile.


    "Please sit," said Old Man Xiao with a smile. Everyone nodded. Queen Xiao turned around and swept her gaze across the vast crowd of people. She stood there casually, with an air about her like she was the mother of the entire world, and extremely noble.


    Countless eyes fell upon her, including Ye Futian''s. She wore a phoenix crown and an embroidered tasseled cape. She was noble and graceful, and exceedingly beautiful. As she stood there it seemed like she was the only person in the world, and even the sun and moon lost their brilliance.


    This was a woman so beautiful that people would not even dare open their eyes around her. Any who stood before her would feel their inferiority. This was Emperor Xia''s woman.


    "Greetings, Queen Xiao," said everyone in the crowd with a bow. No matter what social position they held, was there anyone in Emperor Xia''s realm who would not bow before the Queen?


    "Today is my father''s birthday feast. There''s no need for you all to be so polite, nor so ill at ease." There was a slight smile upon Queen Xiao''s beautiful face. After saying this she sat in the second seat of honor upon the platform, leaving the main seat for her father. Xia Qingyuan sat beside her.


    "It is an honor to have you all here. Please be seated, everyone," said Old Man Xiao with a smile as he waved his hand. Everyone bowed and took a seat.


    Ye Futian also found an inconspicuous seat amongst the crowd.


    At a feast filled with people of the younger generation he would not have to care about anyone, but many of the people here were elders of powerful forces. This was not his turn to seek the limelight. There would be time for that later.


    Yao Xi still sat beside him, which made him feel strange. He said, "Should you not be following your elder?"


    "Right now the only people here from Yaotai Divine Palace are me and a few others. None of our elders came," whispered Yao Xi. She looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes, and there was a sense of charm in them.


    Ye Futian nodded and said nothing. He could not shoo away a beauty sitting next to him.


    Moreover, she was quite interesting to talk to. There was never anything improper about her. She was like a fairy. Her charm was obvious with every action she took, and in reality there were no problems with her sitting there.


    "I think the Princess is looking at you," whispered Yao Xi.


    "You must be mistaken," answered Ye Futian.


    "The Princess wears men''s clothing, but she can''t hide her beauty. If she went back to wearing women''s clothing, I''m afraid she would make everyone faint," whispered Yao Xi as she looked at Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian did not say anything, but he thought that if Xia Qingyuan wore women''s clothing, her beauty could compare to that of Yao Xi.


    At that moment the great figures at the feast were chatting casually, mostly polite formalities. Many serving maids weaved through the crowd, serving good wine and delicious food. It was truly a grand occasion.


    The people from the various forces offered their gifts in succession, but the gifts from the top forces were all just formalities. With the Xiao clan''s current glory, what use were common gifts?


    When it came to Divine Cloud Valley, they presented a divine weapon was their gift.


    "How has Brother Gongsun been doing recently?" Old Man Xiao asked a middle aged man from Divine Cloud Valley. It was Gongsun Jing, the second generation leader of Divine Cloud Valley. As for the most important figures of the top forces, they had not come. For those who stood at the top it was enough to just send some of their subordinates. It was only a feast after all.


    Only at a holy ceremony put on by Emperor Xia himself would all the top figures of the realm come together.


    "My father is well. He has been painstakingly researching armoring, hoping to better himself in that respect and contribute more to His Majesty," replied Gongsun Jing politely. The leader of Divine Cloud Valley had once been Emperor Xia''s armorer.


    "That is so good of him. With Brother Gongsun looking out for him, His Majesty can surely rest easy," answered Old Man Xiao with a smile and a nod.


    "Divine Cloud Valley only has a meager amount of power. The ones who truly protect His Majesty are the Eight Divine Generals. It is said that there have been some disputes in recent years with Emperor Li and the Demon World," said Gongsun Jing.


    Of the three thousand realms of the Great Path, Emperor Li''s Realm and one of the Demon Worlds were adjacent to Emperor Xia''s Realm, so there was occasionally friction between them.


    "Disputes are inevitable amongst the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. But things are much better than they were three hundred years ago," said Old Man Xiao with a smile. Three hundred years ago had been the age of the Twin Great Emperors'' unification.


    "The Swordmaster of Lihen has been away for many years, travelling around the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path and improving his swordsmanship. I have no idea how high he has cultivated now." Old Man Xiao looked towards the cultivators from Lihen Heaven. There was a Saint among them.


    "The Swordmaster of Lihen''s whereabouts are uncertain, so we from Lihen Heaven also do not know how high he has cultivated," answered the Saint.


    "Ah." Old Man Xiao nodded. "I hope that all of us cultivators in Emperor Xia''s Realm can continue to get stronger."


    "That is something for His Majesty to worry about. No need to trouble yourself over it, father," said Queen Xiao with a smile.


    "Indeed. We are all old men here. We should be watching the next generation make names for themselves," said Old Man Xiao.


    "Father, Qingyuan is very talented, even unparalleled in this world. Are you really so worried about the next generation?" said Xiao Qianhe with a smile.


    "Indeed. The Princess''s talent it without equal, and she has been personally trained by His Majesty. Plus she had trained very hard. In the future she will certainly become an assistant to His Majesty," many people below them praised her one by one. Xia Qingyuan was already quite outstanding, and with her status as the Princess, it was only natural that everyone would praise her so much.


    Xia Qingyuan seemed to be quite used to such occasions, and so she seemed very calm. She also did not seem too pleased with herself due to their praise. She accidentally glanced towards Ye Futian once again.


    The people there probably did not know that among them was one who had defeated her.


    Even if that man was a scoundrel.


    Ye Futian did not see her looking at him. He was casually chatting with Yao Xi. Since he had been invited, he could eat and drink in peace. As for him not bringing a gift, Old Man Xiao did not seem to notice.


    "You are all flattering her too much," said Queen Xiao with a smile. "Where is Xiao Sheng?"


    She looked into the crowd and saw a figure stand up and bow. "Here I am."


    Queen Xiao looked at Xiao Sheng, then at the beautiful woman beside him. She suddenly understood. "Is this the daughter of Divine Cloud Valley?"


    "Greetings, My Lady. I am Gongsun Ni," said Gongsun Ni.


    "Excellent, you are truly worthy of being a junior of Divine Cloud Valley," Queen Xiao praised her. "And you have grown up, Xiao Sheng. I''m sure you will both soon enter the Saint plane. You should consider cultivating together."


    "The path of cultivation takes a long time, so I would not like him to put too much energy into his feelings for a girl. Moreover, he is going to serve His Majesty in the future," said Xiao Qianhe.


    "That is no problem. If he finds a suitable partner to cultivate with he can bring it up with me and I will make a request to His Majesty to let them marry." Queen Xiao was very wise. XIao Sheng was moved by what she said. She understood what he wished for, and desired to help him, presenting her offer of help like a gift to his father.


    "If I find a suitable partner, I will certainly tell you." Xiao Sheng bowed to Queen Xiao. Everyone looked at him in awe. To have the Queen arrange a marriage for you was a great honor. As a relative of Queen Xiao, Xiao Sheng had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth.


    The Xiao clan and Divine Cloud Valley would probably form a marriage alliance. This would make the Xiao clan even more glorious.


    Moreover, according to Xiao Qianhe''s words, it seemed that he was planning to have Xiao Sheng enter Emperor Xia''s service. It seemed that the Xiao clan''s prestige would become even higher.


    The people from Divine Cloud Valley also naturally understood what Queen Xiao''s words meant, and had no objections. This would bring these two forces closer.


    "This is also a generation of great talent for Divine Cloud Valley. Gongsun Zhong is but a half step away from the Saint plane, and in a few years he will have a chance to get there. Lihen Heaven has Wang Chuan, Xuanyuan Palace has Xuanyuan Ao, and even more powerful characters appear at Jiutian Temple from time to time. Everyone is looking forward to this next generation of heroes." Old Man Xiao could naturally not only praise his own Xiao Clan, he also had to praise the others.


    "You are still missing one person, Elder Xiao," said Fengxiao with a bow.


    "Ah, who do you mean?" Old Man Xiao looked towards the people from Lihen Heaven.


    "Not long ago, someone boasted that he was unparalleled below the Saint level. By himself he was able to sweep away everyone from Lihen Heaven who was not a Saint," said Fengxiao coldly. Ye Futian, who was sitting there quietly, lifted his head and stared at Fengxiao with cold eyes!

 1033 The Princess’s Attitude

    The entire feast quieted down at Fengxiao''s words. Everyone looked over at her with great interest.


    A single person had swept away everyone under the Saint level in Lihen Heaven?


    Old Man Xiao smiled and said, "I have heard that a junior of Lihen Heaven, Wang Chuan, is said by the elders of Lihen Heaven to stand alone on his plane. Who below the Saint plane has as much ambition that they could sweep away all the cultivators of Lihen Heaven below the Saint plane?"


    Many people guessed what she was really talking about, and their gazes turned towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had previously been named the Princess''s valet, leading to some turmoil. Some of the most powerful holy lands were paying close attention to this situation.


    Seeing many people look at Ye Futian, Old Man Xiao also turned towards him. He smiled and said, "Ah, so it is Qingyuan''s valet who is so ambitious. Excellent."


    Xia Qingyuan looked over towards Ye Futian. That guy was never inconspicuous.


    But she did not think that he was all talk. Whatever he boasted of, he could do.


    Her father had praised him, saying he could command the Nine States all by himself. Even if he did not use all his techniques, Wang Chuan could probably still not defeat him.


    "So you are Ye Futian?" Queen Xiao''s gaze fell upon him, and she smiled slightly. Although she was smiling, there was still an air of nobility about her that no one would dare to profane.


    Ye Futian rose and bowed to Queen Xiao. "I am Ye Futian, Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State. Greetings, My Lady."


    Queen Xiao nodded at him. "You are truly a dragon among men. No wonder His Majesty thinks so highly of you. I wish you the best in your cultivation."


    "Thank you, My Lady," said Ye Futian. He sat back down.


    Ye Futian was of the younger generation, so even if there was wild boasting about him, the Saints would not say anything. Moreover, the hosts of today''s feast were Old Man Xiao and Queen Xiao, and since they had not said too much, naturally no one else would dare to.


    However, these words had been a bit too flattering.


    "Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven, Xuanyuan Ao of Xuanyuan Palace, Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley, Qin Bai of Qin Palace, and Yao Xi of Yaotai Divine Palace are all said to be nearly peerless below the Saint Level," said Xiao Qianhe from beside Old Man Xiao. His gaze fell upon Ye Futian and he said, "Of course, you and Yu Sheng once fought your way through Jiutian Temple to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. And not long ago, Yu Sheng defeated Lu Cheng, so presumably the two of you are worthy of being on the same level as them. This is why His Majesty regards you so highly and has named you the Princess''s valet. But you are still young. Please do not forget how you got where you are and look down upon the great figures of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Cultivate your righteousness and guard against arrogance, and serve well at the Princess''s side. Give her your full dedication, and your future will be unlimited."


    Everyone nodded at his words. Xiao Qianhe was the Princess''s uncle, so he naturally had the right to remind Ye Futian of his place.


    There was nothing improper in what he had said.


    Xia Qingyuan glanced at Xiao Qianhe. She had not expected him to speak. He was her uncle, and there had been nothing wrong with his words, but she knew that Ye Futian was different than other people. He was a man who was prideful down to his very bones. Even when facing her he had not lowered his head at all, and had even fought her at the Imperial Mausoleum.


    Moreover, her father had not named him her valet because he really wanted him to serve and protect her. It was to remind the people of his realm not to act against him casually.


    Ye Futians'' current status was also very mysterious, and he must be very clear about why her father had helped him. After all, she knew that he had been depressed for a while, and as far as she knew he did not know how her father had handled him during that time. Not knowing if he was going to live or die coupled with the loss of his wife had led to his depression.


    Later, her father had chosen to protect him. He did not ask why, but he must have speculated. So, this guy definitely did not fear her, and did not think of himself as her valet.


    Xiao Qianhe''s words would have had no problems if they were directed at other valets, but Ye Futian would be unhappy with them.


    She looked at Ye Futian and saw him look up at Xiao Qianhe. There was no joy or anger in his deep eyes, but it was Yu Sheng behind him who looked unhappy.


    It seemed that he did not think it fell to Xiao Qianhe to give pointers to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled at Xiao Qianhe and nodded. "I will of course remember my elder''s words."


    Xiao Qianhe stared at him. Seeing his attitude, he was suddenly a bit unsatisfied.


    "But..." he started.


    But at that moment, Ye Futian continued, "Although I have received His Majesty''s favor and have been made the Princess''s valet, I have never felt self-satisfied due to this. As for looking down upon the great figures of the world, let me say this: when the Sages of Lihen Heaven were defeated, their Saint got involved. All of Emperor Xia''s Realm must know this, as many cultivators personally witnessed it. So when I say that there is no one worthy in Lihen Heaven below the Saint level, none can find fault with those words."


    This was too much.


    It was fine if people wanted to say he was arrogant, or didn''t know his place. But a Saint getting involved was a Saint getting involved. They had surrounded Ye Wuchen, and the Sword Saint of Liyang had wounded him. And then they had wanted to pretend like nothing had happened. That was impossible.


    "What a stubborn fellow," many people thought secretly as they looked at Ye Futian. He was like this even in front of the Queen and her own brother. He was truly a crazy and arrogant junior.


    It was obvious that Ye Futian would not accept Xiao Qianhe''s admonition.


    He persisted in his arrogance.


    Xiao Qianhe''s gaze was fixed on Ye Futian. Then he smiled and said, "So there is some enmity between you and Lihen Heaven. There''s nothing wrong with that. This is just a bit of disharmony on the path of cultivation. I hope that you can be so passionate in your service to the Princess."


    Ye Futian looked back at Xiao Qianhe. Although Xiao Qianhe talked like there was no problem, he had a feeling that he was trying to sound him out.


    Moreover, who was it that had invited him to come today?


    Old Man Xiao would not care about the affairs of his juniors.


    And Queen Xiao and Xia Qingyuan were even less likely. As for Xiao Sheng, it was probably not in his power.


    It seemed that the only possibility was Xiao Qianhe.


    What was he trying to find out?


    Why had he invited him and then tried to provoke him by his words?


    "His Majesty and the Princess know my disposition. They can understand me." Ye Futian was still exceedingly polite. No matter what he was thinking, he could not offend the Queen''s brother in front of her face.


    He would naturally be respectful enough to Xia Qingyuan outside.


    Emperor Xia had deliberately protected him, both by sealing off news about the sacred war and by naming him the Princess''s valet. He was very clear on his place in this arrangement, and knew that the Emperor and the Princess supported him.


    If it had just been Lihen Heaven he could have completely humiliated them, after all they had acted first. If Emperor Xia was there, they would not dare do anything.


    But Xiao Qianhe was the Emperor''s uncle, and had a close relationship with Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan. If it was possible to not offend him, he wouldn''t.


    However, he would not let the fact that he did not want to offend Xiao Qianhe make his determination waver.


    "Xiao Qianhe really places a lot of importance on you, Lord Ye," said Yao Xi with a quiet laugh right beside Ye Futian.


    "Places importance on me?" responded Ye Futian. He seemed to disagree with these words. Why had she said that?


    "You must not have heard that Xiao Qianhe previously told Queen Xiao that he wanted Xiao Sheng to enter Emperor Xia''s Palace," said Yao Xi with a smile. "The Xiao clan is prosperous right now since the Queen is from their family, but they obviously want to go a step further. Xiao Sheng is an outstanding talent and is a relative of Queen Xiao and the Princess. What a close relationship! Him entering the palace is obviously so that in the future he can help Xia Qingyuan..." Yao Xi lowered her head and continued. "You tell me, is this not placing importance on someone?"


    Although she was speaking unclearly, Ye Futian understood what she meant. He was surprised. Did she really see things so clearly?


    He never would have thought of this.


    Among the Emperor''s children, his favorite was Xia Qingyuan, and he had even said that her talent exceeded his own. Many people predicted that the one who would rule Emperor Xia''s Realm was not the Prince, but the Princess.


    Xia Qingyuan was the Queen''s only daughter, and so the Xiao clan would naturally support her. Due to this, the relationship between Xia Qingyuan and Xiao Sheng was much closer than that between other half-siblings. So if Xiao Sheng became Xia Qingyuan''s assistant, how high would his position be in a few years?


    And a marriage alliance between the Xiao clan and Divine Cloud Valley would only help this along.


    Given this, Xiao Qianhe naturally would not want to see someone else beside Xia Qingyuan whom the Emperor would value highly.


    Ye Futian had come from the Lower Realm and was in Emperor Xia''s faction, and moreover had been made the Princess''s valet. Perhaps it was because of this that he had attracted Xiao Qianhe''s attention.


    Ye Futian suddenly realized why he felt like Xiao Qianhe was sounding him out. He was indeed sounding him out, and not just that, he was probably sounding out the Princess''s intentions at the same time.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    In that case, obtaining the favor of Emperor Xia and the Princess was equal to offending Xiao Qianhe.


    His opponent''s position had been set from the start. This had nothing to do with Lihen Heaven.


    And his arrogance had even less to do with it.


    "Thank you for the reminder," he said to Yao Xi. If not for her, he would not have seen things so clearly.


    The two of them were communicating through spiritual will, so it took only a short time.


    Xiao Qianhe was silent for a while, then smiled and said, "Many people have said that you are unequaled in the Nine States and are highly favored by His Majesty. Since you persist in your self-confidence, perhaps you truly do have the qualifications necessary to have your name be heard throughout the world. If so, I will say no more. Do you have anything to add, Qingyuan?"


    He turned and looked at Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian narrowed his gaze slightly. This Xiao Qianhe was shrewd. Today was Xia Qingyuan''s grandfather''s birthday. Him being at the feast was equivalent to defying Xiao Qianhe. And since Xiao Qianhe was Xia Qingyuan''s uncle, him asking her if she had anything to add meant she had to declare her position.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes as everyone''s gaze fell upon her. It seemed that they all wanted to know how she felt towards Ye Futian.


    "This fellow is arrogant and doesn''t know his place. He does not understand the rules," she said. Xiao Qianhe smiled upon hearing this.


    But Xia Qingyuan continued. "Ye Futian, you have boasted that there is no one of note under the Sage level in Lihen Heaven. This has offended the people of Lihen Heaven. Let''s take this opportunity to settle the matter. And if you lose, you must return to the Lower Realm."


    There was anger in her voice!

 1034 Who is Qualified to Fight Me?

    Many went into deep thought after hearing Xia Qingyuan''s words at the banquet.


    What does Xia Qingyuan mean by all that?


    While it seemed as if she was berating Ye Futian, she had nonetheless given him permission to engage the ones from Lihen Heaven. With Wang Chuan being absent, none of the students of Lihen Heaven present would have been able to take Ye Futian on.


    It was something that many present found amusing. Emperor Xia made Ye Futian the princess'' valet, which meant that Ye Futian served Xia Qingyuan. While her words seemed to be targeted at Ye Futian, many wondered if she was also voicing her displeasure at the ones from Lihen Heaven.


    Fengxiao was the one who provoked with words earlier, spreading what Ye Futian said for all to hear. If that was the case, then they would have only needed to duke it out right there and then.


    There seemed to be no reason to refuse such a proposal.


    Xiao Qianhe took one look at Xia Qingyuan. It seems that the princess has made up her mind then.


    Well then, we shall see what Ye Futian is made of.


    If Ye Futian turned out to be just some crazy guy having a penchant to boast, then there would have been no need to worry. Both Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan would have no longer had any need for Ye Futian.


    Yaoxi took one good look at Ye Futian by her side. She did not know if Xia Qingyuan was clear how capable Ye Futian really was, and she had no idea how powerful Ye Futian actually was.


    However, she would have been able to gauge more or less if he were to fight, and she would have been able to tell what kind of an attitude Xia Qingyuan had towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan with a rather surprised look. Others may have known little, but he knew well that no one present knew what he was capable of, than Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan had learned plenty from both the battle in the Imperial Mausoleum and the sacred battle fought at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    The fog that clouded Ye Futian''s mind dissipated within an instant. If Xia Qingyuan were to take his side, that meant that to a certain extent, he had Emperor Xia''s consent as well. As for the Xiao clan, the family the queen hailed from, there would not have been any risk of getting him into trouble, so long as he did not offend them too harshly.


    Ye Futian was feeling rather grateful for she did for him. While he found Xia Qingyuan''s personality irksome, but that hardly mattered there, as one''s stance took priority over everything else.


    But then again, Xia Qingyuan probably meant every single word she berated him with. If the opportunity were to present itself, he would have had no doubt that Xia Qingyuan would have wanted to beat him up real good.


    "Yes, princess." Ye Futian bowed and stood up, appearing very polite and respectful. He was Xia Qingyuan''s subordinate after all, so he had to play the part with the right attitude.


    There was an empty space in the banquet. While the place was by no means small, but it was apparent that it was still inadequate for having pinnacle sages fight.


    However, Ye Futian did not mind at all. He walked to the middle and bowed to both Old Man Xiao and Queen Xiao on the pedestal, saying, "Today is the day where your birthday is celebrated, Senior Xiao. As a junior who was invited to the event, I naturally do not see it fit to spoil the mood of the event by fighting here. As such, I''d like to play a song here instead, a way to celebrate your birthday, Senior Xiao. I shall repel the sword wills of the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven, with the tune alone."


    Ye Futian finished his lines and turned his eyes at the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven, saying, "Since you all, students of Lihen Heaven, claim that I was merely boasting, well then, all of you below Saint Plane, feel free to come at me at once."


    He sat cross-legged as soon as he finished. The guqin spirit appeared before him.


    He started plucking the strings without waiting for them to make a move. A tune was soon heard.


    The banquet turned unusually quiet after that, with only the sound of the tune in the air. Everyone turned their eyes at the silver-haired young man sitting alone, as if he was the only being worth paying attention to at the moment.


    There was a tinge of loneliness heard within his tune, as if he was isolated from the world. Vivid illustrations welled up in the minds of everyone within earshot. Despite being at the center of a lively crowd, he seemed isolated and completely alone.


    "Let''s go," the leading sword saint of the Lihen Heaven students said. One figure after another appeared. Many swordsmen walked together and surrounded Ye Futian in the middle.


    Mo Li of Lihen Heaven sat cross-legged before Ye Futian and took out his guqin as well.


    Fengxiao stood by his side while all the others stood, surrounding Ye Futian and emanating sword wills.


    "You could make your move," Ye Futian said. One of them, who stood before Ye Futian, shot with sword wills about him as soon as Ye Futian finished talking, without any reservations.


    Both parties were very near each other and compressing sword will attacks in very small vicinities would have been something extremely dangerous, as the destructive capacities of such attacks would have been formidable.


    The sword will rang with a high pitched noise as it launched at Ye Futian at blazing speeds.


    Ye Futian plucked the strings and sent a sliver of music into the air, which surprisingly was converted into terrifying power of rules, shattering the incoming sword will.


    Whooosshh... Terrifying sword aura storms whipped up within an instant. All of the mighty ones from Lihen Heaven burst with frightening sword will. A stifling pressure washed all over the banquet, turning into frightening storms. Saints acted and laid down screens of light, isolating that battlefield from the outside world. The terrifying sword aura storms were tore through the space as boundless sword will, intending to cut Ye Futian down.


    Ye Futian did not move and neither did the ones from Lihen Heaven. It was only the music and the sword wills that were clashing.


    That small space looked like doomsday within that mere moments.


    Ye Futian was at the very center of it all.


    However, it seemed as if he was unable to feel any of that and remained playing his tune quietly. His tune pierced through the sword aura storms and became heard outside. A frightening storm of rules manifested around that lonesome figure. As the tune continued playing, sound waves shot forth and the air seemed to have been cut opened. It tore right through the storm of sword wills and the scene looked harrowing.


    The tune that Mo Li was playing was heard as well, converted into extremely sharp sword wills. It seemed as if thousands of threads were flying about as every single tune he played felt like a sword, stabbing into Ye Futian''s mind.


    Worse still, there were still boundless sword wills heading straight for Ye Futian emanating from that storm that was cut opened earlier. However, Ye Futian continued to look as if he had not felt any of it. He continued sitting where he was quietly, as if countless swords cut his body and stabbed into his spiritual will. Ye Futian, in the situation he was caught in, felt as if he would have been torn to shreds at any given moment.


    But then again, he remained playing his tune in silence. His tune was lonely and sad, yet it had extreme pride laced within, as if to announce to the world that even if he were to make enemies with the entire world, he would still remain as he was and his mind would remain unflinching.


    Ye Futian''s hair billowed in the storm like swords, his clothes whooshed in the air. He emanated an aura of rules about him at that moment, that none of the sword wills were able to cut.


    "An amalgamation of starry and space rules." The saints seemed to have been able to sense the power emanating from Ye Futian. He placed absolute defense around his body, while his power of rules continued to rage while being shrouded by his tune.


    The mighty ones from Lihen Heaven frowned mildly and burst with even greater sword wills. Some even unleashed their Life Spirits. Mo Li plucked the strings in a frenzy, intending to penetrate his opponent''s mind using his tune, in an attempt to affect Ye Futian. However, he soon found that Ye Futian looked as if he heard nothing.


    The storm brought forth by Ye Futian''s tune grew increasingly intense, shrouding boundless spaces. The tight space was filled with devastating space-tearing powers, making many feel threatened.


    A swordsman finally made a move. His body burst straight like a sword, lashing out straight for Ye Futian. One strike would have been capable of taking life and splitting space.


    Ye Futian remained seated quietly still and did not even bother lifting his head. The swordsmen simply felt devastating lightning flashed in his mind in that moment, making him shudder at his very soul. At the same time, his body seemed to have stopped altogether. Devastating storms shrouded him and he felt intense fear.


    What is with the power of rules and spiritual will attack of such magnitude?


    It seemed as if he was totally defenseless.


    "The people of the world claim that I''m unbridled and arrogant, yet why would I need to prove anything to the world?" Ye Futian said calmly. He plucked at the strings as he finished talking. That swordsman grunted and spitted blood at that very moment, as he body dropped.


    He was not alone. Every single swordsman of Lihen Heaven around him was being attacked by his tune at the same time. At that moment, his tune seemed to have been turned into true spiritual attacks, penetrating their will right there and then. They all suffered hallucinations right there and then, feeling as if they were being subjected to the might of the light of doomsday.


    That was not all. Their bodies seemed to have been frozen solid, making it almost impossible to move.


    "I am who I am. Who below Saint Plane from Lihen Heaven, is qualified to fight me?" His fingers plucked the strings again as he finished his words. The people around him all grunted and spitted blood from their mouths in that very instant. The strings on Mo Li''s instrument snapped right there and then. His face was as white as paper. The entire space was filled only Ye Futian''s music, and that stifling storm.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    It was as if everyone was being subjected to Ye Futian''s control.


    Who below Saint Plane from Lihen Heaven, is qualified to fight me?


    None among the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven dared move a muscle, and none had the strength to.


    Ye Futian was still playing nonchalantly. However, his frenzied tune was near its end, turning quiet yet lonesome.


    It was as if he needed understanding from nobody, and he had nothing to prove to the world.


    There were naturally many who doubted him, who came from the Nine States of the Lower Worlds. While many great figures deemed him too abrasive and unbridled, that he was not fit to stand abreast with the geniuses who stood at the pinnacle. But then, so what?


    Xia Qingyuan allowed him to fight, as such, he overpowered everyone from Lihen Heaven who was not a saint, with just one song.


    His tune slowly came to a close as his hair billowed. He remained seated there quietly, as if he had never done anything.


    However, everyone present was immensely shocked. He dealt with the attacks of the swordsmen with only his control of rules and his formidable constitution. Yet, at the very end when he finally attacked, lashing out with both his tune and rule attacks, no one was able to stand in his way.


    No one was capable of doing so.


    It did not matter that they were cultivators from Lihen Heaven. The result remained the same.


    Everyone present had their eyes on him. That one song seemed to have made them realize just how much pride that silver-haired young man from the Nine States held.


    It seemed that Emperor Xia had indeed made him the princess'' valet, due to having known of his strength and came to appreciate him because of it.


    When that was said, Emperor Xia''s appreciation of Ye Futian seemed to have exceeded the expectations of everyone present.


    The permission that Xia Qingyuan gave to Ye Futian to make a move became more intriguing than it had otherwise would have been.


    Is this her way of telling everyone that Ye Futian belongs to her?


    Xiao Qianhe cast his gaze at that figure. He sensed a sharp aura emanating from Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian put away his guqin spirit and stood, bowing at the pedestal before saying, "I beg your forgiveness for having interrupted the mood of the event. I shall take my leave at once."


    "Go on then." Xia Qingyuan said before anyone commented anything.


    Ye Futian excused himself and left with the people of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Since Xiao Qianhe had his own agendas, then Ye Futian saw no need to give him face and stay behind in the party!

 1035 A Great Shock

    The swordsmen of Lihen Heaven retreated in shambles after Ye Futian left. All of them suffered injuries of varying degrees.


    It was especially so in Fengxiao''s case, who looked extremely irritated. Ye Futian transformed his music into rules and manifested it as a large hand, pinning her on the ground right there and then, making her look really beaten up.


    The banquet turned eerily quiet. Everyone wore looks suggesting deep thought.


    Many had been able to guess that if Emperor Xia was willing to make Ye Futian a valet of Xia Qingyuan��his most doted daughter��then there must have been something about that direct subordinate from the Nine States that caught his attention. Furthermore, with the battle records of both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng added to the list, he could have possibly been ranked alongside the most cutting edge of geniuses. That battle that just happened moments ago verified their speculations.


    The mighty swordsmen of Lihen Heaven had been vastly overpowered and none of them were worthy of fighting him. Their powers and his were of different orders of magnitude altogether.


    There was no doubt that Ye Futian was at the level of Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane as well.


    It was entirely possible that he could have fought toe-to-toe with Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven after all.


    They were wondering if such massive loss of face in Lihen Heaven''s part would have been enough to prompt Wang Chuan to descend from the 33rd Layer of Heaven of Lihen Heaven, visiting Ye Futian at his cottage personally.


    Xuanyuan Ao, Gongsun Zhong, Qin Bai and the others watched Ye Futian leave. All of them came to have some level of respect shown in their eyes. There were probably a handful of such opponents to be found in even all of the Upper Worlds, so much so that they probably existed only in single digits.


    Yaoxi''s eyes glittered. That tune from the silver-haired young man had been stunning, as if to declare that even if he were to not budge for even an inch, he would have been able to tear through the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven regardless. No one below Saint Plane from Lihen Heaven would have been qualified to fight him.


    The only who was deemed qualified, was probably Wang Chuan.


    She turned her eyes and looked at Xia Qingyuan. Her smile was indeed alluring.


    From what was seen, while Xia Qingyuan behaved coldly towards Ye Futian, she was nonetheless helping him out actually.


    "One who was valued by his majesty has indeed been of exceptional talent, and one who has quite an attitude to boot as well." A voice was heard breaking the silence of the banquet. Xiao Qianhe smiled and said, "Qingyuan, your valet is really something indeed. But you''d still need to work on him more. He would have became something quite difficult to tame otherwise."


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyelashes twitched. Tame?


    She never actually had any thoughts about taming Ye Futian.


    However, since Xiao Qianhe put it that way, she nonetheless nodded and said, "My father made him my valet precisely he knew what Ye Futian is like. The first reason would be to nurture him, and second, to shape him up for the future. He hailed from the Nine States and is a Palace Lord of a Holy Land. He is quite arrogant and unbridled, knowing not when to keep his ego in check even in such an event today. I''d have father berate him when the opportunity presents itself. Please forgive the offense caused, uncle."


    "Yeah." Xiao Qianhe nodded without minding at all, yet he felt coldness all over him nonetheless.


    It seemed that the princess had indeed grown up and had her own mind, not giving him any chance to meddle in her affairs.


    What Xia Qingyuan meant by letting her father berate her simply meant that Ye Futian served her and Emperor Xia. As such, the emperor would have kept him in check personally, and that uncle of hers had better not have any ideas.


    "Small matter. That tune has spruced up the banquet quite a bit, I''d say." Queen Xiao smiled and added, "Qingyuan, your father had planned out everything for you, making Ye Futian your valet and even letting you go on a pilgrimage with people from both the Upper and Lower Worlds back then. You''re near becoming a saint now, and you should indeed nurture your own force. When would you be summoning the Heavenly Chosen Ones from the Lower Worlds?"


    As the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan would have probably became the heir of his father''s Renhuang throne. As such, she naturally needed to nurture her own force and she needed the best of the best, as only those people would have been able to keep up with her and be useful to her.


    Emperor Xia would have chosen some candidates for her while she was free to choose to nurture people on her own.


    "Yeah, their planes would have been near Archmage Plane by now. I''m already considering summoning them up to the Upper Worlds to train, and have them achieve sainthood in the Upper Worlds." Xia Qingyuan nodded.


    "Not just the ones from the Lower Worlds. If there are any geniuses of the Upper Worlds that you came to value, you could inform your father as well. But then again, I''m sure you have your ideas, so I won''t tell you how to go about it." Queen Xiao smiled and continued, "But regarding your marriage in the future, I''d really like to do something for you, as your mother."


    "What are you thinking, mother?" Xia Qingyuan asked indifferently. She had yet to reach Saint Plane and as such, she had no mind for love affairs.


    "Well, you''re right. Make sure you make the right decision in the future. I wonder who in Emperor Xia''s Realm would have made a good match for you. But then again, you''d venture out yourself one day to the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. There''d be many top notch figures out there." Old Man Xiao smiled and added. The few of them talked in discreet voices, as all of that were matters within the family after all.


    The others did not see their conversation as such, however. All of them listened intently, picking up the conversation despite the miniscule volume. Many came to have their own thoughts about things.


    The princess'' future marriage would have definitely became more than an affair of their own family; it would have became something massive that would have affected all of Emperor Xia''s Realm after all.


    Many top notch figures in the Upper Words harbored such thoughts but they kept such thoughts to themselves. No one dared to let others know such thoughts out in the open.


    Xia Qingyuan''s talents were known to be peerless in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm, and at the moment, few were capable of speculated who would have been worthy of becoming her future spouse.


    Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley turned her eyes onto the proud and cold silhouette on the pedestal. As the most core students of Divine Cloud Valley, it would have definitely not been his first time meeting Xia Qingyuan. He met her many times before and he felt stunned in every single one of the meetings. He wondered himself as well, what kind of a man would have been deemed worthy of her hand in marriage.


    While he was of excellent talent himself and was the number one figure below Saint Plane in Divine Cloud Valley, being rather renowned in Emperor Xia''s Realm as well, but he would have lost his shine before Xia Qingyuan nonetheless.


    However, he strived to work hard and keep up with her, as that was the only girl that piqued his interests in that kind of way. While Yaoxi of Yaotai Divine Palace was stunningly beautiful and had looks that would have made cities fall, he remained unmoved at all.


    The second master of Divine Cloud Valley, Gongsun Jing, who stood by his side, took one look at Gongsun Zhong and spoke to him telepathically, "I''d have your grandfather make a request to Emperor Xia to let you train with the princess. It''d be up to you if you''d be able seize the opportunity or not."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Gongsun Zhong took one look at his father and said nothing.


    The banquet continued and the ones from Lihen Heaven found some reasons to excuse themselves. Everyone knew what was going on and did not say much.


    Mo Wen of Tianji Pavilion stayed at his seat silently throughout the whole time, watching the attendees. He found it rather amusing that many of those who were present had their own thoughts, and most of the thoughts surrounded Xia Qingyuan, the most renowned genius of a woman in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Things would have turned more interesting in the future in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    However, none who were present had probably speculated that history, would have moved in a totally different direction instead.


    And all of that, had nothing to do with Ye Futian at the moment.


    He would have been able to train in peace after he returned.


    The battle at the Xiao clan''s banquet spread like wildfire. Many were impressed by Ye Futian''s powers, so much so that he was actually able to make short work of all the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven.


    Just how powerful is he?


    Would Wang Chuan emerge?


    Many looked forward to it all, yet they found that Lihen Heaven was hardly doing anything at all, and Wang Chuan did not seem to have any intentions of emerging from his training.


    Some claimed that he was indifferent while others speculated that he was simply making a breakthrough into Saint Plane.


    Regardless, no one knew what was actually going through Wang Chuan''s mind. The number one figure of Lihen Heaven hardly emerged from the mountain for the past two years. He was already at the very pinnacle of Sage Plane two years ago.


    It was said that even more than two years ago, there had been hardly anyone among the top notch swordsmen of Lihen Heaven capable of taking even one strike from Wang Chuan.


    Time passed and Year 10020 of Divine Prefecture Calendar was nearing its end.


    While it was said that as one''s training reached higher heights, one would have came to have little thoughts about the concept of the end of the year. However, Emperor Xia''s Realm continued to be rather lively nonetheless. Countless forces busied themselves, and many were about to inspect the progress of their younger generations for the past year.


    Ye Futian did not enter the palace to serve the princess and Wang Chuan did not emerge as well. Emperor Xia''s Palace remained standing at the top of Cloud Peak, symbolizing its power and prestige.


    Many mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Palace stepped out and stood high up in the air, casting their gaze faraway, seemingly waiting for something.


    The clouds rolled several hundred miles away and golden clouds were seen showering. A roar of the dragon was heard in the clouds.


    At that moment, countless looked up in the air, hearing the dragon''s roar thundering in the air. Dazzling golden light rained down below. A huge figure appeared basking under the golden light.


    That huge figure was golden throughout and its head looked overpowering and magnificent. Five claws were seen at its abdomen, with lengths reaching over a thousand meters. It was none other than the golden dragon.


    The hearts of many shuddered. One golden dragon after another emerged and filled with divine might. Those were saintly might and they were sacred beasts capable of taking human form.


    Yet at that moment, there were actually 18 divine dragons pulling a carriage, blocking out the sky and looking magnificent.


    "Who are they?" The hearts of some raced. Which force in Emperor Xia''s Realm dared to emerge with such a magnificent entourage?


    Not even Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan would have put up such a massive display going out, no?


    Images of true dragons were carved on the huge golden carriage, looking extremely extravagant and there was an enormous golden character on it saying: Li!


    "Emperor Li''s Realm." The hearts of many continued to race. Such an entourage could have only been of the neighboring Emperor Li''s Realm, which was right next to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Li established the Dali Dynasty and ruled all of the Lower and Upper Worlds of his. His power was magnificent and he held stricter control over his realm, compared to Emperor Xia was his.


    What''s with the mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm doing with such a huge entourage, and heading straight for Emperor Xia''s Palace?


    "Let''s head to Emperor Xia''s Palace." The hearts of many remained racing as they followed the golden dragons, heading towards Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    The massive groups of mighty ones gathered as they headed for the palace standing tall in the sky. Powerful saints stood guard outside the palace, blocking the golden dragons'' way. Their extremely overpowering divine might shrouded the place.


    There were in Emperor Xia''s Realm after all. They needed to follow the rules and customs even if the visitor was none other than Emperor Li himself.


    The golden carriage descended and one figure after another emerged from within. The one taking the lead was a figure who was clad in golden, extravagant clothing and had mighty ones by his side.


    That young leader bowed in Emperor Xia''s Palace''s direction shortly after. A voice was heard somewhere near him saying, "Li Yao, crown prince of Emperor Li''s Realm, has come to pay a visit to Emperor Xia."


    The palace stayed silent for a brief moment before a voice was heard.


    "Permitted to pass." The voice was heard everywhere. Li Yao and the mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm stepped into Emperor Xia''s Palace shortly after.


    News quickly spread that Li Yao, crown prince of Emperor Li''s Realm, came to ask for the hand of the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan. The news of the marriage proposal came as a great shock!

 1036 Descending from the 33rd Layer of Heaven

    The divine golden dragon pulled the carriage and entered Emperor Xia''s Palace. Emperor Xia was looking down from the Ninth Heaven Palace, yet the people from the Emperor Li''s Palace were unable to see him.


    "What is the matter?" Someone asked with a brimming voice at said palace.


    "Li Yao, the Crown Prince of Dali Dynasty, has reached the age of marriage. He has long heard the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan, who is of superb talents and unparalleled appearance. As such, in the name of Emperor Li, the prince would like to ask Emperor Xia, here at Emperor Xia''s Palace, for her hand in marriage," the powerful saint at his side replied to the voice in the palace, bowing courteously as he spoke.


    He was not worried about what Emperor Xia would have done to him. Emperor Xia was a renhuang, emperor of the people, after all. When two realms fight, both parties shall not cut down the envoys. A renhuang would have definitely not done anything that would have tarnished his status.


    Xia Qingyuan was at her residence and heard the voices coming from below. That person''s voice resounded throughout the heavens and everyone within the vicinity of Emperor Xia''s Palace, heard the words spoken telepathically clearly.


    However, Xia Qingyuan''s expression was a calm one and he was unmoved at all. She knew what was going on and the marriage proposal was but an excuse; those people were there for something else.


    "Li Yao, has your father told you to look at the mirror, before you departed?" A voice was heard from high above, plain and unfettered.


    Li Yao did not mind Emperor Xia''s sarcastic remarks. He bowed and replied, "He did not, Emperor Xia."


    "Get out of my sight at once and tell Emperor Li this, if he dares to bring a ''marriage proposal'' here again to insult Qingyuan, I shall cut down his envoys." A solemn, majestic voice was heard from the palace above. Heavenly might spread all over the place all of the sudden, bearing onto the people from Emperor Li''s Palace. The 18 dragons howled and shuddered. They were almost about to lay prostrate.


    Emperor Xia''s voice was an extremely overbearing one and took Li Yao''s marriage proposal to Xia Qingyuan as an insult to the princess herself. While the people from Emperor Li''s Realm were bearing the mighty pressure from Emperor Xia, their expression hardly looked any different, as if they have expected things to turn out as such.


    Figures like the renhuang had zero tolerance for provocations. It was no secret that Emperor Xia doted on Xia Qingyuan, so much so that even Li Yao, the crown prince of Emperor Li''s Realm, did not seem to be a fitting match for his daughter in his eyes.


    Furthermore, both realms had never actually been on good terms and had scuffles with each other every now and then.


    "The crown prince and the princess met several times before and he had long admired her. As such, we were granted permission by Emperor Li to come all the way here. It is fine that you did not find the arrangement agreeable, but Emperor Xia, was it necessary to insult the crown prince of Emperor Li''s Realm?" The saint beside him then continued, "If you place the princess in such a high regard, then she would definitely be as superbly talented as told in rumors and unparalleled in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm. We have quite a number of superbly talented cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm here today, and we would to request a sparring with the princess."


    "How dare you." A cold, aloof, and very overbearing voice was heard. A proud silhouette was then seen standing tall in the air, appearing above those people. It was none other than the Sacred General of Qian of the Eight Sacred Generals. He glanced at the people from Emperor Li''s Realm and said coldly, "The princess is of unparalleled and esteemed status. She is not someone you people could simply ask for sparring matches with."


    "We would be fine with having someone capable of fighting in her stead and defeating our cultivators nonetheless," the people of Emperor Li''s Realm said again, as if they were actually there to fight.


    Emperor Xia remained seated calmly in his palace and said with a composed expression, "Get out."


    It was apparent that the emperor was chasing out the guests.


    The mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm looked above and they were unable to see where Emperor Xia was. The saints dared not probe haphazardly with their spiritual powers.


    While they were indeed boastful, they nonetheless actually did know where they stood��the Emperor Xia''s Palace, which was the absolute center of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    None of them dared to do anything that would have truly overstepping the border, as they were simply there to fulfill their tasks.


    "If Emperor Xia do not like us here, then we shall wait outside Emperor Xia''s Palace for a battle. If there shall be no one emerging to fight us within three days, we shall leave at our own accord, without needing further orders from you, Emperor Xia," a mighty one from Emperor Li''s Realm said with a brimming voice. They then retreated shortly after, leaving the palace.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    As they stated earlier, despite stepping outside the palace, they did not leave the realm. They really set up camp outside Emperor Xia''s Palace, and that action alone was one of blatant provocation.


    Even though the guests from Emperor Li''s Realm set up camp outside despite being ordered to leave the palace, Emperor Xia still could not have simply ordered for their execution.


    A huge crowd was drawn outside of the palace due to the golden dragon carriage being around. No one was able to tell how many people actually gathered around there.


    They all heard the conversation within Emperor Xia''s Palace earlier. There was simply no way a marriage proposal from the crown prince of Emperor Li''s Realm to Xia Qingyuan, could have not attracted any attention.


    However, Emperor Xia had been incredibly overbearing, stating that if the other party were to bring the matter up again and insult the princess, he would have cut them down all the same, despite them being envoys.


    It was apparent that Emperor Xia had taken Li Yao of Emperor Li''s Realm seriously, and furthermore, he had taken such an action to be an insult to his most beloved daughter, Xia Qingyuan. The way he saw it, Li Yao was beneath Xia Qingyuan.


    That is our Emperor Xia indeed.


    Many were wondering deep down that, just how important the princess was to Emperor Xia, that he had to treat even a crown prince of Emperor Li''s Realm in such a manner. Who would actually be qualified in Emperor Xia''s eyes then?


    What happened at the palace quickly spread everywhere else. Mighty ones stepped out from Emperor Xia''s Palace soon enough, led by the Sacred General of Qian, heading towards to people from Emperor Li''s Realm. A group of exceptional youths were around the general.


    Battles broke out soon as witnessed by countless there.


    The ones who came from Emperor Li''s Realm were all pinnacle figures below the Saint Plane. While the mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Palace were too, extremely formidable, but they nonetheless lost more matches than won. In short, they were completely overpowered.


    What was even more astounding was that every single figure from Emperor Li''s Realm seemed to have been able to step into the level of Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane. All of them were unnervingly powerful and saintly powers were actually emanating from them.


    Emperor Li''s Realm had actually deployed such a lineup to come provoke them.


    There were also people who doubted if Emperor Li''s Realm had indeed been so terrifying, that they seemed to be able to easily overpower all of the genius who emerged from Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    They heard that Emperor Li had established the Dali Dynasty and ruled all of Emperor Li''s Realm. All under the realm, whether they be from imperial lands or not, were subjected to absolute rule. As such, it would have definitely been far easier for Emperor Li''s Realm to mobilize capable men for specific tasks, than Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Xia sat quietly at his Ninth Heaven Palace above, his eyes pierced through the layers beneath and watched the battlefield.


    A cloaked figure stood quietly by Emperor Xia''s side and gazed at the battlefield below as well.


    "So the period of ten years is finally up then?" Emperor Xia, who had been sitting regally, asked.


    The cloaked figure by his side nodded and said, "Your majesty, it would be after the end of this year. The armies of Tian and Dou had began to mobilize."


    "Right." Emperor Xia nodded slightly. "So they are here to probe us then. It is no wonder that they are able to overpower our men. They came prepared after all."


    "Those people have been subjected to forced transformation of their foundations using saintly powers. Most of them would never be able to go any further, and they are little more than pawns of Emperor Li," The cloaked figure commented. He was naturally able to tell that the group of people from Emperor Li''s Realm out to provoke them, were extremely powerful. They did not get to where they were from their own superb talents, they, who were all pinnacle sages, had also been subjected to inhumane means of infusing semi-saint-like powers. However, doing so would have been the same as shattering their future.


    But then again, it was entirely possible that those people did not have what it would have taken to make it as saints, so they were selected to become machines of war instead.


    "How about we mobilize Tian Ji?" The cloaked figure asked. If Tian Ji and Xia Qingyuan were to be there to fight them, there would not have been much of a problem.


    Only people at the Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane level people��the semi-saints��would have been able to overpower those forcefully created mighty ones.


    "No need to hurry. Have Tian Ji mobilize his men, but no need to act for now. Let the others feel what those people are capable of first. We might be meeting them in the battlefield soon enough. As for Qingyuan, tell her to stand down," Emperor Xia gave his orders.


    "Acknowledged." The cloaked figure nodded and his silhouette turned ethereal, before disappearing altogether.


    The news of the battles spread at blitzing speeds, kicking up quite a ruckus. It was especially so with the top notch forces, as they were the first to catch wind of the news.


    Many mighty ones made their move, heading towards Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    The battles outside Emperor Xia''s Palace continued for days. The cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm continued to have the absolute edge and overpowered the sages from Emperor Xia''s Realm by a considerable margin. Countless were stunned at the strength of the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm.


    But then again, the saints were somehow able to tell that something was off.


    Many younger generations of many top notch forces gathered outside Emperor Xia''s Palace. People from the Divine Cloud Palace, the Qin Palace, the Xiao clan, the Jiutian Temple and many others were seen there, including some who were ranked on the Jiutian Ranking. Some among them even made their move, yet things remained unchanged. Most from Emperor Xia''s Realm continued to be overpowered, and only a handful had been able to win.


    Those top notch figures kept their hands to themselves. The princess and the few of the most powerful figures of Emperor Xia''s Realm had yet to make a move as well. Xia Qingyuan was nowhere to be seen even then, as if none of that had anything to do with her.


    Countless from the Upper Worlds discussed about that matter, and Ye Futian naturally caught wind of it. He then arrived outside Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    He was there for one reason only��Li Yao.


    Many noticed Ye Futian''s presence and discussed about him. He was then considered a renowned figure after all.


    Ye Futian took a look at Li Yao, who was sitting on the carriage as soon as he came.


    Li Yao was inexcusable for making that battle several years ago back in the Holy Zhi Palace being so brutal.


    Saint Zhi and the nine mighty ones acted as they did because of Li Yao. If Saint Zhi had not made a move against him, Jieyu would not have died.


    As such, it was within reason to hold Li Yao responsible for Jieyu''s passing, and Ye Futian was compelled to show up.


    He was not the only one there. Gongsun Zhong, Qin Bai and others were there as well.


    At that moment, high above the 33rd Layer of Heaven of Lihen Heaven.


    A figure was sitting there quietly. Sword will of the great path flowed and circled around him.


    Several people stood behind him and they were saying something, seemingly informing him of the happenings of Emperor Xia''s Realm as of late.


    "The ones from Emperor Li''s Realm are very strong then?" The young man asked.


    "There were seniors claiming that the people of Emperor Li''s Realm had been thrust into semi-saint level through forced means using saintly powers. Unless people at the Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane were to act, the chances of defeating them would be incredibly small," the ones behind answered.


    "Semi-saint eh?"


    The young man mumbled to himself in a calm manner. He took one look and the sky and sword will gushed about, seemingly coalescing from the heavens.


    "Sword." The young man said with a brimming voice, penetrating the heavens. Thousands of swords seemed to have flown and arrived before the young man in mere moments.


    He stepped forward and travelled using the swords. Sword aura burst as he made his move, tearing the space before him at breakneck speeds.


    Many at Lihen Heaven turned his heads above to catch a glimpse of the mighty scene. Their minds were shuddering.


    Looks like our big brother is only one step away from becoming a saint then?


    Wang Chuan, the number one figure below Saint Plane at Lihen Heaven, finally descended from the 33rd Layer of Heaven on that day!

 1037 Number One below Saint Plane?

    Things were at all time high and mighty ones flocked outside Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    People were seen everywhere at a corner of the vast space. Two people were seen fighting at the center of the crowd.


    The mighty one from Emperor Li''s Realm threw a punch and terrifyingly devastating lightning was seen coiled around his fist, as if concealing the power of the great path with. That punch struck its target, making the person on the receiving feel as if their body was tearing apart from within. Every single one of his internal organs seemed to have been ruptured as he was sent flying, spitting blood as he crashed to the ground.


    Many continued to be shocked by that scene. The side of Emperor Xia''s Realm suffered yet another defeat, as the one who was defeated was a mighty one from Emperor Xia''s Palace, and he too, was overpowered. The power of his opponent''s fist had concealed might of the saints, and furthermore, its force was compressed as much as it had been able to. As such, there were hardly any terrifying aura being sensed by the onlookers, yet the attack burst with extremely devastating force nonetheless.


    People of such levels would have been able to have fine control of their power at will. Their control was unnervingly terrifying. If they were able to make it as saints, such qualities would have been even more pronounced.


    At that moment, the crowd split without anyone telling them to. Cheers were heard and countless eyes turned around, looking at Emperor Xia''s direction. A figure descended from the palace above and stepped into the crowd.


    "The princess is finally here." The eyes of many sparkled, not knowing if the princess would have fought personally.


    "Princess." The people from Emperor Xia''s Palace all bowed. Tian Ji brought his men and appeared behind Xia Qingyuan. Gongsun Zhong, Xuanyuan Ao and many others were there as well. The moment the saw Xia Qingyuan, they knew that the time for the ones from Emperor Li''s Realm to go home was near.


    If those people still insisted of staying around, they would have acted then.


    "Princess Qingyuan, we meet again." Li Yao turned his eyes at Xia Qingyuan and smiled. Xia Qingyuan is indeed stunningly perfect. What a waste for her to be dressed in men''s clothing indeed.


    If she were to be clad in phoenix robes, her stunning looks would have enabled her to charm kingdoms. That, coupled with her cold yet elegant bearing as the princess, would have made her unmistakably charming.


    It was quite a pity he would never have had any chances to get near such a woman.


    Emperor Xia would have definitely killed him if he dared.


    "The upcoming battle shall be one fought to the death. Do you intend to continue, or get lost?" Xia Qingyuan eyed Li Yao and asked.


    "We have yet to see what Princess Qingyuan is capable of, so we shall naturally continue," Li Yao replied calmly.


    "Tian Ji," Xia Qingyuan called.


    "Yes, princess." A towering figure was seen stepping out from her side. He seemed to have been able to shake the ground with every step he took.


    Ye Futian took a look at that figure, whom he recognized. It was the man who stopped him when he was at Emperor Xia''s Palace, requesting to see Xia Qingyuan.


    "Tian Ji." Many around them looked on with anticipation.


    He was Tian Ji, the son of the leader and the number one figure of the Eight Sacred Generals. He had superb talents and acknowledging the merits and efforts of his father, Emperor Xia allowed him to train in Emperor Xia''s Palace. Despite being little more than a guard, but that was only because of the limit of his plane. Tian Ji was destined to walk the same path as his father, becoming a sacred general serving Emperor Xia directly.


    As to whether he could have succeeded his father to become the next Sacred General of Tian, that would have up to the extent of his powers and how far he would have been able to go in the future.


    Boom. Tian Ji walked. Unmatched pressure swept all over the place as he stomped the ground. The mighty one from Emperor Li''s Realm who fought before walked as well. Flashes of lightning clad around him and coursed about his body, bursting with devastating might of rules.


    Tian Ji raised his fists and within an instant, golden images appeared on each of them and materialized as blinding halos. Terrifying power of Tearing Rule burst from them. Furthermore, halos appeared on his body as well, emanating formidable pressure as if they were divine light.


    Halos of Great Path glittered and pressured his opponent. The mighty one from Emperor Li''s Realm frowned a bit and seemed to have sensed threatening force. However, there was no way he could have backed away then. He stepped forward as well. His fists struck the air with shattering crack of lightning, seemed to be out to swallow the heavens.


    Both came to clash with each other up close and personal within seconds.


    Boom. Boom. Boom... Wrecking explosions were heard and within an extremely short span of time, both sides brought countless punches to bear. A shriek was then heard. The mighty one from Emperor Li''s Realm had his arms turned bloody and gory, before his internal organs exploded from the relentless attacks. He was quickly thrown back to the dragon carriage and slumped to the floor, totally and undoubtedly dead.


    The hearts of countless spectators raced. They looked at the glittering Tian Ji, finding that the son of the Sacred General of Tian had indeed lived up to his father''s mighty name. His strength was undoubtedly formidable.


    Tian Ji was a Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane himself. He was nearly invincible at Sage Plane. Even if his opponent happened to possess powers enhanced through external means, said opponent was nonetheless quickly killed.


    Li Yao did not show much of any emotions from seeing his men killed. Those people had been trained to become suicide fighters and martyrs to begin with after all. All of them should have been prepared to die in battle.


    Tian Ji, son of the Sacred General of Tian, was indeed formidable.


    There was little idea how many people of such levels were there in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Who else?" Tian Ji turned his eyes at Li Yao.


    Li Yao looked at someone at his side and said in a low voice, "Get up there."


    There was a mighty one at each of his side respectively who had never participated in the battles. It was apparent that those two differed from the others.


    One of them walked out and stood before Tian Ji. That supreme bearing emanating from him seemed like a natural one instead of achieved using external powers.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at the battlefield. That person would have probably been very powerful.


    As expected, the resulting fight between those two men was indeed spectacular. Tian Ji and that mighty one from Emperor Li''s Realm fought and the fight ended up in a tie.


    Even someone as powerful as Tian Ji had been incapable of taking down his opponent.


    "That will do," Xia Qingyuan then spoke. Both Tian Ji and his opponent stepped down simultaneously. The aura of both men still felt agitated.


    Xia Qingyuan turned her eyes at Tian Ji''s opponent. Other than the ones who have had their powers forcefully amplified, Li Yao had also indeed brought two true Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane fighters with him indeed.


    "The Sacred General of Tian had been known for his almighty prowess and the son was equally as extraordinary. Are there any others from Emperor Xia''s Realm like him?" Li Yao asked.


    Gongsun Zhong, Qin Bai and some others were eager to try their hand, so they were about to walk out.


    However, Ye Futian stepped out before everyone else. His expression was extremely cold as he gazed at Li Yao.


    Li Yao looked at him with a puzzled expression. He was not at that sacred battle back in the day and his people, who had been watching the battle back then, were killed as well. As such, he decided to bail right away and left Emperor Xia''s Realm. He only knew later that the Holy Zhi Palace emerged victorious in the sacred war. That good-for-nothing Saint Zhi acted and still failed.


    He seemed to have sensed vengeance from Ye Futian''s gaze and asked, "Are you going to fight?"


    "I challenge you," Ye Futian looked at Li Yao and said.


    "You?" Li Yao smirked when he heard what Ye Futian said. You want to challenge me?


    There was no way he would have taken the challenge.


    "Who else?" Li Yao did not bother with Ye Futian, and had instead asked his people at his side.


    Someone else stepped out, spreading his aura at Ye Futian.


    The surrounding spectators from Emperor Xia''s Realm felt rather hopeful about that battle. They thought the likes of Gongsun Zhong would have made a move, and never expected Ye Futian to have acted first. Furthermore, Ye Futian intended to challenge Li Yao.


    However, given that they were at Emperor Xia''s Realm, there was no way Li Yao would have simply agreed to fight.


    But then again, the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm were actually very curious as to how capable Ye Futian would have been. That battle would have allowed them to witness for themselves.


    "Li Yao isn''t going to fight. Stay out of this battle." Xia Qingyuan spoke to Ye Futian telepathically. "If vengeance is what you''re after, you''ll get plenty of opportunities in the future."


    Ye Futian remained standing where he was even after hearing Xia Qingyuan''s words. He gazed at Li Yao and asked, "So you took Saint Zhi''s son away then?"


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about." Li Yao naturally would not have admitted. While Emperor Xia would have definitely found out that he was present when the sacred war of the Nine State took place, but he never participated directly. There was no way he would have been stupid enough to just own up to the accusation of him inciting a lord of Emperor Xia''s holy lands to revolt, when he was right in front of Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    "You would be in their place soon enough." Ye Futian turned around and left after leaving a line behind.


    There would have definitely been reasons for Xia Qingyuan to tell him to stay out of that battle.


    Many were feeling puzzled as to what Ye Futian meant with that line.


    So, that''s it?


    Gongsun Zhong then walked out next, fighting the one who emerged from the other side. Like how it was with Tian Ji, he too, killed his opponent.


    Qin Bai, Xuanyuan Ao and a few others killed one of the other side each, letting everyone witness what did it mean to be called ''Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane."


    Other than the two sages right beside Li Yao, the number of other mighty ones continued to dwindle.


    "So you really are not going to spar then, Princess Qingyuan?" Li Yao continued to ask, seemingly still wanted to have Xia Qingyuan fight.


    Xia Qingyuan did not answer. Li Yao then smiled and said, "Well, if that is the case, we shall take our leave."


    He was able to more or less tell what the top notch figures from Emperor Xia''s Realm were like in terms of powers.


    "So they''re finally leaving then?" Many asked themselves deep down. While the supposed enemy had been sent home, but the battles actually ended with Emperor Xia''s Realm being on the losing side as a whole nonetheless.


    However, sword will whipped about in the air at that moment, seemingly announcing the arrival of someone. Countless looked up and found out to their shock, that swords rained down straight from the air ceaselessly.


    "Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven, here to spar with the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm." Voice of the great path seemed to be heard from above. Sword aura blocked out the sky and countless witnessed a figure arrived, riding on thousands of swords.


    Wang Chuan, an Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane from Lihen Heaven.


    "Such unparalleled bearing." Many felt their minds shuddering in awe. It only merely an instant for the swords to arrive and one mighty one after another before Li Yao stepped out, taking on the opponent who showed from the other side with sheer numbers.


    Wang Chuan, however, commanded the swords to coalesced into one entity. He himself seemed like the master of the swords. Celestial Sword Techniques seemed to brought forth as he launched himself at all others before him.


    One mighty one after another roared as their bodies burst with power. Their aura was cranked to the maximum, intending to take that one sword entity head on.


    That sword, however, pierced through the air and straight into their minds. One strike was all it took to tear them apart.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Pfftt... With only a light tearing sound, one of the incoming mighty one was unable to hold on and spitted blood. He dropped to the ground right away as his spiritual will was cut down right there and then.


    One sword to cut it all. Wang Chuan''s sword will pierced the bodies of all before him. All of them dropped while spitting blood. Their auras dropping at alarming rates.


    "Heretical tricks unworthy of the higher circles," Wang Chuan commented plainly. His finger pointed downward as soon as he was done talking. All before him were penetrated by his swords in that one instant, ended up dead right there and then.


    Li Yao''s eyes were frozen in place and the other two by his sides looked troubled.


    The hearts of those from Emperor Xia''s Realm raced.


    Ye Futian provoked Lihen Heaven back then and Wang Chuan never bothered looking for him.


    However, he was absolutely stunning as he descended from the 33rd Layer of Heaven and cut down the mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm .


    Wang Chuan was truly the number one figure below Saint Plane in Emperor Xia''s Realm!

 1038 Lihen Heaven

    Countless people were fascinated as they watched this heroic figure with the impressive sword.


    Someone had come from Emperor Li''s Realm to provoke them by giving a command to their Princess. In Emperor Xia''s Realm, many people looked at Princess Xia Qingyuan as a goddess that should not be profaned.


    However, in the provoking battle with Emperor Li''s Realm, the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm were suppressed. Tian Ji and Gongsun Zhong had gotten involved, and thus they were able to defeat their opponents, but their foes had been so many that it seemed the only way they were able to win was due to the intervention of these two great figures. One of the two people beside Li Yao had even managed to fight Tian Ji to a standstill.


    Because of this, Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven had flown over on a sword. He was such a powerful figure that as his sword struck the ground, all the cultivators besides the two people beside Li Yao who had a bit of Divine Path power were killed.


    Moreover, his sword had clearly already reached the extremes of the Sage plane. It had elements of the Divine Path. It seemed that Wang Chuan was much more than halfway on his path to Sainthood. One more step and he would be there.


    Before Princess Xia Qingyuan had reached the peak of her powers, even she would have had difficulty beating Wang Chuan, who was at the peak of what was possible below the Saint level.


    It was highly likely that Wang Chuan, who had come from the Thirty-Third Heaven could inherit the ceremonial robes of the leader of Lihen Heaven.


    At Old Man Xiao''s feast, Ye Futian had suppressed the cultivators of Lihen Heaven and had boasted that there was no one there of note below the Saint level. Was that really true?


    It was just that Wang Chuan had not wanted to come down for a single battle.


    At that moment he stood there majestically and independently in a white robe with sword wills flowing around his body as he stared at Li Yao.


    Li Yao stared back at him, then smiled and said, "Marvelous! I am grateful for this opportunity to see you in action. If we have a chance we should do it again."


    He waved his hand and suddenly eighteen sacred golden dragons streaked through the air, pulling the carriage into the sky. And so he left.


    Xia Qingyuan did not order for him to be stopped. Although he had provoked her, she still followed the rules. Emperor Xia was the host here, and could not detain his opponent.


    "Princess Xia Qingyuan, I''ll see you on the battlefield," came a voice from the sky along with the dragons roaring. Xia Qingyuan knew what he meant by this.


    Li Yao sat upon the dragon with eyes flashing. Today he had tested the combat prowess of the cultivators below the Saint level of Emperor Xia''s Realm. It seemed that more preparations needed to be made. Even though those dead soldiers had been strong enough, they still could not resist someone of Wang Chuan''s level.


    And they would be even more useless against actual Saints.


    Ye Futian looked up at Li Yao riding away on the dragons. His white hair flew in the wind, but his heart was cold.


    His enemy was right before him, but he didn''t have the power to kill him. He could not get revenge for Jieyu.


    Moreover, Li Yao had never looked at him seriously. He probably had never cared about what he had done at Zhisheng Cliffs. Who had died there had nothing to do with him. All that he cared about was whether or not Saint Zhi had completed his service. As for everything else, it meant nothing to Emperor Li''s son.


    And as a mere Sage, why would Li Yao ever care about him?


    Xia Qingyuan glanced at Ye Futian. Besides the people from the palace, she was probably the only one who knew the hatred that he felt for Li Yao.


    As for the others, they were all looking at Wang Chuan. The figure who had come down from the Thirty-third Heaven turned slowly and nodded slightly to Xia Qingyuan. He was elegant beyond compare.


    He turned to look at Ye Futian. This was his first time seeing him. They had not known each other before, but upon seeing him he instantly knew who he was.


    Ye Futian felt him looking at him, and he turned away from the fleeing Li Yao, looking back at Wang Chuan. In that moment their gazes crossed over each other.


    Everything was silent across that vast space. It all seemed a little bizarre.


    This silence was all because the two of them were looking at each other.


    One was Ye Futian, who had swept away the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven and said there was no one there of note below the Saint level.


    The other was the best cultivator of Lihen Heaven, Wang Chuan, who had come down from the Thirty-Third Heaven and killed the cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm.


    The two of them finally stood face to face.


    So, would they have a real exchange today to solve the enmity that had grown between them?


    Everyone was trembling on the inside as they watched with great expectation.


    Could Wang Chuan defeat Ye Futian in a single sword stroke as he had done to the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm?


    "The Sword Way of Lihen Heaven has thirty three levels, and countless cultivators follow it. I don''t even know how many powerful cultivators there are below the Saint level. Many of the swordsmen have never revealed their true strength, and have not come down off the mountain. This does not mean that there is no one of note," said Wang Chuan, seemingly in response to Ye Futian.


    "If there are people of note, then why did a Saint have to get involved?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Uncle-master Li Yang made a mistake, but if it had been me I would have done the same. After all, I could not watch the cultivators of Lihen Heaven being killed, and I''m sure you would have done the same as well. They had really done wrong in Pei Qianying''s battle, but it was still unfair. Lu Cheng had gone to fight for Pei Qianying, but was still defeated." Wang Chuan''s voice was calm as his sword will wrapped around him.


    To put it bluntly, Li Yang had done something wrong. Many people sighed inwardly. It was probably only someone as heroic as Wang Chuan who could call out their elder like that.


    But he had said he would have done the same in that situation.


    Indeed, there were some things that from a certain standpoint should be done even if they were wrong. Could he have really watched his disciples die?


    In the end, he was his own person, and nobody could shield him from his own faults.


    "Even so, I have not heard a single apology, nor will I acknowledge your so-called standpoint. In the end, our strengths were not equal," said Ye Futian. If their strengths had been equal the outcome would have been very different.


    "Is the world of cultivation not always like this?" Wang Chuan looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian did not dispute this, but nodded seriously. "You''re right. Such is the world of cultivation."


    Whether it was Lihen Heaven or Li Yao, it was all the same. Would Li Yao not think the same way? He only pursued his own goals. Why would he care about the deaths of others?


    "I heard that the enmity between you and Pei Qianying stemmed from Ye Wuchen, and that was why you fought your way up the Sky Stairwell and to the Ninth Layer of Heaven. If you cannot calm yourself today, then come up to the Thirty-Third Layer of Heaven. I will wait for you there. If you can fight your way through thirty three layers of heaven that will prove that you are right." When Wang Chuan was finished speaking the sword will flowed around him and he turned into a brilliant light sword and sped away.


    But the words he left behind made everyone''s hearts beat faster.


    He had not fought Ye Futian, but would wait for him on the Thirty-Third Layer of Heaven.


    Ye Futian had said there was no one of note below the Saint Level in Lihen Heaven. If he could fight his way to the Thirty-Third Layer of Heaven, that would prove his words.


    But that was Lihen Heaven, not Jiutian Temple. Would Ye Futian dare to go?


    Ye Futian looked up into that figure that had turned into a sword and said, "In seven days it will be the new year. I will see you then, Lihen Heaven."


    Now, the 10,020th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was coming to an end.


    In seven days, it would be the first day of the 10,021st year, and on that day he would go to Lihen Heaven.


    He had agreed to do so, so he would go.


    "I will wait for you," came Wang Chuan''s voice from the sky, making everyone''s hearts beat wildly.


    Ye Futian really wanted to go to Lihen Heaven. He was truly insane.


    Gu Mu was also there that day, watching Ye Futian. In the past, Ye Futian had fought his way to the Ninth Layer of Heaven, and he had personally witnessed him crush Pei Qianying.


    But no matter how powerful those at Jiutian Temple had been, the people on the thirty three layers of Lihen Heaven were stronger. Many of the top figures from Jiutian Temple were there.


    As for Wang Chuan, he was at the limits of what could be achieved below the Saint level. He did not need to go to Jiutian Temple to prove his power.


    It would be nearly impossible for Ye Futian to fight his way to the Thirty-Third Layer of Heaven. And even if he could, judging by Wang Chuan''s performance with his sword here today, he was only a half step away from Sainthood. Could Ye Futian really defeat him?


    Everyone had a feeling of great anticipation. Emperor Xia''s Realm had proposed a marriage alliance with the Princess, Wang Chuan had killed his foes with a single sword stroke, and Ye Futian had declared his attention to go to Lihen Heaven.


    The end of that year could truly be called shocking.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian as well. His answer had been firm; he really was going to Lihen Heaven.


    She swept her gaze over everyone and said, "In seven days, I will go as a witness."


    On saying this, she turned and left, returning to Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    But her words left everybody stunned.


    This...


    Xia Qingyuan would personally go to witness the battle.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Was this also for the purpose of protecting Ye Futian?


    After all, they were going to Lihen Heaven.


    If Xia Qingyuan was there, no one would dare do anything underhanded.


    Of course, since Wang Chuan had made a promise, and invited Ye Futian to Lihen Heaven, it was not likely that anyone would try anything underhanded.


    "Phew..." many people sighed. On the first day of the next year there would be a great performance by some magnificent actors.


    The crowd dispersed, including Ye Futian. The news spread with frightening speed. After all, the people from Emperor Li''s Realm coming had already caused a huge sensation and so many people were gathered together. That had been followed by the agreement between Ye Futian and Wang Chuan. How could this not ignite everyone''s emotions instantly?


    This was the first time that a great stir had been caused in Emperor Xia''s Realm by two juniors.


    There had never been so many people paying so much attention to two junior Sages before.


    And moreover, Xia Qingyuan was going to watch.


    This was destined to be a year of unsettlement. Everyone felt that the seven days passed very slowly, and they could not wait for them to pass by. But the more they wished for this, the slower they seemed to go.


    Finally, under great anticipation from everyone in Emperor Xia''s Realm, the 10,021st year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar came. Many people gathered together under Lihen Heaven, coming from all directions.


    On that day, Ye Futian came riding on a sword. He stood beneath Lihen Heaven, preparing to ascend the thirty-three layers!

 1039 Lack a Single Step on the Path of Swordsmanship

    Countless cultivators were gathered together below Lihen Heaven. Many people from the top forces had come as well.


    Everyone''s gaze fell upon Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian and those with him descended from the sword and looked up, then started forward.


    Everyone looked on in amazement. There were five people coming forward.


    Besides Ye Futian, there was Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Xue Que, and Zui Qianchou.


    "Ye Wuchen and the other three must be the ones that Lihen Heaven had surrounded and tried to kill," said someone in the crowd.


    "Ah, that must be it. After Yu Sheng arrived, the Sword Saint of Liyang struck out and after but a single sword stroke Yu Sheng was covered in blood."


    Once someone had brought up the reason that this bitterness had started, many people suddenly understood. Ye Futian was bringing them up to Lihen Heaven to rid them of their enmity.


    Up in the air there was a Blue Phoenix riding the wind with a stunning figure standing atop it. It was Princess Xia Qingyuan, who had come to witness the battle.


    Having here there would ensure that no Saints interfered as Ye Futian ascended the thirty three levels of heaven.


    Ye Futian and the others stepped forward onto the staircase and entered Lihen Heaven.


    The Village Saint and the others waited below. With Xia Qingyuan there, they did not need to worry about Ye Futian''s safety, so it was best that they wait for his return there.


    Each of the thirty three levels of Lihen Heaven had many cultivators, richly decorated jade palaces. It was towering and majestic. Step by step, Ye Futian and the others ascended to the first level of Lihen Heaven under everyone''s gaze.


    A group of cultivators appeared before them, all of them on the Sage plane. There were only five people in front of them, but their eyes were still serious.


    It was said that Ye Futian had wounded many cultivators at Old Man Xiao''s feast with a single pluck of his guqin, including Fengxiao and Mo Li. They were not equal to this kind of power.


    But since he had come, they could not just huddle up in the corner.


    They stood there gripping their swords, with sword wills flowing around them. But at that moment, Ye Wuchen, Xu Que and Zui Qianchou stepped forward as fast as lightning.


    Yu Sheng followed behind them, and Ye Futian came last.


    Lihen Heaven was the primary holy land for swordsmanship in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Where else could be a better place for training with their swords?


    In the past, Lu Chen of Lihen Heaven and his men had cornered Ye Wuchen and the others. After they had been defeated by Yu Sheng, their Saint had gotten involved. Today, they were going to give the cultivators of Lihen Heaven a taste of their own medicine.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    The life spirit in Ye Wuchen''s brow spat out brilliant golden light as radiant golden sword wills wrapped around him, and his whole body became exceedingly sharp. Xu Que and Zui Qianchou both had divine implements, and they struck forward. Although they were only mid level Sages, and many of the cultivators from Lihen Heaven were at the top of the Sage level, their divine implements made up the difference. Even if their opponents had had divine implements, using them would still have been more advantageous to Xu Que and Zui Qianchou than if both sides had not had them.


    Of course, the strongest among them was still Ye Wuchen, who had Renhuang''s Sword Will.


    Ye Wuchen flashed over in an instant. He opened his eyes that were as sharp as swords, and light swords shot out, piercing everyone''s minds. An illusion appeared before the cultivators of Lihen Heaven. It seemed that the sky was full of swords.


    A sword struck, and they all felt a clear sense of danger, but they did not know where it came from. This was the Illusory Sword Technique.


    However, they were well trained for this. Some of the best among them closed their eyes and struck out, and in an instant there were swords everywhere.


    Ye Futian stood behind them calmly. He had heard that in the first eleven levels of Lihen Heaven the cultivators were all those who had not yet officially joined Lihen Heaven or whose talent was not enough and thus had not yet advanced to the core. The people on the middle eleven levels were the true core disciples.


    As for the top ten levels, those were reserved for those whose talent was enough to certify their genius.


    Starting at the middle eleven levels, each level had someone at the Saint level to train them. It was easy to see how powerful Lihen Heaven was. The teachers on the middle eleven levels were of the first tier of the Saint Ranking. They were disciples on the Divine Path. The top ten levels were the true foundation of Lihen Heaven, and the teachers were of the elder generation.


    As for the thirty third level, it was called the Heaven Beyond Heaven. Only top talents like Wang Chuan had a chance to go there and be taught by the Sword Master of Lihen.


    It could be said that the division of ranks in Lihen Heaven was very strict.


    The Sword Saint of Liyang was in the top eleven levels of Lihen Heaven. Lu Cheng, who had gotten involved previously, Chu Qingyang, Wang Mang, Li Qiushui and Mo Li were all there cultivating.


    Of course, anyone who could get into Lihen Heaven was an outstanding cultivator. Those whose talent was referred to as "not enough" were only not good enough when compared with the people of Lihen Heaven.


    But Ye Wuchen and the others were enough to handle them. After all, by using Renhuang''s Sword Will and their divine implements, they could bring to bear a combat prowess equal to one at the top of the Sage level, especially Ye Wuchen. In the previous battle he had wounded Chu Qingyang, Overbearing Sword and Wang Mang.


    Ye Wuchen launched the main attack, and sword illusions wrapped around his opponents. Xu Que and Zui Qianchou accompanied him. They both sped up and launched surprise attacks. They were invisible and left no trace. With their help, the attacks became even more amazing.


    Cracking sounds rang out as the cultivators in front of them found their clothes stained with blood. They had all suffered wounds of various degrees.


    The swords wills still flowed all around them as Ye Wuchen and the others continued forward.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Futian followed close behind.


    Along the way, countless cultivators attacked them, but all of them were defeated by Ye Wuchen and the other two. Yu Sheng did not even have to lift a finger.


    They quickly passed through the lower eleven levels and reached the middle eleven.


    By that time Ye Wuchen and the others were short of breath. Even though it had only been the lower eleven levels, everyone there had been extraordinary.


    They looked up into the sky and saw that their path was filled with swordsmen, but Ye Wuchen still looked very calm. A brilliant light shone from the life spirit sword. He reached out with his single arm and suddenly thousands of swords gathered together into an unbreakable sword that seemed able to sweep away anything.


    "Lend me your swords," he said. Xu Que and Zui Qianchou nodded. As they stood behind him, their sword wills flowed wildly into his.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Wuchen, and suddenly the three of them turned into a single light sword. They tore through the air as they shot into the sky as fast as a bolt of lightning. An incomparable sword will emanated from them as they tried to break through the Thirty Three Layers of Heaven.


    Boom! There was a loud sound as Yu Sheng stepped forward quickly. That sturdy figure followed close behind Ye Wuchen, causing the earth to tremble and countless buildings to waver.


    Ahead of them, a figure stood watching them with sharp eyes. Countless sword wills flowed around him, and eventually formed together into a terrible sword diagram. He reached out with both hands and pressed them down, and suddenly the sword diagram sliced through the air towards the light sword that was shooting up towards him.


    A line of sword will tore through the sword diagram, slicing it apart. The sword will in front of the cultivator collapsed wildly. He turned pale and turned to retreat, dodging out of the way of the sword. He saw it pass in front of him, and he was instantly covered in cold sweat and his face was as pale as ash.


    He had to retreat.


    And this retreat would damage his swordsmanship.


    Up ahead, another cultivator was coming after them. A terrible storm appeared in front of him, and it turned into a storm of swords that covered the sky. The sky darkened as the swords fell, as if the end of days had come.


    Ye Wuchen and the other two shot up into the sky like swords, cutting through the air. They pierced through the storm and cut it open.


    The storm of swords turned into an endlessly destructive light that could annihilate anything. Yet Ye Wuchen seemed not to notice it as he continued forward. The sword will of the Great Path followed him, and the sword will present in the storm was also integrated into his sword.


    The swordsman paled as the sword sliced through the air. He flew away covered in blood, feeling like all the sword will within him had been destroyed. If Ye Wuchen had let his sword will explode, he would have been a dead man.


    The group continued forward. They wanted to pierce through the Thirty Three Layers of Heaven. Swordsman after swordsman was wounded or retreated. Many people watched them from below. From down there they could faintly feel the invincible sword will. And of course there was an incomparably powerful figure following behind them.


    At that moment there was no sword will on the Thirty Third Layer of Heaven. It seemed as if there was only one person in the entire world. He sat there with his single eye closed, as if he had entered into a state of emptiness.


    This was Wang Chuan.


    A figure appeared in a palace across from him and stood at the edge of it. He stood there casually. He gave off no aura, but he wielded a sword that could pierce the heavens and the earth.


    The foremost swordsman in Emperor Xia''s Realm, the Swordmaster of Lihen, had returned from his cultivation.


    "Why did you ask him to come here to fight?" he asked.


    "The Thirty Third Layer of Lihen Heaven is also known as the Heaven Beyond Heaven. You once said that there are men beyond men, and heavens beyond heavens. The swordsmen of Lihen Heaven say that I am unequaled, but my swordsmanship is impure. I need someone to break me out of my habits," said Wang Chuan.


    "Do you seek victory or defeat?" asked the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    "Neither. I only wish that my swordsmanship can be without fault," answered Wang Chuan.


    "You lack a single step on the path of swordsmanship?" asked the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    "Yes." Wang Chuan nodded.


    "You have invited someone to Lihen Heaven to fight before the eyes of all the world to prove your determination, and seek defeat to prove your lack of flaws. If you can break through your limitations, and achieve success through defeat, then you will surely be the foremost swordsman of Lihen Heaven." The Swordmaster of Lihen spoke calmly and without surprise as he quietly watched his disciple kneeling before him.

 1040 Straight to the 33rd Layer of Heaven

    At the eleventh heaven of Lihen Heaven, Ye Wuchen moved forward with great momentum. The swordsmen of Lihen Heaven who were in front of him were all wounded and retreated.


    At this time, some of the sacred elders of Lihen Heaven stood next to the battlefield and observed what was happening inside, and their hearts were slightly disturbed. They did not think that Ye Futian''s group of five came to challenge Lihen Heaven. So far, only Ye Wuchen was making the moves.


    The two strongest people, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, had not yet fought, and Yu Sheng follow Ye Wuchen closely.


    As for Ye Futian, he walked alone in the back as if taking a leisurely walk outside, relaxing.


    As if the 33rd Layer of Heaven of Lihen Heaven meant no threat to him at all.


    "They are about to break the eleventh heaven." Looking at the radiance sword opened a path that would go straight to the 33rd Layer of Heaven. Even just Ye Wuchen alone had a Sword Way superior to countless swordsmen of Lihen Heaven.


    Soon, Ye Wuchen set foot onto the eleventh heaven, and it was also the place where the real geniuses of Lihen Heaven gathered.


    In this eleventh heaven, there were elite cultivators of Sword Way from Lihen Heaven.


    Since Ye Futian''s group of five set foot on to Lihen Heaven, until now not much time had passed before they had crossed the eleventh heaven, and Ye Wuchen only had one sword.


    At this point, the sword stopped, the forward-moving Sword Will finally dissipated, and Ye Wuchen''s group of three stood there, still surrounded by infinite Sword Will. They looked up and forward, then continued moving forward.


    It seemed that they intended to take the momentum and get to the highest layer of heaven.


    Yu Sheng still followed closely behind, with Ye Futian taking up the rear. Until now, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng still had not made a move.


    There were even fewer people who were on the eleventh heaven. When they looked up, they saw a line of figures that lined up straight from bottom to top. In each heaven there were just a few people, but everyone was of the existence at the peak of the Sage Plane.


    At this time, there was a swordsman standing in front of Ye Wuchen and the others, standing in the void above them, surrounded by Sword Will, his life spirit blooming, and above his head there was now a sword diagram, shining downward. The light fell on Ye Wuchen and the others.


    From there, an astonishing atmosphere of Sword Way atmosphere faintly permeated the outside.


    At this moment, the Sword Qi vaporized into rain. The sword diagram was growing bigger and bigger, covering the void. Endless Sword Will was falling down from the sword diagram, with extremely fast speed, without any rules or restraints. These Sword Will were dropping with craze, completely drowning the area beneath the sky.


    Ye Wuchen and the others stood below, like standing in the rain, only that this was a rain of swords.


    Psst! Around the eyebrow chakra of the Sword Spirit rushed out, and an even more dazzling Sword Will shrouded his body, as if once again entering into the state of the last battle when he was assassinated.


    He stood there, as if he had transformed into Sword Way, completely in charge of the Great Path of the sword, infinite Sword Will between heaven and earth gathered together, centering on Ye Wuchen body.


    In the void, as the sword rain fell, Xu Que and Zui Qianchou were resisting and dodging, but Ye Wuchen still did not move.


    The sword rain fell on him, but did not harm him at all, even melting into the sword will that surrounded his body.


    An even more beautiful sword light swept out from his body, as if he reigned supreme in the Sword Way.


    "Wuchen''s comprehension of the Renhuang Sword Will is even deeper," Ye Futian thought to himself. It had been some time since the last battle, so it was normal that Wuchen''s power had increased and improved.


    But the power he now comprehended was the Renhuang Sword Will; just a shred of improvement translated into considerable increase in combative power.


    Above the sky, the swordsman of Lihen Heaven frowned, and felt a sense of danger. Then he saw that Ye Wuchen moved. His whole person seemed to be turning into Sword Way and integrated with it in one; not at all within the possibility of someone in the Sage Plane.


    But the one-armed figure that bathed in radiant glory, at this time gave that feeling to the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven.


    The white garment was bright as snow, and he moved directly toward the sword diagram, and the one arm lifted, pointing to the void.


    Buzz.


    At this moment, brilliant light poured over the sword diagram above, but Ye Wuchen seemed to be unaware of it. Just like the last time, his one finger pointed to the sky, and suddenly there was a sword light between heaven and earth, directly tearing and opening, smashing toward the sword.


    The sword diagram spun wildly and became more violent and dangerous. The Sword Will that erupted from it seemed to be all-powerful, but it was broken by Ye Wuchen''s sword.


    There was a gap in the sky, and Ye Wuchen carried the shredding rules of Sword Way toward it, the sword diagram oscillated, and cracks seemed to appeared faintly upon it. The cultivator made a snorting sound and the sword diagram disappeared instantly. It was formed with his own life spirit, so naturally he would not have allowed Ye Wuchen to destroy it.


    A sword crossed from his side, and Ye Wuchen did not even gave it a glance, but simply continued going up. The swordsman from Lihen Heaven had a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth, looking pale.


    Only one move of the sword. He had guarded here and had thought that today, he would fight with Ye Futian or Yu Sheng, but he would never had thought that he just saw these two people instead without even making an exchange with either, and he was defeated by one move from Ye Wuchen''s sword.


    "This guy," Xu Que and Zui Qianchou saw Ye Wuchen breaking the sky with his sword and could not help but tried to catch up with him quickly. Did he want to try to get to the 33rd Layer of Heaven by himself?


    At this time, Ye Wuchen was urging the Renhuang Sword Will with his spiritual power, and his strength was exerted to the limit, such possibility was not entirely without merit.


    Maybe, he could really make it.


    In those previous battles, Ye Wuchen did not really exercise all his power, but was reserving it, waiting to explode for the eleventh heaven to reveal his true strength.


    Ye Futian showed a flash in his eyes, and he and Yu Sheng continued to keep up.


    Today, Wang Chuan invited him to come to challenge the 33rd Layer of Heaven, but it had always been Wuchen and the others fighting, because he also wanted to see if Wuchen could get to the ninth heaven.


    The five of them kept moving forward and the opponents were stronger and stronger, but the advancement of Ye Wuchen''s kept pace without stopping. All the way upward, all the cultivators seemed to only have one sword.


    As if Ye Wuchen had only one sword and was only good with one sword.


    At this time, above the sky up front, a suffocating pressure dropped down, and the loud rumbling sounds could be heard. The heaven and earth made a sharp whistling sound, and a boundless and beautiful sword mark blossomed upon the sky, as if to sever the sky and cut directly toward Ye Wuchen''s body.


    Three Thousand Mile Sword, a sword that cut through three thousand miles, slashed toward Ye Wuchen in the air.


    The last time, Ye Wuchen was defeated by this sword.


    At this time, he was still simply raising his hand, pointed in the void, and a sword opened up the sky, colliding with the thick sword mark that came chopping down from the sky. For a moment, the world seemed to be collapsing, and the storm that could tear and destroyed everything swept out. The sword mark was torn, and Ye Wuchen rushed forward.


    However, there was another sword that greeted him, and seemed to be even more fierce and violent. The figure that stood in front of Ye Wuchen was the enchanted genius of Lihen Heaven, Lu Cheng.


    After Lu Cheng lost to Yu Sheng that day, he had gone to the outer layer of heaven to seek higher cultivation.


    Although it was impossible to metamorphose his strength, it must have been much stronger than it was before. Could it change the outcome of this battle?


    Yu Sheng was still behind Ye Wuchen. Originally, he was the target of Lu Cheng, but at the moment, only it seemed that he had to first defeat Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen blocked a sword move again, but then he saw endless sword marks came down from the sky that seemed to chopped through the sky.


    This time Lu Cheng asked for Wang Chuan''s help to understand a truth. Swordsmanship often did not need to be too rigid in its practice. Sometimes, the most simple and direct sword moves could often exert the strongest strength, so that sword and heart became one, sword and will became one.


    Lu Cheng at this time had comprehended this point. Every time he pulled out the sword, it was the same. He was at the peak of his spirits, and many sword marks had broken the sky, that seemed to be dividing the sky. But more than that, horrific sword marks melded into the Sword Will, intending to destroy Ye Wuchen''s spiritual will


    Lu Cheng understood that although Ye Wuchen had not been instructed, he also understood.


    In the midst of the storm, he broke a lot of swords, but the sword marks of the Great Path became stronger and more aggressive.


    Upon his body, an extremely strong Sword Will seemed to appear, the radiance of two different Sword Will shined at the same time. At this moment, the endless Sword Will above the sky flowed toward Ye Wuchen''s body and blended into him.


    Back then when he went through the trials at the ruin, he had received three Renhuang Sword Wills.


    One sword to open the sky and one sword to return the truth.


    Ye Wuchen''s body moved, as if entering a state of selflessness, like a sword, but with actual physical existence.


    His body skyrocketed, without unsheathing the sword, not attacking nor dodging.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Lu Cheng''s expression was cold. If Ye Wuchen was looking to die, then even Xia Qingyuan would probably have nothing to say.


    Many cultivators witnessed Ye Wuchen meld into the sword marks, slamming into them with his own body. When Yu Sheng tried to block him, Ye Futian used voice transmission to stop him.


    He knew a little of Ye Wuchen''s style, he was extremely decisive, and usually cared nothing about himself.


    His person melded into the sword marks, seemed to trample and collapse, and the sword will dropped down madly. Many watched the scene in the void with great shock. Then they saw the sword marks explode and smash, and Ye Wuchen figure rushed forward.


    Bang, Bang, Bang! Sounds of loud booms came out. Ye Wuchen actually passed through folds of heavy attacks, and his whole person became illusory and appeared directly not far in front of Lu Cheng. He did not stop, but continued forward, and in an instant landing in front of Lu Cheng''s eyes. As his one finger fell, there were stone-breaking shocks.


    Lu Cheng let out a scream, gathered all his entire life''s cultivation of Sword Way, and unleashed the most powerful strike with his sword. The fingers of Ye Wuchen''s illusory and immaterial body had already pressed down on the sword. In this moment, Lu Cheng only felt that his body seemed to be penetrated by thousands of swords. He watched the body that was getting closer and closer, the sword he had unleashed was slowly broken bit by bit.


    An unparalleled sword light exploded forth, stung everyone''s eyes. The next moment, countless people were shocked to see that Ye Wuchen was still standing there, but the Sword Will from his body had weakened much. As for Lu Cheng, he was covered in blood, falling to the ground, letting out a moan, and coughing up bright red blood.


    Ye Wuchen looked at him calmly without too much emotions, and continued to move forward.


    Yu Sheng took a big step forward, and also glanced at Lu Cheng coldly, directly passing over him and continued going upward.


    Another swordsman made a strike, and Ye Wuchen did not move again. Behind him, Yu Sheng rushed out and threw a punch that pierced through the void between heaven and earth, just as tyrannical as that day when he battled Lu Cheng. Just one punch was enough to shatter the sword of the other, and shocked another swordsman to fly out, breaking many of his ribs.


    Back then, Lu Cheng couldn''t take the blow, and today it was the same with the other swordsmen, unless they were like Wang Chuan, who was no longer at this level.


    A group of five, rolling forward over everything that was in their path, and no one was able to resist. With an absolutely strong posture, they had now gone to the highest place of Lihen Heaven, the 33rd Layer of Heaven.


    Looking up, one could see the figure sitting in front of the ancient palace, and several swordsmen beneath him!

 1041 The Fiercest Battle below Saint Plane

    The 33rd Layer of Heaven from Lihen Heaven, also known as the Outer Heaven, was in the midst of clouds and mist, just like a place where Sword Celestial would reside and cultivate.


    Wang Chuan was sitting in front of the palace, his eyes closed, his robes fluttered in the wind. His aura was extraordinary, as if he was not of this world.


    Around Wang Chuan, traces of Sword Will flowed about, surrounding his body without dissipating, forming a terrible field of Qi around him. At this moment, when Ye Futian looked at Wang Chuan, he had a false sense that was as if what he was seeing was not a person but a sword.


    He was now one with the Great Path, and although he sat there quietly, he was more dangerous than anyone else.


    Wang Chuan, the leader of the younger generation from the Lihen Heaven who had been gifted in Sword Way, just below the Saint Plane, who had slayed the cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm with just one sword strike.


    At this time, he was sitting in the 33rd Layer of Heaven, waiting for Ye Futian to arrive.


    In the other direction, above the ancient peaks that were steep and sharp as a sword, there were towering palaces. On its edge, a person stood with his hands behind his back, looking downward calmly.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen was observing the battle in person.


    In the void, a sacred beast of Blue Phoenix floated in the sky, and Xia Qingyuan stood upon it, quietly looking down. She bore witness of Ye Futian and his party reaching the 33rd Layer of Heaven, and until this moment, Ye Futian still had not made a single move.


    Ye Wuchen had exhausted a lot of power urging the Renhuang Sword Will. Otherwise, just he alone could make it to the 33rd Layer of Heaven from Lihen Heaven. But after his battle with Lu Cheng, it was difficult to sustain his own spiritual will power, and Yu Sheng took his position as forward to clear the path. No one was able to stop this group of five when they arrived.


    This scene seemed somewhat familiar. Just like the time when they entered the Ninth Layer of Heaven at the Jiutian Temple, they moved with incredible momentum.


    However, the swordsmen at Lihen Heaven, especially those at the post-eleventh heavens, was much stronger than those that were at the Ninth Layer of Heaven. After all, Pei Qianying was just one of the disciples of the eleventh heaven, but today''s Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen were also much stronger than they were.


    In front of Ye Futian and company, a group of swordsmen stood there, blocking the way of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. They had been moving their way up to this point with ease, and it was clearly not a good look for Lihen Heaven, especially when the Swordmaster himself was watching all this in person., The fact that Lihen Heaven was penetrated so easily by them seemed to confirm Ye Futian''s opinion that there was no one under the Saint Plane in Lihen Heaven.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward, and shook the ground, and he went to those swordsmen.


    These were the swordsmen from the 33rd Layer of Heaven of Lihen Heaven, anyone of them would be swordsmen at the top of Sage Plane, and the Sword Will was clearly stronger than any of the opponents they had encountered before.


    At this moment, a person attacked, and a sword came at Yu Sheng. When the sword was unleashed, and lightning and thunder exploded between the heaven and the earth, as if they could break stones, and shattered someone''s spiritual will.


    This sword was like a thunder catastrophe of the Great Path with the speed of lightning, and the domineering destructive power of the thunder, like the terrible light of catastrophe of the Sword Way. In the void, traces of horrific purple marks slashed toward the immense body of Yu Sheng, and in his mind, there seemed to also appear a sword light that wanted to chop his spiritual will to pieces.


    On the body of Yu Sheng, the light of the Buddha and demon circulated, the immortal body was indestructible. As the horrific sword light came to him, a loud booming sound was heard, and even the defense that was as strong as Yu Sheng''s started to crack, but his actual body was unaffected as he continued forward.


    The roaring sound came out, like the sound of the Great Path, turning this space into a destructive space of Sword Way. Endless sword light slammed into the body of Yu Sheng. At this time, Yu Sheng felt that he was in the end days of sword light, his spiritual will seemed to be drowning in the Sword Way.


    Streams of destructive currents curled around his body and the immortal body was broken, but there was still a terrible dark golden light floating about his body. When that horrible Sword Way hit his body, it was devoured little by little and demonized.


    Boom! A loud sound, Yu Sheng continued to step forward, like a demon god, gave out a suffocating pressure.


    The body of the swordsman in front twirled in flight, and the light of the end days permeated the void. In an instant, endless Sword Will was produced between heaven and earth; since Yu Sheng was going to devour and demonize it, he would let the rules of the Sword Way break his physical limit until it was destroyed from within.


    He wanted to see just how strong this immense body was that could bear the Sword Way.


    Bang! Another loud sound, the space trembled, and Yu Sheng took another step forward. The demonic power bloomed in his pupils, and the swordsman felt that there was a horrible pressure, centered on his body, there now appeared statues of demon god, so that he no longer faced a man, but a demon.


    The expression of the swordsman changed slightly, and there were now statues of horrible demon god surrounding him. Yu Sheng stepped out again, and a destructive dark thunder sword of catastrophe exploded from the midst of the demon gods, as if the attack he was using on Yu Sheng was now demonized by Yu Sheng, whose destructive power seemed to be even stronger now that there was demonic power integrated into it.


    The sky was dim without light, like a real end days sword catastrophe.


    His look changed slightly, fighting now against his own strength, and Sword Qi continued without ceasing, difficult to destroy. In front, a gigantic demonic Buddha palm print covered the sky and the sun, crushing the void, slamming down to all living beings and collapsing the Sword Way.


    Boom! With a loud sound, his body was slammed to the ground, completely suppressed. His whole body was like being torn apart, full of blood, and terrible to behold.


    However, the swordsmen from behind continued to attack with no fear whatsoever. Even if they knew it was a lost cause, they were still willing to fight.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    From the 33rd Layer of Heaven of Lihen Heaven, they were the swordsmen who stood at the highest point, if they retreated, who else would fight?


    Ye Futian did not look at below, but stepped forward, alone, toward the swordsman who was sitting on the edge of the palace. From the body of Wang Chuan, Ye Futian could feel an aura, the aura of someone who had dipped into the Saint Plane.


    That day when Wang Chuan took his sword and came down from the 33rd Layer of Heaven, and ended the cultivator of Emperor Li''s Realm with one strike of his sword, he had already felt that Wang Chuan had truly reached the limit below Saint Plane, and this limit meant that he was infinitely closer to the Divine Path.


    Perhaps, it was only a thin line apart, but from Wang Chuan''s person, he had been able to perceive a trace of divine authority.


    After that battle, outside of Emperor Xia''s Palace, many people in Emperor Xia''s Realm had proclaimed that Ye Futian was already the first person below the Saint Plane within Emperor Xia''s Realm, and were betting that he could step onto the 33rd Layer of Heaven. However, his halberd would be broken here, and lose to the hands of Wang Chuan.


    Although this ending was unlikely, the strength and the heart of Wang Chuan were not something that the likes of Pei Qianying and Lu Cheng could have compared.


    At this time, Wang Chuan opened his eyes and looked at Ye Futian. His eyes were full of terrible Sword Will and when he looked at Ye Futian, Ye Futian suddenly felt that there was Sword Will piercing into his eyes, as if to pierce through his spiritual will. Nonetheless, he stood there steadily, and his eyes stared directly toward the other.


    An extreme suppressive atmosphere enveloped this space. Wang Chuan had not really made his strike yet, and Ye Futian felt that he was already in the midst of ruinous Sword Will which was everywhere, wrapping the space around him, madly stabbing his body, his spiritual will.


    His white hair flew in the air, and his clothes flapped in the wind, emitting sharp and harsh sounds. In just a moment, they had been riddled with holes.


    Ye Futian continued to move forward, as if he was not at all disturbed by the Sword Will, and headed directly toward Wang Chuan.


    He wanted to see if this first person below the Saint Plane, this swordsman who was only a step away from being a saint, could threaten him.


    Every step that was taken, the Sword Will madly enhanced, enough to tear everything into pieces. If it was anyone else in the Sage Plane but Ye Futian, they would probably already have been turned into endless pieces now.


    Wang Chuan''s expression was as usual and extremely calm, not at all as if he was being threatened by a major battle.


    In front of him, there was the once-in-a-life-time genius who was known as the Unparalleled of Nine States. Even after having entered the Upper Worlds, he was still one of a kind, much valued by Emperor Xia and the princess.


    In this battle, he did not seek victory nor defeat, only that the heart and the sword would connect into one, and that the Sword Way would be flawless.


    "Sword." Wang Chuan spat out a word; it was the first word between the two in this first meeting. There was not an extra word.


    The sound fell, the Sword Qi surged to the sky. The sword of heaven and earth, above the firmament, countless swords descended, surrounding his body, humming and spectacular.


    "Go."


    Another word fell, and thousands of swords broke through the sky in an instant, breaking the air and away from the spirit.


    The Sword Way of all heavens falling like a river of heaven. Each of these thousands of swords was like a divine implement, tearing the void, and slashing the souls. It was truly a sword that contained divine authority.


    Above Ye Futian, there loomed a ruinous light of catastrophe, centering on his body, like the end of days, and thousands of rays of the light of catastrophe exploded at the same time. Every light beam was like a sword, colliding with the onslaught of the Sword Will.


    The sword light and the light of catastrophe madly burst and destroyed, and there was a horrific scene between the two.


    The Sword Will did not extinguish, nor did the light of catastrophe. Ye Futian carried the catastrophe of end days, and continued to move toward Wang Chuan, like a god who was taking a walk in the infinite Sword Will.


    Seeing Ye Futian coming forward step by step, Wang Chuan''s body slowly floated up, and he straightened out his legs that were originally in the sitting position. Like Ye Futian, he also stepped forward, toward Ye Futian. The two did not seem to be in the middle of a battle.


    But every step that was taken gave birth to destructive power that was enough to pulverize sages. The space between the two of them had become an absolute no man''s land.


    The light of catastrophe and the sword light madly entangled and colliding, without any sword skills, magical powers, just confrontation of the simplest kind.


    Wang Chuan''s entire body radiated a flawless sword light, as if his entire person had been integrated into thousands of Sword Will and entered into a state of meditative consciousness. While in this state, Ye Futian actually felt the pressure, and he had a feeling that he was not facing someone who was half-dipped in sainthood, but a true saint.


    "By the Sword Way of three thousand," Wang Chuan spat out a command, and as his voice fell, the sword light of all heavens melded into his body, rendered his body even more radiant, like an illusion, as if it was no longer a physical entity, but a body of sword.


    Thousand rays of sword light dissipated, all of them were integrated into the body of Wang Chuan, but the Sword Will between the heavens and the earth was several times stronger than it was before, as if a qualitative change had taken place.


    The light of catastrophe around Ye Futian''s body was suppressed, and the Way overpowered the rules; under the Sword Way, no rules could exist.


    Wang Chuan borrowed three thousand swords and turned them into the Way.


    Wang Chuan of this moment, represented the Sword Way.


    The man was the sword, was the Way.


    He continued to move forward, and the Sword Will stabbed into Ye Futian''s body, as if to break his body and cut off his spiritual will!

 1042 Lending a Sword

    Ye Futian stood there as countless sword will pierced his body as he was caught in the storm of sword will. Even his spiritual will seemed to have been caught in that Lihen sword will. What he was caught in felt rather familiar to him, like how it was when he was being subjected to the medicine baths and suffering their intense agony. There had been multiple times when he was subjected to his breaking point and almost crumbled.


    The medicine baths provided by Saint Jiang had him breaking his limits all the time back then. The limit of both his physical body and his spiritual will continued to be challenged, making him infinitely near to experiencing the divine calamity. What Wang Chuan subjected him to actually made him feel a sense of familiarity. It was a testament that Wang Chuan''s sword will was infinitely close to the level of divine calamity as well, making him simply one step away from achieving sainthood. Having suffered through the medicine baths meant that the level of sword will attacks he was subjected to then was utterly unable to truly shake him.


    Not enough. The storm of calamity conjured by his spiritual will within his mind seemed to have become even stronger. His physical body rang and shone with brilliant light, seemingly having resonated with the great path. Ye Futian''s eyes were incredibly sharp. It was as if he were to pierce through the great path. He took one more step forward, intending to see what Wang Chuan''s limits were and if Wang Chuan would be able to shake him. An opponent like that was hard to come by, so much so that he had met no one of such prowess before in Emperor Xia''s Realm below the Saint Plane but Xia Qingyuan.


    Wang Chuan''s eyes stayed on Ye Futian. Ye Futian, as one who had trained his ways through his physical body, meant that he was far from being able to reach Wang Chuan''s level, yet Ye Futian was nonetheless capable of taking on his attacks with his physical resilience alone. There was hardly anyone as powerful as Ye Futian in that sense, and he had no idea if Xia Qingyuan would be capable of that, as he had never fought her. However, his mind remained as calm as the surface of a lake. Every single step he took amplified his sword will. The space between the two of them seemed to have burst with a harrowing storm. The high-pitched whipping seemed rather deafening.


    Wang Chuan''s hand extended as he looked before him. Boundless sword will coalesced before his hand, and a sword seemed to be conjured bit by bit. "I shall conjure a sword using the powers of the great path. If you''re able to take this strike, there is probably no one below the Saint Plane who can defeat you," Wang Chuan said. The sword before his hand gradually materialized, pulsing with the will of the way of the sword. It pierced through the space and Ye Futian vaguely felt as if his body was about to be torn apart. All pressure that he was suffering at that moment had actually surpassed that of the medicine baths he went through all those years ago.


    So this is what the so-called "Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane" is. The people of Emperor Xia''s Realm claimed that Wang Chuan possessed powers at the level of Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane and they had been right. He was indeed qualified to be called such. It was a pity that Wang Chuan met Ye Futian. Despite being the Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane, the holy land where he came from would still be reduced to having no one around below the Saint Plane.


    The space seemed to have been frozen solid and everything seemed to have stopped flowing. Ye Futian''s rule powers affected the entire space, yet it was still unable to stop the sword will from flowing. The sword will of his opponent was above the level of his own rules.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Ye Futian extended his hand and the rules conjured a halberd. It was shining all over and it pulsed with powers capable of tearing everything apart. Wang Chuan waited for Ye Futian''s halberd to come into being before lashing out with his sword. That simple thrust seemingly merged his being with his sword into a single entity. That one thrust seemed to be of true swordsmanship.


    A dazzling flash of the sword appeared in the space around them. The currents around them crumbled, and everything seemed to have been reduced to nothing. The space seemed to be truly stifled. One thrust with the sword seemed to have destroyed everything in the world. It seemed to be the other sword thrust capable of doing so.


    Great force shot to the sky from Ye Futian''s body. While his plane was not at Wang Chuan''s and he had yet to comprehend the power of the great path, the terrifying force about him continued as he stepped forward. Light of rules coursed about his body as they were infused within his halberd.


    He thrust his halberd as he saw the sword coming from the other side. Dazzling light burst and a black dot of vortex actually manifested below the devastating sword will. With every inch the halberd moved, the force turned greater.


    I don''t care how strong your sword is, my halberd shall take care of it.


    Both parties had been fighting for quite some time and it was only then that they truly attacked each other. Both were figures at the pinnacle of their training below the Saint Plane. One of them trained in the way of the sword, while the other, in the way of the halberd. Both parties were capable of infusing everything they were capable of into their weapons, bursting with a single thrust, and there was utterly no need for complex methods. As such, both parties never needed more than one attack.


    The sword clashed with the halberd. Abundant sword will was reduced back to the way while the halberd crumbled one inch at a time. The sword crumbled as well as the halberd, being reduced to bits inch by inch as well.


    The terrifying storm pierced through the bodies of both men. If both men had been top-notch sages beneath the 33rd Layer of Heaven, they would have simply torn each other apart. However, both of them continued moving forward. Wang Chuan pointed with his finger after his sword crumbled, and Ye Futian replaced his halberd with his fist. The space rumbled as they kept going at one another.


    The first and the finger clashed in an instant. Boundless sword will pierced through his arm from his fist. His body burst with the light of the sword. At the same time, his fist punched through his opponent''s finger, sending shockwaves into Wang Chuan''s body, where he raged furiously.


    Stifling noises were heard and the actions of both men seemed to have halted altogether. Yu Sheng had finished his battle before things came to that point between the two. Everyone turned their eyes to the battlefield above, then at the two unmoving figures. Things seemed rather eerie at the moment. Eerie sword aura coursed about Ye Futian''s body as they pierced him all over the place, while the sword will on Wang Chuan seemed to have disappeared altogether.


    So, who won?


    The devastating aura circling both men finally dissipated altogether. A terrifying sheen was seen on Ye Futian''s body. Thunderous sound resounded from his body, and the sword will finally dissipated altogether. It seemed as if he had never been hurt by the sword will in the first place. His silver hair billowed in the air and his eyes remained looking brimming, as he gazed at Wang Chuan before him.


    Cough... Wang Chuan coughed and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth. At that moment, the hearts of the swordsmen below shuddered violently and they looked ashen. Big brother actually lost?


    Being the number one figure below Saint Plane of Lihen Heaven and having superb talent in swordsmanship, the seniors of Lihen Heaven claimed that under Saint Plane, Wang Chuan was a plane on his own. At that moment, however, blood was seen from his mouth, and the strength of his aura was dropping quickly. It was as if he had been crippled altogether. It seemed that even his body was barely holding on. It felt as if one had made it to Saint Plane in an instant, yet quickly dropped back down as a mortal.


    Wang Chuan turned around and stepped out in the air. His steps were slow and narrow as if he had been reduced to a complete mere mortal. The skyscraping bearing he had before was nowhere to be seen. He walked before the palace and sat down where he had been before. Wang Chuan then closed his eyes.


    There was no doubt that he lost.


    As someone who had become a semi-saint and almost achieved sainthood, he remained incapable of destroying Ye Futian. In contrast, his opponent had managed to deal considerable damage to him. His internal organs were all rattled and no one knew exactly how many injuries he had sustained, causing his aura to feel so weak.


    Wang Chuan recalled the path of cultivation that he walked all along. He became famous at an early age and had been the focus of everyone else ever since he became a part of Lihen Heaven. His path had been smooth-sailing right up to the point where he entered the 33rd Layer of Heaven and became a personal student of the lord of the Swordmaster of Lihen. He made it to Archmage Plane five years ago, and there were few in Lihen Heaven capable of fighting him toe-to-toe back then. He defeated every single one of his peers below Saint Plane at Lihen Heaven two years ago. Few were even able to make him lash out with a second attack.


    He was lauded as the "Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane" back then. However, he knew that it was now, at this very moment, that he truly became someone befitting the title��someone who was truly one step away from achieving sainthood.


    He knew well that if he were only to keep walking the path that he had walked so far, even if the likes of Ye Futian did not show up, his hard work would have eventually bore fruit and enabled him to become a saint. It would not have made any difference even if he had been able to defeat Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had not appeared at the Upper Worlds for long but had become incredibly renowned. Both Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan held him in very high regard. When he fought the Lihen Heaven''s swordsmen at the Xiao clan''s residence back then and had indeed proved that none of them were qualified to fight him, Wang Chuan knew right there and then that Ye Futian would become a rare rival. He might have been able to fight Wang Chuan and Wang Chuan might have even ended up losing. However, he invited Ye Futian to fight him at the 33rd Layer of Heaven nonetheless.


    If Ye Futian was able to fight all the way up to the 33rd Layer of Heaven and truly defeat every single swordsman of Lihen Heaven, even beating me, what will become of the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven, and what will become of me? Wang Chuan thought. Will our minds in swordsmanship practice be fractured, and our way of the sword become flawed?


    He lost moments ago and his mind was shaken. He was a semi-saint and yet he was unable to shake Ye Futian. There would have been no way that his state of mind would have remained totally unmoved. Everyone in the world would know of his defeat and his reputation would be tarnished. There was no way he could be unaffected.


    No one in Lihen Heaven under Saint Plane had been able to defeat Ye Futian. The gleaming title of being the number one holy land of the sword in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm would be tarnished because of him from then on out. His mind was definitely affected.


    He sat cross-legged and closed his eyes to think. Countless thoughts welled up in his mind in a single instant. Am I practicing the way of the sword for fame, for wealth, or to better my mind?


    "If you feel troubled by anything, then the only to do is simply to cut it down with one swing of the sword." The voice of the Swordmaster of Lihen was heard from the palace at the highest peak. Wang Chuan was shaken. He recalled the way of the sword that he practiced and the myriad of teachings from his teacher.


    Fame, glory, and everything else in the world felt as if they were of no value. There was simply no way one could have always remained undefeated in one''s cultivation to reach the great path.


    Wang Chuan looked up at the Swordmaster of Lihen, then smiled and said, "I understand, teacher." He then turned his eyes at the air before him. His weakened aura spiked and became incredibly powerful in an instant. His sword will shot to the heavens within a single moment.


    He remained seated upright and he said, "There will be one less person in this world tangled by worldly matters of fame and wealth. On the path of the sword, there shall be me, Wang Chuan." He lost, and yet his path leading to sainthood was complete.


    Sword calamity of the great path showered from the heavens above. The clouds rumbled and things looked severe at Lihen Heaven within that instant.


    "Divine calamity." Ye Futian looked up at the sky and his mind was slightly rattled. They stepped into Lihen Heaven''s territory and fought all the way up to the 33rd Layer of Heaven. However, Wang Chuan ended up using his ordeal to reach sainthood and his mind was elevated.


    Wang Chuan lost but had become a saint.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt the turn of events to be ridiculous and something did not sit well with him.


    "Thank you." Wang Chuan looked straight ahead at Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s expression was a complex one. It was not only him. Even the swordsmen at the 33rd Layer of Heaven did not know what to feel about the turn of events. Is Brother Wang Chuan setting himself as an example here? they wondered.


    At that moment, an unflinching gaze shot towards Ye Futian and his people. Ye Futian felt something and looked up. The Swordmaster of Lihen was looking at them. Ye Futian felt as if that one look from the Swordmaster of Lihen had penetrated his being, seeing all that doubt and struggle in his mind.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen then looked at Ye Wuchen, who was right behind Ye Futian. A sword shot down from above straight into Ye Futian. That sword was conjured from the body of the Swordmaster of Lihen himself.


    Ye Futian was totally startled and turned around to look at Ye Wuchen. He saw the sword punch right through Ye Wuchen''s body, which was then coiled around by unparalleled sword will in his entire being. That sword seemed to have seeped into his body.


    Ye Wuchen felt as if his entire body was about to be torn apart. The sword will raged in a frenzy within. Slivers of terrifying sword will coursed about his body. At that moment, he had instead chose to close his eyes and let the sword will rage on. The sword will about him grew increasingly strong. It continued until his way of the sword became elevated and he broke into Archmage Plane.


    Ye Wuchen opened his eyes and there seemed to be sword will in his eyes. He then looked up at the Swordmaster of Lihen above with a complicated expression as well.


    "Your mind of the sword is pure. I shall lend you my sword then." The Swordmaster of Lihen''s voice sounded fleeting as it came from above.


    Ye Futian turned around and looked at the Swordmaster of Lihen, with a tinge of regret in his eyes. He then bowed to the air and turning around, saying, "Let''s get out of here."

 1043 A Man Being A Plane of His Own

    Countless were standing before the layers of palaces of Lihen Heaven.


    Ye Wuchen was able to throw his weight around with his way of the sword and Yu Sheng had been unnervingly overpowering. They all made it up to the 33rd Layer of Heaven and everyone was eager to learn of how things ended up there, but they were unable to do anything but wait. Everyone, instead of the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven, was waiting eagerly. There were countless others who gathered below Lihen Heaven, including top-notch figures from all over Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    That was the very first day of Year 10021 of Divine Prefecture Calendar. Ye Futian went to Lihen Heaven and was about to fight Wang Chuan. Xia Qingyuan the princess would have served as the witness, making the fight one that caused quite a stir. No one knew how Ye Futian and his people had been able to get to.


    The powers of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng would definitely allow them to get to the 33rd Layer of Heaven. Will they be able to come back in one piece from the 33rd Layer of Heaven though?


    "Look!" someone shouted in the crowd. Countless turned their eyes to the air. Terrifying light of calamity of the great path appeared. It got increasingly strong as the skies changed. Every single beam seemed like a sword of the great path.


    "Divine calamity." The minds of many shuddered. Someone actually made it to become a saint. Furthermore, it might have very possibly been one from the 33rd Layer of Heaven. They had originally thought that Ye Futian''s entourage would take some time despite being able to get to the 33rd Layer of Heaven. No one expected the fight to conclude so quickly.


    "Is it Ye Futian or Wang Chuan?" someone seemed to be mumbling to themselves. They naturally thought of Ye Futian and Wang Chuan first when it came to making it through divine calamity.


    "While Ye Futian is indeed formidable, his plane should still be quite a long way away to get that far. Wang Chuan, on the other hand, has been an upper-level archmage for years. He was already at the pinnacle of Sage Plane two years ago. He attacked with only one single stroke in that battle seven days ago. He was already half a saint by then," someone said, and the other one who mumbled earlier did not say anything further. There was no doubt that if it were one between the two achieving sainthood, it would definitely be Wang Chuan.


    "So Wang Chuan won then?" someone else asked. "He invited Ye Futian for a battle at Lihen Heaven so that he would defeat Ye Futian at the 33rd Layer of Heaven and have his way proven then?" Many thought so. That battle should have been won by Wang Chuan. He would not have been able to achieve sainthood otherwise. They were not the only ones who thought so. Most of the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven shared that opinion.


    At that moment, Ye Futian stepped down from the 33rd Layer of Heaven. Everyone around watched them as they made it through the layers. When he passed by, Lu Cheng, Fengxiao and some others stared at Ye Futian coldly.


    "No one below Saint Plane in Lihen Heaven is capable of beating you, eh?" Fengxiao said in a sarcastic manner. She thought that Brother Wang Chuan had defeated Ye Futian in that battle and became a saint afterward. Ye Futian, on the other hand, seemed to have asked to be humiliated with what he did. However, he saw those harsh words as nothing but jokes.


    Ye Futian took one look at her. If what just happened at the 33rd Layer of Heaven had not happened, he might have actually replied. But, at that moment, he was not in the mood. That look he gave Fengxiao was a plain, uncaring one. He ignored her altogether and continued walking. There was no doubt that Fengxiao was exceptionally talented for being able to train at the 11th Layer of Heaven, and she was presumably a future candidate for sainthood. However, if she were to find out the truth, her mind would have been so rattled that her path to sainthood would have turned out much more difficult. But then, none of that had to do with Ye Futian.


    The calamity of the great path ceased as they walked down. Wang Chuan was able to make it through the calamity of the great path at the 33rd Layer of Heaven. Many from Lihen Heaven smiled. Yet another saint was born in Lihen Heaven, and one who had been an incredibly renowned and high profile one.


    Ye Futian and his people felt more like lonely guests. They came with great force and left Lihen Heaven in silence. That seemed to have made many swordsmen of Lihen Heaven cement their speculations.


    When Ye Futian and his people appeared below Lihen Heaven, countless eyes stared at him. The Village Chief, Qin Zhuang, and the others were waiting below as well. It was only natural that they were aware of the discussion. Ye Futian emerged. The ones who were waiting said and asked nothing. After having fought that sacred battle outside the Holy Zhi Palace years ago, they knew too well to even assume that Ye Futian lost. The fact that Wang Chuan became a saint after the fight did not matter. It was just that something might have happened during the fight.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said to the Village Chief, who nodded and manned the sword. The entourage stepped onto the huge sword and flew away right there and then.


    "What happened to that battle?" Countless watched the figures who left. So they just leave without saying anything? Judging from Ye Futian''s expression, did the fight end up shaking him so much that his state of mind became affected? He claimed that none below the saints of Lihen Heaven would be able to fight him. He lost, and it is no surprise that his mind is affected.


    The discussions went on and someone claimed gleefully, "See, I told you. Wang Chuan would definitely win. The number one figure below the saints is now a saint." There were always post-factum wise men around, regardless of day and age. But then again, it remained a fact that none of them knew what the truth of the battle was truly like.


    Ye Futian left but the crowd remained unwilling to disperse. Someone continued to watch the sky until the divine calamity ceased altogether and Wang Chuan truly emerged a saint. It was only then that they reluctantly left.


    The news of Ye Futian''s defeat began to spread everywhere. Countless talked about the battle as if they had been there themselves and witnessed the entire battle. Many saints emerged at the 33rd Layer of Heaven of Lihen Heaven after Wang Chuan attained sainthood. They all naturally knew of the outcome of the battle. Despite being saints, they still felt rather restless.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen then looked at the saints and said, "I''ve been on pilgrimages throughout the realms and have fought several great battles, suffering several defeats as well." Many looked up at the swordmaster and felt rather shaken deep down. The Swordmaster of Lihen, the number one swordsman of Emperor Xia''s Realm, had actually suffered several defeats out there.


    "As cultivators of the great path, who in the world dares to claim that they shall never be defeated?" The Swordmaster of Lihen spoke calmly and then continued, "This battle shall be a lesson. Lihen Heaven is a place for learning swordsmanship, and that is all. This holy land is not the number one holy land of the sword." The people of Emperor Xia''s Realm all claimed that he was the number one swordsman, yet that was in no way to say that he shall forever be undefeatable. The Swordmaster of Lihen finished. He turned around and left.


    The saints felt rather shaken still. The state of mind of the swordmaster had been elevated to an even higher state. There was none in the world who was free of ego.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    Cultivators were not exempt even if they were to become saints. As such, there had been cases of the Sword Saint of Liyang sending out swordsmen of Lihen Heaven to regain face lost for the holy land. If they were to continue to succumb, no one would be able to tell how things would end up in the future.


    Wang Chuan seemed to have merged with his surroundings into a single entity at the moment. His aura was stable and conserved. He looked below Lihen Heaven and said, "We shall always remember the words of our teacher. Lihen Heaven claimed to be the number one holy land of the sword all the time, and today''s battle shall be a lesson."


    "Brother, what was Ye Futian actually like?" some swordsman below, who had been defeated by Yu Sheng before, asked. They were still unable to understand that as powerful as their brother had been, he nonetheless lost.


    Wang Chuan turned his gaze far away. His expression was a fleeting one as he said, "You all once claimed that I was a plane of my own among the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven. However, from today''s battle, I shall tell you that below Saint Plane, Ye Futian is on a plane of his own, while all others are of other planes." He then turned around and continued, "Despite having become a saint, I still need to train in silence for a period of time."


    The swordsmen below froze. They never expected Brother Wang Chuan would have such a high opinion of Ye Futian, so much so that he appraised Ye Futian with words that his elders had once appraised him with. Below Saint Plane, Ye Futian was a plane on his own, while others were of other planes.


    ��


    There was no way Ye Futian would learn of Wang Chuan''s praise of him. He was riding the sword with the Village Chief after all. The wind blew on him as he stood quietly at the forefront of the huge sword. His clothes flapped about in the wind and his silver hair danced wildly. Despite having won the battle, he did not feel what he once felt after winning. He was steeped in deep thought instead. He recalled the scenario when he trained in the cottage back when his Third Brother and teacher were always the ones teaching him. There were countless cultivators in the world, and only people of an open mind would be able to make it as sages. Attaining sainthood had even stricter requirements on the state of mind. A lacking state of mind would have never been able to make such a breakthrough.


    Despite the reasoning, the so-called flawless state of mind actually differed from one person to another. Some made all the way to become saints due to hate, some due to resentment, and some were so bigoted that their state of mind actually proved flawless. As long as one was able to maintain their state of mind until there were no openings to be found, such states would then prove flawless.


    Wang Chuan''s plane was truly at the very edge of the pinnacle and he was really one step away. The battle with Ye Futian proved that his state of mind was indeed flawless, and then he made to become a saint.


    Ye Futian''s teacher, Douzhan, protecting his principles with his life at the Battle of the Holy Zhi Palace. He was then able to break through the limits of his physical body, elevating his plane and making him a saint.


    Everyone had things that they needed to hold fast to.


    Ye Futian actually thought that the Swordmaster of Lihen was actually acting out against Ye Wuchen back there. However, the swordmaster never said anything. When they made it all the way through the 33rd Layer of Heaven, he had lent a sword to Wuchen and helped the young sage make it further. He did not know what the swordmaster was holding fast to, but that state of mind alone made Ye Futian felt rather ashamed of himself. It might have been time for him to quiet down and train for a period of time. He was not all that far from becoming a saint, after all.


    Ye Wuchen walked towards Ye Futian quietly and cast his gaze far away. The swordmaster lent him a sword, and that shaken him considerably as well.


    "The sword lent by the Swordmaster of Lihen is still with me," Ye Wuchen said quietly.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. "The number one swordsman of Emperor Xia''s Realm is really above us."


    Ye Futian took one deep breath, and smiled all of a sudden, becoming able to let go. He then looked at Wuchen''s empty sleeve and said with a smile, "Wuchen, you''re now an upper-level archmage yourself. The path leading to sainthood is no longer all that far away. The swordmaster claimed that your mind of the sword is pure, so you''ll definitely be able to make it as a saint. After attaining sainthood and being baptized by the great path, emerging as a new being, your arm might actually be restored."


    Ye Wuchen took one look at his left sleeve and said, "It''s been years. I''ve gotten used to it."


    "Yeah. We''ve been around for this many years in the blink of an eye, so much so that you''ve gotten used to it." Ye Futian smiled, as did Ye Wuchen.

 1044 The Four Tiers of the Divine Path

    The curtain was closed on the 10,021st year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar with a battle between people at the peak of what was possible below the Saint level. Afterward, Wang Chuan embarked upon the Divine Path. The news of Ye Futian''s defeat shocked Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    But no one from Lihen Heaven would talk about it, and there were even rumors that Wang Chuan had evaluated Ye Futian very highly, saying that he stood on his own level. His high evaluation of him made the other cultivators of Lihen Heaven throw themselves into their own training. This made people wonder if it had been Wang Chuan who had won or Ye Futian. Could it have been a draw?


    The two men of talent obviously appreciated each other, and this battle had allowed Wang Chuan to advance to the next level. Had this ended the battle between them? Given the ambitious character that Ye Futian had shown before, if he had won, he would not have held his tongue and would have instead mocked Lihen Heaven. It was said that after the battle, he had gone back to the Cottage to lose himself in cultivation. It was as if this battle between geniuses had never happened.


    Princess Xia Qingyuan never mentioned the battle either, making everyone even more curious about what had happened. What had happened on the 33rd Level of Lihen Heaven?


    The days passed, and people''s interest in the battle gradually cooled. Important things happened in Emperor Xia''s Realm every day, and the people''s eyes would not remain fixed on a single battle forever. This was especially true over the past few days. It was said that the top forces had been summoned to Emperor Xia''s Palace, and Princess Xia Qingyuan had summoned the cultivators from the Lower Realms that she had chosen in the past to come to the Upper Realms. In addition, many Saints from the Nine States came to Emperor Xia''s Palace as well. As the news of this spread out, many people understood what it meant: ten more years had passed.


    At that time Ye Futian was at the villa cultivating. His state of mind had changed after the battle, and now he was firmly fixed at the upper Sage level.


    His next goal was the Saint level.


    Yaya and Glass Saint were also there cultivating. With her reincarnated body, Yaya''s state of mind was already in the right place, so she only had to increase her level. Thus, her rate of progress was extremely fast, and she grew far stronger each day. And she was receiving her instruction from incredibly powerful Glass Saint.


    Ye Futian sat beside Yaya and whispered, "Yaya, how is the Saint plane divided up?"


    Looking straight forward, she replied, "Some people say there are three tiers of the Saint plane, and some people say there are four. Very few people reach the fourth tier, but if you want to reach Renhuang''s plane, you have to reach this fourth tier first.


    "The first tier of the Divine Path consists of proving your holiness. Your state of mind is without blemish, your faith is firm, and you must pass across the catastrophe of the Divine Path. Most of the Saints of the Nine States are at this tier. At the second tier of the Divine Path, you know your true self, and thus it is called the True Self Plane. Your state of mind is even more firm and pure. She is on this tier, but now she is a little confused. She hesitates on this tier, trying to find her true self." Yaya looked at Glass Saint. In the past, all she had wanted was to kill the Great Zhou Sacred King, and her mind was firmly set on that. But she had run into difficulties and was unable to advance to the next step. After the Great Zhou Sacred King had died, she had been severely wounded and her level was very unstable now. Although her swordsmanship was coming along well, she was not advancing in terms of her level.


    "She needs to undergo a change in her state of mind in order to advance to the third tier of the Divine Path. This tier is close to the level of perfection and is called the Flawless Holiness. No one in the Nine States has reached this level. Saint Xia and Saint Li are the closest, but it will still be difficult for them to reach it.


    "At the third tier you are already tending towards perfection, as for the fourth, it is called the Legendary Plane or Holy Nirvana. In order to go even higher and reach the Renhuang Plane, it is first necessary to achieve Nirvana." Yaya spoke slowly as she introduced Ye Futian to the four tiers of the Saint plane.


    "What is the highest tier that you ever got to?" asked Ye Futian.


    "I achieved Nirvana." Yaya did not hide anything and spoke directly. Ye Futian looked at her, then reached out and patted her head. It felt great to have a legendary sister who had achieved Nirvana. In the future, he would rely on her more.


    Yaya''s face grew dark and she bit her lip, but it seemed that she had already become used to this guy''s shocking behavior. There was no use resisting it, she knew that Ye Futian still looked at her as the old Yaya and did not want her old personality to disappear.


    "What about the Swordmaster of Lihen?" he asked as he pulled his hand back. Right now, the Swordmaster of Lihen was the best swordsman in Emperor Xia''s Realm. He must have reached the Legendary Plane.


    "So many years have passed, he must have had many years of Nirvana," answered Yaya.


    Ye Futian was not surprised. With his supernatural state of mind, the Swordmaster of Lihen was known as the best swordsman, so there was nothing strange about him entering the Legendary Plane.


    "How many Saints in Emperor Xia''s Realm have achieved Nirvana?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "I don''t know much about the cultivators in Emperor Xia''s Realm, but there are probably a few at the third tier of Flawless Holiness. There can''t be more than ten who have achieved Nirvana though," answered Yaya.


    Ye Futian nodded. He trusted Yaya''s judgment. If the number of people who had achieved the peak of what was possible below the Saint level was so small, then the number of people who had achieved Nirvana would be even smaller.


    The sound of footsteps came from behind him. He turned and saw the Village Chief, who said, "Someone has come from Emperor Xia''s Palace, saying the Princess has summoned you to the palace."


    "Xia Qingyuan?" Ye Futian was a bit confused. He didn''t know why she would be looking for him. These past few days, he had been cultivating diligently and had not paid attention to the affairs of the outside world.


    "The Saints from the palace are probably there as well," said the Village Chief.


    A strange look came over Ye Futian''s face. "What has happened?" he asked.


    "The Princess has probably summoned you because of this. If you go you''ll find out," said the Village Chief."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. "Why don''t you come with me?" He had entered the upper levels of the Sage plane, but he was still nowhere near as fast as the Village Chief, and the villa was quite far from Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    "Mmm." The Village Chief nodded and the two of them left, riding on a sword towards Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    ��


    Many cultivators had gathered together in a mighty hall in Emperor Xia''s Palace. Ye Futian walked in with the Village Chief and saw many familiar figures there. He smiled when he saw Douzhan, You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng, Xu Shang, Yuan Hong, and Yun Shang coming towards him, calling out, "Palace Lord!" Six of the Saints from the Barren State were here. Only Saint Jiang was not.


    "Saint Jiang isn''t here?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Saint Jiang only cares about cultivating. You still don''t understand him," said Douzhan with a smile. Everyone in the palace was extremely grateful to Saint Jiang, especially Douzhan. Saint Jiang had played a key role when he had passed through the catastrophe of the Divine Path. If he had not been there then, Douzhan would not be here today.


    Ye Futian nodded. He knew Saint Jiang''s wishes. He smiled and said, "With Saint Jiang and his two great disciples there, the disciples of the palace will improve greatly."


    "Of course, and they also have instruction from us Saints. There is a different scene in the Barren State every day," said You Chi with a smile. "With seven Saints stationed in the Lower Realm, you have no need to worry. And you have been named the Princess''s valet by Emperor Xia. You truly are worthy of being the leader of the Barren State." Everyone looked at him with faces full of smiles. His status as the Princess''s valet was truly extraordinary.


    Ye Futian looked at them all in shock. They were all Saints, shouldn''t this have seemed ordinary to them? It must be because his mood had changed. Now that the Barren State had stabilized, he was in a much better mood.


    That was indeed the case. Their dream had always been to become Saints, and now that they had achieved that, everything was on the right track. How long had Ye Futian been in the Upper Realms? And he had already become the Princess''s valet? And moreover, his fame was growing. They were happy.


    "Futian," said a voice. Ye Futian looked forward and saw three figures coming towards him. He bowed slightly and said, "Greetings, seniors."


    The three who were coming towards him were Saint Xia, Saint Li, and Moon Saint. During the great war in the Nine States, they had all been very close to him, and Moon State had even directly participated in the war.


    "I knew you would become famous in the Upper Realms, but I never would have imagined it would happen so quickly," said Saint Xia with a smile. "But from now on, you can''t face the Princess the same way that you used to." Saint Xia had been sick with worry over Ye Futian. He was far too brazen. But now Emperor Xia had personally given him a title, and now that he had come to the Upper Realms, he would become close with the Princess. He was her valet, after all.


    "Don''t worry, the Princess may have a bad personality, but she is a good person," whispered Ye Futian.


    "You..." Saint Xia pointed a finger at Ye Futian. He was speechless. This guy had the guts to say that the Princess had a bad personality. That was simply...


    Ye Futian smiled when he saw Saint Xia''s reaction. Saint Xia stared at him. This guy''s future was growing brighter and brighter, and now he even dared to tease him.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "I heard that not long ago you went to Lihen Heaven to take care of matters. You should restrain yourself as much as possible," said Saint Xia as he shook his head. But even though he had said this, Ye Futian would probably not listen to him. Legendary figures were always overbearing to the extreme. Ye Futian was obviously this kind of person. There was no use urging him. But Lihen Heaven was the top force in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and this guy had still dared attack them.


    "Do you know everything that happened?" asked Ye Futian.


    "I know a little bit about everything that you''ve done in the Upper Realms," said Saint Xia. "There has not been a man like you in the Nine States for many years. Please don''t disappoint us old fellows."


    Ye Futian thought of Yaya''s evaluation of the Saints of the Nine States and understood what Saint Xia truly meant. Right now there was no one in the Nine States at the third tier of the Saint Plane��the Flawless Holiness. Thus, Saint Xia was full of expectations for him.


    His expression grew a little more solemn, and he nodded seriously. Saint Xia was more or less the leader of the Nine States. He did not expect to get anything from him, but he still had great expectations of him. Thus, he paid attention to what he was doing in the Upper Realms. That was his current state of mind.


    Many other powerful people from top forces were also nearby. Xiao Sheng from the Xiao clan and Gongsun Zhong from Divine Cloud Valley were there, and they were all looking towards Ye Futian. Seeing the Saints gathered around him, they whispered about this unparalleled figure from the Nine States. He truly must be incredibly important down there, for as soon as he came, countless Saints flocked around him.


    But even though he was unparalleled in the Nine States, there was nothing unusual about the people of the Nine States placing so much importance on someone like this. After all, the Lower Realm did not have as many powerful figures from top forces as the Upper Realms.

 1045 The History of the Divine Prefecture

    Ye Futian naturally did not care about what the other top forces thought of him. He turned his gaze and saw some of the most powerful figures who had come. He had seen many of them before, like Lin Shubai from Nine States College, Tong He, and Bai Luli from Jixia Holy Palace. And beside Bai Luli was another powerful figure from Jixia Holy Palace, one of Princess Xia Qingyuan''s Heavenly Chosen Ones. In fact, all of the Heavenly Chosen Ones were here, aside from the ones that he had killed. He knew that these were all people that Xia Qingyuan specifically wanted to train.


    Of course, in addition to the people from the Nine States, there were also some people that Xia Qingyuan had chosen to guard her in Emperor Xia''s Palace, like Tian Ji, the son of the Sacred General of Tian.


    At that moment, a maid came up to Ye Futian and said, "Imperial Bodyguard Ye, the Princess summons you." A confused look came over Ye Futian''s face when he heard he call him. Imperial Bodyguard Ye?


    He looked at the maid and recognized her as the maid who had told him that the Princess would not see him when he tried to enter the palace. She looked at him coldly, as if she was not pleased by this turn of events. She probably thought that he had no respect for Xia Qingyuan. Ye Futian naturally did not want to get into an argument with a maid, and moreover, there was nothing wrong with being called an Imperial Bodyguard. After all, he was the Princess''s personal valet.


    "Go on," Saint Xia said to him.


    Ye Futian nodded and walked forward. All the geniuses of the Nine States watched him with trepidation in their hearts. After all, Ye Futian had grown up with them, and it could even be said that he had risen with their help. But in the last Sacred War, Ye Futian''s reputation as the best in the Nine States had been created, and later in the Battle of Proving Holiness, the Barren State had produced five Saints.


    Later, they had heard that after they left with Xia Qingyuan, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had gone to the Upper Realms, ascended the Sky Stairwell and fought through many layers of heaven to retrieve Ye Wuchen''s life spirit.


    They had heard many more rumors about Ye Futian after coming to Emperor Xias Palace. He seemed to be quite famous in the Upper Realms, and he had been named the Princess''s valet. And now the Princess had invited only him to come over. Did that mean she trusted him?


    Lin Shubai watched Ye Futian walking over with a conflicted look on his face. When Ye Futian had gone to Nine State College to cultivate, he had been nothing more than a talented junior. There had been many small disturbances in the college because of him. He had once reminded Xu Chehan of this, but now he and Little Butterfly had entered the Holy Zhi Palace, and Saint Jiang as well. It was enough to make one sigh. What kind of charm did he have to make Saints act like this? Even his master, Saint Li, regarded Ye Futian highly.


    Ye Futian walked through the crowd to another palace hall. Xia Qingyuan stood there quietly, looking forward so that she could see everyone who was coming in.


    "Princess," said Ye Futian.


    "Come here," said Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian nodded and walked to her side. "Why is it that you have summoned people from both the Upper and Lower Realms?" he asked.


    "Do you know the history of the Divine Prefecture?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian shook his head. "No." He had grown up in remote Qingzhou, and although he had read through many books at Nine States College, he still did not know the history of the Divine Prefecture. He only knew a few things about Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. Moreover, as he got stronger and set his gaze higher, he realized that what he had once thought was the truth was often just rumors. Only by standing in a higher position could one touch the actual truth.


    "In ancient times, the Heavenly Path collapsed, all cultivation was blocked, and the Path transformed into thousands of realms. For thousands of years, powerful figures plundered the heavens and the earth, controlled the Great Path, and enslaved all sentient beings. The world of cultivation became exceedingly strict, and people did as well. The strong became stronger, and the weak had no choice but to submit," said Xia Qingyuan. She spoke calmly as she recounted the history of the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian''s heart trembled as he heard her words. He felt solemn. In ancient times, the Heavenly Path had collapsed. What was the Heavenly Path? What did it mean that cultivation had been blocked and that the Path transformed into thousands of realms?


    In Emperor Xia''s Realm, the rules of the Upper Realms were much clearer and richer, and obviously more suited to cultivation than in the Lower Realm. Xia Qingyuan said that powerful figures plundered the heavens and the earth, controlled the Great Path and enslaved all sentient beings and that the world of cultivation became extremely strict. Did that mean that there was a better place for cultivation? At that moment, he thought of Chess Saint. Although he was a plunderer himself, his words were perhaps not meaningless.


    "What happened 300 years ago?" Ye Futian suddenly asked. He thought of Emperor Ye Qing. 300 years ago, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing had declared themselves emperors of all the world. However, he did not know if what this person from the Lower Realm had told him was true or not.


    "The history of the Divine Prefecture is a history of chaotic looting and plundering. Because the great figures of the age created powerful forces, their plundering of the Great Path became even crueler. 300 years ago, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing declared themselves emperors and rebuilt the world in an ordered fashion. Thus, the Divine Prefecture has been much better off for the past few hundred years, but the fundamental problems still cannot be solved," continued Xia Qingyuan. "But this has little to do with us. Best not to think about it too much." Her father had said that Ye Futian''s background was probably dreadful. She guessed that he might be related to Emperor Ye Qing.


    Ye Futian wanted to know why Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing had fallen out, and why Emperor Ye Qing was taboo in the Divine Prefecture. Everything had been destroyed, and so Xia Qingyuan probably didn''t know. In any case, this gathering probably had nothing to do with any of this. What Xia Qingyuan had said was correct. None of this had much to do with him.


    "Does the History of the Divine Prefecture have to do with this gathering?" asked Ye Futian.


    "What I was just talking about is just the background. Most of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path are under Renhuang''s control, but there are some exceptions. These are the Lordless Realms. For example, not far from Emperor Xia''s Realm there is a place known as the Empty Realm, which was formed from a piece of the shattered Heavenly Path. Now that the Divine Path is not scattered, its will covers the Empty Realm. Many wandering cultivators have gathered there to cultivate. In addition, many cultivators from the realms of the three emperors are stationed there," answered Xia Qingyuan.


    "Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Mm." Xia Qingyuan nodded. "And the Demon Emperor''s Realm that is ruled by the Demon Peacock Emperor. These three realms are neighbors, and the Empty Realm is the area in between them all."


    When Ye Futian was cultivating in the Nine States, he had heard that the Barren State was connected to the Demon Emperor''s Realm, and if you continued West past the Summer State you would reach the Dali Dynasty. In the Upper Realms, this represented the Realms of the Three Emperors.


    "Is this place there for the purpose of helping people understand the way of the Divine Path?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Mm." Xia Qingyuan nodded. "And the Empty Realm isn''t the only place like this. There are many resources for cultivators in the Upper Realms. You did not take part in the Battle of Proving Holiness, but the resources for these battles come from there. These things were formed from the Heavenly Path, and are extremely mysterious. Not only can they help you understand the way of the Divine Path, but they also contain the broken pieces of Great Path that have been refined into sacred spirit stones. When used for cultivation, they have many uses, such as forging divine implements."


    This stirred up Ye Futian''s feelings. He had not been in the Upper Realms for long, but he had already learned how lacking the Lower Realms cultivation resources were. He had never heard of these things. Not long ago, Yaya had taught him of the four tiers of the Divine Path: the holiness of witnessing the Divine Path, the holiness of knowing your true self, flawless holiness, and Nirvana. This had made him realize that one''s state of mind was very important in becoming a Saint.


    What Xia Qingyuan was telling him now made him realize that cultivation resources were also very important. When cultivating it was important to raise your level bit by bit and then understand the Great Path. You needed your level to be stable, and your state of mind to be untroubled. When you had achieved both of these things, you could understand the Divine Path and break through to the next level. His understanding of cultivation had recently become much deeper.


    After the Sacred War, You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng and the others'' mental states were strong enough, but their levels were not high enough. Thus they had participated in the Battle of Proving Holiness, using outside power to understand the Great Path and bring their levels closer to where they needed to be in order to break through to the next plane.


    Master Douzhan was the same way. His mental state had reached where it needed to be, and he had used a battle matrix during the Sacred War to transcend the limits of his flesh and raise his level up to the Divine Path, thus attracting the Divine Catastrophe. Thus, there were two difficulties for a cultivator who wanted to break through to the Saint level, which was why there were so few Saints in the Lower Realm.


    The first was that if your talent was not enough, you would have no way to reach the peak of what was possible below the Saint level. The second was if your mental state was not good enough, you could not succeed.


    For the people of the Lower Realm, the first difficulty was more important. If you didn''t have enough talent, you could not break through the barriers that you would face while cultivating. Therefore, the people of the Nine States greatly cherished the Battle of Proving Holiness.


    This was what the people of the Upper Realms called cultivation resources. For the geniuses of the Upper Realms, these were nothing, and instead, the thing that kept them from becoming Saints was the second difficulty. Of course, this was only relative. The top forces of the Upper Realms had a broad vision. They practiced powerful martial arts and had famous teachers to instruct them. For example, Wang Chuan''s state of mind was so strong that he could even set out on the Divine Path through a defeat.


    Thus, it was much harder for someone from the Lower Realm to become a Saint than someone from the Upper Realms. Things were unfair for them from birth.


    "If this is so important, how does it affect Sages?" asked Ye Futian. The conflict between the three emperors'' realms was a battle between Saints.


    "Which is of less importance, the loss of a Saint or the loss of a Sage?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian suddenly understood. Compared to the Sacred War that had just broken out, more Saints would fall in this one.


    "The three realms have agreed that a battle between cultivators below the Saint plane will decide who has the right to control the Empty Realm for ten years. Of course, Saint level cultivators will go there as well, since people not following the rules happens all too often. So a battle between Saints could break out at any moment."


    Ye Futian nodded. Emperor Xia was there to enforce the rules of Sacred Wars in the Nine States, and no one would dare to go against him. But in this war between the three realms, the rules were nothing more than a three-way verbal agreement. There were no cultivators above them to enforce the rules. Since the rules were set so weakly, they could be broken at any time. It seemed that Li Yao had also come for this same reason, in order to prepare in advance.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.comfor visiting.


    "When do we leave?" asked Ye Futian. He would definitely not refuse. One reason was because Emperor Li''s Realm would take part in the battle, and the other was because he wanted to experience this for himself.


    "I will give seven days for every force to send people here. When the time comes, you will command the forces of the Nine States," said Xia Qingyuan. She was giving her Heavenly Chosen Ones over to him to command.


    "Excellent." Ye Futian calmly agreed to this!

 1046 Truth Hurts

    Seven days later, in Emperor Xia''s Palace, many mighty cultivators gathered.


    Forces from all corners of Emperor Xia''s Realm gathered together; its composition impressive and strong. Of course, apart from the direct forces belonging to Emperor Xia, many of the top forces of the realm came on a voluntary basis. Still, there were also many who did not participate, such as the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven.


    Divine Cloud Valley and the Xiao Clan had the most cultivators in attendance. After all, their relationship with Emperor Xia was an extraordinarily close one, so it was only natural that they would follow Emperor Xia closely. Even though Emperor Xia did not personally participate in this event, since the Princess would personally attend the battle of the Empty Realm, it had already caused a great sensation among the people. This was the first time Xia Qingyuan participating in a direct confrontation involving the imperial realm, therefore defeat was not an option.


    The Xiao Clan was the family of Queen Xiao and were the elders of princess Xia Qingyuan, so it was natural for them to fully support her. From this battle onward, Xiao Sheng would officially become part of Emperor Xia''s Palace. The same was true of the Divine Cloud Valley. The valley master of Divine Cloud Valley was an old acquaintance of Emperor Xia, and Gongsun Zhong was its third generation. Though he was in love with princess Xia Qingyuan, he was afraid to show it, but still, he held out hope in his heart. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    Of all the forces that arrived today, the people of the Upper Worlds formed one camp, while the cultivators of Nine States formed into a different camp.


    Ye Futian also arrived, in the camp of Nine States. It was not just Ye Futian or Yu Sheng, but Yaya, Glass Saint, and the Village Chief would also be attending this time, and the Empty Realm would be a suitable place for Yaya to continue her cultivation.


    Xia Qingyuan stood on the stairs in front, and looking down from the sky, she said, "This time in the Empty Realm, those elected from the Nine States shall be directly commanded by Ye Futian as their own independent camp." All the saints who heard her glanced at Xia Qingyuan and thought that the Princess indeed thought highly of Ye Futian, as she was having him command those who were divinely selected. However, this was not unexpected, as Ye Futian now possessed the talent, strength, status and all of the qualifications to make him a suitable candidate for this role. However, it also implied how highly Xia Qingyuan regarded Ye Futian.


    The top forces of Emperor Xia''s Realm had many strong and powerful cultivators, and they were followed by many other cultivators, forming a self-contained camp led by the best of them, such as Xiao Sheng, Gongsun Zhong, and Xuanyuan Ao. Now Ye Futian, along with his group and the divinely selected from the Nine States, although not as strong in numbers, was still able to form a camp of his own, enough to keep up with the top forces of the other camp.


    As for the camp of Emperor Xia''s Palace led by Xia Qingyuan, there was no more that needed to be said except that not all the powers were present there. Two great armies had already arrived in the Empty Realm. Not only that, but in the Empty Realm, Emperor Xia also had his own principalities. Although the Empty Realm was not as vast as Emperor Xia''s Realm, it was a complete one.


    For those divinely selected in the Nine States to be commanded by Ye Futian, some had no disagreement, but there were also some who had other ideas. They thought that they would be following the Princess, but now, were they to follow Ye Futian instead? It seemed that Ye Futian had gone farther than they had and had a different relationship with the Princess.


    "Princess," guards came over and bowed at the stairs, "Virgin Yao Xi of Yaotai Divine Palace requests an audience with you."


    "What is she doing here?" Xia Qingyuan''s voice was cold. Although Yaotai Divine Palace was also a top force in Emperor Xia''s Realm, it was not very close to Emperor Xia''s Palace. Its remote location was far away from Emperor Xia''s Palace, but recently it seemed that Yao Xi often visited this area, and her motivation remained unclear.


    "She said that she wants to participate in the battle with the army."


    "Let them in," Xia Qingyuan replied.


    "Yes." The guards left, and not long after that, the cultivators of Yaotai Divine Palace came, led by Yao Xi, and attracted countless attention in an instant. After all, the beauty of the Yaotai Goddess was extremely phenomenal, especially Yao Xi, whose beauty was out of this world and incredibly magnificent.


    "Yao Xi greets the princess." Yao Xi bowed slightly to show her respect. Her every move was full of beauty which fascinated everyone.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at that beautiful Goddess, and her voice was colder still. "Did Yaotai Divine Palace only dispatch its sage level cultivators?"


    "To answer the princess, the battle of the Empty Realm is now the battle below the Saint Plane. If it turned into the battle of the Divine Path, the great army of His Majesty would respond. Therefore, Yao Xi only brought the sages to come lend our help to the Princess." Yao Xi''s voice was still soft with a wonderful charm. Even as a woman, Xia Qingyuan had to admit that she was an enchanting creature. Just her voice alone was enough to charm one to the bones and led many to fantasize.


    "After reaching the Empty Realm, you will wait for deployment," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "Yes, Princess." Yao Xi nodded. When she finished, she smiled and walked toward the other direction, where the people of Nine States gathered. Yao Xi''s clear and pure eyes were full of smiles, enough to make anyone who beheld them feel their heart skip a beat.


    "Master Ye, we meet again." Yao Xi smiled at Ye Futian.


    "Goddess." Ye Futian nodded in return.


    The people of Nine States, when witnessing this scene, all expressed a surprised look, silently watching Ye Futian. Who exactly was this b*stard? In the short time since arriving in the Upper Worlds, the princess clearly favored him, and now this magnificent Goddess greeted him first rather than any one of the powerful characters of the Upper Worlds, this��


    Never mind the people of the Nine States, even Ye Futian himself did not quite understand.


    "Recent rumors in Emperor Xia''s Realm say that in the battle of the 33rd Layer of Heaven in Lihen Heaven, Master Ye was defeated, but Yao Xi does not believe it. Seeing Master Ye today, I would like to ask Master Ye, how exactly did the battle go?" Yao Xi asked smilingly. The rumors in Emperor Xia''s Realm said that Ye Futian was sorely beaten. To be asked by another person, it might seem a bit rude. If Ye Futian was indeed defeated, it would be more like a deliberate attempt at humiliation, so no one would take the prerogative to ask such a question. However, when Yao Xi spoke, her speech and demeanor did not make anyone feel that there was anything inappropriate with the question, and no one would even consider it as an insult. It was as if she had complete confidence in Ye Futian. In fact, many cultivators of the Upper Worlds also wanted to know the reality of that battle, so their eyes were all fastened on Ye Futian.


    "I won, but so did Wang Chuan," said Ye Futian. In that battle, he had made a breakthrough in his state of mind and his level had become higher. Wang Chuan especially had changed his mindset and had passed the Divine Catastrophe and become a saint. Therefore, there were no losers really; they both won. If no such thing had happened on the 33rd Layer of Heaven, he would probably have said something blatantly humiliating about Lihen Heaven, but he did not do so now.


    Yao Xi''s eyes twinkled, and she continued to gaze at Ye Futian. She smiled lightly, "Although I don''t know what that really means, since Master Ye said that both won, then it must be so."


    "Winning is winning, defeat is defeat, how can both win in a battle?" Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley piped up. Even if the battle was a tie, it would only be possible to say that both were unbeaten. Ye Futian''s words were somewhat ridiculous.


    Ye Futian looked at Gongsun Zhong. The Xiao Clan wanted to groom Xiao Sheng in Emperor Xia''s Palace, following Xia Qingyuan, and become her most trusted right-hand man. Xiao Sheng was unhappy about Xia Qingyuan and Emperor Xia''s interest in him. But what could be the reason for Gongsun Zhong''s hostility toward him? Was it because Xiao Sheng wanted to marry his sister Gongsun Ni? Or, was there a reason similar to Xiao Sheng''s?


    "One day, if you can reach the realm of Wang Chuan, perhaps you will understand." Ye Futian did not expound further, but made a blunt declaration. It was equivalent to saying that the realm of Gongsun Zhong was not as advanced as that of Wang Chuan.


    Although that day, Wang Chuan took thousands of swords down the mountain to slay the people Emperor Li''s Realm, many had thought that Wang Chuan was the first person under the Saint Plane in Emperor Xia''s Realm and even Princess Xia Qingyuan may not be able to surpass him. Even though Gongsun Zhong also had a reputation as being one of the best under the Saint Plane, it was probably not quite the same as Wang Chuan. But an unspoken thought was different than Ye Futian''s public declaration, and it did not leave him any room to stand down. Moreover, Ye Futian stated that he and Wang Chuan had both won, which implied that he placed them in the same position. Now that he declared that Gongsun Zhong was not on the same level as Wang Chuan, was he also insinuating that Gongsun Zhong was not as good as he was?


    Gongsun Zhong stared at Ye Futian and calmly said, "Wang Chuan has already broken into the Saint Plane. I''m clearly not at the same level as him, but what about you?"


    "From the 33rd Layer of Heaven in Lihen Heaven, Ye Futian and Wang Chuan battled, Ye Futian was the winner." At this time a voice was heard, making everyone''s heart tremble. Everyone turned their attention to the person who had spoken. It was the only figure on the stairs��Xia Qingyuan.


    In the battle of the 33rd Layer of Heaven, Xia Qingyuan was a personal witness; who would dare to question her words? In that battle, Ye Futian was the winner.


    Everyone present was stupefied. Many had speculated that Ye Futian was defeated, and some had speculated that the battle was a tie, hence Ye Futian''s tight-lipped insistence that both of them had won. But no one had thought that it was Ye Futian who had won.


    If he had won, why was Wang Chuan the one who broke into the Way?


    Why was he looking thoughtful when he came down the mountain that day?


    Why did Ye Futian never again humiliate Lihen Heaven?


    Many people were puzzled, and Yao Xi looked toward Ye Futian. Her eyes revealed a strange splendor.


    "Even though Wang Chuan was defeated, he used the defeat to enter the Way, eschewed the shackles in his heart and detached himself from winning and losing. He attracted the Divine Catastrophe but was able to enter the Divine Path. Ye Futian''s pronouncement that Wang Chuan also won was not an incorrect statement," Xia Qingyuan continued. Her voice was calm, but every word was whipping Gongsun Zhong''s heart. She continued, "Do you have any more questions?"


    Gongsun Zhong''s state of mind had been shaken. If it was simply the news that Ye Futian defeated Wang Chuan, it would not have affected him much. However, a supposedly simple dialogue today put him into a trap. At the end, when Xia Qingyuan announced the result of the battle, it undoubtedly stung his heart deeply.


    Ye Futian had won but he was not arrogant. He had not mentioned anything of the battle, even claiming that Wang Chuan had also won. But because of his persistence in asking for the details, attempting to force Ye Futian to admit his defeat in front of Xia Qingyuan, the level of the two men was now clear as day.


    Many people looked at Gongsun Zhong with sympathy. Although Xia Qingyuan did not reprimand him, this was a trap that he had dug for himself. Xia Qingyuan''s simple announcement of the truth about the battle was enough to bruise him.


    "The world misunderstood that battle, saying that Palace Lord Ye was defeated, and yet Master Ye never explained it, and even today, he pronounced that both won. This kind of generosity..." Yao Xi looked at Ye Futian with a smile.


    "Departure." She had not finished when Xia Qingyuan interrupted her and made a command coldly, which stunned many!

 1047 Leader of the Troops

    The Empty Realm was located in the middle of the three major imperial realms. The endless and massive Empty Realm was shrouded in the boundless brilliance of the Great Path. Mysterious and unfathomable, a horrific light of Great Path was everywhere, and even had faintly condensed into physical form, creating a huge light screen that enveloped the entire Empty Realm like a boundless matrix.


    This land without a master was, in reality, governed by all three imperial realms, and it had been the cause of many explosive wars. Later, the three imperial realms agreed that the right to control the Empty Realm should be determined by the confrontation under the Saint Plane, rotating every ten years. This would avoid the never-ending battles of friction where no one would willingly give up control. Once every ten years was a term acceptable to all three imperial realms.


    However, the Empty Realm was not sparsely populated because it was without master. On the contrary, the Empty Realm was extremely prosperous. Its martial traditions were extremely robust because the entire realm was bound by the rules of the Great Path. Many cultivators in the Saint Plane had crossed infinite distances and spaces to cultivate here. Over time, many characters of the Saint Plane had gathered at the Empty Realm. Some top principalities of faraway holy lands had even led the descendants of their clans to come here to cultivate, just as Xia Qingyuan had done in the beginning to go to other realms for experience. Over time, many cultivators even settled down in the Empty Realm, so that the Empty Realm of today could be said to be very populated.


    Of course, the Empty Realm was not a place of unrestricted access. In order to enter the Empty Realm to cultivate, a payment of sacred spirit stones was required as the entrance fee. Therefore, every ten years, the governing realm of the Empty Realm could obtain a large number of sacred spirit stones. Furthermore, this was just a glimpse of the resources offered by the Empty Realm.


    At this time, above the sky of the Empty Realm, suddenly a loud sound was heard, and the void seemed to tremble. Then, an incomparable golden light screen appeared, and countless many looked up at the sky and saw that there was a huge diagram of a matrix, like a massive matrix of space, with a beam of light shooting from the sky and falling to one side of the Empty Realm. In that direction, there was an ancient city, with many flags flying in the city, engraved with the majestic character of Xia.


    "The people of Emperor Xia''s Realm have arrived," countless people who saw this scene said to themselves. Only the three major imperial realms could make an appearance like this in the Empty Realm.


    Not long ago, the armies of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Emperor Li''s Realm, and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm descended and made camp. Today would be the arrival of key battle participants. Moreover, the armies that descended this time were very strong. The two great armies that were deployed were the army of Tian and the army of Dou in Emperor Xia''s Realm. These two great armies were controlled by Sacred General Tian and Sacred General Dou, with strong combative powers. The Sacred General Tian ranked number one among the eight Sacred Generals, so one could imagine the importance of this battle.


    Many suspected that the leader of this war would likely be the most adored Little Princess in Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan. As of now, she should be at the pinnacle of the Sage Plane, and it was possible that she would use this battle as the first battle after the growth she had achieved in cultivation.


    The battle of the Empty Realm itself was meant as a way to temper the army of sages in the three major imperial realms, to train the best of those who were in the Sage Plane. Not only was the army deployed by Emperor Xia''s Realm very strong, but the same was also true for Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. It was speculated that the main participants of this battle would all have surprisingly eminent backgrounds.


    The light beam descended from the sky and fell inside Emperor Xia''s City. Many people had already begun to inquire who would lead the army.


    At this time, in another direction, there was also an extremely radiant beam coming down, and the void trembled once again. A spatial diagram of a matrix appeared in the sky.


    The cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm had descended.


    Boom. There was a dull sound that came, and in the distance, the light of space sprinkled down, rocking the void. Terrible demonic aura slid down from the sky, followed by many figures who descended with the beam of light, falling inside the Demon Peacock City. The three imperial realms seemed to have had made an agreement and had come one after another.


    This sensational news spread quickly in the Empty Realm. The three imperial realms, as if with some tacit understanding, had all chosen their royal descendants as leaders of the armies.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm��Princess Xia Qingyuan led the army and descended.


    Emperor Li''s Realm��Prince Li Yao led the army and descended.


    The Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm��the one and only twin siblings, Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan.


    At once, the Empty Realm was shaken to its core. In the wars of years past, there had never been such a situation where all three imperial realms were led by the prince or princess of the realm.


    The battle this time was possibly the grandest battle of the Empty Realm in a hundred years. It could even be a battle that would determine the status of the three major imperial realms going forward. After all, it would be a direct confrontation among the descendants of the three great imperial realms, and Xia Qingyuan and both Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan were reputed to be the most outstanding descendants of Emperor Xia and the Demon Peacock Emperor.


    ��


    In Emperor Xia''s City, the cultivators led by Xia Qingyuan descended from the sky and landed in the center of Emperor Xia''s City in the Empty Realm.


    In front, there were many cultivators coming toward this side. The two who were leading had an unusually majestic aura and strapping physique. Both carried themselves with authority. Although there was no detectable breath being released, they still gave out an extremely suppressive power. Behind them, there was a group of cultivators in the Saint Plane, and further back was a horrific army of sages. At first glance, it was all great and strong cultivators.


    Ye Futian and others from the Nine States trembled in their hearts. This was the war of the Upper Worlds. It was on a much grander scale than the Sacred War that had involved the ten holy lands. Moreover, this was the battle for the ten-year control of the Empty Realm. If it was a real battle of Renhuang''s Realm, what would it look like? Just imagining it gave people pause.


    It was rumored that there had been many battles of extinction in the past. Before Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing unified the lands, the Divine Prefectures were also full of chaos and must have been even more so than today.


    "Princess." The two great Sacred Generals who were in the lead greeted Xia Qingyuan with a slight bow and did not give a formal greeting. After all, they were already standing at the top of the Emperor Xia''s Realm, and as Emperor Xia''s most trusted advisors, even in the presence of Emperor Xia, there was no need for them to perform formal greetings.


    "Princess." Behind the two, the mighty army saluted Xia Qingyuan, and it was a spectacular moment that shocked Emperor Xia''s City. Although the army under the jurisdiction of Emperor Xia was constituted of warriors made of iron and blood, they knew that this princess, who was greatly favored by His Majesty, was not a delicate, sheltered little girl. She was extremely outstanding in her own right and had led the powerful cultivators of all kinds to trial. Even at a young age, she had already traveled through many realms and had survived many conflicts with others. Now, she was personally visiting the battle as the most precious princess of the realm. This itself was worthy of the respect of all military personnel.


    "Two Sacred Generals and everyone, thank you for coming," Xia Qingyuan said to everyone in a clear voice. The war was about to begin, the atmosphere here was a world away from that of Emperor Xia''s Palace, solemn and reverential.


    "In the battle for the Empty Realm a decade ago, Emperor Xia''s Realm was disastrously defeated. Our city was breached and attacked. Not only was the flag of Emperor Xia torn and insulted, but Emperor Xia''s City suffered numerous deaths and injuries, an incredible blow. After the war, many cultivators of the Empty Realm swore their allegiance to Emperor Li''s Realm. Now, ten years have passed. Emperor Li''s Realm has become even stronger with the momentum of their last victory, and he intends to govern the Empty Realm for another ten years. However, since His Majesty allowed the Princess to personally participate in the war, our realm will be able to regain control of the Empty Realm and wash away our shame," the Sacred General of Tian said clearly, not at all avoiding the defeat of ten years ago.


    "That''s not all. For the victory of this war, Emperor Li used inhumane means to forcibly create demi-saint cultivators. He recently came to our realm to boast," Xia Qingyuan said to the Sacred General of Tian. In that battle, Li Yao was not really intending to ask for her hand. The two great imperial realms were on very unfriendly terms; it was not something that would escape Emperor Li. It was merely a pretext to deter them and to test their resolve.


    "It must have been the doing of the imperial advisor of Dali," the Sacred General of Tian said with indifference. Emperor Li''s Realm was also known as the Dali Dynasty. The world was ruled by imperial families so that all clan forces were obliged to obey.


    The imperial advisor of Dali was a cultivator who was neither just nor evil. His cultivation was great and his methods terrifying, and he was also well-versed in the techniques of armory-making as the premier armorer of the dynasty. Aside from armory-making, he was also an expert in the dark arts and was considered to be one of the most terrible existences under Emperor Li in Dali Dynasty. It was said that prince Li Yao of the Dali Dynasty was also a disciple of his.


    "Even so, Emperor Xia''s Realm will win in this battle for the Empty Realm." Xia Qingyuan''s voice was cold and confident.


    At this moment, Ye Futian suddenly vaguely understood why Xia Qingyuan had not wanted him to respond that day when Li Yao challenged him outside of Emperor Xia''s Palace. Perhaps it was because she did not want Li Yao to know his true strength. Afterward, Xia Qingyuan had also not disclosed anything regarding the battle between him and Wang Chuan until right before they left, but she disclosed the results of the battle in Lihen Heaven to everyone.


    Was all this on the account of this battle? He could see that Xia Qingyuan had attached great importance to this war.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    "Since the princess is so confident, there is no reason for us not to win." The Sacred General of Tian nodded in agreement.


    "After this war, all officers here are entitled to their share of the fragments of the Great Path unearthed in the Empty Realm in the next decade. Those who fight extraordinarily will be rewarded further." Xia Qingyuan looked at the crowd. What else would motivate worldly cultivators joining the army of Emperor Xia? It was also for cultivation; to grow by fighting wars of iron and blood. But, of course, it was also for cultivation resources. The fragments of the Great Path were also the sacred spirit stones, and it was undoubtedly an extremely valuable spiritual resource to them.


    At this time, the Sacred General of Tian frowned. He turned back and looked into the distance and said coldly, "The war hasn''t started yet, and Emperor Li''s Realm is already disregarding proper etiquette?"


    "Apologies, Sacred General. Prince Li Yao would like to invite princess Xia Qingyuan, as well as Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan, for a get together in Kongxuan City at the Jiuxiao Tower so all three parties can meet," the messenger spoke clearly in the void.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up into the void and said, "Very well, I will go."


    "I''ll take my leave then," the messenger replied, and the aura of the messenger disappeared.


    "It seems that Li Yao is very confident, and believes that he already has the victory well in hand," remarked the Sacred General of Tian.


    "Let''s go. Since Li Yao invited us to visit, we will go and see about the leaders from Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm," Xia Qingyuan said and then stepped into the void. Suddenly, many people levitated with Xia Qingyuan to depart with her.


    "The army will station here." Sacred General of Tian and Sacred General of Dou would both go, and the army would remain in Emperor Xia''s City. Those who had come with Xia Qingyuan from Emperor Xia''s Palace would follow her!

 1048 Whose Descendant Am I?

    Kongxuan City was the largest city in the Empty Realm with cultivators from various realms found there. It was a very bustling trade city.


    Due to having great path fragments unearthed, the city was known to be a mine of treasures. That, coupled with powerful cultivators gathered from all corners, all sorts of trades were taken place in the city, as great path fragments were of different attributes after all and the ones from the Empty Realm were of the Great Path of Space.


    The Jiuxiao Tower was an extremely renowned place in Kongxuan City. Many powerful saints were there and the place was getting cleared out.


    "Mighty ones from the Dali Dynasty." Many murmured and mighty ones gathered from all corners. Saintly, golden dragons were seen pulling carriages and a group of people appeared making a lavish entrance. The one who was taking the lead was dressed extravagantly and was of superior bearing. That was none other than Li Yao of the Dali Dynasty.


    They quickly settled at the top of the Jiuxiao Tower and waited silently.


    The ones who witnessed the scene knew what was going on. The people who were able to make Li Yao and his entourage wait would have definitely been people of the two remaining forces.


    As expected, another group of mighty ones were soon seen coming through the air.


    "Xia Qingyuan, princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm and two sacred generals." Many turned their heads in her direction. Despite being dressed in men''s clothing, her beauty nonetheless shone through. That was the very first time many laid eyes on the extremely renowned princess from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    As for the group of people at Xia Qingyuan''s side��Ye Futian, Xiao Sheng, Tian Ji and the others��few there knew much of them. They were at the Empty Realm after all and those people would have only heard of the very top notch figures. They naturally knew little to nothing about those at Sage Plane, but the sages from Emperor Xia''s Realm were perceived to be among the very best nonetheless.


    A smile was seen in Li Yao''s eyes when Xia Qingyuan appeared. He then said, "It''s been a while, princess, and you look extraordinary as ever. It''s a pity that I''ve never gotten to see you dressed in women''s clothing, and I wonder if there would be a day when I get to see that, princess."


    Xia Qingyuan''s group descended on the top of the Jiuxiao Tower and took a look at Li Yao coldly, saying nothing in return.


    "It''s entire fine to not respond at all, Princess Qingyuan. My goal in this year''s Battle of Empty Realm is to see you get dressed in women''s clothing after all," Li Yao continued with a smile.


    "How insolent of you," Tian Ji berated him with a cold voice and many mighty ones at Xia Qingyuan''s side looked cold as well. Li Yao had been to Emperor Xia''s Palace to ask for trouble a while ago. With the Battle of Empty Realm about to take place, he had gotten even more unbridled.


    "That is, if you manage to live through the fight," Xia Qingyuan said with a bone-chilling tone.


    "Please rest assured, Princess Qingyuan. I value my life very, very much." Eagerness was seen in Li Yao''s eyes. Xia Qingyuan was not the only one present in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm; the princess of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, Kong Xuan, was there as well. It was a coincidence both princesses were his peers and he found that very delightful.


    Powerful demonic aura was sensed from faraway. The sky trembled and countless turned their heads in that direction. They then saw sacred beasts and great monsters appearing in the air, emanating stifling pressure.


    An incredibly dazzling Roc was seen in that direction, glittering with holy light and looking very dazzling. Every single feather seemed to be things created from gold. Its wings were spread wide as it flew and circled above the Jiuxiao Tower.


    There were a man and a woman, both of which looked extravagant, seen standing on the back of the Roc, which was of sacred beast level.


    The appearances of both figures were extremely exceptional. The man looked demonically alluring and his skin looked as far as that of a woman. He could have been even described to be beautiful.


    The woman by his side looked undeniably stunning, with a perfect, extremely sexy figure. She had stunning looks to go with her demonic figure, looking alluring yet not overly so. There was hardly any flaws to be found on her.


    They were the descendants of the Demon Peacock Emperor, Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan, who were twins.


    Ye Futian looked up at both of them. Judging from looks alone, Kong Zhan''s appearance probably rivaled that of Ye Futian. Kong Xuan''s appearance was on par with that of Yao Xi, yet she was of a totally different kind of beauty.


    "I have heard of sacred beasts being able to take human forms. Both of them are not even saints yet, but how come they possess the ability to take human forms?" Ye Futian asked Yaya, who was by his side, telepathically.


    "The Demon Peacock Emperor is the emperor of the demonic realm. He has unparalleled methods and he is of Renhuang Plane himself. As such, he is long versed in the creation of the world, making him no different from humans, the most intelligent of all beings. Thus, his descendants possess the innate ability to shapeshift." Yaya explained to Ye Futian telepathically. "The Demon Emperor don''t even need to be involved. In truth, the Demon Saint, who is already capable of taking human form, is already capable of such feat. As such, you could see many demonic beasts in the air actually appear in human forms instead."


    "Alright, got it." Ye Futian nodded.


    "It is not someone only demons could do, as humans could actually do the same. Descendants of extremely powerful people possessed innate extreme talents. The greater the ancestor''s powers, the more apparent such signs show in the descendants. Truly extremely powerful figures could just impart their powers to their descendants, or simply meld the great path into their own Life Spirit, which was then passed onto their descendants. Said descendants would then continue to awaken stronger talents as their training grew," Yaya continued to elaborate.


    Ye Futian was awed by her words. So is that to say that my World Tree Life Spirit...harbors the power of great path, which could conjure all things in the world then?


    What level would be my ancestor would have been at then?


    From the looks of things so far, there had never been anyone else who possessed Life Spirits similar to Ye Futian''s, and he dared not bring that up to anyone else as well.


    "Knowing a man by repute is indeed inferior to seeing a man in the flesh indeed. Both are indeed superb." Li Yao then smiled and said, "I''m rather curious then, between Princess Kong Xuan and Princess Qingyuan, who would be the one with superior appearance indeed."


    The demonic eyes of both Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan looked cold as they glanced at Li Yao. Terrifying demonic aura burst from behind them and their eyes turned to look extremely ferocious.


    "I shall take your head apart and feast on your heart. I wonder what the heart of the crown prince of Dali would have tasted like indeed." A demonic figure whose eyes shone with frightening cold light behind Kong Xuan, eyed Li Yao in an eerie manner.


    "Looks like an animal that has not yet truly evolved then." Li Yao glanced at the demonic beast condescendingly and said, "A proposal then. If either Princess Qingyuan and Princess Kong Xuan is willing to serve me, then Dali Dynasty shall share dominion over Empty Realm with the one who is willing to do so. How about that?"


    "Looks like you have a death wish."


    Two voices were heard at the same time. It seemed like Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan, shared a telepathic link as twins. Both of them said at the same time as they glared at Li Yao coldly.


    "Your highness, I shall tear this insolent one apart bit by bit." Another demonic beast was heard saying as they glared at Li Yao coldly. He dared disrespect Her Highness Kong Xuan after all.


    "If you like babbling so much, I shall skip the chatter." Xia Qingyuan then said coldly, "Let''s get on with the sacrifice to the flag then."


    "Well, since you''re in such a hurry, Princess Qingyuan, let''s set the time for flag battle to be three days later then," Li Yao said.


    "That will do," Xia Qingyuan replied.


    "Three days later then," Kong Zhan responded as well.


    "Who would you choose to fight in the flag battle, Princess Qingyuan?" Li Yao looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "I''ve heard that Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven has already made it to Saint Plane and he is not here today. Quite a pity I''d say, I wanted to take my revenge at the Battle of Empty Realm after all."


    He sounded rather lazy and relaxed. It was a good thing for him that Wang Chuan had not been able to participate in the battle. There was no way he would have felt that to be a pity.


    Furthermore, it seemed that there were hardly any swordsmen from Lihen Heaven showing up.


    "Whether Wang Chuan shows or not, the outcome would remain the same, " Xia Qingyuan said.


    "Is that so?" Li Yao scanned the people around Xia Qingyuan and said, "I''ve had a taste outside of Emperor Xia''s Palace a while ago. Tian Ji, son of Sacred General of Tian, Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley, Xuanyuan Ao of Xuanyuan Palace...doesn''t seem like much to me. Who would be the strongest below Saint Plane at the moment in Emperor Xia''s Realm, other than you, Princess Qingyuan, I wonder."


    The eyes of countless youths behind Li Yao looked heated. They were all top notch figures from Emperor Li''s Realm. They were determined to kill several important figures from Emperor Xia''s Realm and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    There were a few who cast their gaze at Ye Futian. Li Yao was perceptive enough to take notice and looked at Ye Futian as well.


    "So this is the guy who challenged Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven a while ago then?" Li Yao turned to look at Ye Futian and said, "We meet yet again."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    He had actually met Ye Futian many times.


    Ye Futian glared at Li Yao with unmistakable killing intent.


    "Seems like you''re not the only one. There seems to be many coming from the lower worlds, even the guy who had acquired the Renhuang lineage before, I see." Li Yao turned his cold eyes at Huang Jiuge. It was Li Yao who discovered the Renhuang lineage back then, and yet he ended up handing the place to someone else in a silver platter instead.


    "Well, since you''re here, how about you stay for a bit? I see that you have superb talent so here is another choice, how about joining Emperor Li''s Realm then? I''d be happy to brush our scuffles before away," Li Yao said to Ye Futian.


    "Let''s go, princess," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan and ignored Li Yao altogether.


    "Didn''t you ask me about Saint Zhi outside of Emperor Xia''s Palace? I was the one who made him did what he did. I''ve taken both his son and wife to Emperor Li''s Realm. If you''re willing to come to my side, I''d be happy to offer them to you." Li Yao narrowed his eyes. So that genius in the Nine States back then is now an important figure serving Xia Qingyuan now then?


    Li Yao had marked Ye Futian to be a target and he deemed Ye Futian someone he needed to dispose of as soon as possible.


    "We''ll meet three days later," Xia Qingyuan said coldly, before turning around and left with the mighty ones at her side.


    "Let''s go," Kong Xuan said as well. The Roc took one look at Li Yao with its golden eyes and took to the air. The mighty ones from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm left as well.


    Li Yao''s eyes were devoid of the smirking and jesting demeanor about them after those people left. His expression became rather serious and said in a serious tone, "Xia Qingyuan is indeed indomitable. I never expected Kong Zhan and Kong Yao of the demonic realm to be such as well. If they prove to be that resilient as well, it seems like we''d have a difficult battle to fight up ahead."


    His provoking words and condescending demeanor were not truly what they appeared to be. On the contrary, Li Yao was taking the upcoming battle with utmost seriousness.


    It was the first important task entrusted to him by his father, and it would have played an important role in determining the course of his future. He was unable to afford to lose.


    "There is no need to be overly concerned, your highness. Teacher has gotten amply prepared this time and we tested what they were capable of outside of Emperor Xia''s Palace. We''d definitely be able to win this," a youth was heard saying by his side.


    "Yeah, and keep a close eye on Ye Futian. If he were to participate in the flag battle three days later, we''d need to be careful with our selection. If the chance presents itself, we''ll have to take him out first." Li Yao''s voice was cold. His intuition was telling him that Ye Futian was extremely dangerous.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian held intense enmity towards him. Killing intent was almost spilling from Ye Futian''s eyes, looking very determined to end Li Yao.


    While Li Yao did not care all that much, it was not a comfortable feeling being glared at like that after all, so he still needed to get rid of Ye Futian as soon as possible.


    "Rest assured, your highness." The people behind him nodded one after another. They were all genius level figures of the Dali Dynasty, and they had absolute confidence in their respective powers!

 1049 Flag Battle

    After the mighty ones from the three realms of the emperors left, one figure after another was seen descending onto the Jiuxiao Tower; all of them were cultivators from Kongxuan City.


    "Seems like the Battle of Empty Realm this year is going to be rather interesting. Who do you think would win?" Someone asked.


    "Emperor Li''s Realm had been dominating the Empty Realm for the past ten years and they had the greatest amount of power accumulated in Empty Realm, enabling them to pull all manner of tricks. With the cultivators from Dali Dynasty added to the list, it was very, very possible that they might have ended up as the winner again."


    "It''s been said that that imperial adviser of Dali had developed new methods and created a bunch of killing machines. It seems like Emperor Li''s Realm is going to bag it again this year."


    "The twins, Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan, had unparalleled combat prowess. It''s been said that the descendants of great monsters of the demonic realm serving the Demon Peacock Emperor had been here to support the twins, in order to secure victory in the upcoming battle. Seems to me that the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm has just as good a chance to come out on top."


    "Yeah, Emperor Xia has claimed that her daughter, Xia Qingyuan, had talents rivaling that of his, which meant she might have became the empress of Emperor Xia''s Realm in the future, so there was no doubt that she was extremely exceptional. But then again, they are not fighting mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm this time, and have to be fighting those of similar levels from Emperor Li''s Realm and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. Li Yao, Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan are probably just as capable as she is. We''ll see if Emperor Xia''s Realm has any secret weapons with them this time around."


    Many talked and judging from the looks of things, Emperor Li''s Realm had the best chance of emerging victorious still. They secured an overwhelming victory ten years ago after all.


    However, things were different at present. The leading figures of the Battle of Empty Realm at the moment consisted of the princes and princesses of the respective realms. Things had never been of such grandeur for the past hundred years or so. If the royalties were leading their forces personally, then their subordinates would have also definitely consisted of the most powerful lineup they were able to gather.


    However, no one would have known of the final outcome until things had gotten to the very last stages. At that moment, all of the spectators were only speculating.


    They were those who had set games in Kongxuan City, betting on who would have emerged as the victor in the Battle of Empty Realm. Many saints put down heavy bets as soon as the games were set.


    It was only natural that most betted on Emperor Li''s Realm emerging victorious.


    ...


    Three days later, the forces from Emperor Xia''s City, Emperor Li''s City and Demon Peacock Emperor''s City, three cities representing their respective realms and laid out in a triangular layout, gathered at the central region between the cities. Stern, solemn pressure was felt everywhere.


    Countless mighty ones emerged in the air from faraway, watching things unfold before them quietly.


    Three grand armies appeared above that area. Their might shrouded the entire area as if they were celestial armies themselves.


    It was the day of the flag battle as agreed by all three sides, which was also the start of the Battle of Empty Realm.


    The mighty ones from the three imperial cities had all left their respective cities and gathered there. One figure after another took to the air and they formed three distinct camps as well. The Sacred General of Tian, the Sacred General of Dou and other saints were high up in the air.


    The saints were forbidden from entering the battlefield and participate in the Battle of Empty Realm, as soon as the flag battle commenced.


    Deciding who would be the ruler of Empty Realm through battles between those beneath Saint Plane had been a consensus reached by the three emperors for many years. None dared to break the rules without good reasons, as any mishap could have resulted in a breakout of war between the emperors'' realms. None of the realms dared to wage a war against one another until they were absolutely sure of it, as the price for doing so would have been too great.


    As such, having one battle held once every ten years and only fought by the sages had been the most peaceful way they had been able to come up with to settle the matter. All three imperial realms had their chance once every ten years, and the losers would have been able to yield easily. If the battle had been one deciding the right to permanent rule of Empty Realm instead, the other two that lost would not have been able to sit well with the result for long.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    While the saints were not participating in the battle, but all three sides nonetheless mobilized a great number of saints there, so as to ensure that none would have flaunted the rules. Things would have turned dire if something untoward were to happen.


    Furthermore, given how it was the royalties leading their armies personally in that years'' battle, they needed to be extra certain of how things proceeded.


    The three forces below stood against each other in a similar fashion. The grand entourage brought about thick might and pressure to the place, making even the spectators standing from faraway felt pressured somewhat.


    A group of people emerged from the army.


    Xia Qingyuan from the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm went forward. Tian Ji was seen bearing a huge flag and walked right behind her. There was an image of the lotus flower on the flag and said flag was none other than the flag of Emperor Xia.


    That day was the day of the flag battle.


    Xia Qingyuan''s side was not the only one doing so, as both Li Yao and the twins emerged as well, coming to the very front of their armies and the flags behind them billowed. The flag of Emperor Li had an image of golden dragon on it while the flag of Demon Peacock Emperor had an image of a peacock.


    "Per the rules of Battle of Empty Realm, after the flag battle, the bloodstained flags shall be placed at the highest point of the three imperial cities. The side with the shaft of their flags snapped shall be eliminated from the battle." Li Yao then continued, "Life and death occurring during the Battle of Empty Realm shall remain as the affair of the battle. Saints are not allowed to interfere. Anyone who violate the rule shall be punished by death. Battle matrixes are forbidden within the imperial cities. Any side that violates the rule shall be eliminated. Other than that, all sages are permitted to participate in the battle."


    "The battle shall be held for three months. If the flags were to remain intact after the duration of three months, the victor shall be determined at this very spot. The victor shall be granted the right to rule Empty Realm for the next ten years."


    Everyone looked serious. The Battle of Empty Realm had been held for more times than they were able to count, so there was no way any of them would have not known about the rules.


    "We shall begin." Kong Zhan''s voice was cold as he turned his eyes at Li Yao.


    "Well then." Li Yao nodded. "The flag battle shall be one to be fought to the death. No divine implements were allowed to be used. The flags shall be stained with blood. I would present to you, my candidate."


    A stout figure was seen walking out from the army of Emperor Li''s Realm as soon as he finished, emanating terrifying power all over him, as if there was no way to conceal his aura. Ye Futian took a look and knew that he was like one of those killing machine warriors fighting outside of Emperor Xia''s Palace back then, who was forced into semi-saint status using special means. However, their planes were unstable and they were no longer able to go further in their training, forever stuck at being semi-saints.


    A mighty one emerged from the side of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, emanating thick, unbridled demonic aura. His body transformed as soon as he walked out, taking the form of a demonic beast. It was a terrifying-looking demonic ape, who was leaking frightening power all over him.


    The flag battle was one that would have determined the morale of the forces in the Battle of Empty Realm. There were three battles to be fought, and in principle, the victors would have been able to stain their flags with the blood of their opponents, by winning one battle each.


    Furthermore, the flag battle was a battle fought to the death. Among the three emerging, only one would have been able to emerge alive, making the fight harrowingly cruel.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm was the last side to field their warrior in the first battle, giving them an edge by allowing them to decide their candidate according to the other two fielded.


    "Who would be the one to fight?" Xia Qingyuan said.


    "I would." A figure emerged. It was Xuanyuan Ao of Xuanyuan Palace. He was one of the most powerful figures under Saint Plane in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and a descendant of Emperor Xuanyuan.


    As a descendant of a Renhuang, Xuanyuan Ao was extremely prideful, yet he was none one of those who lived off the glory of his ancestors and did nothing himself. On the contrary, he had a keen battle sense and possessed an overbearing temperament. Despite the flag battle being one that would have had him fight to the death, he remained staunch in coming out to fight in that very first battle.


    Three candidates emerged and stood at the center between the armies. Terrifying aura swept all over the place.


    Xuanyuan Ao burst with extremely dazzling golden light that looked like the light of Renhuang. An enormous sword appeared. While the blade was not a long one, but it was thick and looked overbearing.


    There seemed to be images carved on the sword and the light of celestial entities coursed on it, while sparks of lightning jumped as well. Xuanyuan Ao was basking in terrifying light all of a sudden.


    "The Xuanyuan Sword Spirit." The mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm gazed at Xuanyuan Ao. As one of the top notch figures below Saint Plane, it was only natural that he was renowned. It seemed like he would have been able to bag that very first battle.


    Li Yao turned his eyes at Xuanyuan Ao as well, whose ancestor was Emperor Xuanyuan and of great renown. There was no way Li Yao would not have known.


    It was said Emperor Xuanyuan had infused the great path''s power on his Life Spirit that enabled him to manipulating powers of the celestial entities as well as thunderstorms. It was then passed down throughout his bloodline and enabled his descendants to possess superior talents from birth.


    The Xuanyuan Sword Spirit that Xuanyuan Ao summoned was indeed terrifying.


    Ye Futian kept his eyes at Xuanyuan Ao as well. He had never spoken to Xuanyuan Ao before, yet he was nonetheless able to sense that Xuanyuan Ao was an extremely prideful person. The man''s ancestor had been a Renhuang after all. Huang Jiuge''s Life Spirit had only been able to be awakened again and became stronger all those years, after inheriting the lineage of his ancestor. Xuanyuan Ao, on the other hand, has had his powers long awakened and had always been extremely powerful.


    As one who was lauded to be among the handful of ''Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane'' in Emperor Xia''s Realm, it was only natural that Wang Chuan had fought him before as well. All the others in that battle were naturally anything but weak.


    His blade was drawn and he blitzed like a streak of lightning at the mighty one from Emperor Li''s Realm. His opponent stepped forward and seemed to be shining with boundless golden light, seemingly having taken an invincible golden form and saintly light burst from within. That mighty figure seemed like a human-shaped divine implement and actually simply lifted his arm, intending to beat down on the Xuanyuan Sword Spirit lashing out at him.


    The flash of the sword dropped with a loud boom. The light of the celestial entities showered and lightning crackled. The power of the great path hammered down on its target with the force of doomsday.


    Boom. That mighty one from Emperor Li''s Realm remained totally unfazed. His legs steadied and both arms were outstretched, barging through the dazzling light and headed straight for the sword spirit.


    Xuanyuan Ao took one step forward and appeared right above the sword, before he held the blade with both hands and brought it down hard.


    A beam of light of the great path out to tear space apart appeared from above, seemingly like a bolt of devastating lightning as it was brought down on the body of its target. That extremely powerful golden body was shattered, chopped in half and died on the spot.


    Saintly aura seemed to still emanate from that broke body after the man had died.


    "So the imperial adviser of Dali had crafted men like he crafted divine implements then?" The Sacred General of Tian said coldly in the air. While such means enabled one to craft human-form weapons, it was nonetheless inhumane.


    The people from Emperor Li''s Realm did not respond. Li Yao looked at that dead body dropping below with a deadpan face. They were the ones to field their candidate first in that very first battle, so it was only normal that they ended up losing.


    It was impossible to win all three rounds of the flag battle, but each side would have had a chance of fielding their candidate last, which would have enabled them to secure one victory.


    Xuanyuan Ao walked towards the mighty one from the demonic realm and as expected, that demonic ape was quickly cut down as well. The Xuanyuan Sword Spirit flew towards the Emperor Xia''s flag, staining it with the blood of his opponents.


    The Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was the first to field their candidate in the next round. Yet another powerful figure emerging and looking extremely ferocious, as they turned around to look in Xia Qingyuan''s direction.


    "Who would be fighting in the next round?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "Yu Sheng." Ye Futian responded calmly. Yu Sheng then walked out and Xia Qingyuan knew what was going on.


    With the Emperor Li''s Realm being the last to field their candidate, Li Yao would have definitely wanted to take one victory of his side, and as such, would have fielded someone extremely powerful.


    The very reason why Ye Futian wanted Yu Sheng to fight was precisely to prevent Emperor Li''s Realm from being able to win.


    At that moment, Ye Futian stood calmly in the crowd and took a cold look at Li Yao. He wanted the blood of all three mighty candidates in all three rounds of the flag battle, to stain Emperor Xia''s flag!

 1050 Absolutely Overbearing

    High up in the sky, many cultivators were watching the battlefield. In the first battle, the Xuanyuan family had played a part, winning the first battle for Emperor Xia''s Realm. In the second battle, Emperor Li''s Realm had gotten involved right at the end, and they would most likely be the victors of that one. At that moment, a dark-robed figure walked about from beside Li Yao. A single glance at him gave everyone a feeling of raw power. He was cold and arrogant.


    "Cao Yuan, take his head as a sacrifice," Li Yao said to the man who was walking forward as he stared at Yu Sheng. Ye Futian had come from the Nine States to the Upper Realms and then had gotten involved in the battle for the Empty Realm. So, it was only right that he not leave this battle alive. And he had actively encouraged Yu Sheng to fight in this battle. He must have a deathwish.


    "Cao Yuan." Everyone in the sky felt their hearts tremble, even the Sacred General of Tian. Many people had the surname "Cao," but in Emperor Li''s Realm, there was someone who stood at the peak of all cultivators whose name was Cao. He was an outstanding magician from Emperor Li''s Realm who had founded a clan based on demonic methods that had achieved great prestige. He was one of the top five most powerful figures below Emperor Li, and thus it was obvious how powerful he was. He was a formidable man who had achieved the fourth tier of the Saint plane, Nirvana. The man who strode forth now was named Cao Yuan, and he must be a descendant of that magician.


    The cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm are in trouble, many people thought secretly. Emperor Li''s Realm would certainly win this battle. Each of the three realms would achieve at least one victory in this flag battle, and the one who acted last had the best chance of victory. It would be difficult for them to lose this one.


    Even the two great Saint generals of Emperor Xia''s Realm were looking at Yu Sheng nervously. Both Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm had many descendants of powerful figures taking part in this battle, like the people from Xuanyuan Palace, Divine Cloud Valley, and Jiutian Temple.


    But even if they were nervous, their expressions did not change. Being wounded was normal on the battlefield, especially as far as the two Saint generals were concerned, who had experienced countless lives and deaths, and thus were numb to it. Ten years ago, Emperor Xia''s Realm had suffered a grievous defeat. Not only had the Sovereign Family in Emperor Xia''s City been struck, but over half their army had also been killed or wounded. This time, they only hoped that the Princess could obtain a victory for Emperor Xia''s Realm here at the Empty Realm.


    Cao Yuan stepped forward onto the battlefield, and his gaze fell upon Yu Sheng. He felt an aura similar to his own coming off of him. It was highly likely that his opponent had cultivated the demonic method just as he had. But he had never heard of anyone in Emperor Xia''s Realm whose demonic arts were stronger than those that had been passed down through his family.


    Li Yao wanted him to take his opponent''s head, so he would do so and present it as a sacrifice to him and win the first victory for Emperor Li''s Realm in the battle for the Empty Realm. But before he could take Yu Sheng''s head, he would first have to deal with the other fools.


    Cao Yuan stepped forward towards the demonic beast that had come forth from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s lines. The demonic beast reverted to its original form��a large and sturdy yak. Its roar thundered in everyone''s ears, and destructive lightning swept forth from it towards Cao Yuan.


    Cao Yuan seemed not to see it, letting the terrible lightning pass through his body. Blood colored demonic light burst forth from him that turned into blood-red lines that absorbed the power of the lightning. He used the electricity to increase his own power, and suddenly, the lightning was flowing over his body as he walked forward.


    The ground trembled with his every step. He was absolutely overbearing as he descended like a demon king, suppressing the giant yak. The yak''s eyes were filled with demonic malice, but it still felt extremely threatened. Cao Yuan''s every step was like a clap of thunder, causing his heart to flutter. It was a descendant of the Sacred Yak, with supernatural strength and power, and yet it was being suppressed by its opponent''s power.


    It charged forward with a roar, rushing madly towards Cao Yuan. Heaven and earth seemed to crack and splinter as lightning shot out from it. Images of countless yaks appeared around it, filling both the earth and the sky. All of them were as large as the original, and they galloped towards Cao Yuan, trying to break everything before them into pieces.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    Boom! Cao Yuan seemed to turn into a demon, quickly growing to the same size as the yak. He stepped into the air, trampling on the images of yaks and crushing them to pieces. They could do nothing against him.


    Crack! Crack! The earth trembled violently, and Cao Yuan''s body collapsed forward. A man and a demon rushed towards each other, and the dust flew up from the ground as they charged. Cracks appeared as the earth split apart. It was an astonishing sight.


    Cultivators of the demon path are truly overbearing to the extreme. This Cao Yuan is a devil in human form. He''s even more wild and violent than the yak, thought many people as their hearts trembled. But when they thought of his family background they were relieved. His powerful nature was beyond doubt.


    Cao Yuan collided with the massive yak and struck forward with his fist. The yak pierced towards him with its horns, purple lightning wrapped around them. They were locked in close combat. The demonic cultivator and a demonic beast were locked in close combat.


    Crack! A loud noise rang out as the yak''s horns snapped and Cao Yuan''s fist smashed into its head. Its massive body instantly shattered into tiny pieces and its flesh and blood went flying everywhere. It was terrible to behold. Its blood splattered on Cao Yuan, and his fist was covered in it; not just the yak''s, but his own as well. His blood dripped to the ground, but he seemed to have felt nothing. He turned to look at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng was still standing there calmly. Cao Yuan walked towards him, and suddenly, Emperor Xia''s Army, which was standing behind Xia Qingyuan, felt a terrible pressure coming from his body. Yu Sheng had been able to sweep away all the cultivators that Lu Cheng had brought from Lihen Heaven and had once fought his way through Jiutian Temple. Would he die in battle today? A flag battle was a battle to the death. Only the victors would survive.


    There was a flash of cruelty in Cao Yuan''s deep eyes. "Is your head ready?" Cao Yuan stepped forward, and a wave of overbearing demonic power swept out. A dark gold demonic power swept out from Yu Sheng as well. The flow of demonic energy covered the sky, and then the entire area. The two flows of demonic power collided up in the sky.


    Everyone narrowed their eyes as they watched. It seemed that both of them had cultivated their demonic arts. But Cao Yuan had such an impressive heritage. Could it be possible that Yu Sheng''s demonic power would be stronger? He would likely come to tragedy.


    Boom! Cao Yuan stepped forward again, his large and sturdy body moving slowly towards Yu Sheng. His eyes were fixed on Yu Sheng''s head, and that was probably where his attack would fall.


    There was a crisp snapping sound as Yu Sheng''s body transformed. A demon-like illusion shone behind him. He stepped forward slowly, but each step shook the earth, and the vibrations were no weaker than those caused by Cao Yuan. Even more terrifying were his eyes. Everything that he looked at with those dark eyes would be crushed beneath his feet. Cao Yuan narrowed his eyes. He felt a bit uneasy as if what was standing before him was truly a demon that could command all other demons. It seemed that in all the heavens and the earth there was only him and him alone.


    In his mind, a huge demonic figure appeared, pressing down upon him, making the demonic power flow through his body less smoothly than before. This feeling made Cao Yuan''s heart beat faster. He felt faintly uneasy, but the fighting could break out at any moment. The two of them were already charging towards each other, and there was no way to retreat. This was no time to be thinking of defeat.


    He shook off the thought and gathered all of his power into his arm. Blood colored light wrapped around it, tearing his sleeve apart. Suddenly, the blood-colored light shot through his entire arm, making it extremely terrifying.


    Boom! The earth trembled as the two of them drew together. Cao Yuan struck out with his arm. He did not manage to tear off Yu Sheng''s head. He would have to defeat him first. Yu Sheng also struck out with his fist, thrusting it directly forward. The two great demonic cultivators fought each other with the most basic methods.


    A violent airflow swept out, and at the instant they collided, deep cracks appeared in the ground, stretching out towards the far away armies. But everyone''s eyes were firmly fixed on the battle.


    Yu Sheng felt his internal organs tremble and his blood surging. His opponent''s attack reached into his body layer by layer. He thought it would break him apart and kill him. The demonic will within him roiled, suppressing the power that was attacking him. His mighty demonic power poured into his opponent''s body. At that moment, Cao Yuan went pale.


    Blood dripped from his mouth, but this was masked by the vigorous courage that filled him now. A terrifying force exploded out from him, swallowing up the demonic energy within Yu Sheng, and even trying to suck the blood out of his veins. But a mighty rule power burst forth from Yu Sheng at the same time. Dark golden light flashed, and Yu Sheng''s body became like a bottomless hole as he transformed into a terrible vortex that resisted Cao Yuan''s devouring power.


    As those cold, demonic eyes met his, Cao Yuan felt his head begin to split as terrifying demonic images entered his mind. He was like an actual demon. At that moment, Cao Yuan realized that his opponent''s demonic arts were stronger than his own and could suppress him. He saw Yu Sheng pull back his fist, and in the next moment, there was a loud cracking sound as it punched through his head.


    Everyone watched this scene with horror.


    "This cannot be." Li Yao''s heart quivered so fiercely it seemed it would jump out of his chest. He saw Yu Sheng reach out with his huge demonic hand and place it upon Cao Yuan''s head. There was another snapping sound as under everyone''s gaze, Yu Sheng twisted Cao Yuan''s head off. He then pushed Cao Yuan''s body to the ground.


    "This..." Everyone''s hearts beat wildly, and they trembled violently. This scene could not be compared to their attacks. Their breath caught in their throats and they stood there frozen, staring fixedly at the scene before their eyes. Yu Sheng had plucked off Cao Yuan''s head, and now stood victorious upon the battlefield!

 1051 Fool

    All was dead silent upon the battlefield.


    Li Yao had ordered Cao Yuan to bring him Yu Sheng''s head, but now his own head had been removed. Yu Sheng had torn it off, killing him in brutal fashion. Even the cultivators from Emperor Xia''s Realm were deeply shaken by this scene. The army stared at Yu Sheng, secretly asking themselves: who is this man?Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    Xia Qingyuan sat there. Another one of her valiant officers had crushed Cao Yuan of Emperor Li''s Realm. And so Emperor Xia''s Realm had won a second victory in the flag battle. At least one of Emperor Li''s Realm or the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm now had no way of making the blood they had shed here worth it. Moreover, Cao Yuan''s death would have made the head of the Cao family quite upset. Although he wouldn''t dare to act personally, he could at least support his brothers. After all, he was not the only prince of Emperor Li''s Realm; he was one of Emperor Li''s five most powerful vassals and had great power of discourse.


    He felt that he had miscalculated, and had underestimated Yu Sheng''s power. Judging by the power he had shown today, he was at the limit of combat power below the Saint level. He was not even necessarily any weaker than Wang Chuan. If Yu Sheng had this kind of combat prowess, then Ye Futian would be even stronger. These two must be the main generals of Emperor Xia''s army.


    The Saints of the three realms were quite surprised by Yu Sheng''s strength. The Sacred General of Tian''s face relaxed a bit. Emperor Xia''s Realm had already achieved two victories. Even if they lost this last fight, they still had proven themselves to be the strongest here, which would be good for morale.


    Yu Sheng lifted Cao Yuan''s head and rose up into the air. He smeared some of the blood on the emperor''s flag, and then tossed the head towards Li Yao. The blood of two great cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm was now on that flag.


    Li Yao looked at the head at his feet, then up at Yu Sheng up in the air. The two of them stared at each other. He could feel intense murderous intent coming from Yu Sheng''s gaze. It was the same as Ye Futian; they both wanted to kill him. After all this, Yu Sheng returned to Ye Futian''s side as if nothing had happened.


    Only the last fight of the flag battle was left. In this fight, Emperor Xia''s Realm would be the first to send out someone, and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm would be the last, giving them the advantage. But Emperor Li''s Realm would not easily give this battle up, and would probably send out someone extremely powerful as they tried to seize victory. But if they did this, it was highly likely that they would have to fight fiercely with the great demon of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, and one of them would be killed.


    No one even considered Emperor Xia''s Realm. They had already won twice, so they probably would not take the risk of competing in this fight. But if they did want to compete, would it be permissible for them to send out Xia Qingyuan? The main general naturally could not participate in a flag battle. Therefore, the last battle would be between the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm.


    "Why don''t you send someone out?" said Li Yao coldly as he swept his gaze over Xia Qingyuan. He was waiting for Emperor Xia''s Realm to send someone to their death. Xia Qingyuan looked behind her. They had Xiao Sheng, Gongsun Zhong and others here, but none of them were willing to go out to fight. They wanted to give up on this last fight. After all, they had won twice in a row, so they didn''t have to worry about the last one. Moreover, even if they wanted to fight, there was a high probability that they would lose. Their opponents would probably send out their top people. If they fought, they would likely face a tough battle.


    "Little Condor," called Ye Futian, and suddenly, a black wind condor waddled through the crowd towards him.


    "A black wind condor?" A strange look came over everyone''s faces as they saw this demonic beast.


    Li Yao cast a cold glance at Ye Futian and said, "You''re sending out an ordinary fool to die? You''d be better off just retreating." Black wind condors were extremely common demonic beasts. Killing one of them was not a big deal, and would not even give him the pleasure of revenge. He had known that Emperor Xia''s Realm would let this battle go, but he had not expected them to be this shameless. They were not even sending out a person, but instead had sent a beast out to die.


    "You fool." The black wing condor stared at Li Yao. It beat its wings and soared towards him, looking down at him as if he were an idiot. He dared to belittle Grandfather Condor? And he looked at who it was involved with and still dared to mistake it for an ordinary condor? Even those big famous demons were nothing to him. When they ran into Grandfather Condor, it would cook and eat them as usual. It had followed Ye Futian for so long that it no longer made a habit of eating raw meat.


    It was going to enjoy this.


    Li Yao saw the petty condor looking down on him, and suddenly, powerful murderous intent flowed out from him. He suddenly smiled, and coldly said, "It must have been difficult for a lowly condor such as yourself to cultivate to this level. If you seek death so willingly, allow me to give it to you." On saying this, he looked back to a figure behind him and said, "Don''t let him die too easily."


    "Very well." The figure nodded, then stepped forward. He was a youth wearing snow-white robes. Although he had been on the battlefield all along, there was no dust or dirt staining him. He carried a sword on his back in a thin scabbard, which meant the sword inside must be thin as well.


    "A disciple of Dali Sword Mountain." When they saw the sword on his back, the people watching up in the air could guess where he had come from. Emperor Li''s Realm had factions of swordsmen as well, and Dali Sword Mountain was their most famous holy land for swordsmanship, equivalent in power to Lihen Heaven.


    This white-robed swordsman who had walked forward had come from Dali Sword Mountain. His style was outstanding and his aura was unparalleled. He looked at the black wind condor calmly. Even if the black wind condor had some tricks up its sleeve, it would not be stronger than a great demon of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. His main opponent in this battle would thus be the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. As for the black wind condor, he would cut through it easily.


    At that moment, a young demon covered in divine golden light strode forward from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s lines. His sharp, arrogant eyes were gold. The black wind condor could feel a great pressure coming off of him. It could see that his original form was that of an extremely precious gold-winged roc.


    There was a family of god-winged rocs in the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, but there were very few pure-blooded members of the family. Any of them would be a treasure in the realm, but now one of them was being used to try and seize victory in this flag battle.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over the three beings who had come forth, and suddenly a strange look came over his face. He naturally knew the black wind condor very well, and he actually felt space rule power coming from his opponents.


    Little Condor was good at that as well. He had dominated many demonic beasts over the years, but the black wing condor was the only one that had followed him since his youth. It could feel his every sensation, and as he grew stronger, the black wind condor had as well. It matched his every step forward on the path of cultivation. It could even be said that they had achieved enlightenment together. And so, he had let the black wind condor take part in this battle. But everyone thought he had sent it to die.


    The white-robed youth walked towards the black wind condor, and said, "Since you''ve come to die, let me fulfill your wish first." On saying this, he moved as fast as thought, and suddenly thousands of swift and sharp sword wills were slashing forward as he charged towards the black wind condor.


    But at that moment, a terrible, beautiful dark golden light was flowing over the condor''s feathers. The light covered his entire body in an instant. The sword wills slashed down, but they only struck the golden light. They were unable to wound the black wind condor.


    The cultivator from Dali Sword Mountain frowned, then smiled and said, "Interesting." On saying this, he disappeared and reappeared right in front of the black wind condor. He slashed out with his sword with enough power to shock both gods and ghosts. There was an ear-piercing sound as space itself seemed to be cut.


    The sword swept across the ground, leaving sword marks in the dirt. But the end it only cut through an illusory figure, as the black wind condor itself appeared up in the air, beating its wings.


    "Hm?" A strange look came over the face of the white-robed swordsman from Dali Sword Mountain. Everyone saw the black wind condor circling up in the sky. Suddenly, countless images of condors appeared there, all of them were spatial afterimages.


    "Space rule power." Everyone stared up into the air. Were they seeing this right? The black wind condor sped up, causing a terrible storm to sweep across the sky.


    "Extreme shadow!" A bolt of golden lightning swept out, and all the images of condors rushed towards the same spot like golden afterimages.


    The white-robed cultivator rushed into the sky as fast as lightning. Both of them disappeared from where they had been and collided together in mid-air, then separated instantly.


    The white-robed swordsman slashed out wildly with his sword, and suddenly, the sky was filled with slashing swords that cut through everything. The black wind condor flew around him, and the space around him seemed to tear, turning into a terrifying space storm.


    "Can it really be that strong?" Everyone stared at the formless demonic beast. They could not follow his trajectory.


    Boom! Boom! Boom�� They collided many times until the white-robed swordsman felt his arm go numb. His attacks were no weaker than his opponent''s, but he was not as strong, and he could not bear this many repeated attacks. And he was gradually slowing down.


    Woosh! A powerful wind blew out, and one of the golden afterimages coalesced into a long halberd in the black wind condor''s talons. Another golden afterimage swept over, and the black wind condor appeared in front of the white-robed swordsman. This time, at the moment the swordsman slashed out with his sword, thousands of swords cut through the air towards the condor. However, all he could see was the golden lightning. The lightning seemed to have melded with the halberd.


    At that moment, space and time seemed to freeze. The white-robed cultivator''s face changed as he felt his movements become restricted. He immediately understood that he had underestimated his opponent. This evil creature was truly crafty.


    Boom! The golden lightning crackled towards him and shattered his sword. The halberd pierced through the air. In the next moment, he felt a cold bite at his throat.


    "You asked for this." The black wind condor pulled out the halberd, letting his opponent''s body fall to the ground. It swept its gaze towards Li Yao and spat out a single word, "Fool." On saying this, he rushed towards the gold-winged roc!

 1052 Mr. Condor is full of Himself

    Li Yao stared at the corpse on the ground, and his eyes were gloomy.


    All three battles, all defeated.


    What he had called in disdain as a beast, had killed the great cultivator of the Dali Sword Mountain.


    If it was the previous battle with Yu Sheng, that would be more acceptable, but this battle just gave him a sense of absurdity.


    Demonic Beasts were even more dependent on talent than human. Unless there was a special chance encounter, the race they were born into determined the fate of the beasts.


    Therefore, when the Black Wind Condor stepped out, everyone thought for sure it was going to its death. Emperor Xia''s Realm had given up on that particular battle, and Li Yao even thought that Emperor Xia''s Realm was acting kind of shamelessly by sending an insignificant beast to its death.


    But who could have thought that the Black Wind Condor killed his swordsman from Dali Dynasty.


    Moreover, this condor, twice contemptuously called Li Yao an idiot.


    At this point, the eyes of the people turned to watch the battle between the Black Wind Condor and the Roc, the speed of the two demonic beasts were fast to the limit, fighting in the height of the sky, causing a terrible spatial storm between the heaven and the earth.


    The Black Wind Condor even morphed, and each of its feathers turned into a dark golden color, faintly revealing a demonic light, its eyes were extremely fierce. Its body was immense, its strength dominant, and it repeatedly colliding with the divine bird, the Roc.


    The talent of the Roc was impressive, its body was like having been casted by golden divine metal, it was able to traverse the void with unparalleled speed, and its power to attack was equally powerful and incredible.


    Who could have imagined that a Black Wind Condor would dared to collide face-to-face with the Roc?


    The many great demons of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm who gazed at the battlefield also revealed surprise in their eyes; what kind of genius was this Black Wind Condor?


    "Die," a sharp voice pierced the void, and the Roc''s body bloomed with unparalleled golden brilliance. Its body seemed to expand, its wings fluttered across the space, and the countless feathers on its body turned into sharp blades, slashing toward the Black Wind Condor.


    The pupils of the Black Wind Condors were dark and arrogant, and the aura of space solidification covered the void. The golden brilliance that were shooting this way seemed to have slowed down. Its speed suddenly increased, and passed through the endless light of slaughter. It descended before the Roc in an instant, the sharp claws seemed to tear the space and stab toward the head of the Roc.


    The wings of the Roc trembled fiercely, and actually broke through the aura of the space solidification. The golden claws also had the power to tear through the void, and they collided together. Afterwards, everyone saw two demonic beasts tangled deep in fighting, between heaven and earth, the storm of space shredding grew ever more intense.


    "This bird is too large to be stewed in one pot, "the leisurely voice of the Black Wind Condor was heard, which shocked all the great demons of the Demonic Realm momentarily, and then the demonic aura swam out, wanting to tear the Black Wind Condor into pieces on the spot.


    A Black Wind Condor, dared to insult the divine bird the Roc, that it could not be stewed in one pot?


    Even Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan could not help the twitching of the corners of their mouths and stared at the Black Wind Condor.


    Xia Qingyuan was slightly surprised. This Black Wind Condor seemed to have the cultivation ability of Ye Futian, and was an enlightened demonic beast.


    "No wonder the Roc is a divine bird," Ye Futian said to himself. If it wasn''t for the battle of sacrifice, this beast would make a great mount. The condor had been following him for many years, and was enlightened by all of his cultivation. It had received the power of the demonic beast upon Mount Tian, and had been bathed in Saint Jiang''s medicinal bath. It had also slayed many monsters in the Endless Ocean to increase its combative power, and made many a sea monsters into stew. Other than the fact that its physical body remained unchanged, all of its other abilities had long since evolved.


    Previously that swordsman was at a disadvantage in his power, but the Roc could directly compete with the smaller condor in strength, physique and defense.


    " The wing on this bird is so meaty, it must be delicious when it''s cooked..." The voice of the Black Wind Condor was heard again, and the Roc made a loud shrill, as if to give a violent attack.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    The Black Wind Condor zigged and zagged all the way in retreat, and the two golden shadows were constantly shifting and moving in the void, as if they had broken through the void.


    "What?" in the void, the cultivators of the demonic realm frowned. The Black Wind Condors seemed to retreat with an enchanting rhythm, dancing and flying in the air, and its movement gathered a violent momentum which wrapped it in a great storm of undeniable force.


    This damned beast was so deceitful, it had deliberately angered the Roc.


    The Roc''s attack was getting stronger, but after many violent attempts, it was still unable to overcome the condor. The Roc''s energy continued to be depleted, and appeared to be exhausted, at least for the time being.


    At this moment, the Black Wind Condor moved, there was a long halberd clutched in its sharp claws, carrying with it a terrible storm that shuttled through the void in an instant, descended in front of the Roc.


    The Roc felt an incredibly overbearing and barbaric pressure swept over it. It let out a scream but did not avoid the onslaught. Instead, it extended its sharp claws into golden blades, trying to stab the other.


    The halberd pierced through the sword and it was broken and crushed. The halberd pierced through the claws of the Roc, and then went on to penetrate its abdomen. The power of destruction was raging, and the Roc made a pitiful whining sound. The brilliance on its body was still shining, its wings shot out endless sharp spatial blades.


    With the dark golden radiance attached to its body, the eyes of the Black Wind Condor turned into the eyes of darkness, as if they were enchanted. It rushed toward its opponent with the long halberd stay inserted in the other''s abdomen. Its sharp claws clamped on the neck of the Roc, and then ripped it open, blood instantly spurted out.


    The Black Wind Condor took a bite. At this moment, it seemed to have turned into a bird of dark magic, wanting to drink the blood of the Roc.


    "Come back," Ye Futian spat out a command, and the Black Wind Condor released the body of the Roc immediately, allowed its body to fall down. The Black Wind Condor returned with a beautiful arc, landed in front of Ye Futian, its demonic pupils disappeared, revealing an innocent look.


    Ye Futian reached out and flicked him on his head, said, "the enlightened demonic beast is strong than anything; you yourself is a divine bird."


    The Black Wind Condor seemed to partially understand what was being said to him, but he still felt it was a pity that the blood of the Roc had gone to waste.


    But Ye Futian was the boss, whatever he said must be right.


    Ye Futian glanced at the fallen Roc. Many of the great demons had the exalted reputation of being sacred beasts, but it was not because all of them they were sacred, but only that they had the potential to becoming that.


    Sainthood was a qualitative change. Whether it was a person or a demon, once entered into the Divine and baptized by the Great Path, a rebirth occurred to change them from head to toe.


    Therefore, Ye Futian had stated that an enlightened demon was stronger than anything else; once it became a demon saint, even though the Black Wind Condor itself was an ordinary bird, as a divine bird, it would metamorphose drastically.


    What the cultivators call the Saint Plane, for the extraordinary to be sanctified, they must shed their mortal body.


    Therefore, there was no need to drink the blood of the Roc. This battle had already enraged the great demons of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. He did not much care about the attitude of Emperor Li''s Realm, but to offend the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm would be too much, and it would not be a good idea for the other two to join in alliance.


    Seeing the previously ferocious Black Wind Condor appeared in front of Ye Futian as a tamed pet, many expressed a look of amazement.


    In the war of the sacrifices, Emperor Xia''s Realm had won all three battles.


    The crowd that was watching the battle from afar reveal an odd look. Emperor Xia''s Realm was the least favored force among the three realms. However, at the battle of the sacrificial flag in the beginning of the battle for the Empty Realm, Emperor Xia''s Realm greeted the Empty Realm with a complete and total victory. So now, who else would dare to predict that Emperor Xia''s Realm would definitely lose?


    Yu Sheng, and that Black Wind Condor, were they the wild cards of Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    But that did not seem right either. Either Yu Sheng or that beast, they both seemed to obey the command of the white-haired youth next to Xia Qingyuan.


    Who was this handsome white-haired young man?


    In the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm, it seemed that he held a high position, very possibly second only to Xia Qingyuan.


    If so, was he the secret weapon of the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    Many were now curious about Ye Futian''s identity. Naturally, Li Yao knew him. Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan also casted a glance at Ye Futian and seemed to realize that Xia Qingyuan was not their only opponent.


    Behind Xia Qingyuan, Tian Ji held the flag of Emperor Xia high up, and the blood-stained royal flag flew in the wind, making crisp sounds.


    The blood on the imperial flag was shocking to behold, but at this moment the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm was in high spirit. With victory of all three battles, the blood sacrificed on the imperial flag was a sign of glory.


    The flags of Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm were still clean.


    Under the watch of many great demons, Kong Xuan levitated, and slashed her own tender skin and dripped blood on the imperial flag of the Peacock Realm. Since they could not garner a victory, she would make a sacrifice to the flag with her own blood.


    Li Yao also levitated into the sky and followed suit, solemn and tragic. Li Yao turned around and gazed at Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian, and said, "this is just the beginning, put the imperial flag up in the city; the battle of the Empty Realm officially began."


    When he finished speaking, he waved and led the army to depart.


    "Sire, the daughter of Emperor Xia is quite the beauty. If captured alive, would Sire reward her to me?" Next to Kong Zhan, a great demon''s eyes filled with evil light and stared at Xia Qingyuan.


    "If someone could capture the daughter of Emperor Xia, she will be your spoils," Kong Zhan replied, his demonic eyes glanced at Xia Qingyuan.


    "That woman also looks good; her skin is delicate, she must taste very good," yet another demonic beast turned to the direction of Yao Xi, the evil light of his eyes was blazing.


    Many demonic beasts were lustful and sinister, and now that they were in the battlefield, they were even more unscrupulous and unrestrained.


    "That Royal Highness of yours also looks pretty good; how about having her come over and serve my master?" the Black Wind Condor glanced at the talking demon with its enchanted pupils. Although it was not familiar with the princess and Yao Xi, but since they were the beauties next to its master, they both belonged to the master, and it was out of turn for these monsters to even think about touching them.


    Kong Xuan''s eyes shot toward the Black Wind Condor like a sharp blade. The nine- color divine light shining upon her torso, and suddenly gave out a great sense of oppression. She was bathed in brilliant glory.


    Many great demons were also angrily roaring, staring at the Black Wind Condor; how dare this beast to humiliate their noble princess?


    To serve his master?


    It was unthinkable.


    The Black Wind Condor looked at the beautiful nine-color divine light displayed by Kong Xuan, a little surprised; this woman was pretty powerful.


    "You heard about serving my master, so you decided to fan your peacock tails?" The Black Wind Condor proudly raised its head.


    Hearing his words, the nine-color divine light shot from Kong Xuan''s torse. Behind her, many great demons roared and coming forward, couldn''t wait for the war to immediately begin so they could tear this animal into pieces for being so rude.


    Ye Futian slapped the Black Wind Condor on the head; was its ego this inflated?


    "Shut up," Ye Futian whispered. This guy was pulling his legs and attracting unnecessary hatred for him. Sure enough, he saw Kong Xuan staring at him, looking extremely unfriendly.


    The fanning of the tail was a mating ritual of lowly animals such as the male peacock. This idiot dared to humiliate her with this analogy, truly unforgivable!

 1053 Imperial Advisor of Dali

    Ye Futian felt rather speechless with the Black Wind Condor. He pressed his hand on the bird''s head, turned around and left, feeling a chill running down his spine.


    He probably had just got himself into trouble, as the a**hole of a bird actually told Kong Xuan to serve him.


    Xia Qingyuan wore no expression on her face when she said, "Let''s go."


    The massive army of Emperor Xia''s Realm left as soon as she gave the word. Putting the imperial flags after the flag battle at the highest point of the imperial city signified the beginning of the Battle of Empty Realm. Deaths occurred during the battle were to stay within the battle.


    The Battle of Empty Realm had always been extremely brutal and the trading of pointed words hardly had any bearing when life and death situations were common. Anyone could have said anything brutal and unforgiving at anyone. While the Black Wind Condor had indeed insulted Kong Xuan, but those demonic beast on the other side were pretty much doing the same as well.


    Everything were to be decided on the battlefield.


    "With the imperial flag placed within the city, does it mean that we''d need to put garrisons as well then?" Ye Futian somehow came to walk at the very front together with Xia Qingyuan, with the army following right behind them, as he asked her.


    "Yeah." Xia Qingyuan nodded. "One of the Battle of Empty Realm''s rules: the city with their flag taken down would be eliminated from the battle. For many years, many from the losing side perished from defending their flags. Don''t think about gathering a force to just go about taking down the flags of others. While we''ve won all three battles of the flag battle, but you''ve seen what they were made of. None of them were weak, and furthermore, that was before divine implements were brought out."


    Ye Futian understood what Xia Qingyuan meant. There were many at the very cutting edge of the top notch figures among the armies of the three great imperial realms. There were even the likes of Wang Chuan among them. Furthermore, with the princes and princesses, no one would have believed it if any of them were to claim not having top notch ritual implements with them.


    If the armies were to bring their full might to bear, they could have even killed saints at the First of the Divine Steps.


    While the might of an individual would have allowed them to kill their way throughout the battlefield, but if said individual were to take down an imperial all on their own, it would have proven next to impossible. In Ye Futian''s case, it would have only been possible if he were to burn his imperial will.


    Ye Futian was barely managed to stay alive doing so with Emperor Xia deciding to spare him. If he dared to pull something like that at the Upper Worlds, it would have been akin to asking for his head to be put on a guillotine.


    "Furthermore, if we were to attack, wouldn''t that mean that we''d have to guard against yet another side attacking us?" Ye Futian asked.


    "That''s a given. As such, we''d need to watch their moves constantly. Other than that, we''d need to be alert against cultivators appearing in any of the three warzones. Even if there were to be unaffiliated cultivators from the Empty Realm, they might actually turn out to be in the enemy''s employ, or at least, they could be spies. As such, if we were to find anyone within the warzones that were not of ours, we''d need to take them down." Xia Qingyuan then continued, "One other thing. We couldn''t afford to expose our true power right at the very beginning."


    "Doing so would end up forcing our enemies to team up then?" Ye Futian added.


    "Battles fought between three forces are more complicated than usual. We couldn''t afford to trust any side, as there would only be one victor in the end. There''s a risk of being set up if we were to team up with anyone, and no one would bother making the first move when launching attacks. Worse still, we''d still need to be on guard against each other, for fear that the other side is actually setting you up while pretending to be an ally, enabling them to cut down our flag first. All manner of scenarios took place during the past Battles of the Empty Realm. Until one side became clearly more powerful than the other two, the balance remained unbroken," Xia Qingyuan explained.


    "In the last Battle of Empty Realm, the leading figure of the Emperor Li''s army had been a student of the imperial advisor of the Dali Dynasty. He had been quite a strategist, going so far as to be willing to lure their opponents by sacrificing one-fourth of their army. They pretended to be weak all the time, making both Emperor Xia''s Realm and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm lower their guard. Emperor Xia''s Realm would have been able to secure victory by taking down the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, so Emperor Xia''s Realm allied with Emperor Li''s Realm. However, during battle, Emperor Li''s Realm played both sides, letting the two other realms duke it out between each other and wearing down their forces considerably. After the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s flag was cut down, Emperor Li''s Realm''s forces burst with all of the power all of a sudden and ambushed Emperor Xia''s Realm''s forces. They killed all the way in Emperor Xia''s City. Massive casualties resulted, the imperial flag was cut down, and Emperor Li''s Realm''s forces emerged as the victors."


    Xia Qingyuan''s voice was calm. It was apparent that she knew the history of the last Battle of Empty Realm like the back of her hand, so as to take the lesson to heart. In actual fact, despite having concealed a good portion of their powers, Emperor Li''s Realm''s forces were indeed the weakest among the three back then. It was especially so after losing a good portion of their forces. One could have only said that the student of the Dali''s imperial advisor has indeed had indomitable will and a very shrewd mind.


    While Ye Futian knew little about past Battles of Empty Realm, but given how it was a battle fought once every ten years and the battles were directly tied to command of the realm for a decade, one could have assumed that any methods imaginable could have been brought to play in the battlefield.


    Many behind them saw both Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian being at the very front of the army, walking side by side. Many looked rather puzzled at the scene.


    Both Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Condor had been Ye Futian''s people back in that flag battle earlier. Both of them bagged two victories and one could have assumed that Ye Futian was also incredibly formidable himself. As such, it was only natural that the princess valued him so much. However, no one thought that she would have valued him that much, so much so that she came to see him as her equal.


    Both Xiao Sheng and Gongsun Zhong sported grim expressions. Xiao Sheng had prepared himself to enter Emperor Xia''s Palace through fighting in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm, which would have enabled him to accumulated merits and renown in the battle, enabling him to legitimately serve Xia Qingyuan and wield actual power over Emperor Xia''s forces.


    However, the scene before them seemed to have said that Xia Qingyuan had already made Ye Futian her lieutenant. That had been the expectations Xiao Sheng''s family had placed on him.


    The army returned to the city and placed the imperial flag at a palace at the central region. Xia Qingyuan ascended the steps and addressed her people below, "In this year''s Battle of Empty Realm. The army of Emperor Xia''s Realm shall be divided into five legions. The Tian and the Dou were a legion in themselves respectively. I expect the leading figures for these two legions had already been assigned by the sacred generals. Ye Futian shall lead the legion consisting of those from the Nine States. Those of other forces here at the Upper Worlds, despite being of different forces, we shall stand in this battlefield as one legion, which I would lead personally. Those who train in Emperor Xia''s City here at Empty Realm, shall be led by Tian Ji. Any questions?"


    The myriad of top notch forces in the Upper Worlds��Divine Cloud Valley, the Xiao clan, the Xuanyuan Palace, the Jiutian Temple, the Qin Palace and many others��deployed their very beast and they looked formidable. Furthermore, Xia Qingyuan appeared to be the only one capable of lording over their respective leading figures. If they were to be left to their own devices, they would have stayed among their own and made streamlining their actions difficult, which would have in turn been a liability in the Battle of Empty Realm.


    There was a force from Emperor''s Xia''s Realm remaining in Emperor Xia''s City at Empty Realm. The killings were stopped when the battles were over. With the victor taking control over Empty Realm, they naturally would not have provoked the other two sides by killing unnecessarily.


    "We shall serve you, princess," Xiao Sheng and Gongsun Zhong were the first to bow and pledged their vow. The mighty ones behind them followed suit.


    Of the five legions, Ye Futian''s was the numerous and they could have hardly been even called a legion. Xia Qingyuan allowed them to be recognized as a legion on their own, as from her perspective, despite lacking in numbers, there were several top notch figures among them, which could have served as vanguards or secret weapons of Emperor Xia''s Realm''s forces.


    Xia Qingyuan continued to delegate tasks. The cultivators of Empty Realm knew the place better than anyone, so they were tasked to protect the imperial flag and monitor the enemy''s movements. Details about operations were naturally delegated to Tian Ji.


    When Xia Qingyuan was delegating tasks, Ye Futian chose to walk off on his own instead.


    "Where are you going?" Xia Qingyuan asked Ye Futian.


    "A stroll outside the demonic city," Ye Futian said. Black Wind Condor was mentally linked with him and appeared rather excited. It flapped its wings as it came to Ye Futian''s side.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian and knew that he would have never obeyed the chain of command, just as she expected. As such, she never intended to give any tasks to him in the first place.


    "Brother Ye, the Battle of Empty Realm could not be fought with individual bravado alone. You might be formidable as an individual, but that would not have helped in the battle. It is best that you listen to what the princess has to say," Xiao Sheng said with a smile and appeared rather amicable.


    Ye Futian took a look at him before turning her eyes back to Xia Qingyuan, "Please rest assured, Princess. I''m only there to look at how things are and I have no intentions of taking risks."


    Xia Qingyuan heard Ye Futian and nodded, saying, "Be careful then."


    "Thank you, princess." Ye Futian nodded and then at Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu and the others, saying, "Big Brother shall be in charge in my absence."


    Ye Futian stepped onto the Black Wind Condor when he was done. The bird flapped its wings and took to the air, heading far away.


    "Hey boss, are we going to pick up your concubine?" The Black Wind Condor''s eyes glimmered and looked rather excited. "That daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor might be a demonic beast cultivator, but she has little difference to humans. And that body of hers, man, perfect."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    Boss sure is quick with his actions. Lord Black Wind Condor here sure is looking forward to it.


    "Now I wonder if you''d fit in a pot, eh?" Ye Futian lowered his head and glared at the bird, causing it to squirm, feeling rather vexed. Wait, so boss is uninterested in that demon girl at all?


    "You''ll get to open that big mouth of yours when we''re at their turf," Ye Futian continued. The bird''s eyes sparkled, as it was akin to allowing it to provoke those from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    ...


    At the Dali Dynasty far away before the Battle of Empty Realm was about to begin.


    The palace of Dali Dynasty was extremely regal. It shot into the skies and looked even more magnificent than Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    A middle-aged man in cultivator''s robe was seen at the top of the Sky Gazing Tower of Dali Palace, casting his gaze into the stars.


    He waved his hand and the stars began to shift, as if the great path had swifted as well.


    The robed middle-aged man was an impressive figure stood above the billions at Dali Dynasty and served only the emperor himself. The man was none other than the imperial advisor of Dali.


    The imperial advisor of Dali was the most knowledgeable person throughout the entire Dali Dynasty and everyone in the dynasty knew, that there was no powers that the imperial advisor was unable to master.


    The imperial advisor took only a handful of students, yet every single one of them were impressive geniuses in their own right. He was a huge factor to Emperor Li''s Realm''s present day glory.


    The imperial advisor frowned with great concern as he observed the changes of the celestial phenomenon. Two beams seemed to have shot from his eyes, enabling him to pierce the stars and see the secrets behind them.


    However, his eyes actually bled after observing the stars for quite a while. It was a harrowing scene to behold and yet, he seemed to have felt nothing. He then gave up after being at it for quite a while.


    He sighed deep down. The might of Dali Dynasty is in decline. But why!?

 1054 Extremely Shameless

    The Black Wind Condor flew all the way through the Empty Realm, heading for the Demon Peacock City.


    To Ye Futian, his main target on that trip was Emperor LI''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was not within hsi sights.


    He cared little for the outcome of the war. So long as those from Emperor Xia''s Realm were not performing too poorly, there was no way they would have lost in the Battle of Empty Realm.


    It was especially so when the imperial flag of the Demon Peacock City was concerned. Cutting it down would have been a breeze, although some methods would have been required. There was not even a need for their armies to clash to get that done.


    As such, he headed straight for Demon Peacock City alone with the Black Wind Condor.


    That place had huge number of demonic beasts guarding it at the moment. Demonic aura was so thick that it shot to the heavens.


    The Black Wind Condor dived from above and saw one demonic beast after another taking to skies, ready to intercept them in the air.


    Formidable violent aura was seen in their eyes. They eyed the place behind the bird and were surprised to find no army; it was just one human and one beast. Worse still, it was that foul beast that dared to insult her highness.


    Voom... Strong gale tore through the space. The Black Wind Condor sped through the air and continued on its way to the sky above the city. The army below the city rose together with them, barricading the city below altogether. One demon beast after another shot to the sky, getting ready to intercept Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor.


    Terrifying demonic aura swept through the place and they saw one eerie beam after another shot from below. It seemed as if the demon lions ganged up on them in a ferocious manner.


    The Black Wind Condor''s eyes shone with golden demonic light and brought its claws to bear. Terrifying space-tearing power shot below, tearing those demonic attacks apart one after another. Its speed was frightening as it continued moving forward. It quickly appeared at the central region of the Demon Peacock City, right before a demon hall.


    The armies were garrisoning there. Both Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan looked up, glaring at the human and beast above coldly, thinking those two to have had death wishes to simply barged in like that.


    The Black Wind Condor was very high up in the air and posed no threat to the imperial flag of the city. Even so, however, the armies below continued to be on guard against them. The terrifying army of demonic beasts took to the air.


    Are these two really trying to just take the flag on their own?


    "Boss, can I talk now?" The bird asked Ye Futian telepathically. Ye Futian did not answer, and the Black Wind Condor took it to be silent approval.


    Excitement was seen in the bird''s pitch black eyes. It spread its wings in the air and screeched at the crowd below, "Kong Xuan, you demonic woman, come up and serve my master."


    Ye Futian felt rather speechless. What the hell is this guy thinking? Is that the only thing it knows?


    He did not, however, stop the bird from talking. If it liked provoking the enemy that much, he saw no reason to stop it.


    Divine light of nine colors shone on Kong Xuan. That fiery body of hers took to the air. She was dressed in feathered garb of the peacock and looked demonically beautiful. Its voluptuous body and stunning appearance shone with a feral grace about it.


    "You really have adeath wish." A howl was heard from below. A Roc tore through the space from below, holding a golden spear and dazzled as it streaked through the space in a heartbeat, aiming to kill the Black Wind Condor.


    A gale was whipped up and the space glittered. The Black Wind Condor appeared somewhere else and making its opponent miss. It nonetheless kept its eyes on the Roc, feeling the power gushing from its opponent, and saw the bird actually holding a space type divine implement.


    "You lowly human. You dare to insult her highness." The Roc''s eyes tore through space and shot forward at Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor.


    "My master had the potential of an emperor. It''d be the honor of Kong Xuan, the demonic girl, to be able to serve my master. She should come to him personally and beg to be pampered." The bird then continued, "As for you lowly beasts, you shall bow before my master."


    The bird fired away with impunity seeing how its master did not bother stopping it.


    "..." Ye Futian was feeling exasperated, and wondering why he had never discovered the beast to have possessed such talents in the past.


    The shamelessness the bird exhibited easily eclipsed his own. Furthermore, the bird was acting all pompous and holier-than-thou, speaking in a very condescending manner, as if it was actually a stead of an emperor, feeling very proud of itself.


    However, Ye Futian remained looking as if he was enjoying it all. He stood on top of the Black Wind Condor and acted as if the bird was telling nothing but the truth. His silver-haired and white-garbed silhouette remained eyeing Kong Xuan, in a formidable, unpredictably powerful stance. He was thinking if he should make it a king of blabbermouth of sorts, if the bird were to ever become a demon lord.


    Kong Xuan looked up at the Black Wind Condor and then Ye Futian, who was standing on its back. He eyed her with an unfazed, serene look, as if he was appraising her looks and figure right there and then. If Ye Futian had not gave the bird his permission, it would have not dared to be so insolent.


    Kong Xuan''s eyes were filled with murderous intent. Despite having an enduring disposition, demonic aura nonetheless coursed throughout her body. Divine light of nine colors glittered and her white, supple hands were clenched.


    Me, Kong Xuan, should go to him personally and ask to be pampered?


    This is unforgivable.


    "Orders to the Godly Wing Legion." A voice was heard saying coldly beside Kong Xuan. One demonic beast after another flapped their wings and ganged up on the duo in the air. There was one thing in common with all those demonic beasts��the possessed wings and were versed in speed attacks. They consisted the fastest elite legion in the grand army of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    "Kill them." Kong Zhan said coldly. The group of demonic beasts shot to the air. Several Roc moved the fastest and streaked through the air at Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor. They wanted to see how those two would have ended up dead.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian gave his orders telepathically. The Black Wind Condor streaked higher into the sky like a bolt of lightning.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    The legion of demonic beasts had no intentions of sparing them. They all sped like lightning bolts as they pursued the duo, shooting into the clouds.


    "I''ll go up and kill them." Divine light of nine colors glittered on Kong Xuan. She hovered in the air and headed high into the sky.


    "Beware of traps," Kong Zhan reminded her. The human and the beast had came to provoke them with mean words, insulting Kong Xuan. What are they trying to do here?


    All manner of tricks were used in the battlefield of the Empty Realm. Lowly tricks of all kinds had been used before. The likes of flushing out the enemy into the open and entice the enemy to leave their vantage ground were naturally commonly seen tactics. With the three armies of the imperial realms getting into their respective cities not long ago, Ye Futian showed up before everyone settled. It was entirely possible that he was there to ambush Kong Xuan, which made it all the more important to be on guard.


    "I won''t go after them too far. I''ll get back to the city soon," Kong Xuan had already shot to the air by the time she finished reassuring her brother. She was extremely fast and disappeared in an instant.


    Although she knew that the Black Wind Condor was only doing all of that to get to her nerves, she remained indignant. She was compelled to kill that foul beast and that wretched human cultivator, who allowed his stead to insult her like that. Serve him and ask to be pampered eh?


    The Godly Wing Legion of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was flying at frightening speeds. However, that Black Wind Condor was not slow in any way itself. Having developed compression of space rules, the powers enabled it to continue to streak through the air at near-impossible speeds. Many demon beasts were gradually left in the dust, with Kong Xuan and some top notch demonic beasts who were extremely adept at speed, being the ones able to keep up with the Black Wind Condor.


    "You dared to speak in such an insolent manner, and yet you now run like dogs with tails between their legs?" Kong Xuan quipped coldly. She looked unnervingly divine while basking in the divine light of nine colors.


    "Would you dare come alone, demonic girl? Me and master would be happy fight you for 300 rounds. You''d definitely be willing to submit yourself to my master after you fight him," the Black Wind Condor answered without turning its head around. It continued to streak forward and its voice was heard throughout the place.


    The divine light of nine colors coursing all over Kong Xuan felt like the light of the great path. Her chest heaved as extreme killing intent was seen burning in her eyes.


    The light turned even more glittering as she accelerated all of a sudden. She alone was the only one capable of close in on the Black Wind Condor, so much so that event he Rocs were left in the dust. It was a testament of how frightening her speed actually was.


    "She is fast," the Black Wind Condor said to itself for her being to be able to close in on it so easily. However, its eyes continued to look unfazed and without the slightest hint of anxiousness. Despite the fact that there was no way for it to defeat the daughter of the demon emperor, it nonetheless had someone to back it. The bird would not have dared to be so insolent otherwise.


    The divine light of nine colors shrouded the entire place. Dazzling feathers of the peacock appeared in the air, blocking out the sky altogether.


    "Hey boss. She is really getting serious. You really don''t want to think about it?" The Black Wind Condor screeched. The feathers of the peacock shone throughout the heavens, which truly looked like a peacock flaunting its tail, looking incredibly dazzling.


    Kong Xuan''s expression was a grim one. The Black Wind Condor felt as if the sky was blocked out by the light of the peacock under the powers of the divine light of nine colors. Extremely huge feathers of the peacock were seen blocking out the sky. A extremely terrifying devouring power manifested and making it difficult for the Black Wind Condor to continue forward. It seemed to even beginning to make it swept in the other direction instead.


    Voom. The Black Wind Condor''s wings shook violently, intending to continue streaking through the air. Its body burst through the air and yet it quickly found that it had not even budged an inch. It continued to move at the very same spot, with space being pulled behind its body.


    The Demon Peacock Emperor had heavenly means and was a lord over one whole realm. That alone was a testament of its powers. All great monsters at Saint Plane of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm were under its rule, and they were beings that comprehended the powers of the great path.


    As the daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor and had extreme talents. She and her twin brother, Kong Zhan, were known as the most exceptional heirs to the throne. With their training being at the very pinnacle of Sage Plane and half a step into Saint Plane, they were at the level of getting into Saint Plane and their powers had the might of the great path in them.


    Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan were the leading figures of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s forces in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm. They both were also the strongest of them all. As such, Kong Xuan dared to lead her people to come out to kill those two without fear of getting ambushed. It was a testament in her great confidence in her own power. Even though the Black Wind Condor had showcased its extremely formidable powers before, and Ye Futian, as its master, would have definitely been stronger, but she remained fearless.


    Ye Futian turned around and eyed Kong Xuan. He somewhat felt an aura similar to that of Wang Chuan from her, that she was someone a step away from attaining sainthood. That dazzling divine light of nine colors and the feathers of the peacock that shrouded the place, already had the might of the great path in ti.


    Furthermore, she was the descendant of the Demon Peacock Emperor, which meant it was extremely possible that her powers were above that of Wang Chuan.


    However, Kong Xuan was not his target.


    He deemed it best to simply leave the descendant of the Demon Peacock Emperor alone.


    Due to Kong Xuan''s status, the emperor would have definitely had something up his sleeve concerning his descendants. If he were to actually control Kong Xuan, he would have most probably ended up alerting the emperor, and he might have even needed to suffer the recoil himself.


    The victory of the Battle of Empty Realm would have definitely been theirs, but his main target was still Emperor Li''s Realm. He had no intentions of offending an emperor of the demon beasts.


    If Kong Xuan were to find out that Ye Futian was actually considering if he wanted to put her under his control, it would have been anyone''s guess what she would have felt.


    Her stared at Ye Futian with a cold expression. That human looked incredibly exceptional and was definitely a rare, strikingly handsome man. But she never expected him to be so shameless and despicable!

 1055 Set Up

    Ye Futian turned around and walked towards Kong Xuan. The Black Wind Condor behind looked on with glittering eyes and said, "Hey demonic girl, my master is going to teach you a lesson now."


    "..." Ye Futian had an urge to just chuck the bird into a pot and see if it would have fit right there and then. While he did permit the bird to provoke the enemy, but it seemed as if it was really overdoing it so much, that he felt compelled to teach the bird a lesson instead.


    Kong Xuan''s eyes were fixed at Ye Futian. One demonic beast after another zipped by behind her. She pointed at the Black Wind Condor and said, "Kill it."


    Cold eyes came to glare at the Black Wind Condor within seconds, causing the bird to shiver. While the bird was indeed very confident of its own powers, it deemed it rather stupid to just stay behind and fight, choosing to bail instead.


    It zipped away with just one flap of its wings, leaving Ye Futian behind. The demonic girl needed a lesson and its master would have naturally gave her one. There was no need for the bird to worry about him.


    Gale blew and one demonic beast after another streaked past, chasing after the Black Wind Condor. Their cold, brutal eyes seemed to be such that if they were indeed able to catch up with the Black Wind Condor, they would have tore the bird to bite sizes. The Battle of Empty Realm had just begun, yet the Black Wind Condor had already became the number one target of the army of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, and one that needed to be killed before anything else.


    That a**hole of a bird is just too much.


    Kong Xuan shrouded Ye Futian with her aura. There were several other top notch monsters other than her, that did not pursue the Black Wind Condor, staying behind to watch the fight between the two instead.


    Their wings flapped about in the air as they demonic aura got extremely overbearing, barricading Ye Futian.


    While all of them were extremely confident of Kong Xuan''s powers, but she was nonetheless a princess of the Demon Peacock Emperor. As the daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor, Kong Xuan''s status in the Demon Peacock Emepror''s Realm would have definitely been on par with that of Xia Qingyuan in Emperor Xia''s Realm. As such, there were definitely mighty ones staying behind to guard her, as leaving her outside alone was utterly unthinkable.


    Furthermore, both Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Condor had displayed extremely powerful might in the flag battles before. The Black Wind Condor was but a stead of Ye Futian and seemed to take only his orders, which meant that Ye Futian''s powers must have been above that of the Black Wind Condor. Furthermore, he would have been considerably more powerful than the bird for being able to subdue it, making it fully willing to serve him.


    Even so, none of them had any intentions of participating in the fight there. With Kong Xuan around, they firmly believed that she would have definitely been able to take him down, regardless of how powerful he actually was.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s body was surrounded by Kong Xuan''s divine light world. The extremely dazzling feathers seemed to be pulsing with the rules of the great path, as if Kong Xuan''s might of the great path alone ruled that very area they were in.


    Zoop zoop... Blinding divine light of nine colors from the peacock''s feathers shot out, heading straight for Ye Futian. The light had intense killing intentions within it, as if it was out to wipe out everyone targeted by the light.


    Ye Futian felt the pressure and was somewhat aware that his opponent''s power seemed to resemble the rules of light practiced by the Hall of Holy Light, yet was of greater power. The divine light of nine colors seemed to be something evolved from the usual power of rules of light.


    Ye Futian was able to clearly see the might of the great path heading straight for him and was extremely overbearing. His will was triggered and terrifying light of the stars appeared around him, but they were quickly reduced to nothingness under the divine light of nine colors. The shattered light of the stars were even swallowed by the peacock''s divine feathers right there and then, assimilating them into the power of the divine light of nine colors.


    That was the power of the great path overpowering that of the rules, which was in its nature, overpowering effects brought forth by something of a higher order of magnitude in its very nature.


    Ye Futian''s Space-freezing rules were punched through right away by the divine light of nine colors. The dazzling, devastating light seemed incredibly beautiful nontheless as they showered on Ye Futian. Kong Xuan glared at Ye Futian''s silhouette with an extremely cold expression. None would have been able to take an attack from the divine light and emerge unscathed, yet Ye Futian did not bother to even evade.


    Boom... The divine light of nine colors bombarded onto Ye Futian''s body, which rang violently when the light hit him. Defense light was seen coursing about Ye Futian''s body, but the divine light of nine colors was nonetheless able to punch through his defenses and hit his body right away.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was able to clearly sense how powerful the divine light of nine colors truly was. It seemed to have consisted of any type of offensive powers��destruction, shredding, overpowering and the sort. In that very instant, Ye Futian felt that he was being bombarded by multi-layered power of rules, intending to tear his body apart.


    Such was the talent of Kong Xuan, talents inherited by the descendants of the Demon Peacock Emperor. Her predecessor was at Renhuang level of training. His powers embodied the way of the heavens and was in all ways, overpowering. His descendants were blessed from birth by being destined to be able to develop comprehensions of the great ways. Kong Xuan, for example, would have became a saint at the very least, and she would have been able to get there naturally, without having to do much.


    The ultimate dream that many human and demonic beast cultivators toiled to achieve, would have probably been the starting point for her instead, as she was able to get that far without doing much.


    "This guy sure has a death wish." The demonic beasts around Ye Futian stared at him. All of them were surprised that he dared to take on the divine light of nine colors from her highness using only her body. Not even great monsters in the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm who were known for their extremely formidable constitutions, would have dared done such a thing. Their bodies would have been torn apart right there and then, and they would not have even had the time to realize anything before they ended up dead.


    Violent ringing noise was heard and the scenario in everyone''s mind did not happen. Ye Futian''s body was shaken, yet he stood where he was in a steady manner still. He was indeed bombarded by the divine light of nine colors, yet the light was unable to destroy his body.


    The demonic beast sported peculiar expressions, being surprised that his body was even stronger than those top notch great monsters.


    Kong Xuan was just as dumbfounded as she looked at Ye Futian. The divine light of nine colors was unable to destroy him?


    Her eyes were incredibly cold. Boundless divine light of nine colors continued to shower below, bombarding Ye Futian''s body like it cost nothing.


    Rumbling noises continued to be heard. Ye Futian''s blood boiled and turned. The divine light of nine colors circled about on him, as if the attacks were tempering his body instead.


    Kong Xuan only came to realize how unnervingly formidable Ye Futian''s physical body was. While the person had been shameless and despicable, yet his powers were just as they expected. It was no wonder why he dared to provoke them at the Demon Peacock City all on his own.


    The divine feathers of the peacock burst with boundless divine light around her. Kong Xuan''s hand extended in Ye Futian''s direction. Boundless divine light manifested as a peacock, which looked like a true peacock demon saint, flying straight at Ye Futian, opening its mouth to chomp on him.


    The currents in the space around them reversed and were being absorbed into that big mouth. Even the might of the rules of the great path was being devoured by that peacock.


    Ye Futian felt as if a gale had whipped up around him. The currents around his body was being absorbed into the peacock''s mouth in a frenzy. He seemed to have a hard time holding himself still, seemingly about to be devoured by the peacock.


    Rules and spiritual qi in that space had all been devoured, and the place seemed to have been drained altogether. Such demonic means nothing short of heavenly indeed.


    Ye Futian intended to coalesce a halberd with rule powers, but quickly found it difficult to materialize said weapon. He was able to sense all manner of powerful limitations within that space, as if the place had been completely taken over by Kong Xuan.


    He looked up at Kong Xuan, who was above him, finding her sexy silhouette to look more alluring as she was basking in the divine light of nine colors. He let the violent divine light of nine colors bombard his body. He took one step forward, going along with the devouring powers instead.


    The humongous peacock devoured all straying light and Ye Futian was swallowed by that peacock together with the light. In that instant, he felt as if he had been thrust into the world of the divine feathers of the peacock, with boundless divine light deconstructing everything in it devoured.


    Ye Futian''s speed remained that of a lightning bolt, sprinting at a single direction. He lifted his arm and terrifying will of rules coursed about on his body. Boundless light of particles glimmered on his fist. When he threw out a punch, it seemed as if their surroundings were about to crumble. That peacock wall was shattered right there and then. His body burst through the peacock''s shadow, heading straight for Kong Xuan directly above.


    Kong Xuan was totally unfettered despite seeing Ye Futian coming straight for her. Divine light of nine colors continued to course about her body and she threw a punch as well, with the boundless divine light. She actually intended to take on Ye Futian in close quarters.


    Demonic beasts possessed extremely powerful combat prowess to begin with and that daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor was naturally no exception. Fists from both sides clashed and terrifying, violent rumble was heard. Ye Futian''s fist was imbued with terrifying offensive force capable of wrecking anything it hit, yet when that power clashed with the divine light of nine colors on Kong Xuan''s fist, his powers continued to shatter instead. The power that he drove into Kong Xuan''s arm was unable to even faze her. She simply ended up twitching from the wild tremor of his powers.


    Ye Futian threw yet another punch without hesitation and Kong Xuan continued to look fearless. She did not chose to back away during that last clash, opting to fight Ye Futian right there and then instead.


    Boom, boom, boom... Violent rumbles reverberated throughout their surroundings. The divine light of nine colors from her continued to destroy everything else around. None would have expected Kong Xuan''s sexy body and petite fist held such frightening powers.


    However, the great monsters around them were shaken to the core as well. Ye Futian is actually able to clash head on with her highness?


    With the exception of His Highness Kong Zhan, there were probably no one else below Saint Plane in Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm capable of doing what Ye Futian did right there.


    Boom... Yet another rumble was heard. A dazzling arc zipped past Ye Futian, retreating far away. Kong Xuan''s body burst with terrifying glitter of light. It seemed that saintly might was cast again, intending to bring out a divine implement. However, the Halberd of Time and Space appeared in Ye Futian''s hand at the same time, pulsing with brilliant light.


    He took one look at Kong Xuan and said, "You''re indeed formidable, Princess Kong Xuan. That steed of mine had a potty mouth, but it told the truth nonetheless. If you''re willing to serve me, I would actually consider it."


    His body turned around and left with a beam of light as soon as he finished.


    Those great monsters intended to pursue him, but Kong Xuan said instead, "Stay back. Call those demonic beasts who went to pursue the bird."


    Sweat seeped through her clothes and her sexy body was twitching about. Her cold eyes glared at Ye Futian''s departing silhouette. That despicable bastard.


    However, she was nonetheless able to sense how formidable Ye Futian was in that battle and was on par with her powers. She was unable to keep him around and so, chose to give up pursuing him instead.


    Furthermore, with the others pursuing the Black Wind Condor, she was concerned if they have fallen in enemy traps. That bird was very shrewd after all.


    Kong Xuan was never Ye Futian''s target. He headed straight to one direction after he left. In a barren land of a mountain in Empty Realm, the Black Wind Condor and the group of demonic beasts were all there.


    Those demonic beasts were incredibly pissed and it seemed the Black Wind Condor had led them to run in circles. It lured all of them there, yet there were no ambushing troops found.


    At that moment, the Black Wind Condor halted all of a sudden, turning around to glare at those demonic beasts, which halted and glared at the bird in return.


    Coldness was seen in the Black Wind Condor''s eyes as it said, "You guys dare chase me this far eh? You''re all done for."


    The bird shared a mental link with Ye Futian, and it knew what to do to synchronize with its master, with just one thought from Ye Futian.


    Those demonic beasts from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, including Kong Xuan, were all probably set up by the bird''s master!


    A silhouette zipped past from faraway, and it was none other than Ye Futian, coming to meet up with his bird!Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.

 1056 Refusal to Figh

    A fierce light flashed in the big demons'' eyes as they saw Ye Futian coming towards them. Her Majesty had not taken care of him?


    They were not even sure just how powerful Her Majesty was, but long ago all of the strongest members of the younger generation of each demon family had said that they were weaker than her.


    Demonic Beasts respected the law of the jungle more than humans, and so they were in awe of truly powerful Demonic Beasts. Thus, the most powerful demons would not give Kong Xuan any true recognition or respect just because she was the descendant of the Demon Emperor. Why would powerful demons like the Roc listen to the orders of a weakling?


    Ye Futian must have fled from her.


    Woosh! A crowd of great demons surrounded Ye Futian. Princess Kong Xuan had not been able to capture him, but these demons were ferociously powerful, and also very careful.


    Ye Futian walked forward towards the Roc, which was surrounded by brilliant golden light. His eyes flashed with dazzling golden lightning.


    "We''ll kill him together," spat the Roc in an arrogant voice. A violent storm suddenly whipped up as a group of demonic beasts surged forward. They slashed out with sharp claws as they attacked him in the manner of the demonic families. Their destructive aura seemed like it would annihilate everything around them.


    The black wind condor looked at them with contempt. Would surrounding him be of any use?


    Soon they would know the fear of being dominated. Although the black wind condor was itself dominated, it was happy to be so. Nobody had forced Grandfather Condor to follow the boss back in the beginning.


    It''s form flashed as it rose up into the air. It looked off into the distance, seemingly keeping a lookout.


    Below, Ye Futian held the Halberd of Time and Space. Destructive lightning appeared around him, and crackling sounds rang out all around as demonic beasts were killed one after another and fell to the ground. When the other demonic beasts saw that something was wrong, they tried to flee, but soon they were all caught up in the attack. They saw a pair of eyes that pierced their very souls, leaving an unforgettable impression in their minds.


    Before long these demonic beasts had been wounded and fled. They went back to the other demonic beasts who had come to call them away, and together they left with Kong Xuan for Demon Peacock City.


    Many people in the city were extremely angry. They had let Ye Futian and the other fools escape, and so many plans were made to kill them. But Princess Kong Xuan said that although she could have defeated Ye Futian, she would not have stayed there just for him.


    They thought that the matter would end there, but they never would have imagined that before long Ye Futian and the black wind condor would appear in the skies above Demon Peacock City, right above their heads.


    Kong Zhan, Kong Xuan and countless demons looked at the man and the demon up in the sky with extremely cold eyes. Would they never be free of them?


    "Do you want to serve my master, witch? If you do your best, you will have the chance to win his favor," the black wind condor would often call from the sky. It continuously provoked them, but when Kong Xuan sent demons to pursue it, it would just fly up high in the sky and escape.


    This made many of the cultivators of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm want to kill Ye Futian and the black wind condor and grind their bones to ash. Especially that beast who boasted incessantly. They wanted to pull out its tongue and cut it into pieces.


    Several days later, Ye Futian and the black wind condor had still not left Demon Peacock City. They had been surrounded many times, but had always managed to escape. And every time they fought, a few of the demonic beasts from Demon Peacock City would be lost.


    Ye Futian and the black wind condor had been a thorn in the side of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm in the battle at the Empty Realm.


    Finally, Kong Xuan ordered for everyone to completely ignore Ye Futian and the black wind condor, and to let them sit up in the air and taunt them.


    However, constantly hearing the black wind condor''s taunts made it so that the demons in the city could not rest easy. Gradually they even began to become numb.


    If a day came when they did not hear the black wind condor taunting them by asking Kong Xuan to serve Ye Futian they would have thought it strange.


    In the city, many people suggested they send an army to attack Emperor Xia''s Realm. But if they did so, they were afraid that Emperor Li''s Realm would take the opportunity to invade them. Moreover, Ye Futian was still here.


    In the Empty Realm, those who were paying attention to the Battle of Empty Realm all gradually heard the news about Ye Futian and the black wind condor provoking the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. Many of them were silent for a while. This Ye Futian and his mount were truly shameless, and were using a shameless method to gradually drain the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s strength. They pitied Princess Kong Xuan. A daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor, and a powerful hero, was humiliated daily by Ye Futian. Many cultivators were uneasy on her account.


    Of course, there were also those who thought that it would be amazing to have Kong Xuan serving them.


    But they didn''t have the guts to say this out loud.


    The cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm also heard the news. Over the next couple days, Emperor Li''s City and Emperor Xia''s City both reorganized their armies, preparing for an occupation. They sent spies to the Empty Realm to investigate their enemies'' movements. Emperor Li''s Realms knew of all of Ye Futian''s actions.


    In Emperor Li''s City, Li Yao heard all the reports. A cold light flashed in his eyes.


    "They may have won three victories at the flag battle of the Empty Realm, but does Emperor Xia''s Realm really think they can win this war?" he asked coldly. Ye Futian and the black wind condor were wasting the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s strengths all by themselves, which was a good strategy. It was a good way to deal with Kong Xuan. If it had been done to him, he''d have no way to counter it.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    "Ye Futian is indeed extremely strong if he is able to contend with Kong Xuan. According to the news we''ve received, the siblings Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan are the strongest demonic beasts in the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. This implies that Ye Futian''s power is no less than that of Xia Qingyuan. The two of them must be enough to crush the siblings, otherwise this provocation would already have gotten them killed," said a young man beside Li Yao.


    "Is it possible that this is all a scheme hatched by Emperor Xia''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, and they''re putting on a show for us?" asked Li Yao. He seemed full of doubt.


    "Probably not. Many demons have died at Ye Futian''s hands these past few days, and many of them were from top families, like the Roc. If this is all for show then the Demon Peacock Emperor is being extremely arrogant. He could not easily sacrifice the Roc."


    Li Yao nodded. He naturally understood this, but there was no disadvantage to being cautious.


    "What recklessness to think that they can know and decide the outcome of this battle. Ye Futian''s talent is outstanding, but he has valor but lacks strategy." Li Yao smiled. "What do you think we should do, Yuan Jin?"


    "Ye Futian and his mount must have thoroughly angered Kong Xuan and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm by now," answered Yuan Jin.


    "So we should make an alliance with the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm?" Li Yao continued to ask for advice. He placed a great deal of trust in this student of the Imperial Advisor of Emperor Li''s Realm who had personally come to advise him in battle.


    Thanks to the Imperial Advisor''s student''s assistance in the battle for the Empty Realm, Emperor Li''s Realm was stronger than it had been ten years ago, and now they had the advantage. With advice from a student of the Imperial Advisor, how could they not expect victory?


    "In this battle of three sides, everyone will constantly try to deceive each other. Especially since the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm will try to get revenge for the lesson they learned ten years ago. But they will also be on guard against us, and will not just casually form an alliance," said Yuan Jin. "They will only do so if there is an opportunity in it for them."


    "In that case what should we do?" asked Li Yao.


    "Now that Ye Futian is drawing the Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s ire, His Majesty can directly send an army against Emperor Xia''s City. We have no need to form an alliance for this future war, we just have to keep attacking Emperor Xia''s Realm. Over time, us and the Peacock Emperor''s Realm will form a tacit understanding, other than the precautions that we take against each other this will be stronger than a verbal agreement," said Yuan Jin.


    "And as a result, both Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm will be expending their resources. This will make those demonic beasts believe in our sincerity." Li Yao smiled. He knew what Yuan Jin was getting at.


    First they would form a tacit agreement and destroy Emperor Xia''s City, taking it out of the picture. Afterwards they could fight with the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    Moreover, it would be a sincere alliance. They would not use any underhanded tricks, as those demonic beasts would probably sense them.


    "In the wars of the Upper Realms, Emperor Xia''s Realm is at a disadvantage, and thus we use trickery. This time, we just need to go with the flow in order to win this war for the Empty Realm." Yuan Jin appeared full of confidence.


    "In that case, then I must ask you to go out to battle with the army, brother." Li Yao smiled. Although he was a prince of Emperor Li''s Realm, he had cultivated with the Imperial Advisor, which made Yuan Jin his sworn brother.


    There were many princes of Emperor Li''s Realm, and they secretly fought among themselves without end. The Imperial Advisor was highly regarded by Emperor Li, and thus all the princes greatly respected him.


    ...........


    The news spread quickly throughout Emperor Xia''s City that an army was gathering in Emperor Li''s City, and was about to set out towards them.


    The whole army was quickly called together and prepared to form battle matrices.


    At that moment, many cultivators were gathered beneath Emperor Xia''s banner outside the palace. Each of the commanders had come to Xia Qingyuan''s side, including Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, Yu Sheng and others.


    Many of the cultivators of the top forces of the Upper Realms were there as well.


    Emperor Li''s Realm had launched such a decisive attack on them that they were all a bit surprised. But since they were coming, they would naturally meet them in battle.


    "Have you sent someone to notify Brother Ye, Princess?" Xiao Sheng asked from beside Xia Qingyuan. On occasions such as this he would naturally call her "Princess".


    "Mm." Xia Qingyuan nodded. She had already sent someone to Demon Peacock Emperor City to find Ye Futian. Emperor Li''s troops were pressing on their borders, and there would likely be a large battle.


    "Right now Brother Ye is taking on Demon Peacock Emperor City all by himself, proving himself worthy of the title of hero of this generation. But now that Emperor Li''s army is pressing upon us, Ye Futian is acting resolutely, preventing us from being attacked on both sides." Xiao Sheng spoke calmly, not hiding anything. He stated the pros and cons clearly.


    "Mm." Xia Qingyuan nodded.


    "But he is strong enough that by himself he is worth a thousand men," said Xiao Sheng with a smile.


    Just as he was speaking, a group of figures appeared in the air riding on a divine implement, crossing the sky at an incredible speed.


    They descended, and bowed to Xia Qingyuan. "Here is our report. Ye Futian says that as long as the Princess is here we will surely win this battle. He will continue to observe the movements in Demon Peacock Emperor City."


    A strange look flashed in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes as she heard their report. "Understood," she said indifferently.


    But she cursed Ye Futian inwardly. What was he trying to do?


    If he had some kind of plan, he could at least tell her!

 1057 Jia Louwang’s Clan

    High up in the sky, the clouds danced in the wind. Even from far away one could feel the pressure that stretched down from the air. This level of pressure was like that which would come from a real Saint.


    The army was obviously pressing close, and would be there soon.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up into the sky. This would be the first incident of the Battle of Empty Realm. And as far as Emperor Xia''s Realm was concerned, they needed to defeat Emperor Li''s main assault. That was why she had hoped Ye Futian would be there. Given his combat prowess, even fighting by himself he would be nearly untouchable, and would be worth as much as a thousand men.


    But Ye Futian refused to fight. She didn''t know what he was thinking, but she didn''t resent him for it. Li Yao had slain Hua Jieyu, and so the person who wanted Li Yao dead the most was Ye Futian. But the enemy he had chosen to act against was not Emperor Li''s Realm, but Demon Peacock City. He must have his own plan.


    "War is coming. Emperor Li''s army presses upon our borders, and yet he wantonly refuses to return and fight. He may be an outstanding talent, but it is too much for him to ignore this battle," said Gongsun Zhong. "Princess, by ignoring military discipline like this, Ye Futian has shown himself to be too arrogant."


    "I never would have thought Brother Ye would refuse to fight either, and I don''t know why he''s doing it," said Xiao Sheng. "Princess, why not order someone else to take command of the forces of the Nine States?"


    "You know war is coming, and yet you do not prepare for it, instead stirring up trouble here. What evil intentions are you hiding?" Gu Dongliu swept his gaze over them. Gongsun Zhong and Xiao Sheng had been born into some of the top forces of the Upper Realms, especially Xiao Sheng. He was the Princess''s cousin. The two of them had always followed the Princess''s lead, trying to become her confidants. He could see right through them.


    But Xia Qingyuan regarded Ye Futian very highly. Was he standing in their way?


    "Ye Futian has already arranged the Nine States'' forces quite well, so there''s no need to change them. Why don''t you go prepare your own battle matrices?" said Xia Qingyuan coldly. No joy or anger could be heard in her voice. It was like a winter that lasted thousands of years.


    Everyone nodded, and naturally did not say too much. The cultivators of the Upper Realms went off to form up into a phalanx.


    The strongest cultivators below the Saint level of the three realms would compete in the Battle of Empty Realm, and many of them had divine implements, and some of the divine implements were quite high level. And some of the cultivators were halfway to the Saint level themselves, and would achieve enlightenment with only a single step more.


    A battle matrix like this had the attack power of a Saint. There was no single person in the world below the Saint level who could shake them.


    The phalanxes formed up one by one. The battle matrices of the Sacred General of Tian and the Sacred General of Dou were the most powerful among the army. Even though the individual cultivators in them weren''t the strongest, they were among the strongest that had been selected from the army. They had been thoroughly honed until their ability to form matrices was the strongest. They could perform thousands of transformations. These two branches of the army were equally perfect wholes.


    Relatively speaking, the troops from the Nine States were the weakest. They hadn''t had any training, and those among them were all Heavenly Chosen Ones, so there were no tacit understandings or arrangements between them. Other than the ones from the Holy Zhi Palace, they all worked as individual units.


    "You are more suited for individual combat. After the battle starts, form squads of a few people and hunt down their cultivators who flee, or watch to see where the weak points in the enemy''s battle matrices are, and see when we have a chance to strike," said Xia Qingyuan to Sword Saint and Gu Dongliu.


    This was the task she was going to assign to Ye Futian, to act as the army''s sharp knife. With his near invincibility, even if he fell into the middle of the enemy army he would have the power to protect himself. He would not be easily killed by the enemy matrix because he was too weak.


    "Yes, Princess." Sword Saint nodded at her order. Since this was the Battle of Empty Realm, he would not disobey her order due to the danger.


    Everyone in a great battle faced danger.


    The vast army, carrying the power to crush heaven and earth, stood in the air above Emperor Xia''s City with their banners down. Princess Xia Qingyuan stood between the Sacred General of Tian and the Sacred General of Dou''s armies with cultivators of the Upper Realms before her. She looked up into the sky.


    Up there, there were powerful armies coming from two directions. One army was a cohesive unit, while the other was like the armies of Emperor Xia''s Realm, divided up into individual camps. But at the same time it formed a whole.


    Li Yao had come himself. He was in the center of the cohesive army, looking down. He called across the distance, "Xia Qingyuan, I once came to Emperor Xia''s Palace to propose a marriage. If you agree to enter Emperor Li''s Palace, I will give you the right to control the Empty Realm for a hundred years as a wedding gift. How does that sound?"


    If Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm formed a marriage alliance, it would certainly be possible for them to win control of the Empty Realm ten times in a row.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyes were cold. She swept her gaze up towards Li Yao, but did not answer him. As a woman, any response she could make to this humiliation would be meaningless. She could only meet him on the battlefield.


    She looked at the army that Li Yao was in, and felt a familiar aura from the cultivators at the very front. It was like the aura of the cultivators the Li Yao had brought to Emperor Xia''s Palace to provoke them to war.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    This was a group of human weapons, a group of undead soldiers who had been trained by the Imperial Advisor for the Dali Dynasty.


    Seeing that Xia Qingyuan made no response, Li Yao waved his hand, and suddenly a powerful aura swept out from the army. The clouds all over the sky changed color, and Saintly power pressed down on the vast city.


    The two armies went to war.


    ........


    In Demon Peacock City, Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan stood before the palace. A golden Rocs flashed over, piercing through the air and landing before them and saying, "Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm are fighting at Emperor Xia''s City."


    "How many men did Emperor Li''s Realm send?" asked Kong Zhan.


    "More than half their army. They can''t have left behind more than a third of their forces to garrison their realm," answered the Roc. Emperor Li''s Realm could not have sent out their whole army, otherwise the Demon Peacock Emperor would launch a surprise attack and directly cut down their flags.


    However, Emperor Li''s Realm had dared a lot. They had dared to dispatch a majority of their army on an attack. In the past, this kind of situation rarely occurred, in which two armies entered a direct confrontation like this.


    Of course, Emperor Li''s Realm had not only dared this because they were brave. In reality, if the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm dared send out their armies to attack Emperor Li''s City, then the armies from Emperor''s Li''s City might attack them here as well.


    "Observe the battle, then come back and report," said Kong Xuan. "And be careful to avoid that b*stard."


    These days no one dared go alone outside the city limits, since that man and that beast would launch surprise attacks from time to time.


    "Yes, Your Highness." The Roc turned and left. Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan looked pensive. Next two them were the leader-level demonic beasts of the great families. An arrogant figure among them said, "Your Highnesses, do you want to seize this opportunity?"


    "What is your idea?" asked Kong Zhan.


    "Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm are at war. If we take the initiative we can attack either of them," he answered.


    "Your Highness, I don''t recommend attacking Emperor Li''s Realm," said a gold-winged Roc.


    "Why not?" asked Kong Xuan.


    "If we launch a surprise attack on Emperor Li''s Realm, no matter if we win or lose we will become their enemies. If we win it will be good, but then we will have to face Emperor Xia''s Realm. And if we lose, Emperor Li''s Realm will change their target from Emperor Xia''s Realm to us," said the Demonic Beast. "Instead, all we have to do now is wait and see. Let the two great forces fight, and wait for them to waste their power. In addition, that cultivator from Emperor Xia''s Realm has been so arrogant, and has humiliated you, Your Highness. Once they have expended their strength, won''t it be advantageous to ally Emperor Li''s Realm?"


    Kong Xuan looked at the demonic beast. The proud young cultivator beside her looked at him strangely as well. He was a descendant of the head of the Golden Roc Clan leader, Jia Louwang, and was the leader of their army. His name was Jia Loufeng.


    "Not bad," she said to him. "You know how to think."


    Although demonic beasts could open their minds to wisdom, they were not as good as human beings at rational thinking.


    Thus, in the Battle of Empty Realm, the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had won the least victories. This was not because they were weaker, but because they had often been tricked.


    "Witch..." At that moment a voice came down from the sky.


    "Shut up." Kong Xuan raised her eyes to the sky. She was even more attractive when she was upset.


    Her eyes were extremely cold. She had had enough of this.


    "Master, this witch has a temper. That will have to be adjusted," came the black wind condor''s voice again.


    Kong Zhan''s eyes were cold. He looked up at Ye Futian and said, "Emperor Xia''s City is under attack. Presumably there won''t be anybody who will have time to worry about us now."


    "What do you mean, Your Highness?" asked Jia Loufeng.


    "Have many cultivators of the demonic families not died at his hands these past few days?" Kong Zhan''s eyes grew even colder.


    "If we kill them, it will be easier to make an alliance with Emperor Li''s Realm later," said the Roc who had spoken earlier. "The members of Jia Louwang''s clan are the fastest. And we have with us here we have one of his treasures..."


    He turned to look at Jia Loufeng.


    "He has an incredibly powerful treasure that he attacks with. Many cultivators once pursued him, and he killed them all with a single swipe of his halberd. We have unexpectedly failed to catch him time and time again," said Kong Xuan.


    "The young master''s speed is unparalleled, and he holds a valuable treasure. His attacks are extremely powerful. If the young master pursues him he won''t be able to escape," continued the demonic beast.


    "I am willing to serve you, Your Highness." Jia Loufeng''s voice was calm. He was a descendant of Jia Louwang, and he commanded the Rocs in the Battle of Empty Realm. He was the strongest one there aside from Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan.


    "Jia Loufeng will lead the Rocs to chase and pin him down, and you will lead two armies of demonic beasts in a secondary attack. Attack if you get a chance," said Kong Zhan. Although they had no way to kill Ye Futian, they could send him into a full retreat with Jia Loufeng''s power.


    Before they had not dared to pursue him too far, as they feared a counterattack by Emperor Xia''s Realm. But now that they were at war they had no scruples. Even if they did not kill Ye Futian, they could make him fear for his life.


    "Alright," nodded Kong Xuan.


    "We will follow you, Your Highness," said all the demonic beasts. All their eyes turned to Ye Futian up in the sky, and their murderous intent burned fiercely. They had already suffered Ye Futian for too long.


    "They''ve finally taken the bait, boss," the black wind condor transmitted to Ye Futian. Things were getting interesting.


    Ye Futian''s face was expressionless. He turned and said, "Let''s go."


    On saying this, the black wind condor flapped its wings and left. They had dominated many demonic beasts over the past few days, but they still lacked demonic beast cultivators with any real power. There were not enough to complete their plan.


    Right now he could easily cut down the banners in Demon Peacock Emperor City, but he did not intend to do so. He had a greater use for the demons of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm!

 1058 Interlocking Links

    Jia Loufeng turned to face Ye Futian as he came towards him. He stepped forward and reverted to his original form.


    Suddenly, a dazzling royal golden Roc appeared up in the sky, radiating brilliant light. His body was covered with divine golden feathers which were filled with Saintly power.


    This was the top divine implement of the Golden Roc Clan: the Garuda''s Wings.


    In terms of speed, even Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan were no match for him.


    The Golden Roc had the reputation of being unparalleled in terms of speed in the Demon World.


    "Follow me." Jia Loufeng''s arrogant eyes were exceedingly cold. As a demon of Jialou Royal Clan, he had always had intentions towards Princess Kong Xuan. And since he was proud and confident, he would not wait until the future like Gongsun Zhong, but would instead go directly to His Majesty to ask for her hand in marriage. The younger members of the Demon Peacock Family and the Golden Roc Clan could produce extremely powerful demons if their powers were merged.


    The Jialou Royal Clan was worthy of a match with the Demon Peacock Clan.


    Ye Futian and that beast had been humiliating Kong Xuan for many days. He should have acted earlier. But now Her Majesty had decided to send a powerful battle matrix to pursue them.


    Woosh! Golden brilliance bloomed as Jia Loufeng sped over, piercing through the air in an instant. He disappeared from where he had been and crossed dozens of miles in a flash, appearing in the sky far away.


    The group of figures reverted to their original forms as golden Rocs and followed him across the sky, all of them moving incredibly fast.


    Kong Xuan''s form shone with light of nine different colors. As she moved forward, numerous cultivators from top families in the Demon World went with her, rushing to pursue Ye Futian.


    In the past Ye Futian had always evaded their pursuit, as they only had a few people who could truly chase him. And they had not dared to pursue him too far, fearing an ambush by Emperor Xia''s Realm. All they had been able to do was ignore him. But now that Emperor Xia''s City was engaged in battle they would not have time to ambush them.


    The black wind condor''s body grew larger, and its wings grew more brilliant, each feather turning a dark gold color. It continued to streak across the sky, disappearing into the distance. But even so, it left an extremely powerful aura behind it.


    Ye Futian naturally knew that the demonic beast pursuing him was Jia Loufeng of the Jialou Royal Clan. After dominating a demonic beast he had become familiar with the news of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. This news helped him to finalize his plans.


    In order to complete his plan, just dominating ordinary demonic beasts would not be enough. He needed a powerful demonic beast from a top clan, one of the top figures of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    Jia Loufeng could without a doubt become an important link in the chain.


    As he felt the pressure behind him, the Halberd of Time and Space appeared in Ye Futian''s hands. Behind him, Jia Loufeng was tearing across the sky, his golden feathers shooting out brilliant light. Each feather had turned into a sharp, unbreakable knife that cut through the air as they slashed towards Ye Futian and the black wind condor. That whole area of the sky seemed like it would be buried in them.


    Ye Futian clutched the Halberd of Time and Space tightly. It made time and space seem to cease their flow all around him. An invisible spatial light curtain appeared, like a wall of time and space. As the golden feathers struck towards him, they could not pierce the brilliant curtain.


    Woosh! Jia Loufeng''s figure flashed, and another feather streaked through the air. It pierce through the spatial light curtain, and a golden line appeared in the air. It looked like a beam of light as it shot towards Ye Futian. It was unbreakable, and it seemed there was nothing it could not break.


    Ye Futian glanced at the feather that was coming towards him and struck out with the Halberd of Time and Space. It collided with the feather, and brilliant light cracked the air around him. The feathers burst off of Jia Loufeng''s body, each one turning into an image of a giant Golden Roc.


    These images of Golden Rocs attacked, seeking to completely destroy the space where Ye Futian was. An immense pressure pressed down on the black wind condor. This kind of attack power would have been dangerous even for Ye Futian.


    The light of the Divine Path that the Halberd of Time and Space spat out burned even brighter as time and space seemed to flow even slower. The images of Rocs also seemed to be slowed, but countless golden claws still lashed out towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his arms, and he moved fast as lightning as he struck out with the halberd again. The space around him trembled violently, and in the next moment many of the images of Rocs were shattered into nothing.


    Ye Futian continued forward, and the Halberd of Time and Spaced struck towards Jia Loufeng himself. A terrible storm swept up in front of Jia Loufeng, and his feathers whirled around wildly in it, forming a brilliant golden spear. It gave off a light that sent cracks through the air.


    Jia Loufeng gripped the spear that had formed out of his feathers with his talons and struck out towards the oncoming Halberd of Time and Space. A fearsome space storm that could tear through anything whipped up as the spear and the halberd strove with each other. The storm turned into a vortex around them from which an ear splitting noise emitted.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as their weapons collided. Jia Loufeng was thrown backwards, and his spear turned back into feathers that scattered over his body. Amidst the dazzling light he stared at Ye Futian. This man''s attack power was simply frightening.


    Ye Futian alighted on the black wind condor''s back and swept his gaze over Jia Loufeng''s pursuing figure. The black wind condor continued to streak across the sky.


    Jia Loufeng flapped his wings and flew up into the air above Ye Futian. His aura flared as he continued to stare at Ye Futian.


    The group of figures persisted in their long-range raid, crossing countless miles. Along the way, Jia Loufeng would make surprise attacks on Ye Futian from time to time. Even if he couldn''t stop him, he could still hinder him.


    A mountainous area appeared before them. The black wind condor shot downward and entered into a canyon.


    Jia Loufeng followed him, flying in the air above the canyon.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as the black wind condor pierced directly through a huge mountain, flying inside of it.


    The light from Jia Loufeng''s feathers cracked the mountain, and pierced into it, shattering everything that it touched.


    After a while they burst out the other side of the mountain, and continued on their way through the endless mountain range.


    When they reached the hinterlands of the mountain range, they continued forward. Ye Futian sat with his back to Jia Loufeng. A strange light suddenly bloomed in his eyes, gradually becoming boundless and deep. His eyes were like an abyss, so deep that you could not see the bottom.


    He held the Halberd of Time and Space in one hand, and the will of the Great Path of Space covered everything around him.


    Jia Loufeng felt a strange aura. He looked at the figure on the back of the black wind condor. At that moment, he saw Ye Futian gradually turn around, and his strange gaze suddenly pierced him. A powerful spiritual storm plunged into his Spiritual Energy. It seemed like he was about to be captured.


    In that moment he felt like he was in great danger.


    Ye Futian appeared like a god in his mind as a frighteningly powerful storm drowned his spiritual will. He felt himself drawn into Ye Futian''s eyes.


    In that moment his will formed a divine bird that firmly protected his mind. The terrifying storm swallowed up everything, including the protective divine bird. Ye Futian''s mark was left upon it, and it was swallowed up into the storm.


    Woosh! Jia Loufeng felt that something was wrong, and he turned around to flee.


    It had not been easy for Ye Futian to lure him here, so he would certainly not let him escape. The light from the Halberd of Time and Space covered a vast area, and the whole mountain range seemed to be fettered by it. Jia Loufeng''s feathers managed to cut through the bindings, but his speed was still affected, and he could not move as fast. He felt like time and space had turned into a swamp around him.


    Woosh! A bolt of golden lightning swept flashed over, and afterimages of Ye Futian''s figure were left behind as Ye Futian descended before Jia Loufeng. He struck out with the halberd, piercing through the air as he integrated the many halberd combat styles he had learned into the First Move: Extreme Shadow.


    The feathers of the Garuda''s Wings turned into a spear, and Jia Loufeng gave a long roar. The spear and the halberd collided. There was a loud noise and Jia Loufeng retreated. Ye Futian flew up higher and began to circle around. More afterimages of him appeared, and a terrible storm swept across the land, and suddenly he lashed out with the halberd again.


    The two men clashed in the sky, colliding many times in a single instant. Jia Loufeng continued to fall back. Ye Futian gained an even stronger advantage, and was able to stab out with the halberd countless times in moments.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! The sky seemed about to split as thousands of halberd techniques were melded into the Second Move: Annihilation.


    The Halberd of Time and Space fell, and the space around them seemed like it would be destroyed, but the Garuda''s Wings protected Jia Loufeng''s body. He spun around, his countless feathers fluttering as he tried to turn the tables by attacking Ye Futian.


    Boom!


    A dull sound rang out. This was different from the halberd''s previous strikes. Jia Loufeng felt like all of his organs had shattered, and golden blood flowed from his mouth.


    But what was even more frightening was that Ye Futian''s stormy eyes were still attacking his Spiritual Energy, and swallowing it up bit by bit. A powerful fear took it them, and he felt as if he himself would be swallowed up. He felt that he had no will of his own, and that he would be dominated by his opponent.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    Thump! Thump! Thump! There was a series of dull sounds as Jia Loufeng''s body crashed into the mountains. The mountains cracked under the strain. Even with the Garuda''s Wings protecting him, he still felt like his organs were shaking.


    Terrifying lightning curled around his body, piercing into his mind and destroying his willpower''s resistance bit by bit.


    Divine light bloomed within his will, and he still managed to fight off the invasion. He was of the Jialou Royal Clan. How could he be dominated?


    At that moment, heaven and earth resounded as the whole area seemed to crack. Ye Futian struck out with the Halberd of Time and Space yet again, and Jia Loufeng did not even try to resist it this time. He just covered his body with the Garuda''s Wings.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise as a mountain shattered. Blood flowed swiftly from Jia Loufeng''s mouth, and his will seemed to shatter just like the mountain. He finally could be strong no longer.


    The storm swallowed up the protective divine bird, and Ye Futian''s mark was branded in his mind. In that moment, he felt that his life no longer belonged to him. He gave up all his resistance and lowered his proud head.


    The wind was howling far away. Ye Futian stepped onto the black wind condor''s back and shot up into the sky.


    Kong Xuan and the others reached the place and saw Jia Loufeng lying smashed into a mountain, with blood streaming from his mouth. Her face was extremely cold. "Jia Loufeng," she said.


    A demonic light flashed in Jia Loufeng''s eyes, and he seemed to return to normal. He turned to face Kong Xuan and said, "Princess, his attack power is too strong. I need several top figures from the royal clans to pursue and capture him."


    He looked at the figures beside Kong Xuan.


    "Fine." Kong Xuan nodded. She saw Jia Loufeng''s wounds, but did not think too much about them.


    Jia Loufeng''s figure flashed and the Garuda''s Wings unfurled. He wrapped several cultivators within them and brought them up into the air. This kind of method of carrying them was not very respectful, and would certainly not be suitable for Kong Xuan!

 1059 Xia Qingyuans Order

    Many people in Kongxuan City in the Empty Realm were paying attention to the Battle of Empty Realm, including many Saints.


    At that moment, many people were in Jiuxiao Tower discussing the news of the battle.


    "Emperor Li''s Realm has finally counterattacked Emperor Xia''s Realm''s in response to their triple victory in the flag battle. Their great army has attacked Emperor Xia''s City many times, and there have been countless casualties in this tragic war. They have firmly restricted the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm, forcing them to defend the city. And Emperor Li''s Realm hasn''t even sent out their full army yet. So far, neither army has gained the advantage," someone was saying.


    "Well, right now the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm are tightly guarding the area where their Emperor''s flag is. Emperor Li''s Realm''s multiple fierce assaults have put a lot of pressure on them, but Emperor Li''s Realm has controlled the Empty Realm for ten years, and many cultivators from the Empty Realm have joined their army. They have the advantage in terms of number of legions, and the Imperial Adviser of Emperor Li''s Realm has trained up many weapons in human form. All of them are at the semi-saint level. When they wield divine implements they can attack with the power of the Divine Path. The threat of this power is simple terrifying, and is putting great strain on Emperor Xia''s Realm''s army."


    "Given the power that Emperor Li''s Realm has shown in this war, it is highly likely that they will seize victory in the Battle of Empty Realm," many people argued.


    "Not necessarily. Emperor Li''s Realm has acted a bit impulsively by attacking Emperor Xia''s City multiple times. Both sides are wasting a lot of energy on this, and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm has been avoiding exerting themselves. So far they have suffered no losses, and have just been watching all along. If this situation continues the strongest side in the end will be Demon Peacock City."


    "But when you speak of Demon Peacock City, you have to speak of Ye Futian. That guy is simply unconventional. He did not go with the army to resist Emperor Li''s Realm, but has been harassing Demon Peacock City from the air for many days. His mount is extremely strong as well. He won one of the flag battles for Emperor Xia''s Realm already. He is able to compete with the top figures of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm."


    Someone else said, "But it''s that pair of master and servant who are truly outrageous. They are up there in the sky provoking them every day, threatening to make the Princess of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, Kong Xuan, serve Ye Futian. It''s that black wind condor in particular, the one who is even more prestigious than many of the noble families of the Demon World. He''s the one who keeps saying that Kong Xuan will have to serve his master. This is simply..."


    Many of the people there had heard this before, and a strange look came over their faces. That pair of master and servant were invincible.


    Was it possible that Ye Futian really wanted to take Princess Kong Xuan?


    That idea was bold enough.


    That man and that demon had been so arrogant, but all the demons of Demon Peacock City hadn''t been able to deal with them. Every time they had pursued and surrounded them they had escaped, and then they would come back. At that moment, all the demons in Demon Peacock City wanted to kill that pair of master and servant more than anyone else in the world.


    There were also some Saint level figures from the Nine States present at Juxiao Tower then. The Saints from the Realms of the Three Emperors were not allowed to enter the area of the Battle of Empty realm. Thus, they were all in Kongxuan City now. They naturally knew all the news about Ye Futian, but they could not guess what he was thinking.


    "What is Ye Futian planning? Does he have a trick up his sleeve?" said Saint Xia. The group of Saints from the Nine States were discussing this. They did not understand it.


    "He''s just a lecher, that''s all. What kind of tricks could he have?" came a cold voice. Saint Xia and the others looked at the one who had spoken and saw a cold but beautiful woman sitting there calmly. It was of course Glass Saint, and Yaya and the Village Chief were beside her.


    A strange look came over Saint Xia''s face as he looked at her. It was said that her cultivation situation was a little bit special right now, and that she had fallen into a strange mood. But why had she suddenly said that?


    He was just a lecher?


    Could it be that Ye Futian had done something to the foremost beauty of the Eastern State?


    Glass Saint still sat there coldly. When she finished speaking she closed her eyes, as if she did not care one bit about the outside world.


    "Glass Saint has the truth of it." Saint Xia suddenly nodded seriously. Then he smiled. There could be no other possibility besides this one.


    He had heard that this demon Princess Kong Xuan was a rare talent, and she was incredibly attractive with an unblemished face.


    Ye Futian had dared to place the Sword Saint of the Void and Glass Saint in the Holy Zhi Palace together. Given Ye Futian''s daring nature, it was likely that he would dare to do the same thing to Kong Xuan.


    ...........


    A black wind condor swooped down from the air above Emperor Xia''s City in the Empty Realm. On its back, Ye Futian''s hair was blowing in the wind and he had his hands clasped behind his back as he descended towards where Emperor Xia''s flag was.


    Emperor Xia''s City was a scene of ruin right now. There was rubble everywhere. Many battles had happened around the flag, and countless structures had been destroyed. For the time being there was no time to repair them, and the repairs would probably have to wait until the struggles in the Empty Realm were over.


    At that moment, everyone in the city looked up at Ye Futian with conflicted expressions.


    At the flag battle, Ye Futian''s friends Yu Sheng and the black wind condor had won two victories for Emperor Xia''s Realm, letting them win the battle with complete military success in the three battles. Princess Xia Qingyuan regarded him highly and fought shoulder to shoulder with him. The troops and officers of the three armies all recognized the white haired youth.


    Everyone had high hopes for Ye Futian. They hoped he could become the Princess''s assistant, and win this Battle of the Empty Realm.


    But they never would have thought that the passion he had shown during the flag battle would disappear. Emperor Li''s Realm had attacked Emperor XIa''s City, but Ye Futian refused to fight. It was said that he spent every day high in the sky above Demon Peacock City, and that he had some sort of intentions towards the demon Princess Kong Xuan, trying to seduce her by his words.


    Because of this he had missed several large scale military engagements.


    If he had been an unknown like before this wouldn''t matter. But since everyone had placed such high hopes on him, their disappointment in him was naturally all the greater. Many of those in the armies said that he was just arrogant, and that despite his incredible talent he had let down Emperor Xia''s high regard and Princess Xia Qingyuan''s trust. He had no military discipline, and did not care about the Battle of Empty Realm. Nor did he care whether the troops and officers of the three armies lived or died.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had received a title from Emperor Xia. He was the Princess''s valet, and was supposed to guard her from danger. But when battle had broken out he was not there, instead he was in Demon Peacock City trying to seduce demon Princess Kong Xuan.


    Thus, most of the people there were a little unhappy to see Ye Futian.


    Soon, Ye Futian came to the central area, in front of a magnificent ancient temple where a large army was stationed.


    The black wind condor glided down and landed in front of the temple. Everyone''s gaze fell upon Ye Futian.


    He seemed to guess the reason for the strange look in everyone''s eyes. They did not seem to be friendly.


    He furrowed his brow slightly, then relaxed it. He stepped forward without giving it any more thought.


    A group of figure were coming towards him. They were cultivators from the Upper Realms.


    "You''ve returned, Brother Ye," came a voice. Xiao Sheng had a dignified bearing, and his style was free and easy. His body was still faintly covered with the iron and blood of the battlefield. These past few days he and Gongsun Zhong had performed bravely. In the Upper Realms they had the reputation of being at the limit of what was possible below the Saint plane, and they had unleashed tremendous power upon the battlefield. Everyone looked at them with great respect.


    "It is commendable that you were able to escape in one piece from Demon Peacock City after having been there for so long. Have you achieved anything?" Xiao Sheng asked Ye Futian.


    Many cultivators were following behind him.


    They all looked over at the meeting between these two men. It was like a commander interrogating a man he had sent out to perform a task.


    But Xiao Sheng was not pushy or arrogant. He seemed very calm, but there was an invisible temperament flowing out of him.


    "I am going to report to the Princess." Ye Futian glanced at Xiao Sheng, then walked past him.


    He didn''t like Xiao Sheng very much, and Xiao Sheng clearly didn''t like him. But he always pretended that they were very close, which was very hypocritical. Since he knew the relationship between Xiao Sheng, Gongsun Zhong and Xia Qingyuan, he knew that Xiao Sheng could have no warm feelings towards him. He was an obstacle to Xiao Sheng. It could be said that he was an eyesore to him.


    "You knew that the two armies were fighting, and yet you refused to come back and help out in the battle. Instead you continued to provoke Kong Xuan and offend the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. What is your goal, Ye Futian?" Gongsun Zhong was not as polite as Xiao Sheng and so he spoke directly.


    "It''s none of your business," answered Ye Futian coldly. He continued forward, passing between the two of them.


    "The Battle of Empty Realm is of the utmost importance. If you offend the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, Kong Xuan and Emperor Li''s Realm will ally and attack us. That will be the end of us! And you say this is none of my business?" responded Gongsun Zhong coldly. "When you came to this battle you become a member of our army, and yet you wantonly trample upon our rules and make enemies for us. And you arrogantly say it''s none of my business?"


    "Only the Princess can be the master of my master. And yet you dare to call what he said arrogant?" The black wind condor swept its dark gold eyes over Gongsun Zhong. Ye Futian already knew that this scoundrel was a master at stirring up trouble. But he was no obstacle.


    At that moment, the sound of footsteps came from up ahead and another group of figures appeared. Xia Qingyuan was dressed in immaculate white robes. She walked towards Ye Futian.


    Xiao Sheng and Gongsun Zhong came to her side and stood there quietly. Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian, and everyone''s gaze was drawn there. They seemed to want to see how Xia Qingyuan would punish Ye Futian.


    "Princess," called Ye Futian.


    "Do you have something you wish to say to me?" the Princess asked Ye Futian coldly as she stared at him. This guy had not only refused to come to the battlefield once, but had refused the call for each battle, not even showing up once.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    "Princess, I must make my report in private," Ye Futian said to her.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him in silence for a time, then turned and said, "Come with me."


    Xiao Sheng, Gongsun Zhong and the others tried to follow her as well.


    Xia Qingyuan stopped and whispered to them"You do not need to follow me." Suddenly Xiao Sheng and Gongsun Zhong stopped. They all watched her and Ye Futian go into the temple alone.


    The black wind condor stood in his original place, proudly sweeping its gaze over everyone. Its master had not participated in the battle because his status was far above that the ones gathered here.


    "Do you see the difference" it asked lazily.


    Xiao Sheng and Gongsun Zhong were stunned. They looked at the black wind condor, and their eyes flashed with coldness.


    But the black wind condor just looked at them with contempt. He did not care at all. Did they want to attack him? Then they would see who Grandfather Condor was used to tangling with.


    Not long after, Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian walked out of the temple. Xia Qingyuan said, "I am naming Ye Futian assistant commander of the Battle of Empty Realm. When I am gone you are all to follow his orders."


    All was silent at these words as Xiao Sheng and Gongsun Zhong stared at her in shock!

 1060 The Trend

    Many turned their eyes at Xia Qingyuan with puzzled expression.


    When the great armies were clashing, Ye Futian refused to fight outside and went to Demon Peacock City to flirt with Kong Xuan. Xiao Sheng, Gongsun Zhong, Xuanyuan Ao and the others were the ones who fought valiantly. Furthermore, there was still Tian Ji, who was the princess'' guard. If she wanted to make someone her lieutenant, Ye Futian never seemed to be even a likely candidate.


    Other than having sent Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Condor at the flag battles, Ye Futian had done next to nothing. There was no way anyone would have been alright with the princess making him her lieutenant.


    They recalled Emperor Xia appointing Ye Futian as her valet and wondered if it had been of the princess'' own will.


    Did Ye Futian somehow end up wooing the princess?


    If one were to pay close attention to Ye Futian''s face, the charming features below his silver hair, he was indeed very handsome nonetheless.


    Many thought such ideas to be rather ridiculous. She was Xia Qingyuan, the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm and a renowned chosen daughter after all. If something like that were to truly happen with her, it would have been a disgrace to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Princess." Gongsun Zhong stepped forward at that moment and bowed. "He was not around when the fighting happened, he made enemies out there, and he had no merits in the battlefield to speak of. Such an appointment would have earned the ire of many."


    Gongsun Zhong was no doubt speaking the minds of those who were present. He was baffled as to why the princess acted as she did.


    "Princess, Gongsun Zhong''s words might have been severe and despite Brother Ye''s exceptional prowess, it was difficult to appease the crowd by appointing someone with no merit as your lieutenant," Xiao Sheng spoke up as well. He sounded rather calm and amicable, but his mind at the moment, was nonetheless cold as ice.


    Xia Qingyuan was his cousin as her mother, Queen Xiao, was of the Xiao clan. He fought at the front lines in the battle and led the mighty ones of the Xiao clan valiantly in battle.


    He was doing all of that for good reasons.


    It was so that that cousin of his would have taken him seriously, enabling him to counsel her by her side. If there were to not be a lieutenant and the princess were to be the sole supreme commander, then no one else would have anything to say about it. But if there were to be a position of lieutenant, then he deemed it no else fit for the position but him.


    However, Xia Qingyuan chose to appoint Ye Futian instead. One could have guessed what was going on in his mind at the moment.


    "Princess, please choose your candidate wisely," Tian Ji spoke softly as well, being concerned that the decision would have affected morale.


    Xia Qingyuan then scanned the crowd. She had predicted all of that to happen. Ye Futian was finished with his work at the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s forces. If she were to put Ye Futian to work at such an important position, it would have alerted those from Emperor Li''s Realm and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. She should not have made such a decision, but she naturally had her own reasons for doing so.


    "Capable ones shall be promoted to positions of importance in the war between the three armies. Ye Futian had claimed all three victories for us and fought single-handedly with the forces from the Demon Peacock City, killing many mighty ones from their side. I ask you all this, who here dares challenge the Demon Peacock City alone but Ye Futian?" Xia Qingyuan''s voice was cold, and many were dumbfounded by her words.


    The way they saw things were different from Xia Qingyuan. Her words were hard to retort and from her perspective, Ye Futian''s strength was indeed undeniable. He had provoked Demon Peacock City all on his own after all.


    It was said that the ones from Demon Peacock City then hated him to the bone. Their forces pursued and fought him many times, yet they failed without exception and many demonic beasts lost their lives doing so.


    Killing demonic beasts from Demon Peacock City was naturally also considered solid results in the war between all three imperial realms. As such, no one dared claim that Ye Futian had not done anything anymore.


    Still, it was undeniable that Ye Futian''s methods seemed rather reckless.


    Gongsun Zhong''s face was grim. He then said all of a sudden, "I dare to do so."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    Everyone present turned their eyes at Gongsun Zhong, including Xia Qingyuan.


    Gongsun Zhong then lifted his head and gazed at Xia Qingyuan, saying, "If you were to give your orders, I would have no problems heading there at all."


    "Well then." Xia Qingyuan then said while looking at Gongsun Zhong straight in the eye. "I now order Gongsun Zhong to head to Demon Peacock City as our envoy, to bring word to Princess Kong Xuan, that our people serve their respective masters during the Battle of Empty Realm. I shall reprimand Ye Futian for whatever trespasses he made, and I hope that she would not hold on to the matter any further. Furthermore, Ye Futian is exceptionally talented and he has shown extreme admiration for Princess Kong Xuan, claiming her to be of exceptional appearance and tremendous combat prowess. He came to admire her greatly and hoped that he had a chance to get to know her further after the battle is over. As for the Battle of Empty Realm, the forces of Emperor Li''s Realm were considerable, and we would be willing to join hands with Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s forces, to take out Emperor Li''s City."


    Everyone was stunned hearing Xia Qingyuan''s words, but quickly realized what Xia Qingyuan was up to.


    The princess intended to ease the confrontation between both sides, and to hint on Ye Futian''s admiration for Princess Kong Xuan of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, which had been what led him to become so reckless in his actions.


    With that said, she had appointed Ye Futian as lieutenant precisely for that matter, allowing them to ease the confrontation between them and Demon Peacock City, then take on Emperor Li''s Realm together.


    Many came to regret their earlier thoughts as they realized that they have misunderstood the princess'' intentions. Xia Qingyuan was simply doing what she did for the greater good of their realm''s forces.


    But then again, their opinions towards Ye Futian remained unchanged. They thought him unhinged for having the princess pick up the pieces for what he did, cleaning up after him. Furthermore, the princess'' words stated that the fellow was after Princess Kong Xuan''s beauty after all.


    Despite being enemies, but it was undeniable that Kong Xuan''s exceptional bearing and appearances rivalled that of Xia Qingyuan back in Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    They were rather concerned. Despite the princess'' mild-mannered tone, but they worried if Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm would have taken that as an insult, and came to resent Emperor Xia''s Realm even more.


    They hoped that Kong Xuan would have been more reasonable. At the very least, they hoped that even though they may not have ended up being allies, she would not have blamed Emperor Xia''s City for what Ye Futian pulled.


    Many then turned their eyes back at Gongsun Zhong with puzzled expressions.


    He dares to do so?


    He is really asking to be allowed to walk to his own grave?


    Ye Futian had offended Demon Peacock City a great deal and one could have imagined how much Kong Xuan have hated Ye Futian. Although Gongsun Zhong would have only been visiting Demon Peacock City to bring word of Xia Qingyuan''s good will, one would have still wondered if Kong Xuan would have ran amok and ordered him killed.


    Worse still, the possibility of such things happening was very great.


    By the way, why is Gongsun Zhong willing to take such a fall in Ye Futian''s behalf?


    Many felt lucky for not having acted on bravado when the princess asked. The way the princess gone with her business was indeed unpredictable.


    Gongsun Zhong stood where he was without making a sound. No one was able to make anything out of his expression. His eyes were on Xia Qingyuan when he said, "If this is your orders, princess, then I shall see it through."


    "Delay no more. Depart immediately. Would you need to bring anyone else with you?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "That won''t be necessary," Gongsun Zhong shook his head as he said. If Ye Futian was able to get to the sky above Demon Peacock alone with only his beast, he would have been able to do the same as well.


    As someone from Divine Cloud Valley and lauded as the heir to the place, he definitely had the greatest number of divine implements on him, and furthermore, all of them would have been of great powers.


    "Very well then. Deliver my words as they were. Do not change a single word." Xia Qingyuan then said, "Off you go."


    "Indeed." Gongsun Zhong cupped his hands and appeared well-mannered, before taking to the air and disappeared right before everyone.


    No one knew what Gongsun Zhong would have felt at that moment.


    Xiao Sheng took a look at Xia Qingyuan and felt some pity for Gongsun Zhong. He naturally knew what was going on in Gongsun Zhong''s mind. However, he did not expect the man who had just left to be the one to suffer the wrath of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s forces in Ye Futian''s place. He found that he was getting increasingly incapable of understanding how his cousin does things.


    His father had been correct. The princess was already her own woman. When they were going about business outside, he could have only seen her as the emperor''s daughter and not his cousin.


    He finally experienced what all of that meant.


    Gongsun Zhong delivered his words at the sky above Demon Peacock City. The Roc of the Jialou Royal Clan, Jialou Feng, went up before everyone else at Gongsun Zhong, intending to kill him, just as Gongsun Zhong delivered his message. Despite claiming to be there as an envoy, the mighty ones of Demon Peacock City remained unflinching, intending to kill the envoy where he stood right there and then.


    However, Gongsun Zhong was nonetheless the successor to Divine Cloud Valley and brought extremely powerful divine implements with him. Be it attack, defense, or speed types, he had it all. He was still able to escape despite being pursued by the mighty ones from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, but he was nonetheless injured.


    It was apparent that the people from Demon Peacock City had intentions of making peace with them. The proposal of an alliance against Emperor Li''s Realm was entirely out of the question.


    After Gongsun Zhong left, Jialou Feng spread its wings and dropped to the ground slowly. There were also other great monsters royalties appearing before Kong Xuan. Jialou Feng then said, "Your highness, Emperor Xia''s Realm is just too much. Ye Futian and that wretched beast have insulted you over and over again, and they dared to claim that all of that was done out of admiration. This is an insult like no other. Xia Qingyuan is mocking us from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm."


    "That might not be an insult. Xia Qingyuan''s attitude seems rather neutral from Gongsun Zhong''s message. That might actually be an act of goodwill and they do not want to make enemies of us. Xia Qingyuan would probably keep him leashed when he returns. The war between Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm had resulted in great losses in Emperor Xia''s Realm''s part, and they were probably doing they did, due to not wanting to offend us too gravely," A descendant of the Great Bull King clan elaborated.


    "So are you proposing that we accept Xia Qingyuan''s goodwill then?" Jialou Feng''s proud eyes glanced at the one who spoke earlier.


    "I''m definitely not. It is precisely due to Xia Qingyuan suing for peace, that we know that Emperor Xia''s City is now in a rather dire state." The green bull then smiled and said, "Your highness, what Ye Futian did before was unforgivable and we definitely need to cut him down to stain our flag. With Xia Qingyuan now suing for peace, why not make things more difficult for them instead, by taking Emperor Xia''s City once and for all?"


    "Emperor Li''s Realm''s forces fought several times with those from Emperor Xia''s Realm. Both sides suffered quite a bit. With Emperor Xia''s Realm''s forces retreated and preparing to recuperate for the time being, and now that us from Demon Peacock City being the strongest, it is indeed a good chance for us to kick Emperor Xia''s City out of the game." Many demonic beasts offered their counsel.


    Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan nodded and nodded, finding all of their words to be logical.


    That was indeed a good opportunity.


    Kong Xuan recalled Ye Futian''s face and her eyes turned cold, feeling very eager to tear him to pieces.


    "Who among you would be willing to head to Emperor Li''s City as our envoy?" Kong Zhan then asked. With all of them having analyzed things to such detail, he naturally knew what to do next.


    "I shall go, your highness," Jialou Feng then said.


    "Well then, I''m pleased that you offer yourself to the task. You''re capable enough and I do not need to worry about your safety as well." Kong Zhan agreed right there and then. Jialou Feng was of formidable powers and had unparalleled speed. If it intended to escape from a place, none below Saint Plane would have been able to catch up to him.


    "Be on your way then," Kong Zhan said.


    Jialou Feng flashed and took to the air, heading straight for Emperor Li''s City.


    At that moment at Emperor Li''s City, Li Yao felt pleased at the reports from his people.


    Is Xia Qingyuan balking already now?


    That Ye Futian had been an idiot. He actually went to take on Demon Peacock City all on his own. And now, Xia Qingyuan has to get moving to ease the tension for him. Still, Gongsun Zhong the envoy almost ended up killed on the spot. Kong Xuan was indeed very angry about the whole deal.


    "Your highness, Jialou Feng from Demon Peacock City has come to visit, claiming to be an envoy to Demon Peacock City," Someone came and reported.


    A smile was seen in Li Yao''s eyes when he heard that. He then smiled at Yuan Jin, who was at his side, and said, "Brother, it is just as you predicted. Things go in our favor without us needing to do anything indeed."


    "It shall suffice with their attitude." Yuan Jin''s expression was calm, as if everything went as he planned it.


    "Send it in," Li Yao stood and said. With how things were then, he deemed it wise to just follow the trend, to wipe out Emperor Xia''s City first!

 1061 Sacrifice?

    Li Yao received Jialou Feng in Emperor Li''s City.


    Naturally he was aware of the identity of Jialou Feng, descendent of the Jialou royal clan, the future king of the Roc family, whose status was extremely esteemed and honorable. Kong Xuan sent him to make the visit in person, demonstrated the importance attached to this visit.


    "Jialou Feng greets His Royal Highness of Dali."


    At this time, Jialou Feng stood in front of the great cultivators of the Dali Dynasty, facing Li Yao. Although he said he was here to greet Li Yao, he did not actually move to pay his respect. His eyes were sharp and sly, as if he felt that as a demonic noble, there was no need for him to salute.


    Li Yao was not upset. The King of Jialou was said to be unparalleled in speed in the Demon Peacock Realm. According to some anecdotes of the demon world, the strength of the King of Jialou was not weaker than the Peacock Emperor. The two demonic beasts were both top figures in the demonic world until the later enlightenment of the Peacock Emperor, who then became the Demon Emperor, thus determined the current landscape of the Demon Peacock Realm.


    "What was the matter for the Demon Peacock City to name you as an ambassador?" asked Li Yao with a smile. He did not mind whether the other saluted him or not; it was all in line with the character of the Jialou royal clan.


    "Demon Peacock City wishes to join forces with Emperor Li''s City to annihilate Emperor Xia''s Realm. After that, the Demon Peacock City will fight with Emperor Li''s City for the right to control the Empty Realm in the next ten years." Jialou Feng replied curtly, getting straight to the heart of the matter.


    A flash of a bright light passed through his eyes. Demonic beasts were demonic beasts after all, straight forward, but he rather like this straightforwardness.


    "Yes." Li Yao nodded in agreement. This was exactly what he had been planning: Get rid of an opponent first, and after taking over Emperor Xia''s City, they could then deal with the Demon Peacock City.


    They had taken the initiative to fight with Emperor Xia''s City to signal to Emperor Li''s City, suggesting that both of them had a shared enemy in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Thus, there could be reason for a real alliance.


    "But I have two conditions," Jialou Feng said.


    "Oh?" Li Yao looked at the Jialou Feng, somewhat surprised. Jialou Feng was the messenger, came to request an alliance, and he has demands?


    "Tell me," Li Yao responded with some interest.


    "First, I don''t have much confidence in Emperor Li''s Realm based on past experiences. For the alliance, when our two armies attacked Emperor Xia''s City, the army from Emperor Li''s City and the Demon Peacock City were to be mixed together, so that if either side has any dishonesty, the other party can renege on the alliance so that both sides are accountable, and would not betray the other," Jialou Feng said.


    Li Yao furled his brows and frowned; to mix the army together?


    In the past, in terms of strategy, Emperor Li''s Realm was indeed more superior, and it was an area that the Demon Peacock Realm had always been the most challenged. In the last battle, it was how Emperor Li''s Realm was able to won the control of the Empty Realm.


    It was no wonder that the Demon Peacock Realm did not trust them.


    "Emperor Li''s City had already declared war against Emperor Xia''s City, and both sides had suffered numerous deaths and injuries. On the contrary, Demon Peacock City only engaged in just a few small-scale battles, and let''s not forget we have not yet launched any accusations about that," Yuan Jin piped up on the side, " alliance has not yet been formed, and you already doubted us; is this why you have come here?"


    "The last battle for the Empty Realm was a good indicator," Jialou Feng responded easily, "not to mention, for the two armies to mix together served as a bind not only to Emperor Li''s Realm, but also to us, to ensure that neither side will turn on the other. This is just for bringing the destruction of Emperor Xia''s City, Emperor Li''s Realm should have no reason to refuse such an alliance?"


    Li Yao and the Yuan Jin gazed at Jialou Feng, and Li Yao continued, "what else?"


    "To be allied in the battle meant that slaying of the imperial flag was not a priority, but to destroy everyone of Emperor Xia''s City, especially Ye Futian and that damned beast; if they are not dead, we would not slay the flag." Jialou Feng said coldly.


    Li Yao and Yuan Jin exchanged a look, a faint smile in their eyes; they were very satisfied with this grievance.


    Not long ago, they had heard that the messenger of Emperor Xia''s City had just conveyed the words of Xia Qingyuan when Jialou Feng wanted to kill him violently within the city limit of Demon Peacock City, revealing the depth of their resentment.


    "I have heard some of the words spoken by Ye Futian and that beast, and it was indeed a great insult to Princess Kong Xuan. Xia Qingyuan even dared to send messenger to express the appreciation that Ye Futian had for Princess Kong Xuan, perhaps Xia Qingyuan thought that as her deputy, Ye Futian is now qualified to be on the same level as Princess Kong Xuan. However, the aim of the battle for the Empty Realm is the slaying of the imperial flag; is this the suggestion of the princess or your own?" Yuan Jin''s eyes stayed on Jialou Feng.


    "Her Royal Highness is the most noble lady in our demonic realm, and we would not tolerate anyone to insult her. This is the common wish of all the major clans of our demonic realm." Jialou Feng was extremely sharp, but avoided giving a direct answer, and Yuan Jin suddenly revealed a touch of smile.


    Kong Xuan, as the daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor, and with a beauty not seen often in her generation, certainly played no second fiddle to Xia Qingyuan. With such a demonic woman, how could the descendants of these great demonic clans not have some ideas of their own about her?


    Ye Futian and his mount not only humiliated Kong Xuan, but also humiliated all the great demons of the demonic clans.


    "Return and tell Her Royal Highness to wait for my news," Li Yao said with a smile; Jialou Feng nodded and left.


    After he left, Li Yao looked at Yuan Jin and said, "Senior Brother, what are your thoughts?"


    "In the past, of all the battles for the Empty Realm, the Demon Peacock Realm had won the least number of times, because strategy is not their forte. Although demonic beasts obtained wisdom through enlightenment, but their nature was still that of the demon. We had fought many wars with Emperor Xia''s City and suffered considerable casualties. The Demon Peacock City has also made enemy with Emperor Xia''s City, but they dared not attack easily, and because they worried that we will take advantage of them, hence their request to form an alliance with us. It was indeed the best solution they could think of. Their request to mingle the armies together was probably indicative of trauma caused by previous battles for the Empty Realm."


    Yuan Jin said with smiles.


    "So, this matter can be done?" Li Yao said with a smile, there was no flaw in it that he could find; the Demon Peacock Realm seemed to really want to form an alliance.


    "Hmm." Yuan Jin nodded, "The demonic beasts of the demonic realm will not use the reputation of Kong Xuan as a pretext to set up a trap. What''s more, Ye Futian had killed many demonic beasts, including beasts of the royal clans such as the Roc. Demonic beasts are straightforward in nature and would not do such things. Otherwise, of all the battles for the Empty Realm, the Demon Peacock Realm would probably win more than half of them."


    "The only flaw was that although we could say that this alliance was possible because of the situation, it was still far too smooth. In my previous calculations, it should have taken longer, perhaps at the end of the three-month period would the alliance be reached," Yuan Jin said.


    In fact, his suspicion was not without reason. Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan did not think of forming an alliance so quickly. However, the great demons of all the great royal clans hated Ye Futian, and so they had banded together and pled. Kong Xuan also hated Ye Futian and that Black Wind Condor, so it was natural that she would go along with it, hence the trip made by Jialou Feng at this time.


    "Sire, how is Ye Futian as a person?" Yuan Jin asked Li Yao. He had heard that Li Yao had some contact with Ye Futian, although not much.


    "I only know that this person came from the land of Nine States in the Lower Worlds of Emperor Xia''s Realm, and master of one state there. He is very talented, but extremely arrogant and unbridled, causing all the holy lands of Nine States to besiege the holy land where he was, and it was almost destroyed. Even though I was not personally in attendance of the battle, but I did hear later that his wife was killed and it explained why Ye Futian hated me."Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    Li Yao said, "But once he was the master of a state, known as Unparalleled in the Lower Worlds. He must have been extremely proud of himself to go to the Demon Peacock City with one man and one beast to inflame the situation; his conceit was demonstrated in his desire to use his own power to vanquish the Demon Peacock City, killing many demons. From this perspective, he was indeed very outstanding. He probably wanted to kill me after he had flattened Demon Peacock City."


    "Someone who had gained the trust of Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan, and could also fight with Kong Xuan, was naturally gifted, and his arrogance was not unexpected," Yuan Jin nodded. "However, this time Emperor Li''s Realm is the strongest, there was no need to use tricks; we just need to go with the flow of the situation, but make sure to guard against surprise attacks from the other side. There is no problem with the alliance, but it needs to be laid out carefully so that if there are any surprise, we could easily deal with it."


    "I''m afraid we have to trouble you, then," said Li Yao.


    "Let me go and calculate," Yuan Jin stood up to leave, and Li Yao also stood up to see him off. To Yuan Jin, this prince demonstrated extreme respect, even in front of his subordinates, he had always addressed him as Senior Brother.


    The status of Yuan Jin and the treatment he received was Xiao Sheng''s dream, though he was by the side of Xia Qingyuan, he still could not receive such recognition.


    The news that Jialou Feng went to seek alliance with Emperor Li''s City quickly spread to Emperor Xia''s City. Xia Qingyuan once again sent Gongsun Zhong to deliver a message to Emperor Li''s City. However, this time, he had only delivered the message half way before he was chased out and running for his life again with injury.


    Gongsun Zhong did not complete the task that was given by Xia Qingyuan, so all he could do was to press on, but every time he left with injury, it was a very miserable business.


    The Demon Peacock City seemed to be in no mood for talks except in its determination to deal with Emperor Xia''s City.


    Gong Sunzhong returned to Emperor Xia''s City to see Xia Qingyuan, and there was blood on him. He had once again returned with injury. Though he was slightly embarrassed, he still maintained his grace. He said to Xia Qingyuan, "Gongsun Zhong had disappointed the princess."


    "It seemed that Kong Xuan''s resentment was very deep. This is not your fault, no need to blame yourself," Xiao Sheng said. Many people looked at Ye Futian who was not far away, and their looks were not friendly.


    For the Demon Peacock Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm to reach an alliance so quickly was undoubtedly disastrous news for them.


    All of this was caused by Ye Futian.


    Gong Sunzhong looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "It''s not just Kong Xuan. All the demons in Demon Peacock City held deep grudges, as soon as they saw me, they started to give chase. It was obviously a situation that had been repeated many times before."


    Everyone naturally understood what Gongsun Zhong was referring to; Ye Futian had repeatedly provoked the other, therefore the people of the Demon Peacock Realm must have treated him like Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan looked calmly at the people, without the slightest sense of disturbance. Ye Futian had already told her the whole plan. Under the circumstances that the setup had already been completed by Ye Futian, the victory of the battle for the Empty Realm was without a doubt.


    But Ye Futian wanted revenge, not just mere victory.


    However, she could not reveal this detail, even to her most trusted subordinates she must concealed this fact, otherwise, it would cause great suspicion once it was known.


    "Gongsun Zhong would venture a word," at this time, Gongsun Zhong said while bowed his head to Xia Qingyuan.


    "Speak," Xia Qingyuan looked at him.


    "The bell must be untied by the one who tied it, for the battle of the Empty Realm, some sacrifices are inevitable." Gongsun Zhong said, and suddenly all eyes were fastened upon Gongsun Zhong, who had his head down.


    This matter was caused by Ye Futian, so how could they not understand the sacrifices implied by Gongsun Zhong!

 1062 The Pending Battle

    This incident was indeed caused by Ye Futian. Gongsun Zhong went to the Demon Peacock City several times, and was attacked by the demons each and every time. On behalf of Ye Futian, he had endured the brunt of the anger of the demonic clans, and there must be a lot of resentment in his heart.


    Now that the alliance between the Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Realm was being negotiated, wanting to attack together, Gongsun Zhong thought of handing Ye Futian over to Kong Xuan to quell the anger of the Demon Peacock Realm, thus maintaining the confrontation evenly three-sided.


    On the surface, it seemed feasible, but in fact, it was not so simple. Xia Qingyuan''s stance aside, even if she was willing to surrender Ye Futian, but what if after the Demon Peacock Realm had executed Ye Futian, they continued their alliance with Emperor Li''s Realm?


    They would have lost a strong fighter in vain, and not to mention the many strong cultivators around Ye Futian such as Yu Sheng and the others. If they surrendered Ye Futian, then the support of these people would also evaporate; it was undoubtedly akin to breaking one of their own arms.


    Even though many did not like Ye Futian, but they had to recognize his strength. Gongsun Zhong''s injuries were proof that Ye Futian was way more powerful, who could repeatedly provoke Kong Xuan but always emerged in one piece.


    Furthermore, Xia Qingyuan was willing to promote Ye Futian as her deputy, and sent Gongsun Zhong to the Demon Peacock City for him to show friendly intentions to Kong Xuan. Her appreciation of Ye Futian and his importance to her were apparently; naturally she would not have sent him.


    Gongsun Zhong ''s proposal could only satisfy his own displeasure and the princess was unlikely to agree.


    Ye Futian glanced at Gongsun Zhong, and he looked calm and without disturbance. Gongsun Zhong''s displeasure of him was apparent at old master Xiao''s birthday banquet. Now, with all that had happened in the Empty Realm, surely his displeasure toward him had increased, so he had made such suggestion even when he knew that there was no possibility, he still spoke of it showed how deep that resentment ran.


    The future leader of Divine Cloud Valley really did not care about offending him.


    However, it was expected. Even though he was talented and named as deputy of the princess, but this was the Divine Cloud Valley, which had its own status and power in its own right. The past leader of Divine Cloud valley was the personal armorer of Emperor Xia, and even the Xiao clan desired to form an alliance with the Divine Cloud Valley through marriage, and like Lihen Heaven, it stood at the epitome of power in Emperor Xia''s Realm. With its solid backing from Emperor Xia, Ye Futian''s feeling was the least of their concerns.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Gongsun Zhong and said, "Gongsun Zhong, what kind of sacrifice do you mean?"


    Upon hearing Xia Qingyuan''s words, many people showed surprise. The princess was deliberately pretended not to understand the insinuation made by Gongsun Zhong.


    With his head still bowed, Gongsun Zhong said, "if Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Realm formed an alliance, we will undoubtedly lose the battle of the Empty Realm, and ten years of preparation will be wasted in an instant. And the cause of the current situation was none other than Ye Futian''s arrogant behavior. If Ye Futian is sent to the Demon Peacock City to quench their anger, they would naturally stop their alliance with Emperor Li''s Realm."


    "In the battle for the Empty Realm, is the Demon Peacock Realm an enemy to Emperor Xia''s Realm?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    "Yes," Gongsun Zhong bowed his head and replied.


    "Ye Futian alone was able to contain the Demon Peacock City, killing many great demons, so what is the reason for sending him to the Demon Peacock City?" Xia Qingyuan continued her inquiry, her voice was calm, but this calmness gave Gongsun Zhong a sense of invisible pressure.


    "The battlefield of the Empty Realm is not subjected to military discipline, fighting alone led to the current crisis," Gongsun Zhong responded.


    Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly and said, "You are right, Ye Futian did what he wanted, which led to the current difficulty we are in, and he should immediately relinquish his title as my deputy. But when Gongsun Zhong, on the verge of impending battle, confused the focus of our army by suggesting sending our deputy to the enemy, disregard ranking and showed fear in fighting; Gongsun Zhong, what do you think should be the punishment for that offense?"


    When Gongsun Zhong heard what Xia Qingyuan had to say, his face paled. He lifted his head up slightly and looked at Xia Qingyuan in the eyes. His heart was cold and he was extremely disappointed.


    There was nothing wrong with what Xia Qingyuan had said, but it showed Xia Qingyuan''s attitude toward the two of them.


    The Divine Cloud Valley had followed the Emperor Xia for many years, his grandfather was the master royal armorer. He, too, had hoped to follow and serve Xia Qingyuan.


    However, in the heart of Xia Qingyuan, the status of Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley was not as high as that of Ye Futian from the Lower Worlds of the Nine States.


    He proposed to sacrifice Ye Futian because he wanted to see how Xia Qingyuan would respond.


    And today, he has his answer.


    "The princess may decide what punishment Gongsun Zhong deserves," Gongsun Zhong looked into Xia Qingyuan''s eyes, then bowed his head in respect, without any more illusions in his heart.


    "Princess," Xiao Sheng walked up and bowed to Xia Qingyuan, "It was in a moment of confusion and frustration that Gongsun Zhong acted like this, and also because of the concern regarding the battle for the Empty Realm; I hope the princess will consider these factors in meting out the punishment."


    "Princess, the brink of battle is really not a suitable time to shake the confidence of the army," Tian Ji also whispered.


    Xia Qingyuan still looked very calm, gazing at Gongsun Zhong, and Gongsun Zhong stood there with his head hung. It seemed a long time had passed before Xia Qingyuan said, "Go to the Demon Peacock City with this message: I, Xia Qingyuan, am willing to apologize on behalf of Ye Futian for his behavior. However, the confrontations between the armies were inevitable. But if the Demon Peacock City insisted on having its own way and joining with Emperor Li''s Realm to attack the Emperor Xia''s City, we are prepared to die fighting, and will focus all our power against the cultivators of the Demon Peacock City, and we would rather let Emperor Li''s Realm win without a fight."


    "Yes," Gongsun Zhong replied.


    "In addition, after the battle began, you will lead the cultivators of the Divine Cloud Valley to fight in the front, and use your action to prove your belief in our victory of the battle for the Empty Realm, and whether or not you are willing to make sacrifices." Xia Qingyuan continued. Her plain voice sounded chilling to many.


    The forward of the great battle had always suffered the greatest, and it had always been the responsibility of the Eight legions directly belonging to Emperor Xia. Now, Xia Qingyuan had asked Gongsun Zhong to lead the Divine Cloud Valley to fight in the front. Such punishment was rather malicious, and Gongsun Zhong had nothing to say.


    Since he said that Ye Futian could be sacrificed, then Xia Qingyuan would let him make some sacrifices himself.


    "Yes, princess." Gongsun Zhong looked very calm and without anger, and his expression did not change much, as if his heart was like stilled water.


    The more he cared, the easier it was for his emotion to be out of control. When true despair set in and he no longer had much to care, he was able to calmly look at everything.


    At this moment, Gongsun Zhong had lost all hope for Xia Qingyuan, and no longer had any illusions.


    "Go deliver the message," Xia Qingyuan said. She did not care about what ??Gongsun Zhong thought, because this descendant of Divine Cloud Valley had also disappointed her greatly.


    "Yes," Gongsun Zhong nodded, then backed off and departed by levitation, went to the Demon Peacock City to pass on the message.


    Looking at Gongsun Zhong departing, many felt sympathy. This extraordinary figure of the Divine Cloud Valley had wanted to win the heart of princess Xia Qingyuan, but in the end, it worked against him. The princess was obviously very dissatisfied with him, so much so that she disregarded his thoughts on the matter altogether.


    "Prepare for war." Xia Qingyuan casted a glance to the crowd, and suddenly every one of them stepped back and went on with war preparation.


    If their opponents were to attack with a united front, it would be a brutal bloody battle.


    Gongsun Zhong went to the Demon Peacock City to send the message, which enraged all the demonic royal clans who were furious and accused Xia Qingyuan for lack of sincerity and her threat to them. They declared their intention to capture Xia Qingyuan and proposed to immediately sent out troops and joined forces to attack.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    Jialou Feng proposed to co-mingle of the Imperial armies and join forces to attack. This way, it would not only be difficult for Emperor Li''s Realm to use trickery agaisnt them, but it would also be difficult for Emperor Xia''s cultivators to target them alone.


    Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan had seriously considered the proposal of Jialou Feng.


    After learning about the content of Xia Qingyuan''s message, it naturally filled Li Yao''s heart with great joy, and he couldn''t wait for the other two parties to shred each other to pieces during the war, so that they could reserve their strength and wait until Emperor Xia''s City was vanquished before they turned on those demons.


    However, after the Demon Peacock City once again mentioned the proposal of Jialou Feng, in order to show sincerity, Li Yao was forced to agree, and the two sides formally made an alliance and began to prepare for the war, planning to take Emperor Xia''s City in one fight without leaving any potential for future troubles.


    At the same time, Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Realm began to prepare for war, reorganized their armies and its mixed formations and started to set up the camps of their mixed army.


    An invisible pressure shrouded Emperor Xia''s City.


    In the Empty Realm, many people have said that Emperor Xia''s City was finished. After this war, they may lose the qualification to fight for the control of the Empty Realm.


    This great confrontation in the battle of the Empty Realm seemed to arrive a little faster than expected.


    After some days of preparation, this day, starting from Emperor Li''s City, branches of army departed, same with the Demon Peacock City, all demons were mobilized from different directions, going toward one direction, the direction of Emperor Xia''s City.


    The two imperial realms had officially formed an alliance, joined forces to invade Emperor Xia''s City, ready to destroy it.


    On this day, the black clouds shrouded Emperor Xia''s City, and it was different from before. This time it was no longer a single attack from Emperor Li''s army, but two armed forces joined together against them. They had each left only some of their troops to guard the cities, and the rest of the cultivators were all involved in this battle.


    At this time in Emperor Xia''s City, the great army gathered in the direction of the imperial flag, waiting.


    The vast sky in the distance had been filled with extremely powerful pressure, and the two great armies were approaching.


    Above the main hall, Xia Qingyuan looked into the distance, with Ye Futian stood next to her, also looking in the same direction.


    The setup had taken many days, and today it was finally the time to welcome this battle. This was also the situation that Ye Futian had been working hard to create!

 1063 Running Attack and Battlefield

    The armies of Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Realm descended upon Emperor Xia''s City. At this time, the location of the imperial flag of the Demon Peacock City was guarded by the descendants of the Green Bull King. The original form of the Green Bull King was a yak, so its strength was extremely powerful.


    The clan of Green Bull King was extremely strong both in terms of offensive and defensive powers. If they formed the Green Bull battle matrix, the impact was unparalleled and they could trample the void of heaven and earth.


    At this time, the descendant of the Green Bull clan was the leader of this army. He volunteered to stay here and defend from behind.


    In the camp of the Demon Peacock Realm in this battle for the Empty Realm, the strength of the Bull Demon was extremely powerful and dominant, and could be ranked within the top five. With him shoring up the rear, Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan would have no worries.


    Around the imperial flag, the great demonic army stationed there, and the Bull Demon looked at all the demons around and said, "The secret command of Their Royal Highnesses is given here now to the great demon army who are guarding here. You will bear the most important task of this battle for the Empty Realm: at the time when the three great armies are going into war, we will cross the distance and launch an ambush by slaying the Imperial flag of Emperor Li''s Realm, thus winning the battle for the Empty Realm."


    There were strange colors in the eyes of the demons, and they were silently amazed at their royal leaders, who had apparently learned the ways of the deceitful humans.


    Now, in the battle of the three armies, the alliance between the Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Realm would ensure the destruction of Emperor Xia''s City, and taken their imperial flag. So, as long as they could successfully ambush Emperor Li''s City and taken their imperial flag, the victory of the battle for the Empty Realm would be theirs.


    "The following battle will be your battle of glory. Who wants to follow me?" The Bull Demon said out loud, and suddenly all demon roared and sounded extremely excited.


    It was time for them to make their contributions to their masters of the Demon Peacock Realm, to gain the control of the Empty Realm was indeed the most important task in the battle for the Empty Realm.


    The great army gathered, and the Bull Demon left some of the demons to guard the Imperial flag, and then led most of the troops who were guarding this place to head toward the direction of Emperor Li''s City.


    After they left, above the sky, a figure appeared among shadows, the look on his face was extremely sullen. He then turned into a beam of light, rushing toward the direction of Emperor Xia''s City; this news must be reported immediately. Even though the people of the Demon Peacock Realm would not necessarily able to take on the defense of Emperor Li''s City, but at least they had to prepare for it.


    These beasts had betrayed the alliance, and were full of themselves, thinking that they had made a brilliant move; was this to let Emperor Xia''s City reap the benefit of it all?


    ...


    At this time, above Emperor Xia''s City, the great army had blocked the sunlight, rendering the entire city in gloom, but there was also a suffocating pressure.


    The army from Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Realm had descended above the firmament.


    Moreover, the two armies were mixed together, with many of the demonic army now integrated into the army of Emperor Li''s Realm, forming an unprecedented powerful force.


    Li Yao and Yuan Jin were right in the middle of the army, they were the main commanders of Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Kong Zhan, Kong Xuan, were in another central area, they were naturally the main commanders of the Demon Peacock Realm.


    Above the sky, Kong Xuan''s eyes stared at Ye Futian below, who were behind Xia Qingyuan, her eyes were extremely cold. These days, she had suffered enough humiliation from Ye Futian and that damn animal. Today, they would be killed.


    "Where was that damn beast?" Kong Zhan said coldly, and just then did Kong Xuan noticed that Ye Futian''s mount, the Black Wind Condor, was not present, and he was also not found among the army.


    The two great realms had joined forces to attack, and that stupid beast dared to be a no show?


    Yuan Jin''s eyes swept down below; he was observing the guardian army of Emperor Xia''s City.


    Xia Qingyuan, the main commander, was present, so was Ye Futian, whose individual combat power was comparable to that of Xia Qingyuan''s, as well as the two great legions of Tian and Dou, and many top cultivators from Emperor Xia''s Palace and the Upper Worlds. No one seemed to be missing except a few important people, who were noticeably absent.


    "Yu Sheng of the sacrificial battle of the flags, and the Black Wind Condor, seemed not to be on the battlefield," Yuan Jin said to Li Yao, who was next to him.


    Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Condors demonstrated great combat power in the sacrificial battle of the flags, which naturally attracted the attention of many, so they were listed by Yuan Jin as key targets. Even among the numerous cultivators of the army, he still discovered that Yu Sheng and the Black Wind Condors were absent. As for others, it may not be so obvious and not so easy to discover on account that there were just too many cultivators.


    At this time, there were several figures flashing toward them, they were the people who were responsible for the investigation of the battlefield. Bowing slightly, one said, "Sire, a few people disappeared before the battle and those should be the trusted confidants of Ye Futian, those who were responsible for hunting outside the battlefield previously."


    When Li Yao and Yuan Jin heard this, they remembered those were indeed Yu Sheng and the others, and many of them demonstrated tremendous strength.


    "They were the people of the Lower Worlds of the Nine States. The cultivator who inherited the ruin of Renhuang is also absent." Naturally, Li Yao knew who that was. He looked cold and indifferent, asking, "is there anyone else not here?"


    "We have not discovered any at the moment," the messenger replied, "Xia Qingyuan and the leaders of Tian and Dou and other top principalities of Emperor Xia''s Realm are all here."


    "Senior brother, how many people were left guarding the imperial flag?" Li Yao asked Yuan Jin.


    "They needed at least a corps like Tian or Dou to break through a great army. Just those people from the Nine States, even if their personal strength was outstanding, are far from enough," Yuan Jin replied. Currently, his brows were furled. At such time when the great armies were about to battle, and Emperor Xia''s City was in dire danger, their opponent had dispersed their power; was it because they knew that they could not defend this, so they wanted to throw a wildcard and capture their imperial flag first?


    This was a possibility.


    If this was the case, then there would not be much surprise. But if the other party was extremely confident, even if their forces were dispersed, the army of Emperor Xia''s City could still resist their offense, then there may be outcomes that he had not considered.


    In the case of the former, one battle would determine the overall situation, but the latter... This possibility was very small.


    "Sire, make this battle a quick one," Yuan Jin said to Li Yao. Though the possibility was very small, but there was still an uneasiness deep in his heart, and he worried about the situations that he did not calculated.


    In this battle for the Empty Realm, Ye Futian was a wildcard, and he had not take him into consideration before, and he did not focus on investigating his background. Instead, it was Wang Chuan that he paid much attention to. In the end, neither Wang Chuan nor Lihen Heaven had participated in the battle for the Empty Realm, and for this he had relaxed a bit.


    Kong Xuan, Emperor Li''s Realm was always known for their trickery; in the last battle for the Empty Realm, they had won using such lowly method, and for this battle, Dali Dynasty had created a group of semi-sainted fighters, and does the Demon Peacock Realm really knew how many of them had appeared in the battlefield?"


    Xia Qingyuan looked up and said to Kong Xuan, "Just for a grudge, you would rather lose the chance for the battle for the Empty Realm, is it worth it?"


    Kong Xuan stared at Xia Qingyuan below; this most outstanding princess in the Emperor Xia''s Realm, had been compared to her.


    In fact, Kong Xuan also felt that it was a bit fast to get to the place they were now, and they may not have been as cautious, but all of this was caused by Ye Futian, all the demons of the Demon Peacock City hated him to the bones, and couldn''t wait to tear him into pieces, hence the catalyst for making this alliance possible after several great battles had erupted.


    "Princess Kong Xuan, don''t listen to her nonsense, our two armies are in a union because of the circumstances. After the Imperial flag of Emperor Xia''s Realm had been captured, Emperor Li''s City and the Demon Peacock City will fight each other fairly to decide the outcome," Li Yao said out loud, and Kong Xuan sobered up her mind. All the demonic forces in the Demon Peacock Realm were aggressive and dominant, what did she have to fear?


    "Kong Xuan, if you were still bothered by the frivolous words of Ye Futian, I can ask my father the Emperor to name him a title, and propose marriage to the Demon Peacock Emperor, how about it?" Xia Qingyuan continued.


    Her voice fell, and Kong Xuan''s eyes suddenly turned icy, and the uncertainty in heart a moment ago disappeared.


    For her to marry Ye Futian?


    "Xia Qingyuan, there were many demonic beasts in our demonic realm who were interested in you, so it would be better for me to give them titles and have you marry into Demon Peacock Realm. How about that?" Kong Zhan responded indifferently. This was an insult to his sister, Kong Xuan.


    For the daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor to marry Ye Futian?


    He was far from being qualified.


    "If you don''t like that, you may serve me instead," Kong Zhan''s eyes showed a demon light as he continued.


    Xia Qingyuan swept a cold look to the sky above.


    "Sire, it''s time to make a move," Yuan Jin said to Li Yao, wanting to make a quick battle out of this without further delay.


    Li Yao nodded, but just then, he suddenly saw Ye Futian levitated from below, holding the Halberd of Time and Space, standing in midair, between the two armies, with the Halberd of Time and Space pointed at the army in the void.


    "If you want to start the war, which of you from Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Realm dared to fight?" And the long halberd pointed at the strong cultivators of both realms. However, the white-haired youth, who exuded ultimate arrogance, challenged them to fight.Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    The great army of Emperor Xia''s City looked at Ye Futian in midair. Naturally they recognized Ye Futian''s personal strength and courage, it was just that he was unbridled and did whatever he wanted with total disregard to rules. If not for these flaws, Ye Futian''s strong personal strength was indeed enough to take the responsibility as the princess''s right hand man.


    "Kill him," Yuan Jin directly ordered, did not want to waste any more time. The two armies are at war, there was no need to abide by rules with the likes of Ye Futian.


    As Yuan Jin''s voice fell, suddenly beams of destructive light slammed down from the sky, as if to chop and slice the void, and to dismember Ye Futian in the air.


    The light of destruction puffed out of the Halberd of Time and Space, and the time and space around it seemed to have solidified. The beams of light of destruction continued forward, and the long halberd of Ye Futian struck forth, turning into endless light beams, colliding with the light of destruction in the void.


    "Attack," Li Yao gave order to the army.


    "Move," Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan also gave the order at the same time, the mighty army pressing down from the sky, the war had official began.

 1064 Attack

    Under the pressure of the two great imperial armies, the heaven and the earth were shrouded in gloom. At this time, Gongsun Zhong led the cultivators of the Divine Cloud Valley towards the void.


    On that day when Gongsun Zhong proposed to sacrifice Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan had ordered that Divine Cloud Valley fight in the front.


    Therefore, at this time, the cultivators of Divine Cloud Valley, led by Gongsun Zhong, appeared in the forefront.


    At this time Gongsun Zhong''s long gown was flying with the wind. His dark eyes were sharp and gazing above the sky. Not only that, but throughout his body he was full of an air of sharpness, as if his whole person was a weapon of the gods.


    Behind Gongsun Zhong, there was an incomparably brilliant divine furnace. Inside the divine furnace, golden light shot straight into the sky and surpassed the firmament, emanating radiant light that swallowed the rules power between heaven and earth, refining the Great Path of the world. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    "Gongsun Zhong has brought the Heavenly Refining Furnace of Divine Cloud Valley to the battlefield." Many were shocked to behold this. Divine Cloud Valley was the premier armorer in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and the Gongsun Clan was the founder and the master of Divine Cloud Valley. Over the years, an unknown number of the powerful divine weapons had been unearthed in the Divine Cloud Valley.


    In the Divine Cloud Valley, there were several remarkable divine implements, which could be considered the treasures of Divine Cloud Valley. One of them was the Heavenly Refining Furnace currently behind Gongsun Zhong.


    The Heavenly Refining Furnace, known for its ability to refine the Great Path of heaven and earth and integrate it into its own to bring forth unparalleled strength. Currently Gongsun Zhong had not yet entered into Saint Plane, but if one day he became a saint and still used this furnace in battle, he would really be able to truly refine the Great Path.


    All the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm now looked at Gongsun Zhong. In the previous battles, Gongsun Zhong had never used this divine arm.


    Perhaps, Gongsun Zhong wanted to prove a point to Xia Qingyuan.


    The cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm all knew that although Ye Futian and Gongsun Zhong did not have a direct confrontation, between the two of them Xia Qingyuan clearly valued Ye Futian far more. At the moment, that figure hovered above the sky and was bathed in endless glory, but somehow gave out a sense of the desolation and sorrow of never looking back.


    Previously, there was Ye Futian responding with the Halberd of Time and Space, and now Gongsun Zhong took the Heavenly Refining Furnace to battle, as if it was an invisible competition.


    Divine Cloud Valley were all pushing their power to integrate into the Heavenly Refining Furnace, with Gongsun Zhong as the center. The radiance released from the Heavenly Refining Furnace shot straight into the sky. Inside the furnace, there were many divine spears that had now been refined, carrying the glory to rush to the void, into the great army of the other side.


    However, at the same time, above the sky there appeared a massive sword diagram that sheltered the sky. From it, an endless sword will be flowed out, shrouding heaven and earth. Hundreds of millions of swords light now surrounding the space, descending from the sky, colliding with the long spears inside the furnace as the two converged in the air.


    Suddenly above the sky, there formed a spectacular picture. A waterfall of galaxies seemed to be hanging between heaven and earth, dividing the world into two, and the atmosphere diffused from it was extremely terrifying.


    "Dali Sword Mountain." Many people look at the swordsmen above the sky and knew that they were coming from the premier holy land of Sword Way in Dali Dynasty.


    Gongsun Zhong''s robe fluttered in the wind, and he stepped into the void. He went upward along with that silvery waterfall as all the power from the cultivators of Divine Cloud Valley was all integrated into the Heavenly Refining Furnace, and put into motion by Gongsun Zhong. At this instant a peerless divine spear appeared behind Gongsun Zhong, emitting endless glory and piercing through the waterfall, slaughtering toward the sky.


    Not only that, but the terrible Heavenly Refining Furnace was continually refining the rules power of the Sword Way that was falling from the sky.


    "Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley, will fight for His Majesty and Emperor Xia''s Realm." A voice was heard throughout the land, and toward the sky.


    Gongsun Zhong reached out, and instantly that peerless divine spear fell into his palm. He darted and his speed surged, propelling him to shuttle through the silvery waterfall, carrying the supreme power to attack upward; the spear in his hand stabbed out with power that shocked all beings.


    The cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm were deeply moved, watching that gorgeous attack by the spear directly land in front of the swordsmen of Sword Mountain. Gongsun Zhong seemed to want to use this war to defend the dignity of Divine Cloud Valley. He was fighting for the Emperor and Emperor Xia''s Realm. Perhaps if it was before, he would have said that he was fighting for the princess.


    "Troops of Tian and Dou, prepare to fight," Xia Qingyuan watched all these with calmness, immediately issuing the command and did not let Gongsun Zhong bear the pressure alone.


    Gongsun Zhong, though disheartened by her treatment of him, was the Gongsun Zhong that she wanted to see. The old valley master of Divine Cloud Valley had been a loyal follower of her father, the emperor, for many years, and it was also the premier land of armory of the realm, which she naturally respected because Emperor Xia''s Realm needed such ally.


    But this did not mean that the descendants of the Gongsun Clan could afford to have too many grand ideas. These unrealistic thoughts would only end up devouring them until they brought Divine Cloud Valley to its doom. So, if Gongsun Zhong still held fantasies towards her as he did before and forgot the true responsibilities that he should be shouldering, she would mind letting the Gongsun Clan pick another leader for the future.


    The troops of Tian and Dou joined in the battle, and they went to the sky from both sides. Immediately following, all the top principalities from the Upper Worlds of Emperor Xia''s Realm also rushed from different directions to the void in attack. Even though their strength was at an extreme disadvantage, princess Xia Qingyuan was still on the battlefield. Who would dare to desert?


    Aside from the outcome of the battle for the Empty Realm, if they ever dared to desert the princess Xia Qingyuan on the battle field to save their own skin, Emperor Xia would no doubt hold them responsible as dishonorable deserters, and they would probably never know how they would die in his hand.


    The two armies fought against each other, and a devastating atmosphere of incomparable horror erupted in an instant above the void, continually sending shock waves through it.


    Tian Ji led a group of people who were constantly surrounding Xia Qingyuan, defending her safety. When he saw the situation on the battlefield at that moment, he was becoming uneasy and said, "Princess, if it was not possible, we should give up the battle for the Empty Realm."


    The safety of the princess was more important than anything else.


    The control over the Empty Realm was only for ten years. If they were defeated this time, they could still fight again in ten years'' time.


    "Watch it," Xia Qingyuan said to Tian Ji and appeared to be extremely calm.


    If Ye Futian had not told her, she would never have thought that guy''s motivation to pick a fight with Kong Xuan was aimed to control the demons, and use the demonic beasts to initiate an alliance with Emperor Li''s Realm to manipulate the battle. The next step should be the time to close the net.


    Although Ye Futian was an extremely agitating bastard, but Xia Qingyuan absolutely recognized his strength, and had absolute trust in him. Even until this moment, there was still no great abnormality in the battlefield. The cultivators of the Demon Realm were also participating in the war and fighting those who were against them.


    Violent roaring sounds continued booming, and under the great confrontation of the two armies, soon there was chaos in the battlefield. The battle between the cultivators of Divine Cloud Valley who were led by Gongsun Zhong and the swordsmen from the Dali Sword Mountain separated the battlefield from the middle. Li Yao and Yuan Jin were on the left side of the battlefield, while Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan were on the other side. As the commanders, they would not participate in the actual battle lightly, but observe the situation instead.


    "Even though these beasts are fighting, they are not fighting very hard," Yuan Jin secretly transmitted his voice to Li Yao; was this an attempt to let Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm consume each other''s strength?


    "Continue to observe, if it is still the case, remind Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan," Li Yao replied with indifference.


    Not only did he become aware of it, but the cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm who were participating in the battlefield also became aware of it. In the troops, the leader of the Evil Clan of Cao sent out a terrible palm of demonic Way, its demonic force filled the sky and his body was shocked backward. Looking to Jialou Feng who was not far from his side, he said, "I heard that none could compare to the speed of the Jialou Royal Clan, but I have yet to witness it. Since a descendant of the Jialou Royal Clan is here, how about a demonstration?"


    "From Emperor Li''s Realm, the combative power of the Evil Clan of Cao is unparalleled. I will hunt down and clean up the deserters," Jialou Feng responded.


    When they were talking, their bodies flickered as they were still fighting.


    At this time, Ye Futian was moving alone in the battlefield, and saw that the battlefield was growing gradually chaotic in the void, and a cold intent of slaughter flashed through his eyes.


    At this time, there seemed to be a flash of lightning crossing the sky and a cultivator appeared. He looked at the situation on the battlefield, showed some concerns, but did not speak in public. Instead he transmitted his voice to Li Yao and Yuan Jin who were underneath, "His Royal Highness, Master Yuan, the Green Bull King of the Demon Realm has led his bull demons and defending troops of Demon Peacock City toward Emperor Li''s City, intending to take our imperial flag."


    Li Yao and Yuan Jin''s pupils slightly contracted, and in an instant both of them looked badly, there was even an aura of murder that emitted from Li Yao.


    This time Emperor Li''s Realm did not play any tricks, but merely took advantage of the situation to first destroy Emperor Li''s City. However, they never expected the Demon Peacock City was setting them up.


    Yuan Jin was thinking and calculating in his head, the Demon Peacock City had defending troops but Emperor Li''s City had the same defense as well. However, the problem was that there were also a group of cultivators from Emperor Xia''s City who suddenly vanished. If this was just a coincidence, then nothing to worry about, the people who were assigned to guard the imperial could hold.


    But if this was not a coincidence, then never mind the battlefield of Emperor Li''s Realm, then over here...


    However, with his various deductions from before, it was unlikely that the Demon Peacock City would be joining forces with Xia Qingyuan. There were no traces of clues. If the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was this deep and calculating, they would never suffer so many losses in the previous battles for the Empty Realm.


    But given the situation in front of him, he had to consider whether or not he made a mistake.


    "Your Royal Highness, please transmit the message to all commanders to fight in retreat, and withdraw from the battlefield." The Yuan Jin did not announce this loudly, but was only transmitting the voice secretly to Li Yao. He quickly glanced at the current situation on the battlefield and saw that it had entered the chaotic stage of melee; this was a risk they could not afford.


    Li Yao nodded and transmitted the information to all the commanders to withdraw their troops. After receiving the order, everyone was puzzled, but still quietly pulled the matrix backward and did not continue to battle the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s City furiously.


    Watching this, Ye Futian understood that the other party had already realized.


    In another area of the battlefield, there was a devastating light bursting out of Jialou Feng. The wings of Jialou Feng bloomed in an unparallel brilliance of the divine, and the sacred feathers were sharper than the sharpest blade that cut through the void, but it was not aimed toward the army of the Emperor Xia''s City. Instead, the attack was aimed at the battle matrix of the Evil Clan next to him. In an instance, the sacred feathers cut through the void and tear out a bloody crack in the battle matrix, with many cultivators being killed on the spot.


    The light of destruction slammed into the cultivators of Cao, and Jialou Feng let out a scream, "Cao Zhen, you dare to speak and humiliate His Royal Highness, die!"


    That sudden sound was heard in the battlefield. When Li Yao and Yuan Jin saw the attack launched by Jialou Feng, they knew there was no need to retreat quietly. The Yuan Jin said loudly, "the cultivators of the Demon Peacock City already embarked toward Emperor Li''s City. Retreat!"


    In times such as this, they could not afford to stay and fight.


    "How dare you ambush me, and now insult our Demon Peacock City! I will kill you," Another cultivator of the demonic royal clan roared, violently attacking, with many other demonic beasts joining the attack toward the cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm, and in an instant, the battlefield was even more confused.


    Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan were still unclear as to what was going on!

 1065 Detection

    Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan looked somewhat puzzled at the battlefield. Wasn''t the Demon Peacock City in alliance with Emperor Li''s City to fight against the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s City?


    Why had they suddenly started killing each other?


    Moreover, it was not only a battle matrix made up of one camp, because the cultivators from the Demon Peacock City and those from the Emperor Li''s City were mixed in the matrix together. So, the moment the war erupted, fighting ensued. Those from Emperor Li''s City, who were still unclear of the situation, reacted immediately when they heard Yuan Jin say that Emperor Li''s City was ambushed by the Demon Peacock City. How could they not fight back?


    As for those from Demon Peacock City, seeing that battle had erupted and the cultivators of Emperor Li''s City who were with them now fought against them, were they supposed to just sit and wait?


    Thus, the current situation was formed. Suddenly, a violent battle erupted in the midst of the mixed army, and the armies that were previously in alliance immediately attacked each other, and because of the close quarters, many people and demonic beasts were slayed in an instant, which led to more intense fighting.


    The cultivators of Emperor Xia''s City were stunned and looked at the battlefield, stupefied.


    What was the situation?


    Weren''t the two allied against them?


    The great army was coming toward them, and princess Xia Qingyuan had decided to defend the imperial flag at all cost, even to the death. Many of their cultivators were also willing to fight to the death. However, the battle did not last long before the other party began to withdraw and pull back line of the battle. They had not figured out what was going on before the other two armies started to fight one another in earnest.


    And the army of Emperor Xia''s City was being put aside.


    This...


    The troops of Tian and Dou were well-seasoned armies and had never seen such an unusual situation.


    A great army in an alliance would switch sides in the middle and turn on one another?


    This was simply unheard of.


    "Kong Zhan, Kong Xuan, is this what you call an alliance?" Li Yao reprimanded with a cold and severe voice.


    "Let them stop first," Kong Zhan''s eyes were sharp, and next to him, Kong Xuan declared loudly and clearly, "Stop the fight."


    Right now, the situation was unclear, and the fighting had to stop first.


    "Don''t touch the cultivators of the Demon Realm. Those from Emperor Li''s Realm, kill without exceptions." At this time, Xia Qingyuan gave the order, loud and clear.


    "Yes, princess." The army from Emperor Xia''s City now received their order, and instantly a terrible atmosphere erupted, rushing toward the battlefield above.


    It seemed that the princess had a plan already, and seemed to have teamed up with the Demon Peacock City?


    And in a surprising double twist, tricked Emperor Li''s Realm.


    "Retreat." Yuan Jin''s voice was very cold. Undoubtedly Xia Qingyuan''s words were adding fuel to the fire. How could an already erupted battle be stopped at will? Whoever stopped first may lose their lives if the other kept on attacking.


    At this moment, the Yuan Jin began to doubt himself. He had actually failed to make an accurate calculation, and the most impossible outcome had occurred.


    The Demon Peacock City actually joined forces with Emperor Xia''s City.


    Yu Sheng and people of the Nine States, as well as the clan of the Green Bull King of Demon Peacock City both slaughtered toward Emperor Li''s City, while the demons over there launched the ambush, and in addition of Xia Qingyuan''s command, no one would believe that the Demon Peacock City and Emperor Xia''s City did not premeditate together.


    Even if Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan almost thought that they had really reached an agreement with Xia Qingyuan. However, who could tell them what had really happened?


    Boom. A loud and violent sound was heard above the firmament, and the battle matrix where the cultivators of the Evil Clan of Cao were had collapsed. Under the double attack between Jialou Feng and the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm from both within and without, it was impossible for them to maintain the integrity of the battle matrix. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    The violent attack above the sky continued, the battle matrixes of Emperor Li''s City continued to collapse. Without the order they had previously, the great army instantly went into collapse and retreated.


    "Li Yao, the clan of the Green Bull King who guarded the Demon Peacock City is now on their way to attack the Emperor Li''s City; is this true or false?" Kong Zhan darted and fought his way from the crowd, and stared at Li Yao and asked.


    "I have been monitoring the movement within the Demon Peacock City, and saw it with my own eyes. The Green Bull said that it was by secret order of Kong Xuan to ambush Emperor Li''s City, how could it be false? And Demon Peacock City want to pretend as if you were ignorant about this?" The cultivator who previously arrived in the void replied with indifference.


    "The people of Nine States around Ye Futian were also absent from the battlefield, presumably had joined forces in attacking our Emperor Li''s City. This time, the Demon Peacock Realm did not hesitate to sacrifice the reputation of Kong Xuan and many demonic beasts and laid out such a trap. I''m truly astounded," Yuan Jin continued coldly, "only that there was no damage done to Emperor Xia''s Realm world, and you have been willing to help defeat Emperor Li''s Realm; do you think in the battle for the Empty Realm, Xia Qingyuan could be beaten by you?"


    Upon hearing what Yuan Jin had to say, Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan knew it was the truth. However, if the infighting was a coincidence, then what could be the explanation regarding the attack on Emperor Li''s City by the bull demons, when they had never issued any orders for them to do so?


    Then, who gave the order to the bull demons?


    Or, there was no order at all, and the bull demons had transmitted a false order.


    The nine-color divine light sparkled on Kong Xuan''s body, and her body released an extreme chill. She had a sense that the situation was serious, and indeed, grievous.


    "All clans from the Demon Peacock Realm listen carefully my order: immediately stopped the fight and withdraw from the battlefield; anyone who disobeys the order will be expelled from the clan." Kong Xuan said coldly, and the nine-color divine light sparkled between heaven and earth. Her voice suggested great authority and threat.


    Her voice was heard throughout the void, all the demons felt the solemnness of her voice, and most of them began to retreat, but there were still a few cultivators of the demonic realm who were still battling violently, fighting alongside with the cultivators from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Among them, there were several great demons of royal clans.


    What really sent chills from her head to her toes was that the descendant of Jialou Royal Clan, Jialou Feng, was still in the midst of battle. The wings of Garuda bloomed with divine feathers; many cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm had died at his hands.


    "Jialou." Kong Xuan shouted loudly. Jialou Feng''s eyes were brimming with a terrible golden light of chill. It seemed that he did not hear her voice and continued the killing.


    At the same time, Xia Qingyuan was personally leading the cultivators to enter the killing field. Behind her, the radiant light of a lotus bloomed, she stepped on golden lotuses, bathed in the most sacred glory, like a Jiutian goddess, dazzling to behold.


    Her hands pointed toward the battlefield in the void, and suddenly the sword of catastrophe appeared, tearing through the void, and a cultivator was killed instantly by the sword that pierced him in the throat.


    With her body as the center, a violent sword storm of catastrophes exploded, and the endless lotus light screen opened and closed. It began with one, which turned to two, two then became three, and with three all things were possible, and the lotus was born into the Way, and the Way dissolved all light of catastrophe.


    The lotus petals flew out in swirls like the sharpest sword in the world. The sounds of bodily contact were heard as cultivators were being killed on the spot.


    Moreover, the cultivators who had been killed by Xia Qingyuan were those from Emperor Li''s Realm, maybe as a way to avenge Ye Futian.


    As for the Demon Peacock Realm, Ye Futian had claimed that he could have taken the imperial flag of the Demon Emperor anytime within the Demon Peacock City, and with the many demonic beasts controlled by Ye Futian, the Demon Peacock Realm would not pose a threat to them.


    In another area of the battlefield, Ye Futian walked in the void and appeared alone in a direction. His face was cold with the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand.


    There was a group of cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm rushing toward him. Ye Futian glanced at them indifferently, his body darted and turned into a radiant light of nothingness. The tyrannical rules seemed to have blasted into nothingness, but gave out a dull sound nonetheless.


    However, the light did not slow down or stop, and the Halberd of Time and Space thrust out. The group of cultivators felt that the space was solidified, and then it was torn. Their lives experienced a moment of stillness, and as their eyes revealed extreme fear, each one of them were shattered.


    In an instant, all were annihilated.


    Ye Futian did not stop at all, but continued to shuttle forward.


    A cultivator had just looked at him, when a sound was heard and his throat was pierced directly.


    Wherever the glory of space passed, all the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm perished, their bodies falling downward from the sky. Without the power of the battle matrix, there was no one who could challenge him.


    At this time, a cultivator whose body had emitted a half-sainted sense, and with extremely dominant breath on his body. He stepped into it and trampled upon the void, and merged with the Great Path. His body was like a divine implement, and he rushed toward Ye Futian.


    A palm print, akin to a golden millstone, crushed the void. The palm print was like the ring of an ancient tree, circle upon circle, smashing down to slaughter, intending on erasing everything.


    Ye Futian did not stop at all, but still struck with the Halberd of Time and Space, and it pierced upon the palm print. A golden brilliance exploded forth, and the palm print was pulverized. The Halberd of Time and Space went on to pierce through his body and shattered him entirely.


    Ye Futian in his current state could rely on his own power to overcome the likes of Wang Chuan who was only a step away from being in the Saint Plane. Now with the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand, how much stronger was he?


    Wang Chuan once said that under the Divine Path, Ye Futian stood alone. This was a confirmation of his strength, and how strong he was.


    Under the glory of space, many cultivators perished.


    In the battlefield, in addition to the battle matrix, Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan were the fastest cultivators from Emperor Xia''s Realm in number of kills, and they were also the two strongest fighters.


    Li Yao and Yuan Jin stood above the firmament, surrounded by many top cultivators, gazing coldly at the figure that came rushing toward them.


    Ye Futian, who wanted to break through the heavy army to fight his way through a bloody path and slaughter toward them was simply reckless, extremely crazy, but at the same time also showed the absolutely confidence he had in his own ability.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt a dangerous aura, and in the next moment, he saw the nine-color divine light shot toward him with madness. A boundless and beautiful figure rushed in his direction, and endless divine light sprinkled down. It seemed to be able to destroy the Way.


    Ye Futian struck with the long halberd, and destroyed the divine light. In front of him, Kong Xuan''s attractive body floated in the air, gazing at him coldly.


    "Is this your doing?" Kong Xuan looked very cold, and she had just thought of the reason why this alliance was done so fast. Because there was a group of demonic beasts around her that had clamored for today''s battle, with Jialou Feng as its chief proponent; he had also requested to go to Emperor Li''s City to seek an alliance.


    Before, Kong Xuan did not think much about it. Under the circumstances that Ye Futian and that base animal, the Black Wind Condor, repeatedly humiliated her, it was completely expected that the cultivators of the demonic realm would want to kill Ye Futian in anger and destroy Emperor Xia''s City. And demonic beasts were anxious in nature, wild and unbridled, so there was nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary.


    When Gongsun Zhong came to relay the message, Jialou wanted to slay him immediately over the most minor disagreement which was also consistent with his nature.


    Everything seemed so natural, as if that was the way it should be.


    Because of this, she did not detect any abnormalities, but now that she was thinking carefully, she realized that the demonic beasts who were still fighting were almost all of them who had gone to kill Ye Futian before.


    All these realizations made Kong Xuan feel cold from head to toe!

 1066 Defeat of Demon Peacock Emperors Realm

    Kong Xuan recalled how she was being provoked and insulted every day at the Demon Peacock City by both Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor, at the very first day of the Battle of Empty Realm.


    From the looks of things, all that he did was to set up for this very day.


    Beings as powerful as Jialou Feng refused to heed her orders, and the Bull Demon also ended up giving fake orders to take the army tasked with garrisoning Demon Peacock City, to cut down the imperial flag at Emperor Li''s City. The implications were apparent.


    It all mean that Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had actually already lost in the Battle of Empty Realm from the very beginning. With the Bull Demon being controlled, it would have been easy for their enemies to cut down the imperial flag at Demon Peacock City, so easy that they would have been able to do it at any time. However, the Bull Demon did not end up doing so, or rather, Ye Futian was not in a hurry to kick them out of the competition.


    That was all because the forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm still had their use, from Ye Futian''s perspective. That was what led to the battle happening right before their eyes.


    From the looks of things as they were at present, the siblings were made pawns from the very beginning, ever since they participated in the Battle of Empty Realm personally, by Ye Futian. It was all so ironic and one could have only guessed what was going through Kong Xuan''s mind at the moment. What transpired hurt her far more than any words of insult she had been served with.


    "I beg your forgiveness, princess, for all my transgressions so far. All is fair in the Battle of Empty Realm, but I have no intentions of fighting to the death with your forces from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. You''re free to step out of the battlefield. When the Battle of Empty Realm is over, I''d let those mighty ones from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm back to your side," Ye Futian said as he apologized to Kong Xuan. It seemed as if his target was never the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm to begin with.


    Kong Xuan understood that while Ye Futian''s words sounded brutal, but in actual, the forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had long lost in the Battle of Empty Realm, and it was rather pointless for them to continue fighting.


    But then again, being played to such extent��their demonic beasts were controlled by Ye Futian and they from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm being reduced to pawns��was still something she found incapable of stomaching.


    Nine-color divine light shone and imperial might coursed about and emanated from the feathers of Kong Xuan''s voluptuous body. The light shone everywhere and many mighty ones throughout the battlefield turned their eyes in her direction.


    The divine feathers behind Kong Xuan were spread and as she was basked in the divine light, she looked like some unparalleled goddess and emanated a feral grace, so much so that one look was all it would have taken to etch such beauty in the minds of those who saw it, making them succumb to her astonishing beauty.


    However, there was without doubt that the beauty in display was an extremely lethal one.


    It was especially so to Ye Futian as he was right there and then. He was able to sense that impending crisis looming over him.


    Kong Xuan, the beloved daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor, who was of a status on par to Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm. She came to the battlefield armed with items of the Demon Peacock Emperor himself. Nine feathers from her father was infused in the divine feathers behind her. His powers were etched with them and those items were of incredibly power, as they were true items of the Renhuang. Furthermore, the feathers melded well with Kong Xuan, fitting into her peacock feathers perfectly. Find authorized novels in Webnovel��faster updates, better experience��Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.


    An extremely huge shadow of the peacock appeared. Its wings spread, blocking out the sky and even her enemies were unable to help but marvel at its beauty.


    However, there seemed to be eyes all over the feathers of that huge peacock. Kong Xuan extended her hand and shrouded Ye Futian within. He felt, right there and then, as if he was being pinned down by the light of the peacock. Terrifying devouring powers threatened to consume everything around him, so much so that even the might of the great path was not to be spared as well.


    That devouring power seemed to be imbued with divine light out to destroy any power of rules as well, tearing apart all powers that Ye Futian was able to gather. The nine-color divine light pierced his body. Under Kong Xuan''s unreserved, all-out attacks, Ye Futian looked extremely puny and insignificant, as if he was about to be destroyed within that extreme beauty he was shrouded within.


    Ye Futian held on tight to the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand. That time however, the Halberd of Time and Space, Nothingness, which was ranked third on the Divine Implements of the Nine States Rankings, seemed to be completely overpowered by that of his enemy. But then again, given Kong Xuan''s status and might, it all seemed completely normal instead.


    Kong Xuan''s divine implement aside, even the Divine Armoring Cauldron behind Gongsun Zhong from Divine Cloud Valley, would have been on par with the Halberd of Time and Space. The lord of Divine Cloud Valley was the number one armorer in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm after all.


    Light of rules coursed all over Ye Futian''s body. While his physical body was indeed extremely formidable, he nonetheless needed to fortify defenses using rules. The nine-color divine light hit him. His physical body rattled as the rules were broken and the divine light blasted straight onto his body, shaking his insides tremendously.


    Kong Xuan, who was not yet a saint, was nonetheless already able to threaten his physical body, which he had tempered with the medicinal baths. That meant that the attacks that Kong Xuan unleashed onto him by borrowing the power of Imperial Feathers of the Demon Peacock Emperor, had considerably eclipsed that of the light of catastrophe of the Great Path.


    The devouring power that was out to devour the great path shrouded Ye Futian''s body. Everything at their surroundings seemed to be flowing to where Kong Xuan was standing.


    Ye Futian was also caught in that terrifying whirlpool and being gradually drawn to where Kong Xuan was.


    He held tightly onto the Halberd of Time and Space as his body burst with dazzling light. His body looked somewhat taller as the Seven Star acupoints throughout his body was activated. The limits on his physical body were lifted and he became even far more powerful. Under such state, he felt as if he had touched the great path, feeling as if his physical body itself was an embodiment of the great path, holding unparalleled amounts of power.


    Boom. Terrifyingly devastating light of calamity of the storm was unleashed, sweeping everything around them. Sliver of storms of the light of calamity hit the peacock behind Kong Xuan. Scenes of doomsday were seen around them and Kong Xuan felt as if her spiritual will was being severely rattled. Harrowing might of the calamity struck directly into her mind.


    Ye Futian''s body moved at the same time. He no longer attempted to resist the devouring power and chose to move with it instead, bringing out the highest speed he was able to achieve, in the form of the Extreme Shadow.


    He lashed out with the halberd in his hand and burst with devastating light of the calamity, fusing the light within the weapon. The devouring shadow of the peacock crumbled right there and then as the attack was brought about with extreme speed. Kong Xuan, however, was hardly fazed when the peacock shadow was penetrated. Her slender hand clenched into a fist and nine-color divine light coursed on it, fusing with her fist will before she threw it out straight before her. Her fist seemed to have been infused with the light of the Demon Peacock Emperor, clashing head-on with the Halberd of Time and Space.


    Boom. Ye Futian was thrown behind with a rumble while Kong Xuan''s arm felt rattled. Even with the power of the Demon Peacock Emperor extending to protect her body, she nonetheless felt her arm going numb as she took on the attack from her opponent''s weapon. It was a testament of Ye Futian''s immense power.


    At the very next moment, Kong Xuan saw her opponent drew a dazzling arc with his body and continued to launch straight for her. That attack seemed to have packed more punch than his last.


    Her beautiful wings flapped and she took one step forward, throwing out yet another punch. Peacock shadow was seen and thousands of dazzling feathers of nine colors were unleashed, intending to bury Ye Futian right there and then.


    Ye Futian was thrown back yet again. He felt as if he had taken untold number of hits within that split second, yet he continued to draw a dazzling arc in the air and dived below. Kong Xuan spread her wings and took flight, seeing how Ye Futian was growing increasingly powerful. Both figures continued to clash in midair with earth-shattering force emanating throughout their surroundings. Violet shockwaves were thrown about as the nine-color divine light shot to their surroundings. Any top notch figures that even attempted to get close were surprisingly penetrated by the nine-color divine light and died on the spot.


    None of them were able to even withstand the aftershock brought by the battle between Kong Xuan and Ye Futian. It was undoubtedly a testament of the immense power the pair of human and demonic beast was unleashing at each other.


    There were some who turned their attention at the battle between the two. Ye Futian seemed to have split himself into thousands of clones, as afterimages were seen throughout as if there was no end to it. The afterimages attacked furiously. Despite being shrouded by the divine light of the peacock, the looming power was entirely incapable of pinning Ye Futian down.


    At that very moment, thousands of Extreme Shadows merged into one being. Their surroundings howled as rules and the great path resonated. He lashed out with an attack of the halberd with earth-shattering might.


    Boom. A rumble was heard as Kong Xuan''s body was thrown behind violently. Her arms trembled and the light behind her seemed to have dimmed somewhat.


    Time and space seemed to have stopped moving with Ye Futian at the center. The nine-color divine light swooped by, shattering the rules of the great path and tearing the binding powers of space rules apart. Kong Xuan''s eyes were locked onto Ye Futian.


    She felt as if a terrifying tidal force was sweeping in her direction and it grew in power as it moved, as if it was a tsunami of rules out to destroy everything.


    Terrifying light of calamity hit her as the incoming force clashed with the nine-color divine light. Ye Futian took one step after another. The space shook as if it was about to shatter. He seemed to have fused with the space altogether and the great path resonated with him.


    Voom.


    A space afterimage came and went in a flash, streaking through space. Dazzling divine light crashed onto the incoming force, yet was all torn down by that one attack with the halberd.


    That was the most powerful attack from the halberd named as the weapon itself: Nothingness.


    Everything under the heavens were reduced to nothing.


    A shadow of the peacock appeared in a dazzling manner right behind Kong Xuan. Boundless nine-color light swooped by and threatened to drown Ye Futian in it. Kong Xuan''s demonic eyes glared at Ye Futian unflinchingly. Her arm was thrown right before her, with boundless divine light streaking through the air, heading for Ye Futian.


    The Halberd of Time and Space was unleashed. At that moment, the nine-color divine light seemed to have been split opened, raging about as they gushed at Ye Futian''s side, drowning the space around them.


    That power rendered Kong Xuan''s face ashen. Light of the divine feathers shrouded her body. One divine feathers after another fell and clashed with the incoming weapon.


    Doom. The power of the Halberd of Time and Space seemed to have penetrated the protection of the divine feathers with a loud rumble, hitting squarely on Kong Xuan''s body. Her body was thrown behind as her wings were opened, with many cracks seen on them. Her stunning looks looked rather pale and blood was seen at the corner of her mouth.


    "Kong Xuan," Kong Zhan called. He was fighting Xia Qingyuan at the moment. He flashed and left the battlefield he was in, after seeing his sister''s predicament. His eyes remained glaring coldly at Ye Futian as he headed towards Kong Xuan.


    "I lost." Kong Xuan looked rather pale. She had lost to Ye Futian, the silver-haired cultivator who went to her city every day to provoke her.


    The forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was reduced to becoming pawns of the enemy. They suffered an overwhelming loss at the Battle of Empty Realm, and at the moment, even she had been bested by someone else personally. They had practically lost in every front in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm.


    Kong Xuan was brimming with confidence when she came to command her forces personally in the Battle of Empty Realm, devoting herself to returning victorious with the forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. None of them had expected to suffer such a brutal end.


    "The forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, I''d advise you to back away from the battlefield," Ye Futian was heard saying to Kong Xuan, while being high up in the air. He then turned his attention to the other battlefield. It would have been embarrassingly impotent of the mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm, if they were to remain incapable of getting the situation under control while the enemy was busy fighting themselves. When the army from Emperor Xia''s Realm joined the fight, they pulverized enemy formations within a short notice, killing many mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Furthermore, the forces from Emperor Li''s Realm had already been retreating without any intentions to fight any further. It could have been said that they have suffered a humiliating defeat.


    Li Yao, Yuan Jin and the others retreated far away with their army, preparing to regroup and defend Emperor Li''s City. All hope was not lost if their imperial flag was still left standing!

 1067 Game Over

    There was a huge army garrisoning Emperor Li''s City.


    Li Yao and Yuan Jin led the army to assault Emperor Xia''s City together with Demon Peacock City, so there was naturally a need to watch over their base, preventing it from being ambushed. The victor of the Battle of Empty Realm was decided by whose imperial flag was left standing last after all.


    As such, not only did they send people to keep an eye on things at Demon Peacock City, they had also began to watch for any movements of the army of Emperor Xia''s City before they reached the battlefield at said city, checking to see if they were anyone leaving the city they were about to sack. All of that was done to prevent their imperial flag from being stolen.


    However, a terrifying pressure was sensed looming right outside Emperor Li''s City, which was demonic in nature.


    "The enemy is at our door. Might ones of Emperor Li''s City, assemble and defend the imperial flag." A voice was heard loud and clear. One silhouette after another was seen flashing about and heading for the same direction. All of them appeared around the imperial flag and laid out their formations in an instant.


    Not only were there people left behind to defend the place, the forces that were left behind were also of formidable strength and versed in defensive matrixes.


    All of them were of a batch of mighty ones nurtured specifically for the task, courtesy of the imperial advisor himself, so much so that their powers were very near in nature to each other, enabling them to easily attack and defend as a group.


    A cauldron after another flew in the sky and countless appeared surrounding the imperial flag in a heartbeat. They spun about in the air, emanating frightening saintly might.


    The Cauldron Matrix, a skill that was both offensive and defensive, enabling all of formed the matrix to act as a single entity. The crafting of the divine implements that they were armed with were commissioned specifically and personally, by the imperial advisor of the Dali Dynasty for the Battle of Empty Realm.


    The imperial advisor had indeed poured his heart and soul into his job for the sake of the regime he served, which enabled him a prestigious position of serving only a single being, while standing on top of tens of millions. The crown prince revered the imperial advisor as the teacher, so much so that he needed to perform proper gestures when seeing the imperial advisor, and address the imperial advisor by the title.


    "Dali and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm are now allied against Emperor Xia''s Realm. What do you all think of this?" A young man of exceptional bearing said with a brimming voice in midair, addressing the people of Emperor Li''s Realm manning the matrix below.


    "The alliance between both armies does not affect the fight between the two forces. When the imperial flag of Emperor Xia''s City is taken down, it would then be our turn to fight each other. We shall take down the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City and bring an end to the Battle of Empty Realm," The Bull Demon elaborated in a loud, booming voice. He then roared and turned into a green Kui. Thunderstorms began to appear all of a sudden of raging magnitudes, as they fell from the heavens.


    Formless light was unleashed by the cauldrons surrounding the battle matrix, blocking the power of the thunderstorm, preventing it from doing any damage.


    "Raging Bull Matrix," The Bull Demon said loudly. The mighty ones of the demon oxen took their formations and rumbling noises were heard throughout their surroundings. The entire Emperor Li''s City was shrouded in terrifying thunderstorms. The demon oxen took their formations impeccably, with boundless shadow of the demon oxen appearing high up in the air. A towering demon ox king appeared amidst the storm vaguely, looking down terrifyingly as if it was an ox god.


    There were some mighty ones from the Empty Realm appearing in the battlefield very far away from Emperor Li''s City, looking at the frightening scene taking place at the city and felt shaken.


    Saints were forbidden to take part and affect things in the Battle of Empty Realm and even sages took serious precautions stepping into the battlefield, as combatants from any of the three sides would have posed a threat to them. However, there were still many coming to check on things after hearing about the showdown.


    Of course, most gathered and watched outside Emperor Xia''s City, but no one would have expected such terrifying battle to take place at Emperor Li''s City as well.


    "Storm the city and take the flag." The Bull Demon roared with earth-shattering voice. The towering ox god''s shadow high in the air dived. The demon oxen below charged straight at their quarry below.


    The demon oxen had always been a raging bunch and were of formidable strength. The black oxen were people that dared to even clash head on through brute force even against the likes of rocs and dragons. They had no fear of death when they turn berserk and knew only to charge, bringing down any mighty one who dared to stand in their way.


    Terrifying storms whipped about, bringing down the heavens on where the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City was. The mighty one that led the defense then shouted, "Bring the cauldrons."


    The cauldrons circled about in the air as soon as the order was given, bombarding the silhouette of the diving ox god.


    The air rumbled violently, as if the heavens and the earth were about to split apart within that very instant.


    Buildings topple one after another within the city. Towering lightning strikes shot forth, destroying everything in their wake. Within a single heartbeat, there were already ruins in Emperor Li''s City.


    Boom, boom, boom! The towering ox god continued to charge below, tearing all defenses that were standing in its way. One cauldron after another crumbled instantly. A golden nine-horned giant cauldron appeared in the defending battle matrix, circled by a golden dragon around it. Cauldrons that surrounded the golden cauldron rang and the light emitted from the cauldrons shot at the ox god with very destructive force.


    A wave swept about the place as such terrifying attacks were being carried out. The air seemed to be exploding maniacally. The Bull Demon transformed into an enormous Kui and seemed to have melded itself with that towering ox god. He then roared, "Take down the matrix at all cost."


    The oxen charged as soon as the order was given. One demon ox after another charged at the circling cauldrons in the matrix without any fear of death, booming rumbles were heard all over the place.


    Furthermore, there was more than one demon ox doing so. All of the oxen dived without care and in a frenzy. Even the leading Bull Demon had too, merged within the ox god and charged at that humongous cauldron.


    "Are you all mad?" A mighty one from Emperor Li''s City shouted. Demonic beasts were known to be unruly, and the oxen were even more so. But do they really have to go this far?


    Are they really throwing their lives to break the matrix? How are they going to cut down the imperial flag even if they succeed then?


    Rumbling noises continued to be heard as one ox after another exploded in the clash. Their blood spilled all over the air. Their efforts rattled the defending cauldrons and the matrix shook violently. The divine light barrier enveloping the place began to tear.


    Pfftt. A puffing sound was heard. There were some within the matrix who were no longer able to withstand the shock of the charge and spitted blood, looking pale.


    "Take down the matrix," the Bull Demon roared and continued to dive.


    Those from far away felt their minds rattled as they watched the devastating scene taking place. Is Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm forces so adamant in taking down the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City?


    At that moment, far above Emperor Li''s City, there were figures dropping from the devastating storm above, and one of them being a Black Wind Condor. The bird''s eyes were cold as it stared at the battlefield. With the bird around, Ye Futian''s plans could be carried out seamlessly.


    Those who went there were naturally cultivators from the Nine States. Ye Futian left the Sword Saint to be in charge of them, leading them to take down the imperial flag.


    Despite the mighty ones from both sides were engaging each other in an intense battle, but they nonetheless were alerted to the presence of Ye Futian''s people. The Bull Demon was long enthralled by Ye Futian, so he naturally felt nothing about it. But then again, not all demonic beasts were subjected to Ye Futian''s control. Most of them were only following Bull Demon, who pretended to have received orders from Kong Xuan, telling them to hit Emperor Li''s City and cut down the imperial flag.


    The mighty ones from Emperor Li''s City were extremely furious, wondering why were mighty ones from both Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm were there at the same time.


    "We''re here for the same goal?��to take the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City, so we joined hands," The Sword Saint held onto the demonic blade and said.


    "Alright," the Bull Demon answered. None of the other demonic beasts had anything else to say. They had no idea what was happening at Emperor Xia''s City. Since they were there to cut down the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City anyway, so it made no difference whether they were cutting down someone or joining hands with someone.


    But of course, the demonic beasts did not let their guard down. They knew humans to be a shrewd bunch and they had watched out for themselves, to prevent from being ambushed.


    "Take the matrix down," the Sword Saint said. Demonic will shot up in a towering manner in that instant from his demonic blade, as he finished his sentence. The demonic will was then converted into dark flash of the blade, sweeping down from above at a cauldron.


    At the same time, Yu Sheng held onto the Battleaxe of Judgment. He too cut down a cauldron with a roar.


    Ye Wuchen summoned thousands of sword wills, shooting up to the sky before diving downward again.


    Light of Nine Words circled around Gu Dongliu and transmuted into shadows of his own battle matrix, blasting the target below.


    There were also Bai Luli, Xia Nan, Tong He and many other mighty ones from the Nine States, attacking at the same time at the two battle matrixes that were in a deadlock.


    The two battle matrixes were of equal power and there was no way they could have taken additional attacks from above, unleashed by the mighty ones of the Nine States. The cauldrons exploded and shattered right there and then. With one whole corner crumbling, the humongous cauldron sunk and cracks began to show on the barrier of light. Many mighty ones manning the battle matrix were subjected to indescribable pressure.


    Voom. A gale swept by and the Black Wind Condor''s body grew exponentially in size, becoming a huge, overbearing demonic bird. It dived right there and then at a corner. Its dark golden claws flashed straight downward, tearing the space below and causing the battle matrix to rattle.


    Yu Sheng took the form of a devil and leapt from above, bringing down the Battleaxe of Judgment hard.


    All of those top notch geniuses from the Nine States brought their best game to bear.


    The shadow of the ox god continued to roar as it bore on its opponent below. The cauldron exploded and reduced to bits with a rumble. Yet another crack appeared on the battle matrix, and many Emperor Li''s Realm defending mighty ones spitted blood.


    "Kill them all." The Bull Demon let out a low rumble and dived below, messing up the battle matrix altogether.


    Yu Sheng and the others charged below as well, barging into the crowd. Yu Sheng, who held the Battleaxe of Judgment in his hands, swung wildly in his devil form. Every single strike ended up killing someone.


    The most powerful ones from Emperor Li''s Realm were sent to the battlefield at Emperor Xia''s City. There was simply no one else capable of standing in Yu Sheng''s way one-on-one.


    Other than Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint and Gu Dongliu were both extremely formidable figures when it came to single combat. With the Black Wind Condor, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge and the others around, things seemed like tigers had charged into a herd of sheep. Blood kept being spilled everywhere. Yuan Jin left a batch of elites to guard the place, and yet, said elites were being wiped out in a bloodbath.


    "Abandon your post, retreat," there were mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm shouting. They eventually despaired and they knew that there was no way they could have held their ground for long. If they were to stay any longer, they would have only died pointless deaths. Even if they were to be executed later, they would have had nothing else to say.


    Pfftt... Blood spilled everywhere. Yu Sheng brought his axe down again and yet another mighty one was split opened. The army of Emperor Li''s City was almost all eliminated, with only a handful being able to escape.


    The imperial flag swayed in the wind high up at Emperor Li''s City. A great monster headed that way and roared, "Cut it down."


    A sharp howl was heard and dark golden claws threw that monster out of the way. The condor zipped past like a bolt of lightning and landed its claws on the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City. Its proud eyes turned around to scan the demonic beasts from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. It then said, "You''re dismissed."


    With imperial flags of Emperor Li''s City and Demon Peacock Emperor''s City in their grasp, the Battle of Empty Realm was actually over!

 1068 Taking the Flags without Cutting Them Down

    Emperor Li''s City was in ruins with bodies strewn everywhere on the ground.


    The demonic beasts watched with cold eyes at the Black Wind Condor below. There was naturally no problem to simply cut down the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City right there and then. It did not actually matter who was the one who took the flags. The key was the battle at Emperor Xia''s City. That battle would have determined the outcome of the Battle of Empty Realm. If Emperor Xia''s City were to fall and the city''s imperial flag cut down, then the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s forces would have emerged as the victor in that year''s battle.


    However, if the ones at Emperor Xia''s City were to be on the losing side, then they would have simply attacked the imperial flag of Demon Peacock City instead.


    "Go home and protect the imperial flag," the Bull Demon said, giving the order. The demonic beasts then took to the air and quickly disappeared from sight, leaving the battlefield of Emperor Li''s City behind.


    With the demonic beasts gone, Yi Xiaoshi appeared and countless vines lashed out, picking up the divine implements and storage rings below. The ones from the Upper Worlds sure are rich. So even the demonic beasts didn''t bother picking up the divine implements eh?


    That was probably only an oversight as they were caught in the heat of battle. However, things were different for him.


    Poverty had a way of stifling ambition after all.


    While the ones from the Upper Worlds might have been indifferent to the massive amounts of divine implements lying around, he could have bagged them and distributed them back at the Holy Zhi Palace at the Nine States of the Lower Worlds. Anyone at and above the rank of an elder would have been able to hold a piece respectively, and that would have looked dashing.


    "Oh my, that fatso..." The people from the Cottage were baffled at Yi Xiaoshi''s antics, but they did not say much. People from the Nine States of the Lower Worlds were indeed poor after all. Unlike those from top notch forces at the Upper Worlds, common divine implements were a rare find for those from the Nine States.


    It was said that Empty Realm had quite a depository of great path fragments. They deemed it imperative to take a good look after the Battle of Empty Realm was over, as those were treasures capable of being made into divine implements after all, allowing saints to continue their training further, enhancing their understanding of the great path, strengthening their planes and enabling them to reach the pinnacle of the first plane.


    All of them from the Nine States were at present, at upper-level Archmage Plane. If they were to train further, it would have only been a matter of time before they reached the pinnacle of Archmage Plane.


    What happened after that would have been of utmost importance, and that was to try to break into Saint Plane.


    Yu Sheng turned his eyes faraway, gazing with a cold expression, looking like a devil standing tall in the sky, as if he was waiting for something.


    Everyone else was waiting for something as well, just like he was.


    The Black Wind Condor landed above the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s Realm. Its claws rested on the flag itself, enabling it to snap it at any given moment. However, it did not do anything further. It stayed around waiting, just like what Yu Sheng and the others were doing.


    The mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm would have definitely retreated back to Emperor Li''s City, if they were to lose the battle over there. If they were to see what was happening to their city, one could have only imagined what would have been going on in their minds.


    ...


    With the forces from Emperor Li''s City and Demon Peacock City fighting each other all of a sudden at Emperor Xia''s City, the army of Emperor Xia''s City took the advantage and was able to break Emperor Li''s City''s streak in a short period of time, killing a good number of mighty ones along the way.


    Demon Peacock City forces naturally knew what was going on. They were extremely enraged. Many of their own mighty ones were enthralled by the enemy and turned against them. Even though they were enraged, they had no way to vent their anger, as they simply could not have brought themselves to fight their own.


    Kong Xuan''s eyes remained cold at that moment, glaring at Ye Futian. She never expected herself to have actually lost to him.


    With that said, he deliberately hid his true abilities in all the battles that he fought with her before, baiting the forces from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm and enabling them to enthrall the demonic beasts. If she were to know that Ye Futian actually had what it would have taken to beat her, she would have never had let the demonic beasts pursue Ye Futian.


    What was more vexing was that, despite being able to control demonic beasts, Ye Futian nonetheless killed many mighty ones from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, just so to not arouse her suspicions.


    Kong Zhan came to Kong Xuan''s side and said with an extremely cold expression, "Even if we from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm were to lose, we won''t let things go your way still."


    "Your highness, our flag has been broken." A voice was heard from far away. One demonic beast after another came their way at blitzing speeds, holding the broken imperial flag of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm in their hands.


    At that very split second, the minds of the demonic beasts from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm sank to the very bottom. Their very last hope was shattered.


    Their imperial flag was no more.


    Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had been eliminated from the competition before everyone else.


    Kong Xuan lifted her head, looking at the demonic beast coming from above. She was not even able to tell if those beasts had actually been enthralled ones, who had deliberately came to deliver the cut flag, just to announce the end of the forces from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm.


    "Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had been eliminated. You shall not affect things any further in the Battle of Empty Realm," Xia Qingyuan came to Ye Futian''s side and announced to Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan below.


    Kong Xuan turned her eyes away from the imperial flag and they looked somewhat bloodshot. She then glared at both Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan and said, "With the forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm eliminated from the competition, you shall release the demonic beasts of ours from your thrall and let them withdraw from the battlefield immediately."


    Her voice was extremely cold. They admitted defeat, but they could have not simply sat by and let the demonic beasts of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm to continue to serve Ye Futian as his pawns, being used as tools to kill those from Emperor Li''s Realm.


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded. "With Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm forces eliminated, all demonic beasts are to leave the battlefield immediately."


    The beasts that he was controlling withdrew from the battlefield as soon as he made the announcement. It went the same with the other demonic beasts, who stood aside.


    "After the Battle of Empty Realm was over, I shall release them from my control," Ye Futian said to both Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan. He then disappeared from where he stood, heading straight for the direction where the mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm retreated to.


    He had ever truly intended to fight against Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm from the very beginning. Since the Battle of Empty Realm was a three-way battle, he could have used Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm''s forces to his advantages. But after the battle was over, it was not within reason for him to keep controlling those royal great monsters. The truly powerful figures from the demonic realm would have really looked for him at Emperor Xia''s Realm to settle the score otherwise.


    "Follow him." Xia Qingyuan gave her order. There was no need for her to say more, as her army was already on their way to do so.


    There were really many twists and turns happening within that battle. The invading forces actually turned against each other outside their door, turning the tables into their favor. They were then only one step away from securing the victory of the Battle of Empty Realm.


    The army of Emperor Li''s Realm retreated en masse in the air. Li Yao looked extremely gloomy. He never expected things to have turned out like that. He thought that the Battle of Empty Realm was already theirs for the taking, yet that one battle previously resulted in them losing over half of their forces instead. They retreated in shambles and all of their previous might was completely broken.


    "I was being too careless." Yuan Jin''s words sounded rather regretful. He naturally knew that both Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan had not betrayed their allies indeed. It was all due to Ye Futian''s ability to control demonic beasts.


    None of them expected that Ye Futian''s repeated provocations had been for that all along. He had been setting things up way back.


    "While they were many mighty ones who were versed in controlling beasts, but it was extremely rare to see cultivators capable of putting demonic beasts under their control right there and then in a short span of time, and furthermore, it was complete subjugation. No one would have expected that. You were not at fault, brother." Despite how things turned out, Li Yao naturally had no intentions of blaming Yuan Jin for anything.


    "Despite so, it was still due to my lacking abilities in doing simulations. I should have been able to take consideration of any scenarios, regardless of how rare they might have been otherwise." Yuan Jin sighed. To know one''s own strength and the enemy''s is the sure way to victory. It was indeed due to his lack of understanding of Ye Futian''s ability and him never bothering to investigate Ye Futian further, that he failed to truly appraise Ye Futian''s abilities. All of that led to what was happening at present.


    "If the imperial flag still stands, then we shall be able to still fight from here on out, but if our imperial flag is taken..." Yuan Jin did not finish his sentence. In the last battle ten years ago, his elder brother in training had been able to secure a victory for them, due to having posed as the weakest side. If Yuan Jin were to return in failure, despite having an edge over the others in terms of powers, he had no idea how he would have been able to face his teacher and his elder brothers in training.


    Despite the army of Emperor Li''s Realm was retreating, they nonetheless maintained an uniformed speed at doing so. Any pursuing enemy who was capable of greater speeds would have been able to tear them apart, making them meat on chopping blocks otherwise.


    Having maintained at an uniformed speed meant that even if there were to be someone from the enemy capable of greater speed, said enemy would not have dared to approach them without good reasons.


    "Those who are better at moving fast, come with me," Ye Futian said with a brimming at the very front of the pursuing army. Many turned to look at Xia Qingyuan, who then added, "His words are my orders."


    As soon as she gave the order, mighty ones who were versed at speed followed Ye Futian right away.


    The light of space sparkled. Ye Futian brought that batch of people heading for the flank of the Emperor Li''s Realm''s forces, catching up to the enemy. Li Yao and Yuan Jin watched with grim expressions, and then gave the order. "Speed up."


    They too, were worried that Ye Futian would have been able to reach the imperial flag before they did.


    As such, there was also a part of the army that sped up as they headed forward.


    Two armies streaked in the skies and eventually reached Emperor Li''s City.


    The imperial flag still billowed at the highest point of Emperor Li''s City, yet there was a Black Wind Condor standing right on top of that flag, eyeing the incoming bunch with proud eyes. Yu Sheng and the others stood waiting before the imperial flag. There were many dead bodies of those from Emperor Li''s Realm on the grond.


    The Emperor Li''s Realm''s forces at the very forefront halted as they saw what was going on, staring at their city while Li Yao looked completely ashen.


    Their imperial flag was taken, and their enemy was able to snap it at a moment''s notice.


    Ye Futian, on the other hand, did not slow down. He streaked past the enemy right away, leading his group of mighty ones to regroup with Yu Sheng and the others. It robbed the enemy of the possibility to even think about barging straight through to retake their imperial flag.


    As such, things turned to look like Xia Qingyuan leading a batch of mighty ones pursuing from behind, while Ye Futian and his people waited at the forefront, to catch the enemy in a pincer attack.


    Those from Emperor Xia''s Realm were relieved to see what they saw. They already won in the Battle of Empty Realm. All there was left to do was simply to cut the imperial flag down.


    "Ye Futian, cut the imperial down," Xiao Sheng, who was right behind Xia Qingyuan, spoke up.


    Ye Futian did not respond. He stepped forward, with Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, the Sword Saint, Huang Jiuge and others following right behind him, heading straight for the army of Emperor Li''s Realm. They looked extremely cold.


    That battle back at the Holy Zhi Palace, the things that happened with the nine pinnacle sages showing up, and how Saint Zhi pulled the unexpected, were all flashing right before their eyes.


    They still had scores to settle.


    "They had the flag and not cut it down. Your highness, he is trying to doom us all." Yuan Jin''s eyes turned cold, noting how brutal those before him were.


    Li Yao naturally understood what was going on, and he knew very well that it was because of him.


    So, this is about revenge then?


    "If that is the case, then we still stand a chance." Yuan Jin''s eyes looked incredibly sharp. He turned around to glance at Xia Qingyuan. If they were able to take Xia Qingyuan from the army, then they would have been able to force the enemy to let go.


    "Kill," Ye Futian said with a cold voice. He zipped past like a bolt of golden lightning right after he finished saying that, charging into the enemy''s army with the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand.


    "Kill them." Xia Qingyuan gave the order as well. She stepped forward onto golden lotuses. One lotus after another blossomed, which were all imbued with the way of Catastrophe Swordsmanship, turning into 3000 swords which followed her finger, streaking forward. Many mighty ones had their throats pierced within an instant.


    "Kill him," Li Yao said coldly as he stared at Ye Futian. Their defeat in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm was brought by one single person: Ye Futian.


    They were all set up by Ye Futian.


    Many mighty ones charged forward, yet they saw Ye Futian shrugging off the attacks and charged straight into the army.


    Boom! Dazzling golden lights tore through space. One mighty one after another was blown to bits as the halberd was unleashed.

 1069 Borrowing the Great Path for the Figh

    Ye Futian charged into the midst of the army without a care.


    Yu Sheng and the others were right behind him. Yu Sheng''s form was that of a devil at the moment, looking imposingly huge, and cutting up a bloody path with just one swing of his axe.


    He and Ye Futian were both practically invincible in terms of constitutional strength, enabling them to ignore power attacks from enemies, which was why they dared to just charge into the army.


    The Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, Qin Zhuang and others right behind them unleashed their own attacks as well, cleaving up their own path.


    Li Yao and Yuan Jin scanned the battlefield and found themselves caught in a pincer attack. Be it Ye Futian on one side or Xia Qingyuan on the other, both of them were extremely powerful figures.


    After Ye Futian defeated Kong Xuan, all of them knew that Ye Futian''s powers were on par with that of Xia Qingyuan. They were near invincible below Saint Plane.


    It would have probably required saint-level powers to kill them.


    "Tian Gan, protect his highness," Yuan Jin said to an army of deadly warriors at his side. A group of semi-saint figures circled around Li Yao. Those people were top notch figures under Saint Plane at Dali Dynasty. They were capable of cutting down enemies when in an advantage, and protect their supreme commander when in a disadvantage.


    It was clear at the moment that they were in a disadvantage, requiring them to prioritize defense.


    But then again, if they were to simply defend and do nothing else, then they were merely reduced to sitting ducks and it was only a matter of time before they were doomed.


    What is the intention of Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan refusing to cut down the imperial flag?


    Their enemy intended to kill every last unit of Emperor Li''s Realm''s forces, a bold, unrestrained attitude to take in such a war.


    "Di Zhi," Yuan Jin called again. Another legion consisting of 81 persons gathered around him. All 81 of them wore pitch-black clothing, looking cold and unforgiving.


    The Tian Gan and Di Zhi had separate roles. The warriors of Tian Gan were suicide warriors bred specifically to serve Dali royalty and there was actually limited need for them. As such, they were comparatively less dangerous to deal with.


    The ones of the Di Zhi, on the other hand, were meant to perform the most perilous of missions. All of them painstakingly nurtured figures and many of them began training at very young ages. It enabled them to possess adamant, indomitable will and very willing to give their all for Dali Dynasty.


    All 81 of them took mystical formations at the moment. Yuan Jin stood above them at the rear and glimmered. A golden diagram seemed to have appeared behind him, which spun maniacally. It seemed to be a diagram of the great path, with the mystics of the universe, as well as the likes of five elements and yin and yang in operation.


    The light shining from the diagram was incredibly blinding, covering all 81 warriors. Beams of golden threads pierced into the brains of all 81 warriors and they lit up brilliantly at the same time, as if they were all part of a single being without any individual differences.


    Terrifying aura burst from all 81 of them. Yuan Jin moved forward and walked in the midst of the 81. At that very moment, all of those warriors received spiritual will commands, being submitted completely under his control.


    Yuan Jin''s eyes turned to look rather demonic, and took a look at Xia Qingyuan in the battlefield.


    Things were such that they were about to suffer absolute defeat. If the enemy were to just cut down the flag right there and then, the Battle of Empty Realm would have been officially over.


    Yet, the cultivators from Emperor Xia''s Realm were not satisfied with simply cutting down the enemy''s imperial flag; they wanted to annihilate every single one of their enemies instead.


    If that is what they intend to do so, then they shall pay the price.


    If we were to be able to take out Xia Qingyuan, then we would still stand a chance.


    A beam of cold light flashed. Yuan Jin moved forward and all 81 moved alongside him. Golden sparkle danced about them. They shone like glittering golden needles, piercing at the incoming army of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Look out." Xia Qingyuan looked up at where Yuan Jin was. She felt a tinge of danger from his direction.


    Swooping, high-pitched noises were heard and extremely dazzling golden light sparkled about in the air within a split second. The criss-crossing thread turned into a formless net, flying at extreme speeds.


    Pfftt!


    A faint sound was heard from another direction. There were some people who had their parts of their bodies��their brows, their throats, or their chests��pierced.


    A very eerie scene was seen there. Yuan Jin''s hands seemed to be taking control of countless threads. All 81 of those semi-saints were like his puppets. Furthermore, it seemed as if the cultivators who had their bodies pierced suffered the same fate��their eyes showed intense fear.


    Dazzling golden light of devastation burst shortly after. Blood filled the air and all cultivators who had been pierced, had their bodies torn apart by the countless threads.


    If Ye Futian were to see what happened in that battlefield, he would have realized that the abilities used by Yuan Jin resembled the ones used by the nine back in the sacred war of the Nine States. When all nine of them joined hands, their powers were incredibly overbearing, so much so that he had to bring his imperial will to the fore.


    However, what Yuan Jin was pulling there was far more powerful than what the nine had been pulling back then, as if what he did was orders of magnitude above them.


    Yuan Jin''s hands continued to shudder. Countless golden threads shot out from the heavens at the army before him.


    "Block his attack." A voice was heard shouting. The mighty ones in that battlefield discovered in that very instant, how dangerous Yuan Jin had been. One legion cast defensive powers in the form of a dazzling barrier of light. But then, those threads seemed to be like needles. They were thin enough to slip through any openings or cracks, burrowing their way into the barrier of light.


    Countless threads shot inside and turned into a net. Yuan Jin pulled with both hands and the barrier was instantly shattered. Those threads continued on their way to slaughter. Untold numbers of mighty ones perished under the attacks of those threads within a heartbeat.


    "Overwhelming through saintly might." Many were able to sense saintly might within those very fine threads. All 81 of the enemy mighty ones moved forward at blitzing speeds, charging at the army. They were heading for Xia Qingyuan, who had been deemed near-invincible in the battlefield.


    "Protect the princess."


    Tian Ji called loudly. The imperial advisor of Dali Dynasty was versed in many peculiar mystical arts, including some heretic, evil ones. Yuan Jin was probably a student of said imperial advisor. That Imperial advisor of Dali Dynasty would have sent a student to fight in every one of Battle of Empty Realms. They were either tasked to lead the charge, or lay out tactics behind the scenes.


    Blood spilled everywhere within the battlefield. Aura of massive magnitudes of order shot to the heavens with frightening might.


    Mighty ones from Divine Cloud Valley went into formation. Gongsun Zhong unleashed the Divine Armoring Cauldron. Powerful armoring powers burst, refining the powers of the great path around him. He charged forward and held a spear in his hand, streaking through the air like a bolt of lightning as he thrust forward. There seemed to be a beam of light piercing through space within that instant, as he moved in on Yuan Jin and the others.


    All the others unleashed their own attacks after seeing Gongsun Zhong making a move. All who appeared in the battlefield were veterans, so they deemed it impossible to just let the chance slip by, instead of simply shirking from enemy might.


    Yuan Jin watched with an unfazed expression. The golden diagram behind him seemed to be one of the great path. Boundless light shrouded the sky. Within that instant, all 81 mighty ones in his battle matrix unleashed overpowering saintly might, as he launched a palm attack forward.


    Every single one of the 81 blasted a diagram of the great path respectively.


    One diagram after another shut the space down as they spun in a frenzy. All 81 diagrams seemed to have formed a complete whole and resonated with the great path, as if they all formed a godly shield.


    "Stampeding God" Gongsun Zhong called as his spear was thrust. The shadow of the attack was towering and brought earth-shattering force onto the diagrams. The diagrams were rattled and light shot into the 81 mighty ones with the diagrams. All of them had devastating light coursing about their bodies, as if they had all bore the brunt of the attack at once.


    That was not the only attack. Many others came down on the diagrams soon enough, but none had been able to destroy the shield.


    Countless hreads shot out from within the many diagrams and climbed onto Gongsun Zhong''s spear, wrapping it all upon within mere moments, and continuing to move at he himself.


    Boom. Powers devouring everything burst and the Divine Armoring Cauldron moved forward, intending to cook up all the countless threads about.


    One figure after another shot forth. The 81 mighty ones quickly surrounded Gongsun Zhong. Golden images coursing about their bodies pulsed with destructive light, shooting at Gongsun Zhong at the same time.


    Gongsun Zhong scanned his surroundings and saw countless golden threads shot to the air. The power of the Divine Armoring Cauldron was unleashed at full force. The glittering light from within consumed most of the threads, yet there were still some left that slithered through and headed towards him.


    Gongsun Zhong swung the spear in his hand about. Boundless shadow of the spear appeared in his surroundings. High-pitched noises were heard as attacks were launched.


    At the same time, Xuanyuan Ao and many other mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm burst with their own attacks. The Xuanyuan Sword Spirit shot through and hit one of the 81. Explosions were heard as that one man''s defenses crumbled, as if he had been shattered.


    Gu Mu, Xiao Sheng and others headed their way and launched attacks as well. One figure after another was rattled so badly that there spitted blood. The first batch of casualties quickly resulted as the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm surrounded Yuan Jin''s battle matrix.


    "Xia Qingyuan, how about we just end this battle right here, right now?" Yuan Jin''s eyes pierced the skies at gazed at Xia Qingyuan at the rear.


    After fighting for a while, he felt that taking down Xia Qingyuan would have proven too difficult. The army of Emperor Xia''s Realm gave him no openings which he could have harmed Xia Qingyuan at all.


    Xia Qingyuan took one look at the battlefield at Ye Futian''s side. She had not been doing all that much in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm. In truth, that held true for most from the Emperor Xia''s City. Ye Futian had been the one laying down the plans in the battle and enabled Emperor Xia''s Realm to bag the victory of the battle.


    As such, regardless of what Ye Futian intended to do, she saw no reason to go against him.


    "Kill," a cold word was uttered by Xia Qingyuan, refusing to stop fighting.


    Yuan Jin was unfazed hearing her answer. The cold winds of the battlefield blew on him. His robe and black hair billowed.


    "We shall fight for Dali Dynasty." A line was heard from Yuan Jin, and he sounded very solemn.


    "We shall fight for Dali Dynasty." All 81 mighty ones of the legion of Di Zhi said with determined eyes, as if they had been completely controlled by Yuan Jin.


    In that very instant, the diagram behind Yuan Jin turned even more brilliant. Aura within the bodies of the 81 warriors coursed towards him. Countless golden threads shot to the air and pierced his body. Waves of terrifying power were infused into Yuan Jin''s body.


    Divine might emanated from Yuan Jin. The weather in the skies changed. The light of calamity of the divine path was there.


    Yuan Jin lifted his head to look at the sky. His hair continued to billow as he uttered a single line, "I request to borrow the great path for the fight."

 1070 The False Sain

    Divine calamity from the heavens penetrated through Yuan Jin''s body. He was standing tall in the air as his long hair billowed, looking like a god.


    It seemed as if the powers within all 81 mighty ones became his. The divine calamity was actually incapable of shaking him at all, making him actually far more powerful than how Douzhan had been, when Douzhan had been enduring divine calamity.


    His body seemed to have grown huge and saintly might emanated from his body. It was the true might of the saints and he had broken through the bondage of rules using divine might, breaking through his semi-saint status into that of a saint.


    "Brother." Li Yao''s expression was a shaken one as he turned around to look at Yuan Jin.


    While they had indeed lost in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm, but Li Yao never blamed Yuan Jin for it. Despite Yuan Jin being tasked as the advisor by his side, but he was ultimately the supreme commander nonetheless, making it his responsibility as well. No one would have expected Ye Futian to have beast-taming abilities of ferocious magnitude, forcefully taking control of the demonic beasts and laid a trap out for them. They had indeed lost and there was nothing more to say about it.


    Even the likes of crown prince had to pay utmost respect to the imperial advisor in the Dali Dynasty. Yuan Jin was a student of the imperial advisor and Li Yao called him a brother in training, affording Yuan Jin the same level of respect as to his teacher. Among the mighty ones participating in the Battle of Empty Realm that year, Li Yao, the crown prince of Dali Dynasty, was not the most powerful; the most powerful one was Yuan Jin.


    And at that moment, Yuan Jin was borrowing the might of divine path and breaking into sainthood. It was done using secret arts to break through the limits of the great path. As such, Yuan Jin had became a false saint and had to suffer the punishment, barring him from ever being able to become a saint in this lifetime.


    It would not have mattered with the suicidal warriors, as they were ultimate meant to die in battle anyway. They would not have been called such to begin with otherwise. But Yuan Jin was a student of the imperial advisor of Dali Dynasty and had a great future ahead of him. Becoming a saint would have only been the beginning. He might have even been able to make it to the second or third steps, even ultimately becoming a Holiness of Nirvana, the last plane in Saint Plane.


    However, what happened right there and then meant that Yuan Jin''s hopes of becoming a saint had effectively been shattered.


    Cold, murderous intent was seen in Li Yao''s eyes as he looked at Ye Futian, who was coming for him. If Ye Futian would have simply cut down their imperial flag and end the Battle of Empty Realm right there and then, Yuan Jin would not have had to suffer all of that. Yuan Jin, a person of supreme talents who was there as Li Yao''s advisor, had forever been barred from becoming a saint, all due to Ye Futian.


    Worse still, their army was being slaughtered as Yuan Jin was suffering such a fate. Ye Futian and his party continued to press forward, heading straight for Li Yao.


    However, Ye Futian caught sight of the battlefield where Yuan Jin was in as well. Light of catastrophe of the great path advent on Yuan Jin, and there was no way Ye Futian would have missed it.


    True might of the divine path burst from Yuan Jin''s body in that battlefield. His body grew to imposing size and his arms were outstretched. The diagram behind him seemed to have became that of the great path and shooting light of the great path. Boundless golden threads shot out from Yuan Jin''s arms and streaked through the air, shrouding everywhere in his immediate vicinity.


    "Retreat," Xia Qingyuan shouted. Yuan Jin''s training had already been at the pinnacle level below Saint Plane. At the moment, he was borrowing the power of 81 semi-saints in his control and broke through the bondage of the great path, using the path''s power and became a false saint. However, there was no doubt that the power he unleashed was that of the saint.


    Whooshing, stabbing sounds continued to be heard. One figure after another from Emperor Xia''s Realm was pierced through by the golden light and be torn to shreds. A rain of blood was falling in the sky.


    When the difference in power reached certain levels, it became something that could not have been compensated through sheer numbers, especially when the battlefield had turned chaotic at that moment. The mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm were unable to fight using top notch matrixes and the entire battlefield was already in shambles.


    "Kill them all." A cold line was uttered by Li Yao. The mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm were all in a frenzy from all that killing. They continued to slaughter their way through the enemy without a care.


    Voom. A gale blew and Yuan Jin''s body flashed. Powerful might of the saints appeared and a huge golden mirage streaked by at speeds that could not have been tracked using the naked eye.


    Divine fires erupted in their surroundings and the Divine Armoring Cauldron burst with dazzling light. Golden spears burst from within and Gongsun Zhong took one of the spears and lashed out, tearing everything before him. Yet, Yuan Jin''s imposing golden form simply whacked forward with his hand. A golden diagram was pinning down and spinning in a frenzy, swallowing the spears and headed straight for the weapon Gongsun Zhong wielded.


    The golden diagram seemed to have been halted for a brief moment with a rumble, before continuing to press forward, tearing everything apart. Countless threads shot from within the diagram. Gongsun Zhong backed away hastily and the Divine Armoring Cauldron burst forward, clashing straight into the diagram. Doom...the Divine Armoring Cauldron was sent flying and ramming straight onto Gongsun Zhong''s body, causing him to spit blood as his body was sent flying faraway.


    Yuan Jin did not bother with him and his imposing form continued to press forward, paying no heed to the enemy forces before him. He simply swatted about with his hand at any incoming mighty ones, spewing golden threads with the power of light of calamity, penetrating through their bodies within an instant. He then only needed to pull with his hand to spray the place with rains of blood. Conventional figures at the pinnacle of Sage Plane was utterly incapable of doing anything against the might of the divine path.


    Calamity of the great path rained on him from above, but it seemed as if Yuan Jin was feeling nothing when he was basked in the light of calamity of the divine path, and simply continued pressing forward.


    The power between the saints and sages was at a fundamental level. Despite many having became top notch sages and had even emerged into being semi-saints, but they were still incapable of withstanding true saint powers.


    Yuan Jin continued to press forward and burst his way through the enemy forces, heading straight for Xia Qingyuan.


    "Protect the princess." Tian Ji''s stout frame was seen standing before Xia Qingyuan. Many mighty ones around them showed up to guard Xia Qingyuan. While all of them knew that the princess was extremely formidable, so much so that she was probably more powerful than they were, but it was nonetheless their duty to protect Xia Qingyuan.


    "Make way." Xia Qingyuan uttered coldly. It took her only one step to streak through the crowd before her and made it to the forefront.


    The simple clothing that Xia Qingyuan wore and her hair billowed in the wind, making her look dashing. Despite having worn men''s clothing, she was nonetheless strikingly beautiful.


    "Princess," Tian Ji shouted.


    "Heed my orders. All of you, stand down." Extremely cold and imposing intent emanated from her body, which was seemingly infused with the might of Renhuang and looking imposing.


    Many were stunned by the bearing she exuded and backed away unconsciously.


    Not even the likes of Tian Ji dared to continue standing in Xia Qingyuan''s way in that moment.


    The princess was determined to fight, and no one was to stand in her way.


    It also seemed that only the princess would have been able to fight that incoming monster.


    Xia Qingyuan''s Lotus Life Spirit burst forth, making her look even more dazzling. A golden lotus hovered from within her body, emanating towering aurora as she merged with her Life Spirit into a single entity.


    The world in that instant was covered in aurora as the lotus bloomed, looking peaceful and tranquil. The calamity of the great path showering down from the heavens that made the place looking like doomsday, seemed to have been blown away by the dazzling scene before them.


    The lotus gave birth to the path''s powers, while said powers gave birth to calamities, and calamities in term gave birth to the sword. Will of Calamity Swordsmanship burst from the beautiful petals of the lotuses in the surroundings. The light of calamity of the great path above coursed about, seemingly conjuring boundless swords heading straight for Yuan Jin.


    The space seemed to have been placed in lockdown, making the place stifling with the pressure all over it.


    Yuan Jin halted in his steps. His ethereal form coursed with boundless golden threads that blocked out the sky, which then shot for Xia Qingyuan.


    In that moment, two powerful forces clashed with each other in the air. The top notch sages in the surrounding battlefield all felt that stifling pressure and burst with their own powers to resist it.


    High-pitched noises were heard as the two powers battled in the air. Xia Qingyuan was bathed in the light of divine Renhuang. She brought all of her powers to bear without reservations at that moment, fighting a saint before her as a sage.


    "You borrowed powers to become a saint, and you''re nothing more than a fake." Xia Qingyuan''s eyes glared at Yuan Jin before her. Her finger pointed below her and countless lotuses rose to the air spinning. 3000 calamity swords burst into a rain of swords. What was even more terrifying was that the sword at her fingertip burst and tore through space.


    "The power of a false saint is nonetheless the power of a saint. If you want to fight, then I shall oblige, Xia Qingyuan." Yuan Jin swatted with his hand and diagram of divine path spun forward. Countless golden threads flew about and clashed with the frightening rain of swords.


    Boom. The sword clashed onto the diagram with a loud boom. However, Xia Qingyuan commanded more than one sword with her fingertip. One sword after another shot through the air. One sword seemed more powerful than the one that came before, growing to such massive powers that it tore the space around them apart.


    However, one beam of diagram after another shot from Yuan Jin''s palm, shining onto the diagram before him and continued to stack. When the diagram was cracked being penetrated by the swords, it was instantly patched up.


    The diagram of the great path continued to spin like a ring of stars and even grew in size.


    Yuan Jin lifted his hand and swatted again. With a loud bang, devastating light burst from the diagram, blowing up the lotuses around until the force reached Xia Qingyuan, who was being shielded by the petals of the golden lotus, before the ferocious attack was stopped. Even so, Xia Qingyuan continued to be forced backwards. Her barrier of swords had been punched through and she looked rather pale. Blood was seen at the corner of her mouth.


    Yuan Jin had already been half way into Saint Plane and was an Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane, before he forced himself into becoming a false saint.


    "Princess." Many mighty ones stepped forward. They were only at the edge of the battlefield when they sensed the formless killing intent from within. There were some who, before even entering the battlefield, got penetrated by the frightening powers within, spewing blood right there and then.


    They did not even have the right to fight in that battle.


    "Get the battle matrix ready," Tian Ji shouted.


    "You may have been of supreme talents, but you still have never touched the great path." Yuan Jin continued to press forward in Xia Qingyuan''s direction, bringing even more terrifying aura to bear.


    Dazzling light of the golden lotus burst and bringing rebirth to the boundless lotuses in their surroundings. The petals blossomed and the sword will shot to the skies. Her eyes remained adamant as she set her sight forward.


    "Huh?"


    Yuan Jin felt something at that very moment, turning around to find a figure streaking through the air and extreme speeds.


    Ye Futian.


    Good time for you to show up indeed.


    There were mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm intending to stop Ye Futian in his tracks, but that silhouette did not even slow down. Blood splashed in his tracks and he did not even brandish his Halberd of Time and Space yet.


    High-pitched noises were heard, seemingly like sonic booms. Countless mirages seemed to have been conjured as he moved like a bolt of lightning, shooting straight for Yuan Jin. Towering might filled the place as if their surroundings were about to come apart, before Ye Futian came before him.


    He clenched his weapon tight and terrifying aura of space-time grinding to a halt around him.


    Yuan Jin swung his hands about seeing Ye Futian coming for him. The light of the great path burst and tore through the air, shrouding Ye Futian altogether.


    The stopped space-time seemed to have been broken through as the light of great path shot through Ye Futian''s defenses, drowning him within an instant and piercing into his body.


    "You have a death wish." Yuan Jin uttered a single line and with a single flick of his wrist, the power that punched into Ye Futian''s body burst. However, he sensed the veins within Ye Futian''s body roared in that instant. Despite bring the might of great path to bear, it was insufficient to just destroy his body right there and then. It seemed that there was a holy power within that felt like green and filled with life.


    Yuan Jin frowned and pulled with his hand, but he was still unable to destroy Ye Futian''s physical body. In that very instant, Ye Futian came right before Yuan Jin and brought the halberd down with the might of the heavens.


    Their surroundings seemed to have been stifled and the great path seemed to be about to shatter.


    Boom!


    A loud boom was heard. Many fixed their eyes forward in shock. Ye Futian''s halberd was lodged into Yuan Jin''s body.


    One attack was all it had taken to cause Yuan Jin''s body to rupture. His body was sent flying and his internal organs seemed to have been torn apart. He lifted his head to look at Ye Futian, who was before him, while spitting blood!

 1071 The End of the Battle for the Empty Realm

    Yuan Jin raised his head and looked at Ye Futian. Could a body of flesh and blood bore his attack of the Great Path?


    Even true characters of the Saint Plane could not completely ignore it.


    The void was silent with nary a sound, and the vast army had actually stopped the fighting at this moment, and looked at Ye Futian with shock.


    How glorious was that strike with the halberd, the Saint of War.


    "How strong." The army of Emperor Xia''s Realm felt the impact in their hearts, and Ye Futian''s strike had wounded Yuan Jin, who wanted to borrow the Great Path to enter Saint Plane.


    Of course, at this moment, Ye Futian himself was not faring much better. Although his body of flesh and blood could be consider near invincible under the Saint Plane, but it was not sanctified after all, and was just a hair from it. Even if it was in an extreme state, but it still could not really disregard the attack from the pseudo-sainted Yuan Jin.


    The burning pain inside his body, along with a burning sensation of tearing, the ancient tree released the green life force from the life palace, repairing his wounded body. But even so, it was still difficult to fully recover, this was the attack of the Way.


    He looked a little pale, and there was blood oozing out from the corners of his mouth. However, the Halberd of Time and Space still tightly clutched in his hands, and a torrential sensation moved about, many of the rules between the heaven and the earth poured into the body at the same time.


    There was a horrible light of catastrophe blooming, with his body as the center, a storm of destruction appeared and ravaged between heaven and earth.


    Xia Qingyuan stepped forward, her clothing fluttered in the wind, the lotus between heaven and earth were endless and gave forth the Way, turned into the sword.


    The Way gave birth to one, and two turned to two, to three, until countless swords were born and turned into one. Her sword of catastrophe intended to become a Way of the sword.


    Yuan Jin''s eyes swept toward the two of them. His hands stretched out, and the diagram of the Great Path appeared, rotating endlessly, gave forth to endless destructive golden silk threads that penetrated the void, puffing out the radiance of the Great Path, slaying toward the sword of catastrophe of Xia Qingyuan, and also toward the body of Ye Futian.


    Today, by borrow the Way to enter the Saint Plane, it would make it impossible for him to enter the Divine Path for the rest of his life; he refused to believe that they would be defeated like this.


    Ye Futian felt the power that was everywhere. Inside the life palace, a rustling sound continued, as if everything between heaven and earth was imprinted in his mind. He could feel the rules power that was everywhere between heaven and earth, and he could even perceive that power of the Way.


    He held the Halberd of Time and Space tightly in his hands. and from the Halberd of Time and Space exuded a sense of the Way. At this moment, his heart comprehended and realized what was The Way.


    The Great Path was invisible yet gave birth to heaven and earth. The Great Path was ruthless, yet regulated the sun and the moon; the Great Path was unknown, and yet it nurtured all things.


    Man ruled heaven and the earth, but the rule of the Way was nature.


    Those who cultivated, embraced the heavens and the earth, and integrate the spiritual will into all things between the heavens and the earth, to comprehend the rules power in the natural world, and integrate with them as one, thus turned into rules.


    Then, what was the Way?


    Man was the Way.


    This was a real metamorphosis. To rule all things between the heavens and the earth was the Way.


    The Way existed in all movements.


    At this moment, Ye Futian seemed to have entered into a curious state, the Halberd of Time and Space puffed out awesome glory, akin to threads of authority of the Way.


    The storm of the light of catastrophe that surrounded Ye Futian became even stronger and collided with the endless radiance that shot out from Yuan Jin.


    Xia Qingyuan continued to move forward, her delicate and slender hands slammed forward, and folds of the Way of the sword of catastrophe merged into Huangting Fist Will, with force that could shock gods and demons alike, madly attacking the defensive diagram that was in front of Yuan Jin.


    At the same time, Ye Futian''s body flew in rotation as if one with the Great Path, fast to the limit. A horrible forth gathered inside his body, the ruinous silk threads released from Yuan Jin chased him for slaughter, but seemed having trouble to keep up with his flying silhouette.


    Finally, when the power of the great force climbed to its epitome, Ye Futian casted a look at Yuan Jin who was below the sky, and with this one look that seemed to penetrate the void, his body then disappeared directly from where he was, and in the next moment he re-appeared before Yuan Jin. His speed was even faster than before, regardless of the spatial distance.


    The Halberd of Time and Space pierced straight forward, tearing the space and broken the Great Path, slammed right on that defensive diagram.


    Boom! A crisp sound was heard, and cracks began to appear on the diagram of the Great Path. At the same time, the sword wills from Xia Qingyuan passed through, and with a ray of destructive brilliance, the golden pattern was directly collapses and pulverized.


    Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian''s attack did not stop, and they continued moving forward. The two engaged in close quarter combat, and Xia Qingyuan had also descended in front of Yuan Jin. Her delicate hands stretched forward, and the endless light of the lotus that was between heaven and earth coursed upon her body, turning into the Way of the sword, pulverized everything, stabbing toward Yuan Jin, and pierced through him.


    A slight sound was heard, and the Halberd of Time and Space also pierced through the body of Yuan Jin.


    At this moment, they were surround by dead silence, and Yuan Jin looked up at the two with a look of surprise, and then a sad smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.


    "I didn''t expect to lose the battle today, even by borrowing the power of Way," Yuan Jin let out a sigh. The next moment, there was an explosion of endless brilliance from his body, shot toward Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan who were in front of him.


    Terrifying brilliance flowed about upon both of their bodies, with Ye Futian as the center, the space seemed to have become static. His body moved toward the side, with one hand around Xia Qingyuan''s body and they both disappeared from where they stood and appeared in the next moment in another position.


    "Is the princess all right?" The two faced each other. Ye Futian released his arm and looked at Xia Qingyuan. When he spoke, there was blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. Terrible power still flowed inside his body, constantly repairing the wounds.


    "I''m fine," Xia Qingyuan looked at him, her beautiful face was slightly pale, and a trace of blood likewise seeped out of her mouth.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly, and turned to look at Yuan Jin, and saw that Yuan Jin''s was gradually becoming illusive. Under the devastating attack of the two of them, it was finally too hard for him to continue holding on.


    The illusive figure looked at Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan. In addition of Xia Qingyuan, Emperor Xia''s Realm had appeared another such fearful figure. If time was give for him to develop fully and fight alongside Xia Qingyuan, it would be the end for Emperor Li''s Realm.


    "Sire, get rid of him." A voice came into Li Yao''s mind; it was Yuan Jin''s last words to him. In the next moment, his body turned into nothingness and disappeared between heaven and earth.


    Li Yao''s heart trembled violently, and watched Yuan Jin''s body disappearing, but there was nothing he could do.


    Yuan Jin, his Senior Brother, tried to borrow the Way to enter the Saint Plane but was defeated, killed by Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    Raising his head, Li Yao looked at Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan, and his eyes were full of murderous intentions.


    The last message left by his Senior Brother was for him to kill Ye Futian.


    He never thought that a person that he had offended in the Lower Worlds of the Nine States would directly influence the outcome of the battle for the Empty Realm. Even caused the countless casualty suffered by the great army of Emperor Li''s Realm, even more miserable than the state Emperor Xia''s Realm was in the last battle.


    The disciple of the imperial advisor of Dali, his Senior Brother, was also executed on the spot.


    The world was silent and without sound. All the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm felt a sense of sorrow; they did not expect that they would have been defeated so badly.


    It is a contempt to capture the imperial flag without slaying it, the ultimate contempt; the ultimate goal was to annihilate all of them.


    The people of Emperor Xia''s Realm, likewise, trembled in their hearts. They looked at the two figures standing side by side; Ye Futian with his hair white as snow and the incomparably beautiful princess, Xia Qingyuan.


    The two of them stood together at this moment did not make anyone felt out of place, as if it was a matter of fact that they ought to have been so harmonious.


    Back in the days when Prince Li Yao from Emperor Li''s Realm came to propose marriage, many cultivators in Emperor Xia''s Realm felt they had been insulted.


    But this time, for unknown reason, they felt that these two should be standing together like this.


    Even the legions of Tian and Dou, belonging directly to Emperor Xia himself, now revealed a sense of respect and sincere admiration, reversing all the doubts and displeasures of the past.


    At this time, they finally understood that everything that Ye Futian had done before was for setting the trap. Almost single-handedly, he succeeded in winning the battle for the Empty Realm for Emperor Xia''s Realm. To the numerous voices of dissent, he had never defended himself, merely facing them with silence.


    All the previous doubts and displeasures now formed a glaring contrast with this moment, making them feel shamed and regretful, and that complex emotions naturally gave way to the sense of awe.


    Obviously, if Xia Qingyuan now named Ye Futian as deputy, there would almost be no more doubts, and they would all agree.


    Gongsun Zhong glanced at Ye Futian, who was next to Xia Qingyuan, and he was speechless. Even though he had also shown his own brilliance in the battlefield, he still could not overcome what Ye Futian had done.


    Many people now remembered the words of Wang Chuan at Lihen Heaven: Under the Saint Planet, Ye Futian was in his own company.


    Among the crowd, someone looked very badly, Xiao Sheng.


    He looked at the crowd around him, and when he saw the eyes of Ye Futian, he knew that most of the people in Emperor Xia''s Realm had been conquered by Ye Futian.


    What did this mean?


    It meant that in the future, he would be able to enter Emperor Xia''s Palace with dignity, standing next to Xia Qingyuan and assisting her, and no one would question him.


    And that was what the family expected of him, the position that he wanted.


    But after this battle, it was getting farther and farther away from him, and seemed to be held t in the hands of Ye Futian.


    Even though he had also performed well in this battle, compared to what Ye Futian had done, it was still no comparison.


    But Ye Futian did not think so much. He had never thought of vying for positions, nor did he think of assisting Xia Qingyuan. All of this was just the imagination of Xiao Sheng himself.


    At this time, his eyes swept coldly at Li Yao, and then as if he had felt something, he directed his eyes into the distance, and felt an immense divine authority coming toward them.


    The saints of the three imperial realms had arrived.


    Ye Futian realized that when Yuan Jin borrowed the power of the Way thus causing changes in the heavens and the earth, even though they were not on the battlefield, the cultivators of the Saint Plane in the distance could still perceive it, and they had rushed over here.


    He also understood that it was all over.


    The cultivators of the Saint Plane from Emperor Li''s Realm took one look at the battlefield and knew exactly what had happened. They stared at the Black Wind Condor, their eyes cold and indifferent. One person said, "This battle for the Empty Realm, Emperor Li''s Realm lost."


    Without the slaying of the imperial flag, he had announced the defeat of Emperor Li''s Realm, it was clear that he would not allow the battle to continue.


    Ye Futian glanced at the other, then drifted toward at the little condor in the distance and spit out a word, "slay."


    The sharp claws of the little condor clamped down, and the imperial flag that was fluttering above Emperor Li''s City was suddenly cut off and fell from the sky.


    The once ten-year fight for the Empty Realm between Emperor Xia''s Realm, Emperor Li''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Realm had officially come to an end.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm snatched the victory and won the control over the Empty Realm for the next ten years!

 1072 Award

    In the distance, many people were coming over this way. After the end of the battle for the Empty Realm, naturally they no longer had any worries or concerns.


    Seeing the situation in the battlefield, many were stunned. Emperor Xia''s Realm was least favored, but was able to capture victory in this battle for the Empty Realm.


    The person who was instrumental in the victory of this battle was someone no one had heard of before, Ye Futian.


    Of course, he was someone of the Sage Plane, and from Emperor Xia''s Realm, so it was quite normal that he was an unknown, it was just that they did not know whose disciple he was.


    The cultivators of the Demon Peacock Realm had also arrived, Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan were also present, they looked somewhat cold and unfeeling.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm could win was because of the strategy that had been used on them. Although Emperor Li''s Realm suffered the most, but the Demon Peacock Realm did not fare much better; they had been used by Ye Futian and it was still difficult to accept.


    The cultivators of the three great realms now gathered amongst themselves, and the Sacred Generals of Tian and Dou both came to Xia Qingyuan''s side and asked, "How is the princess'' injury?"


    They clearly saw that Xia Qingyuan was wounded.


    "No matter, since the battle of the Empty Realm was won by Emperor Xia''s Realm, get ready to take over the Empty Realm." Xia Qingyuan said. In the next ten years, the resources of the Empty Realm would be taken over by them; anyone enter into the Empty Realm would need to pay the spiritual resources to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Yes," the Sacred General of Tian nodded. "After the takeover, the princess could then hand out the rewards. "


    After he finished speaking, he looked at a cultivator of the Saint Plane from Emperor Li''s Realm and said, "ready to turn over the control."


    The war of the Empty Realm was the agreement reached by all three parties. The three imperial realms had to agree to the outcome, because if they refused, then there could only be war of the imperial realms.


    Before there was not enough preparation, it was obvious that none of the three parties was willing to risk an all-out war of the imperial realms, there was too much at stake.


    "Wait." A voice of indifference was heard, and the eyes of the people turned to see that Kong Xuan was staring at Ye Futian.


    She didn''t say anything, but Ye Futian understood what she meant nonetheless.


    With his gaze refocused, Ye Futian conveyed his thoughts to the demonic beasts that he controlled, and suddenly they all came forward, including Jialou Feng, Bull Demon and some other royal elites of the demonic realm.


    Seeing that so many demonic beasts were being controlled, Kong Xuan''s face was quite steely. Not just her, but all the characters of the Saint Plane within the Demon Peacock Realm looked at Ye Futian with extreme unfriendliness.


    Ye Futian looked at the many demons, his eyes were enchanted, and the spiritual will infiltrated into their minds, erasing all the marks he had planted before, and the spiritual will power ceased to control the will of these demonic beasts.


    The bodies of the demonic beasts, such as Jialou Feng, trembled. It was then that they seemed to realize what had happened to them before. A violent thought of murder exploded from Jialou Feng, and he madly rushed toward Ye Futian. Not only him, but many other demonic beasts also did the same.


    "You don''t think this is shameful enough?" Kong Xuan scolded them. She stared at Ye Futian, "are there any other that you have controlled to lurk around us?"


    "I have heard that all the previous battles for the Empty Realm were full of trickeries and intrigues, and nothing was not permissible. I possessed the kind of ability that could be used to capture the battle for the Empty Realm, it was understandable that I would use it. If I had offended the princess, I ask for your indulgence in the matter. "Ye Futian looked at her and continued, "as for other demonic beasts, Princess Kong Xuan may feel free to ask others of the Demonic Saint-level to investigate. Judging from the Demonic Saint Plane, it should be no trouble to detect."


    Kong Xuan stared at Ye Futian and said coldly, "I hope we do not meet again."


    "The leader of a defeated army, what gives you the right to be proud," a cold voice came out, and Kong Xuan turned her attention to look at the speaker, and saw a pair of equally stunning eyes.


    The person who spoke was none other than her equal, princess, Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The two crossed their gazes in the air, with the same coldness, there seemed to be an invisible current flowing. Seeing this exchange, many were faintly excited because the most unfortunate thing in this battle was that the two beautiful princesses did not engage in direct confrontation.


    Otherwise, it would definitely have been the most beautiful scenery.


    "Go." Kong Xuan did not say anything further after all, just turned and left. Xia Qingyuan wasn''t wrong, she iswasindeed the leader of a defeated army.


    Even if it was lost in Ye Futian''s unusual strategy, but defeat was defeat, there was no excuses.


    What''s more, in that battle with Ye Futian alone, she had also lost to him.


    After returning, she shall cultivate harder, evoking the Divine Path, and wash away the shame of the battle for the Empty Realm.


    The cultivators of the Demon Peacock Realm quickly disappeared and left the battlefield.


    "We will order the evacuation of our people, you can takeover yourselves," From the camp of Emperor Li''s Realm, there was someone who responded coldly, and they left by levitation.


    The Sacred General of Tian looked at the other and nodded in agreement.


    After that, he looked at Xia Qingyuan and asked, "would the princess also wish to come along?"


    "Well, let''s take a look see," Xia Qingyuan nodded, and suddenly the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm gathered together, and then left the city in a mighty force.


    After the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm had left, the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm looked at Li Yao and said, "Sire, shall we return to the palace?"


    "Send messenger back to report the news of the battle for the Empty Realm. I still have unfinished business here. As to the imperial advisor, I will go back and ask for forgiveness," he replied. There were countless cultivators who perished in this battle, but even as top geniuses who died in the battlefield, as the Prince of Dali, there was nothing for him to explain.


    However, Yuan Jin was a great disciple of the imperial advisor of Dali, his own master. Even though the imperial advisor would not blame him, he still had the obligation to ask for forgiveness.


    After all, he was the leader of the battle.


    But before that, he still had something he wanted to do.


    The news of this war soon spread in the Empty Realm, and many were quite surprised by the victory of Emperor Xia''s Realm, and there were many cultivators who inquired about Ye Futian.


    This figure who came from nowhere, defeated Kong Xuan, and together with Xia Qingyuan, joined forces and slain Yuan Jin, the disciple of the imperial advisor of Dali; gained control the demonic beasts, and played Emperor Li''s Realm and Demon Peacock Realm one against the other; he captured the imperial flag and yet did not slay it so he could destroy most of the elites from Emperor Li''s Realm, and Yuan Jin had died fighting.


    Such a brilliant record help to quickly spread the name of Ye Futian all over the Empty Realm. In the future, this could be the character who could sway Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    ...


    Xia Qingyuan came to the land of a deserted canyon in the Empty Realm.


    At this time, the group had travel by air, and there were people continuously broke off and left from the sky below; they were all cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm who began retreating from this point.


    Ye Futian looked down at below, and heard continuous sounds of explosions, the mountain ridge bursted, and a strong and dominant matrix below was being destroyed. It was the matrix set up by the cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm, and they were destroying it now.


    "What are they doing?" Ye Futian asked curiously, and he felt that the space rules between the heavens and the earth at this place was so thick that he could even felt traces of the Great Path.


    As they continued forward, he was shocked to discover that the mountains were of a golden color, nursing a terrible sense of space within, just like a sacred mountain in the space.


    "Did you feel the atmosphere here?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded.


    "The rumor has it that the Empty Realm was a complete piece of the Heaven Path that fell from the universe after the collapse of the Heaven Path, thus forming the Empty Realm. Therefore, the endless area of the Empty Realm has a strong atmosphere of space. If you look down from the firmament, you will see that the entire Empty Realm is surrounded by the Great Path of Space, so cultivators who are specializing in the power of space attributes will come here to cultivate."


    Xia Qingyuan explained further to Ye Futian, "Here seems to be the center of the Empty Realm. The layout of the Great Path Matrix was to absorb the intention of the Great Path in the Empty Realm, thus condensed into the Great Path fragments, that is, the sacred spirit stones. But in the next ten years we are in control of the Empty Realm, so that was why Emperor Li''s Realm destroyed the matrix."


    "Not only that, there are some places in the Empty Realm that are similar to this place, but this is the core area of ??the Empty Realm. Look at the mountains below, they have all turned into a sacred mountains of space. Cultivating in place like this, you will get twice the result with half the effort." The Sacred General Tian who were in front also piped up. His palms grabbed toward below the sky, and a powerful suction suddenly came from the palms of his hand, and a radiant glow came toward his palm.


    The next moment, a crystal appeared in the palm of the hand of the Sacred General of Tian, which seemed to be formless and intangible.


    "Princess," the Sacred General of Tian handed it to Xia Qingyuan, and she took it in her hand. There was a flow of air current in her hand, which was absorbed into her body, and suddenly the light of space covered the body of Xia Qingyuan. She stepped forward and was able to directly crossed the void.


    "The Great Path fragments can be used for enlightenment. If you are already at the Saint level, you can also use it to battle directly, or for use to refine magic weaponry or divine implements." Xia Qingyuan, who was in front, turned back and explained to Ye Futian, "so every ten years, the battle for the Empty Realm was always very intense."


    "Princess, I will lead people to set up now," the Sacred General of Tian said to Xia Qingyuan, and then immediate left. They still have much to do, taking over the resources of the Empty Realm, controlling the entrance of the Empty Realm.


    "For the cultivation of the people of the Upper Worlds, they were blessed," Douzhan said with a sigh.


    "It is said that in ancient times, before the collapse of the Heaven Path, the sense of the Great Path was everywhere, and it was the most prosperous times for the cultivators. After the Heaven Path collapsed, the difficulty of cultivation multiplied and evolved to today, in the so-called Lower Worlds, the Great Path no longer existed, even in the Upper Worlds, resources were scarce, and competition for them happened often, only some legendary places was said to have still preserved partial Heaven Path," Xia Qingyuan explained. Douzhan and the others nodded; the people of the Nine States, after cultivating at the peak, needed to rely on the power of the Sacred War for enlightenment, the level of difficulty was extreme.


    Xia Qingyuan faced all people and announced, "for everyone who participated in the battle of the Empty Realm, you may cultivate in the Empty Realm, and all the Great Path fragments collected in the coming year will be distributed equally among all the people who had participated in the war."


    "Many thanks to the princess," everyone bowed to convey their gratitude. One year in the Empty Realm could produce a large sum of Great Path fragments. The princess indeed did not mistreat them, but it was a pity for those who died in battle.


    "Ye Futian, in the battle for the Empty Realm, you were indispensable, what kind of reward do you wish?" Xia Qingyuan asked Ye Futian, "you may ask for anything."


    "It''s enough to be the same as everyone else," Ye Futian replied very calmly, and many showed a look of total surprise, but then they admired Ye Futian even more.


    Considering the future of Ye Futian, it was true that there was no need for him to fight for the gain at the moment.


    "You laid down the trap and slay the imperial flag of the Demon Peacock Realm, and led the people of the Nine States to capture the flag of Emperor Li''s Realm. I will ask Divine Cloud Valley to forge a divine implement suitable for those who fought from the Nine States. As for you, I will ask my father, the Emepror, to bestow on you a place of cultivation in the Upper Worlds or to renovate the place where you cultivate right now. In addition, you will have the privilege to enter and leave the palace at will,. When the matrix had been arranged, all the Great Path fragments that were unearthed in the next seven days would belong to you. "


    All the cultivators who participated in the battle would share equally one year''s worth of the Great Path, but Ye Futian alone, would receive seven days'' worth of the Great Path fragments unearthed in the entire Empty Realm. This would be an unimaginable number.


    However, no one disagreed. He had helped Emperor Xia''s Realm to gain the control of the Empty Realm for the next ten years, and was only rewarded seven days, this was how it should be.

 1073 The Princess is a Good Person

    For the next little while, all the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm were cultivating at and around this mountain range.


    Seven days later, Ye Futian was sitting cross-legged upon a sacred mountain of space rule power that was full to overflowing with the brilliant light of space rule power. He had closed his eyes in order to enhance his perception, and many lines of will flowed around his body. They were without form and without shadow, and seemed difficult to even ascertain.


    In the previous battle he had already nearly touched the edge of the Path. He had touched the Great Path rules in the truest sense. He knew that he had already entered the mysterious area between the Sage plane and the Saint plane.


    Of course, there was a still a good bit of distance between his level and Wang Chuan''s level.


    In the Life Palace within Ye Futian''s body there was a constant rustling sound. The World Tree life spirit was swaying.It was actually able to absorb will from space elements, making rays of the light of space rule power appear within his Life Palace.


    This kind of mysterious plane made Ye Futian''s heart tremble slightly. He knew that his own life spirit was extraordinary. As he increased in level, his life spirit would reveal special powers to him from time to time.


    When he had first set out on the path of cultivation, his original life spirit was able to harmoniously cooperate with and visualize the attainment of other life spirits, as well as absorb the ten thousand different spirits and auras of heaven and earth. No matter what kind of element the spirit or aura belonged to, he could sense it and then integrate it into his cultivation.


    Now he understood will a little bit better and he could sense its presence. This life spirit could absorb it and integrate it into itself, letting it seep bit by bit into his Life Palace and at the same time washing his body.


    The descendants of truly top-notch cultivators of great power''s life spirits could integrate their life spirits into their ancestors'' paths of cultivation.


    What path was his World Tree life spirit integrated into?


    And who''s path was it?


    What kind of people had his ancestors been?


    The light of space rule power flowed over the surface of his body. He opened his eyes and saw that not far in front of him there was a delicate figure walking towards him. There was a bright smile on her devestatingly beautiful face that was enough to make one''s heart beat faster. Her autumn-like eyes were as gentle as water. She looked at him with a grin.


    "Goddess Yao Xi," Ye Futian called out.


    These days, the great army of Emperor Xia''s Realm was cultivating in this area. Even though the vast majority of them weren''t cultivating any abilities related to space elements, they could still feel the presence of will everywhere. This still made them able to easily grasp the power of the Great Path.


    Yao Xi came over to where Ye Futian was seated and said, "I see will flowing all over you, Lord Ye. Have you already made to to the demi-Saint plane?"


    "I''m still a step away. I just barely touched the edge of it," said Ye Futian with a shake of his head.


    "You have such outstanding talent, Lord Ye, and yet you are still so modest." There was a warm smile in Yao Xi''s eyes all along, and her face was clear and bright.


    The flow of will over his body clearly meant that he had already entered the demi-Saint level. How could he have just barely touched the edge of it? He was clearly being modest.


    Seeing Yao Xi''s reaction, Ye Futian knew that she did not believe him. But his own cultivation was special. He naturally could not explain it easily, so he just smiled and shook his head. A misunderstanding was just a misunderstanding, after all.


    In reality, even though he had not made it to the demi-Saint plane yet, there would be very few people who could resist him in terms of combat ability below the Saint plane.


    Yao Xi stared at him when she saw his expression. His hair was white as snow, and his features were as sharp as a knife. He had an incredibly handsome face.


    In the Battle of Empty Realm, he had had won the victory for Emperor Xia''s Realm nearly by his own strength. And he had kept everyone else in the dark, only letting Xia Qingyuan in on his plans.


    In the final Battle of Empty Realm, he and Xia Qingyuan had fought side by side and slain Yuan Jin as he entered the Saint Plane. His halberd had pierced through the sky. It was absolutely outstanding.


    She kept looking at him, as if she were being drawn to him. Her smile became even more mysterious.


    Ye Futian saw Yao Xi''s smile. It was beautiful enough to make one''s heart say. Her bright and clear eyes seemed to not hide her admiration of him at all, which was even more confusing.


    Of course, Ye Futian had never lacked for beautiful and talented women by his side. Jieyu, Glass Saint and Xia Qingyuan all were.


    But in terms of charm, none of them could surpass Yao Xi. It was a charm that could leave one flustered. It could be inadvertently revealed with every frown and smile of hers.


    "You truly fulfill every fantasy about what a woman might wish her partner to be, Lord Ye," said Yao Xi with a smile. She didn''t wait for Ye Futian for an answer, but said, "Am I disturbing your cultivation?"


    "It''s no problem ." Ye Futian shook his head.


    When she heard his answer, Yao Xi''s smile grew even brighter. He had said that it was "no problem," not "you are not disturbing me." Did that mean that she was in fact disturbing him?


    But Yao Xi did not care. She stretched lazily, suddenly outlining her perfect figure. Anyone without a firm will probably would have had trouble restraining themselves.


    "You should attend to your cultivation, Lord Ye, no need to worry about me." Yao Xi lay down on a rock behind him lazily, a mischievous light shining in her eyes.


    Ye Futian smiled ruefully. It would probably be impossible for anyone to avoid having their heart moved by a woman like this. With her lying there, how could anyone cultivate peacefully?


    In the past, Ye Futian might have flirted with her for a while, until it would not be clear who was teasing who.


    But now he no longer had the same youthful vigor as before. He did not know if it was because of Jieyu, or because he had matured.


    At that moment a figure came towards them through the sky. Her face was so beautiful it was almost shocking. It was Xia Qingyuan.


    She looked at Ye Futian and Yao Xi lying behind him and smiled coldly.


    "Greetings, Princess," called Yao Xi with a smile.


    Xia Qingyuan glanced at her and said coldly, "There is something I must discuss with Ye Futian. Why don''t you go on down?"


    Yao Xi looked at Xia Qingyuan with a slight smile, then bowed and said, "Yes, Princess."


    On saying this she looked back at Ye Futian and grinned. "I must come another day to question you about the way of cultivation, Lord Ye."


    "Why would you need to come and question him about the way of cultivation of Yaotai Divine Palace?" said Xia Qingyuan coldly. "If you have nothing of importance to say then do not disturb his cultivation."


    Yao Xi looked at Xia Qingyuan, then smiled and rose up into the air to leave, her robes fluttering in the wind. It was truly a stunning sight.


    "I like him!" came her voice from far way. This was naturally said to upset Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan narrowed her eyes slightly. She was clearly a bit unhappy.


    Then she looked at Ye Futian and said, "I see that you like to enjoy yourself while you cultivate."


    Ye Futian looked up at Xia Qingyuan and asked, "Is it Yao Xi that you have a problem with, or with me, Princess?"


    "At the beginning you entered the Imperial Palace because of the news of your wife. This was not polite in the least," answered Xia Qingyuan. She had finally spoken her opinion on the matter out loud.


    She had called Ye Futian to the Upper Realms to cultivate because she had been informed of the news about his wife. He had come to the Imperial Palace to seek an audience with her and had made things difficult for her maid. This made her extremely unhappy, and even after seeing her his attitude was still cold.


    But not long after that, he had spoken with Yao Xi on very intimate terms at the Xiao clan banquet.


    Ye Futian naturally understood what Xia Qingyuan meant. Was she accusing him of something?


    "There is no need to trouble yourself over my private affairs," Ye Futian answered.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at him coldly for a moment. Then she waved her hand and suddenly there was a storage ring floating in front of Ye Futian. She said, "These are the fragments of the Great Path that were unearthed over these past seven days."


    On saying this, she waved her hand again and turned, flying back up into the air to leave.


    Ye Futian walked directly through the storage ring, and his spiritual will power entered into it. When he saw the number of fragments of the Great Path, he trembled inwardly.


    Had they really unearthed this many fragments of the Great Path over the past seven days? If so, then it was quite obvious how many they must have unearthed over ten years.


    Of course, Saint level figures using fragments of the Great Path to enhance their perception must have consumed a great number of said fragments as well.


    Without the aid of fragments of the Great Path, one could only use one''s own power to gradually perceive the Great Path bit by bit.


    A figured suddenly appeared in front of Ye Futian. It was actually Saint Xia. He had seen Princess Xia Qingyuan coming over earlier, and thus he had come as well.


    At that moment his long beard blew in the wind. He pointed at Ye Futian, his disappointment at Ye Futian''s lack of progress and impatience for him to improve clear on his face.


    "You...can''t you be a little warmer to the Princess?" Saint Xia really wanted to beat him, the scoundrel.


    They had built a difficult friendship upon the filed of battle, and then Ye Futian had actually said to the Princess that she shouldn''t worry about his private affairs?


    That was simply...


    Did he not know how many people dreamed night and day of reaching the level of relationship he had with Princess Xia Qingyuan?


    And perhaps they could get even closer?


    He probably didn''t know how many people hated him and burned with jealousy towards him. The Princess had given him fragments of the Great Path, and had even personally given them to him.


    She had been so good to him, and he had basically shooed her away.


    Ye Futian smiled ruefully and shook his head when he saw Saint Xia''s expression. This old guy really still spent his days worrying about him.


    "Elder, haven''t I said it before? The Princess is a good person, but her temper is ugly," said Ye Futian.


    "Could it be that you actually still want to change the Princess?" asked Saint Xia incredulously.


    Ye Futian looked at him. He thought that if Xia Qingyuan was not so cold, and if she wore women''s clothing, she would definitely be much more charming.


    Perhaps her charms would be no less than those of Yao Xi.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian nodded thoughtfully. "If I can change her, that would be better."


    "...."


    Saint Xia left with a flick of his sleeves.


    Incredible. Simply incredible.


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. Saint Xia was still quite adorable.


    "You can come out, everyone," called Ye Futian. A line of figures suddenly flashed over towards him. They were the various Saint level figures of the Nine States: Douzhan, You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng and the others were all there.


    The people from the Nine States were all there cultivating, and so they had naturally heard everything that had gone on.


    "So, have you elders all learned how to eavesdrop?" Ye Futian said incredulously. A group of Saint-level people had all been lying in hiding. This was really...


    "The Palace Lord''s affairs are the affairs of everyone from the palace. We naturally had to pay attention to them," said You Chi in dead seriousness. Ye Futian felt a burst of shame, and blushed.


    "I think that what Saint Xia said was correct. I too think that the Princess is a good person, and you can get closer with her," continued You Chi. If their relationship became closer, and if Ye Futian became the son-in-law of Emperor Xia, then wouldn''t the Upper and Lower Realms be going into the future walking hand in hand?


    They did not need to speak of Ye Futian''s talent. With it he could sweep through anyone unhindered, and none could match him. Such talent would inevitable lead to his rise in the world. It was just like in the Battle of Empty Realm. Although the great army admired him greatly, there were certainly those who bore envy for him in their hearts.


    If Ye Futian could have Princess Xia Qingyuan as a protective talisman, in the future he could truly do as he pleased and run rampant, and no one would dare to interfere with his plans!

 1074 Li Yaos Murderous Inten

    The days passed one by one, and in a flash more than a month had passed since the previous Battle of Empty Realm.


    The great army that Emperor Xia''s Realm had stationed in the Empty Realm had taken full control of the area, and some cultivators had even been sent over from Emperor XIa''s Realm, using space rule power matrices to transport them.


    However, as one of the losing parties in the Battle of Empty Realm, Li Yao, who had been responsible for this Battle of Empty Realm, had not left yet.


    Emperor Li''s City was still shattered and broken, and many of the places in it had not been repaired yet. The ruins of battle were still preserved there. Only a single great palace had been repaired.


    At that moment Li Yao was there. He had been cultivating in the Empty Realm all along.


    "Your Highness." At that moment someone came towards him and bowed to him.


    "Speak," said Li Yao.


    "Ye Futian is still cultivating there, he has not left even once," the man said to Li Yao. "Here is the news that I have uncovered from Emperor Xia''s Realm. There is great enmity between Ye Futian and many other people. Among them, the most obvious is the enmity between him and Lihen Heaven, and this hate runs the deepest. He once humiliated them by saying that there was no one of worth in Lihen Heaven below the Saint level, and fought his way through the thirty three layers of Lihen Heaven. He challenged and defeated Wang Chuan. Xia Qingyuan herself said this. Afterwards, Lihen Heaven did not take part int the Battle of Empty Realm."


    "Anything else?" asked Li Yao.


    "Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley and Xiao Sheng of the Xiao clan may be prejudiced against Ye Futian," the man continued his report. "We ordered the cultivators to go to Emperor Xia''s Realm to investigate the news from Tianji Pavilion. Gongsun Zhong probably admires Princess Xia Qingyuan, but he has hidden it very well. He likely does not dare to reveal his feelings. But he certainly wants to follow her and cultivate with her. Besides this, Xiao Sheng of the Xiao Clan is Xia Qingyuan''s cousin. His family dearly wishes for him to be by Xia Qingyuan''s side and act as her assistant. Last year at Old Man Xiao''s banquet at the Xiao clan, they gave vent to some of their discontent..."


    "Did you hear any concrete details of what happened that day?" asked Li Yao.


    "Mhm." The man nodded. Li Yao was extremely interested in this affair.


    "Then speak," Li Yao said again. He then listened seriously to everything the man said, not missing even a little bit of it.


    he had not only ordered people to find out everything they could dealing with Emperor Xia''s Realm and Ye Futian, he had also had them find out everything that had happened in Emperor Xia''s City that had to do with Ye Futian during the last Battle of Empty Realm.


    Brother Yuan Jin''s death and their defeat at the Empty Realm all stemmed from them underestimating Ye Futian. They did not understand him well enough.


    If they had been given more time, Brother Yuan Jin would definitely have been able to uncover more details about Ye Futian, and thus would have been prepared to guard against his special ability to control demons.


    And it would not have been like how the Battle of Empty Realm actually turned out, in which they had been fooled by their opponents, and had been defeated at every turn.


    Although Lihen Heaven was full of bitterness towards Ye Futian, at the moment there was nothing they could do about it.


    At the moment, it seemed that the only ones who could do anything were Gongsun Zhong and Xiao Sheng.


    So, which one should he choose?


    For this step, he could not be wrong again. If he chose the wrong person, they would certainly directly report it to Xia Qingyuan. In that case, moving against Ye Futian would probably be impossible.


    Moreover, the force that he could bring to bear was not terribly strong. Those powerful Saint level figures of the top forces would not just casually obey his orders. Otherwise things would not be so difficult for him.


    His sworn brother was gone. So, he was the only one left who could make the decision.


    The Valley Master of Divine Cloud Valley, the foremost armorer in Emperor Xia''s Realm, had once pursued Emperor Xia. Now her descendant Gongsun Zhong admired Xia Qingyuan, and yet he dared not show it.


    He would probably not have the guts to betray her. And even if he did betray her, if the matter came to light the conflict would not be too fierce. Divine Cloud Valley would not dare to protect him.


    Xiao Sheng, was Xia Qingyuan''s cousin, and Queen Xiao''s own kin. The Xiao clan had lofty ambitions, and were kinsmen of the Emperor.


    Moreover, Xiao Sheng''s goal was probably everything that Ye Futian had already done so far, and Xiao Sheng was still trying to form a marriage alliance with Divine Cloud Valley.


    Given this background, he was obviously bound to be much firmer than Gongsun Zhong. And as the cousin of Xia Qingyuan, and with his status as a member of the Emperor''s own family, he would naturally have even more ambitions.


    "He is the one." A cold light flashed in Li Yao''s eyes. To the man bowing before him he said, "Where is Xiao Sheng now?"


    "He is in Kongxuan City in the Empty Realm," the man answered. Xiao Sheng had not left the Empty Realm either.


    Princess Xia Qingyuan was there as well. He obviously would not leave her side too hurriedly.


    "Make contact with our spices in the Empty Realm secretly. Make sure you do not reveal yourself," ordered Li Yao.


    The man nodded and said, "I understand."


    "If this matter goes poorly, you will be the one I will ask about it," said Li Yao coldly. If he could use Xiao Sheng he would do so. If he could not use him now, he might have some use later on.


    ......


    Ye Futian naturally did not know that Li Yao was still plotting against him. Of course, he had made a display of his abilities at the Battle of Empty Realm, and have revealed his murderous intent towards Li Yao. He had also inflicted heavy casualties upon the cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm. It was only natural that Li Yao would want him dead.


    Thus, as far as Ye Futian was concerned, he needed to continue to work hard and raise his cultivation level, and strive to enter the Divine Path as soon as possible.


    Now he had already faintly touched the will of the Great Path. His combat ability was extremely high. If he could make it up to the Realm of Proving Holiness, then his ability to protect himself would become much stronger. Other than this, he could look for an opportunity to kill Li Yao at a later time.


    The period of his cultivation flew by, and in a flash another period of time had passed.


    On this day, Ye Futian finally stopped cultivating, and called together the cultivators of the Barren State.


    "Are we preparing to go home?" Gu Dongliu asked Ye futian once the cultivators of the Barren State were gathered together.


    "The Empty Realm is a force that the Realms of the Three Emperors take turns controlling. Cultivators from eveyr plane have all come here to cultivate. Thus, the Empty Realm has become an extremely prosperous trading place. Cultivators from each realm all come here bearing all the treasures they possess to engage in trade, exchanging them for the resources that they need to cultivate. Since we have come here, we shouldn''t let this be a wasted trip."


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "The Princess promised to have divine implements forged for all of you. But cultivation resources are scarce in the Barren State, and Saint level combat spells are so scarce as to become precious. You should all take a walk around the Empty Realm and trade for some of the things that you need."


    "Palace Lord, are you telling us to spend freely?" asked You Chi with a smile. Xia Qingyuan had given Ye Futian fragments of the Great Path a while ago. Their palace lord was quite rich now.


    "Okay, if you see anything you like you can have it." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. The fragments of the Great Path that had been excavated in the Empty Realm over seven days were certainly enough for him to let them spend freely for a day.


    "In addition, I am preparing to trade my fragments of the Great Path for some fragments of the Great Path that all you elders need for your cultivation. Later, you can all use these at the palace to continue cultivating your pereption," continued Ye Futian.


    The Nine States'' resources were scarce. Xia Qingyuan had even said that the Great Path did not exist in the land of the Lower Realm.


    In addition, Master Douzhan, You Chi and Zhuge Qingfeng''s natural talent was nothing outstanding. Although they were considered top-notch in the Nine States, in the eyes of the Upper Realms their talent was far from enough. After entering the Saint plane through the Battle of Proving Holiness, they had realized that their cultivation had reached a bottleneck. They wanted to continue on to the next step, but it would probably be difficult for them to reach the top. It was said to be difficult to reach the second tier of the Divine Path. Even if they truly reached that level, that would probably be the end.


    Saint Xia and Saint Li had both stopped at that tier. In order to go further, they had left the Nine States and trained in the Upper Realms. Perhaps they would have another chance.


    "All the fragments that Princess gave you were space element fragments of the Great Path. They are advantageous for your cultivation. You may not need very much right now, but later, when you raise you level up to the Saint plane, the number of fragments of the Great Path that you will need to use will grow larger and larger. No matter how long you let us spend freely for, you should keep some fragments for yourself," Douzhan said to Ye Futian.


    For Douzhan, the Divine Path had once been nothing more than a wild dream. And not only him, everyone from the Barren State felt the same way. Now all they thought about was protecting the palace, and make it continue to become stronger and more prosperous. In addition, they hoped that their students Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could go even farther than they had.


    "Master, do you still need to worry about my future cultivation?" said Ye Futian with a smile. "Go on," said Ye Futian.


    Everyone smiled at Douzhan. He had indeed worried greatly about Ye Futian.


    With Ye Futian''s talent and Princess Xia Qingyuan''s high regard for him, how could he lack for cultivation resources?


    Now, before he had even become a Saint he had already shown off his once-in-a-lifetime talent. He had the power to rise high in the world, and when he finally entered the Saint plane he would naturally be even more outstanding.


    "Please call Saint Xia, Saint Li, and Moon Saint together," said Ye Futian with a slight smile. The group took their leave of him.


    Saint Xia and the others were not far away. After hearing the news they happily accompanied Ye Futian on a walk.


    "Ah, I was just about to go for a walk around the Empty Realm myself," said Yao Xi with a smile as she walked over. "You won''t mind if I take a walk with you, will you Lord Ye?"


    "You''re already here, why would he mind?" asked Saint Xia. Yao Xi did not care. She could see that Saint Xia did not like her at all. She bowed slightly to him, with a warm smile on her face all along. Let Saint Xia say secretly that she was awful. As long as Ye Futian couldn''t control his feelings it was all alright.


    As an elder, Saint Xia had certain expectations of Ye Futian. He had not dared to think of it before, but now, there were some things that he did dare to think of.


    Far away, Xia Qingyuan looked up into the sky. She gave an order to the people beside her, and suddenly the group of them rose up into the air. They came up behind Ye Futian and the others. Ye Futian noticed one among them. It was someone who was always there protecting Xia Qingyuan.


    "Elder," called Ye Futian.


    "Don''t worry about us," said the person. Xia Qingyuan had ordered them to ensure Ye Futian''s safety.


    Ye Futian looked over at Xia Qingyuan. An astonished expression came over Saint Xia''s face.


    Things had become more promising.


    "Let''s go." The group of them rose up higher in the air and left the mountain range.


    Back where Xia Qingyuan was, Tian Ji looked at her and said, "Princess, why are you doing this?"


    "It''s no bother," said Xia Qingyuan calmly. Emperor Li''s Realm may have wanted to fight to the death with Emperor Xia''s Realm, but in reality they still had not gone so far as to dare to pay her back for the results of the Battle of Empty Realm.


    In the Battle of Empty Realm, the two sides had agreed that life and death would be ruled by fate. Sending an assassin would be sufficient reason to send in the troops. Under the rules they had set, there was still a chance of this. But now the Battle of Empty Realm had ended. Emperor Li''s Realm would not go so far as to madly send someone against her. The people of Emperor Li''s Realm must realize that that would be a disaster for them.


    And Ye Futian''s performance at the Battle of Empty Realm had been too dazzling. He had killed many people from Emperor Li''s Realm once again. This was something that Li Yao would certainly hold him accountable for. Before they left the Empty Realm, Xia Qingyuan would certainly have to ensure his safety.


    "Since you are going to do this, why don''t you go with them?" asked Tian Ji.


    Xia Qingyuan turned and gazed at him coldly. Tian Ji suddenly bowed slightly and said, "I have said too much."


    Xia Qingyuan looked back, then walked forward and left. He would really ask her to go with Ye Futian?

 1075 Exchange of Methods

    All the cultivators who had come from the various realms were gathered together in Kongxuan City. Many Saint level figures had come here to cultivate, and it was all because of the space element fragments of the Great Path.


    In addition, the space element fragments of the Great Path were valuable in and of themselves, and thus it was very easy to trade them for other kinds of fragments of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian and his group had not been strolling through Kongxuan City for a long time before they had managed to trade many of their space element fragments of the Great Path, exchanging them for things that the Saints of the Barren State needed for their cultivation. Even Saint Xia, Saint Li and Moon Saint each got some.


    Even though Saint Xia and Saint Li were held in very high status in the Nine States, cultivation resources such as fragments of the Great Path were not something that they could easily get their hands on. Where could they go in the Nine States to find such things?


    If they could obtain a great number of fragments of the Great Path, then the Battles of Proving Holiness would become almost meaningless.


    Saint Xia sighed inwardly. Did He and the other old people really still need Ye Futian to take care of them?


    That was so...


    Even Sage level figures had participated in the Battle of Empty Realm, and they would all have fragments of the Great Path distributed among them.


    Xuanji Mountain was the best spot for trade in Kongxuan City.


    Xuanji Mountain was situated at the center of Kongxuan City, rising up into the clouds like a celestial mountain. There were many pavilions and palaces on it, and clouds drifted across it. Saint level figures had taken up many positions on the mountain in order to cultivate, and to trade for the things that they needed.


    Most people would trade their treasures for fragments of the Great Path. Of course, there were also a few people who would trade items for other items.


    At that moment, Ye Futian and his group were at that celestial mountain.


    "The Nine States truly are quite poor," said Saint Xia as he gazed at the dazzling assortment of treasures there. He sighed inwardly. The divine implements and magic treasures on this celestial mountain were worth as much as a city. And there were also may top level spells.


    He naturally understood that many of the disciples of the top forces of the Upper Realms had brought treasures to the Battle of Empty Realm that were not any worse than the top ranked divine implements on the Divine Implement Ranking of the Nine States. For example, Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley''s Divine Armoring Cauldron was extremely powerful. When even Sage level figures possessed such powerful divine implements, this showed the power of top forces of the Upper Realms.


    "Why are some of the cultivation spells here cheaper than divine implements?" asked Yi Xiaoshi.


    "There is only one of each divine implement, so it is a one time trade. As for cultivation spells, the one who is selling it has probably already learned it. And even if he hasn''t, he can still sell it to many different people," answered Gu Dongliu. "But even so, none of these prices are cheap, they are just cheaper than some of the other prices. Neither side in these trades will come out the loser, each will get what they need."


    Yi Xiaoshi scratched his head and said, "You are so amazing, Third Brother. You can see through to the most important part of an affair with merely a glance."


    "You are getting better and better at being a toady," said Zhuge Qingfeng with a grin.


    "I''m only speaking the truth, Second Brother," said Yi Xiaoshi in all seriousness.


    "However, the cultivation spells here have been traded many times over. Even though there are some high level spells, they probably don''t have the highest level ones. Many of the spells that are passed down through the great powers of the Upper Realms cannot be lightly taught to outsiders, much less traded many times to many different people," continued Gu Dongliu.


    "What you have said is mostly true, young man. But there are always exceptions," a voice called from a pavilion far away. There they saw an old man lazily sitting on the ground. A group of people sat on the ground in front of him, and two women were at their head. Ye Futian had seen them before.


    They were Gongsun Ni and Gongsun Xuan of Divine Cloud Valley.


    "Fifth Brother." Yi Xiaoshi touched Luo Fan on the arm. He narrowed his eyes an whispered, "What a rare opportunity!"


    "Get out of here." Luo Fan glanced at the fat man. That guy was always trying to stir up trouble. And he actually dared to tease his sworn brother?


    Gongsun Ni and Gongsun Xuan turned and looked over at them.


    An astonished look came into Gongsun Ni''s eyes when she saw them. These people had shown themselves to be heroes of their generation at the Battle of Empty Realm, even eclipsing Princess Xia Qingyuan''s glory.


    But from her perspective, her brother Gongsun Zhong had been coldly received by the Princess, and had suffered much humiliation at Ye Futian''s hands. Thus, he was not as heroic as he had been before. He had sought to prove some things on the battlefield, but no one in the Battle of Empty Realm had been able to outshine Ye Futian.


    And not only that, she and Xiao Sheng would likely be taking the same path in the future. A marriage aliance between Divine Cloud Valley and the Xiao clan was greatly wished for by both families.


    And she knew what Xiao Sheng wanted. But Ye Futian had received the Princess''s trust much more than he had.


    Gongsun Xuan also looked at Ye Futian, but she did not think too much of it. Her disposition was different from her sister''s. She did not like to think about her families schemes. Her pretty eyes also found Luo Fan. He avoided her gaze, seemingly deliberately.


    She stared at him for a while, then finally averted her gaze.


    Yi Xiaoshi payed close attention to where the two of them were looking. The fat man narrowed his eyes and whispered, "Coward."


    Luo Fan glanced at him fiercely, then said, "Are you looking to die, fatty?"


    "It seems that you are all talk, Fifth brother," scolded Yi Xiaoshi. In the past he had been so brave when flirting with beauties. Now it seemed as if that had ended.


    "Why do you say this, sir?" Gu Dongliu asked the old man.


    "In the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, many forces flow through history like sand. But although many forces disappear, the cultivation spells that they leave behind can still be passed down. Some of them will be cherished and practiced alone, but some will be integrated into other top notch spells and be used for trade," said the old man.


    Gu Dongliu nodded. "What you say makes sense, sir."


    The old man stroked his beard and said, "Look at my cultivation spell. It was passed down from a vanished top force from Emperor Yan''s Realm''s cultivation methods. It is called Judgement of Nine Refining Flames.''


    "...." Ye Futian''s face went dark. The old man had a common face, but there was a little bit of celestial heroism to him. However, in the blink of an eye he had started peddling his spells. Why did he look so much like a swindler?


    "Let''s listen to him, his spell sounds fantastic," said Ye Futian as he walked forward. There was a damaged old scroll before him, that gave off an aura of antiquity. Beside it was a jade scroll.


    "This is naturally a Perfect level Saint spell," the old man said seriously as he looked at Ye Futian. "The Judgement of Nine Refining Flames takes a Great Path of Fire and refines it to the extreme. Even only a single Great Path of Fire has the power to destroy everything around it. But with this one is able to come infinitely close to the source of all flame will. After learning the spell you can integrate it into your other powers. There is not need to say too much about how amazing this is. You must know that in order to cultivate to the Saint level you need to sense the Great Path. A powerful cultivation spell can enhance your perception, and let you integrate yourself more easily into the Great Path. If you don''t believe it, that scroll gives an introduction to the spell. The jade scroll is the the spell itself. You can look over the scroll if you''d like."


    Ye Futian nodded. He knelt before the pavilion and opened up the scroll. According to the introduction to the spell, it could allow you to continuously temper your body with the Great Path of Fire and turn your body of flesh into a body of flame.


    "Are you interested?" Ye Futian looked at Gongsun Ni and Gongsun Xuan beside him.


    "Those who are skilled at cultivating flame spells will all naturally be interested in this. These two girls just think that the asking price is too high. However, this is the only exiting copy. Once it is sold it will be lost. I only ask for 10,000 fragments of the Great Path of Space. This is absolutely not too much to ask." The old man looked at Ye Futian. "Would you like to consider it, young man?"


    If this spell was truly so powerful, then 10,000 fragments of the Great Path of Space was certainly not too high an asking price. After all, this was a top notch spell of the Saint level. It would only be natural if Gongsun Ni and Gongsun Xuan could not afford it.


    However, Ye Futian did not believe this old man''s cunning words.


    "That price is indeed a bit too high. If you lower it a little, we might consider buying it," Ye Futian said to the old man.


    The old man looked into Ye Futian''s eyes and saw how clear they were. He narrowed his own eyes a bit, then smiled and said, "Fine, 8,000 each."


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "So it''s not the last existing copy?"


    "If I spend a little bit of my energy, I can make a copy," said the old man.


    "Since its not the only copy, then 10,000 is too much. Give us a deal. How about 5,000 each? In that case I will consider buying a copy, and these two women will do the same," said Ye Futian.


    The old man looked at Ye Futian through narrowed eyes. What a treacherous boy!


    "Very well, I guess I will take a loss. 5,000 it is then," said the old man. He had already cultivated up the third tier of the Saint plane by now. With only one more step he could break through to the plane of Nirvana. He needed extremely large fragments of the Great Path, otherwise he would not be selling spells like this.


    There was nothing he could do. He had cultivated to such a high level, and the amount of resources that he needed to use to go further was truly frightening.


    "If this spell does not do what it said you would after I purchase it, you may need to return these fragments of the Great Path to me, elder," said Ye Futian. The old man looked at the crowd of people behind Ye Futian and knew that there was force behind his words. His matrix would be very strong.


    The old man nodded. "No problem." Ye Futian took out five thousand fragments of the Great Path and handed to him, then picked up the jade scroll and the ancient scroll. But he did not put them away, instead handed them to Gongsun Xuan and said, "Divine Cloud Valley is a force that focuses on armoring. You must be good at fire magic them. Can you help me see how good this is?"


    Gongsun Xuan was stunned. She looked at Gongsun Ni.


    The people from the Nine States did not understand what Ye Futian was trying to do either. Gongsun Xuan was silent for a while, then nodded. She took the scrolls. She merged her spiritual willpower with the jade scroll, and suddenly a mysterious power from the scroll entered her mind. It suddenly turned into a flame and then disappeared.


    After a while, Gongsun Xuan opened her eyes and saw that the jade scroll had disappeared. Her face changed.


    "This..."


    "How was it?" asked Ye Futian.


    "The elder was not lying. This spell is indeed mysterious and powerful." She nodded. "But this spell..."


    "I said that it was the only copy. Since this happened, the woman will have to buy it again to give to the young man. I''ll have to work hard to copy it," said the old man with a smile.


    "No need. Miss Gongsun does not have many fragments of the Great Path. I had planned to buy this and give it to Fifth Brother. Since Miss Gongsun has read it, that counts as Fifth Brother having given it to her," said Ye Futian. "Of course, if Miss Gongsun is willing to share it with Fifth Brother, that would be wonderful."


    "Hey..." Luo Fan blushed.


    Yu Sheng curled his lips in disbelief. After so many years, this habit of his had still not changed.


    An astonished look also flashed in Gongsun Xuan''s beautiful eyes. She looked at Luo Fan, then nodded. "Since Lord Ye was the one to purchase this, I will naturally share it with Lord Luo."


    "You boy..." the old man pointed at Ye Futian. How could he not know that he had been duped?


    These two guys definitely knew each other, and had a close relationship. Otherwise why would they talk of sharing it?


    They could probably share it through their spiritual will.


    Gu Dongliu looked at Ye Futian. His sworn brother seemed to have changed a little bit after fighting in Lihen Heaven.

 1076 Making A Move

    Xia Qingyuan spent most of her time at the place where the Space Sacred Mountain was, training.


    However, at that moment, she was standing on top of one of the mountains there, staring blankly at the vista before her.


    She had spent her many years thus far training diligently, chasing after her father''s footsteps and hopefully be able to succeed her father''s will. Her mind at training had always been planted on solid rock.


    She had always been extremely disciplined and spent minimal time thinking about things that had little to do with training. Yet, at present, she was in a dazed state, and her emotions were rather unstable.


    Such an emotional state should not have been happened with her, and yet there was no doubt that it happened.


    Xia Qingyuan closed her eyes and steadied her breathing, trying her very best to recomposed herself and fend off the unnecessary thoughts.


    Wind blew from faraway at that moment. Xia Qingyuan closed her eyes and her eyebrows twitched, looking rather cold.


    Someone appeared behind Xia Qingyuan, and it was none other than Xiao Sheng.


    Xiao Qingyuan naturally knew what the Xiao clan wanted of her, especially when the members of the clan concerned were her uncle and her cousin. While she had not been spending much time around them, she nonetheless knew what they were up to.


    She did not deliberately distance herself from them. In the world of cultivators, imperial power was more than just political power; it also had the power to bring everything to their knees. The very reason why her father was the Emperor Xia was because her father was a Renhuang, an emperor of humanity. It was outright impossible for her relatives to usurp power from him, and the Xiao clan dared not even harbor such thoughts.


    They only wanted to be closer to the Renhuang, and achieve higher status.


    If Xiao Sheng were to prove capable enough, Xia Qingyuan would not have been opposed to the idea, as he was her cousin after all, and a clansman of her mother''s family. She would have definitely helped promote him if he proved capable.


    She knew that, and the Xiao clan knew that. As such, Xiao Sheng had indeed intended to prove his worth through efforts in the Battle of Empty Realm.


    It was a pity that there was that one person who outshined everyone else in the Battle of Empty Realm.


    All the others had no choice but to be kicked to the sidelines.


    "What matters do you have with me, cousin?" Xia Qingyuan turned around and looked at Xiao Sheng.


    Xiao Sheng was dumbfounded as he looked at the extremely beautiful eyes of his cousin. He was unable to see an anger in those clear eyes of hers, and he had no idea how she thought of him at the moment.


    Nonetheless, she addressing him as ''cousin'' still counted for something. Despite being the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, she was still the biological daughter of his aunt.


    But then again, Xiao Sheng dared not slack just because Xia Qingyuan addressed him as a cousin. He bowed and said, "I''ve something to say, princess."


    "Speak then." Xia Qingyuan nodded.


    "While it was without doubt that we won the Battle of Empty Realm this time due to Ye Futian, and that it was only natural that you trusted and rewarded him for his efforts, but he nonetheless had his faults near the end of the Battle of Empty Realm, despite his merits. I think that it is a bit too much to simply assign all of those who are meant to protect you to him, after you have rewarded our people."


    Xia Qingyuan had her eyes locked on Xiao Sheng as he spoke. She then asked, "So you''re thinking that I have rewarded Ye Futian a bit too much then?"


    "Indeed." Xiao Sheng lowered his head and continued, "I dared not bring that up in front of everyone else, and so I only brought it up before you, princess. Right before the Battle of Empty Realm ended, he could have just cut down the imperial flag right there and then, bagging the victory for Emperor Xia''s Realm, yet he did not do so. Instead, he caused many deaths to our people, due only to fulfill his own ends. Did that not count as a fault of his? While the army are impressed with his merits and the importance that you''ve placed upon him, thus not daring to speak their minds in public, but I''m afraid there''d be talk behind his back."


    "One cultivates the mind on the journey to cultivation. While it is true that the states of mind of cultivators are unyielding and vast, but there is simply no saints and sages without flaws. What do you think about the comparison of military strengths between Emperor Li''s Realm, Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, and Emperor Xia''s Realm, now that the Battle of Empty Realm is over?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "Emperor Li''s Realm is the strongest, while Emperor Xia''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm are perhaps in a tie, but it''s hard to tell for sure," Xiao Sheng answered.


    "If we were to take the powers of Ye Futian and his people into consideration, and how Yuan Jin fought right before he died, there is no doubt that Emperor Li''s Realm is the strongest, while Emperor Xia''s Realm is right behind. Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm is definitely not all that far behind that of ours as well. Yet, if we were to take Ye Futian and his people out of the equation, Emperor Xia''s Realm would have been the weakest."


    Xia Qingyuan then slowly added, "As such, if it had not been for Ye Futian and his people, what did you think our odds at coming out on top would have been? How many lives would have been lost?"


    Xiao Sheng hung his head low hearing her words, as he was unable to say anything.


    While he still had his own ideas that he clung to. How Xia Qingyuan thought of Ye Futian would have naturally been done from her point of view, yet his perspective of looking at the problem was the exact opposite to that of Xia Qingyuan.


    "Now that we have won the Battle of Empty Realm and that Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm out of the picture. If we were to fight Emperor Li''s Realm head on, how many lives would have been lost?" Xia Qingyuan continued to ask.


    Xiao Sheng continued to hang his head low and stay silent. If that was how his cousin looked at things, than it was pointless how he looked at things.


    "Everyone has their own standpoint and they see what is in their best interests. While I''m not an exception myself, I do not think there is any person who would be able to be flawlessly altruistic. That is not a saint. A person who is able to be cast their own standpoint aside and consider solely for the best interests of other people, is a god. What I''m able to see are but merits and faults. If one''s merits are greater than their faults, then they naturally need to be rewarded. We can to rule Empty Realm for ten years, is seven days of reward that out of question in comparison?"


    Xia Qingyuan gazed at Xiao Sheng and said, "Before you ask strict requirements of others, it''s best to first look at yourself."


    Xiao Sheng''s pupils, which were looking at the ground, contracted. That line sounded rather severe.


    The joy that she brought him by addressing him as cousin had all been thrown out of the window at that very moment.


    "You could excuse yourself," Xia Qingyuan said coldly.


    Xiao Sheng cupped his hands slightly and then excused himself. Xia Qingyuan continued to gaze faraway. It was rare for her to say so much. She had said a lot that day and made her words sound that severe, in hopes of being able to tell Xiao Sheng to reflect on himself. That was considered a reminder from her.


    If Xiao Sheng had not been her cousin, she would not have even bothered saying that much to him in the first place.


    "Li Yao, what do you mean by this?" A silhouette was seen shooting past from faraway. One figure after another appeared and blitzed at frightening speeds, heading for one single direction.


    Xia Qingyuan turned her eyes in that direction and she frowned. She then stepped out as a blue phoenix appeared beneath her feet. She quickly appeared elsewhere as she zipped past in the sky.


    A small group of people appeared faraway. Other than Li Yao, there were also several saints in that group.


    "The outcome of the Battle of Empty Realm is set. This place is now under Emperor Xia''s Realm''s command. Unrelated ones are forbidden to get near. What do you people from Emperor Li''s Realm mean by doing this?" The Sacred General of Tian said coldly, sending shock throughout the space.


    Many turned to look at Li Yao, thinking if he was trying to renege on the deal the realms had made.


    That could have only happened if Emperor Li attempted to wage a war against Emperor Xia.


    "I just happened to free and wanted to pay a visit to Princess Qingyuan," Li Yao smiled and said. Xia Qingyuan frowned and asked the sacred general telepathically, "Are there many of them?"


    If those people had indeed came all the way there, then there was no way their numbers would have been that few.


    "There are quite a number of saints appearing near the place. Some of them are of advanced training." The Sacred General of Tian then asked, "Do you wish to retreat, princess?"


    "No need for that," Xia Qingyuan replied. If Li Yao dared to come on his own, then she did not believe that he would have dared to make a move against her.


    "Li Yao, the three emperor''s realms had an agreement, that the region was entrusted to the rule of the party that won. This place is now Emperor Xia''s Realm''s territory. Any unauthorized entry shall be seen as invasions." Xia Qingyuan then added coldly, "Everyone else, here are your orders. If the people of Emperor Li''s Realm dared to take another step into the region, kill them."


    "I''m just taking a stroll around these parts. There is no need to get so serious, princess," Li Yao said as he smiled nonchalantly, turning his eyes at the matrixes at the mountains and said, "How many great path fragments had been unearthed so far?"


    "None of your business," Xia Qingyuan replied.


    They were several people taking flight and left the place at frightening speeds as they spoke.


    ...


    Ye Futian and the others still remained at Xuanji Mountain. They spent considerable amount of spirit stones of great path to trade for several training methods. The saints of Barren State acquired one set of methods each, which included the Moon Saint as well.


    He owed the Moon Saint for what the saint did to help him back at the Sacred War of the Nine States, which he was compelled to repay. Whenever he could have afforded to look out for the Moon Saint, he would have done his part to help out.


    Ye Futian squatted before a pavilion, but he was feeling somewhat uneasy, as if he was being watched.


    Several silhouettes appeared beside Ye Futian. Yaya and the Glass Saint, both of whom had been faraway, closed in on him.


    They were not the only ones to do so. Several powerful cultivators assigned by Xia Qingyuan came close behind Ye Futian, as they all seemed to have felt something.


    Ye Futian acted as if he had sensed nothing and continued to chat. He stood up a while later and asked Yaya telepathically, "Are they powerful?"


    "I sensed saintly aura from them, and they were all keeping an eye on you," Yaya replied telepathically, and Ye Futian naturally sensed someone staring at him.


    "We''ll just wait around and see," Ye Futian said telepathically. With him out in the open and his supposed enemies in the dark, it was only natural that he dared not pull anything rash.


    While he was indeed protected by several extremely powerful figures, but if it were to be powerful saints making a move against him, then it would have been difficult for them to protect him nonetheless.


    He felt rather cold inside at the moment. Those from Emperor Li''s Realm had lost. Are they really coming for me now?


    Ye Futian naturally understood that the end of the Battle of Empty Realm did not mean that Li Yao would not have dared to kill him. While he dared not make a move against Xia Qingyuan, the same could not have been said with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian understood why Xia Qingyuan arranged for people to stay by his side for protection.


    While Xia Qingyuan acted coldly and smiles were hardly seen on her face, she nonetheless was being rather kind to him. He was able to tell that much after getting in touch with her more frequently.


    "See Li Yao anywhere?" Ye Futian asked Yaya telepathically. If Li Yao was there, things would have been easier.


    "Nowhere to be found," Yaya answered. Ye Futian''s expression turned somewhat colder. If Li Yao were to be present when those people tried to make a move on him, then the prince would have been made a target by everyone else.


    As such, it was most advantageous for him to not be around. It seemed that Li Yao had thought things out clearly.


    "If we were to make the first move, what are the odds that we get to take them down?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "We can''t even be sure what many of them are actually here. We''re only able to keep an eye of the few who are watching you. We can''t tell if there are others hidden in Xuanji Mountain," Yaya answered. She dared not make any moves without knowing what they were up against.


    Ye Futian''s expression was a cold one. They were out in the open while the enemy was in the dark. Man, this feeling sucks!

 1077 Xuanji Mountain

    Li Yao and his people did not make another move in the mountains. He looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "Xia Qingyuan, Dali Dynasty and Emperor Xia''s Realm are neighbors. Why do we need to keep fighting each other? If you''re willing to join hands with me, both imperial realms would allies from here on out. We would be able to fight for resources of great paths elsewhere by then, and that goes without saying the Empty Realm as well.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned hard. She did not pay much attention to Li Yao''s provocations. In such pointed exchange of words, women were always in a disadvantage, just like how Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor went about provoking Kong Xuan back then.


    "Any of the saints around making any moves?" Xia Qingyuan continued asking the Sacred General of Tian telepathically.


    "There are several more saints showing up here." The Sacred General of Tian continued to guard Xia Qingyuan by her side. Regardless of what happened, he placed the safety of Xia Qingyuan before anything else.


    "Xia Qingyuan, if you intend to ascend the position of Renhuang in the future, I wouldn''t stop you if you were to be my wife. I wouldn''t even need you to train at Emperor Li''s Realm. On the contrary, I''d gladly assist you with all my might," Li Yao continued saying.


    The way he provoked Xia Qingyuan resembled how the Black Wind Condor provoked Kong Xuan back then.


    Things continued to be at a stalemate for quite some time. Those saints continued to be active in surrounding areas but did not cross the border. That was the same with Li Yao.


    That made Xia Qingyuan frowned hard. Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor back then had their own agenda when they provoked Kong Xuan, and that was to lure her demonic beasts out of their lair, in order for Ye Futian to enthrall them.


    What is Li Yao doing all this for then?


    He did not seem to have any intentions of invading their turf. Even at that very moment, Xia Qingyuan still did not think Li Yao would have dared to make a move on her. It would have been possible for him to still have the Empty Realm in mind, but making a move against her would not have been something Li Yao could have decided for himself, unless that was Emperor Li''s orders.


    If Emperor Li were to decide to move against them, he would have done far more, just so to ensure the greatest chance of success in just one go.


    What is Li Yao really up to then?


    "They are buying time." Xia Qingyuan seemed to have realized something all of a sudden and then gave her orders, "Cultivators around the mountains are to retreat hundreds of miles away from here immediately. Any who disobeys the order are to be killed with extreme prejudice."


    Her voice was extremely cold. Li Yao''s eyes were fixed at Xia Qingyuan as he said, "Xia Qingyuan, Empty Realm might have been ruled by Emperor Xia''s Realm now, but there are still cultivators from other realms around. Don''t you think you''re going too far."


    "Move." Xia Qingyuan did not bother with Li Yao. She realized that Li Yao was only there to keep a close eye on her.


    "Acknowledged." The mighty ones in the mountains received their orders and burst with terrifying aura. Li Yao then said, "Well if you insist, I shall take my leave."


    He turned around and left as soon as he finished. All the other saints retreated as well.


    None of them had been people from Emperor Li''s Realm. However, the crown prince of Emperor Li''s Realm seemed to have been very charitable that day, asking for them to take a stroll there and reward them adequately for doing so. They were only asked to take a stroll there and they needed to pledge to nothing. No one would have refused such offers.


    As such, they really came to take a stroll with Li Yao at the mountains. They thought Li Yao intended to woo Xia Qingyuan and simply had them around to buff up his entourage. But from how things proceeded, it seemed that Li Yao had other agendas in mind instead.


    But then again, none of that had anything to do with them. They finished what they were supposed to do, and so they were to simply leave after taht.


    None of them did anything but talking strolls around the place. Is Xia Qingyuan really going to kill us for doing so?


    Li Yao blitzed away at frightening speeds and was out of sight within a heartbeat. He did not look like an invader at all. It was clear that he sensed that Xia Qingyuan knew something, and so he ran away as quickly as possible, for fear that Xia Qingyuan would have came for him next.


    "Depart immediately and look for Ye Futian." Xia Qingyuan was unable to spare any time to pursue Li Yao. She realized what Li Yao was truly up to by then.


    But then again, Ye Futian was guarded by the mighty ones she sent personally and there were also saints from the Nine States around. Even if those from Emperor Li''s Realm intended to make a move against him, they would have still been in for a very tough fight.


    A group flew at very high speeds.


    Powerful aura filled the place everywhere in Xuanji Mountain. Ye Futian and his people were not all that obvious on Xuanji Mountain, but it seemed that there were countless pairs of eyes watching them.


    A group of people appeared above Xuanji Mountain at that moment. They tore to the skies and one of them said loudly, "The princess is attacked. Li Yao led mighty ones and surrounded the Sacred Mountain. You are to reinforce her at once."


    Many looked up at the sky and were surprised to find the one saying that to be Xiao Sheng.


    The mighty ones behind Ye Futian were startled all of a sudden. They were being pinned down by the enemy, but said enemy simply watched them without doing anything. So they''re after the princess by doing all these?


    "Let''s go." They took flight in a heartbeat, but then saw silhouettes appearing in all directions at Xuanji Mountain from the dark. Terrifying auras swept the place and demonic might of overwhelming magnitude was sensed.


    "You all could leave, but leave Ye Futian and Yu Sheng behind." A cold, overbearing voice was heard.


    "Cao Kong." A cold voice was heard. That overwhelming demonic might shrouded the environment. It was an extremely renowned practitioner of demonic arts in Dali Dynasty after all, and he was extremely formidable.


    Cao Yuan, one of the people who perished in the flag battles of the Battle of Empty Realm was a descendant of his.


    The mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm looked grim. Other than Cao Kong, there were also other practitioners of demonic arts and swordsmen about, who were probably people from Dali Sword Mountain. It was almost impossible for the guards to just take Ye Futian and his people to break out from such a barricade in a short span of time.


    "What are you all waiting for? If something were to happen to the princess, who would shoulder the responsibility?" Xiao Sheng shouted in the air, "Those by Ye Futian''s side are to remain behind and escort him back to Emperor Xia''s City."


    The guards were troubled, not knowing if they should leave or they should stay.


    If they were to leave, the enemy might have made a move on Ye Futian.


    But if they were to stay, they had to consider Xiao Sheng''s status. There was no doubt his words would have proven true, if he were to send word personally. While none of them would have believed that Emperor Li''s Realm would have dared to make a move on the princess, but they were none who dared to bet on it.


    They needed to make their choice between the two options.


    "We''ll head back. The ones from the Nine States, stay here," a voice was heard saying, making the decision. A group of people then took to the air, heading faraway.


    Xiao Sheng scanned below and saw Gongsun Ni and Gongsun Xuan on Xuanji Mountain. He then said, "People of Divine Cloud Valley, come with me."


    "Alright." Gongsun Ni nodded. There was no need for them to stay behind if all the enemy wanted was Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Furthermore, Xiao Sheng might have been her future husband anymore.


    "Sister," Gongsun Xuan called. It was apparent that Ye Futian''s side was more lacking in terms of powers then. There were several saints behind her, making it possible for them to join hte fight.


    "Let''s go." Gongsun Ni did not bother with Gongsun Xuan''s thoughts. It was more dangerous to stay behind, and she naturally felt so as well.


    Gongsun Xuan was exasperated and followed suit, turning to look at Ye Futian and said, "Be careful."


    They met up with Xiao Sheng and the mighty ones from the Xiao clan soon enough, leaving that side at extreme speeds, heading for the mountains.


    Only saints from the Barren State, as well as Saint Xia, the Glass Saint and the Moon Saint��whom Ye Futian was more friendly with��were left at Ye Futian''s side by then.


    While Saint Xia was actually concerned for the princess'' safety as well, but things did seem more dire where they were at the moment. If their enemies intended to take down the princess, he would not have been of much help anyway.


    "All who do not have anything to do with this, leave." A shout was heard. The entire Xuanji Mountain was shrouded by terrifying demonic might. Cao Kong had agreed to move against Ye Futian not only because Li Yao bided him to do so. In truth, even the crown prince did not have the right to just command the top notch figures of the Demonic clan. He was doing it because of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Li Yao was right about one thing��Ye Futian would have posed a great threat in the future. It was naturally best to take him out while he was still at Empty Realm.


    If Ye Futian were to be allowed to return to Emperor Xia''s Realm, it would have been a lot more difficult to kill him in the future. Even if they were to succeed doing so, it would have been impossible for them to leave alive.


    As such, they chose to make a move there.


    There were many saints from other realms at Xuanji Mountain, but they naturally would not have wanted to be a part of the conflict between Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm. One figure after another took to the skies and left. Within mere moments, there were only a handful of extremely formidable saints who did not bother about the conflict remaining at the mountain. The others who remained were none other than Ye Futian and his people.


    Towering demonic might pinned them down from above, as if the enemy was trying to bring the sky down on the entire Xuanji Mountain. The previously misty mountain turned to look like doomsday, where demonic clouds rolled about and the face of an ancient devil appearing in the sky, throwing a palm attack on the mountain. The huge mountain quickly crumbled, with cracks appearing nonstop as it headed straight for the spot where Ye Futian and the others were at.


    Yaya looked at the sky and burst with terrifying sword will from within. A sword diagram appeared right above them, shrouding everyone within. Devastating light pulse on the sword will, tearing everything around apart as boundless aura of the sword shot upwards.


    The huge palm blocked out the sky as it came crashing down. The sword diagram crumbled with a loud rumble. The palm continued to bear on them and Yaya transformed into a sword and shot upwards. Her finger pointed at the palm and boundless sword will lashed out, shattering the palm. Yaya grumbled and looked ashen after doing that.


    "Take him away," Yaya then ordered the village chief.


    "But, madam." The village chief looked pale. He naturally sensed the aura about Cao Kong. That demonic figure was a Holiness of Nirvana.


    It was someone who his mistress would have only been able to defeat at her prime. While she had indeed been growing at frightening speeds in the past several years, but she had a long way to go before reaching the height of a Holiness of Nirvana.


    Boom. There were steps thumping down. It seemed as if a devil had descended on top of Xuanji Mountain.


    "Get going. I can''t do this for long," Yaya said. She made for higher altitude as boundless sword will coursed about her body. Terrifying phenomenon appeared in her surroundings as boundless sword will was gathered, turning into a sword diagram with her at the center, standing tall in the air. At that moment, Yaya seemed to have turned completely into a sword. Boundless sword will flowed at her direction from faraway. A terrifying sword matrix seemed to have coalesced there.


    "The Sword Saint of the Void." Cao Kong uttered a name and continued to step below.


    "Let''s go." The village chief looked grim. He took Ye Futian and streaked through the air, heading outside Xuanji Mountain. All the others retreated as well.


    But then again, their enemy was there to hunt down Ye Futian, and there was no way they would have simply let them leave like that.


    Li Yao never brought much of anyone to where Xia Qingyuan was, as she had never been the target. All forces that he was able to muster were all used right there!

 1078 Borrowing the Sword Thousands of Miles Away

    All the mighty ones from the Nine States escaped by air.


    There were countless cultivators from Emperor Xia''s Realm, so much so that they numbered at billions.


    However, few managed to make it into the pinnacle of Saint Plane. Fewer was capable of even making it to Holiness of Nirvana.


    The Sword Saint of the Void had been one such figure before he perished, yet at the moment, only the demon of a person was the true Holiness of Nirvana at the place. There was simply no one other than Yaya, who had once been Holiness of Nirvana, capable of stopping him.


    However, even Yaya claimed that she would not have been able to hold him back for long.


    The vast Xuanji Mountain seemed to have turned into a mountain swords at that moment, shrouded in sword will. Boundless swords turned into a Sword Diagram of the Void, pulsing with towering light. Sword aura covered hundreds of miles. Light of the sword out to tear the heavens shot up, at what looked like an overbearing devil above. The extremely imposing and menacing looks was where Cao Kong, the renowned practitioner of the demonic arts of Dali, was.


    The swords coalesced into a river of stars and shot to the heavens. At that moment, Yaya seemed to have returned to her peak state.


    It was such that it seemed as if she had disappeared altogether and had turned into a sword.


    There seemed to only be the massive sword matrix all over the skies at the moment.


    The village chief shuddered when he looked back, feeling extremely restless. He had little idea what would have happened to his mistress in that fight.


    That was invoking the Sword Matrix of the Void at its pinnacle by force. There was no way even the Sword Saint of the Void would have been able to win against the Holiness of Nirvana, without being at the top of her game.


    The entire Xuanji Mountain slowly crumbled and it seemed that it was only a matter of time before the place was reduced to rubbles. That scene was simply harrowing.


    Ye Futian and the others continued to run for their lives amidst the dust and chaos. Many saints headed for them at speeds of lightning bolts, quickly circling to their flanks and getting ready to cordon them off altogether.


    "Let''s go," Saint Xia made the decision right there and then, heading for the left flank while Saint Li headed right.


    Both of them were at the second level of Saint Plane and they were capable of fighting the intruders off somewhat. The mighty ones at their flanks clashed with both of them right there and then. As for the ones right at the rear of the escapees, they continued to pursue Ye Futian as there was little need for them to stay behind.


    There were three of them emanating tremendously powerful aura, and they were at mighty ones at the third level of Saint Plane.


    Both Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm dispatched many mighty ones to the Empty Realm for fighting in the Battle of Empty Realm. Due to having won in said battle, Emperor Xia''s Realm continued to send forces to control the Empty Realm. As the loser of the battle, many mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm left.


    In actuality, the forces of Emperor Li''s Realm in the Empty Realm at the moment were inferior to that of Emperor Xia''s Realm. The number of people that Li Yao was able to dispatch was limited as well. He would not have needed to resort to tricks to pull away the guards that Xia Qingyuan put at Ye Futian''s side otherwise. He had even spent quite a fortune to have many saints from Empty Realm to bluff Xia Qingyuan, shocking her and buying them time.


    It was worth noting that in order to shock the Sacred General of Tian, he had even invited someone very, very powerful to help with the act. Despite said figure was to do nothing but loiter around, the price was steep nonetheless. As such, he could not have afforded to simply return empty-handed, which was why he focused all of his forces to get Ye Futian killed.


    "Where do you think you''re going?" A cold voice was heard saying. A devilish figure of extreme might was seen extending his hands, bringing towering demonic might to bear. If even the leader of the Demonic clan, Cao Kong, was around personally, then it would have only stood to reason that they were other top notch figures showing up as well.


    The figure that just lashed out with an attack against them was none other than the Demon Saint, who was at the third level of Saint Plane.


    As he lashed out with his hand, the aura of the surroundings that flowed in reserved all went into his palm. Ye Futian and the others felt as if their bodies were going in reverse, making it impossible for them to move forward.


    The village chief''s body intended to keep moving forward through the air, yet that frightening devouring power seemed to be imbued with powers to devour even that of the great path. The currents around seemed to have been flowing in reserve. The level difference was not one that could have been compensated in any way.


    They had no time for games with Ye Futian and his people. Li Yao''s plans gave them limited time to kill Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. If Xia Qingyuan were to realize something was off, her people would have been able to get to where they were at blitzing speeds.


    In short, both sides were racing against time.


    It was worth noting that the people of Xiao clan was only able to inform Ye Futian and the others after Li Yao appeared. With the time the mighty ones of Xiao clan were on their way taken into consideration, Xia Qingyuan might have sensed something was off, and she would have get to Ye Futian as soon as posible.


    As such, the enemy struck as soon as the people who were sent to protect Ye Futian by Xia Qingyuan left, giving Ye Futian and his people no chance to recover.


    Terrifying sealing arts rained down on them, blocking off the force of the devouring great path at the rear of the escapees.


    But then again, the Moon Saint''s power paled in comparison to that of the enemy. A beam of light of the sword shot through the air. The seals that the Moon Saint laid out crumbled with a boom. Saints went after the Moon Saint. Saints at third steps of Sainthood did not even bother with him.


    From their perspective, that saint at second level of Saint Plane was far less important than Ye Futian.


    Their targets were mainly Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. It did not matter if they were to kill the others around those two.


    Despite having been thrown off, but he nonetheless continued to buy whatever time he was able to, just to enable Ye Futian and the others continue to run.


    However, that bit of time seemed to have been of little meaning in the pursuit with life and death hanging by a threat, so much so that it could have even been said that the bit of time was not even worth mentioning.


    There was no way the escapees would have been able to escape.


    "Please help me to intercept the saints at the flanks." A voice was heard by the saints from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. Their pupils contracted a bit as they heard that, yet they did as asked all the same.


    Among the mighty ones that were going after them, the three at the very front were all of third steps of Sainthood powers, which they had no way of fighting against. The ones at the flanks, on the other hand, consisted of saints of the first level and second level.


    Saint Xia, Saint Li and the Moon Saint did quite a lot to hold the enemy mighty ones off.


    Boom. Douzhan took the lead. Despite being asked to do what he was about to do, he remained pessimistic abot his chances.


    Saints at the third level was simply powerful enough to cause them despair. There was no way they could have fought such enemies off.


    The few top notch figures that Xia Qingyuan had assigned to Ye Futian''s side might have been able to fight such enemies and hold them off, but all of said figures had already been called back to back Xia Qingyuan up, making their situation a despairing one.


    Battle between saints exploded at the flanks. Douzhan, Zhuge Qingfeng and others had not been saints for long and they were from the Lower Worlds, making it impossible to truly fight the enemies toe-to-toe. However, at such a time, they had no choice but to fight to the death.


    But the most brutal thing about the fights there was that even if they were to fight to the death, they were still unable to see hope of coming out on top.


    Only the Glass Saint and the village chief were left before Ye Futian, making it impossible for them to fend off their assailants.


    Dazzling light burst from the Glass Saint as she lashed out with the sword in her hand, cutting down all bondage of the great path in an unfazed manner. The devouring powers that shrouded Ye Futian and the others were cut down as well. However, it hardly made any difference to the enemy, and it seemed that said enemy was about to take them soon enough.


    "You all go on ahead." At that moment, a figure was seen turning around, standing before the three top notch saints at their tail.


    Ye Futian and the others were shocked looking at who was the one turning around.


    "What are you doing, Wuchen?" Ye Futian shouted.


    Ye Wuchen was but a sage at the pinnacle of his plane. There was no way he would have been able to stand against third level of Saint Plane saints.


    He was practically walking to his grave by doing so.


    Even those three extremely powerful saints were dumbfounded. That man from the Demonic clan who was at the third level of Saint Plane, lashed out with his palm, which was circled with demonic might, sucking Ye Wuchen into his hand.


    There was no way Ye Wuchen could have resisted such an attack. He was sucked inside like a beam of light, as if it would have only taken the enemy a single throught to thrust him into a bottomless abyss.


    "Wuchen." Ye Futian felt difficult to move ahead. He turned around to look at the man who stood out for him and felt somewhat despaired.


    They could have tried to fight the opponent if they were to be of the first level of Saint Plane, but the current level difference was just too great.


    They were of several orders of magnitude lower than the enemy. They were like ants in front of him, beings so pathetic that he could have simply squished them.


    However, Ye Wuchen simply turned around and stood before them.


    Ye Wuchen looked utterly insignificant before someone at the pinnacle of the third level of Saint Plane, as he continued to sucked into the maelstrom of the enemy''s hand. The enemy did not even stop moving forward while doing so.


    A sage was like ants before them, and as such, there was no way they would have been affected.


    Ye Wuchen was about to be sucked into the maelstrom, when towering sword wills burst from his body, which did not seem to be his sword wills to begin with.


    Boundless sword wills burst from within his body and headed straight for that maelstrom.


    Ye Wuchen''s eyes looked extremely point at that instant, as he uttered a line, "I request your aid of the sword."


    A sword shot out from within him as he spoke. The flash of the sword shone brilliantly.


    Everything in their surroundings seemed to have been severed when that sword came forth, severing the heavens and the earth, as well as the soul.


    That sword seemed to be out to sever the 3000 paths.


    Towering wills burst from withi that sword. That powerful demonic arts practitioner that was trying to devour Ye Wuchen looked on with a shocked, grim expression.


    "Look out." The top notch mighty one from the Sword Mountain was just as shocked to see the Sword of Lihen.


    It was not the sword of Ye Wuchen, but of the lord of the number one holy land of swordsmanship of Emperor Xia''s Realm; the sword of the Swordmaster of Lihen, the number one swordsman in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Ye Wuchen was borrowing his sword.


    Ye Futian looked ahead, finding that extremely brilliant sword to have shrouded the heavens and earth with its blinding brilliance.


    He recalled the fight with Wang Chuan at that moment. The Swordmaster of Lihen bestowing Ye Wuchen with a sword, and Ye Futian also recalled what the swordmaster said to Ye Wuchen.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen lent Ye Wuchen a sword.


    And furthermore, it was not just any other sword.


    "It shall be done." A trembling voice was heard and that was not Ye Wuchen''s voice. It seemed to have came from somewhere else, replying to Ye Wuchen''s request.


    That sword penetrated the maelstrom of that demonic arts practitioner, tearing it to bits. That sword plunged into the palm of the enemy and despite the towering demonic might imbued within, his hand was penetrated right away by the blade. At the very next moment, that overbearing demonic being was covered in boundless sword will.


    The aura of the sword shrouded his entire being next.


    At that moment, faraway at a palace at the 33rd Layer of Heaven at Lihen Heaven, Emperor Xia''s Realm, someone was seen sitting cross-legged while having towering sword will coursing about him, as if he was fighting a battle far, far away.


    "Cut." His voice seemed to have traversed through space and resounded at the 33rd Layer of Heaven at Lihen Heaven, as well as beneath Xuanji Mountain at Empty Realm.


    That demonic being was crushed bit by bit by the sword aura as the voice was heard. A harrowing howl was heard and the man was no more!

 1079 Barricades

    A third level of Saint Plane from Dali Dynasty perished. A demonic figure at Flawless State of Saint Plane was killed with a single sword attack. All the other pursuing saints halted their steps right there and then, locking their gaze forward.


    A dazzling streak of sword will returned before Ye Wuchen. Sword will of the great path around him coursed about, cutting down all saintly might.


    That sword was not of Ye Wuchen, but of the number one swordsman of Emperor Xia''s Realm��the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    That third level of Saint Plane figure did not bother with Ye Wuchen before, intending to just devour him right on the spot. It ended up with him devouring the sword, which in turn caused his demise.


    Even so, it was nonetheless a testament of the unimaginably frightening powers of the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    The man was not there, and yet he was able to cut down a saint of the third level of Saint Plane nonetheless.


    Rumor had it that the Swordmaster of Lihen had trained in the 33 Strokes of Lihen Sword Will. That was probably one of those strokes.


    However, no one fathomed why such a sword will would have been found on Ye Wuchen.


    Lihen Heaven had not participated in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm. There were even rumors saying that Ye Futian had a grudge against Lihen Heaven.


    Despite so, the Swordmaster of Lihen had nonetheless lent Ye Wuchen his sword, invoking sword will across the vast space and cut down the devil before them.


    "Go." Ye Wuchen did not turn around, saying that with his back facing Ye Futian and the others. That one stroke of sword will had killed a devil at third level of Sant Plane. There were two reasons why it happened, the first undoubtedly being the swordmaster''s frightening level of powers, and second, the carelessness of the enemy. No one would have expected a sage to have harbored a sword from the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    However, there were still two other saints of the third level of Saint Plane��the Flawless State of Saint Plane. One of them was even a sword saint level person from Dali Sword Mountain with extraordinary powers. Ye Futian and the others were only still sages. It was simply too dangerous for them to continue staying behind.


    Ye Futian fixed his gaze at the one-armed figure in front of him. He saw Ye Wuchen''s body being shrouded by sword wills and it seemed that there were 33 layers of them. The sword wills were interconnected with each other as their towering might blocked the skies. Ye Futian was somewhat relieved. If the Swordmaster of Lihen was willing to lend his sword, then Wuchen would have definitely been able to fight, armed with said sword.


    Staying behind there would have resulted in him getting in Ye Wuchen''s way instead.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian made his decision right there and then. The party continued heading outside Kongxuan City, getting ready to return to Emperor Xia''s City. There were some other mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm stationed at the city.


    Furthermore, they could have left Empty Realm territory right there and then by using grand matrix of space.


    "Go after them," that sword saint said to the other saints around him. His body burst with towering might of the sword as well, which he sent in Ye Wuchen''s direction. Sword wills of both sides clashed.


    While his plane was lower when compared to the Swordmaster of Lihen, but his opponent only had one of the 33 layers of Sword Will of Lihen. He was confident that he still stood a chance.


    "Feel this." A voice was heard in Ye Wuchen''s mind. The way of the sword descended from above, transformed into 33 layers and shot forward at the saints from Dali Dynasty. The two most powerful cultivators among them stepped forward, invoking towering powers to resist Ye Wuchen''s sword.


    Voom. Shadows of the sword shot forth in an instant. They rang as their surroundings howled. One sword seemed to have followed another in their path forward, chaining into faster, stronger streams of swords.


    One sword was all it took to make the saints halt their steps.


    But then again, Ye Wuchen was able to do so because Yaya had already held back the only Holiness of Nirvana level saint among the enemy��Cao Kong, the monster from the Demonic clan, as well as Saint Xia and many saints from the Barren State stopping many others. All the other pursuers thought they would have been able to easily kill Ye Futian like a pathetic ant, but they never expected the Swordmaster of Lihen was able to stop them, while he being thousands of miles away.


    Despite the saints giving their all in resisting that sword attack. The 33 layers of the sword of Lihen lived up to the name of Lihen Heaven. The layers stacked on top on each other, reaching the pinnacle of the way of the sword.


    In that instant, one saint after another was pierced through by the sword. Devastating sword wills coursed about in their saintly bodies. Their expression went pale and despair was seen in their eyes. That fight marked the end of their training.


    There was entirely fine from the Swordmaster of Lihen to go all out massacring the cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm going after Ye Futian. Even if that resulted in the two realms going to war, Emperor Li''s Realm was the one that provoked it first after all.


    Swooshing noises were heard continuously. One powerful saint after another was killed, but those two of Flawless State of Saint Plane were still able to resist the sword attack, while protecting several other saints right behind them. They were the only survivors in that attack, other than the two.


    "Go." That flawless sword saint pointed his finger forward at that moment. One huge sword after another appeared, enabling several cultivators of the Sword Mountain behind him to break through their opponent''s sword will, armed with towering might of the sword, and arrived far away. They zipped past Ye Wuchen, while those two top notch figures continued to resist that sword attack.


    Four saints rode on the huge swords and zipped past Ye Wuchen, continuing on their path to hunt down Ye Futian. The battle had gone south. One saint of Flawless State of Saint Plane ended up killed and there were quite a number of saints dying by the hands of the Swordmaster of Lihen. If they were to fail to kill Ye Futian, they would not have dared to return to Emperor Li''s Realm.


    They had been the ones who provoked the conflict and yet, they suffered considerable casualties. If they were to fail in their ultimate objective, they would have ended up being made a laughing stock by the cultivators of Dali Dynasty. It would have made it very difficult to report to their emperor, and that would have been an insult like no other.


    Ye Futian and the others moved at blitzing speeds, but the enemy saints were swordsmen and were able to move just as fast, being right behind them.


    Kongxuan City was already within sight by then.


    The village chief took the holy sword right up to the city, with blazing sword aura marking their trail. He turned around and saw the Glass Saint by his side, saying, "Go on without me."


    She then turned around.


    The Love Destroyer was brandished as she went up against several incoming enemy swordsmen.


    The enemy split up and there were two holding the Glass Saint back. The remaining two continued on their paths at pursuit, zipping past the Glass Saint without any intention to stop.


    "Forward." The village uttered a single word, before turning around with the holy sword. Ye Futian and the others continued moving forward. The village streaked through the air and headed straight for the two saints who continued to move in. A great battle took place right there and then.


    The two swordsmen who fought the Glass Saint were of the second level of Saint Plane. They only held the Glass Saint back momentarily before one of them broke off from the battlefield, heading straight for the village chief. A sword streaked past, the village chief burst with towering might of the sword, intending to meld with the holy sword. While he was versed in dodging attacks, he stood firm against the incoming attacks, clashing head on with the swords of the enemy.


    He grunted within an instant and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth. However, sword will of space continued to emanate from his body, blocking the sky as he continued forward, preventing the enemy from going further.


    "Keep chasing after them," That second level of Saint Plane saint said. Two other saints zipped past from the flanks and continued forward.


    However, despite all the blockades encountered, those from Emperor Li''s Realm finally caught up to Ye Futian''s party. There were only two saints-to-be in said party.


    ...


    At the same time, the Sacred General of Tian and the others took Xia Qingyuan, speeding for Kongxuan City.


    Her expression at the moment was cold. Li Yao had been defeated in the Battle of Empty Realm and turned to move against Ye Futian. But then again, she had placed a Holiness of Nirvana saint at Ye Futian''s side, protecting him. It would not have been all that simple for them to take him down.


    The Sacred General of Tian was the head of the eight sacred generals serving Emperor Xia, and was a Holiness of Nirvana saint as well. His speed was frighteningly fast and took Xia Qingyuan blitzing at the very front.


    Yet at that moment, he focused and gazed forward.


    He then saw a group of people blitzing by in an instant. Xia Qingyuan''s expression looked rather grim after seeing them appear and said, "Where is Ye Futian?"


    All of them were people that she placed by his side.


    Those mighty ones knew they had been set up after seeing Xia Qingyuan unharmed. In actuality, a mighty one had thought about the possibility of Ye Futian being the real target back at Xuanji Mountain. A top notch figure from the Demonic clan was there after all.


    Furthermore, it was a nephew of the queen who sent word saying that the princess was under attack. He dared not risk it.


    He was someone that Emperor Xia had placed at Xia Qingyuan''s side. There was only one objective to everything that he was doing, and that was to protect the princess from harm. Nothing else mattered more than Xia Qingyuan''s safety to him.


    As such, despite his doubts, he had to leave.


    "We''ll talk along the way. Be quick." That mighty one turned around and Xia Qingyuan knew something was wrong. The Sacred General of Tian took her along and blitzed forward. Xia Qingyuan then asked, "What happened?"


    "Cao Kong of Dali Dynasty led a group of mighty ones and surrounded Xuanji Mountain, demanding Ye Futian and Yu Sheng be left behind. Xiao Sheng came to us telling us that you were attacked, so I had to come."


    "Xiao Sheng?" Xia Qingyuan''s eyes turned cold after hearing his words. She had never given any orders to Xiao Sheng to deliver any word.


    While it took her quite a while to realize that she was being duped by Li Yao back then, given the circumstances, but she had never even thought about recalling those people at Ye Futian''s side. Who the hell let Xiao Sheng make such decisions on his own?


    Worse still, said decision was made when Ye Futian was being surrounded.


    "Princess." A voice was heard at that moment. It was none other than Xiao Sheng, who was returning.


    "Are you alright, princess?" Xiao Sheng asked, but Xia Qingyuan and the others simply zipped past him like mirages. Even so, Xiao Sheng was still able to feel that Xia Qingyuan cast a cold look at him.


    That one look seemed to have thrust him into an ice cellar, making him shiver all over.


    "Forward," Xiao Sheng ordered. The party then moved forward. Gongsun Ni, who was by his side, asked, "Xiao Sheng, what is happening?"


    Wasn''t the princess under attack?


    "I don''t know." Xiao Sheng then added, "Li Yao brought many saints to the sacred mountain back then and looked like he was about to make a move against the princess. So I summoned the mighty ones back immediately. From the looks of things, it seemed to be a trick by Li Yao."


    Gongsun Ni''s expression turned and seemed to realized something. She then asked, "That meant that the princess never gave the order and you acted on your own?"


    "Things looked dire back then and I couldn''t have waited for her orders. If there were to be anything happening to the princess, who would be the one to take the blame then? So I went to summon our people to back the princess up." Xiao Sheng said, "If the princess were to blame me for what I did, then I would just own up to it."


    Gongsun Xuan''s expression looked very displeased and said, "If things are fine with the princess, then it''s obvious that they''re going after Ye Futian. With the people that she placed at Ye Futian''s side being called back by you, Ye Futian and the others...man, if anything were to happen to him, the princess would be very, very angry."


    She dared not imagine the scenarios any further. With the likes of Cao Kong showing up, it was not all that difficult to imagine what would have happened to Ye Futian''s party.

 1080 Killing through Sheer Brute Force

    Outside of Kongxuan city, Ye Futian and his party continued to blitz without stopping.


    It was obvious that the power of Emperor Xia''s Realm was above that of Emperor Li''s Realm at present. Unless Emperor Li of Dali Dynasty himself were to give orders to wage war between the imperial realms and sent mighty ones to see to it, it would have been Li Yao''s personal agenda otherwise.


    Li Yao wanted him dead.


    As such, it would have sufficed to keep buying time, as that would have prevented Li Yao from accomplishing his objective.


    The saints by his side continued to stand their pursuers'' way. Yaya returned to the pinnacle of her training. The Sword Matrix of the Void burst forth, the Swordmaster of Lihen lent his sword to Wuchen, the likes of Saint Xia and Saint Li took on the enemy without regard of dangers. There were also the village chief, his teacher and other saints from the Holy Zhi Palace. Even Saint Glass turned around to fight.


    All those saints did what they did, just so that he was able to leave.


    The weather in the sky changed and violent currents swept about. That was an area of barren land and there were even sandstorms whipping up below, which seemed to have been affected by the strong air currents.


    Two saint swordsmen kept flying at great speeds, chasing after Ye Futian''s party, catching up to them soon enough.


    They were saints after all and besides, swordsmen had always been versed in speed. When they traveled with their swords, the distance of 100 miles could have been covered within a heartbeat.


    They closed in behind Ye Futian soon enough. Both of them pointed their fingers forward. Swords whooshed about in the air at greater speeds than the humans traveling, coming before Ye Futian''s party within an instant.


    Voom. Ye Futian''s party split up within that split second, drawing arcs in the air.


    Furthermore, they drew their arcs behind instead of forward.


    As the two swordsmen continued to move forward, the arcs seemed to have drawn around them, surrounding the two saints.


    The sages were actually surrounding the saints.


    The two swordsmen halted their steps in an instant, feeling something was off when they saw what Ye Futian and the others were doing.


    Despite their enemies being of superior numbers, they were nonetheless sages.


    Sages and saints seemed to have been only a thin line apart, yet there were considerable differences in the nature of their powers, and such differences were not something that could have been compensated through talents in combat alone.


    Sages were sages and saints were saints.


    While Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan had indeed worked together and killed Yuan Jin, who had borrowed the divine path and attempting to become saint, but Yuan Jin was still not a true saint. Those two that appeared right there and then, they were true saints��people who had truly developed powers of the great path and could have transformed as entities of the great path.


    At that moment, Ye Futian and the others burst with formidable power, with some among them more powerful than the others.


    They were Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint and Huang Jiuge.


    Towering demonic might burst from Yu Sheng and the Sword Saint, especially Yu Sheng, who had a terrifying devil appearing behind him, looking imposing and regal, as if the devil had truly advent. Silhouettes of devils appeared around him, cordoning the space off.


    The Sword Saint relied on the blade he held onto. The power emanating from his entire being was being devoured by the blade. The will of his blade swept about in his surroundings and dark, demonic might coursed about him, making him look extremely terrifying.


    The might of Renhuang coursed about on Huang Jiuge, looking extremely regal. He held onto the Renhuang Bow and fed all of his powers within. Might that far surpassed his current level burst from the bow at that moment.


    Dazzling imperial light shot up from Ye Futian and his bearing transformed, as if he was born to become emperor. In that very instant, the bearing emanating from his being made even those two saints shudder.


    While the aura was not very powerful, but they were nonetheless able to feel faint pressure from it. That was not some power that belonged to sages, unless he was of extraordinary birth and had regal blood flowing in his veins.


    "Kill them." The two saint swordsmen lashed out in an instant, heading straight for Ye Futian like they were swords themselves. They were extremely fast at doing so, yet towering demonic aura blocked their way of.


    The Sword Saint looked emaciated throughout, his face devoid of colors and it seemed as if he had been using the powers in his body as sacrifice, letting the blade feast on them with impunity. He closed his eyes to feel the will of the blade. While he had yet to be able to touch the great path, his blade was equipped with powers of the great path nonetheless.


    Doom. The Sword Saint took one step out and swung his blade. Terrifying shadow of a devil appeared on the demonic blade. The will of the blade was filled with aura of destruction and death. Dark demonic aura swept about and coalesced into a blade, cutting up dark gashes in the air as he attacked those two saints.


    Gu Dongliu stepped out as well and it seemed as if Celestial Shadows fell from above. His entire being was coursing with celestial light and he looked imposing with the nine words circling about him. Countless seals of the nine words burst forth and headed straight for the enemy.


    They attacked in pairs at each of the saints. Despite being only sages, they did not show any fear at all.


    However, those two saint swordsmen were hardly intimidated. They held a sword in their hands respectively, extending the hand forward and focused the divine path on their fingers, turning into frightening maelstrom of the sword, which spun maniacally like blooming lotuses, tearing everything before them apart.


    Both of them moved at frightening speed. Towering light of the blade clashed with the swords. The harrowing, destructive will of the blade was torn to shreds. The maelstroms of the sword continued to move forward as they devoured, intending to gobble up the Sword Saint and tear him to shreds. However, the Sword Saint brought his blade down at the center of the maelstrom. That frightening devilish shadow stood tall before him, but was devoured and torn to pieces by the terrifying sword will.


    Gu Dongliu was in a ditch himself as well. Countless seals were being torn apart by the enemy''s sword. The enemy only needed one stroke of the sword to tear through the thousands of seals, breaking up the boundless ancient symbols with unstoppable force.


    But then again, the enemy''s swords were indeed held back somewhat. At the same time, the arrows fired from Huang Jiuge''s bow tore through space and burst with the might of Renhuang. The Renhuang will might have been inadequate to kill the saints, but they were nonetheless threatening forces anyway, so threatening that the two saints could not have afforded to simply ignore it. However, they only needed to swing their swords about to summon torrents of the sword, lashing out at the air.


    Boom. Devastating demonic might swept about in the air. Yu Sheng stepped forward and walked towards Gu Dongliu''s direction, bringing down the axe from above. The devil seemed to have advent with that one swing, and their surroundings seemed to be on the verge on crumbling.


    That swordsman actually shuddered somewhat. Such powers were of such a magnitude that it was near that of a saint, so much so that it was hardly any weaker than the power of a saint. If he were to be hit by the attack, he would have been destroyed even though he had a body of saint.


    He continued to swing his hand about in the air. A huge sword appeared and he flicked his wrist. That huge sword zipped in the air, heading straight for Yu Sheng. The sword and the axe clashed and a high-pitched, loud bang was heard.


    Other than that, the other mighty ones from Barren State��Zhuge Mingyue, Yuan Zhan, Luo Fan, Yi Xiaoshi and the others��all attacked the saint that the Sword Saint was attacking. Even though they might not have been able to kill the enemy, they nonetheless saw the need to create trouble for him, affecting how he fought.


    The sword of that saint swordsman and the blade of the Sword Saint clashed. Extremely violent power of the sword tore through the will of the demonic blade. However, the blade remained where it was without flinching. Thousands of devilish shadows appeared at the same time. The sword cut them down one after another, but there did not seem to be an end to it.


    The Sword Saint was trembling all over. Blood was seen oozing from all of his orifices and the sight looked harrowing. However, he continued to channel power into the blade, as if he was borrowing demonic might from the blade to resist the swordsman.


    A silhouette zipped past and danced in the air. Terrifying might of space emanated, shrouding their surroundings. Space-time seemed to have stopped and that storm seemed to get increasingly powerful. The power of the heaven and earth seemed to be rushing into his body.


    That silhouette was none other than Ye Futian, who was gathering strength.


    Said force grew increasingly strong. The space felt stifling.


    Everything in their surroundings turned silent eventually, as if they have stopped altogether. Even that powerful aura of the sword seemed to have stopped moving altogether. That holy aura took control of the great path in that vicinity.


    A figure transformed into golden lightning and streaked through the sky, heading straight for the saint that the Sword Saint was fighting against.


    That swordsman burst with even greater might of the sword from within. The bondage of the great path of space broke with a howl. The swordsman intended to leave the battlefield and head straight for Ye Futian, but quickly saw the Sword Saint howling and blood kept pouring out from his body. Multiple devilish shadows appeared, bringing down the sky as the will of the blade grew boundless. The attack continued to come at the saint swordsman, who was held back through sheer brute force.


    He was only able to use his left hand as a sword, pointing in the air and making the terrifying maelstrom of the sword appear yet again, tearing the space apart and went on to devour Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian did not bother to dodge that time and simply streaked through the space, charging into the maelstrom. The Halberd of Time and Space lashed out and the sword wills within the maelstrom crumbled in a frenzy. The weapon continued to travel straight downward.


    That swordsman seemed to have noticed the intense threat and with a roar, turned his finger into a sword and pointed at the air, sending sword will of great path tearing through everything in its way.


    Ye Futian seemed to have felt nothing. The halberd continued to destroy the aura of the sword, letting all residual power struck his body. He kept his eyes focused on the enemy.


    The halberd clashed with the finger of the enemy, which was an embodiment of the great path in itself.


    The aura of the sword tore through space and ripped into Ye Futian''s body, but he seemed to have felt nothing. The light he emanated looked extremely regal. The weapon continued its way downward. Blood was seen as the enemy''s finger continued to crumble bit by bit.


    That swordsman''s face went pale in an instant. He roared and even with his finger broken, he arm nonetheless coursed with towering might of the sword. A blood sword was coalesced and shot into Ye Futian''s body along the halberd, breaking through his defense. The aura of the sword seeped into Ye Futian''s body.


    Yet, Ye Futian''s body seemed to be burning with holy energy, preventing him from feeling anything while the weapon continued to strike its target.


    The swordsman''s arm crumbled inch by inch and blood splashed about. He wailed in terrifying pain and finally, his arm was punched through and the halberd landed into his brain, punching through on the other side.


    That swordsman watched Ye Futian coming down from above with harrowing eyes at that moment. The aura of the sword about him continued to dwindle. Despite his might continued to attack Ye Futian, but its power was no longer what it used to be. At the same, the Sword Saint brought the demonic blade down onto him, cleaving his body apart.


    That powerful sword saint level figure, and furthermore, not one who had been saint not long ago, who had actually been a saint for many years, was wiped out within that instant. He was broken up by the Sword Saint, Ye Futian and the others through sheer brute force delivered at the greatest speed possible, with the strongest power that could have been mustered.


    That scene seemed to have been sensed by the other saint swordsman. His face turned pale. Two saints fighting a group of sages should have been like tigers charging into a herd of sheep, slaughtering with impunity.


    Yet for some reasons, within just a single moment, he was held back by powerful resistance and his cohort, was actually killed right there and then!

 1081 Rush

    The left over Saint level cultivator cried out in rage. His hands turned into swords, and he pointed one of them towards Gu Dongliu, and the other at Yu Sheng.


    His sword will billowed and wrapped around his body. He took a step forward, and the celestial shadows around Gu Dongliu were pierced by his sword will. He spat up blood as his Nine Word Seal collapsed wildly.


    Yu Sheng gave a great cry, and dark golden light flowed out from him. A terrible demonic vortex appeared and sucked up the sword will. He was using this devouring magic to demonize the power of the Great Path.


    The Saint level cultivator retreated from Gu Dongliu and raised his right hand. He pointed up into the sky and suddenly nine overlapping swords burst out from his fingertip. They shot forward as one, shooting directly towards Yu Sheng.


    Boom! Yu Sheng''s was violently sent shaking backwards.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! The power of the swords was unmathed. They went forward together, cracking open Yu Sheng''s body. His extremely violent demonic body seemed about to collapse, and his garments flapped wildly in the wind, exposing his deep bronze skin and powerful muscles. There was blood all over him as the sword will pierced through his body.


    However, even though this was happening, Yu Sheng still stuck to his opponent. He did not retreat, and his Battleaxe of Judgement cut through the billowing power the was coming towards him. It gave off pressure that pressed down on everything as it continued to cut forward, not giving his opponent a chance to rest and catch his breath for even a moment.


    The Sword Saint cried out in anger, and bright and dazzling swords shot out of his eyes. They pierced into Yu Sheng''s eyes, and they became filled with blood. He closed his eyes, but the sword will still plunged wildly into him, cracking his body open from the inside.


    It was at that moment that Ye Futian, who had just slain another Saint level figure, rushed over to where Yu Sheng and the Saint were fighting. Time and space once again seemed to be restricted, and the swordsman''s face suddenly changed.


    His partner must have just been directly killed by the Halberd of Time and Space on the spot. There was no need to say just how powerful that meant Ye Futian''s combat ability was.


    Crack! Crack! Crack! His body seemed to be cracking open. He transformed himself into a sword, and suddenly a burst of sword will shot up into the clouds as both and he Yu Sheng rushed up into the sky, with the swordsman pushing Yu Sheng along at the tip of his sword.


    The Inexhaustibly Sharp Sword pierced through the demon body, but Yu Sheng''s powerful from had still not once been knocked back by his opponent''s sword. His battleaxe was still pressed up against his opponent''s sword.


    A suffocating, destructive pressure descended upon them as Ye Futian''s Halberd of Time and Space fell. The Sword Saint had not been able to make Yu Sheng retreat before Ye Futian arrived. He could only pull back his right hand and thrust it towards the Halberd of Time and Space. Nine swords overlapped once again and shot out towards the halberd.


    The Halberd of Time and Space descended with all the power of heaven behind it. It sliced through the air and fell upon his opponent''s sword. There was a loud noise, and the Halberd of Time and Space seemed to slow because of this, but then it continued forward.


    Boom! Shock waves swept out in succession. Ye Futian felt the one sword turn into nine and shoot forward, blocking the power of the Halberd of Time and Space.


    In that moment, as the three of them confronted each other, they formed a strange balance as they all stopped their in the air.


    But in between the three of them an incomparably violent airflow swept up. Even Huang Jiuge''s bow could not have pierced through that airflow, and any attacks would be impossible.


    The Sword Saint cultivator''s hair danced wildly in the wind. At that moment he was under terrible pressure. Were these two really only on the Sage plane?


    Even those who had recently reached the Saint plane would probably not be like this.


    Moreover, the power of his swordsmanship was formidable indeed. His sword will had entered his opponent''s body but had not been able to destroy it. What level of body was this?


    Would a Saint level swordsman fall at the hands of Sages today?


    This was an incredibly shameful way to go. He never would have imagined it.


    "I''ll kill you!" he cried. He transformed into a formless body, seeming to find some hidden reserve of strength to put into his flowing sword will. His every breath, every thought, every drop of blood were bent towards this sword attack.


    Buddha and demon were one in Yu Sheng''s body. Up in the sky, 1,808 Buddhas flashed into appearance. And right above him appeared a demon head that covered him. The power to control all the demons of heaven and earth was a terrible sight to behold. He had gathered the power of demons and Buddhas into one body.


    The flow of sword will continued forward, smashing into the image of the demon Buddha, completely destroying it. The Saint''s sword was incredibly poowerful.


    But the arm that held the sword also trembled slightly. It had just suffered an incomparable amount of power as well.


    In the other direction, the powerful flow of sword will rushed into Ye Futian, and an extremely destructive light bloomed from his body. It rushed into his mind, and even attacked the Saint''s will. But when the Saint felt the spiritual will, his heart trembled fiercely. He seemed to have felt a spiritual willpower that could not be found even on the Saint plane.


    The divine light shone, and a terrible space vortex appeared in front of the Halberd of Time and Space in Ye Futian''s hands. The dazzling, flowing light shot forward, slicing through the sword will and entering his opponent''s body bit by bit.


    The three cultivators were all being subjected to tremendous amounts of power.


    "You must have come from Dali Sword Mountain. Sword Mountain is sending many Sword Saints to kill me these days. I will remember this," spat Ye Futian in a cold voice. "Don''t worry, you won''t be alone."


    As he said this, the infinite power inside Ye Futian went into his arms. In that moment, an incomparably brilliant light burst forth from his right hand and entered into the Halberd of Space and Time.


    "Destroy!" he yelled. He seemed to have given up on protecting his body as he gathered all his power into the halberd. Suddenly, a rumbling sound shook the heavens and the earth as the shrieking sword will was shattered. The Halberd of Time and Space opened up a gap and continued forward bit by bit, cutting through the shattering sword will until it pierced the palm of his opponent''s hand. Blood flowed from the wound instantly, just like the previous Sword Saint.


    He gave a bitter cry as billowing sword wills burst from his body. They flowed towards Ye Futian, but on the other side Yu Sheng was pressing him fiercely. Another sound rang out as his battleaxe cut through the sword and into his other arm. In a flash his sword will was mixed with his blood, creating a shocking sight.


    His cry of rage shook the heavens and the earth. Both his arms were cut through at the same time, and a look of despair came over the Sword Saint''s face. Would he really be killed by two Sages?


    His blood fell all around as his two arms were cut off. Then, the Halberd of Time and Space and the Battleaxe of Judgement cut into his body. In a flash, the Sword Saint''s face grew deathly pale, and the sword will that had been flowing around him wildly weakened, although wisps of it still swirled around him. But blood was flowing from his mouth continuously, and his breathing weakened.. But his eyes were still firmly open, as if he would still bear a grievance even in death.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as the Saint''s body was destroyed. He had been slain.


    The two Sword Saints who had pursued them had both been slain.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were extremely cold. He was covered in blood. During the battle he had seemed to have no problem, but he knew how things really were, and so did Yu Sheng.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian, and suddenly the group continued on through the sky. Before long, a group of cultivators came over to them. They were the Saint level figures who garrisoned Emperor Xia''s City, and they rushed over as soon as they saw them.


    As he saw them approaching, Ye Futian, who''s breath had grown very weak, said, "Emperor Li''s Realm has launched a surprise attack. I must ask you elders to go to Xuanji Mountain to rescue them."


    They nodded. "Alright." Their figures flashed, moving quickly in the direction of Xuanji Mountain.


    Ye Futian and the others all stopped; they were no longer fleeing. The Saint level cultivators of Emperor Xia''s City had rushed to their defense, so there was no need to flee anymore. And if Cao Kong attacked them, they would not be able to escape.


    He did not know how Yaya, Wuchen and his master were doing right now.


    According to his previous estimation, Li Yao would probably not dare to act against Xia Qingyuan. The message that Xiao Sheng had sent was probably only Li Yao pretending to act against Xia Qingyuan in the hopes that she would rush to Xuanji Mountain earlier.


    Now, it was only her and those beside her who could help Yaya.


    "Don''t worry, everything will be fine," came a warm voice from beside Ye Futian. He turned and saw Yao Xi''s perfect face appear before his eyes. Her eyes were warm and soft, but there seemed to be a trace of worry in them. "You should rest and recover, Lord Ye," she said,


    "Thank you, goddess," whispered Ye Futian.


    "I will keep your secret, Lord Ye," said Yao Xi. Ye Futian nodded slightly. He and Yao Xi had no quarrel with each other, and had a pretty good relationship. She had no reason to betray him.


    Moreover, Yao Xi was a smart person. Seeing today''s battle had probably reminded her of something. If she wanted to spill his secrets, she should consider whether or not she could bear the consequences.


    ........


    At that moment on the battlefield, the sword matrix spanned across the sky. Yaya had turned into a sword and integrated herself into the matrix. While using the power of the matrix, her ability to counterattack was at its peak.


    But even so, the magic giant of Lihen Heaven had still not retreated even a little bit. In fact, he was still attacking wildly. He stood their in the sky like a majestic demon king. His head scraped the sky and his feet trampled the earth. His overbearing attacks rumbled wildly. The sword matrix in the air kept launching attacks against him, but he still stood their without retreating.


    The entire sword matrix had even been knocked far away by his mighty attacks, and had left Xuanji Mountain far behind. Of course, at this point Xuanji Mountain had already been razed to the ground.


    "You may have once been at the peak, but that was in the past," came a mighty voice that shook the heavens and the earth. A giant fist smashed down, and suddenly the cracks in the sword matrix grew wider, and it was shattered. A group of figures fell powerlessly to the earth, with blood streaming from their mouths.


    "Cao Kong!" came a voice from far away. As the voice echoed, a fist shot across the distance, covering the sky. Demonic power rolled off of Cao Kong''s body as he matched fists with his new opponent. The air seemed about to shatter as Cao Kong was forced backwards. He swept his gaze over the battlefield.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng must have already killed them?


    "Let''s go," shouted Cao Kong, and his voice filled the sky as it rolled out into the distance. The cultivators from Lihen Heaven whoe were fighting heard his voice and shot up into the air, leaving the battlefield and starting to scatter.


    Cao Kong had given the order to scatter, which meant that Xia Qingyuan must have arrived. Their opponents'' battle matrix was now stronger than theirs. If they didn''t leave now, they might never be able to.

 1082 Unforgivable

    Voices rang through the air from the distance, and the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm who were fighting scattered one by one. The Sacred General of Tian and the Sacred General of Dou stepped forward towards where Cao Kong was fleeing and pursued him.


    The rest of them continued along in the direction of the battle, all of them moving extremely quickly.


    Xia Qingyuan glanced all around the battlefield. Yaya had fallen down to the ground, and Ye Wuchen was bathed in endless sword will. In a bright, clear voice he said, "Thank you swordmaster for you sword!"


    As he said this, the sword wills pierced through the air, shooting up into the sky.


    This was the sword that the Swordmaster of Lihen used to enhance his perception, and that he could use to help him in battles of life and death. How he would return his sword.


    Xia Qingyuan''s face was expressionless as she observed this scene. But on the inside, she still felt some gratitude to the Swordmaster of Lihen. In the past she had once gone to Lihen Heaven and asked the Swordmaster of Lihen to teach her swordsmanship, and to help her understand the way of the sword better.


    Ye Wuchen descended to the ground, where he sat cross legged. His breathing suddenly became weaker. But Xia Qingyuan and the others continued forward.


    All of the Saints stopped fighting. The Saint level cultivators of the Nine States had all been injured, and none of them had only been injured once. But at that moment they were only worried about how Ye Futian was doing.


    Xia Qingyuan had rushed over, and the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm were scattering. As long as Ye Futian was alright then this would count as a loss for Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Xia Qingyuan and the others strode forward. Eventually, they saw a group of people coming towards them. Among the people at the very front of the group were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    At that moment, Xia Qingyuan breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that nothing terrible had happened to him.


    Xia Qingyuan stepped forward and walked in front of Ye Futian. At that moment, he and Yu Sheng were extremely weak. Her expression was exceedingly cold, and the warm air all around them seemed to be chilled in an instant. "Pass on my order," she said. "Anyone from Emperor Li''s Realm in the Empty Realm is to be killed without mercy. No exceptions."


    "Yes, Your Highness," said the people beside her.


    At this point, Emperor Li''s Realm had already been defeated in the Battle of Empty Realm, but they had ordered their Saint level cultivators to launch a surprise attack on Ye Futian. Li Yao had even personally appeared as a decoy, but they had sent out Saints who had reached the peak of the Nirvana plane.


    This kind of action was extremely odious. Xia Qingyuan could not tolerate it.


    If Emperor Li''s Realm wanted to go to war, let it be known that it was them who had made the first move.


    Many people were secretly trembling. Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm had always been in conflict, and had clashed over and over again. And this attack had probably intensified the conflict. No one knew what would happen in the future.


    "I''m going forward to take a look," said Ye Futian. He still had not seen the others, and he was worried about the safety of the people from the Nine States.


    As he went forward he finally reunited with Glass Saint, the Village Chief and Saint Xia. When he saw that they were all injured, his heart grew cold.


    Simply put, the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm''s target had been him and Yu Sheng. They just wanted to force everyone else to retreat so they could kill them. They probably had had no heart for a fierce fight, and they would not have suffered misfortune if there hadn''t been. But the wounds on everyone from the Nine States showed that they would fight to the death. Otherwise, they would have taken a step back and their opponents would have ignored them and been able to leave directly. If that had happened, how could they have gotten hurt?


    The Village Chief rushed forward, and when Ye Futian saw him moving his heart leapt. He also rushed forward, and saw Ye Wuchen kneeling on the ground with sword wills wrapped around him. There was nothing too wrong with him.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen had once used Ye Wuchen''s sword. And not only sword, but his life as well.


    That life should have been his.


    Perhaps the Swordmaster of Lihen had thought that there would be some kind of accident up in the sky, and that was why he had done what he did.


    Had he truly lent his sword to Ye Wuchen? Or had it been to Ye Futian?


    There was no way to know, but no matter who he had meant to lend it to, it was enough to remind him that he owned the Swordmaster of Lihen a life.


    Finally they all reached Yaya''s side. At that time she had fainted, and the Village Chief had gotten there first and was supporting her. Yaya''s mouth and clothes were stained with blood.


    Yaya had not been the only one wounded in the attack; many others had been as well. Even his powerful sworn brothers had been heavily wounded, and blood poured from their ears, eyes, mouth and nose. They were all extremely weak.


    "Li Yao." Ye Futian clenched his fists. The vengeance that he owed him had just gotten even deeper.


    At that moment, a group of figures came rushing through the air from the distance. The Sacred General of Tian and the Sacred General of Bu and their cultivators had returned. "Cao Kong has set all his will to fleeing," they said. "We could not stop him. But several of the Saints who participated in the battle were stopped and killed. Li Yao of Emperor Li''s Realm is no longer in the Empty Realm. He probably started up a space matrix in order to leave. And not only that, Emperor Li''s City is now a ghost town."


    Obviously Li Yao had already made preparations before he had acted. Now matter if he was able to kill Ye Futian or not, he would be able to predict that there would be great disturbances afterward. Why would he wait in the Empty Realm for Xia Qingyuan to deal with him? Of course he had left straight away.


    "Is the Princess alright?" asked Ye Futian.


    These words carried deeper implications than their surface meaning.


    Of course, he was not blaming Xia Qingyuan. This whole situation definitely had nothing to do with her. Moreover, when he had first set out she had sent people to protect him in order to guard against this sort of thing.


    Although the likelihood of Li Yao doing something crazy was quite low, they had still been prepared for it.


    But Xiao Sheng''s words had changed everything, and had nearly cost Ye Futian and his friends their lives.


    Ye Futian also did not blame those cultivators who had left. The two sides had no relationship with each other, and in Emperor Xia''s Realm he was nothing more than the Princess''s valet. He had no right to ask them to do something for him.


    Moreover, since Xiao Sheng had sent a message saying that Princess Xia QIngyuan had met with a surprise attack, they had to go, even if there was only a one percent chance of that being true.


    They were Emperor Xia''s people. They were the Princess''s people. They weren''t Ye Futian''s people.


    "Li Yao sent some Saint level cultivators from the Empty Realm to the holy mountain to create an illusion to confuse me. They did not actually dare to act, but delayed me for some time. It was my fault for being too slow," said Xia Qingyuan. She knew that if she had been only a moment later, Ye Futian would have really been in danger.


    And the fact that Ye Futian and the others had survived this battle was already a miracle.


    It was truly a miracle. If Yaya had not counterattacked with all of her power, and if the Swordmaster of Lihen had not lent his sword to Ye Wuchen, Ye Futian would not have survived. He knew this all too well.


    "Princess, this is all my fault," a voice range out. When she heard this, Xia Qingyuan''s eyes flashed with cold light. She turned her cold eyes slowly, looking towards the figure from which the voice had come.


    It was Xiao Sheng.


    "When the Saints that Li Yao had sent appeared, I panicked. I didn''t wait for orders, but directly sent the message to Xuanji Mountain, leading to Brother Ye and the others suffering a surprise attack. But fortunately nobody came to any great harm." Xiao Sheng bowed to the Princess. "Please forgive me, Princess."


    Xiao Sheng had actively admitted his mistake.


    At that moment his head was bowed very low, as if he were truly admitting that he had done something wrong, and begging the Princess for her forgiveness.


    Ye Futian''s gaze fell upon Xiao Sheng. He had just asked if the Princess was alright, but what he was really asking about was Xiao Sheng''s message.


    He had previously guessed that Xia Qingyuan would not have sent people to call back his guards. Li Yao would not dare to attack Xia Qingyuan. So he had asked if something had happened to Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan had said that it was just Li Yao trying to confuse her, and that war had not really broken out.


    So, Xiao Sheng had come back with the message, and had stated that there were no orders from Xia Qingyuan. What did he mean by this?


    Well, if that was all that it was, then it was alright.


    When Xiao Sheng had rushed to Xuanji Mountain, Cao Kong and the other cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm had all been there. When he saw that, Xiao Sheng must have thought that something had happened, and that Li Yao''s target was him, not Xia Qingyuan.


    But Xiao Sheng had summoned people to go out without any hesitation, and moreover had said that the Princess was under attack!


    It could be said that he was extremely decisive at that time. He had been determined to send people, and to have them gather the people from Divine Cloud Valley along the way.


    If Xiao Sheng had said that he meant nothing by this, could Ye Futian really believe it?


    And it was not only Ye Futian. The other people from the Nine States were all looking at Xiao Sheng extremely coldly. He had seen that Ye Futian was surrounded by the cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm and had still said that the Princess was under attack and sent people to her. Broadly speaking, didn''t this mean that he had tried to kill Ye Futian?


    He had just tried to use others to do it.


    "You have indeed done wrong," said Xia Qingyuan coldly. "You said ''The Princess is under attack''. When was I under attack?"


    "Li Yao sent Saints to surround the holy mountain. The situation was dire, so I immediately sent people from the Xiao clan to get people to come help. I naturally thought that Li Yao was moving against you." Xia Sheng still had his head bowed. "Under such circumstances I could not take too much time to think."


    "You could not take too much time to think?" Ye Futian said suddenly. A sharp look flashed in his eyes. He still remembered Xiao Sheng''s expression when he had relayed his message. Cold, without a hint of emotion.


    At that time, it had not looked like Xiao Sheng had cared about the Princess''s safety at all.


    "Either way, this situation is my fault. No matter how you punish me, Princess, I will not complain." Xiao Sheng bowed again, still sounding honest and sincere.


    "What do you think, Ye Futian?" Xia Qingyuan turned her gaze to Ye Futian. The one who had really been in danger here was Ye Futian. He would probably not let Xiao Sheng off too easily.


    This was a thorny problem.


    Ye Futian would most likely want to kill Xiao Sheng. She did not think that it would be strange for him to want this, nor would she blame him for it.


    But even though Xiao Sheng was in the wrong, if they killed him they would never be able to explain it to her mother and the Xiao clan.


    "I think that you should thoroughly investigate this matter, Princess. I believe that you will handle it well," said Ye Futian. He did not give his own opinion on the matter.


    "I will." Xia Qingyuan nodded. "Many people have been injured. Have them return to Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    They could slow down when handling this matter. But many people in Ye Futian''s group had been wounded, and it was not suitable for them to stay in the Empty Realm!


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. Then they all gathered together and left in the direction of Emperor Xia''s City where they prepared to depart.


    "You are just going to let him off like that?" Luo Fan''s voice was extremely cold. Everyone could see it clearly. Xiao Sheng had plotted against Ye Futian, and had tried to have him killed.


    The Princess was Xiao Sheng''s cousin, and Queen Xiao was his aunt. Even if the Princess wanted to act against Xiao Sheng, the matter would not be easily decided.


    By handing the affair over to Xia Qingyuan to handle, Ye Futian had made things difficult for her. It would be extremely difficult to act against Xiao Sheng.


    "Let him go?" a cold, murderous light flashed in Ye Futian''s eyes. "He must die."


    Li Yao wanted to kill him because they were enemies. So if Xiao Sheng wanted to kill him, it was even more unforgivable!

 1083 Collaborating with the Enemy?

    Xia Qingyuan, Ye Futian and the others had originally planned to cultivate in the Empty Realm for a period of time, at least one year. After all, in one year the spirit stones of the Great Path would be distributed.


    However, this sudden incident had made Ye Futian and the others use the grand matrix of space to return to Emperor Xia''s Realm earlier. Xia Qingyuan would naturally stay in the Imperial Palace, and the others left individually. Ye Futian and the others returned to the mountain villa to cultivate and heal. This time, many of them were seriously wounded.


    But before long, Xia Qingyuan sent a powerful Saint level cultivator who was skilled in the healing arts from the Imperial Palace to cure their wounds, both wounds of the body and wounds of their spiritual willpower.


    Because of this chaos that had taken place, any of the cultivators from the top forces of Emperor Xia''s Realm returned, and the news quickly spread to all corners of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The news of their victory in the Empty Realm had made it back to Emperor Xia''s Realm a long time ago. Now as everyone was returning, many of the details were being passed around as well. Many people marveled at the fact that Ye Futian had helped Xia Qingyuan seize victory all under his own power.


    However, this person who had rendered outstanding service had earned the jealousy and hatred of Emperor Li''s Realm due to this, and thus had been subjected to an extremely dangerous attack.


    The Sword Saint of the Void had reappeared during that attack, and the Swordmaster of Lihen had lent out his sword. This left many people amazed. When Ye Futian and Wang Chuan had fought upon the thirty-third level of Lihen Heaven, what had really happened?


    They had thought at first that Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven had been defeated, and thus had not taken part in the Battle of Empty Realm. But for the swordmaster to lend his sword meant far more than simply participating in the battle.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen''s skill was forging thirty-three sword wills. He had lent one of them to Ye Wuchen to enhance his perception. He had helped him at the hour of life and death. Was this the attitude of a master personally teaching a disciple?


    Even though Ye Wuchen had showed extraordinary talent for swordsmanship at Lihen Heaven, would that really be enough to make the Swordmaster of Lihen do this?


    No one knew what the Swordmaster of Lihen was really thinking, but this foremost swordsman of Emperor Xia''s Realm had a bearing that made people admire him. Many people thought that Ye Futian had fought his way up to the thirty-third layer of heaven in order to humiliate Lihen Heaven. But he had lent his sword to Ye Wuchen. This kind of bold vision was truly worthy of a top Saint.


    Later, more details of the attack came out. At first, Xia Qingyuan had sent people to protect Ye Futian, but they had been ordered to gather together and leave by Xiao Sheng, which had led to Ye Futian coming into grave danger.


    Now, it was said that the Princess was investigating the matter.


    Was Xiao Sheng really trying to save the Princess, or was he simply trying to kill Ye Futian?


    The latter option was probably not true. After all, Ye Futian and Xiao Sheng had no enmity between them, and it could even be said that they had nothing to with each other. Why would Xiao Sheng try to kill him?


    But those people from top forces who had gone to the Empty Realm had seen more than anyone else. Xiao Sheng certainly had sufficient reason to want Ye Futian dead.


    But on the bright side, Xiao Sheng was also justified. He was indeed thinking of the Princess when he did it.


    .........


    The core members of the Xiao clan had gathered in the palace of the Xiao clan in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The person sitting at their head was Old Man Xiao. Those around him were all core members of the Xiao Clan: all of his sons.


    And sitting before them all was Xiao Sheng.


    At that moment Old Man Xiao''s face was quite ugly, as if he were quite angry. He gazed coldly at Xiao Sheng and said, "What on earth have you done? You have made Qingyuan order an investigation."


    Xia Qingyuan had given the order to investigate this matter, and even to directly investigate the Xiao clan and those beside Xiao Sheng.


    He was Xia Qingyuan''s grandfather, and the head of her mother''s clan. The people in this mansion were all Xia Qingyuan''s relatives. Even though she was the Princess, she should still have deep feelings for the Xiao clan.


    And yet, at that moment his granddaughter, Princess Xia Qingyuan, had sent people to his household to investigate him. What did this mean?


    When outsiders saw this they would think that a rift had formed between the Princess and the Xiao clan. It was obvious that what Xiao Sheng had done had made Xia Qingyuan angry, and that was why she had acted in spite of what Old Man Xiao might want and sent people to investigate him.


    At that moment, Xiao Sheng''s face was rather pale and his fists were clenched. He knew that Xia Qingyuan thought highly of Ye Futian, but he had underestimated just how much. Had she really launched an investigation into the Xiao clan over an outsider? This now not only implicated her cousin, but all of the Xiao clan.


    "I''ve already said all I have to say. You must know, grandfather, that the situation was very tense. I was worried for the Princess''s safety, and so I naturally sent people to protect her," said Xiao Sheng. "Who is the Princess? Who is Ye Futian? Should Ye Futian really have been the one I worried about in that situation?"


    The blood of the Xiao clan flowed in Princess Xia Qingyuan''s veins.


    "Is that all?" Old Man Xiao asked coldly.


    "I only did what needed to be done. If the Princess blames me for this, I will have no complaints," answered Xiao Sheng. When he had spoken to Xia Qingyuan he had learned that she regarded Ye Futian far more highly than him.


    Ye Futian had lived, so naturally there was no problem. In that case, it was best to try and find an opportunity. The worst possible result was just that he would not have a chance to be at Xia Qingyuan''s side. This would not too different from if Ye Futian was alive. In that case he would also have to dampen his ambitions and not think about them anymore. He would have to find another path of cultivation.


    So he did not regret doing what he did.


    "There is a report for you, Master," came a voice from outside.


    "Come in," said Old Man Xiao.


    A figure quickly came in from outside. After he had stepped into the hall he bowed slightly and said, "News has come from the outsie world. Master Xiao Sheng has been in contact with people from Emperor Li''s Realm."


    Everyone was shocked when he said this. They all gasped loudly.


    Xiao Sheng had been in contact with people from Emperor Li''s Realm?


    If that was so, then him transferring people away from Ye Futian''s side could absolutely not be explained simply by his concern for the Princess.


    That would mean that he had collaborated with the enemy to kill one of his own.


    This kind of crime would be enough to finish Xiao Sheng, and would even put a black mark on the entire Xiao clan.


    "I have not!" Xiao Sheng''s face suddenly chance.d He knew that this crime was not something that he could bear.


    In a flash many pairs of ice cold eyes gazed at Xiao Sheng. The members of the Xiao clan looked at him with severe expressions. The atmosphere in the entire hall had changed.


    The Xiao family was the family of Emperor Xia''s queen, who had given birth to Emperor Xia''s favorite daughter, Princess Xia Qingyuan. Thus, they were at the height of their power, and almost stood at the top of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Everything that they did was to make their relationship with Emperor Xia closer, and to go a little farther. Of course, they did not seek to take advantage of this, they just wanted to follow in Xia Qingyuan''s footsteps.


    If Xiao Sheng was charged with collaborating with the enemy, he would not be the only one who would be unable to bear it. This would put a black mark on the name of the Xiao clan.


    After this, it would be impossible for Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan to place the Xiao clan in an important position.


    "Where did this news come from?" Old Man Xiao asked the man who had come in.


    "I don''t know the source. It seemed to suddenly appear out of thin air. It seems like someone was spreading it on purpose," the man answered.


    "Grandfather, someone is trying to frame me." Xiao Sheng''s expression finally changed. If he was accused of collaborating with the enemy, the situation would be far worse than he had anticipated.


    Old Man Xiao, who normally seemed so warm, was now cold and stern. His eyes were like knives that seemed to pierce directly into Xiao Sheng''s mind.


    "Xiao Sheng, there will be traces left behind of anything that you have done. I understand Qingyuan''s nature a bit. If she is going to do something, she will do it thoroughly. Don''t think that there is any use in hiding anything. If you have done something, your best option is to admit it immediately. Maybe then you will still have a chance. But if you mean to hide it and wait until you are found out, I will have no control over the consequences."


    Old Man Xiao''s voice pierced Xiao Sheng''s ears. In that moment he felt a terrible pressure. It came not only from Old Man Xiao, but from everyone in the hall.


    At that moment, he felt like he was suffocating.


    His expression changed constantly, like he was struggling with himself. Finally, he lowered his head and bowed, saying, "Grandfather, no matter what, I would not dare to collaborate with the enemy. The blood of the Xiao clan flows in the Princess''s veins. How could I dare to help Emperor Li''s Realm against her?"


    As he said this, everyone was still staring at him. Xiao Sheng broke out in a cold sweat, but he continued, "It''s just that I meta female cultivator in the Empty Realm. She told me that Li Yao meant to attack the Princess, and if that happened that I should immediately call cultivators to protect her."


    "Is that all?" A cold voice echoed throughout the hall.


    "At a single sentence from her you rushed to do her bidding? How close was your relationship with her?" continued Old Man Xiao. How much was Xiao Sheng revealing, and how much was he hiding?


    Xiao Sheng knelt to the floor and said, "I admit, everything that you think happened did indeed happen. But I swear I never made any contact with people from Emperor Li''s Realm, nor did I ever speak of betraying Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    "Don''t tell me that you didn''t suspect that''s what you were doing." Old Man Xiao''s eyes were sharp. "You were taking advantage of the situation, and taking the opportunity to get rid of Ye Futian."


    Xiao Sheng lowered his head and said, "In everything that I did I never committed treachery. All along I was thinking of the clan."


    Slap! A crisp sound rang out as Old Man Xiao slammed his hand down on his armrest. His face was cold. "These words might work on me. I believe you, and the people of the Xiao clan believe you too. But how do you intend to explain this to Xia Qingyuan?"


    Xiao Sheng lowered his head. "Aunt will understand me."


    Everyone in the Xiao clan stared at him with fury in their hearts. This was simply dastardly.


    They all understood that once this got out they would have to give up all hope of sending Xiao Sheng to the palace to cultivate. Xia Qingyuan would never trust him again, nor would she ever make use of him.


    "Father, Xiao Sheng is guilty. I will take him to the palace to admit his guilt," said Uncle Xiao to Old Man Xiao.


    "You are planning to go to your sister, aren''t you?" How could Old Man Xiao fail to see what he was thinking? Xiao Sheng had made a terrible mistake, and word of it had reached the outside world. Someone was clearly trying to incite conflict. Under these circumstances, if things deteriorated at all it would be very serious.


    Now, the only only who could help Xiao Sheng was Queen Xiao!

 1084 Summoned by the Queen

    In the midst of the mountain, Ye Futian came to the Cottage Villa.


    There, a quiet figure sat cross-legged, eyes closed, cultivating. The wind past through and caressed her long strands of hair, it was Yaya; she had already woken up.


    Ye Futian walked next to Yaya, only to see her opening her eyes, the breath from her body was still not as steady as before.


    "How are you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Fine, it is just that the cultivation of these few years had been wasted; I need to start from the first level of the Saint Plane," Yaya whispered as if she did not mind it at all.


    The battle with Cao Kong, with her recovered realm, was not enough to stop Cao Kong of the Nirvana Plane, the only way was to return to the peak. This battle had cost her dearly, her cultivation in recent years was destroyed.


    Ye Futian sat next to her and handed a storage ring to her.


    "What?" Yaya looked at him and asked.


    "You cultivated the power of the Great Path in space, everywhere here are the great path fragments with space attributes, they should allow you to speed up your cultivation," Ye Futian said.


    Yaya looked at him and said, "save it for your own cultivation."


    "Your comprehension had long been accomplished. The only thing left was just the realm, it would be faster used on you." As Ye Futian was saying, he reached over and took her hand, then placed the storage ring in her palm, "otherwise If you encountered similar situations again, could you still count on me?"


    Looking up at him, she saw Ye Futian smiling while closing her hand and whispered, "focus on cultivating, we need you in the future."


    As he was speaking he stood up and left. When he turned around, his eyes suddenly became cold. There were news from the outside that Xiao Sheng had colluded with Emperor Li''s Realm. If so, he truly deserved to die.


    Even though he blocked Xiao Sheng''s way, but it was ultimately to contribute his power to the battle for the Empty Realm, and help Emperor Xia''s Realm to win the battle. If Xiao Sheng wanted to get him out of the way, he could have done it in the open; no need to find a pretext, even resort to colluding with Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Who else was more deserving of death if not Xiao Sheng?


    Of course, this whole thing seemed somewhat odd. If Xiao Sheng had really gone to the enemy and colluded with Emperor Li''s Realm, why would such news suddenly come out? With the background of the Xiao clan in Emperor Xia''s Realm, there were few in Emperor Xia''s Realm who would dare to spread such news at will, because once found out by the Xiao clan, they would not easily let it go without retribution.


    Unless, Li Yao had done it intentionally?


    If so, what was his motivation?


    Deliberately inciting the contradiction between himself and Xiao Sheng, thus offending the Xiao clan who stood at the top of the Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    The Xiao clan was royalty.


    If he touched Xiao Sheng, then Li Yao''s purpose was accomplished, and knew that Ye Futian would feel compelled to do so.


    This was also why the plot was the insidious and extremely nasty.


    But even if he knew all that, could he just let Xiao Sheng go?


    But for now, it was better to wait and see. After all, Xiao Sheng''s status needed to be considered, and Xia Qingyuan was already investigating the matter. He would not be impulsive and out of bound. Otherwise, it would only create embarrassment for Xia Qingyuan.


    Whoosh. Ye Futian let out a heavy breath, and felt a little depressed. He felt that although Xiao Sheng was guilty, there was little hope for Xia Qingyuan to execute him for it; it could even be said to be nearly impossible.


    After all, he was the grandson of Xia Qingyuan''s maternal grandfather, the son of her uncle, and the nephew of her mother, Queen Xiao.


    All these relations involved, with layers upon layers of of blood and kinship. Even though Xia Qingyuan has the power as a princess, she was equally subjected to constraints. Punishment was likely, but execution was difficult!


    After Ye Futian left, he went to visit Senior Brother, Knife Saint, and the others to check on their recovery.


    ...


    When Ye Futian was thinking about all these, Xiao Sheng''s father, Xiao Qianhe, had already entered the palace with Xiao Sheng to visit Queen Xiao, who was also Xia Qianhe''s sister.


    After they entered the palace, Xiao Qianhe had Xiao Sheng explained everything in detail. Naturally he understood that this thing could not be concealed. Although Queen Xiao was his sister, she was also the Queen. If he dared to deceive even the Queen, the consequences would only be dire still. To admit guilt and ask for forgiveness was counting on that the aunt would not want to execute her own nephew over this.


    Examine this incident carefully, although Xiao Sheng was a bit foolish, the fortunate thing was that even though he was being used, but he never really had any contact with Li Yao, so at most, it could be said that he was merely borrowing the advantages from Li Yao. It was true that he wanted to kill Ye Futian, but ultimately it failed, and Ye Futian and the others were safe in the end.


    But being defeated like this, when Xiao Qianhe left the palace, his face was cold as ice. Xiao Sheng bowed his head without saying a word, knowing that his future was probably over.


    At this time, inside the palace, Xia Qingyuan came to the personal quarters of Queen Xiao. She looked at her mother and asked, "uncle was here?"


    Obviously, she already knew that Xiao Qianhe and Xiao Sheng had been there.


    "Your uncle wanted to see you, but I know you weren''t in the best of moods, so I didn''t let him and Xiao Sheng go to your place," Queen Xiao looked at her daughter and whispered with a laugh, "are you still worried about this?"


    "There were rumors that Xiao Sheng colluded with Emperor Li''s Realm," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "Do you think your cousin was that stupid?" Queen Xiao said to Xia Qingyuan, "think about his status; collusion with Emperor Li''s Realm? Even if he had killed Ye Futian, what kind of crime would that be?"


    "These many years, I understand the thoughts of your uncle and your cousin, but I''ve let you have your own way. You were just like your father and you know your own mind, so I rarely interfered with your decisions. Xiao Sheng is anxious for fame and glory, and perhaps he was jealous of the position that Fu Ye Futian occupied in your heart, and felt that something that should have belonged to him was robbed by Ye Futian, so he wanted Ye Futian dead. But how would he dared to collude with Emperor Li''s Realm? It was only the people of Emperor Li''s Realm who took advantage of his feelings."


    Queen Xiao continued, "Just now, your uncle and Xiao Sheng came over and explained everything he did. Someone did sent him a message saying that you would be attacked, probably he also wanted to achieve his own objective so he sent away the people you sent to Ye Futian. In any case, Xiao Sheng would never dare to do anything that hurts you. Otherwise, even if your uncle was here begging, I would have killed him myself."


    Xia Qingying was silent without a word. It was all just as she had expected. Indeed, her mother had never interfered with any of her decisions, and everything was always decided by herself.


    But the ties of blood were, after all, unable to be severed.


    Her uncle had came personally to plead, and her mother still chose to speak on behalf for Xiao Sheng.


    "Tell me, Qingyuan, is Ye Futian important in your heart?" Queen Xiao asked.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up at Queen Xiao, remembering that the few times when she first saw Ye Futian, she had always disliked this self-righteous guy. However, after the fight at the imperial mausoleum when she lost to Ye Futian, she had also acknowledged his strength.


    And with everything that happened later, she gradually started to recognize and even accepted Ye Futian, and Ye Futian''s position in her heart had changed quietly. This change did not occur overnight.


    Seeing Xia Qingyuan''s silence, Queen Xiao smiled and said, "sending people to investigate the Xiao clan, without nary a care for your grandfather''s name, just to clear the air for him?"


    "The battle for the Empty Realm was made possible by him, so that Emperor Xia''s Realm won the control for the Empty Realm for the next ten years without a drop of blood. And not long after that victory, an attempt to assassination was made on the single most important person who made it all possible, and now, Xiao Sheng is rumored to have colluded with Emperor Li''s Realm. As the leader in the battle for the Empty Realm, how can I not fully investigate the matter and give everyone involved an explanation?"


    Xia Qingyuan said, "if this whole thing ended like this, it would have a chill effect on everyone."


    Queen Xiao walked up to Xia Qingyuan. She smiled softly and looked at her daughter, "Qingyuan, you are all grown up now; are you still going to wear men''s clothing? It is time to return to your femininity."


    She knew just how beautiful her daughter was.


    She also knew that her daughter was lonely. She had a noble birth, Emperor Xia''s youngest daughter, who was talented and beautiful, and was deeply adored by her father.


    Since childhood, whoever spoke to her, was always careful and full of respect.


    Among her peers, no one dared to look at her, even those proud sons of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Except Ye Futian was an anomaly. It was said that he had absolutely no regards in front of her daughter, but it was just so that his talent was not any less than that of Xia Qingyuan.


    Perhaps his appearance made Xia Qingyuan feel that she was not so lonely after all, that in this world there were still people like her.


    Therefore, Ye Futian had possessed a certain position in her heart.


    "Mother..." Xia Qingyuan looked at Queen Xiao, and knew her mother was trying to change the topic.


    "Arrange a meeting and ask Ye Futian to come to the palace for me to meet him," Queen Xiao said lightly to Xia Qingyuan, Last time at her father''s birthday banquet she had already seen him once, and he had left an impression on her.


    "Don''t investigate your grandfather''s side any more. Your uncle would not dare to deceive me," Queen Xiao continued. Xia Qingyuan sighed. It seemed that her mother was getting involved personally to mediate the matter.


    However, knowing Ye Futian''s temper, how could he accept it?


    She was very clear about how stubborn that guy was.


    ...


    Meanwhile, at the Cottage, messenger sent from the Emperor Xia''s palace delivered the message that Queen Xiao had summoned him.


    Ye Futian immediately understood that the Xiao clan had contacted the Queen, and it was pretty much the same as he had expected.


    Queen Xiao was the first beauty in Emperor Xia''s Realm, the favorite of Emperor Xia, and the mother of Xia Qingyuan. The power she weld could only be imagined.


    Xia Qingyuan launched an investigation on Xiao Sheng, and now there were rumors that Xiao Sheng had colluded with the enemy, it was only natural that the Xiao clan had asked the Queen for help.


    Since Queen Xiao had summoned him, it was obvious that it was for this matter.


    However, for Queen Xiao to personally summon to see him, it showed the high regard she had for him, otherwise as the bodyguard of the princess, if Queen Xiao had issued an order, what could he do, and what did he dare to do?


    In the Villa, many people came to Ye Futian, even Knife Saint who had not yet fuly recovered. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "Futian, the Queen had summoned to see you, you must take care not to offend her. I know it''s impossible for you to let go this thing with Xiao Sheng, but it can wait; don''t cause friction with the Queen."


    Knife Saint was thinking about Ye Futian. Emperor Xia and the Princess were both good to Ye Futian. If there was friction between Ye Futian and Queen Xiao, this would obviously not be most ideal for Ye Futian.


    "Senior brother, don''t worry, I know what to do," Ye Futian sighed in his heart. Because of Xiao Sheng, his Senior brother was seriously injured, but now he was advising him to hold his temper!

 1085 Rewards and Punishments

    When Ye Futian arrived at Emperor Xia''s Palace, there was a maid waiting outside ready to lead the way.


    However, she did not take Ye Futian to the palace of Queen Xiao, but to Xia Qingyuan''s living quarters instead.


    On the stone bridge, Ye Futian saw Xia Qingyuan standing there, and at the pavilion next to the lake across, there was a graceful and elegant figure standing quietly, the back facing Ye Futian. Slender hands waved above the lake, seemed to be feeding the goldfishes in the lake.


    "Princess," Ye Futian bowed slightly to Xia Qingyuan and greeted her.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him and whispered, "my mother wants to see you, come with me."


    As she was telling him, she walked toward the other end of the stone bridge, and Ye Futian followed behind her. They stopped at the lakeside pavilion, where an enchanting mist permeated the air so that the lake appeared as if a fairy pool out of this world. Although the figure standing in front of the lake was just a view from the back, it still exuded an air of noble holiness.


    She turned around slowly, revealing the unparalleled beauty of Emperor Xia''s Realm, upon which mortals dared not cast their eyes.


    However, Queen Xiao at the moment had a gentle smile on her face, and did not seem to be unapproachable. But that temperament was from deep down inside and cannot be concealed. Even just standing in front of her was enough for most people in Emperor Xia''s Realm to feel a touch of pressure.


    "Ye Futian greets Her Royal Highness the Queen," Ye Futian bowed and paid his respect.


    "No need for protocols," Queen Xiao said softly, "I heard Qingyuan speaking of the battle for the Empty Realm, and she credited you especially as the one who single-handedly helped Emperor Xia''s Realm to win the victory of the once every ten-year battle for the Empty Realm, and with the least injuries among all previous battles. To win with the least cost was indeed precious."


    "That was our duty as subjects of the realm," Ye Futian said with bowed head.


    "Provided one has the required ability to do so," Queen Xiao said with a smile, "in every battle for the Empty Realm, how many cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm desired to achieve glorious deeds, and yet there were few who could have done as you did, even though Qingyuan participated this time in the battle, the victory of the battle for the Empty Realm was still uncertain. After all, our opponents were also of royal principalities. Your achievements also meant that you were the most outstanding in this battle for the Empty Realm."


    "The praises of the Queen I dare not accept," Ye Futian said.


    "Excessive modesty is akin to insolence; you quite deserve the praise," Queen Xiao continued, "and, I already said no need for protocol, so why are you continuing to bow your head and not looking at me? Do you think I''m old and ugly?"


    Ye Futian sighed in his heart. Queen Xiao said absolutely nothing of the matter of Xiao Sheng, but instead praised him continuously, even with humor and playfulness. After all, as the first beauty of Emperor Xia''s Realm, who would dare to dismiss Queen Xiao as old?


    This Queen was even more difficult to deal with.


    Looking up, Ye Futian beheld the beauty that could fell a city, replied, "I dare not."


    Queen Xiao''s eyes fixed on Ye Futian and said, "At the Xiao clan, you were not so restrained, actually you were quite comfortable doing what you wanted. You then entered Lihen Heaven, got to the 33rd layer of heavens, and defeated Wang Chuan in front of the Swordmaster of Lihen. At the moment, you are quite unlike the you from before; you are acting this cautiously was it because you have something against me?"


    "The Queen is most distinguished and noble, I dare not disrespect," Ye Futian said.


    Queen Xiao casted a stern look at Ye Futian and said, "then how come I heard that you were quite unscrupulous with my daughter?"


    Ye Futian looked totally confused; this...


    He glanced at Xia Qingyuan, who was next to him, and saw that she was just standing there quietly, without expression.


    "Forget it, you cherish the words like gold, more precious than old me," Queen Xiao said mildly, "but Qingyuan trusted you, and His Majesty have granted you additional title, presumably he wished that you would become a helper in the future for Qingyuan. At the 33rd Layer of Heaven in Lihen Heaven, although the Swordmaster Lihen borrowed the sword from Ye Wuchen, there was hidden intention to protect you."


    "So many people valued you. I''m sure you won''t let them down. Although Qingyuan had already rewarded you for the battle for the Empty Realm, but it was not comprehensive. I heard that Qingyuan had promised to have Divine Cloud Valley craft implements to the people of Nines States; I will personally give them an order to expedite the work so they will not dare to delay. In addition, I also heard that you have traveled to Xuanji Mountain with the intention to trade methods of cultivations. To avoid such troublesome process, Qingyuan had allowed you the freedom to enter Emperor Xia''s Palace, and I will personally allow you to enter the Golden Hall of Lotus in the Palace, all except for the ninth floor, you may come and go as you wish. In addition, you may select ten scriptures of methods, copy them, and pass them on to your close associates at the Holy Zhi Palace."


    Queen Xiao looked at Ye Futian and said, "this way, you don''t have to go to other places to trade for cultivations in the future and your friends would also have enough powerful methods to support their cultivations and continue to move forward. After all, they have contributed greatly in this battle for the Empty Realm by taken Emperor Li''s City and took their imperial flag, so this is rewards to their achievements."


    When Xia Qingyuan heard Queen Xiao''s words, she casted a glance at her mother. A strange color flashed past her clear eyes.


    The Golden Hall of Lotus in Emperor Xia''s Palace could be said to be one of the most precious places in the entire Emperor Xia''s Realm, comparable to any treasured ruins, and many people even thought that it was hands down, the most precious place of all.


    Even her, from the beginning of her cultivation, besides what was taught her by the Emperor her father, most of her time was spent in the Golden Hall of Lotus, seeking enlightenment.


    In Emperor Xia''s Palace, there were some who were of extremely powerful Saint Plane. They were not part of the royal family, but they were willing to enter Emperor Xia''s Palace to serve her father. Some of them did so also for the Golden Hall of Lotus.


    Even with her position as the princess, she did not possess the power to reward others the privilege to enter the Golden Hall of the Lotus to cultivate.


    There were only three people with this power, and they still require the consent of the Emperor.


    One could only imagine just how tremendous this reward really was.


    It would be fine if Ye Futian was the only one to be given this reward, but her mother had said that Ye Futian could take out the transcript of methods of the Golden Hall of the Lotus to allow his close associates to cultivate, which meant that this could be passed on to the cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. This kind of bestowment was extremely rare to say the least.


    This also meant that the Emperor had also agreed.


    Queen Xiao had already received the permission of Emperor Xia.


    Ye Futian clearly understood the weight of Queen Xiao''s reward to him. He could enter the Golden Hall of Lotus at will, which meant that except for the highest level, he could cultivate with any methods he chose, and he could also teach the ten methods to the people of the Holy Zhi Palace, which was equivalent to giving them a holy land of heritage in the Barren State.


    Such reward was not inconsiderable.


    "Many thanks to the Queen," Ye Futian bowed, " I would also thank the Queen on behalf of the people of the Holy Zhi Palace for this handsome reward."


    Ye Futian secretly sighed inside. Was this the compensation from Queen Xiao to the people of the Holy Zhi Palace?


    In this battle, many people from the Holy Zhi Palace were injured, Queen Xiao must have known it.


    "All right, you may go now," Queen Xiao said again.


    "Yes," Ye Futian put his hands together and turned to leave.


    Xia Qingyuan took a step, wanting to catch Ye Futian for a few words, but then she heard Queen Xiao called out, "Qingyuan."


    Xia Qingyuan stopped and looked at Queen Xiao, and heard her said, "come and chat with me."


    Xia Qingyuan looked at the departing Ye Futian, then nodded gently and walked over to Queen Xiao''s side, saying, "anything else, Mother?"


    "Do you disapprove of my decision?" Queen Xiao said.


    Xia Qingyuan understood the intention behind her mother''s decision. She never once mentioned Xiao Sheng, nor did she plead for him. The only thing she did was to pile reward upon reward to Ye Futian, but Ye Futian was a smart guy, he would not have mistaken her intentions.


    "Ye Futian is now coming to the Upper Worlds to cultivate. In the past, those close associates of his were great talents themselves. Following him in cultivation, they would experience wider perspective. For them, what is the most lacking?" Queen Xiao said to Xia Qingyuan, "it is far simpler to ask for Xiao Sheng''s life, but to these people of the Barren State, isn''t it more important to cultivate? To Barren State, could Xiao Sheng''s life be equitable to these?"


    Xia Qingyuan had to admit that Xiao Sheng''s life was indeed not worth the rewards that her mother had bestowed on Ye Futian.


    If the choice was given, anyone would choose these resources for cultivation.


    "Of course, I am only doing this because your father and you both valued Ye Futian, so I am just following your lead. Otherwise, Xiao Sheng''s life is not worth all these efforts, and your father would never allow me to do so." Queen Xiao said, "but he is, after all, your uncle''s flesh and blood, it doesn''t matter to the others, but it''s different for your uncle."


    "Qingyuan, let this be the end of the matter. I have already told your uncle that Xiao Sheng would never be allowed to step into the palace again, and the heir of Xiao clan would never be him." Queen Xiao added.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at her mother, then nodded gently. What her mother had done was even too grave for her to comment any further.


    ...


    After Ye Futian left Emperor Xia''s Palace, news quickly spread from the palace that Queen Xiao had permitted Ye Futian freedom to enter the Golden Hall of Lotus inside Emperor Xia''s Palace, the most prestigious holy land for cultivation in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    In addition, Queen Xia had personally ordered that Divine Cloud Valley to create divine implement for the people of Nine States.


    Not only that, but Ye Futian was also permitted to take the ten methods from the Golden Hall of Lotus and pass it on to the people of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    In addition, there was also the punishment that was dealt to Xiao Sheng.


    Xiao Sheng was tempted while in the Empty Realm, secretly sent commands and dispatched personnel, causing Ye Futian and the others to be ambushed. Going forward, Xiao Sheng of the Xiao clan was not allowed to step into the palace, and the cost for Divine Cloud Valley to recreate divine implements for the people of the Nine States would also be paid for by the Xiao clan.


    Once these two news came out of Emperor Xia''s Palace, many people were staggered by Queen Xiao''s handling of the matter. The first beauty of the Emperor''s Xia''s Realm had chosen to use reward so that Ye Futian had nothing to say.


    At the same time, everyone understood that Xiao Sheng''s future was probably over. With such stain, and the palace had ordered him not to enter the palace ever, from then on, the focus of the Xiao'' clan would no long be Xiao Sheng. Unless his own talent was unusually genius that he would never need the spiritual resources of the Xiao clan to cultivate, and rise up on his own against the odds.


    However, even if he was outstanding in talent, how could he compare with Ye Futian? This had already been proven in the Empty Realm, not to mention, at present, Ye Futian was well-regarded by Emperor Xia and the princess, and all the advantages were on his side. What did Xiao Sheng have to fight against him?


    Before, there were rumors that when Xiao Qianhe and Xiao Sheng left the palace, Xiao Sheng''s face was gloomy. Now everyone understood that the rumor was likely true. After coming out of the palace, Xiao Sheng knew his ending. The punishment may have seemed not much, but in truth it had destroyed his future!

 1086 Sword Will

    Ye Futian returned to the Cottage and told everyone about his meeting with the queen.


    All from the Nine States were shocked. Queen Xiao was something indeed. If she were to simply order Ye Futian to keep his hands from Xiao Sheng, she would not have been able to budge Ye Futian at all.


    However, at present, the queen was taking the soft approach. She simply rewarded him and never mentioned anything about Xiao Sheng. That ended up dissipating Ye Futian''s intent to kill Xiao Sheng altogether.


    Despite wanting to kill Xiao Sheng still, it would have been a lot more difficult.


    The queen gave him plenty of face and rewarded even the people of the Nine States. Her actions of compensating them was actually an act to have them spare Xiao Sheng''s life. Ye Futian simply was unable to do anything about it.


    His only backing would have been Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan, even if he intended to make a move against Xiao Sheng, he needed both of them to back him.


    But then again, everyone knew what Queen Xiao''s identity was��the beloved woman of Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan''s biological mother.


    "Brothers, what do you make of that?" Ye Futian asked his Eldest Brother and Third Brother.


    "It was very sincere of her to summon you for a meeting. If you were to refuse her offer and intended to still make a move on Xiao Sheng, you would have appeared insolent. Furthermore, if you were to offend Queen Xiao simply to take Xiao Sheng''s life and things were keep developing from there, there would be no telling if both Emperor Xia and the princess would be displeased with you." The Sword Saint said to Ye Futian, "Xiao Sheng''s life is worth less than that. Better put it aside for the moment."


    "The news that was spread all over the place seemed to have been pulled intentionally by those from Emperor Li''s Realm, and it was done none other to instigate you to kill Xiao Sheng, eventually pitting you against the Xiao clan and the queen. It''s an extremely disadvantageous turn of events for you, and they sure know how to pull something so devious." Gu Dongliu added, "Xiao Sheng should have been punished by death for what he did in the Battle of Empty Realm. But then again, he wanted to have you killed due to jealousy nonetheless. Now that his future path is in shambles because of that, you''d irk him further by getting better with your own life. There is no need for hurry."


    "Any training methods in the Golden Hall of the Lotus, if you were to seriously take your time to select, would have been worth considerably more than Xiao Sheng''s life. What is there to refuse?" A voice was heard and Ye Futian turned around to address the woman walking in. He then called, "Yaya."


    What Xiao Sheng did involved more than just Ye Futian alone, so it was not something that he could have simply decided on his own. At present, however, it seemed that no one agreed to him making a move against Xiao Sheng.


    Even Yaya shared their opinions on the matter.


    He understood without doubt, that if he were to insist on killing Xiao Sheng, it would have simply meant that he was letting his emotions do the talking. But if he were to truly weigh the pros and cons, it became obvious that Xiao Sheng''s life was not worth it.


    "There is a training method in swordsmanship in the Golden Hall of the Lotus called the Taixuan Sword Sutra. The training method in swordsmanship is suitable for any swordsman and resembles the training methods of the Swordmaster of Lihen in certain ways. Copy the methods and make it into one of the ten, and you could make it something to be passed down in the Holy Zhi Palace," Yaya said to Ye Futian.


    "Alright then." He did not have anything further to say, since Yaya had put it that way.


    Furthermore, there were actually many swordsmen training in the Holy Zhi Palace to begin with. If he were to count those by his side, Yaya, the Glass Saint, the village chief, Qin Zhuang, Wuchen, Xu Shang, the Sword Demon, Zui Qianchou and some others were all practitioners of the arts of the sword.


    The Holy Zhi Palace indeed lacked a power training method in the way of the sword.


    "Would there be any need of other training methods?" Ye Futian then asked Yaya.


    "If you were to see Huangting Fist Will at the eighth floor, feel free to take it. I don''t know much about the others, but since you could now come and go as you like, you could take your time and browse the training methods. Decide for yourself which of them would prove useful," Yaya said.


    Ye Futian nodded. It was actually rather difficult to just pick ten to pass down as legacies. He needed to first take the training of the people around him.


    All of those people around him were people who followed him through thick and thin, establishing the foundations of the Holy Zhi Palace. If he were to pick training methods to pass down, he would have naturally needed to take their needs into consideration.


    The Taixuan Sword Sutra would be useful for the swordsmen. As for other methods, he would have needed to take his time and select carefully.


    "The one that I acquired for Luo Fan back at Xuanji Mountain is useful enough for me. There is no need to find another for me in this trip of yours." You Chi spoke first after seeing Ye Futian eyeing the crowd. He was only allowed to take ten methods, and any one that he would have taken would have been invaluable.


    "Futian, there is no need to deliberately consider for everyone''s needs here. It would suffice to pick that you deem the most powerful," Douzhan said as well. He too, was willing to put his own interests aside and consider for the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "If the difference in power proves great enough, then I shall pick the strongest there are. If there are those suitable for some of you here and those methods are powerful enough on their own, I don''t see any reason to not take them." Ye Futian continued, "Relax. I know what to do."


    "Right." Everyone nodded hearing what Ye Futian said.


    ...


    Ye Futian came to Emperor Xia''s Palace several days later.


    Xia Qingyuan walked with him after knowing that he came, heading for the deeper parts of Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    Emperor Xia''s Palace was a very big place. Palaces shrouded in mists and ancient halls stood tall everywhere. Despite having been there before, he had only been to Xia Qingyuan''s residence and nowhere else.


    He came to a place and saw many steps in front of him. Clouds shrouded the sky of that place, like a paradise on Earth. There was a golden ancient hall that resembled a lotus on top of those steps, and the place was none other than the Golden Hall of the Lotus, which was also the library of Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    There were no guards around the Golden Hall of the Lotus, as if anyone could have came and went as they pleased. But everyone around knew that it was one of the most important places in the palace. No one dared to step foot inside without orders.


    Xia Qingyuan said to Ye Futian, as they stood before the hall, "The Golden Hall of the Lotus had a myriad of books and all of them were saint level training methods. You can''t find anything lower than that. You could say that it is the most important treasure trove in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Not only would you be free to pick any that you find suitable for yourself, you could also study other methods as well, comparing them and advancing your training further."


    Ye Futian nodded. He naturally understood that he needed to incorporate his own understanding in his path of training. The Halberd of Nothingness that he created was one that incorporated the understanding that he developed back in the Endless Ocean, as well as training in the Nine Heavenly Attacks.


    His own understanding of things became even more important after breaking into Saint Plane.


    "Let''s head inside," Xia Qingyuan said and she went into the Golden Hall of the Lotus together with Ye Futian. She was at the pinnacle of Sage Plane herself and needed to make a breakthrough into Saint Plane.


    It was without doubt beneficial for one to further their training by reading a myriad of books.


    Furthermore, she could have provided some opinion for Ye Futian as well. She was very familiar with the Golden Hall of the Lotus after all.


    Ye Futian was quickly enamored by the ocean of training methods laid out before him after stepping inside the Golden Hall of the Lotus. He seemed to have lost track of time as he went on to further his understanding within.


    At that moment, Ye Futian came to a row of books at the seventh floor of the Golden Hall of the Lotus, flipping through the pages of the training methods available.


    All training methods available there were specifically that of speed, suitable for cultivators training in the power of the great path with wind and space attributes. Most of them were spells at saint level which proved useful for enhancing movement speed.


    However, there was one that seemed rather special. It was one on footwork.


    "Footwork of Xuanyuan." Ye Futian frowned at the name of the training method. Does this have anything to do with the Xuanyuan Palace?


    It was said that the ancestor of the Xuanyuan Palace was a Renhuang.


    Ye Futian started flipping through the pages. There were introductions to the footwork at the beginning. The Footwork of Xuanyuan was created by the Renhuang of Xuanyuan all those years ago. It was of formidable might, enabling one to take to the skies with a single step, melding with the great path. It was lost in the generations and there was no detailed explanations on where the footwork originated from actually.


    "The footwork belonged to the Xuanyuan clan. After it was lost in the generations, my father felt it a pity to see it fade from history. As such, he went on to combine his own understanding with any records left by the Xuanyuan clan and created this new breed of Footwork of Xuanyuan. It paled in comparison to the original created by Emperor Xuanyuan all those years ago, however, as everyone developed different understandings in their training after all. There is a copy of it in the Xuanyuan Palace as well, bestowed by my father," Xia Qingyuan explained.


    Ye Futian nodded. If it was something created by Emperor Xia himself, then it would have been extremely formidable regardless.


    Understandings developed by a Renhuang would not have been common things after all.


    He flipped through the pages detailing the essences of the art and extended his spiritual powers to the jade scroll at the side, seeing immediately a blurry figure standing tall in the sky. Every step the figure took seemed to have been able to crack the heavens and the earth, bringing down the sky. The strength of the steps compounded as they were merged with the great path.


    Ye Futian sensed pressure beyond his tolerable limits and the footwork took a turn after melding with the great path, conjuring many mirages and making it looked like that of a matrix, enabling the user to appear in any corner at will. Every single step taken remained terrifying.


    "If the footwork were to be merged with the great path, especially that of suppression and space, then it would have enabled a perfect melding in the arts, enabling defense and offense to be carried in a single move. Even when used for escape, it would still have demonstrated impressive offensive might." Ye Futian felt shaken after his spiritual powers were rescinded.


    Even though it was a lost art that Emperor Xia built from scratch again, it was still terrifyingly formidable.


    "This is it." Ye Futian said. He reserved a spot in the ten for the Footwork of Xuanyuan.


    Ye Futian put Footwork of Xuanyuan aside for the time being and continued to browse other training methods. The reading process actually took him months.


    There were simply too many books to be found in the Golden Hall of the Lotus and all of them were of great depth. If one were to truly spend time understanding every single training method to be found within, it would have taken years and yet one would not have yet been able to finish, let alone spending just months. As such, at later stages, there were many methods that he did not take more than a look of.


    As time passed, he selected quite a number of very powerful methods. He was rather undecided what to take and left the decision at the very end.


    Ye Futian saw the Huangting Fist Will at the eighth floor. There were 33 layers to the art, one layer being stronger than the one before. If one were to be able to train in all 33 layers, one would have been able to break through the great path itself.


    Furthermore, he discovered that Huangting Fist Will was an offensive art that Xia Qingyuan trained before. It was no wonder why Yaya asked him to pick that up. It was obvious that she knew how powerful it would have been. The further one proceeded with their training in the art, the more terrifying it would have became.


    Huangting Fist Will was very suitable for furthering his and Yu Sheng''s training.


    He continued reading the others without stop and quickly reached where the Taixuan Sword Sutra was.


    The Taixuan Sword Sutra was one that trained the heart of the sword and tempered the will of the sword. He extended his spiritual powers into the jade scroll of the Taixuan Sword Sutra and immediately found himself in another space.


    Swords were everywhere in there.


    The sword of the great path rained down and fused within his will. The sword merged with the great path and conjured different sword will of the great path.


    There was one extremely formidable figure standing tall in the void, who waved about with his hand and swords appeared. Every single sword was an embodiment of a way of the sword. When the swords were launched, the heavens and the earth trembled.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt as if he was coursing with sword will all over him. The World Tree in his Life Palace swayed. Sword will seemed to have begun to develop and continued to grow.


    It went on until his entire Life Palace was shrouded by the sword will.

 1087 Destroying His Own Guqin Spiri

    Xia Qingyuan came to where Ye Futian was at the eighth floor of the Golden Hall of the Lotus, staring straight at him.


    She saw Ye Futian being circled around by sword will at that moment, which gradually coalesced into a sword. Her eyes were filled with shock and puzzlement.


    It seemed that her father was not wrong about Ye Futian. He was indeed possibly been of extraordinary birth.


    A sword was seen circling around the World Tree in Ye Futian''s Life Palace after a while. The sword will fell and gave birth to a Sword Spirit.


    The World Tree and Freedom Meditation had once against given birth to another Life Spirit. Of course, doing so required powerful references in reality for developing understanding.


    Sword will flashed in Ye Futian''s eyes as he opened them. He turned around and found Xia Qingyuan standing there.


    "The Taixuan Sword Sutra was of mysterious depth. My Catastrophe Swordmanship was imbued with understanding of the Taixuan Sutra as well," Xia Qingyuan said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded. It was a training method mentioned explicitly by Yaya, so he had to copy it. He went on to comprehend the Taixuan Sword Sutra further, before continuing to roam about in the Golden Hall of the Lotus.


    He came to a remote corner after a while and flipped through the methods available there.


    "The training methods here are available for practice to those possessing specific powers or even Life Spirits. They are not one-size-fits-all types of methods. It is best not to make them methods to be passed down in the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, but you are free to study them yourself," Xia Qingyuan said to him.


    The Taixuan Sword Sutra was not actually a specific training method of a certain way of the sword. It was more like a comprehensive outline of the arts of the sword, suitable for use for any swordsman. The Footwork of Xuanyuan and Huangting Fist Will were suited for cultivators training in multiple abilities, enabling them to meld their ways within.


    Training methods found in the Golden Hall of the Lotus were all of saint level and melded well with the great path. Many of those methods were capable of being melded with great paths of different sort, bringing formidable powers to bear.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded and continued to read the methods over there.


    A training method caught his eye after a while.


    "Art of Thousand Phantasms." Ye Futian read the book and was able to deduce from the title that it had something to do with illusions-related training.


    It was indeed as Ye Futian had speculated after flipping the pages. The Art of Thousand Phantasms was indeed a book on the arts of illusions.


    However, it possessed the ability to bring illusions into reality, changing one''s immediately reality so much that one could have even changed one''s appearance and bearing.


    It was something that only cultivators training in spiritual type of arts could have trained in. Furthermore, the one created the art had a peculiar Life Spirit��the Fox of Thousand Transformations.


    The Fox of Thousand Transformations was a peculiar beast capable of mystical abilities and take thousands of different forms. They were very eerie beings and legends had it that such foxes reaching enlightenment would have been able to enchant people, with nothing more than a single look.


    There had been Foxes of Thousand Transformations taking forms of women of extreme beauty, possessing the ability to enthrall the people.


    Ye Futian extended his spiritual power into the jade scroll of the book and felt a vast power of the great path. His eyes had even taken an eerie, demonic form, making them capable of enthralling others without fail.


    There was a godly Fox of Thousand Transformations appearing in his spiritual world. Those eerie eyes seemed to have been able to cast him into the depths of an illusory world.


    Boom. Ye Futian''s spiritual will shuddered violent as he shook free from those eyes. His spiritual will left the world of the jade scroll, yet the eyes imprinted in his mind nonetheless. In that split second, he felt as if his spiritual will had been taken over by something else.


    The Eye of the Storm passed down by Emperor Ye Qing enabled him to take control of demonic beasts, yet that godly Fox of Thousand Transformations enabled it to take control of humans with its spiritual will. What differed was that the Eye of the Storm was capable of planting a mark in the target''s spiritual will, giving him permanent control. The Fox of Thousand Transformations, on the other hand, probably required eye contact to maintain the effects on the target''s spiritual will. Even so, it was nonetheless extreme terrifying.


    Ye Futian''s eyes glimmered looking at the methods before him, seemingly thinking of something.


    He stepped away after a while and went on to browse other arts.


    Some time passed and he exited the Golden Hall of the Lotus, after picking the ten training methods. He left the Emperor Xia''s Palace and returned to the Cottage with the methods, letting the crowd take their pick on what to train with. At the same time, he had his teacher, Douzhan, as well as You Chi and the others, return to the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State with the training methods.


    There was one among the ten that was of an extremely potent sealing art. Queen Xiao''s orders required that he only passed down the chosen methods within the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State. As such, Ye Futian suggested to the Moon Saint and had him pick the most extraordinary student among their clan to train within the Holy Zhi Palace. Doing so enabled them to gain the sealing art, so the Moon Saint agreed to it.


    It made no difference whether said person trained in the Yue clan and the Holy Zhi Palace after all.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian''s status at the Upper Worlds was such that he was placed with extreme importance by both Emperor Xia and the princess. Even if Queen Xiao intended to save his nephew, she had to resort to rewarding Ye Futian to do so instead. It was a testament of the bright future ahead of Ye Futian. There was simply no way the Moon Saint would have refused having one of his own clansmen train in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    He clearly knew that Ye Futian had actually chosen the sealing art just so to return the favor of having the Yue clan participate in the sacred war.


    He was even thinking if he himself should have joined the Holy Zhi Palace as well.


    He would have been able to train in such a powerful saint level method by doing so after all.


    Douzhan, You Chi and the others returned to the Lower Worlds, back to the Holy Zhi Palace after settling with the arrangements.


    Ye Futian came to Emperor Xia''s Palace again and he went to look for Xia Qingyuan at her place instead.


    "I need a favor from you, princess," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan.


    "What would that be." Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian. He actually came asking me for help on his own will.


    "I want to do something and I might require your assistance in the future," Ye Futian said.


    Seeing Ye Futian being serious, she straightened up herself and said, "Continue then."


    Ye Futian then told her about what he intended to do and Xia Qingyuan''s face saw a shocking change, saying, "Are you out of your mind?"


    "You should know that I train in many abilities, princess. I saw that training method in the Golden Hall of the Lotus, and I think it is viable to do so," Ye Futian continued.


    "That is what you think is viable. What happens if things were to go south?" Xia Qingyuan stared at Ye Futian with a rather cold expression. What the hell is this bastard thinking?


    Is there really a need to go so far for revenge?


    Couldn''t you just wait for a bit?


    "My training is now at the pinnacle of Sage Plane and I have even touched the power of the great path, so I''m not all that far from breaking into Saint Plane. I have developed some understanding training in the Golden Hall of the Lotus for months. If I were to break into Saint Plane, I''d need to experience more to temper my mind, allowing my state of mind to stabilize and further my plane level."


    Ye Futian''s eyes were adamant as he said, "That shall be one very perfect experience."


    "I still think it is too dangerous," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "Which is why I''d need your help, princess," Ye Futian said.


    "I''m not agreeing to this." Xia Qingyuan eyed him coldly and her tone was just as determined.


    Ye Futian frowned. What he intended to do would have been difficult to pull without cooperation from Xia Qingyuan. Furthermore, he would have required large amount of intel.


    "So you''re concerned for my wellbeing then?" Ye Futian stared at Xia Qingyuan and asked all of a sudden.


    Xia Qingyuan was dumbfounded and continued to glare with her cold eyes.


    "You''re my valet now. It''s a waste to let you die just like that," Xia Qingyuan replied coldly.


    "Cultivators couldn''t just simply stick with the beaten path with their endeavors. Haven''t you ventured into the Empty Realm, braving the dangers to fight in the Battle of Empty Realm too, princess?" Ye Futian then continued saying to Xia Qingyuan, "What I intend to do is not actually all that dangerous, and furthermore, I''d have been able to serve his majesty by doing so. Why would you refuse my suggestion in such an adamant manner?"


    Xia Qingyuan glared at Ye Futian without saying anything.


    "There have been many who took the risk in the Battle of Empty Realm. You have participated in the battle personally and never flinched. Yet now you are worrying about my wellbeing. Are you hitting on me now?" Ye Futian provoked Xia Qingyuan with the look in his eyes. After spending so much time near one another, he naturally learned of Xia Qingyuan''s personality and knew what would have worked best on her.


    Xia Qingyuan''s pride simply did not allow her to take such provocations and do nothing about it.


    As expected, Xia Qingyuan glared at him with her cold eyes and said, "If you want to die so badly, fine, I''d oblige you. As for other matters, I''d suggest you not think too much about them."


    Ye Futian smiled after hearing Xia Qingyuan''s words and said, "Thank you for your help, princess."


    His body glimmered after thanking the princess. His Guqin Spirit hovered in the air. Xia Qingyuan had no idea what he was up to. She stared at Ye Futian, who then said, "I''d like to request you to destroy it, princess."


    Xia Qingyuan''s expression turned grim. That bastard has indeed gone nuts.


    He is asking me to destroy his Life Spirit?


    Even though she knew that Ye Futian had suffered having his Life Spirit destroyed before, but she was unable to fathom why he would have wanted her to destroy his Life Spirit right there and then.


    "Are you hesitating, princess?" Ye Futian then continued, "If you wish to see me continue to live, then the Guqin Spirit needed to be destroyed."


    Xia Qingyuan then burst with terrifying will of Catastrophe Swordsmanship after hearing his words. Sword aura circled about her and her eyes were just as piercing as she gazed at Ye Futian''s eyes. She took one step and light of calamity glittered, turning into thousands of swords and swooped at Ye Futian''s Guqin Spirit.


    The strings were broken and the Guqin Spirit was shattered with one rumble after another.


    Ye Futian grunted and spitted blood. Xia Qingyuan pulled her sword wills back and glared at him coldly, "You satisfied now?"


    She then turned around and left, leaving Ye Futian where he was. Her hands, which she had hidden in her sleeves, actually trembled a bit.


    That bastard.


    "Thank you for indulging in my request, princess," Ye Futian lifted his head and looked at Xia Qingyuan, who was leaving. A bitter smile was seen in his eyes. That Guqin Spirit had been with him for many years. It actually pained him to destroy it.


    It was especially so since the Guqin Spirit held significant meanings to him. His teacher, Hua Fengliu, Jieyu, his grandmaster, all of them were related to the guqin.


    At that moment, his Guqin Spirit was no more.


    However, determination was seen in Ye Futian''s eyes. Even though his Guqin Spirit was no more, he had no regrets.


    What he needed to do next required the Guqin Spirit to be destroyed, replaced with other Life Spirits.


    Ye Futian bent his knees and sat on the ground, beginning to recuperate from his injuries at the princess'' residence.

 1088 Pure swordsmans

    Ye Futian returned to train in the Golden Hall of the Lotus to train after recuperating from his injuries, spending days inside without taking a single step out.


    As the days passed, Year 10021 of Divine Prefecture Calendar neared its end.


    Ye Futian finally emerged from the Golden Hall of the Lotus that day and came to the princess'' residence.


    Xia Qingyuan eyed Ye Futian. She never stepped into the Golden Hall of the Lotus all those days. In fact, she had never seen Ye Futian after she destroyed Ye Futian''s Guqin Spirit.


    At that moment, she found Ye Futian''s bearing took an 180 degree change after seeing him for the first time in many, many days.


    Ye Futian of the past exuded exceptional bearing and there was an unbridled, carefree feel to his handsome face. One could have also felt a sense of gentleness and well-mannered bearing from him��something resulting from having been playing his guqin for years.


    Ye Futian, at that moment, while still could have been described as handsome and dashing��even more so when looks alone was concerned��his handsomeness had a tinge of demonic grace to it. Those deep eyes looked enchanting, making it seemed as if one were to fall for him just by looking at those eyes.


    Xia Qingyuan felt Ye Futian''s eyes looking increasingly demonic and enchanting at the moment. It seemed as if there were only those eyes occupying his mind, as if she was going to fall anytime.


    "What are you doing?" Xia Qingyuan snapped out of it and felt a chill running through her spine, turning her eyes away from that pair of eyes of his.


    "Just want to try it out for a bit. Forgive me, princess," Ye Futian replied. His expression returned to normal, but nonetheless looked very handsome still.


    However, the bearing on Ye Futian began to change. His features changed gradually and his silver hair turned black again.


    Ye Futian seemed to have became someone else altogether. While he was still exceptionally handsome, but his looks and bearing were no longer what it had been in the past.


    "Seems like you have mastered the Art of Thousand Phantasms then." Xia Qingyuan kept her eyes at Ye Futian. She had to admit that if it had not been for her witnessing Ye Futian''s transformations personally, there would have been no way she would have recognized him.


    Even if a cultivator were to change their appearances, there was no way they could have changed their bearing and aura. Regardless of how powerful a cultivator would have became, one could have still told who they were with just one look.


    However, not only did Ye Futian change his appearances, his aura and even his entire bearing, bore no resemblance to what they had been before. It was a complete transformation from head to toe.


    "Princess, would you mind if I let his majesty take a look at me?" Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at him, knowing what he meant.


    "Wait here." Xia Qingyuan left where she stood after saying that. Xia Qingyuan returned after a while and said, "You can rest easy now."


    "Thank you, princess." Ye Futian nodded. What Xia Qingyuan said meant that Emperor Xia saw all of that.


    Despite the Art of Thousand Phantasms being extremely mystical, he nonetheless still had his worries, being concerned that extremely formidable beings could have still saw through his disguise. However, he no longer needed to be concerned about that anymore.


    "I''ve taken your time long enough, princess." Ye Futian said, "It''s time that I head back and get ready. I''d still need your help in the future, princess. If I were to not be around, I''d send word through my stead. You would be able to know of my whereabouts at all times."


    Xia Qingyuan gave him one cold look. Ye Futian cupped his hands and returned to his original form, concealing his aura somewhat and left the place.


    A figure came to Xia Qingyuan''s side after Ye Futian left, chuckled in a low voice and quipped, "Interesting little fellow indeed."


    "Do you like being a voyeur so much, father?" Xia Qingyuan glared at the figure that just appeared.


    "This world belongs to your father to begin with. Would I really need to peek at anything?" Emperor Xia chuckled and said. Xia Qingyuan was rather exasperated and had no words to retort.


    "Are you telling me that you have fallen for the kid?" Emperor Xia asked.


    Xia Qingyuan glared at him and said, "I''d fall for anyone but him."


    "Makes sense. The kid sure knows how to piss people off. I feel like giving him a good beating myself." Emperor Xia nodded with a smile. "If he wants to venture on a pilgrimage outside on his own, let him be. There is no need to maintain contact with him. The world would be a more quiet place with him dead somewhere out there. No one else would come to bother you in the future."


    "..." Xia Qingyuan looked at her father with a dumbfounded expression.


    "Why are you looking at me like that for?" Emperor Xia smiled and said.


    "While he is one hell of a jerk, he is nonetheless very exceptionally talented. He might yield unexpected results from his journey. Just have one of your shadow guards keep an eye on him," Xia Qingyuan said to the emperor.


    "If he wants to die so badly, why bother? Just leave him to his own devices then," Emperor Xia said.


    Xia Qingyuan glared at Emperor Xia and said, "Have it your way."


    She then turned around and left.


    "Someone is not speaking their mind here," Emperor Xia said with a smile, seeing Xia Qingyuan leaving in an exasperated manner. She was in no mood to be bothered with him and just kept walking.


    There were definitely less than three people who dared behaved in such a manner in front of Emperor Xia throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Xia Qingyuan, whom the emperor had doted on since a very young age, was no doubt one of those three.


    Emperor Xia smiled and turned his gaze faraway. This kid sure is interesting.


    ...


    At the end of Year 10021 of Divine Prefecture Calendar, Ye Futian was seen training at the mountain behind the villa.


    Sword will coursed about Ye Futian''s body, emanating sharpness throughout his entire being.


    Countless sword will coalesced and terrifying fires emanated from his body. The fires were of raging might as it merged with the sword will. The sword will of flames condensed in a frenzy, being gradually compressed at a single point, which eventually took the form of a sword. The sword pulsed with scorching light throughout its entire form.


    Ye Futian exuded a totally different aura throughout his being after the sword was conjured; it was an aura of coldness. His surroundings seemed to have been invaded by the sword will of coldness, which was coalesced into yet another sword, hovering before Ye Futain.


    The third sword after that was that of storms.


    The fourth, a heavy blade of the stars which suppressed the heavens and the earth.


    The fifth, a blade that was conjured by countless particles, which could have been separated into thousands of swords at any given moment.


    The sixth, a sword of lightning infused with explosive powers.


    The seventh, a blade which flickered in and out of tangibility, looking unreal.


    The eighth, pulsed with the light of space.


    All eight swords pulsed and emanated different sword wills. Stifling pressure was felt throughout his immediate vicinity. Ye Futian''s eyes seemed to be shining with the light of the swords. The eight swords then circled about him.


    Other than the Taixuan Sword Sutra, he learned many other types of sword arts while training with the Golden Hall of the Lotus during the time spent there. Every single art corresponded to one type of elemental powers, which he melded with his own training.


    His way of training would have been different from that of other swordsmen, making him unique.


    Yaya continued to stare at him from behind.


    She had never seen any cultivator like Ye Futian. It seemed as if he would have been able to master any art quickly, so long as he had the will to do it.


    At present, no one would have doubted Ye Futian''s authenticity as a swordsman.


    Furthermore, even if he were to claim that he had been practicing arts of the sword right from the beginning when he began training, no one would have doubted him after seeing what he was capable of.


    Ye Futian was indeed a swordsman.


    Furthermore, he was a swordsman that was considerably more powerful than conventional ones of his current plane.


    Ye Futian waved his hand. Sword wills shot out and leveled a hill far away right there and then.


    The sword wills about him dissipated and he set his sight far away, thinking that since he had came to yield some results with his sword training, he would have grown more powerful if he were to merge the Footwork of Xuanyuan and Huangting Fist Will with his way of the sword. Even if he were to lay off using his previous powers, he would have still been invincible under Saint Plane, not one bit weaker than he had been before.


    "You have changed your bearing and took to studying the art of the sword. What are you up to?" Yaya asked Ye Futian. Very few cultivators did what Ye Futian did. There were definitely reasons for him to be doing what he was doing.


    "Yaya, I might be leaving for some time. Take care of the villa for me," Ye Futian said.


    "Where would you be going to?" Yaya asked again.


    "Somewhere far away." Ye Futian said, "I have hit the bottleneck with my training. If I were to break into Saint Plane, I''d need to go on a pilgrimage. I intend to do this on my own, without bringing anyone with me. No idea when I''d be departing, but I''d leave the bird behind. I''d know if anything would have happened to any of you."


    "You are going into Emperor Li''s Realm, aren''t you?" Yaya''s eyes seemed to be saying that she knew what Ye Futian was thinking.


    If you''re only embarking on a pilgrimage, why would you choose to go alone?


    Even if the pilgrimage were to be one pitting your life on the line and you don''t intend to bring saints with you, why not take Yu Sheng and the others with you?


    Furthermore, having changed his bearing and trained in the art of the sword, all of that seemed to have suggested that he was in disguise.


    She speculated that the faraway pilgrimage that Ye Futian talked about was one to be carried out in Emperor Li''s Realm.


    "Don''t think too much about it, girl." Ye Futian extended his hand, but Yaya anticipated it and dodged, glaring at him.


    Girl?


    Ye Futian put his slightly shaking hand down, shaking his head with a bitter smile. Yaya walked up to him seeing how he acted.


    Ye Futian flashed a warm smile seeing her move. He extended his hand and stroked her hair, saying, "No need to worry about me."


    "Have you learned the Art of Disguise?" Yaya looked at Ye Futian and asked. It was inadequate to just change his bearing and the arts he trained with.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded. His features began to change as Yaya eyed him. It did not seem as if he was in disguise at all. Instead, the man that stood before her had been someone else altogether.


    "What do you think?" Ye Futian returned to his original looks.


    "Even if you are able to change even the world around you, but if you were to kill Li Yao in Emperor Li''s Realm and assuming if you succeed, how are you going to make it out alive?" Yaya continued to ask.


    "Who says that I''m going to kill Li Yao?" Ye Futian smiled and said, "I''m just going to Emperor Li''s Realm to train. I wouldn''t be stupid enough to go and kill him. Relax."


    Yaya''s eyes continued to be filled with distrust. Going to Emperor Li''s Realm just to train?


    What kind of an excuse is this?


    There were plenty of places to train in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, and there were definitely many places stronger than Emperor Li''s Realm, yet he insisted to train Emperor Li''s Realm instead.


    But since Ye Futian put it that way, she saw no need to argue further.


    "If you were to run into any danger, remember to keep me posted." Yaya continued to stare at him, but she was unable to say anything to stop him. If he had made his decision, than it was possibly something that she had no way of changing.


    "Let''s talk about something else. Tomorrow would be the first day of the new year, let''s celebrate together," Ye Futian smiled and said, taking her to the villa.


    The Black Wind Condor ran in Ye Futian''s direction not far away and said, "What are we going to eat for the new year''s feast? Roasted meat?"


    "Indeed, roasted condor." Ye Futian turned around and said to the bird, "Hey bird, seems like you have grown quite a bit of meat from eating too much. Could you actually still fly? How about we take some of those extras off?"


    The bird shuddered and whimpered in an instant, looking at Ye Futian feeling wronged.


    Alright, alright. Lay off the jokes. I''d just go on a diet!

 1089 Unruly Swordsman

    Emperor Li''s Realm was ruled personally by Emperor Li himself, establishing the Dali Dynasty and ruled both the Upper and Lower Worlds.


    The Upper Worlds were naturally ruled directly by Emperor Li himself, while the Lower Worlds were ruled by the members of Emperor Li''s royal family. Furthermore, suitable talents were selected from the Lower Worlds and sent to the Upper Worlds for further training.


    The Dali Dynasty''s Lower Worlds were divided into Nine Counties, which somewhat resembled the Nine States in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    What differed was that all Nine Counties were ruled by sheriffs with absolute power within the country they were in charge of. Conventionally-speaking, they were usually the most powerful person to be found in the county.


    The County of Yan ranked at top three among the powers of the Nine Counties of the Lower Worlds of Dali Dynasty.


    The County of Yan had been famous for years for producing swordsmen.


    There was a saying in Dali Dynasty that went, The swordsmen of Dali were divided between the swordsmen of the Country of Yan, and the swordsmen of other counties.


    As such, swordsmen of Dali would have all trained in the County of Yan.


    There were five holy lands of the sword in the County of Yan and there were 18 Sword Saint level figures in them. It served as the testament of the power of the swordsmen of that county.


    Swordsmen were usually a preferred choice of many cultivators, and there were many stories of swordsmen.


    There was a story in Liuyue City of the County of Yan at the moment.


    There was a young swordsman rising to fame in Liuyue City, which was said to have hailed from the Mountain of Hidden Swords in the east, who developed his powers in a single day, embarking on a journey to help the downtrodden and cut down the wicked. Blood would have spilled as soon as his sword was drawn.


    Among the stories, there was one where there had been robbers throwing their weight around outside of the Mountain of Hidden Swords, robbing everywhere they went and enslaved the weak. Said swordsman traveled a thousand miles on a single sword, going into the lair of the robbers alone, and causing a bloodbath in that mountain all on his own.


    There was also one telling of a clan of swordsmen who performed wicked deeds in secret and even trained in evil arts, using young women to further their training. Said swordsman went up to the clan and cut down the head of the lord.


    But of course, the most renowned one told was one that happened recently in Liuyue City.


    There was a son of the younger sister of the City Lord of Liuyue City, who was known for being lecherous. He took a liking to a woman he saw in the city, however, said woman rebuffed his advances, and so he manipulated things behind and backed her family to a corner. That swordsman caught wind of the news and cut that man down.


    The beloved son of the sister of the City Lord of Liuyue City was killed, and the authorities sent men to arrest the swordsman, who were all ended up killed. The City Lord was enraged and led the army of the City Lord office to take him down, ordering that he be killed on sight.


    However, all of the elites from the City Lord office perished in that battle. The City Lord was killed as well.


    It was worth noting that the City Lord of Liuyue City was at the pinnacle of Sage Plane. However, it was rumored that said swordsman only took one attack to take him down.


    In actuality, such stories were filled with conventional tropes, and there were happening everywhere all the same. Bullies, perverts, and robbers, those people were found in abundance and there was never any shortage of those kind of people. No one could have ever cut every single one of them down. But, it was just a coincidence that the swordsman kept running into those people, and proved mighty enough to slay them without delay.


    None of those matters would have been all that much of a story in the vast Dali Dynasty otherwise.


    It was rumored that that swordsman went by a very simple name. It was anything but overbearing and very memorable.


    He was known as the Seventh Swordsman, and some speculated that he had the name due to having carried seven swords with him.


    None of them would have naturally expected that the man had only took such a man due solely to laziness. There had once been a swordsman he knew named Yan Jiu, whose name meant loosely ''Yan the Ninth'', so he just called himself the Seventh Swordsman instead.


    The death of the City Lord of Liuyue City kicked up quite a ruckus. It was worth noting that other than being City Lord, the man had another identity��a student of the Sword Clan of the Gale, a holy land of the sword. The holy land was established by a sword saint named Jian Kuangren, whose swordplay was known for its overbearing and ferocious nature, with many of its moves consisting of strong blows and wide sweeps.


    Liuyue City was under rule of the Sword Clan of the Gale.


    There was no way said holy land would have simply let the death of the City Lord slide just like that. It was said that there were already mighty ones heading towards Liuyue City.


    Within a villa found inside Liuyue City at that moment, there was a woman who was playing the guqin. The woman had soft features and looked quite stunning. She was alluring enough to pique the interests of any lecherous fellow.


    A man was lying on the ground near the woman, who had a sword placed at his side, while carrying a gourd on his right hand, drinking from it.


    The young man had stunning looks and those eyes of his had a mystical charm to them. At that moment, he looked like he was enjoying himself, drinking and listening to music.


    The man was none other than the talk of Liuyue City at the moment��the Seventh Swordsman.


    The man was also one who hailed from the Nine States of Emperor Xia''s Realm, who came to Dali Dynasty on pilgrimage, Ye Futian.


    He trained as he traveled, venturing into the Lower Worlds of Dali Dynasty from the Nine States, instead of entering Emperor Li''s Realm from the Upper Worlds directly.


    Ye Futian had two goals for making the trip, with one of them being truly to train on his pilgrimage, tempering his mind. As such, it was not an odd choice for him to travel through the Lower Worlds instead.


    His second goal was to avoid any troubles or suspicions, which might have happened if he were to enter Dali Dynasty right away from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Li''s Realm had a way of investigating a swordsman from the Lower Worlds.


    It was especially so for a swordsman who ventured out from the Mountain of Hidden Swords, a holy land of the sword, in the County of Yan. His journey was an extremely risky one, so he naturally needed to be very careful and had to cover his tracks all the time.


    The woman gradually stopped for the tune was over, turning her eyes at the handsome man who lying about drinking. She then said, "Mr. Seventh, it''s best for you to leave. The Sword Clan of the Gale is a holy land of the sword. Even if there were to find out the truth, they might not come looking for trouble with us. But since you''ve killed the City Lord of Liuyue City, they will sure come for you."


    "Having a pretty woman by my side, drinking fine booze, and having superb music being played, this is just heaven for me. Why should I leave then?" Ye Futian smiled and asked. The woman lowered her head for a bit and looked rather embarrassed. She then turned her eyes again at Ye Futian, who was lying about and thought that it was quite lucky for her to even get to meet one such dashing figure.


    While they have yet to get to know each other for long, yet the extremely dashing young man left a deep, lasting impression on her. The man was carefree and abrasive. It seemed that it was always how he had been carrying himself.


    However, what made him so unforgettable to her was how stunning and extraordinary he looked when he worked with a sword. It seemed as if he was able to put anyone under the heavens in their place with little more than a sword in his hand. Blood would have been spilled as soon as the sword was drawn.


    "Furthermore, is the Sword Clan of the Gale really that powerful?" The young man put his gourd down. Those extremely charming eyes of his met hers with a smile. The woman felt dazed for a second, seemingly attracted by those eyes.


    She turned her eyes away and dared not look at them any further. She lowered her head and said, "I know that your training is superb, Mr. Seventh, yet the Sword Clan of the Gale was still a holy land nonetheless. There were quite a number of extremely powerful genius swordsmen in the place. The ones who are coming would definitely be anything but weak, and there would be quite a number of them as well. You might be very powerful, but there is simply no need to stay behind and risk your neck for me."


    "Don''t think too deeply into it. I''m not doing this for you," Ye Futian smiled and said. The woman felt her cheeks burning as soon as she heard that.


    "It''s a good opportunity for me to get to know just how powerful the swordsmen of the Sword Clan of the Gale are. I wonder if the genius swordsmen of said holy land would be able to make me use a second attack on them." Ye Futian sounded lazy when he was saying all of that. There was no way he would have left. He was already in Dali Dynasty and he was compelled to attract some attention somehow.


    He needed to attract not only the attention of holy lands of the Lower Worlds, but also cultivators of Dali Dynasty of the Upper Worlds.


    As such, he needed to take quite a bit of shortcuts, but then again, he still had to be careful not to overdo it.


    The woman felt rather exasperated, but she seemed to have gotten used to Ye Futian bragging. She heard quite a bit over the time she spent around him.


    "Mr. Seventh." An anxious voice was heard at that moment. A middle-aged man walked towards him in a hurry and took one look at his daughter, before saying to Ye Futian, who was casually lying about, "Mr. Seventh, Nie Yun of the Sword Clan of the Gale brought his men personally to Liuyue City. It was said that they were already at the City Lord''s office. I thank you for your kindness, but it''s best that you leave. If I were to drag you into my mess and end up getting you killed, I wouldn''t be able to forgive myself."


    "Is this Nie Yun that powerful?" Ye Futian did not seem fazed at all, as he asked in a lazy manner.


    "He is the number one in the Sword Clan of the Gale. The powers of Nie Yun would have ranked him in the top ten in all of the County of Yan," the middle-aged man said.


    "Top ten in the entire County of Yan huh?" Ye Futian then continued nonchalantly, "Even if the number one below Saint Plane in all of County of Yan were to show up, I can tell you that they wouldn''t even be able to make me dish out a second attack."


    "Is that so?" A voice was heard from afar. There were swords whooshing from faraway as the question was asked. One figure after another was seen arriving on their swords.


    Furthermore, there were more and more mighty ones closing in on the villa, peering inside as they moved.


    "The number one figure below Saint Plane in all of County of Yan unable to make you dish more than one attack, you say?" A cold voice was heard. Everyone was baffled. The Seventh Swordsman was no doubt very powerful, but they nonetheless deemed him to have been too pompous and reckless for boasting like that.


    The County of Yan was vast and there were plenty of genius cultivators about. Talented swordsmen were in untold numbers, and one could have imagined how powerful the number one below Saint Plane had to be.


    The middle-aged man and the woman turned pale, knowing that it was too late for them to do anything further.


    The middle-aged man steeled him at the moment and walked forward, saying, "Senior, you need to know that it is indeed the City Lord''s people going too far in this matter. The Seventh Swordsman here was simply helping us out. If you insist on taking someone, then take us instead."


    "This has nothing to do with the two of you," Nie Yun said plainly. Many gasped as he said that. They were indeed people from a holy land, seeing how they had done their investigations beforehand. Claiming that the matter had nothing to do with them meant that they did not intend to pursue the matter further with them both.


    However, it remained a fact that the City Lord died by the hands of that swordsman. There was no way the Sword Clan of the Gale would have simply let things slide like that.


    Many took to the air and looked into the compound, seeing that swordsman remained lying about lazily. He was totally unfazed even after seeing Nie Yun showing up.


    "Seeing as how you people could still tell right from wrong, I''d just spare you people then. Just go home," Ye Futian said plainly.


    "How insolent," Nie Yun berated angrily. He stepped out, bursting with towering sword will and ferocious winds whipped about, then diving below at Ye Futian.


    He was not the only one who had gotten angry, as all swordsmen from the Sword Clan of the Gale shared the same sentiment, as they burst with their sword will.


    "Why do you have to make me do this?" Ye Futian said lazily and slowly got up, taking to the air and set his eyes at Nie Yun.


    "Draw your sword." Ye Futian gazed at Nie Yun, whose expression turned somewhat severe seeing Ye Futian''s eyes. Violent aura burst around him and coalesced into swords.


    Swords were conjured around Nie Yun, all imbued with the sword will of storms. He looked extremely overbearing at the moment.


    Everyone around them turned their attention to Nie Yun, who whipped up a terrifying storm of sword aura around him, as he stood tall in midair. Many gasped as they witnessed the number one below Saint Plane in the Sword Clan of the Galen in action.


    Voom. Gale blew and Nie Yun streaked forward. His storm getting increasingly powerful as it whipped at Ye Futian.


    The place was filled with sword aura in an instant.


    Ye Futian sensed that storm coming at him and conjured a heavy sword right before him.


    He took one step forward as Nie Yun came. The space around them shuddered as the heavy sword was brought down like a bolt of lightning. Many witnessed the sword cutting through the storm right there and then like hot knife through butter, tearing the storm apart.


    Boom! Nie Yun''s body halted with a rumble, before falling below right there and then.

 1090 The People of Dali Beneath His Notice

    Pff. Nie Yun, who dropped below, spat up blood. His insides felt as if a heavy sword had cleaved them apart. His insides were so violently rattled that he felt as if his body would come apart at any given moment.


    Nie Yun looked up at the young man before him and sported a surprised look. The man had indeed dealt only one attack. He was not the only one feeling dumbfounded. Many around them stared blankly at what just happened.


    Nie Yun, the number one below Saint Plane from the Sword Clan of the Gale, a holy land of the sword, had only been able to make that young man attack once, just like how it was with that City Lord. Just how powerful was he?


    The students from the Sword Clan of the Gale sported frustrated looks. They flashed about and burst with towering sword will, making their way towards Ye Futian. Swords came raining down from above, bursting with mighty sword will within an instant. All of the other mighty ones around them felt dazed. That space seemed to have been filled with nothing but sword aura.


    At that moment, however, they saw Ye Futian''s body burst into brilliant light, like a blazing sun. There seemed to have been a red sun shining in the sky. Ye Futian pointed at the air, and a scorching hot blade emerged from that sun. His sword aura swept all over the place.


    "Go." Ye Futian pointed forward, and within an instant, the flash of the sword of the sun burst with blinding light. The students from the Sword Clan of the Gale felt their eyes hurt. It was as if they had been burned by the fires of the sun. When the Solar Sword Flash fell onto them, they felt as if they were covered in scorching heat within a heartbeat. All of their sword will was burned away immediately. Wherever the light of the sword hit, smoking noises were heard as the clothes of many caught in flames and began to burn. Eerie gashes of the sword were left on some of them as well.


    Everyone stopped what they were doing in an instant, looking at the extremely brilliant young swordsman with astonished expressions. That handsome appearance of his seemed rather demonic. Even men had to admit that those eyes were indeed mesmerizing. Since when did the Mountain of Hidden Swords produced one such mystical swordsman?


    "You failed to discipline your people despite claiming to be of a holy land of the sword. That City Lord bullied others using his status, thinking that he had nothing to fear due to having been a student of the clan. It is no wonder why you people failed to produce any swordsman worth mentioning," Ye Futian said, completely monotone. He was exuding an extraordinary bearing all over him. It was as if the Sword Clan of the Gale was entirely beneath his notice.


    The students of the Sword Clan of the Gale all looked frustrated, yet they were unable to come up with any words to retort him. They, the student of the Sword Clan of the Gale, were unable to withstand more than one attack from him, after all.


    "That there is one true swordsman." Many young swordsmen from Liuyue City looked at Ye Futian with admiration. All disputes were to be settled with the sword as a swordsman ventured on their way to do good, taking no more than one attack to deal with any one person.


    "Any unjust matters of the world shall be taken care of with a single swing of the sword. You''re all from holy lands, so what? Care to take one swing of the sword from me?" That was the true personification of a swordsman.


    "If you feel vexed, then go back to your clan and tell everyone what is happening. I want to see if the saints of the Sword Clan of the Gale will come for me, just like you people," Ye Futian said plainly and waved about with his hand. Sword will filled the place as he said, "What are you still here for?"


    "Let''s go," Nie Yun said. The mighty ones then retreated in a heartbeat, with their tails between their legs. Many felt dazed about what just happened. Those people were students of a holy land of the sword. Nie Yun was known to be the number one below Saint Plane, one who ranked among the top ten in the County of Yan. They expected Ye Futian to be taken away by the Sword Clan. No one would have anticipated that he still lashed out with just one attack.


    Just how powerful is this Seventh Swordsman? they wondered.


    "Mr. Seventh." The father and daughter in the villa looked just as dazed. Their hearts continued to race. He was just too powerful. They were not even able to begin imagining how powerful Ye Futian was. He used only a single attack, be it when he was dealing with Nie Yun or the others, after all.


    "I studied the art of the sword for many years before venturing outside of the Mountain of Hidden Swords, thinking it would be a good thing to see how capable swordsmen outside were. I never expected to find the swordsmen to be so weak. Now, I''m wondering if there are actually swordsmen worth mentioning in the County of Yan." Ye Futian shook his head and said, "Man, this is boring. It seems like more fun to drink and listen to the guqin indeed."


    "..." Many were rendered speechless hearing Ye Futian talk.


    He was wondering if there are actually swordsmen worth mentioning in the County of Yan? Gosh, just how boastful could he be...


    It was worth mentioning that over half of the swordsmen of Dali Dynasty hailed from the County of Yan, which actually sent many, many geniuses of the sword up to the Upper Worlds. Some top-notch geniuses were extremely renowned in the County of Yan. However, the way Ye Futian talked, it seemed as if he was suggesting that there were no swordsmen in all of the County of Yan. But then again, when they recalled what happened moments ago, it seemed to them that he was rightful to boast, given how he had what it took to back his claims.


    "Where did you train in the Mountain of Hidden Swords, senior?" A young man then bowed and asked Ye Futian.


    "Is there any place in the Mountain of Hidden Swords that you can''t train in?" Ye Futian retorted with a single question. The young man was dumbfounded and then bowed at Ye Futian, saying, "I do still have much to learn. Thank you for your guidance."


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded and looked like he was some kind of master. Little did the young man know that Ye Futian was making things up. While he had been to the Mountain of Hidden Swords before, he did little more than take a scroll there. The place was too big after all, and he was just there to get familiar with the place, just so to prevent him from getting his cover blown in the future.


    The Seventh Swordsman was an orphan who hailed from the Mountain of Hidden Swords. He had a single-minded devotion to the art of the sword and did nothing but practice his way of the sword. He was also of supreme talent in the learning of the way of the sword.


    That constituted his identity at Dali Dynasty. That identity of his would one day been the talk of all of Dali Dynasty, becoming an extremely renowned genius in all of the realm.


    Ye Futian hovered to the ground and smiled at the woman at the villa below. "Would you mind if I trade that attack for one more tune?"


    "I''ll play as many as you wish to hear, Mr. Seventh," the woman said softly and then began to play the guqin again. Ye Futian continued to drink, without any intention of leaving the place. He was waiting for the Sword Clan of the Gale to send more people his way. Be it to extend an invitation or to deal with him, he was indifferent.


    The middle-aged man smiled a bitter one as he shook his head while looking at Ye Futian. That daughter of his was considered beautiful and prudent, and it seemed as if she was about to really fall for the man. However, he knew that one such mystical man was not someone that his daughter would be able to tie down.


    That previously unknown young swordsman who hailed from the Mountain of Hidden Swords had truly set the world on fire. That one attack of his would earn him fame throughout the entire County of Yan.


    As Ye Futian expected, Nie Yun came back to Liuyue City on the same day, looking for Ye Futian.


    "You want to try your hand again?" Ye Futian sat on the ground and drank quietly, looking at Nie Yun, who had just gotten there.


    "Our clan leader extends an invitation," Nie Yun said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flashed as he drank with his head down. He then put his cup down and said to Nie Yun, "I''m not interested in joining the Sword Clan of the Gale."


    "I know." Nie Yun looked at Ye Futian coldly. While he acknowledged Ye Futian''s strength, he deemed him to be unnecessarily prideful. But he nonetheless knew that there was little for Ye Futian to gain in joining and training in the Sword Clan of the Gale.


    Nie Yun was standing at the very top below Saint Plane, after all.


    "You claim to be invincible in the art of the sword. Wouldn''t you want to know what the powers of other top-notch swordsmen in the County of Yan are like?" Nie Yun asked.


    "I heard that you rank among the top ten below Saint Plane in all of County of Yan. If all swordsmen from the County of Yan are of a similar caliber, why should I bother?" Ye Futian eyed Nie Yun with his charming eyes. Nie Yun was dumbfounded as he glared at Ye Futian coldly.


    That b*stard knows no respect at all, he thought.


    "I''m far from being the only swordsman in all of County of Yan. There are naturally those who are more powerful than I am. Even if the County of Yan proves inadequate, top-notch geniuses are found in abundance through the Nine Counties of Dali Dynasty. Do you dare to claim to be superior to them all?" Nie Yun asked coldly.


    "Why would I not?" Ye Futian looked at Nie Yun and continued, "I''ve spent decades in the Mountain of Hidden Swords to perfect my art of the sword, and I gave up fame and glory for over 30 years before I got to where I am today. Dali Dynasty has Nine Counties, so what?"


    Nie Yun glared at Ye Futian, feeling rattled inside. That man had spent decades perfecting his art in the Mountain of Hidden Sword, spending 30 years learning the sword arts. It was persistence and determination that he found himself impossible to match. It was not surprising that he lost at all. However, Nie Yun still deemed the man before him to have been overly pompous. 30 years learning the art of the sword, and you think you can claim to be invincible throughout the Nine Counties of Dali Dynasty? he thought.


    "There are trillions of cultivators throughout the world. Mighty ones of Dali Dynasty are literally everywhere. Other than the geniuses of the Lower Worlds, there are still the cultivators of the Upper Worlds who are even more brilliant and unmatched, whom the ones from the Lower Worlds are incapable of matching at all. While you have defeated my brother and proven yourself to be of incredible power, deeming everything in the world beneath you and cultivators of all realms not worthy of your notice, don''t you think you''re too much of a frog in a well? Is this your way of the sword?" a woman beside Nie Yun said. The woman was not there previously. She came after hearing that the man defeated Nie Yun with a single stroke of the sword. She wore plain, pitch-black clothes, sporting a dashing, stunning appearance, as well as a well-mannered grace.


    There was no way she could have known that Ye Futian was able to brag like that because he had already seen what the top-notch geniuses below Saint Plane from Emperor Xia''s Realm, Emperor Li''s Realm, and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm were capable of. If Ye Futian were to be a cultivator who had not been in the scene for long, then the woman would have been right about Ye Futian��a frog in a well whose arrogance knew no bounds.


    "My way of the sword rests with the sword in my hand. There may be countless cultivators throughout the world, but there will only be one Seventh Swordsman," Ye Futian said.


    "Brother, while this man truly has exceptional powers, he is not worth inviting over. Let''s go," the woman said to Nie Yun, feeling rather disappointed at Ye Futian''s extremely boisterous attitude.


    Nie Yun gazed at Ye Futian and said, "This is the order of our teacher. The Upper Worlds of the dynasty are recruiting extraordinary people. This might be your chance. Since you''ve claimed to be invincible, I suggest you go and see for yourself. You can take it as I''ve never said anything to you otherwise."


    "That so?" Ye Futian looked amused. What a coincidence indeed. Dali Dynasty ruled both the Upper and Lower Worlds directly, so they would definitely be more strict with the administration of the Lower Worlds. They might have suffered quite a shock after the Battle of Empty Realm and were ready to recruit capable people from the Lower Worlds en masse.


    The ones who decided the outcome of the Battle of Empty Realm were none other than him, Yu Sheng, and the others, who had cut down the imperial flag of Dali Dynasty��people who hailed from the Nine States of the Lower Worlds.


    "Since you''ve put it that way, I shall go and have a look. I''d like to know how many attacks the cultivators of the rest of the world can make dish out." Ye Futian got up and began walking. Nie Yun felt dumbfounded. However, being someone who lost to Ye Futian, he had no right to say much about Ye Futian''s arrogance.


    That woman eyed Ye Futian coldly. Even though he had defeated her brother, who was of supreme talent, she deemed Ye Futian someone who would have limited achievements due to his insolent nature. She was slightly disappointed about coming. While Ye Futian looked stunning, those who trained in the art of the sword were not simply common beings.


    "Mr. Seventh." The woman who was with Ye Futian rose, and the middle-aged man came as well, looking at Ye Futian. "Fate brought us to meet each other. I think no one else from Liuyue City will look for trouble with either of you in the future. I shall take my leave," Ye Futian said and began to walk away nonchalantly, leaving with Nie Yun and his people.


    The woman continued to gaze at him after he left. She believed that she would hear of his name again soon enough, as he was about to be known throughout the world!

 1091 Traveling Together

    The Sword Clan of the Gale was one of the five holy lands of the County of Yan. Jian Kuangren, the clan leader, was a saint at the pinnacle of the first level of Saint Plane. It was said that his way of the sword was filled with pride and unruliness.


    The Sword Clan of the Gale was considered the weakest out of the five holy lands of the County of Yan. Of course, that was also the reason Ye Futian chose to set up shop within Liuyue City��a place ruled by the Sword Clan of the Gale��in the first place. Even if he were to get on the bad side of a sword saint of the first level of Saint Plane, he would not have been taken down right away without any way of fighting back.


    Although he pretended to be extremely arrogant, he nonetheless had to be cautious while operating within the Dali Dynasty. He had been a champion of the people and went around doing good deeds ever since he entered the Dali Dynasty. All whom he killed were people who deserved it, so there were little faults others could have found with him.


    Ye Futian met Jian Kuangren at the palace of the Sword Clan of the Gale on a mountain, who was also known as the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind. Nie Yun and that woman walked to the sides of Jian Kuangren, and there were many students of the Sword Clan of the Gale below him. All of them looked at Ye Futian. So this is the guy who defeated Brother Nie Yun with just one attack then, they thought.


    Ye Futian gauged the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind. He was tall and imposing. He emanated sharpness of the sword throughout his being as he fixed his eyes on Ye Futian.


    "I''m the Seventh Swordsman, senior. It is an honor to meet you," Ye Futian bowed and said. Jiang Kuangren did not say anything. He emanated formless pressure while his eyes were locked onto Ye Futian, finding the man before him exuding a demonic charm, yet lacked the tension exhibited by many when they faced saints.


    There were many cities found in the County of Yan, and cultivators were aplenty, yet there were only 18 saints found in the county. All of the sword saints were revered by many. It was the Lower Worlds after all. Regardless of how superbly talented one might have been, all would have paid due respect to a saint when they saw one. However, Jian Kuangren was unable to sense any such respect from Ye Futian. Even that bow of his seemed nonchalant.


    There was no way he would have known that Ye Futian was a Palace Lord of a holy land. The saints who served him were all powerful enough to raze the County of Yan in its entirety, so there was no way he would have behaved like conventional cultivators.


    "You don''t seem too concerned with saints," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind said to Ye Futian.


    "As a member of the later generation, it is only natural that I respect my seniors and elders. However, one''s training precedes all. Is there a need for cultivators of the sword to be too concerned with propriety?" Ye Futian answered.


    Pressure continued to be emanated from the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind as he continued to stare at Ye Futian. The man was indeed how he was rumored to be��insolently prideful.


    "One''s training precedes all, eh? It seems like you have absolute confidence in being able to break into Saint Plane." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind continued, "I have heard that you claim that there are hardly any swordsman who could have you deal a second attack, no?"


    "He didn''t even bother with the Nine Counties of Dali Dynasty, let alone the County of Yan," the woman at the saint''s side quipped.


    Ye Futian took a look at the woman and said, "If you invited me here to interrogate me, then it''s best that I leave." He cupped his hands and got ready to leave as soon as he finished his sentence.


    "If you''re so confident in your way of the sword, then I suppose you''d be interested in fighting the geniuses throughout the Nine Counties of Dali Dynasty. The dynasty is now recruiting people from all over the Nine Counties. If you''re so confident about yourself, you should test yourself at the event." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind seemed rather calm as he spoke to Ye Futian.


    "Where should I head to?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The people throughout the Nine Counties are gathering at Liwang City." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind continued, "If you''re of supreme talents, you could train in the Upper Worlds right away. There might be cultivators coming from the Upper Worlds of Dali Dynasty this time. If you''re truly that powerful, perhaps you might be able to achieve fame and glory with a single step even. Does that interest you enough?"


    "Not interested." Ye Futian answered plainly, "So you''re saying that there is a competition of martial arts at the Lower Worlds, then?"


    "Perhaps." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind nodded and looked slightly amused. He said that he was uninterested, eh?


    "Just how many cultivators throughout the Nine Counties of Dali Dynasty are worthy of having me draw my sword?" Ye Futian said plainly, "Such competitions sound boring. As for training at the Upper Worlds, I''d be able to head there any time the sword is in my hands. As for fame and glory, that sounds even more boring. What I seek is none other than the supreme way of the sword. If I were after fame and glory, I wouldn''t have spent decades polishing my art and have emerged only recently."


    "Supreme way of the sword, is it? Interesting." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind looked increasingly amused with Ye Futian. He then said, "Cultivators of the sword do indeed need to have little concerns with fame and glory, devoting themselves single-mindedly instead, in tempering their minds of the sword. It seems like you have a high state of mind. It is no wonder that you were able to achieve this much. But, even if you''re interested in polishing your art and think that few throughout the Nine Counties are worthy of making you draw your sword, then there is all the more reason you should head to the Upper Worlds to train, don''t you think?"


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "In that case, let''s travel together. I''m curious about your way of the sword. If you think that few throughout the Nine Counties are worthy of making you draw your sword, then how about you wait until you find someone who can make you do so?"


    "Very well, I shall travel with you, senior." Ye Futian nodded. That was his goal, after all. It would have been easier for him to add another layer to his identity by being among the ones from holy lands, instead of just one guy appearing out of nowhere.


    "Huanxue, find him somewhere where he can train," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind said to the woman beside him.


    "I..." The woman was dumbfounded. "I refuse." The woman was the biological daughter of the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind. She would not have dared to take such an attitude, refusing what the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind told her. She had had a taste of Ye Futian''s arrogance, and now, even before her father, Ye Futian continued to behave insolently. Despite his superb talent, she had no desire to get too involved with him.


    "It seems that you''re not ready to travel with us on this trip, then?" the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind said plainly. The woman glared at her father, feeling exasperated as she said to Ye Futian, "Come with me." She only brought Ye Futian away after that. No one was able to fathom why the clan leader was so polite with that insolent swordsman. While it was true that he had talent, the clan leader was a sword saint, and there was simply no need for him to be so polite.


    "You''re dismissed." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind then waved at the people, who then left. Nie Yun was still around, looking at the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind as he asked, "Are you that appreciative of this Seventh Swordsman, teacher?"


    "That kid has the will of the way about him." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind did not look at Nie Yun, casting his gaze faraway as he continued, "There are indeed few below Saint Plane in all of the County of Yan capable of matching him in a fight, let alone you. If he were compared to those throughout all of Dali Dynasty, there are but a handful of people capable of matching him." He heard from Nie Yun that the man came from the Mountain of Hidden Swords. That place was indeed a pure land of training of those who were steeped in the art of the sword. He spent decades polishing his art and only emerged after 30 years of age. If he had indeed turned out to be such, then that man''s mind of the sword was undoubtedly pure, any hardly matched whose aptitude for the way of the sword in the County of Yan. There were few swordsmen throughout the County of Yan capable of learning that much all on their own, after all.


    "In that case, why not take him in as a student of the clan instead, teacher?" Nie Yun asked.


    "If he was able to come this far all on his own, there is no way the Sword Clan of the Gale will be able to keep him around. He belongs to the Upper Worlds of Dali Dynasty. I have my agenda of having him travel with us. The Sword Clan of the Gale had been the weakest holy land of the sword throughout the County of Yan for many years. If there is one swordsman in our midst who proves capable of shining brightly through Dali Dynasty and overwhelming those from other holy lands of the County of Yan, it''d feel rather satisfying nonetheless." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind smiled as he said so. It was not that much of an agenda. One could have said it was only something saints would have found amusing.


    "And yeah, don''t tell your sister about this," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind said.


    "Why would that be?" Nie Yun asked in puzzlement.


    "There is a need to give her some shock. The greater the shock, the greater her gain would be in tempering his state of mind." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind then turned around smiling, leaving the place.


    His daughter, Huanxue, escorted Ye Futian to a compound of the clan and said, "Stay here and train. The Sword Clan of the Gale is a holy land of the sword, and there are many forbidden areas. Don''t loiter around elsewhere if you''re not training."


    "Thank you." Ye Futian walked straight ahead into the compound and did not bother to take another look at the woman. He had no doubt saw through her attitude and did not bother. They were hardly acquaintances, after all. The woman was scarcely surprised about Ye Futian''s attitude as well. She then turned around and left.


    ...


    The mighty ones from the Sword Clan of the Gale departed several days later. Their sword will filled the place as they headed faraway.


    Ye Futian was naturally with them on the trip as well. However, their destination was not Liwang City. They were heading to Yandu City, which was where the sheriff of the County of Yan was found.


    All Nine Counties of Dali Dynasty had their respective sheriffs, reigning supreme over the own counties. Even holy lands were subjected to their rule. Mighty ones were found everywhere in County King''s Residence in Yandu City at the moment, seemingly waiting to receive something or someone. The sheriffs were known as kings of counties as well.


    The King of the County of Yan sat upright on his chair. Many mighty ones lined his flanks, waiting in silence. That day was the day he had set to meet with those from holy lands throughout the County of Yan. They were to gather there and head to Liwang City together.


    "Who among the cultivators of the County of Yan will reign supreme in this trip to Liwang City?" the King of the County asked as he addressed the crowd. He naturally knew that it was an extremely rare chance as the event was concerned with the Upper Worlds of Dali Dynasty selecting genius cultivators. As the King of the County of Yan, he naturally hoped that there were few more geniuses selected. It would have reflected well on him, after all.


    "There is no doubt that the two princesses will make it," someone below quipped, and all turned their eyes at the two women beside the King of the County. The two women were gorgeous, and what was even more shocking was that the two of them looked identical. It was as if they were copies of each other. The two princesses of the County of Yan were twins and shared a telepathic link. They trained in the way of the sword together and possessed superb talents.


    "Li Hanxing of the Ziwei Sword Clan," one of the princesses uttered.


    "Kai Huang of the Juque Sword Clan," the other one said.


    Everyone nodded. Both the Ziwei Sword Clan and the Juque Sword Clan were the most powerful of the two holy lands of the sword in the County of Yan. The two figures mentioned by the princesses were the strongest students studying in those places, and they were among the strongest to be found below Saint Plane in the County of Yan. If there were anyone from the County of Yan who could make it, then those two would definitely be among those people.


    The King of the County looked up faraway and heard brimming laughter. "Thank you, Princess, for thinking so highly of that brat of a student of mine."


    Powerful sword aura was sensed from far away. Two sword clans came together, yet they were clearly separated. They were none other than the Ziwei Sword Clan and the Juque Sword Clan.


    The King of the County smiled as he rose to receive them. The mighty ones from the two sword clans landed and cupped their hands at the King of the County. Cultivators from the Crimson Phoenix Sword Clan and the Sword Clan of the Storm arrived shortly after as well. The place was vivacious.


    The Sword Clan of the Gale was the last to arrive, and Ye Futian was with them.

 1092 Big Mouth

    The entire County King''s Residence turned extremely rowdy. There were people continuously showing up at the door to pay a visit, wanting to see those top notch figures from the holy lands for themselves.


    The County King of Yan threw a banquet for the mighty ones as well as those who came all the way to Yandu City to visit the place, to show his appreciation as the host. They were to leave for Liwang City right away after the banquet was over.


    Ye Futian came with the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind, so it was only natural for him to sit with them. However, the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind kept a low profile in the banquet. The Sword Clan of the Gale was ranked the lowest among the five holy lands of the sword after all. He was less formidable somewhat compared to the saint lords of other holy lands. As such, he spoke little and listened more to what others had to say.


    "County King, who is the one from the Upper Worlds who would be coming to the Lower Worlds?" The Sword Saint of Ziwei asked. They all knew that someone from the Dali Dynasty of the Upper Worlds would be coming down to the Lower Worlds to pick geniuses, who would then be sent to the Upper Worlds to further their training. However, they did not know who would have been the one showing up. The County King of Yan was in charge of the County of Yan and had the title of king. His high status meant that he might have known more.


    "I''m not all that sure about the details myself. We''d only find out once we got there." The County King of Yan then said, "But there was one thing I was sure of��the operation was ordered personally by the imperial advisor. It involves more than just the Nine Counties of Dali, as even the Upper Worlds seems to be up to something as well. It might have had something to do with the Battle of Empty Realm that happened last year."


    Everyone present there was of high status. The County King of Yan was already one of the handful of people standing at the top of the Lower Worlds, so he naturally would not have been oblivious of what was happening in the Upper Worlds like most common folk.


    "The imperial advisor." Respect was seen in the eyes of many. There had been many rumors regarding the imperial advisor. He had been playing an important role in bringing about the massive strength of Dali Dynasty after all.


    Even those from the Lower Worlds would have known about the imperial advisor''s status in Dali Dynasty. He was someone who stood at the emperor''s side and a top notch figure revered by the saints.


    "If the imperial advisor has a hand in arranging this, then the Upper Worlds would definitely be placing a lot of importance in this matter. How many slots would there be?" The Sword Saint of Juque asked.


    "It is said that there would be mighty ones coming down to see for themselves. There is no telling of the actual number of slots. Perhaps, anyone that they take a liking to would be permitted to train in the Upper Worlds, so much so even be allowed inside top notch forces in the Upper Worlds." The County King of Yan added, "Would you be reluctant to let your students go?"


    "Well, we would be able to help nurture capable ones for Dali and our students would get to widen their vista. What is there to be reluctant about." The Sword Saint of Ziwei smiled and said, "I hope that Hanxing would be able to get to the Sword Mountain in the Upper Worlds to train instead. Speaking of which, I assume that you would be reluctant to part with the princesses, no?"


    The County King of Yan took a look at the twin sisters at his side and said, "Well, I''m sure reluctant, but nonetheless, they would need to venture outside eventually. Furthermore, they might have their own partners in training in the future. There is no way I would be able to stay by their sides forever."


    "With their stunning appearances and talents, I think that the princesses'' path in training would surpass even yours. There is no need to worry about their partners in the future at all," the Sword Saint of Ziwei said with a smile.


    "Speaking of which, girls would always have it worse than guys when venturing outside. But if they chose the path of a swordsman, I just hope that they would see it through throughout their lives." Being someone who was in charge of managing the County of Yan, it was only natural that he was familiar with the sword saints from the holy lands of the sword, which was why he was able to chat so freely with them.


    "Li Hanxing of the Ziwei Sword Clan, Kai Huang of the Juque Sword Clan, Chi Xia, Chi Yao of the Crimson Phoenix Sword Clan, Lin Ya of the Sword Clan of the Storm, and Nie Yun of the Sword Clan of the Gale. You all are the most capable of swordsmen from the holy lands of the sword in the County of Yan, and you may have a chance to make it up to the Upper Worlds this time. I know that there are rivalries between the sword clans, but if you were to be able to make it up there to train, I sure hope that you''ve gotten each other''s backs." The County King of Yan turned his eyes at the geniuses of the holy lands.


    The ones that he mentioned were the most renowned of the five holy lands of the sword in the County of Yan.


    "If I were to be able to make it to the Sword Mountain of the Upper Worlds and train there, I''d surely have the backs of the princesses," Li Hanxing said to the king, who nodded.


    "I shall recommend one person to you, County King of Yan."


    A voice was heard and the king turned his eyes at that voice''s direction. He then looked at the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind and asked, "Who is he?"


    Nie Yun, his daughter, Huanxue, and one other person was sitting at the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind''s side. Many took notice of that person when he arrived, as he looked extremely handsome, maybe even demonic. That might have had something to do with his training. Furthermore, he sat next to the daughter of the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind, so it was only natural that he attracted attention.


    However, that young simply enjoyed his drink and food all the way through, so the others did not pay him any further heed.


    "Seventh Swordsman," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind called.


    Ye Futian looked up at the County King of Yan and cupped his hands, saying, "I''m the Seventh Swordsman. It is an honor to meet you, County King of Yan."


    The deep eyes of the king remained on Ye Futian for a bit. It seemed that Ye Futian''s eyes looked impeccably dashing and he was even able to sense charm exuding from them. Ye Futian''s eyes shone like the stars, bright, deep and bottomless. Despite being only a sage, but the king was able to tell that the young man was rather exceptional, judging from his bearing alone.


    But then again, he had not sensed any might of the great path from Ye Futian. He had deliberately emanated some vague will of the great path to resist the pressure emanating from the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind, but he was not doing that then.


    "Not bad. A student that you had just taken in?" The County King of Yan turned his eyes away and asked the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind.


    "No." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind shook his head and elaborated, "The kid spent over 30 years training in the Mountain of Hidden Swords, polishing his art at the sword throughout the decades. His way of the sword was only accomplished as of late and he chose to travel the world. He caused quite a ruckus at my place not long after he came, even killing a City Lord, who had been a student of mine. I ordered Nie Yun to arrest him, but Nie Yun was unable to withstand a single attack from him."


    "That so?" The king''s eyes sparkled. While he knew well that Ye Futian would have been someone exceptional, he never expected that Nie Yun, the number one student of the Sword Clan of the Gale, had not been able to take even a single attack.


    Among the five holy lands of the sword in the County of Yan, the Sword Saint of the Gale was ranked last. Nie Yun was probably somewhat inferior when compared to the other top notch figures from the holy lands of the sword. However, there were actually only about one or two among them who were able to completely overpower him, which was why he was able to make it to the top ten.


    The mention of only one attack surprised many.


    The County King of Yan was not only the other one who was gauging Ye Futian, as every sword saints present were doing the same. Needless to say, the top notch geniuses were doing the same as well.


    All of them naturally knew each other and there were many who have fought each other before. But this Seventh Swordsman guy...did he really just appear out of nowhere and brought down Nie Yun with a single attack?


    "You spent decades polishing your art of the sword, you said? That will of yours was indeed commendable. So tell me, Seventh Swordsman, what kind of art of the sword have you been studying all these years?" The County King of Yan asked.


    "The Sword of Blazing Sun, the Sword of Freezing Ice, the Sword of Raging Storm, the Sword of Blitzing Thunder...throughout my 30 years of study of the way of the sword, there was no art of the sword that I was unable to wield." Ye Futian said calmly. Everyone had their eyes on him at the moment.


    No art of the sword that I was unable to wield.


    He really has a big mouth indeed.


    But then again, that was how it usually was with geniuses, especially he was one who had studied the way of the sword for 30 years and found his training completed one morning, who then went into the world and achieved fame with just a single attack. There was no reason for him not to be proud.


    "So you are saying that you possess talents of multiple attributes and you have infused them all into your way of the sword then. It would seem that yet another genius of the sword emerged in the County of Yan then." The County King of Yan hardly minded Ye Futian''s big mouth. He had been training for years and had seen too many younger generations of excellent caliber. Be they humble or haughty, eventually it was their swords that did the talking.


    There was more than one way to walk to the path of the sword. So long as a swordsman was exceptional enough and their mind clear and flawless, any path could have been their own way of the sword.


    But then again, Huanxue, who was at Ye Futian''s side, felt rather speechless and was unable to wait to distance herself from him. Other than the County King of Yan, there were also lords of other holy lands present. They were all very powerful sword saints and their students were top notch geniuses.


    Despite Ye Futian''s extraordinary powers, but he remained haughty even in such an event, claiming as if his way of the sword was unparalleled in the County of Yan. She was puzzled as to why her father bothered to deliberate bring him up. Is father really buying his bul**hit?


    "Which of your swords would be the strongest then?" A woman beside the County King of Yan asked. Ye Futian turned his eyes to her. The twins were really identical in just about any way. If it had not been for the difference in their clothing, it might have been near impossible to tell them apart.


    "All of them are just as strong," Ye Futian answered.


    .....


    Everyone gave Ye Futian peculiar looks. Despite the fact that he was indeed very powerful for being able to best Nie Yun with a single attack, but did he not know how to be prudent in such situations?


    All of them are just as strong?


    Huanxue noticed the eyes that the others looked at Ye Futian with, and she wanted very badly to just leave, instead of sitting beside someone like that.


    Couldn''t you keep a lower profile?


    Ye Futian, however, looked completely at ease, as if he never noticed how the others looked at him.


    That was the Seventh Swordsman��unbridled, free, and going about things as he fancied, yet nonetheless, possess talents of the sword that were peerless.


    Such a swordsman would have pulled anything and there would have been hardly any reason to be surprised.


    The princess who asked before was at a loss for words after hearing Ye Futian''s answer.


    "One should have a focus in the arts they practice, and more so when it comes to the art of the sword. Picking up too much would render one''s way of the sword impure. Despite your supreme talents, you should still have an art that you majored in," Li Hanxing of the Ziwei Sword Clan looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "The great path connects all. Knowing one would open the path to knowing all. That is the same with the way of the sword." Ye Futian did not bother to even look up. He added calmly, "Having spent decades to polish my art, no one knows the purity of my way of the sword better than I would. Any ways of training with the sword touched only on the methods. What a swordsman truly studies, is the sword and nothing else."


    "So you are saying that you have developed complete mastery of the art of the sword then?" Kai Huang of the Juque Sword Clan asked as well.


    "There are many senior sword saints with us today. Please ask the seniors if any of them dare to claim that they have developed complete mastery." Ye Futian continued, "One''s journey on sword training has no bounds."


    None of the others said anything else and simply looked at Ye Futian.


    Regardless of how good he is with a sword, but you have to give it to him, he really has a way with words.


    All of what he said made everyone else speechless.


    "Splendid." The County King of Yan smiled and said, after seeing the banquet falling into awkward silence. "The great path is interconnected and knowing one grants access to all. One''s journey on sword training has no bounds. Being able to comprehend that much at such an age, it was no surprise why you have been able to accomplish so much with your sword. It would seem that we have yet another top notch figure who would be able to make it up to the Upper Worlds for training then."


    Since the County King of Yan put it that way, no one else said anything. However, all of them remained somewhat doubtful if Ye Futian''s way of the sword as actually as extraordinary as he put it himself.

 1093 Lu Chuan

    Things were harmonious at the banquet. Despite the holy lands being rivals with each other, they were still at the banquet thrown by the King of County, so they saw fit to reel their usual animosity in.


    With the imperial advisor giving the order and sending people to pick worthy candidates to train, those from the County of Yan saw it necessary to stand together. They needed to send as many geniuses to train at the Upper Worlds as possible, as the glory of the County of Yan was on the line, and it was not the time for them to fight each other.


    The banquet did not continue for long, as it was just courtesy of the County King of Yan as the host. The banquet served little purpose but to gather cultivators from holy lands and get ready to depart for Liwang City. As for Ye Futian''s appearance, he was little more than a footnote to them, especially to the saints. Having yet another extraordinary swordsman emerging from the Sword Clan of the Gale was hardly anything worth mentioning.


    "Let''s go," the County King of Yan said after the banquet was finished. The mighty ones nodded and took to the air in an instant. Their sword will blazing in the sky. The County King of Yan was at the very front with his people from the County King''s Residence. The mighty ones from the five holy lands followed behind them. All had their respective saint in the lead, summoning huge swords to serve as steeds.


    "Go." Sword will burst throughout the sky as soon as the County King of Yan was done. The sound of sword aura bursting throughout the County King''s Residence was heard from inside out. Many looked up in the sky at the impressive scene and were thoroughly shaken. Over a thousand swordsmen flew while riding on their swords. Over a dozen saints took the lead right in front of them, creating a very, very shocking scene. The swordsmen of Dali went outside the County of Yan, and everyone was hoping that the trip to Liwang City would have allowed the swordsmen of the County of Yan to shine at their best.


    The swords flew high up in the sky. Ye Futian was traveling with the ones from the Sword Clan of the Gale. The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind invoked a huge sword of the storm and streaked the air. Huanxue, who was beside Ye Futian before, deliberately took several steps away to distance herself from him. That b*stard''s arrogance knew no bounds, and he didn''t even bother to reel his ego in before the significant figures of the County of Yan. It was as if he was the only one in the entire County of Yan who knew how to wield a sword. That was an insult like no other. Regardless of how great his talents with swords were, Huanxue had no intention of getting involved with him any further.


    Ye Futian stood on the huge sword, his hair billowing in the wind. He naturally noticed what Huanxue was doing. However, he behaved calmly and did not mind at all. No one liked someone who was abrasive, unbridled, and had an ego, especially those who thought themselves to be above others. But then again, he was never there at Dali Dynasty to make friends.


    If one had extraordinarily stunning looks, traits like stubbornness and contentiousness could be considered affectionate and charming instead. If one possessed unparalleled talents, one''s arrogance and boisterousness would be accepted by the people around them, thinking such traits to be typical among supreme beings. Those traits would have even been regarded as unique personalities.


    After the trip to Liwang City, the people would have naturally accepted his arrogance, and those from the Upper Worlds had extended their invitations for him to train in the Upper Worlds. These were his true intentions for the trip. He did not head straight to the Upper Worlds but had instead taken a detour by first setting up shop at the Lower Worlds of Emperor Li''s Realm.


    "The princesses��Yan Qingyi and Yan Ziyi��complement each other with their way of the sword, and they are versed at Sword Arts of Twin Shadows, extremely formidable when they fight alongside each other. There is hardly anyone below the Saint Plane in the County of Yan who is capable of beating the two princesses when they join hands. The only people who could threaten the princesses are Li Hanxing of the Ziwei Sword Clan and Kai Huang of Juque Sword Clan." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind added quietly, "Other than that, Chi Xia and Chi Yao from the Crimson Phoenix Sword Clan, and Lin Ya from the Sword Clan of the Storm are mighty as well."


    Despite looking straight ahead, Ye Futian was able to tell that the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind was speaking to him. "What do you mean by telling me all this?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It is a given that I hope the swordsmen of the County of Yan can become the leading figures of the Nine Counties on this trip to Liwang City. But then again, as every cultivator in the County of Yan was a swordsman, it became even easier to compare them with each other. If you wish to find someone more powerful to hone your way of the sword with, then you need to stand out among the most exceptional ones among the swordsmen of Yan. Those people might not be a match to your powers, but there is no doubt that they will be compared to you," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind answered.


    "I see," Ye Futian said.


    "You''ve got nothing else to say?" The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind turned his eyes to the side to look at Ye Futian. That''s all with that kid? he thought.


    "I''m looking forward to seeing who will be worth having me draw my sword. If there are any such capable ones around, then I will fight," Ye Futian said.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind was dumbfounded but quickly laughed it off. It seemed that he had gotten used to Ye Futian''s insolence. He thought if the kid had been too steeped in his training with the sword for the past decades to know how to deal with people. He was thinking if it was all due to him not knowing where his way of the sword stood at, having little idea of how capable the cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm were.


    So the kid wants to get to know the cultivators of Dali better then, The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind thought. He found such possibilities to be very plausible.


    Huanxue distanced herself even further from the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind''s side, finding the conversation intolerable. Nie Yun was speechless as well. This guy, damn... But then he recalled the attack he took and his annoyance dissipated.


    ...


    Liwang City was the capital of the Lower Worlds of Dali Dynasty and the number one city in all of Dali Dynasty. It was situated in the central region of Dali Dynasty. Liwang City was so huge that it was comparable to hundreds of cities throughout the Nine Counties. The Nine Counties of Dali Dynasty were divided with Liwang City serving as a divider at the center after all. One could only imagine how magnificent Liwang City had been.


    Liwang City was directly connected to the Upper Worlds, and King Li, the master of the city himself, was a member of the royalty from Dali Dynasty in the Upper Worlds, being tasked to manage the entire Lower Worlds. It was rumored that King Li''s Palace had received orders from the Upper Worlds at the start of the year, intending to select genius cultivators and have them train in the Upper Worlds. The selection processes were to be carried out at Sage Plane, and it was not even limited to just pinnacle levels of Sage Plane.


    King Li''s Palace began to spread the news to the Nine Counties as soon as the news was received. The County Kings of the Nine Counties proceeded to notify the holy lands, and after that, what took place at the County of Yan happened.


    The County of Yan was not the only county rising to the occasion. Liwang City and all of the other counties of Dali Dynasty were in an uproar. The most capable of cultivators were gathering at that largest imperial city of Dali Dynasty, making the event unbelievably grand.


    There were many voices heard throughout Liwang City at the moment. It was said that the cultivators of the Nine Counties had all arrived before Liwang City. Many people from Liwang City were able to see cultivators from holy lands across the Nine Counties walking outside.


    There was news that there would be cultivators of top-notch forces coming down from the Upper Worlds of Dali Dynasty. Those people had all arrived at King Li''s Palace at the Lower Worlds. Countless people in Liwang City were asking about which top-notch forces had come from the Upper Worlds. According to rumors, some people came personally from the royal palace of Dali Dynasty. The imperial advisor of Dali Dynasty sent his students personally to the Lower Worlds to select geniuses.


    At that moment, a huge banquet was thrown in the grand, magnificent King Li''s Palace. A regal figure in a golden threaded robe of the snake was seen sitting at the throne atop the jade steps. The middle-aged man exuded an upper class, supreme bearing. He was none other than King Li, who was in charge of managing the Lower Worlds of Dali Dynasty.


    A young man was sitting on the ground quite a distance away below where King Li sat. Despite wearing only a simple robe, the young man''s extraordinary bearing was unmistakable, and he looked surreal. King Li even went to toast the young man personally.


    King Li was important not just because he was in charge of more than just the Lower Worlds, but he was also of true royal blood of Dali Dynasty. A figure like him toasting to a young man spoke volumes of that young man''s prestige.


    Many ministers and officials from King Li''s Palace were seen sitting at the seats below. Emperor Li''s Realm had been the weakest among the three��Emperor Li''s Realm, Emperor Xia''s Realm, and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm��in the Battle of Empty Realm ten years ago.


    Yet, there was one person who turned the tables for Emperor Li''s Realm. That man reversed the trend by sacrificing a considerable number of Emperor Li''s Realm''s forces to numb their opponents, bagging the final victory to that Battle of Empty Realm. Mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm slaughtered their way into Emperor Xia''s City in that Battle of Empty Realm, killing countless enemies and cutting down the enemy''s imperial flag. Any who participated in the Battle of Empty Realm would never be able to forget one name.


    Lu Chuan, a personal student of the imperial advisor of Dali and was someone whom the imperial advisor held in very high regard. Lu Chuan''s name was known throughout Emperor Li''s Realm after winning the last Battle of Empty Realm. He achieved great fame at the pinnacle of Sage Plane and was greatly valued by Emperor Li.


    The young man who was sitting on the floor at the moment was none other than Lu Chuan, a genius who would probably succeed the imperial advisor''s position in the future. What Lu Chuan did in the Battle of Empty Realm ten years ago was equivalent to what Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm pulled ten years later. His story was told everywhere by mighty ones of Emperor Li''s Realm.


    In actuality, there were also many mighty ones from top-notch forces of the Upper Worlds present other than Lu Chuan, student of the imperial advisor. All of them responded to the imperial advisor''s call and went to the Lower Worlds to select geniuses, seeing if they were any among them who would make decent students, which included sword saints from holy lands like the Sword Mountain.


    Even so, Lu Chuan was still undoubtedly the main character of the day. His status, talents, and what he did at the Battle of Empty Realm enabled him to enjoy all of those privileges. Nobody objected to his privileged status.


    Lu Chuan was, at the moment, already a saint. He definitely would be a crucial figure in Emperor Li''s Realm in the future. Everyone knew and did not doubt that.


    "I have heard from father about your esteemed bearing, and I have long admired you, sir. Here''s a toast to you from me, Li You." There was a stunning woman who looked incredibly regal and elegant in her long pretty dress, who was sitting not far away from Lu Chuan. Her voice was gentle, and she had extremely stunning looks. The surname of "Li" and where she sat at the moment spoke volumes of her status.


    "You''re too kind, Princess. I only performed puny matters that are hardly worth mentioning. I hardly have the esteemed bearing that you speak of." Lu Chuan raised his cup and drank, both hands holding the cup. He then raised his palm and the cup as a gesture of respect before putting it down. Princess Li You did the same after him.


    King Li was in charge of the Nine Counties of the Lower Worlds, and he was the king of the Lower Worlds. Emperor Li allowed his children to be addressed as princes and princesses.


    Many looked at the two of them with smiles on their faces. One of them was an extraordinary student of the imperial advisor and the other, daughter of King Li, who had stunning looks. They were both humble and polite and looked quite like a perfect match.


    "You bagged victory for Emperor Li''s Realm at the Battle of Empty Realm single-handedly, besting the strong as one of the weak, and His Majesty rewarded you for it. You are too humble to deem such impressive feats not worth mentioning," Li You smiled and said. She was regal and elegant, yet still had a gentle beauty to her.


    "I did not intend to be humble. That battle happens once in ten years, and there are incredible people emerging in every single battle. In the Battle of Empty Realm last year, there had been a member of the younger generation of Emperor Xia''s Realm appearing out of the blue. What he pulled was far superior to what I did in my time. Other than the Battle of Empty Realm, there are still many other magnificent people. I dare not brag with that many being better than I am."


    Lu Chuan then said slowly, "My teacher has asked me to come to the Lower Worlds to recruit capable people and strengthen the Dali Dynasty. My mission is an important one, indeed."

 1094 King Lis Palace

    Many were impressed, hearing Lu Chuan''s words. It was indeed rare for someone with Lu Chuan''s status and talents to be so humble. Furthermore, he even claimed to be inferior to that other person who achieved so much fame in last year''s Battle of Empty Realm.


    There was a name that spread far and wide after last year''s Battle of Empty Realm. It was the name of their opponent, and he was but a sage. It was extremely rare for a foreign name to be so well known in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Even Lu Chuan, the personal student of Dali Dynasty''s imperial advisor, had to acknowledge how extraordinary that other person was, even though a younger brother-in-training of Lu Chuan had perished in that Battle of Empty Realm. Yuan Jin, yet another student of the imperial advisor died in that Battle of Empty Realm.


    "While that person from Emperor Xia''s Realm was a deciding factor of the outcome of the Battle of the Empty Realm, he had only been able to win due to having the element of surprise. No one knew he was able to enthrall the demonic beasts, and that cost Demon Peacock Emperor Realm''s place in that battle. Those from Emperor Xia''s Realm even used them, and it all seemed just too convenient." Another prince of Dali at Li You''s side said, "If you, sir, were of the same era as him and had been able to fight him on the same battlefield, you would have won."


    Everyone naturally knew the one they were talking about was none other than Ye Futian. There had been an extraordinary figure that appeared out of nowhere in the ranks of Emperor Xia''s Realm. He single-handedly acted as the key to Emperor Xia''s Realm''s victory in emerging victorious in the Battle of Empty Realm. He had also joined hands with Xia Qingyuan and killed Yuan Jin, causing severe casualties to the mighty ones of Emperor Li''s Realm at the same time.


    "There are no ''ifs'' in the world, only results. If he had been able to do that much, then there is no doubt that he performed excellently. Despite being of opposing sides, I acknowledge his prowess. I would only be able to defeat him should we cross paths in future battles," Lu Chuan replied calmly, elaborating on his thoughts instead of riding on that prince''s words simply because it was the prince who lauded him.


    "You do have a solid point, sir." That prince nodded with a smile and did not mind at all.


    "King Li, have the cultivators of the Nine Counties arrived at Liwang City?" Lu Chuan did not dwell on the topic and asked King Li instead.


    "They are all here," King Li nodded.


    "Well then, please see to the arrangements. There are many forces from the Upper Worlds coming this time, and I hope they all return with something," Lu Chuan said.


    ...


    Ye Futian did not know that he was mentioned by the ones attending the banquet in King Li''s Palace. He did not know of Lu Chuan, but he heard of some things about the Battle of the Empty Realm from ten years ago.


    Ye Futian was in a palace which served as an inn of sorts in Liwang City for the ones from the Nine Counties. Dali Dynasty was a force that reigned all over Emperor Li''s Realm. King Li was in charge of the Lower Worlds, and all of the County Kings of the Nine Counties were subordinate to him, and they, in turn, ruled over the holy lands in their respective counties.


    At that moment, the mighty ones from the Nine Counties gathered at Liwang City, and they had their palaces to serve as their accommodations. Those palaces were not connected, as they were scattered throughout different corners outside of King Li''s Palace.


    At that moment in the County of Yan''s palace, Ye Futian was sitting alone in a compound training. Despite being very boisterous with his words outside, he nonetheless knew where his way of the sword stood. All that talk about him having spent decades studying and perfecting his art of the sword was work that he had been doing for several months. But then again, he was confident that due to his extensive training throughout the years, he would nonetheless be able to reign supreme below the Saint Plane in Dali, wielding only the sword, despite having only practicing sword arts for months.


    Footsteps sounded at that moment. Ye Futian, who was training, dispelled the sword will coursing about him. He opened his eyes and saw a dashing silhouette walking by. It was none other than Huanxue, but she was standing far away outside the compound. She looked at him and said, "The swordsmen from all holy lands were exchanging thoughts and arts at the arena. My father told me to come fetch you." She turned around and left right away after delivering her message, not caring if Ye Futian bothered showing up or not.


    "Exchanging arts of swords, huh?" Ye Futian was hardly interested. But since the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind was there, he deemed it necessary to have a look. He rose and left. By the time he arrived at the arena, many swordsmen from holy lands were present, but all of them looked nonchalant. Even the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind was standing around, looking at what was taking place quietly at the side.


    Swordsmen from all of the holy lands verified their arts with each other in the vast arena. However, the exchange was hardly an official one, and they sparred for a bit to get a grasp of the level of the other party''s training, as well as that of their own. But then again, they were also those who took such sparring and exchanges very seriously.


    "You have been practicing with your sword?" the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind turned around and asked Ye Futian, who came to his side, with a smile.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind looked somewhat satisfied. Despite being arrogant and unbridled due to his supreme talents, the young man seemed to be very diligent in the study of the sword. His mind of the sword was definitely very pure. The probability of such swordsmen making it to sainthood was very high.


    "It''s a good thing to see how others are doing with their arts of the sword," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind quipped.


    At that moment, the two top-notch figures from the Crimson Phoenix Sword Clan��Chi Xiao and Chi Yao��were standing at the arena. They were siblings; an elder brother and a younger sister. They were practicing their arts of the sword with others. Their prowess with the sword was very powerful. Crimson shimmer flashed when their swords were drawn, looking incredibly sharp. They turned to look at the crowd when they stopped fighting. Chi Yao took notice of Ye Futian, who was walking in their direction.


    "Chi Yao of the Crimson Phoenix Sword Clan. Would you mind sparring with me, Seventh Swordsman?" Chi Yao asked Ye Futian across the distance. Many looked at Ye Futian. The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind claimed that Ye Futian had beaten Nie Yun with a single sword attack, and she had no idea how much of it was made up. There was at least no doubt that he had beaten Nie Yun, and he was probably far more powerful than Nie Yun was. Furthermore, Ye Futian had been very boisterous with his words, claiming that there was hardly anyone who could beat him at the art of swords. She had already wanted to test that figure out. He claimed to be peerless in his way of the sword at the County of Yan. She wanted to know where she stood.


    Chi Yao was not the only one. In truth, swordsmen from the holy lands of the County of Yan were also very curious about how capable the Seventh Swordsman was.


    "My sword isn''t used for sparring." Ye Futian looked at Chi Yao and said, "Find someone else instead."


    "I have tested my prowess against the swordsmen of holy lands last year," Chi Yao replied. The topmost handful of the swordsmen had fought at an event in the County of Yan in the previous year. Ye Futian would probably be a good opponent, which would have served her well in her training before getting into King Li''s Palace.


    "In that case, just wait for the mighty ones from the Nine Counties to show up then," Ye Futian answered and did not bother to give her any face.


    "What harm would there be just to spar for a bit?" another figure said. It was none other than Lin Ya from the Sword Clan of the Storm. He crossed his arms before him and had been looking at Chi Yao, only turning his eyes to look at Ye Futian when he talked.


    Ye Futian glanced at Lin Ya and said, "If you test your art out against me, I''m afraid you''ll all end up returning to the County of Yan and begin to train in isolation instead."


    All the others looked at Ye Futian with their mouths agape, feeling speechless. It was indeed just like how he behaved at the County of Yan; he cared for nothing.


    "If you do not intend to spar, why are you here? We will fight each other all the same when all cultivators from the Nine Counties meet," Chi Xiao looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "Since when did I say anything about being a part of the fighting between the cultivators of the Nine States?" Ye Futian said as he looked at Chi Xiao. He never thought about it before at all.


    "Then, why are you here?" Chi Xiao wore a sarcastic expression as he talked. Dali Dynasty intended to select geniuses to train in the Upper Worlds, and fighting between cultivators would have been a must.


    "I''m just here to see if there is anyone worthy of having me drawing my sword," Ye Futian said. Chi Xiao and Chi Yao both took a good look at Ye Futian and understood that there were people who were beyond reasoning with. Both of them walked out of the arena, and Chi Yao dropped a line, "I look forward to seeing your sword leave its scabbard then."


    Many from the holy lands looked at Ye Futian and found him puzzling. Ye Futian naturally did not wish for any of them to see through him. He left the place not long afterward. Mighty ones from King Li''s Palace sent word at the same time, asking for them to be inside the palace three days later.


    ...


    The outside of King Li''s Palace was flooded by a massive crowd three days later. Countless mighty ones gathered about, and it was a scene like no other. The gates of the palace opened that day to the public. All cultivators of Dali were permitted to enter the palace and head to designated areas.


    At that moment, a group of people arrived by air from outside the palace. The leading figures were all saints and looked extraordinary. They landed outside of King Li''s Palace, and some people came to receive them.


    "Mighty ones from County of Xichu are here." Many were able to identify where those mighty ones came from��County of Xichu.


    "Mighty ones from County of Changhe are here as well." A group of mighty ones appeared in the air, and the entourage looked massive. It looked grand as they entered the palace.


    "The ones from County of Dongyang are here too." Towering sword will was sensed high above. Over 1,000 swordsmen arrived by air, and howling sword will shot through above.


    "The swordsmen of County of Yan are here." Countless eyes turned in that direction. The combined might of the County of Yan enabled them to come to the top three among the Nine Counties. The swordsmen of County of Yan were also extremely renowned. Over half of Dali''s swordsmen emerged from the County of Yan, after all.


    Things were extraordinarily solemn and regal within the palace. King Li was sitting on his throne atop the eastern steps. There were mighty ones on every single step below. Those from top forces from Upper Worlds sat at the same corner as he was, casting their gaze at the mighty ones that kept showing up.


    "Such grandeur is not something one would often see even King Li''s Palace," King Li said with a smile. All holy lands from the Nine Counties responded to the call of gathering capable people from King Li''s Palace.


    "My lord, we are from County of Xichu." The County King of Xichu led his mighty ones to pay respects to the throne. There was only one emperor in Dali Dynasty. King Li was only a king.


    "Take your seats," King Li said with a brimming voice. Mighty ones from the Nine Counties all took their seats later. The grandstands were quickly filled by mighty ones from the Nine Counties, surrounding a vast patch of empty ground in the middle. Ye Futian sat among those from the County of Yan. He was hardly noticeable due to being surrounded by a massive crowd. He turned his eyes to where King Li was at the moment. It was said that the event on that day was an order by the imperial advisor of Dali, to gather geniuses of Lower Worlds and send them to Upper Worlds for training. It was unknown which of the Upper World''s top forces had shown up, and Ye Futian naturally hoped that they would have been a lot of them. He saw Lu Chuan right away. Lu Chuan, who was sitting right below King Li, looked extremely dazzling. It was as if one would notice his presence right away, whether one liked it or not.


    "Is this guy a prince?" Ye Futian asked himself in secret, but he quickly saw Li You, who had stunning beauty. She was sitting not far away from Lu Chuan, and there were several other youths at her side. Those people even bore some resemblance to King Li, and Ye Futian only understood right there and then that they were the princes and princesses of the king. If Lu Chuan were to be able to sit at their side, then there was only one possibility��he was from the royal palace of Dali Dynasty from the Upper Worlds.

 1095 Just did I do wrong here?

    Despite not having been at Dali for long, he had still developed some thoughts about the place. Dali was not like what he had imagined it to be. Under the dynasty''s rule, everything was orderly and had a neat hierarchy. Furthermore, it had a higher inclination towards martial arts than the Nine States.


    Currently, people from the Upper Worlds of Dali Dynasty came to the Lower Worlds to select worthy candidates, and the event was supervised personally by King Li, gathering mighty ones from all over the Lower Worlds. All of that spoke volumes about how much importance Dali Dynasty placed in honoring martial culture.


    At that moment, the crowd outside King Li''s Palace was massive, and mighty ones were found everywhere. King Li turned his eyes to the enormous crowd from his throne and said, "Today, people have gathered at King Li''s Palace from all over the Nine Counties to witness what the cultivators from all Nine Counties are capable of. The imperial advisor from the Upper Worlds ordered many top forces to come down here and select worthy geniuses to further their training in the Upper Worlds. It is a rare opportunity for the Nine Counties of Dali, and I hope that there will be more extraordinary people emerging within the Lower Worlds of Dali, who will become pillars of Dali Dynasty in the Upper Worlds." His booming voice was heard all over in and out of the palace. The messy chatter was quickly suppressed, and everyone quieted down soon enough.


    Countless looked up at the steps at King Li, who was sitting at his throne. It was said that King Li was already at the third step of Sainthood, and he was the most powerful man in all of Lower Worlds of Dali Dynasty. His powers were unfathomable, and he was a flawless saint. The people of the Nine Counties of Dali were filled with reverence for King Li.


    "I shall introduce you all to one person," King Li continued. He extended his right hand and pointed to where Lu Chuan was. "Lu Chuan, student of the imperial advisor. Ten years ago, Lu Chuan led the cultivators of Dali in the Battle of Empty Realm. He fought between three imperial realms of the Upper Worlds, besting foes that had been superior to ours and cut down over half of the mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm, thereby attaining a glorious victory in the Battle of Empty Realm. Lu Chuan quickly rose to Saint Plane after the Battle of Empty Realm. He is now at the pinnacle of the first level of Saint Plane. He is here today being sent to the Lower Worlds by the imperial advisor personally, to witness this grand event of Dali."


    Many turned their eyes towards Lu Chuan. A student of the imperial student and one who was introduced personally by King Li was someone extraordinary.


    Ye Futian only came to learn who he was by then. Being a student of the imperial advisor of Dali meant that he was Yuan Jin''s elder brother-in-training, which in turn made him the extraordinary figure who brought about the glorious victory to Dali in the Battle of the Empty Realm ten years ago.


    Lu Chuan stood after hearing King Li''s introduction of him. He cupped his hands at the crowd, looking polite and well-mannered as he said, "You''re too kind, King Li. I, Lu Chuan, am but only a witness to the grand event sent here on my teacher''s orders. The geniuses of Dali are the true main characters of the event, which both I and my teacher, look forward to very much." He cupped his hands again after he was done and returned to his seat. Many gasped and were impressed by his bearing.


    That is the student nurtured by the imperial advisor of Dali for you. It is indeed rare to find someone of such status to possess such bearing, many thought. As someone of such status and introduced personally by King Li, it sufficed for him to nod to the crowd, enjoying the prestige afforded to him.


    The County King of Yan, at the County of Yan''s corner, rose and spoke, "The imperial advisor is indeed the pillar of Dali Dynasty. All students that he nurtures are exceptional people without doubt. You all should learn from him."


    The people from the holy lands of the County of Yan all nodded in agreement. Huanxue cast a glance at Ye Futian, who was beside the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind, but she said nothing. Despite both the Seventh Swordsman and Lu Chuan were geniuses, that bearing alone said that Lu Chuan was far more superior than the Seventh Swordsman. The difference was glaringly obvious, and Lu Chuan was indeed the dragon among people.


    Ye Futian was somewhat surprised himself as well. He initially thought that someone who had gone about killing over half of participating mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm would have been someone who reeked of killing intent. However, Lu Chuan looked and felt well-mannered and humble to him instead. Despite being an enemy, Ye Futian had to admit that cultivators of Dali were more exceptional than he had imagined them to be.


    "Not only Lu Chuan, but the student of the imperial advisor is also here at this time. Even top forces like the Sword Mountain of the Upper Worlds are here en masse as well. Any who can perform with flying colors here will get the chance to train in the Upper Worlds. It is very rare for Dali to see such opportunities in years past. Please seize the moment as best as you can."


    King Li smiled and added, "The event is opened to cultivators at Sage Plane, and holy lands are gathering places for these people. All sages of the holy lands of the Nine Counties, from lower to higher planes, are free to fight at the platform before you to showcase your talents. Please give it your all and wait until the people of holy lands finish showcasing their prowess. Any selected may be challenged by any who think themselves to be at the top of their training. You are free to challenge any selected geniuses of holy lands and show everyone present what you''ve got."


    There were countless cultivators all over the Nine Counties of Dali, even though the event was restricted to sages. Dali Dynasty did not ask for cultivators to get things done quickly. Such showcases would be done in one-on-one duels, just for the holy lands to assess how capable every single contender was. As such, it was naturally impossible for everyone to get a turn on the platform as there was still the matter of time to consider. Cultivators from holy lands were made a priority instead.


    This would be carried out until someone from the holy lands got selected by the top forces from the Upper Worlds before being challenged by others in Dali. By doing so, no one who was not of the very top would dare to step onto the platform. Such rules enabled all to see clearly what the top sages of all over Dali were actually like.


    "Let''s begin," King Li said. A mighty one said with a brimming voice below the steps, "Get the wine ready and open up the platform." The voice was heard throughout the place, and servant girls from the royal palace went on to zip about where the audience was, serving wine. But then again, all who earned the right to sit were cultivators from holy lands all over the Nine Counties. The cultivators who only came to witness the event were only able to watch everything going on from below.


    The grand event was to be held over many days. There were people from the holy lands of the Nine Counties getting up one after another, walking up to the platform. They were also several from the County of Yan making a move, with their swords strapped to their backs. When two people stepped onto the middle of the platform, that was when the event truly began. However, those two were sages of the first plane.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at the platform. He had never expected to be able to one day see the cultivators of Dali fight each other while he sat somewhere in King Li''s Palace. There had been a Nine State Forum back in the Nine States all those years ago, and that was already considered the grandest of events to be had. However, with the imperial advisor of Dali giving the order and King Li hosting the battle between the Nine Counties, the scale of the event was evidently far more extensive than the Nine State Forum back then. One could have even said that they were of different orders of magnitude altogether. All top-notch figures from Dali participated in the event. Better still, there were also people coming down from the Upper Worlds to attend the event. It could be said to be the largest sparring event to be had below Saint Plane.


    The battles went on and on with the County of Qin, Dongyang, and Yan having the highest level of cultivators on average. Those three counties were the top three strongest counties in Dali, to begin with, and their holy lands were also superior to others.


    "What do you think?" the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind asked Ye Futian while they were watching at the corner of the County of Yan. He had bought the idea of Ye Futian training his way of the sword hard at Mountain of Hidden Swords all those years, never having ventured into the world to train. As such, he took to asking Ye Futian what the young man thought about the cultivators of Dali.


    "Weaker than I expected them to be. When I was at that plane all those years ago, I wouldn''t even need to draw my sword to fight those on the platform," Ye Futian said.


    "You are something..." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind shook his head with a smile. He had already gotten used to how Ye Futian talked and continued to ask, "The battle between sages at the pinnacle of their training will probably be at the very end. You can join the fight as a student of the Sword Clan of the Gale."


    "Thank you, senior." Ye Futian nodded and said, "But I''ll need to see if any in the Nine Counties are worthy of having me draw my sword."


    "What happens if there aren''t any?" The sword saint''s face looked peculiar as he asked.


    "Then I shall keep my sword sheathed," Ye Futian said.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind was slightly exasperated, but he then said, "In the Nine Counties of Dali, there are also holy lands from the imperial city itself as well. I''m sure you''d find someone worthy of having you draw your sword."


    "That would be best." Ye Futian nodded.


    The two of them did not go out of their way to conceal their voices. Cultivators had very good ears, so many cultivators from holy lands across the County of Yan heard the conversation between both of them. Many even looked in Ye Futian''s direction deliberately, finding his antics baffling.


    Does he want to see if anyone throughout the Nine Counties of Dali is worthy of having him draw his sword? they wondered. It seems like his insolence isn''t restricted only to the County of Yan, then...


    "If you''re able to make it to the Upper Worlds, then, by all means, get up there to train." The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind said all of a sudden, "Look at the cultivators from Sword Mountain. That is the most powerful holy land of the sword in both the Upper and Lower Worlds. You may able to find a lot of opponents there. Look at Lu Chuan, the imperial advisor''s student. That is some bearing you''d hardly find in the Lower Worlds."


    Ye Futian took a look at the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind. Regardless of standpoint, he found such bearing truly impressive indeed. Ye Futian came to deem it best to keep a certain distance from him, however.


    The fighting on the platform continued. Ye Futian drank and enjoyed himself as he watched the fights going on, amusing himself as time passed.


    ...


    At the Princess'' residence of Emperor Xia''s Palace of the Upper Worlds of Emperor Xia''s realm, Xia Qingyuan stood quietly, and there was a Black Wind Condor before her.


    "Where is he?" Xia Qingyuan asked the Black Wind Condor. She already knew about Ye Futian''s ability to control demonic beasts. The beast before her was Ye Futian''s steed, and they shared a telepathic link.


    "King Li''s Palace," the Black Wind Condor looked at Xia Qingyuan and said.


    Xia Qingyuan''s expression changed a bit, and she said coldly, "What is he doing at King Li''s Palace?"


    "The imperial advisor of Dali gave the order to select geniuses from the Lower Worlds to train in the Upper Worlds, and they gathered people from all holy lands of the Lower Worlds for sparring. The imperial advisor even sent his student down to the Lower Worlds. Guess what that would be, Princess?" the Black Wind Condor said. However, Xia Qingyuan felt as if she was hearing Ye Futian talking instead. She knew right away that it was a result of Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor sharing wills, and the bird was speaking with his tone.


    "What would that be?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "Lu Chuan," the bird answered.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyes sparkled. She naturally knew who Lu Chuan was. "What are you going to do?" Xia Qingyuan''s expression changed again as she stared at the Black Wind Condor and asked.


    "Training while I''m on pilgrimage, of course," the Black Wind Condor answered.


    Xia Qingyuan glared at the bird''s eyes and said, "Are you trying to get into the top forces of Dali to train, or are you trying to get near Li Yao?"


    "Please excuse me," the Black Wind Condor said. Ye Futian withdrew his will, and the Black Wind Condor was seen flapping its wings. It said, "Master is gone. Can I go home now, Princess?"


    Xia Qingyuan''s expression was a cold one. That b*stard sure is having a good time. He went to the royal palace of the Lower Worlds of Dali Dynasty, she thought.


    "No. You are not to step outside the residence for even a single step," Xia Qingyuan glanced at the bird and said.


    The Black Wind Condor blinked his eyes. You are not happy with master, and you''re taking it out on me then? it thought.


    "Princess, I still have matters to attend to." The Black Wind Condor wanted to bail. The palace was too strict and no fun.


    "Guards," Xia Qingyuan said. Someone responded and came.


    "If the bird dares to step outside for even a single step, roast it," Xia Qingyuan said.


    Pffff... The bird''s legs gave, and it slumped to the floor. Just what did I do wrong here? it thought.

 1096 Handing Out Opinions

    The battles going on in King Li''s Palace had been going on for days. The spectacular fights taking place opened their eyes of many cultivators of Dali who came to watch the event.


    All of the topmost geniuses from Liwang City and the holy lands of the Nine Counties all gathered around the platform, showcasing their astonishing talents.


    However, despite the impressive showcase, students that actually caught the attention of Upper Worlds forces were but a handful, numbering in tens. It was a testament of the high requirements they had for the ones they were about to pick.


    As the planes of the fighters grew, battles fought on the platform got increasingly spectacular. There were already saints from King Li''s Palace laying down barriers, to prevent the battles from affecting the grandstands and the audiences.


    The battles between sages at the eighth plane finally ended.


    Battles between upper-level Archmages were about to begin in King Li''s Palace, which also happened to be the highest level at Sage Plane.


    Everyone wore solemn expressions, as all of them knew that the upcoming battles would have been that between those at the very top below the saints.


    The top notch figures from the various holy lands in the County of Yan were eager to get to the stage. That was the battlefield where they were about to shine.


    Someone already stepped onto the platform at that moment, bursting with frightening combat capacity with moments. The spectators were all in awe.


    Even the cultivators and even King Li himself, took a more serious attitude towards those battles than before. That plane was the nearest to Saint Plane. If there were those who were of exceptional talents right there, they would have been picked to be nurtured until they became saints.


    Battles continued to take place between cultivators of the Nine Counties, with many very formidable figures being known.


    "Who from the County of Yan would go on to fight the first battle?" The County King of Yan said to those from holy lands at the County of Yan''s direction.


    All of the Nine Counties fielded very powerful figures to fight the first battles. As such, it was unacceptable for the County King of Yan to lose out in terms of putting up airs. That was why the County King of Yan asked personally.


    "I''ll go." A voice was heard and the first student from the Juque Sword Clan walked out and stepped onto the battlefield. His opponent was someone from the County of Beimo, who had bested their opponent and yet chose to continue doing battle, instead of walking out to take a break. That person was very powerful.


    "Kai Huang of Juque Sword Clan was very formidable and was trained in the Sword of Eight Corners of the Juque Sword Clan, possessing extremely formidable offensive powers. You could pay close attention to it," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind said to Ye Futian. The sword saint noticed that Ye Futian was somewhat slacking off before and very few battles interested him, so much so that he actually shut his eyes for a bit occasionally, as if none of the battles going on concerned him.


    But at the moment, those were battles that were fought at Ye Futian''s current plane, so the sword saint deemed that they would have made him sit up right.


    Saleen lifted his head somewhat and looked at the platform, seeing Kai Huang, the number one student of Juque Sword Clan summoning his Life Spirit. His body burst with towering sword will and a heavy sword appeared before him. The sides of that heavy sword was different from conventional swords. The edges were serrated, making it not only heavy, but sharp as well.


    He was seen dragging his sword with both hands as his sword will built up. Dazzling shadow of the sword appeared around the blade, pulsing with frightening sword will as he thrust at the enemy. His surroundings resonated and the heavy sword burst with sharpness, as if it was an extremely ferocious beast charging at its opponent.


    Power of rules coursed about his opponent, who then summoned a golden stone wall in front of them. The huge sword was pierced into the wall with a boom, bursting through it. The sword will on the blade, however, dissipated altogether.


    Kai Huang, who had been holding the sword with both hands, pulled his left arm back and lifted the sword up with his right. He then took one step forward and brought the sword down from above, as if he was to split the ground open.


    Terrifying, overbearing power was sensed from above. Multiple shadows of the huge sword flashed as they came down alongside Kai Huang''s body. The blade burst with terrifying aura as it cut through space.


    "Some overwhelming swordplay indeed." The minds of many mighty ones from the Nine Counties trembled for quite a bit, as if that sword was being brought down onto they themselves.


    The Trailblazing Sword seemed to be about to split their surroundings apart when it was brought out. Its aura swept through all directions. Even if one were to watch the swordplay from afar, one would have still been able to feel the overbearing might of the sword.


    The defensive powers of that mighty one from the County of Beimo shattered in an instant with a boom. While his opponent had burst with the most formidable of powers to block his sword, but when Kai Huang brought the huge blade down with his entire being, everything before him shattered. His opponent was hit squarely by the sword and was thrown to the edge of the barrier of the platform. They were bloodied and no one knew how many bones had been broken.


    Boom.


    Kai Huang landed with a rumble and the huge sword in his hand disappeared. He then walked off the platform.


    He had intended to fight to the very end, so it would have been impossible for him to keep staying behind on the platform. That victory belonged to the swordsmen of the County of Yan.


    What do you think?" The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind asked Ye Futain after seeing Kai Huang walked off. However, he found Ye Futian''s eyes to be extremely calm and unfettered. Ye Futian nonchalantly picked up a cup and drank from it, looking poised and carefree. He then asked, "You like an honest opinion, senior?"


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind looked rather puzzled and answered, "Of course."


    "Too weak. He took three strokes to deal with his opponent. If it were to be me, one attack was all it would have taken," Ye Futian said.


    "..."


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind''s eyes froze. If Ye Futian were to point out Kai Huang''s other weaknesses, he probably would not have felt surprised.


    However, Kai Huang''s sword was extremely heavy. The way of the Sword of Eight Corners was one that razed everything in all directions. Its sheer force was overbearing and unforgiving.


    Yet, Ye Futian said that it was too weak.


    Many from the County of Yan looked at Ye Futian and looked just as puzzled. Did this guy really just take down Nie Yun with one attack?


    No matter how they saw it, they found Ye Futian to be one who brags a lot but has little to show.


    Kai Huang being weak?


    Many around him snorted.


    "I''ll look forward to seeing you in action then" Someone from the Juque Sword Clan said to Ye Futian coldly.


    Ye Futian smiled and said nothing as he continued to watch the battles.


    Many others stepped onto the platform later. There were also one swordsman from the County of Yan after another walking up to the battlefield.


    Lin Ya of the Sword Clan of the Storm caught a lot of attention when he stepped onto the battlefield. His Sword of Storms was not only fast, but also overwhelming. His thundering sword was so unbridled and ferocious that he took only two attacks to overwhelm his opponent.


    "What do you think?" Lin Ya actually went up to ask Ye Futian after he returned to the Sword Clan of the Storm''s corner. It was apparent that he was doing so due to what Ye Futian said about Kai Huang before.


    He wanted to see how Ye Futian would have assessed his abiltiies.


    "Lacking in explosiveness." Ye Futian answered calmly. Lin Ya smiled and said, "I look forward to seeing your sword at work."


    Those from the County of Yan were speechless yet again. Lin Ya''s swordplay was known for its explosive power and Ye Futian should have been able to see that much, yet he claimed that Lin Ya''s swordplay was lacking in explosiveness. Everyone was beyond baffled by then.


    A lot of swordsmen from the County of Yan that stepped onto the platform afterwards would have asked for Ye Futian''s opinion regarding their swordplay. However, Ye Futian simply shook his head and did not even bother saying anything to most of them.


    As such, Ye Futian became the one that all swordsmen from the County of Yan wished to see in action without exceptions. They looked forward to see him at work more so than Li Hanxing from the Ziwei Sword Clan and the two princesses.


    However, Ye Futian remained unfettered and showed no signs of wanting to do battle. He continued to eat and drink, enjoying himself very much.


    After a while, the County King of Yan turned to look at where the ones from the Sword Clan of the Gale were at, when the two princesses of the County of Yan walked onto the platform, and said to Ye Futain, "Seventh Swordsman, I''d like you to assess how both of them are doing."


    Many looked rather baffled at how even their County King wanted to hear Ye Futian''s thoughts. It seemed to have became something seen only among those in the County of Yan.


    The Seventh Swordsman was indeed like no other.


    He reached new heights with being pompous.


    The County King of Yan smiled and added when he saw Ye Futian was about to speak, "I want honest opinions."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded unapologetically.


    Yan Qingyi and Yan Ziyi both fought like a single entity and as such, they were fighting against two opponents as well, and those two were also very powerful cultivators.


    However, both Yan Qingyi and Yan Ziyi seemed to have turned into mirages. They seemed to be seen everywhere on the battlefield within a heartbeat. Sword aura whooshed but it seemed as if no one was able to actually locate them, only criss-crossing blades flying about.


    When they both finally stopped, they returned to where they first stood, while their opponents were all bloodied but sustained no serious injuries. It was apparent that the princesses went easy on their opponents.


    At that moment, many at the corner of the County of Yan turned their eyes at Ye Futian. The County King of Yan then asked, "Well?"


    "They are doing alright," Ye Futian said.


    The eyes of many sparkled. So the guy stops bragging in front of the County King of Yan then?


    Finally some decent opinion.


    "But, they were still too slow and they were too fancy. All fluff and no punch." What Ye Futian said next made the eyes of many froze, before silently turning around. No one else looked at him anymore, as if none of them know him.


    "The girls might not be top notch with their art, but they are doing quite alright I''d say, especially how their way of the sword synchronize with their movements. While it is not to say that they''re unbeatable when they join hands, but they do fine for their planes. Why would you have such opinions, Seventh Swordsman?" The County King of Yan asked curiously. Even he became curious as to how capable Ye Futian would have been.


    "If the princesses were to take on conventional cultivators on the platform, their powers would have naturally sufficed, making it easy for them to take down their opponents. But if they were to take on truly supreme swordsmen, they probably wouldn''t have been able to stand around for long," Ye Futian answered.


    "Supreme how? Someone like you then?" The two princesses walked by and heard what Ye Futian said, and one of them asked.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at both of them and said with a smile, "It is totally fine for you to think that way."


    Sword will emanated from Yan Qingyi after she heard his reply, wanting to test Ye Futian out right there and then. However, the County King of Yan interjected, "Qingyi, I was the one who asked for honest opinions from him. Just sit back and watch the fights."


    The sisters glared at Ye Futian coldly before returning to their seats.


    Ye Futian saw how similar their movements were with each other, so much so that they even had to fight together, and felt it to be peculiar.


    However, he did not dwell on the thoughts for long. He deemed it to have something to do with them being twins and they have trained together since a very young age. He then continued to watch the fights on the battlefield.


    No other swordsmen from the County of Yan that fought the subsequent battles asked for Ye Futian''s opinions anymore. They have had enough of him.


    That guy really has skin as thick as a wall. Better not ask to be insulted instead.


    Even those from the Sword Clan of the Gale felt rather embarrassed and wondered what was their lord thinking.


    Ye Futian did not care for any of that. He had an easy time with none of them asking him anything, and he simply continued to watch the battles in silence.


    As the battles raged on, many suffered defeats. The ones who stepped onto the platform had gotten increasingly powerful, as it was the clash of the titans between winners of previous battles.

 1097 When Would You Fight?

    Countless looked at the battlefield in King Li''s Palace, watching two people fighting on stage while the spectators were unusually silent.


    Everyone was drawn to what was happening in the battlefield.


    "Some power indeed." Many gasped. With battles getting that far, it was almost exclusively clashes between titans at the pinnacle of their training. All remaining mighty ones were frighteningly powerful.


    There was only one person who took to the air in the battlefield, whose palm was infused with the might of the great path, booming in the air and down on his opponent. The one at the receiving end was unable to hold out for long and was quickly thrown off.


    "18 consecutive victories."


    Many were astonished at the scene happening before them.


    A lithe figure clad in golden, elegant robe was seen on the platform. His eyes were condescending as he stood tall in the air.


    18 consecutive victories. That young man had fought round after round without breaks, regardless who he would have been fighting. It was confidence like no other indeed.


    Furthermore, there was already top notch forces of the Upper Worlds extending their invitation to him.


    That man was from the County of Shangqin, named Qin Cang.


    Qin Cang finally turned around and flashed, returning to the County of Shangqin''s corner. Many sighed a breath of relief. There were many who found themselves utterly incapable of showing their prowess with him around, as they would have probably just ended up being overwhelmed.


    Unsurprisingly, Qin Cang might have actually been the one of the strongest persons below Saint Plane in Dali.


    "Spectacular." Even King Li came to praise him by then. Many nodded in agreement. Qin Cang was indeed very powerful and had already touched the great path. His Voidwalk and Mudra of the Void techniques were also extremely formidable and there were hardly anyone capable of fighting him.


    His 18 consecutive victories made the massive number of spectators around the platform in King Li''s Palace silent.


    "What do you think?" By then, the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind, who had not been speaking for quite some time, asked Ye Futian.


    He knew that Ye Futian had already been able to touch the great path. Finally someone who you''d find worthy of fighting, no?


    "He''s okay," Ye Futian said plainly. He watched Qin Cang fight as well. Qin Cang was the first among the fighters who fought, to have touched the great path.


    Cultivators like that were but a handful even if one were to look throughout the entire Lower Worlds of Dali.


    That was prowess at the pinnacle right below Saint Plane after all.


    Being able to touch the great path unaided meant that they were having half of their being breaking into Saint Plane.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind smiled, finding it amusing that even someone as powerful as Qin Cang was only able to make the young swordsman say ''he''s okay."


    Just how powerful the mighty ones needed to be in his eyes?


    Yet another person emerged on the platform at that moment. Many gasped in shock, as it was apparent that many recognized the one who walked out.


    "Zuo Zhengdao of Dongyang," Many said. He was indeed Zuo Zhengdao of the County of Dongyang, and he was very renowned in his home county indeed.


    "Is he really that famous?" Some asked curiously. It was only natural that not all from the Nine Counties of Dali knew of Zuo Zhengdao.


    "He was known to be the number one figure below Saint Plane in Dongyang." Some sported solemn looks. Zuo Zhengdao walked onto the platform after Qin Cang walked out. It was apparent that he intended to fight Qin Cang some time later.


    Those two mighty ones would have probably fought at least once later.


    Many mighty ones hesitated somewhat seeing Zuo Zhengdao being of such renown. However, a mighty one from the County of Nanyue emerged on the platform. His eyes were brimming with vigor as he gazed his opponent. It was precisely because his opponent was so powerful and renown, that he deemed that he would have earned greater prestige when he defeated said opponent.


    Doom. That mighty one from the County of Nanyue stepped out and the air shook. Boundless heavy pressure emanated from him, shrouding Zuo Zhengdao''s surroundings. However, Zuo Zhengdao simply stood calmly where he was, with his eyes fixed on his opponent.


    The mighty one from the County of Nanyue continued to walk. Every step seemed to be stepping onto the minds of the spectators, imbued with extremely overbearing pressure of the rules.


    "This guy really is formidable." Many whispered deep down to themselves. That man who emerged from the County of Nanyue was definitely no weakling.


    The people from the County of Nanyue all knew who he was��a very renowned figure.


    That mighty one from the County of Nanyue walked step by step diagonally above Zuo Zhengdao, like some kind of celestial god and looking extremely overbearing. He lifted his hand and threw a palm attack below, with power capable of pulverizing mountains and rivers.


    At that moment, Zuo Zhengdao burst with extremely dazzling glimmer all of a sudden. Golden divine fires burst from his body and he was basked in it like some god of war. He simply lifted his hand after seeing his opponent making a move on him. He pointed a finger in the air and tore through his opponent''s attack.


    The palm attack crumbled within mere moments and the underlying rules were nowhere to be found. The power of that one finger burst with dazzling light and continued shooting upwards at his opponent''s body. The one on the up side threw palm attacks in a frenzy, but quickly found Zuo Zhengdao flashed at the very next moment. His finger was pointed forward yet again. Their surroundings became basked in his power. His opponent was quickly shrouded in divine light and looked terrified.


    "I yield." He shouted, feeling as if he was going to be destroyed at the very next moment.


    Zuo Zhengdao''s opponent''s body was thrown off with a boom. His clothes were torn apart and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth, while his hands were still twitching.


    "The power of the great path."


    Many saints looked at the scene and thought Zuo Zhengdao''s power to truly be adequate to fight Qin Cang toe-to-toe.


    The mighty ones of the Nine Counties felt pressure on their shoulders.


    Zuo Zhengdao continued to score consecutive victories in the following battles. No one was able to fight him. He ended up bagging 18 consecutive victories, just like Qin Cang, before walking off.


    "Who in the County of Yan would be able to fight them?" The County King of Yan asked. Both Qin Cang and Zuo Zhengdao were very formidable, and as the County King of Yan, he naturally hoped that there would have been one such formidable figure emerging from the County of Yan.


    A figure rose and walked up to the platform. He was none other than Li Hanxing of the Ziwei Sword Clan.


    Many mighty ones from the holy lands of the County of Yan looked startled. The County King of Yan then asked, "So Li Hanxing has been able to touch the great path then?"


    "You''d know soon enough, my lord," The Sword Saint of Ziwei replied. The faces of the other sword saints froze. If the Sword Saint of Ziwei was putting it that way, then it was extremely possible that Li Hanxing had indeed been able to touch the great path.


    The following battle was as they had speculated. Li Hanxing burst with frightening sword will and none who emerged were able to withstand his sword attacks.


    Three extremely formidable fighters emerged one after another in the battles, and their emergence had brought the event to its climax.


    "What do you think now?" Huanxue asked for Ye Futian''s opinion, something she would not have done otherwise. Ye Futian never thought much about the swordsmen of the County of Yan prior after all.


    However, it became evident at that moment that Li Hanxing had indeed been able to touch the great path, but he had been keeping a low profile all the while. Ye Futian was the complete opposite, so much so that he was considered a freak.


    I wonder if he is feeling ashamed of himself now.


    "No comment," Ye Futian replied. Huanxue glanced at him. It seemed hopeless to have him admit to anything.


    She wanted to see how he would have joined the fight instead.


    Li Hanxing returned to the corner belonged to the Ziwei Sword Clan and the County King of Yan said with a smile, "Seems like Li Hanxing is truly the number one below Saint Plane among the swordsmen of the County of Yan."


    Many nodded in agreement. Li Hanxing had been able to touch the great path and possessed formidable sword techniques to boot, so much so that he had earned the approval of the County King of Yan. That meant that he deemed both princesses beneath Li Hanxing in terms of combat prowess.


    Every single battle that was fought after that was extremely spectacular ones. While there was not another top notch figures who had touched the great path emerging, but every single combatant had been of formidable combat prowess. Every single battle had been a clash between titans.


    As the battles raged on, many came to realize where they stood. Those of insufficient strength dared not even step foot onto the platform. The same could have been said for even those from holy lands.


    Nie Yun of the Sword Clan of the Gale stepped onto the battlefield as well, but he lost to a top notch figure from the County of Xichu in a battle.


    There were no other new challengers from all holy lands going up onto the platform after that. Those who had never lost in their prior battles began to fight other powerful combatants. Other than to fight for the chance to train in the Upper Worlds, they were also doing so to hone their own martial will.


    Chi Xiao and Chi Yao from the Crimson Phoenix Sword Clan lost one after another.


    Kai Huang of the Juque Sword Clan lost afterwards as well.


    As the battles continued, Li Hanxing became the only one among the swordsmen of the County of Yan who had yet to lose a battle.


    Even the two princesses had lost to the most powerful figures from the County of Changhe. However, Li Hanxing quickly stepped into the battlefield to avenge the princesses and defeated the ones who won over the princesses. That act earned him some points with the swordsmen of the County of Yan.


    Li Hanxing became the only hope for the swordsmen of the County of Yan by then.


    "Splendid." King Li praised. There were hardly anyone who stepped onto the platform by then. Zuo Zhengdao was standing tall on the platform and it seemed as if no one dared to challenge him.


    Li Hanxing eventually rose from the corner of the County of Yan. He moved alongside his sword and stepped onto the platform, standing opposite Zuo Zhengdao.


    Loud cheers and roars were heard in the King Li''s Palace.


    Is the battle between fighters at the pinnacle about to begin?


    Even Lu Chuan and the other top notch figures from the Upper Worlds came to pay close attention to the battlefield, looking forward to the upcoming battle.


    "Who do you think would win this battle, sir?" Princess Li You asked Lu Chuan, who was at his side, with a smile.


    "Zuo Zhengdao seems to have better chances. But then again, Li Hanxing has a fair chance as well," Lu Chuan replied.


    "Li Hanxing has exceptional talents and if he were to train in the Sword Mountain of the Upper Worlds, his way of the sword would definitely be able to reach higher heights." Li You''s smile looked gentle and pretty.


    The battle on the platform began.


    Zuo Zhengdao was basked in divine light like a golden divine furnace, looking indestructible and invincible, and his fingers seemed to be swords themselves.


    Li Hanxing''s sword will of Ziwei seemed like the stars and every sword will was imbued with supreme offensive powers. Both figures fought on the platform. Violent auras swept through the place and the King Li''s Palace was surprisingly quiet. Everyone was paying close attention to the clash of the titans on up there.


    Both men traded blows using pure offensive skills and clashed untold amount of times. Li Hanxing''s sword finally broke with a boom. His body was thrown behind and blood spilled from his mouth.


    Zuo Zhengdao''s shirt was torn at the same time as well.


    However, it was clear that Li Hanxing lost the fight.


    The people of the County of Yan had their eyes fixed on the battle and were all gasping. Li Hanxing''s swordplay was superb, yet he still proved inadequate to beat Zuo Zhengdao. Li Hanxing then walked off the stage dejectedly.


    Qin Cang then emerged and asked Zuo Zhengdao if he needed rest. Zuo Zhengdao replied that he would like to continue.


    The vast royal palace was completely silent when the battle raged on. Everyone kept their eyes at the two violent figures, as if the spectators have all stopped breathing altogether.


    "The battle between supreme ones below Saint Plane indeed." The County King of Yan praised.


    Mighty ones from all over the Nine Counties were gather at King Li''s Palace by King Li, with the mighty ones from the Upper Worlds coming down to witness the battles. That very battle before them were indeed one fought between titans.


    Qin Cang eventually won against Zuo Zhengdao. It was a fight that seemed to prove that he was indeed the peerless one below Saint Plane.


    Countless eyes gazed at the two combatants with reverence. Despite having lost the fight, Zuo Zhengdao remained standing proud.


    Qin Cang remained standing where he was after Zuo Zhengdao walked off the platform. No one else went up the platform after that.


    King Li then asked personally, "Is there any from the Nine Counties of Dali who would like to fight?"


    No one else answered. There was simply no one who dared to fight him, after seeing what he was capable of.


    "Are you still going to keep your sword sheathed?" The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind asked Ye Futian in a low voice. Many from the County of Yan turned to look at Ye Futian without caring much. That guy had been extremely boisterous, but after seeing that battle between titans, they deemed him to cowardly to emerge and fight.


    Ye Futian took one look at Qin Cang. He smiled and shook his head lightly, before drinking from his cup.


    "No one else would challenge Qin Cang after this battle. You wouldn''t have another chance if you were still going to keep your sword sheathed. Regardless if you win or lose, it''s best to have those from the Upper Worlds see what you are capable of," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind added. Even the people from the holy lands of the County of Yan turned to look at the sword saint with startled looks.


    It seemed that he placed a lot of trust in the Seventh Swordsman.


    Ye Futian put his cup down and looked at the platform nonchalantly, saying, "No one from the Nine Counties of Dali is worthy of having me draw my sword. I shall leave it at that."

 1098 One Sword Attack

    "..."


    The corner of the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind twitched when he heard Ye Futian''s words, and wanted very, very badly to just clap him to death right there and then.


    The sword saint had waited for so long and brought him all the way to King Li''s Palace just to see his sword at work, while letting the Sword Clan of the Gale get glorious for a bit on the side.


    The fights were about to end and Ye Futian told the sword saint that none of those who fought was worthy of having him draw his sword.


    "I knew it. He wouldn''t have dared to make a move and was just bluffing all the while. I sure as hell don''t know what you''re thinking, father," Huanxue quipped, feeling furious at Ye Futian''s reply.


    Just admit that you''re a coward already. None of the cultivators from the Nine Counties of Dali being worthy of having you draw your sword, you said?


    Bul**hit.


    Many eyes turned to look at Ye Futian and they all had the urge to beat him up, deeming him to be the epitome of a coward.


    Qin Cang and Zuo Zhengdao were both of the pinnacle of their training below Saint Plane. Even Li Hanxing of the Ziwei Sword Clan had been a top notch figure as well.


    Just what the hell is wrong with this Seventh Swordsman guy? Not worthy of having him draw his sword eh?


    Many swordsmen from holy lands of the County of Yan turned to look at Ye Futian with condescending eyes, snorting at his boisterous bluff. Even the County King of the County of Yan spoke, "Your way of the sword might have been superb, but that doesn''t change the fact that you really are arrogant."


    Seeing how the mighty ones from all over the Nine States of Dali fought that day, he had to acknowledge how exceptional those of the younger generations were, despite being a very high level saint himself.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind was the one who brought him there and the sword saint had high hopes for him. The County King saw fit to give him respect where it was due, for none other than the fact that he was a genius swordsman from the County of Yan.


    However, Ye Futian''s actions proved somewhat disappointing.


    But then again, he would not have been petty with a member of the younger generation.


    "As a cultivator of the sword, are you telling me that you won''t even admit that you lack the guts to draw your sword?" Chi Yao of the Crimson Phoenix Sword Clan said plainly. Seeing how he had been dropping big words prior, he probably knew that coming out to fight at that point would have been an action to invite insult.


    Yan Qingyi, Yan Ziyi and Kai Huang of the Juque Sword Clan all simply glanced at Ye Futian with scoffing eyes. However, they said nothing and simply pretended he did not exist.


    As for Li Hanxing, he did not even bother to look at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian saw the reactions of the people around him and thought everything went as expected. He did not mind the thoughts of those people and said plainly, "I said before I came, that I was on this trip to King Li''s Palace just to see if any among the cultivators of the Nine Counties are worthy of having me draw my sword. I didn''t say that I would definitely fight. As for my strength, have it your way. The path of the sword does not need opinions of others after all."


    "Whatever," the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind said plainly. Since Ye Futian put it that way, he saw no reason to force the young swordsman. But still, he apparently looked rather displeased.


    Despite having spent 30 years practicing the sword and had supreme talents, but having such personality meant that it would have been near-impossible for him to stand around for long in the Upper Worlds.


    He simply has too much ego.


    Ye Futian took note of the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind''s expression and thought it was indeed for the best.


    After that battle in Lihen Heaven back then and having experienced the Swordmaster of Lihen borrowing his sword to Ye Wuchen, his mindset changed somewhat. Despite having a grudge against the regime that was Dali Dynasty, he did not intend to shift his frustration towards the cultivators of Dali.


    A person''s place of birth was something predestined.


    He personally experienced how different Dali actually was from what he had imagined, after entering Dali.


    At the very least, both the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind and the County King of Yan actually seemed to be decent people. Being someone of such an attitude, saints with irritable temperaments would have made a move against him.


    Saint Ji of the Nine States back then was a good example of someone lacking such bearing.


    As such, he did not wish for something he would have done in the future to one day, get the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind tangled in his mess.


    Qin Cang stood tall on the platform alone and no one dared to fight him.


    No one else in Liwang City and the Nine States of Dali were able to fight him.


    Qin Cang of the County of Shangqin was about to make it to the Upper Worlds, and it would have probably been a matter of time before he ended up achieving great things. He was destined to be someone whose name would have been heard far and wide.


    Be it Qin Cang, Zuo Zhengdao or Li Hanxing, their future lied in the Upper Worlds of Dali Dynasty.


    King Li swept his eyes at the crowd and said, "If no one else would come out and fight, then this shall be the end of the battles."


    The battles between the Nine States were concluded that day.


    Countless were heard talking for quite a moment.


    "Thank you all for your hard work," King Li smiled as he said to the County Kings of the Nine Counties and those from the holy lands.


    "You, King Li, and the cultivators from the Upper Worlds hosted the event personally. It was not hard for any of us at all." Many were seen cupping their hands at King Li.


    King Li nodded with a smile, saying, "The banquet shall continue. Be at ease and enjoy yourselves."


    Many rose at that moment. The lords of holy lands whose students had been selected, brought their selected students and greeted those from top forces of the Upper Worlds.


    They were also getting ready to send them to the Upper Worlds.


    The lord of the Ziwei Sword Clan rose and brought Li Hanxing there.


    "Let''s head there together," the County King of Yan smiled and said. Many saints walked together towards King Li.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind did not join them. The students from the Sword Clan of the Gale had been average in their performances and he did not see fit to join the fray. He was rather disappointed that Ye Futian did not fight.


    However, Ye Futian was seen standing up and walking down.


    He seemed to be following right behind the swordsmen of the County of Yan, which the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind found rather peculiar. What is he up to this time?


    At the corner where King Li was seen, Princess Li You smiled and said to Lu Chuan, "What do you think about the geniuses of the Lower Worlds of Dali in this event, sir?"


    "They''re fine." Lu Chuan nodded and did not hold them in too high of a regard.


    While there were few who performed rather admirably, but he did not see any supremely powerful figures that h wished to see.


    But then again, those handful would have emerged to be extraordinary cultivators once they were further nurtured in the Upper Worlds.


    "What are you doing following us?" A voice was heard below the steps. Many turned around and saw quite a number of swordsmen of the County of Yan heading towards the direction of the ones from Sword Mountain, led by the County King of Yan. Li Hanxing was among those swordsmen as well.


    However, there was an unusually handsome figure walked behind those swordsmen, seemingly heading towards the same direction.


    Yan Qingyi''s brow twitched seeing that and said to Ye Futian.


    "I''m not following you," Ye Futian replied plainly.


    The County King of Yan turned around to look at Ye Futian. Kai Huang of the Juque Sword Clan then jabbed sarcastically, "You didn''t even dare to fight in the prior battles, and now you actually have the gall to come right behind us swordsmen from the County of Yan?"


    Ye Futian glanced at him and remained standing where he was. He looked straight ahead of him and ahead of the swordsmen of the County of Yan, he saw a group of people who stood upright quietly somewhere, as if they were all swords.


    Those people were from the Sword Mountain of the Upper Worlds.


    "My name is Seventh Swordsman. I have heard that the Sword Mountain was the number holy land of the sword in the entire Dali Dynasty, as such, I came to ask for a challenge," Ye Futian said with a brimming voice, which pierced through the space like a sword.


    The chatter around them gradually subsided within mere moments, and their surroundings turned dead silent before long.


    Countless eyes turned to look at one direction at that moment. Ye Futian was seen standing upright like a sword, as if he was the only one worth being noticed in all of the heavens and the earth.


    Someone from the Lower Worlds actually skipped the entire event of battles and went up to challenge the swordsmen of the Sword Mountain.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind stood up from far away, who was speechless after hearing Ye Futian''s voice.


    Did he really think that no cultivators throughout the Nine Counties of Dali were worth having him draw his sword?


    So he actually went up to challenge the Sword Mountain instead?


    Someone who spent 30 years polishing his art of the sword is actually this arrogant?


    The eyes of the swordsmen of the County of Yan froze and looked at Ye Futian with baffled expressions.


    He is actually challenging the Sword Mountain?


    "How insolent," The Sword Saint of Ziwei said. The Seventh Swordsmen did not participate in the battles prior and Ye Futian was actually coming up to challenge the students of the Sword Mountain, when his student, Li Hanxing was going to greet them. What is he trying to pull here?


    Even the likes of King Li and Lu Chuan turned their eyes to look at the handsome figure standing alone.


    "We have not seen you fight in the battles before. Why do you come to challenge the Sword Mountain instead?" Princess Li You turned her eyes at Ye Futian. It seemed baffling that someone just appeared out of nowhere to challenge the number one holy land of the sword in the Upper Worlds.


    Ye Futian turned to look at Li You calmly and said, "I have watched the battles and saw none of the cultivators of the Nine Counties were worthy of having me draw my sword. As such, I''d like to try my hand against the Sword Mountain instead."


    "Insolence." Li You''s expression changed somewhat. His father was the one who managed all of the Nine Counties of Dali. His father had called all cultivators of the Nine States there to hold the event as the Upper Worlds were recruiting, and yet, Ye Futian claimed that none of the cultivators of Dali were worthy of having him draw his sword.


    Lu Chuan looked at Ye Futian with puzzled eyes. Throwing such words in such an occasion was not action that could have been amply described by the word ''insolence'' alone.


    The swordsmen of the County of Yan stopped and looked at that lone figure.


    A figure stepped out at that time, and it was none other than the strongest swordsman below Saint Plane of the Juque Sword Clan, Kai Huang.


    Every step he took was imbued with frightening power and he pressed onto Ye Futian. His Life Spirit burst forth and a huge sword appeared. Terrifying sword will was shot at Ye Futian within moments.


    Voom. Kai Huang stepped into the air and heavy swords lined up around him. The raging pressure was transformed into torrential sword aura.


    The heavy swords streaked through the air ferociously with a boom.


    Ye Futian looked up at him and stood quietly where he was. Sword will coursed about his body and the huge swords, which were shooting down at him, stopped all of a sudden before him, as if they were all blocked by a powerful sword will.


    Boom. Kai Huang took a huge sword and charged straight at him.


    Ye Futian waved his hand and a heavy sword appeared right before him as well. Extremely heavy pressure burst forth. He pushed with his hand and the heavy sword shot forward, clashing with Kai Huang''s sword.


    A low rumble was heard and Kai Huang charging figure was stopped altogether and it seemed as if his sword was suspended as well, feeling terrifying pressure bearing on his entire being.


    Ye Futian slapped on the heavy sword, which flew and with sharp, piercing noises, Kai Huang''s sword was broken inch by inch, until Ye Futian''s heavy sword punched right through his defenses and landed on his body. Kai Huang was thrown far away within an instant, throwing up blood from his mouth.


    "The power of your sword is too weak," Ye Futian said plainly. He never moved an inch throughout the fight, and launched only one single attack with one single clap.


    ''Too weak'', had been his appraisal of Kai Huang before.


    Crack... Towering sword will shot to the air at the moment. Lin Ya of the Sword Clan of the Storms brought terrifying sword will of the storms down from above, as if the air was about to burst.


    Lightning crackled about Ye Futian and a sword of lightning appeared before him.


    He took one step forward and charged into the massive bolts of lightning. One sword attack and the surroundings seemed to have split open. The lightning was nowhere to be seen anymore.


    Boom...


    A rumble was heard and at the very next moment, lightning crackled all over Lin Ya of the Sword Clan of the Storms. His clothing was all torn and his face looked burnt.


    "You lack explosive power." Ye Futian''s voice was heard from midair. That was how he evaluated Lin Ya before.


    Yan Qingyi and Yan Ziyi took one look at each other and the sisters flashed about, turning into mirages. Sword will filled their surroundings, as if countless specters lashed out at Ye Futian with boundless sword will.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were as pointed as swords, as he calmly glanced at the two of them.


    He stepped out and disappeared from where he stood right away. Dazzling flash of the sword was seen in the air and thousands of sword aura were launched.


    One sword was all it had taken to break all of their spells. The swords of both Yan Qingyi and Yan Ziyi were nowhere to be found. A corner of their dresses were torn.


    They stopped moving and looked down at their torn corner of their clothing, while their arms were shaking.


    It still took just one attack.


    None of the swordsmen of the County of Yan had been able to withstand more than one sword attack!

 1099 The Seventh Swordsman

    The Yan sisters, the daughters of the County of Yan.


    Kai Huang and Lin Ya, both of whom were number ones of the Juque Sword Clan and the Sword Clan of the Storm in the County of Yan respectively.


    None of them were able to take more than a single attack from him.


    In just one instant, the vast space turned dead silent.


    The minds of the swordsmen of the County of Yan were rattled. Their eyes were pointed as they looked straight ahead at Ye Futian.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind went out of his way to introduce Ye Futian, claiming that he had bested Nie Yun with just one attack with his sword. Many thought Ye Futian would have been extraordinary, so much so that even the County of King shared that opinion.


    Yet, when it came to the battles, Ye Futian had been all talk and no show. No one else paid him any attention by then, especially after his wildly insolent words, which made him looked more like just an unruly jerk.


    And then, he finally drew his sword.


    One attack on one opponent. That was all.


    The very reason why he acted as such in the prior battles, was not because he was unable to draw his sword, but that no one was truly deemed worthy enough for him to do so.


    As such, he skipped the battles altogether and came to ask those of the Sword Mountain, the number one holy land of the sword in all of Dali instead.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind stood far away, with his eyes fixed on the lone, proud figure standing high in the air. His handsome figure emanated intense sword will, which had the bone-deep pride weaved into it. That pride was that of a swordsman.


    That was probably the true Seventh Swordsman, a swordsman who ventured outside of the Mountain of Hidden Swords, a swordsman who was little else than a swordsman. He sought to further his way of the sword and nothing else. He cared little for the opinions of others, for his concern was reserved for his sword, and his sword only.


    Thus, he did not play according to the rules of Dali and fought in the battles, as he simply deemed that no one fighting in those battles had been worthy of fighting him.


    Huanxue watched the dazzling flashes of the sword by the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind''s side and was utterly speechless.


    "If he was so capable with a sword, why did he not fight earlier?" Huanxue said in a low voice, seemingly finding the state of affairs unacceptable.


    "Cutting edge geniuses were mostly stubborn and lonesome. True extraordinary figures are the ones with the right to break all rules." The sword saint replied, "Maybe, he truly is one of those people."


    If Ye Futian had been able to hear the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind''s comments about him, he would have thought about how successful that image that he fashioned had been. At the very least, in the eyes of the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind, that was the Seventh Swordsman that he would have wanted the people of Dali to see.


    An insolent, arrogant, stubbornly prideful swordsman of extraordinary caliber, who saw everyone else to be beneath him.


    In the world of the Seventh Swordsman, there was no place for overbearing authority and rules. There was only the way of the sword.


    With the imperial advisor of Dali ordering to gather geniuses from all over the Lower Worlds personally, a student of the imperial advisor coming all the way to the Lower Worlds, and King Li hosting an event to gather mighty ones of all Nine Counties to King Li''s Palace, there was no doubt that Dali Dynasty would have been able to stomach a stubborn yet extraordinary swordsman like him.


    "All of you, stand down." A elder of the Sword Mountain said to the people of the County of Yan. The County King of Yan led the swordsmen and stepped aside, except one.


    The one person was Li Hanxing of the Ziwei Sword Clan, who was ranked third in the battles prior, and was taken in by the Sword Mountain to be their own.


    "So you skipped the battles altogether and challenged those from the Sword Mountain, because you thought that none in the Nine Counties of Dali were worthy of having you draw your sword?" A saint of the Sword Mountain asked Ye Futian.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Yet, the few moves that you have just showed remained inadequate, to have the students of the Sword Mountain accept your challenge." That sword saint gazed at Ye Futian and said. If he intended to break the rules, then he needed to bring corresponding prowess for doing so.


    Li Hanxing walked up to Ye Futian as soon as the saint finished talking.


    Li Hanxing was too from the Nine Counties of Dali, but Ye Futian claimed before that none were worthy of having him draw his sword.


    He glanced at Li Hanxing and sensed the sword will on his would-be opponent. He then turned his eyes to look at Zuo Zhengdao and Qin Cang, saying, "I said that none who fought in the battles were worthy of having me draw my sword. If you want to see me in action, then all three of you shall move against me at once."


    Everyone was speechless after hearing that.


    The three he meant were naturally the top three strongest figures who fought in the battles.


    Qin Cang of the County of Shangqin, Zuo Zhengdao of the County of Dongyang and Li Hanxing of the County of Yan.


    All three of them were figures at the absolute top who had been able to touch the great path. They were the three strongest figures below Saint Plane in all of the Nine Counties of Dali.


    Even at that very moment, Ye Futian still claimed that they were not worthy of having him draw his sword, and he had all three of them gang up on him instead.


    His unbridled nature ignited the blood of countless. They thought before that the battles were already over when Qin Cang proved invincible in all of the Nine Counties of Dali.


    No one would have expected that the Seventh Swordsman, a nobody at that moment, emerged out of the blue and challenged those from the Sword Mountain.


    Qin Cang, Zuo Zhengdao and Li Hanxing all looked at Ye Futian. All three of them have already proven that they were the strongest in all of the Lower Worlds of Dali.


    At that moment, Ye Futian walked out. Is he trying to just step on us to prove his superior talents?


    Li Hanxing took to the air and a sword appeared in his hand. Stars dazzled and the skies were lit up. Sword will circled around him and the will of the great path strewn about. Countless sword flashes of the stars rained down on Ye Futian like swords of meteors, whooshing loudly as they bombarded the ground from above.


    Ye Futian gave him a cold look and burst with terrifying sword will about him, emanating the will of the great path as well.


    "Interesting." King Li chuckled. The Seventh Swordsman only emanated the will of the great path at that moment, as if none of the swordsmen from the County of Yan before were worthy of having him do so.


    The light of the sun seemed to have burst from behind, emanating scorching heat like that of the sun as well. A scalding Sword of Blazing Sun appeared before him, pulsing with the will of burn everything down.


    At the very next moment, their surroundings became covered with freezing ice. A Sword of Freezing Ice appeared right after.


    Storms raged after that and howled in the air, as the Sword of Raging Storms appeared.


    Lightning flashed about like the light of calamity of doomsday, as the Sword of Blitzing Thunder appeared.


    And finally, the Heavy Sword of the Stars materialized with powerful might.


    The five swords lined up and hovered right before Ye Futain.


    The swordsmen of the County of Yan was astonished once again. The pupils of the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind dilated. Ye Futian claimed in the County King''s residence that blazing sun, freezing ice, raging storms, blitzing thunder...there was no art of the sword that he was unable to train with.


    Those big words have proven true after all.


    Li Hanxing''s expression changed somewhat when he saw all that. He flashed like a comet and drew his sword, which rained down on Ye Futian like meteor shower.


    "Blazing Sun." Ye Futian''s will merged with his surroundings and the Sword of Blazing Sun shot out as he willed it. It seemed as if the light of the sun dazzled in the air, devouring the stars and within an instant, the rain of swords burned.


    That sword continued its way forward, charging through the rain of swords and headed towards Li Hanxing.


    Countless swords, which had been raining down, merged into a single blade and clashed with the Sword of Blazing Sun, intended to destroy it from within.


    "Freezing Ice." The second sword was launched, emanating cold that was seemingly about to freeze souls. The Sword of Freezing Ice streaked forward, conjuring frost as it went along. The flow of sword wills around it slowed down and Li Hanxing seemed to have been covered with a sheet of frost.


    Li Hanxing''s body spun and threw a dazzling flash of the meteor. Countless sword will in the air melded into a beam of dazzling light as it tore through space.


    Ye Futian remained standing where he was silently. His moved his hand and had both Swords of Raging Storm and Blitzing Thunder shot out. They streaked through their air. The Sword of Raging Storms cut right through Li Hanxing''s sword and the Sword of Blitzing Thunder closed in. Li Hanxing''s face turned pale.


    Boom! A rumble was heard as his body seemed like it was about explode. The lightning flashes consumed his body and that mighty one from the Ziwei Sword Clan sported startled looks.


    However, Ye Futian''s sword did not destroy Li Hanxing and had simply sent him flying far away. He then spitted quite a bit of blood.


    Ye Futian, on the other hand, never budged throughout the fight.


    Zuo Zhengdao made his move right afterwards, turning into a beam of burning golden light, heading towards Ye Futian like a god of war. His moved like a bolt of lightning and was emanating overbearing will of the great path throughout his body, intending to crush everything in his path.


    The four swords appeared and yet, Zuo Zhengdao did not flinch at all. He turned into golden lightning and continued to streak through the air.


    The swords came soon enough and the wills of the great path from both sides clashed. The space was rattled and Zuo Zhengdao looked like a true god of war, with the swords seemingly incapable of breaking through him. He actually intended to take Ye Futian''s swords head-on.


    That scene excited countless. Zuo Zhengdao might have proven capable of fighting Ye Futian toe-to-toe after all.


    However, at that moment, Ye Futian finally moved. He stepped out and the air seemed to rattle as he did, with his immediate vicinity shrouded in his might.


    Many saw Ye Futian took one sword with both hands and descended from above. The heavy sword was brought down as their surroundings howled.


    Zuo Zhengdao felt the looming pressure and his expression finally changed. He roared angrily and turned into a golden god of war, continuing to charge into the air.


    Ye Futian''s sword came.


    Boom!


    A stifling rumble was heard and as expected, Zuo Zhengdao''s body dropped from the sky.


    Boom...the platform was shaken as Zuo Zhengdao''s body hit the ground below, feeling as if his internal organs had all been ruptured as blood came spilling from his mouth.


    Qin Cang took to the air and his body disappeared from where he stood right away. He appeared right above Ye Futian at the very next moment, shooting out with his palm attacks right onto Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian threw his hand at the attacks, cutting through the palm strikes as if his hand was a sword itself.


    However, Qin Cang disappeared right away and appearing somewhere else, again, throwing down his palm attacks.


    It all happened in an instant, and the spectators saw the space being filled with Qin Cang''s silhouette everywhere. Every single attack seemed to be imbued with the power of the great path, tearing the air apart as they flew at Ye Futian.


    "Return." Boundless sword will circled around Ye Futian, capable of tearing anything that had gotten near apart.


    His body spun at the very next moment. Countless flashes of the sword howled at the same time in an instant, shrouding the sky and the flashes of the sword were seen everywhere.


    Boom, boom, boom...the huge palm attacks continued to rage on. Sword will filled the air in that very next instant. Regardless how Qin Cang dodged, he was forced to take Ye Futian''s sword head-on.


    Raging aura coursed around his body, merging with the great path. His palm attacks shot in a frenzy to resist the sword wills, tearing them apart.


    Yet, at the very next moment, he saw a mirage and sensed extremely scorching sword will.


    He roared and his hands were thrown out with earth-shattering might. A sword was lashed out, cutting through space and shattering the palm attack. The flash of the sword emerged and his face was frozen with shock. His heart raced and he felt as if he was about to asphyxiate.


    The flash of the sword came and went before him in an instant. Time and space seemed to have been halted. Qin Cang''s body shuddered as he extended a trembling hand, touching his brow from top to bottom, finding a shallow gash.


    The sword was not brought down on him.


    Qin Cang took one look at the streak of blood on his fingertips and looked up at Ye Futian. He thought that he had been invincible below Saint Plane in all of Dali. He also proven that with his efforts in the battle.


    Yet, there was an extraordinary swordsman appearing out of nowhere right before him.


    "None in all of the Nine Counties of Dali are able to take on your sword indeed." Qin Cang turned around and left, looking somewhat dejected.


    Countless eyes gazed at that handsome swordsman standing in the air at that moment.


    None in the Nine Counties of Dali were able to withstand a single attack from his sword.


    Ye Futian did not concern himself with the opinions of the people. He turned his eyes at the ones from the Sword Mountain and said, "I, the Seventh Swordsman, wish to challenge the Sword Mountain."


    The Seventh Swordsman seemed to have seen nothing, but the way forward with his sword!

 1100 Who Else

    The Seventh Swordsman challenged the Sword Mountain.


    Countless cultivators of the Nine Counties of Dali and many from holy lands gazed forward.


    His sword proved that none in the Nine Counties were able to take him on.


    Not even the three strongest from the battles of the Nine Counties had actually been able to make him go all out, be it Li Hanxing, Zuo Zhengdao or Qin Cang. In truth, none of them had been truly able to take that one sword attack he threw.


    Who the hell is this Seventh Swordsman?


    The people of the Nine Counties were not the only ones being impressed, as even the County King of Yan became astonished by Ye Futian''s power. That young man that the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind introduced to him, had indeed made it seem like there were no swordsmen below Saint Plane but him.


    None had been able to take even one sword attack from him.


    Even someone as powerful as Li Hanxing proved utterly incapable of taking even a single attack from him.


    "Spectacular." King Li, who was sitting on his throne on top of the steps, praised. He had truly dared to break the rules with his swords, ignoring the rules of the event and went straight to the Sword Mountain, as if there were no swordsmen in all of the Nine Counties to begin with.


    He was arrogant and unique.


    King Li did not mind at all, as he deemed that truly extraordinary people needed to possess the courage of breaking rules, and only truly extraordinary people had the right to do so.


    There had been quite a number of people from the battles fought between the Nine Counties had been selected by the cultivators of the Upper Worlds. Qin Cang of Shangqin, Zuo Zhengdao of Dongyang and Li Hanxing of Yan were all fine candidates.


    However, as the king who reigned all over the Lower Worlds of Dali, he nonetheless felt something was lacking.


    There was a lack of a figure who was truly able to stand above all, a lack of an absolutely exceptional genius who was able to shake the top forces of the Upper Worlds. While Qin Cang had beaten Zuo Zhengdao and came to be number one in the battles, there was still something lacking about him.


    The emergence of Ye Futian made up for that lacking. King Li saw a supreme youth who was truly unbridled, and one who possessed the combat prowess that truly stood above all.


    As King Li, he naturally knew that there was no lack for talent or geniuses in Dali Dynasty. What the dynasty lack was people like Lu Chuan��geniuses who were capable of steering the direction of the Battle of Empty Realm single-handedly. They lacked someone like Ye Futian, who had been able to single-handedly decide the outcome of the Battle of Empty Realm last year, through his efforts alone.


    While it would have been nice to have some geniuses enter the Upper Worlds to train, but it was probably someone like that that would have truly caught the imperial advisor''s attention.


    He did not know if the Seventh Swordsman had what it would have taken to live up to such expectations, but at the very least, he stood a chance of doing so.


    Lu Chuan gazed at Ye Futian, but he did not speak and did nothing. He simply watched the events unfolding silently.


    It was the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint that led the ones from the Sword Mountain in that event. His eyes were pointed like swords as he gazed at Ye Futian.


    The Sword Mountain was the number one holy land of the sword in the Upper Worlds and they had many students. Anyone of them had made it through trials after trials and all had superior talents. But then again, there were still stronger and weaker ones among them.


    In actual fact, Ye Futian had already proven the power of his way of the sword when he had defeated those swordsmen from the County of Yan.


    However, as the number one holy land of the sword, they were unable to simply allow anyone to ignore the rules and challenge them. Anyone who wanted to challenge the Sword Mountain, needed to prove the strength of their way of the sword first.


    It was apparent that Ye Futian performed with flying colors in that department.


    "You''re from the County of Yan?" The Shadow Bearing Sword Saint asked.


    "I am," Ye Futian replied.


    "Who was your teacher?" The sword saint continued to ask.


    "I have learned and trained under many wandering swordsmen and rangers. I''ve been guided by them and walked the path of the sword, but I''ve never truly studied under any teacher in my journey," Ye Futian answered.


    "So you''re self-taught then?" The Shadow Bearing Sword Saint continued to ask, "How many ways of the sword have you developed? I assume that you have developed the general principles of the sword, the Blazing Sun, the Freezing Ice, the Raging Storms and so on, all on your own, no?"


    "I''ve picked up quite a number of incomplete manuscripts about sword arts. If I were to be said to have a teacher, then one could say that I''ve picked up my arts learning from the sun, moon, stars, storm, and rain. The nature itself is my master," Ye Futian continued to answer. He then asked the sword saint, "Are you done with your questions, senior?"


    "Would you like to come with me and train in the Sword Mountain of the Upper Worlds then?" The sword saint did not ask any further, extending his invitation to Ye Futian instead.


    An invitation to ask him to train in the Sword Mountain.


    It was not a turn of events that would have surprised anyone. Despite his unbridled personality, but Ye Futian''s talents in the way of the sword proved superior and peerless among those of the Lower Worlds of Dali. Furthermore, there was simply no way the Sword Mountain would have simply let someone who was so pure in their seeking of the way of the sword. They would have even gladly overlooked his unbridled nature.


    "I have spent 30 years studying the way of the sword. After venturing outside of the Mountain of Hidden Swords and into the County of Yan, I quickly found none of the swordsmen of the County of Yan worthy of having me draw my sword. I then heart that King Li was gathering cultivators throughout the Nine Counties, so I came here intending to find a worthy opponent. However, the cultivators of the Nine Counties of Dali continued to be devoid of one such person." Ye Futian''s voice was as sharp as the sword, as he turned around to look at Shadow Bearing Sword Saint and said, "I heart that the Sword Mountain was the number one holy land of the sword in the Upper Worlds. If anyone from the Sword Mountain prove capable of defeating me, then I shall come with you, senior, to studying the way of the sword in Sword Mountain."


    "So you''re saying that if none of us are able to defeat you, then you wouldn''t join us then?" The Shadow Bearing Sword Saint asked.


    "If none of the students who emerged from the Sword Mountain is able to defeat me, then what is there in the Sword Mountain that would be worth seeking for me?" Ye Futian said proudly, and those words made all who heard them speechless.


    None from the sword being able to defeat him?


    What is there in that would be worth seeking for him?


    It was clear that he remained as arrogant and unbridled as he had been. However, none of them saw Ye Futian with the same eyes they did before. That unbridled swordsman would have been able to join the Sword Mountain, if he were to just simply nod.


    However, he sought only the way of the sword.


    "Good point," the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint smiled and said, not minding Ye Futian''s attitude one bit.


    Truly extraordinary people seemed to be stubborn to a fault in furthering their way of the sword. That was a manifestation of their obsession with the sword, and their yearning for it.


    He seemed to be able to see all of that from Ye Futian.


    "Yuan Gang," the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint called. A figure emerged from the crowd behind him.


    There were few from the Sword Mountain who came to the Lower Worlds, and there was coincidentally one who had just touched the great path recently. It would have been very difficult for anyone to defeat the Seventh Swordsman otherwise.


    In the previous battles, it was shown that Ye Futian was versed in many arts of the sword, and it was also seen that he possess immense strength, being able to cleave Zuo Zhengdao from above with just one swing of the sword from above, serving as testament to the might of his heavy sword.


    Yuan Gang was also versed in peculiar, uncommon ways of the sword.


    Yuan Gang stepped forward. His silhouette was clear and it seemed that he was oozing with explosive power. Every step he took seemed to emanate a sense heaviness, instead of sharpness common with swordsman.


    One was unable to even sense any sharpness from him.


    "Draw your sword," Yuan Gang said to Ye Futian, with a heavy sword appearing right in front of him as soon as he finished. Furthermore, the was a sword without an edge, which was how he was like as a person��heavy, clumsy without any hint of sharpness.


    Many sported funny looks when they saw him in action. The blunt sword in Yuan Gang''s hand seemed to be utterly incapable of piercing into the body of anyone.


    However, given that he was nonetheless a student from the Sword Mountain, there was still no one who dared to underestimate him.


    Ye Futian stepped out. The light of the sun bright and scorching as it shone from above. He held the Sword of Blazing Sun. Its heat burning the sky as it was brought down from above. One swing with the sword and the air looked as if a fire dragon had manifested.


    Yuan Gang seemed to be cradling the blunt sword at first. His body then coursed with silver light, transforming into a suit of armor.


    Boom. He stepped out and his movements looked clumsy and heavy. He held the blunt sword and swung it, clapping Ye Futian''s sword aside.


    Yuan Gang did not pierce with his sword; he bashed with it instead.


    The Sword of Blazing Sun was brought down and banged onto the blunt sword. Sparks sprayed all over and Yuan Gang leapt into the air with his sword. Ye Futian''s Sword of Blazing Sun cut all the way through the air onto Yuan Gang''s blunt sword. The terrifying flames actually reeled back and causing the Sword of Blazing Sun to be shaved off bit by bit.


    Boom. The blunt sword continued to clap and Ye Futian took to the air, heading straight into the clouds and gazed below.


    Boom. Yuan Gang shot to the air while cradling his sword. Multiple blunt swords appeared in the sky and they grew in numbers as they stacked on top of each other. It seemed as if their surroundings were filled with nothing else but that edgeless blunt sword.


    "All ways of the world could be made into swords," the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint said as he pointed the fact out. Many came to realize that they were thousands of ways of the sword, instead of being confined to one single path.


    That sword saint from the Sword Mountain was actually letting Yuan Gang teach everyone else a lesson.


    "You are correct, senior. All ways of the world could be made into swords." Ye Futian replied with a brimming voice high above in the sky. He extended his hand and multiple heavy swords appeared around him, carrying the weight of stars. Every single sword seemed to be emanating terrifying powers.


    A humongous heavy sword materialized between his hands.


    Rumbling noises were heard as Yuan Gang shot upwards with his layers of shadows of the blunt sword, heading straight for Ye Futian.


    "Go." Ye Futian took one step in the air and dived, which seemed to be melding with his way of the sword. The swords around him dived as well, bombarding the first blunt sword his opponent was wielding.


    Intense explosions continued to be heard afterwards. The rumbling shook the world around them.


    The stacks of blunt swords clashed with Ye Futian''s swords. Yuan Gang finally reached his target with the sword in his hands. He yelled and the shadow of blunt swords swept above.


    However, Ye Futian arrived at that moment, bringing down that heavy sword that was imbued with limitless power down. Countless swords of the stars around him fell, clashing with the heavy swords.


    Two massive forces clashed with each other, whipping up a devastating storm in an instant.


    "Down." Ye Futian uttered a word. Extremely furious power burst with the will of great path. The heavy sword he wielded bombarded the blunt sword, pummeling it down.


    Boom, boom, boom...Tremendously terrifying explosions continued to be heard. The crowd was shocked to find two silhouettes dropping at extreme speeds. The stacks of heavy swords before Yuan Gang continued to explode and shatter as they went.


    He roared and yet, remained incapable of stopping that overwhelming tide.


    The Seventh Swordsman pointed at the sky with one hand, summoning more heavy swords to rain downwards. Rumbling noises continued to be heard.


    Boom! A massive rumble was heard all over the place. Yuan Gang''s body became pinned on the platform. His hands continued to resist with that huge, blunt sword of his, but Ye Futian came down with the sword of the great path, bringing down one attack after another on him, causing Yuan Gang to grunt. He then spit blood and the armor on him shattered.


    Ye Futian took one furious step and finally, the blunt sword was shattered. Yuan Gang remained all sprawled on the ground. Ye Futian got up to the sky again using the recoil. He stood tall in the air and turned to look at Shadow Bearing Sword Saint, asking, "Who else?"


    His booming voice was heard throughout the venue. Everyone from the Nine States of Dali felt their hearts racing.


    The Seventh Swordsman did not only make it as if there was no formidable fighters in all of the Nine Counties, his power was such that even a swordsman from the number one holy land of the sword in the Upper Worlds, lost by his hands.


    It did not matter that his opponent was someone from the Upper Worlds. He took them down all the same.


    The Shadow Bearing Sword Saint looked at Yuan Gang, who was being pinned flat on the ground, and was unable to say anything at that moment to reply Ye Futian''s question.

 1101 Appreciation

    Everybody looked in the direction of Sword Mountain as if they could perceive the silence of the Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing. Many people had a strange look on their faces. What came after was shock. Did it mean even the disciples of Sword Mountain were not able to fight him?


    Looking at that peerless figure, many were speechless. This peerless person, who came from nowhere, not only conquered the elites of the Nine Commanderies of the Great Li all by himself, but he also made no one in Sword Mountain dare fight.


    Who else could question that he broke the rule? Perhaps now, even the powers of the uppermost rank, such as Sword Mountain, were all planning to recruit him. This time the King Li, convened practitioners of the Nine Commanderies, including so many gallant heroes. But now, it seemed all became nothing but a foil for this swordsman-in-training. He conquered everything as if the aura of the Great Li only belonged to himself.


    The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind stood aside and watched the scene, slightly affected. Although he had thought that this Seventh Swordsman was something, he had not expected him to be this strong and defeat the swordsman-in-training of Sword Mountain with one strike.


    As for Huan Xue, who stood beside him, she had already been stupefied. Ye Futian''s presumptuous words were still in her ears. However, were they presumptuous? Who in the Great Li could withstand his attack?


    "I didn''t expect that such an outstanding swordsman-in-training could appear in the Yan Commandery of my Great Li," King Li said, smiling. "Seventh Swordsman, since you have mastered swordsmanship of such a level, you are overqualified to cultivate in the Lower Realm of the Great Li. The Sword Mountain is the Holy Land of swordsmanship cultivation for the Kingdom of Great Li Upper and Lower Realm. How about you follow the elders of Sword Mountain to cultivate in the Upper Realm? You won the battle, but this time, the Sword Mountain didn''t bring many swordsmen-in-training to the Lower Realm. If you join the Sword Mountain, of course, you can find rivals there." The King Li commended Ye Futian''s gift and unraveled the awkwardness of Sword Mountain at the same time.


    Many people slightly nodded. Although Sword Mountain was mighty, they were in the Lower Realm, and the real masters might be all in the Upper Realm.


    "Let''s call it a day," King Li continued. Ye Futian weakened his force and landed on the ground from the hollow sky. He stopped where he should stay. He had achieved his goal; the people from both the Upper and Lower Realm had remembered the name of the Seventh Swordsman.


    If he had entered the field and joined the fight in the Law Battle and taken first place all the time, he could have made the people of the Great Li remember him, too, but obviously, they would not have been so impressed. He broke the rules and skipped all the people of the Nine Commanderies to directly challenge Sword Mountain, which made him more like a swordsman-in-training who was arrogant to the extreme.


    "Your Majesty, I came here just for an opportunity to find opponents. Since there is no sword for me to seek in Sword Mountain, I will not go there," replied Ye Futian.


    "Although you defeated Yuan Gang, there are stronger swordsmen-in-training in Sword Mountain, numerous classics of swordsmanship and Sword Saints who can guide you. How do you know there is no sword that you want?" the Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing said. Apparently, he cherished his talent, so even though Ye Futian had disrespected Sword Mountain, as long as he showed extraordinary talent in swordsmanship, the disrespect could be ignored.


    This was what a real swordsman should be like.


    He didn''t know that the reason why Ye Futian dared to push his luck like this was that he knew the Upper Realm was seeking talent from the Lower Realm. Since the imperial advisor of the Great Li had given the order in person to convene the cultivators of the Nine Commanderies and select the peerless genius to cultivate in the Upper Realm, as an unequaled person in the Lower Realm, he would not bring trouble to himself.


    "If you can''t find the sword you want in Sword Mountain, then where is the place for you to seek the sword in the Great Li?" King Li also said, saving enough face for Sword Mountain.


    "I appreciate your kind thoughts," Ye Futian said, slightly bowing to him, "it''s just that I have spent 30 years to comprehend the pith of swordsmanship and have just started to cultivate in the secular world to pursue the law of the sword. The Sword Mountain is the Swordsmanship Holy Land of the first order. Still, if I entered the sect to cultivate, even though I would receive guidance from the elders and learn from important classics, I am afraid my state of mind would change, and the spirit of my sword would be constricted. I would no longer be able to wander around the world like what I am doing now, free of limitations and welcoming knowledge from the universe.


    "So, if anyone of my level from Sword Mountain can defeat the sword in my hand, this can prove that the Law of Sword Mountain is better than my Law, and then I will be willing to cultivate in the Mountain. If no one can defeat me, it proves that the path I choose is a path toward the Great Law, so what''s the point to forsake the right way and make a detour," he continued.


    "I hope Your Majesty and every elder here understands the way I am pursuing." As he finished speaking, even King Li of the Third Plane of the Divine Path was caught off guard for a second and looked at Ye Futian in surprise. As a person of the Sage Plane, this Seventh Sword was able to utter such words, which made the King even more impressed.


    Many notables of the Upper Realm nodded and showed approval to him. For all the swordsmen-in-training in the world, who were not proud of joining the Sword Mountain? Everyone hoped to cultivate swordsmanship in the Great Li Swordsmanship Holy Land of the First Order.


    However, this person thought that the Swordsmanship Holy Land of the First Order was also one kind of imprisonment of Swordsmanship thoughts. He challenged Sword Mountain just to verify which was better between the Law of the Sword Mountain and the Law of his own. Even some figures of the Holy Plane felt ashamed in front of his such spiritual stature.


    "Good." The Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing was not angry about what he said. The Seventh Sword was only at the Sage Plane but had such a stature of pursuing the Law. If a prestigious man like him became furious about this, that would be a shame for the Law of Sword. On the contrary, he showed more appreciation to Ye Futian. If all the swordsmen-in-training in this world could have the stature of the Seventh Sword, how much prosperity would be brought to the Swordsmanship of the Great Li?


    "But even if you are reluctant to join Sword Mountain now, you can still come to cultivate in the Upper Realm. After you reach the Upper Realm, I can arrange disciples of Sword Mountain to practice swordsmanship with you, and you can decide whether to join the Sword Mountain at that time. I respect your decision about whether you agree or not."


    Countless pairs of eyes looked toward the Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing. The Sword Saint of the Shadow Bearing was much admired. This was what the conversation between two swordsmen-in-training should be like. The swordsman junior wholeheartedly pursued the Law, and the swordsman senior cherished the talent and wanted to reward him with the Law.


    Of course, at this moment, Ye Futian had also provoked the envy of countless cultivators, especially the swordsmen-in-training of the Yan commanderies. Studying Swordsmanship in Sword Mountain was the dream of all cultivators. However, Ye Futian won the chance hands down but still hesitated.


    It was as if the Sword Mountain begged him to join. Totally absurd��


    Well done, well done!


    "Thank you, sir," Ye Futian said and saluted the Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing. He was proud, but he showed respect in front of elders.


    "Today''s conversation in the palace will always be remembered," King Li said, laughing. He was satisfied with such an ending. If the Seventh Sword had not appeared, however, everything would have just been ordinary and tedious.


    How could they know that the protagonist of this conversation was actually the opponent of the Great Li, whose fame had just reached every corner of the domain of Emperor Xia because of the battle of Empty Realm? Besides, what Ye Futian was doing had nothing to do with the so-called spiritual stature. He was just a good actor.


    Since he acted as the Seventh Sword, he needed to keep in mind what kind of person the Seventh Sword was; his personality, a peerless, arrogant, and paranoid swordsman who pursued nothing but swordsmanship. If he had aimed at climbing up to a high rank in the Kingdom of the Great Li, he would not have been the Seventh Sword and had flaws in his acting.


    "The Seventh Sword, how about you stay in the Palace and later head toward the Upper Realm of the Kingdom of the Great Li together with the elders of the Upper Realm?" the King Li asked the Seventh Sword.


    "Sure," Ye Futian said, nodding. Seeing that all elders of Sword Mountain and the King Li showed so much appreciation to the Seventh Sword, everybody understood that if nothing unexpected happened, the Seventh Sword would most likely become a top swordsman-in-training in the Upper Realm.


    After the feast, the people of the Great Li departed in succession, but many people were still not satisfied. The long-lasting battle of Law let numerous cultivators of the Great Li witness the elite rivalries under the Holy Plane of the Great Li, especially the Seventh Sword, who appeared out of nowhere. He was hard to forget.


    The King of the Commandery Yan was also preparing to lead his swordsmen-in-training to leave. They bowed to King Li. Behind the King of the Commandery Yan, Yan Qingyi, Yan Ziyi, Kai Huang, Huan Xue, Nie Yun, and others all looked at Ye Futian. The shock brought by Ye Futian to them was so strong that maybe it would stay in their mind for a long time.


    "The Seventh Sword, I know you concentrate on the Law of Swordsmanship, but after you reach the Upper World, you should keep a low profile sometimes, especially when facing the notables of the Upper Realm. Avoid attracting too much attention," the voice of the Sword Saint of Fierce Wind whispered into Ye Futian''s ears.


    He had the impression that the Seventh Sword''s talent in swordsmanship was peerless. Still, because he only concentrated on pursuing swordsmanship, he couldn''t get along with people, and his personality was flawed. Still, perhaps that was the reason why he could use all his energy on swordsmanship and achieve his aim.


    But before leaving, he didn''t forget to remind Ye Futian that the situation of the Upper Realm was complicated, and there were many more experts. Not every notable would cherish talents, and if he offended someone, even though he had extraordinary talent, he would risk ending up with a murderous outcome.


    "Thank you, sir," Ye Futian whispered back to him. The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind fixed a gaze on him and said, "I hope one day you can achieve your Law of the Sword, and I can hear your name in the Commandery Yan again." And then, he turned around and left together with the swordsmen-in-training of the Commandery Yan. The Sword Saint of Fierce Wind would not expect what the situation would be like the next time he heard about Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian didn''t turn his head, neither did he see him off. He didn''t want to talk to anyone.


    One after another, the people of the Nine Commanderies left. In the palace, there were only some cultivators of the Upper World, King Li, and the chosen one. At this time, one gaze fell upon the Seventh Sword. Ye Futian raised his head and noticed a smiling person looking at him. The person raised his glass and introduced himself, "L�� Chuan, the Great Li."


    Ye Futian had already known L�� Chuan''s identity. Still, it was not until now that he actually looked up and down at L�� Chuan, the legendary figure in the Battle of the Empty Realm ten years ago, the disciple directly taught by the imperial advisor of the Great Li. This leading figure, who had vanquished more than half of the army of Emperor Xia''s City, didn''t even have a slight aura of violence around him. All Ye Futian could see was a Confucian-sage-like figure with extraordinary composure and elegance.


    Ye Futian couldn''t help but become alert. This L�� Chuan must be an uncommon figure, he thought to himself.


    "The Seventh Sword, a swordsman-in-training," Ye Futian said. He nodded to L�� Chuan and didn''t let his gaze linger on him for too long. These two decisive figures of the Battle of Empty Realm greeted and toasted each other in such a mild way after ten years.


    "Mr. L�� and the Seventh Sword will become the mainstay of our Dynasty of the Great Li. I will toast to both of you," Princess Li Youqian said, with a slight smile and no pretension at all.


    "I would be honored," replied Ye Futian. The cultivators of the Great Li were not inferior to the ones in Emperor Xia''s domain!

 1102 The Imperial City of the Great Li

    The next day morning, in the palace of the Great Li, warriors of the Upper Realms gathered in front of the matrix of the space portal. L�� Chuan, swordsmen of Sword Mountain and the chosen winners ready to cultivate in the Upper Realms were all here. So was Ye Futian. He had agreed to go with them to the Upper Realms for cultivation. Although he didn''t promise to join Sword Mountain, as a swordsman of his level, he should go to the Upper Realms to pursue swordsmanship.


    King Li saw them off in person. Many in the palace went with them, such as the Princess Li You. The Great Li Dynasty ruled over both Realms. King Li was the king of the Lower Realms, but he was also a duke in the Upper Realms because he was a royal member of the Great Li Dynasty. The princes and princesses in King Li''s palace also had royal blood coursing through their veins, so there was no need for them to pass an assessment in order to cultivate in the Upper Realms. For much of their time, they stayed in the palace of the Upper Realms.


    The giant matrix of the space portal at their front was the direct access to the villa of King Li in the Upper Realms; it could be used to commute any time.


    "Your Majesty, we can see ourselves out here," L�� Chuan saluted with his fist and said to King Li. The swordsmen echoed, "Please return, Your Majesty. We will come back to visit someday if we have the chance."


    "Okay, please take care," King Li nodded and said. When all the people stood on the matrix of the space portal, one person triggered the matrix using sacred spirit stones. All of a sudden, boundless glares erupted. The dazzles rose up high as if they had pierced through the skydome and been projected into the upper regions of infinite distance, vanishing with the group of people.


    The matrix of the space portal opened up both Realms, so besides the colossal matrix, the launching process each time would also cost enormous sacred spirit stones to create enough energy to send one into the indefinitely distant space. The longer the distance was, the more scared spirit stones it required. So, even for ones of the royal hierarchy, it was very rare to employ the matrix of the space portal, and almost only royal members had the privilege of using it.


    During the Battle of Empty Realm, the matrix of the space portal was used by Ye Futian and others to cross the endless void space from Emperor Xia''s Realm into the Realm of Empty Space.


    ��


    They arrived at the Great Li Dynasty in the Upper Realms. Rows of lofty palaces standing erect on the ground exhibited the imperial grandeur.


    Standing on the top of one palace of this villa and looking afar, one would see a Palace of the Ninth Sky that towered into the clouds like a sacred temple; that was the royal palace of the Great Li Dynasty.


    The villa that stood in the neighborhood of the royal palace of the Great Li must also be uncommon, and in fact, it was where the Mansion of the King Li, the Lower Realms King Li''s residential home in the Upper Realms located.


    A beam of dazzling light discharged from the Mansion of the King Li and hit into the sky dome, containing a very strong spirit of the Space Law.


    Following the appearance of the beam, a large team of people showed up in the villa.


    At this location, the void space was emitting dazzling space rays; a myriad of formations of the Great Law surrounded this area; everyone''s body spun around in the formations until they finally landed.


    The luminous pattern gradually dimmed, too, until it vanished; only then did they adjust and stand still.


    In the villa, several figures came near. The person who took the lead with unusual charisma was the King Li''s eldest son; he somehow took after the King Li and always guarded the Mansion of the King Li in the Upper Realms. The King Li ruled the Lower Realms for the Emperor Li, while his eldest son Li Yang was arranged to inherit the Mansion of the King Li in the Upper Realms.


    "I am glad to see you back," Li Yang made a fist salute and said to all of them.


    "Your Highness," they answered.


    "Brother L�� Chuan, how was your trip?" Li Yang asked L�� Chuan. Apparently, they knew each other.


    After all, the Mansion of the Imperial Advisor was also in the surrounding.


    "Not bad. There were indeed some extraordinary talents in the Lower Realms of the Great Li, and we have brought them to the Upper Realms this time," Li Yang said.


    "Sounds good. You must be tired now. Everybody, please have a seat in the villa. I will ask my servants to prepare a feast," L�� Chuan said.


    "Thank you so much for your generosity, your Highness, but the King Li have served us very well for many days, so we should not bother anymore. It''s time to bid farewell," Someone said.


    "I should go back and report to my master, too. Don''t bother preparing it."


    Li Yang nodded, saying, "if so, I will not persuade you all to stay. Please take care."


    "Farewell," people made fist salute and flew away from the place.


    L�� Chuan and cultivators of the Swords Mountain were the last to leave. The Saint Sword of Shadow Bearing''s gaze fell upon Ye Futian and asked, "now we have reached the Upper Realms, what is your plan? Do you want to come with me to Sword Mountain first?"


    Sword Mountain was the Swordsmanship Holy Place of the first rank in the Great Li, but it was not in this area and rather far away.


    "Where are we now?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Here is the Mansion of the King Li, close to the Imperial Palace of the Great Li. This district includes not only the Imperial Palace, the Mansion of the King Li, but also the Mansion of the Imperial Advisor and many residential palaces of royal members. It is the center of the Great Li Dynasty," Princess Li You replied.


    "If so, I will find a place to cultivate nearby. There must be many top swordsmen in the center district of the Great Li," Ye Futian said, "of course, I will not forget the promise between us, sir. If any disciple of Sword Mountain can defeat the sword in my hand, I will definitely go to Sword Mountain to cultivate."


    The Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing kept silent for a while after hearing Ye Futian''s words. Li You laughed and said, "sir, let me arrange for the Seventh Sword. If he doesn''t mind, he can always stay in the villa."


    The Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing took a look at Li Yao and slightly nodded. In fact, he really hoped to take Ye Futian to cultivate in Sword Mountain. He had seen Ye Futian''s swordplay, and of course he didn''t want to miss such an extraordinarily potential young man.


    If he could join Sword Mountain, he would definitely become a preeminent swordsman-in-training.


    "Good, if Princess can take care of him, I don''t need to worry about anything, so now I will go back to Sword Mountain," the Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing said. It made Li Yang a little curious about Ye Futian; this handsome young man seemed to be somehow unusual; both Sword Mountain and his sister Li You specially talked about him.


    L�� Chuan didn''t leave as if he was waiting for an arrangement for him as well.


    The Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing led all his swordsmen-in-training to leave. L�� Chuan said, "I should go, too."


    "Let me see you out," said Li You.


    "No need to bother about me. I can go back by myself," L�� Chuan said, smiling, and then looked back to Ye Futian, "we shall meet again."


    "See you again someday," Ye Futian nodded and said. L�� Chuan left with his people as well.


    After a short while, only people of the Mansion of the Great Li and Ye Futian were left.


    "You Li, you haven''t introduced him to me yet," Li Yang said with a laugh and looked at Ye Futian.


    "This gentleman, the Seventh Sword, is a swordsman-in-training of our Great Li. As a recluse swordsman, he learned various Laws of the Swordsmanship by himself. He was the champion among the Nine Commanderies of the Great Li, and nobody could resist the attack of his sword; even Yuan Gang of Sword Mountain was defeated by him. Our father held the feast to convene all the talents of the world where the attention of the Realms only belonged to the Seventh Sword himself. He is peerless in the Lower Realms." Li You smiled, continued introducing, "and, the Sword Saint of Shadowing Bearing invited the Seventh Sword to cultivate in Sword Mountain and promised if any disciple of Sword Mountain could defeat him, the Seventh Sword would join Sword Mountain, otherwise, his current Law of Swordsmanship will be proved to be the best in the world and he will not join Sword Mountain."


    Li Yang''s eyes widened slightly. A swordsman-in-training, peerless in the Upper Realms and refused to join the Sword?


    "No wonder the Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing treated you with special respect. It''s so glad to see such a gallant hero emerging from the Upper Realms of our Great Li," Li Yang said, laughing, "I am Li Yang of the Great Li."


    Li Yang was the King Li''s son who was from the direct bloodline of the Great Li Dynasty, so he called himself as Li Yang of the Great Li like what L�� Chuan did.


    L�� Chuan was the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, and the Imperial Advisor of the Great Li Dynasty was a close confidant of Emperor Li, so when he introduced himself, he also called himself as L�� Chuan of the Great Li. If one was a disciple of Sword Mountain, he would not call himself like that; instead he would add Sword Mountain after his name.


    "I am the Seventh Sword, a swordsman-in-training," said Ye Futian, "I am very flattered by princess."


    "I am a similar age to you, so if you don''t mind, you can directly call me You Li. Calling me Princess sounds like our relationship is distant," You Li said, smiling.


    Ye Futian looked at her beautiful noble face; her smile was as soft as a spring breeze that made one feel warm; she was indeed an irresistibly attractive woman.


    When she sat in the Palace of the King Li of the Lower Realm, she was a vision of grace and elegance, but now, she was as close as a friend who would never let one feel a sense of distance.


    "You Li Princess," Ye Futian directly called her name but added her title Princess after it, which adequately kept his distance.


    You Li paused a second, laughed and said, "my father is always in the Lower Realms, so the villa is often empty. If you don''t mind, how about staying in the Mansion of the King Li for a few days?"


    Although the King Li was of royal lineage and granted with the title of King, in the World of Cultivation, it was one''s real strength that determined the rank he belonged to.


    Take the Imperial Advisor as an example, which royal member dared to claim that his position was higher than the Imperial Advisor?


    Even the King''s own son was extremely deferential to him.


    There were quite a lot of powers of high rank in the Great Li, such as Sword Mountain and Cao Family.


    Given the talent Ye Tianfu had exhibited, if he joined Sword Mountain, it was very likely that he would become an important figure of Sword Mountain; if he chose not to join Sword Mountain, that would mean no peer of Sword Mountain could defeat him, so wouldn''t his accomplishment be great in the future?


    And now such a figure appeared in the Mansion of the King Li. As a princess, You Li naturally would like to get close to him and established a relationship.


    There were only advantages for the Mansion �C no disadvantages whatsoever.


    "I appreciate your kindness, Princess. It''s just I have been accustomed to living alone on the path of cultivation, and I am afraid I will feel restricted when living in the Mansion, so I think I will not stay," Ye Futian refused. It was no doubt that he would approach the core of the Great Li some day, but not in such a way.


    "If so, I respect your decision," You Li said with a smile, "but you just came here from the Lower Realms, and there are many things you are not familiar with in the Imperial City. You will not mind if I arrange your accommodation, will you?"


    Ye Futian could see the sincerity from her gorgeous eyes. It was indeed hard to decline it since You Li had said in such a way, so he nodded and said, "if so, I am greatly thankful for your help."


    "It''s no bother at all," You Li said.


    "You said here is the Imperial City, Princess?" said Ye Futian.


    "Yes," Li You nodded and said, "you can come up with me."


    She leapt up onto the roof after she talked; Ye Futian followed her. You Li pointed a finger into a far distance, and there Ye Futian saw a palace that towered into the clouds.


    "That is the Imperial Palace, the absolute center of the Great Li, surrounded by sites such as the Mansion of the Great Li. Although there is no specific dividing line between regions, people of the Great Li usually call this district the Imperial District," Li You explained.


    Ye Futian looked up to the palace that towered into the sky. Li Yao, he must be living there.


    Until he reached here, Ye Futian had taken a detour from Emperor Xia''s Realm and crossed the Lower Realm, but approaching the imperial palace this quick was indeed out of his expectation. It was his luck to catch such an epochal opportunity; otherwise, if he wanted to go to the Upper Realms, he would probably have to take much more time to attract the King Li''s attention!

 1103 The Chosen One

    In Emperor Li''s City, there was a very famous main street called Emperor Li Avenue.


    This avenue was the absolute center of Emperor Li''s City as well as the busiest ever place of the boundless Emperor Li Dynasty.


    On both sides of the Emperor Li Avenue, that was to say the outlying district of the Emperor Li''s Palace, located residential villas whose owners were probably the most prominent figures of the Great Li Dynasty.


    There was a joke that even the Doctrine Saint of the first level of Saint Plane must behave himself and act humble when walking on the Emperor Li Avenue.


    Because any young person that came out of the revenue might become a figure that ordinary saints didn''t want to mess up with.


    It sounded like a joke, but if one knew whom the villas near the Emperor Li Avenue belonged to, he might not feel it funny.


    The Emperor Li Dynasty ruled over both the Upper and Lower Worlds, and its control to the Great Li was much firmer than in the Emperor Xia''s Realm; the neighborhood of the Emperor Li Avenue was where the true corridors of power in the Great Li located.


    There was one advisor and four kings in the Great Li, and on the two sides of the Emperor Li Avenue, three kings and the advisor lived here.


    Advisor referred to the Imperial Advisor of the Great Li, and the Imperial Advisor''s Residence was in the district of the Emperor Li Avenue.


    Besides Imperial Advisor, three out of the four powerful kings also had mansions here.


    The King Li Residence was one, but King Li only assisted Emperor Li to govern the Lower Worlds. He had supreme power in the Lower Worlds, but in fact, King Li was considered as the weakest among the four kings; his influence in the Upper Worlds was far less than other kings'', and so was his strength.


    The other three kings were legendary beings of the Nirvana state, all in the ultimate level of Saint Plane.


    Prince Regent, the uncle of today''s Great Li Dynasty ruler Emperor Li, once had been in power before Emperor Li was enthroned and now assisted the emperor to rule the Great Li Dynasty. As a venerable senior politician of the Great Li, even though he had retired from politics, Emperor Li still remembered his accomplishments and had not deprived him of the title of Prince Regent.


    Among all royal members, Prince Regent had an extremely high rank and numerous followers; even Emperor Li attended his celebrating birthday parties in person. So you would know, the Xiao Clan in Emperor Xia''s Realm was not comparable with him.


    In addition to Prince Regent and King Li, another king also had his mansion located in this district.


    King White, the head of all three forces in Emperor Li''s Realm, ranked even higher than the Sacred General of Tian in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Few could compare with King White in terms of noble status in Emperor Li''s Realm.


    However, the Imperial Advisor was one of them.


    So was King Tiandao, the most powerful among the four kings, and the one who was in charge of the Western Army for Emperor Li.


    People in the Great Li said that among the four kings, the King Li ruled the Lower Worlds but was the weakest, Prince Regent had the most prestigious status and was most respected, but speaking of power and strength, King Tiandao was the strongest. He was Emperor Li''s elder brother; if succession to the Great Li throne had been decided by birth order, King Tiandao would have been the one who inherited the throne.


    Once King Tiandao had been considered to be the one who inherited the Great Li Dynasty, but later Emperor Li caught up from behind and became the one who sat firmly on the throne.


    The reason was that Emperor Li was qualified to do so. He made his breakthrough and entered the Renhuang Plane successfully; there was no voice against him in the Great Li.


    In the world of cultivation, real strength spoke loudest.


    Of course, even so, King Tiandao''s power in the Great Li was still terrifying; it was only him who dared to directly challenge the Imperial Advisor.


    In order to revive the spirit of Martial Arts, the imperial Advisor established the prominent Dali National Academy. Emperor Li devoted all his efforts to promote it, and royal members all joined the Dali Academy to cultivate. The Imperial Advisor of the Great Li served as the dean in person and cultivated numerous excellent figures for the Great Li Dynasty. It was now considered as the top one cultivation holy land in the Great Li.


    The Dali National Academy was also located on the Emperor Li Avenue.


    King Tiandao envied that Emperor Li paid too much attention to the Imperial Advisor and was afraid the Imperial Advisor would gain a status second only to the one on the throne, so he also established Daoli Mountain on the land of the West.


    Now Daoli Mountain had become a holy land of the West and cultivated numerous outstanding figures for the Western Army, as if it was trying to compete with the Dali National Academy.


    So, people of the Great Li said, inside there was the Imperial Advisor, and outside there was King Daoli. Even though they two had conflicts, the displeasure would not affect either their positions in the Great Li capital or the contributions they had made to the Great Li.


    Emperor Li was also fully aware of their achievements, but he intentionally let alone their competition because such benign rivalry would be no harm to the Great Li.


    In fact, he hoped King Li was also capable to build up a holy land such as the Dali National Academy or Daoli Mountain.


    It was just that the gap between the Lower and Upper Worlds was way too huge. Even the whole Upper Worlds was not able to compete with Dali National Academy or Daoli Mountain.


    But now, Ye Futian had been arranged by Princess Li You, the daughter of King Li, to stay on the busiest street of the Great Li, Emperor Li Avenue, where numerous top figures lived.


    In Emperor Li''s Realm, the Avenue referred not only to the street itself but also to the neighborhood around the street.


    At this moment, Ye Futian lived alone in a villa on the Emperor Li Avenue and concentrated on cultivation. Li You had thought about arranging a maid to take care of him, but he declined. Since it might be an inconvenience during his cultivation, and according to the Seventh Sword''s personality, he was supposed to act in this way, Li You did not mind.


    Ye Futian squeezed his eyes shut, and his soul traveled an infinite distance away, to Emperor Xia''s Palace where Black Wind Condor was with Xia Qingyuan.


    Files were pilled up high in front of Black Wind Condor. He flipped them page by page and carefully browsed these files which recorded all had happened in the Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Soon, Ye Futian came to know where he was, the very center of the Great Li.


    After finishing reading, Black Wind Condor flapped its wings; a wind rose up and closed the files. He lifted his head and looked at Xia Qingyuan with a pair of pitch-black eyes.


    "You live on the Emperor Li Avenue?" Xia Qingyuan asked, staring at Black Wind Condor. It was so fast; last time he said he was in the Palace of King Li in the Lower Worlds of Great Li, and now he had already reached the center of the Great Li.


    "Yes," Black Wind Condor nodded, and said in Ye Futian''s tone, "L�� Chuan, people of Sword Mountain and the Prince and Princess of the King Li residence all value me and are not suspicious. The daughter of King Li has arranged me to stay in the district of Emperor Li Avenue. Maybe I will start my cultivation from now on."


    "You really have some abilities," Xia Qingyuan said coldly, "you haven''t told me what you want, when you will come back."


    "In the Great Li, nothing is in my control. What do you expect me to do? Now I can only do what I can do and see how it goes, but don''t worry, Princess, now my identity is as a swordsman-in-training, and I have no conflict with anyone else; nobody is targeting me. There is not much difference between cultivating in Emperor Xia''s Realm or in the Great Li. As for how long, maybe one year, maybe ten years, I have no idea, either," said Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan became even colder after hearing what being said from the Black Wind Condor''s mouth. This bastard was going to stay for ten years there?


    He didn''t even stay that long in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Whatever you want to do, don''t be rash. And, be careful of the Imperial Advisor," Xia Qingyuan reminded him, "it is said that the Imperial Advisor of the Great Li is extremely knowledgeable and skillful. He cultivates in tens of thousands of ways, even including Astrology; he was able to see the past and the future. Maybe it is just an exaggeration, but my father said he is really very dangerous. Even though your illusion could dupe my father, you should still always be careful."


    "Thank you for your care, Princess," Ye Futian said.


    "Care?" Xia Qingyuan looked at the Black Wind Condor''s eyes with coldness and said in an aloof tone, "I just don''t want you to die outside. No one will bury your body."


    "Sorry for bringing concern to you, Princess. Time to go. I will come back if anything happens." After he said that, Black Wind Condor''s eyesight changed. Xiao Qingyuan knew Ye Futian had left; frost spread all over her face as if her mood was not good. He would come to her if anything happened?


    Good.


    Releasing the coldness from her body, she moved her palm and struck it on the head of Black Wind Condor, directly crushing him to the ground.


    "Eeeeeee..." the Black Wind Condor let out a piercing cry and climbed up, staring at Xia Qingyuan in anger.


    "What are you looking at?" Xia Qingyuan asked with coldness.


    "Not looking at you anyway," the Black Wind Condor said, but obviously there was a lack of pride in his voice. He turned around and strutted away, unwilling to submit and kept groaning to himself, "the Princess Peacock is much cuter than you."


    Lord Condor had some nostalgia when he thought about the time he flirted with Kong Xuan in the Empty Realm. This princess was too fierce to mess up with.


    "Xiao Qing," Xia Qingyuan called the name. Suddenly strong gusts of wind rose, and from the sky, a Cyan Argusianus Holy Beast swooped down on the Black Wind Condor.


    "What..." said Lord Condor. Panicked, he let loose his wings and ran for his life; she was such a bully.


    Soon, the poor Black Wind Condor was ridden by the Cyan Argusianus and beaten like hell.


    The sound of screaming and pleading echoed in the Princess''s mansion.


    Lord Condor swore, one day, he would ride on their backs, too.


    ...


    The Imperial Advisor Residence, Emperor Li Avenue, the Great Li.


    L�� Chuan had been waiting in the front of a palace since he came back.


    At this moment, a figure in a Taoist gown showed up; it was the Imperial Advisor who came back from the Imperial Palace.


    "Master."


    "Mister Advisor."


    L�� Chuan and others made salutes in a differential manner.


    "How was your trip?" the Imperial Advisor asked.


    "Master..." L�� Chuan told him everything that had happened in the Lower Worlds from beginning to end and said, "it seems that the Seventh Sword is wholeheartedly pursuing swordsmanship and has an extreme personality. The Sword Saint of Shadow Bearing wants to recruit him, so I didn''t get involved, but if the Seventh Sword chooses not to join Swrod Mountain, do you think we should invite him to cultivate in the Dali National Academy, Master?"


    "Let Sword Mountain move first," the Imperial Advisor said, "and, you spread the word that I will recruit one more direct disciple."


    L�� Chuan paused a second; other people also got strange looks in their eyes. The Imperial Advisor was the dean of the Dali National Academy, but in fact, he only had very few direct disciples, and his disciples were all extremely prominent figures.


    In the Great Li, as long as one could become a disciple of the Imperial Advisor, his future was destined to be a brilliant one, but of course, there were exceptions such as Xiang Yuanjin who died on the battlefield of the Empty Realm.


    "Yes, Master," L�� Chuan bowed to him, "now I should leave if you excuse me."


    "All right," the Imperial Advisor nodded, so L�� Chuan and others left.


    After they were gone, the Imperial Advisor of the Great Li looked up to the sky. The positions of celestial bodies had changed; the fate of the Great Li was also revolving around a star, transforming.


    He thought to himself, "the chosen one has showed up!"

 1104 The Seventh Swordsman Seeks the Path

    Some big news made its way out from the residence of the Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty. The Imperial Adviser was going to take on another disciple personally. This news shook Emperor Li''s City in an instant.


    The Imperial Adviser''s reputation was so excellent that even the four kings could not suppress him. He was as noble and prestigious as the Prince Regent, and as strong as King Tiandao. One of these men was Emperor Li''s Uncle, and the other was his brother. Neither of them could suppress him. He truly was subordinate to only one man, and above tens of thousands.


    Each of the Imperial Adviser''s students was also outstanding. Lu Chuan, who had seized victory for Emperor Li''s Realm at the Empty Realm ten years ago, was one of them. And there were even several disciples above him. Every one of their names was well known throughout Emperor Li''s Realm. For example, his great disciple Yan Yuan was now at the third tier of the Divine Path, the tier of Unblemished Holiness. He almost stood among the greatest cultivators in Emperor Li''s Realm.


    After all, there were so few who had achieved the Nirvana tier. In all of Emperor Li''s Realm, there were not even ten. Thus, one who attained the tier of Unblemished Holiness was already at the top, and far above most. Moreover, some people said that Yan Yuan was at the top of the third tier of the Divine Path and that there was no one else at this level in Emperor Li''s Realm who could defeat him. And the Imperial Adviser''s second disciple was also at the level of Unblemished Holiness. Thus, the Imperial Adviser''s reputation within the Dali Dynasty, in reality, was no less than that of Emperor Li''s sons.


    This could be seen from the Emperor''s son Li Yao''s attitude towards Yuan Jin, a disciple of the Imperial Adviser, at the Battle of Empty Realm. Li Yao was a fellow disciple of Yuan Jin and had great respect for him. And Li Yao was also a disciple of the Imperial Adviser, but he was not personally taught by him; he was just a registered disciple. If the Emperor''s son wanted to seek training from the Imperial Adviser, he naturally could not deny him that.


    Because of all this, when the news came out that the Imperial Adviser was personally taking on another student, Emperor Li''s Realm was shaken. Many people said that it was because of Yuan Jin''s death and that he wanted to take another disciple to replace him.


    Everyone sighed when they thought of Yuan Jin. He had initially been an outstanding figure at Dali Academy, who had achieved the limit of what was possible below the Saint plane. There very few people who could rival him. And yet he had met his death at the Battle of Empty Realm. Not many people knew the details of that battle, but some rumors said that Yuan Jin had managed to enter the Saint plane, but had still been slain by his two opponents working together.


    Of the two people, one of them was Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm, and the other was the one who had won victories left and right at the Battle of Empty Realm, Ye Futian. This was an unfamiliar name to the people of Emperor Li''s Realm. No one knew who Ye Futian was, but since he had taken control of the Battle of Empty Realm and slain Yuan Jin, he must be an outstanding and powerful figure.


    Was the Imperial Adviser personally taking on another disciple in order to train someone who could compete with this incredibly powerful junior from Emperor Xia''s Realm? Perhaps he had a plan like this. As for who he would choose, many people in Emperor Li''s City already had a guess. It would be the student at Dali Academy, Dong Chen.


    At the time of the defeat at the Battle of Empty Realm last year, Dali Academy had held its annual forum. Dong Chen had undoubtedly been the first place finisher from Dali Academy with his perfect performance. He had been number one in terms of both debate and .polemic.


    The debate at the Dali Academy forum was an argument in which they discussed their opinions and feelings about cultivation. The polemic, on the other hand, was a battle.


    Dong Chen had given perfect answers. The one who had done this before him had been Yuan Jin.


    Some said that if Dong Chen had been born a few years earlier, he would have been the one to enter the Imperial Adviser''s household and not Yuan Jin, even though Yuan Jin was also an outstanding talent and a hero of his age. Yuan Jin had gone to the Battle of Empty Realm, and Dong Chen had not.


    Yuan Jin had died at the Battle of Empty Realm, and the Imperial Adviser was taking another disciple. Dong Chen was the most likely candidate. Many people seemed to already be sure that Dong Chen of Dali Academy would soon enter the Imperial Adviser''s household to cultivate.


    At that moment, many people at Dali Academy were discussing this matter. Even among those outside Dali Academy, there were some people who would talk about it from time to time.


    At this time, a handsome figure was standing outside of this top holy land that had been personally prepared by the Imperial Adviser with the full support of Emperor Li. He was looking at the grand Dali Academy before him.


    Dali Academy was not old, and standing before it, one could faintly sense that it was full of vitality. The vast majority of the cultivators who came out of Dali Academy were extremely young, seeming to be about the same age as him. But they had all already reached various stages of the Sage plane, having left the Noble plane far behind. The true heroic figures of the Dali Dynasty were all gathered together at Dali Academy.


    Even members of Emperor Li''s own family came here to cultivate. He had let his sons and daughters come here to train, so how could the other noble families dare not to follow suit?


    Many people noticed Ye Futian standing outside Dali Academy and were quite curious. This young man was extremely handsome. Could it be that he was a student there as well? Perhaps he was a youth who sought to enter the academy.


    For who in Emperor Li''s Realm would not want to enter Dali Academy?


    But even the sons of noble families would not necessarily be qualified to enroll. The entrance exam for Dali Academy was the strictest in the Dali Dynasty. There were none others like it.


    Ye Futian stood outside and sighed inwardly. He had come to Emperor Li''s Realm from Emperor Xia''s Realm. Upon seeing the differences between them, he had realized that Emperor Li''s Realm''s sense of unity was greater than that of Emperor Xia''s Realm. The Imperial Adviser seemed like someone who possessed great talent and bold vision.


    At that moment, a sword will suddenly shrieked beside Ye Futian, and everyone who was outside Dali Academy was instantly drawn to him. And those disciples inside Dali Academy looked at him sharply.


    This man dared to draw a sword outside Dali Academy? What was he trying to do?


    There were also people there who had come to pay their respects to Dali Academy. When they saw what he had done, they turned to him one by one; their faces froze in surprised expressions. They only saw endless sword wills wrapping around Ye Futian''s body, which then formed into real swords.


    The swords flew up into the air, then fell back to the ground, causing a series of loud noises. Seven swords were pierced directly into the ground. The sounds resonated together, and an even more powerful sword will spread out from among them.


    Ye Futian stepped forward, standing behind the swords. A powerful storm of Sword Qi was born and gathered together around his body.


    And then a voice came from Ye Futian: "I, the Seventh Swordsman, who has reached the peak of the Sage level, have come to Dali Academy to seek the Path and to cultivate." His voice swept out, making everyone''s hearts beat faster, especially those who had come to Dali Academy to pay their respects. They all looked at him strangely. Had he come to Dali Academy to seek the Path?


    The disciples of Dali Academy also looked at him strangely. Was he wielding a sword outside the academy?


    Someone looked at Ye Futian from a distance and asked, "How do you wish to seek the Path?"


    "By training in swordsmanship," Ye Futian answered.


    "Is that a challenge?" asked the one who had spoken before.


    "I am not challenging you, I am seeking the Path," answered Ye Futian. Asking to practice his swordsmanship in order to seek the Path was indeed a challenge, but he wouldn''t admit it. To stand outside Dali Academy and issue a challenge would not sound too good. It would be more provocative. "Seeking the Path" sounded much better. It was humble, and his opponents could find no faults with it.


    The Seventh Swordsman had come to the Upper Realm and was seeking the Path at Dali Academy.


    Many of the disciples of Dali Academy were looking at Ye Futian. Was he doing this to draw attention to his performance, and thus gain entry to Dali Academy to cultivate? This method was very direct, but to be so arrogant as to stand outside Dali Academy and ask to seek the Path would end very badly for him.


    Seemingly drawn by his words, more disciples walked out of Dali Academy. But most of them were just smiling and laughing and did not take any direct action.


    As disciples of Dali Academy, they naturally had their pride. Someone had come to seek the Path, but he was nobody worth taking action against.


    At that moment, a figure walked out from the crowd. He was carefree and easy, and he bowed slightly to Ye Futian, saying "I am Xu You of Dali Academy."


    "I am the Seventh Swordsman." Ye Futian touched his sword to his chest in a gesture of respect.


    "I hope to learn from you," said Xu You.


    "And you as well," answered Ye Futian.


    Boom! As soon as the two of them were finished speaking, Xu You stepped forward as fast as a bolt of lightning, and in an instant, he was in the air. Up in the sky, a majestic force surrounded him, and it gradually formed into the image of a dragon. It roared and the sky trembled. Xu You raised his hands into the air and clapped them, and suddenly the golden dragon swept out, rushing through the air towards Ye Futian to crush him.


    "Rise!" called Ye Futian, and suddenly one of his seven swords cut through the air. He stepped forward, and clutching his sword in his hand, his body shot up into the sky like an arrow.


    A ferocious storm gathered as Ye Futian''s sword sliced through the air, and suddenly, a hurricane of illusory swords appeared in the sky and collided with the golden dragon. Everyone could only see the storm slicing through the air and cutting through the dragon''s body. But the giant swords were also gradually destroyed.


    Ye Futian flew upwards, and he seemed to transform into a storm. His swords followed behind him, and suddenly, thousands of sword wills burst out from them. Each one seemed able to cut through the very air itself.


    The images of dragons behind Xu You were overbearing to the extreme. He clapped his hands together again with what seemed like enough force to topple the mountains into the sea. A pure-blooded dragon mudra shook the skies until it seemed as if they would collapse, and it collided wildly with Ye Futian''s swords.


    Everyone saw the terrible scene unfolding in the sky. In only an instant, the two of them had struck each other countless times.


    Of course, Ye Futian was not using his full power. He was indeed practicing his swordsmanship, and his ability to call upon storms of swords. He had come to the Dali Dynasty not only for revenge but also to cultivate.


    Finally, an extremely brilliant storm of swords slashed down from the sky, and all the pure-blooded dragons were completely shattered. Xu You was sent flying backward. He panted heavily as he stared at the swordsman before him.


    "You win," said Xu You.


    "Thank you for the match." Ye Futian nodded and then descended to the ground. He brought his swords back down, keeping them held out in front of him.


    A strange look came over everyone''s faces. Xu You was not well known in Dali Academy, but no one there was a weakling. All of them were outstanding people. From the battle that had just taken place, they could tell that both combatants combat power was extremely strong. Xu You was absolutely not weak. But he had still lost to the Seventh Swordsman. It seemed that this swordsman did indeed have remarkable power, which was why he had dared to come to Dali Academy to seek the Path.


    This battle caused great waves, and drew in even more people. Disciples streamed forth from the academy continuously, and in an instant the area grew extremely lively!

 1105 Do Not Care About the Rules

    Someone had come and was standing outside Dali Academy, challenging people to fight and talking about seeking the Path. Although many people inside Dali Academy scorned him, they did not care about him and thought that he was nothing more than someone who was trying to please the public with his claptrap. He was doing this because all he wanted to do was enter Dali Academy to cultivate, nothing more. But some powerful figures walked out of the academy and gave a bit of attention to him. If he wanted to seek the Path, they would fulfill his wish.


    Before long, someone else had moved against Ye Futian. A student from Dali Academy who was good at manipulating space rule power attacked him directly, turning himself into a shadow and moving extremely quickly. It was nearly impossible even to get a glimpse of him. His attack power was extreme.


    Ye Futian was still only using one sword at a time. His swordsmanship was about to reach its peak, and his speed at drawing his sword, when combined with his natural speed, was simply frightening. He was able to block the disciple of Dali Academy''s attack completely. In the end, his sword slashed through the air, and the disciple of Dali Academy fell in defeat.


    Many people decided then and there that this swordsman who had come seeking the Path was incredibly powerful. And why did he have seven swords in front of him? Could it be that they represented seven different kinds of swordsmanship?


    For each fight, he only drew one sword. Did that mean he was not using his full power in any of the battles?


    Before long, the third challenger attacked, seemingly to confirm everyone''s suspicions. Ye Futian still only used one sword to defeat the man from Dali Academy who was attacking him. This swordsman who had come seeking the Path had won three times.


    For a time, the disciples of Dali Academy all had solemn expressions on their faces. It seemed that this swordsman had not just come to boast emptily, but had truly come to seek the Path and to use the disciples of Dali Academy to hone his swordsmanship.


    At that moment, a young man wearing golden robes stood among the crowd. His features were sharp as a sword. His deep eyes flashed with different kinds of light that constantly changed.


    "Seventh Swordsman." His eyes flashed with cold light as he smiled. He looked at the figures behind him and then strode forward out of the crowd. A strange look came over the faces of the disciples from Dali Academy as they saw him come forward. For a time, all became quieter. This person was at least moderately famous in Dali Academy.


    "Your swords are not bad." The man who had walked forward swept his gaze over Ye Futian''s swords. "But what gives you the guts to dare to come to Dali Academy and taunt us? I will give you ten seconds to get out of here." When they heard this, everyone looked a bit confused. They had thought he had gone forward to fight. They would never have imagined he would directly ask the swordsman to get out of there. But when they remembered who he was, they all felt relieved. This was just his usual style.


    His surname was Li. This was the surname of the Imperial House in Emperor Li''s City. He was Li Xuan, a third-generation member of the house of the Prince Regent and the Prince Regent''s grandson.


    When he heard what Li Xuan had said, Ye Futian''s eyes grew as sharp as swords. He swept his gaze over his opponent. He was familiar with his golden robes; he had seen then in Emperor Li''s Palace. Seeing his opponent''s arrogant demeanor, he could sort of guess at his history.


    He was a prince of the Li house. Of course, in Emperor Li''s City, and particularly at Dali Academy, there was nothing strange about running into someone from the Imperial Family.


    "If you can defeat me while I wield the sword in my hand, then I will get out of here," Ye Futian said to Li Xuan.


    Li Xuan looked at Ye Futian with a bit of mockery in his eyes. His look was full of contempt. He was like someone who had been destined to rule others, mocking a toy that he held in his hand.


    Boom! A violent aura burst forth from Li Xuan, and a group of golden afterimages appeared, stretching out his body. It was like there were countless Li Xuans who had all appeared at the same time. The foremost Li Xuan appeared right in front of Ye Futian and reached out for him. At that moment, all the swords in front of Ye Futian trembled and resonated together. Not only that, but Ye Futian also felt like his swords were about to be shattered into pieces. Moreover, the space where he was standing was subjected to a ferocious binding power and a terrible shattering power. It seemed like he was about to be crushed.


    Ye Futian drew his sword, and in a flash, lightning swept out, raging wildly in the air like the light of catastrophe. His sword had given birth to the ultimate catastrophe. Purple lightning appeared before Ye Futian, and space itself seemed to split as his power collided with the oncoming attack.


    Boom! Crack! There was a loud noise as his opponent''s arms seemed to turn golden and slammed into his sword. The sword struck his hand, but he felt the almost saintlike power of his opponent.


    Boom! His opponent''s arms continued forward and smashed everything, including his sword. His arms seemed to have been forged out of divine implements. He had come seeking the Path, but Li Xuan had not taken this as a training battle. Otherwise, he would not have used the power of a divine implement.


    When he felt the terrible destructive power in his opponent''s hands, Ye Futian left behind many afterimages as he retreated. At the same time, his will spread out from him, and sword will shrieked as a great sword appeared in his hands.


    Boom! Ye Futian suddenly stopped retreating, then stepped forward. Li Xuan felt as if he had stepped right on his heart. In the next moment, the great sword whistled forward. It was incomparably heavy as it smashed into his hand.


    A loud noise rang out as the great sword left a mark in Li Xuan''s hand. Even though he had a divine implement there, his arm still trembled violently, and he felt like it was going to break off. He was thrown backward, but Ye Futian continued forward with the great sword following behind him. Li Xuan''s heart beat wildly as heavy sword wills struck towards him.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Violent impacts rang out one by one. Li Xuan was driven backward, his feet scraping along the ground until he finally stopped. The great sword disappeared, and Ye Futian gave him a cold look. Li Xuan lowered his arms, but they were still trembling slightly. That had obviously been extremely difficult for him to bear.


    A figure appeared behind Li Xuan, but he seemed not to see it. He was just looking up at Ye Futian. A sarcastic look flashed in his eyes, and his mouth curled into a wicked grin. He spat out a command, "Kill him!"


    "Kill him!" These words that came out of his mouth had a chilling effect. This was not a joke. Even many of the people from Dali Academy were shocked by what he had said.


    This swordsman had directly challenged Dali Academy, but had phrased it as "seeking the Path." Even though that was a little bit disrespectful, Dali Academy could defeat him in battle to save face. Just giving him a beating would be enough to get their revenge.


    And ordering a Saint level figure to kill him after being defeated was not something to be proud of. After all, Li Xuan was someone of particularly high status. Being a disciple of Dali Academy proved you were of high status, and moreover, Li Xuan was a member of the Imperial family. What Li Xuan was doing went beyond what was right and proper. But it seemed that his opponent had been reckless and arrogant all along. For someone of Li Xuan''s status, killing a mere swordsman who had come seeking the Path was not something that he would be held accountable for.


    The Saint level figure behind Li Xuan suddenly moved to carry out his order. He moved so quickly that it seemed as if there was no distance between them. In a flash, Ye Futian felt a powerful force bearing down on him. A giant golden hand pressed towards him, seemingly invincible. As the hand pressed down, it was like the apocalypse. Ye Futian felt like everything in the area was going to be crushed, and it was difficult to even breath.


    A Saint level cultivator had directly gotten involved. And he was definitely a killer. There was no trace of hesitation. If Li Xuan had ordered him to kill, he would kill.


    Although he had been full of confidence and carelessness ever since he had come to Emperor Li''s Realm, Ye Futian had not meant to offend anyone too much, nor had he intended to create any conflicts of interest between himself and them. He had seemed wild, but in reality, he had been quite cautious to prevent powerful Saints from acting against him. He had come to Dali Academy, not admitting that he challenged them, but instead saying that he had come to seek the Path. It was all very regular.


    The students of Dali Academy were known as the best and the brightest of Emperor Li''s City. The foremost holy land in Emperor Li''s Realm would naturally want to save face, and thus would not try to do anything to him. But there could always be some accident or some person who did not care about the rules and had no morality at all.


    An example was Li Xuan. This was the first time that Ye Futian had met him, but his eyes were already full of mockery and scorn. After he had been defeated, he had immediately asked his Saint to kill him.


    As far as Ye Futian was concerned, things had gone from bad to worse. He had already attracted the attention of a powerful figure, and he had not even reached the true center of the Dali Dynasty yet. Without revealing his identity, there would be those who would try to kill him.


    At that moment, his will flared up wildly, and a great sword appeared before him and shot towards the giant hand that was pressing down towards him.


    Boom! There was a loud noise that seemed so violent that it would shake the sky until it collapsed. The golden hand that smashed through the air destroyed everything in its path, including the great sword. It continued downward, and Ye Futian was sent flying, giving off a muffled cry. But he had withstood the assault.


    His eyes went cold, and a terrible storm of sword will erupted around him as he glared at his opponent.


    When facing Saint level figures in Emperor Li''s Realm, he could not use the Halberd of Time and Space as he had in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Otherwise, he would be revealed. Nor could he use other extremely powerful divine implements. If a lone swordsman who had come from the Lower Realm brought out an extremely high-level divine implement, there would be something wrong with that. And so, Ye Futian could not even draw upon the power of a divine implement to fight this Saint.


    Ye Futian stared at his opponent, then glanced at Li Xuan far away. He stood there calmly, quietly watching the battlefield. Or rather, he was watching Ye Futian.


    The Seventh Swordsman had come outside Dali Academy to seek the Path? Who did he think he was? Even though the Lower Realms had shown their unparalleled strength at Emperor Li''s Palace, now that one of them had fallen into his hands, he would not be polite!

 1106 Use Your Sword

    The Saint level cultivator saw Ye Futian block his attack and could not help but feel slightly surprised. Those at the level of the Divine Path were so powerful. Ye Futian was just an enlightened Sage. The gap between them should have been enormous.


    He stepped forward, and the majesty of the Great Path swept down, pressing on Ye Futian. Even the many cultivators who were surrounding them and observing the battle could feel the invisible force. But since they were outside of Dali Academy at the moment, the Saint controlled the scope of his power. He did not dare to let loose and break anything. He flooded his will into his hand, and another palm print smashed down from the sky, even stronger than the last one.


    Ye Futian looked up and felt that the palm print crashing down above him would crush everything in the area. A suffocating pressure descended. If it had been someone at the peak of the Sage level facing this, they would probably have trouble even moving.


    But he did not retreat. Ye Futian moved his hands, and suddenly, his sword will transformed, forming numerous great swords. A dozen or so swords appeared before him, and each one was filled with vast power.


    Boom! Ye Futian took a step into the air, and suddenly, one of the great swords cut through the sky, piercing through the void as it swept through everything. It rushed towards the oncoming handprint to withstand its mighty power.


    Boom! He took another step and clapped his hands together with enough force to collapse mountains. Suddenly, all the great swords shot through the air one by one, each one following the last. The palm print descended, and a loud sound rang out. The great sword at the front was immediately destroyed. The giant hand pressed down with incredible speed, and booming sounds rang out continuously as the air itself trembled violently. Great sword after great sword was destroyed, but the hand did slow a bit, and slight cracks appeared in it.


    Rumble! Woosh! Ye Futian took a step forward. The last great sword shot through the sky and finally sliced through the hand. But at the same time, the Saint stepped forward and descended directly above Ye Futian. This swordsman might be so strong that he could destroy a Saint-level palm print, but destroying a palm print was all that he had managed to do. The Saint''s hand pressed down like a millstone, and suddenly, a frightening golden storm appeared, destroying everything below it.


    "Go." Ye Futian pointed up into the sky, and suddenly, all the sword will surrounding him shot up into the air. The swords shone brightly, and everything between heaven and earth seemed to be filled with swords. There was no trace of Ye Futian.


    "Illusory Swords?" The Saint level cultivator was uncertain. The golden storm continued to press downward, and the illusory swords were violently destroyed.


    Devastating pressure descended on Ye Futian that tried to shock him back down to the ground. But as he fell back, Ye Futian reached out with his hand, and suddenly another sword appeared. As he pulled out the sword, his figure disappeared from where it had been. He firmly cut through the pressure that was coming from his opponent and managed to escape.


    At that same time, Li Xuan felt a strong sense of threat descending. In the next instant, he saw Ye Futian waving his blade of light off in the distance. In a flash, he appeared before him, swift as a cloud and smooth as water. This was spatial swordsmanship.


    Sword will billowed from Ye Futian, and Li Xuan went flying backward. But he could not outrun a sword. He could only stretch out his hands and clap them in front of him. His eyes were cold. Did he want to take care of him in a single instant?


    A divine implement protected his body, and a divine implement also covered his hands as he grabbed Ye Futian''s sword. The sword slammed into his hands. Li Xuan tried to yank it away, but he only saw golden light flashing by. The sword pierced through his hands and cut open his defensive light curtain, plunging towards his throat.


    In a flash, Li Xuan felt a bit of coldness at his throat. He suddenly stopped moving his hands. His body stayed in that strange posture as he stiffened up. At the same time, the Saint stepped forward and landed close beside them. He had felt it when Ye Futian had slashed him with his sword, but it had only slowed him down a little. As long as Li Xuan could block his sword, it would give him enough time. But clearly, Li Xuan could not block even a single blow.


    As the disciples of Dali Academy beheld this scene, they all looked shocked. While facing that assault of a Saint level cultivator, he had fled the battlefield and with a single sword stroke, had gained mastery over Li Xuan''s life and death. That sword could truly be called amazing. This swordsman who had come to Dali Academy to seek the Path was truly formidable.


    "Let him go." The Saint stepped forward. Ye Futian did not turn to look at him. Sword will billowed out from him as the tip of his sword touched the skin of Li Xuan''s throat. With only a slight movement, he could pierce through his throat and end his life.


    Li Xuan tilted his head slightly. His face did not seem too disturbed as he felt the coldness at his throat. He slowly put down his hands and lowered his head, but he still stared at Ye Futian with eyes full of coldness and pride. He was indeed worthy of being called matchless in the Lower Realms. He had defeated the swordsman of Sword Mountain and was able to control him with a single sword. That was amazing.


    "My name is Li." Li Xuan stared at Ye Futian as he said this. "That is a good sword you have there. Take it away from me, and I will let you leave."


    Ye Futian kept his sword in place. He looked at Li Xuan and said, "Why did you attack me?"


    "How could I let Dali Academy be so easily humiliated?" said Li Xuan proudly.


    Ye Futian saw that his opponent had remained calm all along, especially when giving the order to kill him. This was not because he had taunted Dali Academy. Moreover, he had come seeking the Path and had said nothing humiliating. If Li Xuan were genuinely thinking of Dali Academy''s honor, he would not have had a Saint try to kill him after losing.


    Li Xuan was lying. But this was his first time meeting him, and there was no conflict of interest between them. Then why would he try to kill him?


    However, judging by Li Xuan''s attitude, it would probably be impossible to ask him the reason. And in any case, it would be meaningless to do so.


    "Let him go." The Saint stepped forward again. His aura was frightening. Sword wills swirled around Ye Futian, and he moved the sword forward, pressing it bit by bit into Li Xuan''s throat. He looked back at the Saint and said, "If you take another step forward, I can''t promise you that my sword won''t pierce through his throat." Blood trickled down Li Xuan''s neck. He felt the coldness there, and his eyes changed a little bit, going very cold.


    "If you don''t take your sword away, I can''t promise that you will leave here alive today," Li Xuan said. As he said this, his throat grew colder, and the sword pressed further in. His skin crawled, and his face went a little pale. He gazed fixedly at Ye Futian.


    "I promise that you will die before me," said Ye Futian coldly. "Also, someone who called in a Saint to help him after he had already lost''s promises have no weight. So, you can shut up now." Li Xuan obediently shut up. The sword was already in his throat; if it went any further, it would kill him. He could do nothing but close his mouth.


    All was suddenly silent outside Dali Academy. A group of figures flew through the sky. The headmaster of the academy had heard the news and had hurried over. As the people arrived and saw the scene before them, their faces changed. Although this Li Xuan was not an outstanding cultivator there at Dali Academy, he was still surnamed Li. If he died here, it would certainly bring them no end of trouble. But that swordsman''s sword did not move even a hair. He stood there still. They seemed to have entered a stalemate.


    Ye Futian did not know what would happen after he let Li Xuan go. So, before he could guarantee his safety, his sword would not leave Li Xuan''s throat.


    "Li Xuan has wronged you in this matter, but why don''t you let him go first?" the Saint of Dali Academy said to Ye Futian.


    "I have heard that Dali Academy is the best holy land for cultivating in Dali. That is why I came here to seek the Path. However, after I defeated this man, he ordered a Saint to kill me. I had no choice but to do this. I ask you, elder, if I let him go, will you swear on the honor of Dali Academy that you will guarantee my safety?" asked Ye Futian.


    The Saint was silent for a moment after Ye Futian had said his piece. Li Xuan had a special status. He was a descendant of the Prince Regent. If he wanted to retaliate against Ye Futian, the Saint would have no power to ensure Ye Futian''s safety. He naturally did not dare to swear this on Dali Academy''s good name. Thus, he could only be silent.


    "When a man is angered, the bloodshed he causes spreads far beyond him. And if you cannot guarantee my safety here, then you will be burying Li Xuan with me," continued Ye Futian. He kept waiting.


    Li Xuan''s face finally darkened. Was what the Seventh Swordsman meant was that if no one could absolutely guarantee his safety, he would kill him?


    Many of the people in Dali Academy secretly praised the swordsman. When he was angered, he would spread bloodshed. Li Xuan''s actions had indeed been too much. If this swordsman had been a little bit weaker, he would be dead. However, other than the most powerful figures of Dali Academy or a great figure from the Prince Regent''s household, anyone who tried to guarantee Ye Futian''s safety would be talking nonsense.


    "Are you the Seventh Swordsman who came up from Emperor Li''s Palace with Lu Chuan and the others?" asked one of the elders of Dali Academy.


    "Yes," answered Ye Futian. A look of surprise suddenly came over everyone''s faces. The one who Li Xuan had tried to kill was the foremost of those chosen from the Lower Worlds by Lu Chuan. It was said that Sword Mountain wanted to take him as a disciple. Some people reported this within Dali Academy. This was going to be troublesome.


    Outside the academy, all still seemed very calm. Two people stood in the middle of it all, not moving a muscle. At that moment, a line of figures stepped forward.


    "Greetings, Brother Yan." The disciples of Dali Academy bowed to the one who was coming one by one, their gazes full of respect. Those who had come from afar to visit the college also gazed worshipfully at him.


    It was the great disciple of the Imperial Advisor: Yan Yuan. Now, the matter that was facing Dali Academy was basically up to him to decide. The Imperial Advisor was a headmaster of Dali Academy. All the cultivators of the academy could thus call Yan Yuan their sworn brother.


    Yan Yuan already knew what was going on. He walked in front of Li Xuan and Ye Futian and looked at the two of them. Then he said to Li Xuan, "Li Xuan, you were the one who started this. How do you plan to solve it?"


    "Brother Yan, if he removes his sword, I won''t kill him," said Li Xuan.


    Yan Yuan looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian said, "I don''t believe him."


    "He doesn''t believe you. How can you assure him?" Yan Yuan asked Li Xuan.


    "If he doesn''t believe me, what can I do?" Li Xuan''s face grew ugly.


    "Since there''s no way to solve this, we''re at a stalemate. So, Seventh Swordsman, use your sword," continued Yan Yuan. As he said this, everyone''s gaze froze on him. He had asked the Seventh Swordsman to use his sword.


    Li Xuan went pale. Did he want the two of them to die together? How could the Seventh Swordsman''s life be worth as much as his?

 1107 Ulterior Motives

    A strange expression came over Ye Futian''s face. He was shocked.


    Yan Yuan was the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, and a Saint at the third tier of the Divine Path, Unblemished Holiness. According to the records at Emperor Xi''as Palace, it was highly likely that he was at the peak of this level.


    Li Xuan was of the blood of Dali. He had been brought here to the Upper Worlds by Li Xuan''s sworn brother Lu Chuan to cultivate. No matter which way he looked at it, Yan Yuan should be trying to mediate a solution, not asking him to use his sword. If he used his sword, there was only one possible outcome: both he and Li Xuan would die.


    Ye Futian glanced over Yan Yuan and saw that he was wearing only a simple robe. His was like brilliant jade, and his figure was slender and elegant. At that moment, his eyes were calm, without even a hint of disturbance. It was like what he had said was the most normal thing in the world. But Ye Futian and even those people in and around Dali Academy who were watching did not know why he had told Ye Futian to use his sword.


    "He wants to kill you, and now you have him. You can''t escape, and he can''t guarantee your life. With such a deadlock, why are you still hesitating?" Yan Yuan looked at Ye Futian as he spoke. It was as if he were trying to provoke him.


    "What you have said makes sense," answered Ye Futian. His sword will shrieked, and his arm moved slightly as he continued pressing the point of his sword into Li Xuan''s throat. That action caused Li Xuan to go pale.


    "Wait!" he cried out. Ye Futian''s sword stopped, and he looked at him. Li Xuan''s face was extremely dark as he stared at Ye Futian. "You may not be able to trust me, but can you trust Dali Academy?"


    "I can," answered Ye Futian without hesitation.


    "Brother Yan." Li Xuan turned his gaze to Yan Yuan. He was scared enough that he was willing to concede and turn over negotiations to Yan Yuan.


    "Seventh Swordsman, what will it take to make you put down your sword?" Yan Yuan asked Ye Futian.


    "Guarantee that I will live." Ye Futian''s words were simple yet forceful. He was using his sword to preserve his own life.


    "That is simple enough." Yan Yuan turned towards Li Xuan and said, "Li Xuan, I can make this guarantee for you on Dali Academy''s good name, but if you can''t do this, then what should we do?"


    Li Xuan stared at Ye Futian and saw his cold eyes. He knew what kind of beast this Seventh Swordsman was. He would not do anything by half measures. He would not put down his sword.


    "I swear on my life." Li Xuan''s voice was hoarse but icy.


    "Excellent." Yan Yuan nodded. "In that case, I swear on the honor of Dali Academy that if you put down your sword, Li Xuan will not pursue this matter any further. Otherwise, it will be equivalent to Li Xuan trampling on the good name of Dali University. He has offered up his life as a guarantee. Is this enough for you?"


    "It''s not just Li Xuan. If the man behind him pursues this matter, it will be equivalent to Li Xuan doing so," said Ye Futian. A surprised look came over the faces of everyone watching. This swordsman''s combat ability was extraordinary, but they had not expected him to be so careful. He had not given Li Xuan any chance to get revenge.


    "Very well." Li Xuan''s voice was still hoarse.


    Ye Futian stared at him and saw that Li Xuan''s eyes were full of cold, murderous intent. But Ye Futian did not care.


    "Put down your sword," said Yan Yuan.


    Ye Futian pulled back his sword, and suddenly, the Saint from before flashed over behind Li Xuan, looking at Ye Futian coldly. He was at fault for what had happened. Ye Futian had fled the battle under his attacks and had instead attacked Li Xuan.


    His opponent was quite skilled at spatial swordsmanship.


    "Let us end the matter here," said Yan Yuan, then he turned to leave as if nothing had happened. The other Saints of Dali Academy left with him. Li Xuan had sworn it on his life. He would certainly not dare to do anything.


    Many of the disciples of Dali Academy watched Yan Yuan leaving and admired him in secret. Yan Yuan telling Ye Futian to use his sword had been a case of making concessions to gain advantages. Since neither of them had been willing to step back, he had to see who would be more firm, and who would compromise. Obviously, Li Xuan had compromised first and had asked him for help.


    Li Xuan may have sworn on his life, but it was something that he had sought help from Yan Yuan about. No one had made him do it, so even the Prince Regent could find no fault with what had happened. Li Xuan had lost this conflict without a doubt. He did not dare to trade his life for his enemy''s.


    After pulling back his sword, Ye Futian turned to leave. He no longer defended himself. From what he understood of the Imperial Adviser and Dali Academy, even a grandson of the Prince Regent, or even a Prince, would not dare to besmirch Dali Academy''s reputation. Li Xuan had sworn on his life. If he acted against Ye Futian now, he would be seeking his death.


    Yan Yuan may have left as if nothing had happened, but Ye Futian did not think that Yan Yuan had handled the situation so well. What it truly that easy to become a top figure at Dali Academy?


    "Seventh Swordsman." At that moment, a voice rang out, and a group of figures flashed over towards him. At their head were Li Yang and Li You.


    "My Prince, My Lord," Ye Futian called to them.


    Li Yang and Li You looked at Li Xuan and saw him looking back at them. The Prince Regent and King Li were both of the Four Kings, but the Prince Regent was the elder, and so King Li had to call him Uncle. Thus, from the point of view of seniority, Li Yang, Li You, and the Prince Regent''s grandson Li Xuan were of the same generation. Moreover, he was the direct descendant of two kings, giving him double status.


    "Is everything alright?" Li You asked Ye Futian.


    "Everything is fine," Ye Futian answered.


    At that moment, Li You''s face grew a bit ugly, and not only because of Ye Futian''s talent. Ye Futian had come from the Lower Worlds. Her father, King Li, was the master of the Lower Worlds. Lu Chuan and the people of Sword Mountain had chosen Ye Futian. In some sense, King Li''s Palace had formed some level of relationship with Ye Futian. Thus, Li You had always been good to Ye Futian because he had come from the Lower Worlds and had outstanding talent. But she knew that the Seventh Swordsman had almost died at Li Xuan''s hands.


    The most powerful figure from the Lower Worlds, who was controlled by her father, had almost died so unexpectedly. She was naturally out of sorts. But she still said nothing. She heard Li Xuan say, "Li Yang, Li You, is he one of your people?"


    "Master Seventh Swordsman has been invited by Lu Chuan to come up from the Lower Worlds. He is the most powerful figure in the Lower Worlds under our control. Master Shadow Bearing Sword Saint of Sword Mountain invited him to Sword Mountain to cultivate," she said coldly. "Li Xuan, you almost became a murderer back there. Why?"


    Everyone who heard Li You''s words looked shocked. No wonder this swordsman had been so strong and could get to Li Xuan even under the assault of a Saint. He was the foremost figure of the Lower Worlds; the one who Lu Chuan and the others had brought to the Upper Worlds.


    Many people knew about Lu Chuan''s affairs in the Lower Worlds. This was why everyone had a look of wonder on their faces. They had thought that this was just a simple surprise attack. However, no, it seemed not to be that simple.


    Who was Yan Yuan? He was Lu Chuan''s sworn brother, and the two of them had a close relationship. They valued each other greatly. Since Seventh Swordsman was the one that Lu Chuan had brought to the Upper Worlds, Yan Yuan had probably realized this as soon as he heard his name. However, Yan Yuan had just barely told Seventh Swordsman to use his sword.


    From Yan Yuan''s perspective, he was just a mediator and was not trying to help either side. He was trying to solve the issue. But which one of them had Yan Yuan secretly been biased towards? Or maybe he was not biased at all.


    What was interesting was whether or not Li Xuan had known that Seventh Swordsman was the person whom Lu Chuan had brought to the Upper Worlds.


    If he did know, then that was food for thought.


    "That''s how it is?" Li Xuan looked at Li You. "No wonder he had the guts to come to Dali Academy and taunt us. And his swordsmanship is indeed quite good." On saying this, he placed a hand on his neck to wipe away the blood. There was still pain there, and a feeling of coldness.


    "However, I may have promised not to pursue this matter, but he better not do anything else improper, otherwise once I get my hands on him..." Li Xuan''s face was cold. He did not hide his murderous intent at all. "No matter who he is. So, you better keep your distance from him, so you don''t get hurt." On saying this, Li Xuan cast a cold glance at Ye Futian then walked away. The murderous intent was clear for all to see.


    Today, the point of this swordsman''s sword had pricked his throat, threatening his very life. This matter was not over; he would watch this Seventh Swordsman.


    Li Yang and Li You looked a bit angry as they watched him leave until he disappeared.


    "Master Seventh Swordsman, let us take you back," said Li You.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Thank you." He was not under threat anymore, but he still did not refuse Li You''s kindness. As for seeking the Path, after the surprise attack, he no longer needed to continue to do so. The group of them left, and the disciples of Dali Academy and the cultivators around the academy dispersed. They all went to look up a certain name: Seventh Swordsman.


    Ye Futian flew through the air with Li You and the others. "Who is Li Xuan?" he asked. He had looked up the top powers in Emperor Li''s Realm in the scrolls, but it was impossible to know everyone in the Imperial Family. From the moment that Yan Yuan had told him to use his sword, he had realized that his opponent was not a Prince. He must be another descendant of the Imperial bloodline. But he still did not know his actual identity. He was not of the blood of King Li.


    "He is the grandson of the Prince Regent," said Li You. "Li Xuan always does things very casually and is a bit wanton, but I would never have thought he''d try to kill you."


    "The grandson of the Prince Regent," Ye Futian thought to himself. No wonder he dared to be so wanton. He had nothing to be afraid of.


    "Tell it to me straight. He must have known that I came from the Lower Worlds part of Emperor Li''s Realm, " said Ye Futian. Li Xuan had not seemed like a man of noble birth to him. He had seemed more like an assassin.


    Li Yang and Li You looked surprised when they heard Ye Futian. They looked at each other. If Li Xuan had known, then that could be punishable by death. His Majesty highly regarded the Imperial Adviser, and the people of Dali Imperial City said he only answered to one man. Obviously, in their hearts, he was only inferior to His Majesty.


    It was public knowledge that King Tiandao was not happy with this, and thus he was always in conflict with the Imperial Adviser. Everyone in Dali knew this. But the Prince Regent was still very low-key, and over the past few years had gotten involved in very few external affairs. The people of the Prince Regent''s household definitely would have ideas of their own.


    Lu Chuan had brought Ye Futian to the Upper Worlds. If Li Xuan knew Ye Futian''s identity but had pretended not to know as he tried to kill him, then he definitely had ulterior motives. He may have been deliberately trying to stir things up!

 1108 Summit Meeting

    Li Yang and Li You brought Ye Futian back to a private residence on Emperor Li''s Road.


    "Would you like me to station some people here?" Li You asked Ye Futian. Li Xuan may have promised not to do anything, but he had done so unwillingly.


    "No need. If Li Xuan were willing to trade his life for mine, he would have asked Yan Yuan for help," said Ye Futian. He had just gotten back. Who besides Li Xuan would be trying to kill him?


    And Li Xuan was not that stupid, especially because he thought that Li Xuan''s acting against him back there had been premeditated. He was not a simple scion of a noble house. Even though he had compromised in the end, all the time that Ye Futian had been pressing his sword into his throat, he had been extremely calm.


    "Alright. Be careful, Master," said Li You. "But if you can, you should go to Sword Mountain to cultivate." She naturally meant well. All Ye Futian had to do was nod, and he would be able to go to Sword Mountain to cultivate.


    Because of the involvement of Sword Mountain, Li Xuan did not dare to do anything rash against Ye Futian. After all, that was the foremost holy land for swordsmanship in the Dali Dynasty, similar to Lihen Heaven in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The Master of Sword Mountain was a Saint at the fourth their of the Saint plane, Nirvana, and he truly stood at the peak of the people in the Dali Dynasty. There were few people like him.


    "I will think about it carefully," said Ye Futian. Li Yang and Li You said farewell and left. After they left, Ye Futian sat down in the courtyard and closed his eyes to cultivate.


    Today''s events had made him more vigilant. After coming to Dali, he had observed the situation and been cautious. He had not gotten into conflicts of interest with those who he could not compete with. And if he had been a bit arrogant, Saint level figures were too high above him to care about it. And even if they did care, they wouldn''t kill him over it.


    But the affair with Li Xuan had made him understand that here in the power center of Dali Imperial City, sometimes even when he did nothing disasters could still befall him. Actually, this was not only true of Emperor Li''s Realm. The whole world was like this. Those who had cultivated weakly would die when battles broke out between powerful figures, and they would not even know why they were dying. Thus, there was only one way to avoid these threats that you could not see coming: make yourself stronger.


    If he had not had enough combat power today, the Saint would have directly killed him; he had truly wanted to slay him. Li Xuan had not been joking. Thus, he had used his combat prowess to capture Li Xuan with his sword and avoid danger.


    If he became a Saint, then killing him would not be something that a Saint at the first tier of the Saint plane could do. However, the gap between Sage and Saint was extremely difficult to cross. It was like a moat: many people were stopped on one side of it, and even if they worked their whole lives they would never be able to cross it.


    Ye Futian pushed away these distracting thoughts and closed his eyes. It seemed there was a rustling sound ringing out through his Life Palace. The World Tree was swaying and giving off jade green light. Many patterns were blooming around the tree. They were other life spirits.


    The World Tree''s light flowed towards his body and then spread out into the distance. Suddenly, Ye Futian felt that he had turned into a tree. His every thought, and every piece of his aura were branches stretching out into the distance, to touch the essence of nature, heaven, and earth. He could feel the power of heaven and earth.


    Man was modeled after heaven, after earth, after the Path. And the Path was modeled after nature. A marvelous airflow swept out from him and was immersed in his cultivation. When he had fought Yuan Jin at the Battle of Empty Realm, he had also entered this mysterious plane where he could sense the power of the Great Path.


    Since man made the Path, the Path was an extension of man''s will. Of course, to actually extend one''s will was too hard.


    Ye Futian''s perception was not strong enough right now. But by plunging himself into the Path of the Sword, he could already create many kinds of swords. He could gain a name for himself with his swords and thus walk around in Dali.


    The Seventh Swordsman was a powerful fighter, but that was, in fact, an illusion. Many months had passed since he had cultivated the Taixuan Sword Sutra. Although his swordsmanship was already exquisite, he was more integrated with the power of multiple elements, and combined with the other skills he had learned while cultivating, he could unleash outstandingly powerful swords.


    Of course, his sword itself was not too bad. The Taixuan Sword Sutra provided a general outline for his swordsmanship. He had cultivated many elemental powers, but he had truly cultivated different types of elemental sword magic. He had been able to apply these many kinds of abilities to his sword, so his swordsmanship alone was quite formidable. But if he could integrate the power he had before into his swordsmanship, it would naturally be even stronger. Now, he needed to forge an even more powerful sword so that he could truly make a name for himself with it and create a foothold in Dali.


    Ye Futian did not go out for a while. He stayed in his residence, cultivating. However, Seventh Swordsman''s name began to circulate in the outside world.


    Dali Academy had a prestigious place in Emperor Li''s Realm, and so the things that had happened were passed along quite quickly. Moreover, since the first person who Lu Chuan had brought from the Lower Worlds to cultivate, the Prince Regent''s grandson, and Yan Yuan had all been there, it would have been impossible for the news not to spread.


    Many people in Emperor Xia''s Realm were curious the first time that Seventh Swordsman''s name spread throughout the Upper Worlds. How strong was this man from the Lower Worlds who dared to stand directly outside Dali Academy and seek the Path?


    Li Xuan had ruined Seventh Swordsman''s battles for seeking the Path. If he had been able to continue, a much stronger disciple from Dali Academy would have come out, and then they would have been able to see.


    After a few days, some more slightly shocking news came out. And there were two sides to this news. The first was that a swordsman had come from a thousand miles away in the primary holy land for swordsmanship in Dali Imperial City, Sword Mountain. It seemed that he had come for an appointment and had met with Seventh Swordsman by chance.


    The reason that this was shocking was that the one who had come from Sword Mountain was Jian Wu, who was called the most outstanding disciple among the younger generation of Sword Mountain. He was at the limit of what was possible below the Saint level.


    Once upon a time, many people had wanted to see a battle between Jian Wu and Yuan Jin and had speculated about who was stronger between them. However, Yuan Jin had fallen, and Dong Chen would probably take his place and become the personal disciple of the Imperial Adviser. Who was stronger, Dong Chen or Jian Wu of Sword Mountain?


    But Jian Wu''s reason for coming was not Dong Chen of Dali Academy, but Seventh Swordsman. From this, it could be seen that Sword Mountain thought highly of this junior swordsman who had come from the Lower Worlds. Indeed, he had made Jian Wu come off the mountain.


    The second reason the news was shocking was very similar to the first reason. It was because someone else had come to Dali Imperial City who was almost a Saint. It was Di Hao of Daoli Mountain.


    King Tiandao had always been overtly in conflict with the Imperial Adviser. The Imperial Adviser had founded Dali Academy, and so King Tiandao had founded Daoli Mountain in the West as a holy land for cultivating.


    Not long ago, the Imperial Adviser had announced that he recalled his disciples. Now, the disciples of Daoli Mountain were coming from far away. This made people speculate wildly. And the one who had come was Di Hao.


    King Tiandao controlled the Western Army, and all of the disciples of Daoli Mountain had battle experience. They were all geniuses forged in the fires of battle. Di Hao had the honor of being the best disciple of Daoli Mountain. King Tiandao thought very highly of him and had adopted him. So, how could someone like this coming to Dali Imperial City not cause a great disturbance?


    Especially since Jian Wu of Sword Mountain had also come.


    At that time, Yuan Jin and Dong Chen of Dali Academy, Di Hao of Daoli Mountain, and Jian Wu of Sword Mountain were the best that there was below the Saint level, and the most prestigious people at that level in the Dali Dynasty.


    Yuan Jin had gone to the Battle of Empty Realm, but Dong Chen had not. As for Jian Wu, the Imperial Adviser had not wanted to order him to go and had wanted even less to have Di Hao go.


    Generally speaking, the Imperial Adviser''s household was responsible for commanding the Battle of Empty Realm, and one of his disciples was always there. And it would obviously not be suitable for the Imperial Adviser''s people to show up at the same place as King Tiandao''s people.


    The three strongest figures in the Dali Dynasty below the Saint level were all in Dali Imperial City. Even though they weren''t Saints, they still attracted a lot of attention, and people had great expectations for them. Many people even wondered if the three of them would stand upon the same stage and battle? They would be able to see which one of them was worthy of being called the greatest figure in Dali Imperial City below the Saint level.


    As for Seventh Swordsman, he was naturally overlooked. Even though he had gained a little bit of fame outside Dali Academy, he was still not worth looking at when compared to those three. How could the foremost person from the Lower Worlds compare with the strongest people from the Upper Worlds? Many people even argued about how many sword strokes Seventh Swordsman could last at Jian Wu''s hands.


    As Dali Imperial City was being shocked by these two pieces of news, Ye Futian was improving his swordsmanship at his residence. He sat there cross-legged with an old tree beside him. The tree was swaying, and its leaves were falling off and swirling around Ye Futian. They seemed to circle him in some sort of majestic pattern. What was more incredible was that each leaf seemed extremely sharp.


    At that moment, Ye Futian suddenly opened his eyes. The leaves suddenly flew wildly as a terrible shriek rang out all around. The sound was ear piercing, and the leaves all flashed in the same direction, seeming to cut through space itself.


    Slash! A wall was cut through piece by piece by the leaves, and the whole thing crumbled to the ground. A vertical line appeared where the leaves had cut through, and on the other side of the wall, several figures appeared. The leaves flew back to Ye Futian and drifted behind him.


    "Your Sword of Raging Storms is becoming as pure as flame," said Li You with a smile.


    "Why have you come?" asked Ye Futian with a bow.


    "You have been staying here practicing swordsmanship for several days, so you probably don''t know what has happened in the outside world. You have a meeting with the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint, who has just arrived in Dali Imperial City. And, the most outstanding disciple of Sword Mountain, Jian Wu, has also come," said Li You.


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded. It seemed that the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint wanted to take him to Sword Mountain as a disciple. Otherwise, he would not have been so considerate.


    "You have been at peace here, but you don''t know the disturbances that have taken place outside. Jian Wu is the best swordsman of Sword Mountain below the Saint level. And not only that, he is one of the strongest people below the Saint level in Dali Dynasty. The fact that the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint brought him here means that he firmly wants to defeat you and bring you back to Sword Mountain with him," said Li You with a smile.


    It would be good if Ye Futian went to Sword Mountain. Sword Mountain was the best place for practicing swordsmanship for those below the Saint level.


    At that moment, Ye Futian thought of Wang Chuan. But this time, he would compete with his opponent with his sword!

 1109 The Three Great Holy Lands for Cultivation in Dali

    Ye Futian saw Li You''s smile and said, "If I am defeated, then I will fulfill my promise and go to Sword Mountain to practice my swordsmanship."


    "Mm." Li You nodded. "Sword Mountain is the best place in the Dali Dynasty to practice swordsmanship. If you were to go there to train, you wouldn''t have to go to Dali Academy like last time." Li You was certain that Ye Futian would be defeated. No matter how strong he was, his opponent was stronger; he was the foremost junior of Sword Mountain.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and didn''t say any more arrogant things. If he gave it his all, he believed that he could defeat anyone in Dali below the Saint level. But right now, he could only do it via his swordsmanship, and he had placed many constraints on himself. If he wanted to win, he could only do so with his sword. If he could not win with his sword, then even if he could defeat his opponent, he still could not win. If he won with his sword then he won, if he lost with his sword, then he lost. If he faced an opponent like Wang Chuan, he still did not genuinely have absolute assurance of victory with his sword alone.


    "Oh right, one more thing. But it doesn''t have much to do with you. Are you interested in hearing it?" asked Li You with a smile.


    "Please tell me," said Ye Futian with a nod.


    "Jian Wu is not the only one to come to Dali Imperial City now. Di Hao from Daoli Mountain has come as well," she said.


    "Di Hao?" asked Ye Futian, confused. He knew of Daoli Mountain. The records told him that it had been founded by King Tiandao, who controlled the Western Army.


    "At the moment, there are three powerful holy lands for cultivation in the Dali Dynasty: Dali Academy, Daoli Mountain, and Sword Mountain," said Li You slowly. "Dali Imperial City is not among them, but in the eyes of the dynasty, it lies at the center of these three holy lands. Dali Academy, which was founded by the Imperial Adviser, is there. Since it receives the full support of His Majesty and has the advantage of being located in the Imperial City, it is considered the best of the three holy lands.


    "The second best is Daoli Mountain. King Tiandao has been stationed in the West for many years, and the Western Army completely controls that area. King Tiandao''s household holds absolute power in the West. Many families and sects look to them for leadership. Given this background, King Tiandao was able to leverage the power he held in the West to call together all the young geniuses and found Daoli Mountain. All the disciples of Daoli Mountain have experience on the field of battle. That is how Daoli Mountain, which is the foremost holy land in the West and the second best in all the land.


    "The third best holy land for cultivating is Sword Mountain. Di Hao comes from Daoli Mountain, and King Tian Dao has adopted him. Many people look at him as the future king of the West. He has never been the Dali Imperial City before, and the great figures of the city have no concrete information about his power. Still, many people speculate that he is the strongest person in the Dali Dynasty below the Saint level."


    "None of the disciples of Dali Academy can defeat him?" asked Ye Futian curiously.


    "Dong Chen of Dali Academy is indeed very strong. Now that the Imperial Adviser is going to choose another disciple, Dong Chen is probably best qualified for the spot. Many people think it will be him. His strength is obvious, but King Tiandao is very conceited and arrogant. He probably sent Di Hao to Dali Imperial City to attack the cultivators that the Imperial Adviser has summoned. You can see the trust he puts in Di Hao," said Li You. "Thus, there are those who call Di Hao the most powerful figure in the Dali Dynasty below the Saint level. Of course, some think it is Dong Chen. But without a doubt, one must add Jian Wu to that list. They are certainly the three most powerful figures below the Saint level in the Dali Dynasty, and the most famous. And no, they will all be together in Dali Imperial City.


    "But," Li You looked at Ye Futian and smiled, "if you can defeat Jian Wu, you will be one of the top three." Of course, she was being polite. In reality, she didn''t think Ye Futian could defeat Jian Wu.


    Ye Futian smiled and said nothing. Li You took her leave, saying, "I will return. If there is more news, I will come tell you."


    "You can just send someone to tell me," said Ye Futian.


    "Very well. It''s also possible that the people from Sword Mountain will personally visit us," said Li You with a nod. She couldn''t keep coming here all the time.


    After Li You left, Ye Futian continued cultivating, doing all he could to integrate his power into his sword. He used Taixuan Sword Sutra to temper his sword. The next time he faced a powerful foe, it wouldn''t be like it had been in the Lower Worlds.


    Jian Wu of Sword Mountain was ranked in the top three figures below the Saint level in the Dali Dynasty.


    ...


    The cultivators from Daoli Mountain and Sword Mountain were arriving at Dali Imperial City one by one. The commotion shook the city at the center of the Dali Dynasty.


    Everyone was waiting for some news. They did not have to wait too long. Soon, the people from Daoli Mountain went to pay a visit to Dali Academy and arranged to go to Dali Academy again in seven days to seek the Path. Daoli Mountain wanted to come into conflict with Dali Academy openly. And just like Ye Futian, they said they were "seeking the Path," just because it sounded good. In reality, they were challenging them to battle.


    The two most powerful holy lands of the Dali Dynasty were in open conflict. This was King Tiandao provoking the Imperial Adviser. He wanted to prove that Daoli Mountain trained better disciples than Dali Academy.


    Since Di Hao had come, many people expected that they would get to see the battle between him and Dong Chen. Many people thought about what it would be like if Di Hao defeated Dong Chen. Would the Imperial Adviser''s authority come under threat?


    Just as people were becoming worried about the Imperial Adviser, some news came from his household: In seven days, the Imperial Adviser would personally come to Dali Academy. And he had invited all the top figures of Dali Imperial City to go and observe the forum. Even Sword Mountain was on the list of those invited. And on that day, he would choose his next disciple.


    There was a great stir in Dali Imperial City as the news spread. This was the Imperial Adviser''s manner. Just as many people were worried about him and were afraid that he would be defeated, he had said that he would personally observe the battle and choose a disciple. No matter if he won or lost, he had shown himself to be two steps ahead of everyone else.


    On the second day, news also came from Sword Mountain. Jian Wu would invite someone to go to the forum at Dali Academy with him.


    Seventh Swordsman. Suddenly Seventh Swordman''s name was once again ringing throughout Dali Imperial City. The strongest cultivators of the younger generation of Sword Mountain, Jian Wu, had challenged Seventh Swordsman.


    The time: the day of the forum between Dali Academy and Daoli Mountain.


    The place: Dali Academy.


    This news caused great waves and shocked all the people in Dali Imperial City. They were now full of great expectations for the forum in several days. Not only Dali Academy and Daoli Mountain would be attending, but Sword Mountain would also be there and would fight with Seventh Swordsman.


    The three greatest holy lands in the Dali Dynasty would all be there, and so would the three strongest cultivators in the Dali Dynasty below the Saint level.


    On that day, Ye Futian was still in the residence where he was staying, tempering his sword. At that moment, he had a slightly strange feeling. He opened his eyes and looked up into the distant sky. He saw a group of swordsmen flying over, and they landed outside his residence.


    "Greetings, Seventh Swordsman," came a voice from outside.


    "Please come in," said Ye Futian. As he said this, the group of cultivators flew in and descended into the courtyard. They all looked at Ye Futian, who was sitting there, cultivating.


    "I come in the name of the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint with news. In five days, Sword Mountain will await you at Dali Academy. Please keep your promise," one of them said. Ye Futian already knew from Li You that Jian Wu would be there, so he knew what the promise the man had mentioned was about. But he was a little surprised about the location. It would be at Dali Academy.


    "Alright. Please tell the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint that I will be there on time," answered Ye Futian.


    "Very well. Farewell." The man nodded, and then the group of them flew up into the sky and disappeared in a flash. Not long after they left, Li You arrived and told him what had happened outside. This made Ye Futian anticipate what would happen in five days at Dali Academy. The three strongest people in the Dali Dynasty below the Saint level would all be there together.


    ...


    The days finally passed as everyone in the city waited expectantly. On that day, powerful figures were continuously descending from the sky outside of Dali Academy. Some of them rode on swords, others on carriages. Some of the figures who were coming down from their carriages had powerful auras.


    "Many people from the Imperial Family have come." Everyone''s hearts trembled.


    It seemed that the Imperial Family was quite interested in this forum.


    A dragon roared in the sky, as a divine golden dragon came pulling a carriage. Several gold robed figures were on the carriage. Everyone gasped as they saw them. It was not just people from the Imperial Family who had come, as even the Prince of the Dali Dynasty had come to Dali Academy. If Ye Futian had seen this, he would have realized that the person on the carriage was the one that he had come to this place for.


    It was Li Yao, the Prince of Dali Imperial City.


    The huge golden dragon descended outside Dai Academy, and the carriage came to the ground. The Prince stepped into the academy, but no one came out to greet him.


    The Imperial Adviser had founded Dali Academy and had desired to train the best fighters of the Dali Dynasty there. When he first founded it, His Majesty Emperor Li had once ordered people to build a statue outside the academy, a statue of the Imperial Adviser, highlighting his powerful position.


    However, when the Imperial Adviser found out about this, he had personally requested that the statue be torn down. Emperor Li had agreed, and the Imperial Advisor had destroyed the statue with his own hands. He had declared that Dali Academy did not advocate advancing the individual, but was to be a place for training cultivators for the Dali Dynasty. There was no rank or authority here; everyone who entered the academy was equal. However, after that day, the people of the Dali Dynasty''s respect for the Imperial Adviser only grew stronger.


    After this, His Majesty Emperor Li had personally ordered that anyone who entered Dali Academy must come down from their carriage. They could not rudely fly in, not even Princes and Princesses.


    Afterward, Emperor Li had made the Princes and Princesses go to Dali Academy to cultivate. Thus, now that Li Yao and his entourage had arrived, they still had to get out of their carriage, even though they were royalty. They had to walk into Dali Academy, and there was no one there to welcome them.


    This was Dali Academy, the foremost holy land for cultivating in the Dali Dynasty.


    But today, Daoli Mountain was coming there to seek the Path!

 1110 Low-Key Up to This Poin

    All the disciples of Dali Academy were gathered together, having shown up for the sparring session. There were many disciples on both sides of the area, but they were behaving in an orderly manner, casually chatting and occasionally casting glances off into the distance.


    There were many seats on the steps in front of the sparring session platform that had been prepared for many of the elders that had come here today. There were already many more elders of Dali Academy waiting here than usual, and they were all looking off into the distance as well. The great disciple of Dali Academy, Yan Yuan, was already there.


    Li Yao and his entourage approached from the distance, coming in front of the building. They bowed slightly to Yan Yuan, and the many Saints of Dali Academy and called, "Greetings, sirs." Yan Yuan was usually responsible for events held at Dali Academy, and thus he was seated in the highest position.


    "Please, have a seat, Your Highness," said Yan Yuan with a slight smile. Li Yao and the others nodded, and three of them stepped forward and were seated. Afterward, more and more people arrived, many of whom were of the Imperial Family.


    There were many people of Emperor Li''s bloodline in the city. Other than the few kings who had been given their titles by His Majesty himself, many others had been born into the Imperial household.


    At that moment, many people were clustering around a single person. He was wearing a golden robe, and Li Xuan stood by his side. Li Xu was Li Xuan''s elder brother and the Prince Regent''s grandson and had the highest status of the royal grandsons. Many people thought that he would one day inherit the Prince Regent''s mantle. The Prince Regents position in the Imperial Family was extremely high. After all, he was the Emperor''s uncle, and so he was highly respected.


    King Tiandao was extremely powerful, but he was His Majesty''s brother. In some sense, King Tiandao and the Emperor were the closest, being of such close blood. He did not bother to get closer to other members of the Imperial Family, and since he was in the West, the Prince Regent had gradually become the leader of the Imperial Family.


    As for King Li, although he was a king, not many people cared about him. His status was not very high. King Li was the weakest of the Four Kings, and so he had the lowest position.


    Although relationships between members of the Imperial Family were slightly delicate, Emperor Li did not care. This was the world of cultivators after all; if they didn''t gang up and form cliques, how could they have any power? As long as the members of the Imperial Household did not do anything too improper and stayed within the rules, Emperor Li would not bother with their affairs.


    Emperor Li would not even ask questions about the conflict between King Tiandao and the Imperial Adviser. A little benign competition was not a bad thing for Emperor Li. And King Tiandao and the Imperial Adviser both had a sense of propriety.


    "Li Xuan, I heard that several days ago, someone put a sword up to your throat. If Yan Yuan had not shown up, perhaps you would have been slain?" said a voice. Everyone looked up to where it had come from. The speaker was a young man next to Li Yao, who was wearing bright and beautiful robes. He looked a lot like Li Yao and was clearly someone extraordinary. And his aura was mighty. He was clearly at a very high level.


    This naturally another Prince: Li Xun. He was Li Yao''s brother and a Saint level figure. There was a bit of mockery in his words. Li Xuan was of the same generation as these Princes, but they were not very close.


    Li Xuan naturally did not dare to be as arrogant as he usually was in the face of this opponent. He looked a bit embarrassed. He bowed slightly to Li Xun and said, "Your Highness, it was because I was too generous."


    "I think it was because you were too arrogant," said Li Xun with a smile. "He had come to Dali Academy to seek the Path, and you tried to kill him. What a temper you have! But in the end, he got you. How does that feel?"


    Li Xuan nodded. This matter had indeed been very shameful.


    "You''ll have to cultivate more in the future and spend less time stirring up trouble," said Li Xun. He then looked at Li Xu beside him. "Li Xu, make sure to teach this guy well from now on. He''s outrageous."


    "Alright." Li Xu nodded and bowed to Yan Yuan. "I apologize for disturbing you with this matter, sir,"


    "It''s no problem," answered Yan Yuan indifferently. He looked at Li Xuan and saw him bowing his head. He was clearly uncomfortable right now.


    "Dong Chen is here," came a call. A group of figures appeared off in the distance, and suddenly everyone was making way for them. Dong Chen and his people were coming over. Birds of a feather flock together. The people beside Dong Chen were all outstanding cultivators from Dali Academy.


    "Brother. Your Majesty," said Dong Chen to Yan Yuan and Li Xun. Li Yao and the others all bowed.


    "Daoli Mountain is coming here on this day to seek the Path. Make sure to prepare well," said Yan Yuan.


    "Yes, sir." Dong Chen took a polite step backward.


    Someone said, "I heard that Hao Di of Daoli Mountain will one day be named King of the West. King Tiandao has adopted him, so he must be a stunning figure. It will truly be amazing when he gets here to seek the Path."


    "Brother Dong Chen is full of learning. At the Year End Sparring Session last year, he took first place. I am very excited about the battle between him and the future King of the West." The disciples of Dali Academy were naturally full of confidence in Dong Chen.


    Dali Academy would definitely win this battle.


    "I''m excited too!" came a voice from outside. Everyone saw a black-robed figure walking in, with many people following him. When this person entered, there was an invisible aura all around. Everyone felt bursts of pressure.


    "How can an elder of the Cao clan have time to come here today?" asked Li Xun with a smile. The one who had come was a cultivator of the Cao clan''s demonic clan. He was an Unblemished Saint of the Cao clan. His name was Cao Zhan, and he was extremely powerful.


    "This is a battle of the greatest figures below the Saint level in the Dali Dynasty, so naturally, I brought some of my juniors along to open up their eyes," said Cao Zhan. "It seems that several members of the Imperial Family are here as well?"


    "Your juniors must be eager to get involved. Do they want to step onto the platform?" asked Li Xun with a smile.


    "There are a few youngsters in the Cao clan who aren''t bad," said Cao Zhan heartily. "But they''re nothing compared to Dong Chen and Di Hao."


    "It seems that you have a clear understanding of your weaknesses," said Yan Yuan.


    Cao Zhan looked at Yan Yuan and said, "I''m not looking to fight with you here at this sparring session for the youngsters."


    "Please sit," said Yan Yuan. Cao Zhan stepped forward and took his seat. As for his juniors, they could only stand below him.


    "Sword Mountain has come to greet Dali Academy," came a voice from outside. Soon, a group of swordsmen entered. The Shadow Bearing Sword Saint was leading them, but the disciples of Dali Academy were paying attention to the young swordsman behind him.


    He was clothed in black and standing there calmly with no aura coming off of him. It was as if he did not exist. But he still gave people a strong sense of threat. He was one of the juniors of Sword Mountain, at the extreme of what was possible below the Saint level. He was someone who was often mentioned in the same breath as Dong Chen: Jian Wu.


    Sword Mountain had been invited to Dali Academy, but Jian Wu had received a personal invitation to take part in the sparring session. The foremost figure of the Dali Lower Worlds, Seventh Swordsman, had also been brought here by the Imperial Adviser''s disciple, Lu Chuan.


    "It seems that the top figures of the Dali Dynasty are all here today," said Li Xun with a smile. Beside him, Yan Yuan pointed out a seat and said, "Please be seated."


    The Shadow Bearing Sword Saint and the other elders of Sword Mountain took their seats, and their juniors stood beside them as they continued to wait. The important faction today was Daoli Mountain, and they had not arrived yet.


    When Ye Futian arrived, he was much more low key than the Cao clan and Sword Mountain. He had come with Li Yang and Li You. King Li had been garrisoned in the Lower Worlds for a long time, and his power was unmatched down there. But his influence in the Upper Worlds was relatively weak.


    After Ye Futian had arrived, the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint''s gaze fell upon him. Yuan Gang, who had once lost to Ye Futian, was also there. He said something quietly into the dark clothed man''s ear. Jian Wu''s gaze turned to Ye Futian, and his eyes were as sharp as swords. But in a flash, he turned his gaze away. However, Ye Futian still felt it. But he did not look over at him. He just followed Li You into the crowd.


    "Your Highness, Sir." Li Yang and Li You bowed slightly to Li Xuan and Yan Yuan.


    "Li Yang, Li You," said Li Xun with a smile. "You are becoming more and more beautiful, Li You. It seems like I will have to talk to your father when I have a chance and see if we can find a suitable family for a match." Even though they were of the same generation when it came to cultivating, there was a significant gap in their ages. Li Xun, Li Yao, Li Xuan, Li You, and many others were all of the same generation, but Li Xun was older than them all. He was their elder brother, and kind of their elder. Moreover, he was Prince, but by the way he spoke, he seemed very familiar with them.


    "You must be joking, Your Highness."


    "I''m serious," said Li Xun with a smile. He looked at Ye Futian beside her and said, "This must be Seventh Swordsman."


    "Seventh Swordsman of the Lower Worlds greets you, Your Highness," said Ye Futian with a bow. He naturally had seen that Li Yao was there, but he did not look at him as if he was a stranger. Right now, he was Seventh Swordsman, not Ye Futian, who had come for vengeance. If he wanted revenge, he would have to be patient. He had created the identity of Seventh Swordsman from the Lower Worlds with great difficulty, so he could not so quickly reveal himself.


    "I heard that you defeated all the geniuses of the Nine Commanderies of Great Li. That is very good. Before, you came to Dali Academy seeking the Path. And now there is a battle of top talents here. You should observe it closely," said Li Xun.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Alright."


    Li Xun said nothing else. Li You and the others stepped back, but at that moment, Li Xuan said coldly, "Li Yang, Li You, it seems that you have ignored what I said last time."


    Li You turned and looked back at Li Xuan. "Seventh Swordsman is my friend."


    "Your friend?" said Li Xuan coldly. "You must have forgotten that I am your brother."


    "Li Xuan, it seems that you learned nothing from last time!" yelled Li Xun. Li Xuan suddenly bowed his head.


    "Do not forget yourself again," said Li Xun.


    Li Xuan nodded. "Yes, sir."


    "The disciple of Daoli Mountain has come to seek the Path!" A voice came, shaking heaven and earth. Everyone suddenly looked up into the distance. The sound of footsteps seemed to come from far away, but a few moments later, everyone saw a group of figures coming towards them. These people had supernatural auras. They walked in good order, all in uniform, and all of them were light and carefree. Their manner showed how extraordinary they were.


    Dong Chen and his entourage walked out of the crowd and looked towards the figures that were coming. Their opponents had arrived!

 1111 Daoli Mountain Seeks the Path

    Many people had come from Daoli Mountain, and the one at their head had a powerful aura. He was a Saint who had cultivated to be very powerful. They walked to the front of the platform, then stopped, and swept their gazes over the seats. They bowed slightly and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."


    "Today, you have come here to take part in the sparring session. We are just here to watch, so there is no need to be so polite. Don''t worry about us," said Li Xun with a smile.


    Dali Academy and Daoli Mountain were the two strongest holy lands in the Dali Dynasty. He was also looking forward to the battle between these two vast holy lands. It would undoubtedly be marvelous.


    At that moment, Lu Xun''s gaze fell upon a young man who was standing among the crowd. He was standing up straight and tall and was looking forward calmly. No emotion could be seen in his bright and clear eyes. They were as calm and still as water. However, even so, the people in the crowd took notice of him as soon as they saw him. Some people had this kind of quality, that even when they were in a crowd, everyone would look at them.


    Di Hao of Daoli Mountain was said to be the strongest person in the Dali Dynasty below the Saint level, and he had cultivated himself to be infinitesimally close to the Saint plane.


    "The cultivators of Daoli Mountain greet our brothers on the Path from Dali Academy." The cultivators from Daoli Academy may have come seeking the Path, but they still expressed themselves very politely. Not a trace of arrogance or taunting could be seen from them. It was as if they had just come to pay a visit.


    "You are all so polite. Please sit." Yan Yuan pointed out the seats for the cultivators from Daoli Mountain. The elders of Daoli Mountain took their seats, while Di Hao and the other youths remained standing. They had come to seek the Path, not a banquet. The disciples of Dali Academy were also standing. They would not sit either.


    "The Imperial Adviser is coming," said Li Xun. From far away, they could see another group of figures coming. In the crowd, Ye Futian also looked up. Among the group of people who were coming were Lu Chuan, who he had seen before. But this time, Lu Chuan was standing behind someone else. He was a middle-aged man wearing sky-blue robes. His face was square and even, and there was no strong sense of majesty coming off him, making him seem like an elegant and refined person. But even though there was no aura bursting from him, one could still feel that he had a strong spirit within him.


    Everyone sitting in their seats rose, even the Princes Li Yao and Li Xun and the great figures from the top forces. All of them bowed to him. The disciples of Dali Academy and Daoli Mountain naturally did the same, and they respectfully called out to the one who was coming, "Greetings, Imperial Adviser."


    No matter if you liked him or not, no matter if you sympathized with him or not, as soon as you saw this middle-aged man, you could do nothing but bow respectfully and call out his name. He had not been born into the Imperial family, but he stood at the peak of the Dali Dynasty and was said only to be subject to one person. Moreover, even if you didn''t like him, you had to admit that he had worked his heart out for the Dali Dynasty. He had bent his mind and skill towards training people. He was even basically responsible for carrying out the Battle of Empty Realm.


    This middle-aged man was indeed the top figure in Emperor Li''s Realm. Dali Academy alone had trained countless top cultivators.


    Before he had come to the Dali Dynasty, Ye Futian had heard a lot of rumors about him in the Battle of Empty Realm. Many in Emperor Xia''s Realm even said that he was a strange and evil man who practiced dark magic. But since coming to Dali, all he had seen and heard was the absolute admiration that people in both the Upper and Lower Worlds had for him.


    Even the Princes of Dali Imperial City bowed to him when they saw him. King Tiandao''s household was not at peace with the Imperial Adviser, but the people of Daoli Mountain still had to show respect when they saw him.


    This was what he had seen of the Imperial Adviser in the Dali Dynasty. He had wondered what kind of person this man, who stood at the peak of the Dali Dynasty, was. Perhaps only those who stood beside him could truly know anything about him.


    The Imperial Adviser walked to his seat and bowed slightly to Li Xun and the others, saying, "May I be seated, Your Highness?"


    "Please," said Li Xun politely. The Imperial Adviser was not a stickler about where he sat, and so Li Xun and the others always left him several possible places of honor at the center.


    After he sat, the Imperial Adviser looked at the vast sparring field before him. With only a glance, he gave everyone there a strange feeling. It was as if he were looking directly at them. Everyone had this same feeling, and Ye Futian was no exception.


    "There are many holy lands for cultivating in Dali Dynasty, but few of them are in contact with each other. Today, Daoli Mountain has come seeking the Path, and this is a good thing. Thus, I have invited many people form Dali Imperial City and Sword Mountain to come and witness the sparring session," said the Imperial Adviser. "For the vast majority of people, there are boundaries to cultivation, and once you have reached a certain level, it is difficult to move forward. You can only wait for your juniors to overtake you. I hope that the juniors of the Dali Dynasty can continue to surpass their elders. As a member of the Dali Dynasty, seeing so many outstanding juniors gathered here for this sparring session soothes my heart. If you all can keep coming to seek the Path in the future, that would be a beautiful thing. When you spar with each other, you can see your weaknesses, scrutinize yourself, and then keep moving forward. Today I will choose a disciple from among those sparring here. Of course, if he is not willing, I will not force him. I now give you all time to yourselves." And on saying this, he said no more.


    In reality, all the disciples of both Dali Academy and Daoli Mountain were outstanding people, and all of them were at the Sage level. There were many things that their elders didn''t need to do. Here, all they had to do was observe. These disciples would do very well on their own.


    At that moment, a figure walked out of the group of disciples of Daoli Mountain. There was a fierce expression on his face. He wanted to look even more dangerous than Di Hao. His eyes were as sharp as knives, and he gave off a pressing aura. But this aura was not too strong. When he released his rule power, everyone could feel that he had only cultivated up to the lower Sage level. But he was undoubtedly at the peak of that plane.


    "I am Kuang Xiao of Daoli Mountain. I have no name of my own, as found on the battlefield, and brought back by the army. The king gave me my name, as my father probably died in battle." The youth looked at the disciples of Dali Academy. "In this life, most of my time has been spent either cultivating or in battle. I have killed many enemies, and have snatched victory from the jaws of defeat many times. The disciples of Dali Academy cultivate here in the city, reading books. Yet, they receive the respect of the masses, and enjoy many cultivation resources, even though they have rarely experienced the threat of death. This is because no one dares to do anything against them. Thus, I wish to test if my cultivation methods are better, or if those of Dali Academy are better." Kuang Xiao''s dashing spirit was carried in his voice, and he did not hide his talent. Even the bit of aura that he was projecting was extremely wild.


    Unlike Daoli Mountain, Dali Academy was located in a city. Thus the environment that the disciples of Dali Academy lived in was indeed much more peaceful. And each disciple of the academy was relatively famous, with everyone knowing about them. In contrast, the cultivators of Daoli Mountain, which was located in the West, often faced death on the battlefield, and yet few in the Dali Dynasty knew their names. Only Di Hao attracted anyone''s attention.


    This diatribe that Kuang Xiao had launched against the disciples of Dali Academy was calling Dali Academy itself into question, as well as the Imperial Adviser''s ideas. In some sense, Daoli Mountain''s attitude was King of the West Tiandao''s attitude.


    Li Xun looked at Kuang Xiao. His kingly uncle seemed to want to prove something by this sparring session. The cultivators of Dali Academy talked among themselves quietly, and then a mighty and powerful figure walked out from their midst.


    "That is Qian Shan, who has been called the most talented student of rhythmic sorcery in Dali Academy," Li You told Ye Futian. Dali Academy naturally did not only have top-level Sages. It had cultivators of all levels. And Qian Shan was an extremely powerful lower-level Sage.


    After he had stepped forward, Qian Shan bowed to the crowd, then looked towards Kuang Xiao and said, "The Great Path is long. There is no weakest person on it, just those who are better suited and those who are less suited. Reading leads to cultivation, as does killing enemies on the field of battle. There is no distinction about which is better. Moreover, we do not receive cultivation resources and the respect of the masses just because we are disciples of Dali Academy. Any time the Dali Dynasty needs us, we can go to war. In last year''s Battle of Empty Realm, Brother Yuan Jin died on the field of battle."


    Everyone nodded slightly. Qian Shan''s argument was outstanding.


    "You may say there is no distinction about which is better, but there is," said Kuang Xiao. His wild aura swept out from him.


    Qian Shan nodded. "Please." He knelt on the vast sparring field, and a Guqin Spirit appeared. He began to pluck the guqin, and the notes resonated. The melody was warm and calm, seemingly able to calm the anger of a human heart.


    Kuang Xiao''s life spirit blossomed, and the figure an impossibly giant beast appeared behind him, full of ferocity and anger. It was the vicious beast Taowu.


    A suffocating pressure swept across the sparring field, and Kuang Xiao suddenly stepped forward. The ground trembled continuously. He seemed to be one with Taowu, having transformed into a beast of war as he charged at Qian Shan.


    Qian Shan continued plucking the guqin''s strings, and the notes resonated with heaven and earth. Suddenly, an invisible force pierced through everything, as the musical sorcery turned into invisible power and shot towards Kuang Xiao and Taowu, slowing them down considerably.


    Hearing the music, Ye Futian felt that the Worldly Rules had been infected by it. It seemed that in that area, everything would only move according to the music. Even those watching on the sidelines had an illusion that their perception and movements had been slowed.


    "Kuang Xiao will probably lose," thought Ye Futian. Although he was very wild, and his combat ability was very high, Qian Shan''s music could control him. Moreover, as a disciple of Dali Academy, Qian Shan''s rule spells would certainly not be weak.


    Sure enough, a snowstorm seemed to appear along with the trembling notes. The temperature plummeted, and waves began to crash towards his opponent. The whole area seemed to have turned into a sea world, and the watery prison affected Kuang Xiao''s movements.


    As soon as Kuang Xiao had stepped forward, the disciples of Dali Academy must have guessed that he was good at close combat!

 1112 Sword of Kasyapa

    Kuang Xiao''s attack was extremely brutal. Even if it was being sealed by frost and bound by the water prison, it continued its wild attack toward the other. With his body as the center, many giant Taowu appeared, rushing forward and tearing away at the frosty seal. At this moment, his body seemed to be fused with the Taowu, and this incredibly violent war beast stood in front of Qian Shan. Its sharp claws clamped down, trying to destroy and vanquish this space.


    Qian Shan sat quietly. In this space of illusion, he seemed to be at the bottom of the ocean. He did not look up, only stroking the strings, and the musical notes turned into ripples of sound waves, rushing into the ears of Kuang Xiao. The closer he got to Qian Shan, the stronger the power that oscillated, rocking his entire will so that everything in front of him seemed somewhat blurred. But even so, it was impossible to stop him from continuing his attacks. The water waves roared upon Qian Shan, and a water dragon encircled around his body moving upward, and then rushed to the war beast and entangled the body of the other, which blocked Kuang Xiao''s attack. Along with a violent shock, their two bodies were simultaneously slammed backward.


    "Kuang Xiao is on the verge of defeat," many exclaimed inside their hearts. The technique of Qian Shan''s music was able to weaken Kuang Xiao''s combat ability continuously. At the beginning of the battle was when Kuang Xiao had the most chance to win. Still, as that attack did not overcome his opponent, the likelihood of another opportunity later in the flight was slight.


    As expected by everyone, the battle lasted quite a long time. Qian Shan''s musical spell defended Kuang Xiao''s violent attacks until Kuang Xiao was weakened to his eventual defeat by Qian Shan.


    "Much obliged." Qian Shan collected the guqing spirit, got up, and bowed to the cultivators of Daoli Mountain, then returned among the disciples of the Dali Academy.


    Kuang Xiao''s face was icy, and there were bloodstains at the corners of his mouth. He also returned to the people of Daoli Mountain.


    "Did you understand?" Among the crowd of Daoli Mountain, next to Di Hao, a young man looked at Kuang Xiao and asked. Kuang Xiao bowed his head. On the battlefield, if defeated, it often meant death. He was the first one of the Daoli Mountain to battle; therefore the defeat was particularly shameful.


    "On the battlefield, you were brave enough to face thousands, rushing into the army without hesitation, but from the very beginning, Qian Shan of Dali Academy restricted your ability. His musical talent was superb, and his spells extraordinary. Even though you possessed immensely strong offensive powers, it was still difficult for you to fully exert your power. After you return to Daoli Mount, you should self-reflect. Empty courage ultimately will achieve nothing. In addition to the trials of life and death, more studying is needed," the young man continued to lecture.


    Many people looked with surprise at the young man. From what he had said, it seemed that the battle was just a trial for the disciples of Daoli Mountain, not a real battle to seek the Way. He had used this battle to teach Kuang Xiao, a disciple of Daoli Mountain.


    "Yes, Senior Brother." Kuang Xiao bowed his head. He seemed to be extremely respectful to the young man.


    The young man stepped forward, and suddenly, the eyes of all the disciples of the Dali Academy fell on him. The affectation of the young man was even more extraordinary than Kuang Xiao, and he was about half a head taller. He was clad in all black, and his eyes, though calm, were extremely deep. This person stood next to Di Hao among the disciples of the Daoli Mountain, and from this alone. One could detect his status. Presumably, he was mighty.


    "Seven Sins of Daoli Mountain, swordsman of the peak of Sage Plane, half-step into Saint Plane, pleased to meet you." The moment his voice fell, an invisible sword will instantly enveloped the entire platform, cold and sharp. Although he was still standing there calmly, there was an extreme sense of danger coming out of him. The faces of the disciples of Dali Academy were darkened. Clearly, this person was very powerful.


    Moreover, when he introduced himself, he bluntly declared that he was a swordsman, half-step into Saint Plane. This was a kind of self-confidence. He informed everyone of his level of cultivation. He released the atmosphere so the other party could perceive it, allowing Dali Academy to choose the next person to answer the battle call.


    Even the eyes of those from Sword Mountain were focused on this person who walked out. Many of the swordsmen in training wore a grave look on their faces. From the sword will that was released from the other, they had felt an authoritative pressure of Sword Way.


    Seven Sins, swordsman in training. This was a cultivator who did not enjoy any fame in Dali Imperial City. Before now, almost no one had heard of his existence. Never mind him; even Di Hao was only known because of his adopted father, King Tiandao.


    The people of Dali focused on Dali Academy way more than they did Daoli Mountain, especially inside this imperial city. Dali Academy had countless cultivators, which was a conglomeration of all the elites of Dali. Naturally, some were half-step into the Saint Plane. If Di Hao did not answer the call of battle, clearly, Dong Chen would not either. Otherwise, who could battle Di Hao?


    At this time, a disciple from Dali Academy stepped out. He was wearing a golden shirt and seemed very thin. When he stepped onto the platform, the sword will released from Seven Sins could be felt, yet his footsteps were steady. A ray of golden light permeated from him, and there seemed to be a strange rhythm that rocked the invisible space, which gradually turned into a strong pressure, sweeping toward Seven Sins.


    "Zuo Zong." Many were not surprised to see the appearance of this person. In Dali Academy, Dong Chen and Zuo Zong were the closest to Saint Plane. At the most recent battle forum at Dali Academy, Dong Chen was first, and Zuo Zong was second.


    "Zuo Zong, a disciple of the Dali Academy, pleased to meet you," Zuo Zong said. As his voice fell, the golden robe fluttered without wind, and a suffocating pressure shrouded the forum platform. At this instant, although the two had not yet made any exchanges, they were already competing with their aura, and the airflow on the platform became extremely agitated. Even the cultivators around them could feel that suffocating pressure.


    The sword will was madly condensing, and everyone could see violent currents of Sword Way gathering in front of Seven Sins, making sharp and harsh sounds. It was followed by a sword, suspended in front of him, humming. This sword looked to be greedily devouring of the currents of Sword Way that rose between heaven and earth. The sword itself was extremely thin, but there was a terrible texture carved upon it, puffing out shocking radiance.


    Many people of Sword Mountain showed a sharpness in their eyes. Their expression now mirrored that of a sharp sword. Even the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint was moved slightly. "Sword of Kasyapa," Shadow Bearing Sword Saint said. Suddenly, many of the powerful principles people were stunned. The name of the Sword of Kasyapa originated from a Kasyapa Sword Saint many years ago, whose Sword Way was unparalleled. He was known as the first person of the Dali Sword Way. Later, the Kasyapa Sword Saint had gone missing, and the Sword of Kasyapa never surfaced again. Now, could the sword in the hand of Seven Sins be the Sword of Kasyapa? The sword was thin as a leaf, and indeed the shape of a leaf could be faintly detected. Although it was extremely thin, its sword will was astounding.


    "First sword," Seven Sins spat, and the sword shot out like a light. It disappeared in a flash.


    Zuo Zong apparently also perceived the strength of the other. He released his life spirit, and suddenly a golden brilliance flowed upon his torso �� a huge golden shadow covering him, just like an ancient golden god.


    Dong! A loud bang rocked the void and let out a roar, and a terrible storm swept out and turned into countless golden spears. However, the sword penetrated directly and split one of the golden spears down the middle, but did not touch the other spears. It continued the forward momentum toward Zuo Zong, as fast as light.


    The huge golden palm of Zuo Zong lifted up and slammed toward the sword. It was like the waves of a storm, and even the void trembled. However, that sword was far too thin. As if there was nowhere to exert the force, it directly pierced into the golden palm print, and penetrated it bit by bit. It came out from the back of the palm, continuing to stab toward Zuo Zong.


    On the golden body of Zuo Zong, brilliant golden lines also appeared, and a clear sound was heard. Terrible shockwaves swept out, but in the face of this terrible storm, the sword still stabbed toward that golden torso, penetrating bit by bit. Halfway, it was finally blocked.


    The disciples of the Dali Academy looked grave. Zuo Zong''s offensive and defensive skills were considered unparalleled below the Saint Plane, but the sword of his opponent actually penetrated him halfway. Zuo Zong wanted to grab onto the sword with his left hand but saw that the sword instantly exited, like a golden streaming light. It then wrapped around and twirled above Zuo Zong''s body.


    Many people look at Seven Sins again; he was controlling the sword. Not only that, but a second sword appeared in front of him.


    "Second sword." As his voice fell, the sword struck again. It once again went toward Zuo Zong. At the same time, the first sword also started to move back. The two swords simultaneously cutting the body of the ancient god that was summoned by Zuo Zong, tearing it apart little by little.


    Dong! A loud noise seemed to rock heaven and earth. Zuo Zong stepped out, allowing the swords to cut at him while he continued walking toward Seven Sins. A golden arm smashed toward Seven Sins. When his foot stepped down, there was a pressure of the Way that covered this space and oppressed the void.


    Seven Sins stood indifferently. He looked up and glanced at the arm that was slamming toward him, sword will surrounded his body, tearing the void. In an instant, Seven Sins broken through the sky, as if ignoring the pressure, and his body disappeared. Then, the body of the Seven Sins appeared above Zuo Zong.


    "The Way of the space." The Sword of Kasyapa could only be cultivated by those who specialized in the Way of the space.


    "The third sword." In front of Seven Sins, the third Sword of Kasyapa stabbed forward. Upon the immense body of Zuo Zong, suddenly, there appeared many golden arms, grabbing toward the void at the same time. The figure of Seven Sins disappeared once more, like a golden afterimage, shuttling upon the platform. His spiritual will power was released to the extreme. While dodging, he still controlled the swords that cut at the body of Zuo Zong without ceasing.


    The disciples of the Dali Academy looked serious. If this continued, Zuo Zong would be defeated. As they expected, when the Sword of Kasyapa manifested the 13th time, a terrible storm of the Sword of Kasyapa started around Zuo Zong. His huge golden battle form was now being slashed and shattered, slowly being destroyed.


    Soon, even the incomparably sturdy body of the ancient god could no longer be sustained, and its body collapsed and shattered. The 13 swords surrounded Zuo Zong''s body. The sword will was covering the sky. The body of Seven Sins suspended in the sky, still looking indifferent.


    Zuo Zong of the Dali Academy had been defeated.


    Many looked up at Seven Sins, who was in the void. It was unexpected that besides Di Hao, there still existed such a strong person. So, just how strong was Di Hao? Even if Ye Futian''s eyes, while looking at Seven Sins, changed somewhat, the one who stood at the peak of Dali was indeed extraordinary.


    "I didn''t expect the Sword of Kasyapa, which had been lost for a long time, to appear here today. It was certainly worth the trip," Shadow Bearing Sword Saint said.


    "Could he compete with Jian Wu?" asked Li Xun.


    "He certainly could." Shadow Bearing Sword Saint nodded, and everyone looked at Seven Sins. Jian Wu was praised as the first swordsman of Dali under the Saint Plane, the first disciple of Sword Mountain. Seven Sins could compete with him. This demonstrated the formidable strength of Seven Sins.


    "Today''s forum battle has gotten even more interesting. I didn''t know if we would be seeing the sword battle of the younger generation of Dali, to see the Sword of Sword Mountain compete with the Sword of Kasyapa."


    The Shadow Bearing Sword Saint looked at Jian Wu and then looked at Ye Futian.


    The Sword Mountain had come to Emperor Li''s City to fulfill a contract to allow Jian Wu to descend the mountain and to defeat the Seventh Swordsman so he could cultivate at Sword Mountain. Now, there was also a peak swordsman in Daoli Mountain and the appearance of the long- lost Sword of Kasyapa.


    Li Xun noticed the gaze of the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint and suddenly looked at Ye Futian, saying, "I almost forgot that this trip of the Sword Mountain was to come for the Seventh Swordsman. Seventh Swordsman is the first swordsman from the Lower Worlds. What is your opinion of the sword of Seven Sins?"

 1113 The Fatal Sword Strike

    Many people looked at Ye Futian. At this moment, it was the first time that many top figures of Dali had truly noticed Ye Futian. Among them, there was the adviser of Dali and the royal prince of Dali.


    Ye Futian''s eyes fell on Li Xun, and he saw that Li Yao, who was next to Li Xun, was also looking at him. However, Li Yao would not know who he was, or for whom he came for.


    Once upon a time in the Nine States, Li Yao caused Jieyu''s death and also caused the death of many in the Nine States. In the Empty Realm, Li Yao forced him to react after he was defeated. Yaya and Senior brother were both seriously injured; both of them and Wuchen almost died in the battle. If it weren''t for the sword from the Swordmaster of Lihen that allowed Ye Wuchen to block the attack, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Therefore, he came to Dali. There were some things that he needed to do. If it was merely relying on cultivation to kill Li Yao, and judging from Li Yao''s status, when would that be?


    But even though his heart was full of hatred, his eyes were calm and without disturbance. He did not cast so much as a sideways glance at Li Yao. He merely focused on Li Xun and said, "The Way of the sword was outstanding, and its power was truly amazing."


    When many heard what Ye Futian had to say, they secretly agreed. Seven Sins was indeed outstanding. This man himself had once come to the Dali Academy, also seeking instruction. He was now known as the first person of the Dali Lower Realm; he must have been quite extraordinary himself. However, this time, Jian Wu of the Sword Mountain and Seven Sins were both present. There were also Dong Chen and Di Hao, two peak characters, so there wouldn''t be much required of him. However, it was still an opportunity to observe and learn.


    Li Xun nodded with a smile and said, "Today is a rare opportunity. Sword Mountain came because of you. There are also two great young swordsmen in training at their peak, a great way to sharpen your Sword Way. You can ask them for instruction later."


    "I do not agree with Your Highness," Ye Futian said.


    "Why?" asked Li Xun.


    "Your Highness said that Jian Wu and Seven Sins are the great young swordsmen of Dali. Though the first sword of Sword Mountain and the sword of Seven Sins are strong, they may not necessarily be at the peak. The sword of Seven Sins had fatal flaws. If Your Highness wanted to talk about the peak Sword Way below the Saint Plane, then I ought to be included," Ye Futian said.


    "Oh?" Hearing his words, Li Xun showed a look of surprise. All witnessed the force of Seven Sins'' sword. He had realized the way of the space and integrated it into the sword. The power of the Sword of Kasyapa was unparalleled. But the Seventh Swordsman claimed that the sword of Seven Sins had fatal flaws.


    Many who knew the name of the Seventh Swordsman had heard that his entire mind was bent on seeking the way of the sword, his behavior was quite arrogant, and he thought that his Sword Way was the one and only. It seemed that this was indeed the case. He had come alone to seek the way from Dali Academy.


    He had just witnessed the sword of Seven Sins in action, but he was now saying that there were imperfections in the sword of Seven Sins. The Seventh Swordsman felt that he ought to be the person at the peak of the Sword Way. However, in the eyes of most people present today, the Seventh Swordsman, though outstanding in his own right, he was bound to be at some distance from the few who were at the peak of the Dali Upper Realm.


    Li Xun did not deny Ye Futian''s claim but said, "If so, let me witness your sword. How about it?" Ye Futian looked toward Li Xun. The status of Li Xun, as the royal prince of the Saint Plane, was no lesser than Li Yao.


    "Since Your Highness wishes to see, I will oblige," Ye Futian responded. He stepped forward and looked at Seven Sins in the crowd of Daoli Mountain. He called out, "The Seventh Swordsman in training, ask for instruction in the Way of the Sword."


    Seven Sins cast a glance at Ye Futian; he did not recognize who he was. He came here today for Dali Academy. And this person just critiqued his sword as having fatal flaws. He naturally relegated it as nonsense.


    Seven Sins looked at Ye Futian. He did not speak and did not step out. Many eyes were looking toward the direction of Daoli Mountain, falling on Seven Sins.


    For a time, this space was rather silent. Seven Sins did not respond to the call of battle, not because he dared not to. His eyes were casual and calm, and he moved his sight away. It was as if he had not heard anything Ye Futian said.


    The cultivators of the Daoli Mountain, likewise, glanced at Ye Futian. No one spoke. The silent space was like a silent jeer. Ye Futian dared to criticize that the sword of Seven Sins, so it was understandable that the people of Daoli Mountain would eschew all etiquette on that account.


    The silence at the moment was a statement. Not just anyone could ask Seven Sins of Daoli Mountain for a fight. Seven Sins did not care to move his little finger.


    Many people felt uncomfortable in this slightly embarrassing atmosphere. This first swordsman from the Lower Worlds was obviously not quite up to par. Even if he had personally asked for Seven Sins to instruct the Way of the Sword, he was ignored by Seven Sins. Those in power felt the embarrassing atmosphere of the forum, but they did not speak, just watching Ye Futian. How would this swordsman in training handle the situation?


    Li Xun looked at Ye Futian. His face changed slightly. This embarrassing situation would make Ye Futian feel he was losing face. Shadow Bearing Sword Saint was thinking whether or not to ask Jian Wu to step out instead to resolve the impasse.


    This Seventh Swordsman was dedicated to seeking the Way of the Sword, and his speech was quite arrogant. The unparalleled in the Lower Worlds also had the right to be arrogant. It was only that in the Upper Worlds, among the top figures here, it was inevitable that this attitude would suffer some disadvantage. However, with the right challenges and trials, great achievement was a definite outcome.


    Of course, Ye Futian knew that he was being ignored, but he did not feel anything out of the ordinary when he saw the reaction of the people of Daoli Mountain. Being ignored was, in itself, quite within expectation. After all, this was one of the two strongest holy lands to cultivate in Dali Imperial City, and Seven Sins was someone who stood at the top.


    "Seventh Swordsman in training asks Daoli Mountain for instruction of the Way," Ye Futian continued, and this time, he was not asking for Seven Sins only; instead, he was asking Daoli Mountain. In other words, anyone from Daoli Mountain would suffice.


    The people of Daoli Mountain glanced at him and saw Ye Futian standing there. His body stood tall. It seemed as if he had not felt any shame whatsoever. After being ignored the first time, he was still insisting.


    In the direction of Daoli Mountain, a burly figure walked out. It was a cultivator of the Sage Plane of Daoli Mountain. Today, it was Daoli Mountain asking Dali Academy for instruction, not an occasion for Ye Futian to cause trouble. However, since he had affected them, they had to clean it up.


    Dong! The cultivator who came out did not announce himself, but merely stepped right out, and released a terrible force.


    "Are you ready?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Get it on," the other responded coldly.


    Ye Futian''s palms stretched out, and suddenly, sword will started whistling. It surrounded him and gathered into a massive sword in front of him. This heavy sword rotated in front of Ye Futian, whistling and humming, and its breath was getting stronger and stronger with terrible power. The force that came out of it contained a strong sense of annihilation. A few cultivators of Daoli Mountain expressed a stern look; this person did not seem to be weak.


    Raising his palm, Ye Futian reached out and clasped the end of the sword, and then pushed the sword forward with breakneck speed. Loud noises whistled. The Daoli Mountain cultivator suddenly lunged forward with both palms extended forward, and a golden pattern appeared in front of him immediately.


    Ye Futian came with the sword, and his palm pressed toward the front. As the sword arrived, the loud roaring noise came out, and instantly the golden pattern exploded and was pulverized. The heavy sword continued its movement forward. The cultivator let out an angry roar. His face changed slightly, and he stepped out once again. His life spirit was released, and a huge golden behemoth appeared. The strength of both palms, like a hurricane, blasted out fiercely.


    Ye Futian ignored the attempt of the other, and his palm continued to push the heavy sword. Everything shattered and exploded, and the body of the other continued to back peddle. He let out sounds of frustrated exertion, and it was still useless. His feet ground against the floor and the clothing on his arms were shredded. Blue veins on his arms were bulging. The sounds of friction could be heard as if his bones were about to be crushed. Ye Futian did not deal a fatality. He had folded one hand behind him, using only his right hand pushing forward, oppressing the other with the ease of a stroll.


    "Enough." A voice was heard, and Ye Futian stopped to turn his head, looking toward the direction of Daoli Mountain. Over there, Seven Sins walked out and looked at Ye Futian. His expression was as sharp as a sword. Clearly, this battle made him feel that Ye Futian possessed incredible strength.


    Ye Futian let go of the opponent, and the sword disappeared. He went to Seven Sins, and the two stood face to face.


    "My sword, what''s wrong with it?" asked Seven Sins.


    "Are you ready?" Ye Futian asked the same as he had before.


    Seven Sins frowned and replied, "Yes." He needed no preparation. Around him, the sword will shot to the sky, and the Sword of Kasyapa was condensing. But as he was concentrating on forming the sword, Ye Futian''s body turned into a stream of light, and Seven Sins felt that he was locked down by spiritual power.


    Ye Futian had a sword in his hand, a common-looking sword. But when the sword struck, a horrible storm that came between heaven and earth appeared. It was as if everywhere it passed, everything would be crushed.


    "So fast." Everyone blinked, and then they saw the sword will of Seven Sins coursing out. His body seemed to disappear. It was like a light that moved in and out of thin air.


    However, in the next moment, everyone''s pupils contracted. They saw that Ye Futian had also disappeared. In the void, Ye Futian''s sword was still swinging. This sword seemed to have accompanied him traversing the void and was aimed directly at Seven Sins.


    The sword will around Seven Sins was extremely powerful, and it madly screamed toward Ye Futian for the kill, but Ye Futian was also surrounded by an equally terrible sword storm.


    Buzz! Seven Sins once again disappeared from where he was standing. Almost at the same time, everyone saw that Ye Futian had also disappeared. The pupils of everyone contracted and stared at the battlefield. They saw a sword. This sword seemed to be a sword from another dimension, appearing through the void so that there seemed to be a sword light crossing the space of the void. From that sword light, it seemed that the position of the two could be deciphered. All of this, in fact, happened in an instant, and there only seemed to be a sword that crossed heaven and earth.


    In the next instant, two figures appeared at the same time. Ye Futian stood in the void, but Seven Sins appeared on the forum platform; the sword in his hand was broken. Seven Sins looked somewhat bewildered at the sword that had not yet formed, and his face was slightly pale. Not only him, but many people around him trembled and watched the scene in front of them with shock.


    One sword strike. That beautiful scene in the void was just one sword strike.


    Seven Sins, the swordsman who stood at the peak of Dali, whose sword was cut in half by another.


    This�� Those from Daoli Mountain looked extremely concerned, and they looked up at Ye Futian.


    "I said, your flaw was too fatal," Ye Futian said. The Sword of Kasyapa was mighty and would get stronger as the battle went on. However, the Sword of Kasyapa needed the condensation of sword will. Obviously, he would not give Seven Sin the time to do so. In the first sword strike, he had immediately resolved the battle!

 1114 The First Sword Below Saint Plane

    But was it true that Seven Sins'' sword contained fatal flaws?


    The answer was no. No cultivator in this world was perfect and without fault. No matter the ability of cultivation, there would always be weaknesses. Perhaps the only weakness of Seven Sins was that for the Sword of Kasyapa to be released, it required a significant amount of sword will to turn it into an invincible sword. The Sword of Kasyapa would get stronger and stronger. Before, when all 13 swords were deployed, even someone as strong as Zuo Zong of the Dali Academy was unable to resist. Moreover, he could be stronger still.


    But it did require some time for the sword will to condense, and did that matter? With the sword will that flowed upon Seven Sins, even if there was no Sword of Kasyapa, his offense and defense were still solid. Not to mention, he had incorporated spatial will and integrated it into the sword will so that it could tear the void in its progression. Previously, even Zuo Zong''s might of the Great Path was unable to trap him.


    So, how could this be considered a fatal flaw? But at the moment, the Seventh Swordsman did not allow Seven Sins to strike with the sword. And before the Sword of Kasyapa could be unleashed, he had cut the formation of the sword short. Because the sword of the Seventh Swordsman was not any weaker than the Sword of Kasyapa, and he was also an expert in spatial will, by locking onto the body of Seven Sins, the sword broke through the void, hence the brilliant sword strike that everyone witnessed.


    If Seven Sin had time to gather multiple Swords of Kasyapa, it would be difficult to know who was strong and who was weak. But since the Seventh Swordsman could deter him from launching his sword, that itself proved that the Way of the Sword of the Seventh Swordsman was more convincing than that of Seven Sins.


    "Excellent," Li Xun praised. Though there was only one strike fro the sword, it was a superb one. Not only Li Xun, everyone around looked at Ye Futian with a slightly changed attitude. This first swordsman from the Lower Worlds, with just one sword strike, convinced all the top figures who were present to recognize his strength.


    Before, many had thought that this battle was, to Ye Futian, to seek the Way, to learn of the sword, and to observe the swords of Jian Wu and Seven Sins. But obviously, the Seventh Swordsman was proving that his sword was not inferior to anyone, even if it was someone as strong as Seven Sins. As he said before to Li Xun, he ought to be included among those at the peak of Swordsmanship below Saint Plane.


    Li You also looked at Ye Futian with some shock. Even though she knew that he was strong, she did not expect that he was this strong. Seven Sins was someone who had defeated Zuo Zong of the Dali Academy. When Ye Futian stepped out, he was ignored by the people of Daoli Mountain. But then, when the two significant cultivators of Daoli Mountain faced him, each was only able to release one single sword strike.


    Even at this moment, all the top figures of Dali who were present focused their attention on him.


    "Jian Wu," at this moment, the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint spoke, "your turn." In the direction of Sword Mountain, Jian Wu''s sight directed toward Ye Futian from a distance. He stepped forward.


    Shadow Bearing Sword Saint had asked him to fight some swordsman from the Lower Worlds, and it was not something he was willing to do. However, the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint was his elder, so he still obeyed. When he saw the sword of Seven Sins today, he thought that his opponent would be Seven Sins. But Ye Futian proved his worth with his sword, that he deserved an exchange.


    Jian Wu walked out, and each of his steps contained a terrifying sword will. The Swordsmanship clouding the sky and causing a sword storm of Sword Qi.


    Jian Wu, the first disciple of Sword Mountain, the first sword below Saint in the Dali Imperial City.


    Seventh Swordsman, the first person below Saint Plane in the Lower Worlds.


    Both of them used "sword" in their name.


    Jian Wu''s body levitated and appeared upon the void, standing opposite Ye Futian. With the sword will wrapped around him, and real, physical swords bloomed between heaven and earth. This storm headed directly toward Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian was also protected by the same force, so the two storms of swordsmanship collided, and a truly suffocating might now filled this space. Some cultivators below the Saint Plane felt that if they came between the two, they may not be able to withstand the sword will and might be torn into pieces.


    At this time, Jian Wu extended his palms, and suddenly, in front of his palms, the sword will gathered, turning into swords, and transparent swords surrounded his body.


    "Water of Autumn," Jian Wu said, and the sword broke through the sky and moved toward Ye Futian. On top of Ye Futian, burning flames hung high above the sky as a sun. His hand reached out, and suddenly, a sword gathered in his hand: a sword of burning flame. The sword unleashed, and fire dragons roared and burned through the void.


    "Blazing sun," Ye Futian also commanded, and the two sword wills circled and colliding. Jian Wu seemed not to have noticed, and the sword will once again condensed and gave rise to a sky full of swords. Between heaven and earth, there appeared a starry sky.


    "Meteor." Jian Wu pointed forward, and suddenly, another sword broke through the sky, descending with meteor sword will. Ye Futian looked up at his surroundings, and there was another will of frost materializing around him.


    "Hail," a voice commanded, and the sword of ice went toward the sword of meteor. Heaven and the earth seemed to be frozen, which blocked the meteor from falling. Jian Wu''s body floated in a forward movement. Both of his hands stretched out. Above the sky, a great and stunning sword will manifested everywhere.


    "The moment." Cued by the command, swords came out to attack, and the affectation of the moment was everywhere.


    Boom! Ye Futian took a step forward, and the sword whistled in the sky, and a storm of destruction raged.


    "Storm." With the strike of the sword, the horrible storm of horror seemed to flood this space.


    "Qijue Swordsmanship of Sword Mountain." All the cultivators of Dali gazed upon the battlefield. Qijue Swordsmanship used seven kinds of sword wills to manifest and depended on each swordsman''s cultivation. The results were not all the same. But Qijue Swordsmanship gradually increased in layers. Its power was shocking, and every time the sword struck, it was to gather sword force so that the sword strikes towards the end were more terrifying. Qijue Sword Realm contained all the Swordsmanship.


    At the moment, above the sky, there was an infinite number of sharp swords falling. In its succeeding gloom, this space had completely turned into a world of the swords: Jian Wu''s Qijue Sword Realm.


    "All in all." Jian Wu''s eyes were extremely sharp, and from those eyes came a terrible light. Of the seven, four had already been disbursed. When the sword struck out, it turned into all, and contained all, it was everywhere, omnipotent, and could destroy all.


    Above Ye Futian, a terrible thunderstorm exploded, sweeping the entire space, shattering all things. He stepped out again, and this time went toward Jian Wu. In the battle between swordsmen, the only way was forward, and there was no retreat.


    "Thunder." Another sword emerged, and heaven and earth seemed to be destroyed by way of the Sword. Thunder sword strikes smashed the void and cleaved open the Great Path.


    "Densify." Jian Wu''s eyes turned into sword eyes, and inside his pupils, the space of the Sword Realm was reflected. Ye Futian only felt that this Sword Realm was unreal, just like a hell made of Sword Way.


    Heavy swords condensed and came into being, immense and incomparable. Each step he took shook the void. The heavy sword broke through the air, and blasted into all eight directions of the land, suppressing the Sword Realm.


    "The End of Day." Jian Wu unleashed the sixth sword, and the Qijue Sword Realm turned into real doomsday. The infinite sword will intended to pierce the Sword Realm and madly moved to attack Ye Futian. Ye Futian waved both hands, his feet upon the void, and sharp swords surrounded him.


    "Infinity." Rolls of sword veil swung out, seemingly infinite, annihilating all Swordsmanship. Everyone who was watching the battle looked at the scene of horror in the void, and many people trembled in their hearts.


    Was this the battle of the peak Swordsmanship below the Saint Plane? Whether it was Jian Wu or the Seventh Swordsman, they were both fearfully strong.


    But at this moment, the Seventh Swordsman was shrouded by Qijue Sword Realm and was significantly restricted by it. Even so, he was still able to block the sixth sword with his sword of incomparable aggression. However, the space seemed to be shattered and destroyed. How sharp would the next sword be?


    Just then, Jian Wu closed his eyes and seemed to have integrated into the Sword Realm, and his body was spinning. Suddenly, the infinite sword will between heaven and earth gathered together and merged into the Sword Realm. This entire Sword Realm seemed to be turning and crushed everything within.


    "Funeral of the gods." A sharp voice came from inside the Sword Realm, and the sword will of destruction suddenly shattered the void. The Funeral of the gods was precisely that; even the gods would be buried in the Qijue Sword Realm.


    Ye Futian stared at this devastating storm. The Sword Realm buried all things and shattered all things. Even the clothes on his body were shredded. His swordsmanship seemed unable to defend this force.


    At the moment, the aura upon his body had already reached its peak, and the sword force of heaven and earth seemed to gather together. In this storm, he held a sword, and with every step that was taken, the sword force was still climbing higher and strengthened further. There was a sword mark between heaven and earth, tearing up the void. Wherever Ye Futian passed, everything seemed to be pulverized; the storm became stronger, rushing toward him.


    Finally, Ye Futian''s sword was unleashed. This sword would end all things.


    When the sword struck, a storm broke out, and his body moved with the sword, using the sword to tear apart the funerary storm. Sizzling sounds were heard, and the sword will madly teared and destroyed. The Sword Realm seemed to have been opened, and then tore apart bit by bit until the Sword Realm was fully opened. All saw that sword rocket upward, like a sacred sword, a true sword strike that could cleft the sky in two.


    The sword light crossed the heaven and the earth, and a sword opened up the sky. With a loud boom, the storm of destruction raged between the sky and the earth, and the Qijue Sword Realm was broken.


    In the Sword Realm, there came a groan. Jian Wu flew out backward, and at the corner of his mouth, there was a streak of blood. The first person in the younger generation of Sword Mountain, the sharpest sword below Saint in the Dali Dynasty, Jian Wu, was defeated. Of course, he was no longer the strongest sword below Saint in Dali Imperial City; the Seventh Swordsman had replaced him.


    At this time, the aura on Ye Futian''s body was slightly shallow. Jian Wu was already incredibly strong, but the final sword of End All appeared as one strike but gathered the momentum of all the sword attacks before it. With his terrible power integrated within, along with the space shredding rules, he had turned the End All power of the Halberd of Time and Space into the swordsmanship that would end all things. Therefore, there was that beautiful sword strike, opening the Sword Realm of the other.


    The Shadow Bearing Sword Saint looked at Ye Futian, speechless. For this arrogant but pure-hearted swordsman of the Lower Worlds, he had asked Jian Wu to come down from the mountain to defeat him. But now, even Jian Wu of Sword Mountain was defeated in battle.


    Just as the Seventh Swordsman had said, would this confirm that he learned from all things of the world to comprehend the swordsmanship of all things, which was more suitable than the swordsman of the Sword Mountain? Then, why go to Sword Mountain at all? Could it be that this seeker ''s destiny was not with Sword Mountain, after all?


    No one would have thought that the Seventh Swordsman from the Lower Worlds would triumph over the two mighty swordsmen Seven Sins and Jian Wu.


    The young man who had come to the Dali Academy to seek instruction once upon a time now used these two battles to prove to the world that he was the first sword under the Dali Dynasty.


    "After this battle, below the Saint Plane, there is nothing more to ask regarding the Swordsmanship. The road ahead can only be the Divine Path," Ye Futian said. Although the words sounded proud, they were the truth. He had reached the apex of the Sword Way below the Saint Plane in Dali. From now on, what lied in front of him could only be the Divine Path!

 1115 The Toughest Battle of Two Holy Lands

    Li Xun looked at Ye Futian with a smile. "Our Dali Dynasty is full of talent. Even the people of the Lower Worlds are standing at the peak below the Saint Plane. I am looking forward to the future of Dali Dynasty."


    Next to Li Xun, the Imperial advisor of Dali also looked at Ye Futian. The fortune of Dali was changing, and there could be turmoil in the future. However, he could not yet see the cause of the change in fortune.


    Dali Dynasty was prosperous. It had many strong cultivators in its command. Even though he had had words with the two kings of Dali, he would still avoid the conflict with the two kings at all costs. Their ideology slightly conflicted, but they were all acting in the best interest of Dali, and no one dared to trespass. Otherwise, even the two kings would not be able to afford the anger of the Emperor of Dali. This seeker was a wildcard and came from the Lower Worlds. Would he be the one?


    "Seventh Swordsman," the Imperial advisor called out. Suddenly Ye Futian looked toward the Imperial advisor of Dali. This was the first time he looked at the Imperial Advisor. Because the other had called out to him, he could look back at the Imperial Advisor with good reason.


    "I heard Lu Chuan saying that you cultivated in the Lower Worlds and were enlightened. You comprehended the Swordsmanship in 30 years, with nature and heaven and earth as your teacher?" asked the Imperial Advisor.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded. His battle techniques had integrated the Way of all things in the world into his Swordsmanship and turned it into Sword Arts that was without weakness. The sun, the ice, the storm, the thunder, and lightning... even the Way of space, contained all things of the universe. Although it seemed that his talent was rather particular, among the many cultivators of the Dali Dynasty, having such one genius was not surprising.


    "Your life spirit, let me take a look," the adviser of Dali said. He hadn''t seen Ye Futian''s life spirit. What kind of life spirit could comprehend the Way of all things in heaven and earth?


    Ye Futian''s heart trembled slightly. At this moment, he was a little nervous. He was unambiguous that possessing such talent would naturally cause the curiosity of those in power in Dali. To cultivators, the life spirit was vital; the request from the Imperial Advisor of Dali to see his life spirit was not because he doubted his identity. No one would see a genius and immediately suspect that this person was a fraud. This was not a rational thought process. Perhaps the Imperial Advisor of Dali wanted to know how this swordsman from the Lower Worlds was so outstanding. He also knew what came next would be the key, and he had already thought about it.


    "Very well." Many thoughts that flooded his mind, but Ye Futian did not hesitate to agree. In the life palace, a sword shuttled around the ancient tree of the world. A rustling came from the ancient tree. Curious aura blended into the sword will and surrounded the sword. Subsequently, the sword whistled and rushed out of the life palace.


    Outside, a brilliant sword rocketed upward, and this sword was incredibly radiant. The instant he appeared, the Worldly Spiritual Qi could not resist but gather together. It was as if this sword had an affinity with all the other Spiritual Qi of the universe. The sword crossed in the void and was gone in a flash. Then it buried itself into Ye Futian and returned to his life palace.


    The attention of the Imperial Advisor of Dali landed on Ye Futian. In this instant, although Ye Futian stood there quietly, he was very nervous inside. He did not know whether or not the will of the ancient tree of the world that he had integrated into the sword will had any flaws.


    He had tested it before. In his opinion, there were no issues. The cultivators of the world were endless, and it was the same with life spirits. Many peoples'' particular life spirits carried with them various attributes. No matter what power of attributes his life spirit was carrying, it was also entirely reasonable.


    "The sword spirit in harmony with nature and heaven and earth is a considered Full Attribute. You are indeed suitable to be taught by all things in the universe and refine the All Methods Swordsmanship. If you could render harmony between them, there would be no sword you could not master." The Imperial Advisor of Dali nodded slightly and was not surprised. It was as if the Full Attribute sword spirit was completely expected. Otherwise, how could all things of the universe be its master?


    Moreover, Ye Futian''s sword spirit not only had an affinity toward the full attribute, but he also perceived an incredibly fantastic force. It was as if he was born to fit into the Way of the world. His perception was not incorrect, but what he sensed belonged to the life spirit of the ancient tree of the world, which caused him to misjudge.


    "Imperial Advisor, it seems that Lu Chuan brought us an amazing genius of the Swordsmanship from the Lower Worlds." He smiled and said, "Seventh Swordsman, are your parents still in the Lower Worlds?"


    "I don''t know who my parents were," Ye Futian''s tone was a bit cold, and it seemed to reflect a faint sadness, but it was the truth. It was true that until now, he still did not know who his biological parents were. That old guy, Ye Baichuan, did not tell him anything, and now he was missing. And his godfather had never mentioned it either. It was as if he was an orphan. Li Xun nodded lightly and did not say anything more.


    "You may go," the Imperial Advisor said. Ye Futian nodded, and then returned to his seat on the side of Li You in a flash.


    When Li You looked toward him, there was a strange color in her beautiful eyes. She said with a smile, "It seems that I underestimated you, the first swordsman below Saint Plane in Dali."


    "The road of cultivation is without end, but the first sword below Saint Plane in Dali is nothing to be boastful of," Ye Futian said calmly.


    "..." Li You blinked her eyes, and this dignified and noble princess revealed her side as a lady.


    "You are a sword idiot." Li You laughed softly, and her beautiful eyes stared straight ahead. Zuo Zong, Seven Sins, Jian Wu, and Ye Futian had made exchanges. For the forum battle of the Dali Academy, who else would now dare to step out?


    The few people before were already peak figures beside Di Hao and Dong Chen. Even if they stepped onto the forum platform, they would not exceed anyone''s expectations.


    This space was silent for some moments, and many eyes looked at the two figures. One stood in front of the crowd of the Dali Academy, while the other, in front of Daoli Mountain.


    Next would be these two battling for glory.


    Today, Daoli Mountain came to visit and seek instruction. These people came to Dali Academy to serve as witnesses of this moment. At this moment, Di Hao stepped out. He did not reveal any expression from beginning to end. Even though Ye Futian defeated seven Sins in one sword strike, he still looked as if nothing had happened. He came today with only one goal: to defeat the best disciple of the Dali Academy, Dong Chen.


    Di Hao walked onto the forum platform and looked in the direction of the Dali Academy, and said, "Di Hao of Daoli Mountain, asking for your instruction."


    The clothes upon his body moved without wind. A solemn atmosphere shrouded this space. Soon after, everyone saw that Dong Chen had stepped out and stood opposite Di Hao. There was no breath released from either one of them, but there was an invisible wind blowing, which was caused by both of their auras.


    Dali Dynasty, below the Saint Plane, two figures at the peak.


    At this time, an invisible storm swept out and beat on Dong Chen''s body. He felt that this force oppressed his soul and was extremely suffocating. Di Hao was still standing there, but it seemed that he was everywhere. At this time, Di Hao stepped forward and walked out.


    Dong! A bell ring sounded across the land, causing a devastating spiritual storm between heaven and earth. When it swept through, Dong Chen closed his eyes slightly and felt that his spiritual will was shaking. He felt a very strong sound wave blast out, intending to erase his spiritual will.


    "God Burying Bell." Many elders from the Dali Academy had seen and known many things, and in just a moment, they had identified the kind of magical power of this sound wave attack. This was a kind of sound magic. It could disregard defensive forces and shatter the spiritual will power of others through the air, destroying others'' minds. It was incomparably aggressive.


    Although the other''s understanding of Di Hao was limited, they did not doubt that his power was great. Otherwise, no one would have named him the first person below Saint Plane in Dali. Now, when they heard this God Burying Bell, many knew that Dong Chen was in big trouble.


    The God Burying Bell was an aggressive mental attack, capable of greatly damaging the spiritual power of Dong Chen, thus weakening his combat effectiveness. It was not probable for this to be the only kind of ability that Di Hao was an expert in; there must be other extremely strong methods he had at his disposal.


    Dong Chen closed his eyes, and there was a mighty storm of spiritual power that appeared upon his body, which blended with the heavens and the earth. It echoed with the Great Path. Suddenly he was covered with dazzling brilliance.


    Dong! Another bell ring rocked the world, sweeping toward them. In front of Dong Chen, the invisible spiritual attack materialized and turned into half-shadows of the ancient bell. It blasted toward him. This was a compelling and mystical method of the Dali Academy, which could make the spirit will power materialize.


    Dali Academy was built by Emperor of Dali, according to the specifications of the Imperial Advisor, and contained many mysterious and compelling methods. Dong Chen was the first person of the younger generations of Dali Academy, so he cultivated many great and powerful abilities.


    Di Hao continued moving forward, and the bell kept ringing. The invisible storm turned into bell rings that continued to attack Dong Chen. At this moment, Dong Chen''s fingers stretched out, and above the five fingers of his right hand, radiant and mysterious brilliance encircled them.


    At the moment, the half-shadows of the ancient bell attacked, his fingers pressed down toward the front, and there seemed to be hundreds of thousands of fingers of catastrophe that reached out, blasting upon the ancient bell and destroyed it into smithereens. But at this point, Di Hao''s aura had already elevated to an extremely dominant level. Both of his hands stretched out, and suddenly, there was a large sacred tripod, hundreds of meters high, that appeared behind him. The sacred tripod rotated, and there was a crushing atmosphere appearing above the firmament. On the area above the forum platform, many tripods appeared at the same time, suspended in mid-air. It was as if they were all controlled by Di Hao.


    The tripods spun at the same time, gathering a terrifying storm of suppression. From those tripods, images of the dragon and elephant could be faintly detected. Its might suffocated the sky, and everything was on the verge of being flattened and overruled.


    "Tripod of Dragon and Elephant." The cultivators of Dali Academy looked up. It was yet another aggressive attack. The tripod in itself was a symbol of suppression. Most cultivators who cultivated in the method of tripods were experts at suppression rules power.


    And the Tripod of Dragon and Elephant was the most excellent method among them. The tripod integrated the power of the dragon and elephant and could even suppress the Great Path.


    Many of the disciples of the Dali Academy and Daoli Mountain felt that their feet were floating. Those whose cultivation was weaker felt their legs slightly trembling. Even if they were not located below, they still felt oppressed and had difficulty breathing. Many of the disciples of the Dali Academy had a look of unease on their faces. Di Hao''s strength was simply beyond imagination. Was this the might of the Way that someone in the Sage Plane could release?


    It was just like the might of the Divine Path!

 1116 Apprenticeship

    Dong Chen was just underneath the might, and the pressure he felt was naturally the strongest.


    The radiance on his body was still brilliant, and the thousands of fingers of catastrophe pointed to attack the invisible ancient bell of the Great Path.


    But at this moment, the bell and the tripod both hummed. The bell shattered the souls of men, annihilating the divine spirit; The tripod crushed everything, oppressed the physical body, the Tripod of Dragon and Elephant suppressed the Great Path.


    Both of Dong Chen''s hands made the mudra, and suddenly, there was a crisp clinking sound from his body. There was a terrible radiance shining upon him. and suddenly the battle form of Vajra appeared, which grew larger and larger reaching as high as hundreds of meters, just like the battle form of the Great Path.


    Moreover, the battle form of Vajra gave birth to many arms, and the will of the Great Path flowed, and all the arms simultaneously struck. The immense palms contained horrific mudra method.


    The elders of the Dali Academy nodded slightly. Dong Chen was the premier disciple below Saint Plane in the Dali Academy. Now he combined the battle form of will and two other magical means to create a perfect blend of power, exploding amazing power.


    Dong Chen, whose comprehension of the cultivation had always been strong, so he could understand the true meaning within.


    The Tripod of Dragon and Elephant dropped down and wiped out everything. The great palm of Vajra blasted upon it, and caused a violent hurricane. The clothes of those who were around watching the battle had fluttered uncontrollably, and the might of the Path blasting toward them. Those sages whose realm were lower were blasted backward, and it was difficult for them to remain standing.


    Dong!


    Di Hao was still moving forward, and the bell rings shook the sky. The Tripod of Dragon and Elephant, like a divine tripod, with golden rays came out of it, just like the light of the Great Path, directed toward Dong Chen.


    At this moment, everyone seemed to be able to perceive just how strong the oppressive force that Dong Chen was enduring; that immense and incomparable Vajra battle form seemed to be on the verge of being crushed.


    Dong!


    A loud bang, and numerous lines of light appeared on Dong Chen''s battle form, extending along the battle form toward the arms. Above the sky, numerous arms blasted out at the same time, creating an extremely brilliant golden pattern from which endless brilliance exuded, and collided with the light from the divine tripod; the two forces were jousting with one another.


    Di Hao stretched out both of his hands, his robe fluttered, and a mighty aura bloomed from him, which then turned extremely sharp. With his body as the center, there was a sudden storm of sword will, and behind him a glorious golden sword appeared.


    "He is also good at swordsmanship?" Everyone looked on with shock.


    Di Hao had already released three major life spirits, all of them were martial spirits.


    Bell, tripod, sword.


    At the moment, he stood on the forum platform like the king of the divine soldiers.


    When the sword will was whistling, the infinite sword will once again gathered in front of him. Under the gaze of everyone, the Sword of Kasyapa that was previously used by Seven Sins was once again manifesting.


    "Sword of Kasyapa, Di Hao knows it too." Many disciples of the younger generation were trembling in their hearts and extremely shocked.


    Moreover, the Sword of Kasyapa from Di Hao was even stronger than that of the Seven Sins.


    Many people showed a look of curiosity. Everyone had thought the battle of the swordsmanship had ended, but no one expected Di Hao was also good at the sword.


    However, the sword spirit was only one of Di Hao''s life spirits; of which he had three major ones, and each one of them was extremely aggressive.


    If Ye Futian claimed that his previous fight with Seven Sins, there were flaws with Seven Sins, then Di Hao, was undoubtedly, perfect without any faults.


    The bell rings suppressed the spiritual willpower, the Tripod of Dragon and Elephant suppressed all things, and now with the rebirth of the swordsmanship, how tyrannical was this strength!


    The people of Daoli Mountain appeared calm without any look of surprise. Naturally they knew how strong Di Hao was.


    Even Seven Sins, was observing the battle calmly. His own strength was already incredibly strong, there were few rivals below the Saint Plane who could be his equal, and in the entire Dali Imperial City there were hardly anyone who could counter him. This was why he could defeat number two of the Dali Academy, Zuo Zong, with overwhelming advantage.


    However, Di Hao was someone that he admired greatly, and was also someone that he felt he could never surpass.


    With Di Hao around, everyone else could only fight for the second spot.


    Although he was very strong, if he had fought with Di Hao, he would be defeated very badly. Whether it was from the beginning or allowing him to release the sword of the peak, he would be crushed either way. There was no need to stop him from gathering the Sword of Kasyapa as the Seventh Swordsman had done.


    "Imperial Advisor, Dong Chen seemed to be under great pressure," Li Xun said to the man next to him, "I had no idea that uncle had adopted such a powerful godson."


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali looked at the battlefield quietly. The strength of Di Hao was indeed at the apex below Saint Plane. Such ability was nearly invincible.


    Swords of Kasyapa now gathered and manifested. Unlike Seven Sins, Di Hao could gather multiple Swords of Kasyapa, and in an instant the swords whistled in the sky.


    The bell was still ringing, and the Tripod of Dragon and Elephant was still in a deadlock with Dong Chen, and with such terrifying swordsmanship suppressing, it could only be imagined just how much pressure Dong Chen was facing.


    Dong!


    A loud bang, and the many arms of Dong Chen were unleashed at the same time, and the currents upon his body were extremely aggressive. He then went in the direction of Di Hao, not only did he not retreat, but instead he headed toward the other.


    "Go!"


    Di Hao''s fingers pointed toward the front, and the Sword of Kasyapa penetrated the void, reaching the limit of speed.


    Buzz!


    At this moment, there were many afterimages appeared in front, and they were all images of Dong Chen, and these images seemed to be as real as could be.


    The Swords of Kasyapa whizzed by, and all the afterimages were shattered, and yet other images were constantly condensing and appear, and seemed to be increasing.


    Not only that, but above these condensing illusions, there was also an extremely powerful spiritual will.


    Di Hao actually felt threatened. Suddenly the Tripod of Dragon and Elephant flew back, and appeared in the area above him. The vastness of the might descended. He continued to move forward, and the bell and the tripod sounded at the same time.


    His palms pushed out, and the Swords of Kasyapa that were whistling suddenly ran through the void, and madly slaughtered in the space, wanting to smash and pulverize the space, and destroy all the images of Dong Chen.


    Above the Sword of Kasyapa, there was a great murderous intent hidden within; this wasthe powerful murderous will that Di Hao had refined from his experience on the battlefield.


    Dong!


    The Vajra battle form exploded from an afterimage, blocking the sword will that was madly attacking. At the same moment, the battle form rushed forward and directly oppressing Di Hao''s true location.


    Di Hao showed no fear. The Tripod of Dragon and Elephant descended from the sky, destroyed everything, and blasted toward the battle form. The many arms of the battle form raised up to support the Tripod of Dragon and Elephant.


    Dong Chen''s body carried the radiant glory with him as he moved forward. He was surrounded by a sacred light, as if it was not below the Saint Plane any longer, but had already entered the presence of the Divine Path.


    Di Hao''s hands closed together, and the swordsmanship surrounding him hummed together. The Sword of Kasyapa broke through from the sky. With the body of Dong Chen as the center, it was attacking instantly, fast as can be.


    Many disciples of the Dali Academy clenched their fists tightly, and revealed a look of worry on their faces. At this moment, the Sword of Kasyapa and millions of sword will came together, shattering the void and was completely indefensible.


    But Dong Chen did not pay any attention to it and just continued moving forward.


    When the sword came for the attack, it passed through his body.


    Just as the sword about to descend on Dong Chen, it stopped abruptly. The glory on Dong Chen shrouded the space within it. The sword screamed wildly, and Di Hao stepped forward again, his fingers extended, continued the command for the sword to attack. .


    A loud sound was heard, and in this moment, Dong Chen''s body split once again, producing bodies outside of bodies, colliding directly with the Swords of Kasyapa, and was crushed by the swords.


    Buzz! The might of Great Path descended in front of Di Hao, and a phantom image penetrated the attack of swordsmanship and came in front of Di Hao.


    Dong Chen''s body seemed to be unreal. His fingers pressed down toward Di Hao, who was in front. In an instant, heaven and earth were suffocated, everything seemed to be at a standstill, with only this one finger existing.


    When this one finger went down, the Great Path descended, and Di Hao only felt that his soul was going to be broken.


    He knew that Dong Chen''s strongest attacking technique was the God Destroyer. The powerful spiritual will that he released was shattered. The invisible force enveloped his body and seemed to take apart his soul.


    Dong! A glorious ancient bell surrounded his body, as if it was one with his body, and like Dong Chen, one of his fingers also pointed forward.


    With this finger, the heaven and earth resonated, the Great Path connected, sharper than sword, and contained supreme Way of suppression.


    The fingers of the two men collided together, and suddenly formed an atmosphere of total destruction. The flesh and the spiritual will seemed to be crushed.


    Bell, tripod, and the sword all hummed, intending to shatter the Great Path.


    Boom!


    A loud bang, the light of destruction swept out, and the people only saw the two bodies were shocked backward at the same time.


    Di Hao retreated unsteadily, and let out a groan.


    Dong Chen''s body flew backwards. It seemed that there was a murderous sword will that penetrated the body, and inside the body there came a roaring sound. Puh! He spat out a mouthful of blood, looking pale.


    "Dong Chen, defeated."


    The hearts of the people trembled; Dong Chen, the first person below the Saint Plane from Dali Academy was defeated.


    Di Hao of Daoli Mountain, godson of King Tiandao, the first person below Saint Plane in Dali Dynasty.


    "Much obliged," Di Hao put his hands together and bowed. His clothes fluttered, as he said to Dong Chen. Although he had won, but he still respect Dong Chen''s strength.


    Dong Chen also saluted, then retired, without say anything more. Defeat was defeat.


    In this battle, he had shouldered great responsibility, but he still lost.


    Daoli Mountain came to seek the Way, and triumphed over the first holy land of cultivation in Dali Dynasty, the Dali Academy.


    After the shock, many people looked at the Imperial Advisor, only to see him sitting there, looking casual, and no one had any idea what he was thinking.


    "This battle can be said to be the battle of the peaks below Saint Plane in Dali Imperial City."


    Di Hao took a few steps forward, looking at the Imperial Advisor of Dali, and bowed gently, saying, "I heard that the Imperial Advisor wanted to take on apprentices, so I came from Daoli Mountain asked to be instructed by the Dali Academy; I would like to be accepted under the Imperial Advisor as an apprentice."


    When Di Hao finished speaking, everyone was stupefied in a moment. Dong Chen came to the Dali Imperial City when the Imperial Advisor had wanted to accept disciples, and everyone thought that Dong Chen would become a disciple of the Imperial Advisor.


    In the eyes of many, Di Hao''s arrival was undoubtedly to provoke trouble.


    But at this moment, Di Hao claimed that he had come to Dali Dynasty to seek the Way, and that he wanted to be the apprentice of the Imperial Advisor to continue to cultivate.


    How could the people not be shocked.


    Dong Chen was even more pale, but he sighed. He was defeated and had no qualification whatsoever to apprentice under the Imperial Advisor.


    Once again everyone looked to the Imperial Advisor; as the first person below Saint Plane, Di Hao had requested to be his apprentice.


    Would the Imperial Advisor agree?


    The Imperial Advisor of Dai was also surprised by Di Hao''s request, but he soon recovered. Obviously, this was also not unexpected.

 1117 Congratulations

    There were many cultivators in Dali Academy, but at that moment, they were all quiet, and most of them were looking at the Imperial Adviser and Di Hao. No one had expected this to happen. The disciples of Dali Academy were all in extremely low spirits. After all, they had lost terribly as Daoli Mountain came to seek the Path.


    Although they had won the first battle of lower level Sages, after the Seven Sins had come forward, it had seemed that that battle had only happened for the purpose of educating Kuang Xiao. He had used the Sword of Kasyapa to defeat Zuo Zong. Next, Di Hao had defeated Dong Chen and had asked to be taken as the disciple of the headmaster of Dali Academy, the Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty.


    This was naturally hard to bear for the disciples of Dali Academy. However, Di Hao had wanted to be taken as a disciple and had let everybody know it. Even though Dali Academy, which he founded, had been defeated, he was still second only to Emperor Li. Why else would King Tiandao have sent his adopted son to be trained by him? No matter what their goal was, this was a recognition of the Imperial Adviser''s power and position.


    The Imperial Adviser looked up at Di Hao and asked him, "If you want to become my disciple, you must tell me, why do you seek the Path?"


    Di Hao stared at him. His adopted father, King Tiandao, had once told him that he looked at the Imperial Adviser as an opponent, but at the same time, he still respected him greatly. That was because people of talent appreciated each other. Thus, he had sent him to become the Imperial Adviser''s disciple, learning from him and seeking the Path with him. That was why he had come here for today''s battle.


    "I seek the Path to be able to sweep over the battlefield and plan victory from a thousand miles away. To be able to protect the Dali Dynasty from within, and sweep away all external threats, and make the Dali Dynasty prosperous," said Di Hao. All the people of Daoli Mountain had trained in the army, and so his thoughts were naturally those of a soldier. He wanted to conquer the world, sweep away all threats, and seize resources of the Great Path.


    "Oh." The Imperial Adviser nodded slightly, then looked away. Di Hao felt himself relax quite a bit. Before, when the Imperial Adviser had been looking at him, he had felt like he was under a lot of pressure. Under that pressure, if he had spoken insincerely, the Imperial Adviser would have perceived it. As for whether or not the Imperial Adviser was satisfied with what he had said, he did not know. The Imperial Adviser had cultivated himself so highly that he could see right through him, but he could not see through to the Imperial Adviser''s thoughts.


    "Dong Chen," called the Imperial Adviser. Dong Chen suddenly stepped forward.


    "Headmaster," he said. The Imperial Adviser was also the headmaster of Dali Academy, and so there was nothing improper about calling him headmaster there.


    "Lift your head," said the Imperial Adviser. Dong Chen lifted his head, and in that instant, felt the same thing that Di Hao had��an invisible pressure. Those deep and wise eyes seemed to pierce right through him, looking into his very soul. Even if he was not purposely putting pressure on him, the force that Dong Chen felt was still great. When one had cultivated to the peak of the Saint level, if he willed it, his every move would be like the authority of heaven.


    "And you? Why do you seek the Path?" asked the Imperial Adviser. When they heard what the Imperial Adviser said, the disciples of Dali Academy had hope once again. When choosing a disciple, he would not just rely on talent and power. Perhaps Dong Chen still had hope.


    "I seek the Path to seek knowledge. I want to see great things, and be like you, teaching the Path to the people of the Dali Dynasty, to increase their levels of cultivation," said Dong Chen with a bow. The Imperial Adviser was an idol to the students of Dali Academy, and they worshiped him. Even Dong Chen, the number one junior at the academy, was the same. His respect and worship for the Imperial Adviser were no less than anyone else''s.


    Thus, Dong Chen''s goal was everything that the Imperial Adviser had now. He wanted to become like the Imperial Adviser, and so he took him as a model.


    "Oh." The Imperial Adviser nodded again, just like with Di Hao. No one could see if he was pleased or displeased, or which one of them he favored.


    Everyone felt a bit uneasy as they saw the Imperial Adviser turn his gaze and look into the crowd. Finally, his eyes fell upon Ye Futian. He said, "Seventh Swordsman, Lu Chuan has praised you highly, and Sword Mountain has come for you. Why is it that you seek the Path of swordsmanship?"


    A shocked look came over everyone''s faces as they heard this. The Imperial Adviser was questioning Seventh Swordsman. Could it be that he was considering him as well?


    Ye Futian looked up at the Imperial Adviser and then stepped forward. The Imperial Adviser looked at him, and suddenly he had the same feeling that Dong Chen and Di Hao had had.


    "I seek the Path of swordsmanship to reach the highest level of swordsmanship, Master," answered Ye Futian. He avoided the Imperial Adviser''s gaze, keeping his head down.


    The Imperial Adviser kept looking at him, then said calmly, "Look up at me. You seek the Path only to improve your swordsmanship?" It seemed that he knew Ye Futian had not spoken the truth.


    Ye Futian could only look up into the Imperial Adviser''s eyes. He had a feeling that if he spoke falsely, the Imperial Adviser would see through him. At that moment, Ye Futian thought of his cultivation, not just his swordsmanship. Why did he seek the Path? The incident at Donghai, the unstable situation at Nandou, the chaos at East Barren College, the disaster of the Barren State.


    As he thought of this, Ye Futian''s heart was like still water. He looked at the Imperial Adviser and said, "When I was young I was often bullied, and thus I put my whole heart towards cultivating. You asked me why I seek the Path. I do so so that one day I can be carefree and happy. And on that day, even if I don''t cultivate, I will still have the right to choose freely."


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian. It seemed that Seventh Swordsman also had this side to him. Of course, this also appeared to be the wish of the vast majority of common cultivators.


    "The people of this world all face a difficult choice. Having the right to choose freely is not easy at all, and if you don''t cultivate, then even if you don''t try to get involved in the affairs of the world, you might still be affected," said the Imperial Adviser. "Your requirements are a bit high."


    Ye Futian nodded. "That is indeed the way it is, and that is why the only option is to seek the Path." He did not speak of the Path of swordsmanship; he just talked about the Path, openly and honestly.


    "Di Hao and Dong Chen both care about the cultivation of all the people in the world, but when you seek the Path, you do it only for yourself," said the Imperial Adviser.


    "Man first loves himself, then may he love others. He first establishes himself, then he may talk about doing good for humanity," answered Ye Futian.


    "Is this the boundary that you are cultivating towards?" The Imperial Adviser seemed a bit interested as he continued to ask Ye Futian questions.


    Ye Futian thought of Mr. Du''s wishes and thought of his path of cultivation so far. He looked at the Imperial Adviser and said, "The Great Path knows no boundaries."


    The Imperial Adviser nodded and said nothing.


    Li Xun looked at Ye Futian with a smile, and said, "What you have said is quite interesting, Seventh Swordsman. The poor think only of themselves, while the distinguished work for the good of the whole world, no? And as for the Great Path having no boundaries, the whole world is bounded. How can there be no boundaries?"


    "What you have said is so, Your Majesty. I was speaking foolishly." Ye Futian would naturally not contradict him. He was an Imperial Prince. They were on entirely different levels.


    "To each their own! What you said was not foolish. In fact, I think it was very interesting," said Li Xun with a smile. "Who will you choose as your disciple, Imperial Adviser?"


    Today, the Imperial Adviser of Dali Dynasty would choose a disciple to teach personally. He was very curious, would it be Di Hao, or would he still select chen dong.


    Dong Chen was the one that most people had expected him to choose. And his ideals were well suited to everything that the Imperial Adviser had done up till now. Of course, Di Hao had defeated Dong Chen and had actively asked to be accepted as a disciple. His goals for cultivation took different roads to the same place with Dong Chen''s. There was not a huge difference in their characters.


    As for Ye Futian, people generally thought that he was best suited for Sword Mountain. Pursuing the Path of swordsmanship comfortably and naturally was their way.


    "I will announce my choice in three days," said the Imperial Adviser. Everyone looked surprised. He had originally intended to choose his disciple today, and yet he had pushed the time back three days. Could it be that he was hesitating?


    But no one dared to question the Imperial Adviser''s decision.


    "Excellent. Your disciple will one day be at the top of the Dali Dynasty. You should indeed take your time to choose," said Li Xun with a nod.


    "Thank you for coming here today, everyone. If you wish to stay here at Dali Academy as a guest, you may do so as you please," said the Imperial Adviser with a bow. Then he walked over to Li Xun and the others and said, "Your Highness."


    "Let''s leave it here for today," said Li Xun with a bow. They said their farewells and dispersed. The people from Daoli Mountain also gradually left, and the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint walked over to Ye Futian.


    "Elder," said Ye Futian, bowing.


    "You won''t go with me to Sword Mountain?" asked the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint.


    "You said that if I won, I wouldn''t have to go," said Ye Futian. If he was cultivating at Sword Mountain, how could he kill Li Yao? It would be difficult to find a chance. He had to stay in Dali Imperial City. And given his performance today, someone would undoubtedly come to find him.


    "Fine," said the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint with a nod. "It will be good for you to stay in the city and cultivate. You will certainly have a good future. Until we meet again."


    "Until we meet again," said Ye Futian with a bow. The cultivators from Sword Mountain left. Jian Wu gave him a final look.


    "You''re going to refuse him?" Li You asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "Let''s go." And on saying so, they left.


    The people who had attended the sparring session at Dali Academy quickly scattered throughout the city. Di Hao''s fame was like the sun at noon. He had defeated Dong Chen and had earned the reputation of being the best cultivator under the Saint level. And he had asked to be the Imperial Adviser''s disciple.


    At the same time, Seventh Swordsman''s name was also resonating throughout the city. He had defeated Jian Wu of Sword Mountain. If it hadn''t been for Di Hao, Seventh Swordsman probably would have become the most shocking figure of the day.


    Many people were speculating about who the Imperial Adviser would choose as a disciple. Di Hao or Dong Chen?


    ...


    The three days passed in the blink of an eye, as many people kept speculating.


    On that day, Ye Futian was cultivating as usual. It was just like he had said��all that was left before him was the Divine Path.


    "Is Master Seventh Swordsman here?" came a voice from outside his residence. Ye Futian opened his eyes and said, "Who is it?"


    "The household of Marquis Qingyi has come to pay a visit," came the voice. It seemed to be someone whom the Dali Dynasty had made a Marquis.


    "Please come in," said Ye Futian. A group of people walked in. They walked up towards him, and an old man at the front smiled and bowed to him. "I am always hearing the name Seventh Swordsman. Your swordsmanship is unmatched. You are truly a dragon among men." He was extremely familiar and friendly. A maid came up behind him, holding a brocade box. It seemed that they had brought a gift.


    "You are too kind, but to what do I owe the pleasure?" said Ye Futian with a bow. There was another extremely beautiful woman beside the old man. She was slim and graceful, fair, and lovely.


    "My daugher loves swordsmanship, and when she heard of you, she wanted to come see you. I''m sorry that we had to bother you, so we brought some gifts to congratulate you on your victory," said the old man with a smile. Ye Futian looked at the woman beside him and saw that the shy look in her eyes made her even more delicate and charming.


    Ye Futian was stunned. This was...

 1118 The Imperial Advisers Choice

    With this kind of expression, how could Ye Futian not understand what his visitor meant?


    It was just that he did not know why a Marquise show him such goodwill?


    Where did his appreciation for him come from?


    "The Xue family of Dali Imperial City has come to visit, is Master Seventh Swordsman here?" came another voice from outside. Ye Futian was stunned, then said, "Please come in."


    He then watched as another group of people walked into his residence. They came up to him and said, "Congratulations, Master Seventh Swordsman."


    "The household of Marquis Yang has come to greet you."


    "The Lin familiy has come to greet you."


    Voice after voice came from outside. Ye Futian invited them all in one after the other, and in the blink of an eye his residence was full of people.


    And everyone who had come were people of status. Among them, many of the families had brought their family beauties along with them. All of them were lovely and elegant women, so beautiful as to make fish sink and birds alight. They were a feast for the eyes, and Ye Futian''s eyes feasted on them, but it was all a little awkward.


    Could it be...


    "Master Seventh Swordsman." At that moment, another beautiful figure flashed over. Li You and Li Yang had come directly to him. They were familiar with each other, so they did not need to be announced.


    "Greetings, my Prince, Princess." Everyone bowed when they saw them. Although King Li was the absolute master of the Lower Worlds, his influence was quite weak in the Upper Worlds. But he was after all one of the Four Kings.


    Ye Futian looked up at the two of them, and saw that both of them looked rather excited. They descended before him, and Li took a step forward, coming right up to him. "Master Seventh Swordsman," she said, "There is news from the Imperial Adviser''s household. He has chosen you."


    In her excitement, Li You was leaning very close to Ye Futian. He suddenly caught a whiff of the fragrance she was wearing. Seeming to see the strange look on Ye Futian''s face, Li You suddenly realized how close the tow of them were. She blushed and took a step back, but their was still excitement in her beautiful eyes.


    Everyone had thought that the person that the Imperial Adviser chose would be either Di Hao or Dong Chen, but new information had come from the Imperial Adviser''s household.


    The Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty would take Seventh Swordsman as his disciple.


    Everyone had been waiting for news from the Imperial Adviser for the past few days, and once it came out they were instantly in motion. That was why they had all come here so fast, and why everything that had taken place here at his residence had happened.


    The greatest swordsman of his generation had been recognized by the Imperial Adviser, and chosent to be his disciple. His future path was hard to predict.


    But at the very least they could come to get to know him and congratulate him. There was nothing wrong with maintaining friendly relations with him.


    And if Ye Futian noticed the beautiful women in their families, that was even better.


    Seventh Swordsman was still young, and extremely talented. His swordsmanship was unmatched, and he was also very handsome. This kind of man was extremely rare.


    The disciple of the Imperial Adviser could even seek to marry a princess, and Emperor Li would not refuse him.


    Given what had happened in his residence, Li You''s news was not unexpected, nor did it surprise him too much.


    In reality, he did not want to become the Imperial Adviser''s disciple. When the Imperial Adviser had questioned him on that day, he had felt a strong sense of pressure and alertness. And Xia Qingyuan had once reminded him that at the Imperial Adviser''s side he would be under even greater threat.


    Of course, his status would also be very high, and he could come into direct contact with Li Yao.


    "What does that expression mean?" Li You saw Ye Futian''s aloof and unconcerned look and could not help but purse her lips.


    The Imperial Adviser had chosen him as his personal disciple, and he did not even look a little bit excited?


    Previously, the Shadow Bearing Sword Saint had invited him to come to Sword Mountain to cultivate. But that was only Sword Mountain, and the Master of Sword Mountain had not promised to take Ye Futian as a disciple. However, now the Imperial Adviser did want to take him as a disciple.


    The two things could not even be mentioned in the same sentence. And moreover, even the Master of Sword Mountain was of lower status than the Imperial Adviser.


    He was lower only than Emperor Li himself.


    "What expression should I have?" asked Ye Futian.


    "...." Li You said nothing to him. Her excitement seemed to have been ruined by his cold-blood, and she just stared at him.


    At that moment there was another voice from the sky as another mighty group of figures came. They descended into his residence, and at their head was the Imperial Adviser''s disciple Lu Chuan.


    Some of those who had come with him were members of the Imperial family.


    For example, the Prince of the Dali Dynasty, Li Yao, was there as well.


    "Seventh Swordsman," called Lu Chuan as he walked towards Ye Futian. "My Master is willing to take you as his disciple, and would like to ask your opinion on the matter. Are you willing?'' Lu Chuan spoke directly and frankly.


    Ye Futian looked at everyone around him. With the Imperial Adviser''s position within the Dali Dynasty, he had even been able to send Li Yao as part of the group inviting Ye Futian. Under this situation, if he refused he would have no chance to get close to the Dali Dynasty. Li Yao would also get farther way.


    "I am willing to enter the Imperial Adviser''s household," said Ye Futian. Perhaps the threat was greater, but entering the Imperial Adviser''s household to cultivate would bring him closer to Li Yao.


    And thus his chance of killing Li Yao would become greater.


    Li You let out a big breathe when she heard Ye Futian''s answer, as if she had finally relaxed. She had truly feared that Ye Futian might refuse.


    In the Dali Dynasty, no one refused to enter the Imperial Adviser''s household. Even Di Hao had requested to join him after defeating Dong Chen. But Li You could not get a handle on Ye Futian. The guy was a mystery.


    But now he had finally accepted.


    "From now on you may call me Brother," said Lu Chuan with a smile.


    "Brother Lu Chuan," Ye Futian called out with a smile. He had stepped into his role quickly.


    Everyone in his residence bowed. "Congratulations, Seventh Swordsman." From this day forward, there would be another hero in the Dali Dynasty.


    "Seventh Swordsman." At that moment, Li Yao walked forward as well and said, "Congratulation."


    "Greetings, Your Highness,'' said Ye Futian with a slight bow.


    "No need to be so polite. I am also a disciple of the Imperial Adviser. I may not be personally taught by him, but from now on I will still call you Brother. You can call me Li Yao, or Brother." Li Yao seemed very polite.


    "Your Highness, I wouldn''t dare be so improper," said Ye Futian, taking a step away from him.


    "Don''t worry about it. You''ll soon get used to it," said Li Yao with a smile. He seemed very easy to get along with.


    Seeing Li Yao''s attitude, Ye Futian relaxed a little.


    This way, he would not have to fear not getting his chance.


    The danger was greater, but it seemed that it was worth it.


    If he entered the Imperial Adviser''s household, he would have a chance to kill Li Yao in the future.


    Of course, at this point he could not reveal even a little bit of his hostility.


    "Let us all go to the Imperial Adviser''s Residence together," said Lu Chuan. Ye Futian nodded, and the group of them left together.


    As they were leaving his residence, he saw several people appear there. In the distance there were people watching him, which made everyone stop.


    "What are you doing, Li Xuan?" said Li Yao.


    Li Xuan bowed to Li Yao, then said, "Your Highness, I only came to ask Mr. Lu Chuan, why did the Imperial Adviser choose Seventh Swordsman?"


    "Does my Master need to explain his choice of disciple to you?" asked Lu Chuan.


    "How can I dare question his choice of disciple? It''s just that several days ago this man held a sword to my throat, and now the Imperial Adviser has taken him as a disciple. I''m a little hurt by that," said Li Xuan.


    "So?" said Lu Chuan.


    "It''s nothing. I''m just a little hurt by it," said Li Xuan with a smile, then he stepped back.


    "Don''t try to stir up trouble," said Li Yao to Li Xuan.


    They all ignored Li Xuan then, and looked ahead of them.


    Up there, a group of figures were standing proudly, with powerful auras.


    These were the cultivators of Daoli Mountain, and the youth standing at their head was Di Hao.


    At that moment countless people were already gathered in the area. After the news had come out from the Imperial Adviser''s residence the people had flowed here like water. The whole city had been shaken.


    The Imperial Adviser had not chosen Dong Chen of Dali Academy, nor had he chosen Di Hao, the most powerful figure under the Saint level.


    Instead, he had chosen Seventh Swordsman.


    No one knew what the Imperial Adviser was thinking, and they were all curious. They did not why why the Imperial Adviser had done this, and at the same time they wanted to see what kind of person Seventh Swordsman was.


    Now they saw that he was incredibly handsome, and extremely heroic looking.


    But now, Di Hao, who had defeated Dong Chen and claimed the title of the most powerful person below the Saint level, was there, standing in front of Ye Futian.


    "The Imperial Adviser did not choose the defeated Dong Chen, but he also did not choose Brother Di Hao. Was it because he comes from Daoli Mountain? Is that why he chose him?" The Seven Sins stood beside Di Hao with sharp eyes as they stared at Ye Futian.


    "My Master had his own reasons for making his choice. Does he have to explain them to you?" Lu Chuan frowned. This wast he second time he had been questioned, and so his tone was a bit colder.


    No matter if they were from the Prince Regent''s household or Daoli Mountain, they had no right to question the Imperial Adviser''s decisions, especially not who he chose as a disciple.


    "Do not be so rash, Seven Sins," said Di Hao. The Seven Sins'' eyes were sharp, and sword will wrapped around them as they stared forward.


    Di Hao took a few steps forward and said, "Since the Imperial Adviser has made his choice, there is nothing that I can say. Today I am returning to Daoli Mountain to cultivate. Before that, I would like to teach the Imperial Adviser''s chosen disciple a lesson."


    Sword will swirled around him and his majestic aura swept out. He stared straight ahead at Ye Futian and said, "I am Di Hao of Daoli Mountain. Show me what you''ve got."


    As he said this, the hubbub around them subsided, and all was silent.


    Di Hao was arrogant without question. He had no right to question the Imperial Adviser''s decision, but before he left the city he would stand before the one the Imperial Adviser had chosen to be his disciple.


    At least he would leave something behind before he left.


    Countless gazes fell upon Ye Futian. Did he dare to accept the challenge?


    Three days ago, Di Hao had defeated Dong Chen. Everyone thought that Daoli Mountain meant to shame the Imperial Adviser, but afterwards Di Hao had asked to become the Imperial Adviser''s disciple.


    But now it was different. The Imperial Adviser had chosen Seventh Swordsman. If Di Hao defeated him, or even crushed him absolutely, that would probably be quite embarrassing for the Imperial Adviser.


    This Di Hao had some anger in his heart.


    That was why he had come here to stand before Ye Futian.


    Di Hao was no the only one who was angry. All of the people from Daoli Mountain were. If the Imperial Adviser had chosen Dong Chen as his disciple, even though Di Hao had defeated him, they could still accept this. After all, Dong Chen was the Imperial Adviser''s man. Di Hao would have left quietly.


    But the Imperial Adviser had chosen Seventh Swordsman.


    Ye Futian looked at Di Hao and was silent for a moment. Then he stepped forward and said, "I am Seventh Swordsman. Show me what you''ve got!"

 1119 Number One Below Saint Plane in All of Dali Dynasty

    Ye Futian''s body had sword will circling him as soon as he finished talking. He turned his eyes at Di Hao, looking calm and without a hint of irritation.


    So the students of Daoli Mountain are unable to sit well with the imperial advisor taking me in as his student, eh? Futian thought. Well then, we''ll have to fight it out.


    A bolt of lightning streaked through the air. Ye Futian shot to the sky like a sword. It was not Dali Academy, and there was no battle platform. As such, there was no need for restraints, and one could have fought in the sky to their heart''s content. There was not even any need to suppress one''s power.


    Di Hao looked up slightly after seeing what Ye Futian was doing. He stepped out and took to the air as well. The sound of the bell resounded with a big dong, shaking the eardrums of those below. Ye Futian felt his brain being shaken. A formless sound wave swept past and invaded his spiritual will right away. It was an overpowering move that caused his mind to be rattled. It was a sound wave attack of the great path, one which had no form. Ye Futian did not stop but continued flying upwards instead, shooting into the clouds. Di Hao pursued him, and both of them were flying at blitzing speeds.


    All three of Di Hao''s Life Spirits��the sword, the cauldron, and the bell�� appeared. Super-powerful will of the great path swept through the air. He stepped in the midair, and the sound of the bell resounded throughout the sky, covering all of their surroundings. Formless ancient bells appeared around Ye Futian and bombarded him with the undying sound of the bell.


    Ye Futian''s pupils turned extremely demonic. It was as if his eyes were able to see through everything. The formless bells were unable to escape his eyes. A sword appeared in his hand, and lightning storms rained down from above, which were fused with his sword like the calamity of the world.


    "Attack." Ye Futian lashed out with his sword.


    Dong... The sound of the bells rang throughout the air as the bells exploded and crumbled one after another.


    Boom... The cauldron behind Di Hao grew in a frenzy to hundreds of meters tall, raining down, suppressing the will of the great path. Their surroundings resonated with his power as one cauldron after another came into being, sealing the space that Ye Futian occupied right away. Extremely dazzling light was seen coursing all over Ye Futian''s body. Sword aura howled and circled about him. One heavy sword after another appeared, and every single one of them emanated terrifying power.


    The sword spirit appeared before him dazzlingly. He held it with both hands, and boundless sword will flowed about, fusing into the sword spirit and transforming it into a hundred meter-tall sword that weighed thousands of pounds.


    "Down," Di Hao said coldly. The cauldrons dived and pressed onto Ye Futian like the might of the heavens.


    Ye Futian burst with sword will, and the heavy swords shot up to the sky, clashing with the cauldrons. Loud rumbling noises that shook the heavens were heard. Di Hao stepped out, and the bells rang in unison. That cauldron shot up and came right above Ye Futian. Boundless light of the great path rained down on Ye Futian. Countless shadows of the cauldron came down as well, making the space stifling.


    Ye Futian swung his hand about, and the heavy swords hovered in midair, letting out high-pitched ringing sounds. He shot out with his hand and clapped on the heavy sword. One shadow of the heavy sword after another shot up, clashing with the cauldrons that were raining down. At the same time, Ye Futian pushed the heavy sword while he streaked forward, mowing down everything that was standing in his way.


    The hundred meter-tall gigantic sword pressed forward with immense might, bombarding the cauldron spirit. It burst with extremely dazzling glimmer, as devastating might of the great path washed all over the sky.


    Di Hao looked at the one who attacked his Cauldron Spirit with a sword and continued to move forward. Sword will howled behind him, and the Swords of Kasyapa coalesced, pulsing with light out to tear everything apart. The swords rang loudly as they were being pointed at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stepped out, and the air trembled. His aura was towering as he clapped the gigantic sword before him. Power from within his body burst, and the cauldron spirit was thrown far away with a loud boom.


    "Go." Di Hao uttered a single word. The Swords of Kasyapa shot through the skies as they spun, tearing through the space at great speed, arriving right before his opponent. Ye Futian stepped into the air at almost the same moment, throwing out his sword right before him. A terrifying screen appeared in front of that heavy sword in an instant, ramming straight at the Sword of Kasyapa but unable to penetrate it.


    The light of stars dazzled on the screen, protecting Ye Futian behind it. Di Hao''s expression was cold. He stepped once again, pointing with his finger, coalescing even more swords forward. The cauldron in the air was dropped yet again. Ye Futian did not bother with that falling cauldron. He stepped forward once again, wrapping up the Swords of Kasyapa as he pressed on. His power of the swords becoming even more frightening as he streaked through the air.


    Boundless light of the sword from Ye Futian flowed into that gigantic sword before him. He eventually slapped with both of his hands, and with a loud boom, the gigantic sword shattered the Swords of Kasyapa, ramming ahead straight at Di Hao.


    Di Hao shot up and evaded the attack in an instant, but Ye Futian did not bother with it. He stepped forward and held the sword with both hands, flipping his entire body behind. He gathered overwhelming strength and swung the sword out with massive force. He melded extremely overbearing power from his whole being into that chop within that very instant. The enormous golden cauldron spirit came at him again as the heavy sword was swung.


    Clang... A terrifying rumble was heard, and the cauldron spirit rattled violently. Di Hao grunted midair. He extended his hand and summoned the cauldron back to the air. Ye Futian stepped forward and spun, throwing out another chop with the heavy sword.


    Clang! Yet another rumble was heard as the cauldron spirit was pinned down. Its sound resounded throughout the space as it kept rattling. Di Hao''s face was rather ashen. That was his Life Spirit. Furthermore, the power of the sword around Ye Futian was still growing.


    Sword will continued to course about Di Hao''s body. The Sword of Kasyapa was circling around him before shooting down through the air, heading straight for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stepped around in the air and brought his sword down again. So long Di Hao refused to come down, Ye Futian would make do with pummeling his Life Spirits.


    Di Hao descended. Endless killing swords shot through the air, intending to kill Ye Futian. However, when Ye Futian brought his heavy sword down, the entire space seemed to have been placed in a lockdown. That sword as not sharp at all, but it brought with it boundless heft.


    Boom. Despite his formidable powers, Di Hao was thrown off by the attack.


    The Swords of Raging Storms manifested around Ye Futian and flew straight at Di Hao, who looked troubled as he pointed forward, sword spirit in hand, intending to mow everything down.


    At that moment, Ye Futian streaked through the air and brought the heavy sword down from above. Di Hao disappeared from where he stood, turning into a beam of dazzling light. However, Ye Futian disappeared alongside him after having him targeted. That sword attack moved along the space with Ye Futian, heading straight for Di Hao, just like that attack that he swung at Seven Sins three days ago, ignoring the movements in space altogether.


    Di Hao was brought down by the attack from above. His body dropped to the ground in a straight line. Ye Futian did not stop right there. He took one step and dove down. However, the heavy sword in his hand transformed in a heartbeat, dispersing into a sword filled with the will of the great path of space. It followed Ye Futian down. He launched yet another attack at Di Hao, tearing through the space as he went.


    Countless people from below looked up. They were only able to see countless beams of the sword flashing where Ye Futian was, shooting in different directions. It seemed as if there were nothing but the aura of the sword in that space. A beam of the sword flashed as it dived, making it seem as if the space was being bisected. It was as if the place was being cut down by the heavens.


    At the very next moment, a beam of light shot down, and with a loud boom, two silhouettes were found on the ground, bursting with sword aura. Everyone turned their eyes in that direction. Sword will filled that space and rang. When the sword aura was dispersed, two silhouettes were seen.


    Di Hao and Ye Futian appeared clearly. In that instant, the place was dead silent without a hint of sound, other than the reverberation from wind and sword will howling. The hearts of many seemed to have stopped, and the mighty ones were ashen as they stared at the scene before them.


    How is this possible? The tip of Ye Futian''s sword was pointed at Di Hao''s throat. Di Hao''s clothing was in a mess after being torn apart by the sword aura.


    "Seventh Swordsman." The faces of the spectators were filled with fright and awe. He had defeated Di Hao with his swords.


    The Seventh Swordsman had defeated Jian Wu of the Sword Mountain three days ago, making his name known throughout Emperor Li''s City. However, Di Hao had defeated Dong Chen and became known as the most powerful person below Saint Plane in all of Dali. Yet, the imperial advisor chose the Seventh Swordsman to become his student instead.


    As such, Di Hao came there.


    No one expected Di Hao, who had defeated Dong Chen and was known to be at the pinnacle below Saint Plane in all of Dali, was defeated by the Seventh Swordsman. Everything looked surreal.


    "That is something." Li Yao, Lu Chuan, and the others were rather impressed. When the Seventh Swordsman had defeated Jian Wu and became known as the number one swordsman below Saint Plane, he did not make any other moves after that. No one would have expected that he was more powerful than Di Hao.


    As for Li You, she was already gasping. Her eyes were locked onto Seventh Swordsman, and she was utterly speechless. That swordsman from the Lower Worlds remained peerless even in the Upper Worlds.


    None below Saint Plane in all of Dali Dynasty was able to win against his swords.


    "You have a problem?" Ye Futian asked, his eyes locked onto Di Hao.


    The imperial advisor decided to take Ye Futian as his student, and Di Hao showed up to provoke Ye Futian. What do you mean by this? he thought.


    You think I don''t deserve that? How about now? Do you have a problem?


    Di Hao was speechless. Losers had no right to speak. He had defeated the most powerful student of the Dali Academy, Dong Chen. He did not pay the Seventh Swordsman any heed even when Ye Futian defeated the Seven Sins that day, as his target was Dong Chen alone. No one would have expected that after defeating Dong Chen, he, who was lauded as invincible below Saint Plane, would have ended up being defeated by the Seven Swordsman. The Seventh Swordsman did not belong to any force before, even he was chosen by the imperial advisor. So the imperial advisor''s eyes were really that sharp, then?


    "Number one below Saint Plane in all of Dali Dynasty, huh? You should take my swords into consideration before claiming to be that," Ye Futian said and sheathed his sword. He let go of Di Hao and stepped back, before saying to Lu Chuan and the others, "Let''s go."


    Lu Chuan nodded and walked with Ye Futian, passing by Di Hao. Di Hao remained standing where he was, as did those from Daoli Mountain. All of them were speechless.


    Countless watched Ye Futian and his party leave. Their hearts were still racing from the stunning scenes they witnessed. No one would have expected that the title of number one below Saint Plane in all of Dali Dynasty had shifted to someone else so quickly.


    The Seventh Swordsman would come to be renowned throughout the world, as the personal student of the imperial advisor, and the number one below Saint Plane in all of Dali Dynasty. His future became something foreseeable. No one would dare doubt how the imperial advisor chose his students. Many were impressed and came to wonder if the imperial advisor had long known that the Seventh Swordsman was capable of beating Di Hao.

 1120 Entering the Imperial Advisors Residence

    Ye Futian initially thought that the Imperial Advisor''s Residence would have been extremely magnificent and grand, due to its status as the residence of all who stood at such high positions in the Dali Dynasty.


    However, when he arrived outside the place, what he saw was but a rather common manor, which was in no way magnificent nor grand.


    Seeing Ye Futian stopping, Lu Chuan asked, "Surprised?"


    "Rather surprising indeed," Ye Futian said.


    "The value of a mountain is judged not by its height," Lu Chuan said nonchalantly, "The title of ''Imperial Advisor''s Residence'' was more than enough."


    Ye Futian nodded and followed Lu Chuan into the place. Everyone else who were there to send them on the trip, including Li Yao and Li You, have left. The Imperial Advisor''s Residence was a private residence of the imperial advisor, with several personal students of his living within.


    While the place was not huge, but it was quaint and elegant nonetheless. The towers were placed in an artful manner.


    When Ye Futian saw the imperial advisor again, he found the elder standing before a tower.


    That place felt clean and simple to Ye Futian.


    "Teacher," Lu Chuan called as he bowed.


    "Yeah." The imperial advisor nodded and turned his eyes at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futina bowed and said, "The Seventh Swordsman hereby greets you, teacher."


    "I don''t have much of any rules around here. There is no need to be bound by mundane propriety. Do you find it surprising that I have chosen you to be my student this time?" The imperial advisor asked Ye Futian.


    "I''m rather surprised indeed." The Seventh Swordsman nodded. "The people of Dali all thought that you would have either picked Di Hao or Dong Chen. Why did not pick me instead?"


    He had indeed wanted to know why the imperial advisor picked him.


    "The Dali Academy holds a forum every year, to either discuss battle or the way of cultivation. After the battle between Di Hao and Dong Chen, I have asked all three of you, about why did you seek the way," the imperial advisor spoke. Ye Futian nodded. He looked rather nervous back then.


    At that moment after entering the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, he actually became more relaxed.


    He reminded himself to be conscious of his current identity��the Seventh Swordsman��and forget about being Ye Futian. He did not bring his enmity and vengeance with him, as it would have exposed him instead.


    He was already mentally prepared to play his character well when he was on the way to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    "Dong Chen and Di Hao answered in a similar manner. Both of them claimed to do so for Dali, but you, you sought the way more for yourself. People learn to love themselves before they learn to love others. I find that very agreeable. Faith is not something as simple as people often put it to be. When a person becomes cornered and forced to choose, faith would crumble all the same," the imperial advisor elaborated.


    "But that shouldn''t have sufficed to have you pick me as your student," Ye Futian added.


    "Of course." The imperial advisor nodded and continued, "What truly cemented my decision was the line behind��the great path knows no boundaries."


    "People learn to love themselves before they could love others. People learn to be independent before they could be of aid to others. All of that coupled with the line��the great path knows no boundaries��would have sufficed," the imperial advisor said.


    Ye Futian looked at the middle-aged man. He never once thought that what cemented the imperial advisor''s decision would have been his words back in the Dali Academy.


    "You spoke of selfishness with the lines before, and altruism with the lines after. As such, I came to believe that if you were to become able to be independent, you would then be able to put the way that you believe in into action��the great path knows no boundaries."


    Ye Futian was very startled to find that the imperial advisor actually came to admire that line. When the imperial advisor pinned him down with great pressure, he was unable to lie and he did not want to. He never considered becoming a student of the imperial advisor in the first place, so he answered according to what he desired instead.


    However, the notion of ''the great path knows no boundaries'' was apparently different from what Emperor Li''s Realm adhered to. The crown prince, Li Xun, said immediately after that, claiming that the world was filled with boundaries. Emperor Li''s Realm, Emperor Xia''s Realm and whatnot, all of those were boundaries, and he questioned how could the great path be of no boundaries.


    The Battle of Empty Realm was an excellent example, as it was a culmination of the conflict between the three imperial realms.


    His impression of the imperial advisor of Dali had been that of a great pillar who devoted his being to make Dali Dyansty strong, whose pressure overwhelmed all. He was unable to understand why someone like that would have agreed to that notion.


    He was indeed puzzled.


    "How about you? I have heard that you have refused the offer to join the Sword Mountain. What changed your mind about taking up my offer?" The imperial advisor asked.


    "You are one who stands at the pinnacle of Emperor Li''s Realm, and you are known as the number one below his majesty, teacher. How could I have refused?" Ye Futian continued, "Furthermore, if I were to refuse, would there be a place in Dali Dynasty then? Would Li Xuan come to be up to no good with me instead?"


    If he were to refuse, none of those top notch figures would have dared to get close to him. If the imperial advisor had not extended his invitation, there would not have been any problems, as he could have simply took other paths.


    "You are indeed practical. So, that is to say that you don''t actually want all that much to study under me then? You would have straight up challenged Di Hao otherwise." It was apparent that the imperial advisor knew that he had defeated Di Hao.


    "Di Hao was powerful, comprehensively speaking, but his way of the sword might not have been more powerful than Jian Wu. I have already defeated Jian Wu, so I saw no reason to fight any further. And furthermore, it was like you put it, I haven''t thought of studying under you before. To me, training could be carried out anywhere." Ye Futian was honest with his words. None of what he said right there had been lies.


    "You are indeed prideful." The imperial advisor smiled and said, "You are now a student of mine. What do you wish to learn from me then?"


    Ye Futian looked up with pondering eyes. He was already half a saint at that moment and was indeed one step away from becoming a saint. What he lacked was comprehension of the world and the right state of mind. Powerful figures would have been of little help in teaching him more.


    The only way forward with his training rested on him and him alone.


    "I''d like to read the Literary Collections of the Sword of Dali," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright." the imperial advisor did not hesitate, nodding in agreement to his request and said, "You shall head to the library of Dali Academy together with your elder brother. There are countless books on cultivation in all of Dali, so there is naturally no lack of books on swords. Browse to your heart''s contents. Furthermore, since you''re versed in multiple types of will of the great path, you could learn from the different types of methods stored there, and incorporate them in your way of the sword."


    "I understand." Ye Futian stood and bowed. There should have been many top notch training methods found within the library of Dali Academy.


    "Pay a visit to your elder brothers while you''re on your way to the Dali Academy," the imperial advisor said again.


    "Will do." Ye Futian nodded again. The imperial advisor was the chief of Dali Academy, so it was only natural for his students to all be studying in Dali Academy.


    Furthermore, all of them had been from Dali Academy to begin with, with only Ye Futian being the exception.


    That was probably why everyone in Dali thought the imperial advisor would have taken Dong Chen as his student instead.


    "You''re dismissed. Lu Chuan would take you to your quarters." The imperial advisor said nothing else.


    "Yes, teacher." Lu Chuan and Ye Futian left together. Lu Chuan arranged for a place for Ye Futian to stay in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, which was in a quiet tower.


    "Brother." Lu Chuan took out a storage ring and handed it to Ye Futian.


    "What is this?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Some fragments of the ways of the sword, covering all attributes. While they might not be much, but you''d be able to train for quite some time with them to further your sword training," Lu Chuan smiled and said.


    "I can''t take this," Ye Futian said.


    "This is a gift from teacher," Lu Chuan said. Ye Futian only stopped refusing and took it over.


    "Rest earlier today. We''d had to Dali Academy tomorrow. Despite being a student of the teacher here in Imperial Advisor''s Residence, there is no need for you to attend to anything special. So you could just train here in peace and try to break into Saint Plane as soon as possible," Lu Chuan said with a smile.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded and said, "Thank you, senior."


    "This is nothing." Lu Chuan then added, "A younger brother used to live here and there are some things of his still around. No need to mind them."


    "Why would you let me stay here then?" Ye Futian able to somehow speculate something was going on, so he asked.


    "He died in battle." Lu Chuan sighed.


    Ye Futian was able to feel Lu Chuan''s dejection and said, "I''m sorry."


    "He had not joined us for long and should have had a bright future ahead of him." Lu Chuan shook his head and left, "We''ll get the score settled at a later date."


    He left after he was done talking.


    Ye Futian did not know what to think. Yuan Jin died by his hands after all.


    At that moment, he was arranged to stay in a place that Yuan Jin used to stay in.


    "The imperial advisor and Lu Chuan." Ye Futian mumbled to himself. The imperial advisor agreed to the notion of the great path knowing no boundaries. He was still unable to fathom why, but he deemed that he would have understood given time.


    He sat cross-legged before the tower and closed his eyes to train, finding his mind in turmoil.


    He had used extremely little time to get to the heart of Dali and even get in contact with Li Yao directly. If he were to have no sense of preservation, he could have killed Li Yao right there and then.


    With his current identity, it became convenient for him to get in contact with Li Yao directly. Killing him became very easy. The problem however, was how to escape in one piece after he was done.


    Ye Futian spent the day thinking, finding himself unable to quiet down.


    Dali Imperial City was just as restless as he was. The case with the imperial advisor taking in a student and the battle between the Seventh Swordsman and Di Hao became the talk of the town.


    There was simply no one who had not heard of the Seventh Swordsman by then.


    Lu Chuan returned to the imperial advisor and he was seen sitting on the floor, training. The imperial advisor asked after seeing Lu Chuan show up, "What is the problem, Lu Chuan?"


    "Teacher, the battle between little brother and Di Hao was a showcase of his immense combat capacity. Even I had gotten surprised," Lu Chuan said.


    "What are you getting at?" The imperial advisor asked.


    "Is there a need to check things out in the Lower Worlds, teacher?" Lu Chuan asked.


    "There is no need for that." The imperial advisor then said, "Remember, Lu Chuan. When I chose to make him a student of mine, he then became your little brother in training. Be it his past or future, there is no need to be bothered about it."


    "I understand." Lu Chuan bowed and left, putting the matter aside.


    Even if he were to venture down to the Lower Worlds, he would not have been able to find out anything. There was simply no way to investigate a person that just appeared out of nowhere, as there were no leads to trace.


    The imperial advisor looked up at the sky after Lu Chuan left. The stars were all over the night sky. His eyes were incredibly deep, as if he was able to pierce through the void above and see how the stars move.


    In Emperor Xia''s Palace, after Xia Qingyuan knew that Ye Futian was taken into the Imperial Advisor''s Residence to study under the imperial advisor, the sacred beat gave the Black Wind Condor another round of beating.


    The Black Wind Condor was in tears, swearing that it would not be called a qualified bird if it were to not get back to the one who gave it a good beating.

 1121 The Imperial Advisors Studen

    Ye Futian had been away from Emperor Xia''s Realm for quite a while. A lot had happened since, but Ye Futian, was without a doubt, nowhere to be seen.


    In a compound found within the Xiao clan''s manor in Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xiao Sheng was coming to meet his father, Xiao Qianhe. Xiao Sheng had been forbidden from stepping foot into Emperor Xia''s Palace since the end of the Battle of Empty Realm. This essentially meant that he was completely cut off from the center of power of Emperor Xia''s Realm for good. His status with the Xiao clan had plunged since then, as he was no longer nurtured to be the next leader of the clan.


    Xiao Sheng experienced every bit of that difference in how his clansman treated him, but he dedicated his efforts even more into his training to try to break through the obstacles posed by the planes. He would finally break into Saint Plane to prove his worth to those of the Xiao clan. He planned to venture out on a pilgrimage as soon as he stepped into Saint Plane. However, despite having become half a saint by then, he was still unable to communicate with the great path of the world and become a saint.


    He came to Xiao Qinhe, his father''s place on that day. "Father," Xiao Sheng bowed and called out.


    Xiao Qianhe looked up at Xiao Sheng and sighed deep down. Xiao Sheng was the most gifted among his children.


    "Why haven''t you gone to train in isolation?" Xiao Qianhe asked.


    "I heard that the people of the Divine Cloud Valley are here. Are they here for the matter with Gongsun Ni?" Xiao Sheng asked.


    Xiao Qianhe took a look at him and nodded. "The incident you kicked up was the talk of the town, and given how you''ve been mesmerized by a woman into doing what you were doing, the people of Divine Cloud Valley considered it best to avoid the matter between you and Gongsun Ni."


    Xiao Sheng said nothing. He did not show any signs of hatred or anger on his face. He had long expected that things would have ended up as such. Both parties had thoughts about a marriage alliance, and they had discussed it before. But how things were at the moment, there was simply no way the Divine Cloud Valley would allow Gongsun Ni to marry him.


    "A lot has been going on in Emperor Xia''s Realm as of late, but Ye Futian is nowhere to be found. It''s been said that even when the Divine Cloud Valley was crafting implements for the people of the Nine States, Ye Futian still didn''t show up. Many claimed that he was training in isolation to break into Saint Plane. I wonder if Ye Futian has been training in the Golden Hall of the Lotus in the royal palace all this while," Xiao Sheng said.


    Ye Futian was allowed free access to Emperor Xia''s Palace to train. He was even permitted to enter the Golden Hall of the Lotus, and that had been a compromise Xiao Sheng''s aunt��Queen Xiao��made for his sake. Xiao Sheng, on the other hand, was practically in a ditch at the moment. The difference between the two men was very apparent.


    "Maybe," Xiao Qinahe answered.


    "Why would the princess summoned Ye Futian''s demonic beast into the royal palace then? I have heard that the beast never left the royal palace since then. Is the beast training in the Golden Hall of the Lotus, just like Ye Futian?" Xiao Sheng asked.


    Xiao Qianhe turned to look at his son as Xiao Sheng spoke. It seemed that even while he was training, Xiao Sheng paid close attention to Ye Futian''s whereabouts, so much so that he had also paid attention to his demonic beast.


    Some enmity you have there; indeed, Xiao Qianhe thought.


    "What are you getting at?" Xiao Qianhe asked.


    "Ye Futian demonstrated his ability to enthrall demonic beasts in the Battle of Empty Realm. He was even able to control them remotely and did not need to be by their side. That Black Wind Condor steed of his was even able to receive his commands from far away. Father, I''m wondering if that beast is training in the Golden Hall of the Lotus or if it simply is still in the Princess'' residence," Xiao Sheng said.


    "Seems you''ve come to your conclusions. But even if the bird is indeed at the Princess'' place, what do you think that means? That Ye Futian is there as well?" Xiao Qianhe then continued, "Even if Xia Qingyuan has indeed let him stay at her place, it''s still none of your business, given how even His Majesty is not bothered." His voice turned slightly serious. Despite feeling displeased with what had taken place, the incident was a lesson. Some matters were better left alone, regardless of how annoyed he was about them. Despite being her uncle, it was not Xiao Qianhe''s place to butt into the Princess'' business.


    "No..." Xiao Sheng shook his head. "You should know well about the Princess'' personality, father. He might not be at her place. If the Princess kept the bird at her place, it would naturally be for communication. That leads to the speculation if Ye Futian is even in the royal palace. Hell, for we all know, he might not even be in Emperor Xia''s Realm at the moment."


    Xiao Qianhe stared at Xiao Sheng. There was no doubt that vengeance would have served as good motivation at times. Due to harboring intense enmity towards Ye Futian, Xiao Sheng had been paying close attention to Ye Futian''s whereabouts, and he came to an extremely accurate conclusion.


    "What are you saying then?" Xiao Qinahe asked while looking at his son.


    "Even if Ye Futian is absent, there is still no need for the Princess to keep his demonic beast. There is one other reason to be concerned." Xiao Sheng''s expression became sharp. "Ye Futian is now somewhere very dangerous, and that is why the Princess needs to monitor him at all times. Father, where do you think he ended up?"


    "You''d better keep the lesson from what happened last time," Xiao Qinahe warned him. He felt that his son was about to do something perilous.


    "Rest assured, father. I''ve naturally learned my lesson." Xiao Sheng nodded and said, "I''ll head back, father." He excused himself and left. Xiao Qianhe stared at his back as he went. The old man was thinking, Where is Ye Futian?


    Xiao Sheng''s expression looked unusually cold when he turned around. Some speculations could have been easily verified. Despite being gone for quite a while, there were still quite a number of the people from the Nine States staying around.


    Xiao Sheng wanted to know if Ye Futian was still in Emperor Xia''s Realm. If he was not, then when would he return?


    ...


    Ye Futian came to Dali Academy once again, with Lu Chuan by his side. Many surrounded them when he stepped into the Dali Academy. The battle between the Seventh Swordsman and Di Hao proved that he was the number one below Saint Plane in all of Dali Dynasty and that he was stronger than Dong Chen. That, coupled with the fact that he became a student of the imperial advisor, naturally earned him a lot of attention.


    Many whispered among themselves when he walked inside the Dali Academy. Ye Futian paid no heed to those voices and followed Lu Chuan to a place of training.


    There were already several people waiting for them. It was evident that they knew Ye Futian was coming. The oldest student of the imperial advisor, Yan Yuan, was there. Other than Yan Yuan, three others emanated extraordinary bearing.


    "Greetings, elder brothers," Ye Futian called. He knew that those men were the students of the imperial advisor.


    "I suppose you know our eldest brother here. The one at the side is our second brother, Nan Zhai. Third brother, Mu Chunyang. Fourth brother, Wang Zhong," Lu Chuan introduced them one by one to Ye Futian. Lu Chuan was the fifth, and Yuan Jin was the youngest, but at that moment, it was Ye Futian.


    "Our little brother here is indeed handsome. I''m sure girls will like you very much," Nan Zhai, their second brother, smiled and said. What Ye Futian found peculiar was that Nan Zhai was different from the other students of the imperial advisor. He was of very advanced age and sported silver hair and a beard, looking even older than the imperial advisor himself. His eyes were not large, and they turned to slits when he smiled, looking very amicable.


    In comparison, their third brother, Mu Chunyang, emanated a far sharper aura. He had shoulder-length black hair and wore black clothing. He wore a curved blade on his back, making it apparent that he was a blade wielder.


    Their fourth brother, Wang Zhong, looked extremely sharp in the eyes, which shimmered with golden light. He seemed very young, almost the same age as Ye Futian, but his real age was not so. Wang Zhong was a Saint of True Self at the second level of Saint Plane.


    In truth, Lu Chuan had introduced him to them before they came. All five personal students of the imperial advisor were very powerful. Their eldest brother, Yan Yuan, and their third brother, Mu Chunyang, were both Unblemished Saints at the third level of Saint Plane. Nan Zhai, who was the second brother, was inferior to the third in terms of plane level, as he was only a Saint of True Self. However, since he became the student of the imperial advisor at an earlier date, he became the second. Wang Zhong and Nan Zhai were of the same plane, that of Saint of True Self. Lu Chuan was at the first level of Saint Plane, that of the Doctrine Saint. He was already at the pinnacle and would break into True Self at any given moment.


    With Yuan Jin dead, the imperial advisor came only to have five students left. Even Lu Chuan, who was the weakest among them, had been someone whose name was the talk of Dali Dynasty ten years ago. One could have only imagined how prestigious being students of the imperial advisor were. It was due to such prestige that Di Hao wanted to study under the imperial advisor. After the imperial advisor chose Ye Futian instead, all of Dali Imperial City was shaken.


    "Brothers, I seek only the way of the sword and have little interests in affairs with girls," Ye Futian replied. It was rumored that Nan Zhai was of average talent, but he had a good state of mind. Despite being surpassed by Mu Chunyang, who had joined at a far later date than he. The incident became the talk of many. He remained unfettered and did not take it to heart. He was then one plane below his younger brother, Mu Chunyang.


    "It is good that you devote yourself to your seeking of the path, unlike your senior here, who gets distracted all the time and is now even surpassed by your third brother. Both you and Lu Chuan better not get too far with your training just yet. Remember to wait until your second brother here makes a breakthrough," Nan Zhai smiled and said. Ye Futian felt somewhat speechless at his words. Was this how a big brother should behave?


    "Don''t listen to his crap. If you run into any problem with your training in the future, seek out our teacher. If that doesn''t prove possible, you could ask second brother here," Mu Chunyang said.


    "It would seem like the third brother still has a lot of trust in me still," Nan Zhai nodded and quipped.


    "You may not have much talent when it comes to training, but you are still an expert on empty talk, after all," Mu Chunyang replied.


    "Cough, cough..." Nan Zhai blushed and glared at Mu Chunyang. "Leave some face for your elder brother, will you?"


    "I should go." Wang Zhong excused himself and left on his own. Ye Futian took one look at him, and Nan Zhai said, "That''s fourth brother for you. Don''t mind him."


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. He had always felt saints to be on pedestals when he was still at lower planes as if they were unreachable beings. However, when his plane level had gotten close, he quickly found out that other than being of different states of mind due to being on higher planes, there was not that much of a difference when it came to daily interactions. Saints and sages were but plane levels. They were still people.


    "Seventh Swordsman," Yan Yuan said, "if you run into any problems in training and you need answers, come to second brother. If you''d like to temper your body with the power of the saint, come to the third brother. Should you have any problems with mundane matters, feel free to look for Lu Chuan. If none of them can help solve your problem, come to me."


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded. Regardless of how exceptional and legendary Lu Chuan was, he was still the youngest among his fellow students. It reminded Ye Futian of the Cottage. Regardless of how exceptionally talented he was, he was the youngest brother. While his elder brothers and sisters cared for him a lot, they still liked to tease him when nothing was going on nonetheless. He had never expected to find a sense of familiarity in Dali. He did not know what to think of it.


    "Thank you, brother, for helping me get out of the mess outside of the Dali Academy that day," Ye Futian said. He was naturally referring to the matter with Li Xuan. Yan Yuan seemed neutral back then, but he was actually leaning against Li Xuan to have him make compromises when Yan Yuan offered to help.


    "Li Xuan had ulterior motives, and I wasn''t doing that for you. If he continues to harass you in the future, there will be no need for you to go easy on him. Just be mindful not to kill him," Yan Yuan said plainly.


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded and left, heading towards the library of the Dali Academy.

 1122 Mr. Nan Zhai

    The library of Dali Academy was one of the wealthiest places in all of Dali Dynasty in terms of the variety of books available. One could even say that if there was something more precious other than the palace of Dali Imperial City, it was the books stored in the library of Dali Academy.


    Dali Dynasty was a royal force, and many of the most powerful books and records regarding the most powerful cultivation methods available were all found within the palace. Dali Academy earned the support of Emperor Li back then when the place was established all those years ago. As such, many of the books found within the library were copied from the ones in Emperor Li''s Palace. As the place had gotten increasingly established, the library of the Dali Academy had become something like a holy land among holy lands. Powerful books on cultivation were available in untold numbers to the students of Dali Academy for furthering their training.


    But then again, all students of Dali Academy couldn''t have access to all of the books found within the library. Every single cultivator found in Dali Academy had a different level of clearance, and the forum event held every year at Dali Academy held the key to such clearance. However, Ye Futian skipped all of that and gained the highest level of clearance due to being a personal student of the imperial advisor. This allowed him access to any cultivation method found within the library.


    If the imperial advisor was to be said to be the supreme figure under Emperor Li in Emperor Li''s City, then the statuses of the imperial advisor''s personal students were about just below that of the princes and princesses. Even the descendants of the fourth prince dared not claim they had higher prestige than the students of the imperial advisor unless there were some exceptional figures on par with the students.


    Li Xuan was a descendant of the prince regent, one of those from the third generation of the Prince Regent''s Residence. If he were to be compared with Lu Chuan or any of the imperial advisor''s students, no one would have taken Li Xuan''s status to be on par with that of Lu Chuan and the others. Many were descended from the princes, yet there were only six students who studied directly under the imperial advisor.


    Due to the need for separating the level of clearance between the students, the library of the Dali Academy was divided into 18 floors, and the building looked magnificent. When Ye Futian came to the library, there were many students of the Dali Academy found there, who were either found browsing the books on the racks or flipping through them on the benches.


    "Seventh Swordsman." Someone quickly took notice of Ye Futian. More and more people lifted their heads to look at him with sparkling eyes. The Seventh Swordsman was then the number one below Saint Plane in Dali Imperial City.


    "Seventh Swordsman, how powerful was Di Hao?" a beautiful female student asked with a smile. Ye Futian glanced at her and walked away without replying.


    The place was in an uproar right there and then. Many whispered and mumbled among themselves, finding him to be just as flippant and arrogant as he was rumored to be. However, none of them felt that there was anything wrong with him. He was the number one below Saint Plane in Dali Dynasty after all, so it was only natural that he had the right to be arrogant. That was the Seventh Swordsman they knew.


    "Aloof, indeed." The woman who was ignored smiled and did not take his response to heart, thinking that he was extremely handsome and that his eyes seemed to be able to enchant people. He was indeed one of a kind among geniuses.


    Ye Futian went directly to some of the upper floors in the library, browsing through a good number of books on swordsmanship and then some other methods of training as well. The very reason why he chose to come to the library first was so that he was able to train in more powers, which he would then incorporate within his way of the sword, developing sword arts that were uniquely his. Furthermore, even if he were to use some other powers in future battles, nobody would have found anything off with him. Other than that, he was indeed genuinely interested in furthering his training to improve his powers and to comprehend the great path better. He was already capable of moving towards sainthood at present, after all.


    "God-slayer Sword. Sword Sutra of the Void." Ye Futian found several books on swordsmanship and flipped through them. All of them were sword arts that allowed the user to attack spiritual will directly. Among the techniques found within the God-slayer Sword was the God-slayer Sword Matrix.


    Ye Futian thought that might have been something that he had experienced quite a while ago. The nine mighty ones that Li Yao sent to participate in the Sacred War all those years ago used that sword techniques, which allowed them to kill gods.


    He flipped through several other books on footwork, which he found useful for disguising the Footwork of Xuanyuan. Some of the methods found in the upper floors of the library were hardly any weaker than those found in the Golden Hall of the Lotus in Emperor Xia''s Palace. Due to having the highest level of clearance, he was able to browse the most powerful methods of training available in the library.


    Ye Futian spent days training in the library. When he came to develop some realization, he went on to sit in a corner and develop them further. While it was impossible for him to unleash any powers in the library itself, he was nonetheless able to simulate them in his Life Palace.


    Ye Futian walked out of the library after training for many days. Many of the students were astonished to find that the Seventh Swordsman was indeed a maniac of the sword, who was after nothing but furthering his path and his art in swordsmanship further. However, to Ye Futian, since he was already peerless below the saints at his current state, and he was also a student of the imperial advisor, there was indeed little that he sought after.


    Ye Futian looked for information on Nan Zhai''s training ground as soon as he left the library, and came to the second brother. Yan Yuan once said that if he needed answers on furthering his path, he would look for Nan Zhai. Nan Zhai was painting and looking carefree and peaceful when Ye Futian came where he was.


    "I heard that you are of supreme state of mind. You indeed look carefree and unbridled," Ye Futian mumbled to himself deep down, getting ready to evaluate Nan Zhai''s artwork. However, when he did come look at the painting that Nan Zhai was working on, he felt as if he went to the wrong person. The strokes were unruly and in a total mess, without any rules or traditions that one was able to find in most artwork. He was unable to tell what Nan Zhai was painting.


    "What do you think of my work, little brother?" Nan Zhai asked.


    "Good," Ye Futian said.


    "How so?" Nan Zhai smiled and looked at Ye Futian.


    "Good in the sense that I''m unable to see anything from it," Ye Futian replied earnestly.


    "..." Nan Zhai was dumbfounded but then smiled and nodded. "You speak truthfully." He then put his brush down and looked at Ye Futian, asking, "I''ve heard that you''ve been spending days training in the library. What brings you here today?"


    "Brother, I''ve come to comprehend multiple wills of the great path in my training, enabling me to merge them to become my own and turn them into my attacks, but I''m still unable to get to Saint Plane. I even think that Saint Plane seems to be very far away from me, and I''m unable to find the way in." Ye Futian continued, "I''m here to ask for your guidance. Sainthood is flawless. What does ''flawless'' mean in this case?"


    "My brother," Nan Zhai then looked at Ye Futian and said with a solemn tone, "you have comprehended many wills of the great path, and you are peerless below the saints. Why do you need to be in a hurry to reach sainthood? Seeking the path is tiring, and there are countless in the Dali Academy that talk about you. I''m sure that there are many very, very beautiful girls among the students who have taken a liking to you. If you''re willing to talk to them about life, it would be wondrous. Don''t you think?"


    "..." Ye Futian felt that he came to the wrong person. Was this really that Nan Zhai, that second student of the imperial advisor, who was said to have a transcendental state of mind?


    "Guess I''ll just head to the library, then." Ye Futian turned around and was about to leave.


    "Gosh, what a waste of those good looks." Nan Zhai shook his head sighing, then asked, "So what do you think ''flawless'' means?"


    "One has who has no regrets in their mind and who is devoted to seeking the path?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Saints notwithstanding, not even the Renhuang, could claim that they have no regrets." Nan Zhai said, "What ''flawless'' illustrates is a state of mind. It doesn''t speak of being devoid of regrets, but rising above them."


    "Please enlighten me, brother." Ye Futian came to seek guidance earnestly.


    "There is no such thing as a truly perfect state of mind. Be it at doctrine, true self, or unblemished states. None could truly achieve absolute perfection." Nan Zhai then elaborated, "I don''t agree to how such states of mind are said to be ''flawless.'' I think that the state of mind of saints should be illustrated as ''transcendental'' instead."


    "What do you mean?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Have you heard of the expression of ''the mind of a person is measured in square inches''?" Nan Zhai asked.


    "I have." Ye Futian nodded.


    "That is the size of a person. There is only so much a place measured in square inches can hold. Although you have comprehended many wills of the great path and use your development for attacks in battle, you''re still trapped within that piece of space measured in square inches, and that is why you cannot become a saint." Nan Zhai then continued, "That applies to everyone. The Saint Plane is a plane that requires all-around elevation.


    "As for transcendence, there are two types to it. One being of deep-rooted persistence, breaking through that space measured in square inches through sheer brute force and meld with the great path. Even if these people could achieve transcendence and become saints, every step they would have taken in the future would be hampered by their states of mind, making it difficult for them to get far on their path of sainthood. An overwhelming majority of such saints would have hit a dead-end��their very limit��when they reach the state of true self, never able to move further forever. But then again, if some saints are indeed able to step even further, they would become terrifying beings indeed."


    Nan Zhai''s words caused Ye Futian to twitch. For some reason, that reminded him of one person��the Glass Saint. Her deep-rooted hatred and obsession allowed her to break through that space measured in square inches.


    "Even if they were to get to the unblemished stage, such states would still actually be flawed. As such, I believe much more in the other kind of transcendence." Nan Zhai continued, "It is a kind of transcendence that I find difficult to place with words."


    "For instance, you seek the way of the sword. If there shall be a day when you find that you could do with the way of the sword, you would still be practicing the way of the sword, even if you were never to use a sword again, and that would be transcendence."


    "Or for instance, there is someone who keeps pursuing one thing, but one day, they just found that that they became able to put that one thing down, let go, and move on to encompass all. That, too, is transcendence.


    "Or, yet, another example. Someone who spent their life seeking the way, was then met with a life and death situation, but found that they became able to let go of everything and see their situation in a tranquil manner. Their state of mind transcended the state of life and death. That, yet again, would be transcendence.


    "This is my take on the matter of transcendence. Everyone has their unique experience with it, but you are in a transcendental state of mind. You will then be able to break through that space measured in square inches, melding your mind with the great path, and achieved the towering, heavenly state of mind. The heavenly path shall then take notice and rain the catastrophe of the great path upon you," Nan Zhai elaborated slowly.


    Ye Futian felt insightful and enlightened. He was able to recall several people from Nan Zhai''s elaborations. The number one below saints in Lihen Heaven, the Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane��Wang Chuan. He lost to Ye Futian at the 33rd Layer of Heaven in Lihen Heaven on that day. He struggled against his loss in pain but then chose to let go. He then transcended and merged with the great path. He transcended his ego at that moment.


    His teacher��Douzhan��fought a life-and-death battle in the Holy Zhi Palace in the Nine States all those years ago. Huang Xi borrowed the will of Renhuang in the imperial mausoleum to fight. Both of them put their lives aside and transcended everything, enabling them to achieve sainthood. As Nan Zhai put it, such transcendence was the true state of mind of saints. A space measured in square inches would not have been able to meld with the world.


    "Thank you for your guidance, brother." Ye Futian bowed. That conversation made him realize that the second student of the imperial advisor��Nan Zhai��was the real deal.


    "Well, we''re a family, so no need to be polite about it. As such, don''t fuss yourself over too much with seeking the way. Put it aside for a change and to talk to a girl about life. You might be able to achieve that required opened state of mind and be on your way to sainthood," Nan Zhai narrowed his eyes to a slit smiling and said.


    "..." Ye Futian became utterly speechless, then said, "I''ll look for the third brother next then." He left as soon as he finished.

 1123 Gifting Methods of Training

    The third student of the imperial advisor, Mu Chunyang, had a totally different personality with Nan Zhai. His shoulder-length hair had a clean, clear-cut image.


    He was training with his eyes closed with Ye Futian came. Ye Futian stood at the side and waited quietly instead of bothering him.


    Mu Chunyang, was a Unblemished Saint at the third level of Saint Plane. With extremely rare handful of Holiness of Nirvana, they were at the pinnacle of the top notch figures to be found in the dynasty.


    Even Nan Zhai was of an inferior state than him.


    Mu Chunyang opened his eyes a short while later and said to Ye Futian, "Little brother."


    "Third brother, I''ve just came from second brother''s place and I''ve asked him something about sainthood. I''m here to experience the will of the great path," Ye Futian said. It was something Yan Yuan told him before. The eldest brother definitely had his reasons to put it that way.


    He was naturally able to tell that the eldest student of the imperial advisor, Yan Yuan, was of extremely high prestige, right below their teacher.


    "Yeah." Mu Chunyang nodded. "Your second brother is indeed more carefree. But actually, he proves more than adequate to teach you and to have you experience the great path."


    "Is second brother really just a Saint of True Self?" Ye Futian asked.


    Nan Zhai felt to be carefree and unbridled, so his state of mind must have been in excellent condition. One''s state of mind was of utmost importance when training in Saint Plane. Nan Zhai should have had very high upper limit instead. Is he really just trapped by his lacking talents, preventing his plane from reaching higher heights?


    "He really is indeed a Saint of True Self. While teacher said that second brother is rather slow in training and somewhat lacking in talents, but he had the best temperament among us all. If there were to actually be one who became enlightened in just a day, that would have been second brother. Perhaps, he might end up being faster in making breakthroughs than any of us. Even I have to ask him for guidance many times after all," Mu Chunyang said. Despite being of higher plane than Nan Zhai, but he was apparently very respectful of the second brother nonetheless.


    "Is that so?" Ye Futian felt rather puzzled. At the very least, his current vista did not allow him to see that far.


    He was there at Dali Imperial City for two reasons: revenge and training on pilgrimage. The trip would have benefited him a lot, even if he did not end up being able to kill Li Yao.


    However, that short amount of time Ye Futian spent with the imperial advisor had surprisingly diminished his enmity against the older man.


    The imperial advisor that he knew back in Emperor Xia''s Realm and the one he came to know at present were different. That was not to say that the imperial advisor had changed, but that he was able to look from a different perspective due to being of different identity.


    "If you want to experience the will of the great path, I''d like to know if you''re ready now?" Mu Chunyang asked.


    Ye Futian''s expression had gotten somewhat more serious and then nodded. "I''m ready."


    Mu Chunyang''s expression changed entirely, looking extremely sharp. At the very next moment, Ye Futian felt as if everything around him changed and the world was no longer the same. The will of the blade shrouded their surroundings and he felt as if he became surrounded by curved blades.


    His robe billowed and felt he was about to suffocate. The will of the blade rained down on him directly. The next thing he felt was as if extremely sharp blades around him were coming down him, streaking down on the heavens and landed right before him.


    His breathing stopped and was unable to breathe. The will of the blade had gotten increasingly strong and his entire world seemed to have been turned into the world of the blade. Formless blades bloomed before him and lashed out on him in a frenzy. Heavenly might rained down through the vast region of blades. Ye Futian felt himself to be insignificant, as if he was but a chestnut floating at sea.


    However, Mu Chunyang never budged throughout the entire time. He simply sat where he was.


    At that moment, he lifted his hand forward. Ye Futian was able to sense clearly in that split second that the region of blades'' will was held by him in that very moment. He took control of that supreme power in that space simply by extending his hand.


    "When one becomes a saint, their mind merges with that of the cosmos. The path is the nature and the person becomes the path, reigning over the heavens and the earth." Mu Chunyang''s voice was heard. He flicked lightly with his finger, sending boundless will of the blade sweeping by Ye Futian like devastating storms. However, all of that dissipated within mere moments, as if nothing had been there in the first place.


    Huuu... Ye Futian exhaled for quite some time, feeling refreshed. He had been in hell for one moment and in heaven the next.


    The Saint Plane was one of transcendence. The mind, which had been one measured merely in square inches, became towering, encompassing the entire world, mastering the way of the cosmos.


    "Thank you, brother," Ye Futian said. Mu Chunyang''s blade will felt exceptionally strong to him and the impact was very direct.


    "Yeah." Mu Chunyang nodded. "But then again, sages becoming saints are something that would naturally happen. It isn''t something that happens overnight, and not something that comes just because one is extra hardworking at it. It''d be best that you place higher emphasis in how you develop your comprehension. You''re now half a saint, and pure training is of little help by now."


    Ye Futian nodded. That was how cultivation was. One might have experienced it, one might have seen it, one might have even been able to wrap their head around it, but one still might not have been able to achieve it.


    That was how mystical planes were.


    There would not have been countless who were stuck below saint levels, not being able to pass into the next phase otherwise.


    Ye Futian was able to comprehend multiple wills of the great path, which was a testament of his uncanny talents at cultivation. It was worth noting that he had never ran into much obstacles at such stages, but countless in the Nine States were shut out altogether by those stages.


    "I should take my leave, brother. I would come here to comprehend further in the future," Ye Futian said.


    "You''re welcomed here any time." Mu Chunyang nodded and Ye Futian left.


    Since he had became a student of the imperial advisor of Dali, he would have gone with the flow and trained in silence, making his way to achieve sainthood. As for killing Li Yao, timing was of the utmost importance, as the prince was not someone he could have killed just because he wanted to.


    If he were to continue training under the imperial advisor, the chance would have presented itself sooner or later.


    At that moment, Li Yao showed up at Dali Academy.


    Ye Futian ran into Li Yao when he was returning to the library of the Dali Academy.


    "Seventh Swordsman," Li Yao called.


    "What business do you have with me, your highness?" Ye Futian walked up to him and asked. His tone was unusually calm despite his enemy being right in front of him, without any signs of emotional fluctuations showing.


    "Right." Li Yao smiled and nodded. "You remember the Sword of Kasyapa?"


    "Naturally," Ye Futian said. Both the Seven Sins and Di Hao used the Sword of Kasyapa, and it was indeed formidable.


    "King Tiandao''s people sent the sword techniques to the palace and I specifically had it copied, ready to be stored at the highest level of the library. Well, you''re versed in the arts of space and you could train in the Sword of Kasyapa''s techniques. That should do a lot in strengthening and completing your way of the sword," Li Yao smiled and said.


    Emperor Li ruled over everything in Dali Dynasty. King Tiandao was an elder brother of Emperor Li himself. King Tiandao had acquired the supposedly lost art of the Sword of Kasyapa, and both Di Hao and the Seven Sins had used them in public. As such, it was natural that King Tiandao sent a copy to the Emperor Li''s Palace.


    However, Li Yao brought it to the Dali Academy shortly after. One could have only imagined how would King Tiandao have felt about it.


    But then again, King Tiandao''s reactions were rather predictable. The people of Daoli Mountain were irritated specifically because Dali Academy had too much access to cultivation resources of Dali Dynasty.


    As for Li Yao, he was originally a student of the imperial advisor in name. Yuan Jin died in battle for his sake in the Battle of Empty Realm as well. Under such circumstances, he naturally would have chosen to get closer with the imperial advisor''s people.


    He had maintained a very amicable relationship with Yuan Jin. With Ye Futian being the newest student and of the same generation as he was, he saw fit to get on Ye Futian''s good side and become friends with the newcomer.


    "Thank you for your effort, your highness," Ye Futian said.


    "Well, let''s head first to the arena instead of the library. We''ll have you take a look at the Sword of Kasyapa first." Li Yao took Ye Futian''s arm and led him forward, as if they were really close friends and he did not seem to care that he was a prince in the first place.


    Ye Futian took one look at the arm and went along with Li Yao. If it had not been for what Li Yao did and that Ye Futian was the Seventh Swordsman, the Seventh Swordsman might have actually became friends with the prince.


    However, some things were predestined. He and Li Yao were irreconcilable enemies, and only one of them would have came out alive if they were to clash.


    Li Yao''s intention to kill him was not any less intense than his towards Li Yao.


    Ye Futian sat on the ground cross-legged at the area, circled by sword wills all around him.


    The Sword of Kasyapa was particular about controlling sword will with one''s will, materializing said will into tangible forms and fusing will of great path into it, enabling one''s will to be able to wield the manifested blade perfectly.


    Ye Futian possessed the perfect requirements for training in the Sword of Kasyapa and he was a swordsman himself. It did not take him long after comprehending the sword techniques, that the sword will around him coalesced in a frenzy, turning into dazzling, leaf-shaped sword, which rang as it pulsed with formidable will of great path of space.


    "Go." Ye Futian extended his hand and swiped. His will activated and the Sword of Kasyapa streaked through the air. The will of his entire being flew with the blade, maintaining tight control on the blade''s movements.


    "This is something," Li Yao exclaimed, feeling impressed. That Sword of Kasyapa that streaked through the air circled around him, ringing at deafening high pitches.


    At that moment, a beam of cold light flashed by and the space seemed to have been torn apart and a sword burst through the air.


    Li Yao felt his entire being shivering in coldness right there and then.


    Voom.


    The sword appeared right before Li Yao, mere inches away from his throat. It would have taken Ye Futian only one intention to have the sword pierce right through the prince''s throat.


    Li Yao''s expression turned serious. His heart raced at that brief moment. He only let out a bitter smile and shook his head when he saw the blade flew upwards and circled around the space right above him. He was rather baffled by how shaken he was. It was impossible for the Seventh Swordsman to kill him right there and then after all.


    "Your highness, I was just thinking of showcasing how precise my control of the Sword of Kasyapa was to you. I beg your forgiveness," Ye Futian said but his tone hardly sounded apologetic, behaving just as boisterous and unruly as the Seventh Swordsman had been known to be. In that brief moment back then, he had actually really wanted to stuck the blade into Li Yao''s throat and taking his revenge.


    However, he bit down on the urge nonetheless.


    He had molded the wild, unruly image of the Seventh Swordsman specifically for Li Yao, but he had never expected Li Yao to deliberately get close to him and buy him over. It was different from how he planned it, but that hardly mattered.


    If he were to make a move right there and then and kill Li Yao, he would have succeeded easily, but he would have also died a horrible death for it.


    That was apparently not how he wanted things to be.


    "No matter." Li Yao smiled dismissively and said, "That attack is indeed fast, as expected of the Sword of Kasyapa indeed. If it was to be used in battle, one attack would have been enough to cut someone''s throat off. Furthermore, that all comes from the first sword materialized."


    "Your highness, the Sword of Kasyapa requires extremely powerful control to wield. That was just one blade. If there were to be more, control wouldn''t have been so easy, and I doubt control could have been at such precision," Ye Futian replied.


    "Well, I believe you would be able to pull it off somehow with your talents." Li Yao gave his approval.


    Ye Futian spent some more time training after that. When he came to have solid control with the Sword of Kasyapa, he left together with Li Yao.


    One could have only imagined how Li Yao would have felt about things, if he were to found out that he was helping Ye Futian train!

 1124 Mysterious Man

    When Ye Futian was still training in Dali Dynasty, the countless beings went about their lives as usual in the vast, seemingly boundless Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    There was a seemingly endless dessert at the western end of Emperor Xia''s Realm, with one city after another built from dirt in it and there were countless people training in the cities.


    That region was known for being chaotic. There were no top notch forces ruling over the place and as such, many barbaric forces continued to grow by practicing and living in their barbaric ways.


    There was a dirt city at the center of the seemingly endless dessert region, which produced three extremely powerful figures little more than a year ago, who gathered people and ruled over the dirt city.


    Many claimed that all three of them were saints.


    However, the three were unusually low profiled and never appeared in public, making them all the more mysterious.


    Still, there continued to be people who wanted to meet and train with those three mighty ones. Many brought precious gifts when they went to meet them.


    On that day, there was a figure who wore conical hat who came to meet the three in the cave where they trained in.


    A group of people walked under the hot sun in silence. The cultivator with the hat and two other muscled cultivators who bared their upper bodies continued on their way.


    "Do you really have sacred spirit stones to offer with you?" The muscled man asked the young man with the hat.


    "How many lives do you think I have for daring to lie to the revered ones? I''m going on this trip to get myself a teacher," the young man with the hat replied. The other two nodded without asking anything further. They initially intended to offer the stones personally, but the young man with the hat refused, being on guard against them and insisting to offer the stones himself. As such, they had no choice but to bring him along.


    They came before a cave of cultivation which looked like a mountain in dirt-yellow colors on the outside. However, the place was actually totally different on the inside, looking extravagant and was decorated such that the place looked like majestic palaces.


    They walked all the way to the depths of the palace and a regal figure was seen sitting on top of the steps above. There were precious beverages laid before him and he was attended to by voluptuous, alluring women. There were two other figures who sat by his side and they too, enjoyed themselves as well.


    "We heard that you have sacred spirit stones with you, no?" The man at the forefront asked the ones who came.


    The young man took his hat off and nodded, before extending his hand and showing a piece of dazzling sacred spirit stone. It was a surprisingly huge piece and of very high quality.


    The regal figure on the chair locked his gaze at the stone, then stared the smiling young man below and said, "Who are you?"


    The aura on the young man shifted and the expressions of those men changed, looking extremely serious.


    The aura of that young man continued to change, becoming increasingly powerful.


    "It''s been quite an effort to find you saints. It''s rather surprising to find that you still know how to enjoy yourself after coming to the Upper Worlds," the young man said with a smile. The aura that he emanated was that of the saints.


    The figure at the forefront was shaken to the core. The other two at his side stood up. Their aura bursting intensely.


    "Out, all of you." The mighty one who was addressed as a saint by the young man ordered. All the others left the scene while he glared at that young man, asking, "Who the hell are you?"


    "I come in peace, seeking cooperation from you, saint. This piece of sacred spirit stone is a token of my sincerity." The young man offered the stone again and said.


    "You''re rather poor at disguises. So this is how you show that you''re sincere? By disguising who you really are?" It was apparent that he knew that the young man was not showing his real face.


    "I could say the same about you. The human face mask that you''re wearing is just as poorly made," the young man jabbed sarcastically. Terrifyingly powerful aura shrouded the entire cave, and the other stepped forward.


    The young man glanced at the three and the strength of his aura continued to rise. He then said coldly, "Saint Xihua, you''d better think things through, given how I actually dare to show up here in front of you. If you want to do it the hard way, I''d suggest that you think of the consequences."


    The figure at the forefront was none other than the saint lord of Xihua Sacred Mountain, Saint Xihua. There was no need to say much about the identities of the other two.


    After leaving the Nine States back then, all three of them came to train in the Upper Worlds. Ye Futian''s name became known all over the place later, becoming like the sun at high noon. They did not care to linger at the core regions of Emperor Xia''s Realm and so they came to the western edges to train in seclusion, to advance their plane of training further.


    "What are you after?" Saint Xihua no longer asked about the young man''s identity, and had instead inquired his intentions.


    "I''m sure you have never expected Ye Futian to rise to fame that quickly. He is now held in high regard by the princess and even his majesty took a liking to him. Well, it''s not all that to difficult to comprehend why you''re forced to hide your face from the world." The young man continued his sarcastic jab. "But then again, do you think all you do here is of any use, saint? You''re only being kept around by his majesty because he did not bother to lift a finger against you people. But as Ye Futian''s status continue to rise, how long do you think you could continue living like this?"


    Saint Xihua''s face was ashen. He had of course remembered the time when Emperor Xia gathered and talked with them. He had long suspected that he was possibly being watched.


    "You should believe what I said, given how I''m able to locate you after all." The young man continued, "As for my intentions coming here, it''s pretty simple. Both the Sword Saint of the Void and the Glass Saint are now training in the Upper Worlds. The Nine States are left rather powerless. Why don''t you ally with those of the Hall of Holy Light and kill the saints of the Holy Zhi Palace? The sacred war is not over with them around. Even his majesty would have to admit to that."


    "Saint Jiang is at Barren State now and there are still other saints around. Saint Ji was placed under house arrest by Emperor Xia, so there was no way he would have dared step outside. Even without the Sword Saint of the Void and the Glass Saint around, do you think you could actually the Barren State as they are now?" Saint Xihua retorted coldly.


    "Didn''t you see that I''ve brought a piece of sacred spirit stone with me? That should be enough to allow you to recruit saints to help you people out. There are bound to be those who would get moving, when the price is right. Furthermore, all of this are still within the boundaries set by his majesty''s rules, so long as you do not go on a killing spree against those below Saint Plane." The young man continued, "Even if you were to fail, all of you would still be able to escape right away. The stone would still be yours, and you''re free to use it to further your training."


    "Of course, you are free to refuse if you want to, saint. But, Ye Futian would then know of your whereabouts sooner than he should have," the young man said.


    Saint Xihua looked extremely glum at that point. Whether he liked it or not, he had to agree to it.


    "What are you getting from doing all of this?" Saint Xihua asked coldly. He wanted to know of the young man''s identity and his reasons for doing all of that.


    Judging from his powers, is he having a grudge against the people of the Barren State?


    All of that seems to be utterly pointless.


    "I''m not getting much of anything out of this. It''s all just a game to me. Just pretend that you have never met me. I''d need to see results within a month, or get ready to see Ye Futian showing up at your door with his men otherwise. By the way, don''t mention anything about me if anything were to go south. It seems that you''ve sired an offspring after coming to the Upper Worlds, so you''ve seemingly plan things out indeed. If anything were to happen to you, I''d look after your kid in your stead." The young man smiled, before putting on his hat and left.


    It was but truly but a game to him.


    Saint Xihua''s face was all pale as he saw the aura of that young man continued to dissipate. Several shrieks of terror were heard from outside. Saint Xihua knew that there were people who were being silenced.


    Even if he had never even seen the true face of that man, the mysterious young man chose to simply just silence other unrelated ones around regardless, as well as threatening him to never mention anything about seeing him. It was an unnerving level of caution being practiced right there, leaving no tracks behind at all.


    If he were to act against the Barren State, then it would have all been him acting for his own sake. He had a score to settle with the Holy Zhi Palace to begin with after all.


    That was probably what that young man had his eyes on.


    Saint Xihua felt himself shivering all over at that moment. If there were to be someone who dared to pull something like that under the reign of Emperor Xia, then the man who dared to do so would have been of very terrifying background.


    ...


    Xia Qingyuan received news half a month later that Saint Xihua had returned to the Nine States of the Lower Worlds.


    She caught wind in her residence that there were someone who leaked that information, and that her father had sent people to notify him.


    There were things that Emperor Xia found inconvenient to interfere after all.


    "Relay my orders. Summon the ones at the Cottage Villa to the royal palace. We shall head to the Lower Worlds from the royal palace." Xia Qingyuan said. She then rose right away and made for the teleportation grand matrix.


    The battle was already raging when Xia Qingyuan and the others arrived at the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State.


    The battles between saints took place right above the Holy Zhi Palace. Other than Saint Xihua, there was another saint at second level of Saint Plane taking on Saint Jiang.


    The three saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain and two other saints of the Hall of Holy Light were taking on Douzhan and the others.


    Saint Ji of the Hall of Holy Light was placed under house arrest, and the mighty ones of the Hall of Holy Light never dared to step outside ever since. They came to deem that it would have been more advantageous to strike first instead of simply continue to wait around. As such, the saints agreed to Saint Xihua''s proposal.


    Saint Xihua and his men naturally took notice of Xia Qingyuan''s presence. They all felt cold deep down. It was apparent that the princess had picked her side.


    "Princess, are we going to help them out?" Some mighty ones at Xia Qingyuan''s side asked telepathically.


    "They are able to take care of themselves at the moment," Xia Qingyuan replied. When Divine Cloud Valley crafted divine implements for the mighty ones of the Nine States, several really potent ones were sent to the Lower Worlds.


    The Black Wind Condor showed up at Xia Qingyuan''s side at the moment.


    As such, Ye Futian naturally caught wind of the news.


    The Black Wind Condor then turned its eyes at Xia Qingyuan and said, "Could you order your men to act?"


    Xia Qingyuan looked at the bird and knew right away that it was Ye Futian who was talking to him. She had long subjugated the bird, robbing it of the gall to be insolent around her.


    "The rules of the sacred war of the Nine States were laid down by father." Xia Qingyuan looked at the bird, and the huge eyes of the bird continued to stare at her.


    Xia Qingyuan turned her eyes away and said to him telepathically with a cold expression, "If there were to be anyone who was caught in a life and death situation, I shall make an exception. Right now, they could still take care of things themselves."


    "Thank you, princess." The Black Wind Condor answered telepathically.


    Those huge eyes of the bird turned around to glare at Saint Xihua and the others. So this Saint Xihua had actually managed to get another saint down to the Lower Worlds, and help to assault the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State then.


    Seems like Saint Xihua and the Hall of Holy Light would always be disasters waiting to happen if they were to be left unattended to then.


    "When would you be ending your training in Dali?" Xia Qingyuan asked again.


    "No idea." The bird replied and dived forward, intending to join in the fray.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyes flashed with a hint of anger as she saw the Black Wind Condor fly away. That ba**ard.


    She heard last that the imperial advisor of Dali was being very nice to Ye Futian and had not doubted him in the slightest. At the moment, he was getting ready to break into Saint Plane in Dali Imperial City.


    Xia Qingyuan was rather irked deep down hearing all of that.

 1125 Scheme

    Several saints were fighting intensely above the Holy Zhi Palace. The Black Wind Condor descended to the battlefield where Douzhan was. Despite having yet to become a saint, the bird was only but a step away into Saint Plane, so it was still able to help out nonetheless.


    Seeing how the attacks were not getting effective and how Xia Qingyuan appeared right before them, Saint Xihua came to realize something.


    Xia Qingyuan would have probably not given him any chance.


    He came to resent the state of affairs at the moment. Xia Qingyuan was the daughter of Emperor Xia and if even her had already picked a girl, there was no way he would have been able to go against Ye Futian.


    The balance of the sacred war had became skewed. When he chose to bail when he lost the battle back then, they were destined to stay as losers of the war.


    He had initially intended to just continue to train while staying hidden. But given how there were others who insisted on forcing him to act, he saw no choice but to comply.


    "If the princess is already here, then Yaya and the Glass Saint wouldn''t be far behind." Saint Xihua mumbled to himself and then said, "Retreat."


    He flashed and retreated right away. All the others retreated from the battlefield one after another, distancing themselves from the ones they were attacking. Saint Jiang and the others from the Holy Zhi Palace did not pursue to assailants, as their current lineup was not really all that powerful.


    "Let''s go." Saint Xihua and the others left right away.


    The Black Wind Condor''s eyes were cold and pointed, flashing with a hint of puzzlement as it saw the figures leaving.


    They''re going to leave just like that?


    Is it because of Xia Qingyuan?


    It seemed that Saint Xihua was not hell bent on getting his revenge and appeared rather cowardly.


    In actual fact, Saint Xihua never wanted revenge, but there was someone who forced him to act. Although he had no idea what the other party was trying to do, but he did what he promised to do. With Xia Qingyuan showing up personally, he simply bailed right away, as he deemed it enough to fulfill his promise.


    The Black Wind Condor''s cold eyes swept around the battlefield. There were quite a number of people injured. However, to saints, injuries would have been inconsequential so long as they were not grievous.


    The bird flapped and came to Xia Qingyuan''s side, saying to her telepathically, "Princess, do you mind doing me a favor?"


    "You want to know the whereabouts of Saint Xihua and the others?" Xia Qingyuan replied telepathically. She naturally knew what Ye Futian was up to.


    The bird nodded.


    "Father was sending men to look into it. What you''re doing now is asking me to violate the rules of the sacred war." Xia Qingyuan then added, "Furthermore, Saint Xihua and the others still serve my father after all."


    Ye Futian naturally did not buy any of Xia Qingyuan''s bullsh**.


    Saint Xihua probably harbored only resentment for Emperor Xia at that moment. If there was a choice to be had, he would have left Emperor Xia''s Realm instead.


    As for Xia Qingyuan, he found it baffling that the woman was talking to him about rules.


    "I need only news. His majesty and you, princess, wouldn''t need to lift a finger, so you would not be violating his majesty''s decree," the Black Wind Condor said telepathically.


    "You''ll talk when you get back." Xia Qingyuan glanced at the Black Wind Condor plainly.


    The bird glared at Xia Qingyuan, feeling an urge to do something right there and then.


    "Boss, no." The Black Wind Condor sensed Ye Futian''s intentions and became scared. The Blue Phoenix Sacred Beast was right beside Xia Qingyuan after all.


    If Ye Futian were to actually do something right there and then, it would have been the bird to suffer the consequences instead.


    As for the matter of getting back at the Blue Phoenix, that would be something saved for a later date.


    "I''d like to request that you notify the Moon Saint and have him be on guard. I''d leave the matters on this side in your hands, princess." The Black Wind Condor said. Since he was still faraway in Dali, the matters right there and then naturally fell into Xia Qingyuan''s hands. They needed to be on guard since Saint Xihua had actually made a move.


    As for him, it was naturally impossible for him to just return right away.


    All of his previous efforts would have been wasted otherwise.


    "Alright." Xia Qingyuan nodded. So this guy finally learned some manners huh?


    Ye Futian, who was training in Dali Imperial City, opened his eyes, which flashed with a hint of coldness.


    He never expected Saint Xihua to actually appear out of nowhere after all that time. It was fortunate that the Holy Zhi Palace had became extremely powerful at the moment, and they were not all that easily shaken. Even if Saint Xihua was able to actually hire a Saint of True Self from the Upper Worlds to aid him, it did not actually work as planned. Nonetheless, it would have been better if he were to be on guard from then on out. As such, he was ready to invite saints from the Yue clan to train in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    By doing so, it would have allowed them to aid each other, before eventually taking out Saint Xihua altogether.


    Yaya, the Glass Saint and the others ventured down to the Lower Worlds, staying behind to guard the Holy Zhi Palace. Saint Xihua and his men retreated yet again.


    The scuffle seemed to have been a minor one, as the Holy Zhi Palace remained unharmed at all.


    The Moon Saint actually came to train at the Holy Zhi Palace after that, while Yaya, the Glass Saint and the others returned to the Upper Worlds.


    All of it looked as if things had reached their conclusion right there and then. It all seemed to be an attempt of Saint Xihua at revenge, and nobody bothered to find out about the story behind his actions.


    Saint Xihua had a massive score to settle with the Holy Zhi Palace to begin with after all.


    The scuffle was quickly forgotten by everyone else. It was something hardly even worth mentioning in the Upper Worlds.


    Xiao Sheng continued to train as he did in the Xiao clan''s manor, leaving the place only in rare occasions. In truth, most of his clansman hardly bothered about him anyway.


    After that incident, he came to understand his fate from then on out, that he had became someone irrelevant and dispensable, so much so that even the ones from the Divine Cloud Valley came all the way to the Xiao clan to null the marriage arrangement. It was all a grave insult to him.


    Xiao Sheng sent men to head to the Divine Cloud Valley that day, inviting Gongsun Ni to a restaurant.


    Gongsun Ni came to a prestigious corner of the restaurant regardless, as both of them almost ended up together after all. She was still willing to give him that much face, since he was the one extending the invitation.


    "I have heard that you''ve spent your time training in isolation as of late to break into Saint Plane. How is your training going?" Gongsun Ni asked. Her sister, Gongsun Xuan was right beside her, and a saint was standing not far away.


    "Not bad, but I seem to be in a bad state of mind, so it''s only natural that I have difficulties breaking through." Xiao Sheng said, "How about you, Miss. Gongsun? We haven''t meet for quite a while. How are you doing as of late?"


    "Hardly any different from how I used to spend my days." Gongsun Ni answered, "You have excellent talents, Mr. Xiao. I''m sure that you''d be able to make it out of your current predicament, making a breakthrough and becoming a saint."


    "I sure hope so." Xiao Sheng smiled and said, looking serene.


    A man was drinking alone not far away from their seats, which was hardly more than a table away from them.


    "Xiao Sheng." A voice was heard in Xiao Sheng''s ears when he lowered his head.


    Xiao Sheng remained calm and unmoved when he heard that voice, continuing to chat with Gongsun Ni.


    "Your speculations are on point. He didn''t show up. If he were to be training in the royal palace, he would have ventured down to the Lower Worlds with Xia Qingyuan. Yet, only the princess appeared down there. Even when the ones from the Nine States showed up later, he was still nowhere to be found." The other party continued to elaborate telepathically.


    "Any useful news you were able to acquire? Like where he went to?" Xiao Sheng asked telepathically. It was the day where they were set to meet. They set the time and date of the next meeting, after every meeting they had.


    But then again, while Xiao Sheng would have been there every single time, the other party who showed up would have almost never been the same.


    "If he were to have left from the royal palace directly, then it was probably done through the teleportation grand matrix. You should know of the places that the grand matrix was connected with. It''s always been those several places." The other party continued, "Xiao Sheng, where do you think he would have ended up?"


    "Is there anyone in the Nine States dead this time?" Xiao Sheng asked.


    "No one died," the other party replied.


    "Are all the saints of the Barren State present?" Xiao Sheng asked again.


    "They''re all accounted for," the other party answered.


    "Then test things out again." Xiao Sheng said, "At least make the ones at the Nine States pay somehow. If he were to still not appear, then we could be sure that he is no longer in Emperor Xia''s Realm. I guess he''s most likely in Emperor Li''s Realm if that turns out to be the case."


    "How so?" The other party asked.


    "He left alone without the princess at his side. It was not that the saints were not allowed to be around due to him having gone to some secret, powerful places in Emperor Xia''s Realm, but due to him being wary of exposing his identity. If that was the case, then the chances of him being in Emperor Li''s Realm would have been extremely high. There was no reason not to take the saints from the Nine States with him otherwise."


    "He''s bold enough to venture into Emperor Li''s Realm to train?" The voice of the other party sounded rather funny.


    "If you bothered to know about him, you''d realize that he might be even bolder than that. Furthermore, the reason the princess left his steed in her place was so to know of his whereabouts at all times. You all could ponder on the implications of such an action." Xiao Sheng said, "At the very least, I''ve yet to find out what is it that he is trying to accomplish in Emperor Li''s Realm. What is it that would have caused the princess so much concern, that she needed to know of his whereabouts at all times."


    The other party was silent for a while, before replying, "I''ve recorded every word you''ve said."


    The other party put down the cup on his hand after that reply and left the restaurant.


    Xiao Sheng continued to chat with Gongsun Ni, looking polite and amicable. One was unable to sense any hint of sadness and anger from him. All of that surprised Gongsun Ni somewhat, and she felt rather guilty for it.


    Xiao Sheng left the restaurant a while later. He and Gongsun Ni went their separate ways and returned to their own residences.


    ...


    It had been a month since Saint Xihua attacked the Holy Zhi Palace. Long Ling''er and Phoenix were poisoned by someone in a restaurant at the Upper Worlds of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Furthermore, the poison used was extremely potent, hitting the internal organs and almost killed them.


    It was worth noting that Phoenix was versed in the art of healing, and yet even she ended up poisoned. It was a testament of the poison''s potency and how well hidden it was. One could have even said that it was a poison at saint level.


    However, since everyone in the Holy Zhi Palace was in high alert due to the incident with Saint Xihua, the village chief was tagging along when Long Ling''er and Phoenix ventured outside. The village chief did not return to the Cottage when the two were poisoned, and had instead sent them into Emperor Xia''s Palace as fast as he had been able to.


    The news was hardly of any importance to Emperor Xia''s Realm as a whole, yet it was no doubt an extremely heavy blow on Ye Futian.


    What the hell is happening as of late?


    Is it Saint Xihua again?


    However, according to Xia Qingyuan, Saint Xihua was not even around when they were poisoned.


    Ye Futian it all to be an attempt at revenge when Saint Xihua attacked back then. But when Ling''er and Phoenix ended up being poisoned, he came to feel that someone was trying to do them no good, and that someone was trying to kill those from the Nine States.


    Ye Futian still remained himself shivering all over despite being at Dali Dynasty, as if he was shrouded by someone''s schemes.


    The most important thing to be done in Emperor Xia''s Palace at that moment was naturally to keep Phoenix and Ling''er alive. Xia Qingyuan even brought the two of them to the bedchambers of Emperor Xia, to ask directly for help from the emperor himself.


    Both of them were at the brink of death when the village chief brought them in, especially Ling''er, who was quite literally having one foot in the coffin and her life hanging by a thread, giving how the poison was all over her systems.


    Xia Qingyuan, too, felt someone was trying to harm those from the Nine States!

 1126 No Openings

    The princess'' residence in Emperor Xia''s Palace was all gloomy. Xia Qingyuan''s mind was cold as ice at the moment.


    Everyone in Emperor Xia should have known that Ye Futian was Emperor Xia''s servant. His name was almost literally glittering from the results he brought from the Battle of Empty Realm, and for a time, he was the talk of the town. There was simply no one who did not know of Ye Futian by then.


    If Saint Xihua were to be said to make a move against the Barren State, he was doing it out of desperation.


    At present, however, someone actually made a move against Phoenix and Long Ling''er. One could have only imagined what was going on in her mind at that moment.


    However, there was something that she was unable to comprehend. Were the two incidents simply a coincidence? Or there were people who manipulated events from behind?


    There were many things that she was unable to understand at that point just yet.


    The Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu and the others also came to Emperor Xia''s Palace, waiting for news at the princess'' residence.


    At present, the conditions of Long Ling''er and Phoenix remained unknown.


    All of them were hoping that Emperor Xia was able to bring about a miracle. Both of them would have been in extremely dire states otherwise.


    At that moment, someone came to Xia Qingyuan''s side and delivered her some news.


    The eyes of the Black Wind Condor were extremely cold. The bird went over and looked at Xia Qingyuan.


    Those eyes radiated bone-chilling cold.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian through the bird''s eyes and said, "There was a saint level clan in Emperor Xia''s City��the Mu clan, and a member of their younger generation was infatuated with Long Ling''er, following her around everywhere. Long Ling''er was rather naughty and constantly made a servant out of him. This incident stemmed from that young man confessing to Long Ling''er and was spurned. He then decided to poison both himself and her, hoping to be able to die together."


    "What happened to him?" The bird asked.


    "Dead, from the poisoning," Xia Qingyuan said.


    The Black Wind Condor turned around to address the people of the Holy Zhi Palace. Zhuge Mingyue then added, "Mu Yan was indeed infatuated with Ling''er and she teased her all the time. Furthermore, Mu Yan was timid yet cheerful, so he followed Ling''er around all the time like the princess put it. He had even been to the villa and we''ve all seen him. As such, we didn''t put up a guard against him. But then again, Mu Yan''s personality was one that shouldn''t have been able to pull off such a feat."


    "We have Interrogated the people of the restaurant and the Mu clan. Those from the Mu clan didn''t believe that Mu Yan would have been capable of such a thing, but there were many in the restaurant who witnessed personally what happened, so that was probably the truth. It would have been possible of one of them had lied, but there was no way so many would have dared to lie. Furthermore, we''ve checked everyone who were present, and all of them were clear of any doubt."


    "Then this incident would be a coincidence then. One that was caused by Ling''er not being careful with who she made friends with." The Black Wind Condor spoke with a cold, gloomy voice. He knew what Ling''er was like very well. She was naughty and stubborn, but pure of heart. If she was willing to be get along with Mu Yan, then Mu Yan would have never been those evil, ferocious or brutal types. His second sister and all the others have seen him as well.


    But then again, the truth was right before their eyes.


    All of that seemed to truly be of pure coincidence and little else. Furthermore, it seemed that none of that incident had anything to do with Saint Xihua acting against the Barren State.


    Ye Futian did not think much of the attack back then, but with something like that happening to Ling''er this time, he was forced to reconsider.


    "I know that you are suspecting something is off. I too am suspecting as well. But from the looks of things at the moment, there are hardly any leads or openings, with one possible exception?��Mu Yan was controlled by some powerful figures using some special means." Xia Qingyuan then added, "None of the people of the Mu clan knew of anything about Mu Yan being acquainted with powerful people. We didn''t have anyone to keep an eye on Mu Yan as well. Furthermore, Mu Yan suffered the worst of the poisonings, dying right on the spot. Even if such speculations are possible, there are no leads for us to look into."


    "Sister, did anyone or Ling''er herself made any enemies, or got on anyone''s bad side during this period of time?" The Black Wind Condor asked.


    "No. Everyone was being diligent in their training. Even if there were to be scuffles when they went outside, none of them were severe enough to warrant the risk of doing something like that," Zhuge Mingyue elaborated.


    The Black Wind Condor nodded. With his current status at Emperor Xia''s Realm, all saints would have known that acting against them all would have came with great risks. No one would have possibly gone that far over mere scuffles, unless said scuffles concerned life and death situations.


    "Well, then it''s probably some enemies we made way back then," the Black Wind Condor said. Saint Ji of the Hall of Holy Light of the Lower Worlds was placed under house arrest. Saint Xihua and his men were hardly able to cover their hide. Both parties did not seem to have anything to do with the incident. The first enemy they made in the Upper Worlds was those from Lihen Heaven.


    But then again, the Swordmaster of Lihen had lent one of them his sword and saved their lives. Wang Chuan came to possess a supreme state of mind and became a saint. All of that should have been known to all in the Lihen Heaven and the score between both sides should have long been settled. Furthermore, with them still owing the Swordmaster of Lihen for having borrowed a sword from him, there was hardly any possibility that the people of Lihen Heaven would have moved against Ye Futian''s people.


    As for Gongsun Zhong of the Divine Cloud Valley, they might have been scuffles between both parties, but during the Battle of Empty Realm, Gongsun Zhong had been rather straightforward in his dealings. Due to Xia Qingyuan having expressed her disappointment in him, he channeled all his frustration in the battlefield.


    Compared to Gongsun Zhong, it was more probable that Xiao Sheng, who had actually set Ye Futian up in the Battle of Empty Realm, would have acted against him instead.


    What Xiao Sheng did back then was totally within reason and little to complain about. He had only recalled those that the princess put at Ye Futian''s side due to the princess being in trouble, yet his actions almost caused all of them to die in battle. However, Xiao Sheng was sold out by Li Yao later, with someone leaking the news of the enemy having bought him over, causing the cover for the motives of his actions blown.


    Xiao Qianhe of the Xiao clan, brought Xiao Sheng into the royal palace and begged Queen Xiao for mercy.


    Queen Xiao had summoned Ye Futian personally and rewarded him, bestowing ten great training methods to the people of the Nine States as well as awarding them with divine implements. She had even permitted Ye Futian to train in the Golden Hall of the Lotus, forcing him to put that score with Xiao Sheng aside for the moment.


    If what happened to Ling''er turned out to be one of the events manipulated by Xiao Sheng, then there was no doubt that he had turned even more adept than when he was during the Battle of Empty Ralm.


    "Could you investigate Xiao Sheng?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''ve considered what you are now thinking." Xia Qingyuan continued, "Someone returned to me with news. Ever since what happened back then, Xiao Sheng had been spending time training in his clan''s estate. Even when he ventured outside, he stayed close to the Xiao clan territory. Furthermore, Xiao Sheng''s status in the Xiao clan was no longer what it used to be. His status became limited, so even when he intended to get something done, he hardly had the resources to pull them off. Before and after something happened to Ling''er, he had only ventured outside once, and it had been to meet Gongsun Ni."


    "Given Xiao Sheng''s status in the Xiao clan back then, they should be someone that he is still able to make use of, no?" The Black Wind Condor asked.


    "They''re definitely some, but probably not many. Given how my grandfather had rescinded a lot of the perks and powers Xiao Sheng was given, he would have had lots of problems using any of the saints," Xia Qingyuan said. The one went about poisoning the girls that time was definitely a saint.


    "What if someone in the clan was willing to actually work with him?" The bird asked again. It was apparent that Ye Futian was doubting the Xiao clan.


    "When my uncle brought Xiao Sheng into the royal palace, he had made promises to my mother, which was why she was willing to agree to stepping in and solving the matter, which in turn led to you being into the royal palace. You should remember that while it is possible for Xiao Sheng to still resent you, but my uncle is nonetheless still the successor to the Xiao clan and my mother''s brother. What good would it do him by doing such things? If he was only doing it to settle the score on behalf of his son, then even my mother would not have forgiven him if it was discovered. Judging by my uncle''s personality, there was basically no way he would have done such a thing."


    Xia Qingyuan analyzed the idea and Ye Futian had to admit that Xia Qingyuan was making sense.


    Xiao Qianhe was no doubt someone who would have clung to power, judging by his intentions to put Xiao Sheng into the royal palace. There was simply no need for someone like him to take such a great risk.


    Xiao Qianhe was still Queen Xiao''s elder brother and Emperor Xia''s brother-in-law. That status alone would have been of extremely high prestige.


    "So you''re saying that this has nothing to do with Xiao Sheng then, princess?" The Black Wind Condor asked in a low voice. No leads or openings, really?


    "There''s another thing. Be it Xiao Sheng or anyone else, if they really intended to act against you, why you they be beating around the bush like that? Phoenix and Ling''er might have been people from the Barren State, but they were still not core figures." Xia Qingyuan frowned and said, "As for the matter if any of that had anything to do with Xiao Sheng, I could only say that there is nothing on him at the moment. I''d keep having people to look into it until we''ve got something."


    "Yeah." The Black Wind Condor nodded. Although he suspected that Xiao Sheng was involved, but it was impossible for them to crash into the Xiao clan''s estate to arrest him when there were still lacking evidence.


    While Ye Futian was on very good terms with Xia Qingyuan, but Xiao Sheng was still the son of Xia Qingyuan''s uncle after all.


    ...


    All of the important people of Xiao clan was gathered in a great hall of the clan''s estate. Old Man Xiao was present to host the meeting.


    There was a lone figure standing below, and it was none other than Xiao Sheng.


    There were people from the royal palace who came to investigate Xiao Sheng''s whereabouts not long ago.


    They all knew that someone tried to assassinate people at Ye Futian''s side using poisons.


    "Kneel," Old Man Xiao said coldly. Xiao Sheng went on his knees on the ground, looking up at his grandfather and the familiar faces that looked like that of strangers to him. However, his eyes were unusually calm and he simply felt the whole situation to be rather ironic.


    He had been raised as the successor to the clan back then after all.


    "Grandfather, I don''t understand," Xiao Sheng said.


    "Did you actually do anything?" Old Man Xiao glared at Xiao Sheng and asked.


    What Xiao Sheng last pulled had actually damaged the relations between the royal palace and the Xiao clan. If Xiao Sheng were to pull anything absurd, it would have ended up jeopardizing the Xiao clan''s status.


    "I don''t understand," Xiao Sheng said as he sensed formless pressure bearing onto him.


    "Someone attempted to kill the people of the Barren State using poison. Do you have anything to do with it?" Old Man Xiao glared at Xiao Sheng as he asked, raining down incredible pressure on his grandson.


    "Someone tried to assassinate those from the Barren State?" Xiao Sheng looked up and said sarcastically, "Well, it seems to me that they''ve offended some other people then. I never expected Qingyuan to be here for this. Girls do have tendencies to lean towards outsiders then. She didn''t bother giving you and uncle face just for a man."


    "You little sh**." Old Man Xiao said coldly, "Say that outside and I''d have you punished according to the clan''s rules."


    Xiao Sheng chuckled sarcastically and continued, "Grandfather, you''d find out what I''ve been up to these days if you''d just look into it. If you think that I was the one who did all that, then by all means just hand me over to Ye Futian."


    Old Man Xiao glared at Xiao Sheng and said coldly, "I know you have your resentments. But it''s your mistakes and you''re to bear the consequences. From this day forth, you''re not allowed to step outside the estate. Xiao Qianhe, pull all men at his side away. He is not to be allowed to have any contact with the outside world without my orders."


    "Acknowledged." Xiao Qianhe nodded. He stared at his son and came to have bad feelings about some people.


    "If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave." Xiao Sheng stood up, turned around and left.


    His clansman all watched with cold expressions as he left. That is one hell of an as**ole.


    Xiao Sheng looked up at the sky after he walked out of the hall. A cold smirk was seen on his face.


    Investigate me?


    Investigate all you like. I''ve done nothing.


    As for the house arrest, he did not mind it at all. If his speculations were to be proven correct, someone else would have picked up where he left off and taken care of the rest.

 1127 Disabled Girl

    There were often mighty ones getting in and out of Emperor Xia''s Palace, especially the princess'' residence.


    The princess'' residence, which was usually extremely quiet, became apparently very lively for the past several days with people coming and going.


    All of those from the Barren State of the Lower Worlds were allowed to come and go as they pleased, and it was something everyone in the royal palace knew. Princess Xia Qingyuan was being very kind to those from the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State, and it all had to do with Ye Futian.


    The incident with just two cultivators from the Lower Worlds getting attacked would not have caused that much commotion otherwise.


    They were even able to get help from Emperor Xia himself, and it was an enormous favor rarely seen.


    Most of the people from the Holy Zhi Palace waited for news in the princess'' residence. Several people flashed on that day, appearing before the group.


    "Phoenix, Ling''er." The group noticed two within those who just showed up and walked up to them. The Black Wind Condor went up as well, feeling relieved as the crisis was finally averted.


    "How are they doing?" Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    "They''re fine now. Consider them actually came back from the gates of hell itself." A figure wearing a cloak behind them said. His voice sounded rather croaked and his skin extremely pale.


    "Thank you, senior," the people from the Holy Zhi Palace expressed their gratitude. The Black Wind Condor''s eyes turned to one of the cultivators behind Long Ling''er and called, "Senior Long."


    That man''s eyes turned to look at the bird and said, "You are?"


    "I''m Ye Futian. The beast could relay my thoughts directly," the Black Wind Condor explained.


    The middle-aged man caught on and said with a smile, "So we''ve met."


    "Yes, and it''s been many years indeed. Thank you for your help," the Black Wind Condor said. The man was none other than Long Yitian, Long Ling''er''s uncle.


    "What happened to you?"


    "This is something that happened in the Battle of Proving Holiness all those years ago. I was surrounded when I was on my journey back then. My physical body perished and my soul rested within the dragon''s soul, merging with it. I then hid within a piece of saint level spirit jade that I came to possess by chance, enabling me to stay alive. His majesty Emperor Xia was gracious enough to forge a new physical body for me," Long Yitian said.


    "Brother, if it hadn''t been for uncle, I''d have been dead by now." Long Ling''er''s eyes were somewhat reddened. It was a blessing in disguise.


    If it had not been for Ling''er being in a critical condition, Xia Qingyuan would not have came to bother Emperor Xia.


    "You''ll be fine," the Black Wind Condor said.


    "But Mu Yan is dead. Brother, Mu Yan isn''t someone of that sort. I felt that he was being controlled by someone else back then," Long Ling''er said.


    "I feel the same way about things. There are so many things that feel wrong with this." Phoenix and Long Ling''er shared the same thoughts. She had a unique constitution and she had a phoenix as her Life Spirit, which was capable of the Nirvana Arts. All of that enabled her to keep her life hanging by a thread and eventually allowed her to survive. Ling''er, on the other hand, was protected by Long Yitian. However, Long Yitian had almost completely dissipated from the ordeal nonetheless.


    Both of them were considered miraculously lucky to have survived the assassination attempt.


    Mu Yan had apparent not been as lucky. He died from the poisoning on the spot, a testament of the poison''s powers.


    "Yeah." The Black Wind Condor nodded. He did not believe all of that to be just a coincidence.


    "I have looked into Xiao Sheng''s actions after what happened. There was nothing suspicious about it. The Xiao clan had placed him in house arrest and forbade him from contacting anyone on the outside. I''d send men to keep a close eye on him as well." Xia Qingyuan said, "Of course, the possibility of someone helping Xiao Sheng out cannot be ruled out. As such, I would look into anyone whom Xiao Sheng was able to mobilize after what happened all the way back then. More people would have been involved and the investigation would have taken quite some time."


    There did not seem to be any leads anyone could have exploited regarding the incident. Mu Yan might have been the only one who had been in contact with the person who poisoned him, but Mu Yan was already dead. There was no way to look into the people that he came into contact with before.


    That lead was totally cut off, and they were only able to look into Xiao Sheng, who appeared to be the most suspicious at the moment.


    However, from the current looks of things, there did not seem to be any openings to be had with Xiao Sheng.


    "If that happened to truly be something that he pulled, he naturally would not have been able to do anything with the princess keeping a close eye on him. As the princess put it, someone might have been helping him. Although the possibility of the Xiao clan being involved being rather low, I''d like you to keep an eye on them as well," the Black Wind Condor said.


    "I would. I shall keep a close eye on things with Saint Xihua as well. While we can''t be sure if those two incidents were actually connected, but I''d look into it as well, to see if they had been coming into contact with someone suspicious." Xia Qingyuan said, "I would look after the people of the Holy Zhi Palace in your stead."


    "Thank you, princess." The Black Wind Condor said, "Please send my regards to his majesty as well."


    "You really have no intentions of returning then? All of these may have been directed at you?" Xia Qingyuan said.


    "I''m not Ye Futian over there. Furthermore, you do have someone at Dali Imperial City, right?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I do. I''d tell you how to contact them." Xia Qingyuan added, "If anything else were to happen, return immediately."


    ...


    Ye Futian opened his eyes at a training ground in Dali Academy. The sword will circling around him gradually dissipated. His eyes looked cold.


    Queen Xiao had gotten personally involved to mediate what happened back then, and he was unable to do anything about it. It''s not like I can go against Queen Xiao after all.


    However, if he were to find out that it was Xiao Sheng who did all of that, there should not have been anyone to protect Xiao Sheng again.


    It was hardly surprising why he kept suspecting that Xiao Sheng was the one involved. No one in Emperor Xia''s Realm had so much beef with him than Xiao Sheng after all.


    "Seventh Swordsman." A voice was heard. Ye Futian looked up and saw someone coming in his direction. It was none other than Li Yao.


    He had been in contact with Li Yao a lot as of late, making them familiar with each other.


    Technically-speaking, Li Yao was a student of the imperial advisor in name, which made the prince his senior.


    "What brings you here, your highness?" Ye Futian called while remaining seated instead of getting up. He looked nonchalant, and that nonchalance was what would have appeared normal.


    "The end of the year is near, and Dali Academy holds a forum at the end of the year of every year. The royal members of Dali Imperial City would hold a grand hunting event��the Royal Hunt��among the royal members instead. I''d like to invite you to join the event, if you''re willing," Li Yao said.


    "Royal Hunt?" Ye Futian asked in puzzlement.


    "Indeed. A hunting event. There are tens of thousands of beasts at the west mountains of Dali Dynasty, which serve as the hunting ground of the royal members of Dali Dynasty. It is a training that is quite hard to come by," Li Yao said.


    "Any sacred beasts there?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Of course." Li Yao nodded. Ye Futian was unable to help but feel impressed. The royalty of Dali Imperial City was actually wealthy enough to keep tens of thousands of beasts just for training by hunting, and they even had sacred beasts.


    "If this is meant for royalty, wouldn''t having me join in be breaking the rules?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Not at all. Royal members have the right to bring others to hunt." Li Yao smiled, "There would be quite a number of attendants and servants by then. Seventh Swordsman, you''re now invincible under Saint Plane. No one else below Saint Plane in all of Dali Dynasty would be able to fight you, and you wouldn''t be able to further your sword training. Even the saints found in Dali Imperial City wouldn''t have actually fought you in earnest. Hunting then becomes a great training opportunity to have you feel the true power of saints among demonic beasts. You daring enough to try it out?"


    Ye Futian''s expression became pointed and said, "How could I refuse an invitation from you, your highness? I shall stay by your side during the hunt."


    "Very well. You indeed are number below Saint Plane in all of Dali." Li Yao smiled and nodded, "Well then, I''d keep you posted when the time comes."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded and Li Yao left with his people.


    Ye Futian watched Li Yao leave and thought that the prince was as nice as a prince could have been to him.


    He was peerless below the Saints and they both studied under the same teacher. As such, it was not difficult to come to the conclusion that Li Yao was buying Ye Futian over to be of help to him in the future.


    It was quite a pity that the feud between them both meant that one of them must die.


    "So his highness has invited you to join the Royal Hunt eh?" A voice was heard and several people were seen walking towards him. Ye Futian lifted his head and saw Nan Zhai, Mu Chunyang and Lu Chuan.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded and said, "What brings you here today, brothers?"


    "We''re heading to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. There is a lunch event held today," Lu Chuan answered.


    Ye Futian was puzzled. Lunch event at the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    "Sure." Ye Futian got up and said.


    "So, have you found yourself a girl whom you can talk about life with?" Nan Zhai narrowed his eyes and asked with a smile.


    Ye Futian was rather speechless. He then said, "Find yourself one then, second brother."


    Nan Zhai stared at his face and said, "If your brother here is as young and handsome as you''re, boyyyy..."


    Ye Futian was exasperated. If it had not been for the conversation they last had, he would have thought Nan Zhai to be a good-for-nothing lecherous old man instead.


    "Brother, the Seventh Swordsman here is a swordsman and has a pure mind of the sword. Don''t go about tainting him, will you?" Mu Chunyang interjected, finding the second brother''s antics intolerable.


    "He needs to relax precisely because he''s so damn tense. Let that stick, will you?" Nan Zhai said with a condescending tone.


    "You''re the older brother. Have it your way." Mu Chunyang did not continue to argue with Nan Zhai and Lu Chuan at the side then smiled at Ye Futian, saying, "That''s our second brother for you. You could learn about divine path from him. As for other matters, you''ll be the judge yourself."


    Ye Futian nodded. The imperial advisor had few students, but the atmosphere among them was an amicable one. It truly made him feel like he was back in the Cottage from all those years ago.


    One could have told something about a teacher by looking at the student. It seemed that the imperial advisor was indeed someone worthy of respect.


    But then again, their stance seemed to have been decided right from the start.


    However, what Ye Futian saw at the moment was not probably all there was to it.


    Yan Yuan and Wang Zhong were already waiting for them. All of them gathered before going to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    Lunch was prepared when they came to a quiet compound within the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    Ye Futian found that other than the imperial advisor, there was also a woman present.


    Ye Futian was rather surprised and turned to look at her. The woman looked very pretty, sporting a pure, natural look that was pleasant to the eye, as if she was favored by the heavens.


    She turned to look at Ye Futian as well and asked, "Father, is this the Seventh Swordsman?"


    "Indeed." The imperial advisor nodded with a smile and looked at Ye Futian, saying, "Seventh Swordsman, this is Feixue."


    Ye Futian was surprised to find that the imperial advisor actually had a daughter. He had never met her before.


    A beaming smile was seen on Feixue''s lips, yet her eyes looked to be devoid of life. One could not have seen a smile in them, which startled Ye Futian.


    "Sister." Ye Futian called.


    "Sister? I''m not father''s student. Just call me by name." Feixue smiled warmly and continued, "As for my eyes, don''t mind them. I can''t see after all."


    She''s blind? Ye Futian was somewhat shaken. For some reasons, he felt a tinge of sorrow hearing that she was unable to see.


    While Feixue did not have looks that would have had men killing each other for, but he found her appearance to be really pleasant on the eye. It was some mystical feeling that he was unable to quite place.


    "Not even your proficiency with the arts is able to do anything about it, teacher?" Ye Futian asked the imperial advisor.


    The imperial advisor shook his head in reply.

 1128 Reaction from the Life Spiri

    Ye Futian looked at the imperial advsior and sighed secretly. Due to Feixue''s status, even if the imperial advisor were to ask for Emperor Li''s help personally, the emperor would have no doubt agreed to help.


    If Feixue remained incapable of seeing still, then there would not have even been a need to ask in the first place.


    "There is no need to grieve for my sake, Seventh Swordsman. I''m fine as I am," Feixue said with a smile, as if she was able to read what was going on in his mind.


    "I''m not grieving." Ye Futian denied and continued, "I''m just thinking that someone as good-looking as you''re would have felt brilliant if you were to be able to see."


    Feixue smiled faintly. Although her eyes continued to look dead, her smile felt pleasant nonetheless.


    "Take a seat," the imperial advisor smiled and said. All of them took their respective seats by his side soon, with Yan Yuan seated at the first seat at the left, followed by Nan Zhai, Mu Chunyang and Wang Zhong.


    Feixue, Lu Chuan and Ye Futian were seated at the right.


    "Where is the mistress?" Ye Futian asked Lu Chuan telepathically instead of asking out in the open. The case with Feixue told him that the imperial advisor might have had his own stories. If the mistress did not show up, there would have also been a story behind.


    Lu Chuan did not look at Ye Futian but replied telepathically nonetheless, "I''ve never seen the mistress. She passed a long time ago. Don''t bring the mistress up in front of teacher."


    "Will do." Ye Futian nodded in secret.


    "Seventh Swordsman, there is no need to be so formal in a family event like this," the imperial advisor smiled and said.


    "Sure, teacher." Ye Futian said and nodded. The group began eating away. They all looked relaxed as there were hardly any rules to be observed there.


    "How are your training been going?" The imperial advisor asked all who were present.


    "I don''t think I''d ever get to your plane, teacher," Yan Yuan smiled and said.


    "Yan Yuan, your strength lies with your sense of perception of worldly affairs, but it''s at the same time, your shortcoming. But then again, it''d only be a matter of time before your achievements eclipse that of mine," the imperial advisor said.


    "Teacher, I don''t have much of any specific goal and I''m only following my heart in training," Nan Zhai said.


    "Yeah." The imperial advisor nodded. "I''m not all that concerned with the few of you. Wang Zhong, your obsession runs too deep. It''s probably pointless for me to tell you to let go, but you need to understand that while the obsession might drive you to greater achievements, it might also get in the way of you achieving greater things."


    "I would definitely surpass you," Wang Zhong said.


    "And I''d be waiting," the imperial advisor nodded and said.


    Ye Futian looked at Wang Zhong with surprised eyes. He had always thought Wang Zhong to be rather different from the ohers. From the looks of things at the moment, he was actually more than just different, as it seemed that he and the imperial advisor did not even seem to be on good terms.


    IF THAT IS THE CASE, WHY WOULD THE IMPERIAL ADVISOR TAKE HIM IN IN THE FIRST PLACE?


    "Seventh Swordsman, I''ve asked you that day why did you become a cultivator and your answer made me decide to take you in as my student." The imperial advisor then said. "The great path knows no boundaries. Not even I had been capable of such spirit as you."


    "I was just mouthing away actually," Ye Futian added.


    "There are no doubt boundaries in the world. Any who was brazen enough to say that the great path knows no boundaries would be a show of open-mindednesss. Me, for example, has never had such spirit with me. If you happen to have that something that I lack, it''d naturally something I''m happy to see."


    Ye Futian looked at the imperial advisor and asked, "I have something that I find puzzling. Would you mind giving me some guidance, teacher?"


    "Alright, speak." The imperial advisor nodded.


    "If you had agreed with the notion of the great path knows no boundaries, why would you have aided his majesty in strengthening Dali and went about taking other realms? Wouldn''t that be going against what you agreed on?" Ye Futian asked.


    He had always been curious what kind of a person the imperial advisor actually was. Since the opportunity to ask was right in front of him, he saw fit to take it right away.


    "When I asked you about why you sought the path, you said that you hoped, that even if there would be a day when you stop cultivating altogether, you would still have the freedom to choose nonetheless. That applies to you as well as Dali as a whole. Wars never ceased since the ancient times. Even the mess the world went through over 300 years ago, we have still not been able to shake off its effects. Wars between realms easily had casualties racking up to millions. If we were to not strengthen Dali, destruction would have been the only thing lying ahead of us, and there is no freedom of choice for us there."


    The imperial advisor turned his eyes at Ye Futian and continued, "I have done a lot of wrong in my efforts in to advise his majesty, but I''ve also done a lot of good for the cultivators of Dali nonetheless. One has to pay something in order to get something. Like I''ve said earlier, I lacked your spirit and I have never considered the notion of the great path knowing no boundaries before. However, I''m nonetheless only able to do what I can to help change what I can."


    "I understand, teacher." Ye Futian nodded lightly and sighed deep down again. He had no problem telling that the imperial advisor was telling the truth. If one were to consider take his stance into consideration, one would have realized that if Dali was not strong enough, the Emperor Xia''s Realm, The Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm or some other realms would have taken Emperor Li''s Realm by force.


    "If you want to see change as well, then you''d have to first stand at the highest point at the place you wish to see changes being made. It''s been said that Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing dreamt of changing the world as well, and that was what drove them to stand at the top of the world." A tinge of respect was seen in his eyes as he continued, "There would always be some great beings around in the world which would inspire respect and awe. My abilities and character are limited and I do not have what it takes to become someone like that, but I do hope that you all would be someone of such caliber."


    "Teacher, you''re great enough as far as Dali is concerned," Yan Yuan added.


    "It isn''t something you could determine on your own. Ask Wang Zhong what he think about that," The imperial advisor said in a self-depreciating tone and took a look at Wang Zhong. Yan Yuan did not ask, as it was obvious that he would not have been able to get any answers anyway.


    Ye Futian seemed to have learned more about the imperial advisor and came to respect him a little bit more deep down.


    It was possibly Emperor Xia''s Realm that had known too little about the imperial advisor of Dali instead.


    The imperial advisor had not been wrong with what he said. He was not Donghuang the Great or Emperor Ye Qing. His abilities were limited and he was only able to affect Emperor Li''s Realm.


    "Teacher, I''d like to ask a rather bold question. Why have you decided to seek the path?" Ye Futian asked.


    The imperial advisor was rather startled as he looked at Ye Futian. That was the first time someone asked him why he sought the path.


    He had always been the one asking the question instead.


    "If I were to tell you that I have never considered the question, would you believe me?" The imperial advisor looked at Ye Futian and said.


    Ye Futian was dumbfounded and rather surprised.


    However, the imperial advisor simply smiled. "Any one of you here has more spirit than I did. I once have been training because I felt like doing so, and I have never thought why I sought the path. When calamities strike one day, you''d quickly find that you don''t have the right to choose. As such, when you said that you want to see the right to choose even if one were to choose not to be a cultivator, I said that you have set your standards too high. Even if you were to be cultivator, there are lots of times when you are still robbed of that right, being utterly hopeless in the face of it all."


    "At present, my wishes are too, simple ones��to allow Feixue to live a simple life, teach a few students of my own, establish a Dali Academy that could provide a good environment for cultivation for the later generations, so to enable Dali Dynasty to live long and prosper. As for anything greater than all that, I dare not ask."


    Ye Futian looked at the imperial advisor feeling rather frightened. That could not have been further from the impression he had about the imperial advisor of Dali.


    The imperial advisor he knew was one would have dedicated his entire being into service to Dali Dynasty; a great figure who would have poured his heart and soul into taking other realms.


    Yet, the imperial advisor who was right before his eyes was someone who could not have been more peaceful and tranquil.


    "Doesn''t match what you know, I take it? People are used to talking down to others from a pedestal. In truth however, regardless of the height one stands at, one would have still been just a person," the imperial advisor of Dali said.


    "Haven''t you thought of bringing change to more realms?" Ye Futian asked.


    "If you''ve experienced realm wars firsthand, you wouldn''t be having such thoughts. Unless I become able to have control over other realms without going through realm wars, it is something that I would never, ever, think about," the imperial advisor looked at Ye Futian and said.


    The realm wars that the imperial advisor spoke about were naturally large scale ones. Ye Futian once heard that there were Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, and some realms were devoid of life altogether, with the realm wars being brutal enough that they brought about total annihilations of realms. It was truly something harrowing.


    The Battle of the Empty Realm was actually one that was fought at a small scale.


    On the other hand, the imperial advisor claimed that he had experienced true realm wars.


    As for wanting to affect other realms without going through the path of realm wars, one would have been able to train to the highest plane there was. For instance, if he alone were to be able to take down Emperor Li, that would not have needed for any realm wars.


    From the looks of things, the imperial advisor was actually someone who opposed realm wars.


    The group chatted without a care in the event and Ye Futian came to learn more about the imperial advisor and his other students.


    After they were done, the imperial advisor said to Lu Chuan, "Lu Chuan, send Feixue to her sleep."


    "Sleep?" Ye Futian looked puzzled.


    "Feixue needed to be in her sleep often due to her cultivation. She is actually far older than you are, and the reason why she looks so young, is because she spends most of her time sleeping," the imperial advisor explained.


    Ye Futian was somewhat shaken. You''re talking about suspended animation then?


    He finally knew what the family gathering earlier was far��Feixue rose from her sleep.


    He turned his eyes at Feixue, at the clean, beautiful face of hers. Fate had not been kind to her, and yet, that calm and warm smile looked as tranquil as it could have been.


    The imperial advisor said that he hoped that Feixue would be able to live a simple life.


    He said so because even that alone proved to be a luxury.


    "Sure." Lu Chuan nodded slightly and rose. Feixue, who was by his side, rose as well and was getting ready to leave.


    "I''ll go as well," Ye Futian said. He rose and walked with Lu Chuan and Feixue, leaving where they had the gathering.


    All three of them walked and Ye Futian asked, "Brother, what happened to Feixue?"


    "I don''t know myself. It has always been so ever since I came to study under the imperial advisor." Lu Chuan shook his head and sighed.


    "It''s alright, Seventh Swordsman. I''ve gotten used to it." Feixue faced where Ye Futian was and said, "I''d be able to stay young always. Isn''t that wonderful?"


    "How long would you need to sleep?" Ye Futian asked.


    "There is no certain pattern to it. I spend most of my time sleeping." Feixue then added with a smile, "No need to be sad for me."


    "I''m not." Ye Futian denied.


    "So you don''t want to admit it again eh?" Feixue said with a faint smile, "My father said that your mind of the sword was pure. Somehow, I find that your emotions are always in turmoil, always easily moved to sadness. Shouldn''t your training in the way of the sword make your state of mind as strong as bedrock?"


    Ye Futian wanted to explain, but Lu Chuan took a good look at him and said, "Feixue is capable of sensing emotions of others."


    "..."


    Ye Futian was astonished as he looked at Feixue. If that turned out to be the case, if he had been harboring resentment and vengeance, Feixue would have been able to sense them as well.


    "I''ve been able to sense all of your emotions throughout the event." Feixue smiled brilliantly. She placed her hand on her chest and mystical light emanated from her. Ye Futian felt a mystical feeling that he was unable to quite place.


    It seemed that some peculiar powers shrouded his body.


    The quiet World Tree within his Life Palace rustled all of a sudden and unleashed mystical light. It seemed as if the tree was affected by the power within Feixue and reacted.

 1129 Can You Take What You Asked, Princess

    "What the hell is happening?" Ye Futian looked startled. It was the first time something like this had happened to him.


    Feixue was able to sense the emotions of others, so it was only natural that she was able to detect the puzzlement and curiosity that Ye Futian was feeling at the moment.


    However, she thought all of that stemmed from him being curious about her. She then explained gently, "I have monstrous beings inside me; one that had once taken many lives, and it would have been able to take mine as well. The being could only be suppressed through sleep. If it had not been for father, I''d have liked to resign myself to fate instead."


    Ye Futian looked at Feixue. She lowered her head. While her tone remained gentle, it was unable to mask her sorrow.


    So that''s the reason, huh? Ye Futian thought.


    One such gentle girl and yet, not only did she possess eyes that were unable to see, but she was even robbed of her right to live, keeping herself alive only through sleep. What is the point of spending your life asleep? Ye Futian wondered.


    Isn''t sleep just like death throughout the process?


    Probably just a way to lie to oneself, then.


    The imperial advisor is reluctant to let go of her.


    Ye Futian extended his hand, seemingly want to touch her hair, but then he hesitated.


    Feixue raised her head somewhat. While she was unable to see, she nonetheless seemed to have been able to sense Ye Futian''s movements, just like how she would have if she were to be able to see him.


    Ye Futian rested his hand on her shoulder and smiled warmly, saying, "Well, who is to say that that thing inside you is a monster? While I have no idea what it is, I feel that it''s something extremely precious; maybe a gift from the heavens, something that you could only obtain after going through some bit of suffering."


    Feixue twitched somewhat, sensing his kindness. She smiled as well and said, "Thank you for comforting me, Seventh Swordsman."


    "I''m not saying that to comfort you. That''s the truth. You need to believe the intuition of a swordsman who has a pure mind of the sword," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Yeah, I believe you..." Feixue smiled. A swordsman who has a pure mind of the sword, eh?


    Somehow she felt that it was anything but pure.


    She had no idea how he managed to deceive her father, but none of that mattered. She did not sense any ill intent from him. He had experienced confusion, calmness, and a faint sense of respect and then letting go from the start of the gathering until the end. When he was talking to her, she was able to sense sympathy, sadness, and a bit of kindness from him.


    Ye Futian looked at Feixue''s expression and knew that he was unable to fool her. Someone being able to read other people''s emotions is indeed terrifying, he thought. Good thing I don''t hold any hostility towards the imperial advisor.


    But then again, Lu Chuan and Feixue chose to tell him honestly instead of merely resorting to observing him in silence. That enabled Ye Futian to feel the beauty of trust.


    It was evident that the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence had taken him as one of their own, and they had no intention of observing him. They would have chosen to keep that a secret from him and kept watching him otherwise.


    Ye Futian did not lie to Feixue as well. Something that was able to cause his Life Spirit to react would not have been some monstrosity like she claimed. He believed what was inside Feixue''s body to be something incredibly precious instead.


    Feixue had probably chosen to refer to it as a monstrosity due to it invoking the greedy nature of people.


    The mistress was not around, and the imperial advisor had been taking care of Feixue in Dali all this time. After learning something about them, Ye Futian naturally came to speculate that the imperial advisor had some complicated past.


    However, Ye Futian did not keep asking. None of that mattered anyway. He witnessed Lu Chuan put Feixue back to sleep. She peacefully went back to sleep in a dazzling sealing matrix.


    ...


    Xia Qingyuan was still looking into the people that Xiao Sheng came into contact with for a long time in Emperor Xia''s Realm. However, all signs indicated that Xiao Sheng had not done anything.


    It seemed as if he had nothing to do with the incident.


    If it had not been for the fact that Xiao Sheng remained the most suspicious person, Xia Qingyuan might not even have bothered looking into it any further.


    As for things in Emperor Li''s Realm, Li Yao extended an official invitation to Ye Futian to join the Royal Hunt.


    Ye Futian had agreed to it before, and so he attended the event as planned.


    Many mighty ones gathered that day at the most extravagant, towering drill ground in all of the royal palace''s vicinity in Dali Imperial City.


    Many members of the younger generation in the royal family arrived. There were also many senior members around who would be the ones taking the lead.


    The royalty of Dali Dynasty was an extremely prestigious family and had many descendants. They were the most renowned clan in all of Dali.


    The extended family was massive, and it was more than just the bloodline of the current Emperor Li that had many members. There were also many great branches other than that of the emperor.


    Branch families aside, Emperor Li himself had 12 offspring. Nine being princes and three being princesses.


    Li Yao was the youngest among the nine princes.


    At that moment, other than the many members of the younger generations of the royal family, there were also their guards present at the drill ground. As such, the entire drill ground looked grand, and golden robes were billowing everywhere, looking magnificent.


    The hunt that was held every year at the western mountains of Dali Dynasty was a test for the younger royal members. It was a tradition that was carried out throughout the ages as a way of nurturing their temperament as well as their abilities at doing battle.


    All demonic beasts sealed in the west mountain were at least of the sage level. There were even demonic saints who were capable of taking human form, and their intellect was on par with that of humans. They knew of their fate��that they were but tools meant to be killed by the royal members for training. As such, all of them were extremely ferocious. They would bring out their all to attack any who went to the west mountain to train as soon as they seized the opportunity.


    The higher the kill count, the better.


    Many did end up dead during the test at the west mountain every year, and many more injured.


    Of course, the princes and the core members were comparatively safe, as they were high on the priority list of protected people. Even so, however, there were still princes who ended up grievously injured nonetheless. It was such ferocity that encouraged the royal members of Dali Dynasty to continue to hone their minds at furthering martial art training.


    Ye Futian came to the drill ground together with Li Yao. He took a look at the massive crowd before him. The royalty of Emperor Li''s Realm indeed appeared to be far more powerful than the ones in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Xia was considered the founder of his extended family. It was different in the case of Emperor Li, as the extended family had been around for many, many years, and they were extravagant people. There would not have been the title of Prince Regent otherwise.


    "Seventh Swordsman." A voice was heard from someone at the front of the drill ground. It was Li Xun, whom he met at the Dali Academy before.


    Li Xun was the fifth child among the nine princes. He and Li Yao were born of the same mother, making them full-blooded brothers.


    "Greetings, Your Highness." Ye Futian cupped his hands slightly as he went up to the prince.


    "Li Yao said a while ago that he invited you to train here. The west mountain indeed suits you," Li Xun said with a smile.


    Ye Futian nodded and said nothing.


    "Brother, so this is Seventh Swordsman?" Someone walked past, and Ye Futian turned around to find a handsome, dashing young man of the royal family looking at him. It was apparent that he was another prince.


    "Yeah," Li Xun nodded and said to Ye Futian, "the eighth among us brothers."


    "Greetings, Your Highness," Ye Futian said.


    "No need for formalities. You, Seventh Swordsman, have been the most renowned figure of the younger generations for the past year; invincible below Saint Plane and taken in by the imperial advisor as his student. You do indeed live up to the hype," the eighth prince smiled and said. Ye Futian sensed cold stares from behind the eight prince. Li Xuan was seen there, and there were also many of the royal family present.


    "You''re too kind, Your Highness," Ye Futian cupped his hands and said. He had read through the profiles of the princes. The eighth prince was very socially adept and had amicable relations with many of the royal members of Dali. He and the incredibly renowned third prince of Dali Dynasty shared the same mother.


    "Invincible below Saint Plane, huh? I wonder, did anyone bother asking about my opinion?"


    A crisp voice was heard, and someone walked towards them. It was a woman who emanated an overwhelming sense of extravagance and looked incredibly pompous. As a female member of the royal family, there was little need to say much about her appearance, which was, without a doubt, on par with that of Li You.


    Her eyes stopped at Ye Futian. She said, "Seventh Swordsman, show me what you''ve got."


    "Li Xiao, I don''t think that bit of power of yours would be much compared to that of the Seventh Swordsman," Li Xun smiled and said. The woman was almost the youngest among the three princesses. She was at the pinnacle of Sage Plane in terms of powers and was of the same age as Li Yao, and her powers were comparable to his.


    The Seventh Swordsman was a widely acknowledged number one below Saint Plane in Dali Imperial City by then. Li Xiao might have been a princess, but she still would not have been much if she intended to take on the Seventh Swordsman.


    "I''m sorry, Princess. My sword is not something for show," Ye Futian said to Li Xiao.


    "What do you mean?" Li Xiao''s expression was cold. What she meant by "show me" naturally referred to sparring with her. The Seventh Swordsman answered in a manner that suggested that he had no interest in fighting her.


    "It would be bad if I ended up hurting you, Princess," Ye Futian said plainly. The Seventh Swordsman had a brazen, unruly personality, and he was a student of the imperial city. He did not see the need to behave subserviently to a princess of Dali Imperial City.


    Many turned towards the drill ground. So the Seventh Swordsman is just as arrogant as he is rumored to be then, daring to treat a princess like this, many thought.


    "How insolent. Seventh Swordsman, are you insulting the Princess?" Li Xuan berated him coldly right there and then, intending to slap labels on him.


    Ye Futian glanced coldly at Li Xuan.


    "Draw your sword." Li Xiao stood tall in the sky. Powerful aura emanated from her body, pressing onto Ye Futian.


    "If you insist that I draw my sword, I''m afraid that you won''t be able to take it, Princess," Ye Futian replied without care.


    "You..." Li Xiao''s eyes were cold. It was the first time someone dared to behave so insolently in front of her.


    Li Yang and Li You were in the midst of the crowd. Li You pouted for a bit. This guy hasn''t changed, they thought.


    Li Xiao was the youngest among the children of Emperor Li. As such, she was spoiled by the people around her. Coupled that with her status, there was no one who dared to get on her bad side.


    The Seventh Swordsman was the only one who did not bother to give her any face.


    "I''m ordering you to draw your sword as the Princess," Li Xiao said coldly.


    The princes around them were speechless, but they did nothing to stop her. Li Xun then said telepathically to the Seventh Swordsman, "Just give her a lesson that she''ll never forget."


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and stepped out. Sword will circled her and rang. An extremely dazzling sword coalesced before him, which was as thin as the wing of cicadas. It was none other than the Sword of Kasyapa.


    Li Xiao burst with brimming aura as she stepped forward. Her hair billowed as she went.


    Voom. A bolt of lightning zipped past at speeds difficult for the naked eye to follow. The aura on Li Xiao was frightening. There were only high pitched noises heard before her attack and defense were punched through right there and then. The dazzling light about her seemed to be torn to the sides.


    She was unable to even gather strength before sensing sword will zipping past, and the Sword of Kasyapa appeared right before her eyes.


    "You asked to see my sword, and I''d like to know if you''re ready to take what you asked for," Ye Futian said, without bothering to give her any face at all.

 1130 Hunt in West Mountain

    Li Xiao''s long hair billowed, and terrifying sword aura tore through the air. The currents slapped on her face, making her feel suffocating pressure.


    Her face looked rather pale before seeing Ye Futian swiped and rescinded his sword. The sword will then dissipated.


    The royal members on the drill ground looked at Ye Futian, astonished by the power demonstrated by the number one below Saint Plane of Dali Dynasty. He was indeed overwhelmingly powerful. Li Xiao was a princess of the royal family, and her powers were not as appalling as they appeared. However, she was unable to even lift a finger against the Seventh Swordsman''s sword. That was a testament to his absolute power.


    "The Sword of Kasyapa." Many royal members came to have thoughts when they saw that sword at work. His majesty was indeed generous towards Dali Academy. The Sword of Kasyapa that King Tiandao had sent from the royal palace was something many of the royal kin had not been even able to lay eyes on, and yet there the Seventh Swordsman was, having already trained in the use of said skill.


    Li Xiao''s chest heaved, and the sword aura had cut several strands of hair at her forehead. Her eyes were seen glaring at Ye Futian. That b*sard sure didn''t bother giving her any face.


    "Alright, Li Xiao. The Seventh Swordsman long proved his powers. You''re practically asking for a beating to have him draw his sword," Li Xun smiled and said. He then turned to the crowd and said, "Well, the crowd is almost ready. Where is third brother, by the way?"


    The Royal Hunt this time was in charge by the third prince. He was the one to lead the way.


    "The third prince is here." Many turned their eyes in one direction at that moment. A group of people was seen walking up to the crowd. The few at the very forefront exuded supreme bearing. The young man who took the lead resembled the eighth prince somewhat. They were full-blooded brothers from the same mother.


    The people around the third prince were royalty as well. Ye Futian looked puzzled as he turned to look at their direction. That was because there was a familiar face behind one of the royal members, who was at the third prince''s side.


    Di Hao of Daoli Mountain.


    Well then, those are people of King Tiandao, Ye Futian thought.


    Ye Futian was not wrong. The person at the side of the third prince was the biological son of King Tiandao, Li Ze.


    Ye Futian came to have some thoughts seeing all that. It seemed that the factions among the royalty were more apparent than he imagined them to be.


    Being the Renhuang, Emperor Li did not concern himself with the fighting between those below him. Regardless of the power struggles between them, they would not be able to threaten his position, nor would they have dared to do so. Those people were mostly fighting over ideological differences.


    Competition on a fair scale would have been beneficial. As such, the factions held themselves out in the open.


    The third prince walked with the people of King Tiandao while Li Xun and Li Yao chose to get near the imperial advisor of Dali. Li Xun and the others were the ones present in the battles at Dali Academy back then.


    Furthermore, Li Xuan was at the Prince Regent''s side. He and the eighth prince were of the same team, and both princes were of the same line.


    Things became apparent when they were to be looked at that way. The third prince and the eighth prince was close to the royal kin, and they distanced themselves from the ones taking the side of the imperial advisor.


    Most royal kin were actually neutral or had no intentions of participating in the fight, and then some were deemed unqualified to be part of the power struggle.


    King Tiandao and the Prince Regent, as well as the imperial advisor of Dali, were the three who stood at the pinnacle right below Emperor Li.


    But then again, Ye Futian knew that the imperial advisor would not have bothered with any of that.


    "Brother," Li Xun and the others called.


    "Your Highness." The others cupped their hands. The third prince had a high status among the nine princes of Dali Imperial City. His talents had even eclipsed that of the eldest prince and the second prince.


    Many expected the third prince to be able to achieve great things in the future.


    "Brother, someone pointed a sword at me," Li Xiao went up to him and began making accusations.


    "Well, who would be bold enough to do that to you?" the third prince smiled and asked. It was apparent that he knew well of the temperament of his little sister.


    Due to her being the youngest among the sibling and a woman, the princes tended to spoil her, and it had always been her who went about bullying others.


    "Him." Li Xiao pointed at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian frowned and felt faint disgust at the flippant temperament of Li Xiao.


    Xia Qingyuan was also a princess, and both of them had great pride. However, Xia QIngyuan''s pride was borne out of solid prowess, while Li Xiao''s pride was something resulting from her spoiled upbringing instead.


    The third prince looked at Ye Futian, then smiled and said, "I have always wanted to see the new student of the imperial advisor up close and personal. I saw what Di Hao was capable of. It was quite a pity that I wasn''t able to witness that fight being pinnacle figures below Saint Plane that day. But here at west mountain, we will be able to compete."


    "Your Highness," Ye Futian called as he cupped his hands. The third prince was a saint, and it was a given he would not have behaved like Li Xiao.


    "Brother," Li Xiao called.


    "You were the one who told the Seventh Swordsman to draw his sword, no?" The third prince took a look at Li Xiao, who was pouting.


    "Alright, we''re all here now. Let''s go," the third prince said, and howls of dragons were heard throughout the drill ground. One carriage pulled by holy golden dragons after another took off. The princes took their places in the carriages while the rest stepped onto the backs of the dragons. They all took flight while the dragons howled as they shot into the clouds.


    ...


    The west mountain was not one mountain, but a region of mountains that seemed endless. A gigantic matrix enveloped the mountains. Any demonic beasts that were exiled there would have only been able to survive in the mountains.


    Only members of the royal family of Dali were allowed access to the winding mountains, which served as a massive hunting ground.


    And only royalty would have had the spirit to maintain a hunting ground with sacred beasts in it to be used to train the students of the royal family.


    The west mountain was a place where demonic beasts gathered.


    The dragon carriages descended from above onto a tall mountain in the west mountain region. Massive groups of mighty ones of the royal family descended and set their eyes forward. The place was filled with demonic aura and looked rather desolate.


    "The west mountain was a place where demonic beasts gathered a long, long time ago. There were many races of demonic beasts found here, and the royal family had been here hunting for a very long time. As the number of hunts grew, some powerful sacred beasts began to leave the west mountain. As such, the royal family created a huge matrix to place the region in a lockdown, and the west mountain became a hunting ground specifically for the royal family," Li Yao said to Ye Futian as he walked out of the carriage.


    "Furthermore, the royal members never attacked and killed any demonic beasts that were of lower training than they were in every hunt. Those beasts were allowed to grow, and the royal members only acted against demonic beasts of similar or higher levels to their own."


    Ye Futian nodded and asked, "So there shouldn''t be demonic beasts that were too powerful in the west mountain then?"


    "Most are below the level of demon saints. Even if there were demon saints, they would be at the first level. Most of the great monsters left back then. There were also demonic beasts that proved useful to the royal members, and they were placed under control. Those who refused to submit were exiled to the west mountain. Demonic beasts at the second level of Saint Plane had indeed almost gone extinct. But then again, there were times where demonic beasts evolved and changed.


    "As such, it is imperative never to allow oneself to drift away from the group. Demonic beasts of higher training have intelligence on par with humans, and they, too, would hunt us. There have been casualties in every hunt in the past, and most resulted from some being too sure of themselves in the hunt, thinking that they would be okay going solo. Of course, there have been cases where demonic beasts ganged up and killed the royal members as well. As such, despite being here to hunt, we need to be on guard.


    "Seventh Swordsman, if you find rare, powerful demonic beasts, feel free to tame them and make them your steed."


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded, but that thought never actually crossed his mind. It was acceptable for him to temper his powers by fighting the demonic beasts of the west mountain.


    The third prince took to the air, and many powerful saints followed. They came to the air and said, "It''s up to you people from here on out. Let''s go."


    "Let''s go."


    One figure after another went forward and made for the inner parts of the mountains. The hunt in the west mountain was mostly meant as a training for the younger generations of the royal family, tempering combat capacity of mighty ones at Sage Plane. Some saints made a move occasionally, taking on sacred beasts.


    The mighty ones among the royal members moved with brimming spirits. They were all of the younger generations. Powerful saints were in charge of things from above.


    "There is a basilisk about a hundred miles southwest," some powerful saint in the air said. The royal members then hasten their steps as they headed southwest.


    They saw a hundred-meter-long basilisk slithering between the mountains, trying to escape soon enough.


    The basilisk had a blue head and a black body. It emanated extremely dangerous aura all over.


    Some mighty one among the royal members held a bow and an arrow. Golden flashes glimmered as dazzling light pulsed. The arrow was shot through the air with a terrifying force.


    That basilisk opened its mouth and blew a breath of great stench. A devouring vortex appeared on that mouth, swallowing the arrow, and the snake continued to run after closing its mouth.


    It was a basilisk at the pinnacle of Sage Plane and had talents of devouring powers. It was capable of devouring an elephant in one go.


    Some royal youths at the pinnacle of Sage Plane sped up and moved forward, quickly catching up to the snake, intending to make their first kill.


    The basilisk knew that it had no hope of escape and turned around to spit venom. The fluid flew at the crowd. It opened its huge mouth and began sucking in a direction, intending to devour someone.


    That person retreated backward in a hurry. Another dazzling light was seen, and charged into the devouring power, heading straight into the snake''s stomach. A loud rumble was heard as the basilisk was blown up from the inside. A mighty one of the royal family emerged basking in dazzling light.


    "Uninterested?" Li Yao asked Ye Futian, who never budged at his side throughout the whole time.


    Ye Futian nodded. He was indeed uninterested as he wanted to test his hands against demonic beasts at saint levels.


    "Your Highness, I''d like to train on my own," Ye Futian said.


    Li Yao was dumbfounded. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "You should have heard what I said earlier. There are demonic beasts who will hunt us in the west mountain. Going solo is dangerous."


    "You''ve also said that there are few great monsters of saint level around. Even if I come across any, I''m confident that I''ll be able to protect myself. Fear of the unknown has no place in the training in swordsmanship. If something turns out to be more than what I can handle, I will send signals to inform you, Your Highness," Ye Futian said. It was rather inconvenient for him to be going along with a huge group.


    "How insolent," Li Xiao said coldly from not far away.


    "Do you care to join me, princess?" Ye Futian looked at Li Xiao and said.


    Li Xiao glared at him. There was no way she would have gone off on her own.


    "Alright then," Li Yao nodded in agreement, seeing how insistent Ye Futian was.


    "Your Highness, I''ll be off then." Ye Futian flashed and left, riding his sword. Many watched him leave and thought, That guy is indeed the Seventh Swordsman.


    Unruly and bold.


    "I''m going solo as well," Di Hao said and stepped forward. If Ye Futian dared to do so, he did not see any reason not to do so himself.


    "The Seventh Swordsman and Di Hao are not royal members, and yet they are daring enough to go solo. While we, by no means, are doing the same, there is indeed no need for so many of us to be grouped together. Let''s split up," the third prince said.


    "Alright." Everyone agreed. Past hunts had always been separated into smaller groups. While doing so was a lot more dangerous, training by doing so would prove more fruitful.


    "Be careful," the third prince said. The groups split up and headed into the depths of the west mountain in different directions.

 1131 Chiseltooth, the Demon Sain

    Ye Futian headed out solo into the ranges within the west mountain. He passed by desolate mountains as he kept moving forward within the clouds. There were also many demonic beasts to be found within, but he did not bother paying them any attention.


    There were many valleys, jungles, and marshes within the region. Ye Futian was wondering what kind of level that grand matrix covering the entire region needed to be.


    The west mountain had long been a place where demonic beasts gathered. It was practically a nation of the demonic beasts. The place was so vast that it was comparable to a large city.


    One could have only imagined how large the area that was covered by that matrix would have been.


    Ye Futian looked somewhere below the mountains, discovering that there was a river. There was a group of black, ferocious beasts near the river which resembled bulls. They had single horns and emanating wild, unruly aura. Their hide looked like armor.


    "Fiends. Si, it would seem."


    Ferocious eyes scanned the air above and found that Ye Futian was all alone. Those demonic beasts took to the air while their eyes spoke only of hostility.


    "Get lost," Ye Futian berated coldly. None of those demonic beasts were sacred, and the strongest among them were only beasts at the pinnacle of Sage Plane.


    Boom. The demonic beasts began running about as soon as he finished talking. Towering might enveloped the region, and the space around them was shaken. Ye Futian felt that his internal organs were all rattling and his blood boiling. The world around him seemed to be shaking as the beasts ran.


    Ye Futian lifted his right arm and swiped at the air. Sword will circled around him within an instant, like some terrifying storm.


    "Go."


    He pointed his finger forward, and the Sword of Raging Storm streaked through the air as it headed forward. A straight line was drawn with a terrifying sword will bringing impossibly powerful tearing might.


    Pffttt...


    Noises were heard as several demonic beasts were bloodied, retreating to the sides soon enough. However, there were other Si at the pinnacle of Sage Plane charged at Ye Futian. The Sword of Raging Storms imbued with formidable might had managed to do little more than grazing them.


    Black shimmer was seen as the demonic beasts continued to charge at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was rather startled. It was said in the legends that Si possessed frightening defensive capacities, and their hides and bodies were commonly made into armor-type implements, imbuing the finished products with the function of repelling blades of all kinds. It was a testament to their formidable defensive prowess.


    The hide of a Si at saint levels could probably be used to craft saint level armor, and cultivators of similar levels would have a hard time breaking through their defenses.


    Many powerful demonic kinds possessed special talents from birth, and said talents continued to grow throughout their lives.


    The body that stood tall in the air continued to shake. Ye Futian glanced at the ferocious beasts that were charging at him, then took a step forward and charged, imbuing powers of the great path into his attack.


    Boom. A stifled rumble was heard in the air. Terrifying will of the great path swept through the place with Ye Futian as the center. A huge sword coalesced and was brought down onto the Si that was charging at him.


    The Si had noticed the looming crisis and let out restless roars.


    Boom. Ye Futian continued to go forward and brought his huge sword down onto the fiends. A Si clashed with the blade in an instant. That Si felt as if its internal organs had been rattled to the point of breaking. It was sent flying, spitting up blood. All the other demonic beasts retreated right away, eyeing Ye Futian cautiously.


    Ye Futian glanced at them and stepped forward before passing right through them and leaving.


    He came to see many other great monsters, and he continued his way forward. There were rare snakes that had wings, and then the great monster, Jimeng, which had a humanoid body and a dragon head in the rivers. There were many monsters hardly seen elsewhere that lived in the west mountain. The mountainous region of the west mountain was an extremely bustling country of the demonic beasts once upon a time.


    He came to wonder what the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was like. The demonic beasts over there would have been of even greater numbers.


    Ye Futian came to an ancient mountain that was entirely white, from the very top to the bottom.


    There was a figure sitting quietly at the top of that mountain. It was an elder with silver hair whose body was bent. The hair dropped to its waist.


    It sat quietly there and looked up when it saw Ye Futian came, commenting in a low voice at him, "You saw me here, and you dared to come alone?"


    Ye Futian naturally realized that the figure was not a human, but a demonic beast taking a human form.


    Sacred beasts were capable of taking human forms, and there were also demonic beasts that descended from demonic beasts that became sacred beasts after absorbing the essence of the world. Those beasts were capable of taking human forms.


    Ye Futian had seen a Jiuying, which was a sacred beast, a long time ago. As such, he did not feel the encounter to be peculiar.


    "What kind of a demonic beast are you, senior?" Ye Futian asked. He was, without a doubt, able to sense the strong demonic aura emanating from the other party, which was why that being said what it had said earlier.


    That elder stood up, and its body grew in a frenzy, turning into a hundred meter-tall giant. Its head changed and turned to look extremely ferocious and terrifying, like that of a devil. Teeth grew out of its mouth, and they looked incredibly sharp, glistening with terrifying sheen.


    A long dagger-ax appeared in its right hand, emanating terrifying sharpness.


    One demonic beast after another walked out of the cliffs, which looked like that beast, as they were of the same race.


    "Chiseltooth," Ye Futian quipped.


    "Seems like you know your stuff," the Chiseltooth sacred beast said. Its devil-like head looked extremely ferocious, and its eyes gleamed with frightening killing intent.


    The silver-haired elder was none other than the extraordinarily ferocious and brutal Chiseltooth demonic beast told in legends, who enjoyed killing very much.


    The sword will around Ye Futian''s body was towering and howled. His might of the great path seeped out as his expression turned serious.


    It was the first time he was truly facing a saint level demonic beast. His spirit and mettle had reached the pinnacle due to his training during the time in Dali Dynasty. He had developed comprehension of many wills of the great path, and he wanted to see if he could fight a saint level great monster.


    Boom. That tall and ferocious Chiseltooth stepped forward. The mountains shook, and cracks were seen everywhere. It lashed out with the dagger-ax in its hand straight at Ye Futian. The space that Ye Futian was in seemed to freeze, and he was shrouded by stifling power.


    The dagger-ax shot out in a straight line at him, seeming about to tear the sky apart.


    Ye Futian extended his hand and a heavy sword that was just as huge as his opponent''s dagger-ax appeared before him. Towering sword will imbued with the power of the great path was gathered, like a sacred sword.


    Nan Zhai once said that the divine path was one manifested through the union of humans and the world around them. Every move they made melded with the great path. Before he was able to make a breakthrough, his mind was within that space measured in square inches. His will of the great path was hardly formidable, yet within that space, his power was quite formidable still. His way of the sword itself carried the powers he used to wield.


    For example, the power of his physical body had neared that of saint levels.


    Ye Futian stepped out, and his steps were imbued with the will of the great path, emanating terrifying might within. The heavy sword shot at the dagger-ax coming down from above. Both weapons clashed.


    Boom. A stifling, terrifying rumble was heard, and devastating light swept throughout their surroundings. The ancient mountain beneath them crumbled in a frenzy. All the other Chiseltooths retreated, looking at the air with startled eyes.


    The heavy sword continued to crumble, and yet, it was able to stop the attack from the dagger-ax. That Chiseltooth''s arm was rattled, and its ferocious eyes glanced at Ye Futian.


    It was startled that a human cultivator who had yet to become a saint had been able to withstand its attack.


    The ferocious killing intent within its eyes grew even stronger. He took one step out and moved like a brutal demon god. Its arms were brought down alongside its entire body. That dagger-ax swooped down with even greater force.


    Will of the great path of space emanated from Ye Futian. He streaked through the air while tearing through the stifling might before him. However, the devastating power of the great path restrained the surroundings around them, suppressing him and preventing him from moving much from where he stood.


    But then again, he was still circled with a terrifying sword will. He stepped into the air and tore through that pressure. The dagger-ax came straight at him. His body evaded it by mere inches. He then burst through the air, heading straight for the head of that Chiseltooth.


    He had used the limitless pressure of the heavy pressure at the end of the showdown between him and Di Hao to bring his opponent down. He was still using close-quarters combat that he was adept in while dealing with the demonic saint right before him. The power that he was so well-versed in did not give him an edge. His opponent was of great size and had peerless offensive capacity. He had to resort to other measures to fight.


    Swords of Kasyapa coalesced from the sword will howling about him. He waved his hands and sent the swords streaking through the air.


    The Chiseltooth glanced at the swords coming for it and took one step forward. The spiritual powers which Ye Futian was using to control the Swords of Kasyapa seemed to have been blocked by some formless power. That resistance was something that had not been there when he was facing off against sages.


    The way of training with the Sword of Kasyapa was rather special. The swords were controlled by infusing one''s spiritual powers into the sword will directly, achieving absolute control before terrifying power was brought forth.


    At that moment, the spiritual will power in Ye Futian''s mind was cranked to the maximum, enabling the Swords of Kasyapa to tear through that resistance and continue to streak forward, heading straight for the head of the Chiseltooth.


    A shield appeared on the left arm of that Chiseltooth when it saw the incoming swords. The shield had a ring of extremely sharp fang-like contraptions, which spun about like gears.


    It held the shield up before its head while continuing to step forward. The world around them shook, and the mountains below them exploded and crumbled, while the dagger-ax continued to swing at Ye Futian.


    The Swords of Kasyapa hit the shield, and high-pitched noises were heard. They were unable to break through the shield. The swords then moved around the shield and manifested countless shadows of the sword, appearing and disappearing time and again, as if they were able to turn ethereal altogether.


    That was a move resulting from fusing the Sword Sutra of the Void with that of the Sword of Kasyapa.


    Ye Futian retreated in a hurry, but that raging, ferocious demonic beast moved alongside him. It streaked through the space, and the dagger-ax caused countless huge specters of the dagger-ax to appear in the air, tearing through their surroundings, intending to pin Ye Futian where he was.


    Ye Futian''s speed was unnervingly fast. He continued to tear through space using the sword will of space, but his opponent continued to charge forward and lock onto his body. Mountains crumbled wherever they passed, and many smaller, lesser demonic beasts scatter in fright in their presence.


    Ye Futian continued to maintain tight control of the Swords of Kasyapa circling above the Chiseltooth. Those swords seemed to have turned into sword matrixes as they continued to circle their target. The Chiseltooth felt dazed somewhat when the swords howled, feeling that it was being attacked.


    Thousands of shadows of the sword shot down at it, aimed at every direction where its head was.


    Roar. That Chiseltooth roared, and their surroundings shook. The shield in its hand continued to grow in a frenzy, shrouding the sky above and put the place on lockdown, while the dagger-ax in its hand continued to lash out at Ye Futian.

 1132 Depths of West Mountain

    Killing pressure shrouded the area where Ye Futian was. Countless dagger-axes were swung his way, giving him nowhere to retreat.


    His sword spirit appeared, and the World Tree within his Life Palace swayed. Multiple types of will of the great path emanated from his body as he melded with the great path. An extremely dazzling screen of the sword isolated the space and enveloped his body within.


    His sword spirit grew in a frenzy, turning into a colossal sword measuring over 100 meters. It shot forward. The screen of the sword covered in the entire space, with his sword spirit as the center.


    Boom!


    Yet another thundering sound was heard. Stifling rumbles were felt everywhere. An extremely tall mountain right behind Ye Futian crumbled in a blink of an eye, turning into dust.


    The devastating light continued to spread around in a frenzy with the bodies of them both at the center, its pressure extending over 100 miles.


    The dagger-ax clashed with the sword spirit, and Ye Futian''s body was thrown back. Countless dagger-axes killed their way through, yet that absolute screen of light burst with terrifyingly devastating force, tearing the shadows of the dagger-axes to shreds.


    Terrifying clashing rumble continued to be heard above the Chiseltooth. The shield repelled the sword, causing the Swords of Kasyapa to turn around and fly straight towards the Chiseltooth''s enormous body.


    However, extremely powerful might of the great path manifested around the Chiseltooth''s body. The Swords of Kasyapa burst through that might and shot for his body, but were unable to deal more than flesh wounds. The Chiseltooth''s hide was visibly torn, yet the blades were unable to pierce into its body.


    Demonic beasts like the Chiseltooth were poor in magical arts, yet their prowess in close-quarter combat and defense were frighteningly formidable. They were like human cultivators who attained sainthood and melded with the great path through their formidable physical bodies.


    Saints were undoubtedly saints, and there was a clear line drawn. Ye Futian might have been peerless below the Saint Plane and possessed unparalleled talents, yet it was simply too difficult to make that one last step, and it seemed as if only a handful were capable of making it.


    There had been renowned figures throughout history who were all unable to kill saints when they were still sages.


    When one shook off one''s mortal limitations and became a saint, they would meld with the great path and shed their mortal self.


    Despite sustaining only flesh wounds, the Chiseltooth roared in a fury. It was unable to believe that a human sage had injured it. Furthermore, the fight had been going on for so long, and it still had yet to kill the human.


    It deemed this unacceptable.


    It continued to step forward, and the sky shook furiously. The dagger-ax continued to attack the sword spirit, intending to crush it. Ye Futian''s body was dragged behind against his will.


    Boom.


    Ye Futian stepped in the air when he retreated, causing him to take steps backward. Even so, his steps still shook furiously. The might of his body did not weaken and had become increasingly strong instead.


    However, Ye Futian continued to look very puny and insignificant.


    Boom. He took yet another step onto a mountain right behind him, causing a terrifying tear to run through the entire mountain. However, he and the humongous body of that Chiseltooth rammed into the mountain, shattering it.


    As he continued to take his steps, both of them tore through over a dozen mountains, and the Chiseltooth''s speed slowed after that. Ye Futian''s might had been cranked to its peak by that, becoming able to withstand the Chiseltooth''s attacks.


    Furthermore, the Swords of Kasyapa continued to circle, finding openings to shoot into the Chiseltooth''s head.


    The Chiseltooth reeled its arm back and lifted the dagger-ax. Its body spun, and the shield on its left hand bashed onto the Swords of Kasyapa. The dagger-ax in its right hand shot down like godly weapons, destroying the landscape below it.


    Boom. Ye Futian took one step forward, and the might accumulated by the Footwork of Xuanyuan had risen to its peak. His body streaked through the air while his sword spirit pulsed with dazzling brilliance. It was as if layers of shadows of the sword had appeared and clashed with the dagger-ax again.


    In a split second, the world around them seemed to be near total annihilation. Ye Futian''s body was thrown far off, yet the Chiseltooth was thrown several steps back at that time.


    The Swords of Kasyapa found an opening to exploit. The flash of the sword came and went in a split second when the shield in its hand was unable to withstand the attack. A bloodied gash was seen on its neck, yet the blades were unable to punch into its body. It was simply too difficult to kill a demon saint who had an extremely formidable constitution.


    The Chiseltooth pulled back its dagger-ax and clapped onto the Swords of Kasyapa, crushing them between its fingers. Ye Futian took the chance to charge forward through the space, holding the Sword of Raging Storms capable of tearing space apart in his hand.


    More Swords of Kasyapa coalesced and streaked through the air as they came. The Chiseltooth resorted to biting on the swords, and it managed to catch one.


    Ye Futian''s charging form appeared right before it, and the sword was brought down. It bashed the shield on its hand at the Swords of Kasyapa while chomping down on Ye Futian with its sharp fangs.


    The sword flew out of his hand, and his body streaked through the air to avoid the fangs. The flash of the sword left a bloodied gash at the corner of its mouth. It was broken after wounding the beast.


    The Chiseltooth looked extraordinarily ferocious and glared at Ye Futian with unforgiving eyes.


    Voom. Ye Futian flashed and streaked past its head while it was thinking of ways to kill Ye Futian. He headed straight for its rear at an unimaginable speed as he streaked through the air.


    The Swords of Kasyapa continued to head for the beast as if trying to prevent it from going anywhere. The Chiseltooth seemed to have realized something and ran following the path it came. However, the Swords of Kasyapa were everywhere, affecting its speed.


    Ye Futian streaked past the air at an unbelievable speed. He returned to the place where the battle took place, glancing at the pack of Chiseltooths below. He glanced at the Chiseltooths below with demonic eyes, before diving into the pack like a bolt of lightning.


    He came right before all of the Chiseltooth demonic beasts before long. Two bodies of the demonic beasts were left on the ground before he continued to head forward and leave the place.


    The demon saint ran and came back to where the fight started. It roared in rage after finding the two bodies on the ground, but it did not pursue him. It had been unable to kill the human, after all.


    The demonic beasts roared in sorrow, and there were demonic beasts that said, "My king, those humans are killing our people in cold blood. Can''t we hunt them down instead?"


    "That''s right. Better to ally with the other demonic races than to let the humans hunt us all down."


    The Chiseltooth''s eyes were cold before it shrunk its body and said, "We''ll leave this place first."


    The humans never acted alone when they came every time. What the two of them did over there would probably attract a lot of attention, making it unwise for them to stay around for long.


    A group of people arrived not long after they left. The leading figure was none other than Princess Li Xiao. She stared at the bodies below and said in a low voice, "Did that guy really fight a demon saint?"


    "I''m afraid so, Princess," one of the people who were there to protect her sensed the lingering aura of combat and said.


    Li Xiao''s expression looked rather peculiar. She thought that demonic beasts would have killed that proud fellow, and yet she found him being able to survive fighting a demon saint instead.


    Furthermore, he killed two demonic beasts while he was at it.


    Ye Futian continued to travel forward. That battle allowed him to learn something about his powers. Furthermore, he did not expose any of his powers other than those of the sword.


    That place was the west mountain, and it belonged to Dali royalty, after all. Who was to say if there were any eyes around in that place?


    He may have looked unbridled and proud in Dali, but he was very cautious.


    Ye Futian fought many other demonic beast types along the way, and there were naturally demon saints among them, with one of them being a nine-headed snake, which proved very difficult and almost held him back.


    There was also an extremely violent Zhu Yan, which had formidable combat prowess and a lot more terrifying than the Chiseltooth, who managed to injure him.


    Ye Futian had been able to venture deep into the west mountain after experiencing many, many battles for the few days he was there. He had accumulated several injuries, but he was unhindered due to his formidable restorative powers.


    However, with every battle, he came to learn more about powers at the Saint Plane. While demon saints were somewhat different from their human counterparts, the difference was not that far off.


    By then, he had become able to retreat in one piece, fighting against saints at the first level of Saint Plane.


    He was even able to find opportunities to leave some marks on those saints, but it continued to prove near-impossible to kill the saints. If he let his guard down, the retaliation would have been dire.


    ...


    Li Yao and the others were doing battle with demonic beasts in another corner of the west mountain. Many dead bodies of demonic beasts were found on the ground a while later.


    Li Yao''s face looked unusually gloomy. Several saints surrounded him.


    Royal members had perished in the hunt in the west mountain but never had there been a prince killed.


    The safety of the princes was of utmost importance.


    "Wretched beasts." Li Yao glanced coldly at the dead bodies on the ground. He had suffered being surrounded by demonic beasts for the past several days. It seemed to him that those beasts had gotten tired of living.


    "Let''s go and find the others. These demonic beasts are beginning to retaliate, and they are now hunting us. I''m afraid some of us are in danger, and I wonder how the Seventh Swordsman is doing right now," Li Yao said.


    The Seventh Swordsman seemed to be making great strides after going solo. He had gone deep into the west mountain, and no one else saw any signs of him.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was sitting before a river and was training. There was a dense jungle in the mountains. His eyes were closed, and his aura calm.


    He opened his eyes and looked at that river before him with a deadpan look. He saw the demonic beasts that Li Yao had encountered.


    It did not seem all that hopeful to manipulate the demonic beasts into killing that prince of Dali Dynasty. But then again, he never had much hope for that to become a reality in the first place. He was trying things out.


    Li Yao was somewhat cautious, and his powers had yet to get to the level of being invincible below Saint Plane, so there was no way he would have gone solo like Ye Futian.


    At that moment, Ye Futian sensed formidable spiritual powers descending, which prompted him to look far away.


    A group of people was heading his way, and one of them asked, "What are you doing here, Brother Seventh Swordsman?"


    Ye Futian glanced at the one who spoke and found him to be the grandson of the Prince Regent, Li Xuan. The ones around him were the people of the Prince Regent.


    Seeing Li Xuan''s smile, Ye Futian rose and flashed, leaving right away.


    He and Li Xuan were hardly acquainted, and one could have even said that they were enemies.


    Brother Seventh Swordsman?


    Better keep my distance from this guy, Ye Futian thought.


    "This place is already in the depths of the west mountain, and great monsters are everywhere. It''s simply too dangerous for you to go forth on your own, Brother Seventh Swordsman. How about we travel together instead?" Li Xuan and his people caught up to Ye Futian and tried to convince him.


    Ye Futian frowned.


    At that moment, rustling was heard from the jungle, and many weak demonic beasts were flapping their wings as they left the place. There was also an increasing number of signs of demonic beasts running.


    Powerful demonic aura swept through the place, shrouding the entire area.


    Ye Futian glanced at Li Xuan. Extreme coldness was seen in his eyes.

 1133 The Candle Dragons Killing Inten

    From the way how the demonic beasts ran, it was evident that they had sensed something perilous; some great monster was coming.


    An extremely cold will shrouded the vast space at that moment, and Ye Futian shuddered, feeling a chill running down his spine. The jungle below actually became covered by a layer of frost, being frozen over altogether.


    However, that was not the end of it. In the very next moment, terrifying scorching will emerged. The chill was turned into heat, and a great swath of the jungle below wilted in a frenzy.


    The cycle of heat and cold went on over and over. Ye Futian did not hesitate to keep speeding away, leaving that space and returning from whence he came.


    Li Xuan had ulterior motives, and the very reason Ye Futian returned following the tracks he came so far was to get near others from the Dali Dynasty.


    Far away in the sky, a great monster of crimson colors all over it sped. Fauna wilted everywhere it passed. Every breath it took caused a cycle of heat and cold. The place became covered with frost as it exhaled, and scorching heat was all over the place when it inhaled.


    That monster was hundreds of meters long and had hard scales all over its body. Its colossal head resembled that of a human, and it had horns. The human-headed-dragon-bodied monster was known as Zhuyin, also known as the candle dragon.


    The candle dragon sped away forward, chasing after Li Xuan.


    There were saints among Li Xuan''s party, and the direction they traveled in was the one Ye Futian was going in. Despite streaking through the sky at great speeds, he was still unable to shake off their pursuit.


    The saints were traveling at unimaginable speeds. It was as if their bodies had become one with their surroundings.


    That candle dragon was moving at extreme speeds as well, continuing to close in on Li Xuan''s party, which naturally meant that it was closing in on Ye Futian as well.


    "Huuu..." The candle dragon exhaled, and its surroundings were frozen over. Freezing will of the great path swept through the sky, and the space seemed to have frozen over. Ye Futian''s speed became greatly affected. He was then circled by sword wills, which zipped through his surroundings, cutting down the freezing will as he continued moving forward, yet his speed had visibly dropped.


    "Faster, Brother Seventh Swordsman." At that moment, Li Xuan and his party, who were all riding on divine implements, surpassed Ye Futian. Ye Futian glanced at them with cold eyes, but he did not say anything. The sword will around him grew stronger and howled in a frenzy, tearing the freezing power around him as he moved.


    Ye Futian tried changing course and headed in a direction different from Li Xuan, yet the candle dragon still had its eyes on him, so he had no choice but to keep moving forward.


    The candle dragon caught up shortly after. Its eyes closed in a split second. Light was drained from his surroundings, and the place turned as dark as night.


    With the place turning dark all of a sudden, Ye Futian felt as if he had gone blind and was unable to see anything. He was only moving forward, guided by his instincts. However, his spiritual powers were greatly restrained and had succumbed to the darkness as well.


    He naturally knew that it was an innate talent of the candle dragon.


    The World Tree in his Life Palace swayed, and slivers of aura emanated, shrouding him, allowing him to sense everything around him. His eyes changed, seemingly imbued with divine light, enabling him to see through the darkness. Despite still being affected, he was no longer blind.


    A strong sense of crisis loomed over him. Cold will shrouded his body, and terrifying pressure was getting close. A huge claw was launched at him. He was like an ant when compared to the humongous body of the candle dragon, looking puny and insignificant.


    Saints were different despite being on the same plane, and the same naturally applied to the demonic beasts as well.


    That candle dragon was also a demon saint on the first level of Saint Plane, but it was more powerful than the ones he had fought before.


    Swords of Kasyapa manifested from the sword will around him, and it shot backward, zipping through the sky like bolts of lightning, streaking past the candle dragon''s claw. It headed straight for its human-like head.


    The candle dragon''s condescending eyes took a glance at Ye Futian, and it exhaled again. Frost shot through their surroundings, and the space before it was frozen over. The Swords of Kasyapa that appeared were frozen by the frost, stopping where they were.


    A huge Sword of Raging Storms coalesced right before Ye Futian. He turned around, and the claw banged onto the sword, sending Ye Futian''s body flying away.


    His body was sent back thousands of meters. He stood in the air. The candle dragon opened its eyes and dispelled the darkness, returning light to their surroundings.


    "I believe we have no enmity, senior. Aren''t you pursuing the wrong person?" Ye Futian said.


    The candle dragon glanced at him, condescending, and continued to move forward. It opened its mouth and exhaled. At that moment, their surroundings were frozen over, and Ye Futian felt as if he was about to turn into a statue of ice. The World Tree in his body swayed, and the light of the sun emanated from his body. He became scorching hot throughout his being in that very instant. It was as if suns were hanging on his body, dispelling the cold.


    A dazzling screen of the sword that tore through space appeared around him. He held onto the sword with both hands and continued to step forward. The space shook as he did, his might resounding throughout his surroundings. It was as if he would combine with the great will and the powers imbued within his sword.


    Voom. The body that was shrouded in the screen of the sword tore the will of the great path of freezing right away as he charged at the candle dragon. The candle dragon closed its eyes again, turning the surroundings into darkness. Yet, it did not manage to affect Ye Futian''s eyes, which were gleaming with divine light. The sword tore through space and grazed the candle dragon''s claw as it headed straight for its head, yet the might of the great path of heat and cold was merely overwhelming.


    It became difficult for the sword to travel, and the dragon''s claw was brought down again. His sword was shattered, and he was sent flying yet again. Blood was seeping out of his mouth as he grunted.


    He did not continue to retreat this time. He held onto his sword and glared at the candle dragon.


    Li Xuan and his people had been far away from where he was by then. Cold killing intent was seen in Li Xuan''s eyes.


    Regardless of how powerful Ye Futian was, he deemed that the only outcome that would have resulted from facing a demon saint candle dragon was death.


    Going solo?


    Not even conventional saints at the first level dared not venture out alone in the west mountain, as it was possible to encounter demon saints.


    Ye Futian dared to venture deep into the west mountain alone due to having formidable combat capacity, which Li Xuan deemed to be stupid.


    If Ye Futian were to die in the candle dragon''s hands, it would have had nothing to do with him.


    "Beware. Demonic beasts approaching." A voice was heard, and Li Xu, Li Xuan''s elder brother, frowned. He was a saint and sensed dangerous aura looming. There was powerful demonic aura emanating from far away.


    Li Xuan and his party stopped and sensed powerful demonic aura from several directions before them.


    They quickly saw a Chiseltooth demon saint at the front, who brought several sage level demonic beasts with it, but the numbers were fewer than when Ye Futian fought it.


    The Chiseltooth demon saint''s eyes were filled with cold killing intent.


    Li Xuan and the others emanated powerful aura, and they looked in yet another direction, finding an ape-like demonic beast, which was red hot all over as if it was clad in the fires of hell. It held a huge staff in its hand. It was none other than the fiend Zhu Yan.


    There was an extremely ferocious snake demon in yet another direction, which had nine heads.


    Other than the several demon saints, there were also many great monsters at sage levels appearing.


    Li Xuan and his party realized right there and then that demonic beasts were jumping them. Furthermore, it was more than just that of one race. All of them in the party sported glum looks.


    One golden dragon after another emanated from the body of Li Xu, Li Xuan''s elder brother, which shot up to the sky and let out angry roars. Their surroundings shook, and they seemed to be sending a message far away.


    Many looked at the sky in the west mountain. Some of them moved in that direction, and there were some who were attacked.


    "Retreat," Li Xu said, and their bodies began to fly backward. Those demonic beasts charged forward at them, intending to kill them.


    The extremely ferocious and brutal Zhu Yan descended with the fires of hell and brought the staff down on them as if intending to crack the earth open. A saint stepped forward with a divine implement in their hands, bursting with golden defensive images. The space seemed to have been shattered with a loud bang. Li Xuan and his party continued to retreat, and those demonic beasts charged at them, emanating strong killing intent.


    However, Li Xuan''s lineup was indeed powerful. There were three saints among them, and all of them were from the Prince Regent''s Residence.


    Even so, they continued to retreat and were mainly defending. The situation before them was tricky. They were waiting for reinforcements before annihilating the threat before them once and for all.


    Li Xuan and the others retreated to where Ye Futian was fighting the candle dragon shortly after.


    The man and the beast were still fighting at the moment. However, Ye Futian was injured, and yet the sword will continued to circle him.


    Li Xuan frowned, finding it puzzling that the candle dragon had yet to kill the Seventh Swordsman.


    As for the Chiseltooth, the nine-headed snake and the other demon saints, their killing intent shot to their skies when they saw Ye Futian. He had killed their people before, yet he managed to escape.


    Ye Futian naturally knew about the killing intent of those demonic beasts. In truth, those demonic beasts had been drawn to where he was using the sage demonic beasts that he had enthralled.


    Li Xuan and his people wanted so badly to dump me here and leave, eh? Ye Futian thought.


    Those demon saints charged at Ye Futian with cold killing intent, but since Li Xuan and the others were closer, it looked as if those demonic beasts were charging at them instead.


    "Brother Li Xuan, how about we team up?" Ye Futian said and flashed to Li Xuan''s side.


    If Li Xuan wanted so badly to address the Seventh Swordsman as "brother," then he saw no reason to refuse at the moment.


    However, Ye Futian''s mind was cold, and he was filled with killing intent deep down. He naturally noticed the three saints that were with Li Xuan.


    What is this meaning of this? he wondered.


    It meant that they had enough powers to deal with the candle dragon, and yet they led the beast to him before leaving on their own. Their intentions were very clear at this point.


    It was a setup that would have killed him if he were to even be slightly weaker. He would have died otherwise at the hands of the candle dragon.


    If he were to be killed by the demonic beasts in the west mountain, then it could all have been attributed to the fact that his insolence and foolishness doomed the Seventh Swordsman, and it would have had nothing to do with Li Xuan.


    Those demon saints had powerful killing intent towards Ye Futian, and all of them charged at Ye Futian, which made it seem as if they were charging at Li Xuan''s party.


    The three saints acted right away to repel the demon saints'' attacks. The other demonic beasts headed their way in a frenzy as well. A harrowing battle broke out right there and then.


    As for that candle dragon, it kept to itself instead of joining the fray, watching Ye Futian with cold eyes instead.


    At that moment, his huge body moved forward and continued to head for Ye Futian, as if it was determined to have him killed.


    Ye Futian''s brow twitched, and a thought crossed his mind.


    The candle dragon could have been said to have shifted its attention to him because Li Xuan and the others ran.


    Yet, at that moment, despite being around Li Xuan and his party, that candle dragon demon saint still had its eyes on him.


    That might not have been an ill omen for him, after all.

 1134 Interrogation

    Li Xuan saw that Ye Futian continued to get close to him, and he could not help but frown, trying to widen the distance between him and Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian had been pestering him. Although his speed was not as fast as the cultivators of Saint Plane, he was still quicker than Li Xuan; there was no question in catching up with him.


    The candle dragon seemed to be concerned with something and did not make its move.


    Ye Futian said nothing and did not reveal its secret, but the murderous intent was firm in his heart.


    The demonic beasts of West Mountain were all prey to the Sovereign Family, but the wisdom of these prey was not any lesser than that of humans. Moreover, they had the chance to survive by being taken as mounts by the Sovereign Family.


    Since there was an opportunity for survival, then indeed, some agreement could be reached.


    In other words, the candle dragon may have promised to surrender.


    But this candle dragon perhaps did not know that if he killed this disciple of the Imperial Advisor of Dali in public, he would not be able to survive either, and would not have the opportunity to become a mount.


    In other directions, great battles broke out, and several other demonic beasts did not hesitate to turn against Ye Futian. Several people of the Saint Plane of Prince Regent''s Residence also seemed to become aware of it, as they turned and looked back at what was being played out.


    These demonic beasts seemed to be aiming toward the Seventh Swordsman.


    Did the Seventh Swordsman offend them somehow?


    Li Xu retreated in an instant without hesitation and came toward the direction of Li Xuan. Seeing that Ye Futian was constantly approaching Li Xuan to avoid the attack of the candle dragon, a mighty might of the Way suddenly surged from his body, his palms waving, and suddenly, his palm print slammed toward Ye Futian.


    "Get away."


    This palm print was not meant to kill. He would not kill Ye Futian; he only wanted Ye Futian to leave Li Xuan alone.


    Ye Futian waved his sword and cut off the palm print as he was retreating. He glanced at Li Xu with an incredibly cold look.


    Several cultivators of the Saint Plane were also in retreat. Suddenly, Zao Chi, the nine-headed demonic snake and Zhu Yan the Beast turned their attacks to Ye Futian.


    And that candle dragon also stared at Ye Futian coldly. Its gigantic body moved forward.


    In an instant, Ye Futian was facing the attack of the four great Demon Saints.


    "Indeed." People of Prince Regent''s Residence secretly exclaimed. Their attacks were aiming at Ye Futian. This guy even could fight the Demon Saints, and he may have also killed the kin of these demonic beasts, therefore greatly angering them.


    They almost bore the brunt of their rage for the Seventh Swordsman.


    When Li Xuan observed this, his eyes were cold; heaven was watching out for him.


    Before, he had already discovered that Ye Futian had noticed something, but he did not expect that the candle dragon could not kill Ye Futian. If he was allowed to walk out of the West Mountain hunting ground alive, there would inevitably be some trouble. The best thing was to let him die in the hands of the demonic beasts.


    Ye Futian saw the four great demonic saints attacking, and the aura of the ancient tree of the world in his life palace flowed madly. Suddenly, his body released radiant glory, and the sword spirit appeared. Many methods of the universe now gathered around him, his body levitated and shot toward the sky above, a brilliant sword veil appeared on his body.


    The sharp claws of the candle dragon, the long dagger ax of Zao Chi, the long red stick of Zhu Yan the Beast, and the tail of the nine-headed demonic snake came down simultaneously and blasted toward Ye Futian, who attempted to escape from the void.


    Boom!


    The shockingly loud sound came out, and the sword veil fell from the void, and the Sword Qi oscillated in the space.


    Boom!


    Another loud sound was heard. The giant sword was pulverized, and the sword veil began to crack.


    Zhu Yan''s long stick brought with it infinite flames, as if a hellfire was roaring, a wave of flame burned through everything, and Ye Futian''s body fell from the sky. The tail of the nine-tailed demonic snaked also smashed down and slammed him to the ground. Ye Futian felt as if his internal organs were shattered.


    With a loud bang, his body smashed on the ground and created a deep pit.


    The people of the Prince Regent''s Residence watched without intervening. At the same time, some demonic beasts now launched an attack against them. Many demonic beasts rushed toward Li Xuan. The Demon Saint of Prince Regent''s Residence only wanted to force them into retreat, but there were a few beasts that were extremely crazed, and unafraid of death. Therefore, killing them was the only option.


    Apparently, Ye Futian was controlling those demonic beasts. He could not control the Demon Saint, but in the battle a few days ago, he managed to gain control of some of the demons around the Demon Saints. He was going to try to use it to deal with Li Yao, but now he had found other uses for it.


    Seeing that the demonic beasts of their clan had been slaughtered, suddenly, the few Demon Saints turned on the people of the Prince Regent''s Residence.


    As for Ye Futian, who was smashed on the ground, if he was not dead by now, he ought to be fatally injured.


    The candle dragon Demon Saint was still staring at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian climbed out of the deep pit and floated in the air, looking cold and indifferent. If it wasn''t that his physical body was nearly at the Saint level, perhaps this fall alone could have taken eight lives out of him.


    However, because he had been baptized by the medicinal bath to strengthen his already powerful body, he had an especially dominant physique so that he could rise as if nothing had happened.


    When Li Xuan saw this scene, he revealed a strange look. How could he come back from that?


    The infinite sword will was gathering around his body, and it was turning into Swords of Kasyapa, puffing out dazzling aurora of the sword, pointing toward the candle dragon in the void.


    The candle dragon exhaled, spat out icy frost, and suddenly, Ye Futian''s body seemed to be frozen.


    The Swords of Kasyapa broke through the sky and disappeared into the void.


    As Li Xuan was watching this battle in the void, preparing to see how Ye Futian would meet his end, he suddenly sensed danger, and then a terrible sword will surged from the void. His face changed; the sword did not go to the candle dragon but was coming toward him.


    This sudden change of event caught Li Xuan unprepared. He wanted to hide, but it was too late. The Sword of Kasyapa was gone in a flash, pointing now at his throat, even piercing into the skin. Li Xuan suddenly felt a prickling coldness all over his body.


    "If I die, he dies too." A voice burrowed into the ears of Li Xuan. The candle dragon roared, but its body stopped mysteriously and did not continue its attack.


    Ye Futian''s body flashed and came next to Li Xuan. The Sword of Kasyapa puffed out terrible sword will that surrounded Li Xuan. Ye Futian walked up to him and said coldly, "The same mistake was made twice. How come you don''t remember not to repeat them?"


    "What do you mean?" Li Xuan replied coldly, pretending not to understand.


    "Seventh Swordsman, you forgot your place," Li Xun, who was currently fighting with a Demon Saint reprimanded in anger. Ye Futian came next to Li Xuan. He looked at the candle dragon, saying, "How come this candle dragon Demon Saint stopped its attack?"


    "How would I know." Li Xuan''s eyes were cold. He felt like a puppet, who was, once again, controlled by the other party.


    This kind of humiliation made him want to chop Ye Futian into millions of tiny little pieces.


    At this time, there was a whistling sound that came from the void, and a group of people was heading this way. There were a few among them whose aura was extremely dominant. Seeing this, the candle dragon Demon Saint retreated backward, and at the same time, the other three Demon Saints also did the same and started to withdraw.


    The newcomer was the Eighth Prince of the Dali Dynasty.


    His eyes swept over the crowd and landed on Ye Futian, saying, "Seventh Swordsman, what are you doing?"


    "Saving my skin," Ye Futian said, but his tone was a bit cold. The Eighth Prince came just in time. As soon as Ye Futian had captured Li Xuan, there he came.


    Was this really a coincidence, or was it intentional?


    "Quit joking, let go of Li Xuan," the Eighth Prince said casually. There was authority in his tone.


    "I beg your forgiveness, Your Royal Highness, but I can''t do that," Ye Futian replied.


    "You forget yourself!" the cultivators of the Prince Regent''s Residence shouted, and they were walking toward him. Someone said coldly, "Even though you are the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, your treatment of Prince Regent''s Residence will not be overlooked and forgiven."


    "But before I got a hold of Li Xuan, you guys didn''t seem to want to spare me either?" Ye Futian said sarcastically. He was biding his time.


    The people of the Prince Regent''s Residence had already sent out a signal; the cultivators of the Sovereign Family would arrive soon.


    "Seventh Swordsman, enough is enough," the Eighth Prince continued.


    Ye Futian looked at him but did not respond.


    Suddenly, the atmosphere seemed somewhat oppressive. Ye Futian just disregarded the Eighth Prince.


    A while later, someone else arrived; it was princess Li Xiao. She was stunned by what she saw in front of her, and said to Ye Futian, "Seventh Swordsman, what is the meaning of this?"


    "Seventh Swordsman, you are much too arrogant," elders of the Sovereign Family, who scolded him with an icy cold voice.


    More and more members of the Sovereign Family had now arrived, and all of them were angrily reprimanding Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian ignored all of them and even closed his eyes.


    Out of sight, out of mind.


    Li Xun and Li Yao had also arrived, as well as those from the Royal House of Li Yang and Li You.


    In the end, the Third Prince and Li Ze arrived with a large number of royal cultivators.


    "Seventh Swordsman, what is going on here?" Li Yao asked.


    "The people of the Prince Regent''s Residence wanted me dead," Ye Futian replied.


    "Seventh Swordsman, don''t lie," Li Xu asked coldly.


    "When did we try to touch you?" Li Xuan also questioned.


    "Put the sword down first." The eyes of the Third Prince focused on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at the people who came; those who needed to come came.


    Suddenly he laughed, a sarcastic laugh, and he said, "The Master was entitled the Imperial Advisor of Dali, and devoted his life to the Dali Dynasty with countless efforts to strength Dali, and nurtured countless talents, thus valued by the Emperor himself. However, the Master was not of the Li clan and had never expected the descendants of the Sovereign Family to squash him. The resentment toward him had run so deep."


    As Ye Futian''s voice drifted, the faces of many changed abruptly. This accusation was a serious one.


    "Seventh Swordsman, the Imperial Advisor is a pillar of our nation and is valued greatly by the Emperor. It has nothing to do with names and clans. Your accusation is pure madness," the Third Prince said.


    "Is it?" Ye Futian looked at the Third Prince and replied, "Then, as the disciple of the Imperial Advisor of Dali, I was ambushed on the royal hunting ground. An attempt was made on my life. I took Li Xuan as security for my life, yet no one asked why, but just accused me of being out of line, arrogant, asking me to let him go. But did none of you really care about what Li Xuan had done?"


    Upon hearing what Ye Futian said, Li Xun and Li Yao both frowned. The people of Prince Regent''s Residence looked grave and gloomy. They didn''t expect the Seventh Swordsman to have made such a deep calculation and to unleash it only at this moment.


    Moreover, it brought to light the hidden conflict between the Sovereign Family and the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    This kind of matter could only be acknowledged silently, but no one dared to say it out loud.


    Which prince dared to admit it?


    "Seventh Swordsman, what exactly did Li Xuan do?" asked Li Xun.


    "I was resting in the forest of West Mountain when the cultivators of the Prince Regent''s Residence came at me and attracted a candle dragon Demon Saint. They fled and left me there, allowing the candle dragon Demon Saint to attack me," said Ye Futian.


    "The power of the candle dragon was great, we couldn''t deal with it," Li Xu said defensively. His only regret was that the stupid candle dragon could not kill the Seventh Swordsman, allowing him to survive. It was now biting them in the *ss.


    "Really?" Ye Futian said sarcastically. "Afterwards, when I faced the Demon Saint by myself, not only did you all watch and do nothing when it was you who guided the candle dragon to me. However, when I got close to you, why did you all start to attack me?


    "Also, when the candle dragon was about to kill me, why did it stop when I took hold of Li Xuan?" Ye Futian continued his interrogation.


    "How would we know the thoughts of the demonic beast?" someone from Prince Regent''s Residence answered coldly.


    "How easy it is for you to deny everything so completely." Ye Futian sneered, saying, "Li Xuan, do you remember your promise to my senior brother outside of Dali Academy?"


    Many people trembled now in their hearts. At the time, Li Xuan had sworn upon his own life as a promise!

 1135 Isll Pick Him Up

    Li Xuan''s face looked terrible, and he did not forget what happened last time.


    On that day, much like today, after the cultivators of the Saint Plane had made a move, he was taken by the Seventh Swordsman, who demanded to make an exchange��one life for another. To save his skin, he promised Yan Yuan that he would never touch Ye Futian, guaranteed by his own life.


    "Seventh Swordsman, if it was indeed as you said, I will investigate this matter, but let him go first," the Third Prince said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian sneered. The Third Prince himself was close to the Sovereign Family; Li Xuan was the grandson of the Prince Regent.


    "Sire, the evidence is undeniable. What else is there to investigate? If it weren''t for me taking Li Xuan, I would already be dead because of their plot to end me. Now, everyone is asking me to let him go, but my senior brothers are not here today, so now the descendants of the Sovereign Family are bullying me like this?" Ye Futian sounded so antagonizing that it made many people frown. This b*stard was determined not to let the matter rest.


    If news came out that the descendants of the Sovereign Family were elbowing out the disciples of the Imperial Advisor or even made an attempt on the life of a disciple of the Imperial Advisor, what would the people of Dali think?


    Perhaps even Emperor Li himself would not be able to spare them.


    The people of Prince Regent''s Residence were genuinely useless. They had several people of the Saint Plane, and in their dealings with the Seventh Swordsman, they had mishandled it. Worse yet, they had allowed Li Xuan to be taken once again.


    "What ironclad evidence? It was just the action of a demonic beast, and you determined that Prince Regent''s Residence ordered it?" Li Xun said coldly; this was something they could never admit.


    He took a step forward to put more pressure on Ye Futian.


    Psst! The Sword Qi pierced into Xuan''s throat, and a drop of blood dripped down. Li Xun stopped, and the look on his face was beyond ugly.


    "Since Li Xuan promised back then, then he should pay with his life for what he did," Ye Futian replied coldly. Murderous intent flowed upon him. The sword will puffing about, moving bit by bit into Li Xuan''s throat.


    Li Xuan''s throat moved as he swallowed. Both of his eyes stared at Ye Futian. Was he crazy?


    Did he dare to kill him?


    "Seventh Swordsman!" several princes couldn''t help but call out.


    "Would you dare?" Li Xuan''s voice sounded hoarse as he spat in a cold voice, seemingly full of bravado.


    "After Li Xuan''s death, if the people of Prince Regent''s Residence thought that this matter had nothing to do with them, feel free to let my Master and senior brothers investigate. That candle dragon is still at the west mountain, and all of you are here. I hope no one will touch him to destroy the evidence. If I wronged Prince Regent''s Residence, I, Seventh Swordsman, will exchange my life for a life," Ye Futian said, then the sword will puffed out. The sword was unleashed and directly penetrated Li Xuan''s throat.


    Li Xuan made a sound from his gut, but it was almost impossible to hear. He opened his mouth, and he stared at Ye Futian, full of fear and despair.


    He. dared. to. kill him!


    With both hands trembling, he put them to his throat and felt the sticky, bloody gore. Li Xuan wanted to make a sound, but he was no longer able to do so. Then his life began to fade, and his body fell from the sky.


    Everyone was stunned. The space seemed to be solidified, and they all stared at the scene playing out in front of them.


    The Seventh Swordsman really killed Li Xuan.


    This madman!


    Li Xun rushed out and caught Li Xuan''s fallen body.


    "Li Xuan." Li Xun''s eyes were red, and his murderous intent was as high as the sky. Li Xuan''s hands were trembling; fear was written all over in his eyes.


    In Dali Dynasty, the Imperial Advisor had such great authority that he suppressed even the Sovereign Family. He, Li Xuan, as the descendant of the Sovereign Family, was reluctant to cultivate inside Dali Academy, but he was coerced, for which he had always felt great shame.


    They were descendants of the Sovereign Family from Prince Regent''s Residence, yet they were indebted to the Imperial Advisor. His grandfather, the Prince Regent, kept a low profile and refrained from asking affairs of the outside world. But he would rather stir the pot so that his grandfather could stand up and intervene, at the very least, to take back the dignity of the Sovereign Family.


    As a member of the Sovereign Family, in front of the disciples of the Imperial Advisor, they were actually required to show their respect by bowing. Even more outrageous was that the disciples of the Imperial Advisor saw this as a matter of course. Even though they would return the salutation to those who were princes, for those royal members outside the main branch of the Sovereign Family, those disciples were not so considerate. Each and every one of them was extremely prideful.


    Therefore, he provoked Ye Futian, wanting to cause a feud.


    The funny thing was that the disciples of the Imperial Advisor were still so arrogant. Even the one who had just become the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, the Seventh Swordsman, dared to kill him...


    He reached out his hand, trembling and pointing at Ye Futian. In his eyes, besides fear, there was also intense hatred and murderous intent. Until his hand fell lifelessly, his eyes were still staring at Ye Futian, and he died without being at peace.


    The people of Prince Regent ''s Residence who came to his side had all witnessed the death of Li Xuan. Li Xun handed him over to the others, and then with his eyes full of murder, he stared at Ye Futian.


    His body flashed and went to Ye Futian with a terrifying might.


    Ye Futian looked at him indifferently, and said, "If I die, then it would not just be a problem with Li Xuan."


    "Li Xun, stop," the Third Prince shouted.


    Li Xun, whose body had rushed out, still managed to land a palm print. Though the sword guarded ye Futian''s body will, but the slam still caused him to fly out. He groaned and spat out a mouthful of blood. He did not even resist.


    His sharp eyes stared at the angry Li Xu in front of him, looking indifferent.


    He killed Li Xuan, and it would matter whose disciple he was. If the people of Prince Regent''s Residence killed him in public, it would be a blatant declaration of war to the Imperial Advisor.


    Even if Prince Regent''s Residence dared to move against him, those princes could not sit by idly and watch that disaster unfold.


    Initially, this matter had nothing to do with the princes. They could deny what he had said about the Sovereign Family elbowing out the disciples of the Imperial Advisor. But if he died here today, then it was as good as an admission that the descendants of the Sovereign Family used the hunting as a pretext to assassinate the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, with the implicit involvements of the princes.


    Then, the matter could become very thorny.


    These princes were smart and astute. Even if they had a disagreement regarding the Imperial Advisor, they would not dare to do so.


    Aside from the fact that Emperor Li valued the Imperial Advisor, and even if the Emperor had issues with the Imperial Advisor, judging from the influence and the position that the Imperial Advisor currently enjoyed in Dali Imperial City, if the Sovereign Family were to do this, who else would dare serve Dali Dynasty?


    "Enough," the Third Prince said coldly.


    "Your Highness, Seventh Swordsman executed Li Xuan in public, and this is it?" Li Xun and the people of Prince Regent''s Residence were full of anger.


    "This matter will be turned over to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence and the Prince Regent''s Residence to investigate. The Seventh Swordsman has guaranteed it with his own life. If it turns out that the Seventh Swordsman killed Li Xuan without justification, the Prince Regent''s Residence may kill him at that time," Li Xuan also piped in.


    "All right, let''s go back to the Imperial City first," Li Yao also said, but his heart secretly trembled.


    He thought that the Seventh Swordsman was indeed daring. He had ended Li Xuan''s life in front of all the cultivators of the Sovereign Family of Dali.


    Although he had a good relationship with Ye Futian, it was only because he was the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, and he had potential was unparalleled below the Saint Plane. His understanding of the Seventh Swordsman was not good, but what had just happened allowed him to know what kind of person the Seventh Swordsman was.


    His sword was genuinely fearless.


    Was this the pride of the swordsman?


    Li You''s heart beat wildly. When she was in the Lower Worlds, she saw Ye Futian''s arrogance, and now, he was still the same in front of the Sovereign Family.


    "His Royal Highness, I need to take him to the Prince Regent''s Residence."


    "Very well." The Third Prince nodded and looked at Ye Futian. "Seventh Swordsman, since you claimed that Li Xuan tried to kill you and you killed him because of it, you will be handed over to Prince Regent''s Residence. Do you object?"


    "What if I object?" Ye Futian replied.


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian, speechless. He had spared no effort to let his feelings be known.


    The Third Prince looked at him casually and said nothing. He was not suitable to handle the matter. Turning this headache over to Prince Regent''s Residence and Imperial Advisor''s Residence to deal with was the best course of action.


    Although he was close to the Sovereign Family, the Imperial Advisor was the Imperial Advisor, after all.


    "Back to the Imperial City," the Third Prince said. With everything that had happened, naturally, the hunt in the west mountain had ended.


    The cultivators of Prince Regent''s Residence came next to Ye Futian. After the convergence with the cultivators of the Sovereign Family, their group was even stronger, and several cultivators of the Saint Plane looked at Ye Futian with icy stares and took him away.


    "Li Xun," Li Yao came over and said to Li Xu, "take the Seventh Swordsman back to the Prince Regent''s Residence for investigation. Before everything is cleared, don''t act rashly, or you can imagine the consequences."


    In fact, no one was that idiotic. Whether this was done by the people of Prince Regent''s Residence or not, everyone should know.


    It was just that Li Xuan''s public execution by the Seventh Swordsman would not easily be let go by the Prince Regent''s Residence.


    "I know." Li Xun''s face was dark, and he did not address the Third Prince by his title. Apparently, he was highly displeased.


    Back in the days, his grandfather, the Prince Regent, wielded incredible power, and even though he no longer involved himself with most affairs, he was still well respected in the Sovereign Family. Now, Li Xuan had been killed by an outsider; the prince did not stand up for his own.


    Li Yao looked at Ye Futian and heard Ye Futian say laughingly, "Your Highness can rest easy. I already said that if the Prince Regent''s Residence had nothing to do with it, I would pay with my life."


    There were just too many holes in this matter, and too many clues; not at all like Emperor Xia''s Realm, where there was no place to start.


    It would be easy for the Imperial Advisor''s Residence to check it out.


    He didn''t care.


    He dared to kill Li Xuan because he was sure that Prince Regent''s Residence would not dare to move him, as the matter was indeed their doing.


    ...


    After leaving the west mountain, everyone returned to Dali Imperial City.


    Ye Futian was taken directly to Prince Regent''s Residence. The news of this incident quickly spread, causing a great sensation with a negative impact.


    The Prince Regent''s Residence now fought with the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, and the Seventh Swordsman was the first person below Saint Plane who enjoyed great fame in Dali Imperial City.


    It was unexpected that during the hunt by the Sovereign Family in the west mountain, such a thing could have happened, and the Seventh Swordsman had killed Li Xuan in front of everyone. It was unlikely that the Prince Regent would let the matter slide.


    The Dali Academy quickly received the news and came instantly.


    Many people were still in shock.


    At this time, in Dali Academy, Yan Yuan was sitting there, and Li Yao had come to tell him everything that had happened.


    Yan Yuan appeared very calm, and when he heard what Li Yao had to say, he nodded and said, "Sorry to trouble you, Your Highness."


    "It''s all right. It''s just that the Seventh Swordsman..."


    "I will go to Prince Regent''s Residence to pick him up," Yan Yuan said. He then got up and said, "Nan Zhai, Chunyang, you two come with me."


    "Yes." Mr. Nan Zhai and Mu Chunyang both nodded lightly, and then the three levitated and traveled through the air.


    The people of Dali Academy looked up at the figures that had just by air, and their hearts were slightly shaken. Had the big senior brother just gone to the Prince Regent''s Residence?

 1136 Prince Regents Residence

    At the Prince Regent''s Residence, under a giant golden pagoda, Ye Futian was now imprisoned beneath it.


    On top of the pagoda, the might of the Way continuously blasted down on his body. He sat on the ground, blood streaming down from the corner of his mouth, and rolls of brilliant light screen flowed down from the top of the pagoda, making it hard for him to sit up straight.


    The sword will on his body continued flowing, and his eyes were still sharp. He kept his eyes forward indifferently.


    Many cultivators of Prince Regent''s Residence were standing there.


    The person in the forefront was a majestic-looking middle-aged man clad in a golden robe with embroidery of pythons. A strong sense of murder was in his eyes, and he stared at Ye Futian coldly.


    The son of the Prince Regent, Li Jing, was also the father of Li Xuan.


    The person that Ye Futian had killed was his youngest son.


    Although Li Xuan was useless, his talent in cultivation was far beneath that of Li Xu, but he was still his child.


    Moreover, the thinking of Li Xuan, in a sense, was also his thinking, and he influenced it.


    But no one would have thought that Li Xuan would lose his life because of it.


    The Seventh Swordsman, the first man below the Saint Plane, who had found fame recently, executed Li Xuan, the grandson of the Prince Regent, in the face of the descendants of the Sovereign Family.


    His hand stretched out, and a terrible might of Way suddenly fell on the pagoda. Li Jin waved his hand, and a dull sound was heard. Ye Futian felt that the authority of heaven had fallen on him, and his body almost fell to the floor. He spat out another mouthful of blood.


    The corner of his mouth lifted in a sneer, and he looked up at Li Jing coldly.


    The reason why he decided to kill Li Xuan was not just because Li Xuan wanted him dead, nor did he kill Li Xuan in the heat of the moment.


    There were two other reasons. One was to create discord between Li Yao and the others, and the second was the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. Since there was already disharmony between the Sovereign Family and the Imperial Advisor, he did not mind increasing that disharmony. One day, it would be better if Emperor Li sidelined the Imperial Advisor, although doing so may cause some damage to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    But what he did not want, was that one day, to be the enemy of the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    Judging from the status held by the Imperial Advisor''s Residence in Dali Dynasty, even if the whole scheme was revealed in the future, and Dali realized his real identity, it would not be possible for Emperor Li to harm the Imperial Advisor.


    After all, the Imperial Advisor''s Residence was also deceived by him without foreknowledge, and at most, it would add to the disharmony.


    "You are not asking for mercy?" Li Jing stared at Ye Futian, and his hand extended again. Another roaring sound, and the pagoda span as radiant rays of light fell. Ye Futian spat out another mouthful of blood again.


    Although Li Jing would not kill Ye Futian himself, since this swordsman was so cocky, he would crush his backbone. He would like to see how he would continue with his swordsmanship when the sword of the swordsman was bent.


    "You must know the truth of this matter. If I died or was maimed while in custody at the Prince Regent''s Residence, what do you think the Imperial Advisor''s Residence would do? Prince Regent''s Residence killed the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, how would His Majesty deal with it?" Ye Futian asked Li Jing.


    "Then you killed the grandson of the Prince Regent, what should be done to you?"


    "Your son was incompetent. In trying to kill me, he was killed by me instead. You should think about whether or not you taught your children anything," Ye Futian continued, and the people of Prince Regent''s Residence stared at Ye Futian.


    This swordsman was beyond presumptuous.


    "Yan Yuan, a disciple of the Imperial Advisor, come to pay a visit."


    At this time, a voice was heard. Although not loud, it resounded throughout the entire residence.


    Everyone could hear it clearly.


    "That was fast," the people of Prince Regent''s Residence exclaimed in secret. They had not been back for long before Yan Yuan''s arrival.


    They had not spoken, and yet a vast might of the Divine will permeated toward them, shrouding heaven and earth and in an instant. It descended where Li Jing was.


    Apparently, Yan Yuan projected his will to inspect the situation inside Prince Regent''s Residence, looking for Ye Futian.


    Was this a visit?


    Using spiritual will to scan Prince Regent''s Residence was considered rude behavior, but Yan Yuan did it anyway.


    Not only did he do so, but a vast might of the Divine blasting toward them. No one had yet responded to whether or not to allow Yan Yuan to enter the residence before three figures came from the void, arriving in this space in an instant.


    The three people who arrived were Yan Yuan, Nan Zhai, and Mu Chunyang.


    After they arrived, they took a look at Ye Futian, who was imprisoned underneath the pagoda, their look was somewhat cold.


    Li Jing and the others turned around, coldness in their gaze, staring at the three who had arrived.


    Li Xu stepped forward and looking at Yan Yuan, he said coldly, "The Great Teacher trespassed in Prince Regent''s Residence. Isn''t it a little rude?"


    Yan Yuan looked at Li Xu and asked, "Were you at west mountain when it happened?"


    Li Xu frowned and said, "Yes."


    Yan Yuan raised his hand. In an instant, a suffocating might was born between heaven and earth. Under the pressure of this might, everyone seemed to stop breathing.


    Then they saw Yan Yuan reached out and made a grabbing gesture in the air at Li Xu. Before anyone could react to this unremarkable movement, an immense handprint appeared and locked down the space around Li Xu, who realized that he could no longer move.


    His level of cultivation was at the first realm of Saint Plane��the Realm of Proving Holiness.


    Yan Yuan, whose own cultivation was at the third realm of Saint Plane, Unblemished Saint, was thought by many of the Dali Imperial City as possibly the strongest cultivator of this realm.


    This meant that apart from a few Holiness of Nirvana of Dali Imperial City, Yan Yuan was standing at the peak.


    At this moment, Li Xu truly experienced the might of the Great Path was. The palm pressed down in the air and lifted him. It was so fast that it was like a flash of a thought before Li Xu was taken.


    "Yan Yuan." Li Jing stepped forward, and the same atmosphere of Unblemished Saint erupted. Suddenly, there was a terrible field around him, and Yan Yuan, likewise, made it hard for everyone around to breathe.


    However, Mr. Nan Zhai and Mu Chunyang walked a few steps forward on each side without being affected.


    Mu Chunyang himself was also an Unblemished Saint, and Mr. Nan Zhai was at the peak realm of Saint of True Self.


    "Did you take part in leading the candle dragon Demon Saint to my younger brother?" Yan Yuan''s voice was calm. Li Xu struggled madly but could not break free. He was already at Saint Plane, the uppermost level of cultivation, and yet, at this moment, he was humiliated.


    "It was just a coincidence."


    "I heard that you all stood by and watched while my brother fought the Demon Saint, and when he got too close to you, you all fought him. Was that also a coincidence?" Yan Yuan asked again.


    Li Xu was green in the face and did not respond.


    "I also heard that you are launching an investigation?" Yan Yuan said. "Whether the candle dragon has anything to do with you or not, just this alone is enough to prove that you set my brother up. What else do you need to investigate?"


    At this time, people were coming from the void. They were all extremely powerful figures from Prince Regent''s Residence. Several cultivators of Li Jing''s generation were already Saints of True Self, and another one was an Unblemished Saint. The makeup of the group was terrifying.


    "Yan Yuan, you have gone too far," someone said.


    "Little brother, how many times did the pagoda suppress you?" Yan Yuan looked at Ye Futian under the pagoda.


    "27," Ye Futian responded.


    Yan Yuan raised his hand, and suddenly a giant palm print fell down. It turned into overlapping shadows��exactly 27��that directly blasted on Li Xu''s body.


    Puh! Li Xu spat out a mouthful of blood, and his body fell from the void, causing the ground to crack, and many more bones and tendons were broken.


    "Last time, outside of Dali Academy, when my younger brother had a run-in with Li Xuan, Li Xuan swore on his life. Since he is now dead, I believe that this was a matter entirely of Li Xuan''s doing. The others were involved in the heat of the moment and had nothing to do with Prince Regent''s Residence so that I won''t be pursuing the others regarding this matter."


    Yan Yuan stepped forward and walked in Ye Futian''s direction. He said, "I am taking him away."


    Li Jing saw Yan Yuan coming forward, and he stepped forward also, with a force that shot through the sky. His whole person was like an angry dragon, filled with dominant majesty.


    The two men walked toward each other, and the momentum was so powerful that it caused a great gust of wind in the surrounding world. A dull sound was heard in the void. It sounded as if it could explode at any moment; the pressure of the might was shocking.


    As the two men approached each other, the momentum grew stronger, and everyone watched quietly.


    They all knew that the two were suppressing their own force. Otherwise, if they were really to unleash their power in the battle, the entire Prince Regent''s Residence would be razed to the ground.


    Finally, when the two came together, they extended their palms and slammed toward each other.


    The palm prints of the two landed together, and the pressure of the mighty washed over the space with the forces of mountains and oceans. All the cultivators from Prince Regent''s Residence stepped out and stood in different directions. The terrible waves landed on them, making their clothing flutter wildly. The force forced them to slide back.


    Cracks appeared on the ground and extended into the distance. The ground underneath their feet burst open and collapsed.


    Yan Yuan continued to move forward, and a radiant light exploded from his palm as if to shatter everything in front of him.


    Bang! Li Jing''s body flew out backward, and his feet tried to break on the ground, creating deep track marks.


    "Do you really want to take him away by force?" LI Jing looked up at Yan Yuan; he was indeed the chief disciple of the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    "Your Highness invited our younger brother to go to the west mountain to hunt, and we all agreed to let him go without accompaniment. Naturally, it was a demonstration of our absolute trust in the Sovereign Family. However, what happened at the west mountain was no longer a matter of etiquette; someone crossed the line. I already said that I believe it was the doing of Li Xuan alone, and I would let the matter rest here."


    Yan Yuan looked at Li Jing and continued, "I didn''t report it to the Master. Instead, I have come here myself to bring back my brother. If Prince Regent''s Residence wanted to stop me from taking him today, maybe won''t come next time. If the matter is escalated, are you sure you can afford to pay the price?"


    Li Jing looked horrible. He knew that the whole thing flopped because Ye Futian was not killed, so it was all exposed.


    He also knew that Yan Yuan was right. If the whole thing was escalated, and the Imperial Advisor locked horns with the Prince Regent and caused Emperor Li to get involved, who would look good?


    If the Prince Regent''s Residence wanted to pick a fight with the disciples of the Imperial Advisor, what would the people of Dali Dynasty think?


    What would His Majesty think?


    "Let him be taken away," a majestic and authoritative voice came, and suddenly, everyone trembled.


    Looking in the direction where the voice came from, Li Jing clenched his fists; Li Xuan, his poor child, had died in vain!

 1137 For What Do We Figh

    Yan Yuan looked up in the direction of the voice, and said clearly, "Yan Yuan thanks the Prince Regent."


    Afterward, he stepped forward and walked straight past Li Jing.


    Li Jing did not stop him. The Prince Regent himself had spoken, so the others would not stop them.


    Furthermore, unless the Prince Regent came out personally, other people in the Residence perhaps would not be able to stop Yan Yuan.


    Dong!


    Yan Yuan threw out his palm, and the pagoda made a crystal clear sound. Immediately following, a divine implement was shattered, and the pressure on Ye Futian disappeared instantly. He looked at Yan Yuan and called out, "Brother."


    Yan Yuan nodded gently and said, "Let''s go."


    Ye Futian hastened his steps and followed Yan Yan, who had turned to walk away.


    Mr. Nan Zhai and Mu Chunyang cast a glance at the rest of the people, and Mu Chunyang said, "If anyone disagrees with Imperial Advisor''s Residence, please be open and upfront. The disciples of Imperial Advisor''s Residence respect the Prince Regent, so I hope that the people of the Residence will not shame the name of the Prince Regent."


    Having said that, the four stepped directly into the void and left.


    It seemed as if Dali Imperial City was a place that they could come and go at will.


    Everyone at Prince Regent''s Residence looked at the sight of Yan Yuan and the others leaving, and they were feeling quite revolted.


    Some of the elders of the palace, who were of the Saint Plane, had experienced the prosperous days when the Prince Regent''s Residence was in charge of the kingdom.


    However, the people of Dali Dynasty had long forgotten its glorious past. They only knew of the Imperial Advisor of the Dali Dynasty, who was just beneath one person, but above all the rest.


    As to the disciples of the Imperial Advisor who dared to be so forthright, that after having killed the grandson of the Prince Regent, they dared to defy other''s opinions and forcibly taken the one who murdered Li Xuan.


    This was why many of the Sovereign Family had objections toward the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    The Imperial Advisor had already wielded power that surpassed the power of the Sovereign Family.


    But for this, the Prince Regent had never expressed any opinions. In the past few years, he had not bothered with the matters of the kingdom. Many people had said that the Prince Regent was ready to retire and focus on cultivating in peace.


    At this time, Li Xu had gotten up from the ground; the corner of his mouth was still bloody. Even as a cultivator of Saint Plane, he could not hold back his emotions at this moment. Great hatred filled his heart. His brother Li Xuan was killed, and now they trespassed and wounded him, destroyed a divine implement, and took away the Seventh Swordsman.


    This was what Yan Yuan had done this day.


    Li Jing did not say anything, but turned around and walked away.


    After a while, Li Jing appeared in another courtyard. It was very quiet. An old man sat quietly on the ground, his back facing Li Jing, his eyes closed in meditation. There was not the slightest sense of majesty from his person, not at all like the Prince Regent, whose power was once toppling the kingdom.


    "Father," he called. Li Xuan, who was slain, was his son, and Li Xu, who was wounded, was also his son.


    The Prince Regent was still sitting with his back facing him, and there was not a trace of disturbance about him. He said, "Losing is losing. If you lost, you must admit it. Li Xu and Li Xuan did not complete their mission and left evidence behind; that''s why they have to pay the price."


    In the eyes of the Prince Regent, there was neither right nor wrong, only success or failure.


    Li Xu and Li Xuan wanted to kill the disciple of the Imperial Advisor, but not only did they not succeed, but they were also killed by the target and left evidence behind. This was undoubtedly a failure.


    Both the Prince Regent''s Residence and the Imperial Advisor''s Residence were in service to Emperor Li. The struggle was like a game. The two sides that played had to abide by the rules of the game and not cross the boundaries. Li Xuan did cross that boundary, so he could only die in vain.


    Otherwise, the dispute between the Imperial Advisor and the Prince Regent, vying for power in the face of the Emperor, that would also be a disgrace to the Prince Regent''s Residence.


    Yan Yuan dared to be so aggressive and arrogant as to come to the Prince Regent''s Residence to take away the prisoner, precisely because he had reason on his side, with all the advantages, so he was not afraid of contention.


    Li Jing understood this. But the one who died was his son, so it was natural that he was angry.


    "Father has stopped inquiring about the matters of the dynasty for many years. Now, when this matter comes out, how will the world view Prince Regent''s Residence?" Li Jing asked. Even he could not understand his father''s mind.


    "What does the view of the world has anything to do with the Prince Regent''s Residence?" The voice of the old man was still calm. It was as if he had experienced a lifetime''s worth of trials.


    "Li Jing, you must remember that Prince Regent''s Residence or the Imperial Advisor''s Residence both serve His Majesty. That is all. What is the status of my position, and what is the status of the Imperial Advisor? Today, the Imperial Advisor is more useful to His Majesty. Whoever disregards the rules is disregarding His Majesty. Do you understand?"


    Hearing this voice, Li Jing''s heart trembled, and he looked at his father.


    The old man in front of him seemed to see things more clearly than anyone else.


    So over the years, he had stopped inquiring about matters of the outside world and no longer fought for anything.


    Many people thought that he had chosen to cultivate in solitude instead.


    But in fact, he had already seen through everything.


    Whether it was the Prince Regent or the Imperial Advisor, they were all for the sake of the emperor, nothing more.


    "Remember, some things cannot be obtained simply because you fight for it. The kids thought they were sharper than me; do you think I need them to remind me of anything?" The Prince Regent continued to speak. His extreme coolness was nearly frightening to behold. Even though his grandson had died, it did not seem to upset him much.


    "One day, when His Majesty thinks that I am useful again, I will be present again," the Prince Regent continued. "Do you understand?"


    Li Jing sighed in his heart; it was very cruel but very realistic.


    "Go back," seeing that there was no response from Li Jing. The Prince Regent dismissed him lightly. Li Jing turned to leave.


    After he left, the Prince Regent opened his eyes, and they were extremely sharp.


    When he got into a match with someone on the level of the Imperial Advisor, it was not a simple matter of who suppressed whom, but whoever made the wrong move first.


    What Li Xuan did was making the wrong move, and it was beyond stupid.


    Therefore, death was his destination.


    ...


    Yan Yuan and the others traveled in the air after they left Prince Regent''s Residence. Mr. Nan Zhai asked Ye Futian, "How is your injury?"


    "I''m fine," Ye Futian responded. All this was still owing to his strong physique that was comparable to that of the Saint''s. If it were not so, he was probably already disabled.


    "That''s good to hear," Mr. Nan Zhai nodded.


    "Senior brother, I killed Li Xuan. Will it involve the Imperial Advisor''s Residence?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Don''t worry. Whether you killed Li Xuan or not, there is no impact on the Imperial Advisor''s Residence," Yan Yuan replied.


    Ye Futian looked up at Yan Yuan and was somewhat puzzled.


    "The world said that the Prince Regent no longer concerned himself with matters of the state and thought that he resides in solitude. But this once-powerful Prince was far more clever than the world imagined; Li Xuan had overstepped the boundaries. His death was unimportant." Yan Yuan continued, "He thought that he could change things, but what went on between our Master and the Prince Regent was not something the younger generation could resolve. He lacked self-awareness."


    Ye Futian seemed somewhat befuddled, but still nodded. Yan Yuan turned his eyes toward him. "Li Xuan thought that he could fight for something, but younger brother, you must remember, the best fight in this world is just to cultivate."


    Ye Futian looked at Yan Yuan, and for a moment, it seemed that time and space had turned back to many years ago.


    His Third brother once told him that whatever was the biggest in the world could claim the truth. If there was anything bigger than the truth, then it had to be a fist.


    In the world of the cultivators, the best fight was cultivation.


    These two conclusions had the same meaning.


    Therefore, the disciples of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence seemed to have no contention with the world and were cultivating in peace.


    They did not deign to jump up and down and all around like Li Xuan.


    This was probably a difference in realms.


    The news that Yan Yuan had taken Ye Futian from Prince Regent''s Residence quickly spread out, causing huge waves instantly. Many people of the Dali Imperial City felt that they were indeed the chief disciples of the Imperial Advisor and had trespassed in the Prince Regent''s Residence to take away their person.


    Below the Nirvana Saint Plane, could there be a second?


    Yan Yuan and the group returned to Dali Academy. Although the people of Dali Academy were excited, they were not too shocked.


    Since the Senior Brother himself had gone, then they would naturally bring back their person.


    The Dali Academy belonged to those who were friendly toward the Imperial Advisor. As for Yan Yuan, who managed Dali Academy, all of them worshipped him from the bottom of their hearts.


    "Seventh Swordsman," Li Yao called when he saw Ye Futian returning safely.


    "Gratitude for all the troubles Your Highness went though on account of me," Ye Futian bowed slightly.


    Li Yao waved his hand. "Your safe return was the most important thing; it was too impulsive of you to have killed Li Xuan."


    Li Xuan, after all, was a royal descendant. If the people of Prince Regent''s Residence were mad enough to kill Ye Futian first, then it would have been too late to do anything.


    "Your Highness, if I did not subdue Li Xuan, I would be a dead man already. Since it was destined that one man must die, then this was the only way it could be." Ye Futian responded.


    Li Yao said nothing more. He added, "Since you have returned safely, I shall be leaving."


    Once finished, he bowed to Yan Yuan and the others. "Senior brother, I am leaving now."


    "His Highness, return safely," Yan Yuan said.


    "Brother, you have suffered some injuries, rest early," Yan Yuan said to Ye Futian.


    "Yes, Senior Brother." Ye Futian nodded and turned to leave.


    "I am leaving too," said Lu Chuan, who was next to him. He left with Ye Futian. He walked next to Ye Futian. "What you did was a little too risky."


    "With the Master and Senior brothers around, what do I need to be afraid of?" Ye Futian laughed.


    "You are not the least bit humble," Lu Chuan smiled and said, "but you weren''t wrong. No matter what you did, the brothers will always be there for you."


    "What if I did something wrong?" Ye Futian said.


    "As long as it is not a great mistake that betrays the Master, then it is the same, just like the day when the Master promised to accept you as a disciple."


    Ye Futian was silent, thoughtful in his heart.


    "Do you know anything about the fourth senior brother?" Lu Chuan suddenly asked.


    "What of the fourth brother?" Ye Futian asked. He had always been curious about Wang Zhong; he and the other disciples of the Imperial Advisor seemed out of place.


    "The Master has the ability to make Death Warriors. The father of the fourth brother was a Death Warrior, and he died many years ago. The fourth brother always hated the Master, but the Master still accepted him as a disciple and passed on his martial arts to him." Slowly Lu Chuan said, "The Master is like this. He doesn''t even care. Maybe one day, when the fourth brother turns on him, he will still be indifferent.


    "Of course, if there is such a day, I, along with our other brothers, will definitely do things for the Master that he does not want to do."


    Ye Futian was a little surprised. He didn''t expect Wang Zhong to have such a story. He glanced at the Lu Chuan, who was next to him, and said, "I believe that the fourth brother will not do this!"

 1138 The Imperial Advisor’s Teaching

    L�� Chuan looked ahead calmly and said softly, "Master took each person as a disciple for a reason. I don''t want brothers to stand opposite of each other one day, either."


    Ye Futian thought for a while and said, "Master doesn''t seem to like violence, but why does he cultivate Death Warriors?"


    "As Master has said before, there is a price for everything you want to do. Whether there is Master or not, Death Warriors always exist, serving the army or born and raised for such purpose. What Master does is to make them stronger. There are even some Death Warriors in the army who knew they were not able to make any progress in cultivation in their lifetimes and rather chose to receive Master''s transformation."


    L�� Chuan continued, "But, even so, Master admits it is against the Law of Heaven and announces he will only cultivate them when there is war, like the Battle of Empty Realm, or when the Sovereign Family ordered so. Do you know why King Tiandao has a deep grudge with Master?"


    "Why?" asked Ye Futian.


    "King Tiandao rules the Army of the West, which is the strongest army outside the Imperial City. He wants to build an army of Death Gods and hopes Master can help. He even thinks that the Master can transform not only Sages but also Saints. King Tiandao has tried to counsel the Emperor many times to give Master pressure, but Master rejected."


    "So to speak, when Di Hao defeated Dong Chen, he requested to become the Imperial Advisor''s disciple. Was this the reason?" asked Ye Futian. Di Hao''s thing suddenly came to his mind, although at that time, after the Imperial Advisor asked both of them why they sought the way, Imperial Advisor chose Ye instead of him.


    "Maybe," L�� Chuan said.


    "Then can Master transform Saint Plane cultivators?" Ye Futian asked, looking at


    L�� Chuan.


    "Saint Plane cultivators have taken the crucial step and refined their physiques; they have infinite potential. Whether yes or no, Master will not do it," L�� Chuan replied. "So, the answer is no."


    "I see." Ye Futian nodded. After they chatted a while, Ye Futian went to cultivate alone. Although his physique was powerful, he was seriously injured by the Divine Implement''s Will, and he needed time to recover.


    The incident soon subsided, and no direct conflict had happened between Regent King and Imperial Advisor; otherwise, that would be a crisis.


    Year 10,022 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was approaching its end; the finely decorated Imperial City of Dali was even busier than usual.


    The tradition of celebrating the end of a year had lasted for more than 10,000 years since the start of the Divine Prefecture Calendar; similar customs were widespread throughout all realms of the Divine Prefecture, though some realms didn''t think it as important as other realms did.


    However, if conditions allowed, having at least a simple gathering was a must for everybody.


    On the last day of the year, gorgeous lamps lit up the Palace of the Dali Dynasty; graceful dancers danced to festive songs; members of the royal clan and courtiers all gathered in the palace to celebrate the new year. However, the Imperial Advisor didn''t come, and nobody would blame his absence because nobody dared to.


    All royal clan members knew the Imperial Advisor didn''t like being surrounded by many people. At the end of every year, he would wake up his sleeping daughter and celebrate the new year with her.


    Emperor Li had asked the Imperial Advisor about his daughter''s issue, but the Imperial Advisor declined his help. The Imperial Advisor claimed his daughter''s illness was incurable; even Renhuang couldn''t do anything about it.


    Nobody doubted what the Imperial Advisor said. If there had been a solution, how could the Imperial Advisor have wasted his own daughter''s time?


    Everyone also wondered, what kind of illness did the Imperial Advisor''s daughter have?


    ��


    In the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, it was cozy and peaceful. The Imperial Advisor just had a dinner gathering with his disciples.


    People returned home. The Imperial Advisor stayed with Fei Xue in the courtyard; both of them sat on the ground in a relaxed manner and looked up at the stars above. When fireworks exploded, glittering stars seemed to dim, but nobody knew if Fei Xue could see them.


    "Master, did you want to see me?" Ye Futian came and asked.


    "Come, sit by me," the Dali Imperial Advisor laughed and said. Ye Futian nodded and sat next to the Imperial Advisor. A slight smile rose on Fei Xue''s face. It was the second time Ye Futian saw her awake; he felt a tinge of pity and sadness for her.


    "I heard you went to West Mountain alone a few days ago, and you challenged Demon Saint?" the Imperial Advisor asked.


    "It was very hard. When confronting the Demon Saint, I could only survive. My level still restricts my ability," Ye Futian replied.


    "The gap between Saint and Sage is indeed hard to measure. Now, you can battle with Demon Saint and even survive before the Candle Dragon Demon Saint. It is very rare. Perhaps you are the only one in the 100 years'' history of Dali Dynasty," said the Imperial Advisor.


    "But I am still just a sage, and I am still unable to enter the Saint Plane."


    "Cultivation is an accumulative process. It needs time to grow. To enter the Saint Plane, you need a chance that conforms to the Great Path, and there is no need to hurry." The Imperial Advisor continued, "I haven''t taught you anything since you became my disciple. Today, I will teach you one chapter of my Cultivation Method."


    "Master, I have cultivation methods of my own, and your way of cultivation may not suit me," said Ye Futian, who didn''t immediately accept with delight.


    He would have been inwardly thrilled when he had just reached Dali and learned the best teachings about cultivation from the Dali Imperial Advisor. However, the Imperial Advisor''s teaching made him feel shame.


    "If it doesn''t suit you, I will not teach you," Imperial Advisor said, laughing. "My Cultivation Method is called the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, which contains all aspects of the world. There are several chapters, including the energy of metaphysical practices, which can help you perceive the existence of all beings, observe the change of stars, and foretell one''s fortune. But there is only one chapter that I will teach you, and it suits you best. Through it, you can use your body as a cauldron, your soul as a guide, the five elements of the Great Path as the air to produce the power of Heaven and Earth, and connect you to the Great Law of the universe and sharpen your sense to the world. When you fight, your body as the cauldron will flame and borrow energy from the Law of the world. If I am not wrong, this chapter will suit you very well."


    In awe, Ye Futian looked toward the Imperial Advisor.


    It was said that the Imperial Advisor was extremely knowledgeable and proficient in many skills; there was even hearsay about his uncanny abilities. Ye Futian, as a cultivator of such level, of course, didn''t believe the rumors and assumed his ability was somehow overpraised.


    But now it seemed, Imperial Advisor indeed had special cultivation skills.


    The Deed of Thorough Comprehension should be extraordinary. And the Imperial Advisor claimed he could see one''s fortune from the change of stars.


    Did it mean he could tell Ye Futian''s fortune?


    "Did Master take me as your disciple because of not only my belief in swordsmanship but also my fortune?" said Ye Futian.


    "The strength of one''s fortune doesn''t mean anything. It''s not about it," the Imperial Advisor said.


    Ye Futian nodded. Even though the mysterious Method could measure one''s fortune, very likely, it was a rough estimation and could not see one''s destiny. Even very powerful astrologers were not able to do so; they could only make a rough guess.


    "I will teach you the Cultivation Method," the Imperial Advisor said. Ye Futian nodded, and soon he felt a strong spiritual power that covered his body. Beams of light emitted from the middle of the Imperial Advisor''s eyebrows and shot toward the center of Ye Futian''s brow. Suddenly, a lot of things came to Ye Futian''s mind.


    The Path was only taught to the chosen one; the Law didn''t come to unwanted ears.


    Imperial Advisor thought Ye Futian was the one, so he taught him in person.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and perceived some moments; the next time he opened his eyes, the Imperial Advisor was gone. Fei Xue was still there, facing him. If she could have seen, her eyes must have been more beautiful.


    "Where is Master?" asked Ye Futian.


    "He has gone to rest," said Fei Xue.


    "How long did I meditate?" said Ye Futian.


    "Half an hour," Fei Xue replied. Ye Futian nodded slightly and looked toward where the Imperial Advisor had been; he was going to make more inquiries.


    "My father told me to pass on the message: when you hesitate, just follow your heart and do what you feel in your heart to be right; otherwise, the imperfection in your state of mind will affect your cultivation," Fei Xue said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s heart sank for a moment. He looked at Fei Xue and said, grinning, "Master has noticed?"


    "Have you seen any disciple evade learning from their master?" Fei Xue put a smile on her face and said, "And don''t forget, I can sense the fluctuation of your emotions."


    Ye Futian shrugged; he seemed not to mind it. Maybe, he was indeed full of himself; nothing in the world could be flawless. Even though the Imperial Advisor might not know his identity or didn''t expect that he came from Emperor Xia''s Realm, how could he be unaware of anything when Ye just cultivated beside him?


    Human beings couldn''t be empty of emotions, and emotional transitions were detectable.


    If the Imperial Advisor had known he came to the Great Li to kill Li Yao, would he have told Ye to follow his heart and do what his heart would not regret?


    "So you mean, I have no secrets in front of you?" asked Ye Futian, laughing.


    "Yes," Fei Xue laughed and replied.


    "Since I have no secret from you, shouldn''t you share some of your secrets with me?" said Ye Futian. "Why does the thing in your body make you keep sleeping to survive?"


    "You want to help me?" said Fei Xue. She was surprised by Ye Futian''s feeling that she sensed. She chuckled at the idea in his mind. Even her father, a Renhuang, could do nothing about it, and this guy wanted to help her?


    "Even though there is no solution, someday, maybe we will find it," Ye Futian said seriously.


    Fei Xue could sense his warm-heartedness, which was from the bottom of his heart. She was never wrong about people''s feelings. That was the true emotion from the heart; he couldn''t fake it.


    "As I told you last time, the thing in my body is inauspicious. In fact, the inauspicious thing is a treasure that has merged into my body, and because of it, my perception is more accurate and sharper than anyone else''s. I can perceive not only human emotions but also the existence of everything in the universe and absorb energy from them. However, the energy is too much, and once it explodes, my Plane cannot support my body to endure this energy, and I will perish. That''s why my father lets me sleep to avoid it," Fei Xue confessed to Ye Futian. She then laughed and said, "Now, you also know my secret."


    Last time Ye Futian guessed it right. This thing could make the World Tree shake, which had never happened before!

 1139 Solution

    Even the Imperial Advisor and Renhuang had no solution for the thing in Fei Xue''s body, so one could imagine how valuable it was.


    "Is it be possible to take it out?" asked Ye Futian.


    "It has merged into my body and connected to my veins and heart. My father said it could only be taken out if I die," Fei Xue shared her secret calmly.


    In fact, she had slept for many years, and the actual duration of her life was very short. If not for her father, she might not have cared about life or death.


    Perhaps now, she lived her life only for her father.


    Thus, she didn''t care about the secret, especially when she perceived Ye Futian''s good intentions; she didn''t need to hide it.


    "Can I perceive it?" said Ye Futian.


    "Yes," Fei Xue nodded, wondering how Ye Futian would do so.


    Soon, Fei Xue felt him holding her hand. Her arm slightly shivered, and she intrinsically wanted to retreat, but she didn''t do it and just let Ye Futian hold it.


    An invisible life force infused into her body under his palm.


    There was a moment Fei Xue had a mysterious feeling. It was as if she was very intimate with him.


    But how could he do this? She was surprised.


    Meanwhile, Ye Futian was amazed by that kind of feeling, too. The World Tree in his Life Palace waved and rustled, emitting wisps of life force out of the Palace, which ran through his body, tentatively entering Fei Xue''s body.


    It was as if his World Tree Spirit could do more than detect the thing in Fei Xue''s body.


    Tens of thousands of wisps of life force were infused into Fei Xue''s body continuously. It was as if they would never end. A dreamy aura surrounded Fei Xue''s body; she slightly felt the treasure that had been part of her blood, and her heart seemed to be detached. It was almost ready to emerge.


    There was even a life flow that ran from her body to Ye Futian''s.


    The change was unexpected by neither of them. Was Ye Futian absorbing the energy from the treasure?


    But how?


    Fei Xue was in shock; the treasure had long been merged into her body, and even her father was not able to take it out.


    But Ye Futian seemed to have made it.


    In the meantime, Ye Futian''s perception of the world was changing; he could hear Fei Xue''s heartbeat, sense her anxiety, and was aware of her confusion and shock.


    Ye Futian even saw the thing in Fei Xue''s body; it was a monument without limit, bearing an inscription with no end. It was hard to see it clearly, but the Law of heaven and earth seemed to hide inside.


    But the thing was a part of Fei Xue''s body; it was hard to tell what was what, and if there had not been the World Tree Spirit, Ye would have never perceived its existence.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and withdrew his life flow. He looked at Fei Xue.


    Fei Xue''s head was lowered. Although she could not see, she was able to sense all that had happened.


    It was amazing that the treasure in her body could respond to Ye Futian.


    "So, we have similar secrets," said Ye Futian, grinning.


    Fei Xue laughed, too. She nodded and said, "I will keep your secret. I will not tell anyone, even my father."


    Ye Futian stared at this young lady''s simple smiling face and sighed to himself.


    Then he looked up into the countless stars in the sky.


    The Imperial Advisor had a grudge with Wang Zhong, but he still took him as a disciple.


    The Imperial Advisor didn''t know Ye Futian''s identity and knew he might have his own agenda, but still took him as his disciple and taught him the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    On many occasions, the meaning of life was not all about benefiting oneself.


    Perhaps this sounded stupid.


    However, this might be what the temperament of a Saint meant.


    "Fei Xue, is there a Matrix where you sleep?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Yes, there is a Sealing Matrix," Fei Xue said, confused.


    "I can take you to the place you sleep. Let''s go," said Ye Futian, standing up. Fei Xue felt his emotions and knew he was not going to send her to sleep, but she still accompanied him to walk toward the place.


    Soon they came to the place where Fei Xue slept. It was a site full of Matrixes.


    Before them stood a Cold Jade Bed. Fei Xue walked up and sat on it. Ye Futian followed her and said, "Maybe I can try to take the thing from your body."


    Fei Xue said that the Imperial Advisor had told her the treasure had been part of her blood and heart, and unless she died, it was impossible to take it out.


    However, after Ye Futian''s first attempt, he felt he could have a try again.


    Fei Xue was silent for a second and then asked with a laugh, "Are you serious?"


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded.


    "You can do it," Fei Xue said, smiling. If Ye Futian wanted to try, she would let him try.


    Even though she didn''t have high expectations.


    They crossed their legs and sat in the Matrix. Both of them closed their eyes. Wisps of life force were released from Ye Futian''s body. He held Fei Xue''s hands. She lowered her head but didn''t stop him.


    Soon, the mysterious feeling reappeared.


    The next moment, bursts of dazzling light erupted. Fei Xue seemed to have perceived something. She softly said, "what a beautiful tree."


    Later, her body was submerged by the giant tree. Countless branches and leaves enveloped her. The World Tree Spirit clasped her to its bosom.


    Fei Xue suddenly understood why she sensed the impurity of the Seventh Sword''s Sword Spirit. Actually, he was not a swordsman-in-training.


    His Natal Spirit was not even Sword.


    Their bodies were wrapped tightly like in a cocoon; the World Tree rustled and reflected resplendent luster.


    After a long while, a breath of horror burgeoned from here, followed by a string of clanging sound; the glare of the World Tree suddenly vanished. Ye Futian withdrew his Natal Spirit and looked at Fei Xue, from whom a beam of bright light shot into the sky.


    "Fei Xue," the Imperial Advisor called.


    Ye Futian swiftly left the bed and walked away.


    In a hurry, Imperial Advisor took a glance at him and walked straight to Fei Xue.


    Ye Futian directly returned to his residence.


    He would not go away, but he had no idea how to face the Imperial Advisor, either. As the Imperial Advisor had told him, he just did what his heart felt was right.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes. In his Life Palace, the World Tree rustled in the wind. He wondered what the Natal Spirit actually was.


    A radiant beam of light came out of a corner in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence and penetrated the sky.


    People came outside and gathered, wondering what had happened. Yan Yuan, Sir Nan Zhai, and others came to the gate of the place where Fei Xue slept and requested to see Master.


    None of them knew what happened.


    "Nothing serious. I am checking Fei Xue''s status. You can all leave," said the Imperial Advisor.


    "Yes, sir," Yan Yuan nodded and said. They saw nothing wrong, and soon all returned.


    ��


    In Imperial Xia''s Palace, Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan summoned Black Wind Condor after she had just returned from a royal banquet to her own Princess Residence.


    Sir Condor felt embarrassed to death. Was he her slave?


    "What are you doing now?" Xia Qingyuan asked Black Wind Condor. Black Wind Condor knew she was not talking to him, so he sent a message to Ye Futian.


    Soon after, Black Wind Condor closed his eyes and reopened them; he looked kind of different.


    "I am cultivating," said Condor.


    "Today is the last day of the year. You should be in the Imperial Advisor Residence, right? How does it feel to celebrate the new year in the Imperial Advisor Residence?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian sensed from her tone that she was not very happy, so he said, "Not bad. The Imperial Advisor just taught me his Cultivation Method."


    Xia Qingyuan was stunned for a second and said, staring at the Black Wind Condor, "So the Imperial Advisor really appreciates you. No wonder you don''t want to come back."


    "The Imperial Advisor Residence treats me very well, indeed," Ye Futian said and sighed.


    "Don''t tell me you are thinking about it," said Xia Qingyuan, staring at the Black Wind Condor. Did this b*stard really have some emotional connection with the Imperial Advisor Residence?


    Black Wind Condor looked at Xia Qingyuan and didn''t answer. Later, he asked, "What''s the matter this time?"


    Xia Qingyuan stared at him and said coldly, "Nothing��"


    "If so, I should go now," Ye Futian said.


    "You��" Xia Qingyuan clenched her fists and hoped she could punch him.


    "About that thing, I found a clue," said Xia Qingyuan. She referred to the last time''s incident with Xiao Sheng.


    Black Wind Condor narrowed his eyes and said, "Tell me more."


    "We are still investigating. I will tell you if we have results."


    "Fine." Black Wind Condor nodded and replied, "Thank you for your efforts these days, Your Highness."


    Xia Qingyuan looked into Black Wind Condor''s eyes and felt somehow relieved.


    On the last day of the year, she skipped slapping the Condor.


    ��


    It was the first day of Year 10,023 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar.


    In the Imperial Advisor Residence, Dali Imperial City.


    Yan Yuan, Sir Nan Zhai, Mu Chunyang, and others came to visit the Imperial Advisor.


    When they set foot in the courtyard, they saw a slim figure quietly standing beside the Imperial Advisor. Of course, it was Fei Xue.


    "Fei Xue." Yan Yuan and others showed surprise. She was not sleeping?


    What had happened yesterday?


    "Fei Xue''s thing had been settled. From today, Fei Xue will no longer need to extend her life by sleep," said Imperial Advisor with a heartfelt smile.


    From now on, his daughter Fei Xue would be normal except for her blindness.


    Yesterday, he just couldn''t believe it when he saw this.


    He even had no idea what Ye Futian had done. He didn''t ask, and Fei Xue didn''t tell him, either.


    Yan Yuan and others first paused a second, and then every one of them smiled.


    Did it mean Fei Xue would no longer need to sleep?


    Although they didn''t know what had happened yesterday, since Master said it was settled, it should have been settled.


    "Where is the Seventh Swordsman?" asked the Imperial Advisor.


    "Master," Ye Futian called from a distance. He came closer, bowed, and said, "the Seventh Swordsman is here to greet Master and Brothers."


    "Good. Have you cultivated on the Deed of Thorough Comprehension?" the Imperial Advisor asked as if nothing had happened yesterday evening.


    "Yes, but it is a little abstruse for me, and I am afraid I need some time," replied Ye Futian.


    "The Deed of Thorough Comprehension is indeed not easy to understand. You have to focus on it," said the Imperial Advisor. Ye Futian nodded.

 1140 Betrothal

    Ye Futian''s eyes turned to Fei Xue. He noticed Fei Xue was also looking at him.


    "I haven''t told my father anything yet," Fei Xue whispered to Ye Futian. Ye Futian could tell there was something playful about her tone; she must be in a good mood since she finally could live a normal life as others did.


    From now on, she could always keep her father company and no longer needed to sleep.


    Ye Futian chuckled to himself. Fei Xue didn''t tell her father anything, and the Imperial Advisor didn''t ask. It was as if nothing had happened yesterday. Even those Elder Brothers had no idea what happened.


    However, the Imperial Advisor must have felt something even if he was not told.


    At least, he knew the Seventh Sword was not merely a swordsman-in-training.


    Even so, the Imperial Advisor didn''t ask.


    "Thank you," Ye Futian replied in a whisper. "Can your eyes be healed?"


    "I should be the one to thank you," said Fei Xue. "My eyes were damaged by the treasure''s energy when it came into my body. I am blind, and it can''t be cured, but I am already happy to live a normal life. I shouldn''t expect much."


    As a cultivator, even though she couldn''t see, she could still perceive the world. Although it was colorless, her life would not be much affected.


    She was delighted.


    The only pity was that she couldn''t use her eyes to see the Seventh Swordman''s face.


    Ye Futian didn''t say anything, but he felt pity, too.


    "Have you taken out the treasure?" asked Ye Futian.


    "No," replied Fei Xue, "but it will no longer be part of my body and can exist separately. My father has sealed it. Although it is not completely sealed, it will no longer merge into my veins and heart and make me unable to endure it."


    She continued, "In my current status, I can depend on its energy to cultivate bit by bit, and as my cultivation makes progress, I can gradually release the sealed energy and grow up with it."


    Such an outcome was, of course, the best for her.


    The treasure had been utterly connected to Fei Xue''s veins and heart in the past, so sealing it would have meant sealing her life and putting her to sleep. After Ye Futian removed it from Fei Xue''s body with the power of World Tree, it became independent.


    Ye Futian could even take it away as his own since the treasure was more attractive to the World Tree than to Fei Xue''s body, which was the reason why it was taken out.


    But this invaluable treasure belonged to Fei Xue. Ye Futian didn''t take it but left right after he did his job, letting the Imperial Advisor finish the job.


    Apparently, after the thing was removed, the Imperial Advisor did a nice job.


    "Good things come one after another," said Sir Nan Zhai with a laugh.


    Master finally cured Fei Xue and would no longer worry about her situation every day.


    And the Junior Brother the Seventh Swordsman even got the opportunity to learn about Master''s Deed of Thorough Comprehension, which was Master''s core cultivation method and contained mysterious knowledge that could change the nature''s fortune. Sir Nan Zhai cultivated on one chapter as well, but so far, he had not totally comprehended it.


    "The first day of the new year is indeed a lucky one," Yan Yuan said, smiling.


    Apparently, everyone was happy for Master and Fei Xue.


    L�� Chuan took a glance at Ye Futian and thought something might have happened yesterday.


    However, it didn''t matter.


    The Imperial Advisor had a smile on his face; he hadn''t been so happy for a long time.


    Although his power had spread across the Dali Dynasty, Imperial Advisor was actually quite disengaged with politics. For him, power was nothing but fleeting clouds.


    "Today is the first day of the new year, and the Court of Dali Dynasty will begin today. Seventh Swordmans, why don''t you come with me?" the Imperial Advisor said to Ye Futian. Since Ye Futian had become the Imperial Advisor''s direct disciple, he had gained his status in the Dali Dynasty and was supposed to go to see Emperor Li.


    "Yes, Master," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Let''s go then," the Imperial Advisor said. He smiled and turned to Fei Xue. "You stay at home and rest."


    "Okay," Fei Xue said, nodding.


    The Imperial Advisor gently stroked her head with love and then steered his sword toward the direction of Dali Imperial City with his disciples.


    Besides the Imperial Advisor, in Emperor Li Avenue District, masters were coming out of Residences and steering their swords in the air in the same direction.


    On the first day of every new year, all the officials in Dali Dynasty came to pay homage to the court.


    On this day, in the lavish Dali Imperial Palace, a broad path stretched from the sky; all cultivators steered their swords in the air toward the Palace following the path. Numerous, rarely seen, big figures all attended this ceremony.


    The Imperial Advisor and disciples arrived a little late, and many people were already in the Palace. They got off of their swords, and immediately many people outside the Palace bowed toward Imperial Advisor and greeted, "Hail, Imperial Advisor."


    The Imperial Advisor slightly nodded and led Yan Yuan and others to walk forward. The people walking ahead of them all stopped and stepped aside to let the Imperial Advisor go first to show respect.


    In addition to the Imperial Advisor, his disciples caught many people''s eyes as well.


    Yan Yuan was the Imperial Advisor''s chief disciple; in Dali, his name weighed a lot.


    Not long ago, he broke into the Prince Regent''s Residence with two Junior Brothers without the Imperial Advisor''s involvement. How daring.


    As the figure who had stirred up a storm not long before, Ye Futian was the most famed among young elites and also captured some attention.


    He hunted in the West Mountain and decapitated Li Xuan. How contemptuous.


    His interest in victory was as keen as his sword.


    They walked straight to the Palace; it was the second time Ye Futian came to the Dali Imperial Palace, but compared with the last time that Li Yao met with Ye Futian and others in a relaxed manner, today the atmosphere was obviously more solemn and tense.


    That day''s meeting was a trial among young elites;


    This time''s ceremony was for all to pay homage to the Dali Court.


    Giant golden dragon patterns engraved on the ground displayed their sharp fangs and claws. The most prominent figures of Dali Dynasty stood on both sides of the central path. Behind them were rows of pillars, each carved with one golden holy dragon.


    In front of them was a lofty staircase that led to a magnificent palace sitting above the clouds.


    Many royal clan members had also appeared on both sides of the path; they looked in the direction of Imperial Advisor, with coldness in their eyes.


    The thing that happened last time let them witness the power of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    After killing the Prince Regent''s offspring, Yan Yuan beat Li Xu and led his people to leave, and even raved that he would not punish others'' wrongs. How brazen they were!


    Thus, most royal clan members were piqued by them.


    Even so, when the middle-aged figure walked past them, without a slight essence of life force, nobody dared to look into his eyes. They all lowered their heads.


    Not to mention the Imperial Advisor, how many people present today were comparable with the disciple Yan Yuan, who stood behind the Imperial Advisor?


    "Imperial Advisor," people in the crowd greeted and bowed to him.


    Many people looked toward the Prince Regent, who was standing in the front line. The people of Prince Regent''s Residence stood behind Prince Regent, including Li Xu.


    Having just noticed the Imperial Advisor''s arrival, the Prince Regent turned around to look at him. He smiled, showing no trace of a grudge. He made a fist salute slowly and greeted, "Imperial Advisor."


    Imperial Advisor paused and replied to him with a fist salute, "Your Highness."


    And then they stood shoulder to shoulder in the front of the crowd.


    Yan Yuan and others didn''t follow behind; instead, they stood in the crowd at a distance from the Imperial Advisor.


    At the front, a prince appeared from the side and showed courtesy to the Prince Regent and the Imperial Advisor. Li Yao was also present. He looked at the crowd and slightly nodded to Ye Futian when he saw him.


    Ye Futian nodded to him as a reply.


    At the same time, another group of people arrived. One of the two persons who led the group was the Third Prince. The other person had a rather imposing physical appearance and domineering manner; he took a glance at the crowd, and many people didn''t even dare to face him. They lowered their heads.


    He strode directly over to the Prince Regent, made a fist salute, and greeted, "Uncle."


    Prince Regent gave a smile and asked, "How did you have time to come here from the land of West this time."


    The person was King Tingdao among the Four Kings.


    "I have some important issues to report to His Majesty," said Tiandao with a laugh.


    Then his eyes turned to other people and fixed on the Imperial Advisor. He said, "The Imperial Advisor is here, too."


    "Hum," Imperial Advisor nodded as a reply.


    King Tiandao stood next to them in the front line. Soon, King White arrived, too.


    One Advisor and Four Kings of Dali Dynasty had all arrived, except King Li. King Li was busy with issues in the Lower Worlds, so he usually didn''t show up.


    Suddenly, the crowd quieted down and stood back to watch a figure appear on the staircase.


    He stood there, almighty like a god, as if in this solemn palace, he was the only one.


    "All hail, Your Majesty," everyone said and bowed. The person standing on the staircase was, undoubtedly, the absolute master of Dali Dynasty, Emperor Li.


    "Feel free to stand up," said Emperor Li. "After one year, I am glad to see the graceful bearings of you all."


    "Imperial Advisor governs the court; King Tiandao guards the border; Prince Regent and King White are also in charge. No wonder our Dali Dynasty can prosper," said a courtier, smiling.


    "Thank you for all your efforts, Imperial Advisor, Prince Regent, King Tiandao, and King White," Emperor Li said.


    The Imperial Advisor and three kings bowed and showed their gratitude.


    "Imperial Advisor, I heard recently you took one disciple with exceptional talent who even defeated King Tiandao''s foster son Di Hao. Did he come with you?" Emperor Li asked, looking toward the Imperial Advisor.


    Imperial Advisor nodded, turned to the crowd behind him and called, "Seventh Swordsman."


    Ye Futian walked up and bowed to Emperor Li, saying, "Seventh Swordsman is here to greet Your Majesty."


    "Raise your head," said Emperor Li. Ye Futian looked up.


    "His temperament is indeed extraordinary," Emperor Li said with a laugh, nodding.


    "Previously Imperial Advisor lost his disciple Yuan Jin on the battlefield. I feel so happy you have a new disciple now. Although she has a boyish nature, my daughter Li Xiao is at the age for marriage, too. Imperial Advisor, what do you think if I married her to Seventh Swordsman?"


    Many people were in shock at what Emperor Li had said.


    The Seventh Swordsman had just offended Prince Regent and killed Li Xuan.


    Now the Emperor was going to betroth his daughter to him. This was��

 1141 Li Yao Received a Message

    Emperor Li''s action indicated that he thought highly of the Imperial Advisor.


    Of course, there was no doubt that His Majesty betrothed the princess to the Seventh Swordsman because he was indeed an excellent man. He was the best swordsman in the Lower Worlds; he defeated Di Hao and survived in the hands of Demon Saint; he killed Li Xuan in public; he had outstanding talent, courage, and charisma, and he was also handsome and the right age.


    Many people thought from this perspective and secretly admired this abrupt but wise decision of betrothal. Princess had a noble lineage, but the Seventh Swordsman as the Imperial Advisor''s disciple was extraordinary, too. In Dali Dynasty, perhaps no one was more suitable than him.


    Many royal clan members raised their head, shocked at the words, but who dared to question Emperor Li?


    Ye Futian was also stunned in the crowd.


    He would never have expected that the first day he came to court with Imperial Advisor and met Emperor Li, Emperor Li would betroth Princess Li Xiao to him; this was ridiculous.


    He let Ye Futian marry Li Xiao and become the Emperor''s son-in-law?


    Not to mention whether he was willing to marry or not, the reason he came to Emperor Li''s Realm was�� And if he married Li Xiao��


    Numerous pairs of eyes fell upon the Imperial Advisor. The Imperial Advisor took one step forward and bowed to Emperor Li, saying, "It is the Seventh Swordsman''s honor to obtain Your Majesty''s grace. I took the Seventh Swordsman as my disciple, and I am aware that although he has an exceptional talent, his personality was unruly and disdainful. I am afraid he may bring offense to Princess. How about we ask about his thoughts? Otherwise, if Princess has discontent in the future, it will totally be my guilt."


    "The Imperial Advisor''s words make sense," Emperor Li said, nodding. He turned to Ye Futian and said, "The Seventh Swordsman, are you willing to marry?"


    Ye Futian lowered his head and stepped forward; he had no choice.


    Who dared to refuse the marriage Emperor Li arranged for him? It was Emperor Li''s blessing, and he was supposed to bow and express gratitude for it.


    Any inappropriate reply might bring trouble.


    But of course, according to what Ye Futian knew, even if he declines it, Emperor Li would not be angry at him as the Imperial Advisor''s disciple.


    "Your Majesty, I deeply appreciate your blessing. I have met Princess once; her beauty and wit are indeed unparalleled, and I am afraid I don''t deserve someone like her. Besides, I am already emotionally attached to someone in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. I don''t dare to disgrace Her Highness," Ye Futian slowly said.


    One that didn''t know the truth would assume he was sincerely afraid he didn''t deserve Princess.


    However, many royal clan members had participated in the recent hunt and still remembered how he bluntly treated Princess and asked her if she could bear his sword.


    And now he claimed that "her beauty and wit were unparalleled" and "he didn''t deserve her"?


    Wow.


    Life was nothing but a play.


    But even though they all knew it, no one dared to expose it. Otherwise, the Imperial Advisor would be offended.


    Also, everyone had to rethink the intention behind the Emperor''s betrothal. Who dared to spread rumors in such a situation might pay for their senselessness at the price of death.


    Obviously, Emperor Li did so because he thought highly of the Imperial Advisor.


    Besides, who was the "someone" in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence he was emotionally attached to?


    It was evident to everyone he referred to the Imperial Advisor''s daughter.


    The Seventh Swordsman had only been in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence for a few days, and now he wanted to become the Imperial Advisor''s son-in-law?


    However, what else could Ye Futian say? He was sorry for Fei Xue, but at least, Emperor Li couldn''t say anything about this reason.


    Both the Imperial Advisor and Yan Yuan took a look at him after he finished speaking; they knew he used Fei Xue as an excuse.


    Emperor Li took a glance at Ye Futian and said with a careless smile, "Okay. Imperial Advisor, if in the future these two young people have this thought, I can arrange marriage for them."


    The matter of Li Xiao had come to an end. Emperor Li valued the Imperial Advisor, and since the Seventh Swordsman was emotionally attached to Imperial Advisor''s daughter, he would not step in and bring embarrassment to the Imperial Advisor.


    And instead, he promised to arrange the marriage for them, which showed his magnanimity.


    Others would just let it be since Emperor Li himself no longer mentioned it.


    Everyone knew how politically stupid it was to give pressure to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence by such a thing; nobody would do it.


    "I am so thankful for your kindness, Your Majesty. I never ask about affairs between young people, but if one day the thing is decided, I will report to Your Majesty," said the Imperial Advisor, bowing. He knew what Ye Futian said was untrue, but he had to admit it had effectively solved the crisis since Ye Futian didn''t want to say yes.


    "Good," Emperor Li said, nodding. He then turned to others and asked, "Is there anything to report today?"


    "Your Majesty, I have one issue to report," said King Tiandao, who stood in the front line.


    "What is your matter, my Brother King?" asked Emperor Li. King Tiandao was Emperor Li''s full brother and was conferred the title of King Tiandao, so Emperor Li called him "Brother King"; the way he addressed him indicated how intimate they were.


    It seemed that the Emperor Li equally respected imperial Advisor and King Tiandao.


    "The martial power of Dali Dynasty has reached an unprecedented level. Numerous top figures came out of Imperial Advisor''s Dali National Academy and my Daoli Mountain, and the number of upper Plane cultivators in Dali keeps increasing. If the Imperial Advisor can provide help to the Army and we build a Saint Plane Iron Troop together, it must be invincible," King Tiandao said in a solemn voice. "Therefore, I earnestly request Your Majesty to allow the Imperial Advisor to enter the Army and build an Iron Troop for the prosperity of Dali Dynasty."


    "The Imperial Advisor has put much effort and work in teaching cultivators for years in Emperor Li''s City. I often send people to learn Matrix methods from the Imperial Advisor and use the knowledge to train the Army. Brother King, you are too straightforward; you want the Imperial Advisor to join the Army," said Emperor Li, laughing.


    King Tiandao said, "Your Majesty, these years, the Imperial Advisor has put much effort into his job, and his contribution to the Dynasty has been significant. However, nowadays, everything in the Imperial City runs smoothly, and the status of Dali Academy is unshakable. I heard that now the Imperial Advisor seldom takes up matters of Dali Academy. Since the Third Prince has made a breakthrough in the Unblemished Saint Plane, I suggest the Third Princess take charge of Dali Academy for the Imperial Advisor and handle issues in the City; Prince Regent and King White can also maintain the City''s stability."


    "The Imperial Advisor and his disciples all have military ability and wisdom. If they can enter the Army and cooperate with me, we can build an unparalleled troop," continued King Tiandao.


    Suddenly everyone''s expression turned serious; all the top figures of the Dali Imperial City gathered in front of the staircase, but no one let out a sound.


    King Tiandao wanted to enlist the Imperial Advisor and his disciples in the army and let the Third Prince be in charge of Dali National Academy. Didn''t it mean asking Imperial Advisor to hand over the enterprise he had been devoting many years to?


    However, everything in Dali Dynasty was supposed to belong to the royal clan.


    How could the Imperial Advisor say no if the Third Prince came to take charge?


    "I can get your point, brother. If the Imperial Advisor and King Tiandao cooperate, indeed, an unassailable army can be established on the land of Dali," said Emperor Li, smiling. He turned to ask the Imperial Advisor, "What do you think of King Tiandao''s opinion?"


    The Imperial Advisor made a fist salute and said, "Nowadays, Dali National Academy is indeed running in good condition, and I am not engaged with the job; Yan Yuan is in charge of running it. If Your Majesty would like to appoint the Prince and others to the board of the Academy, I can relax more and will be delighted to do so.


    "As for entering the army, I am studying the new Matrix Method, and if there is an outcome, I will send it to the Palace and then to the Army," the Imperial Advisor continued, "but directing the army is not my field. I am afraid I will disagree with King Tiandao if we work together."


    "Is there anything in the world the Imperial Advisor is not good at?" King Tiandao said after listening to the Imperial Advisor. "And, Imperial Advisor, you don''t need to worry about disagreement. As long as you are willing to join the Army and build it well with me, I don''t mind serving as the Imperial Advisor''s assistant."


    "Your Highness is so dedicated to strengthen the army; are you preparing for the war?" the Imperial Advisor questioned him.


    "Dali Dynasty is powerful enough to start a war. Why can''t we do it?" replied King Tiandao.


    "A war between Realms will cost too much, and once it explodes, the number of casualties will be uncontrollable even if the scale is not large. Dali is far from ready for it," said the Imperial Advisor.


    "Exactly. That is why we need the Imperial Advisor''s support," said King Tiandao.


    Emperor Li didn''t speak, so the argument was only between the Imperial Advisor and King Tiandao.


    Prince Regent just stood there quietly and didn''t say a word. It was as if all that had happened was none of his business.


    "Please stop arguing, both of you," Emperor Li said, laughing. "Imperial Advisor is right. Wars are costly; once the war begins, the situation will be out of our control. This issue requires further thought and discussion. How about King Tiandao and Imperial Advisor talk after the meeting?"


    "Yes, Your Majesty," King Tiao and Imperial Advisor said, nodding and ending the quarrel.


    "Does anyone else have anything to report?" Emperor Li asked and turned to others. Some reported some unimportant issues.


    However, Ye Futian was still slightly agitated; did King Tiandao try to provoke a war?


    Was he aiming at Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    At the thought of this, he delivered the message to the Condor and let him pass it on to Xia Qingyuan.


    But soon, the Condor''s message for help came to Ye Futian''s mind, which made Ye Futian feel curious. After taking a look at what had happened on that side, he said to himself that this guy deserved it. Didn''t he know it was suicidal to irritate Xia Qingyuan by the things that happened today in the Court?


    One could imagine how Xia Qingyuan''s mood was like when she found out Ye Futian almost became Emperor Li''s son-in-law. He came to Emperor Li''s Realm for revenge, and now he would become one of them?


    Ye Futian perceived how violent the scene where Xia Qingyuan and the Cyan Argusianus beat the Condor was, and paid a silent tribute for him in advance.


    This was what his loose lips deserved.


    Ye Futian could hear Black Wind Condor''s dreadful shrinking even from the infinitely far distance.


    This time, Xia Qingyuan, that woman, really had no mercy.


    In Dali Palace, after Emperor Li announced the end of the Court meeting, the crowd dispersed. Li Yao took a look at Ye Futian and felt pity for him; if Ye Futian had agreed to become the son-in-law, his power in Dali would have definitely reached its apex.


    However, he declined the chance; he was, as usual, very special.


    Li Yao didn''t come to talk to Ye Futian, but rather, he walked to King White and King Tiandao.


    Not long ago, he received a message, and now he needed King White and King Tiandao''s backup; otherwise, the manpower he was able to manage would be not enough!

 1142 Sword Sain

    Emperor Li convened King Tiandao, Prince Regent, King White for a meeting, and the rest of the crowd gradually dispersed.


    Li Yao walked to Yan Yuan and Ye Futian''s side and said, laughing, "The Seventh Swordsman, just now if you had said yes, from now on you would have to call me ''brother-in-law.''"


    "I hope Your Highness didn''t mind," said Ye Futian.


    Li Yao shook his head and said, "Of course not, since you are emotionally attached to Master''s daughter. My sister Li Xiao is very unruly; if you had nodded, she would still cause a disturbance."


    The Seventh Swordsman was such a proud person, and the first time he met with Li Xiao, the two had already had an intense confrontation. If Li Xiao married Jian Qi, the scene�� must be quite horrifying. Li Yao guessed they could fight every day.


    Ye Futian didn''t say much. Yan Yuan, who was standing aside, cut in, "It takes a while for His Majesty and the Imperial Advisor to discuss issues. The Seventh Swordsman and I should return now, Your Highness."


    "I will see you out, Elder Brother," said Li Yao.


    "Please stay, Your Highness," said Yan Yuan respectfully. And then they returned.


    Li Yao watched Ye Futian leave and had a thought in his mind: In the Battle of Empty Realm, Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm was peerless, and no one on the battlefield dared to fight him; today the Seventh Sword was also unrivaled in Emperor Li''s Realm. If both appeared on the battlefield, who would defeat the other?


    The message he received recently was just about Ye Futian.


    If Li Yao had known the two people that he was comparing were the same person, nobody could understand how he would feel.


    Of course, they looked like two utterly different people. Ye Futian was good at using halberds, and the Seventh Sword was good at using swords. Li Yao had made close contact with Ye Futian several times, and he felt their life forces were completely different. Li Yao was smart, but he did not think they were the same person; the thought had never even occurred to him.


    Anyway, who would suddenly think two completely different people were one for no reason?


    It was said that after Ye Futian and others left the Imperial Palace, Li Xiao was furious in her palace, and claimed she would kill the Seventh Swordsman, who had embarrassed her so much. How could he reject the Emperor''s betrothal in public? Did he think she didn''t deserve him? She heard that the Imperial Advisor''s daughter had a severe illness, could not see, and had to sleep all the time.


    And his heart belonged to her? Was a princess not better than a half-dead patient? Wasn''t it an embarrassment?


    Even though the patient was the Imperial Advisor''s daughter, it was an open secret. Nobody dared to mention it during the Court Meeting, but they all knew.


    The people in Princess''s Residence lived their lives in apprehension, but most people in the Palace enjoyed it as a farce. After Li Xiao was mollified, she would soon forget about it, but if the Seventh Swordsman had promised to marry her, she probably would still make a fuss.


    Ye Futian wasn''t even aware of all this; he didn''t care what Li Xiao thought.


    ��


    In Emperor Xia''s Realm, Black Wind Condor was being beaten like hell.


    While in the villa where the Cottage was located, on the back side of the mountain, the Sword Saint stood on the edge of a cliff in silence, his black clothes blowing in the wind.


    Behind him, a person came and asked, "What are you thinking about, Brother?"


    The person was the Cottage Villa Third Disciple Gu Dongliu.


    "It has been 19 years," Sword Saint said abruptly.


    However, Gu Dongliu understood what he meant. He walked to Sword Saint''s side and nodded. "Yes, 19 years."


    In Year 10004 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, the peerless Princess Donghuang came to the Book Mountain of Eastern Barren Territory and took away Sir Du of the Cottage Villa.


    Today was Year 10023 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. It had been 19 years.


    Others might not understand what Sword Saint meant, but Gu Dongliu understood it.


    Too many things had happened over these 19 years. They had reached the height they''d never dreamt of before. They had experienced numerous trials. So many times, they had been on the edge of death, until they came to be who they were today.


    Even so, it seemed they still had a long way to go.


    The Sword Saint looked up at the sky dome and asked, "Dongliu, how high do you think the sky is?"


    When people in the Lower Worlds looked up, what they saw was the sky; hen people of the Upper Worlds looked up, the sky was still there.


    How high was the sky?


    "Infinitely high," said Gu Dongliu.


    "How far can we go?" asked Sword Saint again.


    "Infinitely far as our hearts," said Gu Dongliu.


    Sword Saint nodded, smiling. The sky was infinitely high, as the hearts, as the Paths.


    Once upon a time, people called him a genius and said his state of mind was exceptional, that he could witness history.


    He didn''t care if he could witness history or not. What he cared about was nothing but when he could see Master and achieve his wish with him.


    However, all seemed too far away. The more he thought, the more intangible everything seemed.


    "Dongliu, I am going to enter the Saint Plane," said Sword Saint.


    Gu Dongliu paused a second and grinned, saying, "That''s great."


    The Brother had finally made a breakthrough on that level.


    Since he said he would enter the Saint Plane, he would make it. Gu Dongliu had no doubt, whether or not the Brother was a saint.


    Sword Saint laughed. He reached out one hand. All of a sudden, demonic might pervaded the space, and in the roaring waves of demonic might, a demon sword gradually formed. All the might converged in his body, which made him bawl to the sky and earth.


    "Even though it is infinitely far, I will chase after it." Sword Saint took a stride forward and lifted the Demon Sword into the air. Stronger demonic might kept rolling, growling, and merging into the sword. The Demon Sword greedily swallowed the terrifying radiance; an aura of force surrounded the whole villa.


    People in the villa looked up in the sky. Yaya, Lapis Saint, and the Village Chief all looked at Sword Saint, who was soaring up in the mid-air as if he was attempting to touch the bound of the sky.


    "Brother." Zhuge Mingyue, Luo Fan, Yi Xiaoshi, and Beitang Xing''er also caught sight of Sword Saint and looked toward the sky.


    As Sword Saint rose higher, the demonic might also grew stronger.


    The light of Catastrophe flickered above the upper sky. The storm and clouds turned dark as if the end of the world would come.


    The sky transformed.


    "His Catastrophe!" People in the Villa were in shock.


    "Brother is entering his Saint Plane Catastrophe."


    Zhuge Mingyue tucked her hair behind her ears using one slender hand; her eyes were crystal-clear and gorgeous when she looked toward the empty sky.


    A saint.


    A Cottage Villa disciple would become a figure of the Saint Plane.


    From now on, the Older Brother would become a Sword Saint in the true sense of the word.


    If Master had been able to see the day to come, he must have been very happy.


    Besides the Older Brother, Dongliu, and Ye Futian were also in the last stage of Sage Plane, and one day, they would experience this, too. Especially Ye Futian. He had caught up with everyone in cultivation. Maybe he would meet the master''s expectation one day.


    "Today is such a good day, Sister," Beitang Xing''er walked to Zhuge Mingyue and said.


    On the first day of Year 10023, according to Divine Prefecture Calendar, the Older Brother entered Saint Plane.


    Ye Futian would also be happy for his Older Brother if he had been here.


    Black clouds loomed in the upper sky as if the demon catastrophe was about to come. Everyone''s catastrophe differed depending on their cultivation styles.


    The intensity of Sword Saint''s catastrophe was much higher than the catastrophe of Douzhan.


    The force seemed to be able to crush Sword Saint.


    But no Cottage disciples doubted whether or not Sword Saint could pass this catastrophe. Just as what Master had said during the Cottage cultivation, although the Older Brother''s talent was ordinary among all Brothers and Sisters, he continued to make steady progress.


    Since he was experiencing the Saint Plane Catastrophe, he had completed all the required conditions.


    It was an automatic outcome. Even though the Saint Plane Catastrophe might be a tough one, all disciples believed the Older Brother would overcome it.


    The Sword Saint continued soaring up in the sky as if he was attempting to run into the Catastrophe of Law. The sword was held tight in his hand; the boundless reflection of catastrophe light dripped down from the sky.


    Followed by an appalling thunder, the Catastrophe befell him.


    Sword Saint raised his sword and heaved a heavy strike toward the Catastrophe. The Catastrophe was chopped up. Even the sky dome seemed to be torn apart.


    The scene was like a thump on everyone''s heart.


    Soon, the Catastrophe converged again. Sword Saint put down his hand and the sword faded away. The light of Catastrophe fell upon him and washed across his torso.


    The Catastrophe of the Law was dangerous, but it was a necessary path to becoming a saint; one could only become a saint by accepting the purification of the Law.


    That strike was not aimed at destroying the Catastrophe. It was a manifestation of Sword Saint''s fearless heart.


    Even though heaven was infinitely high, the Path was infinitely far, he must rise up in person and see them with his own eyes.


    Under the dome of the boundless Catastrophe, Sword Saint stood straight up in the air like a god. Even people far from the Villa looked up and watched toward the direction, full of awe.


    ��


    In the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, Emperor Li''s Realm, at dusk Ye Futian heard from the Condor that the Older Brother had entered the Saint Plane. He woke up from the status of cultivation, and a grin spread across his face.


    He stood up on his feet, eyes fixed on the sky.


    Finally, a Cottage disciple set foot on the Saint Path.


    The only pity was that Ye Futian was not in the Cottage to witness this historical moment.


    Now the older brother had entered the Saint Plane. One day, Ye Futian would, too. So would the Third Brother.


    They would all reach a higher place.


    "What makes you so happy?" someone said in a soft voice. Ye Futian turned around and saw Fei Xue, who was facing him. She said, "I can sense how excited you are from a far distance."


    "A happy thing, of course," Ye Futian said, laughing.


    "Really? I heard in today''s Court meeting His Majesty wanted to betroth Princess to you. If you were happy about this, you shouldn''t have rejected it," Fei Xue said with a smile. "And when did you fall in love with me?"


    "Ehh��" Ye Futian was very embarrassed.


    Fei Xue smiled carelessly. She was able to sense emotions, so she knew Ye Futian was never in love with her.


    Otherwise, he could not hide it in front of her.


    "Why did you decline the Emperor''s betrothal? Don''t tell me you really have someone you love?" Fei Xue said, grinning. She suddenly wanted to know about Ye Futian''s thoughts; it must be interesting.


    Ye Futian heard Fei Xue''s questions, and it felt like an icy needle was pricking his heart. Even after so many years had passed, he was still heartbroken whenever it came to his mind.


    Fei Xue''s smile vanished; she immediately realized her curiosity was not appropriate. She lowered her head and softly said, "I''m sorry."


    She knew she asked a bad question.


    "Never mind, it''s not about you," Ye Futian said. He knew Fei Xue didn''t mean to.


    "I should go now. Please forget it and continue thinking about that happy things," Fei Xue said quietly and turned and left, worrying she would affect Ye Futian''s mood.


    Seeing her leave, Ye Futian shook his head with a bitter smile. How could he easily forget it since it had already come into his mind?


    But the news that Sword Saint had entered the Saint Plane still made him happy from the bottom of his heart!

 1143 Giving Up

    After Fei Xue left, Ye Futian looked up to the sky.


    The scene of the Palace Battle remained vivid in his mind; Jieyu''s death was the pain in his heart.


    They had been together since they were 16 years old; they had gone through ups and downs for so many years, but all became nothing but a memory because of Li Yao.


    Even though Li Yao was friendly with him in Emperor Li''s Realm, Ye Futian knew it was only because of his current identity as the Seventh Swordsman��a person useful to Li Yao��instead of the trivial and miserable Palace Lord at the mercy of him in the land of the Nine States.


    So he ventured to Emperor Li''s Realm. However, Ye Futian gradually realized his plan was not as perfect as he first thought. He came to the Imperial Advisor but discovered that this mysterious and powerful figure in legend was uncommon and common at the same time.


    He dithered.


    Especially when he cultivated in the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, he found the Cultivation Method was above the Saint-level.


    But the Imperial Advisor had taught it to him before Ye Futian helped Fei Xue.


    Besides, from Fei Xue and L�� Chuan''s conscious or unconscious indications, Ye Futian came to know that people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence were not unaware of his suspicious identity as the Seventh Swordsman.


    However, even so, the Imperial Advisor was eager to teach him the Cultivation Method beyond Saint level.


    What kind of magnanimity was it?


    If Ye Futian had been in the Imperial Advisor''s shoes, he would not have done it.


    Was it only because the Imperial Advisor appreciated his passion for cultivation?


    Ye Futian couldn''t stop thinking about what would happen if he killed Li Yao with ]as the Imperial Advisor''s disciple. Even though the Imperial Advisor was in power in Dali Dynasty, and Emperor Li might not harm him, the estrangement must grow between them. And as what he had seen in today''s Court meeting, King Tiandao was also very aggressive and was urging the Imperial Advisor to join the Army.


    Prince Regent''s forbearance was unsettling, too. His offspring was killed, but when Yan Yuan took him away in the face of the Prince Regent, the Prince Regent didn''t demand the release. Yan Yuan also said the Prince Regent was very sophisticated.


    He had his own intention behind the seeming forbearance.


    What''s more, the Imperial Advisor was against battles between Realms. Some people speculated that he could transform Saints, and King Tiandao obviously also had this thought, but the Imperial Advisor didn''t do it.


    Did Emperor Li have the thought, too?


    King Tiandao was Emperor Li''s full brother.


    If Emperor Li had no opinion on what King Tiandao had said, why should he convene Imperial Advisor, King Tiandao, and others for a session after the court meeting?


    The harmony between the lord and the ministers in Dali Dynasty was nothing but an illusion. The Imperial Advisor was perhaps not at the apex of power in Dali as he appeared to be.


    Was the Imperial Advisor''s status really that stable?


    Maybe yes, only if no accident occurred.


    Ye Futian was having an inner struggle.


    If the Dali Imperial Advisor had been a different person, Ye Futian would fool the Imperial Advisor and Emperor Li against each other without hesitation, just like before.


    But he had changed his state of mind after this period of time.


    The Imperial Advisor once passed the message through Fei Xue to tell him not to waver and do what his heart felt was right.


    Sir Du also taught him to live a life between sky and earth, following his conscience.


    Killing Li Yao was what he pursued, but if he made it, would he be free from guilt?


    He was not supposed to involve others in his plan for revenge.


    If he had not known the result, he would not have had so much concern.


    However, he knew what outcome that would bring.


    "Following my conscience, between the sky and earth," Ye Futian murmured and exhaled deeply. Suddenly, his mind cleared.


    In just one moment, he felt his heart open, and his mind become broad. It was as if his body was connected to the sky and earth, and everything in the world became clearer to him.


    It was a wonderful feeling that he couldn''t tell what it is.


    It seems that I have touched the Saint Path, Ye Futian thought to himself.


    Everything became so bright in his eyes.


    At the moment, he was getting closer to the Saint Plane.


    Ye Futian sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes. Instantly, his mind connected to Black Wind Condor in the palace of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    In Princess Residence, Emperor Xia''s Realm, the poor Black Wind Condor had so many bruises. The next time he came in front of Xia Qingyuan, she gave him a cold, brief glance and called, "Cyannie, what''s the matter?"


    "It''s me." It was Ye Futian''s voice. Xia Qingyuan paused a second, but she was still emotionless and replied coldly, "I heard you will become Emperor Li''s son-in-law?"


    She was still thinking about whether Ye Futian should belong to Emperor Xia''s Realm or Emperor Li''s Realm.


    If he had said yes in the Court meeting, he would immediately become the Imperial Advisor''s or Emperor.


    Li''s son-in-law and his status would be equal to that of a noble Dali Prince. However, strictly speaking, Ye Futian in Emperor Xia''s Realm was just a princess''s servant.


    The contrast was��


    "May I know why Your Highness is not in a good mood?" Ye Futian asked calmly.


    "When am I not in a good mood?" Xia Qingjuan asked coldly, expressionless. She would not admit it.


    "Why did you beat the Condor half to death then?" Ye Futian was speechless; this woman lied through her teeth.


    "The beast couldn''t keep its mouth shut. Why can''t I discipline it?" replied Xia Qingyuan.


    "��"


    Ye Futian thought to himself that this woman was indeed unreasonable, even though she was the high-born princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "I will come back," said Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan paused a second and stared at Black Wind Condor, asking, "When?"


    "I will find the right time to tell them I will travel outside Emperor Li''s Realm for cultivation, and then I will come back to Emperor Xia''s Realm," said Ye Futian. He hoped the Seventh Swordsman could vanish. Nobody would know his identity.


    Vengence for Jiuyue had to be delayed.


    "Okay." Xia Qingyuan was finally relieved. Even though Ye Futian had converted his identity, he was surrounded by top figures in Dali Imperial City, and he even had met Emperor Li.


    She felt it was not that safe for him to continue.


    What''s more, she was not sure whether the assassination last time was a trap someone set up for Ye Futian, but if it was, the message might have reached Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Even though the identity of Ye Futian in Dali Dynasty was the Seventh Swordsman, and people might not realize it.


    But still, there was a risk.


    Now since Ye Futian was willing to come back, she fully supported it.


    "Do you need anyone to pick you up?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    "No, that will alert them. I will use cultivation as an excuse to leave and change my identity, then come back," said Ye Futian. Xia Qinyuan nodded and said, "Okay, just be careful."


    "Thank you for your care, Your Highness," said Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan paused a second and said coldly, "I just don''t want to see you die in Dali."


    Ye Futian didn''t say anything. Xia Qingyuan continued, "Are you going to come from the Upper Worlds or Lower Worlds?"


    "From the Lower Worlds," said Ye Futian. It was safer.


    "Good. You control demonic beasts in the Holy Zhi Palace of Lower Worlds, don''t you? I will send people to the Lower World Palace and take the controlled demonic beast to the border of Emperor Li''s Realm just in case," Xia Qingyuan continued. The Black Wind Condor would stay in the Palace, so she could know the latest situation and communicate with Ye Futian.


    "Your Highness doesn''t need to bother," said Ye Futian.


    "It''s settled. Send a message to me whenever you can after you depart," said Xia Qingyuan coldly.


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan; there was a strange look in his eyes.


    "Okay." He didn''t say much, and soon he exited from Black Wind Condor''s mind.


    ��


    In Dali Dynasty, Ye Futian had cultivated for some days. He was not able to leave on the first day of the year when Emperor Li''s betrothal happened, so he waited and spent the time focusing on cultivating the knowledge in the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. Sometimes, he also sought advice from the Imperial Advisor, and the imperial Advisor explained to him patiently every time.


    As his cultivation progressed, Ye Futian gradually felt his level was getting closer to the Saint Plane. He was very likely to enter the Saint Plane this year; the feeling was very mysterious and indescribable.


    One day, Ye Futian came to the courtyard where the Imperial Advisor lived.


    "Master," Ye Futian greeted the Imperial Advisor, who was resting there.


    The Imperial Advisor looked at him and asked, "Do you have any questions about cultivation?"


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head and said, "Master, I feel my cultivation has reached the edge of Saint Plane, so I am thinking about traveling around the world and taking occasions to set foot on the Saint Path."


    "Good. You need company?" asked the Imperial Advisor.


    "No need, Master. I want to focus on meditating cultivation paths this time. I will travel the world alone with only one sword in my hand and will not come back until I enter the Saint Plane," Ye Futian said to the Imperial Advisor, but he knew it was not true.


    From now on, the name of the Seventh Swordsman would no longer exist in Dali.


    Ye Futian looked at the Imperial Advisor and had mixed feelings; he didn''t want to say goodbye to him.


    If Dali had not been his enemy, Ye Futian would have stayed and cultivated under the instruction of the Imperial Advisor for a long time. He was indeed a highly respectable old man.


    "Where are you going?" Fei Xue came toward Ye Futian and asked.


    Ye Futian lied.


    "Anywhere��Upper or Lower Worlds. I want to travel around," said Ye Futian. He knew he could not conceal anything from her, but he still said it in this way.


    He was planning to go to King Li''s Palace and asked Li You to open the Matrix for him, and then he would enter the Lower Worlds. Li You was his friend; she could do him a favor.


    Fei Xue didn''t say anything. She could sense that it was very likely Ye Futian would not come back after leaving.


    She knew Ye Futian had his secret, but why would he not come back?


    What kind of secret made him do this?


    Was there someplace outside the Imperial Palace that was better than the Imperial Advisor''s Residence in Dali Dynasty?


    "Do you have to go?" Fei Xue asked after a short silence.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded, serious.


    Fei Xue fell silent for a moment again and then put on a smile, saying, "I hope you enter Saint Plane one day, Seventh Swordsman."


    She came in front of him and slightly opened her arms.


    She had no idea when the next time she would see his face.


    Ye Futian knew what she meant. He opened his arms and hugged her and said, laughing, "Now I have to say I was honest to His Majesty."


    Fei Xue sighed to herself; the guy made a joke again.


    The hug was, of course, not about love; it was to say goodbye.


    The Imperial Advisor looked at them as if he had understood something, but he didn''t ask. He just said with a laugh, "The Path has no boundaries; cultivation exists everywhere. I hope you enter Saint Plane soon."


    "The Path has no boundaries; cultivation exists everywhere." Ye Futian looked at the Imperial Advisor and said, "Master, please take care!"


    And then he took a bow to the Imperial Advisor and turned around, leaving. Before he left, he said, "Please say goodbye to my Brothers for me, Sir."

 1144 Seeing Off

    Ye Futian was walking out of Imperial Advisor''s Residence. Fei Xue couldn''t see, but she still faced Ye Futian and had a bright smile on her face.


    Everything had gone well so far.


    Ye Futian was going out, and at the same time, a group of people was coming in the direction of Imperial Advisor''s Residence, and the person who led the group was Li Yao.


    Li Yao saw Ye Futian and paused, greeting, "Seventh Swordsman."


    "Your Highness," Ye Futian stopped and saluted, too.


    "Where are you going?" asked Li Yao.


    "My cultivation has reached a plateau, so I am thinking about traveling outside and strengthening my swordsmanship. I hope one day I can enter Saint Plane," Ye Futian replied.


    Li Yao nodded and said, smiling, "By the time you come back, a peerless swordsman-in-training will rise in our Dali Dynasty."


    Ye Futian didn''t respond. He said, "Your Highness, I should go now."


    "All right." Li Yao nodded and said, "I have some matters to talk about with Master. Sorry I can''t see you out."


    Ye Futian and Li Yao parted and walked in opposite directions, respectively. Li Yao headed toward the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, and Ye Futian went in the direction of King Li''s Residence.


    Outside the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, Li Yao and others landed and requested to see him. Soon they were invited in. Li Yao bowed in front of the Imperial Advisor and saluted, "Master."


    "Your Highness," the Imperial Advisor nodded and greeted him while sitting.


    "Will the Seventh Swordsman enter the Saint Plane soon?" asked Li Yao, smiling.


    "Yes, he will," said the Imperial Advisor, nodding.


    "The Seventh Swordsman''s talent is extremely rare even throughout the 100 years of Dali Dynasty history. I can''t imagine how great he will be after he enters Saint Plane," said Li Yao, laughing.


    The Imperial Advisor slightly nodded and asked, "Is there anything I can do for you today, Your Highness?"


    "Yes." Li Yao became serious after hearing what the Imperial Advisor asked. He said, "I received a message before that the person who killed Brother Yuan Jin on the battlefield of Empty Realm might have reached Emperor Li''s Realm. It is undoubtedly extremely hard to find a person in a country; however, recently, I got one more message that this person will probably return from the Lower Worlds. I am here to ask Master if my Brothers can go to the Lower Worlds with me?"


    The Imperial Advisor took a look at Li Yao and said, "People die during war. It was Yuan Jin''s destiny to end his life on the battlefield. Please don''t take it too much to heart, Your Highness."


    Li Yao nodded, but he couldn''t put it aside.


    Ye Futian left a too strong impression on him.


    That year in the Nine States, Li Yao treated his enemies like nothing, but on the battlefield of Empty Realm, a man, who he thought he could trample on like an ant, completely defeated him and even threatened his life.


    Yuan Jin had entered the Saint Plane and was one of the most talented among all Brothers, but he was also defeated and killed. If Ye Futian became stronger, he would definitely become a great threat. But as an opponent, Li Yao must admit that Ye Futian was a very rare genius, just like the Seventh Swordsman.


    With these thoughts in mind, Li Yao bowed to Imperial Advisor and requested to leave.


    He turned around and prepared to leave. After walking a short distance, he was suddenly hit with a thought like a lightning strike jolting his mind. It stunned him for a few seconds. He froze for quite a while.


    His face turned pale, and his heart thumped faster and faster.


    "


    No, that''s not possible��" Li Yao''s heart twisted painfully. He tried to deny the thought that came out of nowhere, but he couldn''t erase it from his mind.


    Ye Futian and the Seventh Swordsman.


    Both of them were rarely seen geniuses. Both of them were able to defend Saint-level attacks. It was said that something detained Ye Futian since he came to Dali; the Seventh Sword from the Lower Worlds rapidly gained fame as a swordsman in Dali Dynasty.


    He got the message that Ye Futian was about to leave, and at this time, the Seventh Sword was going outside to cultivate��


    Why did he have to choose this time to go outside?


    Li Yao had never put these two people together, and he didn''t have the idea even when the Seventh Swordsman said he would travel outside to cultivate, but after he had the conversation with the Imperial Advisor, the connection between Ye Futian and the Seventh Swordsman suddenly came to his mind.


    His heart trembled heavily.


    "Master, where is the Seventh Swordsman heading?" Li Yao turned around and asked. Even at this moment, he was still not sure and needed to confirm it with the Imperial Advisor.


    "I don''t know. He said anywhere," said the Imperial Advisor.


    "I want to take the Seventh Swordsman to the army for cultivation. Please allow me to do this, Master," Li Yao bowed and said. Fei Xue seemed to have perceived something, and her face turned ashen. She looked toward her father. The Imperial Advisor said, "Your Highness, cultivation should follow the will of the heart. Since the Seventh Swordsman wants to cultivate outside, let him do it."


    Li Yao looked at Imperial Advisor and bowed, saying, "Yes, Master."


    He left the Imperial Advisor''s Residence with his head lowered.


    He was still not sure about it, so he didn''t say it out loud. What if he was wrong?


    But if he was right, the Seventh Swordsman would definitely go to the Lower Worlds.


    The best way to enter the Lower Worlds in Dali Imperial City was to go to King Li''s Palace.


    "Let''s go." Li Yao quickly headed in the direction of King Li''s Palace with his people.


    "Father, I can sense that His Highness has a desire to kill," said Fei Xue to her father. Her face was pale.


    The Imperial Advisor looked into the distance and let out a sigh. Now it made sense.


    Finally, he understood why the Seventh Swordsman had to leave.


    If he hadn''t left, Li Yao wouldn''t have noticed.


    If he hadn''t left, what kind of ending would be waiting for him? What would happen if the Seventh Swordsman kept cultivating in Dali, depending on his talent and nature?


    Wang Zhong also cultivated with Imperial Advisor before the Seventh Swordsman arrived, but Wang Zhong hated him; persistence was his nature.


    But compared with insisting on something, what was more difficult to do was letting go.


    The Seventh Swordsman chose the latter.


    The Imperial Advisor had not expected that he could learn so much from a young disciple at the apex of his Saint Plane.


    The Law had no boundaries, and according to the nature the Seventh Sword had shown, the Imperial Advisor believed he could have his achievement.


    With this in mind, the Imperial Advisor released his soul of Saint Apex and sent it into the distance. It reached Dali National Academy.


    Yan Yuan was in the Academy and perceived it. He raised his head and saluted, "Master."


    "Yan Yuan," Imperial Advisor''s voice came to Yan Yuan''s mind, "please see your Brother, the Seventh Swordsman, off in King Li''s Palace."


    "Where to?" asked Yan Yuan.


    "To the Nine States, Emperor Xia''s Realm," said Imperial Advisor''s voice. Yan Yuan fixed his eyes on the empty sky. He stood still and didn''t say anything for a while.


    "Why?" Yan Yuan hesitated for a moment and asked.


    He rarely asked Master for an explanation, but this time, he did.


    "He is your younger brother��the Seventh Swordsman��in Emperor Li''s Realm, but when he passes the border of Emperor Li''s Realm, the Seventh Swordsman will no longer exist in Dali." Imperial Advisor''s voice again came into Yan Yuan''s mind. Yan Yuan closed his eyes and ruminated for a second. The next moment, he opened his beaming eyes; something seemed to be clear in his mind. He said, "I see."


    Yan Yuan did a flip and vanished from Dali National Academy.


    King Li''s Palace, Imperial Advisor''s Residence, and Dali National Academy were all located on Emperor Li''s Avenue, so the actual distance was not very far.


    Ye Futian didn''t take a long time to come to King Li''s Palace. Li Yang and Li You were surprised to see Ye Futian come, so they asked, "Seventh Swordsman, what brings you here today?"


    "I want to go to the Lower Worlds to travel around and find ways to enter the Saint Path. Your Highnesses, please allow me to use the Matrix and enter the Lower Worlds," said Ye Futian. He came to the Upper Worlds by the Matrix in King Li''s Palace last time after he gained fame in the King Li''s Palace.


    King Li ruled the Lower Worlds, and the Matrix he was in charge of connected the Upper and Lower Worlds.


    "All right." Li Yang and Li You immediately approved it; they had no reason to refuse Ye Futian''s request.


    They were friendly with Ye Futian from the beginning. Besides, an Imperial Advisor''s disciple''s request to use the Matrix was always granted.


    "Do you want to depart now?" asked Li You.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "I will go with you," Li You said, smiling. "I want to go to Lower Worlds to see my father anyway."


    Then they together headed in the direction of the Matrix in King Li''s Residence.


    At the moment, Ye Futian heard the sound of someone breaking into the air behind him. He seemed to have perceived what happened and frowned.


    "Seventh Swordsman, please wait." It was Li Yao''s voice. Ye Futian didn''t know Li Yao had become suspicious. Li Yang, Li You, and Ye Futian, who were near the Matrix, turned around and looked at him.


    "What can I do for you, Your Highness?" asked Ye Futian.


    "I have an important issue, and I need you to come with me to the Imperial Palace and solve my confusion," said Li Yao. Even though he was suspicious, Li Yao didn''t immediately accuse him; he had to confirm everything before he adopted a hostile attitude.


    Because the Imperial Advisor still stood behind the Seventh Swordsman, he was the Imperial Advisor''s acknowledged disciple. If the Imperial Advisor developed a grudge with him because of this, there was no benefit to Li Yao.


    There was a strange look on Ye Futian''s face, but it soon turned back to normal. He said, "Your Highness can speak here. I will try my best to help clear up any confusion Your Highness may have."


    "This matter is extremely important, so I can only tell you in the Imperial Palace. It won''t take very long. Please spare some time to go with me for a few hours, and you can cultivate later," continued Li Yao. Although he was still very polite, Ye Futian had already sensed something abnormal.


    Li Yao''s tone and attitude seemed somewhat strange.


    Since Ye Futian transformed into the Seventh Swordsman, he had been very cautious in behaving consistently with the Seventh Swordsman''s personality. Everyone spoke and did things in their personal style, but Li Yao, at this moment, acted abnormally.


    So, had he become suspicious?


    It shouldn''t have been possible since the Seventh Swordsman, and Ye Futian were two completely different people now.


    Ye Futian didn''t know the reason that Li Yao became suspicious because he was on his way to the Lower Worlds for cultivation.


    Not long ago, Li Yao received a message that Ye Futian was likely to return to Emperor Li''s Realm from the Lower Worlds.


    "Your Highness, I have requested to leave and have gotten permission from Master. Please wait for me when I return," Ye Futian insisted. He had to go.


    Li Yao''s heart sunk after hearing his reply. Li Yao''s speculation was getting closer and closer to reality, which made his heart harden. So the person whom he treated with respect these days was the person he most wanted to kill?


    The atmosphere suddenly became cool, and at this moment, a person arrived from the sky. Ye Futian saw it was Yan Yuan. He said to himself that this time, he had been exposed.


    Suddenly his heart sank, too. Would Yan Yuan capture him?


    "I need to do something in the Lower Worlds. Master told me to see you off," Yan Yuan came in front of Ye Futian and said to him!

 1145 This Man Was a Defender

    Ye Futian''s heart slightly trembled; he looked toward Yan Yuan and didn''t know how to feel.


    Just now, he thought that Yan Yuan had come to capture him.


    However, Yan Yuan said he came to see him off per the Imperial Advisor''s request.


    Obviously, Li Yao remembered something in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence after Ye Futian left, which was he stopped Ye Futian.


    The Imperial Advisor had also figured it out.


    "Thank you, brother." Ye Futian nodded and didn''t decline Yan Yuan''s support.


    At this moment, he was the Seventh Swordsman; he was not Ye Futian.


    Li Yao''s face took on a strange expression. The Imperial Advisor asked Yan Yuan to see him off? What was his intention?


    Did it mean that the Imperial Advisor had found out what had happened, but he still let him go anyway?


    Li Yao was almost certain that Ye Futian and the Seventh Sword were the same person.


    "Let''s go," Yan Yuan came next to Ye Futian and said. They stood on the Teleportation Matrix and uttered, "Launch the Matrix."


    Li Yang and Li You were perplexed. Why was the atmosphere so weird?


    The Seventh Swordsman wanted to go outside to cultivate, and it seemed that Li Yao didn''t allow it, but the Imperial Advisor''s chief disciple Yan Yuan came to see the Seventh Swordsman off.


    The matrix emitted dazzling light; the formidable Will of the Law erupted from it.


    "I will see the Seventh Swordsman off, too," said Li Yao. He looked ghastly and walked straight to the Matrix with his people.


    He had no time to hesitate at this moment.


    Before he entered the Matrix, he passed a message to a subordinate, and the person didn''t enter the Matrix and went in a different direction instead.


    "I will go with you," said Li You. Confused, she also stepped into the Matrix; she wanted to figure out what had happened.


    A dazzling beam of light soared up, and in the extremely strong light, all the people vanished from where they were. They arrived at King Li''s Palace, the Dali Dynasty of the Lower Worlds.


    Li Yao and Ye Futian stood together. There was a short distance between them. At the moment, they had their own thoughts and didn''t look at each other.


    In King Li''s Palace, a lot of people came to them. Many Wills were sent here. A voice sent greetings from a distance, "Li Yao, Your Highness, Sir Yan Yuan, how do you do? What brought you to the Lower Worlds?"


    A mighty figure stepped outside a palace and came in front of the Matrix. The voice came from King Li.


    All his people bowed and saluted, "We are here to meet Li Yao Highness, Sir Yan Yuan."


    King Li noticed Ye Futian and greeted him, too, smiling.


    Once the Seventh Swordsman gained fame in the Lower Worlds and entered the Upper Worlds with L�� Chuan and people of Sword Mountain. Now he had become the Imperial Advisor''s direct disciple and was famous in Dali Imperial City. King Li was, of course, happy to see him have such achievements.


    However, King Li soon realized the atmosphere was somewhat quite strange; everyone was silent.


    "Yan Yuan Brother, you have come to the Lower Worlds with the Seventh Swordsman. Are you planning to keep escorting him?" asked Li Yao. He already knew the answer based on Yan Yuan and the Seventh Swordsman''s attitudes.


    "I want to escort him a little longer. Please return, Your Highness," Yan Yuan said, taking Ye Futian to stride down the Matrix.


    "What if I want him to stay?" Li Yao said. The people behind him came forward immediately and blocked Yan Yuan and Ye Futian''s way.


    "Your Highness��" King Li and Li You were stunned. What had happened?


    Weren''t Li Yao and the Seventh Swordsman good friends?


    Besides, Li Yao was also the Imperial Advisor''s nominal disciple, so he was supposed to respect Yan Yuan, but why were they almost hostile to each other?


    "I apologize that I can''t obey your rule, but my master''s order is first," said Yan Yuan. He threw his sleeves and took a step, jumping into the air.


    "Stop them!" Li Yao ordered. People behind him all dashed forward toward Yan Yuan and Ye Futian.


    "Uncle, please help me stop Sir Yan Yuan and the Seventh Swordsman," said Li Yao to King Li.


    King Li was confused and hesitated for a while.


    Catching the Imperial Advisor''s disciples?


    He had to hesitate even though it was the prince who gave him the order.


    "Uncle, the Seventh Swordsman is a spy from Emperor Xia''s Realm. We must arrest him," said Li Yao. How had he treated the Seventh Swordsman since he entered Emperor Li''s Ream?


    Li Yao treated him as a confidant, gifted him the Sword of Kasyapa, and took care of him as much as he could.


    But now, he realized the Seventh Swordsman was actually Ye Futian��the foe he was most eager to kill. How did he feel?


    As if he was wrapped by Ye Futian around his finger.


    The Imperial Advisor was the pillar of the country, but he was also trying to help him?


    "Okay, I see." King Li was shocked by what Li Yao just said. The Seventh Swordsman was a spy from Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    It was from his palace that the Seventh Swordsman entered the Upper Worlds.


    Releasing abundant life force, King Li also immediately led his people to chase them.


    "Sir Yan Yuan, please stop," King Li shouted, his voice resonating throughout the sky, but Yan Yuan''s speed was faster, and no one was able to catch up with him.


    "Please forgive me for this offense." King Li saw this and moved his fingers into a claw and swung in the air. Suddenly the might of Law shrouded the place. A blurred image of a giant holy dragon showed up above the clouds, and it raised a terrifying sharp claw and smashed toward Yan Yuan and Ye Futian.


    Yan Yuan drew a circle using his left hand, and suddenly, numerous Swords of the Great Laws floated up and scattered all over the space with his body as the center.


    "Go." Yan Yuan threw down his sleeve and unleased the swords, which all aimed at the dragon and stabbed through it.


    People on the ground looked up to the upper sky, shocked,


    Wasn''t that person King Li?


    Who was fighting with him?


    "When I am determined to leave, you will not be able to keep me. Please stop here, Your Highness," Yan Yuan said. A dazzling beam of light flared up from his body and shook the sky and earth. It was still expanding, speeding up, outpacing anyone else.


    Witnessing the scene from a distance, Li Yao''s face was ghastly white. Yan Yuan was considered the strongest cultivator below the Saint Plane of Nirvana, and he did deserve the title.


    If there was no saint of the fourth Holy Plane Nirvana present, who would be able to stop him?


    "Follow him!" Li Yao let out a shout. King Li and others fixed Yan Yuan as the target of their Wills and continued chasing after them.


    At the same time, in the Prince Regent''s Residence, Emperor Li''s Realm.


    The Prince Regent was usually not interested in such matters, but this time, he opened his eyes, and anger flared up in his eyes.


    He could understand that the Imperial Advisor was detached from worldly complications, which made him a real saint. It was his virtue, but this was also his flaw.


    How could he make a mistake like this?


    If he had been in the Imperial Advisor''s position, he would have captured the Seventh Sword.


    The Prince Regent stood up like a giant dragon waking up from his slumber. Suddenly, his will engulfed his villa and spread even further. The next moment, he jumped into the air and disappeared from the Prince Regent''s Residence like a furious dragon having stormed into the Ninth Sky.


    Many people of the Prince Regent''s Residence looked up to the sky, full of excitement.


    The Prince Regent was finally ready to take charge.


    The life force was so powerful that even the people in extremely distant places were able to perceive it. Of course, the Dali Dynasty Imperial Advisor was able to sense it in his residence.


    The Imperial Advisor looked up in the sky and told Fei Xue, "I will see him off."


    After saying so, he took a stride and vanished into the air.


    ��


    In the Lower Worlds, Yan Yuan took Ye Futian, and they kept going; they were swiftly crossing the Empty Realm.


    At the moment, Ye Futian kind of felt bad. He didn''t expect Li Yao to figure out his identity before he left; he had already given up his plan.


    And he would accept it if the Imperial Advisor''s Residence had just ignored him, but now Yan Yuan was escorting him to leave in person and even had a conflict with Li Yao.


    Didn''t it mean that Ye Futian had the involved Imperial Advisor''s Residence in his own issues?


    Ye Futian couldn''t understand how Li Yao figured it out.


    Li Yao hadn''t even perceived it when he met Ye Futian outside the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    Was it because he told Li Yao he would go outside to cultivate, which made Li Yao suspicious?


    He knew what happened in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and Li Yao might know Ye Futian was not in Emperor Xia''s Realm, but how could he know it was him?


    The only possible reason was that Li Yao knew he was going back.


    But since Xia Qingyuan promised to send people to meet him, these people should have been reliable and shouldn''t have attracted anyone''s attention.


    What went wrong?


    He looked at Yan Yuan next to him and asked, "Does Master know who I am?"


    Yan Yuan took a look at him and said, "You are the Seventh Swordsman, Master''s direct disciple."


    Ye Futian''s stare froze for a moment, and then he seemed to have understood. He nodded. "I see."


    He was the Seventh Swordsman. In Dali Dynasty, he was just the Seventh Swordsman, the Imperial Advisor''s direct disciple. That was all.


    That was why the Imperial Advisor sent his chief disciple Yan Yuan to escort him out.


    Their speed was so fast that others behind them were falling further and further behind, but these people''s life forces were still fixed on them, and they refused to give up.


    A gust of depressing air befell the earth from the upper sky.


    Numerous people on the ground looked up but only heard a continuous deep roaring sound.


    "What is that?"


    "A miracle."


    Numerous hearts trembled. People looked up to the sky, bewildered. Tens of thousands of golden dragons marched forward grandly, enveloping the sky.


    What a thrilling scene.


    Yan Yuan sensed the force and took a glance at the numerous holy golden dragons above. His life force had reached the climax at this point, and he was ready to take action.


    "Yan Yuan, keep going," a voice came from the figure that was standing above the sky. Suddenly, numerous dragons ceased their advance and let out a thundering roar.


    The figure appearing ahead stood still in the upper sky. It was as if no one could cross his shield as long as he was there.


    Yan Yuan said nothing and continued going forward.


    "Master," Ye Futian murmured. The next moment, he saw a boundless, astonishing pattern form around the Imperial Advisor''s body. It was like a sacred matrix containing the Five Agents of Yin and Yang and the Law of Sky and Earth. All the spirits of the world were suddenly sucked up. The magnificent matrix was erected in the upper sky and formed a barrier, blocking everyone''s way.


    "Imperial Advisor, your disciple is a spy of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Do you still want to keep me from capturing him?" the Prince Regent said loudly, his voice resounding between the sky and earth. It was as if he raised his voice intentionally so that everyone could hear it.


    "The Seventh Swordsman is my disciple. What did he do that let Your Highness come to arrest him in person?"


    "He didn''t do anything, but he belongs to Emperor Xia'' Realm. Do you still want to be on his side?" asked Prince Regent.


    "My disciples are my disciples, regardless of their origin or background. All I know is the Seventh Swordsman is my disciple. Since he is my disciple and didn''t do anything wrong, I will not allow anyone to harm him, even if the one who wishes to harm him is the Prince Regent," the Imperial Advisor announced. King Li and others gradually all arrived, but none could pass the Imperial Advisor''s barrier.


    At this moment, the man who stood in front of them was the Imperial Advisor, second only to Emperor Li in Dali Dynasty. Who dared to step forward!

 1146 One Step Back

    Li Yao looked toward the Dali Imperial Advisor, who was standing in front of him.


    This man was like a natural barrier that no one was able to cross.


    The Imperial Advisor wanted to protect the Seventh Swordsman.


    Li Yao didn''t understand it. Yuan Jin was also Imperial Advisor''s disciple. Even though he didn''t study with the Imperial Advisor for long, neither did the Seventh Swordsman. The Imperial Advisor didn''t know the real identity of the Seventh Swordsman, but he still wanted to protect him.


    Li Yao just couldn''t understand.


    It was not until he told the Imperial Advisor about Ye Futian''s identity that the Imperial Advisor came to realize the reason why Ye Futian was requesting to leave.


    Because Ye Futian had let it go.


    The Imperial Advisor knew it was he who influenced the Seventh Swordsman and taught him to let the past go. The Seventh Swordsman even revealed some of his own secrets and put himself in danger to heal Fei Xue until he made up his mind to leave.


    Was it because of gratitude or vengeance?


    It was not easy to draw a conclusion.


    But the Imperial Advisor could see a rare virtue from the Seventh Swordsman.


    Ye Futian was Ye Futian in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and the Seventh Sword was the Seventh Sword in Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Vengeance was vengeance, but gratitude was gratitude.


    The Seventh Swordsman was able to tell the difference; why couldn''t the Imperial Advisor do so?


    The Imperial Advisor was the destined one, born with the ability to predict destiny; he was able to influence the fortune of Dali Dynasty.


    The great Law was boundless was the belief he held.


    The Seventh Swordsman inadvertently became his disciple less than one year ago. Still, the Imperial Advisor had a hunch that he would probably become the most eminent one among all his disciples in the future.


    "Good. As the Imperial Advisor of Dali, you keep me from capturing a spy from Emperor Xia''s Realm. Are you trying to betray Dali?" the Prince Regent''s voice echoed in the sky, reaching very distant areas. Numerous people heard what he said.


    The people of Dali''s hearts trembled.


    Was the venerated Imperial Advisor a defector to Dali?


    The ordinary people on the ground didn''t know what had happened, and the Prince Regent''s words were appalling to them.


    Even King Li was in shock. He stared ahead and felt that the Prince Regent was too ruthless.


    If the Seventh Swordsman really belonged to Emperor Xia''s Realm, it was likely that Imperial Advisor protected him purely out of a master''s care for his disciple.


    In Dali, the Imperial Advisor was very trusted and respected by people, and he couldn''t possibly commit treason. However, the Prince Regent, who had retired for many years, suddenly convicted him of treason, which might destroy the Imperial Advisor''s reputation in Dali.


    But did the Prince Regent really care about Ye Futian?


    Not at all. The Prince Regent had no idea how outstanding Ye Futian really was. All he knew was that among all cultivators below Saint Plane, Ye Futian was the strongest. But he was at most a sage, and the gap between Ye Futian and the Prince Regent was still huge.


    The Prince Regent''s intention for this accident was to frame the Imperial Advisor, or at least undermine the reputation Imperial Advisor had established and Emperor Li''s trust in him.


    Anyway, at the end of the day, the last name of Dali Imperial City''s owner was "Li."


    The Imperial Advisor could work for the dynasty, but he was not supposed to surpass any members of the Li clan in power.


    "I will request to meet His Majesty after this affair is resolved," said the Imperial Advisor calmly. He stood there firmly, his body as the center. The colossal pattern that fell from the sky dome to the ground sealed the world and devoured all the roads, sucking up life forces in the space.


    The true dragon roared above the sky. Hundreds of thousands of divine dragons howled. They rushed forward and tried to shatter the Imperial Advisor''s barrier.


    Numerous people looked at the shocking scene in the sky, their hearts racing.


    The Prince Regent and the Imperial Advisor, two legendary figures of Dali Dynasty, were fighting.


    What did they fight for?


    ��


    Ye Futian didn''t have a chance to witness the battle, but he knew that unless Emperor Li came to the Lower Worlds in person, he was safe under the Imperial Advisor''s protection.


    Emperor Li didn''t know what happened in the Lower Worlds, and even if he had known, would he enter the Lower Worlds just to arrest a young person of the Sage Plane?


    What would the people of Dali Dynasty think of him?


    If the Seventh Swordsman had killed Li Yao, Emperor Li might do it.


    Even so, Ye Futian was not satisfied in his knowledge that he was safe, but rather, he felt burdened.


    He had given up killing Li Yao and made up his mind to leave Emperor Li''s Realm because he didn''t want to involve the Imperial Advisor''s Residence in it. Still, he had never expected the Imperial Advisor to fight for him personally.


    Li Yao wasn''t killed, so things weren''t that serious. But in the end, it would still affect the Imperial Advisor.


    Now Ye Futian knew the Imperial Advisor didn''t really care about repercussions since he had already taken action.


    Imperial Advisor didn''t care about fame and what people thought of him.


    Yan Yuan was in the ultimate status of the third Saint Plane Unblemished Saint Plane, so he could cross the Void at a very fast speed. He was able to cover a very long distance in one stride.


    They didn''t spend much time coming to the border of Dali Dynasty of the Lower Worlds. On the border, many people were standing on a mountain. The Demon Beast, which shared a mind with Ye Futian, was there, too. Those people had received his message and were waiting for him.


    "Your people?" asked Yan Yuan.


    "Yes," said Ye Futian, nodding.


    Yan Yuan teleported to the front of the mountain and slightly pushed forward with his hand. Suddenly Ye Futian''s body floated up and landed on the mountain.


    Ye Futian turned around and looked at Yan Yuan.


    "Brother," Ye Futian called.


    "Master said you are the Seventh Swordsman in Dali, but after you cross the border of Emperor Li''s Realm, I am no longer your Brother," said Yan Yuan. "The next time we meet, I don''t have to show mercy to you."


    Ye Futian recovered his original countenance and his silver hair. His eyes were dark and bright.


    Although he didn''t have the Seventh Sword''s stunning looks, Ye Futian was more spirited and full of charisma.


    Ye Futian didn''t mind his words and put on a smile, saying, "The next time we meet, whether you want to show mercy or not, I will."


    Yan Yuan took a long look at Ye Futian, turned around and walked away, saying, "No need."


    Seeing the statuesque person leaving, Ye Futian bowed at Yan Yuan and said, "It was my great honor to have entered the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. If, one day, the Imperial Advisor''s Residence faces difficulties, I will definitely come back to help."


    That figure was silent as he walked further and further away.


    After a while, a voice came.


    "No need."


    The short reply put a bright smile on Ye Futian''s face.


    It was fortunate for the world of cultivation to have the 33 Strokes Swords master of Lihen Heaven in Emperor Xia''s Realm and Dali Imperial Advisor in Emperor Li''s Realm.


    It was also Ye Futian''s fortune to meet these two elders who truly changed his state of heart.


    "Goodbye, Brother," Ye Futian said and then turned around.


    ...


    The name "The Seventh Swordsman" was well known all over Dali Dynasty of the Lower Worlds.


    He has been famous when he was still in the Lower Worlds; he was the man with a sword who defeated all others in the Dali Nine States.


    No one had expected that he would still be peerless after he entered the Upper Worlds. He was considered the strongest below the Saint Plane. The Imperial Advisor took him as a direct disciple. Emperor Li betrothed his own daughter to him, but he declined.


    What was more amazing was that the Seventh Swordsman belonged to Emperor Xia''s Realm, and after his identity was exposed, the Imperial Advisor escorted him out in person.


    What a dreamy story.


    What kind of being was he? A man with so much talent and charisma.


    In Dali Empire, the atmosphere of Emperor Li''s Imperial City was very depressing.


    The Imperial Advisor, Prince Regent, Li Yao, Yan Yuan, and others had returned from the Lower Worlds. Rumors of what had happened spread across the city.


    People were in shock.


    The strongest cultivator of Sage Plane, the Imperial Advisor''s disciple��the Seventh Sword��was Ye Futian from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    This name sounded unfamiliar to many in Emperor Li''s Realm. Still, people who experienced the Empty Realm Battle all knew that it was Ye Futian who contributed to the victory of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    A peerless talent.


    He changed his profession to study swordsmanship and gained fame in Dali Dynasty, but nobody had even figured out he changed his identity.


    Emperor Li had been unaware when he met Ye Futian in person. What tricks had he used that deceived everyone?


    What was more astonishing was that after his identity was uncovered, the Imperial Advisor helped him leave. His charisma was truly amazing.


    With these experiences, the Seventh Swordsman was a real legend.


    At this moment, the people of Dali Imperial City fixed their eyes on Emperor Li''s Palace.


    Would Emperor Li rage at the Imperial Advisor?


    Although no one would believe that the Imperial Advisor committed treason, and Emperor Li could understand and trust the Imperial Advisor, it was inevitable for His Majesty to be concerned.


    In Emperor Li''s Palace, the Dali Imperial Advisor, the Prince Regent, Yan Yuan, Li Yao were all present; they stood there without a word.


    Emperor Li stood on the stairs and looked down at them.


    "Your Majesty, the Imperial Advisor let the spy of Emperor Xia''s Realm go and even stopped us from capturing him. I suspect he has committed treason. Your Majesty, please convict him for his crime," the Prince Regent said loudly. He knew he couldn''t destroy the Imperial Advisor by using the thing that happened today. Others knew this as well.


    But even though he couldn''t destroy the Imperial Advisor, Prince Regent still wanted to sow the seeds of alienation in His Majesty''s heart.


    Emperor Li was the ruler of Dali Empire; he allowed no betrayal.


    "Your Majesty, the Seventh Swordsman cultivated in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, so he was my disciple. He never did anything improper during his stay. As his master, when I saw His Highness go to capture him, I asked Yan Yuan to escort him to safety. Your Majesty, please convict me of my crime," said the Imperial Advisor. He confessed.


    "I know that Imperial Advisor cherished him as a talent and didn''t have the heart to see him arrested, but the Seventh Swordsman belongs to Emperor Xia''s Realm, and he will be a potential danger after he goes back," said Emperor Li. "How will you deal with him if you meet him in the future?"


    "He was my disciple��the Seventh Swordsman��in Dali. Since I have escorted him out, from now on, he will no longer have any relationship with me," replied the Imperial Advisor.


    Emperor Li nodded and looked at the Prince Regent, asking, "Do you have anything to say, Uncle?"


    "Your Majesty, the Imperial Advisor emphasized their master-student relationship and deliberately ignored mentioning his own defects," said Prince Regent. "Your Majesty fully trusts and reveres the Imperial Advisor. When he decided to establish Dali National Academy, Your Majesty made all efforts to support him educating talents. But isn''t he helping Emperor Xia''s Realm now?"


    "I am willing to resign my position as the dean of Dali National Academy. Yan Yuan followed my orders and was involved in the issue today, so he will also go back to Imperial Advisor''s Residence for cultivation to avoid bringing controversy to the Academy," said the Imperial Advisor. It shouldn''t have been considered a severe misdeed, but rather something brought about by negative influence; there was no choice but to give up something.


    The Imperial Advisor had sensed the result before the actual events occurred, and now what he was doing was following the trend of things.


    "Since the Imperial Advisor said so, Uncle, how about putting an end to it? Let someone else take over the job of Dali Academy," Emperor Li said to the Prince Regent.


    Since Emperor Li had given his opinion, the Prince Regent immediately understood what to do next. He took a bow and said, "Always regard your wisdom."


    "You may leave," announced Emperor Li. The Imperial Advisor, the Prince Regent, and others soon all left.


    Li Yao turned around and looked into the distance, perplexed.


    He was the most pitiful one in this incident!

 1147 He Was Back

    It was in Emperor Xia''s Realm of the Upper Worlds.


    Outside Emperor Xia''s Palace, a group of people came over.


    Below the palace, numerous people looked up and saw the young man at the front. They murmured, "It''s Ye Futian."


    Ye Futian hadn''t been seen for many days. People said he was cultivating in Emperor Xia''s Realm, but now he came from outside the palace.


    Where did he go?


    People of Emperor Xia''s Realm hadn''t heard about Ye Futian for a while; the last time people talked about him was when Long Ling''er and Phoenix were in trouble.


    Someone walked out of the palace to meet him.


    That person was the little princess, Xia Qingyuan.


    Did Princess come to welcome him in person?


    What kind of reception was this!?


    Did Ye Futian go outside for cultivation instead of cultivating in seclusion?


    A broken black shadow whipped in the wind, fast as lightning, and flew directly to Ye Futian. It was the Black Wind Condor.


    Black Wind Condor rushed in front of Ye Futian and said to him, its eyes watering, "Master, finally, you are back."


    These past days, Black Wind Condor was in hell.


    Ye Futian put his hand on the Condor''s head and said, "I am sorry to have made you suffer."


    "Yes, yes." The Condor kept nodding; he had suffered a lot indeed.


    Sir Condor made up his mind that one day, he must ride on that Pheasant. He would not call himself "Condor" if he couldn''t get revenge on it.


    But Sir Condor didn''t expect to take revenge on Xia Qingyuan; he just hoped his master could whip her harshly for him one day.


    Sensing the thought in Black Wind Condor''s mind, Ye Futian gave a knock on the Condor''s head. This brat held too many grudges.


    Ye Futian looked up and saw Xia Qingyuan standing outside the palace, so he walked up to Xia Qingyuan and saluted, "Your Highness."


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian. She had already known about how Ye Futian''s identity was exposed, and he was chased in Dali.


    She raised her head and looked at others, saying, "Thank you all for your effort. Please stay in the palace and wait for my order."


    "Yes, Your Highness." The people nodded. Xia Qingyuan was expressionless. She looked at Ye Futian and turned around to enter the imperial palace. Ye Futian followed her.


    They walked into the palace, followed by the Black Wind Condor. "Since Sir Condor''s Master has returned, will that woman beat me again?" he thought.


    People who saw them from a distance felt they looked like a couple.


    They came to the Princess''s Palace. Xia Qingyuan said, "I will investigate all the people in the Lower Worlds and anyone who knew about this affair."


    Ye Futian told her through the Black Wind Condor on his way back that someone might have revealed that he was returning to Emperor Xia''s Realm, which made Li Yao suspicious.


    The people who went to pick him up were all direct descendants of the Xia Clan, and they entered the Lower Worlds through the Matrix in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Xia Qingyuan had never considered the possibility that it was leaked to Emperor Li''s Realm. The situation was worse than what she had expected.


    The whole thing seemed confusing from the beginning.


    "Your Highness, could you please let your people in Emperor Li''s Realm collect information for me?" said Ye Futian. Although he knew nothing serious would happen to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, he was still worried and wanted to know what had happened.


    "All right." Xia Qingyuan nodded.


    "Where is Xiao Sheng?" asked Ye Futian.


    "He is in the Xiao House. I have asked people to watch over him. I am sure he doesn''t have contact with the outside world, even with other people of the Xiao House," said Xia Qingyuan. "Does it mean that we have been wrong since the beginning?"


    They had watched Xiao Sheng since the beginning.


    But from what had happened then, they could deduce that Xiao Sheng couldn''t do so many things. But Xiao Sheng wasn''t involved at all? Impossible.


    It was more likely that someone else helped Xiao Sheng in the beginning.


    If so, who would cooperate with Xiao Sheng?


    It only could be someone close to the Imperial Palace. In other words, there was a traitor among all direct descendants of the Xia clan.


    "Last time Your Highness said there was a clue. How is it going now?" asked Ye Futian.


    "I learned that when Xiao Sheng was a child, there was an old servant taking care of him, and the servant went outside for cultivation after Xiao Sheng grew up. During that period, he came back and met Xiao Sheng once. I sent my people to track down who he had contacted. Still, later, he made a breakthrough in cultivation and experienced the Divine Catastrophe and died in it," said Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian laughed after hearing what she said. "I don''t think Xiao Sheng is the head of the whole conspiracy, either."


    Ye Futian didn''t believe Xiao Sheng had done all this by himself. Although he used to be considered the successor of the Xiao House, after all the events that had happened, his status was undermined, and he was no longer as strong as before.


    The scheme was almost perfect.


    Every clue was flawless.


    Saint Xihua''s attack seemed to have been driven by revenge, and if nothing happened after it, Ye Futian would have no suspicion at all.


    Because they were always enemies.


    How could anyone relate Saint Xihua''s revenge to Xiao Sheng?


    Afterward, Ling''er was almost killed by an admirer who held a grudge against her because of her rejection. His love turned into hatred, and then he tried to use poison to let Long Ling''er die with him. He had ended up killing himself. Long Ling''er and Phoenix were lucky and survived thanks to Long Yitian and Phoenix''s special cultivation. There was no flaw in this case, either.


    And now, Xia Qingyuan found a clue and wanted to investigate it, but the suspect died in a Divine Catastrophe.


    Was it just a coincidence?


    But how could a person devise someone''s death in the way of Divine Catastrophe?


    The plot had no flaws.


    However, making the plot too perfect itself was a flawed thing.


    However, if it was flawed, how was the Divine Catastrophe designed?


    Was it just a coincidence? Did it mean that the person knew he was going to enter the Saint Plane, so he sacrificed himself to help Xiao Sheng?


    Besides, all that the person had done was not meant to kill Ye Futian. Now, when Ye Futian thought about what had happened, he felt that that person was just trying to test him. That person guessed that Ye Futian probably was in Emperor Li''s Realm.


    But who revealed when Ye Futian was coming back?


    "What is Xiao Sheng doing recently?" asked Ye Futian.


    "He has been cultivating in the Xia House quietly," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "He must be either completely disappointed by Princess or Xiao Clan. Otherwise, he wouldn''t be so quiet. Which do you think is more likely to happen in the light of Xiao Sheng''s personality?"


    If Xiao Sheng remained quiet even when he was wronged, the only possibility was that he was completely disappointed.


    Otherwise, he must have been involved in the incident, and that was why he was so quiet.


    Xia Qingyuan understood what Ye Futian meant. She thought for a moment and said, "I think the latter is what happened."


    It was more possible that Xiao Sheng was involved in this, and that was why he remained quiet and didn''t go to others for help.


    "Yes," said Ye Futian, nodding, "for some things, we don''t have proof, but we don''t need proof. It is inconvenient for Your Highness to approach Xiao Sheng because of his identity, but I can do it."


    Last time, it was because of Queen Xiao''s mediation that Ye Futian agreed to reconcile with Xiao Sheng.


    That was his only choice because Queen Xiao was his weapon to deal with Xiao Sheng; he couldn''t offend her.


    No matter how famous he was in Emperor Xia''s Realm, Ye Futian''s status was not comparable with Queen Xiao''s.


    Not to mention that Queen Xiao had never used radical approaches; her way was more mild, like rewarding him.


    But what about this time?


    Saint Xihua led his army to the Barren State to attack the Holy Zhi Palace, and Ling''er and Phoenix were almost killed.


    Ye Futian almost died in Emperor Li''s Realm, too. Although he was lucky to come back, the Imperial Advisor''s Residence was involved.


    How should they pay for these debts?


    Xia Qingyuan looked toward Ye Futian. She understood that Ye Futian couldn''t let it go after all these things had happened.


    He wanted to get rid of Xiao Sheng now.


    Maybe it was not convenient for her to do it, but it was for Ye Futian.


    "I will leave and go to the Villa first, Princess," said Ye Futian. Xia Qingyuan nodded, and soon, Ye Futian left Emperor Xia''s Palace with Black Wind Condor.


    ...


    Here was the Cottage Villa. Nobody knew Ye Futian would come today, and neither did they know about the soul-stirring things that had happened in Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Because the Condor had been with Xia Qingyuan, Xia Qingyuan was the only person who knew about it.


    When Ye Futian and the Condor came, Yaya and the Glass Saint first noticed and looked at him as they were cultivating. Soon, the Village Chief and the Sword Saint saw them, too.


    "Little Brother is back," said the Sword Saint. Very soon, his voice spread across the Villa. People heard and teleported to him. By the time Ye Futian arrived, the people he couldn''t be happier to see all showed up.


    He didn''t stay in Dali Empire for a long time. Although he had planned to stay longer, he decided to give up after the state of his heart changed.


    However, he still felt it had been a long while since he had been to the Cottage.


    And the coziness of the Cottage was nowhere to be found in Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    His home was the Cottage, where the Palace people stayed with him.


    "Elder Brother," Ye Futian greeted the Sword Saint. It was a pity that he couldn''t witness the Elder Brother enter the Saint Plane.


    The Sword Saint nodded, smiling. They were all worried about him going to Emperor Li''s Realm.


    "Many things must have happened to you during this trip, right?" said the Sword Saint.


    "Brother, you are underestimating Ye Futian. He must have hit on many women while he was there," said Zhuge Mingyue, smiling.


    "Sister, I am not that kind of person!" Ye Futian was awkward and couldn''t say anything. No matter how much he had changed, he was always the little brother to be mocked whenever he was in front of Zhuge Mingyue Sister.


    "Okay." Zhuge Mingyue made an expression that meant "I am pretending to believe you."


    Ye Futian was embarrassed and had to look away. The Third Brother Gu Dongliu was standing next to Zhuge Mingyue, smiling. Yu Sheng and Wuchen stood beside them quietly. A girl rushed to him and called, "Brother!"


    Ye Futian looked at this graceful young lady and put his hands on her shoulders. He stroked her head and said, "I am back."


    "Great." Long Ling''er nodded. She had really thought she would die back then.


    But luckily, it was a blessing in disguise.


    Ye Futian took a look at Phoenix, who was standing back. She looked quite calm. Phoenix was a Palace disciple, so she had already experienced many dangerous battles.


    However, she and Ling''er were almost fatally poisoned. Whenever the thought came to Ye Futian''s mind, it sent a chill down his spine.


    Whether it was Xiao Sheng or the people behind Xiao Sheng who did this, Ye Futian had to figure it out.


    Since he couldn''t find a clue, Ye Futian would start with Xiao Sheng.

 1148 Meeting Xiao Sheng

    At the Xiao clan''s manor in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Xiao Sheng was training in silence. Someone came, and Xiao Sheng opened his eyes. It turned out to be his father, Xiao Qianhe.


    Xiao Qianhe looked at his son, whom he had once placed high hopes in. He had hoped that one day, Xiao Sheng would be able to be in charge of the Xiao clan.


    As such, Xiao Qianhe did everything he could to lay out the path for his son, hoping that Xiao Sheng would enter the royal palace and be put at Xia Qingyuan''s side to serve her, thus getting as close as possible to the center of political power.


    However, everything changed when Ye Futian came into the picture. Xiao Sheng did something stupid during the Battle of the Empty Realm. The matter would have been settled if Ye Futian had died, yet none from Emperor Li''s Realm proved capable of killing Ye Futian, and that failure came with the cost of having Xiao Sheng''s future cut right off.


    In a conversation that followed at a later date, Xiao Sheng seemed to have been able to guess Ye Futian''s whereabouts, and things happened in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    No one else from the Xiao clan knew about it, but Xiao Qianhe knew a thing or two.


    As such, Xiao Qianhe came to understand that Xiao Sheng had something to do with what happened. There was no denying it.


    "Ye Futian has returned," Xiao Qianhe said. The corner of Xiao Sheng''s eye twitched.


    He actually made it back alive? he thought.


    It seems like no one can kill him, then.


    Never mind, it''s not like the matter has concluded.


    "The princess received him personally outside the royal palace. Furthermore, she sent people down to the Lower Worlds," Xiao Qianhe continued. With Ye Futian back, there was no need to hide anything anymore. Everything could have been laid out in the open, and Xiao Qianhe was naturally able to learn what transpired.


    "Why are you telling me all this, father?" Xiao Sheng asked.


    "Who is the one helping you?" Xiao Qianhe''s eyes were fixed at Xiao Sheng.


    The one who knew the son best was none other than the father. As Xiao Sheng''s father, he knew Xiao Sheng better than anyone else, and he was the only one who knew all of that. Xiao Sheng would not have been capable of something that intricate right now. There was no way Xiao Sheng would have been able to pull all of that off with the resources he had on his hands after the incident from back then.


    If Xiao Sheng was behind all that, there was no way he would not have found out, although the others might not have been able to.


    As such, there was definitely someone helping Xiao Sheng out.


    "I don''t understand what are you''re getting at, father." Xiao Sheng took a look at Xiao Qianhe. Even his father did not know what he actually did.


    What happened before gave him a profound lesson. He came to trust no one at the moment.


    The Xiao clan was a family and, furthermore, a very renowned clan. If the old man were able to obtain the prosperity of the clan simply by casting Xiao Sheng away, he would not have hesitated at all.


    His status fell considerably since that incident back then. Even the marriage alliance with Divine Cloud Valley was voided altogether.


    Xiao Sheng remembered all of that.


    "There might still be a chance for you to turn things around, so long as you''re not the one executing these plans," Xiao Qianhe said again.


    Xiao Sheng smiled, hearing Xiao Qianhe''s words, and said, "Are you concerned about me, father? Pity that I have no idea what you''re getting at, indeed."


    Turn around?


    There is no turning around, he thought.


    Furthermore, he was indeed uninvolved with that matter. There was no way Xia Qingyuan would have stormed her mother''s family''s estate without any evidence and take her cousin away to force a confession out of him.


    Things would have been interesting if that were to actually happen instead.


    Xiao Qianhe took one good look at Xiao Sheng, finding that he came to know less and less about that son of his.


    What happened back then had probably incited him.


    "You have been at the pinnacle of Sage Plane for some years, and Wang Chuan has already broken into Saint Plane. You are someone who is known to be Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane, yet you are still unable to break into Saint Plane after all this time. Your state of mind might have been affected, and maybe, I shouldn''t have arranged for you to get to Emperor Xia''s Palace in the first place. I should have let you train in peace instead." Xiao Qianhe sighed.


    Xiao Sheng did not say anything else. It had been two years since Wang Chuan had broken into the Saint Plane.


    He had once been someone who was on par with Wang Chuan of Lihen Heaven in terms of renown, and both of them had been Edges of Pinnacle below Saint Plane.


    However, the Saint Plane was a threshold, and many who were at the same level broke through at different times, potentially separated by many years.


    At that moment, someone else came from outside. Xiao Qianhe frowned and said, "Who let you in here?"


    "Sir, Ye Futian has come to visit, asking to see the young master," the one who came said. Xiao Qianhe was dumbfounded upon hearing that while Xiao Sheng''s eyes flashed with extreme coldness.


    Ye Futian coming to pay him a visit?


    What the hell is this Ye Futian up to? Xiao Sheng thought.


    "Who else is here?" Xiao Qianhe asked.


    So Princess Xia Qingyuan didn''t show up, then?


    "There is another swordsman other than Ye Futian," the messenger answered. Xiao Qianhe nodded and guessed that it would have been that sword servant of that Sword Saint of the Void, coming here as Ye Futian''s escort.


    That meant that it was Ye Futian alone coming to pay a visit.


    He turned his eyes to Xiao Sheng and said, "You deal with this on your own."


    He left as soon as he finished.


    Xiao Sheng chuckled and stood up, pacing back and forth, wondering why Ye Futian showed up.


    At that moment, he wanted very much to meet Ye Futian.


    That person who had taken him from the clouds and thrown him into the depths of hell, and that person whom he failed to kill twice.


    Xiao Sheng did not wait for long before that extremely handsome silver-haired young man showed up. His bearing was just as extraordinary as it had always been. He stepped into the Xiao clan''s manor as if he was walking into his own home, natural, unperturbed, and carefree.


    Ye Futian saw where Xiao Sheng was, and both of them stood across from each other. They gazed at each other, neither of them bothering to avert the other''s gaze.


    "Disappointed, I take it?" Ye Futian asked Xiao Sheng.


    A smile was seen at the corner of Xiao Sheng''s lips. He did not say anything. If Ye Futian thought he would get a confession from Xiao Sheng by merely showing up, he thought wrong.


    "I heard that you were very interested in me going to Dali?" Ye Futian continued, seeing how Xiao Sheng was in no mood to talk, "I was in Dali Dynasty as a swordsman, and I trained at the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, with the imperial advisor of Dali as my teacher. I came to be acquainted with Li Yao, and he gifted me with training methods. Emperor Li wanted to marry off his daughter to me, and I refused."


    Xiao Sheng felt like being strangled deep down. The smile on his face gradually disappeared. He was seemingly jealous of Ye Futian.


    Despite being in Dali Dynasty, Ye Futian was surprisingly living just as well as he did in Emperor Xia''s Realm, with all that about studying under the imperial advisor of Dali, getting acquainted with Li Yao, and refusing marriage with Emperor Li''s daughter.


    Is he saying that he could have been a prince of Dali, the emperor''s son-in-law, if he were to simply nod? Xiao Sheng thought.


    "Interesting," Xiao Sheng''s voice was rather cold, "but I''m hardly interested in your affairs."


    "That so? I thought you''d be very interested." Ye Futian smiled and said, "I heard that you have been put under house arrest all this while, and you couldn''t go anywhere, not even taking one step outside of the manor. You couldn''t even choose who you got to see.


    "After what happened the last time, Queen Xiao summoned me and gave me free access to the Golden Hall of the Lotus in the royal palace to train, as well as to pick ten training methods to share outside. At the same time, she had the people of Divine Cloud Valley craft divine implements for my people, just to trade for your life. You might be the young master of the Xiao clan, but you can only live in the shadows. I truly pity you."


    "Are you here just to humiliate me?" Xiao Sheng looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "Of course not. I''m just here to tell you that even though you might think that just because I can''t do anything about you, just because you won''t admit it and there is no evidence found, you need to understand one thing: there are many times where there is no need for evidence to get things going." Ye Futian continued, "Even if I don''t kill you now. What do you think will become of me in ten or 20 years from now? From here on out, I''ll keep a close eye on you. I''d like to see how you weasel your out if I really try to kill you."


    The smile on Xiao Sheng''s face had disappeared altogether. He glared at Ye Futian with cold eyes. He knew that Ye Futian was telling the truth.


    It was easy to tell what Ye Futian''s status was at the moment and what would become of him in the future.


    If Ye Futian were to really keep a close eye, there would be no way he could escape.


    Xia Qingyuan was already keeping a close eye on him as they spoke.


    Xiao Sheng smiled all of a sudden, seemingly having recalled something. His smile was unnervingly cold as he said, "That depends if you''re able to live that long."


    "You mean, the ones backing you?" Ye Futian glared at Xiao Sheng and said, "Rat them out yourself, and I just might actually spare you."


    Xiao Sheng continued to glare at Ye Futian. Is he coming all the way here to threaten me? he wondered.


    "Men," Xiao Sheng said. Someone came, and Xiao Sheng looked at Ye Futian and said, "See our guest here off."


    Ye Futian turned around and left right away. He already knew what he came to find out, as well as having verified certain matters.


    While he had been confident that Xiao Sheng definitely had a part in it, he had to come and see Xiao Sheng personally before he was able to truly verify anything. The conversation between them confirmed his speculations that Xiao Sheng had played a part.


    No evidence, no reasons. Xiao Sheng''s current attitude and what transpired in the past were more than enough to confirm his thoughts.


    Xiao Sheng did not bother to conceal anything deliberately. With the exception of his unwillingness to admit to what he did, he did not bother to conceal that devil-may-care attitude of his.


    With everything confirmed, things were a lot easier.


    ...


    After Ye Futian left, Xiao Sheng went back to the place he was training in. He sat cross-legged and looked up at the sky.


    He became a student of the imperial advisor of Dali after going into Emperor Li''s Realm. He even had Emperor Li offering him a chance to become the emperor''s son-in-law.


    He was held in high regard by Emperor Xia in Emperor''s Realm and earned the princess'' trust, so much so that it eclipsed her mother''s family, earning him absolute protection.


    He might have only been the princess'' valet, yet he gained free access to the royal palace, the princess'' residence, and the Golden Hall of the Lotus. It was a status many would have found unimaginable.


    What about me, Xiao Sheng, then? he wondered.


    Ye Futian was right that he was only able to live in the shadows. He set up plots to have Ye Futian killed, yet he failed while Ye Futian''s status rose by the day. Xiao Sheng, on the other hand, even had his actions restricted. It was irony like none other.


    "Maybe I was wrong." Xiao Sheng sighed. It seemed as if Ye Futian''s sarcasm had woken him up.


    He had been wrong right from the start.


    He should not have chased after fleeting power and status; he should not have wanted to have a marriage alliance with Divine Cloud Valley; he should not have wanted to be the number one figure by Xia Qingyuan''s side to gain higher prestige and more training resources.


    What Ye Futian did was the exact opposite of what he did. Ye Futian never chased after any of that, yet all of those things fell into his hands all the same. Even the relationship between him and Xia Qingyuan paled in comparison to that between her and Ye Futian.


    Why has everything turned out like this? he thought.


    It could be said that he had lost everything. The status and reputation of the Xiao clan, none of that had anything to do with him anymore.


    But then again, why should it all matter?


    Power and status were all fleeting things, to begin with. When one chases after them, it''s almost guaranteed that they never find them. On the other hand, if one simply dedicates themselves to training with a pure state of mind, all of that could be theirs.


    Everything has its time and place; everything is like a dream and little else.


    At that moment, Xiao Sheng seemed to have put everything down, and his state of mind was pure and crystal clear.

 1149 Here to Send You Off

    Ye Futian then began to train in isolation once he returned to the Cottage Villa. There had been changes to his state of mind once he decided to give up at Dali Imperial City.


    The imperial advisor and Yan Yuan sent him off later, escorting him to the Nine States. Ye Futian''s mind was opened up, and he came to develop an even more significant comprehension of the world around him. It seemed as if there were signs of a breakthrough in that space measured in square inches. As such, he sensed that he was not far away from attaining sainthood.


    It was probably because he had not arrived at the pinnacle of Sage Plane for long, and his plane had yet to stabilize, that he was unable to make the breakthrough right away.


    Everyone came to different realizations when they broke into Saint Plane, after all. There was a myriad of ways of practice throughout the world, yet all led to the path heading towards sainthood.


    Time flew, and several months had passed.


    The silver-haired figure clad in white sat cross-legged at the mountain behind the villa. Mystical aura ebbed about him, and his entire being seemed to glow with a holy sheen.


    At that time, Ye Futian''s eyes were shut. He felt as if his will permeated the world around him, making him feel as if he was traveling through the void, and that his will had melded as one with the world around him.


    Will of the great path flowed around him, and there were people behind him who were watching him.


    Both Yaya and the Glass Saint were there.


    Ye Futian became shrouded by holy light at that moment. Yaya and the Glass Saint were able to clearly sense''s Ye Futian''s will in their surroundings, touching the wills of their own. It was a mystical feeling, and only saints were capable of emanating such a mystical feeling.


    Yaya and the Glass Saint both knew that Ye Futian was getting increasingly close to the Saint Plane. All he had to do was to wait for his plane to stabilize. When his plane reached the true pinnacle, and his will was able to communicate without hindrance, that would be the day he made the breakthrough.


    The Sword Saint back then knew that he was about to make a breakthrough, as some people were able to sense something when a cultivator around became able to make the breakthrough without fail.


    It was the same with Ye Futian. He came to have the same feeling about himself. It meant that the distance between where he was and the Saint Plane was no longer that of a chasm nor even a barrier; he was simply one thought away from it.


    That was how it had been with Wang Chuan back then. He knew that he was only one step away, and it was not a step in terms of plane but a step in terms of state of mind. That was why he was able to make the breakthrough into Saint Plane through the battle with Ye Futian.


    The Sword Saint watched Ye Futian train from afar. Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, and the others stood by his side.


    "Our little brother is not far away from Saint Plane. He should be able to make the breakthrough soon," the Sword Saint said. Gu Dongliu smiled and said, "So, our little brother is going to break into Saint Plane before I do. It seems like the trip to the Dali Dynasty did a lot to elevate his state of mind."


    "Indeed." The Sword Saint nodded. They came to know something about what happened in Dali Dynasty.


    ...


    While Ye Futian was training, the weather changed above the Xiao clan''s manor. Terrifying clouds of calamity actually gathered above.


    Countless in the Xiao clan looked up, and their minds were shaken.


    "Who is the one making the breakthrough?"


    Countless were confused. It was the Divine Path''s Ordeal.


    Who is it that was about to break into the Saint Plane in the Xiao clan''s manor?


    Elders flashed, and their wills were felt all over the place. They turned their eyes in one direction.


    It was a compound in the Xiao clan''s manor that was almost forgotten at the time. Few paid attention to that place.


    The one who had once been known as the number one genius among the younger generations in the Xiao clan lived in that compound of the manor. It was none other than Xiao Sheng, who had once been known to be one of the handful of extreme, top-notch geniuses known as the Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane. He had been nurtured as the future leader of the Xiao clan.


    However, the incidents that happened with him as of late caused Xiao Sheng''s status to fall in the Xiao clan. Many had begun to slowly forget that genius who was known as Edge of Pinnacle below Saint Plane, thinking that his future was no more. The royal palace no longer liked him, and his clan no longer bothered to nurture him. His state of mind would have been affected, hindering his path in cultivation.


    But then again, just as Xiao Sheng was about to be forgotten, he was visited by the Divine Catastrophe.


    Xiao Sheng was actually about to make the breakthrough into Saint Plane.


    Well...


    The people in Xiao clan''s manor were shaken. Even Old Man Xiao took to the air, looking where Xiao Sheng was. The light of catastrophe of the Great Path rained from above at where Xiao Sheng was. An intense rumbling was heard. It was as if it was doomsday right there.


    Xiao Qianhe flashed and came to Old Man Xiao''s side. He looked in that direction as well. He was just as shaken deep down.


    Xiao Sheng was actually about to make the breakthrough into the Saint Plane under such circumstances.


    "His state of mind should have been affected, yet he was able to reverse the flow and make the breakthrough. What happened to him?" Old Man Xiao sighed. He had doted on that grandson of his, as he was chosen as one of the candidates to take over the leadership of the clan. It was due precisely to having high hopes for him that he had been made to enter Emperor Xia''s Palace and was put at Xia Qingyuan''s side to train.


    "He should have had a challenging time as of late." Old Man Xiao felt pity for him at that moment.


    Xia Qingyuan was, for better or worse, Xiao Sheng''s cousin. However, she placed him under house arrest for Ye Futian''s sake. It almost robbed Xiao Sheng of his freedom, despite having no evidence for their suspicions.


    That, coupled with how the clan had been treating him since that incident, meant that Xiao Sheng seen his darkest times.


    Yet, Xiao Sheng was able to make the breakthrough under such circumstances nonetheless, which made the breakthrough all the more rare and precious.


    Perhaps the clan had been too harsh towards him?


    What happened to Ye Futian later had nothing to do with him after all.


    The raging Divine Path''s Ordeal continued to rain down on him. Every beam of light seemed to be striking on the minds of the people of the Xiao clan.


    "Qianhe, do you think we should give Xiao Sheng another chance?" Old Man Xiao asked.


    Xiao Qianhe was dumbfounded. He knew that the matter had something to do with Xiao Sheng. However, Xiao Sheng was his son. As such, when Old Man Xiao said that, he was apparently moved.


    If the old man was willing to vouch for him, then there was still hope to turn things around.


    Xiao Sheng might be able to rise again.


    Queen Xiao was Xia Qingyuan''s birth mother, and the old man was Queen Xiao''s birth father.


    If the old man is willing to vouch for Xiao Sheng, then little sister would have to yield one way or another, no?


    Even Emperor Xia would have to give face to his father-in-law, after all.


    If they were able to prove that Xiao Sheng had no part in the incident, then the case would be settled, and Xiao Sheng would have had a chance to rise again.


    "If you''re willing to give him a second chance, father, I''m sure he will make good use of it," Xiao Qianhe said.


    Old Man Xiao did not say anything and continued to look where Xiao Sheng was. The Divine Path''s Ordeal continued to rain, and the beams only dissipated a short while later until they were all gone.


    One figure after another flashed and went to his side. Old Man Xiao came to the sky above and cast his gaze there. In that broken ruins of a compound, slivers of holy light were seen coursing about Xiao Sheng''s body. He had achieved metamorphosis after braving the ordeal.


    "Xiao Sheng, it is extremely commendable that you were able to rise above the bonds of your state of mind and make it into Saint Plane. You will be able to serve his majesty after becoming a saint. I''m willing to vouch for you to the queen and have you train within the army. What do you think?" Old Man Xiao asked.


    Xiao Sheng looked at Old Man Xiao and said, "I''ll leave it to you, grandfather."


    "Right." Old Man Xiao nodded and said, "Do you have any wishes or anything that you''d like the clan to do for you?"


    Xiao Sheng turned his eyes around and shook his head. "No."


    He was a cultivator. Eventually, only cultivation mattered. He had once chased after fame, benefit, power, and status, wanting to become someone of importance, someone that Xia Qingyuan would have held in high regard, but his priorities had actually been upside down.


    He got nothing in the end.


    At that moment, he no longer cared what his clan, the authorities, and even Xia Qingyuan thought of him.


    As for Ye Futian, he would someday fight the man in earnest.


    "Good." Old Man Xiao nodded satisfactorily. Being able to make it to the Saint Plane was a testament to some things, among them being that Xiao Sheng had seen through it all.


    He was getting ready to have Xiao Sheng distanced from the center of political power in Emperor Xia''s Realm. That way, it would have invited less trouble, and it would have probably allowed him to dedicate himself better to his training.


    There might be a day where a top-notch figure was to emerge from the Xiao clan.


    His actions were considered to be one giving a chance to Xiao Sheng, and he was hoping that the young man would not let the Xiao clan down again.


    ...


    The news of Xiao Sheng becoming a saint rocked things. There was news about Old Man Xiao visiting the royal palace and met Queen Xiao.


    The queen allowed to have Xiao Sheng train in the army. That news astonished many. From the looks of things, it seemed that Xiao Sheng had truly seized the opportunity to turn himself around by becoming a saint.


    If he proved to be excellent enough, he might just have been able to return there one day, standing at the center of the Xiao clan yet again. The punishment of forbidding him from entering the palace might even be revoked someday.


    After the matter was settled, the Xiao clan was getting ready to give Xiao Sheng a send-off as he left the clan to join the army.


    Many of the adjoining forces of the Xiao clan came to pay them a visit that day. Some other forces acquainted with the Xiao clan, like the Divine Cloud Valley, paid a visit to the manor to see Xiao Sheng off.


    Despite not having deliberately sent out invitations, guests swamped the manor of the Xiao clan on that day. All of them showed up at their own volition. Judging from how Old Man Xiao went to the royal palace to vouch for Xiao Sheng and how Queen Xiao allowed him to join the army, it seemed that there were signs that Xiao Sheng had regained the trust of the Xiao clan. The queen was willing to give him another chance.


    As such, many were willing to show up at the send-off.


    Xia Qingyuan stood on a tower in her place at Emperor Xia''s Palace, gazing far away.


    The wind blew at her clothes, and yet, she remained standing unmoving, like a statue, sighing deep down.


    From her understanding of Ye Futian, the man would not just let things slide like that.


    He already told her that whatever she, a princess, found inconvenient to pull, he would do it in her stead.


    At that moment, the Xiao clan was about to send Xiao Sheng off, and Ye Futian would show up.


    "Let''s head to the Xiao clan''s manor," Xia Qingyuan stepped forward and said.


    At that moment, Ye Futian, who was training in the Cottage Villa, opened his eyes. Slivers of holy light coursed about him. Despite having yet to become a saint, he was extremely close to making the breakthrough.


    He rose and turned around. Many were looking at him at that moment.


    Xiao Sheng had become a saint, and the Xiao clan was giving him a send-off. The news of his departure would reach the villa as well.


    Ye Futian cast his gaze far away.


    You''re a saint now, huh? he thought.


    Do you think you can just wipe everything you''ve done away now that you''re a saint?


    He stepped forward. His silver hair billowed in the wind, and his deep eyes were devoid of emotions. There was only one plain line heard from him.


    "Head to the Xiao clan''s manor and give Xiao Sheng a send-off!"

 1150 Fighting a Sain

    Guests filled the Xiao clan''s manor, and the scene was extremely lively.


    Old Man Xiao sat at the leading seat, and Xiao Sheng sat quietly, not far away below him. Many came to greet him, toasting him as a gesture of his send-off.


    Xiao Sheng would have returned the gesture whenever people came to toast him, appearing amicable and humble. However, there was a tinge of indifference below all that amicability and humbleness.


    That indifference felt rather alienating to many.


    Many were able to sense that the young master of the Xiao clan felt rather different than before. His entire bearing seemed to have changed after making the breakthrough and becoming a saint.


    Xiao Sheng used to be smooth and well-rounded, which made others feel congenial. He had once been silently proud underneath all that well-roundedness; however, at present, there was only that indifference.


    He seemed to have held all those social rituals with little regard now.


    Xiao Sheng, as he was now, had indeed come to put a lot of things down. The guests notwithstanding, he had come to hold little regard of what the clan itself thought of him.


    Only one''s training proved to be the most fundamental path in all paths of the world.


    "Xiao Sheng." A gentle voice was heard at that moment. An elegant figure stood before Xiao Sheng, and it was none other than Gongsun Ni. She once had an engagement with Xiao Sheng. The Xiao clan and the Divine Cloud Valley had arranged a marriage alliance for them. However, that was voided after what happened during the incident in the Empty Realm.


    "Congratulations on becoming a saint," Gongsun Ni smiled and said.


    Xiao Sheng nodded and said, "I owe you for all that happened back then."


    He did not hold any resentment against the Divine Cloud Valley for voiding their engagement after breaking into Saint Plane. That was a price he had to pay for what he did, and he had caused Gongsun Ni a lot of trouble.


    Gongsun Ni smiled and said, "What''s past is past."


    She was able to tell that Xiao Sheng had put the past to rest, and he looked even more extraordinary than he used to now that he became a saint. There may have been a day where he would regain enough recognition to allow him to assume leadership of the Xiao clan.


    Gongsun Zhong came to congratulate him as well. Gongsun Xuan��Gongsun Ni''s younger sister��did not go to greet him. She asked her sister telepathically after Gongsun Ni returned, "Don''t tell me you head over heels in love with him again now that he is a saint!"


    Gongsun Ni glanced at her, and she continued, "What is done is done. I do not forgive him for all that."


    Gongsun Ni did not say anything else. The scene remained lively.


    Old Man Xiao took note of the attitudes of the guests, as well as Xiao Sheng''s, feeling rather gratified. He hoped that Xiao Sheng would make something out of his time training in the army.


    At that moment, however, Old Man Xiao looked outside of the Xiao clan''s manor. Powerful aura was sensed closing in. A storm howled from the sky far away, heading straight for the Xiao clan''s manor.


    His will extended out there and quickly caught what was happening far away. His expression changed somewhat.


    Old Man Xiao was not the only one who felt it. Other saints had also sensed what was happening, and all of them looked up.


    A group of people descended from above and landed outside the manor. They were the people of the Cottage.


    Ye Futian was at the forefront. He eyed the Xiao clan''s manor as his silver hair continued to billow in the wind. He said, "Ye Futian, here to pay a visit."


    He stepped forward as soon as he finished, entering the Xiao clan''s manor. Yaya, the Glass Saint, the Sword Saint, and others were at his side.


    One mighty one after another flashed about. The people of Xiao clan intended to stop them before hearing Old Man Xiao''s voice.


    "Welcome."


    The others all parted to make way for the group upon hearing that. Ye Futian and the others walked straight and came to where the banquet was being held, appearing before all the guests.


    "Ye Futian."


    Someone murmured his name, and everyone eyed the silver-haired young man clad in white. He looked incredibly handsome, and even though he had yet to make it into Saint Plane, his bearing was comparable to Xiao Sheng''s, so much so that he seemed to look even more extraordinary.


    Ye Futian caused Xiao Sheng''s downfall back in the day. He disappeared for quite some time after that, and then there he was, appearing before everyone again.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian came right before Xiao Sheng was about to leave the Xiao clan''s manor. What was he up to?


    Based on what had transpired between Xiao Sheng and Ye Futian, no one present thought that Ye Futian was there to send Xiao Sheng off.


    Furthermore, he had brought the Sword Saint of the Void with him, and one could easily feel that ready-to-fight tension within the group.


    They were up to no good.


    Ye Futian did not look at Xiao Sheng after he came but instead bowed to greet Old Man Xiao, saying, "Ye Futian, here to greet Senior Xiao."


    Old Man Xiao nodded and asked, "May I know what business you have, bringing your people here?"


    "I''d like to ask you a few questions, senior," Ye Futian said.


    "Ask away," Old Man Xiao said.


    "During the period where I seemed to have disappeared, I have made a trip to Dali Dynasty. Did you know that, senior?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I learned of it as of late," Old Man Xiao responded.


    "Someone tried to do something against the Holy Zhi Palace, then tried to harm two young women, almost killing them with poison while I was away at Dali Dynasty. Did you know that, senior?" Ye Futian asked again.


    Old Man Xiao frowned and continued, "I heard that the incident was caused by someone who was infatuated with a young woman from the Holy Zhi Palace. His love turned into hatred before doing something crazy."


    Xia Qingyuan had investigated Xiao Sheng due to that. There was no way he would not have known.


    Ye Futian did not explain as he continued, "When I was at Dali Dynasty getting ready to return to Emperor Xia''s Realm, someone sent a message to Li Yao, prince of Dali Dynasty, blowing my cover, almost killing me there. Did you know of that, senior?"


    Old Man Xiao''s expression worsened. He said, "I would say the same thing. I have only learned of that as of late. What are you getting at?"


    "Since you already knew all that, senior, did you think it was all simply a coincidence?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "The Princess is already looking into those matters. Whether they be coincidence or not, the Princess will find out," Old Man Xiao said.


    "The Princess is half a member of the Xiao clan. There are things she knows well but is unable to do anything due to her relationship with the Xiao clan." Ye Futian continued, "As such, I''ll be the one to do it.


    "All of it has to do with Xiao Sheng."


    "Ye Futian, Xiao Sheng was training here all that time, and there would have been no way he could have participated in whatever was happening outside. Watch your words," Xiao Qianhe, at the side, said coldly.


    They were about to send Xiao Sheng off that day, yet Ye Futian showed up at the manor.


    "Ye Futian, do you have any evidence that any of this has to do with Xiao Sheng?" Old Man Xiao asked coldly.


    While the Princess trusted him and Emperor Xia had rewarded him as well, the Xiao clan was the clan where Queen Xiao was from. Ye Futian''s actions looked incredibly unruly, and it seemed that he did not hold any respect for the Xiao clan.


    Even the queen herself had agreed to let Xiao Sheng leave and train in the army.


    "I''m here today to prove it," Ye Futian replied before turning his eyes to Xiao Sheng, who was sitting quietly. He then continued calmly, "You have stepped into Saint Plane, and since you wanted me dead so badly, I shall give you a chance to do so today. If you can win, it will be the end of the fiasco. The Princess shall no longer look into it, and I shall die."


    Everyone present looked up, and their minds were rattled as they gazed at Ye Futian.


    Is he nuts or something?


    While his bearing was extraordinary, he was nonetheless at the Sage Plane, while Xiao Sheng was already a saint.


    Ye Futian is about to fight Xiao Sheng? many wondered.


    Furthermore, he is saying that he will let it all slide if he dies in battle?


    Gongsun Zhong, Gongsun Ni, and the others from Divine Cloud Valley looked at that silver-haired figure, finding him to be crazy indeed.


    Xiao Qianhe''s eyes were gleaming as he glared at Ye Futian.


    As for Xiao Sheng, he looked up and gazed at Ye Futian with a cold expression. He was getting ready to venture out to train to fight Ye Futian in earnest in the future. He never expected Ye Futian, who was still a sage, would challenge him, a saint.


    "Ye Futian, watch your words. His majesty and the Princess trust you. The odds are stacked against you. If you die in battle, the Princess shall blame us for it," Old Man Xiao said coldly. Ye Futian appeared rather insolent.


    Saints were saints, after all.


    However, as soon as he finished, a powerful aura was sensed in the air. The Blue Phoenix sacred beast dove down, and many mighty ones descended from above. A voice was heard from the sacred beast, "Grandfather, I agree to this arrangement."


    All eyes were drawn to the sacred beast that descended from above. Xia Qingyuan was right behind the beast. All of them felt shaken deep down.


    So, even Xia Qingyuan thinks that Ye Futian is able to fight a saint, then?


    Xiao Qianhe looked at Xia Qingyuan and felt speechless.


    "Xiao Sheng, if you lose, then you shall give me the answer I seek. If you refuse, I shall seek it on my own," Ye Futian looked at Xiao Sheng and said.


    Xiao Sheng looked at Ye Futian. He had broken into the Saint Plane, but Ye Futian actually wanted to fight him despite being a sage.


    He turned to look at Xia Qingyuan, and it was apparent that Xia Qingyuan thought that Ye Futian, despite being a sage, was able to fight Xiao Sheng, a saint.


    That was some level of trust.


    He had made it through that chasm and broken the shackles in his mind, becoming a saint, yet that silver-haired young man continued to be as unruly as ever.


    Xiao Sheng did not say anything. He rose up and stepped forward before flashing and shooting into the clouds, standing in midair.


    Saintly aura shrouded the place at that moment. The will of the great path was extremely overpowering.


    He looked down at Ye Futian below and said, "Come up, then."


    Ye Futian took one look at the sky. His body was covered in dazzling brilliance as he stepped into the air. Both of them came to stand in the sky.


    Countless rose up and looked at the sky at that very instant.


    Xiao Sheng of the Xiao clan had broken into the Saint Plane.


    Ye Futian, a sage, was about to fight a saint.


    Xiao Sheng''s eyes glanced at Ye Futian in midair. Powerful might of the great path expanded in an instant, seeping everywhere, and pressing onto Ye Futian. In that instant, Ye Futian felt as if Xiao Sheng had become one with the great path, and he was everywhere.


    Xiao Sheng lifted his hand and grabbed at Ye Futian. The pressure of the great path pressed down in an instant. The palm of the great path descended from above, heading straight at Ye Futian.


    Their surroundings rattled as the power of the great path seemed to be in Xiao Sheng''s control. One thought was all it took for him to put all the powers in his surroundings to use. Stifling might of the great path pressed onto Ye Futian, and the palm print squeezed the space around him, preventing him from escaping.


    The ones below saw the incredibly huge palm coming down right away in a direct, overbearing fashion.


    Saints were able to shake their surroundings simply by lifting their arm.


    Dazzling golden brilliance burst from Ye Futian''s body at that moment. Matrix images materialized, and the might of the great path of all attributes circled about him. The power within him seemed to have resonated with the great path.


    In that instant, Ye Futian''s body seemed to have become a furnace of the great path, capable of refining the great path of the world around him, siphoning power into his physical body.


    His body melded with the great path, and holy light shot up. His aura continued to climb and had gotten infinitely close to the Saint Plane.


    It was the training method that the imperial advisor of Dali imparted to him��the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.

 1151 Do You Admit?

    "What?"


    The people in the Xiao clan''s manor all looked at the dazzling figure in the air. He seemed to be stepping onto images of matrixes. Beams penetrating their surroundings emanated from the round matrix images, circling about. The beams coalesced into dazzling pillars of golden light. Extremely brilliant golden characters hovered on the beams.


    "Qian, Kun, Kan, Li..."


    The golden characters seemed to be imbued with the might of the great path as they were melded into the beams of light, circling Ye Futian''s body and emanating light around him.


    All of the spectators saw that wherever the beams passed, the might of the great path was sensed, with Ye Futian and the very center of the phenomenon.


    Ye Futian was like a furnace of the great path at the time. The power of the great path resonated with his body.


    He was of little difference to a saint at that moment.


    The World Tree in Ye Futian''s Life Spirit continued to sway as if it was responding to the attacks being used. Power of all attributes poured and melded with Ye Futian''s body, providing him with the powerful will of the great path.


    As predicted by the imperial advisor of Dali, Ye Futian was a suitable candidate for training the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    The people below were all in awe, watching the extremely formidable power at work. They gazed at the dazzling light in the sky. All of them wondered if that was some training method he had learned in the Golden Hall of the Lotus.


    If it was indeed so, they wondered why the Princess had not been trained in this method. Furthermore, they never saw any mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Palace demonstrate the use of such powers.


    Did His Majesty teach Ye Futian his own training method?


    If that turned out to be the case, it spoke volumes of just how highly His Majesty thought of Ye Futian.


    All of them were wondering if that training method was something that had surpassed saint level and if it was something above the saints as he was able to bring that much power to bear.


    None of them knew that Xia Qingyuan, who was watching from the sides, was feeling astonished as well.


    She naturally knew that it was not something imparted by her father, and the Golden Hall of the Lotus did not have something like that either.


    It was something Ye Futian learned in Dali Dynasty. Furthermore, it was something imparted personally to him by the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    She never expected that the Imperial Advisor of Dali would have imparted training methods to Ye Futian, let alone one of the imperial level.


    At that moment, even she came to see the imperial advisor of Dali differently and wanted to see for herself, what kind of a person the imperial advisor, who had imparted training methods to Ye Futian and sent him off personally, truly was.


    Huge palm attacks capable of blocking the sky rained down from above, coming right before Ye Futian as if to destroy the dazzling golden light. However, Ye Futian took one step forward, which resonated with the great path of the world around them. He put his arm forward and threw a punch.


    The will of the punch was ferocious. The light of the letter of Qian moved along with the attack, tearing through space and shredding the power of all methods before it.


    That golden light of the punch streaked through the air and clashed with the palm attack coming at him. Rumbling noises were heard, and a ring-shaped light exploded in all directions up in the air. The phenomenon was blinding, and no one knew how powerful that clash had been.


    " Huangting Fist Will."


    The people of the Xiao clan recognized the art. Princess Xia Qingyuan was trained in the Huangting Fist Will, after all.


    There were 33 layers to Huangting Fist Will, and one layer was stronger than the other. The fist will of the great path gathered raging force from the user''s surroundings, and with all 33 layers of fist will bursting, the art shredded all paths of heaven.


    The spectators were all astonished to find that the Huangting Fist Will that Ye Futian brought to bear was extremely formidable. It was far more powerful than the one used by Xia Qingyuan. It was a terrifying sight to behold.


    His methods came with the effect of amplifying the power of the great path of his own, enhancing the power of other offensive skills. The powers of the great path were interconnected, and they resonated with the world around.


    The spectators thought it would have required Ye Futian to use considerable measures to break the palm attacks of Xiao Sheng, who had broken into Saint Plane. No one expected him to be able to do so with only one punch.


    Ye Futian, at that moment, did not look a sage at all. He looked as if he was a saint, just like Xiao Sheng, capable of standing opposite Xiao Sheng and fighting him on equal footing.


    Xiao Sheng, too cast his gaze at that person before him. He had thought of fighting Ye Futian in the future, but he never expected Ye Futian to want to fight him before breaking into Saint Plane.


    I, who have broken into Saint Plane, lost against Ye Futian, who is still a sage? Xiao Sheng thought incredulously.


    The line between sage and saint was like a heavenly chasm. It was a consensus shared by all cultivators. If Ye Futian wanted to take Xiao Sheng on, he needed to break that consensus and achieve the incredible feat of having a sage beating a saint.


    Xiao Sheng refused to yield.


    Xiao Sheng took one step forward and moved his palms as well, bursting with the dazzling light of the divine path all of him. There was rumbling all over the place, and huge palm attacks of dazzling brilliance manifested everywhere, shrouding the entire sky.


    The palm attacks were all infused with overwhelming, shattering powers, putting a lockdown on their surroundings with the might of the great path.


    "Prajna."


    The mighty ones of the Xiao clan looked up at Xiao Sheng. He waved his hands about before him, and then extended them at Ye Futian.


    Boom...


    Heaven-splitting rumbling explosions were heard as the palm attacks arrived one after another. All of them slammed onto Ye Futian at unimaginable speeds.


    Beams of light from Ye Futian''s body coursed to his legs. He then took one step forward and seemed to have sunken the space around him. It was as if towering force burst from that one step of his. Those bursting palm attacks seemed to have been stifled, and the force on Ye Futian grew even mightier.


    That footwork was none other than the extremely formidable Footwork of Xuanyuan.


    Yet another punch was launched, and the Huangting Fist Will tore through the air, bringing the power of the Footwork of Xuanyuan with it, causing the palm attacks to crumble and explode. The palm attacks of prajna bombarded wave after wave. If looked up from below, it would have seemed that the endless palm attacks had shrouded the sky, burying Ye Futian in a very tight space.


    Ye Futian did not mind his opponent''s attacks at all. A harrowing sword will coalesced about him, and his left hand drew a line in the air. A streak of a dazzling flash of the sword came and went within an instant, breaking down that palm attack. He extended his finger. The Swords of Kasyapa coalesced, tearing apart all palm attacks that came at him.


    Ye Futian continued to step out with his Footwork of Xuanyuan, and the force about him continued to climb, getting increasing mighty. The light from the Deed of Thorough Comprehension circled about him.


    His left hand coalesced sword will, bringing Huangting Fist Will and using Footwork of Xuanyuan, while backed by the power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension as he advanced. Those incoming bombardment of palm attacks were unable to stop him in his tracks at all.


    The Huangting Fist Will had gotten increasingly powerful, and the Footwork of Xuanyuan had gotten increasingly overbearing. More and more Swords of Kasyapa coalesced around him, and the swords circled him as he moved, tearing through space and shattering all incoming palm attacks.


    The spectators watched with awe as Ye Futian continued to move forward, getting increasingly close to Xiao Sheng. Is that some power capable of being brought about by a sage? they wondered.


    Xiao Sheng''s eyes were locked onto Ye Futian, and he was just as astonished. He continued to step forward instead of retreating, advancing as holy light burst from his body. He came to bring the full might of his powers as a saint to bear.


    He extended his hand and performed mudras. A divine shadow appeared behind him. A giant was manifested in the air, one that had a myriad of arms, taking control of the powers of the world around them.


    The countless arms moved at the same time, throwing down countless palm attacks at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian acted as if he was unable to see any of that. The Swords of Kasyapa circling him continued to cut out, and a terrifying screen of swords appeared before him, tearing everything apart. The Huangting Fist Will was also getting increasingly powerful. The sixth step of the Footwork of Xuanyuan was made. The world around them shook as extremely raging pressure was launched at Xiao Sheng.


    Ye Futian, who continued to advance at that moment, was enveloped by the holy light emanated from the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, sweeping forward like a tidal wave.


    The gigantic shadow behind Xiao Sheng closed its arms, seeing that dazzling figure continue to advance. The power of the great path compressed the place as countless palm attacks stacked on top of each other, burying Ye Futian''s body.


    "Six Directions."


    A line was heard from Xiao Sheng. At that moment, it seemed as if his power had been brought to the limit.


    Boom.


    Ye Futian took another step out, and the world around him shook. His extremely dazzling body shot at Xiao Sheng. The palm attacks thrown at him continued to crumble in a frenzy, yet countless palm attacks from his flanks seemed to have melded together in walls of the great path, burying everything caught between.


    Xiao Sheng pointed forward, and the same phenomenon took place before him. Six directions of the world melded with the great path. All of the palm attacks became one as they buried the heavens.


    The spectators saw that Ye Futian gradually disappeared as he was being buried by the Six Directions, making them unable to see him.


    Xiao Sheng closed his palms, and the world around them shook violently. The crowd was only able to see the palms of the heaven-burying Six Direction bury Ye Futian right there and then. Rumbling noises were heard from within, but no one else knew what was happening inside.


    No one interfered with the fight, and even Xia Qingyuan watched in silence. No one knew what was going on in her mind.


    She trusted Ye Futian, and he was appointed as her valet. Many knew that the Princess held Ye Futian in high regard. The one whom Ye Futian was fighting was her cousin. Everyone understood the words that Ye Futian said before, that there were things that Xia Qingyuan would have found inconvenient to do.


    But could he carry those things out?


    Palm attacks continued to rain around them, becoming a part of that wall of the great path as they closed. Everyone had their eyes fixed at the sky above.


    The rumbling continued to be heard, and people gradually saw cracks on that Wall of Six Directions. The cracks continued to extend and spread in all directions. Extremely brilliant light was seen unleashed from within, and the hearts of the spectators raced.


    Intensely blinding light was seen, and with an earth-shattering rumble, the wall crumbled, and all of the palm attacks were no more. Ye Futian emerged from within, clad in holy light. His towering sword will tore at the space around him.


    His body turned into a bolt of lightning, arriving right before Xiao Sheng, who was no longer able to bring attacks of greater power to bear. Ye Futian threw a punch, and Xiao Sheng threw a palm attack without retreating.


    Boom... A rumble was heard as the sky shook. The spectators saw Xiao Sheng''s body rattled violently, and his internal organs felt as if they had been rattled. Cracking sounds were heard from his bones. The light of the divine path remained glittering, yet his aura continued to weaken. Blood was seen at the corner of his mouth, yet his eyes remained fixed on Ye Futian.


    "Do you admit?" Ye Futian shook his arm and burst with another fist will. Xiao Sheng''s body rattled violently yet again.


    Ye Futian continued to glitter with holy light. His silver hair billowed, and he looked tremendously mighty.


    Everyone knew at that moment that Ye Futian, as a sage, had beaten Xiao Sheng, who was a saint.


    Despite there being a chasm between sages and saints, Ye Futian made it through, nonetheless.


    There were countless living beings in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and there had been many legendary figures throughout the ages. However, none had been capable of defeating a saint while they were still a sage.


    No one would have expected that Xiao Sheng, who had only made it into Saint Plane a short while ago and showed signs of rising again, was met with one unspeakably legendary figure.


    Despite having broken into Saint Plane, there he was, defeated.


    The Xiao clan wanted to change Xiao Sheng''s fate, and Ye Futian was against it.

 1152 Confession

    The clansmen of Xiao clan gazed at the two figures high up in the air. They looked incredibly awkward.


    Xiao Sheng became a saint, and Old Man Xiao went to the royal palace to personally request Queen Xiao to give the young man another chance, all of which led to what happened just now.


    Many came to congratulate them, and yet, despite having become a saint, Ye Futian was still able to beat him.


    Up in the sky at that moment, blood continued to spill from Xiao Sheng''s mouth. Ye Futian''s fist seemed to have punched right through his body. Xiao Sheng''s long hair and clothes, which were bloodstained, billowed.


    The people from Divine Cloud Valley were speechless as they watched the scene unfold.


    "Do you confess?"


    Ye Futian wanted a confession from Xiao Sheng. He wanted to hear that the losing young man was guilty of those horrible actions.


    The relations between Xia Qingyuan and the Xiao clan meant that she was unable to pull something that extreme if she did not have the evidence to back her claims. As such, Ye Futian came to see it through personally instead.


    There were no such restrictions between him and Xiao Sheng. More than that, what Xiao Sheng pulled twice prior was deemed unforgivable.


    Ye Futian''s party almost perished during the Battle of Empty Realm, and they were only able to barely survive due to Yaya, his eldest brother, Ye Wuchen, and the others holding off their assailants by putting their lives on the line.


    The second time Xiao Sheng''s attempt on his life required the Imperial Advisor and Yan Yuan to send him off, just so that he was able to leave Dali Dynasty, getting the Imperial Advisor''s Residence embroiled in his matters. Ye Futian learned from Xia Qingyuan that the Imperial Advisor had resigned from his position as the chief of Dali Academy. Even the students of the Imperial Advisor left the academy to train elsewhere. The Prince Regent emerged again, and his powers seemed to be about to eclipse those of the Imperial Advisor.


    King Tiandao and the Prince Regent became close allies, supporting the third prince to take the position of chief of the Dali Academy, taking charge of the academy that the Imperial Advisor had painstakingly built. Both figures were to be the third prince''s advisors then. Many from Daoli Mountain were even allowed to train in the Dali Academy.


    The Imperial Advisor would have definitely predicted those turn of events at the very moment he had decided to make a move for Ye Futian''s sake. While Emperor Li would not have done anything to him simply because he let one person go, there was no way the Emperor could just let everything slide. The Imperial Advisor was still a subject of Emperor Li''s Realm, one who played a crucial role in determining the outcome of the Battle of Empty Realm.


    In both attempts to take his life, someone from Emperor Xia''s Realm��Xiao Sheng��had colluded with Li Yao, a prince of Emperor Li''s Realm. Such actions meant that even if Xiao Sheng had truly confessed and repented, Ye Futian would still not have forgiven him, let alone that Xiao Sheng had only become a saint.


    There were things that one could not merely let slide, things that did not deserve to be forgiven. If it had not been for Queen Xiao''s intervention before, Ye Futian would not have let the matter slide back then.


    All of that had nothing to do with one''s state of mind or magnanimity.


    Xiao Sheng, at that moment, looked at the silver-haired figure right in front of him, the figure that was basking in holy brilliance. At that moment, Xiao Sheng felt as if Ye Futian was the saint while he was the sage.


    Despite having become a saint, Xiao Sheng was still unable to beat him, and any talk of besting him in the future was now pointless.


    Do I confess, then? he wondered.


    While Xiao Sheng had not done anything himself, he was still involved in those incidents. It was due to him that the attempts at Ye Futian''s life came to be.


    Seeing how Xiao Sheng was looking at him without saying anything, Ye Futian lifted his arm and sent a burst of dazzling sword will through Xiao Sheng''s body without hesitation. The force raged throughout Xiao Sheng''s body, making him shudder throughout. His face was ashen.


    He continued to look at Ye Futian, who then threw punches at him. Every single punch worsened his condition as the powers of the punches ravaged his internal organs.


    Countless who were watching below were shaken at that scene.


    Ye Futian was taking care of things his way.


    "If you''re not going to confess, I''ll keep doing it my way until you yield," Ye Futian said. His voice was cold and overbearing. Even the ones below came to be confused about what was going on.


    Who among the two was the saint again?


    Who among the two was the sage again?


    Ye Futian was truly ravaging Xiao Sheng''s will by then.


    Boom...


    Another punch landed, and Xiao Sheng''s body seemed to have been penetrated. He looked very wobbly. Not only did his aura feel shriveled, but it also seemed as if his spirit and vital signs were quickly disappearing. It was only then that Xiao Sheng realized that until Ye Futian got the answer he sought, there was no stopping what was going on.


    "Enough." A voice was ringing throughout the air. Many looked at the one who spoke and saw Old Man Xiao step forward with cold eyes, looking at Ye Futian.


    "Ye Futian, are you going to use such means to make him confess to something he didn''t do?" Old Man Xiao asked coldly.


    "If he truly is innocent, I shall be willing to pay the price with my life. But if he truly is guilty, what will you do then?" Ye Futian glanced at Old Man Xiao and answered in an equally cold tone.


    Old Man Xiao understood from Ye Futian''s eyes that he was sure that Xiao Sheng was behind all those attempts on his life.


    "Only through a transformation of one''s mind, reaching completion and flawlessness, cam one achieve sainthood in one''s training in the great path. Xiao Sheng has been of such a state of mind, as he was able to make it into sainthood. How can you be so sure that he was the one behind all of that?" Old Man Xiao asked again. After Xiao Sheng was able to make it to Saint Plane, the old man came to think that he might have been wrong and had misunderstood Xiao Sheng.


    The Princess was unable to find out anything, after all. They had restricted Xiao Sheng''s mobility, and yet what followed still happened, which meant that Xiao Sheng could not have been the one behind it all. Even some things that happened before could not have been pulled off by Xiao Sheng, judging by the resources he had at his disposal.


    "Flawless state of mind?" Ye Futian chuckled sarcastically and continued, "While I have no idea why he had been able to let go of his obsession and make the breakthrough, there were multiple ways of breaking into Saint Plane. Even if he had truly been able to let go, that does not mean that he did not do any of those things. You claimed that he was of a flawless state of mind? What about me, then?"


    The holy light on and around Ye Futian turned even more dazzling as soon as he finished. He threw yet another devastating punch, rattling Xiao Sheng''s internal organs so severely that they were almost shattered. Xiao Sheng looked even more broken.


    At that same time, Ye Futian''s aura intensity climbed to a critical point, and beams of glittering light shot to the heavens. It brought forth a terrifying, stifling aura all of a sudden. It was as if a storm was brewing.


    The hearts of many were shaken furiously. The beams of light shot to the heavens, and his will seemed to have merged with the great path. His mind seemed to have melded with the world around him.


    Ye Futian looked up to the sky and said with a brimming voice, "I now ask the heavens. Is my conscience clear?"


    His voice resonated with his surroundings. Countless heard that voice throughout the vast space. Many outside the Xiao clan''s manor gathered around. They looked up at that figure in the sky at the silver-haired man who was a sage yet had bested a saint.


    Catastrophic clouds rolled about above him. Beams of the divine light of calamity ebbed in the heavens. Black clouds filled the sky, and the scene looked like doomsday. Stifling pressure shrouded the entire place.


    Old Man Xiao looked up. His gaze was fixed on the scene unfolding midair.


    I now ask the heavens. Is my conscience clear?


    The catastrophe of the Great Path could not have been evoked if one''s state of mind was patchy.


    Xiao Sheng looked up in the sky at the terrifying might of the gathering catastrophe, which proved even more powerful than the one that he had braved through.


    He grinned all of a sudden. Ye Futian, a sage, had bested him, a saint.


    The catastrophe of the great path was evoked soon after, giving the one who bested him a chance to break into the Saint Plane.


    It was an irony like no other.


    He had thought himself a truly changed man from head to toe when he broke into Saint Plane, enabling him to start anew.


    Yet, there was someone who refused to let him do so.


    The one who refused proved to be better. So much better that there had never been one such person emerging in history throughout all of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Ye Futian used him as a catalyst to break into the Saint Plane.


    I, Xiao Sheng, have broken into Saint Plane, but so what? he thought.


    What he did in the past were things he would have never do again with his current state of mind. Yet, so what?


    The fact that he had done all those things remained unchanged.


    Ye Futian kept his eyes on Xiao Sheng and said, "I led Emperor Xia''s Realm to victory in the Battle of Empty Realm, yet someone wanted to see me dead. After the Battle of Empty Realm, I went to Dali Dynasty to train, and the Imperial Advisor of Dali imparted his ways to me, teaching me the ways of the great path. Yet, someone in Emperor Xia''s Realm still wanted to see me dead. The Imperial Advisor knew that I was from Emperor Xia''s Realm, and he escorted and sent me off back to the Nine States all the same. I would have died in Dali and would have never made it here. Tell me, all of you, does that someone deserve death?"


    Violent clouds of the catastrophe rolled in increasingly great intensity. Even those who watched from outside were shaken to their core.


    The catastrophe was truly powerful. All of them seemed to have sensed all manners of the might of the great path imbued within. It was as if the catastrophe would bring about doom below as soon as it rained.


    What Ye Futian said, however, proved even more earth-shattering.


    His methods were actually imparted to him by the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    He went to Dali Dynasty to train, and the Imperial Advisor took him in. His identity was discovered, and the Imperial Advisor escorted him to Emperor Xia''s realm.


    It was surprising enough that the Imperial Advisor of Dali Dynasty would have gone to such extents for him, yet someone in Emperor Xia''s Realm wanted to see him dead.


    Some irony indeed.


    All of them seemed to be able to understand what Ye Futian had gone through.


    It was of no surprise that he went on to ask the heavens if his conscience was clear.


    If Xiao Sheng had truly been the one doing all of that, then he truly deserved death.


    All of them understood why Ye Futian had come in such a forceful manner to take Xiao Sheng.


    "Anyone can come to vouch for him, and still, I will not yield," Ye Futian said coldly.


    Xiao Sheng looked at him and then at the sky. One could have only guessed what was going through his mind right there.


    He closed his eyes and opened them again, sighing before saying, "I am indeed guilty."


    The world turned completely silent in that instant, with only the catastrophe continuing to howl.


    Xiao Sheng confessed to his crimes!

 1153 Becoming a Sain

    Everyone looked up into the sky. Dark clouds were gathering, making everything more and more frightening. The light of catastrophe was falling from the heavens.


    Ye Futian''s light of catastrophe seemed to consist of many different colors. Layer upon layer of will was immersed in the light, as a terrible brilliance flowed out from him.


    But he still stood there like a statue. In front of him, Xiao Sheng was doing the same.


    And he had admitted his fault.


    He had admitted everything.


    Xiao Sheng had broken through to the Divine Path, and the Xiao clan had pleaded to Queen Xiao for his life. They were ready to send him to the army to train. Many guests had come to see him off, and his future was very bright.


    But the most dazzling figure in the past few years in Emperor Xia''s Realm had come to criticize him.


    As a Sage, he had still been able to crush Xiao Sheng, who was at the Saint level, and forcibly break through to the Divine Catastrophe.


    The people of the Xiao clan went pale. They had wanted to fight for a future for Xiao Sheng. Since he had entered the Saint plane, his heart must have changed, and he would very likely become one of the most prestigious figures of their clan in the future. Thus, Old Man Xiao had once again placed all his hopes upon him.


    But now they all understood.


    Xiao Sheng was finished.


    Everyone had heard what Ye Futian had just said very clearly. He had worked with people from Emperor Li''s Realm twice all to kill Ye Futian, who had achieved victory in the Battle of Empty Realm and gone by himself to Emperor Li''s Realm. This was an unforgivable offense. Even Xia Qingyuan could not let him get away with this.


    And neither could Ye Futian.


    The people from Divine Cloud Valley also looked up into the air. Gongsun Ni, Gongsun Zhong, and the rest were all conflicted.


    They still remembered the first time they had seen Ye Futian. It was in the Xiao clan''s household, at Old Man Xiao''s banquet.


    At that time, he had only recently arrived in the Upper Worlds and had just made a name for himself. He had launched a surprise attack on Lihen Heaven, which made everyone think he was too arrogant and did not know his own power. He had provoked Lihen Heaven and had swept away all their heroes at that banquet. Afterward, he had set out on a path that no others could match.


    On the 33rd layer of Lihen Heaven, he had defeated Wang Chuan. Wang Chuan had used this battle to become a Saint, but he said that Ye Futian stood alone among those below the Saint plane.


    Afterward, in the Battle of Empty Realm, he had seized victory all by himself and then had joined with Princess Xia Qingyuan to defeat Yuan Jin.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen had given his sword to Ye Wuchen because of him, to save him from an attack by cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm.


    And now, he had defeated a Saint level cultivator as a Sage, accomplishing a feat for the ages, and now was using the majesty of this battle to step onto the Divine Path.


    Those who had been called the greatest figure below the Saint plane in Emperor Xia''s Realm, those dazzling, unparalleled heroes seemed to lose their luster before him.


    He seemed to be the only person who mattered in that generation of cultivators from Emperor Xia''s Realm. He was absolutely without equal, and eclipsed everyone else''s glory. No one could compare with him.


    Some people looked at Princess Xia Qingyuan not far away. Once, it had been said that she stood alone in her generation and that none could compare with her.


    But now, what about Ye Futian?


    Could he stand shoulder to shoulder with the Princess?


    At that moment, everyone understood what Xia Qingyuan had seen in Ye Futian, and why she appreciated him. Perhaps Xia Qingyuan and Emperor Xia had known of Ye Futian''s talent from the start.


    Even the Imperial Adviser, who was from an enemy power, treated him like this. A truly outstanding figure could perhaps make those who stood before him give up their own status. This was sincere appreciation; it did not matter whether or not they stood in opposition to him.


    Boom!


    A rumbling sound pulled everyone back from their reveries. The light of catastrophe was falling from the sky and crashed violently upon Ye Futian. His white hair was dancing in the wind as his white robes fluttered.


    The brilliant light around him became even brighter as the light of catastrophe flowed across his body. But he still stood up straight without wavering even a little bit. His body was not moved even an inch.


    With a start, many people realized that not only was terrible will flowing around Ye Futian, but his flesh itself was also suffused with a powerful will. The terrifying light of catastrophe baptized his spiritual willpower and changed it.


    At that same time, it baptized his flesh, making it divine.


    In front of him, Xiao Sheng was also suffering the waves of the Divine Catastrophe. His weak flesh trembled, and he spat up another mouthful of blood. His face was as white as paper.


    Xiao Sheng''s breathing was growing weaker and weaker. He looked at the impossibly brilliant figure before him and felt a burst of sorrow.


    If he had known it would turn out like this, he would not have done the things he did.


    That way, the incomparably brilliant Ye Futian would have had nothing to do with him. He could still have become a Saint. Given his status, he could have done anything that he wanted to. Princess Xiao and Xia Qingyuan would have promised him anything.


    Why had he decided to compete with Ye Futian and worry that he would steal his position?


    Now he understood that there were some things you should not strive for, as to do so would be meaningless.


    It was only a momentary slip, but it had made it so that there was no way to escape, and had led him to this point.


    He felt sort of pitiable.


    He naturally understood that Ye Futian would not give him another chance. He would do the same, regardless of his mood or his amount of tolerance.


    "Who else?" Ye Futian asked Xiao Sheng.


    He naturally knew that Xiao Sheng had not done all of this by himself. It was not something he could have done alone.


    Xia Qingyuan had told him always to watch Xiao Sheng and the Xiao clan; she had even placed Xiao Sheng under arrest. No news could have gotten out, so they could not know the news of his return.


    He trusted Xia QIngyuan, and so did not doubt what she had said. If it was not Xiao Sheng, then there must have been someone controlling him from the background. Moreover, they were much more powerful than Xiao Sheng. Otherwise, they would not have been able to get even a little bit of information.


    But everyone else trembled when they heard his question. There was someone else?


    Who had been involved in this besides Xiao Sheng?


    Everyone involuntarily looked at the people from the Xiao clan. This had made Old Man Xiao, Xiao Qianhe, and the others look worried.


    This affair did not only concern Ye Futian.


    If it had just been him, they would not have cared so much.


    He had conspired with Emperor Li''s Realm to harm one of his own people, and it was someone that His Majesty and the Princess regarded highly. Even someone from the Xiao clan could not get away with something like this.


    "Qingyuan," Old Man Xiao looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "I''m not that senile yet."


    The Xiao clan was at the height of power in Emperor Xia''s Realm. With the Emperor as an in-law and Queen Xiao as the Queen Mother, their status was very high. Would he betray Emperor Xia''s Realm and collude with Dali Dynasty?


    Obviously, he could not just sit still and take what Ye Futian was saying. It was too serious.


    "That''s not what he meant, grandfather. But you must understand that he could not have done this alone," said Xia Qingyuan.


    Old Man Xiao''s eyes flashed when he heard this. When he had seen Xiao Sheng become a Saint, he had thought that Xia Qingyuan had been mistaken about him. But he did know that there were many things he could not do.


    But now, even Xiao Sheng admitted that he had done this.


    Thinking about it in detail, it was apparent that someone else had to be involved.


    He swept his gaze over the people of the Xiao clan, then looked at Xiao Qianhe. The other person would have to be as bold as him, right?


    The light of catastrophe rumbled down yet again. Ye Futian was completely immersed in the Divine Catastrophe and looked nearly celestial. However, the Catastrophe of the Divine Path could not shake him one bit. He still stood up straight, calmly bearing its power like a god up in the sky.


    Everyone in the palace stared at him. They all knew that after becoming a Saint, Ye Futian would undergo a change. In that past, his talent had been outstanding, but in the end, he had only been a junior, and so his power was limited.


    But after this change, he would truly come into his own.


    But at that moment, all Ye Futian wanted to know was the truth. Thus he questioned Xiao Sheng about who else was involved.


    Xiao Sheng suffered the waves of the Divine Catastrophe. He coughed up blood, then looked at Ye Futian, but his eyes seemed calm. He shook his head and said. "I did this by myself. I sent the information to Li Yao. I did all of it alone."


    Ye Futian looked at him and saw that he did not look too distressed. It was as if he were still ready to face anything. He seemed sincere.


    Obviously, he did not want to say who had been backing him.


    Who was it? Xiao Sheng had admitted his guilt but was still protecting them.


    Was it someone from the Xiao clan?


    "You could not have done this alone," said Ye Futian coldly.


    "I said I did it alone. If you don''t believe me, that''s fine," said Xiao Sheng. He still would not confess.


    Ye Futian looked at him. Since Xiao Sheng had already confessed, everything that would happen next was very simple.


    Saint Xihua had suddenly attacked the palace. Ling''er and Phoenix had been poisoned. His information had been leaked, including a lot of sensitive details. This was not something that Xiao Sheng could have arranged all on his own. There must be someone extremely powerful in the background controlling everything.


    This matter was not over.


    Up in the sky, the light of catastrophe burned brightly. Xia Qingyuan said, "You should become a Saint first."


    Ye Futian nodded. His figure flashed up into the sky.


    Dark clouds covered everything, making an apocalyptic looking scene. The Divine Catastrophe descended, and his spiritual willpower suffered a terrifying assault. But each assault baptized him in the Great Path. His will became one with heaven and earth, and he could sense will more clearly.


    That was not all. His body underwent powerful assaults as the light of catastrophe bathed his flesh, making him seem to transform.


    His flesh became divine. His whole body became the Path.


    Everyone saw Ye Futian sitting there, cross-legged with eyes closed, bearing everything calmly. He was once baptized in medicine, and his spiritual will and physical body were extremely strong. There was no fear that he would not cross through the Divine Catastrophe.


    Everyone looked up at the white-robed youth sitting there. As the light of catastrophe fell upon him, his bearing changed little by little.


    In the end, he was like a butterfly breaking out of its cocoon. Divine light flowed from him and covered everything. Rays of morning sunlight filled the vast sky, dispersing the terrible light of catastrophe.


    The Divine Catastrophe grew weaker and weaker. The dark clouds dispersed, and morning sunlight came down from the Ninth Heaven.


    The white-haired youth opened his eyes. They were deeper than before, and divinity seemed to shoot out from them.


    He rose and looked out at the crowd. He was suffused with a supernatural aura.


    Ye Futian had become a Saint!

 1154 The Death of Xiao Sheng

    Ye Futian stood calmly in the sky, and with a single breath, he sucked in the Qi of heaven and earth.


    His heart and mind moved together and could roam freely throughout heaven and earth. It was as if everything was moving in conjunction with his spirit.


    Although it was not as brilliant as before, divine light still flowed across his body. His flesh and his spirit had both undergone the baptism of the Divine Catastrophe and had changed, becoming better than before.


    At that moment, he felt his body stabilize. His internal organs had become extremely powerful, and they quivered as he breathed. His limbs and bones were completely unobstructed, and he could see extremely far away with his naked eyes.


    In his Life Palace, the World Tree swayed with divine radiance. The other life spirits curled around it as if it was supporting them all.


    After all, the World Tree was Ye Futian''s original life spirit. The others had all grown out of it.


    Will flowed around the World Tree, and in his life palace, Ye Futian could faintly feel it connecting with his thoughts. It seemed to be in both his body and his mind. The trunk of the World Tree seemed to be his body, and it provided him with a constant stream of the breath of life and strength.


    Ye Futian felt like his life spirit had been set free, and could actually touch heaven and earth, turning into an incomparably holy tree that would touch the sky.


    Unfortunately, he had not truly released his full life spirit in combat as of yet.


    He was a Saint. He had extraordinarily become a Saint.


    This was a barrier. Most people were stopped by this barrier. Many people in the world of cultivators thought that advancing through the first three tiers of the Saint plane was not as difficult as advancing from a Sage to a Saint. It was a huge test of one''s character, and thus it was one of the most important steps.


    By taking this step, he had stepped over the barrier. From now on, he just had to steadily increase his level. Now that he had reached the Saint plane, his state of mind had improved so that he could break through even higher levels.


    This step was a huge change. From now on, he would be advancing.


    Of course, crossing from the third tier of the Saint plane, Flawless Sainthood, to the fourth tier, the Holiness of Nirvana, was also an incredibly difficult step to take, and it prevented countless heroes from reaching the fourth tier.


    To break through to that plane, one needed a lot of luck and a lot of perseverance.


    After reaching the Saint plane, Ye Futian felt much stronger than before. Even though it was only a single step, that single step had brought great changes.


    Divine radiance shot out from his eyes as he swept his gaze over Xiao Sheng below him.


    Before starting on the Divine Path, he had already been able to defeat Xiao Sheng. Now that he had become a Saint, he could easily and swiftly crush him. He did not need to expend as much energy as he would have before.


    Even those below them could tell where Ye Futian and Xiao Sheng stood in relation to each other. Even though they were both Saints, the difference in their auras was great. If Xiao Sheng was a supernatural Saint and had completely changed, then Ye Futian was like a god who was even greater than a Saint.


    They would never have thought that even after they had both become Saints, there would be such a great difference between them.


    Everyone sighed inwardly. Perhaps this was truly a hero whose name would be heard around the world. Before taking that step, he had been able to crush Xiao Sheng. Now that he had taken it, Xiao Sheng could only despair.


    They even sort of felt that someone who had been a Saint for many years would be crushed if they fought with Ye Futian, even though he had just become a Saint.


    They even wondered about Ye Futian''s family background. Could he truly be just a cultivator who had come from the Lower Worlds?


    Why would he be so outstanding? His aura was even more powerful than the juniors of the greatest houses of the Upper Worlds.


    There was even wonder in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes as she beheld Ye Futian. He was truly dazzling right now.


    She wondered when she would be able to become a Saint.


    She wondered what he would be like now that he was a Saint. If he was like he was now, what would be the outcome?


    Everyone from the Cottage looked on in reverent silence. Seeing his elegant demeanor, they all felt a burst of joy in their hearts.


    Their little brother had become a Saint.


    Long ago, Ye Futian had come to the Cottage at age 18 and was pampered by his sworn brothers and sisters. Now he had become a Saint while he was still young. When he returned to the Nine States, he would stand at the peak and look down upon the whole world.


    It all seemed like a dream.


    He was a Saint. He had attained what had once been unreachable.


    Now, after his sworn brother, he had finally taken this step.


    Now, he would not need Yu Sheng and the Cottage to protect him anymore. He was the strongest disciple of the Cottage now.


    Ye Futian, the Saint, stepped forward, traversing the sky in a single step. He descended before Xiao Sheng.


    Xiao Sheng looked at him. At that moment, he felt unworthy to be in his presence.


    Once, he had been the heir of the Xiao clan, and Queen Xiao''s niece. Therefore, even though Ye Futian was an outstanding talent and was becoming famous throughout the Upper Worlds, he had not paid him any mind. He thought that by merely blocking his path he could get rid of him.


    Now, looking back, he saw that the gap between them was huge.


    To become a Saint was to be detached from the ordinary.


    However, Ye Futian''s detachment had advanced by leaps and bounds, much faster than other people''s. Even though no one knew what his family background was, he was in Emperor Xia''s good graces, and the Princess treated him favorably. As far as he knew, Xia Qingyuan had never treated anyone else like this.


    Even without this incident, Ye Futian would still not be comparable to him.


    Now, Ye Futian''s future was limitless, and Xiao Sheng was a criminal.


    Maybe if he had seen things clearly before becoming a Saint, this would not have happened.


    "Who was it?" Ye Futian asked coldly as he stared at Xiao Sheng. His voice carried an unmistakable meaning.


    Xiao Sheng may have confessed, but this matter was not over yet.


    Someone was helping him behind the scenes.


    The person who was secretly arranging all this from behind the scenes was no ordinary person. But he could not think of anyone other than Xiao Sheng, who hated him.


    "I said that it was only me." Xiao Sheng stared calmly at Ye Futian. Even though he was in turmoil, he now saw many things clearly. It had all come to this, so he would confess.


    Since he had done all this, he would pay the price.


    He knew that even though he had become a Saint, now that things had come to this point, he was finished.


    All his former glory had passed by like clouds of smoke. His cultivation and his future were gone now.


    Ye Futian grabbed Xiao Sheng, and in a flash, a terribly bolt of lightning descended towards him. It slammed into him, violently destroying his internal organs.


    Not only that, but his eyes became very sharp, and lightning will shot out of them into Xiao Sheng''s eyes.


    At that moment, Xiao Sheng''s brain trembled violently as his spiritual will came under serious attack. His whole body shook. He swayed as though he were about to fall, but he was held up by an invisible force.


    Xiao Sheng may have confessed that he had done everything, but if he wanted to hide anything else, it would not be that easy. Ye Futian would destroy his will.


    Having confessed to his crime, Xiao Sheng had no right to resist. And the Xiao clan had no right to question it.


    Below, everyone was looking at the two of them. The saw the terrible lightning flashing around the two of them. The lightning struck Xiao Sheng, destroying his flesh bit by bit and numbing his spiritual will.


    "Who was it? Tell me!" Ye Futian''s voice was like thunder as he began to crack open Xiao Sheng''s mind. His brain trembled fiercely, and it seemed that Ye Futian would completely destroy his will.


    A voice repeated over and over in his head, telling him to say who it was.


    Everyone was speechless. At this moment, Xiao Sheng, who had no power resist, could truly be called wretched.


    But this was the price that he had to pay for everything he had done to Ye Futian.


    But everyone was still wondering if there was someone else with ill intentions towards Ye Futian.


    If there really was, would it be someone in the Xiao clan?


    The Xiao clan would not have needed to do this.


    But if it was someone else, why would Xiao Sheng admit his guilt but not say who had helped him?


    "Xiao Sheng." At that moment, another figure stepped forward. It was Old Man Xiao. He walked towards him, and when he looked at him, he sighed inwardly. With all that Xiao Sheng had done, it would be impossible to obtain a pardon for him.


    Now all he wished for was that he could live.


    "If there was someone else involved in this, tell me who it was," said Old Man Xiao. He knew everything that had happened. It was definitely not something that Xiao Sheng could have done, but he knew that Xiao Sheng had done it.


    But now Xiao Cheng had admitted his guilt, which implied that Ye Futian''s suspicion was not without reason.


    He also wanted to know who it was.


    Now Xiao Sheng had to speak. It was only a matter of time.


    If he did not confess, Ye Futian would not agree to spare him, nor would Xia Qingyuan.


    Xiao Sheng looked at Old Man Xiao, and bowed slightly with his trembling body, saying, "I have admitted what I did. I did it all myself. There was no one else."


    Boom! A bolt of lightning descended from the sky, cutting into Xiao Sheng''s body. He spat out a mouthful of blood as endless lightning will swirled around him.


    "if you confess, I will go easy on you. If you don''t, you should know that there are those who can make you tell the truth." Ye Futian did not know why Xiao Sheng was being like this. Who was he protecting?


    Xiao Sheng should understand that Xia Qingyuan had not acted against him before was because of the relationship between them, not because it was inconvenient to do so.


    And now that he had admitted his guilt, how could Xiao Sheng not tell the truth under the ministrations of all the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    The person behind Xiao Sheng was much more sinister than him. Ye Futian could not let him go.


    Xiao Sheng knew that Ye Futian was telling the truth. He could not conceal this forever. Powerful cultivators would have ways of making him talk.


    But from the moment he had made this decision, everything had been predetermined. Nothing could be changed.


    He looked at Ye Futian, then at Xia Qingyuan, and said, "Ye Futian, I hope that you can serve the Princess with all your strength. You will do that which I hoped to do but never could much better than me."


    Ye Futian frowned. What did he mean by that?


    At that moment, his face suddenly changed.


    Before him, Xiao Sheng''s body suddenly blackened. His whole face suddenly seemed to have countless dark lines flowing over it. Not only that, but they covered his arms and his body as well.


    His vitality drained away with frightening speed. There was almost no more chance for him to talk!

 1155 Payback

    Suddenly, jade green vines spread out from Ye Futian towards Xiao Sheng and wrapped around him.


    They had a powerful breath of life within them. They poured into Xiao Sheng''s body, but Ye Futian found that as soon as they did, they turned black. Corroded and withered, their vitality peeled away.


    And there were even dark lines stretching out towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian cut the vines and saw that Xiao Sheng was covered in a dark fog. His whole body had turned black.


    "Xiao Sheng!" Old Man Xiao, Xiao Qianhe, and the other members of the Xiao clan had all gone pale. They tried to rush forward, but Xiao Sheng''s body was already descending to the ground. There was no breath of life left within him.


    His life force had been completely cut off. He was dead.


    "This..." Below them, everyone''s eyes were fixed on where they were, staring at Xiao Sheng''s corpse as it fell.


    He was dead?


    Ye Futian had not even done anything, and Xiao Sheng had still died?


    They all trembled on the inside. They finally understood. No wonder Ye Futian had come here with so much force. It looked like he was already sure about many things; he did not know who was helping Xiao Sheng.


    And had Xiao Sheng killed himself, or had he been killed?


    But no matter if he had done it actively or passively, Xiao Sheng had known everything. He had calmly met his death. He knew that since things had come that far, Ye Futian would never let him go. Even if he agreed to spare his life, he would take something to pay Xia Qingyuan back with.


    He had collaborated with people from Emperor Li''s Realm and attacked the greatest contributor to the victory at the Battle of Empty Realm. Even if he didn''t die, he would be reduced to a mediocre and unambitious life. To a cultivator, that would be even more miserable than death.


    Especially to a cultivator who had touched the Saint plane.


    Xia Qingyuan''s figure flashed, and she appeared in front of Xiao Sheng, a slightly ugly look on her face.


    At that moment, she was extremely conflicted.


    Xiao Sheng had died like this. He had obviously been hiding his maliciousness, but she did not know if he had actively done this, or if he had been led into it.


    But no matter which it was, Xiao Sheng had known all along. He had let someone plant poisonous seeds within him, leading him to this violent death.


    Ye Futian descended beside Xiao Sheng. Behind him, Zhuge Mingyue said, "Ling''er and Phoenix were poisoned as well."


    This was clearly the work of the same person.


    This person must be a powerful cultivator. Even using someone else, he had almost managed to kill Ling''er and Phoenix with poison, and in the end, Emperor Xia had gotten involved. Not to mention, Xiao Sheng had let them plant toxins within him, causing his death.


    Ling''er''s admirer had probably died in that same way. But the difference was that he probably did not know he was being poisoned.


    In his prime, Xiao Sheng could maybe have resisted him for a bit, but under Ye Futian''s attacks, he was extremely weak. He had lost the power to resist the poison''s infection, and so he had died to the poison in an extremely short period. But even so, it was still evident that the poison was powerful.


    "Princess Xia Qingyuan, are there any powerful Saint level cultivators who are skilled with poison?" asked Ye Futian. The person who did this was powerful and was outside the control of Emperor Xia''s Realm, so they must be someone famous.


    "There are many Poison Saints, but I can''t think of who it might be. I looked into the affair with Ling''er and Phoenix but haven''t reached a conclusion yet. Moreover, since he dared to use poison, it must be someone who is hidden very well," answered Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian was silent. He naturally understood what Xia Qingyuan meant.


    Since Xiao Sheng was only one of the participants, there must be someone else behind him. This person must be very skilled, much more so than Xiao Sheng. He acted meticulously and did not make mistakes.


    If he had not forced Xiao Dong to act, there would not be enough evidence to prove anything now, like a knot that could not be untied.


    What was more frightening was that every incident seemed to be just a pure coincidence.


    If he had really died in Dali Dynasty, then everything would have ended there. There would have been no disturbance in Emperor Xia''s Realm, just as if the people of Dali Dynasty had uncovered his identity, and he had been killed.


    "Qingyuan." Old Man Xiao stood before Xiao Sheng. A faint sense of sorrow could be detected from him.


    Among the juniors of the Xiao clan, Xiao Sheng was the most talented. Previously, he had been the most cherished disciple of the third generation, and now he had become a Saint. He had once again given everyone high hopes but had come to a tragic end like this.


    He had admitted his guilt and been executed by poison.


    Moreover, this turmoil would certainly drag in the whole Xiao clan, even though due to Queen Xiao''s status, Emperor Xia''s Palace would not do anything against them.


    But what had happened had happened, and they could not pretend like it had not. The people of Emperor Xia''s Palace knew it for sure, as did the powerful forces of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    After today, the Xiao clan would still be a powerful family, but they could not continue to advance. Old Man Xiao''s banquet had probably been the height of their glory, unless a miraculous figure appeared in the Xiao clan, giving them a chance to fight back.


    Of course, this all presupposed that the Xiao clan had nothing to do with Xiao Sheng''s actions. Otherwise, they would be dragged in, and the turmoil would be far from over.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up at Old Man Xiao and heard him say, "Xiao Sheng was involved in this affair, and how he has paid the price. But I promise you that the Xiao clan had nothing to do with this. I will help you investigate this. If I find out who else was involved, I will not let them escape."


    Although his heart was filled with sorrow, he still had to show this kind of attitude.


    He was furious at the one who had helped Xiao Sheng and made him take this drastic step, and who had dragged the Xiao clan into all of this.


    If it were truly someone from the Xiao clan, he would certainly not let them go.


    "Mm." Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly. Although the things that Xiao Sheng had done were terrible, he had paid the price for them. But the person who was acting in the shadows was even more contemptible.


    Xiao Sheng was not powerful enough to have arranged all of this. So it must have been the one working behind the scenes who had done it.


    Their skill was so great that even she was shocked. It had been such a long time, and they had still not made a mistake.


    When Xiao Sheng had died, all the threads had been severed.


    Ye Futian stood there silently. Many people from the Xiao clan were looking at him furiously, especially Xiao Sheng''s father, Xiao Qianhe.


    No matter what Xiao Sheng had done, he was still his son. He had become a Saint and should have had a limitless future, but he had come to grief instead.


    Xiao Sheng may have done some things that he should not have done, but he had not really wanted to collude with Emperor Li''s Realm; he just wanted Ye Futian to die. That was all.


    And now he had been hounded to death by Ye Futian.


    Before, no one could have imagined that a junior cultivator of Emperor Xia''s Realm could kill Xiao Sheng and even weaken the Xiao clan. Given the Xiao clan''s power, even an exceptionally talented junior cultivator would not be able to disturb them in the slightest. And even if they wanted to kill him, so what?


    But Ye Futian had been able to ruin them due to his outstanding talent, which could not be found anywhere else in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Even when he went to antagonize the Dali Dynasty, he had had a meteoric rise.


    Ye Futian turned and left.


    He felt that the Xiao clan had not been involved. It was only Xiao Sheng who hated him, and Old Man Xiao was not that stupid.


    But he still had to investigate. Xia Qingyuan would continue to search for more clues.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at the people from the Xiao clan, then at the retreating figure of Ye Futian. Then she turned around indifferently and followed him, whispering, "What are you planning to do next?"


    Ye Futian kept walking, and his fellow palace members followed him. They left with Xia Qingyuan.


    Below, countless people watched the two of them walking side by side. There seemed to be a particular meaning to this scene.


    There were countless cultivators in the vast Emperor Xia''s Realm, but none of those in the same generation as her had the right to stand beside Xia Qingyuan, except perhaps for that white-haired youth.


    Ye Futian did not think too much about it. When he heard what Xia Qingyuan asked, he was silent for a while, then answered, "Princess, previously, I wanted to seize Xiao Sheng by force and wrest the answers from him, but now he is dead. As for clues, we only know that it was a Saint-level cultivator skilled in the art of poison. But you already said that we could not find such a man, so there is only one clue left."


    "What clue is that?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    "Saint Xihua," said Ye Futian. "We''ve already proved that what happened to Ling''er wasn''t just a coincidence. Saint Xihua chose that time to suddenly take revenge on the Holy Zhi Palace. But you said that it was only a casual attack, and then they fled. They had no determination at all. So, someone must have been directing things behind the scenes."


    If it weren''t for the things that Ling''er and Phoenix had encountered, no one would have suspected that there was someone behind the scenes pulling strings. After all, vengeance would have been served.


    But looking back on it now, things weren''t so simple. Everything had probably been to test whether he was there or not.


    "Saint Xihua has had people watching you all along. They must have had a part in this. Let''s grab them," said Xia Qingyuan. "They are still in the Nine States now, lying low and cultivating in the Endless Sea."


    "Excellent, we will go there," said Ye Futian. The Endless Sea was vast. It was indeed a good place to hide from the world and cultivate. If it had not been for Xia Qingyuan having people watch them, it would not have been easy to find them.


    In the Sacred War of the Nine States, the great holy lands had laid siege to the Holy Zhi Palace. The palace had taken heavy casualties. This was all set off by Saint Xihua. At that time, the only enemy of the Holy Zhi Palace had been the Great Zhou Sacred King. Saint Xihua had entered and allied with the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty, and afterward, the Hall of Holy Light and Zhisheng Cliffs had gotten involved as well.


    As for the palace itself, a terrible holy war had broken out there, and Jieyu had died.


    Now, Saint Xihua was involved in these matters once again. Old debts and new debts would have to be paid back together.


    The group continued forward towards Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    A great matrix for sending people directly to the Nine States was there, which would speed things up considerably.


    Not long after, Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan, and the others activated the matrix, and amidst a swirl of light, the whole group disappeared from the Upper Worlds.


    The sky above the Endless Sea was as blue as the water. One could not see the end of it in a single glance. The wind and waves howled as a beam of powerful light descended. A group of people was coming from the sky!

 1156 Destroy a Saint with One Finger

    There were countless islands in the Endless Ocean.


    Among these islands were many island cities of various sizes.


    In the eastern portion of the Endless Ocean, there was a small, unknown island. People were scarce here, with a population of 100,000 or so. On the mainland of the Nine States, this would amount to only a small village.


    At that moment, on the eastern edge of the island, an old man was wearing a long robe, sitting peacefully on the rocks fishing. He had a plaited bamboo hat on his head, under which his face was sharply angled. He had his eyes closed as if he were dozing off.


    "I see you''ve come here fishing again, Old Xi," called another dark-skinned old man from not far off with a smile. He was getting ready to go out into the ocean to hunt monsters.


    There were countless sea monsters in the Endless Ocean, and each of them had many cultivation resources. Since these resources were extremely scarce in this island, these sea monsters were the only source of them.


    "Mm." The old man, who was sitting there with his eyes closed, nodded slightly. He opened his eyes lazily, then smiled at the other old man and said, "You''re getting ready to go out into the ocean? I can see that there are huge waves out there; there must be a big monster out there causing trouble. Why don''t you stay in today?"


    "That''s no problem. My son and my son-in-law are quite powerful cultivators. If we run into a fierce monster, that will be excellent." The old man spoke clearly and honestly. He seemed to be very proud of his children. There were several other people behind him. One of them was shirtless, and his skin was dark all over. He was very strong. The other two people were a couple, both of them seeming very fierce. People''s appearances could change due to natural processes or due to cultivation, but they could also do because of environmental effects. "But Old Xi, you''re probably not going to catch much here. Your disciple looks a bit delicate; he probably hasn''t experienced much turmoil. Why don''t you let him come out in to the ocean with me?" said the old man with a smile as he looked at a figure in the distance.


    That man was handsome, with fair skin and not even a trace of aura coming off of him. He seemed to be a scholar. No wonder the old man had said what he did.


    "My disciple is very lazy, so I just let him sit there," said Old Xi with a smile. The old man nodded, then brought his son, daughter, and son-in-law into a boat and sailed out onto the sea. They waved to Old Xi up on the rocks. When a lone boat went out into the ocean, it''s fate was determined by heaven. This was a popular saying on the island.


    As he watched the boat sail away, Old Xi whispered, "Sometimes I envy them. They may not know the ways of heaven, but they are still able to smile at everything."


    "The people of the island say that you never know what day you will die, so you should face every moment of your life with a smile." Behind the old man, the young disciple opened his eyes and looked out at the boat.


    "Their environment may dictate Their attitude, but it''s still a kind of optimism," continued the old man. "I have a bad feeling. You two should leave."


    Another figure walked towards them from a mountain far away. "Brother," he said, "if you want to leave, you can."


    "I will stay here and accompany our master," said the young man.


    Old Xi sighed, then looked up into the distance. The sky that had once been as blue as the water was suddenly covered in dark clouds, looking very frightening.


    The sea was vast, endless, and capricious. It could change its face at any time.


    How could the people who lived on this small island understand?


    "If I had known that things would turn out like this, I never would have started down this path," whispered Old Xi. He had once been a giant in the Nine States. He had mastered all heaven and earth, and his voice shouted commands that could lead to the deaths of thousands.


    But now, he had fallen to this level all because he had tried to get revenge on a junior. Was there anything he could say about that?


    Who would have thought that that junior cultivator was not just exceptionally talented, but was, in fact, the most talented of his generation? Even since he had gone to the Upper Worlds, he still commanded the wind and rain. In both the Upper and Lower Worlds, there was no one like him.


    He vividly remembered the Sacred War at the Holy Zhi Palace. The youth who gave off dazzling light was still firmly imprinted in his mind. At that moment, he had realized that that man was not simply incredibly talented. And after that, his fate seemed to have been set.


    But he had not thought that it would happen so fast.


    The violent wind whipped up huge waves, and dark clouds covered the sky. The lone boat floated in the sea and was swept into the storm by a large wave. A terrible monster appeared in the storm. It appeared to be a Flood Dragon. It rose into the storm as it stared at the few people in the small boat. It opened its mouth as it struck out to swallow them.


    At that moment, a burst of incomparable majesty descended from the sky, covering the whole area. Everything seemed to freeze, and the storm slowed. The dragon looked to the shore in surprise, and a fierce sense of fear could be seen in its giant eyes. It suddenly lowered its proud head.


    The people in the lone boat watched this scene in surprise. They rose into the air, but it seemed that they had been slowed by something. The dragon before them and the terrible storm had been slowed as well. It seemed that the area around them had frozen.


    "Begone, vile beast," came a voice from the sky. In the next instant, the dreadful power dissipated, and the dragon tuned in fear and fled, diving back into the sea. A giant hand descended from the sky and pulled the lonely boat, and the people in it back to shore.


    When the old man and the others returned to shore, they were a bit shaken. They recovered from their shock and looked at the old man, who had been sitting there, fishing.


    They saw that the bamboo hat he had been wearing had blown off. He stood up straight, not seeming old in the least. There was an overpowering majesty about him. As far as the old man was concerned, he was like a god.


    And it was not only the old man who had changed. Even his young disciple now had an extremely sharp aura that billowed up to the clouds. Divine brilliance shone from his eyes as he looked up into the sky.


    The old man and the others knelt to the ground and kowtowed. They did not know what to say.


    Were they gods?


    Up in the sky, the clouds had changed color as a suffocating power descended. The old man and the others were still kneeling, but they seemed to feel something and looked up. They saw a group of figures appear like gods in the sky.


    The two in front were a man who looked heroic and had an incomparable aura, and a woman who, although she wore man''s clothing, was still extremely beautiful. To the people from the small island, she was like a goddess.


    Emperor Xia''s daughter was indeed like a goddess to the people of the Nine States in the Lower Worlds.


    "Those who should come have finally arrived." Saint Xihua sighed in his heart. Ever since the day when the mysterious man had made his threat, he had known this day would come.


    But he had not expected that Ye Futian would have already become a Saint.


    He was a Saint, a supernatural figure. How many years had he been in the Upper Worlds?


    The Princess had not yet become a Saint, and yet he had.


    "Greetings, Your Highness," said Saint Xihua as he looked up at Xia Qingyuan. The old man who was kneeling on the ground''s heart trembled even more fiercely.


    Those who were like gods in their eyes still needed to greet the ones who had come?


    Then who on earth were these people who had come from the sky?


    "Saint Xihua, who ordered you to attack the palace?" said Ye Futian as he looked down on them.


    Saint Xihua looked up at Ye Futian. There was no trace of disturbance on his face. He seemed very calm. Since he had known this day would come and had worried about it for a long time, now that the day had truly come, he was unperturbed.


    "During the Sacred War, you ordered people from the palace to destroy Xihua Sacred Mountain. Did I need someone to order me to attack the palace?" answered Saint Xihua calmly. "Ye Futian, there is also something that I would like to know. Who on earth are you?"


    This was a question that had puzzled him for a long time. Once, Emperor Xia had summoned all the people of the Nine States and forbade them from asking it.


    But now it no longer mattered.


    "I am Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State in the lands of the Nine States, under the rule of Emperor Xia''s Realm," said Ye Futian clearly.


    Saint Xihua was stunned when he heard this. Then he smiled and did not ask again.


    He was Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State.


    That was enough.


    The enmity between them had sprung up from that.


    "Thinking back to when Liu Zong wanted to fight with you, it seems a bit ridiculous now. First, it was Saint Zhi, then Chess Saint, then finally the Great Zhou Sacred King. Who would have thought that you''d mature so quickly? If we had known that you''d have such success after only a few years, perhaps no one would have looked at the Barren State as weak," said Saint Xihua with a smile. He spoke casually and seemed incredibly calm.


    Rain Saint rose into the sky, and a brilliant radiance bloomed from him. His long robe flapped in the wind as divine majesty swept out from him.


    Dazzling brilliance shone from his eyes. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "Since you are a Saint now, I must ask you for a fight."


    As he said this, he stepped forward towards Ye Futian, who was in the sky. He lifted his hand and made a grabbing motion in the air. Time and space seemed to freeze, becoming solid. It was as if that area had been petrified and became incredibly dense.


    "Are you up to it?" Ye Futian took a step down and pointed his finger at Rain Saint. As he did so, an incredibly powerful storm of swords swept out, cutting through the air. The tip of his finger descended towards the ground, and a Heaven Slaying Sword descended, cutting through the power that was freezing heaven and earth.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as the Great Path solidified. Countless large stones appeared and formed a wall. The covered Ye Futian, but they were destroyed as he pointed his finger at them.


    Not only that, but the terrible storm of swords wrapped around Rain Saint. Divine light flowed around Ye Futian, becoming brighter and brighter. The tip of his finger kept descending towards the ground, and the Heaven Slaying Sword followed it. The air trembled violently as everything was destroyed, and the sword rushed towards Rain Saint.


    Rain Saint waved his hands, and a powerful defensive force appeared around him, seeming to freeze the air around him. A stone wall made from the Divine Path appeared, crossing between the heavens and the earth.


    Ye Futian took another step downward, and his foot pressed down upon the heavens and the earth. He continued to press down with his finger, and suddenly sword will cut through the stone wall, shattering it and piecing through it.


    There was a crackling sound as golden lightning cut across, and the brilliant sword will slashed into Rain Saint, piercing through his body.


    In the next instant, brilliant light bloomed from Rain Saint''s body. He shattered into countless pieces that disappeared from the face of the earth!

 1157 Detterence

    He had destroyed a Saint with a single finger.


    Saint Xihua watched the figure disappear in the air. His eye twitched slightly, but he was not as agitated or angered as one might imagine. He calmed down after a momentary flutter in his heart, and he looked at the magnificent figure before him.


    When Rain Saint had become a Saint, Ye Futian was nothing more than a minor figure.


    He remembered those days. That was when XIhua Sacred Mountain had held the Nine States Forum.


    Ye Futian, who was still a Noble level cultivator, had brought the destitute people from the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State. After missing so many forums, they had finally come to participate in that one.


    At that time, the group of people from the Barren State was tiny. As far as the people from the other holy lands were concerned, the people from the Barren State were unnecessary. He still remembered that they had been seated in the last seats, and they were very unhappy about this, feeling like they had been humiliated. The people of the Nine States had just laughed and not thought it was anything serious. But later, they had taken first place in the forum and made everyone else look at them with newfound respect.


    But even so, the other holy lands still did not really worry about the Barren State.


    How many years had passed since that Nine States Forum?


    The one who was once a Noble had slain Rain Saint, upon whom he had once placed such high hopes and made Saint Xihua accept his fate. If he was not experiencing it himself, he would not have believed it.


    The old man beside trembled with fear as he watched the scene unfolding in the sky. He and those with him were kneeling on the ground. Everything that had happened today went entirely against what they would have imagined.


    Before, Saint Xihua had saved the from the storm, and he had seemed like a god then.


    But in a flash, it seemed like this man, who they looked at as a god, would be killed!


    What kind of person was the brilliant, incomparable figure in the air?


    And that woman. Old Xi had even called her Princess. Was this the Princess of the Ninth Heaven?


    Up in the sky, Ye Futian looked down on them all. He fixed his gaze on Saint Xihua.


    Woosh! Another figure rose into the sky. It was Saint Xihua''s sworn brother, another Saint level cultivator of Xihua Sacred Mountain. He had been a Saint for a long time, but he was still stuck at the first tier of the Saint plane.


    When they had fled from the Upper Worlds, they had realized that this day might come, and thus they had left a few people behind in the Upper Worlds.


    The reason he had not returned and had hidden away in the Endless Ocean was so that his juniors would not be dragged into all of this.


    Since the outcome of all this was already fixed, there was no reason to struggle. He could face it all honestly.


    He had understood as soon as he saw Ye Futian kill Rain Saint. Although they were on the first tier of the Saint plane and had been Saints for many years, there was still a gap between them that neither time nor level could fill.


    Some people were destined to stand out from birth. Although Ye Futian had not been a Saint for very long, the combat power that he could bring forth was not something that Saints from the Lower Worlds like them could match. After all, they had relied on outside power to become Saints.


    But Ye Futian had been without match in the Upper and Lower Worlds even before he had become a Saint, save perhaps for Princess Xia Qingyuan.


    They even suspected that even Xia QIngyuan was not as good as Ye Futian. That day at the battle at the Holy Zhi Palace, the divine light that he had called forth was like that of an Emperor as it covered the world.


    Ye Futian saw his opponent shoot into the air, and a powerful airflow surrounded him. His sword will whistled as it shrieked through heaven and earth.


    Xuanyuan stepped out, and the sky trembled. He pressed his finger forward, and 10,000 sword wills pierced the sky, shattering everything in their path. Looking down in it, it looked like an endless radiance descending. And right in the middle, there was a giant, holy sword that cut through the sky towards the Saint-level cultivator, who had rushed towards Ye Futian. It cut through him, killing him in mid-air.


    The second Saint level cultivator had fallen.


    And it had, once again, only taken a single attack.


    Of the three Saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain, Saint Xihua was the last one left.


    Saint Xihua was saddened by this. Once upon a time, Xihua Sacred Mountain had dominated the Nine States and was even slightly stronger than the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty in the Eastern State.


    But because of him, it had all been destroyed by one man.


    It was a tragedy.


    He raised his arms, and suddenly, there was an incomparably fierce airflow in the sky. A bunch of boulders was pulled out of the ground on the beach as loud booming sounds reverberated. The cliffs seemed to be uprooted, and in a flash, huge boulders were floating over a hundred-mile area. The old man trembled as he knelt. His heart went numb as he watched this indescribable scene.


    Saint Xihua rose into the air, and the countless boulders rose with him, high up into the sky. Ye Futian and the others were still standing calmly in that infinite sky, with brilliant light shining from them. They watched this happening peacefully.


    Several figures stepped forward, blocking the rest of the group.


    Yaya''s long hair flew in the wind, and countless sword wills descended from her, cutting through the boulders. A huge sword matrix was formed that gave off a frighteningly bright light. Numerous sword shadows seemed to be reflected on Saint Xihua''s body.


    The figures behind Glass Saint and Xia Qingyuan stepped forward, indifferently watching Saint Xihua far below them.


    Saint Xihua was still moving forward, causing the heavens to tremble. He gave a great cry and shook his hand towards the sky. Everything seemed like it would be buried by his boulders.


    "Take him," ordered Xia Qingyuan coldly. As she said this, several Saint-level figures acted at the same time.


    Saint Xihua was the last Saint of Xihua Sacred Mountain, so naturally, he could not be allowed to die.


    There was a brief but violent burst of combat in the air above the little island, which made the whole island shake. Countless people looked up and watched the short but brilliant battle.


    In the end, Old Xi, who had fished on the cliffs, was captured and taken away, leaving only ruins behind.


    The man and his family pulled themselves out of these ruins. The waves were beating against the shore, making them shiver from the cold. They looked up into the sky and saw that everyone had disappeared. They were still trembling.


    What had they just witnessed?


    This was something they would probably never forget as long as they lived.


    ...


    The Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State could be called the most prestigious holy land of the Nine States at that time. There was none like it.


    The Sacred War had shaken the Nine States. Ten holy lands had participated, which made it a spectacular event. Later, at the Battle of Proving Holiness, the palace had produced five Saints, which was another spectacular event.


    This was in addition to Ye Futian''s fame. Countless heroes from around the Nine States had rushed to the Barren State, wanting to ask to cultivate at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Later it was rumored that Ye Futian had helped Emperor Xia achieve victory in the Battle of Empty Realm, making him a highly regarded figure. The Saints of the Holy Zhi Palace had brought ten sacred methods to the Lower Worlds and taught them to the core disciples of the palace.


    Even Moon Saint of the Yue clan had sent the most talented juniors of his clan to the Holy Zhi Palace. This showed how outstanding they were.


    Since there were too many cultivators who came seeking admittance to the palace, they had to raise the threshold for acceptance. Their disciples were getting more and more outstanding, and in these few short years, many heroes had emerged.


    At that moment, the palace was bustling as many of the disciples were there cultivating.


    In the air above the palace, a burst of divine power suddenly descended. Everyone faintly felt it and looked up into the sky.


    Douzhan walked out of the palace and looked up as well.


    He saw a brilliant light coming down, and then a group of figures descended from the sky.


    The two people at their head were heroic and magnificent. It was Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    There were many cultivators behind them, as well as a wounded Saint Xihua.


    "The Palace Lord has returned!" Everyone looked up into the sky and called out greetings.


    Ye Futian had become the symbol of the Holy Zhi Palace; the thing they set their hopes on.


    "Welcome, Palace Lord." Everyone bowed in Ye Futian''s direction, overlooking Xia Qingyuan beside him. In the past, this would have been unthinkable. Given her status, she should be the most respected person everywhere she went.


    But Ye Futian was unequaled within the palace. None could match his prestige, not even Princess Xia Qingyuan.


    He had once fought with everything he had to save the palace. He was undefeated in the Sacred War and had built up the palace''s current glory.


    Ye Futian nodded to everyone, then walked towards Douzhan, calling out, "Master!"


    Douzhan stared at Ye Futian for a bit, then smiled and said, "You''ve become a Saint, Palace Lord."


    "Mm." Ye Futian nodded. Suddenly everyone in the palace was shaken.


    The Palace Lord had become a Saint. No wonder his bearing was so magnificent. Many of his disciples had felt that something was different.


    The Palace Lord had finally stepped onto the Divine Path.


    And Saint Xihua, who had once launched a surprise attack on the Holy Zhi Palace, had been captured.


    Everyone looked at the wounded, dejected figure behind Ye Futian, and their hearts were filled with many emotions. It was Saint Xihua, who had once been the lord of Xihua Sacred Mountain, and before whom the Holy Zhi Palace had once been insignificant and easily crushed.


    Now he had been captured by the Palace Lord and brought back to the palace.


    Such was the modern Holy Zhi Palace. Who could resist them?


    "Keep doing what you were doing before," said Ye Futian to the people of the palace. He brought those who had come with him into a hall. Saint Jiang''s figure flashed over, bringing Little Butterfly and Xu Chehan with him.


    A bright smile appeared on Little Butterfly''s face when she saw that Ye Futian had become a Saint.


    "Elder!" called Ye Futian.


    "Palace Lord!" called Saint Jiang. "Greetings, Princess," he said to Xia Qingyuan.


    "Mm." Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly.


    Beside her, Ye Futian said, "I need you to help me interrogate someone, elder."


    Saint Jiang naturally knew what Ye Futian meant. He looked at Saint Xihua.


    "Will you really humiliate me so, Ye Futian?" asked Saint Xihua.


    Ye Futian ignored him, but Douzhan said coldly, "You must have forgotten what you did."


    "If he is not willing to talk, then make him wish he was dead," said Ye Futian coldly.


    If he didn''t talk, would that be enough?


    "Please, Princess, grant me a boon," said Saint Xihua to Xia QIngyuan. He was Saint Xihua; how could he be humiliated like this?


    "I know that you have sons in the Upper Worlds, and I already have people watching him. I will do all I can to guarantee their safety. If someone is secretly threatening you, now they won''t dare to act against them," said Xia Qingyuan. She guessed what Saint Xihua desired.


    Saint Xihua''s face paled, and he felt powerless.


    He sighed and said, "Princess, if I tell you all that I know, it will still be meaningless."


    He did not know the identity of the man they sought. He could only be sure that none of this was a coincidence. It had all been deliberately planned!

 1158 Punishmen

    Saint Xihua finally talked. He had no other choice.


    Right now, it was not just Ye Futian who wanted to get payback on him; Princess Xia Qingyuan had brought others with her. There was no escape.


    There was an area in the Holy Zhi Palace where there were usually very few people. The area was filled with tombstones, and names were carved onto each one. These were the names of cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace who had died in battle.


    Saint Xihua was escorted there and was placed on a punishment platform in the middle of all the tombstones.


    He knew what was about to happen. His face grew extremely pale.


    Many people from the Holy Zhi Palace gathered there, standing behind Ye Futian. They all looked very solemn.


    As Saint Xihua was escorted to the platform, chains appeared out of thin air. They were locked onto his body, and even directly penetrated his bones, making him unable to stand up firmly.


    "Kneel," said Ye Futian coldly.


    "Ye Futian, no matter what I''ve done, I was still once the lord of Xihua Sacred Mountain, one of the titans of the Nine States. You''ve captured me now, so if you want to kill me, go ahead. Why must you humiliate me like this?" Saint Xihua snarled.


    Would he kneel to be punished and then killed?


    No, he was Saint Xihua.


    The hegemon of the Eastern State.


    "You instigated the alliance between the Great Zhou Sacred King and Saint Zhi, which caused the Sacred War of all the holy lands of the Nine States. Many people died because of this. Even a thousand deaths would not be punishment enough for this. What does who you are and your status have to do with anything?" said Ye Futian calmly and coldly. "Kneel and confess."


    As he said this, a terrifying sword shrieked past, cutting into Saint Xihua''s legs at the knees. His bones snapped as he knelt to the ground. His face twisted as he looked at Ye Futian in fury.


    "Princess, I once held Xihua Sacred Mountain in the Eastern State in His Majesty''s name. How can you let this happen?" he roared.


    "You were defeated and fled Xihua Sacred Mountain without any regard to your honor. What right do you have to call yourself Saint Xihua?" said Xia Qingyuan indifferently. A group of figures appeared above Saint Xihua. They were Douzhan, Xu Shang, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the other Saints of the Barren State.


    The divine power within them spread out, and a terrible destructive power descended upon Saint Xihua''s body.


    Today, Saint Xihua''s blood would be sacrificed to those who had died at the Holy Zhi Palace.


    All the disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace gathered together, staring at the scene before them. All of them appeared extremely solemn.


    Those among them who had experienced several sacred wars all had red eyes. There were many tears, especially from the older people who''s feelings ran deeper.


    Those great wars had been so tragic.


    The first time, the Great Zhou Sacred King had led a great army to attack the palace, threatening to destroy it. At that time, Douzhan had faced the Divine Catastrophe, not fearing for his own life, to win the battle and ensure the safety of the palace and giving them a chance to recover.


    This had lasted until the outbreak of the most tragic of all the Sacred Wars, in which the Palace Lord''s wife, Hua Jieyu, had died.


    Even though it had been many years since, when they thought back to it, it was like it was happening right before there eyes. They would never forget.


    Those who had entered the palace later knew of this too. Although the palace was now in its golden era, these events had all become legendary, and every person newly admitted to the palace memorized this piece of history. Now, as they gathered in the cemetery, they were struck by emotion, and all looked very solemn.


    Terrifying divine light fell upon Saint Xihua''s body, just like the light of the Divine Catastrophe.


    Xihua looked up at everyone angrily. His eyes were bloodshot. Were they really going to let him die in such a humiliating way?


    He had waited for this to happen peacefully. He had prepared himself for death. But Ye Futian would not let him die peacefully.


    He would first carve Saint Xihua''s name onto the Barren State''s pillar of shame.


    "Kill him," spat Ye Futian. Suddenly, the five Palace Lords of the Barren State launched devastating attacks at the same time. The sky looked like the end of days was coming as terrible power shot down, piercing right through Saint Xihua''s head.


    Saint Xihua''s body trembled violently. His eyes were open wide, still showing his humiliation and unwillingness to die like this. He roared as blood poured from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. But the destructive attacks continued to fall on him.


    This was his punishment. In this way, the life of Saint Xihua, who had once dominated the Eastern State, was brought to an end.


    The life force of a Saint-level cultivator was powerful, and so Saint Xihua struggled for a long time. But his life force was eventually completely exhausted. His body fell to the ground slowly and became a corpse. A hegemonic figure had died in the cemetery of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    He was still kneeling there as he died, his head bowed in confession, and his body chained to the tombstone. It was an extremely miserable way to go.


    Ye Futian watched this all happen calmly. He had no sympathy, no pity. This was the punishment that Saint Xihua deserved for all he had done.


    Someone behind Ye Futian handed him a glass filled with wine. He dropped the wine glass in front of the cemetery and then bowed to all the tombs.


    The Barren State was not like it had been before, and the Holy Zhi Palace even less so.


    The Holy Zhi Palace would one day become the greatest power in the Nine States, an unmatched holy land for cultivation. Its disciples would cover the earth. The cultivators of the palace, particularly those who had fought in the sacred war, would receive their own cultivation resources and would have a bright future.


    But the dead were dead. As far as he knew, they would never see the Holy Zhi Palace''s current glory, nor would they ever have a way to experience what that glory would bring.


    Even saying that they had died contently was nothing more than self-consolation.


    Death was death. There was only one life.


    As if affected by this emotional atmosphere, all the disciples of the palace bowed along with Ye Futian. All were serious and solemn.


    "If the families of those who died in battle are still here, give them the best cultivation resources. And have them be trained by elders and treated with special favor," said Ye Futian.


    "Don''t worry, Palace Lord, we have already done so," Sword Demon said as he and a few others came up to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded. This would let him rest a little easier.


    "Now, all that is left is Saint Ji and the others from the Hall of Holy Light," whispered Ye Futian. He wanted to see how long Saint Ji could hide for.


    Waiting for death must not be a comfortable thing to do.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian turned to leave, and the people of the palace made a path for him.


    At that moment, Ye Futian had a thought. He should pass on the title of Palace Lord.


    The palace''s position in the Nine States was as unshakable as a mountain; no one would be able to threaten them again. Everything was on the right track, and now that he was a Saint, it was even more so. The other holy lands would know about what had happened in the Upper Worlds. And now that Saint Xihua was dead, once he had destroyed the Hall of Holy Light, he would no longer need to be in charge of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    After all, he seldom came back to the Lower Worlds. The reason he had not abdicated his position was that the palace still needed him. He was a symbol; the symbol of the palace.


    Ye Futian looked at Douzhan beside him. Other than here, five other palaces had been established by the Holy Zhi Palace. Master Douzhan commanded the central palace, and he had once been the master of Battle Sage Palace, which was second only to Holy Sage Pavilion.


    If he were to step down, his Master would be the most natural choice to succeed him. He had always believed in the Holy Zhi Palace.


    As for what went on in the Upper Worlds, although Saint Xihua had come clean, he was farther from the end of this matter than he had thought.


    Saint Xihua had known too little. He only knew that a mysterious person had sought him out and made him get involved.


    But he did not know who this person was. Moreover, they were good at hiding and being unpredictable. They had arranged everything seamlessly. All that they were sure about now was that someone was pulling strings behind the scenes. They had already known this, so it was not too important.


    They still had not found any key evidence. It could be said that there were no flaws to be found in their opponent''s plan.


    "When Saint Xihua was hiding in the Upper Worlds, I had people watching him, but he was in contact with too many people. After so long, it would be impossible to have all of them watched. Our opponent is skilled at hiding his identity, and can even conceal his Saint-level aura. It may be impossible to find him now," said Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. "Now, we can only rely on conjecture and the process of elimination. Think, Princess, how many people in the Upper Worlds of Emperor Xia''s Realm could play this sort of game?"


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian. She naturally knew what he meant. Who could arrange everything so secretly, not leaving any holes, and make an alliance with Xiao Sheng that he did not dare to divulge?


    There were not many in Emperor Xia''s Realm who could do this.


    Only those at the very top could have such power and skill.


    "When we return, I will investigate this in detail," said Xia Qingyuan.


    "Thank you, Princess," said Ye Futian. These days, Xia Qingyuan was indeed doing a lot for him.


    ...


    News of Saint Xihua''s death spread quickly throughout the Nine States. Everywhere, people experienced mixed emotions.


    Saint Xihua was a hegemon whose fame had once shaken the earth. He had called the Great Zhou Sacred King to attack the Holy Zhi Palace in a Sacred War. No one could have imagined that, in the end, he would be humiliated and killed like that.


    Nowadays, the Holy Zhi Palace made everyone respect it.


    It was said that Ye Futian had become a Saint.


    On that day, a powerful aura descended upon the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State. Many figures walked out of the Palace and heard voices.


    "The Ocean Palace in the Endless Ocean has come to greet Lord Ye."


    "The North Deep in the Endless Ocean has come to greet Lord Ye."


    "The Celestial Cliffs in the Endless Ocean has come to greet Lord Ye."


    The voices rang out, sounding very humble. Not only had three great holy lands come, but their Lords had come as well. Their attitude was very respectful, and they trembled with fear.


    They had finally caved in. They had heard the news that Saint Xihua had been found by Ye Futian on a small island in the Endless Ocean. The people of the island said that Ye Futian had killed a Saint with one finger.


    The Ye Futian of today was not like the Ye Futian of the past.


    They had once submitted to the Holy Zhi Palace, but they did this without any sincerity. After all, the enmity leftover from the Sacred War was still there. Now, when they saw how strong Ye Futian was, how could they not feel afraid? They feared that Ye Futian would come to them to settle old scores, and they would come to the same end as Saint Xihua!

 1159 The End of The Nine States

    At the Holy Zhi Palace, many cultivators looked up into the void.


    They knew that this was because the Lords of the three Holy Lands of the Endless Ocean got scared and came to visit preemptively.


    The deaths of the three great saints of Xihua Sacred Mountain, especially the death of Saint Xihua, seemed to have had a huge impact on the Nine States, and with great rippling effects.


    "Go to the Palace Cemetery and repent for three days," Ye Futian said.


    When the Lords of the three Holy Lands of the Endless Ocean heard this, they were stunned. There was no preaching, just the one sentence.


    Let them repent by themselves. This kind of directness was difficult for them to get used to.


    But soon, they took a deep breath of relief. Still, their hearts were conflicted.


    Ye Futian did not see them, and it seemed to be a gesture of slight disrespect, but they had vowed to submit to the Holy Zhi Palace and swore loyalty to Ye Futian.


    Moreover, it was unrealistic to say that Ye Futian did not hold any resentment against them.


    In doing so, Ye Futian probably wanted to put an end to the matter. Henceforth, the storm of the Sacred War was now ended with no further repercussions.


    If so, repenting for three days, though somewhat humiliating, was not a big deal.


    After all, given Ye Futian''s position today in the Nine States, traveling to the Lower Worlds with the Princess Xia Qingyuan personally accompanying him, this was not usual treatment for someone from the Nine States.


    Even the highly respected Saint Xia had to pay respect to the little princess when he saw her.


    In the land of the Nine States, who could walk shoulder to shoulder with the Little Princess?


    Only Ye Futian of the Barren State.


    What was the status of Ye Futian in the past, and what was the status of Ye Futian today, and what would be the status of Ye Futian in the future?


    Once the three thought about that, they looked at each other and replied, "Yes."


    After that, they stepped out and headed toward the cemetery, prepared to repent.


    At this time, from a palace, Ye Futian stepped out.


    Here, Douzhan, You Chi, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others were all here. Ye Futian walked to the front of the staircase and looked down at the vast land of the palace beneath.


    Lifting his head, Ye Futian looked up at the sky, where a battle of destruction took place once. Many cultivators of the Holy Zhi Palace had perished, which also ruined the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Now that Great Zhou Sacred King had died, and Saint Xihua, the culprit, had received his just punishment, should all this be over?


    After a long period of silence, Ye Futian said, "All these years, the Nine States was in chaos. I put an end to the three great Holy Lands. Although the Holy Zhi Palace has now risen, the land of Nine States has suffered a setback, especially the Eastern State."


    Douzhan and the others listened quietly without saying anything. Of all three Holy Lands of Eastern State, the Glass Saint was now with Ye Futian; Xihua Sacred Mountain and the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had both been destroyed; Sky Saint came and went as he pleased, without belonging to any place. It had indeed fared the worst.


    "The old palace lord hopes that the Holy Zhi Palace will be strong and become a Holy Land to pass on our crafts in the Barren State. Now that the first step has been completed, Master and all you elders will complete the rest," Ye Futian said.


    "Futian." Of course, Douzhan and the others understood the meaning behind Ye Futian''s words; it seemed that he had an intention to resign.


    "Futian, you have to know that whether you are at the Holy Zhi Palace or not, even if you are cultivating outside, you carry the belief of the Palace, as long as you keep the title of the Palace Lord," Douzhan said.


    "Douzhan is right, as for the day-to-day stuff, you can leave them to your Master," You Chi added.


    "In the past few years, although I bear the title of the Palace Lord, it was the Master and the elders who took care of the Palace. There would be no Holy Zhi Palace if it were not for all of you. Strictly speaking, it is not I who made the Holy Zhi Palace, but it was the Palace that achieved my reputation."


    Ye Futian shook his head. "Now, everything should return to their rightful place. I am an incompetent palace lord, but I will do the last bit of things I can for the Nine States, for the Palace."


    Douzhan and everyone looked at Ye Futian. It seemed that Ye Futian had already made up his mind.


    At this moment, Ye Futian looked into the distance and said softly, "Master, I''m troubling you to go to all the Holy Lands in the Nine States and invite them to come to the Holy Zhi Palace in Barren State. The Holy Zhi Palace will host a feast to discuss the planning of the grandest martial arts event in the land of Nine States that will surpass the Nine State Forum. This competition belongs to the cultivators of the Sage Plane. At that time, I will invite the Princess to participate in the discussion, and I hope that this competition will open up the communication between the Upper and the Lower Worlds."


    Douzhan and the others trembled inside, all of them were shocked. They vaguely understood what Ye Futian wanted to do.


    Today, perhaps in all of Nine States, only Ye Futian could have done it.


    Even Saint Xia couldn''t do it.


    In this land of Nine States, only he could really influence the Princess.


    "Very well." Douzhan took a deep breath and then nodded in earnest. If this could happen, it would indeed be a great contribution to the land of Nine States, and it would make the spirit of martial arts in the Nine States that much stronger.


    Others also nodded earnestly. If Ye Futian could have this ambition, they were naturally willing to work together for this.


    "This event must be widely spread and have participants from all over, and all of the Nine States will need to be informed." Ye Futian continued, "In addition, pass my order on to the Hall of Holy Light of Qi State and tell them I also invited the Hall of Holy Light to join us in this event. The Hall of Holy Light is also a part of the Nine States as long as those who participated in the war are willing to come to apologize and repent for their past wrongdoings, I, Ye Futian, will no longer look to the past, and the Hall of Holy Light is still one of the Holy Lands in the Nine States.


    "There is only one person I will not forgive��Saint Ji, Lord of the Hall of Holy Light."


    Saint Ji was one of the culprits of the Sacred War. All the others could be forgiven and their pasts forgotten, except for Saint Ji, who initiated the Sacred War. He would never be forgiven.


    Of course, the premise was that those who participated in the war must come to apologize and plead guilty and repent in the cemetery.


    Douzhan and the others, as they looked at Ye Futian, who stood there alone with his back facing them. After the initial shock, a smile appeared in their eyes.


    Ye Futian today, was a saint.


    "Yes, Palace Lord." Everyone took their orders then retreated. Soon, they all stepped into the void, heading out for all the places within the Nine States.


    Soon, the news spread throughout the Nine States.


    Ye Futian had summoned all the Holy Lands in the Nine States. The Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State would hold an unprecedented grand event.


    In a short time, the Nine States responded, and all the major Holy Lands had responded, saying that they would go to the Barren State to participate in this grand event.


    The Barren State, once again, attracted worldwide attention and became the focal point of Nine States.


    Within the Nine States, countless people set off to the Barren State, wanting to witness this great spectacle.


    Many people had said that this event would be the most spectacular event of the Nine States in decades.


    As the appointed day approached, in the land of the Summer State, Saint Xia had set off, and Saint Li of the Nine State College had also departed. Of course, there was also Moon Saint.


    Holy Lands, such as War State, Vajra Region, Holy Temple of Ten Corners, began to set off one after another.


    In Qi State, the Lord of the Qi Clan personally led his group there, and the same with Jixia Holy Palace and Yue House.


    Only the atmosphere of the Hall of Holy Light seemed a little peculiar.


    In the past few years, the development of the Hall of Holy Light had been rather fast, and it had become one of the top five Holy Lands in the Nine States.


    Saint Ji, the Lord of the Hall of Holy Light, ranked fifth on the Saint Ranking. For a time, he was at the top of the world, dominant and sharp, his force about to surpass that of the Qi Clan, the longtime top Holy Land in Qi State and Jixia Holy Palace.


    However, after the Sacred War, Saint Ji was put under house arrest, and the Hall of Holy Light was continuously guarded by the Holy Light. He dared not relax for one moment.


    The Grand Matrix of Holy Light Protection of the Hall of Holy Light was finally opened.


    The cultivators of the Hall of Holy Light successively walked down and left, actually going toward the direction of the Holy Zhi Palace in Barren State. This was a situation that no one could have foreseen.


    In the Hall of Holy Light, there was a main hall, high above the sky. Standing at its edge, one could overlook the entire vastness of the Hall of Holy Light.


    At this moment, Saint Ji stood there, watching the flow of the crowd below, that cultivators of the hall, stepped out and left, one after the other.


    There were fewer and fewer people, and he stood there, watching.


    As the people at the Hall of Holy Light decreased day by day, watching many bowed to him and paid their respect before leaving.


    Until there was no one else left, the once glorious Hall of Holy Light now seemed extremely quiet. At a glance, there was hardly anyone in sight. The main hall that disappeared into the clouds seemed particularly lonesome, and his figure seemed even more desolate.


    "Today must be the day that Ye Futian is holding the feast?" Saint Ji looked into the distance and murmured.


    "Yes, Lord." Behind Saint Ji, an old manservant stood there quietly. It was an old man who had watched Saint Ji grew up many years ago. His hair was completely white.


    "Uncle Han, was I wrong?" Saint Ji asked.


    "My Lord, in this world, there is no absolute right or wrong," the old man whispered softly.


    "Why did the people of the Hall of Holy Light all choose to leave?" Saint Ji asked again.


    "This is human nature. Not to mention, the Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, Ye Futian, was able to let go of the grievances of the Sacred War. He is a man of stature. It is not surprising that the people of the Hall would go down to join him. My Lord should not blame them," said the old man.


    "Yes," Saint Ji nodded, "I thought I would wait for his revenge, but I didn''t expect him to let it all go instead. And now that he is holding the event of a lifetime in the Nine States, not only trying to promote the Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State but also to promote the Nine States, I am a far lesser man than him in terms of spirit and aspiration."


    The old man stood quietly and said nothing.


    Saint Ji smiled and said, "It''s been quite a few years, and it''s time for me to get out and take a walk."


    "Lord." The old man looked up at Saint Ji. Emperor Xia was the one who personally issued the house arrest on Saint Ji. Whoever dared to disobey the order of Emperor Xia was unlikely to live.


    "Since he could have such generosity in his heart, I hope not to hinder the Hall of Holy Light from now on." As Saint Ji''s words fell, a boundless radiance darted into the sky from his body, and then his body turned into light and rushed into the sky above.


    "An era has ended." Saint Ji''s voice spread through the Hall of Holy Light. He disappeared after he rushed out of the Hall.


    Since then, no one in the Nine States had seen Saint Ji. Some people claimed that he had died, executed by Emperor Xia. Some claimed that he was taken by the people of Emperor Xia.


    This became a mystery in the Nine States.


    Contrary to the bleakness of the Hall of Holy Light, this day at the Holy Zhi Palace of Barren State, there was an unparalleled feast that would affect the future of the Nine States.


    At this feast, Ye Futian announced that in the future land of the Nine States, the Nine State Forum, that was to be held once every three years, would not only be open to those below the sage plane but that sages could also participate.


    Moreover, the principalities of the Upper World would come down to the Lower World and chose the best of them to be brought to the Upper World to cultivate. Princess Xia Qingyuan had promised.


    All of the Nine States were shocked.


    Of course, there was something else that was even more shocking.


    Ye Futian announced that he would step down as the Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace of the Barren State and that the new Palace Lord was to be Saint Douzhan.


    This turbulent era had finally come to an end!

 1160 She-Devil?

    Cottage Villa, in the Upper World of Emperor Xia''s Realm, had made many new acquisitions.


    Ye Futian had already become a saint and gained a firm foothold in Emperor Xia''s Realm. He''d deduced that the last assassination attempt had been meant to get rid of him in the name of Emperor Li''s Realm, but now that he had returned, the others would not be bold enough to try it again. Without Xiao Sheng as a sacrificial lamb, it would be easier for their scheme to be exposed.


    Therefore, they had brought some more people from the Lower World to the Palace.


    They''d brought with them the four senior brothers, Xue Ye, the entire family of You Xi, Qingxuan, Liu Chenyu, and Goddess Wangyue. Now that the big senior brother was a saint, Goddess Wangyue would naturally follow him and they would cultivate together.


    The Cottage Villa was quite lively.


    On a green pasture, Ye Futian sat quietly. In the distance, an elf-like girl ran through the pasture toward him, shouting, "Uncle Ye!"


    Ye Futian opened his arms, and the girl rushed into them. Ye Futian said with a smile, "Little Grass, what are you doing here?"


    "My dad is forcing me to read again, but I have read a lot already, so I need to take a breather," the little girl said seriously and quite precociously.


    Ye Futian squeezed her cheeks and said, "It''s for your own good that your dad asked you to read. It will make it easier for you to cultivate in the future."


    "What do I need to have such great cultivation for?" Little Grass asked.


    "To protect yourself," Ye Futian replied.


    "Aren''t you here to protect me?" Little Grassed looked at Ye Futian with her big eyes.


    Ye Futian looked at the girl''s innocent eyes, smiled, and nodded. "You''re right."


    "So I don''t need to cultivate so hard in the future, right?" Little Grass continued with her line of reasoning.


    Ye Futian had no words to refute her.


    Children nowadays were a lot sharper than he had been at that age.


    "Uncle Ye, when will Auntie Jieyu come back?" Little Grass asked.


    Ye Futian was stunned for a moment, speechless and without a response.


    Then he squeezed out a smile and said, "Soon."


    "But my mom said that Auntie Jieyu is now an angel and that she has gone back to heaven." Little Grass asked with some bewilderment, "But isn''t this heaven?"


    Ye Futian looked at Little Grass and was speechless again for a moment.


    "Uncle Ye, I kinda miss Auntie Jieyu." Little Grass''s eyes were slightly reddened. When she was little, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu had been extremely good to her. Now she was almost grown, but she had never seen Auntie Jieyu again. Was heaven a destination that she would never return from?


    "Little Grass," a voice called out. You Xi was coming toward them. He looked at Little Grass and said, "You are bothering your Uncle Ye again."


    "It''s okay, I was a little bored anyway." Ye Futian smiled and hugged the little girl who was leaning on him and said softly, "Me too, I miss Auntie Jieyu too. One day we will go and find her together."


    "Really?" Little Grass looked up at Ye Futian.


    "Sure, when have I ever lied to you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Okay then." Little Grass nodded seriously.


    You Xi watched Ye Futian and felt some sadness. It had been some years now, but Hua Jieyu was still a source of pain in their hearts. For Ye Futian, it must be even worse.


    Even though he was smiling at the moment, there was no mistaking the faint sadness on his face.


    Even though he was now a saint, there were still some things and some people that could not be let go of easily.


    You Xi looked at Little Grass again. The girl was a teenager now, but her mind was extraordinarily innocent. She understood that this was because of the environment where she had grown up. Although Little Grass had experienced a period of turmoil at the Palace, because of her age, she had always been protected. Coupled with the fact that she had never gone outside by herself, she lacked practical worldly experience. She had rarely even gone outside of Alchemy City or the Holy Zhi Palace.


    Ye Futian and the other disciples of the Cottage were extremely indulgent and fond of her, so it was difficult for her to "grow up."


    "Is there still no news?" You Xi asked softly.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. Saint Xihua had not provided much valuable information at all. The only person who might have known the truth, Xiao Sheng, was now dead. Along with him, all the clues regarding the matter had been lost. Not even Xia Qingyuan could obtain too many valuable leads in her investigation.


    These days, Ye Futian had a better understanding of the many top principalities in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Although he did not know the truth, he had some hypotheses of his own.


    However, these hypotheses were unlikely to be confirmed soon.


    In the past, he''d dared to go to the Xiao Clan to confront Xiao Sheng because he was convinced that Xiao Sheng had participated. Although there was no hard evidence, he was still determined to interrogate him. However, this would be more difficult than it had been before.


    It would probably be impossible to act like that again.


    Of course, he would not stop forever. but even if he was unwilling, he would probably need to let it go for the time being.


    Now, many people at the Villa had reached the bottleneck of cultivation just below the Saint Plane, especially the third senior brother, Yu Sheng, and Wuchen. They were already at the peak of the Sages, within reach of the Saint Plane.


    The most important thing right now was his hope that everyone would successively enter the Saint Plane.


    However, sanctification required the right state of mind and opportunity.


    There was a figure coming out from the sky with a sword. Ye Futian turned his head and saw Qin Zhuang, clad in black, standing in front of him. He said, "Yaotai Divine Palace has prepared the Yaotai Divine Feast and sends their invitation."


    "Yaotai Divine Feast," Ye Futian murmured to himself. The Yaotai Divine Feast was the grandest banquet held in the Yaotai Divine Palace. The banquet was always held with great fanfare, as everyone who was anyone in Emperor Xia''s Realm was invited.


    However, Ye Futian was not very interested in this, so he said, "Decline on my behalf. Just say that I am busy with cultivation and have no time to attend."


    "People at Yaotai Divine Palace mentioned that Goddess Yao Xi told them specifically that Master Ye should attend," Qin Zhuang insisted.


    When Ye Futian heard what Qin Zhuang said. He remembered that the woman with stunning beauty, and hesitated for a second. He gave it some thought and nodded, saying, "Very well."


    Strictly speaking, Yao Xi was a friend. Since she had already told him to attend, he would oblige. He would think of it as taking a short break for some relaxation.


    Qin Zhuang said nothing more and turned to leave.


    In Emperor Xia''s Realm, the news of the Yaotai Divine Feast had caused quite a stir.


    Yaotai Divine Palace was the highest power in Emperor Xia''s Realm. The Enchanted Island of the West in Emperor Xia''s Realm was known for its beautiful women and dozens of goddesses. It also gave rise to the top force composed entirely of women.


    The lord of Yaotai Divine Palace was known as the Holy Mother of the West and was also the head of all the saints of the Enchanted Island of the West in Emperor Xia''s Realm. She was the most distinguished character in the entire realm. The reputation of her beauty had spread throughout the world when she was young. She was an unusual woman who was able to compete with Queen Xiao for the title of the first beauty in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The Yaotai Divine Feast was not held every year, only once in a blue moon.


    However, every time the Yaotai Divine Feast was held, it signified a major event happening at Yaotai Divine Palace.


    Many in Emperor Xia''s Realm speculated that this year''s Yaotai Divine Feast was being held by Yaotai Divine Palace as an occasion to select a Path Companion for the current Virgin of Yaotai, Yao Xi. Although Yaotai Divine Palace was a principality of female cultivation, it did not reject the idea of Path Companions. On the contrary, many of the Goddesses in Yaotai Divine Palace had Path Companions and cultivated outside. Even more so, their standard was extremely harsh, and their selected companions were only people of renown.


    It was said that at Yaotai Divine Palace, there were methods that were suitable for couples to cultivate together.


    For those who cultivated in Emperor Xia''s Realm, many had fantasies about the Goddesses of Yaotai Divine Palace. Therefore, those who could succeed were rarer still.


    This time around, people in Emperor Xia''s Realm speculated that it was Yao Xi who wanted to choose a significant other. As the reigning Virgin, Yao Xi''s beauty was peerless, and many even claimed that she was qualified to compete for the title of the first beauty in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Some had even compared her with Princess Xia Qingyuan, so one could only imagine the outstanding beauty she possessed.


    For this reason, how could the announcement of Yaotai Divine Feast not create a sensation all on its own?


    Those who received the invitations were the most powerful figures in Emperor Xia''s Realm; ordinary people did not qualify.


    People from all corners of Emperor Xia''s Realm set off for the Enchanted Island of the West to the Yaotai Divine Palace.


    Ye Futian was prepared to depart and see for himself.


    However, before Ye Futian was able to leave, someone came to the Cottage Villa and appeared in front of him.


    The man who appeared was the guard of Emperor Xia''s Palace. He''d come carrying orders.


    "Saint Ye." the guard greeted Ye Futian with a bow. Now that Ye Futian was sanctified, Ye being his surname, he could be called "Saint Ye," if there was no other specific title.


    Ye Futian nodded and asked, "What message do you bring?"


    "The princess would like to remind Saint Ye that although Saint Ye has already entered the Divine Path, the road of cultivation will only be more difficult in the future, and cautioned against complacency. There are many methods for cultivation in the Golden Hall of the Lotus that could aid in comprehension and further cultivation, and there are now divine methods of cultivation that Saint Ye might want to visit for further enlightenment. Do not forget and neglect your cultivation," said the messenger.


    Ye Futian nodded and replied, "Many thanks to the princess."


    The messenger nodded but made no motion to leave. Ye Futian looked at him; the messenger looked back at Ye Futian. The atmosphere was slightly ominous.


    "Is there anything else?" Ye Futian couldn''t help but ask when he saw the messenger making no move to leave.


    "No." The messenger shook his head.


    "Then..." Ye Futian saw that the guard looked strange.


    The guard asked, "So, Saint Ye is not going to the Golden Hall of the Lotus to cultivate?"


    "Ye Futian understands the message of the Princess and will go to visit and cultivate at another time," Ye Futian replied.


    "Oh." The guard nodded, still showing no intention of leaving.


    "Then, you may return with my reply," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes." The messenger nodded, looked deeply at Ye Futian. He finally turned to leave.


    Ye Futian saw the messenger departing and said to those around him, "We should go now."


    "Let''s go," the Black Wind Condor muttered excitedly. The master was always so authoritative.


    Better yet, this time, they would go and collect the Virgin of Yaotai. This thought made the Black Wind Condor even more excited.


    The experience of the past was memorable and, to the Black Wind Condor, downright unforgettable.


    He had also seen Yao Xi before. Compared to that She-Devil in Emperor Xia''s Palace, Yao Xi was much gentler.


    If only Xia Qingyuan knew what the Black Wind Condor secretly thought of her, what would she do with him?


    She-Devil?

 1161 The Arrival of the Prince

    The territory of the Western Region of Emperor Xia''s Realm was vast, populated with many enchanted islands and temples of cultivation for saints.


    The Holy Mother of the West, who was respectfully referred to as the Holy Mother, indicated the prowess of her cultivation. She ranked first among all the saints in the Western Region with no one close behind. Whether it was cultivation or appearance, she reigned over all of the outstanding figures in the Western Region.


    Yaotai Enchanted Island was the temple of cultivation for the Holy Mother of the West.


    This enchanted island was surrounded by numerous other enchanted islands. There were countless goddesses and beauties who all regarded Yaotai Enchanted Island as a holy land. Anyone who possessed outstanding talent would come to Yaotai Enchanted Island, hoping that they would one day become a member of Yaotai Enchanted Island.


    But the selection of disciples at Yaotai Enchanted Island was extremely stringent. Most people were destined to hope in vain.


    Naturally, the Yaotai Divine Palace was not the only principality of Yaotai Enchanted Island. There were countless cultivators on the island. It was one of the most prosperous areas in the Western Region.


    On Yaotai Enchanted Island, countless people were discussing the same thing, the Yaotai Divine Feast.


    The last time the Yaotai Divine Feast had been held by Yaotai Divine Palace, it was when the Holy Mother of the West had formally taken over the position of Palace Lord of Yaotai Divine Palace, and it had been decades since then. From this, one could assume that the Yaotai Divine Feast always coincided with the occurrence of major events.


    But this time, people on Yaotai Enchanted Island thought that the most likely reason for the feast was that Yao Xi wanted to choose a Path Companion.


    Therefore, all the renowned figures from all walks of life had arrived, even those who did not receive an invitation were in attendance at Yaotai Enchanted Island.


    "If Goddess Yao Xi wants to choose a companion, who is the most likely candidate?" People were talking about it all over the island.


    "Who knows? There are so many impressive figures in Emperor Xia''s Realm, but Yaotai Enchanted Island is located in the Western Region. It is some distance away from the center of Emperor Xia''s Realm. It is said that those who are the closest have the best chance. The young master of Shura Palace seemed to have been pursuing Goddess Yao Xi, whether it was talent or family name. He is outstanding, so his odds are good."


    Many people nodded in agreement. Shura Palace was a powerful Demonic Clan of the Western Region, and its strength was truly impressive. Furthermore, Shura Palace also had people at Emperor Xia''s.


    Among the Eight Sacred Generals, Sacred General Shura, who was the most skilled at offense, was from Shura Palace and enjoyed a great reputation. The reigning Palace Lord of Shura Palace and Sacred General Shura were brothers, he the elder brother. However, it was believed that it was Sacred General Shura whose cultivation was a level higher.


    The young master of Shura Palace was the son of the Palace Lord of Shura Palace, and he had a close relationship with Sacred General Shura, so his status was considered very prominent.


    "Although the young master of Shura Palace has excellent talents and comes from an impressive family, ultimately, he cultivates in the Way of Demonic Method, and his temperament is cold and cruel. Goddess Yao Xi is as gentle as the water, so she does not necessarily like that kind of man." Someone else added, "I am in favor of the romantic man from Hundred Flowers Valley. He is considered to be the most legendary person in the Western Region in recent years."


    Many people remembered this person when they heard this. Hundred Flowers Valley was a force composed of Goddesses, but a few decades ago, the Palace Lord of Hundred Flowers Valley had found an orphan and raised him in Hundred Flowers Valley. As a result, he became the only man among the many hundreds of female cultivators there. He was handsome beyond words, his looks even hinting of feminine beauty. His talents were excellent and he was said to have the most perfect character.


    It was said that he had already arrived at Yaotai Enchanted Island, and would be attending the Yaotai Divine Feast.


    "Don''t just focus on the cultivators from the Western Region Temple. In the central area of Emperor Xia''s Realm, there are many noteworthy characters. In the Jiutian Temple alone, there are countless proud talents, not to mention the many descendants of Master of Jiutian Temple. Anyone of them would be extraordinary. There is also the Xuanyuan Clan, the descendants of Renhuang, and the swordsmen of Lihen Heaven, and Wang Chuan, whose presence is yet to be determined."


    "What''s more, don''t forget about the most prestigious person in this generation, a cultivator who could slay the saints as a sage. It was rumored that Goddess Yao Xi knew him and that their relationship was not insubstantial. He was also invited this time. If he comes, I am afraid that those many excellent figures in the Western Region will be overshadowed."


    "Don''t just build up other people! Is this Ye Futian really that powerful?" someone asked curiously. After all, they had only heard of him and not seen him with their own eyes.


    This new rising star, since the battle with the Xiao Clan, was well-known in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Many others had learned of his name.


    "He was able to defeat Xiao Sheng while in Sage Plane and force his death. How can that be false?" someone asked. "You know, Xiao Sheng was not a frivolous character either. Before he became a saint, he was one of the few people in Emperor Xia''s Realm below the Saint Plane who enjoyed great reputation and recognition as Queen Xiao''s nephew. Even so, he was crushed by Ye Futian and was forced to die by his hand. You can imagine what kind of person Ye Futian is."


    "However, many people thought that Ye Futian''s endgame would be the Little Princess."


    The Upper World was vast and endless, but as long as Emperor Xia''s Palace was involved, it would be a major event.


    The Little Princess Xia Qingyuan was an unusual character. Unless they were truly peerless, people rarely struck her fancy. But as her relationship with Ye Futian was a close one, and because Ye Futian had been the only person who could walk shoulder to shoulder with the Little Princess in all these years, it had caused many to speculate.


    "His Royal Highness, the Fifth Prince, has arrived."


    At that moment, a voice was heard in the distance. Many people were stunned. Someone asked, "What was that you said?"


    "From the imperial palace, the Fifth Prince has come down to Yaotai Enchanted Island," the man said, looking at the space below. Many people trembled in their hearts.


    Within moments, the news caused great waves of excitement.


    Had the prince come in person from Emperor Xia''s Palace?


    Emperor Xia had six children, and the Little Princess was his youngest child and only daughter. The other five were all a lot older than the Little Princess. The five princes were all in the Saint Plane.


    Now the prince had arrived in person to attend the Yaotai Divine Feast.


    What would happen?


    If His Royal Highness the Fifth Prince had an idea, and if Yaotai Divine Palace wanted to choose a Path Companion for Yao Xi, then the Prince would undoubtedly be the most promising choice. If she married a prince, she could enter the Palace and get to the heart of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    However, some others also thought that Yao Xi, as the reigning virgin, would be the future heiress of Yaotai Divine Palace. If she married a prince, she would have to enter the palace and Yaotai Divine Palace would lose Yao Xi.


    The Yaotai Divine Feast seemed to be getting more interesting by the second.


    ...


    Every prominent figure from all corners of Emperor Xia''s Realm arrived at Yaotai Divine Palace.


    The Divine Palace was divided into enchanted islands which were interconnected into a whole. Looking down from the void, they were extremely beautiful.


    Visitors from many places were put on different enchanted islands.


    A mighty procession descended. The head of the group was extremely distinguished, clad in a brilliant robe. From Yaotai Enchanted Island, figures flashed and many goddesses personally came to greet the newcomers. All bowed and said, "Greetings to Your Royal Highness."


    "No need for formalities, goddesses. I came at my father, the Emperor''s, behest to attend the Yaotai Divine Feast, and am just one of many guests. There is no need for the goddesses to pay so much attention." The Fifth Prince possessed an extraordinary temper, but his voice sounded gentle and polite like a spring breeze.


    "Your Royal Highness, please go to the Divine Palace to rest," said the goddess in the lead. The Fifth Prince nodded slightly, and then followed the goddess to the Divine Palace on the enchanted island.


    He looked around at his surroundings. This place was indeed a spiritual treasure for cultivation.


    Shortly after the Fifth Prince entered Yaotai Divine Palace, it caused quite a wave of excitement on the islands.


    Those who had already arrived from principalities such as Jiutian Temple, Xuanyuan Palace, Qin Palace, Tianji Pavilion, and Lihen Heaven had all heard the news. Many people tried to figure out where the Fifth Prince had settled so that they could visit him later. After all, he was the descendant of Emperor Xia. Respect must be paid.


    There was an enchanted island nestled near the Divine Palace where there were many beautiful pavilions and lofty structures. Between the pavilions, there were many lush and ancient trees. The scenery was incredibly ethereal.


    A group of people sat in a pavilion under a century-old tree, chatting casually.


    One of them had a head of white hair and a handsome visage. It was Ye Futian. He had been there for a while and had been welcomed to rest on this enchanted island. The Yaotai Divine Feast would be held the next day.


    On the way over, Ye Futian had heard many people mention that the reason for the Yaotai Divine Feast was to select a Path Companion for Yao Xi, which made Ye Futian speechless. Although Yao Xi was a perfect woman, he had no fantasies about her and was unclear as to the reason why Yao Xi had deliberately invited him to come.


    The two hadn''t had much contact at all. He could not believe that Yao Xi might have feelings for him.


    When one reached their age and spiritual state, it was not easy to foster romantic feelings like it was for young adolescents. As mentally stable as they were, it was not very easy for them to move their true emotions.


    Unless it was to choose the right person, rather than on emotional preferences. Then it was more likely.


    Qin Zhuang came over and said to Ye Futian, "The Fifth Prince of Emperor Xia''s Palace has arrived at the Yaotai Divine Palace."


    Ye Futian heard Qin Zhuang''s words with a touch of surprise. Although he knew that Emperor Xia had five sons besides Xia Qingyuan, he had never been in contact with them. After all, Emperor Xia''s Palace was immense and there had been no opportunity for their paths to cross.


    What puzzled him was, why had His Royal Highness come?


    Did he prefer Yao Xi''s beauty?


    If it was simply a matter of appearances, Yao Xi was indeed one of the most beautiful women in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    In the Upper World, of all the women he had seen, only Queen Xiao could surpass Yao Xi. As for Xia Qingyuan, who he had never seen dressed as a woman, it was difficult for him to judge.


    "Let''s go and pay him a visit," Ye Futian said as he stood up. Even though they''d had no interactions before, when they ended up in the same place, a visit was still expected.


    Qin Zhuang nodded. As the group got up and prepared to leave, a voice was heard, saying, "Master Ye."


    The speaker was a peerless beauty.


    Yao Xi was wearing a long dress today that enhanced her sexy figure to its fullest. Her face revealed a gentle yet charming smile.


    "Master Ye''s temperament seemed to have become even more delightful. Since you entered the Saint Plane, you have become even more handsome and extraordinary." Yao Xi''s voice was as gentle as the water, and he was moved by her every smile and sound. This was a woman who could satisfy anyone''s fantasies without any faults.


    "The Goddess flatters me," Ye Futian said. He saw that Yao Xi''s temperament had also changed slightly. The feeling of being nearly immortal was even stronger, just like a figure in a painting. It made Ye Futian faintly feel that Yao Xi might be just inches away from the Divine Path.


    Was the Yaotai Divine Feast being held because Yao Xi was about to enter the Saint Plane?


    "We haven''t seen each other for some time. Master Ye seems to be estranged again." Yao Xi swept a playful side glance at Ye Futian, so charming in her every movement that it could make a man drunk with feelings.


    Futian smiled and shook his head. "Yao Xi, I heard that His Royal Highness is here, and we were just about to go and visit. Why don''t we go together?"


    "His Royal Highness has other people to receive him. How come I have just arrived and Master Ye already can''t wait to chase me away?" Yao Xi said, joking. Ye Futian still didn''t know how to respond.


    "This is Yaotai Divine Palace, how could I drive you away?" Ye Futian laughed and said, "I am afraid that I would be blown out of the Enchanted Islands."


    "Who would dare to blast Master Ye out of the island? I would certainly not let them get away easily." Yao Xi smiled softly. "I heard Master Ye had not planned on coming, and that you finally acquiesced only after being informed that Yao Xi had insisted on your presence."


    "I have just entered the realm of the Divine Path, and my realm is still unstable. Naturally, I needed to cultivate more. I beg your pardon," Ye Futian responded.


    "The instability of the realm refers to the destruction of the saint?" Yao Xi went directly to the heart of the matter. "It was in the realm of the sage that you defeated Xiao Sheng of the Saint Plane, and Master Ye''s cultivation was quite stable then. It is clear that you did not want to come. Pity, I had always hoped to see Master Ye again. "


    Ye Futian smiled helplessly. "Yao Xi, you are going to make me run away with the way you talk."


    Casual chatting was impossible


    Yao Xi laughed softly. She brushed the hair away from her forehead, appearing even more charming and enticing. She looked at Ye Futian and said, "Then I won''t tease Master Ye. I''ll just sit here and we can talk."


    "Of course." Ye Futian nodded.


    The Black Wind Condor sat watching next to them, his eyes wide. He looked at Ye Futian, then looked at Yao Xi. It was as if no one else was around!

 1162 The Message

    Ye Futian and Yao Xi were chatting on their enchanted island. Meanwhile, another island was also quite lively.


    Naturally, it was the enchanted island where the Fifth Prince, Xia Lun, was located. By this time, a banquet was already set up for everyone to sit and chat to their heart''s content.


    Well-known characters from all walks of life had come. Folks from Xuanyuan Palace, Jiutian Temple, Tianji Pavilion, Qin Palace, Shura Palace, and many other geniuses and disciples from other places had all come to visit.


    No matter how outstanding one was, Emperor Xia''s Realm was ultimately ruled by Emperor Xia. All the top forces were under the jurisdiction of the Emperor, so when the Prince arrived, etiquette dictated that visits must be paid to show respect.


    In addition, as the host, Yaotai Divine Palace had also sent their person as a representative, a goddess known as Yun Shang whose cultivation was of the Saint Plane. She was highly recognized in Yaotai Divine Palace. Although her beauty was no comparison to Yao Xi, she was quite stunning.


    However, the person that everyone wanted to see was Yao Xi. After all, all the rumors that came from Yaotai Divine Palace were about Yao Xi.


    "I haven''t come out for quite some time. Today, I got to meet a lot of influential characters from Emperor Xia''s Realm, which is a great blessing. Bottoms up!" The Fifth Prince, Xia Lun, raised his glass with a smile. His gentle manner was greatly magnetic.


    Everyone raised a glass and drank up together. After putting down the glasses, someone laughed and said, "Most of the known characters in Emperor Xia''s Realm only have titles bestowed by others. It''s just that Your Royal Highness and the Princess never come out to visit. Otherwise, there would be no place for the likes of us."


    This statement was rather self-deprecating, but no one really felt that it was inappropriate. After all, the status of the other was clear. This kind of humility could be regarded as acting out of politeness, not something to be taken too seriously.


    "Not so." Xia Lun smiled and shook his head. "Being the characters of renown in Emperor Xia''s Realm, you have reasons to be proud. Take the disciple of the Swordmaster of Lihen, Wang Chuan, whose defeat led to his sainthood. How legendary! Or take Ye Futian for example, who defeated a saint as a sage. That was something I could never have done. Many of you have already stepped into the Saint Plane and have caused some sensations in our world. All your fame came from your talents and strength. It cannot be considered vanity."


    "Wang Chuan didn''t come this time, but I heard that Ye Futian has already arrived. I very much want to see this unparalleled figure. When is he coming over?" a young man who exuded a coolness asked. This person sat not far from Xia Lun, his eyes narrow and long, giving him a feminine look. His body exuded a faint sharpness.


    This young man was the young master of Shura Palace, Chu Xi.


    Having said that, his attention turned toward Goddess Yun Shang and he asked, "Goddess, why haven''t we seen Yao Xi?"


    Goddess Yun Shang smiled gently and responded calmly, "Sister Yao Xi had gone to visit Master Ye. They were previously acquainted, so when she heard that Master Ye had arrived, she went directly to visit. We beg the forgiveness of Your Royal Highness."


    Upon hearing Goddess Yun Shang''s reply, everyone revealed a strange look.


    Yao Xi had gone to visit Ye Futian?


    Rumors from the outside said that Yaotai Divine Feast was being held for matters related to a Path Companion for Yao Xi. What was the meaning of her visiting Ye Futian?


    Did it mean that Yao Xi''s heart had already found the where place it belonged?


    Moreover, all the influential characters of Emperor Xia''s Realm had gathered here. As the reigning virgin of Yaotai Divine Palace, Yao Xi had gone to visit Ye Futian alone; didn''t this mean that she regarded Ye Futian above everyone else?


    What''s more, today, in addition to those from Emperor Xia''s Realm, His Royal Highness was also present.


    Even if Ye Futian''s talents were peerless, he was still a subject of the realm, after all.


    No matter how one looked at this, both Yao Xi or Ye Futian should be there right now.


    "No matter." Xia Lun did not show any expression and appeared very casual as if he didn''t care at all. He smiled and said, "Since Goddess Yao Xi and Ye Futian are old friends, it ought to be so. Yaotai Divine Palace is the host of Yaotai Divine Feast, I am but a guest. The goddess need not care so much about what I think."


    "Gratitude to Your Royal Highness for your understanding." Goddess Yun Shang nodded with a smile.


    The atmosphere at the banquet was joyful. Everyone was chatting casually, but they all had their own concerns inside their hearts.


    From time to time, Mo Wen of Tianji Pavilion looked at Xia Lun. His eyes betrayed nothing, but in his heart, he was trying to figure out Xia Lun''s reason for coming to Yaotai Divine Palace.


    He knew a lot more than ordinary people.


    Others only knew that there was a competition for the title of the first beauty of Emperor Xia''s Realm going on between the Holy Mother of the West and Queen Xiao, but they did not know that there was more to the story.


    It was about Emperor Xia, the Holy Mother of the West, and Queen Xiao.


    After spending some time at Xia Lun''s place, everyone slowly left, not waiting for Ye Futian and Yao Xi. However, since the Fifth Prince himself didn''t seem to care, the others had nothing else to say.


    However, when they left the enchanted island where Xia Lun was staying, they heard faint sounds of ethereal and peaceful strings coming from afar. Because the sound of the music itself contained spiritual power, its ability to penetrate was great and could carry the tune further, causing many to stop and listen.


    "This music is quiet and beautiful. It fits perfectly with the atmosphere of the Yaotai Divine Palace and leads people into its artistic conception. Who is playing it?" someone asked Goddess Yun Shang.


    "Yao Xi is the reigning Virgin of Yaotai Divine Palace. She is proficient in many abilities, an expert in musical instruments, as well as dance and singing," Goddess Yun Shang responded. "Judging from the sound of the music, it''s coming from the island where Master Ye is staying. Sister Xi Yao is probably discussing the art of music with Master Ye."


    Ye Futian''s talent for playing the guqing was well-known. When old Master Xiao was celebrating his birthday, Ye Futian had swept away the cultivators from Lihen Heaven with a single performance.


    So it was quite reasonable for the two to discuss music when Yao Xi went to visit.


    However, this situation was causing some discomfort for many people.


    They were all guests but were being treated differently.


    It should be obvious that many who''d arrived there today had certain thoughts about Yao Xi.


    Among the women of that generation in Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan was out of the question. Yao Xi was considered a very outstanding woman besides Xia Qingyuan, and it was rumored that Yaotai Divine Palace possessed a double cultivation method for couples and would not pose any limit on them. If this was really the case, then there were no other concerns. Perhaps it would even be a lovely story for posterity.


    But nothing had even begun, and yet it seemed that they were already behind.


    Chu Xi''s brow raised slightly. He had courted Yao Xi before, but Yao Xi had never really been close to him, let alone playing instruments with him. No matter how one looked at it, this behavior was slightly dubious.


    Chu Xi stepped forward and landed on a raft on the lake in front of the islands. Many enchanted islands in Yaotai Divine Palace were connected by the numerous lakes.


    The raft moved forward quickly and sped toward the direction of the music, as fast as an arrow shot off from a bow.


    When they saw this, many people expressed an intrigued look. Then many figures stepped forward, landed on rafts, and moved forward across the lake.


    The waves of the lake flowed in the direction of the music. Many small rafts were now moving in that direction as well.


    On one of the rafts, a handsome young man clad in white clothes sat cross-legged. A guqin had appeared in front of him. He played.


    The music of the guqin was ethereal and in harmony with the atmosphere. It actually echoed the music from another island. The musical achievements of these musicians were obvious.


    The two played across a great space, yet they seemed to play as an ensemble, creating a beautiful harmony.


    "Befitting of the name of Master of a Hundred Flowers," someone said, praising the man who played the guqin. He was the peerless man who had been raised by many goddesses in the Hundred Flowers Valley of the Western Region. He was called the Master of a Hundred Flowers. He was handsome and elegant, with great talents to boot. It was said that endless young women adored him in the Hundred Flowers Valley, but he had never touched any of them.


    It was said that among, many thousands of flowers, the leaves are never left behind.


    The lakes between the islands were clear and seemingly endless. Occasionally, flowers fell and floated upon the lake, adding to the landscape there. The leaf-shaped rafts were still floating, but Chu Xi''s raft had stopped outside an enchanted island. He stood quietly on the raft, looking at the island.


    The sound of the guqin was coming from there.


    On the enchanted Island, someone looked over there and saw Chu Xi''s stick-straight body. He was standing there quietly like a statue.


    His loitering here, was it to provoke the resident of this island?


    On the enchanted island, Ye Futian listened to the music quietly. There was a beautiful woman playing in front of him, and it was definitely a beautiful picture. He was a bit surprised that Yao Xi could have such accomplishments in music.


    In many ways, compared to that proud Little Princess, Yao Xi was even more full of womanly charm.


    At this time, Qin Zhuang walked over. Ye Futian waved his hand at him, sensing the situation outside. Chu Xi had released a faint breath which indicated provocation, ever so slightly. What was more, with the music coming from the Master of Hundred Flowers, it was impossible for him not to know.


    At the Yaotai Divine Feast at the Yaotai Divine Palace, there were some who wanted something, and there were some who wanted nothing.


    Those who wanted something would naturally hold a grudge, but he wanted nothing, so nothing really mattered.


    Yao Xi had attracted a lot of hostility.


    After a while, the music finally stopped. Yao Xi smiled softly and asked, "How about that, Master Ye?"


    "It was perfect," Ye Futian praised.


    Yao Xi smiled and said, "Yao Xi will be proud for a long time with such praise from Master Ye."


    "I think the goddess had other ulterior motives." Ye Futian smiled and shook his head.


    Yao Xi understood what Ye Futian was referring to and gave him a charming look. "Since this is the case, Yao Xi will not disturb Master any longer tonight."


    As she said this, she moved lightly in her steps. With a quick flicker, as if dancing, she quickly disappeared.


    After Yao Xi left, the music from outside stopped. Chu Xi''s lonely raft drifted past, moving along through the water, and soon disappeared.


    After they had left, someone else came to the island, asking to be seen. It was someone sent by the Fifth Prince, Xia Lun.


    "Greetings to Saint Ye," the messenger said as he bowed.


    "Does His Royal Highness have anything to command?" Ye Futian asked.


    "His Royal Highness had planned to come in person, but did not want to disturb Saint Ye''s musing, so he asked me to send a message instead."


    "His Royal Highness was too polite. I should be the one who visits him," Ye Futian said. "If His Royal Highness has any words for me, please let me know."


    "His Royal Highness wishes that Saint Ye would not touch Goddess Yao Xi!" said the messenger.

 1163 The Fifth Prince

    The day of Yaotai Divine Feast had finally arrived. Yaotai Enchanted Island was bustling with festivities.


    The top principalities had all arrived at the enchanted islands in advance. They were all traveling by boat to the largest enchanted island. Their destination was the king of all the islands, the home of Yaotai Divine Palace.


    On the immense lake, thousands of boats traveled together. The sunlight shone down and the waves sparkled, creating an extremely lovely landscape.


    On the boats, many of the well-known figures from Emperor Xia''s Realm observed the lone figure who was sailing ahead of them. Many discussions centered around this individual.


    "That''s His Royal Highness the Fifth Prince." Someone pointed to the figure in question. Xia Lun stood with his hands folded behind his back as the boat moved downstream.


    All around him, the passengers of the other small boats bowed and acknowledged him as they passed him, much like the stars surrounding the moon.


    Many people were wondering whether the Fifth Prince, Xia Lun, had come here for Goddess Yao Xi. If so, who could possibly compete with him for her hand?


    However, some news had come out of Yaotai Divine Palace yesterday. After many of the top figures in Emperor Xia''s Realm had arrived, Goddess Yao Xi had gone to visit Ye Futian alone. She had not paid a visit to the Fifth Prince.


    Many people couldn''t help but be impressed. Ye Futian, who had come from the Lower World in recent years, had truly captured the imagination of his generation. Before him, all the proud sons of Emperor Xia''s Realm battled to be at the top. All of them were brilliant in their own right and power.


    However, his appearance had overwhelmed all the others. With him around, no one else mattered very much.


    Now, was it possible that he could take away attention from the prince?


    Many people turned and looked for Ye Futian. Even those who had never met him were inquiring after him.


    After a while, the boat passengers'' eyes locked onto a figure in the distance. The man had just taken a boat from an enchanted island. He was clad in clothing white as snow and stood casually, looking extremely handsome and attractive. His visage was perfection in itself, one in a million.


    What was even rarer about him was the transcendent temperament of his person. It still made others notice him immediately.


    As the small boat moved forward, his entire person seemed to integrate into the scenery, as if he had always been part of it.


    "That''s Ye Futian," someone remarked.


    As other boats started to cross, one after another, the passerby looked in Ye Futian''s direction.


    Everyone was at least a little curious about this world-famous figure whose reputation resounded through Emperor Xia''s Realm. Even the cultivators in the Saint Plane were no exception in their curiosity.


    Although the cultivation between sages and saints was only one step away, the distance between them was as far as heaven from earth. The fact that Ye Futian had been able to defeat saints as a sage was lore for the ages.


    It was a pity that Xiao Sheng, the genius figure from Xiao Clan, had ended up as no more than a footnote in this legacy.


    Undoubtedly, Ye Futian sensed the attention of the people. The boat continued moving downstream. His eyes focused on the Yaotai Enchanted Island in front; it was indeed a fairyland, beautiful beyond description.


    Looking forward, one could see the stairs next to the lakeshore that lead up to the magnificent connected palaces. Further ahead lay the cultivation temple of Yaotai Divine Palace.


    Each island was occupied by a palace.


    A boat rushed past Ye Futian at an incredibly fast speed, causing ripples to spread across the calm lake. Ye Futian looked around and saw a lone boat overtaking his in an instant. Standing upon it was a figure clad in all black, showing a hint of coldness in his expression.


    Ye Futian had encountered this figure yesterday. It was the young master of Shura Palace, Chu Xi.


    Chu Xi continued forward as if he was not aware of Ye Futian''s presence. Once he had passed Ye Futian, he went straight toward Yaotai Enchanted Island.


    This scene had indeed attracted the attention of many.


    Yesterday, Chu Xi had hovered outside the enchanted island where Ye Futian stayed. Everyone knew it. There seemed to be some invisible contention between the two.


    After all, it was no secret that Chu Xi had once courted Yao Xi.


    Ye Futian did not look at Chu Xi either. Instead, he directed his attention at the boat passing him. The boat seemed to slow down intentionally as if to wait for him. When Ye Futian''s small boat caught up to it, the person on the other boat turned around to face him. He nodded with a smile, his appearance very diplomatic.


    Ye Futian brought his hands forward and bowed slightly in greeting. "Ye Futian greets His Royal Highness."


    The man he addressed was the Fifth Prince, Xia Lun.


    Yesterday, Xia Lun had sent a message to the island where Ye Futian stayed, the meaning of which still eluded Ye Futian. Given Xia Lun''s status, if he had thoughts about keeping Yao Xi for himself, he need not resort to such a method. Directly competing with Ye Futian would only make himself appear classless.


    So, what exactly was Xia Lun''s intention?


    For the time being, he was still puzzled.


    Although he knew that Emperor Xia had five sons, he did not understand the Fifth Prince.


    Xia Lun was the first prince he had met.


    Xia Lun smiled winsomely at Ye Futian and said, "Brother Ye, I''m afraid my sister won''t like this trip you are taking."


    Everyone around who heard Xia Lun''s words looked surprised.


    What did that even imply?


    Was the Little Princess truly interested in Ye Futian?


    If this was the case, Ye Futian already possessed an unparalleled talent. Coupled with this layer of relationship, it would be enough for him to summon all the forces within Emperor Xia''s Realm. No wonder he dared to challenge the Xiao Clan head-on!


    Perhaps Queen Xiao simply could not deny her baby girl.


    Even so, this guy had still come to attend the Yaotai Divine Feast, which was kind of a shameless act.


    Although Yao Xi was perfect, if a choice had to be made between her and Xia Qingyuan, most people would choose the crowning jewel of Emperor Xia''s possession. After all, she was widely known as the future Renhuang.


    Xia Qingyuan herself was truly beautiful, the daughter of the first beauty in Emperor Xia''s Realm. How could her beauty be questioned?


    Yao Xi had more womanly charm, but wouldn''t a proud and untouchable noblewoman like the Little Princess be a more fulfilling conquest?


    And even though such an expectation was a long shot, just imagine what would it be like if the Little Princess dressed in women''s clothing of her own volition one day.


    Moreover, the people also noticed that the Fifth Prince, Xia Lun, had addressed Ye Futian as "brother Ye," which paid Ye Futian more than enough respect.


    After all, Ye Futian''s title, for now, was nothing more than the princess''s bodyguard. Of course, no one was stupid enough to still consider Ye Futian only as that. Would a bodyguard be able to force Xiao Sheng to his death?


    When Ye Futian heard Xia Lun''s words, he also revealed a look of surprise. As a prince, Xia Lun''s words were a little too casual and carried a sense of ridicule. Still, it was surprisingly pleasing to the ears, as if the prince could get close to you in an instant.


    "Surely His Royal Highness is joking. How could my attendance of Yaotai Divine Feast be a source of unhappiness to the Princess? Isn''t Your Royal Highness here also?" Ye Futian responded. Xia Lun was the older brother of Xia Qingyuan, and he could joke with Ye Futian, but Ye Futian had to pay careful attention to the consequences.


    Xia Lun smiled at Ye Futian with a profound smile. He continued, "It seems that there is someone even Qingyuan can''t control."


    Ye Futian couldn''t figure out a way to respond. Xia Lun''s speech seemed to be a bit too casual.


    If only Xia Qingyuan knew, what would she think?


    The two men sailed side by side in their boats. Surprisingly, there was no sense of competition between them. Ye Futian would not take the initiative to compete with the prince. Xia Lun did not seem to want that either.


    It was the young master Chu Xi of Shura Palace who seemed to harbor that intention.


    However, in the eyes of everyone else, no matter how exceptionally talented the young master of Shura Palace was, if he faced such genius as Ye Futian, he would probably be crushed.


    If Ye Futian wanted to fight, except for His Royal Highness, no one would stand a chance against him.


    After all, everyone had witnessed Yao Xi''s behavior yesterday.


    The boats docked at the shore. The passengers alighted one after another and walked up the steps to the Yaotai Divine Palace.


    Both sides of steps leading to the Yaotai Divine Palace were lined with goddesses clad in pure white. They looked as if they had emerged out of the ether. The place appeared to be a true paradise.


    Ye Futian had also stepped onto the road. As he moved forward with everyone else, he sometimes felt a look or two being cast his way.


    On this trip so far, Xia Lun, the Fifth Prince, and Ye Futian had attracted the most attention.


    The mighty group continued moving forward. All those who had qualified to be here were extremely outstanding figures.


    The Yaotai Divine Palace had a platform set for a huge banquet. After the arrival of all the attendees, goddesses led everyone to their seats. Many found out that the seating arrangement had not been made at random, but had been done in a very deliberate manner.


    The most outstanding figures had been seated at the front.


    Ye Futian was naturally seated at the forefront of the Yaotai Divine Feast.


    There was no one on the platform yet. The top figures of the older generation had not come to the Yaotai Divine Feast this time. In fact, they hadn''t been invited, which sent a clear message that the feast had nothing to do with them.


    Fine wines and delicacies were being offered up. The attendees chatted easily amongst themselves. But the important figures like the Holy Mother of the West and Yao Xi were no-shows so far, so the rest waited quietly.


    "I had heard that Palace Lord Ye entered the Divine Path. Now that we met again, I salute Palace Lord Ye." Gu Mu of Jiutian Temple faced Ye Futian, toasting him. Beside him were several extraordinary persons who were all children of the master of Jiutian Temple. They, too, raised their glasses to Ye Futian to pay their respects.


    "Thank you very much." Ye Futian raised his glass in return. Once upon a time, Gu Mu had accompanied Pei Qianying to Jiutian Temple. However, that little grudge no longer mattered to Ye Futian, who was now a saint.


    "Unfortunately, there is no saint ranking in the Jiutian Temple. Otherwise, there would be a place for Palace Lord Ye." Mo Wen from Tianji Pavilion also laughed and raised a glass to Ye Futian. "I also salute Palace Lord Ye, who is now Saint Ye. "


    Ye Futian took another drink and asked, "I heard that there was nothing that Tianji Pavilion doesn''t know, so do you know who poisoned Xiao Sheng?"


    "Surely Saint Ye jokes. Omniscience is dependent on the who and the what, so only God could be truly omnipotent. If Tianji Pavilion knew something that even the Little Princess could not detect, we would report personally to Emperor Xia''s Palace," Mo Wen said with a smile.


    Indeed, Tianji Pavilion did not know, but through certain clues, some conclusions could be drawn. Even if they knew, they would dare not speak of it.


    The things that had already been entangled with that palace were not things they were able to participate in. No matter how well the Tianji Pavilion collected its information, it must respect the ultimate authority!

 1164 The Song

    All drank and chatted to their hearts'' content at the Yaotai Divine Feast.


    A group of goddesses appeared when the banquet was in full swing, dazzling everyone in attendance.


    Seven figures appeared at Yaotai at the forefront. Every one of them was unique and stunning.


    "The Seven Goddesses of Yaotai!" All who were present looked at the seven of them and mumbled excitedly.


    The Seven Goddesses of Yaotai were of extreme renown in Emperor Xia''s Realm. All previous Seven Goddesses of Yaotai had been candidates for the position of Virgin of Yaotai. As such, be it in talent or appearance, all of them were extremely exceptional.


    Five of these goddesses were saints. One of them had reached the stage of Saint of True Self.


    All seven of the goddesses sat on the ground in a line. Their dresses draped over the floor, making the scene looked like a painting.


    "What are they doing here?" Many looked puzzled. At that moment, several others emerged on the stage. The one in the middle was dressed in a phoenix-tail styled, floor-length dress. It looked as if fire danced on the ground around her.


    That figure wore a phoenix coronet and robes of ranks, looking elegant and stunning. The dazzling phoenix-tail styled dress was tailored to her shape, making her look perfect. She walked to the center of the stage and scanned the crowd. Her smile was enough to mesmerize all who gazed upon it.


    Everyone present was enamored by her beauty. Ye Futian stood and looked at the goddess as everyone else did. He was rather surprised to find Yao Xi capable of handling such elegant beauty.


    That figure was none other than Yao Xi, the Virgin of Yaotai. At that moment, she had lost all the charm and gentleness of a lady that she had shown him before. Regal elegance emanated from her like she was a queen looking down onto her subjects. She was someone that no one would dare to defile.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was unable to help but recall Queen Xiao and Xia Qingyuan. Such a bearing should have been something only they were capable of emanating.


    However, it was obvious that Yao Xi was capable of handling such looks all the same. The aura that emanated from her seemed to be natural as well.


    Ye Futian was not the only one who had never seen her like this, as not many had come to know Yao Xi of being capable of looking like this. Many were stunned by Yao Xi''s beauty, which was different from how she was usually seen, making the impact very powerful.


    Chu Xi, the young palace lord of the Asura Palace, looked forward with dazed eyes. As a saint, there was little doubt about how firm his state of mind was, yet he was nonetheless momentarily dazed.


    He had always known that there was another side to Yao Xi''s beauty, one that no one knew about. Her so-called gentleness was but a facade shown to the world. He had pursued Yao Xi many years ago, yet he had never been able to truly get close to her. He was able to feel an apparent distance from her, as well as the pride that belied those gentle, amicable looks of hers.


    Was this the real her?


    Chu Xi regained his composure and a bright smile was seen in his deep eyes, suggesting that he had become even more enamored by Yao Xi''s beauty. Only one such woman would have deserved his attention and his desire.


    He was capable of understanding her.


    Yao Xi''s dress sprawled on the ground as she sat at the stage. Two goddesses of saint level stood by her side.


    That scene enabled more to understand Yao Xi''s status in the Yaotai Divine Palace.


    Despite being the virgin of the Yaotai Divine Palace, her training was lacking and she was still one step away from achieving sainthood. Despite her status as the Virgin, she should not have been able to behave and be treated this way in front of her Saint Plane seniors.


    However, at that moment, everything looked so natural that it seemed that she had been deserving of such a position all along.


    That seemed to mean that Virgin Yao Xi had been designated as the successor to the position of palace lord of Yaotai Divine Palace, and that decision was not one that would be changed. In the absence of the Holy Mother of the West, she was the queen of the Yaotai Divine Palace.


    Ye Futian felt somewhat rattled inside. The scene had proved to be rather shocking to him as well.


    Yao Xi had only visited the island for the first time the day before. She had been a quiet and modest maiden, looking gentle and beautiful as she''d lovingly played the guqin.


    Yet, at this moment, she was extraordinarily stunning and looked like a queen.


    The greater the contrast, the great the impact.


    Furthermore, Yao Xi never showed such a side to him when she was around him. He never knew that her status was this high.


    That position on the stage should have belonged to the master of Yaotai Divine Palace��the seat of the Holy Mother of the West.


    On that day, it was Yao Xi who sat there, as the Holy Mother of the West was absent.


    That meant that Yao Xi was able to speak on behalf of the Holy Mother of the West right there and then, in Yaotai Divine Palace.


    "I, Yao Xi, was the one who invited all of you to the Yaotai Divine Feast. It is my honor to see you all here at Yaotai Divine Palace," Yao Xi said, smiling as she addressed her audience.


    It was only then that the crowd understood that the feast they were at had not been thrown by the Holy Mother of the West.


    It was thrown by Yao Xi.


    As had been speculated by the crowd, Yao Xi was indeed capable of speaking on behalf of the Holy Mother of the West.


    She was even able to throw the Yaotai Divine Feast on her own.


    With that said, there was little surprise as to why the Holy Mother of the West had not shown up.


    "What is the purpose of holding the Yaotai Divine Feast, if I may ask, goddess?" Mo Wen of Tianji Pavilion asked. There were rumors throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm that the Yaotai Divine Feast was meant for selecting a Path Companion for Yao Xi. With her taking charge of the event personally, many were wondering if she was there to choose her future husband.


    Many turned to look at Yao Xi with great interest after hearing Mo Wen''s question.


    They were rather moved to see Yao Xi as she was at the moment. Anyone who was able to conquer her would probably conquer the Yaotai Divine Palace.


    The virgin of Yaotai Divine Palace seemed destined to become the future palace lord.


    "I''d like you all to hear a song," Yao Xi said.


    Many looked puzzled at that. A song?


    What is Yao Xi getting at with this?


    The Yaotai Divine Feast was a grand event held in the Yaotai Divine Palace. It looked rather random and haughty for her to be the one inviting the geniuses from all over Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "What would that song be?" Chu Xi asked.


    What kind of song would it have been worth Yao Xi throwing the Yaotai Divine Feast?


    "It is a song that my teacher acquired years ago. It has rarely been heard in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and I can assure you that it will not disappoint," Yao Xi replied with a smile, piquing the interest of many.


    Judging from Yao Xi''s tone, the song seemed to be an extraordinary one.


    Furthermore, Yao Xi claimed that it was a song that had never been heard in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    That meant that only a select few had heard the song before.


    "Since you put it that way, Goddess Yao Xi, I''m really interested," the Master of the Hundred Flowers smiled and said. He was exceptionally handsome. A dandy whose smile could mesmerize many.


    "However, the song will be rather overbearing. Please enjoy the feast without worries and the song shall be played later. I''m afraid that it would be a waste inviting you all here otherwise, as it might rob you of your enjoyment of the feast," Yao Xi continued.


    What she said piqued the curiosity of the crowd even more.


    The song is an overbearing one?


    Was she implying that there were some among us them would be unable to withstand the power of that song?


    The crowd was filled with exceptional people from all over Emperor Xia''s Realm. There were even many on the Saint Plane present. All of them were curious as to how powerful that song might be.


    "Don''t keep us hanging, Goddess Yao Xi. Please, play," someone in the crowd said.


    None of them were there at the Yaotai Divine Palace just to have a feast.


    Maybe the song was a test from Yao Xi?


    "That''s right. Please, just play, goddess," someone smiled and said.


    Xia Lun sat quietly as he looked at Yao Xi.


    Despite being the prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm, he had not been received and honored much by being there on that day. Although a goddess had been sent to receive him the day before, Yao Xi had never bothered to greet him.


    At that moment, his status meant that the Yaotai Divine Palace should have invited him to a special seat just for him, yet that had not happened either.


    However, he found none of that to be surprising, taking it all in a stride.


    After all, he was not there to be served by the Yaotai Divine Palace.


    Yao Xi heard the cheers of the crowd and smiled, saying, "If that would be the case, then shall I begin?"


    "Please, goddess." Everyone nodded.


    Yao Xi waved and guqins manifested in front of the seven goddesses who sat before her.


    All seven goddesses were getting ready to play at the same time.


    "Let''s begin," Yao Xi said. Notes were played as soon as she gave the order. The one in the middle of the seven plucked the strings and all the others continued to play.


    The music danced and seeped into the ears of the audience. The spiritual power of many tingled as well.


    The tune was soft and comforting, making it a pleasure to hear. It was as if one was being steeped in an extremely beautiful painting. One was sitting alone somewhere outside of the bustling world. There were flowing waters and a bridge, as well as beauties playing music all around. It was all leisurely and immersive, making those within earshot feel as if they were about to doze off.


    Ye Futian found himself inside one such beautiful painting. He leaned on a pavilion and there were mountains and rivers around him, making him feel invigorated. Jieyu''s figure appeared right before him. Her smile made his soul shudder.


    That image was just too beautiful, making the ones experiencing it want to stay within it forever.


    "An illusion." A thought crossed Ye Futian''s mind. He was naturally capable of keeping his senses. The song was able to bring the listeners into an elusive realm, and they were entering the realm willingly. It was as if the song was a dream tailored to the listener, affecting the emotions of those within earshot.


    Furthermore, the elusive realm that everyone was in differed from one another, as said realms were created based on their thoughts.


    The notes continued to dance and immerse into the spiritual will of the listeners, seeping in without notice and affecting the emotions of the audience.


    Urges welled within some people before they knew it. It was the same with Ye Futian as well, and he frowned upon realizing it.


    It was desire. The song was bringing up the desires of its listeners.


    His will began to resist, but the sound of the song became increasingly rushed. Every note seemed able to keep the listeners'' desires burning.


    The eyes of many changed. At that moment, a group of goddesses came down before everyone. Every single goddess was dressed in an extremely sexy manner and they danced. Their alluring movements and enticing eyes caused many to want to surrender to their urges completely, getting themselves completely immersed in the illusions.


    The tune continued to seep into Ye Futian''s mind. He too saw the bodies of those extremely sexy ladies and it seemed as if he saw Jieyu walking up to him, smiling. He seemed to see Xia Qingyuan dressed in women''s clothing as well and looking stunning in it. He also saw a very sexy and alluring Yao Xi closing in on him.


    There was even the elegant figure of the Glass Saint, the one who was known to be the number one beauty in the Eastern State, within the picture. She looked incredibly stunning.


    It was as if they would have thrown themselves into his arms, so long as he was willing, and continued to be steeped in the beautiful picture.


    His spiritual will seemed to be about to give up resisting. His blood began to boil. The tune was still playing and every note seemed to be out to crush his resisting will, urging him to let himself loose.


    "A terrifying song indeed." A thought crossed Ye Futian''s mind.


    Xia Lun, who was at Ye Futian''s side, was struggling as well. He was wondering if the song was the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires.

 1165 Bewildering

    People have passions and desires��a fact that stays true to all regardless of their level of training.


    Not even sages and saints were capable of completely severing their own passions and desires.


    The thought of bettering oneself was a desire, the want for power was a desire, and the lust for women was a desire as well.


    The song seemed to be able to amplify people''s desires and bring them to the forefront completely, swaying the emotions of cultivators, robbing people of their self-control, thrusting them into the depths of desires. It even gave birth an elusive realm woven in the minds of the enchanted, rendering them completely under the song''s thrall.


    In the illusion conjured by Ye Futian, not just Jieyu was there. Xia Qingyuan, Yao Xi, and the Glass Saint were present. That was not due to Ye Futian harboring feelings for any of those women, but because of the lust sparked deep within him. No one was able to prevent themselves from having thoughts about beautiful things and matters, but what differed was the intensity of those desires. Those were not things that would have been brought to the fore in one''s daily life, as those thoughts could have also been easily suppressed.


    However, under the thrall of the song, those desires seemed to have manifested in the form of illusions.


    In Ye Futian''s mind, he found the silhouettes of Yao Xi and the Glass Saint to be somewhat stronger. Yao Xi had two sides to her��gentle and alluring, or elegant and regal. The Glass Saint, on the other hand, appeared cold and aloof. At that moment, those two extreme beauties seemed to be dancing around him with alluring moves.


    That was not due to him yearning for Yao Xi and the Glass Saint more than for Jieyu. His feelings for Jieyu were more than love. In comparison, his thoughts for Yao Xi and the Glass Saint were probably of another unspeakable nature.


    The reason why Yao Xi had manifested was that she had left a lasting impression on him for the past two days. The Glass Saint''s appearance was probably due to both of them having experienced something extraordinary before.


    Xia Qingyuan, on the other hand, had always been unusually cold and aloof to him and never dressed in women''s clothing around him. As such, he had few thoughts about her.


    The illusions created by the song had musical notes that constantly seeped into his mind, forming beautiful works of art that made it difficult for the listener to contain themselves.


    Those notes seemed to have enchanting powers in and of themselves, connecting to the great path and constantly eroding a person''s self-control. Ye Futian knew very well that as soon as he gave up resisting and surrendered himself, he would be placed completely under the song''s thrall. His demons in the forms of desires would be unleashed and amplified, preventing him from getting out.


    He looked ahead. His state of mind was clear and untainted. He kept a tight leash of his mental state and appeared unmoved in the illusion.


    However, the dancing notes continued to make him shudder deep down. The dazzling dance before him was being translated into alluring dance in his illusions.


    Cough. Cough.


    Someone coughed a little bit in the feast at the moment. They were standing up, their body slightly shaking. They cupped their hands and said, "Please excuse me."


    The person turned around and left right away at blinding speeds. The demonic sound continued to coil around their minds, making it imperative for them to leave as quickly as possible.


    If that person had stayed around, they might have ended up embarrassing themselves. Those who were present that day were all notable figures in Emperor Xia''s Realm. There was no way they would willingly embarrass themselves while they still had a measure of control over themselves.


    Others stood up one after another. Their faces were reddened from the struggle to resist the temptations. All of them rose from the tables before they lost control over themselves and left. They needed to keep their composure and leave with dignity instead of as disheveled clowns.


    None of them harbored any resentment after they left. They had come to the palace and yet they were unable to stomach a single song. They had no one to fault but themselves.


    There were perhaps some who were reluctant to leave, giving up resisting altogether under the spell of the song, succumbing to it and letting themselves lose altogether. None of them seemed to have made buffoons out of themselves. Rather, they felt unprecedented ease during the process of letting themselves loose.


    The effects of the song continued to work. They surrendered themselves completely and were gradually immersed in the experience as if they have forgotten who and where they were.


    Despite being of Saint Plane training, none of them had been able to resist the song easily. Some had chosen to leave while some had chosen to succumb.


    Furthermore, there were some who, while completely capable of leaving, let themselves loose all the same. They wanted to see just how much power the song held, and what would happen if they were to continue losing themselves in it.


    None of them were worried that the invitation from the Yaotai Divine Palace had been a setup. From their perspective, what was happening at the moment was a rare experience in itself.


    Hours passed before they knew it. In truth, other than the sound of the song from the guqin and the dance, the event was an unusually quiet one.


    Those who left had left, while those who succumbed had succumbed. There was a handful of those who were still capable of keeping a leash over themselves, maintaining their clarity of self��those who had not left and had yet to succumb.


    Yao Xi continued sitting where she was, looking elegant and alluring. Her beautiful eyes smiled while she spoke.


    "I invited all of you to the Yaotai Divine Feast because I wanted you to hear the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires. Such a beautiful song should have been savored leisurely. Why the hurry to leave?" Yao Xi''s voice was alluring and mesmerizing.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes. There seemed to be two dazzling beams shooting out of his eyes, enabling him to see through the illusions and break through the spell of the song. He then looked at Yao Xi and said, "The song is indeed an intricate one, capable of swaying the will of the listeners. What are your intentions of inviting people to hear the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires, Yao Xi?"


    Xia Lun, who was beside Ye Futian, burst with brimming light. There seemed to be pure light of the lotus glimmering off it him, with whiffs of the will of the Renhuang emanating from it. As a descendant of the Renhuang, he''d inherited the lineage of Emperor Xia.


    He turned his eyes to Yao Xi and said, "Goddess Yao Xi, it seems like there are people who do not wish to hear you play the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires."


    "Is that so?" Yao Xi turned to look at Xia Lun and asked, "Who might that person you speak of be, Your Highness?"


    "You know who it is," Xia Lun said.


    "Pardon me, your highness, but I do not know indeed," Yao Xi said with a smile.


    None of the others reacted much when the three of them talked. Only a handful opened their eyes in response.


    Chu Xi, the young palace lord of the Asura Palace, the dashing Master of the Hundred Flowers, Qin Bai from the Qin Palace, and Gu Ran from the Jiutian Temple, whose brother has had scuffled with Ye Futian before, all opened their eyes. He took a look at Gu Mu, who had obviously succumbed.


    Gu Mu was not the only one. Sages who had been present had either left or succumbed, not knowing where they were at the moment.


    There was only one of the sages who had stayed��Mo Li of Tianji Pavilion, who was trained in special abilities. There seemed to be constellations shining in his eyes as he opened them. Even so, it seemed that he was struggling with his urges, on the verge of giving in at any given moment. However, he still wanted to keep himself awake, just to see what else would happen.


    What was Yao Xi up to?


    While he had been able to speculate on some things, he nonetheless wanted to verify his speculations.


    Back all those years ago, Yao Xi had deliberately put herself at odds with Xia Qingyuan at the birthday banquet of Old Man Xiao of the Xiao clan.


    No one knew what had happened back then, but he was able to guess some things nonetheless.


    Ye Futian was surprised to hear the conversation between Yao Xi and Xia Lun. Was Xia Lun here for some specific objective?


    Who was it that Xia Lun was talking about here?


    He felt all of a sudden that there was something no one knew about going on in all of that.


    He remembered that Xia Qingyuan had always found Yao Xi irksome, and Yao Xi did not seem to be on good terms with Xia Qingyuan. But then again, the two had never duked it out.


    The two of them had never been seen going at each other''s throats. He thought that all might have only been due to their differences in status. From the looks of things at present however, it seemed that things were more complex than he''d anticipated them to be.


    Ye Futian recalled that, before he''d left, Xia Qingyuan had sent someone to the Cottage Villa to have him train at the Golden Hall of the Lotus. That should have been meant to prevent him from attending the feast.


    However, since he had promised Yao Xi first and had given his word to the messenger of the Yaotai Divine Palace, he''d pretended that he did not know anything about it and came to the feast all the same.


    From the current looks of things however, there seemed to be something going on indeed.


    Yao Xi turned her eyes around and looked at Ye Futian, saying with a smile, "Sir Ye here is someone who is versed in the art of the guqin, which means that you should be able to understand the extraordinary nature of the song. The very reason I invited you here, Sir Ye, is in hopes that you and I will be able to look into the complete Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires together."


    "Goddess Yao Xi, you''re saying that there is a chance for us both to do so?" Chu Xi asked.


    Yao Xi looked at him and nodded lightly, answering, "Indeed."


    "If there is a chance to train in the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires, I''m fully willing to succumb myself to it, even if it means that I shall be dragged to hell," Chu Xi added.


    Mo Li smirked deep down when he heard what Chu Xi said. Get dragged to hell, eh?


    There had been rumors that there were methods for two cultivators to train in tandem in the Yaotai Divine Palace. Yao Xi might have been out to choose her Path Companion. Getting chosen by Yao Xi would never be like getting dragged to hell. It would be more like going to paradise.


    Yao Xi grinned uncaringly. The song continued to be heard and all who were still present had intense urges raging inside them as they looked at the woman of immense beauty before them. Even Ye Futian was not spared from having such urges rising inside him, but he was able to hold it back better than most.


    And that was because he did not want to do it.


    However, others yearned for it.


    Xia Lun sighed deep down. He was able to keep himself in check well enough and he continued, "Yao Xi, it''s best to just let go."


    Yao Xi smiled and rose without paying heed to Xia Lun''s words. She turned around and walked to the back. The wall at the rear of the stage was seen being pulled to the sides, revealing the scene behind. There was a pool before them and the place looked like paradise.


    There was an island further forward. Yao Xi''s body floated and took to the air. Her dress billowed in the air. She turned around and smiled as she made for that island. She then said, "If there is one who can cross the Fairy Pool by boat, then I shall train in the complete version Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires with him."


    Her eyes looked exceptionally alluring and mesmerizing as she turned them around.


    The seven goddesses rose at the same time and took to the air, rising above the Fairy Pool as they continued to play above it. The song sounded even more rushed by then.


    Someone rose immediately and headed straight for the Fairy Pool. It was none other than Chu Xi. He took one step and landed on a boat, crossing the pool and heading for Yao Xi.


    All the others who were still awake rose as well and headed to the pool. However, there were only several of them who did so.


    Ye Futian took a look at Xia Lun. He vaguely sensed that something was off at the moment and asked Xia Lun, "Should I or should I not go, Your Highness?"


    Xia Lun had sent someone to remind him to not touch Yao Xi, which puzzled him. He was unable to tell Xia Lun''s intentions of doing so.


    From the looks of things at the moment, Xia Lun had not been doing so to intimidate him. The prince had other agendas.


    Xia Lun took one look at Ye Futian and then at the ones who had stepped into the Fairy Pool. He then said, "Go."

 1166 Sea of Illusions

    Xia Lun knew right there and then that Yao Xi would not have paid heed to his words.


    If she wanted someone to make it across the Fairy Pool, she would want that person to be him or Ye Futian, not someone else.


    While it was the first time he had met Ye Futian, Xia Lun had heard a lot about him before. The young man had the attention of his father while his little sister, Xia Qingyuan, likewise held him in high regard. There was no way Xia Lun could not know about Ye Futian.


    He deemed Ye Futian to be trustworthy. If Ye Futian indeed succeeded, then he would have to leave the rest to Ye Futian.


    Seeing how serious Xia Lun looked, Ye Futian nodded and turned his eyes toward the Fairy Pool before them. He leaped onto a boat and moved forward, heading towards the seemingly nearby island.


    The place seemed to be where Yao Xi lived.


    The trip enabled them to gain a clearer picture of Yao Xi''s status at the Yaotai Divine Palace.


    Xia Lun, Qin Bai, and the others stepped onto their boats and moved forward as well.


    They hadn''t had thoughts about Yao Xi initially, but now they yearned for her. They deemed getting her for themselves to be a splendid goal.


    The Seven Goddesses of Yaotai played their song above the Fairy Pool. Runes danced about as the scene before them changed altogether.


    There was no longer an island before them, for the place had turned into a seemingly endless lake. The goddesses sat in midair and seemed to have become part of the borderless sea outside of the world.


    The seven goddesses were all highly trained. One of them was even a Saint of True Self. Their will was imbued within the tune and brought out the true power of the song, bringing all of them into the illusionary ocean. The ocean seemed to be so real that it would have been impossible to distinguish it from an illusion.


    That was the true strength of the will of the great path. It enabled the conjurer to meld with the world around them and hold command over the heavens and the earth.


    There seemed to be no notable differences between the world of illusions and the true world at all.


    A beautiful silhouette appeared vaguely in the distance. It was none other than Yao Xi. She looked as if she was just within arm''s reach, yet at the same time, she seemed to be somewhere high in the skies and completely out of reach.


    The boats kept moving forward, yet it seemed as if they had no way of ever reaching their destination.


    They knew that they had been trapped in an illusion.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and let the boat continue to move forward despite not being navigated. Like the boats of the others around him, his boat did not change course, always moving forward.


    The song became a calm and serene one, no longer the one from before that had made the others succumb to the illusions.


    However, Ye Futian was still somehow able to sense how terrifying the new song was. An urge seemed to have developed inside him. He felt himself wanting to cross the pool and get his hands on Yao Xi.


    Furthermore, the thought became increasingly intense, just like a spark of lust that had been hidden deep within his mind. Now, it was being unleashed bit by bit.


    Said urge compelled him to move forward. It was so strong that he came to see the others as his rivals before he knew it.


    The influence was sublime, taking over the urges and thoughts of the listeners bit by bit. This made Ye Futian realize how terrifying it was.


    The Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires was terrifying indeed.


    If it had not been for the fact that his spiritual will was exceptional, he would not have even been able to notice the sublime takeover at all.


    At that moment, the others were so affected by the song and their urges were lit up as well.


    Chu Xi of the Asura Palace gazed at Yao Xi''s silhouette before him and burned with desire.


    He had to get his hands on her.


    He glanced around him and found that the one who posed the greatest threat to him was probably Ye Futian.


    Yao Xi had been showing interest in Ye Futian since the day before. Furthermore, her conversations with Ye Futian had also differed from those she''d had with others.


    Since Yao Xi wanted to pick only one to train alongside her, there was naturally no way that several could make it through the sea at the same time. Only one would be making it to shore.


    Such thoughts became increasingly intense as they ate away at his thoughts. He even failed to notice that his thoughts were being affected by hypnosis.


    A gust of cold wind blew across the lake, sending a faint chill across the water.


    A gray mirage streaked across the surface of the lake at speeds that the naked eye had trouble following, coming and going with a flash.


    Ye Futian''s body moved all of a sudden. A beam of light flashed and he disappeared from where he stood. He disappeared without a trace and then appeared in the air above the lake.


    The gray mirage streaked by again, creating a chilling gust and a crisp noise. The boat that Ye Futian had been standing on was reduced to dust immediately, disappearing into the lake.


    A gray silhouette coalesced, destroying the boat with the gust that it had just blown. Chu Xi was seen standing there.


    Chu Xi made a move against Ye Futian in that instant.


    He was from the Asura Palace after all, and the cultivators from that place trained in the ways of the demon. The Sacred General of Asura among the Eight Sacred Generals, who bore the title of Asura, was an extremely frightening figure who inspired fear in all those who had heard of him.


    To the cultivators of the Asura Palace, they were compelled to bag a kill in their very first shot, without heed for propriety and without giving their opponents any opportunity to fight back. That was the method they believed in.


    Ye Futian was known throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm and was extremely powerful. He had beaten Xiao Sheng before he had even become a saint. There was no way Chu Xi would have greeted or warned Ye Futian, given that he intended to make a move against him. He simply acted. His speed was such that hardly anyone noticed what happened.


    Yet, Ye Futian was able to evade that attack��a testament to his baffling speed.


    Ye Futian had been able to evade the attack due to his extremely powerful perception, which had become especially powerful after he''d become a saint. Saints were capable of melding their will with the world around them, so no actions around them were able to escape their notice. They were capable of tracking every pulse of movement around them. As such, even though they were crossing the Fairy Pool, he was nonetheless able to sense Chu Xi''s actions within that split second.


    Space-manipulation had been used in that very instant, enabling him to disappear from where he stood and evade that attack.


    Even he had to admit that the attack from Chu Xi had been perfect. If it had been someone else in his stead, they would not have been able to evade such explosive attacks.


    Despite having missed the first time, Chu Xi did not stop attacking. He flashed and mirages appeared, shrouding Ye Futian in an instant. Demonic might was brimming and many exterior incarnations were appearing all around. All of them were of Chu Xi himself, surrounding Ye Futian.


    Every single one of them held a blade that looked extremely sharp.


    Chu Xi made his move and the flashing of the blades was seen. Many of the exterior incarnations brought their blades down and it seemed as if the power of the great path had buried the space they occupied.


    Blade Art of Asura, Hell of Asura.


    Boundless flashes of the blades were seen in that space as they tore through space. The attacks were seemingly meant to cut that space up into pieces.


    The ones at the Fairy Pool all looked in that direction and saw Ye Futian being buried in the flashes of blades.


    That was the Blade Art of Asura. It was probably difficult to find wiggle room while trapped by that skill.


    Ye Futian, who was being buried by the Hell of Asura, burst all over with holy light all of a sudden. He melded with the great path and multiple layers of the will of the great path burst from his body in an instant.


    He did not stay where he''d been as he resisted the other party''s attacks. The space around him was shaken and the vast space seemed to have been frozen. The overpowering Footwork of Xuanyuan was brought out and the extremely dazzling light surged into his arms, flowing to his fingers as he pointed forward.


    Crackling, high pitched sounds were heard as the blade was bashed against Ye Futian''s body. However, the dazzling light that coursed about his body seemed to be indestructible armor that prevented him from being cleaved. The fingers that he pointed tore through the Hell of Asura, heading straight for Chu Xi at breakneck speeds.


    Chu Xi looked at that incredibly dazzling silhouette before him turning into golden lightning and charged forward, feeling that he was in trouble.


    He was baffled as to how Ye Futian had been able to tell his true body from the illusions with just a single look.


    He dissipated into a gray mirage and quickly saw a terrifying storm of sword aura whipping up in the air. One dazzling sword after another shot out from the air and headed straight for Chu Xi''s body.


    Chu Xi froze momentarily. Ye Futian arrived at the very next moment. His body descended like a bolt of lightning that was shrouded in holy light. He pointed his finger forward and brought about a terrifying sword will that headed straight for Chu Xi.


    Chu Xi cleaved a flash of the blade in a hurry, tearing through the space before him. Yet when that finger arrived, the flash of his blade was broken and the light from the finger pierced through his body.


    Chu Xi''s body dropped from above in an instant, falling into the Fairy Pool and sending splashes everywhere.


    Ye Futian then grabbed Chu Xi from the water and hoisted him up. He shot a cold glance at his opponent and said, "Get lost."


    He clapped as soon as he uttered the line, sending Chu Xi flying back to where he''d come from.


    The light on Ye Futian disappeared and his body landed on Chu Xi''s boat where he stood quietly.


    The others took one look at him, wondering if that holy light about him had been something he''d learned while training in Dali Dynasty. It was rumored that the unique training method had been something imparted to him personally by the imperial advisor of Dali.


    The young palace lord of Asura Palace was completely overwhelmed. He struck first and yet he had been defeated, losing the right to fight altogether.


    The sound of the guqin was heard again, but it was no longer the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires. On a boat floating on the pool, the Master of the Hundred Flowers Valley was playing the guqin. His tune seemed to be able to affect the will of others, making it increasingly difficult for them to control themselves.


    The sound seemed to be attempting to meld with the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires.


    Auras emanated from the handful of people remaining as they continued to move forward. There was a faint stifling aura on the pool.


    Ye Futian felt himself growing increasingly irritated and anxious. It was evident that he was being affected by the sound of the guqin as well.


    He kept his eyes forward and said, "This place is the sea of desires and is difficult to wade through. Please, I implore you all to return. It is not worth having your states of mind be affected by the sea.


    One by one, they turned to look at him and frowned somewhat.


    Ye Futian had his hands behind his back at the moment. He was heading forward in silence, yet telling the others to go home.

 1167 Yao Xis Background

    Having made it so far, none of them wanted to turn back so easily.


    Furthermore, all of them were already deep into it and had developed intense yearnings. They each wanted to cross the Fairy Pool and take Yao Xi as their own.


    There was no way any of them would simply yield under such circumstances.


    It seemed that Ye Futian had thoughts about Yao Xi, given how he wanted the others to give up while he continued making his way forward.


    No one else around him heeded his words. Ye Futian turned his eyes forward and sat cross-legged on the boat. He waved and a guqin appeared in front of him.


    While he had undoubtedly lost his guqin spirit, he always kept a guqin with him nonetheless.


    He began plucking the strings and a tune was heard. Three distinct sounds from guqin were heard mixing, but they retained enough to be told apart. All three of the sounds had extraordinary clarity as they seeped into the ears of those within earshot.


    Ye Futian''s mind became exceptionally tranquil and clear as the Ukiyo Song played. It was as if he had entrenched himself in an absolute barrier constructed from his own emotions. The lust dancing in his mind gradually subsided. When his tune was heard by the others, they too were affected, causing the influence of The Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires and the tune played by Master of the Hundred Flowers to weaken.


    His tune went from tranquil to raging, as if there was a hotblooded force welling up within him, taking apart the passions and lust that had developed. Those who were still at the Fairy Pool had a mystical feeling developing in their minds. Their passions and lust subsided, which seemed to remind them of their paths in training.


    At the same time, the notes that were dancing in the world around them seemed to become imbued with the will of the great path of their surroundings.


    He flicked his arm and caused dazzling blades to swoop through the air, turning them into Swords of Kasyapa that moved with the dancing notes. They then transmuted into terrifying bolts of lightning that shot at the Master of the Hundred Flowers.


    The Master of the Hundred Flowers hastened his playing at the same time. The dancing notes turned into terrifying attacks, clashing in the air.


    However, there seemed to be countless dancing notes around him. Every note turned into Swords of Kasyapa and rained down on him in a frenzy.


    The Master of the Hundred Flowers'' fingers sped up and intense clashing sounds continued to be heard in the air. The notes, imbued with the power of the great path, continued to be blown up as the water of the Fairy Pool splashed.


    A bolt of lightning streaked by and, with a crisp crack, the Master of the Hundred Flowers grunted as the strings of his guqin snapped. He turned to look at Ye Futian and put away his guqin. He took one look ahead before turning around and heading back to where he''d come from.


    His silhouette quickly disappeared as if he had never been there in the first place.


    "Are none of you going back?" Ye Futian continued asking. Qin Bai and the others took one look at Ye Futian before turning around and leaving, giving up of their own free will.


    Before long, only Ye Futian and Xia Lun were left on the Fairy Pool.


    Ye Futian was thinking about what would happen if he just gave up right there and then.


    "You''re invited to the island, Sir Ye," a voice said. The island in question then appeared right before Ye Futian''s eyes. It was so near that it seemed like he could reach shore with one step. Xia Lun was unable to see it and remained on the illusory sea, but he was nonetheless able to hear the voice as well.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes to look at Xia Lun. Xia Lun nodded and said to him, "Go on ahead."


    At that moment, Xia Lun felt rather conflicted.


    He knew that Yao Xi would not have let him get near. If it had to be someone else getting onto that island, he was glad that person would be Ye Futian.


    He was wondering if Ye Futian had given up right there and then, Yao Xi have chosen someone else as a substitute.


    It was not something he would have wanted to see.


    As such, he would have rather had Yao Xi choose Ye Futian.


    He was unwilling to think about what would have happened from then on out. He simply hoped Xia Qingyuan would not resent him when she found out.


    Ye Futian nodded and his boat moved towards the island. He stepped out of the boat and landed on the island.


    Green covered the island completely. Fairy cranes were flying in the air. Ye Futian was even able to catch sight of a phoenix resting on a parasol tree.


    There was a woman of striking beauty sitting on the extremely lush and beautiful island, playing the guqin leisurely and looking serene. The scene looked like something out of a dream and felt astounding.


    The tune stopped when Ye Futian came by. The woman looked up at Ye Futian and smiled brilliantly. "I hoped that it would be you, Sir Ye, that made it here. I knew that if anyone would make it here, that it would be you, Sir Ye. It would seem that you do not disappoint after all."


    Yao Xi, who was dressed in lavish clothing, did not lose one bit of her alluring beauty as she smiled brilliantly. There seemed to be all manner of beauty manifesting on her, more than enough to mesmerize any man.


    "Why would you, Goddess Yao Xi, hope that it would be me that would make it here?" Ye Futian asked.


    Yao Xi took one look at him with sheepish eyes and said, "You''re the only one in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm that I could fall for."


    Her eyes locked on Ye Futian''s when she spoke, looking embarrassed.


    "I''m afraid you''ll be disappointed," Ye Futian said.


    "Because of Xia Qingyuan?" Yao Xi asked with a smile.


    Ye Futian shook his head.


    "I remember the first time we met. You said that your heart belonged to someone else, and that person was your wife, Sir Ye. However, from what I know, your wife has since passed away. So why would there be a need for you to cling to her? If it is because of Xia Qingyuan, do you think that there is anything about me that is inferior to Xia Qingyuan?" Yao Xi asked.


    "I have no such intentions." Ye Futian continued to shake his head.


    Yao Xi smiled. "Your level of intelligence should allow you to learn from Xiao Sheng''s incident. What happened was not something that Xiao Sheng would have been able to pull off on his own. The one who would be able to pull off all of that is someone from the royal palace. I''m sure that Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan would have figured out that much. I wonder if Queen Xiao was involved. He was Xiao Sheng''s aunt after all, and perhaps she did not wish to see you and Xia Qingyuan get too close. Are both Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan unable to find out anything, or do they just not want to?"


    "You played a key role in winning in the Battle of Empty Realm for Emperor Xia. You ventured alone into Emperor Li''s Realm, yet you met with all of that. I do not believe that there is anything in Emperor Xia''s Realm that could have been kept secret from the emperor if he wanted to find out more. You''re not of the Xia clan, after all, Sir Ye. Perhaps they are simply using you due to you having extraordinary talents."


    Ye Futian took a look at Yao Xi and knew deep down that what she said made sense. He was able to come to such conclusions himself and intended to put the matter to rest. He was unable to do anything like what he had done to Xiao Sheng, for he lacked a target.


    However, he continued to trust Xia Qingyuan, knowing that she definitely would not want any harm to come to him. The news was leaked when she sent people to pick him from the Lower Worlds. That, coupled with everything else that had happened, meant that the royal palace had something to do with it.


    That was the only way anything made sense. There could be no other explanation.


    However, Yao Xi was well aware of his relationship with the royal palace, yet she had chosen to say all of that to him. While none of what she''d said seemed out of place, one could have learned that Yao Xi was not on good terms with the royal palace.


    Furthermore, she''d gone so far as to mention Emperor Xia and Queen Xiao. If he were to report her to the authorities, he could easily ruin her, yet she did not seem to mind that at all as she chatted away.


    What had made her so displeased with the royal palace?


    Why was she always at odds with Xia Qingyuan?


    Xia Lun had told him to not get near to Yao Xi, yet the prince had then asked for him to come along. It seemed that Xia Lun''s objective for being at the event had been to stop Yao Xi from doing all of that.


    Ye Futian thought that, although what Yao Xi was doing was displeasing, he still had no right to interfere with her matters. After all, he was not someone close to her.


    "If you have anything that you would like to get off your chest, my ears are all yours, Yao Xi." Ye Futian did not respond to Yao Xi''s accusations about the royal palace. Deep down he knew about a lot of things already.


    When the sacred war had broken out in the Nine States, his imperial will had burned and Emperor Xia had locked down the news, forcefully suppressing the matter. For that, he owed Emperor Xia his life.


    Furthermore, since Emperor Xia knew all of that, he would have been able to develop his speculations. As such, Emperor Xia knew Ye Futian better than many others.


    Even if Emperor Xia did intend to use Ye Futian, he would not have wanted any harm to come to the young man. Otherwise, it would have been like keeping a hidden threat around him.


    Ye Futian knew that much at least.


    As for Xia Qingyuan''s temperament, he had a good idea of what hers was due to having been around her for such a long time.


    Despite being cold and aloof, her thoughts and intentions were simpler than those of Yao Xi.


    "Anything I want to get off my chest?" Yao Xi was dazed as she looked at Ye Futian. Her eyes seemed shifty for a brief moment, yet she quickly concealed it with a smile. "What kind of thing would I want to confess to you?"


    "For example, who your parents are," Ye Futian said.


    Yao Xi gazed at him without flinching. Ye Futian did not evade her look as he gazed back at her.


    With all that has been going on as of late, between the attitude of both Yao Xi and Xia Qingyuan took when they were around each other, as well as rumors about Queen Xiao and the Holy Mother of the West, Ye Futian was able to arrive at some conclusions.


    All of that, coupled with what he had learned of Yao Xi''s status at the Yaotai Divine Palace, enabled Ye Futian to develop a very wild, bold guess.


    It was speculation that involved the royal family.


    The space they occupied seemed to have ground to a halt and turned extraordinarily quiet. Yao Xi shook her head lightly and her eyes became somewhat reddened as she forced a smile onto her lips. All of that made her look sad and beautiful at the same time.


    "Xia Qingyuan is your sister and his majesty is your father, correct?" Ye Futian asked as he looked at Yao Xi.


    "I have no father and I do not have what it takes to be a sister of the high and mighty princess." Yao Xi looked at Ye Futian and continued, "You have heard the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires. Do you know why such a tune appeared in Emperor Xia''s Realm in the first place? It was because someone enjoyed the song alone, yet they''d forbidden the owner of the song from playing it ever again. That someone thought the song would embarrass him. Furthermore, he turned around and married another woman and made her the queen. Do you think such a person would be qualified to be someone I call ''father,'' Sir Ye?"


    Despite not admitting to it outright, what she said had undoubtedly verified Ye Futian''s speculations.


    As such, he was able to understand why Yao Xi had done what she did, and the resentment that she harbored deep down.


    When he was invited to the Yaotai Divine Feast, he''d heard that the last time the event had been held was decades prior. The Holy Mother of the West had taken leadership of the place back then.


    He was wondering if that event had been held after Emperor Xia had made Queen Xiao queen.


    Everyone claimed that the Holy Mother of the West had lost to Queen Xiao in the contest of the title of the number one beauty in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm. In truth, however, there were other reasons for it.


    Reasons that had changed their lives from then on out.


    "If the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm had to choose between Xia Qingyuan and me, who do you think the people would pick?" Yao Xi asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian did not reply, but then again, there was no doubt about the answer��it would be Xia QIngyuan.


    "The people would have naturally wanted you to choose the high and mighty princess, due simply to the fact that the girl in question is the princess." Yao Xi chuckled in a self-deprecating manner. After all, she''d grown up hearing of Xia Qingyuan''s name.

 1168 Moved

    Ye Futian looked at Yao Xi and sighed deep down.


    Despite being of the same background in the sense that both were daughters of Emperor Xia, Xia Qingyuan was born in the royal palace and was doted by Emperor Xia. She was known by all since birth. It was rumored that her talents were unparalleled throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm. She was lauded as the future empress of the realm.


    In contrast, Yao Xi''s status as the Virgin of the Yaotai Divine Palace paled by leagues. But then again, if she were to simply be the Virgin of the Yaotai Divine Palace, she might not have so many thoughts about things and would continue being the elegant virgin in peace.


    However, with comparison, came pain. She too was the daughter of Emperor Xia, yet she grew up hearing the name of another girl instead.


    She knew deep down that regardless of how exceptional she could become, that other name would forever shine brighter than hers. It was a fact that she was unable to change.


    All of that was naturally somewhat cruel to Yao Xi, but that was how fate was and there was nothing anyone could have done about it. It was for that very reason that princes of the imperial courts fought over the throne. The princes were all brothers from the same father, yet there could be only one who could ascend to the throne.


    Yao Xi was even more pitiful than the princes who were fighting each other for the throne, as she never had a father by her side.


    It was obvious that Yao Xi intended to resist, but given that her father was Emperor Xia himself, there were very few ways she could do that.


    As such, she had gotten to Ye Futian. Of course, there was also the Yaotai Divine Feast.


    Perhaps that was her way of resisting fate.


    It was not Ye Futian''s place to chastise Emperor Xia, and it certainly was not his place to chastise Yao Xi either.


    Ye Futian sighed looking at the woman before her. "I went to the Dali Dynasty to train not long ago, and I think you know about that too. I studied under the imperial advisor of Dali when I was there. I thought that the imperial advisor would be someone filled with ambition, yet the imperial advisor that I came to know was someone who was able to see through everything. His greatest wish was that his daughter could have a normal life. There was one of his students who resented him and even wanted to take his life, but he did not mind any of that. He remained willing to escort me and send me off, even knowing who I really am."


    "He did not have any thoughts about that student who saw him as the enemy taking revenge against him. He did not dwell on whether or not I would become a threat in the future if I returned to Emperor Xia''s Realm. He let go of the past, thought little of the future, and did what he could in the present. If there is nothing you can do to change anything, why not try putting it all down instead?"


    Ye Futian continued, "I know that it''s not my place to ask you to put it all down. It''s easy to advise others, but it''s something else altogether if those things are happening to you. But then again, regardless of what you do, Emperor Xia will still be Emperor Xia, and Xia Qingyuan will still be Xia Qingyuan. You might think that you''re punishing them, but what you''re doing is punishing yourself. Furthermore, at least you know who your father is. I never knew who my biological parents were. But what can I do about it? Other than calling them as**oles when I''m reminded of that fact, there is little else I can do."


    Yao Xi kept her eyes on Ye Futian and smiled, saying, "I never realized that you had such a bleak past. I know the reasoning behind it all, but I couldn''t just let it all go with only a few words."


    Ye Futian was able to tell from her reply that her obsession ran deep. She was not someone he could move with words.


    She had some sort of ongoing contest with Xia Qingyuan deep down.


    Yao Xi smiled and continued, seeing that Ye Futian was staying silent. "You are versed in the art of the guqin, which would make you a good choice to play the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires with me."


    She then extended her hand and pulled Ye Futian''s arm, bringing him to the instrument. Ye Futian took a look where her arm was. Her supple, lithe fingers coiled around his wrist as she brought him before a guqin. Yao Xi then sat down and took out the scores and handed them over to Ye Futian. "Take a look at the score while I play the song over once."


    Ye Futian opened the score and saw the glittering brilliance of it. The score''s countless notes seemed to be imprinting themselves into his mind and dancing, which was a result of Yao Xi''s playing.


    The tune was soothing and gentle. It made one feel amicable and at ease, as if they were about to enter a beautiful place.


    Ye Futian continued to read the score as he listened to the tune. The tune seemed to have melded with the score itself, sucking him in and immersing him completely in the music before he realized it.


    The Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires was not a demonic song that enthralled people using lust as he had imagined was the case.


    It was a song that was truly able to resonate with a person''s emotions and desires. The song was extremely complex and long. What he had experienced before was but a part of the song''s power, which continuously amplified the desires of its listeners, making them succumb to it and giving them no means of escape.


    Such desires were part of human nature and emotions. What the tune was doing was simply amplifying certain emotions and desires until said emotions were rendered completely under the song''s control, making an escape from it impossible.


    It was a song capable of manipulating the passions and emotions of its listeners, making them fall under its spell and be completely immersed in it. It was no surprise that the song had come to be known as the Heavenly Demon Song.


    Music was like martial arts which, in their very nature, were not divided into good or evil. The song would have been good if the user played it to do good, and evil if the user played it to do evil.


    Ye Futian listened to the complete song and some time passed. He looked at Yao Xi beside him. Her fingers gradually stopped moving over the strings. There were a few strands of loose hair at her forehead. The smile on her face remained gentle and alluring. It was a mesmerizing and endearing sight to behold.


    Ye Futian was even able to see Jieyu in her. The two faces seemed to have overlapped with each other, making him feel an urge to pull her into his arms.


    "What''s wrong?" Yao Xi turned around and smiled, looking at his eyes as she asked. "Are you mesmerized by the song?"


    "Somewhat." Ye Futian did not deny it. At the moment, Yao Xi looked really endearing, making him want to cherish her.


    "You''re of an extremely stable state of mind to be able to come this far. All the same, I didn''t expect you to get mesmerized by the song." Yao Xi smiled sweetly. Ye Futian could see his dear Jieyu in her.


    "Well, I''m not a piece of wood, am I?" Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    Yao Xi stared at him with an embarrassed look in her eyes and said, "If there is some urge that you need to act on, I''d be willing to cooperate."


    "I''ll have a go." Ye Futian quipped as he looked at the instrument before him.


    "Alright." Yao Xi moved to the side and Ye Futian sat where she''d been sitting, putting his hands on the strings. He began to slowly play the tune.


    Yao Xi listened beside him.


    The sound of his playing was beautiful. While it was his first time playing the song, he was getting the hang of it already.


    The tune could be heard throughout that paradise and there was a beautiful lady at his side. The scene looked more beautiful than anything found in pictures.


    The song finally ended after quite a while. Ye Futian took a look at Yao Xi by his side, recalling the times when he had played the instrument for Jieyu. It still seemed as if the faces of the two women overlapped.


    "Is the tune incomplete?" Ye Futian asked, looking at Yao Xi.


    "Indeed. That was only half of the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires. The remaining half was something that was never brought to the Yaotai Divine Palace." Yao Xi then continued, "You''re getting over 70 percent of the tone and feel right on your very first try. If you were to play it several times more, I''m afraid you would be better at it than I am. When you completely master the song, I''ll be happy to dance to the tune for you."


    "Very well." Ye Futian smiled and nodded before continuing to practice the song.


    Time passed and Ye Futian played again and again. Yao Xi went up to him at times and both of them would collaborate and write songs.


    Both of them seemed to be like one entity in that picturesque scene, looking natural and beautiful.


    An unknown amount of time passed and Ye Futian''s tune was still being played. Yao Xi leaned against him and the lower part of her dress sprawled on the ground. Endearment and love were seen in Yao Xi''s beautiful face as if she too was immersed in the picture.


    Her fragrant scent continued to attack Ye Futian''s senses, making him feel urges that he was not supposed to be feeling.


    When the song was over, Yao Xi circled her arms around his body and hugged him gently. Her gentle, supple body pressed close to his body and Ye Futian felt a fire burning inside.


    "Yao Xi," Ye Futian called gently.


    "Sir Ye, the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires is a spiritual type song, capable of affecting the passions and emotions of its listeners. There is no need to suppress yourself when you''re under the song''s spell. Unleashing your desires would be beneficial to the training of spiritual powers." Yao Xi''s voice sounded like something from a dream, working its mystical magic in Ye Futian''s ears and tugging his heartstrings.


    "If I''m not the one you like, you are free to see me as someone else and I''d be totally fine with it," Yao Xi said. Ye Futian looked at the face right in front of his eyes. It was as if he was looking at Yao Xi, Jieyu, the Glass Saint, and some others at the same time. It was an environment that could satisfy any fantasy of his.


    ...


    At that moment, at Emperor Xia''s far away Palace.


    A figure was standing at the princess''s residence. The figure''s usually calm face seemed to be troubled at present.


    Just what was happening at Yaotai Divine Palace?


    Had it been the Holy Mother of the West''s idea to throw the Yaotai Divine Feast there?


    Or was it Yao Xi''s idea?


    She heard what everyone was talking about, how the feast at Yaotai Divine Palace this time was being held for Virgin Yao Xi of the Yaotai Divine Palace to select a Path Companion.


    Who would Yao Xi choose?


    Back at the birthday banquet for her grandfather, Yao Xi had been seen staying really close to Ye Futian. Yao Xi had been at the Battle of the Empty Realm as well and had always been following Ye Futian around. She had naturally been aware of all of that.


    She looked into the distance at that thought.


    "That ba**ard. I sent someone to tell him to train in the Golden Hall of the Lotus, yet he went to the feast all the same."


    Couldn''t he tell that Yao Xi was up to no good?


    "What has gotten into your head, Qingyuan?" A voice asked. Emperor Xia appeared before her.


    "Nothing much," Xia Qingyuan replied.


    "Why would you be spacing out then?" Emperor Xia smiled and added, "Seems to me that your mind is elsewhere."


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about." Xia Qingyuan''s voice sounded plain when she said that.


    Emperor Xia smiled and did not try to embarrass her. He then said with a solemn face, "Qingyuan, there is something that I''ve never told you before. But since the matter has gotten you involved, it is time that you knew."


    Xia Qingyuan shot a puzzled look at her father.


    "Yao Xi of Yaotai Divine Place she is your elder sister," Emperor Xia said. That one statement made Xia Qingyuan freeze. She was unable to react.


    "Yao Xi is my elder sister?"

 1169 He Is Mine

    Yaotai Divine Palace, above the Enchanted Island.


    Her slender body wrapped around his, full of infinite allure. Her elegant and inviting figure was so close. The long dress decorated with phoenix patterns slowly slipped off, exposing the fair skin on her shoulders. Those eyes of hers seemed to be able to capture the souls. It caused Ye Futian quite some confusion.


    Ye Futian was burning up inside. He looked down at the figure that was entangled around him. There was a strong desire deep in his heart. There also seemed to be another figure in his mind that exhorted him to indulge himself, release his desire, and lose himself in it.


    "Master Ye." Yao Xi looked up, eyes soft. She seemed to have the power to melt men''s hearts.


    Both of Ye Futian''s hands held that flawless face, then slipped down slowly to land on those delicate shoulders. Yao Xi''s eyes closed slightly. She seemed to be just as lost in the moment as he was.


    One of Ye Futian''s hands moved to Yao Xi''s bosom. Yao Xi''s lips slightly parted, a fragrance filled the air, and from those lips came a moan that was ever so soft and gentle.


    However, in the next moment, Yao Xi''s eyes opened suddenly, staring at Ye Futian.


    "Master Ye..." The expression in Yao Xi''s eyes kept changing. In them, he saw surprise, confusion, and discomfort.


    Upon Ye Futian''s caressing fingers, there was an incredibly sharp sword will blooming. It penetrated through Yao Xi''s body instantly and rushed into her body. In an instant, the sword will enveloped the body of Yao Xi, seemingly intent on destroying her.


    A tear rolled down from the corner of Yao Xi''s eye. Pitifully, she asked, "Why is Master Ye treating me this way?"


    "Yao Xi, you invited me to come, and I came. You invited me to cultivate in music, and I accompanied you, treating you as a friend. I do not wish for you to debase yourself," Ye Futian said slowly. "However, Yao Xi, you set me up. Is it as retribution against Emperor Xia and the Princess?"


    As his voice faded, the sword will on his fingers became stronger, tearing everything. Yao Xi''s beautiful figure gradually became transparent, on the verge of being torn apart and shattered.


    Traces of sword will pierced through, and Yao Xi''s figure immediate crumbled and dissipated between heaven and earth as if it had never existed in the first place.


    Looking at that disappearing figure, Ye Futian appeared cool and collected, as if nothing had happened.


    He turned his gaze and looked in front of him, surveying this beautiful enchanted island. He spoke into the void, saying, "The Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires wasn''t incomplete, the goddess didn''t want me to see the rest of it. It was six desires controlling a person''s emotions and desires, taking over the feelings and thoughts of the other. If I guessed correctly, the bottom portion of the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires should be able to create an illusion that is close to reality, and once the emotions are incited by it, they will be controlled bit by bit until they are mired in the abyss and unable to escape."


    "When crossing the Fairy Pool, as I stepped onto the enchanted island, it appeared that the illusion had been lifted, but it was not so. I''m still inside the illusion, right?" Ye Futian''s voice called into the void.


    As Ye Futian''s voice faded, a burst of laughter as clear as silver bells was heard.


    "Indeed, Yao Xi didn''t judge incorrectly. To be able to maintain such strong control within the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires... no wonder you are the person valued by Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan." The voice fell, and a figure drifted down from above the enchanted island. It was Yao Xi, clad in a dress, dignified and elegant, and exquisite beyond words. Her smiles and movements were full of charm.


    She drifted down until stood in front of Ye Futian, smiling. She asked, "How did Master Ye detect it? Was Yao Xi that unattractive?"


    She seemed to be a bit disappointed when she spoke, but her demeanor was irresistible.


    "When I arrived on the enchanted island, everything appeared normal.n fact, reality, and illusion had already been merged into one. Goddess Yao Xi taught me to play the guqin, attracting me little by little. It even caused a hallucination at one point, and I confused the goddess with others. Furthermore, the desire was getting stronger and stronger, but in the current realm of the goddess, even defeating the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires would not affect my emotions. In my realm, it should also be impossible for me to experience the multiple hallucinations that I did. Therefore, the only possibility was that the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desire had never really stopped playing, it was just that I could no longer hear the melody because I was always inside the illusion."


    In his realm, for a moment, he had really been tempted to indulge and give in to his desire. That, in itself, was a weakness.


    When he''d looked at Yao Xi, she''d appeared sometimes as Jieyu and sometimes as Glass Saint, which made him keenly realize that he had always been within the illusion created by the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires, which magnified desires in general.


    "Was Master Ye tempted?" Yao Xi asked with a smile.


    "Yao Xi, since you are an expert in the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires, you should understand that there are desires in everyone''s heart, and I am no exception," Ye Futian replied. "Can you lift the illusion now?"


    "If it is not an illusion but reality, and Yao Xi is willing to promise herself to Master Ye, would Master Ye accept?" Yao Xi asked again.


    "Does it matter?" Ye Futian looked at Yao Xi and said, "You got close to me and even invited me to the Yaotai Divine Feast, and none of that had anything to do with feelings. You held such a strong grudge against His Majesty and the Princess, how could you change your feelings so easily? I am but the prey chosen by the goddess."


    Yaoxi walked until she was by Ye Futian''s side. She looked in Ye Futian''s eyes and said softly, "Does Master Ye not believe me?"


    "Stop playing," Ye Futian said.


    "Playing?" Yao Xi suddenly laughed. She looked at Ye Futian and said, "If it was Xia Qingyuan asking, would Master Ye refuse?"


    "You are too obstinate. Perhaps she didn''t even know you and never wanted to compare herself to you," Ye Futian said to Yao Xi. Her obsession with comparing herself to Xia Qingyuan had become the focus of her life.


    "She is a noble princess, her father is the Emperor, and her mother is the Queen. There is no need for her to compare herself with me." Yao Xi laughed at herself and said, "Stop it!"


    As her voice fell, something seemed to have disappeared. The Enchanted Island was still the Enchanted Island, but it seemed less perfect as it had been before and now closer to reality. The feeling was remarkable; reality and illusion seemed to have truly fused into one.


    From the void, many goddesses floated down one after the other, landing in different positions on the enchanted island.


    Yao Xi was still looking at Ye Futian. She said, "When I hosted the Yaotai Divine Feast, the world declared that it was so I could choose a Path Companion. Now, I would like to choose Master Ye as my Path Companion. Would Master Ye be agreeable to it?"


    Now, without the effects of the illusion, Ye Futian felt that everything had gone back to normal. His emotions were no longer controlled by such a strong desire but seemed to be extraordinarily peaceable.


    Ye Futian saw Yao Xi gazing at him, waiting for his answer.


    "As I said before, I have a wife," Ye Futian replied.


    "I see." Yao Xi smiled. Her smile seemed beautiful but sad.


    From her point of view, it was just an excuse.


    Everyone in the world knew that Ye Futian''s wife had fallen in the Nine States Sacred War. It had been years since then.


    Still, he used such an excuse to refuse her.


    Even though she was so proactive, between her and Xia Qingyuan, Ye Futian was more willing to choose Xia Qingyuan.


    Sure enough, she still lost.


    At that moment, a group of people arrived in a flash. Yao Xi turned her attention toward them and asked, "What is it?"


    "Emperor Xia''s people are here," the person replied.


    Yao Xi''s eyes flashed strangely and she smiled sarcastically. First, it was Xia Lun. Now someone else?


    Was he worried that she would steal away the man favored by his beloved Little Princess, or was he concerned about her fall from grace?


    "Go and look," Yao Xi said, but before she could move, she felt a strong force coming her way, shrouding the enchanted island within it.


    Yao Xi saw the figure at the forefront and let out a bright smile. Xia Qingyuan, finally. Was this because she could no longer sit by the side any longer?


    The foremost figure was Xia Qingyuan. She had launched a grand matrix of space to come across the void, descended directly into Western Region, and rushed to Yaotai Divine Palace.


    "Order of Emperor Xia."t this time, the person next to Xia Qingyuan stepped forward and looked at Yao Xi, declaring, "To grant Yao Xi the title of Princess Xi, surname Xia, and a residence of Princess Xi which is to be built within Emperor Xia''s Palace so that Princess Xi can visit at any time."


    Yao Xi was stunned. Her father wanted to name her as a princess?


    She looked at Xia Qingyuan again. Xia Qingyuan said, "My father the Emperor wanted me to give you this message.t the time, the Holy Mother of the West chose to stay and did not want to enter the palace, and my father did not force her. You do not need to bother with grievances. As long as you are willing, you can cultivate at any time in the Princess residence at the Palace."


    "You came to show pity on me?" Yao Xi looked at Xia Qingyuan. For so many years, she had always compared herself with Xia Qingyuan.


    "No," Xia Qingyuan said. "I came to pick someone up."


    As she spoke, she looked at Ye Futian and said, "He is mine."


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan and was speechless.


    Yao Xi looked at Xia Qingyuan and suddenly smiled. He was her person.


    She turned her attention to Ye Futian and said softly, "What happened today, Yao Xi will always remember. I pray that Master Ye will not forget Yao Xi."


    Ye Futian looked awkward and saw Xia Qingyuan''s eyes staring at him coldly. He couldn''t help but feel fretful.


    Women were scary, especially beautiful ones.


    "The goddess taught me a song today. Ye Futian will remember it well," Ye Futian said.


    Yao Xi handed a musical score to Ye Futian, saying, "This is the bottom half of the Heavenly Demon Song of Six Desires. take it if it pleases Master Ye to accept it. Should the feelings of today persist, you know where to find me."


    Ye Futian looked at Yao Xi. He did not refuse and accepted the score.


    Yao Xi had set him up. This score, perhaps, served as compensation to him.


    Moreover, now that Emperor Xia had also given Yao Xi the title of princess, the two of them would probably meet again in the future, so there was no need to be adversarial because of this.


    However, Yao Xi''s words contained some hints which made it easy for others to make conjectures.


    But he could not explain anything in public.


    Many people from Emperor Xia''s Palace looked at him with a strange look.


    Now, both princesses were here. This guy was really something else.


    "I will take my leave now," Ye Futian said, turning to go. Xia Qingyuan followed close behind. She did not spare Yao Xi another look.


    Many, such as Xia Lun and the Village Chief, had come from the air, waiting for the news. They had not expected Xia Qingyuan to come in with an entourage.


    "Master, are you having fun?" The Black Wind Condor blinked his eyes and glanced at Xia Qingyuan; this she-devil was pretty arrogant.


    "Tie this beast up and take it back to the palace to cook," Xia Qingyuan said, glancing at the Black Wind condor.


    "Ah ..." Pity the poor Black Wind Condor, who let out a scream with a shudder!

 1170 Donst Cross the Line, Kid

    After the departure of the people from Emperor Xia''s Palace, Yaotai Enchanted Island returned to its former calm atmosphere.


    On the enchanted island where Ye Futian had resided previously, a group of people had arrived. The person in front of the group was graceful and elegant, with stunning looks. The feminine charm she exuded was even greater than that of Yao Xi. Her glory was impossible to behold.


    Moreover, judging her age from her appearance alone, she was just slightly older than Yao Xi. Her actual age was impossible to fathom.


    This person was the mistress of Yaotai Divine Palace, the Holy Mother of the West.


    Yao Xi looked up at the Holy Mother and called out with a smile, "Mother."


    "I remember that I told you once that the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires can truly stoke human desire. Even if you could control a man''s emotions for a moment, and even if you succeeded, you could not possibly keep his heart. After all, they think of it as mere desire." The Holy Mother of the West said to Yao Xi, "In the future, don''t do it again."


    "Was this the reason why mother lost to Queen Xiao?" Yao Xi smiled and said, "Mother cultivated in peace and was detached from matters of the heart with no more arguments, but did he pay more attention to you?"


    "Xia Qingyuan was right. He asked me to go to the palace, and I refused because I wanted to cut off the past. It was my choice; there were no regrets. As Renhuang, he had his pride," continued the Holy Mother of the West.


    "But, he still can''t help but send people here today," Yao Xi continued. "Mother lost to Queen Xiao once upon a time, but I won''t give up so easily."


    "Yao Xi," Holy Mother of the West sighed and looked at her daughter, saying, "I''m afraid you will get pulled in deeper and deeper."


    Ye Futian could maintain such clarity under the magic of the Heavenly Demon Song of the Six Desires and his desire under control. He possessed such a reputation. Surely, he was no simple character.


    Clearly, Emperor Xia had intentionally focused on training Ye Futian and did not oppose Ye Futian''s close relationship with Xia Qingyu.


    In the future, it may be another him again.


    Naturally, she did not want Yao Xi to repeat her mistake.


    "Go see him at the palace when you get a chance. Since he gave you the title of ''princess,'' it was a declaration to the world that he acknowledged you, so don''t keep on resenting him," the Holy Mother continued.


    Yao Xi smiled and said, "Fine."


    ...


    Although this year''s Yaotai Divine Feast was more like a comedy of error, the news still spread out rapidly, creating sensations in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Xia had granted Yao Xi the title of "Princess Xi," giving her the surname "Xia."


    Yao Xi''s real name was Xia Xi.


    After all, she was the daughter of Emperor Xia.


    Once, the Holy Mother of the West and Queen Xiao had competed for the title of the first beauty in Emperor Xia''s Realm, but they did not expect that there was such a story behind it.


    Emperor Xia had lived up to his reputation as the emperor, having conquered the two most beautiful women in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The Holy Mother of the West of Yaotai Divine Palace also belonged to Emperor Xia.


    Many people admired and envied the emperor. His Majesty was nothing if he did not desire the most beautiful women in the world, despite his cultivation.


    However, all most people could do was only use their imagination.


    But, today, someone else had exhibited similar tendencies.


    Ye Futian.


    On the enchanted island of Yaotai Divine Palace, did something happen between Yao Xi and Ye Futian?


    Xia Qingyuan, the Little Princess, actually came in person to pick up The One herself.


    This...


    What else could there be but envy?


    Xia Qingyuan, Ye Futian, and the rest were traveling in the direction of the Emperor Xia''s Palace. On the way back, Xia Qingyuan remained silent and did not speak, but Xia Lun and Ye Futian were chatting rather delightfully.


    The Black Wind Condor had been hiding behind Ye Futian, trembling, his mouth closed tight. He dared not speak any more nonsense.


    He couldn''t afford to mess with her. He was still thinking, This she-devil wouldn''t really play for real, would she?


    She was way too scary.


    "Follow me to the palace." When they had arrived at the center of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan turned her head and spoke to Ye Futian.


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded and asked the people of the Cottage to return to the villa first.


    As soon as the Black Wind Condor heard Ye Futian, he started sneaking toward the back, getting ready to slip away.


    "Did I say that you could go?" Xia Qingyuan stopped and stared at the Black Wind Condor.


    The wings of the Black Wind Condor stiffened. If this she-devil was displeased with the Master, why take it out on him?


    He was only asking if the Master was happy or not, and she had a problem with that?


    He turned, trembling, and said to Xia Qingyuan, "Whatever the Princess commands, little condor is at your service, through hell or high water."


    Ye Futian looked at the Black Wind Condor with contempt; this was as much resolve as this useless thing could muster.


    "Then come to the palace with me," Xia Qingyuan said.


    The body of the Black Wind Condor stiffened even more. He looked to Ye Futian pitifully, and said in his head, "Master, help me."


    This she-devil was playing for real.


    He could never go to the palace, not even if they killed him.


    "The Princess asked you to go, so go! She won''t really roast you," Ye Futian said with some despise.


    The Black Wind Condor blinked and stole a glance at Xia Qingyuan again.


    "Why wouldn''t I?" Xia Qingyuan said.


    The Black Wind Condor''s hair stood up on his back, sensing murderous intent.


    Ye Futian was at his wit''s end. He looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "What angered the princess? What did the little Condor do?"


    What angered her?


    Xia Lun glanced at Ye Futian and silently turned in another direction.


    Best not to get involved in this matter.


    The others who were following them also stayed far away; they saw nothing and knew nothing.


    "His eyes were disrespectful, can''t I punish him?" Xia Qingyuan asked, looking at Ye Futian.


    "Then punish him, but there is no need for the Princess to terrorize him." Ye Futian continued, "And since when did I become the Princess''s ''person''?"


    "My father��the Emperor��commanded you as my imperial bodyguard, is there a problem?" Xia Qingyuan said coldly, "I sent a messenger to tell you to go to the Golden Hall of the Lotus at the palace to cultivate. Why didn''t you go? If I hadn''t gone to Yaotai Divine Palace, were you planning on staying?"


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "I don''t like restraint. If the Princess thinks I don''t obey orders, I will resign as the imperial bodyguard."


    "Do you think your resignation is up to you?" Xia Qingyuan''s voice was a little colder. She looked furious. She stared at Ye Futian and said, "I refuse your resignation."


    In the distance, Xia Lun and the others stayed out of the way, but couldn''t resist listening in.


    This was war.


    For as long as he had known her, Xia Lun had never seen his sister throw a tantrum.


    Was this because she was antagonized?


    When they left, Yao Xi''s words had a lot of hidden meaning.


    On their way back, Ye Futian didn''t even offer any explanation?


    Others who had followed Xia Qingyuan also felt it too. Though the Princess was mostly quiet, she was rarely angry.


    Never mind on account of a mere imperial bodyguard, who dared to talk back to the Princess?


    But only an idiot or moron dared to treat Ye Futian as a mere bodyguard.


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan and said lightly, "Thank you, Princess, for coming to my rescue this time, but I could not possibly serve the princess forever. Perhaps, in a little while, I will inform Emperor Xia of my intention to travel and do the things I need to do."


    Xia Qingyuan was stunned for a moment. She looked at Ye Futian, then asked, "What things do you have to do?"


    "Look for someone," Ye Futian looked into the distance and said. When Xia Qingyuan heard what he had to say, suddenly, she was silent.


    She, too, looked into the distance and said quietly, "Very well."


    As she was speaking, she continued forward, and everyone was a little bewildered.


    What was happening?


    Why did the whole thing suddenly come to an end?


    "Master, can I go now?" the Black Wind Condor asked in voice transmission.


    Ye Futian glanced at him, then stepped forward, leaving the poor Black Wind Condor to decide whether to follow him or not. Finally, he gritted his teeth and caught up to them.


    Xia Lun and the others followed in doubt, bewilderment written all over their faces.


    In the palace, the group retired to their respective quarters. Xia Qingyuan took Ye Futian somewhere. This was the palace above the ninth layer of heaven of Emperor Xia''s Palace, ethereal and ever sacred.


    When Ye Futian saw that Xia Qingyuan had brought him here, he knew who wanted to see him.


    In front of him, on the steps that disappeared into the mist, a figure stood quietly. It was as if he had been waiting for him.


    "Go," Xia Qingyuan said and left. Ye Futian walked forward and saw the figure turn around to look at him.


    "Your Majesty."


    Ye Futian bowed to pay his respect. This was the first time he had met Emperor Xia in the truest sense.


    At the earliest, he had seen the projection of Emperor Xia in the Lower World.


    Now that he had seen the true body of Renhuang, although there was no discernible breath, it gave out a feeling of giant, akin to a god, similar to the impression that Emperor Li had given him.


    Likewise, Emperor Xia was also sizing up Ye Futian. Although he had noticed Ye Futian for a long time, this was also the first time he had seen him up close.


    This guy was audacious.


    When he was in the Nine States of the Lower World, he had turned that world upside down, causing Emperor Xia to have to deal with the aftermath on his behalf.


    Now in the Upper World, he was equally as bothersome.


    "Did you touch Yao Xi?" Emperor Xia stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian shivered, but fortunately, he had not.


    "No," Ye Futian replied resolutely.


    His voice had just drifted off when the feeling of the pressure on his body weakened. Emperor Xia stepped up and came to Ye Futian, patted him on the shoulder, saying, "It''s impossible for young men to behave themselves. When I was your age, I had many romantic adventures as well, but don''t be excessive, kid."


    "Ah��"


    Ye Futian looked up at Emperor Xia, and blinked, revealing an innocent look.


    Excessive?


    He had no idea what that was supposed to mean.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s innocent look, Emperor Xia wanted to give this guy a beating but thought better of it and stopped himself. Instead, he patted his shoulder again. "Between Qingyuan and Yao Xi, whichever one you like, as long as they are willing, I have no opinion on the matter. But if you go too far, I won''t spare you. "


    "..."


    Ye Futian looked awkward and finally understood what Emperor Xia meant.


    Since Yao Xi was also the daughter of Emperor Xia, then the Emperor had two daughters.


    The excess that he was referring to was naturally...


    This old man was a genius!

 1171 Trouble in Emperor Xias Realm

    Ye Futian clearly understood what Emperor Xia meant.


    That old guy actually had thoughts like that.


    Well, not that it didn''t sound exciting or anything, though.


    But then again, just thoughts, nothing more. He wasn''t that type of person, after all.


    Ye Futian''s actions were more benign than what was going on in his head. He bowed right away after hearing Emperor Xia''s Words and said, "Your Majesty, I dare not harbor such thoughts."


    "Dare not?" Emperor Xia smirked coldly at him and asked, "Is there anything you dare not do?"


    That kid is the Princess''s valet in name, but since when did he ever give any face to Qingyuan, eh? Emperor Xia thought.


    One hell of an *ssole; that''s what he is, the Emperor thought.


    Emperor Xia dared not subject his precious daughter to any degree of grievances, however slight it might have been. Yet, for a long time, what his daughter had been occupied with was little more than what was going on with Ye Futian.


    The kid is full of sh*t.


    Ye Futian had no idea where the resentment that Emperor Xia harbored came from. Xia Qingyuan and Yao Xi?


    But then again, he thought it was best for him to shut up at that moment. He then lowered his head obediently and said nothing.


    The very reason he dared do whatever he did in Emperor Xia''s Realm, be it going up to Lihen Heaven all those years ago, or the more recent act of throwing his weight around at the Xiao clan''s manor, was standing right before him, after all.


    To put it more bluntly, it was because he served Emperor Xia.


    There were a lot of people in Emperor Xia''s Realm who saw what it was like between him and Xia Qingyuan, but he knew better than anyone that Emperor Xia, who was the one who kept him around after the Sacred War of the Nine States. He was the one who truly backed Ye Futian up.


    The old guy who stood before him at that moment was the greatest boss in Emperor Xia''s Realm, one that he could not afford to offend.


    He could have offended anyone��anyone but Emperor Xia.


    Emperor Xia glared at him after seeing Ye Futian playing possum and asked, "You''ve been to Dali. How was it?"


    "The Dali Dynasty rules over both the Upper and Lower Worlds and was very cohesive, but there were also shortcomings. The royal members and extended families were very powerful and rather xenophobic, so much so that they did not like the imperial advisor all that much. Dali Dynasty would be stronger otherwise," Ye Futian answered.


    "All of that is but Emperor Li''s maneuvers for balancing power." Emperor quipped casually, "But then again, the imperial advisor of Dali is truly someone indeed. If he has taken a liking to you so much, when will you ask him to come over and serve Emperor Xia''s Realm? The realm here has no royalty or extended families to be concerned about. He would absolutely have a better time here than in Emperor Li''s Realm."


    "..." Ye Futian was speechless. It was the first time he came to see Emperor Xia. Everything he knew about the old man crumbled.


    Emperor Xia appeared carefree and laidback, nothing like the imposing, almighty impression that Ye Futian had of him. That was probably something borne out of the projections of Emperor Xia from when Ye Futian was still in the Lower Worlds.


    Is the Emperor actually telling me to get the imperial advisor to betray his own country? Ye Futian wondered.


    "Your Majesty, Emperor Li is good to the imperial advisor of Dali and holds him in very high regard. It is utterly impossible to have the imperial advisor betray Emperor Li''s Realm under such circumstances," Ye Futian replied. It had a lot to do with a person''s character. If a person were being very trusted and valued by one''s sovereign, and said person betray their sovereign without reason, or worse, for their own interests, then there would be little character of such a person in the first place.


    The imperial advisor was willing to escort him back to Emperor Xia''s Realm due to having taken a liking to him. Still, the imperial advisor would never betray Emperor Li.


    That was, unless Emperor Li was a trash person. Yet, if Emperor Li had been one such person, the imperial advisor would not have taken his position of imperial advisor in the first place.


    "There is nothing absolute in this world. Time is capable of changing many things. Perhaps, you might become the lord of a realm someday, or even rule over the realms. There might no longer be Emperor Xia''s Realm or Emperor Li''s Realm." Emperor Xia turned around and walked up the steps, his back facing Ye Futian. "As a person who trains and seeks the great path, one shall always be unfettered and free. However, there is still a need to be wary of boundaries."


    He then turned and shot a warning look at Ye Futian, who, having just lifted his head before, lowered it right away, feeling rather speechless.


    What about trust between people, then?


    "Your Majesty, I have something that I would like to seek your guidance with," Ye Futian, who was hanging his head low, said at that moment.


    "Speak," Emperor Xia looked at him and said.


    "I have heard from the Princess that my wife might not have perished. There was an empress in the 3,000 realms whose methods are capable of communicating with the heavens, and her will is capable of transcending the 3,000 realms. Could that be possible?" Ye Futian asked.


    Having broken into Saint Plane, he was not able to venture further away.


    "Yes." Emperor Xia nodded. "It might be possible. But the chance is slim, and it''s best not to keep your hopes up too high."


    Ye Futian clenched his fists slightly and felt somewhat tense. So long as there was still hope, he wanted to see for himself.


    "Your Majesty, who might that empress be, and where would I be able to find her?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You want to go out and look for her despite having just become a saint?" Emperor Xia glanced at Ye Futian plainly and continued, "You''re quite in a hurry. That empress is the at the top among all within the 3,000 realms. She reigns supreme. Even if I were to go out and look for her, she might not have even bothered taking a good look at me. Your current level of training might not even be worth mentioning."


    "I would only want to look for my wife, and I have no intention of becoming the empress''s enemy." Ye Futian then pressed on, "Please tell me, Your Majesty."


    "I will inform Qingyuan, and when you''re ready to go, you may ask her," Emperor Xia replied, and Ye Futian nodded. "Thank you, Your Majesty."


    "Is there anything else you need of me, Your Majesty?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "Yeah, right. Get lost!" Emperor Xia waved his hand dismissively at Ye Futian and said. I didn''t even bother settling the score with him, and he is already in a hurry to get out? the Emperor thought.


    The kid is indeed full of sh*t.


    Ye Futian felt rather speechless at Emperor Xia''s attitude and said, "I shall take my leave then."


    He then turned around and left, still feeling rather speechless. Emperor Xia was indeed totally different from how Ye Futian had expected him to be.


    But of course, Emperor Xia indeed felt more approachable that way, due to the lack of distance stemming from the lack of that high and mighty attitude.


    High and mighty, that was how he felt Emperor Li was like. Even when he was telling Ye Futian that he intended to marry his daughter to the young man, the Emperor still seemed so distant, looking down at the living beings from the clouds above.


    Ye Futian returned to the Cottage Villa right after he left the palace instead of getting snorted at in the Princess'' residence. Xia Qingyuan found him to be incredibly irksome at the moment, and it was best that he did not go anywhere near her.


    ...


    The news of Yao Xi being made a princess spread throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm several days later.


    On that day, a group of people arrived at Emperor Xia''s Palace, serving as escorts to Yao Xi.


    It was a happening that caught the attention of everyone in Emperor Xia''s Palace. There would be two princesses of Emperor Xia after the Emperor made Yao Xi a princess. Everyone wondered how Emperor Xia would treat a princess who had been out there for so many years.


    However, during the Yaotai Divine Feast that day, Emperor Xia had sent Xia Lun before sending someone with Xia Qingyuan. That meant that the Emperor was still concerned about Yao Xi, nonetheless, or he would not have been paying so much attention to her.


    Yao Xi came straight to the Emperor Xia''s Palace high in the clouds and was able to see the biological father that she had always wanted to see for all those years; the man who stood at the very pinnacle of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Both of them looked at each other and said nothing. The scene in the fleeting clouds was unusually quiet.


    Emperor Xia finally sighed after some time, breaking the silence. He said, "Do you hate me?"


    "I dare not hate you, father," Yao Xi said.


    Emperor Xia was able to hear the distance between the two of them from the tone that she had taken. It was something that had never been there when he was talking to Xia Qingyuan.


    But, he was able to understand.


    As speculated by all, if Emperor Xia did not care about Yao Xi, he would not have concerned himself with the Yaotai Divine Feast. She was still his daughter, after all.


    "I had sent Xia Lun to stop you in hopes of preventing you from punishing yourself for what happened all those years ago. What happened between your mother and me was our own choice, and we respected each other''s choices. You could hate me, but there is no reason for you to hurt yourself."


    Emperor Xia walked up and looked at Yao Xi, saying, "You thought I''ve never been concerned with you, but in truth, I''ve been to Yaotai Divine Palace quite a number of times to see you. You didn''t know it, nor did your mother."


    Yao Xi looked up at Emperor Xia. If the Emperor was willing, it was naturally possible for him to go and see her without anyone else knowing.


    "I''m not telling you all this because I want your forgiveness. I don''t want to see my daughter live with hate and resentment. As a descendant of Renhuang, you should be living freely instead," Emperor Xia looked at her eyes and said.


    Yao Xi lowered her head a little, and her eyes were somewhat reddened.


    She was unable to understand how the man she had hated for decades was standing right in front of her eyes, yet she was unable to bring herself to hate him.


    She was his daughter��a daughter of a Renhuang, a princess of extremely high prestige in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "I have tried letting it go, but perhaps I still need time," Yao Xi sighed and said.


    "I will give you time." Emperor Xia nodded and continued, "Do you have any other wishes?"


    "If I do, would you grant them?" Yao Xi asked.


    "So long as it is something within my capacity to grant," Emperor Xia said.


    "Of course," Yao Xi said with a smile.


    "Speak."


    "I want a valet," Yao Xi looked at Emperor Xia and said.


    Emperor Xia was dumbfounded. His brows twitched slightly as he looked at Yao Xi and asked, "Ye Futian?"


    "Would you be able to grant that?" Yao Xi looked at him and asked.


    Emperor Xia was unable to come up with an answer. It was apparent that Yao Xi had not been able to let it all slide.


    Ye Futian was the valet of his other daughter.


    "Ye Futian might be a valet, but he is not required to fulfill any of a valet''s duties. He is a valet in name only. While he might be Qingyuan''s valet, he never stayed in Qingyuan''s place or acted as a valet. If you want him to be your valet, you''ll only need his approval."


    Emperor Xia knew that Yao Xi was very sensitive at the moment. If he were to tell her that Ye Futian belonged to Xia Qingyuan, it would have incited her instead.


    Every word he said right there was the truth. He had not lied to Yao Xi.


    "Thank you, father. I shall try." Yao Xi smiled and nodded. Both of them chatted for a while after that.


    That day, Yao Xi moved into her new place. To the people of Emperor Xia''s Palace, it was not a small matter.


    Furthermore, the first thing she did after moving in was send people to the Cottage Villa to summon Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan sent someone over to the Cottage Villa and summoned Ye Futian as well as soon as she found what was going on.


    As such, Ye Futian, who was playing his guqin on the plains at the mountains, received summons from both Xia Qingyuan and Yao Xi.


    He took a look at Qin Zhuang, who was there to deliver the news and said, "Tell the envoys that I''m now training in isolation. I''m not going anywhere."


    "Understood." Qin Zhuang left to relay the message.


    Both groups of people left and sighed deep down after hearing his reply. Ye Futian was probably the only person in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm who dared to behave in such an abrasive, cocky manner.


    Two princesses asked to see him, and he was seeing none of them.


    Trouble was brewing in Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    Ye Futian continued to play his tune or train. He was not the only one doing so, as everyone in the Cottage Villa was training diligently as well.


    Among the ones from the Cottage Villa at the moment, only Ye Futian and the Sword Saint had made it to Saint Plane.


    Yu Sheng, Gu Dongliu, Ye Wuchen, and the others were naturally doing their best in hopes of attaining sainthood.

 1172 Armoring

    It was year 10024 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, and a lot had happened in Emperor Xia''s Realm in the past year.


    Ye Futian became a saint, and Xiao Sheng had perished. The Xiao clan, which had been extremely renowned for a time, seemed to show signs of decline.


    There was yet another princess in Emperor Xia''s Palace��Princess Xi. It was said that she kicked up a lot of fuss after moving into the royal palace, being at odds with Xia Qingyuan.


    Princess Xia Qingyuan seemed to have gotten herself a rival.


    There were signs of activity from Dali Dynasty''s army at the borders of Emperor Xia''s Realm, and there had been several skirmishes. That alerted Emperor Xia''s Realm considerably, and armies had been sent there to strengthen border defense, as well as keep a close eye on the movements of the neighboring dynasty.


    However, it seemed as if none of that had anything to do with Ye Futian. Ever since he had returned to the Cottage Villa after the Yaotai Divine Feast, he had been focused on his training.


    Training at Saint Plane required more time than before to see noticeable progress.


    While it was said that being able to step into Saint Plane itself had been an achievement of a different magnitude, it still seemed inadequate to Ye Futian.


    It was especially so since he had developed thoughts of venturing far outside of Emperor Xia''s Realm, and that would have required him to enhance his powers continuously.


    If he were to get to the stage like that of the Swordmaster of Lihen, he would have been able to come and go anywhere as he pleased, so long as he did not get on the bad side of Renhuang class of beings.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm seemed extraordinarily lively in the new year.


    The Divine Cloud Valley, which was known as the number armoring clan in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm, was no exception.


    Great old halls in the Divine Cloud Valley were glittering with golden brilliance. The place was filled with mighty ones, and the valley master had been one of the followers of Emperor Xia, an armorer serving the emperor, specifically.


    The Divine Cloud Valley would have been able to remain a prestigious clan whose status was immutable in Emperor Xia''s Realm, so long as their people did not commit grave offenses like treason.


    There were several silhouettes seen high in the sky above Divine Cloud Valley on that day.


    The group of people landed right before they entered the valley as a sign of respect.


    The guards outside of the valley were unable to help but gauge one of those who came, one who was dressed in white and had silver hair, looking to be of exceptional bearing.


    There was only one person in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm who sported such an appearance, which made him stand out like the sun at high noon.


    "I''m Ye Futian, and I''ve come to pay the valley master a visit. Please inform your superiors," Ye Futian cupped his hands and said as he went through all of the required proprieties.


    The guards were shocked to find that the man was Ye Futian.


    "Please hold on for a moment, Saint Ye." A guard went in to deliver the word. Someone else came out to receive Ye Futian''s party into the valley not long after.


    "Please forgive us, Saint Ye. There are honored guests at the valley today, and that was why there was a delay," the one who received them explained to Ye Futian.


    "No matter. I''m only here to pay a visit, after all. Please, lead the way," Ye Futian replied, but he was still curious. From what he heard from the other man, there was already someone here before they did, and it seemed that those people were of exceptional status, and he wondered who they might have been.


    Ye Futian and his party came to a grand, old hall, and there was already quite a crowd at the place.


    Ye Futian saw several familiar faces in the crowd before him. Gongsun Zhong, Gongsun Ni, Gongsun Xuan, and some others were all there.


    Gongsun Zhong looked rather complicated when he saw Ye Futian show up. He had been somewhat dismissive of him at Old Man Xiao''s birthday banquet all those years ago. It was a testament to his arrogance, which stemmed from his exceptional talents.


    However, he remembered what happened in the Battle of Empty Realm well.


    At present, Ye Futian was someone known everywhere.


    He had let go of his obsession with Xia Qingyuan back at the Battle of Empty Realm, and he had little to resent Ye Futian for, but what happened left a lasting impression on him nonetheless.


    "Brother Gongsun." Ye Futian cupped his hands and smiled as he greeted Gongsun Zhong, apparently without care for the scuffles they had back then. He was able to tell that Gongsun Zhong had held back many things himself.


    Gongsun was dumbfounded for a moment when he saw Ye Futian greeting him, before sighing deep down.


    It seemed that the difference between him and Ye Futian had gotten increasingly large.


    Gongsun Zhong then lifted his hands and returned Ye Futian''s greeting.


    "Ms. Ni, Ms. Xuan, it''s been a while." Ye Futian turned to look at the Gongsun sisters. Luo Fan came as well, and Ye Futian had deliberately brought his older brother along. Since both his fifth brother and Gongsun Xuan had taken a liking to each other, he did not mind playing matchmaker and presenting them with more opportunities to meet up.


    As for the result, he was not trying to force anything but let things take their course.


    "It''s been a while indeed." Both sisters nodded. They were acquaintances back at the Battle of Empty Realm.


    Gongsun Xuan turned her eyes to Luo Fan, who scratched his head for a bit and said, "Well, Divine Cloud Valley is a really big place."


    "Shall I give you a tour?" Gongsun Xuan looked at him and said.


    Luo Fan''s eyes sparkled, yet Ye Futian butted in immediately, "My fifth brother knows a thing or two about armoring. If you''d be willing to give him a tour at Divine Cloud Valley, I''m sure he''d be delighted."


    "That so?" A brimming voice spoke. "If that''s the case, have your fifth brother come over more often then. It would do him a lot of good learning armoring arts right here."


    Ye Futian turned his head around and found the person who spoke was an elder wearing a golden robe, who smiled as he looked at Ye Futian''s party.


    There was another youth who looked extraordinary at the elder''s side, looking at Ye Futian with a smile.


    "Ye Futian, here to pay you a visit, valley master," Ye Futian bowed and said.


    He then looked at the youth at the valley master''s side and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."


    While it was the first time he laid eyes on the young man, his bearing and appearance bore some similarities with that of Emperor Xia and Xia Lun. Furthermore, he was an honored guest whom the valley master attended to personally, which spoke volumes of his status.


    That young man was none other than the fourth prince, Xia Kun.


    Xia Kun took a look at Ye Futian and smiled, saying, "It''s no wonder that my sisters are getting at each other''s throats in the royal palace. You really are the number one in my generation in Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    "You''re too kind, Your Highness," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "His Highness is correct, though. There is indeed none among your generation throughout all of Emperor Xia''s Realm who would be able to overpower you." The valley master then added with a smile, "Anyway, what brings you here to Divine Cloud Valley today?"


    "To tell the truth, I''m here to ask for your help in matters concerning armoring today, senior." Ye Futian then continued straightforwardly, "However, I dare not ask for such help from you without giving you anything in return. I want to offer a top-notch sword sutra that I acquired at Dali as payment. I shall pay for the material cost of the work in sacred spirit stones as well."


    The valley master nodded as he heard Ye Futian talk. Ye Futian was one of the brightest figures in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm. If he were to go through the Princess with such a request simply, the valley would have had to agree to it.


    However, Ye Futian did not do so. He paid a personal visit instead and was requesting services by trading for a fair price. Those actions earned the valley master''s affinity, thinking that the young man to be a decent fellow.


    "No problem." The valley master did not hesitate and agreed to it right away. Since Ye Futian was giving him due respect, he was willing to return it with the same amount of respect.


    "Thank you, valley master." Ye Futian extended his hand and handed the sutra to the valley master, saying, "This is a top-notch sword sutra that was previously lost in Dali. It''s called the Sword of Kasyapa."


    The valley master took it over and flipped the pages nonchalantly, finding it to be something decent. He then turned to Ye Futian and said, "This is indeed a precious piece. What kind of implement would you like forged?"


    "Swords." Ye Futian said, "I would like a sword capable of incorporating my Life Spirit into it, as well as a batch of swords of space."


    Those swords were something he wanted made for Yaya.


    Yaya''s training had yet to be restored to its pinnacle state. The last battle cost her considerably, and he was unwilling to see something like that to happen again. As such, he wanted a batch of swords crafted in order to help her in future battles.


    If he were to request something like that of the valley master, he was naturally expecting the products to be top of the line, which would have definitely come at considerable costs.


    They were things that conventional armorers were incapable of crafting, after all.


    "No problem." The valley master then asked, "When would you like them finished?"


    "The sooner, the better," Ye Futian answered.


    The valley master then took a look at the fourth prince, who then said, "It''s completely fine to attend to his request first; I''m in no hurry."


    "Are you here for matters concerning armoring as well, Your Highness? If that''s the case, it''s completely fine for my request to be finished later," Ye Futian added.


    "It''s alright. Let''s get yours made first," Xia Kun smiled and said.


    "Thank you, Your Highness," Ye Futian thanked the fourth prince.


    "Well, in that case, let''s get to it right away. If you''d like a ritual implement capable of incorporating your Life Spirit, it would be best that you stay around and help with the crafting process."


    "I''ll be bothering you at Divine Cloud Valley for some time then, senior," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Valley master, I shall take my leave then," Xia Kun then said.


    "Very well. Goodbye, Your Highness." The valley master nodded and ordered men to send the prince off while he brought Ye Futian elsewhere and ignited the forge.


    ...


    Several days later, golden flames shooting up to the heavens were seen at the forging tower of Divine Cloud Valley.


    Many were watching the valley master himself at work.


    There was a terrifying great matrix at the front where sword aura of their world manifested in a frenzy and melded within the matrix. There seemed to be a leaf-shaped sword appearing above the matrix.


    The weather above the sword at that moment change, their surroundings shrouded by stifling might. Terrifying diagrams of sword arts were projected in the heavens, surrounding that sword.


    A silver-haired figure sat cross-legged and unleashed his will into the matrix, incorporating his will as a saint while sensing the terrifying power ahead, melding with it.


    The valley master formed a mudra in his hand. Boundless sword will in the heavens gushed from the matrix downwards, following the terrifying diagrams and flowed into Ye Futian''s brow, making him shine brilliantly all over with holy light.


    The power of the great path was imbued within the sword. How much of the weapon''s power could be brought out became solely dependent on Ye Futian''s power.


    Boundless light flowed into Ye Futian''s brow after quite a while. Sword will coiled around him before their surroundings returned to their usually quiet state. The valley master brought the spectators and everyone else away, leaving Ye Futian sitting cross-legged over there.


    Extremely holy light glittered in his mind, causing imperial will to ebb at his brow, which was then incorporated within the sword.


    He was there to get a trump card for himself forged, enabling him to gain an extra element of surprise at key moments, which, in turn, would allow him a means to end his enemy without regard to level difference.


    The sword will around him gradually dissipated after a while. The light on his brow disappeared as well, and it was only then that he rose and left.


    The valley master then began to forge the other swords the next day. The process had taken even more time, and only ended when he had finished crafting multiple swords of space for Ye Futian.


    He put the swords away and looked at the valley master, saying, "Thank you for all your hard work, valley master. I''m forever in your debt."


    "I''m just doing what I can. No need for such gratitude," the valley master replied.


    "If there shall be anything you''d need in the future, please do inform me," Ye Futian said again.


    "Will do." The valley master nodded with a smile and did not refuse.


    Ye Futian then brought his people and left.


    The valley master of Divine Cloud Valley had a lot of thoughts as he watched Ye Futian leave. The trip seemed to be one where Ye Futian requested for him to make things, but it was actually one to forge good relations between the two of them. At the same time, it undid the scuffles between Ye Futian and Gongsun Zhong all those years ago.


    No one knew whose Emperor Xia''s Realm it would be in the future, after all.

 1173 Crimson Dragon Region

    Ye Futian was playing the guqin at the Cottage Villa.


    Someone walked up to him at that moment; it was Gu Dongliu.


    "How is training, third brother?" Ye Futian looked at Gu Dongliu and asked.


    "Saint Plane bottleneck," Gu Dongliu answered. His plane had been higher than Ye Futian''s a long time ago, and his state of mind had always been superb; however, he remained incapable of making the breakthrough. He needed some opportunity to make the breakthrough.


    "You''re getting ready to leave?" Gu Dongliu asked.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. "I''ve been training in isolation for some time ever since I made it into Saint Plane. It''s time that I venture outside. Furthermore, you guys probably need your turning points. If isolation isn''t doing you guys any good for making the breakthrough, why not try and venture outside instead?"


    Gu Dongliu nodded and said, "What about the villa?"


    "I''ll get the princess to look after the place. There shouldn''t be any surprises for us at this point," Ye Futian replied.


    "When will we be departing?" Gu Dongliu asked again.


    "I''ll go to the royal palace for a bit. We''ll get ready to depart after that," Ye Futian got up and said.


    "I''d get the others to get ready." Gu Dongliu did not say anything further, turning around and leaving.


    Ye Futian took to the air and headed for the royal palace.


    It has been quite a while since the last time Ye Futian went to Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    He had never stepped foot into the royal palace ever since he met Emperor Xia personally last year.


    He went to the Princess'' residence in the royal palace that day.


    Xia Qingyuan looked rather displeased seeing Ye Futian show up. She asked coldly, "What brings you here?"


    "When I last met his majesty, he told me to look for you when I was ready to leave." Ye Futian then continued, "I hope you''ll tell me what I need to know, Princess."


    Xia Qingyuan stared at Ye Futian. She knew what he was there for.


    It seemed that he had gotten ready to leave.


    "Empress Qin," Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "Empress Qin?" Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan.


    "The person you''re looking for. She is Qin Ge, an empress of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path," Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian and explained. She was a legendary empress.


    "However, the empress is at the Supreme Path Realm, which is extremely far away from Emperor Xia''s Realm. Despite having made it into Saint Plane, getting there will take you an untold number of years," Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian. She waved her hand, and a jade scroll flew at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian extended his will inside and found a map.


    The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were scattered all over the place and spread out in a cascading manner, seemingly without rules and making them look like stars.


    Every single realm was like a star in itself.


    Ye Futian found where Emperor Xia''s Realm was and found Emperor Li''s Realm, and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm at its left and right, respectively.


    Other than that, there were also other Renhuang''s Realms, clustered together like a region of stars, and there was actually a curved line circling them as if to mark them deliberately. There were words denoting the region��the Crimson Dragon Region.


    "The region you see Emperor Xia''s Realm in is known as the Crimson Dragon Region, which includes Emperor Xia''s Realm, Emperor Li''s Realm, and many other Renhuang''s Realms in it. All of them are parts forming the Crimson Dragon Region, and the topmost realm was the center of the Crimson Dragon Region��the Crimson Dragon Realm."


    Xia Qingyuan then elaborated, "The Crimson Dragon Realm is also the liveliest, most bustling realm within the region, attracting all manner of mighty ones there. Furthermore, it is a nexus connecting other regions. Every realm within the Crimson Dragon Region has a grand teleportation matrix leading to the Crimson Dragon Realm."


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled. What Xia Qingyuan meant was that there should have been one such matrix leading straight to Crimson Dragon Realm in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "If you want to find the empress, you should use the Crimson Dragon Realm as your springboard before venturing into other realms." Xia Qingyuan continued. Ye Futian nodded, saying, "Thank you, Princess. Is the royal palace capable of sending me straight to Crimson Dragon Realm?"


    "It is." Xia Qingyuan nodded.


    "If that is the case, I''m afraid I''ll have to trouble you again, Princess," Ye Futian said.


    "No need to thank me. I''m going out on a pilgrimage myself as well, and I''ll be heading to Crimson Dragon Realm as well, so I''ll be taking you with me," Xia Qingyuan said coldly.


    "..."


    Ye Futian blinked.


    "I''m afraid that would be rather awkward, Princess." Ye Futian''s eyes looked shifty. No one knew what the trip would have entailed, and Xia Qingyuan''s status was special.


    "If you''re not going with me, then you figure out how to get there yourself." Xia Qingyuan shot a cold glance at Ye Futian.


    "Umm..." Ye Futian felt as if he was being crushed between her fingers and said in an exasperating tone, "Sorry to trouble you then, Princess."


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him coldly. Since when did Ye Futian get so polite?


    "I''ll head back and finish my preparations," Ye Futian said and left right after. However, he stopped after taking several steps.


    He remembered that it was his actions of making use of the matrix before that led to all that had happened afterward.


    Now...


    He halted his steps and seemed to be steeped in deep thought.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian''s back and felt puzzled.


    What is he thinking now? she wondered.


    Ye Futian stopped for a bit before turning around. He looked at Xia Qingyuan and asked, "Princess, may I ask for a favor?"


    "Speak." Xia Qingyuan had no idea what was going through Ye Futian''s mind.


    "This trip might be somewhat dangerous, and I think you should stay where you are," Ye Futian said.


    "Speak." Xia Qingyuan''s tone turned even colder. That b*stard.


    Ye Futian spoke his mind, and Xia Qingyuan looked rather puzzled. Thoughts seemed to be running behind those bright eyes of hers, and she looked at Ye Futian, saying after a while, "I''ll do the setup."


    Ye Futian nodded before walking out of the princess'' residence.


    However, he was unable to make it far before someone else had gotten in his way.


    "Princess Xi," Ye Futian looked at the alluring figure before him and cupped his hands, greeting her.


    "Why don''t you come to visit my place since you''re here at the royal palace, Sir Ye? You''re telling me that you''ve forgotten all about me so quickly," Yao Xi said as she seductively looked at Ye Futian.


    "I have business to attend to. Help yourself around, Princess Xi," Ye Futian cupped his hands and said, disappearing as soon as he finished.


    Emperor Xia had warned her before. They were in the royal palace and directly under the scrutiny of Emperor Xia. Yao Xi would not have dared to do anything to harm him.


    Best not get on the bad side of this woman, though.


    "You afraid I''m going to eat you up or something?" Yao Xi called out without caring where she was. Her eyes were sad and resentful. Many in the royal palace heard her voice and felt speechless.


    That Ye Futian is one hell of a lucky *sshole.


    The people from the Cottage Villa came to the royal palace in a low profile manner several days later, hardly alerting anyone around them.


    The teleportation grand matrix in the royal palace lit up, and many disappeared from Emperor Xia''s Palace right away.


    Princess Xia Qingyuan left with them.


    It was not until Xia Qingyuan went off that someone, including Yao Xi, took notice, wondering where Xia Qingyuan had taken Ye Futian.


    However, the ones guarding the matrix actually kept the whole thing a secret and did not say anything to anyone.


    ...


    In the royal palace of Dali Dynasty several days later.


    Li Yao had seen some dark times after the incident with the Seventh Swordsman all those years ago.


    He had originally been a student of the imperial advisor in name and had gotten close to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    However, due to the case with the Seventh Swordsman, he had almost turned against the Imperial Advisor and was at odds with them. He had even gotten the Prince Regent to act, yet the Prince Regent was blocked off by the Imperial Advisor, allowing Ye Futian to leave alive.


    As such, Li Yao became the most downtrodden one in Dali Dynasty.


    Both sides wanted to have nothing to do with him.


    Li Yao reflected on himself and trained in isolation since then, and was actually able to make it into Saint Plane at the start of year 10024 of Divine Prefecture Calendar. That caused quite a commotion, and even Emperor Li took notice of him, thinking better of him. The third prince came to show goodwill as well.


    Li Yao began to get close to his third brother and the side of the royal members, cutting off contact with those from the Imperial Advisor altogether.


    Of course, it went without saying that the Imperial Advisor''s Residence was having quite a hard time. They were keeping a very low profile.


    "Your Highness." A servant girl came to report.


    "Who was it that allowed you to disturb me?" Li Yao, who was training, opened his eyes and shot a cold glare at her. Having one''s training interrupted was something extremely irksome.


    "Your Highness, there is news from Emperor Xia''s Realm," the servant kneeled and said with a shuddering voice.


    Li Yao''s eyes softened after he heard that it was news from Emperor Xia''s Realm. "Bring them in."


    "Yes, Your Highness." The servant girl left and quickly brought someone there.


    "Your Highness." That someone bowed.


    "What is it?" Li Yao glanced at the messenger, wondering if it had something to do with Ye Futian and if that man did something that would have astounded everyone yet again.


    "There was news from Emperor Xia''s Palace saying that Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan activated the teleportation grand matrix in the royal palace, leaving Emperor Xia''s Realm," the messenger reported.


    "You sure about this?" Li Yao rose. Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan both left Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    "The news could not be more true. Many knew of that news. Xia Qingyuan had indeed left with Ye Futian."


    "Where have they headed to?" Li Yao asked.


    "The Emperor Xia''s Palace sealed the news, but there were rumors saying that Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan might have gone to train in the Crimson Dragon Realm."


    "The Crimson Dragon Realm?" Li Yao''s eyes sparkled.


    The Crimson Dragon Region consisted of both Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm. The Crimson Dragon Realm was the primary realm of the Crimson Dragon Region. It was not a place where both Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan could throw their weight around, yet they had actually left for that place.


    "Is the news reliable?" Li Yao asked again.


    "There shouldn''t be a problem," the messenger replied.


    Li Yao was feeling rather restless by then. Despite having broken into Saint Plane, there were some obsessions that he was unable to lay to rest.


    The time he spent being duped by Ye Futian proved to be the greatest insult he suffered in his life. He had to make Ye Futian pay for that.


    "Ye Futian in Crimson Dragon Realm," Li Yao mumbled to himself and then left.


    Ye Futian ventured outside with Xia Qingyuan, so Emperor Xia would have definitely sent powerful escorts to protect them along the way.


    Li Yao''s current powers proved rather inadequate.


    However, it was a chance that he would absolutely not miss.

 1174 Madam Ye?

    The Crimson Dragon Realm was the primary realm of the Crimson Dragon Region, and the central areas of many regions were connected to many realms, making them extremely prosperous and bustling with people.


    People of all realms in the region came to train and explore there.


    It went without saying that those who were capable of crossing realms to train were either extremely powerful people or people with highly notable backgrounds��for instance, someone like Xia Qingyuan.


    Otherwise, the time that one would have spent crossing realms to train would have exceeded what ordinary cultivators were able to afford.


    Ye Futian and his party were already at Crimson Dragon Realm, and for the past several days, they were able to feel one thing about the place��it was hot.


    Crimson Dragon Realm was filled with intense, fiery aura throughout the place, like how the void aura permeated the entire Empty Realm. That place would have been a heaven for cultivators training in fire-related abilities. People who were versed in the will of the great path of fire would have been extremely suited to train at the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Furthermore, the fiery aura of the Crimson Dragon Realm was more intense than the will of space found in the Empty Realm.


    As such, the place was very hot.


    But then again, cultivators cared little about their surrounding temperatures.


    It did not seem that the notion of spiritual qi in the Upper Worlds being abundant was an exaggeration. Furthermore, spiritual qi was not the only thing found in abundance.


    Ye Futian even began to wonder what the true nature of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path actually was.


    Is it really like it is said in legends, that all realms are products born from the heavenly path shattering? he wondered.


    Ye Futian was drinking at a restaurant in the Crimson Dragon Realm, feeling scorching heat welling up from within his body. It was as if flames were about to shoot through his throat. Fiery will of the great path in his body was invoked, causing him to feel himself being set ablaze.


    The booze here really is something indeed, he thought.


    He took the cup on his left and mumbled, "Some fine booze indeed. No wonder it''s so expensive. One hell of a luxury this thing is."


    The liquor contained the power of the great path, making a true fine brew of the great path. The price of one bottle of liquor was calculated in sacred spirit stones as well. No common folk would have been able to afford such an item.


    It was no wonder that those of high birth had a natural edge to them right from birth.


    If one were to think about the cultivators of the Lower Worlds, they were indeed a miserable lot. They lacked resources to back their training and had to rely on themselves to make it far enough before being able to enjoy more resources. The difficulty of them doing so far eclipsed those who had an impressive background.


    Xia Qingyuan was seated across Ye Futian. She remained dressed in men''s clothing and looking dashing. Curiosity could be seen in her eyes.


    "How about you give it a go?" Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan and said.


    As a daughter of Renhuang, Xia Qingyuan had naturally enjoyed all manner of resources, but she was a light drinker.


    She poured herself a cup after being urged by Ye Futian, before emptying it.


    As someone who had yet to make it to Saint Plane, she felt as if her internal organs were burning, and her body had been set on fire. Her face was burning red in an instant as well.


    She stared at Ye Futian. Her eyes looked like they were about to spit flames.


    Ye Futian looked at her and then said with a grin, "You don''t look half bad like that at all. But don''t drink so much in one go. It''d be quite a waste."


    He then took the bottle away from Xia Qingyuan and handed it to another woman sitting elsewhere, saying, "Phoenix, you, on the other hand, should drink more and don''t let it go to waste."


    Phoenix trained in fire type abilities.


    "Can I try too, master?" The Black Wind Condor stuck its head over, and Xia Qingyuan shot a look at the bird, who then lowered its head, lowering its neck.


    It was tough for a bird to get around.


    "How far are we away from Crimson Dragon City?" Ye Futian asked Xia Qingyuan. He did not look at the map of Crimson Dragon Realm carefully. Xia Qingyuan had one with her, after all.


    "Two to three days away," Xia Qingyuan replied. The Crimson Dragon City was the main city of Crimson Dragon Realm. It was located at the absolute center of the realm.


    "Crimson Dragon Realm is indeed a big place," Ye Futian mumbled.


    Big and very hot.


    It was said that the Crimson Dragon Realm had nine suns, and they took turns rising. There was no night in the realm, only day.


    There were rumors saying that the master of Crimson Dragon Realm��the Crimson Dragon Emperor��had a wife who was an empress. She spent her days basking in the sun.


    While the truth of the rumor remained to be seen, it nonetheless made Ye Futian realize how truly terrifying extremely highly trained cultivators were.


    He had never experienced how powerful cultivators of Renhuang Plane truly were, but saints were terrifying enough as they were.


    At the level of Renhuang, one could kill millions simply by being angry, practically causing a genocide.


    "The Crimson Dragon Realm was at the center of the region. Cultivators from all realms gathered there, so it was only natural that the realm is huge. Not only is the place huge, but extremely powerful people are also practically everywhere. Your training doesn''t seem to be much compared to these people." Xia Qingyuan took a look at Ye Futian and continued, "Furthermore, due to being the center of the region, Crimson Dragon Realm is a very messy place. Mighty people from all realms clash often, and martial arts are greatly proliferated here. There are many cities and training resources to be found. They are taken by people powerful enough to claim and keep them. Plundering often happens here."


    Ye Futian chuckled. His training was indeed considered weak if compared to those throughout the 3,000 realms.


    However, being a saint, he no doubt was qualified enough to venture throughout the world, and he was indeed no weakling. His powers had surpassed most people, after all.


    Saints were always able to find a place where they belonged in any realm.


    For instance, in Emperor Xia''s Realm, the Jueying Sword Saint was but an ordinary saint, yet he was nonetheless able to establish the Jueying Palace.


    Due to him usually being surrounded by people from top-notch forces, his sainthood training did not seem to stand out all that much. In truth, however, any saint would have been regarded as powerful people in any realm.


    "While the place is messy, it presents a lot of opportunities." A voice was heard at that moment.


    Ye Futian and the others turned around, looking at the ones sitting at a table beside theirs.


    The one who spoke wore a blue shirt and looked to be around 30 years of age, yet he was brimming with superb bearing. It was apparent that he was a saint.


    None of the people around him had common bearings either. Ye Futian was naturally able to sense that their powers were very strong.


    He had taken notice of the group a while ago. However, with the Crimson Dragon Realm quite literally overflowing with powerful cultivators, they did not seem to be out of place.


    "I take it that you all are from other realms then?" the young man asked Ye Futian and his party. He was gauging the party as he asked.


    There was little need to say much about Ye Futian''s bearing. Despite being dressed in men''s clothing, Xia Qingyuan was nonetheless a beauty.


    The Glass Saint was, too, a top-class beauty.


    Yaya looked very young, but he was unable to tell what level her training was actually at, but she was definitely very powerful.


    Even the sages did not look to be ordinary folk, which meant that they were possibly of top-notch forces from other realms, who came all the way to the Crimson Dragon Realm to train.


    There were too many people like that in the Crimson Dragon Realm. Many cultivators were coming from all realms to train every day, and every single one of them was of top-notch forces in their respective realms.


    "Yeah," Ye Futian nodded and said, "we''re from other realms."


    "The name''s Shen Jun, from Qianye City. I just came from training at Fusang Valley. I''m getting ready to head back to Qianye City. If you guys are heading to Crimson Dragon City, I''d say that it''s quite a coincidence since we''re heading there as well," the young man smiled and said.


    "Fusang Valley?" Xia Qingyuan turned her eyes at Shen Jun.


    "So are the rumors concerning the Fusang Valley true?" Xia Qingyuan looked at Shen Jun and asked, "I have heard that there is a Fusang Tree in the Fusang Valley that shoots up to the heavens. Nine suns revolve around the tree as they rise and fall in sequence. The suns are, too, bathing in Fusang Valley."


    "My level of training does not permit me to enter the center of Fusang Valley, so I have never seen it myself. But, it might actually be true." Shen Jun smiled and continued, "What plans do you have at Crimson Dragon City, by the way? Have you found a place to stay?"


    "We''re venturing out far away on a pilgrimage and have no specific goals. We plan to settle down at Crimson Dragon City first," Ye Futian replied.


    "In that case, why don''t we head there together, then? You could all settle down at Qianye City. That would save you a lot of trouble. Qianye City is not far away from Crimson Dragon City, after all." Shen Jun extended an invitation.


    "There are many small cities surrounding Crimson Dragon City, and it is said that most are private estates." Xia Qingyuan looked at Shen Jun.


    "And you are looking at the young city lord of Qianye City," Shen Jun smiled and replied.


    Xia Qingyuan nodded. Things sounded normal in that case.


    "Since you''re so kind to extend such an invitation to us, Brother Shen, we shall not be standing on ceremony then," Ye Futian agreed to the proposal. They saved themselves a lot of trouble with someone leading the way, and they did not need to look for somewhere to settle down.


    Xia Qingyuan took one look at Ye Futian, thinking that he might have been too eager to accept such a proposal.


    "Resources at the central region of Crimson Dragon Realm are all taken up by top-notch forces around. All of the cities had their masters, and they possess absolute rights in determining how their cities are run. The Crimson Dragon Emperor does not concern himself with any of those and lets the people of Crimson Dragon Realm quarrel among themselves. Being a young city lord means that Shen Jun has some kind of background. He might be up to something, inviting us to the city," Xia Qingyuan said to Ye Futian telepathically.


    "You''re of some kind of background yourself, Princess." Ye Futian replied, "With this Shen Jun guy leading the way, we''ll be saving ourselves a lot of trouble. Regardless of his motives, I do not need to worry about anything, since you''re around, after all, Princess."


    "..."


    Xia Qingyuan glared at Ye Futian. Just what does that b*stard take me for?


    Who is the valet here? she thought.


    Ye Futian ignored Xia Qingyuan''s glare. "You''re the one who insisted on coming after all. I''m not going to hold back then."


    "That was quick. How may I address you?" Shen Jun asked.


    "Name''s Ye Futian."


    Shen Jun smiled and nodded, saying, "You, your wife, and the others will be pleased when you reach Qianye City."


    "My wife?" Ye Futian was dumbfounded.


    Xia Qingyuan saw Shen Jun looking at her in a peculiar manner and retorted coldly, "I''m no wife of his."


    "My bad." Shen Jun cupped his hands and apologized. He was able to tell from how the two looked at each other that they had a solid relationship. He was simply testing things out by calling them husband and wife, and it did not really matter if he was right.


    However, Ye Futian did not seem to have any intention of introducing Xia Qingyuan, and Shen Jun found the relationship between the two puzzling.


    The Black Wind Condor opened its eyes wide and took one look at Xia Qingyuan, finding her to be oddly calm.


    The bird was praying deep down that the way those two were addressed earlier would never come true. My days would go down the gutter if that were to come true, it thought.


    "So, we''re departing now?" Shen Jun asked again.


    "No problem." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Alright, in that case, let''s go then. It''s quite a distance from here." Shen Jun smiled and rose. All of them walked out of the restaurant and took to the air, continuing to head straight for the central region of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sun hanging high in the sky.


    Is it true that the Crimson Dragon Realm has nine suns? he wondered.


    The Crimson Dragon Realm was only the main realm of the Crimson Dragon Region, and the fiery aura was already that intense. I wonder what the Supreme Path Realm is like, he thought.


    Ye Futian was getting increasingly curious about the world of cultivators.


    What would the eyes of an emperor be able to see indeed!

 1175 Demonic Cultivator

    The Crimson Dragon City served as the center of Crimson Dragon Realm, and many cities were surrounding it. There were people building cities outside Crimson Dragon City in the early days of the realm. As time passed, the number of cities grew, and the place became what it was at present.


    The Crimson Dragon Realm was at the center of Crimson Dragon Region, and all manner of people were found in that realm. Other than cultivators native to Crimson Dragon Realm, there were also cultivators from other realms.


    Some were there for pilgrimage, and some settled down at the realm for good.


    As such, the Crimson Dragon Realm was extraordinarily prosperous and lively, in a manner that Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm were unable to compare to at all. The place was a main realm of the region, after all, gathering mighty ones from many other realms.


    As such, the many cities littered around Crimson Dragon City were also controlled by mighty ones from all places.


    Powerful cultivators took cities and called themselves king, as they became king of a city.


    There were those who gave it their all to manage their cities, making their respective cities forces that belonged entirely to themselves, and things continued to develop from there.


    Some made the cities a place of training for their clans and families, taking over the entire place but never bothering themselves to manage them.


    There was also an extremely rare bunch who went about taking one whole city for themselves only, making the place their private training ground.


    The Crimson Dragon Emperor did not concern himself with any of that and simply let things take their own courses. The turnaround of those cities was intense.


    Qianye City was one of those cities and had been around for many years, becoming quite a place in itself.


    Two groups of people came from the air high above Qianye City. It was the young city lord of Qianye City, Shen Jun, and Ye Futian''s party, coming to Qianye City.


    Xia Qingyuan introduced what she knew about the Crimson Dragon Realm in detail to Ye Futian along the way.


    Ye Futian developed some knowledge about the realm. The main realm of the Crimson Dragon Region was far more chaotic and intense than places like Emperor Xia''s Realm. The notion of the strong preying on the weak was shown in a more clear manner.


    Shen Jun turned his eyes to Ye Futian and the newcomer''s party at that moment, saying, "You are here from other realms. Do you have any plans to stay here for long? If you people are indeed planning to stay here for some time, would you mind being the city lord''s office''s guests, then?"


    "Thank you, Brother Shen, but we''re only here for training and will be leaving before long. There is no need to bother you any further." Ye Futian refused. The way Shen Jun put it, it seemed that he intended to get them to side with the city lord''s office.


    However, there was no way they would become a part of other forces at the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    It was apparent that Shen Jun had good eyes for gauging people, wanting to make them his people.


    "Very well." Shen Jun smiled and did not mind. He then continued, "We met at a restaurant out there, and since we''re all now here at Qianye City, I''ll be your host. Let''s go to the best restaurant in the city."


    "Thank you, Brother Shen," Ye Futian smiled and agreed to it.


    Xia Qingyuan, who was at his side, glared at him and said telepathically, "This Shen Jun guy is a young city lord and has quite a background. The way he is doing things with us makes it seem like he''s trying to buy us over. There is no way we will do it, so why get so close to him?"


    "Princess, when one trains outside, the people one gets to know come from all corners of the world. Now that we''re at a main realm and there are so many mighty ones around, if Shen Jun proves to be of goodwill, then we have nothing to lose being friends with him. If he is up to no good, then we have nothing to fear either," Ye Futian replied.


    They were only stopping by. It felt right to be at home everywhere since they were out on a pilgrimage, after all.


    Seeing that Ye Futian knew what he was doing so, Xia Qingyuan did not say anything further.


    Since they were away from Emperor Xia''s Realm, she did not seem to have that much of a say of things anymore despite being a princess. As such, she just let him be.


    The largest restaurant in Qianye City was one of the businesses ran by the city lord''s office.


    The scene at their place��above the stairs and below the pavilions��looked very elegant, and one would have been lucky to look at the scene faraway, drinking there.


    Shen Jun then gave the people around him their orders. Several of them took flight and left. He then looked at Ye Futian at his side, smiling and saying, "I''d say that you, Brother Ye, definitely have exceptional talents, being able to become a saint at such a young age. I''ve just ordered someone to invite some young saints here, and we could talk about training."


    "Sounds great. I''d like to meet the saints of Crimson Dragon City as well." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    "I have forgotten to ask. Which realm are you from?" Shen Jun asked again.


    "I''m from Emperor Xia''s Realm." Ye Futian answered truthfully. Shen Jun nodded and said, "I have heard of the realm; one that belongs to the Crimson Dragon Region as well. But I have never left Crimson Dragon Realm despite having been training for so long. That is one of my regrets."


    "The Crimson Dragon Realm is the main realm of the region itself. It''s perfectly normal to have never left. If the trip is for training, I''m afraid you''ll have to go to other realms that are more powerful," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    Cultivators aimed for higher heights, so there was no way they would have ventured to weaker places instead.


    Having made it from the Nine States to the Upper Worlds of Emperor Xia''s Realm, there was no way Ye Futian would have ventured to other Lower Worlds to train. It might have been possible if he were to be going to those places to temper his state of mind, though.


    "You have a point," Shen Jun smiled and said. He then looked at Xia Qingyuan and the others. The most attractive people in the group were all women. Since Ye Futian did not introduce any of them to him, it would have been awkward for him to ask.


    He was still unable to discern the relationship between everyone.


    For instance, Xia Qingyuan had always behaved in a cold and aloof manner, looking haughty and prideful, which meant that she was of very high status within the party. She and Ye Futian were always among the crowd, yet she was not Ye Futian''s wife, and there had never been an intimacy shown between the two.


    From the looks of it all, those people might have been people studying under the same teacher. Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan might have been holding core positions within the clan.


    Shen Jun asked proactively after having that thought, "I suppose your group is people studying in the same clan, Brother Ye?"


    Ye Futian knew that Shen Jun was curious. He then smiled and said, "You could say that. Most of us here do indeed study within the same clan."


    "I suppose your teacher is extraordinary for being able to produce students such as yourself," Shen Jun smiled and said.


    Ye Futian smiled and said nothing more.


    Both of them chatted leisurely, and many below the restaurant looked up in their direction. Some were curious about the identities of Ye Futian and his people. They were, after all, received personally by the young city lord, and they were still shrouded in mystery. The only thing known about them was that they all felt extraordinary.


    A figure came through the air at that moment.


    That person flew straight into the restaurant and arrived where they were with just a single step.


    That person wore a long robe, and his hair was pitch black. His eyes were brimming, and an overbearing aura emanated from him.


    "Young city lord." He nodded to Shen Jun as he greeted him. He then turned his eyes at Ye Futian and the others, looking rather hostile.


    "Mo Chen," Shen Jun then said, "this is Ye Futian. We got to know each other when I was on my way back from Fusang Valley."


    Mo Chen took one look at Ye Futian with a plain expression. One could describe him as cold.


    Yet another figure arrived where they were right there and then. It was a woman. Her sleeves and long hair billowed. She was of decent appearance, and there was an exceptional bearing about her. She wore plainly and looked clean and clear-cut.


    "You''re in quite a good mood, young city lord," the woman looked at Shen Jun and said.


    "Situ Yan. The eldest daughter of the Situ clan of Qianye City. The youngest woman in Saint Plane." Shen Jun introduced each other. Even in Qianye City, there were a few saints who were Ye Futian''s age.


    Other than resources, one also needed talent and the right state of mind to achieve much in cultivation. Accomplishing that also required time and experience.


    At that moment, an extremely hot aura was sensed. Everyone turned to look far away. A huge fiery beast appeared in the sky. It was the fiend, Qiongqi.


    That demonic beast was humongous and was oozing rage and hostility. Black flames were burning all over its body as if it was something that came from hell.


    A low pitched roar was heard, and the fiend headed straight for the steps below. Many evaded, and a girl turned around and looked at the Qiongqi that was about to descend, feeling terrified.


    "Look out!" someone yelled.


    "Stop it already!" Situ Yan eyed the carriage on the Qiongqi''s back and shouted. However, the ones on it seemed to have heard nothing. The huge body continued to descend, and it seemed as if it was about to step onto the girl.


    Ye Futian and his people frowned at the scene. He then stood up and disappeared.


    The fiend seemed to have been stopped by a formless will of the great path at the very moment it descended. A bolt of lightning flashed, and the little girl disappeared from where she was.


    The fiend descended with a loud boom. Many were still reeling from the shock.


    They turned around and looked at the steps above, seeing a silver-haired figure cradling the little girl in his arms, casting a cold glare before him.


    "It''s okay." Ye Futian lowered his head and looked at the trembling little girl, consoling her.


    "Ran." An elder ran up to him, and his face was ashen from fright.


    The little girl cried as she ran to the elder. Ye Futian turned around and looked at the fiend. A voice was heard from it.


    "Will of the great path of space."


    The voice sounded slightly demonic. One figure after another clad in white flashed. All of them were pretty women, and it seemed that they were all very young, looking to be around 20 or so. They laid prostrate before the fiend as they landed.


    A young cultivator clad in white walked out of the carriage on the Qiongqi''s back. His white garb looked utterly stainless. and even his shoes looked spotless. That young face looked slightly demonic, and he had an extremely fair complexion.


    The man stepped out and walked by stepping onto the women. He walked to the front of the steps and looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at him as well with rather cold eyes. The world of cultivators had all manners of people in it, after all.


    The man did not mind and looked at the old man and the girl, saying, "She was lucky enough to survive. Send her over to the Bliss Palace tomorrow."


    The old man looked up in a trembling manner at the young man who spoke. His face was ashen, yet he lowered his head, saying, "Understood."


    "No need for that, old man," Ye Futian looked at the old man and said. The old man looked at Ye Futian, wanting to say something, yet he ended up saying nothing.


    The young man smirked hearing Ye Futian''s words. He then looked at Ye Futian and said, "You take pity on them, then? What do you think will happen to her in the end if she does not enter Bliss Palace?"


    "Not as bad as you make it seem," Ye Futian replied.


    The other party smirked sarcastically. There were many people like that in the world of cultivators��no background and no one to look after them. Crimson Dragon Realm would not have ended up as much in the end. It was him being generous for allowing her to enter Bliss Palace.


    "Alright, Brother Ye is a guest of mine." At that moment, Shen Jun''s voice was heard from the pavilion. The young man then moved his eyes away from Ye Futian, looking at Shen Jun and nodded. "Young city lord."

 1176 An Incident Caused by a Little Girl

    Shen Jun nodded and said, "Come on in."


    Ye Futian glanced at the other party before turning around, settling back into his seat.


    That young man walked to the restaurant and sat somewhere. His demonic eyes had been lingering on Xia Qingyuan, the Glass Saint, and the women in the group when he turned to look at Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned, her eyes looking colder than usual.


    "Brother Ye, this is the young palace lord of the Bliss Palace of Qianye City, Bai Ze. He has a habit of going about things his way. I hope you can forgive that," Shen Jun said to Ye Futian. He turned around to look at Bai Ze. "Bai Ze, it''s best that you keep your eyes peeled on the future. If it had not been for Brother Ye making a move, your beast might have just stepped on her."


    "She would be spared from having to experience the cruelty of the world in the future, then." Bai Ze''s expression was calm. He seemingly did not feel anything wrong with what he did.


    "Everyone has their own fate to deal with. Even if there are trials and tribulations in the future, it is their path to walk. There is no need for you to find an excuse for your coldblooded nature," Situ Yan glanced at Bai Ze and said.


    "Ms. Situ hails from a renowned clan and has never known the insignificance and despair felt by the weak," Bai Ze looked at Situ Yan and replied. Situ Yan recalled her background when she heard what Bai Ze said.


    It was said that Bai Ze had been through a lot since young, and he was able to get as far as he did by climbing out of a sea of blood. That was why he had an obsession with cleanliness, with not a single speck of dust being found on him.


    He also liked young, pretty women, those who were brimming with the zest of life. It reminded him that his own blood was still warm.


    "She was born in a place like Qianye City, and none of her elders were able to serve as much of a backing for her. They were unable to even look after her. What do you think would have become of her from here on out?" Bai Ze elaborated without the slightest hint of emotion, sounding rather demonic.


    "Regardless of the life she would be walking from here on out, it''s not your place to decide for her," Ye Futian said coldly.


    "But it is indeed my place." Bai Ze turned to look at Ye Futian after hearing his words. Both men glared at each other, without either of them willing to look away.


    "There is no need for you to argue." Shen Jun then said, "Brother Ye and his people came all the way from Emperor Xia''s Realm. I''ve invited you all here to drink, not fight."


    "One''s drinking companion is of the utmost importance. Forgive me, Brother Shen, I''m in no mood to drink with one such person," Ye Futian said coldly.


    "I think it''d be awfully boring as well." Bai Ze glanced at Ye Futian plainly before turning to Xia Qingyuan and the Glass Saint. "But the two of you, would you like to have a drink?"


    "Get lost."


    Xia Qingyuan glanced at him in a cold, condescending manner, her eyes filled with contempt.


    As for the Glass Saint, she behaved as if she had never heard him in the first place, staying quiet.


    Bai Ze''s eyes continued to stare at the two of them. A plain grin was seen on his pale face, and it seemed as if he did not mind at all.


    "Idiot."


    The bird shot a look of contempt at Bai Ze. My master has yet to throw his weight around, and yet this dude thinks he owns the place now? it thought.


    While that demonic woman is indeed rather brutal, she is definitely not someone that *sshole deserves to lay hands on, it thought.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyes softened somewhat when she looked at the Black Wind Condor.


    "Where did the animal come from?" Bai Ze''s eyes turned demonic as he shot a look at the bird. Plain pressure was emanated, and the Black Wind Condor sensed danger. However, its eyes continued to stare at him. It said, "And I was thinking of telling you to call me ''master.''"


    Several figures clad in black appeared behind Bai Ze, looking cold and murderous.


    "Well, since none of you people are willing to drink, I guess it would not be a bad thing to see you guys fight instead. But then again, don''t go too far. Let see what the ones who have yet to break into the Saint Plane are made of then," Shen Jun said and looked at Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and the others behind Ye Futian.


    "I''m completely fine with that." Bai Ze''s eyes remained on the Black Wind Condor. Call you master, eh? he thought.


    "What do you think, Brother Ye?" Shen Jun looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    Ye Futian looked up and shot a thoughtful look at Shen Jun, then said, "Those people are not qualified."


    He then rose and said to Shen Jun, "I have lost my mood today, and I shall take my leave. Please excuse me, Brother Shen."


    Shen Jun nodded after seeing Ye Futian and his people rise. He then asked, "Would you like me to see to accommodation arrangements for you?"


    "No need for that. I''ll look for a place myself," Ye Futian said and ventured outside. He did not bother to even look at Bai Ze on his way out, merely passing by his side.


    The others followed Ye Futian and left.


    He scanned the place a little bit after walking out of the restaurant before heading somewhere else.


    An old man and a little girl were walking in Qianye City. They evaded anyone who they passed, looking exceptionally tiny and insignificant in the crowd.


    "Old man." The old man halted his steps. He turned around and saw Ye Futian before bowing and saying, "Greetings, young man."


    "Uncle," the little girl called. Her eyes still looked sweet and innocent.


    Ye Futian walked up and patted the little girl''s head, before turning to look at the old man, saying, "I see that the young palace lord of Bliss Palace being a demonic guy who is up to no good. Just what kind of a place is Bliss Palace?"


    The old man was alerted and scanned their surroundings after hearing Ye Futian''s words. He lowered his voice and said, "The cultivators of the Bliss Palace are indeed a very eerie, demonic bunch. The young palace lord is more so. He likes young girls and uses them as cauldrons to train."


    "Why were you still willing to send her to the Bliss Palace, then?" Ye Futian asked.


    "What else could I do? I was once a servant of Little Ran''s parents. I''ve been looking after her ever since her parents died. In a place like Qianye City, it would be best for Little Ran here to be a servant girl for some larger force. While the young palace lord of the Bliss Palace is using girls as cauldrons for training, at least the girls around him are able to train with him nonetheless. I hope Little Ran is of better talent. She might have better opportunities." The old man sighed.


    "But then again, if you are willing to take her in, I would be able to die in peace." The old man then kneeled on the ground. The little girl wanted to kneel as well, but Ye Futian stopped her.


    Ye Futian remained speechless for quite some time. He had once how wonderful it would have been, if people of the Nine States of the Lower Worlds, from places like the Eastern Barren Territory and the Nandou Nation, were able to train in the Upper Worlds.


    However, at that moment, he seemed to have realized that not everyone would have been able to be like him, capable of moving up step by step, and be able to be met with the best forces there were, whenever he might have ended up in.


    The people of every realm had their own way of survival. Powerful people were able to stand out from the crowd. In contrast, in places where resources were abundant, and cultivators were commonly powerful, weak people without backgrounds were destined to be marginalized, making even just surviving difficult.


    But then again, there was also an extreme handful who were able to struggle and survive, getting more powerful one step at a time.


    However, for someone like Little Ran, who lost her parents, the possibility of such a thing happening was infinitely small. Worse still, the Crimson Dragon Realm was extremely vast. Just struggling and breaking free of the place would have proven difficult.


    The Crimson Dragon Realm was a chaotic place, which made conditions far harsher than places like Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "He was right, though. Maybe Bliss Palace is indeed not that bad of a choice for her." A voice was heard, and a woman arrived. It was none other than Situ Yan.


    The woman, who was the youngest saint in the Situ clan, was saying something that made Ye Futian feel pitiful.


    However, there was nothing he was able to say to retort.


    "We know that some things are wrong. But why do we console ourselves instead of righting said wrongs?" Ye Futian mumbled. It sounded like he was talking to Situ Yan, but at the same time, it was like he was asking himself.


    "A realm is vast. How much could even saints be able to change? How would we go about righting said wrongs?" Situ Yan asked.


    "The ancient ones had named plane levels of training of cultivators, with words like ''sages'' and ''saints.'' Did they mean only the magnitude of one''s power when they said that?" Ye Futian asked again.


    Situ Yan was astonished. Everyone in the world knew that Renhuang, Saint, and Sage meant planes of training, after all.


    "I could bring her to the Situ clan. However, I would only be able to change her fate by doing so. How would we be able to change the world of cultivators as a whole?" Situ Yan took a good look at Ye Futian. She found that the silver-haired cultivator who came to the Crimson Dragon Realm from other realms seemed different from the others.


    The old man kneeled and kowtowed to Situ Yan, shedding tears.


    "Thank you." Ye Futian looked at Situ Yan and said, "You''re right. But then again, even though we might not be able to change the world of cultivators, we will at least be able to change what we can. What is the plane that the palace lord of Bliss Palace is at?"


    Situ Yan stared at Ye Futian, saying, "He is an Unblemished Saint. What do you intend to do?"


    Bliss Palace was a top-notch force in Qianye City. The power of an Unblemished Saint would indeed be terrifying.


    Furthermore, there were many powerful saints to be found within the Bliss Palace.


    Ye Futian turned to look at Yaya.


    Yaya was able to tell what Ye Futian intended to do from the look in his eyes. She then nodded.


    He extended his hand and patted Yaya''s head, smiling brimmingly.


    Yaya then glared at him.


    "Third brother, what is more powerful than reasoning?" Ye Futian turned around and asked Gu Dongliu.


    "One''s fist," Gu Dongliu answered. The two brothers looked at each other.


    Their teacher had been propagating his ideals in the Eastern Barren Territory back then, but eventually found that he needed to rely on his fist to do the talking.


    As such, Ye Futian came to admire Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing better.


    All great, lofty goals had to be built on the foundations of one''s fist.


    Situ Yan looked at the backs of Ye Futian and his people with a peculiar expression. Just what are these people trying to do here? she wondered.


    Bliss Palace had a great estate in Qianye City. The majestic palace was towering constructs built in a cascading manner, extending into the clouds.


    That palace looked like something suspended in the air far away, looking majestic and magnificent.


    The golden gates of the Bliss Palace looked extremely lavish as well.


    A group of people came below Bliss Palace at that moment, standing before the gates.


    Ye Futian stood at the forefront. Xia Qingyuan looked at him in silence, not bothering to stop him at all.


    If Ye Futian liked the idea, it would not have mattered much even if he ended up crushing the entire Bliss palace.


    "Who are you people?" a mighty one standing before the gates of the Bliss Palace scolded Ye Futian and his party.


    Ye Futian did not bother saying anything. He took a few steps forward, and towering sword will emanated from his body all of a sudden.


    The sword aura shot to the skies and howling in the heavens, turning into shapes of leaves and pulsed with the dazzling light of the sword, circling above the heads of everyone present.


    The guard of the Bliss Palace was dumbfounded. Someone else yelled, "Intruders!"


    Sword will rained down from above as soon as the one yelling finished. The attack streaked through space as they rained.


    The great golden gates of the Bliss Palace crumbled right away at the very next moment.

 1177 Ridiculous

    The guards of Bliss Palace looked at what happened with astounded expressions. Thousands of sword will rained down and zipped past their sides. The might of the attacks continued to climb, and the buildings crumbled one after another as the attacks hit them.


    The place was quite literally turned into ruins within mere moments.


    One mighty one after another streaked through the sky, and powerful might of the saints were felt.


    The people from far away were shocked by the scene, and they all looked at the Bliss Palace''s direction.


    What kind of people would destroy Bliss Palace just like that?


    Powerful might of the saint whipped up in one of the destroyed halls in Bliss Palace. A silver-robed figure''s eyes pierced the air below.


    The figure stepped out and turned into a dazzling beam of silver light. He waved his sleeve, and terrifying devouring power shrouded the world around him, causing the sword wills to head straight for his sleeve.


    The silver figure continued to move forward as his long hair billowed. His entire body coursed with extremely dazzling silver light.


    Ye Futian gradually lifted into the air and looked at the figure before him. At the very next moment, Swords of Kasyapa rained down on him as they tore through the space. The silver figure''s expression twitched, and a rumbling noise was heard as he waved his sleeve about. A huge sleeve appeared and swept through their surroundings, sucking in the rain of swords into it.


    High-pitched cracking noises were heard, and the sleeve was torn apart right there and then. Swords of Kasyapa shot out and severed his long sleeve, piercing through his arm.


    With a terrifying shriek, that person became bloodstained and his face ashen.


    "Who is it that dares to wreak havoc here?" A loud, booming voice was heard throughout their surroundings. Many streams of saintly pressure pressed forth, rolling at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s body remained standing tall in the sky, and sword will circled him. He turned to the people of the Bliss Palace and asked, "Where is Bai Ze?"


    Many mighty ones from the Bliss Palace stepped outside, and their eyes were filled with murderous intent. However, at that moment, there was another young woman who appeared behind Ye Futian. A huge sword diagram appeared high in the sky. Boundless sword wills howled throughout the vast space, as they were melded into the sword diagram.


    The might of the sword shrouded the entire Bliss Palace as the sword diagram spun. The pulsing light of the swords appeared above the Bliss Palace, causing cracks to form everywhere.


    That scene caused the eyes of many saints in the Bliss Palace to be locked onto the sword diagram in the sky. Their expression looked grim after that.


    Their level of training naturally allowed them to sense the power latent within the sword diagram.


    If that sword were to be dropped, it would not have been something that Saints of True Self would be able to withstand.


    Furthermore, those people did not seem to be cultivators from Qianye City.


    When did Bai Ze end up offending such a powerful person?


    "Who are you people?" A voice was heard from the pinnacle of the Bliss Palace. Dazzling light glittered as they shot up to the heavens. A middle-aged man wearing a golden robe was seen standing there. Dazzling light seemed to be shining above his head, raining down onto his surroundings. The holy pressure seemed to have shrouded the vast space around him.


    His eyes felt sharper than swords as he cast his gaze at Yaya in the air.


    Yaya did not respond. The dazzling figure then lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian below.


    A figure clad in white gradually rose to the air within Bliss Palace. His clothing was free of stains. He cast his gaze at Ye Futian faraway with icy eyes.


    He was astounded that someone he had met no long ago in that restaurant came crashing into Bliss Palace.


    "Bai Ze, who is he?" That glittering middle-aged man was none other than the palace lord of Bliss Palace. He asked while looking at Bai Ze.


    "Teacher, he was someone I met not long ago in the restaurant. Someone from other realms." Bai Ze responded and then turned to Ye Futian, asking, "You''re doing this for that girl?"


    Did he come to Bliss Palace, one of the top forces in Qianye City, for reasons like that?


    Despite having been training for so many years, Bai Ze had never met someone so ridiculously crazy before.


    Ye Futian walked up to him and said, "You said that it was your place to decide whether she lives or dies. In that case, rather than to continue living a sinful life, I think it''d be better that you die."


    "We shall see if you''re fit to determine my fate." Bai Ze stepped forward. Golden tablets appeared in the air as he stepped with runes carved onto them��Bliss.


    Countless tablets circled in the air, all of them imbued with terrifying holy might. One who gazed upon the myriad of tablets seemed to be about to hallucinate, sucking them into the world of the tablets.


    Illusions? Ye Futian thought.


    A golden light shot out of Ye Futian''s eyes all of a sudden, enabling him to see through all that was ethereal. The tablets then shot at him in a frenzy.


    He stepped forward and was circled with sword will all around him. When the tablets came, the Swords of Kasyapa tore right through them, causing them to crumble one after another.


    Bai Ze waved his hands as he saw that dazzling figure coming up at him. An incredibly huge tablet that looked like it was from the heavens materialized out of nowhere, flying straight at Ye Futian and making escape impossible. The Swords of Kasyapa appeared, yet was unable to pierce through that tablet. Boundless dazzling holy light burst from the tablet, causing multiple layers of illusions in all who saw it.


    Ye Futian moved, and the space around him trembled as if every step he took weighed thousands of pounds. He extended his hand and focused the will of the great path into his fist, which then burst with glittering light.


    The will of the fist was launched before he had gotten close enough. One layer after another from the Huangting Fist Will was blasted at the tablet of the great path.


    Countless cracks formed on the tablet with his fists at the center within mere moments. The tablet then crumbled with a loud boom.


    He then lifted his hand and grabbed it in the air. Bai Ze felt as if the space around him had been placed in a lockdown. He held a golden spear in his hand, shining with glittering light.


    At that moment, swords rained from nowhere, streaking through space and headed straight for Bai Ze. He then waved the spear about and caused illusions to materialize.


    The swords were boundless, and with a tiny tearing sound, the swords managed to pierce Bai Ze''s body.


    However, at that moment, the palace lord made his move. He grabbed with his hand and causing formless power placing Bai Ze''s body in a lockdown. The swords still rained in a frenzy, and yet, they were unable to break through that barrier.


    The sword diagram in the sky unleashed towering sword will and an extremely dazzling beam of the sword burst through the air in a frenzy, heading straight for the palace lord of Bliss Palace.


    The palace lord looked at the air and stepped out. His surroundings trembled with him, and everyone around felt their bodies trembling. The weather in the air changed, and countless tablets streaked through the air.


    Holy light filled the entire Bliss Palace, and countless holy sword wills rained from the sword diagram. All mighty ones were on guard, and there was a heaven-cleaving sword appearing in the middle, which tore through their surroundings and crushed all of the tablets as it went straight for the palace lord.


    The boundless golden tablets that streaked at Yaya seemed to have been transmuted into thousands of ancient seals, yet none of them were able to survive being shined on by the sword diagram.


    The palace lord then extended his palm. Boundless holy light shrouded his entire body, and the towering golden light was all turned into tablets. His body grew in size and melded with the boundless tablets. He then attempted to lash out at the sword that was piercing the space with his bare hand.


    Terrifying rumbles were heard everywhere as the sword, and the hand clashed. The entire Bliss Palace was crumbling, and the towering building was quickly razed. The ground beneath the palace lord crumbled in a frenzy, with the cracks extending outward.


    Boom. Another rumble was heard, and everyone close enough to hear it felt as if their eardrums were about to rupture. Everyone then saw the palace lord take to the air and charge at Yaya. He lashed out with both arms, every strike seemingly able to cause a breakdown in reality.


    "An Unblemished Saint." Ye Futian looked at the battle taking place high in the sky. The palace lord''s body glittered. The holy light looked flawless, and there seemed to be no weaknesses in the great path wielded to be found. The power was such that not even Yaya''s sword matrix would have been able to take out with one strike.


    "Kill him." Bai Ze''s white garb was bloodstained. He glared at Ye Futian with cold eyes, and saints from Bliss Palace all turned to Ye Futian.


    "No one but the palace lord of the Bliss Palace and Bai Ze shall be killed. The Bliss Palace shall be dismantled. Anyone who dares make a move shall be killed with extreme prejudice," Ye Futian declared with a brimming voice. His voice was heard throughout the air and managed to stun all mighty ones around them. The saints from Bliss Palace all gazed at Ye Futian, and none of them made a move.


    The battle raging in the sky was immensely terrifying. Every attack from the palace lord seemed to have caused the space around them to rumble. It seemed there were millions of tablets in the air, and none of them was still able to break through Yaya''s sword. Furthermore, the sword diagram behind Yaya''s back seemed to be growing still, blocking out the sky. The swords of many cultivators in Qianye City streaked shot to the air and flew towards the diagram.


    The sword wills of the swordsmen seemed to be about to burst right through their bodies.


    The palace lord naturally knew something was off and brought increasingly raging power to bear with his attacks, seemingly about to bring about doomsday.


    "I shall hand Bai Ze over to you people." A voice was heard, which made many shudder. Is the palace lord about to lose the fight? they wondered.


    Yaya stepped out as soon as his voice was heard. The light of the sword diagram moved alongside her body. There seemed to be a beam appearing high in the sky as if about to tear through everything in its path.


    The light of the sword burst and rained down. The countless tablets all crumbled at that moment. Their surroundings seemed to have ground to a halt, and many saw a beam of the light of the sword appear on the palace lord''s imposing body, tearing right through it.


    He lifted his head and looked at the sky. Refusal to accept what was happening was in his imposing eyes.


    Am I about to die? he wondered.


    Unblemished Saints were regarded as super-powerful people, even in the Crimson Dragon Realm, but he ended up being killed before he knew what actually transpired.


    All of that sounded ridiculous.


    The palace lord was not alone. Many looked at what happened in the sky, and their eyes froze, finding the turn of events ridiculous.


    The scene was extremely shocking to them all.


    A dazzling beam of the sword felt blinding to all who saw it. At the very next moment, the palace lord''s body crumbled under the beam of light of the sword, turning into nothing.


    "No..." Bai Ze looked at the sky, and his eyes remained open despite the scorching, blinding light. His eyes were fixed on the scene.


    He was unable to believe that his teacher had just been killed.


    The death of an Unblemished Saint was caused only by him ignoring the fate of a little girl.


    He was wondering if all that would have even added up in the first place.

 1178 Ulterior Motives

    The palace lord of Bliss Palace was killed, and the place was falling apart, turning into ruins.


    What was happening right before them made them shudder deep down. What the hell is going on here? they wondered.


    Bai Ze seemed to have pissed off people he shouldn''t have.


    There were only a handful of people who stood out like the palace lord of Bliss Palace in Qianye City.


    No one would have expected that he was killed right there by someone who no one knew about.


    The woman who just killed him looked very young. From the looks of it, she seemed to be in her early twenties.


    However, her sword was no doubt, earth-shattering. It seemed as if half of the swordsmen in Qianye City had been alerted as soon as she brandished her sword.


    The saints of the Bliss Palace looked at what transpired speechlessly. They were rather angry, but the anger was directed at Bai Ze. How is that piece of sh*t capable of getting on the wrong side of a walking disaster like that? they thought.


    There was no doubt that it was the end of Bliss Palace. The place was razed. The silver-haired young man had also declared that he had no intention of killing anyone else, but Bliss Palace was not permitted to exist anymore.


    Ye Futian looked at it all with an uncaring expression. Ever since the Battle of the Empty Realm, Yaya had been at work restoring her former powers. She had once been a Holiness of Nirvana. Even though she still was unable to reach the pinnacle of her powers, she nonetheless was still capable of bringing combat capacity exceeding that of her current plane to bear. Furthermore, she was versed in sword matrix, to begin with.


    From the looks of the battle, the only ones that Yaya would not have been able to do anything about were people at the Holiness of Nirvana level. Any lower than that, she practically was capable of moping the floor with them.


    As for the death of the palace lord, Ye Futian was hardly affected. Despite some being of extremely high plane of training, they were all the same to him.


    There was no doubt that Bai Ze was evil. He had women served as cauldrons to facilitate his training and required young, pretty women to kneel beneath him whenever he went out. From how he had been going about his business, if it had not been for having reservations about Ye Futian''s powers, it was highly possible that he would have made a move against Xia Qingyuan. He had no care for the lives of others when he did so.


    The palace lord was Bai Ze''s teacher, and he had made Bai Ze the young palace lord. That spoke volumes of the palace lord''s character, and it was definitely due to him that Bai Ze dared to throw his weight around wherever he went.


    Ye Futian kept his eyes on Bai Ze.


    Bai Ze returned his gaze at that moment. He still felt the whole thing to be ridiculous even then.


    The prestige of an Unblemished Saint was not something that the title would have been able to fully cover, yet one such saint was killed right there and then all the same.


    "Since you think you could play with the lives of others as you fancy, then I assume that you wouldn''t think that it would be unreasonable that I now am coming for your life." Ye Futian stepped out, and sword will continued to course about him.


    Bai Ze looked at Ye Futian''s eyes. He thought the way he conducted his affairs would have been considered unbridled and without restraint.


    Yet, there Ye Futian was. He was another lunatic who went to raze the Bliss Palace and killed an Unblemished Saint all for a little girl.


    Just how crazy was he?


    Boom. Extremely forceful saintly power burst from him as he made his last stand.


    Sword will howled as Ye Futian pointed ahead. Boundless swords of space materialized in shapes of leaves, charging straight for Bai Ze.


    High-pitched screeches of clashes were heard, and Bai Ze''s defense was quickly broken through. The swords punched right through his body, which trembled frantically. A flash of the sword came and went in an instant at his brow. Bai Ze was standing completely still at the next moment. The sparkle in his eyes was wholly extinguished as he fell to the ground below.


    Both palace lords of Bliss Palace perished.


    The place that was known as Bliss Palace was completely razed in the great battle fought between Yaya and the palace lord prior.


    Sword will around Ye Futian dispelled, and he returned to Xia Qingyuan and the others. He then said, "Let''s go."


    The group turned around and left soon after, leaving behind ruins.


    Bliss Palace, which stood tall in Qianye City as a top-notch force, was razed in mere moments, reduced to the pages of history books.


    The cultivators of Bliss palace did not even know what had happened. They flashed and began rummaging around the ruins. Many were baffled to find that the people of Bliss Palace began fighting a terrifying civil war among themselves shortly after.


    The infighting was caused by fighting over the training resources leftover in the wake of the palace lord''s death.


    They splintered into several factions in the infighting that ensued shortly after. Several saints perished, and many found what was happening to be utterly ridiculous.


    What happened on that very day was utterly ridiculous.


    Some began to look into what happened and who that silver-haired young man was, as well as how Bai Ze came to be at odds with him.


    There was finally news saying that it could all be traced back to a meet-up at a restaurant in Qianye City.


    It was all caused by Bai Ze''s steed almost stomping a little girl to death. That incident led to the razing of Bliss Palace, which stirred quite a commotion in Qianye City. The palace lord, who was an Unblemished Saint, died in battle.


    The people of Qianye City were even more speechless after finding out the reason. Some people hate evil that much out there?


    However, all of that seemed to have reminded them to watch what they were doing from then on out. Bai Ze probably never even expected in his dreams, that his downfall would have been caused by him ignoring the fate of a little girl.


    That silver-haired young man from foreign realms was one hell of a brutal character.


    A figure flashed and arrived from far away. It was a woman��Situ Yan, who parted ways with Ye Futian not all that long ago. She came right away after sending the little girl to her clan.


    Her eyes froze as she looked at the ruins that had once been Bliss Palace.


    Her hair billowed in the air, looking messy, just like she felt deep down at the moment.


    He razed the Bliss Palace?


    Is he nuts or something? she wondered.


    ...


    The news spread all over Qianye City, and the city lord''s office naturally caught wind of the news.


    Shen Jun stood within the city lord''s office and listened to the reports of those who came, with a rather grim expression.


    "The palace lord of the Bliss Palace is dead?" Shen Jun doubted his ears at the moment.


    "Indeed." The one who came to report nodded. "He was killed by that young woman at that party. She was adept at using sword matrixes and had extremely powerful offensive capacities. Half of Qianye City was able to sense the power of the sword emanating from her sword matrix."


    Yaya came to mind right there and then. He had been unable to sense anything about that young woman when he met her.


    He never expected her to have been so powerful, so much so he had to reevaluate the powers of Ye Futian''s party.


    "Bai Ze died at Ye Futian''s hands, I assume. What are his powers like?" Shen Jun asked.


    "Swords as well," the one who came to report answered. Shen Jun nodded. He seemed to have gotten a vague idea about things. If his speculations proved correct, those people were probably from top-notch forces adept at the way of the sword in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and Ye Futian was probably the son or personal student of a master of a holy land of the sword.


    Bai Ze, being a young palace lord, was incredibly powerful on his own. He would not have caught the palace lord''s attention in the first place otherwise. The fact that Ye Futian was able to kill him made something clear.


    If Yaya and Ye Futian had both being able to bring such formidable combat prowess to bear, then the others were not bad either.


    It was no wonder why Ye Futian would have refused right on the spot when he invited Ye Futian into the city lord''s office. If he were to be from a top-notch force in his native realm, then it was only natural that Ye Futian''s seniors might have been Holiness of Nirvana level.


    "Keep a close eye on them for the moment. Don''t let them leave Qianye City," Shen Jun said.


    "Understood." The one who came to report nodded.


    ...


    After Ye Futian killed Bai Ze, they found an inn in Qianye City to stay at.


    Due to having razed Bliss Palace, they attracted attention everywhere they went in Qianye City. People were talking about them everywhere. The inn where they stayed in was quickly packed. The place was filled with people talking about them.


    The compound of the inn was huge, making it seem like a private palace instead.


    The group stuck together just about all the time. Xia Qingyuan then asked Ye Futian, "We''re not leaving Qianye City, then?"


    "Why would we want to leave?" Ye Futian asked in return.


    "Don''t you think something is off?" Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian and asked again.


    Ye Futian then looked at Xia Qingyuan in the eyes and asked, "You think so?"


    "Shen Jun invited us to Qianye City and received us at a restaurant. Why would he bother inviting Bai Ze?" Xia Qingyuan then commented, "I think he is up to something."


    Ye Futian nodded. His eyes looked rather cold.


    Shen Jun was the young palace lord of Qianye City, and it was apparent that he and Bai Ze knew each other. There was no way he would not have known what Bai Ze was like as a person.


    Bai Ze liked young, pretty women, and there were top-notch beauties like Xia Qingyuan, the Glass Saint, and Phoenix with him. If Shen Jun had been sincere in receiving them, he should have avoided letting them meet Bai Ze.


    However, Shen Jun did not do so. Or rather, he acted on his own and invited Bai Ze. A young palace lord who was already a saint himself, having nothing to hide by doing all of that?


    That meant that even if the little girl was not there, there might have been a scuffle breaking out over other reasons.


    Bai Ze had already asked Xia Qingyuan and the Glass Saint if they would have liked to drink with him at the restaurant.


    All that made Ye Futian doubt Shen Jun, thinking the young palace lord to be up to no good.


    "Shen Jun might have wanted to test what we were capable of by using Bai Ze. But I don''t think he would have expected things to get this out of hand," Xu Que said lazily, and many nodded in agreement.


    "What would he be up to?" Gu Dongliu asked in a low voice. What is he testing us out for? he wondered.


    What is Shen Jun''s deal for inviting us all to Qianye City in the first place?


    Be it due to goodwill or ulterior motive, they were at least able to tell from how things went, that Shen Jun was not to be trusted.


    "That is the key." Ye Futian then said, "That is why I don''t want to leave the place even more. I want to see what Shen Jun is trying to pull."


    Xia Qingyuan took one look at Ye Futian, thinking that he was not afraid of stirring up trouble.


    She, on the other hand, was reserved enough not to get herself into such boring troubles.


    However, since Ye Futian wanted to know so badly, she just let him be.


    "If my speculations are correct, Shen Jun might have his men staying here in the inn. I''m afraid he''d come looking for trouble with us soon enough," Ye Futian continued.


    If Shen Jun had ulterior motives, then it stood to reason that he would not have let them leave Qianye City easily.


    That meant that he would show up sooner or later.


    Just as Ye Futian speculated, Shen Jun brought his men to the inn they were staying in not long after that.


    One figure after another arrived, and the people in the entire inn looked up at the sky. Shen Jun was seen there and stepped into the compound Ye Futian, and the others were at.


    "Young city lord," Ye Futian called as he saw Shen Jun coming.


    "You''ve just got here, and yet, you''ve already razed one of the top-notch forces in Qianye City. You are making my job difficult," Shen Jun looked at Ye Futian and said. As the city lord, it was technically within the jurisdiction of, or even a requirement for, the city lord''s office to interfere. With a top-notch force within the city��the Bliss Palace��razed, the city lord''s office naturally looked into it.

 1179 Shen Juns Invitation

    Ye Futian listened to Shen Jun''s words and replied, "I''m sure you saw how Bai Ze paid no heed to the lives of others, young city lord. I was unable to take it so I went to kill him. The palace lord of Bliss Palace allowed his students to use women as cauldrons for training, and I think there are many in Qianye City who resent them for it. Are you telling me none of that bothers you one bit?"


    Shen Jun lowered his head and looked at the silver-haired young man below. The mood in the inn felt rather tense.


    However, moments later, Shen Jun laughed and waved his arm a bit, bringing his people down to the compound. Shen Jun walked up to Ye Futian and said with a smile, "There have been people in the past who complained about Bliss Palace to the city lord''s office. But, they were still one of the top-notch forces in Qianye City. What is past is past, and there is no need to delve into it further. But then again, you have caused Qianye City to lose one top-notch power, and I suppose you''d have ways to make up for it?"


    Ye Futian''s eyes sparkled with a peculiar expression in them. Shen Jun indeed knew how to go about his business. When he first showed up, it seemed as if he was there to interrogate them, yet he quickly turned his stance around, as if he deliberately let the matter slide altogether.


    It was as if he was making Ye Futian owe him a favor.


    "How would you like us to compensate, young city lord?" Ye Futian asked.


    Shen Jun grinned and said, "Bai Ze was the young palace lord of the Bliss Palace, and he was indeed mighty, but he ended up dying by your sword, Brother Ye. Even someone as powerful as the palace lord himself had, too, perished by the hands of those of yours. I''m getting quite interested in your way of the sword, and I have brought several from the city lord''s office. The lot usually has their eyes on top powers, and they are all swordsmen as well. It''s quite a coincidence that your party practices the same type of arts. Would you care to spar with them for a bit?"


    Ye Futian felt rather peculiar about the proposition. He thought Shen Jun would have made his objective clear. He never expected just to spar.


    That did not seem to be a big deal.


    Or rather, Shen Jun may have had other objectives.


    "Alright, how would you like to go about it, young city lord?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You two, come over here," Shen Jun turned around and said. Two people walked up to them.


    "Well, here is the lot I mentioned. They are both at the pinnacle of Sage Plane and mere steps away from breaking into Saint Plane. It''s great that you have people from this plane in your group. Let them have a go at it, and see what kind of guidance you can give as they fight," Shen Jun elaborated casually.


    "Will do." Ye Futian nodded.


    He wanted to see what Shen Jun was up to.


    Ye Futian turned around to look at Ye Wuchen and Xu Que. Both of them were swordsmen, and they were at the pinnacle of Sage Plane, especially Ye Wuchen, whose training had progressed by leaps and bounds ever since the Swordmaster lent a sword to him. He was, too, one step away from sainthood. Xu Que, on the other hand, was somewhat lower in terms of plane level. He was not as blessed when it came to the availability of resources.


    Ye Wuchen had first acquired sword will of Renhuang and had the Swordmaster lend a sword to him. Both occurrences were extremely rare for swordsmen.


    The Swordmaster had borrowed a sword to Ye Wuchen, which allowed him to participate at the Unblemished Saint-level fight. He was able to experience firsthand in the Battle of Empty Realm how powerful sword arts at saint level was.


    Ye Wuchen and Xu Que stepped forward. Shen Jun, Ye Futian, and the others made way. Ye Wuchen and Xu Que stood against the two swordsmen from the city lord''s office at the center of the crowd. One of those two was of more advanced age, who had grown a silver beard and looked sage-like. He wore a sword on his back. The other one was somewhat younger, and his eyes were pointed, lacking the reservation shown by the older swordsmen.


    Ye Futian looked at the two of them. If the fight was truly meant for him to give guidance to his juniors, there would not have been one whose age was more advanced. They were both explicitly selected for the fight.


    "After you," both of them said to Ye Wuchen and Xu Que.


    "Please." Ye Wuchen and Xu Que returned the gesture. Sword will filled their vicinity, and high-pitched ringing was heard.


    Boom. A raging sword will burst all of a sudden. The younger swordsman from the city lord''s office burned like the sun and was basking in fire. His sword felt to be as scorching as the sun as beams of terrifying fire shot forth. Multiple sword wills were launched at Ye Wuchen and Xu Que.


    Ye Wuchen flashed and drew his sword. The younger swordsman felt like there were multiple illusions of Ye Wuchen flashing before his eyes at extremely high speeds. Every single illusion launched flashes of the sword at him, making it difficult for his eyes to track them.


    Sword aura burst in midair. The sword wills of fire were extinguished in a frenzy, and Ye Wuchen looked as if he never moved from where he stood, standing quietly where he was.


    Voom.


    The older swordsman made his move right there and then. The space they occupied turned scorching hot in an instant. It was as if the sun itself had descended, burning their surroundings.


    The older swordsman zipped about in flames like a grey mirage. Sword will flowed about the place in a frenzy, and yet, it looked as if he had yet to make a move. The younger swordsman stepped out, and his raging sword shot out again at both Ye Wuchen and Xu Que.


    One of them at the forefront while the other behind the scenes.


    Both Ye Wuchen and Xu Que made their moves at the same time. Xu Que''s body turned into mirages and melded within the darkness, flashing around the younger swordsman. Ye Wuchen turned into illusions as well, chasing after the older swordsman.


    The speed at which both of them moved was difficult to track with the naked eye. Everyone around them was unable to see both of them at work; what they saw was the shadows of their blades moving about as if the blades have clashed without making a sound.


    At that moment, stifling pressure of the sword loomed. All four of them burst at the same time.


    Xu Que and the younger swordsman of the city lord''s office clashed. His killing sword brought forth a boundless grey aura of the sword in the dark, while his opponent turned into a furnace of sorts, lashing out with the sword of the sun. His blade seemed to be able to melt everything, tearing the grey aura apart.


    It continued until an extremely hot and huge sword clashed with another killing sword of equal size. Terrifying heatwaves shot all over the place. Explosions were heard, and Xu Que''s body was thrown backward. Holes were burned here and there on his clothes. His sleeves were torn, exposing the hand holding the blade.


    On the other side, Ye Wuchen and the older swordsman clashed without making a sound, yet the confrontation between the two of them looked even more intense. It was as if there were two beams of light flickering about. At the very next moment, both stood with their backs against each other. Terrifying storms of the sword whipped about around them as if they were out to tear the space apart. The sword on the older swordsman''s hand broke inch by inch. He grunted, and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth.


    Both confrontations ended with one win and one loss for both sides.


    However, that raging younger swordsman did not seem to have any intentions of stopping. He stepped out again and launched his sword will high, cleaving straight at Xu Que. Xu Que frowned and retreated in a hurry, yet that overbearing sword continued to pursue him. He waved his hand before him, and grey killing swords swept out, yet they were quickly pierced and burned. The raging sword came down from above and sent him reeling.


    "Seems like the young city lord has overestimated you. You people are so-so. Anyone else?" The younger swordsman pointed his sword forward.


    Boom.


    The ground shook as soon as he said that. A tall, stout figure was seen walking out. That young man''s eyes flashed as he looked forward.


    A raging figure stepped out right away at the very next moment. The ground continued to shake, and he felt tremendous pressure.


    He extended both hands and a terrifying fiery huge sword appeared, emanating intense flames in his surroundings as he raised both hands and brought the sword down.


    Boom.


    With another rumble, that figure actually charged at the sword that was coming down. Intense power was felt like that tower-like body of his. He then threw his arm forward, launching a punch that send the heat waves reeling. The huge sword crumbled right there and then, reduced to nothing bit by bit.


    That younger swordsman''s expression changed all of a sudden. His opponent''s fist reflected clearly in his pupils. At that very next moment, the fist landed squarely on his chest, and crisp cracking sounds were heard. He felt his bones breaking and was sent flying limply.


    Blood spilled from his mouth after a grunt when he landed. His chest felt a burning pain.


    Shen Jun lowered his head to look at the young man before turning his eyes at the stout figure. His eyes sparkled with amusement.


    Both swordsmen were specifically selected for the show, and they were anything but weak. One of them lost to Ye Wuchen''s blade while the other was brought down with just a single punch.


    "Splendid." Shen Jun praised, "Is this your fellow student as well, Brother Ye? I''m surprised that he isn''t a swordsman."


    "Yu Sheng, step down," Ye Futian said. That towering figure glanced forward and retreated to where he was before.


    Ye Futian took a look at Shen Jun. That younger swordsman had probably been inciting them when he won. However, that young man probably had never expected Yu Sheng to be so forceful. That one punch would have had him recuperating for a long time.


    "There are some where I study in who are not swordsmen," Ye Futian smiled and said. If Shen Jun was up to something, then it was only natural for him to keep from telling the truth all the time.


    Shen Jun nodded and said, "Judging by the power of those two friends of yours, I''d say that they are top-notch figures even when compared with those in the cities of Crimson Dragon Realm. I take it they are here to make breakthroughs into Saint Plane?"


    "You could say so," Ye Futian nodded and said.


    "I have a suggestion. Is it not your intention to go to Crimson Dragon City? I''ll be heading there myself in several days. There will be a party there at that time. If it''s fine with you, how about we head there and have some fun? Furthermore, Yu Sheng and the rest could meet the top-notch figures from Crimson Dragon Realm at their level and do a bit of sparring. Would you be interested?"


    Ye Futian looked at Shen Jun and wondered if that was what he was after.


    "Yu Sheng''s level?" Ye Futian asked.


    "There would be saints as well, but only a handful. If you''re interested, you''ll get your chance so long as you''re willing to stay behind at Crimson Dragon Realm. Furthermore, the event is not a common one, which is held only once a month. It''s a great chance for one to test their abilities out. The way requires registration," Shen Jun smiled and elaborated.


    "A chance that is hard to come by," Ye Futian quipped with a low voice.


    "Indeed." Shen Jun nodded and continued, "Every city has its quotas. If Yu Sheng and the rest are interested, I''m happy to register for them. But then again, no need to force yourselves if you''re not interested. You could just be there to watch the event then."


    "Yu Sheng, Wuchen, what do you think?" Ye Futian turned around and asked.


    "You call the shots," Yu Sheng answered.


    None of the others said anything else. Ye Futian smiled and asked Shen Jun, "Would there be any danger?"


    "Judging from what was displayed just moments ago, how dangerous do you think the sparring at their level could be, Brother Ye?" Shen Jun smiled and said casually.


    "Well, then. Yu Sheng, Wuchen, Xu Que, Jiuge, go and see what guys are made of," Ye Futian nodded and said.


    Shen Jun smiled and took out a crystal sphere and said, "Put a piece of your spiritual powers here. That will be all."


    "What is this for?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The event is held at Crimson Dragon City, and the one at the very top is the Crimson Dragon Renhuang, so it''s a pretty official event, requiring the contestants to confirm their participation. Saying ''I''m in'' alone won''t suffice." Shen Jun said, "Relax, Brother Ye. There won''t be a problem so long as you make it to the event in time."


    "Alright, then." Ye Futian nodded and looked at Xia Qingyuan at his side.


    Xia Qingyuan had just told him something mere moments ago.

 1180 Battle of the Sleeping Dragon

    Shen Jun left as soon as she was done with all of that. Ye Futian sported a pondering face after he left.


    He never expected that Shen Jun''s objective never involved him personally. Shen Jun was after Yu Sheng, Wuchen, and the others around him instead.


    That was to say that when Shen Jun already had such thoughts when they first met outside, so he invited all of them to Qianye City and had Bai Ze to test them out.


    However, the commotion the group of outsiders caused exceeded his expectations, as they went out to raze Bliss Palace right away.


    As such, Shen Jun took the chance to test the capabilities of Yu Sheng and the others, using sparring as an excuse.


    The event, eh? he thought.


    He turned to Xia Qingyuan and asked, "Is martial arts really that popular in Crimson Dragon Realm?"


    "This place is the main realm of the region, after all. Some imperial realms near the Crimson Dragon Realm would have even expanded their forces here. Furthermore, many mighty ones from foreign realms are here, too, and the Crimson Dragon Emperor himself favors martial arts. As such, martial arts are more popular here than they are back in Emperor Xia''s Realm." Xia Qingyuan replied, "There are places like the Jiutian Temple here as well."


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. "Seems like I''ll need to take a good look at this place, then."


    Yu Sheng, Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, and the others were all at the pinnacle of Sage Plane. They deemed such an opportunity to be something not to be missed, so they agreed to Shen Jun''s proposal.


    But then again, that did not mean that Shen Jun did not set them up.


    Shen Jun''s description was vastly different from the truth, after all.


    Sparring at their level?


    Do you really think that will be all? some thought.


    People in the inn watched Ye Futian''s party since they had appeared. Many called them idiots behind their backs when they found out what happened.


    That''s outsiders for you, indeed. They might be extremely powerful, but they know too little about trickery and schemes, those people thought.


    There is no way the young city lord would go easy on this bunch.


    However, it was apparent that no one would have reminded Ye Futian of anything, as it would have turned out to be a slight against Shen Jun, after all.


    However, it was actually too late to caution Ye Futian''s party of anything. With their spiritual powers linked to the crystal sphere, it enabled them to sense Yu Sheng''s whereabouts within a short period of time. If they were to not show up to the event, they would have suffered punishment in one form or another.


    Furthermore, it would not have been punishment from Qianye City, but from the Crimson Dragon Army.


    Those were the rules laid down by the Crimson Dragon Emperor, after all, and no one would have dared to disobey them.


    Saints notwithstanding, as the king of the main realm of Crimson Dragon Realm, the Crimson Dragon Emperor was known to be the number one mighty one in Crimson Emperor Realm, so not even a Renhuang of another realm would have dared to get on his bad side.


    There were someone who came to the inn to look for Ye Futian and his people. It was none other than Situ Yan.


    She did not come alone; she had the little girl that she took tagging along.


    Ye Futian smiled. The little girl had new clothes, looking clean and elegant, even resembling the daughters of well-to-do families.


    Her parents must have doted on her very much when they were alive.


    "Thank you," Ye Futian smiled and said to Situ Yan.


    Situ Yan looked at Ye Futian with a puzzled look in her eyes. This fellow razed the Bliss Palace for the kid, killing the palace lord and Bai Ze for her sake.


    And yet, he is now so easily set up by Shen Jun?


    What is the deal with him indeed? Situ Yan thought.


    "Uncle." The little girl flashed a brimming smile as she walked to Ye Futian''s side. Her head reached Ye Futian''s waist. Ye Futian extended his arms and picked her up, smiling and saying, "How are you doing?"


    "Ms. Situ has taken me as her student. Thank you for saving my life," the little girl lowered her head and said to Ye Futian. It was apparent that she had begun to learn the ways of the world.


    She knew that Ye Futian did more than just save her life; he had changed her fate and given her a future.


    "Little Ran, you should thank your teacher instead," Ye Futian smiled and said. He looked at Situ Yan with a smile, showing goodwill, and nodded as a gesture of gratitude.


    Situ Yan was a daughter of the Situ clan and the youngest woman saint of her clan. As such, her status was supreme. With Little Ran becoming her student, her status would have naturally been far higher than that of a servant girl.


    "You''re half the reason why I took her as my student," Situ Yan quipped honestly. If it had not been for what Ye Futian pulled, there was no way she would have picked a little girl out of nowhere to be her student.


    What he did had apparently triggered something within her.


    "I have heard that you agreed with the young city lord in letting them participate in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon." Situ Yan then said to Ye Futian, "Do you know what the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon actually is?"


    Ye Futian looked at Situ Yan with a puzzled look. It seemed that she had used Little Ran as an excuse to meet him.


    Situ Yan was there to warn him.


    "I have heard things," Ye Futian nodded and answered.


    Situ Yan was puzzled by what he said, seeing how Ye Futian remained calm and collected even after hearing her mentioning the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    She was wondering if he had truly understood, or that he was only putting up a front.


    Did Shen Jun tell them about the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon?


    "You are from foreign realms. Are you sure you know about the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon here at Crimson Dragon Realm?" Situ Yan''s expression turned somewhat solemn as she continued, "Crimson Dragon Realm is a place where mighty ones from all realms gather, and the Crimson Dragon Realm itself is a huge place, to begin with. Other than Crimson Dragon City, which the Crimson Dragon Emperor resides in, other Renhuangs are carving out their own territories here. It is unknown how many mighty ones have gathered in the mightiest main city of the realm��the Crimson Dragon City.


    "Given the background, there would be some extremely terrifying people participating in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. You might be very confident in their powers, but you need to know, nonetheless, what it means to fight in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon." Situ Yan''s voice sounded rather solemn.


    Her clan had been training in Qianye City for generations and there was no doubt that they knew the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon very well. They knew how terrifying the battles would have been, and even someone who were from top-notch forces, like her, would not have participated without thinking things through.


    There were a great many cities like Qianye City to be found in Crimson Dragon Realm. There were many top-notch forces to be found in the realm, and legendary figures were in abundance. As such, even someone of her caliber was hardly considered much of a genius in the realm.


    There were too many who were more extraordinary than she was.


    She speculated that Ye Futian and his people would have been legendary people back in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and as such, were extremely confident in their own powers. The fact that they were able to raze Bliss Palace served as a testament of their powers, but they might have underestimated just how powerful mighty ones in Crimson Dragon Realm were.


    "I know." Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    "..."


    Situ Yan looked at him feeling speechless, wondering if she had wasted her breath.


    She was unable to come up with words for some time, looking at him and not knowing what to say.


    "Are you sure?" Situ Yan asked again.


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded still.


    "I shall take my leave." Situ Yan took Little Ran and left. She had no intention of saying more.


    Ye Futian had brought his people to raze Bliss Palace and kill the palace lord. That meant that he probably had a good idea of what he was doing.


    She had done her part to warn him. If Ye Futian were to continue to underestimate the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon of the Crimson Realm, then the problem was his to deal with.


    He was a saint and things had been laid out to that extent. There was little need to say more.


    "Goodbye, uncle." Little Ran took her to the air. She then turned around to wave goodbye to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian waved at her as well, saying with a smile, "Thank you, heroine."


    Situ Yan''s arms twitched and her movements in the air stuttered for a bit. All of that lasted for a brief moment. She and Little Ran turned into mirages and were out of sight soon after.


    ...


    A group of people came above the inn several days later.


    Many mighty ones from the city lord''s office came together with Shen Jun. The entourage was a grand one. Other than the people of the city lord''s office, there were many members of top-notch forces arriving as well, together with Shen Jun.


    Ye Futian saw Mo Chen, who Shen Jun had invited to the restaurant back then, among the crowd.


    It was a given that Situ Yan was there as well, but she was with her clansman, and Little Ran was not around.


    While the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was something held as frequently as once a month, it was nonetheless a great event of the martial arts in the Crimson Dragon Realm. At the same time, it was also a gathering of many members of top-notch forces in the Crimson Dragon Realm, although not all of them would participate in the event.


    "Let''s go, Brother Ye," Shen Jun called while looking Ye Futian in the inn.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded and the group took to the air, meeting up with the group led by Shen Jun.


    "You''d be getting to Crimson Dragon City soon enough, Brother Ye, and you''d witness the grand event held once a month at the Crimson Dragon City," Shen Jun said to Ye Futian after taking one good look at him. He had no idea if Ye Futian had learned what the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was by then.


    Of course, it did not matter if they knew or not; everything was already set in stone.


    Shen Jun did not bother with any of that. Even though Ye Futian might have learned of the deception, there was nothing they could have done about it.


    He speculated that Ye Futian and his party came from a top-notch holy land of the sword in Emperor Xia''s Realm. However, a powerful dragon cannot crush a snake in its old haunt, after all. While there were many cities like Qianye City to be found in the Crimson Dragon Realm, being to reign over one city was a testament of status in itself.


    "I''m sorry to trouble you, young city lord," Ye Futian replied plainly.


    Many around Shen Jun went about gauging Ye Futian''s party, especially Ye Futian and Yaya. The ones who caught their attention the most after that were Xia Qingyuan and the Glass Saint.


    Ye Futian''s party had become legends in Qianye City for having razed Bliss Palace and yet still been received by the young palace lord. They did not know if they should have been impressed or dismissive of those newcomers.


    Situ Yan took one look at Ye Futian''s party and said nothing. She kept to the crowd among her clansmen.


    "Nothing worth mentioning. Let''s go," Shen Jun said, and the crowd took flight, crossing the border and heading straight for Crimson Dragon City.


    The Crimson Dragon City was the number one city in Crimson Dragon Realm. Some claimed that the Crimson Dragon City was the largest city to be found in the Crimson Dragon Region. One could have only imagined how majestic and grand the place was.


    Countless powerful cultivators from all realms came to trade in that city, acquiring top-notch methods and arts, or treasures in some other forms.


    Ye Futian had only one feeling when he stepped into the Crimson Dragon City.


    The place was a majestic, regal one.


    Every single building had a history behind it. They felt as though they were historical annals in themselves, being passed through the generations.


    Even if realm wars were to break out in the Crimson Dragon Region, Crimson Dragon Realm would have hardly been affected. That place was the main realm, after all.


    That was, unless, a super war broke out between main realms in the same region.


    The city that was lauded to be the number one city in the Crimson Dragon Region was extremely vast. Ye Futian and the rest of the group stayed in the air for quite a long time before they found their destination of the trip.


    A towering castle was first seen, which was ring-shaped and surrounded an area at the center.


    There were countless mighty ones in the area.


    That place was the extremely renowned spot��the Rising Dragon Platform.

 1181 Seeing Familiar Faces

    One castle after another formed a ring, and in the middle of the ring of castles, there was a huge cylindrical screen of light.


    "Brother Ye, tell Yu Sheng to follow him. There is a special entrance for them," Shen Jun said to Ye Futian. A saint stepped out to lead the way. Ye Futian nodded. Yu Sheng and the rest of the participants followed the guide and headed for the lower parts of the castles.


    Shen Jun brought Ye Futian and the ones who remained to the top of the ring of castles. Guards were verifying their identities. Shen Jun said to Ye Futian, "Those who were brought by the city lords are allowed to watch the show from the very top."


    Ye Futian nodded, and everyone headed for the top of the castle and walked until they reached the edge.


    He took a look at the buildings before him, which consisted of huge castles connected in a ring pattern, and there was a huge space at the center. A layer of a formless pillar of light shrouded the entire place. It was completely transparent and did not hinder the view in any way. However, cultivators were all able to easily feel the barrier''s presence.


    Every floor of the castles had corridors at the edges, enabling spectators to see the inside of the screen of light.


    There was where the Rising Dragon Platform was located.


    Ye Futian scanned the area and found that the corridors of the tall, majestic castles became swamped by crowds.


    Some of them were seen looking at the ones at the top of the castles, who were of the highest status. They did not even need to spend anything to watch the battles. The ones in the castles, however, were all required to pay for their tickets with sacred spirit stones before being able to make it into the internal space of the castles to watch the battles.


    There were quite a lot of people who looked up at Ye Futian''s group. They, too, were all standing at the top of the castle��the ones from the city lord''s offices of other cities in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "There are people from Qianye City who dare to go onto the Rising Dragon Platform?" A voice was heard not far away, and the one who spoke was a saint who was of the same age group as Shen Jun. He, like Shen Jun, was someone from the city lord office of another city.


    Shen Jun took a look at the other party and said, "The ones from Qianye City this time will be able to rise."


    "That so?" The other party smirked and said, "Isn''t that something to look forward to, indeed?"


    More and more people arrived, and the numbers began to get so staggering that the place was boisterous.


    A group of people appeared at the top of the castle across from where Ye Futian was. They walked to the stands at the edge of their castle.


    Those people felt extremely extraordinary. A man and a woman took the lead, with the man looking extraordinarily handsome and dashing, while the woman''s appearance seemed to be near perfection. Her body was of golden proportions, and that gorgeous face of hers had a demonic grace to it, making her look incredibly alluring.


    They took their seats, and many who looked in their direction mumbled to themselves.


    Are the siblings here to watch the battles? Are they here to see who will be their future opponents? they wondered.


    The two of them then turned their eyes below the cylinder of the Rising Dragon Platform. The bronze gates leading from the castles to the cylinder remained shut, and the ones who participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon had yet to appear.


    Everyone wondered if there would be any top-notch fighters appearing.


    "Your Highness, why does the princess need to come all the way here? Even if there are actually extraordinary ones among the fighters, how would they possibly be able to be of a match to the Princess and you, Your Highness? I''m afraid there won''t even be anyone capable of even getting to our level," someone at the side quipped. His eyes were incredibly sharp, and his body seemed to be basking in golden light.


    "Jialou Feng, bear in mind that this is the Crimson Dragon Realm and not the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. Mighty ones are abundant here, and there are mighty ones from other imperial realms here as well. We can''t afford to let our guard down," the woman with incredible beauty said. Her eyes, however, remained cold and aloof.


    The very reason they participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was to break through their limits and see if they could make it to Saint Plane. They treated the fight as an ordeal.


    It went without saying that since she was already there, she would give her all to be awarded by the Crimson Dragon Emperor.


    "Yo." A familiar voice was heard from far away.


    "Master, over there."


    That voice had Kong Xuan lift up her head and turn in the direction where the voice came from. When she finally made clear of the silhouette of the one who had talked, her eyes froze.


    An icy aura emanated from her at that very next moment. However, both parties were separated by that formless cylinder of light. While it did nothing to hinder vision, it nonetheless blocked the aura.


    That filthy animal, she thought.


    Kong Xuan''s eyes were filled with cold, murderous intent. She then spotted Ye Futian, who was at the Black Wind Condor''s side, right away.


    Is he here at Crimson Dragon Realm? And his bearing. Wait, no... she thought.


    Voom. Extremely dazzling golden light burst from Jialou Feng''s body as killing intent burst, drawing attention from many around them.


    What is with the beast from Peacock City? Ye Futian thought.


    "Ye Futian." Jialou Feng roared, its killing intent laid bare for all to see.


    The insult that it suffered during the Battle of Empty Realm all those years ago could have never be forgotten; it was an insult like none other.


    Jialou Feng had actually been enthralled by Ye Futian and was made to turn against its own kind, causing the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm to be a laughing stock in that year''s Battle of the Empty Realm.


    "Kong..." The Black Wind Condor was about to open its mouth when Ye Futian slapped the bird, telling it to shut up.


    They were connected with a telepathic link, and he knew what that thing was trying to say.


    The bird was trying to say the same, classic line that it had been harping all those years ago in the Empty Realm.


    "Kong Xuan, come and serve my master..." the bird had once said.


    Is the bird getting addicted to yelling that back in the Empty Realm?


    Look at where we are now, you stupid thing, Ye Futian thought.


    They were currently at the Crimson Dragon Realm. The fact that the Kong siblings were around meant that mighty ones surrounded them. If the bird were to harp that classic line, Kong Xuan would have stopped at nothing until she killed the bird.


    Does this *sshole think that we''re still back in the battlefield in the Empty Realm?


    He had only allowed the bird to pull that back then to have the plans for the battle set up by inciting Kong Xuan.


    There was currently no longer any need to get on the bad side of the princess of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    The Black Wind Condor shot a dejected look at Ye Futian, wondering why his master allowed it to do all that back then, yet, not at the moment.


    Kong Xuan shuddered at the very first word that the Black Wind Condor blurted, which almost made her leap out of her seat. That animal''s voice had traumatized her back in the Empty Realm.


    "The bird needs to work on its manners, and I''ve already given it a lesson. I''ve apologized for what happened during the Battle of Empty Realm, and I hope that you no longer hold any grudges over what happened." Ye Futian nodded to Kong Xuan as a gesture of apology, looking dashing as he did so.


    Kong Xuan managed to calm herself down due to how he behaved. She glared at her with cold eyes and said nothing in return.


    She naturally noticed Xia Qingyuan as well. In the eyes of Kong Xuan and her people, however, Ye Futian and the bird had proven to attract more attention than she did.


    Jialou Feng, who was at her side, still had thick killing intent oozing out of its eyes.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded after seeing that Kong Xuan did not bother to reply, before turning his eyes away.


    Shen Jun, who was at his side, shot a surprised look at Ye Futian and asked, "You are acquainted with Princess Kong Xuan, Brother Ye?"


    "Emperor Xia''s Realm is right beside the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. We have fought in the Battle of Empty Realm. Despite both of us being participants of that battle, we were on opposing sides, which is why they hold a grudge," Ye Futian replied, and Shen Jun nodded. He did at least know that Emperor Xia''s Realm was neighbors with the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    It was no surprise why Ye Futian apologized right there and then. It seemed that he had gotten on Kong Xuan''s bad side back then. With both parties currently at Crimson Dragon Realm, he was naturally wary that Kong Xuan sought revenge.


    "Kong Xuan was able to rise on the Rising Dragon Platform in last month''s Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. No one else had been able to shine more brilliantly than she did. I do hope Yu Sheng and the others would be able to do the same this time," Shen Jun said, and there was a peculiar look in his eyes.


    If Ye Futian was on Kong Xuan''s bad side before, then we will probably have to say our condolences to Yu Sheng and the others, Shen Jun thought.


    "You have offended Kong Xuan before?" Situ Yan asked Ye Futian telepathically.


    "Indeed," Ye Futian replied.


    "Several demonic beasts participated in last month''s battle. The Kong siblings burst with their nine-colored light of the peacock, and they were almost invincible. They were tremendously powerful," Situ Yan reminded him.


    "I''ve fought her myself," Ye Futian replied.


    Kong Xuan was indeed extremely powerful back in the Battle of Empty Realm. She was the daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor, after all.


    Kong Xuan was probably at the pinnacle among the Sages in the pinnacle stage. She was simply a step away from becoming a saint, so she was probably there to try to make a breakthrough into Saint Plane.


    However, if she were to end up fighting Yu Sheng...


    Situ Yan did not say anything more, hoping that luck would be with Yu Sheng and the others. She hoped that there were not any fighters who were too powerful in that Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    They might have ended up dead in the battle otherwise.


    Shen Jun did not have any good intentions in baiting Yu Sheng and the rest to participate in the battle. He was doing all of that for himself.


    If there were anyone among Yu Sheng''s party who managed to rise, they would have participated as members of Qianye City. As such, the award from Crimson Dragon Emperor would have fallen into Qianye City''s hands.


    As for the price of losing, Shen Jun probably paid no heed to that.


    Deafening sounds were heard at that moment, and the countless crowds in the castles were in an uproar. Low rumble of dragons seemed to be heard, and dazzling matrixes on the ground seemed to have lit up. Matrix diagrams were activated, and at the very next moment, a huge, imposing figure was seen on the diagram.


    That huge figure had a fiery crimson color all over it. It was a crimson dragon and a demon saint.


    The dragon rose to the top, and with a deafening roar, the heavens shook, and it shot up to the top, circling in the air.


    "The Rising Dragon Platform." A human voice was heard from the crimson dragon, howling at the ones below, and the bronze gates were opened.


    Blinding light burst and from with the gates in different corners, came cultivators who had participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, emerging one after another.


    The tension in the group of castles hit a critical point within a mere instant. Deafening cheers were heard everywhere, seeming out to rupture peoples'' eardrums.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes and saw Yu Sheng''s group walking to the Rising Dragon Platform.


    There was only a single battle within the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, one where all mighty ones were to fight a brutal battle at the same time!

 1182 Betting on Dragons

    The castles around the Rising Dragon Platform were in an uproar.


    The countless people in the ring of castles all looked at the ones below.


    The castles served as places to watch the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, and the huge cylindrical area had been blocked off by a screen of light from the matrixes, which served to isolate attacks, as well as preventing participants from running away from battle.


    The battlefield was completely sealed off.


    There was only one opening, which was at the very top, where the crimson dragon kept watch.


    The Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was a battle where all of its participants were caged within the vicinity of the Rising Dragon Platform. Only a handful of the most extraordinary was able to make it out from the opening where the crimson dragon kept watch.


    That was known as the "Rise of the Dragon," where the caged or sleeping dragon emerged.


    If a participant lacked in powers displayed within the battlefield, one could only keep fighting at the platform. If one were to rise and escape, that demon saint level crimson dragon would have then acted to slap anyone who dared to make that attempt.


    There had even been cases in the history of the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, where only one was eventually left standing. The last survivor attempted to leave and was still clapped down by the demon saint above.


    What that meant was no one had been deemed fit enough to rise.


    Other than that, the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was one where life and death were totally up to the participants. It was very common to see deaths on that battlefield. The participants were, after all, trapped in one place to battle. If there were anyone out to claim someone''s life, there would have been no escape, and the target could have only ended up killing or be killed.


    As such, the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon had always been known for its extreme brutality. After years where it had been held, only top-notch warriors dared to participate in the battles. One would have easily ended up as cannon fodder and stood no chance of making it out alive.


    It was a good thing that the mighty ones from Crimson Dragon Realm were powerful enough. Mighty ones from all realms gathered at Crimson Dragon Realm, and powerful people kept showing up to test themselves out.


    Top-notch geniuses from all realms wanted to test themselves in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    The Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was a symbol of Crimson Dragon City, as a testament to the popularity of martial arts in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    One who sought perfection in the arts they practiced would have cornered themselves, battling top-notch figures from all realms.


    Anyone capable of accomplishing the Rise of the Dragon would have been awarded. They were even given the right to be a part of the Crimson Dragon Army that served directly under the Crimson Dragon Emperor, becoming a part of the strongest army in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Under such a background, the top-notch forces from the cities surrounding the Crimson Dragon City hardly ever let their younger generations participate in the battle unless said younger generation members were extreme geniuses who were tremendously confident in their powers.


    While Shen Jun was the young city lord of Qianye City, it was equally difficult for him to get fighters to participate in the battle. Even less so when it came to finding ones capable of rising from the battle.


    That was why he deliberately got near Ye Futian''s party when he first met them, and it was why he wanted to test them out later.


    He went so far as to dupe Ye Futian into letting Yu Sheng and the others participate in the battle.


    A figure descended from the opening above the Rising Dragon Platform at the moment, shrouded in holy light as he scanned the vast area surrounded by castles. He briefly announced the rules of the battle.


    "Young city lord, the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon sure sounds very dangerous," Ye Futian said to Shen Jun, who was by his side.


    That was not what Shen Jun told him before.


    "Don''t you believe in their capabilities, Brother Ye?" Shen Jun smiled and asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded after seeing the smile in Shen Jun''s eyes. He then turned his eyes back at the Rising Dragon Platform and did not say more.


    The two whom Shen Jun had selected to fight with Yu Sheng and the others did not participate in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, so it was easy to tell how tricky Shen Jun was.


    He had already been scheming against them right from the first time he met them.


    If they were of insufficient strength, they would have been in danger after their scuffle with Bai Ze back then. Shen Jun would have had other plans for them if that were to happen, such as taking them in as his subordinates.


    Ye Futian did not know that even at that very moment, Shen Jun still had such thoughts playing out in his head.


    It did not matter if they were to die in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. However, if any of them were able to rise, they would have gotten on someone''s bad side one way or another. All of them still would not have been able to escape from his plans eventually.


    That saint who was basking in dazzling light on the back of that crimson dragon took out a list and opened it. He then declared the names of the participants one by one. That list had actually been announced to the public prior to the battle, and many knew who the participants were.


    However, everyone remained attentive in listening. Every name read went along with a beam of light shining on a participant below, drawing the attention of the spectators.


    The noisy environment had surprisingly turned completely silent. Everyone was listening and watching.


    "Pang Xiao of Crimson Cloud City." A beam of light shone on one of the participants when the name was read. He was wearing golden, lavish clothing, which was emblazoned with fiery images. He looked steady and stood like a mountain.


    Pang Xiao of Crimson Cloud City finally participated in the battle.


    The spectators were on the lookout for notable top-notch figures from every city before every Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was held, speculating who was going to participate in the battle.


    Crimson Cloud City was more than just a city in Crimson Dragon Realm; it was also one that was established and managed by a Renhuang from someone from an imperial realm in the Crimson Dragon Region near the Crimson Dragon Realm. It served as said realm''s territory in Crimson Dragon Realm. Such situations were not all that rare, and there were many places like that in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The surname "Pang" of Crimson Cloud City was the surname of a Renhuang.


    Pang Xiao was of Renhuang blood and a direct descendant of a Renhuang.


    Despite Pang Xiao''s extraordinary background, there was a possibility of someone like him showing up in every Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. As such, his appearance was hardly surprising. That was how prosperous and powerful the primary realm of a region was. It also showed how intense the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was.


    In the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon held last month, the Kong siblings from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had brought several powerful demonic beasts and almost reigned supreme in that battle.


    Who would be the ones to do so this time?


    Pang Xiao was the most renowned participant of the month.


    The saint continued to announce the names, and when he called Yan Tong of Flaming Prison City, the crowd gasped yet again, looking at the stout figure who was dressed in red.


    Yan Tong was the son of the city lord of Flaming Prison City, and he was now participating in the battle. It was said that he possessed invincible combat capacity in his current plane. There was hardly anyone below the Saint Plane in Flaming Prison City capable of withstanding his attacks.


    Other than that, there was yet another extremely powerful figure participating in the month''s Battle of the Sleeping Dragon��Zhuo Xu of the Black Flame clan. He was a descendant of the Black Flame Emperor, which made him yet another of royal blood. It was a testament to his terrifying power.


    Pang Xiao of Crimson Cloud City, Yan Tong of Flaming Prison City, and Zhuo Xu of Black Flame clan were the three most highly anticipated participants on the list.


    Many claimed if that if the three of them were not to end up fighting each other in the Battle of Sleeping Dragon, all three of them would have been able to rise.


    "Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and Qin Zhuang of Qianye City." The names were read, and a beam shot down on them. The ones who participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon that time were the five of them.


    Gu Dongliu felt that what he lacked was not something to be found in actual battles, so he did not participate. As for the others, their powers were lacking, and there was no need for them to participate. In truth, other than Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen was the only one who was notably stronger among the remaining four. Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and Qin Zhuang stood little chance of actually standing out in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    Qin Zhuang was considered extremely powerful in the Nine States, but they were in Crimson Dragon Realm. Knowing the background and identities of the participants would have given anyone a good idea of how difficult and terrifying the battle was.


    "There are five from Qianye City?" Many from other cities looked puzzled, finding the occurrence to be odd.


    They looked at the five led by Yu Sheng and had no idea which force of Qianye City they belonged to. They were wondering if those five had death wishes.


    Some knew Shen Jun personally and looked at him, feeling puzzled. Did Shen Jun dupe them into participating in the battle?


    Only Kong Xuan took Yu Sheng and the other four seriously. There was no doubt that Ye Futian had been the brightest star in the Battle of Empty Realm back then, but Yu Sheng and the rest were still able to ambush Emperor Li''s City and took the imperial flag, after all, which was a testament to their immense power.


    With Ye Futian daring to let Yu Sheng and the others participate in the battle, she was, unlike many others, thinking that there was a high possibility of Yu Sheng''s party being able to stand out and to rise from the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    The saint who had been reading the names closed the list when he was done and said, "You may place your bets on the dragons now."


    One figure after another stepped into the castles as soon as he finished.


    What he meant by "placing bets on the dragons" was to bet who would be able to achieve the Rise of the Dragon. The rules were simple. The list had been read, and one was allowed to place a bet on the participants one thought the most possible of making the rise. The odds were one to one.


    The rules were easy, as the likes of Pang Xiao and Yan Tong had an extremely high possibility of success in making the rise. In truth, however, with so many mighty ones participating in the battles, unforeseen circumstances were also very common. Judging from the statistics in every battle, the biggest winner had always been the banker.


    The Battle of the Sleeping Dragon and the Rising Dragon Platform were both properties of the Crimson Dragon Emperor. While he did not lack such resources, he nonetheless needed support from such properties to maintain the greatest army in Crimson Dragon Realm. The Emperor couldn''t spend all his money.


    As such, those properties were managed by those serving the Emperor.


    Furthermore, absolute fairness was practice. The Emperor was of such status that he couldn''t tell the dragon to get in the way of those who had earned the right to rise. No one would have dared rub dirt on the Emperor''s face in public, after all.


    "Place the bets on Yu Sheng of Qianye City," Kong Xuan ordered the ones behind her and handed the person a storage ring.


    It was apparent that she wanted to join in the fun.


    She turned her eyes to look at Ye Futian, who was sitting across her. While she hated Ye Futian for letting her lose in such an insulting manner in the Battle of the Empty Realm, she nonetheless had complete faith in his capabilities. Such was her respect for the one who had bested her.


    "Place a bet on Yu Sheng," Shen Jun, who was at Ye Futian''s side, said as well. Judging from the results of the test at that inn in Qianye City, he was confident that Yu Sheng would be capable of rising.


    Ye Futian took a look at Shen Jun and asked, "How large of a bet can you place?"


    "They take bets in any amount under imperial level," Shen Jun answered. However, few would have placed crazy bets. Any accident would have resulted in dire consequences, after all.


    There were all manner of tricks that could have been played in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. Anything could have happened, and no one would have had absolute certainty of anything.


    "Could I borrow some?" Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan as he asked.


    Xia Qingyuan glared at him and handed him a storage ring.


    Ye Futian smiled and said with a low voice, "Damn pity I''m poor. I would''ve bankrupted them otherwise."


    There was no way he would have missed out on such an opportunity, so he bet everything he had on Yu Sheng!

 1183 Keeping Things Under Control

    Shen Jun looked at Ye Futian with a puzzled expression. He had placed his bet on Yu Sheng, so he naturally knew that Yu Sheng was powerful.


    However, while it was entirely normal for Ye Futian to want to place his bet on Yu Sheng, he went so far as to borrow money from the woman at his side.


    But then again, Shen Jun simply chuckled and paid no further attention to any of it. If Ye Futian wanted to have fun, it was none of his business.


    "Don''t get too carried away. It''s difficult to rise from the platform, after all," Situ Yan heard what Ye Futian said and reminded him of the stakes.


    "Go and bet on Yu Sheng. Place, however much you can," Ye Futian replied to Situ Yan.


    "..."


    Situ Yan looked at him in a somewhat exasperated manner before saying telepathically, "Alright, I''ll chip in and bet on Yu Sheng. Again, don''t get carried away."


    She then headed to the place to place bets in the castle after that. However, her expression remained cold after she returned, not saying another word to Ye Futian.


    No wonder he went to tear Bliss Palace apart. This guy is nuts. He went and bet everything he got, she thought.


    She shuddered when the sacred spirit stones and treasures that he bet with came to mind.


    Those things were not something that a Doctrine Saint would have been able to fork over. In truth, not even Unblemished Saints would have been able to spend that much on a bet, as those were not things they could have afforded to lose.


    He sure is a daredevil.


    And an insane one, she thought.


    "You have bet too little. Put more in. How about telling your clan to chip in as well?" Ye Futian said, trying to persuade Situ Yan, who was at his side.


    Situ Yan''s face remained cold, and she did not bother with him.


    She was thinking that she had been concerned about him for nothing and that she had been wasting her time.


    "This is a rare chance, you know," Ye Futian said again.


    Situ Yan glared at him hard, and then walked away, pretending as if she did not know him.


    Ye Futian shrugged and felt it to be a pity, thinking she had been missing out on a chance of a lifetime.


    As a top-notch clan in Qianye City, the Situ clan must have been wealthy. Ye Futian was thinking how splendid it would have been if they were just to bet everything they had, their lives included.


    It was a pity that Situ Yan stopped paying him any attention.


    Why won''t she trust me on this? he thought.


    Everyone returned to their seats, and the eyes of the spectators changed when they looked at the Rising Dragon Platform at that time. Those who placed their bets were unsurprisingly in a different mood. They all had their eyes fixed on the ones whom they placed their bets on, having expectations for their respective candidates.


    Pang Xiao, Yan Tong, and Zhuo Xu were naturally the three with the highest amount of bets placed on them. Many placed heavy bets on those three, especially those from their respective clans.


    As for Yu Sheng and the others, other than a handful of people��Ye Futian, Kong Xuan, Shen Jun, and a few others��no one would have bet on them.


    Other than Pang Xiao, Yan Tong, and Zhuo Xu, some others were extremely renowned from other cities on the Rising Dragon Platform.


    A low rumble of the dragon was heard, and the saint who stood on the back of the crimson dragon left the platform. Formless powers emanated from above that cylindrical screen of light. Matrixes were activated to isolate aftershocks from attacks. Crimson glow showered on the space below.


    Countless in the castles waited solemnly for the battle that was about to begin.


    All of them stared at the crimson dragon that was circling the opening above the platform. The dragon then said, "Let the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon begin."


    One figure after another on the Rising Dragon Platform below, looking very serious, as none of them dared to let their guard down.


    All those who participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon were sages at the pinnacle of their training, which practically meant that all of them had one foot in Saint Plane already. The meaning of that battle was to be trapped in a crisis, battling many others who were at the top. None who lacked courage would have dared enter the battlefield.


    While it was not to say that one would die if they proved to be of inferior powers, but in principle, at least, the battle was not one where life and death fights were prohibited. If a participant was heavily injured, the risk of getting killed would be very high, making the battle one where people put their life on the line.


    Powerful, terrifying aura burst, and the Rising Dragon Platform was like it was being set on fire. Mighty ones continued to burst with their power.


    The pressure within the platform became earth-shattering within mere moments.


    Some participants began to make a move after finding their opponents, attacking right there and then.


    "The show has started."


    The spectators were tense as they looked at the battlefield. Formidable fighters in a free-for-all battle burst in an instant, making the scene exhilarating.


    It was a scene like none other on the Rising Dragon Platform.


    Pang Xiao of Crimson Cloud City burst with golden light all over him as his arts were unleashed. Golden beams shot out with a force that could have torn everything in their path apart.


    Yan Tong of Flaming Prison City was even more ferocious than he was. Yan Tong unleashed his Life Spirit right away��a terrifying fiery giant, which looked like it was a devil from hell. Yan Tong melded with his Life Spirit into a single being, and his entire body grew to enormous sizes, becoming a god of war forged in the fires of hell. Every inch of his enormous body was covered in flames, which moved about like liquid, resembling lava out to melt everything.


    That pressure alone was extremely forceful.


    That huge hand of Yan Tong swatted away at a participant before him, who sensed extremely frightening pressure and burst with towering might of the sword. Thousands of sword will flowed about him as they lashed out at their target.


    When that enormous hand came down, the flowing liquid felt as if it had frozen over within an instant. Those swords were frozen in place at the same time, and the liquid fire solidified right away. Everything in that space was locked in place in an instant, and the swords were slowly being melted away.


    That swordsman was able to react quickly and unleash his Life Spirit, melding with his sword into one, and it seemed as if his physical body was transformed into a sword. The overflowing sword will merged into a single entity, and a flash of lightning zipped past. The frozen fiery lava exploded and crumbled as the sword attack surprisingly tore through Yan Tong''s moves. The extremely sharp sword charged forward without stopping, heading straight for the head of that huge, fiery god of war.


    Boom. Yan Tong''s foot stomped on the ground, and a wall of fire was thrown up before him. The entire space was solidified into a sturdy firewall. A huge fiery punch was thrown with extremely massive force. It was apparent he was versed in more than just the power of fire.


    The sword continued forward, but it was still melted and broken eventually. That powerful swordsman ended up dead within the flames. His body was burned until there was nothing left.


    Yan Tong swept his eyes at the battlefield around him and continued stepping out with overbearing force.


    There were heaven-splitting cheers heard everywhere. Those within the castles who had placed their bets on Yan Tong felt their blood boiling.


    He really is a mighty one from the city lord''s office of Flaming Prison City, indeed, they thought.


    Zhuo Xu, a descendant of the Black Flame Emperor, displayed extremely formidable combat capacity as well. Boundless black flames surrounded his body, and where his fingers pointed, boundless black flames shot in a frenzy. The black flames were extremely overpowering, and they were capable of easily killing anyone they touched.


    Soon, three extremely formidable participants were killed by Zhuo Xu.


    The battle had only been going on for mere moments, and yet everyone was able to feel how intense and brutal the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was; it was just too wild and crazy.


    The great figures standing at the top of the castles watched in silence. Unless there were those of their losing or dying in battle, none of them would have shown many emotions.


    Ye Futian was watching the battle as well. The cultivators of Crimson Dragon Realm who were versed in fire-based powers, were clearly of a higher ratio. The realm was said to have nine suns, after all, and the entire realm was filled with a thick aura of flames everywhere.


    As for the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, Shen Jun had the gall to tell him that it wasn''t very dangerous, fooling them into participating in the battle. It was easy to tell that Shen Jun never had the slightest care for their lives to begin with.


    He was simply using them to achieve his objective.


    From that point alone, it was easy to tell that Shen Jun and Bai Ze were fundamentally similar.


    It was just that Bai Ze never bothered to conceal his cold-blooded nature.


    Shen Jun, on the other hand, had a knack for manipulating others through plain chatter, so long as the ones before him would have been of use to him.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were on that battlefield, and his heart felt rather cold. Shen Jun had been scheming against them right from the first time they met, making it apparent that Shen Jun saw those from other imperial realms as little more than prey.


    But then again, the score was not one needed to be settled in a hurry. He had plenty of time to get to that.


    Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and Qin Zhuang all made their moves on the battlefield, picking their respective targets.


    Their goal of participating in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was mainly to test themselves out, without the slightest intention of killing their targets. They only wanted to know just how powerful those at the pinnacle of Crimson Dragon Realm were.


    Yu Sheng did not move. He stood at the center where the battles of the other four had taken place. He simply stood there alone and watched the other four fight.


    He was there to keep the situation under control for all four of them.


    His current level was such that mere fights between sages would have done him little good in allowing him to further his endeavors to break through the Saint Plane.


    "What is Yu Sheng doing?" Shen Jun said. "They should be joining hands to take others down."


    Since all five of them were of the same gang, it was naturally best that they join hands, enabling them to have an easier time overwhelming the others. The possibility of Yu Sheng making it out eventually was very high, and Shen Jun would have been able to see his objectives achieved, creating a win-win situation.


    "He knows what he is doing," Ye Futian replied.


    Shen Jun frowned. His intentions could have been vaguely told by the position he took. He was there to keep the situation controlled for the other four. That was simply insane.


    By doing so, his battle at later stages would be extremely stressful.


    The possibility of him losing would have been great.


    However, since the battle was already underway, none of the spectators would have been able to do anything to affect the situation. They were able to watch from the sides.


    The coldness on Shen Jun''s face became apparent, and he seemed less friendly already.


    Yu Sheng began to slowly move at that moment. He had been keeping himself at the center of the four battles around, just so that he was able to support any of the four at any given moment.


    He was naturally keeping a close eye on the four battles as well. Ye Wuchen''s side did not seem to be of much of a problem, and he was able to handle things. He, at that moment, had the edge over his opponent.


    However, those on the battlefield simply would not have let Yu Sheng just watch and do nothing.


    One mighty one went up to Yu Sheng at that moment.


    Yu Sheng sensed the hostility from the other party, and he glared at that person with an overbearing look, uttering two words, "Get lost!"


    That person narrowed his eyes. One hell of a cocky *ssole, eh? he thought.


    A dazzling image appeared before him as he launched himself at Yu Sheng within an instant, bursting with terrifying killing force. He intended to bury Yu SHeng''s entire body within the image. Killing light rained down on Yu Sheng, and yet the man remained standing where he was, quietly. The light that coursed about his body felt like he had been wearing an armor fused with both Buddhist and demonic powers, letting the killing force rain on him while he stood around doing nothing.


    Voom. That person accelerated all of a sudden and brought dazzling images on Yu Sheng right there and then. His eyes were filled with wonder, wondering if Yu Sheng had a death wish.


    However, he saw Yu Sheng move at the very next moment. Yu Sheng bent his legs and stepped out with a loud rumble.


    That space shook violently, and a punch was thrown at the very next moment. That person had not been able to react in time. His images were penetrated by the dark golden fist, which then landed on his chest. He was sent flying with just one single attack.

 1184 One Whole Team Wrecked

    The one attack from Yu Sheng drew the attention of a small number of people. That guy seems very powerful as well, they thought. Furthermore, he never bothered going out to fight on his own.


    Shen Jun was somewhat relieved. Those two he had deployed to test Ye Futian''s party out were half-saints and were very proficient with the art of the blade. Yu Sheng was so terrifying that he had ended one of them within mere moments. That was the reason why he bet on Yu Sheng.


    From his perspective, so long as Yu Sheng practiced caution and worked with those around him, there was a significant chance that he would end up breaking through. Thus, he was worthy of being betted on.


    Yu Sheng did not bother following up with his attacks after sending that one person who came at him flying. He also did not seek to fight any of the others, and simply remained behind, holding the fort down.


    The other four were doing fine with their respective battles at the moment. Ye Wuchen had even defeated his opponent and continued to fight others.


    Xu Que had some problems with his side, but the situation was still in control for the time being.


    Injuries and deaths were common in that chaotic battlefield. Some battles inspired awe among the spectators. The battles were unusually brutal, and many were already covered in blood.


    Yu Sheng saw a group of people closing in on their battlefield at the moment.


    Several mighty ones were teaming up in that group, and few of them were extremely formidable.


    While many had participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon to seek trials in crisis, it was not to say that there were not others who participated for other purposes. Those who were able to rise would have been rewarded or allowed to join the Crimson Dragon Army of the Crimson Dragon Emperor.


    Of course, there was also the thing about winning bets.


    As such, team-ups were commonly seen in every Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. For instance, Yu Sheng and the other four could team up right from the start if they wished to do so.


    But then again, those people would not have gone too far, and the number within such teams was always kept small. It would have quickly drawn the ire of others on the battlefield, prompting those people to team up and get rid of them first.


    As such, those who went about teaming up would keep a low profile to avoid drawing attention, targeting, and getting rid of those who were of little renown.


    There was also yet another situation, which, while rare, came with a greater risk. That was a situation known as the "Hunt for the Dragon."


    The Hunt had destroyed many top-notch figures for the Dragon on the battlefield of the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    No one knew if the hunt would have occurred on this battlefield.


    "Someone from Tianyin City." Yu Sheng was not the only one who noticed. Many in the castles noticed the presence of that group. Team-ups were more apparent, and as such, more noticeable.


    "That''s Bai Qianluo." Shen Jun turned gloomy.


    Bai Qianluo was a son of the city lord of Tianyin City and a very renowned figure among the sages at his level. While he was not comparable to the likes of Pang Xiao, Yan Tong, and Zhuo Xu, he was nonetheless a legend in his own right, and many had high expectations for him.


    More importantly, he was not the only one from Tianyin City who participated in the battle; there were others around who were there as his support.


    It was obvious that those of Tianyin City intended to have Bai Qianluo make the breakthrough.


    Furthermore, Bai Qianluo and his people were heading straight for Yu Sheng. The first target was the battle that Xu Que was fighting in.


    Shen Jun cursed at Yu Sheng deep down, for being a cocky b*stard.


    They didn''t bother teaming up, and now Bai Qianluo of Tianyin City was teaming up with others to take them down.


    "Xu Que, stand back." Yu Sheng began to run as soon as he said so. His steps made the platform shake.


    Xu Que did as told by Yu Sheng and retreated right away, getting ready to shake off his opponent and leave the battlefield.


    The one who fought Xu Que sensed the looming danger and did not stop Xu Que, as he was about to retreat himself.


    Clang.


    Terrifying killing intent filled their surroundings in that very instant. Formless sound waves that were out to take everything down seeped into the minds of everyone present.


    Xu Que and the one he fought before felt their brains shaking as they were attacked by the will of the great path of sound.


    Yu Sheng''s brain felt just as rattled. He felt as if he was being assaulted with formless cutting threads of spiritual powers coming at him, lashing out in a frenzy and trying to wipe out his spiritual will.


    Boom. Not only did he not stop, but he accelerated instead as he headed for where Xu Que was.


    A group of people came at him at that very moment. Formless power swept over the place in an instant, as drumbeats out to crumble the space around them were heard. The formless killing sounds lashed out at the same time.


    Cracking sounds were heard as the one who fought Xu Que before was being attacked by the formless sound attacks, shaken, shuddering, and blood spluttering from his orifices.


    Clang... The killing sounds swept out again, and the group of people zipped past the person who dropped before. That person was then shaken so violently that his body was quickly reduced to dust. He was killed right there and then.


    Those who teamed up did not typically bother showing mercy, as they were concerned about their opponents teaming up with others to retaliate. As such, people in such teams were usually quick to act, and they would kill their opponents right away, giving nobody a chance whatsoever.


    Xu Que quickly turned into a grey mirage, and yet, he was unable to move faster than sound. He grunted, and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth. The other team ran at him like a raging torrent of formless killing power, intending to wipe him out like they did the last person.


    At that moment, however, a stout figure appeared before Xu Que. The raging attacks beat on his body in a frenzy, causing his black clothes to billow and crack. Tearing sounds were heard during the attack.


    However, that imposing figure wearing dark golden armor did not budge at all, taking all the hits from the terrifying vibrations head-on, preventing any of them from reaching Xu Que. As such, Xu Que only had to withstand the sounds and not the force.


    The ones at the front saw Yu Sheng appear right before Xu Que, and they did not bother stopping. They continued moving forward and waved their arms at the same time. Drumbeats were heard and swept the place with the killing sound before. Raging torrents in their surroundings pummeled at Yu Sheng without mercy and with extremely overbearing force.


    Boom, boom, boom... Thundering rumble was heard from Yu Sheng''s body as the attacks continued to hit him, one wave after another.


    Yet, Yu Sheng continued standing where he was without budging at all. Bai Qianluo frowned at the scene before him. The team-up would have allowed them to generate chord resonances, and their power would have multiplied several times over.


    He stands there and takes it all in? they thought.


    That killing music circled Yu Sheng''s body at the same time. With high pitched noises heard in the air, attempting to tear Yu Sheng''s body apart. Be it spiritual will or physical attacks, Yu Sheng remained standing and taking everything.


    His eyes were locked onto Bai Qianluo as well. A terrifying whirlpool appeared above that raging body of his, resembling a black hole out to devour all of the powers from their attacks.


    Black aura swept throughout the place and shrouded the entire area. Bai Qianluo sensed a looming danger ahead.


    Boom.


    Yu Sheng took one step forward, taking on their attacks while charging at them.


    Raging aura swept from within his body, and rumbling drum beats were heard. He threw a punch, which caused the winds to howl. His dark golden fist was wrapped in that same raging drum beats as well.


    It was as if the power of the great path that they had brought to bear on Yu Sheng earlier was then being used to attack them.


    A hurricane was whipped up, and the group was being bombarded intensely. Punches were flashing in the air, and their bodies were all being penetrated by the flashes of the fist. Bloody holes were seen on all of them, their faces ashen as they looked down at their bodies.


    They teamed up, yet their attacks proved inadequate to make him budge. Yu Sheng, on the other hand, was able to punch right through all of them with one punch.


    The raging attacks caused Bai Qianluo to falter and back away. Yu Sheng then took a huge step, causing their surroundings to shake. It was as if he was able to overwhelm the space around them with just a single step. It was none other than the Footwork of Xuanyuan.


    He took several steps continuously, and Bai Qianluo felt stifling pressure looming all over him. He burst with his Life Spirit and waved his arms about. A gale whipped about as the power of the great path roared like thunder. The drum beats shattered the space around them as they headed for Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng stopped and let out an earth-shattering roar as if he was out to burst through the drum beats through sheer force. He threw another punch, and it seemed as if a god of war launched together with his body. The opposing power of the great path was blasted onto him, resulting in a loud rumble, and yet that still proved inadequate to make him stop his advances.


    A stout figure was seen zipping through the air.


    Boom...


    A loud rumble was heard as his fist shattered the space before him, landing hard on Bai Qianluo''s body. Bai Qianluo''s organs ruptured within a split second. His body dropped to the ground limply, and his eyes were filled with despair.


    The look in his eyes seemed to be asking, who the hell was that before him?


    The mighty ones from Tianyin City, who were at the top of a castle somewhere, all sported gloomy looks, seeing the scene before them.


    Bai Qianluo was extremely powerful, and they had even deliberately allowed a group to participate in the battle with him as supports. As such, they had high hopes for him in that Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, getting ready to send Bai Qianluo into the Crimson Dragon Army.


    However, none of them would have expected that the whole group was brought down by a single person��Yu Sheng.


    Is that fellow from Qianye City? they thought.


    They looked up and cast their gaze elsewhere, looking at Shen Jun.


    Shen Jun was shaken deep down as well and breathed a sigh of relief. Yu Sheng did not let him down. He was ferocious enough even to overwhelm someone as powerful as Bai Qianluo.


    He seemed to have sensed something and looked up, catching the looks from the mighty ones from Tianyin City. He did not mind any of that, though. That was what naturally would have happened in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. Yu Sheng was drawing the enmity of others. He was wondering how Ye Futian''s party would be able to leave Qianye City after that.


    That battle drew the attention of many, and they began to take Yu Sheng seriously. That is some fighter, they thought.


    He was also one who stood a chance of rising from the platform.


    There were indeed many dark horses in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    Situ Yan was shaken deep down, and she took a look at Ye Futian with a peculiar expression.


    It is no surprise that he is so confident. It seems like Yu Sheng is indeed more powerful than expected, indeed, she thought.


    Am I missing out on something here?


    But then again, it was still too early to tell. The Battle of the Sleeping Dragon had only just warmed up by then.


    She was still thinking that Ye Futian''s action of betting everything he had on Yu Sheng was too risky. While he might have had a lot of confidence in Yu Sheng''s powers, he should not have behaved so recklessly.


    The Battle of the Sleeping Dragon continued to rage on the Rising Dragon Platform. There were fewer and fewer fighters on the stage. Injured and dead ones were everywhere, and clashes of the titans continued to break out. The intensity of the fights was such that even they had even caught the attention of the saints. Those below Saint Plane were even more pumped up.


    Final showdowns would have taken place soon enough.

 1185 Hunt for the Dragon

    Everyone in the castles looked at that battlefield, where fights were being fought both on the ground and in the air.


    Other than dead fighters, others who have lost the ability to fight due to severe injuries went to hide on the side, not daring to continue.


    As those fighters lost the ability to fight, the others would not have deliberately fight them, unless someone had a grudge or a score to settle.


    At present, there were only tens of mighty ones who were still capable of continuing to fight.


    The strongest few were still around, such as the highly anticipated Pang Xiao, Yan Tong, and Zhuo Xu.


    Many placed massive bets on the three of them. Those who had bet on them all seemed rather anxious, seeing all three of them still around, getting increasingly close to the goal.


    When there were ten on the battlefield left standing, they were then allowed to try to rise from the platform. So long as the crimson dragon above approved of them, it would let them pass.


    All three of them had very good chances of earning such approval.


    Other than the three of them, the most eye-catching ones were Yu Sheng and the others around him, especially Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, Xu Que & Qin Zhuang. After he had single-handedly wrecked the whole team of mighty ones from Tianyin City, few went to fight them. Some tried to challenged Yu Sheng, and all of them ended up being practically run over without mercy.


    While Yu Sheng would have refrained from killing anyone, as he did not bear any grudge against them, having some bones broken and eliminated from the battle was inevitable.


    The other four from Qianye City who came with Yu Sheng were all still on the battlefield, and that earned the ire of many.


    While everyone acknowledged Yu Sheng''s strength among the five, Xu Que was weaker than the rest, while there was a considerable gap between Qin Zhuang, Huang Jiuge, and those top-notch powers. Among the ones who had fallen in battle, some were stronger than the few of them, yet all five led by Yu Sheng remained standing.


    There was no other reason why they were still around other than that Yu Sheng was there to hold down the fort. If anyone of the other four were in danger, he would have saved them.


    Anyone who proved powerful enough would have had to take all five of them down at once.


    One fighter after another took to the sky, and the fighters gradually stopped fighting one another. It was as if they had come to some consensus.


    Pang Xiao took a look at Yu Sheng''s party, and then at Yan Tong, Zhuo Xu, and the others, saying, "How about we take them out first before continuing our fight?"


    "Good idea." Yan Tong nodded at Pang Xiao. He did not object to the suggestion.


    "Will do." Black flames gleamed and flickered in Zhuo Xu''s eyes, emanating an extremely dangerous aura.


    Yu Sheng and frowned. A terrifying aura was sensed everywhere around him.


    It was not just Pang Xiao and the other two. Even all others who were left standing seemed to have agreed on the idea of removing Yu Sheng''s party first.


    Boom. Yan Tong stepped forward like a fiery god of war, every step causing the Rising Dragon Platform to shake as he charged at Yu Sheng. Fiery heatwaves swept all over the place, turning into a firestorm out to drown Yu Sheng.


    Pang Xiao and the others made a move as well, charging with Yan Tong and emanating terrifying aura.


    Zhuo Xu turned into a bolt of lightning, heading straight for Ye Wuchen. If Pang Xiao and Yan Tong intended to move against Yu Sheng, who was the strongest of the five, he saw no reason not to let them be. It would have been best if both sides ended up injured and eliminated from the fight, while he went on to take out the others first.


    Boom! Yu Sheng stepped out in midair, causing the Rising Dragon Platform to shudder. His raging form charged straight at Yan Tong''s overbearing form of a fiery god of war without fear.


    Both sides came near each other, and Yan Tong threw his arm forward. The punch thrown by the fiery god of war seemed like a red-hot fiery hammer. It was harsh and overbearing, and lava-like fires were seen coursing about it.


    Yu Sheng''s arm streaked through the air, and his body seemed to be expanding as well, which seemed to be his battle form manifesting. The dark golden Buddhist and demonic punch burst into a myriad of illusions before coalescing into a single punch again.


    Rumbles were heard everywhere as terrifying fiery waves swept all over the place, but none of them retreated.


    Pang Xiao''s attack seemed to be about to connect at that moment. A flaming halberd appeared in his hand, streaking through the air like a halberd of heavenly gods as it was launched at its target.


    However, the target was not Yu Sheng, but Yan Tong.


    The eyes of many froze as their hearts raced; they all seemed to have stopped breathing.


    There was indeed no trust in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, and alliances were forged for the sake of convenience only.


    Pang Xiao was not only out to fight; he was aiming to win as well.


    At the moment he lashed out, one figure after another zipped past and attacked at the same time. Several fighters were attacking Pang Xiao at once.


    That caused the spectators'' eyes to freeze again after they snapped out of their dazed state. Surprises kept coming.


    Boom. Yan Tong and Yu Sheng distanced themselves. Yan Tong''s entire body of lava fires solidified and was out to devour everything. When Pang Xiao''s fiery halberd was about to reach its target, deafening high-pitched noises were heard, it still managed to tear through the solidified lava and sink bit by bit into the body of the fiery god of war.


    The charged hit was exceptionally powerful, giving no chance to Yan Tong at all. As the fiery halberd tore through its target, the raging body of the fiery god of war crumbled. However, a figure shot out from it, basking in flames. He lashed out both arms at Pang Xiao at the same time, sending fires of lava at his opponent.


    Pang Xiao''s expression changed. He thrust away with his halberd, tearing through the lava fires, but at the same time, attacks from several top-notch mighty ones were there as well, blasting straight at him.


    "Hunt for the Dragon."


    That term flashed in the heads of countless people in the castles. That was the Hunt for the Dragon Plan in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    The Hunt for the Dragon referred to a group of people teaming up in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, but would not have exposed themselves in earlier stages. They would not have stood out until key battles at later stages. It was only then the target realized that those who had been fighting their respective battles had been of the same gang.


    However, it was difficult for the Hunt for the Dragon plan to be implemented, as few would have been able to make sure that they stayed until the late stages. There were more who chose to team up right from the start, but there were many who did so drawing the attention of others and were quickly wiped out.


    Many laid out Hunt for the Dragon plans and never got to execute them, as there was no way of doing so.


    However, no one would have expected that the one to do so to be Yan Tong, the young city lord of Flaming Prison City, who was of great renown and highly anticipated right from the start. He was hell-bent on getting through the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    Yan Tong needed to win the battle, as his clan had placed heavy bets on him. Furthermore, as a native resident of Crimson Dragon Realm, he needed an opportunity.


    While Pang Xiao was someone from the city lord''s office of Crimson Cloud City and a descendant of a Renhuang, but his main forces lied in other realms. As such, he was not as familiar with Crimson Dragon Realm as those from Flaming Prison City.


    Many spectators found that those who participated in Yan Tong''s Hunt for the Dragon plan were top-notch figures from many other cities in the Crimson Dragon Realm, instead of originating from Flaming Prison City.


    It was, however, apparent that they were all fighting Yan Tong.


    One could have easily deduced just what kind of a hefty price did Flaming Prison City paid to participate in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    The eyes of many spectators turned in the direction of the mighty ones from Flaming Prison City. If those people had paid such a hefty price to get the Hunt for the Dragon plan''s execution, then Flaming Prison City would have definitely placed heavy bets on that battle.


    Many who had bet on Pang Xiao looked extraordinarily gloomy.


    Rumbles were continuously heard from the battlefield at that moment, as Pang Xiao was being ganged up on. However, dazzling light from his golden armor on his body held strong.


    Yang Tong turned into a fiery god of war yet again, throwing his punches at Pang Xiao, whose defenses eventually gave altogether. He spat blood from his mouth and was pinned to the ground from the air. Terrifying, devastating powers raged in his body, and he became severely injured.


    However, Yan Tong did not kill him, for he was still a descendant of a Renhuang, and Yan Tong saw it fit to show mercy.


    The atmosphere in the castles felt rather glum. Pang Xiao sneaked up on Yan Tong, and yet, he was the one who ended up pummeled. Of the three most highly anticipated candidates, one was officially out of the game. Many who had bet on him suffered losses.


    However, that was how the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was.


    At that moment, there were also the ones who cheered and howled excitedly in the castles��the ones who had placed their bets on Yan Tong.


    The game was set by then.


    Zhuo Xu, who was fighting Ye Wuchen, retreated and distanced himself from his opponent, a tight frown on his face.


    Shen Jun, who was on the top of a castle, frowned and felt something was off.


    "If Yan Tong went to such lengths to execute the hunt, then there is no way he will go home empty-handed. He would have begun sweeping everyone out from then on out then. Only by doing so would he be able to show his powers and then rise," Situ Yan mumbled in a low voice as if saying to Ye Futian deliberately. That was what Shen Jun was thinking as well.


    Things had just gotten tricky.


    Yan Tong turned his eyes and looked at Zhuo Xu, saying, "Does anyone in their midst belong to you?"


    Other than his men and the five led by Yu Sheng, there was also a group that teamed up right away. Furthermore, he sensed that he had been locked onto by hostile auras, alerting him.


    The mantis stalking the cicada was unaware of the oriole behind it.


    "Clever." Zhuo Xu smirked and one figure after another zipped past, gathering at Zhuo Xu''s side.


    Many spectators were shocked at that scene.


    Two top-notch figures were executing the Hunt for the Dragon plan, and both parties managed to stay to the very last stages.


    There was still a group of people on the battlefield who did not belong to any side, and they all looked glum at that moment.


    "How about we take them out before we have our final showdown?" Yan Tong said.


    "Sure." Zhuo Xu nodded. Mighty ones from both sides acted at the same time, but they did not team up. All fighters who were of one side or another went out to fight those without a side of their own, defeating and overwhelming all of them.


    That went on until those from both parties, as well as the five led by Yu Sheng, were left standing.


    It seemed that the final showdown would have broken out between Yan Tong and Zhuo Xu, or maybe both of them would have gained recognition as well.


    Shen Jun was despaired, seeing how things on the battlefield turned out. That was indeed the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. He schemed against Ye Futian, yet the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was nonetheless filled with unpredictable elements.


    Ye Futian, too, lowered his head and looked below, finding people from both sides charging at the five led by Yu Sheng.


    The five no longer split at that moment, standing in a wedge-shaped formation, with Yu Sheng at the forefront, Ye Wuchen and Huang Jiuge at the flanks, and finally, Qin Zhuang and Xu Que taking the rear, looking at the mighty ones from both sides coming.


    The ones on the castles took one look at those people around Yan Tong, who was, at the moment, walking towards Yu Sheng.


    There were several of them who were top-notch figures from the city lord''s offices. What more could one do with a situation like this?


    It seemed like the five from Qianye City were about to go down hard. They were only wondering if Yan Tong and Zhuo Xu would have been kind enough to spare the five of them, after defeating them.

 1186 Undefeatable One

    However, many looked forward to such an ending to the battle. After the five from Qianye City got eliminated, Yan Tong of Flaming Prison City and Zhuo Xu of the Black Flame clan would have fought for the right to rise, and there would have been a great battle.


    The winner would have been able to rise from the Rising Dragon Platform.


    About one-third of the spectators lost their money after Pang Xiao was eliminated, but there were still over half of them who had bet on Yan Tong and Zhuo Xu.


    A great many would have been able to get rich regardless of whichever side ended up winning.


    As such, both sides looked forward to the upcoming battle very much.


    At present, they needed first to eliminate the five from Qianye City.


    "Do it," Yan Tong said and stepped out right away. His huge flaming body was filled with overbearing might. Terrifying flames shot from his eyes. The place where Yu Sheng and the other four were in became shrouded by intense will of the great path of flames.


    It felt as if that place had just turned into a purgatory.


    At the same time, those by Yan Tong''s side charged at Yu Sheng''s group from the flanks at blitzing speed, bursting with terrifying pressure.


    The incoming assailants saw that Yu Sheng was not bothering to evade and stepped out right away, charging at the ones coming at them.


    Yan Tong grabbed at the space before him, and the purgatorial fires in that space turned into that spouting from lava, which were then gradually solidified, trapping Yu Sheng. Conventional pinnacle sages would have easily been burnt to a crisp with such a move.


    "Close." Someone above extended their hand, and golden diagrams appeared one after another, closing in on Yu Sheng, trying to trap him inside the purgatory.


    Yet another person, who was versed in the will of the great path of space, froze the space Yu Sheng was in.


    In that instant, the step that Yu Sheng had taken seemed to have stopped altogether, with him being completely trapped.


    The others around lashed out at the same time. One of them held a golden spear and thrust into the air, aiming straight for Yu Sheng''s body.


    Another threw a punch of the great path, tearing through space as it headed straight for Yu Sheng.


    The crowd heard nothing but continuous rumbles as if that space was frozen altogether. Everyone threw whatever they had at Yu Sheng, intending to crush him with their attacks.


    Zhuo Xu chose to continue to attack Ye Wuchen. Boundless eerie black flames gushed around him, emanating terrifying, burning might. It was as if auras of death had blocked out the sky and shrouded the area as he headed straight for Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen stepped out, and dazzling light was seen emanating from his brow. Boundless sword will surrounded him, and thousands of sword aura manifested above, with every sliver containing the power of the path of shredding.


    His will of great path was infused within every single sword will, and rules flowed as if they had grown eyes of their own and attacked the black flames blocking out the sky, tearing them apart gradually.


    However, the black flames were extraordinarily overbearing and were capable of burning off the sword will, which ended in continuous mutual destruction.


    Several moved in from the flanks. Qin Zhuang invoked his sword with a small sword diagram appearing behind him. The sword will from Xu Que flowed into him in a frenzy. He lent his sword to Qin Zhuang, as he had not been training in the way of the sword as long as Qin Zhuang did.


    Qin Zhuang had been able to touch the great path as well, and he was well on his way to becoming a saint.


    Qin Zhuang waved his hand when an assailant attacked. The small sword diagram zipped out and streaked through space.


    At the same time, Huang Jiuge''s Renhuang Bow Life Spirit appeared, bursting with extremely brilliant light. It contained some powers of the imperial path. While he was still lacking in his development and had yet to be able to develop will of the great path, the burst of might through his lineage of Renhuang was not that much weaker, compared to Qin Zhuang, who had developed such powers of great path.


    Nine arrows were shot one after another, tearing through space like rainbows, holding off the assailants.


    The few of them were more on the defensive.


    At that moment, terrifying destructive aura burst, and Zhuo Xu was seen standing with a black shadow behind his back, which was tall and mighty, as well as shrouded in black flames.


    Zhuo Xu was a descendant of the Black Flame Emperor. If he were to reach Renhuang Plane level, he would have been able to pass on the powers of the great path to his descendants, infused within their Life Spirits.


    As such, those who were born from genius parents had it easier in developing comprehension of the great path.


    Ye Futian, for instance, had it far easier in his processes of developing such comprehensions. Furthermore, he was able to develop a myriad of wills of the great path and interconnecting them.


    Zhuo Xu extended his hand forward and grabbed at Ye Wuchen. His pitch-black hand blocked out the sky like some devastating black hole, which was forged from boundless black flame auras. When Ye Wuchen''s sword wills touched the black hand, they were burnt down right there and then.


    Ye Wuchen wore a solemn expression as a sword shot from his brow, ringing as it emerged containing the will of the great path.


    Sword wills in their surroundings flowed in a frenzy right there and then.


    Thousands of sharp swords condensed, with tens of thousands compressed into thousands, then hundreds... and the number continued to shrink. Ye Wuchen''s body was shrouded with the light of the sword. The path of the swords merged into a single entity and fused with the sword before him. However, that devastating sword will was still found everywhere.


    "Go," Ye Wuchen uttered.


    The sword shot forth and came to his enemy within an instant.


    The sword and the black hand clashed, which ended up with the black hole-like hand exploding and crumbling right away. However, the terrifying might infused within the sword was weakened as well, returning before Ye Wuchen.


    The act of the Swordmaster of Lihen lending his sword to Ye Wuchen told the younger swordsman that the way of the sword was more than just expansion; it was one of contraction as well.


    One sword could have multiplied into two, then three, then up to ten thousand. That was the way of the sword.


    Having ten thousand swords compressed into one was, too, a way of the sword.


    In yet another battlefield, many mighty ones were bombarding Yu Sheng at the same time, intending to destroy his body, which was trapped inside their attacks.


    However, none of them were able to see that the dark golden shimmer glowing on that body was turning increasingly bright. That terrifying lava fire of hell remained incapable of melting down his body. The intense offensive powers from all those around him were, too, unable to break his body.


    "A physical body of such strength?" Countless spectators on the castles who watched the battle shuddered. The attacks from Yan Tong and the others were absolutely near that of saint levels, after all.


    They were all baffled to find that they were unable to destroy his body.


    Just what kind of a physical body is this? they wondered.


    Ye Futian''s expression was a calm one. When the Medicine Saint went to the Holy Zhi Palace at the Lower Worlds back then, many had taken medicine baths, and Yu Sheng went through with the whole course.


    Furthermore, Yu Sheng was a warrior whose innate forte was his very own body, which was even stronger than Ye Futian''s. Yu Sheng, whose body had been innately infused with the power of the great path, had grown to be infinitely near that of a saint at the moment.


    Boom. The solidified lava fires, dazzling golden diagrams, and other powers keeping him trapped, all crumbled. Yu Sheng burst with dark golden light, and slivers of terrifying light of the demon swept through the entire place. Terrifying demonic storms blown on the ones surrounded him, enabling them to have a taste of unparalleled might.


    Yu Sheng''s body hovered in the air. Dark demonic might coursed in a frenzy around him, shrouding the entire area and spreading out to the Rising Dragon Platform.


    Many looked at their sides and found dark demonic might brushing through them, making them feel chills all over their bodies.


    Yu Sheng''s pitch-black eyes shimmered with demonic light. They were extremely overbearing. It was as if anyone who so much as looking at them would have been cast into boundless darkness, compelled to bow before him.


    The terrifying demonic aura gushed at his body in a frenzy, making that body of his look increasingly huge. It was as if he was constructing his battle form right there and then.


    A devil battle form appeared before long, standing tall in the air.


    "Kill." One of the assailants waved their hand, and a golden spear was launched at him, banging hard on the body of the demonic battle form and crumbling right away.


    Yu Sheng extended his hand, coalescing flowing dark aura at the center of his palm, and a pitch-black devil ax materialized.


    Boom. He stepped into the air and shook the entire place. Everyone was able to sense that overbearing might of the great path emanating from him, coming down with his steps. Yu Sheng stepped forward and appeared right before one of them, swinging his ax down as if to cleave the heavens apart.


    That person was terrified, throwing their hands with great force, bringing boundless golden diagrams to place the space before them in lockdown.


    However, at the very moment when the ax came down, cracking noises were heard as the golden diagrams were cleaved apart right there and then. The one who had made a move against Yu Sheng before everyone else was cut down right away, their blood splattered all over the place.


    The roaring, noisy castles quieted down once again as if that ax had cleaved onto their hearts.


    What kind of power is this? they asked themselves.


    Powerful will of the great path of space came down on Yu Sheng at that moment. He turned around and looked at someone.


    He then seemed to have crushed that will of the great path with only a single step.


    There was a magnitude difference to powers of the great path, after all.


    Boom. He took yet another step and his opponent''s body seemed to have been locked right away, practically pinned down. Yu Sheng lifted his arm and brought the ax down again. His opponent roared and shook off that overbearing power and retreated. A flash of the ax was seen brought down. Cracking, high-pitched noises were heard. A gash was seen on that person''s body as blood was spilled. They then yelled, "I give up."


    Technically-speaking, there was no "giving up" in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. If Yu Sheng wished to continue, he would have been able to cut his opponent down easily.


    However, Yu Sheng shot his opponent a dull look before turning to the others. All of those sages at the pinnacle of their training from the significant cities felt a faint hint of fear, while Yu Sheng did little than shoot a look at them.


    Those pitch-black eyes of his were tremendously deep. It was as if they were able to see a devil like none other, looking down at everything in the world.


    They were all top-notch figures and were very confident with their own powers. They would not have participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon otherwise.


    However, for some reason, they seemed to have lost all of their confidence right there and then.


    It was as if there were indeed people that they would have stood no chance against right from the start.


    That person right before their eyes was one such being.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stepped out again, shaking their minds.


    "I give up."


    "I yield." One fighter after another was seen leaving the battlefield.


    They gave up on their battles and retreated.


    None of them wanted to face that ax of his. While the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was perilous, to begin with, and the chance of losing one''s life was very high, but no one truly wanted to die. They were all there to fight for an opportunity.


    However, right at that moment, it became clear that they stood no chance against that monster, and struggling would have been pointless.


    As for what they have promised the Flaming Prison City, none of that would have worth throwing their lives away for.


    Let Yan Tong fight this monster alone, they thought.


    The spectators within the castles were thoroughly shaken. One man with a two-sided ax was able to force that many top-notch figures just to give up and run?


    Are Yan Tong and Zhuo Xu going to win this? Will one of them be able to rise from the platform? they wondered.


    There had always been people who went on to break expectations of others in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. There had been a lot of precedences.


    It was yet another day for something like that to happen again, and it happened in such a frightening manner.

 1187 Making the Rise

    Yan Tong was the only one left in that area of the battlefield.


    Yan Tong''s fiery god of war form stared at the devil battle form that was equally as huge. Yan Tong''s form, which was basking in fiery light, seemed to be in stark contrast with the demonic colors of Yu Sheng''s form. It was as if they were destined to become archenemies.


    Boundless lava fire coursed and coalesced around him, which later solidified.


    A huge fiery hammer of the fiery god of war gradually coalesced before Yan Tong. It was crimson all over and was a startlingly high temperature.


    He then swung his arm and stepped out, heading straight for Yu Sheng.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stepped and walked towards Yan Tong as well.


    Both men were cultivators wielding extremely overwhelming powers, and it seemed as if they planned to clash head-on.


    Boom, boom, boom...


    Both of them stepped onto the air continuously, causing their surroundings to shake. Yu Sheng moved according to the moves shown in the Footwork of Xuanyuan, incorporating suppressing will of the great path into his steps, bringing extremely high pressure to bear.


    Heatwaves swept across the air and hit Yu Sheng''s body. The fires of lava seemed to be out to burn the heavens away, but Yu Sheng, who was literally covered in fire, continued to press forward, breaking everything in his path. He swung the devilish ax down, and there seemed to be dark demonic glimmer appearing in their surroundings, containing unparalleled power.


    Yan Tong shouted and swung the fiery hammer in his hand out, clashing with the ax. The sense of power emanating from it caused all to keep their eyes fixed at the battlefield without blinking.


    Boom...


    Heaven-splitting clashes were heard, and everyone saw Yan Tong''s body being brought down, dropping to the ground at high speeds.


    That devil-like body continued to head straight for the ground, and yet another strike from the ax was lashed out. It was as if it was to bring down the gods.


    Yan Tong''s blood was boiling, and his arms shaking, yet he continued to swing his hammer with all his might, clashing against the ax coming down at him.


    With another intense rumble, the fiery hammer was surprisingly split open. The ax continued to come down. It landed onto the fiery god of war''s body. Yan Tong''s battle form crumbled with a loud boom, and his body accelerated as it dropped. He spat blood and crashed hard onto the ground below.


    Boom. Another rumble was heard. Yan Tong was unable to react in time before the heavenly god-like body of his opponent stepped onto him. He even closed his eyes when he saw the ax coming down, waiting, in despair, for the moment of death.


    However, he opened his eyes moments later and saw Yu Sheng shoot a cold glance at him. Yu Sheng then lifted the ax and charged elsewhere, not cutting him down.


    It was perhaps due to Yu Sheng not wanting to cause too much trouble on the battlefield. They were at Crimson Dragon Realm, after all.


    Yan Tong, who had been able to survive, did not feel fortunate. He was simply rendered dazed.


    He was confident that his powers were already at the top of his plane. His powers were strong, and he was half-way into the Saint Plane. Even attacks from his Life Spirit had been extremely overbearing.


    Yet on that day, he met someone else who was even more overpowering that he was, who went on to pummel him to the ground using the most direct and raging means.


    He had been well-prepared for the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, yet he lost all the same.


    Furthermore, he knew how much his clan had done to foster him and how massive their bets were on him. There was no way he could have lost.


    Yet, at that moment, everything was over for him.


    It was not just him. All those who had betted on him turned pale at that moment.


    The three most highly anticipated figures consisted of over 90 percent of the bets placed. At that moment, however, there was only one of the three left on the Rising Dragon Platform��Zhuo Xu.


    How long would he be able to last before Yu Sheng?


    Yu Sheng''s extremely raging silhouette, like that of devil, left a lasting impression on those who saw him. It was as if there was no way to take him down at all.


    Yu Sheng did not stop after taking down Yan Tong. He headed to another area of the battlefield right away. Ye Wuchen continued to fight Zhuo Xu. While he was by no means at an advantage, he was, nonetheless, able to hold his own. As such, Yu Sheng did not help him out. He headed somewhere else instead.


    Huang Jiuge, Qin Zhuang, and Xu Que were at a disadvantage and stayed on the defensive, as they were being surrounded and attacked by several others.


    However, when Yu Sheng finally came, the hearts of those few sank, and they looked glum. All of them saw what happened in the battle in the other corner.


    There was no way they would have been able to fight someone who had been able to overpower someone as mighty as Yan Tong.


    There had been another top-notch figure from the city who had been cleaved right away. Huge number of other fighters lost without even putting up a fight.


    "I yield," one of them said and was getting ready to leave the battlefield. The others made their stance clear right away as well.


    Yu Sheng took a look at Qin Zhuang, Huang Jiuge, and Xu Que. His pitch-black eyes were icy. He switched the ax up, having the blunt side facing all of them before stepping out.


    Those who had yielded were frightened, wondering what was Yu Sheng up to.


    And they quickly found what he was up to.


    Sounds of bones cracking continued to be heard. Their internal organs seemed as if they had been ruptured, and all of them soon dropped to the ground, looking like having one foot in their coffins.


    Yu Sheng did not kill them, but their current state meant that it would have taken them months before they were able to get up again.


    "We''re done for." Those who had bet on Zhuo Xu looked despaired, finding themselves completely done for.


    Almost everyone lost in that Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    A dark horse emerged out of nowhere and stole everyone else''s thunder.


    However, no one would have been insane enough to bet on someone who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.


    Situ Yan had placed her bets, but she hardly felt happy at all.


    She looked at Yu Sheng and then at Ye Futian. She then recalled what Ye Futian said to her before.


    He told her to bet everything she had on Yu Sheng.


    And she took him for a lunatic back then.


    But looking back, she wondered who had been the lunatic and who had been the idiot.


    While she had placed her bet and she won, she nonetheless felt that she had missed out on a once-in-a-lifetime chance.


    But then again, who dared to do that back then?


    Two others placed their bets on Yu Sheng��Shen Jun and Kong Xuan.


    Shen Jun seemed to have achieved his objective. Despite not having placed that huge of a bet, he earned considerably from it, which made it worthwhile for him to have laid such schemes in place.


    However, he was still concerned.


    Yu Sheng was too powerful. Furthermore, it was not just Yu-Sheng; he felt something out of the ordinary with Ye Wuchen, and even Huang Jiuge as well.


    Those people did not seem to be people studying under the same teacher.


    Kong Xuan, on the other hand, had a very good idea of who they were. However, unlike Shen Jun, she simply watched Yu Sheng fight.


    She came to realize that he was yet another person who would be able to threaten her.


    She lost to Ye Futian back in the Battle of Empty Realm, and she had always seen that defeat to be an insult. However, she never expected Yu Sheng to be just as formidable.


    He seemed to be invincible under Saint Plane.


    At that moment on the battlefield, Zhuo Xu gave up all of a sudden and took flight. There were only six people left standing on the battlefield. According to the rules, they were free to attempt to rise, so long as the crimson dragon above approved.


    However, Yu Sheng and the rest did not let him.


    They began making a move as soon as Zhuo Xu shot to the air, heading out and intercepting him above. Yu Sheng blocked his way and brought his ax down on Zhuo Xu. Ye Wuchen''s sword arrived as well, penetrating through his body. Zhuo Xu was bloodstained and dropped to the ground.


    Seeing Zhuo Xu dropping to the ground severely injured and losing all capacity for combat, the last hope for many in the castles was snuffed out right there and then.


    It was a crushing defeat. Almost every single one of the native residents from all over Crimson Dragon Realm lost their bets, earning nothing.


    "We''re rich," Ye Futian mumbled to himself. Man, this feels good, he thought.


    It was said that participants were not allowed to continuously participate in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, which he found to be a pity. He would have bankrupted the Crimson Dragon Emperor otherwise.


    He would have been willing to stay around and bet for a decade or so.


    What a shame.


    What a shame, indeed.


    He came to wonder if the Crimson Dragon Emperor were able to read his thoughts, would the Emperor clap him to death right there and then?


    Yu Sheng and the other four remained standing in the air above the Rising Dragon Platform.


    They lifted their heads to look at the opening where the crimson dragon was seen circling above. Yu Sheng stepped out, and the others followed, heading upwards.


    They were rising from the platform.


    The crimson dragon''s colossal body circled the opening. It looked at Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen with its huge head, saying, "You both shall pass."


    Other than Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen had also performed admirably, for he had been able to fight Zhuo Xu, qualifying him for the rise.


    While Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and Qin Zhuang showed decent performance, they were, nonetheless, lacking.


    "All five of us are together." Yu Sheng said, "Please make way, senior."


    "No," the holy dragon looked at them with its huge eyes and said coldly.


    Yu Sheng stared at the dragon, and demonic might was seen overflowing. He still held onto his devil ass.


    Boom.


    The air shook as Yu Sheng stepped out, heading straight for the huge crimson dragon, shocking the spectators.


    Yu Sheng then brought his ax down onto the crimson dragon.


    Everyone watched in shock.


    ???


    What the hell is happening here?


    Is that guy trying to cut dragon demon saint open? they wondered incredulously.


    "Wooaaahhh..." When everyone realized what was happening, those in the castles who did not place bets and were simply there to watch the battle cheered with booming voices.


    This is awesome, they thought.


    Yu Sheng is just a true devil.


    He is going to cut anyone down who stands in his way, and demon saints are no exception.


    Many had only realized that he still had the ax in his hand, and his devil battle form was never dispelled. Had he been getting ready for this?


    That *sshole knew what was coming and headed straight for the demon saint.


    This is just ridiculous, they thought.


    Many even began to curse and jeer, not knowing what words could describe their current thoughts.


    "You''re going too far," the crimson dragon berated him, and terrifying flames were seen circling its huge eyes. It lashed out with its claws right at Yu Sheng.


    Ye Wuchen and Qin Zhuang''s swords headed for the dragon''s eyes.


    The crimson dragon roared angrily, opening its mouth. It breathed holy fire capable of burning everything down.


    Its claws clashed with the ax. The dragon then pulled its claws back, and Yu Sheng was thrown behind as well. The dragon then whipped its tail at Yu Sheng.


    Boom.


    Yu Sheng''s devil battle form was hit with a loud boom, but he stuck to the tail and grabbed it, latching on to the crimson dragon''s tail with both hands.


    What happened at the very next moment shocked everyone.


    Yu Sheng looked at the sky above and roared, hoisting the dragon up with all his might with both arms, which were still grabbing the dragon''s tail. He then flung the demon saint dragon away.


    "Go." Yu Sheng said. Ye Wuchen and the others took the chance and charged for the opening, taking only a split second to emerge outside.


    The dragon roared in rage, turning its head around. It breathed flames capable of burning everything down at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng let go of the dragon''s body while he stepped outside, charging like a bolt of lightning while still burning with fires of the great path. The holy flames ended up only burning down his armor.


    All five of them emerged outside.


    Countless in the castles watched the scene unfold and were silent for a brief moment before cheers erupted all over the place.


    What happened right there and then was immensely shocking to all of them.

 1188 Switching Sides

    The screen of light from the matrix crumbled when the rise was made. It was as if something was broken. Blinding light was then seen showering below.


    Countless eyes in the castles were all focused at one single spot��the place where the five stood above the crimson dragon. Yu Sheng drew a great majority of the attention.


    All five of them rose from the Rising Dragon Platform.


    The rules of the Rising Dragon Platform at the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon said anyone capable of breaking out of the opening was considered to have succeeded.


    A sacred beast level demon saint was guarding the place, and without its permission, none who were deemed qualified were allowed to make it through the opening.


    The crimson dragon deemed that the other three were inadequate, while only Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen made the cut.


    However, Yu Sheng managed to fling a demon saint away using his overwhelming strength, barging outside with all of the other four.


    No one dared to do something like that in the past.


    What Yu Sheng did right there was challenging the rules, and yet, he was still playing by the rules.


    That crimson dragon glared at Yu Sheng, having the great urge to chomp down on him and swallow him right there and then.


    It was an insult like none other!


    The dragon was actually flung away by a challenger of the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, whom it was tasked to guard against. The higher-ups were probably going to blame the dragon for slacking off.


    However, that man''s strength was comparable to a saint''s, as it would not have been able to fling something with its size away otherwise.


    Furthermore, his defense capacity was infinitely near that of a saint''s as well. The flames of the great path were unable to burn him down, after all.


    Yu Sheng lowered his head and looked at the dragon. There was no fear to be found in those pitch-black eyes of his. The dragon refused to let them pass, so he resorted to doing it the hard way instead.


    "You really are something." A voice was heard from the crimson dragon before it headed below. The image on the ground lit up. It went into the matrix and disappeared.


    The saint who had been announcing the rules previously appeared once again in the air. He looked at all five of them and took out five tags, which he then handed to them. "Congratulations. These are the Rising Dragon Tags. Hold onto them."


    Regardless of what methods they used to achieve the objective, they had played by the rules of the Crimson Dragon Realm, and it was only the outcome that mattered.


    Yu Sheng and the rest put their tags away, and many below Saint Plane looked at them with envious eyes.


    With Rising Dragon Tags in their hands, they were able to join the Crimson Dragon Army anytime if they were willing.


    Everyone who made it through the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was awarded a Rising Dragon Tag.


    That saint who gave them the tags did not explain what the tags were for. Anyone in Crimson Dragon Realm would have known anyway. There was no need to elaborate.


    It was given that they were the ones participating in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    The saint who handed them the Rising Dragon Tag, scanned the castles and left soon after.


    One silhouette after another was seen taking to the air from the platform, heading for the castles. They were all people who survived on the battlefield.


    As for those perished, people would go to pick up their bodies.


    The Battle of the Sleeping Dragon had about a quarter of its participants die. The death count was very harrowing, and it served as a testament to the battle''s brutality.


    Furthermore, those were all top-notch fighters, to begin with. However, there was always someone stronger.


    For instance, Yu Sheng managed to overpower extremely formidable ones, like Yan Tong and Zhuo Xu.


    Yu Sheng and the others headed to where the ones from Qianye City were. Ye Futian and the others were able to sense many cold eyes clearly, and they did not seem friendly.


    In truth, Yu Sheng had gone easy on everyone during the later stages of the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, instead of being as brutal as he could have been.


    Yan Tong and the others had been out to kill Yu Sheng right from the start, yet Yu Sheng pummeled them to the ground instead of killing them.


    Regardless, both Flaming Prison City and the Black Flame clan had invested a great deal in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. The losses they suffered were harrowing.


    All of that happened because Yu Sheng showed up.


    Other than that, the group of mighty ones from Tianyin City, who had been out to kill Xu Que earlier, including Bai Qianluo of the city lord''s office, were all cut down by Yu Sheng.


    All of that made for a score that remained to be settled.


    "Rest assured, Brother Ye, the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon has been held for many years, and all participants were participating out of their own will. They knew that there would be casualties, and there were grudges. But then again, most forces were still able to tell that they were inferior, so even if there were grudges, since Yu Sheng and the others were participating as representatives of Qianye City, those forces will not go wage wars between cities."


    Shen Jun spoke to Ye Futian with an amicable tone, appearing friendly.


    Ye Futian looked at him and was thinking that Shen Jun was a snake for having duped Yu Sheng into participating in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    If he were to lose, there was the risk of dying.


    If he were to win, he would have definitely offended someone.


    If they offended someone, they would need protection from Qianye City to ensure their safety, as the cities in Crimson Dragon City had come to some consensus a long time ago. The Battle of the Sleeping Dragon had been held for too many years, after all.


    Unless there was a party proving capable of gobbling up other cities, wars would not happen.


    But then again, there was still another option��joining the Crimson Dragon Army.


    "Thank you for your hospitality, young city lord," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "That would be my duty as host. Yu Sheng and the others performed perfectly this time. Qianye City will be able to reap benefits for having you all participate in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. I should be the one thanking you instead, Brother Ye. I shall throw a feast for all forces in Qianye City when I return and introduce you to them, welcoming you to the city once again," Shen Jun said with a smile.


    A peculiar look was seen deep in Ye Futian''s eyes.


    Shen Jun seemed to have been a lot more polite.


    And he seemed to have been more sincere.


    He had previously duped them into participating in the event, and yet he made it clear that Qianye City had something to gain from it.


    If things had gone that far, Ye Futian was ready to keep playing along.


    "Right. I see that Yu Sheng, Huang Jiuge, and the others are practicing different arts. It seems like my speculation before had proven erroneous. I take it that you all are not of the same force, Brother Ye?" Shen Jun asked in a probing manner.


    Due to Ye Futian and Yaya being sword wielders, and later seeing Ye Wuchen and Xu Que being swordsmen as well, Shen Jun thought all of those people came from some top-notch holy land of the sword in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Most of us are, and there are some who are friends coming on the same trip," Ye Futian smiled and said. Most of them came from the Holy Zhi Palace.


    "Right. Huang Jiuge emanated quite an extraordinary aura. I assume he is from some extraordinary clan then?" Shen Jun took a look at Huang Jiuge and continued to probe.


    Ye Futian smirked deep down. It seemed that Yu Sheng''s frightening powers, as well as the abilities shown by Wuchen, Jiuge, and the others, had made Shen Jun concerned. He then went about beating around the bush, trying to get to know who they really were.


    "He had some mystical encounters," Ye Futian smiled and replied, not bothering to go into detail.


    Ye Futian just did not bother to deal with putting up an act that looked sincere.


    "Ye Futian." A voice was heard at that moment.


    Ye Futian and the others turned around and saw a group of people at the castle across them, coming their way and then hovering before them.


    The group was none other than those from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. The one who took the lead was Kong Xuan.


    Her alluring body looked flawless. Her perfect curves, long legs, intricate features sporting a feral grace, were astonishing to any graced by her beauty.


    Princess Kong Xuan of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was someone of the same status as Xia Qingyuan in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "What brings you here, Princess Kong Xuan?" Ye Futian called with a smile.


    Kong Xuan seemed to have gotten a good grip on her emotions, refraining from fighting him right there and then.


    Back in Empty Realm all those years ago, Kong Xuan was practically looking at him with eyes saying that she wanted to flay him alive. That went for the bird as well.


    They had been inciting Kong Xuan one too many times after all.


    The eyes of the Black Wind Condor at the side sparkled. It missed the days back in the Empty Realm. It no longer dared to say anything it had said back then, for the power difference between them did not allow it to.


    Jialou Feng, who was at the side, had eyes filled with murderous intent, but it kept it in check nonetheless.


    It wanted nothing more than to tear Ye Futian and the animal apart.


    However, as it came to sense Ye Futian''s aura up close, it found that he had indeed become a saint. If they were actually to fight, it would have probably lost.


    If Jialou Feng were to be the princess, it would have ordered them all to fight right there and then.


    "Ye Futian, you all serve Emperor Xia''s Realm, and I wonder what the realm has given you? How about you come to the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm? What Emperor Xia''s Realm can give you, we at Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm will be able to give you more. Furthermore, we shall do away with our past grudges," Kong Xuan said, and Ye Futian felt somewhat surprised. He never expected the princess of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm to be there to recruit them instead.


    Kong Xuan once lost to Ye Futian, and he had been able to steer the direction of the Battle of the Empty Realm single-handedly. Now that he became a saint, there was little to say about his powers and talents.


    Yu Sheng had crushed everyone else single-handedly and overwhelmed many top-notch figures in the Crimson Dragon Realm, going so far as to toss a dragon demon saint aside, just to make way for Ye Wuchen and the others.


    The unnaturally powerful fighting prowess displayed by the two of them alone made it worthwhile for her to try to take them to her side.


    Those two would have definitely become top-notch fighters spoken about in legends.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned and glared at Kong Xuan with cold eyes. Are you here to recruit my people? she thought, bewildered.


    A cold aura was faintly sensed emanating from her.


    There was no way Ye Futian would have agreed to Kong Xuan''s proposal. There was no doubt about it.


    Speaking of Kong Xuan''s invitation, Emperor Li''s Realm had been very generous to Ye Futian as well. The imperial advisor of Dali had taken Ye Futian in as his student and taught him the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. Emperor Li of the Dali Dynasty had wanted to marry off his daughter to him to make him a son-in-law to the emperor.


    Conditions, eh?


    Just what kind of conditions could Kong Xuan offer?


    Is she going to offer herself to me? Ye Futian thought.


    "If you''re willing to become his servant girl, we might consider it," Xia Qingyuan replied coldly.


    "Damn!" The Black Wind Condor blinked as it looked at Xia Qingyuan.


    The bird was thinking that she was indeed quite the devil, stealing a line that it wanted to say but dared not to.


    Kong Xuan''s eyes were cold, and there seemed to be divine light shining in them. She locked gazes with Xia Qingyuan, and formless fighting intent seemed to have spread all over the place.


    "Thank you for your invitation, Princes Kong Xuan, but I''m doing rather fine in Emperor Xia''s Realm," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    Kong Xuan had only pulled her gaze back and looked at Ye Futian, saying, "Fine then, we''ll see about that."


    She then took her people and left soon after.


    Xia Qingyuan shot a cold look at Ye Futian after she left.


    Shen Jun''s eyes shifted around those before him. He was relieved deep down.


    It seemed that Ye Futian did not lie to him. Ye Futian was indeed from Emperor Xia''s Realm, and he was not a member of royalty; he was instead a subordinate serving Emperor Xia. But then again, he would have probably among those close to the royal members, which explained why Kong Xuan would want him to switch sides.


    As for Xia Qingyuan, there was no way she would have been Ye Futian''s wife. However, there were secrets between the two of them, as she was very naturally hostile against that beautiful princess from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    However, Shen Jun did not go so far as to deduce Xia Qingyuan''s status as a princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Ye Futian was the one who called the shots in the group, after all, which made him the leader. Even Xia Qingyuan was standing by his side while he was at the center.


    If Xia Qingyuan were the princess, this would have really been a mess!

 1189 Plans

    Ye Futian went to collect his winnings. Almost everyone who had bet lost.


    Ye Futian, Kong Xuan, Shen Jun, and Situ Yan were the only ones who won. In the past Battles of the Sleeping Dragon, there had been several very highly anticipated participants as well. While the battles might have had many variables, most of the time, one of the highly anticipated ones was capable of succeeding.


    What happened right there in that battle was comparatively rare. It was a total loss for the spectators.


    Ye Futian was wondering how much the Crimson Dragon Emperor had been able to earn in that one Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. It was no wonder why the event was held once a month.


    If I were the one holding the event, I''d have made it once every three days instead... he thought.


    But then again, while the Crimson Dragon Emperor might not have cared about those training resources himself, the ones serving him would have consumed such resources in massive quantities.


    "You want to return to Qianye City, Brother Ye?" Shen Jun''s attitude towards Ye Futian was a lot more polite. While he would not have thought Xia Qingyuan to be a princess, being someone who was valued by royal members of both Emperor Xia''s Realm and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, there was no doubt about his extraordinary talents.


    Yu Sheng''s performance had been startling as well.


    As such, Shen Jun''s attitude towards those people changed. He would have avoided offending those people as best as he could. Even if they might not have been people serving Emperor Xia directly, they might be very trusted subordinates nonetheless.


    Furthermore, if he were to be able to befriend those people, that connection might prove useful in the future.


    "Sure. How about you, heroine from Situ clan?" Ye Futian looked at Situ Yan and said.


    Situ Yan glared at him, wondering why he was speaking in such a frivolous manner despite being a saint.


    "How about we all return together, eh? I''m thinking of throwing a feast to welcome Brother Ye again. There will be a feast in several days at the city lord''s office. Please do show up," Shen Jun smiled and said. Those from Qianye City all nodded. They needed to give that much face, at least.


    The group took flight and headed towards Qianye City. Ye Futian then headed to the border of the Situ clan and said to Situ Yan, "I''ll pay a visit to the Situ clan later. I''ll check on Little Ran along the way."


    "Sure," Situ Yan nodded and said.


    "It''d be a great honor to the Situ clan to have you with us, Brother Ye," an elder from the Situ clan said with a smile. Yu Sheng''s performance at the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon notwithstanding, the fact that Ye Futian and his party had destroyed the Bliss Palace was impressive enough.


    Both the Situ clan and the Bliss Palace were both top-notch forces in Qianye City, and both were not all that different in terms of powers.


    "You''re too kind, senior." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    "You''re a man of passion, Brother Ye," Shen Jun, who was at the front, turned around, smiled, and quipped. He found it surprising that Ye Futian was still concerned about the little girl. While he found that action to be disagreeable, he admitted that Ye Futian had superior character compared to him.


    Surviving in a chaotic place like Crimson Dragon Realm meant that cultivators were mostly preoccupied with enhancing their powers, using all means to strengthen themselves to gain control of greater resources.


    There was no way weaklings would have been able to survive at the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "What are you going to do at the Situ clan?" Xia Qingyuan asked Ye Futian telepathically.


    "To pay a visit to the clan leader of the Situ clan," Ye Futian replied. Xia Qingyuan nodded and did not ask any further.


    "We''d like you to visit the Mo clan as well if you have the time." An elder of the clan, Mo Chen extended his invitation as well. The Mo clan was also a top-notch force in Qianye City.


    "Sure, I''d pay a visit," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "That settles it then." That mighty one did not expect Ye Futian to agree in such a forthright manner, which he found surprising.


    "That settles it." Ye Futian flashed a beaming, warm smile, which made those around him feel comfortable.


    "You should come by Qianye City often in the future, Brother Ye. It''d do you a lot of good to visit the place more often. I''m prepared to introduce you to the forces throughout the city, by the way," Shen Jun smiled and said.


    "Thank you for your hospitality," Ye Futian replied.


    "That''s nothing. You''re one of us from here on out. If you run into any trouble in Qianye City, you''re welcome to look for me always," Shen Jun answered in a very polite manner.


    "Right, I do have a favor to ask from you, Brother Shen. I''m afraid I have to bother you at the city lord''s office at a later date," Ye Futian nodded and said seriously.


    "No problem," Shen Jun smiled and said. He was wondering if Ye Futian would have just let the grudge the newcomer had with him slide.


    It was apparent that Ye Futian resented him for one thing or another. It would have been nice if Ye Futian needed a favor, and he would have done all in his power to help.


    After returning to Qianye City from Crimson Dragon City, everyone returned to their home. Shen Jun returned to the city lord''s office while Ye Futian returned to the inn.


    The news with the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon spread all over the place and shocked many.


    No one would have expected the group that had destroyed the Bliss Palace would have had someone so terrifying among their sages, who practically mopped the floor with the top-notch figures who participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon that time.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng become two very, very renowned names in Qianye City.


    Ye Futian took several people to pay a visit to the Situ clan the next day.


    Many in the Situ clan came to receive him. Situ Yan appeared with Little Ran as well.


    "Uncle Yan," the little girl called obediently and smiled.


    Ye Futian hugged Little Ran for a bit and then turned to the people of the Situ clan, "Thank you for all you''ve done."


    "We have an honored guest here, and the feast is ready. Please help yourself, Sir Ye," someone among them said.


    Ye Futian nodded and smiled. He walked to Situ Yan''s side and said, "I''d like to pay a visit to the leader of the Situ clan."


    "Sure, I''ll tell grandfather," Situ Yan nodded and said.


    Everyone took their seats at the feast at the Situ clan shortly after. A very old-looking elder stepped out, emanating an esteemed, imposing aura.


    Ye Futian rose and bowed. "I''m Ye Futian, pleased to meet you, senior."


    Situ Zhong then nodded with a smile, saying, "Your name has reached my ears in the clan, Brother Ye. No need for formalities. Please take a seat."


    "Thank you, senior." Ye Futian then said, "Ms. Situ here is valiant and forthcoming, now that I meet her grandfather, I hardly find it surprising at all."


    "You''re too kind. Being able to destroy the Bliss Palace for just one little girl is one hell of a feat. We old folks are just older than you guys are. The place will belong to your generation sooner or later." Situ Zhong''s voice was brimming and unbridled, making him sound like a grand bell and filled with spirit.


    "It was done on a whim." Ye Futian then smiled and said, "I just found what Bai Ze did to be too disagreeable."


    "Trampling on the lives of others without care is indeed despicable. But then again, that has always been the case with the world of cultivators. Even if you intend to change things, I wonder how many you could kill." Cultivators who have reached an age like Situ Zhong had long seen what the world was like.


    There were many types of cultivators in the world.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded. "But since I happened to see something happening right in front of me, I just did what I could. It is for this matter that I come to visit you."


    "How so?" Situ Zhong looked at Ye Futian.


    "The Crimson Dragon Realm is strong, and people from all realms gather here, so there are many extraordinarily talented people around. They might lack opportunities. I''m thinking of setting up a place for cultivation here in Qianye City. What do you think, senior?" Ye Futian said.


    Situ Zhong''s expression was peculiar upon hearing what Ye Futian said. It was apparent that he was surprised.


    Cultivators came and went throughout the cities of the Crimson Dragon Realm because so many from all realms gathered there. Even someone who held control over a city might have just left the place anytime to train elsewhere.


    What Ye Futian put forth was hardly seen in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    It was especially so with how things were in the cities of the Crimson Dragon Realm, which were very unstable. There were few who would have bothered wasting resources to establish such places of training.


    "Brother Ye, things at Crimson Dragon Realm are complicated, and the people traveling between cities are in a very unstable state. It will take a very long time before results are seen. In Qianye City, by the way, those who stay here for long are only clans that have taken root here," Situ Zhong said.


    "It is precisely for that reason that I come to you, senior. Propagating the path and cultivation would do immense good for the development of Qianye City. If a force like the Situ clan were willing to join, when Qianye City becomes strong, the Situ clan would prosper along with the city."


    "What prompted you to go that far?" Situ Zhong asked. None of that seemed to be doing much for Ye Futian himself.


    "I''d like to see the powers of Qianye City consolidated, and to make Qianye City the topmost city in all of Crimson Dragon Realm in the future." Ye Futian answered, "But then again, I might not be the one doing all that. Those are my thoughts."


    "This might require cooperation from the city lord. I''m afraid the Situ clan still falls short of pulling off something like that," Situ Zhong said. He was able to vaguely sense that Ye Futian might have wanted to do something else to get this off the ground.


    Furthermore, there was still a lack of a true reason from Ye Futian. Why would he want to consolidate powers and develop Qianye City?


    "I''d like to introduce you to someone, senior." Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan by his side and said, "This is the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan."


    Situ Zhong was dumbfounded and took a look at Xia Qingyuan. He was vaguely able to understand why Ye Futian wanted to do what he said he wanted to do.


    If that proved to be the case, then the reasons were indeed more than enough.


    There were many imperial realms from the Crimson Dragon Region coming to set up shop and expand their forces at Crimson Dragon Realm. For instance, the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm that Kong Xuan belonged to, reigned over Peacock City.


    If Emperor Xia''s Realm were to be a part of a city, it would have been a sufficient reason for developing the powers of a city.


    Situ Yan looked at Xia Qingyuan, feeling shocked. Many others from the clan shared the sentiment.


    Xia Qingyuan, the woman who had been following Ye Futian around, is a princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm? she thought.


    None of them saw that coming. They wondered what kind of status Ye Futian had back at Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Even the princess is at his side, they thought.


    Situ Yan realized all of a sudden that if that had never occurred to her, then it would have never occurred to Shen Jun as well.


    From the looks of things, the conversation between Ye Futian and Shen Jun the day before had a lot going on between the lines.


    "Is Emperor Xia''s Realm planning to expand in Qianye City?" Situ Zhong looked at Xia Qingyuan and asked.


    "I''d like your kind assistance, senior," Xia Qingyuan answered.


    Situ Zhong was silent for a bit. His position naturally compelled him to consider his clan''s interests, to see if the proposal would have done the clan good or harm.


    Ye Futian''s character suggested that he was a man of his word, that he was a comparatively upright man and would not scheme against them.


    If Emperor Xia''s Realm indeed intended to expand its influence in Qianye City, then it would be more influential and powerful than the current city lord''s office.


    "I''m glad to be of service, Princess," Situ Zhong raised his cup and said.


    "Thank you, senior." Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian both raised their cups at the answer. The deal was considered sealed by then.


    They naturally needed support from top-notch forces in Qianye City if they wanted to set up shop there instead of just beating everyone down. Diplomacy served better at times.

 1190 Backing

    Ye Futian paid a visit to the Mo clan after he was done paying a visit to the Situ clan. Since it was the Mo clan that had extended the invitation, he did not see the need to hold back.


    It did not matter what the Mo clan thought of the proposal. It would have been great if they were able to agree to it.


    Even if they were to not agree to the proposal, there was no way the Mo clan would have leaked the news anyway.


    Before the Bliss Palace was destroyed, the top-notch forces in Qianye City would have only dared to stay neutral.


    While it was said that the mighty dragon was no match for the native serpent, that still depended on the dragon.


    If the other imperial realms were to take a city by force, they could have done so quickly.


    However, some imperial realms were reluctant to do so, as not only was the trip difficult to make, but taking down a city meant that they would have had to leave a powerful force behind to manage the taken city. With conflict being a common sight in the Crimson Dragon Realm, they might have run into all sorts of problems.


    As such, not all Renhuangs would have been willing to carve out a piece of the land for themselves in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    This time, however, they could have taken the opportunity to do so.


    The city lord''s office organized a banquet several days later, inviting all major forces throughout the city to participate. It was said to be thrown to celebrate Yu Sheng and the others, as well as to welcome Ye Futian and his party officially.


    Everyone in Qianye City, however, was able to tell that the young city lord wanted to get close to Ye Futian''s party.


    But then again, their talents were so extraordinary that it was indeed worth the effort.


    Guests gathered at the city lord''s office that day.


    Somewhat inferior forces showed up early and waited at the place where the banquet was held.


    A group of people was received into the city lord''s office, and many went up to cup their hands in greeting. "Greetings, Senior Situ."


    "You''re all being too kind." Situ Zhong cupped his hands and returned the gesture. Many were surprised that even the clan leader of the Situ clan��Situ Zhong��showed up personally. It seemed that he held the banquet in very high regard.


    However, one who was able to destroy the Bliss Palace was indeed worth being taken seriously by the top-notch forces in Qianye City.


    If Ye Futian and his people were to stay in Qianye City for prolonged periods, they would have become legends in the city.


    "Senior Situ." Shen Jun brought his people and walked up to him, bowing politely to him. He said, "I did not expect that you would show, senior. I would have greeted you outside if I knew you were coming."


    "No need for formalities, young city lord. It''s quite an event in Qianye City, and so I just thought to come and sit around for a bit," Situ Zhong smiled and replied.


    The people in the Situ clan all smiled, and there was nothing out of place with them.


    "Situ Yan, why didn''t you notify me that the elder was coming?" Shen Jun smiled and asked Situ Yan.


    Situ Yan smiled and said nothing. Shen Jun then said, "Please, senior. Have a seat."


    "Great." Situ Zhong nodded and took a seat at one of the privileged seats. Many who showed up and greeted everyone, making the scene very lively.


    The mighty ones from the Mo clan showed up shortly after. What was even more surprising was that the clan leader of the Mo clan was there as well.


    Many noted that all the big shots in Qianye City seemed to have all made it to the banquet.


    "Sir Ye is here." A voice was heard at that moment, and many turned to look in that direction. It was none other than Ye Futian and his group.


    They all walked forward, and people from many forces in Qianye City rose. Some smiled and said, "Your name has been all over the place, Sir Ye, and you look more extraordinary than you''re said to be."


    Ye Futian nodded faintly with a plain expression.


    Many forces had brought their women with them to the banquet, and they were all very beautiful, exceptional members of the younger generations. Their eyes sparkled when they saw Ye Futian, thinking how handsome that legend known all over the city was. That full head of silver hair of his looked very charismatic, and they all thought he must have had quite a colorful past.


    However, Ye Futian walked straight ahead without taking one look at them. After seeing what Xia Qingyuan and the Glass Saint looked like, all of them thought that they were ridiculous for having thought anything in the first place.


    Ye Futian naturally did not know what was going on in their heads. He walked forward, and Shen Jun rose as well. He said with a smile, "You''re all that is left now. Please take a seat, Brother Ye."


    However, Shen Jun did not see any smile on Ye Futian''s face.


    Instead, he looked different from before.


    His silver hair billowed, and his white robe looked flawless. His chiseled face looked cold, and those deep eyes of his seemed to be able to see through people.


    "Shen Jun." Ye Futian went up and halted his steps. The others stood behind him, and they all looked solemn.


    The atmosphere changed within an instant.


    The smiles on the faces of everyone present rescinded. It was apparent that they all sensed something different was going on.


    Ye Futian called Shen Jun by his name.


    Furthermore, his eyes were aloof and cold, seeming condescending, even.


    At that moment, Ye Futian emanated the might of a saint and looked somewhat supreme.


    Situ Yan''s eyes sparkled. Ye Futian''s bearing seemed to have changed within that instant; he appeared utterly different.


    "What is the meaning of this, Brother Ye?" Shen Jun had noticed Ye Futian''s changes as well. He seemed to sense a looming danger ahead.


    He came to hold Ye Futian in high regard at the moment. He had been treating him with respect in hopes of reconciling the conflict between him and Ye Futian.


    While both parties had been amicable and did not turn on each other, he knew what he did to Ye Futian before, and Ye Futian harbored resentment over it. As such, he did his best to reconcile and mend the relations between the two of them.


    He no longer had any thoughts of using him.


    However, it seemed to be too late.


    He had invited various forces in Qianye City and thrown a banquet to welcome Ye Futian, but Ye Futian did not seem to be of an attitude befitting that of a guest.


    He felt that Ye Futian was there to interrogate him instead.


    "We knew each other somewhere out there, and you invited us to Qianye City. You then set up a meeting between Bai Ze and us, then followed up with testing Yu Sheng and the others, baiting us into participating in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. If Yu Sheng was of inferior powers, he might have ended up killed by Yan Tong and the others. Was that what you meant by the battle being harmless?" Ye Futian looked at Shen Jun and said.


    Shen Jun frowned after hearing that Ye Futian question him in front of everyone. Ye Futian was indeed there to hold him responsible.


    "Participation in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was entirely voluntary. I don''t remember forcing any of you to participate." Shen Jun then said coldly, "I have gone all the way to welcome you, Brother Ye. So what do you mean by this?"


    "If we lost in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, it would have been our people who would have died. If we won, you''d be the one to get awarded, no?" Ye Futian asked, "Since when have we become your subordinates, Shen Jun?"


    "How about we let the past be the past, Brother Ye? We''ll drink and let it all slide. You''re free to name whatever compensation you want. If you''d like the rewards from the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, you''re free to have them. We''ll end things at that, how about it?" Shen Jun said with a glum face, apparently trying to make compromises.


    The lord of a city was lower than that of a Renhuang force, meaning that he was at a disadvantage.


    However, he did not know how much power Ye Futian was capable of mobilizing.


    "I want Qianye City. Are you going to give the city to me?" Ye Futian asked.


    Shen Jun''s expression turned completely cold. He glared at Ye Futian and said, "Don''t go too far, Brother Ye. You might be highly valued by the Renhuang of Emperor Xia''s Realm, but this is still the Crimson Dragon Realm."


    Both men glared at each other for a while. A stifling atmosphere washed all over the place in an instant before the banquet had even started.


    Two saintly auras clashed, and all who were present at the banquet shuddered.


    Some knew what was going on, and those who did not know dared not get in the middle haphazardly. The situation was tense enough for people to know it was to better wait and see, instead of doing anything immediately.


    Ye Futian took one step out, and it was all that was needed to bring a stormy aura of the saint sweeping all over the place. A formless gale swept the entire banquet.


    Shen Jun''s expression was gloomy and dark, finding it baffling that Ye Futian dared to make a move against him in the city lord''s office.


    What is his backing for doing all this? he thought.


    There were few others behind Shen Jun who stepped forward, with one of them emanating a very powerful aura.


    Yaya stepped from behind Ye Futian as well. A formless gust of sword aura washed all over the space.


    The cups in the banquet shattered within an instant. The tables and chairs were then destroyed bit by bit.


    Mighty ones from all forces unleashed powerful saintly might for protection. They all retreated. That terrifying storm swept all over the place, and every miscellaneous item crumbled instantly.


    Powerful auras burst within the city lord''s office and swept all over the place. They looked up at the sky and felt many powerful auras descending from above all of a sudden.


    They all flashed, intending to leave the banquet.


    The figures that appeared high in the air descended, sealing the place and landed on the buildings at the city lord''s office.


    All of them were surprisingly saints.


    Shen Jun''s expression turned especially gloomy. Ye Futian had brought people of Emperor Xia''s Realm here?


    The figures that appeared turned their eyes and looked at the place where the banquet was held. They all bowed in the direction where Xia Qingyuan was and said, "Greetings, Princess."


    "Princess?"


    The eyes of many froze, and Shen Jun felt a shudder running all over him. His face seemed rather ashen.


    How could this possibly be? he thought.


    There is a princess from Emperor Xia''s Realm in Ye Futian''s group?


    He turned around and saw the figures behind Ye Futian. He eventually turned to Xia Qingyuan.


    He recalled the conversation between Xia Qingyuan and Kong Xuan at that very instant.


    There was only one line to be had, and he did not think too much about it as a result. Xia Qingyuan had just tagged along with Ye Futian, after all.


    He had only discovered that he made a grave mistake at that moment.


    Women who were in love would not have cared about their status; they would have been willing to stand by the sides of their beloved as secondary characters, even if the woman in question was a high and mighty daughter of a Renhuang.


    If he were to know that the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm was in their midst, he might have apologized right away instead of trying to mend their relations through drinking at a banquet.


    It was apparent that Ye Futian never intended to give him any chance.


    He made a move right after showing up.


    Xia Qinyuan turned her eyes to the air and nodded lightly, which seemed to have confirmed the speculations of Shen Jun and the others.


    She is indeed a princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, they thought.


    What does it mean for a daughter of Renhuang willingly standing behind a young cultivator in Emperor Xia''s Realm anyway?


    If they were to be told that Xia Qingyuan had no thoughts about Ye Futian, none of them would have believed that.


    Shen Jun is done for this time. A thought crossed in the minds of many present. It was no surprise why that group of people was so extraordinary and dared to wipe out the palace lord of the Bliss Palace without considering the consequences.


    They had backing from someone even more powerful!

 1191 Taking the City

    Ye Futian dared to attack Bliss Palace not only because of Yaya.


    After all, for him to destroy the Bliss Palace, other things needed to be considered. It seemed the City Lord Office requested an explanation.


    Xia Qingyuan came to the Crimson Dragon Realm from Emperor Xia''s Realm to conduct trials. It was impossible that she would not have strong cultivators accompany her.


    What was more, this time, the request from Ye Futian for Xia Qingyuan''s help had a purpose in itself.


    "Everyone, help me take them down." The expression on Shen Jun''s face changed again and again. His eyes turned to the cultivators at the banquet.


    Many cultivators had descended upon the City Lord''s Office, and Ye Futian was going to make a move against their City Lord''s Office at Qianye City.


    As Ye Futian said before, "What if I wanted to take Qianye City?"


    Well, this matter could not have a satisfying ending, but if Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan were both taken, then there was still a chance to turn the tides.


    No one paid any attention to Shen Jun. Several top principalities had already been talked to by Ye Futian, so they were all aware and remained calm and collected because they had previously anticipated the situation at the moment.


    In the cities of Crimson Dragon Realm, changeovers of ownership were commonplace. Plundering and in-fightings with one another continuously, and eruptions of occasional battles of various sizes were not unheard of. Under such circumstances, for the forces in the city to be loyal to the City Lord''s Office was, obviously, an impossibility.


    Right now, the opponent of the City Lord''s Office of Qianye City was the people from Renhuang''s Realm.


    In the Crimson Dragon Realm, many from the Renhuang Realm came here to expand their power, and those were relatively strong individuals. Even on other matters, where Renhuang was not allowed to interfere with the goings-on in the Crimson Dragon Realm, the underlings of Renhuang were more than capable of taking over a city.


    Under this circumstance, the most they could do was to remain neutral, so how could they help the City Lord''s Office?


    With the destruction of Bliss Palace fresh in their memory, who would want a repeat of it?


    "Young City Lord, today''s matter was caused by many injustices," Situ Zhong said with a clear voice. The people of Situ Clan stood up and suddenly seemed to surround Shen Jun and others with a blooming pressure.


    The people of Qianye City looked at him; this old guy had picked a side.


    Shen Jun looked pale; in this space, his people now were at an absolute disadvantage.


    The Situ Clan had committed treason by supporting Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian walked toward Shen Jun, and he said in a cold voice, "Shen Jun, since you invited me to Qianye City, I won''t hold back."


    Bang. Shen Jun stepped out; his body soared into the sky, and the might of the Saint Plane was fully released.


    In an instant, flames filled the sky and shrouded the firmament.


    Ye Futian looked up slightly. He took a similar step, turning into lightning that shuttled through the void, and headed straight to Shen Jun.


    Shen Jun stood above the void. His hands were forming a seal as he bathed in a dazzling luster of flame. Many immense flaming dragons roared angrily and rushed out with incredible speed toward Ye Futian.


    With the divine brilliance upon his body, Ye Futian seemed to be covered with a layer of sacred starry armor, and the flames swallowed him up but did not burn him.


    The immense body of the fire dragon impacted him, and a powerful roaring sound came out. That brilliant golden body penetrated that of the dragon, like a golden streamer, sacred but bright, aiming directly toward Shen Jun.


    Roar.


    Another angry roar trembled between heaven and the earth, and an extremely fierce nine-headed crimson flame dragon appeared behind Shen Jun. The sacred light of fire surrounded it. The nine-headed dragon moved at the same time, wanting to swallow Ye Futian in one gulp.


    Ye Futian did not stop at all. His spinning body turned into real lightning, and the golden lightning sliced through the void and rushed into the mouth of the dragon.


    Suddenly, a dazzling radiance erupted above the dragon''s body, and the shrill sound of gurgling was heard. The immense body of the dragon exploded and shattered, and a figure emerged from the endless sword might. Its body shot straight toward Shen Jun.


    Shen Jun''s face was pale. He had been extremely confident in his offense, but it was directly crushed and broken.


    The magnificent streamer magnified in the pupil. He saw Ye Futian raise his arms. Huangting Fist Will burst forth, breaking through the void. It penetrated Shen Jun''s last defense until it blasted upon his chest.


    Clack.


    The sound of the bones exploding was so clear that everyone below could hear it, and the people from the City Lord''s Office wanted to come to his aid.


    However, Yaya, Situ Zhong, and the others were standing there, so who could intervene?


    Shen Jun spat out a mouthful of bright red blood, and his body flew backward.


    Ye Futian took a step forward, and his arm, flowing with pure brilliance, struck out again.


    For a moment, the aurora of the fists pierced through the void and kept blasting on Shen Jun''s body. It was like rays of golden light pierced through his chest to his back. Shen Jun''s body, like rootless duckweed, was blasted weakly, flying mindlessly in the air.


    Ye Futian slapped a large palm print down until he was blasted on a building. The building collapsed and shattered, and Shen Jun''s body fell right into the ruins. There was no strength, and his hands lay weakly there.


    Ye Futian''s figure drifted down to the ground. He stood in front of Shen Jun and looked down at the figure that lay on the ground.


    Shen Jun coughed up blood, but even the coughs sounded weak, and his eyes were still open, watching the figure that was standing in front of him and looking down at him.


    Those eyes, at that moment, were so proud yet scornful of his existence.


    Shen Jun realized that he had been using Ye Futian and treated him like a clown.


    But in fact, he was the clown in the eyes of the others.


    From the start, Ye Futian had never really cared about his existence. Everything that he had done was more like a joke.


    His long silver hair blowing in the wind, and Ye Futian didn''t say a word to him but looked straight ahead.


    An extremely forceful breath was blooming.


    At the moment when the breath was released, the entire City Lord''s Office became extremely oppressed.


    It was unclear when Yaya had come in front of Ye Futian. It seemed the pressure of the might was giving her considerable tension, and her pair of sharp eyes stared steadily ahead.


    There was a sensation of extreme heat.


    A middle-aged man clad in a robe decorated with flames stood there quietly. His pupils seemed to be burning with fire. When he looked up into the void, the vast sky suddenly turned fiery red, and the sky was burning.


    Within the circumference of several hundred miles from the City Lord''s Office, everyone felt hot and uncomfortable. When they looked up at the sky that was burning red, they were all shocked.


    What was happening at the City Lord''s Office?


    This seemed to be the breath of the City Lord. However, the City Lord of Qianye City was said to be cultivating alone. The affairs of Qianye City were left to the Young City Lord, and he had not been seen for a long time.


    And today seemed to be the day that the Young City Lord hosted a dinner banquet in honor of Ye Futian.


    But for some reason, it seemed like a terrifying battle had blown up.


    Crimson Dragon City, the main city of Crimson Dragon Realm, was under the direct command of the Crimson Dragon Emperor. The surrounding cities were filled with top personalities who not only had to compete with top cultivators from other major interfaces, but sometimes, their opponents were from all walks of life directly under the command of the emperors of other realms.


    Under such circumstances, the people in charge of the main cities around Crimson Dragon City today were truly from the existence of top Saint Plane. They were either born of the cultivators of the Crimson Dragon Realm or originated from travelers from all parts of the Crimson Dragon Realm, who eventually settled here or in other principalities of emperors.


    The City Lords of every city in this central area belonged to Nirvana Plane. If these lords were placed within each Renhuang''s Realm of the Crimson Dragon Realm, they were all giants who, alone, could deter a major force.


    Anyone who was not the best of the best had already been eliminated in the fiercely competitive environment of Crimson Dragon Realm and had no qualification to control a city at all.


    Shen Tianzhan, City Lord of Qianye City, likewise, was also such a fearsome presence. He immersed himself in cultivation and possessed tremendous strength.


    If he intervened, it must have been that he had encountered a powerful opponent.


    It was highly likely that someone would come to seize the city.


    At this moment in the City Lord''s Office, Shen Tianzhan looked up at the sky. He stood there casually, like a god, with his body as the center, and a burst of hot glow erupted.


    However, as strong as Shen Tianzhan was, his look toward the sky seemed extremely grave. He said, "If my son offended anyone, I am responsible for the lack of discipline, and I apologize on his behalf."


    In the distance, Ye Futian''s body floated in the air, looking at that proud figure.


    The existence of Nirvana Plane was astounding.


    He looked up into the void and saw a figure drift down from above.


    The man was dressed in a white cloak. He appeared very mysterious. He held a scepter in his hand, and his aura wasn''t too great. But, by merely standing there, he seemed to pose a great threat to the City Lord of Qianye City.


    The figure in white in the void looked at Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian. He asked, "Princess, what shall we do?"


    Xia Qingyuan came to Ye Futian''s side in a flash. She whispered, "You decide."


    Ye Futian looked at the front; he knew who came this time.


    In the land of Nine States, the first person in the legendary Saint Ranking List��the Great Shaman. In his hand was the number one divine implement��Scepter of Control.


    Many years ago, the Great Shaman followed Emperor Xia in cultivation and remained at the side of Emperor Xia. He became Emperor Xia''s confidant.


    This trip, he was tasked to guard the safety of Xia Qingyuan.


    The strength of the Great Shaman was unquestionable.


    The land of Nine States had finally produced a figure of great acclaim.


    Ye Futian looked to Shen Tianzhan and said, "Shen Jun invited us to Qianye City and used us without regard for our lives. That being the case, now Qianye City is changing hands. If you want to leave, we will not detain you, but Shen Jun stays. If you stay, you can help us manage Qianye City. In the future, when the time is right, we will grant you another city in return."


    Either choice, no matter which, Shen Jun would not be released.


    Otherwise, the departure of Qianye City Lord��Shen Tianzhan��would be a hidden concern.


    Shen Tianzhan looked toward Ye Futian, and his eyes seemed to be burning with terrible flames. At first glance, Ye Futian felt his eyes tingle. It was as if the sensation of flames had rushed directly into his pupils.


    But in the next moment, Shen Tianzhan looked away and turned his attention to the Great Shaman once more, saying, "Shen Tianzhan of Qianye City, please enlighten me!"

 1192 New City Lord

    The Great Shaman bowed his head. His eyes landed on Shen Tianzhan, and he introduced himself, "The Great Shaman of Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    At the moment when the voices of the two men faded, a fiery hot sensation shrouded the infinite space, and both the sky and the earth turned red.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and glanced down. The earth seemed to be roasting, and there was a vague and surreal feel to it.


    Just how strong was the saint of Nirvana Plane? Perhaps a single thought was enough to destroy a city.


    Boom. Flames were ignited in the sky and the earth, and all the cultivators released their power to shield their bodies against that invisible force.


    Shen Tianzhan''s body was bathed in a radiant sacred fire. In an instant, his body skyrocketed.


    Above the sky, an immense and boundless flaming dragon opened its enormous mouth. It emerged from the burning red sky and moved toward the Great Shaman.


    Countless people on the ground looked up at the sky, their hearts trembling violently. They felt tiny in front of the dragon. It was as if a breath from the dragon could burn them to nothing.


    The Great Shaman stood there quietly, and his body did not sway. Above his cloaked body, countless bright, golden lights lit up, like countless golden threads, moving toward his body at high speed.


    In an instant, those endless golden threads, like a divine net of space, winding upwards, covered the sky and the sun, winding on the body of the dragon.


    The sacred flaming dragon continued to dive down, but the divine net of space expanded, and the golden threads entangled it within.


    Great Shaman raised the scepter, and the endless lines of space cut through the void and the dragon''s body, cutting it into countless pieces.


    For a moment, the immense sacred dragon turned into endless fire and rained down.


    Boom. The ground exploded and shattered madly, and infinite flames shot from above the sky, condensing together, and fierce roaring sounds were heard.


    Shen Tianzhan stood proudly above the sky. Both of his hands were forming a seal, and many flaming gods of war that stood a few thousand meters tall appeared in the sky, surrounding the Great Shaman.


    The palms of Shen Tianzhan, with the formed seal, blasted out. Suddenly, all the flaming gods of war accompanied his movement and blasted shocking flaming palm prints, covering the sky and destroying the void.


    The Great Shaman stood in the center of these flaming gods of war, appearing extremely insignificant, like a gnat.


    At this moment, above the Great Shaman, a more brilliant light bloomed forth. A golden lotus appeared under his feet, and the lotus petals released an endless glow.


    The golden lotus rotated and expanded continuously. The lotus petals opened and closed, and instantly wrapped his body in it, turning it into a lotus light screen, shrouded him within.


    Bang, bang, bang! The godlike flaming palm prints blasted attacks, and the lotus petals sunk inward as if to melt in destruction.


    But the glow was shining, and the giant golden lotus continued rotating. The petals perished and were reborn with even more brilliant light. They bloomed toward heaven and the earth. Giant lotus appeared one after another, continually expanding, and an unparalleled golden glow was emitted at the same time. The space was drowning in dazzling light, and the bodies of the flame gods of war were penetrated, torn, and shattered.


    The void in which the Great Shaman was located had been completely transformed into a world of fire, and those flames seemed to be slightly surreal, burning up the sky.


    Countless people on the ground looked up at the sky. If they had stood there, they would probably be turned into nothingness.


    The sun''s rays sprinkled down and reflected on that flame space as if interspersed with each other. The sun''s rays also turned into part of fire, so that the Way merged with the Heaven, and the fire of the Great Path now one with the sun.


    Boom. The world of flames suddenly erupted, and the space in which the Great Shaman was started burning. It turned into a true solar furnace, smelting all existence.


    However, the Great Shaman still stood there, wearing a cape, and his eyes were as calm as they were before. He raised his foot and walked forward calmly.


    Every step was taken very slowly but extremely steadily. Lotus petals surrounded him. Each petal opened and closed to give rise to other lotus flowers. These lotus flowers were much like in a space of their own. In the moments of opening and closing, it had devoured the fire of the Great Path.


    The Great Shaman walked toward Shen Tianzhan, step by step. He looked up slightly, and his eyes were extremely demonic. It was as if they could captivate and capture those who looked into them.


    Shen Tianzhan looked at those eyes and frowned. A horrific spiritual power invaded him, and instantly, a space divine matrix seemed to have appeared in his mind. Behind the Great Shaman, a radiant matrix appeared, and radiant brilliance bloomed upon the matrix with countless golden threads penetrating the void, covering Shen Tianzhan''s body.


    Shen Tianzhan retreated, but the golden threads increased, and the matrix elevated toward the sky. Above the firmament, it turned into a matrix of space that sheltered the sky. With the endless space radiance now falling downward, Shen Tianzhan had nowhere to go, as the world was blocked.


    The crowd below looked up at the sky in horror; at the level of Nirvana, it all depended on whose attack was the stronger, and Shen Tianzhan did not have the strength to destroy the Great Shaman.


    At this moment, could Shen Tianzhan bear the counterattack of the Great Shaman?


    The Great Shaman''s body floated in the air, rising higher and higher until he was integrated into the divine matrix that was above the sky. He raised the scepter and looked down at Shen Tianzhan, saying, "This is the art of judgment; do you still want to continue the fight?"


    Shen Tianzhan looked up at the Great Shaman. His body still emitted the majesty of might, but he knew in his heart that he had already lost the battle, and he was not sure that he could bear the attack of the Great Shaman.


    For a moment, the fire of the sky dissipated, and the sensation of extreme heat disappeared immediately. The heated sky and earth restored as they were before.


    Seeing this scene, the Great Shaman lowered his hand and retracted the scepter. The divine light of space also disappeared, and his eyes were no longer terrible.


    The crowd below exhaled a sigh of relief; the battle that just occurred was like a dream.


    Qianye City Lord Shen Tianzhan was defeated, everyone said secretly in their hearts.


    Qianye City would be officially changing hands.


    This Great Shaman should be the top figure in Emperor Xia''s Realm; the top existence cultivated by the emperors was indeed awesome.


    Among the many cities in Crimson Dragon Realm, only a few City Lords who were at the peak of their power could fight such figures.


    There were several peak existence cultivators in the Crimson Dragon Realm. Even though they claimed to be standing on the top of Nirvana Plane, there were rumors that some Nirvana Saints had offended Renhuang, which accounted for their flight to the Crimson Dragon Realm to become the master of a city. Other Renhuang of the realm could come to the Crimson Dragon Realm, but they could not wreak havoc on its territory. Of course, the dispatch of the saints was not something the Crimson Dragon Emperor cared much about.


    Shen Tianzhan descended and landed on the ruins of the City Lord''s Office in front of Ye Futian.


    He glanced down at Shen Jun, who was gravely injured, and saw despair in his eyes.


    His father, who was also defeated, was implicated because of him, and now the entire City Lord''s Office was lost.


    All this was because he had wanted to use Ye Futian and his people.


    Now, it was not so easy to send away the deity that he had invited in.


    Ye Futian wanted Qianye City.


    Shen Tianzhan picked up Shen Jun''s body. Ye Futian stood aside and did not stop him. The Great Shaman drifted down and descended next to Xia Qingyuan.


    They just wanted Qianye City and were not worried that Shen Tianzhan would go to the extreme. There was no need for it when he had already cultivated to this level.


    Turning around, Shen Tianzhan stopped and said, "I will stay."


    Then, he took Shen Jun going deeper into the City Lord''s office, which, by now, was half in ruins.


    "Great Shaman, take over the City Lord''s Office," Xia Qingyuan said to him, and the Great Shaman nodded.


    The next step would be to firmly control the City Lord''s Office. Since Shen Tianzhan chose to stay, he did not need to help, but he must not be given a chance to add to the chaos.


    "Who will be the City Lord?" Xia Qingyuan said, looking at Ye Futian.


    "Naturally you, Princess," Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan.


    "I''m not interested," Xia Qingyuan said lightly. "You''ll take over."


    "��"


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan but saw that her eyes were focused far away. No one knew what she was thinking.


    "Princess, in the future, Qianye City could be the foundation of Xia Emperor Xia''s Realm in Crimson Dragon Realm. I am not suited for this duty," Ye Futian said.


    "Aren''t you always complaining that you have no place in Emperor Xia''s Realm? Now, you will be named as the City Lord of Qianye City. I will ask my father the Emperor to make it official, and father will not object," said Xia Qingyuan, looking at Ye Futian. Previously, Ye Futian was just a bodyguard for the Princess.


    Ye Futian was speechless; since when did he complain?


    Women did not make any sense.


    But, it was much better-sounding than being the bodyguard of the princess.


    "Boss, this she-devil must have been traumatized by Kong Xuan." The voice of Black Wind Condor resounded in Ye Futian''s mind. Not long ago, Kong Xuan came to poach him.


    However, this clown had learned his lesson and dared not say it out loud, but only said it secretly to Ye Futian.


    "Want to get beat up again?" Ye Futian smiled at the little condor, and immediately, he behaved.


    "Very well, I will take over temporarily, but if I leave, I will give up the position," Ye Futian said, but Xia Qingyuan ignored him.


    Next was to straighten out Qianye City.


    What happened at Qianye City soon came to pass, and all the cities knew that Yu Sheng came from Emperor Xia''s Realm, and now, Emperor Xia''s Realm had also seized a city in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    However, although it was known at this time, it had not caused much disturbance. After all, these kinds of occurrences happened often in the Crimson Dragon Realm, and the top figures had seen it all.


    At this time, inside a city in Crimson Dragon Realm, there was a group of people in a palace.


    One of them was well-known to Ye Futian��the crown prince of Dali Dynasty, Li Yao.


    After hearing the news brought to him by the messenger in front of him, Li Yao flashed a coldness in his eyes. Was it the Great Shaman of Emperor Xia''s Realm, who personally accompanied to guard?


    Now, they had even taken a city in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "His Royal Highness, the strength of this Great Shaman is unfathomable. He has been following Emperor Xia all these years and is definitely one of the peaks power of Emperor Xia''s Realm," said a nobleman clad in a golden python robe behind him.


    Li Yao nodded, and a cold smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. "It seems that there will be a need for our Imperial Advisor of Dali!"

 1193 Arrival of the Imperial Advisor

    Qianye City began the reorganization process with the full support of the Situ Clan. Shen Tianzhan was still staying in the City Lord''s Office to cultivate. The old alliances of the City Lord''s Office had all yielded in submission.


    Gradually, cultivators of the Saint Planes who came with the Great Shaman took control of the City Lord''s Office and even planned to mobilize more help from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Since they had now taken a city in Crimson Dragon Realm, naturally, it would need to be managed with care.


    Afterward, the City Lord''s Office built an academy of cultivation in the center of Qianye City, and it caused a lot of talk in the surrounding cities.


    An academy of cultivation was not suitable for other cities in the Crimson Dragon Realm save for the Crimson Dragon City. These cities were continually warring with one another and changed hands often, so the construction of an academy was a waste of time, energy, and resources. The cultivators that came out of the academy would likely end up being used by another.


    Only the Crimson Dragon City under the direct control of the Crimson Dragon Emperor was a suitable location.


    Because it was Qianye City, everyone just laughed it off.


    At the same time, in Emperor Li''s Realm within the Crimson Dragon Region.


    Dali Dynasty, Emperor Li''s Way, Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    At this time, the Imperial Advisor was standing with his hands folded behind his back, staring at the sky.


    Feixue stood quietly next to the Imperial Advisor without disturbing him.


    At this time, there were footsteps. It was a few disciples of the Imperial Advisor. Yan Yuan, Mr. Nan Zhai, Mu Chunyang, and the others had arrived.


    "Master." Yan Yuan and the others bowed.


    "You all knew, right?" The Master lowered his head and spoke to them.


    Yan Yuan nodded. Li Yao and the Prince Regent both reported to the Emperor at the same time to ask the Imperial Advisor of Dali to go to the Crimson Dragon Realm and create a territory there. At the same time, it was requested to assassinate someone in the Crimson Dragon Realm��the Seventh Swordsman, who was undercover in the Dali Dynasty, the same as Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    This action of Li Yao and the Prince Regent were suspicious.


    Back then, they both suggested punishing the Imperial Advisor, but Emperor Li suppressed the matter, and the Imperial Advisor made concessions by resigning as the head of the Dali Academy.


    Moreover, when the Imperial Advisor and Yan Yuan released Ye Futian and sent him away, they had betrayed the Dali Dynasty.


    And he had also said that he was the Seventh Swordsman in Dali Dynasty, and only when he returned to Emperor Xia''s Dynasty would he be Ye Futian once again.


    He was the Seventh Swordsman at the time, so the Imperial Advisor''s Residence considered the relationship between master and apprentice. But now?


    For that matter, although Emperor Li did not blame the Imperial Advisor, the situation in the Dali Dynasty had changed subtly, and there must have been a seed of doubt planted in Emperor Li''s heart.


    Now, this was an opportunity for the Imperial Advisor of Dali to prove himself.


    If he killed Ye Futian, then the Imperial Advisor was still the same as he was before; below one man, and above all the rest.


    "Master, His Majesty wanted to test you," Yan Yuan said, and everyone else was silent.


    Of course, they were all too clear on this point.


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali''s heart was also as clear as a mirror.


    Since that time, he had been cultivating at Imperial Advisor''s Residence and had rarely asked about any matters of Dali. Emperor Li wanted to find a pretext to get him to come out again and take control of Dali. Surely, there would no longer be any resistance then, and no one would dare to object.


    Naturally, this was because he valued the Imperial Advisor, but at the same time, it was also a test for him to see whether or not he was loyal to Dali Dynasty.


    In a certain sense, he served as the Imperial Advisor with great power, and Emperor Li treated him well. Ye Futian was only a disciple. As a person of the opposing realm, there should be no hesitation, and there was no question about Emperor Li''s action.


    However, that disciple for such a short time was the one he admired the most besides Yan Yuan.


    Although their positions were different, ultimately, it was difficult to make a move against him.


    "What do you think?" asked the Imperial Advisor.


    "Master, go," Yan Yuan said. His Majesty had already commanded them. If they did not obey, what would the Emperor think?


    "The Seventh Swordsman gave up the opportunity and chose to return to Emperor Xia''s Realm. With his state of comprehension, Seventh Swordsman will understand and respect the Master''s choice," Mr. Nan Zhai also advised.


    The others did not speak, and Lu Chuan sighed.


    This time, it was all manipulated by Li Yao.


    Whatever happened before had a great impact on Li Yao.


    So, his report to Emperor Li this time was full of vitriol and bad intentions.


    Whatever choice they made would be the wrong one.


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali had been reluctant to get involved because if he killed Ye Futian, judging from the value that Emperor Xia placed on Ye Futian, it would leave the Imperial Advisor''s Residence with little choice.


    If he didn''t go, it would suggest that he had a difference in opinion.


    Now, from Emperor Li to everyone in Dali Dynasty, they were all of one mind, and he wanted the Imperial Advisor to go.


    Even the supporters of the Imperial Advisor had hoped that the Imperial Advisor could wash his name by killing Ye Futian and regain the power he once had in Dali.


    Under these circumstances, there was almost no other choice.


    Li Yao had counted on this too.


    "Dad," Feixue called out. Her voice was a little low as she bowed her head slightly, and those eyes that were not seen were filled with tears.


    She knew the difficulties her father was facing about whether to go or not.


    However, did she wanted her father to face off with the Seventh Swordsman?


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali turned around. He smiled at Yan Yuan and the others. He then stroked Feixue''s long hair, whispering, "I am the Imperial Advisor of Dali, and as His Majesty had commanded me, I shall fight."


    "Will you kill him?" Feixue looked up slightly, facing the Imperial Advisor.


    "Those from Emperor Xia''s Realm were escorted and protected by the Great Shaman. How do you know that Dali would win the battle between Emperor Li ''s and Emperor Xia''s Realm in the Crimson Dragon Realm?" the Imperial Advisor said with a smile. "Maybe the Seventh Swordsman will give us a surprise."


    In this battle, everyone had their stance, and he would do his best.


    This was his duty as the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    "Back when we sent him to Emperor Xia''s Realm, I said that in the future, if we ever met again on the battlefield, I would not be merciful," Yan Yuan said. Now, they would meet on the battlefield.


    "How did he answer?" Imperial Advisor asked Yan Yuan because he had never mentioned this before.


    "He said he would," Yan Yuan replied.


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali was stunned for a moment. He walked forward with a great laugh, saying, "Nan Zhai, you stay here to take care of Feixue. The others will follow me to the palace."


    "Yes." The disciples nodded.


    "Dad, I''ll go with you!" Feixue cried out.


    The Imperial Advisor glanced back at her and said softly, "Nan Zhai will take good care of you."


    As he finished, he continued to walk. Yan Yuan and the others followed closely behind.


    Mr. Nan Zhai and Feixue stayed, watching them as they left. Mr. Nan Zhai secretly sighed. This trip, whether it was a good omen or an evil one, perhaps the Master already knew.


    As for Feixue, how could the Master possibly take her along?


    If the Master did that, Emperor Li would question his motive of taking his family away.


    "Second Brother, will Dad and the Seventh Swordsman both be okay?" Feixue whispered in the direction of the departure of the Imperial Advisor. Her heart was extremely conflicted.


    This time meeting on the battlefield, she did not wish for either side to be hurt.


    But, was this possible?


    Mr. Nan Zhai looked down at Feixue and said softly, "Feixue, don''t worry too much."


    Feixue said nothing and could only pray in her heart.


    This trip, it was best there was no fighting.


    If they fought, the hope was for everything to end peacefully.


    The Imperial Advisor had gone to Dali Palace for permission to depart, and the news caused great shock.


    Everyone knew the significance of this trip was far more than just killing Ye Futian. There was much significance behind it.


    What had happened with the Seventh Swordsman at the time had a significant impact on the Imperial Advisor of Dali and even affected the structure of Dali Dynasty.


    The Prince Regent had once again regained power and led the nobles of Dali to the epitome of their power in Dali Dynasty.


    The trip of the Imperial Advisor of Dali could change the situation, so naturally, many were observing closely.


    To the Imperial Advisor of Dali, one step forward in the right direction meant that everything would open up. But a false step may destroy the myth of Dali henceforth.


    After the Imperial Advisor decided to depart, the Third Prince personally requested to lead some cultivators along to assist the Imperial Advisor, and the Emperor agreed.


    In time, a large group of powerful cultivators set off toward Crimson Dragon Realm through a teleportation grand matrix.


    Ye Futian, who was far away in Qianye City of the Crimson Dragon Realm, knew nothing of what had happened in Emperor Li''s Realm. He was still cultivating in Qianye City.


    Li Yao should have made some movement.


    In a blink of an eye, some time passed.


    On this day, inside a city in Crimson Dragon Realm, Li Yao looked up into the void and saw a large group coming.


    Their appearance gladdened Li Yao''s heart, and a smile appeared in his eyes. He put his hands together and greeted those descending from the sky, "Greetings to the third royal brother and the Imperial Advisor."


    "His Royal Highness." The Imperial Advisor nodded in return. The Li Yao of today was vastly different from before. After entering the Saint Plane, he became even more unfathomable.


    "In the past, the Imperial Advisor released the Seventh Swordsman, saying that as long as he was the Seventh Swordsman, none shall pursue him. But now, the Seventh Swordsman is Ye Futian, who went undercover inside Dali Dynasty and stole many of our methods of cultivation, including the Deed of Thorough Comprehension of the Imperial Advisor, as well as the Sword of Kasyapa, and other books from Dali Academy."


    Li Yao continued, "Now, Ye Futian has entered the Saint Plane and is highly valued by Emperor Xia. Even Xia Qingyuan accompanies him frequently. This man must be eliminated. Since the Imperial Advisor has arrived, let''s head straight away to Qianye City and get rid of him."


    "His Highness has been through the battle of the Empty Realm, so you know that before the war, all three parties had to sacrifice to the flag, and then the three Renhuangs may begin the war. Ye Futian and Princess Xia Qingyuan were there, as well as the Great Shaman, which was sufficient to represent Emperor Xia''s Realm. If we desire war, we must first declare war," replied the Imperial Advisor


    "Imperial Advisor, this is an emergency, and the person spied on our Dali Dynasty. How can we declare war by formal means and run the risk of them fleeing?" Li Yao frowned. He instead believed that the Imperial Advisor wanted to allow Ye Futian to escape.


    "The message previously relayed by His Highness was that Emperor Xia''s Realm captured a city within the Crimson Dragon Realm, which is to be the foundation of Emperor Xia''s Realm here. If so, we will also occupy a city and use it as a base to declare war against Qianye City and Ye Futian''s crime against Dali, and take him down with reason. If the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm flee without a fight, it would not be too late for us to chase after them and eliminate them," the Imperial Advisor continued. "If I take someone to ambush Ye Futian, whose plane is way below mine, our Dali princes, who were outside, might also be ambushed by top figures of Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    Li Yao looked at the Imperial Advisor. Although he was the prince of Dali Dynasty, he had no right to command the Imperial Advisor. Otherwise, the situation today would not have existed.


    If this was really what the Imperial Advisor intended to do, there was nothing he could do.


    Even though he wanted to kill Ye Futian, he did not have such a strong power within his grasp that would allow him to move the Great Shaman, so he had to use some leverage.


    "Let''s do as the Imperial Advisor says," the Third Prince said.


    "Very well." Li Yao nodded. His voice was somewhat grim!

 1194 Regional Palace

    In the Crimson Dragon Realm, from the cities in the area surrounding Crimson Dragon City came the news that another city had changed hands.


    The men who seized the city were cultivators from Emperor Li''s Realm and planned to rename the city as "Li City."


    In a short amount of time, there were two consecutive seizures of cities, and both were done by Renhuang Realms, which caused a lot of discussions.


    Moreover, many top figures had maps of the Crimson Dragon Realm, and they knew that the Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm were two major adjacent Renhuang Realms.


    Then this sudden seizure of the city by Emperor Li''s Realm without warning... Did it have anything to do with the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm over at Qianye City?


    Soon, they knew the answer.


    After Emperor Li''s Realm captured the city, a messenger was sent to Qianye City. They went to the City Lord''s Office and handed over a declaration of war.


    In Qianye City, when Ye Futian received the declaration of war, there was a slight disturbance in his heart.


    He put down the declaration of war and stood on the steps of the stairs. He looked into the distance, sighing silently.


    This seemed to be different from what he had expected.


    Why did the person who came have to be the Imperial Advisor of Dali?


    Behind him, a figure stepped forward and stood beside him, also looking into the distance.


    "Man plans, God laughs," Xia Qingyuan said softly. Ye Futian''s goal when he first came to Crimson Dragon Realm was to gain a foothold in Crimson Dragon Realm. He asked the Crimson Dragon Emperor to borrow the teleportation grand matrix to cross the border to Supreme Path Realm.


    The Crimson Dragon Realm was the main realm of the region, and its teleportation grand matrix was connected to various Renhuang''s realms in the region.


    However, to cross the region to reach the higher realm was not something easily done. One must go through the Crimson Dragon Emperor.


    Therefore, coming to the Crimson Dragon Realm was also a trial.


    Before leaving, however, Ye Futian was reminded of the incident of being exposed while at Emperor Li''s Realm. If someone inside Emperor Xia''s Palace did it, then there was a chance that this trip may be exposed as well.


    Therefore, he asked Xia Qingyuan for help and had prepared for it.


    He wanted to wait for Li Yao in this Crimson Dragon Realm.


    As long as Li Yao took the initiative to kill him, there was a chance to get rid of him.


    But Ye Futian had not expected that the person sent from Emperor Li''s Realm would be the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    What happened at the time caused great havoc in Dali. It ended with the Imperial Advisor resigning from his post at the Dali Academy. Common sense would dictate that anyone but the Imperial Advisor to be used to deal with him. Weren''t they concerned that the Imperial Advisor would let him go again?


    But apparently, Dali did not follow this thought pattern. They planned to use the Imperial Advisor to deal with him.


    This must have been a dirty trick thought up by Li Yao.


    Naturally, he knew how nasty the situation was.


    Now, he was caught in a dilemma. This situation was not what he had hoped for.


    The two of them stood there silently, not speaking. Ye Futian picked up the declaration of war again and turned to the opposite side. On that side, there was a line of writing on it: clear conscience, never fear.


    Xia Qingyuan turned around and glanced at it. She was now a little curious about this Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    "The Imperial Advisor of Dali must have known that you would feel torn about this, so he wrote these four words. No matter how you choose, I have no preferences," Xia Qingyuan said softly.


    Fight or retreat, she was fine with either.


    "Thank you very much," Ye Futian said softly. "The master came in person to fulfill his obligation. We have already established a foothold in the Crimson Dragon Realm and have taken Qianye City. How can we walk away from it now? And if we walk away, can we come back again?"


    He smiled and then sliced a corner off of his robe. With the sound of tearing, an edge of the robe came off.


    Xian Qingyuan focused her eyes on Ye Futian''s action; her heart was slightly disturbed.


    Was this a gesture to break away?


    Why!?


    Ye Futian engraved a line of words on that piece of clothing��No mercy on the battlefield.


    When he was done, he walked forward, ready to dispatch it with a messenger to Li City and hand it to the Imperial Advisor.


    The Imperial Advisor would understand what he meant.


    Emperor Li ordered the Imperial Advisor to come; he must fight with all his strength and kill him. He must not show mercy.


    Otherwise, it would be disloyal to Emperor Li.


    Emperor Li must have had his own take on what had happened. If it happened again, it would be difficult to predict what would happen next.


    Therefore, he cut off the corner of his robe to send a message.


    The declaration on the robe was delivered to the Imperial Advisor, and this exchange caused much attention within the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    These two Renghuang''s Realms seemed to be on the verge of starting a great war in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    In this battle, who would win?


    However, neither side proceeded to start the war. As time passed, the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon was drawing closer.


    The people of all major cities had all submitted a list of those who would be participating in the battle, but this time, Qianye City did not plan to participate.


    On this day, Situ Yan came to the City Lord''s Office and found Ye Futian.


    Situ Yan had also heard about the news of the declaration of war by Emperor Li''s Realm, but she did not ask; this was not under her purview.


    "City Lord Ye," Situ Yan called out. Now that Ye Futian was named the City Lord of Qianye City, the title of "City Lord Ye" seemed fitting.


    "Is there anything I can do for you?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "After this Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, it will be the tenth Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. Do you know that after every tenth of the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, there will be a grand event for all those who have received the Rising Dragon?" Situ Yan asked Ye Futian.


    "I do know." Ye Futian nodded. He had known this very early on. Therefore, he had insisted on Yu Sheng taking part in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    "It''s good for you to know that this time, it will be a huge opportunity." Situ Yan nodded.


    The winners of the Tenth Battle of the Sleeping Dragons who got the Rising Dragon Order were all top figures. It could be said that they were all one step away from the Saint Plane, right underneath being Saints.


    Immediately following, there would be a super showdown between the strongest.


    So, when Yu Sheng entered the battle, and when Situ Yan saw Kong Xuan, she thought, If Yu Sheng wins the battle, what will he do when he faces Kong Xuan?


    In the end, Yu Sheng was given the Rising Dragon, but Situ Yan didn''t think about what would happen later. Yu Sheng was strong enough. Even if he faced other characters who had received the Rising Dragon, such as Kong Xuan, his strength would be equal to them, and he would not be inferior.


    Furthermore, this face-off forbade killing. After all, they were geniuses who had obtained the Rising Dragon and were eligible to join the Crimson Dragon Army.


    "Well." Ye Futian nodded, and among the ten strong men who won the Rising Dragon, one would be chosen, which was equivalent to picking the strongest among the countless top figures in the Crimson Dragon Realm. That person would receive the Crimson Dragon Emperor''s reward.


    They would also enter the most powerful palace of cultivation in Crimson Dragon Realm��the Regional Palace��to cultivate.


    The Regional Palace was known as the place to train the regional kings of the realm. Many of the people who came out of it had become upper-level figures in the Crimson Dragon Army, not just ordinary members.


    There were very few cultivators in the Regional Palace, which could be described as rare.


    It was similar to Dali Academy, but it was far stronger than Dali Academy. This was the gathering place of the kings of the realms created by the Crimson Dragon Emperor.


    From there, Renghuang were born.


    Renhuang of all realms were also willing to send future descendants to cultivate there.


    Therefore, many of those who participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon were aiming at the Regional Palace and wanted to seize an opportunity that could change their lives.


    Such a place was where Futian hoped that Yu Sheng, Wuchen, and even the third brother could all enter to cultivate.


    However, among the winners of the tenth Rising Dragon, only one would be selected.


    Therefore, Ye Futian intended Yu Sheng to be the one who entered the Regional Palace.


    And only Yu Sheng could fight.


    Otherwise, the third brother and Ye Wuchen, strong as they were, could they be certain to beat the ten who had obtained the Rising Dragon?


    Everyone besides Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan were people he had fought before. Who else could guarantee the win other than Yu Sheng?


    Even for someone as strong as Xia Qingyuan, there would be pressure. If there was an accident on the battlefield, such as being ganged up on, a strike was highly likely.


    "You asked me to find out what''s going on in Li City. They will send someone to participate in the next Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, and just in time for the tenth. Whoever gets the Rising Dragon will meet Yu Sheng and the others," Situ Yan continued.


    A flash crossed Ye Futian''s eyes as he looked at Situ Yan.


    Might the battle between the two Renhuang Realms begin here?


    Was this the will of the Imperial Advisor, or was it the will of Li Yao?


    If someone from the Dali Dynasty were to join in the battle, and if neither of them was in the Saint Plane, then it would be one or both of them.


    At the time, the two strongest cultivators below the Saint Plane in Dali Dynasty were Di Hao of Daoli Mountain and Dong Chen of Dali Academy.


    Later, Di Hao defeated Dong Chen, and he defeated Di Hao.


    It was just that, had they been brought over to the Crimson Dragon Realm?


    He heard that the Third Prince had arrived with the Imperial Advisor, and now it was the Third Prince who was in charge of Dali Academy.


    "I know, thank you," Ye Futian said to Situ Yan.


    "I''ll go back now," Situ Yan said, then turned to leave.


    ��


    The Battle of Sleeping Dragon was here once again, and the Rising Dragon Platform at Crimson Dragon City once again became the gathering place of countless cultivators.


    As usual, the castle was crowded with people, people of the peak principalities everywhere.


    Many of the cultivators of the Dali Dynasty were there, such as the Third Prince and Li Yao.


    This time, the people of Dali would participate in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali, Yan Yuan, and the others had also arrived today. At the top of the castle, all eyes were fixed on the huge cylinder covered by the light screen.


    Such a cruel battle, and the style of martial arts could indeed produce a group of top characters, fanning the interests in martial arts and its success. However, such a cruel way of competition was not greatly favored by the Imperial Advisor of Dali, so he was little lacking in interest.


    "Great Teacher, about a month ago, the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm swept through the powerful men at the Rising Dragon Platform, especially Ye Futian''s good friend Yu Sheng, whose strength suppresses cultivators of all sides. He made a name for himself," Li Yao said to Yan Yuan, who was next to him. He continued, "What does the Great Teacher think about Di Hao and Dong Chen of Dali''s chances?"


    "I don''t know," Yan Yuan responded lightly.


    "You will know after the exchange," Li Yao said. He didn''t care about Yan Yuan''s cold and arrogant attitude; he was already used to it.


    Just opposite them, a group came quietly. Yan Yuan and others looked at them instantly and saw Ye Futian arrive with many cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm Dynasty. He was accompanied by the Great Shaman, who was clad in the cloak.


    Ye Futian walked to the edge of the castle. His attention focused on the Imperial Advisor of Dali and Yan Yuan opposite of him. There was a smile in his eyes.


    When they parted in the past, they never expected to see each other this way!

 1195 Crimson River

    The Imperial Advisor of Dali and Yan Yuan, likewise, looked toward Ye Futian. Previously, Ye Futian appeared as the Seventh Swordsman, and the only time Yan Yuan saw his true identity was the time when he escorted Ye Futian back to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    This was the first time that the Imperial Advisor of Dali had seen Ye Futian''s true visage, but he still recognized him at first glance. Although his temperament had changed completely, but it was still outstanding.


    "Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm greets the Imperial Advisor and the Great Teacher," Ye Futian bowed slightly toward the Imperial Advisor and Yan Yuan in the opposite direction.


    He referred himself as Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm was a clear marking of the boundary, as he did not address them as Master or brother any longer.


    Respect and boundary were not mutually exclusive.


    If they got too close, it might cause them trouble instead.


    He had sent the message using the fragment of his robe, and the Master should understood his intention.


    Next to him, Xia Qingyuan also looked in the opposite direction and said, "Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm greets the Imperial Advisor of Dali."


    The Imperial Advisor looked at the two and nodded with a smile.


    "Ye Futian, I once said that the moment you returned to Emperor Xia''s Realm, and we meet on the battlefield, I will not be merciful, you should be careful in the future," Yan Yuan said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded, and replied, "and my response is still the same."


    On the side, Li Yao listened to the conversation and looking a little gloomy. Was this a complete disregard of his presence?


    From the moment Ye Futian arrived, he had never acknowledged him.


    As if he didn''t exist at all.


    How insulting this was.


    "Xia Qingyuan, you have received the declaration of war?" Li Yao looked at Xia Qingyuan and asked.


    Xia Qingyuan looked coldly at Li Yao, and heard him continuing, "what Ye Futian did in Dali were sins beyond forgiveness. If you are willing to surrender him to us, then we will treat this whole affair as if nothing ever happened, otherwise, the consequences are yours to bear entirely. "


    "After the defeat of the Battle of the Empty Realm, someone was sent to ambush, and had infiltrated deep inside without being detected. Li Yao, where did you get the courage to even open your mouth?" Xia Qingyuan continued, "I heard that you have now entered into the Saint Plane, just at the same time that Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm was also entering the Divine Path. Since you can''t let this go, you might as well fight a battle to the death, what say you?"


    When Li Yao heard Xia Qingyuan''s words, his face darkened, to fight to death against Ye Futian?


    Although Li Yao himself was also quite excellent, but to have him face off against Ye Futian in the same realm, he had no confidence of winning at all.


    During the battle in the Empty Realm, the battle between Ye Futian and Di Hao was a peerless match. It was rumored that before he became Saint, Ye Futian had forcefully gone to the Xiao Clan and killed Xiao Sheng who had already entered the Saint Plane.


    As a peak sage, he had defeated the existence of a saint, and used that battle to enter the Divine Path


    Such was Ye Futian, and how could he fight against that?


    "Li Yao, thank you for the care you''ve taken while I was at Dali," Ye Futian glanced at Li Yao and suddenly Li Yao''s eyes were full of murderous intent.


    Ye Futian''s words inadvertently poked at his wound.


    "Just wait and see," Li Yao looked down at the Rising Dragon Platform. Ye Futian took out a storage ring, which contained the treasures and sacred spirit stones that he had earned in the last Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. He turned around and looked behind him, and smiled at Situ Yan, saying, "How about doing me a favor?"


    "Go ahead," Situ Yan said.


    "Put it all on Di Hao," Ye Futian smiled, "you can also make some adjustments, but don''t go to the extremes; I don''t have absolute confidence this time either and can only say that the chances are good, about 50%."


    "Alright," Situ Yan nodded. They had missed an opportunity last time, this time, she believed in Ye Futian.


    Di Hao''s strength was acknowledged by Ye Futian. At the time at Dali Dynasty, besides him, Di Hao was truly invincible. He was the adopted son of King Tiandao, a peerless figure cultivated by Daoli Mountain.


    After the defeat of Di Hao in that battle, and after he had cultivated for such a long period of time, presumably, his realm had advanced, and he must definitely be one of the top figures below the Saint Plane.


    Of course, the people participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon were not weaklings themselves, and there must be stronger opponents, so he did not have absolutely assurance.


    But Yu Sheng had a major victory last month at the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, and so Dali had dispatched the likes of Di Hao and the others to combat, must be because they wanted a definitive result and would be employing their full capacity. Those who answered the call would not just be Di Hao, but also several other top figures like Dong Chen.


    Therefore, Ye Futian was willing to bet on this opponent. If he lost, it was only the winnings from last time. He did not put any of his own capital in and did not ask for Xia Qingyuan for a loan again.


    So it was just for the fun of it.


    Soon, the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon would erupt, and it would be another raging battle.


    Di Hao, Dong Chen and the others fought for themselves, and their strength has increased compared to before.


    Di Hao''s God Burying Bell, Tripod of Dragon and Elephant, and the Sword of Kasyapa were all top-notch offensive techniques. When the three major Life Spirits sang in unison, their power of might was amazing beyond belief, and would defeat the opponents consecutively.


    Dong Chen summoned the Dharma Body of the Vajra, many arms blasted out at the same time, and it was equally overpowering. Even on a stage such as the Battle of Sleeping Dragon, he still belonged with the top characters.


    After all, the two of them in Dali were also the ones who could overcome Li Yao.


    Furthermore, if it wasn''t for the fact that both of them were defeated once, they might have already entered the Divine Path.


    Of course, entering the Saint Plane required opportunity and timing, and now that their realm was on par, they were only waiting for the right time.


    In addition to the two, there was a very strong cultivator that Ye Futian had seen only once before, and they had made exchanges before--it was the swordsman at Daoli Mountain who had first used the Sword of Kasyapa, Seven Sins.


    At that time, many thought that he would be the opponent of the premier swordsman of Sword Mountain, Jian Wu, but Ye Futian had seized the weakness of Jian Wu and defeated him with a single move.


    Now, Seven Sins had become even stronger.


    At the end of the battle, showdowns were between the strongest, Di Hao, Dong Chen, Seven Sins, and others joined forces to overpower the Rising Dragon Platform and defeated many opponents. Finally, the three were successfully ascended to heaven.


    Witnessing this, Li Yao expressed a look of satisfaction. This way, Di Hao and the others could face off with Yu Sheng of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Was Ye Futian trying to send Yu Sheng into Regional Palace?


    Not so fast.


    They were all from the Renhuang''s Realm, and their goal was not necessarily to join the Crimson Dragon Army like the people of the Crimson Dragon Realm, but if they could enter the Regional Palace, it was not a possibility to be refused.


    Kong Xuan also arrived today to observe the battle. Like last month, the winner of this game would become her opponent.


    "After seven days, whoever is in possession of the Rising Dragon may take part in the battle of the Regional Palace," the saint n the void announced, and this couldn''t be more familiar to the people in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The light screen disappeared, Li Yao glanced at Ye Futian and the others, then turned to move in another direction, walking toward Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan.


    "It''s been a long time since I saw the two of you after the Battle of the Empty Realm," Li Yao said, Ye Futian looked over there, understood Li Yao''s intention.


    Did Li Yao intend to continue the Battle of the Empty Realm?


    At the time, in the Battle of the Empty Realm, Emperor Li''s Realm teamed up with the Peacock Demon Emperor''s Realm, but it was obstructed by him.


    Now, would Li Yao make another attempt?


    Kong Xuan, Kong Zhan, Jialou Feng, coupled with Di Hao, Dong Chen, and Seven Sins from Emperor Li''s Realm, such combination could indeed be considered as extremely powerful and a nearly invincible team.


    Of course, this strong showdown was not only for them, but also for the top figures in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Perhaps, their strength was not necessarily weaker than Di Hao and Dong Chen.


    Even Yu Sheng, would feel a touch of pressure in such a battlefield.


    "Had I known, I would have participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon this time," Xia Qingyuan said when she saw Li Yao went to Kong Xuan. If she and Gu Dongliu had participated in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon this time around, they would have been able to suppress Di Hao and Dong Chen, and the battle of the Regional Palace after that would have not much to do with Li Yao and the others.


    "It is better for the princess to not get involved in these killings and fightings," Ye Futian said with a smile while Xia Qingyuan gave him a dirty look.


    Could one avoid fighting in the world of cultivation?


    Her reputation in Emperor Xia''s Realm was not based on her breeding.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian glanced at the direction of the Imperial Advisor and Yan Yuan and slightly nodded at them, then turned to leave.


    His main purpose for coming was to see the Imperial Advisor and his party.


    As for the battle between the two sides, naturally it would not take place here.


    The Crimson Dragon City was the only city directly ruled by the Crimson Dragon Emperor, no one dared to start a war here, so a battle would start somewhere outside the city.


    After Ye Futian returned, the two sides remained in peace, because after seven days, there would be a battle.


    This face off would be held in the Regional Palace.


    Anyone who has received the Rising Dragon in the ten Battles of the Sleeping Dragon may participate in the war, but of course, they could also abstain.


    In this battle, no killing was allowed, therefore no death would occur, so no one would abstain.


    Many top characters participate in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon as trials, to join the Crimson Dragon Army, and to exchange with other top opponents. In the end, they also wanted a chance to enter the Regional Palace


    Of course, this was too difficult.


    There could only be one winner of the ten Battles of the Sleeping Dragon, the invincible one who could overpower everyone else, may enter the Regional Palace to cultivate.


    There was a Crimson River in Crimson Dragon City. This river was a boiling river, like fire of magma. The fire of the Great Path flowed within the river.


    The Regional Palace was situated on the Crimson River.


    The sky around the majestic Regional Palace was of a reddish color, and the sky was full of red glow all day long. The entire Regional Palace was shrouded by the will of the Great Path. The will of the way was omnipresent and could be felt distinctively at any time.


    Some people said that underneath the Regional Palace, there was a great treasure of Renhuang, which was the cause of such a wondrous sight.


    Some people said that the entire Regional Palace was a rare treasure in itself, which was casted by the power of Renhuang, and gathered the will of the Great Path of heaven and earth.


    At this time, in the Crimson River, there was a figure standing on the Regional Palace and his gaze directed toward the opposite side of the Crimson River.


    These people had extraordinary temperament and were full of peerless beauty. Some were surrounded by the Great Path while others were hidden by the glory of Renhuang. When cultivating at the Regional Palace, one must always release power to defend against the burning will of the Great Path at all times.


    Therefore the breath of these people could be felt distinctly.


    Those who cultivated in the Regional Palace came from all the Renhuang realms of the Crimson Dragon Realm; some were from other royal family, and some were the descendants of the top figures from all walks of life who were sent here to cultivate.


    Regional Palace was known as the strongest place for cultivation in Crimson Dragon Realm!

 1196 The Battlefield Below the Great Path

    Many people had gathered at the other end of the Crimson River.


    Cultivators from all over the Crimson Dragon Realm had come and were prepared to witness this battle between top fighters.


    The best cultivators from the Crimson Dragon Realm always came to each Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, but only a few of them could receive the title of Rising Dragon.


    However, today, ten cultivators who had received this title were there and had chosen to send forth the strongest among them. It was evident that this was going to be a special match.


    Even though there was no betting on this match, and no one would die, it still drew much more attention than the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    Everyone was looking straight ahead. The Regional Palace was there. It was the place that countless cultivators yearned for.


    The Regional Palace seemed to be covered by the red clouds that filled the sky like blood. To go there was everyone''s dream.


    From where they were, they could faintly make out figures atop the Regional Palace. It seemed that they were interested in the battle as well.


    After this battle, another person would enter the Regional Palace and cultivate with them.


    At that moment, a group of figures walked up. There was suddenly a hubbub, and everyone''s gaze turned to there. They saw the powerful figures walking towards the Crimson River.


    The cultivators from Xiang City have arrived, everyone thought.


    Xiang City was absolutely among the best of the cities around Crimson Dragon City.


    Just like Qianye City and Demon Peacock City, Xiang City had also been founded by one of Renhuang''s Realms in the Crimson Dragon Realm. But it''s history was much longer.


    Emperor Xiang''s Realm had made an arrangement with the Crimson Dragon''s Realm many years ago. Now they sent out their forces from within the Crimson Dragon''s Realm. They were extremely powerful.


    Emperor Xiang always sent his descendants to the Crimson Dragon Realm to train. The person who had come from Xiang City to take part in this battle at the Regional Palace was one of Emperor Xiang''s sons��Xiang Nan.


    Xiang Nan was extraordinarily talented and had great combat ability. In the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon that he had taken part in, he had used his incredible strength to sweep away all other cultivators. He had dominated the battlefield. The sleeping dragon had risen into the sky, and Xiang Nan had been entitled as a Rising Dragon.


    Everyone sized him up. Although he looked refined and cultivated, and there was a well-educated look to his face. Those who had witnessed the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon knew that under his harmless appearance, there was a wild fighting spirit.


    If Xiang Nan''s face deceived you, you would die a miserable death.


    Xian Nan was, without a doubt, one of the favorites to win this Battle of Selection. Before Yu Sheng appeared, he would have been in the top three.


    But now, many people did not dare to rank him so highly. It was not that Xiang Nan wasn''t powerful; it was just that many others were not inferior to him in any way.


    Xiang Nan stepped forward, and everyone subconsciously made a path for him, letting him walk to the bank of the Crimson River and look out over the water.


    "It seems that we got here pretty early," said Xiang Nan with a warm smile. He was looking at the Regional Palace before him. His eyes were sharp and domineering.


    Today, most of the conversations in Crimson Dragon City and the surrounding cities were about the conflict between Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm, and the conflict between Li City and Qianye City.


    It seemed that these conflicts had been brought to this battle at the Regional Palace.


    It looked like this would be their battlefield.


    How ridiculous.


    He had gone to see the battle several days ago. Di Hao and Dong Chen were incredibly strong and graceful, but could they beat him?


    If someone dared to say this, he would call them a fool.


    At this battle before the Regional Palace, there was only one opponent for him��the one from the Ancient Imperial City.


    There was another hubbub, as other cultivators started to arrive.


    The cultivators from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm arrived, led by Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan, and they came to the bank of the Crimson River.


    At this battle, even those as strong as Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan were not assured of victory. All they could say was that they would try their hardest to win.


    The people of the Dali Dynasty arrived as well, led by the three Princes. Di Hao, Dong Chen, and Seven Sins were all there.


    Li Yao searched all around with his eyes. It seemed like he was looking for someone.


    After a while, Li Yao looked up into the sky. There, he saw a group of figures descending. Suddenly, everyone all around made a place for them and watched them as they approached.


    Yu Sheng had arrived.


    This was someone who had previously been unknown, but after the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, his name shook the four corners of the earth.


    Yu Sheng of Emperor Xia''s Realm was incredibly powerful. He had swept away all the other cultivators at the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. With his terrible power, he had even thrown the Demon Saint Crimson Dragon. It had been a truly frightening display of power.


    A monster like that would certainly show up at this battle.


    Ye Futian appeared as well and glanced over at Li Yao. Was he going to try and have Di Hao and Dong Chen try to stop Yu Sheng?


    Was that even possible?


    Di Hao and Dong Chen may have been strong, but they probably could not stand up to Yu Sheng in his current power.


    "The cultivators from the Ancient Imperial City have arrived."


    At that moment, a clamor rose from the crowd. Everyone looked off into the distance. Whoever was coming was even more worthy of their attention than Prince Xiang Nan had been.


    When he heard this, Ye Futian also looked off into the distance, where he saw the ones who were coming.


    The youth in the front appeared to be even younger than he was. His golden robes were shining brightly, and they were very flashy and beautiful.


    This was Xing Chou of the Ancient Imperial City.


    The reason that Ye Futian paid attention to the Ancient Imperial City was that it was very legendary, having the word "Imperial" in its name.


    The ruler of the city was not an Emperor and had not been founded by another Renhuang. But it still had the word "Imperial" in its name. That was an incredibly arrogant thing to do.


    The reason the Ancient Imperial City was legendary was that it only had one great power in it. This force ruled the city, and no one dared to object.


    The ruler of the Ancient Imperial City was a legendary figure himself. He called himself "Ninth Servant," which seemed like the name of an inferior person.


    But in reality, Ninth Servant was looked at by many people as the foremost city lord in the Crimson Dragon Realm, and the strongest of all the lords.


    Some said that he had already made it through the Saint plane and was one step away from the Renhuang level.


    Ninth Servant was but a step away from the Renhuang plane.


    With such a glorious reputation, there was no doubt that he was an extremely powerful figure.


    It was rumored that Ninth Servant had been a vassal of Emperor Zhan of Emperor Zhan''s Realm. After Emperor Zhan fell, his realm was occupied, and so Ninth Servant escaped with Emperor Zhan''s descendants and brought them to the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The city that they occupied was named the Ancient Imperial City.


    And Xing Chou of the Ancient Imperial City was one of the powerful figures taking part in the battle before the Regional Palace.


    Even after Yu Sheng had revealed his incredible combat ability, Xing Chou was still ranked above him.


    This showed how legendary the Ancient Imperial City was and how powerful Xing Chou was.


    Yu Sheng had thrown a demon dragon at the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. Everyone had seen it. The cultivators of the Crimson Dragon''s Realm were not stupid. But even so, they still thought that Xing Chou would be the one to enter the Regional Palace.


    So, this Xing Chou must be even stronger than Ye Futian had thought; he could even shake Saint-level figures.


    Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan looked at Xing Chou as well. They knew that he was their most powerful opponent besides Yu Sheng.


    No one at this Battle of the Regional Palace could say that they were assured of victory.


    There were so many powerful opponents and no weak ones.


    Who would make this battle their stage?


    At that moment, a group of powerful cultivators descended from the sky. They wore red robes embroidered with dragon patterns, making them look like imperial robes. This was the symbol of the Crimson Dragon Army.


    They alighted on the bank of the Crimson River. Something seemed to be initiated as they arrived, as there was a burst of power that descended from the sky.


    The power was nearly divine and suppressed everyone''s spirits and will.


    A heavenly mirror appeared up in the red sky, shining with brilliant morning light upon the Crimson River. The light of the Great Path fell upon them all, and upon the river, illuminating the battlefield.


    The light was shining directly upon everyone''s battlefield.


    "Is this battle going to take place under the might of the Great Path?" whispered Ye Futian as he felt the power of the mirror. He looked at Xu Que and Qin Zhuang behind him and said, "If you''re not going to fight, you should forfeit now."


    With a battle at this level, even though they wouldn''t die, there was no point in participating if they weren''t strong enough.


    "I won''t fight," said Xu Que with a nod. He had not yet been enlightened, so there was indeed no point in him fighting. Anyone on the battlefield would have been able to crush him.


    "I want to feel what it''s like," said Huang Jiuge. He knew that since he had not been enlightened either, he was not strong enough, but he still wanted to try. He was only a step away. This battle would be another chance for him.


    "I want to try too," said Qin Zhuang.


    Ye Wuchen looked out over the Crimson River with a solemn expression. He would naturally fight.


    An opportunity like this was rare, indeed.


    "Those who won the title of Rising Dragon in the last ten Battles of the Sleeping Dragon may come," said the cultivator in the air above the Crimson River. A group of cultivators stepped forward, advancing onto the battlefield.


    The victors of the last ten Battles of the Sleeping Dragon arrived one by one.


    Everyone felt their blood boiling in anticipation as they watched those figures before the fight.


    What kind of contest would this be?


    There were top figures like Xing Chou of the Ancient Imperial CIty, Xiang Nan, the Prince of Xiang City, Yu Sheng, who had thrown a giant demon dragon, Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, who possessed the nine-color divine light, Di Hao and Dong Chen of Emperor Li''s Realm, and others.


    How could a contest like this not excite people?


    Far off in the direction of the Regional Palace, several figures rose into the air. They crossed the Crimson River and stopped just outside the battlefield.


    It seemed that they had come to watch the battle.


    Everyone gave a sharp cry when they saw who one of them was.


    "Xing Kai!"


    Xing Kai of the Ancient Imperial City was a hero of the Crimson Dragon Realm. When he had fought at the Battle of the Regional Palace, he had swept away all his opponents. He had been unopposed.


    After becoming a Saint, he had remained undefeated. It was said that even after entering the Regional Palace he had swept away all opponents there who were on the same plane as him.


    There was so much glory about him. He was truly a legend of his generation.


    And he was Xing Chou''s elder brother. He had personally come from the Regional Palace to witness the battle at the Crimson River.


    He was waiting for his brother Xing Chou to sweep away all his opponents, just like he had, using his once in a generation strength to cross the Crimson River and enter the Regional Palace to cultivate!

 1197 Continuation of the Battle of Empty Realm

    The Crimson River flowed like a stream of magma, dying the world red.


    Light shone from the heavenly mirror in the sky, illuminating the space for the battle of the Great Path.


    There were more than thirty people on the battlefield at that moment.


    In total, there were over 30 people who had achieved the title of Rising Dragon in the last ten Battles of the Sleeping Dragon, an average of about three people for each battle.


    But many of them were merely secondary characters. In most people''s eyes, only a few people were participating in this battle at the Crimson River.


    "Is Xing Chou like his brother? Can he use his unmatched strength to sweep away all others on the battlefield and enter the Regional Palace to stand shoulder to shoulder with his brother Xing Kai?" Everyone watched in solemn silence. They had high hopes for Xing Chou of the Ancient Imperial City.


    Could Xiang Nan, the Prince of Emperor Xiang''s Realm, Kong Xuan and Kong Chan, the descendants of the Demon Peacock Emperor, and the incomparably overbearing Yu Sheng threaten Xing Chou?


    But before this, Yu Sheng and the others from Qianye City would probably have to come into conflict with those from Emperor Li''s Realm.


    And they were also compelling figures.


    "Begin!" said the head of the Crimson Dragon Army, up in the sky. He had not stated the rules for this battle.


    Nothing was forbidden in this battle, save for killing your opponents and relying on outside help.


    The last person left on the battlefield would be the winner. There were no other rules. You could fight as you pleased.


    They only cared about the ending.


    The strongest one among them would be rewarded by the Crimson Dragon Emperor and would enter the Regional Palace to cultivate.


    Powerful auras swept out all over the battlefield. Everyone stood there solemnly and did not move. Just the burning air coming off the Crimson River and the majesty of the Great Path descending from the sky were suffocating enough to make them release their power to resist them.


    With a long cry, Jialou Feng rose into the air. Everyone looked up at him and saw a brilliant golden light shining from him. A divine golden roc appeared around his body.


    Jialou Feng of the Jialou royal family''s true body was that of a golden roc.


    The brilliant light of the Great Path flowed across the roc''s divine wings. He narrowed his eyes proudly and swept them over Yu Sheng and the others.


    At the Battle of Empty Realm, he had not only been defeated by Ye Futian; he had dominated him. He had been utterly humiliated.


    But he was of the Jialou royal family.


    Zap! A bolt of golden lightning pierced through the air with great speed. In a flash, the roc''s feathers shot out, sharper than any sword, cutting through the air as they sped towards Yu Sheng.


    Boom!


    There was the sound of a mighty footstep as dark golden light flowed and blazed. The wind whistled as Yu Sheng raised his fist, slamming it into the sky, making even Jialou Feng''s mighty form tremble a bit. The wild fist tore through the air and collided violently with the onrushing feathers.


    There was an ear-piercing grating noise that filled heaven and earth as Yu Sheng''s fist was scratched by the feathers, but they could not cut through it, and some of them were even slammed to the ground. Jialou Feng was sent flying backward.


    "Such power..." everyone felt their hearts tremble. Yu Sheng of Qianye City seemed to have the strength of a god. He was not inferior in the least to those who had the blood of Renhuang and was possibly even superior to them. Could it be that he was the descendant of some powerful figure of Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    "You are no opponent for him, Jialou," came a voice. Kong Xuan stepped forward with her peacock feathers spread out, covering the sky. Divine light shone from her. When she spread her feathers, they seemed to contain the power of the Great Path and the ability to suppress heaven and earth.


    She could naturally see how strong and talented Yu Sheng was. He was a natural-born warrior. At the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, he had thrown a Demon Saint, and from this, his power was undeniable. He was indeed a madman when it came to battle.


    Even though Jialou Feng''s attack power was peerless, he was still at a disadvantage when faced with such resistance. This showed how strong Yu Sheng was.


    Kong Xuan stepped forward and descended to the ground where Yu Sheng was. Her divine light flashed brilliantly as it fell from the sky.


    At that moment, nine colored light covered Yu Sheng, and her beautiful figure became even more so until it was almost suffocating. Unfortunately, Yu Sheng did not know how to appreciate it, and he looked indifferent. Everyone who was watching looked on in wonder.


    This princess of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had truly inherited the beauty of a peacock.


    But under this beautiful exterior was a terribly threatening aura. The nine color light fell from the sky, and each beam of light carried with it the majesty of the Great Path. The light struck out towards Yu Sheng, seeking to destroy that entire space completely.


    Everyone trembled. The first fight would be between such strong opponents?


    Kong Xuan of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm and Yu Sheng were both some of the most highly ranked fighters at today''s Battle of the Crimson River. At the very least, they were both in the top ten and possibly even the top five.


    And these two people had clashed as soon as the battle started. This would be a mighty contest, indeed.


    Yu Sheng felt the pressure of the Great Path upon him. The nine color light was shooting towards him faster than lightning and carried with it the power to suppress, destroy, kill, and rend him apart. The power of the Demonic Path was integrated within it, giving it the ability to destroy anything.


    He stepped up into the air, dark golden light flowing all over him. He glittered with golden light as he was covered in a layer of sacred armor.


    Yu Sheng clenched his fists and descended upon Kong Xuan. As he stepped out, the divine light slammed into him, causing a horrible booming sound that shook him. It burst upon his body, forcing him to take a step backward.


    But his powerful body seemed able to withstand the power of the Great Path. His every step brought him a little closer forward. The ground shook, and the Great Path thundered as a terrible pressure appeared around him. It seemed like it was trying to crush everything around him on the earth and in the sky.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! The brilliant divine light seemed to be endless as it slammed against him wildly. Each strike made everyone watching tremble.


    It was too wild. This kind of attack still could not break his flesh. Other than Yu Sheng, there was probably no one on the battlefield who would dare to bear the attacks of Kong Xuan''s nine colored light on their bare flesh.


    How had he tempered his body to be so strong?


    Did he have this dark power, this demonic aura, because he had studied the demonic arts and tempered his body with them?


    Kong Xuan trembled inwardly as well. She stared at him with her beautiful eyes, her long hair flowing in the wind. She was confident that her attacks were at the limit of what was possible at this level, but they were not able to break Yu Sheng''s flesh.


    Boom! He took another step. Yu Sheng was continuing forward, coming closer and closer to her.


    His cadence harmonized with the Great Path, making her feel a suffocating pressure as she stood up in the sky. Her body felt heavy.


    Finally, Yu Sheng took a mighty stride and crossed through the air. He would be right in front of her in a moment. Kong Xuan moved as well. The nine colored light flowed over her slender arms, and she clenched her fists. Her hands were suddenly wrapped in the nine colored light, the flowing bright glow of the Great Path.


    Her figure flashed like a lightning bolt, crossing through the sky and descending right in front of Yu Sheng. She struck him with her fists at the same time as the nine colored light lashed continuously as him. She was also incredibly skilled at close combat.


    In a flash, countless fist shadows struck out in harmony with the nine colored light. It was like every beam of the nine colored light had transformed into a fist.


    Yu Sheng gave a great cry and thrust his fists into the air, slamming them into the Great Path. In a flash, there was a loud rumbling sound that pierced the sky. The air trembled as he faced Kong Xuan head-on.


    At that moment, Yu Heng pulled back his arms, and many illusory arms appeared. Finally, a fist cut through the air and collided with Kong Xuan''s fists. In a flash, many fist wills overlapped, and the nine colored light shattered violently. Kong Xuan was sent flying backward.


    "Kong Xuan has been beaten back!"


    Everyone''s hearts were racing. Two months ago, the divine and powerful demon princess had swept away everyone else on the Rising Dragon Platform, so brilliant that she seemed peerless.


    But here at the Battle of the Crimson River, she had been beaten back.


    The Battle of the Crimson River was truly worthy of being called a battle of top figures.


    Yu Sheng did not stop his attacks. He did not believe in going easy on women, and so he stepped forward again. The Great Path resonated with his steps as the air around him was pressed down.


    He struck out with a fist as he continued forward, and fist will overlapped over more fist wills, extending his reach evermore.


    His power was without match, especially his Huangting Fist Will, which had his natural power and the power of the demonic arts integrated into it.


    "Watch out!" Kong Zhan stepped forward towards Kong Xuan. Jialou Feng flashed over at the same time, and both of them attacked Yu Sheng, the power of their blows falling on him at the same time.


    Yu Sheng stepped up into the air and struck out with a fist. Everything in its path was destroyed as it pierced through the sky.


    Kong Xuan blocked it with her fists of nine colored light, but her defenses were pierced, and she was sent flying backward yet again. There were traces of blood around her mouth.


    But she just wiped the blood off. She floated in the air. Her peacock feathers opened up again, looking even more beautiful than before. A bit of Sovereign Light flowed over them, making them incomparably bright. The Great Path was within her.


    Higher up, Kong Zhan released his powerful aura. He and Kong Xuan stared at Yu Sheng.


    This Yu Sheng of Qianye City''s combat ability was greater than they had imagined.


    The light from the golden roc was dazzling. Jialou Feng was getting ready to rejoin the battle.


    The three top cultivators of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm were about to join together to fight Yu Sheng.


    At the same time, battles were breaking out in other directions.


    In one place, the three great cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm, Di Hao, Dong Chen, and Seven Sins were walking towards three people from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, and Qin Zhuang.


    Dong! A bell sounded, shaking everyone''s spiritual will. The three spirits, bell, cauldron, and sword, appeared behind him.


    A tall and mighty vajra body appeared behind Dong Chen, with many arms. It was covered in divine light like a spell of invincibility.


    Sword will wrapped around Seven Sins'' body, resonating sharply with each other. Many Swords of Kasypa were formed.


    Ye Wuchen faced Di Hao; Huang Jiuge faced Dong Chen; Qin Zhuang faced Seven Sins. Swords of Kasypa were forming around him as well.


    This made Seven Sins look very angry.


    And Li Yao, who was watching from the banks of the Crimson River, looked even more gloomy.


    He had personally given the Sword of Kasypa to Ye Futian. Now he had taken it back to Emperor Xia''s Realm and had apparently already taught the knowledge to many people.


    Qin Zhuang had learned how to form Swords of Kasypa.


    Ye Futian was not thinking about how Li Yao felt. He was watching the battlefield. It seemed that this truly was a continuation of the Battle of Empty Realm.


    In yet another battle between the Realms of the Three Emperors, Emperor Xia''s Realm was once again facing an attack from two realms.


    This battle was an important test for Wuchen, Jiuge, and Qin Zhuang. The pressure on them was great.


    But they could not be killed in the Battle of the Crimson River, so he was not worried. Winning or losing would test their states of mind, but he believed that Wuchen and the others, who had come up from the Lower Worlds step by step, could all withstand such a test!

 1198 Enlightenmen

    Di Hao stepped towards Ye Wuchen, his God Burying Bell shaking everyone to their core. Ye Wuchen felt his mind come under serious attack. His Swordsman''s Will trembled.


    A sword clashed and shrieked in his mind, looking bright and resplendent. But the sword shook under the toll of the bell.


    The God Burying Bell wanted to destroy the sword and tear it completely apart.


    A beam of brilliant light was melded into the sword, protecting it. The terrible sword will shot out of his eyes, piercing into the eyes of Di Hao, who was still walking towards him.


    Ye Wuchen''s Sword Spirit was a Spirit Elemental. The sword had tempered his willpower. It was firm and unshakable. And his Swordsman''s Will was extremely stable.


    The swordsman''s state of mind was unblemished. His will could not be destroyed.


    But even so, the God Burying Bell was still difficult to bear.


    But he still took a step forward, single-minded, his sword will moving with him. The world between him and Di Hao turned into a world of illusory swords. There were swords everywhere.


    Di Hao swept his gaze over the illusory swords, looking indifferent. The bell still rang, and he knew what was an illusion and what was real.


    At the same time as that, the Precious Cauldrons flew over. They were engraved with a pattern like a mighty dragon that had been to be extraordinary. Endless Precious Cauldrons descended, slamming towards Ye Wuchen, trying to break everything around him.


    Seventh Swordsman was not there, and so Di Hao was the foremost person in the Dali Dynasty below the Saint level. His power was clear for all to see, and his knowledge of the Great Path seemed infinitesimally close to that of a Saint. He traversed a great distance with a single step.


    Ye Wuchen felt like he was under thousands of pounds of pressure. But he still held his back up straight, like the edge of a sword.


    He formed a sword mudra in front of him, and instantly, thousands of swords were floating in the air and whirling around his body, pointing up into the air.


    The endless swords formed a sword matrix, and they howled as they surrounded Ye Wuchen. One after another, the swords slashed through the air up into the sky, thundering towards the falling Precious Cauldrons.


    There was the sound of a shocking collision above Ye Wuchen. The Precious Cauldrons rotated as they fell, seeking to crush everything below them. But Ye Wuchen''s swordsmanship swallowed them up, trying to destroy the power of the Great Path within them.


    An even more powerful sword will wrapped around Ye Wuchen. He was covered in swords.


    The thing was, when practicing swordsmanship, more swords did not necessarily make you more powerful; it was all in how powerful the swords were.


    "I will use my sword for the Path."


    Ye Wuchen looked very solemn. He closed his eyes and traced a seal in front of him. Divine light bloomed from him, and threads of will went flying towards his swords and melded into them.


    Suddenly, Ye Wuchen''s body became indistinct. It was as if he was not real.


    Threads of sword will flowed from him. He seemed to become a part of all the swords. Each sword appeared in his mind; they were like his hands and feet. They were now a part of his body.


    When a sword bore the will of heaven and earth, it could cut through the air.


    "Block!" A sword cut through the air, slamming into a falling Precious Cauldron. The dragon patterned cauldron resonated wildly but kept falling.


    "Block!" After that, another sword came.


    The sound of collisions rang out incessantly as sword after sword collided with the falling dragon patterned cauldrons. Each time a cauldron fell into the sword filled air below; cracks appeared in it.


    There was a loud noise. It was as if the air itself were splitting apart. All the Precious Cauldrons were shattered. They had been destroyed in an instant.


    Di Hao stared at Ye Wuchen. At that moment, the indistinct Ye Wuchen was like a statue, standing there without moving. He seemed to have become a sword of the Great Path himself.


    He knew that, at this moment, Ye Wuchen had almost no defensive power. If he could break through his swords, it would go badly for him.


    Di Hao stepped forward through the air, towards the space above Ye Wuchen''s head. His Precious Cauldron life spirit howled as it descended upon Ye Wuchen''s head. It constantly grew bigger as it fell until it became a divine cauldron that blocked out the sun. The power of the Great Path was within it.


    The radiance of the Great Path descended from above the cauldron, powerful enough to destroy anything. Countless illusory Precious Cauldrons fell behind it. The whole area became a deathtrap. The swords rattled. It seemed that they were being crushed and could not move.


    But the clattering swords continued to rotate, breaking up and counterbalancing the will of the Precious Cauldrons, and tearing through the air. They rose and shattered the illusions of Precious Cauldrons and shot towards Di Hao''s Precious Cauldron life spirit.


    But just as they reached it, the Precious Cauldron just shook and sped up to suppress it.


    Ye Wuchen drew another seal in the air, and thousands of sword wills rose, slamming wildly into the dragon patterned cauldron, slowing its descent. The two forces clashed wildly.


    Up in the sky, Di Hao''s sword spirit clattered and shrieked. The matter around him coalesced into Swords of Kasypa.


    The Swords of Kasypa that had just formed shot towards Ye Wuchen, aiming for the finger he was using to draw seals.


    The swords shot through the air, seeming to ignore the vast distance between them.


    Ye Wuchen seemed to sense this, and his swords suddenly lined up in front of him, protecting his flesh. They shot out in all directions, colliding with the Swords of Kasypa that were flying towards him. The swords cracked and shattered each other.


    Di Hao stepped forward, and the ringing of his bell shook the sky. Swords of Kasypa continued to form and shoot, being created as quickly as they were destroyed.


    "How many swords do you have?" Di Hao''s voice melded with the ringing of the bell of the Great Path, thundering downward. Under the assault of three different powers, Ye Wuchen was subject to an immense amount of pressure. A line of scarlet blood was flowing from the corner of his mouth. But he made no sound. He still stood there with his eyes closed.


    Not many people at the edge of the Crimson River were watching Ye Wuchen''s battle. Most of them were watching others, such as Yu Sheng fighting off the three great cultivators of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm by himself. Their collisions shook the air. Every attack contained unimaginable power. It was truly astonishing.


    But Ye Futian was paying more attention to Ye Wuchen''s battle.


    This was not the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. Yu Sheng. There would be no use in Yu Sheng helping Ye Wuchen and the others.


    They had insisted on taking part in this battle. They had wanted to experience this kind of fighting. If Yu Sheng came and helped them, what good would it do them?


    Di Hao''s three life spirits had all appeared. He was so close to the Great Path and was using his full power to attack. Wuchen would improve a lot from this, even though he was under so much pressure.


    And it was not only Ye Wuchen; at that moment, Huang Jiuge was being crushed by Dong Chen.


    Dong Chen''s vajra body was tall and mighty, like a divine vajra. Its many arms were striking out with many palm prints, crushing everything in their path.


    Huang Jiuge''s life spirit bloomed. His Renhuang body was tall and imperial, but unfortunately, it only had the form of a Renhuang, not the power. But even so, it held a sword pointed at the sky, cutting through the oncoming palm prints. This lasted until the powerful pressure from the palm prints reached him, and it crushed him to the ground, making it difficult to move. His arms trembled slightly.


    Dong Chen did not give him a chance to fight back. After he had crushed him, thousands of illusions shrieked forward and descended upon Huang Jiuge. Many shadows overlapped into one. He struck down with one finger towards Huang Jiuge''s face.


    Dong Chen''s most powerful attack was God Destroyer. This descending finger contained the attack power of the Great Path and could destroy men, gods, and ghosts.


    Huang Jiuge stared up at Dong Chen and gave a great cry. Renhuang light flowed from him, and an incomparably overbearing power swept out, slamming into Dong Chen. But it did not stop his finger.


    The finger descended, and a terrible strangling force rushed towards Huang Jiuge. It raged in his mind, destroying everything.


    At that moment, blood was running down Huang Jiuge''s brow. His eyes were closed, and his Renhuang will was protecting his spiritual will. But Dong Chen''s finger continued to assault his spiritual willpower.


    "You still won''t admit defeat?" called Dong Chen. The voice shook Huang Jiuge''s mind.


    In Huang Jiuge''s mind, his spiritual will was constantly bursting and evaporating. Lines of brilliant divine light were flowing, taking him back many years.


    At the battle of the Imperial Mausoleum, his father had died protecting the tomb. He had traded his life to allow Huang Jiuge to enter the tomb and inherit the power of his ancestors.


    He had inherited the power of the Great Path, and his ancestors had used Renhuang will to cleanse his spiritual willpower and grant the power to him.


    So why had he still not reached enlightenment?


    He had dishonored his father''s death and his ancestors.


    Blood kept running down his brow, but the light still shone brilliantly. Huang Jiuge had not given up.


    Ye Futian was uneasy as he beheld this scene. He had nothing to say. After the battle at the Imperial Mausoleum, Huang Jiuge''s personality had changed. He was no longer as bold and generous as before, but had become more restrained and silent.


    In that battle, Huang Xi had traded his life so that his son could inherit the will of their ancestors.


    Huang Jiuge was presumably carrying a heavy burden. In this way, Wuchen was much more free than Jiuge. His sword was simple and unblemished.


    He hoped that Huang Jiuge could break through one day.


    Images flashed in Huang Jiuge''s mind. He seemed to be able to see the scene of him inheriting his ancestors'' power.


    His ancestors had had the power of Renhuang. Their chariots had thundered across the world, and everyone bowed to them. Wherever they pointed their sword, the heavens paled.


    With longsword and longbow, they had raged against destiny and the power of the gods.


    How magnificent it had been.


    But now, even though he had inherited his ancestors'' power, he was being crushed. And he had still not reached enlightenment.


    The world was in turmoil, and the Renhuang will within him was vast. It spread throughout heaven and earth, and a suffocating force filled the area. It seemed that Renhuang had truly arrived.


    Huang Jiuge squeezed his eyes shut even tighter. He seemed to have forgotten that he was under attack. All that he could see was that magnificent scene.


    He forgot about rule power; he forgot about the Great Path. He just used all his might to try and feel the images before him. Before his father had died, he had used the power of his ancestor Renhuang to step upon the Great Path. Had he seen the magnificent things Huang Jiuge was now seeing?


    Dong Chen frowned. He suddenly felt immense pressure. It was everywhere, like the power of Renhuang was there.


    It seemed that this area could not contain any other Paths.


    Huang Jiuge''s Renhuang body seemed to become larger and mightier. A burst of power came from within him, making Dong Chen''s vajra body come under enormous pressure.


    At that moment, Huang Jiuge opened his eyes. They seemed to have changed, becoming more imperious. As he looked at him, Dong Chen felt only that he should bow and submit.


    Woosh! A wild aura swept out. Terrifying illusions appeared, a battle matrix that crushed heaven and earth, surging forth and slamming violently into Dong Chen. He felt his will was being dominated.


    This was the Path of Renhuang. Dong Chen could naturally see the blood of Renhuang flowing upon the body of the one he was fighting, even though he had never attained enlightenment.


    But now, he could feel the power of the Path of Renhuang!

 1199 One Day With Sword in Hand

    It was said that when a cultivator reached the Renhuang plane, they became pure Dao. Dao had given birth to the sky, the earth, and all things. It was as grand as heaven and earth, as brilliant as the sun and moon, and as magical as all creation.


    After Renhuang had become pure Dao, he had integrated it into his blood, into his life spirit, and into the magical power of creation. He preached about the Dao, and his descendants continued to become stronger through enlightenment. How much they could ultimately bear depended on their qualifications, experience, power of understanding, and tenacity.


    Some people were born with this talent, and some acquired it after birth.


    One''s family background determined one''s initial conditions, but when cultivating on the Great Path, you had to rely on yourself. As for which was more important, everyone had their own opinion.


    At that moment, Huang Jiuge finally knew why he had never been able to achieve enlightenment; it was because the Dao that he had perceived was different than that which had been passed down by his ancestors. He thought he would learn the ways of suppression and power because these were the rule powers that he had cultivated.


    But today, he realized that the Dao that his ancestor Renhuang had passed down was different.


    It could shake the world and suppress both gods and demons.


    The Dao that his ancestors had passed down was the Dao of an overlord.


    It could suppress the entire world and threaten even immortals and demons.


    Without the inheritance of his ancestors, he would not have been able to comprehend this kind of will. It was now possible for him to understand the Path of Suppression and the Path of Power.


    Dao needed to be in harmony with heaven. He had inherited the hegemonic will of his ancestors but had always been focused on the power of repression and strength. Thus he had never been able to step onto the Path.


    That was until now, when he had forgotten about Rule Power and forgotten his own Dao. His mind was filled with nothing else but the Renhuang will of his ancestors, and it finally merged with his own will.


    Boom! There was another footstep, and a violent airflow swept out, throwing Dong Chen back. At the same time, Huang Jiuge''s Renhuang sword slashed out. There was a loud noise as the Vajra body was thrown back as well.


    Huang Jiuge''s temperament suddenly changed as well. His eyes became domineering, and will flowed around him, turning into martial phantoms. The illusions were so clear that they seemed real. Chariots surged around him, crushing everything beneath them.


    His Renhuang body grew taller and mightier, and hegemonic will swept out from the Renhuang sword as he stepped forward, pressing down on Dong Chen. It seemed that everything in the area would submit to him.


    His Hegemonic Will was like suppression, like power, and like destruction, but most of all, it was like strength. It contained the characteristics of the Great Path, and could even suppress the Dao within others. Thus, Dong Chen felt his will being dominated.


    This was Hegemonic Will.


    As his will was activated, Huang Jiuge felt his life spirit changing. This was still not him truly becoming a Saint. When he did truly become a Saint, his talents would probably change once again to absorb more of the power that he had inherited from his ancestors.


    The blood surged through his veins. As he stepped forward, Dong Chen could feel the pressure growing stronger. He struck out, and suddenly, the vajra body''s many arms struck out as well. The air trembled as they swept through it.


    Huang Jiuge gave a great roar as he continued forward, and an incomparably violent airflow swept out from him. All the air around him turned into a true battlefield as chariots surged and thundered forward towards where Huang Jiuge pointed with the Renhuang sword. A scene of absolute destruction appeared as thousands of chariots and soldiers charged towards Dong Chen.


    At that moment, many people were watching Huang Jiuge. The changes that had happened to him had naturally attracted a lot of attention.


    Watching this scene, Ye Futian was naturally happy for Huang Jiuge. Had he finally achieved enlightenment?


    They were different now than when they had been in the Nine States. The people of the Nine States had limited talent. After cultivating for many years, many of the top figures had the right states of mind, but they could not comprehend the Dao, and thus could not become Saints. They had to borrow power to break through their limits by participating in the Battle of Proving Holiness and using the opportunity provided by Emperor Xia. But cultivators like them needed to continue in a more steady fashion, advancing towards the understanding of their own Dao step by step.


    Only when the Great Path was stable could they advance farther along it.


    This was a big change for Huang Jiuge. He was now much closer to becoming a Saint.


    Many other battles were breaking out across the battlefield besides those of Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen. Previously, Xing Chou and Xiang Nan had not even started fighting yet, just letting their assistants join the battle, and only getting involved when they were defeated.


    Now, Xiang Nan clenched his fists, and suddenly, a god-like figure blasted down from the sky, smashing into one of his opponents.


    He turned and looked towards Huang Jiuge.


    He was someone who was a pure-blooded descendant of Renhuang.


    As a son of Emperor Xiang, he naturally knew the strength of the bloodline of Renhuang. Those at the Renhuang level were so powerful that when they cast a spell, even their descendants would be affected by it.


    This Battle of the Crimson River was getting more and more interesting.


    Compared to Huang Jiuge, who was transforming on the battlefield, Ye Wuchen seemed to be in great danger at this moment.


    Di Hao, the foremost figure below the Saint level in the Dali Dynasty, was attacking him wildly. Drums and bells rang as he attacked with his endless Swords of Kasypa.


    Ye Wuchen was currently fighting at the limits of his power. He had integrated every bit of sword will into his own willpower, and was wielding them to their fullest extent. But he was still in danger.


    It was just like Di Hao had asked. How many swords did he have?


    His Sword Qi might be limitless, but how much Spiritual Energy had Ye Wuchen put into his swords, and would he have enough time?


    The Swords of Kasypa wrapped around Ye Wuchen, striking at him again and again, cutting holes in the swords that surrounded Ye Wuchen. At the same time, the dragon patterned cauldron was pressing down bit by bit, seeking to shatter the sword curtain that covered Ye Wuchen and crush the swords below it.


    Blood ran down from the corner of his mouth and stained his robes.


    But he still persisted. Swords materialized constantly and were integrated into his will. They struck out towards the dragon patterned cauldron and towards the Swords of Kasypa.


    One sword after another. Though they became slower, he still kept creating them.


    His head seemed like it was about to burst. Even with the blessing of the Renhuang sword will, he still seemed like he was past his limits.


    But wasn''t cultivation all about breaking through your limits?


    He knew that he was one of the weakest people here at the Battle of the Crimson River. Most of the people here were stronger than him, and many of them were a lot stronger than him.


    But he had still come.


    He wanted this to be a turning point for him.


    His goal was very clear. He wanted to get a step closer to the Divine Path.


    Since he did not have enough talent, his only option was to seize any chance he could get. That was why he had seized the Renhuang sword will, and why he had come here today.


    His talent may be limited, but his will was not.


    Moreover, he was not as untalented as he had been in the past. He had received a swordmaster''s sword and had fought with it. He had felt the true Divine Path and knew what it was like. Now, he wanted to once again seize the chance to feel it.


    "Wuchen." Ye Futian looked towards where Ye Wuchen was fighting. His heart was in turmoil.


    He and Ye Wuchen had walked this path together. They had come from the land of the Hundred Kingdoms to here. He knew him very well.


    He knew why Ye Wuchen was doing this. Ye Wuchen''s state of mind was probably even tougher than his own.


    Di Hao frowned. Was it really taking this long to defeat Ye Wuchen?


    Also, was Ye Wuchen crazy?


    If he pushed himself so hard it might have negative effects on him. And the Battle of the Crimson River did not permit killing, so why was Ye Wuchen being like this?


    He waved his hands, and suddenly, more sword will gathered together. Brilliant Swords of Kasypa cut through the air and fell towards Ye Wuchen.


    Swords appeared around Ye Wuchen, but they had great difficulty blocking the attack of the Swords of Kasypa. The dragon patterned cauldron continued to press downward. Di Hao said coldly, "If you keep this up, you will be destroyed once your defenses collapse, and you will have no one to blame but yourself. At that time, no one will be able to say that I killed you on purpose."


    Ye Wuchen was resisting so doggedly that he had to keep increasing the power of his attacks. Once Ye Wuchen collapsed, all his defenses would collapse as well. In that instant, the destructive power would be too great for him to escape.


    But at that point, Di Hao wouldn''t be able to control it.


    Ye Wuchen heard what Di Hao had said, but he still squeezed his eyes shut. His swords were still there, even as blood oozed from his brow. It was truly a shocking sight.


    But he had already come this far. A true warrior of the sword did not retreat.


    He remembered his master''s words.


    A swordsman is neither proud nor impatient.


    A swordsman is fearless and dauntless.


    A swordsman''s original nature does not change. It stretches as far as the eye can see.


    He did not have the potential that Ye Futian did. He had only his one teacher. At the Fuyun Sword Clan, a teacher had preached the way of swordsmanship to him and taught him how to become a swordsman. After he died, his last thread of sword will had gone into him and given him a message.


    He thought of his master''s death and the destruction of the Liu Kingdom.


    There were so many evil people in this world.


    But at the same time, there were swordsmen like his master, and cultivators like the Swordmaster of Lihen, who had shown him the road of swordsmanship cultivation.


    One day, he would cleanse the world of evildoers with sword in hand.


    His swords, though broken and destroyed, seemed to be endless, and they went from moving slowly to extremely fast.


    Di Hao frowned as he saw more and more swords coming into being constantly, and even extending wildly.


    Swords were even starting to appear around him.


    At that moment, Ye Wuchen felt that everything in all the vast world was filled with swords.


    Di Hao had asked, "How many swords do you have?"


    At that moment, Ye Wuchen''s voice rang through the air.


    "I have infinite swords!"


    As he said this, infinite swords were truly born, enveloping heaven and earth.


    Up in the sky, the wind whistled through the clouds as sword will descended, shaking the world.


    On the banks of the Crimson River, everyone looked up with trembling hearts.


    It seemed like he was going to break through to the Saint plane.


    It was not uncommon for this to happen during the Battle of the Crimson River; it had happened many times in history.


    But no one had thought that Ye Wuchen would be the one to do it. Ye Wuchen, who no one had any great expectations for, was actually going to break through to the next level.


    He was going to take his first step onto the Divine Path.


    This battle had no rules. From the moment when they stepped onto the battlefield, the Regional Palace would only accept the last one left.


    Therefore, even if you became a Saint during the battle, you could continue to fight.


    On the path of cultivation, luck was an important factor.


    Moreover, with so many top figures on the battlefield, how could they prevent them from becoming Saints?


    The Regional Palace only cared about results.


    Ye Futian was stunned at first. Then a bright smile appeared on his face.


    He would never have thought that after he became a Saint, among Yu Sheng, Wuchen, the three brothers, Huang Jiuge and many others, the first one to break through to the Saint level would be Ye Wuchen.


    Of course, this did not mean that Ye Wuchen was more talented than them. The Great Path had no system of seniority.


    But no matter what, Ye Wuchen had taken this first step in spite of his limited talent. This was truly a wonder.


    And the path of cultivation was full of wonders!

 1200 Targe

    Someone becoming a Saint had the potential to influence the outcome of the battle and upset the balance.


    This was especially true since everyone in previous instances of the Battle of the Crimson River had already been outstanding fighters. Once they became a Saint, they could sweep away all opponents.


    Therefore, in previous Battles of the Crimson River, it had not necessarily been a good thing to become a Saint during the battle.


    And sure enough, many gazes fell upon Ye Wuchen at that moment.


    A cold light flashed in Xing Chou and Xiang Nan''s eyes, two of the people who were most favored to win.


    It was not that they bore any ill will towards Ye Wuchen. It was just that him becoming a Saint during the battle would affect them.


    In light of this situation, they would have to deal with him before he completed his transformation into a Saint.


    There was still a period in which he would need to comprehend the Divine Path, be baptized in the divine catastrophe, and then wholly step onto the Divine Path. This period was often fatal to those who were becoming Saints unless they gave up.


    If they didn''t, they would probably be affected by the divine catastrophe.


    At that moment, Ye Wuchen''s sword will had cut through the assault of the Swords of Kasypa. The powerful sword will smashed into the dragon patterned cauldron high in the sky, causing it to shake incessantly.


    The mighty sword will wrapped around Ye Wuchen. Wuji Swords appeared around him, covering the battlefield.


    It seemed that a catastrophe of swordsmanship was descending. The light of catastrophe blended with the red sky, making everything seem extremely oppressive and frightening.


    Ye Wuchen felt all the eyes on him. He knew that now that he had started the divine catastrophe, others would start paying attention to him. Those who had not cared about him before would now want to make him be the first to flee the field.


    "This is your chance to step onto the Divine Path; you should leave the field," said Xiang Nan to Ye Wuchen. The fact that he was becoming a Saint did not mean much to him. As a son of Emperor Xiang, he did not have any so-called respect for those who were becoming Saints.


    As far as he was concerned, it did not matter who among them became a Saint first. The goal of this battle was to enter the Regional Palace.


    Ye Wuchen looked at Xiang Nan, and his eyes were as sharp as swords. He then looked towards Yu Sheng. If he fled now, would Yu Sheng be able to make it to the end?


    As Ye Wuchen hesitated, the divine catastrophe had gathered together and had arrived. Xiang Nan walked towards him.


    He stepped into the air, reached out, and made a grasping motion. In a flash, a terrifying scene appeared in the air above Ye Wuchen''s head. A divine figure could faintly be made out. It looked like a god. The figure stretched out all its fingers and pressed downward, forming a giant golden palm print in the sky. It rushed down to crush Ye Wuchen.


    The sword will around Ye Wuchen shrieked as it rushed up to resist. It collided with the palm print, and intense golden light burst from it. There seemed to be a light curtain flowing around it, slapping away the sword will. It continued downward towards Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen stretched out his single arm and pointed into the sky. His countless swords melded into one, a giant sword that smashed into the onrushing palm print.


    As the sword and the palm print collided, there was an explosion of brilliant golden light.


    Xiang Nan looked indifferent. He glanced over the scene with eyes full of dazzling light that shone deeply within them. He put his hands out in front of him and formed a special seal.


    The divine figure was like a shadow of Renhuang in the shape of Xiang Nan. The seal went out, and suddenly the figure was surrounded by a five-clawed golden dragon. Its massive claws swept downward, blotting out the sun as they tried to swallow Ye Futian up.


    Boom! A loud noise rang out as the massive sword was pressed down. "Your swordsmanship is not bad," said Xiang Nan. "Since you''ve seized the chance to become a Saint, you should stop here. You won''t ever get a better chance than this."


    Ye Wuchen had taken the lead at the Battle of the Crimson River, being the first to seize the opportunity to comprehend the Great Path. But he was not the strongest one there; in fact, he was the weakest. Before he could become a Saint, he would need to increase his strength. Staying on the battlefield would be foolish.


    That was, unless he was the best cultivator on the battlefield.


    But obviously, Xiang Nan did not think he was.


    Seeing the great pressure that Ye Wuchen was under, Huang Jiuge, who had repelled Dong Chen, rose into the air. A dazzling radiance bloomed as he pulled back his bowstring. The Renhuang bow had nine arrows on it, and they were locked onto Xiang Nan.


    At the moment that he let the arrows fly, there was an earsplitting noise that overpowered everything.


    The powerful arrows were able to shoot through the Great Path itself. Xiang Nan glanced at Huang Jiuge, but at that moment, a figure stood between the two of them. It was Xing Chou, who was the favorite to win the Battle of the Crimson River.


    Brilliant light bloomed from him, making him dazzling to behold. He stood there casually, like a god of war. He looked unshakable.


    Xing Chou stepped forward, and a divine golden light curtain swept out from him. The overpowering arrows cut through the air and slammed into the light curtain, making a horrible noise. The air around them trembled fiercely.


    The arrows pierced through the light curtain bit by bit, seemingly able to destroy the will within it. But Xing Chou made a grabbing motion, causing another loud noise. A giant palm print grabbed up all the arrows and snapped them.


    Xing Chou did not care about Ye Wuchen, but if he entered the Saint plane, things would be different. He naturally needed to stop him.


    Huang Jiuge stepped forward, the power sweeping out from his Renhuang body. He wielded the Renhuang sword. A majestic will swept out from him, striking towards Xing Chou with majestic purpose.


    But Xing Chou glanced at him indifferently. The descendant of Renhuang, who had just barely comprehended the Dao, wanted to attack him?


    That was like an ant trying to shake a tree.


    An extremely tall figure appeared behind him, looking like a god of war and filled with a sense of limitless power.


    Seeing Huang Jiuge striking towards him with the Renhuang Sword, Xing Chou stepped into the air. The air around him trembled fiercely, and beams of brilliant light bloomed from him, seeming to resonate with the great worldly path. It seemed that everything in this area was his to use.


    The battlefield illusions around Huang Jiuge shattered wildly, and the god of war behind Xing Chou slammed its fist downward. The Great Path was suddenly integrated into its fist, and it seemed that the limitless power of the Great Path was behind this attack. It slammed directly into Huang Jiuge''s Renhuang Sword.


    A destructive storm swept out as the fist, and the Renhuang Sword collided. An overpowering force tried to split the fist apart, but terrible beams of light burst upon Huang Jiuge''s body. The violent fist sent Huang Jiuge flying backward.


    Xing Chou still looked indifferent. The lofty and mighty god of war once again struck out with its fist towards Huang Jiuge as he flew away. In a flash, countless fists were stretching out beside it, pressing through the air. Huang Jiuge looked up into the sky. He felt like his opponent''s fists were everywhere, and had become one with the Heavenly Path.


    The violent attacks fell upon him, and he continued to be sent flying backward until he fell upon the battle platform beside the Crimson River with a thud.


    The wind howled as even stronger fists fell from the sky, crushing down along with the god of war. Huang Jiuge looked up and saw that the god of war had the Great Path within it, and his heart trembled slightly. It seemed that he was nowhere near strong enough.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise as Huang Jiuge''s body bent until he was nearly lying on the ground. His face was pale as he spat out a mouthful of blood.


    Elsewhere on the battlefield, Ye Wuchen''s situation was dire as well. Xiang Nan''s attacks were powerful, and the catastrophe of the Great Path was gathering together. It seemed like it could descend upon him at any moment.


    Di Hao also chose that moment to launch his attack on Ye Wuchen. The bell and cauldron rang, and his sword qi cut towards him, cutting through his defenses. The Swords of Kasypa cut directly through Ye Wuchen''s body, and blood stained his robes.


    "Get out of her," said Xiang Nan coldly. Suddenly, he struck out with his giant hand, slamming Ye Wuchen to the ground.


    Everyone watching from the riverbank trembled within their hearts. The moment of becoming a Saint was a sacred time for any cultivator.


    But here on this battlefield by the Crimson River, it was treated as an abnormality and brutally suppressed.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as the catastrophe of the Great Path descended, piercing into Ye Wuchen''s body. His flesh and spiritual will were bathed in sword will. His body trembled slightly. The attacks had seriously wounded him, and so as far as he was concerned, this was a bad time to face the Divine Catastrophe.


    Yu Sheng naturally saw what was going on over there. Over on his side of the battlefield, Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan were launching violent attacks on him. Nine colored light shot down, its power shaking heaven and earth, slamming into him time after time. It was truly shocking to behold.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng swept out his arms, sending Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan flying back. But a divine bird was swooping towards his head with its talons. It was Jialou Feng.


    He stretched out his left arm to block in front of him, and Jialou Feng''s talons raked across it, trying to tear it apart. But Yu Sheng''s other hand shot out like a bolt of lightning, grabbing the golden roc''s talons.


    Bang! He stepped into the air as the golden roc struggled wildly, trying to break out of Yu Sheng''s grip. But Yu Sheng was as powerful as a demon, and he suddenly threw the roc towards the ground.


    The golden roc tumbled downward, but he suddenly spat a golden sword from his mouth. Yu Sheng covered his eyes with his arm. The wind blew over them as they both fell towards the ground.


    He raised his arms, and with a loud noise, he slammed Jialou Feng into the ground.


    And before he could do anything, Yu Sheng stepped on his stomach, grabbing his golden wings. He began to pull his feathers out one by one, causing Jialou Feng to scream in pain.


    Yu Sheng ignored his cries. He looked up at Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan in the sky. He then the ground shook wildly as he charged towards where Ye Wuchen was.

 1201 A Demon that Covered the World

    Upon the battlefield by the Crimson River, Jialou Feng was bleeding golden blood and crying out in pain.


    Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan looked furious as Yu Sheng stood upon Jialou Feng and plucked out his golden feathers, throwing them to the ground. It was a shocking sight.


    This guy was a madman on the battlefield. No matter what, they could not shake him.


    Kong Zhan''s figure flashed towards Yu Sheng, pursuing him. He had a dark look on his face.


    Kong Xuan looked at her brother and moved forward at the same time. "Get off the battlefield," she said to Jialou Feng.


    Jialou Feng was badly injured. There wouldn''t be much point in him staying any longer.


    There was a flash of hatred in Jialou Feng''s proud eyes. As a member of the Jialou noble family, this was a grave humiliation to him.


    The wild Yu Sheng had trampled him to the ground and then rushed to the aid of Ye Wuchen. Up in the sky, Xiang Nan stretched out his hand, and the divine five-clawed dragon struck once again with a roar. Its claws blotted out the sun and covered up half the sky as they sliced towards Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen.


    He had already told Ye Wuchen that he was not strong enough to seize this opportunity that had been offered by the Great Path, as he would not be able to enter the Regional Palace. And since Ye Wuchen was hesitating, he would make the decision for him.


    At this juncture, if he were injured while facing the Divine Catastrophe, he would probably die. If Ye Wuchen were not willing to give up, this chance he had to become a Saint would become a disaster for him.


    Yu Sheng looked up at the charging golden dragon with cold eyes. Dark golden light flowed from him. He thrust his fist into the air, and a huge palm print shot up into the sky, as powerful as the sun, blocking the dragon''s claws in mid-air.


    Xiang Nan looked indifferent when Yu Sheng appeared. He had seen Yu Sheng''s combat ability. He was very strong. In terms of theoretical power, Xing Chou was the only person on the battlefield who could resist him.


    He pressed down with his fist yet again, and suddenly, the divine golden five-clawed dragon circled in the air with a roar. There was a loud sound as its claws pressed down on the palm print, shattering it, and then continued downward.


    However, down below mighty demonic power billowed from Yu Sheng, and an endless demonic airflow appeared, rushing towards his body and making him even more terrifying. It was like a demon had possessed him. His body became larger and more powerful, like a demon that covered the world. His dark eyes were full of coldness, and a demonic battleax appeared in his hands.


    He looked up and stepped forward, making the ground tremble beneath his feet so fiercely that it seemed like it would split open. He rushed into the air with his battleax slicing towards the sky. The golden claws were split down the middle and shattered in an instant.


    The powerful body continued upwards, bursting through the golden dragon''s abdomen, splitting it in two along the way, then continuing towards the Renhuang-like figure.


    Light flashed on the battleax as he swung it, and the figure immediately dissipated as if it had never existed.


    Yu Sheng turned and looked at Xiang Nan and saw the Renhuang figure reappear behind him, as tall and mighty as a god.


    At the same time, Huang Jiuge and Qin Zhuan had stopped fighting and came to Ye Wuchen''s side to protect him from the Divine Catastrophe.


    Because of this, Xing Chou and Seven Sins found themselves without opponents, and so they rushed over there as well.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng and the rest of them seemed to have become targets for everyone as Ye Wuchen tried to cross through the Divine Catastrophe.


    Woosh! The Divine Catastrophe continued to descend upon Ye Wuchen, baptizing his spiritual will and his body. The divine light of the Great Path flowed over him, but his eyes were still open, looking as sharp as swords as he watched the figures around him.


    Seeing that Ye Wuchen was still trying to overcome the Divine Catastrophe, Xiang Nan and the others hesitated no longer. Xiang Nan drew a seal with both hands, and suddenly, a huge face appeared in the sky. I looked like the face of Renhuang. The divine golden five-clawed dragon roared, and there was not just one of them.


    And incomparable purple and golden lightning appeared in the sky, like the lightning of the highest heavens. Thunderbolts descended, filling the air around Yu Sheng and the others.


    This was just as wild as the Divine Catastrophe and would kill everything around it.


    Woosh! Yu Sheng rushed up into the sky, his demonic figure filling the above Ye Wuchen and the others. He stood their mightily, and there seemed to be a gravitational force that pulled all the destructive power onto him.


    The incredibly terrifying divine lightning struck, and dazzling thunderbolts flashed across Yu Sheng''s body. His armor seemed about to break, but his body was like a black hole, swallowing up all the violet and golden light and the power of the thunderbolts.


    Many five-clawed dragons rushed down along with the lightning, roaring furiously, trying to crush Yu Sheng.


    Even someone as strong as Yu Sheng was continuously shaken by their assault, and his body seemed about to shatter.


    But at that moment, his Demonic Battleaxe disappeared, and he reached into the air with both hands. His huge body turned into a black hole vortex that swallowed up all the power around him. The onrushing dragons roared as they were pulled into the vast abyss, falling bit by bit into the mighty demonic will.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng was like a bottomless black hole, swallowing up the destructive divine lightning and the five-clawed golden dragons.


    More violent dark magic roared and surged around his body, blocking everyone''s field of vision. Even their spiritual wills could not penetrate it.


    It seemed like he was trying to turn the whole battlefield into a demon world.


    Xiang Nan frowned. All of his attacks had been swallowed up?


    Had this cultivator of the demonic path cultivated his Path of Devouring up to this level?


    Moreover, that mighty demonic power made him feel some pressure.


    Beside him, Dong Chen''s seemed extraordinarily calm. There was no expression on his face.


    When he had come forth from Daoli Mountain, he had wanted his name to resonate throughout the Dali Dynasty and defeat the cultivators of Dali Academy, thereby becoming the Imperial Adviser''s disciple and the most powerful figure below the Saint level.


    But Seventh Swordsman''s appearance had made all his preparations count for nothing.


    To the point that now his state of mind was affected.


    Now, he had come to the Crimson Dragon Realm and the Battle of the Crimson River, but he could not beat this Ye Wuchen, and he had even become a Saint.


    Yu Sheng was so powerful that he felt he was no match for him.


    It seemed that Seventh Swordsman was not the only one who was much stronger than him.


    This made him feel frustrated. Even the ones by Seventh Swordsman''s side were out of his league?


    He stepped forward, and Swords of Kasypa rushed towards Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng''s dark eyes seemed able to throw people into the abyss and kneel before him.


    He did not block the Swords of Kasypa, as golden lightning snaked through the mighty demonic power like leaves on a tree, then disappeared within it. Di Hao''s will was connected to his sword, and he had just started to be able to perceive it, but soon he felt that his will was being forcibly scraped away.


    His connection to his sword was completely lost.


    A deep roar rang out through the dark airflow. A black, five-clawed demon dragon appeared in the air in front of Yu Sheng and wrapped around him. Terrifying black lightning bloomed with world-destroying light.


    The Swords of Kasypa turned black as well and swallowed up the destructive sword will.


    It seemed that this power did not belong to Yu Sheng, but rather to Xiang Nan and Di Hao.


    But at that moment, it was all demonized and put to Yu Sheng''s use.


    "This is not the Path of Devouring; this is demonization." As a prince of Renhuang, Xiang Nan was naturally a man of broad experience. This kind of overbearing demonic power was extremely difficult to cultivate and comprehend. It was even more fearsome than the Path of Devouring since it was, in fact, the evolution of the Path of Devouring.


    Could it be that Yu Sheng was the descendant of a Demon Emperor?


    Boom!


    Yu Sheng strode through the sky, and the very air trembled, resonating with the earth.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    He continued forward, and the Great Path seemed to be pressed down under his feet. A demonic figure that covered the sky appeared, and its dark demonic airflow blotted out the sun. It seemed to be endless, and that it would swallow up the entire battlefield by the Crimson River.


    Every step of the Footwork of Xuanyuan seemed to trample on Xiang Nan''s heart, making it beat wildly. Seeing the demonic figure rushing towards him wildly, his expression finally became serious, as if he was facing a great foe.


    "Crush him."


    Xiang Nan quickly formed a seal as he spoke this spell.


    The power of the Great Path descended as many gigantic written characters fell. However, the black dragon roared as it twisted around Yu Sheng, shattering the falling characters.


    "Stop!" called Yu Sheng. The sound of an explosion rang out, and it seemed that the heavens would collapse. The Renhuang figure that covered the sky seemed to become real and stepped towards Yu Sheng''s demonic figure.


    It was as if Renhuang had manifested in the world, and would suppress everything for him.


    At that moment, Xiang Nan was covered in sweat as if he was under great pressure.


    Boom! Yu Sheng finally slowed down as the striking black dragon and the sharp swords were all crushed under the foot of the summoned Renhuang figure. His footsteps continued to slow as the tall figure stamped down on him, trying to crush him.


    Not only did it contain the power of the Great Path, but it also had divine majesty. It could not be resisted.


    Boom!


    There was a loud sound, and Yu Sheng felt that he could not move. But he looked up into the sky, his demonic eyes looking as fearless as ever.


    Even if the Sovereign Path could put this much pressure on him, would he really let himself be crushed here?


    He had studied the demonic path. He defied the laws of gods and men.


    Boom! The dark airflow gathered together, and a massive demonic figure appeared, seeming to overlap with Yu Sheng''s body, making him into a true demon god.


    He gave a great cry, and heaven and earth seemed about to collapse. The demon''s massive palm print lashed out, covering the gigantic Renhuang figure''s face and slamming into its head.


    Xiang Nan groaned, and his face turned pale. The demon continued forward, and another loud noise rang out. The summoned Renhuang body shattered. Blood ran from the corner of his mouth. His face was ashen.


    At that moment, a huge hand stretched out. It was the demon''s hand. It grabbed him and pulled him up into the air.


    Xiang Nan tried to escape, but no matter how hard he struggled, he could not move a bit.


    Even as a descendant of Renhuang, at this moment, he seemed insignificant. He looked like he was in his death throes.


    The demonic power surged, and the powerful demon slammed its hand into the ground with a great cry, slamming Xiang Nan into the ground just like crushing an ant!

 1202 The Divine Catastrophe Reappears

    On the banks of the Crimson River, countless people were watching the shocking scene taking place on the battlefield with pounding hearts.


    The massive demon ripped open the Renhuang figure with a horrendous noise and slammed the Prince of Renhuang, Xiang Nan, to the ground.


    The once glorious Xiang Nan now did not even know how many of his bones had been broken. He was sprawled out on the ground without even a trace of his former splendor.


    He had said that Ye Wuchen was not strong enough to seize this opportunity, and was not worthy of fighting with him.


    But now, he had fallen so miserably. If the people watching him had not known who he was, they would never have thought that he was a Prince of Renhuang.


    But such was the Battle of the Crimson River, the most crucial battle in the Crimson Dragon Realm. Even those of the blood of Renhuang could be crushed here. It did not mean that Xiang Nan was not strong. Everyone had witnessed the power that had just burst forth from him. He cast spells like a Saint and had even used Renhuang will to suppress his foes.


    But even so, he had still been crushed by Yu Sheng.


    Right now, that massive demon was too strong. Even a celestial being would be crushed before him.


    Everyone else on the battlefield was shaken. He was too strong.


    The combat ability that Yu Sheng had displayed today was even more impressive than that which he had shown at the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon. Previously, everyone had thought that Xing Chou was the cultivator who was most likely to enter the Regional Palace and that he would be able to sweep away all his foes upon the battlefield.


    But now their opinions were wavering.


    Would he be able to block the assault of the wild Yu Sheng?


    Yu Sheng did not care what anyone thought. He turned his cold gaze towards Di Hao. Di Hao had been the one who had pierced Ye Wuchen with his sword, wounding him gravely. Later, Di Hao''s Swords of Kasypa had attacked him, but they had been swallowed up by his demonic power.


    Seeing that Yu Sheng was looking at him, Di Hao''s expression changed.


    That incomparable demonic figure and the demonic airflow that raged forth from him gave him a feeling that he could not defeat Yu Sheng.


    This made him feel very bitter. There was someone on the same plane as him who could give him such a hopeless feeling. This was a great assault on his state of mind.


    A blast of terrible demonic energy rose, and Di Hao felt a wild pressure upon him. The massive demonic figure stepped forward and seemed about to step upon Di Hao''s chest, trying to crush him.


    His sword will flared as much as possible, and the dragon patterned cauldrons before him swallowed up the earthly will as they grew bigger. Brilliant light bloomed upon the battlefield, but it was swallowed up by the dark airflow.


    The demonic figure raised its fist, and suddenly the dark airflow surged together. A mighty demonic palm print appeared in the sky and slammed downward, crushing everything beneath it.


    The Precious Cauldron shrieked forth towards Yu Sheng, but there was a loud clang as it was blocked, and it and the other dragon patterned cauldrons were sent flying back. Cracks appeared in them. Di Hao groaned, and blood flowed from the corner of his mouth. Those had been forged from his life spirit.


    But the demonic palm print continued downward without waiting for a response from him. Dark clouds filled the sky. Yu Sheng truly ignored the laws of both gods and men.


    The swords behind Di Hao rushed out with a frantic howl. He moved backward, will blooming in the space behind him as he tried to escape the demonic palm print that covered everything.


    But the space around him seemed to have been frozen. Even drawing upon spatial rule power, he was still unable to escape the palm print.


    He watched palm print falling hopelessly. His body was sent flying backward with a loud sound and rolled to the edge of the battlefield, almost falling into the Crimson River.


    Watching from the banks of the Crimson River, Li Yao looked furious. Ye Futian, who had transformed into the Seventh Swordsman, had once boasted that he was without equal below the Saint level. Why was it that his friend Yu Sheng was so strong as well?


    Had all the luck of the Great Path fallen within Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    Could it be that today Yu Sheng would enter the greatest holy land for cultivating within the Crimson Dragon Realm: the Regional Palace?


    Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan rose in the air. They did not launch any more attacks. Before, when the three of them had surrounded Yu Sheng, they still could not beat him, and now he was even stronger.


    Kong Xuan floated up before Yu Sheng, and her peacock feathers fanned out with nine colored light flowing through them.


    A brilliant light shone from her. The Great Path revolved, and nine colored light shot into the sky, trying to pierce through the demonic dark airflow. It grew brighter and brighter.


    Woosh!


    The peacock feathers trembled as even more brilliant peacock wings appeared behind Kong Xuan. The divine bird had been unleashed. The whole world seemed colorless under its nine colored light.


    At this moment, Kong Xuan was extremely beautiful.


    Yu Sheng may have displayed incredible combat ability, but as a Princess of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, the blood of the Demon Emperor flowed through her veins. She was not willing to give up like this. She let loose all the power within her. She wanted to see just how strong Yu Sheng was.


    Even if she lost, she would have no regrets.


    In the sky, all that anyone could see besides the dark, demonic airflow was Kong Xuan''s nine colored light. It covered the sky, merging with the worldly Great Path and integrating it into itself.


    At that moment, there was a long peacock call as a divine peacock appeared in the sky. The nine colored light blotted out the sun as it raged through the air, shooting towards Yu Sheng. There was nowhere to run to, nowhere to hide.


    Everything in the area was caught up in the destruction.


    The dark demonic airflow surged wildly. Yu Sheng saw the destructive nine colored light coming towards him and thrust his hands out, piercing through the air. In a flash, countless fist wills stretched out through the sky, each one containing immeasurable power. They collided violently with the nine colored light and were annihilated.


    The nine colored light seemed endless as they came on continuously.


    Woosh! Yu Sheng stepped forward. The fist wills did not cease, and they shot out yet again. The fist wills were integrated into his demonic body, making it even more terrifying and able to sweep anything away.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Yu sheng continued forward, and everything suffocated under his aura. Kong Xuan''s peacock feathers trembled one after another. In a flash, she moved, and the destructive nine colored light shot forward towards the demonic figure.


    At that moment, a pillar of nine colored light appeared, shattering everything.


    Finally, the two of them collided, and the brilliant pillar of nine colored light smashed into Yu Sheng''s overpowering dark fist wills. The air seemed like it would burst as everything around them shattered. Endless nine colored light slammed into Yu Sheng''s body, and at the same time, countless fist wills pierced through the air and crashed into Kong Xuan''s feathers.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise as Kong Xuan was sent flying backward. But the devastating nine colored light died and was reborn. Blood flowed from the corner of her mouth, but she rushed forward towards Yu Sheng yet again.


    The demonic figure covered the world. Yu Sheng''s fist wills had grown even stronger, and it seemed as if they would shatter the very sky.


    This time Kong Xuan was thrown up into the air, and much of the nine colored light on her feathers was extinguished.


    But she still did not give up and rushed towards him a third time.


    She was welcomed by an even stronger fist. She was thrown high up into the air again. She flapped up into the sky and looked up.


    Clouds of Catastrophe were rolling in. But these were not Ye Wuchen''s clouds, but her own.


    Everyone looked up into the sky and could sense the gathering Clouds of Catastrophe. Everyone''s hearts beat fiercely.


    A second person in the Battle of the Crimson River had attracted the Divine Catastrophe and would become a Saint.


    This...


    Everyone''s hearts beat wildly. This truly was a battle of top figures.


    No other battle in the Crimson Dragon Realm between cultivators below the Saint level could match the Battle of the Crimson River.


    Kong Xuan had let loose her incredible combat prowess and used the Demon Emperor''s will to great effect. She still could not shake Yu Sheng and had been sent flying thee times. But each time she had been able to bear it.


    And now she had attracted the Catastrophe of the Great Path.


    Previously, Xiang Nan had been unable to withstand Yu Sheng''s attacks because his flesh was too weak.


    But Kong Xuan was a descendant of the Demon Peacock Emperor. Her power and her flesh were terrifyingly strong. The nine colored light flowed over her. With such pure power, few could compare with her.


    Thus, after receiving devastating attacks, she had not been lain low like Xiang Nan.


    She had withstood three powerful blows, and would now become a Saint.


    The three blows that had been withstood by her peacock body had wounded her severely, but the Catastrophe of the Great Path would certainly not shake her.


    Ye Futian watched the battlefield with a look of surprise.


    Kong Xuan was becoming a Saint. This woman was relentless.


    He couldn''t help but glance at Xia Qingyuan beside him. She seemed to sense it and looked back at him. There was a flash of anger in her eyes. What did this guy mean by looking at her?


    "Princess, Li Yao and Kong Xuan have both become Saints," whispered Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at him for a moment, then looked back to the battlefield. Even though she had some thoughts about this, she did not care too much. Who became a Saint first and who became a Saint later meant nothing.


    "Master, do you want to take her..." muttered the Black Wind Condor behind them. Xia Qingyuan frowned and looked back at the Black Wind Condor with an icy gaze. Seeing her expression, the Black Wind Condor weakly lowered its head, then whispered timidly, "...as a maid."


    "Good idea," said Xia Qingyuan softly, then she looked back to the battlefield. The Black Wind Condor breathed a sigh of relief.


    It was a good thing it was such a quick thinker.


    Everyone else was watching the battle. Yu Sheng had defeated three great cultivators in succession and seemed to be almost casual about it. But now, two people were attempting to withstand the Catastrophe of the Great Path.


    How would they keep fighting?


    In reality, other than Kong Xuan, who was trying to make it through the Divine Catastrophe, the only opponent that Yu Sheng had left was Xing Chou.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng cast his gaze upon Kong Xuan up in the air. Seeing those dark eyes, brilliant light bloomed from her, making her look like a goddess. "I am leaving the battlefield," she said.


    Kong Xuan would cross through the Divine Catastrophe in peace. She had already lost this battle. If she continued to fight, Yu Sheng and Xing Chou would not leave her be.


    So, now it seemed that only Xing Chou was powerful enough to face Yu Sheng.


    Previously, everyone had that that the reason Ye Wuchen had stayed on the battlefield to face the Divine Catastrophe was so that after becoming a Saint, he could continue to fight.


    But now it seemed that he had no intention of fighting Yu Sheng.


    Sensing the overall situation on the battlefield, the two top cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm, Dong Chen and Seven Sins, both discovered to their shame that they were almost being ignored.


    It seemed that they were not worthy of notice. How ridiculous!


    Even those as strong as them seemed invisible on this battlefield!

 1203 Catastrophe Comes

    The will of the Great Path was everywhere on the battlefield by the Crimson River. Burning flames covered everything.


    But in addition to the burning will, there was also terrible dark demon light raging wildly.


    "Get out of here," came a cold, overbearing voice. Yu Sheng swept his gaze over Dong Chen and Seven Sins, the two cultivators who had come from the Dali Dynasty.


    The two of them had probably only participated in this battle to get to him.


    But his dark eyes were full of indifference.


    Dong Chen and Seven Sins'' gazes froze when they heard Yu Sheng''s words. They looked up at him in shock. The oppressive and unpredictable demonic lord''s dark and cold eyes were filled disdain.


    The reason that the three cultivators from the Dali Dynasty had fought in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon and then come here was naturally to attack Yu Sheng.


    However, Li Yao had wanted them to stop or even defeat Yu Sheng and his friends. But in reality, Yu Sheng had never even taken them as a serious threat.


    If that was the case, what could they do?


    Rush Yu Sheng and fight him to the death?


    Could they do it?


    The misfortune that had befallen Di Hao and Xiang Nan made them realize that it would be a matter of but a single punch.


    Should they fight for honor?


    Would it be honorable to charge him, only to be smashed to the ground?


    When he thought of this, Dong Chen realized how ridiculous it was. He turned and swooped through the air, landing on the banks of the Crimson River. When he went home, he would ask the Imperial Adviser to instruct him.


    Sword will whistled around Seven Sins as it wrapped around his body. His whole body shone brightly.


    His eyes were like swords as well, stabbing towards Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng''s domineering eyes were so cold it seemed that within them, Seven Sins did not even exist. Within them, he saw that Yu Sheng looked down on everything.


    He had a feeling that was someone who respected neither heaven, nor earth, nor the gods.


    Was this what happened when you studied the demonic arts?


    A person''s cultivation would determine their character, their temperament, and even their natural disposition.


    He finally extinguished his sword will and sighed. In the end, he did not dare to attack him. He flashed towards Di Hao and picked him up, carrying him away from the battlefield by the Crimson River. His retreating figure looked lonely and desolate.


    In the whole world, there were people more talented than himself.


    Back on the battlefield, Jialou Feng''s feathers had been torn out, Kong Xuan had abandoned the fight so she could withstand the Divine Catastrophe, and Kong Zhan had no more heart for fighting since Kong Xuan had already tried.


    Xiang Nan had been severely wounded.


    Ye Wuchen was also crossing through the Catastrophe of the Great Path, and Huang Jiuge and Qin Zhuang were protecting him.


    The Clouds of Catastrophe rolled over the sky, emitting a deep resonance that occasionally rumbled down.


    The situation on the battlefield was obvious.


    The fight between Yu Sheng and Xing Chou would be the climax and would decide who would be able to enter the Regional Palace.


    Yu Sheng and Xing Chou stood facing each other, staring across the distance at each other. A terrible storm of Qi burst forth from both of them.


    By the Crimson River, a group of cultivators from the Regional Palace rose into the air to watch the battle.


    "Xing Kai, your strength is unparalleled. Even in the Regional Palace, no one has ever shaken you with a frontal assault. But this demon cultivator seems to be the same. He has unmatched combat ability. How does your brother compare to him?" someone asked Xing Kai.


    Everyone in the Regional Palace of the same generation as Xing Kai had learned of his strength the hard way. He was a god of war. In a head-on confrontation, he was nearly unbeatable.


    "We''ll see after the fight," said Xing Kai calmly as he stood there. There was not even a trace of worry in his eyes.


    The person behind him smiled and said, "Does that mean that even you have no faith in Xing Chou?"


    "I won''t speculate on things that are not certain," answered Xing Kai.


    As cultivators of the Regional Palace, personally witnessing this competition had been enough to let them understand how powerful Yu Sheng truly was.


    Who would dare to say that Xing Chou was assured of victory?


    Not even Xing Kai would.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    A series of loud noises rang out. The two of them had not yet started fighting, but already loud sounds were emanating from Xing Chou.


    Brilliant halos of shining lights surrounded him, and they seemed to resonate with the world. At that moment, it seemed that he was representing the heavens themselves.


    Xing Chou stretched out his arms, and the body of a mighty god of war appeared behind him. Next, his body grew larger, as well. The Great Path roared as the halos pierced through the air. His own body melded with that of the god of war. It was as if he had become the god of war.


    The halos on his body resonated with heaven and earth, making a pattern of brilliant golden halos appear around him. It covered both the sky and him as it resonated with his body.


    Everything was silent as everyone watched this final confrontation. Xing Chou had melded himself with his life spirit right at the start. He felt how threatening Yu Sheng was and did not dare to go easy on him at all.


    Right now, it seemed that a god of war and a demon were fighting by the Crimson River.


    Bang!


    There was a loud sound as the god of war stepped forward.


    In the next instant, an equally overpowering sound rang out as Yu Sheng rushed forward.


    The two of them were charging towards each other.


    This made the battlefield by the Crimson River tremble until it seemed like it would break.


    In a flash, the two ancient godlike figures came together. Xing Chou raised his arm and struck out with a fist, and a burst of the intent of battle swept out. His fist resonated with heaven and earth. A wild storm whipped up and swept out towards Yu Sheng. It seemed like all the power in the world was contained within that fist.


    Thousands of fist auroras stretched out through the brilliant golden pattern that was formed from halos. The mighty intent of battle destroyed the very air as it rushed towards Yu Sheng.


    Demonic power rolled out. Yu Sheng raised his arms without hesitation and thrust out a fist as well. Huangting fist will shattered the air. Countless fist auroras shrieked as the golden fist collided with the black one, causing the battlefield to tremble so hard it seemed like it would shatter.


    At the same time, the two of their fists crashed together.


    A hurricane swept out over the battlefield.


    Dong! A sound rang out through heaven and earth. A droning sound emitted from the golden halo pattern around Xing Chou. It seemed to have taken the blow from Yu Sheng''s fist will. Yu Sheng''s arms were trembling slightly. It was the first time someone had had the power to shake him.


    Without any hesitation, the two of them struck each other again. As their fists collided again, everyone felt that their ears would split from the loud noise.


    Then they struck each other a third time, then a fourth... The earth trembled with every collision, and everyone''s hearts were trembling along with it.


    Endless fist will shot towards Xing Chou and seemed to drill a hole right into his body. His halos shot up into the sky, forming a brilliant halo pattern up there then falling back towards the earth.


    They both seemed crazy. There was no skill involved in this; they just punched each other time after time.


    The Huangting fist will grew stronger and stronger. Yu Sheng knew that Xing Chou could not completely withstand his might. A blinding Renhuang brilliance came from him, and he seemed to be riddled with holes. He could collapse at any time.


    But he still did not stop. Brilliant light shot out from him, stretching across the sky. The golden halo pattern in the sky grew larger and larger.


    Smash!


    There was a loud noise as another fist thrust out. Xing Chou was sent flying up into the air. He lowered his arms, and he stood proudly up in the sky. He seemed to have become transparent as endless light shot out from him, piercing through the pattern of halos and continuing up into the sky.


    Boom!


    There was the sound of muffled thunder as a storm raged at the end of the emitted light. The Light of Catastrophe flashed.


    Xing Chou looked up. It had finally come.


    He had been waiting for this all along, the chance to break through to the next level.


    Who in the world could stop him?


    Not even Yu Sheng could.


    "It is finished," said Xing Kai from the sky above the Crimson River. There was a trace of surprise in his eyes, but his expression was full of satisfaction.


    He was very satisfied with Xing Chou''s display. He was just like him: unwavering in his determination and with an unshakable mind for the Path. Their only mission was to move forward. That was the only one they would undertake.


    No one could get in their way.


    Not even Yu Sheng.


    Xing Chou would come to the Regional Palace to cultivate with him.


    "This is the third one!"


    Everyone watching from the banks of the Crimson River felt their hearts tremble. This was the third cultivator who had attracted the Catastrophe of the Great Path during this Battle of the Crimson River.


    It indeed was a battle between top figures.


    When Xing Chou became a Saint, who could touch him?


    Even if Ye Wuchen became a Saint, it wouldn''t matter.


    Countless people looked up into the sky. The mighty figure stood there like a god of war, preparing to welcome the Catastrophe of the Great Path.


    Xing Chou was about to become a Saint.


    No one could stop him.


    Upon the battlefield, Yu Sheng looked up at Xing Chou as well. Would this be the second person who became a Saint at his hands?


    First, it had been Kong Xuan. Now it was Xing Chou.


    "Saint!"


    Yu Sheng looked up, his black eyes full of coldness. He closed his eyes, and the dark demonic light shot wildly into the sky. He let go of his thoughts and let his mind move along with his will up into the sky. He tried to use all the power in the area.


    But he soon encountered an obstacle.


    He could not integrate himself into the Great Path in this place. It was as if he was lost in darkness. An all-encompassing demonic shadow suppressed the whole area, making it so that he could not control its power as he pleased. Even though the power in this place billowed up into the heavens, he still could not use it completely.


    He was strong enough, but his state of mind was not in the right place to become a Saint.


    Feeling the Great Path Catastrophes that others were experiencing as well as the demonic shadow suppressing the world around him, Yu Sheng swept out with his demonic airflow. It endlessly rolled out, shrieking and screaming.


    He couldn''t become a Saint?


    He clenched his fists and looked up into the sky. An overpowering look filled his eyes.


    Smash!


    There was a loud noise that shook the sky. Many people felt as if their eardrums would split. Demonic power swept out. There seemed to be a massive demonic figure waking up, that neither heaven nor earth could stop.


    However, that invisible force seemed to be Heavenly Rule Power, and it could not be broken. The demonic shadow still suppressed the area and blocked him from stepping upon the Divine Path.


    Boom!


    "What is he trying to do?" Many people trembled as they watched Yu Sheng. He rose into the sky and pierced through the clouds as demonic power rolled off him, shrieking.


    It seemed as if he wanted to fight heaven itself.


    His arms were trembling as even more powerful demonic energy rolled off him.


    A massive wild demonic wave swept out through the sky with another roar, making the air itself tremble violently.


    Was he crazy?


    Everyone was watching Yu Sheng.


    Of course, he was not crazy, but his eyes had gone frighteningly dark with demonic light. They were like demon eyes, and they wanted to pierce through heaven itself.


    He wanted to become a Saint. If the Dao sought to stop him, if heaven sought to stop him, he would break through them.


    A cultivator of the Demonic Path would resist the heavens themselves.


    He opened his arms and gave another roar that shook the highest heavens. An even taller and mightier demonic figure rose from thin air around him, growing larger and larger. It was as if a demon god had awoken.


    Boom!


    A loud sound rang out as the invisible magical energy holding him back shattered. At this moment, the demon ruled the heavens.


    Yu Sheng''s will extended throughout the world. The Great Path could not stop it.


    Up in the sky, the clouds roared. The Catastrophe was coming!

 1204 The End of the Battle of the Crimson River

    It was crazy.


    Everyone''s hearts were pounding. It had not been surprising that the Divine Catastrophe had appeared in previous Battles of the Crimson River since it was a battle of the greatest figures below the Saint level, and all of them were geniuses.


    Someone had proved their worthiness to become a Saint in nearly every battle.


    However, four great cultivators breaking through to the Saint plane in succession was simply astonishing!


    It was too crazy!


    Especially Yu Sheng. As soon as he had seen Xing Chou facing the Divine Catastrophe, he had forced his way into the sky, forcibly breaking down all the barriers that the Great Path threw in his way and smashing through the bottleneck into the Saint Plane. That showed just how tough he was. When he wanted to become a Saint, even the Great Path could not stop him.


    So, he had broken through as well.


    Thunder roared up in the sky as the Great Path descended.


    The sky above the Crimson River was still burning red, and when it was met with the terrible Catastrophe of the Great Path, it truly seemed like the end of days. This struck everyone deeply.


    None of them were fighting; they were all facing the Catastrophe of the Great Path.


    The reason they wanted to enter the Regional Palace was to get stronger. Now that they had a chance to break through to the next level, they would naturally do that first.


    Qin Zhuang and Huang Jiuge looked up at Yu Sheng in the sky. There was an emotional look in Qin Zhuang''s eyes. When Ye Futian and the others had come to Tombkeeper Village, they were all just Nobles and Sages. Now, he was personally witnessing them stepping onto the Divine Path one after another.


    Today, Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng had successively broken through to the next level in different ways on the battlefield. This had a great impact on him.


    Ye Wuchen''s swordsmanship was clear, and he had a bright future ahead of him. Yu Sheng was so overpowering that even the Great Path could not stop him. His state of mind had not been in the right place, but at the moment that he had decided to defy heaven and forcibly break through to the next level, it had been enough.


    He had cultivated for many years, and now he had reached this level but had still been unable to break through.


    Perhaps what he lacked was that passionate blood, that swordsmanship that could threaten the very heavens, or talent sharp enough to pierce the clouds.


    Right now, Ye Wuchen had withstood the Catastrophe of the Great Path''s descent many times. He stood up as straight as a sword, displaying his talent as his body was refined.


    However, Xing Chou and Yu Sheng''s Catastrophes were fiercer, even seeming to be double catastrophes. Their bodies were becoming sacred; they were becoming Saintly bodies.


    Beside the Crimson River, the Great Shaman stood behind Xia Qingyuan. His eyes were bright under his hood. "He has had the Dao within him since birth," he whispered.


    Xia Qingyuan looked back at him. "Princess," said the Great Shaman, "this man''s family background is probably not as simple as it seems."


    Some people were born with great talent, and they were destined to become enlightened.


    Yu Sheng was obviously this kind of person.


    Xia Qingyuan was not too concerned. She knew that Ye Futian''s background was not simple. Since Yu Sheng had grown up with him and also displayed incredible power, the fact that he would have an extraordinary family background was quite natural.


    "My father knows this. Do not tell anyone else," said Xia Qingyuan to the Great Shaman. It may have been possible for some supernatural people to see this, but it was not necessary to deliberately spread this information and attract attention.


    "Yes, Your Highness," said the Great Shaman.


    Boom!


    The Crimson River surged as the sound of the Catastrophe of the Great Path rolled over from the battlefield, shaking everyone''s spirits.


    What was more terrifying was that besides the injured Ye Wuchen, who was struggling a little bit, the other four people who were fighting through the Divine Catastrophe did not seem to be hindered too much.


    Yu Sheng and Xing Chou were actively welcoming the Catastrophe of the Great Path and letting it wash over them. They steadfastly stood their ground.


    They were truly some of the most powerful cultivators. Even if someone became a Saint before they did, once they became Saints, they would all be the same.


    The Catastrophe of the Great Path did not cease. Ye Wuchen had been the first to face it. He sat cross-legged on the battle platform with sword will washing over him. At that moment, in his perception, everything was swords.


    The Dao created heaven, earth, and nature.


    Dazzling sword will flowed over him. An arm slowly extended from his left shoulder. Sword will flowed over it until it formed a real hand.


    He opened his eyes, and his eyes flashed as sharp as swords. He looked down at his arm with neither sorrow nor joy. He did not seem to be surprised at all.


    "Chenyu would have loved to see this." When he thought of his wife, Liu Chenyu, a warm smile came over his face.


    He turned his gaze towards the banks of the Crimson River and looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was also looking at him, a bright smile on his handsome face.


    20 years ago, Ye Wuchen had cut off his arm for them. Now, seeing that as he became a Saint, his arm grew back, how could Ye Futian not be happy?


    Ye Wuchen''s road had been even harder than his or Yu Sheng''s.


    Now he was finally transforming and taking his first step onto the Divine Path.


    Saints cast off their former selves and transcended the ordinary. His talent may have been commonplace before, but after today, he would be reborn.


    This was the first hurdle that stopped most people from genuinely becoming Saints. So many people were stopped on the Great Path by this hurdle.


    It was fortunate that the three of them who had come from the Hundred Kingdoms had traveled so far.


    Next, Kong Xuan made it through the Divine Catastrophe. The nine colored light flashed, as brilliant as anyone had ever seen.


    Her skin had been flawless before, and now it looked even more divine. She was like an actual goddess, beautiful in the extreme.


    As the daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor, Kong Xuan was a demon who had become a Saint. Divine and demonic temperaments mixed together within her. She was stunningly beautiful.


    She opened her eyes and looked at Xing Chou and Yu Sheng.


    The battle was already finished for her, but not for them. But right now, they were facing the Catastrophe of the Great Path, so they did not fight.


    However, after they did this, the battle would continue.


    "Their catastrophes seem a bit stronger," said many people with a gasp. This was especially true for Yu Sheng. Demonic majesty rolled out from him. There were black flames in the sky, and a terrible black vortex from which came a terrifying demonic Catastrophe, violent in the extreme. Every time it struck him, people felt their scalps go numb from the pressure. It seemed like this demonic catastrophe would destroy his soul.


    But Yu Sheng stood firm and unyielding like a demonic god.


    A while later, the Divine Catastrophe in the sky above the two of them dissipated. All that was left was the redness in the sky that was cast by the Crimson River that covered the battlefield.


    At that moment, Xing Chou opened his eyes. The earthly Great Path resonated. Countless halos of the light of the Great Path flashed in the sky, and the figure of a towering god of war stood proudly. It grew taller and taller, and a burst of war will swept out over the battlefield. It was like a god of war had awoken.


    As a Saint, Xing Chou was like a god of war. His intent to fight suppressed everything around him.


    Ye Wuchen stood on the other side of the battlefield and felt the surging intent to fight. But he did not move, continuing to stand there calmly.


    He had become a Saint first, so he could have attacked Xing Chou. But he did not do so.


    He knew that once Yu Sheng became a Saint, he would be even stronger. He would transform far more than Xing Chou had.


    Yu Sheng would naturally be able to deal with Xing Chou, so he did not need to get involved. This was a fight between the two of them: the fight between the two greatest figures at the Battle of the Crimson River.


    After this fight, Yu Sheng would enter the Regional Palace while everyone watched. No one doubted it.


    No matter if he was a Sage or a Saint, he was still the strongest man.


    At that moment, Yu Sheng felt the power within himself. A terrible illusion appeared in his mind. The techniques that he had cultivated evolved along with him.


    Demonic power rolled off him, covering the sky.


    In the instant that he opened his eyes, the demonic will that covered the battlefield seemed to quiver. He looked at Xing Chou with truly demonic eyes. That single glance made Xing Chou feel like he was in the midst of thousands of demons.


    Behind Yu Sheng, the figure of a towering demon god appeared. It rose into the clouds.


    The demonic energy that was surging through the sky gathered together. Heaven and earth seemed to be wrapped up in roiling demonic energy, and demonic figures appeared all around.


    What Xing Chou was seeing was not an illusion. It was real.


    As he stood upon the battlefield at that moment, he was surrounded by thousands of demons.


    Each of those demonic figures was as powerful as the god of war he had summoned.


    And each of them had been summoned by Yu Sheng and followed his commands.


    Yu Sheng stood in the air with the figure of a demonic king behind him. He seemed to be the lord of a thousand demons. All the demonic will in the world was under his command.


    Xing Chou frowned and felt a powerful burst of pressure.


    He may have been a true god of war, but amidst all these demons, he still felt the pressure.


    He stepped into the air, and suddenly the pattern of halos around him flashed with brilliant light. He reached out and clapped his hands together, and in a flash, palm prints shot out from the pattern of halos, shooting towards Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng reached out and slammed his fist downward, with demonic voices seeming to scream from it, making everyone''s hearts tremble. The demonic figure behind him also smashed its fist downward.


    All the demonic figures around them did the same thing.


    At that moment, the heavens went dim as dark demonic palm prints shot out. Each one was massive beyond compare. They slammed towards Xing Chou.


    The shocking sounds of collisions rang out, each one making everyone''s hearts pound.


    Next, Xing Chou''s palm prints were completely swallowed up as everyone watched, and the figure of the god of war was suppressed.


    Finally, a terrible giant fist smashed Xing Chou out of the sky, and he slammed into the ground by the Crimson River.


    His palm prints were thoroughly shattered. He lay there amidst a huge five-fingered palm print on the ground.


    He had been smashed from the sky all the way to the ground.


    He may have been a Saint who was transformed into a god of war, but in a flash, he had been suppressed by this tyrant.


    Even as a god of war, he had fallen.


    Only one person was left standing in the sky above the battlefield at the Crimson River.


    "It is finished," everyone said to themselves.


    They looked at Yu Sheng up in the sky above the Crimson River and felt like they were in a dream. This Battle of the Crimson River had seemed like a fantasy. It had been far too shocking.


    Now, Yu Sheng, who had thrown a demon dragon at the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, had suppressed all his opponents and had made it to the end in an unstoppable fashion.


    Ye Wuchen and Huang Jiuge naturally would not fight him. So there was no one else to fight.


    Yu Sheng of Qianye City was the strongest cultivator to come to the Crimson Dragon Realm. He would enter the Regional Palace!

 1205 Rivals Facing Off

    A series of sounds rang out on the banks of the Crimson River. Everyone was gasping in shock.


    Even though he was now going to enter the Regional Palace, Yu Sheng still had his proper place.


    The disciples of the Regional palace were all top figures and had swept away all their opponents just like Yu Sheng had in order to get in. But today''s Battle of the Crimson River had been even more impressive than many of the previous ones.


    Many people sighed with emotion. Their journey to witness this battle had not been in vain.


    Yu Sheng had defeated xing Chou of the Ancient Imperial City, and so he could not enter the Regional Palace.


    Moreover, after this defeat, it would even harder to get another chance.


    Other than exceptional characters, those Sages who had not come here would not be able to participate in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon or the Battle of the Crimson River. But if they showed great talent and strength in the Crimson Dragon Realm, they would still receive an invitation to enter the Regional Palace when they became Saints.


    But this was impossible for Xing Chou, as he had been utterly defeated here.


    Most people only had a single chance to enter the Regional Palace, and thus most people chose the best time to do try and do so: the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon.


    It was not only Xing Chou. Before him, Xiang Nan of Xiang City and the Prince of Emperor Xiang''s Realm had been highly favored to win. But when he had fallen before Yu Sheng''s pressure, he had lost the right to enter the Regional Palace.


    And entering the Regional Palace was not the only opportunity that he had lost. Four great cultivators had become Saints in this battle, but this did not include Xiang Nan. Yu Sheng''s huge palm print had crushed him before he had the chance to do so. This would probably become something that haunted him for years to come.


    After all, Xiang Nan was a Prince of Renhuang and was incredibly proud, which could be seen from what he had said to Ye Wuchen. He had said that Ye Wuchen was not worthy of this opportunity that had been afforded by the Great Path and that he had no right to strive for the chance to become a Saint. He thought that he was the one who was worthy of these things.


    But Yu Sheng had taught him how to behave.


    This would leave a deep impression on him for a long time.


    No one knew if Xiang Nan would be able to let this go. If he couldn''t, it would affect his state of mind and delay his ascension to the Divine Path.


    Kong Xuan, on the other hand, was an exceptional woman. The Princess of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Real knew that she could not shake Yu Sheng, but had still used all of her power to resist his attacks three times. In the end, she had broken through her own limits and become a Saint.


    She may have been defeated, but that would not affect her too much.


    But the golden Roc who had also come from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm did not have such good luck. The memory of this battle would trouble him for a long time to come.


    All the fighting on the battle platform stopped.


    The demonic power coming from Yu Sheng dissipated. He appeared high up in the air, but his aura was different than before. He had ascended to Sainthood through Demonic Power, making him a Demon Saint.


    High up in the sky, the crimson-robed head of the Crimson Dragon Army looked down and asked, "Will anyone continue to fight?"


    There were still several people standing: Kong Zhan, Huang Jiuge, Ye Wuchen, and the others.


    "Let''s go," said Kong Xuan to Kong Zhan. Their figures flashed as they left the battlefield by the Crimson River.


    Ye Wuchen and the others smiled at Yu Sheng, then prepared to leave, leaving the platform for Yu Sheng.


    "Wuchen, won''t you stay?" Yu Sheng asked suddenly.


    He had no great desire to enter the Regional Palace. His demonic method was a perfected combat system, and so even the best holy land for cultivating in the Crimson Dragon Realm was not that useful to him.


    But Ye Wuchen had ascended to Sainthood with great difficulty. If he could cultivate in a place like that, it would have great benefits for him.


    Thus, he was giving this opportunity to Ye Wuchen.


    Many people were shocked by what Yu Sheng had said and looked at him strangely.


    What did this guy mean?


    He had the chance to enter the Regional Palace, the best holy land for cultivating in the Crimson Dragon Realm. Many people came from all over to strive for this chance, and he was going to give it to his friend?


    Ye Wuchen looked at Yu Sheng and smiled. He naturally knew what Yu Sheng was thinking.


    But this was a stage set for Yu Sheng. Even if he did go to the Regional Palace, he would feel uneasy about it, and it would lose some of its meaning.


    "The winner of the Battle of the Crimson River may enter the Regional Palace to cultivate. You cannot just let someone else have the victory," came a voice from outside the battlefield. A group of people was walking over to them.


    The one who had spoken was Xing Kai. He glanced at Xing Chou with a calm expression. He did not look too distressed.


    He had naturally hoped that Xing Chou could come to the Regional Palace to cultivate with him. Xing Chou had performed quite well and had even become a Saint upon the battlefield. But he had had a bit of bad luck when Yu Sheng had smashed through the barriers keeping him from Sainthood and crushed him.


    If he had been in any of the previous Battles of the Crimson River, Xing Chou would probably have had no problems. It was just bad luck.


    But a battle like this was not a bad thing for him. After all, the enemies they would face in the future might be just as strong as that.


    The Great Path was sure to be full of thorns.


    Yu Sheng looked up at Xing Kai, then at the cultivator from the Crimson Dragon Army. He had also asked if Yu Sheng knew if what he was doing was wrong.


    Ye Futian had asked him to enter the Regional Palace to get closer to the Crimson Dragon Emperor. In the future, they would have to use the Crimson Dragon''s Emperor''s power to cross through the realm.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm was one of the realms within the Crimson Dragon Emperor''s Realm. If they wanted to go to other realms, it would be essential to have good fitting within the Crimson Dragon Emperor''s Realm.


    But when he saw Ye Wuchen, he had wanted to give him this chance. That way, he could walk along the Great Path along with him.


    "This guy," said Ye Futian with a smile. Neither Yu Sheng nor Wuchen liked to talk much, but their friendship was clear in their hearts.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian and others flashed over towards the battlefield.


    At that moment, Xing Kai was continuing to speak: "You may have been unmatched at this Battle of the Crimson River, but those who are in the Regional Palace have all done the same thing as you. Since you will be entering the most powerful holy land for cultivating in the Crimson Dragon Emperor''s Realm, you should have proper respect for it. His swordsmanship was good, but it was far from good enough to let him enter the Regional Palace."


    Yu Sheng frowned and gave Xing Kai a cold look. But Xing Kai did not care and continued to look at him indifferently. There was a flash of golden light in his eyes.


    "He''s right. You should be the one to go," said Ye Wuchen. He was not angered by Xing Kai''s pronouncement that he was not worthy to enter the Regional Palace.


    Perhaps Xing Kai had spoken a bit too straightforwardly, but he had indeed not been good enough in today''s Battle of the Crimson River.


    Swordsmen should strive to move forward continuously, but they should also know themselves.


    Kong Xuan and the others who had been crushed by Yu Sheng like Xiang Nan were all stronger than him, so if Yu Sheng swept away all his opponents and then granted this opportunity to him, he would feel that he could not accept it.


    Yu Sheng nodded and said no more.


    "Congratulations!" said the man from the Crimson Dragon Army up in the sky. He handed a badge to Yu Sheng and said, "With this, you may enter the Regional Palace and cultivate there. Once you are there, we will further reward you. Would you like to go now?"


    Yu Sheng accepted the badge and said, "There are some other things I must take care of right now. Once I have finished them, I will come to the Palace."


    The cultivator that had come from Emperor Li''s Realm at Li Yao''s orders had come to attack Ye Futian. He would naturally not be able to relax until this matter was resolved.


    The cultivator nodded. "Very well. You may come any time you like." He then looked at Xing Kai, who bowed slightly. The man smiled, and they all left.


    This Battle of the Crimson River had officially come to an end.


    Yu Sheng would enter the Regional Palace.


    They would have to wait a year for the next one, at which point one more person would be able to enter.


    Ye Futian and those with him descended upon the battle platform. He looked at Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and the others with a bright smile on his face.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen looked back at him. Yu Sheng grinned. There was no longer an overbearing look in his eyes. He looked simple and natural.


    A look of surprise came over Xia Qingyuan''s face when she saw this. This guy had just dominated the battlefield with his demonic power. Ye Futian also sometimes had this quality about him.


    Sometimes he was cold and cruel, like at Jiutian Temple, the sacred war of the Nine States, and at the battle where he had killed Xiao Sheng, where he was glorious and powerful. But occasionally, she would see that he had a simple and sincere side to him.


    Especially when he was together with his friends, then it seemed like even after having experienced so much hardship, they were all still young.


    Ye Wuchen smiled brightly as well, a smile that it seemed that only they understood.


    They had once been young together, and now they were all Saints.


    On the other side of the battlefield, Xing Kai walked up to his brother, Xing Chou.


    Xing Chou looked at his elder brother. He stood up straight but bowed his head slightly. He seemed a bit ashamed.


    "Not bad," said Xing Kai with a smile. Xing Chou looked up at Xing Kai, then said with a smile, "A loss is still a loss."


    "When cultivating on the Great Path, who can avoid losses?" asked Xing Kai.


    "You''ve never lost," said Xing Chou.


    "Someday, I will," said Xing Kai. "Moreover, there may be many historical heroes who were undefeated, but once you lose once, you can never join their ranks. So your defeat here does not mean much. If you can enter the Regional Palace in the future and beat him there, it will be even more glorious."


    Xing Chou looked at Yu Sheng.


    Hearing what Xing Kai was saying, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng looked over at them.


    "You shouldn''t cling to that hope, because you''ll probably never get a chance to fulfill it in this life," said Ye Futian with a soft laugh. There was nothing wrong with what Xing Kai had said, but if he wanted to prove himself by defeating Yu Sheng, then he was sorry, but he had no chance.


    Xing Kai turned his gaze upon Ye Futian.


    A look of shock came over the faces of everyone who was by the Crimson River and heard their words. Ye Futian had a close relationship with Yu Sheng. Moreover, the Lord of Qianye City was not Yu Sheng, but Ye Futian.


    Even though Princess Xia Qingyuan was there, the position of city lord was still given to him.


    So was this man just as dominating as Yu Sheng?


    Previously, Xing Chou and Yu Sheng had faced each other. Now Xing Kai and Ye Futian might. This made people''s blood rush faster. Would there be a battle between them?


    The thing was, Xing Kai was said to be unparalleled by those on the same plane as him. Perhaps he would be defeated one day in the future, but it would probably not be in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "The Great Path is long. There are no absolutes," said Xing Kai.


    "Some things are absolute," answered Ye Futian.


    Xing Kai stared at Ye Futian, then said, "I am Xing Kai of the Ancient Imperial City."


    "I am Ye Futian of Qianye City," Ye Futian responded.


    After they said this, they turned away from each other as if nothing had happened.


    But no one knew what they were thinking.


    Everyone left the battlefield by the Crimson River, including Ye Futian and the others. After they left, Li Yao returned home with Di Hao and the others. They all had grim looks on their faces.


    The news of this Battle of the Crimson River would quickly spread to all corners of the Crimson Dragon Realm!

 1206 Seeking Allies

    Yu Sheng''s fame rapidly spread across the Crimson Dragon City and to neighboring cities.


    He defeated all the talent in the Battle of the Crimson River, including Xing Nan of the Ancient Imperial City, Xiang Nan of Xiang City, and Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan of Peacock City. What impressive combat it was! It was a pity that so many people had not been able to watch how he fought with their own eyes. All those top figures were defeated all by Yu Sheng himself!


    The whole of Qianye City was in shock, too. In the past, Ye Futian had gained fame by annihilating Bliss Palace with his people. Soon after, he became the Lord of Thousand Leaves City and made his name known to everyone.


    No one had expected Yu Sheng to be so powerful.


    What a gallant hero from Emperor Xia''s Realm!


    Both of them were so strong.


    Princess Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm shouldn''t be considered weak, even though she hadn''t yet started fighting.


    In the Lord''s Residence of Thousand Leaves City, Shen Jun heard the news, too. He had gradually recovered after many days of healing.


    Shen Jun had mixed feelings as he listened to the messenger''s report in the courtyard.


    He would be ridiculous to think about taking advantage of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng when he was nothing in their eyes.


    He''d asked Yu Sheng to join the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, and Yu Sheng had won it. Now, Yu Sheng was also peerless in the Battle of Crimson River and had entered the Regional Palace.


    It was Shen Jun''s dream to cultivate in the Regional Palace one day. He had been dreaming of entering the Regional Palace and seeing what kind of talents were inside.


    And now, Yu Sheng had made it there.


    Shen Jun''s father, Shen Tianzhan, arrived. He hadn''t left the Lord''s Residence after he was defeated by the Great Shaman.


    "You know about it?" Shen Tianzhan asked him.


    "Yes," answered Shen Jun, nodding.


    "The minimum achievement of one who comes out of the Regional Palace is being an Unblemished Saint. Many Unblemished-Level Saints have already come from there. Some stayed in the Crimson Dragon City and some left... some even became Renhuang," said Shen Tianzhan. "And I heard that Yu Sheng was even stronger than many previous champions at the Battle of the Crimson River. In the future, he will probably become a Saint of Nirvana."


    Shen Jun didn''t say a word. He understood it, so he could only sigh in response.


    "Among the people who came from Emperor Xia''s Realm, Ye Futian was the Lord of Thousand Leaves City. How do you think his relationship is with Yu Sheng?" asked Shen Tianzhan.


    "They are very good friends. Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan are the leaders of the group. Yu Sheng should be his friend. He does whatever he tells him to do. Their relationship is unusual," replied Shen Jun.


    "You''re not unlucky. I told you to go to Fusang Valley for cultivation. You met so many people with Nirvana-Saint potential on your way back," said Shen Tianzhan. Shen Jun lowered his head. He understood what his father meant.


    With such luck, what was he thinking? What was he doing?


    "It was not easy for you to enter the Saint Plane. I told you, be broad-minded, be ambitious. However, now your only ambition is within this city." Shen Tianzhan sighed. Nobody knew a son better than his father.


    Shen Jun had talent, but he was too narrow-minded and limited in his ambition.


    His ambition was limited within the city. If it wasn''t, he would not have used others in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon just to acquire some treasures.


    His achievement was destined to be limited by his narrow ambition, even though he had entered the Saint Plane.


    Shen Jun lowered his head in embarrassment.


    "Don''t hold any grudges. Take advantage of the time for introspection," Shen Tianzhan said.


    "Yes, Father," replied Shen Jun. His father nodded and departed. What was the use of holding a grudge against him?


    He couldn''t fight against Emperor Xia''s Realm anyway.


    ��


    That day, in Peacock City, Li Yao came to visit.


    Kong Zhan and Kong Xuan met Li Yao in the Lord''s Residence.


    "Princess Kong Xue, congratulations on entering the Saint Plane! I''ve prepared some gifts for you. I hope you like them." Li Yao asked his people to bring the gifts forward.


    "Thank you, but we don''t deserve them," said Kong Xuan, taking a look at Li Yao. No one from her side came to accept the gifts.


    "What brings you here today?" asked Kong Xuan.


    Li Yao had come to visit her before the Battle of the Crimson River to discuss capturing Yu Sheng and the others.


    But the result was the same as it had been at the Battle of Empty Realm. Emperor Xia''s Realm was still the winner. The good thing was they hadn''t lost too much, and Princess Kong Xuan had entered the Saint Plane as a result of the battle.


    "To be honest, Princess, I''ve come to the Crimson Dragon Realm with my people only for Ye Futian. He and Yu Sheng are extremely talented people, and if we don''t wipe them out, they will become the scourge of the Dali and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm in the future. That''s why I came to request cooperation with you again. What do you think, Your Highness?" said Li Yao.


    "It''s the grudge between you, Dali, and Ye Futian. I will not get involved this time," Kong Xuan refused.


    Both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng gradually showed their talent. Besides, there seemed to be some chemistry between Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    Maybe Emperor Xia regarded him as his son-in-law.


    She was afraid that Emperor Xia''s Realm would have a strong reaction if Ye Futian was captured. She would not take it upon herself to instigate a war with them.


    She didn''t have the ability to control a war between the realms.


    In addition, Li Yao at least had his reasons for dealing with Ye Futian. What excuse could Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm have?


    Why not sit quietly and watch them fight?


    "Kong Xuan Princess, have you forgotten how Ye Futian treated you at the Battle of Empty Realm? If he becomes too strong, he might become a threat to the Demon Emperor''s Realm," Li Yao reminded her. He was referring to Ye Futian''s ability to control Demonic Beasts.


    Kong Xue frowned. She didn''t seem happy. "It was at the Battle of Empty Realm where you could use all means to fight. Besides, Ye Futian has apologized. If he does it once again, of course, we will not let him go. But it''s you, Li Yao, who broke the rules and tried to kill Ye Futian in the Battle of Empty Realm. And you failed. I heard that Ye Futian used a fake identity as the Seventh Sword to cultivate in Dali. You have a grudge against him, but that is none of my business."


    Li Yao suddenly became sullen. He took a look at Kong Xuan and said with a smile, "After several battles, you have lost your courage to even go against Ye Futian, Princess Kong Xuan. I should go now."


    Then he turned around and left.


    Kong Xuan took a look at him. She understood that Li Yao was referring to her two defeats, once by Ye Futian and once by Yu Sheng.


    She was indeed impressed by these battles.


    Even though she hated to admit it.


    Li Yao looked sulky after he left. He didn''t expect for Kong Xuan''s hatred for Ye Futian to have lessened. Had she completely yielded to it?


    It seemed he couldn''t count on cooperating with the Demonic Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    Kong Xue had left him no room for negotiation.


    "Go to Xiang''s City," Li Yao said in a low voice. He went straight to Xiang City, followed by his people.


    ...


    Li Yao entered the Lord''s Residence at Xiang City to visit Xiang Nan.


    However, he was blocked by someone in front of the gate. The person said, "Xiang Nan Highness is cultivating in seclusion. I can pass along the message if Your Highness has any matters to discuss."


    Li Yao laughed secretly. Cultivating was an excuse. He guessed that Xiang Nan was actually recovering from his injuries.


    Yu Sheng had shown no mercy at all when he''d used the palm strike on Xiang Nan in the Battle of Crimson River.


    "I am afraid you will not able to carry a message. It regards a highly confidential issue about an Imperial-level treasure," said Li Yao.


    The man got a strange look in his eye. Imperial level?


    What did Li Yao mean?


    "I will report to His Highness," said the man, hesitating. He left to make the report. When he came back, he told Li Yao, "His Royal Highness wants to see you. Please, come in."


    "Thank you so much," Li Yao said as he followed him inside.


    This time, he wanted to visit Demon Imperial City, Xiang City, and Ancient Imperial City. As long as one of them accepted his request, Li Yao would not need to worry about defeat.


    These three cities all had intimidating powers. The first two had been established by Renhuang. The lord of the Ancient Imperial City was the Ninth Servant. He claimed to be the First Lord of All Cities.


    However, Kong Xuan had declined his request. Li Yao hoped he could succeed in the negotiation with Xiang City.


    Li Yao soon met Xiang Nan. Xiang Nan was dressed in magnificent clothes looked very well and handsome. It seemed as if he was not injured at all.


    He sat there, smiling at Li Yao. "Have a seat."


    Li Yao sat. Xiang Nan said, "Let''s cut to the chase. Li Yao, why did you find me today?"


    Li Yao glanced at the people nearby. Xiang Nan immediately understood and waved his hand. All the people left. He had no need to worry about what Li Yao would do to him.


    "I''ve heard a lot about Emperor Xiang''s Realm being a very powerful realm among all the Crimson Dragon Realms. The reason I came today is to seek cooperation with you," Li Yao said bluntly.


    "What kind of cooperation?" asked Xiang Nan.


    "We Dali people have a grudge against Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm. The Lord of the Thousand Leaves City, Ye Futian, once snuck into Dali Empire to study cultivation methods. He even learned a Renhuang-level cultivation method in Dali. I''ve come all the way from Dali with my troops just to deal with him."


    Li Yao continued, "However, Ye Futian has powerful people protecting him. I''m not sure if we alone can capture him, so I am seeking allies. If Emperor Xiang''s Realm can form an alliance with us, I can let Emperor Xiang''s Realm keep him for a while after we capture him together."


    Li Yao was indicating that Emperor Xiang''s Realm could question Ye Futian about the Renhuang-level cultivation method, which was undoubtedly a tempting option.


    "How can I verify that what you say is true?" asked Xiang Nan.


    "The Dali Imperial Advisor is deeply trusted by my father and venerated by numerous Dali cultivators. His cultivation method, Deep Thorough Comprehension, is absolutely above the Renhuang level. If you inquire about it with him, you will hear that it was secretly learned by Ye Futian."


    Li Yao continued, "Aren''t you interested in the demonic martial arts used by Yu Sheng during the Battle of the Crimson River?"


    There was a coldness in Xiang Nan''s eyes when he heard Yu Sheng''s name.


    Of course, he couldn''t forget how Yu Sheng had smacked him to the ground with one blow during the Battle of the Crimson River.


    He had never experienced that kind of embarrassment before in his life.


    The demonic martial art was indeed very powerful.


    "But Emperor Xiang''s Realm has never had a grudge with Emperor Xia''s Realm," said Xiang Nan.


    "It is not about the grudge between Emperor Xiang''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm. Don''t you want to get control of another city? I don''t mean to involve Xia Qingyuan in this," continued Li Yao. "Ye Futian and Yu Sheng are just cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm in the Lower Worlds. Princess Xia Qingyuan relies on them only because of their talents."


    There was a gleam of a smile in Xiang Nan''s eyes after he heard what Li Yao said. It was tempting for him indeed.

 1207 The Letter and the First Prince

    Xiang Nan looked at Li Yao and said with a smile, "This thing we discussed is not only about getting one more city of the Crimson Dragon Realms. It involves Renhuang''s Realms. I need time to rethink it."


    Li Yao looked into Xiang Nan''s eyes but couldn''t tell what was on his mind, so he nodded and said, "Alright. I will be waiting for your reply, Xiang Nan."


    Li Yao stood up and left. Xiang Nan saw him out in person.


    After Li Yao left, Xiang Nan had a sneer across his face. Li Yao was trying to drag others from Renhuang''s Realms into this. He was a calculating person indeed.


    If things went as Li Yao planned and the conflict intensified, a more serious war could break out. The war might even be between Realms. If Emperor Xia''s Realm had to fight against two of Renhuang''s Realms, that would be the end of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    And Li Yao''s compensation for Xiang Nan was nothing but the Imperial-level Cultivation Method stolen by Ye Futian, or Yu Sheng''s demonic martial art. Li Yao was generous at the expense of others.


    "I need someone here," said Xiang Nan.


    A subordinate came and bowed, saluting him."Your Highness."


    "I will write a letter. You take it to Thousand Leaves City and give it to Ye Futian. Don''t attract anyone''s attention," said Xiang Nan.


    "Aye." That servant nodded. Xiang Nan wrote a letter and handed it to him. The servant took the letter and soon departed for Thousand Leaves City.


    Meanwhile, Li Yao was heading for the Ancient Imperial City.


    The Ancient Imperial City was different from other cities. There was only one power that dominated the whole area.


    The Lord of the Ancient Imperial City was the Ninth Servant. It was said that the Ninth Servant had entered the Renhuang Plane and recruited many talented people.


    The Ancient Imperial City had a special status among all the cities of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The Lord Residence of the Ancient Imperial City was enclosed by lofty walls. The Residence was like an antique castle, at the center of which stood a giant bronze gate.


    There were very few guards guarding at the gate, but every one of them had a very intimidating life force.


    However, there was an old man sitting over by the castle. He was clothed in rags but looked clean. There was no sign of life force coming from his body.


    Li Yao and the others didn''t dare to look down at him. He saluted. "Sir, Li Yao of Dali is here to salute you."


    The old man took a look at Li Yao. His cloudy eyes looked dull. He spent awhile narrowing his eyes to see Li Yao''s face clearly. He asked, "What brings you here?"


    "I am Li Yao, and I am here to request to see the Lord," said Li Yao, bending slightly to show courtesy.


    Even though he was the Prince of the Dali Empire, this was the Crimson Dragon Realm, not Emperor Li''s Realm. Here, he didn''t have a distinguished identity. Not to mention that the people who stood at the top of Saint Plane didn''t really care about the prince''s identity.


    Besides, the person he wanted to visit was the Ninth Servant, who claimed to be the strongest being in all of the Crimson Dragon Cities.


    If no Renhuangs from other Realms stepped into the Crimson Dragon Realm, the Ninth Servant was probably the most powerful figure in this broad land. He didn''t need to care about anyone, whether the person was a son of a Renhuang or anyone else.


    "The Lord is cultivating in seclusion. He will not see anyone. If you have any matters to discuss with him, please tell me and I will send the message to him," said the old man slowly. He didn''t show much respect to this prince of Dali.


    Li Yao looked calm. He was not irritated at all. However, if he was not able to meet the Lord, the time he''d spent to make this visit had been in vain.


    "May I pay a visit to Xing Qiu Highness then?" asked Li Yao.


    "The Second Young Master has been strengthening his cultivation since he entered the Saint Plane. I apologize, but he isn''t welcoming any guests either," said the old man, nodding.


    The soldier standing next to Li Yao frowned and stared at the old man with his intimidating, piercing eyes.


    How dare he decline the request of Li Yao, the Dali Prince, to visit Xing Qiu!


    This old guy didn''t know how to show respect to a person as noble as a prince.


    "Sir, I came here for an extremely important issue which relates to an Imperial-level treasure. I sincerely hope you will allow me to visit," continued Li Yao.


    "You can just say it here. I will let the Lord and the Second Young Master know," replied the old man.


    Li Yao looked sullen and kept staring at him, but the old man was still expressionless. It was like he didn''t notice them.


    "Fine. We should leave," Li Yao said, departing with his people.


    He had visited three cities so far, the Peacock City, Xiang City, and the Ancient Imperial City.


    The trip hadn''t gone well. Not one of these cities had promised to cooperate with him in the wars.


    Kong Xuan of the Peacock City had immediately rejected his request. He hadn''t been able to see anyone in the Ancient Imperial City. Xiang Nan of the Xiang City had his own concerns.


    Such an outcome was far from his goal.


    Of course, he''d come to visit them just to try his luck. He would be happy if anyone formed an alliance with him, but if not, he would rely on the strength of Emperor Li''s Realm alone.


    ��


    In the Lord''s Residence of Thousand Leaves City, Ye Futian received the message that someone from Xiang City was requesting to see him.


    It made Ye Futian suspicious. What had the person from Xiang City come here for?


    Earlier on, Xiang Nan of Xiang City had hurt Wu Chen in the Battle of the Crimson River. He was then injured by Yu Sheng. Since the Battle of Crimson River had ended, the matter should have been forgotten. He didn''t want to start a war between two Renhuang Realms over the non-fatal Battle of Crimson River.


    But during such a sensitive period, he still had to meet the envoy of Xiang City.


    "Lord Ye." The person saluted Ye Futian in a very polite manner.


    "Welcome. Sir, tell me what brings you here," said Ye Futian.


    "My lord wrote a letter and told me to present it to you," replied the messenger. He passed the letter to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took it and opened it with confusion. There was just one line in the letter.


    Ye Futian calmly put the letter aside after he read it. He said to the messenger, "What else did Xiang Nan Highness ask you to bring to me?"


    "Nothing. My lord only told me to send the letter," he said. He waited after handing over the letter, showing no intention of leaving.


    He seemed to be waiting for Ye Futian''s reply.


    Ye Futian nodded and took out a storage ring and gave it to him, saying, "I greatly appreciate that Xiang Nan Highness was kind enough to notify me. Here is my humble gift to express my thankfulness to him. Please pass it on to Xiang Nan."


    "Aye. I will pass your kind words and the gift along to my lord," he replied. "Now I shall return."


    "All right," Ye Futian said, nodding. "I apologize that I will not be seeing you off. Safe journey."


    "Thank you very much, Lord Ye." The messenger withdrew.


    After he left, Xia Qingyuan asked Ye Futian, "What did Xiang Nan want?"


    Ye Futian gave her the letter and said, "Read this."


    He narrowed his eyes. His expression was cold and his stare was like the sharp blade. The smile in his eyes totally disappeared.


    There was also a coldness in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes after she read the letter. She released the Force of Sword, tearing the letter to pieces in her hand.


    The letter said that Li Yao had just visited Xiang Nan and intentionally mentioned that Li Yao was planning to give the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, Yu Sheng''s demonic martial art method, and the Thousand Leaves City, to him. Xiang Nan had sent the messenger to inform them.


    The letter reminded them of the things that had happened.


    But there was no friendship between Ye Futian and Xiang Nan. If he wanted to reject Li Yao, he could directly do that. Did he have to inform them?


    Furthermore, the letter didn''t indicate that Xiang Nan had declined Li Yao''s request. Rather, it just stated the fact.


    The important point was that he''d bluntly listed all the conditions, including the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, Yu Sheng''s demonic martial art, and Thousand Leaves City.


    In the end, his messenger had waited for Ye Futian''s response.


    What did Xiang Nan want?


    Since Li Yao had offered these generous rewards to convince Xiang Nan to cooperate in an attack on Thousand Leaves City, shouldn''t Ye Futian also offer some rewards to him?


    Xiang Nan wanted to see what generous compensation Thousand Leaves City could offer.


    He was trying to fish in troubled waters.


    If Thousand Leaves City''s attitude was sincere enough, Xiang Nan would not cooperate with Li Yao. If so, Xiang Nan could benefit from it and wouldn''t need to join the war.


    "What did you give him?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    "Half of the rewards I earned from the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon were in the storage ring. The rewards were substantial," said Ye Futian. "But I don''t think that can satisfy his appetite."


    "Then why did you do it?" Xia Qingyuan asked, staring at him.


    "Li Yao let Xiang Nan choose. Xiang Nan sent the messenger, which means that Xiang Nan was not willing to make the choice. That''s why he asked us to help him. I showed my attitude with that gift, and now it is his business to make the decision," said Ye Futian. "Besides, given the current situation, do you think we can afford to make Xiang Nan our enemy?"


    What stood behind Xiang Nan was Emperor Xiang''s Realm.


    Things would get tricky if Emperor Xiang''s Realm got involved in this.


    Xia Qingyuan didn''t say a word. The situation was getting more and more complex.


    "Princess," a voice called out. The Great Shaman appeared.


    "Great Shaman," greeted Xia Qingyuan.


    "The First Prince is here," said the Great Shaman.


    Xia Qingyuan paused for a second, looking surprised. She smiled and said, "Great, let''s go."


    They headed outside together.


    Outside the Lord''s Residence, a huge group of people had arrived. They seemed to belong to the army. Everyone had a very strong life force. Almost all of them were of the Saint Plane.


    The lead person had a handsome but imposing appearance and a dignified demeanor. His smile was comfortable like a warm spring breeze.


    He was the manifestation of both the iron will of a warrior and the noble spirit of a prince.


    The First Prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Rong, the Unblemished Saint of the Third Saint Plane, had been raised in the army. He rarely stayed in the palace.


    Now, the First Prince had become the Deputy General of Tian, second only to the Sacred General of Tian of the Nirvana Plane. He had a great reputation in the army as a genuine, iron-willed prince.


    However, at this moment, Xia Rong had hidden his military temperament and put on a mild smile when he saw Xia Qingyuan coming. He called to her, "Qingyuan."


    "I didn''t know you were coming today, Brother," Xia Qingyuan said excitedly. Although Xia Rong had been in the army for years, every time he came back to the Imperial Palace, he came to see her. He''d watched her grow up and had pampered her a lot. For her, he was her brother and also a father. Their relationship was very positive.


    "Nowadays, Emperor Li''s Realm is preparing to cause a disturbance. The Dali Imperial Advisor came here with his people. I am worried about your safety, so I asked permission from Father to come here," said Xia Rong.


    "Thank you, Brother," said Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Rong looked at Ye Futian who was standing near Xia Qingyuan. Ye Futian stepped forward and took a bow, making a salute. "Ye Futian is here to meet you, sir."


    "No need for unnecessary courtesies," Xia Rong said with a smile. "I was expecting to meet you but didn''t have a chance in the army. Now I know you look like an outstanding person. No wonder Qingyuan��"


    "Brother!" Xia Qingyuan cut in, glaring at him. Xia Rong saw it and laughed, waved his hands, and said, "Sorry for my loose lips!"

 1208 The Night Before the Storm

    Ye Futian said, smiling, "Thanks, I appreciate that, Your Highness."


    Standing nearby, Xia Qingyuan took a glance at him before rapidly looking away.


    "The situation of Dali is, King Tiandao has led his army to the border of our Emperor Xia''s Realm. They are ready to attack, and the Saint General has to confront them in person. This time, Emperor Li''s Realm seems to have prepared a scheme and is coordinating with the actions taken here. Dali Empire is determined to win this time. We must defend against them cautiously," said Xia Rong. He suddenly changed his topic, his tone turning serious. The atmosphere suddenly shifted.


    Xia Rong had a powerful enough aura to control the atmosphere around him.


    "The princess prepared for it beforehand," said Ye Futian.


    "Yes," Xia Rong said, nodding. "I think you all know what kind of figure the Dali Imperial Advisor is. In the Dali Empire, he is only second to their emperor and is very venerated. He has come to Crimson Dragon Realm in person, and I believe they have secretly arranged for other people to do the same. I have received word from Dali that Prince Regent probably has left his residence, too."


    Ye Futian frowned. Were things getting more serious?


    Before long, he let Xia Qingyuan release the message as bait to lure Li Yao into assassinating him.


    As long as Li Yao dared to go, Ye Futian would not let him return.


    But Li Yao had sent Imperial Advisor to Crimson Dragon Realm, and the situation seemed to be expanding as a result. Now it was likely to become a conflict between two realms, going beyond Ye Futian''s expectations. The plans Ye Futian had arranged probably shouldn''t be applied to these circumstances.


    The rulers of Dali seemed to have achieved an agreement. Getting Ye Futian may not be their only goal.


    "Your Highness, how about entering the residence first and then talking?" suggested the Great Shaman. Everyone agreed. Only then did they head toward the Lord''s Residence.


    Ye Futian knew with certainty that Li Yao had blocked Yu Sheng during the Battle of Crimson River because he''d wanted Di Hao to show their strength to him. Di Hao was the one who''d lost completely.


    Next would be the battle between them.


    One could say the battle would not only be about the grudge between those two, but between two entire realms.


    Ye Futian also had to take into consideration Xiang Nan''s letter.


    It would be a disaster if Xiang Nan meddled at a crucial moment.


    He needed to be careful.


    In the Lord''s Residence, Ye Futian went to Shen Tianzhan''s cultivation temple and met Shen Tianzhan.


    "Sorry to disturb your cultivation, sir," said Ye Futian. In the temple, Shen Tianzhan opened his eyes and saw Ye Futian bowing to him.


    "What brings Lord Ye here today?" asked Shen Tianzhan. He already had a guess as to what Ye Futian was about to say.


    "Let me be honest with you, sir. I''ve come to Crimson Dragon Realm because of the feud between me and Prince Li Yao of Emperor Li''s Realm. That feud might soon bring about a disturbance. That''s why I came here today to ask you for help," said Ye Futian.


    "Even though my cultivation has reached the Nirvana Plane, it is far beyond my ability to intervene in a disturbance between Renhuang Realms. Thousand Leaves City is a lesson for me. You easily obtained it," Shen Tianzhan said, looking at him carefully.


    "Sir, I think you can see that Emperor Xia''s Realm is planning to stand guard for the long term. If you are willing to take part in the battle, you will become one of us. Emperor Xia''s Realm can take your risk for you. Even if the situation here is not stable, you can always retreat to Emperor Xia''s Realm," continued Ye Futian.


    "You mean, have me work for Emperor Xia''s Realm?" Shen Tianzhan asked calmly.


    "As I''ve said before, I will give the city back to you after the turbulence passes. If nothing happens here in Crimson Dragon Realm, there will be no need for you to go to Emperor Xia''s Realm. I was talking about the worst-case scenario. You don''t have to become an underling of Emperor Xia''s Realm," explained Ye Futian. "And of course, I am just inviting you to support us, since Thousand Leaves City requires your strength to win. If you agree to this, you can put forward conditions. If you disagree, you can just forget what I''ve said."


    "Any condition?" asked Shen Tianzhan.


    "Any condition I can reasonably fulfill, but I don''t believe you will push me beyond my limit," said Ye Futian.


    "Good." Shen Tianzhan nodded.


    Ye Futian paused for a second and looked at him expectantly.


    "I promise I will join the battle," said Shen Tianzhan. His resolution surprised Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked at Shen Tianzhan and asked, "Sir, what are your conditions?"


    "I haven''t decided yet. I will say tell you once I make my decision," said Shen Tianzhan.


    Ye Futian was just a Doctrine Saint on the first level of Saint Plane. Even though he could take acquire some treasures or promise to fulfill some conditions using his status in Emperor Xia''s Realm, what use did Shen Tianzhan have of the Nirvana Plane?


    Shen Tianzhan''s cultivation meant that he didn''t need to ask anything of Ye Futian yet, so he let Ye Futian owe him a favor. One day, he would find a chance to use it.


    But of course, that could not happen if Ye Futian fell on his way of cultivation.


    "Thank you very much, sir," Ye Futian said with a deep bow.


    "I''ll say this first... I will abandon this fight if it is to be a fatal battle or a losing one from the start," said Shen Tianzhan.


    "Sure," Ye Futian said and nodded. Of course, he would not waste a Nirvana Saint''s life in exchange for one condition.


    His condition wasn''t worth it.


    ��


    In Xiang City, the subordinate that Xiang Nan had sent to Thousand Leaves City had returned and reported on what had happened there and given the storage ring to Xiang Nan.


    Xiang Nan''s mind entered the ring. He sneered when he saw the things inside.


    "Ye Futian is the lord of a city. Isn''t he also an important person in Emperor Xia''s Realm? Why is he so stingy?" murmured Xiang Nan. The contents of the ring were abundant resources for a common cultivator of the Saint Plane.


    But Xiang Nan already owned better things than these.


    Was Ye Futian treating him like a beggar?


    The conflict between Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm was already so tense, and Xiang Nan had explained everything clearly in the letter. Why was Ye Futian still ignoring his existence?


    Or did it mean that Ye Futian was certain that Xiang Nan didn''t dare to get involved in the conflict?


    "You go to Dali Imperial City and tell Li Yao that I will be present on the battlefield when the day comes," said Xiang Nan. There was a smile spreading across his face. Whether he joined the battle or not, he could at least be an audience and enjoy the show.


    Still, he''d just sent the message to Li Yao that he would be present. He would not promise anything and leave the rest to Li Yao''s imagination.


    "Aye," the messenger answered, nodding. He soon left and headed toward Li City.


    After the messenger left, Xiang Nan''s face turned expressionless. His goal in Crimson Dragon''s Realm had been to join the Battle of Crimson River and cultivate at the Regional Palace.


    However, he''d failed and been humiliated. He couldn''t just let that go and leave in disgrace.


    He wanted to gain something from them, no matter what it was, and enjoy the show.


    When the shorebird and the clam fight, the fisherman benefits from it. The Dali Prince Li Yao had come to deliver him an opportunity in person. How could Xiang Nan let it slip by?


    Soon, the messenger sent by Xiang Nan delivered the letter to Li City.


    Li Yao didn''t show any sign of satisfaction when he received the message. After the messenger had departed, Li Yao frowned slightly. He was not pleased.


    He understood what Xiang Nan meant. Xiang Nan hadn''t promised anything and would act according to the situation.


    But he had explained his conditions to Xiang Nan.


    Xiang Nan hadn''t accepted his invitation, yet he was ready to maximize his benefits from the conflict between them and Emperor Xia''s Realm without paying a price.


    This son of Emperor Xia liked playing mind games.


    However, even though Li Yao was not very pleased, he didn''t show it. At least he knew Xiang Nan would not go against them and would only be a threat to their opponents. Although Li Yao hadn''t achieved his goal, there might still be an unexpected outcome waiting for him. He didn''t rest all his hopes on Xiang Nan''s shoulders anyway.


    He''d done what he needed to do.


    Keeping this in mind, Li Yao got up and walked to another villa. He saw Yan Yuan and greeted him. "Mr. Yan Yuan."


    "What brings you here, sir?" asked Yan Yuan.


    "I am here for the Imperial Advisor," said Li Yao. As he said that, the Dali Imperial Advisor walked by. He looked toward Li Yao with brooding eyes and greeted him, "Your Highness."


    "The Imperial Advisor should have known that the Frist Prince, Xia Rong, of Emperor Xia''s Realm has reached Thousand Leaves City, correct?" asked Li Yao.


    The relationship between the two sides was tense. They both had informers in each other''s cities, so public news like this was immediately reported to Li Yao when it was released.


    "Yes," the Imperial Advisor replied, nodding.


    "Your Highness, people from Emperor Xia''s Realm didn''t leave Thousand Leaves City after hearing we were there, which means they have already prepared to fight. Although we have public knowledge of their strength, can you be certain that Emperor Xia''s Realm isn''t hiding other powers?" asked the Imperial Advisor. "And if we make a bold attempt to start the war, I am afraid that any blunder will harm your safety."


    "Other Dali people have come, too. Imperial Advisor, you can take action," Li Yao said to the Imperial Advisor.


    Imperial Advisor looked at Li Yao and was silent for a moment. Finally, he nodded and said, "I see. If you''re sure you don''t want to wait, I will get down to preparations."


    "Thank you, Imperial Advisor," said Li Yao, nodding. He soon turned around and left. Although he was still being polite, he no longer respected the Imperial Advisor.


    Seeing him leaving, the Imperial Advisor let out a sigh.


    "Yan Yuan," the Imperial Advisor called.


    "Master, I am here," answered Yan Yuan.


    "You know that I am just an ordinary old man without much ambition. I just want to take responsibility as a father. No matter what happens in the future, please take care of Fei Xue for me," said the Imperial Advisor.


    Yan Yuan stared blankly at him. His face turned pale. He said, "No matter what the results of the battle will be, based on your strength, you will not be harmed."


    "Not everything is within our control," continued the Imperial Advisor. "This is my task for you."


    Yan Yuan was silent for a second. "Yes, Master."


    He looked determined. No matter what his master had foreseen, he would try his best in the battle and not let his master go into danger.


    A nation''s decline begins at the pinnacle of its power. He had served the Dali Dynasty for many years, and now the Dynasty had reached the apex of its martial power.


    However, the atmosphere in Dali was not like had been before. It had changed!

 1209 Black Clouds over the City

    Things in Crimson Dragon Realm were as usual. Crimson Dragon City and its surrounding cities were running steadily. The scorching sun was high up in the sky, it''s burning heat illuminating the ground.


    There was only day here, never night.


    Every day, the sun rose high in the sky.


    Li City was in the charge of Emperor Li''s Realm somewhere to the west of Thousand Leaves City.


    At this moment, somewhere in the far east of Thousand Leaves City, a group of people was cultivating. Demonic will permeated the villa.


    A piercing sound rang through the sky. It was a demonic beast diving for the ground! One person in cultivation opened their eyes. Suddenly, the demonic will roared, thundered, and rolled fiercely. The man took a look at the plummeting demonic beast. The beast was brawny and intimidating, but the man below it just sat there like a statue, wearing a demon-like look of his own.


    There was a letter in the demonic beast''s claw that fell when the beast plummeted. The demon-like man opened it. After he read it, he looked up into the distance with his brooding, completely emotionless eyes.


    It seemed that this time he could harvest something. The demonic method he had been cultivating this time should work on the demonic cultivator who''d killed the descendants of the Cao Clan during the Battle of the Empty Realm.


    "Let''s go." Cao Kong stood up, his demonic will spreading into the far distance. The other people in the villa rose to their feet. Suddenly, the strong demonic will permeated the air.


    These warriors belonged to the Cao Clan, the best demonic cultivation family of the Dali Empire.


    This time, Prince Regent had come in person to persuade them to go to the Crimson Dragon Realm and do something for him.


    The Cao Clan was a great power in Dali and they didn''t have to listen to Prince Regent''s order. However, this time, Prince Regent had promised a lot of rewards. The letter he''d just received had been surprising indeed. It would be worth going there for him now.


    Another reason was that, even though Prince Regent was the one who''d arranged matters this time, he could tell that what was behind Prince Regent''s actions was Emperor Li''s intention to influence Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The Crimson Dragon Realm would be the battlefield of the initial confrontation between the two sides.


    Although the feud between Li Yao and Ye Futian was the main stimulus, the battle was not about that alone.


    Otherwise, the three most powerful figures of Dali would not have shown up together in Crimson Dragon Realm. It was threatening enough to see all of them together, not to mention that the Third Prince had also come along this time.


    The Third Prince of the Dali Empire was extremely talented. Emperor Li thought highly of him and considered him as the one most likely to inherit the empire. The Third Prince''s presence here was undoubtedly meaningful.


    They stepped into the air. Suddenly the demonic will seethed and permeated between the sky and the earth. People in the city looked up to the sky, shocked. The sudden strong pressure on the city alarmed and horrified many.


    But the demonic cultivators weren''t coming for them. The entire city was relieved when the people saw that these cultivators were just passing by.


    At the same time, Xiang Nan of Xiang City also received a letter from Li City written by Li Yao.


    The letter told him that Emperor Li''s Realm was ready to take action.


    Xiang Nan sneered after he read it. Even though Li Yao knew that Xiang Nan just wanted to be a third party and benefit from the battle, Li Yao still had a slight hope that Emperor Xiang''s Realm could help them deal with Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    To be honest, they were taking advantage of each other.


    There was no need for sincerity in this kind of alliance. Each side cared only about their interests.


    "Let''s go. All of you, go to Thousand Leaves City with me," said Xiang Nan.


    "Your Highness, do you mean we will be joining the battle?" Although Emperor Li''s Realm was there, and their two powers should be able to suppress Thousand Leaves City, it was a feud between two Renhuang Realms. It was not wise for them to get involved directly, and the consequences for doing so would get out of their control as the situation changed.


    That was what the warrior standing next to Xiang Nan had to remind him of.


    "No, we''re just going there. We don''t have to join the battle," said Xiang Nan. They just needed to be present during the conflict between the two powers. That alone would mean a lot.


    He just wanted to be a member of the battle''s audience.


    "Aye," people answered, nodding. As Emperor Xiang''s son, his words carried a lot of weight. Since he wanted to go, his subordinates had to accompany him.


    The people of Thousand Leaves City would not dare touch them anyway.


    They too started their journey toward Thousand Leaves City.


    ��


    More and more warriors headed toward Li City and formed a small-sized battalion. Almost all of them were of the Saint Plane.


    The Imperial Advisor and the Third Dali Prince stood at the front with serious expressions on their faces as they looked into the distance.


    Li Yao was standing behind them. He took a look up at the sky, guessing that the letter should have arrived by now.


    The warriors of Xiang City should have already set out.


    If his calculation was correct, Xiang Nan would reach Thousand Leaves City before the others.


    Li Yao, of course, knew that Xiang Nan was trying to take advantage of and benefit from them. He would let Xiang Nan do it and leave some time for Xiang Nan to negotiate with Thousand Leaves City.


    But it all depended on Xiang Nan to get the result he wanted.


    If any conflict happened between them during this period, they would be none of his business.


    At the same time that he''d sent the letter, he''d also asked people to release the message to Thousand Leaves City. Since Xiang Nan had sent a messenger to Thousand Leaves City, Li Yao could too.


    "Your Highness, please remain here," said Yan Yuan to Li Yao.


    Li Yao looked toward Yan Yuan and asked, "Sir, what do you mean?"


    "This battle will probably be between Nirvana-level cultivators. Although Your Highness has entered the Saint Plane, it will still be risky if Nirvana Saint-Level opponents target you. That''s why I don''t suggest that Your Highness enter the battlefield," said Yan Yuan.


    "Yan Yuan is right. Brother, you stay here," said the Third Dali Prince to Li Yao. "I will leave some soldiers here to guard you."


    A complex look flashed across Li Yao''s face. He was reluctant to stay here. Since he was the instigator of the battle, he couldn''t wait to go and see it in person. He craved to capture Ye Futian and kill him.


    However, Yan Yuan and the Third Brother had both asked him to stay put.


    What they''d said did make sense because Li Yao was only on the first Saint Plane. He would be in danger if a Nirvana Saint aimed at him.


    Anything could happen on the battlefield. He needed to be careful.


    "Let''s go," said the Imperial Advisor. All of a sudden, all the warriors set out into the air and headed toward Thousand Leaves City.


    The intimidating life force suddenly swept between the sky and earth.


    In Li City, people raised their heads and watched these warriors flying through in the air in awe.


    The conflict between Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm had begun.


    The storm was coming.


    It could become a battle, but nobody knew what that would lead to.


    Would a war explode between the two realms?


    Among the people looking to the sky in Dali City, there was a person in black with no detectable life force. He looked at the upper sky. Over his shoulder sat a demonic beast with shark-like eyes. The mighty troops in the air were reflected in its pupils.


    ��


    In Thousand Leaves City, Ye Futian received the message that Xiang Nan and the warriors of Li City had set off.


    The warriors of the Lord''s Residence had convened in the Lord''s Residence, including the warriors of Emperor Xia''s Realm and some local powers like the Situ Clan and the Mo Clan. Shen Tianzhan and other warriors of the Lord''s Residence were also present.


    Shen Tianzhan had promised to aid Ye Futian. The cooperation between the new lord and the old lord was very influential, so some of the local powers of Thousand Leaves City had decided to join the battle and dedicate their lives to the Lord''s Residence.


    It was a momentous decision, one that could shatter their clans into fragments if anything went wrong.


    However, it also represented a considerable opportunity to them if Emperor Xia''s Realm could get a firm foothold in the Crimson Dragon Realm and prosper after this battle.


    Even Shen Tianzhan had dared to take the risk. Why shouldn''t they?


    Warriors stood solemnly in the Lord''s Residence. The First Prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Rong, was their leader. The Great Shaman and Xia Qingyuan stood beside him.


    What was strange was that Ye Futian hadn''t shown up. His absence made many people wonder...


    Where was Ye Futian?


    Many people had just seen him not long before. Besides, it was Ye Futian who had released the news that the warriors of Li City had set out. So why had he suddenly disappeared?


    Was it because Ye Futian was the target of Emperor Li''s Realm? Was he hiding somewhere?


    But that didn''t seem to be Ye Futian''s style. Besides, Yu Sheng and his other friends were still here.


    Perhaps Ye Futian had another plan.


    Somewhere in the Lord''s Residence, an intimidating sword will was released, pervading the cultivation temple. The sword will loomed in the air as if it was restrained by something. Upon closer inspection, one could observe a giant pattern of swordsmanship spreading across the ground of the temple like a Matrix.


    A lady dressed in white was sitting with her legs crossed in the center of sword matrix. Her body was surrounded by a very powerful sword will. The sword will slowly blended into the Matrix, gradually lighting it up.


    It looked like the giant Matrix didn''t even fit in the broad cultivation temple.


    Besides the strong sword will, a powerful spatial will also emanated from the Matrix.


    Incessant waves of Sword Will swept toward the temple from all directions. They no loners seemed able to suppress the blazing sword will.


    The young lady in white sitting at the center of the Matrix was Yaya. Her body translucent, as if she was a sword made of pure crystal.


    Outside the Lord''s Residence, numerous people sensed the unusual life force and looked up at the warriors in the sky.


    They knew the battle was coming.


    Not only the people of Thousand Leaves City, but the people of other cities in the Crimson Dragon Realm had also heard the news. Many people even came to Thousand Leaves City to witness the unprecedented battle between the Renhuang Realms.


    Among them, the top figures of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, Kong Xuan and Kong Zhan, were included. Although Kong Xuan had declined Li Yao''s request to get involved in the battle, she was very interested and had come to Thousand Leaves City early. She hadn''t brought many warriors with her to avoid a misunderstanding. Since it was the most sensitive moment for both sides, she didn''t want anyone to misinterpret her activity. She was just an audience member.


    Who would be the winner in the competition between two Renhuang Realms? Li Yao or Ye Futian?


    The scorching sun was high in the sky, but the atmosphere felt as if black clouds were hanging over Thousand Leaves City!

 1210 The Battle Broke Ou

    The warriors of Emperor Li''s Realm hadn''t arrived by the Xiang Nan reached Thousand Leaves City.


    Li Yao had intentionally released the message early so that he could arrive first.


    Xiang Nan had also figured it out, so he didn''t hurry to approach the Lord''s Residence. However, based on the waves of life force, he could tell that he had been perceived by the warriors of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    They paused and relocated to further away from the Lord''s Residence.


    Li Yao had his own scheme. He''d let Xiang Nan arrive before Emperor Li''s Realm could take action. What a cunning guy.


    The warriors of Peacock City were also present. Kong Xuan and several subordinates of hers stood in the upper sky, looking in the direction of the Lord''s Residence from a distance.


    Just then, a group of people strode out of the Lord''s Residence. The one who took the lead had an outstanding appearance. He looked toward the warriors of Xiang City and Peacock City and asked with composure, "May I ask what brings you here today?"


    "I am here to witness the battle," said Kong Xuan. She''d come there to spectate only.


    The person who''d just spoken was the First Prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Rong.


    It was said that he was a tough person.


    "Same here," Xiang Nan said, smiling.


    Xia Rong nodded and said, "The battle today is meant to solve the feud between Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm. You are free to spectate, but please be careful of your own safety. However, if anyone wants to intervene in the battle��"


    Xia Rong''s voice suddenly turned cold, producing a chilly, invisible pressure. "Great Shaman, if anyone dares to take advantage of our perilous state and intervene, we will exterminate them. Even if we lose the battle with Emperor Li''s Realm, the ones who stab us in our backs will be punished first. I don''t care whether it will bring about a Realm battle or not."


    "Aye, Your Highness," answered the Great Shaman.


    "We will follow your order, Your Highness," the warriors behind him echoed. Xia Rong gave Xiang Nan a cold glance and then put on a smile as if nothing had happened.


    "Of course, I don''t believe anyone present will do such a despicable thing. Please spectate at your ease." Xia Rong turned around and left after speaking, ignoring Xia Nan''s gloomy expression.


    Xia Rong was just in the Sage Plane. So far, he had not entered the Saint Plane. Besides, his heart had been injured during his defeat by Yu Sheng. Needless to say, he was not comparable to Xia Rong of the Unblemished Saint Plane.


    He''d come here to loot the burning house. He wanted to rip off Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    But he had not expected Xia Rong''s style of doing things to be so dominating. Xia Rong just burned his bridges and left no room for negotiation, sealing his mouth before he was ready to talk.


    Xia Rong had directly announced that he would kill anyone who dared to sabotage them.


    Even if doing so would cause a battle between realms.


    How dare Xiang Nan get involved!


    Xiang Nan was faced with a dilemma. One of the warriors from Emperor Xiang''s Realm took a look at him, thinking the prince was still very immature. Although he was extraordinary among his peers, he lacked the worldliness of figures like Xia Rong.


    If they meddled in the battle, they would face severe consequences.


    The conflict between Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm was being managed by the highest powers on both sides.


    Xiang Nan''s role was to guard Emperor Xiang''s heritage in the Crimson Dragon Realm. They didn''t have the right to join such an important battle.


    Xia Rong knew it too. That was why his attitude was so aggressive. However, that had been his style in the military for many years.


    But the warriors didn''t say a word or try to persuade Xiang Nan. If they told him to let the matter go, Xiang Nan would be even more embarrassed.


    They would let him cool down first.


    Kong Xuan looked at Xiang Nan from a distance. She had no strong feelings about what Xia Rong had said. After all, she''d never considered getting involved in it anyway. It was Xiang Nan who was panicked by Xia Rong''s words.


    Xiang Nan was still too young to fish in these troubled waters.


    Even as a prince, he was not qualified to intervene in the battle because he had not reached Xia Rong''s level.


    ...


    Outside the east entrance of Thousand Leaves City, the demonic will wallowed. Demonic will surged forward like roaring black clouds. People retreated as warriors of the Cao Clan arrived.


    The demonic life force was horrifying. It seemed as if it could swallow the sky and earth. It indicated the arrival of an ultimate demon.


    Boom!


    The flows of demonic will kept surging. Cao Kong and the demonic warriors of the Cao Clan had been marching for a while. He raised his head to take a look at Thousand Leaves City.


    Finally, he was here. he didn''t know if the Imperial Advisor and Prince Regent had arrived yet.


    And how prepared was Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    He hoped that Emperor Xia''s Realm would not disappoint him. He wanted to have fun on this trip.


    His pitch-black eyes looked into the void sky, filled with the vast pressure of will. Even a simple glance from this man at the people on the ground was terrifying. Normal people couldn''t bear the pressure of the will contained in just one glance. His eyes alone could seduce them to the demonic path.


    Boom!


    A loud sonic boom erupted. Cao Kong and the demonic cultivators behind him paused.


    Cao Kong looked up to the sky. His eyes reflected his overbearing nature as they pierced through the void sky.


    The man was coming.


    Cao Kong hadn''t expected anyone to be able to block them.


    Beyond Cao Kong''s expectations, it was this man.


    The demonic warriors of the Cao Clan felt a kind of intimidating will overwhelming their bodies. It was the force of the Lingtian Sword Wills. It was trapping the demonic warriors'' wills inside.


    High in the sky, tens of thousands of shining rays tore through the air in dark, roaring torrents. A crack formed in the sky, revealing a radiant sword.


    The sword nearly filled the entire sky. All of a sudden, it lunged toward Cao Kong.


    It was a sword that could tear through the sky and earth.


    Boom!


    With a roar, Cao Kong rose and pressed a palm to the air. A giant demonic palm print appeared in the air, slapping away the giant sword in the sky.


    Bang!


    With a loud explosion, the palm print and the sword both shattered into pieces.


    At the same time, high above, blinding light erupted. Innumerable swords appeared, covering the sky.


    Seeing this, the people of Thousand Leaves City were in shock. One man was standing amidst these tens of thousands of swords in the sky.


    "The Sword Master of Lihen!" the leader of Demonic Cao Clan, Cao Kong, coldly called his name. His voice resonated in the air, making the warriors of Thousand Leaves City tremble.


    Many people had heard the news of the battle between Emperor Li''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm and were heading toward the Lord''s Residence.


    However, they weren''t expecting to witness the battle here.


    Two Nirvana-Plane cultivators were confronting each other on the battlefield.


    The demonic will in Cao Kong''s eyes was strong. He knew the Sword Master of Lihen was the strongest among the 33 Lihen Heavens and was not ruled by Emperor Xia. It seemed that this battle in Crimson Dragon Realm was more complex than he had first thought.


    The Sword Master of Lihen had come to assist in person.


    If Cao Kong and Prince Regent hadn''t been present, Li Yao would have been in danger.


    The eyes of the Sword Master of Lihen were sharp as swords. He looked down on Cao Kong, manipulating the innumerable swords with both hands. The horrifying sword will emanated from the countless spinning swords as if they could tear the whole sky into pieces.


    "Go." The Sword Master of Lihen waved his hands. Suddenly, billions of swords fell like a giant net covering the sun and sky, ready to exterminate all warriors.


    "You go first! Let me deal with him," said Cao Kong. He stepped forward. The demonic will kept wallowing, rumbling, and shaking the sky and earth.


    A demonic cloud hid the sun and covered the sky. The dark demonic torrents roared across the sky, stretching out in the form of countless demonic palms, striking at the falling swords.


    An ultimate demonic shadow appeared behind Cao Kong. it stood ten-thousand-feet tall and let out a low, horrifying roar, resonating between the sky and earth.


    Innumerable swords fell. The innumerable swords stabbed the demonic torrents. Somehow, they were all blocked.


    At that moment, the dazzling light was released from the innumerable swords. The Sword Master of Lihen held out his palm. Suddenly, a sword of incomprehensible length appeared between the sky and earth. The sword emitted tens of thousands of shining rays. It fell straight toward Cao Kong''s body.


    The 10,000-foot tall demonic shadow let out a yell that resonated between the sky and earth. It held out a palm and launched countless palm prints.


    However, the falling sword transformed into the indestructible light, and under the blaze of the light, the countless demonic palm prints vanished.


    The sky was almost ripped apart.


    The ultimate demon shadow let out a shout, put his two giant hands together, and grabbed the sword. A terrifying tearing sound rang out. It was as if the hands of the demon were being torn to pieces.


    The sword kept falling. The Sword Master of Lihen slightly pushed his finger down on it, exerting his infinite strength on the falling sword.


    It was a fight between the two most powerful figures of their respective realms.


    The warriors of the Cao Clan tried to leave the scene and keep marching forward. However, they soon encountered a group of swordsmen-in-training.


    The swordsmen-in-training secretly encircled them, each giving off a very strong sword will from their bodies.


    Obviously, the Sword Master of Lihen hadn''t come alone either. He''d been entrusted to block a top opponent during this battle.


    No matter who the person was, he was waiting for their arrival.


    Apparently, the people he was waiting for were the cultivators of the Dali Cao Clan.


    The Sword Master of Lihen needed to achieve his goal. He was in charge of this district, and nobody was allowed to pass through here to assist on the other battlefields.


    Even if the person was Cao Kong.


    Meanwhile, the Dali Imperial Advisor had led the warriors of Dali to the territory of Thousand Leave City when Cao Kong arrived.


    The people of the Thousand Leaves City Lord''s Residence had been waiting for their arrival since the moment they''d begun their journey.


    "They''re here," said the Great Shaman in the mysterious cloak.


    He looked into the distance with his brooding eyes.


    He could see the Dali Imperial Advisor rushing over with warriors of Emperor Li''s Realm. But it was not only the Dali Imperial Advisor.


    Prince Regent also seemed to be coming to join this battlefield from another direction. It seemed like there would be a killing spree!

 1211 A Master Duel

    Dragons bellowed above Thousand Leaves City.


    In the upper sky, holy golden dragons marched forward across the skydome, their rumbles shaking the air.


    The people in the city all looked up to the sky, shocked by the scene.


    Many people were standing on the holy golden dragons'' backs. The man who was riding the giant dragon at the forefront was Prince Regent. His gold-embroidered official robe was blowing in the wind. His appearance was solemn, dignified, and imposing.


    Those riding on other dragons were all warriors of the Saint Plane, strong cultivators in the Dali Imperial Clan.


    As the dragons approached the Lord''s Residence, far in front of them, a group of people stood in the void sky waiting for their arrival. Obviously, their envoy had been spotted


    The man who stood in the front of the group was Lu You, a Nirvana-Plane warrior of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    In Emperor Xia''s Realm, Lu You''s name was not known by many people. He was Emperor Xia''s bodyguard who had followed Emperor Xia for many years. Since Emperor Xia had been accepted as Renhuang, Lu You was in charge of protecting princes and princesses. He took charge of Princess Xia Qingyuan''s protection during the battle of Empty Realm.


    One could even say that he was Princess Xia Qingyuan''s invisible guard. For him, Xia Qingyuan''s safety was always the biggest priority.


    Today, he''d led warriors of Emperor Xia''s Realm to stop Prince Regent.


    Seeing the roaring golden dragons coming, Lu You released purple light. Dazzling golden rays also flashed in the thick purple radiance.


    At the moment, seeing the parade of roaring dragons marching forward, Li You moved both hands. Suddenly, a giant halo appeared in the upper sky and kept expanding to encompass the whole sky. The halo lay above the skydome and blocked the roaring dragons'' way.


    Prince Regent stared forward, perceiving a slight threat. He said coldly, "Lu You, for so many years you''ve been following Emperor Xia, but now you have neither fame or status. How about swearing allegiance to Dali today? I promise that His Majesty Emperor Li will confer a noble title to you."


    He, as the Prince Regent of the Dali Empire, was familiar with the names of the top figures in Emperor Xia''s Realm, except for those god-like ones in seclusion.


    Whether it was in Emperor Xia''s Realm or the Dali Empire, there were very few cultivators who could enter the Nirvana Plane. Prince Regent could count them on one hand, so he naturally recognized Lu You.


    Lu You ignored Prince Regent''s voice, drawing two palm prints instead of answering. Suddenly, the giant purple-gold halo expanded. Inside, the horrifying rays of purple and gold rumbled and surged. The might of the law converged and formed thunder clouds above the earth. The sky looked as if it was heralding the end times.


    "Die." When Lu You said the word, rays of purple and gold shot out of the boundless purple halo, pierced through the skydome, and headed toward the roaring golden dragons.


    "Everyone, be careful!" said Prince Regent as he walked into the air. Countless golden dragons rumbled and fought their ways out, but when the purple light arrived, the rays passed straight through the dragons'' bodies.


    The magnificent purple light was like a celestial blade, chopping the dragons up.


    Bam!


    Prince Regent stomped in the air, shaking the sky and the earth. The golden dragons appeared once again, roaring and surging between the sky and earth. After a horrifying shout, a 10,000-foot long golden dragon with five claws appeared behind Prince Regent, circling his body.


    Its enormous body spiraled up. Its giant head looked down on all beings in the world below. The dragon was full of imposing might, like the forebearer of all dragons.


    "The Sword Master of Lihen is also here. It seems like Emperor Xia''s Realm is fully prepared. You are here to kill the Dali Prince, aren''t you?" Prince Regent asked, sneering. He suddenly realized that if Li Yao had not received the message about going back and had gone to kill Ye Futian, he might have had bad results.


    It was very likely that he would have not returned.


    The people of Emperor Xia''s Realm were conspiring against him. That is to say, Ye Futian was conspiring against him.


    Emperor Xia and Princess Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm treated Ye Futian well. The girl must have been in love with him.


    Prince Regent''s steps made the sky and earth tremble. He extended one palm. The giant holy dragon behind him followed his actions, the five claws smashing down. A reflection of the 10,000-foot long dragon also appeared above the skydome and swiped down with its claws.


    In front of the golden claws, Lu You''s figure was so small it seemed like he would be torn to pieces.


    Lu You raised his head and looked straight ahead. The purple halo around his body blew up and released a horrifying amount of energy. Endless rays formed a ring and converged into one beam of light that projected ahead like a purple sword, but this was much sharper than a sword.


    Boom!


    A loud sound was heard, shaking the skydome. The sharp claws and rays of purple and gold collided violently. The scene froze in time as an aura of destruction arose.


    The holy golden dragon''s claws were torn apart as the rays of light dimmed and broke apart.


    Prince Regent snorted and continued forward as if nothing in the world could stop him.


    Lu You wouldn''t take a step back. The purple rays kept soaring up, roaring through the air.


    ��


    While the battle was going on, in another part of the world, the Great Shaman was leading warriors into the upper sky to wait for their opponent''s arrival.


    The approaching Dali Imperial Advisor and his warriors formed the main fighting force of this battle.


    The Third Prince and other warriors of the Dali Empire were all in this legion. Their powerful might overarched the sky.


    The Dali Imperial warriors paused in front of the Great Shaman. They looked straight at their enemies with piercing eyes.


    The Dali Imperial Advisor looked at the Great Shaman. Both of them were the most powerful figures of their respective camps.


    Another Nirvana-Plane cultivator stood next to the Dali Imperial Advisor. It was the ex-lord of Li City, Yan Kun.


    Yan Kun''s eyes fell upon the person standing opposite him, the ex-lord of Thousand Leaves City, Shen Tianzhan.


    He hadn''t expected Shen Tianzhan to join the battle.


    The Dali Imperial Advisor hadn''t done anything to Yan Kun after taking his city. The Dali Imperial Advisor had treated him with respect, so Yan Kun quite admired him. Li Yao had also provided him with great recompense, so he''d decided to join the battle between the Renhuang Realms.


    Had Shen Tianzhan had a similar experience?


    The Third Prince of the Dai Empire, Li Zhen, looked at the First Prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Rong. It seemed that they had chosen their opponents at first sight.


    The Dali Third Prince had an extremely high status in Dali. His talent and cultivation even surpassed that of his two elder brothers. He was thought to be the most likely to inherit Empire Li''s empire.


    Xia Rong, as the First Prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm, was also extremely outstanding. Before Xia Qingyuan was born, he''d been thought to be the most promising inheritor of Emperor Xia''s Realm. He''d joined the army for cultivation and had built an iron-blooded charisma and extraordinary martial ability there. Many people in Emperor Xia''s Realm admired and respected him.


    It was because Xia Qingyuan was the only princess that Emperor Xia pampered her a lot. Emperor Xia had once announced that Xia Qingyuan''s talent was equal to his, so many people thought Xia Qingyuan would become Emperor Xia''s successor.


    But that would all depend on their own cultivation achievement.


    Whoever could be proved as being at the Renhuang level would naturally become the successor of the empire.


    But at this moment on the battlefield, Li Zhen and Xia Rong were undoubtedly the best opponents for each other. They stared at each other with piercing eyes, the strong battle will emanating from their bodies.


    "Ye Futian snuck into the Dali Empire under the fake identity of a Dali cultivator the Seventh Sword. He secretly studied our cultivation method and broke the rules. Xia Rong, I will let you go if you hand Ye Futian over to me," said Li Zhen to Xia Rong.


    "Li Yao sent people to assassinate Ye Futian after he was defeated in the battle of Empty Realm. Didn''t that also break the rules? I should ask you to hand Li Yao over," said Xia Rong coldly. "Ye Futian didn''t do anything wrong in Dali. If Li Yao is killed, it will be because he deserves it. Fight if you want to. Stop talking nonsense."


    Li Zhen sneered. Xia Rong''s attitude was tough indeed. No wonder he was a prince leading an army.


    "I have heard a lot about you, First Prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Today, please show me how strong you are," said Li Zhen, taking one step forward like an ancient dragon. The might emanating from his body was horrifying. He looked very handsome. An aura as intimidating as his was rare in that era.


    Xia Rong stepped forward, his long hair blowing in the wind. The iron will to kill emanated from his body.


    Both of them had dominating halos as noble princes, but their murderous wills were very different.


    They stepped forward and walked toward each other. No one came to intervene in their battle. It was a duel between the prince of Emperor Li''s Realm and the prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm. They didn''t want to be interrupted either.


    Without showy skills, Li Zhen and Xia Rong walked toward each other and both threw a punch.


    Li Zhen launched a punch that packed the power of a dragon whose low roar echoed between the sky and earth. When the one punch came out, a horrifying wave swept out, shattering everything in front of him into pieces. It was as if the flow followed the fluctuation of the natural law and was meant to destroy everything. There was an ancestral dragon standing behind Li Zhen. However, at this moment, no one could steal his thunder. He was peerless in the world.


    The power was grinding forward, igniting the void sky.


    Xia Rong employed the skill of 33 layers of Huangting Fist Will. The first punch he threw maintained 22 layers of Huangting Fist Will. One after another, the following punches grew stronger and stronger, like sea waves smashing the coast.


    When the blows landed, the void sky was radically shaken. An invisible air current swept out and shook the sky and earth violently.


    The fist will was totally smashed into power. Fierce hurricanes fell upon the princes'' bodies. Their hair and clothes blew wildly in the wind. Nothing in the world could stop them.


    It was a duel between the two most outstanding princes of Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm. All of a sudden, a large space appeared from other battlefields. It seemed as if the other warriors intentionally sought their corresponding opponents to let two princes fight the duel.


    Above the void in the sky, two figures appeared over the skydome, far away from anyone else.


    It was the Dali Imperial Advisor and the Great Shaman!

 1212 Mighty Imperial Advisor

    Dali Imperial Advisor and the Great Shaman stood opposite each other in the upper sky. Imperial Advisor wore a Taoist robe, and the Great Shaman was dressed in a cloak.


    The Great Shaman took off the hood, revealing his fair face.


    "I know you cherish talents and that you once escorted Ye Futian back to Emperor Xia''s Realm. Why did you have to come here to suffer today?" asked the Great Shaman.


    "I am the Imperial Advisor of Dali. I must take a stand," replied the Dali Imperial Advisor.


    The Great Shaman nodded slightly. He guessed that the Dali Imperial Advisor probably hadn''t come willingly. Otherwise, he wouldn''t have had to escort Ye Futian.


    He knew that Dali Imperial Advisor had taught his own cultivation method, Deed of Thorough Comprehension, to Ye Futian, which meant that he regarded Ye Futian as his successor. Additionally, he''d escorted Ye Futian to Emperor Xia''s Realm in person, which brought the Dali people''s suspicion on him.


    The Great Shaman admired him for his big heart even though the Imperial Advisor was now his opponent.


    "Imperial Advisor, please," said the Great Shaman. He held the crozier in his hand, his expression turning serious.


    Although the Great Shaman admired him, they were on the battlefield. The Dali Imperial Advisor was considered the strongest person after Emperor Li of Dali. He was very likely stronger than King Tiandao if he had no match in Dali beside Emperor Li.


    Not to mention the Imperial Advisor''s status in Dali. The Great Shaman would have to do all he could to fight against such a strong opponent.


    As the Dali Imperial Advisor had said, he had to take a stand. This battle was not about what was right and what was wrong. It was all about the different sides. He didn''t think that the Dali Imperial Advisor would show any mercy, so he wouldn''t either.


    "Please," said the Dali Imperial Advisor. After he said the word, the mind of the Great Law started to flow above the skydome.


    All of a sudden, a boundless Five Elements Eight Trigram formed around the Dali Imperial Advisor''s body. Ancient characters appeared on the pattern in the sky.


    "Qian, Kun, Li, Kan..."


    The sky and earth had five elements. The Great Law ran between Qian, the sky, and Kun, the earth. The boundless pattern was running by itself. The Dali Imperial Advisor''s clothes blew in the wind as he stood above the skydome. The mind of the Great Law flew into his body. It seemed as if the whole world was under his command.


    It was the Dali Imperial Advisor''s cultivation method, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    Many people perceived this horrifying might of Great Law and looked up to the sky, shocked.


    The Dali Imperial Advisor and the Great Shaman chose to battle in the upper air in case their battle affected other people. Of their own record, they left the battlefield and went into the upper sky.


    A golden lotus flower appeared around the Great Shaman''s body. The petals of the lotus flower stretched out and bloomed, expanding as if it was the lotus of the Great Law itself.


    An endless boulevard of lotus flowers blossomed in the air, sensing the Great Law. They spread across every corner of the world, lotus flowers growing everywhere.


    The endless lotus flowers even surrounded Dali Imperial Advisor''s enormous Five Element Eight Trigram.


    Magnificent golden threads sprouted from the endless lotuses and stretched out to shroud Dali Imperial Advisor. The golden threads moved extremely fast, like thin swords piercing through the void sky, trying to envelop everything inside, including the Dali Imperial Advisor''s body.


    The Dali Imperial Advisor saw the scene and raised both his hands to the sky. Suddenly, the pattern of the Great Law launched, following the movement of his hands. Ancient characters flew from them. The character "Qian" kept growing until it turned into a spell of the Great Law, enveloping the sky. It lay over the skydome and supported the whole sky.


    At the same time, he stomped on the ground. Suddenly, the character "Kun" fell and turned into the land, sealing the space below it.


    The Dali Imperial Advisor was the manifestation of the Great Law. He had nothing to fear between the sky and the earth.


    He took a step forward and suddenly turned into the incarnation of the Thunder Deity. The character "Zhen" darted out and summoned the thunder catastrophe from the Ninth Sky. He dropped it to the Great Shaman, sweeping out and destroying the incoming golden threads.


    His body followed the movement of the wind. The sky and earth roared and raised a storm of the Great Law, sweeping out and quickly rushing toward the Great Shaman''s body with the pattern of the Great Law. Nothing could stop it.


    The Great Shaman looked at Dali Imperial Advisor. He was approaching him at an extremely high speed, carrying the Great Law, like a deity arriving.


    It was said in Emperor Xia''s Realm that the Dali Imperial Advisor was trained in various skills, even evil ones. He could do it all and cultivate using different methods.


    This was the first time he''d ever battled with the Dali Imperial Advisor face-to-face. Of course, the Great Shaman would not take hearsay as truth, but he had to admit that the Dali Imperial Advisor was talented at various cultivation methods.


    The lotuses transformed into all the beings of the world. The Great Shaman held the crozier in his hand. Endless golden radiance shone in front of his chest and converged into a sword of the Great Law, tearing apart the void sky. He stretched out the crozier, and the sword of the Great Law moved forward, too. All of a sudden, it pierced through the void sky, tearing it apart. It became tangled by the countless golden threads which ripped the sky and earth in half.


    Boom!


    The omnipresent celestial thundercloud of the Ninth Sky was almost trying to destroy the world. The Dali Imperial Advisor was devouring the Great Law of the sky and the earth. The character "Zhen" surrounded the world as he transformed into an ultimate Thunder God. He pointed his finger, causing countless characters to move. The sword and the fingertips collided. the giant sword that had shaken the void sky and pierced through the thundercloud shattered into pieces. The Imperial Advisor continued walking forward. His eyes looked toward the Great Shaman, telling him that nothing could stop his forward movement.


    Below them, numerous people looked up to the sky, still shocked.


    How powerful the Dali Imperial Advisor was!


    He deployed the Great Law as his matrix. Qian, the Sky, Kun, the Land, and the Five Elements of the Great Law all listened to his order.


    The Great Law entered his body. He became an alchemy furnace for the Great Law of sky and earth. His hands could support the sky, his feet could push the land, his body could become a Thunder God, and his power was ultimate. With just one finger, he could eliminate the Great Shaman''s sword.


    There was a holy aura surrounding his body.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up to the battle in the sky and felt slightly stirred by the scene. The Great Shaman''s strength had been acknowledged by her father. Among the cultivators of the Nirvana Plane, he was a top figure.


    However, the Great Shaman was obviously having a hard time in this battle with the Dali Imperial Advisor, proving how powerful the Imperial Advisor was.


    From this, one could tell that it was very likely that Dali had stronger top figures than Emperor Xia''s Realm. If a war between the two realms broke out, according to his strength, the Dali Imperial Advisor wouldn''t find any equal opponent in Emperor Xia''s Realm except Renhuang.


    While the battle was going on between the Dali Imperial Advisor and the Great Shaman, Prince Li Zhen and Prince Xia Rong were also fighting in the void sky.


    On another battlefield, Yan Kun and Shen Tianzhan, two ex-lords of the cities, had also started to fight. Both of them were local cultivators of the Crimson Dragon Realm and were good at using the Great Law of Fire. When they battled, their blazing fires burned the air. The skydome turned hotter as they suppressed the sky and earth. Many people had to retreat further. The ones with weak cultivation ability had to run away. It was not safe for them to stay and watch.


    Besides these top figures, many people of the two sides had joined the battlefield. A breathtaking battle between Saint-Plane cultivators had also broken out.


    Even the warriors of the two cities, like the people of the Situ Clan, had joined the battle. The scene was becoming more turbulent as the fire of war kept spreading. Fierce battles broke out everywhere in the center district of Thousand Leaves City, terrifying many people.


    "Who is that person? His ability was so strong!" At this time, many people fixed their eyes on one cultivator in particular who was using a sword. His swordsmanship was extremely aggressive. His every thrash showed such strong force that it could have split up the void sky.


    Xia Qingyuan noticed him too. The person in black was of the Unblemished Saint Plane. He controlled the sword perfectly when he attacked. He won the battle with the Lord of the Situ Clan and almost chopped the man''s arm off.


    "Mu Chunyang, the Dali Imperial Advisor''s Third Disciple."


    The person''s name came to Xia Qingyuan''s mind. He was Ye Futian''s Elder Brother while Ye Futian cultivated in Dali.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned.


    The Dali Imperial Advisor''s Third Disciple. The message she had received said that, other than the Second Disciple, all of Imperial Advisor''s disciples would come.


    So where was the Dali Imperial Advisor''s most outstanding First Disciple, Yan Yuan?


    Her eyes kept searching the battlefields, but she couldn''t find anyone similar to Yan Yuan. If any of the Imperial Advisor''s disciples were present, they would be very eye-catching. However, on the large battlefields, other than the Third Prince, Li Zhen, she only spotted Mu Chunyang.


    Yan Yuan was absolutely not here.


    As Xia Qingyuan realized that Yan Yuan was not there, many people of the Dali Empire also lost Ye Futian''s trace.


    This time, Dali hadn''t let Li Yao come to protect him, so had Emperor Xia''s Realm intentionally let Ye Futian avoid this battle, too?


    In one spot on the battlefield, so much demonic will surged that it looked like an ultimate demonic figure would soon come. His body violently broke out from the demonic flows. He was only a Doctrine Saint, but his imposing appearance as he took a step forward was terrifying.


    A Dali Doctrine Saint raised one hand and sent giant palmprints toward him, but the demonic cultivator directly bumped his body toward the prints. With a loud sound, the palmprints completely smashed. The demonic cultivator threw a punch and punched through the sky and the earth. The Dali member of the Saint Plane defended it by hand. But with a cracking sound, the punch broke his arm and struck through his chest. He was knocked back a distance and dropped to the ground feebly.


    That Dali figure was Yu Sheng. Beside him, Ye Wuchen, who had entered the Saint Plane, joined the battle.


    At the Lord''s Residence, Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue stood shoulder to shoulder in a pavilion.


    Gu Dongliu looked up at the battlefields in the void sky. A magnificent light ran around his body, but he did not seem able to perceive it as he looked toward the battlefields above him.


    The battle between the Dali Imperial Advisor and the Great Shaman, the battle between Yan Kun and Shen Tianzhan, the battle between Li Zhen and Xia Rong, Mu Chunyang''s battle, First Brother''s battle, and Yu Sheng''s battle...


    All these stunning battles were in full view.


    All of these battles were between cultivators of the Saint Plane.


    The flow of light around his body shined brighter. The lifeforce of the Saint Plane emanated through the air. Wisps of Saint Might wrapped around his body. His mind traveled into the distance and blended with the air. Above the skydome, a thunderstorm raged. A catastrophe was about to come.


    Zhuge Mingyue looked up to the sky, the tinge of a bright smile flashing in her eyes. Finally, he would enter the Saint Plane, too.


    Little Brother and Yu Sheng had each gradually entered the Saint Plane, but Gu Dongliu was not anxious and cultivated at his own pace. He believed that he would one day enter the Saint Plane too. He was patiently waiting for the day to come in a natural way.


    Now as he watched the battle of Great Law, he was finally able to break the last barrier, get a thorough and intact insight into the necessary state of mind, and enter the Saint Plane.


    Many people were surprised when they saw the scene. He''d entered the Saint Plane during the battle!


    But even though he''d entered Saint Plane, it couldn''t affect the situation on the battlefield very much.


    After all, the warriors in the battle between the two Renhuang Realms were all on the Saint Plane!

 1213 The Battle Between Yan Yuan and the Death God

    In the Lord''s Residence, Li City.


    Li Yao stood on the rooftop of the palace and looked in the direction of Thousand Leaves City. Of course, no matter how high his cultivation level was, he couldn''t see the battlefields in Thousand Leaves City due to the enormous size of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    To achieve their goal, Prince Regent joined the battle as three Nirvana-Plane warriors reached the Crimson Dragon Realm. Such a battle array was intimidating in itself.


    The Dali Imperial Advisor, Prince Regent, and the number one demonic figure in Dali, Cao Kong, were each strong enough to dominate many cities of Crimson Dragon Realm. Except for Ancient Imperial City, no city could defend against them.


    Plus, former-lord Yan Kun was also with them.


    Even though Ye Futian had made preparations, he shouldn''t be able to handle four Nirvana-Plane warriors.


    Besides, no one in Emperor Xia''s Realm was comparable with the Dali Imperial Advisor in terms of strength.


    Of course, the Imperial Advisor had to try his best during the battle. However, since Prince Regent, the Third Prince, and the other warriors were all present, the Imperial Advisor would have to put all his efforts into fighting. After all, there was no way that the Imperial Advisor could retreat this time.


    At this moment, many figures were flying in the air and heading toward the Lord''s Residence. Li Yao glanced up and noticed them, causing him to frown slightly.


    It seemed as if some people were trying to approach the Lord''s Residence.


    Outside the Lord''s Residence, a person in a black cloak was sitting quietly. Like a ghost, his face was obscured as if it had been absorbed by a black hole.


    He seemed extremely dangerous.


    Wisps of dark mist circled his body, but it was not demonic flow. Rather, it was more like the will of death.


    The figure in the darkness looked like a death god who''d come there to reap souls.


    Inside the Lord''s Residence, Li Yao leaped up and looked outside. When he saw the dark figure waiting outside, his face suddenly turned sullen.


    Thousand Leaves City was in the midst of a fatal battle, but they''d still had time to send warriors to the Lord''s Residence of Xiang City. Had the person outside come to kill him?


    Perhaps sensing that he was being observed, the figure shrouded in darkness slightly raised his head. Within the dark mist, a pair of eyes appeared from within the cloak. With just one glance, he gave Li Yao a taste of the Death God''s arrival. Li Yao suddenly felt himself falling into the endless abyss, unable to escape from it. The sense of impending doom ran through his body.


    Suddenly, a hand patted Li Yao on the shoulder, causing an eruption of light. Li Yao was awakened, his face pale. He looked down at the dark shadow walking step by step into the Lord''s Residence.


    "Sir," Li Yao called to Yan Yuan, terror in his eyes.


    "Your Highness, please back off. Allow me to handle this," said Yan Yuan. Li Yao knew that this person was very dangerous and that he would not able to deal with him. He had been able to sense the arrival of death with just a single glance.


    But since the Dali Imperial Advisor''s First Disciple, Yan Yuan, was here, he shouldn''t need to worry.


    However, because of Ye Futian, he had stood against the Imperial Advisor. Even so, he still trusted the Imperial Advisor and Sir Yan Yuan''s strength from the bottom of his heart. The feeling was strange since he had chosen to fight against them, yet he still felt safe with Yan Yuan standing next to him.


    Ye Futian should have had that kind of feeling too as Yan Yuan escorted him away.


    Li Yao sighed to himself. If only there had been no Ye Futian. That year, he''d wanted to join the Imperial Advisor''s Residence and become the Imperial Advisor''s disciple.


    But he knew things could never return to the way things were before.


    Yan Yuan stood next to Li Yao. He felt the same even though he knew that they had taken opposite stands.


    But he still had the responsibility of guarding Li Yao''s safety.


    The dispute this time had arisen from the feud between Li Yao and Ye Futian. He knew that his master was not willing to kill Ye Futian, but that he had to do it due to his chosen side.


    Yan Yuan was in the same position; he had to protect Li Yao.


    He had definitively made up his mind that day after the conversation with his master.


    The Dali Imperial Advisor was under orders to come to the Crimson Dragon Realm to capture Ye Futian, earning the title of Imperial Advisor Commander of Dali.


    What would happen if Li Yao died?


    Today, in Dali, things were no longer as they''d been before. Dali seemed to be interested in confronting Emperor Xia''s Realm this time. Emperor Li thought highly of the master, but he hoped that the Imperial Advisor could state his position clearly and follow Emperor Li''s decision. Emperor Li had cast suspicion on the master because of what had happened last time.


    If the Prince also died, Yan Yuan could not imagine what the outcome would be.


    So, nothing could happen to Li Yao.


    Yan Yuan looked at the person in front of him and asked, "Shadow Guard of Emperor Xia''s Realm, you didn''t come here alone, did you?"


    "I''ve heard that the Dali Imperial Advisor''s First Disciple, Yan Yuan, is the strongest cultivator below the Nirvana Plane in Dali. My name is Ji Yuan. I am the Shadow Guard Commander of Emperor Xia''s Realm. I am here to see what I can learn from you," said Ji Yuan. Both people had a character "Yuan" in their names, so there was some karma between them. However, they stood on opposite sides.


    Ji Yuan had been the second top figure in the Sage and Saint rankings of the Nine States for many years. His ranking was lower than the Great Shaman''s, but he was so good at death skills that he had eventually infuriated Emperor Xia. After Emperor Xia stopped allowing him to establish orthodoxy, Ji Yuan had disappeared from the Nine States.


    After Emperor Xia punished him, he''d let him join the Shadow Guard. Ji Yuan, the Death God, had since become the Shadow Guard Commander and reached the apex of the Unblemished Saint Plane, very close to the Nirvana level.


    He hardly appeared in public and didn''t have widespread fame. Few people knew of his existence because those who saw his face usually died.


    "Please," Yan Yuan said, looking at him.


    His black robe was billowing in the wind. As Ji Yuan stepped forward, the wisps of death force rose and diffused toward the Lord''s Residence. The mist became thicker and thicker as the Death God shrouded the place.


    Warriors of the Lord''s Residence released their might to defend against this incoming sense of death. Yan Yuan stared ahead, a dazzling, holy light shining over his body. As the Imperial Advisor''s First Disciple, he''d also cultivated on the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    As an Imperial-Level Cultivation Method, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension contained deep and profound knowledge. What the Dali Imperial Advisor had taught Ye Futian was just a small part of it.


    When different people studied the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, they gained different results.


    Yan Yuan put out one hand and waved. Suddenly, a glaring halo appeared in front of him and rapidly expanded.


    At the same time, Death God Ji Yuan pointed one finger outward. The sky and earth rumbled with the gesture. Innumerable flows of death force rose from other lands, enveloping the Lord''s Residence and sweeping toward Yan Yuan and Li Yao.


    Yan Yuan raised one palm. With that movement, the pattern grew bigger and bigger, seemingly about to devour the Great Law of the sky and the earth. The horrifying air flows of the Great Law between the sky and earth formed a halo pattern and enlarged. The halo kept expanding in the upper air, covering the sky. The innumerable flows of death force dripped down, all getting blocked by the pattern.


    At this moment, Yan Yuan reached out with his left hand and put his finger on the pattern of the Great Law. Suddenly, from the pattern, countless sharp swords emerged, piercing through the void sky and falling upon Ji Yuan.


    But his fingertips stayed on that pattern. The pattern of the Great Law spun, causing a giant sword to be born from it. At the next moment, the giant sword penetrated the space and thrust toward Ji Yuan, shaking the sky and earth.


    In just one moment, the tens of thousands of swords annihilated the flows of death force, ready to kill.


    Ji Yuan had no time to think. He held out both arms. The waves of dark flow rumbled and merged into a horrifying dark abyss in front of him, devouring the sword of the Great Law. The abyss was boundless enough to swallow all the swords.


    The Lord''s Residence was rapidly collapsing into the abyss. The swords all gradually disappeared as the devouring abyss roared and trembled.


    Finally, following an explosion, the Sword Will and the dark abyss crashed together, countless fragments breaking off and falling to the ground.


    Bam!


    Yan Yuan stepped into the void sky, lifting the halo pattern of the Great Law with one arm as he headed toward Ji Yuan.


    The pattern of the Great Law spun above the skydome as it expanded. Inside was a huge matrix swallowing and spitting the horrible power.


    Ji Yuan looked up at the void sky and felt like he was being crushed under the pattern of Great Law.


    Yan Yuan waved his hands and patted the Matrix pattern, saying, "Jin."


    After he said the word, several giant golden swords appeared from the edge of the pattern of the Great Law. They emitted the radiance of obliteration as they slashed at the ground.


    The Will of Death roared wildly around Ji Yuan. His body turned into black shadows and immediately vanished, trying to escape.


    However, the swords were not targeting him, they were attacking the whole area.


    Boom! Boom! Boom��


    Horrifyingly loud noises were heard. The giant sword slid into the sky and earth, sealing the space off. All of the swords that were connected by the matrix became part of the matrix pattern. When the dark mists tried to break in, they all were smashed into the void.


    In the Lord''s Residence, people gathered and watched the fight on the battlefield. The man who stood above the skydome was truly peerless.


    He, the Dali Imperial Advisor''s First Disciple, was called the strongest cultivator below the Nirvana Plane.


    Even though his opponent was the Shadow Guard Commander, as long as Yan Yuan was there, no one could get past him to reach Li Yao.


    Seeing the scene, Li Yao sighed to himself and felt that he was fortune''s fool.


    Before, he''d at least been able to call Yan Yuan "Elder Brother." Now, he could only address him as "sir."


    Why did Ye Futian have to live in this world?


    Thinking about this, Li Yao''s hatred of Ye Futian became even stronger.


    If Ye Futian had not pretended to be the Seventh Swordsman, all these things would not have happened.


    At this moment, Ji Yuan''s body converged and reappeared. The dark mists roared around his body, the shadow of the Death Deity appearing behind him. He was best at death skills, but Yan Yuan didn''t give him the chance to copy his ability.


    This Imperial Advisor''s disciple was indeed powerful.


    He rose into the sky. The boundless shadow of the Death God pressed a giant dark palm print onto the light curtain of the swords over the skydome. After a loud noise, the light curtain tore the giant palm print apart. The palm print was slashed in half.


    However, at this moment, a divine sword flew straight out of the broken sword matrix and headed toward the skydome. Soon, it slowly fell to the ground.


    Li Yao and many others raised their heads and took a look at the divine sword, perplexed. What did that mean?

 1214 Here Appeared the Sword Matrix

    The flying sword was hanging in the void sky, sending out metallic clangs. It was apparently meant for Yan Yuan.


    Yan Yuan raised his head and took a look at the sword. The sword seemed to be controlled by someone.


    At the same time, far away from there in the cultivation temple of the Lord''s Residence of Thousand Leaves City, a lady was sitting with her legs crossed. She was being bathed in endless Sword Will. Beneath her, the pattern of a sword matrix flickered.


    Suddenly, her eyelashes slightly fluttered, the pattern of the sword matrix lighting up.


    Instantly, the matrix pattern absorbed the Sword Will of the Great Law between the sky and earth. When that happened, all the swords around the lady began to ring. A horrible gust of storming Sword Will swept out and enveloped the boundless space. Some swordsmen-in-training felt the Sword Will around their bodies fly out of their control and head off in one direction.


    "What happened?" People fixed their eyes in one direction and froze there, their pupils contracting. All they could see a Sword Road forming above the skydome. An endless void of Sword Will dripped down from the skydome and flew to one location in the Lord''s Residence.


    The dazzling sword force was being discharged from that spot.


    In the void sky, the Dali Imperial Advisor was fighting with the Great Shaman. He took a look at his side and released his Will. As he tried to make it follow the newly built Sword Road, his face turned slightly pale.


    The Imperial Advisor formed two palm prints and looked up to the sky. The giant character "Qian" flew out. He then spat and said, "Seal."


    The skydome trembled after he said the word. It was as if the sky was trying to seal and shut down the Sword Road.


    However, at the same time, a dazzling beam of sword light rose up. Tens of thousands of swords darted down along the ancient Sword Road. The Dali Imperial Advisor used the character "Qian" to seal the sky. The torrents of Sword Law gushed out, trying to break the seal. The loud roll of thunder was heard, causing the sky and earth to tremble.


    However, the ancient character of the Great Law didn''t shatter as it tried to seal the ancient Sword Road.


    At that moment, the lady''s body blended into the halo pattern of the sword and turned into a beam of light, piercing the sky and shattering the Qian. The ancient road of Sword Law reappeared. The lady turned around and disappeared together with the Sword Matrix on the Ancient Road of the Sword Law. Only the massive Sword Will was left behind.


    "This is..."


    Countless pairs of eyes froze on the Ancient Road of Sword Law from where the lady had just vanished.


    The scene was so shocking.


    What had just happened?


    A battle between two Renhuang Realms, where so many Nirvana-Plane warriors fought with each other, was a rare event even in the Crimson Dragon Realm. It was a Renhuang-level battle.


    How could Emperor Xia''s Realm have prepared such a sword matrix when so many top figures had already been engaged in fighting?


    It would be extremely hard to defend against the Sword Matrix''s attack.


    Thinking about this, Xiang Nan, who was standing with warriors of Emperor Xiang''s Realm, had a slight look of panic on his face.


    What Xia Rong had said was not merely a warning. Although Emperor Xiang''s Realm was powerful, few warriors were guarding Xiang City in the Crimson Dragon''s Realm. Among them, only one had reached the Nirvana Plane. In a battle of such a level, Xia Rong could eliminate Xiang Nan if he tried it first at all costs.


    The sword that had just appeared could easily execute anyone during the battle. It seemed to be prepared to kill on any battlefield at any time.


    But for now, it was not being used on this battlefield. Rather, it had pierced the sky, built a Sword Road in the air, and disappeared.


    ...


    In the Lord''s Residence of Li City, Yan Yuan looked up at the sword in the void sky as if he had perceived something. He turned around and said to the people nearby, "Escort His Highness away immediately."


    He couldn''t stay here.


    Yan Yuan could sense how powerful and dangerous the force was. It could even be a threat to him.


    The sword that Ji Yuan used was the sword of guidance.


    "This way, please, Your Highness." They appeared in front of Li Yao, ready to escort him.


    Li Yao frowned slightly. Something in her eyes had changed. He could tell that Yan Yuan''s tone had become serious.


    Was the situation so serious that even Yan Yuan was worried?


    Were more warriors of Emperor Xia''s Realm coming here?


    However, how could Emperor Xia''s Realm deploy top warriors here during a battle of such magnitude?


    But this was obviously not the moment to think too much. He jumped into the air and prepared to leave with his escorts. It seemed that his Sage Plane was not qualified enough to join this battlefield.


    At the same time, Yan Yuan looked down at Ji Yuan who was covered by the matrix. His left hand smashed against the magnificent matrix of the Great Law again as he spat the word, "Huo."


    When he said the word, the matrix swallowed the flames of the Great Law between the sky and the earth. Even the blaze of the sun above the skydome was drawn to the matrix and made part of it.


    All of a sudden, the flames swallowed the matrix and transformed into flame dragons which ran to Ji Yuan. The flame of the Great Law was trying to burn the space to ash.


    Ji Yuan looked at the magnificent matrix and frowned slightly. This Dali Imperial Advisor''s top disciple had acquired the Imperial Advisor''s skills, making him really tricky to deal with.


    There was no way to use his deathly methods in front of Yan Yuan.


    At this moment, the Sword Wills dripped down from the skydome and fell on Yan Yuan''s body. Although the Will was not very strong yet, Yan Yuan could sense the great danger from it.


    Numerous swords came into sight above the skydome and sealed off the sky.


    The faces of Li Yao and others turned pale as they looked up at the skydome.


    Right above their heads, an ancient road of Sword Law with countless swords was dripping down from above.


    Yan Yuan''s face suddenly turned pale. He immediately let Ji Yuan go and lifted the Matrix pattern of the Great Law with both hands, rushing up into the sky.


    He lifted the matrix between the sky and earth with both hands. The matrix greedily swallowed the Law of the sky and the earth as it kept expanding. It grew until it turned into a pattern that completely covered the sky.


    People in the lower sky all looked up and were shocked by what they saw.


    Yan Yuan was powerful indeed.


    A Void Air Sword Road suddenly appeared above the sky. Countless swords fell and attacked the pattern of the Great Law.


    Finally, a boundless matrix pattern appeared at the end of the Ancient Sword Road. A lady stood at the center of the matrix. She instantly turned into lightning and flashed down toward the Lower Sky with the Sword Matrix.


    Tens of thousands of swords dropped from the Ancient Sword Road, destroying everything.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    A series of bomb blasts went off, shaking the sky and the earth. The swords attacked the matrix in a frenzy, causing more and more crevices to appear on the pattern of the Great Law.


    The void air Sword Matrix dropped straight down toward Yan Yuan''s body. A beam of sword light fell from the skydome.


    The sword seemed to be able to break anything.


    Boom!


    With a loud noise, the matrix cracked. All the swords fell from the air. Although their power had been weakened by more than half, many of the warriors were still having a hard time defending against them.


    In the blink of an eye, the imposing Lord''s Residence was reduced to nothing but ashes.


    The warriors around Li Yao were blown away and scattered to different locations. They wanted to flee, but many shadow-like figures encircled them and launched an attack. They seemed to be the shadow guards of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The battlefield was disrupted. Many of the warriors were dispersed.


    On another battlefield, the sword matrix arrived from the void sky and broke the pattern of the Great Law. The giant sword slashed down and kept attacking Yan Yuan. The Sword Force pierced through his body, leaving blood on Yan Yuan''s lips.


    With a pair of still determined eyes, he looked at the lady dressed in white hovering in the void sky.


    With the storm of the Great Law surrounding his body, Yan Yuan became the furnace of the Great Law itself, absorbing all the power of the Great Law''s Five Elements into his body. He held the giant sword. He wanted to turn into the Law.


    An aura surrounded his body. He had released the power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension to its ultimate degree.


    "You should give up," the lady dressed in white said to him.


    Yan Yuan paused for a second and looked into her eyes. Then Yan Yuan cracked a smile and said, "I told him once that I will show no mercy."


    After speaking, he joined his hands together and said, "Po."


    As the word emerged, his body turned into the Law itself, allowing all the swords to pass through him. At the same time, innumerable Sword Wills of the Great Law shot into his opponent''s matrix. Crevices appeared on the matrix pattern, causing the pattern to explode into pieces.


    With a loud noise, their bodies were thrown apart.


    Yan Yuan''s clothes were torn and his whole body was tinged with blood. Yaya was hurled into the void sky, eyes still fixed on Yan Yuan.


    She launched the Sword Matrix in the void sky. Even though the Dali Imperial Advisor had blocked part of its power, it should have been enough to kill an Unblemished-Plane Warrior.


    However, it was broken by Yan Yuan.


    She knew that Yan Yuan was severely hurt, but he still bore the attack of her Sword Matrix.


    His level was very close to reaching the Nirvana Plane.


    Ji Yuan stepped into the air and tried to leave, but Yan Yuan raised one hand. With the motion of his hand, a gust of sword force pierced through the void sky and blocked his way. Yan Yuan asked, "Where are you going?"


    Ji Yuan looked at him and asked in return, "Do you still want to fight?"


    The fight was now two against one.


    Even though Yan Yuan''s ability was extremely strong, he had no advantage against the two of them, not to mention that the strike had severely wounded him.


    Yan Yuan launch the Great Law by force. The pattern again appeared around his body. The magnificent aura around him looked dazzling, Within it, he looked solemn.


    It was not that he didn''t want to quit. He couldn''t quit.


    Nothing could happen to Li Yao.


    This was for his master. Master''s safety was a priority before anything or anyone else. What Master had said that day unnerved him.


    Ji Yuan looked at the prideful person standing in front of him and sighed. Such an opponent was truly worthy of admiration.


    Unfortunately, he was still an opponent.


    The only thing shared between them would be a fight.


    In another direction, Li Yao had seen the fall of tens of thousands of swords and the many Sage-Plane warriors who had been hurt by the sword rain. At this moment, he was being chased by Shadow Guards of Emperor Xia''s Realm. He made his way as fast as he could, trying to leave and looking very embarrassed.


    He had not expected to find himself in such an awkward situation when he was staying in the Li City Lord Residence and not even part of the battle. Even under Yan Yuan''s protection, he''d still been forced to flee. What a shame!


    "Your Highness, this way!" a voice called from somewhere. Li Yao followed the voice and found that a Sage-Plane warrior was waiting there to guide him. His face looked quite familiar to Li Yao. Perhaps this was the Third Prince''s person!

 1215 Li Yao in Despair

    Li Yao walked toward the man waiting for him. The man turned around and led the way.


    Behind Li Yao, someone was following him and watching closely.


    They quickly crossed the chaotic battlefield.


    Suddenly, the man leading the way paused and turned around, saying to Li Yao, "we must hurry up, Your Highness."


    Wisps of life force flew around his body. His eyes were gorgeous and amazingly deep. At that moment, Li Yao felt like an utter mess. Shame and anger were the only things he could think about.


    He could not believe that he had been forced to flee.


    A bolt of lightning flashed across the void sky, directly passing Li Yao to attack the person in front of him.


    The man paused for a second and looked up. He saw a handsome figure with an extremely thin sword in his hand arriving like a lightning bolt. The sword was like a silver snake, reflecting dazzling light.


    The sword was being wielded in an extremely fast way. It was like a lightning bolt followed by thunder. The man leading the way squinted his eyes a bit and used his palm to defend himself. The palm print he drew out was immediately torn to pieces. At the same time, his body was pushed back. The sword force swept through him and shredded his robe.


    He raised his head, confusion in his eyes. He asked the handsome figure who was trying to kill him, "Sir, what did you come here for?"


    Standing behind them, Li Yao paused to look at the person who was attacking them.


    It was Dali Imperial Advisor''s disciple, L�� Chuan.


    A peerless figure with intelligence and wisdom who had once launched the Battle of Empty Realm and defeated Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "I kept everyone who stayed in the Lord''s Residence in mind. Even the people who went to Thousand Leaves City, I know the life force of every one of them. You look like one of the Third Prince''s subordinates, but you are not him," said L�� Chuan softly. "Brother Seventh Swordsman, long time no see."


    This name, "Seventh Swordsman," was like a thunderbolt out of the blue that exploded in Li Yao''s brain. He suddenly raised his head and fiercely looked at the person in front of him. With his eyes widened, he fixed his stare on him, his face turning pale gray.


    He couldn''t be more familiar with the name. He had sworn to kill this person no matter what.


    Yet he''d been duped again!


    A gust of violent force swept out from Li Yao''s body. He was angry like a furious dragon, but there was a sort of fear in his anger.


    The Seventh Swordsman had almost damaged him.


    Before, when Yan Yuan had stood in front of him, he''d been completely confident that Yan Yuan could defend against anyone below the Nirvana Plane. Li Yao completely trusted Dali Imperial Advisor''s disciples.


    Yan Yuan was capable indeed. Even though he was severely wounded, he had still successfully blocked two top figures of Emperor Xia''s Realm and allowed him to escape.


    At this moment, it was another of Dali Imperial Advisor''s disciples, L�� Chuan, who was standing in front of him. His talent was also extraordinary.


    However, Li Yao lost his confidence.


    His opponent was Ye Futian.


    Even though Ye Futian was the man he hated most and wanted to kill, from the bottom of Li Yao''s heart, he still totally acknowledged Ye Futian''s ability.


    This place was weirdly quiet while the rest of the battlefield was in turmoil.


    As a wind passed by, the robe of the person standing there blew in the wind. His long hair had turned silver since he''d last seen him. The contour of his face had changed, too. Soon, the handsome face became clear to Li Yao''s eyes.


    He clenched his fists. His face was extremely sullen.


    "Ye Futian!" he spat out the name like venom.


    Ye Futian didn''t look at Li Yao, ignoring him. He fixed his eyes on L�� Chuan and asked, "Brother, could you just let me through?"


    "No, I can''t," replied L�� Chuan. He initiated his cultivation method. Suddenly, the Will emanated between the sky and earth, tearing the void apart. A storm of Will appeared in the space that was trying to shatter the area. L�� Chuan''s body was surrounded by the horrifying Sword Will.


    "Sorry for the offense," said Ye Futian. A long halberd appeared in his hand. The Halberd of Time and Space swallowed and spat out the terrifying Space Will which swept through the void air, trying to seal and freeze it.


    The Great Law enveloped the sky and earth. Li Yao and L�� Chuan felt like they were submerged in the absolute space. At this moment, L�� Chuan flicked his wrist, and the silver sword light swept over the sky and crushed the Space Will. The two powers were colliding with each other in an invisible form.


    Bam!


    Ye Futian stepped forward and released the dense Space Will which shook the void sky, almost stiffening it.


    L�� Chuan looked solemn. The silver storm grew even stronger, growing to cover all the skies.


    Bam!


    One more step. Ye Futian kept heading forward. The void air trembled again. He merged the Footwork of Xuanyuan into the Will, and his might became even more powerful.


    As he took his third step, Ye Futian disappeared where he stood.


    His body transformed into many shadows that then reappeared in front of L�� Chuan. Innumerable shadows of giant halberds appeared between the sky and earth and then converged into one. One halberd pierced through the void sky.


    Extreme Shadow, the Halberd of Nothingness.


    The long silver sword in L�� Chuan''s hand started to move. All of a sudden, the sky and earth started humming.


    The sword struck, chopping the light and splitting the shadow, tearing the void sky apart, and sending out infinite silver sparks.


    The moment their attacks collided, storms of destruction rose between the sky and earth. With a deep boom, Ye Futian stomped on the ground and started moving like a phantom. He drove the halberd forward with another thrust. Annihilation came with the second strike.


    The Will of the Great Law shattered the void sky and crazily smashed the silver Sword Will, surging toward L�� Chuan''s body.


    L�� Chuan''s finger tapped on the sword. The sword force between the sky and earth was dazzling. An impressive glow fell upon the sword as the Will of the Great Law merged into the one sword.


    The sword came out. The void sky cracked. One sword was left.


    An extremely dazzling beam of light appeared between them. The hefty attacking power was chopped in half by the sword. Above L�� Chuan''s body, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension bloomed. The holy aura enveloped his body. The Great Law dropped down, and his body was surrounded by the Sword Will, becoming transparent, as if he was the sword itself.


    At the same time, similar power was released from Ye Futian''s body. The glow of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was also sacred. The Great Law became one, and all the Wills turned into the Path of the Space. The sky and earth were being shackled. Numerous Sword Wills appeared from the void and attacked L�� Chuan.


    L�� Chuan''s body didn''t move. He still stood firmly on his feet. When the sword swung toward his body, it couldn''t break his sword defense.


    Bam!


    Ye Futian started walking again. The sky and earth became heavy. He kept walking forward. L�� Chuan looked even more solemn. His body seemed to be bearing the extremely heavy pressure of the Great Law.


    "Brother, watch out," said Ye Futian. He took one more step after he spoke, his body then bending forward. He released the Halberd of Time and Space. The storm of destruction tore the void sky apart and marched ahead.


    As if anything in front of him would be destroyed.


    The Third Strike, Unending Void.


    The Great Law returned to the Unending Void. Everything was annihilated.


    The sword in L�� Chuan''s hand was hanging before his chest. He drew two palm prints. The Sword Will of the Great Law flew from the sky and earth into the sword. The sword swallowed and spat silver light tens of thousands of feet into the air. All the sword shadows became one and blended into the sword.


    The sword made a series of metallic clangs. Crevices appeared in the space as if the sky and earth were about to be torn apart.


    A pattern of the Great Law appeared in the void sky with the sword as its axis. In the pattern of the Great Law, all swords turned into one and merged into the sword.


    Finally, L�� Chuan extended his palm forward. When the sword came out, the sky and earth roared for it.


    In front of him, the Halberd of Time and Space that Ye Futian held in his hand stabbed at the sword.


    The Halberd of Time and Space collided with the sword. The storm of destruction collided with the sky.


    The horrifying explosion of storms swept out as the sword swept back. The violent Will beat against L�� Chuan''s body. He spat out blood and was blown away.


    Zoom!


    A lightning bolt flashed across the sky. The Halberd of Time and Space aimed at L�� Chuan''s chest but didn''t stab him.


    L�� Chuan raised his head and looked at the figure in front of him, sighing to himself.


    He and Yan Yuan had been cautious enough to arrange the plan, but had they still lost?


    "Please forgive me, brother," said Ye Futian. Ye Futian walked past him and headed after Li Yao.


    L�� Chuan didn''t give chase. Ye Futian had just shown mercy to him. Otherwise, he would have been killed. It was meaningless to chase him again.


    Why had he been born in Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    On the battlefield of the Lord''s Residence, Yan Yuan was defending against two top figures of the Unblemished Plane. Of course, he had perceived Ye Futian''s presence. He stepped into the sky. His Matrix of the Great Law covered the sky, trying to block Yaya and Ji Yuan. He wanted to leave the battlefield to help Li Yao.


    However, tens of thousands of swords had fallen and sealed the sky and earth. There was no way Yaya would let him leave the battlefield.


    ...


    Ye Futian was traveling through the void sky and rapidly heading toward Li Yao.


    Li Yao had entered the Saint Plane, but he even had no courage to fight when confronted by Ye Futian. He believed that he could never defeat Ye Futian.


    That was why wanted to escape.


    "Kill him!" Li Yao gave the order to a warrior who was fighting with a shadow guard. The warrior was a Saint of True Self with extraordinary ability. After he repelled a shadow guard of the same level, he turned to Ye Futian, guarding Li Yao who was still trying to flee.


    Ye Futian stepped into the void sky and pointed one finger in front of him. He summoned the Sword of Kasyapa tore the void air apart.


    The warrior flew into the void sky and did a double palm strike. Suddenly, tens of thousands of palm prints appeared and shattered the Sword of Kasyapa into pieces.


    However, Ye Futian kept moving forward. More and more swords came to attack. Cruelty flashed across his eyes. No matter how talented the person was, he was only on the first level of the Saint Plane. Why did he dare to come near?


    The seemingly infinite swords were all destroyed. The guard smashed the palm at Ye Futian.


    At this moment, a strong presage of destruction befell him.


    Among all of the swords, one emanated with such a horrifying life force that he could perceive the fatal crisis approaching him.


    The sword seemed to have emerged from the center of Ye Futian''s eyebrows. It pierced through his palm print with incredible speed. He let out a roar. Soon, a powerful Will rose in front of him to guard him. This was the Will of the Great Law.


    The sword thrust toward it. An extremely dazzling light spat out from the sword. His pupils contracted. What he could see in his mind was an inviolable sword with a wisp of the Will of the Emperor.


    The sword had been forged by the Master of Divine Cloud Valley at Ye Futian''s request, so the wisp of his Will of the Emperor had been merged with it.


    The sword flashed by and penetrated the warrior''s skull. Ye Futian didn''t stop there. He strode over the corpse as he continued walking forward.


    Li Yao perceived the scene with so much fear in his eyes.


    How had Ye Futian cultivated his Sword Force to be this strong?


    He could kill a Saint of True Self with just one strike!


    Li Yao''s heart beat fast. He could feel the life force behind him coming near. He was in such despair.


    When he had come to the Lower World Nine States of Emperor Xia''s Realm, he had never expected that such a day like this would come.


    At that time, he had been the Prince of the Upper World, the descendant of Emperor Li. His identity was truly noble, especially to the people of Lower Worlds.


    To him, the people of the Lower Worlds Nine States were nothing but loathsome ants, not worth taking into consideration.


    Even though he''d let Saint Zhi kill his wife, Li Yao didn''t care much at all.


    However, today, the person he''d once regarded as another ant of the Lower Worlds was trying to kill the Dali Prince!

 1216 Struggle

    Li Yao was still running forward when he saw swords raining down from above, cutting his escape route right then and there.


    Vast pressure swept all over, and Li Yao turned around abruptly throwing out his hand toward Ye Futian, who was charging at him. His arm was transformed into an extremely saintly five-clawed dragon that charged abruptly at Ye Futian.


    It was apparent that Li Yao did not want to roll over and die. He, too, was a saint. While his powers were inferior to those of Ye Futian, he deemed it necessary to fight, nonetheless.


    However, his face appeared rather twisted at that moment, displaying an expression of anger amid despair.


    That look in his eyes suggested that he wanted to battle Ye Futian.


    The Halberd of Time and Space was thrust out like a bolt of lightning. Rumbling noises were heard as the huge, five-clawed, golden dragon exploded and crumbled. Ye Futian did not stop charging. He continued streaking through the air and appeared right before Li Yao.


    The place seemed to have frozen when the Halberd struck. Li Yao roared in anger, and the space around them trembled. He stepped forward as an extremely dazzling specter appeared above him. It did not seem to be something of his own will. Rather, it seemed to be an Imposing Renhuang shooting right out of his brain.


    Ye Futian sensed looming danger ahead.


    The raging will lashed out right away. He had sensed the Imposing Renhuang''s shadow. While it was a construct of spiritual willpower, the hurricane of rage still sent him flying. That spiritual willpower then charged right into his mind.


    That will was incredibly grand and imposing. It was a true Will of Renhuang, wiping out the existence of all other wills.


    Boom! Ye Futian suffered a huge blow to his mind, and his body was sent flying, again, and crashed to the ground. Blood spilled from his mouth, and he felt rather hazy.


    Li Yao''s expression was extremely gloomy as he looked at Ye Futian.


    The will that his father left within him enabled him to invoke this power when he was in mortal peril. It was known simply as the Will of Renhuang. He had little idea how powerful it would be, but, upon seeing the scene before him, Li Yao no longer despaired and seemed to find the light of hope. His eyes were filled with a negative, violent aura as he headed towards Ye Futian.


    "Dead?"


    If his father''s will had crushed Ye Futian''s will, it would have been possible for him to kill Ye Futian on the spot.


    Seeing Ye Futian on the ground not budging even an inch, Li Yao''s face became ferocious with a cruel smirk in his eyes.


    He had always wanted to kill Ye Futian��the ant from the Nine States of the Lower Worlds who had been growing into an increasingly greater threat to him.


    "So he''s dead now, eh? And to die in such a way, how dramatic indeed."


    Raging aura was unleashed from his body as he extended his hand. A terrifying, five-clawed, golden dragon appeared right above Ye Futian''s head.


    While Ye Futian remained slumped where he was, Li Yao nonetheless wanted to kill him one more time.


    "Die." Li Yao roared, and the five-clawed, golden dragon came down blasting Ye Futian''s body. The ground exploded and dust flew everywhere.


    Li Yao walked up, taking one step at a time and finally smiled, which made him look rather crazy.


    However, that simply lasted for an instant. His smile froze as a figure rose from the flying dust around them.


    Jade-green light emanated from Ye Futian''s body; it was a manifestation of the power of life, and it was tremendously thick.


    He opened his eyes, and they looked deep like a bottomless abyss. It left Li Yao, who had been smiling, with a gaping jaw. Li Yao then saw Ye Futian stand up.


    "How could he possibly survive?"


    There was blood at the corner of Ye Futian''s mouth, and he looked rather pale. The Will of Renhuang had almost killed him. If it had not been for the imperial will protecting him, he would already be dead.


    Li Yao was not the most highly regarded of Emperor Li''s offspring and was the weakest among his siblings in training. However, he, nonetheless, had protection provided by Emperor Li.


    "Pathetic."


    That was the word that Ye Futian uttered plainly as he looked at Li Yao''s ferocious-looking eyes. Thunderous Light of the Great Path seemed to be glimmering on his body; it was a manifestation of the Great Path, basking in the Light of Calamity.


    When he became a saint, the resilience of his constitution made his body a true body of a saint. Saintly attacks of the same level were hardly capable of doing any harm to his body.


    "Pathetic."


    Li Yao felt a chill all over as he heard Ye Futian''s sarcastic jab at him. He was a prince of the Dali Dynasty, and Ye Futian called him "pathetic."


    "Pathetic, eh?"


    "Indeed I am."


    The way that Ye Futian looked at him now was just like the way he had looked at Ye Futian before striking him down.


    Boom! Light of Calamity bombarded Li Yao''s body like a thunderous disaster of the Great Path. His soul trembled as his body was paralyzed.


    However, he did not run away. He would not be able to escape this person even if he wanted to. He was indeed pathetic.


    The only thing that seemed to be waiting for him was death.


    A shout came from afar, and Ye Futian turned his head to look in that direction. Yan Yuan was conjuring diagrams of the Great Path and had blood all over his body. Yaya and Ji Yuan attacked at the same time, and there was no way that Yan Yuan, who had been severely injured before, could have resisted their attack. Yaya had once been a Holiness of Nirvana.


    Yan Yuan turned around at that moment and looked at Ye Futian whose eyes seemed rather dull.


    Sword Wills whooshed around Ye Futian, and the Sword of Kasyapa penetrated Li Yao''s body in an instant. Blood spilled all over him and Sword Wills raged throughout his body. Blood was still spilling from his mouth, and he struggled to stand.


    However, he did not die.


    He looked up at Ye Futian and said, "Give me a quick one."


    He thought that Ye Futian was about to torture him and make things hellish for him while he was still alive.


    Boom! A hand clapped down and lifted Li Yao. Ye Futian''s eyes reddened from the incredible intent to kill he felt.


    "I wanted to give you a quick one, as well." Ye Futian''s voice croaked as if he was struggling to speak.


    Li Yao had killed Ye Futian''s wife back in the Empty Realm, and he had almost killed Ye Futian''s kin as well. There was no way that Ye Futian did not hate Li Yao.


    He wanted nothing more than to see Li Yao''s heart pierced by thousands of swords.


    However, when he saw the determination in Yan Yuan''s eyes and the implications of the fight between the Eight Holinesses of Nirvana, he refrained from dealing the killing blow.


    If Li Yao died, it would be extremely possible that a war would break out between the Dali Dynasty and Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Then Ye Futian questioned if he would be able to shoulder the responsibility of a war breaking out between those two imperial realms.


    He questioned his right to do so.


    That was why he was struggling.


    Boom! A hand lifted Li Yao''s body and Ye Futian walked away, heading to the other battlefield.


    Lu Chuan, who saw Ye Futian still grabbing Li Yao from afar, chased after him. Many who had been fighting around them stopped.


    The space quieted down again.


    Ye Futian headed straight for the battlefield where Yan Yuan was and called, "Yaya."


    Yaya and the others turned around when they heard his voice. The swords were rescinded, and she came to Ye Futian''s side. Ji Yuan stopped fighting, as well.


    Yan Yuan then looked at Ye Futian. Despite being covered in blood, he still looked resilient, standing tall and proud.


    A smile suddenly appeared on his face but a sad one.


    "I didn''t think we would actually lose to you," Yan Yuan said. His expression was an extremely complicated one, filled with emotions that he was unable to place.


    He did not resent Ye Futian although they were on opposing sides.


    Naturally, he still admired Ye Futian.


    That day when they had parted at the Nine States, those words had come true.


    Yan Yuan knew that he had prepared for this battle, yet Ye Futian still ended up taking down Li Yao.


    "There are no winners or losers here," Ye Futian sighed and continued, "Let''s head to Qianye City."


    Yaya waved her hands about and then a sword appeared in the air. Several of them stepped onto it, and the sword streaked away.


    Lu Chuan walked to Yan Yuan''s side, and Yan Yuan then mumbled, "No wonder our teacher liked him so much."


    "He might not kill the prince, brother," Lu Chuan said. Yan Yuan turned to look at him as he continued, "He was here to avenge his wife. If he was going to cut down the prince, he would have done it already."


    Yan Yuan looked at Ye Futian disappearing in the distance and said, "Let''s go."


    He then stepped forward.


    Lu Chuan stood at Yan Yuan''s side and looked at his eldest brother while sighing deeply.


    Li Yao was lost in his eldest brother''s hands.


    If Ye Futian were to kill Li Yao, blame would first fall onto Yan Yuan''s shoulders. However, Lu Chuan thought, at the moment, that his eldest brother was, instead, more concerned for their teacher.


    ***


    The battle was still raging in Qianye City, and the place looked like a mess.


    The mighty ones were fighting close to each other.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen had injured Cao Kong before, yet Cao Kong''s demonic powers were overwhelming. He was extremely resilient, refusing to back away. He went all the way to the battlefield where the imperial advisor of Dali and the Great Shaman were fighting.


    The Prince Regent managed to fight off Lu You and pushed the battle all the way to the central region of Qianye City.


    The six figures at the Holiness of Nirvana level were fighting earth-shattering battles high in the air. Many throughout Qianye City looked up at the battles, their hearts racing.


    Many saints perished on that battlefield.


    The imperial advisor had no intention of fighting any longer when Yaya, who had returned, opened the ancient path of the sword with a single stroke then headed far away. She definitely had gone to Li City. The imperial advisor had no idea how Yan Yuan would have fared and if his student would have been able to block her attack.


    "Li Yao has been taken. Stop fighting immediately," a voice came from nowhere. The mighty ones who had been fighting were, at first, dumbfounded and then turned to see who had spoken. It was none other than a demonic beast.


    "My master has taken Li Yao and is heading back here," the Black Wind Condor continued saying. The imperial advisor shouted and, throughout the battlefield, countless soldiers felt their brains rattling.


    There were mighty ones throughout the vast battlefield, but they were unable to help and backed away from each other. That shout had made them all cease fighting.


    The imperial advisor scanned the battlefield. He had not wanted to see a fight happen, but he had no choice.


    "So Ye Futian has taken Li Yao, eh?"


    "Yan Yuan had been there to guard him. I wonder how he is doing now."

 1217 Release or Kill

    The battlefield of Qianye City was littered with ruins, and that happened with the mighty ones fighting in the air and not causing any collateral damage from above.


    Half of the city would have been razed otherwise.


    The atmosphere was extraordinarily tense at that moment. They all had ceased fighting, but everyone was still in a ready-to-strike position as if the fighting could restart at any moment.


    In truth, both sides had things under control to a certain measure as the mighty ones all went out of their way to find opponents of comparable strength.


    If fighters from the Dali Dynasty who were at the Holiness of Nirvana level were to kill those on the lower levels of Emperor Xia''s Realm, there would hardly be anyone left. Both sides were not willing to pay that price. As such, all went out of their way to keep the battle contained instead of trying to annihilate each other.


    However, Li Yao, a prince of the Dali Dynasty, was taken.


    Everyone, indeed, wondered what the outcome would be.


    No one had an answer, and everyone was waiting.


    "Imperial advisor, could any cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm stop you?" The Prince Regent asked as he looked at the imperial advisor.


    His words puzzled many.


    "What is the Prince Regent of the Dali Dynasty getting at?"


    "Is he chastising the imperial advisor for not doing his best?"


    "Are there conflicts within the Dali Dynasty itself?"


    However, Dali''s imperial advisor had been extremely forceful in the battle, so much that he looked invincible. If he were to go all out, there was no telling how many would have perished.


    The imperial advisor shot a look at the Prince Regent and said, "You were not able to stop them yourself either, Prince Regent."


    The Prince Regent''s expression turned cold. "I hope that his highness is doing fine. Yan Yuan is your topmost student, number one in Dali below the Holiness-of-Nirvana level. If he is around, I believe that the animal is simply bluffing. How could his highness be taken with Yan Yuan around?"


    The imperial advisor frowned and shot a cold look at the Prince Regent.


    The Prince Regent saw that Yaya had opened up the Ancient Path of the Sword and zipped off. He could tell just how frighteningly powerful the might of her sword was. It seemed as if she had surpassed the level of the Unblemished Saint.


    Yan Yuan was known to be at the pinnacle of the Unblemished Saint level, but that sword would have been dangerous nonetheless.


    However, not only did the Prince Regent ignore the fact that Yan Yuan could have been in danger, but he claimed that Li Yao could not possibly have been taken when Yan Yuan was around. His scheme was obvious.


    The imperial advisor did not bother arguing with the Prince Regent about anything.


    A Sword Will from afar zipped past, finally, and everyone looked up and saw the group of figures heading their way.


    Everyone''s face changed when they saw what had happened, especially those from the Dali Dynasty.


    The Ninth Prince of the Dali Dynasty, Li Yao, had been taken.


    Ye Futian, Yaya, and the others had Li Yao tagging along as their prisoner.


    Ye Futian turned to look at the battlefield and, in a flash, headed straight to the crowd and stopped in front of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Yan Yuan followed suit and looked up at the imperial advisor. Regret was in his eyes as he said, "I failed, teacher."


    The imperial advisor took a look at Yan Yuan''s bloodstained body and sighed deep down, saying, "It''s fine that you come back in one piece."


    "Yan Yuan," a cold voice was heard; it was the Prince Regent who was visibly angered, saying, "So this is what you call protecting his highness?"


    Yan Yuan took one look at the Prince Regent and said, "I have indeed failed."


    The Prince Regent''s eyes were cold. He then looked down at Ye Futian and Li Yao. Dragon roars were heard as he took a step forward. A mighty voice filled the air.


    "Let him go."


    One figure after another stood before Ye Futian and cast their gaze at the Prince Regent.


    Ye Futian looked up at the Prince Regent who was high in the sky.


    Li Yao had been severely injured. A spark of hope ignited in his mind at the moment. There was still a chance of him emerging alive.


    Since Ye Futian had yet to kill him, it meant that there were still ways of turning things around. Both the imperial advisor and the Prince Regent were there. He did not think for a second that Ye Futian would have dared to kill him in front of them.


    "You people from Dali were the ones who waged war on us by sending people to invade Qianye City. Li Yao had attempted to kill me several times. What do you make of that?" Ye Futian said as he looked at the Prince Regent.


    "If you dare to make a move against his highness, I swear that you shall never leave this place," the Prince Regent said with an imposing voice, paying no heed to Ye Futian''s words.


    Whoosh! A Sword Will zipped past and a Sword of Kasyapa streaked out right in front of Ye Futian, hanging right at Li Yao''s throat.


    In an instant, blood was dripping from Li Yao''s throat.


    "You''re going too far," the Prince Regent roared.


    "Put any pressure on him from here on out, and Li Yao dies," Ye Futian said as he looked coldly at the Prince Regent. The Prince Regent''s eyes filled with imposing anger, but then he heard Ye Futian continue, "If he dies, it''s on you. I dare you to try."


    The Prince Regent''s expression turned extremely glum, and he rescinded the aura emanating from him.


    Ye Futian was intentionally making it difficult for him. He was unable to shoulder such a crime.


    Ye Futian looked at those around him and said, "I will let him go, as long as the people of Dali leave the Crimson Dragon Realm and never step into it again. I shall release him."


    He had made this decision despite the struggle he felt deep down.


    However, he eventually decided to spare Li Yao.


    It was far more difficult to spare someone than to kill them.


    He was able to take Li Yao that day and had a chance of killing him. He would still have the chance to do so in the future.


    At present, however, he needed to consider the consequences of killing Li Yao and who would have been caught in the crossfire.


    As such, he came to that decision.


    It was a very difficult one for him to make, but he made it, nonetheless.


    Both the imperial advisor of Dali and Yan Yuan had been able to escort him out. There was no reason he couldn''t do the same. He was considering it for the imperial advisor and his brother-in-training, Yan Yuan.


    Saints and sages do not thank someone for saving them and then resent them for not doing more.


    The imperial advisor had brought his people to take Ye Futian, but Ye Futian knew that the imperial advisor, Yan Yuan, and the others had been reluctant to do so. As such, he did not mind at all.


    Even though they might end up meeting each other on future battlefields as enemies, he still did not regret what he did.


    "If we were to leave, who is to say that you would actually let the prince go?" asked Li Zhen, the third prince, as he stared at Ye Futian. He did not expect Li Yao to end up as a prisoner. If things had turned out that way, it would have been difficult for the battle to go on, especially when Ye Futian had yet to kill Li Yao.


    If he were to kill Li Yao, then the real fight would have truly broken out.


    Both sides would no longer hold back against each other, after that.


    "I believe him, your highness," said a voice, and Li Zhen looked to see whose it was. It was the imperial advisor of Dali. He looked at Li Zhen and said, "Your highness, this all happened because of me. I shall serve as the guarantor and stay behind to take the prince home."


    Li Zhen looked at the imperial advisor, and Ye Futian said, "That is acceptable."


    There were other things that he wanted to say to the imperial advisor, as well.


    The place was silent and many looked at Li Zhen.


    Li Yao turned his eyes toward his third brother. It seemed that Ye Futian did not dare to kill him, after all.


    "That settles it." Li Zhen''s expression was extremely cold, but there was little else he could have done. He was extremely reluctant to do that, but there was no way he could have just let Ye Futian kill Li Yao.


    "Imperial advisor, I shall leave my ninth brother to you," Li Zhen then said to the imperial advisor. He then waved his hand and said, "Retreat."


    He then gathered his people and left.


    The Prince Regent''s expression was ice-cold as he glanced at Ye Futian, but he was unable to do anything else other than leave.


    So Ye Futian was calm and planned to let Li Yao go.


    What Ye Futian did ground the battle to a halt.


    If nothing was going to happen to Li Yao and the imperial advisor was to take him away, then there was nothing he could have done to the imperial advisor. There would have been no excuse to spark a war.


    As such, everything he had done had gone to waste.


    It also meant that the trip to the Crimson Dragon Realm would be a waste.


    One figure after another left. The people from the Dali Dynasty retreated like a tide. Those from Emperor Xia''s Realm who were still on the battlefield rescinded their aura and looked at Ye Futian.


    When everyone from Dali left, there was only the imperial advisor, Yan Yuan, and some others remaining.


    Ye Futian looked at the silhouette that was far away in the sky, and he stepped forward, heading in the imperial advisor''s direction. Yaya followed right behind him. While Ye Futian was confident that the imperial advisor would not have harmed him, Yaya followed nonetheless.


    As for Li Yao, no way could he run with so many mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm around.


    "Teacher," Ye Futian called as he came before the imperial advisor of Dali and bowed.


    The imperial advisor looked at the handsome young man before him and sighed. He truly wanted to take Ye Futian as his student.


    "Let''s just leave Dali," Ye Futian said to the imperial advisor telepathically. He was able to tell from the Prince Regent''s attitude that his teacher was, at present, having a hard time in Dali.


    The imperial advisor sighed and shook his head slightly. Some things were not as simple as Ye Futian thought they could be. There was no way the imperial advisor could have simply left.


    "Renhuang from foreign realms are unable to interfere with anything going on in the Crimson Dragon Realm. You don''t have to be a traitor, teacher," Ye Futian advised him telepathically, again. His teacher could have learned a lesson from the Ninth Servant of the Ancient Imperial City setting up shop in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    If he had not sided with the enemy, Emperor Xia''s Realm, then he would not have been considered a traitor. He only needed to resign from his post as the imperial advisor.


    "I''ll think about it," the imperial advisor said. If things were to turn out okay, he would try to leave although he knew that success was near-impossible.


    "Take care, teacher," said Ye Futian, and he bowed. He then turned around and looked in Li Yao''s direction and said, "Let him go."


    Ji Yuan and the others intended to let him go, but someone came to Li Yao''s side at the moment, looked at Ye Futian and said, "Ye Futian, Li Yao has been trying to murder time and again to start a war between the realms. Now that you have taken him, you can''t just let him go like that."


    Ye Futian was dumbfounded. He then turned to see who spoke.


    It was none other than the eldest prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Rong.


    "Your highness..." Ye Futian wanted to say something.


    "Ye Futian, you''re too soft. There is no way you could achieve big things like that," Xia Rong said and then grabbed Li Yao''s throat. His overwhelming aura flowed from him, and he sensed the intention to kill him.


    The scene shocked everyone.


    Even those from Emperor Xia''s Realm looked at Xia Rong.


    Ye Futian had been the one in charge of everything before Xia Rong showed up, so much so that even Xia Qingyuan just let him be.


    However, with the eldest prince, Xia Rong, showing up, everyone wondered who was in charge.


    Ye Futian agreed to let him go, but Xia Rong did not.


    "There have been many saints who died fighting in the Crimson Dragon Realm. The Swordmaster and the others come here personally. If Dali is not afraid to wage war, then there is nothing the Emperor Xia''s Realm should be afraid of." Xia Rong looked at Ye Futian and said, "Remember, Ye Futian, those who do big things need to be decisive."


    Xia Rong pressed hard with his hand as soon as he was done speaking. Li Yao was thoroughly frightened and found it difficult to breathe.


    A crisp crack was heard, causing everyone''s hearts to skip a beat.

 1218 A Wise Man Shall Develop an All-Encompassing Breadth of Character

    The vast space quieted down within moments.


    Countless eyes watched Li Yao, who was being held in Xia Rong''s hand. He then let go, and Li Yao dropped to the ground. The dead man''s eyes were still opened. Xia Rong had invaded Li Yao''s mind with the Will of the Great Path and killed him in an instant.


    His action had been decisive and without a hint of hesitation.


    Li Yao, the Ninth Prince of the Dali Dynasty, perished.


    He died in the Crimson Dragon Realm at the hands of Xia Rong.


    Ye Futian looked with astonishment at what transpired. He then turned his eyes to Xia Rong whose face was filled with coldness and determination. It seemed that his will was adamant and undeniable.


    It was as if he had long made up his mind.


    "Brother..."


    Xia Qingyuan had watched the scene unfold with the same level of astonishment. Her mind was blank, as well.


    They were not the only ones astonished. Everyone from Emperor Xia''s Realm that was present shared the sentiment.


    Many thoughts ran through their minds in that instant, and their hearts raced.


    Even the Swordmaster of Lihen took a good look at Xia Rong.


    That move had indeed been brutal and merciless.


    He killed Li Yao and robbed everyone else of any other options.


    Ye Futian had just promised to let go of Li Yao, and his people went back on his word. He was thinking of how to deal with the imperial advisor, now that Li Yao was dead.


    Furthermore, the imperial advisor had spoken in Ye Futian''s favor in front of all the mighty ones of Dali, guaranteeing the prince''s safety. However, there was no way he could go back to Emperor Li unscathed now that Li Yao was dead.


    The imperial advisor, Yan Yuan, and Mu Chunyang were baffled by what transpired in front of their eyes. All of it seemed to have happened too suddenly.


    They had understood that Ye Futian had been ready to let go of the prince instead of killing him.


    However, Xia Rong made his move.


    The faces of Yan Yuan and the others turned pale. Everything seemed to have happened as their teacher had predicted.


    Powerful Sword Will emanated from Yaya, who was standing in the air behind Ye Futian. The Light of Sword was brought to its limit on her. She took Ye Futian''s hand, intending to retreat with him.


    However, Ye Futian did not move, he stayed put in the air.


    He understood what Yaya was trying to do. The imperial advisor was a guarantor for Dali after all.


    The imperial advisor needed to first kill the man before his eyes before going back to Emperor Li.


    Both men were an arm''s length away from each other, so it would be easy for him to kill Ye Futian, just as easy as it was for Xia Rong to kill Li Yao.


    Ye Futian knew that without doubt. He was even very clear that if the imperial advisor insisted on killing him, Yaya would not be able to keep him safe.


    There would be no chance of him surviving at this distance.


    To fulfill his duty to Emperor Li, the imperial advisor needed to kill him. It had to be done.


    If he refused, it would be tantamount to treason.


    Xia Rong had cut off the imperial advisor''s escape route.


    His standpoint was that the imperial advisor had done nothing wrong. He posed an immense threat to Emperor Xia''s Realm, after all.


    The imperial advisor had stepped up to guarantee Li Yao''s safety, but now one was imagining what was going through Emperor Li''s mind now that Li Yao was dead.


    That move had been too brutal.


    Ye Futian felt a chill running throughout his body.


    "So this is the eldest prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm who had been training since he was young and grew up in battles of life and death?"


    "He really is brutal!"


    It was just like he put it, decisive and without mercy.


    Ye Futian might have ended up dead because of what he did.


    Yet, he showed no hint of mercy at all.


    He looked at Li Yao, who was already dead. He had been wanting to kill Li Yao for years, but not at a time like this, especially when the imperial advisor served to guarantee the prince''s safety.


    "Go back, Yaya," Ye Futian said with a light tone.


    Yaya looked at him with stubborn eyes. She added strength to her hand, intending to take him away.


    Ye Futian shook his head at her, and Yaya finally gave in. She turned around and looked at the imperial advisor and said, "He had nothing to do with this."


    Ye Futian looked at the imperial advisor with regret written all over his face.


    He understood that his teacher had stepped up to act as the guarantor out of trust for him.


    However, it was because of him that his teacher was caught in such a predicament.


    He lowered his head and felt speechless.


    "Regardless of your choice, teacher, I have nothing to say against it." Ye Futian then sighed.


    He would not have held a grudge against the imperial advisor even if he wanted to kill him on the spot.


    After all, he was the one who started it.


    The imperial advisor turned around and looked at the handsome face before him, sighing deeply.


    He, of course, knew that Ye Futian had nothing to do with the prince''s death, but that didn''t matter.


    He vouched for Ye Futian and volunteered to act as a guarantor, yet his majesty''s son died right before his eyes regardless.


    Who else would have been able to shoulder such a crime?


    Since he was the guarantor, there was no doubt that it would be him.


    There was only one thing left for him to do��fight to the death.


    Kill Ye Futian, kill Xia Rong, bring their heads to Emperor Li, and wage a war between realms. That was the only way for him to make amends.


    He was the only Holiness of Nirvana from Dali present, while the enemy had four. Xia Rong was an Unblemished Saint, which meant that there was no guarantee that the imperial advisor would have been able to kill him. Ye Futian, on the other hand, he could simply clap him to death right there and then.


    "But should I kill him?"


    Yan Yuan''s eyes were bloodshot. He looked at the two silhouettes looking at each other in the sky.


    Ye Futian had chosen to spare Li Yao''s life.


    He was able to see Ye Futian''s breadth of character from there.


    But then again, how would a teacher deal with such a predicament, and what choices would he have?


    His teacher, notwithstanding, felt the struggle deep in his mind.


    It was simply too painful to go with either option.


    The key, however, was that there were really no options to begin with.


    Betray Dali?


    Feixue is still at Dali.


    Furthermore, if Feixue is indeed around, would she be willing to let the teacher kill Ye Futian?


    She would probably suffer a pain worse than death.


    "Imperial advisor." Another voice was heard at that moment. Everyone turned to see Xia Qingyuan speaking.


    Xia Qingyuan stood where she was and looked up in the air. Her eyes, focused on the imperial advisor, looked adamant and determined.


    "It is indeed our fault that my brother has caused you to break your promise. However, this has nothing to do with Ye Futian. If you were to kill him, regardless of whatever else that happened, I would be forced to pay whatever price I have to pay to keep you and your students around."


    Xia Qingyuan''s voice had a murderous tinge to it. It was determined and undeniable. She, at that moment, sounded just like Xia Rong.


    Xia Rong was the eldest prince.


    She, on the other hand, was the most doted on of Emperor Xia''s daughters��a fact known by all.


    Xia Rong took looked at his little sister and sighed deeply. That was how it was when one let sentiments do the talking.


    "Why not choose to side with Emperor Xia''s Realm, imperial advisor? I''m willing to guarantee that your place in Emperor Xia''s Realm would definitely not be worse than your place in Emperor Li''s Realm. Xia Rong said, "Furthermore, Emperor Li is irritated by you, now. Judging by the words of the Prince Regent, I''m sure you know what is going on, imperial advisor."


    Ye Futian turned and cast a cold glance at Xia Rong.


    "You''re telling him to betray his emperor?"


    He knew how much the imperial advisor cherished Feixue. His fatherly love for her was as great as the mountains. Honor and duty aside, Feixue was still in Dali, so there was no way for the imperial advisor to betray his emperor.


    Ye Futian had been advising the imperial advisor in secret, to have him consider moving to the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Xia Rong had, instead, cut off any escape for the imperial advisor. What he did was tantamount to pushing the imperial advisor off of a ledge.


    If anything were to happen to the imperial advisor, Dali would lose a combatant at the pinnacle of his powers. If a war between realms were to break out, Emperor Xia''s Realm had something to gain, as well.


    Furthermore, the imperial advisor''s status in Emperor Li''s Realm was such that, if anything were to happen to him, news would quickly spread and cause a massive ripple. At the very least, the power of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence would be dismantled right away.


    All eyes looked at the imperial advisor high in the air. Everyone was waiting for his decision.


    The imperial advisor appeared very calm at the moment. Wind blew and his robe billowed.


    Neither Xia Qingyuan''s determined threat nor Xia Rong''s persuasion moved him.


    He was still as calm as he had always been. He looked at the young man before him and eventually sighed.


    "This is fate, I guess."


    He had been able to foretell all of this before he came.


    But he was still unable to run from any of it, and unable to run, he saw fit to take things as they came instead.


    "Ye Futian," the imperial advisor called. His voice was calm and gentle, without the slightest hint of being fettered.


    "I''m here." Ye Futian lowered his head slightly and answered.


    "I''d like to share two lines with you before we part," the imperial advisor continued.


    That indicated that he had made his decision.


    Ye Futian looked up at the imperial advisor and wondered, "Is he getting ready to shoulder everything on his own?"


    His eyes reddened somewhat as if sand had gotten into them.


    "A wise man does not stand beneath a collapsing wall," the imperial advisor said. That was the first line he shared with Ye Futian. The young man knew that his teacher was talking about their current predicament.


    Ye Futian was, at the moment, putting himself beneath a collapsing wall. If the imperial advisor were to attempt to kill him, there was no chance he''d survive.


    His previous action of infiltrating Dali as the Seventh Swordsman was in the same vein��he was putting himself beneath a collapsing wall.


    The imperial advisor then turned around and walked, telling Yan Yuan and the others, "Let''s go."


    Yan Yuan looked at his teacher and then at Ye Futian. His steps were heavy, but since his teacher had made the decision, all of them moved nonetheless and followed their teacher.


    "What is the second line?" Ye Futian then called, looking at his teacher''s back.


    "As heaven''s movement is ever vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive," the imperial advisor said loudly to Ye Futian with his back to him. The brimming voice was imbued with a virtuous aura.


    Ye Futian''s eyes turned even redder. He clenched his fist tightly as he looked at the silhouette that was gradually disappearing from his sight.


    As heaven''s movement is ever vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive. The next line to that would have been "as the earth''s condition is receptive devotion, a wise man shall develop an all-encompassing breadth of character."


    "You are of a breadth of character that is all-encompassing, teacher. Yet why do you put yourself under a collapsing wall?" Ye Futian yelled at the figure who was disappearing.


    His teacher had spared him, which meant that his teacher would now be in more serious trouble.


    One of Emperor Li''s sons perished, and the imperial advisor had the opportunity to kill the one who caused his death. Sparing the killer will come with severe implications.


    The mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm looked at the imperial advisor''s disappearing silhouette, and they felt pity for him. While those present were on opposing sides, and it was the first time many met him, they nonetheless developed respect for him from the bottom of their hearts.


    So, this is the imperial advisor of Dali then!

 1219 Return

    "As heaven''s movement is ever vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive."


    The voice of Dali''s imperial advisor reverberated in the minds of everyone present. The ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm never knew that the legendary figure who was serving their enemy, Emperor Li of the Dali Dynasty, held Ye Futian in such high regard.


    While the parties were on opposing sides, the imperial advisor had truly taken Ye Futian as his student. He definitely would not have put his neck at risk for Ye Futian under any other circumstances.


    The ones from the Dali Dynasty had left, but everything happening there was no secret, and many from afar witnessed the imperial advisor spare Ye Futian.


    The first thing that the imperial advisor should have done after Li Yao died was kill Ye Futian right before his eyes.


    However, he chose to simply leave.


    "Would there still be an imperial advisor of Dali left after this?"


    Ye Futian turned around and walked towards Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Rong took one look at Ye Futian and said nothing more.


    He could tell from his expression that Ye Futian would not understand what he did on that day. He knew that Ye Futian was different from the others. Ye Futian would not have submitted to Xia Rong just because he was a part of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Ye Futian had a very notable attitude.


    Xia Rong already knew that because of how Ye Futian dared to go to the Xiao clan just to kill Xiao Sheng. What was done, was done. Xia Rong did not bother explaining anything; it would have been pointless.


    The imperial advisor of Dali was indeed an opponent deserving respect, yet at the same time, he was also a dangerous opponent. The imperial advisor had to shoulder the responsibility of Li Yao''s death. Even if he had chosen to kill Ye Futian, it would have been difficult for him to regain Emperor Li''s trust.


    Worse still, he did not do anything to Ye Futian. The outcome was settled by then. Regardless of how encompassing and tolerant Emperor Li might have been, there was no way he would have forgiven a traitor.


    What the imperial advisor did that day was tantamount to treason.


    When he returned, he would probably have to atone for his crimes through death.


    Xia Qingyuan lowered her head a bit after seeing Ye Futian walking and feeling rather restrained.


    She never anticipated any of that either. While the actions of her brother were understandable from the standpoint of Emperor Xia''s Realm, he was nonetheless devoid of honor��what he did put both Ye Futian and the imperial advisor in a bind.


    It was especially so from Ye Futian''s standpoint. What Xia Rong did was unforgivable.


    As such, she was feeling very terrible at the moment.


    "Retreat from the Crimson Emperor Realm and return to Emperor Xia''s Realm," Xia Rong said at that moment. Everyone turned around to look at Xia Rong. Many heeded his order and followed him, especially those whom he brought.


    Xia Rong was the Deputy General of Tian and held extremely high prestige in the army. The Tian Army was the number one legion in Emperor Xia''s Realm, so one can imagine what Xia Rong''s status was. He was a hardened prince who grew up on battlefields.


    However, not everyone heeded Xia Rong''s orders. He was indeed the eldest prince, but some, like the Swordmaster of Lihen, were of the Holiness of Nirvana and did not serve Emperor Xia directly, which meant that princes and princesses held no sway over them. Only Emperor Xia had the authority to give them direct orders; everyone else could only request things of them.


    That was how it was with the Great Shaman. While he would have respected the princes and princesses, only Emperor Xia would have been able to truly give him direct orders.


    As such, the mighty ones were taking a rather peculiar stance after Xia Rong spoke. The Swordmaster of Lihen did not budge, looking in Ye Futian''s direction instead. He was aware of everything taking place that day. The Swordmaster of Lihen had bestowed his sword to Ye Wuchen, and he was not doing that simply because of Ye Wuchen''s sword training; Ye Futian played a part in influencing that decision.


    From the look of things, Ye Futian appeared to be extraordinary in more than just his talents. Even an imperial advisor of an enemy nation, capable of throwing his weight around in his home country, treated Ye Futian differently.


    As for Lu You, he stood behind Princess Xia Qingyuan.


    Lu You had been following Emperor Xia all those years ago, yet at present, he was tasked with protecting Xia Qingyuan most of the time. As such, he was partial to listening to Xia Qingyuan''s orders instead of Xia Rong''s orders.


    Things on Emperor Xia''s side looked rather peculiar at the moment, having lost harmony from when everyone shared the same thought. The atmosphere suggested that something had happened among the men, despite no one saying anything after what transpired between Ye Futian and the imperial advisor.


    "Let''s head back to Emperor Xia''s Realm," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan. He needed to return immediately.


    "Yeah." Xia Qingyuan looked at his eyes and nodded. Many followed afterward as if factions had been split between Xia Rong and Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Rong looked at the other side and said nothing. He flashed and moved, getting ready to return to Emperor Xia''s Realm through the teleportation grand matrix.


    Ye Futian walked up to Shen Tianzhan before he left and said, "Thank you for helping out with the battle, senior, but it seems that there will be some changes to what was promised. For that, I am sorry. Please be careful out here, senior."


    "Will do." Shen Tianzhan nodded. He then looked at Ye Futian and said, "I shall wait for you to return to the Crimson Dragon Realm."


    Despite having participated in a battle fought mainly between those from Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm, he was mostly excluded from the equation. The ones that Emperor Li''s Realm targeted were those from Emperor Xia''s Realm. He wouldn''t have a problem if he was more careful in the future.


    Ye Futian then looked up at Shen Tianzhan. Waiting for his return seemed to have deep implications.


    From the looks of things, he and Ye Futian would be on opposite sides in the future. However, Shen Tianzhan said that, instead, he would wait for Ye Futian in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded and left with the large group.


    Shen Tianzhan pondered about something as he looked at the silhouettes disappearing. He knew that both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had extraordinary talents, but that was all. As such, when Ye Futian requested for him to help out, he agreed.


    Despite what had transpired, he did not regret participating in the battle.


    He thought that he had made the right decision.


    He did not know of the relationship between the imperial advisor of Dali and Ye Futian. However, it was extraordinary for a pinnacle saint to have such breadth of character. The imperial advisor was indeed legendary, and Shen Tianzhan did not think that he was capable of doing the same deeds as the imperial advisor.


    The imperial advisor did what he did for Ye Futian. He knew little of the young man, but for him to sacrifice himself for another young man showed what kind of character Ye Futian was.


    If Ye Futian was someone for whom the imperial advisor saw fit to sacrifice himself, there was no doubt that the battle had been worthwhile for Shen Tianzhan.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm was imperial, but it was just one realm in the Crimson Dragon Region. If Ye Futian were as extraordinary as he seemed, it was only a matter of time before he would venture out of the realm.


    Many mighty ones from Qianye City witnessed the battle. They were incredibly shaken by what they saw.


    It was especially so in the case of Kong Xuan, Xiang Nan, and the others. Kong Xuan stood in the air, her hair billowing in the wind. The parting between the imperial advisor and Ye Futian was something that stuck in her mind; it was unforgettable.


    There would have been a storm brewing between the Dali Dynasty and Emperor Xia''s Realm soon.


    A tidal wave would sweep through the inner affairs of the Dali Dynasty.


    ***


    The Imperial Advisor''s Residence in the Dali Dynasty was peaceful and quiet at the moment.


    He had brought his people to the Crimson Dragon Realm. Nan Zhai and Feixue were the only two students left in the residence.


    At that moment, Feixue was touching a painting on a table. Nan Zhai was by her side; he had painted it.


    "It seems that your art has seen a lot of improvements, second brother," Feixue smiled as she said it. She was unable to see the painting, but she was, nonetheless, able to sense it through her hands.


    "If you were able to see this with your own eyes, Feixue, it''d be even more surprising," Nan Zhai said and smiled.


    "Really?" Feixue smiled faintly. "I, too, want to open my eyes. I''d be able to see the other elder brothers."


    "Just the elder ones?" Nan Zhai asked sheepishly, "No younger ones involved?"


    Feixue''s smile brimmed, and she nodded slightly, "If the Seventh Swordsman is here, I''d definitely like to know what he looks like."


    "He is very good-looking." Nan Zhai smiled and added, "More so than eldest brother and fifth brother."


    Yan Yuan and Lu Chuan were both considered dashing figures.


    Feixue smiled showing her dimples, but then she quickly frowned a bit and seemed to have recalled something unpleasant. She turned her face away and said, "I wonder how father and the others are doing in the Crimson Dragon Realm."


    She did not want to see her father standing against Ye Futian, and she did not want to see either their father or Ye Futian hurt.


    "Teacher should be able to see it well," Nan Zhai said. However, his tone sounded rather flighty. It was apparent that he was concerned, as well.


    At that moment, Nan Zhai extended his will, and he frowned slightly. His expression changed somewhat.


    His heart gradually sank.


    "Feixue, it''s best to rest early," Nan Zhai said quietly.


    "Right." Feixue nodded and left. Nan Zhai sent her back to her room and then sat cross-legged right outside, closed his eyes, and trained. His will shrouded the vast space around him and every movement within the shrouded area was unable to escape his notice.


    "Something happened?"


    However, nothing had happened. Everything was still in order, but Nan Zhai knew that the Imperial Advisor''s Residence had been targeted.


    Few in the entire Dali Dynasty dared to keep a close eye on the place.


    Furthermore, his observation was done at such a sensitive time, so Nan Zhai was only able to speculate the worst outcome possible��something might have happened in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    However, since his teacher had yet to return, he didn''t know what had happened.


    ***


    That same day at the royal palace in Emperor Xia''s Realm, Ye Futian and the others returned.


    They went to the top of the royal palace alongside Xia Qingyuan. The Great Shaman was around, as well. They came to see Emperor Xia in the palace that was surrounded and permeated by clouds.


    "Please help us out, your majesty," Ye Futian said and bowed immediately after seeing Emperor Xia.


    Emperor Xia looked at Ye Futian and then at Xia Qingyuan. He noted their solemn expressions and then turned towards the Great Shaman and asked, "Great Shaman, what happened?"


    "Your majesty." The Great Shaman bowed slightly and elaborated on what happened in the Crimson Dragon Realm, while Emperor Xia listened intently and quietly.


    When the Great Shaman finished, the emperor turned to Ye Futian and said, "What would you need me to do?"


    "I would like you to depart for Dali, your majesty." Ye Futian bowed yet again. The only person capable of saving the imperial advisor at that moment was Emperor Xia.

 1220 Royal Palace of Dali

    Emperor Xia pondered over what was asked of him, turned to look at Ye Futian, and said, "Ye Futian, this is an internal affair of the Dali Dynasty. If a war between realms were to break out, if I were to simply interfere and take the imperial advisor away, Emperor Li can just show up at Emperor Xia''s Realm and take him back, no?"


    Even if a war were to break out, there still needed to be a balance. Renhuangs would have attacked easily. If they were to kill people below the Renhuang plane, it would be tantamount to genocide. No one else would be able to fight the Renhuangs.


    Emperor Xia claimed that even if a war were to break out, the imperial advisor was still a representative of the Dali Dynasty. If he were to interfere in the imperial advisor''s execution through the use of force, it would anger Emperor Li.


    Ye Futian knew that, which was why he advised the imperial advisor to consider settling in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "Father," Xia Qingyuan called. The emperor turned to her.


    Shen then said, "We remained on the defensive in the battle at Crimson Dragon Realm. We retaliated only after Li Yao and the others made a move against us. Li Yao was also leading the others to violate principles of the Battle of Empty Realm. Do you think that we took everything thrown at us lying down?"


    The emperor looked at them and, with a bitter smile, shook his head. He then said to Ye Futian, "I shall take you to Emperor Li''s Realm, but I''m afraid that Emperor Li is already thinking about what to do with the imperial advisor as we speak. I can''t guarantee the outcome of the matter. The fate of the imperial advisor and the Imperial Advisor''s Residence depend solely on them."


    "Thank you, your majesty," Ye Futian bowed. Despite what Emperor Xia said, there was hope as long as he was willing to act on his own.


    Emperor Xia lifted his head and, in an instant, his will swept all over the place.


    The Will of Renhuang was tremendously powerful, capable of shrouding vast areas within mere moments, enveloping the entire royal palace within. It continued to extend outwards, reaching extremely far places.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen had just returned to Lihen Heaven. He then looked up at the 33rd Layer of Heaven and said, "Your majesty."


    A spectral face appeared in Lihen Heaven, and it was none other than Emperor Xia''s face.


    "I''m going to Dali for a bit, would you mind joining me?" Emperor Xia asked.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen nodded and answered, "Not at all."


    "We shall depart immediately," the emperor said.


    There were also several other mighty figures there aside from the Swordmaster of Lihen, who received Emperor Xia''s orders. They took to the air right away.


    A gale swept through Emperor Xia''s Palace and Will of Renhuang swept all over the place, taking many within.


    Ye Futian was also in that storm. His silhouette vanished from the palace at that moment. Not even he knew where he was going.


    Xia Qingyuan stayed where she was. She stood as she watched the people in front of her vanish.


    Emperor Xia, Ye Futian, and the Great Shaman had disappeared, taken away by her father.


    Countless people in the royal palace looked up at the palace in the Ninth Layer of Heaven. All of them sensed the raging might, and they wondered where Emperor Xia was heading.


    Xia Rong was also in the royal palace. He initially intended to see his father, but he quickly noticed the changing clouds in the sky. He was somewhat shocked but knew that Ye Futian had gone along with Xia Qingyuan to see his father.


    "Is father heading to the Dali Dynasty now?" he wondered.


    ***


    When Ye Futian and the others returned to Emperor Xia''s Palace, the mighty ones from Dali who had gone to the Crimson Dragon Realm returned to the Dali Dynasty.


    News swept throughout Dali Imperial City��the imperial advisor had betrayed Dali, aiding those from Emperor Xia''s Realm who were responsible for Li Yao''s death and letting them escape.


    The news was earth-shattering, causing a huge commotion throughout the city. Everyone sensed that a terrifying storm was coming.


    No one had completely forgotten what had happened when the imperial advisor had let Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm escape. That caused quite a bit of noise in Dali, and the Prince Regent dealt with it personally. Now, another incident of such magnitude happened again, and everyone wondered what consequences awaited.


    Furthermore, some high-level figures had long known of Li Yao''s death, and the news came from Emperor Li''s Palace.


    However, no one knew exactly what had happened just yet.


    As the news of the imperial advisor''s treason spread, one could imagine the intense commotion it caused.


    All of Dali Imperial City became shrouded in a stifling atmosphere.


    The imperial advisor of Dali had been a top-notch figure who had served one and reigned above all in the Dali Dynasty.


    Nan Zhai caught wind of the news in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, and he finally understood why the place was being watched.


    Something had happened, after all.


    Li Yao had been killed in Crimson Dragon Realm. His teacher had gone there to take charge of the battle, and so his teacher naturally was responsible for Li Yao''s death.


    But just how did Li Yao die?


    And how did such news spread?


    Things in the royal palace were dreadful. A thundercloud seemed to have shrouded everyone''s heads.


    The imperial advisor was someone with great influence in the royal palace, even affecting the supreme being he served.


    It was said that he sold out his nation, so one could imagine what was going through the mind of that supreme being.


    A group of mighty ones stepped into Dali Imperial City.


    The imperial advisor, the Prince Regent, Li Zhen, the third prince, Cao Kong, the demonic leader, and many other top-notch figures were there. They had traveled straight for the royal palace at blitzing speeds above Emperor Li''s Realm.


    The imperial advisor was surrounded, at his flanks, by the Prince Regent, Cao Kong, and all the others. They looked extremely cold.


    Regardless of how encompassing and tolerant the imperial advisor had acted��a testament of his breadth of character, Ye Futian was nonetheless seen as an enemy of Dali.


    Murderous intent was vaguely in the Prince Regent''s eyes even as he deemed the imperial advisor''s actions as a death wish.


    In the past, he had waited for the imperial advisor to make a mistake so that he could ask the advisor to step down from the center of power. It would enable the Prince Regent to reclaim his powers and retake the glory that belonged to the royal members of Dali.


    He never thought of killing the imperial advisor, though. Not even Emperor Li would do anything against the imperial advisor unless he had committed some grave, utterly unforgivable crime.


    However, the imperial advisor had indeed committed a grave, utterly unforgivable crime.


    It was more than just the death of Li Yao. If the prince were to die in battle, the imperial advisor might have only needed to shoulder some responsibility for it.


    The case was worse because despite being the imperial advisor of Dali, he did nothing after Li Yao died. He had gone so far as to spare Ye Futian, the man who Dali wanted to capture, the man responsible for causing Li Yao''s death.


    What he did amounted to treason.


    "Imperial advisor," the Prince Regent called after seeing him stop.


    "Yan Yuan, get back to the house with everyone else," the imperial advisor said to Yan Yuan and those around him.


    The Prince Regent frowned and said, "Best head to see his majesty first."


    The imperial advisor shot a plain glance at him and continued, "I''m the only one responsible for the offense. I would go with you all to his majesty to stand trial. It has nothing to do with my students."


    The Prince Regent wanted to insist, but he did not say much more after seeing the imperial advisor''s cold expression, "After you, then."


    If Yan Yuan and the others were to leave with the imperial advisor, they would have nowhere to go.


    They would likely get pinned down in Dali Imperial City.


    Yan Yuan stopped and looked to where his teacher headed. Mu Chunyang and the others were at his side, as well. None of them followed their teacher although they wanted very much to do so.


    "Let''s head back," Yan Yuan said. He knew his teacher''s intentions and remembered what his teacher had said to him.


    "Look after Feixue."


    Even if something were to happen to their teacher, all of them still had their missions to accomplish.


    As such, they did not head to the royal palace with the imperial advisor.


    Countless witnesses looked up at Emperor Li''s path, seeing the imperial advisor and the others streaking by. They were reluctant to believe that the imperial advisor had betrayed Dali.


    It seemed impossible.


    If the imperial advisor had intended to betray Dali, he wouldn''t have needed to wait until now.


    Furthermore, the imperial advisor had no reason to betray Dali.


    Those who had immense respect for the imperial advisor had a hard time believing any of the accusations.


    However, all of them felt extreme anxiety seeing the looks of the ones traveling above.


    Many had even headed to and gathered around the royal palace, wanting to receive first-hand news, to see what would happen from that point on in the royal palace.


    The royal palace was already a sight. The atmosphere both in and around it was stifling.


    The imperial advisor looked at the majestic palace buildings and sighed deeply.


    He was trained in the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, enabling him to see things that a lot of people were unable to see. It was all very mystical.


    He knew that the trip would not be a smooth one, that it would affect the fate of Dali. However, some matters were set in stone, and even if one were able to foresee them, it did not mean that one could simply change those matters as they wished.


    The group walked towards the royal palace with especially heavy steps.


    The atmosphere throughout the entire royal palace seemed unusually severe, and a lot of people were around.


    They walked towards the tall, majestic, grand hall in the royal palace one step at a time. Many mighty ones were around. Even members of the royal family were present.


    A figure was seen standing above the steps of that hall. He looked supreme and undeniable simply by standing and looking on those below him.


    That figure was none other than Emperor Li.


    The Prince Regent and the others arrived. The Prince Regent took Li Yao''s body from the person behind him.


    He carried Li Yao, walked to the steps, and then knelt on the floor, putting Li Yao down.


    "I have failed, your majesty. Please see to my punishment," the Prince Regent said, and his voice was heard throughout the air.


    Everyone claimed that it was the imperial advisor who had committed treason and was to blame.


    But then again, those high-level figures had also some responsibility for the death of his majesty''s son.


    The Prince Regent would not have been foolish enough to attack the imperial advisor. He apologized for his mistakes before anything else.


    "I, too, have failed you, father," Li Zhen the third prince knelt on the ground, lowering his head and not daring to look at Emperor Li.


    Emperor Li stood at the top of the steps and looked at Li Yao''s dead body. He then stepped forward and began walking down.


    He walked very slowly, and everyone focused on each step. Many knelt and silently prostrated themselves on the ground.


    Emperor Li did not have the highest regard for Li Yao, nonetheless, he was of the emperor''s bloodline and his biological offspring. One could only imagine the implications of his majesty''s son dying out there.


    Even if the emperor were to punish all of them, it would still have been reasonable.

 1221 Emperor Lis Maneuvers

    Emperor Li walked down the steps of the palace and came before Li Yao, looking in an emotionless manner at his son who was lying there quietly.


    No one could tell by the expression on the emperor''s face what he was thinking. However, everyone sensed an extremely stifling aura. If the emperor unleashed his might, that aura alone would have prevented anyone from standing straight.


    The royal palace was dead silent.


    Such extreme silence spoke of extreme dread.


    The imperial advisor looked at Emperor Li and bowed, saying, "Your majesty, it is my fault that his highness perished. Please see to my punishment."


    He lowered his head and did not defend himself. The evidence lay right before him, and any argument would have been pointless.


    He had already decided in Qianye City of the Crimson Dragon Realm that he would shoulder the blame, taking whatever punishments were dealt.


    The emperor continued to look at Li Yao, his head lowered as if he had not heard anything the imperial advisor said.


    The wind blew, and everyone in the palace felt a chill as if the place were very cold.


    Emperor Li finally moved. He lifted his head slowly, looked at the Prince Regent, and then at Li Zhen before he looked at the others. His eyes eventually rested on the imperial advisor.


    "Imperial advisor, have I ever been unkind to you?" Emperor Li asked.


    The Prince Regent knew what was going to happen upon hearing the emperor''s words.


    The era that belonged to the imperial advisor was over.


    The imperial advisor could have made many mistakes, but the one that he had just committed was one that no man who stood at the pinnacle of power would ever understand.


    He had committed treason.


    He may have needed only to kill Ye Futian or at least fought him in a frenzy for a while, and his majesty would have forgiven him regardless of the outcome of the fight.


    However, he did nothing.


    "I have indeed failed to meet your expectations despite all that you have done for me, your majesty," continued the imperial advisor as he bowed.


    "Why did you choose to betray Dali for a single person?" Emperor Li asked.


    The emperor knew what had transpired, and he knew that the imperial advisor had done what he had done for one person��Ye Futian.


    That young man had once infiltrated Dali as the Seventh Swordsman. He was unable to understand why the imperial advisor disregarded it and insisted on sending Ye Futian, a Sage at the time, away.


    And now, Li Yao, a prince, had been killed, and he still refused to make a move against Ye Futian.


    The emperor knew what it meant, and yet the imperial advisor made such a choice all the same.


    He was unable to understand.


    The emperor had sent the imperial advisor to the Crimson Dragon Realm hoping that the imperial advisor would have been able to make a choice.


    And here was the outcome of the emperor''s efforts.


    "I was aware of your expectations, your majesty. However, there were other matters that I was aware of, and yet unable to bring myself to do what you expected. I had no intention of betraying the Dali Dynasty, but that was the way things turned out to be, nonetheless. I have no intention of speaking for myself, but Yan Yuan even suffered severe damage to protect the ninth prince. I hope you would be able to forgive him and allow all of them to choose their own paths. I do hereby swear that they would not hold any grudges against Dali."


    The imperial advisor bowed and knelt saying, "I am willing to be sentenced to death to atone for my crimes."


    The entire royal palace was moved.


    The most supreme figure under the emperor of the Dali Dynasty asked to be sentenced to death.


    He intended to shoulder all crimes on his own.


    He did not argue nor did he try to weasel out of his predicament.


    Emperor Li then looked at the imperial advisor with intense disappointment in his eyes. He then said, "Imperial advisor, you should understand that this is not what I wish to see."


    The imperial advisor kept his hands flat on the ground and said nothing.


    He knew what the emperor would have wanted and knew what he should have done to survive.


    However, he did not do so because then he would no longer be who he was; he would have never spared Ye Futian in the Crimson Dragon Realm in the first place.


    "Imperial advisor, shouldn''t you be asking for mercy, that I absolve you of your crimes instead?" The emperor saw that the imperial advisor was unmoved, and his eyes looked increasingly imposing and stern. An even more terrifying aura washed all over the heads of everyone.


    The Prince Regent lay prostrated on the ground and felt extremely shaken. He was jealous of the imperial advisor.


    He knew what the emperor meant between the lines.


    The emperor remained reluctant to kill the imperial advisor. He wanted to give the imperial advisor a chance.


    However, the imperial advisor did not want a chance.


    The emperor was already dropping hints that if he was willing to ask for forgiveness, that the emperor would absolve him of his crimes. If he was willing to atone through his future merits, submit to and fight for Dali, and be willing to kill Ye Futian in revenge for Li Yao, there would be a chance for him still.


    Emperor Li was willing to forgive and continue to use him.


    However, the imperial advisor did not do any of that.


    He had said that there were matters that he was aware of and yet was unable to bring himself to do them.


    He deemed fighting for Dali and killing Ye Futian off-limits.


    "Is he really making a death wish there?"


    The Prince Regent was puzzled by what was going on in the imperial advisor''s mind and why he was so insistent.


    He jealously grew. The prince perished, the imperial advisor had done nothing, and still, the emperor was willing to give him another chance.


    The imperial advisor was perhaps the only person in all of Dali who would have been given such treatment.


    There definitely would not have been another.


    He knew that if their places had been switched and if he had done what the imperial advisor had done, the emperor might not have given him��even being the emperor''s nephew��another chance.


    He knew that deep down.


    Seeing that the imperial advisor remained unmoved, the emperor''s eyes showed intense disappointment yet again.


    It was more than just his betrayal at the Crimson Dragon Realm; it was that the imperial advisor no longer intended to serve him.


    "Prince Regent, take Li Yao and do what you have to with him," Emperor Li said.


    "Yes, your majesty," the Prince Regent answered and nodded before taking Li Yao''s body away.


    He knew that Emperor Li had made a decision.


    If the imperial advisor was making a death wish and was unwilling to save himself, no one could save him.


    Emperor Li was willing to give him a chance, and yet he simply threw that chance away.


    The emperor then turned around and walked up the steps. Standing on top, he gazed at the people below. His eyes eventually rested on the imperial advisor.


    "Imperial advisor, I would be willing to forgive you for any mistakes, but you shouldn''t have let me down in such a manner." The emperor kept looking at the imperial advisor as he slowly said, "The imperial advisor has betrayed the Dali Dynasty. I shall spare his life because of all he has done for Dali throughout the years, allowing him to be rid of his training by his own hands and be incarcerated."


    The emperor was not speaking loudly, but his will shrouded the entire Dali Imperial City nonetheless. His voice was heard throughout the city.


    In that instant, countless people in Dali Imperial City felt a shock within and were extremely overwhelmed.


    Everyone had been paying attention to this case of the imperial advisor betraying his nation.


    Then Emperor Li declared that the imperial advisor had committed treason. Those who were reluctant to believe that felt as if something in them died.


    "The imperial advisor had indeed betrayed Dali?" they wondered.


    They felt their hearts bleeding and a sense of dread deep down, especially those who had practically worshipped the imperial advisor.


    Countless members of the younger generations looked up to the imperial advisor, seeing him as a role model, success like his was a goal they trained diligently for throughout the years.


    The emperor''s voice felt like the sky crashing onto their heads.


    The sky that lived vividly in their minds was no more.


    The imperial advisor helped build the Dali Dynasty to what it was on that day, but now he was sentenced to give up his training and be imprisoned.


    At that moment, many in the Dali Academy looked up to the sky, and some knelt on the ground, saying, "Please pardon the imperial advisor, your majesty."


    The sounds of so many people kowtowing on the ground emanated ceaselessly from the Dali Academy. They were heard saying loudly," Please pardon the imperial advisor, your majesty."


    That was not all. As they pleaded on behalf of the imperial advisor, the space right outside the royal palace turned black from the massive crowd kneeling.


    Many were astonished by what was happening. The imperial advisor was probably the only person in Dali who commanded such prestige.


    None of them could see Emperor Li, but they all knew that because the emperor''s will had shrouded the entire city, he could hear their pleas.


    Yan Yuan, Feixue and the others heard the emperor''s voice in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, and they, too, felt as if the sky had come down on them.


    No doubt, it was a shock like no other for everyone in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    Feixue''s face was ashen in an instant, devoid of any color. Her steps became erratic as she struggled to stand still. Yan Yuan held her still.


    Tears flowed from those blind eyes of hers. She bit her lip, keeping herself from crying.


    "Father sentenced him to end his training and be imprisoned?"


    Yan Yuan looked up, his eyes were red even though he had speculated that things would end up this way once his teacher had decided to take the blame for everything.


    The students of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence did not kneel nor plead. The emperor''s voice was heard throughout the entire city, and they figured that pleading would be pointless.


    The emperor had made his decision, and there was no changing his mind. No one could easily change the mind of a Renhuang.


    "The imperial advisor confessed voluntarily to his crimes and asked for a death sentence. I did not want to pardon him. However, given his contributions to the Dali Dynasty, throughout the years, I have decided to appoint Li Zhen, the third prince, as King Zhen, and the daughter of the imperial advisor as Queen Zhen. The Imperial Advisor''s Residence shall remain as it is. The eldest student of the imperial advisor, Yan Yuan, shall be a candidate for imperial advisor, and he shall be appointed as the next chief of Dali Academy, to continue to foster capable people for Dali. He shall take the position of imperial advisor when he becomes a Holiness of Nirvana."


    At that moment in Dali Imperial City, the minds of the people were shaken by the emperor''s words.


    While the imperial advisor had betrayed Dali and was subsequently tried and imprisoned, his daughter became the queen. She was married to Li Zhen, the third prince who was the most extraordinary of the princes. If he succeeds his father in the future and rules over the nation, the imperial advisor''s daughter shall reign over the nation with him. It was glory of the highest order.


    The imperial advisor''s crimes did not harm those close to him. Instead, they had been rewarded.


    Even Yan Yuan, one of the imperial advisor''s students, would be able to become the imperial advisor in the future. Such was the breadth of the emperor''s grace.


    Is this the bearing of a Renhuang?


    In the royal palace, the Prince Regent''s mind was extremely shaken, as well, impressed by what the emperor had done. It was not something that the Prince Regent would be capable of doing.


    He had speculated about what the emperor might do with the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, but he never expected something like this.


    Feixue was married to Li Zhen and would be given the title of queen. Li Zhen was the most highly regarded prince, and no one doubted the emperor''s decision. People were impressed by the grace that he had shown.


    Furthermore, the students of the imperial advisor were all extraordinary people, and the emperor had chosen to continue valuing them instead of acting against them. He had even prepared Yan Yuan to take the imperial advisor''s position in the future.


    With Feixue entering the palace as queen, Yan Yuan and the others would never act against the royal family. Furthermore, Yan Yuan would have the chance to keep the royal family members in check once he became a Holiness of Nirvana.


    Everyone was astonished by how the game was played. Their emperor was their emperor for good reasons.


    The imperial advisor looked up at the emperor. He knew that if he shouldered the blame, the emperor would not have vented frustration at the Imperial Advisor''s Residence for the time being. The emperor may have wanted to harm them, but the timing was inconvenient.


    Furthermore, all of his students had vibrant luck and destinies, unlike him. What happened was not something that he could have ever predicted, so he simply went with the flow.


    He never anticipated that things would turn out as such!

 1222 Fall of the Imperial Advisor

    The emperor''s move not only showed the magnificence of his imperial bearing and might but also enabled him to use Feixue as a hostage.


    There was no way Feixue could have joined the palace''s ranks and become a queen.


    The imperial advisor said to Emperor Li, "I thank you, your majesty, for pardoning the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. However, Feixue is blind and her body is frail. I''m afraid that she would not be worthy of such an honor. As for Yan Yuan and the others, I''m afraid that they will have their reservations because of what happened to me. I ask you to allow them to choose their own path."


    Emperor Li lowered his head and looked at the imperial advisor with much disappointment. He was confident that he had been very good to the imperial advisor, but it seemed that the imperial advisor had never truly been willing to serve him wholeheartedly.


    The imperial advisor outright refused to serve him any further and even asked for his daughter and students to be pardoned. He hoped that none of his students would have to serve the emperor in the future.


    "The people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence are to come to the royal palace at once," Emperor Li said with a booming voice that was heard throughout Dali Imperial City, including the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    Yan Yuan, Feixue, and the others were at the residence and heard the emperor''s decree. They were speechless.


    Emperor Li wanted to get rid of the imperial advisor, yet he had other plans for the rest of them.


    "We all are willing to leave Emperor Li''s Realm and never come back. We shall also never become enemies with Dali. Please let us be on our way," Yan Yuan said with a voice that was heard everywhere.


    Yan Yuan knew what his teacher''s choice was, and he respected all that his teacher did for them.


    At present, he only wanted to finish what his teacher hoped for��take Feixue and leave that messy place of a nation.


    He did not think of going all out to save his teacher, nor did he bother pleading, as all of that would have been pointless.


    Yan Yuan, the first student of the imperial advisor of Dali, had indeed inherited everything from his teacher.


    "Prepare to welcome those from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence into the royal palace," ordered Emperor Li.


    Many mighty ones from the royal palace took to the air and headed for the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    They were going to bring Feixue and the others into the royal palace.


    However, Emperor Li frowned all of a sudden before looking up at the sky. Boundless might and pressure swept out causing the people in the royal palace to tremble. It seemed as if a Renhuang was shrouding the entire place.


    Emperor Li was angered.


    "What is happening?"


    He never showed such a severe, solemn side even when he was looking at Li Yao''s body or dealing with the imperial advisor''s treason.


    Clouds rolled in and a terrifying might from the heavens arrived.


    A single will shrouded the entire Dali Imperial City and made people tremble as they looked to the sky with frightened expressions.


    "Who is that?"


    It was Renhuang-level might and pressure, just like that of Emperor Li.


    Renhuangs from foreign imperial realms were coming to the imperial city of the Dali Dynasty. It was no surprise why Emperor Li was in such an extreme mood.


    "Is there a need to force others to go against their own will, Emperor Li?" asked a voice from above that all within Dali Imperial City could hear.


    They looked up to the sky and saw a group of descending gods.


    It was especially clear in the royal palace. A group had appeared in the sky, and the one taking the lead was a supreme Renhuang indeed.


    The hearts of the people raced as Emperor Xia arrived.


    "This is a matter for Dali. Since when did you, Emperor Xia, get to interfere?" Emperor Li said in a very calm tone looking at the silhouette in the sky.


    "The affairs of Dali are indeed none of my business, however, the Dali Dynasty had provoked Emperor Xia''s Realm time and again. As such, I have brought some of the strongest figures to be found in our realm to spar against the pinnacle figures of Dali. I''d like to see how your training had been progressing, Emperor Li," Emperor Xia said, and a group of silhouettes descended from the sky to his side.


    Every one of them was at the pinnacle of Saint Plane.


    Among them was the Great Shaman, the Swordmaster of Lihen, Lu You, and even the Sacred General of Tian.


    All four Holiness of Nirvana saints had arrived in Dali Imperial City with Emperor Xia. That was indeed an extremely powerful lineup.


    There was another figure standing quietly behind Emperor Xia''s back��Ye Futian.


    He turned his eyes to the imperial advisor below in the royal palace and felt pained deep down. When the imperial advisor decided to spare him that day, he had been ready to shoulder all of that.


    The imperial advisor rose and looked at the sky, a lot of thoughts were going through his mind.


    He never anticipated that Ye Futian would get Emperor Xia to move there, bringing four pinnacle figures to Dali Imperial City.


    Emperor Li looked at the young man behind Emperor Xia. A member of the younger generation had not only moved the imperial advisor enough for him to commit treason by sparing him, but this young man affected the imperial advisor so much that he was even willing to be stripped of his honor and give his life to avoid killing him.


    That same young man had, at present, been able to get Emperor Xia to show up in the city. It seemed that Emperor Li had underestimated the young man who had disguised himself as the Seventh Swordsman and infiltrated Dali.


    Emperor Li had even thought of marrying a princess of Dali to Ye Futian, to make the young man his son-in-law.


    "If you would like to find that out, Emperor Xia, I shall indulge you. But first, I need to take care of some business in Dali," Emperor Li said plainly and turned his eyes to the imperial advisor.


    The imperial advisor knew what the emperor wanted of him. The emperor had declared his sentence��the imperial advisor was to give up his training and be incarcerated.


    Emperor Xia took one step, and the heavens shook at that moment as if they were about to crumble. The entire Dali Imperial City shook. Everyone was being overwhelmed with terrifying power. Emperor Li was able to feel that the most.


    Emperor Li''s eyes were cold as he looked at the figures high in the air. The might of Renhuang was unleashed and spread out with great force.


    One step was all it took to bring extreme, imposing pressure sweeping throughout the place and holding the heavens in place.


    "Are you going to make me do it instead, imperial advisor?" Emperor Li then looked down at the imperial advisor below, who was seemingly waiting for the emperor to do it.


    The imperial advisor looked up at the emperor. He knew that until he was either dead or crippled, the emperor would not have let him off the hook.


    There was no way Emperor Li would have let him leave Dali Imperial City unscathed.


    There was a concern about him leaving and siding with Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Li had made up his mind, and no one else was going to sway him, not even when Emperor Xia was right before his eyes.


    Boom! A frightening explosion was heard, and extreme, devastating powers filled the space around them. The aura surrounding the imperial advisor''s body ran amok as if there was only devastating power to be had.


    "Teacher." Ye Futian looked at the scene from high above the air and shook his head at the imperial advisor.


    "I have been disloyal, and today, I shall be rid of my training to repay my debt of kindness and grace to you, your majesty, but please, let Yan Yuan and the others leave," the imperial advisor pleaded. Devastating power punched through his body as soon as he finished. That raging aura penetrated his body terrorizing it as it went through.


    The imperial advisor spit blood, and his face was ashen. His aura weakened drastically, but he remained looking at Emperor Li in the sky.


    Emperor Li looked down with a cold expression. Even given his current predicament, the imperial advisor was still occupied with thoughts of his daughter, Feixue, leaving Dali with Yan Yuan and the others.


    "Am I merely a tyrant who is simply out to eat them alive in his eyes?"


    Emperor Xia looked down below and sighed deep down. The imperial advisor understood that if he did not make a move, then the emperor would. There was no way he would have been spared.


    If he were to rid himself of his training, there would still be hope for the ones in the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    It was quite a shame that someone who had the opportunity to pass the trial and become a Renhuang was to fall in the Royal Palace of Dali on that very day.


    "Please, your majesty," the imperial advisor continued. Yet another burst of immensely devastating power punched through his body. A frightening storm whipped up with him in the center but did not attack the others around him; it was simply crushing him from the inside.


    They could hear the sounds of his bones and meridian paths breaking, and red blood spilled out of the corner of his mouth.


    His supreme body remained standing tall and firm where he was. Even the indescribable anguish that he suffered at that moment did not cause him to flinch, and he remained adamant in seeing it all through.


    Sounds reverberated throughout the area and rumbled the eardrums of everyone around. Several people were on their knees outside of the royal palace, pleading for the emperor to spare the imperial advisor.


    Emperor Li''s eyes turned even colder, and he looked below.


    "The imperial advisor shall be granted special parole to attend the wedding of King Zhen," Emperor Li said and took a step towards Emperor Xia in the air.


    Emperor Xia willed and the sky changed. A boundlessly large lotus flower enveloped the space where he and Emperor Li were.


    Ye Futian was gradually enveloped within, as well. He witnessed how the imperial advisor continued to be harmed, while he continued to suffer intense heartache from above.


    That figure who had been standing tall finally bent and slouched over; he was no longer able to stand firmly. His hair turned a lot more silver within a single instant, and he became very withered.


    "Imprison the imperial advisor." A voice was heard from below. Ye Futian was no longer able to see what was going on down there.


    He was dragged by Emperor Xia to where only Emperor Xia and Emperor Li were present, standing against each other.


    ***


    The imperial advisor was hauled to the prison in the Royal Palace of Dali. A group of mighty ones then began to make a move, heading towards the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    They were getting ready to welcome the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence into the royal palace.


    However, the four Holiness of Nirvana from Emperor Xia''s Realm were right outside the royal palace.


    When the Prince Regent and the other mighty ones emerged, the Great Shaman stood in their way.


    Sword aura and demonic might burst in another direction. The Swordmaster of Lihen struck at Cao Kong.


    More mighty ones emerged from the royal palace. King White, one of the Four Kings, emerged as well, and Lu You stood in his way.


    "You all, get to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence and get them to the royal palace," the Prince Regent said. Many mighty ones began to head straight for the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    Even after the imperial advisor begged, again and again, Emperor Li stuck to his decision to keep his students and daughter around. It was apparent that he still wanted the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence to remain in the realm.


    The Sacred General of Tian headed towards the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. It wasn''t long before they arrived.


    Yan Yuan and the others were at the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, and all of them sensed that the mighty ones were heading at them from all directions.


    The Imperial Advisor''s Residence had become the absolute center of the royal palace in an instant.


    "Father." Tears streaked down Feixue''s face. She felt worse than death at the moment. The Imperial Advisor''s Residence was not that far away from the royal palace. The overwhelming aura in the palace was felt all the way to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    "Feixue, let''s go," Yan Yuan looked said, determined to leave Dali.


    His teacher was imprisoned, and Feixue''s special constitution meant that there was no way she could have entered the royal palace, marry Li Zhen, and become a queen.


    The only option for them was to run.


    At present, with Emperor Xia holding Emperor Li back, and the four Holiness of Nirvanas that Emperor Xia brought holding back Dali''s pinnacle figures, it was the right time for them to escape.

 1223 Breakthrough with One Step

    Yan Yuan and the others had yet to depart when an overwhelming aura shrouded the entire area. Many mighty ones came from all directions.


    Yan Yuan took one look in the air and saw a group of them arriving. The one who took the lead emanated a terrifying aura. It was none other than King Tiandao, who held great power in the court of Dali.


    Yan Yuan''s eyes sparkled with an intent to kill when he saw the person by King Tiandao''s side.


    It was none other than Wang Zhong��another of the imperial advisor''s students.


    Mu Chunyang and Nan Zhai also looked at Wang Zhong and said nothing. Their teacher knew that Wang Zhong had always been hostile towards him, yet he nonetheless saw Wang Zhong as a student of his. Knowing that there might be a day when Wang Zhong could take his life, he remained unfazed.


    However, at present, the Imperial Advisor''s Residence was caught in a crisis. Wang Zhong had chosen to betray them and sided with King Tiandao. Since it had come to that, they no longer needed to consider past sentiments.


    From that moment, the two parties stood as enemies.


    "Yan Yuan, his majesty has given an order. Head to the royal palace with us," King Tiandao said condescendingly as he walked. The terrifying aura of a Holiness of Nirvana burst forth, weighing on Yan Yuan and the others.


    Yan Yuan looked at King Tiandao and said, "I''m afraid I can''t do that."


    "His majesty has been graceful enough to not punish the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence and to make the imperial advisor''s daughter a queen. He also made you a future imperial advisor. However, you choose to resist orders and caused Emperor Xia to come here. It would seem that the Imperial Advisor''s Residence has indeed betrayed Dali," King Tiandao said coldly as his eyes sparkled with murderous intent.


    He threw his palm forward and attacked. A boundlessly huge and heavy ring of light descended from the heavens, shrouding Yan Yuan and the others with intense suppressing power.


    Under the huge light, the space was on the verge of being crushed; the force was unstoppable.


    The might of a Holiness of Nirvana was brought to bear within an instant.


    King Tiandao claimed that the ones from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence had committed treason, which meant that he was determined to destroy them. He was not Emperor Li and saw no need to give them any chances.


    Diagrams of the Great Path appeared before Yan Yuan, and their surroundings howled. He put up his hands and headed straight for the sky above, putting up a divine golden wall right above the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    The ring of light descended, clashing hard with the diagrams. Their surroundings rattled as the residence began to come apart and a burst of devastating golden lightning lashed out.


    The entire Imperial Advisor''s Residence was reduced to dust in an instant. Mu Chunyang flashed his blade and cut down the golden lightning, intercepting the attack above Feixue.


    King Tiandao was lauded as one capable of fighting on equal footing with the imperial advisor. While Emperor Li''s elder brother was inferior to the imperial advisor in many ways, he was still nonetheless at the pinnacle of the Dali Dynasty. There was no doubt about the ferocity of his powers.


    He walked in the sky. The ring of light of the Great Path turned into waves of golden light and swept downwards. Yan Yuan grunted as the pressure of the Great Path weighed on him. Boundless golden lightning had torn the place apart, and the diagrams of the Great Path were on the verge of crumbling.


    Mu Chunyang and the others were ready to get on their knees.


    "Yan Yuan, stop resisting, and take your orders from the royal palace," King Tiandao advised him. His presence was overwhelming, and everyone, even those far away from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, was shaken.


    Yan Yuan looked up at the sky. He had been injured during the Battle of Empty Realm, and he was at his wit''s end on how to fight King Tiandao, who was a pinnacle figure in the Dali Dynasty.


    His eyes were wild and his robe billowed. The five elements and dualities of the Great Path appeared around him.


    He lifted his hands to clap on the diagrams of the Great Path again, resisting the force coming from above.


    "The imperial advisor gave up his training, confessed, and will be incarcerated. Are you having a death wish now, Yan Yuan?" King Tiandao said coldly, after seeing that he was still resisting. Mighty ones gathered around them, surrounding the entire Imperial Advisor''s Residence and leaving them with no chance of escape.


    Yan Yuan''s eyes turned red as he thought about all that his teacher had sacrificed.


    Since his teacher no longer had any intentions of serving Emperor Li, there was no way the emperor would have simply let him leave, not even when Emperor Xia showed up.


    If Emperor Li was insistent on them staying, then not even Emperor Xia would be able to stop him.


    As such, he had agreed to end his training and pleaded with Emperor Li to spare the ones at the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. Even if that was futile, at the very least it showed that he was sincere in his confession to placate Emperor Li.


    Furthermore, if Emperor Li still insisted on having them all stay, he would have nonetheless been affected by the imperial advisor''s actions.


    Even after pleading for mercy in such a manner, he could not convince Emperor Li to spare the ones from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. However, he was no longer able to fight against them and delegated that to his subordinates instead.


    Because of that and because of the mighty ones that Emperor Xia brought here to keep things in check, they seized the chance to escape.


    They all knew that Feixue''s condition would not have permitted her to be a part of the royal palace.


    As such, they had to resist one way or another. They simply had to leave.


    "Our teacher had not done any wrong against Dali," Yan Yuan said to King Tiandao, who was bearing down on them from above. Burst of golden lightning lashed out at Yan Yuan in an attempt to kill him.


    Yan Yuan''s body was rumbling. Boundless runes circled him. Qian, Kun, Kan, Li, and many other ancient symbols hovered in the air then melded with the Great Path.


    "What do you mean doing no wrong?" King Tiandao berated coldly. Raging aura lashed out on Yan Yuan''s body, making him feel like he was going to come apart, and even his powers of the Great Path were about to crumble.


    "His conscience was clean, and he was able to stand proud, facing the heavens and the earth," Yan Yuan continued saying loudly. His body felt as if it was about to explode. Blood splattered on his clothes, and his aura weakened at breakneck speed.


    "Hmph." King Tiandao snorted and coldly said, "I see that you still dare to resist, do you have a death wish?"


    Feixue was able to sense everything that was happening below. Despair was written on her face as she turned toward the battlefield and called out, "Eldest brother!"


    "He is fine." Nan Zhai looked above and, while Yan Yuan was severely injured, the diagrams of the Great Path and the ancient symbols surrounding him turned even brighter, transforming into a diagram of Yin and Yang of the Great Path. It spun chaotically and became increasingly bright, resisting the pressure from above.


    At that moment, boundless light from the diagram of the Great Path seeped into Yan Yuan''s weakening body, making him seem like a furnace of the Great Path, fusing the power of the heavens and the earth. His aura, which had been weakening, rose in a frenzy, breaking his limit within an instant, and he became even more powerful than when he was at his peak. Furthermore, his powers continued to increase and the boundlessly terrifying diagram of the Great Path extended far and wide, blocking out the sky.


    King Tiandao frowned and looked at Yan Yuan below. His pupils dilated and a flash of cold, murderous intent was seen in his eyes.


    That was Yan Yuan breaking into the next and final level of the Saint Plane, becoming a Holiness of Nirvana.


    "As heaven''s movement is ever vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive. I can''t just roll over and die," Yan Yuan said. His finger pointed to the diagram of the Great Path. Golden, giant swords shot up to the heavens right at King Tiandao, who was stepping on the ring of light above.


    The space exploded in that instant, and incredibly brilliant, harrowing rings of light swept in all directions.


    King Tiandao''s body was sent flying higher. Those who watched the battle from afar avoided the aftershocks, and their hearts raced as they saw the Great Path''s ring of light sweeping the sky.


    They then saw King Tiandao standing tall in the air.


    Someone as powerful as King Tiandao had been thrown behind.


    Yan Yuan, the imperial advisor''s eldest student, made a breakthrough and became a Holiness of Nirvana.


    It hadn''t been long since Emperor Li had said that if Yan Yuan were to become a Holiness of Nirvana, then he would be eligible to become the imperial advisor.


    It didn''t take long for him to make a breakthrough and become a Holiness of Nirvana. He could take the imperial advisor''s place and reign supreme in Dali if he was willing.


    However, it was apparent that Yan Yuan did not have such thoughts.


    Power was but fleeting clouds to him, and he had no intention of staying behind.


    When Dali had been united and the imperial advisor, King Tiandao, the Prince Regent, and other high-level figures took charge, it became glorious and prosperous, yet there were also many lurking perils.


    If it had not been for those lurking perils, they would not have sent his teacher to the battlefield at the Crimson Dragon Realm, and his betrayal would have never happened.


    Solid dikes could collapse because of ant holes. Lurking perils, when not dealt with in time, could have caused earth-shattering changes when fully manifested, which was what happened on this day.


    However, some things were unavoidable, and no one could do anything about it, they could only watch them unfold. His teacher had not been able to change what had happened in the past.


    At that moment, however, Yan Yuan wanted to take fate into his own hands.


    King Tiandao looked at Yan Yuan whose aura became increasingly overwhelming and still growing. He had unleashed the pressure of pinnacle levels. King Tiandao did not expect that Yan Yuan would have a breakthrough with a single step.


    Students taught by the imperial advisor had already been able to get into Nirvana levels.


    But then again, despite having broken into the final plane, Yan Yuan was nonetheless a new Holiness of Nirvana and was deemed incapable of fighting King Tiandao on equal footing.


    King Tiandao began to take a step down. However, he halted before he could complete his step the looked far away. Terrifying currents washed over them and howled. A figure streaked through the air and arrived right before him. A huge palm struck from above, shrouding the place as it headed for King Tiandao.


    King Tiandao turned around, and his extremely sharp aura burst. His hands streaked through the air and looked even more terrifying than blades. His attack split the palm open and the sky rumbled.


    "King Tiandao, you have been provoking us for years. If you want a fight so badly, I shall fight you in earnest on this very day," this imposing voice was heard loud and clear. The Sacred General of Tian had arrived and was stepping towards King Tiandao. Every step was extremely heavy, bearing on the sky around them.


    "Since when did affairs of the Dali Dynasty become something you could directly interfere in?" asked King Tiandao as he looked at the Sacred General of Tian. His body burst with overwhelming might of equal magnitude.


    "Interfering with Dali''s business?" The sacred general then jabbed at him sarcastically, saying, "I''m not interested in that in the slightest. However, since you people have been trying to stir up trouble and had even acted against the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm and the others in the Crimson Dragon Realm, showing that you were up to no good, I have come with Emperor Xia to see what you''re made of."


    He attacked as soon as he finished talking. King Tiandao frowned. With Yan Yuan''s breakthrough, no one else could stop this Holiness of Nirvana even if he were held back by the Sacred General of Tian.


    He took one look at the sky. Both Emperor Li and Emperor Xia were nowhere to be seen.

 1224 The Imperial Advisors Second Studen

    The Sacred General of Tian and King Tiandao fought all out right there and then. King Tiandao was from the king of Dali''s military, known as the leader of the Four Kings. He commanded the military forces of the west.


    The Sacred General of Tian was the commander of the first army of the eight of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Both men were people of extreme overbearing might. The battle fought between them shook the heavens.


    It seemed as if the sky would be brought down when they fought.


    Yan Yuan looked at them both fight above and knew that the Sacred General of Tian intended to hold that pinnacle figure behind for their sake.


    "Second brother, take care of Feixue." Yan Yuan turned around and looked at Nan Zhai, who nodded. Yan Yuan was seen stepping out and headed far away. Mu Chunyang held his sacred blade and followed right behind.


    One was a Holiness of Nirvana who had just made a breakthrough while the other was an Unblemished Saint. Both of them burst with extremely overbearing might.


    However, there was already an army of saints surrounding them, effectively blockading the space they were in.


    An Eight Trigrams Heaven-locking Diagram appeared in the sky. Golden chains of the eight trigrams sealed the space away, and crashing noises were heard. The chains streaked through the sky and headed towards Yan Yuan and the others.


    Boom, boom, boom! Yan Yuan''s body felt like it had been chained up by countless chains in an instant. However, extremely dazzling diagrams of the great path dazzled around his body. He, who had become a Holiness of Nirvana, dazzled incredibly. He grabbed onto the chains of the great path, and devastating power was unleashed from his body, wrecking the boundless chains.


    He stepped into the air and headed towards the eight trigrams diagram, thinking if he should take his opponent using matrixes imparted to me by his teacher.


    He pointed towards heaven, and his body streaked down below the eight trigrams diagram like a bolt of lightning, pointing to the diagram right above him.


    His finger pointed to the diagram that had blockaded the place, and countless cracks were seen on it, spreading out in all directions. The fish of Yin and Yang seemed to be swimming before they crumbled shortly after. The matrix above him shattered, and m many mighty ones'' bodies were thrown behind right away.


    Many saints above burst with their respective might and headed for Yan Yuan and the others. Yan Yuan stepped out and scanned the crowd around him, saying, "My teacher once was the imperial advisor of Dali, and I''m a citizen of Dali. There are some among you people who had studied at Dali Academy before. I don''t want to kill any of you. Make way."


    Doom. He took one step forward as soon as he finished. The air shook.


    Swords of the great path surrounded him and howled as if they would have burst through the air at any given moment.


    Many mighty ones sensed the brimming aura emanating from Yan Yuan, and they all thought of retreating right there and then.


    As Yan Yuan put it, they were all people of Dali, and some had studied in Dali Academy and received guidance and teaching from Yan Yuan himself.


    Many among them had been taught by the imperial advisor and had always been impressed by the imperial advisor. If it had not been for the circumstances, none of them would have wanted to see the imperial advisor have his training destroyed and be imprisoned. None of them would have wanted to kill Yan Yuan.


    "The Imperial Advisor''s Residence committed treason and sided with Emperor Xia''s Realm. They are ready to leave with Emperor Xia. Kill them!" King Tiandao, who was fighting with the Sacred General of Tian in the sky, faraway shouted. Some of the ones who had hesitated moved forward once again.


    But then again, there were many who stood behind and were unable to bring themselves to harm the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    They knew very well that even though it was then a fact that the Imperial Advisor had refused to carry out his majesty''s order, the Imperial Advisor would have never been in bed with those from Emperor Xia''s Realm and betrayed Dali. The Imperial Advisor was a great figure, unlike any other, and he would have never had been such a dishonorable person. There were definitely not obvious reasons.


    Countless sighed at the situation.


    Many mighty ones attacked Yan Yuan at the same time. Yan Yuan looked up at the sky. The saints all appeared in his will. He stepped forward and had no more words to say. The bursts of devastating attacks were not only directed at him but also Feixue and the others, without any mercy.


    Struggle and reluctance were seen in Yan Yuan''s eyes, which then quickly cleared as he looked at the faces before him.


    Everyone had their stances and decisions, especially when they had become saints. Since they had already made their choices, then they no longer needed to hesitate.


    The powerful burst of aura swept through his surroundings at the thought, shrouding the vast space.


    Many saints there were shrouded by a mystical will within an instant. They seemed to have seen a boundless huge diagram of the great path, which enveloped all of them. Countless ancient symbols hovered around, and their saintly will were all bound within. They intended to struggle, yet they found it difficult to shake it off.


    The dazzling boundless diagram seemed to have led them into a space of will, which was ethereal, and Yan Yuan was at the center of the diagram. He scanned those around him and one ancient symbols after another shot out.


    Qian, Kun, Kan, Li... Every single ancient symbol that emerged was infused with extremely formidable power.


    "Slay them," Yan Yuan said, and within an instant, the symbols bombarded the minds of those around him. In the sky where they fought, there were saints whose wills were cut down right away by the sword will. Streaks of blood appeared at the center of their brows as their eyes were wide open, glaring at Yan Yuan below.


    There were also mighty ones whose wills were shattered right there and then, feeling as if their minds had rattled before losing consciousness altogether. Their bodies dropped to the ground.


    One saint after another perished in the sky within the same instant, dropping to the ground below. Many watched that scene unfold from far away and felt things were astonishing.


    All of those people were saints, and yet, they were all killed within an instant.


    So this was the power of Yan Yuan, who had become a Holiness of Nirvana?


    Emperor Li had declared that the first student of the Imperial Advisor would be allowed to take the position of imperial advisor right there and then.


    However, he wanted nothing more than to leave.


    Just what the hell happened between Dali and the Imperial Advisor''s Residence?


    Countless felt that to be a pity. One way or another, there was no longer an Imperial Advisor in Dali, and the Imperial Advisor''s Residence now ceased to be.


    That would have been a huge loss to Dali Dynasty. The Emperor knew that as well, which was why he still wanted to give the Imperial Advisor a chance, which the Imperial Advisor threw away without hesitation. The Emperor intended to continue employing Yan Yuan and the others even after he had arrested the Imperial Advisor, which was why he wanted Feixue to be married into the royal palace as Li Zhen''s wife and to be titled as Queen.


    However, none of that managed to make them stay behind.


    The crack in their minds was something impossible to be repaired, and there was no turning back.


    Yan Yuan and the others from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence had only one way to go from then on out.


    At that moment, on another battlefield, a legion that King Tiandao had brought circled Yan Yuan and headed straight for Mu Chunyang and Nan Zhai, attacking them. Judging from their formations, it looked as if they intended to break through Nan Zhai''s defense and take Feixue.


    They all knew that if they were to take the Imperial Advisor''s daughter, then the ones from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence would not have been able to leave, even if they wanted to.


    Mu Chunyang''s blade was extremely ferocious, splitting the space before him open as soon as he swung it. His will of the bade seemed to have cleaved open everything before him. Several saints caught in the storm were quickly killed.


    However, there were also several extremely powerful saints around at the same time. They were all Unblemished Saints, and they have intercepted Mu Chunyang, isolating him from the battlefield of Nan Zhai, Lu Chuan, and Feixue.


    At that moment, an Unblemished Saint led many other saints heading to where Feixue and her two other brothers were, attempting to surround them, and the situation looked perilous.


    Nan Zhai was at the forefront while Feixue and Lu Chuan stood behind him. Nan Zhai''s expression remained extremely calm even when facing such a situation, without the slightest hint of being fazed. Yan Yuan and Mu Chunyang were still fighting their own respective battles.


    "The eldest student might have become a Holiness of Nirvana, but that is not to say that we would let him loose just because he wants to leave," an Unblemished Saint said and lifted his hands, grabbing at the space before him. A holy dragon bared its fangs and brandished its claws right away, descending from above and wanting to take down Nan Zhai and the other two.


    That person''s might was brimming, and he looked poised. It was apparent that he was a member of Dali royalty, making him one of those from the side of the royal members.


    That holy golden dragon circled above Nan Zhai''s head, and its pressure was burning. It charged below after letting out a loud roar.


    Nan Zhai looked up at the sky plainly and waved his hands. A huge painting spread open in the sky, which showered the space around, and extremely holy pressure burst from it. The might was imbued with the will of the great path as if he was wielding a piece of an extremely powerful divine implement.


    Countless dazzling diagrams within the painting lit up with brilliant light, and a boundlessly huge ancient tree burst, emerging with countless vines that lashed out above, blocking out the sky.


    The dragon dived and was instantly caught within the countless mass of vines in an instant, which was then devoured bit by bit.


    Many looked below in shock, seeing Nan Zhai standing above the ancient tree in the painting. Feixue and Lu Chuan stood behind him. All three of them seemed to have become characters within the painting, looking very mystical.


    What was even more shocking was that at the very moment, Nan Zhai entered the painting, will of the great path of boundless strength burst from within. The painting continued to expand, and when Nan Zhai melded within the painting, his aura seemed to have melded with the painting and rose in a frenzy. He had broken through the bonds of Saint of True Self and became an Unblemished Saint.


    His powers continued to rise after becoming an Unblemished Saint, climbing to the pinnacle of his current plane.


    "How could he be so powerful?" Many looked at the scene in shock. Everyone in Dali knew that the strongest among the imperial advisor''s students was Yan Yuan. While Nan Zhai, the second student, was unfettered and had a good mindset. He loved painting and jesting around, but his training had not been powerful. He was only a Saint of True Self. His powers were even inferior to his younger brother, Mu Chunyang.


    However, at that moment, none dared to claim that Nan Zhai was weaker than Mu Chunyang.


    His current power was of such magnitude that not even Yan Yuan before becoming a Holiness of Nirvana would have had such a brimming, formidable aura.


    "The way of painting." Everyone was shaken and knew that they had underestimated Nan Zhai''s powers. His training might have only been that of a Saint of True Self, yet his painting seemed even stronger.


    His powers spiked as soon as he entered the painting.


    That Unblemished Saint before stepped out with a cold expression and attacked with the saints around him, intending to tear down that ancient tree of vines.


    The painting continued to expand, so much so that it had blocked out the sky. Those saints quickly found that they seemed to have become people in the painting, entering Nan Zhai''s work and becoming a part of his powers.


    Many knew that something was off and intended to run, but it was too late.


    Unraveling sounds were heard as the painting spread through the area, catching everyone within it. The vines of the ancient tree consumed the saints, while sword aura and many other killing powers burst from the painting. At that moment, it seemed as if Nan Zhai had not been the one surrounded.


    It seemed as if he was the one who had everyone else surrounded instead.

 1225 Yan Yuans Plans

    A huge painting was seen high above the sky, embroiling many saints around within. Even Unblemished Saints were caught as well.


    That Unblemished Saint royal member attacked ferociously from within the painting, yet the painting itself nullified all of his attacks. The painting was infused with the power of the great path of the world. Celestial bodies were found within, and the heavens and the earth were in motion. Matrixes were also found within the painting, which made it so that the painting had indeed been infused with the power of the great path.


    "So, this is the Life Spirit of Nan Zhai?" Countless looked up in the sky. They witnessed royal members being sucked into the painting bit by bit, and they felt very rattled within.


    They had the impression that Nan Zhai, the second student of the imperial advisor, was inferior to Mu Chunyang, the third student, and his presence had not been as strong. Even when Nan Zhai was giving lectures in Dali Academy, he looked carefree and unfettered. Everyone knew that he was very knowledgeable and had different concepts and views regarding training.


    However, no one knew that Nan Zhai''s true powers were something of such formidable magnitude.


    He had made painting a way of manifesting his power of the great path. He had the world in his sleeves, which was manifested in his painting.


    In yet another battlefield at that moment, Yan Yuan continued to bring his might to bear and blaze the trail. He continued walking forward. No one had been able to stand in his way. Mu Chunyang followed closely behind. The huge painting that Nan Zhai conjured flew in the sky and took off far away.


    Any saints who were still standing in their way high above in the air were unable to help but make way, retreating to the sides. They all felt astonished and shaken deep down, not daring to face the students of the Imperial Advisor.


    It seemed that no one was able to stand in the way of the students, other than the likes of Holiness of Nirvana.


    However, all Holiness of Nirvana found in Dali Dynasty''s imperial city had been kept busy by people brought by Emperor Xia. There was also some other Holiness of Nirvanas to be found, but they were not in Dali Imperial City.


    Many were astonished and thought that if the Imperial Advisor had not been dealt with, he would truly be at the very pinnacle of sainthood in all of Dali Dynasty.


    However, he was incarcerated at the moment, which was a situation many found to be a pity.


    Yan Yuan and the others cut all who dared to stand in their way down and headed to the sky. Their silhouettes went further and further away from sight, seeming about to disappear before everyone''s eyes.


    Everyone who saw that scene understood that the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence had truly made up their mind��they wanted to leave Dali Dynasty.


    There was no longer an Imperial Advisor''s Residence in Dali from then on out.


    Yan Yuan and the others eventually disappeared without a trace as they continued to streak the sky.


    However, the Holiness of Nirvanas'' battles in Dali Imperial City were still ongoing. Every single battle was an astonishing one and caused their surroundings to shake.


    Furthermore, the battles continued for quite some time. While there were stronger and weaker ones to be found, none were able to kill their opponents. Fighters from both sides were top-notch. While they were still differences to be had, yet said differences were not great enough to have any of them kill their opponents.


    For instance, it was obvious that the Swordmaster of Lihen could overpower Cao Kong, yet Cao Kong was extremely resilient, continuing to fight despite suffering severe injuries. People of such levels had terrifyingly adamant will.


    Both Emperor Xia and Emperor Li were still nowhere to be found. It was thought that Emperor Xia intended to keep Emperor Li busy, giving a chance to those from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    He told Ye Futian before that while he was willing to go to Dali Dynasty, the fate of the ones from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence was eventually up to them and that he was unable to do anything further.


    He couldn''t take them away personally, after all.


    If he were actually to do that, then Emperor Li could have crashed into Emperor Xia''s Realm and taken them away all the same.


    As such, despite having brought people with him, Emperor Xia was still there to teach those from Emperor Li a lesson in name, for they had been provoking Emperor Xia''s Realm for far too long. Emperor Xia never mentioned those from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, despite the fact they were the reasons why Emperor Xia showed up.


    The battles raged on and on. Both Emperor Xia and Emperor Li were seen yet again in Emperor Li''s Palace, emerging in the palace building they were before.


    Ye Futian was behind Emperor Xia.


    Emperor Li''s expression turned rather cold after he scanned the city with his will. At the same time, Emperor Xia said instead, "Let''s get back to Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    The Great Shaman and other Holiness of Nirvanas all retreated and left after the order was given, without any intention of fighting any further.


    Their opponents intended to pursue them, yet Emperor Li said, "Let them leave."


    "Emperor Li, I know that you have wanted to test Emperor Li''s Realm''s strength for years, but if you are thinking of taking the Emperor Xia''s Realm for yourself, Dali is still far from being powerful enough to do so. I don''t mind if you want to wage war against us. I shall be waiting back in Emperor Xia''s Palace," Emperor Xia said plainly. He took flight and waved his hand. The Great Shaman, the Swordmaster of Lihen, and others came to his side and were preparing to leave.


    A flash of light was seen, and Emperor Xia brought his men away. Ye Futian, who was right behind him, took one look below as if wanting to find where the Imperial Advisor was.


    However, they disappeared within an instant, emerging in the sky elsewhere.


    "The ones from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence are safe now, but the Imperial Advisor wanted a death sentence, trying to exchange the safety of his people with his own life. I assume that he understands that Emperor Li would have never let him go even if he wanted to. As such, he got rid of his training using his own hands and was willingly incarcerated," Emperor Xia said while looking at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was speechless deep down. He knew, too, that there was no way the Imperial Advisor could have escaped.


    However, with his teacher having destroyed his training and being incarcerated, Ye Futian hoped that his teacher was still alive.


    While that would have been difficult, there was still hope.


    The expression of Emperor Li, who was still in the royal palace, appeared rather glum and severe after they left. He did not pursue Yan Yuan and the others, slowly going somewhere else instead.


    The place was a golden prison, which was suppressed by the great path. The Imperial Advisor was imprisoned within. There was the light of chains within the prison of the great path, chaining him within.


    The Imperial Advisor had lost all of his brimming appearance from the past. His aura appeared weak. He looked unusually withered, far older than common old people.


    "Your majesty." The Imperial Advisor lifted his head. The color is his eyes were dim as he looked up at the Emperor.


    The Emperor looked at him as well, standing there quietly without saying anything.


    One figure after another arrived through the sky. It was King Tiandao, the Prince Regent, and the others. They all bowed and stood there quietly. The people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence were able to escape the city in their watch, which meant that they were naturally responsible.


    "Four Holiness of Nirvana were lost in Dali within a single day." Emperor Li looked at the Imperial Advisor and continued, "I''m still unable to understand why you would be willing to go to such lengths to let him go. I want the truth from you."


    The Imperial Advisor had been at the pinnacle of sainthood in Dali, after all.


    Yan Yuan had become a Holiness of Nirvana.


    Nan Zhai displayed supreme powers, and Mu Chunyang was extremely formidable as well. Both of them would soon become Holiness of Nirvanas themselves.


    As such, Emperor Li claimed that Dali had lost four Holiness of Nirvana within a single day.


    The Emperor was still puzzled and wanted to ask the Imperial Advisor; he wanted an answer.


    The Imperial Advisor looked up at Emperor Li. A smile was seen in his murky eyes as he said, "Your Majesty, I''m puzzled myself as well. But maybe, there will be a day where you understand."


    Emperor took another look at the Imperial Advisor and then left. The Prince Regent and the others bowed and stood without saying anything.


    While they had been able to apprehend the Imperial Advisor on that day, but in actual fact, they had suffered a terrible loss.


    No one would have thought that Emperor Xia would have brought mighty ones and descended upon Dali Imperial City.


    After Emperor Li left, the Prince Regent took one look at the Imperial Advisor. He was just as puzzled as the Emperor.


    Looking at the figure who had once been extraordinarily renowned and prestigious, the one who had been the number figure below the emperor of Dali Dynasty, incarcerated within such a prison and looked little more than an old man on his deathbed, the Prince Regent was exasperated as well.


    "Why, indeed?" The Prince Regent said plainly and then turned around, leaving the place.


    ...


    Ye Futian had been waiting in Emperor Xia''s Palace ever since he returned with the Emperor to the royal palace.


    Yan Yuan and the others finally showed up.


    Yan Yuan came and greeted Emperor Xia in the royal palace.


    Ye Futian looked at Yan Yuan and the others, who were standing right before him, and he felt a sense of guilt.


    His eyes then turned to Feixue afterward, and Feixue faced him as well.


    "Feixue, I was the one who got teacher into this mess," Ye Futian said.


    Feixue shook her head. She knew what had happened.


    His father had been the one who chose to walk that path.


    Ye Futian did not choose to kill Li Yao after he had apprehended the prince. He was set up by Xia Rong��the prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Ye Futian had intended to let go of Li Yao. The enmity between them ran deep, and yet he wanted to spare the prince nonetheless, which meant that he had taken her father and the others into consideration.


    No one would have been able to anticipate what ensued following that.


    "Ye Futian, our teacher has made this decision, and he naturally has great expectations for you. I hope you won''t let him down," Yan Yuan said.


    Ye Futian nodded. He resolved to keep that in mind.


    "Follow me," Xia Qingyuan appeared and said. Yan Yuan and the others followed her and came to the highest point of Emperor Xia''s Palace. Emperor Xia was with them as well.


    "I, Yan Yuan, have brought my brothers and sisters, to express our gratitude to Your Majesty," Yan Yuan and the group bowed to Emperor Xia.


    Emperor Xia''s appearance had no doubt saved them all. There was no way they would have been able to leave otherwise.


    "I wasn''t going to Dali just for your sake, after all. There is no need to thank me." Emperor Xia said, "What plans do you have from here on out? If you''re willing to stay behind in Emperor Xia''s Realm, I shall see to it."


    Yan Yuan shook his head and said, "We are extremely grateful for what you did, your majesty. However, our teacher had never truly betrayed Dali. If we were to stay behind in Emperor Xia''s Realm and train, it would have been akin to verifying our teacher''s treason. I hope you understand, Your Majesty."


    "Right." Emperor Xia nodded and asked, "So what are your plans now?"


    "We intend to head to the Crimson Dragon Realm, as such, we''re here to ask for passage. There is no way the others and I will be able to repay your kindness for the time being. If there is anything you need of us in the future, I shall see the debt repaid," Yan Yuan said to Emperor Xia in a manner that was neither haughty nor humble, making his stance clear.


    He did so even if what happened with the Imperial Advisor was actually sparked by Xia Rong, the eldest prince.


    "The Imperial Advisor is someone truly worthy of respect. I''m sure his students will be anything but disappointments in the future. I''ve been asked to make the trip by someone else, and there is no need for you all to repay me," Emperor Xia said.


    Yan Yuan and the others looked at Ye Futian, and they naturally knew who did the asking. However, they were still somewhat surprised that Ye Futian had been able to get Emperor Xia to make such a trip personally.


    "Qingyuan, take them to the teleportation matrix," Emperor Xia said to Xia Qingyuan. While he admired Yan Yuan and the others, he saw no need to lean on them. The Imperial Advisor had stayed honorable throughout. Even if they were to enter Emperor Xia''s Realm right after their teacher was to be sentenced, no one would have had anything to say about it.


    However, all of them valued their teacher''s reputation. At the very least, they were unable to bring themselves to truly make a traitor out of their teacher.

 1226 Emperor Xias Attitude

    In the palace, teleportation grand matrix area, in front of the grand matrix of space to the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Ye Futian came to see Yan Yuan and the others off. Feixue stood next to Ye Futian. She turned toward him and whispered, "What happened to father was nothing that we wanted to see, and I hope you will not blame yourself."


    She could feel the guilt in Ye Futian''s heart. He must have been blaming himself all this time.


    Ye Futian looked at the woman in front of him and thought that perhaps the person most in pain was Feixue.


    But at the moment, she was still trying to persuade herself.


    A smile appeared on his face, but it was mixed with some bitterness. He said, "Well, rest assured, I will adjust myself. And you take good care of yourself after you go to the Crimson Dragon Realm with your senior brother."


    "I will," Feixue nodded gently. "Will you still go to Crimson Dragon Realm?"


    "Well, maybe to Qianye City in Crimson Dragon Realm," Ye Futian responded.


    "Well then, we will see you at the Crimson Dragon Realm," Feixue whispered softly. She then walked toward the grand matrix of space with Yan Yuan and the others as they entered into the matrix.


    "Everyone, take care," Ye Futian said to Yan Yuan and the others.


    "You too," Yan Yuan nodded at Ye Futian. The brilliant light shone, and the light beams pierced straight through the sky as if opening up a Great Path of space, and only for a moment, the bodies of these people disappeared directly from the matrix.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky; the channel was still bright with radiance. The energy required for such a realm-crossing matrix was unimaginable. The number of spirit stones of Great Path consumed by the launching of the grand matrix was an astrological figure each time, and only the top principalities could afford its cost.


    If one relied upon oneself to go to the Crimson Dragon Realm, even the cultivators from the Nirvana Plane would take a long time, so that was the reason why Yan Yuan came to borrow the passage. Of course, Yan Yuan was also thankful to Emperor Xia. After all, they could leave safely entirely on account of Emperor Xia. No matter what position the two parties were in, a favor was a favor.


    Xia Qingyuan stood next to Ye Futian. Her eyes turned and fell on him.


    This must have touched Ye Futian considerably.


    "Are you going to the Crimson Dragon Realm?" Xia Qingyuan asked after a moment of silence.


    "Um," Ye Futian nodded, "I meant to use the way of the Crimson Dragon Realm to gain a foothold in Crimson Dragon Realm and then leave. It was pure chance that I thought about Dali and decided to take down Li Yao in Crimson Dragon Realm. But I did not expect that the Imperial Advisor would be there. Everything that happened after, the Princess is well aware of."


    Xia Qingyuan was the one person who knew everything that had happened. At the time, right before leaving, Ye Futian had the bright idea of using the Crimson Dragon Realm to get rid of Li Yao and set it all up in the Crimson Dragon Realm. In reality, he had executed the plan and took down Li Yao. However, because the Imperial Advisor of Dali came also, he was pulled into it, thus created the situation today.


    But now, Ye Futian must be disappointed. His intention to go away was completely expected.


    "As I said last time, I will ask my father, the Emperor, to name you as the City Lord of Qianye City. You will be in charge of the city on behalf of Emperor Xia''s Realm. From then on, you will be in complete charge and not subject to anyone in Emperor Xia''s Realm," Xia Qingyu said.


    She understood that it was inevitable for Ye Futian to leave Emperor Xia''s Realm. Qianye City was regarded as their victory, and sending Ye Futian to Qianye City as the City Lord meant that he would be considered as a Lord of the land. To name him as the City Lord was not as fitting as saying that the city would be gifted to him, and they had to send cultivators there to assist with security.


    After all, Ye Futian''s strength was not yet enough to stand alone and defend a city.


    In the central area of ??Crimson Dragon Realm, many of the city lords were of the existence in Nirvana Plane; a simple Doctrine Saint was not nearly the same.


    "Many thanks to the Princess." Ye Futian nodded and did not refuse Xia Qingyuan''s kindness.


    "I''ll return to the Villa first," Ye Futian said again. Xia Qingyuan nodded. "I will see you off."


    And the two left together.


    Ye Futian did not go to see Emperor Xia and request judgment regarding Xia Rong.


    Although Xia Rong hurt him this time, he was the crown prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm and the biological child of Emperor Xia. From the standpoint of Xia Rong, what was the problem of getting rid of someone powerful, such as the Imperial Advisor of Dali?


    Even though the means he used were underhanded, between the battle of two major Renhuang''s Realms, it honestly didn''t mean much.


    Ye Futian had no right to go to Emperor Xia and demand Xia Rong to be punished.


    He was the outsider, and to a certain extent, Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan had been extremely kind to him.


    Just because Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan treated him well did not mean that he could demand Emperor Xia to dispose of his own son on his account.


    Xia Rong was not Xiao Sheng.


    Unless, one day, he had the ability himself to deal with Xia Rong, then there would be nothing else to discuss; he would do it himself. To ask Emperor Xia to handle the matter, what could be his reasoning?


    Of course, Ye Futian would not form any opinion on Emperor Xia because of what Xia Rong did.


    Emperor Xia was Emperor Xia, and Xia Rong was Xia Rong, just like Xia Qingyuan was Xia Qingyuan.


    Everyone was an independent individual, even if they were a family.


    This was something that the Swordmaster of Lihen and the Imperial Advisor of Dali had both taught him by action.


    Of course, this principle could not apply to those who did evil.


    But for all this, he who had already entered the Saint Plane would make his judgment.


    ��


    After Ye Futian left, Xia Qingyuan came to the place where Emperor Xia was.


    When Emperor Xia saw Xia Qingyuan arrive, he asked with a smile, "Are you here because of your brother?"


    "Father, does the last incident have anything to do with what happened this time?" Xia Qingyuan asked, what she was referring to was when Ye Futian''s identity was exposed in Dali, and the event that happened at Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "Last time, Xia Rong was not in the palace," Emperor Xia said, looking at Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up at her father. She knew that her brother, Xia Rong, was often in the army, in charge of military affairs.


    "Of course, absence does not mean that this matter has nothing to do with him. Maybe he did it, maybe your second brother, third brother. They are all possible suspects," Emperor Xia continued.


    "But why didn''t Father ever inquire?" Xia Qingyuan asked. She understood that if her father had questioned these events, no matter how secretive they were, they would be able to find something.


    "Will father not punish my brother this time?"


    While at the Crimson Dragon Realm, Xia Rong wanted to hurt the Imperial Advisor of Dali. He did that by using Ye Futian''s life as a bet, and there was a very high possibility that Ye Futian could have been killed.


    "Dali Dynasty incited the battle with us, and the conflict erupted in the Crimson Dragon Realm. Ye Futian took down Li Yao, but he wanted to release him because of the Imperial Advisor of Dali. What do you think of what he did?" asked Emperor Xia.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up at her father and was speechless for a moment.


    No matter how much respect the Imperial Advisor of Dali deserved, even if he has kind to Ye Futian, he was regarded as Ye Futian''s master.


    But after all had been said and done, he was the Imperial Advisor of the enemy.


    "For this battle, we mobilized inconsiderable power in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and several individuals in the Nirvana Plane even went to the Crimson Dragon Realm in person as support. Although it was Ye Futian who took Li Yao down, and there was no issue with him seeing things from his angle, for your elder brother, as the Deputy General of Tian who accomplished all this, how could you accuse him?" Emperor Xia continued.


    Xia Qingyuan listened quietly; she also wanted to hear what her father had to say.


    "Whether it is your brother or Ye Futian, everyone is growing. They are all in the Saint Plane. Whatever they want to fight for, I will not stop them, but they must be able to bear the price, even if it is fighting for the throne."


    Emperor Xia''s voice seemed very calm. He said, "Many things that you have to do, I will support them, but in what way you want to do accomplish these things solely depends on your ability, and you must consider the consequences. I heard that at the Crimson Dragon Realm, the Imperial Advisor sent Ye Futian a saying: ''gentleman do not stand close to danger.'' He was right. Everything you do, you must consider its consequences and consider what kind of situation you will put yourself in.


    "Today, I will not stop the secret jostling of power between them, nor will I punish your elder brother. In the future, if he has to pay for what he did one day, likewise, I will not stop that either. This is the path of your cultivation, and every cultivator will have to go through all of this in the path of growth, able to bear it all. "


    Emperor Xia slowly said, "You are the same, Qingyuan, and you are about to step into the Saint Plane. Maybe, one day, you will fly on your own."


    "I understand," Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly, then turned away without saying a word.


    Watching Xia Qingyuan''s departing figure, Emperor Xia said nothing.


    This was their cultivation. All the storms, setbacks, and tribulations would work to build an era belonging to them.


    ��


    A few days later, clashes broke out between Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm in several places with spiritual resources.


    Subsequently, these conflicts continued to amplify and detonate. The two Renhuang Realms kept battling on various major battlefields. King Tiandao and Sacred General of Tian led the armies to confront each other.


    These things quickly spread to the two realms, and soon, everyone knew that all this was caused by what happened in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Or rather, it was caused by the grievances between Ye Futian and Li Yao, the crown prince of Dali Dynasty.


    Once upon a time, Li Yao killed Ye Futian''s wife in the land of the Nine States, the Lower World of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Now, Ye Futian took him down in Crimson Dragon Realm, which led to Li Yao''s death.


    Of course, these border conflicts had not affected the central area of ?? Emperor Xia''s Realm. Neither of the two realms had the idea of ??a full-scale border war. Otherwise, it would not just be limited to this scale.


    In Emperor Xia''s Palace, there was a declaration that Emperor Xia officially named Ye Futian as the City Lord of Qianye City to guard Qianye City in the Crimson Dragon Realm for Emperor Xia''s Realm!

 1227 Traveling Together

    For some time afterward, Ye Futian cultivated in retreat at the Cottage Villa.


    Not only him, but many at the villa had gained something during this trip, with several of them having broken into the Saint Plane. They needed to comprehend the way of the Saint Plane in earnest and integrate it into their strength.


    After Gu Dongliu entered into the Divine Path, his whole person had gone through a great transformation. It was as if his life spirit had once again awoken, rendering his temperament even more remarkable.


    The same was also true of Yu Sheng. He was born into the Way, but his changes were more internal. Once in battle, his potential had completely erupted and was completely different from before. Many people in the Crimson Dragon Realm had already experienced his battling method.


    After Ye Wuchen entered into the Saint Plane, he had endeavored to refine the Renhuang sword will into his swordsmanship, and was progressing little by little.


    After Huang Jiuge comprehended the swordsmanship, he had also begun to try to impact the realm of Sainthood.


    Except for Glass Saint, she was still the same as before, unable to get out of the predicament she was in. This made it difficult for her to make progress in her cultivation. Even though she often cultivated with Yaya, she was still trapped by her own demons, as if she really wanted for nothing and felt nothing.


    A few months later, news came out of Emperor Xia''s Palace that the Little Princess Xia Qingyuan broke into the Sainthood.


    This news soon spread throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm. The Little Princess was extraordinarily talented and very young. Among the many top characters in Emperor Xia''s Realm, she was the cultivator who entered into the Divine Path the fastest. Even compared to her several other brothers, none of them were younger than her when they entered the Saint Plane.


    Countless people lamented that perhaps in the future, Little Princess Xia Qingyuan, could match the achievements of Emperor Xia and enter the realm of Renhuang.


    Of course, this day was still too far away. Compared to this, the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm were more concerned about the marriage of the Little Princess. Looking at Emperor Xia''s Realm, who could be worthy of a peerless figure such as the Little Princess? And many had counted the many geniuses of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    They found that in Emperor Xia''s Realm, the only person who was qualified to stand next to the Little Princess was still that person who could slay the saints while in the realm of sage.


    Princess Xia Qingyuan entered Sainthood, and Emperor Xia hosted a feast in Emperor Xia''s Palace to celebrate, like a holy ceremony. Countless people felt the love that Emperor Xia had for the Little Princess.


    On this day, inside Emperor Xia''s Palace, many top principalities of Emperor Xia''s Realm gathered along with those top figures whose fame was known throughout the world. Its scale was far grander than that of Old Man Xiao''s birthday banquet.


    This was the celebration of Xia Qingyuan''s Sainthood. Perhaps, there was a deeper meaning hidden behind Emperor Xia''s action.


    Of course, no one knew exactly what Emperor Xia intended.


    On this day, almost all the top figures were there, including the peak existences such as the Swordmaster of Lihen, Lord of Xuanyuan Palace, the master of Jiutian Temple, the master of Tianji Pavilion, and the valley master of Divine Cloud Valley.


    At the banquet, Emperor Xia sat high upon his throne, with Queen Xiao and Xia Qingyuan on each side of him. The other princes were sitting below Xia Qingyuan. After all, this was a celebration for Xia Qingyuan.


    All the top figures had arrived, but at the banquet, Xia Qingyuan''s look was calm, and she seemed uninterested. Her eyes sometimes looked far into the distance.


    Today''s banquet was filled with many cultivators, but one person was missing.


    Many people had also noticed Xia Qingyuan''s look, and these top figures understood. No one mentioned anything about the Princess'' marriage at the banquet.


    It seemed that the crowning jewel in Emperor Xia''s Realm was now grown up, and her heart had already found its belonging.


    But that man was not there today.


    Perhaps it had something to do with what happened at the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Emperor Xia had already named him the Lord of Qianye City. Perhaps, soon, he would leave Emperor Xia''s Realm for Crimson Dragon Realm. After that, it was very unlikely that he would return to Emperor Xia''s Realm in the future.


    After the banquet was over, Emperor Xia asked Swordmaster of Lihen, Lord of Xuanyuan Palace, and other peak figures to stay so he could talk to them.


    No one knew what they talked about. Until not long after, people were able to faintly assume one thing, which shocked many in Emperor Xia''s Realm, and they continued to guess Emperor Xia''s real motivation.


    When Emperor Xia''s Palace hosted the banquet, Ye Futian was not in the Upper World but went to the Nine States to take a few people to the Upper World.


    A few days later, Ye Futian and his party gathered at the Cottage Villa.


    Everyone from the Lower Worlds of Nine States was there.


    Ye Futian stood in front, holding the hand of a young girl. It was Little Grass, the daughter of the fourth senior brother, Xue Ye, and his wife, Youxi. Ling''er stood on the other side and took LIttle Grass''s other hand.


    Loulan Xue stood quietly behind them. Knife Saint, Gu Dongliu, and Zhuge Mingyue were all there. Of course, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, Xu Que, and Yuan Zhang were also present.


    Yaya and Glass Saint stood quietly behind. Obviously, they were prepared to go on a long-distance trip. Otherwise, it would not involve everyone departing.


    Ye Futian levitated into the air and glanced behind him. They had stayed here for a few years. After leaving today, it would be unlikely that they would return often.


    Although the Red Dragon Realm was chaotic and the strong preyed on the weak, in fact, it cohered more to the principle of survival of the fittest, where everything was more direct. Everything was based on power.


    More importantly, the Crimson Dragon Realm was freer. As the primary realm of the Crimson Dragon Region, no other Renhuang could interfere in the affairs of the Crimson Dragon Realm. If one was strong enough, then one could create an empire of one''s own; one that no one could shake, just like the City Lords of yore.


    During this trip, he prepared to establish his foothold in the Crimson Dragon Realm, and when everything was settled, he would embark to the more distant Supreme Path Region.


    Yu Sheng would also cultivate at the Regional Palace of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. Suddenly, this large group of people moved toward the distance. Soon, the Cottage Villa was emptied and seemed extraordinarily quiet.


    There were already many waiting in Emperor Xia''s Palace. When Ye Futian and his party arrived, they saw a group of people appearing in front of them, the head of which was Xia Qingyuan.


    Obviously, Xia Qingyuan was also preparing to leave Emperor Xia''s Palace and travel to Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Aside from Xia Qingyuan, Ye Futian also saw a lot of familiar faces. For example, the first person of Lihen Heaven who once fought with him on the 33 layers of heaven, Wang Chuan.


    There were also Xuanyuan Ao of Xuanyuan Palace and Gongsun Zhong of Divine Cloud Valley.


    Ye Futian also saw the people from the Nine States, such as Bai Luli.


    After these people received the order from Xia Qingyuan to go to the Upper World, they were under the order of Xia Qingyuan. And now, they were planning on traveling with her.


    "Why are you here?" behind Ye Futian, Luo Fan asked another person. Ye Futian looked over there and saw that next to Gongsun Zhong, Gongsun Ni and Gongsun Xuan were there, and Luo Fan was speaking to Gongsun Xuan.


    Clearly, he was surprised.


    "Why can''t I be here?" Gongsun Xuan retorted.


    "Uh..." Luo Fan blinked and saw a pair of enchanting but slightly angry eyes, and he dared not look straight at them.


    Ye Futian watched with a smile on his face. Apparently, someone was able to trump the fifth senior brother.


    Luo Fan had always been cynical, but now it seemed that his status in the family would be jeopardized in the future.


    Ye Futian glanced at the people who were present and immediately understood that Emperor Xia had already talked to all the top forces.


    Many people from various forces had sent their youngsters to accompany them on the trip to the Crimson Dragon Realm, but they should also be willing to go.


    After all, being able to travel long distances was a trial in itself.


    As for Emperor Xia''s exact command, it was not something he could have known.


    However, to be able to see so many familiar faces had lifted his mood.


    "Is the Princess also prepared to stay in the Crimson Dragon Realm for a long time?" Ye Futian asked. In addition to those youngsters, each force had also dispatched some powerful saints to travel with them.


    Clearly, this was the result of the last banquet.


    "This trip is for trials out there. You can rest assured that since my father, the Emperor, named you the City Lord of Qianye City. Everyone will obey your orders in the city, including me," Xia Qingyuan said to Ye Futian.


    "I would not dare..." Ye Futian whispered softly, but seeing Xia Qingyuan looking at him, he continued, "But thank you, Your Highness."


    Obviously, Emperor Xia did so because of what happened last time.


    He wanted to travel further, and so Emperor Xia deliberately arranged to secure the foundation of Qianye City. This was truly allowing him to become a lord of the empire, Qianye City was wholly entrusted to him.


    As for the result, it would solely be dependent on his ability.


    "Qingyuan, when are we going?" At this moment, a voice was heard, and Ye Futian saw another group coming toward them. It was Yao Xi, who had also brought many people to go along with her.


    Xia Qingyuan looked indifferent. She merely glanced at Yao Xi and ignored her question.


    "Young master Ye, you''ve been well." Yao Xi was not bothered by Xia Qingyuan''s treatment towards her and didn''t get angry. She smiled at Ye Futian. Yao Xi was clad in expensive clothing. She looked noble and holy, like a real noble princess, even more so than Xia Qingyuan.


    After all, Xia Qingyuan was still in man''s clothing, casual and simple.


    "Princess Yao Xi is also going to Qianye City," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes," Yao Xi said, "I have always wanted to go out and see the world. Now that I have a chance, I will come along."


    Ye Futian didn''t say much. Yao Xi was now the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Whatever she wanted to do was not something within his control.


    "Let''s go then," Ye Futian said, Xia Qingyuan nodded, and the group set off immediately, moving towards the teleportation grand matrix.


    Gongsun Xuan stepped forward, and without realizing it, approached Ye Futian and his party, next to Luo Fan.


    Xuanyuan Ao of Xuanyuan Palace walked behind Yu Sheng. He asked him as he was walking, "I heard that you decimated the geniuses of the Crimson Dragon Realm during the battle of Crimson River, and will enter the Regional Palace at Crimson Dragon Realm to cultivate?"


    As the descendant of Xuanyuan Clan, he certainly knew a little about the Crimson Dragon Realm. The ancient books in the family had also recorded what the Regional Palace was like, and many elders even knew about it.


    It was known as the first sacred place of cultivation in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "What is it?" Yu Sheng said, looking at Xuanyuan Ao.


    Xuanyuan Ao also had a husky built. Standing next to Yu Sheng, he did not appear any less brawny. He looked at Yu Sheng and said, "When we get to Crimson Dragon Realm, can I cultivate with you?"


    Many people heard Xuanyuan Ao''s words and turned their heads back to look at him. This proud descendent of Xuanyuan Palace showed no sign of proudness at this moment.


    This made many who knew Xuanyuan Ao look rather strange.


    "No." Yu Sheng spat. It was a resolute refusal. He continued to move forward, leaving a shocked crowd behind!

 1228 Arrangements

    Crimson Dragon Realm, Qingye City.


    Ye Futian and his party came forward in a mighty manner and descended directly into the City Lord''s Office of Qingye City.


    After that previous battle, the City Lord''s Office still seemed to be in ruins.


    The ruins were exceptionally quiet. An exhalation of breath seemed to be released from the dilapidated remains of the City Lord''s Office. Then Ye Futian saw a figure rise up into the sky. It was the previous City Lord, Shen Tianzhan.


    Only Shen Tianzhan remained in the City Lord''s Office. Everyone else was gone.


    "The City Lord has returned," Shen Tianzhan said to Ye Futian. He''d known that Ye Futian would come back sooner or later.


    This time, Ye Futian seemed to have brought a lot of people with him. The princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Xia Qingyuan, was among them as well. In addition, there were many cultivators from every plane, making the composition of the group even more complicated and mixed than it had been the last time.


    "Elder, what is this?" Ye Futian asked, looking at the ruins. Since Shen Tianzhan had stayed to wait for him, it meant that he still recognized Ye Futian as the City Lord of Qianye City. However, if that was the case, why had Shen Tianzhan not ordered for repairs of the City Lord''s Office? Moreover, why had everyone else disappeared?


    It seemed as if Shen Tianzhan was the only one left in this vast City Lord''s Office.


    "After the battle a few months ago, the cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm both withdrew. Xiang Nan saw that Qianye City was empty and wanted to take Qianye City for Emperor Xiang''s Realm. He ordered an attack to kill me. Not only me, but several principalities in Qianye City were also attacked by the people of Xiang City. Situ Zhong, the head of the Situ Clan, was injured during these attacks. Many people lost their lives. I dismissed everyone from the City Lord''s Office to prevent them from being harmed," Shen Tianzhan said.


    When Ye Futian heard what he said, his expression turned blank. In the past, during the battle between the two Renhuang realms, Xiang Nan had wanted to take the opportunity to profit, wanting to gain all the advantages without participating in the war, to use threats to put a squeeze on their resources. He had given him some, but he''d been far from able to satisfy Xiang Nan''s appetite.


    On the day of the great battle, Xiang Nan had brought people to threaten them.


    However, Xia Rong''s iron-wrought determination had deterred Xiang Nan. As soon as he''d made a move, he''d been caught up in the battle between the two Renhuang realms. The cultivators of Emperor Xia''s Realm would have killed him at any cost.


    Xiang Nan had not dared to make his move. Meanwhile, his followers had not been silly enough to interfere in the battle between the two Renhuang realms.


    But after the battle between the two Renhuang realms, they had returned to their respective lands. Xiang Nan had naturally anticipated that fightings would ensue within the two Renhuang realms which would set off a storm, so he''d thought of attacking Qianye City.


    Emperor Xiang''s Realm already required a considerable number of cultivators to guard the one city they occupied. They could not spare too many others to be dispatched to the Crimson Dragon Realm to guard the two cities for a prolonged period. Just like Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm, they did not have many who were of the Nirvana Plane. They could not possibly dispatch them all to guard the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Therefore, it was more likely that Xiang Nan had wanted to vent the humiliation he''d suffered during the Battle of the Crimson River, during which he''d been scared by Xia Rong into not fighting, which had caused much of his indignation.


    As a result, he''d sent people to harass Shen Tianzhan, wanting him to submit and agree to defend Qianye City for Emperors Xiang''s Realm.


    However, Shen Tianzhan had resisted stubbornly, displeasing Xiang Nan considerably. Since Shen Tianzhan had been willing to surrender to Ye Futian but had refused to become an affiliate of Emperor Xiang''s Realm, one could imagine Xiang Nan''s feelings about it. So, he''d repeatedly sent people to keep the City Lord''s office of Qianye City in a state of ruin.


    After Ye Futian learned what had happened, he said to Shen Tianzhan, "It''s been hard for you. It''s finally time to rebuild the City Lord''s Office."


    "Very well," Shen Tianzhan nodded. He had previously promised to stay on as the deputy city lord because of the defeat, though it had not been a sincere surrender.


    But what happened later had made him realize that maybe, by standing beside Ye Futian, he would see things differently.


    On the contrary, Xiang Nan, the prince of Emperor Xiang''s Realm, was resentful because of his defeat at Crimson River. He''d even gone so far as resorting to retaliation and extortion. His villainous acts were far worse than anything Ye Futian had ever done. Shen Tianzhan would loathe to even be in contact with such a person, much less follow and obey him.


    No matter what, he was on the Nirvana Plane, the last realm of the Divine Path.


    Suddenly, a surging wind rose up. A group of people was seen walking in the air in the distant void. They stopped a ways off and looked at Ye Futian and the others.


    Likewise, Ye Futian and Shen Tianzhan looked at them. They heard the leader of the group say, "Shen Tianzhan, we had given you many opportunities, and His Royal Highness had been unceasingly benevolent."


    "Our paths are different. We cannot work together," Shen Tianzhan said to the people in the void.


    Ye Futian turned and said to them, "Go back and tell Xiang Nan that if he wants Qianye City, send someone to come and fight me for it. If he dares not, then, by all means, stay quietly in Xiang City."


    The messenger stared at Ye Futian. After a while, he turned to leave, thinking that the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm had arrived too soon.


    What had happened in the past did not seem to have caused a division inside Emperor Xia''s Realm...


    On that day, Crown Prince Xia Rong, Xia Qingyuan, and Ye Futian had clearly been divided into two different camps.


    But now, Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan had returned together with reinforcements.


    This meant that Qianye City would most likely be entrusted to Ye Futian in the future.


    The people in Xiang City left, but Ye Futian''s eyes still maintained their coldness. Xiang Nan had once again exercised his old trick of profiting from other''s misfortunes. He had no conscience and was not afraid to show it.


    The news of Ye Futian''s return and the return of all the top forces of Qianye City soon spread. Situ Yan and Situ Zhong had both arrived as well.


    "Elder, I know about Xiang Nan. I will settle the score with him on your behalf," Ye Futian said by way of greeting to Situ Zhong.


    "I am relieved to hear you say that, City Lord Ye," Situ Zhong responded. "I have also brought along some reinforcements to see if we can be of assistance."


    As he was speaking, Situ Zhong mobilized his people. Some of the top forces in Qianye City began working together to build the new City Lord''s Office.


    In the world of cultivators, the time spent building was extremely accelerated. In just a short time, a brand-new City Lord''s Office rose from the ground.


    "Choose your place of cultivation," Ye Futian said as he walked toward the main hall of the City Lord''s Office.


    Xia Qingyuan chose a hall next to him. Yao Xi did the same as if she was intentionally competing with her.


    The other cultivators all chose their places of cultivation in the new City Lord''s Office.


    Those who''d come from the top forces of Emperor Xia''s Realm each set up a camp and chose an area in which to reside.


    Ye Futian faced the people next to him and said, "Little Butterfly, you should choose an area to be used as a medicinal pool and herb garden."


    Next to Little Butterfly was Saint Jiang''s eldest disciple, Xu Chehan.


    Not long ago when Ye Futian had taken the trip to the Lower World, he hadn''t only brought along his relatives. Saint Jiang had ordered Xu Chehan, who had already entered the Saint Plane, to accompany him. The husband and wife, along with Little Butterfly, had followed Ye Futian and cultivated with him.


    In the days when the Sacred War was being waged against the Palace, Xu Chehan had fully comprehended the way. Later, when he''d finally been able to enter the realm of the Divine Path by his own merit, Saint Jiang taught him everything he knew.


    The Great Teacher Xu of today was no longer comparable to the one of the past.


    Furthermore, the resources of the Crimson Dragon Realm were incomparable to those of the Lower World of the Nine States. In the future, Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly would need to collect better materials for treatments or medicinal baths.


    Ye Futian situated the people from the Nine States into one area. Yu Sheng, Yi Qingxuan, Wuchen and Liu Chenyu, Gu Dongliu, the second senior sister, and the rest were staying in the main house with Ye Futian.


    After all the arrangements were made, Ye Futian went over to Yaya and said, "Yaya, come with me."


    Yaya nodded, walking away with Ye Futian and Black Wind Condor.


    In Peacock City of the Crimson Dragon Realm, Ye Futian found Kong Xuan.


    Kong Xuan was a little surprised by Ye Futian''s arrival. She asked, "Are you looking for me?"


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "There is a matter at hand that requires Princess Kong Xuan''s help."


    "What matter?" Kong Xuan asked doubtfully. Beside her, Jialou Feng''s eyes were extremely cold as he fixed his stare on Ye Futian.


    When he''d last been on the battlefield of Crimson River, his divine feathers had been plucked by Yu Sheng.


    "This demonic beast of mine has some gifts in cultivation, but he can''t seem to enter the Divine Path. I''m not very familiar with the cultivation of the demonic realm and want to send this little condor to the Peacock Demon Emperor''s Realm to cultivate. Therefore, I''ve come to ask for your help," said Ye Futian.


    Even though Black Wind Condor already knew what Ye Futian wanted to do, when he heard those words, the Black Wind Condor couldn''t help but turtle up his neck and shiver uncontrollably as he stole a glance at Kong Xuan.


    It was a truly crazy idea that might cost the little condor his life.


    Even Kong Xuan was stunned for a moment. Her cold and sharp eyes swept towards the Black Wind Condor.


    While they''d been at the Empty Realm, the Black Wind Condor had not spared her any humiliation. Those words echoed in her head to this day: "Kong Xuan, come quickly to serve my Lord..."


    At the time, she could not wait to cut the Black Wind Condor into a thousand pieces to quench the hatred in her heart.


    However, since she''d entered into sainthood, her state of mind had gone through some changes. Her hatred was not so strong anymore. That was why, when she''d first seen the Black Wind Condor, she had not immediately thrown a tantrum.


    She looked at Ye Futian coldly and said, "Ye Futian, do you know what you are asking?"


    Have her take this Black Wind Condor to cultivate?


    This Black Wind Condor whose mouth spewed out nothing but garbage?


    "Does this dumb beast qualify?" Jialou Feng asked mockingly. A sharp whistling sound came from the mouth of the Black Wind Condor. Suddenly, a great gust of wind whipped up. Its eyes glanced at Jialou Feng as its form morphed into a bolt of dark golden lightning and rushed toward him.


    The divine feathers of Jialou Feng glimmered brightly as the extremely sharp golden blades slashed towards them. The Black Wind Condor did not retreat. It turned into frightening lightning and thunder, its wings extended, cutting through the void.


    Boom.


    With a loud sound, Jialou Feng''s body was thrown backward. The Black Wind Condor returned to Ye Futian''s side in a radiant arc and glanced scornfully at Jialou Feng.


    "The Little Condor possesses all the comprehension of my cultivation. It is very talented, but its entrance into the Saint Plane had been delayed. I don''t know what should be done next, so I thought to send it to the Peacock Demon Emperor''s Realm," Ye Futian said. "I know that there were several offenses made in the past, but those are inevitable on the battlefield. We beg the princess''s indulgence in these matters. I want to send Little Condor to the Demon Emperor''s Realm in the hopes of building a friendship, not a rivalry."


    Kong Xuan looked at Ye Futian deeply, then nodded. "Very well."


    Seeing that Kong Xuan had agreed, the Black Wind Condo took a secretive look at her beautiful face and shivered again.


    Little Condor was unlucky. It had barely escaped the hands of the she-devil, only to face yet another danger!

 1229 Enter the Regional Palace

    Ye Futian revealed a smile. Since Kong Xuan had agreed, she must be willing to resolve the grievances of the past.


    This way, there would be one less powerful opponent in the future.


    In the chaotic Crimson Dragon Realm, even though one may be endowed with excellent abilities, there were just too many strong cultivators from other major Renhuang Realms. However, if there was no feud to settle, there was no need to make enemies.


    In fact, the grudge between Ye Futian and Kong Xuan had always been him continuously bullying her, so it was natural that he did not mind letting go of the grudge and turning war into peace.


    "Going forward in the Crimson Dragon Realm, I hope that Princess Kong Xuan will watch out for us." Ye Futian slightly bowed and appeared very humble.


    Kong Xuan looked at him and asked, "Do you have time to stay?"


    Ye Futian was stunned for a moment. Kong Xuan seemed to have made quite a leap.


    "Is there something else required by the princess?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Fight with me," Kong Xuan replied. Her eyes glowed with intensity as she stared at Ye Futian. Back when she had entered the Divine Path at the battlefield of Crimson River, she''d decided to forfeit and not to fight with Yu Sheng who was already on the Saint Plane. This had since caused her to feel some regret.


    Now that she had been on the Saint Plane for several months, and her cultivation had gained a firm foundation, she lacked a good opponent to help hone her fighting skills. She wanted to see what level her fighting power had reached.


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. Looking at her cold face, he asked, "That wouldn''t exactly be appropriate, would it?"


    They had just made peace. Why should that be followed by a fight?


    Kong Xuan was indeed a cultivator of the Peacock Demon Emperor clan, whose affinity to fight was innate.


    "There is a battle platform at my residence," Kong Xuan said, eager to get going.


    "Very well," Ye Futian said begrudgingly. "Shall I go all out?"


    He was weighing whether or not he should let it rip. Would it be better to restrain himself?


    If he beat Kong Xuan violently, would he be adding new hatred onto the old?


    "Of course." Kong Xuan glanced at Ye Futian coldly as the two walked toward the battle platform. It didn''t take long for earthshaking sounds to start coming out of the City Lord''s Office of Peacock City. Many buildings collapsed and their dust filled the air.


    Emerging from the thick dust was a handsome white-haired man. He cleaned the dust off his body as he walked away from the battle platform.


    From out of the dust, Kong Xuan gradually appeared. She stared grimly at the departing figure, a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth.


    The little condor shivered from the sidelines as he watched the scene play out.


    "How did he cultivate his physical body?" Kong Xuan asked the little condor, regarding him with an icy stare. This was Ye Futian''s demonic beast and must have the same mind as Ye Futian. This little condor would know how Ye Futian cultivated.


    "I don''t know exactly." The little condor shook its head decisively, not wanting to betray its master.


    Kong Xuan released a coldness from her body as she walked toward the shivering little condor. It looked at her and said, "Xia Qingyuan gave him the method of cultivation. It should be Emperor Xia''s."


    "Xia Qingyuan?" Kong Xuan stopped. It was possible.


    Xia Qingyuan had access to many kinds of methods. With her help, his body-enhancing techniques would be the strongest.


    "Yes." The little condor nodded in earnest. "But Xia Qingyuan always wore men''s clothing. She is far less attractive than Princess Kong Xuan in looks and figure. And her personality is violent and manic, not at all gentle and soft like yours, princess. You are like a goddess from heaven. How would you like to be my mistress in the future?"


    "Your mistress?" Kong Xuan gave him a strange look.


    "Mmm." The little condor nodded seriously. "Princess, you and my master are a match made in heaven."


    "The princess may beat this condor without mercy, no need to spare it." Ye Futian''s voice was heard from somewhere in the distance. Apparently, he knew what the Black Wind Condor was talking about.


    "Ah!" the Black Wind Condor screamed. When it saw Kong Xuan walking his way, he was on the verge of tears.


    Afterward, there was a mix of violent screaming, pleading, and flattering, all rolled into one.


    The following period made the Black Wind Condor realize that Xia Qingyuan was entirely too gentle.


    Ye Futian left the little condor in Peacock City and departed with Yaya.


    By sending the little condor to Peacock City, he hoped to resolve the grievances between himself and Kong Xuan. It was also for the benefit of the little condor. It belonged to the demonic tribe and needed the tempering of its kind. He hoped that its luck would improve and that Kong Xuan would send it to be taught by the great members of the Peacock Demon Emperor''s Realm to transform and cultivate.


    Ye Futian returned to the City Lord''s Office of Qianye City and went to the newly built temple to cultivate. In the cultivation temple, he sat with his eyes closed, comprehending the omnipresent meaning of heaven and earth.


    There was a sacred radiance shining upon him. Its bright, shining light seemed to cast a matrix diagram surrounded by ancient characters around him. His body was in the center of the diagram. The might of the authority between heaven and earth seemed to be everywhere. A variety of different colors of the swordsmanship emerged, blooming around Ye Futian''s body.


    Each color represented a different kind of swordsmanship.


    Inside his body, in the Life Palace, the ancient tree made a rustling sound. On top of the ancient tree, the colors changed until they converged into one color which flowed wildly into Ye Futian''s body. At the same time, the splendid brilliance seemed to also turn into one color, integrating into Ye Futian''s body like it was a furnace for refining.


    His body made roaring and booming sounds. The five elements of the Great Path were integrated into one. The universe returned to one as it refined the Great Path into one, fueling and strengthening the way. It was as if his swordsmanship had undergone transformation and sublimation.


    Moreover, this powerful swordsmanship resonated within the sanctified body. With a grasp of the palm, a force suddenly swept out, its violence extreme. If anyone faced it, no doubt they would find it difficult to breathe.


    The power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was perfectly matched with his ability to cultivate. The master''s vision could be described as extremely vicious. The ancient tree of the world seemed to be able to contain all things, and the Deed of Thorough Comprehension aimed to temper the swordsmanship and sublimate it. The combination of the two allowed the refinement of many types of swordsmanship to form one that would be even more powerful after being sublimated. By using the Deed of Thorough Comprehension to bring forth its full strength, its power became truly astounding.


    Moreover, he could always adjust the amount of swordsmanship that he wanted to release.


    As he stood up, Ye Futian waved his hand and flexed his fists. Every move seemed to be perfectly natural, blended with the Great Path, one with heaven and earth.


    The sacred light pouring over his body was like showering in divine radiance. Each unleashed strike may not seem strong, but it contained a curious power that gave out a dull sound with each blast, swirling as if they were devouring black holes, disappearing in an instant.


    In Crimson Dragon Realm, the opponents he would meet in the future would be even stronger. That day in the Battle of the Crimson River, he''d discovered that the strength of some of the geniuses was already very strong, and that was just the tip of the iceberg in the Crimson Dragon Realm. Every year, such cultivators would be born.


    In the future, he would likely face many descendants of Renhuang, and the gap between himself as these people would get increasingly smaller. Even those that he would meet on the Supreme Path in the future might not necessarily be less powerful than him.


    Therefore, the higher the level, the harder he needed to cultivate.


    Ye Futian left the cultivation temple and found Yu Sheng. It was time to send Yu Sheng to the Regional Palace to cultivate.


    Before long, a group of people arrived at the bank of the Crimson River.


    The crimson sky seemed to contain the mighty pressure of the Great Path. The Crimson River seemed like it was full magma. If anyone with weaker cultivation stepped into it, they would be burned to death immediately.


    "Yu Sheng, go," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng would soon enter into this most powerful spiritual holy land for cultivation. He would have the opportunity to touch the core of the Crimson Dragon Realm, the direct source of the Crimson Dragon Emperor''s power.


    Yu Sheng nodded and walked into the void, traveling directly above the Crimson River toward the castle at the center of Crimson River.


    He knew what Ye Futian wanted him to do. He would fulfill his mission by gaining a steady foothold in the Regional Palace. There, he would come into contact with the core forces of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    As he walked forward, the crimson red castle, came into view. Someone was standing guard there, and Yu Sheng handed them the token he carried. As he stepped through the towering Heaven''s Gate that rose high into the sky, he officially entered the Regional Palace.


    From a distance, the Regional Palace looked just like any castle. Inside, however, it was something unique, like a city suspended above the Crimson River.


    In front of him, the shadows of figures stood above the void, watching Yu Sheng''s arrival as if they were waiting for him.


    Each one among them possessed an extraordinary temperament. They were standing there like a natural chasm, blocking Yu Sheng''s path forward.


    They were all cultivators of the Regional Palace. Like Yu Sheng, they had also shared the victory of the Battle of the Crimson River and had entered into the Regional Palace with great advantages.


    "I heard that the newcomer is very powerful and has overwhelmed many powerful opponents with his strength, including the brother of Xing Kai," someone said. The welcome ceremony at the Regional Palace was always a little unusual.


    "Perhaps the people he faced were just very weak," a woman crossing her arms in front of her said with a smile. Her manner was elegant. From the first glance, it was easy to tell that she was of uncommon and noble birth.


    Above the castle, Xing Kai stood, watching silently.


    Yu Sheng walked by someone and said, "Move."


    "The rule at the Regional Palace is that the newcomer who enters the palace must respectfully address the elders as senior brothers and sisters. Only then will the brothers and sisters will make way," the man said with a smile.


    There were no rules in the Regional Palace except that the strongest fist rules the palace.


    Yu Sheng had already discovered that the people who were standing in front of him were all on the Realm of Proving Holiness, just like him.


    Yu Sheng tightened both of his fists. With a roar, an extremely violent magical power swept through the air instantly. Behind him, a world-toppling demon king appeared. Above the firmament, the magical power tumbled and roared like a demonic god.


    The people in front of him revealed a look of surprise. Although the newcomers who entered the palace all chose to fight, such direct and powerful newcomers were still in the minority.


    Now they wanted to see how many obstacles he could pass through.


    Whether Yu Sheng could get through the barriers or not would be his first test of entering the Regional Palace. It would also determine how much value he would have in the palace.


    This was the welcoming ceremony of the Regional Palace.


    Boom!


    Yu Sheng took a step that shook the void with a roar. The Crimson River roiled. The entire castle seemed to be bombarded by the sound of thunder.


    On the bank of the Crimson River, Ye Futian glanced in the direction Yu Sheng had gone, then turned to leave.


    The road to the Regional Palace would be walked alone by Yu Sheng!

 1230 Jianmu City

    Ye Futian and his party did not return to Qianye City after leaving Crimson River. They were still inside Crimson Dragon City.


    This first major city of Crimson Dragon Realm was extremely vast, with many wonders and cultivation places that were not seen in other Renhuang realms. It was not only in possession of a battlefield like the Rising Dragon Platform, but also had other places of cultivation.


    The land west of Crimson Dragon Realm was where Ye Futian and his party had gone. There were countless roads in front of them. These roads were like the branches of an ancient tree, extending to different places in every direction. A faint sense of heat was transmitted from the place.


    On each ancient road, people coming and going. The place was filled with cultivators. People of the Saint Plane seemed to be everywhere as well.


    Ye Futian looked forward and raised his head slightly to look at the sky. He saw something like a floating castle. It was boundless, reaching high above the sky. Even the holy will was unable to reach it.


    The sun and its radiance shone down from the sky. Above the castle, divine golden birds could be seen flying in circles. Bright flames rained down, holier than one could imagine.


    Standing next to all of it, Ye Futian and his party seemed incredibly small. When someone walked past them and set foot on one of the roads, it was as if they had stepped onto a branch.


    "Is this the Divine Jianmu Tree?" Yi Xiaoshi whispered. One of the four legendary Divine Trees in the lore, the Divine Jianmu Tree could connect the heaven and the earth. It was able to reach the depths of the earth and high above the firmament so that heaven and earth were connected.


    Each of his branches was an ancient road. Together, it formed thousands of ancient roads that led to Jianmu City, the city which lay in front of them.


    The Crimson Dragon Army guarded Jianmu City. Standing above the void, they looked like an army from heaven.


    Jianmu City was a holy place for cultivation. It was also one of the largest trading posts in Crimson Dragon City. To enter Jianmu City, payment of spirit stones of the Great Path was required. Otherwise, one was not eligible to cultivate in Jianmu City.


    Furthermore, the price of admission was not cheap. Those who were weak and small in their cultivation simply could not cultivate for long in Jianmu City. Otherwise, Jianmu City would have become overcrowded a long time ago.


    "Go and feel it," Ye Futian said. He walked over to the Crimson Dragon Army and paid the spirit stones required for everyone to enter.


    The group of people walked forward and entered a boulevard inside Jianmu City. The boulevard was lined with a lot of buildings that seemed to be no different from those on the outside. However, when you looked up at them, you would see a stout tree branch supporting a road above it.


    Furthermore, there was an extremely hot stream of air above the ancient tree like the flaming breath of the Great Path.


    "Jianmu City reaches the sky and goes deep into the ground, absorbing the fire of the Great Path. The higher that Jianmu City reaches upward, the more prosperous the trading post will become. Many top forces have been taking shape inside Jianmu City over the years and taking root here. The more rooted they are, the more suitable for cultivation. It is said that, at the bottom of Jianmu, ordinary cultivators of the Saint Plane are unable to stay without getting burned up into ashes under the fire of the Great Path," someone behind Ye Futian said.


    The one who spoke was Shen Jun, the former young master of Qianye City. He''d always been very dashing and elegant, but now he was more subdued. He was acting as a guide for Ye Futian and his group, introducing the background of the Crimson Dragon Realm to Ye Futian. After all, he''d grown up in the Crimson Dragon Realm and knew much more about it than Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly, contemplating what kind of truth would be contained within the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    In the Empty Realm, the will of space hung in the sky.


    The Crimson Dragon Realm was more powerful than the space will of the Empty Realm. This Crimson Dragon Realm truly belonged to a world of flames. It was said that those who cultivated in the art of flames were extremely powerful.


    "Let''s go up first," Ye Futian said, then looked at Luo Fan beside him. "Fifth senior brother, let''s go see if there is a fire of the Great Path that is suitable for your cultivation."


    The number of flame cultivation methods in the Crimson Dragon Realm was endless. Many top figures had refined it into a special flame of the Great Path which integrated the Way into it. These flames were of great help to the future generations of cultivators. It could even be directly refined into the body. Learning to comprehend the Divine Path was of great help to one''s cultivation.


    Although similar to Ye Wuchen''s Renhuang sword will, the fire of the saint was not as strong as the Renhuang sword will, so it was quite suitable for Luo Fan who was still a sage.


    The higher one went, the more they discovered that the world of cultivators was destined to be unfair. All of this was unimaginable in the Lower World of the Nine States. How could one compare the speed and limits of cultivation?


    "I''m embarrassed to trouble my younger brother for money to spend on it," Luo Fan said.


    "That''s right. After all, I, your younger brother, am also poor. If that''s the case, let''s just not go," Ye Futian said jokingly.


    "Eh..." Luo Fan stared at Ye Futian with shock. He had not expected such a response from him.


    "We are all brothers of the same master. Helping each other is a matter of course. Since the younger brother is so sincere, then I will gladly accept it." Luo Fan hugged Ye Futian''s shoulder, internally cursing him for being so tight with his wallet.


    The senior brother was clearly not as fortunate as the younger brother.


    "Of course, if you something that strikes your fancy, please pick out whatever you want. By the way, choose a gift for Miss Xuan too," Ye Futian said with a smile. He''d been joking before.


    "That''s the spirit. Don''t forget how nice I was to you when you were young!" Luo Fan exclaimed with a thumbs up.


    Ye Futian''s face was a picture of confusion. When he was young?


    All right, perhaps 18 or 19 years olds could be considered young.


    "Have you found a good place?" Ye Futian asked Shen Jun.


    "What level do you want?" Shen Jun asked.


    "The best," Ye Futian responded. Luo Fan''s eyes lit up. When he looked at Ye Futian, he thought that his junior brother was even more handsome than ever.


    "Heavenly Flames Avenue in Jianmu City is the most prosperous place for flame trading. Even Nirvana-level flames are not lacking there. Renhuang level flames have even appeared there once," Shen Jun said.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Let''s go to Heavenly Flames Avenue then."


    "Okay, then we need to hurry." Shen Jun nodded. His body flickered as he led the way. Ye Futian and his team followed behind. They all traveled fast as they shuttled through Jianmu City.


    Jianmu City was considered a renowned city for a reason. When all the areas above and below the surface, it was much larger than a city as large as Qianye City. Therefore, one could only imagine just how massive this ancient tree that connected the world was, or that it was still growing.


    In Heavenly Flames Avenue was a huge, wide-open square where many cultivators gathered to trade.


    There were a lot of shops in the square, many of them temporarily built by the cultivators. Outside of these shops were engraved signs displaying what items were available for trade. Of course, there were also some large, permanent structures that were used for long term trading.


    The Tower of Heavenly Flames on Heavenly Flames Avenue, for example, belonged to a major force with many invaluable Flames of the Way.


    At the moment, many cultivators were assembled in the Tower of Heavenly Flames. Ye Futian and his people had just arrived. There were many flame furnaces inside, all of which contained the Flames of the Way. Above the furnace, the name of the Flame of the Way, its grade, and its abilities were listed in great detail.


    The cultivation of flames in the Crimson Dragon Realm was considered the epitome of the Crimson Dragon Region. The classification and grade of the flames here were finer than anywhere else.


    "Purple Flame, unblemished medium-grade Flame of the Way, aggressive attacking power with a strong ability to break defenses." Ye Futian looked at a flame furnace. Inside, a purple flame was making a sharp sizzling sound. Tiny bolts of lightning could be seen inside the flame.


    After cultivators entered the saint realm, if they majored in the flames, they would temper the flame of their Great Path, making them physical, multiplying their power, and refining them to contain great Swordsmanship.


    "The fire of the Golden Flames, unblemished upper-grade Flames of the Way, aggressive attacking power with the ability to melt anything. Good for attacking, forging armors..." In yet another flame furnace, the golden flames shone brightly, lighting up the flame furnace with extremely bright golden flames.


    "This would be more suitable for Gongsun Xuan, but she came from Divine Could Valley. Presumably, this grade of Flame of the Way would not be a great help to her," Ye Futian whispered. Gongsun Xuan''s origin meant that she had tremendous spiritual resources of her own.


    In addition, her grandfather had reached the Nirvana Plane. The Flame he possessed could be tempered into the Flame of Nirvana.


    "The Flames of the Way in this area were artificially made. The Flames of the Way on the other side were formed naturally," Shen Jun explained. Of course, there was no absolute advantage or disadvantage to choosing either. It was all dependent on the person who refined the flame and the strength of the natural formation.


    Ye Futian and his party continued their search for an even stronger Flame of the Way.


    They came across another flame furnace. Inside, the flames seemed dim and ghostly like a shadow.


    "The Ghostly Flame of the Way, Nirvana mid-grade. Possesses a strong sense of destruction. Its ability to burn and destroy souls was given by the Nether Saint Lord," said the line of writing engraved on the outside of the furnace. As Ye Futian walked past the Tower of Heavenly Flames, he felt a dizzying sensation and some interest.


    The flames here were too strong. By comparison, the Unblemished Flames of Way did not appear so precious.


    In fact, Ye Futian had also cultivated in flaming ability. Not just the flame, he''d also cultivated many other kinds of abilities and comprehended all kinds of will.


    However, because many abilities were limited by magical powers, they were not strong enough. In fact, there was no absolute strengths or weaknesses between the kinds of will. Any kind of will could be cultivated to its highest level. Ye Futian wondered if he could pick up some of them to cultivate.


    "Senior brother, choose the one that suits you," Ye Futian said to Luo Fan. Stronger was generally better, but it still needed to fit Luo Fan''s ability to cultivate to be effective.


    For example, for those with extraordinary birthrights, if their forefathers had cultivated certain kind of flames, or even passed them on into the life spirit, they could inherit them in the form of comprehension, saving themselves half the trouble.


    "Beggars can''t be choosers. Let''s just make do," Luo Fan said casually. However, his action was pretty deft. He pointed at a flame and said, "That''s it."


    Ye Futian saw the grade of the flame he wanted and felt a pinch in his heart. He said, "Senior brother, you don''t want to spare me any expense!"

 1231 Peculiar Old Man

    Luo Fan listened to what Ye Futian said and smirked, clapping his little brother''s shoulder. He said, "We''re family after all, aren''t we? Isn''t this for our second sister''s sake, eh?"


    "Really?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled sheepishly at Luo Fan, which made him shudder as he smiled. Holding his head high, he said, "Indeed."


    "Don''t bother about him, little brother," Zhuge Mingyue said, looking at the flames. While Ye Futian had recently become rather rich, the flames were of such a level that they were really going to cost him.


    "Could you be more biased, sister?" Luo Fan said with a glum face.


    "Now you know," Zhuge Mingyue said with a smile as she looked at the dejected expression on Luo Fan''s face. Ye Futian, however, smiled and asked, "What is the price for these flames, senior?"


    "This is not to be traded using sacred spirit stones. It can only be exchanged for something of equal value, like the Pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvana-level training methods, ritual implements, and the like," the elder who guarded the flames said. Ye Futian smiled, thinking about how this was supposed to have been an easier day. Even if he''d been able to pay for the flames using sacred spirit stones, it still would have been difficult.


    "What do you think about these sword arts?" Ye Futian sent a holy will from his brow over to the elder. The illustration of the Sword of Kasyapa entered the elder''s mind. The elder looked at it for a bit and then said, "The arts look fine. However, it''s not something truly unique. I assume that you use it for trading quite often, so this won''t do."


    The Sword of Kasyapa was considered the best sword arts that could be found in Dali. It was considered a very high grade even in Crimson Dragon Realm. As far as barter was concerned, its value should have been adequate.


    "I''m afraid you are wrong, senior. The sword art was of top-notch Holiness of Nirvana indeed. While it isn''t something unique and could be found elsewhere, I could say the same thing about the Consuming Flames of the Way. I''m sure seniors who are trained in such arts could have created it again and again," Ye Futian said.


    "You saw the grade of the Consuming Flames of the Way yourself��extreme Holiness of Nirvana level. It was crafted by a mighty cultivator at the very pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvana level, requiring quite a bit of spiritual power to craft it. Do you think someone of such a level would have crafted flames like that over and over again to sell? Furthermore, what if others managed to figure out its workings?" The elder continued, "The higher the level of the Flames of the Way is, the harder it is to come across. I need a training method of the same level to exchange for it. Otherwise, it''d be better for you to look elsewhere, sir."


    Ye Futian felt rather speechless as he looked at the forceful elder. He knew that what he''d said was the truth, but the trade depended on whose needs were stronger. The elder was not in a hurry to sell it off, and others wanted to trade him for it. Unless there was a high demand for the product, the elder wouldn''t have dared to negotiate in such a manner. If Ye Futian were to set up a shop selling methods of such levels, he would be asking for at least as much as the elder.


    With that thought, Ye Futian seemed to have chanced upon a way of getting rich.


    However, on his plane, if he simply traded Holiness of Nirvana level methods without a care, he might as well be painting a target on his back.


    Why would there be a need to trade if one could just take what they wanted by force?


    After all, the Crimson Dragon Realm was a largely lawless place.


    "Alright, we''ll just go elsewhere," Luo Fan said, clearly frustrated.


    "What do you think about this method then, senior?" Xia Qingyuan interjected from the side. She then sent holy will into the elder''s mind. The elder nodded and said, "You could take the flames for two methods."


    "That will do." Xia Qingyuan took out the method she''d used and looked at Ye Futian, who then took out a manual copy of the Sword of Kasyapa and handed it to the elder. The elder checked the goods and then nodded, handing the furnace to Ye Futian. He said, "The furnace itself is one the top of the line containers of flames. It would have melted under the powers of the Flames of the Way a long time ago otherwise. You people are getting quite a bargain here."


    Ye Futian took the furnace and handed it to Luo Fan before turning to Xia Qingyuan. He said, "Thank you, princess. I still have other methods with me though."


    There were many methods to be found in the Golden Hall of the Lotus in Emperor Xia''s Palace, but the truly top of the line ones were kept in private collections by the royal palace. Even if he were to have seen them, there was no way he could have traded with them. However, if Xia Qingyuan were to do so, then it naturally would not be a problem.


    "Never mind. It''s all the same," Xia Qingyuan said plainly. The elder looked at the two of them and speculated about their identities.


    Princess?


    But then again, all kinds of people could be found in Crimson Dragon City. The place was the biggest and greatest city in the Crimson Dragon Region after all.


    Luo Fan took a look at Ye Futian, impressed by his little brother''s capabilities. They were far above his own abilities.


    He sure couldn''t measure up to him.


    "Ye Futian," someone called out. Ye Futian turned and saw someone familiar.


    He quickly recalled who the man was. It was the man who had fought Yu Sheng, Wuchen, and the others in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon��Zhuo Xu of the Black Flames clan. He was a native of Crimson Dragon City.


    Zhuo Xu took a look at Ye Wuchen. Those who had lost to him in the past had since become saints at the Battle of the Crimson River.


    Ye Futian nodded with a smile, not wanting to engage him in conversation. Zhuo Xu then took one look at the flames that Luo Fan was putting away. In truth, Zhuo Xu had always wanted the Consuming Flames of the Way. He wanted to consume it to strengthen his flames. However, his family wouldn''t grant him two top-notch methods to exchange for it. Their Flames of the Way were powerful to begin with, so they were reluctant to cover such expenditures.


    "Ye Futian, Lord of Qianye City?" Many turned to look at Ye Futian curiously. After the battle between Li City and Qianye City, as well as the Battle of the Crimson River, the city lord of Qianye had gained quite some renown. Of course, his renown paled in comparison to that of Yu Sheng, who had practically steered the direction of the entire Battle of the Crimson River.


    A battle between two cities was a big event involving two imperial realms. However, the attention attracted by such battles could not compare with the Battle of the Crimson River. That battle had enabled the winner to enter the Regional Palace. Plus, the Battle of the Crimson River had been fought in the Crimson Dragon City.


    "We''ll take a look elsewhere," Ye Futian said as he walked out of the Tower of Heavenly Flames.


    However, there were still many people around who had come out to take a look at him. Some were heard saying, "Ye Futian was bickering with Xing Kai back at the Battle of the Crimson River. It was quite a pity that they didn''t end up fighting each other."


    "Yu Sheng''s talents were unparalleled. He seemed to listen to this guy a lot. How would Ye Futian compare to a devil like Yu Sheng?" Many talked about this. Many cultivators on Heavenly Flames Avenue turned to look at Ye Futian as well.


    Xing Kai of the Ancient Imperial City was extremely renowned, even in Crimson Dragon City.


    Xing Kai would become a renowned figure in the Crimson Dragon Realm in the future.


    Furthermore, the Ninth Servant, the city lord of Ancient Imperial City, was also a legendary figure. He was lauded as the number-one city lord outside of Crimson Dragon City.


    Ye Futian did not bother with what the people around him were saying. People of renowned clans were commonly seen in a place like Crimson Dragon City. For instance, Zhuo Xu was a descendant of a Renhuang, yet people had stopped paying him any attention soon enough.


    "Are you looking for Flames of the Way, my friend?" someone asked, causing Ye Futian to turn around. An old man was setting up a street stall in the middle of the busy Heavenly Flames Avenue, making him stand out of the crowd.


    The old man''s aura appeared to be very weak. The grades of flames he was selling in his stall were all of the very low grades. No one walking about was paying him any attention.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded, saying, "I''m indeed looking for Flames of the Way. Why do you ask, sir?"


    "I have some here." the old man said, beckoning Ye Futian''s party over to his stall.


    Ye Futian took one look at the flames in the old man''s stall. They were like comparing gold and dirt when he thought of the quality flames being sold at the Tower of Heavenly Flames. There was no need to compare them at all.


    However, Ye Futian nonetheless walked up to the old man and said, "The levels of these flames are rather low. They would be of little use for my friend''s training."


    "I do have higher level ones if that''s what you''re looking for, but I don''t know if you''d dare to take them," the old man said to Ye Futian with a smile.


    Ye Futian looked at the old man and noticed how alert and cautious his eyes were. Although the old man looked frail and had little aura to speak of, Ye Futian was able to tell that the old man was very adept at concealing his true abilities.


    He had been quietly sitting there before with no one bothering him. He had not been trying to bother anyone either. Ye Futian wondered why the old man had decided to call out to him.


    "If the prices are good, I don''t mind taking them," Ye Futian said.


    "You can have them for free." The old man flashed a beaming smile. His teeth were rather yellow and somewhat unsightly.


    Ye Futian looked even more puzzled.


    Free?


    There were a lot of situations where free things turned out to be things turned out to cost the most. They often required payment in other forms.


    "What conditions do you have then, sir?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I have none." The old man shook his head.


    Ye Futian felt rather puzzled. He was unable to read the old man.


    "That was why I asked if you would dare to take them!" the old man said somewhat aggressively.


    "I don''t dabble with what I know nothing about," Ye Futian said, bowing to the old man. "I shall take my leave."


    The old man looked very mysterious. Ye Futian thought that it would best to exercise caution in a place like Jianmu City.


    "Are you sure you don''t want it?" a voice with a terrifying aura cried out all of a sudden, sweeping all over the Heavenly Flames Avenue. Its scorching will made everyone turn around in an instant.


    Ye Futian was no exception. He saw the old man holding a ball of Flames of the Way which glittered brilliantly. They contrasted with the rays of the sun above in mystical ways. The Three-Legged Golden Ravens in the sky over Jianmu City cried.


    The old man put the flames away in just an instant, smiling at Ye Futian. He said, "I''m giving them away to you. Do you dare to take them?"


    "Renhuang Flames of the Way." Ye Futian stared at the old man and then looked around the avenue. Countless pairs of eyes had turned toward him in an instant. The old man whom no one had bothered with before had suddenly attracted the attention of everyone in the area.


    That Flames of the Way were being given away for free.


    The eyes of countless people were burning brilliantly, Ye Futian included. However, flames of such levels would be difficult to hold onto.


    It was no surprise that the old man had asked him if he dared to take it.


    What he was unable to fathom was why the old man was trying to give the flames to him for free.


    There was no way that they knew each other.


    "I''ll take it," Ye Futian said. If that old man said that he was willing to give Renhuang level flames away, then it would be up to Ye Futian to choose how to deal with it. If he was unable to keep it around, he would simply sell it.


    He walked up decisively, the people around him following him, concerned that the old man was up to no good.


    However, that old man simply chucked the flames into the furnace and handed it over to Ye Futian, who accepted them right away. He then looked at the old man and said, "Since you''ve said you''re giving it to me, then it''s up to me to decide what to do with it, right?"


    "Of course, I wouldn''t hold it against if you just gave it someone else. So long as you''re willing to take them from me, that is." The old man looked at Ye Futian with a beaming smile. That look gave Ye Futian a bad feeling.


    The old man waved and put the entire stall away before disappearing in a flash.


    Many formidable auras turned in Ye Futian''s direction as soon as the old man left. Ye Futian frowned and thought that the flames would indeed be difficult to hold on to.

 1232 Thief?

    Ye Futian watched as the old man disappeared and the people in the square closed in on him. However, none of them dared to try to take the flames from him by force.


    Ye Futian, the lord of Qianye City, was backed by Renhuang forces, making him a difficult person to take on. Furthermore, it appeared that the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm was with him.


    "Do you mind if I have a look at those Flames of the Way?" Zhuo Xu of the Black Flame clan asked.


    Ye Futian took a look at him and said nothing in reply. Those flames would cause quite a commotion if they were exposed. It would be a bad idea to take them out so casually.


    While there was no doubt that they would be something difficult to hold onto, the flames were in his hands and he had no intention of letting them go.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said with a low voice, getting ready to leave the area. They had attracted way too much attention.


    However, a powerful aura seemed to be sweeping from in faraway at that moment. One figure after another streaked over Heavenly Flames Avenue, locking their eyes onto Ye Futian.


    An elder took one step and sent scorching will all over the place. He grabbed at the space before him and will of the great path of flames roared, transforming into a great fiery dragon that lashed out at Ye Futian''s party.


    Yaya stepped out and appeared right before everyone in the party. She waved her hands and sword will shrouded the entire area. Terrifying ringing sounds were heard as a screen of swords appeared before Yaya. The dragon was blocked by the screen, yet it remained adamant in breaking through them as it roared.


    The people around retreated and scattered in a hurry. The elder continued moving forward, his robes billowing. He waved his arms, conjuring one dragon after another in the air. All of them roared as they charged at Ye Futian and his party, trying to engulf everything within the vicinity in the flames.


    Yaya took to the air and was immediately surrounded by sword will. It turned into streams of flowing light in an instant, heading straight for the dragon as she placed the area on lockdown.


    Terrifying clashing sounds rang through the air. The great path shuddered as more and more mighty beings showed up, all trying to surround Ye Futian''s party. Several people acted at the same time, manipulating flames of greater magnitude to attack Yaya.


    The screen of swords blocked out the sky as it shrouded everyone within. Yaya was forced one step back. She scanned the people around her with eyes as cold and sharp as swords.


    The space above them was completely taken over by swords and flames. Ye Futian and his party were trapped.


    A group of people approached them. All of them looked rather young, especially the person taking the lead. Their leader was a woman dressed in fiery-red clothing. She looked to only be 25 or 26 years of age, yet the aura emanating from her was unmistakably that of a saint. She was elegant and stunning.


    Her fiery-red robes billowed as she turned to look at Ye Futian and the others. All eyes turned towards her. Many immediately recognized who she was and where her group came from.


    She was a member of the Xi clan, a top-notch clan that was an early founder in the establishment of Crimson Dragon City.


    The Xi clan had been in Jianmu City for many generations and was incredibly powerful. They owned many properties and controlled many industries in Jianmu City. The leader of the Xi clan was known as the Saint Lord of Jiuyang, one of the figures at the pinnacle of Crimson Dragon City. His powers were unfathomably profound.


    Her group consisted of mighty members of the Xi clan. The woman who was leading them was none other than a direct descendant of the founder of the clan, Xi Chan.


    Xi Chan looked at Ye Futian''s party with a cold expression and said, "Hand over the flames."


    Ye Futian frowned. He hadn''t expected to get into real trouble so quickly, but there was no denying how forceful these people were.


    They were forcing him to hand over the flames right away.


    At that moment, Yaya, who was still in the air, sent sword auras to tear the dragons apart. The fires of the great path roared and then disappeared with the sword will.


    Their opponents did not continue attacking. They instead surrounded Ye Futian''s party. Many of the people on Heavenly Flames Avenue retreated quite a distance away to watch what was happening from safety.


    "What do you mean?" Ye Futian took a look at them. "You want to take my things without even bothering to talk first? Man, you guys are harsh."


    "Hand over the flames and then we''ll talk," Xi Chan said.


    "Xi Chan, I heard that the Flames of the Way were stolen. Are these the people behind the theft?" a member of Xi Chan''s party asked. The young person took a look at Ye Futian''s party and said, "What is there to talk about with the thieves? We should take them down right now."


    "Thieves?" Ye Futian frowned. From what this young person said, these flames had been stolen from the woman before them. The old man must have stolen them and given them away immediately after.


    "Head back to the clan with us. If you''re able to explain yourselves adequately, you might be able to leave with your lives intact," an old man standing beside Xi Chan said. His eyes seemed to be imbued with fire as he looked at Ye Futian''s party. His words were extremely forceful.


    That Flames of the Way were of the Renhuang level, so they were very precious to them.


    In truth, those flames were more trouble than they were worth. All the most powerful forces in the Crimson Dragon Realm were after them.


    "I''m afraid that there is some misunderstanding happening here," Ye Futian said. "If you''re talking about the flames that caused all that ruckus earlier, they were given to me by an old man just moments ago. Many people on the avenue saw it happen and will be able to serve as witnesses. You should consider that before you call us thieves."


    Xi Chan''s eyes sparkled as she turned to look at the crowd on the avenue behind them. Someone called out, "It happened just like he said."


    Xi Chan''s expression changed after that. She locked her gaze onto Ye Futian and asked, "Why would the Star Plucking Hand just hand over the flames to you? What is your relationship with him?"


    Many gasped at Xi Chan''s words. Whispered gossip broke out all along the avenue.


    That old man who had gifted the flames to Ye Futian was the Star Plucking Saint?


    Shen Jun''s expression shifted as well. He telepathically explained to Ye Futian, "That woman is a member of the Xi clan, the most powerful force in Jianmu City. The Star Plucking Hand is the nickname of the Star Plucking Saint, an extremely powerful figure. He has reached the Holiness of Nirvana and is capable of reaching unparalleled speed, making many great transformations, and wielding formidable combat abilities in battle. He is one of those few people who even the most powerful figures in Crimson Dragon Realm would hesitate to mess with. Anyone who dares to mess with him will find themselves down on their luck. Furthermore, the Star Plucking Saint is a weird guy who keeps to himself. He has stolen some of the most precious treasures from the most powerful clans in Crimson Dragon City. No one to date has been capable of capturing him."


    He felt that the case was very weird. The Star Plucking Saint could have simply taken what he''d stolen from the Xi clan away without making a fuss. The Saint Lord of Jiuyang of the Xi clan, despite being extremely powerful, was utterly incapable of capturing the Star Plucking Saint. The two men were probably more or less equal in power. No one could tell who between them was the stronger one.


    Even if the Star Plucking Saint simply took the goods by force, there was nothing the Xi clan could do about it. The saint was a loner and there was no way the clan could get their hands on him. He''d handed the flames to others right in front of everyone on Heavenly Flames Avenue and no one had recognized him. That in itself was a testament to his frightening ability in the art of transformations.


    It was apparent that the Star Plucking Saint had masked his aura and changed his appearance.


    Shen Jun didn''t understand why he had given the flames to Ye Futian.


    "How should I know why he gave the flames to me? However, since he gave them to me, the flames are mine. All of you showed up and attacked us right away, accused me of being a thief, and even declared that I would only live if I explained myself adequately. I''m afraid you are not much better than thieves yourselves," Ye Futian said coldly.


    Xi Chan frowned slightly and said, "If things happened as you say, then it is indeed a misunderstanding. However, the Flames of the Way were indeed stolen from my clan by the Star Plucking Hand. If you''re willing to return them, then we shall call it a day."


    "Return it and call it a day?" Xia Qingyuan''s expression turned extremely cold after hearing what the other party said. She then responded, "You people attacked us and accused us of being thieves. Do you think we can just let that slide?"


    Whether the other party was telling the truth or not, the flames had nonetheless been given to them by that old man. The other party should have been thankful if they were willing to return the flames instead of demanding them back.


    Furthermore, they said that they would call it a day after the flames were returned. It was as if they were saying that they were doing Ye Futian''s party a great service by not bothering with his people anymore after that.


    "Furthermore, what is the nature of the flames and how can you prove that the flames are yours in the first place?" Ye Futian retorted. If the other party didn''t want to bother with being courteous, he saw no need to be polite with them.


    Although the flames had indeed proven difficult to hold onto, they would not simply let go of them just because of what the other party had said. Worse still, the other party had demanded the flames back instead of asking for them politely.


    Boom!


    Raging fires burst out everywhere. The elder from Xi Chan''s clan hovered toward Ye Futian''s party, getting ready to strike.


    So, they were going to take the flames by force?


    "If you think you can take the goods by force, I can guarantee that you all will pay a greater price," Xia Qingyuan said, eyeing the people right in front of her.


    "Xi Chan, they are from Qianye City," Zhuo Xu reminded her. All those who had been preparing to attack the group frowned.


    The Xi clan had paid attention to the Battle of the Crimson River at the Regional Palace. Even though the battle between the two imperial realms had taken place outside of Crimson Dragon City, they had nonetheless caught wind of the news.


    These people were from Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    That meant that the powerful woman must be the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Xi Chan''s eyes landed on Xia Qingyuan. She had great renown in the Crimson Dragon Realm and was considered quite a legend on her own for her extremely exceptional talents. Xi Chan''s eyes seemed to have been imbued with scorching flames as she glared at Xia Qingyuan, unfazed by the princess''s identity.


    Even the Renhuang forces of other realms commanded limited power in Crimson Dragon City, especially where top forces like the Xi clan were concerned.


    But then again, they would not go out of their way to severely offend those of other imperial realms. Doing so would pose a grave threat to the native forces of Crimson Dragon City.


    "Those flames belong to the Xi clan. You all might be of other imperial realms, but it will still be impossible for you to take the flames away." Xi Chan glared at Xia Qingyuan and appeared extremely powerful.


    While foreign imperial realm forces were extremely powerful, the majority of their forces were not in the Crimson Dragon Realm. If the Xi clan insisted on keeping these people around, there was no way they could simply leave.


    It was impossible to simply walk away with those flames.


    Even if those of the Xi clan refrained from taking the flames by force, there was still no way Ye Futian and the others could call for help from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    If that course of action was possible, conflicts like these would be settled in such a manner from then on.


    The number cultivators who had reached the Holiness of Nirvana level from imperial realms were far fewer than those in the Crimson Dragon Realm. Mobilizing those saints was more difficult than it seemed to be.


    Furthermore, even if such saints were mobilized, the forces of foreign imperial realms could not simply act against the native forces without ample reason.

 1233 Battle Between Two Women

    Jianmu City was the home territory of the Xi clan, meaning that Xia Qingyuan and the others were at a disadvantage.


    That was why Xi Chan was daring to be so forceful and insisting on keeping them around.


    However, while the forces of other imperial realms were incapable of doing as they pleased in Crimson Dragon City, the native forces didn''t dare to act rashly either.


    Xia Qingyuan did not balk at all and forcefully retorted, "Many of the people on Heavenly Flames Avenue witnessed what transpired personally��the flames were gifted to us by an old man. If you insist on being so forceful, then bring the old man here. If he told us to hand over the flames, we would comply without question. As for you people, we did not get the flames from you. Do you think that we''ll just hand them over because you say that the flames are yours?"


    If these people had spoken to them nicely and proved that the flames were indeed theirs, Ye Futian and his people would have considered returning them to them. However, there was no way they would hand them over just because the other party claimed that the flames were theirs.


    Furthermore, these people had attacked as soon as they''d arrived and had behaved extremely rudely and forcefully. They''d also voiced their intentions of taking down Ye Futian''s party out loud.


    In this case, it was simply impossible for Ye Futian''s party to hand over the flames.


    Both parties stayed in a deadlock for quite some time, neither of them giving way to the other.


    Both women��Xi Chan and Xia Qingyuan��were extremely powerful people.


    A new group of people approached them. They emanated extremely powerful auras and wore crimson dragon robes, making it obvious that they were part of the Crimson Dragon Army and tasked with maintaining public order in Jianmu City.


    Jianmu City was part of Crimson Dragon City. Within Crimson Dragon City limits, the Crimson Dragon Army served as the absolute peacekeepers.


    A fight had broken out there and caught their attention.


    "Commander Mu." Xi Chan bowed slightly to the leader of the army. It was obvious that she knew the commander. The Crimson Dragon Army of Jianmu City had been stationed there for many years. There were nine lieutenants and two commanders. Commander Mu was one of the two. He was tasked with managing the upper regions of Jianmu City.


    "What happened?" Commander Mu looked at the opposing forces and asked.


    A figure arrived in a flash of light and reported to the commander what had transpired.


    Commander Mu then looked at Ye Futian and his group after finding out who they were. It was said that Yu Sheng of Qianye City had entered the Regional Palace by overpowering all the mighty being there. He could become one of the commanders of Crimson Dragon City someday.


    There was a great possibility that he would join the Crimson Dragon Army''s ranks one day.


    "Xi Chan, how can the Xi clan prove that those flames are theirs?" Commander Mu looked at Xi Chan and asked. "How did the Xi clan come to possess the flames?"


    "Commander Mu, those Flames of the Way indeed belong to the Xi clan." A figure appeared in midair at that moment. A fiery aura swept out through the air. A legendary figure appeared, looking as brilliant as the sun in the sky.


    He seemed to have the sun on his back. He was blindingly bright and nearly impossible to look at.


    It was the Saint Lord of Jiuyang of the Xi clan. However, this was probably only a projection of his will rather than his true self.


    Commander Mu looked at the materialized specter and said, "There has never been a Renhuang in the ranks of the Xi clan, Jiuyang. Those flames are of the Renhuang level, so that means they were acquired elsewhere. By my logic, I''m afraid no one would have traded those flames away without good reasons."


    It was apparent that Commander Mu had a good guess as to the origins of the flames.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang frowned.


    Commander Mu then looked at Xia Qingyuan and asked, "The Xi clan claims that the flames are theirs. Would you be willing to return it?"


    "No," Xia Qingyuan answered decisively.


    "Very well." Commander Mu nodded.


    "One side wants to take the flames while the other side refuses to give it up. In that case, the Xi clan is free to take the flames by force, but do not cause too much of a commotion in Jianmu City. Furthermore, if you people clash with them in the future over the flames, the Crimson Dragon Army shall not interfere with matters between your parties. You are free to do as you please with each other."


    Crimson Dragon City had rules that forbid haphazard killing. In truth, Crimson Dragon City was the safest city in the Crimson Dragon Realm because it was the only place where rules were firmly enforced. That was because those rules had been laid down by the Crimson Dragon Emperor himself. Everyone had to obey them.


    Anyone who broke those rules would be dealt with by the Crimson Dragon Army. However, at present, the Crimson Dragon Army was there simply to mediate the conflict between the two parties. Since neither of the parties was in the mood to make compromises, the commander saw fit to let them deal with the conflict on their own.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang looked down at those below him until his eyes fixed on Xia Qingyuan. "If a conflict breaks out between your parties, none of us will have anything to gain from it. What would it take for you to return the flames?"


    Those flames were rather important to them. It was about more than the flames being left behind by a Renhuang.


    If the flames had only been left behind by a Renhuang, the saint lord would not have bothered making an appearance.


    "Since you people sought to overwhelm us through sheer force, there is naturally no way we will return the flames." Xia Qingyuan looked at the Saint Lord of Jiuyang coldly. If he had been a top-notch figure who didn''t belong to any group, he would have been tricky to deal with. However, since he was part of a top-notch clan, then he did not dare to make a move against her.


    "Overwhelm you through sheer force, eh?" The Saint Lord of Jiuyang looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "Xi Chan."


    "Yes, sir." Xi Chan looked up at the saint lord.


    "If Princess Xia here thinks that we are simply throwing our weight around, you should fight her. After all, you are on the same plane as her." The saint lord then said, "Princess Xia, if Xi Chan wins, you shall return the Flames of the Way. If you win, then the Xi clan shall never ask for the flames again, and I shall have Xi Chan apologize for her rude actions. What do you think about that?"


    If it not for Xia Qingyuan and the others being from Emperor Xia''s Realm, the Saint Lord of Jiuyang would not have bothered being so polite. He would have simply taken them on right there and then.


    Of course, if that had been the case, Xia Qingyuan and the others would not have dared to maintain such a forceful attitude in the first place. They would have been forced to give up the flames.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up after hearing the Saint Lord of Jiuyang''s words. Ye Futian then said, "I''ll do it."


    They did not object to the saint lord''s proposal.


    Xia Qingyuan took a look at Ye Futian and then at Xi Chan. She said, "Mind your own business." She then looked up at the saint lord and said, "Very well then."


    The people around them got rather excited when they heard her agree, especially those who had been watching the entire time.


    They have long heard of Xi Chan''s talents and powers. She was the most powerful member of the younger generation of the Xi clan. She had honed her Flames of Jiuyang to frightening levels, making powers were unparalleled.


    Xia Qingyuan, on the other hand, was a princess from Emperor Xia''s Realm. They were rather curious as to how a princess from an imperial realm would fare against a genius from the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    It seemed to them that a good show was about to start.


    The two women rose into the air. Xi Chan basked in the flames like a goddess of the sun. She hovered high in the air as the scorching afternoon sun showered down on her. Nine suns appeared behind her and rotated. Raging flames emanated from behind her. The light from those flames was capable of burning anything it touched. The fire was imbued with the devastating might of the great path.


    Terrifying sunrays shot out at Xia Qingyuan. They could have burned her to death on the spot.


    Holy light glimmered all over Xia Qingyuan''s body as Will of Calamity Swordsmanship emanated from her. It turned into the light of Calamity Swordsmanship and fired out beams of sword wills, clashing with the sunrays. The collision created high-pitched noises.


    Xi Chan did not expect to beat Xia Qingyuan with only that one move. Her body hovered in the air as the nine suns circled her. The celestial bodies rotated and high above. Suns appeared in astounding numbers in the blink of an eye, shrouding the entire area and enveloping Xia Qingyuan.


    Every single sun harbored extremely ferocious flames. They were the Flames of Jiuyang. Every single direct descendant of her family had trained in the Flames of Jiuyang. The only thing that differed between them was their plane levels.


    Even though the flames that she''d conjured and honed were only of the Proving Holiness level, they were nonetheless tremendously devastating.


    The suns that surrounded Xia Qingyuan rotated shot down rays of light, trying to burn their target alive. Xi Chan''s beautiful eyes looked as if they held suns inside them. She lifted her arms and fire of the sun coiled around her palms.


    She was out to see just how capable a princess of an imperial realm could be.


    "Burn," said Xi Chan. Saint-level spells were cast as the suns repeatedly fired beams of flames. They tore through the sky as they headed right for Xia Qingyuan. Ringing noises were heard in the air. It was difficult to imagine just how devastating the flames of the suns were.


    Ye Futian looked at the battlefield from below and was rather startled. Xi Chan was more powerful than he had expected her to be.


    Top-notch clans who were trained in the power of the flames in Crimson Dragon Realm exhibited extremely proficient control and use of fiery powers. They were considered masters among masters in the art.


    Holy light dazzled over Xia Qingyuan as countless lotus flowers appeared around her. Those lotuses shielded her as they blossomed in the air. The beams of flames collided with them, making the petals ring intensely. However, the flowers remained intact instead of melting or burning away.


    The suns fired beams of even greater intensity, drowning the space and burying Xia Qingyuan completely. Xi Chan waved her hands, causing the suns in the air to merge. They turned into a gigantic sun and buried Xia Qingyuan.


    The air around them became extremely hot in an instant. It felt like everything was on the verge of melting down. Xia Qingyuan and her lotuses had been all but swallowed by the sun.


    At that moment, dazzling sword auras burst from the petals of the lotuses, especially from the one in the middle. Terrifying Calamity Swordsmanship pierced through the sun and shot outside. The number and intensity of the auras grew increasingly dramatically as they tried to tear everything apart.


    Within mere moments, the boundless sword auras tore the sun into pieces which then exploded with a loud noise. The lotuses blossomed to reveal an imposing figure standing at their center. It was none other than Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan stood on a lotus flower as countless others blossomed in the air. The Will of Calamity Swordsmanship harbored extremely terrifying explosive capabilities. They became numerous enough to block out the sky in mere moments and headed straight for Xi Chan.


    "Go." Xia Qingyuan pointed at Xi Chan. The boundless swords imbued with the worldly great path zipped past as they launched at Xi Chan.


    Xi Chan stepped aside as an extremely enraged aura burst from her body. It seemed as if a sun had appeared around her, shrouding her within. The space around the sun was burning red. When the swords reached her and pierced through the sun, they melted into nothing.


    The swords melted immediately.


    Xi Chan kept moving forward, forcefully making her way toward Xia Qingyuan. The flames of the sun were capable of melting everything in the world. The swords crumbled before the Flames of Jiuyang.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned as boundless swords shot forward. They were all quickly destroyed when they hit the screen of the sun.


    It was her first time fighting with someone at her level. She''d never faced someone who was trained in such formidable powers as the art of flames.


    Furthermore, it seemed as if Xi Chan intended to fight up close and personal.

 1234 Leaving

    The flames on Xi Chan''s body grew increasingly more powerful as the nine suns rotated. She looked like a true goddess of the sun as she basked in the sun''s flames. Devastating fiery waves swept out all around her.


    Boom!


    Xi Chan stepped forward and headed straight for Xia Qingyuan. The Flames of Jiuyang burst devastatingly as soon as she stepped out, firing nine beams of holy light straight at Xia Qingyuan.


    The lotus flower before Xia Qingyuan blossomed and blocked the beams, yet destructive heat waves still washed over her. The extremely dazzling figure of Xi Chan charged at her. It was as if Xi Chan had turned into a sun herself. Ferocious heat waves began engulfing the entire space before she even came close to Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan performed hand seals, causing countless lotuses to blossom around her in an instant. Calamity Swordsmanship ebbed within the petals. Beams of destructive auras fired right at Xi Chan.


    However, Xi Chan ignored the attacks altogether as she continued to charge.


    Vroom!


    She sensed that the raging waves sweeping toward her were out to destroy everything. Calamity Swordsmanship burst out as the swords headed straight for Xi Chan. Xi Chan did not even slow down, zipping right through like a bolt of lightning to throw a punch. Her devastating flames contained terrifying explosive powers that wrecked the swords within mere moments.


    "Divine Body of Nine Suns," Xi Chan muttered. Her body was like a sun at the moment. She activated the Divine Body of Nine Suns, enabling her to pulverize everything before her through extremely destructive means.


    The swords were destroyed and the lotuses crumbled. Xia Qingyuan retreated as Xi Chan continued to press forward like a sun falling from the sky. Seemingly nothing could stop her.


    Boom, boom, boom...


    Explosions were heard as Xia Qingyuan''s attacks continued to crumble. The holy light about her became even more brilliant. Lotus petals opened and closed until they melded into one single lotus flower. Thousands of swords flowed around her body, encircling her in an ever more powerful storm.


    Terrifying ringing noises were heard as the two of them chased one another in the air. Xi Chan basked in flames and charged forward like a fireball of the sun. At that moment, Xia Qingyuan finally retaliated.


    Xia Qingyuan pointed at Xi Chan below. Boundless swords appeared in an instant. They immediately transformed into a dragon of calamity. Catastrophic beams of terrifying intensity rained down from above. The swords then streaked downward in a frenzy, crashing into Xi Chan''s body. The Divine Body of Nine Suns broke and crumbled under the incoming attacks. However, that dragon seemed to be an indestructible being. It continued to roar and charge, engulfing the sky around them.


    The mighty beings from the Crimson Dragon Army had yet to leave. They''d stayed around to prevent the battle above from harming the avenue below. Everyone watching the battle from the avenue felt astonished by what they saw happening above them. The duel between the two women was far more intense than they had expected it to be. Their attacks were nothing less than harrowing.


    Ye Futian was also watching the battle closely. He was able to tell that Xi Chan was very powerful. Otherwise, the Saint Lord of Jiuyang of the Xi clan would not have allowed Xi Chan to fight Xia Qingyuan in the first place. He''d known that the daughter of a Renhuang would be anything but mediocre.


    It was a testament to his confidence in Xi Chan''s powers.


    Furthermore, Xi Chan''s plane was slightly higher than Xia Qingyuan''s. It had not been long since she''d became a saint. She was still at Proving Holiness level and her aura was somewhat inferior as a result.


    At that moment, however, a beam of even greater brilliance fired from the sun. Xi Chan''s Divine Body of the Nine Suns charged forward and destroyed the dragon, ramming into Xia Qingyuan''s body to crush her once and for all.


    However, at the very next moment, many of Xia Qingyuan''s silhouettes appeared and stepped on the lotuses. The petals of the flowers howled with the might of the swords.


    Xi Chan stood at the center. Her sun goddess form was still incredibly dazzling. She scanned her surroundings, unable to tell which Xia Qingyuan was the real one.


    The silhouettes of Xia Qingyuan all performed hand seals at the same time. Powerful auras burst forward as the swords howled. The noises reverberated throughout their surroundings.


    "Thousands of calamities, tens of thousands of shadows, all born of the lotus," many voices said at the same time, resonating with the world around them. More lotuses appeared in the sky. Xia Qingyuan was standing on every single flower.


    The place permeated with the truly stifling pressure of devastation. Countless lotus petals circled Xi Chan as the swords flowed around her. Both attacks grew in strength as they tried to engulf the area. The swords conjured devastating hurricanes.


    The hurricanes lashed out at Xi Chan. Every single hurricane was being conjured by the countless swords of calamity. Xi Chan charged through, intending to break through the blockade. Raging attacks bombarded the hurricanes around her. However, none were able to destroy the hurricanes. Worse still, she was almost caught in the hurricanes herself.


    Xia Qingyuan stood right outside the masses of hurricanes as she glared at her opponent. Her will resonated with the world around her. All things were interconnected through the great path, all phenomena and things were born of the great path. She looked like she had become the master of the great path at that very moment.


    The nine suns were high in the sky as they surrounded Xi Chan. When she shouted, all nine suns fired beams of flames. The hurricanes around her exploded in a frenzy, yet the hurricanes stayed intact as they were covered in flames. The flames made them stronger! They all headed for Xi Chan.


    Xi Chan looked rather pale at that moment. The Saint Lord of Jiuyang, who was watching from high above, was able to tell from her expression alone that Xi Chan had lost.


    This daughter of the Renhuang was one of the most powerful descendants of the Renhuang. Her combat prowess was tremendously formidable.


    As the most powerful force within Jianmu City, the Xi clan had frequent contact with the Renhuang forces. Not every single descendant of Renhuang was as powerful as her.


    "That will be all, Xi Chan," the Saint Lord of the Jiuyang said. Xi Chan looked up into the sky. The devastating storms of the swords subsided and gradually dispelled. The glow of the sun around Xi Chan dimmed as well. She turned to glare at Xia Qingyuan.


    Xi Chan turned around and left right away without apologizing. It was apparent that she was incredibly irked.


    Xia Qingyuan had not really expected her to apologize. However, since the Xi clan had behaved so forcefully before and had wanted to fight their entire group, there was simply no way they would have handed the Flames of the Way over to the Xi clan.


    The mighty members of the Xi clan departed. The flames conjured in the sky by the Saint Lord of Jiuyang likewise disappeared without a trace.


    Xi Chan had lost. The Xi clan could never demand those flames from them ever again.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. He had intended to stay in Jianmu City for a while and see if there was anywhere in the lower parts of the city fit for training in the way of the flames. From the looks of things at the moment however, it would be ill-advised to continue staying in Jianmu City. They had to return to Qianye City.


    Even though the flames were still with them, things had become quite tricky.


    "Lord Ye." Some people blocked the way of Ye Futian''s party, making him look up at the one who spoke. It was the young man who''d told Xi Chan to just take them away.


    Several imposing people were standing right behind the young man. It was apparent that they were from renowned clans.


    Many citizens from Jianmu City were able to recognize him. He was a member of the Chang clan, one of the most powerful groups in Jianmu City. They had amicable relations with the Xi clan and their bond ran rather deep.


    The young man was named Chang Huai and he was a saint with exceptional talents. He had been pursuing Xi Chan for quite a while, wanting to forge a marriage alliance between the Chang clan and the Xi clan.


    "Yeah?" Ye Futian said rather coldly. Chang Huai was the one who''d suggested that they take Ye Futian''s party out, so Ye Futian saw no reason to be nice to him.


    "I would like those flames. Would you mind naming a price, Lord Ye? We would like to get a fair trade underway," Chang Huai said with a smile to Ye Futian, appearing polite and amicable. He didn''t have a single trace of the bullying attitude he''d displayed before.


    "Not interested." Ye Futian refused the proposal right away, getting ready to walk past Chang Huai and his people.


    Chang Huai was dumbfounded for a brief moment. He then smiled and said, "Lord Ye, you''re just a Doctrine Saint, yet you''re already the lord of a city. It wouldn''t be far-fetched to say that you''re the first person to accomplish such a thing in the cities surrounding Crimson Dragon City. But then again, you''re a saint who stands behind a woman. Don''t you think there''s something wrong with that?"


    Ye Futian''s party stopped and Xia Qingyuan shot him a cold glance. "You''ve got a problem with that?"


    Ye Futian looked at Chang Huai as well, saying with a smile, "It must seem strange to someone who only gets close to women to use them, or to someone who does not even bother with them at all. I assume that you want the flames so you can give them to Xi Chan, right?"


    He then continued walking. Chang Huai had been right beside Xi Chan before, and it seemed that Xi Chan hadn''t wanted anything to do with him.


    Seeing how Xi Chan and her people had been unable to take the flames, it made sense that Chang Huai was asking to trade for them to gain favor with her.


    Ye Futian and his people left. They flashed and zipped along the roads below, departing the area at breakneck speeds.


    Chang Huai smirked and said in a low voice after they left, "The lord of Qianye City has a way of getting the people around him to work for him. I have to admit, that is a good ability indeed."


    Sending Yu Sheng into the Regional Palace, making Emperor Xia''s Realm back him up, having Yaya protect him while he''s outside, and having Xia Qingyuan fight for him... He was capable of doing all of that, yet he''d made it unnecessary to do anything for himself.


    The people around Chang Huai listened to his words and concluded that this was indeed the case with Ye Futian. The man himself had hardly ever fought. No one knew how capable he was.


    Many who had watched the Battle of Crimson River claimed that, as city lord, his powers must be on par with Yu Sheng. After all, Yu Sheng had been doing his bidding.


    But then again, one would one only be able to know how powerful he was with certainty from seeing him fight.


    Ye Futian hardly minded what Chang Huai said. Xia Qingyuan shot a look at him after they left and said, "Don''t mind what he said."


    "You''re the one who shouldn''t mind, princess." Ye Futian smiled and did not say much after that. They were traveling at high speeds as they left Jianmu City. He turned his head around and took a look, feeling that it was quite a pity that they''d had to spend so many Sacred Spirit Stones to gain entry. They would have to pay again if they ever wanted to come back.


    Yaya conjured a sword in the air. The party hopped onto it and disappeared in an instant.

 1235 Ruins of Emperor Kua

    Ye Futian''s party returned to the city lord''s office at Qianye City.


    Ye Futian pondered the Star Plucking Saint''s intentions during the return trip. He was still puzzled as to why the saint had done that.


    From what Shen Jun had told Ye Futian, the saint was powerful enough to take the Flames of the Way away and the Saint Lord of Jiuyang wouldn''t be able to do anything about it. The Star Plucking Saint''s skill at transforming was peerless. No one knew if anyone in the Crimson Dragon Realm less powerful than the Renhuangs would be able to capture him alive.


    Regardless, the Renhuang-level Flames of the Way were theirs. However, it was the backing of Emperor Xia''s Realm that had allowed him to pull what he''d pulled. It would have been nearly impossible for him to bring those flames back with him otherwise.


    The Xi clan would have been the first to get in his way.


    Ye Futian looked for Shen Tianzhan after he returned to the city lord''s office to talk to him about it. He asked, "Do you have any idea what the Star Plucking Saint was actually up to?"


    Shen Tianzhan was at the same level as the Star Plucking Saint. He might be able to share some insights about the enigmatic saint.


    However, Shen Tianzhan simply shook his head and said, "The Star Plucking Saint has always kept to himself. No one knows what he is up to. But then again, I have heard that he once went to the Ancient Imperial City intending to steal something, but he failed. Furthermore, it is said that there is a very high possibility that he was injured in the fight with the Ninth Servant. As for the flames, do you mind if I take a look at them?" Shen Tianzhan said.


    Ye Futian nodded and took the Flames of the Way out. Terrifying heat radiated from them and swept all over the place. The light of the flames shot to the heavens.


    Shen Tianzhan''s pupils dilated slightly as he sensing the will of the great path within the flames. He then said, "Put it away."


    Ye Futian put the flames away. Shen Tianzhan continued, "The flames were something left behind by Emperor Kua. If you''re able to internalize the flames, you will be able to head to the Nine Tribes of the Kua and have the chance to enter the territory of Emperor Kua."


    Ye Futian was puzzled after hearing Shen Tianzhan''s words. He asked, "So you''re saying that there are other uses for the flames? That they allow passage into a Renhuang territory?"


    He recalled the moment right after he''d acquired the flames when Zhuo Xu of the Black Flame clan had asked if he could take a look at the flames.


    Zhuo Xu was a descendant of Renhuang. The Black Flame clan was a top-notch force. This meant that Zhuo Xu had been able to figure out a thing or two about the flames, driving him to make such a seemingly stupid request.


    Ye Futian had not bothered with him back then.


    "Indeed." Shen Tianzhan nodded and said to Ye Futian, "The Flames of the Way of Emperor Kua appear once every few years. There is rarely more than one wisp of the flames to be found at a time. However, many would have appeared at the same time in the Crimson Dragon Realm. All the top-notch forces throughout the realm were out to get them secretly. Some groups obtained some and then lost them before they were able to do anything. Some traded them away to make extreme profits. In the end, a handful was taken away for training purposes, while the rest were used to gain access to the Nine Tribes of the Kua."


    "And I just happened to pick this up for free?" Ye Futian asked.


    Shen Tianzhan looked rather puzzled by the question. He''d indeed been lucky in an eerie, unnerving way. He wondered if the Star Plucking Saint had indeed set up the events to play out this way.


    "The Saint Lord of Jiuyang probably decided to not turn hostile against you because of your identities and backgrounds. But having lost the flames to you, the Xi clan will try to get the flames elsewhere," Shen Tianzhan said. After all, Ye Futian was not the only one in possession of flames left behind by Emperor Kua.


    The flames had appeared all over the place in the past.


    "Where are the nine tribes?" Ye Futian asked.


    "They are found in the western regions of Crimson Dragon Realm. That place used to be the territory of Emperor Kua. The current nine tribes are nine of the major forces in Crimson Dragon Realm. They are all very powerful. They''re like our cities here," Shen Tianzhan elaborated.


    Ye Futian nodded. Forces that had once served directly under the Renhuang territory would undoubtedly be extremely formidable.


    "Seems like there will be secret fights over the flames starting in the Crimson Dragon Realm again. We''d better watch ourselves out there," Shen Tianzhan said. Despite what he''d said, the people of Crimson Dragon Realm would hesitate to make a move against them. However, it was still prudent to be cautious.


    Many would guess that Ye Futian had gotten his hands on Flames of the Way of Emperor Kua. Even Zhuo Xu had begun to have his suspicions.


    "Will do." Ye Futian nodded. He had no intention of leaving Qianye City just yet.


    "Try and see if you can do anything with the flames. I''ve heard that the flames pick their masters," Shen Tianzhan said.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded and left.


    Ye Futian went to a training ground and temporarily sealed the place off. He then took out the flames. They began to warm the entire place with their scorching heat within mere moments, filling the entire space. A scorching aura of extreme intensity swept throughout the place.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and extended his holy will into the flames as, melding with it. His will circled the flames and sensed the powers within. He then seeped into the flames properly, bit by bit.


    Ye Futian sensed the flames'' terrifying will of devastation within a split second. He felt as if his will was about to be burned to cinders.


    The Flames of the Way were, in truth, something materialized from the will of the great path. The flames had been conjured without any will of attack. However, he nonetheless still felt as if his will was about to be reduced to nothing just by getting near the flames.


    Ye Futian did not try to work on it. Holy light sparkled at the center of his brow. His body was then bathed in divine essence and became extremely brilliant.


    Divine imperial will shot out and entered the flames, sensing the might of the flames from within.


    Ye Futian was immediately able to sense an extremely elegant and magnificent image.


    A god-like silhouette stood tall and proud beside the sun high above. He seemed to be devouring the fires of the sun. The celestial body, which hung high in the sky, burned with true fires, melding with the body of the god of war. The god of war''s eyes turned even more brilliant than the sun. It was as if one look from him could make the world burn.


    In comparison, Ye Futian discovered just how insignificant and weak his sun Life Spirit was. It was no wonder that other cultivators had gained abilities to communicate and manipulate the world around them when they reached the Saint Plane or even the Renhuang Plane. They had forged their ways and methods into their Life Spirits which could then be passed down to the later generations. When one reached such plane levels, they transcended. The ability to absorb the fires of the sun was extremely formidable and overwhelming on its own.


    The abilities of those trained by the Xi clan were similar. It was no wonder that they wanted the flames back so badly. It must have caused them quite a bit of heartache to part with those flames.


    As he sensed all of this, the will of the great path in the flames shot into Ye Futian''s will and melded with it. At that very instant, the holy brilliance of the Renhuang showered onto Ye Futian''s body. It was as if he had earned the approval of the flames.


    The flames ceased to hurt Ye Futian directly. He began to try to internalize the Flames of the Way into himself, sensing and absorbing the powers within.


    Others were incapable of learning such overpowering ways of training. They would only be able to slowly communicate and work with the flames. No one else could bash into it as he could.


    He spent quite a long time afterward training in isolation, internalizing the flames and attempting to forge his own.


    It was not that he would be training with the very flames that he worked with and internalized. Depending on his level of comprehension, he would be able to create a new one that belonged only to him.


    Everyone was capable of comprehending the experiences of those who came before them, but their training had to be uniquely their own nonetheless.


    Someone arrived at the city lord''s office of Qianye City while he was training, claiming that they wanted to trade for the flames. None of them thought that Ye Futian would train in the powers of the flames, so they thought that the flames would be of little use to him. They hoped that they would be able to get the flames at a high price, but their proposal was rejected right away.


    Other than the scuffles and skirmishes that broke out time and again between the top-notch forces in Crimson Dragon City, hardly any clashes occurred. It was as if the fight for the flames was taking place in secret. But then again, none of that had anything to do with Ye Futian.


    Shen Tianzhan came looking for Ye Futian one day and told him a piece of news. Many of the top-notch forces in Crimson Dragon City and the surrounding cities were departing.


    Ye Futian also decided to depart right away and make the trip with Shen Tianzhan.


    The territory of Emperor Kua consisted of ruins left by Emperor Kua. There was no way he would miss seeing it.


    ...


    A city known as Emperor Kua''s City was located in the western regions of Crimson Dragon Realm. The old city had once been the residence of Emperor Kua.


    The nine tribes who served Emperor Kua were tasked to stand guard around the city.


    Emperor Kua''s City had recently become extremely lively. People of the top-notch forces from all over Crimson Dragon City were going there. The people of the city could guess why they were there.


    Emperor Kua''s City had a rustic feel to it. Emperor Kua''s Castle stood within the city. There was a skyscraping statue of Emperor Kua basking in boundless fires right in front of the castle. His likeness stood tall and proud, looking very alive.


    Mighty members of the Xi clan, who had recently fought Ye Futian over the flames, were one of the forces found there. Xi Chan was there as well.


    After the flames were taken away by Ye Futian, the Xi clan paid a great price to get themselves another wisp of the flames of Emperor Kua before coming to the city.


    Xi Chan stood before Emperor Kua''s statue and displayed the Renhuang will about her. They were many around who extended invitations to her. All of them were members of the nine tribes that had once served the emperor.


    Ye Futian and Shen Tianzhan were there as well. Shen Tianzhan learned a lot about the matter and explained quite a bit about the ruins of Emperor Kua on their way to the city.


    In addition to Ye Futian, there were many people from other forces there as well. The Chang clan of Jianmu City was there too.


    Mighty figures from Flaming Prison City and Crimson Cloud City were also present.


    Ye Futian was wondering just how many wisps of the Flames of the Way Emperor Kua had developed.


    "Go. Getting into the ruins requires support from the nine tribes, and their powers complement each other. The nine tribes are not of the same level. They often compete with each other. I have introduced the tribes to you before. It''d be best for you to work with the strongest tribe," Shen Tianzhan told Ye Futian telepathically. Ye Futian nodded and walked up to the statue of Emperor Kua. Holy light shrouded his body. He looked as if he was basking in divine, fiery light.


    "And you are?" Many pairs of eyes turned toward Ye Futian.


    "Ye Futian, City Lord of Qianye," Ye Futian replied.


    The people nodded at once. Those of the nine tribes stared at him, seemingly watching him while weighing their options. They were wondering if Ye Futian was someone worth extending their invitations to.


    They had naturally paid attention to news from Crimson Dragon City. Ye Futian of Qianye City hailed from Emperor Xia''s Realm, but they knew little of his powers. They knew only that he had defeated Shen Jun, son of Shen Tianzhan. He had also killed the young palace lord of the Bliss Palace. However, those achievements hardly seemed worth mentioning.


    At the very least, he appeared to pale significantly in comparison to Yu Sheng, who had participated in the Battle of Crimson River. That was why the tribes were wondering if Ye Futian was someone worth betting on.

 1236 Everyone is Here

    The relationship between the nine tribes that had once served Emperor Kua was a rather rocky one. Even though they worked together, they were also rivals.


    They had all served Emperor Kua before. When the emperor perished, the nine tribes remained separate entities, competing against each other for many years. They all wanted to become the true successors of Emperor Kua and inherit the will of the emperor. Doing so would allow them to unify all nine tribes.


    If one among the nine reached the Renhuang Plane, everything would naturally come to a close.


    The so-called Renhuang ruins were the ancestral lands of the nine tribes. They had been trying to inherit whatever was left behind by Emperor Kua for many years.


    They were the only ones who truly knew where the Flames of the Way came from. Furthermore, the people of the nine tribes knew that every single person who came to possess the flames was somehow destined for the endeavor. However, what happened after they fought was not planned.


    However, there was no doubt that people who inherited the flames were definitely from top-notch forces and adept at flame powers. Only such people had the ability and right to do so.


    Each of the nine tribes was allowed to cooperate with someone who came with the flames.


    As such, the nine tribes only had a single chance to pick their candidates. As such, they were always very careful about it.


    It was especially true that many forces who gained the flames showed up. However, there were still others who had yet to show up, so they did not know how capable those who had the flames were.


    Under such circumstances, the weaker ones among the nine might have proceeded with the selection process, finding and approaching their candidates. The process was two-sided after all. If they didn''t take the initiative, they might be able to do so later.


    However, the stronger few would not have extended their invitations without serious consideration.


    Ye Futian, lord of Qianye City, had unknown power. In truth, in addition to powers, the people of the nine tribes still needed to consider other factors. While Ye Futian had internalized the flames, he was not a member of any clans of fire powers. They had no idea how capable he was at manipulating flames. It was imperative to find that out, as it concerned their ancestral land.


    As such, to the people of the nine tribes, Ye Futian was quite literally a wild card. Extending an invitation to him would be little more than a gamble at best.


    On the other hand, Xi Chan and Chang Huai, who were near Ye Futian, despite having lost to Xia Qingyuan before, were nonetheless members of renowned fire clans. The abilities that they were most versed in, or rather, their core powers, were flames.


    As such, several tribes extended their invitations right away.


    However, the stronger few did not extend their invitations. They needed to wait.


    "City Lord Ye, I, a member of the Wu clan, would like to invite you to join us in an expedition into the territory of Emperor Kua. Will you accept the proposal?" a powerful voice asked him. Ye Futian turned his eyes toward the person who''d asked. It was a gray-robed elder. He then nodded and smiled at Ye Futian, appearing rather friendly.


    Ye Futian recalled Shen Tianzhan''s introduction to the nine tribes. In the era after Emperor Kua''s passing, the nine tribes had competed for many years. By remaining separated, the differences in their strengths had become apparent.


    For instance, the Zhu clan was one of the strongest among the nine clans, ranking at firmly the very top.


    As for the Wu clan, they were actually leaning on the Zhu clan. They had even married their women into the Zhu clan, showing their intention to become an affiliated force. As for the specifics, Shen Tianzhan knew little more than that.


    It was, however, clear that the Wu clan was not that great of a choice.


    "I''ll think about it," Ye Futian replied with a smile. The relationship between the nine tribes and the people who had acquired the flames was that of a partnership. Both sides waited for the right price before bidding. Ye Futian was in no hurry to make his decision. He deemed it entirely fine to wait until the very last moment.


    "Very well," the gray-robed elder said, nodding.


    "You can stay in Emperor Kua''s City, for the time being, Lord Ye. There are still others who have yet to arrive. You are free to make your choice when everyone else is here." The people of the Zhu clan were right beside the people of the Wu clan. The one who spoke was huge and imposing, wearing a fire type robe sporting a crimson beard. He looked very overbearing and stern.


    "Sure." Ye Futian smiled and nodded before leaving the place.


    Like Ye Futian, Xi Chan and Chang Huai did not make their choices yet. They chose to wait for the right price before bidding. Those who had extended invitations to them were comparatively weak tribes.


    In this case, there was simply no need for them to be in a hurry to make their choices.


    "You train in fire powers too?" someone behind Ye Futian asked. He turned around and saw Xi Chan. Her voice sounded rather cold.


    When the flames that were stolen by the Star Plucking Saint were handed over to Ye Futian, it had cost her clan considerably to get their hands on another wisp of the flames.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "We''ll see each other in the ruins then," Xi Chan quipped. Chang Huai followed right behind her. Chang Huai smirked and took a look at Ye Futian when he walked past before continuing to move forward.


    Ye Futian did not pay the two of them any heed. He returned immediately to see everyone from Qianye City. He told them, "Let''s head out."


    The group left the place right away. They wanted to find an inn in Emerpor Kua''s city to settle down in for the moment.


    Mighty beings continued to pour into Emperor Kua''s City after that. There were even some people there who did not have flames with them and were simply there for fun.


    Of course, there were others who had acquired the flames arriving all the time. Their identities were gradually discovered by others. Unexpectedly, every single one of the people who showed up later was a legendary figure trained in fire powers in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Those people caused quite a bit of commotion as they arrived at Emperor Kua''s City.


    People were talking about them all over the city in inns and restaurants.


    "Someone from Emperor Dong''s Palace of the eastern region is here." Everyone sitting at a table felt rather shocked. Emperor Dong''s Palace of the eastern region was a true Renhuang force. It was a place located in the eastern region of the Crimson Dragon Realm. All those within the region submitted to them. They reigned supreme in the eastern region of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Emperor Dong''s Palace of the eastern region and Emperor Kua''s Hall in the western region were both of equal legendary status, reigning supreme in their respective regions.


    "Emperor Dong''s Palace of the eastern region has never interfered with Emperor Kua''s ruins in the past. Yet, they now show up with a wisp of the flames. I wonder what they''re up to."


    They were wondering which of the nine tribes would be willing to work with a force like that from Emperor Dong''s Palace.


    "The southern regions are like they''ve always been. The ones who showed up are the descendants of Saint Chiming. Furthermore, they will probably work with the Nanli Tribe if everything goes well," someone added. Everyone in Emperor Kua''s City knew that every single expedition into Emperor Kua''s ruins would mean one wisp of flames appearing in the other three regions. One member of the forces of the three respective regions would have to come. It was as if things had been set up to work this way.


    People serving Saint Chiming were always from the south.


    "It is the same in the northern regions. Saint Jiuyou will send someone," someone else said. The descendants of both Saint Chiming and Saint Jiuyou showed up very frequently.


    Other than those three forces, any others who had acquired the flames were probably those from the central region of the Crimson Dragon Realm. The area centered around Crimson Dragon City was the strongest. As such, quite a few flames should have emerged there.


    However, despite that area being the most powerful one, only the top forces of the other three regions would have sent their representatives to the event. This was due to the central area having the Crimson Dragon Emperor reigning supreme. It was indeed a terrifying lineup.


    Many tribes of Emperor Kua''s city paid visits and extended invitations when the three forces were there.


    "With eight forces having gathered at present, I wonder which force has gotten their hands on the flames and if they''ll show up."


    During the previous events, there had been situations where people who had obtained the flames had not shown up to the event. They hadn''t been interested in entering the ruins and had simply gone on to train with the flames.


    "The last force is here." someone announced, attracting the attention of everyone in the restaurant. Everyone turned to look at the speaker.


    "Who is it?"


    "Unclear, but the mightiest members of the Zhu clan have departed to pay them a visit," the speaker told them. Many were startled by the news.


    The Zhu clan was visiting someone personally?


    So, the Zhu clan had already decided who they wanted to work with?


    They had been waiting all this time?


    One figure after another left the restaurant in a flash, heading outside with intense curiosity. They were intrigued by whoever had made the topmost clans of the nine wait.


    Few remained in the restaurant after that.


    Ye Futian and the rest sat quietly in a corner feeling rather curious. He wondered who could have made the Zhu clan pay them a personal visit. Who could have made the Zhu clan wait?


    A group of mighty beings was traveling from the central region of Emperor Kua''s City at that moment. The one taking the lead was a woman. She looked legendary, dashing, and very unapproachable.


    The mighty beings of the Zhu clan appeared. The one in the lead was the tall man who had made Ye Futian wait for days. He said with a smile, "Welcome, princess."


    "Yeah." The woman in charge nodded, startling many. Anyone bearing the title of princess in the Crimson Dragon Realm was definitely a daughter of a Renhuang. Common folk did not dare to use such titles.


    "Daughter of Emperor Wu." Someone was perceptive enough to recall who she was. She was the princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm. She was training in the Regional Palace and was considered a genius.


    So it was she who had come this time.


    Emperor Wu was proficient in fire powers and was ranked at the forefront of the Crimson Dragon Region in terms of powers. His powers of fire manipulation were extremely formidable. If they had sent the princess there, it was, without a doubt, the best bet available to the Zhu clan. It was no surprise then, that the Zhu clan had kept waiting. It seemed that everything had been arranged beforehand.


    "Who else is here?" the genius woman asked. She''d come from the Regional Palace for the expedition, intending to see Emperor Kua''s ruins for herself. If the place had not been Renhuang ruins, she would not have bothered to make the trip.


    "Those from Emperor Dong''s Palace, Saint Chiming, and Saint Jiuyou. Others are from the central region just like you, princess." One of the powerful members of the Zhu clan added, "Our greatest opponent this time will probably be someone from Emperor Dong''s Palace. Of course, the others pose quite a threat as well. But then again, the Wu clan is ours now. I could have them get someone to support you, princess. Who do you think would be up to the task?"


    "Ye Futian of Qianye City," the woman answered, seeming to recall something


    The Zhu clan member was dumbfounded for a bit when he heard that name. However, he quickly nodded in agreement.


    Yu Sheng had entered the Regional Palace to train after the Battle of the Crimson River. The princess was definitely acquainted with him, given that she was also training in the Regional Palace.


    Ye Futian''s powers were anything but weak. His most proficient power might not be fire, but he would serve as a very suitable aide to the princess of Emperor Wu. However, the powerful member of the Zhu clan was not going to state it that way when the invitation was extended.

 1237 Ancestral Land

    The nine forces were all there and they behaved appropriately, extending invitations to the mighty ones.


    The Nanli tribe chose to work with Saint Chiming''s people right away, while the Zhu clan had also gotten their candidate to show up. In truth, it was the other seven tribes seeking to pick their candidates.


    The Zhong clan extended their invitation to the candidate from Emperor Dong''s Palace and both parties reached an agreement. The Zhong clan was one of the top among the nine and very powerful. It was a collaboration between titans given that Emperor Dong''s Palace was just as powerful. Many in Emperor Kua''s City talked and looked forward to their collaboration. They saw that this collaboration had the capability to match the collaboration between the Zhu clan and the princess of Emperor Wu.


    Afterwards, there would be word that the Raven tribe would work with Saint Jiuyou.


    Ye Futian was at the inn the whole time. He felt rather exasperated as the news came in bit by bit. According to Shen Tianzhan, the stronger of the nine tribes seemed to have had their candidates in mind, and there was no one seeking to extend an invitation to him. It was apparent that he was not the preferred choice of any of the nine tribes.


    He heard from Shen Tianzhan that the nine tribes placed greater importance on candidates who were mainly trained in fire powers. Not only was Ye Futian''s knowledge of his powers limited, but the other candidates were skilled in fire powers of the Crimson Dragon Realm. That likely explained why he was being ignored.


    There were even descendants of the Renhuang, who were proficient in fire powers. The princess of Emperor Wu or the prince from Emperor Dong''s Palace were two such examples.


    The other candidates were also members of skilled forces with fire-based power. The candidate from the Pang clan of Crimson Cloud City was from the Crimson Cloud Realm, and a descendant of a Renhuang as well.


    There were also the Xi clan and the Chang clan from Jianmu City, and they too belonged to fire-based clans. Such as Flaming Prison City, which was proficient in Hellfire. While they were considered a weaker clan among the others, they were nonetheless very skilled in fire power.


    He was the only one whom no one had seen use fire powers. That was probably why none of the stronger tribes dared to bet on him. One would have placed their bets on more likely candidates, and he apparently was not one of their top choices.


    After some time, Ye Futian finally had invitations extended to him. The one who came first was an elder of the Beili tribe, who emanated a rather mystical aura. In terms of power ranking, the Beili tribe was in the middle of the nine. The elder wore a robe and held a scepter in his hand.


    "We of the Beili tribe would like to extend our invitation to you, City Lord Ye, to enter the ruins with us. Would you take up the offer?" The elder from Beili tribe did not bother to beat around the bush.


    "Why did you choose me, senior?" Ye Futian did not answer right away, choosing to ask with a smile instead.


    "Among those who have obtained the Flames of the Way of Emperor Kua, your powers are the least known. As such, all nine tribes have their reservations about you, which I''m sure you can understand," the elder explained. "Now, with the likes of the princess of Emperor Wu and the prince of the Emperor Dong''s Palace having decided which tribe to collaborate with, we of the Beili tribe would like to try it out with you, City Lord Ye. Were you to accept our offer, we would do our best to aid you within the ruins."


    It now made sense to Ye Futian. The best candidates had already been claimed by the top tribes and the Beili clan was in a rather awkward position. That was why they decided to bet on him. The Beili tribe simply wanted to try him out, instead of truly believing in what he was capable of.


    However, Ye Futian did not mind any of that. He was not stupidly prideful enough to think that the nine tribes should have believed in his powers without question. Trust was built on the foundations of power after all. He had never even displayed what he was actually capable of, so there was no way he could have asked others to trust him.


    Just when Ye Futian was about to accept, another voice was heard.


    "City Lord Ye, we of the Wu clan would like to extend our invitation to have you collaborate with us." The grey-robed elder who had extended his invitation to Ye Futian in front of the statue of Emperor Kua appeared.


    Ye Futian looked at him and then at the elder of Beili tribe, feeling rather hesitant for a moment.


    "City Lord Ye, we would be working with the Zhu clan on this expedition. We would have a better chance if we looked out for each other. The Zhu clan would actually like you to aid the princess of Emperor Wu. But of course, if your powers prove adequate, then there wouldn''t need to be any talk of aiding the princess. You could still reap whatever you wish within the ruins, so long as you make a show of working with them."


    The grey-robed elder of the Wu clan then added telepathically, "If you were to find something big, we of the Wu clan would do our best to help. Of course, even if you were to end up getting next to nothing, we wouldn''t mind. There is no need to put strict requirements on what must be done, after all."


    Ye Futian''s expression changed after hearing the elder''s telepathic words. The Wu clan seemed to be out to aid the Zhu clan. However, it seemed that the Wu clan was not as simple as they appeared. One of their own came to extend an invitation and laid the truth bare to him, appearing sincere and honest.


    If the two tribes were to ally with each other and he was going to go along for the ride, it would definitely be more advantageous for him. Shen Tianzhan had reminded him that it was best to collaborate with the top few tribes.


    The elder of Beili tribe spoke, after seeing Ye Futian''s hesitation. "It is up to you, City Lord Ye. It''d be fine, regardless of your choice."


    The Beili tribe invited Ye Futian with the intention of trying him out. If he declined, they would simply look for someone else. After all, nothing was set in stone before entering the ruins.


    "All right then." Ye Futian nodded. "As the Wu clan had extended an invitation earlier, I must give them priority."


    "It is fine." The mighty one from the Beili tribe nodded decisively. "Well then, we shall meet again in the ruins." He turned around and left.


    Once the mighty one from the Beili tribe had gone, Ye Futian looked at the grey-robed elder. "What prompted you to extend an invitation to me again, senior?"


    While several mighty ones had already been claimed, it was not as if the Wu clan had no options. Ye Futian was still not really held in high regard, so he never expected them to come to him again, let alone tell him secrets behind the deal.


    "The princess of Emperor Wu mentioned you, City Lord Ye." The grey-robed elder then smiled and added, "But I do hope you would keep what I told you privileged."


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded. He was not so lacking in character that he would have sold out the one who came to him. However, he wondered why the princess bothered bringing him up.


    He asked Shen Tianzhan before and found that the princess'' surname was different. The realm that her father ruled had only been known as Emperor Wu''s Realm because of her father''s name. The princess'' name was actually Yin Tianjiao, meaning ''genius.'' It was a testament of her father''s expectations for her.


    Yin Tianjiao had indeed lived up to her given name. She had superb talents and came to Crimson Dragon Realm because of her proficiency with fire powers. She had been trained in the Regional Palace and was quite renowned in Crimson Dragon City. Recalling that fact, Ye Futian wondered if she had brought him up because of Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng had trained at the Regional Palace and would have definitely interacted with the cultivators who were also there. He wondered if Yu Sheng had talked with Yin Tianjiao before.


    "Well then, I shall take my leave. I will send someone to pick you up before we depart, City Lord Ye," the grey-robed elder said. Ye Futian nodded and the elder left.


    A group of people came to him next. Xia Qingyuan, Shen Tianzhan and some others were there.


    The nine tribes had chosen their respective candidates for the collaboration and many looked forward to it. When everything was settled, it was time to depart.


    The grey-robed elder came to invite Ye Futian and the others to depart together. The group left the inn and headed towards their destination. The nine tribes moved out at the same time, heading west from Emperor Kua''s City.


    The nine tribes did not reside within the city itself. The city had once been a territory of Emperor Kua. It was only after Emperor Kua''s passing that the nine tribes began to move into Emperor Kua''s City''s. However, their headquarters remained in the areas surrounding the city, and they seemed to have ruled all of the western regions.


    It was a desolate place which seemed endless, consisting of deserts and castles. The scorching sun shone on the land and a heat wave threatened to fry the entire area.


    The further they went, the hotter it got, as if the entire place was covered in flames. The ground was like fire scorching their feet.


    Amidst the heat-struck desolation, there was an area with statues. The largest of them all depicted Emperor Kua, with the others surrounding it. They were the mighty ones who had served Emperor Kua��the ancestors of the nine tribes. The gallery was in ruins, but in the center was a portal.


    The people of Crimson Dragon Realm all somehow knew that this was not only Emperor Kua''s ruins, but also the ancestral land of the nine tribes. That was the place where they originated from. From here, they had taken all of the western regions in the Crimson Dragon Realm, reigning supreme over the entirety. Despite the passage of time, the ancestral land remained standing.


    Some of those now present were members of top clans proficient in fire powers, but had not acquired the Flames of the Way themselves. However, there were also others who had entered the ancestral land before.


    They landed and walked in a single direction. Mighty ones of the Zhu clan and Yin Tianjiao walked together, attracting the attention of many. Due to Yin Tianjiao''s renown in Crimson Dragon City and training at the Regional Palace, she attracted the most attention. It could have been said that she was very radiant.


    Other than Yin Tianjiao, the one that attracted the most attention was the prince of Emperor Dong''s Palace. That was a Renhuang force native to the Crimson Dragon Realm. They were the absolute authority in the eastern region of the realm, so much so that not even the Crimson Dragon Emperor would interfere with their rule.


    Emperor Dong''s Palace was of equal renown to Emperor Kua''s Hall. As the prince of Emperor Dong''s Palace prepared to enter Emperor Kua''s ruins, many became excited and wondered what would happened next.


    Out of all the clans, it was the Zhong tribe that was working with the prince of Emperor Dong''s Palace. They were very powerful and definitely among the top three forces. The collaboration of two such parties was naturally worthy of note.

 1238 Fire Spiri

    Those present were the strongest to be among the nine tribes. The leaders of all nine tribes were there personally, as were the Holiness of Nirvana.


    The fact that the nine tribes had still been able to rule the region after Emperor Kua''s passing served as an undeniable testament of their powers.


    Several pairs of eyes turned to Ye Futian when he came. Notable among them were the mighty ones from the Zhu clan and Yin Tianjiao, princess of Emperor Wu. Also Xi Chan of the Xi clan and Chang Huai, who worked with the Vermilion Bird clan and the Jue tribe.


    The Vermillion Bird clan consisted of demonic beasts, with the leader having once served as Emperor Kua''s steed.


    The student of Saint Chiming worked with the Nanli tribe, while the student of Saint Jiuyou worked with the Raven tribe. The mighty ones of which descended from the bloodline of the Three-legged Golden Raven.


    The Beili tribe had chosen to work with a prestigious young saint from Flaming Prison City after Ye Futian refused their offer. And finally, the ones from Crimson Cloud City worked with the Shang tribe.


    All nine cultivators who internalized the Flames of the Way were of Proving Holiness level. Though there were others of higher-level flame power, only those who had attained Proving Holiness were permitted. That was because only people of Proving Holiness level could enter the ruins of Emperor Kua. Those rules were likely due to concerns of the nine tribes over their ability to keep the more powerful in check. There may have been other reasons, but only the nine tribes knew for certain.


    "Since we''re all here, let''s move out," the Zhu clan elder with a fiery red beard said. The leader of the Zhu clan stood right beside him and his aura was unreadable, looking like a god of fire simply by standing around.


    Everyone nodded and began walking. The leaders of the nine tribes walked to the spectral gate and all performed hand seals. Nine dazzling wisps of flames emerged from their hands and shot at the gate.


    Nine beams of light rained down and the gate seemed to have detected some kind of summons. A terrifying fiery aura and air flowed and the entire gate twisted, with a huge hole appearing shortly after.


    "Let''s head inside," a voice said.


    Everyone moved for the gate, their bodies immediately disappearing after stepping inside.


    "Let''s go, City Lord Ye," the grey-robed elder said.


    Ye Futian nodded and looked at Xia Qingyuan and the others. The princess then said, "Be careful."


    "Yeah." Ye Futian replied before moving alongside the massive group, disappearing inside the gate.


    The mighty ones of the nine tribes went in next. After everyone else had entered, the nine tribe leaders followed.


    Only members of the younger generation of the nine tribes��as well as mighty ones from all forces all over Crimson Dragon Realm��were left outside the gate. They all stood guard over the vast territory, waiting for their compatriots'' return.


    "Let''s just train at the side," Xia Qingyuan said and everyone nodded. All of them went elsewhere and sat cross-legged, waiting for Ye Futian and the others to return.


    ...


    Ye Futian entered another space right after stepping inside the gate. When they entered, they sensed scorching will washing all over the place. It looked like it had been cooked throughout. Fire sprouted from the red-hot ground everywhere. The will of the great path of fire was all around them.


    "The world of fire," Ye Futian muttered. He looked up and saw that even the sky was scorched red. The fiery red sky seemed to have been shaped into peculiar patterns. Two huge balls of fire were seen like there were two suns in the sky. However, they were concave and looked like black holes of fire. Their shapes made them look like a pair of eyes.


    Ye Futian''s mind was rattled. He peered closely at the sky and saw more than just the eyes. He then saw a boundlessly huge face and the fiery red hair spread out throughout the sky, like glowing, red clouds in the sky. "A humanoid form!"


    Ye Futian was not the only one who thought so. The other eight mighty ones not affiliated with the nine tribes all looked up at the sky. They all seemed to have seen something and looked rather astonished.


    "Let''s go," a mighty one said.


    Hot winds blew and it seemed that even the winds were imbued with the will of the great path of fire. The winds were scorching hot when they hit them. The place seemed like a holy ground for training in the ways of the flames.


    What did Emperor Kua leave behind here? The nine tribes went out of their way to invite geniuses from all realms. Could it be that the nine tribes who had once served Emperor Kua were unable to get it themselves? Is that why they wanted help from outsiders?


    "What would I need to do?" Ye Futian asked the mighty one from the Wu clan by his side.


    "Fire spirits are found in the ruins. Countless fire spirits of differing strengths are born in this place. All of those fire spirits have the essence of will of the great path of fire. What you''d need to do is to take them and make them your own," the mighty one answered.


    "Is that all?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Indeed. To possess the boundless will of the great path and transform yourself, you''d need to keep extracting and refining them. The process isn''t complete until you''re able to bring out extreme might using the way of flames," the mighty one elaborated.


    Ye Futian nodded. The other mighty ones moved forward.


    Ye Futian wondered if he would have been able to ignore the obstacles posed by plane limitations and bring out combat prowess exceeding his level, simply by using the way of the flames.


    It was no surprise why the nine tribes placed so much importance on the fire manipulation abilities of the mighty ones. It possibly had something to do with the ruins. The way of the flames was of utmost importance there. As such, those who were incapable of internalizing the will of the great path would not have been allowed to enter.


    The mighty ones of the nine tribes moved forward and split up, heading in different directions. Dangers lurked everywhere in that ancestral land. If the nine outsiders were to simply wander on their own, there was no doubt that they would end up dead.


    Therefore, each tribe was in charge of the safety of one person. But of course, the nine tribes naturally had their reasons for doing so. They would not have been so meticulous with their selection process otherwise. All of them placed high hopes on their chosen ones.


    The Wu clan chose to work with Ye Futian, so they followed right behind him. The Zhu clan was there as well. They were tasked with the protection of Yin Tianjiao.


    A fiery desert area was right before them, looking endless.


    Ye Futian finally saw fire spirits emerging. One fire dragon after another was seen spread out in different places. All of them were burning with golden flames. They had a humanoid, yet fiery build. They all pounced when they saw the group. Despite being spirits, they had not actually been awakened and only acted on instinct, making them see the humans as prey.


    "Let''s go," mighty ones from both clans said to Ye Futian and Yin Tianjiao respectively.


    Both of them flashed and headed out in different directions.


    The mighty one from the Wu clan paid close attention to Ye Futian. The Zhu clan wished for Ye Futian to be of aid to Yin Tianjiao. It was a good chance to see what both of them were capable of.


    Boom! Yin Tianjiao charged and her entire body burst with extremely dazzling golden flames. Holy light burst out of her body, making her look like a furnace of the great path. She stepped out at blitzing speed as she headed for a fire spirit.


    While the fire spirits were not intelligent beings, they nonetheless possessed saint-level auras, as if they were Flames of the Way borne of the world itself. However, Yin Tianjiao was not hesitant. She charged right before a fire spirit and lashed out. That construct of flames charged at her roaring but was quickly pinned down.


    A terrifying whirlpool seemed to have appeared on Yin Tianjiao, devouring the fire spirit''s body and making it one with her own. She was able to absorb fire spirits of such levels into her body without pause.


    The mighty one from the Zhu clan watched the scene quietly. Yin Tianjiao, princess of Emperor Wu, had indeed inherited the true essence of her father. She was able to incorporate fires of the great path directly into her, wielding such powers in a variety of means, making her extremely powerful.


    Ye Futian charged at a fire spirit as well. Raging flames were sensed all over the place.


    Boom! A fire spirit charged right at Ye Futian, intending to eat him up alive. However, the will of the great path coursed about his body and holy light flowed. The flames were quickly internalized. The fire spirit roared and wanted to destroy him outright, yet its body kept shrinking. It continued until every single bit of its way of flames was taken into Ye Futian''s body, being siphoned straight to his Life Palace.


    The mighty ones from both the Zhu Wu clans nodded when they saw the scene. While the city lord of Qianye City might not have been well-versed in fire powers, but that was not to say that he was weak. Such beginner levels of fire spirits were of no threat to him at all.


    Both Yin Tianjiao and Ye Futian continued moving forward, destroying any fire spirit that emerged from the desert and consuming their powers.


    Time passed and as they crossed the desert area, hundreds of wills of the great path of the flames were already found in Ye Futian''s Life Palace.


    They came to a lava-filled area when they crossed the desert. The lava burst everywhere, and there were even more fire spirits to be found there. However, the will of the great path of flames was different from what was seen before. But things ended up almost the same nonetheless.


    Both of them charged into the fires of the lava and continued to internalize the fire spirits within. The mighty ones followed closely behind. The mighty one from the Zhu clan was relieved to find that Ye Futian had not gotten in the way in the slightest, as he consumed the flames without a problem. It seemed that Ye Futian had a way of taking down flames after all.


    At that moment, the lava boiled and gushing sounds were heard. Ye Futian looked forward and saw the lava boil, from which a war god of lava appeared. That thing was no longer a simple fire spirit, as it had condensed itself into a solid body and materialized into a giant of lava, emanating a terrifying aura.


    "Saint of True Self level, eh," Ye Futian muttered to himself.


    The giant of lava took a look at Yin Tianjiao and Ye Futian, lashing out with both its hands. Anything hit by the great, big hands of lava would have probably melted on the spot. Both of them evaded at breakneck speeds. Yin Tianjiao looked at Ye Futian and said, "Work with me."


    It was apparent that she was getting ready to take on the giant, even though it was of Saint of True Self level.

 1239 Sun Castle

    The lava giant took a huge step forward and clapped its hands in Yin Tianjiao direction. Yin Tianjiao was unfazed and charged at the hand. Her body dazzled with glittering light, power bursting from her body. She threw forward her hand. Though slender, it still contained the might of the great path. Rumbling noises were heard and the world around her resonated with her being. She thrust and an enormous, fiery handprint appeared.


    Boom! A loud rumble was heard and the lava giant''s hand cracked, but quickly mended. The fires melted her great handprint. She frowned slightly at fire spirit''s insane healing powers.


    Sword wills howled around Ye Futian. Swords of Kasyapa zipped past and arrived right before the lava giant, which roared as the swords came near. They were engulfed in the fires right away and melted into nothingness. Level superiority was at play in this fight.


    Yin Tianjiao''s aura became even stronger at that moment. A tall, imposing figure like an empress seemed to have appeared behind her. A towering aura swept all around her body as her might burst in a frenzy. The will of the great path circled about her. Thousands of wills of the great path coursed and the area surrounding her seemed to have become a world of destruction.


    Many wills of the great path of flames all gushed into her body at that moment, and it felt as if her body was burning. The will of the great path around her was furiously absorbed into her body. Ye Futian took a look at her and conjured the Halberd of Time and Space into his hand.


    Ye Futian burst into the air with a flash, disappearing right away and appearing right before the lava giant, bringing down the weapon like a bolt of lightning.


    The lava giant blocked with its hand, clashing with the Halberd of Time and Space. Rumbling noises were heard as the hand crumbled, inch by inch. The fires exploded at the weapon and Ye Futian himself. Still, the giant absorbed the power of lava without pause to reconstruct its broken arm.


    Yin Tianjiao stepped out and attacked as well. Her great handprint resonated with the great path around her as she brought her attack down on the fire spirit. The lava giant attempted a block, which caused its arm to quickly crumble inch by inch. Both Ye Futian and Yin Tianjiao continued to press on their attacks until they pierced the lava giant''s body. Yin Tianjiao''s rules within her handprint cracked open the fire spirit.


    A sliver of lava-colored will of the great path intended to flee, but Yin Tianjiao grabbed and pinned it down. Towering fires burst, intending to consume Yin Tianjiao. As holy light dazzled, her body almost burned, devouring the fire bit by bit.


    "You could have the next one," Yin Tianjiao said to Ye Futian, who nodded without saying anything.


    The mighty one of the Zhu clan added, "Why not internalize the will of the great path inside you to a certain level of strength first?"


    "Doesn''t matter," Yin Tianjiao replied plainly.


    Ye Futian took a look at the mighty one. Since entering the ruins, the Zhu mighty one spoke his mind without reservation.


    The ruins had boundless wills all around. The numbers were astronomical. To people who trained in fire-based powers, the ruins were like a holy land all its own. The reason why the nine tribes supported their candidates was to allow them to internalize their will of the great path and increasing their strength. But what was their ultimate goal?


    Ye Futian and Yin Tianjiao continued moving forward without thought. The lava area was incredibly vast and looked endless as well. Both of them plundered as much as they were able to, having no idea how many fire spirits they had destroyed and stripped of their will. They weren''t the only ones. Mighty ones from the other seven tribes did the same in other areas, too.


    A short time later, they entered a territory filled with demonic fire beasts. A city seemed to have appeared right before them��a City of Fire. They stopped and stared at it. The city had many steps leading to the top, and the entire place looked like it was basking in fire. The phenomenon made it seem like a City of the Sun.


    "It is best to internalize the will of the great path of flames within your bodies. You might run into greater challenges ahead," a mighty one from the Zhu clan said.


    Yin Tianjiao and Ye Futian nodded, then found a spot to sit cross-legged. Ye Futian closed his eyes and dazzling light appeared around his body. Swishing sounds were heard in his Life Palace. At that moment, his Life Palace turned into a world of flames. Flames of the Way circled about endlessly.


    Ye Futian knew that those powers were not his. They were simply things taken by force. Even if he were to be able to internalize and use them for battle, they could be destroyed. That would be the end of it. Essentially, he was only using external powers instead of relying on his own skills. It was something he would not have done in his usual training. Those flames could only be used as trump cards, akin to convenient devices.


    That was unless his plane could reach the required level. Then he could truly make those flames his own. If at Proving Saint level, he could really enhance his own powers. Of course, there would have been no way for him to finish internalizing those flames in such a short period of time. The greater the flames'' intensity, the harder it would have been for him to make them his own.


    There seemed to be another silhouette of his in his Life Palace, who sat cross-legged and holy light burst from it. The Deed of Thorough Comprehension flowed about in a frenzy within him. His body was now like a furnace, melting and internalizing the wills of the great path.


    The World Tree swished about. Powers of all elements been turned into auras of flames, enveloping his body. Auras of the world around him flowed into his body, entering his Life Palace through his veins. The first of his flames were completed a while later. Flames of increasingly greater numbers melted to become one with him. Fiery auras of the boundless great path flowed into his Life Palace.


    Not far away from where Ye Futian was, Yin Tianjiao was also training with her eyes closed. They sat that way for a long time. When they completed their training, they opened their eyes. Together, they began ascending steps before them, moving towards the City of the Sun.


    With every step they took, the heat of the staircase grew increasingly intense. Like they were walking on the flames of the great path.


    The sun hung high above with countless Golden Ravens circling around it. The birds dove towards them with great force, as if they viewed the group as intruders. Everyone feared they were on the verge of destruction.


    Ye Futian sensed the birds'' auras and found many of them to be at Saint of True Self levels. Fiery auras of the great path flowed around the sun, coalescing into dazzling beams of light. The beams shot forth like divine fire. The Golden Raves were engulfed by them, and they exploded into flaming auras of the great path.


    What transpired had caught the attention of the mighty ones from both the Zhu and Wu clans. Ye Futian''s fire ability did not seem weak at all. His own powers combined with what had been absorbed were like rays of the sun, capable of melting anything. It even seemed to contain will of the sword, which gave the beams devastating shredding power.


    He conjured the Halberd of Time and Space, grabbing the will of the great path. He charged at the flock of Golden Ravens that blocked out the sky. Yin Tianjiao''s attacks were just as powerful. Her entire body was bathed in the dazzling, holy light of flames. It was apparent that, like Ye Futian, she had also internalized the flames. She melded them with her own attacks and crushed everything before her.


    Humanoid spirits appeared amidst the great number of Golden Ravens. A silhouette dove straight for Ye Futian. Its eyes emanated an extremely terrifying demonic aura.


    Ye Futian sensed the aura as the fire of the sun rained down, intending to penetrate the creature''s body. However, it suddenly became a sea of flames, engulfing the area Ye Futian was in. A terrifying head appeared, intending to devour him.


    The grey-robed mighty one of the Wu clan came behind him. "Be careful, that thing is out to take your spirit!"


    The people of the nine tribes would not have let anything happen to their candidates, not before they reached their destination. The journey was meant to strengthen their powers and familiarize them with the way of the flames of the nine tribes'' ancestral land.


    The mighty one lashed out with his hand and dazzling, golden flames fired at the being coming at Ye Futian. It let loose a harrowing roar as it was turned into will of the great path.


    "Thank you, senior," Ye Futian said before continuing on.


    The rest of the mighty ones arrived soon as well, moving up the steps towards the Sun Castle.


    Upright figures stood guard at the gates of the city. They cast their glances forward and a frightening and immensely profound aura swept over the field, turning into terrifying storms that resonated with the sun in the sky.


    "It has been years since you last came. Is there one worthy of entering this time?"


    The nine tribes had been trying for many years. They had toiled for ages, bud had never succeeded. As such, they were forced to begin borrowing external powers. The intent was to unravel the secrets of their ancestral land through the hands of ingenuous outsiders. Even so, not one in all those generations had succeeded. The guards wondered how these new chosen ones would fare. They hoped that the clans would not let them down again.

 1240 Battle between the Nine

    High above the Sun Castle and the sun above the castle, Golden Ravens descended upon them like a flood.


    Ye Futian and Yin Tianjiao were doing their best to hunt them down and take any manifested will of the great path.


    Duan Wuji, prince of Emperor Dong''s Palace, and the mighty ones of the Zhong tribe were there as well. Duan Wuji''s body was surrounded by a terrifying firestorm as if it was able to devour anything it touched. He extended his hand as he charged at the birds. A black fireball manifested in his hand, which turned into a terrifying maelstrom. The maelstrom devoured the birds one after another on the spot before having their will of the great path extracted and absorbed into his body.


    There was a mighty one from the Zhong tribe who went on to kill the Golden Ravens with Duan Wuji, who then gifted any will of the great path gathered to him, as the mighty one worked with him in the hunt.


    Dazzling holy light glittered far away. It was as if Golden Ravens had swooped down. It was the mighty ones of the Raven tribe, as well as the student of Saint Jiuyou.


    The mighty ones of the Raven tribe had the blood of the Golden Ravens flowing in their veins. They were impressed at the scene before them deep down. Such was their ancestral land, where the will of the great path was abundant and turned into countless Golden Ravens.


    The student of Saint Jiuyou was extremely powerful. Black lotuses surrounded him, and black fires sprouted from the flowers, burning down the birds and absorbing the manifested will of the great path into the flowers themselves.


    He quickly ended up killing quite a number of Golden Ravens. His Life Spirit blossomed, and a pure black lotus appeared. He stepped onto the flower, which subsequently enveloped his entire body. The taken will of the great path gushed within and was absorbed by the black lotus.


    After that, the student of Saint Chiming, Xi Chan of the Xi clan, Chang Huai of the Chang clan, and many other mighty ones arrived. All of them charged into the battlefield with the nine tribes without hesitation, hunting down countless Golden Ravens and making nourishment out of them.


    The mighty ones chosen by the nine tribes were capable of internalizing all of the wills of the great path taken throughout their journeys, and making them their own, thus enabling them to easily kill the Golden Ravens at Saint of True Self level.


    The fire powers of everyone present were very powerful. Ye Futian understood why the nine tribes picked only cultivators who were versed in fire powers. It was not surprising at all that none of them had any expectations for him.


    Cultivators who were lacking in firepower had no way of working on and internalizing the wills of the great path in that place to enhance their powers. That meant that they had no way to participate in the later battles.


    Ye Futian found, while he was doing battle, that the other mighty ones continuously took wills of the great path while they were doing battle, enhancing their own powers as quickly as they were able to.


    The Deed of Thorough Comprehension was in full effect. Ye Futian''s body was like a furnace of the great path, as well as that of the sun at the same time. His sun Life Spirit was infused directly with his body, enabling him to devour the taken wills of the great path on the spot. He became able to easily make such wills at Saint of True Self level into something of his own.


    Boom. A huge Golden Raven dived at them. It had extremely sharp eyes, looking as if it had acquired intelligence. That Golden Raven seemed to have harbored will of the great path at Unblemished Saint level. Everything it touched was quickly burned down.


    That huge being charged right at Ye Futian.


    The grey-robed elder behind Ye Futian stepped out and pointed his finger at the air. Dazzling golden fire spread throughout their surroundings, before penetrating right through the Golden Raven''s huge body. Fiery holes appeared on that huge body of the bird.


    Terrifying golden chains of the great path appeared from within the holes, penetrating through the bird''s body and shackling it in place.


    "City Lord Ye," he called. Ye Futian appeared right away. His finger pointed right before him, and great fires shot out right away, devouring the Golden Raven''s body, along with the will of the great path at Unblemished Saint-level.


    The Unblemished Saint aura was extremely powerful. Ye Futian felt extremely hot all over when he absorbed the bird. It was as if he was about to be burned to a crisp. The fires of the furnace were unable to make it into the way of fires that he required.


    He had internalized too many Saint of True Self level wills of the great path along the way. However, the will of the great path at Unblemished Saint-level exceeded his capacity to easily internalize the flames, due to plane limitations.


    That bit of Renhuang will of the great path seemed to have fused within his body, making the light on his body shine even holier. He used that will of the great path of Renhuang with the fires of True Self to work on the Flames of the Way of Unblemished Saint level.


    Time passed, and Ye Futian plundered countless wills of the great path of Saint of True Self level, as well as many Unblemished Saint ones. He then stopped fighting altogether, walking up to a spot. He trained with his eyes closed, internalizing the flames in silence.


    Among the others, there were some who were still fighting and some working on the flames. All of them were doing their best to enhance their fire powers to the greatest extent.


    Ye Futian continued doing battle at times and taking wills of the great path while he was working on the taken wills.


    The group plundered and trained in a frenzy at the Sun Castle, forgetting about the passage of time altogether.


    They had ended up training there for a month before they realized it. The flames on their bodies had long become something terrifying. While the wills of the great path absorbed exceeded their respective planes, they were nonetheless able to internalize the flames due to having worked continuously on them. Despite not being able to enhance their planes right away, the internalized flames were able to be used in combat nonetheless.


    Everyone on the battlefield became unnervingly powerful by then. Duan Wuji, the prince of Emperor Dong''s Palace, stood there. Terrifying fiery whirlpools appeared around him. Boundless aquamarine-colored flames coursed about him. He extended his palm and absorbed it. Golden Ravens around him were all absorbed into his body in a frenzy, which was then internalized by the flames within.


    The black lotuses of the student of Saint Jiuyou seemed to have turned huge, and his flames burst in full force, burning everything down. Those Golden Ravens were all burned down.


    Every single one of them brought extremely formidable power of the flames to bear until none of the massive flock of Golden Ravens was left flying in the sky.


    The ray of the sun above the Sun Castle was cast onto everyone''s bodies. The sun seemed to have a true Golden Raven letting out a shrilled cry. Terrifying light was cast down onto the nine mighty ones as if they seemed to have been embedded with mystical connections.


    The battlefield was empty, making the participants realize that there was a limit to the birds'' appearance after all. When they became powerful enough to absorb and internalize those Golden Ravens easily, the spirit of the bird disappeared altogether.


    Frightening aura was sensed sweeping out from the Sun Castle before them. All of them began to walk towards the construct. The mighty ones of the nine tribes seemed to be walking up in the front like they were on a pilgrimage.


    One mighty one from each of the nine tribes walked to the front and came before a being in front of the Sun Castle''s gates. All nine of the mighty ones stood before that being. The mighty ones bowed slightly and then extended their fingers, drawing papercuts on them and let their blood drip.


    The blood was shot to the being on the castle, which then flowed on its body. The being then looked up at the sky, and the sun up there shone on it. The nine glittered with extremely dazzling light. It was as if a blood-colored thread had connected them.


    The nine mighty ones of the nine tribes then returned to their respective chosen ones. The grey-robed mighty one came to Ye Futian''s side and said, "Do what you''ve seen me do. You''d be connected to the matrix afterward."


    Ye Futian nodded and pricked his finger as well. Blood dripped from his finger, and a ray of light shone onto his body. The being on the castle connected to him, and a blood-colored thread was seen in the air. Ye Futian seemed to have seen an illusion right there and then, as if he was linked together with that being at the castle, flourishing and perishing alongside it.


    All chosen ones of the nine tribes did the same as well. The space seemed to have a huge matrix conjured, engulfing them within. The center of the matrix was that sun in the air, shining on everyone below.


    "Only one among the nine of you will be able to enter the ancestral land. It is time for you to battle amongst yourselves," the mighty ones from the nine tribes said to the people at their side.


    All nine of the tribes had chosen their own candidates, and the upcoming battle would determine who would earn the right to enter the ancestral land.


    The outcome of the battle would also determine which of the nine tribes would be able to have their ancestral lands opened.


    "Who would be the first to do battle?" a mighty one of the Zhu clan said. He turned his eyes at Yin Tianjiao, hoping that they had not chosen the wrong candidate that time and that she would have enabled the Zhu clan to open up their ancestral land.


    Many turned their eyes to Yin Tianjiao and Duan Wuji. The scene made the mighty one of the Zhu clan lift his brow slightly.


    The mighty one from the Zhu clan took one look at the grey-robed mighty one at Ye Futian''s side as if he was signaling something.


    "Let''s see you fight first, City Lord Ye," the grey-robed mighty one said to him telepathically. Ye Futian noticed the eyes of that mighty one from the Zhu clan. He was hoping to avoid having Yin Tianjiao fight first, as it would attract too much attention.


    Ye Futian nodded and stepped out without saying much.


    Another figure walked out from the other side right after he emerged. It was none other than Xi Chan, who was working with the Vermillion Bird tribe.


    She glared at Ye Futian. Intense flames coursed about in her eyes. She was scorching hot all over her. She naturally noticed that Ye Futian had a sun Life Spirit as well, which meant that he was capable of wielding flames.


    She lost to Xia Qingyuan back in the fight in Jianmu City, losing their Flames of the Way. She took that loss as an insult.


    At the moment, the match was essentially one that was fire fighting against fire. She was confident in not losing to Ye Futian.


    No words were spoken. The sun hung high up in the air when Xi Chan emerged. Nine suns appeared at the same time above her. Terrifying rays of the sun were fired, containing fires of the great path of destruction.


    Boom. Flames burst all over Ye Futian''s body right away. But it was as if he was a furnace of the great path, devouring the scorching beams shot at him.


    Xi Chan took one step out. The ground rang, and more suns appeared in the sky, hanging high above and surrounded Ye Futian. All of those suns fired frightening will of the great path of flames unendingly right at Ye Futian.


    Fiery aura that was even more raging bloomed, and Ye Futian''s body had turned entirely into a furnace of the great path. The beams of fires shot were continuously consumed by the furnace, preventing them from burning his body.


    Xi Chan performed hand seals and multiple suns circling Ye Futian to close in on him in an instant as if they were about to merge into a true sun.


    She then unleashed the wills of the great path of flames that she had imbued into the sun. Devastating fiery beams shot from that sun, making Ye Futian, who was being engulfed in it, feel that doomsday was near, and he was about to be devoured by the sun.

 1241 Resolve

    The nine powerful cultivators had all refined a great deal of will. This was an external force. With it, they could all exert destructive power far beyond their level.


    The power of the sun flare that Xi Chan was putting forth was completely different from that which she had used during her battle with Xia Qingyuan.


    The part of the air that Ye Futian was in seemed to be within an actual sun. Beams of destructive flame will shot towards him. His body turned into a furnace tripod, and he was covered in flames. When the beams of flame will reached him, they were swallowed up by the furnace tripod, and so they did not even touch his body.


    The sun seemed about to explode. Destructive power filled the air, trying to bury Ye Futian within it.


    Ancient characters were floating around Ye Futian as he released the Deed of Thought Comprehension. All of his will melded and turned into flames. His body was the furnace that swallowed up Xi Chan''s sun flare, and she was swallowed up within it. The people outside the battlefield could barely see Ye Futian. All they could see was fire.


    The burning storm swept out, but the people surrounding him stood firm. No one there was weak.


    The terrible storm gradually dissipated. Xi Chan stared forward. The furnace tripod was still there, and Ye Futian''s body was contained within it. A furious look came over her face. The will that she had sent against him had not only not hurt him, but it had also actually been refined by him.


    Everyone else looked at Ye Futian and felt a flicker of nervousness. The terrifying furnace tripod surrounded him and refined the power of heaven and earth and all the law power into power that he could use.


    This was an incredibly strong technique.


    No wonder he had been able to come here. It seemed that his cultivation techniques could be used with flames. The ability to refine things out of flames was also very powerful.


    A look of surprise came over the faces of the Wu clan cultivators. It seemed that the Zhu clan might have been underestimating him when they had chosen them.


    Even among the flames, he was still strong.


    Xi Chan transformed into the Divine Body of Nine Suns, becoming like a sun goddess as she was bathed in divine fire. She shot towards Ye Futian. Her spells could not shake him, so she had to attack him directly.


    She gathered her power as she rushed towards him. He reached out, and countless sun fists cut through the air like huge fireballs. They slammed into Ye Futian, containing immense destructive and explosive power.


    Boom! The sun furnace on Ye Futian''s body shook endlessly. A huge sword appeared before him, formed from Kasyapa, and forged from the fire of the Great Path. It was a Flame Saint Sword.


    Bang!


    There was a loud sound as Ye Futian rose into the air and lashed out with the sword. It cut through the sun fists. This sword of the Great Path was immeasurably brilliant. It cut down from the sky, slicing through the air towards Xi Chan.


    Xi Chan raised her arms. The nine suns protected her as her hands rushed up to collide with the sword.


    The sword cut down wildly through the fist wills, piercing towards Xi Chan''s arms. Terrible flames suddenly swept out, completely enveloping her and seeming to refine her.


    She gave a groan. She felt as if her body was being eroded away by the flames. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. She retreated, but Ye Futian did not let up. His sword continued forward, with flames spitting out of it. Xi Chan went pale. Her tender body fell to the ground, blood flowing continuously from her mouth.


    Ye Futian flashed down to the ground in front of her. Xi Chan looked at him and said, "I am defeated."


    But Ye Futian ignored her, and the flames of the Great Path flew overhead. Xi Chan looked at him coldly.


    But seeing the resolve in Ye Futian''s eyes, she finally sighed and gave up the Flames of the Way, letting Ye Futian take control of them.


    Soon, the divine fire around Xi Chan dissipated, and all was calm once again.


    "And?" Ye Futian was not planning on giving up.


    "You..." There was a furious look on Xi Chan''s face. She glared at Ye Futian, but Ye Futian ignored her.


    When he had obtained Renhuang''s Flames of the Way in Jianmu City, Xi Chan had not been polite to him and had directly attacked him.


    If she would not pay attention to the rules and only care about strength, then he would naturally not be polite to her either.


    Seeing the cold look that Ye Futian was giving her, Xi Chan''s face grew as icy as frost. But she finally gave him the rest of her Flames of the Way. Ye Futian took them. Only then did Ye Futian let her go.


    After Xi Chan was defeated, the sunlight that had fallen upon her went dim. Even the cultivators on the castle walls connected to her were weakened. They would never be as powerful as before. It all looked incredibly magical.


    It seemed like when the whole matrix was only missing a single piece, it dimmed until there was no light left.


    And Ye Futian''s light shone brighter. The figures on the castle walls that were connected to the Wu clan could breathe a little more.


    The nine families of the Vermilion Bird Clan had already withdrawn from this clan dispute.


    Xi Chan returned with an apologetic look on her face. The Vermilion Bird tribes did not say much. They just sighed inwardly. Even the descendant of the Xi clan from the Ancient Tree in Jianmu City was not strong enough.


    Ye Futian returned to his original position and sat cross-legged, continuing to refine the will that he had seized.


    However, refining this will would take time. Even though the Flames of the Way that he had refined for his use were quite strong, he couldn''t mold other wills into them whenever he wanted.


    The cultivators of the Zhu clan looked at Ye Futian. He was stronger than they had even imagined. Later, they might be able to use him to deal with Duan Wuji and Saint Jiuyou''s disciples. They were sharp enough to see that these people would be difficult to entangle.


    At that moment, Duan Wuji stepped forward and walked to the center of the crowd. Everyone shared a single thought: this Prince was a son of Renhuang in the Crimson Dragon Realm. He dominated the eastern part of the realm, and his Flames of the Way were extremely strong. People called them God-Eating Fire.


    As he stepped forward, his gaze fell upon a cultivator of Flaming Prison City, who was allied with the Beili Tribe. The cultivator frowned slightly. He did not want to oppose Duan Wuji, but it seemed to be too late to avoid it. His every step shook the very air.


    Burning will swept out, and hellfire blazed. A powerful flaming god of war appeared behind the cultivator from Flaming Prison City, and his body merged with it. He grew larger, turning into a flaming war Saint.


    Duan Wuji looked at the tall figure, but his expression was unchanged. The dark green flames around him blazed and flowed, seeming to form a devouring storm. It swallowed up all the flame in the area around them and integrated them into itself.


    Bang! The burning god of war stepped forward, and a terrible aura swept out. Duan Wuji stood firmly and rose into the air. He stretched out his hands, and suddenly, the dark green flames formed a terrible storm that grew larger and larger.


    In a flash, a dark green vortex appeared in the air above Duan Wuji''s head. In addition, the aura that was swallowing up all the flames in the area grew larger.


    The terrible vortex shot towards the god of war and covered him. The cultivator from Flaming Prison City lashed out with a fist, and suddenly, it seemed as if lava and flames were shooting out from him. Firelight shone all around, threatening to melt the vortex before him.


    But the vortex swallowed up the lava as well. Endless green light shone from it, falling upon the fiery god of war''s body and slowly eating up the flames upon him. It was turning him dark green as well, making it look like demonic fire.


    The cultivator from Flaming Prison City felt that even his soul would be devoured and integrated into that terrible fire. His face grew dark. Did he have no power to resist?


    His opponent''s Flames of the Way were crushing his own.


    The flames raged wildly, and the fiery god of war''s body began to shrivel. Soon, his figure exploded, the Flames of the Way were all devoured, and the terrifying vortex returned the air above Duan Wuji, after which it wrapped around him and poured into him little by little.


    "Give up," said Duan Wuji. Then he stepped back, just like Ye Futian had. This battle was a contest of flames. It would show who could refine and use flames for their attacks the best.


    When facing the cultivator from Flaming Prison City, Duan Wuji had shown complete mastery.


    A disciple of Saint Jiuyou stepped forward and challenged a cultivator from Crimson Cloud City, which was allied with the Shang Tribe. There was another battle, and the cultivator from Crimson Cloud City, though he was a descendant of Renhuang, was defeated by Saint Jiuyou''s disciple.


    This disciple of Saint Jiuyou was skilled with Black Lotus Karma Fire and had immense destructive power. He could burn away someone''s very soul. All of the Fire of the Way that he seized, he refined into Black Lotus Karma Fire, giving it incredible destructive power that he used to defeat his opponent.


    After three battles, there were only three people who had not fought yet. Yin Tianjiao took the initiative to step forward and challenge a disciple of Saint Chiming. Both of them were extremely strong and clashed many times.


    But in the end, Yin Tianjiao was able to withstand one more attack, and he defeated the disciple of Saint Chiming.


    Sunlight flooded the walls of Sun Castle. The cultivators of four great tribes shone with dark fire. The opportunity to reclaim their ancestral lands had once again passed them by.


    Of the nine great cultivators, eight had fought. Only Chang Huai had not yet fought. He frowned and glanced at the four cultivators.


    Duan Wuji, Yin Tianjiao, the disciple of Saint Jiuyou, and Ye Futian.


    There was no clear choice. He was not assured of victory against any of them.


    In fact, he was likely to be defeated.


    But he could not avoid going out to fight. His gaze fell upon Ye Futian, who was sitting cross-legged and was busy refining his Flames of the Way. "There was a misunderstanding at Jianmu City," said Chang Huai. "I never would have thought that you were so skilled with flames, Lord Ye. I ask that you show me what you can do."


    Ye Futian, who had just been cultivating, opened his eyes and glanced at Chang Huai. A loud sound rang out, and his body transformed into an enormous furnace. It rang out as he stood, and his body disappeared. The furnace blazed as brightly as the sun, and he appeared right in front of Chang Huai. He raised his fist to strike, and a powerful wave of Qi swept out, slamming violently into Chang Huai''s body.


    A look of shock came over Chang Huai''s face as a burst of powerful spatial will locked his body in place, making it feel as though it was impossible to move. Even though his flame spells were powerful, he could not avoid being affected by other powers.


    Chang Huai could only hastily raise his hand to attack. Raging flames burned the sky!

 1242 The Flames of the Way Enter

    Ye Futian had completely transformed into a sun furnace. He shot forward, with fist will filling the sky, pushing the Flames of the Way before him. He was powerful enough to cut through anything like a blade through bamboo.


    There was a loud sound as Chang Huai was sent flying backward. He felt like a hole had been pierced through him. A burst of flame entered into him, causing him to twist and distort his face in pain.


    Ye Futian walked forward step by step, looking indifferent and emotionless.


    Although he had refined some flames, and his attacks with the Flames of the Way were extremely strong, his defenses had not changed at all. Ye Futian''s burst of power had made it so that he had had no way to respond and so he had been badly wounded. The battle ended in an instant.


    Ye Futian walked in front of Chang Huai and swept his cold gaze over him. He reached out, and Flames of the Way came out from his hand.


    Chang Huai went pale as he watched the figure before him.


    He had once ridiculed Ye Futian''s reliance on women back in Jianmu City. But now, he had been so thoroughly crushed. Even though it was true that Ye Futian had attacked him without warning, even if he had been ready for him, it would have made no difference.


    His will had been seized, and his Renhuang will had been taken, just like with Xi Chan.


    Ye Futian had crushed the two geniuses of the Ancient Tree.


    Ye Futian returned to his original position and sat down. Everyone looked at him. This contest between them had not been anything special, and so they had not gotten a look at the opponents'' strengths and weaknesses. But they could at least see that the Lord of Qianye City was not like they had imagined. Otherwise, it would not have only been two great tribes that would have went to invite him.


    After Chang Huai was defeated, there were only the representatives of four tribes left.


    Yin Tianjiao of the Zhu tribe, Duan Wuji standing in for the Zhong tribe, the disciple of Saint Jiuyou for the Raven tribe, and Ye Futian.


    These four were all very skilled at refining flames. Even now, they had their eyes closed and were cultivating, seizing every moment they could to refine the Flames of the Way that they had taken.


    In this place of ruins, the Flames of the Way were power. The one who could refine the most of them would be the strongest.


    At that moment, sunlight was falling upon Sun Castle. Only four beams of light were still shining. The light where Ye Futian was was the brightest. He had defeated two great cultivators all by himself, and so he had seized a few more Flames of the Way. The light seemed to form a mystical matrix.


    However, this did not increase Ye Futian''s power. He could feel the sunlight falling upon him.


    Seeing that all four of them were calmly and silently cultivating, the cultivators of the Zhu tribe cast their gaze over the battlefield.


    At that moment, there was only the four of them. They and the Wu tribe were together in this, which the Zhong tribe and the Raven tribe must have known. Thus, those two forces would probably not fight each other, which would let the Zhu tribe and the Wu tribe win the battle without lifting a finger.


    So, this would be a two on two battle.


    He looked towards Duan Wuji, who was fighting for the Zhong tribe. He was probably more threatening than the disciple of Saint Jiuyou.


    Thinking of this, the cultivator from the Zhu tribe summoned a cultivator from the Wu tribe and said, "Have Lord Ye challenge Duan Wuji."


    They would fight for a bit, which would let them see how strong Duan Wuji was. What they had seen in the previous battle was just a performance. Duan Wuji had needed to use too much of his power to defeat his opponent.


    Ye Futian''s performance had been outstanding, so he would probably be able to test Duan Wuji a bit more and see just how the powerful the Flames of the Way that he had refined were, and how strong his God-Eating Fire was.


    That way, they would be able to find out as well.


    The cultivator from the Wu tribe looked out towards Ye Futian. The grey-robed figure walked over to him and said, "Lord Ye, why don''t you fight Duan Wuji of the Zhong tribe in this battle?"


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and glanced at Duan Wuji. He was indeed quite strong. In his last battle, he had nearly crushed his opponent. He had not wasted any energy. His God-Eating Fire had swallowed up his opponent''s Flames of the Way, and he had integrated the will that he had seized into his own God-Eating Fire. He was incredibly threatening.


    But if he wanted to make it to the end, this was an opponent that he would have to face sooner or later. He couldn''t avoid it.


    It was just a matter of when.


    Therefore, he did not refuse. He stood up and walked out onto the battlefield. He looked out towards the cultivator from the Zhong tribe and Duan Wuji.


    Seeming to feel Ye Futian''s gaze, Duan Wuji opened his eyes as well and looked back at him. There seemed to be dark green flames within his eyes, like demonic fire.


    He stood up as well and walked out onto the battlefield.


    It was still extremely hot in front of Sun Castle. Everything was extraordinarily calm at that moment.


    The two of them stood facing each other. Ye Futian turned into a great furnace once again, and the fire of the Great Path surrounded him, bathing his body.


    Dark green flames flowed around Duan Wuji, wrapping around his body. They slowly formed a vortex that grew stronger and stronger. It floated forward, swallowing up all the flames and slowly turning into a massive vortex of flames.


    The wild vortex shot towards Ye Futian, sucking up all the flame power in the area. Ye Futian used his Deed of Thought Comprehension, and all his will turned into flames that burned like the sun.


    "Leave."


    He pointed to the air, and the flames around suddenly shot upwards, covering the sky. The word ''leave'' appeared among the flames.


    The vortex collided with the sun furnace, causing an incredibly destructive storm to sweep out. The dark green storm tried to swallow up the sun furnace, and the sun furnace was trying to transform the vortex. The two forces intermingled, and terrifying Flames of the Path wrapped around each other.


    Duan Wuji and Ye Futian were floating in the air, using their minds to control the flames, and guiding them with their hands.


    As they watched this ferocious battle, many people thought that if Ye Futian and Duan Wuji''s wills were to collide with each other, both of them would be consumed. In that case, Yin Tianjiao and Saint Jiuyou''s disciple would probably be able to reap the benefits without having lifted a finger.


    Many people were a little surprised that Ye Futian''s fire of the Great Path could withstand Duan Wuji.


    As a Prince, Duan Wuji had cultivated himself to be very powerful. So, Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm''s powerful techniques must be at the Renhuang level.


    The two of them floated among the fire of the Great Path, using their hands to control the flames. They were putting more and more will into it, and endless flames descended from the sky. Each flame was filled with terribly destructive energy.


    Duan Wuji looked at Ye Futian under the raging flames. Dark green fire wrapped around him, growing stronger and stronger.


    He had not put all of his power into the vortex yet. He was still saving some.


    However, lines of flame will appeared around Ye Futian as well. The flames were clear and pure, seeming real one instant then illusory the next. There was something unreal about them.


    "Go." Duan Wuji swept out his sleeve, and endless Flames of the Way swept out.


    But Ye Futian pointed forward, and three thousand Flames of the Way shrieked forward, slamming into his opponent''s flames. The two powers shook the sky as they collided.


    Duan Wuji stepped forward with a mighty stride and descended right in front of Ye Futian. He reached out, and suddenly, a vortex of flames appeared around Ye Futian, trying to swallow him up.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were frightening. He swept his gaze over Duan Wuji, and pure white flames appeared around him, seeming to have grown out of thin air. They covered Duan Wuji''s body.


    The two of them were nearing each other quickly. Duan Wuji raised his fist and slammed it towards Ye Futian. Immense power appeared around his delicate hand.


    Ye Futian stretched out a single finger, but it was sharper than a sword. It pierced towards the onrushing fist.


    The two attacks collided, and a terrible vortex descended upon ye Futian from Duan Wuji''s fist. He seemed unable to control his body, and his aura was sucked out by his opponent''s fist. It seemed that his very soul was under attack, and would be sucked out.


    But Ye Futian''s finger contained immense space-tearing power. It was like a halberd. In a flash, endless destructive will entered his opponent''s hand and slammed into his body.


    Duan Wuji''s blood surged through his body. He had an uncomprehending look on his face. Terrible flames suddenly appeared on his hand, and it turned dark green as he continued to press it towards Ye Futian. His fist seemed able to engulf Ye Futian along with his very soul.


    Ye Futian continued to press his finger forward, and Flames of the Great Path shot out of the other fingers. As soon as his finger landed on his opponent''s hand, a void was drilled all the way through his hand up into his arm.


    Both of their attacks threatened their opponent, so after that single touch, they broke apart. Ye Futian''s sleeve was torn, and dark green light had appeared on his hand. Duan Wuji was the same: his sleeve had been burned away to nothing, and undying Flames of the Way were raging across his body, sapping his vitality.


    Duan Wuji tried to retreat, but he felt an intense space-binding power. Ye Futian continued to press his fingers forward, trying to touch Duan Wuji again.


    Duan Wuji frowned, and coldness flashed in his eyes. Someone was really actively trying to attack him.


    He slammed out with his fist once again with no hesitation. In a flash, the two of them collided again like two phantoms.


    Bang!


    There was the loud sound of a collision, and the two of them separated yet again. Both of them groaned.


    This attack had obviously been difficult to bear.


    They had both been struck by their opponent''s attack at the same time as they struck their opponent. The threat from the Flames of the Way was more than they could handle at their level, and its destructive power when it entered their bodies was apparent.


    Ye Futian''s arms and torso were starting to turn faintly green, which looked very strange. Everyone''s eyes fell upon him. Could he withstand this any more?


    But Ye Futian sat down and crossed his legs as the dark green fire raged across him, swallowing up his vitality, his spirit, and even trying to devour his very breath.


    His blood roared and roiled as his divine will descended, stamping out the flames. He looked a little better now.


    When it came to flame power, Duan Wuji was not inferior to him at all and was even a little bit better. Thus, he did not have the advantage when they collided.


    But at that moment, Duan Wuji was also sitting cross-legged in the air. Renhuang light seemed to flash around him, snuffing out all other power. White void flames raged within him. They were undying, having an unlimited lifespan.


    The flames burned until they reached outside his body. His face was ashen. Finally, he groaned and spat out a mouthful of blood!

 1243 Give Up?

    The cultivators from the nine great tribes were all shocked when they saw what was happening.


    Prince Duan Wuji had been the first one to be seriously wounded. From his current stance, it was clear that this wound was affecting him greatly, and he was still fighting to control the Flames of the Way within him.


    On the other side of the battlefield, Ye Futian swept his gaze around. The Divine Sun Furnace swallowed up everything, and gradually devoured the dark green vortex. Duan Wuji had no time to deal with him, and so the conflict up in the air had come to an end.


    "Duan Wuji has lost." Everyone''s hearts trembled. This was an unexpected outcome.


    If this had just been a regular duel, then even though Lord Ye of Qianye City did not have a brilliant record, he would still have been strong because of Yu Sheng, and he could have been more than a match for Prince Duan Wuji.


    However, this was a contest of flames.


    The God-Eating Flames were famous, and so everyone had thought that Duan Wuji would win here in the ancestral lands. But things had not gone as expected.


    Ye Futian of Qianye City had defeated Duan Wui in a contest of flames.


    Even the Zhu tribe and the Wu tribe, who had chosen Ye Futian, had not thought this to be possible. They looked incredibly surprised at that moment. If they had known that he could control flames so well, then everyone would have sent him invitations the moment he had set foot in Emperor Kua''s City. Instead, no one had come looking for him, and so the Wu tribe had been able to convince him to go with them for practically no cost.


    However, many people looked surprised when they thought of the relationship between the Wu tribe and the Zhu tribe.


    Yin Tianjiao of the Zhu tribe was still there, and Ye Futian, whom the Wu tribe had invited, was still so powerful. It seemed that there was no more suspense about the outcome of this struggle at the Ancestral Lands.


    Saint Jiuyou''s disciple was strong, but it would be almost impossible for a single cultivator to resist two powerful cultivators like Yin Tianjiao and Ye Futian.


    Indeed, he would have a great deal of trouble trying to take on just one of them.


    After all, Ye Futian had already proven his strength in this battle.


    Thus, if the Wu tribe was willing to concede to the Zhu tribe, then there was no more suspense in this battle. The Zhu tribe would be the victors and would have the opportunity to put the Ancestral Lands to use.


    Eight great tribes had been eliminated from this competition already.


    The only question was, would the Wu tribe and Ye Futian concede?


    If they didn''t, who was stronger? Ye Futian or Yin Tianjiao?


    "Lord Ye''s strength is supernatural. I never would have thought that Prince Duan Wuji would lose to him. It seems that Saint Jiuyou''s disciple would similarly have a hard time against him," said the burly, middle-aged man from the Zhu tribe with the long, red beard.


    Saint Jiuyou''s disciple looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his eyebrow slightly. This cultivator from the Zhu tribe was a bit impolite. Or could it be that he was trying to incite a fight between him and Saint Jiuyou''s disciple?


    Among the people present, he was the one who had fought the most.


    Although he had beaten Duan Wuji in the fight he had just had, he had used up a lot of his power to do so, and much of the will he had refined had been destroyed.


    Moreover, Duan Wuji''s attacks had injured him. With such fearsome flames entering his body, how could he not have been affected?


    Saint Jiuyou''s disciple was not weak, and his Black Lotus Karma Fire contained terrible destructive power.


    If he fought again after having just fought, then even if he defeated Saint Jiuyou''s disciple, he would not be at full power.


    And at that point, the only two cultivators left would be him and Yin Tianjiao.


    He knew exactly what the cultivator from the Zhu tribe was trying to do.


    His statement seemed to incite Saint Jiuyou''s disciple''s will to fight. He stared at Ye Futian, and the Black Lotus Karma Fire wrapped around him.


    He was ready to fight.


    But at the moment, a figure flashed over and descended upon the battlefield, appearing in front of Saint Jiuyou''s disciple.


    The dazzling figure was none other than Yin Tianjiao.


    She had not waited for Saint Jiuyou''s disciple and Ye Futian to fight but had actively come to participate.


    Terrible flames wrapped around her, bathing her in divine fire. Her violent aura swept out, shooting towards Saint Jiuyou''s disciple.


    The cultivator from the Zhu tribe was shocked as he beheld this scene. He was surprised that she would act like this.


    But then he understood. These people were all proud sons and daughters of heaven.


    Thus, this Yin Tianjiao was an incredibly proud person and had seen what he was tying to do.


    So she had acted, disdaining such means as he was employing.


    The cultivator from the Zhu tribe smiled coldly. Yin Tianjiao was indeed proud. But the Ancestral Lands were extremely important to the Nine great tribes.


    Now that they were within easy reach, how could he easily let them go? He would obviously use any tricks at his disposal.


    Also, wasting your opponent''s energy was not really a petty trick.


    Ye Futian eyed Yin Tianjiao. What a proud woman!


    Duan Wuji was still sitting there. He opened his eyes and looked at Ye Futian, saying, "What kind of Flames of the Way do you have?"


    The pure white fire had been almost clear and seemed like void flames.


    This kind of flame seemed as if it could not be extinguished. Even if he tried to use Rehuang will to control them, he would still be burned by them.


    "These are flames that I learned about long ago through my cultivation. But at that time, they were just a prototype, so I never used them. Now, when we were refining our flames here in the ruins, I tried to use them again. Now that I''ve managed to employ them, I call them the Fire of White Lapis Lazuli," answered Ye Futian.


    "These flames have an endless will," said Duan Wuji.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. Endless will was indeed contained within those flames, and it would be difficult to extinguish for even the most powerful cultivator.


    Duan Wuji smiled and said, "I never thought I would lose to you in a contest of flames."


    He was extremely confident in his God Eating Fire since it was so powerful.


    "You are very good at controlling flames," said Ye Futian. He then turned and returned to his position. He had not been exaggerating. He had spoken truly.


    That God Eating Fire had burned within him. It was indeed quite ferocious.


    Duan Wuji looked at Ye Futian, then turned and left as well. The glory of the Zhong tribe had dimmed a little bit.


    Only Ye Futian and the Wu tribe cultivator''s glory was still shining brightly.


    On the battlefield, the two cultivators were locked in furious combat. Although Yin Tianjiao had cultivated many powerful Flames of the Way, she seemed to have integrated all of them into her attack spells. She was bursting with power as she launched her attacks.


    Saint Jiuyou''s disciples Black Lotus Karma Fire was incredibly strong, but it seemed almost insignificant when facing Yin Tianjiao.


    In the end, Yin Tianjiao defeated Saint Jiuyou''s disciple and made it to the end of the contest.


    The glory of the Raven tribe dimmed while the Zhu tribe''s glory brightened.


    The light of the sun fell upon the two remaining tribes��the Zhu tribe and the Wu tribe.


    It also shone high up into the clouds.


    What was hard for people to accept was that the two remaining cultivators were from the Zhu and Wu tribes.


    These two tribes were very close and were practically allied. Now they had both made it to the end. Did that not seem a little strange?


    Would they really fight each other now?


    Ye Futian was still busy refining his will. He sat with eyes shut, cultivating. He seemed to have not seen the conclusion of Yin Tianjiao''s battle.


    The Zhu tribe cultivator''s gaze fell upon Ye Futian. "Lord Ye," he said, "I will have a great gift of thanks for you when we return. Why don''t we let this battle end here, alright?"


    He hoped that Ye Futian would give up.


    Yin Tianjiao was very strong, but if they could win this without a fight, everything would be settled.


    The fact that Ye Futian was still there made him an unknown factor.


    If he had been able to defeat Prince Duan Wuji, who could say that he would certainly lose to the Princess of Emperor Wu, who had cultivated in the Crimson Dragon Realm?


    "End it here?" Ye Futian looked at the cultivator of the Zhu tribe. "The elder of the Wu tribe placed his trust in me and asked me to fight this battle. I''ve already come this far, how can I give up? I must give it my all."


    The Zhu tribe cultivator frowned. He was a bit upset with this reply.


    The Wu tribe cultivator looked at him, then to Ye Futian, and said, "Both of them are powerful figures, and so it would be good to watch a battle between the two of them. Why don''t we just let them fight?"


    The Zhu tribe cultivator frowned. This man from the Wu tribe seemed to have his own ideas.


    Was it because Ye Futian''s strength had given him confidence, and thus thoughts of total victory had been born in his mind?


    "What are you thinking, Wu Yong?" asked the Zhu tribe cultivator coldly. The other cultivators of the Zhu tribe also swept their gazes over the people from the Wu tribe. Coldness flashed in their eyes.


    Were they trying to stand up for themselves?


    Boom!


    At that moment, a wild flame aura swept out.


    Ye Futian ignored the Zhu tribe cultivator. He directly unleashed his power as he sped towards Yin Tianjiao.


    He was prepared to fight.


    As for the Zhu tribe cultivator''s exhortations, how could he obey them?


    Why had he even come here?


    Would he give up when he was only a step away?


    "Please enlighten me." Wild flames rolled towards Yin Tianjiao as the Great Path furnace burned everything. Yin Tianjiao waited for it patiently, staring at Ye Futian.


    In a flash, a ringing sound came from her, and she blazed as brightly as the sun. Her radiance was frightening.


    Boom! Her wild aura shot up into the clouds. She seemed like a goddess of war. Divine light shot up into the sky as she gazed at Ye Futian''s onrushing figure.


    Great Path binding power descended. It was spatial will that sought to freeze her in place.


    But Yin Tianjiao stepped forward with no thought of retreat. She seemed about to trample upon Ye Futian''s body. A giant palm print materialized before her and slammed out towards him.


    The battle had broken out in an instant.


    There was a dark look on the Zhu tribe cultivator''s face. He watched Ye Futian with unkind eyes, but soon, he was watching the whole battle.


    This battle was extremely important.


    The idea to have the Wu tribe invite Ye Futian on this trip to the ruins had originally been theirs. When the Wu tribe had seen Ye Futian''s strength, they decided to gamble with him.


    He would watch and see. If Ye Futian was defeated at Yin Tianjiao''s hands, how would the Wu clan cultivators deal with him?


    And even if he won, would the Wu clan cultivators be able to take all of the Zhu clan cultivators?

 1244 The Gate to the Ancestral Lands

    Two figures collided wildly atop of Sun Castle.


    Ye Futian was bathed in the sun''s fire. He turned into a furnace tripod, and ancient characters surrounded him, refining all his power and integrating it into his body. He let loose a powerful attack.


    Yin Tianjiao was a Princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm and was a Renhuang cultivator. It was apparent how powerful she was in combat.


    She had also inherited Emperor Wu''s talent, and her attack spells were overpowering.


    She integrated the fire of the Great Path into her attacks. At that moment, the fire merged with the martial will exploding from her body. But it was different than it had been with Xi Chan. Xi Chan had transformed into the Divine Body of Nine Suns, but that had just been like borrowing the might of the sun.


    But Yin Tianjiao had transformed into a goddess of war. Burning flames wrapped around her, and she borrowed the might of the entire world. Her every strike and her every movement was filled with destructive power.


    At that moment, Yin Tianjiao raised her fist and pressed it down towards Ye Futian. She was powerful and overwhelming. Her attack, the Nirvana Handprint of Unblemished Flames, covered the sky and shook the very as it slammed towards Ye Futian.


    The wave of flames swept out, giving off a shrieking sound.


    Ye Futian activated the Deed of Thought Comprehension, and took the flames into his own body, as he had turned into a great furnace. He also raised his fist and stepped forward with the Footwork of Xuanyuan. The air trembled along with the Great Path.


    He thrust forward with overlapping Huangting Fist Wills, and his attack slammed into the palm print that covered the sky. A rumbling noise rang out, and the hand print trembled as cracks appeared in it. It then collapsed.


    But Yin Tianjiao''s attacks did not stop. She continued forward and struck out with both fists at the same time. Her long robe was bathed in flames. She looked majestic and powerful.


    She slammed out her fists like a martial goddess, and her flaming palm print flattened everything in its path.


    The two of them slammed together, and a destructive airflow swept out at their terrifying collision.


    There was a loud bang, and they both retreated. Ye Futian''s gaze was fixed on his opponent. He was a little surprised that a woman could attack so powerfully. No wonder she had been able to enter the Regional Palace to cultivate. He wondered if she had fought with Yu Sheng there.


    Yin Tianjiao felt her heart quaking. She had not been able to beat Ye Futian, and he was even directly attacking her. This guy was just like that b*stard from the Regional Palace. He was simply a monster. Moreover, he seemed to have a similar power to her own in that he could integrate the power of flames into his attacks.


    Either way, this showdown between them was not getting anywhere.


    She looked at Ye Futian, and her blood boiled. The blood of Renhuang flowed through her veins.


    The light from an even more powerful flame shot up into the sky. Divine fire seemed to wrap around her as dazzling flame light pulsated. It was like a divine golden fire was burning her body and making her aura even more powerful. An even wilder aura swept out from her.


    A look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face. Yin Tianjiao''s aura was increasing and becoming stronger. It was as if the Flames of the Way within her were improving her combat ability.


    Golden flames shot out of her eyes and pierced towards Ye Futian''s. In that instant, Ye Futian felt terrible divine flames burning in his mind that sought to extinguish his spiritual willpower.


    Woosh! Yin Tianjiao stepped forward, and the divine flames that wrapped around her body transformed into a fiery war goddess with many arms. The goddess thrust out her fists towards Ye Futian, destroying the very air as they covered him in blows.


    There was a look of pain in Ye Futian''s eyes. He looked up at the oncoming fists, and a terrible fiery airflow swept out from him.


    At that moment, horrifying divine fire shot out from his eyes. He looked at Yin Tianjiao, and she seemed to see an incomparably huge fiery god of war.


    The scene was somewhat familiar to her.


    Intense sunlight fell from the sky. It was as if the sun itself was on fire. The flames fell on Ye Futian''s body, making the flames that were already around him become stronger and stronger.


    All the cultivators from the nine great tribes were looking at him, and their hearts were trembling. They also seemed to feel a familiar aura.


    "The Renhuang Flames of the Way," they all said as they watched him.


    Had this guy refined many Renhuang Flames of the Way and integrated them into his body for his own use?


    Yin Tianjiao''s Flames of the Way could also be called Renhuang Flames of the Way. Her father, Emperor Wu, was Renhuang, and her talent had come from him.


    But even so, she had only been able to gradually display her power as her cultivation became stronger.


    No matter what, her Flames of the Way should have been stronger than the ones that Ye Futian had refined. After all, she had directly inherited them from her father, whereas Ye Futian had obtained them later.


    However, the aura that burst forth from Ye Futian now was not weaker than hers in the least. In addition, Renhuang will burned within it. It was as if he was using the power of these ruins. The intense light of the sun shone down on him.


    Boom! A wild burst of will swept out as Ye Futian''s furnace swallowed up the flames around him. His body became tall and mighty. It was as if Emperor Kua had come down into the world.


    He raised his fist and grabbed at the air. Huge palm prints slammed into the onrushing fists, shattering them completely.


    He stepped forward, and the very air trembled. The Great Path roared as fire shot out of his eyes, colliding with the golden fire that was coming from Yin Tianjiao''s. The two colossal powers clashed.


    Yin Tianjiao''s expression changed. She stepped towards Ye Futian. Beneath the flames, she was like a goddess, beautiful beyond compare.


    Ye Futian stepped forward at the same time and thrust his fist out. A furnace tripod of the heavenly Great Path appeared in his hand, formed from the Flames of the Way. The flames within him poured into it and then swept out towards Yin Tianjiao.


    Yin Tianjiao swept her divine golden flames downward and turned into a divine phoenix. She and many other sacred beasts of flame charged forward.


    But the divine furnace was growing larger and larger, and it swallowed them all up. The fiery divine beasts shrieked as they were shattered within it. They could not break out.


    Boom! The fiery divine beasts all melted within the furnace. Yin Tianjiao went pale. The terrifying furnace continued to swallow them all up, and endless divine flames shrieked forward, but they could not destroy it. It was as if the furnace was formed of Renhuang fire, and thus was able to consume all their flame will.


    The Great Path had formed this furnace, and it could refine all the flames of heaven and earth.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and slapped the furnace through the air towards Yin Tianjiao. It pressed towards her, and she raised both her hands to block it, but it swallowed up the flames that were upon her. She was sent flying back by its continuous pressure, and she spat up a mouthful of blood. Her face was ashen.


    Ye Futian continued forward with not a hint of regard for her safety. He once again pressed the furnace towards her, continuing his attack on her. She was slammed to the ground. She was finally no longer able to bear it. She lay sprawled on the ground with crimson blood flowing from the corner of her mouth.


    Ye Futian''s figure flashed, and he descended before her. He began to walk towards her.


    Upon the walls of Sun Castle, the Zhu tribe cultivator''s face was held hard as iron.


    Yin Tianjiao had actually been defeated at Ye Futian''s hands.


    Of all the nine tribes, it had actually been the Wu tribe''s Ye Futian who had made it to the end and had defeated all opponents.


    "Lord Ye," called the Zhu tribe cultivator. Ye Futian looked at him, then continued forward, ignoring him.


    All the cultivators of the nine tribes were watching him. They were speechless.


    The Zhu tribe cultivator could not change this outcome. Ye Futian had no intention of conceding.


    He walked up to Yin Tianjiao and cut the flame will from her.


    Sunlight streamed down from high up in the sky. Upon the walls of Sun Castle, nine beams of radiance seemed to merge into one. It fell upon Ye Futian.


    Golden light wrapped around him and covered the vast area.


    The will of the Great Path flowed down along with the sunlight, making Ye Futian''s aura stronger and stronger. He seemed to resonate with the sun, and the two of them became one.


    Not only that, but of the cultivators standing guard on Sun Castle, only those of the Wu tribe''s bloodline shone brightly as well. The cultivators from the other eight tribes dimmed.


    It seemed as if their auras had been swallowed up by the sun and given to this one man.


    Wu Yong turned his gaze towards a figure standing guard upon the castle walls. The sun shone brightly upon him as he strode towards Ye Futian.


    "Do not resist. He will help you open the gate to the Ancestral Lands," Wu Yong said to Ye Futian.


    The figure walked towards Ye Futian, then entered directly into his body, seeming to turn into a beam of fire.


    It seemed as if the cultivators upon the castle walls were not real, but were formed of pure will.


    Ye Futian''s golden light grew brighter and brighter, and the refinement of Flames of the Way within him sped up. The light of brilliant flames covered Sun Castle.


    A beam of terrifying light shot forward towards the gate to the Ancestral Lands.


    The sun, Ye Futian''s body, and the gate to the Ancestral Lands all shone brightly one after the other. Even under the light of the terrible golden fire, the gate did not budge. Even as it was heated until it became red hot, it still stood firm.


    "Open it, then we can go to the Ancestral Lands," said Wu Yong from beside Ye Futian.


    He hoped that Ye Futian could complete this final step and open the gate that led to the Ancestral Lands.


    The cultivators of the nine great tribes all watched Ye Futian. They did not know whether or not he could accomplish this final task and enter the Ancestral Lands!

 1245 Vigilance

    There seemed to be a massive matrix atop Sun Castle.


    At this point, the sun''s fire was not divided into nine rays, but instead, all of it was falling upon Ye Futian and helping him refine the gate to the Ancestral Lands.


    Flames burned beneath the brilliant matrix that was formed from the light of the sun. Everyone around them stepped back due to their terrible power and would not dare to draw any nearer.


    The cultivators of the nine great tribes and the eight other people that they had invited with them were all staring at Ye Futian and the gate.


    The cultivators from the Wu clan were watching closely, especially Wu Yong; his heart was pounding fast.


    Wu Yong may have invited Ye Futian twice. But in reality, he would have never thought that the Lord of Qianye City could refine the Flames of the Way and defeat all his opponents, especially Yin Tianjiao, the daughter of Emperor Wu, and Duan Wuji.


    But now he had succeeded. He naturally hoped that Ye Futian would go even further and open up the gate to the Ancestral Lands, letting them set foot there.


    Over the years, any tribe that managed to enter the Ancestral Lands became much stronger, and their power would increase by leaps and bounds.


    They naturally did not want to miss their chance.


    The reason that the Wu tribe had attached themselves to the Zhu tribe was both tribes'' power was gradually increasing. When facing external threats, the nine tribes acted as one, but they would also struggle and compete against each other.


    Each of the nine tribes was ambitious. They each wanted to unify the nine tribes and become their leader.


    However, without entering the Renhuang plane, it would be challenging to make the other eight tribes listen to orders and obey them.


    But even if they could not unify the nine tribes, they would still increase their power by entering the Ancestral Lands. Wu Yong would no longer need to look at that Zhu tribe cultivator''s face, nor listen to his orders.


    As he thought of this, Wu Yong watched closely. He hoped Ye Futian could do it.


    Duan Wuji and Yin Tianjiao were watching Ye Futian as well. They had all heard of the ruins of Emperor Kua. It was said that every time they were opened, people would go there to undergo trials. Part of the reason was so that they could become stronger. For people who refined Flames of the Way, the path of refining did not allow you to advance to the next level directly; they must first deepen their understanding of flames.


    But more importantly, it was rumored that Emperor Kua had left something behind in the ruins. Those who went to the Ancestral Lands would have a chance to find and inherit it.


    Of course, very few people had been able to go there in the past. No one had ever heard of anyone finding whatever it was that Emperor Kua had left behind.


    Thus, people still came here.


    But none of them expected that they would not be able to pass through the gate, as Ye Futian overtook them.


    Now they could only be observers.


    Both Duan Wuji and Yin Tianjiao thought that given Ye Futian''s talent, he had a chance of opening the gate. After all, they thought of themselves as quite outstanding, and Ye Futian had beaten them using flames, so they naturally had to admit the extent of his power.


    At that moment, there was a divine matrix formed of sunlight in front of Sun Castle. The sunlight helped Ye Futian refine the flames, and his aura began to rise wildly, becoming extremely strong. It seemed to be helping him reach the peak of the Divine Path and refine all the flames that he had seized from his opponents.


    It was not only the matrix that was helping him; the figure that had entered into his body previously had turned into a brilliant Flame of the Way and was assisting him as well.


    At that moment, Ye Futian had reached the extreme limits of his power. He could even fight with someone at the Nirvana level.


    Of course, most of it was power that came from outside him, and it was just there to help him open the gate.


    The sun''s flames shot towards the gate to the Ancestral Lands and covered it.


    However, the gate did not budge. It stood there firmly, and the flames of the Great Path could not melt it.


    Ye Futian wildly refined the will within him. He could even feel that the figure that had entered him was at the Nirvana level and was refining fire as well.


    At that moment, he felt that he was at the absolute center of all the fire of the Great Path in the area. He was drawing in all the power of heaven and earth to try and melt the gate.


    But he was still unable to do it.


    Time passed slowly, and Ye Futian still sat in the center of the matrix, bathed in the sun''s divine fire. He did not stop for a moment.


    No one tried to hurry him up. The cultivators of the nine tribes stood there watching. All of them were at the Saint level and thus were very patient. At this point, there was no need to be hasty.


    The cultivators who had been defeated in battle did not leave either. They stood there watching as well.


    Several days passed in what seemed like the blink of an eye.


    However, nothing changed. The flames within Ye Futian''s body became stronger, but the gate was not affected in the slightest. It seemed to be an eternal gate that would never open.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were shut tight. He was thinking about what the problem could be.


    He had taken all the flames from the matrix. If that were enough to open the gate, it would have done so by now.


    But the gate had not opened. So, where was the problem coming from?


    "Emperor Kua''s Flames of the Way." When Ye Futian thought of this, lines of fire entered the furnace that his body had formed and into his will.


    In his mind, a fiery god of war stood between heaven and earth, devouring all the flames.


    Ye Futian''s will moved, drawing upon the power of the matrix, and began to refine Emperor Kua''s Flames of the Way.


    Time continued to pass. When one reached the Saint level, cultivation could take a long time.


    Ye Futian refined for ten days without realizing it.


    Some of the people there thought about leaving, but stayed anyway, sitting there cross-legged as they cultivated.


    The cultivators of the nine tribes were used to this. They were aware of what the gate to the Ancestral Land was like. It was not easy to open.


    Even within the nine tribes, no one could open it. That was why they came here all the time and relied on the power of outsiders to open it. That showed how difficult it was.


    Ye Futian''s perception of the will was getting stronger and stronger. He had already refined quite a bit. In his perception, he seemed to have transformed into a fiery god of war. A figure was coalescing in the furnace of the Great Path and was gradually growing larger.


    This figure looked like Ye Futian, but it was just an illusion formed of the fire of the Great Path.


    Its body grew bigger and bigger and swallowed up all the fire in the area. Up in the sky, the sunlight grew stronger and changed even more than it had before. It seemed as if the sun''s fire would flow along the bridge of heaven and earth to the fiery god of war.


    Time passed, and the flames burned in the sky. Above the figure that had been formed from will, the firelight reached the sky and merged into the world itself.


    A powerful burst of will shot through the world. Gradually, Ye Futian became able to perceive the whole ruins.


    After some time, everything in his perception changed. He seemed to see an incomparably immense figure.


    It was just like when he had just come to the ruins, but it had become much clearer.


    There was a huge face in the sky, and the brilliant sun seemed to be its eye.


    The crimson clouds were its hair.


    And the vast ruins seemed to be its body, and the fiery magma was its blood.


    It seemed as if these ruins had been integrated into a god, or rather, these ruins were, in fact, a god.


    "Is that Emperor Kua?"


    Ye Futian wondered this. Heaven and earth seemed to change colors as the whole ruins were dyed red. The sun matrix''s power reached its limits, and the figure of the god of war that was formed from flames seemed like it would swallow up the whole sun. There was endless fire everywhere, and it all turned into nourishment for the figure.


    Rays of divine light shot towards the gate and finally slammed against it with loud bangs. The gate gradually began to change. It looked like it was melting.


    The entire gate gradually became transparent.


    "It''s opened."


    The Wu tribe cultivators'' eyes were bright.


    Ye Futian had done it. He had opened the gate to the Ancestral Lands.


    Wu Yong clenched his fists. Although he was an Unblemished Saint, he was still obviously very excited by this.


    He had not expected this stroke of luck that he had invited someone able to open the gate to the Ancestral Lands.


    He looked up into the crimson sky and felt his heart pounding.


    The Wu tribe would finally have a chance to enter the Ancestral Lands.


    "Lord Ye, the gate to the Ancestral Lands is open. Please let us, the members of the Wu clan, enter. You may enter as well, but do not let anyone else," Wu Yong said to Ye Futian.


    "Very well," answered Ye Futian. Wu Yong looked around at everyone else and saw a powerful figure standing next to him. It was the elder of the Wu tribe. He looked at the other tribes and said, "This time, it is the Wu tribe who will enter the Ancestral Lands."


    On saying this, the whole tribe started forward.


    The other eight tribes did not move. This was the agreement that the nine tribes had had for many years, and they would continue to follow it.


    Moreover, right now, Ye Futian was controlling the gate to the Ancestral Lands with help from the matrix. At this point, it could be said that Ye Futian was at the extreme limit of his power, and could even kill someone who had reached Nirvana.


    He was the one whom the Wu tribe had invited, and thus the Wu tribe had earned the right to enter the Ancestral Lands.


    "Open." Ye Futian opened his eyes, and terrifying light flashed in them. A fiery hole appeared in the gate to the Ancestral Lands. The Wu tribe walked forward entered within it.


    Once they had all entered, Ye Futian flashed over there and transformed into a beam of fiery light that shot inside.


    In the next moment, the matrix at Sun Castle disappeared. Everything returned to the way it was before. The gate to the Ancestral Lands solidified once again. It was closed.


    Everything was calm once again. The Zhu tribe cultivator had an icy look on his face. "B*stard," spat the burly figure.


    The Wu tribe had betrayed them.


    If the Wu tribe had obeyed their orders, then the one to open the gate to the Ancestral Lands would have been Yin Tianjiao.


    "Should we leave, or should we wait?" asked Duan Wuji. His voice was calm. There was no joy or sorrow in it. It was if this was all perfectly ordinary.


    "We will stay here. You can all leave if you want to," said the Zhong tribe cultivator.


    "Is it alright if we stay and cultivate here for a while?" asked Yin Tianjiao.


    The Zhu tribe cultivator nodded. "Of course." Duan Wuji looked at Yin Tianjiao, then smile. He had had no intention of leaving, so he stayed as well.


    The gate to the Ancestral Lands had opened. None of them knew what would happen there.


    After Ye Futian and the others entered, they looked forward and saw a stairway off in the distance that went up into the sky. The end of the staircase seemed to be the place where the sun rested, the highest point of Sun Castle.


    The Wu clan cultivators waited for Ye Futian up ahead. The elder watched Ye Futian walking over. Many thoughts were racing through his mind.


    At this point, Ye Futian no longer had the blessing of the matrix. But an incredible aura still flowed over him.


    What had he just gained?


    After opening the gate to the Ancestral Lands, would he be the only one who had the chance to get whatever it was the Emperor Kua had left behind?


    Ye Futian felt the elder''s eyes on him but kept his own eyes forward. He looked extremely calm, but he felt a keen sense of determination.


    This whole scene made his heart tremble slightly and gave rise to a sense of vigilance within him.


    This elder of the Wu clan had never spoken to him. Could it be that he had some ideas of his own?


    For him to pull down the bridge after crossing the river would be nothing new!!

 1246 Ruthless

    "Have you gained anything from this, Lord Ye?" the Wu tribe elder asked Ye Futian. There was a faint smile on his face, and it did not look like he had any ulterior motives.


    "I have been able to refine a lot of will, and have felt Emperor Kua''s majesty. I have benefited a lot," said Ye Futian with a slight smile.


    The Wu tribe elder nodded with a smile. "Thank you for allowing us to come here to the Ancestral lands. Without you, we would have never had this chance."


    "No need to be so polite, elder," replied Ye Futian with a smile. "As far as I am concerned, I have also gained a lot from this. So I must also thank you for inviting me."


    The Wu tribe elder smiled at that, then looked ahead. At that moment, Wu Yong was coming over. "Elder, Lord Ye," he said, "Let''s go up and take a look."


    "Alright." Something flashed across the Wu tribe elder''s face as he looked forward. No one could tell what he was thinking.


    Ye Futian walked forward up the stairway, going higher and higher.


    It looked like he was walking right into the sun.


    "Lord Ye, did you learn anything about what we might find in the Ancestral Lands from the matrix?" asked the Wu tribe elder as he stared up the stairs. "My perception has covered the entire area, but other than at the very top, I can''t find anything."


    "I did," said Ye Futian with a nod.


    A sharp look flashed in the Wu tribe elder''s eyes, but when he turned to look at Ye Futian, his gaze returned to normal. His eyes were warm and calm.


    "Was it the thing that Emperor Kua left behind?" he asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head and said, "It was a marvelous feeling. Previously, the power of the matrix poured into my body, and I felt that my body could resonate with the Ancestral Lands themselves. I feel that a secret way of opening up the Ancestral Lands can be found at the top. Let''s go and see."


    The Wu tribe elder looked at Ye Futian, then nodded and said, "Very well. Since you were able to come here, Lord Ye, you must also be able to unlock the secrets of the Ancestral Lands. I will wait here and see. The Wu tribe thanks you deeply. If you ever need anything in the future, you only have to ask us."


    "Thank you, elder," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    A group of them continued forward. "You were able to overcome all those heroes," said Wu Yong to Ye Futian. "Your future is definitely bright. Unfortunately, the nine great tribes of Emperor Kua have no one left within them who is as powerful as you are. Otherwise, given your accomplishments with the Flames of the Way, we might truly have a chance to truly become Emperor Kua''s heirs."


    "You are too kind, elder," said Ye Futian with a smile. They continued forward.


    They eventually came to the top of the stairway.


    A blazing will descended upon them. The sun was directly overhead and seemed to be very close to them.


    This was clearly not the sun of the Crimson Dragon Realm, but instead was the sun of the Ancestral Lands.


    "Look over there." Wu Yong looked at the place directly below the sun. There seemed to be a magical matrix pattern there.


    "I will go and look. Perhaps we will find the secret of the Ancestral Lands there," said Ye Futian. He flashed over there and descended within the matrix. He sat down cross-legged within it.


    Sunlight fell from the sky, and he was instantly swallowed up by it. Divine light was shining all over him.


    His body was bathed in endless flames. The Great Path drew upon the power of heaven and earth. The Matrix lit up bit by bit until it was incredibly bright.


    In a flash, Ye Futian''s whole body was covered by the incomparably bright light from the matrix.


    Radiance continued to fall from the sun.


    At that moment, many thoughts were running through Ye Futian''s mind.


    "How is it going, Lord Ye?" called the Wu tribe elder. Ye Futian kept his eyes closed, and seemed not to hear what he said.


    "Lord Ye!" The Wu tribe elder''s voice grew much louder, shaking Ye Futian''s eardrums.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes, and the Wu tribe elder asked, "How is it going?"


    "There is an inheritance here, left by Emperor Kua. Please do not disturb me for a while, and let me perceive this area in peace," Ye Futian said to the Wu tribe elder.


    The Wu tribe elder''s pupils dilated, and his gaze became extremely sharp.


    There was an inheritance here that Emperor Kua had left behind?


    As he watched Ye Futian, a thought appeared in his mind. Why should this inheritance not go to him and his tribe, rather than to an outsider?


    After all, Ye Futian was just a guest that they had invited to help them fight, not a true cultivator of the nine tribes.


    Moreover, he had just claimed that he had felt the thing that Emperor Kua had left behind. This was undoubtedly very exciting, especially to the elder of the Wu tribe.


    It was indeed a very great temptation.


    As he thought of this, the Wu tribe elder walked towards Ye Futian and said, "Lord Ye, can I feel it with you?"


    Ye Futian nodded. "Very well. As you please, elder." The elder of the Wu tribe walked into the matrix and could suddenly clearly sense the power of this will. It seemed that Emperor Kua had indeed left his Flames of the Way in the sun, and they were falling here continuously.


    "This..." The Wu tribe elder stood amid the Flames of the Way. Lines of will were falling on him and piercing directly into his mind. Divine light covered his body.


    This was an incredibly mystical experience. It was like he was touching the inheritance of the Great Path.


    But Ye Futian was at the center of the matrix, and so the will falling towards the Wu tribe elder was clearly a bit less.


    He turned his eyes towards Ye Futian, and his gaze became very sharp.


    He was thinking that whenever one of the nine tribes went to the Ancestral Lands, their power increased greatly when they returned. Could it be that they had personally felt the will that Emperor Kua had left behind here?


    It was highly possible.


    Ye Futian and the others who had previously come to the Ancestral Lands were all outsiders after all. They had only come to help. If there was something useful here, they should naturally give it up to the members of the tribe.


    Moreover, if there really was a secret in the Ancestral Lands, was it necessary to abandon future opportunities for the nine tribes by letting outsiders uncover them?


    The nine tribes had fought for many years, but no matter what, they were all of the same bloodline.


    Thinking of this, he said, "Can I sit where you are sitting, Lord Ye, so that I might better feel it?"


    Ye Futian looked up at him.


    The Wu tribe cultivators were all stunned as they watched their elder. Wu Yong''s expression changed. The elder had his own ideas. He wanted to take the inheritance for his own, rather than letting Ye Futian have it.


    And why shouldn''t he? This was the Ancestral Land of the nine tribes after all, and this was what had been left behind by Emperor Kua.


    Emperor Kua must have created these Ancestral Lands.


    He naturally understood why the elder wanted to be the one to obtain the inheritance.


    It was just that in doing so, they would be betraying Ye Futian.


    "Elder, let Lord Ye cultivate for a bit. These are the Ancestral Lands, after all, and Lord Ye was the one who opened them," called Wu Yong.


    He had invited Ye Futian to help the Wu tribe. It was not his wish to betray him.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was an outstanding talent and had an extraordinary background. Maintaining good relations with him was the best choice. If they betrayed him, it would bring them trouble later.


    After all, Ye Futian had unlimited potential.


    Unless...


    Wu Yong''s heart raced. He looked at the elder, and his expression changed again.


    Could it be that the elder had murderous intentions? Did he want to cut out the problem at its root?


    Ye Futian had unlimited potential, but right now, he was very weak. If they killed him now, it would undoubtedly offend Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    But, outsider emperors could not come to the Crimson Dragon Realm and unleash their power.


    As for the Nirvana level cultivators in Emperor Xia''s Realm, if they dared to send an army against them, they would have to face the nine tribes.


    Their battle array was not far inferior to that of Emperor Xia''s Realm. If Emperor Xia wanted to defeat them, how much power would he have to expend?


    Moreover, the elder probably thought that if he took the inheritance, then his own power and right to speak among the nine tribes would grow as well.


    Wu Yong''s guess was correct. At that moment, the Wu tribe elder had murderous intent within his heart.


    The talent that Ye Futian had displayed made him think that rather than form a bad relationship with him, it would be better to cut him down now, ending the matter forever.


    As a figure at the Nirvana level, his will was firm, but he also pursued his goals with a ruthless heart.


    Ye Futian looked at Wu Yong. He was a little surprised by the elder''s request. He saw him walking towards as if he had not heard Wu Yong, and he said to Ye Futian, "What do you think, Lord Ye?"


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over him, and the light of the matrix became even more brilliant.


    Divine fire fell from the sun. In a flash, it was like the flames of the apocalypse were descending.


    Boom! Suddenly, a look of shock came over the Wu tribe elder''s face. He was sent flying back as the descending flames slammed into him. His body began to burn.


    The matrix around him filled the air. Everything was flames.


    "Ye Futian." The Wu tribe elder swept his gaze over Ye Futian. Could he control the fire of the sun?


    A pair of eyes seemed to appear in the shifting clouds, looking like two great suns. They were vast beyond compare, like the eyes of Emperor Kua.


    They looked at the Wu tribe elder. He felt that his body was burning up and that he had no control over it.


    He retreated with a horrified expression on his face. A booming sound rang out as flames covered everything. It was a devastating divine fire that could destroy everything.


    "You tricked me..." The Wu tribe elder gave a pitiful cry as his body burned up.


    "From the beginning, I''ve only let you see what I wanted you to see," said Ye Futian coldly. "Even the inheritance was like this. We came here, but I am the master of this place."


    The Wu tribe cultivator shot into the sky, trying to escape, but his arms burned away into nothing. A look of absolute terror came into his eyes. When he looked up in the sky, he could only see a horrifying imperial face.


    "Please spare me, Lord Ye!" he cried.


    "Kill him," Ye Futian spat in a cold, emotionless voice. The fire of the Great Path continued to fall. The Wu tribe elder''s aura swept out at maximum power, but it was no use. His body burned away to nothing under the fire of Renhuang.


    The Wu tribe cultivators all looked shocked. They trembled as they beheld this scene, with hearts beating wildly.


    They were shaken by how fast it had all happened.


    Ye Futian swept an indifferent glance across the disappearing figure. There was no emotion in his eyes.


    A Nirvana level cultivator had tried to deceive him, but he had only managed to reveal his ambitions and be destroyed!

 1247 Black Hole Sun

    Ye Futian was still sitting there, cross-legged. He had not moved at all, but the elder of the Wu tribe, a Nirvana level cultivator, had disappeared.


    The sun was high in the air Ye Futian''s head. A huge face had appeared in the sky, and as the cultivators of the Wu tribe looked at it, they felt their hearts tremble.


    It was the face of Emperor Kua.


    Emperor Kua had rebuilt the Ancestral Lands. This part of the Ancestral Lands had been left behind for the nine great tribes to use. If they could obtain it, it would be a great advantage for them.


    The thing was, few in the nine great tribes had been able to pass Emperor Kua''s test and open the gate to the Ancestral Lands.


    This was why they found themselves in the situation they were in now. Ye Futian had come to claim the inheritance, and the elder of the Wu tribe had gotten greedy.


    At that moment, conflicted expressions were playing across the faces of the Wu tribe cultivators. They were all top figures within their tribe. The elder had had his reasons for what he had done, but from Ye Futian''s point of view, the elder had tried to kill him, and so he had naturally had to eliminate the threat.


    They had not wanted their cooperation with Ye Futian to end up like this.


    Them being able to open the gate to the Ancestral Lands was really a happy accident. They would have a chance to revive the Wu tribe. But greed was inherent to human beings, and so now they wanted more.


    This had made it so that at this moment, their very lives were in Ye Futian''s hands, not to mention the revival of their tribe.


    It could be that Ye Futian would wipe them all out with one fell swoop at the slightest provocation.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was watching the cultivators of the Wu tribe. There was a great sense of tension throughout the whole area.


    A voice suddenly rang out, "The elder of the Wu tribe acted impulsively and was killed by Renhuang''s Flames of the Way when he tried to claim the inheritance." Ye Futian turned and looked at the one who had spoken. It was Wu Yong.


    Wu Yong clasped his hands and bowed to Ye Futian, saying, "Lord Ye, you opened the gate to the Ancestral Lands, making you Emperor Kua''s heir. We in the Wu tribe will always be your friends."


    The other cultivators of the Wu tribe all looked at Wu Yong. Those of the nine great tribes who came to the ruins were all top figures. Even if they were not elders, they had still cultivated for a long time and had become very strong. But there were very few of them.


    They naturally understood that Wu Yong was trying to avoid a threatening situation for the Wu tribe. The elder had tried to do away with Ye Futian, which had led to this awful situation. What would Ye Futian do?


    Ye Futian had just slain their elder very decisively.


    If he could kill one of them that easily, he could do the same to ten of them.


    "After we leave, we will summon the nine great tribes and announce that the elder was consumed by Renhuang''s Flames of the Way due to his impulsive actions," chimed in another cultivator beside him. His desire to survive this was quite strong.


    "Lord Ye, I understand why you just did what you did. You had no choice but to do it. Everyone here is an elder of the tribe, and none of us are in the elder''s direct bloodline. As an elder of the tribe, I can control the rest of them," Wu Yong said to Ye Futian. "So, please do not worry, Lord Ye."


    Ye Futian looked at Wu Yong. His eyes were filled with the light of divine fire.


    Boom! High up in the sky, the fire of the sun descended, and a giant phantom appeared. It seemed to be the image of Emperor Kua.


    He merged into the sun, and flames fell to the ground from him.


    In a flash, Wu Yong was covered.


    The cultivators of the Wu tribe were all stunned. Wu Yong''s expression also changed slightly. He looked up at Ye Futian and cried, "Lord Ye!"


    Wu Yong''s voice resonated throughout the area as he stared at Ye Futian. He seemed to have shown his attitude and disposition. He did not try to escape.


    The light of the terrible flames covered Wu Yong''s body. The Wu tribe cultivators'' hearts beat wildly.


    However, Wu Yong was still standing there. He did not move.


    The terrible scene that they had been imagining did not occur. Wu Yong''s body was not burned, and the Flames of the Way entered into him. Will was flowing down from the figure of Emperor Kua up in the sky and going into Wu Yong''s mind.


    At that moment, Wu Yong felt that he had received a great gift from the Great Path, one that had been imparted by Emperor Kua.


    "If the elder of the Wu tribe had not acted against me earlier, then I would have given the inheritance of the Ancestral Lands to him. After all, these are the nine great tribes'' Ancestral Lands," said Ye Futian indifferently. The cultivators of the Wu tribe felt like they were in a dream. They breathed a sigh of relief, but their expressions were still conflicted.


    Ye Futian had been the one to open the gate to the Ancestral Lands and was the one who had the right to receive Emperor Kua''s inheritance. He could give it to whoever he wanted.


    That was how those few tribes that had come here before had been able to become so powerful.


    The elder had died for nothing.


    He died because of his greed.


    If he had not had that often idea, Ye Futian would have helped him. But since Ye Futian had guessed what he was thinking, that he was purposely plotting against him, it had led to his fall.


    A Nirvana level cultivator had died for nothing.


    They all sighed inwardly. It was truly tragic.


    "Previously, you all saw that this was not what I wished. I grant what Emperor Kua left behind to Senior Wu Yong. If he wishes to give it to someone else after this, that is his affair. From now on, Wu Yong should be in charge of the Wu tribe," Ye Futian said to everyone.


    Wu Yong was an elder of the Wu tribe, and now the inheritance had been passed on to him. Now he would be able to lead the Wu tribe even better.


    Wu Yong was stunned when he heard what Ye Futian said. But the one beside him said, "He is worthy of bearing the position of elder."


    The others all said the same thing one by one. Wu Yong nodded, not shirking his responsibility. This must have been fated to happen.


    The brilliant light of the flames flowed through Wu Yong''s mind, but it stopped after a while. When Wu Yong opened his eyes, fire seemed to flash in them. He bowed to Ye Futian and said, "Thank you, Lord Ye."


    "You should go and cultivate, elder," said Ye Futian, already calling him "elder."


    "Very well." Wu Yong nodded, then turned and walked to the front of the gathered Wu tribe cultivators. "We will go somewhere else to cultivate," he said.


    "Yes, elder." Everyone followed Wu Yong away. They walked down the stairs. They took care not to disturb Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at them. How much of the inheritance Wu Yong was willing to pass on was his own business.


    He closed his eyes and began to sense the Great Path.


    At that moment, there was only one man left atop Sun Castle. He sat with legs crossed beneath the sun. High up in the sky, there was also a massive figure.


    This scene could be seen from far away. It was incredibly astonishing.


    Endless will flowed down, descending upon Ye Futian''s body. Besides the law power that Emperor Kua had given him, the scene that he beheld was growing clearer and clearer.


    It was the figure of Emperor Kua. It seemed that these ruins had turned into him.


    His perception spread out throughout the ruins, expanding the range he could sense. As he stretched out his perception, the fire flowed towards him.


    Could it be that there was something else hidden here besides Emperor Kua''s inheritance?


    It was that that previously no one had been able to find it; otherwise, nothing would have happened.


    He sat there, calmly, perceiving, letting his thoughts spread out.


    Time passed slowly. The Wu tribe cultivators were cultivating at the foot of the stairway. Wu Yong''s aura was the strongest.


    Some of the others looked up at Ye Futian and saw that the sun was growing redder and redder. Crimson clouds streamed through the sky. They wondered if Ye Futian would be able to find whatever it was that Emperor Kua had left behind besides his inheritance.


    Could he find the secret of the Ancestral Lands?


    Or maybe the nine great tribes had been wrong all these years, and there was no secret of the Ancestral Lands at all. Maybe Emperor Kua had only left his inheritance here and waited for people to come and claim it.


    They did not know if this trip would end up being a blessing or a curse.


    Woosh! A powerful aura exploded from Wu Yong, and divine light covered his body. Strange light shot up into the clouds.


    The cultivators of the Wu tribe looked on in fascination. Wu Yong''s aura was already at the level of an Unblemished Saint.


    Perhaps he would have the chance to reach the Nirvana level before long.


    Outside the gate to the Ancestral Lands, no one had left yet. They were still waiting there. No one knew what was going on inside. They could only imagine.


    However, they could all faintly feel the flame will all around them, flowing towards the gate to the Ancestral Lands.


    A long time passed.


    Ye Futian was still cultivating at the top of Sun Castle.


    His thoughts seemed to cover all of the ruins. These ruins formed the figure of Emperor Kua. He could faintly feel a strange aura in the sun at the peak of the ruins.


    Up in the sky, there was an incomparably brilliant sphere among the sun''s flames, which was slowly rotating. There was a powerful aura within it. Rays of light shone out from within it and stretched out into the distance. They covered the whole ruins.


    "What is this?" A thought flashed in Ye Futian''s mind. His will and his perception floated towards it, trying to enter in. But once they got close, it turned into nothingness. There was no way to touch the depths of the sun.


    The terrifying thought surged wildly. It melded into Emperor Kua''s will, broke its shackles, and continued to penetrate the core of the sun.


    Ye Futian saw flames bursting from the brilliant sphere within the sun. They shot out all over the ruins. It seemed that the source of the fire of the Great Path was here.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s life spirit, the World Tree, began to sway. He felt something.


    It made his heart tremble. This had also happened when he had run into Feixue.


    Could this be a treasure like the one that resided within Feixue?


    There was a rustling sound in his life palace as he thought of the way that he had helped Feixue. The World Tree began to spread outward.


    At that moment, he put the will of the emperor into his life spirit, making incomparably brilliant light shoot out of the World Tree. It was like the World Tree had its own sun as it stretched out towards the actual sun.


    A powerful sense of burning spread out and the will of the emperor that had been melded into the World Tree began to burn. But the leaves and branches of the World Tree grew even more brilliant as they were bathed in flames, and they began to swallow up all of the fire, even the flames from the radiant sphere within the sun.


    At that moment, everything suddenly changed. A terrifying vortex instantly appeared inside the sun, and the endless flames around him shot towards it.


    "What is going on?" Everyone at the base of the stairs looked up and saw the clouds fluctuating up in the sky. All the flames were flowing wildly towards the same spot.


    They were flowing towards the brilliant sun on top of Sun Castle.


    At that moment, it had turned into a Black Hole Sun and was swallowing up everything.


    After only a moment, the whole world went dark!

 1248 The Ancestral Lands Disappear

    "This..." Everyone looked at the scene before them in shock. Even the Unblemished Saints among them had never seen something as shocking as this.


    The sun hung high above Sun Castle and had turned into a black hole that was swallowing up all the flame power in the Ancestral Lands. It even seemed like their own flame will powers were being pulled out of them and sucked into it.


    Wu Yong, who had been cultivating, opened his eyes and looked up at the scene taking place in the distance. His robes fluttered in the wind as he was bathed in endless flame. His eyes that were full of flame will power did not seem disturbed in the least.


    Had he succeeded?


    Over the years, many had been able to enter the Ancestral Lands, but no one had ever really uncovered the secret therein.


    However, could it be that this time Ye Futian of Qianye City, who they had brought with them, had been able to do it?


    Solar wind blew by him, incomparably hot. Many thoughts raced through Wu Yong''s mind.


    This trip to the Ancestral Lands had been full of twists and turns. Ye Futian, whom everyone had overlooked, had crushed the other eight cultivators and entered the Ancestral Lands, surprising everyone. But afterward, the elder had wanted to take the inheritance for himself, and so had tried to kill Ye Futian, but had been killed himself.


    Afterward, Wu Yong himself had been made the new elder and had been granted the inheritance.


    Now, they were going to uncover the secret of the Ancestral Lands.


    It was said that Ye Futian had come from Emperor Xia''s City.


    The nine great tribes were all on the same side. They had once followed Emperor Kua. And even though Emperor Kua had fallen, they still dominated the western portion of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    But there were so many heroic figures in the wide world. Who would have thought that Ye Futian of Qianye City would defeat all his opponents and even slay a Nirvana level cultivator?


    Even though he had cultivated up to such a high level, Wu Yong still had to be in awe of Ye Futian. If he had been in the middle of that solar wind, he would be swallowed up easily.


    The world grew darker. The black hole seemed bottomless as it violently swallowed up the sun.


    Ye Futian was sitting there cross-legged. He seemed to have entered into the sun as well. It was a shocking scene.


    At that moment, all of his thoughts were focused on a bead of flame spirit. Up to that point, he had known what it was, but now he was sure that it was similar to what had been within Feixue. It contained truly frightening power.


    Moreover, his life spirit was resonating with it. He did not know who had granted this life spirit.


    Endless leaves and branches sprouted from Ye Futian as he sat in the sun, covering everything. They stretched out to the center of the sun and entered into its spiritual will. They were continuously destroyed and reborn. They inexorably stretched towards the bead of flame spirit and seemed to be devouring the power within it bit by bit. They seemed to be automatically refining it.


    However, that thing that seemed like a bead of spirit was devouring all the flames in the area at the same time. Even the will that he had already refined was being sucked in. He could not stop it.


    He could only feel himself sitting inside the sun, but his World Tree life spirit was rolling the bead of flame spirit towards him, bit by bit. Ye Futian''s heart was beating wildly. It seemed that all the fire in the world was being sucked in. It looked like he was the black hole.


    But Ye Futian understood that this was not something that he could do with his power.


    What was more frightening was that he could sense the image of Emperor Kua being swallowed up by the sun as well.


    At that moment, the figure became extremely clear. It was as if it was formed out of Emperor Kua''s actual will. But at the same time, it was being swallowed up by the terrible vortex, bit by bit.


    In the outside world, everything was becoming darker and darker, until there was almost no light.


    All the light was being swallowed up by the black hole.


    The cultivators of the Wu tribe stood there, not moving, letting the wind blow by them and rustled their clothing, which made a rustling sound. The wind was burning hot.


    "Wu Yong!" came a voice from the darkness. Wu Yong''s eyes were like flames. He looked into the darkness. It was like looking into an eclipse.


    "I''m here," answered Wu Yong. He could naturally tell that the voice had come from Ye Futian in the heart of the storm.


    "Catch," came Ye Futian''s voice again. Brilliant light appeared in the sky. Wu Yong could faintly see a figure standing up there. It looked like the figure of Emperor Kua.


    The figure rushed into his body like a beam of light.


    Terrible Flames of the Way burned across his body, like the fire of the gods. It was so dazzling that he had to shut his eyes. He let the flames burn across him. He felt like his body would burn away to nothing.


    His aura seemed to be gradually weakening as if he was being reduced to an ordinary person. It seemed that he would be burned to death by the fire of the Great Path.


    But at the moment when he reached his weakest point, a more powerful flame flared up, lighting went up the sky.


    Brilliant flames shot up from Wu Yong''s body through the darkness, reaching the clouds. His eyes became even more dazzling as they turned into flames.


    "Nirvana!" Behind him, the cultivators of the Wu tribe''s hearts trembled as they beheld this scene.


    Now that the elder of the Wu tribe had fallen, Wu Yong was inheriting his position.


    Had Ye Futian killed one Nirvana level cultivator and granted the power of Nirvana to another?


    Of course, this was not done solely by Ye Futian''s power. Wu Yong''s level was very close to that of Nirvana already, and now both his will and his mind were being washed clean, allowing him to break through to the next level and become a Nirvana level Saint, the final step on the Divine Path.


    "Thank you, Lord Ye," said Wu Yong clearly. His Nirvana aura swept out, no weaker than the one that had slain the Wu tribe elder.


    He looked up towards Ye Futian and saw a powerful beam of light that stung his eyes. None of them could see anything. In the next moment, the world became dark, and Sun Castle disappeared completely.


    However, after this moment, there was another powerful beam of light that descended from the sun.


    Everyone opened their eyes and looked around them. It seemed that they could not believe their eyes.


    Sun Castle had disappeared, and the sun that hung high in the sky was no longer the sun of Sun Castle, but the sun of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The wind blew, still a little bit hot, but nothing like it had been earlier. They knew that Sun Castle had disappeared.


    And not only Sun Castle; all of the ruins of the Ancestral Lands had disappeared as if they had never existed.


    Everything that had just happened seemed like a dream.


    Up ahead, a figure was walking towards them. The cultivators looked at him, and a look of shock came over their faces.


    Ye Futian seemed to have changed, but they could not quite tell how. Everything looked the same. It was impossible to imagine that the man who had just devoured a sun was the white-haired youth before them.


    "Lord Ye," called Wu Yong. He and the other Wu tribe cultivators were looking at Ye Futian completely differently from before.


    Their visit had deeply moved them to the ruins.


    "Congratulations on breaking through to the Nirvana level, elder," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    Wu Yong shook his head and was about to say something, but he seemed to feel something, and so he did not open his mouth. Instead, he turned and looked off into the distance and a group of figures coming towards them through the sky. They were the cultivators of the nine tribes and the eight cultivators that Ye Futian had defeated.


    All the cultivators from the nine tribes were watching them keenly. They swept their gazes over Ye Futian and the rest of them. The cultivator from the Zhu tribe was the first to speak. "What happened, Wu Yong?"


    None of them were calm at that point. The Ancestral Lands had disappeared.


    What had happened after they had opened the gate?


    "We are not sure," answered Wu Yong directly.


    "You don''t know?" The Zhong tribe cultivator frowned. Wu Yong had stepped into the Ancestral Lands, and he said he did not know what had happened there?


    Yin Tianjiao and Duan Wuji were looking at Ye Futian. Could it be that this guy had found whatever it was that Emperor Kua had left behind in the Ancestral Lands?


    And they were not the only ones wondering this. The others were looking at Ye Futian as well, including the cultivators from the other eight tribes.


    Ye Futian was the one who had opened the gate to the Ancestral Lands. If not him, then who?


    The cultivator from the Zhu tribe seemed to notice something, and so he suddenly asked, "Where is your elder?" The others all noticed as well. The Wu tribe was missing a member.


    And that member was their elder. He seemed to have vanished into thin air.


    Off in the distance, there was the sound of more people flying. More cultivators flashed over. It was the crowd of people who had been waiting outside for several months.


    The people of the eight other tribes and the cultivators of other forces all descended.


    Xia Qingyuan and Shen Tianzhan had naturally come as well. They flashed over and descended beside Ye Futian.


    They could feel that the atmosphere here was a little mysterious.


    Wu Yong faced the crowd and said, "The elder acted rashly. He tried to seize Emperor Kua''s inheritance in the ruins, and so he was swallowed up. He died at the hands of Emperor Kua''s Flames of the Way. After that, the world changed, and all of it disappeared, just like you all saw."


    Although the nine tribes often invited people to open the gate to the Ancestral Lands, they never thought of giving away what Emperor Kua had left behind. If Ye Futian was strong enough, he could deter anyone, and even become the head of the nine tribes.


    But at that point, Ye Futian''s level was not high enough. If the nine tribes knew that he had received Emperor Kua''s inheritance, they would not let him go. They would have to make him give it up, or take him from it at any cost.


    Moreover, at that moment, none of them knew what had happened in any detail.


    The cultivator from the Zhu tribe looked at Wu Yong and said, "Wu Yong, do you think anyone will believe what you are saying?"


    Ye Futian and the Wu tribe were not the first ones to open the gate to the Ancestral Lands. He had been in there as well, and he knew what it was like inside.


    Now the Ancestral Lands had disappeared, seeming to fly away like ash and smoke. Wu Yong was telling him that there was no reason for this; it had just disappeared. Was that possible?


    "And Wu Yong, you have not cultivated to a high enough level." He stared at Wu Yong, and a powerful pressure stretched out from him.


    But Wu Yong was now at the Nirvana level.


    Everyone could naturally feel it. Their gazes all fell upon Ye Futian.


    "Lord Ye, did the Ancestral Lands disappear because of you?"

 1249 Expressing Attitudes

    Ye Futian looked up to the warrior of Zhu Clan and said, laughing, "Since I was the one who opened the door of the Ancestral Lands and came inside with warriors of Wu Clan, of course, I am related to the disappearance of Ancestral Lands no matter what reason.


    "It''s just I still have no idea how I got related. I received teachings from Emperor Kua and passed it to Senior Wu Yong. I did what I was supposed to do, and what you saw is all that happened."


    There was no way he could tell that his Life Spirit had devoured the Sun.


    Otherwise, the crisis he was facing would be not only from the Nine Clans.


    Until now, he still had no idea what the dazzling fire spirit orb in the sun was.


    But at least he was sure that it was the base of Emperor Kua''s relics, which had devoured the whole Ancestral Lands.


    It was probably the treasure used by Emperor Kua for cultivation during his time, which was beyond the Saint level. If such a treasure were exposed, many people in Crimson Dragon''s Realm would covet it.


    "What Lord Ye said is true. I received Emperor Kua''s heritage through Lord Ye and entered the Nirvana Plane thanks to it," said Wu Yong, standing beside Ye Futian.


    "Then how do you explain the death of the Head of Wu Clan? Your excuse was not convincing at all," said a burly middle-aged man of Zhu Clan, his eyes blazing with anger. Ye Futian was invited by Wu Yong to join the Wu Clan, but then Wu Clan betrayed them; they hadn''t settled it with them yet.


    But now, Wu Yong and the people of Wu Clan all seemed to be on Ye Futian''s side.


    The thing was too coincidental.


    What was truth hidden behind it?


    How did the Head of Wu Clan die?


    Wu Yong stared at him. His pupils turned red, and the horrifying Will directly swept out of his eyes and rushed into that Zhu Clan warrior''s mind. The warrior was of Unblemished Plane and suddenly turned pale when the shock came. He let out a low groan and took a step back.


    "You want to know?" said Wu Yong coldly. "After Lord Ye helped us enter the site, the Head wanted to take Emperor Kua''s heritage as his own and kill Lord Ye but got devoured and died. Do you like the answer?"


    The place suddenly went quiet after Wu Yong said the words. He didn''t elaborate on the process, but top figures of all clans could roughly figure out what had happened.


    Especially the ones who had entered the Ancestral Lands understood what he meant, since they had similar thoughts, too.


    It was just that Ye Futian looked like a tough guy. He killed a Nirvana Saint using the Renhuang Will.


    "Your Head died because of him, but you don''t seem to care at all," that warrior of Zhu Clan, who had stepped back, said coldly.


    "Everyone needs to be responsible for their own choice; so does our Head. I invited Lord Ye to join the Wu Clan. After the Ancestral Land was opened, the thought of killing came to the Head''s mind. I will not judge who is right or wrong here, but I think you have your answer," said Wu Yong calmly. "As for the Wu Clan, from now on, I, Wu Yong, will serve as the Head."


    "Very good," the Head of Zhu Clan walked up and said. The life force from his body was almost intimidating. It exerted huge pressure over everyone.


    He looked toward Wu Yong and said, "I will leave the death of the ex-head of Zhu Clan. The Ancestral Lands have been the common heritage of we Nine Clans for many years, but now it just disappeared. Wu Yong, shouldn''t you give us an explanation?"


    "I have no idea why the Ancestral Lands disappeared, but if Lord Ye indeed unlocked the secret left by Emperor Kua and became Emperor Kua''s inheritor, shouldn''t the Nine Clans follow the clan doctrine and obey Ye Futian''s order?" said Wu Yong.


    The Head of Zhu Clan stared at him fiercely after he asked the question.


    There was indeed such a clan doctrine in the Nine Clans.


    But how could the Nine Clans let their people submit to Ye Futian and listen to his order?


    The Heads of the Nine Clans were all of Nirvana Plane. They were the lords who ruled the west land of Crimson Dragon''s Realm.


    If Ye Futian unlocked the secret treasure left by Emperor Kua, should they choose to steal from him or to submit to him?


    Such a simple question that everyone should have an answer to.


    He didn''t need to overthink it.


    "If Lord Ye made it, will the Nine Clans agree to submit? If not, why do you keep asking?" continued Wu Yong, "since the Nine Clans invited all warriors, they are here to help us. Now the site has disappeared, and we should put an end to all this."


    No warriors had expected Wu Yong would defend for Ye Futian like this.


    Xia Qingyuan and others had figured out what the whole story was like.


    It was simple and banal.


    "So you mean, we Nine Clans shouldn''t even ask about the disappearance of the Ancestral Lands? Just let it go?" a warrior of the Chong Clan also said in a slightly hostile tone.


    The death of the head of the Wu Clan was Wu Clan''s own business; they could ignore it.


    But how could they easily let go of Ancestral Lands left by Emperor Kua?


    "What do you want to do?" asked Xia Qingyuan, standing next to Ye Futian in a cold voice.


    It sounded like the Nine Clans were reluctant to let Ye Futian go.


    "Lord Ye, please stay in Emperor Kua''s City to cooperate with the Nine Clans'' investigation into the thing that happened in Ancestral Lands. If our investigation proves it is not related to you, then we will see you off," said one person.


    Xia Qingyuan released the Cold Will from her body.


    Letting Ye Futian stay?


    She was certain that Ye Futian had gotten something, and warriors of all clans must have known something about it.


    Obviously, they wanted to mug Ye Futian for what he got in the Emperor Kua''s site.


    Once they did it, they would wipe him out.


    Of course, he couldn''t stay here.


    "Go away!" said Xia Qingyuan cold. She released the Cold Will. She said, "We were invited to come to the Ancestral Lands and open the door for you. Is this how you treat us?"


    A gust of Will befell after the two words "go away" came out of her mouth. Warriors of Clans thought to themselves that no wonder the Princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm could be so arrogant.


    But even though they were not afraid that Nirvana-Plane warriors of Emperor Xia''s Realm would come, they didn''t dare to touch Xia Qingyuan.


    If they touched the daughter of Renhuang and Emperor Xia came for revenge, that would be beyond Emperor Crimson Dragon''s governance.


    Ye Futian also looked cold; he had already expected the way all these clans behaved.


    From their point of view, of course, they wanted to take Emperor Kua''s treasure as their own. It was because they couldn''t take it that they invited them.


    The atmosphere became quite depressing. Shen Tianzhan appeared in front of Ye Futian; he stood with Wu Yong. Both of them were of Nirvana Plane.


    However, compared with the other eight clans, their power seemed not worth mentioning.


    "Lord Ye, you are placing us in a difficult situation," said the warrior of Zhu Clan slowly.


    "Is this your way of treating guests?"


    At that moment, a voice came. Many people followed the voice and expressed surprise when they saw the speaker.


    The one who asked the question was the Prince of Emperor Dong''s Palace, Duan Wuji.


    The people of the clans didn''t expect he would say something. A warrior of Chong Clan said to Duan Wuji, "Your Highness, the issue is about the Ancestral Lands of our Nine Clans. We must be cautious about this thing."


    The Chong Clan used to collaborate with the Emperor Dong''s Palace. This time they didn''t want to offend Duan Wuji.


    Since Duan Wuji''s power was not in other realms, he was the Renhuang power, which ruled the East Land in Crimson Dragon''s Realm.


    Duan Wuji flashed a smile and said, "We were invited to unlock the secret of Emperor Kua''s relic, but today, it seems that even if one of us succeeds, you will still not let him go. It doesn''t sound like cooperation. If I were the one who had made it, perhaps I would be the one who had to face the situation today."


    The person of Chong Clan didn''t know how to reply after listening to Duan Wuji''s words. If Duan Wuji had been the person who opened the secret of the Ancestral Lands, would they force him to stay?


    "Everybody, just let that be the end," Duan Wuji said calmly. Even Ye Futian took a glance at him in surprise; he didn''t expect that Duan Wuji would speak for him.


    During the Battle of Ancestral Lands, Duan Wuji was defeated by Ye Futian and got burned by his Flame of the Way.


    "Your Highness, this thing is related to the future of our Nine Clans," said the warrior of the Chong Clan. Obviously, he still didn''t want to let it go even though Duan Wuji had expressed his attitude.


    "As far as I know, if there were no external assistance, the Nine Clans would not be able to step inside the Ancestral Lands," said Duan Wuji. "If the Nine Clans were indeed so altruistic, how about you work together and share Emperor Kua''s heritage with all of us."


    "Your Highness, this thing is not Emperor Dong''s Palace''s business," said the Head of Zhu Clan.


    "Since I am on the trip, of course, I am involved in this," said Duan Wuji.


    "He is right. Since we were invited to the Ancestral Lands, we are related. Let''s leave the issue aside in case the prestige of the Nine Clans is affected," another voice said. People of clans all frowned; the speaker was another Renhuang descendant.


    Emperor Wu''s Princess, Yin Tianjiao.


    The two were Ye Futian''s strongest competitors but were all defeated by him.


    Now they both spoke for Ye Futian.


    Was it out of respect between heroes?


    People of clans began to look uneasy. People from Emperor Xia''s Realm, warriors of Thousand Leaves City, Wu Yong, and others from Wu Clan, besides the powers of two Renhuang Realms, such a team was awesome enough.


    Xia Qingyuan saw Yin Tianjiao talk and took a look at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had a strange expression on his face, too.


    Obviously, the thing was also out of his expectations. Yin Tianjiao showed no mercy to him in Ancestral Lands.


    Who could expect today both warriors could speak for him!

 1250 The Message

    The atmosphere in this space felt kind of weird. Suddenly, everyone fell silent.


    The people who were present today were from everywhere in the world. The Nine Clans and the warriors, who were invited by them, all had different thoughts.


    Even the Nine Clans were not completely united; for example, Wu Yong was on Ye Futian''s side.


    "You are right. Since Lord Ye was invited to the Ancestral Lands, we should respect what happened in the Ancestral Lands. If we have to investigate, Lord Ye obtained the secret of Emperor Kua, so is everyone willing to let him lead the Nine Clans?"


    At that moment, another voice came. This time, even the warrior of the Zhu Clan couldn''t help but squint his eyes and see the one who was talking.


    The speaker was the head of one of the Nine Clans, the Beili Clan.


    He didn''t agree to look into the case, either. Inside the Nine Clans, two clans had shown their agreement.


    Ye Futian just stood there quietly and witnessed the scene. He saw each one show their attitude and thought that, since all these big figures had their own thoughts, and competition within the Nine Clans was severe, it was likely that the Zhu Clan and the Chong Clan wanted to prosecute him because they wanted to get the secret from him. Other clans also had their own thoughts.


    They might not be united as one.


    In terms of power, the Beili Clan was just average among the Nine Clans.


    However, the current situation seemed like even though the other seven clans wanted to prosecute him, they would not be able to do it.


    The Head of the Zhurong Clan with vigorous life force took a glance at the crowd, a glance at warriors of the Wu Clan and Beili Clan, and then a glance at Duan Wuji and Yin Tianjiao. He let out a laugh, then started talking, "Since you said so, I will not insist on it, but it doesn''t mean I will put it to an end. Some things have to be figured out."


    After saying that, he turned around and said, gesturing to his people, "Let''s go."


    Warriors of the Zhu Clan followed him and left. Seeing them leaving, warriors of other clans no longer insisted and gradually all returned to their respective clans.


    Many people of Crimson Dragon Realm gathered and watched the scene from a distance.


    Although the incidence had temporarily ended, Ye Futian probably obtained a lot from the relics of Emperor Kua.


    However, it would be far from putting an end to it.


    Today, although Duan Wuji of Emperor Dong''s Palace and Princess Yin Tianjiao of Emperor Wu had expressed their attitudes, it might simply have been because they didn''t agree with the Nine Clans today. They would not stay with Ye Futian forever so that Ye Futian couldn''t be secure all the time.


    If later anything happened, Emperor Dong''s Palace and Emperor Wu''s Realm would not intervene.


    Ye Futian watched the people of clans leaving. His eyes were frozen straight ahead. He looked into the distance, absorbed in thought.


    "What happened?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    "Nothing," said Ye Futian, who soon distracted himself from the thought. He cupped his hands as a salute, and said to Duan Wuji and Yin Tianjiao, smiling, "I should thank you both for your support."


    "I don''t like their attitude. Don''t need to take them seriously," said Duan Wuji with a lazy smile. "I still want to test your real strength if there is an opportunity."


    They only used the Will of flame and Forging to fight when they were in the Ancestral Lands, which could not reflect their real strengths.


    Although Emperor Dong''s Palace was good at the God-devouring Fire, the Art of Flame was only one of their cultivation methods.


    He was aware of it; so was Ye Futian. Nobody had expected Ye Futian would win, because they had no idea of Ye Futian''s real strength, not to mention his attainment of Flame Art.


    Now his attainment of Flame Art had been proved to be strong; his ability in other areas shouldn''t be weak, either.


    If there were a chance, he would want to test how strong the Thousand Leaves City Lord''s real strength was.


    "Good," said Ye Futian, nodding with a smile.


    Duan Wuji left with his people. Yin Tianjiao took a glance at him and turned around without saying anything.


    Ye Futian didn''t keep it in mind, but Xia Qingyuan had a strange look on her face and looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes.


    "Why are you looking at me?" asked Ye Futian. He felt something weird; why did she look at him like that?


    "Nothing," said Xia Qingyuan. She turned her eyes away. "Let''s leave as soon as possible."


    After all, the West Land belonged to the Nine Clans.


    Ye Futian nodded and looked toward Wu Yong, asking, "Sir, will the Zhu Clan bring trouble to you?"


    The Wu Clan used to depend on the Zhu Clan indirectly, but now they had turned on them. Maybe the Zhu Clan would seek revenge.


    The possibility was not low.


    Wu Yong slightly frowned; obviously, he had such worry, too.


    Ye Futian looked toward the people surrounding him and said, "I was invited by the current Head of Wu Clan, Wu Yong, to enter Emperor Kua''s relics and obtain his heritage. During this trip, I received a lot of care from Sir Wu Yong. If one day, the Wu Clan is attacked by any other clans because of this, I, Ye Futian, will regard it as the Nine Clan''s injustice and make Emperor Kua''s heritage open to the world."


    His words stirred people; how dare this guy threaten the Nine Clans?


    Emperor Kua''s heritage was stored in the Ancestral Lands and could only be obtained after entering the Ancestral Lands. There were several clans among the Nine Clans who hadn''t obtained it yet.


    However, Ye Futian now declared he might reveal the heritage to the world, which the Nine Clans would definitely not allow.


    "Of course, if the Nine Clans don''t do so, I will carefully guard the heritage and return it to the Nine Clans and leak it to no one," continued Ye Futian.


    The warriors of the Beili Clan looked toward Ye Futian. The Head of the Beili Clan said, "The Nine Clans are supposed to be united as one. The Beili Clan will not sit by and watch as inner conflict happens."


    "After hearing what you said, I feel much relieved. Thank you very much for your help this time. If the cultivators of the Beili Clan can spare time, please come visit the Thousand Leaves City," said Ye Futian. "Currently, I have only passed the heritage to the Wu Clan, but if the Nine Clans can be united as one and won''t separate, I welcome all cultivators follow the Wu Clan cultivators and come discuss the cultivation of Fire Art with me."


    Obviously, Ye Futian was indicating that he was eager to return the favor since the Beili Clan had helped him.


    Ye Futian was not a selfish person; besides, Emperor Kua''s heritage was supposed to belong to the Nine Clans. He would have no complaints if he passed it to someone he could trust.


    Making friends was better than making enemies.


    Of course, if the Head of Beili Clan were like the Head of Wu Clan or the Zhu Clan, things would be different.


    "Great. I will come to visit Lord Ye in Thousand Leaves City one day," said the Head of Beili Clan. He offered help to Ye Futian because of this.


    Besides, according to Emperor Kua''s doctrine, Ye Futian had the right to rule over the Nine Clans if he had really obtained everything.


    It was just because he was still young, and his Plane was not high enough to convince others that the Nirvana-Plane leaders of the Nine Clans wouldn''t accept his rule.


    The Beili Clan was not willing to see his rule, either, but it didn''t mean they didn''t want to tie the bond with him now.


    Given the talent Ye Futian had shown on this trip, even though his current Plane was low, in the future, he might become a figure like Emperor Kua. If that day came, he might as well lead the Beili Clan since he had inherited Emperor Kua''s relics.


    "I should leave now, Sir," said Ye Futian with a salute.


    "Lord Ye, please take care," said the Head of Beili Clan. Ye Futian then said farewell to Wu Yong and left with his people.


    In the void sky, everyone thought that this guy might have again plundered Emperor Kua''s Ancestral Lands.


    Xia Qingyuan took a look at him and sent the message, "What did you do? How did you make their Ancestral Lands disappear?"


    "Nothing, just with luck," replied Ye Futian. For him, being able to unlock the gate of Ancestral lands meant he was capable of inheriting the Emperor Kua''s Path.


    As for what he did after that, he had just depended on his luck, Life Spirit, and the Emperor''s Will.


    Otherwise, he would not have devoured the spirit orb in the sun.


    Xia Qingyuan gave him a stare. Luck?


    Why did no one else have luck as good as his?


    Besides, it was not the first time that he got good "luck."


    "Then what did you obtain?" Xia Qingyuan asked bluntly. Perhaps she thought she and Ye Futian were close enough so she could ask like this.


    Otherwise, she should have avoided asking about Renhuang''s secret, just like Shen Tianzhan and others did.


    Of course, Ye Futian knew it, too. Xia Qingyuan was not interested in occupying what he got.


    "I don''t know, either��"


    A strange expression suddenly flashed across Ye Futian''s face. In his Life Palace, the World Tree turned a crimson color. A blazing orb was floating in his Life Spirit, and the Life Spirit was devouring its energy bit by bit.


    Above the Life Spirit World Tree, Ye Futian''s Sun Spirit was greedily swallowing the life force of the flame and becoming more dazzling.


    What pissed Ye Futian off was that he had forged many Wills, including some wisps of Renhuang Wills. Even though they were not his ability, he could use them to fight and threaten opponents of higher Planes.


    But now they were all devoured.


    The orb in the sun was like an abyss. When it was triggered, the whole relics was devoured, and the sky and earth disappeared. All the Wills Ye Futian had forged were all swallowed by it. Ye Futian''s heart was bleeding.


    The energy of this thing was horrifying. No doubt that Imperial Advisor once tried all methods, even including putting Fei Xue to sleep, to suppress the thing in her body, in case she exploded and died.


    If the treasure indeed exploded, no one knew how terrifying the outcome would be. According to her Plane, Fei Xue was unable to endure it.


    Thinking about Fei Xue, Ye Futian didn''t know where Yan Yuan and others were in Crimson Dragon Realm. They must have reached and been cultivating somewhere.


    Imperial Advisor was imprisoned in Dali Imperial Palace. Yan Yuan and Fei Xue must be working hard to level up their skills.


    After Ye Futian and others reached Thousand Leaves City, the news began to sweep across the Crimson Dragon Realm and spread to other realms.


    Lord Ye Futian of Thousand Leaves City not only inherited Emperor Kua''s Path but also unlocked the Emperor Kua''s ancient secret and let Emperor Kua''s relics directly disappeared.


    It was said that the treasure obtained by Ye Futian was probably of Renhuang-level.


    The news immediately caused a sensation after being released.


    Even the Crimson Dragon Realm and cities around the Crimson Dragon Realm came to know about it!

 1251 The Undercurren

    Ye Futian had been cultivating in seclusion after returning to Thousand Leaves City.


    He knew this thing would bring about a new tumult. Not to mention that the Nine Clans would not just let him go; many top figures in Crimson Dragon Realm must also have wanted to take it as their own.


    Nobody knew what he had obtained, and that was why they were more curious about it.


    Besides, since receiving the Emperor Kua''s cultivation law before entering the relics, everyone was speculating.


    What thing did Emperor Kua leave that was even more precious than his heritage of cultivation path?


    The world of cultivators was always cruel. Few people were willing to offer help, but many people were waiting to kick someone when that person was down or benefited from other people''s misery. As long as someone wanted to lay a hand on him, other people would soon join the pillage.


    Ye Futian''s thought was not wrong. Now, there were voices outside saying that although Emperor Xia''s Realm supported ye Futian, a Renhuang Realm would not bring a big surge in Crimson Dragon Realm. As long as Xia Qingyuan was safe, Emperor Xia''s Realm wouldn''t take action.


    If many people wanted to lay a hand on Ye Futian at the same time, even Emperor Xia wouldn''t do anything.


    The people who talked about this must have had evil intentions, but such remarks were also frank. If a lot of top figures besieged ye Futian, would Emperor Xia''s Realm come to challenge the powers of Crimson Dragon Realm?


    It was impossible.


    ��


    Time flew by, and soon, the year 10024 of Divine Prefecture Calendar was near its end.


    During this period, many people flowed into Thousand Leaves City from everywhere in the world. The city was more bustling than ever before.


    The newcomers'' levels differed; some were strong, and some were weak. As for their reason for coming, everyone knew the answer.


    In addition, there was another piece of news related to Thousand Leaves City, which caused an uproar in Crimson Dragon City.


    The news even deterred quite a lot of people who wanted to lay a hand on Ye Futian''s treasure and forced them to give up the idea.


    The news came from the Regional Palace that a new name would appear in the Regional King Ranking of this year.


    And the name belonged to a young person who just came to cultivation in Regional Palace this year.


    It was Yu Sheng of Thousand Leaves City.


    He had just come to the Regional Palace for a few months and entered the Regional King Ranking.


    People of Crimson Dragon Realm, of course, all knew the value of Regional King Ranking.


    The Regional Place was the top sacred land for cultivation in Crimson Dragon Realm, and the Regional King Ranking was perceived as the top ranking in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Besides, the candidates were not restricted to be cultivators in the Regional Palace; all cultivators of Crimson Dragon Realm were included.


    Every candidate who entered the ranking would attract great attention.


    The ranking only listed candidates of Saint Plane. Cultivators of all levels of Saints Plane were welcome and wouldn''t be judged by levels.


    The Regional Palace had never clarified the judgment standard of Regional King Palace, which made it look like an unknown amateur ranking.


    Even so, whenever a new name appeared on the Regional King Ranking, it would cause an uproar.


    Before Yu Sheng, there were 17 names on the Regional King Ranking. Including him, there were only 18 people.


    These people covered all four levels of the Saint Plane.


    The elder brother of Xing Qiu of the Ancient Imperial City, Xing Kai, who used to compete with Yu Sheng for the right to enter the Regional Palace, was also one on the Regional King Ranking.


    Although the Regional Palace had never mentioned what the Regional King Ranking represented, the people of Crimson Dragon Realm all claimed the ones chosen by the Regional King Ranking probably would become future Renhuangs of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    This also meant that the 18 warriors on the Regional King Ranking had the potential to enter Renhuang Realm.


    One could tell how meaningful it was that Yu Sheng entering Regional King Ranking.


    It was much harder than entering the Regional Palace.


    And so, those who wanted to lay a hand on Ye Futian must think twice about Yu Sheng''s existence.


    Even if they got rid of Ye Futian, who could beat the person who cultivated in the Regional Palace, entered the Regional King Ranking, and might enter the Nirvana Plane in the future?


    Nowadays, all the Nirvana Saints on the Regional King Ranking were almost invincible in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    And this cultivator of the Regional Palace was listed in the Regional King Ranking.


    Few people could achieve this in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The Emperor Crimson Dragon was the one who stood behind the Regional Palace.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were both extraordinarily talented, and both belonged to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Thus, many people decided to give up the thought and not get involved, considering these factors.


    Even if they participated, they might not get anything and even become Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s enemy, so they''d better choose to become a quiet audience.


    One day, a guest came to visit the Lord Residence and requested to meet Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian met him, a warrior of Flaming Prison City.


    This time, Flaming Prison City also participated in the trip to Emperor Kua Relics. They acquired the Flame of the Way and entered the relics in cooperation with the Beili Clan.


    The warrior of the Flame Prison City was clear about all that had happened.


    In the guest hall of the Lord Residence, Ye Futian sat in the host''s seat. The warrior of the Flaming Prison City said, "Lord Ye, allow me to be straightforward."


    "Sure. Sir, please speak freely," said Ye Futian, nodding. He didn''t like talking in circles, either.


    "This time, during the trip to Emperor Kua relics, Lord Ye demonstrated extraordinary skills and must have gained a lot of relics. Whether it was the cultivation heritage or other secrets left by Emperor Kua, the things have already attracted the attention of many powers in Crimson Dragon Realm. Now, many powers have gathered in Thousand Leaves City, and top agents have all arrived," said the warrior of the Flaming Prison City.


    Ye Futian listened to him quietly without a reply. The warrior of the Flaming Prison City paused a second, took a look at Ye Futian, and continued, "I would suggest that there is no need for Lord Ye to wait and guard, just as Lord Ye said in the West Land since the Nine Clans will not simply let you go, how about trading Emperor Kua''s heritage and secrets with others? If so, all powers can be satisfied, and Lord Ye will also receive bountiful resources for cultivation."


    His words seemed to have aroused Ye Futian''s interest. Ye Futian had to admit that this warrior of the Flaming Prison City indeed provided a solution which could help his situation. If he did so, he could probably solve the current plight.


    Obviously, the warrior specially came here for this.


    The warrior continued, "I think Lord Ye has understood what I came here for. Flaming Prison City is willing to take Emperor Kua''s heritage at a high cost. Of course, if Lord Ye thinks Flaming Prison City is not capable of affording your price, in the future, we can be on your side whenever you have any difficulties, including this time."


    Ye Futian took a look at him; this time, the Flaming Prison City was quite sincere.


    If he said yes, from now on, he would have one more friend.


    On the contrary, if he refused, he would very likely push Flaming Prison City and make it become one of the powers who tried to grab his treasure.


    He tapped his finger on the armrest of the throne; it was indeed an interesting deal he wanted to think over.


    He would not possibly take out the Flame Orb devoured by his Life Spirit, but Emperor Kua''s Heritage Path seemed tradable. However, it didn''t seem to be a morally correct thing to do.


    If he did so, the Nine Clans below the Emperor Kua would definitely abhor him and try to eradicate him with all their effort.


    Ye Futian thought for a moment and soon stopped tapping his finger. He said with a smile, "Sir, I deeply appreciate your kindness. It''s just that, although many people of Emperor Kua Clans behaved unfairly, I believe it was not every clan member''s attitude. The Nine Clans will think that since Emperor Kua left the heritage in the Ancestral Lands, he must have left it to his descendants. I accidentally obtained it, but if I sold it to a random person, that would be extremely disrespectful toward Emperor Kua, His Majesty, and the clans."


    "So," said Ye Futian, smiling, "please try to understand."


    The warrior paused a second when he saw how resolute Ye Futian was in his rejection, but then he put on a smile without saying anything. Given Ye Futian''s personality reflected during the trip to the relics, he guessed Ye Futian should be a man of determination, and since he had declined, there was no point to keep trying to persuade him.


    "If so, we should go now. Sorry to bother you, Lord Ye," said the warrior of Flaming Prison City. Soon he cupped his hand as a courtesy and left.


    Ye Futian seemed lost in thought for a moment after they left. He didn''t know if Flaming Prison City would go to the opposite side.


    Flaming Prison City was just the beginning. Later, Crimson Cloud City, Yan City, and other top powers, which specialized in Flame, all came to visit as if they had a tacit agreement.


    But their goals were all similar to Flaming Prison City''s. They wanted to get what Emperor Kua had left in a mild approach. However, they were all declined by Ye Futian.


    Some people acted politely before they left, but some also left with a hostile attitude.


    The year was almost over, and news had spread that the Lord Residence rejected many people. Many people wondered what Ye Futian was thinking.


    Was he not worried at all?


    Even the normal cultivators in Thousand Leaves City had apparently perceived that there were special, powerful cultivators everywhere in Thousand Leaves City.


    Finally, the Year 10024 of Divine Prefecture Calendar had come to an end.


    In the Lord Residence of Thousand Leaves City, Ye Futian quietly sat in the courtyard and looked up to the sky.


    One year had passed, and as his cultivation had leveled up. It seemed that time passed even faster.


    Sometimes, he wouldn''t even realize a period of cultivation would take such a long time.


    Many things had happened this year and had much influence on him. Dali Imperial Advisor was deprived of power and imprisoned in the Emperor Li''s Palace. Whether Jieyu was alive or dead was unknown, and he didn''t know when he could go find her.


    Currently, he had not been able to have a firm standing in Crimson Dragon Realm, and because of the Emperor Kua''s relic, he roused a huge uproar.


    But for this, his reaction was quite calm. Maybe he had been used to it.


    After experiencing so many storms, now his state of mind was as calm as still water when he faced things.


    Time had changed him a lot.


    But the only thing that didn''t change was that he was more and more eager for real strength as his ability grew.


    The more powerful he became, the more eager he was for cultivating real strength.


    At some time, Xia Qingyuan showed up beside Ye Futian and said, "Now the storm and cloud have converged in Thousand Leaves City. Many warriors have actually arrived. Are you ready to deal with them?"


    "No," replied Ye Futian.


    "��" Xia Qingyuan looked at him.


    Ye Futian turned around and smiled at her, saying, "Those who should come will come. Just send our generals to defend against their soldiers, let our soil soak their blood. They can''t raise a big tide!"

 1252 Gathering

    Somewhere in Crimson Dragon Realm, in a courtyard.


    At this moment, someone was cultivating. She wore plain clothes, and the life force that emanated from her body was horrifying.


    There was a kind of mysterious energy like a primitive beast roaring from her body, which elicited the endless Law Will dripping down from the sky and earth. The whole space was enveloped by a kind of terrible energy and compressed to the extreme.


    An unclear booming sound came from her fragile body as if the strong power was purging her flesh, bones, and blood.


    She seemed to be enduring intense fear and looked to be suffering, but she was still holding on.


    Suddenly, as if a gust of energy went out of control, the flow of all the Law Will between the sky and earth was disturbed.


    "Ptooey��" She spat out blood and ceased cultivating. Her life force was not stable; even though she tried to restrain the energy in her body, it was still too wild to control.


    "Fei Xue," a person and called. So, the cultivating lady was Dali Imperial Advisor''s daughter Fei Xue. This group of people had borrowed way from Emperor Xia''s Palace and had come to Crimson Dragon Realm. They didn''t expose their identity and focused on cultivating here.


    But since they escaped from the Dali Empire, would Emperor Li just let it go?


    A mysterious power surged from Sir Nan Zhai''s body, which enveloped Fei Xue and retrained the matrix inside her. Only after did the disordered flow gradually calm down.


    "Second Brother, don''t worry, I am okay," said Fei Xue to Sir Nan Zhai. Even though she couldn''t see, the smile on her face was still sweet, and she didn''t forget to wipe off the blood from her mouth.


    "Just look how tired you are!" said Sir Nan Zhai. "Fei Xue, your physique is unique, and that thing was in your body. Although it affects you, it also provides you with an extraordinary condition to cultivate. You were born with the body of Law, and since you have entered the Saint Plane, you don''t need to hurry to achieve anything. Just take your time to cultivate, and your cultivation speed will only be faster than others."


    "Yes," Fei Xue said, smiling, "I will keep it in mind."


    "Every time you talk like this, but why did you hurt yourself again since you said you would keep it in mind?" a harsh voice asked. Fei Xue turned around to face the speaker. Although she couldn''t see the speaker''s face, she lowered her head and said in a soft voice, "Elder Brother."


    Yan Yuan looked at her. Although he looked emotionless, he worried a lot about her, but he still talked to her in a serious way. "Fei Xue, I know you are eager to grow, but cultivation is not a thing you can accomplish in a day; otherwise, all your efforts will be in vain. Besides, currently, you are not able to endure the energy in your body. From now on, I will not allow you to cultivate using it."


    Fei Xue lowered her head and didn''t say anything.


    "Elder Brother, don''t be too harsh on her. Fei Xue doesn''t want to do it, either," said Sir Nan Zhai to Yan Yuan, but he only met Yan Yuan''s sharp eyes.


    Suddenly, Sir Nan Zhai turned his head as if he didn''t notice.


    He was older than Yan Yuan, but as the master''s disciple, she should call Yan Yuan "Elder Brother."


    "Fei Xue, Master asked me to take care of you. I don''t want to see that when we go to see Master, he will be fine, but you can''t pull through," said Yan Yuan. He didn''t want to be so harsh, but Fei Xue was the Master''s only daughter.


    For them, an Elder Brother was like a brother as well as a father. He was like a real senior brother to them.


    But Fei Xue wanted to level up quickly and deploy the power in his body by force, which was totally out of her control. If anything went wrong and the seal was broken, she would be eternally doomed.


    "Okay, I see. Sorry, brother," said Fei Xue softly with her head lowered.


    "Tomorrow will be the beginning of a new year. Don''t tire yourself out. Rest." Yan Yuan didn''t have the heart to keep putting on a serious face.


    "Yes," said Fei Xue, nodding.


    "I need to go outside. Nan Zhai, you, and Chunyang, please take care of Fei Xue," said Yan Yuan. Sir Nan Zhai nodded and said yes.


    Yan Yuan turned around and walked away.


    Fei Xue has confusion and asked, "Sir, today is the last day of the year, shouldn''t the Elder Brother have dinner with us? What is he going to do?"


    "Nothing. Maybe he is going to find resources for cultivation," said Sir Nan Zhai in a soft voice.


    "Okay." Fei Xue nodded and stopped asking.


    Her father and the Brothers were supposed to gather in the Imperial Advisor''s residence and enjoy a simple dinner at the end of each year.


    They didn''t know whether there would be such a day in the future.


    ��


    The year 10025 of Divine Prefecture Calendar finally arrived. It was the first day of the year.


    On this day, a large group of warriors paid an unexpected visit to the Lord Residence of Thousand Leaves City and requested to see Ye Futian.


    The visitors were warriors of the Wu Clan, one of the Nine Clans in the West land of Crimson Dragon Realm. Wu Yong led the warriors to come here in person.


    Seeing Wu Yong suddenly come, Ye Futian knew something must have happened and went in front of them.


    "Lord Ye," Wu Yong saluted, his expression serious.


    "What brings you here, Sir?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Things went wrong in Wu Clan," said Wu Yong.


    Ye Futian frowned. He had cautioned the Zhu Clan that if they dared to touch the Wu Clan, he would make the Emperor Kua''s heritage open to the world.


    Even so, the warriors of the Zhu Clan still dared to lay a hand on them?


    Didn''t they care about their Renhuang ancestor''s heritage?


    "What happened?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Lord Ye, when we entered the Ancestral Lands, there were several elder warriors who were the core figures of the Wu Clan entering with us. But as the saying goes, a man''s heart is incomprehensible. Now some of them have been enticed by the Zhu Clan, probably promised generous rewards. They have betrayed our clan and turned to the Zhu Clan," said Wu Yong.


    Ye Futian''s face turned slightly pale.


    The warriors who entered the Ancestral Lands were the absolute core of the Wu Clan, but even among them, some betrayed the clan. This meant warriors of the Zhu Clan or other clans had known what had happened inside the site.


    During that time, he got into the sun and devoured the whole Ancestral Lands. The people who witnessed it, of course, knew that there was some unusual thing inside the sun that triggered the vision.


    Besides, the thing was even more precious than Emperor Kua''s heritage of Path; otherwise, it wouldn''t be the most difficult to obtain.


    All the people of the Nine Clans must desire it since it was indeed the ultimate treasure or chance left by a Renhuang.


    And, on such an occasion, it was very likely that the Nine Clans would want to take it back at all costs.


    "What did they do to the Wu Clan?" asked Ye Futian.


    They said I colluded with Lord Ye and killed the ex-head. They also caused an uproar within the Wu Clan with the ex-head''s followers. The warriors of the Zhu Clan and the Chong Clan came when we were in trouble and tried to control the Wu Clan, swallowing us completely," said Wu Yong. "So I had to leave the clan with a group of people and came here. I am afraid they will arrive, too."


    Coldness flashed across Ye Futian''s face. He knew that the Zhu Clan would not dare to attack the Wu Clan for fear of his threat.


    That was why they tried to disintegrate the Wu Clan in such a way to force the Wu Clan to yield.


    "Sir, how about you temporarily stay with me?" said Ye Futian.


    Wu Yong looked toward Ye Futian and asked, "Lord Ye, are you sure?"


    This time, since all clans had known about the relics, they must try their best to take the thing back.


    So the next time, Ye Futian would not only face one clan or one or two Nirvana Saints.


    Even though he had the support of Emperor Xia''s Realm, it would be hard for him to deal with so many powers.


    "Sir, I remember you said that since I inherited the relics, I should be able to command the Nine Clans, is that true?" asked Ye Futian.


    Wu Yong gave him a surprised look. What did Ye Futian mean?


    He should know it well. Even though the ancestral doctrine said so, would the Nine Clans really follow it?


    "In principle, it should be so," replied Wu Yong.


    "Good," Ye Futian said, nodding. If so, it was unjust for the Nine Clans to attack him.


    "Sir, the Wu Clan''s crisis is only temporary," said Ye Futian. "One day, it will prosper again."


    Wu Yong was confused, but he still nodded.


    The trip to Ancestral Lands made him somewhat understand Ye Futian''s personality. In the beginning, he didn''t compete with others and even gave way to Yin Tian, but when it was his time to fight, he wouldn''t yield to anyone.


    He only wanted what was supposed to belong to him.


    The ex-head wanted to take the heritage as his own, so Ye Futian directly enticed him to expose his goal and killed him at once.


    Ye Futian said so, which meant he had the confidence.


    Did it mean there were top figures of Emperor Xia''s Realm staying in Thousand Leaves City right now?


    "Let''s go. Take a rest in the residence," said Ye Futian. The group of people followed him and entered the Lord Residence.


    At this moment, outside the Thousand Leaves City, seen from a distance, there was blazing fire force reaching to the sky. A group of warriors was quickly heading toward the Thousand Leaves Cit and stepping across the gate.


    Local people looked up to the sky and only felt a gust of scorching life force sweeping between the sky and earth. Above the sky dome, Golden Ravens were crossing the sky. Vermillion birds spread their wings and covered the sun. Sun chariots were loaded with warriors and rushing forward, of which the Will trembled in the sky.


    The intimidating army drove into Thousand Leaves City on the first day of a new year. Suddenly, numerous people in Thousand Leaves City were in shock.


    "We are here," they said to each other.


    "Emperor Kua''s Clans in the West Land of Crimson Dragon Realm had no leader since the death of Emperor Kua. Emperor Kua''s heritage, craved by many of them, was obtained by Lord Ye. Now their army has arrived; the Lord Residence will be in danger," someone said.


    They watched the fire deity-like warriors teleporting and heading toward the direction of Lord Residence.


    These days, the top figures of Crimson Dragon Realm had been focusing on the Nine Clans'' action as well as the Thousand Leaves City.


    Now all the clans had reached, the top figures of Crimson Dragon Realm had received the message beforehand and was ready to take action.


    In the following hours, people continued to enter Thousand Leaves City.


    Suddenly, at the beginning of the year, Thousand Leaves City became a spotlight of the realm where all strong warriors convened.


    At this moment, a group of warriors was coming in the void air. The one who led the group was Xiang Nan of Xiang City. This time he also brought warriors of Xiang City.


    The last time they were hard to intervene in the rivalry between Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm since it was a battle between two Renhuang Realms.


    But this time, they only needed to aim at Ye Futian.

 1253 Confrontation

    In Thousand Leaves City, there were countless people on their way to the Lord Residence.


    Warriors of the Situ Clan were heading toward the Lord Residence, too.


    At this moment, a horrifying Will came from the void. Situ Yan raised her head and saw a large group of warriors flying across the sky. The sun rays fell on them as if merging in their bodies, extremely dazzling.


    "They are the Nine Clans in Emperor Kua''s territory," Situ Yan thought to herself. She felt worried since she had just received the message that the army of the West Land would enter the city, so she hurried to the Lord Residence.


    However, the Nine Clans had already passed in front of them.


    How would the Lord Residence go through this battle against these warriors?


    Situ Yan was a little worried. She heard that when Ye Futian in the West Land, Emperor Kua''s clans didn''t lay a hand on him because several warriors who battled with him spoke for him.


    But this time, they directly broke into the city. It was not likely that they would easily give up.


    "What did that guy take away from them?" said the lord of the Situ Clan, Situ Zhong, in a low voice. There was a tinge of worry in his eyes. Confronting such a large lineup, there would be a cruel defeat waiting for Ye Futian if he refused to take the thing out.


    In recent years, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng from Emperor Xia''s Realm had become legendary figures. One of them entered the Regional Palace and was ranked on the list of Regional King Ranking.


    As for Ye Futian, although he didn''t have an outstanding grade like Yu Sheng did, he led the battle between two Renhuang Realms and defeated so many rivals in Emperor Kua''s ruins. It was said that the Regional Palace''s glory, Emperor Wu''s Princess Yin Tianjiao and the Prince of East Palace, Duan Wuji, was also defeated by him.


    Although nobody knew what happened in the ruins, it also proved how unusual he was.


    They had unlimited potential, and their future would not be restricted to Thousand Leaves City.


    He didn''t want to see anything bad happen to them; he wanted to witness their bright future.


    In the void, more warriors had arrived.


    "The Black Flame Clan came here to add trouble, too," said Situ Zhong, frowning. He knew many warriors were staying in Thousand Leaves City, especially the ones who were good at Flame skills; they should be more interested in Emperor Kua''s treasure.


    They came so fast.


    All the people of Thousand Leaves City could feel that an enormous storm would break out in the city.


    This storm would be no smaller than the battle between two Renhuang Realms.


    During the rivalry between two Renhuang Realms, both sides deployed four Nirvana-Plane figures, and the warriors covered the whole Eight Saint Planes.


    But this time, if the Nine Clans were all present, there would be nine Nirvana-Plane figures present.


    And the number nine did not include Nirvana warriors from Thousand Leaves City and elsewhere. One could see how intimidating the battle lineup was.


    Thinking about this, many people showed weird looks. Before Ye Futian and others entered Thousand Leaves City, Thousand Leaves City had never experienced a storm like this. Not only in the Thousand Leaves City, but such a storm was also rare in the cities outside Crimson Dragon City.


    But since Ye Futian came, it had happened again and again.


    However, in history, the rise of a legendary figure also accompanied crises more serious than anyone else had ever seen.


    The Thousand Leaves City Lord Ye Futian might be a figure like this.


    It was just that, this time, would he pass smoothly through the storm?


    ��


    Everything was as usual in the Lord Residence; there was no tension at all. Ye Futian even hosted a banquet for the warriors of Wu Clan.


    Besides, the banquet was set in the main palace of the Lord Residence, where they could see the scenery in the distance.


    People of the Lord Residence didn''t know what he was thinking; he was not worried at all.


    But Shen Tianzhan looked quite calm, too. He would lend a hand since the Lord Residence was in crisis. Since he had promised to stay and be the deputy lord, he would try his best to assist. He expected Ye Futian''s growth.


    Besides, Shen Tianzhan knew it that no matter what the outcome was, at least he would not be in danger.


    Although he had promised to assist Ye Futian, when it was a moment of life and death, he would not die for Ye Futian.


    Their friendship hadn''t gotten to that stage.


    Ye Futian knew it well, too.


    There were not many people in this world like Dali Imperial Advisor.


    At this moment, Wu Yong was telling Ye Futian information about each clan''s real strength. In addition to the strongest Nirvana Saints, Emperor Kua''s Nine Clans also had several Unblemished-Plane Warriors.


    After listening, Ye Futian couldn''t help but comment that the Nine Clans who ruled the West Land of Crimson Dragon Realm indeed had intimidating power.


    If Emperor Kua had been alive and led the Nine Clans, they would have been equal to one world in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The Wu Clan had the least number of warriors and was relatively weak, which was the reason they kept being weakened in the political fight of the Nine Clans and had to depend on the Zhu Clan.


    The Zhu Clan''s Head Zhu Kong was also a top figure of the Nine Clans. Among the nine Nirvana-Plane figures of the Nine Clans, his level was the most inestimable one, far stronger than the level of Wu Clan''s ex-Head. Even when two warriors were of the same Plane, there might still be a notable gap between their abilities.


    Otherwise, how would the Wu Clan be willing to depend on them?


    "No wonder, seeing the Wu Clan in crisis, some people would rather pledge to Zhu Kong of the Zhu Clan than follow you. I somehow understand it after hearing what you said," said Ye Futian.


    When the ability of two sides was so clearly contrasted, it was unwise to stand with Wu Yong.


    It was not unusual that Zhu Kong could lead the warriors of the Zhu Clan to control the Wu Clan.


    "Lord Ye, please forgive our ex-head. Part of the reason he wanted to inherit all left by Emperor Kua was because of this. The Wu Clan, as one of the Nine Clans, has been treated as the lowest for many years and was under Zhu Kong''s control. He also felt resentful and wanted to reverse the situation when entering the relics," said Wu Yong.


    Ye Futian nodded; he didn''t mind at all.


    Thinking about the ex-head''s situation, it was completely understandable that he made such a decision since everyone worked for their own interest.


    But from Ye Futian''s standpoint, since his life was threatened, he had no choice but to eliminate him.


    "Sir, don''t worry. As the saying goes, ''out of the depth of misfortune comes bliss.'' One day, the Wu Clan might unify all the Nine Clans," said Ye Futian. Wu Yong took a look at Ye Futian in surprise and said, laughing, "I hope the day will come."


    He then raised his head and looked into the distance.


    Not only him, but Shen Tianzhan also raised his head and looked into the distance.


    "They are coming," said Wu Yong. Even though the people were still far away, they could still perceive their imposing aura.


    Ye Futian had not sensed it yet, but he also looked into the distance and said, "Let''s go receive them."


    He got on his feet and walked from the Lord Residence; others followed him.


    Ye Futian didn''t wait on the ground outside the Lord Residence. He stood on a building in front of the Residence.


    Many warriors had converged and surrounded the Lord''s Residence. They looked up and wondered whether Ye Futian had gotten ready or not.


    The sky in the distance turned red. A gust of intimidating might swept over.


    The Sun Chariot showed up. Zhu Kong sat on the Sun Chariot, surrounded by countless warriors. The giant group marched forward.


    Warriors of the Nine Clans were all with him, each wrapped in the powerful life force of Flame. The void sky seemed to be burning.


    The fire shot directly toward the direction of the Lord Residence from afar. The Sun Chariot stopped in the upper sky. Warriors of all clans paused, too. Their eyes of Flame glared in Ye Futian''s direction. It was extremely terrifying.


    There were warriors continually coming from all directions and landing near the Lord''s Residence.


    "Warriors of the Black Flame Clan have arrived." At this moment, a group of people with horrid life force came near. The person who led the group was dressed in a black robe; he was the head of the Black Flame Clan. This time, he came in person.


    The ancestor of the Black Flame Clan, Emperor Black Flame, was also a Renhuang.


    "Warriors of the Flame Prison City have also arrived." Another group of people bathed in the dazzling glow of flame came from a different direction. The person who led the group stood relaxed, like a war deity of fire.


    In the beginning, these powers had visited the Lord''s Residence, but their suggestions were all rejected by Ye Futian.


    This time, nobody knew if they came just to watch the battle or join the fight for Emperor Kua''s heritage.


    "Ye Futian!" the figure who was standing over the Sun Chariot in the void sky called. Bathed in the glare of the sun, he looked like a deity.


    He was the Head of the Zhu Clan, Zhu Kong.


    "Emperor Kua''s heritage belongs to Ancestral Lands of the Nine Clans. You colluded with Wu Yong and killed the Head of the Wu Clan, took away Emperor Kua''s heritage, and made the Ancestral Lands disappear, undermining the base of the Nine Clans," Zhu Kong said in a sonorous voice while looking at Ye Futian. "How do you explain this?"


    His words spread across the void sky. Hearing what Zhu Kong said, people could tell that this time, the Nine Clans were very confident to take back what Ye Futian had gotten.


    Besides, Zhu Kong even claimed that Ye Futian colluded with Wu Yong and killed the Head of Wu Clan, one of the Nine Clans. They had declared his sin, which meant their side had justice. This time, they were ready to take away Ye Futian''s life.


    Obviously, the Nine Clans knew it, too. Since Ye Futian had become their enemy, all they needed to do was to eradicate him, eliminating any potential risks.


    "Zhu Kong, Wu Yong, and other Wu Clan warriors around me know better than anyone else how the Head of Wu Clan died in the Ancestral Lands. You instigated in the inner conflicts of the Wu Clan and tried to annex it. It is not my business, and I am not interested in asking you about things related to the Nine Clan," replied Ye Futian coldly when looking at him.


    "But if you insist on targeting me, let me ask you, since you know I have obtained Emperor Kua''s heritage and inherited what Emperor Kua had left, now I am in front of you, but why don''t you bow to me and regard me as your master?"


    Under the boundless sky dome, countless people heard Ye Futian''s voice and were shocked.


    This guy was demanding the Head of the Zhu Clan call him "master" when being besieged by the Nine Clans?


    Even Zhu Kong''s pupils contracted after hearing this. The horrifying Will of blazing flame shot from his eyes and darted toward Ye Futian.


    "You claimed Emperor Kua''s relics belong to the Nine Clans. Why don''t you follow Emperor Kua''s last will?" continued Ye Futian. "If you don''t follow Emperor Kua''s final will and regard me as your master, how dare you challenge me and beg for Emperor Kua''s heritage?"

 1254 Explosion of War

    Ye Futian''s aggressive questioning silenced the vast space around the City Lord''s Office.


    For a moment, Zhu Kong had no answer.


    There was nothing wrong with what Ye Futian had said. If he wanted to recognize Emperor Kua and the Nine Major Tribes, then he should have fulfilled his last will and testament.


    Obviously, this was just a raid; there was no justice in it.


    The so-called charges were just made up lies.


    "Even the heir of Emperor Kua could only come from the Nine Major Tribes, and how can it have anything to do with an outsider like you?" Chong Lou, the chief of the Chong tribe, said with glaring eyes and stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at the other and said, "Chong Lou, Chief of the Chong Tribe, your name came from Chonglou Battle Form, which boasts its legacy from Emperor Kua."


    Chong Lou stared at Ye Futian. Indeed, he had inherited the complete method of Emperor Kua; he even knew of the Chonglou Battle Form.


    "If it has nothing to do with outsiders, why would the Nine Tribes invite the winners of the Flames of the Why to enter the Ancestral Lands?" Ye Futian asked, "isn''t it because the Nine Tribes had no one, thus using the power of others to obtain the inheritance for you and then take away from them by insidious means?"


    Chong Lou''s pupils contracted slightly and nursed a sense of extreme overbearing will. Between the opening and closing of his pupils, the shadow of a horrible war god of flame appeared in the eyes of Ye Futian, which seemed to intend on crushing him.


    Ye Futian''s eyes, likewise, were burning with flames, and the breath bloomed. Although none of them made a move, just one look and breath could give him a sense of extremely powerful oppression.


    A man of the Saint Plane from the Nine Major Tribes stepped out with a terrible breath upon him, staring at Ye Futian. Behind Chong Lou, there was also another cultivator stepping forward and bathing in flames.


    Ye Futian had claimed that the Nine Major Tribes had no one competent left.


    Seeing the man who walked out, Ye Futian cast a glance at him, revealing his contempt.


    "Being in the west for many years, it seems that the Nine Major Tribes have forgotten who they were, disobeying the final will and testament of Emperor Kua, lacking in self-awareness," Ye Futian said indifferently.


    "Even without you, our Nine Major Tribes would have gotten the inheritance of Emperor Kua sooner or later. Chong Li of the Chong Clan will now ask where you got your confidence from." The man saw Ye Futian''s scornful look and walked toward him. He was the premier leader of the younger generation of the Chong Clan, whose combat ability was extremely awesome.


    This time when the Ancestral Land was opened, he did not enter. The people within the Nine Major Tribes would re-enter the Ancestral Lands when their cultivation reached a higher level, and the chance of success would be higher then. At the same time, they would continue to invite outsiders, letting them do the bidding of the nine Ancestral Lands.


    Ye Futian was not incorrect in saying that the nine Ancestral Lands invited them so that they could use them.


    But this time, the flames of the Ancestral Lands was robbed, and the relic of Emperor Kua disappeared.


    All Chong Li wanted was to inherit the relic of Emperor Kua. However, before he could even visit the Ancestral Lands, the Ancestral Lands were gone.


    The Chong Clan did not stop Chong Li''s confrontation. Chong Li''s talent was top-notch, and he himself was someone who was a likely genius and could open the door of the Ancestral Lands and inherit the relic of Emperor Kua.


    The Chong Clan always had high hopes for him.


    But now, everything was on Ye Futian.


    Chong Li stepped in the void, and the might of Divine Path swept out and pressed against Ye Futian. Every step he took, it was like a flaming war god whose each step landed on top of Ye Futian.


    "Who among you will make a move?" Xia Qingyuan said to the people behind her.


    Chong Li wanted to fight Ye Futian?


    The Nine Major Tribes came here with countless strong cultivators, and yet Chong Lou was just a junior person, so he wanted to fight the City Lord of Qianye City, but was he worthy?


    "I''ll go."


    A voice was heard. As the voice trailed off, a sword strike broke the air, like frightful lightning and thunder splitting the void.


    In the crowd, there was a figure walking forward. Between heaven and earth, the sword will filled the sky and was whistling forward.


    Chong Li''s eyes swept through the sky below, and the horrific flames of the Great Path burned downward, shook the space, and it seemed to be able to kill the other with a single look. But the eyes of the person who stepped out were like swords that tore everything and crushed the swordsmanship piercing him in his eyes.


    Boom. The will of war was so horrifying that Chong Li''s body seemed to have turned into a flaming of god of war. With one step, the void roared and trembled, and a large flaming footprint stepped on the void, burning the mountains and boiling the sea.


    The sword arrived and pierced directly into the large flaming footprint. Along with a loud sound, it penetrated it and wanted to tear it to pieces.


    The surrounding space also seemed on the verge of being torn apart.


    Chong Li stepped out again. The Flame of the Way above his body seemed to be even more powerful and aggressive, and his whole person also became more massive. With one more step, the great flaming footprint seemed to overlap with the previous one. Its strength multiplied wildly to destroy the sword will of the other.


    The person who stepped out pointed his finger forward, and the Sword Qi was released, turned into a terrible storm. It leveraged the attack of the other and integrated a stronger sword will into the sword and slashed forth.


    Chong Li continued forward, and the might of authority became stronger and stronger as his body became more and more powerful. Chonglou Battle Form had thirteen forms and one stronger than the one previously.


    Chong Li took seven steps, and seven battle forms were released.


    However, his opponent did not back down at all. With the sword will opening the way, from the midst of that flaming footprint, whose power was condensed with the might of massive building, was shining with endless bright sword light, raging violently. At the same time, a giant sword penetrated it bit by bit. Both powers were incredibly overbearing.


    Many cultivators of the Chong Clan tribe looked on with a frown. Chong Li, in their clan, was already considered to be an extremely threatening character. Even within the Nine Major Tribes, all the top figures were about equal in strength in this realm. Now the other side had not yet sent out Ye Futian nor Xia Qingyuan, and there was even someone else who could go toe to toe with Chong Li?


    At this moment, there was a dazzling sword light. Finally, with a loud noise, everything was destroyed. The flames and sword Qi continued to rage between heaven and earth, causing a destructive storm within the space.


    "Who was that?" someone asked. These two people, who were only at the nascent stage of Saint Plane, were very strong.


    "Should be a cultivator from Emperor Xia''s Realm," someone thought.


    Ye Futian appeared calm as he watched the battle that was taking place in the void. Chong Li was indeed strong.


    As for Chong Li''s opponent, it was none other than the Swordsman who reigned above the 33rd layer of heaven in Lihen Heaven of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Wang Chuan.


    The two fought violently, and many cultivators in the midst of the vast space had to release breath to fend off the ripples of the battle between the two.


    Zhu Kong and Chong Lou watched the battlefield attentively, but at this moment, yet another cultivator stepped forward and entered the battlefield. It was the genius of the Saint Plane from the Zhu clan, Zhu Nan.


    Not only him, but cultivators from all majors tribes successively moved forward toward the battlefield.


    These people were all of the Realm of Proving Holiness; it seemed that they wanted to force Ye Futian to make an appearance.


    If they could take down Ye Futian, they wouldn''t need the help of the top characters of each tribe; all they would need was to block the top characters of the other side.


    Step by step, these cultivators headed directly toward the battlefield where Wang Chuan was. Ye Futian''s brows knitted together, and before he even spoke, there were shadows next to him that went directly to the void.


    Knife Saint and Gu Dongliu moved forward first and made a beeline straight for the battlefield.


    After that, Ye Wuchen and Xu Chehan also marched toward the battlefield.


    In addition, Xuanyuan Clan and the Divine Cloud Valley each sent out a cultivator, corresponding to the number of people sent out by the other side, so that each may go forward to find their own opponents.


    In an instant, the Divine Might swept across the battlefield, overwhelming the vast space outside of the City Lord''s Office.


    Knife Saint pulled out the demonic blade. He did not regard this as an exhibition of exchanging battle techniques, but the actual battlefield.


    Today, the Nine Major Tribes themselves were not here to learn, but to capture and conquer.


    For a moment, the demonic might roared into the sky, and the knife will blended into the body of Knife Saint so that his body seemed to be covered with a layer of demonic armor.


    The demonic blade puffed out terrible demonic radiance, the turbulent air currents swept through the void. He appeared in front of a cultivator from the Ravine Tribe, the other''s body was brilliant, the light of the Golden Raven bloomed, but when the Knife Saint struck with his blade, the sky seemed to be cut open by a terrible crack from the hill.


    His expression changed dramatically, and an immense Golden Raven appeared and dashed out, trying to block the light from the blade. But under the demonic blade, the shadow of the Golden Raven was chopped in two.


    The terrible demonic blade struck downward, and with a bang, the fire feathers of the Golden Raven that condensed behind him were cut off, and his whole person was dodging while backing away in a hurry, covered in cold sweat.


    "This demonic blade ..." Many cultivators stared at the sword in the hand of Knife Said. The Knife Will was far stronger, surpassing the realm of Knife Saint himself, like the blade of all demons. When the blade struck, it was full of violent intention.


    Gu Dongliu''s opponent was a cultivator from the Nanli tribe. Floating above his body was a divine light, surrounded by ancient characters, resonated with the Great Path, the atmosphere soared wildly, and when the palm print blasted out, it felt that heaven and earth would explode. It was incredibly violent.


    Xung Chehan walked to a cultivator of the Shang tribe. His body floated to the other side, and his breath was not strong. The other saw him coming closer, a sneer flashed in his eyes, and a bright golden flame flowed in his palm.


    When Xu Chehan arrived, his palm print blasted out and touched Xu Chehan, palm to palm.


    "You are seeking your death." Seeing Xu Chehan dared to touch his palm, he spoke coldly condescendingly, and his intention to kill was strong.


    When the two palms collided, a horrible hot flaming air rushed into Xu Chehan''s arm instantly and even ran all the way into Xu Chehan''s body.


    Xu Chehan moaned under his breath. There was a terrible golden Flame of the Way inside his body that could destroy everything. It rushed to all of his internal organs, and his body was blasted backward, blood flowing out of his mouth.


    But at the same time, his opponent also made a sound of exclamation, looking at his palm.


    His flaming palm turned black, and soon, his arm was the same, the golden flame mixed with the dark. It looked incredibly sinister.


    "Poison sorcery." The same was true of his face. The golden flame melted into the dark air currents.


    But even more frightening was that he felt that this poison sorcery seemed to be designed especially for his flames, as it dispersed when met with the fire, invading all the internal organs, limbs, and throughout the body.


    It was no picnic for Xu Chehan either. He took out an elixir and fed it into his mouth, then withdrew quickly from the battlefield. He moderated his breath, turning poison into medicine, and a healing light shrouded his body to repair the parts that were damaged.


    As far as combat power, he was certainly not as good as the saints selected by the Nine Major Tribes of the Crimson Dragon Realm, but his poison sorcery was unexpected and enough to make the other party suffer.


    The situation on the battlefield was obviously not as expected by the major tribes.


    They didn''t have any advantages.


    And Ye Futian didn''t even make a move!

 1255 Cave Masters

    Zhu Kong frowned and glanced at the chaotic battlefield, and said coldly, "Go."


    As his voice fell, cultivators from all the major clans stepped out once again. In no time, more cultivators of the Saint Plane descended onto the battlefield.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned. Although their side also had quite a few Doctrine Saints, but not as many as those other tribes.


    As many figures came through the air, the cultivators in the first realm of the Divine Path started moving, and Situ Yan also stepped into the battlefield.


    "You go too," Shen Tianzhan said to Shen Jun, who nodded in agreement, then walked toward the battlefield.


    An overbearing breath bloomed from Ye Futian''s body, and he wanted to take action himself but heard Xia Qingyuan say, "I''ll go."


    As soon as she finished speaking, she marched on and went toward the battlefield.


    Ye Futian was the City Lord of Qianye City; he could not make his appearance in the conflict so easily.


    Even Xia Qingyuan had come out to fight now. No one who was of the first realm of the Divine Path from Emperor Xia''s Realm dared to stay behind.


    For a moment, this vast space seemed to be completely inadequate for the battle between these people. As they continued to move the conflict toward higher altitude, the scene was becoming chaotic.


    In the distance, other cultivators kept coming.


    Saint Lord of Jiuyang of Jianmu City had arrived in person, and also Xi Chan, whose eyes directed toward the battlefield.


    Next to them was Chang clan, another principality of Jianmu City, and Chang Huai was also there.


    His eyes were directed toward Ye Futian. There was a slight coldness in those eyes.


    Ye Futian glanced back and saw not only the Saint Lord of Jiuyang but also the cultivators of Xiang City. Xiang Nan was also there.


    On this first day of the beginning of the year, Qianye City was truly lively, with top figures from all walks of life coming together.


    These top figures also looked toward the battlefield and saw many acquaintances of the same level.


    "Saint King of Gai has arrived, too," the Saint Lord of Jiuyang said while looking in a particular direction, where a group of shadows descended from the void.


    The person who headed the group was a man wearing a magnificent golden robe, appearing extremely majestic. Even standing there casually, he seemed to possess an authority that could rule the world.


    A pair of thick brows slightly curved like swords, showing a sharp and authoritative aura, his hands folded behind his back as he looked on at the battlefield. Many people''s eyes were looking at him, and their hearts were shocked.


    They did not expect Saint King of Gai to come here for the occasion.


    Many people also looked at the person next to Saint King of Gai, a peerless young man with an extraordinary temperament, who had only the breath of the beginning of Saint Plane. But even before this, he was someone famous and well-known.


    It was just that someone else had stepped upon his name to enter the Regional Palace.


    Xing Qiu of the Ancient Imperial City.


    During the Battle of the Crimson River, witnessed by everyone, they thought that he would be like his older brother, Xing Kai, who swept aside all other cultivators, and elevated to the Regional Palace to cultivate.


    However, in that battle, Yu Sheng surpassed all others, overpowered every single competitor, and entered the Regional Palace.


    It was rumored that after entering the Regional Palace, many geniuses in the palace tried to intercept Yu Sheng during the welcome ceremony. Yu Sheng fought his way into the Regional Palace and pushed forward in such an invincible manner so that in a few short months, he was named in the Regional King Ranking.


    Saint King of Gai and Xing Qiu came together. Even though Saint King of Gai was not from the Ancient Imperial City, there was no doubt in anyone''s mind; the relationship between Saint King of Gai and the Ancient Imperial City was known to everyone in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Very few in this realm of Divine Path would deserve the respect of this peerless Saint King, and he was almost at the peak.


    The only exception was the Ninth Servant, who was said to be the first person under Renhuang, who was respected by someone as powerful as Saint King of Gai.


    Rumor had it that Saint King of Gai once received a favor of the Ninth Servant, the City Lord of the Ancient Imperial City, and there were also rumors that Saint King of Gai was once a seeker at the door of Ninth Servant.


    Now, Saint King of Gai personally accompanied Xing Qiu to Qianye City, and it was unclear if he was here simply for the excitement or he had some other agenda.


    The assemblage around Qianye City was getting scarier.


    Zhu Kong also frowned slightly. He clearly felt that there were many people of the Nirvana Plane around him, which was a threat in itself. It would be a tough situation if these people were also to compete for the relics left by Emperor Kua.


    "Ye Futian, do you want to compete against us the Nine Major Tribes with the power of Qianye City?" In the void, Zhu Xuan said with a clear voice while upon the sun carriage. The bright sunlight shone down, and hot air currents oppressed heaven and earth.


    "Don''t involve the others."


    "If you retreat now, I will not pursue what had happened today," Ye Futian glance at the other, responding.


    Zhu Kong, Chong Lou, and the others frowned. Their majestic look was even colder. This guy didn''t know when to quit while he was ahead.


    "What made you so sure of yourself?" Zhu Kong uttered. The brilliant divine sunlight directly beamed in the direction of Ye Futian. Wu Yong appeared in front of him, with flames burning on his body, and the sunlight directly fell on him as if he was bathing in the divine light.


    "What about you?" Ye Futian cast a glance at the other cultivators other than Zhu Kong and Chong Lou. "Think clearly. If you insist on participating in this matter today, and if you are not able to take me down, you will be responsible for whatever happens next. And, if anyone from my Qianye City perishes today on account of this, I will most definitely take all of you out of the nine tribes of Emperor Kua."


    Everyone stared at Ye Futian; he was way too presumptuous.


    The Nine Major Tribes in the West, except for the Wu tribe and the seven tribes outside of the Beili Tribe, were here to join in the kill, and he dared to speak of such outrageous words.


    Could there really be a wildcard?


    The seven characters of Nirvana were present, even if it was just like the last time when the three great Nirvanas of Emperor Xia''s Realm descended. Shen Tianzhan and Wu Yong perhaps were not going to be enough.


    Furthermore, many top figures did not detect traces of other Nirvana characters in the City Lord''s Office.


    The war between Dali Dynasty and Emperor Xia''s Realm last time had caused discords between those two Renhuang realms.


    Where did Ye Futian get his confidence from?


    The brilliance on top of the sun carriage was getting brighter and brighter, and a hot glow shrouded the vast endless space. It seemed that Zhu Kong wished to take him down in person.


    The battle of the first stage of Divine Path that erupted out front was not going to be finished in a short time, and there was no way to touch Ye Futian in a hurry.


    Just as he was about to start, a strong breath came from afar.


    Zhu Kong frowned and directed his gaze at the distance. He saw a group of people come through the void. They instantly descended into this space.


    He saw a familiar figure, and it was the cultivator who had cooperated with the Zhu tribe previously, Wuhuang Princess, Yin Tianjiao.


    However, Yin Tianjiao later went to Ye Futian''s aid instead.


    Yin Yinjiao was not alone but came with many people.


    The person who headed the group was an elder clad in a flaming robe, who possessed a terrifying aura.


    The appearance of this person was recognized by many and attracted many suddenly exclamations.


    Even the top figures of the Regional Palace were present.


    But he was surrounded by youngsters.


    "Yu Sheng."


    Many people''s eyes fell in one place. There was a stalwart figure standing next to the old man from the Regional Palace. He stood there, a head taller than everyone else, and his entire body seemed to be full of explosive power.


    Qianye City, Yu Sheng.


    Xing Qiu''s eyes instantly looked over there. After seeing Yu Sheng, his pupils contracted slightly, and his body was filled with the intention of war.


    In the battle of the Crimson River, after he became a saint, he was suppressed by Yu Sheng, who had also broken into the Divine Path.


    The name of Xing Qiu was destined to be less than that of his older brother, and the rest of the world would always only see him and be reminded of Yu Sheng.


    Although Xing Kai had counseled him on that day that no one who cultivated in this world could be undefeated, seeing Yu Sheng''s name becoming more well-known and now among the Regional King Ranking just like his older brother, one could only imagine his feeling.


    "One of the cave masters from the Regional Palace," Saint King of Gai said to Xing Qiu while glancing at the old man next to Yu Sheng.


    Although Xing Qiu looked nothing out of the ordinary, his heart was extremely unsettled.


    Was Yu Sheng traveling with cave masters in tow?


    At the Regional Palace, there were some special places of blessings. Each cave master would have several very powerful characters under their tutelage, who were responsible for instructing the disciples of the Regional Palace daily.


    In other words, even if one had entered the Regional Palace, one may not be so easily accepted in the house of a cave master.


    Every cave master was someone who was the epitome of the Saint Plane.


    But Yu Sheng was accepted directly into the house of a cave master to cultivate.


    This was what he had wanted, but now, all the limelight was on Yu Sheng.


    "Xing Qiu, even though he has a cave master to instruct him in cultivation, you have the teaching of the Ninth Teacher, not any inferior than him, don''t be too obsessed," Saint King of Gai seemed to have read Xing Qiu''s mind, and was reasoning with him.


    "Well, I will do my best," Xing Qiu nodded. It was difficult not to care about these things completely.


    "Although I don''t know what Ye Futian obtained, if it could persuade the chiefs of the seven major tribes to come in person, it must be something quite extraordinary," Saint King of Gai whispered.


    Just as they were speaking, Yu Sheng stepped out and walked toward the battlefield.


    He did not look at those who were defeated by him, such as Xing Qiu and Xiang Nan, who were not important in his eyes.


    Zhu Kong and his people had noticed when the cultivators from the Regional Palace had arrived, and he now frowned when he saw Yu Sheng stepping out. He looked at the cave master, saying, "Today''s matter is between our Nine Major Tribes and Ye Futian. The Regional Palace will not be interfering?"


    It was the Crimson Dragon Emperor who was behind the Regional Palace. Generally speaking, he did not like to interfere in the affairs of the outside world.


    "No," the cave master said lightly, which comforted Zhu Kong somewhat. He heard the other party continue, "But Yu Sheng is from Qianye City. If he wants to participate in the battle, the Regional Palace will not restrain him, so you are free to do as you please. However, we do not want to see people of higher realms from the Nine Major Tribes to bully disciples of the Regional Palace."


    Everyone who heard his words expressed a look of curiosity. Yu Sheng was someone who had already entered the Regional King Ranking, which was a clear sign that he was going to be the one doing the bullying.


    However the words of the other could not be refuted either. If they deploy those of the higher realms to fight Yu Sheng, then the people of the Regional Palace would have a reason to butt in.


    Zhu Kong frowned slightly without saying anything further; he directed his gaze at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng stepped outside of the battlefield and ran in one direction.


    Someone of the Saint Plane from the Nine Major Tribes directly attacked him. The flames were soaring high into the sky, and the violent handprints pressed down.


    Yu Sheng glanced at the other, his footsteps slamming into the void. The world roared, and demonic might tumbled and rolled without ceasing as if it donned the demonic armor.


    Boom! With a loud bang, everyone saw that Yu Sheng did not block the attack at all, but instead, opened wide to allow the other''s palm print to descend and blasted on his chest. The terrifying flame of the Way intended to burn up his body, the fire soared into the sky, drowning Yu Sheng''s body within it.


    The armor of the demon god seemed to ignite flames, becoming even more radiant.


    That man had never dealt with Yu Sheng before and had no idea how terrible Yu Sheng''s defense was.


    By the time he realized that something was wrong, it was already too late, and Yu Sheng struck out.


    Boom! With a loud noise, his chest was punched through from a single strike!

 1256 Borrowing the Way

    "This kind of power ..." Many people looked at the battlefield where Yu Sheng was after seeing his moves.


    After all, he was an existence new to the Regional King Ranking, and with the cave master of the Regional Palace accompanying him, it was natural that he attracted all the attention. People wanted to see just how strong his combat power was.


    This strike gave everyone a clear sense of the wild, explosive power contained in his stalwart body. His opponent was of the Saint Plane from the Nine Major Tribes, whose strike seemed to have done nothing when blasted upon Yu Sheng. But as he took a hit from Yu Sheng, the fist will directly punched through his body, and he fell from the sky.


    Without allowing them much time to think about it, Yu Sheng continued to walk and shook the void. His palms stretched out, and they instantly transformed into the palms of a demon god, grabbing toward someone of the Saint Plane.


    That cultivator of the Saint Plane waved with both hands. Endless Divine Fire surrounded his body. It erupted directly, blasting toward Yu Sheng.


    Boom! A shocking demonic might descended, and everyone saw a sheltering demonic shadow appear behind the giant palm print of the demonic way. This palm print seemed to explode out of the hands of this demon and getting larger and larger. The Great Path of heaven and earth echoed each other and suppressed this space, the cultivator of the Saint Plane felt that it was difficult to move.


    The dazzling Divine Fire collapsed and was pulverized underneath the palm print, and he quickly retreated.


    But before his very eyes, the demonic shadow continued expanding. The more he fled, the more he found the insubstantiality of his body, still under the palm of the demonic way.


    It felt as if there was no way up and no way down.


    Boom! A loud bang, and an immense palm print drowned him, slamming down on him from the sky to the ground. With a violent outburst of sound, an extremely clear giant handprint appeared on the ground, surrounded by rippling cracks.


    The hearts of many trembled. Such an aggressive, offensive force was merely hopeless.


    The Regional King Ranking, as established by the Regional Palace, was not specific in the kind of ranking it pertained to. Without exception, anyone who was on the list was almost invincible in his realm and surpassed their peers. Unless there was conflict with others who were also on the list, it was hard for the others to reach.


    Before Yu Sheng got on the list, there were still others who doubted his strength. Now, many had witnessed just how strong those on the Regional King Ranking were.


    Xing Qiu stared at the battlefield that Yu Sheng was in. Now that he had entered the Regional Palace, he was much stronger than when he had first entered the Divine Path.


    The intent of battle surrounded his body, and he seemed to want to battle again.


    Saint King of Gai next to him seemed to have perceived the intent to battle from Xing Qiu, saying, "Do you want to go?"


    Xing Qiu did not respond, but he did want to fight again.


    However, this time was not the same as the battle of Crimson River. In the last battle of Crimson River, he thought he would win.


    But now, he had not a bit of confidence.


    "You don''t have any confidence?" Saint King of Gai continued, "Knowing that one shouldn''t but still does so, it is the same tempering of the mind. As long as you release attachment to the outcome��treating it as a test��victory or defeat is irrelevant."


    He could see that the last battle had cast a shadow on Xing Qiu, who had just entered Saint Plane.


    This was unlike Xing Qiu from the past, full of self-confidence, and had the conviction of looking forward as if he was on top of everyone who was excellent and worthy.


    Before that, he and Xing Kai were very much alike.


    The two brothers were exceptionally talented. The younger generation admired him a lot. And his achievements would not be lower than this brother''s in the future.


    Therefore, Saint King of Gai wanted to help Xing Qiu overcome this mental block.


    Xing Qiu nodded, then really started walking straight toward the battlefield.


    On his body, a horrific glow bloomed, and the aura of the Great Path shone between the heaven and the earth. His body seemed to resonate with the birth of this firmament, and an immense body of the god of war appeared behind him. Xing Qiu, at this moment, turned into a war god.


    He raised his hand and launched an attack on a cultivator of the Saint Plane from Qianye City. It was Situ Yan.


    Situ Yan felt a terrible coercion of might. Her face changed as her strength bloomed in defense. But Xing Qiu''s attack was aggressive and boundless. The strike of his palm was one with the Great Path, capable of destroying everything.


    With a loud sound, her body was thrown back, and blood spurted out of her mouth. Her body trembled violently, and the blood boiled within her body.


    "Xing Qiu has made his move."


    In an instant, countless eyes fell on Xing Qiu, and many still remembered the end of the battle of the Crimson River last time.


    Ye Futian frowned and looked up at the battlefield.


    Was Xing Qiu using this battlefield as his place of trial?


    Once again, Yu Sheng crushed another person and blasted him away. He then headed straight to where Xing Qiu was.


    Likewise, Xing Qiu also approached him. After the battle of the Crimson River, the two met once again.


    The power of demonic mighty kept rolling, and Xing Qiu concentrated on condensing the seal, resonating with the Great Path. A supreme coercion exploded out of his body, and above it, there was a faint trace of the glory or Renhuang.


    Seeing that Yu Sheng was approaching, Xing Qiu''s body and his life spirit blended together, and a rumbling sound was heard. He transformed himself into the Great Path and became a true God of War.


    Streams of light lit and surrounded his body, resonating with heaven and earth. With his body as the center, there was an overwhelming coercion of might.


    "So strong," many in the Saint Plane secretly exclaimed as they felt the coercion of Xing Qiu. After Yu Sheng was named on the Regional King Ranking, everyone understood that Xing Qiu''s defeat was not due to his weakness but was because his opponent was even more terrible.


    Now those who were witnessing the will of battle on Xing Qiu would agree that it was indeed terrifying.


    Moreover, now that Xing Qiu had entered the Saint Plane, he must be able to fully exert the unique method inherited from Emperor Zhan��Taixuan Will.


    This technique could use the body itself to resonate with heaven and earth. The practitioner was required to practice martial arts also from an early age. The body must also be able to be sanctified until the spiritual will and the body could resonate with one another to communicate with the heaven and the earth so that one''s own body could release battle power far beyond one''s combat power.


    This technique held extremely high requirements for the spiritual will as well as for the physical body of the practitioner. Once upon a time, Emperor Zhan relied on this method to crush the peers of his generation. He fought everywhere with strength so great that he was named "Emperor Zhan" when he entered Renhuang Realm.


    Centered on the body of Xing Qiu, a terrible storm seemed to be formed and rolled toward Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng stepped in the void, and the demonic might above the void was immense. Behind him, there appeared the illusion of a mighty demonic god whose pupils were cold, and his domineering eyes seemed to want to make Xing Qiu submit at his feet.


    The method practiced by Yu Sheng was perhaps not less powerful than Taixuan Will.


    The might of authority was terrifying.


    Before the two of them even made a move, two forces roared and clashed.


    Boom! Accompanied by a loud bang, the handprints of the demon god in the Great Path above the void blasted down from the sky.


    Xing Qiu let out a scream, and his body soared into the sky. The aura of the Great Path above his body resonated with heaven and earth, and illusions of the god of war appeared. He raised his hand to launch the method and rocketed into the sky.


    It seemed that it was a repeat of the battle of the Crimson River in the past.


    Boom! The palms that could crush all crushed the space. Many fists aura of the war god broke into pieces. The arm that was the incarnation of Xing Qiu reached out, and thousands of fist will shattered the space as he attempted to raise the sky with his hands.


    Dong. Yu Sheng stepped out and crossed the void, stepping down directly. As he looked down from the sky, his arms raised, and the figure of the demon king smashed toward Xing Qiu, who was below.


    Another loud boom and Xing Qiu''s body fell from the sky. He moaned and spat out a mouthful of blood again.


    "Help him," Zhu Kong said. Suddenly, cultivators of the Saint Plane flickered forward and launched an attack at Yu Sheng.


    They wanted to gang up on Yu Sheng.


    Xing Qiu''s mouth was still bloody as he looked up into the sky. His will to battle remained strong as he rose into the sky once more.


    Saint King of Gai looked at this battlefield and glanced at Yu Sheng.


    It seemed that this time, Xing Kai and Xing Qiu had found their match.


    It was pressure, but it could also become motivation.


    Zhu Kong stepped forward, and an incomparably dazzling divine power descended. It was as if the sword of the sun fell straight down in the direction of Ye Futian.


    Wu Yong was still standing in front of Ye Futian. His palms blasted into the void as the sword fell, disappearing bit by bit under the flame in his palm.


    The top figures of all seven major tribes stepped forward. Zhu Kong said, "Those who have nothing to do with this, leave, lest the innocent are hurt."


    What a terrible scene when the powerful cultivators of Nirvana Plane get involved.


    Many cultivators below the Saint Plane all retreated into the distance, fearing that they, too, would be destroyed by the ripples of the aftermath.


    Cultivators of various major tribes came forward. Zhu Kong stepped out of the sun buggy, overlooking Ye Futian Road in the city''s main government. "If we shoot, it might affect the entire city''s main government. You really want us to do it ourselves ?"


    Until this moment, he did not know where Ye Futian got his confidence.


    He even threatened him with these wild words.


    The seven major tribes, how many tyrannical figures, this coercion came down, and the entire city''s main house seemed to be shrouded in a coercion of coercion.


    "You''d better not hurt anyone else; otherwise, your tribes will be responsible." Ye Futian looked up at the figure in the void and said, "Elder Wu Yong, please take the way of Emperor Kua."


    Wu Yong lifted his eyebrow and was puzzled, but he still nodded and said, "Alright."


    Zhu Kong and cultivators from the other tribes were equally puzzled. What was the meaning behind Ye Futian''s words?


    In Ye Futian''s Life Palace, the branches and leaves of the ancient tree of the world wrapped around the dazzling Fire Spirit Orb as traces of horrifying flaming will diffused. This Spirit Orb drifted toward the life spirit of the sun in the life palace. Suddenly, that life spirit of the sun became brighter and brighter.


    In an instant, terrible flames lit up on Ye Futian''s body. Above the firmament, the clouds changed color, and it seemed to turn into a world of the flames.


    The sun''s rays fell on Ye Futian''s body, and an infinite fire came toward him. The flames between heaven and earth also poured wildly toward Ye Futian''s body.


    Boom. Ye Futian seemed to transform into a sun, bathed in the fire of the sun, which drowned his whole person within it.


    "Don''t resist," Ye Futian said. For an instant, the brilliance of unparalleled flames poured into Wu Yong''s body. What was more terrible was that there were not only flames but also will that flowed wildly into Wu Yong''s own will.


    At this moment, Wu Yong seemed to perceive a figure of Renhuang, who was like a peerless god of war.


    "The inheritance of Emperor Kua," Wu Yong murmured. His heart trembled. Did the sun that was devoured by Ye Futian contain the will left by Emperor Kua?


    "Forge Chonglou Battle Form," Ye Futian said. Wu Yong nodded, and with a bang, his body grew taller. He intended to become a god of war!

 1257 Wu Yong Battles Seven Nirvana

    "What''s going on?"


    Stares that were like sharp swords all directed toward Wu Yong, and then at Ye Futian, who was behind him.


    Above the sky, heaven was branded crimson red, flowing toward the distance, trying to envelop all of Qianye City.


    The sun above the sky seemed to become one with Ye Futian and Wu Yong, shining straight upon them.


    Boom.


    Wu Yong''s body continued to grow taller, more and more powerful, wanting to shelter the sky.


    Zhong Lou, the chief of the Zhong tribe, stared at the scene playing out in front of him. He couldn''t be more familiar with this method.


    He was named after this method.


    Zhonglou Battle Form.


    Zhonglou Battle Form had 13 phases, and each was stronger than the one before. If it reached the 13th phase, it could be considered the Battle Form of Renhuang and even become the War Emperor of the Sun.


    By now, he had reached the realm of Nirvana, but out of the 13 phases of the Zhonglou Battle Form, he had still only reached the 11th level, and it was only accomplished a few years ago.


    But at this time, Wu Yong''s body continued to rise, becoming stronger and stronger. His aura was so imposing. It was as if he was a Renhuang reincarnate, and the battle form of Zhonglou was transformed and sublimated.


    Soon, Wu Yong''s battle form had reached the tenth level. This was the level that Nirvana levels could enter. Although Wu Yong entered Nirvana not long ago, he never practiced heavy building battles before. The body, perhaps in the relics, would have to be passed on that day.


    At this moment, it broke through the tenth phase.


    Alas, Wu Yong did not stop there.


    He was still getting stronger. Ye Futian seemed to be transformed into a sun that had devoured heaven and earth. All the fires were surging toward Wu Yong, lending all power to Wu Yong.


    Boom. Wu Yong''s body pulled taller again, and the Zhonglou Battle Form now reached the 11th phase��the same level as that of Zhong Lou, the leader of the Zhong Clan.


    But what shocked Zhong Lou was that he did not stop there.


    Wu Yong was bathed in the infinite flame, and an illusion appeared in his mind. He saw a majestic body standing between heaven and earth. It was Emperor Kua.


    At this moment, he truly felt the will of Emperor Kua.


    "Break." With a thunderous shout, the fire emitted by the sun above the sky turned into a storm. Wu Yong''s body rose again. The world roared, and the flames turned into a sea of fire. Many cultivators retreated into the distance.


    The entire City Lord''s Office was burning, but beyond that, even the sky was burning.


    In the vast area centered on the City Lord''s Office, countless people looked up at the sky, looking at that tall and immense figure��the flaming god of war.


    The battles of many cultivators of the Saint Plane were interrupted, and everyone was retreating to evacuate from the battlefield.


    At the moment, the will upon Wu Yong''s body was far too terrible. It seemed intent on burning the sky, and it was difficult to bear the heat in close range.


    "12th phase." Zhong Lou, the leader of the Zhong Clan, was lost for a moment when he looked at the scene in front of him.


    The 12th phase could be considered to be at the top of Nirvana Plane��the real peak of the Saint Plane.


    Even he did not reach it, and now, Wu Yong had done it.


    However, Wu Yong had achieved it by borrowing the way.


    Ye Futian had indeed gotten everything left by Emperor Kua, as they had suspected. No wonder the ruins had disappeared.


    But, what exactly did he get?


    According to the elders of the Wu clan, it was a terrible sight when Ye Futian devoured the flames throughout the ruins.


    But it also seemed to corroborate the scene they were witnessing.


    He was devouring the flames of heaven and earth, and at the same time, releasing the infinite flame into Wu Yong''s body to lend him the way.


    Above the sky, a face appeared. It seemed to be the face of Emperor Kua that then merged with Wu Yong''s body. It was as if Wu Yong, at this moment, represented the will of Emperor Kua.


    Not only was the attention of the cultivators of the seven major tribes fixed on this scene, but many of the cultivators here also stared at Ye Futian and Wu Yong.


    What a terrible flame; what exactly did Ye Futian inherit?


    No wonder the major tribes of the western region had gathered here today.


    They were intending on getting back whatever it was.


    Even if Emperor Xia''s Realm should be offended in the process, it was worth it to get back the inheritance left by Emperor Kua.


    But now, it seemed that it was not so simple to get it back either.


    "Nine major tribes all belonged to Emperor Kua. Now that the will of Emperor Kua has made itself visible, the likes of you still have not bowed down in worship. What are you waiting for?" Ye Futian stood behind Wu Yong, bathed in the radiance of flames, and said in a clear voice that resounded through the space.


    To ask the nine tribes bow down and worship...


    At this moment, the will of Emperor Kua appeared and descended upon Wu Yong.


    But no one worshipped. Zhu Kong and the other seven tribes were here today to arrest people. Even the appearance of Emperor Kua''s will did not have much effect. They were here to recapture, not to worship.


    "The will of Emperor, Kua should be returned to the Nine tribes," Zhu Kong said.


    "Sacrilege!" Ye Futian shouted. "Today, those who violated the will of Emperor Kua are to be regarded as traitors. As the heir of Emperor Kua, I will mete out the punishment later. For now, you still have one last chance to repent. There is still time to obey the last testament of Emperor Kua."


    "I don''t know what you are talking about," Zhu Kong said coldly. His eyes were directed at the others. He said, "Since he is stubborn and unwilling to follow us back to the west, let''s make him."


    Obviously, he still decided to fight Ye Futian.


    As the situation had deteriorated to this point, how could it be possible to turn back now?


    The leaders of each tribe belonged to the Nirvana Plane. They were resilient and would not retreat easily.


    With the seven cultivators of the Nirvana Plane surrounding Ye Futian, the whole world was burning.


    "Everyone, get back," Ye Futian said to his people. This battle was a battle among those at the peak of Nirvana. For those below Nirvana plane, it would be difficult to intervene.


    Unless those in the front had no doubt, only Shen Tianzhan was still guarding next to him.


    He was also an expert at flaming ability. If Wu Yong did not come this time, and someone from the Crimson Dragon Realm came to plunder, he might have to fight using Shen Tianzhan.


    But Wu Yong, who was originally from the Wu Clan that belonged to Emperor Kua, was much more suitable.


    Zhu Kong looked down, and the sun''s divine rays sprinkled downward. He lifted his palms. Suddenly, the flames of heaven and earth condensed into a terrible vortex which directly condensed into a solar fireball and burned all existence.


    "Go." Zhu Kong waved his palms downward, and suddenly, the sun dropped. It chased toward the immense body of the towering flaming god of war��the 12th phase of the Zhonglou Battle Form achieved by Wu Yong.


    At the moment Zhu Kong made his move, the seven cultivators of the Nirvana Plane gathered a terrible flame of the Great Path at the same time, all of which had the power to destroy.


    Zhong Lou, head of the Zhong Clan, between the opening and closing of his eyes, an extreme might descended between heaven and earth. He stepped into the void, and it seemed that a flaming war god would come from the sky and kill Wu Yong.


    The cultivators of Raven Tribe stepped forward, and suddenly, golden sun birds appeared between heaven and the earth, whistling down and drowning the void.


    Seven cultivators attacked simultaneously.


    The attack of each contained a different flame, but they all contained a terrifying force of destruction.


    Wu Yong lifted his eyes and looked at the sky. Between the sky and the earth, things had changed. The infinite flames in the sky converged and spawned a terrible storm this immense.


    The seven characters of the Nirvana Plane looked at Wu Yong''s eyes and saw that between the blinking of the eyes, a solar storm descended. The suns went toward the people in attacks, colliding in the void as if it was the flame that would destroy the world.


    Boom. Wu Yong reached the sky in one step. His eyes were terrible. At this moment, he seemed to have been transformed into a god. Those eyes were the Divine Eyes of the Sun that hid the method and ways within them. Looking afar, a solar storm was born.


    The terrible solar vortex storm swept out toward the seven nirvana cultivators, trying to bury them in the solar storm.


    Witnessing this terrible storm, the seven Nirvana cultivators looked badly.


    This was the method of the Zhu Clan��Divine Eyes of the Sun.


    Now, it was blooming on Wu Yong with a power that was extremely scary. Compared with Zhu Kong, it could only be stronger, not weaker.


    The cultivators in the distance where shocked when they saw this scene before them. Was Wu Yong going to fight the nine major tribes'' seven Nirvana figures with his own strength?


    At this moment, Wu Yong''s breath climbed almost to the extreme of Nirvana Plane.


    Some other nirvana figures who were also there stared at the battlefield. Saint King of Gai looked indifferent, focusing ahead.


    "Borrowing the way, borrowing the will of Emperor Kua," he said in his heart. He did not expect Ye Futian to work in tandem with Wu Yong to showcase such combat effectiveness.


    Zhonglou Battle Form at the 12th phase was already at the top of the Nirvana Plane.


    Wu Yong himself was of the Nirvana Plane. Ye Futian had swallowed the power of heaven and earth in order to lend the power to him, thus making him even stronger. That, combined with the will of Emperor Kua and his inheritance of the way, all contributed to the making of Wu Yong at this moment.


    Wu Yong, under such circumstances, was stronger than any one of the seven great nirvana figures and was much stronger.


    Therefore, even if the seven great Nirvana figures joined forces, it would be difficult to kill Wu Yong.


    But to take down Ye Futian, it was necessary to pass over Wu Yong.


    Zhu Kong and the others naturally understood this as well.


    "Zhong Lou, Raven, we will be the main attack, the others can take down Ye Futian," Zhu Kong said. Inside the solar storms, there was a Sun God sword penetrating the storm. Zhu Kong''s body went downward, with might authority.


    Zhong Lou and Raven moved at the same time with him toward that peerless Zhonglou Battle Form, trying to hinder Wu Yong.


    The other four Nirvanas bypassed Wu Yong in an attempt to take down Ye Futian.


    Wu Yong''s strength was given by Ye Futian. If Ye Futian was to be taken down, Wu Yong would lose without a fight.


    Seeing the seven Nirvanas coming closer, like gods diving down, Wu Yong''s countenance remained unchanged. The flames kept burning on his body, and at the moment when the seven Nirvanas descended, an infinite Golden Raven manifested, drowning the sky. It came out attacking.


    This Golden Raven seemed to possess torrential breath that seemed to be transformed by his will. The seven Nirvanas attacked at the same time.


    Wu Yong stared at one person in particular��the relatively weak chief of the Shang clan among the seven great Nirvanas.


    "Thousand Divine Arms!" Ye Futian commanded. Wu Yong understood. Suddenly, on top of the towering and terrible Zhonglou Battle Form, infinite arms suddenly appeared, and each one of them was surrounded by terrible flame. It was as if there were thousands of arms being extended at the same time, grabbing at the seven cultivators of the Nirvana Plane.


    Boom. Wu Yong stepped into the air, suppressing the firmament above.


    The shadow of Emperor Kua appeared to become solid. At this moment, the seven nirvana figures had an illusion. It was as if Emperor Kua had returned for this battle using Wu Yong''s body.


    These abilities were all abilities of Emperor Kua!

 1258 Saint King of Gai

    The head of the Shang clan��Shang Yan��saw thousands of arms blasting toward him, and retreated rapidly.


    The Thousand Divine Arms stretched out. Each arm turned into a storm of vortex, wrapping the space within it as if there was nowhere to escape.


    Shang Yan''s hands condensed the seal. He stopped in his tracks. His body was radiant all over. The light of flames surrounded his entire body, protecting him.


    The storm came in a great gulp as the two flames collided together, and he was directly sucked into the storm of the Thousand Divine Arms.


    Boom. A horrific vortex of devouring power descended, and Shang Yan felt that the flames around him had now turned into currents of flames toward the other, and was swallowed up and melted madly.


    The expression on his face was terrible. How could this be? he thought.


    He was of the Nirvana Plane, and his flame was extremely overbearing, capable of melting everything. Every attack that came near would be destroyed.


    But the flame of the other swallowed and refined his flames. It was as if its ranking was higher.


    Unless it was because it had borrowed from Emperor Kua and inherited the secret of his treasures.


    When his thought turned to this, his look was gloomy. The flaming currents over his body were swallowed up madly as he was buried in a vortex of flames. This vortex turned into a sun, and he seemed to be in the center of the fire of the sun. The infinite fire of the sun intended to burn him into nothingness.


    Boom! Shang Yan himself had a flaming body. The fire of the sun refined his body but could not burn it up within a short time. He bathed in flames as if he had turned into a god of flames.


    Elsewhere, great battles erupted, but while Wu Yong was defending and attacking, his focus was on Shang Yan.


    Among the leavers of the seven major tribes, Shang Yan was the weakest. Now that he had come upon the opportunity, he would rush in and get rid of one of them first.


    This way, it could destroy the confidence of all other tribes.


    Shang Yan had already been shrouded in a solar sphere, and the flame in the center of the sun appeared crimson red, like blood, which was shocking to behold.


    Even, Shang Yan felt a sense of danger.


    Ye Futian was manipulating the Sun Spirit Orb, and rays of true solar fire condensed and manifested, following Wu Yong''s body. It flew toward the space where Shang Yang was. The true fire fell and sprinkled on him.


    At this moment, Shang Yan felt a sizzling sound from his flaming body. It was being burnt and melted.


    "Impossible..."


    As Shang Yan sensed this change, his face was filled with shock. It was impossible.


    He was of the Nirvana Plane. Even if Wu Yong had borrowed the way, it was not possible that he could have melted him.


    As the light of true fire continued to fall, the sizzling continued, and a series of even stronger crimson beams fell down. They pierced his flaming body so that his body became unreal under the flames. Then, a sharp pain was felt.


    Boom! He took one step, his body soared into the sky, brought the flames into the heavens above. He was trying to escape.


    From the outside, Wu Yong, as a Zhonglou war god, glanced over the space where he was. Divine fire shot out from his eyes, falling wildly. The fire of the Great Path was madly flowing above the immense torso. From the outside, Shang Yan''s body could be seen within the sun.


    As they saw this scene, Zhu Kong and others were greatly shocked. Zhu Kong manifested a giant Sun God sword, pierced through the void, and headed in that direction, trying to save Shang Yan.


    After all, the seven major tribes came together; their honor was bound together.


    From the solar storm, countless lines of true fire were shot out, swallowing Shang Yan''s body little by little until, with a final loud bang, the sun exploded. Shang Yan''s body disappeared into the endless flame.


    He was burned and killed.


    "Sir!" In the distance, the faces of the cultivators of the Shang Clan had significantly changed.


    Zhu Kong and the others also changed. Wu Yong was now able to vanquish the existence of Nirvana cultivators.


    Although Shang Yan was a weaker existence among the leaders of the seven tribes, he was once stronger than the former leader of the Wu clan.


    Among the nine major tribes, now only the leaders of eight major tribes remained.


    If Wu Yong were removed, then there would only be seven major tribes.


    Moreover, too many of the Beili Tribe seemed to be a little too uncertain, waiting to see which way the wind would blow.


    They didn''t expect that when the seven major tribes came to arrest people that they would lose someone from the Nirvana Plane among them, or that Ye Futian was able to lend the way to Wu Yong.


    This disturbed him extremely. After the death of Emperor Kua, even though the nine major tribes continued to fight amongst themselves, they still maintained the same stance against outsiders, which was the reason why they could rule the western territory for such a long time.


    Now, were the nine major tribes finally about to usher in major changes?


    Of course, beside disturbance, there was also anger.


    Zhu Kong stared at Wu Yong and said, "The nine major tribes were as one, and you killed Shang Yan."


    Wu Yong glanced at him, indifferent. The instigator was Zhu Kong. What sense did it make to accuse him now?


    If they could have killed him to plunder the inheritance of Emperor Kua, would they have shown mercy?


    Absolutely not.


    "I''m cleaning house for Emperor Kua. You have moved against the heirs of Emperor Kua and betrayed the Emperor''s will. You are already rebels," Wu Yong said. Since both sides had already chosen different positions, the only way was to keep going.


    Zhu Kong''s body soared into the sky, and the bright sunlight above the firmament showered on his body. An endless Sun God sword was suddenly created between heaven and earth, covering the vast and immense space in it, sheltering the sky and shielding the sun.


    Qianye city, countless many looked up, and all were able to witness this shocking scene.


    Many continued to retreat away from this battlefield; it had become too dangerous here.


    Zhu Kong, it seemed, was not intending to approach but attacked toward the distance and along the borders.


    Not only him, but the other six Nirvana figures had all released their power.


    With Zhu Kong''s finger pointed downward, the infinite Sun God sword fell down, destroying everything.


    In the distance, a sacred flaming dragon came roaring. These magnificent dragons appeared as true dragons that had descended upon the world and rushed toward those Sun God swords.


    Along with the great roars, a figure came along. The man was holding a scepter. It was Beili Qiu, the leader of the Beili tribe.


    "Zhu Kong, are you still so obstinate?" Beili Qiu said to Zhu Kong, who was in the void.


    "Are you also on his side?" Zhu Kong stared at Beili Qiu and said. Previously, Beili Qiu''s attitude was ambiguous. He had helped Ye Futian when Ye Futian and his party came out of the ancestral lands.


    Now, seeing that Ye Futian could lend the way to Wu Yong, had he come out and chosen his position?


    "You have delusional thoughts and wanted to plunder what was not yours. Have you ever considered that the relics of Emperor Kua had existed for many years, and if the nine major tribes were not able to obtain them, it was because they were destined not to belong to the nine major tribes? City Lord Ye entered the ancestral lands and inherited Emperor Kua''s last will and testament. Even if you don''t recognize his status and are unwilling to follow him. Why can''t you give City Lord Ye some time? Perhaps, he could lead the nine ancestral lands?"


    Beili Qiu said out loud clearly. He was on Ye Futian''s side, and there were public and personal reasons.


    Ye Futian was able to obtain the inheritance because his talent was recognized by Emperor Kua, creating history. His future was unlimited, and he may become the next Emperor Kua.


    As for personal reasons, it had been proven that the nine major tribes were having difficulties taking them down, so why not follow the trend and make friends with Ye Futian?


    Zhu Kong''s look was indifferent. Right now, there were already three nirvana figures around Ye Futian.


    Wu Yong, Shen Tianzhan, Beili Qiu. And it was unknown whether or not more nirvana figures were hiding within Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    But what really frustrated them was that Ye Futian was able to lend the way to Wu Yong to exert the fighting power of Nirvana''s peak, so that they could not approach him and were unable to take down Ye Futian.


    Today, all seven majors tribes were here. What should have been a simple and easy battle turned out to be so incredibly difficult.


    And a nirvana existence was killed because of it.


    But now, the two sides were like water against fire. It was a state of conflict that could not be easily avoided.


    Even if they did not kill Ye Futian, the other would come and find them sooner or later in the future.


    If Ye Futian took Wu Yong to break them down one by one in the future, it would be a great disaster for each of the major tribes.


    Under such circumstances, they had to succeed today no matter what.


    When his thoughts turned to this, Zhu Kong look around the people surrounding heaven and earth. Those who were still nearby were all top influencers, and there were existences of Nirvana on the sideline, guarding.


    He said loudly, "You have all witnessed this battle. Ye Futian possesses the treasures passed down by Emperor Kua. According to the eyewitnesses of the Wu clan, they have seen the gates of the ancestral lands of our nine tribes, and at the time of the inheritance, Ye Futian had used the things inherited by Emperor Kua to devour the entire ancestral land in fire, which caused the ruins of the ancestral land to disappear. Now, the power he lent to Wu Yong was likely only part of the power from the ancestral lands that were devoured. Use your imagination, what do you think that would be? "


    Everyone who heard the words of Zhu Kong revealed a strange look. They understood. No wonder the seven major tribes arrived together and had already determined his crime, intending to take Ye Futian away forcibly, even if what they did would enrage Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    What a terrible thing Emperor Kua''s inheritance was, in addition to the secret treasure that could devour the whole ancestral land.


    Seeing was believing.


    At this moment, Ye Futian''s lending the way to Wu Yong had also confirmed Zhu Kong''s words.


    If they could get it, would they have a chance to take it one step higher on the way of the flames, or would they comprehend the will of Emperor Kua and impact the realm of Renhuang?


    When their thoughts turned to this, the eyes of even more people were burning red hot.


    Ye Futian was in the flames of the sun, indifferent, merely staring at Zhu Kong, who was in the void. Was this to incite everyone to fight against him?


    Zhu Kong knew that it was difficult for the seven major tribes to achieve, so he began to use the power of the Crimson Dragon Realm to make him the target of public criticism. It was quite vicious.


    Even if they could not obtain it, they would cut him off, so he had nowhere to go.


    "Everyone who came here today must have heard about it. Now, why not get together, and whoever can get it, it will belong to that person. How about it?" Zhu Kong continued, urging everyone to take a shot.


    Many of the top figures were tempted. In another direction, Xing Qiu had already returned to the side of Saint King of Gai. He had suffered major injuries. Ye Futian''s battle had forced a stop between their fight with Yu Sheng.


    "Uncle, do you want to try?" Xing Qiu said to Saint King of Gai.


    "Are you interested?" Saint King of Gai asked Xing Qiu.


    "The relic of Renhuang that could devour the ancestral lands. It does sound interesting. Even if I do not practice the art of flames, I can comprehend. Not to mention, this thing is bound to be valuable," Xing Qiu said.


    "Very well, then. Since you are interested, I''ll take it for you as a present," Saint King of Gai said softly, as if he decided to make a move. The treasure must be his!

 1259 The Mighty Ones Attacking

    The Saint King of Gai had been in the debt of the Ninth Servant, city lord of the Ancient Imperial City, since he was young. He was subsequently taught by the Ninth Servant, resulting in his legendary status in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    His plane could have easily made him the lord of a city. However, he had not done so. Instead, he''d spent his days either traveling the land or training in the Ancient Imperial City. Everyone who knew him saw him as a member of the Ancient Imperial City.


    Due to his close relationship with the Ninth Servant and the others, even though they were not related by blood, Xing Kai and Xing Qiu called him their uncle.


    The Saint King of Gai nonetheless valued Xing Kai and Xing Qiu very much. Everyone in Crimson Dragon Realm knew that to be true.


    The Saint King of Gai did not have any descendants, so he nurtured the Xing brothers as if they were his own.


    The Ninth Servant, who was known as the number one Holiness of Nirvana, hardly needed his help with anything. As such, he was still unable to repay his debt to the Ninth Servant.


    Furthermore, he had not worried about the Nine Tribes of Emperor Kua coming after him when he''d taken it.


    The Saint King of Gai naturally knew that Zhu Kong had instigated others to take out Ye Futian because he was unable to do so himself. This would get rid of Ye Futian and give them all the chance to take the secret treasures of Emperor Kua once Ye Futian was dead.


    However, only six of the nine tribes stood together at the moment. Their allegiances were divided.


    But then again, he would not have to concern himself with those western tribes once he got his hands on the treasure.


    Even if the nine tribes stood together as one, there would still be nothing for him to fear.


    In the eras that followed Emperor Kua''s passing, the nine tribes lost their former glory. The nine tribes, which still reigned over the western region nonetheless, hardly concerned him.


    He saw the nine tribes as nothing compared to the Ancient Imperial City.


    If the Ninth Servant made a move, not even Holiness of Nirvanas would be able to stand in his way.


    The Saint King of Gai stepped forward, bursting with dazzling golden light.


    Many pairs of eyes turned to him in an instant. All those looking shuddered intensely.


    No one had anticipated that the first to act would be the Saint King of Gai.


    There were many top-notch figures present that day. No one knew if they would act against Qianye City. They all waited to see what would happen.


    Someone would make a move after Zhu Kong spoke.


    What surprised them all was that the first to make a move was the fearsome Saint King of Gai.


    All of them wondered what would happen to Qianye City and Ye Futian after that.


    Would they be able to escape this ordeal?


    Ye Futian shot a glance at the Saint King of Gai. Many people behind him made severe expressions at the sight.


    Shen Tianzhan''s pupils contracted somewhat as he said, "Be careful, the Saint King of Gai is an extremely renowned Holiness of Nirvana. His art at manipulating space is second to none. He is an extremely dangerous threat."


    Ye Futian, who was basking in the light of the sun, looked coldly at the Saint King of Gai and Xing Qiu as they walked toward him.


    Was this the Saint King of Gai''s will, or Xing Qiu''s?


    But then again, that hardly mattered.


    The Saint King of Gai stepped forward. Frightening storms of space whipped up around them as he threw his palm forward.


    Terrifying whirlpools appeared near Wu Yong and Ye Futian in an instant.


    Wu Yong, who had taken the form of a god of war and fire, shot a look at the Saint King of Gai, feeling extremely threatened.


    The will of the great path wielded by the Saint King of Gai was indeed second to none.


    His eyes turned into the Divine Eyes of the Sun. Terrifying will of the flames transformed into the sun, shrouding the Saint King of Gai.


    The Saint King of Gai responded by grabbing them with his hand. The space around them was twisted until the will of the great path was crushed.


    One wave of his hand was all it had taken to destroy it all.


    The Saint King of Gai continued to walk forward. It took only a single step to close in on Wu Yong and the others.


    The surrounding mighty beings were all shocked by the move.


    The Saint King of Gai was indeed a legendary, fearsome figure. His attacks were able to shake Wu Yong, who had borrowed powers to use as his own.


    The space around The Saint King of Gai warped as the will of the great path of space emerged, conjuring terrifying whirlpools to devour everything. He extended his hand again. The space between both Wu Yong and Ye Futian was twisted. Ye Futian sensed that a terrifying will of the great path was indeed intending to separate him from Wu Yong.


    It was apparent that the Saint King of Gai had realized that Wu Yong was currently at the pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvana level, making it difficult to find attacks against Wu Yong.


    As such, the only thing he could do was sever the connection between Ye Futian and Wu Yong.


    Zhu Kong and the others undoubtedly knew that as well. They were, however, unable to pull this off.


    However, the Saint King of Gai''s manipulation of space made it possible nonetheless.


    If the connection between them was severed and the borrowed powers failed, Wu Yong would only be a common Holiness of Nirvana. If that happened, any of the six tribes'' Holiness of Nirvanas would be able to fight him.


    Ye Futian would have no way to resist the incoming attacks then.


    Wu Yong''s expression changed when he realized what the Saint King of Gai was trying to do. His eyes turned into divine eyes, intending to trap the Saint King of Gai in the fires of the sun.


    However, the Saint King of Gai was extremely perceptive of space. He simply took one step forward and blitzed through space at blinding speeds. It was as if he was trying to tear space itself apart. The attack was unable to even touch his body.


    The Thousand Divine Arms burst out and covered out the sky in an instant, blocking out the sky. Countless flaming hands shot forth, burying the space with a flurry of attacks.


    A warped storm of space appeared right before the Saint King of Gai. He stepped into the air and extended his hand forward. The devastating storm twisted and tore the incoming hands of the great path. Will of the great path of space then shrouded Wu Yong''s Chonglou Battle Form at the same time, separating him from Ye Futian.


    A twisted storm of space shot at Ye Futian at the same time.


    "Look out!" Shen Tianzhan stood before Ye Futian and launched a palm attack, sending the incoming attack reeling backward.


    The aura around Wu Yong dwindled rapidly. His boundless Flames of the Way seemed to have been extinguished. The space whirlpool caught his humongous body and severed the connection between him and Ye Futian. Terrifying tearing powers of space appeared between the two men, preventing Ye Futian from borrowing Wu Yong''s powers.


    The Saint King of Gai sent a palm attack forward. It turned into boundless blades of space that tore through the air before him, clashing with the attacks from Wu Yong. Wu Yong''s battle form was being wrecked bit by bit and rapidly reducing back to its original form.


    "Terrifying indeed."


    "Such is the power of the Saint King of Gai. His powers of space are indeed at their very pinnacle."


    Many shuddered deep down. He had separated Wu Yong and Ye Futian, directly diminishing Wu Yong''s combat prowess. It also rendered Ye Futian completely helpless.


    Zhu Kong and the others all paid close attention to the battlefield. They had been watching the battle even before the had Saint King of Gai acted.


    However, at the exact second when Wu Yong and Ye Futian were forcibly separated, they finally stepped out.


    Six Holiness of Nirvanas emerged instantaneously. Their bodies descended from the sky and headed straight for Ye Futian.


    All six of them had terrifying powers. Their pressure permeated the space around them.


    Ye Futian sensed stifling pressure and nothing else. Shen Tianzhan, who was by his side, felt their intense, looming pressure as well.


    Beili Qiu, the leader of the Beili tribe, frowned.


    The Saint King of Gai was nothing short of a nightmare when he attacked.


    The Saint King of Gai shot a cold glance at Zhu Kong and the others when they moved. They had instigated him to make a move. They wanted to take Ye Futian away from him.


    "Did you think that was possible?"


    "What are you people taking me for?"


    He stepped forward, zipping through space. The six Holiness of Nirvanas descended within an instant, lashing out at Ye Futian.


    Boom!


    Terrifying pulling power grabbed at Ye Futian from below, sending him reeling back. Zhu Kong and the other five clashed with Shen Tianzhan and Beili Qiu, sending the two of them flying backward. The six went straight for Ye Futian.


    However, there seemed to be a terrifying matrix of the great path lying in wait.


    A figure appeared behind Ye Futian. He stepped forward and stood before Ye Futian. The image of the matrix continued to grow and become extremely dazzling.


    "Qian." The figure extended their hand and conjured an ancient symbol. It then transformed into a wall of the heavens, blocking out the sky.


    Boom...


    The attacks from Zhu Kong and the others bombarded them. The matrix began to crack. They all looked at the handsome figure standing before Ye Futian.


    They were surprised to find yet another Holiness of Nirvana on the battlefield.


    Ye Futian turned to look at the figure before him and felt just as shocked.


    He''d been wondering where his elder brothers and Feixue had been training in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Yan Yuan was standing right before him.


    Yan Yuan had appeared in front of him when he was in trouble.


    It was apparent that he''d known about the commotion. The fact that he was able to come to offer support meant that he had been observing from behind the scenes all the while.


    There had been many Holiness of Nirvanas around on that day. Many members of top forces were already there, so no one had paid extra attention to him as he''d lurked in the shadows.


    If Ye Futian had been able to take care of the fight himself, Yan Yuan probably would not have appeared.


    "Elder brother," Ye Futian called out.


    "I''m no longer your elder brother." Yan Yuan brought the powers of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension to the very extreme. Wills of the great path coursed about in a frenzy across the image above them. The attacks from Zhu Kong and the others caused more and more cracks to appear on the image.


    Ye Futian did not say anything else. It did not matter what their relationship was anymore.


    Boom.


    The matrix shattered with a rumble, sending Yan Yuan''s body reeling. He then grabbed Ye Futian and retreated.


    However, when he touched Ye Futian, he vaguely felt an eerily formidable power that sent tingles throughout his body. That was probably the thing that Ye Futian had acquired from Emperor Kua''s ruins. He''d borrowed it to allow Wu Yong to fight at maximum capacity.


    Voom.


    The Sun God sword zipped past.


    "Run on your own." When Yan Yuan saw several Holiness of Nirvanas appearing, he knew that his hands were full. They would prevent him from guarding Ye Futian. He struggled to conjure a matrix of the great path again as he moved but still managed to seal his surroundings for a moment.


    "Move," a faraway voice said. Someone else appeared. It was yet another Holiness of Nirvana.


    It was yet another Holiness of Nirvana from Xiang City, as well as the Saint Lord of Jiuyang and the leader of the Chang clan from Jianmu City.


    They were all there to claim the relic of Emperor Kua.


    Things were clear at that moment. No one could have seen the eventual outcome. With so many Holiness of Nirvanas attacking, there was simply nowhere for Ye Futian to go.


    The relic of Emperor Kua would fall into the hands of whoever managed to get to him.


    The mighty beings all ganged up on Ye Futian. Their auras were simply terrifying.


    He was done for. That was the thought that occurred to many who were watching from afar.


    There was simply no way Ye Futian would be able to escape in one piece under such circumstances.


    It seemed that the lineage of Emperor Kua would prove to be his downfall.


    Ye Futian, who was basking in the Divine Fire of the Sun, looked up at his pursuers. His eyes, which were wrapped in flames, looked extremely cold somehow.


    The imperial will within his Life Palace infused into his body. The Fire Spirit Orb inside his Life Palace burst with dazzling light, resonating with his surroundings.


    Towering, dazzling lights burst out of his body in an instant, igniting a terrifying firestorm.

 1260 Burning Down Holiness of Nirvana

    Raging flames swept around Ye Futian''s body as his might was felt throughout his surroundings. Those who were pursuing him halted in their tracks right away.


    All of them glared at the figure basking in the divine fire before them; all of them felt a shuddering aura emanating from him.


    Ye Futian slowly rose to the air, hovering in the sky as if he was a lotus with its root severed. It was as if he was weightless. Flames burst in his eyes as his blood boiled within his body.


    The spinning Sun Spirit Orb in his Life Palace burst with extremely brilliant light as if it was about to burn his Life Spirits up.


    Boom...


    A raging aura of flames swept out from Ye Futian''s body, flooding the entire sky and rolling far away.


    In that instant, the sky above Qianye City was drowned with auroras of flames. Everyone felt their hearts racing as they looked in Ye Futian''s direction.


    It felt as if time had stopped altogether.


    Ye Futian seemed to be able to do more than lend his powers to Wu Yong.


    He seemed to be able to tap into that power, making use of the power of Emperor Kua.


    Ye Futian, who was drifting in the air, looked up slowly and eyed the Holiness of Nirvanas who were there to kill him. He took a deep breath and said, "What does the lineage of Emperor Kua have anything to do with you people? Why don''t you leave a way out for all of us?"


    His eyes were burning as he spoke. Afterward, his body burned as well.


    His surroundings turned blood-red. The sun in the sky shone on his body. Boundless auras of flames flowed into him from thousands of miles away.


    Ye Futian''s body seemed to have turned into an extremely terrifying whirlpool, as if he had become a black hole of the sun, out to devour everything.


    His body seemed to be burning.


    Everyone around watched Ye Futian''s twisted expression. He looked as if he was being subjected to painful torture in purgatory. He felt all of his organs enduring the intense burning from the flames.


    A low-pitched noise was heard coming from Ye Futian. Frightening flames shot from his eyes as he looked up at the boundless sky.


    "I''d like to call upon Emperor Kua."


    A roar was heard as Ye Futian''s body was buried in the towering flames. Boundless Flames of the Way coalesced into a solid form. The resulting enormous being that took his place was a legendary Renhuang.


    The hearts of many those present were racing, especially those from the nine tribes.


    Zhu Kong looked up in awe at the solid form coming into view. The extremely towering body belonged to Emperor Kua who was emerging into the world again.


    Emperor Kua descended upon the world using Ye Futian''s body.


    "This can''t be..." Zhu Kong''s face was incredibly twisted. What he was seeing right there was unbelievable.


    He was not the only one. Everyone from the nine tribes trembled violently. Even the Holiness of Nirvanas were incapable of keeping their hearts from racing.


    Emperor Kua had perished many years ago. It was simply impossible for him to descend into the world again.


    However, what was taking place before their eyes was undeniable.


    Ye Futian had summoned Emperor Kua.


    He had conjured the form of Emperor Kua using the boundless Flames of the Way.


    "This is insane..."


    The people watching the battle from afar felt their hearts race as they wondered what they were seeing at that moment.


    Mighty ones from all over the Crimson Dragon Realm had gathered at the battle that day, including many of the top-notch forces and Holiness of Nirvana figures.


    They were all caught in the storm after fighting fierce battles.


    The storm became increasingly intense.


    Emperor Kua was standing right before them.


    The battlefield turned silent all of a sudden. All the Holiness of Nirvana who had been fighting stopped to look up at that figure.


    Flames continued to roar as the emperor''s body high in the sky. He was like some bottomless hole.


    Ye Futian was somewhere within that incredibly tall and mighty figure. His entire being was being buried in flames.


    His World Tree Life Spirit spread out in threads that enveloped his body, seeping into his veins as the imperial will went into full bloom. The blood in his veins continued to boil.


    He knew right away that he would have been able to make use of the borrowed powers as soon as he inherited the ruins of Emperor Kua. However, he was simply too weak to do so effectively due to his current plane.


    As such, he had deliberately lent his powers to Wu Yong when the fighting broke out to let Wu Yong do the fighting. While Ye Futian had been unable to lend it all to Wu Yong, due to the man''s Holiness of Nirvana level of powers, he''d been nonetheless able to bring his powers to the pinnacle of the Holiness of Nirvana plane.


    Ye Futian simply had not expected the Saint King of Gai to make a move and sever the connection between the two of them.


    He''d run out of options and had resorted to summoning Emperor Kua, using the power of the great path in his surroundings. His current plane meant that borrowing such terrifying powers would cost him greatly if he wasn''t careful. He could die without even knowing how he''d died.


    There was no way he would have gone that far unless his hand was forced.


    "This is not Emperor Kua. It is simply a will left behind in the ruins," Zhu Kong said with a brimming voice. Everyone had been shocked by the scene before them. However, the emperor had indeed passed and there was no way he could have been resurrected.


    Everyone came to their senses after hearing Zhu Kong''s words. They understood that Zhu Kong was making sense. If Emperor Kua had indeed come back to life, he would have been able to tear them to shreds with just one hand.


    "Furthermore, he only has powers at the first level of sainthood. He could suffer from the recoil at any given moment. No one expected that the thing he acquired would allow him to summon the emperor again," Zhu Kong said as he walked. The greed in his eyes was becoming increasingly apparent.


    He had to get his hands on it.


    He deemed it a terrible waste to leave something like that with Ye Futian. If he inherited those powers, he would be able to tap into them during battle.


    If that happened, no one in Crimson Dragon Realm under Renhuang would be able to fight him.


    If Zhu Kong harbored such thoughts, it was no surprise that others were thinking the same thing.


    The opportunity to become invincible among saints was right in front of them.


    So long as they were able to gain everything Ye Futian had acquired, they would be able to stand at the pinnacle of the Saint Plane.


    Other than that, it would also give them a chance to tap into the will of Renhuang, making it possible for them to move towards that plane in the future.


    It was a temptation like no other.


    Those who were of the Holiness of Nirvana level, especially those who were adept at fire powers, coveted it.


    Mightier ones felt their hands getting itchy.


    Somewhere far away, Xia Qingyuan and the others looked concerned. They no doubt understood that Ye Futian was borrowing the power of Emperor Kua''s lineage.


    If things got out of control, the consequences would be dire.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyes were ice-cold as she shot a glance at those attempting to make a move.


    It was incredibly frustrating for her. Despite having become a saint, such a level of battles was only capable of being fought by the very pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvanas. There was no way she would be able to interfere.


    The aftershocks of the fights between those people alone would have sufficed to destroy common saints.


    They were not even qualified to even get near the battlefield, let alone fight in it.


    The scorching rays of the sun were intense high above the sky. Zhu Kong gathered the flames of the great path from his surroundings. High above the sky and below the sun, an immensely huge Divine Sword of the Sun appeared.


    He roared as he looked beneath him. The Divine Sword of the Sun descended from the sky, heading straight for the enormous figure of Emperor Kua.


    That tall and imposing figure lifted its arm and extended it toward the sky. Its arm turned into a terrifying whirlpool that began to tear everything in its immediate surroundings apart.


    It didn''t even bother to block the sword coming down on it. Instead, it went on consuming the flames on the sword.


    The sword slashed into its arm, attempted to cut it down as the blade swung at the emperor''s enormous body. However, gleaming Flames of the Way were conjured to melt the sword. The sword was gradually consumed by the huge figure.


    Zhu Kong''s probing attack was consumed right away, causing him to look glum. The materialized figure of Emperor Kua had developed the way of the flames, making flames entirely ineffective against it.


    While it was the true Emperor Kua, it was nonetheless a construct conjured out of Flames of the Way.


    Boom.


    At that moment, the tall, imposing figure suddenly stepped down.


    That enormous figure''s head reached the heavens while its feet touched the ground.


    One step forward caused the ground to burn immediately, overwhelming the city in flames.


    The flames rushed into the sky. They were out to bury the entire battlefield in flames.


    The huge landmass was lifted and thrown through the air. That attack was imbued with boundless Flames of the Way, capable of melting everything. The flames in its palm burned as hot as the sun.


    The Holiness of Nirvana who were closest to Ye Futian were not those from the six tribes, but the two from Jianmu City. They were the Saint Lord of Jiuyang of the Xi clan and the head of the Chang clan.


    As such, the terrifying attack had been launched first and foremost at those two Holiness of Nirvanas.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang was surrounded by nine suns, all of which burst with boundless light. They moved forward and continued to split, turning into millions of suns and heading straight for that huge palm attack. He wanted to see just how powerful the figure of Emperor Kua was.


    Boom!


    The suns all crumbled as the palm attack devoured the flames before continuing to press forward.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang''s expression turned severe, wondering if flames would be entirely useless against that being.


    Boundless spears of the sun appeared behind the leader of the Chang clan, intending to pierce the huge palm. However, the result was the same. The spears were devoured, altogether useless.


    All flames were being devoured, regardless of type.


    Both of them stepped into the air and retreated.


    At that very moment, the huge palm attack quickly engulfed everything in their vicinity. A devouring whirlpool appeared at the center of the palm.


    Boom...


    The flames conjured by both men rushed at the whirlpool on the palm. Both of them felt as if they were about to be devoured by that palm.


    Both men turned glum and retreated even more quickly.


    The palm continued to extend forward, blocking out the sky as the flames on their bodies roared. They were being sucked into the whirlpool in a frenzy. It was as if the whirlpool was trying to suck their flames dry.


    The situation was so severe that even the Sun Life Spirits around the Saint Lord of Jiuyang were about to be devoured.


    "Melt," a cold voice said from within figure of Emperor Kua. Its huge palm trembled as boundless Flames of the Way shot out from the devouring whirlpool, engulfing the place and shrouding the two Holiness of Nirvanas in boundless Flames of the Way.


    That huge palm seemed to be spitting flames from the body of Emperor Kua. The bodies of the Saint Lord of Jiuyang and the leader of the Chang clan were buried by the flames.


    "Be one," the Saint Lord of Jiuyang shouted as he took his Divine Body of Nine Suns form. A dazzling sun shot out of the flames and flew into the sky.


    However, his heart continued to race. Even his arms were trembling.


    His Divine Body of Nine Suns had almost been devoured.


    The Great Elder of the Chang clan was not as fortunate. He let out shrill, eerie shrieks as he was buried in the flames. He wanted to burst out, but the palm continued to spit Flames of the Way, burning away his body and soul.


    "I give up," The Great Elder of the Chang clan shouted. His body began to disintegrate. He was about to disappear at any moment.


    "Too late." The voice that replied was a cold one. It sounded like the voice of death itself.

 1261 Submission

    Countless eyes turned in that direction. Boundless Flames of the Way burst from the enormous palm, sealing the Great Elder of the Chang clan within.


    The Great Elder of the Chang clan let out a shrill howl as rumbling noises were heard from within the flames. He took the form of a huge god of war. However, he was still being consumed. His body was rapidly losing its form.


    It was as if he was no longer a being of a solid body. Instead, his body was made of flames.


    "Clan leader!" All the people of the Chang clan turned pale at the sight. Chang Huai, who had once entered the ruins of Emperor Kua, was the palest of them all.


    Their clan leader''s body was gradually turning to nothing. Everything around him was on the verge of melting down.


    The flames bursting from the clan leader''s body were being consumed.


    An ethereal being was about to burst from the flames with a howl.


    However, bursts of golden divine flames were descending, causing that specter of a being to howl again.


    "No..." the Great Elder of the Chang clan continued to howl. He looked at Ye Futian with a terrified expression. He could only see Emperor Kua''s silhouette, tall and proud.


    The clan leader was a top-notch figure in Crimson Dragon Realm, as well as a Holiness of Nirvana. He was the clan leader of a very renowned clan in Jianmu City.


    He was about to die.


    A young man on the Proving Holiness level had tapped into external powers, taking the form of Emperor Kua to cook him to death.


    "The treasure was left behind by Emperor Kua, but you nonetheless need to be alive to take it," the tall, imposing figure said in a voice that reverberated throughout the space, causing the hearts of countless people to race. Even the Holiness of Nirvanas felt this threat to their lives.


    Ye Futian was terrifying, even more than when he had been lending his powers to Wu Yong.


    It was no wonder that he had been so confident before. He was able to lend his powers to Wu Yong, but he was also fully capable of fighting alone.


    If the leaders of the former seven tribes, Wu Yong, and Shen Tianzhan had been there, there would not have been any problems.


    However, given that so many mighty beings were joining the battle and even the Saint King of Gai making a move, Ye Futian''s hands were indeed being forced.


    Boom...


    A raging rumble was heard. The body of the Great Elder of the Chang clan was completely consumed in the frightening flames. His body was reduced to a ball of fire.


    "No!" the mighty members of the Chang clan yelled. Their faces were very pale.


    Their clan''s leader had been killed.


    Their eyes fixed on those flames. They wondered what being a Holiness of Nirvana meant to them anymore.


    Having a Holiness of Nirvana in their midst meant that they had the chance to bag a city and become lords. It would have enabled them to create their own clan and establish a top-notch force.


    The reason why the Chang clan had been able to gain such prestige in Jianmu City was simple��they had the greatest power backing them, a Holiness of Nirvana.


    In the world of cultivation, having top-notch combat prowess meant everything.


    Their clan leader had been killed. This meant that the Chang clan was now off the list of top-notch forces.


    All the industries they had in Jianmu City would be taken away by others. There was no way for them to keep control of all their industries.


    Furthermore, there would be other dire consequences to deal with, such as the many enemies that would be eyeing the wealth of their clan.


    Every single person and force that they had offended before was waiting to do them harm.


    The death of their clan leader represented nothing less than a disaster.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang looked down on the vanishing body in the air and felt a chill running down his spine.


    He wondered what would have happened if he''d been the one getting cooked to death.


    The fighting stopped all of a sudden. Yan Yuan turned around to look at where Ye Futian was. He sensed a harrowing aura in Ye Futian when he was near. The power emanating from his now gave him the same feeling.


    It surprisingly felt like the mysterious power residing within Feixue''s body.


    He wondered if the treasure that Ye Futian had acquired from Emperor Kua''s ruins was something similar to whatever was inside Feixue''s body.


    His teacher had sealed the power in Feixue''s body, never letting Feixue use it for training. His teacher had been afraid of the consequences that would result, fearing that it would exceed what Feixue could endure.


    At present, Ye Futian was cornered enough that he''d had to tap into such powers to do battle. If the recoil was more severe than expected, the consequences would be dire.


    Yan Yuan wondered how Ye Futian was able to endure using such powers.


    If Feixue tried to pull off what Ye Futian had pulled, he was sure that the likelihood of her death would have been over 90 percent.


    He''d been able to deduce that from how Feixue tapped into the power of that thing inside her to train.


    Ye Futian had to be severely cornered by the many Holiness of Nirvanas to perform such a feat.


    Things would not have come to this otherwise.


    An elder appeared in the distant sky. He looked down at the battlefield with a faint smile on his lips.


    He found it interesting that Ye Futian had succeeded in inheriting Emperor Kua''s ruins.


    However, he found so many Holiness of Nirvanas ganging up on their junior to be rather unsightly.


    Even after stepping into the Holiness of Nirvana level, they still wanted to become invincible on such a plane. If they succeeded in becoming invincible on the Holiness of Nirvana Plane, they would probably want to get to the Renhuang Plane next.


    The further one''s journey into cultivation went, the greater their yearning for greater planes would become. It was because they had already seen things that were so beautiful that they wanted to reach higher heights to see more.


    "This is not Emperor Kua. This is just a specter that he conjured using the treasure''s power. Do not get near him," Zhu Kong said. He too felt a tinge of fear and panic inside him.


    If they gave up them, it would be a catastrophe for the tribes.


    There was simply no way Ye Futian could just let the six tribes go, especially not after all the fighting they had done that day.


    Their only way forward was to kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s continued existence would pose a great threat to them. They needed to take him out.


    Ye Futian glanced at the leaders of the six tribes. The eyes of Emperor Kua turned to the leader of the Vermillion Bird tribe. A terrifying aura of sharpness emanated from him.


    "You wretched beast. You see your emperor in front of you and you refuse to submit?" the huge figure shouted. He fired a terrifying will into the mind of the being. The clan leader felt a chill run through him, making him balk.


    He felt rather dazed at that moment. It was as if he was facing the emperor himself.


    "You once served as my steed. You should have stuck with your mission and aided the one inheriting my powers. I shall give you one more chance. If you''re willing to serve me and kill Zhu Kong, all of your crimes of the past shall be absolved," another voice said, reverberating throughout the place.


    The look in the eyes of the leader of the Vermillion Bird tribe suggested that he was struggling with the decision.


    He naturally understood that the one speaking was Ye Futian. He realized that Ye Futian was pretending to be the emperor by mimicking the emperor''s tone.


    However, Ye Futian was attempting to spare him as well.


    If he changed his stance right there and then, it might be possible for him to come out in one piece.


    He hesitated.


    "Can''t you see that he is playing you for a fool?" Zhu Kong asked, looking at the Vermillion Bird tribe leader. He was surprised to see that the other tribe leader was hesitating.


    The Vermillion Bird tribe leader was still hesitating. Wu Yong had been the first one to submit to Ye Futian, and Wu Yong had become a Holiness of Nirvana.


    The Beili tribe decided to do the same and stand together with Ye Futian.


    Why were they all doing this?


    Ye Futian had been able to inherit the ruins of Emperor Kua. After the battle they had fought that day, there was no doubt that Ye Futian''s talents were immense. He would probably become the next Emperor Kua.


    The reason that they had all thought only of taking the power from him instead of submitting was that he was believed to be too weak to be the new emperor. However, that thought seemed to be changing.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian was giving him a chance to change his mind.


    "While he was able to tap into Emperor Kua''s powers and bring this much combat prowess to bear at the moment, it is obvious that he is duping you because he is not confident in his ability to fight any further. Don''t fall into his trap," Zhu Kong said to everyone with a brimming voice.


    The power of Ye Futian''s side continued to grow. If the Vermillion Bird tribe leader decided to balk and switch sides, then the nine tribes would have only five left.


    Ye Futian would have three tribes on his side.


    "You now have a chance. If things were already set, what use would I have of you?" Emperor Kua said yet again. The eyes of the Vermillion Bird tribe leader kept shifting.


    If he were truly able to take Ye Futian down in such a situation, would he be able to get anything left behind by Emperor Kua?


    That wasn''t certain.


    Among the six remaining tribes, the Zhu clan and the Zhong tribe were the most powerful. Furthermore, others might also be getting a share.


    However, helping Ye Futian would be risky. He was considering what would happen if Ye Futian''s side lost in this tug-of-war.


    He was considering if the Zhu clan and the other tribes would still want to settle the score with him by then.


    "Alright." The Vermillion Bird tribe leader gritted his teeth and made his decision. He flashed and lashed out at Zhu Kong in the air. He''d made his decision, and now he needed to show that he was sincere.


    "You..." Zhu Kong had not expected yet another tribe to switch sides. He stepped forward and headed straight for the Vermillion Bird tribe leader.


    "Other than the Zhu clan and the Zhong tribe, are there any who wish to submit?" Ye Futian asked. "If any tribe wishes to submit, each side will have four tribes each. Regardless of how the battle ends, there will always be four tribes standing on one side. If that were the case, there wouldn''t be any need for further concerns."


    After the Vermillion Bird tribe, there were still the Nanli tribe, the Raven tribe, and the Jue tribe left.


    "There is still one place left. Any tribe that decides to submit to me will receive the powers of Emperor Kua to aid their training," Ye Futian said.


    Despite having killed a Holiness of Nirvana to shock everyone, there were still too many enemies for him to take on at once.


    The situation was still dangerous for him. Even if he could defeat all of his enemies, it would be impossible for him to kill all of them. There was also the future to consider.


    As such, he needed powerful forces to submit to him.


    His powers at the moment were shocking. That, coupled with the lineage of Emperor Kua, made this a very good opportunity for him.


    He realized that most of the tribes were simply being forced to commit at the moment. As such, what he wanted to do now was give them a push and an opportunity.


    Xia Qingyuan, who was watching Ye Futian from the distance, found that Ye Futian was being far more composed in dealing with matters than he''d ever been in the past. Even at such a critical moment, he was thinking not of slaughtering his enemies, but of giving them the choice to submit to him.


    That would benefit his future endeavors in Crimson Dragon Realm a great deal in the long run.


    If he were to be able to get command over greater tribes of the western region, then there would be fewer forces capable of shaking him in the future. What was happening on that day would not happen again.


    She understood that there was no way Ye Futian could simply fight like this every time. If he recoiled, it would be extremely devastating.


    "I have witnessed Emperor Kua''s lineage today and I believe that you, Lord Ye, have earned the late emperor''s approval. We of the nine tribes have always belonged to Emperor Kua. As such, the Nanli tribe is willing to submit to you, and to aid you in bringing the former glory of Emperor Kua''s era into reality again." The leader of the Nanli tribe made his decision right there and then.


    The expression on Zhu Kong and the rest''s faces were extremely gloomy and ugly.

 1262 The Star Plucking Sain

    Out of the top figures of the nine tribes, one had been killed by Ye Futian. Eight of the top figures remained.


    With the Nanli Tribe leader and the Vermillion Bird Tribe leader submitting to him, four tribes were choosing to side with Ye Futian and acknowledge his place as the successor to Emperor Kua. They were willing to work with him.


    The powers of both sides were almost equal, with four tribes standing on each side.


    No one had anticipated that things would turn out this way. When the seven tribes led their armies to attack Ye Futian, everyone had thought that the battle would be a slaughter.


    Furthermore, with more and more people joining the fray and ganging up on Ye Futian, it seemed as if he had made enemies everywhere.


    A man''s ruin was brought by the wealth he possessed. The relic of Emperor Kua that Ye Futian had should have been his downfall.


    However, no one could have anticipated what had transpired. The forces on Ye Futian''s side were actually growing stronger.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian had tapped into the will of Emperor Kua and come to possess some extremely formidable combat abilities.


    Everyone present understood that, if not for Ye Futian putting up such a show of force, he would have never gotten two other Holiness of Nirvanas to switch sides.


    The Vermillion Bird Tribe leader fought with Zhu Kong. At the same time, the Nanli Tribe leader headed straight for Zhong Lou. The Beili Tribe leader fought with the Raven Tribe leader while Wu Yong turned his attention at the Jue Tribe leader. Wu Yong began walking toward his opponent.


    The upcoming battle was no doubt going to be a civil war between the eight tribes.


    Regardless of how the battle would end, one thing was clear... The Nine Tribes of Emperor Kua would be no more. There would definitely be one side reigning supreme after this fight.


    The balance of things that had been maintained for ages was about to shift completely. All of this was due solely to the presence of Ye Futian.


    However, no one knew yet if it would be the Zhu Clan annexing the Wu Clan, or Ye Futian leading nine new tribes to rule over the western region.


    The raging battles continued to be fought. The Saint King of Gai watched the events unfold with a glum expression. Indeed, nothing had happened as expected.


    Someone like Yu Sheng had emerged out of Crimson Dragon Realm in that generation. There was Ye Futian to consider as well.


    It became apparent that the Xing brothers had met their rivals.


    Xing Kai, who was in the Regional King Ranking, might not have been as stressed in this situation. Xing Qiu, on the other hand, had lost to Yu Sheng in the Battle of Crimson River. Both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng would have become quite a pair of obstacles in their journeys of cultivation.


    The Saint King of Gai took one step into the air, heading towards the Emperor Kua''s specter without the slightest bit of reservation. It was a show of absolute confidence in his own powers.


    "Gai Huang, you dare to bully a member of the younger generation despite your level of training, and yet you still call yourself a Holiness of Nirvana?" A lazy voice was heard from somewhere in the air.


    Gai Huang''s brow twitched as an elder appeared before him. It was just an unassuming old man.


    Gai Huang frowned when the old man narrowed his eyes and smirked.


    "The Star Plucking Saint," Gai Huang said, recalling the name. He condescendingly asked, "So, you have recovered? And you dare stand in front of me again?"


    "My injuries are none of your concern. At the very least, I have no problem taking you on." The old man who''d appeared was the Star Plucking Saint, a figure who was extremely versed in the art of transformation. He was known to be peerless in both transformations and speed.


    "The Star Plucking Saint!"


    Everyone who was listening to the conversation between these two figures shuddered deep down. Yet another legendary figure of the Crimson Dragon Realm had appeared. The name of the Star Plucking Saint was known everywhere.


    It was also apparent that he was siding with Ye Futian.


    Many wondered when the Star Plucking Saint had gotten acquainted with Ye Futian.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang and Xi Chan, who was watching from afar, sported glum expressions. They knew that the Flames of the Way belonging to the Xi Clan had been stolen by the Star Plucking Saint. Furthermore, he''d then given the flames to Ye Futian.


    That act led to the scene taking place. If it had not been for the Star Plucking Saint handing the flames to Ye Futian personally, he might not have participated in the event, which in turn meant that he would not have entered the ancestral land of the nine tribes and acquired the lineage of Emperor Kua.


    As such, it could be said that the Star Plucking Saint was the one who had single-handedly brought forth what was happening.


    First, he handed the Flames of the Way to Ye Futian. Then, he showed up on the battlefield again. Many wondered what was he up to by doing all of that.


    Furthermore, what the Saint King of Gai said meant that the Star Plucking Saint had sustained injuries before. That probably had a lot to do with the Ancient Imperial City.


    They were wondering if the rumors had been true, if the Star Plucking Saint had fought with the Ninth Servant, the city lord of the Ancient Imperial City, and was injured in the fight.


    "That so?" Gai Huang said condescendingly. He stepped forth and grabbed at the air. An enormous golden handprint shot forward, heading straight for the Star Plucking Saint. The handprint shrouded the entire place, filled with terrifying shredding powers.


    It was as if the entire space was about to be torn to pieces.


    Boom!


    A loud rumble was heard as the Star Plucking turned into a body of stars. A holy ring of the great path glittered. Dazzling lights of the stars coursed about and merged with his body. Terrifying space-shredding powers tore away, crushing the external shell of stars and tearing at the Star Plucking Saint. It was still unable to crush all the stars in one go.


    As Holiness of Nirvanas, their plane had long ago melded with the great path. Death could come with only a single thought. Both attacks and defenses were done at harrowing magnitudes.


    Stars burst out around the Star Plucking Saint all of a sudden. All of them were of great size. The place seemed to have turned into a world on its own. Rumbling noises were heard as extremely harrowing powers were born, causing even people standing quite far away to tremble.


    As implied by his name, the Star Plucking Saint was able to pluck stars with his hands.


    Voom!


    Gai Huang zipped past in the air, ready to escape the place right there and then.


    The Star Plucking Saint extended his hand and grabbed at the air. The entire vast area seemed to be literally within his grasp. His body disappeared unbelievably quickly.


    It was worth noting that the Star Plucking Saint was peerless when it came to speed.


    Voom...


    Both figures moved at extreme speeds, arriving high above the sky right from the ground within the blink of an eye. The Saint King of Gai''s plane made it so that he was able to traverse extremely vast distances within a moment. However, when he reached his destination, he still found the stars all around him.


    Gai Huang glared at the Star Plucking Saint and said, "So, by plucking the stars with your hands, you can get the world in your palm."


    "Not bad. You''ve apparently heard of what I''m capable of. If you''re interested in becoming my student, I could teach you," the old man said with a smile, sounding unbridled.


    "You lost at the hands of the renowned Ninth Servant, yet you are offering to be my teacher," Gai Huang jabbed sarcastically. Boundless golden lights burst through the air, shooting all around his surroundings.


    "Why are you bullying a kid?" The old man smirked without care. He waved his hand around and an enormous star appeared, seemingly conjured by the great path itself. It charged straight at Gai Huang.


    Their surroundings rattled. The extremely huge star wanted to kill everything.


    Countless people in Qianye City looked up and saw the star falling from the sky. All of them were extremely shocked.


    The Star Plucking Saint and the Saint King of Gai were both top-notch figures known throughout the Crimson Dragon Realm. The battle between them was nothing short of horrifying.


    The storm in Qianye City was also getting increasingly frightening.


    "Hmph." Gai Huang smirked coldly. He stood tall and proud as dazzling light coursed over his body. The will of the great path of space shrouded their surroundings. Even though that huge star was about to crash down on him, he stood his ground without any intention of evading or blocking.


    He lifted his arm and pointed just as the star was about to fall on him. Boundless dazzling wills of the great path of space enveloped their surroundings, slowing the star down. The body of the star seemed to be engulfed by the light of space.


    Gai Huang stepped out again and pointed at the star directly. The will of the great path burst into the star immediately. Boundless dazzling lights caused the star to emit a blinding brilliance, crumbling apart with a loud rumble.


    The Star Plucking Saint was unfettered as he looked on calmly. He then waved his hand, causing all the stars to fall toward Gai Huang like comets.


    Gai Huang''s body looked quite puny and insignificant when compared to the vastness of the area of stars around him.


    "That attack..." The hearts of the people watching raced. The aura of both men fighting high above in the air felt stifling to all of them.


    There was hardly anyone paying to the other battles happening below by then. Yu Sheng and many others who were not fighting were ignoring everything else.


    However, at that moment, Yu Sheng turned to look in another direction.


    Xing Qiu sensed something from far away. He frowned when he noticed Yu Sheng glaring at him.


    Yu Sheng''s stout frame burst into the air at the very next moment. Rumbling noises were heard all over the place. On the chaotic battlefield where Holiness of Nirvanas fought, Yu Sheng charged straight at Xing Qiu.


    The outcome of the Battle of Crimson River was final.


    Still, Xing Qiu instigated Gai Huang to participate in the battle. Furthermore, Xing Qiu had fought in that battle in the past.


    As such, Yu Sheng saw no need to hold back against Yu Sheng.


    Xing Qiu''s expression changed slightly. He was there for the Saint King of Gai that day. His status and the Saint King of Gai''s strength meant that no one dared to make a move against him.


    However, at that very moment, someone was making a move against him.


    Boom!


    Raging auras burst forward in an instant. Xing Qiu resonated with the great path as rings of the great path dazzled above him, generating extremely potent power.


    Boom...


    Another rumble was heard. Yu Sheng moved like a devil of unparalleled strength as he traversed the space. A huge shadow of the devil appeared behind him, looking imposing and brimming with energy.


    He then threw a punch that could tear through space itself. Countless wills of the fist burst from the huge, imposing devil, tearing through space and landing on Xing Qiu''s body. Yu Sheng''s fights had always been straightforward and overwhelming, lacking the slightest hint of flourish and fluff. All there was to him was power and overwhelming strength.


    He burst forward with raging strength. He was about to tear through anyone who dared to stand in his way.


    Xing Qiu roared and brought his will of the fist down on Yu Sheng. He threw a palm attack at the same time, feeling a god of war, attempting to block Yu Sheng''s advance.


    Boom...


    Raging rumbles were heard. The defense crumbled altogether as Yu Sheng''s raging body continued to burst forward like a bolt of lightning. Everyone saw Xing Qiu''s body go flying away a moment later.

 1263 The Tables have Turned

    Xing Qiu rose from the ground and wiped the blood off of the corner of his mouth, looking at Yu Sheng, who continued to press forward. A ritual implement was seen in his hand, emanating a brilliant ring of light that melded with his arm.


    Rings of light swept through his surroundings in an instant. Will of the great path of an even greater magnitude descended. A stifling pressure permeated throughout the space with Xing Qiu''s body as the center.


    Even though he had been defeated by Yu Sheng before, he had never used ritual implements to do battle with him.


    However, he deemed Yu Sheng to simply be too much to handle, what with the other party targeting him specifically. The way Yu Sheng came at him suggested that Yu Sheng wanted him dead.


    Xing Qiu was born and raised in Ancient Imperial City. Few in the Crimson Dragon Realm would dare to try to take his life.


    There was a handful who dared to get on the bad side of the City Lord of Ancient Imperial City, the number one city outside of Crimson Dragon City.


    However, Xing Qiu could feel that Yu Sheng was simply a lunatic and an absolute exception. He had trained in the Regional Palace and was ranked in the Regional King Ranking. The fact that he was daring to pull something like this off was insane.


    Going about business the way he saw fit, leaving behind reservations and restraint, was just how Yu Sheng did things.


    Towering demonic might swept all over the place. Xing Qiu then saw a huge demonic palm print bearing down on him. He stepped forward as lights burst from both of his arms, colliding with the incoming attack.


    Boom...


    A huge rumble was heard as the huge palm print was severed.


    Yu Sheng took a look at Xing Qiu with his pitch-black eyes. He knew that the other party had made use of powerful ritual implements, amplifying the attack''s power exponentially.


    However, he charged forward without the slightest hint of hesitation.


    Demonic might rolled over and shrouded the place. His eyes turned pitch-black like a bottomless pit.


    When Xing Qiu saw Yu Sheng''s eyes, he felt as if he was looking at a devil. This was the world of the demons, and there seemed to be demonic generals standing around the devil itself. All of them submitted to the devil without question.


    Xing Qiu actually felt an urge to kneel and worship the devil before him, as if Yu Sheng was the true manifestation of the devil itself, demanding that he lay prostrate and submit to it.


    That feeling was insulting, but also one that inspired awe.


    None of that was an illusion. Xing Qiu''s level of training allowed him to determine right away that Yu Sheng had been born as a demon. He was destined to become a demonic lord reigning supreme. This being had also trained in the terrifying demonic arts, causing him to feel what he felt.


    It was worth noting that Xing Qiu was a descendant of a Renhuang, yet he was nonetheless overwhelmed by Yu Sheng in a match of wills.


    Xing Qiu was wondering about Yu Sheng''s background.


    Yu Sheng did not pay any heed to the thoughts in Xing Qiu''s mind. His raging demonic aura conjured multiple devilish halberds. He then roared and brought the halberds tearing through the air with overwhelming might. Every single halberd streaked through space and caused a series of sonic booms. Their devastating might as they streaked through the air inspired nothing but dread.


    Xing Qiu also roared and took his battle form, stepping out and clashing with the attacks. He had already brandished his ritual implement, there was no way he could simply back away. Furthermore, there was nowhere for him to back away to!


    Both men fought ferociously. Countless pairs of eyes turned to look at the battlefield where the two of them fought. The battle between Yu Sheng and Xing Qiu was not even remotely as astonishing as the one going on up in the sky, where the Star Plucking Saint and the Saint of King were fighting. The power being wielded on both battlefields were of different orders of magnitude altogether, but both Yu Sheng and Xing Qiu were extremely renowned members of the younger generation nonetheless.


    They would probably become figures like the Saint King of Gai or the Star Plucking Saint in the future.


    Yu Sheng might become stronger than both of them in the future.


    He was, after all, ranked in the Regional King Ranking. Anyone at his plane who ranked on the Regional King Ranking was considered a nigh-invincible being.


    Even the likes of the Star Plucking Saint and the Saint King of Gai had never made it into the Regional King Ranking. Such was the testament to the difficulty of getting ranked in the Regional King Ranking.


    At present, including Yu Sheng, there were only 18 saints ranked in the Regional King Ranking.


    ...


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang took a look at the other battlefields.


    He flinched at what he was seeing.


    He had never anticipated that things would turn out like this.


    He thought that the scene would spiral downwards, devolving into a fight between many for the lineage of Emperor Kua and the treasure. Qianye City would have been insignificant in comparison. There was no way Ye Futian would have been able to keep what he had gotten intact. Even the members of the nine tribes would have been able to get rid of Ye Futian easily, let alone the many mighty figures from all over the Crimson Dragon Realm joining the fray.


    Even if the forces of Emperor Xia''s Realm were to join in the fray, unless they were able to mobilize all of the realm''s powers, there would be no way for them to keep things in their favor. That was something that would have been impossible to pull off.


    No one would have anticipated something like this happening right before their eyes.


    Even the Star Plucking Saint had made his move, fighting the Saint King of Gai.


    He was utterly incapable of predicting what would happen from then on out.


    The outcome of the battle was utterly uncertain. No one knew how things would turn out.


    He''d once thought that Ye Futian would end up dead as a result of this confrontation. It would not have mattered even if he was unable to take the treasure. It was an opportunity, and he saw fit to seize the chance. The consequences didn''t matter, even if he failed.


    However, things had changed. If he were to continue fighting and Ye Futian''s side emerged as the victor, the consequences would certainly matter, judging by the powers that Ye Futian would be able to wield by then.


    Consequences would actually be very severe for the losing side.


    Every single Holiness of Nirvana who was as powerful as the likes of the Saint Lord of Jiuyang felt shaken at that moment. All of them hesitated. They couldn''t decide if they should press forward or retreat.


    If they retreated and left Ye Futian large, they would have to worry about him coming back to settle the score with all of them.


    "Father, let''s retreat," Xi Chan said telepathically to the Saint Lord of Jiuyang from a distance. With events having taken such a turn, there was simply no need to continue fighting.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang was still hesitating. A figure stood before him. It was Yan Yuan.


    He was standing guard before the Saint Lord of Jiuyang.


    Ye Futian, who had taken the form of a god of war of flames, turned around at that moment, looking at the Holiness of Nirvana who had ambushed him before.


    That Holiness of Nirvana from Xiang City had arrived with Xiang Nan. He was a mighty figure from Emperor Xiang''s Realm.


    He had apparently intended to join the fray without revealing himself, killing Ye Futian and taking the treasure of Emperor Kua for himself.


    That towering god of war of flames turned to look at the Holiness of Nirvana from Emperor Xiang''s Realm, causing him to frown as he sensed a threat looming over him.


    Ye Futian summoned the will of Emperor Kua before the Holiness of Nirvana was able to retaliate, conjuring the form of Emperor Kua. The Holiness of Nirvana cursed deep down. If he had been able to foresee all of this, he would not have decided to join in the fray.


    From the looks of the figure''s eyes, it was clear that the Holiness of Nirvana had been marked.


    They still had scores to settle from the last round.


    During the battle between the forces of Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm, Xiang Nan had brought people to Qianye City, seemingly to threaten Ye Futian.


    At that moment, it was a case of scores piling up on top of each other.


    Xiang Nan, who was far away, seemed to notice what Ye Futian was up to. He frowned.


    Ye Futian, at that moment, was no longer himself. He had summoned Emperor Kua which posed a grave threat.


    At that very moment, Ye Futian in Emperor Kua''s form turned into the Divine Eyes of the Sun, casting a gaze that caused the Holiness of Nirvana from Xiang City to feel as if he was being engulfed by a dazzling sun. The rays of the sun rained down as Flames of the Way descended, burning him to nothingness.


    Boom!


    A loud rumble was heard as lightning crackled overhead. His body zipped by like a bolt of lightning.


    Ye Futian was the only one who knew what he was getting himself into. The pressure of summoning a being like Emperor Kua at his current plane was immensely stressful. The greater the powers that he wielded, the greater the burden it was on him. It was as predicted by many. Any mishap could easily cause him to be destroyed by the recoil.


    That was why he''d allowed the Vermillion Bird Tribe and the Nanli Tribe to side with him.


    If he was able to kill everything before him without restraint and suffer no repercussions, he might have actually done so.


    However, he knew that, even though summoning the will of Emperor Kua had given him formidable powers, at the end of the day, those powers were not his to keep.


    At the very least, he needed to leave some Holiness of Nirvanas behind to serve as deterrents to people eyeing the lineage of Emperor Kua.


    At that moment, he cranked the powers into a frenzy. The sky and the earth scorched red-hot. The Fire Spirit Orb in his body emanated brilliant light. The flames of his surroundings howled as if they were burning like the sun.


    Countless people looked at Ye Futian and felt rattled to the core. That power was nothing short of harrowing.


    "Let''s get out." The Holiness of Nirvana from Xiang City sensed how terrifying that power was. He then shouted at Xiang Nan and the others.


    "Your highness, let''s go." Some mighty figures made a snap decision and took Xiang Nan away.


    Xiang Nan''s expression changed somewhat and he looked very glum. He couldn''t believe that he was about to run away.


    He turned around and looked at the battlefield, finding an enormous face appearing in the sky. It was the face of Emperor Kua!


    An arm descended from above. The boundlessly huge arm seemed to be a manifestation of Flames of the Way. It blocked out the sky and swatted at the Holiness of Nirvana.


    That mighty being roared. His entire body was clad in lightning as he burst through the clouds. Brilliant light burst from his body as he moved faster than a bolt of lightning. Still, that destructive will was getting closer.


    Boom...


    A huge pillar of lightning shot into the sky, tearing everything apart.


    The extremely huge flaming hand clapped down from above, causing rumbles to be heard everywhere. The beam that shot into the sky clashed with the flames. The beam had actually torn an opening in the hand from above, intending to disintegrate the attacking hand.


    The hand of flames continued to solidify, scorching the sky red-hot like fire from lava. It continued to press downward, overpowering the pillar of lightning by sheer brute force.


    "Get lost," the Holiness of Nirvana roared. His body burst with nine dazzling beams and blasted at the power that was pressing him down.


    That scene was extremely harrowing.


    The Spirit Orb in Ye Futian''s body burst with extremely formidable powers, causing Emperor Kua''s body to resonate with his surroundings. Raging fires were brought forth with a rumble. The nine beams of lightning transformed into beams of lightning and fire, burning together with the conjured flames.


    Intense flames scorched the sky in an instant. The Holiness of Nirvana from Xiang City looked despaired as he said, "Please have mercy, Lord Ye."


    Boom!


    Terrifying powers washed over the area. Eerie shrieks were heard as the Holiness of Nirvana was flooded by the destructive light.


    "No..." Xiang Nan, who was running, turned around just in time to witness the harrowing scene. His face was ashen.


    How could this have happened?


    The Holiness of Nirvana who had followed him from Emperor Xiang''s Realm had died in Qianye City.

 1264 Game Se

    "Your Highness, let''s go." The mighty ones at Xiang Nan''s side took him and continued moving forward. Despite being a considerable distance away from the city lord''s office by then, the flames on top of their heads remained.


    The sky above Qianye City had been tainted red. It seemed that they would only be safe if they left Qianye City.


    Xiang Nan turned around to look at the face in the distant sky. His expression was bone-chillingly cold.


    Ye Futian had killed their Holiness of Nirvana.


    The Xiang City was still backed by Emperor Xiang''s Realm, meaning that it was still, without a doubt, an imperial realm.


    Even if Ye Futian was able to tap into Emperor Kua''s will, he was nonetheless still at the Proving Holiness level. However, he''d dealt the killing blow without hesitation, killing a Holiness of Nirvana from Emperor Xiang''s Realm in Qianye City.


    A Holiness of Nirvana was of extreme importance to their respective imperial realm. Without that one Holiness of Nirvana around, Emperor Xiang''s Realm would not be able to keep Xiang City in the Crimson Dragon Realm intact, unless Xiang Nan was to assign another Holiness of Nirvana from Emperor Xiang''s Realm. However, he would lose all face in the imperial court back home if he were to do so.


    His father would probably be immensely disappointed with him.


    Xiang Nan''s fists clenched at that thought. He looked increasingly grim.


    He vowed to get revenge for what had happened.


    Everyone around the city lord''s office had seen yet another Holiness of Nirvana die. All of them were incredibly shaken.


    That was a Holiness of Nirvana after all. While there were indeed many Holiness of Nirvanas found in the Crimson Dragon Realm, the realm itself was not so big that the loss of one was insignificant.


    Furthermore, the Crimson Dragon Realm itself was the primary realm of the Crimson Dragon Region, where powerful figures from all the realms gathered. Even so, Holiness of Nirvanas were still at the pinnacle of powerful beings. They were figures capable of stabilizing a region, serving as city lords, or even establishing top-notch forces.


    At this point, Ye Futian had killed two Holiness of Nirvanas. Adding the one that Wu Yong killed before��the Shang tribe leader��to the count, three Holiness of Nirvanas had fallen in battle.


    That battle had truly made any mighty figures who had not yet joined the fray think twice.


    The tables had turned completely. Ye Futian''s forces had gone against the odds. They seemed to be the ones with the advantage.


    If Ye Futian went into battle personally, it would be disastrous for anyone taking him on.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang finally made his decision after seeing the Holiness of Nirvana from Xiang City fall. He turned his eyes toward the god of war and fire, gritting his teeth as he charged.


    Yan Yuan wanted to stop him, but he quickly realized that the Saint Lord of Jiuyang was not heading toward Ye Futian. Instead, he was heading towards another battlefield.


    He was heading toward the battlefield where Wu Yong was fighting the Jue Tribe''s leader.


    However, Yan Yuan nonetheless made a move and followed him, concerned about the Saint Lord of Jiuyang acting against Wu Yong.


    Extremely dazzling rays of the sun appeared. The Divine Body of Nine Suns form taken by the Saint Lord of Jiuyang burned brightly. His body seemed to be a manifestation of the sun itself.


    Boom...


    The space rattled as he threw a punch, as scorching as the sun itself. Nine suns shone brilliantly as they bombarded someone.


    The aura bursting from Yan Yuan was terrifying as it tried to stop the Saint Lord of Jiuyang''s attack. However, he was baffled by the target of the Saint Lord of Jiuyang''s attacking, causing him to pause and cease interfering.


    In yet another area of the battle, the Jue Tribe leader''s face changed. He was fighting full force against Wu Yong and was the one at an advantage. Wu Yong had not made a breakthrough yet. Despite receiving help from Ye Futian and inheriting the lineage of Emperor Kua, he was unable to process the powers enough to enhance his combat prowess.


    However, when both men were still locked in an intense battle, a formidable sense of crisis looming over the Jue Tribe leader. He turned around immediately, intending to leave the battlefield, but Wu Yong quickly took the form of Divine Eyes of the Sun and threw his arms out, blocking his way.


    "Get away from me," the Jue Tribe leader roared as he clashed with Wu Yong. He was sent reeling back again.


    However, at almost the very same moment, the dazzling fist will of the sun came down. The scorching heat of the sun quickly engulfed him.


    The Jue Tribe leader turned around, intending to retaliate, but his arm was still being penetrated by the incoming fist will, hitting him hard on the chest.


    He felt as if his chest had been punched through by the flames at that instant.


    At that very moment, he sensed another looming danger behind him. Wu Yong saw no sense in letting the opportunity slip through his fingers. He threw a handprint down on the Jue Tribe leader''s head. At that very moment, the Jue Tribe leader felt as if his entire body had been set on fire. He out a terrified shriek.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang did not stop there. He launched another fist shortly after, preventing the Jue Tribe leader from recovering.


    The Jue Tribe leader glared at the Saint Lord of Jiuyang. His eyes were filled with intense hatred.


    As the leader of the Xi Clan, the Saint Lord of Jiuyang was a renowned figure in Jianmu City.


    However, the Saint Lord of Jiuyang had switched sides during the battle, ambushing the Jue Tribe leader and trying to kill him.


    The Jue Tribe leader hated him for that.


    Boom... Raging flames swept into the Jue tribe leader''s body, burning and killing him right away.


    The fourth Holiness of Nirvana perished in the battle that day.


    Yan Yuan watched the scene unfold from the side and looked at the Saint Lord of Jiuyong. He''d thought previously that the Saint Lord of Jiuyang would have attacked Wu Yong. However, things had turned out to be completely opposite, as he''d chosen to help Wu Yong by killing the Jue Tribe leader instead.


    It was apparent that the Saint Lord of Jiuyang behaved like some of the western region''s tribe leaders��betraying their allies and switching sides on the fly.


    Furthermore, he did not simply give up and leave. He''d opted instead to land a killing blow out of nowhere, thereby adding yet another Holiness of Nirvana to Ye Futian''s kill list. He was extremely decisive. His method was extremely brutal.


    Countless people who were watching from far away were shocked by the scene. What the Saint Lord of Jiuyang had just pulled would probably be used against him in the future. However, the decisiveness and brutality he''d shown had no doubt served as the best way for him to get out. He did not want to get involved in the mess any further.


    The head of the Chang Clan had been killed, so it was only a matter of time before the Chang Clan was no more. He did not want to see the same thing happen to the Xi Clan.


    "City Lord Ye, I participated in today''s battle out of greed, and I have atoned for my mistakes by killing a Holiness of Nirvana for you. I hope you will forgive what I did today. When the dust settles in Qianye City, I shall get someone to visit you again," The Saint Lord of Jiuyang said with a brimming voice as he looked at Ye Futian.


    He was actually rather unlucky. Ye Futian had summoned Emperor Kua before he was even ready to truly make a move against Ye Futian.


    He would not have gotten himself in this mess if he''d known things would turn out this way.


    Ye Futian looked at the Saint Lord of Jiuyang and thought about what he''d done. They''d acted extremely decisively when the opportunity had arisen to take Emperor Kua''s lineage for themselves. Now that the opportunity was no more and the tide had turned, this man had turned around and killed the Jue Tribe leader instead.


    With that, the game was set. The western region''s tribes were no longer able to cause great disruptions.


    Furthermore, he knew that Ye Futian would continue to get rid of the remaining opposing tribes. As such, the Xi Clan would be able to get out in one piece.


    "You despicable son of a b**ch," Zhu Kong berated. His voice was cold. The Saint Lord of Jiuyang was, after all, a renowned figure. He''d never expected the Saint Lord of Jiuyang to pull off something so despicable.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang turned to look at Zhu Kong with a plain look, thinking that Zhu Kong and the rest of his gang were not any better for showing up just to rob Ye Futian of Emperor Kua''s lineage.


    The two of them were having the same thought patterns. They had each only considered what was in their own best interests.


    "I shall take my leave." Seeing that the Saint Lord of Jiuyang was not going to bother replying, he cupped his hands and excused himself, then turned around and flew away.


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang then headed towards the mighty figures of the Xi Clan and said, "We shall head home now."


    They did not stay around to watch the rest of the battle so that Ye Futian would not think that they were simply there to observe how things would turn out. Instead, they took the chance to leave immediately instead. The game was set, and the outcome of it would be heard soon enough.


    As the Saint Lord of Jiuyang had speculated, due to his defection and the death of the Jue Tribe leader, the outcome of the battle was already foreseeable.


    On the first day of Year 10,025 of Divine Prefecture Calendar, the seven tribes of the western region appeared in a great show of force. The Saint King of Gai and many other top figures came to attack Qianye City, yet they failed to take the place.


    Furthermore, four Holiness of Nirvanas perished in the battle that ensued.


    At present, Zhu Kong and the others were no longer able to turn the tables around. Their fates were sealed.


    Wu Yong stepped away after the Jue Tribe leader was dead, helping the Vermillion Bird Tribe leader fight Zhu Kong.


    At present, there were only three Holiness of Nirvanas left at Zhu Kong''s side��the Zhu Clan, the Zhong Tribe, and the Raven Tribe.


    All the others had either defected or died.


    No one had foreseen any of that before the battle broke out.


    Boom... A rumble was heard. Zhu Kong blasted with his hand and then retreated at great speed, not giving Wu Yong any chance to get close. He then yelled, "Retreat!"


    He understood that the game was set by then. The chance of turning the tables was nearly non-existent.


    The nine tribes of the western region intended to take back Emperor Kua''s lineage and the secret treasure of Emperor Kua that Ye Futian had inherited, but the endeavor was destined to fail.


    Worse still, they paid an extremely heavy price for the endeavor.


    Ye Futian and the tribes that submitted to him would probably not let them go.


    Between the two sides of the nine tribes, it was destined that one side would disappear from Crimson Dragon Realm for good.


    The Zhong Tribe and the RavenTtribe retreated and left as well. It was apparent that they knew they were no longer able to turn the tide. The opportunity to get Emperor Kua''s lineage was gone.


    Emperor Kua''s form that Ye Futian had taken remained standing tall in the sky, but he did not pursue the ones that ran away. He knew how things were at the moment. The stress that he was enduring at the moment was no longer worth fighting any longer.


    The battle between the Saint King of Gai and the Star Plucking Saint high up in the air was still incredibly terrifying. The stars completely surrounded them. The intensity of that battle exceeded any of the others fought between the Holiness of Nirvanas.


    It was apparent that the powers of both men were of considerably higher than the other Holiness of Nirvanas.


    In truth, the Saint King of Gai was unable to do anything to turn the tide so long as the Star Plucking Saint was around.


    Worse still, Xing Qiu was having a hard time below.


    Yu Sheng''s raging bursts of attacks caused Xing Qiu''s aura to continuously weaken, despite Xing Qiu having brandished a ritual implement to aid him in the fight. One stunning attack after another caused Xing Qiu to feel like he was about to crumble.


    A loud rumble was eventually heard. A large handprint landed on Xing Qiu''s body, intending to break him apart completely.


    Pfftt... Blood spilled from Xing Qiu''s mouth as his limp body was sent flying. However, Yu Sheng refused to let him go easily.


    A terrifying power of will burst from Xing Qiu''s body at that moment. The power of will overwhelmed everything around him. Yu Sheng immediately sensed an intense pressure when he drew near.


    Xing Qiu''s eyes seemed to have changed. There seemed to be another aura coming from his body that was extremely terrifying. Yu Sheng glared at his opponent. His eyes seemed to penetrate the other party, seeing yet another scene within.


    A figure was standing with his hands behind their back inside a tall, magnificent city, glaring at him with imposing, overbearing eyes, as if the entire space was looking down at him.


    It was none other than the number one city outside of Crimson Dragon City.

 1265 The Overbearing Ninth Servan

    The number one city of Crimson Dragon City, the Ancient Imperial City.


    The Ninth Servant stood with his hands behind his back at the tall majestic palace within the city lord''s office. His sharp, imposing eyes gazed forward. His will seemed to have shot through the vast space before him and descended upon Qianye City, bursting through Xing Qiu''s eyes.


    The Ninth Servant was lauded as the number one City Lord outside of Crimson Dragon City, so much so that he was even known to be the number one figure below Renhuang, and half a Renhuang. That was a plane like no other.


    However, to the Ninth Servant, he had only someone per his namesake��a servant.


    Xing Kai and Xing Qiu were both the young masters he served.


    The Ninth Servant''s greatest wish in his life was to see both of his young masters make it into Renhuang Plane.


    He was extremely concerned about the safety of Xing Kai and Xing Qiu, much more than other Renhuang would have only their offspring.


    He disallowed anyone from threatening the lives of both Xing Kai and Xing Qiu, which was why he became the number one figure outside of Crimson Dragon City and had his name known throughout Crimson Dragon Realm.


    A powerful aura burst from the Ninth Servant, shooting into the heavens. His will seemed to have melded with Xing Qiu''s.


    In Qianye City, Xing Qiu took one step out, and his extremely raging aura sent Yu Sheng flying, and the demonic might about Yu Sheng faltering.


    That scene caused many to turn their eyes in their direction. They all sensed a terrifying aura from Xing Qiu. It was as if the aura had been someone else''s.


    "The Mark of God of War."


    Everyone recalled a rumor, and their expression changed. Fighting will shot to the heavens from Xing Qiu. Brimming pressure washed all over the place in a raging tide.


    The phenomenon caused many to recall Xing Qiu''s rumored background, which was related to the special ability trained by the Ninth Servant.


    That aura is probably not that of Xing Qiu, but of that number one City Lord.


    "Know your place."


    A cold voice came from the Ninth Servant''s lips. Xing Qiu then lifted his arm and lashed out. The Mark of God of War seemed to have burst within an instant, overwhelming their surroundings as he charged at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng shouted, and his demonic might emerged with a raging roar. His fist will tore through the space before him and continued to roll. However, that mark seemed to have overpowered everything. The great path of the world around them rumbled as if the sky was about to collapse.


    Boom. The demonic armor conjured around Yu Sheng seemed like it was about to shatter as he was pinned on the ground, spitting blood from his mouth.


    A cold killing intent was seen in Xing Qiu''s eyes.


    Boom... A loud rumble was heard from above. Gai Huang and the Star Plucking Saint had both separated. Gai Huang was falling from the sky, down to Xing Qiu''s side. He lowered his head and said, "Sir Ninth Servant."


    His eyes seemed to have a hint of self-blame in it. He had intended to help Xing Qiu take a treasure of Renhuang on that day, but it had ended up with Xing Qiu being caught in danger and even almost ending up dead instead.


    "Ninth Servant, have you no shame?" a voice said from the sky. The Star Plucking Saint looked at the injured Yu Sheng.


    Another gust of might swept over the place from another direction. It was the lord of the Regional Palace coming down. Extremely overbearing aura washed all over Xing Qiu.


    Xing Qiu''s eyes turned to both the Star Plucking Saint and the overbearing lord. He looked around, extending his will. There was no way he could fight all of the Holiness of Nirvanas around.


    The Ninth Servant only wanted to see who would have dared to make a move against Xing Qiu.


    "So you''re Yu Sheng, the young man who went to the Regional Palace to train, then?" the Ninth Servant took a look at Yu Sheng, who was rising from the ground, and said coldly.


    Demonic might continued to boil around Yu Sheng, as his eyes were fixed on Xing Qiu.


    "If you dare do so again, I will kill you all the same, even if you''re one who is training in the Regional Palace," the Ninth Servant said. His voice sounded imposing. He behaved just as arrogantly, despite the lord of the Regional Palace standing right in front of him.


    Everyone around shuddered. That was the might of the Ninth Servant of the Ancient Imperial City, the number one City Lord outside of Crimson Dragon City.


    Rumor had it that he was only about half a step away from Renhuang Plane in his training.


    He was also ranked in the Regional King Ranking.


    The holiness of Nirvanas ranked on the Regional King Ranking were seemingly capable of reigning supreme over the saints. Few throughout the entire Crimson Dragon Realm would be able to stand against them.


    "Ninth Servant, you''re too much." That lord stepped forward and exerted his might onto Xing Qiu.


    Yu Sheng was studying in what was technically his organization, which made the young man his student.


    Xing Qiu looked up at the lord and said, "I have no objections with sparring, but are you not going to stop him even if he were to land killing blows? The Regional Palace is known as the number one holy land for training in all of Crimson Dragon Realm. I wonder if I could pay a visit to your place? If Crimson Dragon Emperor were to allow it, that is."


    "You could try," the lord glared at Xing Qiu and answered.


    Xing Qiu''s eyes were icy, and he was devoid of any expression. However, he still looked overbearing and intense.


    Everyone knew that the Regional Palace was a holy land, yet they were limited by their perception of planes and the extent of powers.


    In the eyes of the Ninth Servant, however, the Regional Palace was of no difference from anywhere else, so long as there was not a Renhuang in it.


    Anyone who dared to do any harm to his young masters, they would have had to answer to the Ninth Servant.


    "Gai Huang, bring Xing Qiu back to the Ancient Imperial City," the Ninth Servant said to the Saint King of Gai at the side.


    "Yes, sir." Gai Huang nodded.


    Boom. Yu Sheng stepped out, and his demonic might bursting in a raging manner. Do you think you can walk away like this?


    Xing Qiu shot a glance at Yu Sheng, but he knew that those were not the eyes of Xing Qiu; it was the eyes of the Ninth Servant.


    "You think you could go about your business without regard for consequences, just because you''re ranked on the Regional King Ranking? If anything were to happen to Xing Qiu, how many in Qianye City do you think would live even if the Regional Palace was able to cover for you?" The Ninth Servant''s eyes seemed to be about to penetrate those of Yu Sheng, suppressing his demonic might.


    Both men stood off at each other. The will in Xing Qiu''s eyes gradually dissipated. He then said, "Gai Huang."


    Gai Huang walked out and took Xing Qiu, getting ready to leave.


    The Star Plucking Saint and many other mighty ones stopped him. Yu Sheng clenched his fists as his demonic might burst in a frenzy. He looked up at Gai Huang and Xing Qiu, never saying a word the whole time.


    Ye Futian stared at his front. The mighty ones then watched Gai Huang took Xing Qiu and left.


    Countless watched at the battlefield and shuddered deep down.


    So that is the Ninth Servant, the City Lord of the Imperial City.


    One top-notch figure had been more than enough to stun all mighty ones around him.


    The lord of the Regional Palace came before Yu Sheng, seeing that the demonic might around Yu Sheng had yet to dissipate, showing that he was incredibly frustrated. However, Yu Sheng did not make a move the entire time and watched those two leave.


    "There would be a day where you will step into the Ancient Imperial City, but on your journey to get there, there is still Xing Kai, who is training in the Regional Palace as well," the lord said to Yu Sheng. He had high hopes for Yu Sheng''s future.


    While Xing Kai was also in the ranking, he was under the charge of another lord. The lord before Yu Sheng came to believe in Yu Sheng when he saw him.


    Yu Sheng''s future achievements would eclipse those of Xing Kai.


    With the Ninth Servant taking Xing Qiu away, he hoped that there would be a day, where Yu Sheng could step into the number one city outside of Crimson Dragon City himself.


    That Ancient Imperial City, which had never been touched by any other.


    As Gai Huang left, the battle finally came to an end. Zhu Kong and his men were all Holiness of Nirvanas. No one would have been able to stop them if they were to insist on leaving. However, the mighty ones from their respective tribes remained.


    "City Lord Ye, could we head back to the tribes and sort things out first?" the few tribe leaders then said to Ye Futian.


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded. The nine tribes were in a mess at present, and there was a need for those people to sort out the mess.


    Everyone flashed and left. The mighty ones from the Zhu clan were closely monitored to prevent Zhu Kong and his men from going home and throwing their weight around in the tribes.


    The commotion had to be sorted out.


    There were already two tribe leaders out of the nine perished and eliminated early. Things with the remaining tribes depended on how things played out.


    The mighty ones left one after another while the sky was still red as if it was on fire.


    Vast tracts of land had been burned down. It was as if a firestorm had attacked the city.


    The whole place was brimming with a fiery aura.


    An earth-shattering battle had been fought, and things came to a close.


    It had been a while since a city, or even the entire Crimson Dragon Realm per se, had seen a battle of such scale.


    Over a dozen Holiness of Nirvanas participated in the battles. One mighty one after another revealed what they were capable of.


    All of that happened due to the lineage left behind by Emperor Kua.


    Qianye City survived. Not only had Ye Futian managed to stay alive, but he had also even been able to maintain his possession of Emperor Kua''s lineage. Four Holiness of Nirvanas died on the battlefield on that day.


    It was believed there probably was not anyone who dared to make a move against him without at least thinking twice.


    Furthermore, that was the result of the mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm being involved. It was the strength of Qianye City alone that repelled such powerful enemies.


    That massive battle at Qianye City changed the place. Several leaders out of the nine tribes submitted to Ye Futian. The strength of Qianye City reached a different level altogether right there and then.


    At that moment, the flames all around them disappeared in a frenzy, flowing somewhere else. Everyone looked at Ye Futian''s direction. That huge, imposing form of Emperor Kua''s specter shrunk and dissipated quickly.


    The boundless flames seemed to have been swallowed by a terrifying whirlpool. The phenomenon persisted until Ye Futian was seen again, swallowing all remaining flames himself.


    Ye Futian continued to bask within the boundless flames. One mighty one after another came to his side.


    Yan Yuan did not leave. He, too, came to Ye Futian''s side.


    "Begin reconstruction of the city lord''s office immediately," Shen Tianzhan ordered. The people of the city lord''s office had only just come and proceeded to clean up the rubble around.


    "Are you all going to stay here still?" He turned around and looked at the mighty ones around who came to watch. There were quite a number of people there, but none of them had participated in the battles. No one else knew what was going on in their heads.


    "I shall take my leave." The City Lord of Flaming Prison City cupped his hands and then left. Many top-notch figures then brought their men with them and left as well.


    Many left quickly to prevent any unnecessary misunderstandings. None of them stayed behind for long.


    Many who were standing far away were people from Qianye City.


    Xia Qingyuan, Yu Sheng, and the others came to Ye Futian''s side, turning their attention to him.


    Ye Futian did not say anything. Tension and concern were seen in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes.


    Having tapped into such formidable powers must have come with terrifying recoil.


    "How are you doing?" Xia Qingyuan asked with a low voice.


    The flames on Ye Futian gradually dissipated. He then looked at Xia Qingyan. Blood dripped from the side of his mouth, and his entire body was red hot. All of his internal organs seemed to be burning.


    "Pfftt..." A mouthful of hot blood came right out of his mouth, before dropping onto the ground right away.


    The blood splashed onto Xia Qingyuan. It was so hot that she was even able to feel the heat. She extended her arms to pick Ye Futian up, who was falling on her. His blood had stained her face.


    She felt the temperature from his body and sensed his internal wellbeing. Xia Qingyuan''s eyes turned red hot as well, seemingly filled with terrifying killing intent.

 1266 Submitting to Another

    The news regarding the battle at Qianye City spread all over Crimson Dragon Realm. It caused immense commotion even at the absolute center of the realm��Crimson Dragon City.


    Over a dozen Holiness of Nirvanas fought, and four of them perished. It had been a very, very long time since Crimson Dragon Realm had seen such intense battles. No one would have thought that a young man at the Proving Holiness level could have sparked such a massive battle.


    Furthermore, he won.


    Qianye City had repelled Holiness of Nirvanas from many top-notch forces, killing four of them along the way.


    The nine tribes were in shambles.


    Qianye City had achieved fame due to the battle between two imperial realms fought there, with many coming to know the name of the City Lord of Qianye City, Ye Futian.


    That one most recent battle brought him to even higher heights.


    He had acquired the lineage of Emperor Kua, summoning the will of the late emperor, making it as if the Renhuang had come back to life again. Such a member of the younger generation was unnervingly frightening.


    Furthermore, with Yu Sheng, who was ranked on the Regional King Ranking added to the list, two renowned figures had emerged from one city.


    Both of them came from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    The two of them would probably become legends who would be remembered in the history of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Of course, that was if they were able to stay alive and grow further.


    Qianye City, a newly emerged force to be reckoned with, seemed to have clashed with the Ancient Imperial City, which was to be the king among cities, from that battle. The Ninth Servant had taken over Xing Qiu''s body and emerged in an extremely imposing, overbearing form.


    The clash between the Ninth Servant and Yu Sheng made it seem to everyone that it was a clash between the old and the new.


    Everyone wondered if the newly emerged Qianye City would be able to threaten Ancient Imperial City, the one city that had been unmoved for ages in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    At the very least, from the look of things, while Qianye City had indeed been extremely terrifying, it was still too early for them to challenge Ancient Imperial City''s place.


    The Ninth Servant alone was able to take down an entire army on his own.


    There was hardly anyone capable of standing against him and emerging victorious.


    He was a Holiness of Nirvana, and one who was nigh-invincible. Only a handful of figures at such levels were found throughout the entire Crimson Dragon Realm. Ye Futian and his people were still too far away from where he was at the moment.


    Furthermore, there were also two members of the younger generations boasting superb talents in Ancient Imperial City. Xing Qiu was put aside at the moment, for he had been practically run over by Yu Sheng twice.


    Xing Kai, on the other hand, was also a renowned figure ranked on the Regional King Ranking, and a fellow student of Yu Sheng in the Regional Palace.


    If he knew that Yu Sheng had almost ended up killing Xing Qiu, his younger brother, many wondered if he would have looked for trouble with Yu Sheng in the Regional Palace.


    Other than the clash between Qianye City and Ancient Imperial City, which attracted the most attention, the crumbling of the nine tribes of the western region and the death of a Holiness of Nirvana from Xiang City was just as astonishing.


    In the era following Emperor Kua''s passing, the western region of Crimson Dragon Realm had been ruled over by the nine tribes, which were at odds with and competed against each other for many years. However, they were always united when dealing with anything that was not one of their own, which enabled them to maintain their status as overlords of the region.


    However, someone managed to inherit Emperor Kua''s lineage, causing the nine tribes to splinter and crumble. No one knew what would have happened following that.


    As for the death of a Holiness of Nirvana of Xiang City, many wondered what Emperor Xiang''s Realm would have thought of it.


    It was said that after Xiang Nan returned to Xiang City, he brought his men with him and left. It was speculated that he had probably returned to Emperor Xiang''s Realm.


    Xiang Nan had, of course, been worried about Ye Futian taking revenge. Ye Futian had dared to kill a Holiness of Nirvana from Xiang City, after all. There was no telling if Ye Futian would go to kill him next.


    Without a Holiness of Nirvana stationed at Xiang City, there was utterly no way Xiang Nan could have resisted Qianye City.


    There were several Holiness of Nirvanas at Qianye City. Wu Yong and Shen Tianzhan, both of whom were Holiness of Nirvanas, would have followed Ye Futian.


    As for the possibility of Emperor Xiang''s Realm amassing mighty ones to take revenge, it remained an unknown.


    That was probably not something Xiang Nan would have been able to decide.


    A formidable battle with far-reaching consequences ushered in year 10020 of Divine Prefecture Calendar. It seemed that the year would not have gone by in peace.


    It was also probably a sign signaling the rise of legends of another generation.


    Time passed, and the city lord''s office of Qianye City was restored. The place had seen many troubles since Ye Futian came, and that was something rare on its own.


    There was probably no city lord''s office in any other city that had seen so many troubles within such a short period of time, being destroyed and rebuilt again and again.


    Ye Futian was still asleep in his bedchamber in the palace.


    Xu Chehan and Little Butterfly were at Ye Futian''s side, checking on the extent of his injuries, while Loulan Xue was helping out at the side.


    "How is he doing?" Xia Qingyuan asked Xu Chehan. While Xu Chehan''s plane might not have been high, he had learned the way of medicine from Saint Jiang later, and Little Butterfly was quite knowledgeable as well.


    "It is a miracle that he is alive. If it had been someone else, I''m afraid..." Xu Chehan said with a low voice. "But then again, there is no need to worry too much, Princess. His self-repair functions are extremely formidable. While the flames have scorched all his meridians and internal organs, they are regaining life bit by bit."


    Xu Chehan was able to sense that Ye Futian had some special abilities that allowed him to keep repairing injuries. If it had been someone else, it would not have mattered if they were at Proving Holiness stage. Even if they were to be a Saint of True Self, they would have probably died a long time ago. Tapping into the force of Emperor Kua was dependent on how much one could have taken.


    Ye Futian''s plane was far below what would have allowed him to withstand such a powerful force.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian, who was still in a coma, before turning around and walked outside.


    There were also others outside the room. Yan Yuan stayed behind. He had not left the room in days.


    While the battle fought previously had shocked many mighty ones, in truth, more of the shock factor came from Ye Futian summoning Emperor Kua and doing battle in his form.


    Many wondered how many times Ye Futian could fight like that.


    That one time had almost cost him his life, and he was still in a coma.


    As such, things were quite shaky in Qianye City. If someone were up to no good, like Gai Huang, things would quickly take a turn for the worst.


    As such, other than Yan Yuan, Wu Yong, and Shen Tianzhan were also at Qianye City, guarding the place against any unforeseen circumstances.


    "Sir." Xia Qingyuan bowed slightly to Yan Yuan.


    "Your orders, Princess?" Yan Yuan looked at Xia Qingyuan and asked.


    "I''m getting ready to head back to Emperor Xia''s Realm for a bit. I''d like you to look after Qianye City in my absence," Xia Qingyuan said.


    Among the three Holiness of Nirvanas in Qianye City, she naturally trusted Yan Yuan the most.


    While Yan Yuan had once been on the opposing side of Emperor Xia''s Realm, which technically made them enemies, Xia Qingyuan nonetheless trusted Yan Yuan more.


    The temperament and character of the Imperial Advisor of Dali and his students were all tried and tested.


    Despite being enemies, they were worthy of respect. Furthermore, Yan Yuan appeared on time when such a crisis hit Qianye City.


    "Rest assured, Princess." Yan Yuan nodded.


    "Thank you, sir," Xia Qingyuan thanked him and then left.


    A group of people left Qianye City without making a fuss. Few knew that they were even gone.


    ...


    Time passed, and many throughout Crimson Dragon Realm continued to pay close attention to Qianye City''s affairs.


    There were rumors that Ye Futian suffered severe recoil after that battle, with his state of life and death remaining unknown. He had yet to make it through. Xia Qingyuan had probably returned to Emperor Xia''s Realm to get someone to treat him.


    Some claimed that Ye Futian would never rise again.


    Recoil from a feat as formidable as tapping into the will of Emperor Kua and bringing such levels of combat prowess to bear would have terrifying consequences.


    Ye Futian might have even paid the price with his life.


    Countless continued to keep a close eye on Ye Futian despite the rumors.


    If Ye Futian were to perish, there would be yet another storm waiting to come.


    Everyone saw how things would turn out at the moment.


    The western region was anything but peaceful throughout the entire period.


    The Zhu clan, the Zhong tribe, and the Raven tribe were allied, fighting against the Nanli tribe, the Vermillion Bird tribe, and the Beili tribe, which had joined hands.


    Several battles had been fought between both sides. There had been many casualties, and yet, none had been able to best the other.


    The Zhu clan was waiting for news as well, hoping that Ye Futian would never come to this time. The alliance would have naturally come apart in that case.


    With Ye Futian still around, the three tribes allied with him still had hope in the future.


    If Ye Futian were to emerge fine, Zhu Kong and the rest knew that it would spell disaster for them.


    However, none of them escaped. All three tribes were huge, and their industries vast. There was no way they could have all just migrated elsewhere.


    While Crimson Dragon Realm was a huge place, it would still be near-impossible to move three tribes of such massive sizes elsewhere. That was unless all of them were to leave Crimson Dragon Realm and move to other realms.


    The option was not one they deemed acceptable, however.


    At present, all they were able to do was to continue to pressure the other three tribes, trying to take the other side down as soon as possible.


    The alliance of the three tribes around the Zhu clan remained in advantage. The powers of Zhu Kong and Zhong Lou were more powerful, after all.


    As long as they were able to defeat the other three, Ye Futian could have hardly posed a threat to them, even if he were to awaken.


    On that day at the Nanli tribe, massive numbers of mighty ones were in the air. Castles were everywhere below, and members of all six tribes were fighting there.


    "We of the nine tribes have always been of one entity, yet you people choose to submit to an outsider and forsake the alliance of the nine tribes." Zhu Kong stood tall in the sky, and a brilliant light burst from his body. He then added, "If you remain headstrong and foolish, then this battle will never cease. If you remain ignorant of the alliance between the tribes, then we shall do everything and use any means necessary to crush you."


    To Zhu Kong and his people, time was running out, and they needed to settle things as quickly as possible.


    "Zhu Kong, if you confess to your crimes and ask for forgiveness in Qianye City, City lord Ye might still probably pardon your crimes." The Beili tribe leader then added, "We of the nine tribes invited people all over Crimson Dragon Realm to enter the ruins. It was fate that Ye Futian inherited the lineage. It is also the will of Emperor Kua. From how he performed in Qianye City, he might just become yet another Emperor Kua in the future. Why stick to the old ways and succumb?"


    "I, Zhu Kong, shall never submit to another," Zhu Kong said proudly, his voice reverberating throughout the entire area. He then looked at the ones below and asked, "We are the nine tribes. Are you telling to submit to an outsider?"


    He suddenly sensed something when he spoke. He turned his head around and looked.


    "That so?" A voice was heard from the sky. Many sensed the vast, undeniable pressure coming down on them.


    A figure appeared all of a sudden before long. It was as if a celestial army had emerged from the heavens. Their pressure was felt throughout the entire region.


    An extremely beautiful woman stood in the midst of those mighty ones. It was none other than Xia Qingyuan, princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Emperor Xia''s Realm." Zhu Kong then looked at the top-notch figures at her side. His expression turned extremely grim within seconds.


    Xia Qingyuan had asked for reinforcements from Emperor Xia''s Realm. Furthermore, there were several Holiness of Nirvanas.


    "On this day, any who refuses to surrender shall be eliminated with extreme prejudice." Xia Qingyuan''s voice was icy. Refusing to submit to another, you said?

 1267 Absolute Control

    Stifling pressure loomed in the air.


    Four Holiness of Nirvanas from Emperor Xia''s Realm descended, with three being the Swordmaster of Lihen, the Palace Lord of Xuanyuan Palace, and the Master of the Jiutian Temple.


    All three Holiness of Nirvanas were not direct subordinates of Emperor Xia; however, they received the orders and showed up to help nonetheless.


    There were members of those three major top-notch forces of Emperor Xia following Ye Futian. Emperor Xia asked personally, and Xia Qingyuan had also visited all of them, requesting their aid. There was no way they could have refused.


    The Holiness of Nirvanas, who served Emperor Xia, needed to fend off Emperor Li''s Realm. The conflict between the two imperial realms continued, and they were unable to be assigned elsewhere.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen and the others would not have been on the trip for long. They would have soon returned to Emperor Xia''s Realm to guard the realm against a possible invasion from Dali.


    Zhu Kong, Zhong Lou, and one other Holiness of Nirvana turned glum when they saw the others in the air.


    Xia Qingyuan had returned to Emperor Xia''s Realm and summoned three other Holiness of Nirvanas to join the fight.


    Furthermore, things were different from what was expected before.


    They all thought that so long as they were able to kill Ye Futian and gain the relics of Emperor Kua, the nine tribes would be able to reach new heights. Even without Wu Yong around, there were still the other eight tribes. With eight Holiness of Nirvanas standing together, even if Emperor Xia were to put over half of the Holiness of Nirvanas from Emperor Xia''s Realm to work, they would still be able to resist.


    Moreover, the ones involved were more than just the nine tribes.


    What took place next was laid out for all to see. The nine tribes splintered right there and then instead.


    All the other mighty ones had either died or apologized for their trespassing. Other than those from the Ancient Imperial City, only three tribes were taking the brunt of it all.


    As such, they had to deal with three more Holiness of Nirvanas from Emperor Xia''s Realm and an army before they were able to take down the other three opposing tribes. All of that was nothing short of a disaster for them.


    It was six Holiness of Nirvanas against three by then. Worse still, those three tribes were not all that much powerful compared to the opposing three, and there was no way those three Holiness of Nirvanas from Emperor Xia''s Realm could have been weak. It was clear which side would emerge as the winning side by then.


    The three opposing tribes were elated instead. Zhu Kong and his people had been cornering them for quite a while, wanting to stage a showdown.


    With the forces from Emperor Xia''s Realm there, everything would have come to a close by then.


    The nine tribes of the past were destined to be in history books. The tribes would have emerged in a new form in Crimson Dragon Realm from then on out.


    Sword will whooshed about in the air. The Swordmaster of Lihen lashed out immediately. His sword tore through the air as it came down on Zhu Kong.


    Zhu Kong sensed the might of that sword and burst in retreat. However, the Vermillion Bird tribe leader quickly rose from below.


    By then, no mighty ones would have wasted their time talking about rules of engagement; they were all out to take down Zhu Kong and his people.


    The Palace Lord of Xuanyuan Palace stepped out with the Footwork of Xuanyuan, placing a lockdown in their surroundings. Their surroundings became stifling, and everyone was able to sense a looming heavenly pressure.


    He stepped out and headed towards Zhong Lou, the Zhong tribe leader. His steps rattled the skies.


    Zhong Lou conjured the Chonglou Battle Form. All 11 layers burst at the same time. His body became extremely massive, and then he threw a punch at the Palace Lord of Xuanyuan, who was coming down on them. The two forces clashed in the air, causing a raging current to sweep all over the place. Everyone else was sent flying.


    The Nanli tribe leader lashed out at Zhong Lou at the same time. Six Holiness of Nirvanas were taking on three of their counterparts. It was two against one by then, which proved more than enough to hold those outnumbered fighters back.


    The fighting broke out in an instant. The army of Emperor Xia''s Realm joined hands with the mighty ones from Nanli tribe, the Beili tribe, and the Vermillion Bird tribe against those from the other three.


    Xia Qingyuan stood high in the air, and there were mighty ones surrounding her for protection. She stared at the battlefield with cold eyes.


    The incident was caused by the nine tribes, and that was where it would have ended.


    The era of the nine tribes was to end on that very day.


    There were spectators from afar watching the battle. It felt the skies and the earth were going to break. Their minds trembled violently, and they all knew a storm was coming.


    Things were about to change for good.


    "Grandfather, help me." A shrilled shriek was heard, causing Zhu Kong to be shaken. However, he was being surrounded by swords from the Swordmaster of Lihen, and the Vermillion Bird tribe leader was lashing out from the side as well. His hands were full, and things looked dire. There was simply no way he had time to spare for others.


    Zhu Kong''s face turned pale, and he felt rather unsettled. It was more than just his life at stake; it was something that concerned the life and death of his tribe.


    There was no way he could have just shrugged it aside.


    Despite having reached the highest of planes, he was unable to become absolutely cold and unfeeling.


    Pfftt... A sword streaked by, making a gash on Zhu Kong''s body. He felt as if his soul had been cut. His face turned even paler as he found that his arm had almost been cut off.


    "You dare ally with outsiders and treat your fellow members of the nine tribes like that," Zhu Kong shouted as he lashed out at the Vermillion Bird tribe leader.


    "If you still have the interests of the nine tribes in mind, then you shall heed the final orders of Emperor Kua," the Vermillion Bird tribe leader replied. Zhu Kong was rendered speechless.


    He was not in the only one in a predicament; the other two who allied with him were also having a hard time. From outside came faint streaks.


    Zhu Kong''s eyes were reddened, and they did not become like this just from the flames. Yet another flash of the sword streaked through his chest. His clothes were bloodstained, and his face was pale as he let out a frustrated roar.


    "I''m willing to surrender. Cease the fighting immediately," Zhu Kong roared. His voice reverberated throughout their surroundings. Terrifying swords that streaked about stopped moving immediately, hovering around him. The Vermillion Bird tribe leader stopped attacking as well.


    The other two Holiness of Nirvanas knew from Zhu Kong''s voice that there was no way to turn the tides.


    If they were to simply keep fighting, other than ending up dead on the battlefield, their respective tribes would have also been slaughtered.


    Xia Qingyuan was not there to bluff when she brought the army with her; she was truly there to end things. She did not bother showing mercy to her enemies, and every move she had taken was meant to deal a heavy blow on her enemies.


    The fighting all over the battlefield gradually ceased then stopped altogether. However, the mighty ones from the overwhelmed three tribes were still being surrounded.


    Everyone was waiting for Xia Qingyuan''s orders.


    Countless pairs of eyes looked up at the woman in the air. Her eyes were cold, and her face was emotionless.


    Seven Holiness of Nirvanas had led the elites from their seven tribes and descended upon Qianye City back then, looking grand and marvelous as they were out to kill Ye Futian and rob him of his lineage.


    At that moment, she had the intention to let those three tribes feel what her side had felt back then.


    "Cripple them for the time being," Xia Qingyuan said coldly.


    "You..." Zhu Kong and the others looked up at Xia QIngyuan. Their eyes were filled with cold anger, and the aura from their bodies was extremely cold.


    "Resist, and we shall take you people as just pretending to surrender, and we shall kill all of you on the spot without further consideration for surrender." Xia Qingyuan''s voice was overbearing, giving no chance to those three tribes.


    If they resisted, they would not have another chance to surrender, and they would have been killed on the spot instead.


    The three Holiness of Nirvanas looked extremely glum. They had never suffered greater humiliation before.


    Furthermore, if they were to be crippled even only for the time being, they would have been akin to meat on a chopping board. They would not have been able to even object to whatever Xia Qingyuan would have done to them.


    They would have been rendered utterly helpless.


    But then again, there was no option for objection.


    Xia Qingyuan had laid down the word��kill any who resist.


    The mighty ones from the three tribes siding with Emperor Xia''s Realm shuddered as well. The fight was against Ye Futian, and they all seemed to have ignored Xia Qingyuan''s determination altogether. The genius of a princess from Emperor Xia''s Realm was still a descendant of a Renhuang, after all. That anger in her was about to cut off all means of escape for the opposing three tribes.


    They claimed to be unwilling to submit to outsiders.


    And at the moment, it was more than just submitting to outsiders from those three losing sides.


    "We have expressed our willingness to surrender. Don''t take things too far, Princess," Zhu Kong said.


    "Losers have no right to negotiate. Dead or alive. The choice is yours," Xia Qingyuan retorted in an overbearing manner and did not bother to say more. She then continued, "Do it."


    Now you want to talk about the dignity of Holiness of Nirvanas?


    Are you all still dreaming?


    Zhu Kong and the rest of his people shuddered slightly. It was no longer simply an insult.


    It was as Xia Qingyuan put it, losers had no right to negotiate.


    Xia Qingyuan did not bother even giving them a chance. If they chose to live, then they would have to cast everything aside. If they chose death, then they could at least die standing.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen gathered his sword wills and flashed, heading straight for Zhu Kong. Two other Holiness of Nirvanas acted at the same time as well, heading towards the ones they were fighting before, bringing terrifying power to bear.


    Zhu Kong lifted his head up to look at the sky. The Swordmaster of Lihen was getting increasingly close, and the sword wills were towering.


    Zhu Kong clenched his fists, and the aura about him roared.


    "Leader."


    A cracking noise was heard soon after. Zhu Kong felt his heart bleeding.


    Zhu Kong had been akin to a de facto leader of the nine tribes, and he was about to end up as such at the moment.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen was getting increasingly close. Sword wills buried his body, and the flames on Zhu Kong''s body roared.


    He then closed his eyes, and the towering flames were snuffed out immediately, disappearing without a trace.


    It was clear that he had made his choice.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen pointed, and countless sword will penetrated his body. The attack was not meant to kill him, and it would not have gotten rid of all his training. It was simply meant to cripple him for the time being.


    Sword will burst through Zhu Kong, destroying everything in his body. He grunted, and blood spilled from his mouth. His aura weakened rapidly.


    The two Holiness of Nirvanas made their choices as well. Like Zhu Kong, they did not choose to resist.


    The Palace Lord of Xuanyuan Palace landed heavy blows with his fists on Zhong Lou''s battle form, shattering it and causing Zhong Lou to feel as if his internal organs had all been destroyed. He returned to his original state, and his aura weakened just as rapidly.


    The same happened with the Raven tribe leader.


    All three Holiness of Nirvanas were cripples at that very moment. The three who attacked them did not bother showing any mercy.


    "Haul all three of them back to Emperor Xia''s Realm. All people from their tribes are to ruled by the Nanli tribe, the Vermillion Bird tribe, and the Beili tribe," Xia Qingyuan ordered. Zhu Kong and the rest were ashen.


    What she did was akin to tearing their tribes apart.


    Xia Qingyuan intended to have them work for Emperor Xia''s Realm, and she made sure that they would not have any thoughts of rebellion.


    It was immensely brutal.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm was not Crimson Dragon Realm; it was the turf of Emperor Xia. As prisoners of war and people who surrendered, they were obliged to do whatever was commanded of them. Emperor Xia would have killed them without question otherwise.


    Furthermore, there was no escape for them at all. Their tribe members were all being controlled in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "Other than that, the Nanli tribe, the Vermillion Bird tribe, and the Beili tribe have been training for years in Crimson Dragon Realm. I assume that you all lacked communication with the outside world. I now offer an opportunity for members of the three tribes to train for a time in Emperor Xia''s Realm, what do you think?" Xia Qingyuan then continued, "The safety of your people will be taken care of in Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    There was no one present who did not understand what Xia Qingyuan meant. That was to say that she wanted the hostages to be at Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Xia Qingyuan did not trust them.


    But then again, that was totally within reason. The three had headed to Qianye City with Zhu Kong before, after all. They had only turned against him and sided with Ye Futian after finding out that things were not in their favor.


    There was no way Xia Qingyuan would have trusted them completely.


    No one had noticed that princess from Emperor Xia''s Realm before. From the looks of things at present, it was obvious that she was someone decisive and brutal as well. Furthermore, one who did not bother giving face.


    However, only by doing so would she have been able to ensure that the tribes would not betray her and threaten Ye Futian. From her standpoint, she was naturally doing this for the sake of Qianye City, or for Ye Futian.


    They had decided to submit, and it was time for them to show that they were sincere about it.


    "Fine." The Beili tribe leader said, "This is my son, Beili Chuan, and he has not been a saint for long. He will bring some of his men to Emperor Xia''s Realm, and I hope you will be able to look after them."


    "You have my word." Xia Qingyuan looked at the Beili tribe leader and nodded.


    "What a fox," the Nanli tribe leader cursed deep down. The Beili tribe had never attempted to actually do anything against Ye Futian, and at that moment, their tribe leader was also the first to express willingness to cooperate. He had to admit that the old fox was indeed cunning. Among the old nine tribes, it would have probably been the Beili tribe leader that Ye Futian would have trusted most, after Wu Yong.


    The Beili tribe leader had shown that he was being sincere and the other tribes did the same naturally, sending important figures to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    With that, all nine tribes were then completely put under the rule of Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.

 1268 Awakening

    The Swordmaster of Lihen and the others brought Zhu Kong and all those with him back to Emperor Xia''s Realm. Zhu Kong and the two other Holiness of Nirvanas suffered severe damage. They lost their combat capacity, for the time being, making it impossible for them to play any tricks during the journey.


    When they reached Emperor Xia''s Realm, their tribesmen were being ruled by those from the Nanli tribe and the other two tribes, which made it even more unlikely for them to do anything.


    Worse still, there were also many from the Nanli tribe, the Beili tribe, and the Vermillion Bird tribe heading towards Emperor Xia''s Realm. With deterrents being everywhere, none would have dared to harbor any thoughts of doing anything nasty. They simply did as they were told.


    The trip was more than enough to bolster the top-notch combat prowess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, as they were able to force Zhu Kong and the other two Holiness of Nirvanas to participate in the conflict with Dali.


    It was a two-birds-with-one-stone scenario for Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Xia Qingyuan naturally stayed behind in Crimson Dragon Realm instead of returning with the others.


    They all would have probably needed quite some time to recover from the incident with the nine tribes.


    The tribes that lost their Holiness of Nirvanas had only one way out if they were to rise again.


    That one way was to submit to Ye Futian and gain his trust, eventually having him impart the lineage of Emperor Kua to them.


    Only by doing so would they be able to have a chance of seeing Holiness of Nirvanas rising among their ranks again.


    If they were to continue resenting him, those tribes would probably never be able to see their past glory return and would entirely fall apart until they were absorbed and assimilated into tribes that Ye Futian came to trust.


    There had been competitions between the nine tribes throughout the ages. All of them wanted to be the one to unify the nine tribes. Any who got the chance to be at the top calling the shots would never show mercy to the other tribes.


    "The Beili tribe, the Nanli tribe, and the Vermillion Bird tribe shall rule the nine tribes of the past from here on out. You all shall be responsible for restoring order, and when you''re done, core members shall be given direct access to Emperor Kua''s City and restore the Emperor Kua''s Hall. Ye Futian, City Lord of Qianye City, shall impart the powers of Emperor Kua as the lord of Emperor Kua''s Hall. The nine tribes shall then follow orders issued within the hall."


    Xia Qingyuan spoke to the mighty ones from the three tribes after sending off the ones heading off to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Yes, Princess." Everyone nodded and did not object. They all submitted to Ye Futian, and it was only natural that he be made the lord of the Emperor Kua''s Hall when the place was restored.


    The nine tribes were, in a certain sense of the word, united as a single entity again. However, it was not through having one of the tribes absorbing and assimilating all the others. Still, that one person was inheriting Emperor Kua''s lineage and passing it all down the generations from that on out.


    It was as if everything was as fate ordained.


    "The three of you shall be the first generation of elders of Emperor Kua''s Hall. Any within the nine tribes whom you find to be insubordinate, you''re permitted to enforce the law and execute them," Xia Qingyuan continued. She was concerned with rebellions in the tribes, and under such circumstances, a heavy-handed approach was necessary.


    The three Holiness of Nirvanas naturally understood and nodded. They, too, were not merciful people. They would not have decided right away to submit to Ye Futian when things were not in their favor otherwise.


    All of them were very decisive and action-oriented people.


    "Keep a close eye on those from the Wu clan who rebelled. Leave them be and let their leader deal with them," Xia Qingyuan added.


    Those who rebelled and chose to follow Zhu Kong back then turned pale when they heard what she said.


    Wu Yong had become an absolute member of Ye Futian''s inner circle then.


    They wondered what their leader would have done with rebels like them.


    Even if Wu Yong chose to spare them, there was no way they would have been placed in prominent positions and given important tasks from then on out. They would have been marginalized, standing at the sidelines as they no longer had a leader.


    They would probably be reduced to serve at the very bottom of the hierarchy among the tribes.


    Xia Qingyuan then departed right away after she was done with affairs over there, returning to Qianye City.


    She believed that the three Holiness of Nirvanas of those three tribes would be able to handle things well there.


    With all nine tribes united again, they would not pose a looming threat anymore.


    Among those who worked against them, some died, and some chose to switch sides. The only problem then was the Ancient Imperial City.


    With the City Lord of Ancient Imperial City��the Ninth Servant��being lauded as the number one City Lord and a supreme being among the Holiness of Nirvanas, it would be challenging to deal with him at the moment. If he were to be sufficiently angered, he might have simply gone on a killing spree in Qianye City, and no one would have been able to stop a Holiness of Nirvana like him, who was at the pinnacle of the plane.


    There were times where numbers did not matter before one who had overwhelmingly powerful training.


    For instance, people like Yu Sheng and Ye Futian could not be dealt with by having more people gang up on them.


    Xia Qingyuan would not make a move against Ancient Imperial City. That part was left to Ye Futian.


    When the news about things regarding the nine tribes at the western region of Crimson Dragon Realm spread, countless were astonished.


    The princess from Emperor Xia''s Realm was, without a doubt, a tough character in her own right. Not only had she been able to take out all nine tribes and dealt with them once and for all, but she had even managed to dismantle any lurking threats on the spot, putting all nine tribes securely in control and making sure everyone would play nice. She ensured that everyone would take Ye Futian''s orders obediently.


    Many came to wonder if Ye Futian was the son-in-law of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    They also wondered if Xia Qingyuan was doing all of that because they pissed off her boyfriend.


    The rebuilding of the city lord''s office''s area in Qianye City was underway, making the place look even more magnificent and grand than it used to be, especially the city lord''s office itself. A grand matrix was even laid in the place.


    It was as if the city lord''s office had to be more magnificent than it had last been after the destruction it suffered.


    It was like Qianye City itself, where after destruction suffered, the rebuilt city lord''s office would be even more powerful than before.


    It was no exception at that time as well.


    Without including forces from Emperor Xia''s Realm, there had only been one Holiness of Nirvana guarding the place before��Shen Tianzhan, the former city lord.


    At present, other than Shen Tianzhan, there was also Wu Yong.


    Furthermore, among the nine tribes that Qianye City came to rule, there were also three Holiness of Nirvanas and many more Unblemished Saints.


    Other than that, Yan Yuan was also present in the city lord''s office, and there was also the Star Plucking Saint, who aided them secretly.


    It was as if everything was different after fighting a grand battle.


    Qianye City seemed to have become the second most powerful city outside of Crimson Dragon City.


    Ancient Imperial City remained the number one city.


    Qianye City''s current power was such that other than Ancient Imperial City, there were indeed no other cities capable of standing against it.


    There had never been a city able to rise to such prominence in such a short period. Qianye City was seen as a miracle.


    ...


    Ye Futian finally rose from his coma on that day.


    He had been asleep all the while. All his injuries had been amply repaired, so much so that he was almost completely healed.


    Loulan Xue, Little Butterfly, and Zhuge Mingyue had been taking care of him throughout the time. Even Long Ling''er stayed by his side without doing anything funny.


    Many smiled when Ye Futian came to. The burden on their shoulders was finally lifted.


    While Xu Chehan had long determined that Ye Futian would be alright, if he were to stay in a coma, no one would have been able to rest easy.


    "Why the hell are you people looking at me like that?" Ye Futian shrugged when he saw the familiar faces around him, asking with a smile.


    "I assume you slept well?" Zhuge Mingyue smiled sheepishly at him. "Yeah, right. For some guy who had been sleeping for months, you''re the one to talk," she thought.


    "Yeah, Second Sister. It''s been a while since I slept so well," Ye Futian said in a joking tone.


    "It''d be weird if you weren''t sleeping well when they''re so many watching over you," Zhuge Mingyue then quipped.


    Ye Futian did not say anything else, feeling warm deep down. All of those familiar faces were people he considered family.


    Other than feeling warm inside, he also felt a sense of responsibility after seeing how nervous they were.


    He knew that he was the center of everything as far as they were concerned. That meant that he was shouldering the fate of everyone there.


    There were many people in the world worthy of his protection.


    They were all looking out for each other.


    "I''ll get some air outside," Ye Futian rose and walked outside. Long Ling''er came and helped him up, lifting her head and looking at him, asking, "Are you feeling alright, brother?"


    "Relax, I''m fine," Ye Futian smiled and said, but he swore deep down that he would never pull anything like that again.


    It would really kill him.


    If it had not been for the protection afforded by his Life Spirit and the imperial will, what he pulled would have easily burned through ten lives.


    He came to the compound after walking out of the room. Ye Futian looked up at the blinding sun and felt he needed to adjust to things.


    "How are things out there now?" Ye Futian asked.


    Xia Qingyuan came to his side and elaborated on everything that had happened to him. Ye Futian nodded and said, "Thanks a lot."


    Xia Qingyuan did not say anything. She then asked after a while, "Do you think there is more to be done with the Xi clan?"


    The Saint Lord of Jiuyang had wanted to be part of the fight back then, but he switched sides and helped them kill the Jue tribe leader.


    Xia Qingyuan was asking if he would like to settle the score further.


    "We''ll talk about this later," Ye Futian answered. He turned his eyes forward, seeing a figure that stood out of the crowd like a sore thumb, getting ready to leave.


    "Brother Yan," Ye Futian called.


    Yan Yuan halted his steps and turned around, saying, "Now that you''re awake, things in Qianye City would be fine, and I''d need to head back. I''m sure Feixue and the others are waiting for news from me for the past several months."


    "Now that you''re in Crimson Dragon Realm, why not stay here at Qianye City instead, brother?" Ye Futian asked.


    "If you''re concerned with the teacher''s reputation, there is no need for you to stay in the city lord''s office. It would suffice if you just stayed in the city for training. Feixue would be safer here. Things at Dali Dynasty are still a threat, after all. If anything were to happen, we would be able to do something to back you up," Ye Futian said.


    Yan Yuan felt rather concerned. Dali was indeed a lurking threat. There was no telling who from Dali would act against them.


    Dali might have gotten into some conflicts with Emperor Xia''s Realm, with both sides being of equal strength, unable to overwhelm the other. However, there was no telling what would have happened in the future.


    "I''ve set up Qianye Academy in the city. You could stay there in seclusion and train. If you run into any decent candidates worthy of your teaching, it would be just like how it was with Dali Academy back then. You''d still be inheriting the will of our teacher," Ye Futian then added.


    Yan Yuan sported a ponderous look and said, "I''ll ask what Feixue thinks about this when I return."


    "Very well," Ye Futian smiled and nodded. Yan Yuan then left for the city lord''s office.


    "Sir Yan Yuan is indeed someone worthy of respect," Xia Qingyuan walked up to him and said. It was a pity that there was no way Yan Yuan would join Emperor Xia''s Realm due to concerns over his teacher''s reputation.


    Despite the regime having permanently crippled the Imperial Advisor and imprisoning him for treason, his students refused to admit to those charges. They would not allow themselves to confirm that their teacher had been a traitor.


    "The Imperial Advisor and the students of his are all worthy of respect," Ye Futian added.


    News came after Ye Futian came to. They were figures from top-notch forces coming to visit him afterward. Xi Chan, daughter of the Xi clan, came to apologize personally at Qianye City and brought many gifts. Ye Futian saw no reason not to accept them in good faith.


    He considered the score settled, and that was final.

 1269 Peach Invitation

    Qianye City regained its usual calm and peace after all the commotion before.


    Even though everyone came to learn that Ye Futian had acquired Emperor Kua''s lineage, they dared not show up and try to take it away by force.


    The battle on the very first day of Year 10025 of Divine Prefecture Calendar saw seven tribes laying siege to Qianye City. Several top-notch figures participated in the invasion. Even so, they did not manage to take down Qianye City. The city had become even more powerful than it had been in the past, and no one dared rechallenge them.


    The rise of Ye Futian was probably unstoppable.


    Many came to agree among themselves that among the many cities outside of Crimson Dragon City, Ancient Imperial City was number one while Qianye City was number two.


    In the area where Vice City Lord Shen Tianzhan had taken up residence within the city lord''s office''s vicinity, Shen Jun was training especially hard. Other than training on his own to deepen his comprehension and understanding, he had also sparred with the ones from the city lord''s office often. Every single session saw him being thoroughly exhausted by the end, and the sessions did not stop until he was injured.


    At that moment, Shen Tianzhan was standing at the side of the huge platform, watching Shen Jun fight on it.


    He witnessed personally how Shen Jun was beaten until he spat up blood, yet he continued to fight nonetheless. The sparring stopped after quite a while before he walked towards Shen Tianzhan, bowing and greeting, "Father."


    "Training should always be done in moderation. There is no need to keep wanting to break one''s limit," Shen Tianzhan said.


    He naturally realized that Shen Jun changed.


    His son''s vista changed.


    Shen Jun, back in the past, had always limited his vista to merely being the lord of a city, wanting to be nothing else, and that his goal was simply to inherit his father''s Qianye City.


    However, one''s environment had a profound impact on one''s outlook and growth.


    Ye Futian''s emergence broadened Shen Jun''s horizons, letting him know what it meant when someone said that there was always something or someone bigger out there.


    Shen Jun recalled what he had been doing in the past and found that he was ridiculous. He had only wanted to dupe Ye Futian into participating in the Battle of the Sleeping Dragon, allowing him to win the gamble.


    However, Ye Futian did things in a vastly different manner when he became City Lord of Qianye City.


    What he did and what Ye Futian was were not even of the same level altogether, and that left a profound impact on him.


    After experiencing the past battles firsthand, he truly realized that the Saint Plane was only the beginning instead of the end.


    "I understand, father. But doing battle allows me to keep bringing out my potential and put it to good use." Shen Jun replied, "I shall return to my training."


    "Very well." Shen Tianzhan nodded. He saw Shen Jun turn around and found his choice to have been sensible back then.


    He thought that maybe he did not need to state his terms to Ye Futian.


    Being able to stay at the side of excellent people was the best condition one could have been offered. The man whom the Imperial Advisor of Dali had been willing to spare at the cost of his career was showing through his feats that he was meant to be legendary.


    Yu Sheng''s name became known throughout the Battle of the Crimson River, and he was then ranked in the Regional King Ranking.


    While Ye Futian did not have a stage like Yu Sheng to show what he was capable of, he was walking his own path and achieving greatness.


    The brothers, together with Xia Qingyuan and the others around him, would have become frightening figures in the future.


    There was one thing that shocked Shen Tianzhan more than anything else.


    It was the fact that Ye Futian was the absolute center of the group. It was as if all excellent people gathered because of him.


    The eldest student of the Imperial Advisor of Dali, Yan Yuan, who had made a breakthrough into Holiness of Nirvana Plane, joined Qianye City''s ranks not long ago. He was training in seclusion in Qianye Academy.


    Shen Tianzhan found that he might be witnessing the rise of a legend.


    ...


    Two figures were training at yet another training ground in the city lord''s office.


    One of them was basking in boundless flames and becoming tall and imposing as if he was a god of war of flames, clad all over in terrifying Flames of the Way.


    "Four layers and no more still," the figure said. He was none other than Ye Futian. After things at Qianye City quieted down, he had been looking into and training in the way of Emperor Kua''s lineage ever since he had awakened. He had been spending his days training quietly and stabilizing his plane.


    He had been at Proving Holiness level back in the battle before. His plane had become unusually stable, and his aura thick and solid, looking far more brilliant and refined than before.


    Training at Saint Plane was not something that could be rushed.


    "The Chonglou Battle Form has 13 layers to it, and every single plane in sainthood had three layers. Now that you can reach the fourth layer, it is already something that could only be done at Saint of True Self level," the one standing opposite him elaborated. It was none other than Wu Yong, the Wu clan leader.


    Ye Futian imparted the ways of Emperor Kua''s lineage to him as well, and they were both researching the ways together.


    He was there to guide Ye Futian in training many times, but Ye Futian was able to tap into the will of Emperor Kua''s lineage to help Wu Yong train as well. Both men were helping each other to reach greater heights.


    Xia Qingyuan told him how to deal with those who switched sides as soon as she returned. He did not even return to Emperor Kua''s City in the western region and had told the three Holiness of Nirvanas in that city to take care of things. He did not want to concern himself with affairs on that side.


    Those who had followed him back then were all staying in Qianye City with him.


    Wu Yong knew clearly that Ye Futian intended to make him the number one figure among the nine tribes, helping him rule the nine tribes that Emperor Kua left behind in the past. As such, his only duty at the moment was to train with Ye Futian and enhance his powers.


    In the world of cultivators, one''s own power served as the basis of everything.


    If his powers were to be unable to reach the top and become the strongest among the nine tribes, others would not have listened to him even if Ye Futian wanted to make him the leader, as his seat would have been built on sand instead.


    "Well, you have experienced what it was like at the twelfth layer in the past, senior," Ye Futian smiled and said. He lent his powers to Wu Yong back then, and Wu Yong had been creating the battle form at the twelfth layer by tapping into the will of Emperor Kua. That was already at the pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvana plane.


    It would be the level of Renhuang at the thirteenth layer.


    "I couldn''t have possibly done it all on my own." Wu Yong smiled and added, "By the way, there is no need to keep addressing me as your senior, City Lord Ye. It will suffice just to call me by name."


    "The habit stuck." Ye Futian chuckled nonchalantly and continued, "Keep looking into the way of Emperor Kua''s lineage, and I believe you''ll be able to do it all on your own before long. You might even be able to go further than that."


    "I''d do my best," Wu Yong said.


    "Continue to train, senior. I shall train in isolation for some time," Ye Futian said. Wu Yong nodded, excused himself, and left.


    Ye Futian was training in isolation. Everyone else in the city lord''s office was also working hard to enhance their plane.


    ...


    Crimson Dragon City was the absolute center of Crimson Dragon Realm. That city was known as the number one city in all of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    There was a divine mountain at Crimson Dragon City��the Crimson Mountain.


    The mountain was a long and winding one, making it seem like a dragon.


    There were castles on that dragon of a mountain, covering the entire mountain itself. The castles extended from the foot right to the top, which made it seem like they were connected to the sun in the sky.


    There were countless standing at the foot of the divine mountain every day, gazing upon the incredibly divine palaces and castles above.


    That place was the royal palace of Crimson Dragon Realm, where the Crimson Dragon Emperor resided.


    Outside of the royal palace, a river was found at the foot of the mountain, which was named Ganyuan. The river water was always boiling. It was as if the sun had been sunken in it.


    The Crimson Dragon Army stood guard at the side of Ganyuan, looking majestic and holy.


    A long cry was heard from the top of the mountain. Countless below looked up and saw an incredibly divine scene before them.


    Golden Ravens were seen pulling the sun carriage out on a journey. It seemed as if a Divine Priest sat on the carriage.


    They were not the only Golden Ravens seen. There were many of those divine birds, and they were all pulling sun carriages themselves. The Divine Priest rode on the carriages and flew past the crowd below, heading elsewhere.


    "What is happening?" The stunning scene before the people of Crimson Dragon City shook their minds.


    They were wondering if something huge was about to happen.


    While Crimson Dragon Emperor was known as the absolute master of Crimson Emperor Realm, he did not interfere with the affairs of the realm itself.


    The Crimson Dragon Realm was vast, and it was also the main realm of the Crimson Dragon Region. If he were to get himself involved in everything going on, he would have worked himself to death.


    As such, regardless of the severity of what was happening in Crimson Dragon Realm, so long as such happenings would not tear Crimson Dragon Realm apart, the emperor would not get involved.


    The carriages before the people were naturally not those of the emperor.


    However, many wondered how many wielded power great enough to call for such a majestic entourage.


    The Golden Raves were the ones pulling the carriages, and Divine Priests were mobilized.


    Countless looked at the carriages faraway in different directions. They seemed to have seen golden sun petals on the carriages, which were scattered everywhere as they went.


    Those were golden peach flowers.


    "It is His Highness."


    Everyone knew who the one who sent the carriages at that moment was.


    With the messengers sent out like that by His Highness, it meant one thing.


    Crimson Dragon Realm was all in an uproar. Countless people flashed and headed towards the carriages, wanting to know who received the Peach Invitations from His Highness.


    At the turf of one of the topmost force found in Crimson Dragon City, the sun carriages were seen heading inside from above before long. The Divine Priest from the carriage looked at the people below and waved, saying, "An invitation from His Highness."


    A young man who looked dashing and legendary stood at a tower. He extended his hand, and an invitation was handed over to him. He looked at the golden peach flower carved on it.


    The same thing was happening in many places in Crimson Dragon City.


    Several sun carriages arrived above the Crimson River at that time. They drove into the river at the same time, heading towards the Regional Palace, which was at the center of the river. No-one stopped them.


    There were also sun carriages outside of Crimson Dragon City as well, causing a huge commotion.


    Those carriages were all heading in different directions.


    The divine birds pulled the sun carriages and arrived above Qianye City before long. Countless looked up, and a piece of shocking news was heard, causing their heart to race. They all rushed to where the city lord''s office was.


    As expected, the sun carriages were seen stopping above the city lord''s office. The Divine Priest waved and said, "An invitation from His Highness. The recipient shall be Ye Futian, City Lord of Qianye City."


    One figure after another flashed in the city lord''s office. All of them looked up, and they shuddered deep down.


    Ye Futian emerged as well. The golden Peach Invitation hovered down and landed on his palm.


    An invitation from His Highness.


    In Crimson Dragon Realm, such a grand entourage and from one known to be His Highness could only be from the royal palace in Crimson Dragon City.


    So that battle had caught the royal palace''s attention?


    With that, he was one step closer to his goal.


    There were also Golden Raves pulling the sun carriages at some distant places when Ye Futian received the invitation. They headed to the eastern region and entered Emperor Dong''s Palace, handing over a Peach Invitation to the prince of the place��Duan Wuji.

 1270 Dropping Flowers Pining for Love

    Attend the Peach Banquet with the Peach Invitation in hand, and everyone under the heavens shall know of your name.


    That was a tradition held for many years in Crimson Dragon Realm. The Flaming Peach at the divine mountain of Crimson Dragon City blossomed once every several years. When the peach flowers filled the mountain, the princes of the Crimson Dragon Realm would have ventured out to hand the invitations.


    The number of people who were able to get their hands on the Peach Invitation was one in a hundred million. There were only a handful of people attending the event each time.


    Every single person who would have received the Peach Invitation were legendary figures in the realm.


    As such, the importance of the Peach Invitation was second only to the Regional King Ranking.


    This explained why the saying "Attend the Peach Banquet with the Peach Invitation in hand, and everyone under the heavens shall know of your name" was associated with the event.


    Even if one was little more than a nameless face, getting the Peach Invitation guaranteed that they would be on their way to being renowned throughout the realm. Everyone in Crimson Dragon Realm would know of their name.


    The event at that time was not an exception, as well.


    The phenomenon of the Divine Priests descending the mountain, and delivering the Peach Invitation was a sight to behold. Countless paid close attention to them, as well as those who would receive the Peach Invitations from the Divine Priests riding on the sun carriages.


    Those names were gradually known by all when the invitations were delivered.


    Some were expected to receive the Peach Invitations.


    For instance, Luo Yang of the Luo clan was someone ranked on the Regional King Ranking, as well as a figure of unparalleled powers among his peers.


    There was also the Virgin of the Yu clan, Yu Shifei, who was a peerless woman known throughout Crimson Dragon City. Many thought her future was obvious.


    Many were surprised that Ye Futian was able to receive a Peach Invitation, but then again, it was entirely within reason.


    Although Ye Futian had to indeed proved his mettle through his powers, he had tapped into the lineage of Emperor Kua in the battle at Qianye City and borrowed the flames in the ruins of the late emperor.


    He had yet to indeed prove his worth by fighting the most terrifying of figures armed solely with his powers. But then again, his shinning record in the battlefield thus far said that he did not lack such abilities.


    No one doubted how extraordinary Ye Futian was. All he needed to truly shine was a grand battle.


    As such, it was deemed entirely within reason that he had received a Peach Invitation.


    Two people had received the Peach Invitation in Qianye City��Yu Sheng, who was training in the Regional Palace, and the City Lord, Ye Futian.


    The future of Qianye City would, without doubt, be glorious.


    Other than that, the Regional Palace attracted the attention of many, as it was the only place capable of receiving multiple invitations.


    The delivery of the invitations caught the attention of Crimson Dragon City in an instant. Everyone was waiting quietly.


    The Peach Banquet was thrown on that day.


    A bridge appeared above Ganyuan outside of the royal palace. It was a bridge permitting entry into the royal palace.


    Another path was opened up outside of the royal palace, granting access to the western side of the divine mountain.


    Countless people arrived outside of the royal palace and went through the bridge, stepping into the mountain to witness the event.


    Peach flowers blossomed throughout the western side of the mountain. Golden Flaming Peach flowers were dazzling and glittered brilliantly under the sun, making them look even more glorious as their scent permeated the place.


    The people walked along the path and finally stopped somewhere far away, gazing at the extraordinarily beautiful, heaven-like forests of peach trees before them.


    There were pavilions among the blossoming Flaming Peach flowers, and there was a raging waterfall falling gloriously behind. Golden Ravens circled above the waterfall, and a dazzling rainbow appeared when the rays of the sun shone above, making the scenery very dreamlike.


    There were also pavilions above the waterfall.


    Carriages were flying above the crowd at that moment. They looked up and saw one figure after another streaking through the air.


    Those who had Peach Invitations in their hands were permitted to fly directly into the royal palace.


    As such, it was evident that those were the people who received the Peach Invitations.


    There was a woman at the center, streaking through the air. She looked supremely dashing while extremely elegant as well.


    "Yin Tianjiao, of the Regional Palace," some below said as they recognized her.


    The woman was Princess Yin Tianjiao, daughter of Emperor Wu. Her combat prowess was extraordinary, but both she and Duan Wuji of Emperor Dong''s Palace had lost to Ye Futian on the trip to Emperor Kua''s ruins.


    Ye Futian was the one who had been able to acquire the lineage.


    However, both of them were still able to receive the Peach Invitation. It was a recognition for them both.


    "Is that Yu Sheng?" Someone looked elsewhere at a stout young man. Many nodded and replied, "That''s him."


    "Xing Kai is here too, and he brought Xing Qiu with him." Someone noticed both Xing Kai and Xing Qiu were arriving together from another direction. Those who received the Peach Invitations were allowed to bring someone to attend the event. As such, the Xing Qiu''s appearance was hardly surprising to the crowd.


    However, Xing Qiu had almost ended up killed by Yu Sheng in the battle of Qianye City. Everyone was curious about Xing Kai''s intentions in bringing his brother along.


    There was a group in the air that landed in different places after they arrived. They were all from the Regional Palace, but they did not seem to be any familiar faces among them.


    There was another group of mighty ones coming through the air. The auras emanated from them were all powerful, and the central figure exuded extraordinary bearing. That figure was none other than Prince Duan Wuji from Emperor Dong''s Palace, which was located in the eastern region of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "Ye Futian is here too." A group of mighty ones from Qianye City streaked through the air from another direction. The leading figure was none other than Ye Futian. Xia Qingyuan was by his side.


    They descended directly in the peach forest, and Yu Sheng came to them after they landed.


    Ye Futian looked around him and found several familiar faces.


    There were Yin Tianjiao and Duan Wuji, both of whom he had fought before.


    Other than that, there were also Xing Kai and Xing Qiu, whom they naturally knew.


    There was another group arriving, and they were all from the Regional Palace. Every one of them looked superb.


    There were two among them who were especially so. One was a young man who looked to be in his thirties and dressed in white. Countless pairs of eyes were glued onto him, and mumbles were heard. It was obvious that they knew of that person''s identity.


    He was a cultivator from the Regional Palace, Pei Min.


    He, too, was a figure ranked in the Regional King Ranking.


    He was not a native resident of Crimson Dragon Realm, but one who came from another imperial realm, and from a place called the Sword Emperor Palace.


    He had traveled far and wide before coming to the primary realm of the Crimson Dragon Region, and he was doing it to further his training, as he wanted to see the number one holy land of cultivation in Crimson Dragon Realm for himself.


    There was yet another extremely beautiful woman in another direction. She was daughter of a Renhuang whose appearance was on par with that of Yin Tianjiao.


    It was said that three women received the Peach Invitations, and all of them looked stunning.


    But, of course, their overall powers were quite a distance away from the men who had received the Peach Invitation.


    Ye Futian quietly eyed those around him as soon as he arrived. He knew that all who came were considered the most extraordinary of their generation, and many were descendants of Renhuang.


    Luo Yang of the Luo clan was there as well. He caught a lot of attention and was extremely renowned in Crimson Dragon City, due to being ranked on the Regional King Ranking.


    Furthermore, he had been a legendary genius who had refused the offer to train in the Regional Palace, which served as a testament to the extent of his arrogance.


    The Luo clan was a family descended from a Renhuang. While there had not been a Renhuang among them now, the lineage left behind by their ancestors was extremely powerful.


    "Yu Shifei." Countless people looked up at that moment.


    A soothing sensation was felt under the scorching sun, cooling the hearts of many and making all feel extremely comfortable.


    A group of mighty ones descended from above, and the leading figure was dressed in an aqua blue dress, looking clean and elegant. She was none other than Yu Shifei, a woman extremely renowned throughout Crimson Dragon City.


    "Shifei." A figure was seen above at that moment. Many vaguely saw the dazzling ray of the sun descending. Someone was basking in holy light, and a figure appeared at the pavilion above the waterfall. His jet black long hair draped on his shoulders while his eyes looked sharp. His handsome looks seemed to be able to mesmerize people with just a smile, making all who happened to gaze upon him be amazed by how dashing he was.


    That was Chi Shang, a prince of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    He extended his hand and smiled when he descended. His eyes were on Yu Shifei all the while.


    Yu Shifei smiled faintly as well, which looked brilliant. She then took to the air and came to Chi Shang''s side. She let him hold her hand. Both of them gradually hovered down, and the golden peach flowers danced in the air. The scene was nothing short of mesmerizing.


    "What a couple." Ye Futian praised deep down. Chi Shang and Yu Shifei were indeed a couple that was very pleasing to the eye. It was as if they were a match made in heaven.


    Countless below looked up at the peach forest above and smiled, sending their blessings and regards.


    But then again, there was no one capable of tearing the couple apart, regardless of if they were blessed by those around them or not.


    The son of Crimson Dragon Emperor and a Virgin of the Yu clan liked each other, and there could not have been a better match for either of them.


    It was only a matter of time before Yu Shifei became a queen of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    If Chi Shang were to inherit the throne in the future, then she would have been the wife of the emperor of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Chi Shang and Yu Shifei descended before a pavilion, and a guqin appeared before them. Both of them sat cross-legged and looked at each other before putting their fingers on the strings and began playing. Beautiful tunes danced, and the illustrated scene was stunning. It was as if they were able to sense what the other was thinking.


    No one bothered them, and everyone listened quietly. Despite Chi Shang''s supreme talents, many wondered if he would be a prince who would forsake the throne for a woman.


    Ye Futian listened to the tune quietly, and it seemed that the tune tugged at his heartstrings. There seemed to be a tinge of sorrow within the warmth.


    He looked up in the sky and saw a vague figure appearing, lingering in his mind.


    Xia Qingyuan, who was listening to the tune beside Ye Futian, noticed his peculiarity. She turned her eyes to look at him.


    She seemed to be able to able to see the faint sorrow and dejection on his face.


    He must have missed her.


    She lowered her head somewhat before turning to look at Chi Shang and Yu Shifei again. Her eyes glimmered with a hint of envy.


    The peach flowers continued to dance in the air. Xia Qingyuan extended her hand, and a petal landed on her palm.


    She wondered if her feelings would remain unrequited.

 1271 Sparing No Expense

    The sound of the tune was beautiful, and it was even more so when the tune was played by them both.


    Golden peach flowers dropped around both of them. Many saw Chi Shang and Yu Shifei smile at each other. All who witnessed that moment were able to tell how beautiful the relationship between them was.


    There were 18 candidates ranked on the Regional King Ranking in Crimson Dragon Realm, and there were eight who were Proving Holiness and Saints of True Self. All of them were at the event.


    That fact alone served as a testament to the importance of the Peach Invitation.


    Both Chi Shang and Yu Shifei were two of those people.


    Yu Shifei stood out even more, given that she was the only woman among those eight mentioned.


    The other two women were Princess Yin Tianjiao, daughter of Emperor Wu, who was training in the Regional Palace, and Shu Zi, daughter of Emperor Shu. Both of them were formidable cultivators in their own right, yet they were not ranked in the Regional King Ranking.


    It was easily seen from that fact alone just how exceptional the Virgin from the Yu clan was. Her clan was currently placing all of their hope on her. Yu Shifei was the key to the future of her clan.


    Many were wondering just how wonderful it would be if both Chi Shang and Yu Shifei both made it into Renhuang Plane.


    They would probably end up like the current Crimson Dragon Emperor and his queen.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at the peach flower that landed on her palm and asked, "Were you two been this beautiful at one time?"


    Ye Futian turned his gaze away from the sky to look at Xia Qingyuan at his side. He smiled beamingly and nodded, saying, "Probably more beautiful than this."


    "It probably won''t take long for you to fulfill your wish on this trip to Crimson Dragon Realm," Xia Qingyuan said in a low voice.


    "That would be great." Ye Futian nodded.


    The beautiful tune gradually stopped. Chi Shang and Yu Shifei smiled at each other before turning around to look at the crowd.


    Chi Shang''s eyes turned to Ye Futian. It was the first time the prince saw him. Ye Futian had handsome looks yet sported silver hair. The prince wondered what he had been through.


    "I heard that you''re good at playing the guqin, City Lord Ye," Chi Shang smiled and quipped.


    It was evident that he heard the conversation between him and Xia Qingyuan, despite them having kept their volume down.


    Chi Shang thought that the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm was with Ye Futian, yet he seemed to be able to tell that he was probably wrong from that simple conversation he heard.


    "I know a thing or two, Your Highness," Ye Futian nodded and said.


    "Well, we''re in such a beautiful place. How about you play a tune for us?" Chi Shang smiled and asked.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded. While Chi Shang was indeed a prince of Crimson Dragon Realm and the favorite prince of the emperor, he lacked any overbearing pressure.


    On the contrary, he seemed to be like one of those dashing gentlemen who loved flirting around.


    Ye Futian sat on the ground, and a guqin materialized before him. His entire being seemed to have gotten into the zone, and his aura changed completely.


    He felt as if he was in a quiet, tranquil place, isolated from the world.


    An illustration seemed to have been painted as soon as the sound of his tune was heard.


    Chi Shang and Yu Shifei were both adept at guqin. But then again, they could not have portrayed the scenery painted by the music itself even if they knew little about music in the first place.


    "This is beautiful," Yu Shifei commented faintly. The tune sounded rather similar to the one they played before. It was as if the tune itself was an embodiment of the concept of beauty itself.


    What differed was that the beauty in the tune between both of them was that of resonance.


    The beauty in the tune played by Ye Futian seemed to have stemmed more from remembrance.


    Everyone turned to look at Ye Futian. He was the most renowned figure in the realm as of late. He finally stood alongside the cutting edge of geniuses in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    There seemed to be a battle fought below the mountain.


    Chi Shang was hardly surprised. He looked at the ground below and saw an ancient path with a figure running on it. That figure seemed to have been blazing a trail and intended to reach the mountain, joining the Peach Banquet.


    That was also the rule of the Peach Banquet. Those who lacked the Peach Invitation were welcomed to fight their way up there.


    And then, there was indeed one who took to fighting their way up.


    Many turned to look at the trail leading to the Peach Banquet below. Someone was seen moving forward, emanating an overwhelming aura as they blitzed the trail before them. There was a group of cultivators following behind.


    "Someone from Xiang City." Someone was able to tell who was coming. Xiang Nan, a prince of Emperor Xiang''s Realm, was actually among them.


    However, the one who fought was not Xiang Nan, as they had yet to make it into Saint Plane, and as such, were not included in the list of invitees.


    But then again, that person resembled Xiang Nan somewhat.


    That person was nonetheless Xiang Nan''s elder brother. His name was Xiang Ze, and he was another prince from Emperor Xiang''s Realm.


    The tune continued to be played, and a rumble was heard as Xiang Ze fought as he moved. He managed to beat all who stood in his way. Defeated combatants were found all over the trail.


    Xiang Ze walked up and came to the place below the Peach Banquet. He then cupped his hands and said to Chi Shang, "I''m Xiang Ze of Emperor Xiang''s Realm. I have long known of the renown of the Peach Banquet of Crimson Dragon Realm. Please pardon my intrusion, Your Highness."


    The Peach Banquet was known as the number one banquet in all of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "Never mind, please," Chi Shang then said.


    Xiang Ze nodded and stepped up, heading into the Peach Banquet officially.


    A wave of aura swept all over the place when he walked. It was as if there was a formless force trying to break up the tune.


    The peach flowers were shredded and lashed out at Ye Futian as a formless force.


    Xia Qingyuan took a look in his direction. She stepped out, and holy light burst from her body. Sword wills filled her surroundings, and she drew a line with her arm. The peach flowers around her danced in the air, looking very beautiful.


    She pointed her finger at Xiang Ze''s direction, causing the dancing flowers to streak out like swords of calamity, devouring everything in their path.


    Xiang Ze did not retreat but took another step forward. Formless waves of aura clashed with the sword wills of the peach flowers. A formless storm was formed, and the flowers were strewn the ground.


    Ye Futian continued to play the strings lightly. Xia Qingyuan seemed to have danced with the peach flowers. The scene was so extraordinarily beautiful, just like how it had been when Chi Shang and Yu Shifei played together.


    Eventually, the dancing notes gradually stopped, and the music was no longer heard.


    Ye Futian did not look at Xiang Ze. He looked at Chi Shang and smiled, saying, "Sorry about that."


    "Marvelous," Chi Shang smiled and said. Xia Qingyuan and Chi Shang both dispelled their auras, and both stood there quietly. Xia Qingyuan returned to Ye Futian''s side as if nothing had happened.


    However, everyone was able to clearly sense the intense conflict between the two parties in those brief moments.


    Xiang Ze probably had not been in Crimson Dragon Realm for long.


    Everyone naturally knew about the feud between Xiang City and Qianye City.


    Xiang Ze stepped into the Peach Banquet with overwhelming force, with a faint of provoking Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian did not even bother responding to the prince, so much so that he did not even bother looking at the intruder.


    An extremely cocky one indeed.


    Many found such a Peach Banquet to be even more exciting.


    The expression of all the people around remained normal. Every single one who attended the banquet was a figure of legends, after all.


    Chi Shang turned his eyes to look at the crowd around him, before smiling and saying, "All who received the Peach Invitation are all the most extraordinary of people to be found in Crimson Dragon Realm. Now that you are all here, it is indeed a good chance for all to witness just how extraordinary, the most formidable of cultivators are in Crimson Dragon Realm."


    Everyone knew that Chi Shang was only telling the truth. The Peach Banquet was lauded as the number one banquet in all of Crimson Dragon Realm. All who were invited were practically the most extraordinary of people found in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    All beings of the first two levels of Saint Plane, who were also people ranked on the Regional King Ranking, were all present.


    The others were also people with the potential of being ranked in said ranking as well.


    Even the entourages that came with those figures were also considered renowned people in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    For instance, Princess Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm was among Ye Futian''s entourage.


    Xing Qiu came alongside Xing Kai as well as the personal students of the Saint King of Gai.


    Other than that, there were also several from the Regional Palace being invited. Other than those who were invited, there were also many renowned people from the Regional Palace present.


    One figure after another appeared in the surrounding areas of the Peach Banquet. Many of them sported extremely powerful auras, and their powers were unpredictable. They were all standing at faraway corners of the mountain, keeping an eye on the event.


    All of those people were the topmost ones from the royal palace of Crimson Dragon Realm. Many among them would become legendary figures themselves if they were to venture out on their own.


    "City Lord Ye played a tune right after Shifei, and I played one. We were only doing it for fun, of course, but I''m sure many of you have heard of the story of a Magic Zither showing up at Crimson Dragon Realm many years ago. Many years have passed since, yet there are still none in the royal palace capable of playing the instrument. The guqin appeared in the past several Peach Banquets, and there were still none capable of playing it."


    Chi Shang looked at the crowd and elaborated. Many who had attended past banquets nodded in secret. Countless had heard of the Magic Zither''s rumors in Crimson Dragon City. It was a very famous instrument.


    It was said that the Magic Zither came from a demonic emperor and was imbued with the will of the demonic emperor. Many saints were not even able to get near the instrument, let alone play it.


    "It will work the same today as well. Anyone capable of connecting and playing the instrument will be allowed to take it away right away," Chi Shang smiled and said.


    The royal palace prepared several treasures for every Peach Banquet.


    Every single piece was undoubtedly an imperial level item.


    Anyone capable of wielding it would be welcomed to take them away.


    Furthermore, things were different from those treasures acquired at the ruins of Emperor Kua. Those items were things gifted by the royal palace of Crimson Dragon Emperor at the Peach Banquet. No one would have dared to take them by force afterward.


    There was also no need to worry about them being reclaimed. They were welcomed to be taken away with no strings attached.


    However, the Magic Zither had been around for several Peach Banquets.


    Despite being the first piece to show in the banquet, its difficulty would probably eclipse all others for historical reasons.


    Many deemed that it remained impossible for anyone to take the instrument away.


    There was simply no way of taking away a Magic Zither that no-one in the royal palace was capable of playing.


    "Please."


    Chi Shang lifted his head and said. Terrifying aura emanated from yet another corner of the mountain. The weather changed, and the place turned dark soon after.


    A dark object was seen flying from the sky far away. A Holiness of Nirvana appeared in the air. He moved his hands, and a dark item dropped from the sky.


    Raging waves washed all over the place. Peach flowers danced in the air before wilting at breakneck speeds, turning into black flowers.


    Voom.


    The Magic Zither descended and hovered in the middle of the banquet. Terrifying demonic aura formed around it as if demonic notes danced, and formless vibrations emanated from it in an extremely overwhelming manner.


    One formidable will after another was cast, heading straight for the Magic Zither. Ye Futian was also doing the same, infiltrating the instrument with his spiritual powers.


    However, his spiritual will was soon caught in the terrifying whirlpool, as soon as it infiltrated the instrument. Terrifying notes washed out shockingly, crushing every will that had gotten near the instrument.


    "A Renhuang level piece."


    Ye Futian gazed onto the Magic Zither, finding the demonic will within to definitely be that of Renhuang level. It was a guqin that a demonic emperor had once used.


    This sure as hell is an event hosted by the royal palace of Crimson Dragon Realm alright. The Peach Banquet really spared no expense.

 1272 Magic Zither

    The Magic Zither, which was hovering in midair, seemed to have terrifying music notes dancing around it. The mighty ones of Crimson Dragon City all knew that the guqin was still actually in its dormant state. Anyone who dared to pluck the strings on the Magic Zither would invoke demonic will power that was even more terrifying, bursting with the notes at frightening force.


    While there had been legendary figures in past Peach Banquets, none were able to withstand the pulses of the notes for long. As such, there was still no one capable of mastering and playing that Magic Zither.


    "Who would like to have a go first?" Chi Shang looked at the crowd and asked.


    Other than the ones who had gotten their hands on the Peach Invitations, the ones who came with them were also welcomed to try.


    But then again, those who were tagging along were destined to remain at the sidelines.


    The ones who received the invitations were the most brilliant there were to be found.


    "Go up and take a shot," Xing Kai said to Xing Qiu, who was by his side.


    He knew a thing or two about the Magic Zither and knew that the instrument was a test for Xing Qiu.


    "Alright." Xing Qiu nodded and moved, coming before the Magic Zither.


    Countless eyes were onto him in mere moments, including many leading figures of the royal palace on the mountain in faraway corners. They all locked their eyes on Xing Qiu.


    Xing Qiu was lauded as yet another Xing Kai before the Battle of the Crimson River. He had supreme talent and would become a member of the Regional Palace.


    However, he met Yu Sheng at that battle.


    Since then, Xing Qiu, who had once been placed with high hopes, felt as if an insurmountable ravine was right before him at all times. Many even wondered if Xing Qiu were to meet Yu Sheng before the Battle of the Crimson River, he might not even have been able to break into Saint Plane.


    Yu Sheng would have made him doubt himself.


    Regardless, Xing Qiu was a competent person, nonetheless. Many wondered how far he would be able to go.


    The light of the great path shimmered above his body, resonating with the world around him.


    He seemed to have basked in holy light. The glittering rings of light melded with the great path of his surroundings. He then stepped out and walked towards the Magic Zither.


    Demonic will rushed at him from within the Magic Zither. At that moment, Xing Qiu felt a vast demonic might had surrounded him. Everything in the world seemed to have changed. There were no longer peach flowers to be found on the mountain. He was in the world of the demon.


    There was a face appearing right before him, yet it was not the face of the demon lord.


    That was the face of Yu Sheng.


    That demon seemed to have been something stemming from his heart.


    Crack. Xing Qiu clenched his fists tight and continued to move a with a rumble, heading towards the Magic Zither. The instrument seemed to have become huge. The seven strings of the guqin, which were hovering midair, looked unnervingly clear within the demon island space.


    His arm glittered all over, and rings of light circled about him. He extended his arm when he was at the strings.


    The strings vibrated immediately after he plucked them with his fingers.


    Extremely formidable demonic might washed all over the place instantly, roaring at the image as it moved. Xing Qiu seemed to have beheld Yu Sheng, who had taken the form of an overlord demon king, then threw a fist at him. Its raging demonic might was difficult to defend against. A tinge of coldness was seen in his eyes. He then shouted and stepped out again, keeping his body centered.


    He then plucked the second string again with his finger.


    Boom... An even greater, wilder force swept out. Xing Qiu''s body was sent flying.


    He rose and kept his eyes forward. That Magic Zither continued to hover in midair as if nothing happened.


    It was as if everything that he had been through mere moments ago had been a dream.


    "Twice then."


    Many sported solemn looks. Even someone as strong as Xing Qiu had been sent flying with only having plucked two strings.


    The Magic Zither was more like an instrument best used for testing the strength of one''s will instead of one being played.


    If the goal was to use it to play a tune, no one around was deemed powerful enough to do so.


    Xing Kai looked disappointed when he saw what happened. He knew a little about the past Peach Banquets somehow, and there was no way the likes of Xing Qiu would have gotten further than that. However, the instrument was capable of attacking the will of its player. If the player had a wavering will, they would have suffered worse under the instrument''s effects, making one think the attacks were stronger than they were and were very difficult to resist.


    It seemed that Yu Sheng had a profound effect on Xing Qiu, as he had become a solid obstacle in Xing Qiu''s path to cultivation.


    "Get up there," Xing Kai then said to someone beside him��Gai Huang''s personal student, Hua Ye.


    Hua Ye nodded and walked out, coming before the Magic Zither. Xing Qiu turned his eyes to Hua Ye, who became clad in the dazzling will of the great path of space, tearing apart the demonic will power rushing at him.


    He slowly moved towards the instrument, coming right before the guqin that was hovering in midair.


    He then pointed at the air and seemed to have grabbed hold of the string on the Magic Zither remotely before plucking it.


    The sound of the guqin reverberated in an instant. However, it did not sound pleasing at all. The sound heard was that of a howl, sending rumbles throughout the space.


    Golden storm of space whipped up around Hua Ye, tearing everything apart. He pointed with yet another finger, plucking the string yet again.


    A demonic aura that was even more raging swept through the place. Boundless notes danced as if there was a ferocious demon intruding.


    Hua Ye stepped out again with his outstretched finger plucking the third string. Hua Ye felt as if his spiritual will was being devoured, yet he did not let up. His finger stirred again, causing the fourth note to be heard.


    His body was sent flying as he grunted. His steps were faltering, and he skid quite a bit on the ground before stopping, looking rather disheveled.


    Hua Ye was doing much better compared to Xing Qiu.


    Both of them returned. Xing Qiu lowered his head somehow. He knew what his brother was doing��Xing Kai was deliberately getting Hua Ye to stir him up.


    "I reminded you last when you fought in the Battle of the Crimson River. If you''re unable to overcome that obstacle of yours on your own, you probably won''t be able to move even a step further in your training. You won''t even get to the level of True Self, let alone Renhuang Plane," Xing Kai said to Xing Qiu.


    Talent was not the only thing that mattered in cultivation, after all.


    Mighty ones from all sides tried their hands one after another afterward, with the strongest of them being only able to pluck the strings five times before giving in to the pressure.


    However, those who had received the Peach Invitation had yet to make their move.


    Yin Tianjiao was the first among those who received the invitation to try it out. She managed to pluck the strings on the Magic Zither six times, breaking the limit seen before, earning her praises from all sides. Those who received the invitations were indeed different.


    Shu Zi, daughter of Emperor Shu, basked in an extremely dazzling purple glow of lightning when she stepped out, looking overbearing as she resisted the pressure. The place howled. Devastating aura formed around her. However, she was only able to pluck six strings as well.


    Duan Wuji of Emperor Dong''s Palace made his move, and he was only able to pluck six strings.


    Xiang Ze, of Emperor Xiang''s Realm, made his move after that. The man who had been fighting his way up to the Peach Banquet dazzled all over when he moved. However, like those before him, he too was only able to pluck six strings, earning him the praise of many. It seemed to them that Xiang Ze was also someone who was of superb talent.


    He shot a glance at Ye Futian after he was thrown back, looking rather spiteful and provocative.


    No one from Ye Futian''s group made a move.


    Yu Sheng shot a glance at Xiang Ze. His eyes were overbearing as he stepped forward.


    He knew little of the way of the guqin, but if it was only about plucking the strings, he thought he would be able to do the same, given how others before him managed to do so.


    Boom.


    Demonic might rolled as he stepped out. Every single step he took caused the ground to shake. His eyes were terrifying. It was as if they had become those of demons.


    He was affected when he had gotten near the Magic Zither, entering a mystical demonic space. It was as if many great demons were charging at him.


    However, as someone who trained in demonic ways, a shadow of a supreme demon seemed to have manifested on him as he stepped out in overwhelming force.


    He came before the instrument and played. Demonic might rolled, and howls were heard.


    He continued to pluck the second string as if he felt nothing.


    Demonic auras roared and howled. His eyes were cold. He then plucked the third and the fourth strings, not flinching even a bit.


    The fifth string rumbled, and the place was filled with raging roars of the demons. Terrifying waves swept all over the place.


    Yu Sheng stood tall like a mountain and plucked the sixth string.


    He felt an irresistible demonic will power bombarding him afterward, causing his brain to rattle. However, indomitable, overbearing will seemed to appear in those eyes of his.


    The wind howled, and the peach flowers all over him wilted quickly. A terrifying demonic storm appeared around Yu Sheng.


    "Clang..." The seventh string rattled. There seemed to be a supreme demonic shadow appearing on the Magic Zither. Yu Sheng shouted and looked it in the eye, remaining unflinching as he did so. However, his body was nonetheless thrown back afterward, rolling on the ground as rumbles were heard. His body continued to sustain the striking force as skid marks marked the ground.


    "Some power indeed."


    Many shuddered. Yu Sheng was the first to have plucked all seven strings.


    However, he remained utterly incapable of genuinely mastering and playing the instrument.


    Mighty ones ranked on the Regional King Ranking were indeed a cut above the others.


    "There is no way anyone could master the Magic Zither just by plucking the strings alone." A voice was heard at that moment. Everyone turned around and saw yet another who was ranked on the Regional King Ranking.


    Xie Qingshan, a prince from an imperial realm, a descendant of Emperor Xie.


    Xie Qingshan looked dashing. He had a lithe figure and looked supreme. He said, "That has been the case with the Peach Banquets in the past. Seven chords have always been the limit. The end was the same, even after that. How could the will of the saintly path resist the will of a demonic emperor?"


    Ye Futian nodded deep down, agreeing with what Xie Qingshan said.


    If one were to pluck the strings, there was no way one could be able to master the Magic Zither.


    Since it was a guqin, mastering it probably required resonance in the way of the guqin.


    However, it was apparently not easy to be acknowledged by the Magic Zither.


    Chi Shang was a good player of the guqin, yet there was no-one in the royal palace capable of accomplishing the feat. It was obvious that he was one of those people.


    "No matter, Brother Xie. Limits are meant to be broken. There has indeed been no one capable of accomplishing the feat in the past, yet that is not to say that there won''t be anyone capable of doing it in the future. Although it is known that mastering it is impossible, one can still try," someone said at the side. The one who spoke was Pei Min, who hailed from the Sword Emperor Palace from another imperial realm, and he was currently training in the Regional King Palace.


    He was also Xie Qingshan''s elder brother in training.


    "You''re correct, brother. I''d like to see if you have the chance of breaking the limit of seven," Xie Qingshan then smiled and said.


    "Sure. Regardless if I succeed or not, there is indeed no harm in trying." Pei Min smiled nonchalantly and stepped out.


    Sword wills filled the air as he moved, shrouding his surroundings.


    The Sword Emperor Palace was known as the number one holy land of the sword in all of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    It was where Emperor Jian��the Sword Emperor��resided.


    Pei Min hailed from the Sword Emperor Palace and was currently training in the Regional King Palace. He was also a figure who was on par with Xing Kai.

 1273 Listening

    Pei Min walked up to the Magic Zither, surrounded by towering sword wills as he moved.


    Sword aura and demonic might clashed within an instant.


    He extended his hand, and sword will howled. Something was then dropped onto Pei Min''s hand��a terrifying sword conjured from the sword will.


    His palm shook, and he pointed his finger. The sword tore through space and broke through the terrifying demonic aura currents, heading straight for the instrument. He did not try to pluck the strings. He tried to stab the instrument with a sword instead.


    Clang...


    The sword landed onto the string, and it surprisingly held. Notes that carried terrifying demonic aura rolled about in the space, rushing at Pei Min.


    Pei Min stepped forward and tore through the space. Sword wills once again coalesced right before him. He flicked his wrist, and yet another sword streaked through midair. That blade was sharper than the one before, bringing about a sonic boom as it moved.


    The blade hit on second string and rang. Both the sword and string vibrated. There were then two swords on the strings.


    The strings continued to vibrate, and terrifying demonic power gushed out, howling. The swords on them continued to shake and ring, yet the towering sword will continued to rain down and meld with the swords, enabling them to stick on the strings without breaking off.


    The third sword was fired.


    It was then followed by the fourth and the fifth.


    Every single blade was stronger than the one fired previously, getting increasingly powerful.


    The space seemed to have been drowned by demonic aura, and Pei Min seemed to be trapped within. However, he remained standing like an unbreakable sword.


    Terrifying demonic shadows appeared and howled, corrupting the swords and making them pitch black.


    However, Pei Min continued to shoot the sixth sword, which stuck to the string without flinching.


    Towering notes continued to dance, and the six swords stuck on the strings shook with even greater force.


    Pei Min''s aura was incredibly strong, and he then fired the seventh sword.


    A dragon of the sword seemed to have appeared on his body as the sword was manifested, tearing through everything in its path as it stuck to the seventh string.


    All seven strings on the Magic Zither vibrated violently. Boundless notes were unleashed as if a devil was howling.


    The seven swords rang and unleashed terrifying light, shrouding the instrument, trying to pin the retaliating demonic will power down on the instrument.


    Pei Min stepped forward and fired the eighth sword��himself.


    His surroundings roared and howled as everything turned dark and severe. The peach flowers in the forest wilted quickly, and everything seemed dead.


    Pei Min seemed to have seen an overbearing figure playing the instrument. All seven strings sounded as that figure put one finger down.


    A crisp sound was heard as all seven swords shattered at the same time. The suppressed demonic will was unleashed within an instant, bursting with harrowing might and banged into Pei Min, who was moving forward.


    Boom...


    Pei Min grunted as a rumble was heard. Sharp, ringing sounds were emanated as he was thrown away like a sword flying straight, leaving a deep gash on the ground.


    Pfftt!


    Pei Min spat up blood, yet all that was seen in the eyes of those watching him was solemn respect.


    While it was still only seven notes, the effort was nonetheless very commendable.


    He had wanted to break through the limit of seven, which drove him to suppress the demonic sound with his swords. That was seen to be an impressively overwhelming feat.


    Pei Min intended to suppress the tune of the demonic emperor with his swords.


    While he had failed, his resolve remained apparent.


    It was just like what he said to Xie Qingshan. While his chances of failing remained, he had tried.


    A figure headed straight for the Magic Zither before anyone was able to react after Pei Min was thrown back.


    That figure was moving at extreme speeds. It was as if he had burst right through space itself and appearing right before the instrument. He extended his arm, and the powerful will of the great path of space burst forth. He waved, and the instrument resounded within an Instant.


    " Jiang Tai''e." All who saw him turned their gaze forward solemnly again.


    Jiang Tai''e of the Jiang clan of Crimson Dragon City was known to have a body inherently suited for practicing the ways of the great path. He was proficient in space abilities, and it was rumored that many years ago, that the Jiang clan had descended from a Renhuang.


    Jiang Tai''e was extremely renowned in Crimson Dragon City. He and Luo Yang were both known as the two geniuses of the city, and both of them were ranked in the Regional King Ranking.


    Powerful will of the great path of space burst around him. Rings of space shone around him. The raging demonic might seemed to have shot right through his body.


    He extended his hand and then plucked the string on the instrument remotely. A sound from the Magic Zither was heard once again.


    The feat of manipulating the instrument remotely spoke volumes of Jiang Tai''e''s space powers. It was a feat seen as no less than terrifying.


    If that had been an opponent instead of an instrument, he would have been able to attack his opponent directly from a distance without any regard for the distance between them.


    The rings of the great path of space continued to circle him. He continued to pluck the strings on the instrument, with his body getting increasingly close to it with every attempt.


    There seemed to be an image of the great path of space right before him when he stepped out. Demonic aura bombarded him, yet it was all devoured by that image and broken. Those powers enabled all to sense the extent of his powers.


    However, despite Jiang Tai''e''s strength. The raging demonic power brought forth when he plucked the seventh string shattered said image right away.


    Jiang Tai''e had failed as well.


    Luo Yang, Yu Shifei, and Xie Qingshan made their attempts after he was done.


    However, while all of those ranked on the Regional King Ranking had been able to make the instrument produce seven tones, none of them were able to make it further.


    It was as if seven notes was the limit of the instrument itself, and that limit was something unbreakable.


    Xing Kai emerged as well. The aura on him gushed with great force. He looked like a god of war when he walked imposingly to the instrument.


    He attacked the instrument without reserve. The rings of the great path bombarded the Magic Zither, causing it to produce notes while shaking furiously at the same time.


    However, Xing Kai disregarded the instrument''s rattling altogether, continuing to attack with imposing force.


    He was also thrown behind after seven attempts, and he had truly been overwhelming and unforgiving.


    "So the Magic Zither continues to dominate in this year''s Peach Banquet," many noted to themselves.


    By then, every single person who had received the Peach Invitation had attempted, except for Ye Futian.


    Even if Ye Futian were to try, everyone thought the end result would be the same as all the previous attempts.


    The Magic Zither was deemed a lost cause.


    Everyone wondered what kind of treasures would be presented in the banquet instead.


    Many turned their eyes to Ye Futian, who was sitting, seemingly without any intention of getting up.


    "So he is not even going to try, then?" some thought.


    While all of them who tried had done little but pluck the strings on the instrument, the attempts nonetheless gave the spectators insights.


    For example, those who were ranked on the Regional King Ranking were apparently more exceptional than everyone else.


    As such, many wanted to see how many times Ye Futian would be able to pluck the strings, wondering if he would be able to make it to the seventh string as well.


    "You want to give it a try, City Lord Ye?" Chi Shang asked.


    "Your Highness, what Xie Qingshan said is sensible. If one were only to pluck the strings, seven notes would indeed be the limit. While every single attendee here is an extreme genius, it remains an impossible feat to resist the will of the demonic emperor through the will of sainthood," Ye Futian said.


    Chi Shang was thinking the same thing. The Magic Zither had remained a puzzle for many years, after all.


    "So you''re saying that to master the Magic Zither, one has to be at Renhuang Plane then, City Lord Ye?" Chi Shang asked. That seemed to be the only way to overwhelm the will of the demonic emperor.


    "If one were to use the Magic Zither to play songs, I''m afraid it would be extremely difficult for anyone who is not a Renhuang." Ye Futian then continued, "I would, of course, not be able to do so as well. I would be able to play a few notes at most. Mastering the instrument would be impossible."


    "Your words hold true. A guqin left behind by a demonic emperor holds the will of said emperor. It is indeed difficult to go about mastering it." Chi Shang then added, "However, even if one was unable to truly master the instrument, being able to play a song, even if just a few notes, they would be considered as having solved the puzzle with the Magic Zither. If you are capable of that much, you''re welcome to take the instrument."


    "I''ll give it a try," Ye Futian said. He then walked towards the Magic Zither.


    Countless pairs of eyes watched Ye Futian at that moment.


    Everyone made their attempts, and they deemed him to have been unnecessarily flamboyant.


    "Is he saying that his attempts will be different from the others?" they wondered.


    Ye Futian walked towards the Magic Zither. Overwhelming demonic aura washed all over him, drowning him in it and eating away at his will.


    He seemed to have been sucked into the demonic space, arriving at yet another world.


    A giant demonic guqin was seen hanging in the sky. Ye Futian approached with his will, which was then encroached by the demonic will.


    He extended his hand, intending to touch the strings.


    Everyone intensely watched Ye Futian. Everyone saw him making his move, putting his hand onto the Magic Zither, and yet, he seemed to have no intention of plucking the strings. He had rested his hand on it.


    "What is he doing?" Everyone''s eyes were filled with a peculiar expression.


    They were unable to fathom what he was trying to do.


    Ye Futian clearly knew that since the instrument had a will of the demonic emperor left within it, it was utterly impossible for them to simply overcome it with their will power. The recoil would definitely be immense.


    As such, even the most powerful of those who tried had only been able to pluck the strings seven times, and that had been the limit.


    That was unless the one plucking the strings were to be a Renhuang.


    If he were to repeat what everyone else before had attempted, it would not yield much of a result, despite the effort being useful to temper his spiritual will to a certain degree.


    The end result would be the same.


    The sound of the guqin was something imbued with the emotions of the one playing the instrument. Every single note had an expression, illustrating the inner feelings of the one playing it.


    That had nothing to do with status, as well as if one practiced demonic ways or not.


    The Magic Zither had a spirit, and mastering it required one to be able to comprehend the instrument''s will itself.


    Ye Futian did not resist the flowing demonic will power within the Magic Zither. His spiritual will was quickly encroached by the demonic will, as demonic might enveloped his entire being.


    He seemed to have been encroached by demonic powers right there and then.


    Dark demonic light shimmered on his face.


    Demonic aura slithered and coursed all over his body.


    Chi Shang was baffled at the scene. He and Yu Shifei, who was by his side, looked at each other. Both were able to see the surprise in each other''s eyes.


    Both of them were proficient in the art of the guqin, so they were able to tell what Ye Futian intended to do.


    Ye Futian did not pluck the strings right away. He listened instead.


    He was listening to the will of the Magic Zither itself.


    Nobody had tried to so in the past.


    Yet, at that very moment, both Chi Shang and Yu Shifei came to a realization. It was as if both realized that they should have done so a long time ago.

 1274 Thousand-word Inscriptions

    Demonic sound howled and circled his ears as it continued to invade Ye Futian''s will.


    Terrifying demonic aura flowed around his body. It was as if his entire being was about to be controlled by that demonic will.


    Dark demonic aura coursed about on his handsome face. Dark light shimmered around his pupils as if he was about to be turned.


    His robe billowed, and dark peach flowers dropped. His hair remained silver.


    That handsome face of his seemed like that of a devil, shining with a feral grace as if he was no longer himself.


    Countless pairs of eyes found on the mountain were all glued to Ye Futian. Everyone seemed to have felt something.


    "Is he sensing the will of the Magic Zither on his own? He is not afraid of being devoured by the demonic will instead?" Duan Wuji of Emperor Dong''s Palace lowered his voice and asked, seeing his change.


    He chuckled and understood why it was Ye Futian who had been able to acquire Emperor Kua''s lineage back in the ruins.


    He dared to venture into territories no one dared to.


    What Ye Futian pulled was extremely bold.


    Terrifying demonic will power was imbued within the Magic Zither, capable of encroaching and even attacking the will of others. Saints, who were all-powerful beings, would not have tolerated the thought of having their will affected and controlled. So their first instinct at facing the Magic Zither was to fight it, cutting down on the demonic will''s influence on them and even suppressing the demonic will to master the instrument.


    That was the most common method, after all. Even any wanted to reach out, they would have instinctively shunned such thoughts soon enough.


    The result of doing such a thing would probably be something out of their control, after all.


    An example being "what if one''s will was encroached so badly that one was left with a permanent, unrecoverable trauma?"


    There was also the concern of recoil from the demonic will affecting them.


    Such methods of wading against the current were totally against human instincts and extremely risky.


    However, that was what Ye Futian did.


    Although many present would not have done so themselves, they nonetheless vaguely felt that he might be doing the right thing when they saw Ye Futian putting such thoughts into action. They, however, wondered if he would be able to bear the will of a demonic emperor.


    "This is interesting," Xie Qingshan said. While Ye Futian had not gone to directly suppress the demonic will and pluck the strings as they had, what he pulled was something that had more thought in it, and was more daring.


    It was no surprise why Ye Futian would emerge to become the most brilliant young man found in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Everyone knew that if Ye Futian were to be the same as they were, he would not have succeeded, and he knew that much.


    As such, he did what he did.


    However, what enabled him to do so was the backing of his imperial will. If he were to run into any accidents, he was still confident that he was able to shake himself free from the demonic will instead of completely succumbing to it.


    Demonic will coursed about Ye Futian''s body, which was at the central region of the Peach Banquet, held in the vast divine mountain. He looked as if he was turning into a demon himself.


    The demonic light became increasingly intense, and Ye Futian felt as if he was on the verge of being enthralled by the demonic will. He seemed to have heard ancient notes within that demonic world, which sounded like they came from an extremely faraway place, while at the same, right beside him.


    Those leaping notes seemed to be out to completely control his will. Ye Futian maintained a sliver of consciousness, as the demonic might, which was getting increasingly terrifying, rolled about.


    Ye Futian seemed to be on the verge of turning into a demon. His pitch-black demonic eyes glittered with a hint of comprehension. He lifted his hand and got near the Magic Zither. His fingers were slightly curved.


    Terrifying, stifling aura was felt in his surroundings at that moment.


    "Look out!" A figure at a faraway corner of the mountain was seen. Everyone seemed to have sensed something, and all gathered their powers to resist.


    Ye Futian''s fingers then struck the strings on the instrument shortly after.


    When the demonic sound was heard, formless demonic light washed all over the place. It was as if devastating demonic rings shot out all around.


    Boom...


    The mighty ones brought their towering auras to bear. The demonic might washed all over the place. Gales swept their vicinity, and the peach forest wilted in mere moments, turning into a pitch-black demonic world.


    Many were thrown several steps back. Rumbling sounds were heard as they unleashed their own will powers to resist.


    However, all of that hardly lasted for a single moment. Everyone then turned their gaze back to Ye Futian.


    His fingers were moving away from the Magic Zither. He backed away, and the demonic might on him gradually subsided as if nothing had happened.


    That bit of demonic sound was totally different from the simple notes produced when everyone was attempting to pluck the strings before.


    That was the true tune of demonic sounds.


    It was apparent that he did it.


    Although it lasted for only a brief moment, he had played the Magic Zither for what it truly was.


    Furthermore, he was able to make it out in one piece.


    Everyone turned to look at Ye Futian. If things were to proceed according to the conversation between Chi Shang and Ye Futian, then the instrument that had been around for many Peach Banquets would no longer remain.


    It had finally found its master.


    "The Magic Zither has been in the royal palace for many years, and there has never been anyone capable of fathoming its workings, or should I say, there had never been anyone capable of such mettle. City Lord Ye, you have succeeded in finding out the secret of the instrument and playing it. Per what I''ve said before, this guqin shall now be yours," Chi Shang smiled and said.


    Ye Futian did not refuse. The guqin of a demonic emperor was a Renhuang level treasure, and there was no way he would have rejected such a precious item.


    Furthermore, there was not any catch to taking the Magic Zither.


    "Thank you, Your Highness," Ye Futian cupped his hands and said. A Holiness of Nirvana dropped from the sky. The guqin case materialized and emitted dazzling light, shrouding the guqin and containing it within.


    The case itself was a treasure as well, evident from the fact that it was capable of containing the will of the Magic Zither within.


    He waved his hand, and the case flew towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took it over and then stored it within his storage ring, before turning around and going back to where he stood.


    The Magic Zither was officially his.


    "The Magic Zither has been around for several Peach Banquets, and it finally found its master. I''d call this a case closed one way or another," Chi Shang smiled and said. It was as if giving away a Renhuang level treasure was something worth celebrating to him.


    "We shall have the second gift prepared for the very next day. The Thousand-word Tablet," Chi Shang said. He then looked far away, ordering, "Please."


    Rumbles were heard in the sky as soon as he finished.


    An item flew from the mountain, zipping past the heads of the crowd and coming to the center of the banquet.


    Boom...


    A booming rumble was heard, and everyone saw a huge tablet appear before them. The tablet looked like a chessboard, and ancient symbols coursed on it. The piece looked mystical, and it seemed to harbor immense power.


    "The Thousand-word Tablet, per its namesake, has thousands of maxims carved on it. It is meant for supplementing one''s training, and one is able to store powers of the great path within. A Renhuang created it."


    Chi Shang''s voice was heard again as he addressed the crowd. "If there is anyone in the crowd capable of comprehending the maxims within and melding what is learned into your own methods, we shall have sparring sessions within two hours for anyone who is capable of developing what they have learned. The one who is capable of developing the deepest comprehension will be welcomed to take the tablet away."


    Things were different than with the Magic Zither previously. The guqin had never found its master in the past several banquets, and it was finally taken away by Ye Futian.


    The tablet itself was not a precious, but the inscriptions on it were of extreme value, as they were creations of a Renhuang. Furthermore, someone would definitely be able to take it.


    However, taking such a piece away would not be an easy feat. All who had attended the Peach Banquet that day were all renowned, formidable figures.


    All of them were top-notch geniuses in Crimson Dragon Realm. Anyone intending to take it away would be required to overwhelm others through their power of comprehension.


    Such formless competition was what the Peach Banquet was truly meant for.


    It served more than a gift to a worthy person, as it was also a piece enabling all present to see just how extraordinary the top-notch geniuses of the realm were.


    Furthermore, all top-notch figures present were people who willingly attended the banquet.


    In all the past banquets held, only a handful of the invitees chose not to attend the event instead. The banquet was of such prominence that those who did not receive an invitation intended to fight their way up, just like how Xiang Ze did.


    "Please, help yourselves," Chi Shang said with a smile.


    The tablet stood before them, and one figure after another shot into the air, heading towards the huge tablet.


    Ye Futian did the same. He came before the tablet, and everyone behind him followed suit. That was an opportunity to further their training, after all.


    Of course, it would have been delightful for Ye Futian if he were to be able to bag the tablet, as it would have enabled him to study the inscriptions in detail.


    But two hours was what he had for now.


    Ye Futian gazed at the huge tablet before him. Ancient symbols spun around the tablet as if they were about to shoot out of it.


    Dazzling light shot from his eyes as he activated the Freedom Meditation, seeping his spiritual will into the tablet.


    He seemed to have immersed himself within the world of the tablet within an instant.


    He stood inside, and countless symbols danced in the air. Every single symbol seemed to have been imbued with might of the great path, yet none had the will of the great path in them.


    It was as if the will was meant to be something to be immersed in them by the ones studying them. The symbols were meant to be infused through his perception.


    "Sword," Ye Futian willed, and he looked at the maxim inscriptions as if they were swords.


    In an instant, those inscriptions seemed to have ceased being just inscriptions, and they looked like sword-shaped ancient symbols instead.


    Over a thousand sword-shaped ancient symbols circled in the air and looked extremely sharp, pulsing with terrifying sword will. They felt as if they were a towering, frightening sword matrix, while at the same time, feeling like a waterfall of swords, gushing at his will.


    "Damn it."


    Ye Futian was alerted deep down all of a sudden. The inscriptions of swords dropped vertically and attacked his spiritual will power within the tablet, shattering it on the spot.


    It was as if they had torn through the tablet and rushed inside his head.


    Ye Futian shut his eyes instantly, intending to shake the attack off. However, that scene seemed to have lingered in his mind. He retreated immediately and grunted, finding blood at the side of his mouth.


    Everyone around him was frightened. Xia Qingyuan and the others flashed and came to his side, asking, "What happened?"


    They were not the only ones doing so. Many before the tablet turned their eyes to Ye Futian as well. Their expressions were puzzled.


    The ones standing faraway at the mountain were rather baffled as well. While many were thrown off instantly, Ye Futian was the only one who showed that much of a reaction.


    It seemed as if he was severely injured.


    The case did not seem to meld well with his prior performance.


    He should not have looked that weak.


    However, none of them knew that the huge reaction from Ye Futian was a result of reaching planes higher and more intense than the others.


    That had been his advantage over the others, yet that advantage almost ended up injuring him severely.

 1275 Exchange Views

    Ye Futian stood firmly and shook his head. "It''s nothing."


    He looked up, and his gaze fell upon the stone stele. Once he received the will of this Thousand Proverb Stele, he would be able to form proverbs of pure will and integrate them into his sword.


    When he did that, it would be much stronger than if he was relying on his own spiritual willpower.


    If he could fully understand it, then he could store his own will inside the thousand proverbs. Once he released it, would it burst forth with a power far beyond his own spiritual willpower?


    This time, he intended to visualize all of the thousand proverbs directly, but he could not withstand such a high-level endeavor.


    It looked like he would have to go a little bit slower.


    He walked forward. There were many people around him.


    Xiang Ze was in front of him. He squinted at Ye Futian, then averted his gaze. He looked back at the huge stone stele and whispered, "You should not be doing this."


    He was currently a celebrated figure in the Crimson Dragon Realm. He had been named lord of Qianye City, and his name echoed throughout the realm. He had even killed a Nirvana level figure from Emperor Xiang''s Realm.


    He had made Xiang Nan have to leave the Crimson Dragon Realm and return to Emperor Xiang''s Realm to ask for help, and made him cross over a vast distance to see what was going on. Even given Ye Futian''s previous performance, he had not been able to see his true power. But the fact that he was able to obtain the Magic Zither proved that he was brave and mighty.


    From what he could see, Ye Futian would be a thorny opponent indeed.


    And the previous scene had been slightly different than he imagined it would be.


    Ye Futian looked at Xiang Ze. He smiled but did not respond. Instead, he continued walking towards the huge stone stele.


    The ancient words on the stone stele were mysterious and intriguing, and contained fantastic rule power.


    Ye Futian''s spiritual will entered it once again, but this time, he did not receive the will of the words; he only saw the endless characters that they were made up of.


    "Is this a matrix of the Great Path?" Ye Futian wondered. Renhuang had probably carved the Thousand Word Proverbs on the stone stele.


    A Renhuang level figure had carved the stele, and now the power of the Great Path was contained within its characters.


    It seemed that every character contained a powerful will.


    There seemed to be some similarity between this and the Sword of Kasypya.


    But what was different was that he had formed the Revolution of the Great Path rule power out of the ancient words. It was extremely frightening.


    Ye Futian perceived the Thousand Word Proverbs and tried to form a Sword of Kasypya. One of the swords did form inside his life palace. Ye Futian felt its will and frowned slightly.


    Something was wrong.


    The will that this character contained seemed ordinary, not extraordinary. It seemed kind of like the three brothers'' Nine Seals of Spiritual Power.


    But it was a little bit different. Every single ancient character had a special mark on it that could attract will.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian did not try and perceive each of the ten thousand words. He just perceived one among them.


    Renhuang had created the Thousand Word Proverbs. When someone reached the Renhuang level, they had already proven themselves before the Great Path and transcended.


    The Dao begets the heavens, the earth, and all things.


    In the space of a single thought, the Dao of all things could make a full revolution.


    The union of humans and Dao created unlimited vitality and endless potential, as vast as the world and as bright as the sun and moon.


    Since Renhuang had created them, these Thousand Word Proverbs contained true will within them.


    Since they contained endless potential, these ancient characters were suitable for any law power.


    Ye Futian was completely lost in self-perception, and he forgot everything in the outside world. He was immersed in the Thousand Character Proverb stele.


    Many powerful figures were standing in front of the stele as well, cultivating and perceiving it.


    All of them had different understandings of it.


    Below the place where the Peach Banquet was taking place, everyone was gazing up at them.


    And many eyes were watching from Divine Mountain as well.


    Half a day was too short a time, especially when trying to perceive a thousand character proverb. It was impossible to get all the details of it.


    Everything that had been created by Renhuang had been done so through the Great Path. Even the things that he had created so easily would be difficult for even a Nirvana level cultivator to create.


    However, the people at the Peach Banquet were all top figures. Even if they could not understand all the will within it, they could still comprehend a lot of it.


    But they did not know who among them could understand the most.


    Those who had received a Peach Invitation naturally attracted a lot of attention.


    "Luo Yang, Jiang Tai''e, and Yu Shifei are the most outstanding talents of Crimson Dragon City. I wonder what kind of performance they will give at the Peach Banquet," said an old man on Divine Mountain he looked out at the stone stele.


    He saw that a fiery mark appeared before Luo Yang that radiating brilliant light.


    On the other side of the banquet, there was an incredibly powerful swordsman''s aura.


    It was Pei Min.


    Ancient characters in the form of swords formed around him. They looked like they were sword marks. An ear-splitting noise came out of the air as terrifying sword will roared.


    Pei Min was even able to control the sword marks flowing around him. It seemed like he was trying to simulate the Great Path rule power of the Thousand Word Proverbs.


    A terrible halo appeared in front of Xing Kai. The will of Great Path was within it, and it was extremely overbearing. The halo seemed to be filled with destructive power.


    Everyone was trying to work as hard as they could to perceive the stele and use it in their cultivation.


    They knew that they could not completely perceive the Thousand Word Proverbs in such a short amount of time, but as long as they could perceive more than anyone else, they could take it with them and work on slowly understanding it. That would be equivalent to Renhuang level combat magic.


    Moreover, it could make any of their law powers much stronger.


    Chi Shang was sitting there satisfied. He was the only one drinking. All the figures in front of the stele were standing or sitting on mats on the ground. The will that was forming around them was growing stronger.


    As time went on, the will of the Great Path flowed between heaven and earth, whistling without end.


    He took a sip of wine and looked at Ye Futian, the one who had gotten the Magic Zither. He saw that he was the one who was moving the least. In fact, he was not moving at all.


    This made him a little suspicious. Was this guy even still perceiving?


    Could it be that he was not interested in the Thousand Character Proverbs at all?


    Beside Ye Futian, many different wills had formed around Xia Qingyuan, Ye Wuchen, and the others. They were obviously all still perceiving.


    He shifted his gaze and looked back at Yu Shifei. A look of warmth came into his eyes.


    Without anyone realizing it, half a day passed. Chi Shang smiled and said, "Time is up, everyone."


    Everyone still seemed to be immersed in the stone stele, but when they heard Chi Shang''s voice, they gradually came out of their cultivation postures.


    Woosh!


    There was a loud noise as the Thousand Word Proverb stele flew away. Everyone returned unhappily to their original places.


    It seemed like everything had returned to how it was at the start.


    "Anyone interested in the Thousand Word Proverb stele may ''exchange views.'' However, we are only looking at how much of the Thousand Word Proverb you have perceived, so this is just a simple ''exchange,'' not a true battle. You may only make simple attacks through the power of the Thousand Word Proverb stele. Moreover, if a Saint of True Self faces a Doctrine Saint, you must control your strength, and keep it to the level of a Doctrine Saint," said Chi Shang. "Only this way can we truly test how well you have understood the Thousand Word Proverb."


    Everyone was silent as they looked at each other.


    Chi Shang watched this scene with a smile. "Everyone here can participate."


    He was naturally referring to those that the guests had brought with them, the ones who had not received Peach Invitations.


    But the ones who had received Peach Invitations were the most outstanding figures. It would be impossible for someone to be more outstanding than them.


    The one who finally won the Thousand Word Prover stele would be one of the ones who had received a Peach Invitation.


    Him letting the others participate was just for his amusement.


    After all, the Peach Banquet was just a banquet, so there were no rigid rules.


    Here you could see some of the most powerful figures in the Crimson Dragon Realm of this generation.


    At that moment, a figure strode forward from behind Xing Kai.


    This person was officially the Saint King of Gai''s younger brother Hua Ye. Even though he had not received a Peach Invitation, he was still one of the top talents of the Crimson Dragon Realm. It was just that compared to the heroes who had gathered here, like Xing Kai, that he came up a bit short.


    Who would be the worst among these people like Hua Ye and Xia Qingyuan?


    Hua Ye looked over at Ye Futian. He had come from the Ancient Imperial City. He wanted to see just how powerful Ye Futian truly was.


    His teacher was the Saint King of Gai, one of the top figures of the Crimson Dragon Realm. He was naturally incredibly proud. The only one that he was willing to follow was Xing Kai.


    "I hope to find out just how much Lord Ye has understood," said Hua Ye. He had been perceiving the stele for half a day, so he could use it in his attacks.


    He wanted to know whether Ye Futian would be able to withstand his attacks.


    Everyone from Qianye City looked at him. Ye Futian was just about to go over there when another figure stepped forward.


    He was dressed all in white. His hair was tied back, and he wore a feathered crown on his head. He strode forward, looked at Hua Ye and said, "You did not receive a Peach Invitation, you just came here with Xing Kai, and yet you directly challenge someone who did receive a Peach Invitation. First, you must prove that you are worthy."


    Hua Ye swept his gaze over the man. He did not recognize him.


    Other than Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, who were both very famous, Princess Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm was the only other person from Qianye City who was well known.


    "Who are you?" asked Hua Ye. He looked a little bit indifferent.


    His teacher was the Saint King of Gai, and he was famous throughout the Ancient Imperial City. He was an outstanding talent. How could someone who had come along from Qianye City compare with him?


    "I am Gu Dongliu of Qianye City." The white-robed figure continued forward. The two of them came to the empty space in the middle of the banquet hall, but they did not stop. They continued forward.


    Hua Ye stepped forward with a cold expression. He had been perceiving for half a day and had formed some Thousand Word Proverb law power for his attacks. He only had enough for one, and he had hoped to use it on Ye Futian. He wanted to see how strong the Lord of Qianye City was.


    But some unknown person from Qianye City had challenged him.


    This was most displeasing.


    However, if Gu Dongliu wanted to take this attack in Ye Futian''s place, he would have to give it to him.


    "I hope you can bear it," said Hua Ye. As he went forward, a powerful spatial storm swept up from his body.


    Brilliant spatial law seals floated around him. He lifted his arms slightly as if he could launch his attack at any moment.


    Gu Dongliu did not stop either but continued forward. Ancient characters formed all around him suddenly. They were ancient characters of the Great Path and they resonated with heaven and earth. There was a hint of the will of the Thousand Word Proverb within them. This made many people look on with surprise.


    Divine light was shining from Gu Dongliu as well, making the will of the Great Path flow wildly through the ancient characters. His aura was getting stronger and stronger!

 1276 The Battle of the Princesses

    As the two of them drew nearer to each other, a wild windstorm whipped against them.


    A group of seals appeared beside Hua Ye, and each one seemed to contain an incredibly powerful spatial storm within it. They were filled with Space Tearing Will.


    The seals all flowed along his body, all the way down to his arms. Suddenly, the incredibly brilliant light of the Great Path bloomed on his arms. A terrible spatial hurricane swept out from him.


    He pointed forward, and all the energy that had appeared seemed to gather together on his finger. The people on Divine Mountain could only see a destructive hurricane sweeping out, and the air before it appeared to be utterly destroyed.


    Gu Dongliu was in the very center of the storm.


    Could the man from Qianye City withstand it?


    The ancient characters wrapped around Gu Dongliu and resonated with the Worldly Great Path. His white robes whipped around in the wind. Even facing the destructive storm in front of him, his expression was unchanged. He stepped directly into the storm and clapped his hands together.


    In a flash, an overwhelmingly loud rumble filled the area.


    The vortex destroyed the ancient characters. But each character was like a giant palm print; even when it was shattered, the fingers continued forward.


    However, the light from the ancient characters that surrounded Gu Dongliu continued to shine. A terrible airflow rose around him. The Great Path howled as it flowed through heaven and earth. The ancient characters turned into seals, and they grew stronger and stronger.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Hua Ye felt a series of blows that felt as powerful as storms. He ripped through space itself with his finger, causing vortexes to appear in the air as he pushed it forward, destroying the palm prints of the Great Path.


    But his opponent''s palm prints were growing stronger and stronger. Finally, a row of ancient characters lined up and slashed down at the same time. His finger slammed into them, and he felt like he had hit a might divine wall, so firm it could not be destroyed.


    Hua Ye saw that this was the final barrier. The ancient characters that were around Gu Dongliu had merged into one in preparation for this single attack. If he could break through them, he would be able to destroy Gu Dongliu himself.


    Hua Ye pulled back his arms, which were trembling slightly, and then thrust them forward again. An ear-splitting screech came from the ancient characters.


    Gu Dongliu moved forward at the same time, in harmony with the world. He slammed his hand forward, and it resonated with the heavens and the earth in all directions. The noise made Hua Ye''s eardrums tremble, and his blood boil.


    Bang!


    There was a loud noise as the ancient characters shot down, slamming into Hua Ye''s arm. There was a crisp snapping sound. He was sent flying backward, eventually landing on the ground. He spat up a mouthful of blood.


    A look of surprise came over everyone on Divine Mountain''s face, except for one old man of the Nirvana level who had a delighted look.


    Gai Huang''s disciple had actually been defeated. Even though this was not a full-fledged battle, it was not possible for the two opponents to purely use the power that they had just perceived. Some of the power they had used had been their own, such as the strength of their will.


    They had put this power into their attacks.


    The point was, Gu Dongliu of Qianye City had not been recognized before and was not famous at all.


    At that moment, everyone at the banquet saw that he was shining with the brilliant light of the Great Path, and the will around him seemed to be affected by his aura, producing a certain resonance. This was obviously no ordinary man.


    Qianye City seemed interesting.


    Gu Dongliu walked back. The two of them had merely been "exchanging views," they had not truly been competing for the Thousand Word Proverb stele, and so they would naturally not stay in the center of the banquet hall.


    Hua Ye stood up. He said nothing as he walked back, but he seemed a little bit desolate.


    He would never have thought that as someone who had studied under Gai Huang and who had a little bit of fame, he would be defeated in his first battle by some no-name cultivator from Qianye City.


    This battle had been a bit of a loss of face for his master.


    Chi Shang had been watching the battle with some interest. Even the very first battle had been full of surprises.


    So the next ones would be exceedingly brilliant.


    At that moment, a figure strode forward to the center of the banquet hall.


    A look of surprise came upon many people''s faces. They had clearly not thought that she would come out so soon.


    This person was one of the three women who had received a Peach Invitation.


    It was the proud daughter of heaven Shu Zi, who cultivated in the Regional Palace. She was often compared to Yin Tianjiao.


    One of them was a Princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm; the other was Emperor Shu''s daughter.


    Both of them had overwhelming attack power. They were in no way weak women.


    The Princess of Emperor Shu''s Realm was really going to start fighting so soon?


    But who would she fight?


    She pulled out a card with a golden peach on it. It was a Peach Invitation.


    She had been directly invited here.


    "May I challenge the Lord of Qianye City?" said Shu Zi. Hua Ye had tried to challenge Ye Futian, but Gu Dongliu had called him out for not having a Peach Invitation and had stood in his way, finally defeating him.


    But both Shu Zi and Ye Futian had received Peach Invitations.


    Ye Futian looked at her in surprise. This was the first time that he had seen the Princess of Emperor Shu''s Realm.


    He only knew who she was by reading her name on the Peach Invitation that she pulled out.


    Now, why did she want to "exchange views" with him?


    Was Qianye City really this famous?


    "Emperor Shu is known as the Thunder Emperor. His accomplishments in the Way of Thunder are extremely impressive," said someone on Divine Mountain.


    "Ah yes, he is named after his overwhelming style of attack. It is said that the Princess has perfectly inherited her father''s talent. She may look weak, but when you see her fight, you won''t think that at all," said someone else with a smile.


    "But why does Shu Zi want to challenge Ye Futian?"


    "I heard that when the Princess had just entered the Regional Palace, she was very arrogant. But she was taught a few lessons by Xing Kai and became much more honest. She threw herself into cultivating and restrained her violent temper a little bit. She even asked Xing Kai to train her," said someone who knew a little bit about the Regional Palace with a smile.


    A look of profound interest came over the faces of everyone on Divine Mountain.


    These noble-born princesses were very high-spirited, and would normally not deign to notice ordinary people. They had cultivated themselves to be very powerful and had outstanding talent, so the only people who could make them notice them were people who were stronger than them.


    But some of the people who had been cultivating at the Regional Palace for longer than Shu Zi did not think this was strange. It all seemed straight forward to them.


    Pei Min smiled. Shu Zi had directly challenged Ye Futian. There was a high likelihood that she would be humiliated.


    Ye Futian may not have really gotten involved up to this point, but everyone still had high expectations for him.


    Ye Futian was about to step out, but at that moment, someone stepped out in front of him, looked at Shu Zi, and said, "I will fight you."


    Shu Zi looked at the one who had stepped out and frowned slightly.


    "Ye Futian is the one I want to challenge," said Shu Zi coldly. The one who had stepped out was Xia Qingyuan.


    Everyone looked on with interest. Shu Zi had challenged Ye Futian, but Xia Qingyuan had been the one to come out.


    Shu Zi may have just emphasized that the one she wanted to challenge was Ye Futian, but based on their status, these two were much more suitable to fight each other.


    The daughter of Emperor Shu and the daughter of Emperor Xia.


    Two princesses of great Renhuang realms.


    Xia Qingyuan did not get involved in much in Qianye City. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were so famous that the Princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm did not get many chances to display her abilities.


    That was until Xia Qingyuan took over the Nine Great Tribes. Then people all saw how decisive she could be.


    "He does not know how to go easy on women. He won''t show you any mercy," said Xia Qingyuan coldly.


    "..." Ye Futian''s face was dark. What did she mean by that?


    Shu Zi frowned as she watched Xia Qingyuan come closer to her without the least bit of propriety. She did not keep asking, but instead, a terrible airflow erupted around her.


    A roaring sound exploded all around, and the light of purple lightning seemed to be everywhere. It seemed like it would cover the entire area.


    Lightning bolt seals appeared all around Shu Zi, each one containing frightening amounts of destructive power. Endless lightning appeared between heaven and earth and shot directly into the seals.


    These seals were formed from her understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb, but she was putting her own will into them as well.


    Everything in the center of the banquet hall changed. It seemed that terrible lightning covered everything, filled with destructive power.


    A terrible storm whipped up around Xia Qingyuan at the same time: a storm of catastrophe swordsmanship.


    Catastrophe sword seals appeared all around her body.


    Each catastrophe sword seal seemed to be made up of a single character, the character for "catastrophe." These catastrophe sword seals seemed to all be one as they flowed continuously around Xia Qingyuan.


    Crack!


    There was a flash of purple light as the sound of thunder rolled throughout the hall. Lightning bolts suddenly appeared and cut through the sky. A lightning seal exploded and shot towards Xia Qingyuan.


    A thick, destructive bolt of lightning tried to destroy Xia Qingyuan. It was extremely overpowering.


    But Xia Qingyuan did not flee. She stepped forward amid all that destructive lighting, and her catastrophe swords shot out with a roar. Endless light of catastrophe appeared as the terrible catastrophe sword will descended.


    The destructive lightning smashed into the catastrophe swords. The two powerful attacks intertwined, and the very air seemed like it was about to shatter.


    The power of the lightning seals and the catastrophe swords seals were equally matched in strength.


    Shu Zi''s dress fluttered in the wind, and her dark hair flowed wildly. She stepped into the air, and another lightning seal shot out, fast as a bolt of lightning, pulling endless bolts of lightning towards where Xia Qingyuan was standing.


    Xia Qingyuan pointed forward, and a catastrophe sword seal shot out, blocking the attack of the lightning seal.


    Afterward, everyone heard the seals that had formed around Xia Qingyuan and Shu Zi roaring continuously as they shot towards each other.


    For a moment, it seemed like the destructive energy would completely shatter the banquet hall. The earth itself opened up, and the sky looked like the end of days was coming.


    Everyone at the Peach Banquet threw up their defenses to block the terrible storm. Even just the aftermath was enough to let them feel the terrible destructive atmosphere.


    Shu Zi stepped forward through the lightning like a thunder goddess. She looked overbearing to the extreme.


    Her eyes were filled with purple lightning, and her fragile-seeming body was bathed in the lightning''s light. She stretched out her fingers, and the purple lighting wrapped around them as well.


    An even more terrible destructive power surged. At that moment, the oncoming lightning seals seemed to resonate with her will, and she now controlled all the lighting power in the area.


    The area where Xia Qingyuan was standing seemed to be locked down by the endless lighting.


    "Destroy her," spat Shu Zi. As she said this, thousands of lightning bolts descended, turning into destructive light as they fell!

 1277 Seeking the Way of the Sword

    "That is..."


    Everyone trembled as they looked at Xia Qingyuan. Beneath thousands of bolts of purple lightning, the place where she was standing seemed to have turned into a matrix of purple stars. The might of the thunder in the sky gathered together in this matrix, seeming to form a huge cylinder. It descended from the sky, containing immense destructive power.


    Even those who were standing far away could feel the shocking destructive energy. It ripped through the very air, destroying everything.


    All of the lightning seals were agitated to the very limit, and it could even be said that they were no longer just lightning seals.


    Shu Zi was truly fierce, and she was holding nothing back.


    This noble princess was truly decisive once she decided to act. She left nothing in reserve.


    A look of surprise came over the faces of many of the people on Divine Mountain. Shu Zi was no doubt powerful, but she had gone against the rules for fighting that Chi Shang had set.


    However, everyone also understood that it would be hard to avoid doing so in this kind of battle. If you only used the power that you had gained from understanding the stele to fight, you would be extremely limited. If you used your true power to fight, it would be much easier.


    And in some sense, Shu Zi''s attacks were still based on her perception of the Thousand Word Proverb. Amid the brilliant column of purple lightning, all of the lightning seals exploded with power at the same time.


    It seemed that she was using her magical powers to strengthen her attacks.


    Would Xia Qingyuan be able to withstand attacks like this?


    Countless eyes fell upon Xia Qingyuan. The destructive light seemed like it would swallow her up in an instant. Her fragile figure seemed like it would be destroyed in that purple light.


    However, the top figures watching from Divine Mountain were not worried in the least.


    Xia Qingyuan was a princess of Emperor Xias''s Realm. Emperor Xia had allowed her to come here to train, and she had followed Ye Futian and the others here. How could she be weak?


    You must have extremely powerful tricks up her sleeve. Even if she could not withstand this destructive attack, she would have no trouble protecting herself.


    All the great figures on Divine Mountain had great faith in the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    As for who would win and who would lose, if she could block this blow and retreat, that would be another story.


    At that moment, brilliant divine light bloomed on Xia Qingyuan. It looked like Renhuang light. Lotuses that were full of brilliant holiness appeared in the air beneath her feet and wrapped her whole body within them.


    At that moment, Xia Qingyuan was dazzling. She looked like a goddess.


    Everyone felt dazed watching the blinding light. Time seemed to stop as they watched the two of them fighting.


    Shu Zi seemed like a goddess of destruction. She was noble and overwhelming, and held lightning in her hands.


    Xia Qingyuan was more like a goddess who had left the sins of the world behind. In fact, she seemed not even to have come from the human world, but was instead a celestial being.


    The brilliant lotus will bloom, and suddenly, the catastrophe swords that had formed around Xia Qingyuan began to increase in number.


    The Dao begets one, begets two, and begets all things.


    Shu Zi was drawing upon her power, and so was Xia Qingyuan.


    But unlike Shu Zi, Xia Qingyuan had not completely detached herself from her understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb. She was still using the forming catastrophe swords as the base of her power and was making more and more of them.


    The many catastrophe sword seals seemed to form a lotus pattern that bloomed in the air above her head. The will of the Great Path flowed towards the pillar of destructive lightning that was descending.


    The blooming lotuses covered the sky, blocking anything from striking her from above. It was stunning and left people dazzled and stunned.


    No matter who in this battle was stronger or weaker, at the very least, it was beautiful to watch.


    Boom!


    The terrible pillar of lightning descended, and at that moment, it seemed strong enough to destroy the world. The heavens and the earth went dark as endless lightning fell from the sky. It covered all of Divine Mountain. The purple lightning was everywhere as it struck downward, and everyone on Divine Mountain called forth their power to block it.


    The people watching below the mountain could all clearly feel how terrible that destructive power was.


    A Nirvana level figure stretched out his hand, and suddenly a light curtain appeared all around Divine Mountain, cutting off the attacks, except for where the battlefield was.


    The dazzling light fell, and everyone had to squint to watch the battle.


    What kind of destruction would such a devastating attack bring?


    The divine, brilliant lotuses were still blooming where Xia Qingyuan was, forming out of the catastrophe swords. Even though numerous cracks had appeared in them, they were still not broken. What was more frightening was that at that moment, more catastrophe swords were still forming. Destructive will was flowing up into the sky.


    Xia Qingyuan''s clothes danced in the wind, and her long hair flew behind her. She looked heroic and overpowering.


    She looked up into the sky. The lotus light curtain was still dazzling.


    She raised her hand and pointed into the air.


    "Go."


    As she said this, the lotuses bloomed, and catastrophe sword seals continued to form. It seemed that they would form a Thousand Word Proverb that shot towards Shu Zi.


    Shu Zi''s expression changed a little bit when she saw this.


    This kind of attack had not been enough to defeat her?


    Her destructive lightning seals had already been used up.


    Boom!


    The thick column of purple lightning descended, slamming into the catastrophe swords and destroying them, but she was also shaken and forced to retreat.


    Xia Qingyuan stepped forward. She wanted to fight more, but she saw Chi Shang smile and say, "That''s enough, princesses."


    When she heard him say this, she stopped. She destructive catastrophe swords around her were gradually extinguished.


    There was still a roaring sound as the purple lightning around Shu Zi still flashed, full of destructive power. She looked at Xia Qingyuan, and her lightning also gradually dissipated. The lightning in the sky lessened until it completely disappeared.


    Everything became calm. Everything stopped.


    "The winner and the loser have already been decided; there is no need for the princesses to keep fighting. If they have a chance, they can exchange views later," said Chi Shang with a smile. The two of them had been about to destroy each other for real.


    Xia Qingyuan and Shu Zi were still looking at each other. Which one of them had won and which one had lost had already been decided.


    The people on Divine Mountain were watching both the brilliant figures. Shu''s Zis attack had been destruction; it had destroyed everything in its path.


    But Xia Qingyuan''s attack had been life.


    Destruction was, after all, limited. Life was not.


    Shu Zi had not been able to defeat Xia Qingyuan, and so she had already lost.


    The daughter of Emperor Shu had received a Peach Invitation and come to the banquet. She had tried to challenge the lord of Qianye City, Ye Futian, but before she had been able to, she had been defeated by Xia Qingyuan.


    In that case, there was naturally no need for her to fight with Ye Futian.


    Shu Zi had already been eliminated from the struggle for the Thousand Word Proverbs.


    From now on, there would be four great women in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Xia Qingyuan may not have been fighting Shu Zi, but she had proved that she had the strength to do so and that she was not any weaker than her.


    Three powerful women of the Crimson Dragon Realm had received invitations to come to the banquet: Yu Shifei, the Saint of the Yu clan, Yin Tianjiao, the Princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm, and Shu Zi, the Princess of Emperor Shu''s Realm.


    Now, Xia Qingyuan, the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, could be counted among them.


    The two of them returned to their original places. Qianye City had emerged the victor in the previous two battles.


    Many people sighed at this. In the future, Qianye City would probably challenge the Ancient Imperial City''s position as the most significant city besides Crimson Dragon City.


    Xing Chou had already been crushed by Yu Sheng twice, which had caused great enmity, and Gu Dongliu had just defeated Gai Huang''s disciple.


    And Qianye City also had people like Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan. If Xing Kai could crush Ye Futian, that would be good for him. If he could not, then he would be dominated by Qianye City.


    In that case, once Ye Futian and Yu Sheng reached full maturity, they would directly threaten the Ancient Imperial City''s position.


    As everyone was thinking of this, a figure walked forward from within the ranks of the people from Qianye City, making a look of surprise come over everyone''s face.


    Qianye City would participate in three successive battles?


    But this time, it was someone from Qianye City who was actively coming forward, rather than one of them receiving a challenge.


    "That is the youth who broke through to the Saint Plane at the Battle of the Crimson River." Everyone looked at the man and saw that it was Ye Wuchen.


    The great figures on Divine Mountain all looked at him. They did not recognize him at all.


    Did Qianye City have even more geniuses within it?


    This man seemed to be a swordsman.


    Those who knew about the people at the Battle of Crimson River knew that Xiang Nan had wounded ye Wuchen at the battle, but now that he had broken through to the Saint plane, he had transcended the weaknesses of the flesh.


    However, on such an occasion as this, it seemed that stepping forward to fight might put him in over his head.


    What kind of people were here?


    The Peach Banquet was known as the foremost banquet in the Crimson Dragon Realm and was much more important than the Battle of the Crimson River.


    Ye Wuchen walked forward. When he reached the center of the banquet hall, he looked in a certain direction.


    "I am trained in the way of the sword. Might I trouble someone to teach me a little bit more?" said Ye Wuchen. The person he was looking at was someone on the Regional King Ranking, Pei Min.


    Pei Min was from Sword Emperor Palace.


    If Ye Wuchen was asking him to fight, he was certainly not seeking victory. He just wanted to learn more about Pei Min''s swordsmanship.


    How stupid would he be if he was seeking victory in a fight with Pei Min?


    Not only was Pei Min very famous, but he had also cultivated to the level of a Saint of True Self.


    Even if he suppressed his power, he would still be far superior to Ye Wuchen in terms of his understanding of swordsmanship alone.


    Pei Min naturally knew precisely what Ye Wuchen wanted. For him to challenge him in a situation like this, seeking the way of the sword, meant that he was a good swordsman indeed.


    If they did not do this today, Ye Wuchen would spend his days blocking his way and asking him to fight. If Ye Wuchen would not be polite, then neither would he.


    "Fine." Pei Min nodded slightly and walked forward.


    He stopped not far from Ye Wuchen and stood there calmly.


    Ye Wuchen looked at Pei Min. At that moment, he seemed to see Pei Min standing there like an insurmountable sword mountain.


    This was a marvelous feeling. It was like Pei Min himself was a Lingtian Sword.


    Those who cultivated on the Divine Path had already transcended the mortal world, and their temperaments had changed. They were in harmony with the way of cultivation. Once they intentionally revealed their temperament, it would immediately be felt by others.


    Pei Min was like this without a doubt. He seemed to already be in harmony with the way of swordsmanship and had found his true self. He had a deep understanding of his swordsmanship.


    As he stood there, he was like a sword that could be pulled from its scabbard at any moment.


    Although there was only one step of difference between a Doctrine Saint and a Saint of True Self, there was still a huge gap between them. In fact, the distance between any two levels on the Saint plane was like a gaping chasm!

 1278 Expectation

    As Ye Wuchen stood there not moving, he could feel Pei Min''s marvelous aura.


    He had sought out Pei Min to fight for this battle. He was not thinking about victory or defeat. He just wanted to test the Divine Path swordsmanship of one of the lower-ranked members of the Regional King Ranking, thus improving his swordsmanship.


    He may have reached the Saint plane, but that did not mean that he had reached the end of his path.


    There was no end to becoming a better swordsman.


    Now, as he stood before the famous swordsman of the Regional King Ranking, he would naturally not miss the chance to learn from him.


    "Please teach me." Ye Wuchen saluted with his sword.


    "Very well," replied Pei Min. In the instant that he said this, Ye Wuchen had the impression that the entire area was filled with swords.


    The aura that flowed through the area seemed to have transformed into Pei Min''s swords. Anywhere his will moved would turn into a sword.


    And he seemed like a mountain of swords, the source of all these thousands of swords.


    Ye Wuchen''s sword will roared as sword seals appeared in front of him.


    Each sword seal seemed to have been formed out of his will. An incredibly powerful stream of sword will flowed out of him. The endless sword will stretched out through the vast area. It flowed around Ye Wuchen, putting him at the center of it. Another flow of sword will appeared upon his body.


    The sword seals continued to increase in number, which made the sword will all around Ye Wuchen even more terrifying. He seemed to have the power to smash through the Great Path itself.


    Even as he watched Ye Wuchen''s forming sword seals, Pei Min still seemed unperturbed. With a single thought, countless sword seals appeared around him as well.


    However, they seemed to be the most simple of sword seals. They had only been formed out of sword will.


    They were nowhere near as powerful as the ones that Ye Wuchen was forming. Otherwise, he would not have been able to form so many in such a short time.


    "I have two different perceptions of the Thousand Word Proverb. One is the same as what all of you had, the other is what you see now: I have combined it with my own cultivation," said Pei Min as he looked at Ye Wuchen. "If your sword can break mine, I will count that as a victory for you."


    Ye Wuchen did not say anything. He suddenly stepped forward, and in a flash, the figure of a sword formed. He pointed forward, and all the sword seals melded into his finger.


    Suddenly, the sword will began to roar as it rushed forward.


    Heaven and earth seemed like they would be torn apart by the sword will. His terrifying sword slashed out as Ye Wuchen shot straight towards Pei Min. Sword will flowed wildly through the air, all of it melding with his body and turning into a shattering sword.


    The creation of this sword would break the Great Path itself.


    Everyone upon Divine Mountain was watching this scene with rapt attention. It seemed like Ye Wuchen would win the whole battle with a single stroke.


    One sword stroke would separate victory and defeat.


    He wanted to see Pei Min''s sword.


    Pei Min was still standing there, his long robe flapping in the wind. There was an ear-piercing noise as sword will shot out of his eyes. His will covered the earth and the sky.


    He had not moved, but his sword was now drawn.


    When one was at the Saint level, their will was one with the Great Path.


    Their every thought gave birth to Dao.


    He could create a sword from his own self.


    Pei Min stepped forward, and the thousands of sword seals around him transformed into a horrifying storm of sword will that swept out like a brilliant wave of light towards Ye Wuchen.


    This seemed a bit like an attack using the power of the proverb on the Thousand Word stone stele.


    However, there had to have been a difference. Pei Min could not have uncovered all the mysteries of the Thousand Word Proverb in so short a time.


    But it still seemed like it.


    His swords reached their destination, and they clashed with Ye Wuchen''s.


    Ye Wuchen thrust his sword forward, cutting through the air. The oncoming swords were shattered as if they could not block Ye Wuchen''s.


    But more and more swords were flowing towards him. They seemed to be endless.


    An ear-piercing sound rang out without end as everything happened in an instant.


    The shattering sword cut through the oncoming swords like a knife through butter. It seemed like it would pierce through the flow of swords in an instant.


    But the wave of sword qi was affecting the momentum of Ye Wuchen''s sword. The flowing swords were not only not weak; in fact, their momentum was growing.


    Piercing sword light shot out from Pei Min''s eyes. His spiritual will filled the area, and each sword seemed to have a will of its own as they continually smashed into Ye Wuchen''s sword. This left a clear impression in his mind.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    The swords shattered one after another, but their momentum was growing. Ye Wuchen felt his sword slowing down.


    It was a very subtle feeling. His sword was moving so fast that it should have been able to pierce through anything.


    But at that moment, Ye Wuchen felt like he was in a sea of swords. Each sword had become very clear as they blocked his sword one by one.


    He continued forward, but it was getting harder and harder.


    Pei Min took another step forward. As he did, his flow of sword qi grew stronger. Each of the swords was more terrible than the one in front of him, and they shot towards Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen''s forward momentum was stopped. It seemed that his sword would be blocked.


    He stretched out his left hand and pointed forward. Endless sword will flowed wildly towards the sword in front of him. The Worldly Great Path returned to his sword.


    Boom! The very air seemed like it would break in two.


    But there was an even more powerful flow of sword qi ready to meet him.


    Bang! A sword fell, smashing into the shattering sword.


    Then a second one, then a third...they seemed to be endless.


    But it seemed like Ye Wuchen had still not given up. He was only a few steps away. Pei Min took another step forward, piercing light shooting from his eyes.


    Woosh! A sword swept down from above his head towards Ye Wuchen.


    Crack!


    There was an ear-splitting sound. Ye Wuchen had finally made it to one step away from Pei Min, but the air in front of Pei Min was filled with swords. The shattering sword was finally itself shattered, and all the sword seals that Ye Wuchen had formed dissipated.


    Woosh!


    Pei Min stepped right in front of Ye Wuchen, and a wild flow of sword will blew into Ye Wuchen. He groaned, but he bore it and did not retreat. He looked up at the swords and the figure that seemed to be insurmountable in front of him.


    He knew that he had completely lost this battle.


    Pei Min had not even really used his powerful will. He had only used his most simple swords to fight with him.


    However, this in and of itself was his way.


    "There''s no artistry to his swordsmanship," whispered Ye Wuchen as he looked at Pei Min.


    "There is no artistry. The strongest swordsmanship of Sword Palace is one sword overpowering another until you have destroyed your opponent, or they had destroyed you," Pei Min said to Ye Wuchen.


    "How can one sword overpowering another be considered swordsmanship?" Ye Wuchen did not understand.


    "Because of your will, your conviction. Every time you draw your sword, your will and conviction are stronger than the last time you did so. Thus, your sword will naturally be stronger as well," said Pei Min.


    Ye Wuchen thought of the last sword that had burst forth from Pei Min. It had indeed been one sword overpowering another.


    That was why his sword will grew stronger and stronger.


    "Thank you for the lesson," said Ye Wuchen with a bow, showing his respect.


    The battle had been simple. Both of them had only made a single full attack.


    But he had learned a lot from it.


    The two of them walked away from each other. Many people on Divine Mountain watched Pei Min. He was indeed worthy of being on the Regional King Ranking. Both his power and his bearing were extraordinary.


    He may have known that Ye Wuchen was no match for him, but he still took him seriously and had even taught him about swordsmanship.


    He had done this to fulfill Ye Wuchen''s request to learn more about swordsmanship.


    The people of Qianye City had fought many times in succession, and they had finally lost.


    However, this was all very normal. If Ye Wuchen had been able to defeat Pei Min, then the Regional King Ranking would have to be dissolved.


    After all, Ye Wuchen had not been the top figure at the Battle of the Crimson River. No matter what leaps of logic you did, he could never be stronger than a figure like Pei Min.


    Ye Wuchen knew this, and thus he had no feelings of disappointment at his defeat.


    He walked back to his original place. He was not thinking about his defeat. He was thinking about Pei Min''s swordsmanship.


    Unfortunately, he was not powerful enough to make Pei Min display his full power. If they had fought an actual battle, he would have been able to learn a little more.


    At that moment, there was the sound of footsteps.


    As soon as Ye Wuchen and Pei Min had walked away, someone else stepped down and walked to the center of the banquet hall. The ground there was broken, and the traces of battle were everywhere.


    The man turned around and looked in a certain direction.


    Once again, it was someone looking in the direction of the people from Qianye City.


    But everyone was already numb to this. They were no longer surprised.


    Moreover, this person had a grudge against Qianye City. He had been at the Battle of the Crimson River and had probably come here specifically to oppose Qianye City.


    He was Xiang Ze, the prince of Emperor Xiang Ze.


    Before he had come, it was Xiang Nan who had been stationed here, with a Nirvana level cultivator by his side.


    The Nirvana level cultivator had died in the battle at Qianye City. Ye Futian had killed him.


    Xiang Ze had not been in the Crimson Dragon Realm and thus had not received a Peach Invitation. But he had fought his way up here.


    "Several people have already sought to test Lord Ye''s power, and they have all been refused. Will you come out now?" asked Xiang Ze.


    Yu Sheng, Xia Qingyuan, and everyone else was all staring at him. This time, Ye Futian did not have them fight for him. He stepped out himself.


    The handsome white-haired figure walked to the center of the banquet hall. A fierce look of expectation came over everyone''s face.


    Would they finally be able to witness the true power of this man who was famous throughout the Crimson Dragon Realm?


    Ye Futian had fought several times and even had the blood of a Nirvana level cultivator on his hands, but that had not been done by his own power.


    And at Emperor Kua''s ruins, he had been drawing upon the power of the Flames of the Way to fight.


    Now, even if he were only using what he had just barely perceived from the Thousand Word Proverb to fight, they would still be able to see him fight for real. And his opponent was very strong. He would be a great test of his power!

 1279 Flashy Without Substance

    Ye Futian and Xiang Ze faced each other in the center of the banquet hall.


    One of them was a rising star in the Crimson Dragon Realm. The other had come from far away Emperor Xiang''s Realm for vengeance.


    Xiang Ze had come here from Emperor Xiang''s Realm and had fought his way to the Peach Banquet. He was talented and powerful without a doubt.


    Now he had officially challenged Ye Futian.


    Which one of them would have a stronger understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb?


    "Lord Ye used the Way of Renhuang to summon Emperor Kua and kill a Nirvana level figure from Emperor Xiang''s City, becoming famous in the process. Now I finally have the chance to see what kind of person he is," said Xiang Ze. His voice seemed very calm.


    But everyone could hear how provoking the things he was saying were.


    The killing of a Nirvana level cultivator would be a catastrophic defeat for many cities. Even for a Renhuang realm like Emperor Xiang''s Realm, it was still a loss.


    Because of this loss, Xiang Nan had no choice but to leave Emperor Xiang''s City and be transferred back to Emperor Xiang''s Realm.


    That was why Xiang Ze had come here today.


    "During the conflict between Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm, Xiang Nan sent people to Qianye City, supposedly to observe the battle," answered Ye Futian. "They asked for cultivation resources, and I gave them many, but it seemed that it was not enough to satisfy Xiang Nan''s appetite. During the great battle, the people from Emperor Xiang''s City came as well. Later, during the Battle of Qianye City, my position as city lord was under threat. Xiang Nan did not show the least bit of courtesy. He sent out his Nirvana level cultivator to go with the people of the Nine Great Tribes to destroy the city. I had made compromises with Emperor Xia''s Realm, but I was not going to give things for free to satisfy Emperor Xiang''s City''s appetite. So we rose up and resisted. How can we take this Nirvana level cultivator into consideration when he was so far inferior to His Highness Xiang Nan?"


    They two of them spoke calmly and without any hint of disturbance. There was not the least bit of anger or passion in their tones.


    But Xiang Ze was trying to paint Emperor Xiang''s City as the victim, and it seemed like he was saying that Ye Futian had been the aggressor. It was utterly ridiculous.


    Ye Futian''s simple words made both sides'' grievances clear. Everyone was suddenly looking at the people from Emperor Xiang''s Realm with a bit of ridicule, especially Xiang Nan. He had once been one of the top talents at the Battle of the Crimson River, but now he just seemed like a clown.


    Saying that the death of the Nirvana level figure from Emperor Xiang''s Realm was Ye Futian''s fault was simply ridiculous.


    An ugly look came over Xiang Ze''s face. What Xiang Nan had told was different from what Ye Futian had just said. He did not have a way out of this.


    Anyone would only speak from their own perspective, of course.


    But at that moment, he spoke without thinking, saying, "I challenge you to a fight, Lord Ye."


    "Very well," said Ye Futian.


    Many people smiled at this. A fight was a fight. Why did they have to waste so much time talking? Xiang Ze had brought this misfortune on himself.


    A brilliant light flashed, and many ancient seals suddenly appeared around Xiang Ze.


    They covered the whole area in an instant.


    Everyone looked on in surprise. The characters in these ancient seals seemed to be the same as those on the Thousand Word stele. They were very similar.


    Countless characters were floating through the air, and they seemed to contain invisible power. They were in harmony with the Worldly Great Path.


    The wind howled as the power of the Great Path pressed down, covering Ye Futian.


    Everyone was wondering, was Xiang Ze''s understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb really that strong?


    But some of the people who knew a little bit about Emperor Xiang''s Realm did not think this was strange. This was a special ability that he had inherited from Emperor Xiang.


    Xiang Ze stared at Ye Futian in front of him. He had an imposing manner about him, and his eyes were filled with endless confidence.


    A group of sword seals appeared behind Ye Futian. It looked like a Sword of Kasyapa.


    When Ye Futian had been observing the Thousand Word Proverb, he had felt that it had some mysterious resonance with the Sword of Kasyapa. It seemed that the Sword of Kasyapa''s perfect evolution was not limited to just being a sword. It could also contain rule power.


    The Sword of Kasyapa had many strengths.


    However, this did not stop him from modeling his sword seals after the Sword of Kasyapa.


    Terrifying sword will came out from the Swords of Kasyapa. All of the sword will gathered together.


    Each sword seal contained frightening amounts of power.


    33 Swords of Kasyapa surrounded Ye Futian. Sword light flowed forward, making it look like a river of swords was flowing through the area.


    Neither of them had attacked yet, but there was a powerful sense of tension between them. There was a huge amount of pressure in the banquet hall.


    Xiang Ze stretched out a hand and pointed. "Go," he said.


    When he said this, many ancient character seals swept out at the same time, covering the sky as they shot towards Ye Futian.


    As soon as he said something, it happened.


    Crack! There was a sharp sound as a sword curtain appeared around Ye Futian. At that moment, an ancient character seal was rushing towards him.


    Ye Futian waved his hands, and suddenly a Sword of Kasyapa shot out with a roar and slammed into the oncoming seal, piercing directly through it and shattering it.


    But afterward, a second seal fell, and its roar sounded even closer. It made an ear-piercing noise come from the Sword of Kasyapa.


    Everyone saw a fearsome storm whip up in front of Xiang Ze. The ancient character seals covered the sky and fell as if they were moving in sync with the Great Path itself. They suppressed the whole area.


    "They have the right form and the right substance," thought Ye Futian as he watched Xiang Ze''s attack. Xiang Ze''s technique indeed had the form of the characters in the Thousand Word Proverb, as well as their substance. They had a ferocious power, and they were growing stronger and stronger.


    It was clear that Xiang Ze was far more outstanding than Xiang Nan had been.


    The Swords of Kasyapa pierced out, one sword after another. His sword will was growing stronger and stronger, forming a sword curtain in front of him. It was cutting through the ancient character seals.


    The 33 Swords of Kasyapa formed a terrible storm of sword will above Ye Futian that destroyed all the power from Xiang Ze''s attacks.


    He looked at the giant ancient character seals that covered the sky and thought: if Xiang Ze had actually understood the meaning of the Thousand Word Proverb, his attack would be more frightening. It would cover the whole area, and he would be absolutely unable to block it.


    But even so, he was still very strong.


    He stretched out his hand, and his will moved a little bit. Suddenly, the countless ancient characters that were shrieking towards him in a wild flow turned into the shape of Precious Cauldrons. A golden dragon roared among them and shattered the sword will below it. The sword curtain shook continuously and seemed like it was about to be destroyed.


    Ye Futian stretched out his hand at the same time and swept it through the air. Suddenly, his sword will grew fiercer, and invisible swords seemed to form, blocking the oncoming power.


    Xiang Ze snorted and took another step forward. Incredibly strong willpower descended. A huge figure seemed to be forming behind the ancient characters, like an image of Renhuang.


    This Renhuang-like figure slammed its hand downward, and there was a terrible crushing will in it. It seemed to have been born from the forming characters. As the characters lit up, it looked like a giant matrix pattern that was rushing towards the sword seals.


    In a flash, the 33 sword seals were shattered.


    "Xiang Ze is strong indeed!"


    A look of surprise came over everyone''s faces. Xiang Ze had not only created an ancient character attack that was taken directly from the Thousand Word Proverb stele, but it had also evolved into various forms.


    At that moment, it seemed even more like a figure of Renhuang was descending, slamming down its fist.


    Moreover, all of this seemed to have been formed out of ancient characters. Even if he was using his own willpower, he had still not abandoned his perception of the Thousand Word Proverb.


    The huge palm print covered the sky. Even people far away could feel its immense power.


    Moreover, if Ye Futian had only formed 33 sword seals, they had all been destroyed, and he would have lost.


    Xiang Ze regarded him coolly. He wanted to see if Ye Futian could make a comeback.


    Heaven and earth roared as the palm print pressed down. But at that moment, many ancient characters appeared around Ye Futian.


    This time they were not sword seals but palm prints.


    A burst of terrifying fist will was formed, making the palm prints turn into huge fists.


    Ye Futian raised his arm and struck out into the sky.


    Boom!


    A loud noise rang out as one of the palm prints smashed into the oncoming fist, but it could not shake it.


    Ye Futian shot up into the air, his body straight as a bolt of lighting. All of the palm prints gathered into his arm as he pierced through the sky, heading upwards.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    The palm prints continued to strike out, one after another, their momentum growing stronger and stronger. A huge palm print appeared under the oncoming fist.


    It seemed like the palm prints were overlapping, creating a giant palm print.


    There was a loud noise, as ten or so fists shot out, stopping the giant fist.


    The giant palm print was growing bigger and bigger. The mighty fist will seemed like it would destroy everything.


    And it did not stop. More palm prints rushed forward, integrating themselves into the giant palm print. Just as Ye Futian descended and he thrust out his arm, all of the palm prints seemed to have been thoroughly integrated into the giant palm print. The figure of a giant fist appeared, punching a hole through Xiang Ze''s giant fist, then continuing forward and piercing through the Renhuang figure. The single fist destroyed it utterly.


    Xiang Ze looked shocked. He looked up at Ye Futian, who was up in the sky looking down at him.


    A burst of terrible fist will covered the sky. There were still endless fist wills on his fist, which seemed to have been formed from many palm prints. They had still not completely dissipated.


    "You are flashy, but have no substance," Ye Futian said to Xiang Ze. He reached out, and the fist will rushed forward, blowing against Xiang Ze and making his long robe flap in the wind.


    "Do you want to try me?" said Ye Futian as he pointed at Xiang Ze. His tone and his eyes were full of indomitable spirit as he looked down on him.


    Everything quieted in an instant. All the eyes on Divine Mountain were fixed on this calm scene. They could all see a fierce sense of humiliation on Xiang Ze''s face.


    He was flashy without substance.


    He had lost the Battle of Understanding the Thousand Character Stele very badly!

 1280 I Hope You Win

    Xiang Ze had crossed an unfathomable distance from Emperor Xiang''s Realm to come to the Crimson Dragon Realm and seek out Ye Futian for a fight.


    But he had already been defeated, and his part in this competition had come to an end.


    That peerless figure from the Crimson Dragon Realm had not let anybody down. Just when everyone had thought he would lose, he had turned the tables and gained the upper hand.


    And it was obvious that Ye Futian had not been using his full power when they were facing each other.


    It was only when Xiang Ze had threatened him that he had finally taken action. His hearty victory had proven that even without the help of some object, he was still the top figure in Crimson Dragon Realm. This was just what everyone expected of him.


    Otherwise, they would have been a bit disappointed in this person who had made such large waves in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    But Xiang Ze was a bit unhappy with this result. Had he had come from Emperor Xiang''s Realm to seek out Ye Futian to lose?


    A powerful will surged from him, and the crushing power of the Divine Path filled the air. It seemed that he wanted to use his actual strength to fight Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian felt the power of the Divine Path surging from Xiang Ze. The mighty power covered his body. It seemed to be everywhere and had a mighty aura.


    Divine might appeared all around him as well.


    If Xiang Ze wanted to fight, he would naturally not back down.


    "The victor and the loser have already been decided, but they are not letting the matter drop there. Could it be that they fear they will never have the chance to test each other''s strength again?" said Chi Shang with a smile.


    Xiang Ze was still staring at Ye Futian. But he knew where he was.


    The Imperial Palace of the Crimson Dragon Realm was not the place for him to give vent to his rage.


    Even if his father, Emperor Xiang, personally came here, he would not dare to be like this.


    This was not the place to act rashly.


    Moreover, Chi Shang was right. If he really wanted to fight, there would be chances to do so later.


    As he realized this, he pulled back his aura, then turned and walked away.


    His mood could not be affected too much by a single battle, but he was still a bit unhappy with the result, and there was a cold expression on his face.


    Xiang Nan watched his brother leaving, but said nothing. He was also feeling rather gloomy.


    He had lost to Ye Futian.


    Xiang Ze returned to his place, and Ye Futian naturally pulled back his aura. He walked back to his place.


    The last few contests had been between Shu Zi and Xia Qingyuan, Pei Min and Ye Wuchen, and Ye Futian and Xiang Ze.


    All of them had had people who had received Peach Invitations taking part. The next battle would naturally not mean too much, and would not be part of the true struggle for the Thousand Word Proverb stele.


    Anyone else taking part in the battle would not mean much.


    "We should not keep bothering Lord Ye. The contestants have only had a short time to perceive the Thousand Word Proverb, and each battle drains a lot of their energy. Thus, let us have each combatant split up their fights as much as possible. Let us not have one person fight multiple times in succession," said Chi Shang. The atmosphere at the Peach Banquet was relatively relaxed. There were not any set rules. But everyone there was a powerful figure, and greatly desired victory. Thus, even though the atmosphere was relaxed, everyone was taking this very seriously. They all wanted to defeat their opponents.


    However, since they were top figures, they would not deliberately take advantage of each other. When Chi Shang said this, everyone understood and agreed.


    Chi Shang looked at Yu Shifei. "Shifei, why don''t you fight next?"


    He had asked his beloved to be the first to fight, setting an example.


    Yu Shifei nodded slightly. She looked at Yin Tianjiao and grinned. "Princess Yin, would you like to fight?


    Yin Tianjiao was the daughter of Emperor Wu, and was thus worthy of being called "princess."


    Shu Zi had already fought with Xia Qingyuan, so they were the only two women left, so it was expected that they would fight. It was not like Yu Shifei was deliberately targeting Yin Tianjiao.


    A look of interest came over the faces of everyone on Divine Mountain.


    "I wonder if the future Queen of the Crimson Dragon Realm can defeat this Princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm," whispered someone with a smile. Everyone knew of what was going on between Chi Shang and Yu Shifei and was delighted by it. They all blessed them in their hearts.


    The happy event of their marriage was inevitable.


    Yu Shifei, the daughter of the Yu clan, naturally embodied the Dao. She had been fated to be extraordinary from birth, and would one day inherit the Yu clan.


    Some of the elders in the palace liked this intelligent and talented woman very much. It was said that even the Crimson Dragon Emperor had no objections.


    "Emperor Wu is skilled in warfare, and the Princess of his realm is naturally the same. Her combat ability is outstanding. I wonder if she will make some trouble for our future queen," answered someone with a smile.


    He thought that Yu Shifei would win this battle, even though her opponent was a Princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm and someone who had cultivated at the Regional Palace.


    Yin Tianjiao and Yu Shifei walked to the center of the battlefield. Both of them were gorgeous women, so it was quite a pleasing sight.


    "Princess," said Yu Shifei with a slight smile.


    Yin Tianjiao nodded. "Princess."


    As they said this, their auras changed. They were no longer as gentle as before.


    Yin Tianjiao was skilled in using flames, and Yu Shifei was just the opposite: she was skilled at using water and ice.


    The two equal but opposite auras filled the area. A look of surprise came over everyone''s faces as the room turned alternately cold and hot.


    Ye Futian stood to the side, watching calmly. He reached out and felt the heat and the cold.


    But the coldness was a little bit stronger.


    It seemed cold enough to slow down the blood in one''s veins, and even freeze it.


    "This princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm is facing a great threat," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    Beside him, Xia Qingyuan looked at him, then back to the battlefield. "This Princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm helped you in the West."


    Ye Futian was stunned.


    What did she mean?


    Where did that come from?


    It seemed that Yin Tianjiao had indeed helped him. When the Zhu tribe had sought to block him and not let him leave, Duan Wuji and Yin Tianjiao had spoken up in support of him.


    "If you had not said something, I would have forgotten Princess. In that case, I hope she wins," said Ye Futian with a smile. Xia Qingyuan ignored him, continuing to watch the battlefield.


    Just as Ye Futian had guessed, Yin Tianjiao suffered a certain degree of domination.


    Yu Shifei was on the Regional Kings Ranking, and her strength was beyond all doubt. She defeated Yin Tianjiao, the Princess of Emperor Wu''s Realm.


    Everyone wished that the battle could keep going. It was a very graceful battle, and many people were watching it with great enjoyment.


    But Yin Tianjiao had no desire to do so. She walked away, discouraged. Once she returned to her original place, she looked over at Ye Futian.


    She seemed to be staring at him.


    Ye Futian was confused.


    "I hope you win," whispered Yin Tianjiao. She had obviously heard what Ye Futian had said before. Before the battle had even begun, she had guessed that she would lose.


    She was a little annoyed. She had lost to Ye Futian at Emperor Kua''s ruins, and now she had lost to Yu Shifei.


    She had come from Emperor Wu''s Realm and entered the Regional Palace to cultivate, but she had lost several times in succession. Thus, it was only natural that she was gloomy.


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head ruefully.


    She must be cursing him.


    He had just wished Yin Tianjiao victory, and yet she had lost.


    Xia Qingyuan looked over at Yin Tianjiao but said nothing.


    Once Yu Shifei and Yin Tianjiao had stepped down, Duan Wuji stepped up. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "I had originally wanted to challenge you, but since you just fought, I must challenge somebody else."


    On saying this, he looked in another direction.


    The figure there was Luo Yang of the Luo clan.


    At that moment, of all the people there, Luo Yang was the one who was most skilled in using flames.


    Of the three significant figures of the Crimson Dragon Emperor''s City, Luo Yang was skilled with flames, Yu Shifei was skilled with water, and Jiang Tai''e was skilled with the Way of Space.


    Of course, they were all good at other things as well.


    But besides Ye Futian, Luo Yang was the person whom Duan Wuji most wanted to challenge.


    Although he had cultivated far away in the Eastern Palace in the Eastern region of the Crimson Dragon Realm, he still knew of Luo Yang of the Regional King Ranking.


    Luo Yang, who was considered the most outstanding member of the Luo clan, had already been confirmed as the future inheritor of the Luo clan.


    Duan Wuji was incredibly proud and had a lot of confidence in his ability, but he was not sure he could beat Luo Yang. And only if he beat him could he have the chance to face Ye Futian. Thus, he did not know whether or not he would have the opportunity to fight with Ye Futian here.


    Luo Yang walked forward, step by step, and said, "You''ve chosen the wrong person."


    His voice was indifferent, as if the outcome of this battle was not in any doubt, even though his opponent was a prince of the Eastern Palace.


    But he was Luo Yang.


    "He is still so proud," whispered the people on Divine Mountain.


    "Luo Yang has been named as the future inheritor of the Divine Fire by the Luo clan. When he was young, he was trained as the heir. He will be responsible for the revival of the Luo clan. He is also incredibly talented, and has had a hard time finding worthy opponents. He refused an invitation to the Regional Palace, and yet still entered the Regional King Ranking."


    "Luo Yang, Xing Kai, Pei Min, and Jiang Tai''e are all worthy of being called the heroes of their generation. They are the future of the Crimson Dragon Realm. And now there are also Ye Futian and Yu Sheng of Qianye City. This is truly an age of heroes. I wonder which of them will be able to stand out from the crowd."


    "It will be His Majesty," said someone with a smile.


    A smile came over many people''s faces. Chi Shang, the prince of the Crimson Dragon Realm, was also a heroic figure, was he not?


    However, he did not need to fight the others. He just had to be himself.


    "Luo Yang is right. Duan Wuji did indeed choose the wrong person. Luo Yang is a Saint of True Self, and his power of understanding is formidable. Duan Wuji is quite young and has suffered humiliation at many levels. It will be nearly impossible for him to defeat Luo Yang."


    As they were speaking, the battle had already begun.


    The battle had started very explosively. Ye Futian had seen Duan Wuji''s God-Eating Fire. It was extremely strong. At that moment, it had solidified into flame seals, and Flames of the Way filled the sky.


    However, he could also see that Luo Yang''s Flames of the Way were even more terrible.


    He activated the power within him, and he seemed to turn into a sun god. A brilliant sun rose from his body. The fire was divine, and it ignored all attacks and defense.


    Ye Futian''s eyes hurt as he watched Luo Yang. It felt like they had been burned. That terrible divine fire was much stronger than that which he had experienced among the Nine Great Tribes.


    As everyone had expected, in the end, Duan Wuji lost this battle quite badly. He had received a Peach Invitation and thus was obviously an outstanding figure.


    But it was just like Luo Yang had said. He had chosen the wrong person.


    He had been completely dominated when he faced Luo Yang.


    Thus, the outcome of this battle had never been in any doubt!

 1281 Together

    Both Duan Wuji and Yin Tianjiao, who had been able to fight Ye Futian at the Battle of Emperor Kua''s Ruins, had been eliminated.


    Of the three of them, Ye Futian was the only one who had the right to continue fighting for the Thousand Word Proverb Stele.


    This seemed to confirm the results of the Battle of Emperor Kua''s Ruins. Most of the time, one''s actual power was the basis of luck and coincidence.


    As Duan Wuji and Luo Yang''s battle came to an end, there were only four people who had received Peach Invitations left who had not yet fought.


    They were Xing Kai, Jiang Tai''e, Xie Qingshan, and Yu Sheng.


    According to what Chi Shang had said, the four of them would have to fight next.


    At that moment, Jiang Tai''e stepped forward. Of the other three, the one who had the best chance of being a threat to him was Xing Kai.


    Xing Kai was a Saint of True Self, just like him.


    Xie Qingshan and Yu Sheng were on the Regional King Ranking just like him, but in a lower division, and their understanding of the Great Path was much weaker. They would be humiliated if they fought him.


    Even if they all had to control their wills, he would still have the advantage.


    Thus, to be fair, he had to challenge Xing Kai.


    However, he had no assurance of victory if he faced Xing Kai. It would be difficult for him to win, and he would have to expend a lot of energy.


    The Thousand Character Stele was a Renhuang level artifact. If he wanted to compete for it, he naturally could not waste too much of his energy.


    "Yu Sheng." Jiang Tai''e had decided who he would challenge.


    From his view, based on the power that Yu Sheng had shown and his crazy abilities, he was a natural talent.


    But natural talents were often lacking in terms of ability to comprehend things.


    So, as far as Jiang Tai''e was concerned, his best choice was to choose Yu Sheng.


    Besides Ye Futian, Yu Sheng looked at Jiang Tai''e and said, "I forfeit my claim to the stele."


    A look of shock came over the faces of the people on Divine Mountain. They had thought they were about to witness a truly explosive battle.


    They would never have thought that Yu Sheng had no intention of fighting and would give up like that.


    He was not going to fight.


    Ye Futian was the only person from Qianye City who would fight.


    Jiang Tai''e had been very well prepared for this. Yu Sheng had always practiced a kind of demonic magic ever since he was young. Later, he had mixed in other methods, but the demonic magic had always been the absolute core of his skills.


    Moreover, these demonic arts seemed to support all of his future cultivation, allowing him to continue raising his level.


    Thus, Yu Sheng was not too familiar with other forms of power.


    Other people placed great value on the Thousand Word Proverb Stele, but he had no interest in it.


    Using his understanding of the stele to fight was not interesting to him.


    That was not his fighting style.


    Ye Futian was shocked as well.


    This guy was too direct. Couldn''t he be a little more tactful?


    This was really embarrassing.


    At least he was someone who naturally commanded respect.


    Even Jiang Tai''e had not thought that Yu Sheng would give up. A look of shock came over his face, and then he walked away.


    This was good, though. By avoiding this battle, he could save some energy to deal with the next one.


    Next, it was Xing Kai and Xie Qingshan''s turn to fight.


    The battle turned out just as everyone expected. Xie Qingshan may have been powerful and was on the Regional King Ranking, but he was of a lower level than Xing Kai. After a wild battle, Xie Qingshan was the loser in the end. However, he did cause some problems for Xing Kai.


    Anyone who could enter the Regional King Ranking was a powerful figure, one of the strongest in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    And so, those that had the right to continue fighting were Ye Futian, Pei Min, Luo Yang, Xing Kai, Jiang Tai''e, and Yu Shifei.


    Of course, Xia Qingyuan was also left. She may not have received a Peach Invitation, but she had defeated Shu Zi, which gave her the right to continue.


    However, as long as Ye Futian was there, Xia Qingyuan would probably not compete, so no one knew if she would fight anymore.


    Each of the people who were left was a powerful, famous figure.


    Not much needed to be said about Ye Futian. In recent days, he had become the most famous person in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    In the year that Xing Kai, the heir of the Ancient Imperial City, had entered the Regional Palace, he had swept away all his opponents there.


    Luo Yang and Jiang Tai''e were two of the most prestigious youths in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Pei Min was just as famous as Xing Kai in the Regional Palace. He came from Sword Palace.


    Yu Shifei would likely be the future Queen of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Luo Yang stepped out first and challenged Yu Shifei.


    Both of them had been born in the Crimson Dragon City. One of them was the hope of the Luo clan, and the other was the hope of the Yu clan.


    The two of them had cultivated to very similar levels and were often compared to each other.


    This was going to be a great competition: a battle between ice and fire.


    Previously, Luo Yang had dominated Duan Wuji, and Yu Shifei had dominated Yin Tianjiao''s flames.


    But Yu Shifei could not dominate Luo Yang. After a struggle, Luo Yang was the eventual winner.


    He was superior to Yu Shifei on their level, but their understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb was very similar.


    After the two of them stepped down, Pei Min came out and looked towards the people from Qianye City.


    Ye Futian knew what he meant and stepped forward.


    Previously, Pei Min had been challenged by Wuchen and had shown his outstanding power in the battle. Ye Futian had a good impression of him.


    The two of them stepped to the center of the banquet hall, with everyone watching them.


    The descendant of Emperor Jian was going to fight Ye Futian.


    What kind of contest would this be?


    Pei Min looked at Ye Futian with a smile. "His Highness set this match to test our understanding of the stele, and thus we must fight. I am at a higher level than you. Even if I control my will, I will still have the advantage. In your last battle, you showed that you had an exceptional understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb. It will be enough to see which of us has a deeper understanding. There is no need to fight."


    As a Saint of True Self, he only wanted to fight Ye Futian in terms of their understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb.


    As far as Pei Min was concerned, this contest did not mean too much.


    He had been very casual in his fight with Ye Wuchen.


    Now, facing Ye Futian, he was only curious about how much Ye Futian had been able to comprehend.


    He was not interested in fighting Ye Futian just because he was famous in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    If Ye Futian had been a Saint of True Self, he would not have limited himself.


    If that were the case, he would have been more interested in the fight.


    But not now.


    Everyone at the banquet was speechless. They had expected a fierce fight.


    However, Pei Min had suggested that they not fight.


    It seemed like he was not interested in doing so.


    But they knew where he was coming from. As far as Pei Min was concerned, there was no point in fighting Ye Futian in a situation like this.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "Fine." Not having to fight was naturally the best option for him.


    "You saw the previous battle. My understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb has been integrated into my attacks. I also watched your battle where you created many powerful attack seals which you integrated into your divine attacks. However, is that really all of your understanding?" asked Pei Min.


    "I felt everything that you did," said Ye Futian. As he said this, a halo of brilliant ancient characters appeared around him. There seemed to be three thousand of them, flowing continuously between heaven and earth and containing the terrifying power of the Great Path.


    In a flash, the ancient characters turned into sword seals, each one filled with terrible Sword Qi and as sharp as could be. They swirled around Ye Futian.


    A look of surprise came over Pei Min''s face as he stood there calmly, feeling everything.


    "I am far from truly comprehending the essence of the Thousand Word Proverb. This is just a shadow of it," continued Ye Futian. The flowing sword seals went towards Pei Min, turning into a river of swords that flashed through the air.


    Pei Min felt like what was coming for him was not many individual swords, but a single one.


    The flowing sword seals stopped coming closer to Pei Min. They flew around him in circles, giving off an ear-splitting noise.


    "It looks like you weren''t using your full power in the last battle," said Pei Min. This made Xiang Ze look even more gloomy.


    His defeat had already been humiliating enough, and now Pei Min had just said that Ye Futian had not been using his full power.


    That...


    Ye Futian did not confirm or deny what Pei Min had said. Pei Min smiled and said, "Your understanding of the Thousand Character Proverb is greater than mine. In that case, there is no reason to keep fighting. I forfeit my right to the Thousand Word Proverb."


    He nodded to Ye Futian as he said this, then turned and left casually.


    It was just like he had said. They had not fought.


    But in reality, Pei Min had admitted that his understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb was less than Ye Futian''s.


    However, no one thought that Pei Min''s loss was shameful at all.


    On the contrary, it made them think that the descendant of Emperor Jian was a very noble and extraordinary man.


    The two men peacefully ended their contest, and they both returned to their original places.


    There were only two people left. There was a decisive battle between Xing Kai and Jiang Tai''e. It was a true contest of strongmen.


    The power of their attacks was terrifying. Their understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb Stele was incredibly deep. They were locked in a mighty struggle.


    In the end, though, it was Xing Kai who had the ultimate victory.


    Xing Kai had defeated Jiang Tai''e in battle.


    It may not have been a real battle, but Xing Kai was able to extend his undefeated streak.


    Moreover, the enmity between the Ancient Imperial City and Qianye City was extremely deep. But up until this point, other than the affair with Hua Ye, Xing Kai had never directly targeted Ye Futian.


    But now, besides Xia Qingyuan, who had not fought, there were only three people left.


    Ye Futian, Xing Kai, and Luo Yang.


    It seemed like there was no way that Ye Futian could avoid fighting Xing Kai.


    Unless he was eliminated by Luo Yang, or if Xing Kai was eliminated by Luo Yang. But it was much more likely they would be the final two contestants.


    Chi Shang looked at the last few people, smiled, and said, "It seems that the Thousand Word Proverb Stele will soon have an owner. The last few people who want to fight can do it together."


    Luo Yang was the first to step forward. Then Xing Kai stepped out of the crowd.


    Ye Futian looked at the two of them then stepped forward as well towards the center of the banquet hall.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him, then whispered, "Let''s do it together."


    Upon saying this, she stepped forward as well, walking side by side with Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan was going to fight.


    Four people would fight in the final battle for the Thousand Word Proverb Stele.


    Two of them were Saints of True Self, and two of them were Doctrine Saints.


    Xing Kai and Luo Yang obviously had the advantage!

 1282 Final Contes

    Four people walked to the center of the crowd of onlookers at the Peach Banquet on Divine Mountain. Everyone''s gaze was fixed upon them.


    Xing Kai and Luo Yang had been famous throughout the Crimson Dragon Realm for a long time and were among the most powerful and famous members of their generation.


    Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan had newly risen to this height due to the power of Qianye City, which they were masters of.


    Watching the two of them walk side by side, everyone thought they looked well suited to each other. They gave off the impression of being a pair of gods.


    However, given Ye Futian''s previous performance, it seemed that there was another woman that he loved.


    Had Xia Qingyuan chosen to fight because she feared that Ye Futian would be humiliated?


    But if she fought, there would be two people from Qianye City. If Xing Kai and Luo Yang ganged up and targeted them, it would be extremely disadvantageous.


    It would be two Saints of True Self versus two Doctrine Saints.


    Of course, in a battle like this, the Saints of True Self had to limit their will, and thus the gap between them would not be that great. They would just have a slight advantage.


    But they were all among the top cultivators of their generation. They could possibly decide the outcome of this battle quite easily.


    The battle for the Thousand Word Proverb Stele would be ended with this fight.


    Xing Kai swept his gaze over them. He still looked indifferent. Even though there was enmity between the Ancient Imperial City and Qianye City, there was no emotion in his eyes as he looked at Ye Futian. He seemed to be a stranger to him.


    "Let us eliminate them first. Choose one of them," said Xing Kai to Luo Yang.


    This shocked everyone. Xing Kai was not showing the least bit of propriety.


    Since Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan had come out together, he and Luo Yang would each choose one of them to fight in order to eliminate them first.


    In the end, it would just be him and Luo Yang competing for the Thousand Word Proverb Stele.


    "As you wish," said Luo Yang indifferently. The two of them turned and faced Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    Two powerful auras instantly bloomed, and powerful will swept out, covering Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan''s wills bloomed as well as they faced Xing Kai and Luo Yang.


    Boom!


    Xing Kai stepped forward, and his powerful fighting will swept out. Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan felt a fierce sense of threat from this invisible fighting will.


    The fighting will seemed to be wrapped around his body. Ancient seals appeared all around him.


    His understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb Stele had allowed him to form war seals.


    The ancient words of the Thousand Word Proverb had seemed to him just like his war seals. If he could cultivate the Thousand Word Proverb and understand the power that it could lend to his attacks, it would be enough to raise his attacks to the next level.


    Even someone like Xing Kai would not refuse the chance to get Renhuang level attack arts. Thus, of course, he would fight for the Thousand Word Proverb Stele.


    As for the enmity between him and Ye Futian, that was secondary. It was not something that could be solved at the Peach Banquet.


    As far as he was concerned right now, Ye Futian was nothing more than an opponent that he would defeat. He was just a stepping stone.


    Nothing more.


    Many ancient seals formed around Xing Kai, flying around in circles. A terrifying force stretched out from him.


    Some of these seals were particularly strong, and they swallowed up all the fighting will in the area. They resonated with the Worldly Great Path, and the fighting will surged within them.


    These ancient seals had been formed from his understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb Stele.


    He was able to do the same thing that Ye Futian had been able to do before.


    On the other side of the hall, brilliant light bloomed from Luo Yang. He seemed to be bathing in the divine fire of the sun. He looked like a sun god.


    The terrible light of the sun shot out from him, hurting everyone''s eyes and burning their very souls. It shot directly towards Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan, attacking them without pity.


    Xing Kai and Luo Yang were not like Pei Min. They did not care who had understood how much. All they cared about was victory.


    However, they still limited the amount of power that they were wielding.


    There was a terrible amount of pressure on Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan. The light of brilliant ancient seals bloomed from them as well.


    Ancient characters swirled in front of Ye Futian, directly opposing Xing Kai''s.


    Xia Qingyuan was wrapped in a bright curtain of sacred lotuses. Endless catastrophe sword seals formed, covering the sky. A gigantic lotus bloomed. It seemed to have an enchantment woven within it that Luo Yang''s brilliant flames had no way to burn. They were stopped outside the lotus.


    Xing Kai continued forward, and suddenly, the ancient seals shot directly ahead, as if they were war seals. They rushed towards Ye Futian.


    Terrifying fist will was flowing through the ancient seals in front of Ye Futian. He stepped forward as well, and suddenly the ancient characters went flying, turning into overwhelming fists that slammed into the war seals.


    Boom!


    An ear-splitting sound rang out as the seals slammed together in the air. But this was just the beginning. The seals around Xing Kai went flying and swept downward towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s silver hair was flying in the wind. The ancient characters turned into fists that lashed out. There was an explosive noise in the air that pierced everyone''s ears. The fist wills slashed through the golden light.


    The two powers slammed together in mid-air, creating a continuous roar. In a flash, a destructive air flow appeared in that space.


    Xing Kai and Ye Futian clashed together powerfully, directly slamming the ancient character seals they had created into each other.


    Their understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb seemed to be equal.


    Seeing that all of his attacks had been blocked, Xing Kai waved his hand, and suddenly a huge seal that was filled with terrible fighting will appeared amidst all the other seals. At the same time, he brought many of the other seals forward. They flowed around him, putting pressure on Ye Futian and cutting through his fist wills. They continued forward, destroying everything.


    Ye Futian looked up and saw a huge war seal forming. He could feel Xing Kai''s will within it. He could feel the incomparably strong desire to fight.


    It was said that the people of the Ancient Imperial City were of the bloodline of the vanished Emperor Zhan''s Realm.


    Xing Kai and Xing Chou were descendants of Emperor Zhan. This rumor was more than half true.


    This kind of fighting will was incredibly strong and could destroy just about anything, even the very air itself. It rushed towards Ye Futian.


    With a thought, 33 fist seals appeared among all the fist wills. They all looked like his actual fists. They lashed out, piercing through the air as they rushed towards the giant war seal.


    The air trembled and groaned, and a clear snapping noise rang out. Cracks gradually appeared in the giant war seal as it slammed down, but the brilliant light shining from it smoothed them all out. Ye Futian was sent flying backward, but his fist seal continued forward and reached its destination.


    In the end, the war seal was destroyed. The attack had been stopped.


    "Ye Futian seems like he will cause Xing Kai some trouble. The seals that Xing Kai is forming out of his will are stronger than Ye Futian''s, though, so he will probably lose eventually," someone whispered as he watched the scene unfold.


    "If Ye Futian was a Saint of True Self, maybe we would get to see an even more exciting battle," answered the person beside him. They thought that Ye Futian would be crushed.


    The winners of the two-on two-fight would be Xing Kai and Luo Yang.


    ...


    In the other fight, divine fire seals appeared around Luo Yang, swallowing up the Flames of the Way in the area. Scalding hot lot bloomed from within them and shot towards Xia Qingyuan.


    Woosh! The terrifying light of divine fire entered the flames and shot towards the lotus curtain. It gradually pierced through the curtain, burning it up bit by bit as it worked its way in.


    And there was more than one beam of light.


    The divine fire light that had formed around Luo Yang bloomed, and in a flash, a huge hole appeared in the lotus curtain.


    "Luo Yang''s Flames of the Way have such great destructive power. He is truly worthy of being called a Man of Fire," said an elder on Divine Mountain.


    Xia Qingyuan would probably be humiliated at Luo Yang''s hands.


    Luo Yang had inherited his ancestors'' talent and was naturally skilled at using the Flames of the Way. The Luo clan had placed all their hopes on him.


    His Flames of the Way seemed to form a sword of fire that could not be blocked, and that could destroy anything.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned as she saw her lotus curtain being pierced. The divine fire shot towards her. Catastrophe swords appeared around her, and they shot out where she pointed. They went out one after another in a straight line, piercing through the oncoming divine fire.


    The devastating catastrophe swords seemed to be trying to pierce through the divine flames and destroy them. But the swords all seemed to melt under the flames. They became scalding hot in an instant.


    Xia Qingyuan''s expression changed a little. More catastrophe sword seals appeared and went flying, one after another. They grew stronger and stronger as they shot towards the divine flames.


    Finally, the divine flames were split, but Xia Qingyuan discovered that once they were split, they became two divine flames that continued shooting forward. They were just like light: they could not be destroyed.


    Thousands of catastrophe swords swirled around her, forming a storm of swords. The swirling swords looked like a giant lotus with countless petals opening up to block the oncoming flames.


    She stepped forward, looking divine and mighty. The powerful swords covered her, and it seemed that she could launch a devastating attack at any point.


    The divine flames seemed to be repelled as Xia Qingyuan moved forward. She floated in the air like a goddess, continuing forward until she reached the air above Luo Yang. Endless catastrophe swords stretched out through the sky. The destructive storm raged as the falling catastrophe swords seemed to split the sky.


    But Luo Yang seemed not even to feel it. He just looked up calmly at Xia Qingyuan.


    "Once you become a Saint of True Self, come find me, and we can fight again," he said. The flames surged around him, and suddenly a halo of fire appeared around him, wrapping around his body. It grew more and more fearsome.


    The destructive power that burst out from it seemed like it could destroy anything.


    "Go!"


    Xia Qingyuan stepped forward, and the endless catastrophe swords streaked down towards Luo Yang.


    The halo of fire around Luo Yang blazed, and an endless amount of divine fire shot out from it, forming a giant ring of flame that rushed up into the clouds.


    When the terrifying catastrophe swords reached him, they were all swallowed up by the divine flames in what seemed like an instant.


    It made for a beautiful sight!

 1283 Is She Really So Unlucky?

    A terrifying image of destruction had appeared on the battlefield where Luo Yang and Xia Qingyuan were fighting.


    Endless catastrophe swords were falling, turning the area into a chaotic space. Everything within it was being destroyed.


    Divine light shone from Xia Qingyuan. She was enveloped in a lotus light curtain as catastrophe swords whistled by. Each one was filled with infinite violence, and they were Swords of All Heavens.


    However, even though the catastrophe swords were so frightening, Luo Yang had still not moved an inch. He stood there, and the halo of flames around him was still as brilliant as ever. The divine fire light that he was shooting out was filled with incomparable destructive power.


    All the flame will in the area gathered together. Luo Yang slapped his hands together, and suddenly the halo of fire rose into the sky, swallowing up all the catastrophe swords, burning them into nothing. It seemed that no force could draw near to the divine flames.


    The burning will covered Xia Qingyuan''s body. The whole area seemed like it would be melted into nothing by the flames.


    Xia Qingyuan watched her catastrophe swords being destroyed and the fiery halo coming towards her. A look of perseverance flashed in her beautiful eyes.


    If she lost, then Ye Futian would have to face two people. And Luo Yang and Xing Kai were so strong. They were both on the Regional Kings Ranking, and everyone thought they would one day reach the Renhuang level.


    What was more, they were both at a higher level than Ye Futian.


    This was obvious from the amount of pressure she was facing now. Even though Luo Yang was limiting the power of this flames, he was still a Saint of True Self, and his understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb was much stronger than her own. Thus, his flames were more powerful than she was.


    And on top of that, Luo Yang seemed to have an exceedingly special physique, which was in no way inferior to that of a descendant of Renhuang.


    She did not know if Luo Yang was a descendant of Renhung, but over many generations and after many years, he had inherited the talents of his ancestors and now possessed the Flames of the Way.


    Endless flames were shooting out of the halo of divine fire. The light from the fire was enough to withstand the onslaught of the catastrophe swords.


    And the halo of divine fire could not be blocked.


    Luo Yang was bathed in endless flames. He controlled it by pointing his finger. "You haven''t given up yet?" he said.


    If Xia Qingyuan persisted, his attacks might actually injure her.


    Xia Qingyuan looked downward with a cold look on her face. Holy light was flashing from her, carrying a bit of Renhuang brilliance. She was as dazzling as a goddess.


    The catastrophe swords were destroyed and then reborn, turning into lotus flowers that covered her body. Every lotus petal had been formed from many catastrophe swords, and they continually swirled around her.


    Within her, a burst of life energy enveloped the lotus flower, making it look like she was one with the lotuses that were forming around her. They were feeding off and enhancing each other.


    Xia Qingyuan traced a seal with her hands, and many of the catastrophe swords joined together and shrieked forward, becoming many straight lines of catastrophe will. They flashed over like lightning, cutting through the air.


    This spell was called the Infinite Catastrophe.


    She turned into a bolt of lightning and shot down towards Luo Yang.


    Luo Yang frowned as he watched the shrieking catastrophe swords that had joined together smash into the divine fire. Her attack was no weaker than his own. The area around them became a zone of catastrophe as it was all enveloped.


    Even Ye Futian and Xing Kai, who were locked in battle, looked over. The two fights were not far from each other. The sky above them seemed to be caught in the catastrophe as well, but Xia Qingyuan was controlling the scope of her attack.


    The world was buried under the Infinite Catastrophe, and everything was destroyed.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Catastrophe swords were falling all around Luo Yang, filling the air. He frowned as he felt that he was actually in danger. If he had been a Doctrine Saint, he could have been threatened by this attack.


    Everyone on Divine Mountain was watching Xia Qingyuan as well. What a powerful spell!


    Even the Nirvana level elders on Divine Mountain were visibly moved.


    "Creation and destruction��the two extremes of will��have both appeared within her, and have burst forth at the same time. This princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm is incredible," an elder whispered. The catastrophe swords were a destructive force, and the lotuses were a force of creation.


    This was the Infinite Catastrophe. Endless destructive will fell, and the lotuses gave birth to even more catastrophe swords.


    In this way, both the creation and destruction were endless.


    "Yes, Qianye City is truly an interesting place. The first one of them to rise in the world was Yu Sheng, who became famous at the Battle of the Crimson River, eclipsing both the lord of the city and the princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm. It was only at the struggle at Emperor Kua''s Ruins that everyone became aware that Ye Futian was also a marvelous talent. As a result, the Princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm became even more inconspicuous," said someone with a smile. Obviously, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had eclipsed Xia Qingyuan, and she had not really had a chance to display her power.


    But now, she had come across Luo Yang during this struggle.


    This was the purpose of the Peach Banquet: to let everyone see these people''s talents.


    Clearly, they had found yet another rare talent.


    The princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Outside of the Peach Banquet, many powerful figures had come as well, like Xi Chan of the Xi clan.


    She had fought with Xia Qingyuan before. Watching her now, she realized that at that time, Xia Qingyuan had not been using her full power.


    If she had used the Infinite Catastrophe in that fight, she probably would not have been able to escape it.


    "It seems that this battle is heating up," everyone thought to themselves. Xia Qingyuan was serious.


    Of course, Luo Yang''s halo of fire was also drawing upon his own power. They were no longer limiting themselves to their understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb.


    Their attacks came on so fast that just as people were thinking it, Xia Qingyuan attacked again.


    The Infinite Catastrophe clashed with the divine flames. The destructive scene was simply astonishing.


    Xia Qingyuan descended, trying to pierce through the halo of fire directly.


    Everyone couldn''t help but feel nervous for her. Was she crazy?


    Did she want to pierce through the fiery halo?


    That kind of destructive power could truly threaten her life.


    The lotus petals opened up and turned into endless catastrophe swords that shot into the divine halo. They were burned up one after another.


    But they kept being created as they were destroyed as if they could keep coming forever.


    A sharp snapping sound rang out as the halo of divine fire was finally broken by the falling Infinite Catastrophe.


    Her figure flashed through the sky in an instant, falling upon Luo Yang.


    Everyone saw the light from the endless catastrophe swords falling and piercing into Luo Yang''s body. Xia Qingyuan pointed forward, and it seemed as if all her attacks gathered together on her finger.


    Just in the instant that Xia Qingyuan was about to launch her attack, brilliant light bloomed from Luo Yang, burning everyone''s eyes. His body became a divine Law Body, and the falling catastrophe swords were melted into nothing. An even more powerful halo of flames rose around him, swallowing up and melting everything.


    He pointed towards Xia Qingyuan, and divine fire fell, burning everything. Even her force of creation did not have a chance to function.


    "Surrender!" yelled Ye Futian. Xia Qingyuan seemed to be completely enveloped. It looked like she had been burned away to nothing.


    Biting her lip, Xia Qingyuan shot away like a bolt of lightning just as a pillar of divine flame descended, sending her flying backward, not stopping until she reached the edge of the Peach Banquet.


    Had she been defeated?


    Everyone''s gaze fell upon Luo Yang and felt his will. Even though it had been his final attack, he had still controlled its power and had not used the strength of a Saint of True Self. But even so, he had still knocked Xia Qingyuan back.


    Everyone thought back to the rumors of Luo Yang''s ancestry. The Renhuang of the Luo clan had a divine fire body that no one could draw near to. The closer you came to him, the stronger the flames became. It was a physical power of his.


    Thus, when Xia Qingyuan had come near to Luo Yang, she had been subjected to an incredibly strong counter-force.


    If Xia Qingyuan had been a Saint of True Self, what would have been the outcome of that attack?


    Could Xia Qingyuan have threatened Luo Yang?


    It was really possible.


    Everyone wanted to see a true, open battle between the two of them.


    Luo Yang took a few steps forward and looked at Xia Qingyuan. There was little satisfaction in his eyes. On the contrary, they seemed to be full of admiration.


    She was a woman, and moreover, only a Doctrine Saint, and she had still given him so much trouble.


    Xia Qingyuan had put no less pressure on him than Yu Shifei.


    This was a woman who could be compared to a woman of the Yu clan who was on the Regional King Ranking.


    There was a little bit of disappointment in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes. Luo Yang looked at her and said, "If you have a chance later, you can come to Crimson Dragon City and challenge me there."


    A look of surprise came over everyone''s faces when they heard this. The fight between Luo Yang and Xia Qingyuan seemed to have created a sense of mutual appreciation between them. He had even asked her to challenge him at the Luo clan when he got a chance.


    But Xia Qingyuan had beaten Shu Zi, who had cultivated at the Regional Palace, and her fight with Luo Yang had been no less impressive than Yu Shifei. This was a woman who could be compared with Yu Shifei, and she had a noble background. Even though she was not wearing women''s clothing, everyone could still see her allure.


    No wonder Luo Yang would appreciate a woman like this. There were few like her in the whole of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    There was a flash of coldness in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes when she heard what Luo Yang said. She seemed extremely unhappy with it. "You have no right to ask that," she said.


    Her words stunned everyone. She was so aloof!


    But Luo Yang did not care. There were few people that he placed much importance on in the Crimson Dragon Realm, and even less who were women.


    Xia Qingyuan was outstanding in so many aspects. It was only normal that she would be proud and aloof.


    At that moment, there was the sound of a collision. It had come from the battle between Xing Kai and Ye Futian. The two of them moved away from each other. They stopped fighting and looked over at Luo Yang and Xia Qingyuan, for whom the victor and the loser had already been determined.


    "Are you alright?" Ye Futian asked Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan shook her head slightly as she looked at him. She seemed apologetic. She had wanted to help him fight, but she had been defeated, so she had, in fact, caused him trouble.


    As he looked into her eyes, Ye Futian understood what she was thinking. He smiled and said, "Victory and defeat are not important. Leave this to me."


    "Mm." Xia Qingyuan nodded, then left. She had officially forfeited.


    Everyone was sent into flights of fancy by this scene. Xia Qingyuan had come from a noble background, she was a princess, after all, and thus must have a higher position in Emperor Xia''s Realm than Ye Futian. And she was so strong. But Ye Futian had been made ruler of Qianye City, and she stood behind him. She even seemed to obey him.


    But thinking of Ye Futian''s song, everyone thought this was strange.


    Could it be...


    Was Xia Qingyuan really that unlucky?

 1284 The Strongest Understanding

    After Xia Qingyuan stepped down, there were only three people left on the battlefield.


    Xing Kai had just moved away from Ye Futian and was preparing to attack him from two sides with Luo Yang.


    Luo Yang saw that the two of them were not done fighting and took a couple of steps towards Ye Futian. Divine fire light still shone brilliantly from him.


    Ye Futian had said, "Leave it to me."


    He did not know what he was talking about.


    Could it be that he still thought he had a chance to win the Thousand Word Proverb Stele?


    At that moment, there was a roar as Ye Futian and Xing Kai both stepped forward. A huge seal shot up into the air, covering the sky.


    At that point, brilliant divine light suddenly shone from Ye Futian. In the moment that it bloomed, he seemed to become one with the world, resonating with the Great Path. The will of the world entered into him, and giant characters appeared in the air all around him.


    The characters read "All Universe," "Flowing," "Leave," "Threshold"...


    The Deed of Thought Comprehension flared to life.


    This was no longer a simple battle of understanding.


    Previously, Luo Yang and Xia Qingyuan had already been using their own power to fight, so this was not out of the ordinary.


    Ye Futian seemed to transform into the source of all things. The Worldly Great Path resonated with him, and the ancient characters around him soared into the sky.


    Each of the ancient characters in the air contained fist will within them, but at that moment, they flared with space will, making them look like countless halberds. He rose into the sky and waved his hand. In a flash, all the ancient characters flew up. A divine halberd pierced through them, drawing upon their power as it pierced forward.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise, and the very air trembled. All of the ancient characters shot down, and the divine halberd slammed into Xing Kai''s seals, making cracks appear in them before they were completely destroyed.


    Ancient characters were swirling around Ye Futian. Everyone had a look of wonder on their faces as they beheld this brilliant scene.


    He was able to turn ancient characters into different kinds of will. This kind of perception was close to the true meaning of the Thousand Word Proverb Stele.


    Ye Futian floated above the banquet hall. Time seemed to have stopped.


    But he was not looking at Xing Kai. Instead, he turned his gaze to Luo Yang.


    "If this battle was simply a test of one''s understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb Stele, you both should have withdrawn already. You must know that the only reason you are still standing here is that you are at a higher level than us," Ye Futian said to Luo Yang.


    "She really is outstanding. If she had been a Saint of True Self, it would truly have been a tough fight," said Luo Yang as he looked up at Ye Futian. "But a win is a win, and now I am the one who is still standing here. You should step down."


    As he said this, brilliant light shot towards Ye Futian, hurting his eyes.


    Ye Futian squinted as the light burned his eyes and fell upon him. He was in intense pain even though he had a divine body. If someone who did not have a divine body had suffered that attack, they would have been in grave danger.


    Luo Yang was not going to show even a bit of mercy.


    Brilliant, holy light covered him, but Ye Futian did not even try to protect himself from the burning. Luo Yang was incredibly skilled, which was why he had beaten Xia Qingyuan.


    He also had a divine body and was using the divine fire light to burn him. This would not be easy.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian stepped forward through the air, leaving Xing Kai and descending towards Luo Yang.


    A look of surprise came over everyone''s face at this.


    Was this guy going to target Luo Yang while he was already locked in battle with Xing Kai?


    That was too foolhardy.


    Once Xing Kai decided to follow him, and Luo Yang attacked him as well, would he be able to fight both of them?


    This plan of action was reckless in the extreme. Was he not considering the consequences at all?


    Even Xing Kai looked surprised as he saw the retreating figure before him.


    Was this guy going to go and deal with somebody else while he was fighting him?


    Ye Futian moved incredibly quickly, descending into the air above Luo Yang in an instant, just like Xia Qingyuan had.


    Endless ancient characters flowed all around him.


    At that moment, all the characters turned into the character for "halberd." Light swept out from all the halberds.


    An incomparably strong light shone from Luo Yang''s Flames of the Way, but when the Deed of Thought Comprehension burst forth, Ye Futian''s divine body resonated with the Great Path. He became one with the ancient characters around him. The fire light could not reach him, and it was completely extinguished.


    "All of the ancient character seals that you formed have been destroyed. Now you are only using your own power. Since you have to limit it, how can you hope to hurt me?" said Ye Futian. As he said this, the "halberd" characters burst forth, shrieking through the air.


    Luo Yang frowned, and the ancient characters came down instantly, smashing through the air.


    The divine fire light bloomed from him once again. His Flames of the Way destroyed everything, and they burned up the "halberd" characters. It was just like what had happened with Xia Qingyuan. He did not let them get near to him.


    Xing Kai was a bit out of sorts, but he did not stop. Nor did he go help Luo Yang against Ye Futian.


    He did not need to.


    "It looks like this will end up just like Xia Qingyuan. He won''t be able to threaten Luo Yang." Everyone thought as they watched the oncoming halberds burning up in Luo Yang''s flames. Luo Yang''s body and flame magic were too strong.


    "What is that?"


    At that moment, everyone frowned. They saw that not all of the halberds were rushing towards Luo Yang; some of them had fallen all around him. They seemed to fill the area.


    Soon, the whole area was covered in space will, making it all become a single whole.


    Beams of light flowed as the space will reached the extreme.


    But it did not stop.


    Boom! Luo Yang once again sent out a wave of burning against the halberds. He frowned as he looked around him. He knew that he was trapped within this space will.


    "What is the meaning of this?" he asked, looking up at Ye Futian. The will continued to get closer to him, but it still could not hurt him.


    "So, how much of the Thousand Word Proverb Stele did you understand?" said Ye Futian. An incredibly terrifying halberd seal appeared in front of him. It seemed to be integrated with Ye Futian''s mighty willpower, and the glorious light of destruction shone from it.


    The halberds all resonated with the space will around him, and an even more terrifying atmosphere spread out.


    "Go," said Ye Futian. One of the characters fell: a halberd that sliced through both earth and sky. All of the will in the area seemed to be integrated into it. It transformed into a huge Halberd of Space and Time.


    The halberd fell like a bolt of lightning, piercing through the air as it fell.


    Boom!


    The Halberd of Space and Time''s target was not Luo Yang. It hit not far in front of him, but it did not get any closer to him. However, an incredibly terrifying will pressed out from within it, splitting the air.


    A low moan rang throughout the whole area.


    Luo Yang''s halo of fire shrieked. He could feel the invisible attack as it slammed into him.


    It was a Cross-air Attack.


    Everyone trembled as they watched the scene.


    Ye Futian used his powerful spatial will to attack him from a great distance.


    But he did not stop there.


    Ye Futian stepped through the air, making it tremble. Another halberd pierced through the sky, resonating with all the halberd will in the area.


    Boom!


    This time, the air was shaking fiercely. A devastating space-tearing storm ripped through the area, seeming to be filled with countless halberds.


    The whole area seemed like it would be torn apart by the pressure.


    Ye Futian reached out, and it seemed like the actual Halberd of Space and Time formed in his hand. He gripped it tightly.


    At that moment, all the ancient characters fell at the same time, following Ye Futian as he stepped forward. His figure flashed through the air like a bolt of lightning.


    The will of the Great Path flowed. The endless light of the ancient characters entered Ye Futian''s body and was integrated into the halberd.


    A huge image of a halberd appeared in the sky, piercing up into the vault of heaven.


    All of the will in the area seemed to have been merged, and then it exploded outwards.


    The Halberd of Time and Space shot forward, containing the will of the Unending Void.


    Everything it touched was turned to nothingness.


    Everyone saw the image of a huge halberd appear above Luo Yang. Even the Flames of the Way could not completely erase it. It looked like he would be subject to a fierce attack.


    Bam!


    There was a loud noise as Luo Yang was sent flying backward. He tried to block it while still controlling his power, but he was unable to.


    The aura of a Saint of True Self flared out from him. He stepped forward. This was the only way he could block the terrible attack.


    But the moment Luo Yang let this aura burst forth. He had already lost.


    Ye Futian had eliminated him with his overwhelming strength.


    But although he had used his power, he was still relying on the power he had gained from his understanding of the Thousand Word Character Stele to launch this attack.


    The storm of Qi had still not abated. It blew against Luo Yang.


    He had lost. He had lost to Ye Futian of Qianye City.


    "This..."


    Everyone on Divine Mountain was staring at the scene unfolding before them.


    Ye Futian had directly faced Luo Yang and gotten revenge for Xia Qingyuan.


    He had done what she could not do.


    He had controlled the entire area with his overwhelming space spells.


    It was just like he had said. If they were only comparing their understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb Stele, Luo Yang would not necessarily have been able to defeat Xia Qingyuan.


    And Ye Futian''s understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb was much more profound than Luo Yang''s. The battle they had just had was proof enough of that.


    The thousands of halberds seemed to have been formed out of the ancient characters and contained the will of the Great Path. As they fell, Luo Yang, who was still controlling his level and relying solely on the Flames of the Way, could not block them.


    Standing off to the side, Pei Min smiled and said, "It seemed that he had not fully displayed his understanding before."


    If one was simply comparing their understanding of the Thousand Word Proverb Stele, Ye Futian was absolutely better than Luo Yang, and thus he had obviously been able to defeat him. This level of understanding was a little frightening. No one knew how he had achieved it.


    Everyone also realized this. Perhaps his understanding was also better than that of his final opponent, Xing Kai.


    Ye Futian was possibly the one who was most qualified to take the Thousand Word Proverb Stele!

 1285 Where the Halberd Is Pointing

    There were only two people left at the banquet.


    Xing Kai and Ye Futian.


    One of them had been famous for many years and was considered to be a heroic figure in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The other one had come from Emperor Xia''s Realm and defeated all the heroic figures who had opposed him.


    This man had forced Pei Min to withdraw, had eliminated Luo Yang, and had finally made it to the last one left, Xing Kai.


    The battle between the two of them would certainly be worthy of being called magnificent.


    At that moment, Xing Kai was the last one left standing before him. Would Ye Futian be able to keep moving forward, defeat him, and claim the Renhuang Stele?


    It would probably not be that easy.


    Boom!


    As everyone was considering this, Xing Kai stepped forward, and a mighty wave of Qi swept forth from him.


    Powerful fighting will spread out in all directions. A halo of light revolved around Xing Kai as he transformed into the Battle Form of the Great Path. He resonated with heaven and earth. His fighting will surged wildly. He stood there like a god of war.


    Xing Kai was rumored to be the descendant of Emperor Zhan. When he truly let his power burst forth, he seemed to be as vast and mighty as the earth itself. His terrible fighting will covered everything and pressed down upon Ye Futian.


    But he was still controlling the level of his power, keeping it at the level of a Doctrine Saint.


    When Xing Kai released his fighting will, many of the mudras around him seemed to be the same. They began to resonate with his body to some degree, especially the huge battle mudras that had coalesced from his spiritual will. They all seemed to form the word "battle." Their power was overwhelming.


    Ye Futian''s power bloomed at the same time. The Great Path became one with his body, and space will covered the sky. It was wild to the extreme. The thousands of characters formed the word "halberd," and their power was equally impressive.


    The two of them faced each other with surging auras that collided wildly in the air, whipping up a devastating hurricane.


    "They''re both so strong!"


    Everyone''s hearts trembled.


    Most of the cultivators who studied at the Regional Palace knew Xing Kai a little bit. The techniques that he cultivated were at the Renhuang level. The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will was said to have been created by an ancient god of war. When the fighting will was unleashed, and his body became one with the Great Path, his spirit would change, and his power would overwhelm everything around him. When he used any method of attack, his power would soar far above that of those on the same level as him. His might was without equal, and he could sweep away all foes.


    With this technique, he had not been defeated in many years. He had become a highly revered figure. When he had come to the Regional to Palace several years ago, he had defeated all his opponents. He had no rivals on the same level as him.


    In this way, he was a little bit like Yu Sheng, who had just entered the Regional Palace.


    With the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will increasing his power, Xing Kai''s aura was simply astonishing. The halo of light around him was dazzling as the divine light of a god of war entering battle burst from him, entering into the battle mudras and increasing their power until it was frightening.


    But Xing Kai could see that Ye Futian''s perception was possibly stronger than his. But this was not enough to make him give up.


    Victory was strength.


    There was no such thing as an absolutely fair fight.


    Boom! The word "battle" suddenly exploded and sped through the air as it rushed towards Ye Futian.


    Every letter seemed to be integrated into his Heaven Punishing Fighting Will. There was a terrible whistling sound as it sped towards Ye Futian.


    The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will was a Renhuang level technique, just like the Deed of Thought Comprehension.


    Just as the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will corresponded well with Xing Kai, the Deep of Thought Comprehension was extremely well suited to Ye Futian. The ancient characters wrapped around him. His body turned into a furnace of the Great Path, swallowing up and refining all the will around him. He turned it all into space will and integrated it into the characters that were swirling around him.


    He saw Xing Kai''s attack coming for him, and the letters of the word "halberd" swept out, flowing through the air.


    Everyone''s eyes were fixed on the battlefield. The people who were sitting on the mountain could see most clearly. The words "battle" and "halberd" were flowing through the air above them, covering the sky, turning into a terrible battle mudra and a spatial divine halberd.


    Then they smashed together in midair.


    In a flash, rough waves of power swept out.


    The word attacks that the two of them had sent out were very similar. They were both incredibly overwhelming attack spells.


    Their attacks seemed to be matched in strength as they collided in the air.


    Xing Kai stepped forward, and the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will whistled through the air. He reached out, and terrible fighting will burst out from the coalescing battle mudra before him. It was growing stronger and stronger.


    "Go."


    Xing Kai slammed out with his hand, and suddenly the battle mudra whistled forward, bridging the gap between them in an instant as it shot towards Ye Futian. The "battle" words were integrated into it and pressed down upon Ye Futian from above.


    There was a loud boom, and the air itself seemed like it would collapse. The "halberd" floated through the sky, directly piercing through the air itself.


    As everyone watched this attack, they thought the sky was going to fall. Would Ye Futian be able to withstand this?


    At that moment, they saw a celestial halberd form in the furnace that Ye Futian''s body had become. It seemed to have been forged from the will that he had taken into the furnace. It pierced through the air in a flash and slammed into the battle mudras.


    Spatial will burst out and tore through everything, turning it all to nothing.


    A loud sound echoed wildly in everyone''s ears as the battle mudras, and the halberds shattered each other.


    The attack made everyone''s hearts beat wildly.


    Their attacks were powerful enough to frighten anyone.


    The two of them stepped forward at the same time. Words flowed around them, sending out waves of pressure in all directions.


    Both of their auras were incredibly powerful. Their eyes were extremely sharp as they stared at each other. Their auras collided in mid-air. It was overpowering.


    Bang!


    They stepped forward at almost the same time. As Xing Kai stepped forward, his fighting will rose, and the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will grew stronger. It seemed as if an image of a god of war was spreading throughout the sky, looking like it would break through the very air itself.


    When Ye Futian stepped forward, his aura surged. He used the Xuanyuan Footwork, and his spiritual will burst forth. His will was growing stronger.


    Bang!


    Neither of them stopped. They continued forward.


    Bang! Bang!


    Each step seemed to shake everyone to their core. Their hearts were pounding.


    The Great Path flowed wildly above their heads, and a destructive storm raged. Their words were still smashing into each other.


    Their clothes flapped wildly in the gusts of wind that hit them. It was truly frightening.


    Would this be the decisive battle?


    Their power had reached its limit, and they were getting closer and closer together. They crossed a vast distance with each step.


    But they stopped at the same time.


    Their robes fluttered wildly in the wind. The figure of a god of war seemed to coalesce behind Xing Kai. He had not unleashed his life spirit; it had just formed merely out of his astonishing fighting will. Its strange image stretched through the Great Path. It was apparent how powerful Xing Kai was.


    Many of the ancient words were revolving around Ye Futian, such as "All Universe." A powerful wind form burst forth from the furnace within him, and a dazzling pattern of the Great Path formed around him and shot up into the sky.


    Many patterns of the Great Path appeared at the same time, forming a cylindrical halo around him.


    Everyone found that they had stopped breathing as they stared at the two of them.


    Xing Kai was strong beyond a shadow of a doubt.


    And this was the first time that Ye Futian had truly let loose his own power.


    He was too strong. He was only a Doctrine Saint, but his aura seemed to have transcended the limits of this world.


    Many ancient characters appeared around Xing Kai''s body. The towering and lofty figure of the god of war''s fist shot out. In a flash, ancient seals floated through the sky, seeming to form into a full body. It pressed through the sky towards Ye Futian.


    His fighting will would destroy anything.


    "The god of war seal."


    Everyone felt their hearts tremble. Xing Kai had used the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will to integrate the attack spells that he was good at into the ancient seals. Everyone felt the pressure up in the sky.


    Ye Futian would be buried within it.


    Woosh!


    The halo of the Great Path roared around Ye Futian. Under the power of the Deed of Thought Comprehension, a divine halberd rose from the furnace that his body had formed through the halo of patterns of the Great Path. Brilliant, destructive light surged out from it, shooting up into the sky.


    An ancient seal descended through the sky, seeming to be a complete whole.


    The huge halberds slashed through the air as many "halberd" seals descended and smashed into the falling ancient seals.


    At that moment, there was an incredibly spectacular scene up there in the air.


    It seemed as if the whole sky was pressing towards Ye Futian. Destructive light fell, trying to annihilate him utterly.


    But at that moment, an incredibly long halberd stretched forward, smashing into the god of war seal, shaking the sky itself.


    Terrible space tearing power appeared on every one of the halberds.


    Moreover, it did not end there. The halberd that had formed from his body slashed out, again and again, growing stronger and stronger.


    The god of war''s descent was growing slower and slower, and cracks were appearing in it.


    The cracks were appearing as the halberd slammed into it, stretching out like a spider''s web. They grew bigger and bigger. A brilliant golden glow erupted in the cracks. The god of war seal was already shaking.


    Woosh!


    A powerful beam of light shot out, piercing everyone''s eyes. The god of war seal shattered, and terrible space tearing will swept out. Many of the weaker people there did not dare to look at it. The destructive space seemed like it would cut into their very eyes.


    After a moment, their eyes slowly opened, and they looked back towards the battlefield.


    At that moment, everyone''s eyes were fixed over there, staring dumbfounded at what they saw.


    Time and space seemed to have frozen. The two figures were still standing up there in the sky.


    Xing Kai was standing there calmly. He had not moved. He was right where he had been before.


    Ye Futian appeared in front of him. He reached out with his arms and grabbed one of the halberds and pointed it at Xing Kai, and destructive light flowed out of it.


    It was evident that Ye Futian had just broken through the god of war seal, and used the Great Path of Space, then had strode across the sky to descend in front of Xing Kai with his halberd.


    There were no more words around Xing Kai, and Ye Futian still had a halberd in his hands.


    In this battle, they had finally gotten to the point where they were using their real attack spells.


    Finally, Ye Futian of Qianye City, who had come from Emperor Xia''s Realm and shown himself to be outstanding, had defeated Xing Kai of the Crimson Dragon Realm, who had never been defeated before!

 1286 Peerless

    The wild airflow had still not completely dissipated. It still blew through the banquet hall.


    But at that moment, everything was completely silent on Divine Mountain.


    The scene was firmly imprinted on everyone''s mind.


    The Battle of Understanding the Thousand Character Stele had come to this. It was no longer just a simple battle of understanding; it had now become much more personal for the combatants.


    Xing Kai and Ye Futian had even let loose Renhuang level techniques and had cast the spells that they were most specialized in, displaying astonishing power.


    And throughout the process, Chi Shang had not stopped them but had let them have free reign.


    Under these circumstances, Ye Futian, who was at the first tier of the Divine Path, had been able to defeat Xing Kai, who was a Saint of True Self.


    Could that mean that...


    If he reached the level of a Saint of True Self, it was highly likely that he could directly defeat Xing Kai in battle.


    He had already proven his understanding. He was not only stronger than Xing Kai. He was stronger than anyone else here.


    Otherwise, how could this Doctrine Saint have made it to the very end?


    And not only that, he had made it to the very end in an outstanding fashion.


    First, Pei Min, the descendant of Emperor Jian, had admitted he was no match for him. Then he had defeated Luo Yang, who had previously defeated Xia Qingyuan.


    And his last fight with Xing Kai had been the most brilliant, and he had still managed to defeat him.


    Such a display could only be called incomparably glorious. It could indeed be said that he had swept away everyone in his path.


    At that moment, everyone realized why Ye Futian had been made the lord of Qianye City.


    There were three great figures of Qianye City in Emperor Xia''s City that had the right to enter the Regional King Ranking.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Xia Qingyuan.


    In the future, Qianye City would very likely become the premier city in the Crimson Dragon Palace.


    "Brilliant!"


    Upon Divine Mountain, many of the Nirvana level figures had a look of appreciation on their faces.


    "Brilliant indeed. Xing Kai had unleashed the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will, and the techniques that he had cultivated seemed to have been passed down from the Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty. In the past, when Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm had been at war, it was said that the Imperial Adviser was not willing to kill him. Now I see why," someone whispered.


    He would indeed never have wanted to kill such a talented, dutiful disciple.


    Of course, if he had been an enemy, he would have been eliminated.


    "This generation of the Crimson Dragon Realm is full of talents. I had thought that this would be the age of Xing Kai, Luo Yang, Pei Min, and Jiang Tai''e. But I had not thought that first Yu Sheng and then Ye Futian would be so dominant.


    "There are so many heroes nowadays. We don''t even know which ones to watch," they all said as they smiled.


    There was also an uproar among the people watching below the mountain. Ye Futian''s name had already been well known throughout the Crimson Dragon Realm. But even at the Battle of Qianye City, he had been relying on Emperor Kua''s will rather than his own power.


    But he had indeed proved himself in this battle. He was a top figure, in no way inferior to anyone in the Crimson Dragon Realm, including those on the Regional King Ranking and the undefeated Xing Kai.


    But today, Xing Kai had been defeated.


    The one who had defeated him was younger than him and of a lower level.


    No one knew what Xing Kai was thinking at that moment.


    "How awkward," whispered the Prince of Emperor Dong''s Palace, Duan Wuji, as he saw Ye Futian pointing his long halberd at Xing Kai.


    Earlier, he had lost to Luo Yang, and the Ye Futian had defeated Luo Yang and Xing Kai in succession. He and Ye Futian were at the same level.


    He was still desperate for a real battle with Ye Futian.


    It looked like he would not get the chance now.


    This guy had embarrassed him.


    But there was still a slight smile on Duan Wuji''s face. Since Ye Futian''s was this strong, then did that mean that what had happened at Emperor Kua''s ruins was not such a humiliation?


    And it was not just him. All the top cultivators of the Crimson Dragon Realm were gathered here, and every one of them had been defeated.


    Thus, it was perfectly understandable that he had not been able to seize Emperor Kua''s inheritance.


    The people who had come with Xing Kai from the Ancient Imperial City all had ugly looks on their faces, especially Xing Chou. He had a look of shock and disbelief on his face.


    His older brother had lost?


    He still remembered that after the end of the Battle of the Crimson River, his brother Xing Kai had comforted him by saying that no one in the world of cultivators could remain undefeated.


    Now, Xing Kai himself had lost. It was as if he was proving his own words.


    Moreover, the one who had defeated him was Ye Futian himself.


    On that day, the two of them had had the desire to face off against each other, but at that time, his brother had looked down on Ye Futian and had not considered him a worthy opponent.


    But what about now?


    Xing Kai looked up at Ye Futian. He also remembered what had happened at the Battle of the Crimson River.


    Even before the battle today, he had not considered Ye Futian to be a worthy opponent. He thought that his final opponent would be a Saint of True Self like Pei Min, Luo Yang, or Jiang Tai''e.


    Ye Futian was no longer his concern. The enmity between them had not been resolved today. He had never once cared about this opponent.


    But now, Ye Futian was right in front of him, pointing at him with his halberd with extremely dazzling light spreading out from him.


    In the world of cultivators, who could remain undefeated?


    He had known he would lose eventually, but he had not thought that it would be like this. He had never thought that he would lose to Ye Futian today.


    Nowadays, many people were saying that Qianye City would one day compete with the Ancient Imperial City for the title of the principal city in the Crimson Dragon Realm. He looked on that prospect with scorn.


    But was it really impossible?


    In the future, if Yu Sheng, Ye Futian, and Xia Qingyuan achieved Nirvana, could he, Ninth Servant, and Gai Huang suppress them?


    Moreover, Ye Futian had also conquered the Nine Great Tribes.


    Finally, as he stood there calmly in the air, Xing Kai said in a cold voice, "I hate being pointed at."


    Thinking of defeat and being truly defeated were not the same thing.


    He found that he was already feeling humiliated by this battle. It was hard for him to bear it.


    He was incredibly proud by nature. He may have known that he would definitely suffer defeats upon the Great Path, but he had thought that it would happen later on his road when he reached a stronger sphere and opponents who were more glorious.


    But in reality, the person who was pointing at him now was someone who had previously been too proud to even fight.


    Thus, this made it even more difficult to bear.


    "You lost," said Ye Futian calmly. Why should a loser be so proud?


    He hated it when people struck at others in a time of crisis, but Xing Chou and Gai Huang had done just that.


    If they had been weaker, then Qianye City would have been destroyed, and he would have died.


    So what did it matter what Xing Kai hated?


    Woosh!


    And extremely fierce airflow swept out, astonishing fighting will burst forth from Xing Kai''s body.


    He was no longer controlling his power. The aura of a Saint of True Self flared out, and the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will bloomed. Lines of frightening light of the Great Path swirled around his body, then whistled out, rushing towards Ye Futian.


    In a flash, Ye Futian felt a shocking burst of power. His Deed of Thought Comprehension flared as well.


    In the next moment, he saw Xing Kai striding forward. The Great Path roared as he raised his fist. It was the God of War Seal.


    Brilliant light burst out from the halberd, and it pierced forward violently, but it still shattered beneath the God of War Seal. A wild hurricane slammed into Ye Futian. He was sent flying back rapidly as the huge wave of wind crashed over him. He was thrown back to the edge of the banquet hall, where he stopped.


    At the Peach Blossom Banquet, Chi Shang frowned.


    A look of disbelief came over everyone''s faces. Xing Kai was flaunting the rules here.


    Perhaps being defeated by Ye Futian had had quite a bad effect on him.


    The seal disappeared. Xing Kai''s eyes were cold as he swept them over Ye Futian off in the distance. He called back his aura, then turned and walked away as if nothing had happened.


    He did not follow up on his attack on Ye Futian.


    So what had been the meaning of it?


    All it did was make people laugh.


    Chi Shang was about to say something, but when he saw that Xing Kai was not going to do anything else, he held his tongue.


    It seemed that he had wanted to display his displeasure.


    Luo Yang was also staring at Ye Futian. They had never imagined that the one who would defeat them would be Ye Futian.


    The battle for the Thousand Character Stele had come to an end.


    There was a loud rumbling sound in the air. A huge stone stele descended from the sky.


    On the outside, the stele appeared plain and ordinary, but there were many ancient words engraved on it. If you did not look into it with your Spiritual Will, you would find nothing out of the ordinary about it. But once you entered it with a thread of Spiritual Will, you could immediately feel the Thousand Character Proverbs.


    Now, the stele of the Thousand Character Proverbs was Ye Futian''s.


    Chi Shang waved at Ye Futian with a smile. "Take it, Lord Ye."


    Ye Futian nodded. "Thank you, your highness. He was not too concerned by Xing Kai''s attack. There was no use in worrying about it.


    This stele of the Thousand Character Proverbs was a Renhuang level artifact. It was the whole reason for the battle.


    He walked up to the stele and took it. There was a strange look in everyone''s eyes as they watched Ye Futian. Besides their envy and jealousy, there was another strange emotion.


    They all knew that Ye Futian had also taken the magic zither.


    The magic zither had been left behind by a Demon Emperor.


    Now, this mysterious Thousand Word Proverb stele that had been engraved by Renhuang was also Ye Futian''s.


    He had just gained two precious Renhuang level artifacts.


    Those were real treasures. It would be difficult for anyone to measure the value of either one of them.


    How many of the great powers of the Crimson Dragon Realm owned such treasures?


    And Ye Futian had walked away with two of them.


    But Ye Futian did not care what they were thinking. After he took the stele, he returned to his place. All the people from Qianye City were watching him, and even Xia Qingyuan had a rare smile on her face.


    She had blamed herself for losing to Luo Yang and worried that Ye Futian would have to face two opponents and be defeated.


    But Ye Futian had once again proven his unparalleled talent.


    This was true in Emperor Xia''s Realm, just as it was in Emperor Li''s Realm, where the Imperial Adviser had looked on him with favor.


    Now that he had come to the main region of the Crimson Dragon Realm, he was still unmatched. It seemed that wherever he was, he suppressed the glory of all the proud sons of heaven around him!

 1287 The Divine Martial Road

    Everyone returned to their seats. Countless pairs of eyes were fixed on the Peach Banquet. They were not appeased.


    If these people had not been restricted by rules and fought without their wills being oppressed, what would the scene be like?


    It was thrilling even to think about it.


    It was a pity, but the Peach Banquet would not let this happen.


    Besides, everyone''s Plane differed. If a Saint of True Self fought with a Doctrine Saint with unrestricted Will, it was not fair.


    "Excellent!" a voice came. People followed the voice and found the speaker was Chi Shang, who was sitting at the head of the table.


    "It was amazing to see you all comprehend the idea of Thousand Character Proverb so thoroughly in just an hour, especially the ones at the end''s performances were marvelous. I believe the Thousand Character Proverb will get a chance to shine in Lord Ye''s hand," said Chi Shang, laughing. "It is my honor to observe your peerless miens. Let us toast to the heroes of our Crimson Dragon Realm!"


    He drank up the wine in his cup.


    "Thank you, Your Highness. The Peach Banquet is renowned around the world; it is an honor for everyone in Crimson Dragon Realm to receive an invitation to Peach Banquet. It is our pleasure today to be invited here, not to mention that it is a precious chance to meet so many gallant heroes," said Duan Qingshan, smiling in a graceful, open manner.


    "Yes, it is a fortunate thing to meet someone more extraordinary than oneself," said Yu Shifei with a gentle smile. Such a chance was indeed rare.


    It was thanks to the Peach Banquet that they could convene together.


    "You all are the future of the Crimson Dragon Realm. Compared with you, I am the lucky one to be here. Perhaps, one day in the future, some of you will become Renhuang. At that time, the scene will be different, and your states of mind will also differ. I hope the Peach Banquet will become an anecdote about you," Chi Shang said, laughing.


    Time would change everything.


    Although the people here still looked young, becoming a Renhuang was still far away for them.


    In the long river of time, nothing was impossible as long as one was outstanding enough.


    The guests being invited today were the most outstanding ones of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    He was clear that the Regional King Ranking was based on the standard of "having the potential to become a Renhuang."


    The Renhuang figures who would appear in the Crimson Dragon Realm in the future must include one or some of them present today.


    "After today, there will be new names appearing in the Regional King Ranking," said Pei Min, looking toward Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan might not be, but according to his brilliant grade today, Ye Futian would definitely be listed on the Regional King Ranking.


    He would become the 19th figure entering the Regional King Ranking after Yu Sheng.


    "I should congratulate Lord Ye beforehand," said Chi Shang, laughing. People on the Divine Mountain felt uneasy. Since Chi Shang had said it like that, there was no suspense about whether or not Ye Futian would appear on the Regional King Ranking.


    At least two warriors of the Thousand Leaves City would be listed on the Regional King Ranking.


    Beside Crimson Dragon City, only the top city in the peripheral realm��Ancient Imperial City��the Ninth Servant and Xing Kai.


    "Regional King Ranking is nothing but a list, but I should still thank you, Your Highness," said Ye Futian. He didn''t keep the thing in mind.


    The Regional King Ranking itself didn''t mean anything, but entering the Regional King Ranking would mean a bright future, at least being of Nirvana-Plane.


    However, it was nothing but a list.


    People looked toward Ye Futian; he was too proud by speaking like this.


    But it was the truth.


    Chi Shang said, "Lord Ye is right. It is nothing but a list."


    "Okay. I will not waste your time. Here is the last course of the Peach Banquet��the Divine Martial Road," said Chi Shang. He rose to his feet and turned around, raised his head, and looked toward the rushing waterfall.


    Above the waterfall, golden peach flowers were in blossom; a celestial road seemed to be hidden inside.


    There was a celestial pavilion on the top.


    "Everyone, please come." Chi Shang turned around and looked toward the warriors.


    People rose to their feet and fixed their eyes on the celestial road above the waterfall.


    The pavilion on the divine mountain had a name��Divine Martial Palace.


    The Divine Martial Palace on the divine mountain stored Martial Arts classics of the world and contained Law methods beyond imagination. It was the place where numerous top figures of Crimson Dragon Realm dreamt of visiting.


    However, people who didn''t belong to the Imperial Palace only had one chance to approach the Divine Martial Palace.


    The chance was to attend the top one banquet in the Crimson Dragon Realm��Peach Banquet.


    Below the Peach Banquet, numerous pairs of eyes looked toward the warriors who rose to their feet, full of envy.


    Only the people who were invited to the Peach Banquet were qualified to walk on the Divine Martial Road; even their companions had no right to step on it.


    "Although Princess Qingyuan was a companion, her performance was outstanding in the previous trial. She can come, too," Chi Shang said, looking toward Xia Qingyuan.


    He made an exception for Xia Qingyuan to step on the Divine Martial Road.


    Xia Qingyuan defeated Shu Zi of the Regional Palace in the previous fight and fought with Luo Yang at such a high level; of course, she was qualified.


    So, it was reasonable that Chi Shang made an exception to allow her to come with them.


    "Thank you very much, Your Highness," said Xia Qingyuan, nodding. After Ye Futian received the Peach Invitation, they had researched everything about the Peach Banquet and knew the chance to enter the Divine Martial Road was very rare; of course, they would have a try.


    She wanted to see how many steps she could take on the Divine Martial Road.


    "Please," said Chi Shang.


    "Your Highness, please."


    Warriors replied courteously. Chi Shang nodded with a smile and soon rose to the air. He directly strode onto the waterfall and walked into the boundless golden peach flowers.


    After a short while, they reached in front of the ancient roads and paused their steps.


    Peach blossoms drifted in the wind and fell slowly on the ground. The mysterious ancient roads stood in the mist; the end of the roads seemed to be the Palace of deities on the top of the divine mountain.


    36 weapons were lying ahead on the roads.


    Each weapon contained a wisp of Path Will, which represented an ancient road.


    People who arrived here each could choose a path to go.


    "I think you all have heard about the Divine Martial Road. These weapons are the barriers you are about to face, but at the same time, each of them represents a kind of Path Method of Renhuang level. What you will get depends on which step you will finally reach," said Chi Shang. "Please use your discretion in choosing which path to go on. Good luck, everybody."


    "Okay," said Pei Min with a smile. He directly entered the Ancient Road with a sword with no hesitation.


    He cultivated in swordsmanship, so he didn''t have many choices; he didn''t need to hesitate.


    Pei Min disappeared after entering the Peach Ancient Road, but above the empty space on the Divine Martial Road, dazzling sword light flashed up. The sword floating in the air made metallic clangs and wind sound.


    Many figures on the divine mountain saw the scene and felt it normal; it was normal that Pei Min chose the road of the sword.


    Many people below saw the dazzling sword floating in the air and asked, "Just now, who chose the Divine Martial Road of the sword?"


    "Of course, Pei Min," someone replied, and many nodded.


    Next, how would others choose?


    Emperor Shu Princess, Shu Zi stepped out and chose the Thunder Hammer. She didn''t act like a delicate lady at all. This weapon was extremely fierce.


    The moment she stepped on the ancient road, thunder lightning exploded in the sky above the road, extremely fierce.


    Xiang Ze chose a cauldron that contained the horrifying Path Will of suppression. As he walked on the Divine Martial Road, a cauldron with metallic clangs appeared on the Divine Martial Road.


    Xing Kai chose a giant ancient bell and entered the Divine Martial Road.


    Gradually, warriors all entered the roads; numerous people were paying attention to them.


    Everyone chose the ancient road matching their cultivation.


    "Which road do you want to choose?" Ye Futian asked Xia Qingyuan, who was standing next to him.


    Xia Qingyuan pointed toward the fighting gloves, from which horrifying Will of Fist was exploding.


    She came from Emperor Xia''s Realm and cultivated in the best method. The thing she got here might not be better than what she had already owned, so she treated it more like a trial.


    "Go ahead," said Ye Futian. Xia Qingyuan nodded and walked there.


    "Yu Sheng, how about you?" asked Ye Futian, looking at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng pointed toward another direction, where there was a poleaxe.


    Ye Futian nodded. Yu Sheng went there and entered the Divine Martial Road.


    Chi Shang looked toward Ye Futian. He let Xia Qingyuan and Yu Sheng choose first.


    Which Path Road would he choose for himself?


    Ye Futian browsed the 36 ancient roads. First, he noticed the cudgel.


    But he had his own Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques.


    He saw the halberd, but he also created his own halberd skill��Unending Void.


    Finally, his eyes fell on one place where there was one thing: a stele.


    The stele seemed to contain stars.


    A Celestial Stele.


    Not long ago, he had obtained a stele with the inscription of Thousand Character Proverb. What would happen if these two abilities merged with each other?


    Even if not, he was also good at Starry Spell anyway.


    Ye Futian stepped out and directly strode onto that ancient road.


    Chi Shang showed surprise at the scene; he didn''t expect Ye Futian to finally choose the Celestial Stele.


    He raised his head and saw a gleaming giant stele show up above the Divine Martial Road Ye Futian chose and lit up the void sky.


    "Ye Futian came in!"


    Below the divine mountain, numerous pairs of eyes looked toward the Divine Martial Road.


    After the previous battles, now Ye Futian had attracted much attention; his action was always the focus of people''s concern.


    During the last battle, Ye Futian was the one who came to an end and got the stele of Thousand Character Proverb.


    So, this time, would Xing Kai, Luo Yang, and others exceed Ye Futian and prove themselves?


    "Bam!"


    At this moment, the sound of a bell resonated between the sky and earth and took people''s thoughts back.


    Many people raised their heads toward the sky above the ancient roads and saw beams of light coming from a giant ancient bell.


    Soon, the second ancient bell appeared and stretched out toward the Divine Martial Palace.


    "It''s Xiang Kai!" many people said.


    Xing Kai was the one who chose the road of the ancient bell.


    He was the first one to pass the first level and let the sound of the bell resonate between the sky and earth.


    "Whizz��"


    Another moment, the sword emitted boundless light amid the limitless golden peach blossoms. The second sword appeared above the ancient road and swallowed and spat very dazzling Will of Sword, pointing toward the top of the divine mountain.


    Pei Min was the second person who passed.


    Soon, the cauldron rang, the poleaxe shone.


    People knew these warriors were all heading toward the Divine Martial Road. Every transformation meant they took one step forward!

 1288 Twelve Steps

    On the top of the divine mountain, there were Nirvana-Plane figures from Imperial Palace observing what happened on the Divine Martial Road.


    These peerless figures were currently the strongest warriors of Crimson Dragon Realm. Would they surpass former warriors and take more steps?


    The trial on the Divine Martial Road could reveal who was the most outstanding one among them.


    However, even the public of Crimson Dragon Realm was not aware of it.


    Only the people from Imperial Palace knew this.


    Chi Shang, as the Prince of the Crimson Dragon Realm, also knew a secret hidden in the Divine Martial Road, which was only known by the core figures of the Imperial Palace.


    Even the top powers in the Crimson Dragon Realm didn''t know about it.


    Who was the peerless one on the Divine Martial Road?


    Would Ye Futian outperform everyone and reach the end like the last time?


    The trial this time wouldn''t be less difficult than last time; this time, it might even be harder.


    ��


    The moment Ye Futian stepped onto the Divine Martial Road, he immediately felt that time moved more slowly. It was as if everything had changed. The divine mountain was not here. There were no boundless golden peach flowers, either.


    There was only a starry ancient road with no end.


    In front of him, there was an enormous stele of stars. In the stele, stars moved around.


    The mood inside the stele was extremely strong. It was as if all of a sudden, Ye Futian was about to be taken into the space of the starry stele''s mood. His body was below the stars, and compared to the stars, he looked so trivial.


    Boom!


    Suddenly, a massive gust of might enveloped the world and exerted pressure on Ye Futian. Stars fell. The boundless colossus stars dropped down on him as if the world was crashing down and he would be turned into ashes by the stars.


    Ye Futian took a step out and instantly released the fierce power from his body. His might of Law released, and the might of the Great Law squeezed the world and rushed out, roaring.


    With a loud boom, the dropping stars were blocked by a gust of horrifying might, but the stars continued to spin forward, trying to vanquish him here.


    A strange look flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes. The pressure of the might was indeed aggressive. They all happened mentally. It was as if all was nothing but an illusion, but the scene was so vivid.


    If anything went wrong, he would be trounced and severely hurt.


    He stood in the world of the starry stele. The rotating stars kept emitting horrifying might and gnawing at his willpower until he couldn''t stand it anymore.


    The oppression was so intense, even at the beginning.


    What would happen next?


    At this moment, Ye Futian was somewhat looking forward to it.


    He lifted one foot and stepped forward. The Great Law resonated, and the fierce Will of Space tore the stars apart. Stars exploded into fragments, and the starry sky seemed to break.


    With one step, Ye Futian seemed to walk into another independent space.


    After he took the step, two Starry Steles appeared above the ancient Divine Martial Road where he was.


    At that moment, people outside also knew that Ye Futian had taken his first step.


    Now, every step he took would be the center of attention.


    After that, a similar scene happened again, but the might was even stronger, and more stars dropped down in the Starry Stele. It was as if the world was about to collapse.


    But Ye Futian still took the second step with confidence.


    All the warriors invited to the Peach Banquet were heading forward, step by step.


    Outsides, people were looking toward the sky above the Divine Martial Road.


    At this moment, the giant bell had rung five times, and six bells had shown up, which meant Xing Kai had taken the fifth step.


    Above that ancient road, the sound of the bell released gorgeous beams of light, and the might of Law swept out.


    No one could catch up to him.


    Xing Kai had walked the farthest, far ahead of anyone else.


    On the ancient road nearby, there were five giant poleaxes. People knew Yu Sheng was there.


    Next to it, there was dazzling sword light piercing through the sky, projecting toward the Divine Martial Palace.


    The Sword Will permeated the sky and earth, in which there were also five swords.


    Pei Min was there.


    "Boom! Bam!"


    At this moment, the thunder lightning ripped the sky apart. The thunderstorm appeared in the upper sky. Warhammers somewhere above the Divine Martial Road directly broke into pieces. The might of the thunder violently danced in the air, and soon a figure was thrown out of the ancient road. She made a sound and spat out a mouthful of blood.


    "Shu Zi, she stops there!" some people said in shock. Before, there were four divine hammers on her ancient road, which meant she was done after taking just three steps.


    What did she encounter on the Divine Martial Road?


    Shu Zi wiped off the blood from her lips, quite embarrassed. Was she only able to take three steps on the Divine Martial Road?


    Just now, why did the Might in front of her suddenly surge and rise up to a horrifying level, directly shaking her out?


    Were others'' situations similar to hers?


    "Luck is an important thing on the Divine Martial Road. You might need more luck with it. Don''t keep it in mind. The outcome is not that important," said Chi Shang. He seemed to know what Shu Zi was thinking, so he tried to comfort her.


    Shu Zi nodded, but she had known the actual reason and understood Chi Shang was trying to make her feel better.


    Good luck was always in company with real strength.


    Chi Shang raised his head and kept looking toward the Divine Martial Road. What Shu Zi thought was right. Although luck mattered on the Divine Martial Road, the warriors who came to the end were absolutely the strongest ones.


    Xing Kai was still heading forward; he looked invincible. Nobody knew when he would meet a barrier.


    Soon, Yin Tianjiao was shaken out and soon quit the game, too. She didn''t look good, either.


    People gradually figured out that after Shu Zi, at every step, there would be at least one person gone.


    "Bam!" After a loud sound, the sound of the cauldron resonated between the sky and earth, and then the cauldrons over the Divine Martial Road were directly shattered into pieces.


    Xiang Ze''s body appeared at the gate of the Divine Martial Road; he was thrown out, too.


    He looked quite awkward.


    After the ninth step, there were only seven people left. Yu Shifei, Xie Qingshan, and Duan Wuji left the game. The first two people were listed on the Regional King Ranking had also lost the game. One could tell how hard it was.


    Xia Qingyuan had trouble at the tenth step.


    Limitless fist shadows appeared in front of her. A gust of unsurpassable Fist Will struck toward her as if a war-deity-like figure launched an attack at her. The Fist Will resonated and lit up the willpower. All of a sudden, the power grew invincible, as if able to slay a god.


    Xia Qingyuan stepped forward and still didn''t want to give up. She released the Infinite Catastrophe from her body and used it to collide with the endless Fist Will. All of a sudden, she felt an endless source of power, which smashed all the Fist Will and kept moving forward. She only had this feeling when fighting Yu Sheng.


    Her Infinite Catastrophe was penetrated. The Fist Will rushed in front of her. Finally, Xia Qingyuan could no longer stand it anymore.


    Above the Divine Martial Road, Fist Will violently exploded into pieces. Xia Qingyuan was shaken out of the Divine Martial Road.


    There were six people left.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Xing Kai, Luo Yang, Pei Min, and Jiang Tai''e.


    The bell had rung 11 times, and 12 bells showed up.


    Xing Kia paused his steps.


    The other five warriors gradually all caught up with him. As Jiang Tai''e finally reached the end, these six warriors together appeared at the same starting point.


    But the scene above the Divine Martial Road was extremely horrifying.


    Xing Kai took action again. This time, he felt a terrifying power. The sound of the bell triumphed over everything, annihilating his Law and his willpower. Nothing could stop it.


    The radiance of the Great Law from Xing Kai''s body exploded to the extreme. He launched the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will and summoned the war deity. The mark of the war deity was released and darted toward the ancient bell.


    At this moment, the sound of the bell trembled in the sky and earth. It lingered on the top of the Divine Mountain endlessly.


    "12 rings, 12 steps."


    The sound of the bell made numerous people''s hearts thump. Xing Kai had taken the 12th step, which was approaching the limit.


    They looked up to the sky above the Divine Martial Road. Matchless radiance exploded in company with the appearance of the 13 ancient bells.


    Xing Kai was the first one who had taken 12 steps.


    On the top of the divine mountain, someone asked, "How many steps did the strongest warrior take in the Peach Banquet last time?"


    "13."


    "13 steps. Just with one more step, Xing Kai will catch up with the strongest warrior from last time."


    Even though Ye Futian defeated him in the last battle, Xing Kai still released his matchless radiance on the Divine Martial Road.


    He wanted to become the peerless one.


    "There! Someone moved, too!" At this moment, other people''s ancient roads also showed a radical change, but soon, things on two ancient roads violently exploded and were destroyed.


    And then, people saw two people show up in the space under the Divine Martial Road.


    They were the most extraordinary warriors of Crimson Dragon City: Luo Yang and Jiang Tai''e.


    They were removed from the game at the same time.


    Both took 11steps.


    But it was still terrifying enough.


    "Look at the Sword Will!"


    At this moment, numerous pairs of eyes looked in one direction where the frightening Sword Will flew and grew stronger and stronger. The 12 swords kept swallowing and spitting dazzling radiance of the sword.


    Finally, a new Lingtian Sword Will was born and converged into the 13th sword.


    "Pei Min succeeded!"


    Pei Min took the 12th step. Before he reached his limit, if he took one more step, he would achieve the record from last time.


    Last time, during the Battle of Understanding the Thousand-Character Stele, Pei Min surrendered without fighting. Still, it didn''t mean this warrior from Sword Imperial Palace, whose name was on the Regional King Ranking, was weak.


    At this moment, everyone saw how powerful Pei Min''s Sword Will was.


    The Law of Sword that he swallowed and spat during the trial of Divine Martial Road was almost horrifying.


    Xiang Kai and Pei Min had made it. There were another two people��Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    At this time, the light of the poleaxe flashed across the sky dome and released boundless radiation of the poleaxe. It was as if the sky and earth would be chopped into two, and an even bigger poleaxe of war deity showed up.


    13 poleaxes formed a line.


    Yu Sheng had taken the 12th step.


    The third warrior was only one step away from achieving the same record.


    They had all taken the step. Before long, Ye Futian''s performance was the most outstanding. Would he fail this time?


    If Ye Futian failed, he might have to face people''s jeers.


    Chi Shang also stared forward. He perceived the might and felt slightly stirred. If Ye Futian succeeded, this time, there would be four people taking the twelfth step.


    There were only two people who made it in the Peach Banquet last time.


    There was only one person who took the 13th step.


    Now, everyone was watching Ye Futian. He shouldn''t disappoint them. After all, his previous performance was outstanding, and undoubtedly, his talent was exceptional.


    But even so, Chi Shang knew that Ye Futian would have a hard time since he would have to face not only the Divine Martial Road but also the three warriors who came with him!

 1289 The Limit?

    Ye Futian indeed felt a lot of pressure.


    He was standing in a real starry sky in the space of Divine Martial Road.


    Dazzling stars were shining above his head. Tens of thousands of celestial bodies of the Great Law revolved in the sky, each of which released extraordinarily copious might. One could imagine how the pressure would be if all these stars of Will fell down at the same time.


    Some stars directly plummeted toward Ye Futian.


    The Might was released to the extreme from his body; the Spatial Will would block all the stars that came near.


    The Deed of Thorough Comprehension was released. Ancient characters appeared around his body and formed the halo of the Great Law.


    The dazzling halberd of Time and Space was formed from his body. He leaned forward and thrust the halberd toward the sky dome. Suddenly, the light of the Great Law pierced through the sky and earth. It tore the space apart and crushed on the stars, broke them into pieces.


    He lifted one foot. When he tried to step forward, endless starry light of the Great Law shot toward him again.


    Suddenly, the gleam of stars shone, and he was like amid a river made of stars, where each wisp of starry light contained extremely intimidating Will. They were like concrete stars blocking his way and suffocating him.


    This step was so hard to take.


    "Boom!" The beam of the Great Law starry light reached. Another star fell, like a meteor trying to smash him to death.


    The Will of the torn space turned into beams of dazzling golden light and thrust forward. They were projected over the stars and created crevices in the stars, but that didn''t stop the stars falling upon Ye Futian.


    The Might of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was released. Ye Futian was bathed in the dazzling aura, like an immortal.


    When the stars arrived, they didn''t fall on his body but rather were crushed by themselves.


    Ye Futian didn''t even frown. He had experienced many similar scenes before this step.


    After each step, a new space appeared.


    Each time, the number of stars increased, and the Will became stronger.


    Besides, there was a gust of wonderful energy merged in the Starry Stele''s attack.


    Stars started attacking. Ye Futian''s body was shaken, but he didn''t step back.


    He realized that the strikes of the stars were getting stronger and stronger, faster and faster as if the dazzling falling stars streaked across the sky dome to strike his body and will, trying to wipe out his existence.


    "Boom! Boom! Boom!" Ye Futian''s clothes were flying in the wind. He felt his will would collapse anytime.


    If there was no end, tens of thousands of stars would shake him away.


    At this moment, he had felt the oscillation of his mind and will; he was in agony because of the feeling.


    "Boom!" The Will of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was released to the extreme. His inner energy was like burning, roaring. More and more Halberds of Time and Space formed within his body. They floated around his body and became a part of it, creating a Time and Space Matrix lying in the void sky.


    The Halberds of Time and Space was projected to the front but were smashed into pieces by more and more stars.


    "Go."


    Dazzling beams of light pierced into the sky. The complete void and Ye Futian became one. The matrix of the time and space was projected, and the Halberd of Endless Time and Space thrust through the void air at the same time and pierced everything.


    "Boom, boom, boom..." The falling stars exploded and smashed into fragments. The Halberd of Time and Space pierced a hole in the boundless void sky. Ye Futian was very spirited and took a step forward.


    Suddenly, the Great Law hummed between the sky and earth. The 13th stele appeared above the Divine Martial Road.


    This moment, people knew, Ye Futian had also taken the 12th step.


    Four warriors had all taken the twelve steps.


    Just one more step, they would tie the record of the last Peach Banquet.


    Among these four people, who could take the step?


    The sword moved.


    On the Divine Martial Road, thirteen swords whizzed ahead. The flows of Sword Will surged above the sky dome as if one sword pushed another sword forward, each one stronger than the last.


    "Was it the power used by Pei Min on the Divine Martial Road?"


    Nobody knew what happened on the Divine Martial Road; all they could see was the change in the sky.


    The 13 swords were inclined to merge as one and kept going. They kept making metallic clangs and whooshing sounds. Even though no one could see the scene in the Divine Martial Road, they could still imagine how strong-willed Pei Min was when he fought with his swordsmanship.


    "Hum��" The sword intended to rise in the sky. It was swallowing and spitting very horrifying Sword Will.


    The 14th sword loomed as if it was about to be formed.


    But right this moment, a destructive beam of sword light flashed by and annihilated everything.


    All of a sudden, the sword in formation directly disappeared, and the 13 swords which had been formed turned into ashes in a second.


    The swords were all gone.


    A figure soon showed up at the gate of the Divine Martial Road. He was shaken out from the Road; he let out a low moan, and a bit of blood oozed out of his mouth.


    Pei Min came out of the Divine Martial Road.


    He finally didn''t succeed in taking the 13th step.


    Would the other three warriors make it?


    Over the three ancient roads on the Divine Martial Road, violence broke out at the same time, thunder continually booming in the sky.


    On the ancient road where Xing Kai belonged to, 13 ancient bells hummed at the same time. Very horrifying strong light emitted from the ancient bells.


    Above the ancient bells, a gust of stuffy Might enveloped the sky. The ancient bells became one and resonated in some way, trembling.


    On the other side, the aura of the poleaxes was also scorching and became brighter and brighter.


    On the third ancient road, dazzling light of stars erupted from the Starry Stele.


    The three warriors must be undergoing huge pressure.


    It was just that they couldn''t see.


    The sky and earth were roaring, rumbling. The 13 ancient bells trembled even harder.


    Finally��


    "Bong!"


    A loud sound came, trembling the sky, resonating on the divine mountains. The 13 ancient bells resonated with it. All of a sudden, the bell rang without an end, making everyone''s eardrum tremble.


    Their stares froze on the gorgeous scene on the Divine Martial Road.


    The 14th ancient bell was formed.


    Xing Kai took the thirteenth step.


    The sound of bells resonated in people''s ears; even the seniors on the Divine Mountain were quite surprised.


    Xing Kai was defeated by Ye Futian in the final battle last time, and this time, he seemed to succeed in defending his self-esteem with his action.


    He was still Xing Kai, the warrior who rode the whirlwind in the Ancient Imperial City.


    He tied the record created by the strongest warrior in the last Peach Banquet and took the 13th step.


    The morale of people of the Ancient Imperial City was very high, especially Xing Qiu, who looked extremely excited.


    They all had to swallow the humiliation in the previous battle and had nowhere to release the pressure.


    Until now, when Xing Kai took the 13th step, they felt all the depression in their chest was suddenly cleared out.


    Were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng able to take the 13th step?


    They clenched their fists and stared toward the sky above the other two ancient roads.


    The moment Xing Qiu turned his eyes to that scene, he saw an unusual aura.


    Poleaxes chopped down from the sky dome cleaved open the skies and streaked across the sky.


    The world was almost split into half.


    The 14th poleaxe appeared on the ancient road.


    Xing Qiu suddenly looked dumbfounded.


    And, it was not only Xing Qiu.


    Everyone on the divine mountain was stunned at the scene, too.


    Xing Kai had just taken the steps that the strongest warrior took during the last Peach Banquet, and everyone thought that Xing Kai had washed away the shame.


    But after just one moment, Yu Sheng told the world.


    He, Yu Sheng, could do it, too.


    13 steps.


    Yu Sheng didn''t even show up in the last trial and directly surrendered.


    But this time, obviously he didn''t do this.


    "But how?" Xing Qiu couldn''t believe his eyes.


    During the last Peach Banquet, only one person was taking the 13th step on the Divine Martial Road, which meant the step was almost the symbol of perfection on the Divine Martial Road, extremely hard to achieve.


    Just now, Xing Qiu''s brother Xing Kai made it.


    But before he felt excited about it, Yu Sheng soon took the 13th step forward, too��the step of perfection.


    Not only Xing Qiu, but other warriors were also all shocked by the scene.


    Yu Sheng of the Thousand Leaves City stepped out, too, just like Xing Kai.


    Warriors of the Peach Banquet this term had surpassed warriors of the last term on the Divine Martial Road.


    "Look there..." someone yelled. On the last ancient road, gleaming stars of the Great Law flew and shone on the stele. Starry Steles lay over one another. Horrifying deep boom trembled the air as if a starry world was there.


    A new stele was just formed. That was the 14th Starry Stele.


    "..."


    Many people around it were speechless after Xing Kai and Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian made it, too.


    How could this most extraordinary figure in the last battle fall behind?


    He could also do the thing that Xing Kai was able to do...


    These three warriors tied the record of the last term.


    This time the Peach Banquet was so crazy!


    So next, would anyone of them break the ultimate record of the last time?


    The ancient bells began to hum, releasing dazzling aura, as if trying to ring again.


    Countless pairs of eyes were fixed there. If Xing Kai could continue taking steps, it was very likely that he would leave Ye Futian and Yu Sheng behind on the 13th step.


    At this moment, on the Divine Martial Road, warriors were unaware of things happening outside. Even though it was uproar outside, what they faced on the Divine Martial Road, was nothing but the terrifying power in front of them.


    Xing Kai was standing in front of the huge ancient bell. He took a deep breath. Xing Kai had known he had tied the record of the last Peach Banquet and taken the 13th step.


    He had tried his best. He believed the 13 steps would leave others behind him.


    As for the 14th step, that would be a challenge for himself.


    Xing Kai released his life force to his limit; it was the strongest degree he could reach. The Life Spirit had already been summoned and merged into the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will. Xing Kai turned into a burly ancient god of war. The intimidating Will exploded from his body and fought against the power of the ancient bell.


    The Might above the ancient bell was extremely powerful like the Might of Heaven; it was an existence that vanquished all the beings of the world. Xing Kai had a feeling that the ancient bell contained the Will of the deities, and all life forms in the world would have to yield to its Might.


    It was the moment he felt the threat.


    Xing Kai lifted his foot; the will to fight was abundant in his sharp eyes.


    This step was not about success or failure; he had tried his best!

 1290 Tying History

    Ancient bells were shaking above the Divine Martial Road. Numerous people stared hard there.


    Would the 15th ancient bell appear?


    Would Xing Kai break the highest record of the last Peach Banquet and take out the 14th step?


    The whirring sound echoed between the sky and earth as if the bell would start to ring with just one more step.


    "Boom!"


    After a loud sound, all turned into ashes. The ancient bells kept exploding, turning into pieces.


    Countless pairs of eyes stared at the scene; many people took a deep breath.


    Finally, it didn''t ring.


    Xing Kai was just one step away.


    At that moment, many people thought the 14th bell would start to ring, but it finally failed to do so.


    A figure showed up at the gate of the Divine Martial Road; it was Xing Kai.


    He was shaken out of the Divine Martial Road by the ancient bell.


    However, Xing Kai didn''t show any frustration on his face. He had done all he could within his limit and had taken out the ultimate thirteenth step.


    He felt humiliated because Ye Futian defeated him in the last battle.


    The trip of Divine Martial Road should be able to help him save some face and prove himself to the world.


    The violent air flows whipped his face; Xing Kai''s clothes were blowing in the strong wind.


    He stabilized his body movement. Although he was a little hurt, his breath gradually calmed down.


    Xing Kai exhaled a deep, thick breath. All the fierce torrents around him disappeared. Xing Kai looked forward.


    In just one moment, Xing Kai''s eyes froze there.


    He raised his head and looked at the scene above the Divine Martial Road, speechless. Those 14 poleaxes and 14 Starry Steles were so eye-catching and shocking to him.


    Beside him, two other warriors also made it.


    And they were still inside and were trying to challenge the 14th step just like how he did.


    Who was still in there?


    He looked around. The divine mountain was quiet right now. Although many watched him, there was no awe or admiration. Even Shu Zi didn''t express any admiration or excitement for what he had achieved.


    He had been used to this; he usually never cared about it at all.


    But today, after having just experienced defeat not long ago, he suddenly craved that kind of feeling.


    However, there was none.


    Who were the people who took the 13th step just like him?


    He had a rough guess, and his face turned grey. He asked the people who had come out, "Who is still there?"


    Shu Zi looked toward him with a pair of gorgeous eyes. She said softly, "Ye Futian and Yu Sheng..."


    She knew these two names were what Xing Kai least wanted to hear.


    Xing Kai had done his job perfectly. With 13 steps, he tied the record of the last Peach Banquet. The score would have been outstanding at any other time.


    However, only this time, it was different.


    Due to the rivalry between Thousand Leaves City and Ancient Imperial City, Xing Kai was defeated by Ye Futian, and Xing Qiu was beaten by Yu Sheng many times.


    Although Xing Kai had not kept all these things in mind, this time, he wanted to prove himself to be more outstanding than Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    However, things didn''t turn out the way he wanted. The only people who were still in there fighting at the same level as Xing Kai happened to be Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    So, even though Xing Kai could tie the record, what was the point?


    Ye Futian had defeated him in the last battle. Even if it was a tie this time, he still lost.


    So, what Xing Kai had done was meaningless.


    Even though he had made a rough guess, when these two names came out of Shu Zi''s mouth, his face turned sullen.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Were they still able to do what he could do on Divine Martial Road?


    Besides, they seemed to be still heading forward.


    Of course, he didn''t believe it was possible.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were incapable of taking the step.


    At this moment, above the Divine Martial Road, a violent storm surged. It rumbled in the sky. The light of poleaxe enveloped the sky like a horrifying wave crazily pushing forward. The sky turned into a battlefield. It was as if tens of soldiers with poleaxes and thousands of horses were roaring there.


    Yu Sheng was challenging his 14th step.


    Xing Kai was reluctant to believe Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could make it, so he thought it was impossible.


    But others were not like him. Many people expected to see the miracle arrive.


    "Boom!"


    A strong beam of light erupted. A poleaxe seemed to appear over the sky dome, which split all skies and chopped all roads of the Great Law into half.


    The next moment, people witnessed the birth of a matchless poleaxe.


    The moment when the poleaxe appeared, numerous pairs of eyes were fixed on it and froze there.


    Was he about to succeed?


    Xing Kai''s pupils were also contracting; he watched the scene, stunned.


    The 14th step?


    He took the 13th step and tied the record of the last Peach Banquet.


    He thought it was the limit, so even he couldn''t make it, he thought he wouldn''t feel bad.


    Since the 14th step was the historical limit of the Peach Banquet.


    The highest record since the Peach Banquet was first held.


    He wouldn''t feel bad even though he couldn''t make it.


    However, that poleaxe was being gradually formed.


    Until that moment, the giant poleaxe lay over the Divine Martial Road, swallowing and spitting the intimidating halo of battleax. The ax seemed to be able to chop off everything in the world.


    The 15th ax appeared.


    Yu Sheng tied the historical record.


    Did it mean another historical figure would appear in the Peach Banquet?


    During the last battle, Ye Futian beat Xing Kai.


    And at this moment, Yu Sheng tied with the past record on the Divine Martial Road.


    These two guys of Thousand Leaves City...


    Today, guests of the Peach Banquet were all the most outstanding top figures of Crimson Dragon Realm. Doctrine Saints and True Self Saints listed on the Regional King Ranking were all present.


    However, even among such a lineup, nobody could steal Yu Sheng and Ye Futian''s spotlight.


    They won over everyone else and stole all the attention.


    They triumphed over so many extraordinary figures, Xing Kai, Pei Min, Luo Yang, etc.


    Yu Sheng, who gained fame during the battle of Crimson River, had been proved to be stronger than the world had assumed, and more strong-willed.


    "Interesting," murmured Chi Shang. He no longer looked unconcerned. Such a score was not only just outstanding; it tied history.


    Besides, Ye Futian and Xing Kai also tied with the past record of the last Peach Banquet.


    How striking the score was this time!


    The look on Xing Kai''s face constantly changed.


    Even his Heart for the Law had a wisp of fluctuation.


    Although he had been defeated by Ye Futian before, he believed that Ye Futian was not actually stronger than him in terms of real strength, even when Ye Futian comprehended the Thousand Characters Stele better than him.


    He was still confident he could defeat Ye Futian.


    That was why he took steps aggressively on the Divine Martial Road and stayed ahead of everyone else.


    But what was the result?


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng did what he could do.


    Now, Yu Sheng even surpassed him.


    At this moment, dazzling stars shone between the sky and earth. People''s hearts were slightly stirred. It was as if they were being triggered by something.


    They all looked up to another road, amazement in their eyes.


    At this moment, the silence on the divine mountain was somehow horrifying.


    Nobody said anything; they just looked at the dazzling stars in the sky. The starry light enveloped the sky where a giant stele was formed.


    Many people''s hearts suddenly thumped; they trembled at the scene.


    Wasn''t it crazy?


    This Peach Banquet was going wild!


    14 steps, another 14 steps. He tied!


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, these two warriors of Thousand Leaves City, were now tied at the same time, leaving Xing Kai far behind.


    Before long, when they saw Xing Kai take the 13th step, they all thought Xing Kai was proving his ability.


    But at this moment...


    Many people even began to sympathize with Xing Kai.


    He was not mediocre at all; he had tied the record of the last Peach Banquet and was just one step away from breaking the historical record. Literally, one step.


    Wasn''t that outstanding enough?


    Who could imagine that the two warriors after him would both surpass him?


    And, unfortunately, both of them had a grudge.


    How embarrassing this scene was for Xing Kai!


    Xing Kai made a humph in a low voice. When Yu Sheng tied the record, even though he felt frustrated and struggled, losing the pride in himself, he could accept it since Yu Sheng was far behind him in the last battle.


    However, Ye Futian took the step, too. What was that?


    It was such a smack in his face.


    Xing Kai was slightly hurt, but because his mood was not bad, and his will was stable, after the trial on the Divine Martial Road, his willpower had become stronger, and his Heart for the Law was firm.


    But soon after it, he had to suffer the strike, which was heaviest for him.


    One could imagine how drastic the change of Xing Kai''s state of mind was in this Peach Banquet.


    Now, he truly began to question himself. His Heart for the Law was no longer that firm; his state of mind was damaged, and that was why he let out a humph in a low voice.


    Shu Zi heard it. She looked toward Xing Kai, quite worried.


    She knew that Xing Kai was an outstanding person, full of pride, but this time, he suffered a series of breakdowns.


    What kind of shock should be brought to his state of mind?


    All of a sudden, Xing Kai had undergone numerous changes in his state of mind. He wanted to stabilize his Heart for Law and strengthen his belief, but it was still too hard to achieve. His faith faltered. That was it.


    Even though he understood all the cultivation paths of the world and knew that the truth of the Law was that no one could triumph forever, it was only a hazy notion for him, and when it happened to him, it was not easy to realize it.


    At this moment, Xing Kai was clear that he actually couldn''t see through it.


    He was reluctant to admit it. It was hard to acknowledge it.


    But it had been the fact.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had surpassed him on the Divine Martial Road. Ye Futian also surpassed him in the last comprehension battle.


    Ye Futian performed better than him in two battles, back-to-back. What did that mean?


    Did he still have the confidence to say he was capable tob Ye Futian while in the same Plane depending on real strength?


    Who would think like this?


    Everyone would think Ye Futian was stronger than Xing Kai after the Peach Banquet.


    Even though he could ignore others, how would he get through it when facing his own heart?


    Xing Kai was not the only one who had inner struggles. At this moment, some people were excited to witness history, while some people were also in an awful mood, like Xing Kai, Xing Qiu, Xing Ze, and Xing Nan, who begrudged Ye Futian.


    They were all very mad.


    But even though they were mad, things had happened.


    This time, at the Peach Banquet, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had made history!

 1291 The Truth of the Peach Banque

    In the Divine Martial Road, Ye Futian stood there. All the stars in the sky turned into a gorgeous milky way. It seemed like the starry sky was hidden inside the stele��a divine stele.


    One Starry Stele was one sky; one Starry Stele was one world.


    Boundless sprinkles of starry light dropped down as if the whole world was under seal. The light fell on Ye Futian''s body like a starry sky was over him; his body couldn''t move at all.


    The light projected from the stele seemed to be the Will of the Great Law originally contained by the Starry Stele.


    Ye Futian perceived the power. He had released his willpower to the extreme; his body was the cauldron of the Great Law, making a deafening noise.


    He raised his head to see the Starry Stele. It was as if his eyes had seen through endless layers of starry skies. He looked into the stele and saw a matchless figure standing there. His willpower was unparalleled.


    The willpower was attached to the boundless aura of starry light. Ye Futian had to bear the intense pressure from each bump; he would directly be shaken out if he relaxed a little bit.


    "So that''s how it is," murmured Ye Futian to himself. It was not until this moment that he truly understood the meaning of the Divine Martial Road.


    Chi Shang didn''t announce the meaning behind the road, and very probably, all the warriors who stepped on the Divine Martial Road didn''t realize it, either.


    If he had not owned some special abilities, he would have not figured out, either.


    "Yu Sheng should be the only one here," Ye Futian said to himself and then laughed. He slightly relaxed and slowed down. The indomitable spirit and willpower seemed to have gone.


    It was as if he was glad to let it go.


    The endless light in the starry sky was like trying to devour him. Amid the whirlwind of the stars, his body spun and was thrown out of the Divine Martial Road.


    Ye Futian appeared outside the Divine Martial Road.


    A glaring halo surrounded his body. He glided backward for a short while and soon stopped moving. The life force on his body gradually cleared at a steady pace.


    Even after he had taken the 14th step, he didn''t experience severe shaking after he came out. He still looked quite secure in a proper manner.


    Numerous pairs of eyes fell on Ye Futian. Finally, he came out.


    He was still not able to break the historical record.


    But it was normal since even though he didn''t break the historical record, he had tied it, which was precious enough.


    Undoubtedly, Ye Futian was the most eye-catching person in the Peach Banquet this time. He stole the limelight from so many people, and the only person who was comparable with him was his good friend Yu Sheng.


    Xing Kai''s glance fell on Ye Futian. He had never seen Ye Futian as a rival before the Peach Banquet.


    But now, in the public eye, Ye Futian was different from before.


    This lord of Thousand Leaves City was very likely to become the most outstanding person in this generation that few people could match.


    In the vast land of Crimson Dragon Realm, even many figures whose names were listed on the Regional King Ranking were thwarted by him.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian. She walked to him and said in a low voice, "Why did you just come out?"


    Other people were stirred by Xia Qingyuan''s words.


    He just came out?


    He took 14 steps and tied the record, and she said that "he just came out"?


    It was as if, in her eyes, the step was not difficult at all for Ye Futian, and he could easily make it.


    Were 14 steps not enough?


    Xing Kai felt it irritating. Did she say it with irony?


    Ye Futian looked quite calm after he came out and just watched the Divine Martial Road quietly.


    "I tried my best to finish the step, so I came out," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan, smiling. Xia Qingyuan looked at him and slightly lifted one eyebrow. Her intuition told her that Ye Futian didn''t say the truth.


    This guy was definitely able to keep going and challenge the record.


    Probably, he himself chose to give up.


    Was it because he knew he and Yu Sheng were the only ones there, and he didn''t want to compete with Yu Sheng?


    The aura of the poleaxe shone upon the Divine Martial Road. A gigantic divine ax appeared above the sky dome.


    The whole Divine Martial Road became almost transparent, and a figure loomed in the illusion.


    That person was Yu Sheng.


    At this moment, he was the incarnation of a demonic deity. Immense Demonic Will was released from his body. A poleaxe also appeared in his hand. He used the poleaxe to chop ahead, and with one strike, the sky was split into half.


    It was the absolute power, extremely intimidating. It was as if nothing could stop him.


    The light of the poleaxe flashed across the sky dome as if it would chop off the divine mountain.


    A new record on the Divine Martial Road was set.


    Yu Sheng from Thousand Leaves City broke the historical record and took out the 15th step.


    The howling wind surged in the upper sky. On the quiet divine mountain, countless pairs of eyes looked at Yu Sheng.


    He finally made it��


    Even Chi Shang and the seniors on the divine mountain were bewildered by the scene.


    Who could expect that someone would break the record of Divine Martial Road during the Peach Banquet this time?


    "He will be another legendary figure," an old man on the divine mountain remarked.


    "True. It will take many years for later generations to break this record," another man said.


    The record created by Yu Sheng today probably would be exhibited in files for many years.


    "Maybe no one will surpass the Peach Banquet of this year in at least 100 years," people on the divine mountain said. Obviously, they all thought highly of the Peach Banquet of this year.


    During the trip of Divine Martial Road in the Peach Banquet, one warrior created a new historical record, one warrior tied the historical record, and one warrior tied the record of the last term.


    It was supposed to be very extraordinary to tie the record of last time, but this time, apparently, the history was rewritten.


    "Xing Kai had bad luck. Don''t know if his state of mind will be affected," someone said.


    What Xing Kai had done was great enough at any previous time.


    However, he met Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    It seemed that Xing Kai in this Peach Banquet was a foil for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to show their excellence.


    It must be a big shock to him, who was a proud person, which was revealed in his bad look after he came out.


    The glaring light shone upon Yu Sheng''s shoulders. After a while, people saw him turn around and step out of the Divine Martial Road. He showed up in front of others, bathed in the divine aura.


    "Congratulations!" Chi Shang said to Yu Sheng, smiling.


    "Thank you very much, Your Highness," Yu Sheng nodded and replied to Chi Shang. Both Yu Sheng and Ye Futian had benefited from a lot during this trip. This prince of Crimson Dragon Realm was indeed very generous.


    "You earn it with your own effort. No need to thank me," Chi Shang said with a laugh. He soon turned to the crowd, saying, "I assume all of you have obtained gains on the Divine Martial Road!"


    People all nodded. Every time they took a step, they could see more clearly the technique being used to attack them and have a better understanding of it. It should be the original cultivation method of the Divine Martial Road.


    Since Yu Sheng broke the record, he might have obtained the complete version of it.


    But Ye Futian and Xing Kai should have also benefited a lot.


    "It is an honor to witness the creation of a record during the Peach Banquet this time. I believe people of this generation will definitely create a new history. From now on, the future of the Crimson Dragon Realm will depend on you," said Chi Shang, smiling.


    People had mixed feelings after hearing the words. If one could say people of this generation in Crimson Dragon Realm were able to create a new history, it was all because of the Thousand Leaves City.


    If Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were removed, the general ability of the Crimson Dragon Realm would be almost the same as before.


    Were these few people from the Emperor Xia''s Realm raising a storm in the Crimson Dragon Realm?


    "So, let''s wrap up this Peach Banquet," continued Chi Shang.


    People''s faces looked different. Some looked calm, but some were not willing to accept the result.


    "Thank you, Your Highness." People showed respect and courtesy and requested to leave.


    Soon they all turned around and left there.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said to Yu Sheng and Xia Qingyuan. They left the place and met with Ye Wuchen and others. Soon, their bodies flashed, and they left the divine mountain.


    People all walked down and left the mountain. At the foot of the mountain, many people made way for them; the way they looked at Ye Futian was different.


    The top of the divine mountain was covered with fallen peach flowers. The only person who hadn''t leave was Yu Shifei; she was standing next to Chi Shang.


    Seeing people leaving, Yu Shifei turned to look at Chi Shang''s face.


    "What are you looking at?" said Chi Shang with a gentle smile.


    "What is the secret hidden inside the Divine Martial Road?" asked Yu Shifei bluntly, without caring about her own identity.


    "You want to know?" asked Chi Shang.


    "Yes," said Yu Shifei, nodding, "but it''s okay if you can''t tell."


    "There is nothing I can''t tell," said Chi Shang with a laugh. "Actually, the Divine Martial Road contains a matrix. When you step into the Divine Martial Road, you have to face not only the attack of the matrix''s Wills inside but also clashes with other warriors. Your willpower will be merged in the Will attack of other Divine Martial Roads. Luck is a factor to help you take the first few steps, but the warriors who come to the end are all��"


    Yu Shifei had a strange look on her face. She said to Chi Shang, "That is to say, all of us have indirectly fought with each other once without realizing it?"


    "You can say that," said Chi Shang, nodding.


    Yu Shifei laughed and said, "So you can figure out every warrior''s talent level and information without anyone noticing. Who set the rule for the Peach Banquet? He was really shameless!"


    "Aren''t you afraid your future senior in-laws hear that and don''t allow you to enter my house?" Chi Shang said jokingly.


    "I am okay if they do it," said Yu Shifei, laughing softly.


    "Nah, it will be my loss," Chi Shang said and took her in his arms. Obviously, their relationship was very good.


    They snuggled together and looked down at the scenery. Something seemed to occur to Yu Shifei, so she asked, "When Ye Futian took the last step, there was not much fluctuation of life force on the Divine Martial Road. Was it possible that he was aware of the truth of the Divine Martial Road, so he finally gave up?"


    Chi Shang showed a flash of surprise in his eyes after hearing Yu Shifei''s words.


    Had he already seen through it?

 1292 The Killing Though

    After warriors left the divine mountain, they respectively began their journey home, including Ye Futian and his companions.


    Wherever they arrived, they always received a lot of attention.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were both from the Thousand Leaves City; one could weigh their influence. And now, since they traveled together, they were always in the limelight of the Crimson Dragon Realm wherever they went.


    "Brother Ye!" They heard someone calling when they were walking. Ye Futian followed the voice and found it was Duan Wuji, so he nodded to him, smiling.


    "Come visit me in Eastern Imperial Palace if you have time," said Duan Wuji, laughing.


    "To practice combat skills?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Nah��" Duan Wuji waved his hand. There was no way to practice combat with him. Duan Wuji used to have the thought, but after Duan Wuji experienced the Peach Banquet, he would just give up the idea. Ye Futian was too dangerous; he didn''t want to bring trouble.


    Besides, Yu Sheng��the badass��was standing next to Ye Futian; he didn''t want to mess with him, either.


    If Yu Sheng fought him, he was afraid he would be killed.


    "To have a drink. Yes, have a drink," Duan Wuji thought a while and said.


    Ye Futian heard his words and laughed and said, "That''s great. If one day I come, please don''t forget my name, Your Highness."


    "After today''s Peach Banquet, there will not be many people in the land of the Crimson Dragon Realm who don''t know your name. I am afraid that later, I will need to wait in line to give you a treat," said Duan Wuji with a hearty laugh. He was speaking the truth.


    The Peach Banquet was called the number one banquet of the realm, and soon all that had happened in the Peach Banquet would be known to the whole Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The lord of Thousand Leaves City Ye Futian and Yu Sheng would be hard to avoid being famous.


    Ye Futian laughed. Duan Wuji waved his hand and said, "See you."


    And then he turned around and left. He was about to depart to return to the Eastern Imperial Palace.


    People were all on their way back. So many warriors were flying in the sky.


    "Duan Wuji looks like a good guy. Last time, he helped you in Emperor Kua''s relics and was not jealous of the relics you got," said Xia Qingyuan in a low voice. Ye Futian nodded; Duan Wuji was a trustful person who was very different from Xing Kai.


    Perhaps it was because of the way they were raised.


    Duan Wuji was a prince, so he didn''t need to compete with anyone else. What he owned was always the best.


    Xing Kai always had to take responsibility. Maybe he had always tried to be perfect and become the most brilliant person.


    He was proud and arrogant. Even though he said everyone had their time of failure, when he was defeated, he didn''t show the detachment he claimed to have.


    "Hm, he is worth befriending," said Ye Futian, nodding.


    "And Yin Tianjiao, she is good, too," said Xia Qingyuan softly, looking ahead.


    "��"


    Ye Futian got a strange look on his face. What was she talking about?


    Why did she mention Yin Tianjiao?


    At this moment, a strong gust of life force surged behind them. They had left the Imperial Palace a while ago, but the life force had just reached them.


    Having perceived the life force, Ye Futian and others turned their heads and took a look. Two warriors of Nirvana Plane, the ex-lord of Thousand Leaves City Shen Tianzhan, and Wu Yong were also with Ye Futian.


    Emperor Kua''s heritage caused the battle of Thousand Leaves City. Although they successfully repelled the opponents, they still didn''t dare to relax their vigilance.


    So this time when Ye Futian attended the Peach Banquet, two Nirvana-Plane warriors of the Thousand Leaves City accompanied him.


    But at this time, two Nirvana warriors frowned. They turned their heads and looked into the distance and said in a low voice, "They are from the Ancient Imperial City."


    In the distance, amid the howling winds and clouds, warriors were coming near, not taking cover. The person who led the group was Xing Kai.


    This group of people swiftly caught up with Ye Futian and others and walking with them shoulder to shoulder.


    Ye Futian resumed his steps and ignored them.


    But at this time, Xing Kai started talking, "Your performance in the Peach Banquet was quite impressive. I am curious about your real strength."


    His eyes slowly turned to where Ye Futian was.


    Ye Futian also looked toward him and said, laughing, "It should be good, too."


    "I can''t know if I don''t try it," said Xing Kai. He directly rushed toward Ye Futian and released a gust of intimidating life force.


    People around Ye Futian frowned. Someone tried to block him.


    A chill flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes. What did Xing Kai mean?


    He took a step and darted toward the direction where Xing Kai was. The Deed of Thorough Comprehension suddenly erupted, and the horrifying life force enveloped his body.


    Although Ye Futian''s performance in the Peach Banquet was eye-catching, he was not so conceited to think that he would easily beat Xing Kai.


    Xing Kai was the one who tied the record of last time, and his real plane was True Self Plane��one level higher than Ye Futian''s.


    There were huge gaps between different levels in the Saint Plane, not to mention that Xing Kai had already become a figure who rode the whirlwind in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    A giant palmprint came in the howling sound of the wind. The palmprint swallowed and spat glaring aura, which contained terrifying Fighting Will. In just one moment, the palmprints fell at an extremely fast speed.


    Ye Futian raised his arm and stepped into the void sky. The Huangting Fist Will exploded and continually punched into the air. The Aura of the 11 Fists became one and blasted toward the giant palmprint.


    After a booming sound, the giant palmprint and the Aura of Fist were both turned to ashes.


    Xing Kai stepped into the air and released his Heaven Punishing Fighting Will.


    All of a sudden, wisps of fighting aura swept across the world. The halo of Fighting Will appeared above his body, resonating with the Great Law of the sky and earth. Countless beams of light of the Great Law flew over his body and formed a phantom of the deity of War. It was as if it was purely created by the Fighting Will.


    Besides, in the whole space, the area around Ye Futian''s body was wrapped up by Xing Kai''s Fighting Will.


    So much Fighting Will was directly turned into an enormous palmprint which smashed down from the sky dome. It was as if the explosion was from the deity of war. Ye Futian''s body was fettered by the light. The halo dripped down and covered the sky, from where the palmprint fell.


    "Boom!" When the Deed of Thorough Comprehension exploded, spells of halberds appeared from the cauldron formed by his flesh and transformed into divine halberds flying upward. Even a giant Halberd of Time and Space was forged from there and appeared in Ye Futian''s hand.


    The aura of the halberd flew. Ye Futian took a step; he seemed to have deployed what he had learned not long before in his fighting.


    The Halberd of Time and Space directly thrust out and clashed with the dropping giant palmprint. Endless light of halberd flew in the air and formed into one spot.


    Suddenly, a crack appeared on the giant palmprint, which contained horrifying Fighting Will. The light of halberd kept bumping against the spot, and immediately, more crevices showed up in the space.


    Boom! A horrifying explosion sound came. The halberd and the dropping giant palmprint were smashed into ashes.


    Xing Kai started walking, and step by step, he came closer to Ye Futian.


    More palmprints of the Great Law were in formation, covering the sky and hiding the sun. Countless beams of light appeared above the phantom of the War Deity behind him.


    The wind and clouds roared between the sky and earth. Even the appalling Fighting Will alone could crush and suffocate many.


    Ye Futian stood in front of Xing Kai and felt a gust of very strong suppressing power the suppressing power from the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will.


    He looked at Xing Kai''s eyes. He looked through that pair of cold eyes as if trying to figure out what Xing Kai was thinking.


    He saw the chilly killing thought in Xing Kai''s eyes.


    Having felt the killing thought, Ye Futian knitted his brows. Did Xing Kai want to kill him here?


    The howling sound came from the distance from time to time. Many warriors who had left from the Peach Banquet seemed to have perceived the disturbance and converged in the area.


    They showed interest after they reached the battlefield.


    Xing Kai was fighting with Ye Futian!


    What happened?


    Was it because Xing Kai was pissed off by Ye Futian''s performance and wanted to teach him a lesson?


    Using this way to prove his dignity.


    But the thing was, Xing Kai was a Saint of True Self. His plane was higher than Ye Futian''s, so even though he defeated Ye Futian, it couldn''t prove anything, and on the other hand, people would think he was jealous of Ye Futian.


    At this moment, the palmprint which enveloped the sky and hid the sun dropped down and covered that space.


    Xing Kai showed no mercy at all.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was almost buried inside the palmprint of the Great Law that covered the sky and sun.


    Ye Futian released the Deed of Thorough Comprehension to the extreme. A long halberd showed up in his hand amid the glaring aura. When the palmprint dropped down, he immediately launched strikes and destroyed it. But the halberd was smashed into ashes by the fighting palmprint after the clash.


    However, the dropping palmprints had no end.


    Obviously, the fight was much harder than the one he had with Xing Kai in the Peach Banquet. During the Peach Banquet, Xing Kai restrained his own Will, but at this moment, Xing Kai was just pitiless.


    Bam, bam, bam! Ye Futian''s body shifted location and flickered in the air. He continued thrusting his halberd out and smashing the palmprints while at the same time taking shunning steps.


    Xing Kai let out a chilly humph. He stepped onto the sky dome. The illusions around him were extremely dazzling. He pushed down his palm, and the formed deity of War also followed his action and dropped a palmprint.


    Suddenly, the endless palmprints above Ye Futian''s head became one and turned into a real print of the War Deity. The sky and earth were roaring as if everything would be smashed into pieces.


    Ye Futian''s body was below the palmprint. The countless halberds pierced into the air and blew on the boundless giant palmprint, but the unparalleled fighting aura just crushed them.


    Ye Futian raised his head and felt the might. The holy Halberd of Time and Space appeared in his palm. It kept swallowing and spitting the aura of the Great Law. The fighting halberd formed by Will was formed to smash everything into fragments.


    Hiss�� Ye Futian rose up. His body transformed into a phantom. The Halberd of Time and Space thrust out. The sky and earth kept buzzing as if all would turn to ashes.


    The halberd was thrust into the palmprint of the length of the sky, but it didn''t break it. The palmprint was like the real celestial might, exterminating everything in the world. The Fighting Will on the palmprint turned into countless golden lightning, which dropped down and shot toward Ye Futian''s body.


    The space was full of fierce power of destruction, trying to engulf and bury Ye Futian''s body.


    "You are seeking death," said Xing Kai. A flash of chilly light ran across Xing Kai''s eyes. He dared to take his attacks directly! The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will turned into the light of catastrophe. Who could defend from this!?


    Seeing the light of destruction in the vast space, many warriors were stunned for a moment, their hearts thumping hard.


    They suddenly realized that Xing Kaii had not intended to practice combat skills with Ye Futian at all.


    Obviously, he was trying to kill Ye Futian.


    As they had thought, if Xing Kai just tried to beat Ye Futian, people would think he was bullying him with the plane advantage.


    Xing Kai was trying to erase Ye Futian. How ruthless!

 1293 Joining Hands

    At this moment, Xing Kai was indeed thinking of killing him. After a series of defeat, he asked himself whether or not he could just let it go.


    During the Peach Banquet, he was overshadowed by Ye Futian twice, which had affected his Heart for Law.


    He felt Ye Futian had become the barrier on the way of his cultivation. It would be hard to enter the Unblemished Plane because of him. For Xing Kai, it was absolutely unacceptable.


    Anyone who hindered his cultivation was supposed to vanish��to be out of his sight.


    Thus, Ye Futian should be wiped out, and if possible, Xing Kai should kill him in person.


    In this way, Xing Kai could prove his Heart for Law.


    Not to mention the grudges Xing Kai had already had with Ye Futian. Ye Futian should be killed. Otherwise, he would become a scourge for the Ancient Imperial City.


    Xing Kai was also afraid that Ye Futian had harbored resentment because of the last battle since Gai Huang and Xing Qiu attacked them. Besides, his brother Xing Qiu was almost killed by Yu Sheng.


    All these factors let him make the decision to wipe Ye Futian out.


    The Print of War Deity contained unparalleled Great Law of oppression, and with the aid of Heaven Punishing Fighting Will, it could seal all beings under one sky. The destructive golden lightning also contained the Tearing Law derived from the Gold Attribute and Thunder Attribute. There was nothing it couldn''t destroy. It was very intimidating.


    Besides, the Will of a True Self Saint was much stronger than the one of a Doctrine Saint. How could Xing Kai show mercy when he had the intention of killing? The fighting power exploded from his body. Below the aura of destruction, it looked like Ye Futian could be wiped out at any time.


    The faces of the warriors of the Thousand Leaves City turned pale; they all knew what Xing Kai was going to do.


    Both Wu Yong and Shen Tianzhan were warriors of the Nirvana Plane. Their reactions were instant. Seeing Xing Kai of the True Self Plane try to kill Ye Futian, they immediately released an immense amount of Might. Between the sky and earth, the wind and cloud changed color. A gust of horrifying Might of Flame fell, and a giant blazing palm print appeared from the sky dome and smashed down toward Xing Kai.


    Boom!


    An intimidating beam of intense light shot out. Someone tried to block it directly in front of them. Gai Huang, who was wrapped in the aura of the Great Law, showed up. He cast his golden eyes on Shen Tian and Wu Yong.


    Obviously, he didn''t allow Wu Yong and Shen Tian to disturb Xing Kai killing Ye Futian.


    Xing Kai was very resolute. Since he had decided to kill Ye Futian, he knew what to do.


    Using practicing combat skills as the excuse, Xing Kai would wipe Ye Futian out, exterminating this threat.


    "Gai Huang!" Shen Tianzhan shouted. He stepped forward. Gai Huang''s real strength was powerful. In the battle of Thousand Leaves City, he was blocked by the Star Plucking Hand.


    "They want to keep practicing combat after the Peach Banquet. Why do you bother them?" Gai Huang said coldly. His eyes reflected golden beams. The horrifying golden storm rose around his body and headed toward these two Nirvana-Plane warriors.


    One gust of very intimidating spatial Great Law came and intended to block all their ways.


    More and more warriors gathered around them. They looked up at these three god-like figures in the void sky and thought to themselves that obviously, Gai Huang was assisting Xing King in killing Ye Futian.


    It was not a practice.


    Xing Kai, at this moment, was trying to kill him.


    Xing Kai was a determined person. Ye Futian overshadowed him in the Peach Banquet, so he wanted to wipe Ye Futian out and exterminate this threat.


    If Ye Futian reached the True Self Plane, Xing Kai might not be able to suppress him anymore.


    In the battlefield where Xing Kai and Ye Futian were, the destruction print of War Deity crushed Ye Futian. The endless golden lightning fell from the print of the War Deity and sealed him in this space, trying to kill him.


    The halberds kept shattering in his hand. Ye Futian held out his palm. The divine Halberd of Time and Space appeared on the palm, swallowing and spitting intimidating Might.


    Boom!


    A strong shaking began. People could see Ye Futian didn''t pause under the burning pressure of the Might of Great Law but rather kept heading forward against the force. He took one more step, his spirit rising, roaring. The Halberd of Time and Space swallowed and spat endless light that tore the space apart. It clashed with the golden lightning that fell down the sky dome.


    These two forces were getting extremely close, each containing horrifying energy of tearing destruction. When they collided in the void sky, the space where Ye Futian was was submerged in tens of thousands of beams of catastrophe light. He stood inside and bore the killing power of the Saint Law.


    Bam!


    He took one more step. The Footwork of Xuanyuan was strengthened. All the Law of the sky and earth was being smelted above the body. The energy released from the Deed of Thorough Comprehension converged in the center of his palm and slipped into the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand.


    The halberd swallowed and spat endless aura. The print of War Deity dropped from his head as if the sky would collapse.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian took the third step. His body spun, and a terrifying beam of light rose into the sky. The Halberd of Time and Space in his hand thrust out.


    At this moment, the spatial beam of light rushed toward the sky. In the vast space between the sky and earth, a boundless giant divine halberd appeared and wrapped the Halberd of Time and Space inside. It directly pierced on the falling Print of War Deity.


    After a loud boom, the destructive Might swept across the world. The sky and earth trembled, and the Print of War Deity roared.


    Above, the giant divine halberd in the aura that pierced through the Print of War Deity held the sky dome and blocked the oppression of the falling Print of War Deity.


    Ye Futian''s torso was glaring in the holy aura that enveloped the sky and echoed the Great Law. He raised his head and looked up to the sky. The halberd light penetrated the clouds, like the light that unlocked heaven, but it didn''t completely destroy the Print of War Deity.


    Xing Kai''s Heaven Punishing Fighting Will claimed to be the heritage from the War of God. When it was infused in the fighting power, the Might of the War Deity could explode from it and slay gods.


    Xing Kai''s attack was always powerful, and with the aid of Heaving Punishing Fighting Will, it was devastating.


    The roaring sound between the sky and earth continued. The boundless giant phantom of the War Deity stood above the sky dome. Xing Kai stepped into the void sky, extreme coldness in his eyes. His palm pushed down toward the ground.


    Immediately, the phantom of the War Deity followed his action and used his palm to push down.


    The Print of War Deity kept falling, trying to crush Ye Futian.


    He wouldn''t give up until Ye Futian died.


    The giant light of halberd was being devoured. What was above Ye Futian''s sky was no longer just one divine seal. It was more like a sky that kept crushing down on him. He was not able to move; he was on the edge of being crushed to death.


    Even the Halberd of Time and Space was unable to defend from the Print of War Deity.


    Other warriors saw the scene and were stirred. How intimidating Xing Kai''s real fighting strength was... He was always the peerless top figure in the Crimson Dragon Realm. He had never been defeated and was always listed on the Regional King Ranking.


    He was of the True Self Plane, but even other outstanding figures of the Plane had difficulty defending him; he was supposed to wipe out any Doctrine Saint quickly.


    However, Ye Futian could fight with him. One could tell this Lord of Thousand Leaves City, who left great impressions during the Peach Banquet, indeed had very horrifying fighting power. If it had been another person fighting with Xing Kai, they would have been killed after the Print of War Deity showed up.


    At the same time, from another direction, warriors of the Thousand Leaves City were quickly heading toward this battlefield.


    Obviously, it was not a fair duel, and Xing Kai''s goal was not to practice with Ye Futian; he was trying to kill him.


    He wanted to exterminate him as a threat.


    Warriors from the Ancient Imperial City started to take action, too. They all began to move and blocked the way of warriors of the Thousand Leaves City.


    Seeing the scene, Xing Kai again drew one hand and created one more print. Two prints overlapped and oppressed all the skies. The loud booming sound came, and Ye Futian''s body was about to be crushed down by the great might of the Great Law.


    The giant light of the divine halberd was still collapsing. Ye Futian perceived the pressure, and suddenly, an aura of stars appeared around his body.


    Endless starry light erupted; the vast space between the sky and earth turned into a starry world.


    Stars were formed in the new world; the stars of the Great Law rotated and rose to the upper sky.


    Boom, boom, boom... People saw the stars clash on the Print of the War Deity. The void sky trembled for it, but the moment when the stars touched the Print of the War Deity, they were just ground into ashes. All they did was slightly slow down the fall of the Print of War Deity.


    However, the light of the stars grew brighter. Ye Futian was amid the world of stars. Endless stars spun and rotated around him. Under the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, a holy halo appeared and formed a plane of stars.


    At this moment, stars all over the sky became one and formed an intact Starry Stele where stars of all skies were included.


    "This is?"


    People who watched the scene from a distance contracted their pupils, stunned.


    Wasn''t it the Starry Stele of the Divine Martial Road in the Peach Banquet?


    It was the road that Ye Futian was on at that time.


    Did it mean Ye Futian had absorbed it and used it in the fight after he stepped out of the Divine Martial Road?


    Stars were moving. The boundless Starry Stele rose with the stars of all skies and smashed on the Print of the War Deity. The sky dome shivered violently as if it was about to collapse.


    Holding the Halberd of Time and Space, Ye Futian shifted away and rushed out of the restraint power of the Great Law. He strode over the space and headed toward Xing Kai.


    Xing Kai took a glance at Ye Futian with disdain. The gap between their Planes was too large. If he had been a common person, Ye Futian might be able to win over him.


    But he was Xing Kai, Xing Kai, who had never been defeated. If Ye Futian could ignore the Plane difference and defeat him, he would give up cultivation from now on.


    A beam of horrifying halberd light thrust out. Ye Futian threw out the Halberd of Time and Space, which pierced through the Great Law and thrust toward Xing Kai.


    The halo of the Great Law flew above Xing Kai''s two arms and linked between the sky and earth. Gorgeous golden halos darted out and blocked the attacks of the Halberd of Time and Space. At the same time, he stretched out both arms, which penetrated the void sky and broke into the Great Law.


    Two forces clashed with each other. Ye Futian''s advancing force was pushed back, but his spirit was not weakened at all.


    At the same time, a gust of forceful Demonic Might came in. Xing Kai raised his head and saw another person arrive from the sky.


    Yu Sheng held a dazzling poleaxe in his hand and chopped down from the sky dome. The demonic light illuminated the sky. As the poleaxe chopped off, it opened the sky as if directly chopping the sky dome into half.


    "You came just in time," said Xing Kai.


    His eyes turned toward Yu Sheng, full of coldness and a stronger killing desire.


    During the Peach Banquet, both Yu Sheng and Ye Futian had excellent performance, and since Yu Sheng actively came to fight with him, he didn''t need to consider the Regional Palace!

 1294 Battle with Xing Kai

    Seeing the poleaxe chopping down, Xing Kai faced the sky and let out a roar. Horrifying Will exploded from his body, and a dazzling beam of light rose up to the sky. Endless Fighting Will was merged into his body as if a War Deity was rumbling. The bellow trembled Sheng''s mind and slightly affected his impelling force of the poleaxe.


    Phantoms of ancient bells showed up and surged forward following the sound waves. They turned into an immense amount of Will and formed an excellent barrier for the poleaxe.


    Xing Kai raised his hand and drew a big palm print toward the void sky. He stretched out one arm, which turned into a golden forelimb. When the palm print was released, it crashed onto the poleaxe with the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will and blew Yu Sheng''s Heaven Breaking Poleaxe away.


    Ye Futian took a glance at Yu Sheng. Even though Xing Kai was one level higher than Yu Sheng, he was the first person of this generation who, face-to-face, shocked Yu Sheng that Ye Futian had ever met.


    Regardless of Xing Kai''s character, his real strength was undoubtedly very strong. He claimed to be War Emperor Zhan''s''s successor and owned the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will inherited from the ancient War Deity; he was the most peerless warrior in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    His way of doing things was brutal, too. Before, he had never thought about competing with Ye Futian in the Peach Banquet. Xing Kai had not regarded him as the opponent at the time.


    But after the Peach Banquet, Xing Kai felt a threat from them.


    Or one should say, things that happened in the Peach Banquet affected his state of mind, so he wanted to kill Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to prove his own Heart for Law.


    And to exterminate the potential threat for the future.


    Since his state of mind couldn''t accept them, he chose to kill them.


    He was resolute in this. On his way back from the Peach Banquet, he used practicing combat skills as an excuse and wanted to wipe them out forcibly.


    In fact, the rule of Crimson Dragon City didn''t allow random killing in the city.


    Not to mention that Ye Futian had just left the divine mountain not long ago. His performance in the Peach Banquet was outstanding. When Xing Kai thought about killing him, shouldn''t he have taken the Imperial Palace on the divine mountain into consideration?


    But Xing Kai still was going to do it; he was cold-blooded indeed.


    However, even so, he said it was for practicing combat skills.


    He could still use it as an excuse.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were both standing in the air and staring at Xing Kai. The spirits of three of them were all very intimidating.


    Numerous people were staring at this battlefield, astounded by the scene.


    The most extraordinary three warriors in the Peach Banquet were face to face fighting with each other.


    The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will came out from Xing Kai''s body and swept across the world, turning into gusts of horrifying air flows. His light of Life Spirit shone behind him, from which a real figure of War Deity showed up. The Life Spirit contained Horrifying Heaven Punishing Fighting Will and surrounded every part of his body.


    Xing Kai slowly merged into the figure and turned into a War Deity. His body started to move at a low pace. At this moment, his life force reached the climax.


    "Since you two want to fight together, come on, show me what you can do," Xing Kai said loudly while looking at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Around the battlefield, other warriors tried to help, but Ye Futian stopped them.


    Xia Qingyuan took a glance at him. Ye Futian raised one arm in the air, suggesting for others not to intervene.


    Since Yu Sheng had entered the battlefield, he also wanted to see how powerful this greatest True Self Saint in Crimson Dragon Realm was.


    Demonic Will billowed above Yu Sheng''s body. Many demonic phantoms showed up. Demonic flows gushed out and swept between the sky and earth.


    A demonic-deity-like figure showed up behind him. His body of Demonic Law merged inside and turned into a figure of a peerless demonic god.


    Above Ye Futian''s body, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension emitted glaring light. The aura of the Great Law enveloped the sky and earth. The body of the Great Law formed in Ye Futian''s body, emitting beams of light and echoing the Great Law of the sky and earth. His figure kept expanding.


    The Fighting Dharma itself was not powerful. When a Fighting Dharma was first established, the warrior was only at the apex of Sage Plane. Still, in a real fight, if the Fighting Dharma fit with the Saint Plane, it could connect the Law between the sky and earth and break the limit of the warrior''s flesh, creating a rousing echo between the sky and earth. It would help the warrior''s flesh make a breakthrough until the warrior was stronger than his or her own Plane.


    The Fighting Dharma could be put into practice in a better way when the user reached the Saint Plane since it was able to fit with the Great Law.


    Especially when the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was released, it could make the Fighting Dharma transform, and Ye Futian could coalesce any Will into it.


    At this moment, the Dharma in formation contained very strong Spatial and Starry Will. Xing Kai was good at attacking, and his fighting ability was peerless. Only an equivalent counterforce could suppress its power.


    In Ye Futian''s Life Palace, the ancient tree was emitting glaring light. Ye Futian''s body was echoing with all the skies. Between the sky and earth, countless beams of light fell on his body. Boundless Will of the Great Law merged into his body. With the power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, his Dharma was built extremely strong.


    Boom!


    At this moment, the void sky sent an intense shiver. Xing Kai took a step forward. The halo of Great Law around his body coalesced into an endless golden spear. It was extremely intimidating.


    He raised one palm, and suddenly, many giant golden spears came out and pierced through the sky and earth. Divine golden light penetrated the space and darted toward Yu Sheng and Ye Futian.


    Xing Kai of the True Self Saint Plane was trying to kill two peerless figures at the same time.


    Behind Yu Sheng, tens of thousands of phantoms loomed out. Above all the skies, a demonic space was created.


    The Demonic Will surged forward and engulfed all the skies. Those demonic statues let out mysterious demonic tunes, trembling in people''s ears.


    At this moment, wind and cloud changed their color above the sky dome; they changed their dark demonic color. Demons of all skies raised their hands at the same time and drew demonic palm prints toward the lower sky, covering the sky and hiding the sun, devouring the sky dome. The palm prints struck toward Xing Kai''s incoming spear.


    When the palm prints and the spear clashed, the void sky was about to collapse.


    However, from another direction, Ye Futian stepped into the void sky. When the Footwork of Xuanyuan came out, the void sky shivered. He stretched out two arms and thrust the Halberd of Time and Space. The attack of the halberd contained the destructive Space Tearing Will and the intimidating power of stars.


    Flares, like falling stars, appeared between the sky and earth. The light of halberd turned into dazzling falling stars and struck toward the incoming spear. Two gusts of forces collided and together annihilated in the sky dome. Gorgeous light sprinkled down and burned people''s eyes.


    Boom! Xing Kai did not sway. He stepped into the void sky like the War Deity''s incarnation. At this moment, he was the War Deity himself. The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will surged out, and his spirit reached the apex. Not to mention a Doctrine Saint, it was rare for the strongest warrior of the True Self to own such a horrifying spirit.


    Xing Kai''s goal was not just being a True Self Saint; he wanted to become a Renhuang. The Unblemished Plane and Nirvana Plane were just stages on his way of cultivation, so he would never let Ye Futian blemish his Heart for Law.


    Ye Futian must be killed here.


    Xing Kai stretched out two hands. Suddenly, the endless Fighting Will between the sky and earth coalesced into a divine golden poleaxe. The boundless poleaxe was extremely sharp. It was held in Xing Kai''s hand and chopped forward.


    The light of the poleaxe chopped down the void air between the sky and earth. A golden line appeared and crossed over the sky dome. The poleaxe chopped toward Yu Sheng and Ye Futian at the same time.


    He seemed to be able to infuse the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will into any derived weapons and ignite an explosion of appalling fighting skills. The power was infinite and unstoppable.


    There was a coldness in Yu Sheng''s eyes. The Demonic Will from his body got stronger. The sounds from the demonic statues echoed, trembling the sky and earth. Tens of thousands of demonic palm prints surged out, rumbling, and finally turned into a horrifying demonic palm print, striking toward the incoming light of poleaxe.


    Ye Futian kept treading in the air, highly spirited. The life force of his Dharma grew stronger, echoing with the Great Law between the sky and earth. The Halberd of Time and Space in his hand launched one more strike. His appearance was like galloping thunder.


    Endless light of halberd converged in one spot and thrust into the incoming poleaxe light bit by bit, tearing the shadow of the poleaxe. The aura of destruction surged out from his body. Horrifying flows beat up his body, but his body of stars was still not affected.


    Xing Kai lightly lifted eyebrows. These two warriors were still not shaken even after two intimidating attacks.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were getting even more spirited as they fought. The spirit surged from their bodies and got even stronger.


    That was why Xing Kai felt threatened by them. If Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were still alive, they would become the biggest threat for Xing Kai in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    He continued stepping forward. The giant golden poleaxe in his hand chopped out. That giant figure of War Deity moved slowly, but it contained an intimidating Might. Every time the poleaxe chopped out, the sky and earth trembled. Beams of poleaxe light chopped off the void sky and buried Yu Sheng and Ye Futian''s bodies inside.


    Every attack used a fighting skill that was fatal to a True Self Saint. If they hit a target, the person''s body would be split in half.


    Even though Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s physiques were extraordinary, they didn''t dare to bear such attacks using their fleshes.


    Tens of thousands of demonic statues let out the same tune. The Demonic Will permeated the air and became one in the sky. Yu Sheng stood in the center, like a real Demon King. All the demonic figures saluted him. He stretched one palm, and the appalling Demonic Will formed a Demonic Poleaxe in his hand. With one jump, he rose into the sky. All these Demonic Statues groveled in front of him, and endless Demonic Light converged in his body.


    The poleaxe came out, and suddenly, tens of thousands of beams of poleaxe light converged into one strike and chopped off the Great Law.


    He chopped down all the attacks. His demon-like body darted toward Xing Kai. It was as if nothing could stop him.


    Ye Futian continued heading forward. Every step he took raised his spirit even more. The Halberd of Time and Space in his hand pierced through the sky and earth. The power was getting stronger. Every attack seemed to contain the momentum of the previous attacks. The power of attacks was increasing progressively.


    Even though Xing Kai''s fierce attacks kept destroying his defense, it couldn''t stop him from marching forward.


    These three towering figures were fiercely fighting on the battlefield. The sky and earth kept rumbling. People''s hearts thumped hard for Yu Sheng and Ye Futian, who kept approaching Xing Kai despite his attacks.


    Were these two peerless Doctrine Saints able to triumph over Xing Kai��the True Self Saint?


    Xing Kai claimed to be invincible among peers. Except for a few warriors who he didn''t have a chance to fight, he had never been defeated by anyone in the Regional Palace. But now, these two lower-ranking warriors were challenging his power!

 1295 Defea

    In the midair battlefield, Gai Huang overpowered Shen Tianzhan and Wu Yong, who were both Holiness of Nirvanas, all on his own.


    Gai Huang was of immense renown, and he was an exceptional figure among the Holiness of Nirvanas found in the realm. He was deemed a truly terrifying figure, as he was lauded as one who stood at the pinnacle of the final plane of sainthood. He was so immensely powerful that he would be able to reign supreme in any realm found within the Crimson Dragon Region.


    However, due to the debt he owed to the Ninth Servant, he spent most of his time training in Ancient Imperial City instead and was considered a member of the city by all in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    He held Xing Kai in extremely high regard, hoping that he would be able to continue Emperor Zhan''s legacy and make it into Renhuang Plane.


    Even though Xing Kai was not someone he taught personally, he watched the younger man grow.


    Yet, there were two figures capable of threatening Xing Kai''s existence in the Peach Banquet.


    Ye Futian managed to overpower Xing Kai in two battles.


    While Gai Huang was concerned for Xing Kai somewhat, the younger man''s decision to act against Ye Futian made him realize that he needed not worry for Xing Kai after all.


    Xing Kai knew very well what he needed. He knew his mind better than anyone else.


    He was unable to accept Ye Futian managing to surpass him and the idea of Ye Futian being able to reign above him in the future. As such, he decided to take Ye Futian out of the picture outright, furthering his progress in training by killing Ye Futian.


    Both men had not been on good terms to begin with. Xing Kai was thinking that if he were to deal the killing blow during the sparring session in Crimson Dragon City, the royal palace would not bother doing anything against him.


    Winner takes all, after all.


    If Ye Futian died, he wouldn''t have been such a big deal anyway.


    There was no doubt that Xing Kai picked the best opportunity to make his move.


    There was no way Gai Huang would have done anything that was not in Xing Kai''s favor. He was not alone, as everyone from Ancient Imperial City would have done the same, making sure that Xing Kai was able to cut Ye Futian down in that very same place.


    However, Wu Yong and Shen Tianzhan did not let anyone else interfere when they saw Ye Futian and Yu Sheng join hands. The two older men did not rush in to aid their juniors. They held their own against Gai Huang, stalling him on that battlefield instead.


    Both Wu Yong and Shen Tianzhan had extremely great faith in Ye Futian''s powers.


    Furthermore, Wu Yong believed that even though Ye Futian paid a hefty toll when he last summoned Emperor Kua, everyone knew that it was not something that Ye Futian was able to do at will. Nonetheless, he could pull it again if his life were once again on the line.


    It went without saying that it would have only worked when he truly needed such powers.


    At that moment, there were three men in front of Ye Futian on the battlefield.


    Xing Kai frowned slightly. He was able to tell that Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were getting increasingly aggressive.


    None of them showed any signs of lethargy or dread from being overpowered. Both of them were enraged instead.


    Yu Sheng''s devil battleax was brought down again and again. Every single blow felt like a devil trying to split the sky, cutting the space down right there and then.


    Ye Futian''s Halberd of Space and Time grew intensely powerful. Every single strike saw the might behind it burst. The light from the Deed of Thorough Comprehension''s power on his body grew increasingly intense. The might that burst with it seemed to have burned the great path around them.


    Attacks from both men posed increasingly great stress to Xing Kai.


    Xing Kai, who had become a Saint of True Self, was being pressured by attacks from two cultivators of lower planes.


    Xing Kai had never been one who would have bothered acting against anyone of planes lower than his, as he could have easily overwhelmed and taken them out without breaking a sweat.


    However, Ye Futian was one who forced his hand. He was worthy of him doing so.


    But then again, Xing Kai never expected that he was unable to take both men down outright. Instead, he began to sense a looming threat from both of them.


    Voom. The ax was brought down again. The air in the sky felt like all demons have returned to become a single being, melding into a shadow of a great, overbearing devil, overlapping with Yu Sheng''s body. Boundless demonic auras washed throughout the space around them when the ax was brought down. The dark axes tore through the sky at the same time, especially the extremely terrifying one in the middle, trying to tear through Xing Kai''s body.


    Xing Kai, who took the form of a god of war, shouted. Will of combat surged throughout Xing Kai, and his aura burst to maximum capacity. He stepped forth, and it looked as if one shadow of the saint of war after another rushed outside his body. Every single shadow looked as if they came from him.


    What was more terrifying was that every single god of war''s shadow was imbued with extremely terrifying spiritual will power. It was as if every single one of them was Xing Kai himself.


    The shadows blasted divine seals at the same time. Their surroundings continued to shake, turning into tidal waves sweeping forward, clashing with Yu Sheng''s battleax. It tore through the weapon''s light. The waves eventually blocked the most devastating move that Yu Sheng was able to bring to bear, causing the weapon to rattle without stopping.


    All who witnessed the battle shook within. The three who were fighting right there and then were indeed terrifying.


    Each of them was of an extreme embodiment of devastating offense, extreme physical resilience, and adamant spiritual will. All three of them possessed peerless head-on offensive capacities.


    It was a case of fighting a firestorm with a firestorm.


    Few would have been able to block attacks from someone as terrifying as Yu Sheng, whose devil-like battleax was brought down with force capable of leveling mountains.


    If Xing Kai had been at Proving Holiness level instead of a Saint of True Self, he probably would not have been able to stop one such overwhelming attack from Yu Sheng, which offered no mercy or no way out for its target.


    If Xing Kai were only taking on Yu Sheng, he would have still been able to handle it fine.


    The edge of his plane was obvious, and it was not something that could have been compensated for through tricks and skills alone. Furthermore, Xing Kai was a descendant of a Renhuang, inheriting the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will, which made him near-peerless in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    However, Xing Kai was pressured.


    That was because he was not only fighting Yu Sheng.


    Devastating currents swept all over the place when the attacks of both men clashed.


    However, at that moment, a terrifying hurricane appeared in the midst of the chaotic space turbulence. The Halberd of Space and Time was brought to bear within an instant.


    The glow of the stars glittered when the strike from the halberd lashed out, shining brightly in the sky, bashing right onto Xing Kai''s god of war form.


    The rumble was continuously heard. The halberd struck right onto Xing Kai''s defenses. Xing Kai''s hurriedly attack after a rumble was heard. The incoming attack penetrated through Xing Kai''s defensive powers and continued raging on.


    Xing Kai frowned and took one hard step forward. The light of the great path laid down screens of defense right away, before stopping Ye Futian''s attack. Even so, a stifled rumble was nonetheless heard.


    "What..." The pupils of many who were watching the battle constricted somewhat.


    That attack from Ye Futian actually managed to tear through Xing Kai''s defense.


    That had impossible before.


    It seemed as if the tables were turning without anyone realizing it.


    There were many who attended the Peach Banquet among the surrounding mighty ones. They had left before, but they turned around to return and watch the battle after sensing the raging aura emanating from that area.


    All of them turned to eye each other and looked rather surprised. It was especially so with those who were training in the Regional Palace.


    They knew how powerful Xing Kai was.


    "Ye Futian''s attack is still growing in force. One strike is getting more powerful than the previous one. Xing Kai is taking on both Yu Sheng and Ye Futian, who are getting stronger. If things keep going on like this, we''ll be seeing a showdown before long," Pei Min commented.


    Ye Futian''s combat prowess surprised him immensely.


    While he and Xing Kai both trained in the Regional Palace, and both men were of the same plane, the truth was that they never truly fought each other. Xing Kai joined the ranks of the Regional Palace later than he did. In truth, he was considered Xing Kai''s senior. Both of them were only on the same plane because Xing Kai managed to catch up later.


    "Xing Kai had been amplifying all of his powers using Heaven Punishing Fighting Will right from the start, while Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were growing increasingly strong in the fight instead. If things keep going like this, the odds will be stacked against Xing Kai soon enough," Xie Qingshan crossed his arms and said with a smile.


    This is interesting, indeed. Two Proving Holiness saints are proving to be a threat to Xing Kai.


    Before Ye Futian and Yu Sheng fought, everyone was listing the likes of Pei Min, Xie Qingshan, or Luo Yang when it came to figuring out who of the same generation as Xing Kai would be able to take him on.


    Yet, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng seemed to have emerged out of nowhere and attracted all the attention, surpassing Xing Kai within an instant.


    "It will be unbelievably difficult to continue to climb in terms of power without limit, though. The process will be needed to repeat several times before they can truly threaten Xing Kai," Pei Min replied telepathically. Xie Qingshan smiled and nodded. He naturally understood that as well.


    What they were doing was somewhat similar to Pei Min, who was a swordsman.


    However, Pei Min, who was a saint at the art of the sword, would have reached a ceiling nonetheless. It would have been merely impossible for his powers to continue climbing. He would have been invincible if he were to be capable of that.


    Yu Sheng''s ax continued to be brought down again and again. After yet another rumble was heard, Xing Kai no longer moved forward. He was thrown behind by the force of the strike instead. It was apparent that he truly felt the pressure by then.


    An extremely dazzling beam of light tore through the sky like a star streaking through the heavens. That attack from the halberd came right after Yu Sheng''s attack, with the follow-up done almost seamlessly.


    Xing Kai threw a huge palm print right away before he was able to steady himself. A rumble was heard at that time. Halberd of Time and Space shattered the palm print right there and then as it continued to move towards the god of war.


    Boom. An embodiment of will was conjured, and the halberd streaked through space. The light arrived, and a rumble was heard. Xing Kai''s battle form was shattered to nothingness right away.


    Xing Kai was then thrown back. He was forced to retreat by Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "They are actually able to grow even stronger. Furthermore, that attack was imbued with extremely raging power of devastating while, at the same time, it contained extremely frightening shredding power. Just what kind of art of the halberd was that?" Many who were able to read what happened shuddered deep down.


    They were surprised to find that Ye Futian''s Halberd of Time and Space attack was still growing in terms of power.


    Is his attack going to continue growing in power?


    Xing Kai''s expression was ugly and awkward. However, there was no time for him to think. It seemed as if the heavens were about to be brought down on him. Yu Sheng''s battleax continued to be brought down on him, giving him no respite at all.


    Ye Futian stepped forward while Yu Sheng was attacking at the same time.


    Boom... An extremely devastating wave washed all over the place. He felt as if he melded with the great path of that space around him. A meteor streaked through the sky and landed on the god of war. His force was felt before he was even there.


    Voom. A dazzling beam of light came and went. Attacks from Ye Futian and Yu Sheng arrived one after another at that time.


    The halberd burst with light that was even brighter than the stars. Vast, unending stars seemed to have expanded. However, the halberd seemed to be able to snuff all those stars out.


    Boom, boom, boom... The rumble from the continuous clashes was extremely raging. It was as if a divine seal from the god of war clashed with Yu Sheng''s battleax.


    However, the halberd that came right afterward banged on the rattling seal. Intense light burst, and the seal was shattered in the middle.


    Furthermore, the Halberd of Time and Space did not stop. The beam of dazzling light continued moving forward.


    Xing Kai roared, and his spiritual will burst to the extreme, yet his body was sent flying. His spiritual will seemed to be on the verge of collapsing, under that intense, raging attack.

 1296 The Will Arises Again

    Boom.


    A loud rumble was heard, and Xing Kai''s huge body was sent flying. The pupils of many surrounding mighty ones constricted as they stared at the scene before them.


    Xing Kai balked before the other two gave in.


    "Wait, what..." they thought.


    Ye Futian basked in a divine glow at that moment. The power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was brought to the maximum. Ancient symbols surrounded him, and he melded with the great path. His raging body itself seemed like the manifestation of the great path. Every single breath and every single step he took seemed to be that of the great path.


    Boom! He was shrouded in stars as he walked. Extremely brilliant light pulsed on the Halberd of Time and Space as if the might of the stars was all condensed into a single point, which was at the same time, packed with condensed devastating power of space. Every single attack he lashed out with the halberd seemed to have been an upgrade from the attack before. Be it his spiritual will power or the might of the great path; everything was amplified without exception.


    Xing Kai let out a low rumble and took one hard, devastating step. The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will seemed to have coursed all over his Life Palace, shrouding the body of his god of war form. His eyes were ice-cold, and his killing intent reached the heavens as he glared at both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    He was actually sent flying by the continuous attacks brought by both men before him.


    That was a true, no-bars-hold battle. None of them suppressed their powers of the great path. The battle was able to showcase the extent of their powers better than in the Peach Banquet.


    Xing Kai should have been able to overwhelm those two, who were of a lower plane than he was, without breaking a sweat. The power difference was deemed so vast that he was toying with Ye Futian right from the start, thinking that he would have been able to make short work of them both.


    However, as the battle progressed, both Yu Sheng and Ye Futian fought increasingly hard and grew increasingly powerful. He was afforded no respite under the relentless attacks from both men.


    Rumbles were heard as terrifying demonic pressure loomed over them. Yu Sheng was again, the first who emerged to lay down suppressive attacks.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng seemed to have reached a certain consensus as they fought alongside each other, with Yu Sheng pinning the opponent down while Ye Futian landed the killing blow.


    Brrooomm... Beams of extremely dazzling light burst from Xing Kai''s massive body. His spiritual will was cranked to the limit. His spiritual will took the form of one shadow of god of war after another, stacking right before him.


    Furthermore, the multiple layers of shadows waved at the same time. It was as if every single shadow was a clone of his own body. Every single shadow was imbued with the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will. He then performed seals again.


    "This..."


    Many were shocked by what was happening right before their eyes. It was as if there were thousands of gods of war appearing at the same time, performing the Mudra of God of War with their hands. His surroundings shook. It was as if the space around him itself was about to collapse.


    "The Seal of Thousand Gods."


    The mighty ones from the Regional Palace were shaking deep down when they saw what he was doing. They never expected Xing Kai to be cornered until he needed to do that, bringing the Seal of Thousand Gods��the ultimate technique of the Mudra of God of War��to bear on his opponents.


    The attack was like the gods attacking all at the same time. Xing Kai would have needed to crank his spiritual will to the limit to do so. There was no other way he could have used the Seal of Thousand Gods otherwise.


    If that attack proved inadequate of killing or at least severely injuring both Yu Sheng and Ye Futian, then Xing Kai would have been the one in danger instead. There was a limit to how much of his spiritual will he was able to expend, after all. Attacks of such levels were not something that he could have brought out without care.


    The Seal of Thousand Gods was activated. It was like the seals of all great paths in the world, unbreakable and nigh-invincible. The attack was cast straight at Yu Sheng, who was closing in fast. The seals were about to drown him, encompassing the entire space in his immediate vicinity.


    Yu Sheng sensed the peerless pressure imbued within that attack. His eyes glittered with frightening light of the devil. An overbearing demonic will appeared. Like Xing Kai, Yu Sheng looked like he was surrounded by all devils to be found in the world.


    The devils all submitted to him, moving alongside him.


    The battleax, which was capable of shocking the gods, was brought down.


    Thousands of devils swung the ax at the same time, banging onto the bursting seals.


    Their surroundings seemed to be on the verge of collapse when both men clashed. The hearts of many spectators raced as they saw what was happening.


    The demonic will on Yu Sheng was completely on par with the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will coursing on Xing Kai''s body. Many wondered just how powerful the might of that demonic will would have been.


    They were wondering if Yu Sheng was actually a descendant of a devil himself.


    They wondered whose lineage he had inherited.


    Boom. A rumble was heard at that moment, pulling the attention of the spectators elsewhere, reminding them that other than Xing Kai, who was overwhelmingly imposing, and Yu Sheng, whose demonic might reached the heavens, there was still another man on the battlefield��Ye Futian. Every single attack he brought forth was imbued with extremely refined killing power.


    His aura continued to climb as he moved, becoming increasingly powerful. The halberd in his hand pulsed with towering light. The power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension surged to the weapon. Boundless light of the divine halberd burst at the same time, causing his surroundings to howl.


    His feet twisted slightly, and he took another step. The great path in his immediate vicinity howled. That single step seemed to have brought his spiritual will to the limit.


    He flung his arms about and brought the Halberd of Time and Space down from above.


    Countless halberds tore through space, yet it seemed all the light had gathered into one single weapon.


    The weapon tore through the air and came right before its target. Rumbles were heard exploding as the halberds hit the seals, which shattered right away. It was as if the seals were destroyed by the boundless light around the weapon.


    The spectators then witnessed a huge divine halberd that seemed to have torn through the heavens and penetrated the earth. The light of the halberd looked as if it had melded with Ye Futian''s body. All powers within his body surged into the weapon. The light bursting from the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was all infused within the halberd.


    The attack seemed to be without an upper limit.


    The Mudras of God of War crumbled. The shadows conjured from Xing Kai''s spiritual will were being destroyed one after another as well. The light of the halberd tore through everything as it headed straight for Xing Kai. There seemed to be nothing capable of stopping it.


    Xing Kai wore a startled expression. The shadows of gods of war on him gathered and charged. However, the attempt proved futile, as they were all penetrated right away.


    That one attack of the halberd tore right through every single bit of power of spiritual will he was able to muster. The distance between two men was utterly ignored, as the halberd headed straight for Xing Kai.


    "It burst through!"


    All those who witnessed the dazzling halberd attack seemed to be about to stop breathing. Time seemed to have stopped at that very moment. Xing Kai felt as if everything in the world slowed, including his thoughts and speed at counterattacks.


    It was unknown if it was he who had become slow, or it was just that attack coming too quickly.


    Boom!


    A loud rumble was heard. Many saw Xing Kai, whose shadows of gods of war seemed boundless, crumble. It was as if his spiritual will had suffered considerable damage as the constructs around him shattered.


    Yet another stifled rumble was heard. That huge divine halberd pierced the god of war''s body. The light from Ye Futian continued to surge into the weapon, making it look like an extension of his body.


    Rumbles continued to be heard as the tall, imposing body of the god of war crumbled.


    Xing Kai''s true body appeared right before both of them. His god of war Life Spirit behind him continued to look extremely dazzling. However, his Heaven Punishing Fighting Will seemed to have been almost exhausted, making him look rather shriveled.


    What was worse was that Ye Futian''s attack actually made it through, punching through his body.


    "How could this possibly be?" Xing Qiu, who was fighting faraway, stopped fighting and looked at the scene, feeling baffled.


    His brother, Xing Kai, was defeated in a real battle.


    Furthermore, he was defeated as a Saint of True Self, at the hands of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, who were both of lower plane than he was.


    All the other mighty ones looked at the scene with baffled eyes as well.


    Xing Kai, who was at Saint of True Self level, should not have lost, even if he were to take on two mighty ones.


    The difference in planes had never been something that could be compensated for number of opponents. A Holiness of Nirvana could have stood against dozens of Unblemished Saints without a doubt.


    But then again, that was if the difference in actual combat prowess was not all that far off.


    Well, was the actual combat prowess between Xing Kai, and the other two��Ye Futian and Yu Sheng��actually that far off?


    Xing Kai was someone who had been standing at the pinnacle.


    Following that line of thought, one could have easily figured out just how terrifying the actual combat prowess of both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were.


    "That really is something. What kind of art of the halberd is this?" Pei Min voiced his admiration. The weapon art that Ye Futian wielded was even more terrifying than Pei Min''s art of the sword. That one attack was actually able to break through attacks as powerful as that from Xing Kai, and the man himself was hit by the weapon.


    Xing Kai''s face was ashen at that moment. His robe and his hair billowed. His eyes remained glaring at Ye Futian, finding it hard to believe what had just happened.


    He actually lost.


    That battle was not a sparring session like back in the Peach Banquet. He did not hold back at all and fought in earnest. He had even brought the attack of the Seal of Thousand Gods to the fore.


    Yet, he still lost nonetheless.


    He wanted to kill Ye Futian as a way of showing his resolve. But things did not happen as planned.


    He grunted, and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth. His face looked pale.


    His Mindfulness of the Path was evidently cracked.


    None managed to make it through their training in the great path without failing even once.


    However, he was unable to fathom why his defeat had been so humiliating.


    He lost to two who were of a lower plane than he was.


    Xing Kai was destined to be someone exceptional from the moment of birth. He inherited the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will, and he knew right from the start the path that he was to take.


    It was destined that he was to become a Renhuang, one who would bring the glory of his ancestors back again.


    He was shouldering great responsibility, and he worked diligently towards that goal. He was not alone, as the Ninth Servant and the others around him worked hard as well.


    No one would have been able to stand in the way of their resolve and his destined path.


    Ye Futian, however, affected his path. Ye Futian was someone from Emperor Xia''s Realm and was liked by the princess of said realm. He had also performed extraordinarily in the Peach Banquet.


    However, none of that mattered to Xing Kai. Ye Futian was deemed an obstacle, and as such, needed to be killed.


    He was about to kill Ye Futian to prove his way and his resolve, enabling him to continue moving forward.


    His Mindfulness of the Path needed to be as indomitable as it had always been, and no one should have been able to shake it.


    Yet, that battle fought right after the banquet was over was breaking up his Mindfulness of the Path.


    Xing Kai began to have doubts at that moment. He was unable to even win against someone who was of a lower plane than he was, and that made him question how he was going to progress in his path of cultivation and reach the Renhuang plane. He doubted how he would be able to restore his ancestral glory and achieve unparalleled fame and might that was solely his.


    The battle on that day would have let everyone know that Xing Kai was inferior to Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Blood continued to spill, and Ye Futian did not bother going easy while Xing Kai was steeped in those thoughts. The halberd pulsed with shredding will of the great path as it tore through Xing Kai''s body, intending to kill him right away.


    Xing Kai wanted to kill him first, so he saw no reason to hesitate. They were all in this predicament, so one of them had to die.


    The chance of killing Xing Kai presented itself, and Ye Futian saw no reason to let it slide.


    His eyes were filled with intense murderous intent at the moment as well.


    Devastating beams of light tore right through Xing Kai''s body, intending to shred the man himself. However, extremely raging spiritual will burst from Xing Kai at the moment. The aura was incredibly vibrant, making Ye Futian feel as if his killing intent was being blocked.


    He looked at Xing Kai''s eyes, which had changed. Those eyes looked tremendously deep and frightening. It was like they were about to tear right through Ye Futian''s spiritual will.


    The Ninth Servant of the Ancient Imperial City was very, very mindful of the Xing brothers indeed!

 1297 Killing Inten

    Xing Kai''s eyes became deep and terrifying. They looked a bit surprised as well.


    The man before Xing Kai was not a top-notch figure at a very high plane; he was but a saint at Proving Holiness level.


    Yet, such a man managed to trigger the mark left in Xing Kai''s body.


    Xing Qiu had almost ended up killed, and that triggered the mark in him. Xing Kai was unexpectedly the next one to experience that.


    The brothers lost one after another. Furthermore, the man who had defeated Xing Qiu was present on the battlefield as well. Xing Kai was probably out to seek vengeance for his little brother, yet it was unexpected that he, too, had lost.


    The man behind the eyes watched the brothers grow up and knew what they were capable of.


    However, both of them were defeated one after another by the two men standing before Xing Kai.


    After what happened in the last battle, he heard that Ye Futian, the young city lord of Qianye City, had opened up Emperor Kua''s ruins. The young man then went on to subjugate the nine tribes of the western region, putting the nine tribes under the rule of one man again.


    The Ninth Servant realized that Xing Kai and Xing Qiu had indeed truly met their match.


    However, the Ninth Servant was hardly surprised. Having lived as long as he did, he had witnessed great battles between Renhuangs and naturally knew just how abundant legendary figures were throughout the three thousand realms. Despite Xing Kai''s superbly gifted talents, as his training progressed, he would definitely run into some legendary figures.


    Furthermore, that event that was held not long ago would have been the Peach Banquet of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The Peach Banquet attracted the most brilliant of figures to be found in all of Crimson Dragon Realm, so it was natural that Xing Kai met his match.


    However, from the looks of things, Xing Kai seemed rather vexed, and he was adamant of getting rid of the threat.


    The Ninth Servant believed that the people from Qianye City did not dare to make a move against Xing Qiu, so it would not have been an exception this time as well. Furthermore, given that Gai Huang was around as well, Xing Kai would have been the one to make a move first, and he was defeated for it.


    An extremely brimming pressure shrouded Ye Futian. The Ninth Servant''s will was impeccably strong. As a person standing at the pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvana level and the number one city lord outside of Crimson Dragon City, the burst of his will made Ye Futian feel as if he was withstanding pressures the size of mountains. Ye Futian''s Halberd of Time and Space was unable to move forward at all.


    Everyone turned to look at Ye Futian, and they all sensed the aura emanating from Xing Kai. All of them naturally knew that the will of the Ninth Servant was there. The man standing before Ye Futian was no longer Xing Kai.


    The battle between Xing Kai and Ye Futian and Yu Sheng was concluded. Xing Kai suffered an overwhelming defeat.


    The circumstances were so severe that his life was in danger, triggering the mark the Ninth Servant left inside his body. The Ninth Servant trained in a particular method called the Mudra of God of War.


    It was said that the phenomenon took place when Yu Sheng was about to kill Xing Qiu as well.


    The spectators found no difficulty making the connection. If such a mark was on Xing Qiu, it was only natural Xing Kai had it on him as well.


    However, no one expected that the humiliating defeat suffered by Xing Kai would trigger the mark.


    Many wondered if Xing Kai''s state of mind would be able to tolerate such a result.


    His mind would have been affected after suffering defeat in the battle before. The blow would have been a hefty one.


    And then, he needed to rely on the Ninth Servant''s power to stay alive. To someone as prideful as Xing Kai, that was an insult like none other.


    It was especially so since he intended to kill Ye Futian to prove his resolve. However, that seemed to have dealt an even more substantial blow on him, making it more difficult for him to overcome the trauma resulted.


    The pressure that Ye Futian was withstanding grew increasingly intense. It was as if he was about to be crushed by that overwhelming power of will.


    "Senior." A voice was heard at that moment. Xing Kai turned his eyes around and looked at the one who talked. It was none other than Duan Wuji of Emperor Dong''s Palace, who had supposedly left yet had returned later.


    He looked at Xing Kai and smiled, saying, "I assume that you must be the city lord of Ancient Imperial City. Xing Kai seemed to be the one who picked the fight. I think it''d prove rather unbecoming for you to throw your weight around after the loss. Don''t you think?"


    The Ninth Servant was known to be the number one city lord. Other than the Renhuang of Crimson Dragon Realm, the only ones capable of taking him on were none other than the few ranked at the top of Regional King Ranking. Furthermore, all of them seemed to have hailed from Crimson Dragon City.


    There were even old, terrifying monsters of people from the royal palace itself.


    As such, the Ninth Servant was known to be nigh-invincible outside of Crimson Dragon City. Few were even able to stand up to him in terms of powers.


    But then again, some would not have cared less. There were few training in the Regional King Palace, and then there was also Duan Wuji, who was training in the Emperor Dong''s Palace. He was, after all, a descendant of a native Renhuang in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    No matter how powerful the Ninth Servant was, he could not beat a Renhuang. Furthermore, it was not one from somewhere outside the realm, but one who was from the Crimson Dragon Realm itself.


    The Ninth Servant looked at Duan Wuji of Emperor Dong''s Palace and said, "The feud between the Ancient Imperial City and Qianye City has nothing to do with Emperor Dong''s Palace."


    "It indeed has nothing to do with Emperor Dong''s Palace; however, this is Crimson Dragon City. It was totally fine for Xing Kai to ask for a rematch after losing to Ye Futian in the Peach Banquet. But then again, I assume that you, senior, as a city lord of Ancient Imperial City, are not going to kill Ye Futian in Crimson Dragon City, no?" Duan Wuji smiled and added, "That would be difficult to explain to the royal palace, wouldn''t it?"


    The Ninth Servant frowned.


    "Senior, the battle was indeed started by Xing Kai. Even if the royal palace were to turn a blind eye to you bullying a junior, the city lord of Qianye City is still someone from Emperor Xia''s Realm. If Emperor Xia himself makes a move, I''m sure the royal palace would be even more reluctant to get involved." Yet another voice was heard. The one who spoke was Pei Min, who trained in the Regional Palace just like Xing Kai.


    While he trained in the Regional Palace just like Xing Kai, Yu Sheng, and the others, Pei Min never fought any of them and was not all that familiar with them. He, too, had no beef with any of them.


    As such, he had no cause to speak on such a matter.


    However, he was still able to tell right from wrong.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng performed admirably and peerlessly in the Peach Banquet, overwhelming Xing Kai. Xing Kai then asked for to spar so that he could kill Ye Futian. That was personal.


    However, since he made his move, he had to accept whatever the outcome was.


    Having his old man show up right after he lost to fight his opponent would be quite disgraceful, after all.


    If Xing Kai were to agree deep down, then Pei Min would have looked down on that so-called "top-notch" genius training in the Regional Palace. He would not have cared in the least if Xing Kai was not fine with his opinion.


    Xia Qingyuan shot from the sky. Her eyes were cold. That was the second time the Ninth Servant appeared.


    That number one figure outside of Crimson Dragon City was someone that none could threaten.


    It was probably due to the presence of the Ninth Servant that both Xing Kai and Xing Qiu were able to act so impudently.


    Regardless of how much of a genius one was or how prideful they were, someone without serious backing and with such an attitude would have died many times over.


    The Ninth Servant then turned his eyes to Pei Min. He never expected the defeat would have put Xing Kai in such an unpopular spot.


    All of that would be a severe blow to Xing Kai.


    His eyes softened as he looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. He was able to understand why Xing Kai chose to do what he did. Those two from Qianye City would probably become Xing Kai''s inner demons, so he wanted to get rid of them. If Xing Kai were to leave them be, his path from here on out would probably be overshadowed by those two.


    He found such a turn of events unacceptable and chose to cut them down right there and then instead. Even though Xing Kai would have found such an outcome to be difficult to stomach, he would have been able to overcome it in time.


    He needed to be decisive when the time called for it. If he was unable to bring himself to do so, then he was the problem instead.


    At that thought, the Ninth Servant''s eyes became imbued with killing intent, which was then infused into his will. It continued to bear on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was able to sense the killing intent within.


    "Return."


    The killing intent lasted only for a split second. No one else other than Ye Futian would have been able to sense it.


    Furthermore, the Ninth Servant seemed to have heeded the words of Duan Wuji and Pei Min, getting ready to return. He had no intention of making a move against Ye Futian any further.


    That split second prior made Ye Futian realize that the Ninth Servant did not intend just to let everything slide.


    It was clear that he did not want to make a move in Crimson Dragon City, to avoid getting on the bad side of Crimson Dragon Emperor and offending the royal palace.


    He would have been unstoppable outside of Crimson Dragon City instead.


    "The sparring has yet to end, and you''re about to return?"


    A low voice as heard, and everyone was stunned as they heard those words. Everyone turned around to find that the one who spoke was none other than Ye Futian.


    The light of Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst to its limit on Ye Futian''s body at the moment. Terrifying aura surged from within his body, shrouding his entire being.


    Return!? Ye Futian thought incredulously.


    The Ninth Servant was getting ready to leave, and yet, Ye Futian did not intend for things to end just like that.


    You think you can just come threaten to kill him and leave when you''re unable to do so?


    Do you think you can take me on once we all leave Crimson Dragon City?


    "What the hell..." Many turned to look at Ye Futian and wondered what he was trying to do.


    They were wondering if he had intended to end Xing Kai right there and then. If that were the case, the Ninth Servant would not let things slide.


    Everyone in Crimson Dragon Realm knew that the Xing brothers were the embodiment of the Ninth Servant''s mission in life. He would not have allowed anyone to harm Xing Kai, let alone killing the younger man.


    Holy flames burned as the light from the Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst. The weather changed, and Ye Futian''s eyes seemed to have become flames. It was as if a terrifying will was shooting out of his eyes.


    His body was bursting with powers that did not belong to him.


    "He is still able to tap into the power of Emperor Kua?" The hearts of many raced. All of them thought that Ye Futian had paid a hefty toll in that battle before.


    Many thought that there was no way he could have sustained fighting like that. The recoil would have been extreme, and it would have possibly ended up taking his life.


    Many speculated that he would have probably died from the recoil of that battle a while ago. However, he once again stood before everyone.


    But then again, that battle is still very much a recent thing. Is he trying to pull what he did before again? they wondered.


    Ye Futian''s body rumbled, and the Flames of the Way in his body became extremely hot. That Fire Spirit Orb in his Life Palace unleashed its power, tainting the skies red within an instant, making the place look like a world of fire.


    However, Ye Futian was actually doing his best to control it. The outcome was not something he would have been able to sustain easily, so he did his best to limit the release of such powers.


    While the Ninth Servant was there, it was nonetheless just an effect of the Mudra of God of War in Xing Kai. It was not that the Ninth Servant showed up in person.


    He wondered just how powerful that mark would have allowed the Ninth Servant''s powers to be.


    He thrust the Halberd of Time and Space straight at Xing Kai. The weapon pulsed with terrifying light of flames.

 1298 Both Sides Lost and Injured

    All eyes were on to that towering might. Countless nearby turned their eyes to the battlefield, feeling rattled deep down.


    It was Xing Kai who wanted to kill Ye Futian before to prove his resolve, due to what happened in the Peach Banquet.


    However, he lost to Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Things were different at the moment.


    Ye Futian became the one out to kill Xing Kai, going as far as to want to kill him despite the will of the Ninth Servant giving Xing Kai an advantage.


    Everyone present knew just how powerful Ye Futian had become after tapping into those powers back in the battle at Qianye City a while ago. He had been able to overpower a good number of Holiness of Nirvanas. There were real, several such figures rendered dead by his hands. Things were so severe that the Saint Lord of Jiuyang dared not touch him, and even the likes of Gai Huang had not been able to do anything about him.


    Everyone wondered how much of that power Ye Futian was planning on tapping into, and if he could have performed as he had in that battle a while ago.


    They were also wondering just how powerful the special mark the Ninth Servant placed onto Xing Kai was.


    If the Ninth Servant had indeed shown up personally, there was no need for further speculations. Even if he were to bring the full power of Emperor Kua to bear, like how he did in that battle before, he was still borrowing someone else''s power. That would not be enough to deal with someone like the Ninth Servant, who was at the pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvana level.


    The Ninth Servant, however, was only doing battle remotely through the use of that mark in Xing Kai, and through the younger man. There was no way he could have brought all of his might to bear on Ye Futian.


    The Halberd of Time and Space contained extreme might of flames. The spirit orb inside Ye Futian''s body seemed to have channeled all of its will of the great path into the weapon. Terrifying whirlpool of flames appeared in their surroundings, gushing into the halberd in a frenzy, causing it to burn. It turned into a tremendously divine Halberd of Time and Space imbued in flames. The fearsome weapon was thrust right at Xing Kai''s throat.


    Ye Futian''s fiery eyes were extremely cold instead, with his killing intent scorching hot in the fires burning in him.


    A figure stood tall above the palace at the Ancient Imperial City. His aura was towering, gushing outwards, and shrouding his surroundings.


    The vast Ancient Imperial City seemed to have been shrouded altogether by that towering might. Everyone near the city lord''s office of Ancient Imperial City was shuddering deep down.


    They were all wondering what was happening.


    They looked up at the pinnacle of Ancient Imperial City. They were able to see the Ninth Servant hovering in midair vaguely. His gaze was cast far away, and his will gushed in a frenzy, shooting out at a distant place.


    The Ninth Servant''s robe billowed, and his overpowering might looked extremely fearsome. It was as if he was like a god himself.


    Furthermore, the Ninth Servant was filled with intense killing intent.


    Ye Futian of Qianye City intended to kill Xing Kai right before his eyes.


    As the protector of the descendants of Emperor Zhan, the meaning of his existence was none other to watch them grow, witnessing them eventually surpass him to step into that legendary plane, achieving the former glory of Emperor Zhan of the past.


    There was no way he could have watched Xing Kai and Xing Qiu get killed.


    He absolutely would not allow anyone to kill them. He was not about to let anyone threaten the Xing brothers'' lives.


    Anyone who did so, he would make sure to kill them.


    Ye Futian is thinking that he can kill Xing Kai just by tapping into the will of Emperor Kua, then? the Ninth Servent thought.


    He has no idea what the significance of the Mudra of God of War is, he thought.


    The Ninth Servant lifted his arm and pointed his finger in front of him. The place right before him trembled as if that finger was penetrating it.


    At the same time, Xing Kai, who was faraway in Crimson Dragon City, lifted his arm as well, pointing a finger before him.


    There seemed to be a shadow manifesting from Xing Kai''s body in that instant, which did not seem to be his own. Ye Futian seemed to have been able to see yet another figure far, far away through that shadow��the shadow of that legendary figure, who was standing at the top of Ancient Imperial City.


    That finger attack was not brought forth by Xing Kai, but by that man represented who shadow.


    That finger attack seemed to have imbued the great path of the world around them, which was gathered at a single point and pointed at the Halberd of Time and Space.


    The fact that he was taking on one such weapon with only a finger spoke volumes of his tremendous confidence.


    The clash between the finger and the weapon seemed to create a terrifying, dark whirlpool, twisting the great path. It swallowed everything in its immediate vicinity. The will of flames shot at the finger with the intent to burn everything down. Yet, at the same time, Ye Futian felt his arm tremble quite a bit. It was as if he was losing his grip on the halberd. That immensely heavy power burst through, trying to wreck Ye Futian''s body through the weapon.


    A grunt was heard, and Ye Futian was sent flying. A stifling rumble burst from the place the attacks clashed, with a terrifying whirlpool out to destroy everything remaining.


    Flames engulfed Xing Kai''s finger. It was like it had been scorched. A great will of the great path then enveloped the finger, repairing the damaged parts.


    It was apparent that both men were tapping into powers that were not theirs, and it was also apparent that their attacks were defective, as both of them lacked the strength to master such powers.


    Ye Futian, who was boosting his physical constitution by tapping into powers of others, was unable to withstand that one attack the Ninth Servant brought forth, which was evident from the fact that the Ninth Servant was still able to hurt him through the halberd.


    Ye Futian might have tapped into the powers of Emperor Kua, but he still was not Emperor Kua. He was still a saint at Proving Holiness level. Furthermore, he did not tap into those powers completely. He was doing his best to keep himself from biting off more than he could chew, being concerned about the magnitude of recoil he would suffer.


    Xing Kai faced Ye Futian. At that moment, Ye Futian felt as if it was the Ninth Servant at the Ancient Imperial City who was watching him from afar. That overbearing aura was unshakable. It was not something he could have managed to shake off.


    That man was at the pinnacle right below Renhuang Plane, and a Holiness of Nirvana ranked high on the Regional King Rankings.


    He managed to bring out his true might simply by borrowing Xing Kai''s body. Ye Futian wondered what kind of powers they had.


    Regardless of the methods used, there was no doubt that it would take quite a hefty toll on the Ninth Servant for being able to go so far.


    At that moment, Ye Futian saw Xing Kai beginning to grab at the air. The great path of their surroundings churned in a frenzy. It was as if the space he was in was isolated altogether. Boundless will of the great path bore onto Ye Futian. It was as if countless hands of victory were manifested in the air, enveloping the space around them.


    "The might of a Holiness of Nirvana." Everyone around them shook tremendously deep down. Those were powers from the Ninth Servant himself. Even if he was not physically present, he was still able to use his powers remotely.


    The spectators looked at that battlefield, finding Ye Futian''s body shrouded by the will of the great path. The space surrounding them seemed to have been isolated by that will of the great path, forbidding anyone else from stepping in. That space was put on lockdown, trying to kill Ye Futian inside.


    Ye Futian clutched the Halberd of Time and Space tightly. His body seemed to have been burned red. The place around him was still burning, and a tall, imposing god of war of flames appeared. He glared at the figure before him, and the fires seen his eyes seemed able to burn space itself down.


    Boom. The flames of the great path burst, and Ye Futian trembled, looking rather pained, yet his eyes remained adamant.


    The killing intent on the Ninth Servant at Ancient Imperial City burned even brighter, after seeing Ye Futian''s eyes.


    The Ninth Servant vaguely realized why Xing Kai would lose.


    He extended his hand and grabbed tightly. In that instant, the palms of the great path surrounding Ye Futian rained down in a frenzy. Their surroundings shook, intending to bury that space.


    Furthermore, every single attack from the hands was incredibly intense. All of them tore through space and landed hard on Ye Futian''s body.


    There would have been no way he could have sustained even a single hit even if he had a body of a saint. Due to him still being a saint at Proving Holiness level, the attacks would have killed him right there and then.


    Ye Futian''s body seemed to have transformed into a sun amidst the terrifying attacks. Rays of sunlight shot forth, looking just like the sun that Ye Futian saw in the ruins of Emperor Kua on that day.


    Terrifying light of the sun shrouded everything within his immediate vicinity, shooting at the attacks from the hands around him.


    The attacks rumbled and intended to continue moving on to kill Ye Futian, yet they were gradually melted down to nothingness, and they were then punched through by the divine light of the sun.


    Ye Futian basked in boundless holy fire under the intense light, as if he was a god of war of the sun.


    He stepped forth and blitzed, bringing the might of the holy fire of the sun to bear. The halberd itself seemed like it was burning. The light of the flames punched through everything as the attack was underway, heading straight for Xing Kai''s body.


    The Ninth Servant saw him coming and took one step forward. A golden divine wall appeared right before him, which looked like a divine seal of the great path, howling as it headed towards its target.


    The halberd and the seal clashed. The resulting force made it seem like the space was about to be torn apart, yet the seal was gobbled by the flames, burning a hole through it. A flash of the halberd was seen through the seal. The Ninth Servant lifted his arm and banged onto the weapon, retreating as he did so.


    A ray of terrifying light pulsed on the halberd as it continued to move forward, shooting at Xing Kai. Ye Futian''s god of war of flames form was sent reeling as well. His body rattled intensely, and blood was seen at the corner of his mouth, which was instantly dried up by the flames around him.


    "Retreat." A voice was heard. The Ninth Servant said this as he was seen retreating. The mighty ones from Ancient Imperial City retreated one after another.


    Gai Huang threw a palm attack. The light of space glittered, and he retreated as well, with Xing Qiu and the others in tow.


    Shen Tianzhan and Wu Yong stepped forward, glaring at the ones who left coldly. However, none of them gave chase, and they went up to Ye Futian instead.


    "Let''s head home." The aura on Ye Futian gradually subsided. He turned around and left where he was. While he had not used his full power in that battle, he was thoroughly exhausted. The injuries on him were just as grievous.


    However, he was sure that the Ninth Servant was having a hard time as well. He was borrowing Xing Kai''s body to do battle, after all, and that would have caused severe limitations.


    The people of Qianye City retreated in another direction.


    Countless in that place watched all of them left. Their minds were still reeling somewhat from what they saw.


    If the Ninth Servant had not appeared, Ye Futian would have most probably killed Xing Kai.


    Furthermore, even after the Ninth Servant advent, Ye Futian remained adamant about killing his opponent.


    However, the Ninth Servant was too powerful. Despite fighting through the use of the Mudra of God of War, it still looked as if he had been present personally, bringing Holiness of Nirvana level of powers to bear.


    The conflict between both sides would intensify after that battle.


    Worse still, none of them needed to hold back after leaving Crimson Dragon City.


    It seemed that a furious storm was brewing.

 1299 Developing Something New

    Ye Futian went to train in isolation as soon as he returned to Qianye City. The mighty ones staying in the city lord''s office all got busy as well. Xia Qingyuan ordered some men to head to the nine tribes in the western region of Crimson Dragon Realm, getting ready to gather the mighty ones from those tribes.


    Ancient Imperial City and Qianye City had butted heads in that battle in Crimson Dragon City, officially making them enemies. The two city lords had been involved in the conflict, with the Ninth Servant borrowing Xing Kai''s body to fight Ye Futian.


    The battle meant that the two strongest cities other than Crimson Dragon City had declared war on each other. Under such circumstances, Qianye City had to put all its effort into getting ready for war.


    While their opponents this time were only from one city instead of an entire region or a realm, it seemed that they were still at a disadvantage compared to their past battles. In the world of cultivators, a figure who was truly at the pinnacle of a plane symbolized far more than what could be measured through sheer numbers alone.


    The threat from the Ninth Servant, who was known as the number one figure outside of Crimson Dragon City, posed a far greater threat alone than all of the mighty figures from past conflicts combined. The people of Qianye City had to get ready for war under these circumstances.


    The news of what had happened at the Peach Banquet and the battle in Crimson Dragon City spread far and wide soon enough. The names of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng became known throughout Crimson Dragon Realm. Countless people were talking about them.


    Those two men from Qianye City had exhibited tremendous talents and combat prowess in that one battle. Even if one were to judge from their performance in the Peach Banquet, they had ruled over everyone else then too.


    Xing Kai had probably gotten jealous of all the glory he was supposedly robbed of, which made him want to kill Ye Futian.


    The future of Qianye City might turn incredibly grim.


    As City Lord of Qianye City, Ye Futian''s powers became known to all. He became the master of the nine tribes left behind by Emperor Kua, uniting them all under one banner. He''d also inherited the lineage of Emperor Kua. Xia Qingyuan, princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm, seemed to have paid close attention to him in those two battles, witnessing how he''d tapped into powers that were not his.


    All of that, coupled with what had happened at the Peach Banquet, made it certain that if the City Lord of Qianye City could make it out of the altercation with Ancient Imperial City in one piece, his success in the future would be immeasurable.


    As had been expected by many, more news came after that. News from the Regional Palace said that Ye Futian was to be ranked on the Regional King Rankings. Furthermore, there was no waiting. An exception had been made and he was being ranked without due process.


    With the talent and combat prowess he''d showcased at the Peach Banquet and the battle in Crimson Dragon City, there was no doubt that he would make it into the rankings.


    He''d managed to overwhelm many legendary figures who were ranked on the Regional King Rankings, as well as defeat Xing Kai, who was a Saint of True Self, by joining hands with Yu Sheng, forcing the Ninth Servant to save Xing Kai.


    There was little need to elaborate on the significance of that battle. The difference in planes was obvious, yet the two had been able to bridge the gap and defeat Xing Kai. If all three of them had been on the same plane, both Yu Sheng and Ye Futian would have probably been able to defeat Xing Kai on their own.


    Xing Kai was already quite a legend. He was ranked on the Regional King Rankings. As such, it was only natural for Ye Futian to be ranked as well. However, Ye Futian did not know about anything going on in the outside world at that moment. He had been training in isolation in the city lord''s office ever since he''d returned.


    Ye Futian was sitting cross-legged in a sealed-off training ground. The jade-green leaves and branches of the World Tree enveloped him. The will of life coursed through him, repairing any damages his body had sustained.


    While he had not been going all out in terms of tapping into foreign powers during that battle in Crimson Dragon City, he had nonetheless activated the Fire Spirit Orb in his Life Palace, wielding combat prowess exceeding his own plane. As such, it was only natural that his body had taken a huge toll from the action, requiring a certain amount of time to recuperate.


    Fortunately, Ye Futian''s special constitution was one that was capable of self-repair. Furthermore, his physical constitution had always been extremely strong, meaning that the extent of the injuries he''d sustained was not particularly concerning.


    At the moment, he was steeped in training.


    The injuries on both the outside and the inside of his body were being repaired. The scenery within his Life Palace, on the other hand, was something else altogether.


    A figure conjured by will appeared within the world in his Life Palace, training and digesting what had been learned. He''d gained quite a lot of knowledge from the Peach Banquet. While he couldn''t use the Magic Zither at the moment, the Thousand Character Proverb and Starry Stele nonetheless proved extremely useful. He had to devote some time to digest them, melding what he''d learned with his existing powers.


    Be it the Thousand Character Proverb or the Starry Stele, both of them were Renhuang-Class ways of learning, which would enhance his combat prowess a great deal.


    Furthermore, both abilities were different from one another and were even able to complement each other, melding into a single entity and creating even greater power.


    Ancient symbols circled Ye Futian. The symbols resonated with the surrounding great path. Every symbol contained powers of the great path, which were then imbued within his will. Any of the symbols contained the extremely powerful aura of the great path.


    Training with the Thousand Character Proverb did not allow him to wield his complete powers in combat due to the limitations of his current plane. He was only able to get the symbols ready prior. Such a method of fighting was akin to burning through consumables. However, the powers of the great path that were brought about when the symbols attacked were worth comprehending. If his comprehension was profound enough, he would be able to harness such powers at any given moment.


    He speculated that he would need to get near the Renhuang Plane before he would be able to bring the powers of the Thousand Character Proverb to bear at will. Doing so would practically allow him to wrap powers in symbols and get the powers of the great path to burst whenever a symbol appeared in his mind.


    The offensive techniques on the Starry Stele shared some similarities with the one on the Thousand Character Proverb, yet there were differences nonetheless. Saleen saw most of what it was able to do on the Divine Martial Road. It was truly a tablet of the great path that was able to summon the stars, overwhelming everything before it.


    That was probably not something saints were capable of doing, making it so that he needed to take his time to comprehend and train. The inherent powers of Renhuang level methods were naturally things that no one at the Saint Plane was able to fully access after all.


    After training for some time, the shadow conjured by his will arose. A staff appeared in his hand and he began to work on his staff techniques. His moves with the staff did not have any earth-shattering force in them, yet every single stroke contained the power of the great path. The moves melded well with the great path itself.


    The Nine Heavenly Attacks were something that he had acquired from close observation. After training with them for many years, they were no longer just the moves that had been imparted to him by the snow ape anymore. The moves themselves had been incorporated with all that he''d come to understand over his years of training. The moves were ever-changing. While the move sets might not be as powerful as those wielded by the snow ape all those years ago, the sets were nonetheless the most suitable for his use in his current state.


    Rumbles were heard within his Life Palace. Ye Futian stopped after working with the staff for some time. He then moved on to train with his halberd. The move sets with the halberd were something he''d created himself using references from the Nine Heavenly Strikes and many other methods. This helped to complete his way with the halberd.


    One could see the training methods of the staff in the way he moved with the halberd, yet his way of wielding the halberd remained different nonetheless. His way with the staff was fierce and overbearing, while his way with the halberd looked to be imbued with a sharpness capable of tearing anything down. The similarities between the two were that they were both very offensive-focused. This similarity strengthened as he went on to complete them.


    The battle he''d fought with Xing Kai in Crimson Dragon City had brought his way of the halberd to the very extreme. Each strike grew stronger than the strike before, making it so that Xing Kai was no longer able to withstand his blows.


    Ye Futian, who was still working in his Life Palace, continued to play around with the halberd. The force of his moves was natural and continued to grow stronger as the will of the great path imbued within.


    He then thrust with the weapon. The air around him shook and then stopped altogether. He stood quietly, seemingly having developed something.


    He repeated the moves several times as if he was trying to grasp something which was proving difficult. He finally stopped and resorted to thinking quietly instead.


    Ye Futian''s eyes opened in the quiet training ground. He stood up and extended his hand. A halberd appeared in his hand immediately. Raging currents howled around his body as he stepped forward. His arms went into action and moved forward, thrusting the weapon out right before him.


    Boom... a stifling rumbled was heard. Terrifying, space-shredding powers were felt right in front of the halberd. It contained the heaviness of the stars and overwhelmed the entire place.


    "Something is not right," Ye Futian muttered to himself. He was still unable to find the feeling he was looking for.


    He sidestepped and moved his body forward as he lashed out with another thrust with his arms. It looked as if the powerful will of the great path was all being condensed into a single point, forming a devastating whirlpool.


    Ye Futian looked as if he was in trance afterward, repeating the moves over and over. He did this so many times that he seemed to have forgotten about his injuries altogether.


    After many attempts at the attacks, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension activated without him realizing it. The will of the great path flowed within the cauldron of the great path of his body. The force burst through the halberd, growing increasingly powerful.


    Slivers of holy light shrouded his entire body. He thrust yet another time. At that moment, a beam of dazzling light burst through the air, lashing out like a straight line.


    Boom!


    A rumble was heard as the space around him crumbled. The matrix isolating the training ground shattered in an instant as if it had been reduced to nothing in a split second.


    Ye Futian finally stopped. He looked at the halberd in his hand and reached out to sense the power he felt. He extended his left hand. A powerful aura emanated from it.


    Dazzling beams calamity and lightning glittered, shooting out faraway. At that moment, every single bolt of lightning burst like thunder as they shot forward, tearing down every single thing they crossed.


    That will of the great path seemed to be everywhere in the sky.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky and saw something joyful.


    He had unexpectedly developed yet another mystical will of the great path while trying to train with the mystical methods he''d learned. The new will was something that was not of his own.


    That will of the great path contained powerful space-tearing powers. At the same time, it was imbued with very frightening powers of the stars and suppressing powers.


    The force that burst from the attack could have been considered a product of melding several of the powerful wills of the great path.


    "Entropy," Ye Futian muttered to himself. The will of the great path was named entropy, which was an offensive power. Such will of the great path would enhance every attack it was imbued with, making them overwhelming and fearsome. One attack was all it would take to reduce everything to nothing.


    Ye Futian glittered with holy light after he developed the new will of the great path. The light from the Deed of Thorough Comprehension became even more blindingly brilliant.


    His aura had also strengthened, melding naturally with the great path. His comprehension of the great path had deepened, He had reached the pinnacle of Proving Holiness level without even realizing it.

 1300 A Challenge

    A group of mighty figures arrived at the city lord''s office of Qianye City. Shen Tianzhan received them personally. The ones who''d arrived all sported an overbearing aura and the fiery crimson robes of the Regional Palace. The one who took the lead was a top-notch figure at Holiness of Nirvana level.


    "How may I be of service?" Shen Tianzhan asked, cupping his hands.


    "We''re here to look for City Lord Ye," the man in the lead answered.


    "City Lord Ye is now training in isolation. I''m sure you all know about the recent battle. He needs some time alone." Shen Tianzhan then added, "If you don''t mind, I''ll be glad to relay the message."


    "That will do." The messenger nodded slightly and continued, "The Regional Palace hereby extends its invitation to Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan to join the Regional Palace for training. The invitees are welcome at the Crimson River any time."


    Many in the city lord''s office looked up at the ones who''d arrived and shuddered deep down. While they''d speculated that something like this would happen, it still nonetheless proved shocking when the time came.


    The Regional Palace made yet another exception.


    In the Crimson Dragon Realm, those who had missed the selection process at the Crimson River had not necessarily forgone their chance to join the Regional Palace just yet. If the ones intending to join the Regional Palace proved extraordinary enough, they still had a shot at it.


    Both Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan had earned the Regional Palace''s approval. What they''d done back at the Peach Banquet had proved exceptional enough. There was little need to say anything about Ye Futian. As for Xia Qingyuan, she had also proven her talents by defeating Shu Zi. As such, it was not a strange thing for the Regional Palace to extend their invitation to her as well.


    "Very well, I shall inform City Lord Ye." Shen Tianzhan nodded. Common people would have been extremely elated by such news. However, those who''d truly earned the right to enter the Regional Palace would never be so excitable. That was because they were people who stood above most others, prideful and confident.


    As for Ye Futian, who was more than qualified to be ranked on the Regional King Rankings, the Regional Palace had made an exception by putting him on the rankings. Deeming him qualified to train in the Regional Palace was something normal enough.


    Shen Tianzhan felt no surprise about any of that. Compared to what Ye Futian had done before, getting into Regional Palace hardly seemed significant at all. What put him at ease, however, was that the invitation from the Regional Palace was akin to a tag for protection... so long as Ye Futian agreed to train in the Regional Palace. That would mean that he was out of the Ninth Servant''s reach.


    While the Ninth Servant had scoffed at a cave master of the Regional Palace not long ago, showing how arrogant and abrasive he was, that was due only to his strength and backing. If one were to truly compare the strengths of their resources, there was no way Ancient Imperial City could compare with the Regional Palace. Furthermore, the Regional Palace was backed by the Crimson Dragon Emperor himself.


    "Very well." Those from the Regional Palace nodded before departing into the sky. It seemed as if they had only been there to deliver the news.


    As for Ye Futian''s choice, that was something entirely up to him.


    There were quite a few people who felt rather shocked by what had happened. Shen Tianzhan turned around, getting ready to tell Xia Qingyuan about it before letting both her and Ye Futian decide what to do about it.


    News quickly spread from the city lord''s office of Qianye City that Ye Futian had accepted the Regional Palace''s invitation and was about to train there. The news seemed to calm down the tense atmosphere that had been building up all over the place. Everyone was wondering if this meant that the great battle would be avoided.


    Ye Futian wanted to avoid confronting the Ninth Servant for the time being. Instead, he wanted to devote his time to training and enhancing his powers. However, when everyone realized that both Ye Futian and Xing Kai were about to train in the same place, the expression of many turned rather peculiar. They then wondered what would happen if they were to meet at the Regional Palace.


    Many wondered if they would continue fighting each other.


    Xing Kai was training in peace inside a palace within Ancient Imperial City. Dazzling light sparkled as the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will coursed all over him, emitting an imposing aura. However, Xing Kai''s expression remained tense throughout the training, as if something was weighing on his shoulders.


    That battle in Crimson Dragon City had dealt a heavy blow to him. He''d never expected needing the Ninth Servant to show up, just so to keep him alive. It was an insult like no other to him.


    He heard footsteps approaching. Xing Kai opened his eyes to look at the Ninth Servant. His eyes no longer looked as pure and adamant as they had before. They looked tainted by some other thoughts.


    The Ninth Servant looked at his eyes. He was able to tell Xing Kai''s current state of mind just by looking at those eyes. Xing Kai seemed to have developed some inner demons due to dealing with Ye Futian.


    "Regardless of what you have run into on your path in cultivation, you needed to deal with it on your own. You have met your match this time, and he might be more extraordinary than any whom you have met in the past. Until you can overcome that, you will forever live in his shadow," the Ninth Servant said.


    "I believe you could make it."


    Xing Kai remained silent.


    "There was news not long ago that said that he has earned the approval of the Regional Palace and is about to enter the Regional Palace to train. The two of you will probably meet in the future," the Ninth Servant continued. Xing Kai''s eyes turned cold within an instant.


    So, Ye Futian was going to join the Regional Palace''s ranks?


    Xing Kai got up and walked outside. He walked over to the steps and cast his gaze far away.


    "Are you feeling disappointed in me, teacher?" Xing Kai asked.


    The Ninth Servant looked at his back and was silent.


    "I''d like to hear the truth," Xing Kai added.


    "I''m disappointed because I have too high of an expectation of you. You should know the extent of the hope I''ve placed on you, but such a day would have come sooner or later on your path in cultivation. As such, I do hope you''ll first win against yourself, young master," the Ninth Servant said with a bow. It seemed as if his attitude had changed.


    "I have to win against myself because I couldn''t win against them, eh?" Xing Kai sighed. It was not something that he could simply let slide. He needed the Ninth Servant to be around just so that he could survive.


    How could I face anyone else ever again?


    How could I ever claim to be a descendant of Emperor Zhan again?


    He was even more disappointed in himself.


    "With your permission, I shall head to Qianye City right away. I will cut off their heads and bring them to the Ancient Imperial City. You will no longer have to be concerned about him if I were to do so," the Ninth Servant said while looking at Xing Kai''s back.


    Xing Kai did not doubt the Ninth Servant. If he truly wanted the older man to do so, he only would have needed to tell the Ninth Servant, and the older man would see to it for him. However, it seemed ridiculous to send the Ninth Servant to kill someone who had defeated him.


    "Sir." A voice was heard from below the steps. Someone had arrived, asking for an audience.


    "What is it?" the Ninth Servant turned around to look at the one who had spoken. His eyes were sharp as they shot through the space. He wondered what would have caused someone to interrupt him at such a moment.


    That man extended both hands, holding a letter. It looked like an invitation of sorts. The Ninth Servant grabbed at the air. The letter then flew right into his hands.


    The Ninth Servant opened up the letter to read its contents. While his expression looked as calm as it had always been, he shuddered somewhat deep down.


    The Ninth Servant''s eyes seemed to pierce through the space before him as he looked in the direction of Qianye City.


    City Lord Ye Futian of Qianye City.


    He really was something.


    "What is that?" Xing Kai, who was at the Ninth Servant''s side, saw his reaction.


    The Ninth Servant looked at Xing Kai, but he did not hand the letter over. Xing Kai seemed to have sensed that something was amiss and extended his hand. The Ninth Servant only handed the letter over to him after that.


    Xing Kai took a look at the letter. His eyes became extremely pointed within an instant. Powerful fighting will seemed to surge from him uncontrollably, bursting out furiously.


    Ye Futian!


    This was just insane.


    That letter he''d sent to Ancient Imperial City was a challenge. A challenge to fight to the death right outside the Regional Palace, above the Crimson River. The Regional Palace would bear witness.


    The two of them would no longer be meeting within the Regional Palace, as Ye Futian intended to fight Xing Kai to the death right above the Crimson River before entering the Regional Palace.


    Only one of them would be able to enter the Regional Palace alive.


    Ye Futian refused to coexist and train with him in the Regional Palace. One could imagine what was going on inside Xing Kai''s mind when he read the letter. He''d lost to Ye Futian and Yu Sheng in Crimson Dragon City not long ago.


    Now, Ye Futian had sent Xing Kai a challenge. He would be the only combatant fighting Xing Kai this time. Furthermore, the fight would be to the death and be witnessed by the Regional Palace. Only one of them would make it out alive.


    This was unruliness and insolence of unprecedented levels. Xing Kai had never expected Ye Futian to dare to challenge him to a one-on-one fight to the death.


    The Ninth Servant, who was at his side, was equally surprised. He thought Ye Futian would agree to train in the Regional Palace because he wanted to avoid clashing head-on with Ancient Imperial City.


    However, he''d never expected such a challenge to be made before Ye Futian even agreed to train in the Regional Palace. Worse still, Xing Kai''s Mindfulness of the Path had been damaged, and his state of mind was faltering.


    There was no way he could shirk the battle after receiving such a letter. If he refused the challenge, his name��Xing Kai��would no longer be worthy of pride, but one filled with shame.


    Xing Kai would never make it past his current state of mind. However, Xing Kai wondered what had made Ye Futian so insolent and so confident that he would emerge as the victor. Xing Kai wondering if Ye Futian had become a Saint of True Self.


    "Are you going to accept the challenge?" the Ninth Servant asked.


    Xing Kai looked at him. The Ninth Servant was almost able to ascertain Xing Kai''s decision from the look in his eyes. Xing Kai had no choice whatsoever when it came to accepting the challenge. He had to fight.


    "Excuse me for a bit," the Ninth Servant said. He finished talking and took one step away. His body soon disappeared into the air.


    Towering pressure rained all over the city lord''s office of Qianye City not long afterward. One figure after another took to the skies. All the Holiness of Nirvanas arrived midair and looked up. That pressure from above was very terrifying.


    Boom!


    A will of great path pressed down as a huge face appeared in midair. It was none other than a conjuration of the Ninth Servant''s will. Terrifying will pressed down in a frenzy, heading straight for the city lord''s office.


    A silver-haired figure took to the skies from within the city lord''s office. Looking up at the face in the sky, he said, "Are you here to check on my plane out of concern?"


    The Ninth Servant placed Mudras of God of War on both Xing brothers for protection. He would not have simply allowed Xing Kai to get into such a dangerous situation after receiving the challenge. If Ye Futian had indeed made it as a Saint of True Self, Xing Kai might have just signed his death warrant.


    The Ninth Servant knew very well from that battle in Crimson Dragon City that if both men were to be of an equal plane and fight to the death, Xing Kai would definitely end up dead.


    As such, he''d shown up personally to find out.


    A raging will pressure continued to shroud the place. That huge face stared at Ye Futian, who was among the crowd below.


    The Ninth Servant found that the young man was still at the Proving Holiness level. The Ninth Servant then wondered what had made the young man so confident that he would issue a challenge to fight Xing Kai one-on-one.


    In that battle back in Crimson Dragon City, both Yu Sheng and the Halberd of Time and Space had only served as auxiliaries. If the two men fought one-on-one to the death, things would be very different.


    Ye Futian truly needed to be able to win against Xing Kai. Otherwise, he would be the one who would end up dead.

 1301 Above the Crimson River

    The Ninth Servant did not reply to Ye Futian''s words, but it was clear that he was concerned about Ye Futian''s plane. If Ye Futian had indeed become a Saint of True Self, Xing Kai would be in a lot of trouble. He definitely would not allow Xing Kai to fight. A damaged Mindfulness of the Path could be repaired, but if he were to die in a fight, everything would be over.


    Furthermore, the spot that Ye Futian had picked for the fight was indeed brutal. Above the Crimson River, outside of the Regional Palace.


    He had no intention of showing mercy in any manner. Even someone as powerful as the Ninth Servant would not be able to interfere in a battle fought right outside the Regional Palace. If Xing Kai accepted the challenge, there would be no turning back.


    As such, the Ninth Servant had to go and check.


    The huge face gradually disappeared, along with that powerful aura emanating from the sky above. Shen Tianzhan, Wu Yong, and the others rescinded their auras as well, walking down to Ye Futian''s side. Shen Tianzhan then said, "He''s gone."


    The Ninth Servant had indeed only shown up to take a look. However, now that the Ninth Servant had come to take a look, there was simply no way Xing Kai could walk away from the battle. There was simply no reason for him to do so.


    If Xing Kai were to refuse, then he would lose all face and no longer be able to stand in the Crimson Dragon Realm. He would be unable to even return to the Regional Palace.


    All of that would have profound effects on Xing Kai. It would probably result in the total disintegration of his Mindfulness of the Path, making further advancement impossible. If he were unable to resolve that trauma, he would never be able to become an Unblemished Saint in this lifetime.


    A huge commotion broke out in Qianye City right after the Ninth Servant left. The conflict between Ancient Imperial City and Qianye City had been catching the attention of everyone recently. Many thought that things had been resolved by Ye Futian agreeing to join the ranks of the Regional Palace.


    However, they quickly found that Ye Futian had issued a challenge to fight to the death instead. The fight would take place seven days later, above the Crimson River, outside of the Regional Palace. Only the winner would be able to make it into the Regional Palace.


    Ye Futian did not want to coexist with Xing Kai. There would only be one of them left standing. That was confidence like no other, for he had challenged Xing Kai, who was a Saint of True Self, as a Saint at Proving Holiness level. Everyone wondered where Ye Futian''s confidence had come from.


    While he and Ye Sheng had teamed up and managed to pin down Xing Kai in their last battle, fighting him one-on-one would be something else altogether. Furthermore, it was a fight to the death, and Xing Kai would definitely go all out.


    Ye Futian had not even bothered giving himself a way out. Everyone deemed that the young City Lord of Qianye City was indeed brutal. He was not only brutal towards his opponent, but he was also brutal to himself.


    Many wondered what the consequences of losing the battle would be. The Ninth Servant returned and everything else happened as expected. Xing Kai accepted the challenge. He would show up seven days later above the Crimson River with the sole purpose of cutting down Ye Futian.


    Such massively shocking news traveled throughout the cities like wildfire. Countless listeners shuddered at the news. This showdown would truly be considered a clash of titans.


    Xing Kai had only lost shortly after he''d gained renown, and he''d lost at the hands of both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. City Lord Ye Futian of Qianye City had quickly risen in fame after he''d became known to the world. His actions had truly shocked the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    At present, there was not a single person who didn''t know Ye Futian''s name. Two such figures were about to have a showdown above the Crimson River, and one could only imagine just how shocking things would become. Many had only heard about the battle that had taken place in Crimson Dragon City, so they deemed the next one as something not to be missed.


    Time passed and Ye Futian remained training in isolation in Qianye City.


    Xing Kai of Ancient Imperial City was doing the same. The Ninth Servant oversaw his training personally. A Saint of True Self like Xing Kai would not benefit much from guidance from outside, but he could nonetheless prepare a few more tricks up his sleeves for the fight.


    Ye Futian trained in the way of the staff at times, and the way of the halberd at others while still in Qianye City. He kept improving on his techniques to make the attacks even more powerful. He stopped training after quite a while when he noticed someone approaching him. It was Xia Qingyuan.


    "Are you sure you''re going to win?" Xia Qingyuan asked. Ye Futian''s opponent was not some common saint. His opponent was going to be Xing Kai, who was known throughout all of Crimson Dragon Realm. Furthermore, Ye Futian was about to fight someone one Saint Plane above his own.


    She knew that Ye Futian must have learned something from that battle back at Crimson Dragon City that had made him bold enough to challenge Xing Kai in such a manner.


    "I''m not," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Xia Qingyuan was baffled. She stared at him, wide-eyed.


    Was he telling her that he was not sure that he could win?


    "I could probably win." Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan''s expression and grinned.


    Probably?


    Xia Qingyuan continued to stare at him. It seemed as if none of those were the answers she sought.


    "If I were to have absolute confidence in my ability to win, there is no way that Xing Kai would have agreed to the challenge. I''m afraid the Ninth Servant wouldn''t have agreed to it in the first place." Ye Futian continued, seeing how Xia Qingyuan was not going to just let it slide. "But, my chance of winning is greater."


    "A greater chance at winning made you dare to throw a fight-to-the-death challenge at him?" A rather cynical voice was heard. Ye Futian turned around and saw two men walking towards him��Wu Yong and an elder.


    He was rather surprised to see that elder, as it was none other than the Star Plucking Saint, who had appeared and helped him several times in the past. That old man had even given Ye Futian the first Flames of the Way he''d stolen before disappearing without a trace. He''d then shown up at the last battle at Qianye City to stop Gai Huang.


    He then disappeared again after that battle. He came and went as he pleased and no one was able to get a hold of him. The old man seemed to truly live up to his reputation.


    Now, he''d appeared yet again.


    "I''ve heard that you''ve been to Ancient Imperial City, senior," Ye Futian said, looking at the Star Plucking Saint.


    The old man glared at him and replied, "Enough with old stories."


    "Seems like the rumors were true. But why did you go to Ancient Imperial City, despite knowing that you wouldn''t be able to win against the Ninth Servant?" Ye Futian asked.


    The old man glared at him even more intensely. The young man really had a way of getting on people''s bad side.


    Ye Futian then looked rather apologetic after seeing the old man''s expression. He bowed to the old man respectfully and said, "You''ve helped me several times, senior, and I''m grateful for that. But I''d really like to know, why did you help me?"


    "You know that I''ve been to Ancient Imperial City, so you''d know the beef between me and them. The Ninth Servant of Ancient Imperial City is known as the number one figure outside of Crimson Dragon City. He is also known to be invincible in terms of offensive capacity. I''ve lost to him and I''m afraid I''m stuck as a loser. I saw your battle with Emperor Li''s Realm before, coincidentally. I saw that you have a lot of potential in you, so I gave you the flames. And man, you''ve even gotten your hands on Emperor Kua''s ruins. I''m truly honored and relieved, now that I see you fighting Ancient Imperial City."


    "Is that all?" Ye Futian asked with a peculiar expression on his face.


    "Do you think that I have something to hide then?" The old man glared at Ye Futian.


    "Very well then." Ye Futian took the answer for what it was worth. He was able to see that the old man was immensely cunning. The old man was someone who would have spilled what he wanted to say. There was no way Ye Futian could have fished anything out of him if he refused to talk. As such, he left it as it was.


    "So, what brings you here, senior?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I heard that you chose the Starry Stele ancient path while you were on the Divine Martial Path back at the Peach Banquet. The ability that I''m most proficient in is that of the stars, so I''m here to teach you what I know. The lessons will not be as good as those found in the royal palace, but I''ll let you decide for yourself if what I teach will be useful to you or not. It may enable you to kill that fellow from Ancient Imperial City without mercy," the old man explained.


    Ye Futian''s jaw dropped. Talk about living as you fancy!


    But then again, the old man was known as the Star Plucking Saint, so he would definitely be very proficient in the powers of stars.


    "In that case, thank you very much, senior," Ye Futian said, cupping his hands. Someone had arrived at his door to help further his training. He would have been an idiot to refuse.


    Regardless, it was clear that the old man held no enmity towards him. "Keep your eyes, ears, and everything else peeled." The old man''s eyes became incredibly deep all of a sudden. He slowly walked towards Ye Futian and, within an instant, Ye Futian''s eyes seemed to have sunken into them. He did not resist, simply letting his will enter those eyes. There was a world of stars to be found within.


    Ye Futian was completely steeped in it before long.


    He remained steeped in his training and would not emerge from it for quite a while, even after the old man left.


    ...


    Seven days passed in the blink of an eye. It was too short a time in Crimson Dragon Realm. His training in isolation was over before long. The day had arrived when Ye Futian and Xing Kai would have their showdown.


    The crowd at the shores of the Crimson River was huge. Countless mighty beings arrived, including some great figures of top-notch forces, as well as top-class geniuses from all corners of the world.


    All of their attention was turned toward that raging river. The Battle of the Crimson River was held there every year, an event that was guaranteed to draw a huge crowd.


    However, the battle that would be held on this day had captured more attention than any Battle of the Crimson River in the past ever had.


    The Battle of the Crimson River was originally meant to be a battle between figures at the pinnacles of their powers. The ultimate winner would be accepted into the Regional Palace.


    However, that impending battle was between two immensely powerful figures ranked on the Regional King Rankings. Furthermore, it was a fight to the death.


    Two geniuses who stood at the pinnacle of Crimson Dragon Realm were about to fight above the Crimson River.


    Outsiders aside, even the ones from the Regional Palace came to stand outside the Regional Palace. Their eyes were locked onto that raging river before them.


    Pei Min, Yin Tianjiao, Shu Zi, Xie Qingshan, and many top-notch geniuses were also present. On the opposite shore of the Crimson River, Luo Yang, Jiang Tai''e, and many who had been present at the Peach Banquet were there as well. The entire Crimson Dragon Realm was paying close attention to this showdown.


    "Who do you think will win this?" Xie Qingshan asked rather excitedly.


    "I''ve heard that the Ninth Servant went to check on Ye Futian''s progress at Qianye City. It seems that Ye Futian has yet to make a breakthrough. While Yu Sheng and Ye Futian beat Xing Kai by teaming up before, but if it will be the two of them fighting one-on-one, I''m afraid Xing Kai will have a better chance of winning." Yin Tianjiao said, "Of course, that is only in theory. Ye Futian is the one who issued the challenge, and it''s obvious that he''s not doing this because he has a death wish. In that case, we should just let him prove how much he is capable of. The outcome is rather hard to predict now."


    "Yu Sheng suppressed Xing Kai hard in their last battle. Yu Sheng made the first move and dominated Xing Kai every time, preventing Xing Kai from having time to deal with Ye Futian right until he was defeated by that divine implement. I think that battle simply gave Ye Futian too much confidence." Shu Zi did not agree with Yin Tianjiao. She continued with a cold tone, saying, "There''ll be no surprises with this battle."


    It was apparent that she thought Xing Kai would win.


    "I think Ye Futian has better chances," Pei Min said plainly, his voice sounding easygoing and nonchalant.


    There was hardly any reason behind it. There was no way any analysis of their strengths could make a definite conclusion. He simply stated what he felt.


    They were not the only ones speculating. The people of the entire Crimson Dragon Realm were speculating about who would win in this showdown.


    Terrifying might of the great path down rained from above. The Crimson River howled and rolled. A figure appeared in the air and then walked forward, heading straight for the Crimson River.


    "Xing Kai is here."


    All eyes were on him. Fighting will coursed all over him and washed all over his immediate vicinity.


    The battle had yet to begin, yet his fighting will was barely contained. It pulsed ferociously all over him, engulfing the space right above the Crimson River.

 1302 Furious Battle

    The Crimson River howled and rolled. The hot flames stained the sky above everyone red. Xing Kai stood with his fighting will coiled around his body. His eyes were cold yet determined. His tall, imposing body looked like a stone pillar, only his clothes billowing in the wind.


    He was adjusting his aura, getting it into the most perfect state possible. To Xing Kai, this was a battle that he could absolutely not afford to lose. Ye Futian had issued a fight-to-the-death challenge to him despite being only at Proving Holiness level. Xing Kai had reigned supreme among his generation in the Crimson Dragon Realm and had never lost before. He had to win in this battle above the Crimson River today as well.


    He was going to cut down Ye Futian, take his revenge, and make his Mindfulness of the Path whole again. The Ninth Servant was there today as well. Many at the shores of the Crimson River made way for him. All eyes were on the Ninth Servant.


    This battle would determine the rest of Xing Kai''s life.


    At that moment, there was quite a commotion at the shore and many opened up a path. A group of people was seen moving forward, cutting through the crowd.


    The one taking the lead was clad in white and had silver hair. He looked extremely dashing. That man was none other than Ye Futian. Many mighty figures from Qianye City were there as well. Xia Qingyuan and Yu Sheng both stood by his side. If Ye Futian won, the three of them would get to train in the Regional Palace together.


    It was finally time.


    Many turned their eyes to look at Ye Futian. Xing Kai, who was above the Crimson River, turned to face Ye Futian. The fighting will all over his body seemed to grow even stronger as he adjusted his spiritual state.


    Despite being very sure that he would definitely be able to kill Ye Futian, he was not going to lower his guard. He would give it his all and cut down Ye Futian to prove his worth.


    Ye Futian took a step forward once he reached the shore, heading straight for the middle of the Crimson River.


    Several formidable aurae shrouded the Crimson River high in the air. They were people from the Regional Palace. Ye Futian had requested that the Regional Palace bear witness to this battle.


    Yet another formidable aura came down, streaking through the air above the crowd. Many looked up above the Crimson River. They had been rather irked before, but their anger quickly subsided. People from the royal palace were showing up.


    Two figures appeared above before everyone else, landing at the edge of the Crimson River. They stood at the very forefront of the crowd, yet no one objected.


    "Wasn''t that Peach Banquet hosted by Chi Shang? He is here to watch the battle!" Many looked at the figure at the forefront of the crowd. Indeed, it was none other than Prince Chi Shang. The person by his side was none other than Yu Shifei, his lover. The two of them were ranked on the Regional King Rankings.


    "This is quite a pity," Chi Shang said, taking a look at the Crimson River. While the stronger of the two fighters had already been identified back at the Divine Martial Road, Ye Futian was nonetheless the one with greater potential. However, Xing Kai was the one who had renewed the record at the last Peach Banquet. It was a pity that he had run into Ye Futian and Yu Sheng at the last one.


    Furthermore, he was unable to accept that both of them were more superb than he was.


    The two legendary figures were unable to coexist. It had been determined on that day that one of them must fall, which was quite a pity. After all, both men were top geniuses of the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    But then again, regardless of what Chi Shang thought of the battle, he was not about to get involved. Feuds in the world of cultivators were not things that could be settled by talking. Since both of them had agreed to fight to the death, all the prince needed to do was simply bear witness to it all.


    The crowd quickly turned its eyes away from Chi Shang and Yu Shifei, watching the Crimson River instead. It was apparent that the fight-to-the-death battle between Ye Futian and Xing Kai was more interesting than anyone showing up to watch it, even if one of the people was the prince.


    Furthermore, despite the two men standing very far away from each other, their presence and auras were already clashing.


    When Ye Futian stepped forward, Xing Kai''s fighting will rained down across the space, shrouding their vicinity and pressing down on Ye Futian. That fighting will seemed to coalesce into solid attacks, thrashing and striking at Ye Futian furiously.


    Ye Futian slowly walked forward, every step shaking the space around him. The Crimson River below howled and rolled.


    He attacked with the Deed of Thorough Comprehension without hesitation, melding with the great path, making it so that everything in the world around him fell into his hands, resisting the fighting will bearing down on him.


    Dazzling light glittered as Xing Kai''s fighting will took a solid form. It was transmuted into a seal as its power spread through their surroundings, enveloping the sky above the Crimson River, lashing out straight at Ye Futian. Xing Kai was already attacking Ye Futian from across the great river.


    Ye Futian glared at Xing Kai across the vast space. There was no anxiousness in his eyes at all. Chaotic currents whipped around him all of a sudden like devastating lightning bolts.


    The world around him turned into a world of destruction. Calamities of the great path raged on all around him. Countless lightning strikes of calamity shrouded the place, lashing out furiously.


    A beam of dazzling golden light of calamity collided with the seal, resulting in a furious rumble. The seal crumbled right away as if it had been hit with a devastating attack.


    Raging light of calamity tore through everything around Ye Futian without care, enveloping the space around him and hitting every single seal that it met. The Crimson River roared as the sky above the river looked like it must be doomsday. Many seals were destroyed by that glittering lightning of calamity.


    "He is that powerful with attacks?" Countless eyes were locked onto the figure basking in the devastating light of calamity. Ye Futian''s plane was lower than Xing Kai''s after all, yet he was able to destroy Xing Kai''s will of the great path using only borrowed might of the great path alone.


    It was as if he was not at a disadvantage at all.


    Xing Kai looked unfazed as he watched everything in silence. He then saw Ye Futian approaching him. He responded by cranking up the fighting will on him accordingly.


    The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will burst from his body furiously as his Life Spirit was unleashed, making him look as if he was an awakened god of war. Brilliantly shining rings appeared above his body. That fighting will affected the will of the great path all around him. The roar of the Crimson River grew increasingly frightening, making it sound as if the clouds above them were roaring in anger as well.


    Xing Kai''s body grew extremely tall, as if he was a god of war waking up, and cranked the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will to its maximum, exuding pressure all over the sky around him.


    He had been repeatedly hammered by Yu Sheng in the last battle in Crimson Dragon City, which had greatly affected his combat capacity, making it so that he had no time to burst with complete power.


    In the battle he was fighting at present, he was determined to let Ye Futian see another Xing Kai, one who lived up to the identity of being a descendant of Emperor Zhan.


    Boundless Heaven Punishing Fighting Will coalesced as he extended his hand, conjuring a huge spear which pulsed with holy light. What was even more terrifying was that beams of devastating light of the great path tore through the space around them, which seemed to be a manifestation of the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will, raining down from the heavens, tearing through their surroundings as they lashed out at Ye Futian.


    Many looked up at the scene above, finding it utterly terrifying.


    Even though Xing Kai had lost recently, that was not to say that his fame had been for nothing. Xing Kai was truly powerful and had repeatedly proven so in many battles. His powers were definitely top class and few throughout Crimson Dragon Realm were able to match him blow for blow. The pressure which emanated from him at that moment seemed to be a testament to his strength.


    That utterly overbearing stance and action seemed to make people forget about his current plane level, as he seemed like a living god of war. Ye Futian looked up. The beams of dazzling golden light rained down like spears, heading straight for him.


    He took one furious step forward and the entire area shook. A space-freezing power was unleashed as the light emitted from the Deed of Thorough Comprehension shrouded his surroundings. The scene transformed into a world of stars shortly after. Stars circled about, protecting him within.


    The raining spears clashed with the huge stars, resulting in earth-shattering rumbles. Terrifying explosions were heard all over the Crimson River.


    Boom.


    Xing Kai moved in the air as Heaven Punishing Fighting Will burst to the extreme wherever the spears pointed. The entire sky around them seemed shrouded by the might. Countless spears rained down at once, tearing through space as they headed for Ye Futian.


    Xing Kai had been unleashing his Heaven Punishing Fighting Will in a frenzy since the battle commenced. He had not shown the slightest hint of wanting to take his time to spar with Ye Futian. He was trying to pin Ye Futian down in the showdown without the slightest hint of reservation.


    Ye Futian naturally sensed Xing Kai''s intentions. The attacks had been overwhelming from the start. Xing Kai''s killing intention towards him was unmistakably strong.


    Powerful spiritual will was unleashed and melded with the vast surroundings around them.


    The great path expanded and multiplied, giving birth to all in the universe. Wherever the will of the great path reached, everything was turned into a personal expression of their powers.


    A dazzling starry world glittered above the Crimson River. More stars were conjured and appeared in their surroundings, emitting an extremely brilliant light. Those stars circled Ye Futian''s body, which seemed to meld with the stars, making him the absolute center of that starry world.


    The stars around him coursed with mystical trajectories. Their surroundings rumbled as the spinning stars clashed with the huge spears raining down from above, bursting with a devastating force that shook the heavens.


    The Ninth Servant, who was standing at the shore, frowned, finding all of this similar to the most proficient arts of the Star Plucking Saint. According to Gai Huang, that old man had fought him once at Qianye City, holding him back. It seemed that the Star Plucking Saint was indeed on Qianye City''s side.


    However, it was not so easy to block the spears of a god of war.


    Xing Kai turned into a golden bolt of lightning at that moment, tearing through space as countless spears burst, blasting the stars of the great path surrounding Ye Futian. Violent rumbles continued to be heard as the stars crumbled and the spears shattered.


    Golden, divine spears appeared and blasted at the orbiting stars. Light conjured from the boundless Heaven Punishing Fighting Will lashed out in an instant, causing the trajectories of the stars to crumble and turn chaotic, as they were being destroyed in a frenzy.


    The devastating lighting pulsing on the spears continued to move forward, hitting the screens of light and intending to kill Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian stepped forward at that moment. He twirled about as he moved, conjuring a halberd his hand. He then lashed out with the halberd. The stars circling him turned into beams of light which blasted Xing Kai''s body, intending to bury him in the stars.


    Xing Kai then stepped forward and continued lashing out with his spears. His force was unyielding and one star after another was shattered as he continued to destroy anything that stood in his way.


    At that moment, the light of the stars all around Ye Futian gathered into a single point. The halberd thrust, clashing with a spear heading straight for him. Boundless lights from the stars gushed and melded with the halberd as if that one strike carried the power of all the stars around.


    At the very moment, the halberd and the spear clashed. Everything around the weapons crumbled into nothingness. The Crimson River below howled and rolled in a frenzy. Scorching fires of lava in the river splashed, drowning the space around them.

 1303 Overpower

    Xing Kai took his god of war form in the middle of the chaotic battlefield. His eyes were cold and determined, without a single hint of indecision. The spear in his hand crumbled and was entirely destroyed. He sensed the terrifying entropic powers from what was happening. It was as if there were some terrifying space-shredding powers imbued within the power of the stars. Such was the way of entropy.


    That entropic power was something he had not seen when he''d last fought Ye Futian.


    The stars around Ye Futian were crumbling in a frenzy as well. The halberd in his hand was pierced by a powerful beam of light, quickly reducing to nothingness.


    However, he was able to fight just as well without a weapon. He took the shock of the halberd''s destruction head-on with his god of war form, then took one step forward to overpower the space around him.


    He lifted his arm, causing seals to appear everywhere. Every single seal was imbued with terrifying Heaven Punishing Fighting Will. These turned into divine seals made specifically for combat.


    He thrust his arm forward and an extremely huge palm print locked the space around them down, blocking out the sky and drowning Ye Futian''s body within. At the same time, that palm print howled as it was blasted by all the other seals around it. They were so powerful that they seemed to be able to tear the sky itself apart.


    Xing Kai''s eyes were filled with murderous intent. He was a Saint of True Self, which meant that his power of the great path was far above Ye Futian''s. He was also armed with Heaven Punishing Fighting Will and the Mudra of God of War. In terms of close combat capacity, he deemed that there was no way Ye Futian would be able to resist his attacks.


    Countless people at the shores of the Crimson River and the Regional Palace witnessed that scene. They saw Xing Kai''s body merge with his Life Spirit and his entire body emit dazzling light. It seemed as if he was shrouded in the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will, emanating a will of the god of war like no other. That extremely imposing form of his made it so that many were able to sense its might even from far away.


    Just how great of a power was Ye Futian taking on?


    The battle was not just sparring, but a fight to the death. Xing Kai had no intention of sparring with Ye Futian. He''d brought his most powerful offensive techniques into the fight without delay for the express purpose of killing Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian shot a glance at the extremely imposing Xing Kai. So, he was going for a showdown right from the start?


    Another halberd was conjured as he was shrouded by the ring of light conjured by the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. He saw the seals coming down at him from all sides, yet he did not back away. He took one step forward, just like Xing Kai.


    "You''re wasting your time." Xing Kai''s voice was cold as he howled through their surroundings. His voice was imbued with the towering fighting will, capable of shaking the will of others.


    Yet at that moment, within the ring of light conjured by the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, beams of light of even greater intensity appeared out of nowhere.


    It was as if thousands of ancient symbols appeared at the same time, surrounding Ye Futian. Every single symbol seemed to be imbued with extremely formidable powers. Their surroundings rumbled and exploded as the symbols circled Ye Futian. It was the sign of the formless power of suppression emanated by Xing Kai being destroyed, making it impossible for him to stop the orbits of the ancient symbols.


    "The Thousand Character Proverb!"


    Chi Shang, who was standing at the forefront at the shore of the Crimson River, was rather shocked. Ye Futian had been the one who was able to comprehend the Thousand Character Proverb better than anyone else. He had also earned himself the tablet, which was crafted by a Renhuang, enabling one to extend one''s spiritual will into it for learning purposes.


    Ye Futian was obviously able to bring the power of the Thousand Character Proverb into the fight with Xing Kai despite not having possessed it for long.


    So that was why he''d dared to issue such a challenge!


    Ye Futian swung the halberd in his hand around. The symbols around him all howled at the same time. Every single symbol seemed to have been infused with Ye Futian''s will of the great path. Powers of the great path were infused within the symbols, with the ones at the forefront already clashing with the seals.


    Boom!


    A rumble was heard as the symbols blasted onto the seals like stars of the great path, shattering them. Thousands of seals flooded the place, blocking out the sky as they flew at Ye Futian. However, the symbols around him seemed to flow like the light of meteors, blasting at the countless seals coming from the other side.


    The world around them seemed ready to break apart at any moment. Devastating currents swept about in a frenzy above the Crimson River, causing the eardrums of all within earshot to ache. Still, they nonetheless kept their eyes fixed before them, not wanting to miss a single detail of the battle.


    The fighting at that moment looked incredibly grand and magnificent. The ancient symbols continued to move forward in a mystical pattern, clashing with the seals from the other side. It was like every single symbol was a seal on its own.


    Boom!


    Neither man flinched on that tremendously terrifying battlefield. They moved forward at the same time as the palm prints from Xing Kai continued to blast at Ye Futian''s symbols. Other than the most powerful of seals, which was shrouding the place and blocking out the sky, all of the ancient symbols were quickly shattered and destroyed.


    However, as Ye Futian swung around with the halberd, the symbols blasted forth one after another, causing the palm print, which blocked out the sky, to rattle. More rumbles were heard, but their force seemed to have been considerably diminished.


    At that very moment, Ye Futian''s halberd burst with extremely brilliant light as it thrust at the palm print like a heavenly weapon. The ancient symbols right before the halberd seemed to have merged into a single entity. Every single symbol looked like a star as they blasted forth with the halberd into the palm print.


    Stifled rumbles were heard in that instant. A crisp cracking sound was heard as the huge Mudra of God of War began to break apart. The halberd was pulsing with boundless light, a result of the light of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension being melded within it.


    Boom!


    A rumble was heard as that magnificent palm print that had been blocking out the sky crumbled and was reduced to nothingness.


    "It''s broken."


    The hearts of many who witnessed the scene raced. Ye Futian had been able to break Xing Kai''s Mudra of God of War right away, just by using his own power. He''d had no need for god-like weapons. The thing that he had just destroyed had been thought to be unmatched in terms of its offensive capacity, yet he''d done it!


    Xing Kai had never lost a single fight with his peers before the Peach Banquet. He had been able to win every single fight using his peerless offensive powers.


    Yet at that very moment, those extremely overwhelming major offensive techniques of his had been overcome by Ye Futian''s halberd.


    Was this the power of the Thousand Character Proverb?


    Every single symbol had been an attack on the great path. When the symbols moved and attacked, it was as if the stars were all blasting at the same time. The entropic powers brought froth within that instant had been more than enough to tear through everything. Even the Mudra of God of War had been destroyed all the same.


    Xing Kai was dumbfounded. His expression suggested that he''d been caught off-guard. His art at the spear and the power of the Mudra of God of War had all been defeated by Ye Futian. The attacks that had made him invincible in the past had just been shredded apart by someone of a lower plane than he.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian had not evaded his attacks at all. He had been attacking head-on all the time. Xing Kai''s major offensive skills had been clashing with Ye Futian''s attacks head-on as well, and he too had never evaded.


    Xing Kai lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian, who was basking in divine light. When the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was brought to bear, his power turned into a cauldron of the great path, melding with the path of the world that surrounded them. Powerful spiritual will burst forth shortly after, cranking his combat prowess to the greatest level achievable.


    The person and the great path merged. His spiritual will, physical body, and way of the great path combined, merging into a single entity, reaching the most perfect state.


    He watched Ye Futian wielding the miracles. Stars appeared everywhere, shrouding the sky above the Crimson River and circling all around them. The stars seemed to all be emanating dazzling godly light, reaching down to Ye Futian and merging with his body. The man seemed to command the heavens, the earth, and everything around him.


    An unassuming elder appeared in the massive crowd at the shores of the Crimson River. His expression was strange when he saw that dazzling scene before them. While he had indeed imparted his methods of training to Ye Futian not long ago, he''d never thought that the results of the lesson would be so dazzling.


    It was a testament to his ability that Ye Futian had indeed fused the mystical techniques perfectly, connecting them with his spiritual will. Such talents were very surprising. It was no surprise why the combat prowess he''d brought to bear had been able to resist Xing Kai, who wielded the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will.


    If it had been a common Saint of True Self instead of Xing Kai, said saint would have probably been thoroughly overwhelmed. Was this truly the power a Proving Holiness level saint was able to bring out?


    A beam of dazzling light burst forward just as that old man was thinking about this, drawing an arc above the Crimson River.


    Ye Futian turned the tides and headed upwards, lashing out with his halberd again. It penetrated the sky and headed straight for Xing Kai''s gigantic body. The halberd brought the power of the stars with it as it moved, arriving at its target in an instant. That halberd itself seemed imbued with the power of stars, which contained extremely formidable powers of entropy.


    The seals that Xing Kai had conjured were shattered in an instant. The halberd then banged against Xing Kai''s gigantic body. Surprisingly, the huge god of war was sent flying. Deafening rumbles were. That huge body of his crumbled as the might of entropy blasted him apart.


    Xing Kai''s god of war battle form was reduced to nothing.


    "What kind of an attack..." The spectators were all stunned by the extremely formidable attacks that Ye Futian could produce. Many wondered just how powerful that halberd was. Perhaps the answer was known only to Xing Kai, who''d taken the brunt of the attack head-on.


    The Crimson River continued to roar, yet the battlefield had turned somewhat quiet. Countless pairs of eyes gazed forward. That battle of life and death had been treated as a showdown right from the start, both combatants bringing out their strongest attacks. No one had expected Ye Futian to be able to overwhelm Xing Kai.


    Everyone then looked at the figure whose battle form crumbled, wondering if it had indeed been Xing Kai, who had been extremely prideful and known to be invincible among his peers.


    Xing Qiu felt rather terrible watching the fight. With all his powers, his elder brother had never lost like this before. However, those two men who had emerged out of nowhere from Qianye City had caused even his brother''s bright light to dim.


    All of this had started with that battle he''d had with Yu Sheng.


    "Are you ready to die now?" Ye Futian asked as he walked through the air. His eyes were plain and uncaring as he looked at Xing Kai.


    This had always been a fight to the death.


    The winner would live and the loser would die.

 1304 Bludgeoned to Death

    Xing Kai''s aura wavered as his body seemed to arch. His god of war battle form crumbled, being destroyed by one thrust of the halberd. His arm was shaking slightly. It was not a reaction from fear, but from the fact that he had lost the fight.


    His Mudra of God of War and his god of war battle form had both been destroyed by Ye Futian. He was unable to accept that he, a Saint of True Self, had actually lost to Ye Futian.


    The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will was capable of bringing out one''s spiritual will in extreme fighting conditions, enabling one to burst with combat prowess far exceeding one''s natural abilities. All of his attacks were imbued with extremely terrifying attacking powers, the Mudra of God of War even more so.


    Despite possessing such formidable powers and his plane being much higher than Ye Futian''s, he had nonetheless lost and was unable to understand why.


    Xing Kai was a descendant of Emperor Zhan. He was destined to become a Renhuang himself. He was born being able to wield Heaven Punishing Fighting Will.


    "How could I have lost? How could I even lose?"


    Boom.


    A stifled noise was heard, shaking the space around them. Mighty crimson flames howled and pinned him down.


    Xing Kai looked up and saw Ye Futian moving forward. His aura continued to grow in intensity. Dazzling light circled all around him. It was as if he was clad in all the stars of the cosmos. He looked imposing with the halberd in his hand. His eyes were filled with contempt as he looked down at Xing Kai.


    He was preparing to kill Xing Kai.


    The shores of the Crimson River were silent as the spectators watched the battlefield. Was Xing Kai even able to fight anymore?


    The Ninth Servant was present as well. His expression was calm. That young man from Emperor Xia''s Realm had been able to overwhelm Xing Kai both in actual powers and talents. This was undeniable.


    However, Ye Futian was not able to kill Xing Kai just yet. Things had yet to turn that dire. Xing Kai was about to defend his life and honor.


    The Ninth Servant was hoping that Xing Kai would turn a new leaf after the battle. Even if he were to pay a hefty price to do so, it would be a new start for Xing Kai so long as he was able to win.


    If he were able to make it past that stage, Xing Kai would grow even more powerful than he had been before. His state of mind would become even more resilient. It would pave the way to reaching the third plane of sainthood��Unblemished Saint.


    Any price would be worthwhile.


    That was a battle that Xing Kai would have to fight one day. Ye Futian, an extremely dazzling genius like no other, was a gift from the heavens to Xing Kai.


    Boom. Another stifled rumble was heard. Ye Futian lifted his arm. He was probably able to end Xing Kai''s life at any given moment.


    Voom. A lightning bolt streaked by and Ye Futian disappeared from where he stood. He thrust the halberd, emitting a light so blinding that no one could look at it.


    Would Xing Kai be able to take this hit?


    Boom. Countless pairs of eyes locked onto the scene. When the spectators made clear of what was happening above the Crimson River, their hearts raced.


    "That is..."


    Many saw Ye Futian''s halberd lashing out straight at Xing Kai. The stars in the sky merged into a single entity. The extremely overwhelming attacks blasted at Xing Kai.


    However, Xing Kai continued to stand tall and proud.


    His Life Spirit seemed to be burning. That tall, imposing shadow of a god of war burned with golden divine flames. Beams of extremely dazzling light glittered over Xing Kai''s body. A tremendously terrifying protector god appeared around Xing Kai.


    The Heaven Punishing Fighting Will continued to burn, engulfing the powers of the great path of the world around them. The Flames of the Way all over the crimson sky were bring devoured by his body, which then shrouded him entirely.


    Xing Kai''s body expanded exponentially. Cracking sounds erupted as his face twisted. He howled at the sky, roaring in anger.


    Boom!


    Extremely raging currents swept forward and sent Ye Futian flying. His pupils constricted somewhat, looking at Xing Kai, whose body continued to expand.


    Cracking noises continued to be heard. The bones in Xing Kai''s body expanded. His Life Spirit burned. The blood within his body and every bit of his Heaven Punishing Fighting Will burned up as well.


    It was as if Xing Kai was burning his life away in that fight. Xing Kai''s gigantic form appeared above the Crimson River. The spectators at the shores were shaking furiously. Not even the cultivators of the Regional Palace had ever seen Xing Kai use such powers before.


    "He''s forcibly breaking the limits of his body by burning his Life Spirit and the Heaven Punishing Fighting Will, making himself the embodiment of the Heaven Punishing Battle Form," Pei Min mumbled to himself. "Xing Kai is effectively cornered now and he is fighting with his life. What he needs to pay back is something difficult to measure. He''s probably going to pay dearly."


    "A descendant of Emperor Zhan shouldn''t be underestimated. However, even if he can win, it won''t have been a glorious victory. It will take no less than a year for him to return to his previous state," someone in the crowd said. "But then again, it''s Ye Futian who''s in trouble now."


    Many listening stayed silent. It was undeniable that Xing Kai was very terrifying in this state. With him going on a full burn to bring out all of his potential, the fight from here on out would be disastrous for Ye Futian.


    Boom.


    A rumble was heard as Xing Kai stepped into the air. He then ran into the sky, which was quite a surprise. Every step he took caused his surroundings to shake. The Crimson River below continued to howl in a frenzy. The water of the Crimson River burst like a tidal wave, flooding the sky with massive, towering waves.


    "He''s fast."


    The hearts of the spectators raced. Xing Kai, who had taken the form of a god of war, was able to move with speed and agility that were entirely comparable to his usual self. His body expanded to massive sizes and both his power and defense were brought to new heights. Many wondered just how terrifying Xing Kai could become.


    A rumble was heard as Xing Kai lifted his arm and headed for Ye Futian. The sky was blocked as his palm print became the Mudra of God of War itself, tearing through everything and suppressing the space around him.


    Dazzling light burst over Ye Futian. He lashed out with his halberd, clashing with the palm print in the air. The terrifying, massive force was sensed and the halberd crumbled. However, Ye Futian used the resulting force to propel himself through space, distancing himself from Xing Kai.


    "How do you suppose you can kill me now?" Xing Kai looked at Ye Futian from afar. His voice sounded like it belonged to something from hell.


    Ye Futian had forced Xing Kai''s hand so badly that the latter needed to burn himself in order to fight. After the battle, it would probably take a year or two for him to be able to return to his previous state. He might have even damaged the foundations of his great path training, causing his progress to backslide. Such abilities to forcibly enhance one''s powers came with terrifying side effects after all.


    However, there was no way he could escape using it.


    That battle at the Crimson River was a fight to the death. Not even the Ninth Servant would be able to cover him any more. If he refused to use such powers, he would only end up dead.


    Ye Futian continued to look unfazed as he listened to Xing Kai talk. He glanced at the tall, mighty form and said plainly, "A general of a losing army is all air and no substance. Burn yourself all you want. You''ll end up dead today all the same."


    The World Tree within his Life Palace swayed as beams of dazzling light coursed over his body, casting holy light all over the place.


    His World Tree resonated with the powers of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, glowing with a ring of light that was even more brilliant. The beam of light shot to the peak of the river.


    The great path of the world around them seemed to meld with the beam, transmuting into a single will of the great path. His body was akin to a furnace of the great path, incorporating the great paths of everything in the world.


    Voom.


    The vast space around him turned into a world of stars. Countless stars circled and orbited around him as all the lights flowed onto Ye Futian''s body. Under the light of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, his body transformed into its Starry Battle Form.


    Boom.


    A tall, mighty form appeared in their surroundings. It seemed to have engulfed the great path of the world around them. The phenomenon was a result of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension and the light of stars of the great path.


    "This is the Starry Battle Form."


    Some of the elders felt their hearts racing. They recognized it to be a power belonging to the Star Plucking Saint.


    The old man who''d snuck into the crowd expressed his approval, astonished that he''d learned how to use something like that in such a short time. Furthermore, the old man also saw that the young man had been able to incorporate his powers into it, expressing the form perfectly.


    "Your talents are catching up to mine," he mumbled. However, everyone around him was simply too focused on the battle to hear what he''d said.


    Ye Futian extended his hand, conjuring an extremely huge staff of the stars using the boundless starry powers around him. The staff gleamed with the dazzling light of the stars.


    Terrifying beams of starlight shot through the clouds. His might did not seem to be inferior to Xing Kai''s.


    Boom.


    Bang.


    The two massive figures walked forward at the same time, charging at each other. Massive waves crashed in the Crimson River beneath them, causing the sky above to shake.


    Xing Kai threw a palm attack out while Ye Futian, who had transformed into the Starry Battle Form, lifted his staff and brought it down. It seemed like stars were being brought down, destroying everything below.


    Boom.


    Deafening rumbles were heard as a devastating ring of light swept out. Raging tornados swept all over the place. The spectators at the shores all unleashed their powers to withstand the aftershock.


    Both men seemed to have backed away at almost the same time, yet Ye Futian continued to lift his staff and move forward. His staff swooped around in the air as he brought it down yet again.


    Boom.


    Boom.


    Boom...


    One strike after another from the staff brought the world around them to the verge of collapse. Xing Kai roared furiously. He then lifted his arm and threw countless palm attacks, engulfing the sky before him.


    However, Ye Futian, who was moving forward, swung his staff around and struck again. The stars around him fell and merged with the staff. The palm attack of the great path crumbled in a frenzy. He brought down the starry staff with great force.


    Boom, boom, boom...


    Earth-shattering rumbles were heard as Xing Kai''s arm gradually shattered. His body was sent flying away under the relentless attacks of the staff. He then spat a great amount of blood.


    However, Ye Futian had no intention of stopping. He stepped out yet again, lashing out with his staff and bringing it down hard on Xing Kai''s chest.


    Yet another rumble was heard. Xing Kai''s massive body continued to break and crumble. His bones were broken and his meridians crumbled. Xing Kai had paid an extremely great price by taking the Heaven Punishing Battle Form. That, coupled with the extent of the damage being suffered at the moment, made it so that his injuries were irreversible. Even if he were to survive the battle, he would undoubtedly be disabled.


    "What the hell..." The hearts of the spectators continued to race. This fight was utterly crazy.


    Xing Kai had taken the Heaven Punishing Battle Form, yet he''d lost all the same.


    Ye Futian lifted the staff again. If the next strike hit its intended target, Xing Kai would be finished right there and then.


    "Stop." A stifled voice was heard, shaking their surroundings and causing even Ye Futian to slow down.


    "If he dies, Qianye City will be no more." A threateningly cold voice was heard.


    While the Ninth Servant had not interfered right away, he now took to threatening Ye Futian using Qianye City.


    "Think you could do so?" a cold voice responded. The staff was then brought down right onto Xing Kai''s head.


    Everyone eyed that scene, watching the weapon being brought down without the slightest hint of hesitation.


    It was as if time had slowed down.


    Boom!


    The starry staff came down. A low rumble was heard.

 1305 The Ninth Servants Wrath

    Lava-like flames danced and roared in the Crimson River, throwing up huge waves.


    Fiery red waves shot to the Regional Palace and the shores of the river. However, everyone seemed to be entirely oblivious to that. Their eyes were dead set on that starry staff being brought down right above the center of the Crimson River.


    That staff also seemed to be hitting the hearts of the spectators.


    Ye Futian did what he said what he would do.


    There was only one among them who would be able to step into the Regional Palace.


    Ye Futian beat Xing Kai.


    The winner then killed the loser.


    "That is brutal." Chi Shang said to himself deep down after witnessing that scene. While that battle had indeed been a fight to the death, if Ye Futian were willing to give up killing Xing Kai, no one else would have gone up to do it for him.


    Furthermore, the Ninth Servant voiced his threat outright, yet Ye Futian did it all the same, killing Xing Kai above the Crimson River.


    "He sent the challenge to Ancient Imperial City after he agreed to join the Regional Palace''s ranks. I guess that was his thought right from the start?" many murmured to themselves. He only needed to get the Regional Palace to bear witness to the battle before he joined the Regional Palace''s ranks, and that would have ensured that even if he were to kill Xing Kai, the Ninth Servant would not have been able to do anything to him.


    Ye Futian made his decision way back then.


    When he and Xing Kai fought in Crimson Dragon City, he already came to believe that he was able to kill Xing Kai. The battle at the moment verified that belief of his.


    A group of people stood at the edge of the Regional Palace, witnessing that one strike being brought down. Their minds were all rattled, and all of them felt unsettled.


    Yin Tianjiao''s mind reeled from that for a bit. She found herself unable to believe what she just saw. That young man who competed with her back in Emperor Kua''s ruins back then managed to cut down Xing Kai, who was known to be invincible among his peers.


    Shu Zi''s expression suggested that she felt only fear and disbelief. She was unable to fathom how it all happened.


    She did not dare to believe what she just saw. That figure who had been overpowering those of his generation in the Regional Palace, the legendary man who had beaten her many times, had ended up killed by a Proving Holiness saint.


    "He grew more powerful than back when he was in Crimson Dragon City. It seems his growth rate is considerable." Pei Min noted to himself deep down. His expression was not all that complex, as he felt it to be a pity.


    Xing Kai was someone who was of equal fame to Pei Min, and he would have been very frustrated getting killed like that.


    While he did say that he felt that Ye Futian would have won the battle earlier, he did not know how Ye Futian would have managed to win against Xing Kai, who was a Saint of True Self.


    Yet, in that very battle, Pei Min saw that Ye Futian was able to use the powers he gained from the Peach Banquet as his own, incorporating them into the methods he trained in perfectly. Furthermore, he had also developed a new way of attack��the way of Entropy.


    Xing Kai burned his Life Spirit and blood to bring the Heaven Punishing Battle Form to bear at his last moments, but Ye Futian merged with the stars into a single being, taking the Starry Battle Form. The powers within his body probably would have been on par Xing Kai''s.


    The art of the staff used at the last moments saw every single attack feeling as if stars were being brought down. Pei Min was thinking about what would have happened if he was the one fighting Ye Futian instead.


    He was thinking about if his sword would have been able to withstand such raging attacks with the staff.


    The might of his sword was such that the attacks only moved forward, with one strike being stronger than the previous strike.


    However, that was how Ye Futian''s art of the staff worked as well, with one strike being stronger than the previous strike. Furthermore, every single follow-up attack contained the might of the attacks before it. The attacks would have continued until they brought down the heavens and the earth, making it so that even Xing Kai''s battle form was unable to withstand the attacks anymore.


    Yet another monster was about to join the Regional Palace''s ranks after Yu Sheng.


    The Regional Palace was not to be the place where the most genius and the most monstrous of figures Crimson Dragon had to offer gathered for no good reason.


    But then again, that was also the reason for anticipation.


    Under the attentive gaze from all sides at that moment, Xing Kai''s battle form crumbled. That construct had been conjured by Xing Kai''s body, after all. It was a manifestation of true flesh and blood instead of the will of the great path, which was then given extremely formidable powers.


    However, that became Xing Kai''s bane instead.


    When the starry staff was brought down onto Xing Kai''s head, it was as if the stars in the skies rained on him. There was no way Xing Kai''s battle form would have survived that, and it indeed crumbled. When the staff was still swooping in the air, Xing Kai''s body disappeared in the sky above the Crimson River.


    On that battlefield above the Crimson River, only that shining body of Ye Futian was left��that Starry Battle Form, which was merged with the great path and basking in the boundless light of the stars.


    The vast place was surprisingly quiet. Only the roar of the Crimson River could be heard at that moment.


    It was but an extremely short moment, yet all who witnessed the scene felt as if it had gone on for a very long time. The roaring Crimson River gradually quieted down and no longer rolled about. However, it continued to flow furiously. Its scorching air lingered in their surroundings, but the crowd seemed not to have felt it at all.


    Their minds still lingered on the fact that Xing Kai was dead.


    A legendary figure whose name shook the realm had just been killed outside of the Regional Palace by a genius who emerged out of nowhere.


    Ye Futian made it clear to all of Crimson Dragon Realm about who was the strongest in his generation by stepping on Xing Kai''s head.


    He, a saint at Proving Holiness level, managed to kill Xing Kai. It was a feat that would never be able to be surpassed by anyone.


    The air above the Crimson River rolled at that moment as if a scorching might was raining down from above, shrouding the entire Crimson River.


    Ye Futian was able to sense just how overwhelming the pressure of the great path had been. It was as if that might was something that could never be shaken, and it leaned onto his body.


    However, Ye Futian''s expression was calm. He knew who was the one doing it.


    But then again, they were at the Crimson River, right outside the Regional Palace, and very much still in Crimson Dragon City.


    The crowd at the shore was unable to help but part. A figure stood tall right there, and it was none other than the Ninth Servant.


    He looked in the Crimson River''s direction. His might of the great path shrouded the entire place. His eyes were filled with cold killing intent.


    He had been watching over Xing Kai as the young man grew up. He had already made it to a Saint of True Self. His young master was not all that far away from the final destination, yet Ye Futian killed his young master at the Crimson River.


    He had watched Xing Kai grow. Despite being the young man''s servant and his protector, he was still Xing Kai''s elder.


    That young man had been extraordinarily resilient and arrogant. The blood of Emperor Zhan flowed in his veins. He was forever aspiring to be the strongest, and it was probably due to that, that he felt vexed at losing to Ye Futian in the Peach Banquet.


    He did not leave another mark in Xing Kai for that battle. After using the Mark of God of War in Xing Kai in the last battle, it was incredibly taxing for him to leave another on Xing Kai. The toll was so great that it might have even affected him. He would not have been able to use Xing Kai''s body to do battle otherwise.


    Furthermore, that battle had been a fight to the death. The Regional Palace was there to bear witness, and he thought leaving the mark behind would have been pointless. Ye Futian had access to external means for bolstering one''s combat prowess as well, after all.


    The Ninth Servant thought that Xing Kai would have been able to win by using his trump card in that life and death battle.


    From the looks of things at present, however, if the Ninth Servant had left behind a mark, he would have at least bought Xing Kai some time, making Ye Futian''s killing intent falter.


    Xing Kai would not have ended up killed outright like that.


    "Ninth Servant." A voice was heard from the Regional Palace, traveling the vast space. It resounded all over the place. A might that was just as terrifying was sensed as well.


    At that moment, everyone at the shore was able to sense just how powerful those two pressures were.


    They turned to look at the Regional Palace. That aura could only come from that one person.


    Ye Futian was deemed very brutal for picking the Crimson River to hold the fight, and letting the Regional Palace bear witness. He had been just as brutal to himself, as he was to Xing Kai.


    The loser dies.


    Furthermore, no one else would have been able to interfere, not even the Ninth Servant.


    While Xing Kai meant the world to the Ninth Servant, it was not like the Ninth Servant had no other concerns holding him back. There was no way he could have cast everything aside and made his move against Ye Futian right there and then.


    "Senior, Ancient Imperial City accepted the challenge and agreed to fight. With that said, one side would certainly perish. While that indeed was quite a loss, it was Xing Kai''s own choice." The spectators saw Chi Shang looking at the Ninth Servant.


    Chi Shang''s tone was polite. Despite being a prince, the Ninth Servant was nonetheless still a figure at the pinnacle below Renhuang. He was also considered an elder, so the prince still had to give him face.


    The Ninth Servant took a look at Chi Shang. He, too, knew that he couldn''t kill Ye Futian right there and then.


    Xing Kai was dead, and doing anything would be pointless.


    He did not say anything more, not even threaten Ye Futian. He turned around slowly and then flashed, streaking through the air.


    "Let''s go." A voice was heard. Those from Ancient Imperial City followed one after another and left.


    Before Xing Kai died, the Ninth Servant leaned on Ye Futian and threatened him to let Xing Kai go. Since Xing Kai was already dead, doing anything further was pointless.


    Many watched the Ninth Servant leave and thought, What would have that City Lord from Ancient Imperial City do?


    He would not simply do nothing about Xing Kai''s death.


    Ye Futian watched the Ninth Servant leave. He then frowned hard.


    The Ninth Servant was the pinnacle existence beneath the Renhuang. Ye Futian was wondering just how potent his threat would have been.


    Despite understanding what would have resulted, he chose to kill Xing Kai nonetheless.


    Be it killing intent from Xing Kai or the Ninth Servant, everything became inevitable.


    As such, he saw fit to get the threats dealt with as soon as possible.


    A group of people took to the air after the Ninth Servant left, following him. Those were the people from Ancient Imperial City that Gai Huang brought with him.


    Gai Huang''s expression was glum as well. He came beside the Ninth Servant and said nothing.


    He was responsible for Xing Kai''s death, too.


    Back when Xing Qiu participated in the Battle of Qianye City, as well as the time when Xing Kai made a move against Ye Futian, he had been present on both occasions. It could have been said that he gave his silent consent.


    As such, he felt guilty about what happened.


    Xing Qiu was quiet as well. He looked rather numb.


    His elder brother had been killed.


    "Gai Huang, bring Xing Qiu and the others back to Ancient Imperial City," the Ninth Servant said.


    Gai Huang was dumbfounded. He looked at the Ninth Servant and said with a low voice, "Sir."


    "Take good care of Xing Qiu," the Ninth Servant said and then headed out elsewhere, distancing himself from Gai Huang.


    "I will, sir," Gai Huang responded lightly. He then looked at the figure who just left. Gai Huang naturally knew where he was heading.


    Despite being the number one figure outside of Crimson City, he always carried himself as a servant before Xing Kai and Xing Qiu, addressing them as his young masters.


    If a master were insulted, then the servant would have had to die. It was all the more so now that his master was killed.


    Gai Huang knew the Ninth Servant very well. Despite being of extremely great renown in Crimson Dragon Realm, revered by the people, and lauded as the number one City Lord, none of that mattered to the Ninth Servant. He also did not care about how the world looked at him.


    Face meant nothing to him.


    What the Ninth Servant cared about were only the Xing brothers.


    Xing Kai, who was the one with better potential between the brothers, was killed.


    One could have only imagined the extent of his wrath.


    He did not care what the world thought of him. All he wanted to do, at the moment, was to take revenge.

 1306 The Killing Sword

    The city lord''s office in Qianye City seemed unusually quiet.


    Some passed by and thought that since it was the day where City Lord Ye Futian was having a showdown with Xing Kai at Crimson River, everyone would have gone to Crimson Dragon City to watch the fight.


    That fight was of utmost importance.


    It was simply unknown if Ye Futian would be able to win. Many thought it would be difficult.


    Some were seen looking up in the sky, thinking that the fighting should have been over given the hour.


    "Huh?"


    Some seemed to have sensed a peculiar aura at that moment. A peculiar gale blew all of a sudden, causing all of them to feel a chill. They seemed to have sensed pressure from the gale.


    That pressure gradually became stronger.


    Boom.


    Some grunted all of a sudden, finding the pressure unbearable. They kneeled on the ground right there and then. Their faces became ashen.


    They all sported frightened expressions as they looked up in the sky. Winds howled above, and there seemed to be extremely potent pressure of the great path descending from above, crushing down everything below.


    The area was all subjected to that pressure of the great path, with the city lord''s office serving as the center.


    "Who?"


    "What is happening?"


    Everyone was shocked deep down. Someone was assaulting the city lord''s office, and that someone was extremely powerful.


    That pressure seemed like an authority from the heavens. A Holiness of Nirvana?


    A figure was seen appearing high in the sky. The robe he wore billowed wildly in the wind. Those deep eyes of his harbored cold killing intent.


    "The Ninth Servant of Ancient Imperial City." Many shuddered furiously deep down. It had not been long since the last time the Ninth Servant came to Qianye City. That was the second time he came.


    He came personally to Qianye City again.


    What is the meaning of this? they wondered.


    It was possible that City Lord Ye Futian of Qianye City won in the fight against Xing Kai at that battle of Crimson River. Furthermore, the city lord might have killed Xing Kai.


    The Ninth Servant, therefore, was there for revenge.


    If Xing Kai had beaten Ye Futian, there was no need for the likes of the Ninth Servant to make such moves personally.


    His powerful spiritual will swept all over the place. The Ninth Servant eyed the ground below with cold eyes, finding the number of people in the city lord''s office surprisingly scarce.


    The few who were left within the city lord''s office all had very powerful auras.


    It was a testament to how prepared Ye Futian had been, knowing that he would beat Xing Kai and that the Ninth Servant would have come to Qianye City.


    It was no wonder why those who went to the Crimson River with Ye Futian had all been people who were of comparatively low plane levels.


    But then again, you think I couldn''t do anything, just because you left the Holiness of Nirvanas at Qianye City, waiting for me to show? the Ninth Servant thought.


    He was wondering if Ye Futian had intended to take him on as well.


    He had to admit that the young man who killed Xing Kai in that battle at the Crimson River had been brutal and unyielding. Ye Futian did not give himself a way out; he planned for what would have happened after he won against Xing Kai instead, guarding against the Ninth Servant''s attempt at revenge.


    Do you think this means anything? the Ninth Servant thought.


    Who under the Renhuang can fight me?


    There might have been several old men in Crimson Dragon City who were capable of doing so, but he deemed no one outside of Crimson Dragon City was able to stop him.


    "Your Majesty, your servant has failed you, for I have not been able to protect the young master." The Ninth Servant sighed deep down. He lifted his arm and then pressed downward.


    Extremely raging currents shot downwards within an instant, blasting at the city lord''s office.


    Waves of terrifying currents pressed down on everything below. A huge palm attack tore through space, and everyone afar saw the city lord''s office being destroyed in a frenzy, exploding, and crumbling within an instant. The place was razed with just a single attack.


    The city lord''s office of Qianye City had seen several destructions and rebuilding. The place was destroyed yet another time that day.


    The crowd outside of the city lord''s office retreated in a frenzy, getting away from the place. People on a plane like the Ninth Servant were able to do a lot of damage if they were to fight in earnest. He could have become a living terror if he were to expand the area of attack as he pleased.


    But then again, no one would have done so in actual combat situations, as they would have hit their opponents with precision.


    Nonetheless, it was still very terrifying to get caught in the aftershock.


    Nobody of a lower plane would have been able to withstand such attacks at all.


    Dust rose amidst the rubble, from which several figures emerged. Every single one of them burst with an overwhelming aura.


    There were the likes of Wu Yong and the other three tribe leaders from the nine tribes.


    All of them were Holiness of Nirvanas. Shen Tianzhan was present as well.


    All of them waited for the Ninth Servant to show up.


    Despite being of Holiness of Nirvana level, they were different from the Ninth Servant. The Holiness of Nirvana ranked on the Regional King Rankings was known as the number one City Lord outside of Crimson Dragon City, and was lauded to be invincible below Renhuang Plane. Even if there several Holiness of Nirvanas joined forces to take him on, it was not certain that they would have been able to defeat him.


    It was just like how the likes of Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Xing Kai could take on any top-notch figures of their plane. The outcome of such a battle could have been determined through sheer numbers alone.


    As such, the Ninth Servant knew about those people around at the very moment he showed up, and he did not care at all.


    There was still a weak-looking figure standing at the razed city lord''s office, who had jet black hair billowing. Formless storms of the sword washed out around her. An area of flat ground was seen with her at the center.


    At that moment, extremely dazzling light of the sword lit up all of a sudden from that flatland. It seemed that there was a large matrix being activated at that moment.


    The frail-looking woman who stood on that sword matrix was none other than Yaya. However, her aura was extremely sharp. She willed, and within an instant, the vast space around her turned into a world of swords.


    The light of the sword drowned the place. She glittered and seemed to have turned into a transparent blade. Terrifying beams of the matrix shot to the clouds. At that moment, countless within Qianye City looked in that direction, seeing that beam of light of the sword shooting to the heavens.


    Many swordsmen far away felt as if their will was no longer under their control. Sword wills gushed in that direction. Some of them wore swords on their backs, which rang intensely at that moment. Some of the swords shot to the air right away.


    The Ninth Servant''s body became extremely brilliant under the light of the sword. Alert was seen in his eyes as he sensed the might of the swords.


    He was surprised to find that the ones below had prepped such a powerful sword matrix just for taking him on.


    The light of the swords all over the place shot through the space and shone onto the Ninth Servant as if locking onto him. When the beams of the swords were shone onto him, he sensed extremely powerful sword will attacks. However, he simply stood there without doing anything.


    The matrix was so strong that it could have almost killed Holiness of Nirvanas at the pinnacle of their training. Even he came to sense threats coming from below.


    But then again, it was utterly ridiculous to think that a matrix would have been enough to repel him.


    At that moment, yet another figure dropped to the center of the matrix. That man had a superb bearing and glittered with holy light, and that light melded with the matrix.


    The matrix lit up more brilliantly within an instant. It circled about, and dazzling symbols appeared, causing the sword matrix to pulse with even stronger aura. It seemed as if the matrix was absorbing the will of great path around them in a frenzy.


    The Ninth Servant looked at that figure. The light of the sword matrix continued to climb in intensity. Its boundless light shot up, and that huge sword matrix continued to operate.


    He found the ability to resemble Ye Futian''s somewhat.


    It was able to merge with the great path, resonating with it.


    It seems like someone from Emperor Li''s Realm then, he thought.


    That other figure who appeared was none other than Yan Yuan. He helped Yaya lay out the Sword Matrix of the Void, enabling the matrix to enhance Yaya''s power when she was at her peak. Yan Yuan himself was a Holiness of Nirvana, after all.


    The one they were about to take on was the Ninth Servant, and they needed to be able to take him down with a single shot, bringing the greatest attack to bear onto him, giving him no chance to recover.


    The Ninth Servant felt the threat continue to escalate. He then frowned.


    It seemed that he had underestimated his opponents.


    Qianye City had been well-prepared, waiting for him to show.


    He wondered if Ye Futian''s question directed at him back in the fight was meant to incite him.


    Voom. The Ninth Servant intended to leave the air space above the city lord''s office. The might of the sword matrix would be cranked to its strongest at such close ranges, and it apparently would have worked against him.


    However, stars appeared all over the sky around him at that moment. Someone else appeared above, looking as if he had merged with the stars.


    The man was none other than the Star Plucking Saint.


    The Ninth Servant had naturally detected his presence before, but the Ninth Servant did not bother, getting ready to wipe him out along with the others. It was due to the Star Plucking Saint''s luck that he had been able to escape last time.


    Yet, it was apparent that the Star Plucking Saint had been laying down a trap for the Ninth Servant before the latter even showed up.


    Wu Yong and the other three Holiness of Nirvanas took four corners as well, bursting with overwhelming auras.


    Boom! Stifling rumble was heard, and the Star Plucking Saint attacked the figure below him. The huge star-plucking hand of his blasted below, which seemed to have brought the stars down with him as well.


    The Ninth Servant lifted his arm and threw a punch at the incoming palm attack. The punch landed, and the palm attack rang furiously. Cracks appeared all over it. The stars all around them rumbled heavily as well. It was as if some formless power across the space had rattled them. Cracks began to form in them as well.


    The Ninth Servant shot upwards as he attacked.


    However, an extremely dazzling beam of light was seen bursting out. Yaya stepped into the matrix right away, turning herself into a sword.


    The huge sword matrix spun, and countless sword wills melded with that one sword. The sword was still not yet bursting, but it had already fired a beam of the sword capable of tearing the heavens, right at the clouds.


    It then took flight afterward.


    An extremely formidable beam of light of the sword appeared between the city lord''s office''s rubble and the heavens. It was as if the beam had penetrated the sky.


    The power of the entire matrix was all invested into a single sword, leaving no means of backup behind.


    The strongest attack was used right from the start. There was absolutely no way they could have afforded to fight a prolonged battle against some enemy like the Ninth Servant.


    No one could have afforded to do so.


    The Ninth Servant knew what was coming when the light of the sword burst. His expression turned grim. He slapped his hand downwards. Light of the great path burst, and a holy stone wall appeared, intending to stop that incoming sword attack.


    Boom!


    The light of the sword tore through space and shredded the stone wall. Despite the might of the sword being weakened, it was nonetheless able to tear down the mighty wall.


    The Ninth Servant used the resulting recoil from the attack to go heights. His body was surrounded by countless palm prints of the great path. Those palm prints then shot at the sword coming at him, yet they were all penetrated and destroyed within an instant.


    He threw his arm down, and a stifled rumble was heard in the air. It was as if something was about to be shattered with a single punch.


    The might of the sword paused for a single moment but continued its way forward at the very next moment, tearing through the sky.


    Boom!


    Intense light burst in the sky as the light of the sword engulfed the space around it.


    Everyone around had their eyes fixed at that scene. That single absolute sword attack burst from the grand matrix was a Sword Matrix of the Void, specifically and purposefully laid down to take on the Ninth Servant for a long time. They wondered if that would be enough to kill the Ninth Servant where he stood.

 1307 Losing the Fight and Escaping

    The blinding light gradually dissipated, and someone appeared in the air.


    It was none other than the Ninth Servant.


    One of his arms was torn off. Sword will penetrated right through his body, staining his clothes in red.


    His face looked rather ashen, and there seemed to be blood at the corner of his mouth.


    However, his eyes still looked deep and terrifying, shining with frightening coldness.


    So this is the present Ye Futian has gotten for me, huh? he thought.


    That one sword that was meticulously prepped did more than tear his right arm off when it struck him The terrifying space-tearing powers contained within attempted to tear his entire being apart as well. Furthermore, that formidable sword will had indeed managed to hurt him; however, he suppressed it forcibly by using his overwhelming might of the great path, preventing his body from being shredded apart.


    His injuries were grave at that moment.


    He gazed forward, and a young woman clad in white, who looked like an adolescent, stood with blood at the corner of her mouth. Her entire being was clad in dazzling sword will. It was as if she was a manifestation of the sword itself.


    He never expected to have been so severely injured. Worse still, he suffered such grave injuries not long after he stepped into Qianye City.


    While Xing Kai''s death pained him very much, his young master had indeed fought a hard battle.


    The Ninth Servant had been protecting Xing Kai for many years. Xing Kai''s talents and state of mind held true to his training undoubtedly, yet he lacked a kind of spirit nonetheless. That was because Xing Kai never suffered true despair, and he had never had his life hanging by a thread before.


    Ye Futian was apparently armed with such a spirit. He did not hesitate after affirming their statuses as mortal enemies. He sent a challenge to fight to the death to Xing Kai, requesting a showdown at the Crimson River. At the same, Ye Futian laid down one such lethal trap waiting for the Ninth Servant in Qianye City.


    He knew well what he should have done to eliminate the threats around him, and he went all out to get rid of enemies who managed to threaten him. Compared to Ye Futian, Xing Kai was indeed somewhat inferior in more than just the extent of his talents.


    Furthermore, other than the Holiness of Nirvanas from the nine tribes who were forced to submit to him, he already had several such figures fully willing to protect and fight for him.


    That also had been something Xing Kai lacked. For instance, that young woman dressed in white right before the Ninth Servant''s eyes knew how dangerous it was to fight the Ninth Servant.


    However, she made her move without hesitation. She had even lashed out a second attack.


    Sword matrix of the great path circled her, with her��the core��standing at the center. She zipped past the sky, and the orbiting sword matrix pulsed with boundless flashes of the sword. The melding continued until they melded completely into a single sword, which then lashed out at him.


    Her eyes were cold and determined. There was no hint of hesitation in her eyes. It was as if she locked onto her target, and she was very determined to kill.


    That attack came very quickly as it streaked through space. All it took was a single thought.


    However, the Ninth Servant reacted just as quickly. He stepped out slightly at the very moment of the flash of the sword. Terrifying shocks appeared around him even though he had only taken a single step. Frightening storms of tremors manifested around him as if they were able to stop any other forces from getting near.


    Those beams of the sword that came at him crumbled right away. Only the sword that dazzled brilliantly in the middle continued on its course.


    The Ninth Servant lifted his left arm and turned into a mirage. His speed was cranked to an unbelievable extent, making it difficult to track him with the naked eye.


    Clang!


    The sword came, and the Ninth Servant extended his arm and pointed, which landed right at the tip of the blade.


    That dazzling beam of the sword turned into a terrifying hurricane of the sword and lashed out. The sword matrix intended to penetrate the defenses and hit the body of the Ninth Servant behind, yet Yaya only felt that the Ninth Servant stood there as if he was the lord of the space around them. The power of that one finger contained the might of the great path all around them.


    Boom, boom, boom... The sword matrix crumbled and was no more. Yaya''s sword was shattered as well. She grunted. It seemed as if her body suffered violent tremors, and she was sent flying back. She used the force of the recoil to leave the battlefield within an instant, flying somewhere far away.


    She spat up blood as she reeled, looking pale.


    She knew that even if she were at the pinnacle of her plane all those years ago, she still would not have been able to take the Ninth Servant head on.


    He was someone known to have one leg in the Renhuang Plane, after all.


    One of his arms was destroyed, and he had suffered grievous injuries, yet he did not so much as frown. He went on to retaliate simply by lifting his left arm.


    But then again, she was not the only one fighting that battle.


    The Ninth Servant sensed horrifying pressure coming from above as soon as Yaya backed off.


    He lifted his head and saw the Star Plucking Saint throwing a punch from above. It seemed as if stars were falling and tearing through the sky below. The Ninth Servant felt very formidable offensive powers with that one attack alone.


    He and the Star Plucking Saint fought before. If he were at his prime, there was no way the Star Plucking Saint would have been able to fight him. The latter would have had to run away in shambles.


    Nonetheless, the Star Plucking Saint was still incredibly formidable on his own, especially when it came to offensive powers, bringing the power of stars with every single attack.


    The Star Plucking Saint took his Starry Battle Form. His entire body dazzled, and his punches felt even more terrifying. It was as if they intended to break the sky apart.


    The Ninth Servant stepped out, and his body moved upwards. He charged into the midst of the Star Plucking Saint''s attacks instead of evading.


    He extended his left arm and grabbed at the sky. A huge palm print appeared above, taking down all the stars around, making the starry sky shudder.


    Boom. The Star Plucking Saint''s attacks hit their intended target, yet at that very instant, the Ninth Servant''s arm flinched. It was as if countless shadows of the palm were being shot, above one wave after another, reversing the tide of offense.


    However, those waves of arms were continuously shattered. The Star Plucking Saint continued moving below, and it seemed he was mere moments from arriving right before the Ninth Servant.


    The Ninth Servant threw his final palm attack. Thousands of palms of the great path melded into a single entity. Waves of terrifying might of the great path shattered the stars all around them, causing them to explode continuously.


    However, at the same time, the Star Plucking Saint''s fists arrived. Everything caught in the crossfire between the two men exploded in a frenzy. The Ninth Servant was thrown down by sheer force alone.


    Wu Yong and the other three tribe leaders of the nine tribes, as well as Shen Tianzhan, were all Holiness of Nirvanas. They had long been ready for what was to come, and they definitely did not let the chance slip by. Words were not necessary between them, and they were able to work in tandem with each other seamlessly.


    Divine Sword of the Vermilion Bird was brought out streaking through the sky, imbued with formidable divine fires of the Vermilion Bird.


    Wu Yong assumed the Chonglou Battle Form and sent palm attacks of the great path bursting downwards, burning the sky around them.


    The tribe leaders of both the Beili Tribe and Nanli Tribe attacked alongside Shen Tianzhan. At that instant, terrifying Flames of the Way had practically devoured the sky around them. All of them had been formidable Holiness of Nirvanas in their own right, and at that moment, all of them attacked the Ninth Servant.


    People from faraway watched the battlefield. Only saints dared to observe the battle. Even saints found their hearts racing, watching what was going on.


    Such high-level battles were extremely rare. They would usually never be seen anywhere else.


    The Ninth Servant, City Lord of Ancient Imperial City, was being ganged up on by Holiness of Nirvanas from Qianye City, attempting to make sure that the number one City Lord outside of Crimson Dragon CIty never got to leave Qianye City alive.


    Terrifying attacks engulfed the sky where the Ninth Servant was. They only heard grunts afterward, and the Ninth Servant was nowhere to be found.


    The hearts of the spectators continued to race. They all wondered if the Ninth Servant would end up being killed in Qianye City.


    While Ye Futian had set up that battle meticulously, what was seen then also resulted from the Ninth Servant growing too confident and underestimating his enemy. He believed in his power too much. But then again, he was indeed formidable.


    It was just that he never expected to suffer such a massive blow from one sword matrix, as soon as he showed up.


    "Huh?"


    The spectators sensed formless powers arriving at that moment. That power rendered their blood boiling, and their hearts beat furiously.


    A very strong sense of crisis was sensed. It was as if the vast area around them had been shrouded by a formless might of the great path.


    "It''s the Ninth Servant, get out." Those who were watching the battle from afar retreated in a frenzy. Even though they had been very far away from that battlefield, they continued to back away.


    That power was so intense that if they were got near, they would have been pulverized right away.


    "Look out!" The Star Plucking Saint uttered. A deafening rumble was heard at the next moment. All attacks surrounding the Ninth Servant crumbled and dissipated. Terrifying storms shrouded the place, and the sky shuddered. Waves of terrifying storms lashed out to destroy everything in their path as they hit the Holiness of Nirvanas from Qianye City hard.


    All of them felt as if their souls were about to be torn apart. Their blood howled and rolled. The auras inside them shuddered violently.


    Grunts were heard, and all of them were sent flying. Many who were watching the battle from afar spat up blood, as they suffered heavy blows.


    The Ninth Servant appeared, and his body seemed to have melded with the heavens. Formless storms pressed down on their surroundings with extreme might.


    However, the Star Plucking Saint from above attacked yet again, diving straight for the Ninth Servant. The latter had already been severely injured, and yet, he still managed to use such powers. That meant that he was feeling terrible himself as well.


    Yan Yuan and the others continued forward at their target, attacking from afar.


    The Ninth Servant, however, was seen stepping out hard in the air. He sent another storm sweeping out. He lifted his left arm and lashed out at the Star Plucking Saint, forcibly stopping the latter''s advance completely.


    Boom. Another step was taken, and the hearts of many raced. They all stopped dead in their tracks. The Ninth Servant shot into the air with that step, bursting out of the barricade, then headed far away.


    It was apparent that he did not intend to fight any longer, intending only to leave the battlefield. Even though he had been able to deal damage to those Holiness of Nirvanas, it did not mean that he would have had an easy time killing them. If he were to stay and fight any longer, the consequences would be difficult to predict.


    It was entirely possible that he would die there.


    Everyone turned around, intending to give chase, but they quickly heard the Star Plucking Saint saying, "Let him go."


    Everyone stopped after he said so. The Star Plucking Saint watched the Ninth Servant leave. He finally spat up some blood he had been holding in for some time. The crimson liquid dropped to the ground below, yet he continued moving forward, his silhouette gradually turning hazy.


    The Star Plucking Saint knew that the Ninth Servant had suffered severe damage. He would not have escaped otherwise.


    Even though the Ninth Servant had suffered grave injuries, if they were to give chase and were determined to kill that man at the pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvana level, at least half of them would probably end up dead.


    The strongest attack they had been able to bring to bear was that one sword. None of the follow-up attacks had been able to kill the Ninth Servant. It made it so that killing him afterward would have been extremely difficult.


    It was deemed quite a pity.


    But then again, they gained a lot from that battle. The Ninth Servant was severely injured, and it would have taken him quite some time to recuperate. Furthermore, the Ninth Servant understood from that battle that Qianye City did have enough power to shake him, making it so that he would think twice before acting against them again.

 1308 A Load on Ones Mind

    Outside of the Regional Palace at the Crimson River, situated in the Crimson Dragon City, Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan and the others were waiting for news instead of being in a hurry to get into the Regional Palace.


    While they had indeed set up an elaborate trap to take on the Ninth Servant in Qianye City, success remained uncertain. He was unable to be at ease until news reached him.


    He knew that the City Lord from Ancient Imperial City would not be someone easy to take on.


    However, the tension between both sides had escalated so much that they had to do something.


    If they were to sit on their hands, the Ninth Servant would be the one getting to scheme against them instead.


    Someone eventually appeared in Ye Futian''s line of sight. It was Wu Yong.


    Seeing Wu Yong''s expression, the burden on Ye Futian''s shoulders was lifted. At the very least, things seemed to have gone well.


    Wu Yong came to Ye Futian''s side and reported what happened in Qianye City in detail before bringing those from Qianye City back to their base. Ye Futian gave some orders before they departed. He, Yu Sheng, and Xia Qingyuan turned around and went inside the Regional Palace after Wu Yong and the others were gone.


    News of the battle in Qianye City spread like wildfire throughout Crimson Dragon Realm. Ye Futian had killed Xing Kai at the Crimson River, and the Holiness of Nirvanas at Qianye City managed to rip off one of the Ninth Servant''s arms, dealing severe damage to him and forcing him to retreat.


    Qianye City had been able to hold its own in the fighting between the two cities.


    Countless were impressed. The title of number one outside of Crimson Dragon City might very possibly switch hands.


    Ancient Imperial City became silent after that battle. It was rumored that the Ninth Servant suffered pervasive injuries and was busy recuperating in Ancient Imperial City.


    Regardless, that one battle had already proven that Qianye City was indeed powerful. If the Ninth Servant were to take on Qianye City again, he had to consider Qianye City''s retaliation and if they would attack Ancient Imperial City.


    That was unless he became able to wipe out the Holiness of Nirvanas in Qianye City in one shot.


    Qianye City sent people to keep a close eye on Ancient Imperial City''s movements��or more specifically, the Ninth Servant''s movements at all times. At the same time, the tribe leaders from the nine tribes stayed behind in the city lord''s office to train instead of leaving just in case the Ninth Servant decided to come back for them.


    Furthermore, all of them were fully willing to stay behind. Ye Futian ordered Wu Yong to pass Emperor Kua''s lineage to them, after all.


    After Yaya recovered from her injuries, she and Yan Yuan laid down two other Sword Matrixes of the Void in Qianye City to defend against incoming threats.


    However, the Ninth Servant never went to Qianye City again after the last attack. It seemed as if everything returned to normal after that.


    Xing Kai��a legendary figure who had once been renowned throughout the realm��gradually faded from the memories of the people of the realm. He was only brought up once in a while when that battle at the Crimson River was mentioned.


    At present, the one name that was always brought up by everyone was that of Ye Futian��City Lord of Qianye City.


    However, Ye Futian seemed to have been hardly seen after he went into the Regional Palace to train. It had been quite a while since he was seen in public.


    The Crimson River continued to flow as it always had, just like the normal passage of time.


    Two years passed by quickly.


    A great number of legendary figures emerged within the span of those two years. The Battle of the Sleeping Dragon held once a month continued to be a huge attraction. Two more battles were held at the Crimson River, and two other very formidable geniuses made it into the Regional Palace''s ranks.


    However, none had been able to achieve what Ye Futian had accomplished two years ago, when he emerged like a brilliant star from the sky.


    ...


    Year 10027 of Divine Prefecture Calendar.


    Two figures were seen standing on the top of a flaming hill on an ancient mountain that was scorched red hot in the Regional Palace. Both of them burst with extremely formidable auras.


    One of them held a halberd while the one held a sword.


    People were everywhere under the flaming peaks. Their eyes were fixed on those two men.


    A terrifying flash of the sword seemed to be about to flood the entire place, and the swordsman finally made his move.


    3,000 swords burst as soon as he attacked. Countless flashes of the sword streaked in the skies, blinding the eyes of the spectators.


    The other man made his move as well, attacking with the halberd in his hand.


    A doomsday-like scene emerged on the flaming peaks. The hills around them either burst and crumbled or were razed altogether. The flashes of the sword climbed in intensity, and it was the same with the halberd, where every single attack felt like a rainbow arching through the sky, tearing through space and destroying the great path.


    Streaks of dazzling bolts of lightning zipped in the sky. Both men separated after a very loud rumble was heard, returning to their spots before they fought.


    Pei Min lowered his head, looking at the sword in his hand, of which only the hilt was left, and then flashed a bitter smile at the silver-haired young man.


    When Ye Futian was still at Proving Holiness level, Pei Min''s sword had still been able to overpower him without needing to use the strongest attacks.


    As Ye Futian became a Saint of True Self, he became able to destroy Pei Min''s sword by clashing head only, armed only with his art of the halberd.


    "You want another round?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Please don''t look for me anymore from here on out." Pei Min then flashed, disappearing from everyone''s sight after drawing an arc with his sword.


    Ye Futian''s expression was peculiar as he watched Pei Min leave. He recalled that it was Pei Min who asked to spar with him when he first got into the Regional Palace.


    He turned around and looked at the spectators standing all over the place, watching the battle. He then asked, "Would any one of you like to have a go?"


    "Let''s get out of here." The crowd dispersed shortly.


    Even Pei Min gave up, and you''re asking us to have a go with you? they thought, incredulous.


    You enjoy torturing us or something?


    Damn, we can no longer play around like we use to ever since that b*stard became a Saint of True Self, they thought.


    Everyone in the crowd was determined to behave as if they heard nothing if he were to ever ask to spar with any of them.


    Ye Futian felt rather exasperated after he saw the crowd turning away from him. Being invincible was indeed lonely.


    He fought almost everyone in the first two planes of sainthood in the Regional Palace for the past two years. Ironically, it had been them who came to him when he first came to the Regional Palace.


    He had defeated Xing Kai in that battle above the Crimson River, after all.


    However, another figure was heading towards Ye Futian.


    That someone came before Ye Futian, looking very elegant and exuding a cold grace. It was none other than the daughter of Emperor Wu, Yin Tianjiao.


    "You want to spar?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Sure." Yin Tianjiao nodded slightly and asked, "Well, not quite a sparring session. I''m no match for you, after all. Take it as me asking for your advice. I''ve run into some problems with my training."


    They had gotten rather familiar with each other after Ye Futian joined the Regional Palace''s ranks.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian was different from how Xing Kai had been.


    Xing Kai was arrogant and aloof. He acted as if he was head and shoulders above the others, appearing unapproachable. Ye Futian, however, looked carefree and laidback most of the time. He even joked around with others. He was so amicable that even someone as prideful as Pei Min was able to get along with him just fine. Even though the two men hardly talked and spent most of their time around each other sparring, Yin Tianjiao knew that Pei Min was very approving and even impressed by Ye Futian.


    But then again, she knew very what Ye Futian had done in the past, and she had an obvious idea of how brutal and decisive he acted against his enemies.


    There was no need to mention that his talent was unusually exceptional as well. His comprehension and development in cultivation far eclipsed those of hers.


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded, seeing no reason to refuse.


    "If you have problems with training, why not seek help from elders or cave masters instead? He hasn''t been a Saint of True Self for long, and there will be little he could help you with." A voice was heard saying. Xia Qingyuan hovered to where they were, looking at both Ye Futian and Yin Tianjiao.


    "Two heads are always better than one. Furthermore, Ye Futian''s talent eclipses mine. It could be easier to discover some latent problems among peers instead," Yin Tianjiao replied plainly, looking at Xia Qingyuan, who had come to their side.


    "You speak the truth, indeed." Xia Qingyuan nodded and continued, "But then again, you probably wouldn''t be his match in sparring, and it would do you little good in furthering your training. How about we spar instead? We might find what we each lack from, after all."


    A hint of bafflement was seen in Yin Tianjiao''s eyes. She looked at Xia Qingyuan''s eyes. She only found calmness in her eyes. Xia Qingyuan also sounded laidback. It was as if she was only giving a common suggestion.


    "Alright, then." Yin Tianjiao nodded and flashed, heading towards the battlefield at the side.


    Xia Qingyuan headed out as well, heading towards Yin Tianjiao.


    A grand battle that was pleasing to the eye erupted soon, rattling the heavens and the earth within an instant. The attacks from both women were extremely raging. Both traded blows without bothering about defense.


    Wait, what? Ye Futian thought.


    Ye Futian, who was at the side, observed the raging battle between the two women.


    You girls have to go that far?


    Man, I better not mess with you two, he thought.


    Ye Futian turned around and left where he stood. He stopped in front of someone else and said, "Yu Sheng, let''s go."


    Yu Sheng stepped out and left with Ye Futian.


    Both of them came to a high ground, and Ye Futian sat on the ground.


    The year was already year 10027 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. He had been training in peace in the Regional Palace for the past two years and had succeeded in making into the next plane, becoming a Saint of True Self.


    A lot of his powers had grown considerably.


    But Ye Futian understood that if he were to be ranked among all in Crimson Dragon Region, his powers were hardly considered formidable.


    But then again, he was unable to sit around and continue training anymore.


    There were still two matters that hung in his mind.


    He wanted to attempt to settle one of them at the moment.


    Someone else came to their side before long. It was Xia Qingyuan.


    "You girls are done?" Ye Futian asked.


    You girls didn''t take your time, indeed, he remarked to himself.


    Xia Qingyuan then shot a cold glance at Ye Futian and asked, "You have something to talk to me about?"


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded and continued, "Princess, I''d like to return to Emperor Xia''s Realm for a bit, and there is something I''d like your help with."


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian. If it were not something important, he would not have come to her more so when he needed her help.


    She felt rather irked at that thought, and her eyes remained cold.


    She wanted to ignore him, but she was able to guess what he was up to and knew how important it was for him.


    "Alright," Xia Qingyuan agreed to it right away.


    "Aren''t you going to ask what it''s about, Princess?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You addressed me as ''princess.'' Would I need to ask any further?" Xia Qingyuan''s eyes remained cold. Ye Futian smiled embarrassingly. He knew Xia Qingyuan was able to guess what he was up to.


    He only addressed her as ''princess'' when he needed her help, and it was indeed quite shameless of him.


    He was unable to help but feel somewhat ashamed.


    However, this was something he needed to see to, and he did not want to wait.


    She looked at Ye Futian, flashing a bitter smile, and then asked, "Are you sure you''re going to do this right now?"


    It would be rather risky, after all.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded. Waiting would be painful for him, and it would be more so for his brothers and sisters back home.


    "In that case, let''s head out immediately. I''ll ask for my father''s help." Xia Qingyuan did not say anything else.

 1309 Unforgivable

    Ancient Imperial City stood tall and mighty.


    This place was the king of all cities found outside of Crimson Dragon City. The reason for this was simple��a Holiness of Nirvana ranked in the Regional King Rankings lived within the city. It was none other than the Ninth Servant.


    However, the battle that had been fought two years prior had threatened Ancient Imperial City''s place, meaning that its status was vulnerable to being taken by some other city.


    Furthermore, the Ninth Servant had returned from that battle in Qianye City severely injured. He spent most of his time training in isolation, not picking another fight with Qianye City.


    It was apparent that the Ninth Servant was unsure of his chances of taking down Qianye City.


    Those from Ancient Imperial City definitely wanted to probe into Qianye City''s movements. He knew that the Holiness of Nirvanas had never left the city since then. He also knew that they had put down Sword Matrixes of the Void. If he were to attack them again, the sword matrixes would be activated once more. He knew that if he were to sustain such a massive attack from the sword matrix again, he would be severely injured.


    He had no certainty of being able to take those matrixes down.


    At the grand, magnificent ancient hall of Ancient Imperial City, Xing Qiu stood on top of its steps. He had only emerged from yet another period of training in isolation recently, but the results were not apparent.


    That battle fought over two years ago had affected him greatly, especially when it came to his elder brother''s death.


    He hated himself for being incapable, yet there was little he could do about it. It was the first time Ancient Imperial City had ever felt helpless.


    They were unable to take down even that puny Qianye City.


    Yet at that moment, someone emanating a terrifying aura arrived, causing dazzling lights of space to appear in the air. A tall, imposing figure was standing in the air. It was none other than Gai Huang.


    Terrifying will of the great path of space appeared before him, turning into a screen of light of space, shrouding the space. He shouted, "Sir, there is a sword coming."


    Yet another terrifying aura was sensed as he spoke. The Ninth Servant, who was dressed in a gray robe, appeared. He extended his arms, a cold glare in his eyes.


    It was apparent that he had regrown the arm he''d lost two years ago. Nothing looked out of place at all.


    A screen of swords appeared in the sky. A sword matrix designed to tear the sky down had enveloped the entire place. Countless people in Ancient Imperial City looked up at the sky. Terrifying storms of the sword whipped up around them all of a sudden. Everyone was thoroughly frightened and all of them looked terrified.


    If that sword matrix hit them, there was no doubt it would kill them all instantly.


    That sword matrix shrouded the sky as millions of sword auras rained down from above. Blinding flashes of the swords pulsed at the center of the sword matrix, tearing through the sky and heading for the ground.


    Boom.


    Gai Huang''s defense crumbled right away. The Ninth Servant took to the air and said to Gai Huang, "Stand down."


    The offensive powers of the Sword Matrix of the Void were not something that even Gai Huang could stand against.


    The Ninth Servant lifted his hand, shrouding the sky as the towering will of the great path engulfed the air around them. An extremely huge palm print appeared in the sky.


    The Ninth Servant thrust his hand, causing the palm print in the sky to shake the entire space. The palm print stacked further until it seemed as if thousands of prints were there, rumbling high up in the air. The sky seemed ready to shatter.


    The swords rained down as the space crumbled like a scene from doomsday.


    Countless sword auras rained down and deafening rumbles were heard. The city lord''s office of Ancient Imperial City was being destroyed in a frenzy. Under the bombardment of the boundless sword wills, the place was quickly reduced to rubble.


    Tall, magnificent ancient halls were razed in the blink of an eye.


    Boom... a rumble was heard and the Ninth Servant was sent reeling back, coming to stand on a broken pillar with a grunt. However, that sword matrix had been more than half-destroyed. The might of the sword gradually dissipated.


    Those in Ancient Imperial City who saw the rubble before them from afar shuddered, their minds reeling from what they had just seen.


    That''s the might of the Sword Matrix of the Void?


    The City Lord was injured by something like in the past?


    What had happened moments before was incredibly terrifying. The force from that attack could have destroyed a city, yet the Ninth Servant had stood at the forefront and ton it down with sheer brute force. However, the city lord''s office was reduced to rubble.


    It did not seem that the sword matrix was out to kill them.


    It had served more as a warning.


    The Ninth Servant had arrived at Qianye City two years ago and razed the city lord''s office.


    On this day, the Sword Matrix of the Void had torn through the sky, proving its formidable powers and destroying the city lord''s office of Ancient Imperial City at the same time.


    It had served to remind him that the Sword Matrix of the Void was capable of killing remotely.


    If anyone were to anger the person wielding such powers, they would be able to destroy their city without being present.


    Was this considered a threat?


    Everyone was puzzled as to why those at Qianye City would have sent such a sword matrix all the way to Ancient Imperial City, as doing so wasted a very well laid down supermatrix for killing. Furthermore, the results did not seem to be proportionate to the effort. From a practical perspective, the attack seemed rather pointless.


    It was obvious that the move had not been worthwhile.


    Many wondered what Qianye City was up to.


    The Ninth Servant lifted his head and gazed in the direction of Qianye City. His eyes remained cold.


    This was the first time he''d been threatened by someone else.


    Gai Huang, Xing Qiu, and some other people appeared behind the Ninth Servant. All of them still reeling from what had just happened. That attack, which was capable of being launched remotely, indeed represented a huge threat.


    If the Ninth Servant were to attack Qianye City and they retaliated by throwing one such sword matrix at Ancient Imperial City, things would turn disastrous very quickly.


    Someone else flashed in after a while, looking at the scene and shuddering deep down. That person then bowed to the Ninth Servant and said, "Everyone at Qianye City left their city lord''s office not long ago."


    "All of them?" The Ninth Servant raised his brow slightly.


    "Indeed. Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan also emerged from the Regional Palace. What happened took place after they returned to the city lord''s office of Qianye City. They probably headed back to Emperor Xia''s Realm," the person elaborated.


    The Ninth Servant realized something. So, they were sending a warning before they left?


    Ye Futian was indeed an insolent pr*ck.


    ...


    After what had happened all those years ago, the relationship between Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm continued to worsen. Conflicts commonly broke out between those of the two realms.


    Emperor Li''s Realm had been very aggressive at the start of the conflict, gathering their troops at the border. After Xia Qingyuan brought several Holiness of Nirvanas from Emperor Xia''s Realm to Crimson Dragon Realm for a bit, another three mighty figures were brought back to Emperor Xia''s Realm to serve the realm.


    The tide turned quickly after that. The top-notch powers of Emperor Xia''s Realm became stronger than Emperor Li''s Realm, which had lost the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence.


    However, the Dali Dynasty was a dynastic force, meaning that they were able to command the forces found throughout the realm, something which Emperor Xia''s Realm was unable to do. As such, despite the turning of the tide, neither realm crashed head-on afterward, only fighting small scale skirmishes here and there.


    At that moment, the lieutenant of the Army of Tian in Emperor Xia''s Palace, who was also Xia Rong, the eldest prince of the realm, was about to meet his father.


    He was dressed in martial regalia and was brimming. He then said to his father, "Father, our Holiness of Nirvanas are the ones with the edge now. Why not just order the forces found throughout the realm to lead their people to join the battle against Dali right away?"


    Emperor Xia naturally knew that his eldest son, who''d grown up in the army, was a war hawk. From his perspective, that decisive move he''d pulled back in the Crimson Dragon Realm had made him realize his ideals, yet it also made him seem cold and unfeeling.


    "Except for the top-notch forces, the overall strength of Dali remains higher than that of Emperor Xia''s Realm. If we fight a realm war now, many will perish on the battlefield if we do not have a decisive edge against our enemy," Emperor Xia said.


    "That is the nature of war. The Dali Dynasty has always been eyeing us, wanting to hit us. If not for the Imperial Advisor of Dali not seeing eye-to-eye with King Tiandao in terms of political ideals, they would have long ago sent their armies surging through our borders. There is no need for you to show that much consideration, father." Xia Rong continued, "Wars make people change and evolve. Those from Emperor Xia''s Realm who have experienced war had to grow stronger to survive. If there are massive incidents in the future, we of Emperor Xia''s Realm will have enough power to deal with them."


    Emperor Xia knew what Xia Rong was getting at.


    However, the emperor did not wish to ever see something like that happen again if possible.


    At that moment, Emperor Xia lifted his head and looked far away. A warm, brimming smile crossed his face, puzzling Xia Rong.


    "Your little sister has returned," Emperor Xia said.


    Xia Rong turned around and looked far away as well, adding, "I''ll go out and get Qingyuan." He then turned around and headed out right away, waiting outside the royal palace.


    Some time passed and a group of people was seen in the sky, heading toward the royal palace.


    Emperor Xia had a teleportation matrix that was linked to the Crimson Dragon Realm. There was also a space matrix there linking to all realms of the region. However, the toll was prohibitively high and most people would bot be able to use them.


    When Ye Futian and the rest returned, they dropped many of their own from various top-notch forces off along the way. All of them had been training for years outside. Now, it was time for them to check how things were going back home.


    The others were not idling by while Ye Futian was training in isolation in the Regional Palace. All of them had been making progress in their training in various places found in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Xia Rong stood outside the royal palace and cast his gaze on Ye Futian, whose bearing became even more exceptional. Xia Rong found that he had become a Saint of True Self.


    What surprised him more was that few at Ye Futian''s side emanated immeasurable auras. They were all more powerful than him.


    That meant that they were all Holiness of Nirvanas.


    They were probably mighty ones of the nine tribes that Ye Futian had subjugated in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    They were people like Zhu Kong and the rest.


    A large group of mighty ones were behind them, which made it look like Ye Futian had brought an army with him. All of them were mighty ones whose training was above that of Saint of True Self.


    Xia Rong turned his eyes toward Xia Qingyuan. He then flashed a warm smile and called out, "Qingyuan."


    Xia Qingyuan took a look at him and her expression turned rather cold. She was unable to forgive him for what he had done in the past.


    Xia Rong was exasperated after seeing Xia Qingyuan''s expression. She was still bitter despite that all of that had happened years before.


    An elder brother could never compare to her beloved.


    "Ye Futian..." Xia Rong turned his eyes toward Ye Futian again. Xia Rong was just about to say something before seeing the other man continue on his way, walking past the prince and heading to the royal palace, leaving Xia Rong where he stood.


    Ye Futian was expressionless. He did not even bother looking at Xia Rong.


    Regardless of what Xia Rong''s stance had been, regardless if it had been the right thing or the wrong thing to do to the prince, that was Xia Rong''s own opinion.


    Ye Futian was unable to forgive what he''d done back then.


    Xia Rong''s decision back in Crimson Dragon Realm had destroyed the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, causing his teacher to be reduced to a weakened and imprisoned state.


    If the Imperial Advisor had not chosen to take on the consequences of what had happened all on his own, there was no way Ye Futian would have been able to stand where he was in the present day.


    Xia Rong was very clear about what his actions would result in, yet the prince never hesitated. He had been decisive and brutal, which had considerably weakened Dali''s powers.


    But at the same time, that had completely offended Ye Futian. Xia Rong probably would not have minded it back then.


    In that case, Ye Futian saw no need to pay any attention to Xia Rong either.


    They were both from the same background in that they all served Emperor Xia. Ye Futian held immense respect and gratitude for Emperor Xia for what the emperor had done for him, but that had nothing to do with Xia Rong.


    Xia Rong stood frozen. He did not turn around to look at Ye Futian. There was nothing to be seen in those deep eyes of his.


    It seemed that there was no chance of reconciliation between the two of them.

 1310 The Mischievous Emperor Xia

    Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan and Yao Xi came to meet the emperor within Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    All the others stayed outside the hall. Ye Futian and Emperor Xia were closer to each other after all, and they needed Emperor Xia''s approval if they were to meet him as well.


    Queen Xiao was there as well. Her eyes looked gentle. It had been years since she last saw her daughter.


    "Father, mother."


    "Greetings, your majesty, and your highness." Ye Futian bowed.


    "Not bad. You''ve been achieving significant progress with your training, I see. You''ve now become a Saint of True Self. Seems like you''ve gained quite a lot in your two years of training in the Regional Palace." Emperor Xia smiled and continued, "Qingyuan, you need to work harder."


    Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly. She, however, had no interest in comparing herself to Ye Futian.


    Emperor Xia then looked at Yao Xi and said, "That goes for you too, Yao Xi."


    "I''m the outsider here. Please continue without me." Yao Xi smiled plainly before turning and leaving. It was rather unexpected that she just left like that.


    While Yao Xi had been to Crimson Dragon Realm as well, but Xia Qingyuan looked at her like she was watching over a thief. She was very much on guard against her.


    She said that she was an ''outsider'', which was quite true. Ye Futian was keeping a distance from her somewhat. From the looks of things, she was able to tell that there were still things that one could not have obtained, simply because one was willing to fight for it.


    Emperor Xia felt rather exasperated watching her leave. While Yao Xi had joined the royal palace''s ranks, but it seemed that she was still unable to truly put some loads she had on her mind down.


    However, that was all up to her, and the emperor had no intention of interfering.


    "Qingyuan, how was Crimson Dragon Realm?" The queen smiled and asked.


    "Very good. There are many exceptionally talented cultivators at Crimson Dragon Realm. Many in the Regional Palace were like me��coming from other Renhuang realms to train," Xia Qingyuan elaborated. It did her a lot of good training in a better environment.


    "You brought Holiness of Nirvanas with you on your way home, and you did look like you have had a good time." Emperor Xia then added, "So, what are you doing bringing so many cultivators with you this time?"


    "I''d like to ask for your help, father," Xia Qingyuan said right away.


    "It is me who needs your help, your majesty." Ye Futian bowed and added, "I''m sure you know that I owed a lot to the Imperial Advisor of Dali. He is in his current predicament all because of me."


    "I remembered the last time I went to Emperor Li''s City with you, I told you that the Imperial Advisor is still someone from Dali. Even if you truly intend to head to Emperor Li''s Realm, what would you do if Emperor Li intends to kill you?" Emperor Xia asked. Emperor Li could not have killed someone from Emperor Xia''s Realm himself, but killing a ''traitor'' of Dali was something no one would have stopped him from doing.


    If they were to send forces to rescue the Imperial Advisor, it would have truly made the Imperial Advisor a ''traitor'' after all.


    "The last time we deployed, we did so in the name of staging a war between the two realms, instead of doing so for the sake of the Imperial Advisor. But the operation this time, won''t be for taking out cultivators of Emperor Li''s Realm; it is to take the Imperial Advisor of Dali out of the picture," Ye Futian said. Emperor Xia''s eye twitched, getting what Ye Futian was trying to do so.


    They wanted to rescue the Imperial Advisor of Dali, and they needed an excuse.


    Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan, and Yao Xi came to meet Emperor Xia in his palace.


    The others remained outside the hall. Approval was necessary to meet the emperor, though Ye Futian and Emperor Xia were close.


    Queen Xiao was there as well. Her eyes looked gentle. It had been years since she last saw her daughter.


    "Father, mother," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "Greetings, your majesty, and your highness." Ye Futian bowed.


    "Not bad. I see you''ve achieved significant progress with your training. You''ve now become a Saint of True Self. Seems like you''ve learned quite a lot in your two years of training at the Regional Palace." Emperor Xia smiled and continued. "Qingyuan, you need to work harder."


    Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly, though she had no interest in comparing herself to Ye Futian.


    Emperor Xia then looked at Yao Xi and said, "That goes for you, too."


    "I''m the outsider here. Please continue without me." Yao Xi smiled plainly before turning and leaving.


    It was rather unexpected that she just left like that.


    While Yao Xi had been to Crimson Dragon Realm as well, Xia Qingyuan looked at her as she would a potential thief. She was very much on-guard around her.


    Yao Xi had said that she was an ''outsider,'' which was quite true. Ye Futian had kept something of a distance from her. It seemed she could tell that there were still things that could not be obtained simply because one was willing to fight for it.


    Emperor Xia felt rather exasperated watching her leave. While Yao Xi had joined the royal palace''s ranks, she was still unable to let go of her burdens.


    However, that was all up to her, and the emperor had no intention of interfering.


    "Qingyuan, how was the Crimson Dragon Realm?" the queen asked with a smile.


    "Very good. There are many exceptionally talented cultivators at the Crimson Dragon Realm. Many in the Regional Palace were like me��coming from other Renhuang realms to train," Xia Qingyuan elaborated. Training in that environment had done her a lot of good.


    "You brought Holiness of Nirvanas with you on your way home, and you look like enjoyed it, " Emperor Xia added. "Now, have you brought so many cultivators before us?"


    "I''d like to ask for your help, father," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "It is me who needs your help, your majesty." Ye Futian bowed. "I''m sure you know that I owed a lot to the Imperial Advisor of Dali. His current predicament is all because of me."


    "I remembered the last time I went to Emperor Li''s City with you, I told you that the Imperial Advisor is still someone from Dali. Even if you truly intend to head to Emperor Li''s Realm, what would you do if Emperor Li intends to kill you?" Emperor Xia asked. Emperor Li could not have killed someone from Emperor Xia''s Realm himself, but killing a ''traitor'' of Dali was something no one would have stopped him from doing.


    If they were to send forces to rescue the Imperial Advisor, it would have truly labeled him a ''traitor.''


    "The last time we deployed, we did so in the name of ending the war between the two realms. But this time, our goal would be liberating the Imperial Advisor of Dali," Ye Futian said.


    Emperor Xia''s eye twitched as he understood Ye Futian''s intention. They wanted to rescue the Imperial Advisor of Dali, and they needed an excuse.


    They did not intend to use that as the reason to deploy their troops��the realm would have served as that reason instead.


    Ye Futian intended to force Emperor Li to hand the Imperial Advisor over. By doing so, they would have to exercise restraint to avoid infuriating Emperor Li.


    "The realm will deploy an army, yet they will be forbidden from killing any important figures of Dali, as the aim is to save the Imperial Advisor. I have no doubt it is all within reason from your perspective. You owe a debt to the Imperial Advisor. But as for the others, I''m afraid...they might not be willing to help," Emperor Xia said.


    "We would have an absolute advantage so long as you give the word, father. We''ll be the ones with the overwhelming edge, and the losses would be small," Xia Qingyuan said. Other than the three Holiness of Nirvanas from the nine tribes that they brought back to the realm, there were also Wu Yong, Shen Tianzhan, and three other Holiness of Nirvanas. There was also Yaya as well.


    Yan Yuan was unable to fight in the war.


    The Star Plucking Saint did not come with them and Ye Futian was naturally unable to order him to do so. The Star Plucking Saint had only been out to help him before. His case was different from those of the nine tribes.


    Even so, Emperor Xia''s Realm, which already had an advantage in terms of a pinnacle combat force, had four more Holiness of Nirvanas and Yaya. There were also many Unblemished Saints from the nine tribes, which would have enabled them to gain an absolute advantage.


    "It is easy to give the generals direct orders. As for the leaders of the other forces, I shall invite them to the palace. If you want their help, you''ll need to ask them yourself," Emperor Xia said.


    He looked at Ye Futian, who appeared calm after hearing his words. Ye Futian then bowed and said, "Thank you, your majesty."


    Rescuing the Imperial Advisor was his own matter. Emperor Xia had already mobilized those elite figures many times. They had also been to Crimson Dragon Realm twice.


    It would not have been a good thing for the emperor to keep ordering them about, just because he was the emperor.


    Xia Qingyuan did not know what his father was up to, but she nonetheless saw her mother smile while looking at the emperor.


    Emperor Xia had invited these people to the royal palace before, asking if they were interested in letting their younger members follow Ye Futian to train in Crimson Dragon Realm. Each force did so. The emperor had given Ye Futian a chance to meet up with those people by letting him ask them himself.


    If Ye Futian had been the emperor''s son, he would have been the top choice in the succession of the throne.


    Ye Futian''s talents and renown were such that no one in Emperor Xia''s Realm did not know of him. He had quite a reputation in all of those elite forces, and many thought highly of him. He had also created his own legend in Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The queen wondered if Emperor Xia had thoughts about allowing Xia Qingyuan to marry Ye Futian, and then having the young man succeed the emperor as his son-in-law.


    Everyone in the royal palace knew what her daughter was thinking. She had yet to marry, but there was already a man that she kept following around.


    In name, she was the princess and Ye Futian was her subordinate. But from what the queen heard, it had almost always been Ye Futian calling the shots.


    Queen Xiao then smiled and said, "Go rest. I''ll talk with Qingyuan for a bit."


    "Yes, your highness." Ye Futian nodded and left, leaving Xia Qingyuan alone in the hall.


    Both the emperor and Xia Qingyuan looked at her. The queen then said, "Come over and have a seat."


    Xia Qingyuan went to her mother''s side. The family of three acted more relaxed with no one else around.


    Queen Xiao was not the emperor''s first wife. He already had a spouse when he was young, who died in chaos. Emperor Xia was still a saint back then. He fell in love with Queen Xiao after becoming a Renhuang, but it took a long time before they were finally married. In truth, she was only a concubine instead of a true queen.


    However, his wife did not mind any of that. It was perfectly fine for the emperor to want to remember his late spouse. Despite technically being a concubine, she was hardly different from a queen.


    "So, how have things been going for the past few years?" Queen Xiao smiled and asked.


    Xia Qingyuan was dumbfounded. She looked at her mother and realized what she was getting at.


    She lowered her head immediately and said in a tiny voice, "What do you mean?"


    "You two have been going in and out together all the time. Are you still trying to play dumb here?" Emperor Xia smiled. "Qingyuan, why are you still dressed like a guy? This is getting ridiculous."


    "It''s not what you think." Xia Qingyuan turned her head to the side. There was hardly any expression on her face.


    Emperor Xia smirked at his little girl''s embarrassment.


    "Wait, that bastard didn''t do anything at all? Sheesh, what the hell!" Emperor Xia cursed. "Qingyuan, do you want me to just order you two to marry?"


    "I have no idea what you''re getting at," Xia Qingyuan said. "Furthermore, Ye Futian is married, and he''s busy looking for his wife."


    "While it may be possible that his wife is still alive, the chances are incredibly slim. Well, at least he is indeed loyal. I''m rather relieved to know that." Emperor Xia then smiled and looked at his daughter. "Wait, didn''t you just say that you didn''t know what we were getting at?"


    "Seriously?" she thought. Xia Qingyuan glared at her father before standing up. "I''d like to excuse myself, father."


    "All right, all right, we''ll talk about what happened in Crimson Dragon Realm then." Emperor Xia pulled Xia Qingyuan over and gestured for her to sit again. Xia Qingyuan did so in exasperation.


    "You two have been through thick and thin for the past few years in Crimson Dragon Realm. Are you telling me that this kid feels nothing at all? He might be very fixated on Hua Jieyu at the moment, but when he''s finally given up on her, that''s where you come in," Emperor Xia said.


    "Wait, what? Didn''t you say the subject is over?" she thought.


    One could only imagine what outsiders would have thought if they saw this side of Emperor Xia.


    Despite it being said that saints and Renhuangs were no longer mortals, they were nonetheless still human. Emperor Xia was still a father. And fathers treated their daughters differently than their sons.


    ...


    Many legendary figures arrived at the royal palace several days later. All elite cultivators were there.


    In pretext, the banquet was held to welcome Princess Xia Qingyuan and Yao Xi home. But those of the elite forces more or less knew what the banquet was really about.


    Their younger members had already brought the subject up. Ye Futian would not have brought so many mighty ones from Qianye City back for anything else.


    Was he trying to usurp the throne of Emperor Xia''s Realm instead? Ridiculous.


    There was only one possibility��Dali.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen, the Palace Lord of Xuanyuan Palace, the Jiutian Temple Lord, and many elite figures were present. They all looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was given a privileged seat right below Emperor Xia and beside Xia Qingyuan. Which struck every one present as interesting.


    Emperor Xia had naturally sat at the very top, the most privileged of seats. He smiled while looking at the crowd and said, "I''m sure you''ve all heard about the incident at Qianye City. Qingyuan and Ye Futian took the city back and established a base for us at Crimson Dragon Realm. Now, Qianye City has also become one of the strongest cities to be found in Crimson Dragon Realm. Qingyuan, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng are all training in the Regional Palace, a holy land of training in Crimson Dragon Realm. This truly calls for a celebration."


    The Jiutian Temple Lord lifted his cup with a smile. "We thought it would have taken quite some time before Ye Futian became a dear general. We didn''t expect this to happen so quickly. Congratulations are indeed warranted, your majesty."


    "Congratulations, indeed." Emperor Xia nodded.


    The mighty ones all lifted their cups to toast the emperor. It was an extremely rare chance to be able to drink with his majesty, and it was all thanks to Ye Futian.


    As they congratulated the emperor for finding a capable general, in truth they all knew that his majesty treated said general like his son-in-law.


    They had all heard of the commotion Ye Futian had been whipping up in Crimson Dragon Realm. They were all very impressed, despite being Holiness of Nirvanas themselves.


    Ye Futian was indeed living up to his reputation as one in a million. It was more than just being peerless in Emperor Xia''s Realm. It seemed that none in Crimson Dragon Region could match his achievements.


    At the very least, there was no peer among the other young ones.

 1311 Reminder

    Because Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian had grown so close, and because Emperor Xia valued Ye Futian so much, everyone present knew one thing for certain. Ye Futian was being groomed for rule.


    But then again, that was little more than a stray thought. Judging from talents displayed by Ye Futian so far, he would have no problem going to Renhuang Plane.


    If he were to one day rule Emperor Xia''s Realm, he might bring the realm to greater heights.


    The mood of the banquet was great. Everyone was having the time of their life. It was some time after the banquet began that the emperor addressed the crowd. "Other than to welcome Qingyuan and Ye Futian home, I''ve invited all of you here for another matter. This is a matter for Ye Futian to tell you about, so I will excuse myself. Please go on without me."


    The emperor got up and left. Everyone cupped their hands to send him off.


    Their eyes turned back to Ye Futian after the emperor left.


    Other than some important figures of the royal palace, every single person who remained at the banquet was a core member of their respective elite force.


    Ye Futian looked at all of them and said, "Over the past several years, I''ve come to each of you for your assistance on many occasions. I shouldn''t impose on you seniors any further, but there is something that I can''t ignore. As such, I''m afraid I must request your help again, seniors."


    Everyone had a good sense of what he was leading up to. The Swordmaster of Lihen looked at him and asked, "What do you want us to do?"


    The Dali Dynasty had lost an important figure in the Imperial Advisor, while Ye Futian had brought back many Nirvanas of Holiness. Judging from the powers of both sides, Emperor Xia''s Realm now had the absolute edge.


    Ye Futian looked at the Swordmaster of Lihen. "I''d like to request that all of you attack Dali Dynasty at the same time."


    "The target?" the Swordmaster of Lihen asked.


    "I''d like all of you to enter Emperor Li''s Realm from different directions, then converge in the imperial city. I want Emperor Li to promise me one thing, and I''m sure many of you can guess what that is," Ye Futian continued.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen did not ask any further. Charging inside Dali Dynasty, marching into the imperial city, and then threatening the emperor? The plan was ambitious, but he had to admit that the chance of success was extremely high. If they agreed to help Ye Futian out, the differences in power would become apparent.


    What would Emperor Li do if he saw enemy troops right outside his palace? He would have to make compromises, whether he wanted to or not. And Ye Futian would achieve his goal to force Emperor Li into releasing the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    "So we''re threatening the emperor himself then? This plan is indeed bold," thought the Swordmaster of Lihen. Then he nodded and answered with two simple yet powerful words: "Very well."


    He was at the battle in Crimson Dragon Realm. He was very impressed with the Imperial Advisor''s bearing, so much that he doubted he could have done the same in that position.


    Such a cultivator��even one on the opposite side��was worthy of respect all the same.


    Furthermore, this operation posed little risk to him. So long as they refrained from unnecessary killing, things would be relatively safe.


    "Thank you, swordmaster." Ye Futian rose. He sipped his drink, then said, "If you require anything of me in the future, Ye Futian swears to see it done."


    None had helped him more than the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    "If the swordmaster accepts the proposal without hesitation, I see no reason not to do the same."


    The Jiutian Temple Lord smiled. "I still remember that time when you and those from Lihen Heaven fought at Jiutian Temple. I surely did not expect to see you sitting side by side today."


    "It''s all in the past. Please let it rest, senior," Ye Futian said with a smile. His state of mind was very different compared to back then.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen had returned Ye Futian''s enmity with kindness, lending his sword to one of Ye Futian''s people after reaching the 33rd level of heaven. That incident had had quite an effect on his training from then on out.


    "Count me in. Hasn''t Dali Dynasty always wanted to attack us anyway? Now we can oblige them this. Too bad we can''t kill them, though." The Palace Lord of Xuanyuan Palace laughed, showcasing his frank and straightforward temperament.


    The purpose of the operation was to rescue the Imperial Advisor, so naturally they would have to restrain themselves and not cross the line.


    Ye Futian was rather touched, finding so many elite figures who agreed to help him, especially when he''d just spring this on them. He raised his cup with both hands to his lips and drank again. Then he bowed to them. "If any senior present should ever need anything of me, I promise to see it done."


    With these elite figures by his side and the powers of Emperor Xia, the operation had now gathered most of the pinnacle forces found in the realm.


    Couple all that with those he had brought from the Crimson Dragon Realm, and it was now possible to overrun the Dali Dynasty. It was just as the Swordmaster of Lihen put it��the battle would have been quite an easy one.


    "I rather look forward to such a grand battle. Now that everything is in order, let''s set up a plan and get prepared," said the Jiutian Temple Lord. Everyone nodded in agreement.


    The banquet ended shortly after, and all the guests went home to begin preparations. When they were alone, Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian. She naturally knew that they hadn''t agreed so quickly just because of her father. It was also because of Ye Futian himself. He was an inspirational figure and everyone saw the potential he had.


    Emperor Xia''s Realm became busy after the banquet was over. Forces gathered and mighty ones went in and out of the royal palace, delivering news.


    Those at the upper echelons of Emperor Xia''s Realm knew that a grand battle taking place between the two realms was imminent.


    Xia Rong had gotten busy as well. He prepared to return to the army and he met up with his father one more time before he departed.


    Xia Rong felt rather complicated. He had been asking his father to wage a realm war and his father had always ignored him.


    However, it took only a single word from Ye Futian after he returned for Emperor Xia to agree to it, starting the storm that would engulfed two realms.


    Just who was the prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm supposed to be?


    But then again, he did not bother to think much about any of that. He simply said to his father, "Father, we now have the absolute advantage in this war. Why did you agree to Ye Futian''s proposal of simply suppressing them? Why not go further and completely wipe out Emperor Li''s Realm?"


    Ye Futian was only doing so to save the Imperial Advisor, but what the prince wanted was something else altogether.


    "This battle is being fought because of Ye Futian. If not for those powers he brought from the Crimson Dragon Realm, we wouldn''t have been able to do this. So we''ll do it his way," Emperor Xia answered.


    "Father, do you think it''s all right to let this chance slip past our fingers, just for the sake of the Imperial Advisor?" Xia Rong asked.


    Emperor Xia eyed his son, who stood tall and proud. While the prince had indeed sensed powerful pressure, there was not a single hint of retreat in his deep eyes. He looked his father straight in the eye.


    "Xia Rong," Emperor Xia continued after being silent for a while, "this is not only for the Imperial Advisor, it''s for you as well. Do not forget who caused all of this."


    It had been Xia Rong''s decision that led to the Imperial Advisor''s current predicament. The emperor had agreed to Ye Futian''s proposal to resolve the problem Xia Rong caused.


    Deep down, Xia Rong knew what his father meant. But other thoughts were interfering with what he knew to be true. "Does Ye Futian mean so much to Father?" he thought.


    "Return to the army and do as you''re told by your sacred general. Don''t indulge your own smart ideas anymore," Emperor Xia reminded him. "Cultivation itself is of greater importance than anything else. I do not think I''d need to remind you of that, given your current situation."


    Xia Rong was not a member of the younger generation, who were incapable of forming their own opinions. On the contrary, he was too opinionated.


    As an Unblemished Saint, there was little need to say anything about Xia Rong''s state of mind. It was, after all, what enabled him to make such a decision back at the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    However, that was not the outcome he wanted to see.


    "Yes, Father."


    The emperor had made himself very clear and Xia Rong naturally did not see the point in pushing the matter further. He then excused himself and left.


    ...


    Due to the scale of commotion in Emperor Xia''s Realm, there was no way Emperor Li''s Realm would have been oblivious to it.


    Both Renhuang realms had placed their spies in each other''s territory. Ye Futian''s return was not even a secret to begin with. It wasn''t long before word of these activities quickly reached Emperor Li''s Realm.


    In the imperial city of Emperor Li''s Realm, a frail old man sat in a prison, held down by a ritual implement. The old man appeared shriveled, his aura was weak, and his hair was unkempt.


    Footsteps approached, and they stopped before him.


    "Imperial Advisor," a familiar voice said.


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali slowly lifted his head and saw the manwho stood at the pinnacle of Dali. He exuded a regal, majestic air. He was none other than Emperor Li himself.


    "Your majesty." The Imperial Advisor''s voice was weak. Though his eyes brimmed at times, the Imperial Advisor''s entire being was otherwise tremendously dejected.


    "News has come from Emperor Xia''s Realm. Your student is getting ready to amass an army to attack Dali. What do you think of that?" Emperor Li asked.


    "Student?" the Imperial Advisor thought. He looked rather puzzled, but he quickly understood who the emperor was talking about. It was not Yan Yuan, nor most others he could think of.


    The only one it could be was definitely Ye Futian.


    "There is a reason why you are the Imperial Advisor��you have good eyes. You picked him over Di Hao or Dong Chen, and time has justified that choice. Ye Futian has indeed proven himself far more extraordinary than the other two, so much so that any comparison to them would be laughable. He is now a City Lord in Crimson Dragon City and has inherited the Renhuang ruins. He''s being served by several Holiness of Nirvanas, which have enabled him to turn the tide of the war. Emperor Xia''s Realm no longer has any disadvantage. And now, he is about to lead an attack into Dali. I''m sure he''s doing it for you, don''t you think?


    "Ironically, he was the one person you were willing to sacrifice yourself to protect. And now, he is now about to attack Dali. It remains to be seen how many people will pay with their lives. What are your thoughts, Imperial Advisor?"


    If it had not been for the Imperial Advisor''s treachery, Ye Futian would have perished long ago.


    The Imperial Advisor lowered his head and said, "Your majesty, when Ye Futian acted out against Prince Li Yao, it was only to avenge his wife as well as the lives of many others. The prince is no longer present, so maybe there is still a chance to turn this around."


    He coughed lethargically after he finished.


    To him, being able to survive alone had been a luxury.


    Emperor Li looked at him silently. "Turn things around? How naive," he thought.


    The emperor turned and left. He had not expected the young man he had met all those years ago could have grown at such a frightening rate.


    It was so much that even him, a Renhuang, felt somewhat threatened.

 1312 The Culpri

    The elite forces departed from Emperor Xia''s Realm several days later. They headed towards the battlefield and prepared to rendezvous with the Eight Legions.


    Ye Futian sent four Holiness of Nirvanas out as well. He sent Yaya out with them too, but she was following the ones from the Sword Clan of Lihen.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen and Yaya had both fought to be the top swordsman in Emperor Xia''s Realm. Presently, both renowned swordsmen joined hands as they made for the inner parts of enemy territory. None was able to stand in their way.


    They could have let Emperor Xia take them to Dali Imperial City right away just as they had done previously, yet they did not. They went on to wage a war across Emperor Li''s Realm instead, charging towards the palace. That was the only way they would have been able to truly lean on the emperor.


    What they were really doing was waging a realm war, not staging a rescue operation.


    Every single group that departed had several demonic beasts with them, all of which had been enthralled by Ye Futian. By doing so, each group could communicate with the others. Ye Futian served as the hub, knowing at all times what others were doing.


    Ye Futian kept only one Holiness of Nirvana by his side, and that was Wu Yong.


    The leaders from the Nanli Tribe, the Beili Tribe, and the Vermilion Bird Clan, as well as Shen Tianzhan, had all departed.


    Ye Futian remained back at the royal palace, not because he wouldn''t participate in the fight, but because he had a mission of his own.


    Emperor Xia arranged for Ye Futian and his people to have their own palace within the royal palace. No one other than royal relatives had ever enjoyed such a privilege.


    Even people like the Great Shaman had only been granted access to training grounds and their quarters, instead of being given their own palace.


    However, none found that arrangement peculiar. Emperor Xia had long treated Ye Futian as a member of his family. Ye Futian''s actual status with the emperor was an open secret.


    That palace had pavilions, towers and even a waterfall, making the place look like a paradise.


    Ye Futian and the fifth prince, Xia Lun, were engaged in a game of chess. Xia Qingyuan was present as well.


    "I just recalled that I have something to attend to. Please excuse me. Qingyuan, take my place," Xia Lun said to his sister. He rose and patted himself. Without even turning his head around, he began to leave, looking dashing and carefree.


    "Three losses straight," Xia Qingyuan said in a low voice, "What a formidable player indeed."


    Xia Lun''s mouth twitched, but he still did not turn around. He walked away with his head held high.


    He was feeling rather frustrated. It was not only that Ye Futian was very talented in cultivation, which made the princes look bad, but many outside the royal palace were talking. They had been saying that Ye Futian looked more like the ''emperor''s son'' than the princes.


    Xia Lun was very proficient at the art of chess, and he had actually intended to kill some of Ye Futian''s brimming might, saving some face for the princes.


    The outcome was horrendous. The games only made the prince feel that Ye Futian''s ability at calculation was horrifying.


    "You''re up for a game, princess?" Ye Futian asked Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan shook her head. "I''m not a player."


    "Allow me instead," interjected Yan Yuan as he approached the pair.


    "All right, older brother. Let''s do this." Ye Futian set the board up. Nan Zhai and Feixue were there at the side as well.


    Both of them started playing and Ye Futian found that Yan Yuan was also a very skilled player. An intense game emerged between the two masters.


    Ye Futian learned how to play chess at Chess Saint Villa many years ago, but that did not mean he was invincible. The Chess Saint was but a common saint. Yan Yuan, on the other hand, had become a Holiness of Nirvana. He wondered just how capable his older brother was at calculation.


    Furthermore, Yan Yuan did not let up at all, surrounding Ye Futian on all sides. It seemed to reflect his current state of mind.


    Yan Yuan must have been worried about the Imperial Advisor.


    They wanted to help but they were unable to. It would have incurred Emperor Li''s wrath otherwise, and their teacher was still a prisoner of Emperor Li.


    "No need to get too worried. Emperor Li isn''t dumb. He wouldn''t have acted against our teacher before things became more apparent. They would have been at an absolute disadvantage otherwise.


    They''re scared of pissing us off," Ye Futian said. After all, the invasion was done in the name of waging a realm war.


    "Right." Yan Yuan nodded. As a Holiness of Nirvana, his state of mind had long transformed, becoming indomitable.


    However, the matter at hand still had to do with their teacher, so it was unavoidable that they still felt frustrated. Even though they were practically able to see the outcome, they still worried nonetheless.


    Yan Yuan was not the only one who felt that way. Nan Zhai, Feixue and the others were quiet as well. It was apparent that a load rested on their collective shoulders.


    But then again, they were all very supportive of Ye Futian''s operation. If they were to simply leave their teacher locked up in a cell, no one could tell what would happen to him.


    Their teacher was no longer what he had once been. His training had been wiped clean and his life might be in an extremely frail state.


    It was quite a pity. Despite all of them having trained in the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, none of them were able to immerse themselves as deeply in the method as their teacher. They were unable to see fates and luck in the great path.


    "You guys are really taking your time." The new voice belonged to the fourth prince, the incredibly dashing Xia Kun. He approached the game.


    "Your highness." Ye Futian rose and bowed, showing his respect.


    Xia Kun smiled. "Save the formalities, I''m just here to look around."


    "All right." Ye Futian sat and continued to play.


    Xia Kun was only there to watch. He then said, "Bravo. I didn''t know that Sir Yan Yuan and Ye Futian were so good at chess. I''m sure my brother was having a hard time earlier."


    "The fifth prince is very skilled as well," Ye Futian replied.


    "He''d like to think so." Xia Kun smiled and then followed up with, "Qingyuan, since when have you been interested in chess?"


    "I''m just watching," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "Well, we never saw you watch a game before." Xia Kun chuckled.


    Xia Qingyuan eyed him with a speechless look.


    "All right, I''m done bothering you guys. Come to my place if you could spare the time, Brother Ye," Xia Kun said.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He received a telepathic message from Feixue.


    His hand hung in midair, the chess piece still in hand. Ye Futian then lifted his head and asked with a smile, "How is the Xiao clan doing now that Xiao Sheng is gone?"


    Xia Kun stopped and turned around, freezing in place. He then turned his head to look at Ye Futian. He saw that Ye Futian was talking to his sister.


    Ye Futian turned to look at Xia Kun and asked, "What happened your highness?"


    "Nothing." Xia Kun shook his head, before turning around and leaving.


    Xia Qingyuan shot a puzzled look at Ye Futian. That question sounded like it came out of nowhere. Neither she nor Xia Kun knew how to react.


    "I''ve never left the royal palace since I returned, so I have little idea. But after what happened, grandfather felt he should keep a tight leash on the clan," Xia Qingyuan answered.


    "What''s done is done, and Xiao Sheng paid for it. Don''t let this get between you and Old Man Xiao, princess," Ye Futian said and looked at Feixue, who was at his side.


    Feixue''s expression changed slightly. "I sense a murderous intent," she said to him telepathically.


    Ye Futian''s hand froze again, then he moved his piece on the board.


    Feixue''s abilities were only known to those from the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. He hadn''t told anyone in Emperor Xia''s Realm, not even Xia Qingyuan.


    If that ability of hers became known, people would have been on-guard against her at all times.


    After Feixue''s telepathic message, he deliberately asked Xia Qingyuan about the Xiao clan, specifically bringing up Xiao Sheng''s name.


    He was doing that just to see how Xiao Kun would react. The prince covered himself pretty well, but hints were there nonetheless. Then again, that hardly proved anything, as turning around would have been normal. But that emotion could not be fake, and that was not something he was able to cover.


    Murderous intent welled up in Xia Kun''s mind as soon as Xiao Sheng''s name was brought up. He wondered what exactly that meant.


    They couldn''t find the culprit back then. All the evidence had been destroyed as well.


    However, as the investigation went on, Ye Futian speculated that the likeliest suspects could have only come from the royal palace. Only someone in the royal palace would have been able to learn everything he was doing, as well as determine that he had headed to Emperor Li''s Realm back then.


    However, that was all just speculation. His status didn''t allow him to look into those from the royal palace. It was impossible without hard evidence.


    Xia Qingyuan frowned after Xia Kun left. She looked at Ye Futian and asked, "What was that about?" She was not dumb and had naturally known something was amiss. She believed Ye Futian might have been probing. But then again, she was unable to understand why he wanted to probe her fourth brother all of a sudden.


    Furthermore, he had only probed her Xia Kun and no one else.


    Ye Futian looked up at Xia Qingyuan, feeling rather complicated. This was not the outcome he wanted. The matter had to do with the princes. He was at a loss about what to do.


    A question lingered on his mind. He and Xia Kun had not been acquainted before. If there were concerns about the succession of the throne, Ye Futian would serve an important role by Xia Qingyuan''s side. But it was not Xia Kun who would be concerned.


    "Princess, which prince was Xia Kun closest to?" Ye Futian asked.


    Xia Qingyuan''s expression kept changing in response to the question. It was apparent that she recalled something extremely bad. So bad that she couldn''t bring herself to say it.


    "Princess," Ye Futian called.


    Xia Qingyuan turned her head around, looking somewhere else. It was apparent that she had managed to figure something out herself.


    "Is it him?" Xia Qingyuan turned her eyes back at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at her the same way and said, "There is no mistake about it. Even if he isn''t the one, he knows something, or may have been directly involved."


    Why else would Feixue detect a murderous intent in Xia Kun''s mind at the mention of Xiao Sheng''s name?


    His current status and power were such that even if he had wanted to kill Ye Futian all those years ago, he would have been able to easily conceal his thoughts.


    However, the incident with Xiao Sheng had been an unresolved threat, and it had something to do with what happened back then.


    As such, it became apparent that Xia Kun was involved.


    "How did you come to that conclusion?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    "Let''s just leave it at that. It has to do with some other people and I don''t want to see them involved. Do you believe me, princess?"


    Xia Qingyuan did not say anything else. She actually had an answer deep down. Her instinct was to believe him. The results of the investigations back then strongly suggested someone from the royal palace was involved. It could only have been someone important.


    Couple all that with the way her brother had reacted to Ye Futian''s question and she realized what was going on.


    She felt pained at the complications. It was the last thing she wanted to see.

 1313 Ambush

    Emperor Xia had seven children��five princes and two princesses.


    Xia Qingyuan was the only princess before Yao Xi came to the royal palace, and she had been the youngest.


    The brothers shared an amicable relationship with their little sister. The brothers doted on Xia Qingyuan, especially the eldest, who doted on her the most when they were young.


    Xia Qingyuan grew up being showered with love all the time. Even though the princes might have had a somewhat strained relationship with each other, she was never caught in their squabbles.


    When Ye Futian asked her who Xia Kun was closest to, she naturally had the answer��Xia Rong, the eldest prince.


    Back then, Xia Rong was not in the royal palace. But Xia Kun had been present.


    Both brothers shared the same ideal��they were warhawks, and incredibly talented in cultivation.


    What those two brothers did put Ye Futian''s life in jeopardy, so much so that he almost died.


    And they were doing it through the hands of Emperor Li''s Realm.


    One could only imagine how complicated she felt at that moment.


    All that time, she''d resented what her eldest brother had done and how he ignored her concerns. She was unable to forgive him.


    However, if Ye Futian intended to settle the score with her brother, she wondered what she would do.


    Those two occasions had been brutal for Ye Futian. While the actions were not specifically directed against him, the ones closest to him had suffered the consequences. Long Ling''er and the Imperial Advisor of Dali were almost killed.


    She and her brother still had blood ties despite what happened, but not Ye Futian.


    After watching him all these years, she knew how he would treat enemies who went out to harm those closest to him.


    "We''ll talk about this at a later date, princess." Ye Futian knew that Xia Qingyuan was going through a hard time. He could relate. Everyone had their own stance in terms of sentiment, and the world did not revolve around him.


    The other princes had little care for him. From there perspectives, it would have been completely normal for them to act against him to achieve their own objectives.


    But all of that could be tabled for the time being. The most important thing at the moment was the war with Emperor Li''s Realm and the rescue of the Imperial Advisor. Everything else had to wait.


    ...


    Mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm charged from the western region of the Dali Dynasty''s territory. The armies fanned out as they entered Dali, with each keeping a certain distance away from the rest. A Holiness of Nirvana led every army.


    Doing so guaranteed that if anything unforeseen were to happen, there would always be a Holiness of Nirvana present, ensuring flexibility by enabling those people to provide reinforcements across the region at the greatest speed possible.


    Even though the elite forces had the absolute advantage, they were nonetheless on enemy turf.


    The Dali Dynasty had the home advantage, and the possibility of being ambushed as the armies moved deeper into the territory was very high. As such, they did not charge straight in without planning and fanned out instead, doing everything to ensure that they went at the same pace.


    The demonic beasts could sense what was happening, which was convenient. Information was constantly being updated and streamlined. That was why such strategies were formulated in the first place.


    They were sending in massive forces after all, and it would have been ridiculous if they were to do it without proper planning.


    Every single army had detailed maps of Dali Dynasty. They were all given their missions and moved simultaneously.


    A group of swordsmen rode their swords towards the western region. Their aura was incredibly strong. The ones leading the charge were none other than the Swordmaster of Lihen and Yaya. They brought the mighty ones from the Sword Clan of Lihen deep into enemy territory. They consisted of an independent army and were also the smallest among all deployed.


    But then again, the Swordmaster of Lihen and Yaya were more than enough to take on the massive armies themselves.


    "We''re almost at Daoli Mountain," the Swordmaster of Lihen said. All faces became even more serious. They were bursting with sword wills, yet remained cautious.


    Daoli Mountain was the camp where the western army of Dali Dynasty was stationed. It had also once been the second largest holy land for cultivation in Dali Dynasty.


    King Tiandao was in charge there.


    However, he had once spent time at the frontlines fighting against the Army of Tian. So he had not always been at Daoli Mountain.


    Clouds in the sky turned as the swords zipped past. A group of people went down at blitzing speeds.


    People below sensed terrifying sword wills coming from above and looked up. All of them shuddered deep down.


    Yaya waved her hands about and conjured a huge sword matrix in the sky. She gestured and the sword matrix fired at the tall, majestic halls right before them.


    The might of that sword matrix was not all that powerful. The attack was only meant for probing.


    From what they were able to sense, Daoli Mountain seemed rather empty.


    Boom, boom, boom! Swords rained on Daoli Mountain and the palaces and halls collapsed one after another. Yet no one emerged.


    That was supposed to be where the western army was stationed. It was extensively huge, yet it appeared to be empty.


    "No one is here." The Swordmaster of Lihen turned a bolt of dazzling light from his sword on Daoli Mountain.


    The tall, majestic buildings remained, yet the place was truly rendered empty.


    Not only was everyone gone, but it was also presumed that they took all cultivation resources with them as well.


    King Tiandao really was something. He ditched his base of operations just like that.


    But then again, in a situation where they knew the forces of Emperor Xia''s Realm were going to hit Dali, Daoli Mountain would have definitely been the first to get hit. King Tiandao had obviously abandoned the base and left a shell of a city behind to prevent them from getting wiped out.


    Cutting off certain parts to keep the whole alive had been a wise move.


    But then again, where would the mighty ones of Daoli Mountain have gone?


    The imperial city?


    There was also the possibility that they were scattered right below Daoli Mountain, or they were hiding in plain sight.


    "We shall cease moving forward for now. Send word to the other armies," the Swordmaster of Lihen told a flying demonic beast at his side, which was enthralled by Ye Futian. The demonic beast relayed the news to Ye Futian after receiving its orders.


    Ye Futian, who was far away at Emperor Xia''s Palace, felt the news was unexpected, but he was not all that surprised. It was within reason.


    He relayed the news to all other armies invading Dali and took out a map, sending out the next set of orders.


    Besides having his own mission, the other reason why he stayed behind was that he was the one in charge of the entire operation.


    He could control demonic beasts, and only he would have been able to see what was going on with all armies.


    He had to know the locations of all armies at all times, and what predicament they had gotten themselves into.


    The mighty ones led by the Swordmaster of Lihen were still at Daoli Mountain. That demonic beast then said in human speech, "Swordmaster, please depart. Now that you''re deep inside Dali''s territory, the enemies are hidden and eyes are everywhere. Chances of ambush are very high."


    "Yeah." The Swordmaster of Lihen nodded. "Let''s go."


    The group then continued riding their swords and headed into deeper parts.


    Several hours later, the Swordmaster of Lihen raised his hand. His sword stopped moving and everyone else followed suit.


    Huge stone pillars were found below and mystical auras permeated the place.


    "Matrixes," Yaya said. "Possibly illusory ones, which are meant for concealing auras."


    Voom! The Swordmaster of Lihen waved his hand and countless beams of swords shot through the air, raining down upon the stone pillars. Rumbles began within mere moments. Devastating powers were felt and terrifying dragon roars seemed to have been heard.


    The huge stone pillars crumbled and the matrix of illusions seemed to have crumbled as well.


    A terrifying aura was felt and countless dragon specters suddenly filled the sky. Someone was then seen shot to the air.


    At the same time, many mighty ones rose from that area. They all had terrifying auras about them.


    The massive group of mighty ones was an army of saints, laying low and waiting to ambush them.


    Furthermore, two more extremely terrifying auras were sensed as well.


    "King Tiandao, Prince Regent," the demonic beast said after seeing both of them. Two of the most powerful figures below the emperor appeared at the same time. They were also likely the most powerful of saints in all of Dali.


    Not only that, the people they brought were far more powerful than those mighty ones behind the Swordmaster of Lihen. It was obvious that they had a good grasp of the make-up of the army when the Swordmaster of Lihen had stopped at Daoli Mountain, and they went on to set up an ambush.


    The enemy army seemed to have laid down a matrix. Thousands of true dragons roared in the sky.


    "Get into formation." The Swordmaster of Lihen said. His sword aura permeated the sky within an instant and enveloped him. The mighty ones from the Sword Clan of Lihen drew their swords and prepared to fight.


    Terrifying storms of the sword art of Lihen appeared all around them within an instant, with the Swordmaster of Lihen in the center.


    Those swords whipped about furiously, seemingly without order. They formed a huge net of swords at the same time, tearing up the space around them.


    True dragons roared as they charged. They were immediately cut into countless pieces as soon as they came near the net of swords.


    Yaya was positioned in her sword matrix and diagrams of sword matrixes appeared around her. She devoured the aura of the sword arts all around her in a frenzy, imbuing those powers within the diagrams.


    At the same time, the army that was closest to the Swordmaster of Lihen''s was led by two Holiness of Nirvanas. One of them brought a group and headed out for reinforcement as quickly as possible.


    Back at Emperor Xia''s Palace, Xia Qingyuan, Yan Yuan, and the others looked at Ye Futian.


    "The fighting has begun?"


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. "King Tiandao and the Prince Regent appeared at the same place at the same time, intending to surround the swordmaster and his people. But they are defending with sword matrixes. The enemy stands no chance."


    "Does that mean the Dali Dynasty army is setting up an ambush in the city?" Yan Yuan asked.


    "Most likely. Looks like it''s our time to head out." Ye Futian then looked at Yan Yuan and said, "Elder brother, Feixue, wait for my news."


    Yan Yuan and Feixue nodded seriously. Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan and the others headed out, leading a group of mighty ones for the teleportation matrix.


    Not long after, terrifying light emanated from the portal. Ye Futian and the others disappeared from the royal palace.


    The place they were heading to was not within Dali Dynasty''s territory. They headed out to the realm that the three imperial realms had fought over long ago��the Empty Realm. Empty Realm was home to a passage connecting all three imperial realms.


    The realm that contained powerful resources was still a chaotic place at present.

 1314 Joining Hands

    After Ye Futian won in that Battle of Empty Realms years ago, Li Yao broke the rules of engagement and attempted to kill him.


    The relationship between the realms of Emperor Xia and Emperor Li quickly took a turn for the worse after that, with conflicts occurring regularly.


    As such, order at Empty Realm was broken, with the realm currently being split into three factions.


    Three imperial realms remained in a standoff and battles erupted now and then. All of them competed for the realm''s resources.


    At present, all three factions had mighty ones carving out their territories.


    In Emperor Xia''s service, the Army of Dou was in charge, with a Holiness of Nirvana taking command. The leader was none other than Lu You, who had been protecting Princess Xia Qingyuan for quite some time. There was also a Holiness of Nirvana from Emperor Li''s Realm present��King White of the Four Kings.


    The Holiness of Nirvana from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was a monster. It was a protector at the emperor''s side and was known as a king in the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. It had the title of Idol King and possessed formidable powers.


    All three factions had fought skirmishes against each other time and again, but they had never gone too far. That was because Empty Realm was directly connected to the three imperial realms. All-out wars could have broken out if they were not careful, and all factions could have had people from their respective realms coming to take charge of things.


    As such, Ye Futian also chose to go to Empty Realm only after King Tiandao and the Prince Regent emerged to intercept the Swordmaster of Lihen. He wanted to confirm that enemy officers at the very top had been deployed. If he were to invade Empty Realm without confirming that, there was the possibility of ambush.


    King Tiandao and the Prince Regent stood at the very pinnacle of Dali Dynasty. If they were absent, Ye Futian would still have been able to handle any ambush he ran into.


    At that moment, a group of people descended from above Emperor Xia''s City of Empty Realm. It was none other than Ye Futian''s party, and Xia Qingyuan was with them as well.


    Lu You and the Sacred General of Dou took to the air and called, "Princess."


    Lu You had served as Xia Qingyuan''s bodyguard for many years, so it could be said that he was very familiar with her.


    Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly and both of them turned to look at Ye Futian. Lu You met him many times before, yet it was the first time for the Sacred General of Dou. The general eyed the genius whose name became known throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm. He had heard that it was this young man who led this war.


    Not even the Sacred General of Tian, the top general of the Eight Armies, had commanded such authority before.


    But then again, he heard that it was Ye Futian who invited the Swordmaster of Lihen and many other legendary figures to participate in the war.


    "Senior, Sacred General." Ye Futian addressed them with his hands cupped.


    "Sir Ye." Lu You nodded.


    "Your reputation precedes you, Sir Ye. I finally get to meet the man in person." The Sacred General of Dou had a brimming aura, yet he had the look and bearing of a scholar, appearing well-mannered and elegant.


    However, there was no mistaking his extremely formidable combat prowess. He was already at the pinnacle of Unblemished Saint level.


    "You''re too kind, Sacred General. How are things here now?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Quiet. There is no movement from Dali''s side, and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm seemed like they''re just watching the world burn. They probably won''t get involved," the Sacred General of Dou said.


    "That won''t be it..." Ye Futian shook his head.


    The Sacred General of Dou looked at Ye Futian and asked, "Do you think that they would choose to ally with Emperor Li''s Realm and take us on instead?"


    Emperor Xia''s Realm was, at the moment, the most powerful among the three. The ones from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm might have allied with Emperor Li''s Realm out of concern that Emperor Xia''s Realm would have taken the chance to seize permanent control of Empty Realm.


    "Would you mind going to Peacock City with me for a bit?" Ye Futian smiled and asked.


    The Sacred General of Dou looked rather puzzled, wondering why Ye Futian would have wanted to do that.


    He was unable to read the young man''s intentions.


    "Very well." The Sacred General of Dou nodded and the group departed.


    It did not take them long to arrive at the Empty Realm base of operations for Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, called Peacock City. The group barged into Peacock City right away, landing at the central area.


    A stout man who emanated brimming might sat before them. His form looked mighty and larger than most. His eyes were very huge and his nose was unusually long. Those eyes had extremely overbearing pressure emanating from them as they gazed at Ye Futian.


    That being was none other than the Idol King of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    As Ye Futian felt the weight of his vague aura, it seemed the aura was capable of crushing him to death on its own. Even the Sacred General of Dou looked rather alerted.


    "I''m Ye Futian. Pleased to meet you, Idol King." Ye Futian bowed slightly to show his respect.


    "You are indeed the cream of the crop, City Lord Ye. No wonder the princess spoke so highly of you." The pressure from the Idol King dispersed and he laughed heartily.


    The Sacred General of Dou was baffled. He knew of Ye Futian''s current status within Emperor Xia''s Realm, and about his rather peculiar relationship with the princess. Yet it seemed Ye Futian had a similar relationship with the princess of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. He wondered how that happened. Especially because some years ago, Ye Futian had gotten on the bad side of Kong Xuan during the Battle of Empty Realm.


    The Sacred General of Dou then looked at Ye Futian''s face, wondering if Ye Futian could do as he pleased because of his handsome features.


    "That''s quite flattering, senior. Princess Kong Xuan has superb talents and she will be quite the demon empress herself in the future," Ye Futian smiled and replied. The Black Wind Condor was still training at Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm and he had long reconciled with her. The relationship between the two was quite amicable.


    If he were to have Kong Xuan on his side, then Dali could have been effectively kicked out of the realm. Then the realm would have been subjected to joint rule by Emperor Xia''s Realm and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    In Kong Xuan''s perspective, it all had to do with her coming to terms with Ye Futian and how the bird was training under a super monster as well. There was also the factor of Ye Futian''s extraordinary performance in Crimson Dragon Realm at play. As such, Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm would have naturally leaned towards having a good relationship with him instead of making an enemy out of him.


    The joint rule of Empty Realm would have been beneficial to both while causing no harm. As for Dali, Ye Futian intended to take them on and Dali Dynasty was in a ditch themselves. They could not have so much as even an opinion, let alone getting on the bad side of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    As such, after receiving Ye Futian''s invitation, Kong Xuan had returned to Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm right away to report. She also relayed the news to Empty Realm through the Black Wind Condor, who enabled Kong Xuan to converse directly with Ye Futian.


    All of that culminated with this meeting between Ye Futian and the Idol King at Peacock City.


    "Senior, it was Emperor Li''s Realm who broke the rules of the pact between the three realms back in the Battle of Empty Realm. We should have kicked them out of Empty Realm back then, and the realm should be jointly ruled by us," Ye Futian continued. That was the agreement he reached with Kong Xuan.


    "Well said." The Idol King nodded. "Emperor Li''s Realm was the one who broke the rules. That is how we should deal with them."


    The Sacred General of Dou, who was at his side, was completely dumbfounded.


    Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had indeed picked a side, but it was their side that they allied with. How could Dali Dynasty fight this anymore?


    "I''ll head back to Emperor Xia''s City and rally our forces. We''ll expel Emperor Li''s Realm once and for all." Ye Futian cupped his hands before excusing himself.


    The Idol King looked at Ye Futian''s back as he left, recalling how Princess Kong Xuan spoke very highly of him. She claimed that his future would not be at either Emperor Xia''s Realm or Emperor Li''s.


    ...


    The army of Dali Dynasty was stationed at Emperor Li''s City.


    Empty Realm had rich deposits of sacred spirit stones and they were all imbued with Empty Realm attributes. Furthermore, the realm was connected to three imperial realms, so Dali Dynasty would not have given up the place easily.


    At that moment, King White sensed a looming threat around him.


    "The ones from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm are here, huh?" He frowned hard. A mighty one whose aura brimmed stood at King White''s side. It was someone whom Ye Futian had met quite a lot of times��Cao Kong, a figure of utmost importance among the Demonic Clan. There were many mighty ones from the Demonic Clan right behind him.


    King White was not the only one in charge at Empty Realm. The Demonic Clan''s mighty ones were there as well. It was apparent that they believed Empty Realm to be important.


    Extremely formidable pressure of the great path rained down on them, and two armies came from afar.


    King White saw the silver-haired young man at the forefront and felt rather complicated. The Imperial Advisor had taken that young man to be his student back then, and Emperor Li had even wanted to marry off one of the princesses to him. It was quite a pity that he and Li Yao could not have gotten along, given how Li Yao had killed his wife.


    If the Imperial Advisor had not gotten into trouble, they would not have been on the defense in this conflict. The Imperial Advisor alone could have taken on armies.


    Yan Yuan, the eldest student of the Imperial Advisor, had advanced to become a Holiness of Nirvana as well.


    However, it was done now and there was no turning back. No one would have expected Ye Futian to have grown so much in such a short period. He had already brought a group of Holiness of Nirvanas to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "Idol King, Dali Dynasty and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had shared amicable relations. Is Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm wanting to get involved in the conflict with Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm now?" King White asked as he looked at the Idol King from afar.


    "We''re not interested in the squabbles between Emperor Li and Emperor Xia. But Li Yao broke the rules in the Battle of Empty Realm all those years ago, and that brought on the current instability.


    Without those old rules, fighting has continued for the past several years, and the order was disrupted," the Idol King said. "Since it was you of Emperor Li''s Realm who broke the rules, then we shall end the chaos with you. Emperor Li''s Realm shall leave Empty Realm."


    King White stared straight ahead. Emperor Li''s City was one step behind him.


    It was obvious that the intrusion of Emperor Xia''s Realm into Empty Realm was meant to uproot Dali Dynasty from the realm itself.


    "Take Ye Futian out," Cao Kong said telepathically to King White. Those Holiness of Nirvanas served Ye Futian, so the fighting would end if Ye Futian were taken out of the picture.


    "Your reputation precedes you, Idol King, and I shall now see what you''re made of." King White disappeared from where he stood. However, he did not charge at the Idol King. Instead, he headed straight for Ye Futian''s location.


    Cao Kong made his move as well. He stepped out and demonic might swept all over as he headed straight for Ye Futian.


    The two Holiness of Nirvanas targeted Ye Futian right away.


    Boom!


    A loud rumble was heard. The sky shook as if it had been pinned down. All of the mighty ones present felt as if a divine mountain had landed on them, intending to crush them outright.


    The Idol King threw a single punch at King White''s body, making it as he was about to crush his surroundings.


    Boom!


    Another rumble was heard and King White''s advance was blocked. The Idol King stepped out and said, "If you tell me, I''ll happily oblige."


    Fighting erupted right beside them almost at the very same moment. Cao Kong threw a demonic palm print, which clashed with Lu You. His immense power threw Lu You back and he continued moving forward.


    People who trained in demonic ways were extremely overbearing.


    He headed straight for Ye Futian after throwing Lu You back, yet he saw a shadow like a war god of flames standing tall before Ye Futian.


    That was the Chonglou Battle Form taken by Wu Yong. Ye Futian stood right behind Wu Yong, whose body seemed to have turned into a scorching sun. The terrifying will of the great path surged inside Wu Yong''s body, enhancing his power and cranking his battle form up to the twelfth layer.


    Cao Kong had been the main force when Li Yao intended to kill Ye Futian in Empty Realm. Yaya was badly injured and Wuchen almost ended up killed.

 1315 Catch Alive

    At the time of the battle of Qianye City in the Crimson Dragon Realm, Wu Yong had used Ye Futian to exert incredible fighting power and shake several nirvana figures with his performance.


    The strength within Ye Futian could directly increase Wu Yong''s strength, allowing him, who had just stepped into the nirvana realm, to appear as if he was at the peak of this state. Thus, while the leader of the Zhong clan could only reach the 11th phase of Zhonglou Battle Form, Wu Yong could reach the 12th phase, creating a towering, immense flaming battle form like a sun god of war.


    Wu Yong''s eyes were as bright as the sun. Once again, he experienced that breath. It was an unspeakable power, just like the last time.


    When Ye Futian lent him the way, he would feel as if he had almost touched an even stronger way, like the source of the Great Path. His physical body was like the source of all flames, swallowing up the fire of the heavens, thus strengthening himself.


    He only personally experienced this feeling among the remaining seven leaders out of the nine major tribes. He also understood that this must have been related to what Ye Futian had obtained from the relics of Emperor Kua.


    Wu Yong naturally would not reveal this. He knew very well that because of his original decision, now Ye Futian trusted him the most.


    On the other side, Cao Kong was incredibly fast. When the Zhonglou Battle Form finished being cast, Cao Kong had already arrived.


    His target was Ye Futian, and naturally, he would take Ye Futian down as quickly as possible. Ye Futian was right behind Wu Yong.


    Mighty demonic powers swept across the heavens, and an awesome Demon appeared behind Cao Kong. Demonic clouds covered the sky. They contained a terrible power to consume, trying to devour Wu Yong''s flame.


    He grabbed directly towards Wu Yong''s body. Those who cultivated in the demonic arts were experts in close-quarter combat, so he was quite fearless.


    The giant palm expanded wildly, turning into a vortex of a black hole. It was surrounded by endless dark, magical currents, moving toward Wu Yong''s Zhonglou Battle Form like demonic magic chains.


    The demonic chains that were formed by the demonic magical currents sheltered the sky and enveloped Wu Yong''s body, wanting to imprison him. The terrible dark demonic currents swallowed the flames upon Wu Yong''s body. A palm of the Great Path descended and blasted toward Wu Yong''s head, wanting to end him then and there.


    "Let him," Ye Futian said to Wu Yong. Endless flames also surrounded his body. The Fire Spirit Orb of his life palace merged into the ancient tree of the world, and branches and leaves reached out and melded into Wu Yong''s body.


    Wu Yong''s Zhonglou Battle Form became even hotter. Like the center of the sun, flames continued to pour into the great palmprint through his battle form, even allowing the chain that grabbed him to devour the flames inside his body.


    He knew very well that Cao Kong could not swallow this flaming force.


    Sure enough, Cao Kong''s face changed in an instant. The chains became crimson as blood, as did the dark demonic palm prints. The terrifying red color blended into the darkness, and even the will that was madly swallowing up the flames between heaven and earth continued to surge toward his arm.


    A terrible sizzling sound was heard, and the endless chain of demonic magic started burning, and the great palm print exploded under the flame. Cao Kong''s eyes changed, and his body retreated. He wanted to extricate himself.


    The temperature of the flames on Zhonglou Battle Form was getting higher, and there was an illusion of divine fire in this space. It seemed as if it would completely transform it into a world of flame.


    Boom!


    Just as Cao Kong attempted to retreat, many flaming arms suddenly appeared upon the 12th phase of the Zhonglou Battle Form, sheltering the sky. When Cao Kong just wanted to get out of there, he saw that Lu You had appeared behind him. He raised his hand to blast out a great palm that struck Cao Kong back, causing him to be surrounded by flaming arms.


    Cao Kong''s''s pupils contracted slightly. There were three nirvana figures on the other side, and because he was eager to take down Ye Futian, he miscalculated Wu Yong''s''s battle power��or rather, Wu Yong''s''s power that was augmented by Ye Futian.


    However, Cao Kong was a nirvana-level demonic figure after all. Although he felt the oppression, he was still mentally solid. The monstrous demonic power now turned into an overbearing demonic sword, stepping out in one direction and slashing a way out, cutting off the arms that extended from the Zhonglou Battle Form.


    However, as he was about to open up a path, a strong sense of danger descended, and many solar spears fell down, piercing straight at his body.


    Boom. The magical power swept the world. His body seemed to have been covered by a demonic armor, both hands holding a sword, and slashed out, opening up a fissure with demonic magic. It split the void, breaking the solar spear. Sounds of roaring continued, and the towering battle form of Wu Yong came out. A sun appeared behind him, emitting infinite sun divine light of the sun. Each beam turned into a solar spear.


    Ye Futian had inherited the relics of Emperor Kua, and he now had mastered all the abilities of the nine major tribes and passed them on to Wu Yong. Therefore, Wu Yong had been improving over the past few years. What he mastered was not just the Zhonglou Battle Form of the Zhong Clan, but also the abilities of the Zhu clan.


    The demonic sword cut through the sky and kept splitting the solar spears, but there seemed to be an inexhaustible number of solar spears. The demonic currents around Cao Kong''s body were burning up so that he felt as if he was in a solar furnace and bore the roasting of the solar true fire.


    A radiant sun fell, drowning Cao Kong, carrying endless solar spears; everything about his body was burned into infinity.


    Cao Kong screamed as the storm intended to devour the flames, but he found that his Great Path of consumption was not nearly as powerful as will of the flames. He only felt that his body was burning, and even his spirit was bearing this power.


    In the past, when Ye Futian lend the way to Wu Yong, it was to fight against several nirvana figures. He easily wiped out the Nirvana characters of the Chang clan. Now, Ye Futian''s cultivation was even more excellent than at the beginning, and his control of internal strength was much better. Wu Yong had also progressed.


    So, even though Cao Kong was extremely strong, he was still suppressed with absolute certainly. He couldn''t attack, couldn''t escape, and was trapped in it.


    The army on the battlefield had begun to fight. Seeing this situation, Lu You turned and headed toward the other battlefields. The cultivators of the Dali Dynasty were not their equal and were overpowered, screams were heard continuously.


    On the other battlefield, the idle king of the Peacock Demon Realm was also an extremely very powerful figure who could suppress King White.


    In this battle, there wasn''t even a chance for the cultivators of the Dali Dynasty to get close to Ye Futian, never mind attempt to take him down.


    "Withdraw." King White retreated and ordered his men to retreat.


    If they continue to fight, they feared they might be trapped and destroyed right where they were.


    "Cao Kong!" he yelled out but saw that Cao Kong was trapped. Countless flaming arms of the flaming war god attacked at the same time, everywhere. With a loud sound, Cao Kong screamed angrily and was hit directly. The flames invaded his body, boiling all of his internal organs, and he spat out a mouthful of burning blood.


    What humiliated Cao Kong even more was that Wu Yong didn''t seem to want to kill him, but wanted merely to trap him with his Zhonglou Battle Form, continuing to attack him.


    King White''s look changed as he watched the scene played out. He felt the breath from Wu Yong and knew that Cao Kong probably would not be able to extricate himself from the battlefield.


    He cast another glance at Ye Futian, who was behind Wu Yong. His return this time would spell another disaster for Dali.


    Who could have thought that the person who could sway the disputes between Dali Dynasty and Emperor Xia''s Realm would be a young man?


    The death of Prince Li Yao was nothing worth tears.


    Everything had started because of him.


    "Start the matrix, withdraw!" While King White retreated, he forced Lu You back, and as the army of Dali Dynasty retreated, those who guarded the matrix now initiated the grand matrix of space. In just a moment, a brilliant beam of Great Path of Space covered this immense land.


    Clearly, the other had prepared to evacuate at any time.


    "Don''t go over there. Get back!" Lu You and Idol King also ordered. If the matrix took anyone to Dali Dynasty before the army had a chance to prepare, the outcome would be very miserable.


    The two sides disengaged in an instant, and each returned to their own camp.


    A loud roar came out, and Cao Kong went berserk. Knowing that King White had ordered the retreat, one could only imagine what he was thinking.


    However, he still couldn''t escape the absolute control.


    Finally, Cao Kong, this demon, had finally revealed his panic. He was slightly pale when a beam of bright light rushed into the sky. It was like opening up a Great Path of Space.


    A group of figures crossed the space and disappeared, leaving Cao Kong there, fighting.


    Bang. With another loud sound, Cao Kong was blasted down by a palm strike and hit the ground. Hot blood came out of his mouth, his clothes were also burnt, and a flaming currents now leaked from his torso.


    "I want him alive," Ye Futian said. The demonic might on Cao Kong was powerful, and he tried to get up as another flaming palm struck him down again.


    Cao Kong was a giant from the Dali Dynasty, their premier demonic figure with great strength, who was highly respected.


    In Dali Dynasty, he had the respect and fear of all.


    But, at this moment, his state was miserable.


    His eyes were pitch black. It was as if he was on the verge of turning into a demon. He tried to get up again and again, refusing to give in.


    However, he was repeatedly shot down. All of his organs were burning inside. The life force inside his body was being burned up, and his breath became weaker and weaker.


    Finally, after a long while, Cao Kong lost his ability to resist completely and just laid there, unable to get up.


    Wu Yong kept the battle form, looking down to survey the figure below. The Idol King and Lu You also came, looking at Cao Kong.


    The Idol King took notice of the desolate state of Cao Kong. After all, he was a leader of demonic magic.


    However, although he sympathized, he could not say anything. This was the grudge between the two major Renhuang realms.


    When Cao Kong first engaged Ye Futian, his ambush in the Empty Realm nearly made Ye Futian lose his life. No matter what Ye Futian did now, it was not excessive.


    Currently, Ye Futian''s figure drifted down from Wu Yong, and his breath was gradually collected. He looked at Cao Kong below and thought that he had dealt with Yaya this way once upon a time.


    This time, again in the Empty Realm, Cao Kong had wanted to ambush him with King White, thus falling into his hands.


    As such, he now had the first card in his hand.


    The existence of any Nirvana Plane was extremely precious to Dali Dynasty. Cao Kong was the leader of the Cao clan, and now that he had fallen into his hands, Emperor Li must somewhat consider Cao Kong''s fate.


    At Emperor Li''s Palace, King White came straightaway to inform Emperor Li about Cao Kong.


    After that, Emperor Li looked up into the distance, and might of authority shrouded the entire Emperor Li''s City.


    Empty Realm was now taken away from them, the army guarding the Empty Realm was expelled, the Peacock Demon Emperor''s Realm joined forces with Ye Futian, and Cao Kong was left behind.


    It was the perfect picture of this war!

 1316 Coming of the Troops

    Emperor Li''s City, inside the palace, there seemed to be dark clouds hovering over it.


    Princes, princesses, nobles, and other magistrates converged, and troops guarded the whole city.


    Under the rule of Emperor Li, the Imperial Advisor of Dali oversaw domestic issues while King Tiandao dealt with outside matters. This management system rendered Dali Dynasty incredibly strong and prosperous, far exceeding the neighboring Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Therefore, many in the Dali Army and also many of the magistrates believed that they were in a position to initiate a border war and plunder the resources of cultivation from Emperor Xia''s Realm, thereby expanding the power of the Dali and making Dali stronger.


    However, this all changed a few years ago when Ye Futian appeared in Dali Dynasty. After that, because of him, the Imperial Advisor of Dali was admonished, and the Imperial Advisor''s Residence sat there, deserted.


    In a few short years, the invasion of Emperor Xia''s Realm swept from all directions, pressuring Dali Dynasty.


    The situation was reversed so quickly.


    In front of the towering Golden Hall of the palace, Emperor Li stood on the stairs case. People were moving below. Messengers kept coming urgently to report the military situation.


    "His Majesty, Sword Mountain and Sun City in the southwest fell. In the northwest, Emperor Xia''s army had invaded Tianluo City and Yaodu. Directly to the west, Daoli Mountain and the relics of the Emperor were lost. King Tiandao and the Regent failed in the ambush, with many casualties, and are now retreating toward the Imperial City."


    The messenger relayed the news in one breath and then bowed his head on the ground, daring not to lift it.


    An important and strategic location in the west, in the shape of a fan, was lost successively, and even the ambush had failed. On the side of the Empty Realm, King White had evacuated, with Cao Kong left behind.


    The battle was becoming a one-sided situation.


    However, this situation was also expected. Under the circumstances, the opponent''s cultivators of Nirvana Plane occupied the absolute advantage while Ye Futian still brought many figures of the Unblemished Saint Plane from the Crimson Dragon Realm. The invasion by one realm was composed of all major top forces and the Eight Great Armies.


    As Dali had been weakened considerably by the loss of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence, in contrast, the disparity of power was one-sided.


    There was silence in the palace. Many ministers were quiet, and the princes and princesses were speechless.


    Some of the princes and princesses present even had dealings with Ye Futian when he was known as the Seventh Swordsman in Dali, whose reputation rang throughout the realm.


    Who would have thought that the Seventh Swordsman now controlled this great battle of the Renhuang Realm?


    "What are your thoughts?" Emperor Li looked at everyone in the hall.


    It was met by more silence. In the world of cultivation, power trumped all. Their previous strategy was to retreat proactively, avoiding direct, all-out confrontation with the enemy, using a few cultivators to ambush possible points of entry. After all, the invading army of Emperor Xia''s Realm was scattered.


    King Tiandao and the Prince Regent were undoubtedly the most promising. Supposing they could ambush and destroy one army of the enemy, they could immediately support other areas of fighting.


    Then there was the Empty Realm. In addition to King White, Cao Kong was deliberately dispatched to infiltrate the Emperor Li''s City in secret and deal a fatal blow if the enemy intended to make a move on the Empty Realm.


    But everyone had seen the result. Ye Futian had convinced the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm to join forces with him to attack Emperor Li''s City in the Empty Realm, causing the capture of Cao Kong, the premier demonic figure of Dali.


    "His Majesty, since this is already the situation, it is better to give up all the positions. I can''t hold it. Is it possible to concentrate all my strength and use time differences to break through one by one?" someone suggested.


    There had to be a time difference with the arrival of the great army of the other side.


    "King Tiandao and the Prince Regent originally planned to do the same, but the Swordmaster of Lihen and Yaya were the main forces defending the sword matrix. After the arrival of the reinforcement, the other party seemed to be able to communicate remotely and kept from consistently advancing together. The closer they were to the Imperial City, their more positions seemed to converge to support each other quickly," reported the messenger.


    "It is Ye Futian''s ability; he can control demons. That was the cause of defeat during the battle for the Empty Realm," someone said.


    "Unless..." The man who knelt on the floor continued. Emperor Li looked at him and said, "Unless what?"


    "Unless His Majesty leads us to the battlefield and smashes them one by one at the fastest speed," the messenger said, his head on the ground. When two armies fought, usually, Renhuags would not participate. If Emperor Li got involved, then it was possible that Emperor Xia may get involved as well.


    Once a Renhuang intervened, it was possible to make the situation even more serious until it became uncontrollable. It could even trigger a battle to extinguish an entire realm. This kind of thing was not unheard of in history.


    Emperor Li''s eyes were sharp as he stared at the other. The man continued, "However, the army of the enemy did not launch a killing spree. Perhaps, they have other motivations."


    "It was an invasion initiated by Ye Futian, presumably because of the Imperial Advisor," the Third Prince of Dali said. He had participated in the battle of the Crimson Dragon Realm and understood that the Imperial Advisor was punished because he had let Ye Futian go. The Imperial Advisor''s behavior had indeed been a betrayal of his position.


    Now, Ye Futian was eager to provoke this war. His motivation was clear.


    He wanted to save the Imperial Advisor.


    "Is it possible for the Imperial Advisor..." someone started, then shut up before finishing the thought.


    After all, Emperor Xia''s Realm was using invasion as a cover and did not say that the operation was to rescue the Imperial Advisor of Dali. If Dali Dynasty used the life of the Imperial Advisor to threaten them in return, what would that look like?


    Emperor Li would be embarrassed. Furthermore, the other had already attacked. Would using the life of the Imperial Advisor even work?


    What would happen if it failed and Ye Futian ordered a slaughter?


    At this moment, someone came in, running. He kneeled on one knee and said, "Your Majesty, the nine armies of the Emperor Xia''s Realm are advancing at full speed and heading straight towards the Imperial City. Without interception, it won''t be long before the Imperial Army of Xia arrives at the same time."


    The space was still silent. They were crossing the territory of the Dali Dynasty and heading straight for the imperial city.


    Dali Dynasty was immense. Out of the countless cultivators, no one was able to intercept.


    Although Dali was a dynasty, it couldn''t mobilize all the cultivators in its kingdom to participate in the war.


    Nine armies plus Ye Futian and his people from the Empty Realm should be ten armies in total.


    The Sword Qi permeated the air, and a strong sword will descended in the distance. Everyone turned their attention there, knowing that the cultivators of Sword Mountain had arrived.


    Before the swordsmen of Sword Mountain entered the hall with their swords on their backs, the clan leader of Sword Mountain was at the forefront. He bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, Sword Mountain was not able to block them. I have disappointed Your Majesty."


    Emperor Li waved his hand, "Not your fault."


    It was expected that it could not be stopped.


    The clan leader of Sword Mountain let out a sigh. Once upon a time, Sword Mountain had invited Ye Futian to cultivate there.


    Although the army of the enemy invaded Sword Mountain this time, it was not a slaughter. The army of Emperor Xia''s Realm had only injured but did not kill.


    Clearly, Ye Futian had deliberately ordered his men to show mercy.


    Strictly speaking, there were also cultivators of Sword Mountain who were involved in the pursuit of Ye Futian while in the Empty Realm.


    It is commendable that Ye Futian could achieve such mercy.


    It was a pity that he was Ye Futian��not the Seventh Swordsman.


    If he was really the Seventh Swordsman of Dali, how perfect would it be?


    There was a strong breath coming from outside of the Imperial Palace, and the great army continued its return to the imperial city.


    Both King Tiandao and the Prince Regent returned and came to the hall, bowing their heads. They said, "We have failed."


    Not only were they unable to kill the Swordmaster of Lihen and his companions, but were attacked by them. Their sword matrix killed many of their people.


    Emperor Li said nothing, as there someone came forward again. It was King Li, who arrived with cultivators from the Lower World.


    However, King Li Wang had not even reached the Nirvana Plane, and his arrival could change nothing.


    King Li''s daughter, Li You, was also present, and her expression was extremely complicated.


    Back then, she had a good relationship with the Seventh Swordsman, who came from the Lower World to the Upper World.


    She knew that Ye Futian had given up on his grudge against Li Yao and had wanted to leave, but the Prince Regent pursued him relentlessly.


    Furthermore, the Imperial Advisor of Dali was later dispatched to the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The real mistake may have been this.


    Otherwise, the Imperial Advisor would not have gone to prison, and Dali would not be in this current situation.


    No one could come out and turn the tide.


    Dark clouds shrouded the imperial city of Li.


    The once-prosperous Emperor Li''s Path seemed a little empty at the moment. The population was either converging at the palace or left this place all together.


    Everyone was talking about just one thing��the great army of Emperor Xia''s Realm would soon arrive at the Imperial City of Li.


    Moreover, the person who controlled this warfare turned out to be the Seventh Swordsman, a disciple of the Imperial Advisor whose name was known throughout Emperor Li''s Path.


    Had he come to avenge the Imperial Advisor?


    Many were thinking, in just a few years, what kind of genius had Ye Futian become?


    What would happen at the Imperial City of Li?


    In the imperial city, large armies from all sides continually gathered. They were the legions that guarded all corners of Dali Dynasty. They had all returned now to prepare for the battle at the imperial city.


    But according to the information received by the people inside the imperial city, even if the entire army of the dynasty converged, they would still be suppressed in this battle.


    After a long while, someone rushed toward the palace. Soon, outside the Imperial City, in various directions, the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm descended.


    Outside the city, people looked up at the void, their hearts trembling fiercely.


    Armies of Saints had surrounded the city.


    Nine armies came one after another, appearing in different positions outside the Imperial City. Their bodies levitated in the air, and they could see the adjacent army.


    They had arrived!


    The troops had come.


    No one would have thought that there would be a day when Dali Dynasty would be pressed outside its own city wall with no means to strike back.


    In the Empty Realm, Ye Futian had also ordered the army to gather and prepare.


    This time, with the troops marching to the imperial city, he did not believe that Emperor Li would not compromise and release the prisoner.


    "Enter the city." A command was issued, and suddenly, the army outside marched straight into the Imperial City in an awesome formation. All the cultivators within the city drew back with trembling hearts.


    Not only did the troops came to the city, but they had now marched into the city and headed toward the palace.


    Inside the imperial palace of Dali Dynasty, Emperor Li looked up into the distance. He had sensed everything outside the city. The presence of nine armies and a dozen Nirvana existence. It was almost double their own numbers.


    He looked up at the sky and said, "Since you are already here, why not show yourself?"


    The hearts of the people inside the palace trembled, and when they saw a figure descended from the sky, it was Emperor Xia.


    When the army invaded the imperial city, Emperor Xia naturally had to be at the helm to control the situation. What if Emperor Li suddenly lost his composure and went crazy?


    But what was shocking was that beside Emperor Xia, two figures descended with him. One of them was an extremely beautiful woman, who stood quietly next to a man. The middle-aged man was wearing a gorgeous robe that seemed to be cast by divine feathers. His figure was long and slender, and he had strange pupils. Even in his middle age, he still possessed a handsome and extraordinary temperament.


    "To what do we owe the pleasure of the presence of the Peacock Emperor?" Emperor Li said, which made the hearts of many tremble. The Peacock Emperor of the Peacock Demon Realm had also come!

 1317 Coercion

    The Peacock Emperor stood quietly above the sky and said, "Just walking about. I heard of the dispute between Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm, so I came to take a look."


    Emperor Li''s eyes were cold. In the Empty Realm, the Peacock Demon Emperor''s Realm had joined forces with Ye Futian to fight against Dali.


    The appearance of the Peacock Emperor, at this moment, was naturally a cause for concern.


    "Your Majesty, at the time of the battle for the Empty Realm, Dali Dynasty and the Demon Emperor''s Realm were allies and were going to join forces to deal a blow to Emperor Xia''s Realm. However, those from Emperor Xia''s Realm were extremely conniving. They gained control of the cultivators of the demonic tribe and disrespected Princess Kong Xuan. So now, why does Your Majesty allow the Idol King to join forces with the people from Emperor Xia''s Realm?"


    Some cultivator of Cao clan said with puzzlement. It was precisely because the Peacock Demon Emperor''s Realm and Ye Futian joined forces that their leader had been captured. His fate was still unknown.


    This was also the question of many people. There was a time that Kong Xuan hated Ye Futian and his cohort to the bone.


    "Now that you mentioned the Empty Realm, I seem to remember, Emperor Li, that the rules of the battle for the Empty Realm were set by us three parties and lasted many years. Your son broke our covenant by disobeying the rules. According to the agreement, Dali will not be eligible to enter the Empty Realm. I am sure you understand." The Peacock Emperor did not respond to the man but directly addressed Emperor Li.


    The man who spoke was pale, but Emperor Li was much calmer. The Peacock Emperor was making a point that he could not refute.


    When they were at the Empty Realm, it was indeed Li Yao who broke the rules.


    Well, now that the Peacock Emperor was present, was it to make Dali obey the rules?


    Of course, the Peacock Emperor said nothing, which only invited more speculation.


    But despite whatever happened in the Empty Realm, just the fact that the Peacock Emperor stood there, was a kind of deterrence.


    "Emperor Li, you want to wage war to invade Emperor Xia''s Realm, and your elder brother, King Tiandao does even more so and caused many provocations. Since you seem to want such an ending, then let the armies battle it out," Emperor Xia said out loud.


    Emperor Li was silent, like everyone else in the palace.


    A great battle?


    Their powers were in great disparity. Battling under such conditions would, no doubt, be a definite loss.


    At this moment, there was a strong space power blooming. The brilliance shone brightly, and the space above the palace seemed to radiate the brilliance of the Great Path of Space. An ancient path of space appeared, and a group of figures appeared in that direction.


    In an instant, it attracted everyone''s attention.


    Had the main character arrived?


    Everyone in Dali Dynasty knew that in this war between two Renhuang realms, only Ye Futian was the one to watch.


    He had instigated everything.


    Now, he came from the Empty Realm through the teleportation grand matrix to descend directly in Emperor Li''s City.


    Behind Ye Futian, there was another large army. Two nirvana figures, Wu Yong and Lu You were by his side, taking Cao Kong into custody.


    Cao Kong, at this moment, was barely breathing. He no longer resembled the awesome demon that he was known as. He had gone through some serious abuse. Ye Futian and the others would not have allowed Cao Kong to maintain any power for fighting.


    "Sir." The cultivators of the demonic Cao clan looked extremely worried. That was their leader, the premier demonic cultivator of the Dali Dynasty.


    But now, he was in such a miserable state.


    Even if he lived, how would this premier demon figure of the Dali Dynasty face the world in the future?


    Ye Futian stepped forward toward the crowd directly across from him and came to the front of Emperor Xia''s Army.


    Countless eyes from the Dali Dynasty fell on him and his white garments and silver hair. Whether in appearance or temperament, he was extremely outstanding. Compared to the Seventh Swordsman of yore, he was even more distinguished.


    Naturally, all of Dali knew that the silver-haired figure they saw was the genius who had infiltrated the Imperial Advisor''s residence��the Seventh Swordsman.


    He was chased by Dali before, but now he returned with such a dominant posture.


    He had come leading the great army of Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Many people in the Dali royal family knew this former Seventh Swordsman had even gone to the west mountain to hunt together. Furthermore, the aggressive Seventh Swordsman had executed a descendant of the Prince Regent''s Residence without regard for anyone.


    Now, to behold the Seventh Swordsman again, the feeling was quite another.


    Emperor Li''s eyes fell on Ye Futian. Back then, he did not even realize that the Seventh Swordsman was using a disguise.


    Once, he had wanted to grant his daughter to Ye Futian as a wife and make him a prince consort.


    To kill Ye Futian at the time, Li Yao and the Prince Regent suggested that he send the Imperial Advisor to the Crimson Dragon Realm and execute Ye Futian to neutralize this threat.


    And he had agreed.


    However, the operation failed, and the Imperial Advisor could not harden his heart to kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian didn''t die; the Imperial Advisor was admonished and was imprisoned by him, and the Imperial Advisor''s residence was history.


    Emperor Li, as a figure of Renhuang, did not expect that the history of the Dali Dynasty would change because of a young man.


    Now, the troops were here in the city.


    Ye Futian wanted to threaten him��the Emperor��into compromising.


    To releasing the prisoner.


    "Ye Futian greets Your Majesty, Emperor Li," looking at Emperor Li, Ye Futian said in a clear voice, but he did not bow in respect, and there was not much respect in his tone.


    One could even say that his tone had a touch of indifference.


    In the battle at Crimson Dragon Realm, it was impossible without the explicit consent of the Emperor.


    Who could order the Imperial Advisor if not the Emperor?


    Obviously, Emperor Li had the intention to coerce the Imperial Advisor. Although he valued the Imperial Advisor, his heart was closer to King Tiandao and the Prince Regent. After all, the same blood flowed within them.


    No matter how much the Imperial Advisor of Dali achieved, no matter how extraordinary he was, he was always an outsider who could be used and even given enough respect. But when push came to shove, it was always blood that could be trusted more.


    If the Imperial Advisor was a relative of the Emperor, perhaps the Emperor would not have sent him to the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Emperor Li should have known how difficult it was for the Imperial Advisor.


    But Emperor Li had hoped the Imperial Advisor would make a choice.


    "You have brought your men here, so don''t bother with pretense." Emperor Li looked at Ye Futian coldly and said, "Ye Futian, what do you want?"


    "When I cultivated in the Nine States, the Lower World of Emperor Xia''s Realm, Li Yao crossed the Renhuang realm, leading people to lay siege on the clan I was with. This caused heavy casualties to my clan, including my wife." Ye Futian looked at Emperor Li and continued, "In the battle of the Empty Realm, it was another slaughter with total disregard of the rules, and in the Crimson Dragon Realm, Dali Dynasty sent out four nirvanas to attempt to kill me. It''s not about what I want, but rather, Your Majesty, what do you want? "


    Emperor Li stared at Ye Futian.


    "If Emperor Li desires so much for me to be dead, well, here I am. Emperor Li could order them to do it." Ye Futian pointed to the people of the Dali Dynasty.


    No one made a move. On the side of the Dali Dynasty, there was dead silence.


    If the armies collided, they would suffer great defeat; there was no doubt about that.


    Once, Dali Dynasty had attempted to kill Ye Futian many times, but now, there was no way that they could.


    When Emperor Xia saw Emperor Li''s silence, he said, "Emperor Li, you are, after all, an existence of Renhuang. If you hesitate without a decision, our fighting will be at a stalemate. Why not play a round of chess?"


    Chess?


    At this moment, Emperor Li did not have the interest to play chess.


    He and Emperor Xia were equal in strength. One could not beat the other. If there had been a clear gap, there would never have been border wars.


    The hardest fist was not bound by rules.


    It was only when two sides were equal was there the need for rules.


    "Your Majesty, decide," Ye Futian said. Along the way, he didn''t allow mindless slaughtering. It was obvious that he did not view this invasion as a true border battle.


    Otherwise, it would not have been so peaceful; countless people of Dali would have fallen along the way.


    They had only killed those who fought against them because it was kill or be killed by the other.


    Emperor Li, of course, knew what he wanted.


    Ten armies descended today. With soldiers now in the city, all these thousands of men came for only one person.


    The majestic imperial palace, with its towering hall, stood there in extreme solemnity.


    Today, for the first time, someone dared to threaten the lord of the Dali Dynasty��Emperor Li��to make a decision in this majestic palace.


    Countless eyes fell on Emperor Li and Ye Futian opposite him.


    The army encircled the palace, and dark clouds loomed over the city, threatening Emperor Li.


    Although the reference to a decision was not stated, everyone knew very well what he meant.


    He wanted the Emperor to let the prisoner go.


    The entire hall inside the palace was filled with pressure.


    Inside the imperial palace, in the jail cell suppressed by the ritual implement, the Imperial Advisor of Dali sat there with weak breath, guarded by cultivators next to him.


    And now, the two who were guarding him were actually on the Unblemished Saint Plane.


    The two Unblemished Saints looked into the distance and knew what was happening. They felt pity in their hearts and looked at the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    Once, he was the first person of Dali Dynasty under the Emperor. Once, he ruled the realm. All had respected him.


    Even now, though he was imprisoned, a bloody storm of a war started because of him. Emperor Xia''s Realm had sent its soldiers to the imperial palace. A fierce battle would be launched if Emperor Li did not comply.


    "Imperial Advisor still has power. Even in prison, there are still those who will shed blood on account of the Imperial Advisor," an Unblemished Saint remarked.


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali raised his head and looked into the distance with a faded gaze. Although his cultivation was obliterated, he could still feel the horrible atmosphere of the entire palace.


    The entire palace of Dali was facing a great enemy.


    He knew Ye Futian had come.


    He valued Ye Futian, Ye Futian''s talent, and his ideal of boundless Great Path.


    Of course, he was reluctant to kill such a character.


    So, he released Ye Futian in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    He knew what it meant to release Ye Futian when he had personally witnessed the death of Li Yao. It meant that he had burned all the bridges, but still, he did it.


    Someone like Ye Futian should not die, let alone by his hands.


    He knew that Ye Futian would inevitably create into a realm far beyond his own, but he did not expect that Ye Futian would come so soon with his troops.


    "Why bother?" muttered the Imperial Advisor. It was true that he did betray his position and betrayed Dali; thus, his cultivation was obliterated. But he did not blame anyone; this was his own choice and the ending that he deserved.


    But thinking of Ye Futian''s arrival, he smiled again. Perhaps he was happy because he had such a disciple.


    He had thought that his life would end in a whimper, and he would be content for Feixue to live a little longer. But Ye Futian had cured Feixue, and Yan Yuan and the others had also escaped this place, flying free like birds. Now, there was a disciple of his who may leave a mark in the history of the 3,000 Realms.


    What dissatisfaction could there be in such a life? Even if he were to die now, there would be no regrets!

 1318 Game

    At the Imperial Palace of Dali, the mighty armies were facing each other.


    Three major Renhuang figures appeared here. Although the palace was very peaceful at the moment, everyone knew that once it exploded, it would be earth-shattering.


    The whole point now hinged on whether or not the two sides could reach an agreement.


    Ye Futian launched the war this time and led an army to invade the Imperial Palace of Dali. His purpose was not to slaughter; otherwise, the way over would not have been so quiet, and countless cultivators would have perished.


    He came for the Imperial Advisor of Dali and wanted to force Emperor Li of the Dali Dynasty to decide to release the Imperial Advisor.


    But could he persuade the Emperor?


    At this moment, Emperor Li looked toward Ye Futian. In his cultivation until now, in the Renhuang Plane, he had ruled a realm respected by all in Dali Dynasty. He wanted to strengthen the Dali Dynasty so that even in times of trouble, they could conquer or defend. He wanted to glorify the name of the royal family of Dali so that it would be known more than just in the one realm.


    The Imperial Advisor was competent and was valued. In his view, the Imperial Advisor would be the main force in his plane to strengthen Dali Dynasty. He had even vacated the power of the Prince Regent and gave all the power to the Imperial Advisor.


    However, the Imperial Advisor had disappointed him.


    After all, the Imperial Advisor was not part of the Li clan, and there was no blood of the royal family flowing inside of him. Therefore, he did not share the same position as him. When he encountered Ye Futian, he had committed treason because of his affinity toward his disciple.


    He had said once that he could allow the Imperial Advisor to make any mistakes, except treason.


    He was also willing to give the Imperial Advisor a chance, but he had declined.


    Therefore, he asked the Imperial Advisor to obliterate his cultivation and be imprisoned.


    Now, Ye Futian, the genius character who had caused the betrayal of the imperial advisor, had come here and surrounded the palace with his great armies, threatening him to release the Imperial Advisor.


    To release him or not?


    Ye Futian asked him to make a decision. But how?


    "Ye Futian, in the world of cultivation, discussion of past rights and wrongs are meaningless. Li Yao killed your wife and those in your clan, but you also killed him. You want to rescue the Imperial Advisor, but the predicament the Imperial Advisor is in today is all because of you. If it was not for you having been the Imperial Advisor''s disciple as the Seventh Swordsman, the Imperial Advisor would still maintain his honorable position in our Dali Dynasty, and the Imperial Advisor''s residence would still be respected by those in Dali. All of this was because of your plan for revenge."


    Emperor Li looked at Ye Futian and said, "Since you want me to make a decision, it will all end today. Everything started with you, and it shall end with you."


    "Ye Futian, if you die, then the Imperial Advisor will still be the Imperial Advisor of Dali. I will forgive all the charges against the Imperial Advisor and his residence. And if they are willing, they can still be in positions of power in Dali Dynasty. Of course, he can also choose to leave, and I shall send him off in a manner befitting his position as the Imperial Advisor. "


    Those who were around were trembling inside, and countless eyes fell on Ye Futian.


    Emperor Li''s decision was that for Ye Futian to die, and the Imperial Advisor would be released.


    And all transgressions would be pardoned.


    Now, the people of the Dali Dynasty could naturally see that Ye Futian''s progress posed a great threat to Dali. If he died, there would not be a Renhuang figure who might obstruct Dali Dynasty. If he died, the great army would also fall apart; the Peacock Emperor and Kong Xuan were most likely here because of him.


    And those figures of Nirvana Plane from the Crimson Dragon Realm were also fighting for him.


    As long as Ye Futian was dead, everything would end.


    Ye Futian stared at Emperor LI. So, he asked him to die in exchange for the Imperial Advisor of Dali?


    The people of Emperor Xia''s Realm were angry in their countenance, and Emperor Xia also frowned.


    "The Imperial Advisor is in this predicament today because of you, and he was willing to die for you, Ye Futian. What the Imperial Advisor could do, you cannot?" Emperor Li continued, "Such a disciple is dishonorable."


    Emperor Li''s voice emitted a strange authority. It penetrated Ye Futian''s eardrums and directly affected his will.


    In addition to the words themselves, his voice also directly affected Ye Futian''s emotions.


    It was as if his words were the truth.


    He wanted Ye Futian to exchange his life for the Imperial Advisor''s.


    Ye Futian''s heart was shaking, and his mind was affected. He frowned a little, seeming to have felt the influence of Emperor Li''s voice. However, he soon returned to a peaceful state of mind, firmed up his will, and he cast an indifferent look toward Emperor Li.


    "My Master exchanged his life for mine because he was unwilling to slay me. But you wanted me dead, so what my Master did was in vain?" Ye Futian said coldly, "In addition, there are many elders of Emperor Xia''s Realm, as well as elders from Crimson Dragon Realm, and the mighty army that joined in this battle because of me. What would become of their deed if I died?


    "Furthermore, Your Majesty, you don''t seem to understand the situation today. I am giving Your Majesty a chance to decide, not a chance to renegotiate the conditions of the exchange." Ye Futian''s voice grew colder and colder. He stretched out his hand, and suddenly, the breath of many nirvana figures bloomed, sweeping through the space and overwhelming the palace, shrouding the Imperial Palace in an atmosphere of terror.


    Many large armies marched forward, oppressing with an even stronger might of authority.


    If there was one misdirected word, there would be a blood bath.


    And in the Imperial Palace of Dali Dynasty, a great battle would erupt.


    Behind Ye Futian, the Swordmaster of Lihen and the others reveal a look of relief. Had Ye Futian been influenced by the words of Emperor Li and agreed to such a ridiculous request, then they probably would have been disappointed.


    Otherwise, why did they fight?


    Because of Ye Futian''s talent, because of his brilliant future, it was possible that he would be a figure who could influence the realms.


    If it was so easy to lose life over this, then what was the meaning of everything they had done?


    It was exactly as he said: what was the reason for the Imperial Advisor of Dali sparing his life?


    Now, would he be seeking his own death?


    The hopes of many were pinned on his life.


    "Is it?" Emperor Li looked at Ye Futian with sharp eyes and said, "If so, you can order them to give it a try."


    He was still standing proudly when he spoke. The authority of Renhuang was released to its fullest and shrouded the heavens. His eyes were so deep and unfathomable that it was hard to see what his thoughts were.


    He wanted to see if Ye Futian dared to issue an order to kill?


    For many things, there was a difference between zero and infinity. Once there was a first time, then there, naturally, would be a second time.


    Today, Ye Futian led an army to press them, and Dali Dynasty had no power to resist. The attack came straight inside the palace, and undoubtedly it was a shameful business to Emperor Li.


    However, today he was threatened by Ye Futian to compromise.


    After that, would the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm no longer attack?


    If not, then what was the point to compromise?


    What he wanted now was for Ye Futian to die.


    If Ye Futian didn''t die, the situation would not change.


    And for Dali Dynasty, it could only get worse.


    Because Ye Futian would only become stronger and stronger, and the outside forces could become even greater.


    Currently, he was only Saint of True Self. What if he became Unblemished or entered the Nirvana Plane?


    Once he entered the Nirvana Plane, the combat power of him alone would be no less than the Imperial Advisor''s, and perhaps, there would only be more people who would follow him.


    Now, it was a game between the two.


    Ye Futian wanted to force him to release the Imperial Advisor. He wanted to see if Ye Futian dared to make a move.


    Ye Futian was silent. Looking at Emperor Li''s eyes, he knew that he had underestimated the power of Renhuang.


    Emperor Li would not move first, but he was also betting that Ye Futian dared not to strike first.


    If it were rushed, then everyone would perish together.


    Rules were rules, and rules were meant to be broken, not last forever.


    Unless there were stronger forces regulating the rules...


    If the moment of life and death for Dali arrived, would Emperor Li still abide by the rules?


    "Release the Imperial Advisor and return his freedom so that he is no longer bound by Dali. From then on, I, Ye Futian, will never step inside Emperor Li''s Realm," Ye Futian said, knowing full well the concerns of Emperor Li. He felt that Ye Futian was too great of a threat, and even if he promised to release the Imperial Advisor, it would not change the situation in the future.


    Therefore, he wanted Ye Futian to die.


    "It''s not enough," Emperor Li said lightly. "I can release the Imperial Advisor, but he still belongs to Dali and cannot leave the imperial city of Dali."


    Even if Ye Futian never entered the Dali Dynasty, others still could.


    What''s more, just how credible were Ye Futian''s words?


    The threat to Dali Dynasty remained. Either Ye Futian was dead, or the Imperial Advisor would continue to be controlled by Emperor Li.


    "Emperor Li, this is hardly the kind of character befitting Renhuang," Emperor Xia said casually.


    "Wait until Emperor Xia''s Realm faces a moment like this, then ask yourself if you have the right to utter this sentence or not," Emperor Li responded indifferently; he was the Emperor of the Dali Dynasty.


    All of Dali Dynasty was under his guardianship; he would never allow it to be threatened.


    Ye Futian looked at the figure standing proudly on the top of the stairs, his fists clenched. He was struggling inside.


    Emperor Li''s thinking was spot on. Even if he never entered Dali again, he still had ways to deal with it.


    Emperor Li had hardened his heart now. He was unwilling to compromise and refused to let the Imperial Advisor go.


    "Emperor Li, Li Yao and all who had grievances with me have died, and the Imperial Advisor lost his cultivation. All this was counted as even between us and will stop right here. The loss suffered by Emperor Xia''s Realm was repaid with the Empty Realm, so from now on, Dali Dynasty will never be allowed to enter the Empty Realm."


    Ye Futian continued, "Going forward, I will no longer pursue any of these grudges."


    Many people look toward Ye Futian. In fact, other than Cao Kong, others still had grudges with Ye Futian. Many cultivators, including the Prince Regent, had gone to the Crimson Dragon Realm to kill him, leading to the situation with the Imperial Advisor.


    But, for the freedom of the Imperial Advisor, Ye Futian was willing to make concessions and compromise.


    In this battle, the army of Emperor Xia''s Realm participated, but he knew very well that it was not only because of him but also Emperor Xia. He couldn''t gamble everyone''s life because of his own grudges.


    At this moment, he has only one goal, and that was to take the Imperial Advisor away from Dali Dynasty so that he could reunite with Yan Yuan and Feixue, no longer being oppressed by Dali, and getting to choose as he wished.


    Concessions such as this should be acceptable to Emperor Li?


    After all, Emperor Xia''s Realm came to attack and had breached the palace. Along the way, many important strategic locations of Dali Dynasty were taken by them, including the Medicine City and other important ruins.


    It could be said that Ye Futian had the absolute advantage.


    But now, Ye Futian had only one condition, and that was the freedom of the Imperial Advisor, and for that, he could let go of everything that had been taken.


    Next to him, Emperor Xia said nothing. This battle was for Ye Futian, and he should make all the decisions!

 1319 Conditions

    "That''s not enough."


    A cold voice responded to Ye Futian.


    Emperor Li looked at him and spat out these words: "not enough."


    Even if Ye Futian decided to give up the pursuance of this grudge, and his only wish now was to leave with the Imperial Advisor safely, and he would no longer pursue things of the past...


    That was all he wanted now.


    As long as Emperor Li would agree, he would evacuate from Dali.


    However, Emperor Li had refused decisively.


    When Ye Futian heard the response from Emperor Li, his face became extremely cold, and a chill was released from his body. His fists were tightly clenched.


    Today''s situation, having surrounded the imperial palace of Dali, was an absolute advantage for them.


    It should be them who dictated the conditions to force Emperor Li to comply.


    However, the fact was that he stepped back and conceded, while Emperor Li still felt that it was not enough and refused to make any concessions and release the Imperial Advisor.


    The Peacock Emperor watched all this quietly in the void. He secretly transmitted to Kong Xuan, saying, "When both parties are in negotiation, whoever cares the most is destined to lose. Emperor Li is Renhuang, after all, and dares to gamble everything and let go. But Ye Futian, he can''t give up. He came for the Imperial Advisor, and his purpose is clear. He cares more than Emperor Li, so in this exchange, he is destined to lose."


    Kong Xuan appeared to be deep in thought. Her father transmitted a secret message to her was perhaps reminding her of something.


    In the future, she may also have the experience of an exchange such as this.


    Even those from Dali Dynasty thought that the Emperor might agree to Ye Futian''s request and let the Imperial Advisor go, and Ye Futian would retreat.


    But they did not expect that Emperor Li still did not agree.


    The advantage that Emperor Li had, compared to that of Ye Futian, was that Ye Futian dared not gamble the lives of everyone, unlike Emperor Li.


    He was the lord of the Dali Dynasty. He could make any decision, and no one could disagree with him.


    He did not need to consider anything else; he only needed to consider himself.


    It was deathly still. Even though Ye Futian was angry, he was also helpless. He wanted to have a great fight and let the army sweep over the entire Dali Dynasty.


    But just as everyone thought, he had more concerns, and he cared more.


    "Your Majesty, then, means to make war?" Ye Futian stared at Emperor Li and said.


    "You came from Emperor Xia''s Realm and attacked until you came in front of me. Now you ask me if I chose to go to war?" Emperor Li smiled sarcastically, saying, "Ye Futian, I will give you two options: withdraw, and I release the Imperial Advisor, but he is still not allowed to leave the Imperial City. The second choice is this: now that the Imperial Advisor is suppressed under a pagoda. If you are willing to try to survive the three levels of suppressions of the pagoda in the stead of the Imperial Advisor, and you are willing to withdraw your army, you may leave with the Imperial Advisor if you live."


    "Nirvana-level implements are not to be trifled with," Emperor Xia said, looking towards Emperor Li. "The Imperial Advisor once served the Dali Dynasty, but now you threaten us with his life. Emperor Li, don''t you think this is unbefitting to your honor as Renhuang?"


    "The Imperial Advisor of Dali betrayed us because of him, yet he refuses to die for the Imperial Advisor. Now, I only ask him to bear the suffering of the Imperial Advisor." Emperor Li responded coldly, "The Imperial Advisor suffered such pain for you daily, Ye Futian. What about you? "


    His voice was the same as before. It was as if contained certain magic, affecting Ye Futian''s will.


    Many understood. Before, Emperor Li had already revealed his desire for Ye Futian to die.


    Now, he did not directly ask Ye Futian to die for the Imperial Advisor, but this request was not far off.


    He wanted to use this to kill Ye Futian so as not to worry later.


    Otherwise, even if Ye Futian promised to let go of the grudge, Emperor Li would probably still be worried.


    Only a dead man would require no more guarding.


    "What is the difference between this and asking me to die if Emperor Li takes control of the implement?" Ye Futian said.


    "Others will control it," Emperor Li said. Ye Futian seemed a little moved.


    "No matter what means I use?" Ye Futian said.


    "Yes," Emperor Li answered.


    Means?


    Even if Ye Futian had incredible means, as Saint of True Self, if he dared to agree to it, there would only be one conclusion, and that was death.


    Even if he could use the external force to exert strength far beyond the realm, the result would be the same.


    "Ye Futian," Emperor Xia called out and looked toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned to look back at Emperor Xia, who said, "You don''t need to promise him anything."


    Obviously, he also did not want Ye Futian to save the Imperial Advisor in this manner.


    Since Emperor Li had proposed it, it meant that he had absolute certainty of taking Ye Futian''s life.


    As soon as Ye Futian agreed, what awaited him could very well be death.


    "What if Your Majesty breaks your promise?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "The Peacock Emperor is here, he can be a witness, " Emperor Li said, looking up at the Peacock Emperor.


    "Gladly," the Peacock Emperor in the void nodded in agreement.


    "Father." Kong Xuan looked at him. The Peacock Emperor had agreed so decisively, but for Ye Futian, the result could be fatal.


    However, the Peacock Emperor seemed extremely peaceful. Ye Futian had chosen this path himself. He caused this war, and everything was his doing.


    The final decision, ultimately, was in Ye Futian''s hands.


    "Very well."


    Ye Futian spat these words, which made the hearts of many tremble.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at him. Had he agreed to such poor conditions?


    "Ye Futian," Emperor Xia transmitted his voice to Ye Futian.


    "Since Emperor Li threatens me with the life of my master, this is the only way. If I can''t bear it, Your Majesty can interfere then by force." Ye Futian secretly transmitted his voice to Emperor Xia. Since Emperor Li was eager for him to die, he would play ball with Emperor Li.


    Of course, he wouldn''t want to die and trade his own life, so he reminded Emperor Xia.


    He nodded and agreed, but Emperor Xia did not.


    Since Emperor Li could intervene by force, so could Emperor Xia.


    Both King Tiandao and the Prince Regent flashed cold murderous intent in their eyes. They would dare to agree?


    If so, then the only thing left to do was to kill.


    They wanted to see how Ye Futian would manage to resist the slaughter of the pagoda.


    "Since that''s the case, let''s go and check on the Imperial Advisor," Emperor Li now seemed rather calm and did not show any emotions. He turned around and walked toward the center of the imperial palace. All the cultivators of Dali were following him.


    Emperor Xia waved his hand, and the mighty armies suddenly moved forward together, heading in one direction.


    After a short while, they came to a prison and saw the figure of the Imperial Advisor of Dali.


    This prison was not an ordinary prison but was in a separate, independent space. In the sky above the Imperial Advisor of Dali, there was a giant pagoda, brilliant, sprinkling lights that turned into an independent prison. The body of the Imperial Advisor was enclosed within, like a prison in space.


    Traces of horrible will of the Great Path permeated from it, and there seemed to be an enchantment surrounding the Imperial Advisor.


    At that moment, he was sitting on the ground. His hair was a mess, his eyes were cloudy, and his hair had grayed much.


    He resembled the hero of yore, no longer possessing the brave spirit of his former self.


    Seeing the appearance of the Imperial Advisor, Ye Futian felt a little sad inside. How could this be the first person under the throne of Dali Dynasty?


    "Master." Ye Futian felt saddened, seeing what was before him.


    He still remembered that when he first came to the Dali Dynasty. He had come from the Lower Realm and entered the palace. He met the disciple of the imperial advisor, Lu Chuan.


    Even though Lu Chuan was only the youngest disciple of the Imperial Advisor, he was still in a superior position, treated as a guest of honor by King Li, who ruled the Lower Realm as one of the four kings.


    After entered into the Upper Realm of Dali, he felt even more clearly how respected the Imperial Advisor of Dali was in Dali Dynasty.


    He has been someone who stood at the peak top of all of Dali.


    But because he didn''t want to kill him, he ended up like this.


    One could only imagine how Ye Futian felt at this moment in his heart.


    "Leave." The Imperial Advisor looked at Ye Futian with murky eyes. His voice seemed weak and lacked energy.


    Leave?


    Seeing his master like this, how could Ye Futian leave?


    He walked forward. Behind him, Emperor Xia shrouded the entire palace with his might. If someone in Dali dared to make a move on Ye Futian, he would intervene directly.


    "Master, I will leave with you," Ye Futian said.


    The Imperial Advisor had no more cultivation left. How could he leave his master here in this state?


    Seeing the master today, his breath of life was drying up.


    He was left on his own. He could really die.


    For cultivators, the loss of cultivation was the greatest nightmare.


    People of Emperor Xia''s Realm seemed to understand why Ye Futian wanted to save the Imperial Advisor of Dali at all costs.


    The former Imperial Advisor of Dali had ended up like this. Even those top characters of Emperor Xia''s Realm who had seen him in Crimson Dragon Realm still felt saddened in their hearts.


    How great was the Imperial Advisor back then? Even the Great Shaman was unable to resist him and was suppressed firmly by him. Just himself alone, he could battle several Nirvana characters at the same time.


    And now? He was on the verge of death.


    "Futian, it''s not worth it," the Imperial Advisor looked at him and said.


    It was not worth it for Ye Futian to save him.


    "You were high above in Dali Dynasty but ended up like this because of me. Was it worth it?" Ye Futian whispered, feeling pain in his heart. He went forward, step by step, and horrific breath was released from him. The flames now burned into the sky. Above the firmament, wind and clouds were changing.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian''s body seemed to be devoured by the flames, but his eyes were still on the Imperial Advisor. He continued forward toward the area that was suppressed by the pagoda.


    Boom. A horrible illusion of the flaming god of war was condensed into existence. An elusive face seemed to appear in the flames above the sky. It was as if Emperor Kua was summoned here and had descended.


    The sound of a roar came out, Ye Futian''s body became immense, and the Zhonglou Battle Form was cast. It grew larger and larger, exuding radiance light of the sun. It was irresistible.


    The people of the Dali Dynasty looked at this scene with shock. Could he exert such tremendous power?


    At this point, Ye Futian''s breath was already that of the Nirvana Plane. The strength of that flame was so strong that it might really slay the existence of Nirvana Plane.


    Boom! With one step, Ye Futian entered under the pagoda. Suddenly, the lights of the pagodas fell down, and the violent force streamed down along his body as if to shatter his body.


    "Do it." Ye Futian looked up and looked in the direction of Emperor Li.


    Emperor Li looked indifferent toward King Tiandao. The chance was best with King Tiandao controlling the implement to kill Ye Futian.


    Even though Ye Futian''s power was comparable to Nirvana at this moment, he still would not escape the fate of death.


    Today, he would die!

 1320 A Wise Man Must Ceaselessly Strive

    King Tiandao went up to the pagoda. His willpower entered into it, causing it to rotate. Golden light fell upon it like bolts of lightning.


    Outside the pagoda, the divine golden dragon was circling it, slowly materializing into what looked like a real dragon.


    Images of more pagodas fell continuously onto Ye Futian''s massive figure.


    All was dead silent throughout the vastness of the sky.


    Everyone was watching the scene unfolding before them.


    This was the bet between Emperor Li and Ye Futian. It would probably determine the Imperial Advisor''s fate.


    The Imperial Advisor of Dali Dynasty looked at the figure in front of him. The once handsome youth had become incredibly large and tall. It seemed that he was trying to protect the old man.


    A hurricane swept over towards them, making his white hair fly in the wind.


    However, he had not yet used even the slightest bit of his power. His powers had been permanently damaged, and so there was nothing he could do other than watch everything unfold.


    The light of the pagoda was extremely bright in that suffocating space. After what seemed like a long time, King Tiandao was finally able to control the pagoda completely. He stepped forward with a cold look on his face. He looked down at Ye Futian.


    He knew why Emperor Li was doing this. The true killing power of the pagoda did not lie in what it displayed on the outside.


    As long as Ye Futian nodded, he would be killed beyond all shadow of a doubt.


    Even if it had been him who had to bear the three attacks that would happen when he activated the pagoda, he would still be in danger. So how much more so would be Ye Futian, who was merely a Saint of True Self.


    When Ye Futian died, the others from the Crimson Dragon Realm would flee as well. The others did not know the Imperial Advisor or even Emperor Xia. They were not Emperor Xia''s subordinates, so they would not necessarily give their lives for him.


    Moreover, Emperor Xia himself would not dare to gamble the lives of all his people here to save the Imperial Advisor.


    "Die!" said King Tiandao in a low voice. He finally made his move. There was a loud noise as shining divine beings were released from the pagoda.


    Boom!


    A shocking noise rang out as Ye Futian''s massive body was smashed by a colossal pagoda that covered him completely. Endless destructive lightning ravaged his flesh, and he was crushed by a terrible pressure.


    The dragon roared as Ye Futian raised his head. He seemed to have appeared in the space in the middle of the pagoda. The divine golden dragon rushed down with a roar and entered directly into his mind, smashing into his spiritual willpower. The dragon''s roar sought to shake his very soul.


    Crack! Crack! Crack! Inch by inch, cracks were appearing in Ye Futian''s massive form. His mind shook, and he felt half-dead from fright as his flesh was destroyed.


    He was too strong. This power would not only destroy his body; it would also destroy his spiritual willpower.


    So this was a Weapon of Mass Destruction.


    Ye Futian''s massive form could not even withstand a single attack. Everyone''s hearts trembled as they watched.


    Emperor Xia''s eyes were cold as he watched. It seemed like he was ready to get involved at any moment.


    If Ye Futian could not hold out, then he would get involved, even if it started a war. He could not watch Ye Futian die.


    Ye Futian had made a bet, but he did not want him to give up his life.


    "Continue," said Emperor Li. His voice was calm. He did not ask for King Tiandao to stop.


    If he wanted to kill him, he would have to do it all with one sustained effort and not give Ye Futian a chance to breathe. You would have to crush him.


    You would have to destroy his body and cut out his soul.


    No matter how outstandingly talented Ye Futian was, today, he would be left behind forever.


    "Very well," answered King Tiandao. He launched another attack that split the earth and cracked the sky. The endless divine light of the Great Path gathered together and fell upon the pagodas.


    The pagodas seemed to grow taller and rotated above Ye Futian''s head. All of the attacks were falling upon Ye Futian. They were extremely accurate, and not a bit of power was wasted.


    The several Unblemished Saints by Emperor Li were protecting the Imperial Advisor with their will. Even though the attacks were incredibly accurate and would not hit him by accident, the Imperial Advisor was so weak that he could not bear even the slightest disturbance.


    Before Emperor Li made his decision, they could not let him die here.


    The endless divine light transformed into another pagoda that wrapped around Ye Futian. The storm of golden pagodas spun, flattening everything, continuously shattering his Chonglou Battle Form.


    The terrible, destructive storm seemed to be at the Nirvana level. Its fury was continuously renewed.


    The Chonglou Battle Form seemed about to collapse, and his legs seemed unable to support him as he was cut down by the terrible force. It appeared that he would fall.


    Endless arms of Flames of the Way stretched out, pressing against the ground to hold him up, but the terrible destructive light destroyed them.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian could only feel a divine pagoda crushing down on him. Magma seemed to be condensing from his Flames of the Way, turning into an indestructible solid. But cracks still appeared in it. What was worse was that his body was relatively unharmed compared to what he was suffering in his mind.


    With pagodas and fire light dancing before his eyes, the Imperial Advisor of Dali''s robes fluttered in the wind. He looked over at the Battle Form that was being crushed in front of him.


    Suddenly, he found himself thinking of a previous destructive battle.


    At that time, he had been in Emperor Li''s good graces. Thus, when he had entered the Dali Dynasty, he had been named Imperial Advisor. He had been devoted to the dynasty and trained many cultivators. Today, many of the amazing cultivators of the Dali Dynasty had once been under his guidance.


    He did not want to see the future Dali Dynasty suffer the kind of destruction he had once faced. At the same time, as the Dali Dynasty was rising, he had taught disciples and found a place for Feixue. He had thought that life would always be like that. If he could protect the dynasty as it prospered and spend more time with Feixue, he would have been satisfied.


    Because Feixue spent so much time sleeping, the two of them spent more time separated than together.


    The days had passed like this for many years. But since Feixue was always in the realm of sleep, and had been so young, he had had to move forward alone in order to protect Feixue.


    Ye Futian''s appearance had changed everything.


    Everything in the world has a destiny. In the end, it had been impossible for things to continue as he had wished.


    But no matter what, everything that had happened before had been destined to happen, and so he could accept them with a clear conscience.


    Even if he died, he would have no regrets.


    But those disciples who had studied under him for a time were not willing to let him die.


    The destructive storm was tearing through Ye Futian''s Battle Form. It seemed like he was about to fall.


    A stronger force was brewing and could fall at any time.


    Emperor Xia''s aura was growing stronger. It seemed like he was preparing to attack.


    But just at that moment, an even stronger aura burst out from Emperor Li. He did not look at Ye Futian but at Emperor Xia. "Emperor Xia," he said, "the winner and loser of the previous battle have already been decided. Let''s have another one, shall we?"


    On saying this, he stepped forward and suddenly descended right in front of Emperor Xia. He had obviously guessed what Emperor Xia was thinking. He would not let Emperor Xia interrupt King Tiandao while he was killing Ye Futian.


    Emperor Li was so strong once he decided to act. In a flash, the entire palace was filled with his power. Emperor Xia raised his hand to attack, forcing his opponent''s energy to disperse. The great army of Emperor Xia''s Realm was behind him.


    The two of them shot up into the clouds. There was a loud noise, and destructive light boomed. If the two of them had not gone up into the sky, countless people would have been killed by their attacks.


    Emperor Li was gambling with the lives of everyone in his palace. He was betting that Emperor Xia would not put up a fight.


    His beloved daughter Xia Qingyuan was there as well.


    Boom!


    At that moment, King Tiandao launched his third attack.


    Everyone''s hearts were beating wildly as they stared at Ye Futian.


    His Battle Form was cracking inch by inch as it continuously collapsed. A lightning bolt shot into him, piercing through his body.


    The pressure was crushing him down. He turned his huge eyes towards the Imperial Advisor.


    "Why are you doing this?" The Imperial Advisor''s long hair flew in the wind as he stared at Ye Futian.


    This was not the outcome he had wished for. He did not want to see Ye Futian gamble his own life for his.


    However, he saw that Ye Futian was smiling. Blood was flowing from his mouth.


    "As the heavens'' movement is ever vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive."


    These words echoed throughout Emperor Li''s mind.


    These were the words that he had said to Ye Futian. Now, Ye Futian was giving them back to him.


    When cultivating the Great Path, a gentleman should be continually improving himself. Why should he seek death?


    That was Nirvana.


    Looking into those smiling eyes, the Imperial Advisor smiled as well. But even as he smiled, his eyes grew wet.


    He slowly stood up. Even though the years weighed down on him, he still stood straight. He had the backbone of a gentleman.


    "As heaven''s movement is ever vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive." The Imperial Advisor looked up into the sky. A terrible storm was whipping across the land, and a brilliant light was flashing. His body was still extremely fragile, and it seemed as if a gust of wind could knock him over. But within that weak body lay an unyielding heart.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Destructive attacks were still shattering Ye Futian''s Battle Form and even smashing into his body. His spiritual will was also under devastating attack. But his eyes were still bright.


    "You''re still not dead?" King Tiandao''s face darkened.


    "You have had your three attacks. Release the Imperial Advisor," came a voice from up in the sky. "But, as for the army that Ye Futian is leading, destroy them."


    The words "destroy them" fell from the sky like a bolt of lightning, entering directly into everyone''s minds.


    It seemed that Emperor Li still wanted to do this.


    He had only promised to let the Imperial Advisor go. He had not promised that after three attacks, he would stop fighting altogether.


    King Tiandao could take this chance to kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had no chance to escape.


    As long as he abided by Emperor Li''s conditions, he would die for sure.


    "Yes, Your Highness," said King Tiandao clearly. He had a fierce desire to kill Ye Futian.


    The Unblemished Saints'' power disappeared from the Imperial Advisor''s body, and at the same time, they tried to undo his bindings.


    "Don''t trouble yourselves," whispered the Imperial Advisor. As he said this, the bindings on him shattered into pieces. The destructive hurricane swept out, sending the Unblemished Saints around him flying.


    Brilliant light shot up from his body into the sky. Just as King Tiandao launched another attack, he raised his fist.


    Dong!


    With a loud noise, an incomparably huge pagoda fell, but it was blocked by a huge palm print that covered the sky. It was big enough to block the entire sky in one direction.


    Countless beams of divine light fell upon the Imperial Advisor. His white hair gradually disappeared, and his wrinkles faded. His cloudy eyes became dazzlingly bright again.


    His calm voice rang out through the palace. "From now on, I will no longer obey Emperor Li. I am no longer the Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty!"

 1321 Kill

    Everyone''s hearts were beating fiercely as they watched.


    They saw the Imperial Advisor standing there in his worn-out robes. Although he had been rejuvenated, his body still looked frail.


    But even so, a brilliant divine light shone around him, and a formation flashed into existence. The ancient characters "strong," "flowing," "leave, and "threshold" circled around him, making the storm of the Great Path grow stronger and stronger.


    He looked up into the sky and began to rise into the air.


    "This is..."


    Everyone''s hearts were pounding. The Imperial Advisor of the Dali Dynasty had destroyed his powers. So what was happening now?


    He raised his hand, covering the sky and blocking the divine pagoda that was crushing down.


    Ye Futian looked up a little bit. When he saw what was happening, a bright smile appeared on his face.


    As the heavens'' movement is ever vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive.


    This was the Imperial Advisor.


    He had permanently destroyed his powers because he had not wanted to leave for the sake of Yan Yuan and the others.


    However, he had reached Nirvana.


    When one reached the Nirvana level, dying was not that easy. He may have destroyed his powers, but the Nirvana within him could be born again.


    The Imperial Advisor had done this.


    This was true Nirvana, even stronger than it had been in the past.


    King Tiandao looked shocked. He could faintly feel a transcendent power. It was frightening.


    The Imperial Advisor of the Dali Dynasty had gone beyond the peak in a single step.


    His body may have been weak and frail, but he could shake the earth with his very thoughts.


    Boom!


    He activated the pagoda, and divine light shone, splitting the very air as it tried to flatten down everything below it. It was trying to kill the Imperial Advisor before he had been wholly revived


    The image of a huge divine pagoda appeared, crushing downwards. It seemed strong enough to break someone''s very soul.


    The Imperial Advisor looked up. Brilliant divine light was falling onto him from the sky. His aura was still quite weak, but when he stretched out his hand, a mighty figure appeared, moving in tandem with him.


    He raised his hand and pointed at the pagoda.


    At that moment, countless beams of light fell upon the pagoda at the same time. A loud "dong" rang out through the sky.


    In the next instant, countless cracks appeared in the divine pagoda as everyone watched with trembling eyes. The cracks spread and widened.


    Bang!


    The pagoda shattered as the divine light swept over it.


    A Nirvana level ritual implement had been shattered.


    What level of power could do this?


    Renhuang level?


    No.


    They could all naturally feel that the Imperial Advisor had not become a Renhuang yet. A Renhuang would be even more terrible than this.


    Moreover, to break through to the Renhuang level was not that easy. Even if your state of mind changed, it did not mean that you would necessarily be able to break through.


    But even though he had not become a Renhuang, he was still close to that level.


    The Imperial Advisor of the Dali Dynasty was at the peak of the Nirvana level. He was subordinate only to Emperor Li.


    His current breakthrough only proved that he had already touched the Path of Renhuang.


    Ye Futian knew that he had already reached the level of Ninth Servant.


    Maybe he was even higher.


    But Ninth Servant looked down on all the Nirvana level cultivators. They had relied on forming the Sword Matrix of the Void to hurt Ninth Servant, but even so, he had crushed Li Kai, and they were unable to block him.


    From this, the Ninth Servant''s power and confidence were evident.


    And right now, the Imperial Advisor was giving Ye Futian a similar feeling of invincibility.


    He had destroyed a Nirvana level ritual implement by pointing at it.


    A look of shock came over King Tiandao''s face. He shot up into the sky, trying to escape.


    The Imperial Adviser was too frightening then. He was making him afraid.


    "King Tiandao," said the Imperial Advisor. He clenched his fist, and suddenly the sky-covering palm print shot downward. King Tiandao felt a suffocating pressure covering him and slowing his movements.


    The palm print grabbed King Tiandao. His aura surged with power, but he was unable to escape.


    The Imperial Advisor was still floating up. He kept going until he was level with King Tiandao.


    "Imperial Adviser, are you going to betray the Dali Dynasty completely?" roared King Tiandao.


    "I have already died once. I have no more association with the Dali Dynasty. You wanted to kill me, and even destroy my residence, causing a war between realms. So, I will give you a glorious death," said the Imperial Advisor.


    "No..."


    When King Tiandao felt the Imperial Advisor''s murderous intent, a look of panic came over his face. He was King Tiandao of the Dali Dynasty, the brother of Emperor Li. He had once almost taken the throne from the Emperor.


    Bang!


    The Imperial Advisor did not give him a chance. He squeezed his fist, and countless brilliant beams of light shot towards it like a catastrophe of the Heavenly Path. They not only destroyed King Tiandao''s flesh; they even destroyed his soul, giving him no chance of survival.


    King Tiandao, the leader of the Dali Dynasty''s army, had fallen.


    He had been killed in the grand palace of the Dali Dynasty.


    Moreover, the one who had killed him had once been the Imperial Advisor for the dynasty.


    They had once been the two most important people below Emperor Li in the Dali Dynasty. The Imperial Advisor was responsible for internal matters, and King Tiandao was responsible for external affairs.


    Now, the Imperial Advisor had slain King Tiandao.


    This scene was incredibly shocking for the cultivators of the Dali Dynasty.


    Even outside the palace, countless people were watching the battle. When they saw the Imperial Advisor kill King Tiandao, their hearts trembled as well.


    "The Imperial Advisor," came a series of murmurs and shouts.


    The voices built up into a storm of noise that flowed in all directions.


    The Imperial Advisor may have been imprisoned, but he was still a prestigious figure. Many people still remembered him, especially here in the imperial city.


    The people within the palace were the same. He had trained many of them.


    Everyone had once believed in him. Everyone had once respected him.


    However, he had been imprisoned because of Ye Futian.


    That incident had had a huge effect on the Dali Dynasty. The battle in which Yan Yuan and the others had left had probably been because of this.


    The Imperial Advisor looked around at the people outside the palace. Everyone was watching him. Their whispers reached his ears. He said, "My residence was destroyed several years ago. Because of the order that Emperor Li just gave, I no longer owe the Dali Dynasty anything."


    Everyone was speechless. Of course, he did not owe the Dali Dynasty. He had served them faithfully but had been imprisoned because of what Li Yao had done. These past few years, he had punished himself. He had still been repaying the Emperor''s grace.


    But Emperor Li had just used him to threaten Ye Futian and had even asked Ye Futian to die in his place.


    He no longer owed Emperor Li, or the Dali Dynasty, anything.


    This was a new life for the Imperial Adviser.


    He was no longer the same person that he had been. He was no longer the Imperial Advisor for the Dali Dynasty.


    Boom!


    Up in the sky, a terrible power swept out, covering the palace and enveloping everyone within it.


    Everyone''s hearts trembled. They could naturally feel it. It was a Renhuang level force, a pressure that had come from Emperor Li.


    He had already prepared his method of killing Ye Futian for when he agreed to his condition. Once Ye Futian died, the rest of his army would shatter.


    But he had never thought that the Imperial Advisor would regain his power and even transcend his limits.


    He had slain King Tiandao.


    Was the outcome of the war between him and Emperor Xia now?


    There was no suspense at all.


    Destructive attacks fell from the sky. Everyone knew that it was the battle between Emperor Li and Emperor Xia happening high up in the air.


    But at that moment, it seemed that Li Yao was trying to affect the battle below with his power.


    His will was falling.


    The Peacock Emperor looked up into the sky. "Emperor Li, since you asked me to witness this, I have witnessed it. You made Ye Futian promise you, and he did so. You lost your bet. Are you trying to meddle in the outcome?" Nine colored light shone from his body.


    He spread his feathers, covering the sky and blocking the falling power, separating it from the battle below.


    The Peacock Emperor was taking a stand.


    The people of the Dali Dynasty went pale.


    The tables had turned completely in a single instant. It had been in the instant when the Imperial Advisor had come back into his power.


    "This was your choice, Emperor Li," came a cold voice that boomed through the air. Everyone looked at Ye Futian standing there despite his grave wound.


    He had suffered three attacks from a Nirvana level ritual implement, and yet he was still alive.


    And he could still stand.


    "Kill Cao Kong," came a cold voice. Cao Kong had been taken and had lost his ability to fight. He trembled with fear and went pale when he heard Ye Futian.


    The cultivators of the Cao clan looked shocked as well.


    Wu Yong stretched out his hand and slammed his fist down on Cao Kong''s head with Flames of the Way in his fist.


    His hand suddenly turned into a flaming fist.


    "No..." there was an intense look of fear on Cao Kong''s face. "Your Majesty!" he shouted.


    Now, only Emperor Li could save him.


    Boom! The flaming fist slammed down, and the terrifying Flames of the Way entered Cao Kong''s mind making him scream miserably. The flames burned his body.


    An incredibly powerful and talented figure of the Dali Dynasty had come to such a miserable end.


    Ye Futian looked up at the Imperial Advisor and said, "Teacher, the Prince Regent always tried to destroy your residence. Kill him."


    The Prince Regent had been a part of many things in the past.


    It could be said that he had even urged the Imperial Advisor to go to the Crimson Dragon Realm and fight Ye Futian.


    If it had not been for him, perhaps none of this would have happened.


    A look of panic came over the Prince Regent''s face when he heard this. He had witnessed how the Imperial Advisor had destroyed King Tiandao with his own eyes.


    He had crushed him, killing him so decisively that he had had no hope of escape.


    If the Imperial Advisor acted against him, his fate would be the same as King Tiandao''s. He would be crushed.


    As he thought of this, he turned to flee.


    In this hopeless situation, he chose to flee rather than fight.


    Up in the air, the Imperial Advisor cast his gaze over him.


    He strode through the air and appeared in front of the Prince Regent.


    The Prince Regent looked up and saw the figure overhead. Brilliant light flashed as if the power of the Heaven Great Path was falling upon him.


    "Fall," spat the Imperial Advisor. When he said this, the divine power of the Heavenly Great Path transformed into many divine swords that shot down from the sky, piercing through the air.


    The Prince Regent roared, loud as a dragon, loud enough to shatter the heavens and the earth. He raised his fist to strike, slamming into the oncoming swords.


    He tried to break out from the encirclement of swords, but at that moment, a beam of light shot into his eye.


    Slice!


    Another sword fell from the sky. The Prince Regent tried to block it, but the brilliant divine sword pierced through the true dragon and ran through the Prince Regent''s body from the head on down.

 1322 Beginning and End

    The Prince Regent''s body was pierced in a flash. Terrible light shot out from him, and he gave a howling shriek. Under this brilliant light, his body was shattered into nothingness.


    First, it had been King Tiandao, and now the Prince Regent. Both of them had lost their lives.


    Including Cao Kong, the Dali Dynasty had lost three of its top figures.


    Moreover, their former Imperial Advisor had slain two of them.


    Many of the people in the palace felt a deep sense of misery. Even the Prince felt this way.


    Those who belonged to the Li Imperial family harbored murderous intent, including King Tiandao''s people, and the Prince Regent''s people.


    The Dali family had been opposed to the Imperial Advisor''s Residence and were always trying to bring about the Imperial Advisor''s downfall.


    "In the past, you all participated in the siege of my residence," said the Imperial Advisor. Up in the sky, a divine array of the Great Path flashed. Ancient characters floated around him.


    "Kill them."


    The Imperial Advisor''s eyes were cold. When he said this, divine light fell everywhere, destroying everyone. No one could survive it.


    The people of the Dali Dynasty had once thought that the Imperial Advisor was too kind. He knew many powerful techniques, but he did not use them. Otherwise, the Dali Dynasty would have been able to destroy Emperor Xia''s Realm. There would have been no reason why they should have lost the Battle of the Empty Realm.


    But the Imperial Advisor had always been very careful about the techniques that he used. The Imperial family all thought that he was too calm and was not fierce enough towards their enemies.


    Now, the Imperial Advisor had finally started to kill; but he had not killed the people from Emperor Xia''s Realm, but rather those of the Dali Dynasty.


    He had given all his loyalty to the Dali Dynasty, but even destroying his powers was still not enough. Emperor Li had still tried to control the Imperial Advisor''s Residence. And now, when the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm had come to save him, then Emperor Li had used his life as a way to threaten Ye Futian. He had asked Ye Futian to die in his place.


    Of course, this had made him completely hopeless. From now on, he owed the Dali Dynasty nothing. He would no longer be their Imperial Advisor.


    And since he owed them nothing, it was time for payback.


    If the people of the Dali Dynasty said that he was betraying them, then so be it.


    "Qin Xuangang!" came an angry voice from the sky. The world shook as terrifying destructive light fell.


    The Imperial Advisor looked up and stretched out a hand. He used the Heavenly Great Path to block the falling destructive light. There was a loud noise as his fist was destroyed, but the Imperial Advisor was not harmed. Even Emperor Li''s will could not kill him.


    "Since you have already made your choice, Your Majesty, you have no right to be angry." The Imperial Advisor was looking into the sky. Qin Xuangang was his original name. Few people knew that. The people of the world were all used to calling him the Imperial Advisor. But Emperor Li naturally knew his true name.


    Emperor Li wanted to kill Ye Futian and had done all he could to do so. This was his decision. At the moment that he had made the decision, nothing could be changed. Fate was set. Anger and regret would be meaningless.


    He did not regret letting Ye Futian go in the past. He did not regret destroying his own powers to give Yan Yuan and the others a chance to live.


    Now, he had begun slaughtering the people of the Dali Dynasty. Even if the people of the world spurned him for it, he would still not regret it.


    This was his choice.


    Another attack fell, and many people were killed on the spot.


    "Imperial Adviser." At that moment, Li Xuan stepped forward. He rose into the air and stood before the Imperial Advisor.


    He and Li Yao had once both been close to the Imperial Advisor and had desired to study under him.


    "The Dali Dynasty has treated you shamefully. But is this what you truly want?" asked Li Xuan.


    "Imperial Advisor." King Li and some others stepped forward as well. They all knew that as long as the Demon Peacock Emperor was helping him block Emperor Li''s attacks, then Emperor Xia''s people would not even need to get involved to defeat them.


    None of them could stop the Imperial Advisor when he was like he was today.


    "Imperial Advisor." On the ground, some people were even kneeling. They looked up at the figure in tattered robes up in the sky and begged him for mercy.


    Seeing all those figures, the Imperial Advisor sighed inwardly.


    He had so much bitterness in his heart, but after he had spent so many years in the Dali Dynasty, and trained so many of their youths.


    And there were those among the princes who had done him no wrong.


    And in the past, Emperor Li had treated him well. Otherwise, he would not have always done his all for the Dali Dynasty.


    He sighed inwardly again, then turned and walked towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian watched him come. "Let''s go, teacher," he said with a smile.


    The Peacock Emperor had no quarrel with Emperor Li; he was shielding them from Emperor Li''s madness. He would not really ally with Emperor Xia to kill Emperor Li. If they could kill him, that would be great, but what if they couldn''t?


    Emperor Li would vent his rage by slaughtering the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm and the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. Could Emperor Xia and the Peacock Emperor keep a constant watch on him?


    And even if they watched him, could they stop him?


    Thus, they could not really destroy the Dali Dynasty. And in principle, this battle between the three Emperors had not broken any rules if it all ended here.


    This was a terrible defeat for the Dali Dynasty. Emperor Li had displayed a fierce and decisive nature, but it had all been for the purpose of killing Ye Futian. But he did not dare to harden his heart and try and destroy them both together.


    "Mm." The Imperial Advisor nodded. He walked up to Ye Futian, who had once had such a weak aura, and then returned to Emperor Xia''s camp.


    "Disperse the army," said Ye Futian. Throughout Emperor Xia''s vast army, all the divisions began to disperse.


    None of the cultivators of the Dali Dynasty dared to stop them.


    They had lost three of their great cultivators. Now they no longer had the Imperial Advisor, the Prince Regent, nor King Tiandao. They had lost a lot of their vitality. It would probably take a long time to recover, and they no longer had the resources to challenge Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    At the very least, they would be like this for a very long while.


    As for the future...


    Up in the sky, the great battle was still raging. It seemed as if the sky would collapse and the earth would split.


    When the great army of Emperor Xia''s Realm had dispersed, Emperor Xia''s voice rang out through the air, "Do you still wish to continue, Emperor Li?"


    As he said this, beams of destructive catastrophe light fell from the sky, and two figures floated down slowly. The Peacock Emperor returned to his original place and stood beside Kong Xuan.


    Emperor Li swept a cold gaze over Emperor Xia. Then he looked and saw the situation that the Dali Dynasty was in. In reality, he had already seen that before.


    How could he have imagined that the Imperial Adviser would break through his state of mind in a situation like this and advance to the next level?


    It seemed that he had already touche the gate to the Renhuang level.


    The Imperial Advisor was Ye Futian''s only condition. He would not lead the great army in an attack. The army would disperse, and he had promised to forget this grudge.


    But what about now?


    Not only had the Imperial Advisor left, but he had also gone beyond the limits of his power.


    The Dali Dynasty had lost three Nirvana level cultivators.


    Other than that, his previous agreement with Ye Futian was not included in this. He might come back in the future.


    If Ye Futian reached a level where he could threaten him, he would certainly not let him go.


    The reason he had not brought slaughter to his men today was that he still had misgivings about facing a Renhuang level Emperor.


    Emperor Li turned and descended. He walked back towards the palace.


    It seemed as if he was calmly facing this tragic defeat.


    He did not give vent to his rage. He did not even say anything angry.


    This was the way things had ended, so doing any of that would have been meaningless.


    He had not lost this game before. And in this case, he did not think he had done anything wrong. He had lost to fate.


    He had bet that Ye Futian would not have the guts, so he had pressed him hard at every step. He had put forward his conditions, prepared to do whatever it took to kill Ye Futian.


    But the Imperial Advisor had recovered.


    And thus, he had been badly beaten.


    But he had not lost to Ye Futian.


    Even though he had lost, he would not lose his temper and go on a rampage. He was at the Renhuang level, so his state of mind was better than that. But he had bet the Ye Futian would not risk that.


    But now it was all finished. Things had come to their end and could not be changed.


    Now he should be thinking about the future.


    Emperor Xia knew that Emperor Li was merely threatening Ye Futian. In reality, he also would not give vent to his rage by going on a rampage. He would wait and see who backed down first.


    He looked up and nodded to the Peacock Emperor, and then the two of them left in different directions. They disappeared in the blink of an eye. It was as if they had never even come.


    Everything in the Royal Palace of Dali was in disorder.


    This was a day that the Dali Dynasty would never forget.


    Throughout Emperor Li''s City, countless people were standing there in shock, looking up at the disappearing figures.


    The famous Imperial Advisor was now far away. After what had happened, he had already been fated to leave the stage of the Dali Dynasty''s history, but he had still been in the Royal Palace of Dali.


    But now, the Dali Dynasty had lost him forever.


    He had brought glory to the dynasty. Even when he left, he would never be forgotten.


    Now, what could the Dali Dynasty use to fight Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    They had lost the Empty Realm, and in the future, they would probably lose even more.


    Of course, other than the Imperial Advisor, there was one other name that the people of the Dali Dynasty would never forget.


    Ye Futian.


    Everything had started with him.


    Of course, who could blame him?


    From the start, everything had been caused by Li Yao, the Prince of the Dali Dynasty.


    The man who had once thought he could crush as easily as an ant and not only cost him his life, now he had taken way one of the most significant figures in the Dali Dynasty.


    Who could have imagined it?


    If Li Yao was still alive and had learned of today''s battle, what would he have thought of it?


    ...


    In direct contrast to the Dali Dynasty, Emperor Xia''s Realm had experienced a glorious victory.


    Ten army divisions had set out and swept away all in their path. They had attacked the Royal Palace of the Dali Dynasty and laid siege to it.


    They had brought the Imperial Advisor of the Dali Dynasty to Emperor Xia''s Realm and killed three great figures of the Dali Dynasty, including King Tiandao. Moreover, Emperor Xia''s Realm had paid only a small price for this victory.


    This glorious victory sent great waves throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm. From now on, the Dali Dynasty would no longer be a threat to them.


    Ye Futian''s fame grew even brighter.


    He eclipsed the Princes of Emperor Xia''s Realm and even Princess Xia Qingyuan. Of course, as far as many people were concerned, Ye Futian and the Princess were inseparable.


    This battle made more people think that the future ruler of Emperor Xia''s Realm might be Ye Futian.


    Within Emperor Xia''s Palace, the great army returned to their stations and all the top figures who had gathered left.


    Ye Futian immediately shut himself away to heal. It would probably be a long time before he was fully recovered.


    In the palace courtyard, Yan Yuan, Teacher Nan Zhai, Mu Chunyang, Lu Chang, and Feixue stood before the Imperial Advisor.


    "Teacher!" called Yan Yuan and the rest. They were all smiling, just as brightly and simply as they had in their youth.


    Feixue walked forward, smiling. Tears were flowing down her cheeks. She took her father''s hand and embraced him.


    "Father," she said. The Imperial Advisor hugged her gently, a thousand feelings racing through his heart.


    It seemed as if he had been reborn.


    When Yan Yuan and the others saw this, their smiles grew even brighter. They sighed inwardly. Ye Futian had not lied to them. He had brought their teacher back.


    It had begun with him, and it had ended with him!

 1323 Settled

    After a few months, the news of the battle with the Dali Dynasty had spread throughout Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    But no one was able to find out anything else, just that Emperor Li''s Realm had made concessions on all of the issues that had caused friction between them and Emperor Xia''s Realm. They had no other choice, as they no longer had any way to defend against Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Emperor Li did not make any earth-shattering moves. After all, they had suffered grievous losses, but the base of their power was still there. The Royal Family and all their children were still alive. The only thing he could possibly do was break the rules and attack Emperor Xia''s people. And if he did that, he would pay for it with his life.


    Obviously, Emperor Li was not that desperate yet.


    Ye Futian was recovering, and Qin Xuangang was shut up for a period of time as well. After all, he had once destroyed his own powers, and his flesh had not yet completely reformed. He naturally needed to cleanse his will and recover to where he had once been.


    One day, everyone went to pay their respects to Emperor Xia.


    Although the people who had made names for themselves at the battle with the Dali Dynasty were Ye Futian and Qin Xuangang?��the former Imperial Advisor?��they knew that the one they should be thanking was Emperor Xia. In addition, Ye Futian owed the Peacock Emperor his gratitude as well.


    Ye Futian and the others reached Emperor Xia''s Palace and bowed slightly to the Emperor. "Your Majesty."


    Emperor Xia and Queen XIao were sitting there. Emperor Xia looked at Ye Futian and Qin Xuangang and said, "I trust you are recovering well?"


    "The worst part is already over," said Ye Futian with a smile. "No need to trouble yourself over it, Your Majesty."


    "I must thank you for my life as well, Emperor Xia, and the lives of the people of my household," said Qin Xuangang.


    Emperor Xia had come personally to save the people of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence twice.


    "You should thank Ye Futian. If it were not for him, I would not have acted, " said Emperor Xia with a smile. "But although you should not feel like you owe me anything, you should still consider coming to serve my realm. What do you think?"


    He had said that the Imperial Advisor did not owe him anything. He hoped that he would serve the realm of his own free will, not because he was returning a favor.


    Qin Xuangang naturally understood this, and he said, "Your Majesty, perhaps the Crimson Dragon Realm would be more suitable for me."


    "Mm." Emperor Xia nodded. "Very well. If Emperor Li does anything reckless in the future, you and Ye Futian will be the first people that I turn to. Moreover, Qinyuan is there as well. With you there taking care of her, I do not need to worry about her."


    His precious daughter would probably not remain in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    He had seen Qin Xuangang''s power on that day. He had been able to block Emperor Li''s will. He knew that he had already come close to the marvelous gate to the Renhuang plane, and even before, few were a match for him on the Nirvana level. Now, his level was truly at its limit.


    Even in a place like Crimson Dragon Realm, there would be few people at the Nirvana level who would be able to threaten him.


    He was much stronger than the people that he had secretly sent to guard Xia Qingyuan. After all, Emperor Xia''s Realm could not part with such powerful figures.


    "I will do my best," said Qin Xuangang.


    "Ye Futian, the people of the Nine Great Tribes are not needed here. You may take them all with you," said Emperor Xia to Ye Futian. These were people that Ye Futian had conquered in the Crimson Dragon Realm, and he had sent them here to help Emperor Xia''s Realm guard against the Dali Dynasty.


    Now that the Dali Dynasty could no longer threaten Emperor Xia''s Realm, he was letting Ye Futian take them back.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Very well."


    He knew that this time when he returned to Qianye City, they would replace the Ancient Imperial City and become the foremost city in Crimson Dragon Realm. There was no doubt about it.


    This was something that he could not have imagined before he had come here.


    "There is someone else who would like to see you, Ye Futian," said Emperor Xia. Ye Futian was curious as to who it was.


    Emperor Xia looked out of the hall and called, "Lu You, bring him in."


    Very soon, Lu You brought a man into the hall. He was wearing a black robe, and his aura was very weak. He had obviously been grievously wounded. Moreover, his face was dark, as if he had been poisoned.


    Ye Futian stared at him. He seemed to be lost in thought.


    "This is the one who poisoned your friend. His powers have been destroyed. How would you like to deal with him? Emperor Xia asked Ye Futian.


    "Let him live or die of his own accord," said Ye Futian. In reality, who already knew who had been behind the whole thing.


    Now, Emperor Xia seemed to want to settle the whole affair.


    "Father," came a voice. Xia Kun walked inside the hall, then knelt to the floor, saying, "I have made a mistake."


    Xia Qingyuan was watching everything calmly. This would all finally be settled.


    "What do you think, Ye Futian?" Emperor Xia asked Ye Futian. His opinion was obvious.


    They did not need to say too much about the things that had happened. They remembered them well enough.


    "His Highness has admitted his mistake, and Ling''er and the others are in good health. You should be lenient, Your Majesty," said Ye Futian. In reality, this went against what he had originally wanted. If it were up to him, Xia Kun would be destroyed.


    However, he had to consider everything that Emperor Xia had done for him, as well as Xia Qingyuan.


    Today, he and the Imperial Advisor had come to thank Emperor Xia. To turn around and punish the Prince would show that they were not grateful.


    Of course, the reason he could say this was because, in the end, everyone was still alive and well, and because the Imperial Advisor was standing there by his side.


    Otherwise, he would not be nearly so calm.


    "His crimes were not just against you," said Emperor Xia. "Xia Kun, from now on, you are stripped of your status as a Prince. It will be better for you to prove yourself in the outside world rather than conspiring behind the scenes."


    Xia Kun went pale, but he still bowed and said, "Yes, Father."


    On saying this, he turned and left, not looking at Ye Futian or the others.


    He knew that starting from today, he would no longer have his status as a Prince of Emperor Xia''s Realm. He was just a Saint-level cultivator. He would no longer have cultivation resources. From now one, he would have to rely on only himself.


    Ye Futian turned and watched Xia Kun leave. There was nothing wrong with Emperor Xia''s justice. Xia Kun had once tried to help Xiao Sheng kill him, and he was indeed not the only one who had been affected by this.


    "Xia Rong had nothing to do with this affair, but how should we deal with him for the things he did in the Crimson Dragon Realm and all of their consequences?" Emperor Xia asked Ye Futian and Qin Xuangang.


    Qin Xuangang had been the one to suffer from his actions.


    Qin Xuangang bowed. "Your Majesty, the Prince had his reasons for making the choices that he did, so we cannot speak of right and wrong. I am able to stand here today because of Your Majesty''s grace. I do not wish to pursue this matter, and neither does Futian."


    Ye Futian nodded as well. "Mm." Since his teacher had said this, what else was there for him to say?


    "Your Majesty, Xia Rong has always wanted to prove himself in battle. Do not blame him too much," pleaded Queen Xiao. After all, Xia Rong was the eldest son of Emperor Xia''s beloved one.


    After Emperor Xia became a Renhuang, he could only take a queen.


    Later, Emperor Xia had doted upon Xia Qingyuan, and the people of Emperor Xia''s Realm had all theorized that she would be his heir. This was probably quite troubling for Xia Rong.


    Emperor Xia nodded. "Fine, then I will deal with him myself." He did not announce to the crowd how he would do so. He sighed inwardly.


    Xia Rong was not seeing things clearly. His eyes must be opened wider.


    What use was plotting against the Imperial Adviser and winning battles against the Dali Dynasty? Emperor Li was still there, and so the Dali Dynasty was still the same.


    Those who could truly decide everything were those who stood at the peak of their power.


    Xia Rong would probably never have a chance to reach that point. But in the future, Ye Futian was destined to take over Emperor Xia''s Realm and the Dali Dynasty.


    Thus, this whole affair was mostly meaningless.


    "Very well, these matters have all been taken care of. You may all set yourselves at ease and depart." Emperor Xia suddenly smiled. Ye Futian would naturally not stay in Emperor Xia''s Realm for long. He knew that many people of the realm were discussing whether or not he would be their new ruler in the future.


    But he knew that Ye Futian did not belong to Emperor Xia''s Realm. If he truly took charge of the realm in the future, he could only bring it to even higher levels.


    But this all rested on the assumption that Ye Futian would survive.


    If he died, then all of this would come to nothing.


    And Ye Futian''s family background was not simple at all. His future would undoubtedly bring great disturbance to the world.


    Thus, he would not live a pampered lifestyle. He was more suited to struggling and training in life or death situations, cultivating his state of mind, his will, and his authoritativeness.


    Ye Futian was very smart, and his will was extremely firm. But what was holding his back was that he often cared too much.


    For example, during the bet at the Royal Palace of Dali. If he could have been more ruthless, he would not have lost to Emperor Li.


    This was his weak point, but it was also an advantage. Because this was the way he was, many people flocked to his side.


    Otherwise, how could the people who had once been of the Imperial Advisor''s Residence have appeared by his side?


    If he had not been the way he was, the Imperial Advisor of the Dali Dynasty would still be the Imperial Advisor.


    Ye Futian nodded. For now, things in Emperor Xia''s Realm were settled, and there was nothing more to worry about.


    He already had a good base in the Crimson Dragon Realm. He had already cultivated in the Regional Palace, and Chi Shang knew him. He was very famous there as well. It would not be long before he had a chance to leave.


    "When are you preparing to leave?" asked Emperor Xia.


    "In a few days. I''m sure that you hate to part with the Princess, and my friends and I would like to go and see the Holy Zhi Palace. We will leave when we return," said Ye Futian.


    "Ah." Emperor Xia thought for a moment. "When the time comes, I will have some powerful people bring their descendants to the Crimson Dragon Realm. You won''t need to worry about them. The wider world will have a better stage for them, and let them advance even higher. They will be responsible for their own cultivation."


    Ye Futian nodded. "I understand." In reality, he had never worried about those people. They had seen to their training, and he had never been sure if they were in Qianye City or not.


    What Emperor Xia had said was exactly correct. Cultivation was his business, and he would help people as much as possible.


    "Very well, you may leave," said Emperor Xia with a wave of his hand. Ye Futian and the others bowed and left with Qin Xuangang.


    As they exited the hall, Ye Futian let out a sigh and smiled.


    "Teacher, brothers, I never thought we''d have a chance," said Ye Futian with a smile. He had thought that he and the others were on different sides, and their relationship as masters and students would only last for a certain period.


    "Are you satisfied?" asked Teacher Nan Zhai with a smile.


    "No, I envy you all. You have all been lucky to have such an outstanding disciple like me," said Ye Futian with a smile. He walked away from them.


    Qin Xuangang, Yan Yuan, and the others watched his retreating figure with a smile. This guy was outstanding, indeed!

 1324 Legend

    Qingzhou City was in the Eastern Sea region of the Nandou Nation in the Nine States, within the Land of a Hundred Nations.


    The island city was as quiet as ever. Although its status within the Nandou Nation was no longer the same as before, it still seemed to exist outside of the world, with very little in the way of excitement.


    Within the peaceful island city, Qingzhou Lake was still as beautiful as ever. Pleasure boats crisscrossed the surface of the lake without end, especially just as evening was falling, making the scene much more lively. Many of the people of Qingzhou City were gathered here, enjoying the beautiful scenery.


    Two figures were playing chess in front of a residence on the lakeside. They sat in the cool breeze very comfortably. People would occasionally steal glances at them, but they were not disturbed. They had grown used to it.


    "Father, you made a bad move there. It looks like you will never be a worthy opponent for Uncle Hua, not even in ten years." Beside them, there was a beautiful woman who looked like she was bout 30 years old. Her smile was bright and simple, and the years seemed to not have left their mark upon her.


    "Haha, I''m getting old. It''s getting easier and easier to be careless," said Qin Shuai.


    "So if you weren''t old, you would be winning?" said the middle-aged man across from him with a smile. It was Hua Fengliu. He had a weathered and worn look to him, but you could still see on his face what kind of a hero he had been when he was young.


    "You are truly ruthless," said Qin Shuai with a smile, putting down a piece as he spoke. "The game isn''t over yet."


    "It''s been so many years, and you still haven''t gotten used to it," came a laughing voice. Qin Shuai turned in confusion and saw a boat coming across Qingzhou Lake. A white-robed youth was in it. He stepped ashore and walked towards them.


    This man was clothed all in white, and his hair was like silver snow. He seemed to be one with the world around him. It was as if there was nothing unusual at all about him appearing there. He seemed a part of the landscape.


    Qin Shuai stood up and stared in shock at the young man who had just appeared. He was even more obviously an outstanding person now, and he seemed even to be otherworldly.


    Hua Fengliu looked at him as well. At first, he was stunned, but then he smiled. He looked back to the chessboard and moved another piece. "Aren''t you cultivating far away from here? Why on earth have you come so far?" he muttered.


    "I was afraid that you would have carelessly gotten old." Ye Futian walked to his side and squatted. He looked at the chessboard and said, "It''s been ten years. Did you not want me to come back."


    His trip had lasted ten years.


    "No," said Hua Fengliu.


    A sour look came over Ye Futian''s face. Hua Fengliu was so unfeeling!


    "A couple of days ago, someone was chattering about how that rascal Futian had been gone for ten years, and how unfilial that was. He asked my brother to go to the Eastern Barren Territory and see what he could find out. Why is this happening today?" A figure walked over, holding a cup. The former foremost beauty of the Nandou Nation was now marked by the passage of time. She was still beautiful, but she had begun to show wrinkles.


    "Masteress." When Ye Futian saw her, he felt a bit guilty. He had indeed been unfilial.


    "When did that happen? Why don''t I remember it?" Hua Fengliu repudiated her.


    Nandou Wenyin came over to look at him. Her eyes were slightly moist.


    She looked at her son-in-law Ye Futian as her own biological son.


    "Why are you crying, Masteress? Isn''t this a happy occasion?" Ye Futian said as he took the cup from Nandou Wenyin''s hands. "I''m back."


    "I"m not crying. It''s good to see you. You''ve made me very happy." Nandou Wenyin reached out and lightly touched Ye Futian''s face and silver hair.


    This man was already one of the most talented youths in the Nine States, but in her eyes, he was still just a little boy.


    "You lose," said Qin Shuai with a smile. Hua Fengliu looked at the chessboard. It seemed that his last move had been a fatal mistake.


    "Let''s not play anymore. This kid has ruined my mood, and I can''t play right," said Hua Fengliu as he messed up the chessboard.


    Nandou Wenyin smiled brightly. This guy had said that he did not want Ye Futian to come back, but if that was the case, then why had he played so badly?


    "You''re right; it''s all my fault," said Ye Futian with a smile. Ye Futian gave the cup to Hua Fengliu and said, "Have some tea."


    Hua Fengliu took it, and Ye Futian gave another cup to Qin Shuai.


    "You still look so young and beautiful, sister," said Ye Futian to Qin Yi.


    Qin Yi looked at him, and he saw that she was smiling brightly as well. Her eyes were wet with tears.


    He was just like he had been in the past. Other than the fact that his aura was more imposing, it was like he had not changed at all.


    "Knock!" Hua Fengliu rapped his knuckles on Ye Futian''s head and said, "You''re acting like your father-in-law doesn''t exist."


    "I''m sorry," said Ye Futian with a sour look.


    Everyone laughed, even Hua Fengliu.


    Time healed all wounds. Hua Fengliu had made progress over the ten years, and now Qin Yi was like his daughter. She would often spend time with him and Nandou Wenyin.


    "Let''s go to the lakeside." Hu Fengliu stood up and walked towards Qingzhou Lake. Ye Futian walked by his side.


    The evening was falling, but Qingzhou Lake was becoming more and more lively. There were more boats upon it, and whenever anyone would see Hua Fengliu or Qin Shuai, a look of respect would come over them. But no one disturbed them.


    Some people payed attention to Ye Futian. They could not help but stare at him. He was so imposing that even if you only got a glance of him, you would never forget him.


    However, it had been ten years, and the people at the lake at that moment were young men and women. None of them knew what the appearance of this silver-haired youth meant.


    After all, ten years in a small city was a long time.


    "Where are you cultivating nowadays?" Hua Fengliu said lightly as they reached the lake. Nandou Wenyin was standing beside him calmly, and Qin Shuai and Qin Yi stood on the other side.


    "The Crimson Dragon Realm. I just returned to Emperor Xia''s Realm for a time, so I came to see you and the Masteress," said Ye Futian.


    "A Realm, huh?" murmured Hua Fengliu. "That must be far away."


    "Mm." Ye Futian nodded. "Very very far."


    "What level have you cultivated up to?" asked Hua Fengliu.


    "I''m a Saint," answered Ye Futian. Hua Fengliu nodded.


    Saint had once been the highest level that anyone in the Nine States had reached. He understood what it meant for Ye Futian to have reached that level.


    But when he thought of the statue of Emperor Ye Qing, the Saint level must be far away from his goal.


    "You must have gone through so much over the years, Futian. We want to hear all your stories," said Nandou Wenyin softly.


    "Alright, then I''ll tell you." Ye Futian nodded slightly. And so, before he left, he told them everything.


    He talked about Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan, as well as the Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty and the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The breeze picked up, and fireworks cracked above Qingzhou Lake. They were extremely beautiful.


    As Ye Futian spoke, the whole group was sitting on the lakeside. Hua Fengliu and the others listened quietly. Ye Futian''s voice was the only sound on the wind.


    Every story seemed to have taken place over an entire lifetime. Even though they had not experienced it themselves, Hua Fengliu and the others still felt the thrill of these experiences. They were scared for Ye Futian sometimes, and happy for him other times.


    "The Imperial Adviser is worthy of respect. He is even more worthy than I am of being called ''master''," said Hua Fengliu.


    "The masters that I have met at every stage have been the best ones possible. They are all worthy of respect. But you were my first master, and you are my father-in-law, so you must be the best of them," said Ye Futian.


    "I see you haven''t lost your skill for sucking up," said Hua Fengliu. Then he thought of something and said, "This Princess Qingyuan seems pretty impressive."


    Ye Futian looked at him in surprise, but Hua Fengliu smiled and said, "Emperor Xia would be a good father-in-law as well."


    Ye Futian saw that smile on Hua Fengliu''s face. He knew his teacher was being sincere. He wanted to say something, but he did not open his mouth. He wanted to tell him the news that Jieyu might still be alive, but he was afraid that this faint hope would be extinguished, which would only increase his teacher''s sorrow.


    Thus, in the end, he said nothing. He looked out over Qingzhou Lake.


    Many pleasure boats appeared before him. A small boat was coming towards them, with many people on it. It was very light.


    There was a young woman of 18 or 19 on the boat. She was as beautiful as a jade statue, and all the youths around her were looking at her.


    This woman was the foremost beauty of the city of Qingzhou��Mu Shiyu of the Mu House.


    She seemed to see all of them, and the boat came over towards them. As it drew near, she saw Ye Futian, with his handsome, unblemished face, his imposing manner, and his silver hair. He was clearly full of stories, and his eyes were dazzling.


    She had had many suitors and had seen all the heroes of Qingzhou City. But with a single glance at the young man before her, her previously calm heart began to flutter.


    But she had not come for Ye Futian. She turned her gaze towards Hua Fengliu and bowed slightly. "Greetings, sir."


    "Miss Shiyu." Hua Fengliu nodded politely.


    "I request that you take me as your student, even if you only teach me to play chess or music. Please take me as your disciple." Mu Shiyu bowed again, showing the utmost courtesy.


    Hua Fengliu was a legend in Qingzhou City. Nine years ago, he had looked with favor upon an ordinary youth, who had then left Qingzhou City. He returned a year later and was already a Noble level cultivator.


    A special man like this was a treasure. However, after returning, his first act had been to go to Hua Fengliu''s residence to pay his respects and give his thanks.


    The people of the City of Qingzhou looked upon this conversation with approval.


    "Miss Shiyu, I''ve already told you that I won''t take you as a disciple," answered Hua Fengliu.


    "Then might I be your servant?" Mu Shiyu was still being polite.


    Hua Fengliu shook his head. "Please leave, Miss Shiyu."


    A disappointed look came over Shiyu''s face. At that moment, Ye Futian spoke up, saying, "Let''s go back, teacher."


    "Mm." Hua Fengliu nodded. The whole group of them left.


    Mu Shiyu was stunned. She looked at Ye Futian, but the silver-haired youth did not so much as glance at her. It seemed that her beauty was not that enticing to him.


    She looked a little disappointed. He wouldn''t take her as a disciple?


    And why had the silver-haired young man called him "teacher"?


    Ye Futian and the others returned to the house. Hua Fengliu said, "Alright, it''s time for you to be going."


    "Teacher, you don''t need to be in such a hurry to see me go. Are you so cold-hearted?" Ye Futian was almost speechless.


    "I''m old. The masteress and I like our peace and quiet. We don''t like people watching us," said Hua Fengliu lightly. Ye Futian had shown his face, and the people of Qingzhou City would soon come around to see him.


    Ye Futian sighed inwardly. He stopped walking. Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin both looked at him.


    "Alright, then I''m off. Master, Masteress," said Ye Futian.


    Nandou Wenyin had tears in her eyes, but she still nodded.


    Ye Futian bowed to them, then waved to General Qin and Qin Yi. He turned, and his figure flashed as he shot into the sky, becoming a star.


    Hua Fengliu looked up at him, watching the rapidly dimming starlight. His eyes were a bit moist, as well.


    "He''s gone." Soon, that little bit of light had disappeared completely. Nandou Wenyin took Hua Fengliu''s hand and looked into his eyes. "You''re being so open and unrestrained. Why are you crying?"


    "It''s just the wind. It''s irritating my eyes." Hua Fengliu led Nandou Wenyi back into the courtyard. Qin Shuai and QIn Yi watched the two of them as they walked away. Even though they were smiling, their eyes seemed a bit wet as well. They turned and left.


    ...


    Back on Qingzhou Lake, Mu Shiyu was sitting dumbfounded in her boat. A middle-aged man was waiting by her side. When he saw the disappointment in her eyes, he said, "Were you refused again?"


    "It seems that he really won''t take me as his disciple, father," whispered Mu Shiyu.


    "His daughter was also once the most beautiful woman in Qingzhou City. If you keep going back, he will accept you eventually," said the middle-aged man with a smile.


    "But there was already a young man there who called him "teacher," said Mu Shiyu.


    "A young man? What young man?" The middle-aged man frowned.


    "A young man with silver hair. He was incredibly good looking and had an imposing manner about him. I''ve never seen such an outstanding young man. He was not the least bit disturbed when he saw me. He did not even spare me a second glance. He is different from other people." Her mind was filled with the image of that young man. For someone like that, even after a single glance, it would be impossible to forget his face.


    "Silver hair, an imposing manner, he called him ''teacher''..." The middle-aged man was trembling. Then he turned, and in a shaking voice, said, "Quick! Go back to Teacher Hua''s place!"


    "What''s wrong, father?" This was the first time Mu Shiyu had seen her father like this.


    His whole body was trembling. His legs seemed like they would not support him.


    The middle-aged man looked at her and held her face with both hands. "Shiyu," he said, "the silver-haired young man that you saw is probably the legendary King of the Nine States!"


    When Mu Shiyu heard her father''s words, it was like she had been struck by lightning. She began to tremble slightly as well. She turned and looked in the direction they had come from.


    The legend circulating through the City of Qingzhou had seemed so distant, but now it seemed so close.


    He was the figure from that legend!

 1325 A Match for Ninth Servan

    Back in the Crimson Dragon Realm, everyone had been gone from Qianye City for several months.


    Before they left, Ye Futian had used the Sword Matrix of the Void to attack the Ancient Imperial City so that they would not dare to do anything foolish.


    The Ninth Servant had indeed not done anything foolish. He did not care about anyone else in Qianye City. His only target was Ye Futian.


    In the time after Ye Futian and the others had left, the Ninth Servant had officially left the city.


    He had sent people to Qianye City, and they had destroyed another Sword Matrix of the Void there.


    Moreover, he created a spatial matrix in the Ancient Imperial City. It was a two-way teleportation matrix, and the other side of it was in a residence in Qianye City.


    At the same time, the Ninth Servant and the people of the Ancient Imperial City captured Ye Futian''s former subordinates and prevented them from leaving the city to spread the news.


    He had lost that battle in the past because he had been the first to be injured by the Sword Matrix of the Void. This had profoundly affected his combat ability, giving his opponent a chance to find a way to beat him.


    Now, Ye Futian and the others had actually dared to leave in such a careless manner. All they had to do was destroy the Sword Matrix of the Void, and once Ye Futian returned, he could teleport to that residence in Qianye City.


    At that time, if he wanted to go and watch, who could stop him?


    Otherwise, Ye Futian would never come back.


    This way, he would take the most vicious vengeance possible for Xing Kai''s death.


    Many people in Qianye City were worried about Ye Futian. For example, a man of the Situ family knew that if an enemy like the Ninth Servant would be so daring as to directly come here even under the threat of the Sword Matrix of the Void, he must have some tricks up his sleeve.


    If Ye Futian came back, it would be a disaster.


    Now, the cultivators of the Ancient Imperial City had conquered Qianye City. No one dared to stop them, nor would they be able to.


    At that moment, the head of the Situ family, Situ Zhong, asked the man who had come in, "What is the situation outside?"


    "The Ancient Imperial City has almost conquered Qianye City. We are being watched, and we can''t go out. Otherwise, the Ninth Servant will probably act against us," said the man.


    Situ Zhong sighed miserably. What was Ye Futian thinking? Without a great weapon like the Sword Matrix of the Void, how could they deal with someone like Ninth Servant?


    Unless they had carved defensive Sword Matrices of the Void in other cities before they left, they would have no way to return to Qianye City.


    But could it be that Ye Futian had no idea what was going on in the city?


    Once he got back, things would go very badly.


    "How are there so many people from the Ancient Imperial City here?" asked Situ Zhong.


    The Ancient Imperial City was the foremost city besides Crimson Dragon City, but this was because of the Ninth Servant''s prestige. In reality, the Ancient Imperial City did not have a huge population; the Ninth Servant was the symbol of the city.


    "There are also those from Xiang City. They probably have not forgiven us for the death of that Nirvana level figure, and they want revenge," answered the man.


    "Xiang City again?" Situ Zhong frowned. Ever since the Battle of the Crimson River, when Yu Sheng had crushed Xiang Nan of Emperor Xiang''s Realm, they had always been looking for trouble. And every time they were frustrated. They seemed to be unwilling to give up.


    "It is probably because they are jealous," said Situ Yan, walking up. "Ever since Yu Sheng defeated Xiang Nan, he has not gone out at all. It has affected his state of mind. Even to this day, he has not become a Saint. Afterward, Xiang Ze had come to participate in the Peach Banquet. However, with Ye Futian there, he had not managed to gain any benefit from this. He was merely reduced to the role of villain. This must have been hard for Xiang Ze to bear. This was added to his previous grudge against Ye Futian. He is definitely mixed up in this as well."


    "So Emperor Xiang''s Realm retreated and then allied with the Ancient Imperial City. With their power added to that of a high-level cultivator like Ninth Servant, they are probably feeling confident," said Situ Zhong coldly. At any moment, the people from Xiang City could retreat and go back to Emperor Xiang''s Realm.


    Xiang City was just their foothold in the Crimson Dragon Realm. They could afford to lose it.


    "What can we do now?" asked Situ Yan.


    "In this situation, there is nothing we can do. We can only hope that our Lord has some plan. Now that he has led all of our cultivators out of the city, he has probably thought about how Ninth Servant would deal with him, and see how he should react," said Situ Zhong.


    Situ Yan nodded. There was indeed no other way.


    It was not just them. Everyone in Qianye City knew the situation they were in. The Ancient Imperial City had completely invaded them.


    Everyone was worried about Ye Futian and the others.


    Ye Futian still had an imposing reputation in Qianye City. This man, whose name resonated throughout the Crimson Dragon Realm, and Yu Sheng were two of the most powerful figures in the land. They were on the Regional King Ranking. These legendary figures were from Qianye City, and thus the people of the city felt honored.


    In a great palace in the Ancient Imperial City, Ninth Servant had his eyes closed in meditation.


    At that moment, someone came forward. Ninth Servant opened his eyes and looked at the man. It was the Prince of Emperor Xiang''s Realm: Xiang Ze.


    "What is happening below the palace?" Ninth Servant asked indifferently.


    "There are some matters of cultivation that I wish for you to teach me," said Xiang Ze. They had sought an alliance with the Ancient Imperial City, and Ninth Servant had not opposed them. Some of the cultivators of Emperor Xiang''s Realm were stationed in the Ancient Imperial City.


    Once Ye Futian appeared, he would head over directly using the space teleportation matrix. He would kill him in a single blow, not giving him any chance.


    "Fine." The Ninth Servant nodded. Xiang Ze was taking advantage of his opportunities. He had asked him for guidance on many occasions.


    But he did not refuse. Xing Kai had been killed, and now all he had left was the little master Xing Chou. It would be advantageous for Xing Chou to make friends with good backgrounds.


    Ninth Servant gave Xiang Ze some pointers about his cultivation, after which Xiang Ze said, "Ye Futian and the others have been gone for a long time, they will probably be coming back soon."


    "I am not worried," said Ninth Servant indifferently.


    Xiang Ze smiled and nodded. "With your great power, there is indeed no need to be worried. As long as no Renhuang level figures interfere, you will be able to easily kill Ye Futian of Emperor Xia''s Realm. There is no need for you to wait here."


    The Ninth Servant did not say anything. He naturally could not leave the Crimson Dragon Realm and go find Ye Futian and kill him. If he ran into Emperor Xia somewhere, he would die a horrible death.


    He was strong, but not as strong as a Renhuang level figure. Here in the Crimson Dragon Realm, he had protective charms.


    There was almost no one below the Renhuang level who could be a match for him.


    As they were talking, a bright flash of spatial light shot up into the clouds far away. The Ninth Servant looked up at it. He suddenly stood up straight and walked out into the air.


    A figure flashed over towards them incredibly quickly, then bowed and said, "My Lord, Ye Futian has returned to Qianye City."


    When he heard this, a powerful aura bloomed from Ninth Servant. "Let''s go," he said in a loud, clear voice.


    He stepped through the air as he said this. Many figures from the Lord of the Ancient Imperial City''s Residence stepped into the air at the same time. Gai Huang was there as well, and the cultivators that Xiang Ze had brought along.


    "Let''s go!" called Xiang Ze in a clear voice. They were all moving extremely quickly. They had to get to the matrix and activate it before Ye Futian and the others did.


    In but a moment, the line of people that Ninth Servant was leading descended upon the matrix. The brilliant spatial light of the Great Path shone, seeming to cut through the Ancient Road of Space.


    They all disappeared in a flash.


    ...


    Once Ye Futian and the others reached Qianye City, they felt that something was wrong.


    "It seems that someone is sending us some information," Wu Yong whispered to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded, but his expression did not change. They had left, leaving behind an empty city. How could the Ninth Servant not have made preparations for this? This was, without a doubt, a great opportunity.


    If his teacher were not fully recovered, this would be a problem.


    But now, there was no need to think about anything.


    If the Ninth Servant was not going to give up and was going to attack them directly, then he would have to stay here forever.


    The group walked towards the City Lord''s Office. All along the way, things seemed to be wrong.


    At that moment, a voice came up from below them, "Lord Ye, I am a member of the Situ family. Don''t go back to the City Lord''s Office!" Ye Futian looked down there. There was a figure on the road below them, but he was not looking at them.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian knew exactly what was going on. But he did not stop walking.


    Before long, the City Lord''s Office appeared in their field of vision.


    Before they descended, a blast of powerful aura rose from the direction of the City Lord''s Office. It swept out through the sky, covering them within it.


    A group of figures appeared there, and among them were the Ninth Servant, Gai Huang, and others. Their auras were mighty, especially the Ninth Servant''s. His will bloomed, covering everything up to the far reached of the sky. Everyone in the area felt a suffocating pressure.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over them. Besides the Ninth Servant and the others from the Ancient Imperial City, he also saw Xiang Ze of Emperor Xiang''s Realm.


    Moreover, there was cold murderous intent in Xiang Ze''s eyes as he looked at Ye Futian, as well as a sense of mockery.


    He had really come back like this, dragging the people of the Nine Major Tribes along with him?


    But even though they had a few more Nirvana level cultivators, could any of them stop the Ninth Servant?


    Ye Futian had a death wish.


    The Ninth Servant stepped through the air, only taking a single step and yet still reaching Ye Futian. He raised his hand and struck up into the air.


    When his fist fell, the Worldly Great Path seemed to shatter. The area where Ye Futian was standing seemed like it was about to break.


    The earth shook as the Ninth Servant''s fist turned into thousands of fists that then slapped down in the blink of an eye.


    But at that moment, another figure stepped forward from beside Ye Futian.


    He stretched out his hand, and the light of ancient characters wrapped around him. A divine matrix of the Great Path appeared in the sky, shielding Ye Futian and the others from the front.


    The Ninth Servant''s fists slammed into it, and the air shook without stopping. Heaven and earth seemed like they would split. However, the dazzling matrix still shone brightly.


    Qi Xuangang slammed his fist out again, pushing the divine matrix forward and breaking all of the fists as it shot towards Ninth Servant.


    The Ninth Servant''s expression changed. He struck out with both his fists, breaking his opponents'' attack. He was sent flying backward. He stared at the figure that had strode forward. His eyes were bright, and his heart was pounding.


    Who was this man?


    Gai Huang, the others from the Ancient Imperial City, and Xiang Ze all looked shocked as well. How could this be?


    Such a terrifying figure had suddenly appeared beside Ye Futian.


    People at the Ninth Servant''s level were not easily found. It was the same in all the realms. They were as difficult to find in Emperor Xiang''s Realm as they were in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "That is the Imperial Adviser of Dali Dynasty," said a figure behind Xiang Ze. It was his brother, Xiang Nan. He had been there at the Battle of Qianye City. Was the Imperial Adviser on Ye Futian''s side now?


    And he had grown even stronger!

 1326 Crushed

    Xiang Nan was not the only one to have realized this. Some of the other people there had been in the battle all those years ago.


    In particular, the people of Qianye City had all witnessed it, and they all recognized the Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty.


    The Imperial Adviser had once stood in opposition to Ye Futian and the others, but he had not been able to bring himself to kill Ye Futian. Now the two of them were walking together?


    Moreover, the Imperial Adviser had been unstoppable in that battle and had overpowered the Ninth Servant, forcing him to withdraw.


    Everyone''s hearts beat wildly as they felt the intense tension. How could they be calm in this situation?


    They could all feel that this battle would not play out like they had imagined it would. Instead, it would go in another direction.


    What would happen once the Imperial Adviser and Ninth Servant started fighting?


    The people from the Situ clan understood what was going on. This was why he had not chosen to disperse after they had warned him, but had instead continued to face the Ninth Servant.


    Without a doubt, the most confused people were the people from Emperor Xiang''s Realm. The look on the two brothers'' faces was marvelous to behold.


    The reason that they had allied with the Ninth Servant for this battle was that there was no risk in doing so.


    If they had a chance to kill Ye Futian without putting themselves in any danger, why would they not do so?


    Even if the Ninth Servant were defeated and could not kill Ye Futian, they would still easily be able to escape. And a cultivator of Ninth Servant''s level would probably be able to crush Ye Futian anyway.


    But now?


    Xiang Ze could feel a cold pair of eyes gazing at him. It was Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stood there, his deep eyes filled with icy coldness. He had not planned to get entangled with Xiang Ze and Xiang Nan again. The two of them may have plotted against him, but the two of them had a Renhuang realm to back them up. As long as they did not affect him too much, it would be too much trouble to deal with them. He did not want to create enemies everywhere he went, especially powerful enemies like a Renhuang realm. This would make it very difficult for him to travel around.


    But he had not counted on his enemies targeting him no matter where he was.


    This time, they had come here to kill him.


    Who did not know of the conflict between the Ancient Imperial City and Qianye City?


    Xiang Ze''s face fell, then he looked in another direction, towards where the Ninth Servant and Qi Xuangang were. The fight between them would decide the outcome of this battle and would determine the outcome of the struggle between the Ancient Imperial City and Qianye City.


    However, Ye Futian did not bother to wait for the outcome of their fight. "Take them all," he said calmly.


    As he said this, a group of Nirvana level cultivators stepped forward, including Zhu Kai and others. At that moment, his Nirvana level cultivators completely outnumbered his opponent''s.


    "Your Highness, we must retreat," said a Nirvana level cultivator of Emperor Xiang''s Realm. Just as he said this, a fist descended. This was the elder of the Zhong tribe''s attack. Now they had no way to escape. They could only honestly submit to Ye Futian. They naturally had to try their hardest to get back into his good graces.


    Thus, they took a more active stance than Wu Yong.


    The great battle broke out in an instant. Gai Huang was strong, but several Nirvana level cultivators targeted him and trapped him.


    Another fierce battle broke out at the City Lord of Qianye City''s Office.


    The people of Qianye City were already numb to it. This was not even as bad as things normally got here.


    Ye Futian stepped forward, and Wu Yong stayed behind him, guarding him. Ye Futian could use his skills to fight; thus, it was most optimal for him to stay near Ye Futian.


    Xiang Ze looked frightened as Ye Futian came near him. He tried to flee.


    "You want to flee, even now?" Ye Futian grabbed for him, and space will fell. Xiang Ze felt like his body had frozen. It was as if he was under an immense amount of pressure.


    Brilliant light bloomed from him. The divine light seemed to be Renhuang''s brilliance.


    However, the brilliant light did not bloom in time. Ye Futian was already there. The Star Plucking Handprint reached through the air with a loud "whoosh!" Xiang Ze was not strong enough to resist it. He was grabbed easily, and his face instantly turned pale.


    Crack! A crisp sound rang out. Xiang Ze cried out in pain as his bones seemed to snap. Ye Futian waved his hand, and the giant handprint slammed into the ground with a "bang!" Xiang Ze was smashed into the ground so hard that his body made a dent.


    He struggled to crawl out of the hole his body had made, but he saw a foot coming down toward him. It forced him back down into the hole with another "bang!" He spat out a mouthful of blood.


    A furious look came over his face. Ye Futian was humiliating him this much.


    Not far away, Xiang Nan''s face was as pale as ash. As he watched what was happening to his brother, it was like he was looking at himself.


    "Does Xiang City think that Qianye City is a good target to bully?" Ye Futian stepped forward and picked Xiang Ze up from the ground, holding him by the throat. He lifted him into the air until he was dangling. He pressed down with a tiny bit of pressure, and Xiang Ze felt like he could not breathe.


    Xiang Ze went pale. "Do you want to make all of Emperor Xiang''s Realm your enemy, Ye Futian?" he said in a hoarse voice.


    "I don''t want that, and so I never sought you out to settle our debts. But even though I don''t want to make Emperor Xiang''s Realm my enemy, you still tried to kill me. You tell me, should I kill you?" Ye Futian was filled with cold murderous intent. His gaze seemed to pierce into Xiang Ze''s eyes.


    "From now on, I won''t cause you any more trouble," said Xiang Ze.


    Ye Futian smiled bitterly. Could it be that simple?


    He saw that Xiang Ze was still watching the other battle. Ye Futian knew that he still had hope for the Ninth Servant''s battle. He hoped that the Ninth Servant would defeat Ye Futian''s teacher.


    "Since you want to watch so much, you can watch. Afterward, we will settle our debts." Ye Futian rotated Xiang Ze as he held him by the throat, holding him up in the air where he could watch the battle. This kind of humiliation was practically a fate worse than death for Xiang Ze.


    ...


    Over at the other battle, Qi Xuangang was moving forward, forcing the Ninth Servant to retreat up into the air. The light of the ancient characters of the Great Path flashed as they wrapped around everything in the area.


    A person like the Ninth Servant would naturally be able to feel how strong Qi Xuangang was. Someone at his level could tell what level his opponent was after only a single exchange of blows.


    Ninth Servant knew that Qi Xuangang was, without a doubt, not at a lower level than him. He had already touched the door to the Renhuang level.


    He stepped forward, ignoring the distance between them. Billowing will swept out from him, shaking and shattering the very air. He smashed out with his fist, and the sky trembled and shrieked. His fist seemed like it could cross any distance to kill him.


    An incomparably bright light flashed, and a character that read "strong" was created in front of the Ninth Servant, like a stone of the Great Path.


    The character was filled with wild fist will. All the ancient characters trembled violently, causing a terrible roar. However, the characters seemed to be one with the Worldly Great Path, so they could never break.


    Whoosh! Another ancient character flashed to life on the Ninth Servant''s other side. It read "earth."


    Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! These sounds rang out continuously as characters that were filled with the will of the Worldly Great Path descended, falling all around Ninth Servant. They seemed to have sealed off the whole area.


    "This..."


    Everyone was trembling as they watched the scene unfolding in the air. The ancient characters of the Great Path wrapped around Ninth Servant and spun, giving off incomparably brilliant radiance. The whole area seemed to be bound up within them, and the Ninth Servant was trapped within.


    Someone as strong as the Ninth Servant, who was on the Regional Kings Ranking, had been trapped in but an instant.


    No one would have thought that the battle would come to this conclusion. There was someone who could dominate the Ninth Servant.


    The Ninth Servant took a deep breath. He had a solemn look on his face.


    He knew that he had encountered the greatest opponent he would ever face in his life.


    After all, as a Saint-level figure, he could not fight with Renhuang level cultivators. And the man before him was the strongest man he had ever faced.


    He formed seals with both his hands, and his body became misty and hard to see. He turned in place as a bright light shone from him.


    Soon, everyone saw many figures that looked like the Ninth Servant appear, seeming to have superhuman powers.


    The air all around him trembled violently as if it would shatter under the weight of the will that filled it.


    Terrible fighting will burst out from his body. A beam of light shot straight up into the clouds, trying to cut through the very heavens. But up in the sky, it was smothered by the rotating characters.


    Rumble!


    A terrible aura burst forth, and countless Ninth Servant figures appeared at the same time, heading out in all different directions.


    These were not exterior incarnations. Each image seemed to have been formed out of his will.


    Thousands of figures appeared in every direction, lashing out with their fists at the same time.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Incredibly loud noises rang out, and the ancient characters trembled. In every direction, the countless images seemed to overlap in an instant, and their thousands of fist wills merged, forming a single fist. Overwhelming power exploded from it.


    The sound of cracking rang out continuously from the wall of ancient characters. It seemed like it would shatter.


    And that was not all; more images appeared. They seemed to be endless. Before them, the wall of characters was about to be destroyed.


    Qi Xuangang stepped forward in front of the wall of characters. He reached up as if he was holding up the very heavens.


    And then, everyone witnessed a scene more shocking than any other.


    Endless ancient characters were born into the world and fell continuously into the wall that was about to shatter.


    A terrible divine light appeared up in the sky.


    "Leave!" said a voice, and the brilliant divine light descended in a straight beam right to where the Ninth Servant was standing. It seemed like it would pierce right through him.


    And then, all of the rotating characters shattered and seemed to turn into endless beams of light that pierced through everyone one of the countless images of the Ninth Servant.


    The whole area was about to be destroyed.


    Ninth Servant stood at the center of the area. Countless beams of light shot toward him. His body swelled, destroying much of the oncoming burst of energy, but the images around him were continuously pierced through and shattered. As the endless divine light fell, yet another beam of light shot towards him.


    In the next instant, all of the other countless beams of light pierced through his body.


    The Ninth Servant was frozen there. He looked up into the sky. At that moment, his life seemed to be flashing before his eyes.


    "Your Highness, I have failed you. I have not lived up to your trust in me."


    The Ninth Servant sighed inwardly. There were tears in the corners of his eyes. He thought of how he had been bullied when he was young. It was only when he received the care and support of His Majesty that he had been able to have a future.


    At that moment, he was not sad about the fact that he was about to die. His heart only ached because he was about to let down His Majesty when he had placed so much trust in him.


    He had tried to help the young master become the Emperor with all his heart. But he had never thought that he would meet his end like this.


    If he had done anything wrong, it was only because the young master had come up against the wrong opponent.


    Everyone''s gaze was fixed on the battle up in the sky.


    Was this the end?

 1327 The Curtain Falls

    Divine light fell, piercing everyone''s eyes. Although the battle was taking place high up in the air, everyone in a vast area could feel the strength of the divisive and destructive will.


    When they opened their eyes, the Ninth Servant''s figures were no longer in the air. Qi Xuangang was the only one standing there, his plain robes flapping in the wind. However, the radiance of the Great Path that was around him was beautiful and dazzling.


    The Ninth Servant was the City Lord of the Ancient Imperial City and a cultivator of the Regional Kings Ranking. He was called the most powerful city lord outside of Crimson Dragon City.


    He had died in battle at Qianye City. He had been slain.


    Everyone still felt like they were in a dream, like this was not really happening.


    After all, that was the Ninth Servant. His name had resonated throughout the Crimson Dragon Realm for so many years. He had stood at the peak of the Nirvana level.


    He would have thought that he would have died.


    The former Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty was much more powerful than he had been at the Battle of Qianye City all those years ago. He had decisively crushed the Ninth Servant. He must truly be as powerful as was possible while still on the Nirvana level.


    Who below the Renhuang level could be a match for him?


    There were several other Nirvana level cultivators on the Regional Kings Ranking in Crimson Dragon City, but would they be able to resist him?


    Ye Futian looked up at his teacher. Although he was more powerful than he had been, in reality, he was no more dazzling. On the contrary, his aura was more restrained now, as if he had dropped all affectations to return to his original simplicity. He stood there in his plain robes, and if he did not release his aura, he would seem just like a common person. His magnificence was all on the inside. This was what it meant to truly change one''s state of mind.


    But his combat ability had increased by leaps and bounds.


    He naturally understood the Ninth Servant''s Power. He had learned of it at the Battle of Qianye City when he had wounded him with the Sword Matrix of the Void, and yet he had still been able to force his way out and escape. The fact that his teacher was able to trap him and then slay him in combat showed just how powerful he had become.


    The death of Ninth Servant meant the end of an era for the people who lived outside of Crimson Dragon City.


    The Ancient Imperial City, which had once been the most powerful, had fallen.


    A new king had risen.


    Qianye City replaced the Ancient Imperial City as the foremost city besides Crimson Dragon City.


    But was Ye Futian worthy of being called the most powerful City Lord?


    After all, he may have been the City Lord, but he was only a Saint of True Self. There was a considerable gap between his combat ability and that of many other top figures. But many people thought very highly of him, even the former Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty. He had left the dynasty to stand by his side and fight for him.


    Such was his charm. This man had created a legend for himself and was considered by many to be the top talent in all the Crimson Dragon Realm. It seemed that his legend had been kicked off by stepping on the back of the Ancient Imperial City.


    Would the next era be his?


    He had slain Xing Kai despite their difference in level. It was said that after he entered the Regional Kings Ranking, no one of the same generation was willing to fight with him anymore. Which of them would be able to withstand him?


    Perhaps Yu Sheng would, but Yu Sheng would not fight him.


    "Ninth Servant!" Gai Huang, who was still fighting, turned pale as ash.


    It was over.


    Everything was over. Even someone as powerful as Ninth Servant had died here in Qianye City.


    He had some regrets. If he had not been so arrogant in the past and intervened when all those cultivators had besieged Qianye City to seize Emperor Kua''s Ruins to give as a gift to Xing Kai, there would not have been such hostility between the two sides.


    At that time, he had not considered Qianye City to be worthy of his notice. How could they have ever imagined that the city would one day destroy them?


    Xiang Ze and Xiang Nan felt the same way. Their faces were also as pale as ash.


    It could even be said that they were utterly without hope.


    Ye Futian was still holding Xiang Ze up in the air to watch. He witnessed the Ninth Servant''s death with his own eyes.


    His death destroyed his hopes. The battle was already lost. The victory was Ye Futian''s. Who could save him?


    How could Ye Futian humiliate him this much?


    It was indeed over. The outcome was decided at the moment of the Ninth Servant''s death. The Ancient Imperial City no longer could resist at all.


    They had wanted to launch a single decisive attack. They had tried to eliminate Ye Futian and the others at the moment that they landed and had not yet had a chance to settle, relying on the Ninth Servant''s power. But now, Ninth Servant was dead, and their opponents still had Qi Xuangang, who was strong enough to kill the Ninth Servant.


    Even if Qi Xuangang did not do anything else, and just watched, they still would have no way to withstand the Nirvana level cultivators of the Nine Major Tribes. Moreover, they still had Yan Yuan, Yaya, and Shen Tianzhan.


    Their formation was so much stronger than theirs.


    The battle was completely one-sided. Gai Huang tried to flee, but several Nirvana level cultivators surrounded him, blocking off his avenue of escape. Everyone knew that he was doomed.


    In the last battle at Qianye City, he had not shown the least bit of grace. How could Ye Futian let him go?


    "Does that put an end to your hopes?" Ye Futian asked Xiang Ze, who he was still holding out.


    "What are your terms?" With Ye Futian holding his throat, it was hard for Xiang Ze to speak, and so his voice was very hoarse.


    Ye Futian looked at him coldly, though he felt a bit said.


    Even now, he was still talking about terms?


    He relaxed his grip, freeing Xiang Ze. Then he slammed out with his fist, hitting Xiang Ze in the torso. The sound of snapping bones rang out. He groaned as blood flowed from his mouth.


    "Take him away and imprison him in the city. Lock him up with Xiang Nan,'' said Ye Futian.


    Wu Yong walked forward and took Xiang Ze.


    Xiang Ze looked up with great difficulty and saw Ye Futian staring straight forward. He was not even looking at him.


    Xiang Nan was taken as well. The two brothers felt sadder than they ever had before.


    Were they going to be imprisoned in Qianye City?


    What made Xiang Nan even more afraid was that Ye Futian did not even seem to care about whether he lived or died. He had said only one thing: imprison him.


    The feeling that this gave him was that he was not even worthy of Ye Futian''s consideration.


    The only thing that Ye Futian was concerned about was the Renhuang Realm that was backing them up. Or rather, it was only their father that concerned him.


    Ye Futian had initially wanted for Xiang Ze to give him a reason to show him mercy. But unfortunately, it seemed that Xiang Ze did not know his place. He still sought to make a deal and to talk about terms.


    What terms could Xiang Ze possibly offer him?


    And even if they were going to talk about terms, it would be Emperor Xiang who sent people to do the negotiations.


    It was just like the Ancient Imperial City had been in the past. Now, Qianye City was the foremost city besides Crimson Dragon City. They did not have to worry about other Renhuang level figures. Here, they were nearly without enemies.


    The reason he did not kill Xiang Ze and Xiang Nan was not that he valued them. On the contrary, it was because he did not think they were worth killing.


    What would be the point of killing two useless people and, in doing so, earning Emperor Xiang''s enmity?


    While they were in the Crimson Dragon Realm, Emperor Xiang could not do anything to them. And what if they were able to leave one day? This was bound to happen.


    It was not a good thing to be remembered by a Renhuang level figure.


    Of course, just letting them go was not something he could do.


    So, he had chosen to imprison them and let Emperor Xiang send people to negotiate.


    Before long, the battle had quieted down. The cultivators of the Ancient Imperial City had been destroyed.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over the crowd. He discovered that Xing Kai''s brother Xing Chou was not there.


    At the start, it had been because of Gai Huang and Xing Chou that their enmity had grown so deep.


    Now, the Ninth Servant had not brought Xing Chou along with him. Had he feared that this great battle would affect him?


    After all, Xing Kai was dead, and so the Ninth Servant would probably not want to put his last young master, Xing Chou, in any danger.


    "Spatial teleportation." Ye Futian smiled mockingly. The Ninth Servant had ordered people to set up a two-way teleportation matrix between the Ancient Imperial City and Qianye City.


    That was really...


    Ye Futian was almost speechless, but he said, "Let''s go to the Ancient Imperial City."


    On saying so, he stepped forward, and many cultivators followed him. They headed towards the teleportation matrix.


    The Ancient Imperial City is finished, everyone thought as they saw what was going on.


    It was completely finished.


    ...


    In the Ancient Imperial City, Xing Chou was standing there calmly. He had been waiting all along for news from the other side.


    It had been so long, and they had still not come back. The battle must have already broken out.


    As long as the fighting had started, then Ye Futian must be dead, without a doubt.


    He was staring farther. At that moment, beams of brilliant spatial light flashed, seeming to form an Ancient Road of Space.


    Xing Chou felt his heart surge with pride, and an excited look came over his face.


    "Have you returned in triumph?" He stepped forward with a smile, preparing to welcome Teacher Ninth Servant.


    The light of the Great Path of Space shone, and a group of figures appeared in Xing Chou''s field of vision.


    As soon as he saw clearly who these figures were, he froze. His face went deathly pale as the blood drained from it.


    His heart pounded in his chest. In a flash, all of his thoughts ceased.


    How was this possible? How could this be?


    How could Ye Futian be the one who had come?


    What had happened to the Ninth Servant?


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over him. He stepped out, straight towards him, moving extremely quickly.


    Only then did Xing Chou react. A powerful, Saint level aura burst out from him.


    Crack!


    A bolt of lightning flashed through the air, and Ye Futian descended right in front of Xing Chou. He pointed at him.


    The finger that he pointed with seemed to be made of the Great Path itself. Xing Chou''s face was filled with fear. Powerful fighting will surged out from him, but it was pierced through and destroyed by Ye Futian''s finger.


    Snap! Ye Futian placed his finger on Xing Chou''s brow, and destructive will surged into his mind, destroying everything.


    Xing Chou''s eyes widened, and he stared fixedly at the figure before him.


    Was this really how he was going to die?


    Ye Futian did not say a word. He was simply going to kill him.


    At that moment, Xing Chou felt incredibly sad, as if he had just realized that he had never been an important figure.


    Instead, he was someone that Ye Futian could kill with a single finger.


    Bang! A beam of light shot out of his finger and into Xing Chou''s brow. A terrible killing will shot into his mind, destroying everything there. In a flash, Xing Chou''s body fell lifeless to the floor.


    From start to finish, Ye Futian had not said a word, as if it Xing Chou had not even been worth talking to.


    "Young Master!" The other people in the City Lord''s Office trembled in their hearts. Ye Futian had been able to slay Xing Chou like that?


    "Destroy the powers of the Xing Chou and the Ninth Servant''s trusted aids. Let everyone else go. If they cause any problems in the future, kill them," said Ye Futian coldly. The rest of the people he had brought with him shot through the air, preparing to sweep through the Ancient Imperial City.


    In an incredibly short period, the most powerful city besides Crimson Dragon City had fallen to this level. After years of hegemony, they finally had to withdraw from the stage of history.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over the once might Ancient Imperial City. If they had not acted aggressively towards him, he would not have acted against them.


    He left everything in the city to be coordinated by the people who had previously done so, and he returned to Qianye City.


    The matter had finally come to an end. Now there were no more forces that could threaten Qianye City!

 1328 Wedding

    The war between Qianye City and the Ancient Imperial City was over, and Qianye City was completely victorious. The Ninth Servant��the City Lord of the Ancient Imperial City��was dead.


    It was said that Xing Kai and Xing Chou, the descendants of Emperor Zhan, had been slain by Ye Futian. Emperor Zhan''s bloodline had been completely cut off, leading many people to weep ceaselessly.


    Afterward, Ye Futian named the chief of the Beili Tribe as the City Lord, giving him command of the city. Other than Wu Yong''s Wu tribe, all the other tribes moved into the city as well, so they were in complete control of the city.


    However, everyone knew that the Ancient Imperial City was still a vassal of Qianye City.


    And the status of the Beili Tribe seemed to have changed entirely.


    As for Wu Yong, Ye Futian had originally thought to make him the City Lord, but he wanted to stay by Ye Futian''s side to cultivate, and so he gave up the prized position of City Lord.


    After some time, Emperor Xiang''s Realm sent envoys. Emperor Xiang had sent them. They brought many cultivation resources as gifts, and they were willing to cede Xiang City and promise that from now on, Emperor Xiang''s Realm would leave the Crimson Dragon Realm. As long as Ye Futian was there, they would not set a foot there. They also promised that they would never seek revenge for this in the future. They were willing to write off this grudge with a single stroke of the pen.


    Many people sighed inwardly at Emperor Xiang''s courage. Although they had suffered great losses in their struggle with Ye Futian, if they continued to pursue this grudge, their losses would further outweigh their gains. First of all, Ye Futian''s power within the Crimson Dragon Realm was nearly unmatched, and Emperor Xiang''s Realm could never compete. Secondly, he had Emperor Xia''s Realm backing him up. And finally, there was his infinite potential for the future.


    If Emperor Xiang''s Realm hardened their hearts and continued fighting Ye Futian, then even if they were able to kill him, the price they would have to pay would be far too high.


    The envoys that Emperor Xiang sent also secured Ye Futian''s promise that he would not pursue this matter any further and release Xiang Ze and Xiang Nan, who had been tortured horribly. He would let them return to Emperor Xiang''s Realm at any time they pleased. He knew that the two of them would always hate him fiercely, but without Emperor Xiang''s support, what trouble could the two princes stir up?


    Moreover, even though Emperor Xiang was making a promise, the two princes would still be well disciplined.


    Ye Futian would trust the word of a Renhuang level cultivator. After all, this was not a matter of life or death.


    After the people from Emperor Xiang''s Realm left, there was still the matter of Xiang City. Ye Futian talked about it with his teacher. In the end, Qi Xuangang and the people of his household went there to renovate and reorganize the city. The reason Ye Futian sent his teacher was that he wanted to let him have his own space. There he could fulfill his ideals and continue to teach even more outstanding heroes.


    And Ye Futian believed with all his heart that the Crimson Dragon Realm did not lack for outstanding youths with great potential.


    As for Qianye City, he was still the City Lord. He had top figures like Wu Yong, Shen Tianzhan, and Yaya by his side, and thus no one could threaten him. And he was making preparations to link the three cities via space matrices so that he could travel between them as he liked.


    In this way, Qianye City, the Ancient Imperial City, and Xiang City formed the greatest force in the Crimson Dragon Realm. No other cities could threaten them.


    After this was all worked out, Ye Futian returned to the Regional Palace, where he locked himself away in cultivation.


    Now he had cultivated up to the Saint of True Self level. His next goal was to become Unblemished.


    He was sure that although he had removed many of the obstacles in his mind, it had not all been done through his own power. Most of it had been done with the help of the people beside him.


    But now, the Crimson Dragon realm was completely stable.


    As long as he did not offend any Renhuang level cultivators, no one could threaten him.


    ...


    The days passed, and the 10,027th year of the Divine Prefecture calendar came to an end. A piece of shocking news spread through the Crimson Dragon Realm, but thankfully it was good news.


    Chi Shang��the Prince of the Crimson Dragon Realm��was going to officially wed Yu Shifei of the Yu clan. This pair of heroes of the Crimson Dragon Realm were going to be together from now on, which made everyone in the realm very happy. Countless women were jealous of Yu Shifei.


    Not only was she a superior specimen, but she was also able to marry someone who she loved and who loved her. And in addition to that, she was of extremely high status and was eminently talented.


    Prince Chi Shang and Yu Shifei of the Yu clan both had wonderful personalities as well. One of them was natural and unrestrained, and the other was gentle and elegant. They had never offended anyone, and naturally, no one would ever offend them.


    This made them a divine couple in everyone''s eyes. They were so perfect that people almost could not even be jealous of them; they were only happy for them.


    At the end of the year, countless people in the Crimson Dragon Realm set out on a journey to the center of the realm: Crimson Dragon City. They wanted to witness this perfect wedding. Many powerful figures also went to pay their respects and to present them with gifts.


    When the end of the year came, Crimson Dragon City was busier than it had ever been before.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, who was cultivating in the Regional Palace, also received invitations to the wedding. They had been sent out in Chi Shang''s name, and they were invited to come to the palace itself. Not many people in the Crimson Dragon Realm received such an honor. The vast majority of people would only be able to watch from outside the palace.


    The 10,028th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar finally arrived. That was the day of Chi Shang''s wedding.


    There was a sea of people outside the lofty palace. They seemed to be able to see a floating stage in front of the brilliant golden palace. The stage was covered in dragons and phoenixes, giving it a happy and auspicious atmosphere.


    There were all kinds of people from the Crimson Dragon Realm within the observation area in the palace. As they walked up the stairs, they looked up at the high hanging stage. Faint smiles came over their faces.


    Ye Futian had brought the others as well: Yu Sheng, who had been cultivating in the Regional Palace, Xia Qingyuan, Pei Min, and Yin Tianjiao all came together to pay their respects.


    And they were giving respects on behalf of the Renhuang Realms that they represented.


    "Ye Futian!" came a voice. He turned and saw a man coming towards him.


    He smiled when he saw him. The man who was walking towards him was Duan Wuji, who had come from the Eastern Palace to pay his respects. An extraordinarily imposing and elegant woman was beside him. It was his sister, the Princess of the Eastern Palace.


    "Long time no see!" called Ye Futian with a smile.


    "It has indeed been a long time. But with all the great deeds you''ve been doing, I hear your name all the time," said Duan Wuji with a wide smile. This guy had actually managed to destroy the forces of the Ancient Imperial City.


    Xing Kai had been unlucky the day he made an enemy of Ye Futian.


    "Let me introduce you. This is my sister Luoyu. She is always asking about what kind of man you are. Now that you can see him, what do you think?" said Duan Wuji.


    "..."


    Ye Futian looked at Duan Wuji. This guy...


    The woman beside him could not hide her embarrassment at what Duan Wuji said. She could not help but hit her brother, and her pretty face looked like all the blood had drained from it.


    How could her brother be like this?


    It was true that she wanted to see this legendary figure, but when he heard her brother''s words, he would not be in any doubt about that fact!


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded to here. "Princess Luoyu." He was someone who had been in all kinds of intense situations, so this was nothing.


    Princess Luoyu smiled slightly and bowed.


    "Let''s go, the ceremony is about to begin," said Xia Qingyuan coldly from beside him. Her gaze was fixed straight forward.


    "Let''s go together." Ye Futian smiled at Duan Wuji. Duan Wuji nodded and grinned at Xia Qingyuan.


    They walked until they reached the bottom of the observation platform. Everyone who was allowed to come here was someone of high status, and so Ye Futian saw many familiar faces, like Luo Yang, who he had first met at the Peach Banquet, and Jiang Tai''e of the Jiang clan.


    They watched him coming. Ye Futian had displayed his unparalleled talent at both the Peach Banquet and the Battle of the Crimson River, where he had defeated Xing Kai.


    Now that he had become a Saint of True Self, they did not know just how strong he was.


    But this was not a time for fighting.


    Soon, their gaze shifted. They looked back to the ceremonial stage.


    Up in the sky, radiant sunlight shone down. A golden roc appeared amidst the sunlight, flying by means of rule power. It flew down and seemed to form a real body for itself. There was a figure standing atop it. It was Chi Shang.


    On the other side, a strange phoenix that was the color of ice crystals appeared. A beautiful figure was standing atop of it, wearing a dress of ice phoenix feathers.


    The golden roc and the ice phoenix circled in the air, gradually coming closer together. The two people riding them clasped hands.


    Chi Shang was bathed in divine fire, and Yu Shifei was bathed in snow and ice. When they stepped onto the ceremonial stage, it seemed like the rest of the world had lost its color.


    The Yu clan cultivators all smiled brightly. They had waited a long time for this day.


    Dazzling light shone down from the palace as the two figures stepped forward.


    The Crimson Dragon Emperor and the Crimson Dragon Queen appeared. One of them had a majesty that eclipsed all else, and the other was elegant and poised. She could have been a model for all women everywhere in the world.


    "Greetings, Your Majesties. Congratulations on the wedding," someone called out as they bowed. In an instant, countless other voices rang out as well.


    "Greetings, Your Majesties. Congratulations on the wedding."


    The sound roared through the palace. Countless people were there to witness the wedding.


    All the women in the palace were looking at Yu Shifei like she was the luckiest woman in the world.


    "She''s very beautiful," whispered Xia Qingyuan. At that moment, Yu Shifei was indeed blindingly beautiful, and even Xia Qingyuan could not help but express her appreciation.


    This must have been the happiest time of her life.


    Her smile was warm enough to melt the world. Her beauty engraved itself on everyone''s hearts.


    All the women in the world could only dream of having a moment like this, of being this beautiful.


    Would she have a day like that?

 1329 Heavenly Mandate Realm

    On the first day of the 10,028th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, an incomparably magnificent wedding was held in the royal palace of the Crimson Dragon Realm. All kinds of famous figures had come, including the Crimson Dragon Emperor and Empress, who had come to personally witness the wedding.


    Everyone there was a witness.


    Ye Futian and the others had been watching quietly from below the stage, up until the point where Chi Shang and Yu Shifei bowed to each other, then smiled and took each other''s hands.


    Hand in hand, they would live together to a ripe old age.


    But it would not be easy for the two of them to reach old age.


    "Today, the whole world shares in Chi Shang and Shifei''s happiness. We welcome everyone who has come here to pay their respects to enjoy the feast," said the Crimson Dragon Emperor. His voice resonated throughout the palace.


    A beam of brilliant light shone, and a divine tree seemed to appear up in the air. The tree swayed, and fire-red fruit fell from it.


    "This fruit comes from the Ganyuan Fusang Tree and contains the essence of Flames of the Way that have been gathered over a thousand years. It belongs to whoever it falls upon, and no one is allowed to fight them for it," said the Empress from beside the Emperor. The tree covered the sky, and many pieces of fruit fell from it towards those waiting below.


    Everyone looked up with a look of longing. Eating this fruit would be equivalent to absorbing a powerful burst of Flames of the Way. But the Empress had said they could not fight for it, and so naturally, no one would dare to do so. This was the Empress''s way of livening things up.


    Ye Futian and the others were also watching the fruit fall. When he saw the fruit falling towards him, he could not help but reach out for it.


    But then, the piece of fruit fell into a pale white hand.


    Ye Futian smiled at Xia Qingyuan beside him and said, "It seems like you are very lucky."


    She looked at him and smiled, which made Ye Futian think she looked beautiful. She smiled so rarely. He did not know what happy thing she was thinking about.


    All of the people who received one of the pieces of fruit smiled as they were overcome with joy.


    Then the banquet started. Many pretty serving maids weaved their way through the crowd, and soon a feast that was both delicious and pleasing to the eyes had been laid out.


    In addition, all of the food and drink at the banquet was rare and precious.


    Many people from powerful forces began to present their wedding presents. Ye Futian and the others also gave their present in the name of Qianye City. Although it meant little to Chi Shang, it was still a heartfelt expression of their good intentions.


    The gift was not important; it was only a tradition. Obviously, those who were able to come to the palace today were all people of high status, and so none of them would give a shabby gift.


    "Wait, there is one more thing," Chi Shang said suddenly. Everyone looked up at him on the ceremonial platform with a look of surprise. Chi Shang took off his ceremonial robes, and his bright smile was unrestrained.


    A gasp of surprise came up from the crowd. They all seemed incredibly excited.


    There was a custom in the Crimson Dragon Realm that if the groom was willing to give his ceremonial robes to someone else after the wedding feast, it would bring them sacred blessings. Usually, the groom would only do this for his siblings or good friends.


    Obviously, Chi Shang meant to do this now.


    But who was he planning on bestowing this blessing upon?


    Even the Crimson Dragon Emperor and Empress looked surprised. They clearly had not known that he was going to do this. This was Chi Shang following his own will. On this day, the groom could decide these things for himself.


    Chi Shang and Yu Shifei walked down from the ceremonial platform towards the crowd. Everyone''s eyes were on them.


    It seemed that Chi Shang was not going to give it to any of his brothers.


    Then, would he give it to one of the top figures of the Crimson Dragon Realm?


    Who would it be?


    They all watched as he stopped before a young man.


    The silver-haired youth still looked dazzling as he stood there among the crowd. His handsome features were no less magnificent than those of Prince Chi Shang.


    This hero of the Crimson Dragon Realm was known as the greatest talent in the realm. Was Chi Shang planning on giving his blessing to him?


    And indeed, everyone watched as Chi Shang placed his ceremonial robe upon Ye Futian''s body.


    He smiled and said, "I hope that one day I will be able to witness the rise of Qianye City."


    Yu Shifei smiled at him as well and took off her ceremonial robe as well. She put it on Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan did not respond; she just stared at her blankly. Chi Shang and Yu Shifei turned and left, walking naturally and unrestrained.


    "Good luck." Yu Shifei''s voice rang through her mind. Xia Qingyuan watched her retreating figure. She did not know what she had meant by that.


    At the Peach Banquet, both Chi Shang and Yu Shifei had known that Xia Qingyuan was experiencing unrequited love. Later, they had found out how things stood between her and Ye Futian, and thus they knew everything.


    The silver-haired young man and the Princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm would have their own magnificent story.


    Some of the people of the Regional Palace were stunned by this, like Pei Min and Duan Wuji, but then they smiled. That was just the way Chi Shang was: he always acted in a carefree manner. Maybe he had not had any particular reason for doing this; it was just his casual nature.


    However, for the two of them to have received Chi Shang and Yu Shifei''s blessing above so many others was truly special and was making everyone stare at them.


    "Thank you, Your Highness," said Ye Futian with a smile. That was all he said.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian beside her, then was silent for a while.


    The cultivators of the Luo clan, the Jiang clan, and many others were all looking at Ye Futian. This Palace Lord of Qianye City had swept away all of his opponents, and then not long after had stolen all the glory from the other cultivators of the Crimson Dragon Realm. His fame had truly been set when he had fought with Xing Kai and defeated him.


    Now, Chi Shang was clearly watching him.


    They did not know that at the Divine Martial Road of the Peach Banquet, Chi Shang and the other people of the palace had already found out which cultivators were the most powerful.


    The banquet commenced, and the atmosphere in the hall became much more lively.


    A figure walked towards the people from the Regional Palace. It was Jiang Tai''e. He looked at Ye Futian and Pei Min, then raised his glass in a toast. "I''ve heard that after you broke through to the Saint of True Self level, you have found no opponents of your level at the Regional Palace.?"


    "There are many talented people in the Regional Palace. I do not dare to say that none of them can match me," said Ye Futian modestly.


    Jiang Tai''e looked at Pei Min. He had heard that he had beaten all comers. In that case, he probably had no one else left to fight.


    "You are too modest, Lord Ye. If we have a chance, I''d like to come to Qianye City and spar with you," said Jiang Tai''e politely.


    Ye Futian nodded his agreement. "Of course." Jiang Tai''e turned and left.


    Luo Yang was also looking at Ye Futian. He wanted to spar with him as well. It was not that he was jealous of him; it was that he truly wanted to test himself against someone as tough as him.


    Ever since his defeat at the Peach Banquet, he had wondered what would happen if the two of them fought a battle in which they held back nothing.


    After toasting his elders, Chi Shang walked over to them. "It seems that everyone is itching to test their skills." This group of people had all participated in the Peach Banquet. It seemed that they had all come together, whether by chance or on purpose, no one knew.


    "Please do not blame us, Your Majesty," said Jiang Tai''e.


    "Of course, I understand. As members of the Regional Kings Ranking, you must not have many opponents within the Crimson Dragon Realm. There are so few that you can actually have a good fight with," said Chi Shang with a smile. In reality, after he had become a Saint, he had found the Crimson Dragon Realm to be a little bit boring.


    Given his status, people who were stronger than him did not dare to fight him.


    "What are you saying, Your Majesty?" Luo Yang seemed to realize that Chi Shang was hinting at something.


    "After the ceremony, we will go and settle this. Shifei and I are planning to take a trip to the Heavenly Mandate Realm," said Chi Shang. Everyone''s hearts beat faster when they heard this.


    Apparently, Chi Shang wanted to train.


    Before he did that, he would finish this wedding. Once he and Yu Shifei were officially a couple, they could go there hand in hand.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Realm," everyone whispered. The name was both strange and familiar.


    They had naturally heard of it. It was one of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. How could they not know of it?


    The Heavenly Mandate Realm was at the head of several hundred Renhuang Realms, ten of which were of particular note.


    The Crimson Dragon Realm was one of them.


    That was a place where the greatest figures of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path could gather.


    "Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    When Ye Futian heard what Chi Shang had said, his heart beat faster. He looked up into the sky.


    That peerless Empress that Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan had told him about was there.


    He had waited for this day for so long.


    He had asked Yu Sheng to enter the Regional Palace to come to this point.


    Now his name was famed throughout the Crimson Dragon Realm. Now he was able to come to the palace itself, and get close to Chi Shang.


    He had finally heard the words "Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    "Lord Ye, do you want to continue to be a City Lord, take up a post in the Crimson Dragon Army, or go with us?" asked Chi Shang. If Ye Futian wanted to join the Crimson Dragon Army, he could give him an important position.


    In the future, he could become a powerful figure in the Crimson Dragon Army and guard one of the borders of the realm.


    But Chi Shang hoped that would not be Ye Futian''s future. Given the talent that he had displayed, his life would be even more significant than that.


    That had been his dream all along��to reach higher and higher levels.


    "I want to go with you," said Ye Futian without the slightest bit of hesitation. Beside him, Xia Qingyuan nodded as well. She seemed to be a little bit sad.


    But she quickly raised her head and smiled indifferently. This day had finally come.


    Sooner or later, he would know everything. He would know whether or not Hua Jieyu was still alive.


    She would help him find the truth as soon as possible. She knew that this matter had been pressing upon Ye Futian''s heart for so many years.


    These days, he had been spending all his energy to move in this direction.


    "Excellent!" Chi Shang smiled and nodded. He looked at the others and said, "How about you all? The people on the Regional Kings Ranking do not need to say anything. If any of you are willing, you can come with me and see how powerful the cultivators of a Supreme Imperial Realm are."


    Everyone''s hearts were trembling. Many of them nodded immediately.


    They could not miss a chance like this.


    They wanted to go and see a higher place. They wanted to see what kind of heroes lived there!

 1330 Leaving

    Everyone returned to their homes after that grand wedding was over.


    Many were still steeped in the mood, but some top notch geniuses were only feeling very restless deep down. It was not due to the wedding itself, but what Chi Shang said.


    The grand matrix in the royal palace of Crimson Dragon Realm would be activated seven days later, opening up the vast great path of space and paving the way to a Supreme Imperial Realm.


    Such matrixes came with a hefty cost with every activation, and the numbers would have been astronomical, so much so that even the top notch forces found all over Crimson Dragon Realm would have been unable to afford such an expenditure. It was quite a huge to Crimson Dragon Emperor, who was the overlord of the entire region of realms.


    As such, such a matrix was only found within the royal palace and only important figures would have been allowed passage. No one knew when would the next opportunity to head to a Supreme Imperial Realm have been, if they were miss the upcoming one.


    Chi Shang had also taken the opportunity to extend his invitation.


    No one would have wanted to miss such an opportunity, which was why all those top notch figures were feeling restless, getting ready for that trip happening days later.


    That place was a Supreme Imperial Realm, which was a main realm of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, that very type of realm which all of the three thousand realms revolve around.


    It was said that the number of top notch mighty ones found in the nine Supreme Imperial Realms, would have eclipsed the total amount of all mighty ones found in the other three thousand realms. No one found that notion unbelievable.


    That was because all the most powerful cultivators found throughout the three thousand realms were found there.


    There was a reason why the likes of Crimson Dragon Emperor, who was the lord of the main realm in an entire realm region, were few and far between.


    When one reached Renhuang Plane, they would have ruled over a realm, like the emperors of Emperor Xia''s Realm and Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Renhuangs who were unable to rule a realm themselves would have submitted to the rule of Crimson Dragon Emperor all the same. There was simply no reason for them to not head to that Supreme Imperial Realm.


    There would have been more of their peers in that realm, and what they sought after would have been found there as well.


    As such, those who were at the very pinnacle in all of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, would have either ruled over a realm themselves, or train in the most powerful of realms��a Supreme Imperial Realm.


    It could have even been said that those top notch forces found at Crimson Dragon Realm, forces who had Holiness of Nirvanas serving as anchors, would have been hardly worth mentioning once reaching Heavenly Mandate Realm. Their background would have been rendered meaningless.


    As such, despite being top notch geniuses found in their respective turf, they would have been moved one way or another.


    But then again, other than being somewhat anxious, what they would have actually felt was more in the area of excitement and anticipation.


    That was how cultivation was after all.


    Ye Futian returned to Qianye City and his state of mind was not all that shaken, behaving as his usual self.


    That was because to him, that was something that would have happened sooner or later, and he long had the psychological readiness for it.


    It had always been his goal after all.


    Be it for Jieyu or for unraveling his hidden past, it was destined that he must reach further heights.


    He gathered everyone around after returning to Qianye City.


    Qin Xuangang, Yan Yuan and the others headed to Qianye City from Xiang City. There were also the Holiness of Nirvanas from the tribes coming all the way from Ancient Imperial City. All of them gathered at Qianye City.


    That grand matrix of space''s activation allowed all of them to bring their own people for the trip.


    Ye Futian was thinking about who he would have brought on that very trip.


    Yu Sheng and Xia Qingyuan were definitely included without a doubt. They were definitely need around.


    His elder brother, the Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu and the others would have been taken along as well.


    That department had been easy. The key, however, was the Holiness of Nirvanas that he would have taken with him.


    Qianye City was considered firmly established in Crimson Dragon Realm, and no one would have had any ideas about the city without good reasons, but there was still a need for someone to stay behind nonetheless.


    "I''d be bringing Chunyang, Lu Chuan shall head out with you people. Yan Yuan and Nan Zhai would stay behind in Xiang City to look after Feixue," Qi Xuangang said. He needed to head out to a place like Heavenly Mandate Realm with them.


    "I''d be coming too, father," Feixue said. She wanted to come along as well.


    "No, you can''t go to the Supreme Imperial Realm," Qi Xuangang said. There were simply too many mighty ones found in such a realm. All manner of people with peculiar abilities and personalities across the board would have been found there.


    The risk of taking Feixue along was simply too high.


    Once the secret with her condition was exposed, Qi Xuangang''s status as a Holiness of Nirvana at the pinnacle of his training would not have been enough to protect her.


    As such, he did not want Feixue to head out to a place like a Supreme Imperial Realm, until Feixue had grown powerful enough to control the powers in her body at will, even incorporating it into her own powers.


    But by the time she became able to do so, she would have probably surpassed her father.


    Feixue was capable of sensing emotions of others. She naturally knew that the Imperial Advisor would have absolutely forbidden for her to come along. She was understandably exasperated but she did not say anything else, feeling only somewhat dejected.


    The planes of Yan Yuan and Nan Zhai had stabilized and they had exceptional states of mind. Yan Yuan was already a Holiness of Nirvana, and it would have only been a matter of time before Nan Zhai reaches such a plane as well.


    As such, he chose to bring Mu Chunyang and Lu Chuan with him on the pilgrimage, to have a look at Heavenly Mandate Realm with their own eyes.


    Yan Yuan and Nan Zhai were left behind to take care of Feixue.


    "Futian, I''ll leave the rest of the candidates up to you. Just be mindful of not bringing too many. It is our first time heading out there and we still haven''t got a foothold after all. We would have another chance in the future, and then we shall bring more with us then," Qi Xuangang said to Ye Futian, seemingly reminding him.


    Ye Futian understood that an overly huge group would have meant difficulty in moving around.


    It was especially so if they were to run into any trouble, and the large size would have only proved to be a hindrance, setting them back.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. He naturally understood what Qi Xuangang meant.


    "Big brother, don''t leave me behind." Long Ling''er looked at Ye Futian with a begging look. She had a bad feeling about things.


    "Kids need to stay behind here and train." Ye Futian knocked her head a little and Long Ling''er was baffled. Kids? Me?


    "I''m almost an old hag now." Long Ling''er mumbled in a speechless manner. However, age of cultivators was looked at differently from how it was with common people. Despite her advanced age, she looked young and spiffy nonetheless.


    She had been making progress throughout the years, but when compared to Ye Futian...she was still rather nothing much.


    In truth, it was not just her; everyone was making progress as well.


    "Those are still not yet saints, it is better for you people to not head out this time." Ye Futian continued, "Devote your time to train here in Crimson Dragon Realm, and get to Saint Plane as soon as possible."


    Many looked dejected at Ye Futian''s words. No going in this trip before becoming a saint huh?


    There were many who had yet to become saints.


    But then again, Ye Futian had also told them to first train in Crimson Dragon Realm. There were still many places in the realm that they had yet to explore, so they held off going to a Supreme Imperial Realm for now. Everything was to be decided later after making a breakthrough into Saint Plane.


    They would have only served as baggage otherwise.


    ...


    Seven days were over in the blink of an eye. Mighty ones gathered in Qianye City on that day, to send their City Lord and his entourage off.


    Even Zhuge Mingyue elected to stay behind due to yet becoming a saint. She would have been able to head out in that trip still, as her might as the second sister was still there nonetheless, but she just did not want to be of too much trouble to Ye Futian and the others.


    It was as her little brother put it, they had to first dedicate themselves to their training, and strive to make it through Saint Plane to catch up.


    Ye Futian left behind sacred spirit stones and training methods. Even if they were to simply boost their training only with resources, they needed to at least get to the pinnacle below Saint Plane. So long as their states of mind proved to be sound, getting into Saint Plane would not have been much of a problem.


    The Saint Plane was a threshold in itself, and one''s state of mind was of the utmost importance.


    "Wait for me to come home," Gu Dongliu stood before Zhuge Mingyue and said.


    "Relax, I''m not running off with someone else. Take care of our little brother," Zhuge Mingyue smiled and said.


    Ye Futian felt rather speechless, finding her second sister to still be that tough and unyielding.


    "Second sister, you seriously think I''d need looking after?" Ye Futian shrugged and said.


    "Yeah right." Zhuge Mingyue glared at Ye Futian and said, "Why do you think these people are here for? Who among them is not looking after you?"


    Ye Futian felt speechless again and then looked at the ones beside, before saying, "Touche, second sister."


    "Good to hear. If Jieyu is still here, you have to bring her back to see me," Zhuge Mingyue said in a solemn manner. She and Hua Jieyu were like actual, biological sisters. It was her to picked up Jieyu from the Land of Hundred Nations and had the younger woman train in the Zhuge clan. Zhuge Mingyue really wanted to see that woman who had the looks of a fairy, who was strong yet delicate at the same time.


    Ye Futian felt rather sorrowful hearing what his second sister said and nodded solemnly. He then turned around and walked, saying, "Let''s go."


    All of them headed out en masse, waving goodbyes to their loved ones.


    That trip was truly an expedition. The distance between where they were and their destination, would have been a lot further than what was between Emperor Xia''s Realm and Crimson Dragon Realm.


    The place they were heading to��a Supreme Imperial Realm��would have had mighty ones all over the place, and that place would have been at the very pinnacle of the three thousand realms.


    That would have truly been the place where Ye Futian belonged.


    He would have met the most extraordinary of figures in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, as well the greatest of the best of geniuses.


    He would have truly found his match there.


    And of course, he would have found friends there as well.


    Many were already at the royal palace when Ye Futian and the others arrived, and people from all corners of the realm had mighty ones among them.


    Ye Futian saw many familiar faces��Pei Min, Duan Wuji, Yin Tianjiao, Luo Yang, Jiang Tai''e, and many other legendary figures. All of them would have headed out, and all of them brought many mighty ones with them as well.


    Chi Shang and Yu Shifei were naturally there as well. They looked like a match made in heaven just by standing together, and that probably had to do with both of them being very much in love with each other.


    Crimson Dragon Emperor had also sent his people as well, but there were but a handful of them, and they have all definitely been top notch figures as well.


    "Greetings, senior, I''m Chi Shang." He nodded after seeing Qi Xuangang, who was by Ye Futian''s side. People like Qi Xuangang, who had been able to cut down the Ninth Servant, was hardly found even in the royal palace.


    "You''re too kind, your highness," Qi Xuangang answered.


    "The Regional Palace is getting ready to list you on the Regional King Rankings, and maybe we might see another Renhuang rise in Crimson Dragon Realm," Chi Shang smiled and said.


    Many people around them were busy getting ready while they talked.


    An extremely huge grand matrix of space gradually lit up. Countless images brightened and shot to the skies. That grand matrix had many stone pillars around, which increasingly brightened as they were entwined with the images below. A beam of light shooting to the sky appeared at the center of the grand matrix, as if it was cleaving a great path of space.


    "Let''s go, everyone," Chi Shang said and everyone headed to the grand matrix.


    The dazzling beam of light became increasingly terrifying, swallowing their surroundings and a strong will of the great path of space shrouded even the extremely huge and vast royal palace. That grand matrix devoured space powers in a frenzy, extending its area-of-effect outside the royal palace.


    The world around them rumbled and as a beam like no other lit up, the intense shock was felt throughout the incredibly vast area. Everyone was able to see a beam of light of space shooting up to the heavens.

 1331 Just Arrived

    The Nine Supreme Imperial Realms served as the absolute center of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    The Heavenly Mandate Realm was one of those nine realms.


    There were countless cultivators found among the massive population of Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Many Renhuangs opened up their own clans and forces at that realm due specifically to the realm being such a place, establishing their own orthodoxies and imparting their own ways.


    There were several supreme forces being a cut above the rest in that realm, positioning themselves at the very peak. They pursued true supremacy and transcendence, which was also the final goal for all Renhuangs.


    There were too many regions with Heavenly Mandate Realm and every single region was extremely vast, with populations of cultivators each reaching hundreds of millions.


    They were Renhuang class beings who reigned supreme over all, but there were also many weak cultivators eking out at obscure places.


    But of course, the bulk of the population was found somewhere in the middle. They struggled in the harsh environment around them as they advance, making their way towards greater heights and accomplishments.


    The Celestial Sword Li Clan, the Demon Slayer Clan, the Yun Clan of Luo City were all such forces. They were all at the very pinnacle in their respective regions, but they still struggled to move to higher heights nonetheless.


    However, that proved to be an arduous challenge.


    At that moment, in the sky above the Buzhou Ridge, mighty ones from the three major forces stood against one another around a mountain.


    Sword will permeated the sky above that ancient peak, as if countless divine swords were circling in the heavens. A group of people somewhere was seen wearing ancient swords on their backs, with their sword aura sweeping the vast area. Their might, which originated from the great path, was incredibly fearsome.


    In another corner, there was a group of people wearing golden attire. Their might of the great path shrouded the entire area as their auras burst, as if golden rings were fired, clashing with the sword auras in an invisible manner in the air.


    In yet another corner, a group of people of extraordinary aura had their brimming will shrouded their surroundings, bursting with their own power just like the other two.


    The three forces almost seemed that they were at even odds with one another. All of them wanted that peak for themselves, or precisely-put, a piece of the cut cliff.


    That cliff seemed to contain a huge mural, which somehow also looked like a statue.


    The brimming will of the great path on it seemed to suggest that it was left behind by a Renhuang.


    It was apparent that all three forces were fighting for that piece of item.


    "We of the Celestial Sword shall have the mural." The leading woman of the Li Clan stepped forward at that moment. Her voice was cold and the will of her sword swept all over the sky as she declared, striking out at the other two persons standing across her.


    "We''ll see if you''d be able to take it in the first place." A mighty one from the Demon Slayer Clan responded. A loud clang was heard and her sword will seemed to have clashed with the aura bursting from that mighty one.


    The ones from the Celestial Sword clan were known for their peerless offensive prowess, yet the mighty ones from the Demon Slayer Clan practiced very overbearing methods. They were not about to just yield a piece left by a Renhuang to others.


    There were many inklings or ruins left behind by Renhuangs throughout Heavenly Mandate Realm, and those places were always targets of all manner of forces, and why they fought each other.


    Those sites or items were used for cultivation purposes, as well as some other uses at times.


    The mighty ones from the Yun Clan did not say anything, yet the auras bursting from them remained just as overbearing, shrouding the place and getting ready for war.


    However, at that moment, a beam of dazzling light shot from the air and it fell before any of them were able to react. The beam of light burst through the will of great path surrounding the area, and blasted onto that peak.


    The expression of the crowd changed slightly after they reacted to what was happening. Their eyes were all on that beam of light, before hearing a rumble indicating the crumbling of the ridge.


    When they looked at where that beam of light landed, everyone''s faces were ashen and they looked extremely grim.


    That wall which all of them was after, had ended up crushed.


    That wall had writings left behind personally by a Renhuang, containing complete will of great path of a Renhuang. However, that piece was not actually some kind of ritual implement or treasure and as such, was not all that sturdy to begin with. The writings were no more as soon as the wall broke, and that will of great path within dissipated as well.


    "It''s gone?" The eyes of the ones in the crowd looked fascinating and their hearts raced.


    It seemed that everyone was baffled over what happened.


    All of them were wondering what that beam of light that blasted the wall had been.


    Someone emerged from the rubble of the crushed wall at that moment. His clothes were ragged and looked rather unkempt. It was only one person.


    That person seemed to still look dazed. He shook his head for a bit and his silver hair billowed. He then looked up around him and found angry, cold eyes glaring at him.


    That silver-haired figure was none other than Ye Futian, who came from Crimson Dragon Realm.


    "Where are the others?" Ye Futian looked around him. None of the others were around. He recalled when they traversed the space, he seemed to remember hazily a very powerful being who happened to pass by, intending to intercept that great path of space flying through the air. Despite that being having been to slow to actually do so, That being nonetheless cut up the great path of space that was just about to open up, severing their path.


    And then, what just happened, happened.


    "Is this Heavenly Mandate Realm?" Ye Futian muttered to himself. He had no idea if he reached his intended destination. That being would have probably been a Renhuang class mighty one. They would not have been able to intercept such a great path of space otherwise.


    They had definitely ran into a super being when they traversed space, who wanted to intercept them and find out who they were. That being was unable to do so, for the energies that sent them there, contained with the grand matrix of space, was extremely frightening.


    But then again, Ye Futian realized that he did not seem to have the time to figure out where he was. His top priority at that moment, was to stay alive.


    Those eyes that were glaring at him seemed to be saying that they wanted to kill him where he stood.


    After he steadied himself, he cupped his hands and said to the crowd of the three forces, "Some issues happened with the teleportation. I''m very sorry to cause all of you trouble."


    He was about to leave after saying so.


    Yet, he sensed towering sword will zipping past his body as soon as he move his legs. That sword will was extremely sharp and terrifying killing intent of the sword shrouded him. The howling current of the sword above seemed to be able to kill him right where he stood, forcing him to stay where he was.


    Those people all sported very powerful auras. There were some who were actually Unblemished Saints and it was apparent that there were many of them.


    "You think you could just leave like that?" A mighty one from the Demon Slayer Clan asked with a cold expression. The leader looked imposing as his eyes glared at Ye Futian below. He then turned to the other two forces and continued, "Seems like we''ve gotten all riled up for nothing. How do you suppose we deal with this?"


    The one who talked turned his attention at the leader of the Celestial Sword Li Clan, who was a beautiful woman wore simple attire. Her form-fitting garb was clean and without frills, making her look dashing as sword will coiled around her.


    Her eyes were cold as she glared at Ye Futian.


    "You have any Renhuang treasures with you?" The woman asked coldly.


    Ye Futian frowned and answered, "No, I don''t."


    He naturally denied right away at that moment. If he were to hesitate, those people would have had second thoughts about him.


    "Hand over all valuables you have on you. If any one of them was worth a Renhuang''s item, you get to live." Li Ruoshuang''s voice was cold as she continued, "Otherwise, kill yourself right here, right now."


    She had been very fixated on that thing left over by a Renhuang.


    That item was ended up destroyed by Ye Futian.


    "What was done, was done. What is the point of killing him. He is but an unlucky which had gotten thrown around by a teleportation attempt. Just let him leave." An elder from the Yun Clan of Luo City. There was no point crying over spilled milk after all.


    If even such a teleportation had gone hay-wired, he knew that Ye Futian could not have been someone from some noteworthy force, and there was no point backing him to a corner. It was better to just spare him.


    "You''re very generous indeed, Elder Yun. But who shall be responsible for that broken Renhuang relic?" Li Ruoshuang continued to say with a bone-chilling tone.


    The way she looked at it, that piece which ended up destroyed had belonged to her.


    The destruction of that item would have affected her future plans considerably.


    "So what if you kill him?" Elder Yun then continued, "You have superb talents, Li Ruoshuang, and you''re a one with rare potential among the Celestial Sword practitioners. Too bad that your state of mind is too brutal and cold, and you''re too fixated with the way of the sword."


    "You''re the one to talk," Li Ruoshuang responded coldly. Her eyes did not look at Elder Yun, making as if the elder was not worth her time.


    Mighty ones at her side stepped out and walked towards Ye Futian as soon as she spoke.


    Cold sword will shrouded Ye Futian''s body, seeping with intense killing intent. It was apparent that they were being serious, and they truly wanted Ye Futian to pay for their loss with his life.


    Ye Futian''s frowned hard. While it was true that he was to be partially blamed for the incident, he did not do so intentionally and it was all an accident. He had no control over anything back then.


    From the way the conversation was carried between those people, he realized that he seemed to have destroyed a mural left by a Renhuang.


    "While I do not have a Renhuang treasure, I would make it up to you to the best of my ability," Ye Futian looked at that woman and said.


    Li Ruoshuang was unmoved. Her eyes remained cold as she said, "Take everything in his storage ring."


    "Li Ruoshuang, I suppose we of the Demon Slayer Clan should have a cut as well," the mighty one from the Demon Slayer Clan said. Some of his mighty ones stepped out and walked towards Ye Futian as well.


    They looked emotionless. There was not a hint of compassion in their eyes as they looked at him, only uncaring coldness.


    Ye Futian sensed that he was being enveloped by killing intent and did not say anything more. He unleashed his aura, sensing the will of the great path around him.


    "A Saint of True Self?" Those who sensed Ye Futian''s aura looked rather puzzled. Ye Futian looked rather young and they somehow were unable to get why he was already at such a plane.


    An elder from the Celestial Sword Clan, who too was a Saint of True Self, stepped out and his sword will was towering, seemingly having turned into a sword himself.


    He arrived right before Ye Futian within an instant and lashed out with his finger. The sword at the tip of his finger flowed, and sword will of the great will washed all over them like a river of the heavens, bursting within an instant and intending to end Ye Futian right away.


    Boom. Light of stars coursed all over Ye Futian''s body. The Starry Battle Form of his was shining brilliantly. He lifted his arm and pointed a finger as well, clashing with his opponent without flinching at all.


    "You have a death wish then."


    That elder was cold as he pointed. Countless might of killing swords tore through space as he pointed.


    At the same time, Ye Futian''s finger reached his target as well��the finger of his opponent.


    Boom, boom, boom...extremely terrifying way of Entropy seeped right into the finger, breaking it right away. The surge of power ran all the way up the elder''s arm and burst into his body.


    A loud rumble was heard and then explosions were heard within his body. His back seemed to have been busted by a force. All of his internal organs crumbled in a frenzy.


    His eyes were frozen right there and then, staring straight at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian pulled his finger back and saw his opponent slowly dropping to the ground.


    A finger attack was it took to kill his opponent.


    He had just gotten to the realm, and he had already killed a saint.

 1332 Renhuang Territories

    The sword aura dissipated and a mighty one from the Celestial Sword Li Clan was killed outright on the spot. Those from all three forces were dumbfounded.


    From their perspective, that person would absolutely not have been someone from some top notch force due to having even such errors happening with a teleportation process. Only lone cultivators would have made such mistakes, as grand matrixes of space of greater forces would have been stable, and there was no way such errors could have happened.


    They naturally did not think that the person who just appeared out of nowhere before them had actually transcended regions, and happened to have a Renhuang class being interrupting their travel.


    Furthermore, competition between cultivators at Heavenly Mandate Realm was extremely intense. The fighting was far more brutal than even what was back at Crimson Dragon Realm. That Supreme Imperial Realm was even more vast and there were even greater number of mighty ones. Even cultivators were practically limitless and there were few rules binding anyone. They needed to fight over any cultivation resources they were able to find, and more so when it came to items left behind by Renhuangs.


    Ye Futian broke one such item and that disrupted all of their plans, which was why the ones from the Celestial Sword Li Clan and the Demon Slayer Clan, both wanted to kill Ye Futian and take whatever there was to take from him.


    However, the attack with that one finger from him clearly indicated that he was anything but weak. He just killed a cultivator from the Celestial Sword Li Clan who was the same plane with him, and that meant that his attack would have been extremely overwhelming.


    Li Ruoshuang''s expression remained bone-chilling cold, yet she was rather surprised nonetheless. She thought that taking on such might of the sword head on would have killed him outright.


    It was apparent that she had underestimated Ye Futian''s powers.


    Several swordsmen took to the sky and sword wills howled above Ye Futian''s head, as if they were about to rain down on him at any given moment. There was one Unblemished Saint elder stepped out and his might was frightening.


    Ye Futian frowned hard. If that was an Unblemished Saint, that meant that the upcoming fight would have been tough.


    It was a given that the elder intended to wipe him out right there and then, but there was no way he would have just sat around waiting to be dealt with. If he were to be backed to a corner, he would have had to unleash the will of Emperor Kua.


    However, he was nonetheless a newcomer to the realm and he did not want to do so as soon as he had arrived. The recoil would have been bad as well after all.


    The Halberd of Time and Space appeared in his hand and will of the great path pulsed on it, containing intense will of space. The eyes of the people around him flashed.


    That ritual implement seemed to be very powerful, and it looked as if he still had some treasures with him.


    Voom. Dazzling flash of the sword of the great path rained down from above in a straight line, targeted right at Ye Futian''s body. He disappeared from where he stood within an instant. Two swordsmen charged at the same time at him with their swords drawn, moving at blitzing speeds.


    Sword auras came at Ye Futian like bolts of lightning. Overwhelming will of the great path emerged from Ye Futian''s hand, charging into the boundless sword wills in a straight line, heading for a mighty one.


    The Halberd of Time and Space lashed out. Raging currents of sword aura coming from everywhere parted in the middle, as they were being destroyed in a frenzy.


    That swordsman noticed something was afoot and intended to back away, but felt his will of the great path being blocked.


    Pfftt!


    A crisp sound was heard and Ye Futian, who had been standing faraway just moments ago, burst through the current of sword aura right away armed with the halberd, piercing his brow at blinding speed.


    However, that Unblemished Saint elder stepped out and charged. Towering flash of the sword rained down as he stepped out, with terrifying hurricanes of the sword whipped up in the sky.


    Swords rained down one after another.


    The speeds at which the blades move were unbelievably fast.


    Ye Futian lifted his hand and lashed out with a palm print. Rumbling explosions were heard. The palm print continued to shatter as his body kept being pushed down.


    That river of swords washed at him, threatening to bury him in blades completely.


    A cold snorting noise was heard at that moment. That leading elder of the Yun Clan stepped out and came right above Ye Futian, bursting with a terrifying storm of lightning.


    He lifted his arm and there seemed to be a god of thunder appearing behind him, extending its hand. Said god''s lightning palm print repelled the attacks and burst with boundless lightning within an instant, blasting on the current of the sword that was raining down. The sky was lit right away and devastating powers were all destroyed up in the sky.


    However, countless sword wills in the sky coalesced into one single blade, which was then materialized into a giant sword, pointing at the ground below.


    Hurricanes of the sword circled around that blade, with boundless sword auras surging into it.


    That Unblemished Saint elder stood beside the sword and pointed downward, saying, "Kill."


    Their surroundings howled in rage as he said so. That giant sword wrapped in hurricanes disappeared right away, cleaving a line downwards.


    The elder from the Yun Clan looked up and towering might of lightning was coalesced into a single beam within an instant, which then streaked through the sky like a blade. That terrifying lightning bolt seemed to be out to tear the sky apart.


    Devastating light drowned the sky around them. Mighty ones backed away one after another. That terrifying beam razed the ridge all around them. The sword in the sky and the lightning then dissipated altogether.


    The Yun Clan elder and Ye Futian both retreated to the side where the Yun Clan cultivators were.


    "Li Ku, you''re an old man yourself and I''m afraid bullying someone a lot younger than you''re isn''t the way to do it," that Yun Clan elder looked up at that mighty one from the Celestial Sword Li Clan and said.


    Li Ku''s expression was cold and sword will was seen in his eyes. He then moved forward burning with intense killing intent.


    Ye Futian killed two of their saints and was definitely anything but weak. It could have even been said that he was very powerful, which meant that he needed to be dealt with on the spot. He had no intentions of letting Ye Futian leave alive.


    However, that elder from Yun Clan acted in Ye Futian''s defense, which put those from the Celestial Sword Li Clan in a difficult spot.


    But then again, those three forces had always been competing with each other. They were of antagonistic relationship, so it was entirely normal for that elder to act.


    "So you''re people of the Demon Slayer Clan is just going to sit and watch?" Li Ruoshuang said coldly as she looked at the mighty ones from the Demon Slayer Clan.


    "Come to think about it, Yun Teng was right. That thing was already destroyed and there was no point killing the kid. We''ll just let the matter slide and have no intentions to pursue the matter further. Excuse us." The mighty ones from the Demon Slayer Clan made up their mind on the spot, leaving immediately as soon as that one mighty one finished talking, without staying around for even a second longer.


    That silver-haired young man who appeared out of nowhere was very powerful, which caused them to reevaluate their opponent, as well to weigh the pros and cons of cutting him down.


    Furthermore, the Yun Clan stepped in on his behalf, so they saw fit to just give up right away.


    By the way, they had no score to settle with Ye Futian to begin with, so it was better to just leave and pretend that nothing happened.


    "Ba**ards." Li Ruoshuang''s expression remained cold. Sword will circled about her as she cast a glance at the mighty ones of Yun Clan. She then said, "Yun Teng, he killed two of ours. Are you sure you are going to cover for him?"


    "Indeed."


    Yun Teng replied coldly. Li Ruoshuang was superbly talented and was one of the best to be found in that region. As such, she showed no fear nor respect towards that elder at all.


    However, it would have been difficult if she were to insist on taking Ye Futian.


    Sword auras howled in the sky around them, making that space extremely stifling.


    Li Ruoshuang glared at the one standing across her. She eventually waved the sleeve of her robe, turning around and saying, "Let''s go."


    Her group turned around and left right afterwards. It would have been difficult to kill Ye Futian in such a situation.


    Ye Futian himself was of formidable powers as well, meaning that it would have been difficult to even just take him on.


    The only option for the time being was to give up.


    Ye Futian then cupped his hands and said to Yun Teng, after the ones from the Celestial Sword Li Clan left, "Thank you for saving me, senior."


    "That is nothing. I''m Yun Teng, of the Yun Clan of Luo City," the elder smiled and said. He saw Ye Futian mumbling when the young man arrived, looking rather dazed yet was clearly formidable. All of that piqued the elder''s interests.


    "My name is Ye Futian." Ye Futian replied, "Elder Yun, is this Heavenly Mandate Realm?"


    Yun Teng''s eyes flashed and he looked puzzled. He then stared at Ye Futian with inquisitive eyes.


    That kid is asking if this is Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    The elder then continued after that thought, "This is indeed Heavenly Mandate Realm. Are you here from other realms? Something wrong with your grand matrix of space?"


    Ye Futian was rather relieved hearing what that elder said.


    It seemed that he did not end up in the wrong place. He was worried that he was left behind in some other realms.


    They were probably at the edge of Heavenly Mandate Realm, when some Renhuang class person happened to see them and intended to intercept them, and that person failed and caused what happened then instead.


    "Indeed. I''m from Crimson Dragon Realm around these parts," Ye Futian nodded and answered, while the grand matrix of space had indeed been disrupted, the others should have arrived at Heavenly Mandate Realm nonetheless, and they would not have been all that far away.


    He was only hoping that they had better luck with things than he did.


    It was fortunate that he only brought saints with him on that trip. While being at Saint Plane did not mean one would have been considered strong at Heavenly Mandate Realm, it would have at least meant that they were able to stand on their own. Nothing would have happened if they were to not run into any messy troubles.


    "According to what I know, it is rather difficult for other realms of other regions to come to Heavenly Mandate Realm, which is a Supreme Imperial Realm. I could see that you are of considerable powers. So that is how it is then. I assume that you''re a descendant of a Renhuang at Crimson Dragon Realm?" Yun Teng smiled and said. Ye Futian looked like he was a total mess when he first arrived, with his hair and clothes looking very unkempt.


    However, after he brushed and straightened himself, it was not difficult to see that he was of extraordinary bearing.


    "I''m not." Ye Futian shook his hand, "We''re on this pilgrimage to Heavenly Mandate Realm with the prince of Crimson Dragon Realm. Something happened with teleportation and we were all thrown all over the place."


    The elder nodded and said, "So that was what happened."


    "You''ve just arrived and is separated from your friends. How about we head to the Yun Clan of Luo CIty for bit. I''d get someone to help you find your friends and see if they''re around these parts. What do you say?" Yun Teng continued. People who were capable of traversing realm regions with the prince would have definitely been someone extremely talented, even if they were to not be a descendant of Crimson Dragon Emperor. They would not have had the right to be on such a trip otherwise.


    Heavenly Mandate Realm was a Supreme Imperial Realm and powerful people were everywhere, but that did not mean that all of them would have been aloof, arrogant pricks. The Yun Clan of Luo City had always intended to become a Renhuang class force. People who came from Renhuang class forces of other realms would have definitely been very exceptional, even when compared to those from Heavenly Mandate Realm. It was just that they were unable to compare to those at the very pinnacle in the realm.


    Ye Futian stayed silent for a brief moment before nodding and saying, "Alright, I''m sorry to have been of trouble to you, senior."


    He had just gotten to Heavenly Mandate Realm and he knew next to nothing. He too, wanted to find out more about the realm, as well as the parts where he actually was.


    Yun Teng proposed to let him go as soon as he showed, so he assumed that the elder had little to no ulterior motives and would not have done him any harm.


    He was getting ready to look for Yu Sheng, Xia Qingyuan, his teacher, his elder brother and the others.


    "Let''s head out then." Yun Teng nodded and everyone made a move. Ye Futian followed by Yun Teng''s side and asked, "Senior, what is that stone wall that I''ve just destroyed?"


    "Probably something written by a Renhuang when they stopped by these parts to train. There are many Renhuangs here at Heavenly Mandate Realm, but to us which are not of Renhuang force, anything left behind by Renhuang would have been extremely valuable, and so we came to fight for it, which you just happened to have broken."


    Yun Teng then elaborated further, "The region that we are in now is where Luo City is, as well as the Celestial Sword Li Clan and the Demon Slayer Clan you just saw. All of us belong to Emperor Qi''s territory. According to what I know, Li Ruoshuang had intended to take that thing to be brought to Emperor Qi''s Palace as a gift, so as to earn teachings from the emperor. Your arrival broke her plans, and that was why she wanted to kill you."


    Ye Futian nodded, realizing that Renhuangs had their own territories in Heavenly Mandate Realm as well.

 1333 Brahmas Pure Sky

    Luo City was one of the cities in Emperor Qi''s Territory.


    The Yun Clan of Luo City was the most powerful force to be found in that ancient city.


    Ye Futian found the city to be an extremely bustling one after entering it, which was comparable to Qianye City in terms of liveliness. That city was considered a medium class city in Heavenly Mandate Realm. While it was without doubt stronger than the smaller cities, the city itself was considered a small city when compared to top notch cities. The key lied with the city it was being compared to.


    Many in the city took notice after Yun Teng and the others entered the city, and everyone seemed very respectful, which showed that they apparently knew who Yun Teng and the others around him were.


    The group came to a grand, majestic-looking manor. That was the manor of the Yun Clan of Luo City. Someone was seen coming out of that grand building to receive them.


    "How did it go, father?" A middle-aged beautiful woman of Saint Plane looked at Yun Teng and asked.


    "There had been some hiccups. Yun Ni, this is Ye Futian," Yun Teng said and introduce the young man to his daughter. He then said, "See to our guest here and send men out to see if there are any who seems to have ran into predicaments similar to Ye Futian in the region. I''d need to be elsewhere."


    "Very well." Yun Ni nodded. The clan was a huge one and her father still needed to report to her grandfather.


    Yun Teng nodded slightly to Ye Futian before leaving with a group of people. Yun Ni gave the order and then said to Ye Futian, "Sir Ye, we of the Yun Clan still has some influence in Luo City. If your friends were to have landed in Luo City or somewhere nearby, it shouldn''t be difficult to find them. If they were to end up in territories further away, things would have been considerably more difficult."


    "Thank you." Ye Futian then nodded.


    "Please come in, Sir Ye," Yun Ni extended her hand and said. Both of them walked and then she asked, "So you have fought with the Celestial Sword Li Clan, Sir Ye?"


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded. "The people of the Celestial Sword Li Clan wanted to kill me. I owe my life to senior back then."


    "Father was not actually doing it all for you, Sir Ye." Yun Ni''s eyes turned rather cold and continued, "The way the Celestial Sword Li Clan carry about their business and how Li Ruoshuang is being so aggressive now, it is just normal for father to butt in."


    The group came to an elegant compound and there seemed to be a young woman training before them. Sparks of lightning dazzled all over her, contained auras of rules. She extended her hand and slashed. The resulting lightning shot forward like a serpent.


    However, that did not seem to be the result she was after.


    She turned around and saw Yun Ni and Ye Futian. She then called, "Mother."


    "This is my daughter, Yun Qianyue. Qianyue, this is Sir Ye," Yun Ni introduced.


    "Sir Ye." Yun Qianye took a look at Ye Futian and bowed slightly. That silver-haired young man had extraordinary bearing and was probably not common folk, but he looked very young, as if he was her age. However, his aura was very reserved and his training would have probably been of very high levels. Her mother, who was a saint, would not have addressed him as ''sir'' otherwise.


    "Is the Yun Clan mainly practicing the ways of lightning? I have seen Senior Yun''s lightning ways and the power shown was extraordinarily overwhelming," Ye Futian said.


    "You''re too kind, Sir Ye. The lightning arts of the Yun Clan is naturally considered powerful in Luo City, but we''re not even at Renhuang class. If we were to take the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm into consideration, we wouldn''t even be considered strong at all. Furthermore, there is also an insurmountable mountain in the realm," Yun Ni elaborated.


    "You mean to say..." Ye Futian was feeling curious.


    "Nothing much. It is still all too far away," Yun Ni said as she shook her head. She did not want to say more, and that was not part of her world after all.


    "All lightning arts in the world originates from the Heavenly Palace." Yun Qianyue''s voice sounded rather serious when she said it. That violet palace high up in the clouds was to be known number one throughout the three thousand realms in lightning arts.


    As such, it was said that all lightning arts in the world originated from the Heavenly Palace.


    Due to the Heavenly Palace being a part of Heavenly Mandate Realm, there were many forces training in lightning arts in the realm.


    " All lightning arts in the world originates from the Heavenly Palace." Ye Futian mumbled to himself and then continued, "Boisterous indeed."


    "The Violet Heavenly Palace was the most powerful force to be found practicing lightning arts. Countless lightning arts found throughout the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, have all been derivatives in one way or another of what is practiced by the Violet Heavenly Palace. This is not actually boisterous at all," Yun Ni smiled and said.


    "What about Brahma''s Pure Sky then?" Ye Futian asked all of a sudden.


    Both Yun Ni and Yun Qianyue were stunned. They then looked at Ye Futian with peculiar expression. Yun Ni then smiled and said, "While you''re of formidable training, Sir Ye, but it is best to not venture into a place like the Brahma''s Pure Sky."


    Brahma''s Pure Sky was simply too far away for them, yet it was where all women in the world wanted to go to.


    An empress was enlightened to the great path at Brahma''s Pure Sky, and that place was lauded as the number one mountain in the world.


    The Jiutian Goddess who served the empress was a figure that countless worshipped.


    There was simply none of them who were not legendary Renhuang.


    It was not a surprise for Yun Ni to tell Ye Futian to not think too much about it. Even the virgins who served the Jiutian Goddess had already been a holy figure that countless deemed unreachable, let alone a supreme force like Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Is the lord of Brahma''s Pure Sky that powerful?" Ye Futian asked.


    "What you''re saying now, Sir Ye, is probably heard by the lord of Brahma''s Pure Sky." Yun Ni continued, "That is a being whose will reaches the three thousand realms. It is said that she is possibly someone capable of breaking through the heavenly path."


    Ye Futian''s expression was a solemn one. That lord of Brahma''s Pure Sky was indeed too far away from him.


    However, if he were to be clear of Jieyu''s situation and wanted to know about whether his wife was dead or alive, he would have had to get to Brahma''s Pure Sky sooner or later.


    He turned his eyes around and looked at Yun Qianyue, saying, "The lightning arts that you intend to practice before. Is it something like this?"


    Ye Futian said and slashed at the sky. Dazzling flashes of lightning shot out, seemingly cutting the sky.


    "Indeed." Yun Qianyue''s eyes sparkled. She nodded and said, "Somehow I just don''t seem to get the hang of it. I''d be honored to have your guidance."


    "Forget what you''ve learned before and forget the rules that you''ve come to comprehend. Just focus on practicing the technique and spend some time repeating it, and see if you have learned something new by then," Ye Futian said.


    Yun Qianyue was steeped in thought for a bit, before nodding and saying, "Will do."


    "Continue your training then." Yun Ni said to Yun Qianyue and then brought Ye Futian to a compound. The place looked elegant and Yun Ni asked, "How about you stay here for the time being, Sir Ye?"


    "Thank you indeed," Ye Futian said.


    "You could come and look for me if you need anything, Sir Ye," Yun Ni said and then left the place.


    Ye Futian took a look around. The Yun Clan of Luo City seemed to be a place like Qianye City back in Crimson Dragon Realm, with Holiness of Nirvanas ruling over a city.


    There was definitely a Holiness of Nirvana among the Yun Clan.


    Yun Teng was out to report, and he would have probably head out to report to the clan leader.


    Ye Futian felt rather restless when he thought about his people scattered all over the place after the teleportation turned hay-wired. It would have been fine if they were dropping out somewhere nearby. If they had ended up somewhere too far away, the size of Heavenly Mandate Realm would have made it very difficult to locate them, unless they were to cause a ruckus large enough to shake a region.


    "Let''s just see if they have any useful news about," Ye Futian told himself and put it behind him, closing his eyes to train instead.


    Someone else came not long afterwards, but did not bother Ye Futian seeing that he was training with his eyes closed, electing to stand faraway instead.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and then saw Yun Qianyue smiling. He then asked, "Is there anything I could help you with, Ms. Qianyue?"


    Yun Qianyue stepped out and came before Ye Futian. She was dressed in blue attire, facing Ye Futian before bowing to him, saying, "Please guide me in my training, sir."


    "You''ve learned something?" Ye Futian''s expression was peculiar. He had only reminded her of something, and did not expect her to be able to get something out of it in such a short period of time.


    "Indeed." Yun Qianyue nodded, "I''d like you to be my teacher."


    "I was simply giving you pointers. That was just a way of training and I didn''t actually teach you anything. You owe being able to get it so quickly to your own intellect. It has little to do with me, and I''m afraid I''m unqualified to teach you," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    He had many teachers throughout this journey in cultivation, and every single one of them played key roles in various stages in his life.


    He totally did not expect someone to want to take him as their teacher. However, he had actually fulfilled all the requirements for such a role. The only inadequacy was that he appeared too young.


    "If you are unwilling to take me as your student, would you mind if I come here often to ask for guidance then?" Yun Qianyue continued. Ye Futian had really simply given her pointers, and that was something that could not have been applied in everything.


    However, she was able to get what she sought in an extremely short period of them, picking up the lightning arts that she sought. It simply proved that Ye Futian was extremely learned in such ways.


    "Not at all." Ye Futian nodded and agreed to it. Yun Qianyue smiled and bowed, saying, "Thank you, sir."


    A group of people arrived from the air at that moment, who then walked up to him.


    Yun Teng flashed and came to him as well, who then addressed the crowd, "Sir Ye is a guest of mine. You shall not be rude in my place."


    Those people backed away one after another. Yun Teng frowned and said, "Many mighty ones from the Celestial Sword Clan came. Li Ruoshuang led those people personally to the Yun Clan, demanding that we hand you over."


    Yun Ni''s expression became somewhat colder at the mentioned of the Celestial Sword Li Clan. The same went with Yun Qianyue as well.


    "Aren''t the Celestial Sword Li Clan enemies with the Yun Clan of Luo City?" Ye Futian asked, "Why is Li Ruoshuang able to come all the way here to make demands?"


    "Li Ruoshuang was extraordinarily talented among her generation in the Celestial Sword Li Clan, and it was extremely possible for her to train under Emperor Qi." Yun Teng elaborated, "Emperor Qi often picks a bunch of people in his territory, and they stand a chance of being personally taught by the emperor. Li Ruoshuang''s talents are such that the probability of her making it is extremely high. As such, she has been very proactive in making the necessary preparations. If Li Ruoshuang were to succeed, then the status of the Celestial Sword Li Clan would have changed considerably, and they would have been able to loom right over us."


    Yun Qianyue''s aura was that of extreme cold. She had been training very diligently in her clan, just so to one day surpass those from the Celestial Sword Li Clan. She saw Li Ruoshuang as her goal, driving herself forward.


    Ye Futian was even able to sense faint killing intent from her.


    He looked at Yun Qianyue in a curious manner, and Yun Teng at the side added, "Qianyue''s father died by the hands of those from the Celestial Sword Li Clan.


    Ye Futian''s pupils constricted slightly. He only understood why Yun Ni said that Yun Teng was not only doing what was done for him back then.


    Sword wills howled outside the Yun Clan manor at that moment. A group of mighty ones rode on their swords and the woman leading them was none other than Li Ruoshuang.


    They knew that they were not able to kill Ye Futian back then and gave. They also knew that Yun Teng had considerable enmity for them.


    At that moment, however, she came directly to the Yun Clan and demanded they hand over the man they were looking for, and it was to see if the Yun Clan would have complied.

 1334 The Zuoqiu Clan

    Li Ruoshuang had elders standing on each side of her. One of them was a senior from the Celestial Sword Li Clan, who had been the Unblemished Saint out to cut Ye Futian down back then.


    The other elder was wearing a tight-fitting long robe and looked to be over 50 years old. His eyes were narrowed and rather eerie and gave the impression that he was unfriendly. He stood with his hands behind his back, and those narrowed eyes of his looked rather cold.


    He seldom appeared in the region, so there were few who knew of him.


    A group of mighty ones from the Yun Clan were there. The one who took the lead was named Yun Chong, who was Yun Teng''s brother. His bearing was calm and steady as he looked at Li Ruoshuang.


    Yun Chong actually spent more time eyeing the long-robed elder beside Li Ruoshuang. He was suspicious of that person''s identity.


    From his perspective, the Celestial Sword Li Clan was the enemy, and they had a lot of scores to settle with each other. Despite Li Ruoshuang''s forceful temperament, they should not have dared to demand that the Yun Clan hand anyone over.


    That elder was probably not someone from the Celestial Sword Li Clan.


    "You do not look familiar. May I ask where you train?" Yun Chong asked in a probing manner.


    The elder with narrowed eyes seemed to have turned his eyes into slits when he looked at Yun Chong. His eyes seemed plain and uncaring, not bothering with Unblemished Saints from the Yun Clan of Luo City.


    He did not even bother responding.


    That made Yun Chong feel rather heavy deep down. If that person dared to ignore him like that, he must really be someone formidable.


    Li Ruoshuang shot a sarcastic look at Yun Chong. Ye Futian had killed two saints from the Celestial Sword Li Clan, and the Yun Clan was actually still covering for him.


    Other than for revenge, she was there at the Yun Clan to have the those on the other side offend the people at her side. So long as the Yun Clan refused to yield, it would naturally offend that elder.


    She wanted to see how the Yun Clan would react to it.


    "Yun Chong, do you know that that Renhuang mural back then was something that Ms. Ruoshuang intended to take and present to the Zuoqiu Clan of the imperial city? It was fine that you didn''t want to do anything about the mural being destroyed, but you people of the Yun Clan actually covered for him. How do you suppose we settle this then?" Li Ku, who stood beside Li Ruoshuang, asked.


    Yun Chong felt rather troubled hearing what he said. He took a serious look at the one at Li Ruoshuang''s side.


    The Zuoqiu Clan of the imperial city.


    The Zuoqiu Clan had come to fame and gained status due to the current clan leader having served as a bodyguard for Emperor Qi once and training with the emperor, going through thick and thin with him.


    The Zuoqiu held incredible sway over a vast region and were of very high renown and status. Many legendary people had gradually emerged from the clan, and the clan had continued to grow strong. They were of extremely high status in Emperor Qi''s territory, and they were one of the most powerful clans around.


    They held so much sway that they were even able to affect how the emperor made decisions.


    For instance, Emperor Qi chose geniuses from his territory to pass on methods of cultivation, but there was no way he could attend to everything. As such, he delegated a substantial amount of responsibilities to others, and the Zuoqiu Clan was one of those at such levels, commanding incredible influence.


    It was clear by then that Li Ruoshuang did not intend to fight for that mural left behind by a Renhuang in order to present it to the royal court. She intended to gift it to the Zuoqiu Clan, which was serving the royal palace, instead.


    She intended to use that as a stepping stone in order to get closer to Emperor Qi and allow their clan to rise by leaps and bounds.


    Li Ruoshuang had always been of considerable talent herself. If she were to be instructed by Emperor Qi and acquire stronger cultivation resources, she would definitely rise to prominence in the future.


    The key was that the woman herself was very good at such machinations.


    "If that were the case, we of the Zuoqiu Clan would have been willing to give it away if we were to be the ones taking it. However, we never knew any of this when we last fought," Yun Chong said. It was apparent that while they were the ones at a disadvantage in the squabble with the Celestial Sword Li Clan, handling it was still within their capacity.


    But if they were to make enemies of the Zuoqiu Clan, things would become difficult for them.


    In truth, the Yun Clan had always attempted to establish connections with the officials who were close to the emperor, but they had never had any good way to do so. Those officials simply scoffed at them.


    Li Ruoshuang was apparently connected to the Zuoqiu Clan. If the Celestial Sword Li Clan were to be able to use such a connection to their advantage, it would definitely be a very bad thing for the Yun Clan.


    Things would look dire for them.


    "No point talking about any of that now. Hand the man over," Li Ku said plainly. That mighty one from the Zuoqiu Clan remained silent.


    He was only there as Li Ruoshuang''s escort. He had examined her talents and found her to truly be a rare talented cultivator. She was still young and she was already a Saint of True Self. She had an unyielding spirit in seeking the great path, and furthermore, she was willing to pay.


    He intended to first send her to learn at the emperor''s side, and she would one day be married into the Zuoqiu Clan as well.


    As such, he did not mind that Li Ruoshuang borrowed such a connection to her advantage. They would be family sooner or later anyway.


    Yun Chong instructed his men to bring Ye Futian. He turned around and saw a group of people coming closer. Yun Teng, Yun Ni, Ye Futian, and a group of people came over.


    That was not all. Many mighty ones from the Yun Clan came as well. They felt heavy deep down after knowing that the elder had come from the Zuoqiu Clan.


    Yun Teng heard people talking when he was on his way. He was feeling troubled, as he knew that there was a huge mess to be dealt with up ahead.


    Li Ruoshuang was actually connected to the Zuoqiu Clan already.


    "What is actually happening, Yun Teng?" Yun Chong asked Yun Teng, who was about to reach them.


    Yun Teng looked at him and then at the elder of the Zuoqiu Clan at Li Ruoshuang''s side. He said, "The case of the three forces fighting over the wall has nothing to do with the Zuoqiu Clan in the first place. Li Ruoshuang, this is between us of the Yun Clan and the Celestial Sword Li Clan. What is the meaning of dragging someone from the Zuoqiu Clan into this?"


    Li Ruoshuang shot a glance at Yun Teng. She was not there to reason with Yun Teng.


    To her, the only thing that mattered was the result.


    "Is the Yun Clan going to hand over the man or not?" Li Ruoshuang was just as cold as her name implied. She had only asked if they were going to hand over the man and nothing else.


    There was no need to explain anything.


    The place was silent.


    Yun Ni and Yun Qianyue, who were standing behind Yun Teng, looked coldly at those from the Celestial Sword Li Clan. Yun Qianyue was strongly fixated on surpassing Li Ruoshuang in the future so as to avenge her father.


    "Yun Teng, we''re not in a position to offend the Zuoqiu Clan at the moment," Yun Chong said to Yun Teng telepathically.


    The way he saw it, Ye Futian was but an outsider, and he was not worth the trouble.


    "Can''t you see that handing the man over would still be pointless? Li Ruoshuang is doing all this to establish a connection with someone higher up. If they are already in league with the Zuoqiu Clan, it will only be a matter of time before they find other excuses to get rid of us. What is the difference between handing our guest over or not handing him over?" Yun Teng retorted telepathically.


    "At the very least, it would prevent the Zuoqiu Clan from having an excuse to take us on for the time being. We need time," Yun Chong said. They were also fighting to establish a connection with a force comparable to the Zuoqiu Clan''s as soon as possible. Yun Chong''s son was also extremely talented in cultivation, and so there was a chance for the Yun Clan as well.


    It was extremely unwise to get on the Zuoqiu Clan''s bad side at the moment.


    Though Yun Teng understood what his brother''s thoughts were, he insisted nonetheless and said, "No way."


    He had already made that compromise once.


    That compromise had left lasting psychological trauma on his daughter, Yun Ni.


    "You can''t understand the gravity of the situation, can you?" Yun Chong replied telepathically in a rather severe tone. He did not bother with Yun Teng further and turned to Ye Futian instead, saying, "Sir, this was between you and the Celestial Sword Li Clan to begin with, and Yun Teng has already done all he was able to. It is in our best interest not to get involved further. You are not one of the Yun Clan, and I hope you understand that."


    Ye Futian appeared calm and without any hint of resentment. It was entirely sensible for Yun Chong to make such a choice. There was no need for him to take such risks for a stranger.


    "He''s not a member of the Yun Clan? Says who?" Yun Qianyue asked. "I''ve already taken Sir Ye as my teacher. The Celestial Sword Li Clan is an enemy of us of the Yun Clan. Are we really just going to hand someone over just because they tell us to? Furthermore, you''re the eldest descendant of the clan, as well as a teacher and example for members of future generations of the clan. I''m afraid what you''re doing now will only cause others to feel disgust."


    Yun Chong frowned and looked at Yun Qianyue, finding her standing in a composed manner, her eyes determined.


    There were many mighty ones in the Yun Clan, and he did not think there was a need for Yun Qianyue to take Ye Futian as her teacher. Furthermore, Ye Futian had not been around for long, and he saw that only as one of Yun Qianyue''s excuses.


    Ye Futian understood that he had not agreed to take Yun Qianyue as his student, but what Yun Qianyue had said made him feel warm inside nonetheless.


    "Qianyue, don''t go letting your emotions get the better of you now." Yun Chong told Yun Qianyue off in a low voice.


    "I''m simply telling the truth," Yun Qianyue said.


    "It''s almost time to head to the imperial city." That mighty one from the Zuoqiu Clan, who had been silent all that while, finally spoke. He swept his narrowed eyes over the Yun Clan and continued, "Make up your mind already."


    Li Ruoshuang looked over the ones from the Yun Clan as well. Yun Chong''s expression suggested that he was feeling very pressured. That man from the Zuoqiu Clan had finally said something.


    "Hold on," Yun Chong said. He looked at Yun Teng with a severe expression and said, "The clan''s interests precede all. Hand the man over."


    Yun Teng stared at him unflinchingly and said, "I''ve made a compromise for the sake of the clan once. I''m not about to do the same again. I was the one who brought him here. If he wants to take my guest away, then we fight."


    Yun Chong looked very unwell hearing what Yun Teng had said. That mighty one from the Zuoqiu Clan, who was standing across them, said plainly, "Will do, then."


    He then began walking away and left altogether, seemingly tired of the charade.


    Li Ruoshuang did not say anything else, and she followed suit. She, however, shot a sarcastic look at those of the Yun Clan.


    "You people want to send someone to train under Emperor Qi, huh?" the look seemed to say.


    "Well, you can stop dreaming now."


    The group left en masse and disappeared from sight soon after. Yun Chong looked glum. His plans might have been broken because of what had just happened.


    People from all over the place were about to gather at the imperial city, and there was no one who did not want to train under Emperor Qi.


    Everyone worked hard just to achieve that, and so did he. At that moment, everything might have just been ruined by Yun Teng.


    "Good work there, Yun Teng," Yun Chong said coldly before stepping away and leaving.


    Many mighty ones from the Yun Clan were there as well. They did not think that Yun Teng had been sensible with what he had done back there. The Zuoqiu Clan was an undeniable force in Emperor Qi''s Territory, after all.


    "Why would you need to put your clan through this for me?" Ye Futian asked Yun Teng.


    "So long as we are not in direct conflict with the Zuoqiu Clan, they, as people who serve Emperor Qi, will have to take their influence into consideration as well. They couldn''t simply fight people like other forces do, and Emperor Qi wouldn''t bother himself with all of that," Yun Teng said. "But the Zuoqiu Clan is still a clan serving Emperor Qi, and if we do not have any other connections, it will be rather difficult for us at the Yun Clan to train under the emperor after getting on the Zuoqiu Clan''s bad side."


    "Could the Zuoqiu Clan have any influence over how Emperor Qi selects the candidates whom he will later teach?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Emperor Qi selects such candidates every year. Anyone he has taken notice of will stand a great chance, but he leaves most other matters to his subordinates and doesn''t bother interfering with any of those matters at all. All manner of fighting and conflict is treated as part of cultivation. Survival of the fittest, after all," Yun Teng said to Ye Futian.

 1335 For the Clan

    Yun Teng was soon called away by clan members. Ye Futian knew it was because of the thing that just happened.


    "Ma''am, how is the Zuoqiu Clan''s real strength?" Ye Futian asked Yun Ni after Yu Teng was called away.


    "Both Zuoqiu Clan and Zhong Clan were the most flourishing powers in Emperor Qi''s territory. They were much more prestigious than any other clans in Emperor Qi''s territory. After years of development, both clans had cultivated innumerable top warriors, including many Nirvana-Plane Saints. As far as I know, there were warriors of the four Nirvana Plane in the Zuoqiu Clan, among whom Zuoqiu Gong, the current clan head of the Zuoqiu Clan was at the apex of Nirvana, much stronger than any other Nirvana Saints."


    Yun Ni said to Ye Futian, "Zuoqiu Gong has followed Emperor Qi for many years and received Emperor Qi''s guidance. Under Emperor Qi''s influence, even though he was restricted by talent and was unable to enter the Renhuang Plane, he could rarely find an opponent of equal level. Of course, I mean in Emperor Qi''s territory; his ability may not be worth mentioning in the range of Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    Ye Futian nodded. The Heavenly Mandate Realm was very large, and this area was only a Renhuang territory. Only the strongest warriors of the place of origin of all Thunder Techniques, Nine Cloud Palace, or the Brahma''s Pure Sky dared to call themselves peerless.


    However, since Zuoqiu Gong could make his clan prosper in this place for so long, he should be an unusual person, too. Even though he couldn''t match Renhuang and other top figures'' level, in the range of Heavenly Mandate Realm, he was amid the first rank. He was in a very high position.


    Although Ye Futian was new here, he could tell the competition in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, where strong figures were everywhere, was fierce.


    "Four Nirvana Saint," Ye Futian murmured to himself. If he could figure out where other people were and let them join him, that shouldn''t be a problem; or if he could find Master, maybe he just needed one more person.


    Since Emperor Qi didn''t ask about these, it had become much easier.


    "Before, we��the Yun Clan��had attempted to depend on the Zhong Clan. Now since this thing happened, the clan side must be even more anxious," said Ni Sheng. "As long as the Zuoqiu Clan is there, it is hard for members of our Clan to cultivate under Emperor Qi''s throne."


    "Yun Teng''s deed was righteous. It is all because of me," said Ye Futian.


    "It is none of your business," said Yun Ni with a shaking head. "The Celestial Sword Li Clan had made connections with the Zuoqiu Clan beforehand; otherwise, how could the people of the Zuoqiu Clan suddenly find Li Ruoshuang? Li Ruoshuang is not only extraordinarily talented, but he is very ruthless when he does things, too. The Celestial Sword Li Clan and Yun Clan are already enemies, so you are just an excuse she used to bring trouble. Without you, the thing still would have happened.


    "As for my father, I have said before, it is not all about you. Qianyue''s father was also hounded to death by the Celestial Sword Li Clan. At that time, we gave in and endured the pain for the sake of clan interest. Now we still don''t dare to start fighting them because we are weaker than the Celestial Sword Li Clan."


    Yun Ni explained, "As for Yun Chong, who wanted to make concessions, his concern is not only the clan''s interest; he has selfish reasons. An offspring of his is very outstanding and is considered the most promising Yun Clan member to cultivate under Emperor Qi''s throne. He is working hard for it and doesn''t want to offend the Zuoqiu Clan."


    Ye Futian listened quietly. Yun Ni spoke in a cold tone. Her husband''s death must have been a big shock to her. They had sacrificed everything for the clan once, so now, when she listened to the excuse of "for the clan" again, she couldn''t conceal her strong feeling of disgust.


    Not to mention that Yun Chong was not just for the clan.


    "Sir Ye, please don''t keep the thing in mind. The whole thing is not related to you; it is the issue within our clan," said Yun Ni to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian slightly nodded. Even though she said so, the thing started from him; Yun Teng was indeed very kind-hearted.


    If he could offer any help, he would not just stay out of it.


    "Why did Li Ruoshuang come to the Imperial City with people of the Zuoqiu Clan? Is anything about to happen?" asked Ye Futian.


    "He will attend the Palace Examination," Yun Qianyue, who was standing nearby, cut in. "The Palace Examination is where Emperor Qi selects young and outstanding Saint-Plane cultivators. The ones who performs well will have the chance to become Emperor Qi''s disciple and learn from him."


    The Palace Examination is mainly in charge of powers like Zuoqiu Clan and Zhong Clan," added Yun Ni. "It is considered a big even in Emperor Qi''s territory. Warriors of all areas in Emperor Qi''s territory will attend. It is also part of the reason why the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan have a prestigious status."


    "I see," said Ye Futian, nodding. After listening to this, he could quickly connect everything.


    All these warriors were competing for the chance to become the Renhuang''s disciple.


    Li Ruoshuang craved the opportunity. Yun Clan in the Luo City wanted it, too.


    There must be minimal vacancies there.


    Li Ruoshuang specially came to visit the Yun Clan and cause trouble by using him as an excuse, and his goal was to incriminate the Yun Clan.


    As long as he could make the Yun Clan fall behind, one day, he would get rid of this opponent.


    So, it seems that I need to go to the Imperial City, Ye Futian thought to himself. He was not interested in the Palace Examination. He didn''t come to the Heavenly Mandate Realm for a Renhuang''s teaching.


    Now, his companions were all somewhere else, but as long as they were in Emperor Qi''s territory, they would know about the Palace Examination. And that would be the only information everyone could receive at the same time. Other people must have thought of it, too, so they could take this chance to meet there.


    He could think of it, so others could, too.


    When Ye Futian was absorbed in thought, it seemed that something came to Yun Shang''s mind. She knitted her eyebrows as if she was worried.


    "What happened, Ma''am?" asked Ye Futian.


    "One thing suddenly occurred to me. If it is true, there will be more disadvantages to our Yun Clan," said Yun Sheng in a soft voice.


    "What is the thing?" Ye Futian asked.


    "There is a terrifying talented Saint-Plane warrior among this generation of Zuoqiu Clan whom even Emperor Qi thinks highly of. This time he will also attend the Palace Examination, but he will walk through it. He is a similar age to Li Ruoshuang," Yun Ni softly said. "Li Ruoshuang is determined in cultivation and has ambition. His talent and appearance are also outstanding. This time the Zuoqiu Clan sent warriors to visit the Celestial Sword Li Clan in person. Or maybe��"


    "You mean, they arranged a political marriage for him?" asked Ye Futian.


    Yun Nin nodded and said, "If so, Li Ruoshuang''s status will immediately rise, and the Celestial Sword Li Clan will also get a chance."


    Thinking about this, Yun Ni didn''t look very good.


    She had been seeking revenge after her husband''s death.


    But if the Celestial Sword Li Clan flourished, survival��not to mention revenge��would be hard.


    Yun Qianyue often came to consult with Ye Futian. Every time, Ye Futian would share his previous comprehension with her since he had experienced the cultivation path Yun Qianyue was working on, and he was good at comprehending things, especially when it came to the integration of the power of rules and creation.


    And it was what Yun Qianyue was going through.


    At this moment, Yun Qianyue was sitting and cultivating in Ye Futian''s courtyard, her eyes closed. Thunder burst around her, emitting gorgeous light. Ye Futian was sitting a short distance away and was playing an ancient zither. The voice of the zither was full of energy, fierce like thunder. It also affected Yun Qianyue and helped her enter the artistic atmosphere of it.


    Listening to music that fit one''s personality was beneficial to a person''s cultivation.


    Suddenly, as if the forceful sound of zither exploded in the artistic atmosphere, the destructive thunder rose. The light of thunder around Yun Qianyue''s body illuminated the sky and erupted at once. She opened her eyes. The spirit around her surged. The destructive thunder and lightning were about to flood the whole space.


    After a while, the Will of Thunder Rules was gradually appeased. She had a look of amazement on her face. She turned her beautiful eyes toward Ye Futian and said, "Thank you, sir."


    These days, Ye Futian had been guiding her cultivation. She had not only made quick progress in Thunder Techniques, but with the aid of the zither, she had even improved her state of mind, and the Thunder Techniques suited her better, which was a wonderful feeling.


    "You have talent," Ye Futian said with a smile. He discovered Yun Qianyue''s talent was actually very outstanding and that she had potential.


    "That is because the teacher teaches well," said Yun Qianyue, laughing.


    "I never promised to be your teacher," said Ye Futian with a laugh.


    "Fine. You are good at teaching," said Yun Qianyue, smiling.


    ��


    At the same time, in another villa of the Yun Clan, Yun Chong was standing in the courtyard. Behind him, a young man stood with his hands behind back in an unusual manner.


    A group of people came in front of them and slightly bowed.


    "How''s it going?" asked Yun Chong.


    "The Zuoqiu Clan and Celestial Sword Li Clan indeed had the plan to unite by marriage," that person replied. Hearing this, Yun Chong immediately turned sullen. Behind him, the young man''s face turned gloomy, too. It might hinder him from cultivating under the throne of Emperor Qi.


    Yun Chong waved his hand. His mind was released and enveloped the space as if prohibiting others from probing into it. He looked at the person and asked, "And, the other thing I told you to do, how is it?"


    That person took a bow and cupped his hands as a salute and replied, "It''s going well. As you expected, Zhong Clan indeed showed their interest, especially Miss Qianyue. They have promised to help if we show a willingness to send them to Zhong Clan in service."


    "Good," said Yun Chong. He stared at him with a pair of piercing eyes and told him, "Nobody else shall know about it. You must change your wording in front of the clan lord. Do you understand?"


    "Aye, sir," he replied, nodding.


    "Then you can go," said Yun Chong. He waved his hand, and a storage ring flew into that person''s hand.


    He bowed and showed gratitude, then soon retreated and left the place.


    Yun Chong looked into the distance. Coldness flashed across his face. Yun Teng didn''t get along with him after the first thing happened, but now that he was dead, it was meaningless to linger on it. All was for the clan to get stronger.


    Now, they even sheltered a stranger and displeased the Zuoqiu Clan. Luckily, Yun Chong had prepared a backup plan.


    For the clan, this time, he had to let Yun Teng make sacrifices again!

 1336 An Acciden

    Yun Teng came to the villa where Ye Futian was.


    "Sir." Ye Futian opened his eyes and saluted. He was cultivating.


    "I just found a cultivator roaming around in the Luo City. His name is Yu Sheng. Do you know him?" asked Yun Teng.


    Ye Futian paused a second and then nodded, smiling. He didn''t expect Yu Sheng was nearby.


    "Where is he?" he stood up and asked.


    "Let''s go," Yun Teng said and turned around. Ye Futian followed him, and soon they flashed away from the Yun Residence.


    In Luo City, a lot of people gathered in one place, bustling with noise. Some cultivators were lying on the ground. All of them were Saint-Level cultivators with some fame in Luo City. They were usually considered geniuses.


    However, at this moment, they had been beaten down; all were lying on the ground. Next to them, their seniors were encircling a burly person in anger.


    "Do you want to intervene in this, too, people from Yun Clan?" said a senior angrily. This burly person was too arrogant.


    Ye Futian was dumbstruck. He immediately recognized that burly figure from a distance. It could only be Yu Sheng.


    For real, this guy liked making trouble more than Ye Futian did.


    "Yu Sheng!" shouted Ye Futian. The burly beast, who was releasing a ferocious life force, paused a second and turned around. When he saw Ye Futian, he grinned. The life force on his body suddenly disappeared. He flashed in front of Ye Futian.


    Seeing Ye Futian staring at him, Yu Sheng turned his head and pretended as if nothing had happened.


    "For my sake, would you mind putting an end to the thing today?" Yun Teng looked toward these people and pleaded. These people seemed quite discontented, but they also had scruples about Yun Teng, since the Yun Clan was the lord of this city; Yun Teng was of Unblemished Plane, and none of them dared to challenge him.


    "Since you have spoken, surely we will not do anything serious. It''s just this boy is too arrogant. In his eyes, we were like nothing. If we don''t teach him a lesson, we can''t appease people''s anger," said one senior. Obviously, they still looked quite furious. Just because of one squabble, he brought them all to their knees. Some people''s hands and legs were fractured. He was such an *sshole!


    "Since then, you don''t need to lend a hand," said Yu Sheng to Yun Teng. He took one step forward and said to these discontented people, "For those of you who have complaints, come on, fight me."


    After speaking, he released a fierce life force from his body. Those seniors'' mouths twitched. Just now, they had fought once. Although they were all seniors of the True Self Plane and Yu Sheng was just at the apex of Doctrine Saint Plane, inferior to them in terms of level, Yu Sheng''s fist almost broke their hand bones.


    If they had real combat�� they didn''t have the confidence.


    Where did this *sshole come from?


    One fist knocked out a warrior of his same Plane. Even to the higher-Plane warriors, he showed no mercy, either.


    Yun Teng looked toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian was quite awkward. Before, when he as a Doctrine Saint fought with Xing Kai the True Self Saint, Yu Sheng was also at the apex of Doctrine Saint Plane. He could even beat Xing Kai, the strongest warrior of Crimson Dragon Realm. As for fighting with the True Self Saints of the Luo City��


    That shouldn''t be a big deal.


    "Sir, my friend was really out of line. Maybe he needs some discipline. Let''s not get involved," said Ye Futian to Yun Teng.


    Yun Teng paused a second and didn''t know what Ye Futian meant. Did he really want to treat his friend like this?


    But since Ye Futian said so, he nodded and said, "If so, I will let you handle it. But please show some mercy."


    After Xing Kai finished talking, Yu Sheng took a step forward. Suddenly the ferocious Demonic Will rumbled around his body. He was dressed in a Demonic Deity''s armor. Even the strongest True-Self-Plane senior shook his arms and twitched his mouth, staring at those demonic eyes.


    He thought to himself that if he were defeated by this young person here, perhaps his long-established fame would be buried here today.


    Thinking about this, he said, "Let''s call it a day. I don''t want to face any controversy related to bullying young people."


    He waved his hand, indicating he didn''t want to fight.


    "Nah, I don''t mind at all," said Yu Sheng. He continued stepping forward. A gust of violent force pushed ahead and added pressure on the senior, whose face turned pale.


    What did this *sshole mean?


    The senior tossed his sleeves back and said, "I don''t want to cause controversy. For Mr. Yun''s sake, I will put it to an end."


    After saying that, he directly turned around and left with those young warriors, who had been pounded to the ground. He just left like that.


    It was too��


    The crowd around them blinked in disbelief. What was this situation?


    Just now, they couldn''t wait to fight and had to stop because that person from the Yun Clan intervened, but now they had just let it go?


    Yun Teng didn''t understand it, either.


    Yu Sheng looked toward others and said, "How about you come over to fight me?"


    "Nah, we don''t bully young people, either."


    "Since Mr. Yun has spoken, we shouldn''t quibble over it," they all said and left with their people. Seeing others leave, of course, they knew what had happened.


    They had no confidence in winning over him.


    Soon, they all went away, crestfallen. No one claimed they wanted revenge.


    Yu Sheng was standing at the center. No one could fight. He looked quite unhappy and let out a sigh, murmuring, "They were all very boastful."


    Then he retrieved his force and walked to Ye Futian''s side.


    Yun Teng was like, "???"


    They�� dared not fight?


    He also saw through something and showed little surprise. This friend of Ye Futian''s was just a young man of Doctrine Plane, and he scared away old people of True Self Plane?


    They all ran away like that.


    Thinking about how Ye Futian killed people of the Celestial Sword Li Clan with one strike, he was somehow speechless. It seemed that these people from the Crimson Dragon Realm all had excessively strong combat power.


    If so, when Ye Futian told him not to intervene, Ye Futian was not teaching Yu Sheng a lesson. He was obviously�� bullying them.


    "What happened?" Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng and said. He didn''t know what to say; was it fun to bully them like that?


    "Their tone was too arrogant while they were too weak," said Yu Sheng. Ye Futian was speechless and didn''t need to ask anything. Although Yu Sheng hardly showed mercy in a fight, he knew when it was time to act properly. It must have been that someone offended him; otherwise, he would not have started the fight for no reason.


    "Have you met anyone else?" asked Ye Futian.


    "No, after the space was distorted, I fell outside the city, and then I directly entered the city," said Yu Sheng.


    "So our locations were not very far. After the space was distorted, others should land within Emperor Qi''s territory, too," said Ye Futian in a soft voice. "Sir, after a few days, we will go to the Imperial City with you."


    If all of them were in Emperor Qi''s territory, as he had speculated, he should be able to find some people in the Imperial City.


    "All right," said Yun Teng, nodding. After a few days, they will depart for the Imperial City.


    Not only them, but other warriors in Emperor Qi''s territory would also go, too.


    For many cultivators, the Palace Examination in Imperial City was a great opportunity.


    It was an opportunity that could even change their destiny.


    Soon, they returned to the Yun Residence. Knowing that Yu Sheng had come, Yun Qianyue came to visit. She stared him up and down curiously. From Yu Sheng, she could perceive a gust of invisible pressure. It was as if he had a peerless imposing attribute in his body. He was able to intimidate so many True Self Saints as a Doctrine Saint, which meant he must be a very unusual figure.


    But Yue Qianyue learned from her grandpa that Yu Sheng listened to Mr. Ye.


    Sir Ye was very mysterious to her. She had been cultivating under Ye Futian''s instruction for a few days and had made great improvements.


    He was always so gentle and well mannered, but so far, she had never seen through Sir Ye once. He was like the sea, like stars in the sky.


    "Sir Yu, I am glad to meet you," saluted Yun Qianyue, slightly bowing. Yu Sheng felt the form of address kind of weird, but he nodded a little bit.


    Yun Qianyue felt Yu Sheng was not very easygoing, so she just gave up and said to Ye Futian, "Sir, I have mentioned to my mother that I want to become your disciple and cultivate with you. My mother doesn''t mind. Can you take me as a disciple?"


    Seeing Yun Qianyue mention it again, Ye Futian forced a dry smile. Yun Qianyue''s talent was outstanding, and she was a good person, too. Ye Futian liked her amiable personality. He didn''t mind receiving a disciple if he were in Emperor Xia''s Realm, but due to the thing he was ready to do in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he was not able to let Yun Qianyue travel with him.


    There were so many people of Sage Plane in Thousand Leaves City that he didn''t take.


    He shook his head and said, "Qianyue, it''s not like I don''t want to take you on as a disciple. It''s just I have my own thing to do in Heavenly Mandate Realm, and I don''t want to take care of you."


    Yun Qianyue nodded. There was a disappointment in her eyes. She said, "The thing you want to do must be very difficult."


    Ye Futian nodded. He wanted to go to the Brahma''s Pure Sky to find his own roots; it couldn''t be easy.


    "If so, I will say yes to the Lord," Yun Qianyue said with a smile. "The Lord said he wanted to specially raise me and take me to the Palace Examination in the future. One day, maybe I will have the change to cultivate under Emperor Qi''s throne."


    Ye Futian nodded and said, "Your talent is very outstanding; that shouldn''t be a problem. In the future, you will definitely be able to cultivate with the Renhuang and learn teachings from him."


    "Maybe, you will become Renhuang, too," said Yun Qianyu, laughing. "I should go back. After a few days, I will go to the Imperial City with you."


    "Yes," Ye Futian said and nodded.


    After Yun Qianyue left, Yu Sheng looked toward Ye Futian and said, "She sincerely wanted you to become her master. Why don''t you take her on as your disciple?"


    "I must be responsible for her if I take her as my disciple. We will leave after a few days. Why do I let her miss me?" said Ye Futian. Yu Sheng didn''t say anything.


    During these days, everything looked quietly in the Yun Residence; the departure day was approaching.


    On this day, Ye Futian practiced a set of fist skills and just finished cultivation. Suddenly, he heard noises from outside.


    "What happens?" Ye Futian frowned. He looked into the distance and saw in the Yun Residence. There was light of thunder falling from the sky. It was as if a fight was about to break out.


    "Father, is this the way you treat me?" someone let out a furious roar, echoing in the Yun Residence.


    Ye Futian''s heart suddenly sank; it was Yun Teng''s voice.


    "Let''s go and see," said Ye Futian to Yu Sheng. They directly flashed there, where many people had gathered.


    Yun Teng and Yun Ni were standing in the crowd. Yun Nin looked grief-stricken. There was absolute despair and even hatred in that pair of eyes, which were staring at people of the Yun Clan.


    "Anything happen?" said Ye Futian to himself. He had a bad feeling about it.


    "Sending Qianyue away. It is for her future!" an old man said to Yun Teng and Yun Ni while looking at them. His manner was solemn and imposing; his voice was sonorous, like a large bell''s chime!

 1337 Heading to the Imperial City

    "For the future?" Yun Teng questioned.


    There was a coldness in Yun Teng''s eyes. He stared at his father, the lord of the Yun Clan.


    His father had promised to cultivate Qianxue before. He used to believe it was true and thought his father wanted to atone for Qianxue''s father''s death in this way.


    Obviously, he thought too much.


    Qianxue didn''t go to the Imperial City with them; she was sent away beforehand with many other outstanding ladies of the clan.


    But the person who picked them up was from the Zhong Clan of the Imperial City.


    How could Yun Teng not understand that the Yun Clan��his family��had sold Qianyue in exchange for the family interest?


    "So, you sent her to the Zhong Clan for the future?" The light of lightning exuded from Yun Teng''s body. He tried to control his fury and snarled in a low voice, "Qianyue is still young, but she has shown very unusual talent. The Clan has already been indebted to her because of her father''s death. Why do you still want to do this?"


    He was even reluctant to believe that it was a thing the Yun Clan of Luo City could do.


    They couldn''t be more cold-blooded.


    "It was Qianyue''s extraordinary talent that made the Zhong Clan pay attention to her. You are very clear about the Zhong Clan''s status. She will have a better future with them," continued Lord Yun.


    "Father, I can''t believe such brazen speech came out of your mouth," said Yun Teng, the light of thunder flowing around his body. "In Emperor Qi''s territory, everyone knows the cultivation method of the Zhong Clan. Zhong Qiu��the current successor of Zhong Clan��is notorious for his cultivation of Ultimate Will of Ice. He cultivated in the pure Yin power of the Will of Yin Yang, even via women''s bodies. People all tried to stay away from them. Only those shameless families send good women to the Zhong Clan as maids in order to seek connection with them. I didn''t expect that you, my father, also became one of them. It is so ridiculous."


    Being a maid was a subordinate job in the world of cultivation. Zhong Qiu of the Zhong Clan hadn''t married yet but had already had many maids to help him cultivate and gain fame.


    Such a way of cultivation should have been looked down upon, but the Zhong Clan had a lofty status in Heavenly Mandate Realm and never forced others, so powerful clans still often sent their women to the Zhong Clan. Yun Teng thought such a thing would be far away from them.


    Although he knew Yun Clan had been trying to establish a connection with the Zhong Clan, he didn''t expect they used such a despicable way.


    "Watch your mouth!" Lord Yun rebuked him. "The Zhong Clan cares for Qianyue''s talent. Zhong Qiu is the strongest warrior in Emperor Qi''s territory. If Qianyue stays with him, in the future, she might have the chance to marry Zhong Qiu. I have also asked them to treat Qianyue nicely. In the future, even if she can''t become his wife, as long as Qianyue performs well, it is not hard to become a mistress. I don''t know what''s wrong with it."


    "You want her to please others to become a mistress," said Yun Nin, tearing up, utterly broken-hearted, "just because her last name is not Yun?"


    "You are despicable, Yun Chong. It was your idea, right? Using my daughter to trade for your son''s future."


    She glanced at the people in the crowd, and finally, her crimson eyes fell upon Yun Chong and his son Yun Mo.


    Yun Mo was the most talented Saint-Plane man of this generation in the Yun Clan. All the Yun people had been resting their hopes on him, and since Lord Yun used her daughter to trade, the only possible reason was to help Yun Mo.


    "You, shut up."


    Yun Mo took an emotionless glance at Yun Ni and said coldly, "All people of the Yun Clan work for the benefit of the clan. You refused to hand the person over for your personal reasons and offended the Zuoqiu Clan, so you are supposed to be the one to pay for it. I got news from the Imperial City that the Celestial Sword Li Clan may seek connection with Zuoqiu Clan via marriage. You must know that only Zhong Clan is able to fight against the Zuoqiu Clan, and Zhong Qiu of the Zhong Clan is the only one comparable with that genius of the Zuoqiu Clan. You have made mistakes without regard to our clan interest once, and now it''s time for you to make a sacrifice. You are acting presumptuously here. I should warn you, don''t forget what your last name is."


    Ye Futian observed all that happened silently. He now understood everything.


    Yun Chong, who had been acting nicely, finally showed his true colors.


    For the clan interest?


    Of course, he was willing to sacrifice other people''s children instead of his own and even his child for the so-called clan.


    Was Qianyue taken to the Zhong Clan and traded like goods?


    As a maid.


    The status of a maid was inferior; she had to listen to every order of the master and belonged to the master physically and mentally.


    How dare he say it was for Qianyue?


    As Yun Teng had said, they were shameless.


    The crueler the cultivation land was, the more the people there worshipped self-interest.


    But he knew arguing was meaningless.


    The way of thinking was rooted in their veins. Despicable people wouldn''t think of themselves as despicable; they would believe what they thought was all true. Otherwise, they would not have reached their current cultivation plane while questioning themselves.


    "Sir, Ma''am, arguing with them is meaningless. Let''s go to the Imperial City," Ye Futian said to Yun Teng and Yun Ni.


    Qianyue was not sent away for a long time. They could still catch up with her if they hurried.


    "Do you have the right to speak here?"


    An arrogant voice came. Yun Chong''s son Yun Mo glanced at Ye Futian with coldness. "Don''t forget who caused the trouble."


    Yu Sheng saw Yun Mo act like this and released the imposing life force from his body. Ye Futian looked quite calm. Although he had the thought to kill, he was still trying to control his fury.


    The speaker was the so-called future of the Yun Clan; all things the Yun Clan had done were for him.


    "Qianyue has been cultivating with me, so she is like a half-disciple of mine. If anything happens to her, I will not let anyone of you go," Ye Futian said calmly, but there was a chill hidden under this calmness, which made one feel like the temperature had been lowered.


    The lord of the Yun Clan looked at him. At this moment, he seemed to be able to perceive a special disposition from this True-Self Plane young man. His disposition seemed to be the leadership of a person in a lofty position with disdain for the Yun Clan.


    He, as a Nirvana-Plane Saint, suddenly perceived a keen sense of threat from this young man.


    Yun Chong and Yun Mo took a glance at Ye Futian with surprise. There seemed to be some contempt in his glance. He would not let anyone go?


    Who did he think he was?


    Ye Futian took one step forward and said to Yun Teng and Yun Ni, "We''d better hurry up. Don''t waste time here."


    "Okay," Yun Teng nodded and said, trying to restrain his anger. He wanted to leave with Yun Ni. Someone blocked their way, but Lord Yun said, "Just let them go."


    He knew it was unfair to Yun Teng and Yun Ni, but as Yun Chong had said, once the Celestial Sword Li Clan had a connection with the Zuoqiu Clan through marriage, they who had a grudge with the Celestial Sword Li Clan would be in danger.


    They must get rid of this situation, and the only way they could find was to get close to the Zhong Clan.


    There must be a sacrifice for the clan.


    "We should depart, too," continued Lord Yun. Yun Teng was just an Unblemished Saint, and he was of Nirvana Plane. They would reach the Imperial City prior to Yun Teng, and they would inform the Zhong Clan beforehand.


    Yun Teng wouldn''t do anything bad, and he didn''t want anything happened to Yun Teng, either, since he was his heir.


    He could judge by Yun Teng''s cultivation Plane that Yun Teng couldn''t do anything big even if he reached the Imperial City.


    The large group of warriors of the Yun Clan started their journey. They drove their divine instruments instead of walking and drew a flash of lightning on the sky dome. They directly surpassed Yun Teng and others and headed into the distance.


    Yun Teng and others looked quite embarrassed. According to the plan, they were supposed to depart with other clan members and reach the Palace Examination on time.


    "Sir Yun, the date of the Palace Examination is approaching, right?" asked Ye Futian. His plan was also to keep up with the Yun Clan warriors.


    "Yes," nodded Yun Teng.


    "If so, the Zhong Clan will also prepare for the Palace Examination, and temporarily, Qianyue should be safe. Sir and Ma''am, you don''t need to worry too much," said Ye Futian.


    Even though Ye Futian said so, Yun Teng and Yun Shang didn''t look relaxed at all. How could they not worry about them?


    Even though nothing had happened, the situation was still��


    Even Yun Clan didn''t dare to provoke such a giant like Zhong Clan, not to mention them. Would it work even if they reached the Imperial City?


    But now they were not allowed to think that much; they could only go there first.


    "Qianyue is my half-disciple. I will handle it when we reach the Imperial City," continued Ye Futian. Both Yun Teng and Yun Shang looked at him. Ye Futian seemed to be serious, just like when he threatened Lord Yun. He looked very confident.


    "Okay," said Yun Shang, nodding. Qianyue trusted Mr. Ye; she even wanted to be his disciple and follow him to cultivate. Every time after cultivation, Qianyue often spoke highly of Mr. Ye in front of her.


    So, unconsciously, she also felt Ye Futian was a very unusual person.


    Now, since he said so, the hope was also growing in her heart.


    Or maybe, he had the chance to do it. It, at least, was a wisp of hope no matter how bleak it was.


    ��


    In Emperor Qi''s territory, in the solemn Imperial City, above the sky dome, warriors traveled in the air.


    Today, all the warriors within Emperor Qi''s territory gathered in the Imperial City and headed to the core of the city.


    It was the start date of the Palace Examination of Emperor Qi''s territory. The chosen ones would have the opportunity to cultivate with Emperor Qi and learn his teachings.


    Heavenly Mandate Realm was the Ultimate Renhuang Realm; it was also the one among the 3,000 Realms of the Great Law, who honored the martial spirit most. Here, everyone pursued the Law of Martial Arts. Such zeal spread across the endless realm.


    People from all directions would not miss this great event.


    Even then, many powers had already arrived beforehand.


    When the Palace Examination was about to start, Ye Futian and the other three had arrived. However, they didn''t directly head toward the place where the Palace Examination was held, but rather, they went to visit the Zhong Clan, with Yun Teng as the lead.


    Compared with the Palace Examination, they cared more about Yun Qianyue''s safety. As for the Palace Examination, they did not care for it.


    Their speed was extremely fast. They were so worried that something would happen to Yun Qianyue that they moved at the fastest pace.


    Finally, when the Palace Examination began, they had reached the Zhong Clan Residence in the Imperial City!

 1338 The So-called Genius

    Ye Futian they reached the Zhong Clan and were blocked by guards of the Residence.


    Ye Futian slightly nodded to Yun Teng and Yun Ni, then walked up to the front of the guards and said, "We are from the Yun Clan of Luo City. Before long, our lady Yun Qianyue came to your residence. This is her grandfather. This is her mother. Please pass the message that we came to visit her."


    The Zhong Clan and the Zuoqiu Clan had similar levels of power and owned four warriors of Nirvana Plane. Still, since the Palace Examination was held in the Imperial City, all people of Emperor Qi''s territory had headed toward the Imperial Palace, so the lord of Zhong Clan was not at home. If Yun Qianyue had been in the Zhong Clan, they would have taken her.


    The guard acted quite politely after hearing Ye Futian''s words. He slightly bowed and said, "Young Master Qiu has been taking Miss Qianyue with him since she reached the residence. They should be in the Palace Examination at the Imperial Palace. I can pass the message if you don''t mind waiting for them in the residence."


    "No need. Thanks," Ye Futian replied and turned around. Yun Teng and Yun Nin knew what he meant and followed him in another direction.


    Yun Nin looked quite pale. Was Qianyue chosen by Zhong Qiu just after she came?


    "Qianyue hasn''t stayed here for a long while, and the Palace Examination was after it. Nothing should have happened to her," said Ye Futian in a low voice. Yun Ni nodded. She had no choice but to think in this way, even though she was just trying to comfort herself.


    Although Ye Futian said he would handle this, was he really capable of saving Qianyue?


    Now, numerous high-level warriors were gathering in the Palace Examination. Even though four of them were all of Saint Plane, the situation was still too unfavorable to them.


    How could they rescue her?


    Four of them flashed toward the direction of the Imperial Palace.


    After a while, they came to the outside of the palace and could see the busy crowd scene in front of them from a distance. Cultivators scattered in all directions in this large space.


    The Palace Examination of the Imperial City was the largest event in Emperor Qi''s territory.


    Ye Futian wedged his way into the crowd. In front of him, there was an ancient golden road paved outside the Imperial Palace that headed toward a giant matrix plaza. Dazzling patterns were carved on its surface. There were warriors fighting over it.


    The other three sides were grandstands, where many warriors were watching the battle. The most powerful family clans of Emperor Qi''s territory were sitting at the forefront.


    At this moment, the crowd bustled. Many warriors exclaimed.


    Ye Futian followed the noise and looked toward that side. He saw a figure standing on the grandstand with hands behind his back. His disposition was outstanding.


    "No doubt, Zuoqiu Yan is one of the most peerless figures in the territory. Among all his peers, only Zhong Qiu can compete with him," many people remarked. Ye Futian heard people''s praise and looked at the unusual young man on the grandstand. His clothes were blowing in the wind.


    "He is Zuoqiu Yan. When people in the clan talk about the political marriage between the Zuoqiu Clan and the Celestial Sword Li Chan, they are referring to Zuoqiu Yan and Li Ruoshuang. He is one of the most outstanding warriors of this generation in Emperor Qi''s territory," Yun Teng said to Ye Futian while pushing his way forward. He had been anxiously looking toward the seats of honor in front of the grandstand, seeking something.


    Soon, Yun Teng found where the Zhong Clan warriors were. His pupils slightly contracted; that familiar figure was there.


    "Qianyue."


    Yun Teng directly ignored the peerless person on the grandstand and fixed his eyes on the graceful figure��Yun Qianyue.


    "Qianyue��" Yun Shang saw her, too.


    Ye Futian looked quite calm when seeing Yun Qianyue. She stood there quietly. Beside her, there were countless powerful warriors. A handsome young man with fair skin sat in front of her. His skin was mesmerizingly fair, even fairer than women''s. He was quite feminine looking. He was watching the battlefield. A slight chill exuded from his cold, calm eyes.


    He should be Zhong Qiu of the Zhong Clan, and his unique temperament should be related to his cultivation.


    "Ma''am, I think Qianyue is fine," Ye Futian called her when he saw Yun Ni was heading there. Yun Nin turned her head and looked at him.


    "Now, Qianyue is there. Temporarily, nothing will happen to her," continued Ye Futian. Yun Ni paused a second and nodded. Of course, she knew, but seeing her daughter there, she didn''t have the heart to leave her there.


    "Sir, what should we do?" asked Yun Ni.


    Ye Futian was absorbed in thinking, and when he took a glance and noticed one person, he suddenly paused for a while.


    In front of him, some warriors sat in the row of seats of honor, and next to a young man sat a familiar person.


    "You are here, too," the whisper came to Ye Futian''s ears. A smile immediately cracked on Ye Futian''s face. He replied from a distance, "Master, how did you get here?"


    So the person who was sitting there was his master��Qi Xuangang.


    "After the ancient path of space was destroyed, we were separated. Thinking that it must be hard to find everyone, I directly came to the Imperial City and entered the Imperial Palace, so it would be much easier to meet any of you. Your Brother is here, too," said Qi Xuangang, smiling. Ye Futian looked up and found Mu Chunyang and L�� Chuan behind Master.


    Mu Chuanyang and L�� Chuan had been following Master for many years and knew Master much better than he did; they also took action very quickly, so they met Master faster than Ye Futian.


    "Wu Yong arrived yesterday. He was on your left," said Qi Xuangang. Ye Futian looked toward the left and saw Wu Yong shoving his way forward in the crowd. He said, "Lord Ye."


    "Is anyone else here?" asked Ye Futian.


    "We don''t know yet. But since today is the date of Palace Examination in Emperor Qi''s territory, those who have received the information should know it is a good chance to meet," said Wu Yong.


    "Yes."


    Ye Futian felt relieved. He asked Yun Teng, who was next to him, "Are the people in front of us royal members?"


    "Yes," Yun Teng nodded and replied. "Emperor Qi''s princes and princesses have all attended the event in person. Emperor Qi might show up, too. The people behind princes are all revered figures from the Imperial Palace."


    Ye Futian was finally relieved. Before, he was worried about how to get rid of all this safely, but now he didn''t need to worry at all.


    Master was there��at the apex of Nirvana Plane, nearly invincible. Wherever he went, he was treated as the guest of honor even though it was in Emperor Qi''s Imperial Palace.


    Sitting next to the prince, he could easily notice almost everyone. It was indeed a smart idea.


    "Sir, just set your mind at ease. Many companions of mind from the Crimson Dragon Realm have arrived. Nothing will happen to Qianyue," said Ye Futian to Yun Teng.


    Yun Teng paused. He knew Ye Futian was from the Crimson Dragon Realm, and he came with the prince of Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Did it mean the royal warriors of Crimson Dragon Realm had come?


    This thought gave him a wisp of hope. Ye Futian''s words made him have faith again.


    Ye Futian didn''t take action immediately, but rather, he quietly observed everything in the crowd.


    The Palace Examination was held by the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan. The Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan would also be in charge of deciding who to choose. All powers coordinated with each other, and finally, the most talented Saint-Plane figures in Emperor Qi''s territory would gather in this Palace Examination and fight each other, showing themselves to the public.


    Finally, the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan would make the decision of who would be summoned by Emperor Qi in person.


    That was why a huge political power was formed with Zuoqiu Clan and Zhong Clan as the center, and these two clans stood on the top throughout Emperor Qi''s territory.


    All the cultivators had thoroughly prepared and performed well during the combat in the Palace Examination. Of course, nobody could surpass Zuoqiu Yan of the Zuoqiu Clan and Zhong Qiu of the Zhong Clan. From time to time, one could hear the audience''s praise to them from the grandstand.


    Many people worshipped these two people''s talent and regarded them as the goal. However, many also knew that even if they didn''t attend the Palace Examination, they would still become Emperor Qi''s disciple and learn his teachings. Thus, they still should show their abilities during the Palace Examination.


    Ye Futian delivered voice to Qi Xuangang and made some inquiries.


    At this moment, next to Qi Xuangang, the prince Qi You asked him, "Sir, what do you think of the warriors that attended the Palace Examination today?"


    He showed great respect to him. The first day he met Qi Xuangang in the Imperial Palace, the prince was impressed by his cultivation knowledge and his temperament. Since his last name was also Qi, the prince invited him to be one of his teachers. Qi Xuangang had promised to give guidance to him, but he also said he wouldn''t stay for long.


    "Their performances were passable," said Qi Xuangang. "But they are not strong."


    "What kind of person do you mean, Sir?" asked the Prince of Qi.


    "It is hard to tell, but you will understand it soon, Your Highness," replied Qi Xuangang.


    "I can tell your standards are very high. I have a rough idea of what you mean, but I don''t know if I have a chance to see one here," said the Prince of Qi, laughing.


    "Mr. Qi''s standard is so high that nobody in the Palace Examination can meet it. I am inquisitive as to what kind of person you are talking about," the lord of Zuoqiu Clan said slowly after hearing the dialogue between Qi Xuangang and the prince.


    The lord was the man standing on the peak of Emperor Qi''s territory; Zuoqiu Yan was also one of the most talented warriors among all clans.


    However, after arrival, Qi Xuangang was esteemed by the Emperor and beloved by princes. The lord of the Zuoqiu Clan had been curious how powerful this Emperor''s guest of honor was.


    Qi Xuangang made it sound like no one in the Palace Examination could meet his standard for a strong warrior.


    "You might have the chance to meet it one today," said Qi Xuangang.


    "Really?" said the Prince, laughing. "If so, I am looking forward to it. The Palace Examination is near its end. Is there still any talented person who has yet come to the stage?"


    After speaking, he looked up into the distance. After several battles, the participants of the Palace Examination all came out.


    The last two warriors showed up. One of them was Yun Mo from the Yun Clan of Luo City. Seeing him, warriors of the Yun Clan all got quite excited.


    The chance was here; they all hoped Yun Mo would not disappoint them.


    Yun Mo indeed tried his best for this battle. He perfectly displayed all his abilities and won over the opponent with a marvelous performance.


    After the battle, a tinge of smile was seen on his smile. He looked toward where warriors of the Yun Clan were.


    A soft wind blew across his face. He was standing there, one step further toward his goal.


    "Good," a warrior of the Zhong Clan commented. He walked to the prince and asked, "Your Highness, what do you think of all the participants of the Palace Examination today?"


    Prince Qi took a look at Qi Xuangang and turned to the huge crowd around him, "What do you think?"


    "Our Emperor Qi''s territory indeed has countless talents," someone said. Other people also echoed and gave praise.


    "Are these the so-called talents specially selected from everywhere of Emperor Qi''s territory to attend the Palace Examination?" suddenly, a voice came from the crowd. It was not loud, but it was very clear. It came into everyone''s ears, and all of a sudden, the noisy crowd quieted down.


    Very soon, the place fell silent!

 1339 Being Aggressive

    Was he jeering at the Palace Examination attendees'' abilities?


    Was he turning his nose up at all these elites of Emperor Qi''s territory?


    Numerous pairs of eyes roamed over the crowd, seeking who the speaker was, and soon, people fixed their eyes on one person.


    The young man with silver hair strode forward. He was the only one walking in the crowd and looked very conspicuous.


    Not to mention others, after hearing this, even Yun Teng and Yun Ni, who were standing beside Ye Futian, had strange looks on their faces.


    Wasn''t Ye Futian the person who told them to stay calm and be low-profile?


    He told them to cool down, but now, he came on to the stage in this way.


    All of a sudden, he attracted the attention of everybody, including the big figures of Emperor Qi''s territory.


    Yu Sheng closely went behind Ye Futian. Seeing the scene, Yun Teng and Yun Ni had to brace themselves to catch up with them. Wu Yong quietly followed them at a distance.


    Before people came to realize it, Ye Futian had taken a step and had strode over to the fighting platform of the Palace Examination right under their gazes.


    "Sir Ye," Yun Qianyue murmured to herself. She was standing on the side of warriors of the Zhong Clan. Watching the man with silver hair step on the high platform, she felt disquieted. When she was forcibly sent to the Zhong Clan by her clan, she thought she had been resigned to fate; her father''s death had already totally broken her heart.


    She chose to give up herself; she had decided to become a stronger person at all costs until one day, she could get revenge for herself.


    However, when she had already made the decision, that gentle and handsome figure showed up again.


    It was just that in contrast with his usual mild appearance, at this moment, he looked more unruly, with a pair of sharper eyes.


    Was this his true color?


    But in the situation like today, if he came for her, he was risking his life.


    "Do you know him?" seeing Yun Qianyue was distracted, Zhong Qiu slowly asked her. His tone was just like him, with a kind of coldness that made one shiver.


    Yun Qianyue could sense the malice in his tone, so she said, "Sir Ye is just a guest in my family. This is not his business."


    Zhong Qiu didn''t say anything. How dare a guest in the family jeer at the people in the Palace Examination?


    "Where are you from? Who allowed you to step on the fighting platform?" the host of the Palace Examination from the Zuoqiu Clan yelled. He stepped out and stood above the void sky, scolding him for what he was doing.


    He looked quite imposing; the might was released from his body and fell upon Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s white clothes were blowing in the wind, his feet firmly planted on the ground. He took a glance at him coldly, then looked ahead to the crowd and said, "If His Highness asks me what I think about the Palace Examination, I would say the Palace Examination this time includes people who sold girls in their clan in exchange for the vacancies, people who endured ill-treatment to get a chance to enter the exam, people who cultivated through the flesh of women. How can you tell me these people are the most talented ones in Emperor Qi''s territory?"


    Ye Futian''s words immediately raised an uproar. People all started talking, and the vast space was suddenly full of noise.


    There was someone who dared to point out the shady deals behind the Palace Examination.


    Everyone was clear that these things could not be put on the table. Every year, there were indeed a lot of shady deals behind the talent selection process; many people used all means possible to get the chance to approach Emperor Qi and learn from him.


    No matter what, even though there were many dirty deals behind the scenes, the final chosen ones were still outstanding. The Palace Examination was still a big event, and normal people wouldn''t care about what happened off stage.


    Since anyone who spoke the truth would not simply offend one or two powers, it was equal to bringing about their destruction.


    Not to mention that absolute equality never existed on earth. There was order in the world, but there was always a shadow behind the sun.


    All this was covered up nicely.


    Was Emperor Qi really unaware of it?


    He would not ask about all these things, and he didn''t have the time to do it unless he didn''t cultivate and focused on these trivial things every day. For many people, it was a big event that might affect their fortune, but for Emperor Qi, it was just one thing that happened for one day in his life.


    Warriors of the Yun Clan all looked sullen. Yun Mo was just one step away from the goal, but now Ye Futian came out and caused trouble again.


    In addition to them, Li Ruoshuang of the Celestial Sword Li Clan and warriors of the Zuoqiu Clan and Zhong Clan also put on surly faces and stared at Ye Futian coldly.


    As everyone had speculated, Ye Futian offended everyone with just a few words.


    It was basically equal to seeking death.


    "Unscrupulous!" The warrior of the Zuoqiu Clan stepped down. His intimidating life force crushed Ye Futian''s body.


    Ye Futian raised his head and took a glance at him. Prince Qi You ordered, "Back off!"


    The lord of the Zuoqiu Clan took a look at Qi You. Just now, Qi Xuangang seemed to have said something to him.


    Qi You looked at Ye Futian; he somehow roused his interest. Before, Sir Qi said he might have the chance to see one.


    Did he mean this person?


    The warrior of the Zuoqiu Clan had to withdraw. Ye Futian took one more step forward. His eyes fell on Yun Mo and said, "Yun Mo, from the Yun Clan of Luo City. In order to create the chance for him to attend the Palace Examination and seek connections with larger powers, his clan sent a lady to the larger clan to serve as their servant, and that is why he could stand on the stage of the Palace Examination and enjoy others'' worship."


    "Do you think he deserves to stand here?" asked Ye Futian.


    Yun Mo''s face now looked extremely sullen. He was the most outstanding one among this generation of the Yun Clan, which was why the clan paid the expensive price for him to study beneath Emperor Qi''s throne.


    Now, when he was almost approaching his goal, Ye Futian came out and brought the thing to light.


    He just felt his face was burning under peoples'' gazes. Those pairs of eyes were so piercing.


    "It is the right of our clan to decide where to send our ladies for cultivation. I don''t know why it sounds so jarring, coming out of your mouth. I have stepped on the fighting platform and proved that I could attend the Palace Examination. Still, in your eyes, the Palace Examination of Emperor Qi''s territory is nothing but a deal?" Yun Mo, step-by-step, approached Ye Futian and questioned him. The light of thunder was shining in the sky, devouring the void air. The scene was appalling.


    "Not to mention that you escaped death under the protection of my clan, but you are not grateful and are trying to tarnish our name here. How should we deal with you?"


    Yun Mo''s voice was extremely intimidating. The horrifying Thunder Might of the Great Law fell and grew stronger and stronger.


    "I have taken Yun Qianyue of the Yun Clan as my disciple," said Ye Futian. "Without the order of her parents, the order of her grandfather, the order of her teacher, the Yun Clan doesn''t have the right to arrange her destiny. I demand the Yun Clan retrieve the order and send Qianyue back."


    "You don''t deserve it!" Yun Mo''s tone was still aggressive.


    Ye Futian looked in the direction of the Yun Clan and saw Yun Chong and other peoples'' cold faces. Their stares toward Ye Futian was full of desire to kill him. They didn''t repent for what they had done at all.


    As if for them, Yun Mo''s future was more important than anything else; Yun Qianyue''s future deserved to be sacrificed for the family''s interest.


    Because they all thought from their standpoints.


    If that was the case��


    Ye Futian looked toward Qi You''s direction. He slightly bowed and said, "Your Highness, my apologies for disturbing you. It''s just my disciple was forcibly taken away from home. Am I allowed to bring justice for her?"


    "As you like," said Qi You quite relaxingly, as if he didn''t mind Ye Futian causing an uproar.


    As long as he had the ability.


    "Thank you, Your Highness." He cupped his hands as a salute. His words were quite pushy, but he had very good manners.


    "You want to fight me, eh?" asked Yun Mo. He took one more step ahead. His cultivation level was comparable with Ye Futian''s.


    Ye Futian took a glance at Yun Mo coldly and said, "You don''t deserve it!"


    Seeing Ye Futian''s disdainful look, Yun Mo turned sullen. A loud boom came out, and suddenly, the killing will swept across the world.


    He was the strongest warrior of this generation in the Yun Clan, and he didn''t deserve it?


    Boom!


    The loud boom made people''s hearts thump rapidly. A figure rushed out from Ye Futian''s behind; it was Yu Sheng.


    The fighting platform trembled as if it was about to break. Yu Sheng came in front of Yun Mo with a few strides.


    Seeing him coming, Yun Mo held out one palm, and suddenly, all the Great Law of Thunder between the sky and earth converged in his palm. Innumerable divine thunder fell and bombed toward Yu Sheng''s body.


    However, Yu Sheng seemed to be covered with the armor of the demonic law. The thunder fell and circled above his body. It was as if they were slowly being devoured.


    A Doctrine Saint dared to ignore the Might of a True Self Saint? many people thought to themselves and looked stunned. How could his human body be so strong?


    Yun Mo looked sullen. The appalling Might of Thunder converged on the center of his palm, devouring the light of destruction.


    "Boom!" Lightning flashed across the sky dome at an unbelievably fast pace.


    Suddenly, the thunder in his palm exploded and darted forward. All of a sudden, the lightning illuminated the sky.


    Yu Sheng raised one arm. Suddenly, tens of thousands of demonic deities showed up. He drew out a demonic palmprint which suppressed the eternal land and sealed the sky.


    They two collided with each other at a short distance. The appalling loud sound resonated between the sky and earth, making peoples'' eardrums tremble.


    Bam!


    Another loud boom. Their bodies were separated. Yu Sheng stood up firmly. The demonic armor on his body seemed to be smashed by the thunder, and his sleeves were also torn.


    However, Yun Mo''s body was blown away. Even though his attack was powerful enough, his defense was not that strong, and he was unable to bear such an intimidating strike.


    He was not able to kill Yu Sheng with one strike, and his arm had been sprained.


    Yu Sheng again took a step forward harshly and grasped Yun Mo''s sprained arm. Yun Mo''s body was lying in the air. Yu Sheng grasped his arm and lifted Yun Mo''s body.


    Numerous pairs of eyes froze there.


    "Yun Mo!" yelled Yun Chong. He rushed to the battlefield, fast like lightning.


    At the same time, a figure in white rushed out and thrust out the Halberd of Time and Space with the aura of all stars, blocking Yun Chong''s way.


    "Go away!" bellowed Yun Chong. The Might of thunder fell, trying to destroy Ye Futian''s body, but the halberd pierced into the sky. It broke everything and rushed to his front, halting his body. Their bodies collided.


    Over the high platform, Yu Sheng''s fist smashed down. After a shriek, Yun Mo''s body fell down feebly!

 1340 Get Ou

    "Boom!" After a loud boom, Yun Mo''s bones were smashed into pieces; lying there dead, he was not able to exert strength at all.


    He couldn''t damage Yu Sheng''s defense, but just with one strike, Yu Sheng''s attack destroyed his defenses and vanquished him most forcefully.


    This Doctrine Saint forcibly won over Yun Mo of the True Self Plane!


    Did the battle prove the real strength of a person who attended the Palace Examination?


    People thought of Ye Futian''s jeer before the fight and felt it even more jarring.


    On the other side, a collision also happened between Ye Futian and Yun Chong under the gazes of numerous pairs of eyes in shock.


    Yun Chong, as an Unblemished Saint, was shaken back to the place where warriors of the Yun Clan gathered.


    He was an Unblemished Saint of the third level in the Saint Plane.


    Ye Futian, with silver hair, stood there imposingly with the Halberd of Time and Space in hand, his white clothes blowing in the wind; his temperament was outstanding.


    As if he could defend the attacks from tens of thousands of men.


    Yun Mo didn''t deserve fighting with him.


    Even his father, Yun Chong, of the Unblemished Saint, was shaken away; how could Yun Mo fight with Ye Futian?


    "You sold my disciple in exchange for your son''s future," Ye Futian shouted in a cold and intimidating voice, solemnly raising the halberd to the sky.


    "Do you deserve her?"


    Ye Futian''s voice was like a slap on the faces of all warriors from the Yun Clan.


    They sent Ye Futian''s disciple to serve as a servant in exchange for Yun Mo''s future, but ironically, Yun Mo couldn''t bear even one blow.


    Besides, Ye Futian''s disciple herself was a lady of the Yun Clan, which made Yun Clan look even more despicable and useless.


    The scene that just happened indeed put warriors of the Yun Clan to shame; they couldn''t be more embarrassed.


    They claimed Yun Mo was the genius, the strongest warrior of this generation of Yun Clan and even traded a clan lady in exchange for a chance to better cultivate Yun Mo.


    But at this moment, Ye Futian slapped on their faces, in front of the whole world.


    Besides, nobody had expected Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to be this powerful.


    "A person like him doesn''t deserve cultivating. If he studied under Emperor Qi, that would be a disgrace to His Majesty," said Ye Futian, "he should be deprived of his cultivation."


    "You are too presumptuous!" The Lord of the Yun Clan yelled and took one step out. The terrifying Nirvana-Plane life force enveloped toward Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian could perceive the Nirvana life force. He pointed the Halberd of Time and Space toward him; at the same time, a person jumped into the air from the crowd. It was Wu Yong who showed up, the life force of the same Nirvana Plane released from his body.


    "Do you want me to exterminate your whole clan?" Ye Futian spat out these cold words; the Halberd of Time and Space swallowing and emitting horrifying light.


    His voice made all warriors of the Yun Clan shiver.


    It was not only aiming at Yun Mo.


    Just one sentence, "do you want to exterminate your whole clan?"


    How aggressive.


    As if he could use one sentence to decide the life and death of Yun Clan of Luo City, exterminating the whole clan.


    While a Nirvana Saint was just standing next to him.


    Ye Futian didn''t even say anything, and he directly showed up, as if he had been guarding nearby.


    They all had to guess Ye Futian''s real identity; he was accompanied by a Nirvana-Plane figure.


    They even began to feel funny that they used to think Ye Futian needed their protection. Had he been faking?


    Ye Futian directly stunned all warriors of the Yun Clan with one sentence; even the Nirvana-Plane lord of the Yun Clan perceived an invisible pressure from him.


    No wonder he once absentmindedly felt Ye Futian was a gallant figure in a high position.


    Now it looked like his feeling was right; it was not an illusion.


    "He is an outsider, he had no right to intervene affairs of the Yun Clan," Yun Chong shouted, noticing the lord had the intention of quitting.


    It was not because he had the courage; just because his son Yun Mo was in Yu Sheng''s hands and could be hurt at any time, no wonder he felt anxious.


    After the words, he turned around toward another direction. Yu Sheng''s arm smashed down again; Yun Mo let out a shriek full of agony, and soon Yu Sheng threw him to the people of the Yun Clan.


    "Remember what you said, for the family," Ye Futian reminded Yun Chong with his back to him.


    Didn''t it sound great?


    Being great while sacrificing others, how gross it was.


    People''s eyes all fell upon Ye Futian. Today was the day of the Palace Examination, a big event in Emperor Qi''s territory.


    However, at this moment, it seemed that Ye Futian was the only hero of this Palace Examination.


    But since Prince Qi You asked Ye Futian to take charge of this, other people would not intervene.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was heading forward. He took a glance at Li Ruoshuang from the Celestial Sword Li Clan and said, "Li Ruoshuang from the Celestial Sword Li Clan claimed to kill me and threaten to capture me from the Yun Clan. Celestial Sword Li Clan, it is up to you."


    He even didn''t pause his steps while walking, as if he had never kept Li Ruoshuang in mind.


    But Li Ruoshuang had tried to kill him twice, undermining the Yun Clan with the power of Zuoqiu Clan, threatened to capture him and found a connection with the Zuoqiu Clan.


    Her ambition was accomplished by treading on others.


    Then it could only be destroyed. As for her talent and her aloofness, Ye Futian was not interested at all.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s cold words, Li Ruoshuang turned sullen. Was he threatening the Celestial Sword Li Clan?


    Just in one sentence?


    Too presumptuous, as if he didn''t give a shit about all the talents in the Palace Examination.


    The Zuoqiu Clan was the one that the Celestial Sword Li Clan hung on, and today, Ye Futian seemed to be ready to offend both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan.


    "The Palace Examination has been going on for many years. I''ve never before seen a person as presumptuous as you," a voice came at this moment. People were slightly stirred when they saw the speaker, Zuoqiu Yan.


    The young man was the most outstanding man of the Emperor Qi''s territory, the joint strongest warrior, along with Zhong Qiu in this Palace Examination.


    They were also respectively the Zuoqiu Clan''s future and the Zhong Clan''s future.


    Zuoqiu Yan stared at Ye Futian. Not to mention Ye Futian claimed that the Emperor Qi''s territory had no strong warriors, Li Ruoshuang was the woman chosen by the Zuoqiu Clan, and if nothing wrong happened, she would become his wife.


    How dare Ye Futian threaten the Celestial Sword Li Clan to treat Li Ruoshuang just with a few words?


    Ye Futian took an emotionless glance at him and ignored him, kept walking toward another direction, the direction where warriors of the Zhong Clan were.


    The Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan were the joint highest powers in Emperor Qi''s territory.


    Ye Futian stood in front of warriors of the Zhong Clan. He looked at that elegant figure behind Zhong Qiu and said, "Qianyue, come back."


    Yun Qianyue looked at that man in white, her eyes wet.


    She had already lost hope, but she didn''t expect that man would show up today in such an imposing manner, in front of the world, to seek justice for her.


    But suddenly, Yun Qianyue perceived a slight pressure; in front of her, a slight Cold Will was slowly being released from Zhong Qiu''s body. The coldness infused into her bones and veins steadily and made her unable to move.


    She was still young, just of Sage Plane; Zhong Qiu could easily control her with a wisp of Will.


    Zhong Qiu didn''t turn his head to her; he fixed his stare on Ye Futian and said, "she belongs to the Zhong Clan now."


    He doesn''t care what Ye Futian was; here was Emperor Qi''s territory.


    The Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan had prospered in Emperor Qi''s territory for many years. The Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan were at their apex within this territory.


    Ye Futian just came here and disdained everyone, ignoring all the existing rules.


    What he said was too demeaning to the Zhong Clan; the reputation of the Zhong Clan could even be ruined.


    The Yun Clan of the Luo City volunteered to send the girl to the Zhong Clan Residence, but now he used it as evidence of the Zhong Clan''s ill repute.


    Ye Futian heard Zhong Qiu''s words and saw him look straight at him, but he didn''t pause his steps.


    Numerous pairs of eyes fell on him. In front of him was Zhong Clan, the strongest power of Emperor Qi''s territory, the clan which stood shoulder to shoulder with the Zhong Clan.


    Was he ready to directly confront them?


    But so far, people still had no idea what the cards in his hand looked like. Even if he was able to win over Zhong Qiu, how could he get rid of the situation safety since he had offended everybody?


    "Belong to Zhong Clan? Who decided her destiny?" Ye Futian looked at Zhong Qiu and asked. "The old codgers in Yun Clan, or you?"


    "No need to tell you," said Zhong Qiu.


    Ye Futian laughed after hearing Zhong Qiu''s words. He took back the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand and said, "is he the strongest warrior in the Palace Examination?"


    Ye Futian''s silver hair was flying; the wind rose on the fighting platform, and his clothes were blowing. He looked at Zhong Qiu and said, "I heard you cultivate with women''s bodies as your cauldron? Your cultivation method is filthy; your way of doing things is filthy, too. I don''t know how your ability is, but from your conduct, I know you don''t deserve to be a Saint. Ironically, you are peerless in the Palace Examination."


    He turned around when he talked and took a few steps back. When people were confused by what he was doing, he again turned around, looked at Zhong Qiu and said, "to deal with a cultivator like you, one strike should be enough."


    The crowd again went dead silent. Ye Futian stood still with hands behind back and said to Zhong Qiu, "Get out!"

 1341 One Hi

    One hit was all it had taken.


    Everyone was speechless. If Ye Futian had been the one saying that to the others, it probably would not have left much of an impact.


    However, the one he was facing was Zhong Qiu, the most extraordinary of saints to be found in Emperor Qi''s Territory. He was also the future leading figure of the Zhong Clan.


    Zhong Qiu had exhibited extremely terrifying combat prowess back at the Palace Examination. Every single one who was of his plane had been overwhelmed when they had fought him.


    In Emperor Qi''s territory, both Zuoqiu Yan and Zhong Yan were like nearly unconquerable mountains.


    However, that man who had just come had told Zhong Qiu to get out there in a very uncouth manner.


    Eerie, hostile intent was gradually sensed being sent in Ye Futian''s direction. Those from the Zhong Clan sported cold expressions. There was hardly any expression seen on the pale face of Zhong Qiu, but his eyes would have sent bone-chilling cold to anyone looking at them.


    Get out there?


    One hit would suffice?


    No one had dared to say anything like that to him before.


    Just who did he think he was?


    A chuckle was heard all of a sudden. There seemed to be hints of ridicule within, but that person did not say anything. Many saw that the one who had chuckled sarcastically was none other than Zuoqiu Yan.


    While Zhong Qiu was indeed his rival, the other man was nonetheless just as renowned as he was. Despite their rivalry, he acknowledged what Zhong Qiu was capable of.


    Ye Futian had disrespected both him and Zhong Qiu one after another, and that could no longer have been described as brash and insolent alone.


    Ye Futian looked at him, and Zuoqiu Yan responded in kind, returning his gaze plainly.


    "If you''re interested in trying your hand as well, you''re welcome to." Ye Futian''s words caused the plain smile on Zuoqiu Yan''s lips to gradually disappear.


    "Big talk indeed. What happens if you can''t pull off what you claimed you''d be able to pull off then?" Zuoqiu Yan''s face turned increasingly glum. The prince, Qi You, did not interfere. It was easy to tell that the prince intended to see how capable they were as well. If they were unable to put Ye Futian in his place, the prince would also see it and think they were incompetent.


    However, both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan were top-notch forces found in Emperor Qi''s territory, and that day was the day of the Palace Examination. Ye Futian had essentially stolen their thunder by behaving in such an uncouth manner.


    If he was unable to do what he claimed, then...


    "Death, of course," a mighty one from the Zuoqiu Clan said. The one who''d said so was none other than that mighty one who had walked with Li Ruoshuang back then. His tone was cold, eerie, and full of killing intent.


    "You''ll only have one chance at this," Zhong Qiu said at the same time. He gradually rose and walked towards Ye Futian.


    He would not have minded fighting Ye Futian just to see what enabled that man to be so insolent.


    However, Ye Futian had provoked him to do battle in such an insulting manner.


    If he dared to be that presumptuous, then he would only give that man a single chance.


    "One hit. If you''re unable to do so, you die." Zhong Qiu rose and walked towards Ye Futian. Every step he took caused the place around him to turn increasingly cold. The eerie coldness seemed to slow the senses of everyone around him.


    The will of the great path seeped into Ye Futian''s body, affecting his blood flow. It even began to slow his senses, as if the great path in his surroundings had actually begun to slow down.


    The will of the great path affected the senses of others, making it seem like he was the only one left in that space.


    "Sir Ye." Yun Qianyue''s face turned pale. Ye Futian sought justice for her, and she was naturally grateful and touched because of that.


    However, she knew well just how powerful both Zuoqiu Yan and Zhong Qiu were. She had witnessed Zhong Qiu''s battle not long ago.


    While she indeed believed in Ye Futian''s powers, she was unable to fathom whether it was possible to unleash just a single hit and end it all.


    There were just too many variables at work with that one hit. Unless the difference in powers was overwhelmingly great, ending it all with just a single hit would not be possible.


    Furthermore, from the way the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan behaved, they did not intend to fight Ye Futian fair and square. If that one hit did not work, they would really move out and kill Ye Futian, showing no mercy whatsoever.


    If Ye Futian really failed to do what he said he was capable of and both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan were out to kill him, the prince would still probably keep his hands to himself.


    The mighty one of the Zhong Clan shot a cold glance at Yun Qianyue. His eyes seemed to have a faint hint of coldness in them, causing her to shiver all over.


    She was able to sense clearly the killing intent within the eyes of the mighty one from the Zhong Clan. Those people really sought to kill Ye Futian for what he had done.


    Ye Futian had truly offended the two greatest forces in Emperor Qi''s territory.


    She looked at Ye Futian, who appeared totally unfazed despite being under tremendous pressure from those two top-notch forces. His eyes remained the same, and he, standing proud, seemed to be saying that he was confident to take on whatever changes were to come.


    The will of the great path of Entropy was unleashed. That formless, eerily cold power was shattered right away.


    The battle between saints was done in the face of the might of the great path.


    The way of Entropy was unbelievably overbearing. Despite that the attacks that Zhong Qiu practiced were extremely cold and the coldness was everywhere, they remained incapable of invading his body.


    Ye Futian extended his hand, and stars were conjured all over the place, making it look like the place had been turned into a world of stars. A great many constellations appeared all of a sudden in the sky above.


    The light of constellations orbited with Ye Futian at the center, seemingly moving with a mystical tune, and a raging might shrouded the place.


    A halberd of the great path appeared on Ye Futian''s palm. The boundless light of the stars coursed, and that weapon pulsed with frightening powers within an instant, seemingly capable of breaking and subduing everything it touched.


    The light pulsing on the weapon alone made Zhong Qiu sense tremendous pressure.


    His eyes turned severe, and he burst with coldness all over him, which was then conjured into a storm of cold. Cold, eerie currents swept at Ye Futian''s body. The method he trained in was on the extreme yin side of the spectrum of yin and yang, capable of killing without alerting the target.


    Boom��the stars all over the sky seemed to burst into flames right at that very instant. The devastating halberd of the great path lit up with true flames of the sun, with extremely overbearing will of the great path bursting through it, as if it were out to overpower Zhong Qiu''s eerie cold.


    If Zhong Qiu took the path of extreme yin and extreme cold, then Ye Futian sought to respond by bringing the power of extreme yang and extreme heat to bear.


    Boom��Zhong Qiu''s Life Spirit appeared, which was a Black Turtle sacred beast. That terrifying will of the great path coalesced into solid currents with him at the center, circling around him ,and every single current caused any place they passed to turn completely dead.


    When that many currents were coursing about at the same time, the scene was nothing short of harrowing.


    At that moment, Ye Futian stepped forward, and their surroundings shook violently.


    Zhong Qiu''s heart seemed to shake alongside Ye Futian''s steps.


    "Even one hit would be too much for the likes of you." Ye Futian walked towards Zhong Qiu, zipping past the space within an instant.


    The pressure that Xing Kai had put on him had been stronger than what Zhong Qiu, at the moment, was able to muster. Ye Futian had still been a Proving Holiness saint back then, and now, he was already a Saint of True Self.


    There was no way Zhong Qiu could have won against him.


    The stars above the sky orbited at that very moment where Ye Futian walked. The light of the constellation of the great path rained down at the same time, crushing everything around him, and he charged, making it seem like the light of ancient symbols was raining down on Zhong Qiu.


    At that moment, Zhong Qiu felt as if he were caught in the world of stars. Every single beam of light of the great path shot at him, like a star coming down on him.


    Countless stars rained down as they burned with true flames of the sun, making them capable of razing everything they hit.


    His expression finally changed. When Ye Futian truly brought his might to bear, Zhong Qiu finally realized just how terrifying things could have been. That pale face of his seemed to turn even paler. Countless currents rushed at Ye Futian in a frenzy, yet they seemed insignificant before Ye Futian''s attacks.


    He roared, and a huge Black Turtle appeared, freezing the entire place as he was shrouded within, turning his attacks into defense.


    Boom, boom, boom... Their surroundings continued to shake, and thousands of clashes seemed to happen within a single moment. The Black Turtle began to crack, and a holy halberd burst through, tearing the sacred beast at the center and penetrating what was inside.


    "No..." Zhong Qiu became frightened. He cranked his powers to be the limit, intending to freeze the space over, yet the Black Turtle continued to be destroyed. The halberd looked unstoppable. With a loud rumble, the Life Spirit crumbled altogether, and Ye Futian''s halberd went straight into Zhong Qiu''s body.


    Zhong Qiu looked horrified. He then looked up at Ye Futian and saw Ye Futian push his hand forward lightly. Devastating power burst and tore through everything in Zhong Qiu''s body.


    He would have him dead if he was unable to pull it off, huh?


    What about if he was actually able to do what he claimed to be able to?


    Boom. A person was sent flying and fell limply to the ground. Zhong Qiu''s face was filled with utter terror. He sensed that everything in his body had been destroyed��even his Life Spirit had been taken apart by Ye Futian''s attack.


    Ye Futian had thoroughly crippled him.


    "You''re unfit for cultivation," Ye Futian said.


    Countless people watched that scene with baffled expressions, and their hearts raced.


    One hit.


    Ye Futian had truly only used one attack, and that attack had utterly overwhelmed his opponent.


    Was that really Zhong Qiu?


    Zhong Qiu of the Zhong Clan had looked so impossibly weak back there.


    He was unable to take even a single hit.


    Zuoqiu Yan watched, feeling as if his mind had been rattled. His expression was a very ugly one. He was unable to imagine what would have happened if he had been the one to fight just moments ago.


    "Sir Ye..." Yun Qianyue watched the scene with a shocked expression, finding Ye Futian to be impossibly powerful.


    While she had gone to seek guidance from Ye Futian many times before, she had never seen what Ye Futian was truly capable of, and in that moment, she had finally seen it.


    Even someone as powerful as Zhong Qiu was unable to withstand even a single hit.


    Mighty ones of the Zhong Clan at her side flashed to Zhong Qiu''s side, looking into the extent of Zhong Qiu''s injuries. Their expressions turned cold, and killing intent was sensed sweeping out.


    The killing intent became blatant after they saw that Zhong Qiu was utterly crippled. The mighty ones from the Zhong Clan headed in Ye Futian''s direction and said coldly, "You behaved in such an unbridled manner in the Palace Examination. Did you even have any respect for the prince or anyone else around you?"


    That man''s killing intent was frightening, as if he intended to kill Ye Futian right where he stood.


    Many sweated on Ye Futian''s behalf after sensing the terrifying might of a Holiness of Nirvana bursting through. They all wondered if the man who had crippled Zhong Qiu with one single attack would be able to walk off the stage alive.


    "Try making a move against my student if you dare."


    A towering might shrouded the entire place, pressing down on the Holiness of Nirvana. Everyone sensed the terrifying pressure within an instant.


    The Holiness of Nirvana of the Zhong Clan turned around to look at the one who had spoken. He was not alone, as everyone looked toward the source of the voice.


    A figure appeared at the prince''s side and slowly walked out. It was none other than Qi Xuangang.

 1342 Bullying

    When Qi Xuangang walked out, his plain bearing changed all of a sudden. Despite wearing a plain long robe, he felt as if he had merged with the heavenly path as he walked.


    A terrifying might shrouded the Holiness of Nirvana of the Zhong Clan. At that moment, countless people had their eyes on Qi Xuangang.


    He stopped and stood still, looking as if he were the only being left in that space.


    His student.


    The Holiness of Nirvana of the Zhong Clan naturally knew of Qi Xuangang. He had become renowned in the royal palace as of late and was highly valued by the prince, so much so that the prince often sought his guidance in training. Even those from the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan were able to sense a looming threat from him.


    That man seemed to be out to fight for status in Emperor Qi''s Territory with them, and it did seem like he had the power to do so.


    Both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan were very wary of Qi Xuangang.


    However, none of them expected that that powerful being was the teacher of that unbelievable genius who had just stepped onto the stage in such a presumptuous manner and taken care of Zhong Qiu with a single hit.


    Those from the two forces became even more glum at that thought.


    To them, everything looked like it had been deliberately arranged by Qi Xuangang.


    He''d had his student rise by stepping on the heads of all the others, making his name known throughout Emperor Qi''s Territory while shocking everyone else, allowing those from the royal palace see just how extraordinary his student was.


    Everything that had happened that day seemed to make sense at that thought, as if that was how things were supposed to be.


    The Yun Clan was but one excuse. The newcomer''s true objective had been to pass the Palace Examination and rise by stepping on their heads.


    What had just happened made it very easy for people to harbor such thoughts. The truth, however, was that while Qi Xuangang had indeed been waiting for Ye Futian, he had not known his student would show up in such a manner.


    But then again, from what Ye Futian said, he realized what was actually happening. A student of the younger generation of Ye Futian in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had been forcefully gifted to others as a servant girl.


    Everyone in that vast place turned their eyes to Qi Xuangang as their hearts continued to race. That man who had just walked beside the prince seemed to possess extraordinary powers. The bursting of his might seemed to be that of the heavens, shrouding the entire place and subjecting everyone to that formless pressure.


    So this was Ye Futian''s backing then.


    No wonder he dared to provoke all major forces with impunity the way he did, going on to insult both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan.


    Yun Teng and Yun Ni clenched their fists tight in the crowd and looked very agitated. They seemed to have truly seen the hope.


    Ye Futian was from the Crimson Dragon Realm, so his teacher would have definitely been a top-notch figure back at the Crimson Dragon Realm. It seemed that he was just as renowned in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Furthermore, he was at Prince Qi You''s side. The prince would probably have not sided with anyone, and all who were squabbling would have had to rely on themselves.


    But then again, they wondered if Ye Futian''s teacher alone would have sufficed to take on all those people.


    The Holiness of Nirvana of the Zhong Clan stared at Qi Xuangang, remaining silent. As a Holiness of Nirvana himself, he naturally sensed, in the might bursting from Qi Xuangang, that the other man had far stronger comprehension and mastery of the great path than he did.


    It was apparent that that legendary figure in the royal palace who had emerged of late was more powerful than he was.


    A figure was seen rising in the Zhong Clan''s direction at that moment. He was slender and looked like an insurmountable mountain just by standing there.


    Everyone was shocked to see him rise.


    They were wondering if the Palace Examination would turn into a fight between top-notch figures.


    That man was the leader of the Zhong Clan. Zhong Li stood quietly and stared at Qi Xuangang.


    He naturally sensed that the prince seemed to have no intention to interfere in the matter. The prince probably knew already.


    They were subordinates of Emperor Qi and were considered an extension of the emperor''s power, as they served the emperor. But the emperor naturally knew that they would have looked for themselves as well. None of those matters could have been brought to light, and no one would have said anything about it.


    However, Ye Futian made clear what had happened on that day.


    The royal palace simply watched the events unfold, so it became clear that the prince intended to let them take care of matters on their own.


    If they lost, then their incompetence would be blamed, and that would serve as a good chance to knock some sense into them.


    "Your student is indeed extremely formidable, Sir Qi," Zhong Li said plainly. His voice was not loud, but everyone in that vast place was able to hear him clearly.


    Qi Xuangang and Ye Futian both looked at Zhong Li, who had just spoken. Zhong Li continued, "But if Sir Qi were to find anything troublesome in the Zhong Clan, you could have found another chance to bring the matter up. You could''ve told us straight that you intended to ask for a servant girl. It would have only taken a single word from you, Sir Qi, and I would have handed the girl over. There was no need for such commotion and insult to cultivators at the Palace Examination, as well as to crippled Zhong Qiu."


    At their level, if Qi Xuangang were to ask him to hand someone over, he would have definitely complied and handed said someone over.


    In his perspective, it was apparent that Qi Xuangang and Ye Futian had said what they had said as a slight towards them.


    Qi Xuangang was naturally aware of what lay between the lines in Zhong Li''s words. He looked at Zhong Li and said, "I''ve heard about both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan from His Highness, and he speaks highly of both clans. It is a pity that the repute seems to have eclipsed the man in the flesh. His Highness once asked how I would have compared to the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan. From what I''ve seen today, I surely do not hope to be compared to the Zhong Clan."


    Zhong Li looked at Qi Xuangang with slightly raised brows. He wondered if the other man was insulting him, saying that he was beneath being compared.


    Qi Xuangang stepped out and elaborated slowly, "The Zhong Clan knew that she was being forced against her will to do so, and you knew that it was not within reason and not something that should have been done. Regardless of who brought it up, you should have let the girl go and looked into the matter. Such was the way of the saints, instead of how you put it. If I were to ask the Zhong Clan to hand over the girl and you complied, it wouldn''t have been out of reason and right or wrong, but out of face and your own interests."


    Prince Qi You listened to Qi Xuangang''s speech and flashed an expression of approval. The prince had found his speech and reasoning to be superb.


    "If my student had not been able to defeat Zhong Qiu with a single hit, you would have killed him. Yet Zhong Qiu lost such a dare, and then you refused to bear the corresponding consequences. So that is to say that right or wrong are not being used to determine the outcome of the matter, but one''s own power is. In that case, why berate him for insulting the Zhong Clan? Wouldn''t you be inviting insult to yourselves by doing so?"


    Qi Xuangang said this as he walked, and he actually walked right past that Holiness of Nirvana.


    The Holiness of Nirvana watched as Qi Xuangang walked past him quietly, and his expression became rather stiff.


    Qi Xuangang then walked toward the Zhong Clan and looked at Yun Qianyue, who was within the group of people of the Zhong Clan. He asked, "Are you joining the Zhong Clan of your own will?"


    Yun Qianyue looked at Qi Xuangang and said, "No, sir, this is not done pf my own will."


    Qi Xuangang nodded, smiling before continuing, "Ye Futian said you have already taken him as your teacher. Don''t you think it''d be rather inappropriate to continue addressing me as ''sir''?"


    Yun Qianyue was dumbfounded and looked up at Qi Xuangang. Her eyes were bloodshot, and the corners of her eyes seemed rather wet. She bowed solemnly and said, "My name is Qianyue, grandmaster."


    "That''s how it should be done." Qi Xuangang smiled and nodded. "Come over here."


    "Yes, grandmaster." Yun Qianyue stepped forward, intending to walk past the group of people from the Zhong Clan. However, several people stood in her way, and all of them burst with overwhelming pressure.


    That matter was not over. Zhong Qiu, a genius of the Zhong Clan, had been crippled, and those from the Zhong Clan were not about to just let her walk free.


    Qi Xuangang burst with extremely terrifying might all of a sudden at that scene. His might of the great path shrouded their surroundings. The robe he wore billowed, despite that there was no wind.


    He stepped forward, and beams of golden light of the great path appeared in the sky, piercing downward and causing all those beside Yun Qianyue to let out a stifled grunt. Their faces were pale as they backed away.


    All of them were saints.


    The mighty ones of the Zhong Clan were shocked as they looked up. Qi Xuangang''s powers were nothing short of terrifying.


    "If you people of the Zhong Clan insist on detaining the student of my student, do not blame me if I go about this the hard way." Qi Xuangang''s voice was cold as he continued to walk. Those mighty ones with pale faces looked extremely frustrated. They simply looked on as Qi Xuangang kept walking.


    None of them dared to do anything against Yun Qianyue.


    The might of one person had proved more than enough to stun all of the top-notch forces. That was how terrifying cultivators at the very pinnacle were.


    "Sir Qi, did you bother asking if I agreed to let you bully the Zhong Clan''s younger generation?" Zhong Li''s voice was cold. Powerful aura burst and lashed out at Qi Xuangang.


    Several Holiness of Nirvanas walked out as well, and all of them had terrifying aura.


    Their might fell not only on Qi Xuangang. Some of them went on to shroud Ye Futian with their might as well.


    It was as if they were saying that if Qi Xuangang dared make a move against the people of the Zhong Clan, they would make a move against Ye Futian as well.


    Things were just as difficult for Zhong Li at the moment.


    If they were to simply yield in this situation, not only would they no longer be able to achieve greater heights in Emperor Qi''s Territory, they would lose their current status altogether as well.


    If they were to give in, they would essentially be falling into a ravine.


    Qi Xuangang would take their place and become the new symbol of the pinnacle of power in Emperor Qi''s Territory.


    A figure flashed and appeared beside Ye Futian. It was Wu Yong. His raging aura burst and was cast onto the people of the Zhong Clan.


    Several auras burst in the crowd at the same time, all of them overbearing. One person after another took to the sky and came onto the stage after that.


    Boom��one of them burst in the divine flames of the sun. His eyes burned like an inferno. That person was none other than Zhu Kong, the leader of the Zhu Clan of the nine tribes.


    "City Lord." Zhu Kong stood behind Ye Futian and cupped his hands. Zhu Kong was no longer against Ye Futian at the moment. He, too, was able to see just how great Ye Futian''s potential would have been. Rather than spending his time scheming against Ye Futian, he found it more sensible to simply wait. By the time Ye Futian became very powerful, he would not bother keeping them on a leash. He might even provide them with opportunities.


    "City Lord." Yet another person emerged. He was the Vermilion Bird Tribe leader, who burst with a Holiness of Nirvana level of pressure as well.


    "I was wondering if you would show up. I really didn''t expect to find you here. But then again, challenging someone of your plane here? That''s bullying, man." A voice was heard, and sword will was sensed. Sword aura then zipped past in the air, and several swordsmen walked up to the stage.


    The leader was none other than Pei Min of the Sword Emperor Palace.


    Several others stepped up as well, walking to the stage. Yin Tianjiao was there as well. Several others followed as she walked up to the stage, staying close by her side, and said, "Princess."


    Apparently, after the ones who had come to the Crimson Dragon Realm were scattered, they had somehow managed to make that place their meeting point after hearing that there was an event to be held in Emperor Qi''s Territory.


    They had then met up with Ye Futian coincidentally.


    A group of mighty ones appeared as well, and they came to Ye Futian''s side. It seemed as if Holiness of Nirvanas were appearing one after another every now and then.


    The people of Emperor Qi''s Territory found this turn of events to be utterly baffling.


    Was the Zhong Clan really going to fight against such odds?

 1343 Windfall

    The mighty ones from the Zhong Clan stood frozen as they saw more and more mighty ones from the other side showing up. They felt a massive pressure on their chests.


    They were unable to fathom what was going on.


    What the hell was this?


    Why were so many mighty ones showing up all of a sudden? There were even several Holiness of Nirvanas standing right behind Ye Futian. All of them were addressing him as City Lord and acting very respectful toward him, as if he were their leader or something.


    All who had showed up seemed to know him as well.


    With such a lineup and Qi Xuangang added to the mix, the few Holiness of Nirvanas in the Zhong Clan were apparently no match at all.


    At that moment, another group of people emerged��Prince Chi Shang and Yu Shifei of the Crimson Dragon Realm. When the teleportation had gone wrong and disintegrated, they had held each other''s hands, and because of that, they had remained together, showing up at the same place. They had met up with the others at the event later, and they had found more of their own.


    They were trying to see if they were able to find anyone from the Crimson Dragon Realm among the vast crowd that day. It was apparent that everyone had shared the same thoughts and gathered at the event.


    Ye Futian was even bold enough to cause a scene at the event.


    "I''d heard of the exploits of the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan throughout the days I spent in the imperial city. I didn''t expect to find both clans more forceful than I could have imagined. These two clans really are capable of throwing their weight around in Emperor Qi''s Territory." Chi Shang smiled and continued, "His Majesty Emperor Qi should really keep his people in check."


    Qi You felt it rather out of place for so many mighty ones to show up one after another. All of them had exceptional bearing, and many among them felt extraordinary, especially several of the younger ones. While their training had apparently not been the strongest, their bearings were nonetheless superb, so much so that it seemed that the geniuses in Emperor Qi''s Territory appeared to be beneath their notice.


    While Emperor Qi''s Territory was indeed said to be a place ruled by a Renhuang, it was but one of the places ruled by a Renhuang throughout the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm. There were many other stronger places, and because of that, they were unable to keep the best of the best around. If talents were to be compared, the geniuses who stood at the very pinnacle would not have been inferior to those from Emperor Qi''s Territory. They would have only been stronger.


    There were many among those who''d emerged who were descendants of Renhuang themselves.


    That day was the day on which the Palace Examination of Emperor Qi''s Territory was held, but it seemed that things had changed altogether. A storm had arisen all because of Yun Qianyue.


    To put it precisely, it was that silver-haired young man who''d caused such a scene.


    Just who the hell was that young man?


    Zhong Li''s expression had turned completely glum. The Zhong Clan had intended to forcibly overpower Qi Xuangang and those with him, sweeping the matter under the rug. They would have apologized to Emperor Qi at a later date. It would have been better to be caught in a disadvantage at such a place.


    However, this turn of events had rendered them utterly helpless.


    The parties were no longer in the same weight class to begin with.


    Even if the Zuoqiu Clan were to be added the conflict, siding with the Zhong Clan, they would still have lost. Now only the Zhong Clan was caught in such a predicament.


    Those from the Zuoqiu Clan sported expressions that were equally as interesting. The mighty ones from the Celestial Sword Li Clan and the Yun Clan of Luo City were all stunned by the turn of events before them.


    "Telling me to keep my people in check... You people really are bold indeed." A voice was heard from afar, and everyone saw a holy, dazzling beam of light descending from the royal palace. A figure in royal garb walked in front of them, heading towards the crowd.


    His appearance caused countless people throughout the vast place to bow solemnly and say, "Greetings, Your Majesty."


    Many mighty ones from the Zuoqiu Clan, the Zhong Clan, and the others bowed one after another as well.


    Emperor Qi came before them with a single step. Qi You rose as well and called out to the person right before him, "Father."


    Emperor Qi nodded slightly to the crowd, waving his hand to tell everyone to be at ease. His eyes then turned towards Ye Futian, Chi Shang, and the others.


    "Greetings, Your Majesty. I''m Chi Shang from the Crimson Dragon Realm," Chi Shang said and bowed.


    "Greetings, Your Majesty. I''m Ye Futian." Ye Futian bowed as well. While those people had been there causing a ruckus, they were nonetheless still very polite seeing a true Renhuang, showing appropriate manners and respect.


    Emperor QI smiled and said, "You sure are bold. I assume you''re a member of the royal family in the Crimson Dragon Clan then? Would you mind doing the introductions, Sir Qi?"


    Qi Xuangang nodded and looked at Chi Shang, saying, "This is His Highness, Prince Chi Shang of the royal palace of Crimson Dragon Realm in the Crimson Dragon Region. The one by his side is his wife. The others are all from the Crimson Dragon Region. Ye Futian is my student, and he hails from Emperor Xia''s Realm in Crimson Dragon Region. All of them are here in the Heavenly Mandate Realm on a pilgrimage. The Ancient Road of Space that we were on disintegrated. We were scattered all over the place, and we all gathered here today."


    "So that is to say that there are probably several children of Renhuang in the Crimson Dragon Realm then?" Emperor Qi asked and smiled, turning his eyes to several of them. He was able to feel something special from those few.


    "Indeed." Qi Xuangang nodded, and crowd was rattled.


    Several children of Renhuang?


    No one had expected the lineup that had showed up out of nowhere to be so terrifying, and it looked rather ridiculous. The Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan had no doubt been very much of a big deal in Emperor Qi''s Territory, but they were rather tiny when compared to the ones on the other side.


    It was no surprise that Ye Futian showed neither fear nor respect for them or that he had even gone on to make sarcastic jabs at them.


    They were curious what kind of a character Ye Futian had been in the Crimson Dragon Region.


    They were curious about his status.


    "Seems like you have your own motives for coming to the royal palace then, Sir Ye. You people have taken the venue where the Palace Examination was to be held to be your meeting place, I see," Emperor Qi continued, looking at them.


    "I beg your forgiveness, Your Majesty," Qi Xuangang said and bowed slightly.


    "You''ve made it a point not to stay here for long, so what can I fault you for? However, that student of yours really is a cocky one, stirring up all that trouble in the Palace Examination." Emperor Qi turned his attention to Ye Futian and asked, "Someone who was able to overpower top-notch geniuses from Emperor Qi''s Territory... What is the status of this student of yours, Sir Qi?"


    "No status worth mentioning. He is but a cultivator from Emperor Xia''s Realm who joined the Crimson Dragon Realm," Qi Xuangang answered.


    "You refuse to tell me the truth then?" Emperor Qi looked at him and the few Holiness of Nirvanas around him. All of them had emerged only because of him, just as a show of force.


    Qi Xuangang had actually said that someone like that was of no status worth mentioning.


    "If you really would like to know of his status, Your Majesty, then I''d say that Ye Futian is someone who loved stirring up trouble back in the Crimson Dragon Realm. He is a City Lord who has a great many mighty ones serving him." Chi Shang smiled and continued, "By the way, Ye Futian is also the number-one cultivator in his generation in the Crimson Dragon Region. A genius who stands at the very pinnacle, if you would. I''m afraid none in the Palace Examination would be able to compare to him, let alone Zhong Qiu of the Zhong Clan."


    "Number-one cultivator!"


    Chi Shang spoke so highly of Ye Futian that hardly any appraisal could have surpassed what he''d said.


    That number one apparently took the prince into consideration, so it was saying that the prince was inferior to Ye Futian.


    Furthermore, he had said "Crimson Dragon Region" instead of "Crimson Dragon Realm."


    Emperor Qi knew, naturally, that there were a great many top-notch geniuses gathered from all over the Crimson Dragon Region in that realm, yet Chi Shang still claimed that Ye Futian was the number-one young cultivator in the Crimson Dragon Region.


    That appraisal alone spoke volumes about how tremendously powerful Ye Futian was.


    It was no surprise that Zhong Qiu had not been able to withstand even a single hit. He really was unfortunate for having met someone like that.


    The corner of Zuoqiu Yan''s mouth twitched. He had been rather dismissive of Ye Futian until the other man had actually taken down Zhong Qiu with a single hit. Only then had Zuoqiu Yan felt truly shaken.


    "Sir Ye, number one in Crimson Dragon Region." Yun Qianyue''s expression turned rather dazed, wondering if this was truly the soft-spoken and polite Sir Ye that she knew.


    All of the mighty ones from the Crimson Dragon Region, even the likes of princes, were proud of him.


    That being said, Sir Ye''s talents would have definitely overpowered many geniuses throughout the Crimson Dragon Region then.


    "So that is how it is." Emperor Qi smiled and said, "In that case, the Palace Examination today has turned out rather meaningful, for we are able to see how different those from this territory are compared to the number one in the Crimson Dragon Region. You all should be more diligent in your training from here on out in order to prevent what happened today from happening again. Your emperor is losing face today."


    "We will definitely do our best to scout geniuses within the territory, Your Majesty," the leader of the Zuoqiu Clan said to Emperor Qi and bowed.


    "While what Chi Shang said sounded rather unpleasant to the ear, it would seem that he has a point. I really do need to keep my people in check," Emperor Qi said. The states of mind of the mighty ones from both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan continued to plunge after they heard that.


    "We''re responsible for what happened today. Please see to it that we''re punished, Your Majesty," the leader of the Zuoqiu Clan said, asking to be punished voluntarily.


    "Qi You, have someone investigate the Zuoqiu Clan''s abuse of power by trading candidate slots for the Palace Examination, and do everything in your power to cooperate. Zuoqiu, you have been following me for many years, and it is impossible for you not to do anything wrong at all. I simply hope that you know where your responsibilities lie." Emperor Qi continued, "As for the Zhong Clan, there will no longer be any need for them to participate in anything related to the territory. Qi You, look into the training methods of the Zhong Clan and see if they have been forcing or threatening others in anything."


    "Yes, father." Qi You rose and nodded. Zhong Li''s expression became as pale as paper. The mighty ones of the Zhong Clan were all shuddering slightly.


    That was the end of them.


    The emperor had stripped the Zhong Clan of all their power right there and then.


    Furthermore, there was also to be an investigation into their clan, and all of them knew what they had done so far. That large clan had had many shady dealings in the past. If any of that were to be brought to light, the emperor would surely not let them off easy.


    The emperor had truly taken advantage of the commotion to straighten his people out.


    "Finally, I shall see to it that the Palace Examination is organized again at a later date, and the selection shall be done fairly," Emperor Qi said to the crowd.


    "All hail our wise emperor." One person after another bowed. Hope lit up in the hearts of many.


    Yun Teng and Yun Ni both smiled. It seemed that Qianyue would turn out all right after all.


    The Zhong Clan would face extremely severe punishments.


    Yun Qianyue had already walked back to Ye Futian on the platform. She looked at Ye Futian with teary eyes, but there was a smile on her face as well. She asked, "Are you really willing to take me as your student, sir?"


    "I am indeed." Ye Futian smiled and said, "But while I''ve agreed to take you as my student, you''ll still be relying on yourself to further your training, for I won''t be able to take you with me."


    "Indeed." Yun Qianyue nodded. "I understand."


    She did not dare ask for more.


    "Let her stay in the royal palace and train under me then," Emperor Qi said. Ye Futian and Yun Qianyue were both dumbfounded as they looked at Emperor Qi.


    "The Zhong Clan served me, and I was at fault in this as well. Just take it as compensation," Emperor Qi said.


    "You indeed are generous and fair, Your Majesty." Ye Futian bowed and continued, "Thank you very much, Your Majesty."


    Yun Qianyue smiled as well. Her eyes seemed to become even wetter as she smiled.


    Her family had thrown her away and sent her off to become a servant girl in order for Yun Mo to get a chance at the Palace Examination.


    Right then, however, she had acquired the right to train by Emperor Qi''s side. It all just seemed so ironic.


    The Yun Clan looked upon the scene with ashen faces. No one could have comprehended what they felt.

 1344 Help From Emperor Qi

    Old Man Yun looked at the platform and saw Emperor Qi declaring that he would allow Yun Qianyue to train under him. That promise held great significance, more so than passing the Palace Examination and being allowed to train under the Emperor.


    What happened on that day caused Yun Qianyue''s status to skyrocket, enabling her to get close to the royal family.


    This was something that the Yun Clan had wanted to do all this time, as they''d wanted to send younger members of their clan to train under the emperor.


    That wish had finally come true, yet it was not something that had happened because of their efforts.


    On the contrary, they had cast her out cruelly, sending her away as a sacrifice so that they would have a shot at achieving that.


    Yun Qianyue would probably hate her family''s guts.


    They took a look at Yun Mo, who had been thoroughly rid of his training. Revenge was out of the question without a doubt. If Ye Futian were to truly sit down and settle the matter with them, they probably would not have been able to emerge unscathed.


    That lineup had overpowered even the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan, making even the emperor himself appear. All of that showed how absolutely terrifying those people were. Their backing was so strong that even Emperor Qi, a lord of a territory in Heavenly Mandate Realm, had to show respect.


    Yun Chong''s face was ashen, and he despaired, wondering how things had turned out this way.


    Two figures walked in his direction��Yun Teng and Yun Ni.


    Yun Teng still looked rather angry, judging from how they looked at the rest of the Yun Clan. He said coldly, "Qianyue''s father sacrificed himself for the clan. And now you people have sent Qianyue to the Zhong Clan to be a servant girl for the sake of the clan. It occurs to me all of a sudden that we''ve been getting close to the Zhong Clan, wanting to establish a connection between us and them. The clan might have been planning for this for a long time, waiting for the pieces to fall in the Palace Examination."


    Yun Teng looked rather sarcastic as he continued, "It is indeed ironic... The one who was cast away by the clan and saved by an outsider. If it had not been for Ye Futian, I''m sure you all would have been smiling from ear to ear instead, feeling not the slightest bit of remorse or sorrow, but only joy from seeing your goals accomplished. From this day forth, my family shall sever all ties with the Yun Clan of Luo City. I wish the clan great success and prosperity."


    Both Yun Teng and Yun Ni turned around and left right away, not at all reluctant.


    Yun Ni would especially hate them for what they had done.


    Her husband had died for the clan, and her daughter had changed her surname, and all of that had only resulted in her being cast away by the clan as a sacrifice. It was pathetic indeed.


    It was fortunate that they had Sir Ye on their side.


    She looked up at the silver-haired man up on the platform. Her eyes were filled only with gratitude.


    She too was able to figure out that the clan had been planning this for a very long time. None of that had anything to do with Ye Futian being threatened by the Celestial Sword Li Clan. That incident was but a convenient excuse.


    Even without Li Ruoshuang in the picture, the clan would have sent Qianyue away all the same, just so that Yun Mo was able to have a bright future.


    At yet another corner, the people of the Celestial Sword Li Clan were feeling just as frustrated.


    Emperor Qi had ordered for the Zuoqiu Clan to be subjected to investigations. The alliance was rendered null without a doubt. Both clans would want to have nothing to do with each other at that point. It was clear that they would have intended to sever all connections with each other just to avoid being punished by the emperor for having conspired with one another.


    Other than that, Ye Futian had once reminded them, Li Ruoshuang of the Celestial Sword Li Clan had wanted to kill him once, going all the way to the Yun Clan to take him away and telling the Yun Clan to know their place.


    Li Ruoshuang was the most extraordinary figure in their clan from that generation, and everyone wondered how the rest of her clan would deal with her.


    If they were to simply ignore Ye Futian, that lineup of his was more than enough take them out as easy as pinching an ant to death. Furthermore, no one would have anything to say about it.


    One wrong step and it would be the end of them.


    Li Ruoshuang walked back to her clan and saw that all eyes in her clan were on her.


    She was perceptive enough to tell that something was out of place. Those eyes did not look like they''d used to.


    She frowned hard, and her mind cleared in an instant. She knew that those looks they were giving her had something to do with Ye Futian.


    She had once been the pride of her clan, yet at that moment, her clan was probably afraid of being dragged into her mess, and they were thinking of what to do with her.


    She felt a bone-chilling cold in her mind. Making minor sacrifices to safeguard major interests?


    She had been reduced to a minor sacrifice to her clan.


    She stopped and looked at all those faces before her, feeling as if they were those of strangers.


    "What happened with the Renhuang mural at the ridge was my own doing, and I shall shoulder the responsibility all on my own. From this day forth, I, Li Ruoshuang, will no longer be a member of the Celestial Sword Li Clan. Everything I have done will have had nothing to do with the Celestial Sword Li Clan," Li Ruoshuang said, making a snap decision right then and there.


    It would have been very dangerous for her to return to her clan, as it was extremely possible for her clan to make her a scapegoat in order to keep their clan out of that mess.


    As such, she made the decision to sever her connection with her clan instead.


    She turned around after she finished saying all of that and began walking, intending to leave right away on her own.


    "Thinking of just leaving like that?" A cold voice was heard. Ye Futian turned to look at Li Ruoshuang.


    He''d heard that Li Ruoshuang was a decisive person, capable of making decisions quickly and follow through with them. She was also brutal and had shown no mercy when she intended to kill him back then. She''d gone to the Yun Clan just to take him away, and then he''d attempted to set the Yun Clan up just to offend the Zuoqiu Clan. All of her actions showed that she was merciless with her dealings.


    At present, she had severed ties with her clan, intending to escape in one piece.


    Li Ruoshuang stopped and turned around to look at Ye Futian, saying, "It was indeed you who destroyed the Renhuang mural, and it was completely normal that I put the blame on you in my anger. I''m willing to cut my hair as a token of apology."


    She then put her hand behind her head and held her hair. A sword materialized in her other hand, and she cut off her long hair right away. Her jet-black hair billowed in the air.


    After Li Ruoshuang cut her hair, her then-shoulder-length hair was left hanging loose, giving her the frail grace of a woman and making her look pitiful and downtrodden, preventing others from making a move on her.


    However, Ye Futian''s expression remained unchanged.


    One''s state of mind was unusually steely when they had trained all the way to sainthood. Every single action a saint took would have come from their own will, and none would have thought that they had been wrong in doing anything. That action of cutting her hair off was but a ploy to buy time. Her pitiful appearance was only a tool to allow her to live.


    Li Ruoshuang was indeed brutal.


    However, Ye Futian''s expression remained as it had always been, without a single hint of moving in any way. It was as if he were saying, "You think doing this is going to appeal to my kindness?"


    Li Ruoshuang had not looked like that at all when she''d ordered him killed.


    "Is that mural something that belonged to you in the first place, Li Ruoshuang?" Ye Futian asked.


    She was startled and speechless.


    "That thing belonged to no one, and yet you sound so matter-of-fact nonetheless. Completely normal, huh?" Ye Futian jabbed at her sarcastically and continued, "I''m now offering you a chance. If you can take one hit from my sword and live, I''ll let you leave."


    One hit from his sword.


    Li Ruoshuang''s expression became pointed. As a mighty one from the Celestial Sword Li Clan, she was trained in the way of the sword, and yet, Ye Futian was getting ready to deal with her using swords.


    "So be it." Li Ruoshuang nodded. Sword aura whipped about and gathered behind her as soon as she finished talking. Her Life Spirit appeared, and the sword will all around was solidified into a terrifying screen of swords, pulsing with the frightening light of the sword as they zipped about. Those were not swords meant for defense. They were swords meant for killing.


    As a swordswoman, she knew well that the greatest defense available to wielders of swords was none other than offense.


    Her swords burst in an instant without waiting for Ye Futian to do anything. She charged straight at Ye Futian in a decisive manner.


    Ye Futian as only able to use one move with the swords.


    Many around them praised her deep down, seeing how she moved. Regardless of her character, the fact that she was extremely talented had not changed at all. She was indeed someone born to be a cultivator.


    Ye Futian remained unfazed as he watched Li Ruoshuang make her move. He took one step forward, and Swords of Kasyapa were conjured around him, zipping through the air. They burst through Li Ruoshuang''s river of swords one after another, moving forward in a special pattern, taking formations and coming at her like an autumn gale.


    The Swords of Kasyapa reflected in Li Ruoshuang''s eyes continued to grow in size. She was thoroughly frightened and backed away in a hurry.


    However, the Swords of Kasyapa were unnervingly fast, and they arrived before her in an instant, piercing the aura of swords all around her as they burst through her body.


    Her body shuddered unceasingly within an instant. Her blood stained her clothes, and she looked pathetic.


    The aura all over her was dispelled, and she grew increasingly weak. Wrinkles began to appear on her face. She lost her youthful appearance altogether, as if she had gotten ten years older within an instant. The life force within her body had all been destroyed by the sword wills.


    She looked completely ashen as she reached out to sense the remaining aura in her body. She was not even able to stand still by then.


    The sword wills were dispelled, and Ye Futian continued to eye Li Ruoshuang. There was hardly any pity in his eyes.


    Li Ruoshuang looked up at him with a vicious look on her face. She stood and hobbled away without saying anything.


    Despite being severely injured, her training disposed of, she still had hope that she would be able to train again.


    Ye Futian turned around, not looking at her anymore.


    "How many abilities are you versed in, sir?" Yun Qianyue, who was by his side, asked. She had only been asking Ye Futian to guide her in the ways of thunder.


    Yet it was the way of Entropy and the Halberd of Time and Space that Ye Futian had defeated Zhong Qiu with.


    At that moment, he''d showed his abilities with the sword as well.


    Ye Futian did not correct the way she addressed him, thinking that she had probably gotten used to it.


    "I''m versed in quite a few powers," Ye Futian said and smiled.


    He then looked at Emperor Qi, bowing and saying, "I''m truly sorry for getting you involved in what happened today, Your Majesty, and I''d like to beg your forgiveness."


    "You people have indeed caused me, an emperor, to lose a lot of face. But then again, it worked well to stimulate them for a bit." Emperor Qi continued, "Since you have come all the way from the Crimson Dragon Realm and something wrong happened with the grand matrix of space, I''m sure that there are others of yours who are still out there. How about you train in the royal palace for a bit? What just happened here will have spread like wildfire soon enough. Other than that, I shall have my people to hasten the spread of the news. Doing so will allow those friends of yours who did not show today to find this place before long."


    "It is indeed best that we have your help, your majesty," Ye Futian said. They were in Emperor Qi''s Territory, and if the emperor was willing to help, those who hadn''t showed that day would come soon enough.


    "I''m not doing this for free. Please take your time to spar with the cultivators in the royal palace while you are training here. Have them experience what the strongest genius from the Lower Worlds is like, just to prevent them from developing a holier-than-thou attitude and thinking themselves to be peerless."


    Emperor Qi smiled as he elaborated. Many studied under him, and there were indeed some who possessed extreme talents among them, whom he''d taken in as personal students. Other than that, the emperor had descendants of his own, after all.


    It was great that Ye Futian and the others around him were the strongest of geniuses to be found in the Crimson Dragon Realm, allowing them to spar with those of Emperor Qi at a similar age. Such training would allow them to have a better idea of who was stronger, and that would benefit their training further.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. He saw no reason to refuse such a minor request.


    "Let''s go," Emperor Qi said, and one figure after another stepped out. The crowd all over the vast place felt like they had not gotten enough. While the Palace Examination was interrupted, everything that had happened after the examination was even more extraordinary.


    They knew that from then on out, both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan, which had been standing on the pinnacle in Emperor Qi''s Territory, would fall into decline sooner or later, and the Zhong Clan would suffer even more.

 1345 The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven

    The mountain range in Emperor Qi''s territory was sparsely inhabited. Cultivators rarely came here, and only recluses or silence seekers would cultivate in the mountains.


    At this moment, many people got down from the top of one mountain. Their robes were blowing in the wind. Divine Might was being released from their body, extremely intimidating.


    They kept glancing around, forceful minds rushing out from their heads and enveloping the endless space. They seemed to be looking for something.


    "He is hurt; he can''t escape too far. Maybe he is still in the mountain range. You go find him separately," said the leader of the group. People nodded and soon flashed toward different locations. They released their life forces without disguise at the same time, so even though they were far away, they could still perceive the life forces from others and support each other instantly.


    The leader looked quite young. He looked cold and had an intimidating life force.


    Many warriors were searching in the mountains, one of whom was an old warrior in a black robe. His body flashed in the air, fast like lightning. When he came to a land of valley, he seemed to perceive a faint wisp of life force. He immediately looked up in alert and darted toward that direction.


    There was a river in the deep of the valley. The old warrior in the black robe arrived on the bank above the river. He restrained the life force from his body and looked down, and then he saw a figure sitting there with his back to him. The life force was suspended around his body. It seemed he was healing himself.


    His clothes were still tinged with bloodstains.


    The old man resumed his steps. His stare was cold, fixed on the figure in front of him. That man in white seemed to have noticed. He slowly turned around and stared at him coldly.


    Boom! The old man''s life force exploded to the full and surged out. The Divine Might arrived. He raised one palm and thrust it out. It turned into a golden wheel and smashed the space.


    The man in white also raised his hand and thrust forward. Suddenly, nine palm prints showed up in the sky and turned into one. The Great Law resonated and trembled the void sky. His palmprint collided with the golden wheel print and made a booming sound.


    "Why don''t you surrender now!" the old man shouted. His palmprint swept forward and crushed the young man''s palmprint. The young man let out a low humph, but his palmprint was still firm. Cold killing thought flashed across his eyes.


    Suddenly, the old warrior seemed to perceive something, and his face turned pale. His mind glanced behind, and when he tried to retrieve the palmprint, he found that the person''s palm was sticking tight on to his palm. He hastily thrust out the left hand, but at that moment, a white phantom flashed in front of him and disappeared.


    Pkkkhht�� after a clear penetrating sound, blood oozed from the old warrior''s neck. His head fell, and the white phantom merged into the figure in white and became a part of it.


    He coughed. A dribble of blood fell from his mouth. He took an emotionless glance into the distance and turned around, flashing away. His life force was concealed, and his speed was super-fast.


    Until now, he still had no idea why the person who came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm with him suddenly sent people to capture him.


    He didn''t offend him, and since he just came here, he didn''t have enemies.


    What on earth was it?


    Even though he didn''t know the answer, he could do nothing but escape. First, escape from this mountain range, and then disguise himself, hide in the crowds until they couldn''t find him.


    It was not long after he escaped that a group of warriors came. The leader arrived, too. He saw the old warrior''s corpse on the ground, of which the head had fallen to one side. He had been decapitated.


    The leader''s face looked extremely sullen. They had wasted a few Saint-Plane warriors, but they had not caught him yet.


    "Go!" he gave the order and flashed into the air, chasing after the residue of the man''s life force left between the sky and earth.


    ��


    To be more exact, the Imperial Palace of Emperor Qi''s territory should be called a city within a city.


    The Imperial Palace was a vast district covering hundreds of acres. There were countless lofty palaces in this area and abundant cultivation resources.


    Besides, the Imperial Palace was enveloped by one giant matrix, full of the thick nimbus of the universe. Even the Will of the Law was everywhere, permeating the whole space.


    It was a perfect land for cultivation, just like the earthly paradise described in legends.


    But it was not beyond Ye Futian''s expectation. A Renhuang''s dwelling place was often like this; he used to cultivate in the Regional King''s Palace.


    In the Regional King''s Palace, Wills of Flame were also everywhere, extremely thick in the air.


    It was also one of the reasons warriors of Emperor Qi''s territory all wanted to attend the Palace Examination and cultivate under Emperor Qi''s throne.


    They would not only learn Emperor Qi''s teachings and cultivate in this zone but also get bigger opportunities if they performed well enough and had enough talent.


    Many eminent figures had come from this Imperial Palace.


    And at this moment, in the Imperial Palace, Ye Futian and other warriors were staying in a provisional palace.


    During these days, from time to time, some people came here to visit and practice cultivation skills. They were all full of pride when they just came here.


    But they all looked quite depressed and enervated when they left, their heads lowered.


    Soon, warriors stopped visiting this provisional palace. The people here were too tough to mess up with.


    Ye Futian''s companions from the Crimson Dragon Realm gradually all arrived. Since Emperor Qi helped release information in person, and also because what happened in Palace Examination had shocked the whole territory, everyone who got a clue immediately rushed to the Imperial Palace and found the people they were looking for.


    The warriors who came from Thousand Leaves City with Ye Futian were almost all here.


    Xia Qingyuan arrived, too. In fact, she had been in the Imperial City on the day of the Palace Examination.


    "Still no news?" Ye Futian asked the Sword Saint of Cottage Villa. He went outside to seek information and had just come back.


    The Sword Saint of Cottage Villa shook his head and said, "Not yet. Dongliu is always careful when doing things. If he had heard about the battle, he must have attempted to come here. Unless something stopped him."


    Now, the Third Brother Gu Dongliu was the only person who had not arrived yet.


    Other people were all here.


    The Third Brother''s real strength was not weak. He should be able to protect himself if nothing serious happened.


    But Ye Futian was still worried about him since they were in the Heavenly Mandate Realm where strong warriors were everywhere. If he had met a person like Li Ruoshuang, it would mean big trouble.


    "Was it possible that he was sent to other territories by the collapsed spatial road?" asked Ye Futian in a low voice.


    "Maybe," said the Sword Saint, nodding. A cultivator should be fine being alone outside, but he was still a little worried about Gu Dongliu, who didn''t come here to meet them.


    At that moment, someone walked to them.


    "Mr. Ye." That person saluted him from a distance. Ye Futian walked forward; he knew the person belonged to the Imperial Palace.


    "His Majesty has prepared a banquet and invites you and other heroes to come," he said.


    Ye Futian listened and asked, "What time?"


    "You can depart now if you are free," he continued.


    "All right," said Ye Futian, nodding. He needed to show respect for Emperor Qi. This time, Emperor Qi penalized the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan. The power of both clans had been weakened, especially the Zhong Clan, which had left the center of politics.


    But, of course, Ye Futian would not think it was all for him. Maybe these two clans had fallen out of Emperor Qi''s favor for long, but they worked for him and did things in his name, just like in the Palace Examination.


    So, Emperor Qi just took the chance to give them an alert and enervate their power and voices.


    Ye Futian and others departed and soon came to the Emperor Qi''s dwelling Renhuang Palace.


    The banquet was ready. Many warriors sat on both sides of the banquet.


    People of the Crimson Dragon Realm had all arrived. They scattered and sat in different seats.


    "Ye Futian, what is your plan?" Chi Shang asked Ye Futian. He was sitting with Yu Shifei, opposite Ye Futian.


    "I don''t have a specific plan, but I want to figure out what powers of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were like first," said Ye Futian in a low voice.


    "Hm," said Chi Shang, nodding, "this time, we just came here for cultivation and training, so we don''t have a strong intention. We are ready to leave here after today and go to different locations for cultivation."


    "Okay," said Ye Futian. He knew it was not convenient for so many people to cultivate together.


    Although many people came from the Crimson Dragon Realm, they belonged to different powers, and they didn''t have to stay together.


    "When you come back to Crimson Dragon Realm, I hope to see you become the top warrior below Renhuang in Crimson Dragon Realm," said Chi Shang, laughing.


    Ye Futian didn''t say anything. Perhaps he needed a lot more time to reach that level.


    He didn''t know if his Master Qi Xuangang had ability like that.


    When they headed toward the banquet, in the Imperial City district of Emperor Qi''s territory, a figure in white swiftly flashed toward the Imperial Palace.


    However, he was stopped outside the palace.


    The man in white was Gu Dongliu. The life force suspended around his body, and his white clothes were stained by blood. There seemed to be a gust of appalling life force rushing toward him.


    "This is the Imperial Palace. You are not allowed to enter," a guard outside the Imperial Palace said to Gu Dongliu with a long spear in hand.


    "I came from the Crimson Dragon Realm. I am here to find people," said Gu Dongliu. He got the news on his way and ran here.


    The guards took a look at each other and slightly nodded. They left some space for him. One of them turned around and said, "Follow me."


    And then, Gu Dongliu followed him to the Imperial Palace territory.


    Just after they stepped inside, the group of people following him arrived. The ones at the front line paused their steps, frowning.


    This district belonged to Emperor Qi''s territory; it was Emperor Qi''s Imperial Palace.


    Many Renhuang''s Imperial Palaces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were independently established spaces, prohibiting unknown visitors from trespassing.


    A figure arrived from the void sky. The life force being emitted from the person''s body was very appalling. His eyes revealed a horrifying gleam. His stare was fixed on Emperor Qi''s territory ahead of him.


    Other people turned their heads and looked at him. He took a stride forward and kept moving.


    Not to mention the Imperial Palace of Emperor Qi''s territory, they were going to catch him anyway, even if he ran right in front of Emperor Qi.


    Who knew if the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven knew his existence!

 1346 The Lost Clan

    The banquet was going on in Emperor Qi''s Palace.


    Ye Futian and others had arrived. Emperor Qi came in person, too.


    "Is it true that recently some royal warriors came to visit Ye Futian''s provisional palace and were all taken away on a stretcher?" Emperor Qi looked at the warriors and asked.


    Many people lowered their heads and looked quite embarrassed.


    Those proud, big figures went to challenge Ye Futian and ended up being defeated.


    "Mr. Ye is the strongest warrior of Crimson Dragon Realm in this generation. It is normal that Emperor Qi''s territory has no one to contend with him," Qi You was standing nearby and said. Emperor Qi nodded and said, "Realizing your own shortcomings is the first step for a more powerful cultivation path. From now on, don''t be someone who sits in a well and thinks they know the world. And, soon, you can depart with Qi You."


    "Aye, Your Majesty," people all answered, nodding. They all knew what Emperor Qi meant.


    Soon, a big event would happen in Heavenly Mandate Realm. This event would be of vital importance for cultivators in this district, especially for those who studied Thunder Laws; that would be a rare chance for them.


    Even though they might not grasp the chance, they should still go to the event.


    "Ye Futian, I know the Yun Clan of Luo City also cultivates in Thunder skills. Since Qianyue is your disciple, you must be good at the Law of Thunders as well, right?" Emperor Qi asked Ye Futian.


    "I can''t say I am good at it, only the basics," Ye Futian replied subserviently.


    "You are being modest. I can tell your Thunder skills are good, too," replied Emperor Qi. "Soon, there will be a chance of inheritance. I will send many people there. Would you like to go with them?"


    It was out of Ye Futian''s expectation. Emperor Qi, as a Renhuang, seemed to pay much attention to this.


    Or did Emperor Qi draw Ye Futian to his side also because of this thing?


    To let him accompany Qi You?


    "May I know where to go?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Have you heard about this after you came to the Heavenly Mandate Palace?" asked Emperor Qi. "All the Thunder Skills in the world originated from the Heavenly Palace."


    "Yes," said Ye Futian, nodding. He indeed heard about it from Yun Nin when he was in the Yun Clan of Luo City.


    All the Thunders Skills in the world originated from the Heavenly Palace.


    The Heavenly Palace here referred to the top power in the Heavenly Mandate Palace��Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Was the thing related to the Violet Heavenly Palace?


    "The place you are going to is one of the orthodox holy places of the Violet Heavenly Palace and contained one of the eight Thunder Law inheritances of the Violet Heavenly Palace," said Emperor Qi slowly. He looked solemn, as if lost in thought of the past, and then said, "The Violet Heavenly Palace inherited from heaven and owned the Heavenly Law, Divine Thunder of Purple Heaven. There are 72 layers in the Divine Thunder of Purple Heaven, eight sects, and numerous branches in the world, and this vast district contained one of the eight orthodoxies of the Violet Heaven Palace. The place you will be going is related to it. Of course, nobody is forced to go. It is voluntary."


    Ye Futian slightly nodded. Emperor Qi just provided a simple introduction and didn''t give any details, but if he decided to go, he would get to know more.


    Of course, Ye Futian wanted to go. All thunder skills of the world originated from the Heavenly Palace. It was one of the eight orthodoxies of the Purple Heavenly Palace.


    He came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm in order to reach higher levels and search for an answer.


    If he had the chance to approach the Violet Heavenly Palace, it would be a very good choice.


    "We don''t cultivate in Thunder Laws; we just hang around. You don''t have to join in the fun," said Chi Shang. He was not the only one; many people didn''t cultivate in Thunder Laws, either.


    He had told Ye Futian he might part with him and go somewhere else.


    "All right, then," Emperor Qi said, nodding.


    Suddenly, Emperor Qi lifted his eyebrows.


    He raised his head and looked up into the distance as if having perceived something. His forceful mind stormed out and enveloped the boundless space.


    And soon, he saw a place there.


    On the outskirt of the Imperial City, a group of people surrounded a young man in white.


    The leader of the group had an unusual temperament. It was as if he was aloof from the world. He stared at the man in white emotionlessly.


    The person in white was Gu Dongliu.


    He had been fleeing on his way and had just come here after hearing about the thing that happened in the city.


    However, he was still blocked the moment he entered the city.


    The young leader in the group waved his hand and immediately. These people flashed and encircled Gu Dongliu.


    "Keep him alive!" the young leader ordered mercilessly. Appalling life force was released from his body.


    From Gu Dongliu''s body, his life force also burst out violently. The Nine Characters of Spiritual Power appeared and rotated around his body. A celestial phantom appeared, and a huge amount of Wills gushed out.


    Seeing the scene, the young leader turned more concerned and yelled out, "Take him, right away!"


    But at this moment, a suffocating pressure came down from the sky dome and enveloped the boundless space; it was the Might of a Renhuang.


    A giant face showed up in the void sky. It was formed by wills. It was Emperor Qis''s face.


    He paused for a second when seeing the ancient characters around Gu Dongliu and the celestial phantom, and soon looked toward the group of people and asked, "Didn''t you know you are not allowed to break into the palace in my territory?"


    The young man who took the lead slightly bowed to Emperor Qi and said, "Our apologies to bother you, Your Majesty. We will leave immediately after taking him away."


    And then he took out a token to show him. There were two characters on it: Wu Tu��Earth the Fifth Essential.


    "The Token of Wu Tu?" Above the sky dome, Emperor Qi slightly frowned at the scene.


    Gu Dongliu raised his head and looked toward Emperor Qi. Since he was here, Emperor Qi should have known the reason. Ye Futian came here and stirred up the whole realm but was still looking for him. Emperor Qi might have made his guess.


    However, at this moment, Emperor Qi didn''t say anything. He just stared at Gu Dongliu in silence, as if he was able to see something from his halo.


    They wanted to capture him. Was it because��


    No, it shouldn''t be possible.


    The Celestial Gate of Heavenly Gate should be extinct.


    "We apologize to bother Your Majesty," the young man slightly bowed and walked to Gu Dongliu. The life force emitting from his body was copious, extremely forceful.


    Gu Dongliu was severely injured. Looking at the warriors coming to him, he saw Emperor Qi''s attitude.


    Gu Dongliu immediately understood that these people who came to capture him had prestigious identities, even higher than Emperor Qi, the Renhuang.


    Otherwise, they would not dare to intrude into the Imperial Palace.


    "I will go by myself," said Gu Dongliu. There was no need to persist. He took a step toward them and gave up resisting.


    He headed here after he got news about Ye Futian and still reached the Imperial Palace after many difficulties. Since Ye Futian was his younger brother attracted attention from the Renhuang in this territory, he thought he would be safe here.


    But obviously, he underestimated these people''s identities. Even a Renhuang didn''t dare to block them.


    It meant that even if he had found Ye Futian and others, it would be useless and might get them involved.


    So, he would just go with them.


    It was just, so far, he hadn''t figured out what the whole thing was about.


    Why did these people have to capture him?


    "Again, I apologize for this trouble I brought, Your Majesty," the young man bowed and said to Emperor Qi after noticing Gu Dongliu following them. "Hope I can visit you again if I have the chance. Besides, Your Majesty can let your people depart now."


    After these words, they turned around and soon left the Imperial Palace.


    Emperor Qi''s face gradually vanished in the void sky.


    In the banquet, when Emperor Qi''s mind came back, many people were watching him.


    They all noticed Emperor Qi released his mind; nobody knew what happened.


    A beam of mind shot out, and immediately, a virtual scene appeared in the void sky. Ye Futian suddenly rose to his feet and yelled, "Third Brother!"


    Emperor Qi looked toward Ye Futian. Did he call him Third Brother?


    The Sword Saint stood up, too. He looked quite worried.


    "Your Majesty, that person is my elder brother. Please show mercy to stop them," Ye Futian pleaded. He didn''t know who Gu Dongliu had offended, but now, only Emperor Qi could save him.


    Emperor Qi looked toward Ye Futian and said, "The token he holds in hand is called the Token of Wu Tu. They belong to the place which I just told you about, one of the eight orthodoxies of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Their real strength is very strong."


    Ye Futian turned pale. Even Emperor Qi didn''t dare to block them?


    The eight orthodoxies of the Violet Heavenly Palace. How did the Third Brother offend them?


    "Master, let''s go chase them," said Ye Futian to Qi Xuangang.


    "There is no use of it. They had crossed the space and left using divine instruments," said Emperor Qi. This Gu Dongliu should not be a simple person since a direct descendant of the Palace chased him, but with such a divine instrument, no wonder the young man could take him away even though he had arrived.


    There was no other way to go.


    "Was he really your brother from Crimson Dragon Realm?" Emperor Qi looked toward Ye Futian and asked.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked quite confused.


    "Is your brother related to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?" Emperor Qi continued asking.


    "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?" Ye Futian murmured. It is a top power in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Third Brother came from the Lower Realms; how could he have a connection with them?


    "No, we came from Emperor Xia''s Realm of Crimson Dragon Realm��a smaller place��and so did my brother. He shouldn''t have any connection with them," replied Ye Futian.


    "What is your brother''s last name?" Emperor Qi fixed his eyes on him and continued asking.


    "His last name is Gu," replied Ye Futian. He felt very anxious; however, Emperor Qi might have known something, so he just replied honestly.


    "Gu��" An appalling beam of sharp Will came out of Emperor Qi''s eyes. Even the life force around his body began to fluctuate.


    The four highest ancient clans controlled the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven at the political apex of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The Gu Clan of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven should have been extinct.


    That lunatic should have been the last person of the clan.


    But now, a person whose last name was Gu showed up in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. If he really belonged to the Gu Clan, he would very likely stir up a storm in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Your Majesty," Ye Futian looked at Emperor Qi and said, "what happened?"


    Emperor Qi stared at him and didn''t respond, but rather, he delivered his voice to him and said, "Your brother''s life spirit and ability are very similar to the ones used by the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven of the past. However, the Gu Clan in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven is extinct now."


    Ye Futian was shocked by what Emperor Qi had told him.


    The Gu Clan was extinct.


    But Third Brother''s cultivation methods were very similar to the ones of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven Gu Clan.


    Was it just a coincidence?


    Didn''t Master kidnap the Third Brother? And Master didn''t say the Third Brother had anything special.


    Or was Gu Dongliu sent to the Lower Realms to take refuge in childhood?

 1347 A Gathering of the Greats

    Ye Futian still had questions. He looked toward Emperor Qi and said telepathically, "Your Majesty, my brother indeed is talented, but he is not powerful to an appalling level and shouldn''t be one of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Can''t it be a coincidence that he just has some similar abilities?"


    "Then why did they want to capture him?" asked Emperor Qi. "Although I don''t know the reason behind it, in all likelihood, that was the case."


    Ye Futian was still confused and anxiously continued, "If my brother is the real descendant of the Gu Clan, what will they do to him? And how did the ancient Gu Clan go extinct?"


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was at the political apex in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and so far, it was still one of the highest and most powerful powers. So how did the Gu Clan go extinct?


    "If your brother is a descendant of the Gu Clan, very probably, he will stir up a storm in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. But I can assure you, they would not dare to kill your brother and will not do that," said Emperor Qi. "Even though they are one of the eight Violet Heaven orthodoxies, they don''t dare to turn hostile against the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven completely."


    He continued, "As for why the Gu Clan went extinct, it is a long story. The Gu Clan used to be a top power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, all because of a legendary figure who was invincible in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He made the Gu Clan and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven become the top powers of the Heaven Mandate Realms."


    Emperor Qi was reminiscing. He looked into the distance, full of yearning for that era. "There used to 12 god-like figures in the Gu Clan whose graceful bearings were unparalleled in the world. They were much stronger than the Nine Sky Goddess serving under the throne of Brahma''s Pure Sky, especially that figure, who owned all talent of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He tried to break the fetters of the Heavenly Law, reached the top of cultivation, and became the top one deity of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. But he who won the victory also caused the defeat. Because he offended the whole Heavenly Mandate Realm, many top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm entered the Celestial Gate��"


    It was said that the battle brought the sky and earth to tears. On the battlefield, the Great Law collapsed, and corpses were scattered everywhere. Countless gallant heroes ended their lives there.


    Until the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was no longer able to afford the cost and terminated him themselves, which also put that era to an end.


    During that time, how peerless that legendary warrior was.


    And the ending of the battle was that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was still on the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but all the memories of that person were wiped out. Not only him, but the Gu Clan also completely disappeared in the records of history.


    After that battle, the lunatic vanished in the chaos. Some people said he had died; some said he was still alive with a wisp of faith.


    That warrior''s level was indeed infinitely close to perfection.


    Now, if a descendant of the Gu Clan showed up, one could imagine what kind of storm he would conjure.


    "This thing might not be kept under wraps for long. Nobody can predict what your brother''s destiny will be like," Emperor Qi said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked pale. Did his Third Brother belong to the Gu Clan?


    If it was true, the Third Brother would be involved in a chaotic storm.


    "Your Majesty, which power did those people belong to?" asked Ye Futian.


    "The territory of Emperor of Purple Underground," said Emperor Qi. "The Emperor of Purple Underground ruled over one land and was the leader of the Purple Underworld. The Purple Underworld of this generation inherited the Infernal Thunder of Wutu in the Divine Thunder of Purple Heaven and strengthened it. The Purple Underworld was one of the eight orthodoxies of the Violet Heavenly Palace. There were countless strong warriors under the demand of the Emperor of Purple Underground. The event that I just mentioned��Qi You''s trial��will be held in that district."


    In the map of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Emperor Qi''s territory was also within this district, and the territory of the Purple Underground Emperor was at the center of the district.


    Of course, from a broader point of view, one could observe that the Violet Heavenly Palace was at the very center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace spread teachings to the world, and in this district, there were eight orthodoxies.


    Knowledge of cultivation radiated from these eight orthodoxies, and this whole boundless area was almost all under their influence.


    That was why it was said that all the Thunder Techniques originated from the Heavenly Palace.


    The endless Thunder Techniques were all derived from the Thunder Laws of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    "Your Majesty, I should go now," Ye Futian said to Emperor Qi, cupping his hands.


    Emperor Qi, of course, understood his intentions. He took out a jade slip and said, "Inside the slip, there is a map of this district. If the message spreads, a storm will rise in the Purple Underworld Emperor''s territory. In that situation, it is almost impossible for you to save your brother, and you can only depend on this."


    Since the Purple Underground Emperor''s subordinates came to capture him, they would hand him over to the Purple Underground Emperor.


    Even Emperor Qi was unable to intervene.


    Although Emperor Qi was a Renhuang, and so was Emperor of Purple Underground, the legitimate heir of Violet Heavenly Palace��Emperor of Purple Underground��had a higher level.


    "Aye," Ye Futian answered, nodding, "thank you, Your Majesty."


    Emperor Qi didn''t say anything and turned to the others, announcing, "I really wish I could have had more conversation with all of you in today''s banquet, but unluckily, an accident occurred and has wasted much of my time. Let''s call it a day, and you may leave at your discretion."


    People were a little confused by Emperor Qi''s words. He and Ye Futian communicated a lot through telepathy, and many people had no idea what happened.


    Ye Futian looked around and saw Yun Teng, Yun Ni, and Yun Qianyue sitting in the last row.


    "Sir, Ma''am, I am deeply grateful for all you''ve done during these days. Now, I should go. Let''s meet again if we have the chance," Ye Futian said to Yun Teng, cupping his hands.


    Yun Teng and Yun Ni rose to their feet and came near Ye Futian. Yun Qianyue followed them and looked quite worried.


    "Brother Ye, take care," Yun Teng said wholeheartedly. He was very grateful to Ye Futian.


    If he had not taken Ye Futian back to the clan by coincidence, nobody knew what kind of destiny would be waiting for this family.


    "Sir Ye, please take care of yourself," Yun Ni also said.


    "I will," said Ye Futian, nodding. He soon turned to Yun Qianyue and said, "Since you have become His Majesty''s disciple, you will have the chance to learn his teachings. Qianyue, try your best to grasp the chance. His Majesty teaches much better than I do."


    Yun Qianyue didn''t want him to leave, but she still nodded and said, "Sir, I will keep what you said in mind."


    "Okay, I should go," said Ye Futian. Then the whole group of warriors bowed to Emperor Qi and left. They stepped into the air and crossed over the void sky.


    Emperor Qi stood there and watched them leave. He was going to arrange for Ye Futian and the others to go with Qi You, but now since the thing happened, he just had to leave it aside.


    "If you meet him in the future, try to help him if you can," Emperor Qi said to Qi You. Qi You nodded, showing he understood.


    "You should start to get ready, too. After a few days, you can depart with them," Emperor Qi looked toward the others and said.


    "Your Majesty, it''s time for us to bid farewell, too," Chi Shang and others rose to their feet and requested to leave.


    This time, they came with Ye Futian from the Crimson Dragon Realm, but they couldn''t stay with him all the time; he also had planned to go somewhere else.


    Now, since Ye Futian''s brother had trouble and Ye Futian couldn''t wait to depart, they would not go with him.


    Not only Chi Shang, but other warriors who came with him from the Thousand Leaves City were also just Ye Futian''s companions. Ye Futian didn''t expect them to help solve this issue.


    Because, very likely, this time, he would have to face great difficulty.


    ��


    Just as Emperor Qi had speculated, although the Purple Underground Emperor''s action of capturing Gu Dongliu was confidential, Emperor Qi was not the only one who witnessed it.


    The secret was soon leaked.


    A descendant of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven Gu Clan showed up and was captured by the Purple Underground Emperor''s subordinates and imprisoned in the Purple Underground Emperor''s territory.


    The Gu Clan was a clan in the legend in Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    It was said that the clan had 12 God-like figures and a lunatic who mastered the ultimate celestial law and was able to break into the Path Realms of all skies.


    Did his cultivation method still exist?


    And since a descendant of the Gu Clan showed up, were there any others?


    How many secrets did Gu Dongliu have?


    Soon, the Purple Underground Emperor''s territory became the center of the whole realm and the destination of numerous great warriors who were coming to unveil the secret.


    In addition, the message had even caught the attention of many top powers.


    It was said that the Violet Heavenly Palace had sent warriors to take Gu Dongliu into the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The Purple Underworld Sect didn''t hand him over to the Violet Heavenly Palace, perhaps because they had their own thoughts.


    On this day, outside the Purple Underground City, numerous warriors traveled in the air, heading toward this ancient city. Saint-Plane figures with strong cultivation abilities were everywhere.


    Among all these travelers, a group of people, who came from one direction, were all Saint-Plane warriors.


    Ye Futian was standing in the front. Next to him stood Yu Sheng, Xia Qingyuan, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, and others; Qi Xuangang and Wu Yong stood behind them. Their Saint levels differed.


    "We have arrived," Ye Futian said in a low voice. Since they departed from Emperor Qi''s territory, they had covered an infinite distance.


    "Don''t know if Dongliu is okay or not," the Sword Saint murmured. He had been worried about Gu Dongliu''s safety.


    He hoped he would be fine.


    Ye Futian was emotionless. Around them, warriors kept passing by.


    There was a voice coming from nearby. "This time, the Purple Underground Emperor''s territory will be bustling. I heard that not only warriors of this territory would come, but top powers of the whole realm will also all send warriors here."


    "Was the descendant of the Gu Clan that attractive to them?" someone inquired.


    "If you heard from elders about the thing that happened in the past, you would understand," someone else replied.


    "But besides the descendant of the Gu Clan, a big event being held in the Purple Underground Emperor''s territory is also a reason that many talented people are attracted here."


    "It will be perfect if we can see the young generation of those top powers."


    Normal people were usually unable to see the descendants of all top powers; they would not come here.


    "If what you said is true, does it mean I can even have the chance of seeing the saintesses under the throne of Nine Sky Goddess?"


    "What a loser!" people around him jeered. The Nine Sky Goddess of the Brahma''s Pure Sky was peerless in this world; the saintesses serving under her throne were also very unusual figures. Were there any men in the world who didn''t want to see their faces?


    But how could they easily be seen?


    Ye Futian quietly listened to what people around him talked about. Would the Brahman''s Pure Sky show up?


    What kind of person was that warrior of the Gu Clan? Even a descendant of the Gu Clan could raise such a big storm!

 1348 the Divine Mountain

    In the Purple Nether City, everybody was talking about two things.


    One was the descendant of the Gu Clan.


    Obviously, the peerless figures of the Gu Clan in the old days had so much influence on the Heavenly Mandate Realms that even after many years, the appearance of a Gu Clan descendant could stir up a disturbance.


    The person that was mentioned most frequently was that lunatic of the Gu Clan.


    Ye Futian had known his real name��Gu Tianxing.


    He was not sure if Third Brother was a descendant of the Gu Clan and didn''t know if that legendary figure Gu Tianxing had any connection with the Third Brother.


    But now, since Third Brother was imprisoned, nobody knew what would happen to him.


    Countless warriors were heading toward the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Numerous people had discussed the possibility that those top powers would also come for this descendant of the Gu Clan. Under such a situation, Ye Futian also felt unsettled.


    The second thing that people talked about was the Heavenly Thunder Summit held on Wutu Mountain. It was a big event in the Purple Underground Territory, especially for cultivators who cultivated in Thunder Laws. It was a very rare opportunity.


    Otherwise, Emperor Qi would not have sent his son Qi You here.


    Ye Futian had heard a lot about the Heavenly Thunder Summit of the Wutu Mountain and known what it was about.


    In fact, there was not much connection between the Heavenly Thunder Summit and the Purple Underground Sect. It was initiated directly by the Violet Heavenly Palace, the Ultimate Land of Thunder Laws in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They spread the teachings to the world and let all suitable cultivators have the chance to learn Thunder Laws.


    Some people even had the opportunity to follow the orthodoxy of Wutu Infernal Thunder and became a successor of the Purple Underworld Sect.


    Wutu Mountain was worshipped as the divine mountain of this territory; it was located within the Purple Nether City.


    At this moment, numerous warriors gathered in one place of the city. The whole area was full of people.


    There were stairs in front of the crowd, and the entrance of the divine mountain was at the top of stairs.


    Usually, people were prohibited from entering this divine mountain. No one was allowed to get inside.


    Outside the mountain, around the stairs and below them, there were giant stone pillars surrounded by the horrifying power of thunder. They let out rumbles of dull thunder, keeping people away.


    At this moment, Ye Futian had also come to this district. The divine mountain had not been open to the public yet, but many people had arrived beforehand and were viewing the scenery.


    Nobody knew how many people would inherit the Thunder Laws of the divine mountain this time.


    Ye Futian came here because entering the divine mountain was the only chance for him to approach the Purple Underground Sect and learn about Third Brother''s current situation.


    "Don''t know how many people will be chosen this time," someone said in the crowd.


    "Not sure, but at least I know who will reach the top of the divine mountain and inherit the Heavenly Thunder laws of Wutu," someone said, laughing.


    "It goes without saying," people nearby jeered, "Streaking Cloud Sword Emperor''s offspring Lu Yu will definitely become the one who uses his sword to draw the Heavenly Thunder."


    The Streaking Cloud Sword Emperor was a Renhuang lord in this district. He cultivated in swordsmanship with Thunder Laws and was good at drawing thunder by sword. He had outstanding skills.


    This time, he was the most promising one to reach the top of the divine mountain.


    "Don''t be so sure. This time talents of all territories within this vast district will come. Every cultivator who specializes in Thunder Law might be here. So, competitive warriors may be much more than you have expected. There will definitely be a lot of outstanding figures showing up."


    "Not to mention others, but will the demon emperor''s offspring be weak? His sturdy body was smelted by Thunder Laws and can endure a great amount of Sky Thunder. Why can''t he become the chosen one of the Heavenly Thunder?" Someone nearby continued, "And don''t forget about the Bamboo Emperor''s daughter."


    Many people nodded slightly. Indeed, this time, many warriors of this vast space would join the gathering, and even warriors of other territories would come, too.


    Ye Futian quietly listened in the crowd. Renhuangs'' children were rarely seen in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Those people''s real strengths should be outstanding.


    Now, he had finally reached the top of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path��the ultimate realm.


    He might meet all kinds of big figures here.


    "I have heard that Yimu, Binghuo, and other orthodoxies of Thunder Law have all gradually reached and entered the Imperial Palace."


    "Not only that, but nowadays in this Purple Nether City, perhaps among us, there are people of very distant powers, but they didn''t come for the divine mountain."


    "The Gu Clan had vanished for many years and became history, and the descendant of the Gu Clan is said to have only an average level of cultivation ability. How did he cause such a disturbance?" someone asked in confusion.


    "Because his last name is Gu, and Gu Tianxing belonged to the Gu Clan," an elder warrior replied, serious. Many young people had never experienced the uproar of that time and didn''t know who Gu Tianxing was; thus, they lacked respect for him.


    The higher a warrior''s level was, the more he could understand Gu Tianxing''s power, and the more he would pay attention to the descendant of the Gu Clan.


    Anyone who had experienced the uproar of that year could not stay calm and act like nothing happened, knowing about the Gu Clan descendant''s appearance.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said in the crowd.


    His companions nodded and soon left with him.


    Xia Qingyuan asked him, "Even if you enter the Wutu divine mountain, what is the use of reaching the top and inheriting the Thunder Laws? Do you really want to study in the Purple Underground Sect and become a successor of one of the Eight Violet Heavenly Palace Orthodox Sects?"


    "Of course not," replied Ye Futian; it was not his goal.


    The Wutu Divine Mountain inherited the Great Laws of Thunder. The chosen ones could only be one of the successors of Purple Underground Sect, one of the Eight Violet Heavenly Palace Orthodox Sects.


    He might be interested if he could become the successor of the whole Eight Orthodox Sects.


    Of course, then his target would be the Violet Heavenly Palace instead of the Purple Underground Sect.


    The Violet Underground Palace included eight parts of heritage, and the eight sects spread teachings of Thunder Laws in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Even a power like Purple Underground Sect actually didn''t have any direct connection with the Violet Heavenly Palace. The Purple Underground Sect was not subordinated to the Violet Heavenly Palace and had its own heritage of Laws.


    Their relationship was subtle.


    But of course, people usually just regarded them as having the same lineage; they all inherited from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    ��


    Ye Futian and others found a place to stay and used the time to cultivate patiently.


    Every day new warriors were rushing into the Purple Nether City. More and more people had arrived. There were even messages leaking out from the Purple Underground Imperial Palace that the Renhuang Emperor of Purple Underground was considering how to deal with the descendant of the Gu Clan.


    But now, since more and more issues were getting involved, the Renhuang Emperor of Purple Underground didn''t dare to make arbitrary decisions.


    It was said that many top powers were on their way here.


    The hearsay made Ye Futian, who was cultivating in the inn courtyard, quite unsettled.


    Now, Third Brother was basically waiting to be killed, but Ye Futian had no solution.


    Because the top power of Heavenly Mandate Realm was involved, not to mention him, but even Emperor Xia or Emperor Crimson Dragon couldn''t do anything for him.


    "Still worried about your brother?" a person came near and asked. Ye Futian raised his head and saw Master. He slightly nodded and asked, "Do you have any advice, Master?"


    "You don''t need to worry too much. Although I hadn''t observed closely before, during the time I spent with your brother, I have seen your Third Brother''s fortune. He should be fine," said Qi Xuangang. "It''s possible that this storm will become an opportunity for him."


    "But the Gu Clan is extinct. Who else can rescue him?" asked Ye Futian. He thought his Master was just comforting him since he was too worried.


    "You don''t know what happened at that time. You don''t know your Third Brother''s past and identity. As you said before, your brother was kidnapped by another master of yours, and he has never talked about his family background or what outstanding talent he had. If so, isn''t it possible that someone designed it purposely?"


    Qi Xuangang said, "It is not an easy thing to send a person from the Heavenly Mandate Realm to the Lower Realms."


    Ye Futian fell silent. What Master said indeed made sense.


    He had perceived it, too, that the Third Brother probably was the descendant of the Gu Clan. Indeed, it was extremely hard to send a normal person to the Nine States of Lower Worlds.


    Besides, the Third Brother''s talent was outstanding, but he hardly showed his real strength. Was there a secret behind it?


    He remembered the Third Brother''s Life Spirit had experienced an awakening.


    "There is always a way in the cultivation of the Great Law. Don''t need to preoccupy yourself with all that had happened. Just focus on the present and do what you are supposed to do," continued Qi Xuangang.


    Ye Futian nodded and didn''t say much.


    Qi Xuangang turned around and soon left. Qi Xuangang''s shoulders looked so wide and dependable from behind.


    So why did the Master come to Heavenly Mandate Realm with Ye Futian?


    At this moment, Qi Xuangang was thinking of himself. Actually, he should not have come to the Ultimate Realm, but he still came.


    Just like last time, he was following his heart.


    All things coming up would have the best results. Instead of worrying, following things as they naturally occurred was a better choice.


    Everything had its time. He would try his best to live his life, and heaven had the answer of when his time would come.


    ��


    It was the day that the Wutu Divine Mountain would open. Numerous warriors gathered outside the divine mountain.


    Today was the day that the teachings of Wutu Divine Mountain would be spread, and the Violet Heavenly Palace would release the Divine Thunder of Heavenly Laws.


    Countless warriors had reached the divine mountain. They entered the divine mountain one after another; all of them had outstanding bearings. Only talented warriors dared to enter the divine mountain, while normal people might turn into ash under the Divine Thunder.


    A group of warriors showed up on the stairs. The ones who took the lead were all warriors of Nirvana Plane. There was also a young man standing among them. Seeing this person, Ye Futian''s pupils slightly contracted.


    In the scene that Emperor Qi showed to him that day, this young man was the person who took away Third Brother.


    Obviously, he had a high standing in the Purple Underground Sect.


    Ye Futian''s stare was totally emotionless. That person''s perception was keen; he seemed to notice and took a glance at Ye Futian.


    Glancing at Ye Futian''s expression, he felt strange, but soon, he moved his eyes elsewhere. He didn''t pay attention to Ye Futian''s existence.


    "Today the Eight Divine Mountains will open at the same time. Here is the Wutu Divine Mountain. All of you can enter the Wutu Divine Mountain and inherit the Laws of Wutu Infernal Thunder. I sincerely hope you can inherit the Thunder Laws and cultivate in the Purple Underground Sect," the young man announced. Numerous people looked toward him, and many people communicated amongst themselves in low voices.


    He was the Purple Underground Emperor''s favorite disciple, renowned in this district. With extraordinary talents, he once broke the previous record and undertook nine hundred Heavenly Thunders in the divine mountain. He was considered to be the heir to the lineage of Wutu!

 1349 Going Through Thunder

    Ye Futian heard peoples'' discussion and had an idea of who the young man was.


    So, he went through nine hundred streaks of Divine Thunder on the top of the Wutu Divine Mountain? he thought.


    Ye Futian was really interested to see just how powerful the orthodox sect of Thunder Laws from the Violet Heavenly Palace really was.


    Such an opportunity was extremely rare for Thunder Laws cultivators, which was why the opening ceremony of the eight divine mountains was always a big event in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and attracted a lot of strong cultivators.


    "And one last reminder: you are responsible for your own safety in Wutu divine mountain. The Law of Divine Thunder is dangerous, and Wutu Infernal Thunder is deadly. The higher your Plane is, the more attacks you will meet," the young man continued. People understood what he meant.


    The stronger one''s cultivation ability was, the more intense the Thunder Laws would be in the falling thunder induced by the Great Law. It was said that no Nirvana-Plane cultivators had entered the eight divine mountains for many years.


    However, there was not much influence on cultivators. All cultivators would choose to enter the divine mountains when they were two levels before Saint Plane so that they could get more chances. If they didn''t succeed in these two levels, it was meaningless to enter during Unblemished and Nirvana levels.


    At this moment, behind the young man, a deep roll of dull thunder came. It was as if something was in the process of formation.


    The enclosed sky in the distance changed color as if the destructive Thunder Might was converging.


    The young man turned his head and took a glance. He soon waved his hand and made way for participants, then said, "The Divine Thunder will soon fall upon the divine mountain. Please get ready to enter the divine mountain."


    After he finished talking, suddenly, all cultivators started flashing toward Wutu Divine Mountain.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian. This time, all young cultivators in his group would enter the divine mountain, and the older Nirvana-Plane cultivators would wait outside.


    Although the Sword Saint, Wuchen, and others didn''t cultivate in Thunder Laws, they were still awed by the majesty of the Divine Thunder of the Great Law, so they also wanted to use its power to cleanse their bodies and purify their own Laws.


    It was very beneficial to cultivators. They were not the only ones who thought like this. Many Saint-Plane cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm also chose to enter the divine mountain on the launching date.


    In the Imperial Palace of the Purple Nether City, many important figures were looking toward the direction of the divine mountain. They all knew the eight divine mountains were opened. Some of those cultivators who entered the divine mountain would become new successors of Thunder Laws of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Some of them would join the Eight Orthodox Sects of the Thunder Laws, like the Purple Underground Sect in the future.


    Some of the more outstanding ones might even have the chance to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace and become their disciples.


    Ye Futian had just stepped into the space of Wutu Divine Mountain. White and purple lightning flickered on the earth, roaming over every inch of land. A gust of suffocating Might dropped down from the sky dome.


    Above their heads, long rolls of dull thunder came from the sky dome. A boundless saucer thunderstorm was in formation. Sky and earth were wrapped in darkness but, at the same time, illuminated by the flashes of thunder.


    The saucer-shaped heavenly thunder enveloped all layers of skies, circulating in the upper air. The center zone of the storm had the strongest Might, and the Wutu Divine mountain was right below it.


    Standing on the top of the divine mountain, one just felt the saucer storm was over his head. Seen from a distance, the scene was very appalling. Even imagining standing on the top of the mountain would give many goosebumps.


    "Be careful," Ye Futian reminded. They walked between the sky and earth. The light flew from the ground to their bodies and roamed around their bodies.


    The power of thunder didn''t attack them, but when it roamed around his body, Ye Futian could clearly feel there was a connection between him and the heavenly thunder above the sky dome.


    Ye Futian looked toward others and saw many warriors try to merge the roaming power of thunder into their bodies. He understood. He switched his mind, and suddenly, the dazzling light started to flow around his body, merging the power of roaming thunder as his own. The thunder flow was running even faster.


    The induction between his body and the Great Law of Thunder from the sky became even stronger. It was as if they were supposed to be in symbiosis.


    Some extraordinary talented figures were very confident. They headed in the direction of the central divine mountain at a breakneck pace while converting the thunder at the same time.


    Only those who could stand firm on the mountain were qualified for the Laws of Wutu Infernal Thunder and had the chance to cultivate in the Purple Underground Sect.


    Ye Futian was also heading toward the divine mountain. Not only him, but everyone else did the same. They kept tempering the thunder around them while walking, merging the power into their bodies.


    Thrum�� In the distance, the fastest warrior had stepped up into the divine mountain.


    He raised both hands in the air, and suddenly, a sword appeared. Endless power of thunder flew around the sword.


    "Come to the sword!" he said. Suddenly a muffled sound came from the sky dome like the beats of a drum.


    Dazzling beams of light were released from the sword. When the Great Laws of Divine Thunder fell from the sky dome, another dull sound came. The thunder light from the sky dome, and the sword light collided. Endless Divine Thunder flew down into the sword and entered the warrior''s body, merging into his flesh and bones.


    "That is the Streaking Cloud Sword Emperor''s offspring," someone recognized that swordsman-in-training and said.


    The Streaking Cloud Sword Emperor''s descendant, Lu Yu, was considered to be one of the most promising warriors, one who could reach the top of the divine mountain and go through the Wutu Heavenly Thunder.


    Few participants could compete with him.


    Boom! At this moment, his sword attracted the Heavenly Thunder from the sky, and the falling Heavenly Thunder kept flowing into his body through his sword. It was as if it was merging into his body.


    Lu Yu continued striding forward; he wanted to reach the top of the Wutu Divine Mountain as fast as he could.


    Not far away from Lu Yu, a lightning figure was also forcing his way forward. Endless Thunder Might was released from his body. He was heading toward the front like a terrifying Holy Beast.


    He was not a human cultivator; he was a descendant of a Demon Emperor who was good at Thunder Laws.


    The original body of the figure was a very powerful Divine Thunder Bird Sacred Beast. Even though he was in a human figure, his mouth looked like a beak, and when he rushed up to the divine mountain, he directly opened his mouth. His body was covered by the appalling roaming Thunder Might.


    Boom�� Lightning fell from the sky and was almost going to hit him, but he seemed not to care at all. He let out a shriek, and suddenly, his human body turned into a beast. His sharp beak was opened wide, and every one of his feathers looked like it contained the luster of lightning.


    When he opened his beak, the thunder in the sky directly fell and entered his mouth. He just swallowed it like it was a vitamin.


    But even so, his body radically trembled once, and his upward movement was slowed down.


    However, that happened for one moment; after he swallowed the thunder, he continued going upward.


    Divine Thunder Birds were born as the Sacred Beasts of Thunder. They could directly devour the Laws of Thunder. They were natural demons of Thunder species.


    Just like some human cultivators who had the natural talent to cultivate.


    Besides Lu Yu and the Divine Thunder Bird, several cultivators had also entered the divine mountain. Among them, there was a graceful lady whose movement was extraordinarily swift and elegant; she was also very good at deploying the power of thunder.


    People continually entered the Wutu Divine Mountain. Some warriors were being crushed and falling from the Wutu Divine Mountain, blood streaming from their mouths. They looked very miserable.


    Battles also broke out between some warriors.


    The dazzling holy light enveloped Ye Futian. His body turned into the cauldron of the Great Law, burning all beings on earth. The Thunder Might that roamed around his body was also refined.


    At this moment, he had also stepped into the Wutu Divine Mountain. In just one moment, the saucer-shaped Heavenly Thunder above the sky dome seemed to perceive something.


    All of a sudden, the Heavenly Thunder fell down and directly darted toward him.


    Since many people had stepped into the Divine Mountain, Ye Futian could see endless Heavenly Thunder drop down as if it was the end of the world; the scene was very appalling.


    Boom! After a loud sound, the Great Law of Thunder immediately fell. Ye Futian just felt the hefty Might of the Great Law was crushing over his body, and he had to endure all of this. The intimidating power of destruction was about to smash his body into pieces, and it was still roaming on every part of his body.


    The dazzling Deed of Thorough Comprehension was released to the extreme. Ye Futian transformed the thunder in his body as his energy and gradually got familiar with the Might.


    Besides Ye Futian, Yu Sheng and others were also enduring the attacks of thunder. As a booming sound came, they all perceived the appalling trembling and defended their Thunder Might with their sturdy builds and powers.


    As warriors gradually stepped into the Wutu Divine Mountain, endless lightning dropped down from the saucer-shaped thunderstorm above the sky dome. Everyone perceived the real sense of destruction. It was as if the whole world of Great Law would collapse.


    Boom. The Might fell down. The dropping Divine Thunder of the Great Law produced a kind of resonance with horrifying power. Many people felt their minds were trembling as if their brains would explode. Overwhelmed by such irresistible power, they all felt their existences were trivial.


    Lu Yu, at the highest height, stretched out two hands; suddenly, tens of thousands of swords made metallic clangs. The swords induced the Heavenly Thunder, which dropped down on his body. The scene was incredibly gorgeous.


    The Divine Thunder kept flying up in the sky, devouring all the Heavenly Thunder.


    However, others were all thinking about how to avoid such appalling attacks. The result of so many warriors gathering in the Wutu Divine Mountain was dying together. The only solution was to remove most of them from the divine mountain and weaken the Might of Thunder.


    When the endless thunder fell, next to Ye Futian, a warrior raised two hands to induce the Heavenly Thunder and merge it in his palms. But the Heavenly Thunder flew down endlessly. He let out a shout and moved his palms, throwing the attack to Ye Futian and his companions.


    The thunder in his palms exploded, trembling the sky and earth. The horrifying thunder darted toward Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan and, all of a sudden, came to the front.


    Bam! Xia Qingyuan was defending against the thunder from the sky and unexpectedly got hit by the thunder from his palms, but since she was defending the Heavenly Thunder from the sky and had a shield around her body, she was not severely hurt. But even so, she let out a low humph and was shaken away, spitting out a mouthful of blood.


    Not only Xia Qingyuan, but other companions were also being attacked, too.


    On the battleground, there were warriors inducing the Heavenly Thunder to attack others everywhere!

 1350 Invincibility

    Anyone who had stepped into the Divine Mountain knew of the might of the eight mountains. Lightning bolts fell, and they were turned into Way of the Heavenly Thunder. They brought about greater lightning powers in them. The attacks would grow even stronger next time.


    As such, many who were out to withstand the might of the Heavenly Thunder at the Divine Mountain were unable to bear it toward the end.


    Unless the one in question was compatible with the Infernal Thunder of Wutu, enabling the seeds to be planted and completely meld within their body, causing them to develop talents for training in the ways of the Infernal Thunder of Wutu. They would have then inherited one of the eight orthodoxies of the Way of the Heavenly Thunder of Wutu.


    Even so, they would be unable to withstand strikes that were just too powerful. As the ordeal went on, the might grew to increasingly terrifying proportions.


    That legendary genius outside of the Divine Mountain had been able to withstand 900 bolts of the Heavenly Thunder, gaining the attention of a Renhuang and was taken in as a student of Emperor of Purple Underground.


    As such, at that moment, many who wanted to plant seeds that were not all that powerful��which were available at earlier phases��needed to purge all other Heavenly Thunder as attacks other than the Lightning Seeds that were intended to be worked on. Doing so enabled them to throw others off of the Divine Mountain, and that would have enabled them to reduce competitors.


    The process was to be continued until later phases before working on the seeds of Infernal Thunder of Wutu to fulfill the requirements of the Purple Underworld. This would then give them the right to train under the Purple Underworld, making them part of the lineage of the Infernal Thunder of Wutu.


    As such, the phenomenon where countless unleashed attacks at the same time were seen on the Divine Mountain.


    Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan, and the others were also attacked by lightning bolts brought about by those around them.


    The one who attacked them was a member of younger generations of some significant forces, who had exceptional talent in lightning manipulation. He was determined to train under the Emperor of Purple Underground on that trip to the Divine Mountain.


    Being accepted by the Emperor of Purple Underground implied that one would have acquired the true lineage of the Infernal Thunder of Wutu.


    To those who trained in the way of lightning, other than the Violet Heavenly Palace, the Eight True Lineages of the Way of Thunder descending from the Violet Heavenly Palace would be the perfect choice.


    Ye Futian flashed and held Xia Qingyuan up and asked in a low voice, "Are you alright?"


    Xia Qingyuan shook her head. She did not train in the way of lightning, so she was having a hard time on the Divine Mountain.


    Ye Futian let go of her and glanced at the one who had just attacked them. That other person simply shot him a glance before continuing to make his way upward. He held his hands up and continued to attract lightning bolts, causing terrifying destructive powers to be contained on his hands.


    Boom.


    A bolt of lightning shot through the air, and Ye Futian disappeared from where he stood right away. That person seemed to have sensed something, and his brow twitched. He turned around and lashed out right away. The lightning in his hands turned into a huge Kui of lightning. It was extremely raging. It charged at Ye Futian while basking in divine lightning.


    The might of thunder shrouded the sky, enveloping Ye Futian''s surroundings.


    Boom. The might of Ye Futian''s Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst with a rumble. The furnace of the great path turned into an extremely holy god of thunder, standing tall in the sky, bringing thousands of lightning bolts as it stood, tearing the space all around it.


    That Kui of lightning roared in anger. The lightning bolts bursting from its body shrouded the place altogether before thousands of lightning will burst through it, which then continued blasting until they hit that person.


    An intense beam of light was seen, and that person shuddered violently. The flash of lightning was seen bursting again. Ye Futian appeared right before him and lashed out with an attack.


    Boom. A rumble was heard, and the might of lightning burst within that person''s body, who was then sent flying and spitting up blood. Intense fear was seen in his eyes.


    Being severely injured on the Divine Mountain would have been possibly lethal, and one could very possibly perish on the mountain from it.


    "Look out!" Xia Qingyuan warned. Ye Futian looked up. A bolt of lightning fell and was immersed within his body. Ye Futian felt as if his body was about to explode. His will rattled, and something seemed to have been triggered within him, causing the might of that lightning bolt to grow more intense.


    His body ground to a halt. He felt as if there was an intensely brilliant light in his body. It was like a seed of the great path, causing the lightning on the Divine Mountain to course all over his body in a frenzy. That would have resulted in the next attack becoming even stronger.


    "A seed of the Infernal Thunder of Wutu, huh?" Ye Futian muttered deep down. The Violet Heavenly Palace was a top-notch force in that Supreme Imperial Realm. They were simply unbelievable for being able to rain down lightning bolts on the eight Divine Mountains to filter out those who would inherit the ways of lightning.


    A shriek was heard by Ye Futian''s side. He turned to look in that direction, finding the one whom he had injured before being struck by a lightning bolt and was unable to take it. That man''s internal organs ruptured, and he kept spewing blood. His body continued to fall from the Divine Mountain.


    However, no one else looked at him. One could have been a genius of superb talent, but once a person ventured into the Divine Mountain, they would simply be just a face in the crowd. There were simply too many geniuses around, making him looking insignificant. Even if he were to die at the mountain, he would only have his incompetence to blame.


    Everyone knew of the dangers on the Wutu Divine Mountain. One had to weigh the pros and cons as they moved.


    Even with the dangers lurking around, countless came to the Divine Mountain nonetheless.


    However, a lot of people were forced to get off of the mountain, and others were injured within a short time. There were even others who had been like that man and suffered a horrible end.


    If another bolt of lightning were to hit him, death would have probably claimed him.


    "You guys don''t train in the ways of lightning, so it''d be enough for you all to just have your bodies tempered. If you''re unable to take it, feel free to get off of the mountain," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan, Yu Sheng, and the others.


    Xia Qingyuan nodded. People who did not train the ways of lightning were at a considerable disadvantage at the Divine Mountain. The attack from that man before had attracted a bolt of lightning right away, tapping into the lightning will throughout the Divine Mountain.


    "I''ll head up," Ye Futian said, and his body shot up as soon as he finished, taking to the sky and heading for higher places at the Divine Mountain.


    Thousands of thunderous beams of light appeared on Ye Futian, looking endless and spreading out like a formless net.


    Boom. Lightning rained from above, and boundless lightning bombarded all over the sky. Heavenly lightning shot into his body. His Life Palace unleashed a mystical aura, seeping out into his body. An ancient tree appeared, extending throughout his body, making it seem as if his body had become the trunk of the tree.


    Lightning powers flowing through his body was consumed right away by that tree, melding into it bit by bit. That lightning seed was also absorbed by the root of that ancient tree, causing lightning to sparkle at the root.


    Ye Futian seemed to have become very used to something like that happening, and he did not feel anything to be out of place at all.


    Lightning from the Divine Mountain surged throughout Ye Futian''s body, causing the might of lightning all around him to grow increasingly intense. His body, which was continuing to go upward, surpassed many. He gradually became one of the handfuls of people who made it really far.


    As he went higher and higher, the might of the lightning bolts became increasingly strong. The lightning construct shrouding the entire Divine Mountain felt stifling.


    Boom. A young man dressed in a blue robe was not far away from Ye Futian. A bolt of lightning hit that young man, and his blue robe billowed loudly. His body expanded, and the might of lightning extended throughout every single part of his body, so much so that even his eyes seemed to sparkle with lightning.


    He looked up at several people before him, and his expression turned solemn. Those eyes sparkling with blue light were filled with determination and edge.


    He was not only there to join the ranks of the Purple Underworld and train; he was also there to become the most dazzling being in the entire Divine Mountain of Wutu.


    He was a descendant of Renhuang and inherited the path of Renhuang, enabling his lightning powers to be tremendous. Joining the ranks of Purple Underworld alone was hardly of any meaning to him.


    Thunderous noise sounded at his side. He turned around and saw Ye Futian, who continued to rise, and that other man, who was about to surpass him.


    It was obvious that he was not the only one with such intentions.


    "Stay down." A thunderous, overwhelming voice was heard. He took one step, causing the sky to shake. Ye Futian felt an extremely overbearing pressure come down on him. Five bolts of lightning of different colors gathered, appearing on top of Ye Futian''s head.


    "The True Ways of Five Thunder" Many looked up. They recognized who that young man was when he attacked.


    "Look out! That''s the True Ways of Five Thunder, capable of killing anything they touch," someone reminded from afar. Ye Futian turned to look at the one who talked, finding a familiar face. That person was none other than Prince Qi You, son of Emperor Qi.


    When Emperor Qi invited them to head out with Qi You, he was talking about to Wutu Divine Mountain. He had initially hoped that Ye Futian and his people would challenge the mountain with Qi You, but they were there early due to something related to Gu Dongliu, and they met at the Divine Mountain.


    "Down." The blue-robed young man pointed downwards, and the might of lightning throughout his body burst. Five bolts of lightning were conjured and seemed to have taken the form of a matrix as they rained down. Those five-colored beams shrouded the entire place and had engulfed the space where Ye Futian was as well. That was indeed a case of five thunders raining down on his head.


    His surroundings rumbled. Everything was to be crushed under the True Ways of Five Thunder.


    Qi You looked at Ye Futian''s direction and felt rather concerned. The True Ways of Five Thunder were descended from a very formidable ancient being.


    Ye Futian clasped his hands together, and powers of the great path gathered. An ancient god of thunder appeared within an instant. Its tall, majestic body was forged of lightning, and it held a hammer of thunder, which was then brought down and clashed directly with the True Ways of Five Thunder.


    A beam of light burst through the air, suppressing the True Ways of Five Thunder. That ancient god had thousands of lightning bolts running throughout its body, which was then unleashed throughout its surroundings and brought down on its target.


    Zzzz, zzz... Lightning coursed throughout that man''s body, causing him to shudder all over. That god of thunder''s weapon was brought down again, which caused the Five Thunder to be suppressed further before being thrown back into the conjurer''s body.


    A massive rumble was heard, and that man''s body seemed to be about to explode, blood splattering everywhere.


    Ye Futian nodded to Qi You and took another step forward as he continued his way upward. The path from then on was clear, and no one else stopped him.


    It was obvious that that one attack had shocked and made everyone else think twice.


    Qi You looked at Ye Futian''s back with a troubled look. He was wondering if that man, who Chi Shang claimed to be the number one genius throughout Crimson Dragon Realm, was about to reach the top of the Divine Mountain as well.


    Ye Futian''s immense talents put even Qi You to shame. That attack, which Ye Futian just pulled, was not something that powerful. Still, it was that his ability at tapping into the power of ambient lightning was far superior to his opponent''s.

 1351 Lu Yu

    Ye Futian went up one step after another, and the mark left inside of him grew increasingly powerful. Lightning bolts throughout the Divine Mountain shrouded the vast space around him, with him at the very center.


    Every single bolt of lightning that smite was earth-shattering. Every part of his body was baptized by lightning. Even that ancient tree within him had boundless lightning coursing through it, but at the same time, it was also consuming the power of lightning.


    "Is the power of the Source of the Great Path?" Ye Futian searched within himself and muttered. His body became a furnace when the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was cast, refining the divine lightning of his surroundings, melding them with the lightning will within his Life Spirit.


    That was the meaning of the existence of the Eight Divine Mountains, passing down the teachings through the lightning bolts themselves, enabling the ones taking in the bolts to develop will of Infernal Thunder of Wutu within them, which in turn enabling them to develop talents for that element, paving their way for training within the Emperor of Purple Underground.


    Imparting the way through the lightning bolts was something that only top-notch forces in Supreme Imperial Realm were able to do.


    It was unimaginable to the Lower Worlds.


    Ye Futian''s body had formidable adaptive abilities. With the World Tree Life Spirit and the Deed of Thorough Comprehension at work, it resulted in him melding quickly with the lightning around him, causing all lightning will found within his body to gradually be developed into the will of the great path of Infernal Thunder of Wutu.


    With that, he became able to withstand thunderous might of greater power as he became compatible with them.


    No one would have been able to sustain smiting from over 100 lightning bolts alone otherwise.


    As Ye Futian kept moving up and overtaking a greater number of people, eventually, there were only three people left before him.


    Lu Yu, a descendant of Sword Emperor of Shocking Clouds, The thunder bird, a descendant of a demon emperor, Zhu Qi, daughter of the Bamboo Emperor.


    The thunder bird continued to consume the lightning of the great path around. The lightning sheen on it shrouded the sky, shining on a vast area. Its eyes were extremely pointed, looking at Lu Yu, who was at the absolute highest point, leaving it and Zhu Qi in the dust behind.


    Presently, even the thunder bird was enduring extremely great pressure.


    That was the same with Zhu Qi. Her body was moving extremely fast, like an illusion. But when lightning bolts flashed, she would have been hindered.


    Ye Futian gradually caught up with them from behind. His steps were steady as he followed, heading towards the peak of Wutu Divine Mountain.


    The millstone-like thundercloud above raged on, making it seem like doomsday for those witnessing it.


    Boom. A rumble was heard. Countless on the Divine Mountain looked up and saw a figure walk to the peak one step after another, holding a sword in his hand. The figure was none other than Lu Yu.


    "Some speed indeed."


    Many shuddered to find that Lu Yu was actually about to get to the top.


    It was as speculated by many��Lu Yu indeed became the first to get to the top of the Divine Mountain. That descendant of the Sword Emperor of Shocking Clouds, who was capable of attracting lightning with his sword and had incredible proficiency at the ways of lightning, was indeed a cut above the rest.


    He looked like some god of the sword. His back faced the ones below him as he made it up one step at a time.


    Boom. Yet another flash of lightning blasted. His sword hung above him, and the bolts blasted onto the sword right away, which was then refined by the sword as it passed before finally surging into his body.


    He looked up in the sky and lifted his legs, continuing to move his way upwards. His sword aura was towering, and boundless lightning glimmered on his sword, making him looking dashing and legendary.


    "That indeed is the number one among descendants of the Sword Emperor of Shocking Clouds. Lu Yu will probably be able to study under the Emperor of Purple Underground," some muttered deep down. Many found themselves inferior, looking at legendary figure beneath the thunderclouds.


    It was not that those people were looking down on themselves, but that it was a glaring fact proven by the powers of the one they were comparing themselves to.


    The ones who were capable of fighting him were probably the handful of people right below him.


    "He''s at the top."


    Lu Yu stepped out at that moment and reached the peak.


    The thunder bird glittered as it moved below him, pulsing with towering flashes of lightning. Zhu Qi took an illusory form and continued moving upward. Her many bodies of lightning melded into a single entity eventually as she moved while stepping on the lightning bolts, making her look impossibly beautiful like a goddess.


    Ye Futian continued moving steadily right behind them, and he was not all that far from the peak anymore.


    Lightning bolts flashed again, but they were not able to shake Lu Yu one bit. He refined the bolts as he looked up.


    There had been a person who withstood 900 strikes and became a personal student of the Emperor of Purple Underground, becoming revered by countless and lauded as the orthodox of Infernal Thunder of Wutu. That person was to become one of those who would inherit one of the nine thunders of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    However, Lu Yu did not think so.


    ''Who came first'' had no bearing when it came to cultivation. What the other person had been able to do back then, he was able to do now as well.


    No one else had been capable of fighting him.


    He believed that no one below would be a challenge to him, either.


    Four lightning bolts struck from above at the central region of the millstone-like thundercloud. Lu Yu waved his right arm in a dashing manner. The sword hanging above him was quickly turned into four swords, appearing in four corners and stopping the lightning bolts.


    Boom. The bolts hit the swords, which made it so that they were hitting Lu Yu as well. His clothes billowed, and the lightning flashed in a glittering manner.


    The might of thunder on the four swords surged towards his body. His bearing at the moment was nothing short of legendary.


    "Lu Yu was able to stop the bolts and consume the path of lightning of others." Many looked shocked at what he did. That was a testament to the immense confidence he had in himself. It was as if he were to withstand being baptized by the heavenly bolts all on his own. He was the only being, and no one would have been able to compare to him.


    "You all could stop now." Lu Yu looked down below him and continued, "The Divine Mountain is open today, and I intend to break the past records. I shall withstand 1,000 strikes, and you all can train where you are. There will be no problem for all of you to enter the Purple Underworld to train."


    He knew that everyone wanted to reach the top, to stand at the peak of the Divine Mountain, and have themselves rained on by the lightning bolts, enabling them to become beings revered by all.


    But he deemed that the peak of Divine Mountain could only have one person stand on it, or it would look less than perfect.


    He had no intention of seeing any who came to the Divine Mountain as rivals. His rivals were those people outside. However, he was competing with them through time and space as they were not of the same generation.


    "How boisterous." The thunder bird said in human speech, "I intend to try as well at the peak and be struck by 1,000 bolts. How about you step down instead?"


    The bird continued moving upward as soon as it was done saying that. The huge thunder bird cast towering beams of lightning from its humongous body.


    Lu Yu shot a plain look at it and did not say anything. He then pointed at the sword hanging in the air.


    The swords rang and howled under the thunder.


    Boom, boom, boom... Lightning bolts flashed and struck down again as if the sword guided them. It was as if he had been attracting the bolts with his sword. Will of lightning in the vast area of the Divine Mountain gushed towards the sword in a frenzy. A towering flash of lightning of the sword glittered in his surroundings. The scene looked very harrowing.


    "One sword shall command the thunderclouds," Lu Yu��descendant of the Sword Emperor of Shocking Clouds��uttered. The voice reverberated in the air. It was extraordinarily overbearing and sharp.


    The thunderclouds had indeed moved as the sword was drawn.


    A sword came down from the sky. The clouds moved with the sword as it zipped past his surroundings, tearing through the sky and coming right before the thunder bird''s body.


    The thunder bird howled loudly, and having taken its original form; its body was humongous. That huge body gathered boundless will of lightning, and it fired a bolt of lightning from its beak. Boundless will of lightning that it had consumed before was quickly turned into 81 beams of lightning, tearing through space in a fearsome manner.


    The two attacks clashed on top of the Divine Mountain. The resulting flash was so blinding that many struggled to keep their eyes open.


    All 81 beams of lightning seemed to have turned into 81 thunder birds, howling through the sky. Yet, its opponent remained using only a single sword to retaliate.


    The sword commanding the clouds tore through the incoming attacks, continuing to move forward at the body of the thunder bird.


    The thunder bird let out a shrilled howl, and its huge body charged forward. Its huge wings brought terrifying flashes of lightning to bear, which were sharper than blades as they lashed out at the person at the peak.


    Lu Yu snuffed coldly and pointed his finger at the sky. Nine swords materialized, and it seemed that their powers were nine times greater than before.


    The nine divine beams of light rained down and tore through his opponent''s attacks, tearing right through the sky and heading straight for the thunder bird.


    Boom. A huge rumble was heard, and the sword will penetrated its huge body. Blood spilled, and it crashed into the mountain. Its huge eyes glared at the swords in the sky. The nine swords remained hanging there instead of raining down. The bird would have probably suffered a worse fate otherwise.


    "Thank you," the thunder bird said in human speech. Although its opponent injured it, it remained grateful to its opponent for showing mercy. It had to accept that it had lost.


    Lu Yu''s name was known throughout the region, and he indeed lived up to his fame, proving that his powers were supreme.


    "What about you all?" Lu Yu looked at those who continued to move up. The ones who were near the peak were Zhu Qi��daughter of the Bamboo Emperor��and Ye Futian. As such, one could assume that he was addressing those two.


    Zhu Qi''s eyes gazed upon Lu Yu, who was in the sky. While she was indeed extremely confident in her powers, the powers of the sword shown before made her realize that she was still unable to take him on. If Lu Yu were to bring his swords down, she did not know how she would have resisted them.


    Even if she managed to stop them, she would be injured nonetheless.


    He was attracting lightning bolts with his sword, and Lu Yu became the absolute king in that place for doing so.


    "We shall see how many lightning strikes you can endure," Zhu Qi said. It was apparent that she gave up. She remained where she was and trained.


    Lu Yu nodded slightly to her. The world would then witness him taking on the lightning bolts soon after, and he would break the record.


    It was his goal to take on 1,000 lightning strikes.


    "Some power indeed."


    "He seems invincible."


    Many who were climbing the mountain were in awe. The thunder bird lost, and Zhu Qi gave up. They had all been of the same renown before, and all of them had been very famous. At that moment, however, it was apparent who among them proved superior.


    Lu Yu was a cut above everyone else, and no one had been able to make him budge.


    Everyone would have only needed to sit around and witness how many lightning strikes he could endure to see if he would be able to break the record of that insane genius.


    Lu Yu''s expression was calm and composed, getting ready to be struck by the lightning of the great path. However, just when he was about to look away, he found another who continued to move upward, which caused him to frown.


    He made himself very clear and had shown mercy, yet there seemed to be someone who refused his kindness still.

 1352 Getting to the Top

    Many at the Divine Mountain noticed Ye Futian as well, because he was the only one near the peak who was still continuing to move upward.


    The thunder bird and Zhu Qi had both stepped down and gave up, letting Lu Yu take all the glory.


    They were all wondering: what was Ye Futian trying to do?


    Is he really going to challenge someone as legendary as Lu Yu?


    Is he capable of taking on Lu Yu''s swords?


    Who is that guy? many were wondering deep down, and some voiced the question.


    "Who knows." Everyone shook their heads, as none of them knew of Ye Futian.


    Qi You, son of Emperor Qi, however, knew who he was. He looked at Ye Futian and felt rather concerned.


    Ye Futian''s immense talent made him renowned as the number one genius in Crimson Dragon Realm. But then again, that sword attack from Lu Yu was simply too extraordinary. If Ye Futian were to be unable to take one such attack, he would have to pay a heavy price.


    Getting to the peak of the Divine Mountain was not child''s play. No one who was anything less than a cut above the rest would be able to do so.


    Many were wondering if he was only a saint who did not know his place.


    Ye Futian, however, did not care about what the others thought of him. The lightning bolts rained down, and yet, he continued moving upwards, getting closer and closer to the peak.


    He was moving at a very high speed, and it did not take him long to overtake the thunder bird.


    That scene made caused a hint of coldness flashing in the proud eyes of the thunder bird.


    It found it difficult to swallow that Ye Futian had been able to walk past it so easily.


    The bird had halted its steps. That sword attack from Lu Yu before made the bird stay where it was to train instead.


    It had no problems acknowledging Lu Yu''s strength, but it was baffled to see Ye Futian simply walk past it.


    "Stay where you are," Lu Yu, who was at the peak of the Divine Mountain, said plainly. His voice was devoid of any emotions, telling Ye Futian to just stay below the peak.


    His sword remained hanging in the air and attracted lightning from above. It was as if he was about to bring a lightning strike on Ye Futian''s head if he insisted on continuing to move forward.


    Thunderous rumbles were heard at that moment. A lightning bolt blasted onto Ye Futian''s body, causing him to shudder. However, he had already gotten used to it, so he remained calm, and there was hardly any expression seen on his face.


    "Get down," Ye Futian looked up at Lu Yu and said plainly. Lu Yu saw that Ye Futian scolded him instead of stopping. It was a show of pride like none other.


    Lu Yu was not the only one caught off-guard; everyone else on the Divine Mountain was baffled as well.


    Ye Futian told Lu Yu to get out even after seeing his sword attack. It was indeed a tremendous show of confidence.


    Even the thunder bird seemed to be unable to take it anymore. It glared at Ye Futian with its proud eyes.


    "Get lost," the bird said in human speech. Its eyes were extremely unruly.


    Demonic beasts were born prideful. Even if one were to become a saint, it was still difficult to change such inborn nature. It was even more so when such beasts were monsters, as they were the most unruly of all.


    The thunder bird had only lowered its head after losing to Lu Yu.


    At that moment, however, Ye Futian was about to get ahead of it as well.


    Ye Futian shot a glance at the bird, and a cold glare was seen in his eyes. An extremely intense will of the great path shot into the bird''s eyes. Ye Futian''s eyes seemed like the eyes of a god. In that instant, it was as if the bird saw nothing else with its huge eyes, only Ye Futian.


    Its spiritual will balked as if it did not belong to itself any longer. The bird''s huge body was unable to help but tremble.


    Yiiiii...


    A long, shrill cry was heard from the thunder bird. It was as if it was sustaining some kind of intense pain.


    It struggled intensely, but quickly saw the flashes of lightning in Ye Futian''s eyes shooting right into its eyes.


    "Kneel," Ye Futian uttered in a cold voice as if he was giving an order. The people at the Divine Mountain were wondering who he was talking to.


    Kneel?


    They were all wondering who he was talking to.


    Boom.


    Thunderous might shattered, and the dazzling thunder bird''s eyes became dazed. Its legs began to bend slightly. It was as if it was about to kneel after being yelled at by Ye Futian.


    Boom...


    Another terrifying purple bolt of lightning streaked through the sky. Flashes of lightning were unleashed from the bird''s eyes as well, but it seemed that it had come to its senses somewhat. It shook its head for a little. It seemed to have stopped thinking just a while ago, and its brains seemed rather fried.


    It was shocked to find itself really about to kneel down to Ye Futian.


    It looked extremely glum within an instant.


    It was only one step away from being enthralled back in that instant, and the bird deemed it to be unforgivable.


    The bird was wondering if Ye Futian was humiliating it.


    When such thoughts ran in its head, the silhouette in that pair of huge eyes expanded exponentially. It had a shocked look in its eyes as it expanded its wings and was about to close them. Yet, that silhouette was simply moving too quickly. Stifled rumble was heard, and thousands of lightning strikes hit the bird''s body, causing it to shudder violently before being thrown away.


    The thunder bird collapsed to the ground and rolled off the mountain. Ye Futian did not pay any further attention to the bird and continued to move upward, ignoring it altogether as he was about to reach the peak.


    The millstone-like thundercloud raged and rumbled. Stifling, devastating might shrouded the area. Lu Yu and Ye Futian were the ones able to sense what was happening the most. The might of the great path of lightning was all over their surroundings.


    Lu Yu looked at Ye Futian continuing to move upward, and he began to take him somewhat seriously.


    Ye Futian had been able to overwhelm and defeat the thunder bird in such a short period of time, so much so that he was unable to even see how Ye Futian did it.


    It was apparent that the man before him was anything but weak.


    But then again, so what, you intend to just throw me off like that? Lu Yu thought.


    That time when the Divine Mountain was opened again, he deemed the one who was qualified to stand at the peak of Wutu Divine Mountain, was only him, Lu Yu.


    Lu Yu did not allow any others to fight him for the glory.


    It was something he was determined to get his hands on.


    He waved his hands about, and the swords howled. Nine swords appeared above him and attracted lightning of the great path. The thunderclouds moved, and the might of lightning raged on. Every single sword contained true devastating powers of lightning.


    Ye Futian remained unfazed even after seeing everything Lu Yu did. He extended his hand, and the Halberd of Time and Space appeared.


    That halberd seemed to have been something conjured out of the lightning of the great path. The mark planted in the World Tree Life Spirit within his body shone dazzlingly, causing the tree to glitter with tremendous brilliance. Boundless will of the great path surged into his body, which was then directed to the halberd.


    That was not all; every single will of the great path of lightning above the Divine Mountain completely went out of control, materializing as dragons. It surged above Ye Futian''s body. Ye Futian, at that moment, seemed to have gathered the might of lightning of the mountain all on his body, which was then refined by the Deed of Thorough Comprehension and surged into the halberd.


    Everything throughout his surroundings seemed to have been drowned by the flashes of lightning at that moment. That scene was simply too dazzling.


    "Kill," Lu Yu uttered coldly, which brought lethal might around him to work.


    Doomsday-like might of lightning rained down, and the millstone clouds in the sky raged, gathering above the sword as they lashed out. It intended to destroy everything before them.


    Boom.


    Countless lightning bolts flashed at the very same moment, blinding many people. In that instant, a bolt of lightning seemed to streak through space. The great path was condensed into a single entity, and only the halberd reigned supreme.


    The crowd saw the two beams clashing with each other. Intense, devastating light that was so blinding that no one was able to open their eyes was seen soon after. That space was drowned out by that white light.


    Lightning flashed all around them, and the crowd locked their eyes in that direction. Everything became clear a while later. Someone stood at the peak silently. It was as if he had been there all along.


    The eyes of many were frozen when they made clear of the one who remained standing.


    The man''s silver hair billowed in the wind. The one who stood at the peak of Wutu Divine Mountain had surprisingly been Ye Futian instead.


    Cough, cough...


    Coughing noises were heard, and it was only then that many saw that someone rose below the peak, who was stained in blood all over and had a weak aura.


    That person was none other than Lu Yu, who looked as if he was a supreme being just a while ago.


    It was as if heaven was turned into hell within an instant.


    "Wha..."


    Many thought that their eyes were playing tricks on them. Lu Yu had actually been defeated.


    "Who is he?" many looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    They were asking who Ye Futian was.


    Lu Yu displayed legendary might and intended to challenge the Divine Mountain''s record. Yet, at that moment, someone else emerged and kicked him off of the peak right away.


    That scene was just too shocking for the crowd.


    "He is actually at the top." Qi You was feeling speechless as he locked his eyes on the scene. Ye Futian was the one who had eventually gotten to the peak.


    Lu Yu, who was right below the peak, looked like he was in shambles. Another cough was heard, and blood sputtered from his mouth. He looked up at Ye Futian, and he completely lost all that air he had been putting up just a while ago. He looked like a complete loser right there and then.


    He thought that he would not have found any rivals at the Divine Mountain. His rivals would have been on other Divine Mountains and in records of old.


    Ye Futian''s white garb billowed as he stood at the peak. His expression was extremely calm. Even though he had gotten to the top, he did not show even the slightest hint of joy.


    His state of mind was hardly fazed at the moment.


    He needed more than just getting to the top; he wanted the Emperor of Purple Underground to notice him.


    He took a deep breath and looked up. The raging clouds above seemed to be inches above his head. It was as if he could have touched them simply by extending his hand.


    Taking on 900 strikes of lightning, huh?


    He then put his hands behind his back. A bolt of lightning struck from above the sky. He let the bolt strike him instead of blocking it.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian basked in heavenly lightning with a rumble, looking dashing and legendary. His hands remained behind his back, and he did not flinch, standing tall at the peak.


    Boom, boom, boom... Lightning bolts descended upon him as they shrouded the entire Divine Mountain, blasting everyone. Ye Futian, who was at the peak, was always the first to take on the strikes. However, he seemed like a statue who just took everything in silence.


    Many had illusions well up in their minds, seeing that figure before them.


    They were all thinking that the man before them might have been able to break the record after all.

 1353 The Limi

    A silver-haired figure stood tall at the peak of Wutu Divine Mountain. Thunderclouds roared above his head, and lightning bolts kept coming down at him, bombarding his body.


    The scene, when viewed from the bottom of the mountain, was like someone braving the ordeals of the Heavenly Path.


    That silver-haired man remained unflinching as he withstood one attack after another.


    That was not all; no one at Wutu Divine Mountain moved at that moment. All who remained behind at the Divine Mountain took their corners and took the brunt of the lightning attacks in silence.


    Divine lightning bolts rained down from above in the Divine Mountain.


    That scene looked like a miracle from the heavens, stunning the hearts of those seeing it.


    "How many strikes has it been now?" someone at the bottom asked.


    "127," someone answered. That person''s eyes remained locked onto where Ye Futian was. He had been struck by over 100 lightning bolts and remained unflinching throughout. In contrast, many in other corners of the mountain were no longer able to take the attacks and were thrown off of the mountain.


    A vast, seemingly endless thunder net gradually appeared at the peak, with Ye Futian''s body at the very center as it continued to spread below. It was as if the net was about to envelop all of the Divine Mountain.


    "From the looks of it, it seems like he is truly out to challenge the record," someone said.


    However, even the thought of taking on 900 strikes was terrifying enough to make everyone shudder.


    From the looks of how things were at the peak of that Divine Mountain, it seemed as if just one lightning strike alone would strike fear into those witnessing it, let alone 900 strikes.


    "Let''s just see how much of the seed of the Infernal Thunder of Wutu he was able to refine," someone said at the side. The number of lightning strikes capable of being taken on had an extremely important role in working on the seed.


    The opening of the Eight Divine Mountains itself was an act of the heavenly lightning planting seeds on those who would take it, with the process being seen similar to being blessed and reaching enlightenment.


    To those training in the ways of lightning, that was an opportunity in itself, as one would earn the chance of having the Infernal Thunder of Wutu being forcefully planted inside them. This would enable them to work and develop the seed. Doing so would have enabled them to manipulate the Infernal Thunder of Wutu. The greater one''s comprehension was, the greater the resistance one would have developed when taking on the strikes.


    If one were to simply take on 900 lightning strikes armed with fortitude gained from their own training, one would eventually end up dead without knowing how they died.


    As time passed, fewer and fewer people remained at the Divine Mountain. It was apparent that they were not able to take on the heavenly lightning strikes that had grown increasingly strong.


    After quite a while later, there were only three people left on the Wutu Divine Mountain.


    Those three were Ye Futian, Lu Yu, and Zhu Qi.


    However, at that moment, even Zhu Qi spat up blood. She looked up at the man above and felt rather impressed, then turned around and descended the mountain.


    She never expected a cultivator that she never knew would have been the one to challenge the record of the Divine Mountain that day.


    Lu Yu sighed. He had been there to challenge the record on that day, yet he was injured by Ye Futian and was no longer able to sustain being struck for much longer. He left the mountain in a dejected manner soon after Zhu Qi left.


    He had been ahead of everyone and acted boisterously before. Everyone thought he would have been the one standing at the peak.


    At that moment, however, it was evident that he was little more than an accessory.


    It was as if his existence had been for showing how magnificent that silver-haired young man had been.


    There was eventually only one person left in the tall, majestic Divine Mountain. He stood at the peak, enjoying himself being watched by the world and becoming that one absolute being.


    "820 strikes now," someone mumbled as their heart raced. The man at the peak was not far away from the set record.


    That man above remained standing tall like an ancient god.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was actually under tremendous pressure at the peak.


    Every single lightning strike that landed on his body would leave a mark. At that moment, there were countless seeds of the mark. His World Tree Life Spirit had turned into a tree of lightning as well, shimmering with dazzling light.


    What was even more terrifying was that all ways of lightning at the Divine Mountain resonated with the seeds. The Wutu Divine Mountain was like a mountain of lightning in itself. He stood at the top and basked in heavenly thunder. Whenever he was struck by a lightning bolt, the mark in his body would be triggered, resonating with the boundless lightning throughout the mountain. The devastating power within that instant was unbelievably terrifying. The strikes grew increasingly strong as they went on.


    However, his Life Spirit was capable of consuming every single bit of might from the lightning strikes. As such, he was still able to remain standing, not budging in the slightest. But then again, the fact that he was under tremendous shock every time the lightning bolts struck remained.


    Ye Futian felt the boundless lightning will coursing throughout his body. That was the Infernal Thunder of Wutu. There were also the Righteous Thunder of Yimu, the Solar Thunder of Binghuo, the Shade Thunder of Guishui, the Perilous Thunder of Gengjin, the Divine Thunder of Zhuxie, the Demonic Thunder of Lushen, and the Violet Thunder of Shengmie��all of which being part of the other seven True Lineages of the Way of Thunder. One would have wondered just how powerful the other seven were.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was a place that gathered all Eight True Lineages of The Way of Thunder. One could have imagined just how terrifying someone who had trained in all 72 layers of the way of thunder would be.


    Boom. Yet another lightning bolt struck. At that moment, the entire Divine Mountain lit up brilliantly. It was as if the place had resonated and melded into a single being with him. Ye Futian''s body flashed with lightning as well, turning his body into one of lightning.


    The lightning bolts continued to hit him, and everyone below the Divine Mountain counted in their minds.


    "891 strikes." Many shuddered as they stood below. The air was stifling.


    "892."


    "893..."


    When the 899th bolt struck, everyone seemed to have stopped breathing altogether due to extreme nervousness.


    Boom!


    A brilliant light flashed as a lightning bolt descended from above. The 900th bolt hit the Wutu Divine Mountain and onto the Ye Futian''s body.


    900 strikes of the heavenly thunder. That was the set record from before.


    The Divine Mountain lit up as the lightning bolts washed out throughout the entire Divine Mountain. The man who was standing at the peak remained standing firm. He remained unscathed after being struck 900 times.


    That meant that he was still far from reaching his limit.


    "The record was about to be broken," many muttered to themselves. Yet another lightning bolt flashed before long, breaking the record set at the Wutu Divine Mountain.


    A new record was set at the Wutu Divine Mountain, and everyone thought Ye Futian was about to be taken as a personal student by the Emperor of Purple Underground.


    Everyone wondered if he would replace Zhang Changqing��the man who had set the previous record��and become the true successor of the Wutu lineage of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Everyone thought that there might be an intense competition between him and Zhang Changqing in the future.


    It was known to all that Zhang Changqing was the one lauded to be the successor of the Emperor of Purple Underground, after all, making him the successor of the Infernal Thunder of Wutu.


    Many mighty ones remained outside the Divine Mountain. Their eyes were fixed on the Divine Mountain, and Zhang Changqing was standing with his hands behind his back.


    "Changqing, someone broke your record," an elder by his side said.


    "Records are meant to be broken, after all." Zhang Changqing''s voice sounded calm, and he was hardly fazed.


    There was no record that would last forever.


    The elder smiled and said, "Indeed, but now, you have earned yourself a competitor for the lineage of Wutu."


    Zhang Changqing looked on and said, "It would be great for the Wutu lineage to have yet another figure of this class. As for competition, I do hope that he possesses such talents."


    "You really are confident." The elder smiled and did not say more. He knew how capable Zhang Changqing was. Zhang Changqing''s talents in the ways of lightning were superb and second to none. He was the number one candidate for Purple Underworld and the most valued successor to their lineage.


    However, no one knew at that moment, just how capable the man who had broken the record was.


    Zhang Changqing did not say anything else. He changed the subject and talked about something else instead. "More are here now. I don''t really get it. How has that one descendant of the Gu Clan caused so much commotion with the higher-ups? While it remains true that Gu Tianxing was someone who stood at the top all those years ago, it was just him alone. He was only one man among the Gu Clan. Despite being the successor of the Gu Clan, he is but a member of all out there. Why is he worth that much of a commotion, I wonder. It is said that even the ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace are here to take him away."


    "Everything happens for a reason. I''ve heard that the Gu Clan was prosperous under the leadership of Gu Tianxing all those years ago. But then again, the Gu Clan alone would have been able to represent the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and Gu Tianxing had been able to master the mystical methods unique to the Gu Clan to the extreme, making it possible for him to break through the bonds of the Heavenly Path. The Gu Clan had also been able to produce 12 mystical ones out of one faction��a pinnacle of their achievements��after Gu Tianxing rose to fame and power, making them almost standing at the pinnacle of Heavenly Mandate Realm. I think there are reasons why those big shots valued him so much."


    Zhang Changqing nodded slightly and said nothing else.


    Heavenly thunder continued to roll where the Divine Mountain was at that moment.


    Countless below the mountain looked up, their eyes all locked on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was still taking on the lightning bolts at the peak.


    "The Eight Divine Mountains are opened and lightning rain from the heavens to bestow foundations of the great path. The number of lightning bolts is 999. Is he trying to challenge the limt?" someone asked, thinking such an endeavor to be insane.


    That limit was what many called to be the Thousand Strikes of Heavenly Thunder.


    All of the eight Divine Mountains had only seen three have such limits broken, where people took on 999 lightning strikes without falling, remaining standing until the lightning strikes disappeared.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was at the Wutu Divine Mountain, and many were wondering if he was attempting one such endeavor.


    Qi You looked up in the sky and felt somewhat speechless.


    Not only was the man, whose talents were unparalleled throughout Crimson Dragon Realm, about to break the record of Wutu Divine Mountain at the moment, but he also seemed to be out to challenge the limit of the Divine Mountains.


    "936."


    Countless people beneath counted in silence. Every single lightning strike seemed to be shocking their hearts.


    Their fists remained clenched when the 990th lightning bolt flashed, looking on with intense anticipation.


    It was no longer about breaking the record set on Wutu Divine Mountain; it was about breaking the limit.


    If he were to succeed, he would make Wutu Divine Mountain be the fourth having such a limit broken.


    Zhang Changqing, who was standing outside, no longer looked calm and unfazed like he was before. He looked rather moved at that moment.


    It was no longer about breaking his record. That man at the peak was about to leave him in the dust and challenge the limit instead.


    Prior to that, everyone would have still compared Ye Futian to him. At that moment, however, the newcomer had overtaken him by a large margin.


    The elder by his side looked on with a peculiar look as well, feeling rather excited deep down.


    They, too, wanted to see Wutu Divine Mountain''s limit be broken.


    "996," an elder mumbled to himself.


    They were not the only ones; in the royal palace of the Emperor of Purple Underground, far away from the Divine Mountain, a group of people gazed from their platforms, their eyes looking far away.


    Even the Emperor himself had been present and stood with his hands behind his back. His eyes gazed far away. Those eyes seemed to be able to pierce through the void as they looked at the Divine Mountain.


    Boom! Yet another bolt of lightning flashed. The robe worn by the Emperor billowed. There were many top-notch figures around him, some even being Renhuangs. All of them were of other forces of the true lineages. They were all looking far away at that moment.


    "That would be the last," someone mumbled.


    Another bolt of lightning descended as soon as the line was said. The Emperor flashed a plain smile on his face.


    On the way, the Purple Underground��which represented the lineage of Wutu��saw the limit of their Divine Mountain broken.


    "Congratulations, Your Majesty." Many bowed slightly to the Emperor, congratulating him.


    The Emperor of Purple Underground had just earned himself yet another superbly talented student.

 1354 Treatmen

    At Wutu Divine Mountain, the thunder clouds above the sky gradually dissipated, and that apocalyptic scene disappeared.


    Countless people looked at the Divine Mountain, staring at the white-haired figure standing on the top of the Divine Mountain, leaving the world behind.


    He seemed to be the only one between heaven and earth.


    Today, Ye Futian broke the pole numbers on the Wutu Divine Mountain and inherited the Thousand Ways of Tianlei. In all of history, out of eight great Divine Mountains, only three were able to achieve it.


    Now, someone at Wutu Divine Mountain had done it too.


    This was a matter of pride for the Purple Underworld. From now on, this pole record would also include the name of Wutu Divine Mountain.


    Based on this alone, it would not take long for the white-haired young man that no one knew to have his name resounded in this side of the world. In the future, when anyone came to Wutu Divine Mountain, they would think of his existence, just as when they entered the Divine Mountain before, they had thought of Zhang Changqing.


    Moreover, this pole number was even more impressive than Zhang Changqing''s 900 thunder strikes.


    Lu Yu looked up at the sky, and felt somewhat lost in his heart. Before he came, his goal was to surpass Zhang Changqing, inherit the Thousand Ways of Tianlei, challenge the pole.


    However, before he even attempted it, he was kicked off the mountain by Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian now had replaced him and achieved what he had wanted to do.


    It seemed to him that his defeat was no unjust.


    But what a pity that the name Lu Yu could not be known in the world.


    Countless many were looking at the figure above the sky. Ye Futian seemed to be standing there still, digesting the strength inside of his body. This time, he had gained a lot.


    At this moment, flashes of figures arrived, and many showed a strange look when they saw the newcomers.


    That person in the lead was precisely the record keeper before Ye Futian��Zhang Changqing.


    He was known to be the most favored disciple of the Emperor of the Purple Underworld, rumored to be the future successor of the Purple Underworld, its most gifted character.


    Today, someone not only broke his record but also created an extreme number of poles, eschewing his record. Would he be replaced?


    It was impossible to fathom what Zhang Changqing was thinking at this moment.


    "Tianlei training won''t need me to elaborate. Everyone clearly understands in their hearts. Those cultivators who stood on the Divine Mountain and comprehended the Wutu thunder seal of the underground and who have refined it into their bodies may follow me to the Purple Underground and pay respect to the Master."


    Tianlei planted the way, and what was in his request was the screening of the Divine Mountain to select those who were suitable for the cultivation of Wutu thunder of the underground. These people had already had the seeds of Wutu thunder of the underground been planted in them and would be very suitable to cultivate this kind of will.


    The eight great Divine Mountains were selecting the eight orthodox heirs.


    The Purple Underworld now represented the orthodoxy of Wutu.


    Some were happy; some were lost.


    For practicing the thunder method, the eight great orthodoxies of thunder method was clearly an excellent choice.


    As for the best choice, there was no doubt that it would be the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    However, it was not so easy to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    For a person such as Ye Futian, who had broken the pole numbers, if he wanted to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace, he should be able to do so the future; but for others, it wouldn''t be so easy.


    For those in the world of cultivation, who didn''t want to enter and become part of a great principality?


    Flashes of figures moved forward and arrived in front of Zhang Changqing and the others.


    Ye Futian''s figure drifted from the void. He landed next to Xia Qingyuan and the others, then stepped forward.


    Zhang Changqing''s eyes fell on Ye Futian. His face was calm, but there were waves in his heart.


    This was the young man who had stared at him before. The head of white hair was very eye-catching, and his temperament was also incredibly outstanding.


    It seemed that this man had already regarded himself as an opponent and wanted to break the record he set.


    "Congratulations," Zhang Changqing nodded slightly to Ye Futian. To someone who had broken the pole numbers of the Divine Mountain, even as the most valued disciple of the Emperor of the Purple Underground, he still must give due respect.


    "Today our pole number of Wutu Divine Mountain was broken, that''s something to brag about in the future, little one. Going forward in the Purple Underworld, focus on cultivating, and there may be an opportunity to impact the realm of Renhuang," the elder next to Zhang Changqing smiled and said. Such a good seedling was worthy of good cultivation in the Purple Underworld.


    "Thanks a lot," Ye Futian nodded slightly in return, somewhat indifferent.


    Others felt that he was a bit impudent.


    He didn''t come to the Divine Mountain for the sake of cultivating in the Purple Underworld. It was only because of his third senior brother did he do so. Otherwise, he might not even be able to see the third senior brother.


    As for him to be fully courteous when facing the person who took away his third senior brother, he was unable to comply.


    Zhang Changqing naturally felt Ye Futian''s attitude. When he saw Ye Futian''s arrogant indifference, he said, "Breaking the pole number of Wutu Divine Mountain''s Tianlei number means that you are highly gifted in the will of Wutu Thunder of the Underground. Your potential in cultivating this method would be infinite, with great prospects in the future. But even so, you should not be too complacent. The way of thunder method is profound and broad; there is still a long way to go. "


    His tone was as that of an old-timer. In the future, when Ye Futian entered the Purple Underground to cultivate, he would be regarded as his younger brother. As such, he was qualified to teach him a thing or two.


    "Let''s go."


    Ye Futian spoke lightly and walked off, passing Zhang Changqing.


    As soon as Zhang Changqing finished speaking, Ye Futian bumped him and left, completely ignoring him.


    Zhang Changqing''s back was facing Ye Futian. His face stiffened.


    Those who faced him could see from Zhang Changqing''s face how embarrassed he was.


    This caused many to experience some subtle emotions. One was the most valued disciple of the former Emperor of the Purple Underworld, who set the record for the Divine Mountain, and the other was a new character who broke the pole number.


    Had they started the competition even before entering the gate?


    The scene that just played out seemed to foreshadow that these two would certainly be unable to live in harmony.


    "Let''s go." Although Zhang Changqing was a little humiliated, he still managed to speak and turned to walk away. Everyone flickered and moved away from the Divine Mountain.


    The elders of the Purple Underworld wore a weird expression. They didn''t speak. The situation was somewhat delicate.


    Having left the Divine Mountain, everyone moved forward, walking along the Purple Nether City. Zhang Changqing and others still came to the front to lead the way, while Ye Futian and the others followed.


    In the Purple Nether City, there was a sky stairwell, with 8,100 steps, which led to above the sky.


    Over yonder, there was a sky gate. Across the sky gate was the palace of the Purple Nether City��the whereabouts of Purple Underworld.


    Many ancient halls were standing here, towering and spectacular.


    At this moment, below the sky stairwell, there were countless many from all places. Some were people from the Purple Nether City. They looked forward and showed a look of respect.


    Behind that sky gate, there were many on the high platform. The one in the middle had an extraordinary temperament. He was the Emperor of the Purple Underworld.


    Beside him, there were throngs of cultivators. In addition, there are many cultivators positioned in all major directions.


    They were not from part of the Purple Underworld but were from other regions.


    Today was not only the opening day of the Wutu Divine Mountain but also the opening day for other Divine Mountains. However, all of the eight major orthodox forces had sent cultivators here; obviously, it was not only because of the opening of the Divine Mountain.


    "Purple Underworld, now that the preaching of Divine Mountain had ended, it''s time to talk about the matter regarding the descendants of the Gu clan. When will we see them?" someone asked. He was extraordinary, and in his movements, he seemed to be one with the Great Path.


    The person who could talk to the Emperor of the Purple Underworld on equal terms had to be also existence of Renhuang, and one of the eight figures who controlled the thunder method orthodoxy.


    "That''s right. There was another who broke the pole number of Wutu Divine Mountain today, and congratulations are in order. But this matter still needed to be dealt with," another Renhuang piped up. It was as if they all had some ideas of their own in today''s attendance.


    The Emperor of Purple Underworld understood that Gu Tianxing��regardless of his extraordinary method��was just one step away from the Heavenly Path.


    Even Renhuang, who did not desire to gain the method of Gu Tianxing''s cultivation?


    If this Gu Dongliu who was captured was the only descendant of the Gu clan, who wouldn''t want to discover something from him?


    It was just that he had already tried to no avail.


    The man who was captured didn''t seem to know who he was and didn''t understand the magic cultivation of the Gu clan. Even his genius seemed to have been vaguely imprisoned.


    And it was unknown whose doing it was.


    Perhaps it was an attempt to leave a bloodline for the Gu clan, to let him live quietly in the Lower World, and continue the name of Gu clan.


    It was just unexpected that he still came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "No need to worry, I will take care of it myself," the Emperor of the Purpose Underworld replied lightly. He already had a plan. Since he couldn''t find anything useful himself, the attraction of the descendant of the Gu clan was naturally not as great, so he would take the initiative to turn him in.


    "Purple Underworld, honestly, what are you going to do with him?" someone asked. They had all knew some things vaguely, and now, beside them, many people had also arrived.


    "They have already arrived. Let''s first see the one who broke the pole number of Wutu Divine Mountain," the Emperor of the Purple Underworld said. As he looked down, he saw a group of people walking along the sky stairwell.


    Among Ye Futian''s party, he was the only one who went up. Xia Qingyuan, Qin Xuangang, and the others stayed below. They were not allowed to step on the sky stairwell to enter the Purple Underworld, and could only observe the ceremony from below.


    Ye Futian glanced at the endless sea of ??people, then stepped onto the sky stairwell. He passed over the sky gate and saw those who were above the sky stairwell.


    The man at the center of the should be the Emperor of the Purple Underworld.


    Finally, Ye Futian and the group stopped. Zhang Changqing and the others flickered behind the Emperor of the Purple Underworld and stood quietly there.


    The Emperor of the Purple Underworld lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian and the others.


    "Greetings to Emperor of the Purple Underworld."


    "Your Majesty."


    Everyone bowed slightly and paid their respects, and so did Ye Futian, even though he was displeased about the fact that the Emperor of the Purple Underworld had sent men to capture the third senior brother.


    However, the strength and status of the Emperor of the Purple Underworld were what they were, and he had to pay his respects.


    The Emperor of the Purple Underworld smiled and waved his hands, and his eyes landed on Ye Futia. He said, "For many years, only you alone were able to inherit the Thousand Ways of Tialei, breaking the pole number of the Wutu Divine Mountain. Would you like to ask me to be your master?"


    There were endless people below, and when they heard the words of the Emperor, they cheered. They were greatly envious of Ye Futian.


    Right after the conclusion of the trip to the Divine Mountain, the Emperor of the Purple Underworld would personally accept him as a disciple. How fortunate!

 1355 Messenger from the Heavenly Palace

    Of course, as the first person to break the pole number of the Wutu Divine Mountain, Ye Futian also possessed such qualifications.


    Above the staircase, those Renhuangs in positions around the Emperor of the Purple Underworld also looked at Ye Futian. It seemed that today, Emperor of the Purple Underworld would accept a good seedling, which, if given proper nurturing, would not be any less than Zhang Changqing.


    This person, perhaps one day, would battle Zhang Changqing in the future for the succession of Wutu.


    Around these Renhuang, they had each brought some descendants here, and they looked at Ye Futian with some interest. They were all characters who had created the glory of the eight major Divine Mountains. What was the true method of this person who had broken the pole number of Wutu Divine Mountain?


    Ye Futian looked up at the figure above in the sky. He bowed to the Emperor of the Purple Underworld, saying, "Your Majesty, I trespassed in the Divine Mountain of Wutu so that I could meet Your Majesty and ask for a favor."


    "Oh?" the Emperor of the Purple Underworld revealed a strange look, and everyone around him was a little curious as well.


    "Tell me," the Emperor of the Purple Underworld said. Since he intended to take in Ye Futian as a disciple, he would agree to most requests.


    "Forgive me, Your Majesty," Ye Futian said, bowing again. "Previously, the people of the Purple Underworld took away a person from Emperor Qi''s Territory. I heard that this person is now at the Purple Underworld. His name of Gu Dongliu; he is my senior brother. Although I don''t know my senior brother''s past, and neither does he, he cultivated step-by-step in the Lower World until today. I hope that Your Majesty will not make it difficult for my senior brother and will set him free. I am sure whatever it is that Your Majesty desires to know, my brother will tell you."


    What Ye Futian said made the vast world fall into quietude. Today, two of the most important events in the Purple Nether City were the opening of Wutu Divine Mountain, and the other was how best to deal with the descendant of the Gu clan.


    Now they found out that the one who broke the pole number at Wutu Divine Mountain had also come for the descendant of the Gu clan.


    Moreover, the two were brothers.


    This world was really a small place.


    The senior brother had an extraordinary family prestige, and his junior brother was also exceptionally talented.


    Perhaps, there was some kind of connection between extraordinary people.


    Zhang Changqing also revealed a strange look. He looked at Ye Futian and finally understood that Ye Futian''s indifferent attitude toward him was not because he wanted to challenge his position.


    It was because he was the one who took Gu Dongliu.


    Ye Futian broke the pole number of Wutu Divine Mountain, and if he had made any other demands, Zhang Changqing thought that the Master would have agreed to them.


    However, he proposed the release of the descendant of the Gu clan.


    Clearly, this was simply impossible. Even the Master could no longer dictate this situation. Looking at all eight major orthodox of Renhuang who arrived today, who did they come for?


    Furthermore, Ye Futian made this request to the Emperor of the Purple Underworld on this occasion, which more or less put the Master in a tough bind.


    After all, from the standpoint of common sense, to order people to go after a junior figure was not an honorable thing to be done by the Emperor of the Purple Underworld. If Ye Futian pleaded for his release, he should agree. After all, Ye Futian had said that even Gu Dongliu knew nothing of his heritage, just like every other ordinary cultivator, so why would a Renhuang give him a hard time?


    But precisely because of it, it would be difficult for Emperor of the Purple Underworld.


    "Presumably, you were also not too clear about the affairs of the Gu clan. Although he is your senior brother, as a descendant of the Gu clan, there is too much involved that can''t be clarified. I won''t be hard on your senior brother, but at present, I cannot release him to you. And even if he''s really in your custody, perhaps, you cannot keep him for long."


    The Emperor of the Purple Underworld spoke to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had already guessed this outcome. He knew that with just a few words from him, the other party couldn''t release the third senior brother.


    However, at least he needed to find out their stance.


    "Your Majesty is a Renhuang��one of the eight orthodoxies of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Like the rest of the elders, you transcended from the world. I had heard a thing or two about the events involving the Gu clan in the past, but my third senior brother knew none of it; he was just a bearer of the name. It was said that those of the Renhuang realm possess the ability to tolerate all things of the world, and so I ask all Your Majesties to let go of what happened in the past."


    Ye Futian bowed down. And his tone was extremely polite from the beginning to the end, without any disrespect. He was simply pleading.


    He knew who he was facing, and he clearly understood the gap between him and the others. Although his reasoning may be superior, the fist was the ultimate decider of everything. If he dared to run in blindly, he wouldn''t even know how he died, never mind saving the third brother.


    The Emperor of the Purple Underworld looked at Ye Futian. This young man appeared polite and respectful, but he could see that Ye Futian was quite calculating. Expressing his case in such manner, it would not do to keep Gu Dongliu in his hand for long and make things difficult.


    Otherwise, it would make them look bad.


    It was only that Ye Futian had ultimately underestimated the influence of Gu''s descendants in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "You have no inkling of what happened with the Gu clan. The Purple Underworld will take care of it ourselves. Now, Master asked if you were willing to be part of the Purple Underworld and cultivate under the Master as his disciple." At this time, Zhang Changqing, who was behind Emperor of the Purple Underworld, spoke up. The fact was that everyone could see that because of Gu Dongliu, Ye Futian might not enter the gate of the Emperor of the Purple Underworld.


    Zhang Changqing''s question was forcing Ye Futian to answer directly.


    "If His Majesty could release my brother and let him stay in the Purple Underworld to cultivate, then I would also be willing to join the Purple Underworld and cultivate under His Majesty," Ye Futian bowed and said respectfully.


    If the Emperor Of the Purple Underworld were willing to release the third senior brother and protect his safety, then he would have proven himself as trustworthy, and there would be no impropriety for him to cultivate under him.


    The Emperor of the Purple Underworld looked at Ye Futian, and the Renhuang of the other eight orthodoxies also revealed a look of interest.


    Ye Futian was making things difficult for the Emperor of the Purple Underworld.


    The person who broke the pole number of Wutu Divine Mountain, but refused to enter the door of the Purple Underworld just because the Emperor was unwilling to release Gu Dongliu, it would perhaps cause much gossip among people.


    "How dare you!"


    Zhang Changqing chided coldly, "For the Master to accept a disciple is a great event, but you take it as an exchange?"


    The people of the Purple Underworld were staring at Ye Futian. The Emperor was accepting a disciple because of Ye Futian''s talent.


    But Ye Futian only wanted the Emperor of the Purple Underworld to release the prisoner��his brother.


    Ye Futian gave Zhang Changqing a cold glance. This Zhang Changqing was deliberately provocative, making the situation worse.


    "Your Majesty, it was not my intention. I only wanted my senior brother to be safe and sound," Ye Futian explained to the Emperor of the Purple Underworld.


    The Emperor waved his hand and said, "I understand what you mean. You may go."


    For the person who broke the pole number of the Divine Mountain, he was naturally willing to accept him as a successor and nurture him so that there would be another powerful existence in the future for the Purple Underworld.


    It was just that as far as Gu Dongliu was concerned, this could not be done.


    Especially now, it was difficult to even for him to keep Gu Dongliu.


    When Ye Futian heard the words of the Emperor, he understood that there was no hope for the Emperor of the Purple Underworld to release Gu Dongliu today.


    He looked at the Emperor, then nodded slightly, and retreated.


    "If others are willing, you may cultivate in the Purple Underworld. If you don''t want to, you may leave now also," the Emperor said to the rest of the crowd on the stairs.


    Everyone knew that because of Ye Futian''s request, the Emperor was not in such a great mood.


    Let them decide themselves, without any nonsense.


    The vast majority of people were willing to cultivate in the Purple Underworld, but only a few had refused.


    Ye Futian returned to the ground below, standing there silently.


    Obviously, even if he had broken the pole number of the Divine Mountain, it was still not enough weight. Even talent such as this was not enough for the Emperor to release the man on his account.


    "You''ve done all you can, leave it to destiny," next to him, Qin Xuangang whispered. Xia Qingyuan also looked at him. Ye Futian was already doing his best.


    It was just that his status today, compared to those Renhuang, who were high above him, was still too far apart; it was not enough to affect the others.


    Even if he had inherited the thousand way of Tianlei, he had created the history of Wutu Divine Mountain.


    "Um." Ye Futian nodded slightly, said nothing.


    With his current ability, this was all he could do, and even he dared not ask anything further, for this was the gap in strength.


    "What a pity."


    Although this was the time when the others decided whether or not to cultivate in the Purple Underground, even more people were still paying attention to Ye Futian.


    He had inherited the thousand way of Tianlei, planted the Seal of Wutu Thunder of the Underground, and it was in his best interest to enter the Purple Underground. However, because of his senior brother, he did not, which was kind of a pity.


    This was perhaps the first time in history that someone who had set a record but did not submit under the discipline of the eight orthodoxies.


    "Purple Underground, what are you going to do with the descendent of the Gu clan?" someone finally asked; Ye Futian and the others were staring at the Emperor of the Purple Underground.


    How would the Emperor of the Purple Underground plan to deal with Gu Dongliu?


    "Don''t worry, it should be here soon," said the Emperor, which shocked the rest of the Renhuang.


    It seemed that Emperor of the Purple Underground still intended to hand him over.


    They probably couldn''t touch him in any way.


    They instinctively understood that if the Emperor were to deliver him, it would only be delivered there.


    The Thunder Method Orthodoxy of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Violet Heavenly Palace.


    If the Violet Heavenly Palace were to take him away, it would be impossible for them to step in again.


    Before, when they asked the Emperor of the Purple Underground if he had obtained anything from this descendant of the Gu clan, he did not give them an answer.


    So far, it was in unknown suspense.


    At this moment, there was lightning shone above the sky, and out of the endless clear sky, divine light of thunder had appeared.


    Countless many looked up at the sky; their hearts were shaking.


    Flashes of lightning sailed across the sky, and in the next moment, figures appeared in the sky above the crowd.


    The group seemed to come by lightning, so it appeared out of thin air, and the group in front emitted a terrible breath; especially the one who led the group, who stood above the void and gave everyone a sense of irresistibility. It was as if he was one with heaven and earth, and the way of the thunder.


    Renhuang of the eight orthodoxies stood up and looked above with a solemn look.


    "Violet Heavenly Palace." Below the stairs, countless people trembled in their hearts.


    The world''s thunder methods were all from the heavenly palace. The eight major orthodoxies of the thunder method were, in fact, passed from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Now, the Violet Heavenly Palace descended in person.


    "Purple Underground, where is the man?" the leader of the group asked.


    "Bring him out," the Emperor of the Purple Underground said. Below, Ye Futian appeared a little pale. The Violet Heavenly Palace arrived, and with just a few words, the Emperor was about to hand the prisoner over!

 1356 Principality of the Heavenly Mandate Realm

    In the Purple Underworld, a group of people appeared, with one man in custody.


    Below the stairs, Ye Futian looked up there, and the man in custody was Gu Dongliu.


    "Dongliu." There was a faint flow of knife will on the Knife Saint. At this moment, Gu Dongliu appeared to be slightly tired.


    Those who cultivated were usually full of energy, especially when they entered the realm of Saint. Under normal circumstances, they would not appear tired at all.


    Unless... something had happened to him.


    Although the Emperor of the Purple Underworld would not do anything drastic to Gu Dongliu during these days of capture, it was impossible that he would do nothing at all.


    What did these people want with Gu Dongliu?


    Gu Dongliu looked up at the figure above the sky. His eyes were filled with indifference.


    Until now, he still did not understand just what he had done.


    After these people captured him, they interrogated him and even wanted to pry into his spiritual world forcibly.


    And now, they were going to hand him over to some other people?


    No one asked him, and he did not expect that even with his cultivation to the Saint Plane, that he would be this powerless.


    As for the principles that they believed in, they were as fragile as a piece of paper in the face of absolute power.


    The people of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked at Gu Dongliu from a distance and thought that his temperament was outstanding.


    "Release your life spirit," the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace commanded Gu Dongliu from the sky.


    Gu Dongliu looked up at the man and remained indifferent.


    Seeing him remain silent, a mighty pressure descended from the void and directly landed on Gu Dongliu.


    Feeling this pressure of might, Gu Dongliu remained standing quietly and looked up at the other without compromise.


    The Renhuang, who was the head of the group, frowned, and a terrible divine light shot from his eyes. This divine light penetrated Gu Dongliu''s eyes and rushed into his body.


    At this moment, the breath inside of Gu Dongliu''s breath roiled, his spiritual will was not under his control, and his soul shuddered.


    Boom. The light of the life spirit appeared, and it was an illusion of an immortal. Nine ancient characters surrounded the illusion and seemed to echo with heaven and earth, which caused sounds of whistling in the space.


    "Indeed," the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace secretly exclaimed. He was undoubtedly the descendant of the Gu clan.


    But this soul would be more befitting in an ordinary person.


    But compared to the Gu clan of yore, its power was far from impressive.


    In the past, when Madman Gu released his life spirit, it had eclipsed the glory of heaven and earth.


    The cultivator of the Violet Heavenly Palace stepped forward, and the divine light in the eye bloomed once again. It was like thunder shocked the world, and it rushed into Gu Dongliu''s body again.


    Boom!


    Gu Dongliu''s body shook. His long hair was flying in the air, his spiritual willpower seemed to bloom uncontrollably, and the breath of life spirit was even stronger.


    The cultivator did not stop there but stepped forward again.


    Gu Dongliu groaned. His face was ashen. It was as his life spirit had been released to its limit.


    But it seemed that it still did not meet the expectations of that Renhuang character.


    "I tried it already," the Emperor of the Purple Underground said. Gu Dongliu''s life spirit seemed to be limited at this point, unless there was a second awakening...


    This was indeed a considerable gap with the people of Gu clan in the past.


    "The elder is of the Renhuang Plane and is bullying someone his junior thusly. This is conduct unbecoming of someone of your stature." At this time, a voice was heard, and everyone followed the sound and saw that Knife Saint looked up at the sky, his hand holding the hilt of the sword. At the moment, he relaxed his hold on the handle, but the movement seemed a bit stiff.


    Although knowing that the gap between them was like heaven and earth, seeing how they had treated Gu Dongliu, as his elder senior brother, he couldn''t help but comment.


    The other glanced briefly at Knife Saint, and his eyes were sharp. It was as if divine thunder bloomed from his eyes. Knife Saint felt a flash of thunder, and lightning blasted his spiritual will. The lightning in his head roared with humming sounds in his head. With a groan, he stepped back.


    The man still looked indifferent. It was as if he hadn''t done anything at all and didn''t explain anything. It was as if no explanation was needed.


    "Elder brother." Ye Futian was witnessing all this. His fists were clenched tightly as he raised his head to look into the void. He saw that Gu Dongliu looking at them, and said, "Don''t interfere."


    Gu Dongliu understood very well how powerful these forces were. Even though there were anger and unwillingness in his heart, he knew very well that they could not resist. If they insisted on fighting them, it would be akin to committing suicide.


    "I''ll go with you," Gu Dongliu said to the cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace looked rather casual. This was not a choice that could be made by Gu Dongliu. From the beginning to end, he had no choice.


    The prosperous and renowned Gu clan of yore was now extinct. The era of Gu Tianxing was the golden age of the Gu clan.


    He cast a glance at the other positions above the sky, and said, "Since everyone is here now, show yourselves."


    Obviously, he did not take Gu Dongliu away because of the opinions he had expressed.


    What was more important was that it was not the Violet Heavenly Palace that had arrived today.


    Below the staircase, countless looked up at the sky; their hearts were shaken.


    Previously, there had been rumors that the supreme forces of principalities had entered the Purple Nether City. Now, it seemed that the rumors were true.


    Forces that could attract the attention of the Violet Heavenly Palace were naturally forces of the same level, standing at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Because its the last descendent of the Gu clan bloodline of our Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, he should be brought back by us." At this time, an ethereal voice came from the void, and then there was a fairy light falling from the sky, and a line of elusive figures came from the sky and appeared in the sky above the Purple Underworld.


    This group of individuals was transcendent in their temperaments. Fairy lights were released around them. It was as if they were one with the Great Path surrounding them, holy and ephemeral.


    South Vast Heaven of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had arrived.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven��one of the top principalities in the Heavenly Mandate Realm��was equally renowned as the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Furthermore, in the past, Gu clan was one of the three peak clans of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and was in charge of it along with the other two peak clans.


    Later, when the Gu clan was destroyed, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was greatly impacted by it. However, the other two major clans were equally powerful, so they were still standing at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "You compromised back then, so what are you doing here now?" A taunting sarcastic voice was heard, and in the other direction, another group of cultivators appeared. The individuals who made up this group each had their different temperaments and were not as domineering and aggressive as the Violet Heavenly Palace, but also not as unearthly as the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Though the temperaments of these cultivators all varied, they were all very powerful.


    "10,000 Divine Mountain," many people exclaimed. 10,000 Divine Mountain on the eastern region of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had also appeared.


    Today, would the top five forces all come for the occasion?


    This was all just because of the resurfacing of a descendant of the Gu clan. What profound lesson did Gu Tianxing leave for the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    So much so that just one descendant of the Gu clan was enough for these cultivators to gather together.


    "What game do you guys at 10,000 Divine Mountain want to play?" a cultivator of the Violet Heavenly Palace asked aggressively.


    "We like to have fun too at the 10,000 Divine Mountain," said a Renhuang figure, clad in a black and white robe, with a smile. "And we can also catch up with all the friends of Brahma''s Pure Sky."


    When he finished speaking, in yet another direction, an elusive divine light shone.


    A group of dazzling figures appeared above the void. This group was made up of all women, and what was even more amazing was that all were extremely beautiful.


    When they appeared, heaven and earth seemed to lose their beauty in comparison.


    "Jiutian Goddesses has arrived in person," the cultivator of the Violet Heavenly Palace said lightly. The woman who headed Brahma''s Pure Sky was a peerless goddess who seemed unattainable. She was one of the Jiutian Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Beside her were all virgins who cultivated under her.


    "Brahma''s Pure Sky."


    Ye Futian looked up in that direction and saw that all the goddesses'' temperaments were ephemeral, and their appearances were not of this earth. They all served under the throne of Brahma''s Pure Queen from the ethereal Brahma''s Pure heaven.


    That was also Ye Futian''s target; it was a place where he wanted to go.


    When Xia Qingyuan saw the presence of the cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Heaven, she looked at Ye Futian, who was beside her, wondering what he was thinking at the moment.


    Ye Futian really would like to step toward them and ask them some things, but those ethereal goddesses may not even bother to answer him.


    Furthermore, the gathering of the top principalities today was because of the third senior brother.


    The situation seemed to be more and more complicated.


    At this time, Ye Futian felt faintly also, just what kind of character Gu Tianxing of the Gu clan, really was.


    The Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky looked in one direction. One last principality and the five peak forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm all arrived.


    "The descendant of the Gu clan belongs to us."


    In the direction where the goddess was, a figure came out. From the sky, a group of noble figures descended. Its majestic imperial power enveloped the world, and the light released from their bodies seemed to demand worship.


    "Heavenly Mandate Dynasty."


    The people below the staircase trembled violently. Today, the top forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had all arrived.


    The God of Heaven was named after the Heavenly Mandate. They were the oldest forces among the five major principalities. It was said that many years ago, they were the absolute bosses of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty ruled the central region of ??the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Many royal dynasties were ruled by it, and it was the greatest power in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Its roots were deep and unfathomable.


    The extinction of the Gu clan was because of its confrontation with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    "Does anyone disagree?" said the Renhuang character of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, who had descended. It was as if he was certain that he would be in possession of the descendant of the Gu clan.


    The men of all forces were looking at him; they were the clearest on the confrontation that happened between the two.


    At the height of his golden age, Gu Tianxing had made rivers of blood at the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He became an immortal and climbed up the ladder of the divine dynasty and slaughtered his way to the divine hall of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    That battle was Gu Tianxing''s most brilliant one.


    The emergence of the old emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and joining forces with the current ruler of the dynasty led to the demise of Gu Tianxing. It was said that Gu Tianxing was injured in that battle, which subsequently led to the fall of Gu Tianxing and the extinction of the Gu clan.


    But for that, the price paid by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was the death of the old emperor��a god-like character who ruled a generation. One could imagine how terrible Gu Tianxing was.


    The whole Heavenly Mandate Realm was shocked by the aggression exhibited by Gu Tianxing in that battle. His presence made the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm uneasy.


    In those days, Gu Tianxing was the other. His actions were unpredictable and unrestricted by rules, and he did whatever he wanted.


    The sins created by that battle were too heavy. The blood stained the dynasty so that the Heavenly Mandate Realm no longer had a place for him.

 1357 Pressure

    It was obvious what those from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were trying to do. Gu Tianxing and the dynasty had serious scores to settle with each other, and it was thanks to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty that the Gu Clan was destroyed.


    At present, knowing that there were survivors from the Gu Clan, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty naturally saw fit to take them away.


    "While the dynasty suffered terrible losses all those years ago, many lives from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were lost as well, and the Gu Clan was totally destroyed. The feud between the Dynasty and the Gu Clan ended at that time. And right now, are you telling me that you people from the dynasty are unwilling even to let one descendant of the clan off?"


    A mighty one from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven said coldly, "We will bring this person back with us. Whatever it takes."


    "I dare you to try," a mighty one from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said coldly. There was no point in trying to sort out the mess that happened all those years ago.


    Be it the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven or the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, both parties had suffered considerable losses in the end.


    Due to the existence of the Gu Clan in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty having a deep history and background, those two forces were at the pinnacle of Heavenly Mandate Realm back then. Both of them had been magnitudes of order higher than the other three supreme forces.


    However, that one battle caused both pinnacle forces to be considerably weakened.


    That was probably the situation that the others wanted to see.


    "The man is now in the custody of the Purple Underworld, and he is to join the ranks of the Purple Underworld. You all claimed to want to take the man, but did any of you bother asking what the Purple Underworld thought about this?" a mighty one from the Violet Heavenly Palace said at that moment.


    They had already arrived before and knew that the other forces actually had their own agendas. They knew that it would not be easy to take Gu Dongliu away.


    At present, any action would trigger a cascade of events. His emergence caused the five pinnacle forces to show up at the same time. All of them wanted to take him away.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s claim of wanting to take him away due to vengeance back then was but a ruse. Instead, they were waiting to see if there was anything of Gu Tianxing left on him. The Dynasty would not have bothered with just another descendant of the dead Gu Clan otherwise.


    As for the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, no one knew how sincere they actually were. They might have been up to no good as well.


    "You could ask if the Purple Underworld is willing to give the man up to the Violet Heavenly Palace then," the Jiutian Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky said at that moment. All eyes were on the Emperor of Purple Underground within an instant.


    The Emperor shot a cold glance at the Jiutian Goddess, wondering if she was trying to have the others target him.


    The ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace naturally knew that even if the Emperor of Purple Underground were truly on their side, he would not have easily made his stance clear right there and then.


    Offending the four major pinnacle forces would come with dire consequences. There was no way he would have made his stance clear.


    All sides wanted to take the man away, putting the situation in a deadlock.


    "Well, if all of you want the man so badly, let''s duke it out and let the winner take the man away then. It''d be nice for me to see how capable those top-notch forces in Heavenly Mandate Realm are," that middle-aged man from 10,000 Divine Mountain, who wore black and white striped robes, continued to smile and said, seemingly out to make things into a bigger mess.


    Furthermore, he also never said that he wanted to take Gu Dongliu away.


    It was apparent that they were not all that interested. It was as if how he put it before��those from 10,000 Divine Mountain were simply there to see how the event would turn out.


    The ones below felt rather speechless at what that mighty one from 10,000 Divine Mountain said. All of those people had tremendous power. Things would be unimaginable if they were to truly fight for the sake of one man.


    The scene would be utterly terrifying, enough to bring down the sky.


    All of the few pinnacle forces of Heavenly Mandate Realm were rather reserved when it came to having Renhuangs among them clash. If any conflict arose, the fight would be something out of this world. What happened between the Gu Clan and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty back then served as a very good example.


    Everyone was silent again. The eight true lineage forces, which included the Purple Underground, were unable to interfere. They simply looked at the five parties butt heads in the sky above.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky as well. All those imposing, overbearing figures were all who stood at the very pinnacle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    His third brother, Gu Dongliu, never knew any of them, and he had no scores to settle any of them. Yet, at that moment, they were all there deciding what they should do with Gu Dongliu, even deciding whether or not to kill him.


    "Since we can''t decide what to do with him, we shall end it all right here, right now." Another voice was heard at the moment. That imposing Renhuang from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had spoken. His robes billowed on its own as he cast his gaze upon Gu Dongliu.


    The way he looked at Gu Dongliu made it as if Gu Dongliu was already a dead man. His eyes were filled with contempt. From the way they saw it, Gu Dongliu''s fate was sealed: he was to end up dead, one way or another.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did not allow Gu Dongliu to live. Even if they were to take him, it was only a matter of time before they disposed of him.


    The life of a remnant of the Gu Clan was of no worth to them. They were only concerned about possible connections between him and Gu Tianxing.


    They were wondering if Gu Tianxing had indeed perished back then.


    That Renhuang stepped out and piled his might of Renhuang onto Gu Dongliu. That Renhuang looked down on him and said, "Who was the one who sent you to the Lower Worlds to train?"


    The way he spoke made it seem like he was out to make others submit to him. Gu Dongliu''s spiritual will was rattled, and he began to see illusions. A tall, majestic Renhuang seemed to have appeared right before him, making it so that he was compelled to answer.


    Gu Dongliu grunted and bit his lip, shutting his mouth and refusing to speak.


    "Speak." That Renhuang of the dynasty continued to press on him. The Renhuang''s voice reverberated in Gu Dongliu''s eardrums, wearing down on his resistance. It seemed as if the Renhuang''s voice was that of the heavens, utterly undeniable.


    The others only understood what was going on right there and then. The five forces were out to determine whether or not Gu Dongliu lived or died, and they were dealing with him on the spot.


    Countless voices reverberated in his mind, and his face was twisting in pain.


    He was able to sense killing intent from the other party''s will of the great path alone.


    "I don''t know." Gu Dongliu looked up, and his eyes were open, staring coldly at the one who stood tall and mighty in the air.


    At that moment, the Renhuang from the Violet Heavenly Palace cast his gaze below, unleashing the terrifying brilliance of lightning from his eyes.


    "Have you trained in the mystical ways?" the overlord from the Violet Heavenly Palace asked. Bolts of lightning flashed in Gu Dongliu''s mind, making his hair dance. His brain felt like it was about to crack. His expression revealed extreme pain.


    "I''m asking you a question." That person from the Violet Heavenly Palace took yet another step out after seeing that Gu Dongliu was not answering. Bolts of lightning pierced through Gu Dongliu''s spiritual will, causing the limit of his Life Spirit to be triggered right there and then.


    He wanted to see where the limit of Gu Dongliu''s potential lied, and if he had the means of pulling what the Gu Clan had pulled all those years ago.


    Gu Dongliu''s body was twisted, and his expression was extremely pained. However, he held his head up high and looked at the godlike figures above. His eyes were bloodshot.


    Those people were of the pinnacle forces of Heavenly Mandate Realm, but they were all leaning on a saint like him at that moment.


    Nobody stopped them, and nobody dared to stop them.


    "Dongliu." The Sword Saint had demonic gleam flashing in his eyes, looking at all that was transpiring. Ye Futian''s fists remained clenched as well.


    This was too much.


    "Your Majesty," Ye Futian yelled, "didn''t you say that you wouldn''t pressure him or anything before?"


    The Emperor of Purple Underground took a look at Ye Futian with a plain expression. He was not the only one doing so. All mighty ones from the other eight true lineages turned to look at Ye Futian as well, feeling pity for him.


    Ye Futian had broken the limit of Wutu Divine Mountain on that day. He should have been the one to have his name known throughout the world, yet due to the presence of a descendant of the Gu Clan, everyone came to care about Gu Dongliu more than him.


    Not only was he unable to join the ranks of the Purple Underground and train under the Emperor, but he was always forced to witness the cruel scene before him and was unable to do anything.


    No one said anything, and even the Emperor of Purple Underground was silent. Everything was already out of his hands.


    "Speak the truth, and your pain shall be lessened," the Jiutian Goddess of Brahman''s Pure Sky said, feeling pity for Gu Dongliu, thinking that he might not know about his birth after all.


    But then again, his surname was Gu, and he was a descendant of the Gu Clan.


    While it was not clear about what the others would have done, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, at least, would not let him live.


    "Enough, everyone," a mighty one from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven said, throwing down a powerful will of the great path on Gu Dongliu. It turned into an image of yin and yang, repelling the pressure put on him by those from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    "What are you doing?" the one from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked coldly.


    "He might really not know anything. Piling what happened all those years ago on a member of the younger generation who knows nothing, don''t you all think you''re going a little bit too far?" that mighty one from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven said coldly.


    "So long as there is one man from the Gu Clan alive, what happened back is still not over," the Renhuang from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said forcefully. Countless from the dynasty perished in that battle all those years ago. Their blood had stained the vast regions of the dynasty.


    Many had even thought that it would have been the end of the dynasty back then, and that Renhuang saw what a doomsday that day had been.


    On that day, all of them swore to eradicate the Gu Clan.


    The conversation between the two men caused everyone''s hearts to race. The commotion all those years ago affected the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm. At that moment, they were wondering if the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would clash once again due to Gu Dongliu''s emergence.


    Overwhelming might descended from the sky as the Renhuang from the dynasty spoke, with his will of the great path clashing with that from the mighty one from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, on Gu Dongliu''s body.


    That scene made the mighty one rescind his power immediately. It would have caused Gu Dongliu''s body to overload from the stress and collapse immediately.


    "You went to the Lower Worlds to train. So why are you here now?" the mighty one from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven asked. That probably would have been the very last of the blood of the Gu Clan.


    However, judging from the attitude of those from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, they seemed to have no intention of letting Gu Dongliu leave alive.


    "Spill it." The Renhuang from the Violet Heavenly Palace continued to pressure him. Boundless lightning rained down on Gu Dongliu''s soul. Terrifying lightning coursed throughout Gu Dongliu''s Life Spirit at that moment. It seemed as if his body would crumble at any given moment.


    He was out to see if that would have been Gu Dongliu''s limit and if Gu Dongliu had been hiding anything.

 1358 Gu Tianxing

    Gu Dongliu coughed up blood, his head lowered. He looked down and saw the Sword Saint and Ye Futian stepping out from the crowd. He delivered his voice to them using his residual life force, "Don''t get involved."


    Dao Sheng and Ye Futian looked up and saw Gu Dongliu looking at them with a pair of bloody eyes. He delivered his voice to the Sword Saint, "Brother, watch Ye Futian."


    If the Sword Saint and Ye Futian intervened in this situation, these big figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm would kill them as if they were ants.


    They were too fragile in front of these big figures.


    No matter how talented they were, they were unable to bear one stare or one wisp of thought from these big figures, who were much more powerful than them.


    These predominant figures might have ignored Ye Futian and the Sword Saint''s presence, but if the Sword Saint and Ye Futian forcibly intervened, they wouldn''t mind trampling them to death because they were weak ants in their eyes.


    So, in any case, neither the Sword Saint nor Ye Futian could stand out and get themselves killed.


    Will of Sword surrounded the Sword Saint. Gu Dongliu told him to watch Ye Futian.


    But he couldn''t control himself.


    The Sword Saint reached out a trembling hand and placed it on Ye Futian''s shoulder, pressing Ye Futian''s body down by force. They both fell to the ground and looked up at everything happening in the void sky.


    "Brother," called Ye Futian, looking at the Sword Saint beside him.


    "Master is not here. It is my fault. I am too useless," the Sword Saint said in a low voice. Their master was not here, so it was supposed to be his duty to protect his brothers.


    However, he couldn''t do anything.


    Seeing them leave, Gu Dongliu raised his head and said to the figures high above the sky, "Hey."


    The moment he spoke, all the forces suddenly dispersed. There was only Might shrouding his body, as if it could befall him at any time.


    Warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace were all looking at him, waiting for his answer.


    Did this descendant of Gu Clan know about his origin? Were there any other people of the Gu Clan still alive? Did he have any cultivation methods of the Gu Clan with him?


    "He asked me to tell you that by the time he returns, the Dynasty and the Palace will be reduced to ruins," Gu Dongliu said with a smile, but the smile was quite sorrowful.


    Say something?


    What did they want him to say?


    He didn''t know anything.


    But since these people were scared of a deceased figure, full of fright even after so many years, he had to say something that they expected him to say.


    "By the time he returns, the Dynasty and the Palace will be reduced to ruins." People ruminated over these words in shock. Even warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace looked pale after hearing his words, doubting their authenticity.


    Will he return? they wondered.


    "I will take him," said a Renhuang warrior of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty assertively. A beam of dazzling divine light descended from the sky. He raised one hand and grabbed at Gu Dongliu''s body. He wanted to take Gu Dongliu back and interrogate him. He needed to know more.


    If Gu Dongliu refused to speak, they would find ways to control him, even using some special tactics.


    "You are asking for your own destruction," a warrior of the Violet Heavenly Palace said coldly. The horrifying Will of Thunder in his pupils burst into Gu Dongliu''s body.


    Boom��


    Gu Dongliu just felt that his soul was going to burst and shatter into pieces. He opened his arms, hair messy, his clothes blowing in the wind.


    Boom!


    His life spirit Celestial Shadow was being destroyed little by little, but at this moment, from his life spirit, wisps of intimidating life force permeated and rushed into the sky.


    At this moment, Gu Dongliu''s life spirit seemed to be resonating with the Law of Heaven. Beams of dazzling celestial light bloomed from his life spirit and connected with the Great Law above the sky dome.


    "What happened?"


    This scene made many people''s eyes contract. Everyone was staring at the young man.


    They just saw Gu Dongliu''s body slowly floating up. It was as if he no longer controlled it. From his body, beams of celestial light rose upward. Every one of the nine ancient characters emitted an unparalleled aura. These characters rotated around him and gradually turned into nine celestial shadows.


    The Emperor of Purple Underworld narrowed his eyes. He involuntarily took a step forward. He was agitated by what he saw.


    How was it possible?


    He had already thoroughly examined him. There was nothing hidden in Gu Dongliu or his life spirit.


    But why was this happening?


    Were there any means that even a powerful warrior like him could not detect?


    Warriors of those five top powers were staring at Gu Dongliu above the sky dome. There was an extreme coldness in the eyes of the warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace. They knew it was not that simple.


    At that time, what was Gu Tianxing like? If any descendant of the Gu Clan survived, how could he not make arrangements for him?


    Today, their guess seemed to be confirmed.


    The Renhuang of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven watched the scene in shock, overwhelmed by his thoughts.


    "The sealing technique of the Nine Deities."


    He felt a surge of emotion. Did sealing techniques exist on earth?


    When the Gu Clan was at the apex of power, there were 12 deity-like figures in the clan.


    The sealing technique of the Nine Deities required the nine of them to seal their power in him.


    The power of nine deities among the 12. Who on earth was Gu Dongliu?


    He suddenly thought of that unprecedented war, during which Gu Tianxing set foot in the court of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty alone.


    He suddenly realized that at that time, numerous warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven seemed to have neglected something.


    The nine celestial shadows rotated around Gu Dongliu. Among them, a beam of dazzling celestial light shot straight into the clouds and resonated with the sky. Wind and clouds roared above the sky dome as if the Might of Heaven would arrive. The whole world was changing. The celestial light shrouded the sky.


    "This is��"


    Countless people from the Purple Underworld Sect were shocked by this scene. What just happened?


    How could there be such a powerful force in Gu Dongliu''s body?


    "Third Brother," Ye Futian murmured. They were all stunned. Qi Xuanguan showed surprise at the scene. He released his mind and could perceive that, at this moment, Gu Dongliu had become one with the Heavenly Law.


    "Some masterful warrior put a seal on his body," Qi Xuanguan said in a low voice.


    Ye Futian was perplexed. Was that person Gu Tianxing?


    If so, why did he do this?


    Was he afraid that the enemy was too powerful? Did he seal the Third Brother''s talents and power to let him live a simple and ordinary life in the Lower Realms?


    Could the seal be removed only when the Third Brother encountered irresistible forces?


    But at this moment, he saw a wisp of hope.


    If, as people said, Third Brother was the last descendant of the Gu Clan lineage, Gu Tianxing must have left something to him.


    Warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace looked up at the sky. Wind and clouds were roaring above the sky dome. The beams of celestial light were scorching. Gu Dongliu''s body kept rising as if it would merge into the celestial light.


    The Renhuang warrior of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty raised his hand and grabbed toward Gu Dongliu''s body. A giant palm print of the Great Law appeared between the sky and earth, covering one corner of the sky. It smashed down, trying to directly capture Gu Dongliu.


    Fizz��


    A beam of celestial light swung down, and the palm print was directly chopped in half. The aggregated palm print of the Great Law fell but had not yet collapsed.


    The Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked up at the sky and saw endless beams of celestial light gather into a body figure above the sky dome.


    This figure was standing on the sky dome amid the endless celestial light. He stood straight with his hands behind his back between the sky and earth. His bearing was peerless in the world.


    Seeing this figure, warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm all had horrified looks on their faces. Even Renhuang warriors had their facial expressions distorted. Their hearts thumped fast. Overwhelming emotions surged inside them.


    How was this possible?


    How could he still be alive?


    Some people''s legs were trembling. This face was a nightmare for warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace didn''t feel any better. Their hearts shuddered violently. The Renhuang warrior had lifted one arm, but he could not stretch it out. Even though he was at Renhuang level, he didn''t dare attack when he saw this face.


    "The Celestial Lord!"


    Many warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven saluted. Seeing that figure, many warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had the impulse to worship him, no matter what kind of role the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven played in the battle.


    For the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, Gu Tianxing''s existence was a symbol, a mark engraved on the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    He represented an era.


    A celestial lord who was unparalleled in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Warriors of the Brahma''s Pure Sky and 10,000 Divine Mountain all looked solemn. Regardless of if they were friends or foes, they all paid respect to Gu Tianxing because he was a legend of one generation, a god-like figure.


    The crowd was enormous below the Purple Underground Sect. Even countless people in the city looked up at the sky and were stirred.


    They all had a rough idea of the identity of the person.


    Gu Tianxing.


    Was he alive?


    Gu Dongliu had just said that by the time he returned, the Dynasty and the Palace would perish.


    Was he back now?


    If Gu Tianxing didn''t die, it would indeed be a disaster for the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    "It is just an illusion created by the Wills, not the person himself."


    At this time, the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Realm spoke up. When he spoke, the figure above the sky turned to him and gave him an emotionless glance. The Renhuang was threatened by this one glance and put down his arm, didn''t dare take action anymore.


    Even the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty didn''t dare try; neither did the Renhuang of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    No one dared to move.


    Bathed in the celestial light, Gu Dongliu constantly rose and landed next to Gu Tianxing. Wind and clouds rumbled above the sky dome. The extremely dazzling celestial light diffused in the air.


    A beam of celestial light swept across the sky dome, and suddenly, these two figures disappeared into the distance.


    "They are gone."


    The arms of the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty shivered. He just watched as Gu Dongliu was taken away. He stepped out and released his mind as if trying to follow the direction in which they had left.


    The Renhuang of the Violet Heavenly Palace also stepped out. They also felt that that was not the real Gu Tianxing.


    If Gu Tianxing had come here today, perhaps nobody of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would survive.


    Everyone knew the grudge between Gu Tianxing and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, which would not cease without another slaughter. During the battle of that time, countless corpses of both sides lay on the battlefield.


    The Emperor of Purple Underground took a deep breath. He didn''t even figure out the sealing force hidden inside Gu Dongliu. What did that mean?


    However, he also secretly felt glad that he did not; otherwise, he would have had no idea what situation he would have to face today.


    Gu Tianxing''s appearance would probably lead to another bloody storm in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Was he really alive?

 1359 Feeling Los

    The appearance of Gu Tianxing made many people think about a question: who was he, this Gu Dongliu?


    Was he just the last descendant of the Gu Clan''s bloodline?


    When the Gu Clan was exterminated, all people of the Gu Clan were killed by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty; nobody survived. How did Gu Dongliu leave alive, and why did he have such an intimidating force in his body?


    The only possibility was before Gu Tianxing died, he had started to make arrangements and sent Gu Dongliu away.


    Then Gu Dongliu must be an essential person for Gu Tianxing.


    "Gu Jiangnan." This name occurred to many people. At the beginning of this storm, he was a peerless gallant hero in the Heavenly Mandate Realm many years ago. He was known as the most talented warrior of all time in the Gu Clan and broke all speed records of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. He was also Gu Tianxing''s son.


    At that time, everyone believed that Gu Jiangnan would become another Gu Tianxing in the future. The Gu Clan was flourishing at that time, and it also had a very outstanding successor. During that period, it seemed that all good fortunes of the world had gathered in this clan.


    However, maybe because of this, many people said that the heaven was jealous of the Gu Clan''s prosperity, so the Gu Clan''s fortune began to wane from its apex, and what happened after that indeed confirmed this prediction.


    Gu Jiangnan and his wife were both peerless figures of that time. When the conflict erupted between them and the crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, they were besieged by many warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty might be afraid of Gu Jiangnan''s potentials and ordered their warriors to behead this couple.


    At that time, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was also extremely powerful and was hailed as the strongest force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. At that time, they did not expect that Gu Tianxing would be so intimidating when he went mad; otherwise, they wouldn''t have dared to kill them.


    It was because of the Gu Jiangnan couple''s death that Gu Tianxing stepped into the court of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty alone. The battle trembled the sky and earth, making ghosts and gods weep. Gu Tianxing took revenge on the crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. In front of all warriors in the court of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he slew the prince in the cruelest way and put his head on top of the temple hall of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    And now, the appearance of Gu Dongliu had to make people wonder whether the Gu Jiangnan couple had any offspring before they fell.


    No one had ever heard of it.


    But the thing that happened today seemed to indicate this possibility could be great.


    If Gu Dongliu was really the child of Gu Jiangnan couple, Gu Tianxing''s grandson, and his sealing had been removed after he cultivated for a while...


    There will be another bloody storm in the future, many people thought to themselves.


    The grudge between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Gu Clan was far from over.


    Ye Futian, however, felt relieved at this moment. He didn''t know the Third Brother''s life story, but it was fortunate for him to be able to leave unharmed.


    Was the person who took the Third Brother away really Gu Tianxing?


    When they planted the sealing force in his body, maybe they had expected that the day would come.


    In the void air, Emperor of the Purple Underground looked down and glanced at Ye Futian.


    Gu Dongliu was Ye Futian''s elder brother. Ye Futian went to the Wuwu Divine Mountain just to meet him and plead for Gu Dongliu; their relationship must be unusually good.


    However, since that powerful figure could take Gu Dongliu away, there was no point in capturing Ye Futian, and the Emperor of Purple Underground had no need to incite hatred for no reason.


    Ye Futian himself certainly had not expected that his brother had such a background.


    "Would you like to cultivate in my sect?" Emperor of Purple Underground asked Ye Futian again. It was the second time he invited Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked up at Emperor of Purple Underground. The Emperor stood there with an imposing bearing. His deep-set eyes looked unfathomable; no one could speculate what he was thinking.


    However, since his Third Brother had a grudge with the Violet Heavenly Palace, it was very unfavorable for him to cultivate in the Purple Underground Sect.


    People fixed their eyes on Ye Futian again. Everything that just happened was so shocking to them that they almost forgot about Ye Futian, who just broke the record of the divine mountain because of Gu Dongliu. Ye Futian was also a very rare talented figure.


    It was the second time that Emperor of Purple Underground invited him to be his disciple.


    However, since the Emperor of Purple Underground refused to release Gu Dongliu, Ye Futian might have felt estranged and would not cultivate with his guidance.


    "I am grateful for your appreciation, Your Majesty. It''s just I am not specialized in Thunder Laws, so I am afraid I will not live up to your expectations," said Ye Futian, bowing. No matter what he was feeling at this moment, he would not show it.


    Many people had expected that he would decline the offer, but this guy even claimed that he was not specialized in Thunder Laws, which was too��


    A genius with Thunder attribute who had just broken the record of Wutu Divine Mountain and gone through 1,000 streaks of Divine Thunder said that he cultivated in Thunder Laws just for fun. One could imagine how the people around him felt.


    What would those practiced warriors who had made great accomplishments in Thunder Laws think of him?


    "Too presumptuous," Zhang Changqing said in a low voice behind the Emperor of the Purple Underground. Ye Futian''s tone was polite, but his words sounded particularly jarring to him.


    He once had also broken a record and endured 900 streaks of Divine Thunder; he was also very good at using Thunder Laws.


    Not only Zhang Changqing, but cultivators of the Eight Orthodox Sects in Thunder Laws were all staring at Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s words sounded too arrogant.


    "If I am not wrong, he should be the first person among the Eight Orthodox Sects who broke the record but was reluctant to enter Sects to study Thunder Laws, right?" a Renhuang figure said with a smile at this moment. He looked toward the Emperor of the Purple Underground and said, "Zi Ming, your Purple Underground Sect does not seem very attractive."


    The Emperor of the Purple Underground looked unconcerned and glanced at him. Of course, he understood the slight irony in his tone.


    "For many years, there were not many people able to break the record of the Eight Great Divine Mountains, only very few. Since you could break the Heavenly Thunder record of the Wutu Divine Mountain, how about coming to the Violet Heavenly Palace to cultivate," at this moment, a warrior of the Violet Heavenly Palace in the air looked down at Ye Futian and suggested.


    His words shocked countless people.


    Pairs of eyes looked towards Ye Futian; people were all stirred by these words.


    Even the Violet Heavenly Palace sent an invitation to him.


    There was a strange look on the face of every Purple Underground Sect warrior. Zhang Changqing raised his eyebrows slightly; the Violet Heavenly Palace had never invited him to cultivate there.


    All Thunder Laws of the world originated from the Heavenly Palace; the Violet Heavenly Palace was the precursor of all the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects.


    Entering the Violet Heavenly Palace meant that one could practice all kinds of Thunder Laws, including the Wutu Infernal Thunder. What one would learn depended on how strong one''s talent was.


    Even any common disciple from there was surely an extremely talented person.


    However, Gu Dongliu might be part of the reason that the Violet Heavenly Palace invited Ye Futian to cultivate.


    Would Ye Futian agree?


    What he said was also out of Ye Futian''s expectation. He looked up at the figure above the sky and said, "Thank you for your offer, but I am afraid I don''t deserve entering the Heavenly Palace because of my limited talent."


    He didn''t deserve it��?


    Ye Futian''s reply made many people feel speechless. His reason to decline the offer was a bit too pretended; he had just said that Thunder Law was not his field.


    However, this was also Ye Futian''s attitude.


    Even though it was the highest force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he still refused to join it.


    Warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace above the sky dome took a glance at Ye Futian. The speaker looked away and didn''t say anything.


    Who could expect he declined the invitation of the Violet Heavenly Palace?


    A young man standing next to that warrior looked towards Ye Futian. His stare was sharp. It was as if thunder was hidden inside. He took a glance at Ye Futian and said calmly, "You inherited the Thunder Laws of the Heavenly Palace but refused to cultivate in Thunder Law Sects. Since then, don''t let me see you cultivate in Thunder Laws of the Heavenly Palace."


    His tone was calm but firm. The Wutu Infernal Thunder of the Wutu Divine Mountain was also a heritage belonging to the Violet Heavenly Palace. The Violet Heavenly Palace established the tradition of the arrival of the Heavenly Thunder in the Eight Divine Mountains, which was designed to pass the Thunder Laws through the world.


    The event was intended for cultivators with Thunder Law talent to cultivate in respective sects.


    There was no requirement to enter a sect during inheritance.


    Because those who owned the talent of Thunder Laws would basically all be willing to enter, not to mention those who gave the best performance.


    But Ye Futian first rejected the Emperor of Purple Underground and then even rejected the invitation of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Since then, he should just give up using the Thunder Laws of the Heavenly Palace in the future.


    The leaders of the Eight Orthodox Sects around the Emperor of Purple Underground were thinking about inviting Ye Futian to join them and seeing if he had other Thunder talents, but now it seemed that there was no need.


    Although Ye Futian was exceptionally talented, he was also an arrogant person; now, he had nothing to do with the Thunder Laws.


    "Let''s go," said a warrior of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Soon, his group turned into lightning and disappeared directly into the sky.


    The rest of the forces were also preparing to leave. The goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky turned around but suddenly heard Ye Futian shouting at her, "Your Excellency, may I talk to you for a moment?"


    The Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky turned her head and looked at Ye Futian. There were strange looks on many people''s faces. This guy refused the invitation from the Heavenly Palace, and the next moment, turned to the Goddess. What did he mean?


    "What''s the matter?" the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky asked in a calm tone.


    "Your Excellency, may I ask that among all cultivators in Brahma''s Pure Sky, whether there is a cultivator named Hua Jieyu who once cultivated in the Lower Realms," Ye Futian asked. He looked quite nervous, his eyes fixed on her, his heart thumping fast.


    This was the first time he approached a person from the Brahma''s Pure Sky; he might get news about Jieyu.


    The Goddess still looked calm. She took a glance at Ye Futian, then turned around and walked away, leaving a word, "No."


    After the word, warriors of the Brahma''s Pure Sky gradually all left, and soon disappeared from sight.


    Ye Futian heard her answer and froze in the void sky. No?


    He heard from Xia Qingyuan that Jieyu might be alive, so he came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm with a wisp of hope.


    Finally, he met a person from the Brahman''s Pure Sky, but she just told him no.


    If Jieyu was not in the Brahma''s Pure Sky, what did that mean?


    Was she really alive?


    Ye Futian''s face looked quite pale. The wind blew on his face. He felt a little cold.


    People around him looked at him. Ye Futian was a bit strange. He refused the invitation from the Heavenly Palace but wanted to socialize with Brahma''s Pure Sky?


    However, the Brahma''s Pure Sky ignored him.


    No matter how talented he was, he was not in good favor with the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Xia Qingyue came beside Ye Futian. Seeing Ye Futian''s pale face, she also felt quite lost.


    "Maybe she was not clear on what you were asking," Xia Qingyuan whispered. But shouldn''t she be glad?


    Why did she also feel sad!

 1360 The West of the Heavenly Mandate Realm

    Many people looked up at Ye Futian, who stood there with his back facing them; the atmosphere became a bit depressing.


    The person he mentioned must''ve been significant to him.


    But why did he think she would cultivate in Brahma''s Pure Sky?


    Suddenly, Ye Futian laughed at himself with a tinge of bitterness. Perhaps that wisp of hope had just been an illusion he created.


    Was it even possible for her to have survived the battle of the Ultimate Holy Palace?


    If Xia Qingyuan hadn''t told him this message, he would''ve lost all hope.


    With that in his mind, he came all the way to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. However, now it seemed that it was nothing but his chimera.


    Even if Jieyu''s soul had not dissipated, why would the exalted Lord of Brahma''s Pure Sky in the Heavenly Mandate Realm have to help her?


    To her, people in the Lower Realms were nothing but insignificant ants.


    Ye Futian turned around and walked back. Xia Qingyuan looked at his face and followed him quietly.


    Although she tried to comfort Ye Futian, she also thought Hua Jieyu had died upon hearing the answer from the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky. The hope that Ye Futian had built over several years had shattered; he must''ve been devastated.


    His heart was filled with only despair, without any room for happiness.


    Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen and others were all looking at Ye Futian. They knew best about the relationship between Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. They were in each other''s company since they came from Qingzhou city until Hua Jieyu lost her life in the battle of Ultimate Holy Palace. Whatever hope they thought was there faded away; they all understood how Ye Futian felt at this moment.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said softly with a low voice. Soon he walked away.


    Everyone nodded and followed him without a word.


    Only time could heal their wounds.


    The crowd involuntarily gave way to them. By breaking the record of Wutu Divine Mountain Ye Futian''s extraordinary talent earned him the respect of the cultivators who came to attend the event today.


    It was a pity that he missed the great opportunity to join the Purple Underworld Sect and even declined the invitation of Violet Heavenly Palace, perhaps due to his brother Gu Dongliu.


    Even though Ye Futian had outstanding Thunder talent, he was now no longer able to deploy it. He said that the Thunder was not his forte, and people of the Violet Heavenly Palace claimed that they did not want to see him use Thunder Laws in the future. He inherited the Thunder Laws from them but was banned from using it.


    Ye Futian''s future in Thunder skills might''ve been ruined, and he might hardly have achieved anything within the district of Violet Heavenly Palace ever since he had offended those top forces.


    People wouldn''t have pitied Ye Futian if he was just mediocre. They pitied him because he broke the record and had the opportunity to enter top forces, but he missed his chance to do so.


    He missed the chance to enter Violet Heavenly Palace because of his relationship with Gu Dongliu. Since everything about Gu Dongliu was left unknown, other top forces wouldn''t have taken him as a disciple, either.


    In this case, Ye Futian could only cultivate his rare talent on his own.


    After Ye Futian left, the crowd also gradually dispersed.


    On this day, the Wutu Divine Mountain was not the only place where Divine Thunder fell. Each of the Eight Divine Mountains in the Violet Heavenly Palace district of the Heavenly Mandate Realm all held such events. Many talented warriors performed excellently in the Eight Divine Mountains. Among them, there was another warrior aside from Ye Futian who broke the record of a divine mountain and became a Renhuang''s disciple. Many opportunities laid ahead of him.


    Compared to him, Ye Futian of the Wutu Divine Mountain looked even more pitiful.


    However, Gu Tianxing''s appearance stole the spotlight of all the Thunder Law events of the Eight Divine Mountain. People in the Heavenly Mandate Realm talked more about Gu Dongliu and Gu Tianxing.


    Was the person who showed up that day actually Gu Guxing?


    Was he still alive, or was it just his remnant soul on earth?


    Gu Tianxing''s appearance directly intimidated many Renhuang figures of the top forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm; his peerless bearing was admired by countless people.


    Many people hoped that he was not dead so they could have the opportunity to see what kind of person he was.


    Gu Dongliu was also mentioned most frequently in people''s conversations. He was said to be the only descendant of Gu Clan and was sent to the Lower Realms for cultivation at an early age. Even his life spirit was sealed by an overwhelming force, suppressing his talent. He did not know of his own origin until he was captured by people of the Purple Underground Sect.


    Now, there were several voices in the Heavenly Mandate Realm speculating that Gu Dongliu was Gu Tianxing''s grandson, the rare talent Gu Jiangnan''s son.


    If so, many people would''ve felt uneasy, especially the two top forces, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace. At the time, they mostly contributed to cleansing the Gu Clan.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Gu Clan were especially deadly foes. At the time, they killed the Gu Jiangnan couple and forced the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to kill Gu Tianxing, but the latter had killed the former emperor and the current emperor''s crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The father and the most beloved son of the emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty both died in the hands of Gu Tianxing; nothing could break the deadlock unless more people died.


    Soon, a message was released from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. On that day, Gu Tianxing showed up and took Gu Dongliu away. People of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty followed them and learned that Gu Tianxing and Gu Dongliu went to the zone in the west of the boundary stone of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The news caused another uproar.


    In the west of the boundary stone of Heavenly Mandate Realm, the territory didn''t belong to any of the five top powers.


    Several years ago, wars kept erupting in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, especially between different races who had brutally killed each other.


    Back then, corpses were everywhere on the battlefield during battles between the Demon Emperor of Demon Realms and Renhuang Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Numerous corpses were left in the Heavenly Mandate Realm until the world was unified and Emperor Qing conferred the title of Lord of All Demons and worshipped by demons. From then on, the situation somehow improved enough for the human race and the demon race to coexist in the world.


    Even so, the divergence between races was still ubiquitous.


    The Heavenly Mandate Realm was also demarcated from other areas, of which the border was set by a boundary stone. The west of the boundary stone was the main force of the Demon Realm. Humans could also go there to cultivate, but royal members of the human race were not allowed inside, or the demons wouldn''t have been responsible for their deaths or injuries.


    Similarly, the other side was the territory of the human race.


    Over the years, both sides had infiltrated each other to some degree, but each side would not interfere with the other side''s ruling. Demon warriors were cultivating on the east side, while many human cultivators entered the western region. However, the Renhuang-level figures usually did not enter the other race''s area since it was risky.


    This was especially true after Emperor Ye Qing passed away.


    Renhuang-level warriors must''ve been extremely cautious about the decision of entering the western zone because they might''ve not been able to return.


    Human cultivators called the land in the west of the boundary stone of Heavenly Mandate Realm a place of chaos; it was the barren land where a variety of demons, ghosts, monsters, and spiritual creatures existed.


    Furthermore, it was the main battlefield of the chaotic war of that year. With countless ancient sites and mass graves, it was far more complicated than the human zone.


    Because of this, even though there was more chaos there, countless cultivators still went there to cultivate and go through trials despite the growing chaos. The complex environment could''ve made them more powerful.


    Now, Gu Dongliu disappeared in the land to the west of Heavenly Mandate boundary stone, which made it hard to follow and kill the Renhuang figures of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Once the news rang out, it was said that top powers began to send their disciples there to investigate Gu Tianxing and Gu Dongliu; the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Violet Heavenly Palace, and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were especially concerned about this.


    Both Gu Tianxing''s fate and Gu Dongliu''s future would''ve greatly influenced the situation of the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    During the past conflict between the human race and the demon race, both sides conceded. Renhuang-level characters generally didn''t lay a hand on lower-level warriors. Therefore, only cultivators whose levels were below Renhuang were to be deployed this time.


    As the news spread, warriors of all forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm began taking action. Several people began heading toward the land to the west of Heavenly Mandate boundary stone, the territory of the Demon Realm.


    Ye Futian also heard the news. It seemed that the Third Brother had safely left, but the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace were still unwilling to let him go. If they had known where the Third Brother was, they might even have deployed their top figures.


    During these days, he had also been collecting information about the demon territory of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Although the human race and the demon race cultivated together, there was always hostility between them. The Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm was a very special case in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    ��


    Now, they were somewhere far away from the Heavenly Mandate Realm: the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm.


    In a majestic demon imperial palace, a peerless woman stood there. In front of her was a very sharp-looking demonic beast with black and golden feathers. Its eyes looked keen, and its body was heavily shrouded in a demonic aura.


    "My father told me that the demon zone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm is one of the gathering places for demons among the Three Thousand worlds of the Great Law. Compared to the Crimson Dragon Realm, top figures of the demon clan are more willing to go there when they are strong enough," said Kong Xuan, her eyes fixed on the demonic beast in front of her. "Do you want to go to the Heavenly Mandate Realm?"


    "I have cultivated here for many years. Now I really miss my master. Your Highness, could you please ask His Majesty a favor for me? It would be better if Your Highness can also go with me. My master must deeply miss you, too," the Black Wind Condor said, blinking hard. Kong Xuan looked at him without emotion. She didn''t forget what that guy had done to her that year. She wished she could''ve killed him in the Empty Realm.


    However, she did want to go somewhere like the Heavenly Mandate Realm. What would it have been like to see so many demon clans gather?


    Ye Futian went there with Chi Shang, the prince of the Crimson Dragon Realm. She neither cultivated in the Regional King Palace nor was listed in the Regional King Ranking list, so she was not invited to travel with them.


    Now, she really wanted to go there and see.


    Thinking of Ye Futian, she thought to herself, "Would that guy leave her behind that far away?"


    If she had the opportunity to meet him again in the future, she didn''t want to be mocked and disdained by him.


    With this in mind, Kong Xuan said, "I''ll go ask my father."


    "I can tell that Your Highness missed my master as much as we do," said Black Wind Condor. His way of speaking was the same as before; he always needed someone to teach him a harsh lesson.


    The life force started to flow around Kong Xuan''s body as she stared at the Black Wind Condor.


    "No, it is my master who needs Your Highness. He is in the land of the demon clan, after all," Black Wind Condor said, immediately changing his tone. Kong Xuan had been used to this jerk''s loose lips; she just ignored him and turned around, walking towards the palace hall.


    Since she wanted to go somewhere as far as the Heavenly Mandate Realm, all she could do was ask her father for help!

 1361 The Lord of Verdant Gazelle Palace

    To the west of the Heavenly Mandate boundary stone was the barren land where few human cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm set foot on. Only the best cultivators dared to enter this chaotic area.


    Although the land of human cultivators was also cruel to those who failed, at least there were some social rules to follow. Thus, humans felt more secure to live amongst their kind.


    The Demon Realm''s territory was full of unknowns, and people needed to be more cautious about anything they didn''t know.


    However, a large number of human cultivators had recently stepped into this barren zone. The five top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm took the lead, with countless people following them.


    At this time, there was a group of people in the vast wilderness steering swords and swiftly flying in the vacant sky.


    They were Ye Futian and his companions who came from afar.


    Even though the Purple Underground Sect was located in the west of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and thus adjacent to the barren land of the Demon Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Realm was too large. Thus, it still took them a while to arrive.


    When they sometimes looked down, they could see a demon beast or two come into view. However, most demon beasts chose to hide from them as they perceived the Sword Will in the air.


    Just like in the world of human cultivators, the vast majority of demon beasts in the Demon Realm were the weaklings.


    The world of cultivators was always pyramid-shaped. The higher the level was, the fewer the cultivators were. Ye Futian always met with the most powerful cultivators only to get stronger and meet people of his level or greater. Otherwise, it would''ve been so easy for him to find a place and be a lord.


    Furthermore, many demon beasts lived together in clans within the barren lands of the Demon Realm. Some of them built caves in mountains as their dwelling places. Ye Futian had traveled for so long without seeing a city.


    Demon beasts who could turn into human shapes were also very rare. Disregarding the descendants of powerful demons who had the innate ability to transform, ordinary demon beasts were able to do it only after they reached the Saint Plane.


    "There is a very strong demonic aura ahead. There should be a powerful demon," Qi Xuangang said while steering a sword. He looked serious, with a pair of eyes looking through the mist and into the distance.


    "Let''s go and see," said Ye Futian. They had lost their way since they came here as if they were chickens with their heads cut off. Although he had controlled demon beasts before, ordinary monsters had no idea how vast this barren land was. They had never left their territory but knew how vast the Demon Realm was.


    Demon-Saint-level powerful beasts certainly knew about something.


    Their swords suddenly accelerated, roaring above the skydome, flashing across the void sky, and piercing through the sky like a lightning.


    A battle broke out on a plain; many corpses were scattered on the ground.


    Ye Futian and his companions steered their swords and stopped in mid-air. They looked down and saw a group of warriors besieging a lady.


    The lady looked dainty and beautiful, but now her body released a chilling life force. She held a sword; wherever the sword arrived, a rain of swords would rise between heaven and earth. Each of the falling swords contained horrifying penetrating power, shrouding the surroundings.


    This lady had the Saint-Plane cultivation ability, but now several powerful demons were besieging her, their roars destroying one''s spirit and willpower. When they raised their hands, they aggressively attacked the lady; she kept bleeding, the bloodstains on her body growing.


    Bang! Another loud noise arose. The lady was hurt by a sharp claw that pierced through her delicate body. Her white dress was stained with bright red blood.


    A burly powerful demon beast with a stout stature was standing nearby watching the battle. He stared at the woman with intimidating and emotionless eyes.


    "Qingyang He, you enjoy disguising yourself as a human and studying human cultivation methods. His Highness likes human beauties, so I assure you he will pamper you very well," the powerful demon beast said loudly. "Guys! Don''t hurt the Verdant Gazelle Goddess!"


    The people encircled the lady. That powerful demon beast raised his head and took a look at the vacant sky and said, "Friends, please ignore our business."


    He figured that these travelers were human cultivators. As a powerful demon beast of his level, however, he had grown used to this.


    Ye Futian''s companions looked at him and wondered if he would intervene.


    At that moment, Ye Futian looked down and saw the lady named Qingyang He, raising her head and looking at them. Her mouth was stained with blood; she looked quite sorrowful.


    "I am Qingyang He from the Verdant Gazelle Palace. Can you please help me?" she said to Ye Futian. She knew very well that if she was taken away, she would, unfortunately, become an evil beast''s plaything.


    "Ma''am, you should be able to tell that we are human cultivators; we''re not supposed to get involved in the business of the Demon Realm," Ye Futian replied. Even though he sympathized with her, he didn''t dare to take arbitrary action within the Demon Realm. If he offended any Demon-Emperor-Level beasts, not to mention that he might not keep himself safe, he could not only put himself in danger but also bring misfortune to people around him. He had to be careful.


    "I''m the daughter of the lord of the Verdant Gazelle Palace. I don''t know why you came here, but I''m sure the Verdant Gazelle Palace can help you. These people are beasts-in-training of the white tiger castle in this territory. The lord of the castle is just a demon saint; he can''t do anything to you," that lady hastily spoke.


    Ye Futian thought about leaving but stopped. This was quite a dilemma.


    "Trust me, please," Qingyang He pleaded, looking up into his eyes.


    Ye Futian saw the plea in Qingyang He''s gorgeous eyes. He took a glance down and said, "Let her go and leave."


    "What?"


    The human-shaped demon beasts frowned. The beast-in-training who took the lead stared at them fiercely. He opened his mouth and let out a low roar. Suddenly his head turned into a terrifying large tiger head.


    "We serve under the throne of the Holy Lord of White Tiger Castle. Humans, are you sure you want to mess with our lord?" the tiger demon said fiercely. A very strong baleful force flew out from his body and turned into a horrifying aura that shrouded the area.


    "Begone!"


    Yaya took a step down, her Sword Will enveloping the space and letting out shrieking wind whistles. Her Sword flows directly purified those baleful air streams and shielded Ye Futian''s side.


    Having perceived Yaya''s Sword Might, he glanced at Ye Futian and his group, taking an especially long time looking at Qi Xuangang.


    Although little life force was released from this person, his intuition told him that this human being was the most dangerous one.


    "Let''s retreat!"


    Once the tiger demon immediately ordered an evacuation, the demon beasts directly released Qingyang He and retreated. These demon beasts were pretty quick.


    He let out a howl and rose into the sky. These great demon beasts made rumbles at the same time. There seemed to be anger hidden in the roars; they would keep the grudge in mind.


    Ye Futian raised his head and watched them before he heard Qi Xuangang whisper, "They can''t go now."


    As Qi Xuangang finished speaking, an old man with a white beard in a white robe arrived at where the tiger demons departed. Suddenly, an appalling killing Will enveloped the sky and earth.


    The faces of those tiger demons suddenly turned pale. The old man with the white beard moved forward step by step, and the chilly killing Will between the sky and earth progressively increased with each step he took.


    "Vroom."


    The old man''s body suddenly turned into a broken shadow, flashing rapidly. The tiger demons'' howls terrified the sky, but one could only see the blood rain splashed in the sky mixed with their screams.


    "We didn''t touch Qingyang He. Those humans did it," that great demon yelled. The old man with a white beard ignored him. His body turned into a broken shadow, and the Sword Will swept across space like a shower of falling stars. It looked as if he only brushed that beast''s shoulder.


    The old man with the white beard continued to move forward as the body of the great demon turned into ashes and dissipated in the air.


    "A Nirvana Saint," Ye Futian said to himself while looking at the old man. He saw that the old man was turning into a white shadow like a drifting cloud, directly approaching Ye Futian and the others.


    Everything happened before he could react to any of it, but Qi Xuangang had already made a palm strike. The old man''s sword was coming, and a giant palm print turned into a light curtain shielding Ye Futian and the others.


    "Father, stop!" only then did Qingyang He''s shout ring out. The old man with the white beard swiftly retreated and looked at Qingyang He.


    "They saved me," Qing Yang said hurriedly.


    The old man with the white beard restrained his life force and took a special look at Qi Xuangang. He cupped his hands and said, "Just now I was too hasty and took impertinent action. Please forgive me."


    "It doesn''t matter," Qi Xuangang replied, looking at him in amazement. Not only did he resemble a human, but his behavior was no different from that of human beings, even his courtesy.


    This was the one who arrived was the Verdant Gazelle Holy Lord, the master of the Verdant Gazelle Palace, and the ruler of the territory.


    The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord flashed beside Qingyang He and asked, "Are you all right?"


    Qingyang He shook her head and said, "Yes, thanks to their help."


    "I don''t know how to repay your kindness. Please follow me to the Verdant Gazelle Palace," Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said.


    "Sure," Ye Futian nodded without declining his offer. His party set off directly, and the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord led the way.


    "Sir, have you been to the other side for cultivation?" Qi Xuangang asked the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord into the empty air.


    "Yes," said the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord, nodding. "Human beings are the primate of all beings. Bloodline is more important for Demon Beast cultivation, but I am just a goat beast with limited talents. Thus, I went to the human realm and cultivated there for many years."


    When the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord was young, he was unable to transform in human shape and even served as a mount for Saint-Plane humans. He had become the man he was today after years of acquisition.


    "I am under my father''s influence and have been wanting to go to the other side of the Heavenly Mandate Realm to study. My father would never allow it, so I have to stay here and gather information on human cultivation," Qingyang He said softly. Ye Futian also found out that Qingyang He wore a long dress and acted elegantly as if she were a human lady.


    "It must''ve bee very difficult for you to have accomplished what you''ve done today," Qi Xuangang said. The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord must have taken more effort than other demon beasts.


    "Indeed," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said and nodded. "Did you also enter the Demon Realm for Gu Tianxing?"


    During this time, countless cultivators from the other side of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had come. Of course, he was also aware of their movements and knew something from the humans'' mouths.


    "Um," Ye Futian said, nodding, "Sir, we need your help."


    "Most areas in this district are overrun by chaos. The land was separated by many great demons'' regimes. My Verdant Gazelle Palace and the White Tiger Castle are both under the control of the Celestial Demon City, the largest demon city near the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Maybe you can inquire about something there. You can briefly rest at my Verdant Gazelle Palace first, and then I will accompany you all to set off for the Celestial Demon City," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said.


    He wanted to repay the kindness of Ye Futian and his companions!

 1362 The Demon Crown Prince

    The barren land of the Demon Realm was vast and boundless, with countless groups of demon beasts.


    Similar to how the Verdant Gazelle Palace guarded its territory, several powerful demon beasts dominated the land around the White Tiger Castle.


    Additionally, battles happened constantly between different demon clans. The strong devoured the weak, and the strong ultimately survived.


    No matter how these monsters fought, they needed to obey the order of the Demon Emperor of the Celestial Demon City.


    The Celestial Demon City was the largest in this boundless area, as well as the ruling regime of this territory. They guarded the territory closest to the world of human cultivators and attracted the most powerful demon beasts nearby.


    At that moment, Ye Futian and his companions were steering their swords and flying in the air at the outskirt of Celestial Demon City.


    The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord and Qingyang He also accompanied them.


    "The Celestial Demon City is ahead," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said, pointing forward. Ye Futian looked at the magnificent city. Compared to human cities, this demon city had a more primitive atmosphere; it was not very delicate but looked majestic, with buildings directly piled up by giant stones.


    "The demon aura is so strong," Ye Futian looked up at the sky above the Celestial Demon City. An appalling demon aura enveloped the boundless sky and earth as if nobody could cross the sky.


    "As the main city of the Demon Realm closest to the Heavenly Mandate Realm of human cultivators, the Celestial Demon City is the most dangerous area during times of war. Since aristocrats of demon clans are unwilling to stay here, the Celestial Demon City is often regarded as an exile destination within the Demon Realm. Some powerful demon beasts who had committed crimes were exiled and guarded here," said the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord.


    "So the four Demon Emperors who are now guarding the Celestial Demon City are all exiled?" Ye Futian asked. The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord had introduced the four Demon Emperors of the Celestial Demon City to them.


    This Celestial Demon City was different from what he expected, not because this main city on the edge of the Demon Realm was weak with only one Demon Emperor.


    On the contrary, this demon city was as powerful as the Purple Underground Sect.


    "The four Demon Emperors used to be in charge of different places, but their descendants all convened here. I''m not sure why they came here, but rumor says that the Taotie Demon Emperor with a fierce temperament disobeyed orders and committed crimes. The Demon Emperor of the Thunder Clan is said to be implicated in Emperor Ye Qing''s affairs at that time, so it is unclear who the Feather Men Clan offended. As for the overlord of the Celestial Demon City, he is believed to be extremely fierce," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said.


    Ye Futian looked surprised. He looked at the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord and asked, "What is the relationship between the Thunder Clan and Emperor Ye Qing?"


    "It is rumored that one of Emperor Ye Qing''s mounts at that time was a Thunder Beast," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord replied.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian''s thoughts seemed to go back to many years ago, when the thunder dragon laid on the ground in front of the statue of Emperor Ye Qing in Qingzhou City. He remembered that his Thunder Dragon Spirit appeared in the Qingzhou Academy that year all because of a wisp of the Thunder Dragon''s soul.


    "All the monsters that were directly related to Emperor Ye Qing met terrible fates, and other powerful Demon Clans were silenced afterward. The overlord of the Celestial Demon City, Zhu Tian the Demon Emperor, is said to have a great relationship with the Ape Clan. He might also be affected by this," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord continued.


    Ye Futian listened carefully. The overlord of this Celestial Demon City was Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor, and the three royal demon clans serving under his throne were the Taotie Clan, the Thunder Clan, and the Feather Men Clan.


    "These four Demon Emperors'' descendants are all ill-tempered and domineering. The whole Celestial Demon City is under their orders. Once we enter the Celestial Demon City, try not to offend them," The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord reminded. Among the four Demon Emperors'' descendants, Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor was the most influential; ordinary demon beasts had shivers run up their spines upon hearing his name.


    They continued chatting and soon reached the Celestial Demon City and entered.


    Several demon beasts walked on the street of the Celestial Demon City amongst the horrifyingly demonic atmosphere. Many demon beasts that were walking resembled humans, while others were half-human half-beast; they had either a beast head and a human body or a human head and a beast body. For example, Ye Futian just saw a fair-looking middle-aged man whose upper body appeared human, but his lower body resembled a white horse. The weird scene looked like a human was riding on a horse.


    Such scenes were common within the Celestial Demon City, and soon Ye Futian began to get used to it. Demon beasts also had their preferences and lived their lives in different forms that they liked.


    Ye Futian and his companions were human cultivators, but most of the demon beasts ignored them. Although there were far fewer human beings than demon beasts in the Celestial Demon City, it was common to see humans; their presence was nothing special to demon beasts.


    "Warriors of all forces should have reached the Celestial Demon City," Ye Futian said. Although they set off directly after receiving the news, those influential figures shouldn''t have departed later than them.


    "When people enter the Demon Realm, their usual first stop is by the Celestial Demon City to inquire information. With so many cities in the Demon Realm, it''s pointless to walk around aimlessly," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said with a nod, "I have old friends in the Celestial Demon City. I''ll take you there and ask if there is any news."


    "All right," Ye Futian said, nodding. It was much easier for them to be led by the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord.


    They soon arrived at a demon residence of the Celestial Demon City. The one they visited was a powerful demon beast; it had a human body but also a beast''s head with two horns on top.


    "Brother Qingyang, are these humans?" the bull-headed demon beast asked the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord in a rough voice.


    "Yes," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord replied, nodding, "They saved Qingyang He''s life; otherwise my daughter He would have fallen into the hands of that white tiger. Sooner or later, I will get my revenge."


    "That tiger''s nature is ferocious and overbearing, so be careful," the bull-headed demon beast reminded, nodding.


    "You may ask him questions," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, "Sir, you must have heard about human cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm who had come here recently. Have you heard anything about Gu Tianxing in the Celestial Demon City?"


    "Nowadays there are many human cultivators in the Celestial Demon City, and most of them should be gathering in the Celestial Demon Arena. Demon Crown Prince Zhu Yan set up three demon matrixes there for human cultivators to challenge. He will tell the news to those who succeed, but he''ll also ask those who fail to leave behind their belongings and cultivation method."


    The bull demon said to Ye Futian, "You can go there if you want your answer, but I advise you to be mentally prepared. The demon crown prince will personally go there and take charge, so you won''t have any chance. If you want to try, you must be mentally prepared to submit all your belongings.


    "So far, many people have tried only to have met terrible fates. Some people refused to hand things over and were beaten to death. Despite this, this is totally voluntary, and the rules have been set to follow; the demon crown prince didn''t force them, so��"


    "I see," Ye Futian said, nodding. He had heard from the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord before that the demon beasts of the Zhu Yan Demon Clan were all quite obstinate, which he could tell from how they did things.


    "If that is the case, we shouldn''t stay here and bother you. We should go now."


    Ye Futian showed his intention to leave, and the bull demon nodded, looked at the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord and said, "I''ll go with you."


    "Sure," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord answered, and they together departed.


    On their way, the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said, "The demon crown prince Zhu Yan and the other three demon princes, also known as the Four Tyrants of the Celestial Demon City, are often found together."


    "The Zhu Yan demon crown prince may be violent, but he is also sincere and principled. Otherwise, the other three Demon Emperors'' descendants wouldn''t be willing to follow or be around him. The Zhu Yan demon crown prince is also very talented. He probably set the rule so he could collect the top human cultivators'' cultivation abilities and learn the essence from them," the bull demon said. He sounded as if he quite appreciated the Zhu Yan demon crown prince.


    "We demon beasts'' abilities rely more on talents. From this perspective, there is much for us to learn from human cultivators," said the bull beast. The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord nodded. Had he not focused on acquisition, he would never have become as achieved as he currently was.


    However, some top powerful demon beasts were born with unparalleled talent.


    As they talked, they quickly headed straight to the central area of the Celestial Demon City.


    The Celestial Demon City was the main demon city in the vast and boundless district.


    The Celestial Demon Arena was located in the central area of the Celestial Demon City. At the moment, this area was full of human practitioners and demon beasts.


    A person was soon shaken out from the Celestial Demon Arena and fell to the ground. Suddenly, appalling roars came from the area, from which one could tell the demon beasts were very excited.


    His human companions were very embarrassed. These people were cultivators of Purple Underground Sect, one of the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects in the Violet Heavenly Palace. Zhang Changqing was also in the crowd, his face sullen upon watching the scene unfold.


    "Stupid animals," Zhang Changqing whispered coldly. He raised his head and looked towards the Celestial Demon Arena. Three figures sat beside one another on the stairs in front of the Celestial Demon Arena. On the left side was a Taotie big monster, with a human head and Taotie''s body. His huge body leaned there lazily, but his eyes looked extremely fierce.


    In the middle sat a beautiful woman with a pair of pure white wings behind her; she was the princess of the Feather Men Clan.


    The demon beast hovering around to the right had a human head and a dragon''s body, with horns and long beards on his head that looked overbearing. He was the prince of the Thunder God Clan.


    Right above them, a body in flames leaned lazily on a throne. He looked like an ape and appeared there in the form of his original body. His eyes seemed to contain golden fire; his lazy gaze swept down, making him look arrogant. He was the Zhu Yan demon crown prince.


    "Can you do it or not?"


    The Zhu Yan demon crown prince took a contemptuous glanced down at the human cultivators below and asked in a disdainful tone. The prince of the Thunder God Clan sitting below him said, "So far, I haven''t seen any qualified warriors yet. We haven''t even challenged you in person yet, but you still can''t do it?"


    His voice was loud like thunder, his words resounding between the sky and earth like thunder. There were even wisps of Thunder Wills permeating in the air, emitting purple thunder aura.


    The Taotie made a deep roar and opened his mouth wide; the sight of it looked awful. Demon beasts below them were thrilled to watch the scene unfold.


    The faces of Zhang Changqing and other warriors turned even gloomier. In this case, only the top figures of the Violet Heavenly Palace could get rid of them!

 1363 Everyone Has Their Own Choice

    At that moment, a cultivator stepped into the vacant sky, looked at them above the stairs of the Celestial Demon Arena, and said, "These three demon matrixes are devised by many demon saints and performed like one. As challengers, we are put in a passive position when we enter the matrix. It is not fair for us."


    These three demon matrixes respectively contained three different matrix methods targeting warriors of three different levels of Saint Plane: the Doctrine Saint, the True Self Saint, and the Unblemished Saint. The Nirvana Saint Plane was not included since nirvana-level top demon beasts were also hard to find.


    Had the matrixes not been in charge of four royal members of the demon clan, it would have been extremely difficult to make them so large.


    "If you don''t want to enter the matrixes, fine, you can choose to challenge the four of us. Defeat us all and you can also pass," said the great demon beast of the Thunder God Clan, its sonorous voice booming like thunder.


    The cultivator glanced at the four demon beasts in the sky. Their descendants were the so-called Four Tyrants of the Celestial Demon City, who were also extremely talented, especially the demon crown prince Zhu Yan. Upon inquiring about them, it was said that this crown prince was such a skilled fighter that all of the Celestial Demon City was under his control.


    Moreover, since those four demon beasts'' Planes were all very high, challenging them would mean being affected by their Planes. One person had tried it before and ended up severely injured.


    If he failed to challenge the matrix, they would at least show him some mercy if he submitted his belongings and cultivation methods to them.


    The main thing was that their most core characters had not taken action because there was no absolute certainty. If they failed, they had to hand over something along with the cultivation methods they used. Before then, the Zhu Yao demon crown prince killed those who refused to hand over the cultivation methods they used during the matrixes.


    They couldn''t even say anything. The rules had been set, and it was their territory. All they could do was obey.


    If they didn''t comply, they couldn''t blame anything for their deaths.


    At that moment, the Zhu Yan demon crown prince got up lazily from the throne, stretched out like a human, and glanced down toward the warriors with a pair of golden eyes. He said, "It seems that you are not being serious today, either. Fine, let''s call it a day and continue the game tomorrow. You can go back and discuss what to do. If tomorrow you still behave like you did today, then please get out of my sight."


    The other three demon beasts followed him and stood up; the demon matrixes on the Celestial Demon Arena were removed as they left.


    The human cultivators looked emotionless. The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was an extremely proud person, using them as training dummies while plundering their treasures and cultivation methods.


    "I have heard that human beings are cautious by nature. It seems that it is true. Aren''t all the five supreme forces in your human cultivation world here?" the Zhu Yan demon crown prince jeered. He swept his eyes to the crowd and soon left.


    Demon beasts of the demon clan were all thrilled. The cultivators of the top forces in the human world must''ve been the most talented ones.


    It seemed that the demon crown prince of the Celestial Demon City was seeking the strongest opponent.


    In Celestial Demon City, the Zhu Yan demon crown prince was notorious for his fierce and tyrannical nature. Many monsters were in awe of him, but none of them could surpass him.


    Although this was the most famous main city in the Demon Realm that bordered the human world, everyone had heard that Zhu Yan the demon emperor was not a simple demon emperor. He was well-known within the demon world as a powerful demon emperor.


    Had it not been for this, the other three demon emperors would not be so willing to follow him, leaving their offspring to follow the demon crown prince to spread chaos.


    "It seems that no one has received the news yet," said the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord. "Let''s go visit the demon crown prince."


    "Qingyang, even though you are the head of the Verdant Gazelle Palace, the demon crown prince may not even bother."


    The bull demon beast said to the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord.


    "It''s worth a try," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said nonchalantly. To him, there was little hope for Ye Futian to pass through the demon matrix. If he wanted to return the favor to Ye Futian, he could only visit the demon crown prince.


    As the lord of the Verdant Gazelle Palace within the Celestial Demon City, he served the demon emperor; he could at least talk with him. Of course, if he failed, all he would lose was his face.


    The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord went to a side road, where the demon crown prince and his party were heading.


    After a while, they appeared below the stairs. The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord cupped his hands and said, "Your Highnesses, Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord is here to salute you."


    The crown prince Zhu Yan fixed his golden eyes onto the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord. He said, "I have heard about the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord for a long time and have always wanted to meet you. What brings you here today?"


    It was said that the demon crown prince Zhu Yan was obstinate and ferocious, but he was by no means incompetent. He knew about many powerful demon beasts in the territory. The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord was of the Nirvana Saint Plane, which was very rare among demon beasts. His fighting skills were also marvelous, which was worthy of learning from.


    The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord looked toward the people around him, and immediately the crown prince Zhu Yan also noticed Ye Futian.


    "Human cultivators?" the demon crown prince Zhu Yan asked.


    "Yes," The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said, nodding. "When my daughter was in a dangerous situation, these cultivators rescued her out of kindness. Thus, I ventured out here to inquire if Your Highness could show mercy and reveal anything about the news."


    The crown prince Zhu Yan looked untroubled without reacting.


    "You want to return the favor to them, but you have seen what has happened today. Why bother to ask?," the Taotie demon beast next to him said. Although his skull resembled that of a human, his complexion still looked very ferocious. His beast body looked extremely tall and sturdy, giving him an intimidating appearance.


    The crown prince Zhu Yan waved his hand and said, "It''s fine for the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord to ask, but they need to wait after the thing is gone."


    Speaking of them, he swept his golden eyes towards Ye Futian and others and said, "I know there are many merits to being human, but sometimes you are too clever and prefer to use surreptitious approaches. If you want news, you can go directly to the Celestial Demon Arena."


    Ye Futian looked at him and felt an almost divine flame burning from his eyes. The demon crown prince Zhu Yan Yao was just as the rumored said; he promised to answer the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord''s request, but he didn''t give a real answer.


    Once he finished speaking, the Zhu Yan crown prince turned around and left. The other demon princes all looked at him from behind. With his massive eyes, the demon prince of the Thunder God Clan fiercely stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian just looked at him with a smile and said nothing.


    Actually, he and the Thunder God clan had a long history.


    The prince of Thunder God clan seemed to have sensed the kindness in Ye Futian''s eyes. With a doubtful look, he stared at him and then left.


    "Thank you, Your Highness," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord saluted and said behind them. The demon crown prince''s promise was already a big favor to him.


    "Qingyang, His Highness usually never agrees to such a request, but this time he did it. I guess he must have a good impression of you since he has heard of you before. If you didn''t mention this request, maybe he will help you more in the future," the bull demon beast said. "For example, maybe he would let you cultivate with him."


    "It doesn''t matter," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said in apathy. He looked back at Ye Futian and said, "This is how the crown prince is. You don''t need to worry too much about going to the matrix. Since the Prince had said that he will talk about this once the thing is over, he has granted the request. Of course, if any human cultivator succeeds in passing the matrix and hears the news, it may spread by itself."


    "Indeed," Ye Futian said, nodding, "Anyway, thanks a lot, Sir."


    He knew that just now the bull beast demon was actually talking to him.


    The Demon beasts in the surrounding area gradually all dispersed. Nearby was a group of people standing there and looking this way.


    Ye Futian seemed to be aware of it. He turned his eyes and saw several people there looking at him.


    They were from the Purple Underground Sect; Zhang Changqing was also there.


    Somewhat unexpectedly, he encountered Ye Futian here. Was Ye Futian also inquiring about his brother?


    "It seems that you are not only talented in Thunder Laws but also very clever," Zhang Changqing said. They were all finding solutions in unraveling the demon matrix, but Ye Futian was unusual; he got into the game by asking a demon beast for help. This way, he learned of the news from the demon crown prince.


    There was irony in his tone. The demon crown prince was rather abrasive towards them, and the demon matrixes were obviously aimed at dealing with them. Even so, Ye Futian tried to flatter the demon crown prince, and he disdained the behavior.


    Ye Futian glanced at him with no reply.


    Just then, a group of warriors came, all of whom were from the eight orthodox forces.


    "Zhang Changqing, who is this?" someone asked.


    "The person who broke the record of the Wutu Divine Mountain, Ye Futian," Zhang Changqing replied. There were strange looks on all their faces; some people even released fighting will from their bodies.


    People of the eight orthodox sects were all talented cultivators in Thunder Laws. When the Eight Great Divine Mountains were opened, many people were there. Among them was only one person who broke a record like Ye Futian.


    Some of them even tried once the last time when the divine mountains were opened. Ye Futian, the person in front of them who broke the record, could be said to not only have surpassed all the cultivators who entered the Wutu Divine Mountain but even almost outperformed all challengers of the Eight Divine Mountains.


    Even though Ye Futian was not taken as a disciple by the Purple Underground Sect because of Gu Tianxing''s appearance that day, his name still weighed enough for all warriors of the eight thunder law orthodox sects to have at least known his name.


    "Seeing him in person was no better than hearing his name," someone said in slight disappointment. They all wanted to see what kind of person could break the record of the divine mountain, reject the invitation of Purple Underground Sect, and even the Violet Heavenly Palace. Now that they saw him, they discovered that Ye Futian wanted to flatter the demon clan; they no longer thought well of Ye Futian.


    Seeing this scene, the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord looked toward Ye Futian with amazement. It seemed that Ye Futian was also renowned among human cultivators, or he wouldn''t have attracted so many people.


    His decision to visit the demon crown prince earned him some criticism that affected his reputation.


    He just wanted to return Ye Futian''s favor, but the situation was now what he expected.


    "Everyone has their own choice. Let''s go and discuss how to pass the demon matrixes tomorrow," another person said in a calm tone. Ye Futian was just a passenger to them, and he didn''t have much effect on their states of mind.


    What was imperative now was to break the demon matrixes.


    People nodded and gradually departed, flashing away from the scene.

 1364 The Return of Lord Condor

    Ye Futian did not care much about others'' opinions. The Violet Heavenly Palace prevented him from using Thunder Laws, so he wouldn''t run into those Thunder Law cultivators in the future.


    It didn''t matter what others thought of him.


    "It seems that I have brought you trouble," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said to Ye Futian, standing at his side. What he did seemed to have some influence on Ye Futian.


    "It doesn''t matter. Sir, please don''t pay it any mind," Ye Futian replied. He understood what the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord meant. He was trying to help him, so no matter whether it worked or out, it was a favor.


    Besides, he held no hostility towards those demon princes.


    This was the Demon Realm''s territory. Instead of harming any cultivators who came here, they set up a demon matrix in the celestial demon arena for those who wanted to challenge.


    It would''ve been the same if demon beasts came to the world of human cultivators.


    It was perhaps because of Emperor Ye Qing and the old dragon that he even felt close to the fierce-looking Thunder God clan.


    "Let''s find a place to rest first and come again tomorrow," Ye Futian said. Soon the whole group left.


    The group of demon beasts and the group of human cultivators scattered. After leaving, many human cultivators gathered to prepare to break the demon matrix.


    These three demon matrixes were carefully designed by the four demon royal clans of the Celestial Demon City to be challenging to pass. Unless they were the warriors of the highest forces like the Violet Heavenly Palace, anyone who challenged it alone would fail. If they instead united as one, their chances of breaking the matrix would''ve increased.


    The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord helped Ye Futian find a place to settle. In the courtyard, they sat there and casually spoke to each other with Qingyang He also present. She kept asking Ye Futian about their cultivation methods, then eventually talked mostly with Qi Xuangang. She discovered that among these people, Qi Xuanzhang was the most proficient in cultivation practice.


    "Miss Qingyang likes to learn," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "She always wanted to go to the human world for cultivation, but I don''t allow her because it is too risky. Now that she has met you, she would never pass up this opportunity," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said with a smile.


    "I also have a demon beast friend, but he is very foppish and hates learning. He should be here today," Ye Futian said, laughing. He and Little Condor could mentally connect with each other, so he knew he was on the way. The Demon Peacock Emperor took them here in person.


    Now they had reached the Heavenly Mandate Realm and were approaching the Demon Realm. It wouldn''t have been long before they arrived.


    Xia Qingyuan suddenly turned her eyes to Ye Futian and asked, "Is that guy coming?"


    "Um��"


    Ye Futian saw Xia Qingyuan''s expression. What was that reaction?


    Why did it feel so weird?


    Thinking of Little Condor''s tragic life in the Emperor Xia''s Palace, Ye Futian didn''t know how he would act upon seeing Xia Qingyuan again.


    "Well, Demon Peacock Emperor His Majesty took them here personally. Little Condor said that the Demon Peacock Emperor His Majesty wanted to travel here, too," Ye Futian said. Demon Peacock Emperor had unified a large demon realm and claimed kingship there; he must''ve felt lonely sometimes.


    Here was the real domain of the demon clan.


    "In other words, Kong Xuan will also come," Xia Qingyuan said. Ye Futian looked at her; women''s angle to observe things was always special.


    Was it because of Kong Xuan''s beauty after her transformation that made her feel uneasy?


    At that time, Xia Qingyuan and Kong Xuan were compared by many people. They also attended the battle of Empty Realm of the same year.


    "Yes," Ye Futian said, nodding.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyes moved away from Ye Futian with a strange look. She thought to herself, "What would Kong Xuan be doing here?"


    As the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord beside them heard their conversation, he began to feel that Ye Futian was unusual. Even a demon emperor came here in person for him?


    It seemed that Ye Futian was not simple at all.


    After a long while, Ye Futian stayed in the courtyard and quietly cultivated. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and looked up into the distance, smiling.


    Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord''s body flashed and soon he arrived.


    After some time, Qi Xuangang and Xia Qingyuan and others also came out. They all felt the presence of an unusual life force.


    A rush of life force came from a distance. Soon, a gust of wind passed by, and a group of people showed up in the sky above the courtyard.


    The man who took the lead had an unusual temperament, standing in the vacant sky with his hands behind his back.


    A slender beautiful lady and a demon beast stood to the left and right to him, with plenty of warriors behind them.


    The Demon Peacock Emperor was here.


    Ye Futian stood up and took a bow as a salute, "Ye Futian is here to salute Your Majesty."


    "Your Majesty," Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord and the warriors saluted. They all needed to show respect for a figure of the demon emperor level.


    The Demon Peacock Emperor nodded slightly and said, "I didn''t expect that you would come to the territory of the Demon Realm. During this trip, I sent Kong Xuan and Condor here. Kong Xuan can stay with you for some time, while I go somewhere in the Demon Realm.


    "Aye," Ye Futian answered and nodded. The Demon Peacock Emperor must''ve also been acquainted with some other demon emperors.


    "Take care of the princess," the Demon Peacock Emperor said to the demon beasts behind him. Afterward, he lifted the sleeve and shined the divine light, allowing him to instantly vanish.


    After the Demon Peacock Emperor left, Black Wind Condor turned his head to confirm that he had already left. Seeing he had left, the Condor finally let out a breath. His sharp eyes blinked as he flapped his wings and flew in front of Ye Futian. He said, "Boss, did you miss me?"


    "Do you think I did?" Ye Futian said, smiling. "Why don''t you transform?"


    Little Condor now was a Demon Saint; he had become a big demon beast.


    "Nah, my human face is too handsome and will outshine yours," said the Black Wind Condor, laughing. Ye Futian smiled; he was cheeky as always.


    Black Wind Condor looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "Haven''t seen you in so long, Your Highness. You still look as stunning..." He keenly looked around her to make sure no warriors of the Emperor Xia''s Realm were around. After he confirmed this, he added, "...and manly as always."


    Xia Qingyuan raised her eyelids and blankly glanced at Black Wind Condor. He had gained more confidence since he became a Demon Saint.


    "Where is Your Highness''s mount Green Phoenix? I was planning on talking with him about life," said Black Wind Condor, gritting his teeth. He could never forget the humiliation of being repeatedly ridden; he had sworn he must ride on it one day.


    "You can go to Emperor Xia''s Palace and talk with it when you have time," Xia Qingyuan said with a disdainful look.


    "Sure," Black Wind Condor replied pretentiously. He took a glance back at Kong Xuan and then said to Ye Futian, "Oh yeah. Boss, Princess Kong Xuan missed you so much. She kept asking me when I would come to you. Had it not been for Princess Kong Xuan, I would have been cultivating for a longer time."


    "Eh ..." Ye Futian was dumbfounded. This bastard.


    Behind him, Kong Xuan was also speechless.


    Since when did she always want to come to Ye Futian?


    What was he talking about?


    "Don''t listen to his nonsense," Kong Xuan said coldly. This guy was too...


    Ye Futian was also speechless. He knew enough about Little Condor''s character to think he did it for a reason.


    "It''s not nonsense. Didn''t Her Highness always miss my master when she was in the demon emperor realm? Her Highness talked about my master in front of His Majesty every day, about how outstanding my master''s talent is and how she hoped to go outside for cultivation. Otherwise, why did His Majesty leave directly after he escorted Princess here?" Black Wind Condor said seriously. "His Majesty was trying to create this opportunity for Her Highness."


    Kong Xuan was dumbfounded.


    How could he tell lies like this?


    Just then, Xia Qingyuan suddenly cut in, "You have entered the Saint Plane and become a saint in the Demon Emperor''s Realm. You must have made great progress."


    Black Wind Condor raised his head and said proudly, "Of course."


    "Let me test how your cultivation abilities have grown over these years for your master," Xia Qingyuan said, walking towards Black Wind Condor. Black Wind Condor still held his head high, thinking he wasn''t a coward.


    Did she think he was still the same as before?


    Light flashed by, and a divine instrument showed up in Xia Qingyuan''s hand. It was a dazzling golden lotus flower, and the life force emitting from it contained a wisp of Renhuang Will. The Might shrouded Black Wind Condor''s body.


    Black Wind Condor blinked and staring at Xia Qingyuan with a stunned look, "Your Highness, what do you mean?"


    "Since Lord Condor''s talent is so outstanding, I have to choose a special way to test your ability," Xia Qingyuan said coldly. Black Wind Condor felt the pressure and nearly cried; his proud look suddenly disappeared as he said, "I haven''t seen Princess Qingyuan for so many years, but you still look so gorgeous. Your beauty is unparalleled among the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Law."


    "Ahem��" the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord remained there quietly, but he could no longer help making the sound.


    This guy was bizarre.


    Ye Futian rubbed his head, feeling a little embarrassed.


    Xia Qingyuan didn''t just let Black Wind Condor go and walked towards him step by step. Black Wind Condor and hid behind Ye Futian while shivering


    "Slap!"


    Ye Futian slapped him on the head and admonished, "If you talk nonsense again, we will have bird barbecue tonight."


    "Ehh ..." Black Wind Condor looked at Ye Futian pitifully.


    Had this woman taken away his master''s heart when the Condor was not here?


    "This brat is getting more and more undisciplined. Don''t take it personally," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan. Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian and put away the divine instrument before coldly glancing at Black Wind Condor.


    At that moment, Black Wind Condor had transformed into a human form. Ye Futian turned back to see him looking like a young man with a sharp mouth, a long nose, and a protruding forehead.


    "You can just turn back, please," said Ye Futian. He couldn''t bear to look at this guy''s hideous face.


    Even so, his face astounded him!


    Black Wind Condor was confused. He might''ve not been as handsome as his master, but was he that hideous?


    With this in mind, he turned his human head into the condor head but kept the human body, Ye Futian nodded and said, "This is much more pleasing to our eyes."


    Black Wind Condor was speechless.


    Someone patted Black Wind Condor''s shoulder and said, "You are the most special transformed demon beast that I have ever seen." Irritated, Lord Condor turned around wanting to teach him a lesson, but suddenly fell quiet when he saw the person''s face.


    Sir Yu, since when did you begin to make jokes?


    "Okay, behave yourself from now on," Ye Futian said. He looked at Kong Xuan and said, "Thank you and Your Majesty for taking care of him over these years."


    "No worries," said Kong Xuan, shaking her head. "In return, may I stay with you for a while?"


    "Of course, you can," Black Wind Condor cut in quickly but chose to not speak upon meeting Xia Qingyuan''s cold glances.


    "Isn''t it better to have Her Highness help us?" Ye Futian said, laughing. Kong Xuan also brought plenty of warriors with her that could help each other. Since they also belonged to the demon clan, it would''ve also been more convenient to travel with them in this territory!

 1365 The Power of the Demonic matrix

    Early the next morning, several demon beasts and human cultivators had convened at the Celestial Demon Arena in the central district of the Celestial Demon City


    Large demon beasts with all kinds of strange appearances were the most prominent amongst the massive crowd, their thick demonic aura permeating the air.


    However, the human cultivators who came here were also of Saint Plane and were unaffected by the aura, even though they were not as comfortable in the realm of demon beasts as they were in their own world.


    Warriors of the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Forces had also arrived and gathered in the same area, and behind them were more warriors from various parties of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    A few powerful cultivators had also arrived and stayed in other locations.


    For example, somewhere far away in the sky, some warriors were standing above the clouds, overlooking everything below them. Their eyes were keen, and the light of thunder reflected off from their bodies.


    Some warriors stood far behind the crowd and kept their distance from others. They were all gorgeous female cultivators with an unusual temperament.


    Several figures also stood somewhere else. They all looked aloof and watched toward the Celestial Demon Arena in the distance. However, there were many warriors nearby circling them at the center.


    It seemed that they were just watching from a distance and didn''t want to get involved.


    Although the Celestial Demon City was huge in the Demon Realm and being guarded by Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor and three other demon emperors, its level was still far from enough compared with the top forces these warriors belonged to.


    The same was true for Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince; it was still unclear if he was qualified to let them take action.


    In another direction, Ye Futian and others had also arrived and joined the crowd.


    This time, they had a stronger lineup; Kong Xuan and other warriors from the Demon Peacock Emperor also joined the team.


    They joined the flow of people and looked up at the Celestial Demon Arena to find a group of warriors approaching them from afar. The four figures who took the lead were the Zhu Yan demon crown prince and three other demon princes.


    Just like yesterday, the four demon royalties sat down in their seats.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince sat on the throne at the top of the stairs. He leaned there lazily, a pair of eyes containing golden flames sweeping towards this space. A demon beast behind him was whispering something in his ear.


    He glanced lazily around and found the airborne warriors in the distance, full of contempt in his eyes.


    He specially designed this demonic matrix to see how the strongest warriors of the human world were like, and these people wanted to get the news without doing anything?


    Impossible.


    He wanted to see who could break the demonic matrix.


    "I''ll give you another chance. If today is still as boring as before, then maybe you will not see me tomorrow. If you want to get the news, go somewhere else and explore by yourself," Zhu Yan demon crown prince''s voice was cold and slightly threatening.


    To get the news, they needed to show some sincerity.


    His time had been wasted by those who made tentative attempts a few days ago; he felt so bored.


    Although he received several things and cultivation methods from them, he didn''t see them as all that valuable. Thus, he just awarded them to subordinates for enlightenment and practice.


    "Ahhhhhhhhhhh��"


    Below Zhu Yan demon crown prince, the prince of thunder god clan let out a dragon roar. Streaks of lightning thunder pierced across the void sky; rolls of thunder shook everyone''s eardrums.


    Human cultivators all looked cold. Feeling rather presumptuous, the four demon beasts of the Celestial Demon City tried to provoke them again and again.


    Over the enormous Celestial Demon Arena, the demonic matrixes were in formation. Many demon beasts guarded the demonic matrix, their appalling demonic aura emitting from their bodies.


    At that moment, the crowd suddenly gave way to a group of warriors emerging from its center.


    They were from the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects. As they stepped down from the area below the Celestial Demon Arena, demon beasts all gave way to them.


    "They are all of the same levels!" The four demon princes above the stairs of the Celestial Demon Arena looked puzzled. These human cultivators were all True Self Saints who had the same Cultivation Plane. They were clearly selected from multiple forces instead of just one sect.


    True Self Saints'' correspondent matrix was one of the three matrixes in the same demon level: the Demon Thunder Drum Matrix arranged by warriors of the Thunder God Clan.


    The other two demonic matrixes left the vast Celestial Demon Arena to warriors of the Thunder God Clan. Large demon beasts of the Thunder God Clan hovered over the arena and waited at different locations.


    Just then, a person jumped up to the Celestial Demon Arena. He first stepped aside, put down a lot of storage rings in a line, and said, "These treasures and cultivation methods belong to me and the people behind me. I have lined them up in order. If one of us fails, you may take one from them."


    "What is he doing?" Demon beasts looked confused.


    Were the Eight Orthodox Forces preparing to challenge the Demon Thunder Drum Matrix one by one to tire them out?


    "Put the storage rings aside first," the Zhu Yan demon crown prince said slowly. A demon beast instantly stepped out and took all the storage rings away, much to the human cultivators'' displeasure.


    "Don''t worry. Since the rules have been set, I will return them to you as long as you made it. I won''t covet your belongings," Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said nonchalantly. The cultivator in Thunder Law stepped in front of the Celestial Demonic matrix as the crown prince said, "Begin!"


    "Boom!" The moment he spoke, a dazzling burst of fire and thunder broke out from that warrior''s body. It was the intimidating Solar Thunder of Binghuo, one of the Eight Orthodox Thunder Laws.


    A dazzling bird showed up behind him. It was his life spirit, a divine thunderbird called Thousand Thunder Bird.


    The life spirit kept growing, covering the sky and hiding the sun. Its mouth spat out a stream of lightning and fire that directly darted toward the big demon beasts of the Thunder God Clan.


    The big demon beasts roared and opened their wide mouths, releasing dazzling purple lightning bolts. They collided with the thunderbird''s solar thunder of flame and ignited the explosion of appalling light beams.


    Meanwhile, enormous bodies of the Thunder God Warriors bathed in the appalling Might of Thunder. Rolls of lightning on their bodies fell, converging into a war drum of Thunder on their abdomens.


    Warriors of the Thunder God Clan spat out lightning while chanting in the language of dragons, causing the bolts to converge and crush on the war drum of Thunder on their bellies.


    "Boom!"


    The aura of electricity overwhelmed the sky. The human warrior headed straight toward the demon beast, thrusting out his palm as it turned into a Thousand Thunder Bird. His head shook violently as if the drum sound would shatter his soul into pieces.


    He groaned as the endless thunder from the war drum came. With a loud noise, his body was directly shaken by the shock and got burned by barely touching a warrior of the Thunder God Clan. He looked miserable.


    Bolts of lightning shone above the sky, overshadowing the sky and sun; the scene was appalling.


    Another warrior from the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Forces rushed out, seemingly prepared for this.


    This time, human cultivators planned to make a series of shots without letting the opponents gain momentum, thus interrupting the attack of the matrix.


    The thunder dragons of the Thunder God Clan ascended into the clouds, their roars shaking the sky. The dragon''s body was straight, and the endless thunder light converged in the sky. Among the nine dragons, a larger war drum of thunder appeared. These dragons spat out divine thunder to the war drum at the same time.


    Suddenly, the war drum trembled the air. The incoming cultivator snorted and kept moving.


    However, the other side''s attack did not stop. The thunder from the war drum contained the Might that could even destroy the Great Law. It came down and penetrated the cultivator''s body defense, throwing another cultivator away from the arena.


    It all happened within a few seconds.


    Their strategy seemed useless.


    The advantage of the demonic matrix was too conspicuous.


    "The matrix is stronger than it was yesterday," someone said. Warriors of the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Forces all looked gloomy.


    The Matrix grew stronger when challengers were stronger. Yesterday, those cultivators made only a few tentative attempts. Was it now the demon beasts'' turn to play around with them?


    These demon beasts were more cunning than expected.


    Soon, four cultivators had been knocked out. The crowd of the demon beasts scattered, their roars trembling the sky.


    "The Thunder God Clan isn''t as prosperous as before, but they were once a very powerful demon clan. These selected demon beasts were all pure-blood outstanding warriors of the Thunder God Clan. With the aid of the matrix and the Law method, their overall power became more than several abilities simply being superposed. Warriors of Thunder God Clan are strong beasts who charged headfirst into battle," the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord next to Ye Futian said.


    "In this kind of matrix, the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Forces don''t have a chance to attack. The demon princes seem to be targeting those top figures," Qi Xuangang said.


    The power of matrix superposition was much stronger than an individual''s combat ability. Once the matrix was formed, there was no need to waste energy making tentative attacks. Simply attacking them directly with the most aggressive skills would''ve been the fastest way to victory.


    This was what the Warriors of the Thunder God Clan had always done.


    As more warriors were defeated, others who followed had lost their confidence.


    "That''s enough," Zhang Changqing stood together and looked toward the battlefield of Celestia Demon Arena. They knew they didn''t have a chance.


    When the two sides'' abilities were vastly different, even adopting the strategy of challenging each one individually still didn''t work.


    Those who had not fought glanced back, looking quite uneasy.


    "If you don''t fight, I will assume you have given in. But I can''t return the things to you," Zhu Yan demon crown prince said as he lazily leaned on the throne. He looked quite nonchalant, idly watching the people below.


    Zhang Changqing said nothing. That was why they took the things away at the beginning.


    The demonic matrix today was stronger than the one from yesterday, so the other two demonic matrixes must''ve been just as powerful.


    In other words, it was extremely difficult to win by passing through the demonic matrixes.


    The Zhu Yan demon crown prince ignored Zhang Changqing and glanced towards the warriors standing in the distance.


    Why were they still waiting?


    He wanted to see how long these top forces of the human cultivation world could wait!

 1366 The Law of Stick

    Zhang Changqing stood alongside the other warriors of the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects; this area was full of their people.


    Zhu Yan demon crown prince gave them two choices: either break through the matrix or challenge the four demon princes. \"If one won''t work, we''ll have to pick the other,\" someone whispered.


    There were three Plane options of matrixes for them to choose from. If they failed, they would not be in real danger.


    But if they chose to challenge those four demon beasts, their only Plane option was the True Self Saint Plane.


    These four demons were on the same level; three of them were True Self Saint, and one of them the Doctrine Saint. Regardless of the Doctrine-Saint female monster of the Feather Men Clan, the three demon princes of the True Self Saint were their main opponents.


    Since they had to conquer all of them to win, the challenge would''ve been too demanding.


    Moreover, the consequences of defeat would''ve been significant. Since the Celestial Demon City was the opponents'' territory, the opponents could easily kill them. They didn''t dare to take that risk.


    This battle was meant to be unfair, but all they could do was obey the opponents'' rules.


    Among the three big demons, Zhu Yan demon crown prince was the most intimidating one; so far he had yet to try. According to what they learned in the Celestial Demon City, however, Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince''s combat strength was astonishing; he was known as the strongest of his generation within the endless territory of the Celestial Demon City.


    In that case, it would''ve been both difficult and risky to defeat all three demon beasts. The previous strategy of challenging each opponent individually to tire them out might''ve worked. However, the warriors who first challenged and defeated them might''ve been seriously injured.


    \"Let''s go with the other plan,\" said Zhang Changqing coldly. He didn''t believe the united Eight Thunder Law Orthodoxy Forces would''ve been defeated by the four demon princes of the Celestial Demon City.


    \"Okay,\" people answered and nodded. Soon, a person stepped forward in front of the Celestial Demon Arena with a solemn look.


    He flashed in the air and landed on the Celestial Demon Arena. The man was wearing a golden robe, looking unusually handsome. He looked up toward the four demon beasts above the stairs of the Celestial Demon Arena and said, \"I am a disciple of the Golden Clan Sect and am here to ask for fighting instructions from Your Highnesses.\"


    The Golden Clan Sect was one of the Eight Orthodox Sects. Their disciples specialized in the Perilous Thunder of Gengjin and were famous for their aggressive attacks.


    The warrior who set foot on the Celestial Demon Arena was an extraordinary disciple of the Golden Clan Sect who accomplished so much in Thunder Laws.


    Above the stairs, the four big demons looked down toward him sullenly.


    \"Third Brother, you want to go?\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince asked the Taotie big demon beast.


    \"Sure,\" the Taotie big demon beast opened his mouth and answered. He had a human face, but when he opened his mouth, it turned into that of a Taotie beast; it looked terrifying.


    Although he had a human head, he also had a Taotie''s body complete with a tail. As his four hoofs stepped down, a ferocious life force emitted from his body.


    Taotie was considered a menacing kind of demon beast.


    When he stepped onto the Celestial Demon Arena, his head also became that of a demon beast. Within a fierce aura, his sharp teeth appeared as horns grew from his head.


    He glanced toward that warrior in contempt as golden divine thunders shone on the Golden Clan cultivator''s body, resonating with the sky and the earth. The bright golden light of catastrophe appeared in the vast space, covering the sky and hiding the sun.


    \"Boom!\" Golden lightning descended from the sky. An endless stream of sword-like golden beams of light split the void sky, crushing toward the Taotie big demon''s body.


    Along with the Celestial Demon Area, even the vast sky was filled with bright golden lightning rays. They hovered over each warrior''s head, threatening several demon beasts.


    The Taotie big demon glanced at the other side and felt the Might of the Perilous Thunder of Gengjin. As he let out a low roar, his body grew to the size of a mountain standing on the battlefield. One by one, some patterns resembling mouths appeared on his enlarged body.


    The Taotie big demon beast claimed to be able to devour the Great Law of sky and earth.


    When the golden lightning of catastrophe fell, all the mouths on the mountainous body simultaneously opened. The demon aura engulfed the vast world and swallowed Perilous Thunder of Gengjin.


    \"Boom!\" He stepped on the area, facing forward, and roared again. A demon vortex appeared between the sky and earth enveloped the Golden Clan warrior directly inside the vortex storm, trying to devour it.


    As golden lightning bolts exploded directly over the battle platform, the Golden Clan warrior rose to the sky with the power and removed the horrifying vortex.


    The demonic whirlpool continued spiraling upwards. The warrior looked emotionless as his life spirit bloomed behind him as a golden sword of catastrophe.


    He waved his palm, and the infinite Perilous Thunder of Gengjin in front of him integrated with the sword. Numerous golden divine swords suddenly appeared in the sky.


    The thunderous booms trembled everyone''s eardrums. The Divine Thunder fell and the Great Laws became as one. In the middle was a golden sword that seemed capable of chopping down the Nine Skies.


    Warriors of the Eight Thunder Law Sects looked solemn. This time the selected challengers were outstanding top-level figures of True Self Plane of the Eight Sects. If they were defeated, they should''ve been able to retreat safely.


    Letting out a roar again, the gigantic demon beast Taotie who had transformed back into a huge original beast stood on his four hoofs, with big mouths open at the same time. A horrible demonic cloud storm appeared above the sky; the huge whirlpool seemed to want to swallow all the skies; the sky over the vast endless area was full of terrifying clouds.


    All the phantoms of the Taotie big demon beasts also ascended into the sky, devouring the converged golden divine swords in the sky.


    Cultivators of the Golden Sect looked solemn. Golden divine prints were drawn in their hands. The Catastrophe Thunder of the Great Law transformed into golden divine swords, piercing through the sky and opening up the world.


    At that moment, it seemed that all the golden divine swords in the Nine Skies thrust down. The golden light rays enveloped the sky, emitting powerful energy.


    The battlefield was consumed by the Perilous Thunder of Gengjin and demonic whirlwinds. Rolls of booming sounds erupted above the sky, causing horrifying collisions that shook people''s minds.


    Several golden divine swords seemed to be getting devoured as phantoms of the Taotie big demon beasts were also annihilated. The strongest golden divine sword thrust towards the Taotie beast''s real body, igniting tens of thousands of afterglow rays in the sky.


    Warriors of the Eight Sects looked somehow relieved. The battle was so intense because both sides had fought with all their might. Before, when they challenged the matrix, they had their abilities restrained with no opportunity to be fully unleashed.


    Although the four demon princes were powerful, the matrixes formed by numerous big demon beasts were far more threatening than their individual attacks.


    However, the risk of challenging them was greater; this demon prince hit hard.


    Sky-shattering sounds of collision erupted above the sky. Everyone stared at that side as a huge body descended and, following a boom, fell on the Celestial Demon Arena and trembled it. It was the Taotie big demon beast, drenched in blood.


    On the other side, the warrior of the Golden Clan Sect also flew out feebly before falling to the ground with his whole body also soaked with blood.


    Many warriors with strong abilities had witnessed the finishing blow. The strongest golden divine sword still failed to fatally wound the Taotie big demon beast and only gave him slight injuries. However, the warrior of Golden Clan Sect was hit hard and severely injured.


    After all, the Taotie big demon beast was more powerful than the warrior of the Golden Clan Sect. Demon beasts had a natural physical advantage, but human cultivators were better at cultivation methods.


    At that moment, a bolt of lightning flashed across the void sky as another warrior from the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects came to the arena. He tossed out a storage ring and immediately charged at the Taotie big demon beast, the lightning swiftly sweeping across the sky.


    Above the arena, Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince frowned. Did they still want to try tiring them out?


    In the crowd, Ye Futian had been watching this battle carefully. While the Taotie demon beast defeated that warrior in the first round, the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects were not common forces. If they kept sending elite warriors to fight, these four demon princes would be in trouble.


    As Ye Futian had expected, the second battle was still merciless. The Taotie big demon beast still defeated the opponent but with some injuries.


    In the following battle, the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince let the prince of Thunder God Clan replace the Taotie big demon beast. He was a better fighter than Taotie big demon beast, but the opponents he met were also menacing. After several consecutive battles, even the dragon scale armor of his original body was broken and stained with blood. Both he and his opponent were severely injured in battle, but the latter was taken out of the Celestial Demon Arena.


    Another figure leaped up onto the arena, lightning illuminating the sky.


    A dragon''s voice trembled in the sky like the sound of a war drum, and a huge thunder dragon hovered in the sky.


    \"Second Brother, come back.\"


    Just then, a voice came from above the stairs. When the prince of the Thunder God Clan wanted to keep fighting, Zhu Yan demon crown prince stood from the throne in the sky and stepped forward into the void sky.


    The prince of the Thunder God Clan looked back then returned his giant body to its previous state. He moved backward, leaving the battlefield to the crown prince.


    The warrior of the Eight Thunder Sects glanced up at the Zhu Yan crown prince walking in the void air. With golden flames blazing in his eyes, the demon crown prince headed straight towards him.


    Thunder Light shone from his body and collided with the golden divine fire shot down from the void sky, bright lightning surrounding him.


    \"Bang!\" Zhu Yao Demon Crown Prince took another step forward. The void sky trembled violently as if a mountain was about to drop down and oppress this side of the sky.


    He stretched out one palm, and endless golden divine fire converged into a huge stick.


    \"Bang!\"


    He stepped out again, like stepping on that human warrior''s heart. As the divine fire approached, its sky-shattering Might overwhelmed the warrior of Thunder Sect.


    He was not the only one; countless warriors also felt the pressure. It was the first time that Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince showed his ability.


    \"Bang!\"


    With another step forward, the Thunder Sect warrior''s body soared straight into the sky, surrounded by the endless divine thunder.


    Just then, the long stick in the hands of Zhu Yan demon crown prince slashed out. The long stick born from the golden divine fire suddenly grew and slashed down from the sky, covering the sky and hiding the sun as one stick cut through the sky.


    The Thunder Sect warrior''s face suddenly turned pale, and his body turned into thousands of thunder shadows and moved in all directions. Under the Might of the stick, the Great Law came down and slowed him down. Endless stick shadows fell all at once, smashing and collapsing all thunder shadows.


    \"Boom��!\"


    A violent sound came out, and the time and space seemed to be frozen. The flashes of the stick stopped and turned into one. The Thunder Sect warrior''s body was directly hit with a violent blow, and then he fell from the void sky feebly, constantly spitting out blood.


    With one blow, he was badly injured. Perhaps his trip would just end here, and he had to be taken back now.


    \"The Law of Stick.\" Ye Futian took a glance at Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince and murmured. The weapon looked quite familiar to him!

 1367 Friction

    The great demon beasts of Zhu Yan Clan were known as soldier beasts, resembling belligerent apes.


    It was said that Zhu Yan was a kind of ape. Before, the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord told Ye Futian that the Zhu Yan Clan might''ve been on good terms with the Ape Clan, and thus was implicated and exiled to the Celestial Demon city.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt a little familiar with this martial art of stick.


    The Ape Clan inherited the Eighty-one Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques. The 81 strikes of stick techniques were the foundation that the demon beasts of the Ape Clan could have their newfound knowledge based on, like the fact that the Late-snow Ape Emperor created the Nine Heavenly Attacks based on the 81 strikes.


    However, this should''ve been considered his legacy, and Ye Futian was the only person who inherited it and passed it on to the Golden Apes.


    Zhu Yan''s martial art of stick was probably familiar to him because it was also derived from the stick techniques of the Ape Clan, with absolutely overbearing power.


    It seemed that the Zhu Yan Clan was close to the Ape Clan.


    In that case, then it''s no wonder he was on good terms with the Thunder God clan; they even called each other brothers!.


    Of course, other people thought from Ye Futian. When countless people saw the warrior of the Thunder Sect fall, they looked up towards the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince who stood in the air with a long stick in hand, his whole body shining. The ignited hope of the Eight Thunder Law Sects seemed to have been extinguished again.


    They had wounded the Taotie beast and the big demon beast of the Thunder God Clan. If they continued sending warriors to challenge, it was possible to be victorious.


    If the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was so powerful, however, how could they fight?


    With a single blow, he could severely injure and incapacitate a warrior.


    It was clear that the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was much stronger than the other two big demon beasts.


    \"Anyone else?\" the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said coldly and proudly, a pair of golden eyes full of contempt.


    \"Boom!\"


    Thunder Light illuminated the sky. Another Thunder Sect warrior stepped out, concentrating the Thunder Law in his hands.


    Expecting his arrival, the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince Yao wielded the long stick in his hand as his body hovered in the void sky. Countless shadows of his appeared in the space alongside tens of thousands of stick shadows.


    Another strike came, followed by tens of thousands of stick shadows; the Might of the Great Law befell.


    People stared at where they collided. When the sound of thunder rang out, they saw the warrior''s body fly backward and loudly fall back to the ground, his body twitching.


    \"Bang!\" the Zhu Yan demon crown prince stepped into the void sky and landed on the edge of the Celestial Demon Arena. His golden eyes full of divine flame swept towards the crowd, fixed on several figures in the distance.


    Would those cultivators of the top human forces remain idle?


    Above the sky shone the light of thunder, and a group of people approached from a distance. The leader looked toward the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, his eyes like lightning.


    At that moment, both demon beasts and human cultivators also looked to that side.


    Warriors of the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects all looked towards the skydome. Seeing those people stopped their movement right above them in the sky. They were cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    They hadn''t expected that they needed to show up at the first stop, the Celestial Demon City of the Demon Realm. They thought that the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects would be enough to cope with them, but the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was more difficult to deal with than expected.


    More people were coming from other directions, to which many demon beasts gave way.


    In one direction, a group of gorgeous women showed up. They were like fairy goddesses, captivating several people. Many warriors guarded around them, separating those covetous demon beasts from the goddesses in case the latter were affected.


    \"Cultivators of the Brahma''s Pure Sky!\" the excited crowd talked about them. It seemed that people of the top forces were ready to show up.


    Another group of figures in gorgeous robes also showed up, all of them with a transcendent temperament. Demon beasts voluntarily gave way to them, and the vast space was occupied only by human cultivators.


    These people were from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Their intimidating gaze swept towards the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince in the void sky.


    As the top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they knew more things than most people. The Zhu Yan Clan once was also very powerful. Although the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor was not a demon emperor of the highest rank, he was still prominent in the Demon Realm.


    The demon crown prince seemed to have inherited the demon emperor''s talent and was overbearing, but if he wanted to stop them, then he was biting off more than he could chew.


    The top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm would''ve lost dignity if they personally fought with him.


    Up in the sky, the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince glanced towards these people with a pair of golden eyes as the Fighting Will from his body dripped down.


    Finally, they showed up.


    Just then a voice rang out and said, \"The Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects of the Heavenly Mandate Realm all inherited from the Violet Heavenly Palace. Is this all you can do?\" Everyone turned to find that the ones who spoke were those of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in stunning clothes.


    There were not many people coming from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and the people around them were all talented royal warriors ruled by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    In the central area of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty ruled several forces that once prospered, some of which were similar to the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Forces such as the Purple Underground Sect.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had the right to direct governance and was the strongest power in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It once stood on the political apex of Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    However, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was brought to ruins after battling with Gu Tianxing, and its power was greatly weakened. Now it no longer had an advantage over the other four top powers.


    \"There are forces in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, but why have I never seen any of you lend us a hand?\" Zhang Changqing replied. Although they came from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Purple Underground Sect was not under their influence. The Dynasty didn''t dare to touch the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects; even though the Purple Underground Sect was in awe of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he didn''t fear them.


    The warrior of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty glanced at Zhang Changqing and said, \"This time in the event of the Eight Divine Mountains, there were two people who broke records. Why don''t you let them fight?\"


    This time there was another person besides Ye Futian who broke the Heavenly Thunder record of divine mountains, in the God-slaughtering Mountain.


    The Thunder Law inherited by the God-slaughtering Mountain was the overbearing power of the Demonic Thunder of Lushen. The name of the person who broke the mountain was Wang Chao, who was now the direct disciple of the God-slaughtering Clan Renhuang.


    Now he was also in the crowd.


    However, the God-slaughtering Clan didn''t plan for Wang Chao to fight.


    This person who had broken the record was considered a significant talent that the God-slaughtering Clan would especially raise. If there was no guarantee, they did not want him to fight against the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince.


    As for the other person who broke the record, Ye Futian didn''t even join the Eight Thunder Law Sect.


    Zhang Changqing looked somewhere else. Because demon beasts had retreated from this area, Ye Futian looked quite conspicuous; he was just standing nearby.


    Besides Ye Futian, there was the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord, the bull beast and warriors of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm; they were all demon beasts.


    The scene made Zhang Changqing look puzzled.


    Had he figured out the connections between the other demon clans?


    Besides, many of the demon beasts around him were quite powerful. Although Kong Xuan''s life force was not strong, Zhang Changqing could tell she was of unusual origin from her outstanding temperament and beauty; she probably was a demon emperor''s offspring who was born to be able to transform.


    \"You have been forbidden to cultivate in Thunder Law. Now, are you going to join the Demon Realm?\" Zhang Changqing said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian, who had been watching the battle quietly, did not expect that he would get involved. He looked at Zhang Changqing from a distance and said, \"I cultivate in whatever fields I like. What does it have to do with you?\"


    \"Also, it''s my own business whether or not I cultivate in Thunder Law. Why do I need you to tell me to stop?\"


    The moment Ye Futian finished speaking, the warriors'' eyes all fell on him. They all knew something about Ye Futian. The man who broke the record of Wutu Divine Mountain was now staying with demon beasts. Was it because he knew he had no future in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    \"Since you chose not to join the Thunder Orthodox Sect, you have volunteered to give up cultivating in Thunder Law,\" other Saint-Plane warriors said.


    \"Did you create Thunder Law?\" Ye Futian rebutted. The Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Sects were humiliated on the Celestial Demon Arena, so they now turned to him?


    If a disciple of the Violet Heavenly Palace claimed that he should no longer cultivate in Thunder Law, did it mean he was no longer allowed?


    Since when did a disciple of the Violet Heavenly Palace have the right to decide his path of cultivation?


    \"All Thunder Laws of the world originated from the Violet Heavenly Palace. The Thunder Law of the Tutu Divine Mountain also belonged to the Violet Heavenly Palace,\" Zhang Changqing said, staring at Ye Futian. \"Since you have refused to join the Heavenly Palace, you are not allowed to use the Thunder Law to cultivate. Don''t think you can forget about it after joining the demon clan.\"


    His tone was jarring and aggressive.


    \"Before I entered Wutu Divine Mountain, no one said that I had to join any Thunder Law Sects if I entered the Wutu Divine Mountain,\" Ye Futian responded coldly. \"Was what you said about Violet Heavenly Palace''s tenet of preaching the Thunder Law to the world to let all cultivators learn Thunder Law a lie?\"


    \"You are too presumptuous,\" the warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace said coldly. They looked down at Ye Futian in the void sky.


    Demon beasts around them looked confused. Were these human spiritual cultivators fighting amongst themselves?


    The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince also showed interest. He walked back to the top of the stairs of Celestial Demon Arena and watched quietly.


    Ye Futian glanced up at the people of Violet Heavenly Palace. The light of thunder shone around his body, like the light of catastrophe.


    \"Before entering the Wutu Divine Mountain, I had already been cultivating in Thunder Law. Since you claimed the Wutu Infernal Thunder belongs to you, I will not use it. However, I have long been cultivating in Thunder Laws by myself. It is supposed to be one of the Great Laws between the sky and earth. Who has the right to keep me from cultivating it? \"


    Ye Futian looked at the figures in the void sky and replied indifferently, \"You, the so-called Eight Great Thunder Laws Orthodox Sects, prohibited me to cultivate your Thunder Law. Are you sure I value it?\"


    Everyone around him was shocked by his words. Was he showing contempt to the Eight Thunder Law Orthodox Forces?

 1368 Friction

    Zhang Changqing stared at Ye Futian. Did he just say that the inheritance of Infernal Thunder of Wutu was beneath him?


    It was not just Zhang Changqing, but all eight orthodoxies of thunder methods were in the vein of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Did this person despise the cultivation of their eight orthodoxies of the thunder method?


    \"Master, who are these idiots?\" the Black Wind Condor next to Ye Futian said.


    How could they blatantly forbid his master''s cultivation?


    \"A group of self-righteous morons,\" Ye Futian responded. People from the eight major thunder clans stared at him. A Might of authority shrouded the void and the lightning flashed as if the thunder of heaven might descend from the sky at any time.


    \"I''d like to see how you dared to despise and humiliate our orthodox thunder method,\" Zhang Changqing said coldly. His sight directed toward another man, who stepped out and headed toward Ye Futian. As a Saint of True Self, he also wanted to see the true strength of Ye Futian, the one who had inherited the Thousand Strikes of Heavenly Thunder and broke the pole number.


    Boom! The Infernal Thunder of Wutu flashed with the sounds of thunder and explosion. Above the firmament, thunder cloud roiled.


    How aggressive was the might of the Divine Path that all the cultivators and demonic beasts around it retreated and gave up this space? The demonic beasts emitted a low, excited roar; something interesting was afoot.


    These humans were powerless against their Demonic Crown Prince, and now there was infighting.


    Ye Futian stared at the other with the same indifference. These eight major thunder clans were brutally beaten to a bloody pulp by the Crown Prince, Zhu Yan. Now in an awkward position, they could neither advance nor withdraw.


    Were they now taking it out on him?


    Above the sky rang out muted sounds of thunder, and the Infernal Thunder of Wutu roared continuously, covering the space above Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stepped forward as starlight flowed and revolved around his body, turning into celestial bodies. The heaven and earth seemed to morph into a world of stars, with each star flowing and dazzling.


    The cultivator of the Purple Underworld stretched out his hands, palms facing upward as if to hold up the heaven and the earth. The light of heaven and earth shone brightly and descended on his palms, gathering radiant brilliance.


    Boom! A bolt of lightning flashed through the void. Moving like lightning, he rushed toward Ye Futian. Both of his palms flipped and blasted out at the same time. The lightning in his palms instantly exploded, with sharp lights blooming and directly attacking Ye Futian.


    Boom!


    The sound of thunder broke through the sky as the infinite Infernal Thunder of Wutu gathered above the palms, blasting inside Ye Futian''s body. The rolling thunder of the Great Path above the sky descended at the same time, striking upon Ye Futian''s Starry Battle Form.


    The light of the stars was dazzling and bright but still crackled.


    However, Ye Futian''s body remained untouched. Endless lightning rushed into the light of the stars along the cracks, but he remained unshakeable.


    Those who were around looked towards Ye Futian. Endless lightning and thunder released a thousand yards of lightning that flooded the world, but his body was crystal clear as if it were immortal. As he withstood the might of thunder, he remained oddly still.


    The expression on the cultivator of the Purple Underworld changed slightly. As Ye Futian raised his palm, the sounds of explosions rang out. Endless Great Path lightning of catastrophe appeared between heaven and earth, gathering into the palm of his hand. As he clenched his palm into a fist, thousands of thunder and lightning bolts of catastrophe resembling swords tore through the void.


    Upon sensing the threat, the cultivator from the Purple Underground withdrew his body rapidly like an afterimage of the lightning. Even so, Ye Futian seemed to stick to him like a shadow that also turned into lightning, pushing its limit.


    The two men''s bodies simultaneously crossed the void and appeared above the sky. The crowd saw Ye Futian''s arms forward, his fists bathed in the light of endless thundering light of catastrophe.


    Boom!


    With a loud bang, the body of the cultivator from the Purple Underground stopped, the fist of thunder blasted on his chest. The devastating light of catastrophe burst into his body, then bloomed from every part of his body. Countless lightning bolts Illuminated the void, making it difficult for people to open their eyes.


    With another loud bang, the body of the cultivator from the Purple Underground fell instantly to the ground.


    His twitching body was charred black, with his long hair standing on their ends. Blood seeped out of his mouth, left in a frightful expression.


    The face of the cultivator from the Purple Underworld looked unsightly. Although this cultivator was neither too strong nor too weak, Ye Futian managed to defeat him in one blow.


    Furthermore, the attack by his hidden Infernal Thunder of Wutu could not even pierce Ye Futian''s defense.


    Zhang Changqing and the others looked up at the figure in the void. Ye Futian also looked down at them with indifference and said lightheartedly, \"is this the inheritance of the Purple Underground? It is strong indeed.\"


    His sarcastic tone sounded particularly harsh. He was now the figure in the void clad in white. His silvery hair flowed in the air, his handsome visage displaying his apathy. Compared to the time at the Purple Underground, Ye Futian appeared even more unbridled and jaunty.


    At the time, Ye Futian had favors to ask of the Emperor of the Purple Underground. Because of the many Renhuang present at that time, he had suppressed his personality and true strength.


    Another figure stepped out and walked into the void; this person was also the Saint of True Self but with even stronger breath. As the thunder clouds rolled, a massive shadow of thunder god appeared behind him with astonishing arrogance.


    This thunder god phantom held a Godly Spear of Thunder, and the thunder gathered above in the sky. With his palms outstretched, a Godly Spear of the Thunder God lashed out in his hand, emitting a bolt of devastating lightning.


    Ye Futian casually looked down at the other. With his palms extended, a long halberd formed. The thundering light of catastrophe gathered again and integrated into the long halberd, leaving space around it to tear all things.


    \"Bang.\" As Ye Futian stepped in the void, a mighty of the Great Path fell and shrouded the other. The cultivator with the spear only felt a strong sense of suppression oppressing him from above.


    Boom! Lightning skyrocketed across the sky and headed toward Ye Futian.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian took another step. At that moment, everyone vaguely felt that Ye Futian''s demeanor was similar to that of Zhu Yan, the demonic Crown Prince.


    A flash of lightning slashed through like a streamer. Ye Futian''s figure headed toward the cultivator of the Purple Underworld beneath, and the long halberd in his hand made a direct hit.


    That cultivator of the Purple Underworld did not evade but instead ascended into the sky. The overbearing illusion of the thunder god seemed to be integrated with him, and its strength increased multifold. The spear enlarged as the thunder method soared, suddenly colliding with Ye Futian''s long halberd.


    A destructive glare of light came out. Through the bright beam, the crowd saw the thunder spear crumble and shatter. Ye Futian''s long halberd directly impaled the thunder god''s body, as easily as piercing bamboo.


    With a loud bang, the illusion of the thunder god ripped apart. As before, the body of the cultivator from the Purple Underworld fell to the ground, unable to move.


    One strike was all it took.


    \"This��\"


    Many people looked puzzled, while the people of the Eight major thunder clans looked extremely embarrassed, especially Purple Underworld.


    The fight ended with just one strike. If Ye Futian was merciless, both opponents would have died instantly.


    This scene was similar to when someone faced Zhu Yan the demonic Crown Prince.


    \"What method are you going to pass on to me?\" Above the void, Ye Futian lowered his head and looked down, looking proud and unrelenting.


    He was banned from cultivating the thunder method.


    As Ye Futian said, did he really want the eight major orthodoxies of the thunder method?


    Black Wind Condor''s voice uttered from below, \"Master, what kind of orthodoxy of thunder method is this? It''s so strong.\" He had morphed into human form but his head still looked condor-like, its sharp voice sounded particularly piercing.


    Just now, they claimed to be the orthodox of the thunder method and wanted to forbid it from this master.


    How astounding...


    \"To them, the orthodoxy of the thunder method was meant to represent the cultivation of the thunder method of the Great Path. If one was unworthy of it, then they are not allowed to cultivate.\" Ye Futian responded sarcastically from the void. All the cultivators of the Purple Underworld felt their faces blackened.


    \"You are out of line.\"


    A cultivator from the Golden Clan who practiced Perilous Thunder of Gengjin stepped out. As his body rushed straight into the void, a divine sword of thunder created by the gathering of all the Perilous Thunder of Gengjin appeared, converged above the sky, and slashed downward.


    He was also surrounded by several sharp divine swords.


    Ye Futian glanced at the void, and suddenly there were ancient characters all around his body, which seemed to contain the starry Great Path that orbited around his body. They flew out and exploded in an amazing power that collided with the divine sword as it came down, shattering the latter.


    The cultivator from the Golden Clan condensed the seal with his hands. Suddenly, the endless Gengjin divine sword turned into thunder and blasted out as if it wanted to tear apart the sky, rushing toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian kept flying forward, the endless ancient characters seemed to contain special rhythms. The starry will exploded in the ancient characters, each resembling a star that kept flowing and rotating before colliding with the endlessly divine sword that continued slaughter forward.


    The divine sword was pulverized. The cultivator of the Golden Clan yelled in anger, and all the ways returned into one. A large golden divine sword converged, rushing into the clouds and slashing toward Ye Futian.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian stepped in the void with a powerful stance. As he moved, the hundreds of thousands of the ancient characters of the world turned into a huge starry monument beneath his feet and descended from the sky, pressing down.


    In an instant, the cultivator from the Golden Clan felt deeply trapped by the starry world. The golden divine sword blasted on the stone monument and slowly shattered. With the starry monument continuing to press down, Ye Futian stepped onto the monument and descended with it. Oppressed all the way down, finally unable to bear it, the cultivator of the Golden Clan spat out a mouthful of blood, and his body fell.


    The ancient character descended one by one, blasted onto his body, and smashed him to the ground.


    It was still an easy finish. The person who fought on behalf of the Golden Clan was already an extraordinary character, yet he still experienced equally overbearing and instant defeat; they were not on the same level at all.


    \"Anyone else?\"


    Ye Futian bowed his head and looked down on the eight major orthodox thunder clans below.


    Who could withstand the fight?


    The area suddenly fell silent. Most people were watching for the show, but they were also amazed by the arrogance of Ye Futian''s fighting power. He could easily defeat even the geniuses of the eight major thunder clans.


    This battle was enough to make the Purple Underworld unable to lift his head and lose face.


    Someone looked up into the sky. As the supreme force who inherited the power of the eight major thunder clans --also known as the place with the most complete collection of all thunder methods-- the Violet Heavenly Palace would come out and fight!

 1369 Breaking the Matrix

    People from the Violet Heavenly Palace looked downward towards Ye Futian, who was in the air.


    Back when Ye Futian had rejected the Emperor of the Purple Underground and the Violet Heavenly Palace successively, everyone thought it was because of Gu Dongliu.


    Now it seemed that there was a bit more to it than that.


    He was also more than confident in his own talents. He didn''t think the Purple Underground would teach him anything, so he wasn''t interested in going under the tutelage of the Emperor of the Purple Underground


    Among the will that was revealed by Ye Futian in the battle, thunder was just one of them. There were also several different powers of the Great Path; his concentration was not solely in thunder.


    Entering Wutu Divine Mountain and breaking the pole number of Tianlei of inheritance was all to meet the Emperor of the Purple Underground and plead for the release of his senior brother, Gu Dongliu.


    He had no interest at all in cultivating the thunder method.


    \"When the Eight Great Divine Mountains opened, two of them had their pole numbers broken. In this case, let the two people who broke them have a chance to exchange,\" The cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace said. Even then, the Violet Heavenly Palace still kept their pride. As the supreme force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, having to fight Ye Futian wouldn''t have been a glorious event even if they won.


    After all, they were the real disciples who cultivated at the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    As the voice fell, many looked toward the direction of the God-Slaughtering Clan before turning to Wang Chao, who had submitted to the God -Slaughtering Clan.


    This man was exceptionally talented, and his combat power was just as aggressive.


    What would happen if the two record breakers fought?


    \"I came today for the news of Gu Tianxing, as all of you have come for the same purpose. Now, what is this?\" Another voice rang out as a group of fair ladies moved forward with their robes floating in the air, appearing holy and pure.


    The lady who spoke was a maiden under the Jiutian Goddess. She glanced at Ye Futian and said, \"I am aware that you had grievances with the Eight Major Thunder Clan, but why bother provoking internal conflict if you came here for the same reason as everyone else? Wouldn''t it have been better to break the matrix or go to the Celestial Demon Arena for a challenge?\"


    This maiden, who came from Brahma''s Pure Sky, saw that Ye Futian was an extraordinary fighter who possessed a sweeping power of the eight clans that was as strong as that of the demonic Crown Prince Zhu Yan.


    He and Wang Chao, the two people who broke the pole number of the Divine Mountain, may have been able to break the great battle matrix on the Celestial Demon Arena if they worked with the followers sent by other top forces. They might''ve even been able to defeat the demonic Crown Prince Zhu Yan.


    Ye Futian glanced at the maiden who spoke. Like Violet Heavenly Palace, Brahma''s Pure Sky stood on the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Emitting an unusually transcendental temperament, these maidens seemed as if they were from another world.


    To this day, they were still as prideful as the Violet Heavenly Palace, unwilling to dirty their hands. Perhaps they thought that, as maidens of the supreme power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, fighting against the demonic beasts of the Celestial Demon City was dishonorable.


    Such pride was etched in their bones; it also served as the foundation of the supreme power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Even though he had crushed several disciples of the eight major clans, both the Violet Heavenly Palace and Brahma''s Pure Sky believed he was still more suitable to challenge the Celestial Demon Arena.


    \"Even if I break the matrix, what''s it to you?\" Ye Futian said. From her tone, it sounded as if breaching the matrix needed to be made public.


    \"What''s more, I''m the one who provoked the infighting?\" Ye Futian asked in return.


    The woman from Brahma''s Pure Sky frowned, glancing at Ye Futian.


    The Black Wind Condor came forward, looked up at Ye Futian in the void, and asked, \"Master, who are these fairies, so glamorous and unreachable like goddesses from the sky?\"


    Ye Futian looked down at him; what was this guy thinking about now?


    Everyone else looked at him scornfully. The mount thought that he was such a proud creature, but was just full of flattery.


    \"They''re cultivators from Brahma''s Pure Sky,\" Ye Futian responded.


    \"Oh,\" the Black Wind Condor responded. \"Brahma''s Pure Sky should be very strong, befitting the status of Master.\"


    He looked at the fairies of Brahma''s Pure Sky and said, \"Recently, my master needs a few maids. Might any of you ladies wish to serve him? My master will certainly treat you well.\"


    Everyone looked at the Black Wind Condor in shock, and for a while, many could not respond.


    Have the fairies of Brahma''s Pure Sky serve Ye Futian as his maids?


    Was this bastard crazy?


    No cultivator in the Heavenly Mandate Realm would ever dare propose for the fairies of Brahma''s Pure Sky to serve as maids, especially when there were saintly maidens among them.


    Kong Xuan also silently looked at the Black Wind Condor in front of her, taken by a familiar feeling.


    In the past, she was once so angered by this bastard that Ye Futian took the opportunity to gain control over the demonic beasts around her. Because of that, he obtained the ability to direct the battle for the Empty Realm.


    Now, she had so wanted to smash the bastard.


    The cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty burst into laughter. Even the royals of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could only fantasize about the maidens of Brahma''s Pure Sky serving as maids.


    Then this stupid beast dared to speak of it out loud.


    This seemed to pique the Demonic Crown Prince Zhu Yan''s interest. Ye Futian and the beasts around him were amusing.


    Very interesting indeed...


    The expression on the faces of the maidens from Brahma''s Pure Sky changed, but a few of them remained stoic.


    A maiden glanced at the Black Wind Condor calmly and smiled, \"Even if we are willing, you should ask your Master if that is what he desires.\"


    \"If you fairies are willing to serve, I''ll consider it,\" Ye Futian said calmly.


    Many looked at Ye Futian; this guy would''ve wanted it!


    \"Really?\" A maiden said with a smile, \"I''m afraid you won''t have our services.\"


    Saying \"Brahma''s Pure Sky\" itself was enough to overwhelm most cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He would ask the maidens of Brahma''s Pure Sky to serve him as maids? He was crazy.


    \"Whether I can bear it or not, we will know once I tried it,\" Ye Futian replied and turned around. No longer engaged with the other, he walked toward the Celestial Demon Arena instead.


    He would accomplish what the Eight Major Thunder Clans couldn''t.


    Ye Futian descended on the Celestial Demon Arena and looked up at the sky above. The demonic Crown Prince Zhu Yan glanced down at Ye Futian, looking somewhat surprised.


    When Ye Futian was with the palace lord of the Verdant Gazelle Palace before, he thought that Ye Futian just wanted to obtain information through their relationship. Now, it appeared that Ye Futian wasn''t the type of person he expected him to be.


    He already promised the palace lord of the Verdant Gazelle Palace that after this matter had been settled, he would consider giving him the information.


    Even under such circumstances, Ye Futian still chose to step onto the Celestial Demon Area for the challenge. He didn''t care to use such means but intended to rely solely on himself.


    From below, the palace lord of the Verdant Gazelle Palace looked at Ye Futian.


    \"Old bull, we''ve been wrong,\" the palace lord of the Verdant Gazelle Palace said to the bull demon next to him.


    \"Indeed, we were a bit off,\" the bull demon nodded.


    \"I choose to break the matrix.\"


    Ye Futian said, much to everyone''s surprise; why didn''t Ye Futian directly challenge the demonic Crown Prince Zhu Yan?


    Could the superior combat prowess of the demonic Crown Prince have deterred him?


    The previous battle matrix was just as mortifying, so it was probably very difficult to break.


    \"Permission granted,\" the demonic Crown Prince Zhu Yan nodded. Suddenly, several thunder dragons landed on the Celestial Demon Arena, each thunder dragon letting out a low growl as the area turned into the thunder world of the Great Path.


    Thunder and lightning fell from above, and Ye Futian seemed incredibly small on the Celestial Demon Arena.


    In Ye Futian''s outstretched hand, a long staff manifested from radiant light shining on his palm.


    The demonic Crown Prince Zhu Yan glanced his way, and a peculiar look flashed through his golden eyes.


    Did this human cultivator actually know staff techniques?


    To think this couldn''t get any more interesting...


    \"Are you ready?\" Ye Futian said.


    The cultivators of the Thunder clan looked surprised; was he asking them if they were ready?


    Boom! Terrifying might of thunder condensed and formed, turning into rolling thunder that slashed directly toward Ye Futian.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian stepped forward and turned into a thunderbolt, instantly disappearing from where he was a moment ago.


    \"Space-manipulation.\"


    The eyes of everyone flashed, but the cultivators of the Thunder clan still looked calm. Their sharp claws extended toward the sky above at the same time. A light screen of thunder appeared on the sky, and endless lightning struck down in an attempt to track down Ye Futian.


    However, everyone saw that Ye Futian was racing with the lightning. He moved so quickly that his figure was hardly visible.


    Above the sky, an extremely strong gust suddenly gathered, containing the mighty pressure of the Great Path within.


    The cultivators of the Thunder clan all felt the pressure of its might. Their bodies enlarged, and divine thunder came out from their mouths. Above their heads, an impossibly giant thundering drum appeared.


    Divine thunder was spat out from the great mouth, converging together and blasting on the drum of war.


    In an instant, the void seemed to make crackling sounds. The bright light that would illuminate everything bloomed and radiated in all areas of the sky, leaving nowhere to hide.


    Among the thunderous light that annihilated the void, a bolt of lightning seemed to race through the thunder at the speed of sound.


    Even so, a thunderous light still hit the moving figure, and a brilliant light burst out. The figure did not slow down and continued flickering with every movement. As the wind and cloud roared, the might of the Great Path pressed down and shrouded the cultivators of the Thunder clan.


    Above the sky, shadows of the staff were covering the sky, with each one appearing to be able to break open the ground. Numerous shadows of the staff blasted out at the same time, covering all the cultivators of the Thunder clan.


    The Demonic Crown Prince Zhu Yan shot out golden divine flames from his eyes, staring at where the endless shadows of the staff now covered everywhere.


    Bang, bang, bang! The loud sounds were heard almost simultaneously, and the battle matrix was instantly split up as the cultivators of the Thunder clan resisted the staff techniques.


    Above the sky, Ye Futian appeared and struck out once again with the staff. The staff turned into a thousand kilometers long and swept across the sky to sweep away all existence.


    Boom!


    The thunder dragons'' massive bodies flew out backward. They let out low and angry growls as all of them were blasted out in a flash.


    \"This��\"


    The cultivators of the Eighth Major Thunder Clan were intrigued by this scene. They had tried their best and fought the Celestial Demon Matrix with the technique of tag match to no avail.


    How could Ye Futian have done it in only two strikes?


    Even those of the supreme power became sharp; Ye Futian must''ve been quite stronger than expected!

 1370 The Violet Heavenly Palace Makes a Move

    The cultivators of the Thunder clan stood at the four corners of the Celestial Demon Arena and took a deep breath. The thunder will upon their bodies were rolling and tossing until it finally made a deep groaning sound of the dragon chanting.


    On top of the staircase, the prince of the Thunder clan stood up and stared at Ye Futian.


    It was clear how aggressive and unstoppable the Demonic Thunder Drum Matrix from the Thunder clan was; it was far more difficult to break the matrix than to defeat him. After all, they were set up by the cultivators of the Thunder clan, so its superior battle power was derived from the echoes of their collective will.


    Despite all that, Ye Futian broke the Demonic Thunder Drum Matrix with only two strikes.


    The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince also looked over, but he was more concerned with Ye Futian''s staff techniques than with him breaking the matrix.


    Like Ye Futian, he also felt that his staff techniques were somewhat similar as if he had seen it somewhere before.


    These staff techniques seemed to come from the same source as his.


    Naturally, the two cultivations of the staff techniques were based on their own cultivation. Each continued evolving their staff techniques so that they would exert the greatest power in their own hands. Even if they were from the same source, it would''ve differed as their paths to cultivation went different ways; the final staff techniques would''ve also been different.


    Just why would this human cultivate the staff techniques from the ape clan?


    Furthermore, he seemed to have known several demonic cultivators.


    \"Will this suffice?\" At that moment, Ye Futian looked up at the top of the stairs towards The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince; the eyes of man and demon met in the void. The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince''s eyes seemed to light up with golden divine flames. Ye Futian''s eyes were as deep as the starry sky, his expression unchanged.


    The prince of the Thunder clan stared at Ye Futian wanting to speak, but he saw that The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince already said, \"Yes, I will tell you the information about Gu Tianxing before you go.\"


    \"Very well,\" Ye Futian nodded, then turned around to walk off the Celestial Demon Arena.


    The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince glanced at the others and said, \"What about you guys? Since you didn''t come out and break the matrix yourselves, do you plan to get the information from him?\"


    The purpose of him setting up the demonic matrix was to experience the strength of the top forces in the world of human cultivation, but he did not expect Ye Futian to be the first to break the matrix. He didn''t seem to be a disciple of the top forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. On the contrary, he seemed to be quite at odds with them.


    His combat effectiveness was as strong as that of the top forces.


    The cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace, Brahma''s Pure Sky, and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty all lifted their heads to looked at The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince. Just as they expected, the Crown Prince was coming for them.


    The descendants of Zhu Yan the Demon Crown Prince wanted to step on them to prove himself, but the idea was somewhat naive.


    He quickly glanced at the people of the Eight Major Thunder Clans below. The cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace knew that these people were unreliable; none of them could rival Ye Futian.


    Had it not been for Gu Dongliu, Ye Futian could have cultivated in the Violet Heavenly Palace. This would''ve been better than the current situation.


    \"Since the Eight Major Thunder Clans had failed, give it to the Violet Heavenly Palace.\" The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said. The people of the Violet Heavenly Palace glanced that way.


    \"Very well,\" the leader responded directly without question. His gaze fell on a cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace as he said, \"Zimo, you go.\"


    \"Fine,\" a young man stepped forward, and everyone from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked at him.


    It seemed that the Violet Heavenly Palace chose Tan Zimo to fight so they could avoid any further mishaps.


    This Tan Zimo was a well-known figure in this generation of the Violet Heavenly Palace. In the realm of the Saint Plane at the Violet Heavenly Palace, he was considered one of the 10 most significant figures there.


    It was known that the Violet Heavenly Palace had countless talented geniuses. Being ranked amongst the top ten there for being the best at the thunder method among all the sentient beings in the Heavenly Mandate Realm meant almost standing at its apex.


    Tan Zimo walked forward, clad in a purple robe decorated with patterns of lightning. He walked onto the Celestial Demon Arena and stood in the void, the robe fluttering in the wind as he gazed at The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince and said, \"Let me try, as well.\"


    His tone was oddly calm as if it was simply a trivial matter to him.


    The cultivators of the Eight Major Thunder Clans glanced his way, worried about this battle.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace finally came out to fight through Tan Zimo.


    The Eight Major Thunder Clans were lords in their own right, but as the founder of the thunder method, the Violet Heavenly Palace was a place they can only aspire to go.


    No matter what position they held in their respective clan or how talented they were, they could only watch in awe facing off with Tan Zimo, the genius figure of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Whether or not it was the Violet Heavenly Palace''s intention, Tan Zimo''s cultivation also came from the realm of the Saint of True Self.


    The cultivators of the Thunder clan gathered again into the matrix, but Tan Zimo waved his hand and said, \"Since you had fought previously, you make the first move.\"


    The sound of dragon chanting continued, and Tan Zimo''s proud voice brimmed with self-confidence.


    The cultivators of the Thunder clan transformed into sacred thunder dragons without objection, their roars piercing the sky. Above the firmament appeared to be an apocalyptic sight as the light of thunder swallowed the sky.


    Their bodies soared into the sky and flew in circles, devouring the thunder of heaven and earth before opening their mouths to spit them out. Infinite thunder light converged in the middle, where a boundless giant demonic thunder drum appeared.


    The Demonic Thunder Drum Matrix was designed to gather all the might of thunder on the Demon Thunder War Drum so it would instantly unleash the power needed to destroy the human bodies and their souls.


    Boom!


    Lightning fell from the sky and landed around Tan Zimo. Tan Zimo stood there quietly, seeing that many of the cultivators of the thunder clans gathered the momentum instead of making the first move. As his mind moved, the light of endless thunder suddenly fell and surrounded him.


    There appeared eight rays of light next to him as if they were the divine thunder of the eight colors.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace had lofty requirements for the talent of the thunder method. Along with the control of one kind of thunder method orthodoxy, a person also had to control all eight thunder methods orthodoxy so that they would become as one, all bloomed from one person.


    Both sides gathered momentum, hoping to win with one strike.


    The thunder rolled as the sky was shrouded in light, and countless lightning bolts bloomed in front of everyone. The thunder light surrounding Tan Zimo''s body gathered into eight beams of light and rotated around him. The eight beams of light pierced through the sky and were integrated with the divine thunder of the Great Path.


    He seemed to be a matrix all by himself.


    The demonic beast and human cultivators watching the battle felt suffocated by its power. The sound of dragons rang through the world. The cultivators of the Thunder clan finally made a move, spitting out the thunder from their mouths and simultaneously striking on the war drums.


    In an instant, destructive beams of divine thunder light blasted from the demon thunder drum toward Tan Zimo.


    Tan Zimo''s expression remained unchanged. He pointed his palm forward and uttered the word, \"Go.\"


    As his voice faded, eight thunder beams rushed straight at the opponent.


    The two forces met and collided mid-air. The terrifying sound of the explosion made everyone feel that their mind also trembled, their eardrums vibrating violently.


    The sky seemed to be drowned in the thunder light, and the two collisions intertwined. Tan Zimo stepped forward and pointed his finger toward the sky, where eight beams of divine thunder light descended from the sky and blasted toward the giant demonic thunder drum.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    The divine thunder descended. When the war drum was hit, a terrible divine light burst out and turned its attack toward the great demons of the Thunder clan nearby.


    They roared as they retreated.


    Bang! With an ear-shattering noise, the war drums collapsed and shattered. Seeing those cultivators of the Thunder clan retreating, Tan Zimo continued to move forward. He raised his finger to the void and said, \"Thunder of Catastrophe.\"


    As the words fell, a Gengjin Divine Sword fell from the sky and blasted toward the demonic dragon, whose sharp claws slashed out to resist the oncoming power.


    But Tan Zimo''s fingers continued its strikes and said, \"Smote evil, god-slaughtering, life-and-death.\"


    As each word fell, it seemed to contain an orthodox thunder method. The Heavenly Thunder descended, and the roars of the demonic dragons were heard.


    Boom!


    With another loud sound, one demonic dragon was blown to the ground, covered in blood.


    Soon afterward, continuous trembling sounds were heard as cultivators of the Thunder clan were struck by the divine thunder. Their bodies fell to the ground, their blood dyeing the platform red; it was a shocking sight to behold.


    Soon, all the cultivators from the Thunder clan were severely injured and unable to fight again. Tan Zimo stood alone in the space above the Celestial Demon Arena, illuminated by the light of the thunder light shining around him as if it will never be extinguished.


    He looked at the scene with indifference and glanced lightly at the sky above the Celestial Demon Arena. Since they had clamored for the Violet Heavenly Palace to make a move, he could only comply.


    However, something else needed to be done.


    Something needed to serve as a warning to the Demon Crown Prince.


    Although this was the territory of the other, there were some scruples. The people of the Eight Major Thunder Clans were afraid, but the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace weren''t.


    Since the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince himself had set down the battle matrix himself, the Violet Heavenly Palace, as the most supreme force of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, would not be so easy to intimidate if he was defeated and dared to leverage the power.


    The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince stood up and saw the figures lying on the ground. A terrible divine light shone from his golden eyes, a flame burning upon his body.


    As he took a step forward, the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince stepped into the void and walked onto the Celestial Demon Arena.


    A pressure of might shrouded the heaven and earth. In an instant, Tan Zimo also felt greatly suppressed. Although The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was about the same size as a human, he seemed more like a towering demon whose every step made people tremble.


    Even so, he remained calm, for he also wanted to know what kind of strength that this most favored prince by The Zhu Yan Demon Emperor, known as the unparalleled great demon of this territory. That alone gave him the confidence to continue challenging the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The Heavenly Thunder roared as the clouds above the sky tossed and turned, lightning bolts shrouding the entire Celestial Demon Arena.


    If it weren''t for them controlling the power, it would''ve probably spread farther than where it currently was.


    \"Is the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince going to fight against the cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace?\" Numerous eyes focused there. On one side was the most talented great demon of the region, the Demon Crown Prince. On the other was the genius disciple of the top forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    How terrible their collision would be!

 1371 The Crown Prince Raging

    Ye Futian lifted his head to look up at the battlefield; he wanted to see at what level the top two cultivators were fighting.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was already standing at the peak in this realm, and there was nothing further to say about those from the Violet Heavenly Palace. The most powerful disciples of Heavenly Mandate Realm were strong beyond imagination.


    In the sky above the Celestial Demon Arena, the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince stretched out his hand, and suddenly a golden flaming staff materialized, he then slung it over his shoulder and continued forward. The look in his eyes was fierce, and an aggressive might bloomed from his body, his demon temperament roared with his will to war soaring.


    Tan Zimo glanced at the other. The eight major divine claps of thunder descended from the sky, covering him. Around him, a violent thunder field formed, and this thunder field attracted the divine thunder from heaven and earth, with his body as the center, a frightening thunder field was formed.


    The cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace looked over there, and it seemed that Tan Zimo was also extremely cautious about this battle, as he had directly released his life spirit.


    His life spirit was unique; it was a lightning area that could devour the divine thunder of heaven and earth and could change its form at will. At this time, the lightning area had no fixed form and was shining between heaven and earth, but as soon as his mind moved, the life spirit evolved.


    At the Violet Heavenly Palace, Tan Zimo''s body of the great path was naturally formed with superb talents, so he cultivated and understood the eight major thunder methods.


    There weren''t many in the Heavenly Mandate Realm who had stronger talents than his. Those were had superior talents were all geniuses and were destined to enter the top principalities.


    Of course, there was still a gap with the one from the Violet Heavenly Palace. After all, there were only the very few in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, who could possess the supreme body of the great path. He was destined to be high above others, ruled a generation, and stood at the peak of the mountain.


    However, it was thought that Tan Zimo''s talent was enough to deal with the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince.


    The divine thunder moved between heaven and earth, the lightning area was expanding madly, and the power of thunder was heading toward Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince as if to cast a huge thunder net.


    A terrible golden flame was burning on top of the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, though he did not dodge the flame and simply let the strands of thunder descended on his body as if the terrible thunderous might did not affect him.


    Tan Zimo didn''t care. He stared straight ahead, his thoughts shrouded the heaven and the earth, and the eight pillars of divine thunder beams shone around his body and spread toward the surrounding areas. The thunder beams continued to appear, seemingly intent on burying the world.


    \"Righteous Thunder of Yimu,\" Tan Zimo uttered. As his voice faded, beams of lightning descended from the sky, the great path roared and smashed toward the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince.


    Golden flames from the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince collided with the thunder in the void and were at an impasse.


    \"Negative Thunder of Kuishui, fall,\" Tan Zimo spoke again, and thunder crashed creating chills, and the golden flames reappeared, trying to block the thunder, but the Negative Thunder of Kuishui penetrated the divine flames and continued its invasion.


    Boom. A clap of thunder rang out, and the force of the thunder struck the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, but his whole body shone with the golden flames as if covered with a layer of armor.


    Tan Zimo didn''t care. The Perilous Thunder of Gengjin, Infernal Thunder of Wutu... eight major thunder methods descended from the sky in succession, and beams of thunder shrouded the body of the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, shining on his armor of divine flames.


    \"Amazing defense,\" everyone exclaimed. He was indeed the great demon Zhu Yan. Those who cultivated in the same realm couldn''t even bear a single thunder method.


    However, he supported the power of the eight major thunder methods with his physical body.


    Tan Zimo looked at the others and secretly said that the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was indeed proud and arrogant.


    Both of his hands were forming a seal. His body seemed to be connecting heaven with earth, and thunder clouds of destruction appeared in the sky, painting a terrifying scene of the apocalypse.


    Boom. He took one step out, turning into a flash of lightning, and moving in the space at will, appearing above the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, the lightning area of the life spirit rushed into the thunder clouds, and a terrible vortex appeared. Divine thunder turned into pillars of light descending from the sky, sheltering all directions. Tan Zimo stretched his hands and looked up into the sky, looking solemn.


    \"Fall.\" Tan Zimo spat out a single word, and the thunder descended. This was the great thunder attack of the Violet Heavenly Palace. The end of days thunder catastrophe. Its power to slaughter was total and complete; it would annihilate gods and demons alike.


    All the bystanders were shocked by the rapacious power of this thunder method. It was impossible to achieve this level of thunder spell unless the might of the cultivator was powerful.


    Such a scene of the apocalypse was akin to a great disaster.


    Several demon princes who were standing on the stairs were worried for the Demon Crown Prince; this power was too terrifying.


    The thunder method of doomsday came down and blasted toward the body of Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince. His body shook, and the golden flaming armor was shattered and broken. The thunder method seemed to be connected with the thunderstorm of the firmament, inextinguishable and continued its blasts to his body as if to kill destroy where he stood.


    The body of the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was bent slightly, and his face had a savage look, terrifying and fierce, as his body trembled slightly.


    Growl.


    With a roar that echoed in the heavens, his body suddenly began to grow. Although he was still being forced to bend his body, he kept reaching upward and getting larger, as if he was going to support the celestial thunder with flesh and blood.


    \"Is this it?\" A low, hoarse voice came from the Demon Crown Prince, full of monstrous ferocity, and the demon twirled upward and screamed into the sky.


    His body continued growing. His arms extended, the long staff was also extending madly, getting longer and longer.


    He lifted his head, bearing the power of the celestial thunder head-on. Bloodstains appeared faintly on his body, but he seemed to not feel it as the staff in his hand swung toward the sky.


    Tan Zimo''s body flickered and turned into lightning. His body even soared above the thundercloud. He turned both palms downward, and the doomsday thunder continued downward as countless thunder claps rushed toward the space below.


    Buzz! The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, who had now transformed into a giant war beast, waved the long staff in his hands, and there appeared endless shadows of the staff above the sky. These shadows collided with the beams of thunder, and under the attack of the doomsday thunder methods, the body of the war beast flew upward. Suddenly there seemed to be many shadows of him that appeared between the heavens and the earth, and at the same time, he struck out with the long staff and collided with the divine thunder in the void.


    The scene above the void was truly shocking.


    The attack that was dealt out by the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince directly blasted to the center of the violent thundercloud, smashing down with endless divine power.


    With a loud bang, even the celestial thunder seemed to be destroyed. A figure continued to rise and appeared high in the sky; it was Tan Zimo.


    Boom. Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince stepped onto the sky and headed toward Tan Zimo who was high above the sky. Although he was not as fast as Tan Zimo, for someone in the realm of the Saint of True Self, this amount of distance was negligible.


    The staff techniques method wielded, Tan Zimo deployed a shadow of the thunder method and disappeared in a flash again, appearing in another direction.


    The Demon Crown Prince let out a deep roar, and a demonic air engulfed the space. He stood still, the golden divine staff in his hand slashed toward the sky, its dancing shadows enveloped the infinite void and blasted its power toward Tan Zimo.


    The lightning around Tan Zimo turned into a horrible vortex of thunder, swallowing and crushing the attacking shadows of the staff. He stood on top of the sky and regarded the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, saying, \"If it was a real battle, you would be defeated sooner or later.\"


    He had an absolute advantage in speed, even if the opponent''s attack was extremely violent, it could not get to him.


    Those who heard his words secretly agreed that even though the attacks and defenses of the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince were impeccable, he was much too slow. Tan Zimo moved with the thunder, and the Demon Crown Prince was unable to keep up.


    If they fought in the air, the opponent''s combat power was equally strong, and he wouldn''t be able to destroy his opponent.


    \"You dared not fight from the front, and you had the gall to make such wild claims?\" The prince of the thunder clan looked coldly into the void and commented.


    Tan Zimo glanced at him. The offensive and defensive power of Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was indeed amazing. The doomsday thunder was terrible, yet it failed to destroy him. This kind of physicality was definitely at the limit of human strength.


    \"Since when is there a limit imposed on the rules of battle?\" Tan Zimo asked, \"the fighting power of the Demon Crown Prince was top-notch in the realm, and only a few could match him. But if this is a battle of life and death. I will not lose. \"


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince''s immense body turned into the size of a human, and golden divine light was shining upon his body. He looked to Tan Zimo and said, \"where did you get that confidence?\"


    As his voice faded and his body burst out into golden lightning.


    \"What?\"


    Everyone''s eyes flashed and saw the thunder blasted from Tan Zimo''s body, but the golden lightning forcibly carried the thunder attack forward.


    Similarly, Tan Zimo''s body also turned into a thunderbolt, quickly retreating, but the golden light followed closely behind, and many phantasmic illusions appeared. Terrifying and fierce breath shrouded the entire space.


    As Tan Zimo stopped his movements, the infinite shadow served the staff technique at the same time. He stretched out both palms, and the space around his body turned into a terrible lightning area, locking down all the phantom illusions.


    A shocking roar was heard, and the immense body of Zhu Yan appeared above him, looking down. A massive long staff swamped this sky, breaking through the bounds of the endless lightning area and slamming at him.


    Bang! The shadow of the staff struck down. All the crowd saw was a figure falling from the void, spitting blood. It was Tan Zimo.


    He stabilized his body and looked up at the giant demonic shadow in the void, looking bad.


    \"Phantasm Movements of human cultivation?\" Tan Zimo remarked; this was not something that would belong to the talents of the Great Demon Zhu Yan.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince glanced at him, then went back. His body became smaller once again and looked toward many influential individuals from the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Everyone looked troubled. Tan Zimo of the Violet Heavenly Palace was defeated by the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince.


    The Demon Crown Prince finally fixed his golden eyes in one direction, and the one who stood there was not just any power principalities of the realm. It was Ye Futian.


    \"Why did you choose to break the matrix previously, instead of fighting with me?\" The Demon Crown Prince''s voice was cold and indifferent; its might filled with overwhelming terror.


    \"Since I aimed to extract some news from the prince, naturally I didn''t want to ruin the peace between us,\" Ye Futian responded.


    \"What if I wanted to see your real strength?\" asked the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince!

 1372 Shook Off

    Ye Futian looked up at Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince and knew his intentions. Since he felt the staff techniques were somewhat familiar, the Demon Crown Prince must have felt the same way too.


    Therefore, he wanted to experience his staff techniques.


    \"Since the Crown Prince is so interested, I will do my best so that he is not disappointed.\" Ye Futian responded after seeing the Demon Crown Prince was looking at him, and he agreed to the battle.


    Many cultivators were looking at Ye Futian. Even Tan Zimo of the Violet Heavenly Palace was defeated by the Demon Crown Prince; how could Ye Futian counterbalance this great demon Zhu Yan?


    Although Ye Futian''s previous exhibition of combat effectiveness was quite impressive, Tan Zimo''s power was also witnessed by everyone. The eight-series of the thunder method, the divine thunder descended from the sky, and the great path of cloud catastrophe gave way to the final thunder of catastrophe.


    Even so, the defense of the other was not destroyed. This point alone would render the Demon Crown Prince invincible.


    What was more, he also seemed to have cultivated in human movement and phantasm spell, with nearly no weaknesses.


    The people who fought with him would need to be from the top forces of the Heavenly Manded Realm like Tan Zimo.


    Previously, many thought that it was more difficult to break the matrix than do a battle challenge, but after seeing the display of Zhu Yan''s true strength, they began to understand that his test was far more difficult than the demonic matrix.


    Just as everyone was deep in thought, Ye Futian had already walked forward. His body levitated as he walked into the void toward Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince.


    \"Sacrifice the staff,\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said to Ye Futian, holding the divine golden flaming staff.


    Ye Futian held out his hand, and a starry long staff appeared in it.


    \"So it was his staff techniques that the Crown Prince wanted to see.\" Those human cultivators saw this scene and understood that the reason Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince did not challenge them, was because he wanted to know Ye Futian''s strength.


    \"His staff technique is a bit similar to that of the Demon Crown Prince, maybe it is the same great path, and the Demon Crown Prince wants to see Ye Futian''s staff technique,\" someone said.


    \"It''s just that, even though the techniques are similar, but the gap between the practitioners is considerable. The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince has such a violent attack, and its power is at its height. Will Ye Futian survive his staff techniques?\"


    \"This battle will let us see how strong Ye Futian is and see how far he can persist the other''s staff techniques.\"


    People of the thunder clan principalities argued that, since Tan Zimo had been defeated, they were hoping that Ye Futian did not have the strength to compete with the Demon Crown Prince. Otherwise, it would be extremely embarrassing for the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was the head of the eight major thunder methods. If Ye Futian could stand shoulder to shoulder with him, then where would the eight major thunder clans stand?


    In this great battle between demons and humans, they suddenly changed their alliance and hoped that the Demon Crown Prince would crush Ye Futian.


    At least, this would prove that the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was powerful and that Tan Zimo''s defeat was not embarrassing.


    \"It is unknown how many strikes he can survive, but none of you could bear even one strike of the staff.\" Yu Sheng''s eyes swept over the people of the eight major thunder clans.


    All eyes focused on Yu Sheng, who looked nonchalant; even those who followed Ye Futian were arrogant?


    At that moment, an overwhelming might hovered over the vast space, and they weren''t in the mood to hang around Yu Sheng. Instead, they looked at the sky above the Celestial Demon Arena.


    The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince held up a long staff. A flash of lightning crossed the void, and his body rushed straight toward Ye Futian.


    Above, a shadow of the staff appeared, and as it smashed down, a row of staff shadows appeared, sweeping through the void. At the same time, a heavy pressure overwhelmed Ye Futian, and the shadows of the staff covered the sky.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian took one step, and starry lights appeared in the world that surrounded them. The long staff in his hand danced, and a dull sound was made in the void, like a real star, it swept away towards the sky.


    Boom.


    Airwaves with extreme violence blasted this space, and the Demon Crown Prince swept downward. A low roar came out, exposing his ferocious fangs, his arms picked up the staff at the same time, and swirled it in the void. A violent vortex of the great path appeared on top of it, and when the staff came down, the void seemed to be chopped in half.


    Ye Futian did not evade but continued to walk on the sky, his body rose, with a sky full of starry lights.


    Another strike and the heavens and stars were integrated into the staff.


    And then another violent collision.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince''s body spun like a top, creating infinite staff shadows in front of him.


    Buzz. The body came down sideways, and the many shadows of the staff fell without any rules or methods.


    Ye Futian also detected that, at this moment, the Demon Crown Prince''s staff techniques were based on that of the ape clan, which he completely integrated into his fighting style. There were no rules to speak of, only the purest pursuit for the most powerful and extreme strength.


    The staff techniques, which seemed incoherent, exploded out of his hands but was complete in itself.


    The long staff, as wielded by Ye Futian, swept out, according to his desire.


    Bang. Another strike and the two collided for the third time, but neither of them retreated.


    Golden lightning flashed across the sky, and the figure of Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince seemed to disappear, except the billowing air currents that were still roaring between heaven and earth.


    Ye Futian also twirled and moved, disappearing out of thin air. The crowd raised their heads and looked at the sky above the Celestial Demon Arena, only to see that two lightning strikes were spinning toward the firmament.


    Boom, boom, boom ...


    Each attack collided again, and each collision seemed to break apart the sky and earth, and the sky seemed to be wiped out by those all-encompassing staff shadows.


    The eyes of those from the Violet Heavenly Palace and the eight major thunder clans changed. How could it be?


    Ye Futian was able to directly collide with the Demon Crown Prince, and all of them were violent frontal collisions.


    The physicality and strength of the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince were top-notch in the demonic world. For a human to reach such a limit, it was nearly impossible.


    However, Ye Futian himself was not shocked into retreat but confronted the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince violently time and again.


    How could his divine power so great?


    However, Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince did not transform into a great beast. It seemed that he only wanted to see Ye Futian''s staff techniques without the intention to suppress him.


    After the Demon Crown Prince morphed into the giant beast, his speed would be reduced, but his attack and defense skills would increase.


    Bang!


    A loud sound rang out as the two figures separated.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince and Ye Futian each stood on one side of the space, and the Demon Crown Prince, looking at Ye Futian, said, \"great staff techniques.\"


    In this confrontation, he just wanted to see Ye Futian''s staff techniques, so he hadn''t exerted his best efforts.


    Ye Futian''s staff technique was indeed from the same heritage as his and bore many similarities.


    \"It''s just that the strength was still not enough. If I pressed for it, you probably couldn''t have exerted the full power of the staff,\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said indifferently. His eyes were golden, he had a reputation of being high and mighty, but he had a good impression of Ye Futian.


    After all, their staff techniques were from the same clan.


    \"Indeed,\" the people below secretly remarked, the Demon Crown Prince had shown mercy.


    No wonder Ye Futian lasted so long!


    \"So the peace was not broken between us, I kept the power of the staff under control; otherwise, if the attack was to remain to this degree, I''m afraid Your Highness would not have been able to persist this long,\" Ye Futian replied, which caused the Demon Crown Prince to look amused.


    He grinned menacingly.


    There was someone who took his attacking power lightly?


    \"That may be the case. Try a strike from me, and let me see just how far you have progressed with your techniques,\" the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said, unleashing his menacing aggression, and the infinite power above the sky descended. His body dazzled as if protected by a divine golden flame, and an endless stream of light from heaven and earth rushed toward the long staff in his hands, radiating as the rising sun.


    \"Aye.\" Ye Futian responded with a single word, took one step, and a sacred brilliance flashed upon his body, Deed of Thorough Comprehension bloomed as his body turned into a furnace of the great path, and the endless power of heaven and earth merged into his body. He stretched out his hands with the long staff laying across the palm, traveling in the void


    Boom.


    His clothing moved with the roar. An amazing explosion fused space with his body as if all the power of the sky was at his beck and call.


    At that moment, Ye Futian seemed to have entered another realm, and his temperament changed.


    Growl. The heaven and earth roared and raged, and there seemed to be an immense and incomparable illusion of a Vajira giant beast in the sky. This illusion shrouded the Zhu Yan. Although he had not turned into the great beast, the force he projected was equally unbridled.


    Bang. The void moved with the steps, the might between the heaven and earth enveloped Ye Futian.


    \"Catch!\" A deep voice rang out, and a giant golden staff appeared and struck down from the sky. When the staff fell, a divine golden light appeared between heaven and earth and cut through the sky.


    Bang. Ye Futian''s body moved again, as he took another step. The sacred light of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension rose, resonated with the Great Path and integrated into the staff.


    Moving with the staff techniques, unified with the great path, the techniques became one. When the staff techniques integrated, they countered the golden divine staff that was slashing toward him.


    Many stared at this scene; would Ye Futian be vanquished by this strike?


    Boom!


    Above the firmament, the shadows of the two staff collided, and as quickly as they touched, they separated immediately.


    At the moment the two staffs collied, the crowd saw a figure immediately fly backward.


    When the identity of the flying figure was discerned, countless eyes below seemed to be fixed on it.


    A figure surrounded by sacred radiance with the staff techniques whistling and dancing stood in the sky.


    This figure was Ye Futian. And the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, at the time of that aggressive attack, was blasted away by Ye Futian''s strike.


    \"How can it be?\"


    Many demonic beasts were watching the scene in disbelief as were the human cultivators.


    They had all witnessed the great strength of the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince--they had watched him crush Tan Zimo.


    But now, he was knocked out by Ye Futian''s staff?


    The cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace''s faces changed. This meant that Ye Futian was far stronger than Tan Zimo.


    Otherwise, how was he able to smash the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince with a single strike!

 1373 Your Choice

    The eyes of the eight major thunder clans, such as the Purple Underworld, were even more interesting. That dazzling figure who stood in the sky shrouded entirely by the sacred light, integrated with the will of the great path, and exploded out of his body. All powers morphed into a single strike.


    That one blow from Ye Futian knocked back the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, and those from the Realm of the Saint of True Self couldn''t even withstand a single attack from the great demon of Zhu Yan.


    Once, when Ye Futian rejected the Purple Underworld, some felt sympathy for him, sad that he had missed a great opportunity.


    Looking at it now, did he need to cultivate at all in the Purple Underworld?


    Was this the true reason for his refusal of the Purple Underworld and the Violet Heavenly Palace?


    \"Well played,\" the people of Heavenly Mandate Realm suddenly became interested. Ye Futian had given them a reason to be excited.


    Before this, the people of Heavenly Mandate Realm did not take Ye Futian seriously, but now, they discovered that this man possessed combat power comparable to those of their disciples of the most supreme power.


    There weren''t many like him in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    What would the Emperor of the Purple Underground think after he learned of this?


    Of course, the most surprised were the cultivators from the demonic clan. Before, they had been extremely excited and shouting. But when this strike fell, the area of ??the Celestial Demon Arena quieted down, and these demonic beasts, eyes wide stared at the void; the Demon Crown Prince was knocked back.


    Above the void, Zhu Yan''s body was bent. After he got a hold of himself, he raised his head, and his golden eyes swept toward Ye Futian. His overbearing physique once again stood up, staring at the figure opposite him.


    After the efforts were spent on staff techniques and strength, he was defeat by a human.


    He stepped up and shook the void. When he moved, the violent beast behind him appeared again, its body spinning, turning into golden lightning, and instantly descended above Ye Futian.


    A terrifying roar rang throughout the heaven and the earth. A fierce breath came from the sky, and an immense staff of divine golden flame appeared between the heaven and the earth, crashing down.


    The sacred and radiant light beams around Ye Futian''s body rushed straight into the sky, and as he walked in the air, he went upward against the force and an awesome might swept across the heavens. As this happened, shining stars appeared twinkling all over the sky.


    The starry staff in his palm continued growing. He lifted both arms, and a mighty power rolled out to sweep the void.


    Boom.


    The two massive staffs collided, and the void seemed to violently tremble. The extremely aggressive Demon Crown Prince felt the infinite power blasted on his body, then rush into him, attempting to destroy his physical body.


    Puh!


    He spat out a mouthful of blood, and the tense body could no longer support its weight and was once again knocked out by the staff and blasted toward the endless sky.


    Everyone''s hearts started beating fiercely, even the demonic beasts. They looked up at the sky. At this level, the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince would exert all his effort, which would only prove that, without resorting to the transformation of a giant war beast, Ye Futian''s offensive power was indeed stronger than his.


    Above the firmament, there came an incomprehensible horror of coercion, the demonic atmosphere permeated the space, turning into a terrible storm.


    An immense beast came from the sky and moved toward Ye Futian incredibly fast. This time, it was the real giant beast itself. Its monstrous force seemed to be able to trample people to death.


    Boom. Ye Futian stepped in the void. His body spun, the long staff danced in his hands, his body, likewise, grew larger, and transformed into a starry Battle form. Infinite starry streams sprinkled down and flowed into the staff techniques.


    Above his head, a giant staff slammed down from the sky, destroying the heavens and splitting open the earth.


    Ye Futian''s staff went up against the force, and all the stars of heaven were one, the will of the Great Path was unified, and turned into the path of All Destruction.


    Boom, boom, boom.


    The moment the rolling shadows touched, the sky seemed to collapse. They were fighting in the air, but the crowd felt that the ground beneath them was shaking.


    The two figures seemed to stall above and that moment seemed to last forever.


    Two pairs of eyes stared at each other, both were extremely arrogant.


    The next moment, the two flew apart. This time, Ye Futian also retreated, but Zhu Yan was knocked toward the sky.


    Only when Zhu Yan looked down at Ye Futian, he saw a mighty force was manifesting, and the momentum of the staff techniques seemed to still exist as if the next attack would be even stronger.


    At that moment, Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince lost his confidence.


    It was the first time he was unsure. In the past, he always felt invincible in every battle, no matter who was in front of him, he knew he could take them down.


    Those deep human eyes made him feel like he couldn''t see the end, just like Ye Futian''s staff techniques.


    \"Do you wish to continue?\" Ye Futian asked Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince. To be able to fight again under the encroachment of the Nine Heavenly Attacks, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, the Starry Great Path, and the Great Path of Destruction Avenue and still able to continue, there was no question that Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was the most talented great demon of the region. He had even could defeat the cultivator of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince looked down at Ye Futian. His eyes were still full of ferocity, but the violent demonic atmosphere between the heaven and the earth was gradually dissipating, and his massive body was also shrinking, returning to human size.


    The long staff in Ye Futian''s hand also disappeared, and the starry battle form dissipated as did the sacred radiance surrounding his body.


    \"On the staff technique alone, I lost, but if it was a real battle of life and death, who would win?\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince stared at Ye Futian and asked. Tan Zimo from Violet Heavenly Palace had asked him this very same question before, and he proved that Tan Zimo could not.


    Then, what about Ye Futian?


    The man in front of him was stronger than Tan Zimo.


    Ye Futian said nothing. A sense of will pervaded him. In an instant, a turbulent storm of space started blowing. Even Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince felt that his body was shrouded by space will, which bound him.


    In terms of speed, the Demon Crown Prince had proved that he was strong, but in the face of space will, his speed had no advantage.


    \"The Crown Prince needn''t be concerned. In my cultivation thus far, none within the realm have been able to rival me.\" Ye Futian said as he looked at the Demon Crown Prince. His answer was quite obvious. In the battle of life and death, he would be the winner, Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince should not feel bad about this.


    This was really...


    \"You are too arrogant.\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said, \"but, you are qualified, at least more qualified, than the people from the Violet Heavenly Palace.\"


    People from the Violet Heavenly Palace looked terrible when they heard what Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said.


    Tan Zimo''s face was even more unsightly.


    A person who was not the top force of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but was just a casual cultivator, who claimed to be invincible in his realm was declared in front of those who were of the supreme power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    \"Besides, listening to your conversation previously, it seemed that the people of the Violet Heavenly Palace forbade you from using the thunder method?\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince continued and glanced at the people from Violet Heavenly Palace. \"Today, I came here to see about the real strength of the top cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but now it seemed that reality did not live up to its reputation.\"


    Upon hearing his words, the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace were even more embarrassed. Before, when he was at the Purple Underground, a disciple of the Violet Heavenly Palace claimed to have banned Ye Futian from cultivating the thunder method.


    It seemed as if the world of cultivation could not tolerate Ye Futian.


    Looking back now, did Ye Futian need to cultivate the thunder method?


    Based on the display of his combat effectiveness, it was safe to say that he regarded the inheritance of Infernal Thunder of Wutu as beneath him.


    \"It was just one battle, and it was laughable to make such a conclusion based on that.\" Tan Zimo of Violet Heavenly Palace responded, \"among the top forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there are many who are stronger than me. In the Violet Heavenly Palace alone, there are many. Although the strength of the Demon Crown Prince is great, using it as a measure for the world, is shortsighted. Not to mention, those who cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, not even those who are in the supreme body of the great path dared to claim to be invincible, even to those within the same realm.\"


    \"You people are indeed shortsighted; you think that there is only one thunder cultivation method and banned the thunder method of others,\" Xia Qingyuan looked up and said to Tan Zimo.


    Tan Zimo looked at Xia Qingyuan, as everyone else from the Violet Heavenly Palace stared at her. Would this matter never be forgotten?


    For the Violet Heavenly Palace, this was truly not something that made them look good, and now the other party mentioned it several times.


    \"Do you have a right to speak here?\" asked a cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace indifferently. They were the supreme power from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and these people were poking fun at them!


    Ye Futian turned his gaze toward the cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    \"Why no right?\" Ye Futian stepped down from the Celestial Demon Arena and looked at the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The pressure of might bloomed from the cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace, and in a moment, a violent will shrouded the vast world.


    Feeling this might, Ye Futian said again, \"the right you are referring to, was about to your identity as a disciple of the Violet Heavenly Palace, or your strength? If your strength is not good enough, and you are making a threat as a disciple of the Violet Heavenly Palace, then we are indeed not on that level.\"


    \"Strength not good enough?\"


    Ye Futian''s voice made the people around him speechless. He said that the strength of the people from the Violet Heavenly Palace wasn''t good enough?


    \"You are using one person''s combat power to judge the overall strength of an institution?\" A leading figure from the Violet Heavenly Palace asked.


    \"The four realms of the Divine Path, your choice,\" Ye Futian stared at the other and replied.


    This arrogant man shocked the crowd into silence. Ye Futian had told the top force, the Violet Heavenly Palace of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, that out of the four realms of the Divine Path, they may choose as they please!

 1374 Intimidating Demonic Migh

    The space fell quiet. The people of the Violet Heavenly Palace thought they must have heard it wrong.


    As they said, a warrior''s combat ability didn''t represent everything. But even the Violet Heavenly Palace had to admit Ye Futian was very strong and had proven himself.


    But was Tan Zimo weak?


    The Eight Sets of Thunder Laws induced the final thunderstorms of catastrophe; how terrifying that power was! Only the mightiest warrior like Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince could win over him.


    But this moment, Ye Futian claimed that he and his group dared to challenge any warriors of the four Saint Planes.


    Did he mean that his teammates could win over warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace in all the four Levels of Saint Plane?


    How could a group of casual cultivators be stronger than warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace in any level of Saint Plane?


    He should not only be described as being arrogant. For people of the Violet Heavenly Palace, he was humiliating the Violet Heavenly Palace as a top force of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Not only were the people of the Violet Heavenly Palace stupefied by his words, everyone who came from the Heavenly Mandate Realm was shocked and looked at Ye Futian.


    Although this white-haired young man was strong in combat, his words were arrogant.


    Did his team want to challenge all cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace here?


    If they had not seen it with their own eyes, they wouldn''t have believed that a group of casual cultivators dared to be so presumptuous and claim that they could challenge cultivators at any level of the most powerful forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    \"You are like a dwarf judging how tall the sky is,\" Zhang Changqing said coldly. Before, even the Purple Underground Sect and the other seven Thunder Law Sects did not pay attention to Ye Futian, but now Ye Futian directly skipped them and challenged the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    All Thunder Laws of the world originated from the Heavenly Palace. Even the eight Thunder Law Sects owed their heritage to the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Ye Futian glanced at Zhang Changqing in contempt and didn''t say anything.


    His glance seemed to tell Zhang Changqing that he didn''t care at all.


    \"You can''t even break the demonic matrix. Just shut up,\" Black Wind Condor shrieked behind Ye Futian. Zhang Changqing''s eyes suddenly lost their gleam; he couldn''t prove him wrong.


    No warriors of the eight Thunder Law Sects were able to break the demon matrixes, and when they wanted to challenge Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, they ended up being defeated by Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince in one strike.


    But later, Ye Futian forcibly broke through all the demonic matrixes.


    They indeed couldn''t rebut.


    From this perspective, Ye Futian had won over the Eight Thunder Law Sects.


    \"Tell me which you do or don''t choose,\" Ye Futian said, still looking at warriors from the Violet Heavenly Palace. Since they were used to looking down upon him in a lofty manner, then he would choose to completely defeat these cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace in front of the world and let them lose all dignity.


    He would like to see how these people would go back to face their sect elders after being directly vanquished by their opponent.


    He wasn''t worried about revenge from the Violet Heavenly Palace, either. If they vanquished the disciples of the Violet Heavenly Palace face-to-face, and the Violet Heavenly Palace sent Renhuang-level warriors to fight against them, from now on, the Violet Heavenly Palace would be a laughingstock in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    So, the Heavenly Mandate Realm would, at most, send other better disciples to deal with them.


    \"I will grant your wish,\" a leader of the Violet Heavenly Palace replied while staring at Ye Futian. His eyes seemed to contain very strong wills of purple thunder; an appalling air flow rose in the space around them. Warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace stood together, and the converging Might encircled Ye Futian and his group.


    \"Wen Yan,\" He turned his head and called someone''s name. A cultivator of the Violet Heavenly Palace stepped out.


    The man was about thirty years old; he looked gentle and elegant with long hair. He was in the first level of Saint Plane, the Doctrine Saint Plane.


    There were not many people in the first stage of the Saint Plane during this trip, and among them, Wen Yan was the strongest.


    Since he wanted to challenge the Violet Heavenly Palace, then the Violet Heavenly Palace would show him what the real strength of their cultivators was like.


    \"Please,\" Wen Yan said; his tone was gentle and without any emotional change; no one could tell what mood he was in now.


    However, Ye Futian kept goading the Violet Heavenly Palace. As a cultivator of the Violet Heavenly Palace, the calmer Wen Yan looked, the more dangerous he was.


    The dignity of the supreme force of the Heavens Mandate Realm was not allowed to be trampled.


    \"Yu Sheng, I will leave him to you.\"


    Ye Futian turned his head and whispered to Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng didn''t say anything. He stepped out, raised his head, and looked up at Wen Yan in the void sky.


    Wen Yan glanced at him, and then he swayed up and flew straight into the clouds.


    He didn''t go to the Celestial Demon Arena. At that moment, Wen Yan looked up at the sky, the lightning shining above the sky, falling from different directions, just like the scene before a thunderstorm.


    There was even horrifying lightning directly entering his eyes and turning his pupils purple. That pair of eyes were extremely cold, and hidden inside was a murderous look.


    \"Boom!\"


    In the sky, there were rolls of thunder roaring, terrifying heavenly thunder converging and becoming stronger, countless rays of lightning falling. The purple light in his pupils was getting stronger and stronger; his eyes were unlike any ever seen on a human.


    \"Bang!\"


    Yu Sheng stepped into the sky; he soared up and chased Wen Yan.


    Around his body, rays of lightning fell, but he seemed to be completely unaware and continued to go up, ignoring those thunder forces.


    Below them, both human cultivators and demon beasts were looking up at the sky. They also wanted to see if the people around Ye Futian could threaten the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Although they also recognized Ye Futian''s ability, they also felt his words were too arrogant. Letting the Violet Heavenly Palace choose any of the four Saint Planes to challenge?


    It sounded crazy.


    This time, Wen Yan of the Violet Heavenly Palace would be ruthless towards him.


    \"Boom!\" Suddenly, a loud noise came from the sky, and the crowd saw a terrible beam of lightning converge instantly. Above the sky, a pair of eyes with two huge purple pupils appeared. This pair of eyes crazily devoured the Will of Great Thunder Law in the space and turned it into a terrifying cloud of catastrophe.


    \"Purple pupils,\" people murmured, stirred by the scene. Wen Yan''s life spirit might be Pupil Spirit, which could elicit the Might of Thunder.


    Yu Sheng was still suspended in the air, and suddenly a beam of light dropped from the sky. The dazzling beam of light directly split the void sky and slashed toward Yu Sheng''s body; all of this happened too quickly for anyone to react.


    \"He can''t escape.\"


    The thought flashed in people''s minds. Just a moment later, the thunder dropped directly, and struck straight on the Yu Sheng''s body, making a terrifying sound; many people''s hearts thumped hard as the Might of Thunder roared.


    Nobody knew how lethal this streak of Divine Thunder would be.


    \"Boom��\"


    The lightning struck Yu Sheng and endless thunderstorms submerged his body. When everyone thought Yu Sheng would be injured, they discovered that his speed was only delayed for a moment, and soon he continued to move upward. The lightning surrounded his body, but he seemed to have put an armor of Demonic Law around his body.


    The thunder force roaming around him did not affect him at all, and his body was devouring the Will of Thunder little by little.


    The scene made many people have weird looks; they felt a little bit numb inside.


    The Zhu Yan demon crown prince''s physical defense was strong, and Ye Futian also proved how terrifying his physical strength was during his battle with him.


    And now, Yu Sheng, again?


    Since when did a physical body of this level become so ubiquitous?


    Any normal cultivator of the same plane should be smashed to pieces by one strike of this Violet Heavenly Palace warrior''s Thunder Law attack.


    Wen Yan frowned; his body turned into a bolt of lightning and rushed directly into the thunder in the sky. The Thunder Law attack mainly depended on the Might of Thunder.


    A more violent cloud of catastrophe appeared, and a pair of terrible purple eyes showed up above the sky of thunder. When he looked towards Yu Sheng, just one moment, Yu Sheng seemed to be in a world of thunder, falling into that pair of purple pupils.


    He felt his body and this world were all surrounded by endless divine purple thunder, which all slashed towards him at the same time.


    The dark golden demon armor on his body directly bore the power of Thunder attack, and his eyes became extremely deep, like an abyss; they looked upwards and turned into a pair of horrifying demonic pupils.


    In his demonic pupils, there seemed to be a demon statue, like an ultimate demonic deity.


    Yu Sheng stretched out two palms, and the endless Thunder Wills was devoured by his demonic body. His body turned into a vortex of horror, like a bottomless pit. An appalling swallowing airflow was formed between him and Wen Yan in the upper sky.


    The Thunder Law fell and was engulfed by the demonic figure.


    That pair of demonic pupils and Wen Yan''s purple pupils collided with each other. At the moment when they crushed, Wen Yan just felt that a demon stepped towards him and forced him to worship.


    That kind of feeling made his body shiver.


    \"Bang!\" Yu Sheng took one step out, crushing over the sky and earth; Wen Yan''s heart trembled. He turned into a lightning bolt and wanted to leave the battlefield, but around him, demon-like figures suddenly appeared out of nowhere and standing in the sky.


    Seeing this, Wen Yan looked stiff. He drew prints between two hands, and endless Thunder Laws appeared in the upper sky, turning into horrifying thunders of catastrophe and thrusting in all directions.


    Phantoms of the thunder deity also drew out palm prints at the same time. The light of Thunder Law and the palm prints collided, emitting a strong, dazzling light.


    There seemed to be a demonic melody lingering between the sky and earth. Yu Sheng continued walking in the void sky, with his palms clawing forward.


    Suddenly, the horrific flows of Demonic Law swirled into Wen Yan''s body, forming an overbearing vortex of devouring that madly consumed the light of thunder above his body, flowing towards the palms of the Demonic Law below.


    \"This is��\"


    The people below looked at them, stupefied. Wen Yan''s body was surrounded by the demonic airflows, which swept away all his power. The Thunder Wills were all devoured and demonized, crazily weakening Wen Yan''s power. His life force was also constantly being enervated.


    \"Come here.\"


    An intimidating voice came out, and there seemed to be melodies lingering between the sky and earth as if many demons were chanting two words at the same time.


    \"Boom!\"


    Wen Yan''s body moved uncontrollably towards Yu Sheng. His power was being weakened; how could he withstand this power? Although he was stronger compared to other warriors of the Doctrine Saint Plane, there was a gap between his talent and that of Tan Zimo in the Violet Heavenly Palace; how could he fight against Yu Sheng?


    Another voice came out, and the crowd saw Wen Yan being directly dragged toward Yu Sheng''s palm by the demonic airflow, and his neck was buckled directly. His body struggled frantically, and there was sorrow on his face.


    Was he, a disciple of the Violet Heavenly Palace, really that weak?

 1375 The Battle of Matrix Methods

    It could be said that during the battle between Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince and Tan Zimo, Tan Zimo''s defeat lost the Violet Heavenly Palace''s prestige, especially after Ye Futian repelled the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince. In contrast, Tan Zimo''s lack of strength became even more apparent.


    In that battle, however, at least Tan Zimo had performed supreme combat ability of a disciple from the Violet Heavenly Palace, and his defeat was not too bad.


    After that, Ye Futian raved that the Violet Heavenly Palace could choose any one of the four Saint Planes to challenge his teammates.


    That was why the brutal battle just happened.


    The first-plane disciple of the Violet Heavenly Palace, Wen Yan, was directly controlled by Yu Sheng in a domineering posture and elevated above others.


    He was trounced by the power that had an absolute advantage.


    Wen Yan was crushed in a humiliating way without fully exerting his strength. It was miserable.


    Even he began to doubt his strength; was he that weak?


    Was the many years he spent on cultivation nothing but a waste of time?


    Countless pairs of eyes gazed into the void sky; this scene was simply shocking to them.


    The faces of warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace all became pale. They did not understand how Wen Yan could be defeated like this. Previously, they thought Ye Futian''s ravings were just a joke.


    But now, it didn''t seem funny at all.


    Ye Futian let them choose any of the four Saint Planes to challenge, and after they chose one and fought, their warrior was vanquished; it was so ironic.


    The fighters belonged to one of the strongest forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    \"Banning him from using Thunder Laws, how dare you?\" The voice of Yu Sheng came from the void sky. He carried Wen Yan''s body down, like a lightning strike, and smashed his body on the ground.


    \"Bang��\"


    With a loud noise, the ground shook violently. Yu Sheng turned around and walked back, leaving Wen Yan''s body lying on the ground.


    \"He is so violent.\"


    Many people marveled; this was even more violent than demon beasts.


    When Yu Sheng passed by warriors of the Eight Thunder Law Sects, he glanced at them with his cold demonic eyes. Zhang Changqing and others frowned and even felt an invisible pressure.


    Yu Sheng also felt a little bit perturbed at that moment. What happened to the world?


    A group of casual cultivators successfully challenged the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    And, they came from the Lower Realms.


    On the top of the stairs in the distance, the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was staring; there was a strange look in his golden eyes. Yu Sheng''s power was horrifyingly domineering; the cultivator of the Violet Heavenly Palace was not weak in the slightest, but under Yu Sheng''s Might, he couldn''t fight back.


    Who were these people?


    He arranged this Celestial Demon Arena to challenge all the cultivators of the peak forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but now it seemed that it had become a battlefield for Ye Futian and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Ye Futian looked at the other side calmly without saying anything.


    At this moment, another figure stepped out, still from the crowd of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Obviously, they were not willing to let it go.


    For the Violet Heavenly Realm, this battle was a big humiliation.


    The warrior who came out had an astounding demeanor--a destructive Might of Thunder shrouded the world, crushing the sky and earth. He was more imposing than any of the other previous warriors.


    \"An Unblemished Saint.\"


    Ye Futian glanced up at him. The Violet Heavenly Palace sent an Unblemished Saint.


    Their strongest warrior of the Doctrine Saint was Wen Yan, who was vanquished. Who dared challenge Yu Sheng?


    The True Self Saint, Tan Zimo was defeated by the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, but Ye Futian successfully repelled Zhu Yan, so no one had the confidence to defeat Ye Futian.


    So, only the Unblemished Plane and the Nirvana Plane were left.


    Thus, this time, the cultivator who stepped out, was an intimidating warrior of the Unblemished Saint Plane.


    The warrior was not young, a middle-aged man with an aloof temperament.


    Ye Futian glanced at him and said, \"Shall we continue?\"


    Before, Ye Futian only asked them to choose one of the four Saint Planes to challenge; he had not said he would keep fighting. But apparently, the Violet Heavenly Palace was not willing to end the battle.


    \"Let all your warriors below Nirvana Plane come out and fight with me,\" the warrior said.


    \"No need, just one battle is enough.\" Ye Futian responded, and he turned to look at two people behind him.


    In their group, there were two Unblemished Saints, Yaya and Mu Chunyang.


    Although Mu Chunyang was Qi Xuanzhang''s disciple with outstanding talents, he didn''t have a conspicuous advantage over the Unblemished Saints of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Although Yaya was at the apex of her Unblemished Plan, she was about to return to the peak Nirvana Plane. She already had the state of mind of Nirvana and had previously been to the Nirvana Plane.


    Moreover, her Might of Sword Matrix was also extremely powerful.


    So, for this battle, Yaya was obviously more suitable than Mu Chunyang.


    Seeing Ye Futian looking at her, Yaya stepped out, without saying anything.


    Her body flashed. Yaya rushed to the sky like a sharp sword.


    The Unblemished Saint warrior of the Violet Heavenly Palace was called Huo Yan. His cultivation in Thunder Law was at its pinnacle. Seeing Yaya jumping into the air, he did the same, crossed the endless void sky with one step and came to the upper sky, standing opposite Yaya.


    Neither of them talked nonsense; astonishing spirits exploded from both of them. Huo Yan waved two hands, and suddenly around Yaya''s body, the sky and earth were filled with thunder. As if in just one moment, she had been sealed in the domain of thunder.


    Such a siege was not very powerful. Since Yaya was qualified to stand there, how could she be easily trapped?


    Yaya saw Ye Futian had no intention to attack, so she waved her hands, and the Might of Swords were condensed and formed from all skies. With her body as the center, countless swords showed up between the sky and earth, rotating toward her.


    Around her body, a huge sword matrix pattern appeared; tens of thousands of words rumbled and devoured the Sword Laws of all skies.


    Warriors saw this scene and said to themselves, \"A Heavy Sword Matrix.\" At that moment, countless people were also watching the fight.


    This young lady was able to control such a mighty Void Sword Law.


    \"He''s also creating a matrix, but it''s a Matrix of Thunder Destruction,\" someone said.


    The crowd turned to look toward Huo Yan of the Violet Heavenly Palace again. The endless Divine Thunder surged, sealing the sky and earth; sometimes a terrible lightning bolt flashed by, thrusting toward Yaya''s body, but he was unable to break through the horrifying Sword Will.


    \"Are there two Unblemished Saint warriors going to fight against each other through the Matrix?\" people asked each other.


    All the onlookers'' hearts beat quickly. All the Might of the Great Law between the sky and earth converged and turned into turbulent Fighting Wills, which only made the destructive power even stronger.


    Huo Yan flitted forward. He opened his arms and looked up at the sky, and beams of light descended from the sky and surrounded Yaya''s body.


    Countless people''s hearts thumped fast.


    \"He is so powerful.\"


    The rolling demonic cloud was similar to the Thunder Law used by Tan Zimo before. It should have been the Final Thunder of Catastrophe, but this time the power was even more horrible.


    \"The sky, seal.\"


    The words came out of Huo Yan''s mouth. Suddenly, towering beams of lightning blocked the sky. Numerous thunderbolts directly thrust toward Yaya; the scene was appalling.


    Warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked sullen. Huo Yan was of the Unblemished Saint Plane, and his cultivation of the Thunder Law Final Thunder of Catastrophe had broken through to the third level.


    Once one entered the third level of the Final Thunder of Catastrophe, the attack could be transformed into a Final Thunder of Catastrophe matrix. Using the great path of sky and earth, one could infinitely restore the Might of Thunder. It was indeed a crucial method of Thunder Law attack and destruction. If it was used on a large-scale war, it could be a catastrophic power once released.


    \"She''s over.\" People of the Eight Thunder Law Sects Men looked at Yaya and said to themselves.


    In the previous two battles, they were okay, but now, Yaya was confronting the Matrix of the Final Thunder Catastrophe of the Violet Heavenly Palace; how could she survive? Nothing but destruction was awaiting her.


    The third level of the Final Thunder of Catastrophe could terminate all Unblemished Saints and even threaten cultivators of Nirvana Planes.


    Huo Yan wanted to kill Yaya on the spot to frighten those people, removing the stigma for the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Endless beams of thunder light descended; and, at this moment, Yaya below looked extremely trivial. Even all the skies were sealed by the beams of lightning, and the endless void space was filled with beams of thunder. The Thunder Law locked the sky. She had nowhere to hide and just had to withstand the attacks.


    Ye Futian looked up to the sky. He was confident in Yaya''s strength; after all, she came from the Nirvana Plane, and now she was about to return to Nirvana. Her ability was strong beyond doubt.


    But seeing this destructive scene, he was still a little worried.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was a force standing at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and its disciples were all extremely outstanding. It was just that the opponents they met here were also highly skilled, including Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng.


    Yaya sat cross-legged, and a huge sword pattern appeared around her body. In the sword pattern, infinite Sword Wills were formed, and outside the walls of lightning, there were still swords coming from beyond. Those Sword Qi directly penetrated the void air and entered her matrix pattern.


    Around Yaya''s body, a sword-shaped light curtain was formed. Endless Sword Wills turned into a sword of storm, heading towards the skydome, and collided with the beams of thunder light.


    Yaya was still sitting in the matrix pattern, and the Might of the Sword Matrix was still strengthening.


    \"Die,\" Huo Yan yelled. He stepped in the void air, rising to the upper sky. He lowered his head and looked down. At this moment, the Final Thunder of Catastrophe exploded, and tens of thousands of beams of lightning penetrated the world, blasting toward the direction of Yaya as if they could slay all the gods and demons on earth.


    People''s hearts thumped hard. How could this woman withstand such an attack?


    Perhaps she would be destroyed by the Matrix of Final Thunder of Catastrophe.


    At that moment, Yaya ''s body seemed have merged into the sword matrix; all the swords shrieked at the same time, hovering, and turning into a sword-shaped storm spinning between the sky and earth, which then turned into an extremely dazzling sword, pointing directly toward the skydome and shooting above the void air.


    Huo Yan''s eyes moved there, and suddenly endless light of catastrophe thrust out and crushed on the sword, which made the colossal giant sword tremble.


    Then, a woman''s figure showed up and looked up at the sky inside a sword.


    For a moment, the sword seemed to be turned into nothingness; it went up along the destructive pillars of thunder light, penetrating the thunder attacks, roaming in the light of thunder, and going up against the trend, as if it was a sword walking in the nothingness.


    Seeing this, Huo Yan felt strong anxiety. His body flashed into the sky, but the sword directly penetrated the thunder and targeted his body; it was coming!

 1376 The Demon Metropolis

    A glaring flash of sword light appeared from the matrix of Final Thunder of Catastrophe and faded away.


    Those falling beams of lightning flickered and turned into a disarray of light. The core of the matrix in the upper sky also shattered and dispersed.


    Endless Divine Thunder poured down, but there was not as much might as before.


    When all things vanished, only two figures were standing above the sky.


    The Sword Will was flowing in the body of Huo Yan, an Unblemished Saint warrior of the Violet Heavenly Palace. He got a gash on his body that blood kept flowing from.


    He slightly coughed and blood oozed from his mouth; his life force was weakening rapidly.


    The strike of the sword badly wounded him.


    Huo Yan raised his head and looked up at the young lady in a white dress standing in the void air. She stood there quietly like a sword; he could feel a sense of mysterious detachment from her, which gave him the impression that the woman was not an Unblemished Saint but a Nirvana Saint.


    He understood that although her current Plane was Unblemished, she was actually infinitely close to Nirvana, and even the might she exerted was already that of the Nirvana Plane.


    Countless pairs of eyes stared into the upper sky; they watched those two figures, stunned, and felt extremely unsettled.


    They lost again.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was defeated again in the Unblemished Saint Plane, and the warrior was seriously injured.


    It seemed that Ye Futian''s statement was confirmed: just choose any one of the four Saint Planes to challenge them, they didn''t care.


    Two battles were complete. Together with Ye Futian''s better performance compared with Tan Zimo, so far, the Violet Heavenly Palace has been defeated in three out of the four Saint Planes.


    Before, everyone thought Ye Futian''s words were nothing but ridiculous exaggerations.


    But now...Did anyone still think so?


    At this moment, they were beginning to doubt that, even in the Nirvana Saint Plane, there were still more cultivators who were able to win over the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace in Ye Futian''s group.


    This idea naturally came to them after they witnessed the two previous battles.


    Moreover, it was meaningless to them even if they fought in the Nirvana Plane.


    Even if they won the battle of the Nirvana Plane, so what?


    They still had huge disadvantages in three other Planes.


    Huo Yan was seriously injured and looked quite dispirited. Suddenly he had aged a lot, and he trudged back.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace, known as the origin of all Thunder Laws, the supreme power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, was trounced by a group of casual cultivators.


    News of this battle would soon be spread across the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Huo Yan returned to the group of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Yaya flashed away, and the next moment, she landed on the ground, standing quietly behind Ye Futian, as if the battle had never happened.


    At this moment, the place fell silent. No one of the Violet Heavenly Palace stepped out again. As many people thought, it wouldn''t make much sense to fight again in the Nirvana Plane, not to mention that they were no longer sure if they would win the Nirvana Plane battle after two fights.


    Perhaps, even the Violet Heavenly Palace themselves had lost all confidence.


    \"It seems that your Thunder Law is not very good. From now on, when you are outside, don''t always say that others are not qualified. That will only lose more of the Violet Heavenly Palace''s dignity.\"


    In this quiet place, what Ye Futian said was like a loud slap hitting the faces of those in the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was thoroughly defeated by Ye Futian. Everything that happened before looked even more ironic.


    Even though Ye Futian rejected the Violet Heavenly Palace, so what?


    All disciples of the Violet Heavenly Palace were vanquished by him.


    The faces of those who lived in the Violet Heavenly Palace were burning. If they had not had tasks with them, they would have immediately left. Staying here would only make them feel more humiliated. People were unkind to the losers of battles.


    Their failure was so obvious that they couldn''t even say anything; they were speechless.


    Ye Futian took one more glance at Zhang Changqing and others in the Eight Thunder Law Sects. His glance was cold and full of contempt; he soon looked away without paying attention to them.


    Ye Futian''s gaze made Zhang Changqing realize that Ye Futian never cared about what the disciples of the Eight Thunder Law Sects thought of him.


    Even if he could successfully challenge the Violet Heavenly Palace, would he care about their Eight Sects?


    Just think about the battle between Huo Yan and Yaya. Zhang Changqing was the most gifted disciple of the Purple Underground Sect, the future successor of the Great Law Wutu Infernal Thunder. The Purple Underground Emperor valued his talent and his cultivation plane was also unblemished.


    However, he had asked himself if he was able to face Huo Yan''s blow, and he knew he couldn''t bear it, and he wouldn''t have the ability to fight back.


    But Yaya could seriously injure Huo Yan in that kind of attacking matrix. If he faced Yaya, his ending wouldn''t be much different than that of Huo Yan. He would be killed.


    Disciples of the other top forces, like the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Brahma''s Pure Sky also had mixed feelings because of the battle.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was a famed institution just like them, standing at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Since Ye Futian was able to turn the Violet Heavenly Palace upside down, their strength shouldn''t be weaker than those of disciples of any other top forces.


    That was very unusual in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    At the same time, some cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky also went to the Purple Underground Sect. When Ye Futian went away, many people sympathized with him and felt pity for him. Now it seemed that Ye Futian himself didn''t care at all.


    At that time, no one knew he was this powerful.


    This younger brother of Gu''s descendant was not as simple as he seemed.


    On the top of stairs of the Celestial Demon Arena, the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince had watched everything. He had also perceived how unusual Ye Futian was. He had the upper hand in the battle with him, and even the people around him were extraordinary.


    However, after listening to their conversation, he got to know this Ye Futian was not a cultivator from top powers, and he used a stick method.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was curious about Ye Futian''s identity.


    In one step, Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince reentered the void sky; other demon princes followed him, and they came to one corner of the Celestial Demon Arena, looking at the crowd.


    Today, his purpose had been achieved. He fought battles with Tan Zimo of the Violet Heavenly Palace and Ye Futian and watched the battle between Yu Sheng, Yaya, and warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace. He hadn''t wasted his time.


    As for other top powers, it seemed that they had no intention of fighting.


    However, since they wanted to find Gu Tianxing, they would have to take action in this demon world one day.


    \"You all know where the Demon Metropolis is, right?\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince looked at these people and asked. Suddenly everyone turned their heads and looked at him.


    How could they never have heard of it?


    It was rumored that many years ago, the Demon Metropolis of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, also called the Divine Demon Domain, was the birthplace of countless powerful demonic beasts.


    But now, the Demon Metropolis had become the most chaotic area in the demon realm, but it was also the most crowded gathering place of demon beasts in the demon world, where there were many relics left by the ancestors of the demon realm, even forbidden zones.


    Therefore, even though there were no top demon clans located in the Demon Metropolis, it was still one of the most prestigious areas in the demon realm. Many of the top demonic clans in the demon realm were active there.


    Even in a geographical sense, the Demon Metropolis was also the center of the demon realm.


    \"Gu Tianxing has appeared in the district of the Demon Metropolis. It is said that he is in a certain forbidden area of the Demon Metropolis. If you go there, you will surely get news about him,\" the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said. He chose to announce the news in public instead of just telling any individuals.


    The information wanted by these top-level humans was useless to him. He arranged the Celestial Demon Matrix here just to see what levels of strength these top cultivators had.


    Now that his purpose had been achieved, it was okay to tell them.


    What''s more, he also wished that these humans would go to the center of the demon realm and see how many of them would be left there forever.


    People of all powers slightly changed their expressions when they heard what Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said.


    He said that Gu Tianxing had shown up in the Demon Metropolis district and was in the forbidden zone.


    Did it mean that Gu Tianxing was still alive?


    If Gu Tianxing hadn''t died in that battle, it would potentially be a huge risk for many forces, especially the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    \"Are you sure that person is Gu Tianxing?\" a royal member of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince while staring at him.


    In the Purple Underground Sect, when Gu Tianxing came in and just stood there, his existence was able to intimidate all Renhuang figures; one could imagine how threatening he was to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    A person who had passed away many years ago was still so intimidating; Gu Tianxing should have been the only one in the century.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince glanced toward the crowd of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and said, \"I am unclear on this now. Why don''t you just go and see for yourself?\"


    Warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty frowned. It was already risky for them to enter the demon realm. It was better in the outer area, and the Celestial Demon City was the first demon city near the world of human cultivators.


    But they were very clear where the Demon Metropolis was. It was the core area of the demon realm, a chaotic place, where there were countless demon beasts, and even the top demon forces would be active there.


    If they went to the Demon Metropolis, the risk would shoot up.


    Moreover, if Gu Tianxing was alive, it was a huge risk for them to go there.


    \"Sir, where is the Demon Metropolis?\" Ye Futian asked the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord next to him in a low voice.


    The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord looked at the white-haired young man next to him; he was also stirred by the things he saw today.


    The people he encountered were very unusual.


    \"The Demon Metropolis of the Demon Realm was known as the place where the Demon Realm originated. Now it was also the center of the Demon Realm. The demon forces there are intricate and complex, and there are many large demon beasts there. It is far more powerful and complicated than the Celestial Demon City,\" the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord looked up at Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince and said, \"I can tell the Demon Crown Prince might also want to go to the Demon Metropolis.\"


    Ye Futian was surprised and looked up.


    Zhu Yan Demon Crown Princess has been peerless in this area, and he arranged these Demon Matrixes also to test the top figures among human cultivators. I guess, the Demon Crown Prince himself wants to go out for a trial,\" the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord continued. Ye Futian agreed with him.


    The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord might be right. Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince probably had such a plan indeed.


    The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince seemed to have noticed his gaze; he looked down at him, and soon looked away.


    Ye Futian knew the Demon Crown Prince must be curious about him now!

 1377 Gu Tianxing’s Life or Death

    After Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince announced the news, warriors from the Violet Heavenly Palace glanced at Ye Futian, looking a little bit sullen. One of them said, \"Let''s go.\"


    After that, the party walked into the sky and immediately left.


    Warriors of the Eight Thunder Law Sects followed them. In the battle of the Celestial Demon City, the Thunder Law cultivators were the ones who took the lead, and even the place of origin of all Thunder Laws, the Violet Heavenly Palace, had to join the battle. But because they were all beaten, they were too ashamed to stay there.


    Seeing them all staring at Ye Futian before leaving, Xia Qingyuanan whispered beside him, \"After being so humiliated by you, I''m afraid the Violet Heavenly Palace will remember you forever.\"


    Ye Futian had provoked a lot of hatred. In front of the world, he turned the Violet Heavenly Palace upside down, which made the place of origin of all Thunder Laws, the most advanced practitioners of the Thunder Law cultivation power lose all its dignity.


    He let them choose any of the four Saint Planes, but he defeated them at every level.


    The feud between Ye Futian and the Violet Heavenly Palace had been settled, but this matter would soon spread.


    Ye Futian shrugged, slightly turned his head toward Xia Qingyuan, looked at her and said, \"Have you forgotten the way they talked to you?\"


    People of Violet Heavenly Palace were full of themselves, and when doing things or speaking, they never cared about Ye Futian''s feelings, so Ye Futian had to teach them a lesson.


    Besides, everyone had to see the situation. If he had fought then privately, the Violet Heavenly Palace might have cheated.


    Xia Qingyuan heard him mentioning her, blinked, and soon turned around, avoiding Ye Futian''s eyes. She did not speak, but her feelings were stirred.


    Was it because of her?


    Earlier that day, someone from the Violet Heavenly Palace said that she was not qualified to speak, which triggered the things that happened later. Ye Futian arrogantly claimed that they could fight with the Violet Heavenly Palace at any of the four Saint Planes and won all the battles in front of the world.


    People gradually dispersed, and warriors of all the top forces also left; before leaving, they did not forget to look in the direction of Ye Futian.


    Today, Ye Futian and his party stole all the limelight, throwing the Violet Heavenly Palace''s dignity to the ground and trampling on it again and again.


    Perhaps they were proud at this moment.


    But nobody knew how long their victorious state would last.


    For those who were also top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they naturally knew each other''s strength. The Violet Heavenly Palace was one of the five supreme powers standing on the peak of power. There were countless cultivators and quite a few core disciples. Among them, some extremely dangerous ones had not been sent to this Demon Realm for trial. After all, there were some unknown risks in the trip, and the Sect Seniors wouldn''t allow their elite to go deep into the demon world.


    Ye Futian turned the Violet Heavenly Palace upside down, and one day, the Violet Heavenly Palace would seek revenge. Although Renhuang would not do anything to him, if those Saint Plane talents wanted to settle with him, other people had nothing to say, and they might fight again in the name of combat cultivation.


    And because there was a gap between two sides'' strengths, no one dared to say anything if the Violet Heavenly Palace wanted to kill him.


    Thus, in some people''s opinions, Ye Futian and his companions proved their talents and combat abilities, but that might not be a good thing if they didn''t have any top forces on which to rely.


    He had no top-notch background, but he had the top-notch talent, which meant he would be destroyed by the environment around him, just as an extra tall tree alone among bushes would be blown down by the wind.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace would deal with them sooner or later.


    After people left, Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince looked at the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord and said to him, \"Are you willing to come to the Celestial Demon City to cultivate in the future?\"


    The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord gave him a surprised look. He didn''t understand why the Demon Crown Prince suddenly asked. However, since the Demon Crown Prince asked him to cultivate in Celestial Demon City, he wanted to help him.


    He didn''t care, but he knew that for his daughter, Qingyang He, being able to cultivate with the Demon Crown Prince of the Celestial Demon City was the best choice.


    At least this place was much better than the Verdant Gazelle Palace, and there, she would not encounter things like the incident with Ye Futian.


    \"Yes, I appreciate Your Highness''s kindness,\" replied the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord. Although he was unsure why he still accepted it. After all, he was one of the most powerful demons in the Demon Emperor''s territory.


    \"Good,\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince nodded and then looked at Ye Futian, who was next to him and said, \"want to walk with me?\"


    Seeing this, the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord could tell that the Demon Crown Prince invited him to cultivate in Celestial Demon City because of Ye Futian.


    Before, when he requested news for Ye Futian, he didn''t leave a good first impression, but after Ye Futian broke through the Demon Matrix and showed his marvelous fighting power, the Demon Crown Prince was a little bit surprised.


    Besides, when the Demon Crown Prince fought with Ye Futian, he advanced his cultivation level and could tell that they had similar staff methods. It was just that they both added their understanding and cultivation methods inside, so their staff methods could be considered independent from one another.


    \"Sure,\" Ye Futian replied and nodded; he also wanted to talk with him.


    The ancestors of the Demon Crown Prince and his people might have contact with Emperor Ye Qing.


    So, they talked.


    \"Let''s go then,\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said. Ye Futian walked out. The Demon Crown Prince intentionally waited for a while to walk with him, and the other three demon princes followed.


    \"What is the name of your staff method? Where did you learn it?\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince asked. He maintained the same human body just like Ye Futian. Although he was an extremely proud person, for those who could defeat him, he showed respect and treated them equally.


    What was more, Ye Futian might have a relationship with the Ape Clan.


    \"I came from the Lower Realm and once was instructed by the Golden Ape Clan to cultivate the Eighty-one Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques. Later, with my understanding, I evolved the staff method to fit my own cultivate method,\" Ye Futian responded.


    It was no secret that the Ape Clan cultivated in the Heaven-Traversing Staff Method, and the Heaven-Traversing Nine Strikes itself was indeed derived from the Eighty-one Heaven Traversing Staff Strikes. The Snow Ape Emperor created the Heavenly Traversing Nine Strikes after he left, and he was the only one who passed on the techniques. The Princess Eastern Phoenix, who went to capture the Snow Ape Emperor was probably the only person who knew it.


    These skills were kept a secret, and usually, the Snow Ape Emperor would not tell anyone. After all, the situation in the Demon Realm was complex. If anything went wrong, there would be trouble.


    But there was nothing wrong with saying that he learned his skills from the Heaven Traversing Eighty-one Staff Strikes.


    \"Um-hum,\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince nodded without a doubt. He also had such conjectures.


    After that happened, the Ape Clans were torn apart; nobody had a good time at that time.


    \"How about you, Your Highness?\" Ye Futian said. \"Where did you learn the staff method?\"


    \"The Zhu Yan Clan is of the same origin as the Ape Clan; we are relatives. We Zhu Yan know all cultivation methods in which the Ape Clan cultivates,\" the Demon Crown Prince responded. \"It''s just you understand the staff method better than I do, and you made it more advanced, which allowed you to win in our fight. In terms of gifts in understanding cultivation methods, human beings still outdo the demon clans.\"


    \"But I don''t understand, why is your physical strength so strong?\" Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince asked curiously. Not only was Ye Futian extremely strong, but Yu Sheng, the demonic cultivator, was also terrifyingly strong.


    \"When I entered the Saint Plane, I had already built a figure of a Saint. Since I began to cultivate, I have been refining the body by cultivating and never giving up,\" Ye Futian replied.


    \"Even so, you should have also cultivated in body-enhancing techniques. After all, even if you have the sacred body, the physical strength of the Zhu Yan Clan should still be stronger than yours,\" said Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince.


    \"Your Highness''s physical body is indeed very strong. In addition to the physical body, I have also cast the Starry Battle Form with the Might of Law, so I didn''t fall behind in terms of strength,\" Ye Futian said.


    The Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince nodded and said, \"from now on, you don''t have to call me Your Highness, just call me Zhu Zhao.\"


    \"Okay,\" Ye Futian replied and nodded. The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord behind him was surprised. Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince had told Ye Futian his real name, as though he was a friend!


    In the Celestial Demon City, Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was the most distinguished and unparalleled person. Even the descendants of the other three demon clans followed him. He was the boss of the Four Tyrants.


    Ye Futian would be the first cultivator he was willing to befriend as an equal... and he was a human!


    One reason for the budding friendship might have been because of the Ape Clan''s staff method.


    Of course, another reason was that Ye Futian had defeated him.


    The Demon Clans respected power, following the rules of nature. For the ones who were stronger than them, they naturally showed respect.


    Hearing what Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince said, the Taotie demon looked dissatisfied.


    \"Boss, he''s a human,\" the Taotie Demon Prince whispered.


    \"Third Brothers,\" the prince of the Thunder God Clan told him to stop; he didn''t feel anything, and since the boss had decided, he agreed.


    The gorgeous lady of the Feather Men Clan also pulled Taotie''s arm.


    Zhu Zhao turned his head, took a glance at Taotie with his golden eyes, and said, \"Stop it.\"


    The Taotie Demon Prince lowered his head but still looked unhappy.


    \"Your temper is too hot,\" Black Wind Condor murmured next to him. The big demon beast glanced at him with a pair of fierce eyes, and the Black Wind Condor was not scared at all and was also staring at him with a pair of sharp eyes.


    \"This idiot, it is his honor to befriend my Master. Did he dare complain? If it had not been for Master''s kindness, he would not have deserved to be a mount.\"


    \"I''m also going to the Demon Metropolis, how about going with me?\" Zhu Zhao said after turning his head.


    \"If you are willing to lead the way, it will be more convenient,\" Ye Futian said.


    \"Don''t be too positive. Demon Emperors were not here in the Celestial Demon City now. We will have to travel by ourselves. I am afraid it will take a lot of time,\" Zhu Zhao laughed and said.


    Ye Futian showed surprise and said, \"Where did Demon Emperors go?\"


    \"Their purpose is the same as yours, Gu Tianxing''s news. Otherwise, how would I know about it?\" Zhu Zhao asked slowly, sobering Ye Futian. Had Gu Tianxing''s news also cause a sensation in the Demon Realm?


    For the Third Brother, was it a good thing or a bad thing?


    \"What happened?\" Ye Futian asked.


    \"Gu Tianxing went to the place of origin of the Demon world,\" said Zhu Zhao, his golden eyes looking into the distance, extremely sharp.


    At this moment, the Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord behind him was also slightly agitated.


    A human cultivator had set foot on the place of origin of their Demon Realm?


    It was an absolutely forbidden area for the demon world!


    What was Gu Tianxing doing there?


    Ye Futian also realized that the situation was becoming more and more unusual. He thought it was unlikely that Gu Tianxing was alive, but the change of survival was growing!

 1378 The Prophe

    The Demon Metropolis was located in the center of the demon world of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. This district was vast and boundless. Forces there were intricate and complicated. It was the most well-known chaotic place in the demon world.


    Once, it had also been the most crowded place in the demon world. Many of the top demon clans originated here.


    And now, there was sensational news from the Demon Metropolis!


    It was said that in the north of the Demon Metropolis, human cultivators showed up in the mountain range of the place of origin of the demon world.


    Moreover, it was said that the person was Gu Tianxing, the most prestigious human cultivator of his time and the person closest to the level of Heavenly Law in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    There were many rumors about the place of origin in the Demon Realm. It was said that this was once the place where the Demon Monarch lived. Later in the battle of Heavenly Laws, the Demon Monarch died; his blood turned into a river, his body turned into land, and his bones were buried in the mountain of origin.


    Since then, countless powerful ancestors of the Demon Realm had come out of the Mountain Range of Origin.


    There were also rumors that the unprecedented war between humans and demon beasts had broken out in the Mountain Range of Origin, and the bones of countless Human Emperors and Demon Emperors were buried in it. Until today, the thoughts of numerous humans and demon beasts remained there and were sealed in the Mountain Range of Origin, making the Mountain Range of Origin a forbidden area.


    Nobody could set foot in the core of the Mountain Range of Origin, no matter how powerful the figure was in the Demon Realm.


    But now, because of the news about Gu Tianxing, the Demon Realm began focusing its attention on the Mountain Range of Origin.


    It was said that powerful figures were coming from all sides of the Demon Realm, including those big names in the demon world and top demon clans.


    All of a sudden, the chaotic Demon Metropolis became the center of the storm; everyone had a hunch that something big was going to happen.


    Many days had passed since Ye Futian came to the Demon Metropolis from the Celestial Demon City. During this time, they were in a tavern of the Demon Metropolis. The tavern was built by large stones and was open-air.


    At this moment, many demon beasts were sitting around eating meat and drinking. There were all kinds of demon beasts; some of them ate cooked meat and some ate raw meat.


    Ye Futian and his companions were sitting together in a circle, just like the demon beasts, they all sat on the floor.


    The Taotie Demon Prince ate the most. In front of him, there were a lot of bones.


    Xia Qingyuan couldn''t bear to see al the bones. She was sitting beside Ye Futian and turned her head, with no appetite to eat.


    Zhu Zhao took a glance at her and said, \"This is the demon world. You should get used to it.\"


    \"She has never lived in the demon world before. It''s inevitable for her to have some kind of reaction,\" Ye Futian said. he was grilling meat with Black Wind Condor, and Black Wind Condor''s drool was almost visible.


    \"These humans have fine skin and tender flesh; they must taste good,\" a voice came from nearby, followed by a burst of laughter.


    \"Especially those women, that human female cultivator has nice skin, and that female peacock, hehe,\" said a big demon beast, staring at Xia Qingyuan and Kong Xuan.


    In such places like the Demon Metropolis, there were very few human cultivators. These human beings stayed together with demon beasts, which made them wonder about their identities.


    However, demon beasts of the Demon Metropolis usually showed no favor to humans.


    \"Third brother,\" Zhu Zhao said and gave Taotie a hint. Taotie put down the meat in his hand and walked towards the big talking demon beast.


    \"What do you want to do?\" the demon beast asked, eyes glowing with chilly dim light.


    \"Roar ...\" A bellow shook everyone''s eardrums. The Taotie big demon beast''s mouth crazily widened and swallowed everything in the direction of that big demon beast; the big demon beast''s face turned pale and dispair was apparent in his eyes.


    How dare this beast wanting to kill anyone inside the Demon Metropolis!


    The demon beast was so frightened that he closed his eyes, thinking sadly that he would be swallowed up, and his body kept trembling.


    However, after a moment, he moved slightly and opened his eyes, only seeing that Taotie had returned to the original seat and resumed eating.


    \"The demon beasts'' way of thinking is much simpler than that of humans. They will test you first, and if you don''t dare to fight back, they may consider attacking and eating you,\" Zhu Zhao said to Ye Futian and others.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. Zhu Zhao clearly understood the idea of the demon beasts of the Demon Realm better than he did.


    \"Come over,\" Zhu Zhao uttered in an extremely cold voice.


    That big demon beast with a lion''s head came. He could tell from Zhu Zhao''s tone that this demon beast was of extraordinary origin, but he didn''t know why he stayed with humans.


    \"Anything new in the Demon Metropolis recently?\" Zhu Zhao asked while biting into the meat and not looking at him. In the Demon Realm, there were many demon beasts that he couldn''t mess with, but they would never be encountered here.


    Even if he did meet one, he could see through them, so he could act even more audacious than them. He was confident in this.


    \"If the answer is unsatisfactory to me, you will become this,\" Zhu Zhao said and pointed to the plate in front of him.


    The demon beast''s head shrank into his shoulders; he said in a deep voice, \"A few months ago, the news came out that Gu Tianxing, a human cultivator who once was famed in the Heavenly Mandate Realm appeared in the Mountain Range of Origin, and many demon warriors of the Demon Realm have come. It was said that many Demon Emperor figures have already arrived. Besides, those top-level demon clans have also gradually entered the Demon Metropolis.\"


    \"Is that all?\" Zhu Zhao glanced at him with his golden eyes. They have heard about the news after they arrived at the Demon Metropolis.


    \"And...\" The lion demon felt a little chilly and continued, \"Recently, in the Demon Metropolis it was also said that there will be great changes in the Demon Realm in the future. Not only the Demon Realm but in the whole Heavenly Mandate Realm, including the land of human cultivators.\"


    \"Where did you hear about this?\" Zhu Zhao asked.


    \"People said the news is from the Prophet''s Palace,\" he replied.


    Hearing his words, the Zhu Yan big demon beast''s golden pupils contracted; his eyes became extremely sharp.


    \"Anything else?\" Zhu Zhao asked.


    \"The Prophet''s Palace also said that a ''big figure'' would come to the Demon Metropolis.\"


    \"Who?\" Zhu Zhao suddenly stared at him and asked.


    \"I don''t know. No one knows. Now all demon beasts in the Demon Metropolis are making guesses about who the big figure in the mouth of the prophet is,\" that demon beast shook his head and said. \"Now many Demon Emperors have arrived, and there will be more demon beast big names coming. Some people guess the person the prophet refers to is one of them.\"


    \"If it refers to one of them, isn''t the prophet talking nonsense? That would be a disgrace to the name of the prophet,\" Zhu Yan said a little disdainfully; apparently, he didn''t believe this.


    Those important figures of the Demon Realm would come, but if the prophet referred to them, it would be meaningless, just like talking nonsense.


    The \"big figure\" in the mouth of the prophet was different, but who could it be?


    \"Maybe,\" the lion beast whispered.


    \"No, it is not maybe. The Prophet''s Palace claimed that there will be a big change in the Demon Realm, and then said there will be an impressive man coming, which means this person can affect a big change in the Demon Realm in the future, and from the perspective of the prophet, the \"big figure\" will not be the same \"big figure\" being talked out by losers like you.\"


    Zhu Zhao said coldly, \"What else?\"


    \"For big events, that''s all I know,\" the lion demon beast replied with his head lowered.


    \"Get out then,\" Zhu Zhao said. The demon beast was being pardoned and left sneakily; he wouldn''t dare stay any longer.


    Ye Futian had been listening quietly. He looked toward Zhu Zhao quite confused.


    \"The prophet''s position was transcendent in the Demon Realm. He possesses the ability to foresee the future. This ability is similar to the astrology of human cultivators. It is very rare. In the ancient Demon Realm, it is said that the Prophet Clan was also a big clan, but because such talent made the Heavens jealous, they almost faced genocide. Today, only the Prophet''s Palace exists in the Demon Realm, and there is only one Prophet Beast in the Prophet''s Palace, and he alone represents a clan.\" The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord beside Zhu Zhao explained to Ye Futian; this time, he also came along.


    Ye Futian thought for a moment. Astrologists were indeed rare in the world of human cultivators.


    Moreover, such people were short-lived.


    His Master Qi Xuangang was gifted with some abilities to predict future, but that was because of his mysterious and all-inclusive cultivation method, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. He was not a true astrologer.


    \"Because of this, the status of the Prophet Palace is detached; it does not participate in the disputes of the Demon Realm, and warriors of all clans are not allowed to attack the prophet, to keep the only big demon beast of the Demon Realm from harm,\" The Verdant Gazelle Palace Lord continued.


    \"That is to say, the prophet''s prophecy truly exists?\" Ye Futian asked.


    \"Yes,\" Zhu Zhao said, nodding, \"there are many strange places in the Demon Metropolis, and the Prophet''s Palace is one of them. Moreover, it is known as a must-go place, and many of the top demon beasts visit the Prophet''s Palace when they come to the Demon Metropolis and let the prophet tell them their fortunes. But whether the prophet would like to receive you or not depends on your luck, and in most cases, he doesn''t.\"


    \"That is to say, now not only Gu Tianxing has appeared in the Mountain Range of Origin, but the prophet also warned that the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm is destined to be not peaceful, right?\" Ye Futian asked.


    \"You could say that. What is happening now is probably very unusual. If Gu Tianxing is alive, why did he come to the Mountain Range of Origin in the Demon Realm, and is he arranging something?\" Zhu Zhao asked, lost in thought.


    Also, who was the big man the prophet spoke of?


    \"It seems that we have to ask ourselves,\" Zhu Zhao said. \"It is a must-go place of the Demon Metropolis. I guess many demon beasts will go to visit. Would you like to go together?\"


    \"You want to visit the Prophet''s Palace?\" Ye Futian asked.


    \"The prophet not only can predict events but also sees the future of demon beasts. I have heard about it, but I have never been there before, and this time, I want to go. Although you are a human, you can also try your luck there and let the prophet see your future,\" Zhu Zhao said.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, \"I know best about my future and don''t need to bother the prophet to tell me, but since you said it magical, I want to accompany you.\"

 1379 The Prophet’s Prophecy

    These days the Prophet''s Palace was particularly bustling, especially since yesterday.


    The demon Prophet changed his habit and no longer rejected people''s visits; he even began to receive visitors one right after the other.


    Many big demon beasts, and even human cultivators, came to the Prophet''s Palace in the past two days requesting to see the Prophet.


    Many people speculated whether the Prophet''s unusual behavior this time was related to the future changes of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the \"big figure\" in his mouth?


    The Prophet''s Palace was located to the west of the Demon Metropolis. It covered an extremely vast and open area, exuding an immortal atmosphere.


    At this time, many people were standing in an open field. In front of them were stairs of some thousand meters, and above the stairs was a single palace, which was not magnificent but showed a sense of transfixion.


    Above the stairs and outside the palace, there was a statue next to the palace gate, a statue of a demon beast.


    This demon beast combined many characteristics of different big demon beasts, with a tiger head, a single horn, two dog ears, a dragon body, a lion tail, and unicorn''s feet. Even though it was only a statue, its eyes still looked animated. This was the form of a Prophet demon beast.


    But nowadays in the Demon Realm, there was only one Prophet in this Prophet''s Palace.


    By the time Ye Futian came, there were already many demon beasts and humans waiting quietly outside.


    Ye Futian even saw some familiar figures, warriors from the world of human cultivators.


    For example, the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky showed was there.


    When Ye Futian arrived, many people took a look at him; the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky also noticed him, but she was unsurprised and soon turned her eyes away.


    However, she was slightly curious. What did Ye Futian come to ask; his future?


    \"People who come to visit the Prophet''s Palace wanted to ask about their future in cultivation, some wanted to ask the fate of their families, and some people asked about what to do next. In short, there were all kinds of questions; some human women even asked about the Great Law of marriage, but of course, it rarely happened,\" Zhu Zhao said to Ye Futian.


    There was some sort of strange look in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes after his words.


    Ye Futian raised a brow and said, \"Can the Prophet measure a person''s life and death?\"


    \"I don''t know, but you know some people who are here today. Maybe they want to ask about someone''s life and death,\" Zhu Zhao said. Ye Futian understood what he meant.


    Many people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm must want to know whether Gu Tianxing was alive or dead.


    At this moment, a figure walked out, standing on the edge of the stairs. He was a young doorman, but his cultivation was also on the Saint Plane level. He looked down at a big demon beast and said, \"Come in.\"


    The big demon beast nodded and then walked up the stairs until he entered the Prophet''s Palace.


    \"How did the Prophet feel so good today? What did he see that made him summon so many people continuously?\" Zhu Zhao murmured, a little confused.


    At this moment, the young doorman looked at Zhu Yan and Ye Futian and asked, \"Who among you wants to see the Prophet, what is it for?\"


    \"We all want to see the Prophet and have many things to ask, but it depends on whether the Prophet is willing to call. If the Prophet is willing to call one or two of us, we will ask a question according to the rules,\" Zhu Zhao said.


    \"All right,\" the young doorman nodded, showing he had understood.


    They waited patiently. At this moment, someone looked at Ye Futian and asked, \"Mr. Ye, do you also come here to ask about your future cultivation path?\"


    Ye Futian looked toward the speaker. He was a personable young person. He didn''t have a lot of companions with him, but every one of them appeared to have a good temperament. The speaker said with a smile, \"My name is Jiang Mo, from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Mr. Ye''s talent is extraordinary; you will enter the Renhuang Plane in the future.\"


    The Jiang Clan was one of the three large clans in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Ye Futian looked at him. He also knew that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had three big clans, but he was not clear about what happened that year, and what the relationship between Jiang Clan and the Gu Clan was.


    \"How about you?\" Ye Futian asked.


    \"I am here to inquire about the future of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven,\" Jiang Mo said.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. Now nobody knew whether Gu Tianxing was alive or dead. The Third Brother appeared and was brought to the Mountain Range of Origin in the Demon Realm. Now for Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, they had to make decisions, since this storm might affect the future of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    \"Whether Gu Tianxing is alive or dead, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had better distinguish itself from the Gu Clan,\" someone said in a proud voice. The speaker was a cultivator of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Gu Tianxing were deadly enemies. If the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven wanted to stand with Gu Tianxing, then they could only be enemies.


    Warriors from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty come to ask the Prophet whether Gu Tianxing was dead or alive.


    \"Elders of the Celestial Gate will decide by themselves, so I don''t need to think too much about it. It is also not your turn to judge the things between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heavens,\" Jiang Mo responded calmly. They were also a top force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm; naturally, he had no love for the people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Not to mention that their relationship had never been very good.


    The warrior of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty snorted coldly and said nothing.


    After a while, that demon beast stepped out of the Prophet''s Palace, with his head lowered, looking quite discouraged.


    At this time, the young doorman''s eyes fell on the Goddess of the Brahma''s Pure Sky and said, \"Please come in.\"


    The leading Goddess of the Brahma''s Pure Sky had a gorgeous face and stunning bearing; she was very famous even in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. She was Jinyi Saintess below the thrones of the Nine Divine Goddess. With outstanding beauty and talent, she served as the leader of her saint clan.


    \"What will Jinyi Goddess ask today?\" someone of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked, \"Maybe about the path of divine marriage?\"


    Jinyi Saintess turned her head and glanced at him but did not reply; then she went straight up the stairs and entered the Prophet''s Palace.


    She walked all the way forward. In the palace, an unembellished courtyard, a white furry demon beast was sitting there. It was the Prophet Great Demon Beast. He did not take the human body but rather maintained the original beast form. His eyes reflected red light, and he looked at the Jinyi Saintess. With just one glance, the Jinyi Saintess felt as if she had been seen through. Her Heart of Law even grew a sense of unease.


    \"You have an inexorable catastrophe waiting for you,\" the Prophet said in a hazy voice. The Jinyi Goddess stared at him with a pair of gorgeous eyes, \"What kind of catastrophe?\"


    \"Catastrophe about love,\" the Prophet said.


    Jinyi Saintess didn''t believe him. She looked indifferent and said, \"I heard that you as a Prophet can predict the future, but now it seems you just have an undeserved reputation. I am never interested in the relationship between man and woman, and I am not here to ask about it.\"


    \"You will be one of the Nine Goddesses, but the future of Brahma''s Pure Sky will not be about you. The fate of Brahma''s Pure Sky will be tied to one person,\" the hazy voice of the Prophet came again, but it could only be heard in this space and was isolated from the outside world.


    Jinyi Saintess''s beautiful eyes stared at him; he knew what she was about to ask.


    She had a very low opinion of relationships between men and women and was a devoted cultivator. As one of the saints under the Ninth Goddesses, her biggest wish was to be one of the Nine Goddesses. She was here to try her luck; it was said that the Demon Prophet could hear everything in the Three Thousand Realms and predict the future, knowing everything, so she wanted to have a look.


    \"You can go now,\" the Prophet said calmly. The Jinyi Saintess seemed to perceive a mysterious and unpredictable power, so she turned around and left here.


    She would become one of the Nine Goddesses, but the fate of Brahma''s Pure Sky was not about her, it was about another person.


    Who would that be?


    She came down the stairs and left the Prophet''s Palace. She, who had never been convinced by the rumors of the Prophet, at this moment was lost in thought. She didn''t come out of trance until she stepped out of the Prophet''s Palace. She looked downward, her gaze falling on the crowd.


    She walked down the stairs.


    \"What did you ask, Jinyi Saintess?\" people from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked again.


    \"It has nothing to do with you,\" Saint Jinyi said coldly. After returning to Brahma''s Pure Sky''s group, she did not immediately leave.


    Later, the young doorman stepped out and looked at Jiang Mo of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, saying, \"Please.\"


    \"Why does the Prophet keep calling upon human beings?\" asked the demon grumpily.


    The boy glanced at him and said, \"You can just go. The Prophet won''t see you.\"


    \"You...\" the big demon beast grumbled, looking unfriendly. At this moment, there was a supreme pressure coming from the Prophet''s Palace, which fell on his body and made him unable to move; sweat flew from his body.


    \"I apologize for my offense, please forgive me,\" he said in a trembling voice. The Prophet in the Demon Realm is well-known for his knowledge of the past and future, but people seemed to have forgotten the Prophet''s cultivation was also extremely powerful.


    Just like Jinyi Saintess, Jiang Mo also went to see the Prophet. He bowed down and saluted, \"Jiang Mo of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven is here to meet, sir.\"


    It might sound funny that a human visited a demon beast and called him \"sir,\" but in the moment, it all seemed very normal.


    The Prophet looked at him, and Jiang Mo suddenly had the same feeling as Jinyi that just with only one glance, he had become completely transparent.


    \"Gu Tianxing will die,\" said the Prophet. Jiang Mo trembled slightly.


    This sentence seems to have two meanings. Gu Tianxing was still alive, but he was by no means Gu Tianxing of his heyday; maybe only the residual soul existed, and he would die.


    \"For the future of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the new master must be assisted with all your efforts; otherwise, the Celestial Gate will decay,\" the Prophet continued. Jiang Mo''s heart trembled. He looked up at the Prophet and asked, \"Who is the new master?\"


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was jointly governed by three major clans at that time. After the Gu Clan died out, only two clans were sharing the power, and they jointly controlled the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Even in Gu Tianxing''s days, he was the representative of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but he was not the sole ruler of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    \"You can go now.\"


    The Prophet did not answer his question but indicated he should leave. Jiang Mo''s expression froze; he wanted to ask something more, but in front of the majesty of the Prophet, he finally didn''t say anything, turn around and walked away, but what the Prophet said to him kept echoing in his mind.


    Would there be an absolute ruler in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?


    \"Otherwise, the Celestial Gate would decay.\"


    \"Gu Tianxing, he would die.\"


    What would happen in the future?

 1380 The Heavenly Secret Shall not be Revealed

    When Jiang Mo stepped out of the Prophet''s Palace, a lot of people stared at him, especially those of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Since he belonged to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, he had asked about Gu Tianxing.


    \"Jiang Mo, is Gu Tianxing alive or dead?\" a royal warrior of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked.


    Jiang Mo glanced at him but didn''t reply; he was in no mood to talk.


    The imperial warrior of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stepped forward and said, \"Don''t forget that Gu Tianxing''s life and death are related to the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.\"


    Jiang Mo looked up at him indifferently and asked, \"why don''t you go ask for yourself?\"


    He understood that the warrior was hoping to learn of Gu Tianxing''s fate so if he was summoned by the Prophet, he could ask another question. That way, he wouldn''t waste his opportunity.


    After all, he was unsure if the Prophet would answer all his questions.


    The Prophet was unexpectedly summoning so many people, and they all wanted to meet this legendary great demon beast. They wouldn''t get a second chance to see the Prophet, and they didn''t want to mess this chance up. Naturally, they wanted to ask more.


    For example, the imperial warrior wanted to ask about his future and the future of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Jiang Mo was not going to tell him.


    At this time, Jiang Mo was absorbed in thought, still thinking about what the Prophet said.


    \"It''s your turn,\" at this moment, the young doorman on the stairs said to the prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He took an emotionless look at Jiang Mo, then walked up the stairs and entered the Prophet''s Palace.


    This made demon beasts around them whisper. Many of the demon beasts coming today were unusual great demon beasts. However, the Prophet kept calling on human spiritual cultivators. Why?


    If the human cultivator Gu Tianxing had entered the Mountain Range of Origin of the Demon Realm, would the change of the Demon Realm start with humans?


    Was that why the Prophet wanted to see these humans?


    \"He''s already in, can you tell me?\" Jinyi Saintess asked Jiang Mo. Jiang Mo glanced at her and said, \"What did Jinyi Saintess ask, and how did the Prophet reply?\"


    Jinyi narrowed her eyes, looking at him, and then said nothing.


    Jiang Mo nodded slightly and walked past her.


    It didn''t take long for the warrior of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to walk out, but the expression on his face didn''t look that well; apparently, he didn''t get the answer he wanted, either.


    He glanced at the people below him; he was curious, what questions did the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky and Jiang Mo of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven ask?


    What answers did they receive?


    At this time, the young doorman continued to invite people to enter the Prophet''s Palace, and gradually some demon beasts were summoned.


    \"Goddesses, will you keep waiting?\" people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked Jinyi Saintess.


    \"We will wait for a while.\" Jinyi Saintess said. She wanted to see if Ye Futian would be called by the Prophet.


    Before, this man challenged the Violet Heavenly Palace. If the Prophet summoned him, what would he ask?


    Would it be his future, and what answer would the Prophet give him?


    After a long while, many big demon beasts had come in and out of the Prophet''s Palace, and most of them came out with disappointment.


    They didn''t get the answers they had wanted or expected.


    Most talented warriors, whether humans or demons, naturally had very high requirements and expectations of themselves. In other words, they had high self-esteem. They also had many resources, but the answers given by the Prophet might not be in their expectations.


    At this moment, the young doorman on the stairs fixed his eyes on Ye Futian and his friends, mainly looking at Zhu Zhao. He said, \"Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince and your party, is the Crown Prince the one who will enter?\"


    Zhu Zhao didn''t announce his identity, but he still recognized him as the Crown Prince of the Zhu Yan Clan. Not only Zhu Zhao, previously those warriors of the top human powers had not reported, either and were also recognized. From this, one could tell the ability of the Prophet was indeed outstanding.


    Many demon beasts looked toward the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince. So he was the son of Zhu Yan Demon Emperor. It was rumored that this guy was extremely talented and even stronger than the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor of his time. They wanted to see how he would be like after coming out.


    \"Only one person?\" Zhu Zhao asked.


    \"Yes,\" the young doorman replied, nodding.


    Zhu Zhao contemplated for a second. He naturally wanted to enter the Prophet''s Palace, but he also wanted Ye Futian to go in and have a look.


    He was curious about what questions Ye Futian would ask the Prophet, and what answers he would get.


    \"You go,\" Ye Futian said to Zhu Zhao.


    He didn''t believe so much in the Prophet''s so-called prophecy. Although astrologists had certain abilities, they also had limitations and could not understand everything.


    The same was true of the Prophet.


    Moreover, he was afraid that the Prophet would not be able to answer his question. The people next to him all thought he would ask about his future, but he did not have such a thought at all. His future lay in himself.


    From the moment he saw Emperor Ye Qing, he seemed destined to have only two paths.


    \"Although I want to see the Prophet, I don''t have many questions to ask. You go in and ask whatever you want. The Prophet knows more than you think,\" Zhu Zhao said; he could tell Ye Futian was not very interested.


    He understood. Ye Futian must be skeptical about this legendary figure of Demon Clan and was so convinced.


    However, people of the Demon Clan were all clear about the Prophet''s position in the Demon Realm.


    He was the only remaining prophet in the Prophet''s Palace. Even if a demon emperor wanted to see him, it was not a very easy thing, including those top demon emperors.


    This time, they also had no idea why the Prophet was doing this.


    \"Zhu Zhao, how could you give up the chance for a human?\" a demon warrior looked at Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince and asked.


    \"Does it have anything to do with you?\" Zhu Zhao took a glance at him and asked. That warrior smiled, showing his fangs. The Taotie big demon beast next to him was also unsatisfied with Zhu Zhao''s response, \"Boss, don''t you want the Prophet to see your future? Even if you don''t want to go, the Second Brother and the Fourth Sister want to have a try.\"


    Zhu Zhao glanced at them and said, \"You are following me, what do you want to know about the future?\"


    The fierce Taotie demon beast was feeling hurt and didn''t know how to reply.


    \"Aren''t you worried about her? Go,\" Xia Qingyuan beside said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian knew what she meant.


    However, he did not believe that the Prophet of the Demon Realm could know about Jieyu''s life or death because that would be too horrible, and how could a mortal be so aware of the past and future.


    \"Okay,\" Ye Futian nodded. Since Zhu Zhao had declined and Xia Qingyuan also said the same, he would go to visit this legendary Prophet of the Demon Realm.


    He would just have a try, and if the Prophet did not know, he could also ask about the Third Brother. He should be clearer about the Third Brother.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian stepped out. Warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty showed interest; was Ye Futian going?


    Ye Futian was also curious about what conversation the Prophet would have with him.


    Jiang Mo of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Goddesses of the Brahma''s Pure Sky also watched Ye Futian walking up the stairs.


    Although these people of top powers still did not believe Ye Futian was very important and believed his future was dim since he offended the Violet Heavenly Palace, they did recognize Ye Futian''s strength and were all curious about him.


    Ye Futian stepped into the Prophet''s Palace. Like others before him, he came to a quiet courtyard. The atmosphere here was very peaceful, and a whole white demon beast was waiting for him.


    \"Ye Futian is here to salute you, sir,\" Ye Futian bowed slightly.


    The Prophet looked at Ye Futian, his eyes suddenly glowing with blood-red light that pierced Ye Futian''s eyes. At this moment, Ye Futian felt like a thought invaded in his mind, and his expression changed slightly.


    The thought was invisible and intangible. Although he was aware of it, he could not stop it at all.


    \"Boom��\"


    Ye Futian''s head was shaken violently. The Prophet''s red eyes kept staring at him, and his body was trembling slightly; he seemed to see a scene, yet he saw nothing.


    His eyes were bleeding, crimson blood, but he still couldn''t look away. He could only stare at Ye Futian.


    \"Sir, what are you doing?\" Ye Futian stared indifferently at him and asked.


    The Prophet closed his eyes, blood exuding from them, and he said, \"You can go.\"


    Ye Futian stared at him, with a sense of vigilance. He turned around and walked away, feeling a little cold in his heart.


    The Prophet seemed to want to pry about something.


    After Ye Futian left, the Prophet''s eyes were still bleeding, and he quietly lay on the ground. There was a human figure coming out of the body of the demon beast. That was a white-haired old man, like a celestial being; it was his soul.


    At this moment, there seemed to be a pure white flame burning, burning his soul.


    His soul turned into a human form; his eyes opened and looked up at the sky.


    \"If you want to catch a glimpse of the secret of the Great Law, then there should be such a catastrophe. The heavenly secret shall not be revealed,\" a hazy voice came, but only he could hear it.


    The clan of prophets was destined not to exist in the world. After today, the world would no longer have prophets.


    Ye Futian walked out of the Prophet''s Palace. Everyone felt strange when seeing him coming out. So fast?


    Although others came out quickly, too, Ye Futian was the fastest one.


    Ye Futian''s expression seemed a little cold and angry. Warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty saw this and snickered. They were glad he had not received the answer he wanted.


    \"Prophet!\" At this moment, a scream came out; it was the voice of the young doorman. Many people were stunned for a moment, looked in the direction of the Prophet''s Palace, and saw the might shrouding over the sky. Above the skydome, a giant hazy figure showed up; it was an old man with a white beard as well as a big demon beast of the Prophet. The two of them appeared as one.


    At this moment, a flame was burning above his body, and the horrifying might descended from the sky, falling on his body.


    \"The Prophet.\" Humans and demon beasts present were all trembling inside. What happened?


    \"I leaked too many heavenly secrets, especially this time, and was punished by Heaven. Today is the day I should depart this life, and there is no prophet in the Demon Realm,\" a hazy voice rang out across the vast space, and everyone''s hearts were thumping hard.


    Even Ye Futian suddenly turned around and looked at the figure above the sky, his heart beating fast.


    How so?

 1381 The Sensation

    The Prophet departed this life today.


    \"Why��\" Ye Futian''s heart trembled. Even though he didn''t believe that the Prophet could predict the past and future, the Prophet was still an extremely powerful cultivator. After all, even a figure like Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince was willing to come to visit him and fully trusted him, which meant that the Prophet had extraordinary abilities.


    It was not just the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince; many descendants of top great demon beasts were also here.


    Before, the Prophet seemed to want to pry something from him; Ye Futian was apathetic, feeling a little bit strange, and even angry.


    However, Ye Futian had never expected that the moment he stepped out of the Prophet''s Palace, this legendary figure of the Demon Realm, the great demon beast Prophet everyone came to visit, would lay down his life because he had leaked too many heavenly secrets.


    Was it because of Ye Futian?


    Did the Prophet see anything?


    Did the Prophet die because he revealed too many heavenly secrets, or was it because he did not want to reveal heavenly secrets anymore?


    Suddenly, Ye Futian felt that he was mistaken. Perhaps, the Prophet could predict the future as the rumors said. He must have seen something, and he didn''t want to leak the heavenly secret, so he departed this life.


    But if the Prophet didn''t want to, then who was \"he\"?


    Who was the \"big figure\" in the mouth of the Prophet?


    At this time, Ye Futian''s brain was scrambled and a bit chaotic. This feeling was weird. Not long ago, he was still a little angry, but at this moment, he had an inexplicable feeling.


    Not only Ye Futian, but warriors of the Demon Realm around him were also all shocked to see what was happening in front of them, stunned by this scene.


    The Prophet passed away.


    He was the last prophet of the Prophet Clan, but today he said he leaked too many heavenly secrets and died.


    If the reason for his death was all the secrets he revealed, then why had he summoned all these people to leak the heavenly secrets?


    Was it because of the message he sent before?


    There would be a big change in the Demon Realm, and the same would happen in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. A big figure would come. The Prophet summoned people, revealed the heavenly secrets, but was he also spying on the heavenly secret at the same time?


    The wind and clouds in the sky began to change color, and the suffocating might dropped down from the sky; the life force was appalling. Many great demon beasts in the boundless surrounding area almost fell to the ground under the pressure; demon beasts were more sensitive to their superiors'' aura.


    This meant, demon emperors were coming, more than one person.


    From the sky, there was continual might dropping down, countless thoughts sweeping past, and there even were big demon beasts coming directly across the void; some big demon beasts condensed phantoms with great demonic powers and appeared in the sky above the Prophet''s Palace.


    They all looked at the figure of the departing prophet in shock, hearts trembling.


    \"Prophet, why did you do so?\" asked a demon emperor.


    They didn''t understand.


    The Prophet''s status in the Demon Realm was transcendent, and even when they requested to visit him, the Prophet usually declined.


    In the Demon Realm, even the great demon beasts at the pinnacle would not lay a hand on this last prophet of the prophet clan, and this was also a consensus in the demon world. Moreover, when things happened, they would always come to ask the Prophet''s opinions.


    During the war between humans and demon beasts, the prophets also played a very important role.


    Even the top powerful figures in the Demon Realm were unwilling to lay hands on the Prophet. He always had the freedom to do whatever he wanted, but why had the only remaining prophet chosen to depart his life.


    Was it because he foresaw something?


    \"Why did this happen?\" a condensed phantom of the demon emperor showed up and sighed. \"Didn''t you know your status in the Demon Realm?\"


    \"This is my inexorable catastrophe, you don''t have to feel sad for me,\" the prophet said. \"Everything has its time. You don''t have to investigate why I chose to depart this life; there is no reason. And you don''t have to deliberately change anything, just let it be. The Demon Realm will have a disturbance, but as long as everyone follows the trend. the Demon Realm will still be the Demon Realm between the sky and earth. \"


    Demon emperors listened quietly and kept the words of the Prophet in mind. The prophet''s last words were all from the bottom of his heart, and they should remember them forever.


    \"What suggestions do you have about the Mountain Range of Origin, Prophet?\" asked a demon emperor. The Mountain Range of Origin was extremely important to the Demon Realm. It was the place where the Demon Realm originated, and now some human cultivators had entered it, so they wanted to know how to cope with it.


    Now, they needed to ask the prophet''s opinion one last time.


    \"Everything has its own time, just follow the trend of nature. Everything that should happen will eventually happen, and you will understand when it''s the time,\" the Prophet''s thin, hazy voice came. His soul figure became more and more blurred as if it was about to turn into ashes under the flame of the Great Law.


    \"My time is up. It''s time for me to go accompany my prophet ancestors,\" the Prophet said, letting out a long sigh. As the only remaining prophet of the prophet clan, he had felt lonely on earth.


    Today, he was finally free.


    Warriors of the demon clans all looked solemn, staring toward the direction of the Prophet. Even some demon emperors bowed slightly in the direction of the Prophet, saying, \"Sir, may you go in peace.\"


    Seeing all the demon emperors like this, in the vast and boundless space, countless great demon beasts appeared in the upper sky, all bowing and saluting in the direction of the Prophet.


    The prophet''s figure became hazier and hazier, until turning into endless light spots, like stars, lighting up the vast space and drifting with the wind.


    Many demon beasts stretched out their hands; the light dots passed through their palms, and the vast endless void sky was filled with a touch of sadness.


    After today, there would no longer be prophets in the Demon Realm.


    Ye Futian was standing in the lower sky; he could also feel the atmosphere, see the demon emperors showing up in the upper sky and feel the life forces of tens of demon emperors, how horrifying the scene was.


    Moreover, there were many demon emperors not showing up, but they were watching it.


    At this moment, Ye Futian started to understand the status of the Prophet in the Demon Realm.


    However, because of this, his feelings were more complicated.


    Was the Prophet''s death because of him?


    \"Who was the last person to meet the Prophet?\" at this moment, above the void air, a demon emperor asked.


    Below, many people''s eyes fell on Ye Futian. Jiang Mo of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, Saintesses of the Brahma''s Pure Sky, and people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty all had a strange look.


    When they saw Ye Futian coming out so quickly, they all thought Ye Futian was disappointed because he didn''t get the answer he wanted and returned, but everything that happened after that trembled the Demon Realm.


    Was Ye Futian the reason for the Prophet''s death?


    However, the moment the idea came to their minds, they just rejected it; it could not be possible. What kind of figure was the Prophet? The demon emperors had to wait for his call to see him; his position in the entire Demon Realm was transcendent.


    They had also entered the Prophet''s Palace before and seen the Prophet. He could see through them with just a glance and make them fail to react. They were also top figures, but in front of the Prophet, they were vulnerable like children.


    No matter how strong Ye Futian''s talent was, it couldn''t be much different from theirs. How could he cause the Prophet''s death?


    The Prophet might have been exhausted and had the idea of departing this life before Ye Futian came in.


    \"I was the last one who met the Prophet,\" Ye Futian looked at the demon emperor and replied. Everyone was watching him; he couldn''t hide anywhere.


    \"Did Prophet say something?\" the demon emperor asked. Was the last person who saw the Prophet a human cultivator?


    If so, the Prophet might not leave anything.


    \"The Prophet looked at me and let me go, didn''t leave anything. I was a bit angry when I came out, but the things after scared me,\" Ye Futian replied. The demon emperor heard his words and nodded, without asking anything.


    The Prophet had said not to investigate the reason; it was his time, and everything had an end.


    A prophet of the Demon Realm, of course, couldn''t die because of a human cultivator of Saint Plane.


    The demon emperor sighed. Unfortunately, the prophet just departed his life like this before he had the chance to visit him. There was no reason, and nothing was left.


    \"Should we check all the humans and demon beasts here?\" another demon emperor asked. \"Was the Prophet''s death related to what he saw from these people today?\"


    \"No need. You have heard the last words of the Prophet before he died. Why bother doing it, let it be.\" another demon emperor said. Other demon emperors didn''t say much, and soon they all stepped into the sky and left. Those horrifying life forces also dissipated in the air.


    It didn''t take long for everything in this world to return to peace.


    Only some Saint Plane warriors of Demon Clans still gathered here, looking at the Prophet''s Palace.


    Today, there were still many great demon beasts waiting to see the Prophet, but now, there was never a chance.


    \"Let''s go,\" Xia Qingyuan whispered beside Ye Futian.


    Here, she probably was the person who knew most except Yu Sheng.


    Before, her emperor father had told her that during the battle of Ultimate Holy Palace, something was exposed from Ye Futian. Her father gave the order to block everything and later, he summoned Ye Futian to come to the Upper Realm and wiped out all memories related to that incident. Only those in the Ultimate Holy Palace knew about it.


    And she knew that even the Ultimate Holy Palace was in her father''s field of vision.


    Although she did not know who the figure that entered the Emperor Xia''s Palace was at that time, she knew he must be an extremely powerful person.


    Ye Futian''s background was probably a very big secret, so big that even a Renhuang couldn''t unveil it.


    And now, after seeing him, the Prophet departed this life. Others wouldn''t think much because they didn''t know Ye Futian''s situation, but she couldn''t help thinking about it.


    It was probably because of Ye Futian.


    But it was also shocking to her that the Prophet chose to pass away because of it. What did the Prophet see?


    What was Ye Futian''s secret?


    She didn''t want to think too much; this place they were is was dangerous. They had to leave first.


    Many people around Ye Futian also had some rough ideas, but they all remained silent. Qi Xuangang also said, \"Let''s go.\"


    He was also a person who could see Great Law destinies. What happened today made him feel unusual. Even though he always thought highly of Ye Futian, now it seemed that this disciple''s fortune was way more powerful than he had imagined, so powerful that he couldn''t even speculate.


    And the Prophet of Demon Realm in this field was far superior to him!

 1382 The Fox Spiri

    Ye Futian and his group just walked away; many people stared at them but did not stop them.


    After all, it was still impossible for them to associate the death of a legendary Prophet of the Demon Realm with a human Saint Plane cultivator.


    \"Didn''t you ask about her?\" Xia Qingyuan asked Ye Futian while they traveled in the void sky.


    Ye Futian shook his head and delivered his voice back, \"I didn''t lie. After seeing the prophet, I didn''t ask anything, and he didn''t say anything.\"


    Ye Futian suddenly realized that he should have asked.


    However, the moment he stepped into the Prophet''s Palace, the Prophet just stared at him with a pair of red eyes, and soon blood oozed from those eyes. In such a situation, he only thought about walking away, how could he ask anything?


    At that time, he couldn''t expect that the Prophet directly departed this life after he came out, and it was because of this that he began to change some of his previous thoughts.


    \"The prophet''s death doesn''t have anything to do with you, right?\" Zhu Zhao suddenly asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was stirred slightly. He looked at Zhu Zhao and said, \"What do you think?\"


    Zhu Zhao shook his head; even he felt this idea a bit too crazy. He was the only prophet in the Demon Realm, and why would he choose to depart this life because of Ye Futian?


    \"It''s just way too strange. Gu Tianxing entered the place of origin of the Demon Realm, and warriors from all over the Demon Realm came together. There was news from the Prophet''s Palace that a drastic change would happen in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Later, the Prophet continually summoned people and passed away. It seems that the Demon Realm is not at peace this time.\"


    Zhu Zhao raised a brow and seemed to be thinking.


    \"Let''s see what will happen,\" Ye Futian said.


    \"What kind of person is your Third Brother?\" Zhu Zhao asked. Now he had known the relationship between Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu. Everything started because of this descendant of the Gu Clan, and if it had not been for him, Gu Tianxing would have not shown up.


    \"How can I know?\" Ye Futian asked and shrugged.


    \"I heard that many people speculated he was the grandson and only descendant of Gu Tianxing and son of the peerless talent of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven Gu Jiangnan in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but at that time, nobody had heard that he had any children,\" Zhu Zhao said. He had also heard about the name of Gu Jiangnan, the gallant hero of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven in the Demon Realm.


    He was the youngest Renhuang in the history of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    \"Gu Jiangnan,\" Ye Futian murmured. \"Does he have any story?\"


    \"At that time, he was considered to have the potential to surpass Gu Tianxing. But a conflict erupted between him and the crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and he was besieged and killed. It was because of this incident that Gu Tianxing wiped out the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, which caused a monstrous commotion that shook the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm.\"


    Zhu Zhao slowly said, \"Speaking of this, I also think that the conjecture of the people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is correct. It must be true that only the son of Gu Jiangnan can lead to the death of Gu Tianxing; a large sealing charm was on his body, which I guess was put on by Gu Tianxing and the Gu Clan Twelve Immortals, so even a Renhuang could not detect it.\"


    \"I''m afraid that your brother will disturb the peace of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.\"


    \"What are we going to do next?\" Ye Futian asked. He didn''t say much; no matter what the Third Brother''s identity was, it didn''t matter. He only knew that Gu Dongliu was his Third Brother of the Cottage.


    \"Didn''t you see that all the demon emperors have arrived? Now, all we need to do is wait with patience and see what they will do,\" said Zhu Zhao.


    \"Okay,\" Ye Futian said and nodded. Zhu Zhao was more familiar with the Demon Realm than Ye Futian. Ye Futian couldn''t use his strength here at all, so now following others was indeed the most suitable choice.


    They found an inn to stay the night in the Demon Metropolis. In the following days, the Demon Metropolis bustled.


    The news that Gu Tianxing had appeared in the Mountain Range of Origin caused a commotion in the Demon Realm. Countless big demon beasts came to investigate, and now many top demon clans were gathering in the Demon Metropolis.


    The underground waves were surging.


    Both human cultivators and demon clan warriors who wanted to collect news were preparing to enter the Mountain Range of Origin.


    The Mountain Range of Origin was known in the Heavenly Mandate Realm as the demons'' place of origin. There were many legends about it, and it was the forbidden land of the demon clans.


    But now some human cultivators had entered there, so they had to go in.


    For human cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they wanted Gu Tianxing''s news. Whatever the news was, it would have great influence and might even affect the whole Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    At this moment, in the Demon Metropolis, in the void sky, there is a group of people walking in the air. Zhu Zhao and Ye Futian were walking at the front and seemed to be rushing to somewhere.


    \"Just now the news came that those demon clans were getting ready to enter the Mountains Range of Origin. Right now, many demon warriors are heading toward the Celestial Fox Palace and want to borrow the ability of the Celestial Fox Clan,\" Zhu Zhao said. \"But the Celestial Foxes are cunning and intelligent by nature. They will be ripped off if they want to take advantage of them.\"


    \"What special abilities does the Celestial Fox Clan have?\" Ye Futian asked.


    \"The Celestial Fox Palace is one of the most attractive places of the Demon Metropolis, even more than the Prophet''s Palace because the Prophet seldom summoned people, even Demon Emperors could rarely visit, so usually no demon warriors were going there, but the Celestial Fox Palace is different. The Celestial Fox Palace opens the biggest trading place of the Demon Metropolis, which is a miracle in itself. In addition to their special talent, the extraordinary intelligence of the Celestial Fox Clan is also a factor of their success.\"


    Zhu Zhao explained to Ye Futian. The Celestial Fox Clan indeed had superior intelligence. Many warriors of demon clans said the average intelligence of the Celestial Fox Clan might be the highest among all demon clans, and they were good at scheming. Even when they were weak, they were able to negotiate well between top clans.


    And today, they had also become a very powerful demon force.


    Moreover, it maintained a very friendly relationship with many top demon clans. Those top demon clans would not touch them, and other demons dare not assault them.


    \"Warriors of the Celestial Fox Clan have a strange skill of transformation, and they also know the powerful magic of Phantom Illusion, which makes them the demon beast clan that most frequently enters the Mountain Range of Origin. The Celestial Fox Clan uses the Mountain Range of Origin to hide their treasure and often enter it to dig out treasures and hold open auctions to sell them. With their talent for business, they gradually made the Celestial Fox Palace a well-known trading place for the Demon Metropolis. It''s famous for being the first demon trading place in the world.\"


    Zhu Zhao said, \"You should know that demon beasts are different from humans. Most demon beasts are not good at trading and prefer to directly steal what they want. Although the world of human cultivators is also full of cheating and scheming, the dirty tricks are in a deeper sense and more civilized on the surface, which is why there are more trading places there.


    \"So, asking the Celestial Fox Clan for help is doing trade with them,\" Ye Futian asked.


    \"The Celestial Fox Clan will naturally think in this way. Now, all warriors want to enter the Mountain Range of Origin, and if they want to use the power of the Celestial Fox Clan, they can just wait and see how the commission skyrockets,\" Zhu Zhao said.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly.


    \"Also, the female beasts of the Celestial Fox Clan are all alluring fox spirits,\" Zhu Zhao said and took a look at Ye Futian with a smile.


    \"Brother, don''t be fooled by fox spirits,\" the Princess of the Feather Men Clan said, smiling.


    \"What level of fox spirit can trick me?\" Zhu Zhao asked disdainfully. Although many demon beasts had some special habits, he had no interest in those kinds of habits at all.


    \"It''s here,\" Zhu Zhao said, gazing downward. There was a large palace standing there; the peaks of the palaces seemed to be shrouded by clouds and mist, much like the castles described in fairytales.


    The Celestial Fox Palace was extremely vast, far grander than the single Prophet''s Palace.


    \"Let''s go down.\"


    And they descended and arrived outside of the Celestial Fox Palace. There were warriors of different demon beast clans gathering all around, together with a few human cultivators.


    Besides, the most conspicuous people were the Fox Spirits that Zhu Zhao talked about.


    Young women of the Celestial Fox Clan in human form were all extremely beautiful. Their skin was smooth like silk, looking very delicate; their bodies were fair and unblemished. The most attractive thing about them was their eyes, which were the perfect shape and could steal a man''s soul and enchant even the most indecisive demon warrior''s heart with a single glance.


    Ye Futian they didn''t attract much attention after they landed; after all, powerful demon warriors were everywhere.


    However, there were several young women of the Celestial Fox clan walking toward them. They all had strange charms when they walked. That pair of fox eyes gazed at them. Even though Ye Futian was used to being around beauties, he still felt that these women of the Celestial Fox Clan had a natural charm.


    \"Are you the crown prince of the Celestial Demon City?\" a woman asked while looking at Zhu Zhao. Great demon beasts of the Zhu Yan Clan were rare, and most members of the Zhu Clan were in the Celestial Demon City and governed by the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor.


    The Celestial Fox Clan was always sociable and resourceful, and they had an immense knowledge of all forces of the demon clan. They had heard that there were Four Princes in the Celestial Demon City with the Demon Crown Prince Zhu Zhao as the lead, and now these four people were in front of them.


    Zhu Zhao glanced at the female fox. Although it was not surprising that she could recognize them, a Sage Plane demon beast who could recognize him with one look must have some extraordinary abilities.


    Zhu Zhao nodded slightly and avoided her eyes, looking forward.


    \"Your Highness, wait a moment,\" she said. She seemed to have understood something and retreated, with an alluring smile on her face.


    A moment later, a beautiful woman with an even more unusual temperament came; every smile of hers was touching.


    \"Hu Yao''er is here to salute the Crown Prince and Your Highnesses,\" the woman bowed slightly and said. She was actually a fox demon beast of Doctrine Saint Plane, but she didn''t show any arrogance and acted humbly.


    Her eyes glanced at them and lingered for a while when she saw Ye Futian; her eyes seemed to be able to steal anyone''s soul.


    \"You must be Master Ye,\" said Hu Yao''er with a smile.


    Ye Futian looked at her in surprise. It was nothing special to be able to recognize the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince, but now she also recognized him, which meant the Celestial Fox Clan was indeed very sensitive to news.


    \"Yes, but I am afraid I don''t deserve the title, Lady Yao''er,\" Ye Futian replied.


    \"Yao''er is just a beast. I don''t deserve the title ''Lady,'' either. Please just call me Yao''er,\" she said with a smile. When she talked, she slightly lowered her head and giggled, and looked at him with her gorgeous eyes. Ye Futian felt like he would be captivated by her eyes.


    \"It is the charming craft,\" Ye Futian thought to himself.


    \"What are we doing here?\" Xia Qingyuan asked coldly, interrupting the conversation. She stared at Hu Yao''er and felt there was something wrong with her. She was indeed a fox spirit!

 1383 The Trade

    Hu Yao''er looked at Xia Qingyuan. People of the Celestial Fox Clan all had excellent intelligence; of course, she understood what she meant.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at her and saw that pair of foxy eyes, thinking to herself that no wonder she was a fox spirit.


    Even though she was a woman, she could still feel how seductive her eyes were.


    \"Your Highnesses and Mr. Ye are all distinguished guests. Please come on in and have a seat,\" Hu Yao''er looked away and said with a smile. When ordinary demon warriors came, the Celestial Fox Clan would not send their core disciples to receive them.


    Zhu Yan Demon Emperor who ruled the Celestial Demon City was not an ordinary big demon beast, and he was very powerful.


    Zhu Zhao nodded. Hu Yao''er led them through the crowd, passing through the outer space. There were fewer demon beasts and humans outside. In front of them, there was an independent area, which was encircled by fences. Ordinary demon beasts were not allowed to enter; only those demon beasts or human cultivators with special identities were eligible to come here.


    Ye Futian glanced at the crowd and got a strange look on his face. He saw acquaintances; warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace were also here.


    It seemed that they were also preparing to enter the Mountain Range of Origin, and they wanted to ask the warriors of the Celestial Fox Clan for help.


    People of the Violet Heavenly Palace also saw Ye Futian, but they looked quite indifferent. Ye Futian led people to challenge the Violet Heavenly Palace; they would not let it go.


    Moreover, Ye Futian seemed to be mingling with the Zhu Yan Demon Crown Prince.


    It seemed that they had been together since their battle.


    Warriors from other demon clans also looked at Zhu Zhao and Ye Futian, but they didn''t care too much. People who were able to come here were not ordinary. Even though they knew Zhu Zhao''s identity, they didn''t care much.


    \"Today we have a few good things in the Celestial Fox Palace. They are all from the Mountain Range of Origin. Your Highnesses and Mr. Ye, please take a look if you are interested,\" Hu Yao''er said in an extremely gentle voice with a unique charm.


    Her voice was pleasing to Ye Futian and others'' ears; only Xia Qingyuan showed a cold face and stared towards Hu Yao''er from time to time.


    Hu Yao''er was not the only one here; there was a stunningly gorgeous Celestial Fox woman beside every group of big demon beasts and humans. Human female cultivators would be jealous of their innate beauty.


    \"Is it a coincidence?\" Ye Futian wondered. Now, many top figures needed the Celestial Fox Clan''s help to enter the Mountain Range of Origin, but the Celestial Fox Clan took out the treasures of Mountain Range of Origin for sale.


    It was indeed the best time to promote the value of the goods.


    At this moment, someone in the front came to his side. An old white celestial fox elder walked at the forefront. Several ladies carried a Qiankun Tree behind them, and bizarre things were hanging on the branches of the tree.


    Warriors of the Celestial Fox Clan put it in front of the crowd. The old man with white hair and white beard looked at the people and said, \"All these things on the Qiankun tree are from the Mountain Range of Origin, but their specific usage and functions are not yet known. They are tradable here.\"


    The eyes of demon beasts and humans all fell on the treasures of the Qiankun tree. Hu Yao''er said, \"Just tell me if you want to take a closer look, I can bring them here for you to look at.\"


    People who came here were qualified to see these treasures at a close distance and judge their value.


    \"But I should remind you that some of these treasures may be much more valuable than the transaction price, but they may also be worthless,\" said Hu Yao''er softly.


    \"The way of making deals in the Celestial Fox Palace is so special!\" Ye Futian said and smiled. In the place where humans traded, shop owners usually first judged the value of the treasure and then set a reserve price.


    It seemed different here.


    \"Yes,\" Hu Yao''er gently nodded and said, \"these things are all from the Mountain Range of Origin; most of them are extremely valuable treasures, but there are also ordinary things. We picked them up and brought back; customers need to judge their value and then bid by yourselves, and we Celestial Fox Palace never touch them.\"


    \"I see,\" Ye Futian said and nodded with a smile. The Celestial Fox Palace probably wouldn''t do loss-making trading, so it was very likely that they had made an evaluation beforehand.


    He looked at the treasures on the Qiankun Tree, which were all somehow peculiar. For example, there was a huge monster egg with a seal on it that could not be seen through even with the Thought Method. It was difficult to judge what was inside.


    There was also a rusty knife with crevices, but one could still tell the original appearance of the knife must be dangerous. Moreover, on the rusty blade, there was still a faint lingering Knife Will, as if it hadn''t dissipated even after many years; one could imagine how strong the Knife Will was in the past.


    Next to this knife was a sword with a rusty scabbard. There seemed to be a gap between the sword and the scabbard. From this gap, a beam of strong light could be seen faintly, but life force could not be felt from it. It was difficult to guess what level of sword it was.


    Beside them, there was a piece of bone with no sense of life force; nobody knew why it was hung there.


    \"You can pick and choose the ones you like,\" the white-haired old man said to them, left his place and hid behind the Qiankun tree.


    \"Can you show me the sword?\" Ye Futian pointed at the sword with the rusty scabbard and said.


    \"Sure,\" Yao''er said and nodded. She went to pick up the sword and came back to Ye Futian, holding it in her hands.


    Ye Futian''s eyes flickered with a strange ray of light; his mind tried to invade inside the sword but was blocked by the invisible Sword Will. The old man of the Celestial Fox Clan watched the scene quietly. How was that possible to let Ye Futian see inside the situation?


    After a while, Ye Futian looked up and said to the old man of Celestial Fox Palace, \"What''s the price?\"


    \"We in the Celestial Fox Palace have never touched it since we got it from the Mountain of Origin. It is also the rule of all things being traded in the Celestial Fox Palace: we keep traded goods wholly intact. We in the Celestial Fox Palace do not know what level of sword it is, but we have an estimate that this sword might be used by a Human Emperor,\" the old man said.


    \"Or it is just a rusty sword?\" Ye Futian asked.


    If what the elder said was true, Ye Futian was willing to believe that the Celestial Fox Palace had not touched it before. However, at least, warriors of the Celestial Fox Palace had an estimate in mind, and they would not trade at a loss. Among all the goods being traded, there must be many worthless things, among which one or two treasures were hidden.


    \"Indeed,\" the old man said with a smile, \"so, the price of this sword has been evaluated with a reserve price according to the limit of Renhuang belongings, and the one who bids the highest price will finally get it. If you want, you can directly deliver your voice to me and say your price; there is only one chance, and whoever pays the highest price will get it.\"


    There was only one chance to bid, which was the rule of the Celestial Fox Palace and was used to create tension. Many of the objects unearthed from the Mountain Range of Origin were extraordinary and coveted by many people.


    However, people didn''t seem interested in the sword.


    \"Okay,\" Ye Futian nodded and soon said his price to the old man. The old man''s eyes flickered and seemed to be listening, but in fact, others were just watching and didn''t bid.


    For this sword, not many people showed interest.


    \"Anyone else want to bid?\" the old man asked and glanced at the people present. No one spoke to him, so he smiled and announced, \"so, the sword belongs to Mr. Ye now.\"


    \"Congratulations Mr. Ye,\" Hu Yao''er said with a smile. Ye Futian took out a storage ring and gave it to Hu Yao''er, and she handed it over to the old man.


    After checking, the old man smiled and said, \"Do you want to try out the sword? I''m also curious about what level of sword it is.\"


    \"Wuchen, you have a try,\" Ye Futian gave it to Ye Wuchen beside him.


    Ye Wuchen took it with his right hand, then grabbed the scabbard with his left hand, pulling the sword with his right hand.


    After a moment, the dazzling light of the sword shone, and the mighty life force swept across the surrounding space; the whole sword body was shining, from which a wisp of imperial life force came out, with extremely appalling power.


    In the glow of light, Ye Wuchen''s face was also illuminated. He stared at the sword, slightly stirred by it. It was indeed a sword used by a Renhuang, containing Renhuang''s Will.


    Noises rose from the crowd behind; the place was in an uproar. Nobody knew how much Ye Futian had paid, but since it was a sword used by Renhuang, it was a good deal.


    And, he might have earned a lot.


    He was quite decisive.


    However, there were still many treasures and opportunities.


    \"Show me this!\" many people pointed at the same thing and said almost at the same time. They were pointing at a giant stone lying on the Qiankun Tree. The stone seemed to have experienced years of weathering, and inside the stone, there seemed to be an inscription.


    The inscription seemed to be written by hand; the characters even contained Will and released a faint light, which illuminated the whole giant stone.


    Moreover, the handwriting they saw was only the tip of the iceberg; only the top few characters could be seen.


    Treasures like stone steles were often used to record the cultivation method and magical skills, or left by powerful cultivators during cultivation, so it seemed to many people that this huge stone was likely to be an extremely valuable thing.


    Many people wanted to bet on it and see what the stele inside the boulder was.


    \"Everyone, excuse us,\" said the old man. A Celestial Fox woman took up the stele and walked towards those who wanted it.


    Ye Futian didn''t compete with them; he didn''t know what this thing was. However, for the first treasure, the Celestial Fox Clan had made a loss, would they lose money for other things?


    Since the Celestial Fox Clan was known for outstanding intelligence, it certainly would not be that simple.


    However, at this moment, Ye Futian''s attention was on another inconspicuous object; no one noticed it at all.


    \"Aren''t you interested in it? A lot of people seem to be competing for the stone. If it is something left by an ancient big figure, its value could be astronomical,\" Hu Yao''er whispered to Ye Futian.


    \"I''m not richer than they are,\" Ye Futian shrugged and smiled. These treasures from the Mountain Range of Origin were all very expensive, some of which were even Renhuang-level. In this situation, although Ye Futian''s resources were enough for his cultivation, they wouldn''t be enough to compete with others.

 1384 A Piece of Bone

    Hu Yao''er smiled and said, \"You must be joking, Lord Ye. However, human cultivators like to engrave their magical powers and the like on stone tablets, creating powerful inscriptions. When the great war between humans and demons broke out, many Imperial level figures were buried in the mountains. You have speculated that a Renhuang left this inscription. There is a high probability that this is true.\"


    Ye Futian looked into Hu Yao''er''s bright eyes that were full of sincerity. It was like there was no ulterior motive within them.


    \"Perhaps. However, I do not want to gamble on this,\" said Ye Futian. And he was not lying. If it came down to him, he was nowhere near good enough.


    This Celestial Fox Palace presented him with an opportunity. He could use something small to obtain something great.


    Of course, he was not purely gambling. He had significant advantages when compared to others. He could use his powers to see what was going on.


    \"If you don''t have enough cultivation resources, I can lend you some,\" said Zhu Zhao beside him.


    Ye Futian shook his head. \"No need.\"


    \"Then can I try?\" asked Zhu Zhao.


    Ye Futian shook his head again. \"There is no need to gamble. Zhu Zhao looked at him for a moment and then nodded.


    Many of the other cultivators were getting themselves ready. The Violet Heavenly Palace seemed to be interested in the stele as well and were preparing to make an offer for it.


    \"You all may send your offers. Same rules as always: you still only have one chance. Whoever offers the highest price will be the one to get it,\" said the Elder of the Tianhu clan. The cultivators were all silent for a bit, then began to call out their offers.


    Those who wanted it more quoted higher prices.


    Moreover, since they already had their estimates, it would be difficult for them not to pay a high price if they wanted this treasure.


    The demonic beasts and human cultivators around them were watching. Everything was in chaos amid the clamor of voices. Although most of the people there were only there to watch the auction, they were still very interested in it.


    \"Who else?\" The elder of the Tianhu clan asked again. After a moment, he looked at everyone and smiled. His gaze fell onto one particular place.


    \"Congratulations to everyone from the Violet Heavenly Palace,\" he said. It seemed that the Violet Heavenly Palace had won the treasure.


    \"They truly are worthy of being called the top force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They are both wealthy and vigorous,\" said Ye Futian with a smile. The Violet Heavenly Palace would get their prize, but they would pay a high price to do so.


    The daughter of the Tianhu clan held the stele up before the people from the Violet Heavenly Palace. A sharp look flashed across their faces. One of them reached for the stone, eliminating all of their outward impurities.


    Soon, traces appeared on the stone. Brilliant light flashed, dazzling everyone. Everyone looked towards it.


    The area grew even noisier. Many of the ancient beasts were roaring without end.


    Finally, the brilliant light shone from the stone stele. Characters were imprinted upon the stone one by one. They were imposing in their magnificence.


    Everyone was staring there, including all of the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace. But their gazes quickly froze.


    \"Haha!\" came the laugh of a demonic beast.


    \"So this is a treasure left behind by a Renhuang. How incredible!\"


    \"Unfortunately, it is not a spell. It is just a record of his career. It was probably the final thing he wrote before he died. Thus, it has a special meaning.\"


    Many of the demonic beasts cried out. Seeing the top human cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Realm humiliated made them incredibly excited.


    The cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked crestfallen. The thing they had gotten was just what they had thought it was, it was a Renhuang relic, and a Renhuang had carved the characters in it. Thus, many people had competed for it.


    But it was not some powerful spell of the Great Path. It was just a simple introduction, and it did not even contain that much will.


    Although the things that a Renhuang wrote naturally contained will, and thus were treasured objects, it was not anywhere near worth the price they had paid for it.


    They had paid a massive price to get this object.


    \"Although you may be a little disappointed, it is after all a Renhuang relic. It is precious,\" said the elder of the Tianhu clan comfortingly. The people from the Violet Heavenly Palace did not say anything. They had made their gamble. Now, they had to accept their loss.


    They looked involuntarily at Ye Futian. Had he made a bid for this one?


    From what he had said before, he seemed uninterested in it and had even asked Zhu Zhao not to gamble for it. Could it be that he had seen something?


    Zhu Zhao looked at Ye Futian as well. This guy could not know a trick like this, could he?


    \"Are you all still looking at that one?\" asked the elder. The next few treasures also had people who were interested in them. They were auctioned in turn, and one of them was actually very good, but the rest were rather commonplace.


    Many people sighed at this. Celestial Fox Palace was quite powerful. Although they had never touched these items, they were still able to estimate their prices.


    It seemed that only the sword that Ye Futian had taken at first was worth very much.


    Moreover, after that, Ye Futian had not been interested in any of the other treasures. He had not made any other bids.


    Soon, there was only one treasure left on the ancient tree. It was a bone that looked plain and simple, and there was no aura emanating from it. It seemed to have been marked by the passage of time. It seemed to have experienced quite a lot.


    This piece of bone was plain and had no aura. It looked just like an ordinary demonic beast''s bone. Thus, no one inquired about it. But it still appeared on the ancient tree.


    However, no one there was interested in it.


    Especially since they had all seen how common everything that had come before it was.


    \"Is no one interested in this bone?\" asked the elder. \"It is the only treasure left. It may be a bit common, but it comes from the Origin Mountains. It is both heavy and solid. Even someone who has cultivated up to my level cannot leave so much as a mark upon it. Thus, it must be the bone of a Demon Emperor. Even if you just use it to forge a weapon, it will be quite useful.\"


    He knew that this bone was a bit too unremarkable.


    And the Tianhu clan could not determine its value.


    Their experience had shown them that a truly powerful bone of a Demon Emperor would have an incredibly strong aura. It would not be like this.


    \"It has no external aura. Can it truly be the bone of a Demon Emperor?\" asked Ye Futian.


    \"A Saint cannot leave a mark on it. What do you think? If it was weak, it would already be broken and would not have appeared here,\" said the elder. \"The Tianhu clan would not bring something worthless to trade.\"


    \"Can I see how heavy it is?\" asked Ye Futian. \"If I can''t break it either, that''s fine. I won''t compete for it.\"


    The elder saw that no one else was interested, then nodded. \"Fine.\"


    \"Yao''er, will you go get it for me?\" asked Ye Futian.


    Hu Yao''er nodded and walked over. She brought the bone back to him.


    Ye Futian took it, and suddenly he could feel how heavy it was. It did not seem to be a bone, but rather a massive demonic beast.


    Threads of aura swept out and entered into the bone and then disappeared. He gave it back to Hu Yao''er and said, \"It is indeed very heavy. It is quite possible that it is, in fact, a bone of a Renhuang. But even so, it is not very useful. I know an elder who is good at forging things, and thus I will consider trading a Saint-level technique for it. If this is not enough for you, then I don''t want it.\"


    The elder looked at Ye Futian and saw how indifferent he looked. No one else looked interested either.


    He smiled bitterly and said, \"A Renhuang bone cannot be compared to a technique in terms of its solidness alone. However, selling it for such a low price would bring shame to the Tianhu clan. Everyone, please make an offer.\"


    Ye Futian nodded. \"Fine.\" But he did not make another offer. A cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace swept his gaze over Ye Futian, then made an offer to the elder.


    The elder had not been listening to the price that Ye Futian had quoted, but the rules of the Celestial Fox Palace forbade him from repeating it. He could only say, \"Anybody else?\"


    Ye Futian smiled and then quoted a price to the elder.


    When he heard him, the elder stared at him for a long time. The people of the Tianhu clan were all very cunning. Humans were naturally much smarter than demonic beasts, and this guy was definitely up to something. His offer was several times that which he had said before.


    He was not as indifferent as he seemed. He had just quoted a reasonable price.


    He looked at him and said, \"Since no one else wants it, congratulations, Lord Ye.\"


    Ye Futian smiled and gave another item to Hu Yao''er.


    The cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace frowned and said, \"Are you sure it was him?\"


    The elder understood his doubts. He nodded seriously and said, \"The Celestial Fox Palace is not so generous as to purposely give him a low price. The price that Lord Ye quoted is different from what he said before.\"


    The cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace''s face darkened. This may not have been an important matter, but they had previously tried hard to prevent Ye Futian from getting this and had thus quoted a price twice as much as he had.


    However, in the end, Ye Futian was the one who had gotten it.


    They had tried to scheme against Ye Futian, but he had schemed against them as well. He was naturally quite unhappy about this.


    \"Congratulations, Lord Ye.\" Hu Yao''er brought the bone to Ye Futian. But at that moment, a voice came from behind him, saying, \"What did he pay? I will pay double.\"


    Everyone turned and looked at the people who were approaching. Everyone moved aside to make a path for them.


    The elder was very perceptive. He narrowed his eyes and looked at them. He knew where they had come from, but said, \"Forgive me, we have already sold all of our items. We cannot make any more deals.\"


    The leader of the people walked up to him, then turned to look at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked back at him, then hid the bone away. He had gotten it, and he was not going to let it get away.


    \"Whatever price you paid for it, I will give you double. Why don''t you give me that bone?\" said the head of the people who had just arrived to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. \"This bone will be useful for forging weapons. Since I''ve already bought it, I''m not going to give it to you.\"


    \"I''ll give you ten times what you paid for it.\"


    The other man seemed not to hear what Ye Futian had said as he directly called out this astonishing price: ten times what Ye Futian had paid.


    If Ye Futian just let the bone go, he could get back ten times what he paid. Everyone was speechless.


    This transaction could be profitable for him.


    Ye Futian looked the other man in the eye. \"I''m not selling it.\"


    As he said this, everyone stared at him.


    He had been offered ten times what he had paid, and yet he would not sell it.


    That meant...

 1385 Clash

    The person at the head of the group of people who had just arrived wore white. His face was handsome in an unusual way, and his face was lined.


    His pitch-black hair was magnificent, and a pair of pure white wings flared out behind him. A silver spear seemed to be fixed between his wings.


    There was only one family in the Demon Realm that wore such clothes. Naturally, most of the people there recognized him.


    They had come from Yingzhao Mountain in the Demon Realm. It was the most powerful force in the realm.


    They were even stronger than the Tianhu clan.


    The Tianhu clan would not even dare to provoke them.


    The elder of Yingzhao Mountain had the power to know everything under heaven. It was said that he was able to shake the sky with a single thrust of his spear.


    Right now was a turbulent time for the demons. Everyone knew that all of the great demon families were coming. Even the great demons of Yingzhao Mountain were there.


    Moreover, it seemed that they were very interested in the bone that Ye Futian had just bought.


    He did not even know how much Ye Futian had paid, and he had still offered to pay ten times as much.


    But what was even stranger was that Ye Futian had refused him.


    What did this mean?


    At that moment, the elder of Celestial Fox Palace''s eyes flashed. He looked at the man who was leading the people from Yingzhao Mountain, then back to Ye Futian. For some reason, he felt like he was being tricked.


    Previously, Ye Futian had told him that he was not interested in the bone, but he thought that he could give it to his friend to use in his forging. He had said that that was the only reason he wanted it.


    But the price he had ended up paying was several times more than he had initially offered.


    And now, the demonic beast from Yingzhao Mountain had offered him ten times as much, and he was still not willing to sell it.


    And he said he didn''t care about it?


    Only a fool would believe that.


    But, just like Ye Futian had thought, these people who had come out of the ground in the Origin Mountains had all been personally evaluated by the clan elders. They knew that a truly worthwhile treasure could not be easily sold.


    This bone was indeed the bone of a Demon Emperor. That was obvious from how solid it was. But there was nothing else special about it. It felt like it had no great uses, and thus they had decided to sell it. And indeed, once they brought it out, no one had made any offers for it. This seemed to prove that the Tianhu clan had judged this situation correctly.


    But now this unexpected thing had happened.


    Ye Futian had bought it, but it seemed that the cultivators from Yingzhao Mountain had come for it as well.


    Is this guy that petty? everyone thought. Ye Futian had decisively won the first treasure, the sword. He got it for a great price, and then had not made any more bids. That was until the bone that no one else wanted had come out. He had bought it while pretending that he didn''t really want it. But he had been very keen to obtain it, and so he had outmaneuvered the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Could it be that this bone was truly so special?


    The head of the people from Yingzhao Mountain stared at Ye Futian. He really would not sell it for ten times the price?


    Was he just trying to get even more for it, or did he know what the bone was?


    Once he tried it out, he would know.


    \"I come from Yingzhao Mountain. That bone is useful to me. Ten times the price should be more than enough for you, Your Excellency. If you give it to me, you''ll have made a friend. How does that sound?\" said the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain.


    \"I''ll have made a friend?\" said Ye Futian with a cold smile. He did not even know what this bone was.


    But ten times the price was not enough.


    \"I''m sorry, but this is also of use to me.\" Ye Futian was still smiling.


    The cultivator from Yingzhao''s face fell. Was the name Yingzhao Mountain not enough to sway him?


    If Ye Futian did not know what it was, then him offering ten times what he had paid and then mentioning the name Yingzhao Mountain should have been enough to make him willing to sell it to him.


    Could it be that this human could really tell what it was?


    \"It is of no use to you. Only we from Yingzhao Mountain can make use of it. I can trade an artifact from a Demon Emperor for it. Would that be enough?\" asked the head of the people from Yingzhao Mountain.


    When he said this, everyone around them went still.


    He would trade an artifact of a Demon Emperor for a bone. Who could refuse such a deal?


    \"What is that bone?\" All of the demons were staring at Ye Futian. Given what the cultivator from Yingzhao had said, he clearly knew the bone''s history.


    Otherwise, he wouldn''t have offered to trade an artifact from a Demon Emperor for it.


    The whole area had gone quiet.


    This was the final offer from Yingzhao Mountain. This was as much as he could possibly do and still hope to keep face.


    Otherwise, he would probably have to wait until Ye Futian left the Celestial Fox Palace and try to seize it from him.


    This bone might have been worth even more than an artifact from a Demon Emperor. And since the people from Yingzhao Mountain wanted it, he was adapting to the circumstances.


    Yingzhao Mountain probably would not pay a higher price. It was not a question of whether or not the bone was worth more; it was that if Ye Futian continued to refuse them, it would make them angry, and they would refuse to bargain anymore. In that case, they would use other methods to obtain it.


    Ye Futian could naturally feel the subtleties of the situation. He understood that if he still \"could not see sense,\" he would offend the people from Yingzhao Mountain without a doubt.


    He had seen that this bone was far from ordinary, and thus he had wanted to touch it with his life spirit. Just as expected, he felt a reaction from it.


    This meant that this bone probably had an extraordinary history, but even the people from the Celestial Fox Palace could not tell that just by looking at it.


    Now, Yingzhao Mountain''s actions proved what he was thinking.


    This bone was probably not merely the bone of a Demon Emperor.


    Zhu Zhao walked forward. \"If he won''t sell it, he won''t sell it. There''s no need to keep talking about it,\" he said to the head of the people from Yingzhao Mountain.


    \"Zhu Zhao,\" the demonic beast from Yingzhao Mountain swept his gaze over him. His expression was cold. He did not care about his status at all. \"This is not your concern.\"


    \"We came together, so it is my concern,\" Zhu Zhao answered calmly. \"The bone is already his. If you want some treasures, you need to go and bid for them.\"


    The demon from Yingzhao Mountain frowned. A faint silver light shone in his dark eyes as he looked at them coolly. \"Get out of here.\"


    Did Zhu Zhao think that Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor was someone to be feared?


    Maybe he could be threatening to other demon families, but what was he to the cultivators of Yingzhao Mountain?


    And how much less threatening was a mere prince?


    He had already given them plenty of chance to save face. It would be nothing to give up an artifact from a Demon Emperor if they could obtain the bone, but if they would still not accept it, then they would have to stop being so polite.


    Zhu Zhao stared at him with his golden eyes. A powerful demonic aura rose from him and shot out towards his opponent.


    \"Get out of here.\"


    His low voice rang out, almost reaching the level of a shout by the time it reached his opponent''s ears.


    In a flash, a burst of pressure filled the area. The great demon of Yingzhao Mountain and the Demon Prince of the Celestial Demon City faced off against each other.


    A violent aura burst out from the demon from Yingzhao Mountain as well. The two demonic beasts'' auras clashed between them, which whipped up a powerful storm of Qi.


    As soon as the elder of Celestial Fox Palace saw them about to fight, he could not help but say, \"If there is a problem, you can talk about it. There is no need to disturb the harmony of this place.\"


    \"I''ve heard that you are quite powerful, Zhu Zhao of Celestial Demon City. I''m glad that I have a chance to see how strong the progeny of Zhu Yan is.\" The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain''s voice was sharp. His wings flared out behind him, and his body transformed into a bolt of white lightning. He rose high into the air.


    He beat his wings elegantly. He reached behind him and pulled out the long spear, clenching it in his fist.


    Suddenly, an astonishingly sharp aura spread out.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as Zhu Zhao shot up into the air, full of wild power and energy. He looked up at the figure above him and reached out. A spear of golden flames appeared in his hand, and the golden light in his eyes shot up towards the figure in the sky.


    However, golden armor appeared on the figure in the sky. Zhu Zhao''s spear continued upwards, growing larger as it did. It seemed able to shatter the very air itself.


    His opponent''s figure flashed, and many bolts of white lightning appeared up in the sky. Many white phantoms appeared as well, and it was difficult to discern just how real they were. The moved quickly, and everywhere that the spear went, there were only phantoms.


    Bang! Zhu Zhao moved like a bolt of golden lightning, rushing through the air at incredible speed as he shot towards his opponent.


    The white lightning flashed again. Zhu Zhao roared as he thrust his golden spear forward. It rose from where he was standing, and its shadow covered the sky, darkening the whole area. It was so big that even things thousands of meters away would be smashed by it.


    Woosh! The great demon of Yingzhao Mountain flapped his wings, and he grew much larger. He had transformed into his true form.


    He beat his huge white wings, creating a powerful airflow. The will of the Great Path flowed as countless silver spears fell like starlight that fell with incredible speed. It was like a meteor shower.


    There was a terrible, sharp noise up in the air as the airflow roared like thunder. The massive spears slammed into each other, which was what created the awful sound.


    But the golden spear cut through the countless silver spears and continued forward, piercing towards the demon from Yingzhao Mountain''s body. Zhu Zhao''s form turned demonic and as big as a mountain. The spear grew even more powerful as it shot forward, making the sky itself tremble.


    Woosh! There was a gust of wind as the demon from Yingzhao Mountain''s wings flapped. He thrust the silver spear forward, and the gust of wind descended. The onrushing golden spear did not touch his body. He was so fast that he was hard to see with the naked eye. The spears scraped against each other, but the sound was lost in the wind.


    The power that the spear contained was simply astonishing, the demon from Yingzhao Mountain spiraled down like a meteor, cutting through the powerful aura as he shot towards Zhu Zhao.


    \"He''s so fast!\"


    Everyone trembled as they watched the figures in the sky. They saw Zhu Zhao drop his spear as his body turned golden, and he thrust his fists out towards the descending demon from Yingzhao Mountain.


    The huge demonic beast roared, and the air trembled. Even the demon from Yingzhao Mountain''s speed seemed to be affected by this.


    Snap! Snap!


    Sharp sounds rang out as the spear descended. Silver light pierced the sky as it crashed into the golden fists and seemed to cut through them. A terrifying power shook the demon from Yingzhao Mountain, but at the same time, Zhu Zhao''s golden fists were cut open, and blood began to flow from them. It was evident from this how powerful his opponent was.


    Woosh! As he floated, the demon from Yingzhao thrust out with the spear. The wind gusted against his body as he looked down at his opponent. His eyes were filled with contempt for everything!

 1386 Leave It Here

    Zhu Zhao looked up into the air, his eyes filled with scorn.


    \"Roar!\" There was the roar of a massive beast, and suddenly, a mighty figure appeared up in the sky. He grew larger and larger. His body burned as it was bathed in golden flames.


    Golden fire shot out of his eyes, melting everything in their path. The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain frowned. He turned into silver light once again and then disappeared.


    An incomparably massive figure appeared. His eyes were burning with golden fire, and the temperature up there in the sky became scalding hot. The golden divine flames filled the vastness of the sky, locking down the entire area. There was nowhere that the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain could go.


    \"He can get even stronger.\" Ye Futian looked at Zhu Zhao. Unlike in the previous battle, Zhu Zhao still had some more power left, and thus he could become even stronger.


    The cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace were also naturally watching this scene with gloomy faces. The genius among them, Tan Zimo, had once been defeated by Zhu Zhao, and apparently, that had not even been him at his strongest. At that moment, it was possible that Tan Zimo would not even be able to provide a stimulating fight for him.


    Thinking of this, the cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace felt a keen sense of humiliation.


    The demon cultivators of the Celestial Fox Palace all sighed quietly. Zhu Zhao was truly worthy of being called the most outstanding genius of the Celestial Demon City. His power was genuinely frightening, and right now, he was simply astonishing. It was as if his strength had increased explosively.


    However, the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain was incredibly powerful as well. A silver halo appeared around his body, then turned into a pattern of light. Countless spears flashed into life and shot out in all directions, smashing into the onrushing golden flames.


    He looked at his opponent with his silver eyes. His face was a bit downcast.


    Zhu Zhao''s aura was powerful enough to make him feel threatened.


    Woosh! At that moment, Zhu Zhao''s wild figure seemed to dance as he flew. His mighty figure spread out until he filled the sky, becoming one with the Qi of the air.


    The great demon of Yingzhao Mountain roared in anger, and countless silver spears burst out from the halo around it, shooting straight towards the onrushing Zhu Zhao.


    Zhu Zhao flew upwards, and the spear of golden flames shot up from his hand into the sky, seeming like it would be able to tear right through it. The air shook as it flew through it.


    Many of the demon cultivators below them felt their hearts begin to tremble. Was this the power of Zhu Yan that they were seeing? It was simply astonishing.


    Woosh! The demon of Yingzhao''s figure flashed, and suddenly many reflections of him appeared all around.


    However, almost at the same time of that, the great demon of Zhu Yan waved his spear, and countless reflections of it appeared as well, waving just like the one that was actually in Zhu Zhao''s hand. They shot out towards all of the different images of the demon of Yingzhao. There was no way to avoid an attack like this.


    The great demon of Yingzhao''s face grew cold. Endless light of the Great Path descended from the sky and gathered up around his body. Afterward, they turned into countless silver lightning bolts that flashed downwards and smashed into the spears.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    The sounds of the lightning bolts smashing into the spears one after another rang out continuously. Countless attacks had been launched in an incredibly short period. All of the cultivators below were staring up into the sky. Their bodies seemed to tremble each time there was a collision up there.


    Bang!


    A figure was sent flying backward, and the spear went flying out of his hands. He spat out a mouthful of blood.


    The great demon of Yingzhao Mountain had been forced backward.


    And ugly look came over the faces of the cultivators from Yingzhao Mountain as they watched the scene. Many of them rose into the air.


    \"You all want to fight together?\" Roared Lei Meng, the Prince of the Thunder Gods. Suddenly, all of their cultivators rose into the sky as well. The whole area was covered in incomparably horrifying demonic Qi.


    Up in the sky, the two figures were facing off. There was an extremely fierce look in Zhu Zhao''s eyes as he looked at the great demon of Yingzhao Mountain up above him. The demon from Yingzhao Mountain''s aura surged as blood trickled from his mouth.


    He had been beaten by Zhu Zhao.


    But Zhu Zhao''s desire to let Ye Futian keep the bone was nothing more than a dream.


    No one could keep it away from them.


    If Yingzhao Mountain had not had a bone just like it that had sensed this one, they would not have known that there was another one here.


    They had researched this bone for many years. Celestial Fox Palace had been so careless as to think that it was useless. Since they did not know, they had not sought out the bone''s mysteries.


    \"You are Zhu Zhao?\"


    At that moment, a voice came towards them from far away. Everyone turned to look.


    They saw several figures flashing towards them, all with a pair of wings on their backs. They had come from Yingzhao Mountain as well.


    The one at their head had an imposing aura, much stronger than the demon from Yingzhao, who had been fighting Zhu Zhao''s. He had an air of kingly scorn about him as if he was the King of his clan.


    Behind him, two huge cultivators from Yingzhao Mountain flanked him to the left and right. Although no powerful auras burst forth from them all, everyone could still feel that this man had the air of a Demon Emperor.


    \"Who is this?\"


    All of the demons below felt their hearts tremble without stopping.


    He had a Demon Emperor protecting him?


    Who was he to deserve such treatment?


    Yingzhao Mountain was a top force in the Demon Realm. Even when its people were traveling, no other demons would dare to attack them.


    But he still had a Demon Emperor traveling with him. Why did he have such high-level protection?


    A Demon Emperor was someone who was at the top of the pyramid.


    For a junior to have an Emperor traveling with him was absolutely astonishing.


    Soon, all the demons were thinking of a single person, the heroic demon cultivator who was famed throughout the world.


    That man from Yingzhao Mountain had personally come from the Celestial Fox Palace.


    Had he come for the bone that Ye Futian had bought?


    This made everyone very curious. What on earth was that bone?


    Many cultivators flashed over from the Celestial Fox Palace. They looked up into the sky as they arrived.


    They all felt that this was a bizarre situation. The Celestial Fox Palace seemed to have truly made a mistake this time. They were responsible for identifying the treasures of the Origin Mountains and yet they had not realized how special that bone was. And thus they had put it up or sale.


    There were several procedures in the Celestial Fox Palace. After obtaining a treasure from the Origin Mountains, they would first look it over to confirm that it was indeed an Emperor level artifact. Then they would let the Emperor level figures in their own clan look over it. If they thought it was worth a lot, then they would pass it along.


    This bone had only passed through the hands of a Demon Emperor and had not made it to the final step. They had thought that it was just a bone of a Demon Emperor that did not have any particular use.


    Now, so many cultivators had come from Yingzhao Mountain, possibly even all of them, and a Demon Emperor had come with them. Without a doubt, the Celestial Fox Palace had made a mistake.


    They all felt this. They would never have thought that there would be a moment that the Celestial Fox Palace had made a huge mistake.


    But there was a fierce look in Ye Futian''s eyes that everyone could not help but admire.


    The Great Demon of Zhu Yan looked at the one who had come. He had also guessed who it might be. However, he still spoke proudly. \"Yes.\"


    He had always wanted to see this legendary figure from Yingzhao Mountain.


    And not only him. He wanted to see all of the legendary figures of the top forces of the Demon Realm. This was the reason he had left Celestial Demon City and come to Demon Metropolis.


    He was without equal in Celestial Demon City. Those who were of a higher level than him did not dare to fight him, and those who were of a more or less equivalent level to him were no match for him.


    He was proud by nature and skilled in combat. Demon Metropolis was much more suitable to him.


    \"You should step down.\" The man from Yingzhao Mountain said to the one who was fighting Zhu Zhao as he stepped forward.


    His opponent nodded, then stepped to the side.


    Zhu Zhao looked up into the air. The one who had come was the most outstanding demon of the third generation of Yingzhao Mountain. He was being trained as the future king of the mountain. The most powerful blood of the Yingzhao clan flowed through his veins. And it was said that his power was simply astonishing.


    Thus, he had come with a Demon Emperor accompanying him. From this, it was obvious how much importance Yingzhao Mountain placed on him.


    He reached out with the silver spear in his hand. In a flash, a terrifying whirlwind whipped up, and the frightening power of the Great Path descended onto the spear. He stood in the middle of the storm like a demon god.


    \"He''s so strong!\"


    Below them, everyone''s hearts were trembling. This was the third generation king of Yingzhao Mountain?


    It was said that the legendary Demon Emperor of Yingzhao Mountain regarded him very highly, and was personally training him. He was already an Unblemished Saint. He had just joined the battle, and already his power was clearly beyond that of most other Unblemished Saints.


    \"You are no match for me.\" He looked down at Zhu Zhao. As he said this, a storm of grey lighting whipped through the sky, and silver spears fell through the storm, forming a straight line in the sky.


    Zhu Zhao roared, and the golden flames swept out. However, his opponent broke out through the flames. When the spears reached their destination, they had formed a single spear that cut through the sky.


    Boom! The spear images pierced downward, but the figure shot straight through them. Spear after spear was broken. The other figure descended, and the storm fell with him, swallowing up everything.


    Boom!


    A terrifying noise rang out as a figure fell straight from the sky.


    Bang!


    All of the demons made way as Zhu Zhao fell to the ground, smashing a huge hole in the ground.


    The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain was standing there in the air. There was no expression on his face.


    Given his level, defeating Zhu Zhao was not something worthy of praise.


    \"What is the matter?\" he asked. He was still not quite sure what had happened.


    A figure floated out of Celestial Fox Palace. She was a breathtakingly beautiful woman of the palace, much more outstanding than the other palace woman standing around Ye Futian and the others.


    When she stepped into the air, her every motion set everyone''s hearts trembling.


    She looked at the demon from Yingzhao Mountain up in the sky, then turned and looked at Ye Futian. She said, \"Why don''t you just leave the bone here, Lord Ye? A ritual implement of a Demon Emperor is not worth coming to grief over. It will probably not be useful to you at all.\"

 1387 Pressure

    Ye Futian looked up at the woman in the sky. She was, without a doubt, the most beautiful woman he had seen here at the Celestial Fox Palace. She was perfect in every aspect, and her every motion left people in wonder.


    But Ye Futian''s gaze was still very calm. He gazed indifferently at the figure in the sky and said, \"How do you know that it will be of no use to me?\"


    Hu Qianmei, the lady Saint of Celestial Fox Palace, looked at Ye Futian. The treasure that Yingzhao Mountain wanted had been overlooked by her Celestial Fox Palace and was now in Ye Futian''s hands. But how would it be possible for him to put it to use?


    Ye Futian may have known that the bone was an incredibly exceptional treasure, but if he tried to hold onto it by force and deny it to Yingzhao Mountain, it would be of no use to him.


    \"I''m sure you must realize this, Lord Ye. Moreover, I have no ulterior motive in saying this. Giving the bone up and handing it over to Yingzhao Mountain would be advantageous to you as well,\" continued Hu Qian.


    How powerful was Yingzhao Mountain?


    What human within the Demon Realm, or even which of the powerful demon families, would dare to take something away from Yingzhao Mountain?


    Even though Ye Futian had obtained it, how could he hope to hold onto it?


    Obtaining a ritual implement of a Demon Emperor would be the most useful possible outcome for Ye Futian. This was Yingzhao Mountain allowing him to save face since they did not dare to steal it from him directly.


    But if Ye Futian were not interested in their offer, then Yingzhao Mountain would have to stop being so polite.


    Everyone could see the Prince of Celestial Demon City, Zhu Zhao, lying in a hole in the ground, spitting up blood.


    Yingzhao Mountain had not allowed Zhu Yan''s family to maintain even the slightest bit of dignity.


    How could Ye Futian withstand them?


    She had asked Ye Futian to give up the bone. This would be best for both sides, and no one would be losing anything at all in this deal.


    \"I should thank you for saying so, Your Grace.\" Ye Futian smiled. He could see how valuable the bone was by how much the cultivators from Yingzhao Mountain desired it. It seemed that it was even more precious than he had imagined.


    And so, he had even less desire to sell such a precious item.


    Of course, he was at a severe disadvantage here.


    Yingzhao Mountain was far more powerful than Zhu Yan''s clan from Celestial Demon City. Given this, if Yingzhao Mountain wanted to seize the bone from him here in the Demon Realm, how could he resist?


    \"No need. I am merely speaking honestly. Do not blame us, Lord Ye. This treasure came from our palace, and you bought it at the auction, so we are at some fault here. But we hope we can avoid any friction,\" continued Hu Qian.


    Ye Futian smiled. He looked at the great demon of Yingzhao, who had previously been beaten back by Zhu Yan. He said, \"Yingzhao Mountain is so strong, and they say that I am not worthy of having it. Why don''t we try this? If you can beat me, then I will give the bone to you and will ask for nothing in return. If you lose, then you will leave voluntarily and not disturb me. What do you think?\"


    The cultivators from Yingzhao Mountain stared at Ye Futian. The great demon, who had been beaten back by Zhu Zhao, regarded him coolly, his eyes as sharp as swords. He wanted to accept and seize the bone for Yingzhao Mountain without any additional complications.


    But this was such an important matter that it did not fall to him to take responsibility for it. Even if he lost to Ye Futian, Yingzhao Mountain would not give up their fight for it.


    The bone had something to do with a legendary demon.


    \"You fail to appreciate how much kindness we are showing you.\" He stepped out towards Ye Futian.


    Silver light flashed in his eyes. It was dazzling to behold.


    Why did Ye Futian think he was in any position to speak of terms?


    And by what right did he do so?


    If he wanted the ritual implement of the Demon Emperor, then he could trade the bone and have it. If he didn''t want it, that was no concern of Yingzhao Mountain.


    The bone was Yingzhao Mountain''s. He had no choice but to give it up.


    Although he had lost a little bit of momentum from his battle with Zhu Zhao, he was still frighteningly powerful as he stepped out. Silver light flashed throughout the entire area, covering his body. A silver halo appeared in front of him as an incomparably sharp aura pressed against Ye Futian.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian stepped forward into the air, going higher and higher. The two of them rose at the same time. Mighty demonic energy swept through the heavens, and silver light filled the sky.


    Ye Futian waved his hand, and suddenly, endless sword seals appeared all around him.


    Every sword seal looked like a sword that was swirling around his body. The shrieking sword Qi produced an ear-piercing sound. The sword seals faced off against his opponent''s spear.


    \"Go.\"


    The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain stepped forward. The silver light that was swirling around him transformed into silver lightning bolts. They pierced through the sky with incredible speed.


    Ye Futian stepped forward as well, his sword will shrieking. His endless sword seals transformed into a river of swords. They slammed towards the silver lightning bolts. The two attacks clashed in mid-air, creating an astonishing burst of destructive power.


    The great demon from Yingzhao Mountains attacks seemed endless, and Ye Futian''s sword seals were as sharp as could be as they pressed forward with an indomitable will.


    Woosh!


    The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain moved and turned into a point of silver light that pierced through the sky and shot towards Ye Futian.


    The sword seals had already turned into a river of swords in the sky that swept out through the whole area. They shot towards the silver spears and crashed into them.


    At the same time, a brilliant divine halberd appeared in Ye Futian''s hands. He thrust it towards his opponent without the least bit of hesitation.


    His sword will smashed into his opponent''s long silver spears. Although the spears were shooting towards him with great force, their strength was ebbing. At that moment, he saw Ye Futian''s halberd coming towards him.


    The great demon of Yingzhao Mountain did not try to evade Ye Futian''s attack. He still had extreme confidence in his power, and so he let Ye Futian''s halberd crash into his spears.


    In the instant that the spears crashed into the halberd, a terrible beam of light tried to pierce through the halberd and shoot towards Ye Futian. But the beam of light did not manage to cut into him. Instead, it dissipated into nothing.


    And not only that, the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain felt his arm tremble and then shatter, and then it seemed like his whole body would do the same.


    Bang!


    A loud noise rang out, and the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain was sent flying. He turned into a phantom that tried to flee.


    But Ye Futian stepped forward, his sword Qi shrieking. Endless Swords of Kasypya split through the sky in an instant, covering everything in the area beneath them.


    At the same time, a great space binding power spread out, and the whole area began to feel like thick mud. Ye Futian pierced right through the sky, crossing a vast distance in a single step. He thrust the halberd forward yet again.


    Bang!


    This time, it was the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain who spat up blood. His very organs trembled. He stared up at Ye Futian, who was standing above him, holding the halberd.


    Was his spear not as powerful as his opponent''s halberd?


    \"Could this human cultivator really be so strong?\" Many of the demon cultivators did not know Ye Futian. Of all of them, only the cultivators of Celestial Fox Palace knew a little bit about Ye Futian''s glorious battles.


    This great demon from Yingzhao mountain had first lost to Zhu Zhao, so now him losing to Ye Futian seemed reasonable.


    Woosh!


    Silver-colored lightning cracked across the sky. A tall and mighty demon appeared there, and he swept his cold gaze down on Ye Futian.


    A silver storm gathered together. It cut down through the sky, destroying everything in its path as it descended towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked up and felt an astonishing power. The Unblemished Saint from Yingzhao Mountain had finally made his move.


    \"The Unblemished level. He is already without flaw,\" thought Ye Futian. He had previously defeated Zhu Zhao with a single attack. This was not because Zhu Zhao was not strong, but because of the difference in their levels.


    The Unblemished level was far beyond the True Self level.


    The Deed of Thought Comprehension flared to life and resonated with the Great Path. He pulled out his Divine Implement, the Halberd of Time and Space, and poured his will into it. Brilliant light shone from the halberd.


    \"Give up,\" spat the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain. A silver-colored airflow cut downwards from him.


    Ye Futian watched as the airflow gathered together into a terrifying storm. His heart was trembling.


    The Deed of Thought Comprehension shone as he stepped forward. He struck out with the Halberd of Time and Space, and terrible light shot out from it, crashing into the silver air flow and destroying it.


    The Unblemished Saint from Yingzhao Mountain watched this scene indifferently, with no emotion on his face. A terrible power descended and gathered around him, forming a terrifying, destructive storm that put pressure upon the whole sky.


    \"If you must fight, then even if you voluntarily give it up in the future, we will not give you a chance,\" continued the Unblemished demon in the sky. His presence was overpowering.


    Boom! Ye Futian stepped up into the air.


    \"Why do you refuse to see reason?\" The Unblemished demon from Yingzhao Mountain sighed as he watched Ye Futian. The storm grew stronger and stronger as it wrapped around his body. Silver meteors rained down from it, each one seeming to have terrifying piercing power.


    But Starry Stele''s appeared all around Ye Futian, wrapping around his body. Just as the silver meteors hit, the steles were cracked in the middle, making a terrible noise.


    The attacks were too powerful. An Unblemished Saint''s might was unstoppable.


    But the light around Ye Futian was endless. It seemed that it had not been extinguished.


    Bang!


    Finally, the figure in the sky stepped forward. The destructive silver storm descended, causing an apocalyptic scene. The whole world seemed like it would be destroyed in this chaos.


    He looked down on everything, including Ye Futian.


    Woosh! A beam of light shot out as his opponent disappeared from where he had been.


    Ye Futian was flying up into the sky, piercing upwards as quickly as he could. The spear and the halberd clashed together.


    Boom!


    A wild air flow swept out as the two figures parted.


    Ye Futian was sent flying backward and slammed into the ground with a terrible sound!

 1388 Be

    The ground outside the Celestial Fox Palace was shaking. The cultivators all around made way.


    Ye Futian had fallen there, and his legs were slightly twisted. His halberd had plunged into the ground, sending debris everywhere.


    He stood up and looked into the air. The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain had been knocked back high up into the sky, but he was evidently much better off than Ye Futian was.


    The Unblemished Saint level demon was the top demonic beast from Yingzhao Mountain. He had a very high status, and thus his strength was beyond any doubt.


    \"So, he withstood a single blow.\" All the cultivators around them were shocked when they beheld Ye Futian''s posture. Although he had been knocked to the ground, he did not seem to have suffered any injury. A Saint of True Self level cultivator had withstood an attack from this powerful demon and not been injured.


    Previously, the Prince of Celestial Demon City, Zhu Zhao, had been defeated in a single blow.


    \"You are quite powerful.\" The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain stepped through the sky until he stood in the air above Ye Futian, looking down on him. He saw a burst of sword will shoot up into the air from beside Ye Futian.


    The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain''s eyes flashed as he looked to Ye Futian''s side and saw a woman there, her long hair flowing in the wind. She disappeared from where she had been standing, and a sword pattern appeared in the air. She wielded the sword pattern, slicing it through the air, seeming to ignore the distance between them.


    \"Hmph.\"


    The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain snorted. A human Unblemished Saint swordmaster?


    He thrust out with his spear, and grey afterimages appeared behind it. The violent storm seemed to become one with the spear as it transformed into destructive light that pierced through the air. It slammed into the sword.


    Boom! A powerful wind swept out, and Yaya was sent flying backward, falling until she almost hit the ground. She stabilized herself, and her aura flared.


    Her opponent was still standing there, high up in the air. The wind and clouds danced around him in a roaring, destructive airflow.


    \"My patience is limited,\" he said. The meaning behind his cold tone was unmistakable. He had personally come here for the bone. He needed to bring it back to Yingzhao Mountain. Who could stand in his way?


    Even with Ye Futian and his pack of human cultivators standing in his way here at the Celestial Fox Palace, he would think of a way to get the bone.


    \"Are you still considering, Lord Ye?\" Hu Qian, the Saint of Celestial Fox Palace, looked at Ye Futian. Her tone was a little bit displeased. Things had already come to this point. Did they really plan to resist Yingzhao Mountain so firmly?


    The question was, what could they use to resist Yingzhao Mountain here in the Demon Realm?


    There were two more Demon Emperor level figures up in the air behind the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain.


    Of course, they would not get involved lightly.


    Zhu Zhao looked up at the cultivators from Yingzhao Mountain and asked, \"Are you trying to seize the bone by force?\" Then he looked at Hu Qian with his fierce and powerful eyes. \"Will the Celestial Fox Palace support them in this?\"


    Hu Qian frowned and said, \"I just don''t want this incident to cause any friction. It would be best if we could come to a peaceful solution, one that does not humiliate Lord Ye.\"


    \"Wouldn''t it be a peaceful solution for you to ask Yingzhao Mountain to leave? From what you''ve said, it seems like Celestial Fox Palace is more keen to have them steal the bone,\" countered Zhu Zhao.


    Hu Qian''s face froze. Now that this had been said, how could Yingzhao Mountain retreat?


    Their strength could be seen at a glance.


    Ye Futian looked up at the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain up in the air. \"Celestial Fox Palace made a gamble when they sold the bone. If you want, we can make another bet. How about that?\"


    \"What is the bet?\" asked the demon.


    \"You and I will fight. If you win, I will give the bone to you. If I win, you will renounce all claim to it,\" said Ye Futian.


    The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain looked surprised. Ye Futian��a Saint of True Self��was challenging him to a fight?


    He had said that he did not have the right to risk the bone in a fight with Zhu Zhao, but he did have the right to do so for a fight like this. Moreover, he could not lose.


    He looked down at Ye Futian a little bit playfully. \"Why should I make this bet with you?\"


    There was no need to speak of victory or defeat. He would certainly be the one leaving with the bone. Why should he make a bet?


    Ye Futian had no right to speak of terms with him.


    He only had one option: give the bone to him.


    \"Fine.\" Ye Futian nodded. He took out the bone, lifted his palm into the air, and opened his fingers. \"I don''t want the artifact from the Demon Emperor,\" he said. \"If you want the bone, then take it from me.\"


    An interested look came over the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain''s face as he watched what Ye Futian was doing.


    This human cultivator was actually pretty interesting.


    If he did it this way, he would be losing a little bit of face if he just took it from him.


    He smiled and said, \"Fine. I''ll give you a chance. You may start first.\"


    Ye Futian wanted to gamble on a battle with him?


    What did he have that could threaten him?


    Ye Futian rose into the air, quickly reaching the higher part of the sky. But the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain was still looking down on him, and his eyes were full of scorn. He was arrogant to the extreme. Ye Futian could use that to his advantage.


    Boom!


    The power of the Deed of Thought Comprehension flared, and a halo of the light of the Great Path began to flow. The World Tree life spirit within him began to create will. The wind blew and the clouds drifted by as endless will flowed out from him and pressed against everything in the area.


    \"Are you ready?\" the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain asked him.


    Ye Futian nodded. \"I am.\"


    His opponent smiled coldly, then stepped down. In a flash, endless silver spears formed in the air and fell downwards. The whole area was covered in terrible destructive power.


    In the next instant, the endless silver spears shot downward like a destructive air flow. The cut through the very air itself as they were launched towards Ye Futian.


    He stood there as if he could destroy everything.


    Boom! A terrible aura burst forth. Stars flowed all around Ye Futian, and endless ancient characters wrapped around his body. His form resonated with the Great Path. As he stood there amongst a halo of light of the Great Path, he reached out with both hands, and a long staff appeared in his hands. He waved it around, and suddenly the air shoot shook as the great air flow was destroyed.


    The endless stars and ancient characters shot out towards the oncoming silver spears, but they were destroyed one after another. The Unblemished power destroyed them all.


    A terrifying vortex appeared in the sky with endless spears swirling around inside of it.


    Ye Futian flew up higher, treading upon the air. His power was growing. When he waved his arms, the stars and characters around him moved with him, making a shrieking noise. They shot out towards the oncoming spears yet again.


    Bang! The image of a staff appeared in the, and all of the silver spears were shattered by it.


    A look of surprise flashed in the great demon from Yingzhao Mountain''s eyes as he beheld this scene.


    This human cultivator''s attack power was so strong. The power of his staff nearly exceeded Zhu Zhao''s. Moreover, there were a lot of similarities between the two of them, although Ye Futian''s staff had greater momentum.


    His expression did not change. He stretched out both hands, and suddenly countless silver spears appeared in front of him. Then, they all merged into a single spear, forming a mountain of silver spears. The infinitely sharp spears shot downward. The mountain of spears grew larger and larger until there seemed to be enough of them to cover the entire world. Their destructive force was extremely terrifying.


    \"This...\" All the cultivators below were looking up into the sky. The scene unfolding there was horrifying. It looked like a silver mountain was falling, but this silver mountain had an incomparably sharp aura and carried terrible destructive power within it.


    Boom!


    There was a great roar, and the air shook as the mountain of spears descended. It was traveling at an astonishing speed. And not only that, but endless silver spears still surrounded ye Futian. Their attack power kept him hemmed in where he was, making it so that he had no way to evade the falling mountain.


    Even Xia Qingyuan and the others looked worried for him. It was not that they were not confident in Ye Futian''s strength; it was just that his opponent was so powerful.


    He was a top figure from Yingzhao Mountain. He was much more outstanding than people like Xing Kai and the others from the Crimson Dragon Realm. He was on another level entirely. He was truly a descendant of a Demon Emperor, and his strength was beyond any doubt. Moreover, he was at a higher level than Ye Futian. He was a demon at the Unblemished Saint level.


    Just watching his attack spells made them all feel a powerful sense of danger. Previously, Yaya had tried to attack him once and had been knocked back.


    It would be challenging for Ye Futian to defeat this opponent.


    Bang! Bang!


    Ye Futian struck out with his staff time after time with terrifying momentum. The stars and characters around him danced around the staff as it swung, containing the Rule Power of the Great path. He was growing stronger and stronger.


    A storm whipped across his body. At the moment when the incomparably huge mountain peak reached him, he grabbed his starry staff tightly and waved it through the air. The stars became one with the Great Path as they slammed into the mountain that was falling towards him.


    A crack appeared as the mountain of spears was cut open by the staff. The starry characters wrapped around the spears, destroying them one after another. The crack grew larger and larger, inexorably splitting the spear mountain in two from the middle.


    The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain was still standing up there in the air. He could not help but look surprised when his attack was cut open. He reached up into the air and called upon the power of the Great Path itself.


    But at that moment, Ye Futian shot straight up into the air, moving at incredible speed. There was a loud roar as he shot upwards. All of the will of the Great Path in the area was gathering together into his staff.


    Ye Futian stopped not far away from his opponent. He lashed out with the staff, seeming to block out the sky.


    \"Huh?\" The great demon from Yingzhao Mountain frowned. He stepped through the air, trying to retreat, but at that moment, his brow furrowed tightly. The whole sky seemed to be filled with images of staffs, all lashing towards him along with Ye Futian''s staff. That was the staff technique of the Great Path. Endless power was integrated into his staff technique. The whole sky was filled with them. The Great Path fell upon the great demon, and the whole sky was blocked off.


    He suddenly had an ominous feeling. It seemed that he had underestimated his enemy.

 1389 Borrowing the Bone

    When Ye Futian observed the Nine Heavenly Strikes all those years ago, he witnessed how attacks were made with the staff techniques. While he was unable to fathom the intricacies within back then, he had committed what he saw to memory.


    The moves had continuously gotten more powerful throughout the years through his training.


    At present, the seventh move of the Nine Heavenly Strikes was melded with the great path, crashing down with immense power.


    Despite being only a Saint of True Self, being melded with the great path at the moment meant that his attack would not have been any weaker than those of Unblemished Saints. With starry power and the way of Entropy incorporated within his staff techniques, the damage dealt in an instant was nothing short of frightening.


    The monster of Yingzhao Mountain had clearly underestimated Ye Futian''s powers. But then again, his plane and powers were laid bare for all to see, and few demonic beasts in the vast demonic realm were able to ignore the level difference and defeat him.


    There were few in Heavenly Mandate Realm, including the human cultivators, who would be capable of pulling off that feat.


    As such, he never committed too much attention to a battle that he thought would be brief and have left little to the imagination. That, in turn, made it so that he was caught completely off-guard at the moment.


    Its body sustained extreme pressures and might of the great path of space. Rumbling formless methods of the great path fallen onto it before the attack even reached it, seemingly about to break through and ultimately squash its body.


    Terrifying, devastating might burst from his body, turning into a bolt of lightning and bursting through the binding of the great path, trying to leave the battlefield momentarily to evade the attack from the staff.


    However, the attack landed all the same. He knew that there was no escaping it. The greyish-silver spears around him turned into a vortex, sweeping out in all directions to destroy all other powers.


    Boom...


    Their surroundings rumbled, and a towering wave appeared in the sky, sweeping out in all directions. The ones watching from the ground were able to feel just how devastatingly shocking that strike in the sky had been.


    Their surroundings seemed to have been frozen over altogether. At that moment, a figure burst through and spat up blood from its mouth, and it was none other than that monster of Yingzhao Mountain.


    Ye Futian''s body followed, and he brought the staff down as he moved, but the strike was halted before it hit the monster.


    Boom. The monster steadied itself and saw that staff above his head, as well as the one holding the staff. The look in his eyes was utterly pathetic.


    \"You lost.\"


    Ye Futian spoke, but his mind was rather rattled nonetheless. The monster had taken one such ferocious beating, and yet its injuries were limited. It was a testament to how overwhelmingly powerful that monster had been.


    If the monster had gone all out right from the beginning and gave him no chance, there was no telling if he would have won.


    Regardless, he had achieved his goal. He managed to provoke the other party to gamble with him, and he won that gamble.


    If the other party insisted on taking the bone, then there was nothing he could have done. In the demon realm, Yingzhao Mountain was still at the very top in terms of power. If the other party were truly out to lean on him, then he would have had no choice but to hand over the bone.


    Countless eyes remained frozen below, and hearts were racing.


    That human cultivator had won the gamble using such terrifying attacks, which were so overwhelming that they had subdued and beaten that monster.


    The mighty ones from the Celestial Fox Palace were extremely shocked. The monster was a legendary figure in Yingzhao Mountain and was a demonic saint at the Unblemished Saint level, after all.


    That one defeat made Ye Futian famous all over the demon realm.


    While it was indeed true that Ye Futian had been playing tricks, it was extremely frightening right from the start, causing his opponent to underestimate him and ultimately allowing him to finish the fight using the fastest and most powerful attacks.


    One way or another, it was still a testament to his formidable powers.


    One way or another, it was his victory and the monster''s defeat.


    The people of Demon Metropolis would know soon enough that the royal grandchild of Yingzhao Mountain lost to a human cultivator.


    That monster''s expression looked utterly glum, and the air was unusually silent. He did not respond to Ye Futian.


    It was true that he had indeed lost to Ye Futian. It lost because he underestimated his enemy. That human cultivator had been frighteningly powerful.


    Furthermore, he had decided to have that piece of bone to serve as a wager, gambling with Ye Futian.


    That was because the monster never thought that he would have lost.


    He knew just how important that bone was, and it wondered if he would have been able to let it go just because he lost the gamble.


    Despite his status, it would still be difficult for him to return to Yingzhao Mountain without the prize.


    The air appeared rather strange at that moment. Everyone looked at the monster and Ye Futian.


    Zhu Zhao looked at both of them as well. His heart was racing. He had not expected Ye Futian''s staff techniques to be that frightening. When the sixth and seventh moves were executed successively, the force was so great that they looked as if they were capable of killing gods.


    He wondered if Yingzhao Mountain would have still clung to the bone.


    \"You are clever.\" A voice was heard at that moment. A demon emperor in the air looked at Ye Futian and said, \"Of course, you are powerful too. Since you''ve won the gamble, we at Yingzhao Mountain see no reason to get in your way. The bone is of great value to us at Yingzhao Mountain. Name your price, and we shall exchange for it with something you deem to be of equivalent value.\"


    The third generation leading figure of theirs lost in the gamble, and it was not in their place to just take the prize by force. That demon emperor would have lost face otherwise, and it would have reflected badly on Yingzhao Mountain as well.


    They were truly unable to give the bone up. They were there with a mission, and they needed to get their hands on the bone.


    As such, the demon emperor proposed a barter.


    By doing so, both parties would be able to settle it peacefully.


    Ye Futian would know what to do, no?


    The demon emperor was already letting him name whatever price he dared to name, after all.


    Of course, without knowing the value of the bone, a human saint would not have been able to ask for something out-of-this-world, regardless of how brutal said human saint might have been. There was no way the price would have exceeded the value of the bone.


    Everyone nodded deep down upon hearing what the demon emperor said. That was truly the best way to solve the matter at hand.


    A fair trade would have allowed that human cultivator to earn a great deal.


    The ones at Yingzhao Mountain would have been able to take the bone away, making it a win-win situation.


    Ye Futian looked up at the demon emperor in the air and asked, \"Do I have a choice?\"


    He won the gamble, and the other party was still reluctant to let the bone go. One could have only imagined just how important that bone had been for them.


    Ye Futian simply asked if he had a choice in the matter.


    The importance of the object held by Yingzhao Mountain was such that there was no way they would have exchanged it for something of equal value. That so-called barter was only a trick played, thinking that he knew little of the value of the piece and would not dare to name a price. It was just so that he was able to hand the bone over without looking bad doing so.


    Everyone was speechless upon hearing what Ye Futian just said, thinking that he was stubborn.


    The demon emperor made it clear that he would not let go of the bone. So long as Ye Futian was willing to agree to it, both parties would be able to settle things without looking too bad on both sides.


    What Ye Futian said right there and then was indeed a way of forcing Yingzhao Mountain''s hand instead.


    Everyone wondered if the demon emperor would answer yes or no to the question.


    \"As the supreme force in the demon realm, Yingzhao Mountain will not bully a member of the younger generation like you, and they will definitely not renege on a promise. Since the royal grandchild of Yingzhao Mountain lost, you''re indeed free to choose.\" A voice was heard before the demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain, telling him to choose anything.


    Many turned around and looked at the sky. Several figures descended right away as if they had just shown up out of nowhere.


    The commotion was high, as four demon emperors appeared at the same time.


    The demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain looked at the demon emperors, who just showed up, and frowned, feeling that the operation would fail for the time being.


    A mighty one from the Celestial Fox Palace emerged as well, who, too, was a demon emperor. That mighty one then said with a brimming voice, \"All four emperors of Celestial Demon City are here. This is quite a scene for us today at Celestial Fox Palace indeed.\"


    \"Father.\"


    \"Father.\"


    Zhu Zhao, Lei Meng, and Taotie all called. The ones who came were none other than the four demon emperors of Celestial Demon City.


    The one who took the lead was of superior bearing and resembled Zhu Zhao somewhat. That was Zhu Yan, the Demon Emperor.


    While the demon emperor emitted no aura, the bearing of an overlord was unmistakable. The demon emperor looked unshakable, simply standing around and doing nothing.


    \"What do you think?\" Zhu Yan then looked at the demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain and asked.


    The demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain looked up and glared at Zhu Yan.


    Ye Futian beat the monster, and it was already a deal. With Zhu Yan showing up like that, there was little else the demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain was able to say to it.


    If Zhu Yan were to be caught in that affair as well, things would have turned very troublesome.


    \"Since the prince of Yingzhao Mountain made that promise, we would, of course, see fit to honor it. However, after we report back, there is still no telling how Yingzhao Mountain would handle the matter,\" the demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain said in reply while looking at Ye Futian.


    Even if Zhu Yan were to emerge to vouch for him, there was still no way he could have just walked away with the bone.


    \"No matter. Just head back and report,\" Zhu Yan said plainly, and then walked to Zhu Zhao''s side while looking at Ye Futian.


    \"Greetings, seniors.\"


    Ye Futian bowed slightly.


    \"Yeah.\" Zhu Yan nodded and then looked at Ye Futian, saying, \"I''m rather interested in the bone as well. Would you mind lending me the bone for research for a period of time? I would like to know what kind of bone it is.\"


    Everyone turned to look at Zhu Yan as soon as that demon emperor talked.


    What is Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor getting at here?


    Is that demon emperor trying to get his hands on it, or is it that he is trying to shake Ye Futian free of the trouble at hand?


    \"There would naturally be no problem if you want to take a look at it.\" Ye Futian nodded without hesitation, handing the bone to Zhu Yan on the spot.


    Zhu Yan looked at Ye Futian with a rather baffled look. He never expected that Ye Futian would be so decisive, and there was not a hint of hesitation seen when Ye Futian handed the bone over.


    Yingzhao Mountain had been so hard on him, and he still refused to hand it over. Now that Ye Futian was so quick to hand the bone over, Zhu Yan wondered if Ye Futian had ever been worried that he would have simply taken the bone away.


    That demon emperor smiled and took the bone, putting it away, thinking that not only was that young man superbly talented, but his intellect was just as astute.


    In truth, Ye Futian was very clear on what kind of a situation he had gotten himself into. Zhu Yan''s objective aside, the situation at the moment was such that he would either need to exchange the bone with Yingzhao Mountain or take a leap of faith on Zhu Yan''s word and hand the bone to the demon emperor.


    He might have ended up getting nothing in the end, but there was also the possibility that Zhu Yan was truly out to help him. At such times, he deemed it unwise to look hesitant.


    One way or another, there was no way he could have kept the bone to himself.


    Regardless of what Zhu Yan was up to, the demon emperor had helped him out of the predicament.


    The ones from Yingzhao Mountain aside, judging from what they pulled, he wondered just how many mighty ones throughout Demon Metropolis would eye that bone.


    \"If that is the case, I shall keep it safe in your stead for the time being.\" Zhu Yan smiled, and the mighty ones from Yingzhao Mountain turned glum upon seeing what happened.


    While it would have been easy to take that bone from Ye Futian, the difficultly would increase if they were to take it from Zhu Yan��the overlord demon emperor of Celestial Demon City. It was not something that could have been settled just by fielding several demon emperors to the task.

 1390 Bone of the Elephant Emperor

    Zhu Yan, the Demon Emperor, took a look at Zhu Zhao and asked, \"Why are you here?\"


    \"I heard something was going on in Demon Metropolis, so I came to have a look,\" Zhu Zhao answered.


    \"No problem with you coming here. Take good care of the lot of them, or I''d skin you myself,\" Zhu Yan said with an overbearing voice, causing Zhu Zhao to stare straight ahead.


    \"Big brother here is going to take good care of us, uncle. You can relax,\" the princess of the Feather Men Clan said with a smile. She was white all over, and her smile was pure. Zhu Yan clapped her shoulder and continued, \"Especially her. If I were to find out that you let someone else out there bully her, you''d be getting it from me.\"


    Zhu Zhao bared his teeth somewhat at him, looking rather displeased.


    \"Let''s go.\" Zhu Yan did not care about Zhu Zhao''s expression and walked away. The demon emperor of the Celestial Fox Palace came out and asked instead, \"Aren''t you going to come in and sit for a little while in the Celestial Fox Palace?\"


    \"Nah. Your place is beyond me.\" Zhu Yan waved his hands for a bit and said, \"Best you people invite those friends of yours from Yingzhao Mountain instead.\"


    Ye Futian took a look in their direction before he turned around and left as well.


    \"I''m so sorry, Sir Ye,\" Hu Yao''er said in a soft voice. Ye Futian took a look at her and said, \"That has nothing to do with you. We''ll meet again.\"


    He said this before he left as well. There was no way he could have stayed there any longer after all that had happened. Cooperating with Celestial Fox Palace was out of the question altogether as well.


    While it was true that those from Celestial Fox Palace were unable to keep the ones from Yingzhao Mountain in check, they could have at least stayed neutral, yet they failed to do even that. They were all eager to have Ye Futian hand the stuff over to settle all that commotion. It became clear that they were siding with Yingzhao Mountain.


    But then again, that was normal. He was only one human cultivator, after all, and there was no way he could compare to the entire force that was Yingzhao Mountain.


    The two parties were not even at the same level at all, and there was little to be said between them. Ye Futian did not let all that bother him, but there was no way he could have been friends with them either.


    After Ye Futian and the others left, those from Yingzhao Mountain remained glum.


    The demon emperor of the Celestial Fox Palace came before the demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain and asked, \"Just what is that bone?\"


    If those from Yingzhao Mountain were to go to such lengths to secure it, then the item must be some extremely valuable treasure.


    The demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain took a look at the other demon emperor and answered telepathically, \"Bone of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions.\"


    The demon emperor of the Celestial Fox Palace shuddered for a bit. The aura around him flickered, and an extremely sharp look was seen in his eyes. They felt an extremely intense sharp pain in their minds all of a sudden.


    \"That divine elephant who served the Demon Monarch told in the legends? That Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions?\" the demon emperor of the Celestial Fox Palace asked further telepathically. The demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain nodded, which caused the other party to shudder further deep down. Despite being a demon emperor, his mind remained extremely rattled.


    Just what have we of Celestial Fox Palace traded away? he thought.


    Did we just trade a bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions with the price of saint level?


    This is insane! he thought.


    If the matter were to be heard elsewhere, it would have ruined Celestial Fox Palace''s reputation. The Celestial Fox Palace, which was known for its intellect, would be reduced to an utter laughing stock.


    That was the most powerful relic that they at Celestial Fox Palace had ever gotten their hands on, after all.


    While they had no idea what purpose it served, the item''s status, which bore the name of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions, would have made it one of the rarest treasures to be found in the world.


    And yet, they just traded it just like that.


    That was done all because the demon emperor of the Celestial Fox Palace was unable to fathom its use, all because he knew that it was extremely resilient and nothing else.


    \"I''m reporting this to the Palace Lord,\" he said. If the Palace Lord were to punish them over this, then all of the ones involved would probably end up getting caught in the mess.


    \"You know just how serious the matter is then. Don''t spread it elsewhere, or we''ll end up with nothing in the end. Now that we of Yingzhao Mountain have become allies with you, if you were to be able to take the bone back from Zhu Yan at Origin Mountains, we of Yingzhao Mountain would definitely be sure to pay you guys of Celestial Fox Palace handsomely,\" the demon emperor of Yingzhao Mountain added telepathically.


    \"We shall talk further in the palace,\" the other demon emperor said. That mighty one from Yingzhao Mountain then shook his head and said, \"No need for that. Time is short, and we need to report back as well. We''ve come secretly because we did not want to cause a commotion. Now that we''ve failed and the item has fallen into the hands of a very difficult person. Things have gotten rather tricky, and we need to inform the others at Yingzhao Mountain.\"


    \"Sure.\" The demon emperor of the Celestial Fox Palace nodded, and both left.


    Seeing how the demon emperors talked in secret up in the air, many were curious as to what that bone was.


    However, none of the demon emperors obviously wanted it known by others, and so they did not voice their concerns.


    There was no doubt that it was a treasured piece, however.


    But then again, since it was now in the hands of Zhu Yan, taking it back would be difficult as well.


    Zhu Yan took his men and left unusually swiftly, coming to a peak in Demon Metropolis before long. They were many cavern residences for training.


    \"Who did you learn those staff techniques from?\" Zhu Yan looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    \"I''m good friends with the golden apes at the Lower Worlds,\" Ye Futian answered.


    \"The apes.\" Zhu Yan looked faraway and added, \"Some techniques you have.\"


    The demon emperor then took out that piece of bone and said, \"The bone is extremely hard, but it looks unassuming, and there doesn''t seem to be anything special about it. No telling what use would it serve. No wonder those at the Celestial Fox Palace were unable to see what it truly is. Hell, even I wouldn''t be able to actually tell what this thing is, thinking that it is only a very resilient piece of bone belonging to a demon emperor. Do you know what this is?\"


    \"I do not.\" Ye Futian shook his head.


    \"Then how could you tell that it was an extraordinary piece and refused to trade it with Yingzhao Mountain?\" Zhu Yan then asked further.


    \"I have some special abilities that allow me to know this thing is extraordinary. And then, the ones at Yingzhao Mountain seemed to be out to get it at all costs, so it would make sense that I actually underestimated its value,\" Ye Futian answered.


    Zhu Yan nodded. Ye Futian was right to have such thoughts. Judging by how badly those on Yingzhao Mountain wanted it, the true value of that bone might have been terrifying.


    \"Those from Yingzhao Mountain aren''t going to just let it slide. This thing would be a difficult piece to keep around. Good thing that they thought that I''m the one holding onto it for the time being. You take care of it yourself then,\" Zhu Yan said as he threw the piece to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took it and looked up at Zhu Yan. \"Thank you, senior.\"


    \"That thing was yours, to begin with. Did you seriously think I''d take it from you?\" Zhu Yan then said, before turning around and leaving, \"But, don''t let anyone else see it.\"


    \"I understand.\" Ye Futian nodded.


    Ye Futian held the bone in his hand after Zhu Yan left, heading into a cavern residence.


    The Black Wind Condor and Ye Futian were connected telepathically. The bird kept watch outside and laid out sealing powers outside the cavern residence. It then sat around and looked at Kong Xuan, who was not far away, and said, \"Princess Kong Xuan, let''s talk about the relationship between you and master.\"


    Kong Xuan turned around to glare at the bird. Xia Qingyuan, who was somewhere nearby, turned around and shot a cold look as well.


    \"No need to be shy, Princess. I''m just to do you a favor as a matchmaker, as a way of thanking you for all you have done for me,\" the Black Wind Condor continued.


    \"You really have a death wish, don''t you?\" Kong Xuan quipped coldly before flashing and leaving right away. Xia Qingyuan continued to glare at the bird with cold eyes. The bird leaned around lazily and asked, \"What is the matter, Princess?\"


    \"I just think roasted condor seems like a good idea,\" Xia Qingyuan then answered coldly.


    The Black Wind Condor shuddered for a bit and glared at Xia Qingyuan, finding the woman to be very ferocious.


    This woman could never be the mistress, or I''d be in huge trouble, it thought.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged inside the cavern residence. That bone was placed right before him, and his aura was extended, shrouding the bone.


    Ethereal branches of the World Tree swayed and tangled with the bone, wrapping it up bit by bit.


    At that moment, dazzling golden light was emitted from the bone, and it surprisingly merged with the ethereal branches gradually. The bone then fused with the branches altogether and was absorbed into Ye Futian''s body bit by bit.


    The World Tree in his Life Palace swayed, and there was a piece of bone in the leaves of the tree. The golden radiance grew increasingly bright. Powerful might of the great path spread from within and grew in strength.


    The specter that Ye Futian conjured with his will inside the Life Palace appeared, and it shuddered slightly, looking at the bone, finding the power to make the piece formidable.


    Rumble, rumble...


    Under the golden radiance, the Life Palace seemed to be rumbling and shaking. Extremely divine pressure rained down in his Life Palace, causing the whole place to shake.


    That bone seemed intent on breaking through his Life Palace and escaping.


    The World Tree continued to sway. Branches all over the place shot out and enveloped the world of his Life Palace, stabilizing the place like a mountain.


    Rumbling noises continued to be heard even so. Boundless golden divine light burst from the bone. There seemed to be dazzling runes appearing and shooting out in its surroundings. The boundless runes then coalesced into golden demon statues, and elephant trumpets were heard, shaking the place and overwhelming the air about.


    \"The bone of a demon elephant emperor, then?\"


    Ye Futian spoke deep down, and his heart remained shaken. Furthermore, the bone definitely did not belong to a common demon emperor, but one that was extremely formidable, one who was a cut above the other demon emperors.


    His Life Palace became rather stifled as the trumpeting of the divine elephants went on. The golden light also shone even more brilliantly and a ring of light dazzled. A figure was seen appearing gradually, and it grew in size.


    The golden divine elephants then faced the direction of that being and worshipped. A huge, boundless shadow of the divine elephant emperor appeared in the world of his Life Palace.


    That divine elephant emperor looked incredibly majestic as it looked down on its surroundings. It was as if it was standing high up in the clouds, and it seemed able to subdue anything with just a single step.


    At that moment, Ye Futian saw an image, depicting an extremely tall divine elephant emperor. Countless divine elephants worshipped it as it walked in the sky. Its thick, massive legs stepped down. It was easily able to reign supreme over a region.


    Thousands of demons laid prostrate on the ground as it walked, all of them worshipping it, making it seem like it was the king of all demons.


    The rumbling of his Life Palace had gotten increasingly loud. Light from countless runes burst out of Ye Futian''s mind. The golden essence was fused with his body as well.


    Intense rumbling reverberated throughout his Life Palace, causing even the cavern residence that Saleen was in to shake as well, with rumbling noises heard outside.


    The Black Wind Condor outside then blinked and turned around to look inside, wondering what just happened.


    The peak shook as well. It looked as if it was about to collapse. Dazzling might of the great path punched through the peak and carved a slit, shooting inside Ye Futian''s body, which was in the cavern.


    A dazzling beam of light shot upward from Ye Futian, turning into an extremely massive shadow of the divine elephant.


    One figure after another flashed and looked at the cavern residence that Ye Futian was in. All of them were wondering what he was doing inside.


    Zhu Yan stepped out and looked in that direction as well. He was pondering seriously.


    Is it getting through the secrets of that bone? he wondered.


    He wondered if a saint would be able to be better at such feats than he was.


    Furthermore, that was a bone of a demon emperor, not something left behind by a Renhuang.

 1391 Dance of the Demons

    Many mighty ones gathered right outside the cavern residence that Ye Futian was training in. The bird blinked, thinking that its master was really impressive.


    That demon emperor bone that the demon emperor of the Celestial Fox Palace and Zhu Yan was unable to tell what it was had already been taken care of by the bird''s master.


    Rumbling noises continued to be heard, and there was even the trumpeting of elephants mixed within at times. Zhu Yan extended his demonic will to shroud the place, preventing anyone from peering into what was truly happening there. If anything from what he was doing leaked outside, it would have resulted in a disaster for Ye Futian.


    Boom...


    A loud rumble came from the cavern residence after a while. The seal was broken, and someone dressed in white emerged, whose silver hair billowed.


    The aura all around him shimmered, and golden light coursed throughout his body. His aura seemed to have grown stronger than before, and his plane seemed increasingly stabilized.


    A golden sheen was seen in Ye Futian''s eyes. Several Life Spirits of his had been destroyed years ago. The Life Spirits of metal and earth elements were both gone. The newly born Life Spirit, however, was innately equipped with those two elements, and the power of great path resided within it.


    Few would have done it like he had��reforging his Life Spirit even after becoming a saint.


    The process saved him the trouble of evolving his Life Spirit as the power of the great path was innately imbued. That, coupled with the bone, allowed for his newly born Life Spirit to be extremely formidable.


    It went without saying that he rescinded the Life Spirit right away. It was unwise to reveal it easily, after all. While the few demon emperors had been nice to him, it was still better to keep secrets, like creating a whole new Life Spirit, to a select few.


    \"So, you have unraveled the secrets of the demon emperor bone, I take it?\" Zhu Yan looked at Ye Futian and asked. His expression was rather peculiar. Ye Futian had accomplished something that he failed to do.


    This guy is just..., Zhu Yan thought.


    Zhu Yan had been looking at the demon emperor bone just a while ago, and he was unable to see anything. It was no surprise why those at Celestial Fox Palace overlooked its value, and those at Yingzhao Mountain probably knew its true value.


    However, Ye Futian seemed to have been able to unravel its secrets within mere moments.


    \"Indeed.\" Ye Futian nodded.


    \"Goodness gracious!\" Zhu Yan was utterly dumbfounded, while the other three demon emperors sported baffled expressions as well.


    That actually happened?


    This friend of Zhu Zhao may turn out to be a monster after all, no? they thought.


    By the way, just how did someone like this not get taken away by any of those top-notch forces in Heavenly Mandate Realm? they wondered.


    \"Are your people reliable?\" Zhu Yan asked telepathically.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and answered, \"Rest assured, senior.\"


    Those who were at his side were people who had been through thick and thin with him, with the exception of Kong Xuan.


    He knew Kong Xuan long enough, and she definitely would not sell him out. Those that the Demon Peacock Emperor left at her side would definitely be trusted monsters as well.


    \"What is that thing, anyway?\" Zhu Yan asked after seeing him nodding. The demon emperor did not hide anything as he was truly curious about the bone.


    \"A bone of the elephant emperor.\" Ye Futian answered, \"It contains the will of the elephant emperor. Please have a look.\"


    Elephant trumpeting was heard from his body as he took a step forward. A dazzling divine elephant shadow appeared shortly afterward, reigning supreme all over their surroundings. The ground shook violently. The mountain trembled. Shadows of elephants sprung from all around them. The might emanating from it was extremely formidable.


    Zhu Yan''s face lit up, and he turned to look at the demon emperors around him, asking, \"What do you all think?\"


    \"Probably something of the current demon emperor of the divine elephants,\" the demon emperor of the Thunder Gods shook his head and said.


    \"If it is something of the current demon emperor of the Divine Elephants, those people back there would have acted a long time ago, and the bone wouldn''t have fallen into the hands of the Celestial Fox Palace. It would have been utterly ridiculous that the bone remained so unassuming. Furthermore, the Celestial Fox Palace claimed that this thing came from the Origin Mountains. Could this be from an elephant emperor of ancient times, then?\" the demon emperor of Taotie added.


    \"If the ones at Yingzhao Mountain value the bone this much, then it couldn''t be from a common elephant emperor,\" Zhu Yan added.


    The demon emperor of the Feather Men''s eyes gleamed and then said, \"It reminds me of someone.\"


    The other three demon emperors turned their eyes to look at him.


    They all offered a guess soon after. Their eyes became pointed, and their minds seemed rattled.


    Would it turn out to be that someone?


    \"Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions,\" the demon emperors said almost at the same time. All of them looked at each other as soon as they said the name, and all of them saw the shock in each other''s eyes.


    The Celestial Fox Palace actually came into possession of a bone that belonged to the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions by chance?


    Judging from how much value Yingzhao Mountain deemed it to be, the possibility was indeed very high.


    \"Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions?\" Ye Futian asked in a low voice.


    \"A steed of an ancient Demon Monarch, the king of the Divine Elephants, who ruled a vast territory and was known as the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. He reigned supreme right after the Demon Monarch himself.\" Zhu Yan looked at Ye Futian and added, \"Legend said that one step from the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions was able to pin down the great path over a vast region. He was also known as invincible in the demon realm in terms of power and once brought the Divine Dragons to their knees, a testament to him being a king of sheer power.\"


    Ye Futian''s mind was rattled. That would have made the demon emperor a monster like none other from many, many years ago.


    \"There has been commotion sweeping all over Origin Mountain, and have you heard of some rumors regarding the place? Legends in the demon realm say that Origin Mountain might possibly be the place where the Demon Monarch was buried. The Demon Monarch''s body became the land, while his blood became the lakes and rivers, giving birth to all manner of demons. That was why Origin Mountain was lauded as the ancestral land of demons.\"


    Zhu Yan then continued, \"If this turns out to be just like how it was told in the rumors, then it is indeed possible that the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions might have been buried at Origin Mountain. Years past and what happened was lost in the course of history. We can only speculate with what we''ve got.\"


    Ye Futian nodded while his mind remained rattled. He was able to vaguely sense that Zhu Yan was probably right.


    It was extremely probable that the bone belonged to the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions, that formidable monster that once reigned supreme in the demon realm. He never expected to have been able to internalize something like that and make it part of his powers.


    \"If this turns out to be true, your luck is off the charts indeed. But then again, there is no telling if this will turn out to be a blessing or a curse. You really need to be more careful from here on out,\" Zhu Yan reminded him.


    \"I understand.\" Ye Futian nodded. Many demonic beasts looked at Ye Futian and felt somewhat jealous. Even the demon emperors were unable to help but feel the same. Ye Futian''s luck was truly out of this world, as he had internalized a bone that belonged to the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions.


    But then again, even if they were given that bone, none of them would have been able to unravel its secrets.


    They deemed that Ye Futian must have had some special means for being able to pull that off, but Zhu Yan did not ask any further.


    Everyone had their secrets, and there was no need to delve that deep into it. It would have made things awkward otherwise.


    \"Get back to training then,\" Zhu Yan then said. Everyone had their routines interrupted by all the ruckus Ye Futian caused.


    Ye Futian nodded, and the crowd dispersed, returning to their respective training grounds.


    Ye Futian returned to his cavern residence to continue comprehending the secrets of the bone.


    He did not know how much time passed when he suddenly sensed a mystical aura.


    He opened his eyes and looked outside. There seemed to be a powerful demonic aura all over the place.


    \"What is happening?\" Ye Futian stepped out and wondered if something emanated from any one of the demon emperors training.


    It was dark and gloomy outside. While the moon was still high up in the air, it was shrouded by dark clouds. The light from the moon was entirely blocked.


    He looked up and found Zhu Yan was there as well. That demon emperor was not the only one, as there were also some other demon emperors around. Even Zhu Zhao and the others all looked up in different directions.


    \"Some intense demonic aura indeed,\" Ye Futian noted to himself. Dark clouds hovered in the air as if the place harbored intense demonic aura; it did not come from someone''s training.


    He cast his gaze faraway, finding only a demonic cloud moving. But then, he quickly corrected himself. It seemed that the entire sky was shrouded by demonic aura. Demonic clouds were all over the place, shrouding the entire Demon Metropolis.


    \"What happened?\" Ye Futian mumbled to himself. He stepped out and headed to where Zhu Yan and the others were, feeling somewhat rattled deep down.


    What is with all that demonic aura? he thought.


    At that moment, Zhu Yan cast his gaze far away. His eyes seemed to have penetrated boundless space, making him capable of seeing the entire Demon Metropolis being covered in the powerful demonic aura.


    \"This demonic aura comes from Origin Mountain,\" Zhu Yan lowered his voice and said. The demon emperors by his side looked severe, as they all sensed something was off.


    They were surprised to find demonic aura from Origin Mountain about to shroud the entire Demon Metropolis.


    What is happening over there? they wondered.


    \"I''ve heard from the prophet that something big is about to happen in the demon realm. It seems like the prophecy is about to come true,\" Zhu Yan continued. He then turned around and shot a look at Ye Futian.


    It seemed that Ye Futian was the last person who had seen the prophet.


    He wondered if that actually meant anything.


    Probably not.


    He dared not speculate just how a human saint would be connected with the passing of the prophet.


    If he were to be indeed connected to the prophet''s passing, he wondered just who Ye Futian was.


    \"Something big is about to happen in the demon realm,\" Zhu Yan mumbled to himself and added, \"I''ll be off. Take care of yourselves.\"


    He then flashed away, taking to the air and leaving with the other demon emperors, leaving their offspring behind.


    The Black Wind Condor came high in the sky and guzzled up the demonic aura in a frenzy.


    \"Hey, bird,\" Ye Futian called. The Black Wind Condor dived down and came before Ye Futian, saying, \"Master, the demonic aura is thick. Man, it feels so good.\"


    \"Yeah.\" Ye Futian nodded. Zhu Zhao came forth, saying, \"Let''s get to Origin Mountain. Things are about to be shaken up.\"


    \"Sure,\" Ye Futian replied, and a group of people headed for the mountain.


    They were not the only ones; countless monsters took to their air in all directions in the Demon Metropolis, dancing maniacally under the moon.


    They absorbed the demonic aura all over the place in a frenzy, feeling very at ease and relaxed.


    A huge demon roc zipped past in the sky, and dragons were roaring.


    It was the dance of the demons all over the place.


    There were also many human cultivators in the midst of the mighty demons all over the realm.


    A group of mighty ones took to the sky at that moment. That group dazzled with a flash of lightning when they moved. They were clad in formidable might all over.


    They took a look at the demons who were in a frenzy, and one of them looked on with contempt. The demonic aura made them feel uncomfortable.


    There was news in their clan a while ago, saying that Gu Tianxing''s steps were traced to the Origin Mountain. As such, many human cultivator forces of Heavenly Mandate Realm came as well.


    \"It seems like the news possibly holds true after all. Gu Tianxing might not have died all those years ago,\" a mighty one said with a cold voice.


    \"I wonder if the shake of Origin Mountain has anything to do with Gu Tianxing.\"


    \"Who knows.\"


    All of them moved, and one of the legendary youth among them basked in divine lightning as he said in a low voice, \"I wonder where Zimo and the others are right now.\"


    \"Challenged and defeated by lone cultivators, putting us at the Heavenly Palace to shame. I''ll have them locked up and training in isolation for years after we get back from this trip.\"

 1392 The Gathering

    Countless monsters were found all over the sky, in a frenzy, in the Demon Metropolis.


    There were countless demon saints all over the place, while those from the Violet Heavenly Palace moved in the air.


    \"Human Renhuangs are here in the demon realm,\" a demonic beast said, not far away. The look in its eyes was pointed.


    The demonic beasts spotted a Renhuang.


    The Heavenly Mandate Realm was divided into two areas with the realm markers, and both sides stayed out of each other''s business. It was especially so with imperial level beings, who were usually forbidden from stepping into the other party''s territories.


    At present, a Renhuang was stepping into demon realm territory. Worse still, they came to the core region of the realm��the Demon Metropolis.


    All eyes turned in their direction. That monster who spoke earlier sensed thunderous will of the great path in the eyes of the humans. It was as if it would pierce through its brain, causing that monster to shake all over.


    \"They are from the Violet Heavenly Palace,\" yet another monster asked.


    \"What are you people from the Violet Heavenly Palace doing here in the demon realm?\"


    \"Silence,\" a cold voice said. A mighty one from the Violet Heavenly Palace, who was at the forefront in the sky, had his hair billowing. His face was very angled, and his entire being exuded intense, overbearing will. Lightning coursed all over that man as if he had been born like that.


    That man was so overbearing that thunder sounded as he moved.


    \"Thunder, a body of lightning, from the Violet Heavenly Palace.\" Many monsters who were in a hurry in the air turned to look at that young man. Their minds were all rattled as they were reminded of someone told in legends.


    They were all training in the demon realm, and as such, they knew little about human cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. But they had nonetheless heard of some of the humans who were top figures from top forces.


    For instance, it was said that there was a man in Violet Heavenly Palace who had a supreme body of the great path and was born with innate lightning powers. Thunderous noise was heard when he emanated his aura, so much so that he was capable of killing by merely walking around, making him a terrifying figure. He was lauded as the number one among the younger generations in the Violet Heavenly Palace and was fostered to become the next Palace Lord. He was taken in as the personal student of the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace, and he was given great importance.


    Many great monsters zipped past the mighty ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace as this thought welled up in their minds. They were, however, not worried that the Renhuang from the Violet Heavenly Palace would do anything to harm them.


    Those from the Violet Heavenly Palace would have only done so if they did not mind being ganged up on by the entire demon realm.


    They were the ones who broke the rules, making them incapable of simply acting out against any demonic beasts below the imperial level. It would provoke stoke flames of anger all over the demon realm.


    \"I''m rather curious about just how powerful those few humans, known to have supreme bodies of the great path, actually are,\" a monster said and breathed fire at them, burning the sky.


    \"I''d like to try it out myself.\" Yet another monster flapped its wings, and terrifying lightning surged all over it. That creature was a lightning roc.


    \"Consider your wish granted.\" A voice was heard. That young man stepped out. Rumbling noises sounded, those few monsters'' eardrums to rattle.


    The young man was then extended his hand, and there seemed to be a huge image appearing in the sky. It was a diagram of lightning, and eight bolts of lightning rained down from above, shrouding the entire place.


    \"The Lightning Matrix of Doomsday.\" The monsters were perceptive enough to tell and intended to evade it right away. However, the beams of lightning coming down placed a lockdown on their surroundings. Countless bolts of lightning rained down throughout that vast space, which then turned into a huge screen of light. There were demonic beasts intending to burst outside, but shrieks were soon heard, and blood was spilled. There were even demonic beasts whose claws were sheared off by that screen of light.


    \"Down.\"


    That young man uttered a single word, and eight different bolts of lightning rained down all over him, blasting every single one of the monsters caught in the area in an instant. They were unable to evade the attack and had to resist it head-on.


    Shrieks were continuously heard. One monster after another was either bloodied or charred. The scene looked extremely harrowing.


    That young man shot a plain look at them before continuing forward. Demonic beasts before him moved out of his way and no longer dared to stop him. Their eyes were filled with anger and resentment, but there was also a faint hint of fear as well.


    That supreme body of the great path of that man from the Violet Heavenly Palace was terrifyingly powerful indeed.


    Despite being an Unblemished Saint, that one great attack from him made everyone sense killing might of Holiness of Nirvana level.


    That man was born with a body of lightning, and it was a supreme body of lightning.


    A group of women clad in white was traveling in the air in another corner of the Demon Metropolis. Despite being under the dark of night, they were very eye-catching. Countless monsters looked in their direction.


    Their white garb billowed in the air, making them look like fairies and goddesses. Moonlight shone on their faces, which made them dazzling enough to cause others to forget what they were doing, and they looked like perfect illustrations.


    It was especially so with one of them. Her face was so perfect and flawless that she was stiflingly pretty. However, the arrogant, cold look in her eyes made her look somewhat unapproachable.


    Other than that, they emanated imperial level might. Some of those beautiful women were Renhuang level beings.


    \"Cultivators from Brahma''s Pure Sky.\" They attracted countless monsters. Human cultivators of such unparalleled bearing could have only been those from Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Is a Jiutian Goddess among them then? they wondered.


    They wondered just how many Jiutian Goddesses were among them.


    \"So, you''re here too, Xuantian Goddess.\" A figure was seen not far away. One of the goddesses turned around and saw a group of people wearing robes. They looked dashing as they blitzed in the air, coming near the ones who came first.


    \"So you all are here as well,\" the Xuantian Goddess turned around to look at those who were dressed in robes and quipped.


    She was definitely able to tell who those people were��mighty ones from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    The commotion was indeed huge. Gu Tianxing was traced to be at Origin Mountains, and the ones who were most aware of it were those from either the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty or the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    The ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were sworn enemies of Gu Tianxing, while the ones from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were only there because Gu Tianxing was there.


    Those two forces would not miss the chance to travel to Origin Mountains.


    \"How about you join us, goddess?\" a mighty one from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven said. Mighty ones from both sides hovered in front, heading towards the mountain together. Both parties were moving at blitzing speeds, crossing through vast distances in a matter of moments.


    Ye Futian and the others were heading towards the Origin Mountains as well. The peak that Zhu Yan taken them to had not been too far away from Origin Mountains, after all. It was evident that Zhu Yan had had plans regarding the matter. It turned that Zhu Yan was not the only one, as many powerful beings were all behaving as such.


    The entire Demon Metropolis was only roused when demonic aura permeated the entire Demon Metropolis. Every single mighty one headed towards the mountain at the same time.


    It was truly the dance of the demons all over the place.


    \"Things are getting rocky indeed.\" The Black Wind Condor continued to suck in the demonic aura all around it while it was in flight. It scanned its surroundings and was in awe that the place was filled with monsters.


    Things were really about to get messy. Hordes of demons moved out, with the demon saints all heading towards the forbidden land that was the Origin Mountains.


    No one knew what actually happened there, but the demonic aura was very enticing to demonic beasts nonetheless.


    Furthermore, myths regarding the Origin Mountains had always been nothing short of legendary.


    As such, that terrifying scene at the moment happened, and the entire Demon Metropolis was shaken.


    As time passed, light was seen in the sky. The night was over, but the sun had yet to rise.


    Demonic clouds shrouded the entire place. It was as if the whole place had been covered by one giant dark cloud.


    The mighty ones came to the external fringes of Origin Mountains one after another, casting their gaze at the boundless mountain.


    Noise was heard all over the place. Things were utterly chaotic outside the mountains, as countless mighty ones showed up.


    By the time Ye Futian and the others had gotten there, countless monsters had gathered outside Origin Mountains. There were also many human cultivators found all around.


    The mighty ones looked ahead of them and found the mountains to be as peaceful as they had always been. It was as if it would stay this way��dead, and hardly anyone to be found.


    However, in the sky far above Origin Mountains, people were vaguely able to see a terrifying dark vortex with towering demonic aura.


    Just what the hell is happening? they thought.


    Many demonic beast''s eyes remained pointed, wanting very badly to charge into that area. However, their logical side told them that Origin Mountains were not a place they could easily step foot into. Countless demonic beasts were known to perish in there, after all.


    Few spots emanated the most terrifying of auras. All demonic beasts in the areas they occupied simply stayed there quietly, not daring to even yelp.


    For instance, there was a clan of very formidable demons in an area, and all mighty ones in that area felt stifling pressure all around them.


    \"It''s the Divine Elephants,\" Zhu Zhao then reminded Ye Futian, who was at his side.


    The Divine Elephants were still top-notch demons found throughout the demon realm. Their powers were extremely formidable, and they were frighteningly overbearing. Their sheer power was unmatched, enabling them to pin down a great path over a huge area.


    Of course, the Divine Elephants once obeyed the orders of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions, Ye Futian thought to himself, wondering what they would have done if they found out that he had internalized a bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions.


    \"Those over there are the Purple-gold Rats,\" Zhu Zhao introduced as he pointed in yet another direction.


    \"Rats?\" Ye Futian looked somewhat surprised as he looked in that direction. He saw that all monsters had taken a human form, yet, all of them looked extremely ugly. Their eyes were so small that they looked shifty.


    However, a purple-golden sheen was all over their bodies, making them look incredibly noble.


    \"Indeed.\" Zhu Zhao nodded. \"Rat demons are originally very weak demons. However, many years ago, one tremendously powerful rat demon emerged in the ranks of the Purple-gold Rats, and that being was lauded to be extremely legendary. It was said that that particular demon had always been submissive to other demons, yet it actually ate countless treasures and enhanced its foundation. Furthermore, that rat was extremely cunning and hardworking, as well as extremely proficient in concealment. It then consumed several monsters and grew in strength, emerging as one of the top demon emperors from being lowly rats. That rat called itself a divine rat and brought the rats to where they are presently.\"


    Ye Futian nodded deep down. Innate abilities of demonic beasts played a huge factor in their growth. Being able to rise like that was indeed legendary.


    \"Best not mess with the rat demons. While they are indeed very capable now, they still feel inferior deep down. They behave in an extremely prideful way and are bloodthirsty. Get on their bad side and you can start counting your troubles,\" Zhu Zhao went out of his way to remind Ye Futian telepathically.


    \"Seems like human cultivators are almost all here too.\" Zhu Zhao cast his gaze further away, and Ye Futian looked in the same direction. He quickly caught sight of the extremely dazzling Xuantian Goddess bringing many from Brahman''s Pure Sky, and they looked extremely exceptional.


    They seemed like they were the only beings left in the world, simply standing around and doing nothing.


    Ye Futian felt a sense of loss, and his heart ached somewhat at the sight of those women.


    He turned his eyes away from them and looked elsewhere. Those from the Violet Heavenly Palace were there as well. There were also some other top-notch forces present.


    The human cultivators had indeed fielded their top figures.

 1393 Origin Mountains

    There seemed to be extremely scorching divine fire coming down from above.


    Countless mighty ones looked up and saw a dazzling scene high up in the sky. One dazzling monster after another descended from above.


    Among them were golden ravens, peacocks, phoenixes, kunpengs, and other formidable demonic races.


    All of the mighty ones from the demonic races sported solemn looks, and they looked at the mighty ones that came.


    \"The Sky Demon Court.\" Zhu Zhao then said telepathically to Ye Futian, \"Back in that awestruck battle in ancient times, human and demon cultivators fought a great, harrowing battle. The demons began to form alliances in order to resist the humans, but the kings of the flying creatures in the sky formed the toughest of alliances. Under the leadership of The Golden Raven Saint Emperor, the Peacock Saint Emperor, the Phoenix Ancestral Emperor, the Kunpeng Demonic Master, Golden Wing Roc Emperor and many other top-notch beings allied themselves and reigned over the flying beasts of the demon realm, establishing the Sky Demon Court and creating the most powerful of demonic armies to resist humans. Even today, the Sky Demon Court remained at the very top of the demon realm.\"


    Zhu Zhao then continued, \"But, there seems to be a schism within the Sky Demon Court. At present, the Golden Raven Saint Emperor and the Kunpeng Emperor are at odds with each other. The Kunpeng Emperor was extremely prideful and refused to take orders from anyone. The Golden Raven Saint Raven liked being alone, too. The nine-headed phoenixes were not accepted by the phoenixes as well.\"


    Ye Futian nodded deep down. All of those demonic races were of top-tier talents among the demons. While their alliances might not have been all that powerful, they would have reigned supreme in the demon realm.


    Furthermore, infighting was normal. All of them formed an alliance due to having to fight an external enemy, after all. It was even considered quite a miracle that the Sky Demon Court was able to stay intact for that many years.


    \"Father,\" Kong Xuan, who as at Ye Futian''s side, called. The Demon Peacock Emperor was among the mighty ones from the Sky Demon Court as well, standing beside another peacock monster.


    They had relatives in the demon realm, and the Emperor had been there to pay a visit to them before.


    \"Come over here, Kong Xuan,\" the Demon Peacock Emperor called at that moment. Kong Xuan took to the sky and headed straight for the place where the monsters of the Sky Demon Court in the air were.


    \"Seems like your friend has a chance of becoming part of the Sky Demon Court,\" Zhu Zhao said. Kong Xuan was seen greeting the demon emperors high up in the sky.


    \"This is frightening.\"


    The Black Wind Condor at Ye Futian''s side shirked its brains, surprised at just how formidable Kong Xuan''s background was.


    The bird deemed that the Princess was not to be messed with.


    \"Princess Qingyuan, I''m rather concerned for you,\" the Black Wind Condor looked at Xia Qingyuan at the side and said. When the backgrounds of both women were compared, Xia Qingyuan would indeed lose.


    \"Shut up.\" Ye Futian knocked the bird''s head hard.


    \"Why are you around human cultivators?\" a young peacock demon saint took a look at Ye Futian and the others below, then asked Kong Xuan.


    Peacocks were inherently prideful, and they were rather displeased to see Kong Xuan mingling with humans.


    \"They are my friends,\" Kong Xuan answered.


    \"Ye Futian is an extraordinary young cultivator, and those people around him are indeed good people,\" the Demon Peacock Emperor added. Many of the monsters in the Sky Demon Court took a look at Ye Futian, and that was all.


    Ye Futian took notice of how the monsters'' eyes. They looked composed and were hardly fettered.


    The demons and humans in the Heavenly Mandate Realm carved their own territories and trained in their respective places, so it was only a given that both parties were not on good terms.


    \"What are we still staying around here for? We''re already here, aren''t we? Just get into the Origin Mountains then. Let the demon emperors take the lead, just so the others won''t get in trouble.\" A booming voice was heard. A group of true dragons appeared high up in the air, looking majestic.


    The true dragons were composed of many dragon races, and all of them were in their true form. The scene in the air was frightening, as dragons of over a thousand meters, one after another, were circling in the sky. That scene was indeed awe-inspiring.


    \"The Dragon Gods, again, a top-notch race in the demon realm,\" Zhu Zhao added. The Dragon Gods gathered many mighty dragons around, and things looked terrifying.


    Their powers, in general, would have allowed them to take on the Sky Demon Court by force.


    The one who spoke asked for the demon emperors to proceed before the others because things with Origin Mountains were special.


    If everyone were to venture inside at the same time, the demon emperors would probably bring bad luck and disaster to the other demonic beasts below the imperial plane.


    \"Let''s go.\" A figure emerged, and all demon emperors took to the skies, stepping inside the Origin Mountains.


    Ye Futian''s mind rattled as he looked at the emperors before him.


    It seemed that over half of the top-notch forces all over the demon realm had gathered there.


    Other than that, there were also many top-notch human cultivators in Heavenly Mandate Realm gathering at the mountains.


    It was a testament to just how great that commotion with the Origin Mountains had been.


    \"Let''s go.\" The demon and human cultivators below the imperial plane flashed one after another, moving forward from all sides, venturing into the Origin Mountains.


    Demonic clouds shrouded the sky above the mountains. The scene with over 10,000 demons moving in the same direction was awe-inspiring.


    The mighty ones from Yingzhao Mountain scanned around and locked their eyes on Ye Futian and Zhu Zhao. All of them sported a cold expression.


    That demon bone was probably in Zhu Yan''s possession. That emperor''s absence meant that he was probably already in the mountains, and taking that bone would be difficult.


    There was also another extremely alluring woman among the mighty ones from Yingzhao Mountain. It was none other than Hu Qian of Celestial Fox Palace. She moved alongside with the mighty ones from Yingzhao Mountain.


    Mighty ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace gathered in another direction, led by someone who seemed to have divine lightning coursing all over him, making it so that the figure was training all the time with the might of the great path tempering his body at all times.


    That man was named Zhan Yuan. He was someone with a supreme body of the great path in the Violet Heavenly Palace and was an Unblemished Saint. He was a leading figure of his generation and a personal student of the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Zhan Yuan took a look at the ones beside him and asked, \"Who was the one in that battle back then?\"


    Tan Zimo and the other mighty ones searched the crowd and found someone far away after a while. His eyes were locked on Ye Futian.


    Zhan Yuan traced the direction where their eyes were looking, then found Ye Futian and his people.


    Those who were with Ye Futian seemed to have sensed the look they had got, turning their eyes around in a single direction as well before catching sight of Zhan Yuan and the others.


    Ye Futian seemed to have seen a pair of eyes of a thunder god within an instant. It was as if he was dragged into a world of lightning and thunder in that instant, dealing heavy impact on his spiritual will.


    Boom... Lightning coursed throughout Ye Futian''s body. His eyes became very pointed in an instant. His hair billowed, and he felt an extremely dangerous aura about to befall him.


    Zhu Zhao, who was at his side, turned around to look in that direction as well, looking very defensive, about to fight someone powerful.


    He, too, felt an immense sense of crisis, and that cultivator who was looking at them was indeed powerful.


    Formidable sword will surged throughout Yaya''s body, which was then directed at the other party. It was obvious that the might of the great path of the other party was not directed only at any one person; he was directing his might at many at the same time.


    The feeling lasted for little more than an instant.


    \"The supreme body of the great path of the Violet Heavenly Palace,\" Zhu Zhao muttered, and Ye Futian''s eyes remained directed at the other side.


    He heard of that before, wondering if that person was indeed one with a supreme body of lightning at the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    \"When we get back to the heavenly palace, you all are to dedicate yourselves to training for the next several years and are not allowed to venture elsewhere.\" Zhan Yuan turned his eyes around and said to Tan Zimo and the others. All of them looked rather glum after being told that, but they all nodded without objection.


    In Zhan Yuan''s current generation in the Violet Heavenly Palace, his words were taken as those of the Palace Lord''s.


    \"Let''s go.\" Zhan Yuan did not do anything against Ye Futian and the others. That one look he shot at those people allowed him to have a rough idea of what they were like. With the exception of the few Holiness of Nirvanas in their midst, everyone else was of no threat to him.


    Taking them out at such a place was utterly pointless.


    He deemed that the Violet Heavenly Palace had not stooped so low as to cling on a group of lone cultivators.


    \"Let''s go,\" Ye Futian then said. He was getting ready to leave when Kong Xuan flashed and came to their side. The mighty ones in the Sky Demon Court in the sky looked at her. One of the peacock demon saints asked, \"You are with them?\"


    \"Indeed. We''ve been together all along,\" Kong Xuan acknowledged with a nod.


    \"Other human cultivators are venturing inside the Origin Mountains of the demon realm as well. If you are to go with them, be careful on your own,\" the other party said in a prideful tone before leaving.


    The monsters of the Sky Demon Court flashed as well at great speeds, overtaking one demon beast after another.


    Ye Futian and the others took to the air and stepped into the Origin Mountains. There was a flat hill before them. It looked vast and almost endless. They had no idea where it ended.


    They proceeded forward without any hiccups. The terrain was getting increasingly high. It was as if they were to enter the sky above. The demonic aura high in the air was getting increasingly powerful as well. Many of the monsters absorbed those demonic aurae in a frenzy and internalized them.


    That area was the entry to the Origin Mountains. The true place of origin lay beyond where they were now.


    Ye Futian finally came to the peak of the hill after a while, gazing at the ridges before them. The place high in the sky felt dead, with black crows circling about, and an aura of death permeated the place.


    Voom. A group of black crows suddenly dove down at the mighty ones at the very forefront. Many monsters and humans unleashed their aura to resist the attack.


    Some monsters were swallowed whole by the crows, and the scene was extremely harrowing.


    However, there were also terrifying mighty ones who managed to repel the crows. For instance, those from the Violet Heavenly Palace. The Lightning Matrix of Doomsday made it so that the crows simply dissipated before they were able to get near.


    The mighty ones from the Sky Demon Court were not having a hard time either. Golden divine fires burned the skies around them, making it impossible for the crows to get near.


    The Divine Elephants trumpeted and stomped on the ground. The crows were killed and shredded in the sky before they were even able to get near, making the elephants extremely terrifying.


    Ye Futian and those around him moved forward as well. Yaya took the lead and held her sword in the air. Boundless sword will circled about her and swept out. Crows were diving at them, and the crows all sported terrifying demonic aura, but all were immediately destroyed by the sword will. Wu Yong and the other Holiness of Nirvanas at Ye Futian''s side burst into flames, burning those crows away.


    All of the mighty ones moved forward. They were only at the beginning on the trip into the Origin Mountains.


    Terrifying demonic clouds emerged from the depths of the Origin Mountains at the moment. A storm conjured by a huge demonic cloud in the air circled about. Boundless might of demons seemed to have gathered around.


    There was vaguely a spectral being seen in that frightening storm, but the being looked rather blurry, and no one was able to make out their face.


    There was also another figure who was at the peak of the skyscraping mountain below. That figure was dressed in white and looked very dashing. The elegant, refined bearing of a scholar was felt from him. There was also dazzling godly light emanating from him.


    Other than that, it seemed that he had also been affected by the demonic aura, giving him a hint of feral grace as well.

 1394 Canyon of Death

    As more and more mighty ones were stepping into the Origin Mountains, everyone gradually spread out and headed in different directions.


    The Origin Mountains were so vast that even with countless monsters inside, it was nonetheless easy to spread out into isolated pockets.


    However, the fact that there were monsters found in every single direction as they moved forward remained.


    Ye Futian and the others around him felt all the other mighty ones distancing themselves from one another. The crows gradually disappeared as they moved forward, yet the demonic aura about became even thicker. Furthermore, the entire barren mountain seemed to be shrouded by some mysterious powers, giving off a faint stifling feeling.


    That pressure was something challenging to put in words, but it was something that made people feel uncomfortable. Be in the sky or on the ground, or even just in the air around, that faint sense of pressure seemed to be everywhere, prompting all the mighty ones to be on guard.


    However, there seemed to be little danger in the external regions.


    \"The aura of the Origin Mountains feels stifling,\" Xia Qingyuan quipped. She felt slightly uncomfortable but was unable to tell where her body was feeling uncomfortable. Mentally-speaking, it was a feeling that she was unable to place.


    \"Same with me.\" Ye Futian nodded. \"Best be careful.\"


    He wondered if Gu Tianxing were really still alive, why had he brought his third brother to the Origin Mountains?


    \"It was said there had once been an out-of-this-world battle here. Many demon emperors and Renhuangs perished, and their blood was spilled everywhere. Their frustration and resentment latched onto the place as a whole, forming into an aura that will never dissipate from the Origin Mountains, causing many inexplicable, unreasonable dangers to lurk all over the place. It is completely normal to feel stifled here.\"


    The Princess of the Feathered Men explained to Xia Qingyuan, and she nodded to the demon princess in return.


    \"Those from Celestial Fox Palace would know more about the place. That Hu Qian is a virgin-like figure in Celestial Fox Palace, and it should be a lot safer staying around her.\" Ye Futian cast his gaze forward. Mighty ones from Yingzhao Mountain were moving forward at very high speeds, making it seem like they were beams of silver light.


    Hu Qian of Celestial Fox Palace traveled into the Origin Mountains alongside those from Yingzhao Mountain on that trip.


    \"Good idea.\" Zhu Zhao nodded and then followed right behind them. All of them sped up, moving right behind those from Yingzhao Mountain.


    Ye Futian and his people were not the only ones to do so. In truth, many demons were doing so right after they stepped into the Origin Mountains. They followed right behind those from top-notch forces, forming huge groups as they moved into the depths of the mountains.


    They came to deeper regions of the mountains as time passed.


    There seemed to be a canyon right before them all, and the mighty ones from Yingzhao Mountain stopped. They were not the only ones to do so. Many mighty ones slowed down and eventually stopped.


    However, they were even more mighty ones who continued forward.


    \"Look out!\" Lei Meng''s voice was thundering as he spoke. Everyone wondered if those from Celestial Fox Palace had sensed any danger.


    Wind blew, and shrilled noises were heard from the canyon. The noises sounded like drums and howls. While the noise was not very loud, they were quite unpleasant to the ear. The noise traveled with the wind, and the noises continued to sound like wails.


    Ye Futian felt his eardrums ringing. The pointed winds traveled with those weird noises and made him feel as if his mind was under attack. It was very uncomfortable.


    \"Seems like we''ve gotten somewhere dangerous,\" Zhu Zhao said. At the same time, many throughout the vast space stopped, looking ahead while on high alert.


    That shrilled howl emanating from the canyon ahead made all of them feel uneasy.


    \"Can we take a detour?\" a monster from Yingzhao Mountain asked Hu Qian at that moment.


    Hu Qian shook her head and answered, \"That is the Canyon of Death, and we need to pass through it. Furthermore, we can''t cause too much of a commotion while doing so. From what I''ve read in Celestial Fox Palace''s records, the more high-profiled one is in the Canyon of Death, the easier one will end up dead.\"


    A group of mighty ones took to the air right before them as soon as she finished. Those people were trying to pass through the canyon from above, making their way to the other side.


    Voom...


    A bolt of black lightning streaked right before everyone''s eyes. Its speed was so fast that it looked like a mirage. It was something that the naked eye had difficult tracking.


    That mirage shot up to the sky and swept all of the mighty ones taking to the air away in an instant, giving them no chance even to attempt to escape. All of them were caught.


    Those mighty ones who were caught were flabbergasted. Powerful might of the great path was cast, but it was of little use. That thing that captured them pulled back in an instant, backing away into the canyon while breaking them down bit by bit.


    That group in the sky all disappeared within mere moments, leaving behind some blood.


    \"Well...\" The minds of many raced, feeling terrified. The eyes of many mighty ones even looked different by then.


    \"Some speed indeed.\" Ye Futian''s pupils contracted. \"Is that a vine from a tree?\"


    \"Be careful. It''s the Demon-eating Tree,\" some demon fox from the Celestial Fox Palace said. Many mighty ones from the Celestial Fox Palace were invited by all manner of forces to embark on the trip into the Origin Mountains.


    \"How should we make it through?\" some mighty ones asked the demon fox from the Celestial Fox Palace.


    \"We need to walk past, but we need to be careful. Do not cause a scene,\" the mighty one from the Celestial Fox Palace said to the crowd.


    More and more mighty ones came to that place. The shrill noises remained, and they slowed down as they walked, but their ears felt even more pained.


    \"Walking right through the canyon?\" Some demonic beast felt rather doubtful.


    \"Indeed.\"


    \"You have a death wish or something?\"


    Some mighty ones snickered sarcastically and shot upwards, reaching so high that they almost entered the clouds, zipping forward from above.


    Zoom.


    The dark bolt of lightning shot to the clouds as if it was able to ignore distance altogether.


    \"No...\"


    Shouts were here high up in the air. That black lightning pulled that someone down, and they disappeared in the canyon. Many extended their will to probe the inside of the canyon but quickly found that their will was blocked by some invisible force.


    Can we only get through by passing through the canyon? they thought.


    Many mighty ones frowned. At that moment, a group of mighty ones burst with dazzling brilliance. Everyone turned around and saw mighty ones among the Purple-gold Rats taking their original form. Bolts of golden lightning zip past, and they burrowed underground, disappearing in an instant.


    \"Wha...\"


    Many sported peculiar expressions at that scene. While it was true that the Purple-gold Rats had already become a race of demons at the pinnacle of the demon realm, they still were unable to get rid of that habit of being rats.


    \"Let''s go.\" A group of mighty ones, who were of the dragons, took the lead.


    They stepped forward and headed to the edges. They scanned the canyon for a bit and then dove down.


    The monsters of the Sky Demon Court followed suit.


    \"Let''s head out,\" Ye Futian said and began walking. The shrilled noises became increasingly annoying as they moved forward, making them feel very restless.


    They came to the edge of the canyon and looked down into the deep canyon. One dark ancient tree after another swayed, guzzling the aura all about them.


    \"Be careful. Try your best not to unleash your aura,\" a mighty one from the Celestial Fox Palace reminded. Everyone concealed their aura and walked slowly to the canyon.


    The ground of the canyon looked as if a grand battle had once been fought there, as the ground was cut up into pieces. The shrilled noises became even more intense.


    Xia Qingyuan closed her eyes, feeling extremely uneasy.


    \"Was this a battlefield?\" Ye Futian asked in a low voice. The chaotic auras and shrill wails seemed to contain the will of the great path of countless hateful souls.


    Voom! At that moment, one of the dark ancient trees in the canyon grew all of a sudden, lashing out in all directions. Many mighty ones were gobbled up in an instant, and that tree gradually consumed them.


    \"Move.\"


    Many of the monsters were shocked and terrified by what just happened, running forward in a frenzy.


    Swishing sounds were heard as countless ancient trees ran amok, spreading out in all directions.


    \"Quick...\"


    The monsters everywhere became frenzied as they sped up and charged forward. However, those trees seemed to be even faster. One would have ended up being gobbled up as soon as they got tangled.


    Countless demonic beasts perished in the canyon within mere moments. Their blood stained the ground red, which was then consumed by the ground of the black canyon.


    \"Move already.\" The expression of a mighty one from the Celestial Fox Palace changed. There were simply too many demonic beasts getting into the canyon, making the situation utterly uncontrollable.


    Things at the moment seemed to have changed entirely.


    One dark ancient tree after another seemed to have sprouted from the black ground of death, and the trees continued to grow in size. They gobbled up the demonic aura all around them before attacking and consuming the demonic beasts and human cultivators to fuel their growth.


    A dark ancient tree grew in a frenzy at the center of the canyon and had gotten increasingly huge, shooting up to the skies. Its leaves and vines shot to great distances, intending envelope the entire canyon, looking like a dark, divine tree.


    That dark tree swayed, and destructive dark aura seemed to have emerged in the canyon, which seeped inside the mighty ones'' bodies right away.


    \"What the hell is this?\" Ye Futian and the others around him sped up as they moved. There was no way they could have avoided running in such a situation.


    \"Things are going south; let''s move.\" Zhu Yan''s face turned glum. A rumbling was heard from the ground, and cracks formed in the canyon. Boundless dark aura permeated the canyon and swept at all of them. The dark aura seeped into the bodies of the mighty ones, killing them on the spot and filling the place with death in an instant.


    Qi Xuangang burst his aura, and turned it into a dazzling screen, circling those around him. He said, \"There was a very formidable someone proficient in deathly powers that perished here. That someone had their power of the great path seep into the soil after death. Right now, all of this is probably something conjured by their will of the great path.


    \"Look out!\"


    Terrifying dark aura swept at them at the moment. Qi Xuangang waved his hand about, and might of great path burst from within him, destroying much of the invading aura. However, the aura seemed to be endless and capable of permeating into anything and anywhere as it moved in the crowd''s direction.


    Ye Futian burst with divine flames all over, which burned all the dark aura coming near him, reducing it to nothing. There were also several Holiness of Nirvanas who stood by his side to guard him.


    Yu Sheng took to the air, and when he saw those auras coming at him, he extended his hand and conjured a terrifying whirlpool, devouring the aura instead.


    The dark aura seeping inside his body caused dark streaks to appear all over his body. Rumbling noise was heard from his body, and his expression continued to change as he did so. However, his hand remained extended forward, continuing to devour that dark aura and internalizing it.

 1395 I havent Seen that Ye

    Ye Futian took a look at Yu Sheng, thinking that the latter''s methods of cultivation and constitutional fortitude were indeed overbearing.


    Ye Futian was surprised by how Yu Sheng was able to ignore the deathly aura and simply devoured it, making it his own. While the aura had still affected him, it was unable to pose an actual threat to him.


    One mighty one after another hurried as they moved forward, all of them using their own ways to resist the attacks faced. Zhan Yuan of the Violet Heavenly Palace took to their air, utterly terrifying Lightning Matrix of Doomsday appearing above. Eight divine bolts of lightning rained from the matrix, covering a huge area and destroying everything in its path, making it impossible for the deathly aura to come close.


    The other mighty ones of the Violet Heavenly Palace raised their hands at the same time. Boundless might of lightning surged into that matrix, making it even more powerful, enabling it to sweep away all auras around them.


    "Beware of that tree," Zhan Yuan said. That tree, which was still growing, had gotten so big, it blocked out the sky and spread everywhere. It spread deathly aura all over the place, and its attacks killed many cultivators, monsters, and humans. Those people were then consumed by the tree to serve as nutrients to further its growth.


    Many mighty ones continued to speed up, intending to pass through that seemingly endless Canyon of Death.


    It was no surprise why the Origin Mountains had always been seen as a restricted area. Demonic beasts dared not step foot inside, and even demon emperors were all fearful of the place. Years passed, and possibly due to the lack of large scale expeditions into the Origin Mountains, the fear and reverence they had for the place weakened. That, coupled with the matter with Gu Tianxing and that terrifying demonic cloud at the Origin Mountains, brought about that massive expedition.


    At that moment, many mighty ones, however, began to regret coming. They thought it would have been better to just let the ones at the top fight for whatever was inside. They didn''t need to have anything to do with it.


    The terrifying trumpeting of elephants sounded in the sky. The resulting rumble rattled everyone''s eardrums within earshot. Everyone looked up and saw a group of Divine Elephants taking their original forms high up in the air, stomping the sky as they moved. They dazzled with golden light all over, looking brilliant. Every single step they took seemed to be able to overwhelm everything around them.


    That deathly aura of the great path and the branches were all pinned down, incapable of breaking through. While the elephants looked like they were advancing slowly, they were actually beginning to overtake the other mighty ones.


    Ye Futian and those around him unleashed their auras as well. He burst with Flames of the Way as well as dazzling sword will. Xia Qingyuan, who was at his side, burst with Catastrophe Swordsmanship, which paired with her lotus powers, making her look unceasingly powerful.


    That dark, deathly aura in the air seemed to have sensed something and went on to lash out at Xia Qingyuan.


    However, most of those attacks were eliminated by the Holiness of Nirvanas around her.


    Swaying sounds were heard, and branches of one deathly tree after another headed their way in increasingly huge numbers. Worse still, countless deathly auras in the sky surged where they were.


    Even auras attacking the others had all surged towards Xia Qingyuan in a frenzy.


    "What is going on here?" Ye Futian frowned slightly. Qi Xuangang stepped forward and lifted his arm, crushing everything before him; however, the branches and auras still came from all sides, even evading him to get to the Princess.


    The immense tree of death seemed to have sensed something as well. One huge branch after another shot in her direction.


    "Look out!" Qi Xuangang shouted. He stepped forward, and terrifying rings of light appeared around him, blocking those branches. However, the branches simply enveloped him, paying no heed to how many vines he ended up destroying, as they continued to lash out at the target behind him.


    "Protect the Princes!" Ye Futian''s expression changed drastically. All mighty ones came to Xia Qingyuan''s side, resisting all the incoming attacks.


    Boom, boom, boom... The furious attacks clashed as the branches continued to sweep out, attacking all of them.


    Those deathly auras were everywhere, seeping through the cracks and crevices between their bodies, heading towards Xia Qingyuan.


    "Flames!" Ye Futian shouted. Wu Yong and the other Holiness of Nirvanas burst with dazzling divine flames at the same time, burning their surroundings, but the deathly auras sneaked through the flames nonetheless.


    Xia Qingyuan, who was surrounded by a huge group of people, appeared rather pale. The might of her Catastrophe Swordsmanship burst to the extreme, cutting down all those currents that seeped through.


    Dazzling, saintly lotuses wrapped around her, preventing the invasion of the auras.


    Crack...The branches pierced through the screens of light of the lotuses. Dark auras seeped into her body, causing her pure, saintly body to be tainted with a layer of dark aura.


    The power of life continued to be cranked to the extreme as she continued to wipe out those dark auras, yet the deathly aura seemed to be utterly boundless and very attracted to her body.


    "Death and life. The will of the great path of life." Ye Futian seemed to have realized something and said, "Pull your powers back."


    "Too late for that." Xia Qingyuan took a look at Ye Futian. If she were to pull her powers away now, death would have consumed her right away. Her power of life was the only thing keeping the deathly attacks at bay.


    She had no way of escape.


    "What is happening?"


    The mighty ones around that group looked on with baffled looks. The auras that attacked them disappeared all of a sudden and were directed at one particular direction.


    They turned around and saw countless ancient tree branches and deathly auras surging towards Xia Qingyuan.


    Qi Xuangang had his hands full at the moment with the huge tree of death. All of the Holiness of Nirvanas around them burst with divine flames in a frenzy, preventing the attacks from getting to Xia Qingyuan.


    Boom!


    The ground cracked open right there and then, with dark branches breaking out of the ground and getting to Xia Qingyuan right away, tangling her up as if they were out to suck that brimming life force out of her.


    Ye Futian stepped out. That Fire Spirit Orb in his Life Palace burst with terrifying Flames of the Way. His body transformed and engulfed by boundless flames in an instant. He turned into a fiery god of war.


    He charged while basking in flames. Countless fiery arms grabbed at the dark branches tangling with Xia Qingyuan, burning them down right away.


    However, the deathly auras all around them continued to invade her body.


    Streaks of deathly aura appeared on her face, making her look ashen.


    She turned her eyes, which looked rather sad, at Ye Futian.


    She wondered if she would die in this forbidden area.


    The Origin Mountains were known as a restricted area in the demon realm.


    Ye Futian seemed to have sensed the sorrow emanating from Xia Qingyuan. He began to regret bringing her into the mountains.


    She would have insisted on coming even if he were to refuse, but he felt responsible and was blaming himself for what happened.


    Boom...


    Terrifying might of the great path burst from within Xia Qingyuan as if imperial might was being unleashed. All the deathly aura inside her body was wiped clean in an instant. Ye Futian was able to see Emperor Xia''s visage appearing behind Xia Qingyuan.


    "Emperor Xia." Ye Futian began to look hopeful; however, he quickly realized that the emperor was looking ahead, frowning hard with a glum expression.


    That huge tree made him feel uneasy.


    Boooomm!


    The vast, seemingly endless canyon trembled. Countless trees of death burst throughout the entire canyon. Terrifying will of death shrouded the vast, endless canyon.


    "She''s going to get us all killed."


    Hu Qian of the Celestial Fox Palace among those from Yingzhao Mountain looked astounded as Xia Qingyuan brought a Renhuang will to bear.


    However, this was the Origin Mountains, where many demon emperors and Renhuangs were buried. According to the records, will of the great path that was trapped in the Origin Mountains would be attracted by powerful auras appearing there.


    A Renhuang might have invoked deathly will of greater intensity to bear on all of them. It would have probably really caused all of them to die in the canyon.


    That was also where the ones in imperial planes moved before everyone else, instead of venturing into the Origin Mountains together with them.


    The presence of the imperial beings would have caused them all to end up dead, instead of being of any benefit.


    The canyon shook, and deathly will shrouded the entire place. Many figures'' faces looked rather solemn. A figure gradually rose from that divine tree as rumbles were heard continuously.


    "What is that?"


    Many turned their attention in that direction. Their minds continued to be rattled.


    Countless branches circled about with the tree in the middle. An incredibly huge figure appeared. That figure was clad in a black robe and looked pitch black. Their long hair billowed while not even a hint of aura was sensed from them, only boundless will of death.


    "Sh*t!"


    The hearts of many raced as they wondered if that thing was some incredibly powerful being who perished in the Origin Mountains.


    Despite having been dead for many years, that being had nonetheless remained capable of turning the canyon into a place of death.


    Furthermore, that being seemed to have clung to life desperately even after death, intending to consume any will of the living around.


    Is that thing trying come back from the dead?


    Voom.


    Emperor Xia brought Xia Qingyuan up and shot into the air at blitzing speeds. However, countless branches of that tree of death continued to shoot to the skies, shrouding the air, seemingly about to devour the sky itself.


    Renhuang will burst, and the Emperor burst with boundless light of catastrophe. He looked up and saw boundless vines coming at him. His face turned glum as he continued to move forward, saying, "Hurry up."


    His shadow burst with boundless light of catastrophe as he spoke. The branches that covered the sky were reduced to nothing in an instant. Countless ancient trees were cut down, and the terrifying light pressured that tree of death, trying to buy time for Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan turned and continued to blitz forward.


    Boom. That will of the great path of Emperor Xia was disintegrated with a rumble, reduced to nothing. The branches of death shot up to the air in an instant, tangling Xia Qingyuan''s body up, preventing her from moving. The will of life within her body and powers were being absorbed in a frenzy. Her body itself was taken to that figure that appeared on the tree of death.


    "She is done for," many muttered to themselves deep down. Even with the will of Renhuang being brought to bear, it still failed to keep her safe.


    Someone was seen bursting into the air, coming to Xia Qingyuan''s side. Countless flaming arms grabbed at the branches of death, intending to burn them down and preventing them from going forward.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up at that massive flaming body while feeling the life slipping out of her at a frightening rate.


    It seemed that she was about to die for real.


    There was a handsome face seen in that huge flaming body. She looked at that face, and tears were found at the corner of her eyes.


    She was about to die with regret.


    Her lips twitched, intending to say something, but eventually, nothing came out.


    She seemed to have recalled something all of a sudden, and she smiled. That smile looked unbelievably beautiful at the very instant it flashed. It seemed as if it was meant to leave the most beautiful memory behind.


    "Goodbye," Xia Qingyuan said softly as her body continued to be dragged down. There was simply no stopping her fall.


    There was no way Ye Futian could have stopped something that not even the will of Emperor Xia was unable to stop.


    Ye Futian felt heartache deep down. That scene triggered some horrible memories��the memories that pained him the most.


    "You do look rather pretty when you smile, Princess. You sure would look even prettier if you dressed in girls'' clothes," Ye Futian replied. Xia Qingyuan was dumbfounded. Ye Futian then stepped forward and put that huge flaming body of his behind her. Flaming arms extended out and wrapped her up altogether.


    "I won''t take a goodbye from you before I get to see that," Ye Futian added. At that moment, that frail body of hers seemed to have been cradled by a fiery god of war.


    The flaming will was reflected on her face. Xia Qingyuan felt the warmth emanating from it, and she burst into tears.

 1396 Devour

    Countless branches of death wrapped the fiery being up in the air, pulling it down like a bolt of black lightning.


    Countless branches and vines quickly enveloped that being. The skyscraping tree wrapped them both up, seemingly out to swallow them whole.


    While many monsters and humans had experienced what just happened to Xia Qingyuan, nothing had been as shocking as what happened before them just now. That was because the tree went out of its way to eat that one particular being up, which gave many a breather, enabling them to escape by charging outside of the canyon.


    "This is ridiculous," Tan Zimo of the Violet Heavenly Palace said after seeing what happened, wondering if it worth it dying for the sake of a woman.


    Ye Futian had pretty much flipped the Violet Heavenly Palace over with what he did. Despite being on opposing sides, they had to acknowledge that he was very formidable and was superbly talented. It was too bad that he had to die in such a manner.


    Virgin Jinyi of Brahma''s Pure Sky sighed deeply as well. It was a pity that Ye Futian would die for a woman.


    While the sentiment was indeed respectable, she did not see the point of throwing one''s life away because of it.


    Training was difficult; it would be more so if someone were to get to Ye Futian''s current level.


    Qi Xuangang and all those around Ye Futian sported glum expression. There was no stopping it, and not even Emperor Xia would have been able to do anything.


    They stepped forward towards the tree of death. Qi Xuangang lashed out with both hands, shattering a great number of branches and vines outside, yet he was still unable to get through.


    Yaya took to the sky and had her sword in the air. Towering sword matrixes appeared beneath her feet. Her expression was frosty as swords whooshed out of the sword matrix on her palm. However, like Qi Xuangang, she remained incapable of breaking through. The cut vines and branches simply regrew in an instant.


    She felt rather vexed and kept bringing her swords down continuously, but she remained incapable of making it through.


    Voom. The sound of swords zipping was heard. She charged inside the mass of branches and vines with her sword matrixes.


    However, the will of the great path bound her immediately. She turned around and found Qi Xuangang behind her.


    Qi Xuangang shook his head at her and said, "His luck on this trip is incredible."


    Yaya was dumbfounded as she looked at Qi Xuangang. She knew that Qi Xuangang had some special ability, allowing her to peer into fate and luck. He had checked out Ye Futian''s luck before all of them entered.


    Furthermore, she recalled the death of the prophet just a while ago. As such, it seemed that Ye Futian''s luck was so formidable that he definitely would not just perish right there and then.


    She was rather relieved to find that, but she nonetheless remained anxious, keeping her eyes on the site.


    Qi Xuangang stopped everyone else trying to get before him. While the older man had no idea what tricks Ye Futian had up his sleeves, he knew that student of his was someone exceptional; he would survive charging into a place like that. For the others, however, it would probably have been on a one-way trip.


    Ye Futian''s body was tangled and buried by that tree of death. Boundless deathly aura and branches lashed out at him. He burst in terrifying might of the Flames of the Way, even utilizing the power of that Fire Spirit Orb within his Life Palace, burning those deathly branches away in a frenzy.


    A terrifying fire zone appeared all around his body, and his eyes turned into flames.


    At that moment, that statue-like tall, imposing figure seemed to have manifested a great many arms, lashing out at Ye Futian, who was protecting Xia Qingyuan. It burst through the binding of the will of flames and headed towards Xia Qingyuan.


    It was evident that despite having been dead for so many years, that figure clung to life still nonetheless.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian''s eyes burned. Terrifying branches burst from him. Green will shrouded the place all of a sudden, swishing out as they moved. The divine tree of life within his life contained boundless life.


    "If you want the power of life that badly, then come and take it." Ye Futian''s eyes were cold. Those branches sensed it all in an instant and charged at Ye Futian in a frenzy. Boundless deathly aura burst into his body. The deathly vines stabbed into his World Tree, intending to drain all that will of life in Ye Futian''s Life Spirit in a frenzy.


    The World Tree swayed, and boundless divine light burst. When the will of death came upon him, it seemed to have ended up assimilated and devoured, as if it had been merged inside his Life Spirit.


    Xia Qingyuan, who was being protected by Ye Futian, was shocked at that scene. She had given in to despair before, and there was no longer sorrow in her. She thought both of them would have ended up devoured.


    Yet, she saw that it was Ye Futian''s Life Spirit devouring the will of death from that tree of death instead.


    "That is probably his primary Life Spirit," Xia Qingyuan muttered to herself. It was as if there was a divine tree fighting against another divine tree.


    That deathly aura was absorbed into Ye Futian''s body, and he devoured even the branches as they surged into his body. That tree of death seemed to be alive, sending more branches at him.


    Furthermore, the canyon trembled violently at that moment. More branches of death burst from the bottom of the canyon, heading towards that region. That scene was very shocking.


    "What is going on?" Some who were leaving stopped at that scene. They turned around to get a better look and found countless branches from the canyon beneath them, heading towards a single direction.


    "Is he still alive?" They were shocked deep down.


    They found what was happening to be utterly impossible. It was something that not even the will of Renhuang had been able to resist. Both Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan were just saints, and there was no way they could have survived being buried by that tree of death.


    Zhan Yuan of the supreme body of the great path from the Violet Heavenly Palace halted and looked in that direction. He did not continue moving forward but instead kept his eyes locked there.


    "Are we sticking around?" some at his side asked.


    "We''ll check out for a little bit longer," Zhan Yuan replied.


    Many people of top-notch forces stopped. A terrifying nine-headed phoenix in the air devoured the deathly auras in a frenzy. Its eyes were cold and giving off a violent, unruly aura. The nine heads of that phoenix made it look even more cold and unforgiving.


    The nine-headed phoenixes had been a branch of the phoenixes, yet they were seen as outcasts. However, some of terrifying powers had emerged from their ranks, and they were taken into the Sky Demon Court. They were extremely formidable and had always been at odds with the phoenixes.


    At that moment, that nine-headed phoenix''s eyes glared at that space that was being buried. The will of death was so thick that if it were to swallow it all, it would have done a lot of good.


    Furthermore, if it could gain the remains of that ancient Renhuang that looked like an imposing statue, things would have even been more perfect.


    It was a pity that it would not be able to resist being devoured by that power.


    However, things seemed to have taken a peculiar turn within.


    Ye Futian''s World Tree Life Spirit seemed to be gobbling up the deathly auras and the branches while still being inside the tree of death, absorbing it into his Life Palace. At present, his Life Palace was filled with death. It had taken over the world of his Life Palace altogether. It made his entire body course with deathly auras, so much so that even his fair face seemed to have the will of death streaking about it.


    In that god of the death-like statue, countless ancient tree-like arms were extending and lashing out at Ye Futian, tangling with the World Tree that was coiling around his body. Both powers were at odds with each other, encroaching each other.


    The World Tree Life Spirit swayed, and divine light surged in every single part of the ancient tree as if it was able to take everything in the world into it.


    Both divine trees seemed to be merging. The branches from that tree of death seeped into the World Tree Life Spirit bit by bit. It looked like a snake was trying to swallow an elephant.


    Deathly auras continued to surge inside Xia Qingyuan''s body unceasingly. The deathly auras on her grew increasingly thick, and Ye Futian was unable to do much than wrap her body up with his World Tree, sending the energy of life into her body to fight the will of death in her stead.


    Time passed, and the ones outside continued to watch the extremely thick will of death rumbling about. The branches were all over the place, preventing them from telling what was happening inside.


    "The will of death is subsiding," a mighty one said. Many peoples'' pupils contracted.


    They were rather puzzled, wondering if Ye Futian was indeed alive.


    They were extremely curious as to what was happening inside.


    "Wha..." Some outside were seeing the branches wilting one after another at that moment, and they were shocked.


    The will of the great path of death is drying up?


    Just the hell is happening? they wondered.


    Yu Sheng stood about at the side and watched everything nervously. Everyone else at his side was doing the same. They were rattled at that scene, yet they were relieved deep down, thinking that it was going to be alright.


    That guy sure is always making miracles happen, Yu Sheng thought.


    Wu Yong and the others were very stunned as well. The longer they spent around Ye Futian, the more terrifying they found him to be. What happened all those years ago back at Emperor Kua''s ruins was already a testament to his mettle, and they were unable to believe that he was even able to survive such a despairing state.


    The drain of that ancient tree was increasingly obvious. The will of death throughout the canyon was dwindling. Many mighty ones had their eyes locked right below them.


    At that moment, both Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan seemed to be wrapped inside as if in a cocoon. The branches of his World Tree had even extended outwards, wrapping up even that statue that looked like a god of death, devouring the deathly aura in them bit by bit.


    Despite having been dead for many years, that being still had the formidable great path of death in them. As a Renhuang, that power of great path had long been melded with their body and blood. Even though they had been dead for many years, their body remained intact, and the will of the great path stayed behind as well.


    The World Tree speed into that being''s body bit by bit, entangling and devouring them gradually. The will of death stained Ye Futian''s World Tree pitch black, yet the branches of the World Tree continued to wrap that being up as if they were devouring that Fire Spirit Orb back in Emperor Kua''s ruins, as well as that bone from the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions.


    Ye Futian''s body seemed to have turned into a terrifying whirlpool. The World Tree rescinded back into his body and disappeared altogether. That Renhuang being was no longer seen as well. In Ye Futian''s Life Palace, however, a statue-like being appeared instead.


    Ye Futian was pitch black all over, and the deathly aura was extremely thick about him. Xia Qingyuan was not in a good state either. Both of them seemed to have simply turned into statues, unflinching.


    The tree of death that wrapped them both up wilted in a frenzy. The branches shrouding the place were wilting and falling as well.


    The deathly aura dissipated gradually, scattering in the winds.


    "The deathly aura is almost gone." Those outside were very shocked. Yu Sheng stepped forward and charged inside the branches of the ancient tree, shattering them in a frenzy.


    Those branches became extremely fragile by then, and one blow was all it would have taken to crush them.


    They were quickly reduced to dust.


    Yu Sheng appeared somewhere below. Two figures stood quietly by his side, like two statues.

 1397 Fighting over Bodies

    Are they dead? people wondered.


    All eyes were on those two statue-like figures below. Both of them were pitch black all over, a result of the encroachment of the will of death.


    At that moment, there was a whiff of aura coursing throughout Ye Futian''s body, seemingly dispelling the will of death bit by bit. That caused mighty ones'' pupils to contract.


    They were able to survive that? they thought, incredulous.


    Untold numbers of human and demonic beast cultivators alike had ended up dead, killed right after they were gobbled up by that boundless power of death.


    Those two were devoured by that tree of death as well, buried within the boundless will of death. That god of the death-like statue seemed to still be imbued with the will of the great path that it carried while still alive, and that being had gone specifically after those two. Yet, both of them survived.


    The crowd had yet to forget that there had been a will of Renhuang manifesting just a short while ago, and it was unable to handle the attacks and dissipated.


    All of those people around them were puzzled as to how Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan managed to survive.


    Furthermore, they had just witnessed the will of death wilting away. The crowd then looked at the body of those two, wondering if they had absorbed all that will of death.


    However, none of them found that to be remotely possible. There was no way two saints would have been able to consume every single bit of that tree of death''s power. That would have probably only been possible if it was a Renhuang doing it.


    "That statue of death is gone," Zhan Yuan of the Violet Heavenly Palace said while still in the air. Lightning flickered in his eyes as he walked.


    That statue had been the dead body of a Renhuang, and that Renhuang would have been someone extremely formidable, as that Renhuang had been able to burst with such terrifying will of the great path of death even after being dead for so long. That will was powerful enough to render the whole canyon into the Canyon of Death.


    However, that Renhuang statue was no more at the moment.


    He wondered if it had indeed been those two who had taken it away.


    In another direction, a nine-headed phoenix was seen flapping its wings. Its eyes were extremely cold. It had been having a good time devouring the power of death, yet that power dried up instead. If it were to be able to get that dead body of Renhuang, it would have been of huge benefit to its training.


    Many mighty ones harbored similar thoughts at the moment. That was the dead body of a Renhuang who harbored extremely formidable will of the great path of death, after all.


    No one would have thought of such things before. It was as everyone was busy trying to stay alive.


    At that moment, however, the crisis was over. Ye Futian managed to suck the tree of death dry.


    All of them naturally thought of other things at the moment.


    The mood in the canyon became rather peculiar. Qi Xuangang was unbelievably perceptive, and he was able to sense the changes in the atmosphere around him.


    The mighty ones in the canyon harbored greedy thoughts at the moment.


    He understood that they were all out to grab that Renhuang''s corpse.


    "We have all entered the Origin Mountains and experienced quite a perilous period. We''ve all been through life and death situations right before this. While the two of them had never meant to pull what they did, they nonetheless helped all of us here escape the crisis in the canyon. I think we should all continue on our way right now," Qi Xuangang said, seemingly hinting to everyone that both Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan could be considered their saviors.


    If they were to do anything against those two, that would have been like a dog biting the hand of the one who fed it.


    Voom. A monster dove down at that moment, heading straight for Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan at a blitzing speed.


    That monster was a roc, intending to zip past at high speeds and grab Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    Qi Xuangang''s expression remained cold, finding that be it humans or demons, all had greedy thoughts.


    Furthermore, demonic beasts would have usually expressed such thoughts in ways that were more direct.


    Qi Xuangang stepped out, and the ring of light of the great path coursed all about him. Ancient symbols circled him as he grabbed at the air. That roc that had been zipping past felt its body bound, and it was utterly unable to move. It was as if a formless might of the great path shrouded its body, preventing it from moving forward.


    "Beings with no honor shall be cut down," Qi Xuangang muttered, and a sword fell from the sky, piercing through that roc''s body in an instant and shattering it. Rain of blood fell from the sky shortly after.


    The eyes of many monsters contracted, finding Qi Xuangang to truly be formidable.


    Many mighty ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace turned to look at Zhan Yuan, who was at the front. It was as if they were waiting for his order, commanding them to grab the bodies or otherwise.


    Zhan Yuan''s eyes sparkled with lightning. He had grown very curious as to how Ye Futian pulled all those extraordinary feats off.


    "Take them," Zhan Yuan ordered. Several Holiness of Nirvanas from the Violet Heavenly Palace stepped forward and moved out.


    Lightning flashed all over the sky in an instant. Terrifying lightning of the great path gathered in the air and struck downward. Those Holiness of Nirvanas were extremely formidable beings, and the flashes of lightning they brought were of such might that they made others feel stifled.


    Qi Xuangang frowned and looked glum.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was one of the pinnacle forces to be found in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and it was a given that cultivators who came from such a place would be extremely difficult to deal with.


    Furthermore, there were also mighty ones eyeing them.


    "Hand him over to us. We shall spare his life," a mighty one from the Violet Heavenly Palace in the air said coldly.


    Qi Xuangang looked up in the sky, thinking that supreme forces of Heavenly Mandate Realm were indeed overbearing.


    The will of the great path coursed all about him, and the clouds in the sky howled as they resonated with the great path.


    The mighty ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace willed as they saw him move. Lightning flashed, and bolts rained down on him continuously, making the scene looking like doomsday.


    Boom.


    A terrifying bolt of lightning struck from above, hitting Qi Xuangang.


    Qi Xuangang responded by pointing his finger in the air, clashing with that bolt of lightning. Intense rumbling was heard, and the air shook violently. The power of that one finger placed above Qi Xuangang''s head resisted that lightning bolt from above, eventually destroying it altogether.


    "Huh?" The mighty ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace saw that and felt astonished. They never expected that the Holiness of Nirvana standing before them would be so powerful.


    They were vaguely able to sense that Qi Xuangang''s comprehension of the great path had surpassed that of theirs, and he stood at the very pinnacle of Holiness of Nirvana level.


    Their eyes became more serious at that thought. According to what Tan Zimo said, back in that battle, Ye Futian was boastful enough to tell them to pick any plane of sainthood they would have liked to fight against, and they did not select a Holiness of Nirvana among themselves to do battle.


    From the looks of things at the moment, if there were to be a battle fought between Holiness of Nirvanas from both sides, they would have lost all the same.


    They eyed each other, and several Holiness of Nirvanas took to the sky, taking different corners and extended their hands, performing seals and invoking lightning from the heavens.


    Boom...


    Intense rumbling rattled in the eardrums of the mighty ones. Several Holiness of Nirvanas appeared at the same time, bringing down heavenly might and boundless lightning in the area of the sky, making the scene look like doomsday.


    "Training has not been easy, and you''ll have a chance of getting to Renhuang Plane in the future. Don''t make such a mistake right now." A Holiness of Nirvana said to Qi Xuangang. That devastating might shrouded everything below within its range of attack.


    Qi Xuangang shot a look at those before him and then took to the air, saying, "You all, protect him."


    Boom...


    Rumbling was continuously heard in the sky. Upright bolts of lightning were conjured and brought down on him like swords.


    That was a terrifying killing move of the Violet Heavenly Palace��the Jiuxiao Thunder Sword.


    "Down," they all muttered, and the move struck at Qi Xuangang like a terrifying flash.


    Qi Xuangang''s body was turned into a furnace of the great path, becoming intensely brilliant as he absorbed the great paths of the world. He then extended his hand to take that sword attack.


    The Jiuxiao Thunder Sword dropped onto him. He resisted through sheer brute force with only one hand taking the attack.


    Boundless devastating lightning dropped onto him right away. His body seemed to be that of flesh and blood no longer. It instead appeared to be more like a conjuration of the great path. Ancient symbols circled him, and that devastating lightning attack was unable to get through to him.


    Boundlessly terrifying devastating power swept all over the place in the air, making the scene look extremely shocking.


    "Such power indeed."


    Many mighty ones were shocked at that scene before them. Qi Xuangang was taking on several Holiness of Nirvanas from the Violet Heavenly Palace all on his own, after all.


    That was a scene like no other.


    All who witnessed what was happening wondered who that person was.


    Tan Zimo and those around him sported pale expressions. If they were to have Holiness of Nirvanas fight in that battle back then, they would have, no doubt, lost.


    They had been allowed to take their pick at any plane of sainthood.


    A virgin from the supreme force that was Brahma''s Pure Sky looked from afar, feeling shocked deep down.


    "That person''s plane is so profound that he would have probably touched the edge of Renhuang Plane," a Holiness of Nirvana of Brahma''s Pure Sky said. There would have been no way a Holiness of Nirvana would have been able to take on several Holiness of Nirvanas from the Violet Heavenly Palace otherwise. It was apparent that Qi Xuangang''s plane was more profound.


    "Who are those people?" a virgin of unbelievable beauty at the very front said. That woman was the number one virgin in Brahma''s Pure Sky, named Qin He. She was at the very pinnacle in terms of talents or appearance, and she was known as the number one of the future Jiutian Goddesses.


    "The one taking the lead in that group is Ye Futian, a younger brother in training of that descendant of the Gu clan, who was taken away by Gu Tianxing," Virgin Jinyi elaborated. She, too, was a leading figure of a line of virgins. The prophet prophesied that she would have become one of the Jiutian Goddesses.


    However, in the Brahma''s Pure Sky, her position paled in comparison with Qin He''s. The latter had been lauded unanimously as one who came from the number one of the nine lineages, and she would have become the leading figure of the Jiutian Goddesses.


    "They were the ones who wreaked havoc in the Violet Heavenly Palace then," Qin He said. Holy light coursed all over her body, and she looked dazzling.


    "Indeed." Virgin Jinyi nodded. She thought for a bit and then continued, "Furthermore, he was the last person who met the prophet."


    Qin He looked in the direction where the battle was taking place. She deemed that a person capable of surviving being devoured by the tree of death would have had secrets on him. It was no surprise why Zhan Yuan wanted a piece of Ye Futian. He would have wanted more than just that dead body.


    In that direction, Zhan Yuan, the one with the supreme body of the path of the Violet Heavenly Palace, moved. Devastating, world-ending might of lightning was conjured. Terrifying lightning diagrams appeared in the air.


    At the same time, demonic beasts flashed about in other directions, heading straight for Ye Futian.


    They deemed that Qi Xuangang would probably be the strongest of all of them. With him being held back by the ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace, the demonic beasts would have their chance.


    Wu Yong and the others around flashed and appeared around Ye Futian, bursting with their strongest flames and bringing about a raging battle within mere moments.


    Sword matrixes appeared on Yaya. She stepped into the air, and her eyes turned into swords, shooting straight at Zhan Yuan.


    Boom. Eight bolts of divine lightning were brought down. The heavenly thunder brought the lightning of doomsday.


    Yaya took to the air and lashed out with her sword, blasting at all eight bolts of divine lightning, resisting them and intending to block their path.


    Her swords and the lightning bolts clashed. The Lightning Matrix of Doomsday was conjured, and Zhan Yuan''s eyes flashed with the terrifying will of lightning. Thunder rumbled as he stepped forward, shocking the spiritual will of everyone within earshot.


    "You''re no match for me. Move aside," Zhan Yuan said. He pointed at the air with his palm, and thunder rumbled, making the might of lightning even more terrifying than before.


    He was of the supreme body of the path, and all lightning would submit to his command.

 1398 Gobbling Them Up

    A huge battle burst high up the canyon, and many monsters acted at the same time. All the other demonic beasts were looking for opportunities as well.


    Qi Xuangang held off the Holiness of Nirvanas from the Violet Heavenly Palace all on his own, fighting to a deadlock in the air. While his plane was indeed high, the ones he was fighting with were of a supreme force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, after all, and they were extremely formidable.


    No common Holiness of Nirvanas would have been able to fight against him otherwise, given how he was already at the edge of breaking into Renhuang Plane.


    He had ended up killing the Ninth Servant at the Ancient Imperial City, which was known as the number one city back in Crimson Dragon Realm back then.


    Such battles would have needed the fighters to at least be at Unblemished Saint level before they were able to do anything. The monsters protecting Kong Xuan acted as well, but given how the monsters they were about to fight were of overwhelming numbers, they would not have probably lasted for long.


    "Get him out of this battlefield," a cold voice said. Kong Xuan, Ye Wuchen, and the others looked at the one talking; it was the Glass Saint.


    While she had been with them all this time, she hardly spoke, making it such that she was hardly noticeable. She spent most of her time training with Yaya.


    At that moment, her beautiful yet emotionless eyes seemed to be flickered with something. She flashed and moved forward. Yu Sheng charged forward as well, intending to take Ye Futian away.


    Boom. Might of lightning struck from above. Yu Sheng roared, and the lightning bolt struck him. Its power coursed throughout his body, making his blood boil, and he had to stop. He looked up coldly at the mighty ones of the Violet Heavenly Palace, who were coming down from above.


    Sword will on Yaya burst in the air. Thousands of swords appeared around her and were turned into a terrifying storm before charging straight at Zhan Yuan. That storm of swords seemed to be able to envelop the sky.


    Zhan Yuan glared at his opponent with contempt while he continued moving. Lightning of the great path was sent down, blasting onto the storm of swords, shattering them altogether.


    However, he then saw Yaya disappearing from where she stood altogether. At the very next moment, Yaya was seen taking Ye Futian''s and Xia Qingyuan''s bodies and left right away. She took only one step, which seemed like a sword zipping through the air, and she ended up somewhere far away.


    "You think you can just run?"


    The mighty ones were all dumbfounded. Zhan Yuan did not expect that Yaya would have just chosen to run so suddenly. He took one step and propelled himself forward like purple lightning.


    Yaya continued to be bombarded with lightning strikes all from above as he chased after her.


    Monsters up the air howled as they moved above. Many demonic beasts targeted her and attacked.


    Voom...


    Yaya zipped past the air like a sword, evading the incoming attacks. At times, attacks blasted right onto her, and rumbling was heard. However, she disappeared right after that, making it unclear if the attacks actually hit her.


    "The great path of space. That speed was comparable to a Holiness of Nirvana, indeed," Qin He, a virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky, said. She stepped forward as well, chasing after Yaya.


    It seemed that the mighty ones of the Canyon of Death seemed to have coalesced into a torrent within moments. It was as they were all heading in the same direction.


    The Canyon of Death was extremely vast. However, as she kept zipping about in the sky, she eventually came to the edge and charged outside.


    The place beyond was still filled with mountainous regions, looking barren and dead. Demonic clouds shrouded the sky as if to tell them that danger lurked everywhere.


    Lightning continued to flash around Yaya. It was evident that Zhan Yuan remained right behind her, and she had yet to shrug him away.


    There was a nine-headed phoenix in that demonic cloud, clad in crimson flames, riding the clouds as it moved. Its wings were able to shroud the sky as soon as they were spread, enabling it to zip past a vast distance. Its nine pairs of eyes were incredibly sharp as it kept a close eye on the ones below. The speed at which it moved was incredible as it was able to catch up with everyone.


    Nine-headed phoenixes were an extremely rare breed, considered to be a mutated breed of the phoenixes. While those birds were not recognized by the phoenixes to be one of them, but nine-headed phoenixes were all of terrifying talents. They were able to travel at blitzing speeds. They had nine heads and were versed in manipulating phoenix fire. Furthermore, they harbored the potential for conjuring flames of devastation.


    As such, that nine-headed phoenix had been consuming the will of death back then.


    There were also many demonic beasts and human cultivators coming from all corners. However, unless their training was extremely formidable, they would not have been able to catch up.


    Zhan Yuan, who was still in the air, frowned at that moment. The Origin Mountains were filled with danger. If they were to simply shoot forward in a frenzy, it was possible that they would have met the same fate as they did back at the Canyon Death, their lives all hanging by a thread.


    However, the woman before Zhan Yuan simply charged forward insanely. Even if his attacks managed to hit and injure her, she adamantly refused to stop.


    At that moment, Zhan Yuan kept his gaze forward and began to feel slightly uneasy.


    Cultivators were extremely perceptive, especially when they were at his level. While they were still unable to predict what would have happened, they were still able to feel something when they were truly near somewhere dangerous.


    He lifted his head and looked forward, feeling that they might have stepped into somewhere dangerous again.


    The terrain ahead of them was a barren low ground with many swords stabbed into it. The swords were all filled with dirt and rust. It was as if they had been weathered for many, many years.


    One look and one was able to tell that the swords were endless. Auras that made one''s heart race emanated from the land.


    There was a sword-shaped hill somewhere far away, looking like a hill-like gigantic sword had been plunged into the ground, pinning down everything around.


    As Zhan Yuan got increasingly close, that sense of danger became increasingly intense.


    However, that woman before him did not seem to have any intentions of stopping but had simply charged into that area.


    Zhan Yuan''s face became pale. He wondered if she had a death wish.


    Yaya had actually hesitated for a bit back there, but she quickly recalled that not even that tree of death had been able to kill Ye Futian, so the other dangerous areas would not have been able to pose a threat to his life. She was able to sense that Ye Futian had fallen into a coma due to the will of death being too great for him to digest, but he was recovering this whole time. What was happening at that moment was but a process.


    Her speed had noticeably decreased. She trained in the way of swords, yet she was unable to sense any sword will at the moment. She only felt that the ground below was dangerous.


    A formless current seemed to have melded into the air, seeping in her body and making her feel somewhat restless. That current seemed to have harbored intense, formless resentment, affecting her will.


    However, she did not stop right there and then, electing to continue moving into deeper regions.


    Zhan Yuan, who was of supreme body of the great path, looked at her, thinking that she indeed had guts.


    He concluded that if she dared to do so, then there was nothing for him to be afraid of.


    Lightning flashed at that thought, and he sped forward. Lighting coursed all over his body, and rumbling thunder was heard, blasting away anything in his way.


    The power imbued within the will of the great path of lightning was inherently capable of dispelling negative things and beings. The power of the lightning of the nine heavens was to dispel evils and protect the righteous, after all.


    That aura permeating the place seeped into his mind as soon as he stepped into the area as well, intending to affect him. However, his entire being rumbled with thunderous sounds, making him look solemn. It was as if he had been enveloped in holy lightning, dispelling all that evil aura around him.


    He lowered his head and glanced below. That place should have been a battlefield all those years ago, suppressing the souls of many mighty ones from back then, thus giving birth to that intense resentment all over the place.


    Many mighty ones arrived later. However, when they had gotten near that area, they were unable to help but slow down, appearing very hesitant.


    Those who were able to go that far had been those of greater training, and as such, they were also more perceptive as well.


    Just when they were still hesitating, hurricanes whipped about in the air. A nine-headed phoenix zipped past into the area. Its eyes were cold and overbearing. It was as if it was determined to get its claws on whatever it could.


    Yaya continued on her way forward, getting deep into the area. Negative emotions continued to affect her. It was fortunate that she had been training for two lifetimes, resulting in her extremely stable will. She stopped when she came to that sword-like hill, putting Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan down.


    Cough...


    Red blood was seen spilling from the corner of her mouth after a soft cough. She looked at Zhan Yuan, who was coming at her, and she burst with raging sword will. It was apparent that she had been injured when she was on the run, and she had been holding it in all the while.


    Zhan Yuan came to her from the air and lowered his head to look at her from afar. Thunderous lightning flashed in the air, and will of lightning was seen flickering in his eyes. He then said to Yaya, "There is no need for you to do this. Hand him over. I won''t take his life."


    Yaya glared at him with cold eyes. She did not say anything. Sword will of great path coursed all over her and was then turned into sword diagrams. The sky was filled with intense killing intent, shrouding the entire place.


    Boom.


    There seemed to have been an ethereal figure emerging from within her in an instant, melding with her way of the sword. A dazzling sword matrix lashed out with a sword, moving quicker than a bolt of lightning.


    Lightning diagrams appeared above Zhan Yuan''s head. Eight bolts of lightning flashed, circling about, and boundless divine lightning gathered. A bolt of lightning was fired, and it clashed with the sword. Two extremely dazzling light of devastation crossed in midair. That devastating power swept out at the vast space all around them.


    Yaya''s clothes and her long hair billowed. She stepped forward, and yet another ethereal figure burst out of her body, then transformed into a sword.


    Boom...


    The sword came through and melded with the sword that was previously fired, making the might of the sword even more powerful.


    "Fight with your life all you want. It won''t be of any use," Zhan Yuan said coldly. His hands waved about, and that terrifying lightning diagram brought even more bolts of lightning down around Yaya, locking her surroundings away.


    A bolt of lightning that was even more terrifying blasted at the center, clashing with her swords.


    If it had not been for Yaya having comprehension of the great path at Holiness of Nirvana level, she definitely would not have been his match.


    In truth, despite still being an Unblemished Saint, Zhan Yuan''s combat prowess was already at Holiness of Nirvana level.


    The bodies of Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan were placed above that sword-like mountain. Boundless resentment headed straight for both of them, absorbing the will of death all about them.


    Streaks of light coursed about Ye Futian''s body. He seemed to have been able to sense what was going on outside as he repelled the will of death with everything he had.


    Thunderous noises were vaguely heard from within his body.


    Voom. Gales whipped about. A nine-headed phoenix emerged from the demonic clouds high above the sky. A cry of the phoenix was heard as it opened its mouth, heading straight for Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan, intending to gobble them up.


    "You filthy beast." Zhan Yuan shot a glance at it, and a bolt of lightning rained from above straight at the nine-headed phoenix. The bird then spread its crimson wings, taking the brunt of the lightning attack head-on. That will of lightning tempered its body. Every single feather on the bird seemed to have been impenetrable, as if they were constructs of the heavens, glimmering with dazzling light.


    It continued to dive down and headed straight for Ye Futian''s body.


    It was apparent that the nine-headed phoenix was a monster so ridiculously terrifying that it had no fear of the one who possessed a supreme body of the great path.


    The aura all about Ye Futian rumbled below. Just when the bird was about to consume him, that pitch-black body of his burst with faint dazzling light.


    Voom. That bird came down and picked both of them up in its beak. Its vast wings continued to flap, intending to fly away from that dangerous place.


    However, at that moment, Ye Futian finally burst with intense, brilliant light. That pitch-black figure opened his eyes all of a sudden.

 1399 Unexpected Surprise

    Ye Futian was able to perceive what was happening at the moment, but the qi of death was too strong, and his whole body was eroded.


    Before, even his life spirit was occupied by the Will of Death, and the life spirit tree was also dyed the color of death. He had been using the power of the ancient tree to expel the Will of Death, but now, something changed in his life spirit.


    He took a look at the situation he was in, and suddenly, a horrifying ray of golden light burst out of his body. The roaring sound came out, and all of a sudden, a loud shrieking was heard from Nine-Headed Phoenix''s mouth.


    At this moment, the Nine-headed Phoenix was leaving the space very quickly, his nine heads exuding an aura of violence, his vast body full of lethal coldness. It was very imposing.


    But at this moment, tens of thousands of golden light rays burst from one of his huge mouths. He tilted his head, from which a loud roar came. He let out a long shriek. He wanted to close his beak, but it was torn up. A figure rushed out of it, bathed in golden light while holding another person, who seemed lifeless.


    The Nine-headed Phoenix breathed out at Ye Futian. The horrifying life force struck Ye Futian.


    Boom! Crimson lightning flashed across the sky. His body turned into a bolt of lightning. His mouth spat out a keen crimson sword of destruction, the destructive dark power, veiling the sky and hiding the sun, covering the whole void sky.


    The Nine-headed Phoenix was also an overawing figure of his clan��an Unblemished Demon Saint��with appalling combat ability.


    Ye Futian looked up and felt that the force of destruction was burying this space. The sacred light shone on his whole body, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension exploding and purifying his body. His body turned into a cauldron of the Great Law, expelling all forces of darkness.


    Above his body, suddenly, the trumpeting sound of the elephant came, trembling between the sky and the earth. Inside his body, the roaring sound continued, just like the symphony of the Great Law.


    What was more frightening was that in the light curtain of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, a boundless huge elephant phantom showed up above Ye Futian''s body. The divine elephant was like a demon god. With one roar, it could make the void air tremble.


    The rumbling sound continued. The flash of the divine elephant rose into the sky, slashing toward the sword of destruction that covered the sky and hid the sun. Appalling waves exploded in the space as if the trembling space would be destroyed.


    Puff!


    The Nine-headed Phoenix breathed the fire of destruction, engulfing the void sky and burning the sky and earth.


    Ye Futian held Xia Qingyuan''s body in one hand and took one step forward. The trumpeting sound trembled between the sky and earth. His body soared into the sky like a bolt of lightning, moving forward in the flame of destruction.


    The devastating fire burned down but was shrouded by a sacred golden halo, blocked by the inviolable figure of a giant elephant.


    Ye Futian''s fist punched out, and the sound of the elephant shook the sky. Tens of thousands of elephants roared in unison, trampling the space.


    Thousands of elephants came out, galloping, crossing the sky. What a terrifying scene...


    The crimson Nine-headed Phoenix made an extremely sharp shriek. His nine heads spewed out flames, and his claws smashed down. Phantoms of elephants were torn and shattered, and the claws thrust toward Ye Futian.


    The demon aura billowed and surged between the sky and the earth. A boundless Nine-headed phoenix bird appeared, its claws smashing down powerfully. It collided with Ye Futian''s fist.


    Bang!


    With a loud noise, the Nine-headed Phoenix felt that his claws didn''t smash on flesh, but rather on a statue of an elephant. Between them, two phantoms were colliding and clashing with each other; it was the confrontation between a sacred giant elephant and a Nine-headed Phoenix.


    The imposing Might shook the Nine-headed Phoenix''s body to the sky. His appalling eyes stared at Ye Futian.


    How could this human cultivator of True Self Saint Plane contend with him by strength?


    The enormous power of the elephant was the ability of a demon clan. Where did he learn it?


    At this moment, Ye Futian loosened the hand holding Xia Qingyuan, and branches and vines swept up and wrapped her body. His might was supporting her body.


    Ye Futian''s chilly eyes stared at the Nine-headed Phoenix in the void sky, and the imperial bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions in his body emitted a dazzling brilliance. Now, he was possessed by the Divine Elephant.


    Boom!


    He took a step out. The void air vibrated. A shocking scene of thousands of elephants trumpeting in unison appeared between the sky and earth as if he was also the king of divine elephants.


    In another part of the Origin Mountains, a group of warriors was on their way. They were from the Divine Elephant Clan and were traveling in the sky.


    But at this moment, as if perceiving something, they all turned back and looked toward one direction, where they faintly sensed a divine feeling of being summoned.


    This feeling was wonderful, but they all understood that it must be related to their Divine Elephant Clan.


    Could it be any treasure left by their ancestors in the Origin Mountains?


    "Let''s go." They turned around and went in that direction, all with solemn looks.


    On the battlefield, the Nine-headed Phoenix''s body was suspended in the sky. When his were wings spread, they were like clouds reaching the edges of the sky, covering the sphere and hiding the sun. Around his body, phantoms of divine elephants showed up. He walked in the air, trampling on history.


    He opened his wings, flapping. His body was like a flash of lightning, but he could feel that the repressive force limited his speed.


    Vroom.


    Ye Futian''s body soared into the sky. It was the first time the Nine-headed Phoenix felt threatened by a human cultivator.


    He let out a rumble. The Wills of the Great Law turned into destructive beams of dark light, flowing up to the sky, surrounding his body, converging into an appalling storm of destruction.


    He spread his wings and thrust them out. Suddenly, beams of destructive light darted towards the surrounding elephant phantoms and collided violently.


    At this moment, Ye Futian came out.


    He thrust two fists at the same time, piercing into the sky. The divine elephant guarded the sky dome, crushing the void air.


    The Nine-headed Phoenix''s claws smashed down, followed by endless destructive storms, clawing toward Ye Futian.


    Boom... Two of them had an appalling fight in the void sky. One human and one demon beast clashed against each other. The Nine-headed Phoenix spread his wings and flickered. Ye Futian followed closely, punching his fist again and again in the void. They kept colliding and conflicting in different locations of the sky. The air was shaking violently.


    Lightning flashed by. Ye Futian grabbed his claws and rushed upward, breaking through his defense and smashing toward the Nine-headed Phoenix''s belly with his relatively insignificant fist.


    But as the punch smashed out, both the sky and earth made a dull sound, and that attack directly hit the Nine-headed Phoenix''s huge body, cracking his bones and tearing his organs.


    He let out a painful shriek and smashed his claws towards Ye Futian''s abdomen.


    One punch after another, Ye Futian blasted the Nine-headed Phoenix''s huge body into the sky. He depended on the reaction force to fly backward, then crossed the void air, and returned to where Xia Qingyuan was and held her in his arms.


    In the upper sky, the nine heads of the Phoenix were all bleeding, his blood dripping down. At this moment, his life force fluctuated drastically above his huge body; his body seemed somewhat unstable.


    His cold eyes took a glance at Ye Futian. Wings flickering, he flew into the distance. He had given up.


    At this time, on another battlefield, Yaya did nine sword strikes continually, one after another blowing towards Zhan Yuan. She also turned into a sword and charged toward Zhan''s body. But behind Zhan Yuan, an appalling matrix showed up, devouring divine thunder of all skies and dropping down. Swords were all wrapped into the thunderstorm.


    At this moment, a devastating thunderstorm swept out, blasting on Yaya''s body. Yaya spat out a mouthful of blood. Her body was struck by lightning, and she flew away, felling towards the lower sky.


    Bang!


    Yaya''s body hit the ground and made a dent. Many broken swords flew out. Appalling phantoms suddenly appeared on the black earth and flung themselves at Yaya''s body, like evil spirits.


    Boom. A flash of lightning came and wiped off the evil spirits. Zhan Xuan looked down at Yaya in the lower sky and said, "You did a good job. From now on, you can cultivate by my side and serve me."


    Yaya raised her head and glanced at him coldly. This leading figure of the Violet Heavenly Dynasty was extremely arrogant.


    Vroom.


    A thunderbolt struck through the void sky. Zhan Xuan raised one hand and drew out a palm print of Thunder. After a loud noise, a sword was inserted on the Thunder matrix in his palm. The sword wanted to penetrate it but was turned into ashes in the Might of Thunder.


    A figure flickered and landed on the ground, picking up Yaya.


    He raised his head and took a cold glance at Zhan Yuan, turning around and heading towards the sword matrix.


    Zhan Yuan was not in a hurry. For him, capturing them was like capturing sitting ducks��none of them could escape.


    During his fight with Yaya, he felt this woman''s combat power was quite good. Any casual cultivator of his level who was able to fight with him for a while could be considered outstanding.


    Moreover, she was extremely decisive in her shots and hard on herself. She was also sincere to friends and was eager to protect Ye Futian at any cost.


    So, he appreciated her and thought it would be nice to have such a person around him.


    As for an intimate relationship, he only had cultivation in his mind and had never thought about it.


    "Are you okay?" Ye Futian asked Yaya, infusing life force into Yaya''s body. The Will of life emitted from the branches and leaves of the World Tree. Yaya''s pale face turned red. Her gorgeous eyes looked at Ye Futian. For these years, this "elder brother" had been calling her "little sister" but always needed her protection, but now, he had grown to the point where she would no longer be needed soon.


    Her cultivation had not been restored to its peak, but Ye Futian was almost catching up with her.


    However, she was still happy. After this trip, if they could leave the Mountain of Origin safely, Ye Futian would no longer need her protection.


    Today, he had defeated the Nine-headed Phoenix big demon beast of Unblemished Saint Plane.


    "Yes," Yaya nodded her head slightly and said. Ye Futian didn''t know she had thought this much. He left Xia Qingyuan beside Yaya, then turned and stood up. He raised his head, looking toward Zhan Yuan in the void sky. His stare was extremely cold.


    "Give me the corpse of the Renhuang and that piece of bone," Zhan Yuan said. Just now, he had noticed the battle between Ye Futian and the Nine-headed Phoenix. It should be the strength of that bone. He had not expected that piece of bone wanted by Yingzhao Mountain was the bone of the former Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. What an unexpected surprise!

 1400 Fighting with the Supreme Master

    Ye Futian stood there, gazing at Zhan Yuan in the void sky. There was a booming sound coming out of his body, and it became louder and louder.


    A faint sound of an elephant trumpeting also came out of him; the void air trembled as if an invisible might of the Great Law had fallen from the skydome. The vast void air was permeated with an invisible might.


    The roar was getting louder and louder. Ye Futian walked in the void air, his body releasing thousands of beams of golden light, enveloped by the giant phantom of a sacred elephant.


    Zhan Yuan stared at Ye Futian''s body. He seemed to have perceived the existence of the demon emperor''s elephant bone. Did Ye Futian use the power of the emperor''s bone to defeat the Nine-headed Phoenix big demon beast?


    Seeing Ye Futian coming, Zhan Yuan showed indifference as if Ye Futian didn''t even deserve his attention.


    He raised one arm, stretching out his hand to drew thunder from the sky. Above his head, the Thunder Divine matrix was in formation. The pattern was extremely appalling. As the Supreme Master, he was born with the talent to use the Law of Thunder and had cultivated in at least three levels of all the Eight Divine Thunder Laws of the Violet Heavenly Palace. The third level meant the Unblemished Saint Plane, and the fourth level was the Nirvana Saint Plane.


    And he had mastered the third levels or maybe even the fourth levels of the Eight Thunder Laws. How powerful would his Lightning Matrix of Doomsday be?


    He held out one palm, and the divine thunder fell from the sky, like a punishment of heaven, exterminating all existence.


    Under the appalling might of the thunderous punishment, Ye Futian''s figure looked insignificant as if he would be turned into ashes under the mighty thunder of doomsday.


    Ye Futian was still striding in the void sky, all elephants trumpeting. Between the sky and earth, many demon elephants appeared, trampling the skydome, dashing toward the upper sky. Around his body, the aura of Deed of Thorough Comprehension appeared and shrouded him. He blended into the phantom of the divine elephant.


    The power of the bone of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions in his body erupted. He walked in the sky like an incarnation of the divine elephant.


    "Booming��" As the thunder descended, countless giant elephants galloped, darting towards Zhan Yuan in the void sky.


    The light of the divine thunder collided with countless giant elephants, which led to the disastrous scene. Phantoms of the giant elephants were annihilated and shattered by lightning and turned into nothingness, but as Ye Futian kept marching, endless elephants showed up.


    The dazzling light of heavenly punishment fell on Ye Futian''s phantom of the divine elephant, trying to tear off the divine elephant''s body. The sky and earth roared, and Ye Futian continued moving upward. Although the divine elephants were enduring the extreme pressure of destruction and being distorted, they kept sprinting in the void air, smashing toward Zhan Yuan.


    Zhan Yuan frowned. He looked at the phantom of the divine elephant rushing into the void, raised one palm and slapped down. Thunder was hidden in his palm. When the divine elephant struck, his palm directly hit the divine elephant''s skull.


    A horrifying booming sound came out. Zhan Yuan''s body was pumped into the sky, but the body of the divine elephant was also flashing with the horrifying thunder. However, the elephant figure was not broken or annihilated; the elephant''s phantom was condensed, like a real divine elephant king on his arrival.


    "That elephant bone."


    Zhan Yuan looked down at the elephant king''s figure and felt the Demon Emperor''s might bursting out of it. He could feel the existence of the elephant king''s bone from the divine elephant''s body.


    Could it be that this elephant figure was supported by that piece of Elephant Emperor''s bone?


    That piece of bone was a treasure of the Renhuang level.


    The Celestial Fox Palace was full of idiots who pretended to be clever. They even took out the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Direction and gave it to others.


    However, even though he had the bone of the demon emperor, what could he do?


    Zhan Yuan stretched out his hands. The divine thunder rolled in the upper sky, and the boundless sky was all covered by thunder clouds, which rushed towards the Lightning Matrix of Doomsday above his head.


    The dazzling lightning illuminated this dark space as if it had been daylight. Zhan Yuan looked down at Ye Futian, with the horrifying Will of Thunder in his eyes.


    Thunder from the eight directions of the space converged.


    In the Lightning Matrix of Doomsday, the thunder clouds sealed the sky and shrouded the lower space. The center of the matrix was connected to the divine thunder in the skydome. Zhan Yuan stretched out one hand, and suddenly an almost transparent divine sword of thunder appeared in his hand that carried such a dazzling light one could be blinded.


    "The Lightning Thunder of Doomsday."


    Zhan Yuan stretched out one hand, and the sword fell and thrust toward Ye Futian.


    At this moment, the sky and earth were under the power of destruction. Ye Futian was shrouded in lightning from the eight directions and could not avoid this sword and had to receive the blow.


    Yaya looked at them. Her face was slightly pale; this was a Nirvana-level attack.


    Zhan Yuan, the Supreme Master of Violet Heavenly Palace, the strongest warrior of this generation, was considered as the successor of the future Violet Heavenly Palace, and direct disciple of the Heavenly Palace Lord. His strength was undeniable. As an Unblemished Saint, he was able to use the might of the Nirvana Saint Plane.


    Even though she had cultivated for two terms, she was still lost to him, while he wasn''t even putting in an effort.


    Seeing the Thunder Sword of Doomsday, she knew that if he had used the sword on her during the previous fight, she would not have been able to defend herself.


    Zhan Yuan even didn''t need to try his best when confronting her.


    The divine elephant let out a roar and covered Ye Futian inside. He looked up to the sky, and countless demon elephants ran out. Ye Futian did not escape but went straight to the sky. Savage golden divine elephants rushed toward the imminent sword of catastrophe, and the ultimate suppressing power of the Great Law swept out. The skydome was suffocating--wisps of the Demon Emperor''s might burst out from the dazzling divine elephant''s body.


    "Boom!"


    The sword slashed down. The thunder sword of doomsday thrashed on the body of the divine elephant. Endless light of destruction struck down and suddenly engulfed the divine elephant''s huge body as if it was trying to penetrate and shatter it into pieces.


    Bang!


    Thousands of rays of golden light erupted over the divine elephant, suppressing the Great Law between the sky and earth. The void sky where the collision happened trembled violently, roaring. The scene was extremely horrifying.


    With a loud sound, Ye Futian and the divine elephant''s body were both shaken downward. Crevices appeared on the divine elephant''s body. Lightning of destruction penetrated inside and tried to destroy it, but the divine aura emitting from the divine elephant''s body instantly repaired them.


    On the other side, the divine sword continued shattering, turning into endless lightning and fading away between the sky and the earth.


    The scene made Zhan Yuan frown. He stared at Ye Futian, with a pair of eyes twinkling with the Will of Thunder. How did the phantom of the divine elephant remain unbroken?


    Just now, that blow made him feel like the divine elephant was a real body, instead of a nonexistent phantom.


    "No wonder! It is the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions," Zhan Yuan said. Saint Plane cultivators were no longer influenced by the limit of mortal flesh, let alone cultivators of the Renhuang Plane.


    The flesh and veins of warriors of the Renhuang Plane were no longer normal ones; their blood and bones were all unusual things. Their robust bloodline could be inherited by future generations--their bones were bones of laws, containing cultivation wills.


    That piece of demon bone obtained by Ye Futian might be an extraordinary law bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions, which contained so much might that it even could cast a divine elephant''s figure.


    Most of Zhan Yuan''s conjectures were correct, but he got the most important thing wrong.


    The divine elephant was not born of cohesion. It was a concrete life spirit cast by Ye Futian.


    Moreover, the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions was smelting in the life spirit, which made the life spirit contain the imperial might.


    Ye Futian heard Zhan Yuan''s words and knew that he could not tell the difference. When one reached the Saint Plane, their life spirit would be the same as a real entity. The demon emperor''s life spirit was the same as that of a big demon beast. Normal people could not see the difference. Now, Ye Futian summoned the life spirit of the divine elephant, but Zhan Yuan thought it was born of the demon emperor''s bone.


    "Boom." The void air trembled, and the divine elephant jumped out into the void, crushing the sky, which made Zhan Yuan frown.


    With such a powerful sword strike, Zhan Yuan could have even threatened a Nirvana Plane Saint, but he not only failed to kill this True-self Saint cultivator but also didn''t do much damage to him. Ye Futian kept coming toward him and launched attacks.


    Even though he knew Ye Futian used the power of the demon emperor''s bone, it still upset him.


    The heavy might shrouded his body. Zhan Yuan was standing in the void air and felt an extremely repressive force. The divine elephants were galloping across the clouds, and Ye Futian was like the king of all divine elephants, leading the elephant herd toward Zhan Yuan.


    Zhan Yuan waved his hand, and immediately the Thunder Matrix of Doomsday fell, like a thunderstorm that engulfed everything, heading towards the elephants.


    "Boom."


    Endless light burst out of Ye Futian''s body. Around him, countless demon elephants ran across the sky, and the divine elephant king directly rushed into the matrix.


    A devastating storm raged above the skydome. The scene was horrifying. The rumbling sound came, and the Thunder Matrix of Doomsday was broken, crazily bursting and shattering. The Thunder Matrix of Doomsday was completely shattered by the endless divine elephants.


    The divine elephant king rushed into the void air, while Zhan Yuan hurriedly retreated toward the side. Two of them once again separated.


    Zhan Yuan stared at Ye Futian, looking a little embarrassed. Had this cultivator been able to challenge him by using the power of the Demon Emperor''s bone?


    "Boom."


    At this moment, he saw Ye Futian stepping in the void sky. He raised his head and saw an authentic divine Elephant Emperor in the upper air, striding on the skydome.


    Each step he took was followed by the trembling of the space as if space was under his suppression. Zhan Yuan had a strong feeling that horrifying oppression was falling on his body.


    He started to wonder whether Ye Futian had gotten that piece of bone as well as the Demon Emperor''s cultivation methods.


    "Bang!" The void air trembled again, and the sky began shaking. Endless might dripped from the sky. All of the sudden, countless phantoms of divine elephants appeared in the boundless sky. Ye Futian turned into the incarnation of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions, tramping over all skies and crushing all Great Laws!

 1401 Snatches from All Sides

    Zhan Yuan stood in the void and summoned the divine thunder, but at this moment, he felt that the divine thunder of the Great Law was almost suppressed as if it was difficult to gather.


    He looked up at Ye Futian, seeing that his body was dazzling, and he was possessed by the divine elephant.


    It was rumored that the Demon Monarch''s mount Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions had invincible power. Ancient books said the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions trod on the sky and crushed the earth. Nowadays, nobody knew how powerful he was, but that the king of divine elephants, the overlord of the Demon Realm, must have unparalleled power to suppress all Great Laws.


    Ye Futian was still striding. His steps seemed to contain the power that suppressed the Great Law, like a supreme mystical method that blended into the power of elephants. Each step was like a manifestation of the Heavenly Might.


    Even a powerful cultivator like Zhan Yuan felt an extremely powerful pressure from that.


    "Bang!" Ye Futian took another step out, and the void air trembled. Tens of thousands of elephant phantoms fell and darted towards Zhan Yuan. A thunderous boom came from Zhan Yuan''s body. He saw the endless phantoms of demon elephants stampeding towards him, so he released a gorgeous aura of thunder.


    Ye Futian wanted to defeat him?


    How could he fail?


    He lifted one foot. A sacred aura burst out from his body, and his body seemed to turn into that of a thunder deity; the thunderous roar broke out from every part of his body, resonating with the Great Law.


    He also took a step out, and the sound of thunder broke through the world, sweeping over all directions. The attacking giant elephant figures all burst and shattered, collapsing over the skydome.


    An intimidating Renhuang might also have exploded from Zhan Yuan''s body. The aura of Renhuang shone between the sky and earth, blooming from his torso.


    Zhan Yuan glanced at the walking figure in the air and said, "Even though the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions has supreme power, you are not the only one who possesses imperial instruments."


    After he said it, his body transformed into the body of the thunder god, and the unparalleled Law of Thunder erupted from every part of his body. The skydome seemed unable to restrain him. He walked in the void sky, heading toward Ye Futian; wherever he went, the divine light of thunder swept out of his body, destroying all phantoms of giant elephants.


    Ye Futian watched Zhan Yuan coming step by step. He knew that Zhan Yuan also used a Renhuang object and merged it into his body, which made his body like that of a true Thunder God.


    Moreover, as a supreme master, when Zhan Yuan turned into the thunder form, his physical body could become a matrix. Now he was the Thunder Matrix of Doomsday. When he stretched out his hand, endless Divine Thunder could descend. Even the thunderous roar coming from his body contained power that could smash everything and destroy the phantoms of demon elephants.


    Zhan Yuan directly walked toward Ye Futian--those demon elephant phantoms were unable to approach him. The moment they came near him, they would either be swept away by the light of thunder or be shattered by the horrifying thunder roars. He blended the Renhuang Might into his Law. How powerful it was!


    The two of them walked towards each other. Their power grew stronger and stronger as if both sides had strong beliefs and were not afraid of the collision.


    "Boom."


    Finally, they reached each other. Ye Futian, who possessed the divine elephant, stomped on Zhan Yuan''s body.


    The roaring thunder shone, and Zhan Yuan''s body became larger and turned into that of a true Fighting God of Thunder. The endless lightning turned into a series of purple lightning, connecting to his body. Countless wills of thunder between the sky and earth resonated with the Fighting God of Thunder he had transformed into.


    Zhan Yuan raised his fist and punched it toward the elephant''s dropping giant foot. The Law of Thunder was appalling in the sky. Countless Thunder Swords of Doomsday blasted out of his fist, trying to penetrate the divine elephant. At the same time, the endless divine light of thunder erupted from his body, sweeping towards Ye Futian.


    Finally, the phantoms of the divine elephants trembled, but their violent force of the same level also made Zhan Yuan move backward. His body rose straight into the sky, thrusting toward Ye Futian like a bolt of lightning.


    The roars and light rays of thunder erupting above his body could destroy all the existence of the Saint Plane, but it couldn''t annihilate the divine elephant that enveloped Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian also raised his fist and punched forward.


    At this moment, the figure of the Fighting Thunder God and the Divine Elephant collided head-on. The space surrounding them seemed to be falling apart. Every attack between them was extremely shocking.


    Over the skydome, the light of destruction shot out frantically--the void sky kept trembling. Nobody knew how many times they collided with each other, but neither of them retreated.


    The life spirit that shrouded Ye Futian merged into the real demon bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. It was not a treasure, but it was stronger than other ordinary Renhuang-level treasures. When it merged into the life spirit, Ye Futian''s life spirit also contained the might of the Demon Emperor. It became unshakable.


    However, Zhan Yuan was also extremely powerful, and his body was also integrated with the Renhuang''s object, which made him become one with the Great Law of Thunder, and now, he seemed to have become the law itself.


    In the end, they were separated from each other. The violent blasts were still going on madly around them. The invisible storm swept through the vast and boundless space. Thunder kept rumbling, and there were still endless demon elephants.


    Zhan Yuan was emotionless. The overbearing might bloomed from his pupils.


    How could he gain so much strength with the aid of the Demon Emperor''s bone?


    His attacks couldn''t destroy Ye Futian.


    Above the sky, thunder clouds rolled. Lightning from the eight directions of the space surged. He turned into the Thunder God, controlling tens of thousands of Divine Thunderbolts to thrust toward Ye Futian all at once.


    The astonishing sound of elephants trumpeting erupted from Ye Futian''s body. The divine light of the Great Law started to flow. Endless demon elephants around him helped resist the bombardment of rolling divine thunder.


    "Vroom." At this moment, Zhan Yuan disappeared, and the sound of thunder echoed in the space. His body was connected to the skydome, gathering millions of divine thunderbolts and turning them into a flash of lightning, thrusting toward the divine elephant figure Ye Futian transformed into.


    "Boom, boom, boom��" Zhan Yuan suddenly came in front of Ye Futian, and the endless attacks fell on Ye Futian''s body. Even with the protection of the divine elephant life spirit, Ye Futian still groaned, and his life spirit was on the edge of bursting. The attacking force was appalling.


    His body was shaken back, and his life spirit seemed to collapse. His hand stretched backward, and a dazzling long stick appeared in his palm.


    "Boom."


    The elephant stood on the skydome, stopped moving backward, and slashed the stick with the enormous power of the divine elephant. The skydome was about to collapse, and the phantom of the Thunder God transformed from Zhan Yuan''s raised arm and sent out countless stick shadows. The void sky shook violently.


    After a loud boom, Zhan Yuan''s body was blasted down into the lower air. Ye Futian''s body was also shaken, his life force fluctuating, organs trembling.


    Just then, Ye Futian suddenly perceived a strong sense of danger. He immediately turned around and saw a golden lightning bolt striking toward him, at the fastest speed.


    He lifted one foot and stepped out. The divine elephant made a fierce roar again, trembling the sky and earth, but the golden lightning bolt didn''t stop at all, rushed directly in front of him, and hit the light curtain formed by the divine elephant. The lightning bolt penetrated the light curtain, creating a cut on the divine elephant''s body. Inside, Ye Futian was like hit by electric shocks. He let out a groan, and the golden lightning bolt rushed straight towards his own body.


    The elephant''s life spirit suddenly collapsed and vanished, but Ye Futian''s body was still blooming with a golden aura, with the divine elephant''s hidden armor inside. At the same time, the stars surrounded him. He swiftly moved in the void air and wanted to retreat.


    But it was still too late. The speed was too fast, and he was hit the moment the idea occurred to him.


    The defense of stars shattered, and the golden aura was cracked. Ye Futian spat out blood, and his body flew straight back.


    That figure in the lightning moved like a shadow, and it continued to rush toward Ye Futian--his speed was reaching the max limit.


    "Vroom." Countless sharp swords thrust out of Ye Futian''s body, and a Sword of Kasypa also dashed out of the center of his eyebrows, racing toward Zhan Yuan.


    The figure in golden light took out one hand to deflect the sword, and only then did he stop.


    This man was wearing a gorgeous golden robe but looked extremely ugly, with a pair of eyes like a mouse. Ye Futian recognized him at a glance. There weren''t many people with this kind of appearance in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He belonged to the Purple-gold Rat Clan in the Demon Realm, of course. They proclaimed themselves to be the Purple-gold Divine Rats.


    Before, Zhu Zhao had reminded him not to provoke the demon beasts of this clan. They were vindictive and extremely egocentric creatures. Even though a top figure had appeared from the Rat Clan, and this clan was prospering, the self-abasement running in their veins still could not be removed.


    Moreover, people of the Rat Clan were extremely greedy and liked treasures.


    This purple-gold rat that suddenly showed up was aiming at the treasure in Ye Futian''s hand, and he chose the right time.


    "Leave everything to me, I will not kill you," the purple-gold rat stared at Ye Futian and said. His narrow and long eyes looked sly but extremely indifferent, showing some sort of pride.


    Ye Futian glanced at him coldly. Did this warrior of the Rat Clan also want to step in?


    The life force around his body was flowing. He seemed to have perceived something, raised his head, and looked into the distance. There, he saw a few more imposing figures coming, all staring at him with anger.


    Seeing this, Yaya looked sullen. Did she fail to leave them behind?


    She had tried her best to bring Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan here. Many warriors dared not set foot on this place, but those top figures still managed to enter this territory and would not give up the things Ye Futian had gotten.


    Especially now when they had seen the battle between Ye Futian and the Supreme Master Zhan Yuan, they would even more strongly believe that the power of the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions that Ye Futian had obtained was amazing, and it would be a huge gain for the demon cultivators.


    "I''ve heard that the Purple-gold Rats are now very strong, but you still can''t change their old nature to do such sneaky things." Zhan Yuan glanced over the Purple-gold Rat and said, "If you want it, you should openly take it."


    The Purple-gold rat looked at him. Rats never cared about whatever methods they used as long as they could get whatever they wanted. Nobody should forget how hard he and his ancestors worked for their clan to prosper as they do today!

 1402 Siege

    The ominous atmosphere in this space became more and more intense. The previous battles had broken many rusty swords on the ground, and there were even evil ghosts rising from the underground that seemed to be transformed from the dead people''s lingering grudges.


    At this moment, a pair of ghostly hands stretched out from a crack in the ground. A phantom showed up and pounced towards the person standing in the void sky.


    As more and more ghosts joined the fight, the warriors, who had just arrived, all perceived the threat. They glanced at Ye Futian indifferently. They must deal with him as soon as possible and leave.


    For an instant, the warriors released their life forces, which followed Ye Futian and attacked the lower sky.


    Ye Futian looked up at these warriors. In his Life Palace, the flame was burning, and the Fire Spirit Orb seemed to be devouring his Life Palace, and then the blaze rushed to his whole body, engulfing him all at once. For a moment, he transformed into Flame God of War, with all the power of his body burning.


    At the same time, in the endless flame, there was also a golden aura of the divine elephant. The elephant''s roars came from his body. A mighty force overwhelmed the vast space. He held a huge stick of stars in his hand, with an unparalleled bearing.


    Yaya stared at Ye Futian. She rose to her feet, standing on the ground. The infinite Sword Will erupted from her body, drawing the Great Law from heaven and summoned tens of thousands of swords. A Sword Matrix was formed around her body.


    She could tell that Ye Futian had been injured, and now he had to face such oppression. So many warriors were targeting him. If he let the fire of the law burn again, he would run out of his energy. Let alone what level of combat ability he could use? It would be difficult for him to persist for long.


    Moreover, these warriors were all capable of using Nirvana skills. It was looking like none of the top forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm would be weak.


    The Purple-golden Rat lifted a brow when he perceived Ye Futian''s life force, and his narrow eyes looked cold. He stretched out a palm and immediately a sword that could release Renhuang might appeared in his hand. This was odd--a rat demon beast cultivated in swordsmanship.


    However, it was rumored that when the old ancestor of the Purple-golden Rat Clan was in humble circumstances, he once served many powerful figures and dedicated himself as a beast servant, serving many top figures, and, at the same time, secretly learned many human cultivation methods.


    So, warriors of the Demon Realm showed no surprise when seeing this Purple-golden Rat Beast use sword skills.


    Renhuang-level might was being released from the sword. It was a Renhuang object. The sword body was thin and narrow and had strong penetrating abilities.


    "Vroom." The Purple-golden Rat was standing on top of the void sky. He wielded his sword, and for a moment, there seemed to be a rain of golden swords appearing in the void sky, each sword raindrop containing the Might of the Great Law. Over the skydome, a curtain of sword rain enveloped the boundless space. The rat''s sword pointed to Ye Futian, and immediately, the sword rain followed and attacked Ye Futian. The rain curtain covered the sky, and the phantoms of demon elephants around Ye Futian suddenly were all penetrated, like being pierced through by thousands of swords and smashed directly.


    When the sword rain approached Ye Futian, it even penetrated the Might of Flames and made a slight dangerous rustling sound.


    The elephant roar continued in Ye Futian''s body. A giant figure of a golden elephant appeared around him. The sword rain fell with no end and kept making a harsh, shrieking sound. The sword raindrops sneaked into the golden divine elephant''s body little by little.


    "Boom."


    Ye Futian took a step out and shook away those shrieking golden swords from the divine elephant figure. He moved quickly and slashed out the long stick in his hand. A huge stick shadow appeared in the upper sky and slashed toward the Purple-golden Rat''s head regardless of the spatial distance.


    The Purple-golden Rat shunned and turned into a dazzling bolt of golden lightning, running between the suppressing forces of the Great Law. His speed was still extremely fast, and he directly avoided the attacks of the long stick and soon appeared in another direction.


    "I should finish the battle quickly," he thought to himself. More evil spirits from the ground rushed up to catch him. Wisps of thoughts entered his mind and made his will power unstable. He glanced toward them and said, "if you continue consuming time like this, it will be no good for anyone."


    It was not enough for him alone to take the treasure.


    Zhan Huan did not expect Ye Futian to have a whole card. Where did this fire that enhanced his strength and endowed him with Nirvana-level abilities come from?


    Ye Futian seemed to carry many secrets.


    Zhan Yuan strode in the void air. The lightning swept out and destroyed the chaotic life force around him that wanted to erode his body.


    The Nirvana-level warriors, who just came to the void space, all started to take action, each of them had an extremely terrifying life force. They all exerted pressure towards Ye Futian in the lower sky.


    For a time, Ye Futian was besieged by enemies.


    "Boom."


    The void air shook fiercely. Ye Futian stepped in the void sky, with his body shrouded by flames and his hands wielding the long sticks. Phantoms of demon elephants galloped between the sky and earth. The vast endless space seemed to be under heavy pressure.


    The Purple-golden Rat Demon Beast started to move. He held the imperial sword high in his hand, bearing endless wills in the sky. The golden divine rain fell. His body flickered, heading straight toward the lower sky. The sword came out, and sword rain fell, annihilating everything.


    Ye Futian felt the power and slashed out the long stick in his hand towards the sky and buried the sword rain. But the Purple-golden Rat monster was extremely fast and changed his position in an instant. He launched the sword rain and wanted to control Ye Futian in that space.


    Zhang Yuan stepped in the void air. The thunder roars around him shook the sky and earth. Endless thunder from the sky gathered in his body and turned into thunderous light that destroyed everything, slashing out towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s stick shadow smashed out again, crushing on the lightning, and a booming sound burst out.


    Above his head, a Nirvana Saint launched an attack. A huge, dark palm print came from the skydome, reflecting black-gold light, containing the strong airflow of destruction and tearing the void air.


    Ye Futian could only slash out the stick again. His body swirling, and the stick shadows appeared. The dark palm prints collapsed and shattered.


    Another golden bell released tens of thousands of rays of light, crushing the void air and crumbling the place where Ye Futian was, hiding the might of Renhuang and wiping out all existence.


    Ye Futian''s body soared into the sky. The shadow of the stick covered the sky, and it suddenly chopped down. After a loud clanging noise, the ancient Renhuang clock was shaken back, but the horrifying killing rays of light''s attack didn''t stop. The Renhuang bell also returned and ran over his body again.


    The powerful attacks continued. Ye Futian kept waving his stick, but these warriors did not even get close to him. They trapped him there and attacked wildly, consuming Ye Futian''s energy, making it impossible for him to escape.


    After all, every person who was attacking him was powerful.


    Seeing the battle scene in the void sky, Yaya looked disgusted. All these were top figures, Nirvana Saints, and a Supreme Master, but they all assaulted Ye Futian at the same time, just iso they could steal his belongings.


    As the fight went on, more warriors arrived in the area one after another. Some people were afraid to come because of the danger, but there were still a few bold people who entered the battle.


    An intimidating life force came, and a Nirvana-level big demon beast Zhu Yan came to this area with Zhu Zhao, Yu Sheng, and others.


    Seeing the battle in the void sky, Yu Sheng looked extremely worried.


    "Boom��" The skydome trembled, and divine elephants trumpeted. In the distance, a group of powerful divine elephants raced towards this side. They glanced down at the battlefield in the lower sky and saw the life force erupting from Ye Futian''s body, which made them feel something familiar as if it was from their ancestors.


    "We should help him," Zhu Zhao said. He saw Ye Futian being hit by one attack right after the other, defending himself alone, when the attacks were coming from so many intimidating warriors.


    The Nirvana-level Zhu Yan Great Demon''s might swept out and rushed towards the skydome.


    "Bang!" A violent sound came out. The sound of elephants trumpeting shook the sky. Above Zhu Yan, the Great Demon Beast''s head, giant elephants marched in the air, among whom, one of the divine elephants glanced at him and said, "Go away."


    Ye Futian, the Divine Elephant Clan wanted him.


    The roar continued, and they kept treading in the void air. Warriors on the other side of the battlefield saw warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan, and their attacks became even stronger. In the shadows of the stick, the Purple-golden Rat Demon Beast crossed the sky and passed through the stick shadows. Horrifying might blasted over his moving body, but his body turned into the size of a rat and directly penetrated the Great Law attacking force. This was his innate talent.


    "Bang!" With a loud noise, the Purple-golden Rat Demon Beast almost penetrated Ye Futian''s body and smashed Ye Futian''s overall defense, but Ye Futian''s body seemed to have a terrifying Flame Might that made him scared and devoured him.


    The golden aura wrapped around his body. The Rat''s sharp claws clawed toward Ye Futian. Using the reaction force, he stepped back. His heart thumped fast, what was that power?


    "Boom!"


    The Might of the Thunder Laws also blasted over Ye Futian, making his body fall to the ground.


    The Purple-golden Rat was extremely fast. He continued to dive down and wanted to take Ye Futian away. A gust of Sword Might arrived in an instant and thrust straight toward him. The Purple-golden Rat spun his body. The Renhuang sword in his hand thrust down and turned into a horrifying golden storm that collided with the sword.


    The sharp shrieking sound came, and golden blood flew from the Purple-golden Rat. He was shaken to the void sky. Yaya fell to the lower sky with Ye Futian and dropped on the Sword Peak. Both of them spat out blood.


    Yu Sheng and others rushed to check them, but, considering their levels, they couldn''t change the situation at all.


    In the void air, those top Saint figures looked down at them.


    "Get out of our way!" Warriors of the divine elephant clan marched in the void sky. Many divine elephants descended at the same time, and suddenly their might shook the sky. Even the Supreme Master Zhan Yuan of the Violet Heavenly Palace didn''t dare to trouble them.


    That Purple-golden Rat demon beast looked sullen. The Divine Elephant Clan was also very powerful. In the era of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions, the Divine Elephant Clan was the king of the Realm, and they still had a vast heritage after so many years. Now, since they had arrived, it was difficult for him to take the treasure.


    Warriors of different forces stared at each other with anger, and both Ye Futian and Yaya were severely injured.


    Ye Wuchen looked indifferent, with anger and sadness in his heart. So many warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm chose to besiege one single person.


    However, they simply could not participate in combat of such a high level.


    He raised one foot and walked toward their direction. This space was suppressed by countless broken swords and filled with horrifying chaotic thoughts.


    "Boom!" There was another loud bang. Warriors stepped down and exerted pressure on Ye Futian. Except for the warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan, none of them wanted to give up.


    "He belongs to me," Zhan Yuan said indifferently. He might not want the divine elephant imperial bone since it was the bone of the ancestor of the Divine Elephant Clan, and he didn''t want the corpse, either. However, he was interested in Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had more treasures.


    "The corpse belongs to me," another Nirvana-level warrior said. They had already started to discuss how to divide gains.


    But at this moment, a rumbling sound came out, and the mountain peak was shaking.


    They turned around and looked toward that side. On the top of the mountain, in front of the giant sword inserted in front of the Sword Peak, a man in white with long hair blowing in the wind was standing, holding the hilt of a sword with both hands!

 1403 The Threat of Renhuang

    The warriors'' faces all turned pale. They could perceive the chaos going on in the space.


    The endless broken swords seemed to be used to seal a land of demons, and this Sword Peak might be the place where the main sword was located. The giant sword inserted above the Sword Peak probably was the key to seal this space. Once it was pulled out, the consequence might be disastrous.


    However, at this moment, someone was trying to pull the sword out.


    "Stop it," people yelled. In front of the giant sword, the figure pulled it with both hands, and the ground made a roaring sound. The vast boundless space was trembling. Those broken swords inserted into this land made high-pitched shrieks, and a devastating storm swept through the vast void air.


    Under the ground, horrible life forces were released, like countless dead warriors'' remaining thoughts that had been suppressed by this land.


    At this moment, they were all being released.


    "Too presumptuous."


    A Nirvana-plane warrior raised his hand and launched attacks towards the figure that was pulling the sword, but a terrifying vortex appeared over the sword and quickly engulfed the person pulling the sword. There seemed to be a phantom-like figure amid the chaotic airflow that rushed into his mind, rolling towards his body. The attack of the Nirvana-plane warrior came near him but was blocked by the terrifying storm.


    "It''s dangerous, step back!" the Sword Saint yelled. But Ye Wuchen still stood in the center of the storm. The blue veins on his body were visible. There was horrifying bloody light in his eyes. The extremely chaotic thoughts invaded his mind directly as if they were trying to overtake his mind.


    The Sword Saint''s face looked very pale. He could understand the situation Ye Wuchen was facing at the moment. The sword that the mysterious warrior gave him at that time, the demonic sword he was using today, contained similar energy just like this one, and also full of demonic thoughts as if actual demons were dwelling inside.


    However, those demonic thoughts had been sealed, so his demonic sword was now a safe weapon.


    But even so, the Sword Saint was very clear how Ye Wuchen suffered every time he used the demonic sword. The agony was unbearable for normal people even though the sword had been sealed. What would happen if the seal was released?


    The huge sword that Ye Wuchen wanted to pull out was like his demonic blade. It was sealed and used to quell the land.


    But at this moment, Ye Wuchen wanted to pull it out.


    He would die.


    How devastating the consequence would be if the lingering beings in the land were freed from the quelling power?


    What kind of price was waiting for Ye Wuchen at the center of the storm to pay?


    The Sword Saint could imagine, had the situation already become this serious?


    Ye Wuchen''s eyes glowed with terrifying bloody light as if they were no longer his own eyes. However, deep in his pupils, there was still a sense of sobriety. It was his will power fighting against the erosion of terrifying power.


    His body didn''t seem to belong to him anymore, but his hands still held the giant sword tight.


    "Boom��" The earth was still shaking, and countless horrifying phantoms flew from the ground, stunning those who wanted to assault Ye Futian for a while. They looked quite unsettled.


    Was this lunatic trying to kill everyone?


    Ye Wuchen didn''t stop. Under countless gazes, he pulled out the giant sword with both hands little by little.


    He didn''t have time to think. So many top figures joined forces to suppress Ye Futian and even discussed how to divide gains. In a situation like this, what else could he do to counter them?


    There might be many demons buried in the ground, but what was the difference between these bloodthirsty top cultivators and the demons? Considering Ye Futian''s ability, he was even more likely to survive in front of the demons in the ground; however, those greedy top figures would not let him go.


    So, after seeing the whole situation, Ye Wuchen came to the Sword Peak alone and pulled out the sword.


    "Shhhhhhhhhh��"


    A beam of dark light vertically pierced into the sky. The sword was finally pulled out. The Sword Peak collapsed, and a terrifying air torrent rushed into the sky.


    But Ye Wuchen''s body was submerged by the infinite darkness. The ground shook, countless broken swords flew up, and the land cracked. Many deep crevices appeared. From the cracks, many hands came out and grasped onto the ground. Many phantoms rose and rushed directly toward the cultivators fighting in the void sky.


    The situation was chaos. Many warriors looked terrified and scattered instantly, trying to escape.


    "Boom." On the Sword Peak where Ye Wuchen was located, the land was divided into two, splitting up from the middle. The two pieces of land seemed to be completely divided, and the gap was getting bigger and bigger. Between the divided pieces of land, horrifying life forces were spreading. Everyone was horrified.


    Countless air currents continued to flow into the giant sword. The opened ground turned into an endless abyss. Looking down from above, no one could see the bottom of it. There were only horrifying life forces being released out of the abyss.


    At the time, in the bottomless abyss, in the endless darkness, two flashes of bloody light suddenly appeared. These two flashes of red light looked extremely scary, like the eyes of a demon. The terrifying demonic light aroused tumult in the whole abyss.


    But just after a moment, these two flashes of light dispersed as if nothing had happened.


    Ye Wuchen held the sword tight. His body was shaking, and his eyes turned into the color of blood. His handsome face became distorted, and the energy of his whole body seemed to be devoured, but the life force surrounding his body was extremely terrifying.


    He didn''t seem to be himself at all.


    He turned around and looked toward other people. The Supreme Master Zhan Yuan was using the Divine Thunder to resist the erosion of demons. Warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan were trampling over the sky to suppress evils.


    Other warriors also used their means to defend.


    However, even in this chaotic situation, the Purple-golden Rat Demon Beast had not given up yet. He turned into a bolt of lightning and thrust towards Ye Futian as if, at this moment, he still wanted to take Ye Futian away.


    He would never give up without reaching his goal.


    However, at this moment, he suddenly became alert and perceived a dangerous life force. He immediately turned around and saw a pair of demonic eyes shrouding him. The horrifying demonic will directly came into his eyes and invaded his mind. He trembled, showing panic, and hurried back.


    The giant sword swept by, chopping over the space he was in. A terrifying trembling sound came out, and the Purple-golden Rat Beast spat out blood like crazy. He seemed to be covered with a layer of purple-gold armor that blocked most damage for him; otherwise, this blow would have been far more serious.


    The Purple-gold Rat Demon Beast was moved far away and spat out a mouthful of blood, and wisps of airflow rushed towards him. The Purple-gold Rat Demon Beast turned into golden lightning and fled through a gap, wanting to escape this area.


    Had that lunatic been eroded by demons after drawing the sword and had become a demon himself?


    His blood-red eyes were extremely scary, and Ye Wuchen flashed away. The sword in his hand devoured endless air flows between the sky and earth and then chopped down towards those warriors in the void air. Suddenly, a terrifying dark vortex gushed out, like numerous phantoms together with the sword dashing toward those warriors and rushed directly toward their bodies.


    At the same time, Ye Wuchen''s body turned into a dark lightning bolt and struck directly toward Zhan Yuan of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Zhan Yuan saw Ye Wuchen coming. Ye Wuchen''s body was wrapped by the horrifying air currents. At this moment, he was not himself.


    "Boom!" The rolls of thunder kept roaring, and the lightning illuminated the whole sky. Thousands of flashes of thunder and lightning blasted toward Ye Wuchen. Under Divine Thunder, those countless phantoms were directly wiped out.


    The violent lightning struck directly over Ye Wuchen''s body. The sword left Ye Futian''s hand and turned into dark lightning. It broke through the forces of heavy thunder and crushed on Zhan Yuan''s body.


    The hissing sound came. It seemed that Zhan Yuan''s body was almost penetrated. Blood flew out of his body, and the devastating air currents rushed into him frantically. His whole body was filled with the breaths of death and was growing black. The lighting was gradually fading, and his face looked dead.


    At this moment, a beam of strong light bloomed. Zhan Yuan let out a roar. Over his body, the mighty imperial power swept out, and a phantom of the Supreme Renhuang Lord appeared. The sacred light shrouded Zhan Yuan''s body, expelling the dark air flows around him and directly wiping out all the chaotic wills.


    The emperor''s aura shone. The Divine Thunder came and destroyed everything, and many chaotic wills around him were all shattered. His eyes were extremely sharp, like the eyes of a deity, sweeping towards Ye Wuchen.


    "Just evil crafts," he said in disdain. His eyes looked indifferent. He pointed his finger forward. Ye Wuchen took back the sword and slashed out a strike. The sacred lightning illuminated the vast skydome and collided with the terrifying dark sword light. An unparalleled life force of destruction erupted, and an astonishing storm blew across the world.


    "Boom��"


    Finally, Ye Wuchen was the first one who couldn''t bear it anymore. After all, he was using the external strength to fight, instead of his ability, how could he fight against the real Renhuang Will?


    The flash of lightning pierced through his body. If he had not had the endless airflow as protection, the blow would have been enough to turn him to ashes.


    "We should go first," Renhuang glanced at the place and said, frowning. It seemed that the danger had been triggered, and he had to get Zhan Yuan to leave with him.


    "Let''s take him with us, as well," Zhan Yuan pointed his finger at Ye Futian and said. Even at this moment, he still didn''t forget capturing Ye Futian.


    Especially after his confrontation with Ye Futian, Zhan Yuan became more interested in him. This young man was even able to compete with all the top warriors at the same time by using the power of the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. And, how did he launch the Flames of the Way?

 1404 The Hearts Following the Ligh

    The Renhuang figure of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked toward Ye Futian, slightly nodding, and then stepped forward. Covered with the bright Thunder Light armor, he slightly raised his arms and headed toward Ye Futian.


    Yaya and others looked sullen. Was this Renhuang warrior also going to capture Ye Futian?


    Ye Wuchen on the ground rose to his feet again. He held the sword with both hands, and the bloody light burst out from his deep, dark eyes.


    At this moment, he seemed to have given up his self-consciousness, and the Sword Will darted toward his body madly and swallowed him up. He seemed to have become part of the sword; not only that, all the horrible air flows around him in the space poured into his body.


    With a roar, Ye Wuchen''s body was devoured. Over him, a real demon appeared. The demon stared at the Renhuang warrior, and the sword in his hand was also roaring and shaking.


    "You are giving yourself to evils!"


    The Renhuang of the Violet Heaven Palace shouted at him solemnly. Even his voice contained horrifying Might of Thunder and wanted to penetrate the demon''s body, but it was of no use.


    Ye Wuchen was still standing there. The Renhuang of the Violet Heavenly Palace had no choice but to put down Zhan Yuan. He needed to deal with the monster in front of him first.


    "You give me a moment," he spoke to Zhan Yuan. Soon the Might of Thunder fell from the sky, and his body turned into the Law of Thunder, just like a real figure of Thunder Deity. He took one step forward, crossing the void sky and heading toward Ye Wuchen.


    "Vroom." At the same time, the Sword Saint held the overbearing demonic sword. The terrifying demonic Might surged straight to Zhan Yuan''s body. Yu Sheng, Zhu Zhao, and Black Wind Condor did the same. Since they couldn''t fight with the Renhuang, they would target Zhan Yuan.


    Everything started with him.


    Accompanied with a rumble, the demon Ye Wuchen launched an attack on the Renhuang. The sword penetrated his body directly, but the Renhuang''s body was nothing but a Thunder Thought. The Thunder Thought also penetrated the demon''s body. Suddenly, the huge demon burst frantically. The light of endless thunder entangled it, and with a loud noise, phantoms around it all burst and shattered.


    Ye Wuchen''s figure showed up from the explosion but again fell feebly.


    However, the Renhuang was not well at this time, either. His body was exposed to countless dark airstreams that devoured his thunder form, making the lightning gradually dim and trying to devour his Thunder Thought completely.


    He glanced toward Ye Futian with a cold look.


    "Take them away," Yaya sitting on the ground said to a beautiful figure next to her. That person looked at Yaya with a pair of gorgeous but emotionless eyes. She was the first beauty of the Eastern State of that time, the Glass Saint.


    "Go to that abyss," Yaya stared at the Glass Saint''s eyes and said, showing no expression. The Glass Saint also looked back at her eyes. If she went to the abyss, would she survive?


    Was she telling her to go die?


    At this moment, her heart was stirred, no longer as calm as before.


    "Aren''t you always looking for the answer? If you find it, you die," Yaya said in an extremely indifferent tone, without any emotion as if this unsmiling girl, who was always patted on the head by Ye Futian, had turned into a real cold-blooded and ruthless Sword Saint of the Void.


    But was she ruthless?


    She asked the Glass Saint to die.


    The Glass Saint lowered her head slightly, looking at Ye Futian, but at this time, Ye Futian was also looking up at her. The Glass Saint wondered what answer was she looking for.


    "Okay," she answered. When the horrifying might befell, and the Renhuang of the Violet Heaven Palace came near, she grabbed Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan with both hands. Seeing Ye Futian wanting to move, she released the Might of Ice and sealed Ye Futian''s body using extreme coldness, and she took the two of them directly toward the direction of abyss.


    The Renhuang frowned and continued to pounce toward them, but at this moment, a bright sword matrix shone across space, and thousands of rays of sword light slashed out. Yaya, severely injured, submerged the Renhuang figure with the sword light.


    "You are playing with fire," the Renhuang said coldly and continued moving forward. The Thunder Light directly destroyed the Might of Sword.


    "Vroom." The sword matrix engulfed toward him, and a sword burst out from the center of the matrix. The Renhuang of the Violet Heavenly Palace raised his hand to draw the divine thunder. The imperial might swept across the world and destroyed tens of thousands of swords, but that single sword continued to drop down and penetrate his body. At the same time, those dark forces that devoured his body became stronger, little by little making his body disperse.


    He turned around and took a glance. At this time, Zhan Yuan was also under siege. All his opponents seemed to be attacking him at all costs. Zhan Yuan had been wounded by Ye Wuchen before; otherwise, he would have not been threatened by these low-level people.


    "Boom." Zhan Yuan''s fist collided with Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng clasped his fist directly. The violent Might of Thunder pierced through his body and banged on Yu Sheng, but Yu Sheng''s hand still clasped on him tightly.


    The Sword Saint''s sword chopped off. Zhan Yuan let out a roar and accumulated divine thunder in his palm.


    The Black Wind Condor swooped down toward Zhan Yuan. He had almost turned into a demonic instrument, a pair of eyes full of killing thoughts.


    Zhan Yuan raised his head, the terrifying thunderous light erupting in his eyes, shooting toward the Black Wind Condor.


    The demonic sword split the sky--blood splashed and a deep blood mark appeared on Zhan Yuan''s body, but his arm also shook Yu Sheng away.


    "Boom!" There was another loud bang. A long stick slashed down. The Might of Thunder violently blasted from Zhan Yuan''s body, but he was still pushed away by the force.


    When he stopped, Zhan Yuan looked down at his arms and body. A startling bloodstain was there as if being eroded by demonic wills. A lot of dark airflows rushed toward him, and his face looked extremely gloomy.


    "You retreat first," a voice from the Renhuang of the Violet Heavenly Palace said. He shook his arm, and the sword matrix was annihilated. Yaya''s body was shaken out, blood splattering in the void sky, and she weakly fell on the ground. The Renhuang turned into a flash and ran toward the Glass Saint and Ye Futian.


    The Glass Saint now was standing on the edge of the abyss. In the bottomless abyss, there were endless dark air torrents, as if ancient monsters were looming inside, filled with infinite danger. If the power in this abyss broke out, even the Renhuang would not dare stay here.


    She took a glance at Ye Futian and then stepped forward and leaped down toward the endless abyss.


    She hoped Ye Futian could survive. Ye Futian seemed to have strong adaptability in these dangerous places, and she hoped it would be the same this time.


    The Renhuang descended on the edge of the abyss, and countless air flows came. He looked indifferent, turned around and transformed into a flash of lightning. His form was about to dissipate, and he had to take Zhan Yuan away.


    At this time, Zhan Yu''s whole body was stained with blood, and killing thoughts were reflected in his pupils.


    "Let''s go," his voice rang out. The Renhuang''s phantom showed up and used his remaining strength to guard Zhan Yuan''s body and soared into the sky, letting the terrible dark power eat away at his body and still rush out of this district with Zhan Yuan under his protection.


    Other warriors also made their way to escape. The destructive power of this space was getting stronger and stronger, and soon, only those around Ye Futian were still there.


    "It''s going to go," a Nirvana-level Zhu Yan demon beast came to Zhu Zhao and said. At this moment, it was not easy to escape.


    He let out a yell and turned into Zhu Yan''s original form. The huge beast stood on the ground like a mountain.


    Zhu Zhao looked in the direction of the abyss, but the Nirvana-level Zhu Yan great demon beast seized him directly, asking the Sword Saint and others, "Do you want to go with us?"


    "You can go," the Sword Saint said. The Zhu Yan Great Demon Beast let out a roar, took his people and soared into the sky, escaping the space.


    The Sword Saint raised his foot and walked toward the abyss. The Sword Saint''s whole body was covered by the Demon Might; Yaya and Ye Wuchen were severely injured; Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan had been to the abyss.


    How did they go?


    Where should they go?


    The Sword Saint approached Yaya, raised his head and asked Black Wind Condor, "Condor, is Ye Futian all right?"


    The Black Wind Eagle stood in front of the abyss, staring down, and said, "They were still going down."


    He looked back at Sword Saint and said, "Glass Saint, I am afraid she is in danger."


    How deep was this abyss?


    The Sword Saint lowered his head. He inserted the demonic sword on the ground next to Yaya, holding the demonic sword with one hand. Suddenly the mighty demonic will power swept out, dispersing all evil spirits. He was covered by the Demonic Will and seemed to be enduring very intense pain.


    Yaya sent the Glass Saint to death.


    However, Yaya intended to prevent Ye Futian from being taken away. Ye Futian had too many secrets on him and must not be taken away. If he was taken to the Violet Heavenly Palace, he would die.


    So, Yaya asked the Glass Saint to send Ye Futian to the abyss, which was equal to letting her die.


    He understood that Yaya was making the right choice. Ye Futian had survived too many life-and-death situations, especially in the secret relics, his survivability was amazing. If he went to the abyss, there was still a chance for him, but if he was taken away, he would be killed. And that was also why Yaya sacrificed her life to block the Renhuang.


    Yu Sheng walked to Ye Wuchen''s side. At this time, Ye Wuchen was eroded by the darkness. He was not only seriously injured but not even like himself.


    Yaya and Ye Wuchen were the injured the worst, and they had more than just injuries.


    Yaya used what was left of her power to stop the opponent from taking Ye Futian away, and the other one, as a Doctrine Saint, pulled the sword and induced the demonic power entering his body. How did he afford the pain?


    Yu Sheng came near Ye Wuchen and sat cross-legged in front of him. His whole body was in golden radiance, and there was Buddha''s whispering echoing between the sky and the earth. The golden aura of Buddha shrouded this place and also wrapped around Ye Wuchen''s body.


    Behind Yu Sheng, the Buddha''s light shone, and many Buddhist statues appeared. Tens of thousands of Buddhas together worshiped the law, emitting glaring Buddhist radiance. Countless Buddhist charms "�d" showed up and flew toward Ye Wuchen''s body.


    At the same time, Yu Sheng chanted Sanskrit mantras. The Sanskrit chants resonated with the sky and earth and gradually turned into the supreme power of karma, which was trying to influence Ye Wuchen. There was nothing more that Yu Sheng could do, and he could only pray that Wuchen could pass through this calamity.


    On the other side, the Sword Saint was looking at Yu Sheng. There were two more severely injured people in need of being taken care of. He would take care of Yaya, and Wuchen would be in the care of Yu Sheng.


    He raised his head and glanced at this dim world. It seemed that now it had truly become a demons'' cave. However, even though they were surrounded by the boundless darkness, their hearts still followed the light!

 1405 The Answer

    In the abyss, the Glass Saint took Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan all the way down. Countless horrifying evil phantoms were rushing toward her.


    The strong Wills of Sword and Wills of Ice were being released from the Glass Saint''s body but could not stop the invasion of those evil spirits. She sealed Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan with the freezing power and turned them into two ice statues.


    "Boom!" The Glass Saint''s body was shaken violently, and a dark airflow appeared on her fair face. An external chaotic thought entered her mind, trying to swallow her willpower.


    She had no other thoughts, and her willpower was strong and wasn''t disturbed. She continued going down, but the infinite shadows eroded her madly. More and more shadows gathered and gradually engulfed her beautiful body.


    The Glass Saint''s mind fell into chaos, and various negative emotions invaded her will. At this moment, she seemed to remember a lot of things and thought of her life.


    She was supposed to be envied by many people, but she experienced all the cruelest things in the world. After that, she was avenged by Ye Futian and his group who killed the Great Zhou Sacred King. Although she knew Ye Futian didn''t do it for her; after all, he still helped her settle her long-standing feud.


    But after that war, she was hurt badly, and her seven emotions were removed. Now she lived like a zombie and didn''t know what she was going to do.


    Of course, when Ye Futian invited her to stay, she chose to stay, not because she didn''t know what to do, but because, even though her emotions were removed, when she was near Ye Futian, sometimes she could feel something.


    Maybe it was the hatred and anger triggered by Ye Futian''s humiliation or it was the gratitude she had for Futian who finally avenged her. She didn''t know what emotion it exactly was.


    Or maybe, it was all of the emotions.


    Whoever in the world wanted to live like a zombie? After all, she still wanted to be a normal person and wanted to survive this calamity of emotions being removed, so she stayed with Ye Futian and his group, followed them, watching everything happen as a bystander and also witnessing their growth.


    Those unforgettable experiences seemed to have become her memory. Even as a bystander, she still occasionally felt the waves of emotion, which might show her how a real person''s life should be.


    Compared with them, her previous life had nothing but revenge and hatred. It was so pale and boring as if she was not truly alive.


    Although everything that happened today looked desolate, she was still touched. Those who fought hard at all costs, like Ye Wuchen who pulled out the sword, and Yaya who sent her to the abyss, all showed her the beauty of human nature.


    Perhaps this was how life should be.


    Sometimes she was envious and wanted to live a life like this.


    Suddenly, a flash of a smile appeared in her beautiful eyes, something that had not been seen for many years, and the smile was exceptionally bright.


    While she was smiling, tears fell, as if she had finally found her lost self.


    "So, this is the answer," the Glass Saint thought. When Yaya asked her to die, she had some hesitations. Although she hesitated for a moment, she still agreed, but it was not until this moment that she found the answer.


    This feeling was beautiful.


    At this moment, a more powerful, copious life force bloomed from her body, and her will was also being sanctified at this moment. Her Will for Law became stronger, and an air torrent from her rushed into the sky.


    The Glass Saint, at this moment, broke the shackles of many years and entered the Unblemished Saint Plane.


    But what was the point of breaking through to a new Plane at this time?


    At least in the last moment of her life, she had found the answer for herself, which was enough.


    She released powerful thoughts, guarding her mind and willpower against the invasion of the endless demons. Even though she might die, she would still resist. She would not be waiting for her death to come.


    She would do everything she could and listen to destiny''s arrangement.


    Countless demon phantoms seemed to appear in her mind, showing their menacing fangs and claws to make her waver. For a moment, chaotic scenes appeared in her mind. She could see the scene in ruins of the horrific war of that year.


    And her body was falling until she gradually lost self-consciousness. After a long while, she fell onto the ground at the bottom of the abyss.


    Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan were the same. They were like two ice statues, falling into this bottomless dark abyss.


    Ye Futian''s ice statue was out of the Glass Saint''s control. The ice over him melted little by little, and after a crackling sound, the ice statue was broken. Ye Futian''s eyelashes slightly moved in the ice, and countless horrifying shadows pounced toward him.


    At this time, in Ye Futian''s body, wisps of sacred light came out and shrouded his body. Some ancient tree''s branches and leaves even stretched out and reached Xia Qingyuan, wrapping Xia Qingyuan''s body inside.


    He wanted to perceive the outside world and wanted to extend the ancient tree branches to the Glass Saint, but at this time he seemed to be a bit too weak, his power seemed to be exhausted. He could feel that the Glass Saint seemed to be struggling and contending with the demons'' Wills; she was getting further and further away from him.


    He understood that even he could not help the Glass Saint.


    With no other thoughts, Ye Futian demanded himself to fall into a deep sleep.


    In the abyss, deep in the dark, a pair of extremely ominous blood-red eyes were opened, but then they disappeared in an instant as if nothing could be seen.


    Time passed slowly. These wills that were sealed up in the abyss had long been corroded. They rushed outward wildly, crazily devouring the bodies of Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan, and of course the Glass Saint.


    Except that, there was only a dead silence in the abyss.


    Beyond the abyss, on the edge of the land, Ye Wuchen was lying on the ground, struggling in pain. Buddhist chants lingered in the space and kept pouring into his ears. The aura of the Buddhist Laws enveloped his body and kept influencing his mind, trying to soothe his nerves.


    "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh��" A low roar came from Ye Wuchen''s mouth, which sounded more like the roar of a beast than the voice of a human. His pupils were glowing with bloody light, and he seemed to be having difficulty controlling himself. He glanced toward Yu Sheng with his bloody eyes that hid his cruel killing thoughts.


    However, it seemed as if Yu Sheng could not feel it at all. He was still sitting there, whispering the Sanskrit chants.


    After he finished cultivation in the Vajra Region, Yu Sheng had not concentrated on the study of Buddhist Laws once, let alone focused on chanting in Sanskrit.


    However, at this moment, he looked very solemn, just like a Buddha, constantly singing the Sanskrit chants, trying to make Ye Wuchen calm down.


    He knew Ye Wuchen ''s suffering and struggle because he was also experiencing it, but before, Ye Wuchen had pulled his sword with both hands and was eroded by the infinite willpower, which was much worse than him. Ye Wuchen was experiencing the pressure that no one had ever imagined.


    "Boom." With a roar, Ye Wuchen rose to his feet, and a horrible dark airflow shrouded his body as if he had transformed into a demon. He stared at Yu Sheng with a pair of blood-red eyes, raised his palm, and slashed them toward Yu Sheng''s head.


    Yu Sheng opened his eyes. His pair of bronze bell-like eyes looked extremely calm. The Sanskrit chants in his mouth continued entering Ye Wuchen''s ears. Seeing that pair of clear and deep eyes, Ye Wuchen didn''t slap his hand down.


    He flicked his arm toward Yu Sheng violently and after a loud sound, Yu Sheng was thrown into the air, but his body immediately flashed and soon returned. The golden Buddhist charm �d had never stopped flowing out of his mouth. He walked in front of Ye Wuchen, just staring at him and said,


    "Since you came from the Cangye Kingdom that year, you have already gone through so many ordeals. Can''t you just pull through this time?" a voice entered into Ye Wuchen''s eardrums, saying. "You are a swordsman-in-training, a cultivator with a pure heart for the sword. You can combat all the evils of the world. Don''t forget, Chenyu is still waiting for you."


    Yu Sheng''s voice was deafening. Ye Wuchen heard his voice and trembled, but the life forces around him were still roaring.


    "Your sword hasn''t chopped off all demons'' heads in this world with us," Yu Sheng continued. Ye Wuchen held his head with both hands. His mind was about to collapse, his will was already engulfed as if he had been occupied by all the negative emotions, swallowed up by those chaotic wills, and became a demon-like being.


    But Yu Sheng had been with him. If there had not been Yu Sheng, he would have failed to hold on.


    He finally made a hoarse growl and then fell on his back; his body was still trembling as if suffering endless pain.


    Many demon Wills pounced on Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng''s eyes looked extremely cold, and the sacred Buddha aura enveloped his body. Even though these demon Wills were powerful, they would not be able to affect Yu Sheng''s mind.


    Not far away in the other direction, the Sword Saint''s entire body was engulfed by the demonic Might. The horrific air flows of the demonic Law were roaring. The Sword Saint clutched the demonic sword inserted above the ground. He and Yaya were submerged in a monstrous demonic cloud.


    Outside this vast and boundless area, in the distance, a group of figures was standing there, looking toward them.


    The person who took the lead was Qi Xuangang, and the people around him were warriors who had not come because of the war; Zhu Zhao had also joined them.


    In front of them, the previous battle zone was no longer visible, wrapped in the dark mist containing extremely horrifying life forces.


    "Master, will they be okay?" Mu Chunyang next to him asked in worry. The life force was too terrifying. He could feel a strong threat from it even though he was just standing on the edge.


    "They will be fine. They are all people with great luck, and their destinies should not just end here," Qi Xuanyuan said. "Let''s wait."


    "Yes," Mu Chunyang answered and nodded slightly. Then his eyes turned cold, and he said, "The Violet Heavenly Palace is such a bully. Even their Supreme Master figure participated in the siege. If Ye Futian can survive this, he will be unable to let this all go."


    Qi Xuangang didn''t say anything, but he knew about Ye Futian''s personality. At that time, Ye Futian dared to fake his identity as the Seventh Swordsman in the Great Li Empire to kill Li Yao, but he could also leave Dali because of him and arranged a scheme to kill Li Yao.


    If this time Ye Futian could survive unharmed, even though the Supreme Master was from the Violet Heavenly Palace, Ye Futian would still seek revenge on him until he died!

 1406 Constant Breakthroughs

    Days passed slowly. In the vast and boundless Mountain Ranges of Origin, demon clouds rolled over the sky, but the mountains were still barren and dead silent.


    A few months ago, countless warriors stepped into the mountains, and now many people had died here. Of course, there were also quite a lot of people who had found the ruins of the ancient battlefield and unearthed what ancient demon emperors and Renhuangs had left.


    But of course, there were more dangers than opportunities, and a lot of cultivators had been buried in the Mountain Range of Origin.


    Ye Futian escaped danger. At this time, the Sword Peak had collapsed, and in the land full of tumbling evil forces, Ye Wuchen had thought about giving up many times, but Yu Sheng kept him in the Buddha light all the time. The Buddhist chants kept falling upon his years and helped him to see a faint glow of dawn in the abyss of agony, while he was struggling in despair.


    At this moment, his mind seemed to have been dissociated, and he developed many personalities. In his vague conscious space, there were many phantoms transformed from the wills. There were wills of evil spirits, wills full of destruction, and bloodthirsty wills that made him want to become aggressive.


    And among these wills, there was one white illusive will, which seemed to be swaying in this storm, as if it might be destroyed at any time.


    It was his own remaining will, which was always close to disappearing.


    "Boom��" All the wills flung at him again, trying to occupy his willpower, and then, countless chaotic wills showed up again all at once. He was struggling in pain, and the horrifying bloody light reflected in his eyes.


    Yu Sheng was sitting in front of Ye Wuchen. Ye Wuchen kept rolling on the ground because of the pain, and his mouth continued to make low roars. During these months, Ye Wuchen had entered the Path of Demons many times and even thought about killing Yu Sheng. There were also countless moments that he wanted to abandon himself and let the demonic wills completely control him, but every time he reached the point of despair, he held on to his faith and didn''t give up.


    The pain he had suffered during this time even made Yu Sheng feel like it was nearly unbearable; sometimes, Yu Sheng even thought of ending Ye Wuchen to relieve his pain.


    With another loud roaring sound, Ye Wuchen jumped up from the ground. His body was surrounded by the horrifying dark air flows, pitch-black. Dark airflows appeared on his face as if he was going to fall completely into the Devil''s Way.


    There was bloodthirsty light in his eyes. He slowly walked toward Yu Sheng and said, "Just kill me."


    There was no end to this pain, and he feared that he would fall completely and became a person who was not him.


    He''d rather die than live like this.


    Sanskrit charms kept coming from Yu Sheng''s mouth. Yu Sheng stared at Ye Wuchen.


    Then he walked to Ye Wuchen''s side, looking at the demonic sword obliquely inserted there. He held the sword with one hand. Ye Wuchen''s pitch-black eyes trembled when seeing this--he stared at Yu Sheng.


    The Buddhist aura dissipated, Yu Sheng restrained the light, and suddenly the magical wills surged. A powerful devouring force swept out, and all of the sudden, the will in the sword rushed into Yu Sheng''s body.


    For an instant, countless demon torrents flowed toward Yu Sheng, as if he had become the center of a vortex.


    He turned around, holding the sword with both hands, his face distorted, and dark streaks appeared on his face, blue veins visible on his arms. A look of agony showed on his face, but his eyes were unwavering. He stared at Ye Wuchen and said, "I''ll stay with you."


    He slowly stretched out his right hand and lifted the sword; infinite demonic flows rolled in. Yu Sheng stared at Wuchen and growled in a deep voice, "Even though we have strong wills, the demons are in the heavens. What can we do?"


    "Boom."


    A horrifying light of darkness appeared in the sky, rushing into Yu Sheng''s body. His voice resonated between the sky and earth, allowing the force to erode.


    "Get out of me," Yu Sheng raised his head and let a roar. Then a terrifying will swept out; the life force around his body became stronger, and the winds of talents whistled around him.


    Just with one thought, Yu Sheng made a breakthrough and entered the True Self Saint Plane.


    Ye Wuchen looked at Yu Sheng, a wisp of will shaking in his heart; his eyes were trembling.


    What could the demons of the heavens do to him? He could enter the True Self Plane in an instant because he was Yu Sheng, a domineering figure who sneered at everything and had strong faith.


    Could he do it?


    During this trip, both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were in a unique position. Ye Wuchen could barely follow the team with his tenacity, but a good state of mind couldn''t make up for everything.


    Could he?


    Yu Sheng was bearing the pain together with him at the moment.


    "Nobody will be left behind on our way to cultivation," Yu Sheng stared at him and said.


    Ye Wuchen''s heart trembled. His eyes looked like he was driving out the evil spirits from himself, and his will was strong.


    For so many years, from an early age to present, the three of them had gone through fire and water and all entered the Saint Plane.


    No one would be left behind on the path to cultivation.


    Wasn''t it exactly what he had in mind when he pulled the sword? Everything that Yu Sheng did for him was the same as what he had done.


    "Yes," Ye Wuchen nodded hard and said. He stepped forward, looked at the sword in Yu Sheng''s hand, and extended his hand.


    Yu Sheng understood what he meant and handed the sword to Ye Wuchen. Ye Wuchen held the sword in both hands. Even though he was in great pain, he still held it tightly. The appalling dark airflows invaded, and the endless chaotic wills whirled toward him. He inserted the sword on the ground with two hands and held it tightly, standing like a statue.


    "Boom��"


    At the same time, a horrific Sword Will rushed into the sky. The gorgeous radiance of the Sword Law bloomed from Ye Wuchen''s body and soared up.


    There was not only great terror between life and death but also great opportunities.


    Ye Wuchen''s state of mind was sublimated. He also entered the True Self Plane.


    The Sword Saint looked toward them, watching them both making breakthroughs and Ye Wuchen still insisting. A gleam of a smile appeared in his demonic eyes.


    After experiencing so many storms, they still had young hearts.


    He still remembered the time when they entered the Book Mountain. So far, they had traveled all the way here and gone through many life and death experiences. No one would be left behind on the way to cultivation.


    This feeling was so good.


    A smile flashed in his dark demonic eyes. He looked up into the distance.


    Was the Third Brother Dongliu still okay in this Mountain Range of Origin?


    Compared with the little brother Ye Futian, the Sword Saint was more worried about Gu Dongliu. He believed that Ye Futian would go through this, and his belief was unshakable.


    The Demonic Might tumbled and roared. The Sword Will dominated the sky. The Sword Saint sat down and also made his breakthrough. The three of them seemed to resonate in their states of mind, and one by one all stepped into the True Self Plane. In a short time, they all had entered a new level one after another.


    At this dangerous moment, they all strengthened their beliefs that they would all get out of here alive.


    Master had taught them that traveling thousands of miles was sometimes even a better choice than reading thousands of books. Even if one was familiar with thousands of ancient books and could use all methods freely and had extraordinary talents, his state of mind could not keep up without traveling many places, experiencing enough trials and challenging himself many times.


    All the Renhuang, Saints and Sages in the world were once just ordinary people.


    Even a true emperor had to go through all sufferings of the world. Nobody was born to be an emperor.


    The domineering life force kept roaring. The Buddha light was released again from Yu Sheng''s body. He evolved himself and expelled evil spirits for Ye Wuchen at the same time.


    Horrifying air torrents flew along Ye Wuchen''s body. The sword held in his hands made a clanging sound.


    Suddenly, a beam of terrifying Sword Will rushed into the sky. It was a dark Sword Will, releasing Sword Might in the void air.


    Ye Wuchen maintained the pose as if he had completely turned into a statue. The Sword Will flowed and rolled, and a beam of bright light was released, then another Sword Will was condensed and rose into the sky.


    "Boom, boom, boom��"


    Beams of Sword Wills were released. They seemed all to be transformed from the Laws. Gradually, over Ye Wuchen''s body, infinite beams of horrifying sword energy were born, each of which contained extremely strong Laws.


    Ye Wuchen''s body was surrounded by the Sword Wills as if he would turn all the intruding Thoughts into sword energy.


    In the abyss, the eyes with red light opened again, glancing over the abyss, and the next moment, endless airflows in the abyss roared and rushed out, rolling towards the sky above the abyss.


    "Huh?" The Sword Saint''s face changed color. The terrifying storm currents moved in the direction of Ye Wuchen and Yu Sheng and tried to devour them. Ye Wuchen maintained the pose and didn''t move.


    The horrifying air flows madly drilled into the sword, flowing into the sword frantically. The sword held in Ye Wuchen''s hand seemed to be devouring all the evil thoughts.


    "Boom." Ye Wuchen was completely swallowed by the dark air currents, but he still didn''t move. His face seemed to be constantly twisted and transformed. It lasted for a long time, and when everything went away, countless air flows were swept by the sword energy, and there were only horrifying air currents flowing around Ye Wuchen''s body.


    The air between the sky and earth gradually cleared and went back to normal as if it was no longer the demons'' land.


    The demonic spirit in the void air was still rolling, and in the distance, a group of cultivators was rushing to this side; they were Qi Xuangang and others who were waiting outside.


    They stared at the scene for a moment and then seemed to be searching for something.


    Ye Futian was here.


    Where was he?


    How did those dark torrents disappear?


    Kong Xuan flashed forward, and she saw Little Condor standing on the side of the abyss like a monster statue, and he was staring at the abyss below.


    Ye Futian might be under the abyss.


    Qi Xuangang also noticed, and his mind was rolling towards that side.


    Yu Sheng and the Sword Saint were all safe. Hopefully, Ye Futian would be too!

 1407 The Mysterious Man

    Under the abyss, Ye Futian wrapped himself and Xia Qingyuan like a cocoon.


    At this moment, he seemed to have perceived something; the ancient branches and leaves wrapped around their bodies were spreading to the surroundings, and then, like a blooming flower, he and Xia Qingyuan, from inside the cocoon, were gradually revealed.


    They kept their eyes closed. Ye Futian had been recovering during this time while waiting for the opportunity. However, he did not expect that the evil thoughts now could recede on their own.


    Next to Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan sat there quietly, also with her eyes closed. At this moment, her cheeks were burning up. Her eyelashes moved, and her bright eyes narrowed into slits. She secretly opened her eyes and took a glance, and what came into view was that handsome face and the long silver hair flowing freely in the wind.


    Ye Futian seemed to perceive it and also opened his eyes. Xia Qingyuan hurriedly moved her stare away and looked toward another direction.


    However, at this moment, her pupils contracted slightly and she felt her whole body go rigid. The life force instantly swept out of her body.


    Ye Futian also looked forward, and the expression in his eyes suddenly changed. A chill came up his spine, and he got a lot of goosebumps.


    A figure was standing in front of them.


    The person standing there didn''t release any life force, and they couldn''t even sense his presence. It was as though he didn''t exist. Yet he was just standing there and looking at Ye Futian quietly. His eyes were tinged with a horrifying blood-red glow; with just a glance, he could directly penetrate Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan''s minds.


    Someone could even be here.


    But where was the Glass Saint?


    "Ye Futian is here to salute you, sir," Ye Futian was tense and saluted to the figure in front of him. That person still just stared at Ye Futian, without any expression on his face, and even his body felt like non-existent.


    "Vroom." His body flashed away and disappeared directly from the abyss. Ye Futian looked up and could only perceive a wisp of his life force.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. His body soared and rose above the abyss; after a while, Ye Futian showed up outside the abyss. People there were also stunned, all staring at that figure who just showed up.


    Qi Xuangang looked very solemn; the person who just showed up gave him a feeling like he was unassailable.


    Moreover, he could even show through the abyss. Who was he?


    Later, when they saw Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan also coming up, they felt relieved. Finally, nothing happened to them.


    However, Ye Futian seemed to also be staring at the figure and have no idea who he was.


    That figure slowly came forward, and the direction he was moving in was the direction of Yu Sheng and Ye Wuchen.


    More precisely, it was the direction of Ye Wuchen.


    He stared at the sword in Ye Wuchen''s hand, and a gleam of red light flashed across that pair of eyes that had been emotionless.


    "Sir," Ye Futian called him. Ye Futian saw this scene and became more anxious; his body tried to move forward, but he could feel an invisible force directly covering his body. He floated in the air weakly, unable to move at all.


    But the person was still walking forward with his back facing Ye Futian as if he had not released any power.


    Such a level of ability was simply appalling as if this person had an invisible hand in the void space.


    "Wuchen," Ye Futian called Ye Wuchen and looked nervously toward him, but that figure didn''t seem to want to hurt Ye Wuchen; he still just stood there watching quietly.


    Ye Wuchen was still standing there like a statue, holding the sword with both hands; only his body was still surrounded by the evil life forces, which kept pouring into his body. Around him, countless air flows of Sword Laws converged and came into being as if the process had never been stopped.


    Finally, the figure started to take action.


    "Boom!" Yu Sheng took a step out, worrying that the person would hurt Ye Wuchen. When he came near Ye Wuchen, that person waved his palm, and Yu Sheng''s body was directly flung away; the two of them were not even on the same level.


    When that person stretched out one palm, Ye Wuchen''s body rose a little bit, and when he clenched the fist, immediately countless air currents around Ye Wuchen all poured into his body. At this moment, the lines on Ye Wuchen''s face twisted wildly.


    However, at this moment, there was a horrifying beam of red glow appearing in that person''s eyes, and then a wisp of light rushed directly into Ye Wuchen''s eyes. For a moment, those roaring thoughts in Ye Wuchen''s mind suddenly quieted down and merged into Ye Wuchen''s mind.


    Qi Xuangnag just stared at the person; perhaps his strength was a figment of their imagination.


    He slightly turned his palm, and the wind and clouds in the sky suddenly changed their color. Countless swords appeared in the void air, covering the sky and hiding the sun.


    He then slightly gripped his fist, and suddenly, innumerable Sword Wills turned into beams of bright light and rushed into Ye Wuchen''s body.


    Ye Wuchen''s floating body suddenly changed to lying there. The horrifying Sword Laws on the top of the sky washed his body and rushed into him madly. Ye Wuchen''s body kept shivering. Seeing this scene, Ye Futian and others all held their breath and were extremely nervous.


    However, they could not intervene at all.


    "Boom!"


    Countless swords became one. Ye Wuchen''s body seemed to be transformed into an extremely sharp sword, laying between the sky and the earth.


    "Vroom."


    At this time, Ye Wuchen opened his eyes, and an extremely radiant beam of sword shot out; his whole body now looked like a sword.


    His body lying in the void sky slowly stood up and floated there. Ye Futian and others all showed surprise when they saw this.


    Was the mysterious person trying to help Wuchen?


    "Thank you for your guidance, sir. My name is Ye Wuchen," Ye Wuchen said and bowed.


    The person raised his hand and waved. Suddenly, the sword Ye Futian had pulled out suspended in the mid-air, making a clanging sound. Seeing the sword, the mysterious man''s eyes displayed a different emotion.


    With a wave of his hand, the sword flew directly to Ye Wuchen''s side. Ye Wuchen looked at the sword and then at the mysterious man and asked, "Is this your sword, sir?"


    "Han Zhou."


    The mysterious figure said two words. It was the first time he spoke, and when he said the word, the sword made shrieks and seemed to be trembling.


    As if it had heard its name.


    "The sword''s name is Han Zhou," the mysterious person said. Ye Wuchen watched the sword floating in front of him.


    The mysterious person let out a sigh. He was no longer himself, and Han Zhou had already been broken and turned into countless broken pieces. This sword was new and deserved to be born as new again.


    "The sword was already a broken sword, with no spirit of that time. You can rename it," the mysterious warrior said.


    Ye Wuchen looked at him and knew the mysterious warrior was serious. Ye Wuchen extended his palm and held the sword. Was this a broken sword?


    If so, those sword fragments that were used to suppress the demons of all skies were all transformed from this sword.


    Today, the sword had lost its aura and power of the past.


    "Sir, I will call it Jiu Zhou," Ye Wuchen said. He came from Jiu Zhou.


    The mysterious man looked at Ye Wuchen and nodded slightly.


    "Why can''t I understand your existence, sir?" Ye Wuchen asked.


    The mysterious warrior looked at Ye Wuchen and did not answer. Of course, he could not perceive his existence because he was non-existent.


    He was the same as Ye Wuchen, except that Ye Wuchen was luckier than him.


    He looked up at the sky. Above the void air, the demon clouds were rolling and seemed to have changed their color.


    What would happen to this Mountain Range of Origin?


    "Sir," at this time, Ye Futian stepped forward and asked, "have you seen my friend?"


    The Glass Saint brought him into the abyss, but he did not see the Glass Saint again.


    Of course, he did not want anything to happen to the Glass Saint.


    Would she survive in that environment?


    "She''s gone," the mysterious man said calmly.


    Ye Futian''s heart trembled. So that was to say, was Glass Saint still alive?


    But how did she get out of there?


    The mysterious warrior still looked up at the void sky. Endless demon clouds flew back against the trend and swept towards the central area of the Mountain Range of Origin. Not only could Ye Futian, but other people could also feel the change when they looked up.


    For these months, which part of the Mountain Range of Origin had those warriors gone to?


    ��


    Deep in the Mountain Range of Origin, the life force was too terrifying. Above the skydome, the scene was just like that in the doomsday. The demon clouds overwhelmed the sky, all rolling wildly in one direction.


    Appalling battles were breaking out everywhere in this area, including Imperial-level battles and Saint-level battles. Of course, Renhuang warriors were the main force to clear the way and push forward.


    Those who blocked their way were sounds crawling out of the ground as if they were endowed with real lives.


    "Boom��"


    Extremely gorgeous divine light was released by a Renhuang-level warrior; everything that it had crossed turned into nothing, but still, there was a life force in front of the Renhuang that chilled even his blood.


    The Renhuang looked up into the distance where he saw a terrifying storm converging above the skydome, and a very intimidating life force was being released from there.


    In the mighty space, all warriors marched forward violently. They had spent so many months on the trip; it was extremely difficult to reach this place, whether for Renhuang warriors or Saint-plane warriors.


    During this time, many warriors had fallen into the Mountain Range of Origin and lost their lives.


    They kept moving forward. Among the crowd, Zhan Yuan, the Supreme Master of Violet Heavenly Palace was also here, but now he was with the Renhuang warrior of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Thunder was roaring from his body, and he was heading forward.


    Beside them, warriors of other top powers had also arrived and were heading forward from different directions.


    Gradually, they all gathered under a huge demonic cloud whose shape looked like an endless loop.


    They raised their heads and glanced at it. No matter what level a warrior was, they all could perceive a suffocating pressure that seemed to be able to overwhelm them.


    The terrifying demon cloud lay above their heads, and sometimes they could see a demon shadow in the cloud, which was about to climb out of it.


    "It''s here." A Renhuang warrior followed the destructive demon cloud and walked forward, and there he saw a single mountain peak on which a figure dressed in white sat cross-legged and looked like a scholar.


    The figure in white was sitting under the center of the storm.


    "What is he doing?" warriors asked themselves.


    Warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace recognized the figure; he was the descendant of the Gu Clan.


    What was he doing there?


    Who brought him here?


    Did Gu Tianxing do that?


    And now, he was sitting there; who was he waiting for?


    They didn''t know the answer, so they could only keep walking toward the mountain!

 1408 Giants Had All Come

    In this vast land, people who came here were almost all from the most powerful forces.


    From one direction, the Xuantian Goddess of the Brahma''s Pure Sky led their people to come. Beside her, Qin He, the first Saintess below the Goddess asked, "Is this the center of the Mountain Range of Origin?"


    She looked up to the mountain in front of her, which towered into the sky.


    "Yes," Xuantian Goddess said and nodded.


    "Why do we come here?" Qin He asked. They had experienced a lot of dangers during the past few months, but since they approached this area and met with the Renhuang-level figures of their sect, they had not encountered any dangerous situations.


    "Perhaps, he is the answer," the Xuantian Goddess stared straight ahead and said. The mountain that towered into the clouds was not surrounded by any mountain; it was a unique and unparalleled single peak.


    Were all of these related to the descendants of Gu Clan up there?


    They looked up at the sky. The might of the rolling demon clouds looked imposing between the sky and earth and were shrouding the Mountain Range of Origin, like boundless enormous storms.


    Was this what Gu Tianxing did?


    At this time, as the Xuantian Goddess, even she was slightly convinced that Gu Tianxing might be alive.


    Was the news released from the Prophet''s Palace at the time true? Would the prophecy come true?


    Gu Tianxing was not dead, but he would soon pass away.


    There would be big changes in the Demon Realm, and the Heavenly Mandate Realm would also change greatly.


    But who was the "big man" in the mouth of the Prophet?


    Many people didn''t understand the secret inside.


    Perhaps the Prophet was the only person who knew it, but the Prophet chose to depart this life.


    They all wondered why the Prophet did so?


    Was he trying to keep a secret?


    "Absorbing the fortunes of the Mountain Range of Origin, obtaining the creation of the heaven and earth," a voice came. Warriors of the Brahma''s Pure Sky followed the voice and looked toward the speaker. He was a middle-aged figure with an imposing manner, who was from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the clan that Gu Tianxing belonged to at that time.


    A low roar came; it was the sigh of dragons. The Dragon God Clan and other demon clans seemed a bit angry.


    Although they had not been able to set foot on this land before, they preferred to keep their Mountain Rang of Origin intact.


    The Mountain Range of Origin was a symbolic place for cultivators of the Demon Realm. Here was the origin of the Demon Realm and the place where the Demon Monarch was buried. For many years, there had been great demon beasts coming from the Mountain Range of Origin, and all the demon clans often came here to baptize themselves.


    For the Demon Realm, this Mountain Range of Origin is their ancestral land.


    But now, it seemed to be destroyed.


    However, who had the power to go against the rule of the world and try to obtain the fortune of the Mountain Range of Origin?


    Was Gu Tianxing of the world of human cultivators?


    The Divine Elephant Clan walked across the sky, shaking the void air and overwhelming the sky and earth.


    The Mountain Range of Origin had changed so drastically that even the ancestral bones of their ancestor, the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions, had appeared in the world. It seemed that there would be a big change in the Demon Realm.


    The warriors kept marching forward. They came to the single peak and looked up toward the figure in the upper sky; nobody took action right away.


    Above the sky, the suffocating might shrouded this space. The terrifying storm hovering in the sky seemed to turn into a human face, but it was extremely blurry and difficult to see clearly.


    Warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had also arrived. They looked up to this side, with no emotions in their eyes, but they did not dare to take action, either.


    That might be Gu Tianxing. That time in the Purple Underground Sect, Gu Tianxing came and dominated the situation; at that time, no one dared to touch him, and he directly took Gu Dongliu away. Who dared to stop him?


    The name of Gu Tianxing was enough to daunt people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. How many people in the world had a grand demeanor like him?


    At that time, Gu Tianxing was the one whose cultivation was nearest to the heavenly path in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    As they approached the lonely peak towering in the sky, these warriors gradually all stopped and looked up at the descendant of the Gu Clan.


    If the Purple Underground Emperor''s subordinates had not released the message, no one would have even known this person''s arrival in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, which caused such a great uproar.


    The demonic cloud storm tumbled, but at this moment, the space seemed extra quiet.


    At this moment, some Demon Emperors and Human Emperors turned around and saw a group of figures crossing the void air and descending into the space below the single peak.


    They were Ye Futian and his companions.


    They were brought here by the mysterious man.


    "What?"


    Many people looked shocked when they saw Ye Futian. He was still not dead?


    In the group of the Violet Heavenly Palace, the Supreme Master Zhan Yuan''s eyes looked fierce, and there was a strong might contained in his eyes. He was wounded and taken away by Renhuang, and after that, he had healed the injuries for ten days. Ye Futian, they were deeply trapped in that space, and he thought Ye Futian must be dead.


    However, there he was, still alive.


    Warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan also showed surprise. Someone spoke to an Elephant Emperor beside him, and immediately the Elephant Emperor''s eyes looked towards the place where Ye Futian was.


    "Boom." the Elephant Emperor took a step out, and the world trembled. His foot seemed to be able to quell one side of the sky. He stepped across the void toward Ye Futian, trying to get back the demonic bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions.


    However, at this moment, the mysterious warrior raised his head. The Elephant Emperor saw a pair of bloody eyes that suddenly drowned his will.


    The Elephant Emperor''s face turned pale. His footsteps trembled the skydome and collapsed the ground. People''s eyes all turned to this side. The Elephant Emperor let out a roar as if he was in a state of madness. He stepped out, but his steps were not moving forward; instead, he retreated toward the upper sky and left the figure far away.


    The red glare in the eyes of the mysterious man dispersed; he returned to calm and looked into the distance.


    At this time, the sky and earth returned to peace, but many of the powerful warriors were all trembling inside.


    Who was this person?


    Warriors such as Zhan Yu also stared at them with confusion. Were they saved by a mighty figure?


    Who was he?


    "Who are you?" a Demon Emperor of Yingzhao Mountain asked. He was also about to step out, but then he saw that Elephant Emperor was shaken and was in shock, so he asked.


    Many people also wanted to know, but that mysterious warrior didn''t even look at them. He just looked up at the figure above the single peak and the storm over his head.


    That was it.


    "Is he that powerful?" Ye Futian thought, with heart slightly trembling. He was quite stirred by the scene. The mysterious man in this abyss seemed to be powerful at a horrifying level.


    The Mountain Range of Origin was indeed a place full of wonders.


    And the Third Brother, what was he doing?


    What was the storm above the skydome?


    "Boom!"


    At this moment, people''s hearts thumped hard, and the sky shivered.


    Above the sky, a domineering figure stepped in the void air. When he stepped, even Renhuang-level figures felt that their bodies were going to be crushed down.


    All the warriors in this space had a feeling of real suffocation.


    "Bang!"


    Another step out and the figure above the sky stepped down with his right foot. A phantom of a divine elephant appeared, boundless and huge. He stomped down from the skydome and hurried toward that mysterious warrior.


    The people around were also shivering. This elephant figure was like a deity; every step he took in the sky threatened the Great Law.


    The warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan all bowed down and worshiped, showing reverence in their eyes. The figure was the king of their Divine Elephant Clan, the contemporary Elephant Emperor.


    However, the mysterious was still standing there, looking up at the Divine Elephant''s phantom trampling down. From his body, appalling wills of the Great Law appeared, and a sword appeared directly over his body and towered up in the clouds.


    "Boom..."


    The Great Law roared up; the elephant phantom collided with the towering sword and together shattered and collapsed until nothing was left.


    The dull sound made people''s blood boil as if the blood would burst out from their ears.


    The vast and endless space was shrouded under an extremely suppressing might.


    The Elephant Emperor''s eyes in the void glowed with golden light, and he glanced down.


    Cultivators of the top human forces were also shocked.


    Who was this person? There were only a few cultivators who could directly confront the Divine Elephant Emperor in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and probably there were only a few top figures of the five supreme forces in the world of human cultivators who had such abilities.


    Obviously, this person did not belong to any of them.


    "Is this person a cultivator in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?" the Elephant Emperor''s gaze swept toward the surrounding space. Above the sky, beams of divine light shone, and some figures gradually showed up.


    There were altogether five people, one of whom wore a purple robe, standing above the skydome, like a ruler of the Great Law, his power overwhelming the space.


    He was the lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Another man was dressed in a black suit, standing with his hands on his back. He stood there like an insurmountable mountain peak, as the Lord of the Ten Thousand Divine Mountain.


    From another direction, a figure in a Taoist robe with immortal temperament showed up. He looked very young, with a gallant bearing. This peerless person was the master of the Jiang Clan of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    The two figures who showed up, in the end, had the most outstanding temperament. One of them, the moment she appeared, overshadowed all the Nine Skies, and her beauty seemed to contain all the colors of the world. She was the Lord of the Brahma''s Pure Sky, the most prestigious woman in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and she was the only one.


    Whether in terms of beauty or strength, she was at the highest peak in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The other man was bathed in dazzling divine light. He wore a crown and a royal robe with a bearing that made all people in the space want to kneel in front of him.


    He was the current Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    When they appeared, people of all top forces bowed down and worshipped.


    "Qi Zhi, the top figure of the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Ye Futian recognized him and thought to himself, quite shocked. Of course, he knew that the Third Brother did not have such great influence.


    All was because of Gu Tianxing''s appearance.


    Later, the monstrous demonic might shrouded all the skies. Many super demon beasts showed up, like the Dragon Emperor of the Divine Dragon Clan with extremely magnificent bearing, overwhelming the world.


    The Lord of the Sky Demon Court stood there, dazzling even more than the sun, and the subordinates around him were all super great demon beasts.


    The Purple-gold Rat Emperor was dressed in black. Although not as handsome as others, he was also unparalleled while standing there.


    "May I know your name, sir?" at this moment, above the sky, the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked down at the mysterious man and asked. There was such a figure who could fight against the Divine Elephant Emperor in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but he as the lord did not even know.


    "Cang Lan''s descendant," the mysterious figure said when he looked at the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Imperial Lord squinted his domineering eyes slightly in surprise. Not only him, but many top characters in the Heavenly Mandate Realm all also looked at him in shock.


    The name Cang Lan sounded strange to the vast majority of people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but how could those top figures not know?


    This mysterious warrior was not referring to himself; he was talking about the Imperial Lord of the Dynasty who was the descendant of Cang Lan.


    The Imperial Lord Clan Lan was the ex-Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    This person actually belonged to the previous era!

 1409 The Matrix Pattern

    The Heavenly Mandate Realm Imperial Lord''s robe was blowing in the wind. A horrifying gleam of Divine Light flashed in his eyes; he stared down at the mysterious figure and asked, "May I know your name, sir?"


    He called him sir because the person knew his father, the old Imperial Lord.


    "Who am I?"


    The mysterious man murmured as if he was also a little confused. He looked at the tumbling demonic cloud in the sky and said to himself, "Dugu is already dead."


    "Dugu is dead?" the warriors all stared at him, and those top figures seemed to be searching for which figure''s surname was Dugu in their minds.


    Soon, they contracted their pupils slightly, and they seemed to have thought of someone.


    That was the time before the Divine Prefectures united, and he was a figure during the battle between the humans and demon beasts in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    In the most recent war between the two races, there was a peak swordsman whose surname was Dugu.


    "Han Zhou Sword Emperor. When he drew his sword from the sheath, the world shivered for him. It was said that during the battle, he alone slew many demon emperors," The Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace murmured. Han Zhou Sword Emperor was a legend. According to some ancient records, his wife was killed by a warrior of the demon clan, and then he practiced swordsmanship alone and became a disciple of many famous masters in the sword to study it. In the end, he perfected the skill of wielding swords, and he slew countless demon warriors.


    The final battle was that so-called super war. It was rumored that he went alone to the deep of Demon Realm with one single sword, killed countless warriors of the demon clan, and sealed the souls of countless demon clan warriors under his sword.


    It looked like the place where these younger people broke into was the land where he killed monsters.


    Han Zhou Sword Emperor, during the war of that year, pushed straight into the Place of Origin of the Demon Realm.


    The Lord of the Jiang Clan of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven looked at Han Zhou Sword Emperor and asked, "Sir, have you already passed away?"


    Han Zhou Sword Emperor looked at him and said, "I suppose you could say that."


    He was no longer the Han Zhou Sword Emperor of that time. During that battle, he was devoured by many powerful warriors of the Demon Realm, but a wisp of his memory persisted. The spirits of the demons had eroded him, and the soul of his sword and the demons had been fighting for so many years; he was no longer what he used to be.


    Han Zhou Sword Emperor''s body also contained the wills of countless big demon figures slain and buried by his own hands, and now they had all been combined as one, but still, the body was dominated by his own will.


    Before, he had been actually in a deep sleep state, until Ye Futian and others arrived. His will was awakened after Ye Wuchen pulled out that sword.


    In a sense, his experience and Ye Wuchen''s experience were somewhat similar; he was also invaded by the wills of demons.


    Therefore, after seeing Ye Wuchen persist, he helped Ye Wuchen, because he saw himself in Ye Wuchen.


    The Lord of the Jiang Clan nodded slightly. He noticed that the Hanzhou Sword Emperor''s body didn''t seem to be concrete; it was condensed from wills. He had lost his life at that time.


    The Han Zhou Sword Emperor they saw today was no longer the Dugu Zhanzhou in the past.


    The powerful figures of demon clans all looked emotionless. Han Zhou Sword Emperor was also a big figure whose name was well known in the Heavenly Mandate Realm; he entered their demon world and exterminated the Qiongqi great demon clan.


    Nobody expected that such a figure was still alive and was in the Mountain Range of Origin. Even though he said he had fallen, he still stood there.


    Top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm at this moment all thought of Gu Tianxing. Since Han Zhou Sword Emperor could be alive, could Gu Tianxing also be?


    Although Han Zhou Sword Emperor was also a legendary figure, his strength in his peak period was not as high as Gu Tianxing''s.


    Gu Tianxing was just a freaking genius; he even had touched the Heavenly Law.


    Many top figures turned their eyes back to Gu Dongliu who was above the single peak. The horror storm hovering above him was still flowing. Above his head, amid the terrifying spiral storm, an illusory phantom was looming, but the phantom was in the storm, in a distorted shape.


    "Go take him," a voice came out. the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm didn''t want to wait any longer; they had to take action after all.


    He raised his palm, grasping toward Gu Dongliu in the air, and suddenly a large palm print headed toward the single peak and clawed toward Gu Dongliu''s body.


    "Boom!"


    When the big palm print arrived, a terrifying storm light curtain appeared around Gu Dongliu''s body, which shrouded his surrounding area and isolated him from that palm print of Great Law.


    The Palace Owner of the Violet Heavenly Palace glanced at him. Suddenly, the bright divine lightning lit up the earth and suddenly covered the sky. Thousands of thunderclouds gathered together, and the vast space seemed to have turned into a ruined world of thunder.


    The monstrous Might of Thunder attacked with the power of supreme destruction and blasted toward the place where Gu Dongliu sat. He wanted to see what Gu Dongliu had arranged and how he would stop them?


    "Fizz��"


    The shrieking horrific sound came out, and the terrifying thunderstorm rubbed against the light curtain around Gu Dongliu''s body. Nine beams of celestial light from Gu Dongliu''s body rushed into the sky and poured into the storm above the skydome.


    At this moment, the storm above the skydome suddenly dropped endless immortal light, completely sealing Gu Dongliu''s body, and the air flows of the Great Law above the sky flew down, blocking Gu Dongliu from all attacks.


    Sacred beams of divine light sparkled and shone. Above the sky, the speed of the storm''s rotation was extremely stable, and the storm turned into a matrix pattern, emitting aura toward all the Nine Skies. It turned into a supermatrix pattern that enveloped the endless void air.


    Huge endless ancient characters surrounded the matrix pattern, which were: Lin, Bing, Do, Zhe, Jie, Zhen, Lie, Qian, and Xing!


    The nine characters rotated, and the rays of celestial light rushed into the clouds, radiating demon beasts of hundreds of millions of miles, and the entire Mountain Range of Origin was shaking, creating roars.


    A terrifying devouring force came out, emitting celestial light. The demon clouds above the sky were all rolling toward the matrix plane; at the same time, in the lower sky, the mountains were all collapsing, and the ground was cracking. Illusory figures of wills rose to the sky and merged into the slots on the edge of the matrix pattern, like becoming part of the matrix.


    Not only that, but the divine weapons buried under the ground of Mountain Range of Origin also flew out and headed toward the matrix. Then they merged into the matrix slots and were refined into the pattern.


    Even Han Zhou Sword Emperor, who as right below the matrix, felt his body was out of control and would have to head toward the sky and merge into the matrix.


    However, he looked relaxed and extremely calm.


    Was it refining the law between the sky and earth and obtaining the fortune of the space?


    Those top figures had their pupils contracted and their hearts trembled. No wonder they had hardly encountered any threat since they came near this area. It turned out that all had been absorbed by this supermatrix.


    Was he going to borrow the power of the whole Mountain Range of Origin, refining all the power into the supermatrix?


    The Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Lord of the Jiang Clan stared at the matrix in the upper sky. Their robes were blowing in the mind, and their hearts were slightly stirred. The scene was so familiar to them.


    They wouldn''t forget how intimidating Gu Tianxing''s Life Spirit Celestial Matrix was.


    Was this Matrix transformed from his life spirit?


    In the void sky, over the matrix, nine celestial flashes merged into it. In the end, an illusory figure sat on the matrix.


    The illusory figure looked solemn and sacred; even though it was just a blurry shadow, one could still see his domineering appearance.


    Gu Tianxing was alive!


    Even if he was not, he still had thoughts in the world, and the plan he set was still in existence.


    The Lord of Brahma''s Pure Sky, Lord of the Ten Thousand Divine Mountains, and the big figures of the demon world also had complex feelings.


    Too powerful.


    Even so many years after he had fallen, Han Zhou still had such mighty power.


    Ye Futian saw this and finally understood why this deceased person after so many years could still make the whole Heavenly Mandate Realm tremble.


    Unless he completely disappeared, those powerful giants of the Heavenly Mandate Realm would never be at peace.


    In a distant place, a group of warriors from the Heavenly Mandate Realm were trapped in a relic, but at this moment, the relic fell and collapsed violently, cracks appeared on the ground, and a series of phantoms headed directly toward the distance. A demonic weapon was born from here; it was a peerless ominous sword, but it was also rolled into the distance.


    Not just here, similar scenes were happening everywhere in the Mountain Range of Origin.


    In the Mountain Range of Origin, everyone looked up in one direction, and they could faintly see the matrix of the Great Law above the skydome, and the matrix was still growing.


    Only the people standing directly below the pattern could truly feel how terrifying this matrix was. Within hundreds of thousands of miles of the space, there were countless chaotic shadows roaring and rumbling and then being swallowed up, and countless divine weapons were also involved in the whirls.


    It seemed to have become a matrix pattern of the Heavenly Law.


    It still spun in an orderly way, absorbing everything in the world.


    Saint-level warriors were already powerful ones of their territories and no longer had perishable bodies, but at this time, Ye Futian and other warriors standing under the matrix just felt so small, like millet in the sea.


    If Gu Tianxing was alive, what did he want to do with this matrix?


    Gu Dongliu''s body floated up and came right below the towering matrix.


    At this moment, the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace finally lost patience. He stepped out, stretching out his hands.


    In an instant, endless divine thunder appeared around his body, glaring in the vast world, and there was also a matrix showing up around his body, which was the matrix of divine thunder. The matrix swallowed the divine thunder between the sky and earth. Hundreds of millions of lights of catastrophe shone at the same time, covering the boundless space.


    "Since you are dead, just rest in peace," the voice of the Heavenly Palace Lord was overbearing. Following his voice, hundreds of millions of divine thunders slashed toward the Celestial Matrix over the skydome and also hit toward Gu Dongliu''s body.


    Even after so many years, Gu Tianxing still was a strong threat to him.


    There was no other person in the Heavenly Mandate Realm that could bring him this kind of feeling; for so many years, Gu Tianxing was the only one.


    He had not expected that Gu Tianxing was still so terrifying to him after his death.


    The heavenly Divine Thunder rose against the wind; the Matrix of Heavenly Law in the void sky dropped hundreds of millions of beams of divine light as if innumerable demons transformed from demons rushed out. Countless divine weapons and instruments also fell and turned into divine light that could annihilate everything, colliding with the force of thunder.


    "Boom��" Above the sky, there seemed to be destructive might, and the appalling divine light of thunder was restrained and could not attack Gu Dongliu''s body.


    Above the divine matrix, Gu Tianxing''s phantom gradually solidified. He looked down at the warriors in the lower sky and said, a voice that sounded like it was coming from outside the sky.


    "One who has inherited the Laws of Origin can be the new king of the Demon Realm."

 1410 To Make a New King

    The Laws of Origin, the new king of the Demon Realm?


    Big figures of the Demon Realm looked up at the sky; what did he mean by the Laws of Origin?


    What did the new king of the Demon Realm mean?


    Could it be that Gu Tianxing wanted to obtain the power of the Mountain Range of Origin and create a new king of the Demon Realm?


    But, who did he think he was?


    "Boom��"


    Above the sky, the divine pattern of the Great Law was moving; endless divine light bloomed, and the demon clouds tumbled and roared violently, pouring into the divine pattern. All the warriors could see countless phantoms flowing into it, and solemn chants from the matrix pattern came out like demons'' whispers.


    "He wants to seize the laws of the whole Mountain Range of Origin," the Dragon Emperor said coldly. He had transformed into his original form, a sacred Purple Gold Divine Dragon, with nine claws below his belly and a body tens of thousands of meters long. When hovering above the sky, he looked like a heavenly dragon, covering the sky and hiding the sun.


    But even so, below the ultimate divine pattern, at this moment he still looked small and was shrouded by the celestial might of the matrix.


    The vast and boundless Mountain Range of Origin was shaken even harder. Peaks were torn apart, and cracks appeared on the earth; rivers flowed backward, and tens of thousands of monsters all fell to their knees.


    The divine pattern was getting bigger and bigger, almost about to radiate toward the whole vast and boundless Mountain Range of Origin area. A supreme power merged into the divine pattern; the nine immortal shadows controlled the nine characters and blended with them to launch the divine matrix. At this moment, the big figures below faintly felt the mighty pressure of the Heavenly Law but could not do anything to fight against it.


    "Stop!" the Dragon Emperor let out a roar, and the sky and earth trembled; the void air was about to shatter. But this roar did not affect the operation of the divine matrix, and the Great Law divine pattern was still rotating in a balanced manner. After a while, a tall and boundless phantom showed up on the top of the divine pattern.


    At this time, in the infinite space of the Mountain Range of Origin, many weak demon beasts knelt on the ground and worshiped.


    Even some powerful Demon Saints had an impulse to bow at this moment; even the Demon Emperors looked solemn and stared at the figure that just showed up.


    Was that phantom the Demon Monarch?


    The Mountain Range of Origin was born from the Demon Monarch. When the Demon Monarch unified the Demon Realm, the Mountain Range of Origin was where the Demon Monarch palace was built. After the Demon Monarch passed away, his skeleton turned into this endless mountain range and became a part of the Mountain Range of Origin. Countless great demon beasts were bred from here, so it became called the Place of Origin.


    Now, Gu Tianxing wanted to seize the creative power of the Mountain Range of Origin and let the Demon Monarch reveal himself. Was this what he said, inheriting the Laws of Origin?


    That was crazy.


    Giant figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were stirred by the scene. What did Gu Tianxing do?


    After his death, did he merge his soul into the Mountain Range of Origin just for this moment?


    "Stop him!" the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said. His royal robe was dancing in the wind; he stepped into the void sky, and a faint phantom of a Supreme Renhuang of tens of thousands of meters in height loomed behind him, like a god, supporting that side of the sky.


    He stretched out his palm, and the Great Law divine light of all skies shot at him. The immense Imperial Might swept across the sky and earth, and countless wisps of keen life forces appeared between the sky and the earth, like endless divine weapons rushing toward him. His outstretched palm turned into a divine sword that pierced through the sky, and he raised his hand and slashed toward the divine pattern of the Great Law in the upper sky.


    At this moment, a huge, endless divine sword chopped toward the sky and instantly reached right below the celestial divine pattern, stabbing toward the center of the divine pattern.


    The Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was still standing in one place, but his arms and the divine pattern in the void sky seemed to be connected, which were all part of the divine sword light.


    "Boom!" The infinitely huge divine pattern trembled fiercely when attacked by the divine sword, but then the tremble gradually subsided and the pattern continued spinning. It was not disturbed and kept obtaining the creation power between the sky and earth.


    The Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was calm. Divine light shot out from his palm, and endless divine weapons integrated into the sword emitting light beams that pierced through the sky, trying to chop off the divine pattern.


    Above the divine pattern, the figure sitting cross-legged glanced at him. Instantly, celestial light shone, and the beaming nine characters above the divine pattern rotated. It looked like demons of all skies rushing out of the matrix slots. At the same time, the glare of the nine characters shone down, blasting towards the Imperial Lord.


    At this moment, demons of all skies smashed down from the divine matrix at the same time toward the Heavenly Mandate Imperial Lord.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Imperial Lord''s huge figure held the divine sword with both hands. The divine sword flew, releasing magnificent radiance, tearing off all the skies. Many approaching demons were torn and shattered, but the radiance of the Great Law divine matrix was endless, which vanquished everything and pounced on his body.


    The Heavenly Mandate Imperial Lord''s hands shook, and accordingly, the shape of the sword changed. It turned into a boundless huge golden bell.


    "Clang��"


    The sound of the bell resonated between the sky and earth. The boundless glory of the Great Law divine bell wiped out all the demons around.


    However, above the divine matrix in the sky, huge demon figures descended from the sky, as if all the demons in the place of origin were blended into the power of the divine matrix, which contained the power to destroy the world.


    "Boom!" A giant foot stepped on the imperial bell, and more demons were approaching, destroying all existence.


    Seeing this, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Imperial Lord looked embarrassed. He held the imperial bell in his hand to sweep down toward the void air, unwavering.


    The attacks of the laws continued to fall, endlessly; the ground collapsed and shattered at the feet of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and his body was sinking.


    At this time, the boundless and gorgeous divine light on the matrix pattern lit up the sky. Sacred and shining killing light went straight down, targeting the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Imperial Lord''s body.


    "Boom��"


    After a loud noise, the bodies of cultivators below imperial rank were all shaken away and flew to distant places.


    Ye Futian was the same, and when he stabilized his body, the scene in front of him had already changed, and he was hundreds of miles away. He looked up at the divine pattern in the sky; it was still so dazzling, covering the whole space inside it. Not only that but when he looked into the distance, he could still see the peerless figures standing over the skydome.


    A groan escaped from his mouth. His blood was boiling. If the divine matrix had not been targeting the Imperial Lord, its aimless attack could wipe out all of them.


    Even some warriors of imperial rank were shaken from the central area to the edge of the land, only for their safety.


    Ye Futian stared toward that direction. Even though the attack used so much might, it still did not affect the operation of the divine matrix.


    Even the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty might be injured by such a blow.


    "Boom ..." The divine thunder shone between the sky and earth. Even Ye Futian was in a place hundreds of miles away, there was also lightning radiating in this area and shining in the sky.


    Ye Futian looked toward the central area of the Thunder Divine Light, where the Place Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace summoned the catastrophic divine thunder and blasted it towards the sky divine matrix.


    They had to stop Gu Tianxing. Although they didn''t know what Gu Tianxing wanted to do, he seized the power of the place of origin and let the Demon Monarch that had been underground for many years show up, so he must have a big scheme.


    The endless divine thunder blasted toward the sky and shrouded it.


    The divine matrix was still running. Demon-like figures showed up from the divine matrix, their bodies spinning. A divine sword was cast out of the demons of all skies and weapons; it thrust directly toward the Violet Heavenly Palace Lord in the lower sky.


    Ye Futian couldn''t open his eyes because of the dazzling light. When the two attacks collided, another gust of Heavenly Might swept out. Their bodies were once again shaken by the shock and were shook hundreds of miles away. Many warriors coughed up blood and got hit by the after wave of the light of thunder, bodies burning.


    Ye Futian and his companions were all scattered and were in different directions.


    But everyone was still watching the appalling scene over there.


    At this time, Gu Dongliu ''s body flew to the void air and appeared below the divine matrix. He sat cross-legged, eyes closed, and his long black hair was flying wildly in the wind. Under that might, he seemed calm while sitting, without knowing the outside changes.


    At this time, the divine light descended over him and poured into his body.


    He was receiving the Laws of Origin.


    A thought came into many people''s minds: Gu Tianxing was trying to make himself the new king of the Demon Realm.


    He absorbed all creation power of the Mountain Range of Origin and merged it into Gu Dongliu''s body.


    The big figures of the Demon Realm all looked sullen. This lunatic had passed the creation power of the Mountain Range of Origin in the Demon Realm to one single person.


    But, Gu Dongliu, could he handle it?


    The Cultivation Plane couldn''t be taught directly to a person.


    At this moment, nine beams of celestial light surrounded Gu Dongliu''s body and then poured directly into him. The nine ancient characters also rushed above his body at the same time, as if they were guarding him so that he could inherit the Laws of Origin.


    The original form of the Lord of Sky Demon Court was a three-legged golden raven. He stood below the divine matrix, and there was a golden aura of divine flame around him, like a sun deity. He stared at the figure in the void sky and said, "You want to pass the creation power of the Demon Realm to a human?"


    Gu Tianxing was a lunatic.


    "The Mountain Range of Origin contains the belief of the Demon Monarch was transformed from the Demon Monarch''s flesh. The whole mountain range is filled with his wills. Before I died, I integrated my laws into his laws, so that I could one day launch it. Except me, there is no second person in the Heavenly Mandate Realm able to do it."


    The voice in the upper sky was extremely solemn, spreading through the Mountain Range of Origin, "From now on, he will be the only one who inherits the belief of the Demon Monarch and wills of countless demon emperors and demon saints of the Mountain Range of Origin. He was the future of the Demon Realm. After his laws get proven, he will become the new king of the Demon Realm. "


    "As a human, he was guided by the celestial cultivation method, but you said he will bear the origin of the demon realm and you Gu Tianxing''s heritage of celestial laws?" the Sky Demon Court Lord asked in a loud voice. Gu Tianxing was just crazy; he wanted to create a new king.


    Now the world was under the rule of the human race. After Emperor Yeqing was expelled, the demon clans were split. Although they were still strong, they all understood that the demon world was still under the shadow of human cultivators, unless a new king showed up.


    Gu Tianxing wanted to create a new emperor.


    Moreover, if Gu Dongliu bore the Laws of Origin, he would have an inseparable relationship with the demon world.


    "By creating a new Demon King, do you think you can do it as you want?" the Dragon Emperor asked coldly.


    "Since the unification of the world, for 300 years, has anyone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm been stronger than me, Gu Tianxing?" a domineering voice asked from the upper sky. "The path he is taking is destined to surpass mine in the future."

 1411 The Celestial Gate’s Participation

    Gu Tianxing''s overbearing voice shocked the world and made countless people''s hearts tremble.


    Since the two emperors unified the world, Gu Tianxing indeed was at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    One should know that in the past thousands of years, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been the leader of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The old Imperial Lord dominated the domain for thousands of years until the new Imperial Lord ascended the throne, and then the former Imperial Lord stepped down. He was like a superbeing of this world.


    But in the battle less than a century ago, because Gu Tianxing''s offspring was assassinated by the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Gu Tianxing entered the Dynasty Court in a rage and fought with both the old and the new Imperial Lords. To repel Gu Tianxing, the former Imperial died in the Dynasty Court but also severely injured Gu Tianxing, which led to the battle in Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven during which Gu Tianxing also lost his life.


    However, judging from that battle, even the Cang Lan Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, who dominated the Realm for thousands of years, died in the hands of Gu Tianxing. Not to mention the warriors appearing after the reunification of the world, perhaps no figures in the past were comparable with him.


    Therefore, even though his words are incredibly arrogant, everyone had to admit that since the two emperors ruled the world.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Gu Tianxing could be considered as the top one.


    At that time, Gu Tianxing''s son, Gu Jiangnan, was not less talented than his father. Since Gu Dongliu might be Gu Jiangnan''s offspring and used to be sealed by celestial methods, his talent must also be incredibly amazing. If he also obtained Gu Tianxing''s celestial cultivation method and the Laws of Origin.


    What kind of monster would he become?


    There could be no suspense for him to reach the Renhuang level. Gu Tianxing was the first figure who made a breakthrough at that level, which could be seen from the fact that his Wills integrated into the Mountain Range of Origin and invoked the spirit of the Demon Monarch. He was the person who had reached the Renhuang Plane, which was why he could do all these.


    If Gu Dongliu inherited the Laws of Origin, he would also own the talents of tens of thousands of demons, and in the future, he might have the opportunity to ascend to the throne of Monarch.


    Moreover, if he ascended to the throne, he would even be more suitable than the previous Emperor Yeqing.


    After all, Emperor Yeqing was just a human cultivator who could control demon beasts and was intimate with them. But Gu Dongliu directly inherited the Laws derived from the tens of thousands of demons'' Laws of the Mountain Range of Origin. From this point of view, he was more suitable as the new king of the Demon Realm.


    Unless, like the ancient times, a Demon Monarch appeared from their own clans in the Demon Realm.


    But it was extremely difficult for demon beasts to seize the creation power between heaven and earth and take that step.


    It was also the difference between demon beasts and human cultivators. Demon beasts were very hard to touch the pinnacle that was within human beings'' ability.


    Ye Futian heard Gu Tianxing''s voice and trembled inwardly. No matter he was an unparalleled figure that intimidated the whole Heavenly Mandate Realm, Gu Tianxing knew that the Heavenly Mandate Realm could not tolerate the Third Brother, so he wanted to bind him together with the warriors of the Demon Realm?


    The only thing was that it was not that easy to let these prominent figures of the Demon Realm admit him as the new king, only if the Third Brother had the strength of that level one day.


    If he just received those Laws, these prominent figures of the Demon Realm would just watch and not care about him.


    After all, they were already at the peak of their level.


    "Boom..."


    The Might of Thunder roared again. The Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace summoned the thunder od destruction and threw it toward the direction where Gu Dongliu was located, right below the Divine Matrix Pattern.


    How difficult was it to kill Gu Tianxing at that time? If previously both the old and new Imperial Lords who had seriously injured him, they would not have been able to kill Gu Tianxing.


    However, even so, Gu Tianxing had not died yet, and now he also wanted to create a new king of the Demon Realm whose talent was higher than himself. If Gu Tianxing really did this, it would be a great disaster for them.


    Therefore, for the two major forces, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace, it was necessary to stop Gu Tianxing.


    "In the land of Heavenly Mandate Realm, many top imperial clans in the Demon Domain coexist and govern the demon world together, each of which had their territories. The world of human cultivators and the Demon Realm is divided by the boundary stone and never interfere with each other. Gu Tianxing, you let all the great powers of the Demon Realm show reverence to a young Saint-plane cultivator who is also your descendant. Don''t you feel it ridiculous?"


    From the collapsed ground, the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty rose to the sky and raised his hand to cover the sky. Infinite divine palm prints appeared at the same time, destroying the Great Law of the Heaven and Earth and blasting toward the place where Gu Dongliu stood below the divine pattern.


    Two peak figures both wanted to wipe out Gu Dongliu here to prevent future problems.


    The divine pattern rotated, and the heavenly Might came down. Appalling divine light bloomed from the vast and boundless Fighting Wills. Giant ancient characters appeared above the skydome; demon-like phantoms stepped down, like demons of all skies chanting in all skies, punching out fists of destruction, piercing through the Great Laws in the space.


    When the attacks collided, the sky and earth seemed to fall apart, mountains collapsed. The ground was cracking, and the land turned into a deep canyon. The Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty God was shaken into the crack of the canyon and quelled down below.


    The divine pattern still released the bright divine aura; the nine characters'' radiance flew at the same time, and the demons of all the skies surround the nine figures, extremely solemn.


    "Boom." At this moment, the Heavenly Might fell, and a phantom from the Divine Pattern crushed down from the sky. The demons of all heavens became one, thrusting toward the two people.


    Even those top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm moved back quickly, to avoid this attack.


    The Lord of the Heavenly Palace and the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty felt the terrifying power of this attack, and they walked fast in the same way, raising their hands and removing the ground that obstructed their movements.


    However, it was too late. The demons of all skies came down with the divine pattern. They looked toward the sky, divine light erupting from their bodies, releasing the strongest Might. The endless thunder protected the Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace. A vast ancient bell surrounded the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Those giant figures who dodged the attack looked at this side from a distance, hearts shaking. This attack had reached the limit. Even giant characters like the Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace and the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could not exert their strengths and crushed.


    A devastating air stream swept past, and the bright light dispersed. There, the crowd saw two peak figures showing up, but their clothes seemed to be a little messy, and even there were bloodstains on their bodies.


    The shock injured these two giant figures.


    "I will not blame all the people who participated in that thing except the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace. If you have any concerns, my grandson Gu Dongliu can marry the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky if she agrees. As for Ten Thousand Divine Mountain, Gu Dongliu can also go to cultivate with the Mountain Lord," he again talked.


    Every sentence Gu Tianxing said seemed to be paving the way for Gu Dongliu to prevent future troubles.


    There were too many people who attacked him at that time. If he were attached to hatred, Gu Dongliu would surely die, and no one could save him.


    For some things, he should just let them go.


    He didn''t blame others for his death, except the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Those two significant forces could not be forgiven, especially the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Gu Dongliu''s mission was to exterminate the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The scene stirred many strong men. Gu Tianxing acknowledged that this person was his grandson.


    He was indeed Gu Jiangnan''s son, who was sent to the Lower Realm to cultivate in order to escape the disturbance of that time.


    Until now, he returned to the Upper Realm.


    Gu Tianxing made the arrangements so that if one day his grandson could return, he would give everything to him and paved the best way for him. It could also make up for the regret that Gu Dongliu was sealed for so many years.


    The Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky and the Lord of Ten Thousand Divine Mountain did not have many thoughts on what Gu Tianxing has proposed; after all, prominent figures like them did not care too much about these.


    For example, about the political marriage, she, as the Lord of Brahma''s Pure Sky, was the legendary empress in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, unparalleled in the world. Did she need to protect herself through marriage?


    However, at least it reflected Gu Tianxing''s attitude.


    Figures like Gu Tianxing did not bother to lie even though they were about to fall.


    Since he said that he could let go of his grievances with others, he could just let go of them.


    After Gu Tianxing''s words, the terrifying divine Might condensed again, and the divine light of nine characters dazzled and once again thrust toward those two prominent figures.


    The Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked embarrassed. They flashed away, receded into the distance, and vanished in an instant; they left the space.


    The two of them were already injured, knowing that nothing could be done. They want to stop the running of the Great Law Divine Matrix, but with the power of two of them, they might not be able to do it.


    Now, it was time to layout how to eliminate Gu Dongliu this potential danger.


    The terrifying divine light chased towards these two men. At the same time, over the flowing divine pattern, the celestial light rushed toward Gu Dongliu''s body.


    At this moment, demons of all skies swarmed towards Gu Dongliu''s body, making Gu Dongliu''s body keep trembling.


    Above Gu Dongliu''s body, the nine beams of celestial light were extremely bright, guarding his Will.


    Tens of thousands of beams of celestial light gradually were released from Gu Dongliu''s body, resonating with the sky and earth. His body kept going up to the center of the divine matrix. Then Gu Tianxing took a glance toward the lower sky.


    There, a person was walking toward the void sky and came under the divine matrix.


    That figure was the Lord of Jiang Clan.


    The scene made many powerful figures feel shocked. One should know that when the Gu Clan was exterminated, and Gu Tianxing died, the other two clans of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were silent, or one could say they also participated in some things.


    However, at this moment, the Lord of Jiang Clan walked to the divine matrix; what did he mean?


    "This time, will you really go?" the Lord of the Jiang Clan looked up and said to Gu Tianxing.


    Gu Tianxing''s phantom sat in the center of the divine matrix, nodding calmly.


    "I asked you to die once, but now, you are really going to depart this life," the Lord of Jiang Clan said, "Farewell."


    Warriors around him heard his words and were all stirred.


    At that time, did the Lord of Jiang Clan ask Gu Tianxing to die?


    That was to say, at that time the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven sacrificed the Gu Clan after they had reached a tacit understanding,


    Gu Tianxing was struck hard and must be sacrificed.


    The Gu Clan couldn''t survive.


    Therefore, he asked Gu Tianxing to die.


    So, had the Lord of Jiang Clan also participated in today''s plan?


    Was it also the reason that Gu Tianxing did not wholly die at that time?


    "You hid it so deeply," the Lord of Ten Thousand Divine Mountain thought to himself. They were really cruel to themselves; the Gu Clan''s death was used in exchange for the prosperity of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and did they make the arrangement for today?


    At that time, they were all in Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and witnessed Gu Tianxing''s death, but he was now still alive, and also Gu Dongliu. If the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven said they didn''t know anything, nobody would believe it.


    Obviously, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven directly participated in everything!

 1412 The Battle for the Imperial Bone

    The three clans jointly controlled the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and when the news came out that year, people said they were divided.


    Now, it seemed that it was just a show for the warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The relationship between Gu Tianxing and the Lord of the Jiang Clan was better than people had expected.


    The Lord of the Jiang Clan told him to rest in peace.


    More dazzling and sacred light shone, and Gu Tianxing''s body gradually merged into the divine matrix. In the monstrous divine matrix, hundreds of millions of demons'' Wills, at this moment, all went towards Gu Dongliu at the center of the divine matrix.


    For a while, extremely bright celestial light was released from Gu Dongliu''s body, and Gu Tianxing''s body seemed to also integrate with him to protect him.


    The Lord of the Jiang Clan waved his hand and sent a beam of celestial light to him.


    At this moment, Gu Dongliu had the nine celestial beings as his armor. Gu Tianxing and the Lord of the Jiang Clan were his guards. He had inherited the Laws of Origin, and his ability was strengthened by the divine matrix.


    He had indeed obtained the creation power of the sky and earth, which reflected Gu Tianxing''s high hopes for him.


    Gu Tianxing hoped that before his death, he could create a hero that could outdo himself in the future, a person that could challenge Heavenly Laws. Although it sounded unreal, he had hope for Gu Dongliu, who was enhanced by so many ultimate methods.


    Many big figures around also understand what kind of monster Gu Tianxing had created. As long as he did not die, Gu Dongliu was destined to have a bright future and become a giant in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He shouldered the mission to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    "The divine matrix has merged with him," people yelled. Everyone was looking at the scene in front of them and trembled inside. The super divine matrix merged into Gu Dongliu''s body.


    Over Gu Dongliu''s body, the celestial light shone and rushed straight into the sky. The nine characters circled him. The souls of the nine immortals seemed to be burning.


    The Lord of Jiang Clan looked solemn. Even the top big figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were stunned. The Gu Clan was not extinct; they still had one person.


    This last person carried the hope of the entire Gu Clan.


    Those top figures of the Gu Clan had completed their final mission and dedicated everything to Gu Dongliu.


    Although they could not see the future, they still made wishes for the future. Gu Dongliu of the Gu Clan would dominate the Heavenly Mandate Realm and continue the Gu Clan''s bloodline, returning to the peak.


    Those giant figures of the Demon Realm were somewhat stressed. How should they treat Gu Dongliu?


    He bore the Laws of Origin. Just as Gu Tianxing said, Gu Dongliu would be the only one who inherited the Laws of Demon Monarch in the place of origin of the Demon Realm and Wills of demons of all skies. The creation power of the Mountain Range of Origin would only belong to Gu Dongliu.


    So, should they destroy him or recognize him?


    There was a brief silence in the vast space. Everyone silently watched what happened, including Ye Futian and others in the distance.


    At this time, Ye Futian and the Sword Saint were both happy for Gu Dongliu. The Third Disciple of Cottage could finally shine in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    However, while they were happy, they were also slightly worried. The shock he caused this time was too great, and they couldn''t predict what would happen next. What would these giant figures in the Demon Realm and the human peak figures do to him?


    If everyone still targeted him, he would have the same ending as before. Gu Dongliu would be hunted down and be killed just like Gu Clan.


    However, today''s situation was not the same as it was at that time. Time was changing, and peoples'' hearts were also changing.


    "In ancient times, the Demon Monarch was buried in the Mountain Range of Origin: the place where the Demon Realm was established, the place of origin of our demon clans. But now, this human cultivator seized the Laws of Origin of our Demon Realm and destroyed the creation power of thousands of years."


    Someone said this, shrieking. Warriors followed the voice and saw the Purple Golden Rat King in a golden robe talking to people of the Demon Realm. "What do you think of this?"


    "He has obtained the Laws of Origin and should be regarded as a member of the Demon Realm. He inherits the Thought of the Demon Monarch and Wills of hundreds of millions of great demons. So now, he is not just a human cultivator," the Lord of Jiang Clan roared. Other warriors looked at Gu Dongliu; his handsome face indeed had sort of demonic characteristics.


    As the Lord of the Jiang Clan said, Gu Dongliu had inherited the supreme demonic Laws this time, and he could be regarded as a half-demon.


    "Moreover, if you kill him, the Demon Realm will no longer have the Thoughts of Demon Monarch, and the Laws of Creation of the Mountain Range of Origin will go extinct," the Lord of the Jiang Clan continued. "Give him a chance, wouldn''t it be better?"


    "Can he become the same as us just by seizing the creation power of the Mountain Range of Origin?" the Lord of Yingzhao Mountain also said coldly. He wore a long silver robe. Extremely sharp life force was being released from his body. He looked toward several other big figures.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor, the Dragon Emperor, King of the Sky Demon Court, and the Golden Raven Demon Lord.


    They were the most influential giants in the Demon Realm, and their strengths were relatively more powerful.


    "I think it is not necessary to intervene. Let''s just wait and see what his future will be like," at this moment, a big demon beast said. Demon warriors looked back at the speaker behind the Dragon Emperor. It was Zhu Yan Demon Emperor. His relationship with the Dragon Divine Clan seemed good, so he was standing behind the Dragon Emperor.


    However, the demon beasts were not surprised. The Thunder Divine Clan was a branch of the Dragon Divine bloodline. In the past, the head of the Thunder Divine Clan followed Emperor Yeqing; so did the Snow Ape Emperor of the Ape Clan, so the relationship of the Dragon Divine Clan and the Ape Clan was not bad.


    Today, the Thunder Divine Demon Emperor was also cultivating in the Celestial Demon City.


    "I think so, too," the Dragon Emperor slowly said. Gu Dongliu''s enemies were the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Violet Heavenly Palace. Even if demon clans just let him be, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Violet Heavenly Palace would deal with him, and their grievances with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would probably continue.


    The dispute among human cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm would be good for the demon beasts.


    As for the future, they would see what level Gu Dongliu could reach.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor looked around and seemed to be looking for something. He was more concerned about Ye Futian than Gu Dongliu.


    The heritage of Mountain Range of Origin had been passed down for generations, and now it was more of a symbolic thing. The Demon Realm had long been separated from the Mountain Range of Origin, and demon clans all existed independently.


    But the Demon Emperor Bone of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions belonged to their ancestors.


    Since the Laws of Demon Monarch had been passed on to Gu Dongliu, should the Divine Elephant Clan take back the inheritance of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions?


    In the distance, many figures appeared. Those warriors, who had been shaken away, gradually returned to the lower sky. Ye Futian and his companions also came.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor glanced down at Ye Futian and slightly moved, which aroused a suffocating Might in this space.


    The Hanzhou Sword Emperor glanced up and looked at the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    "Whether you are a man or a ghost, you should return the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions to us, the Divine Elephant Clan." The Elephant Emperor''s voice was overbearing. It shrouded the air above everyone''s head, especially Ye Futian; the suffocating might was strong for him.


    Ye Futian looked up at the Emperor and said, "It''s not that I want to take the Divine Elephant Bone of Ten Directions as my own, but that the Elephant Emperor''s bone has been refined and integrated into my body and has become part of me."


    "How is it possible that you could refine the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions?" the Elephant Emperor questioned him imposingly. In his eyes, Ye Futian was boasting.


    "Maybe I was destined to encounter the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. Otherwise, I would not have had the chance to get it," Ye Futian said. There was a sound of elephant rumbling in his body, and soon, a phantom of the divine elephant appeared. The divine Might shrouded the void air, and the horrifying demonic Imperial light loomed from his body.


    The scene stunned many people. Was the bone refined by him?


    The Divine Elephant Emperor also showed a surprised look. Could a Saint-plane human cultivator refine the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions?


    "When I got the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions, I didn''t know what it was and couldn''t pry into its mystery, but this young man was able to unravel the secret and refine it. It seems that he was indeed chosen by the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. Since your ancestor has given him a chance, why can''t you be more generous?" the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor said to the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    "You are not from my clan, so you know anything about it, and it is not relevant to you. It is only in the hands of the Divine Elephant Clan that the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions can exert its strongest power," the Divine Elephant Emperor said coldly.


    "But even if I give the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions to you, Divine Elephant Clan, sir, I don''t think you will unlock its mystery. I can take full advantage of it, not less," Ye Futian continued.


    "Talking big," a warrior of the Divine Elephant Clan said in a cold voice.


    A young Saint-plane demon beast of the Divine Elephant Clan stepped out. The void sky shook. A phantom of a divine elephant appeared over his body, his might overwhelming the void air. He looked down at Ye Futian below and said, "How much power of the Divine Elephant imperial bone can you use?"


    Ye Futian stared at him and said, "I welcome your instruction."


    After those words, his body flickered, and he descended into the void air.


    Above his head, that powerful demon elephant stepped down and trampled over all the skies. Giant elephant phantoms appeared, their extremely stout elephant legs trampling towards Ye Futian''s body with immense power and repressing Laws.


    A terrifying storm was born. The foot stepped down, which made many feel like Ye Futian''s thin body below would be broken.


    At this moment, Ye Futian also stepped into the void sky, quelling the world, and the sound of the elephant trumpeting came out. His body was shining with golden light, and a huge elephant phantom wrapped him in it. The divine elephant trampled down, but it was not able to shake Ye Futian''s defense.


    The demon elephant in the void paused a second, and his footsteps came out again. The rumbling sound continued, and tens of thousands of elephants roared at the same time, almost crushing the space into pieces.


    Ye Futian was not afraid at all. It was as if he hadn''t seen it. He stepped up against the trend and similarly released countless golden elephant phantoms, which collided with elephants of the other side.


    At the same time, Ye Futian raised a punch and blasted out. A huge elephant phantom appeared over the sky, crushing the void air and turning everything into pieces.


    His fist bloomed, and all the Fist Wills turned into golden elephants, roaring in the sky and shattering a side of the world.


    The sky dome rumbled wildly, and with a dull sound, the warrior of the Divine Elephant Clan was directly hit. He turned back into his original form, and the body was huge, but even so, he was still shaken. The fierce power made him spit blood!

 1413 Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky

    The eyes of all the mighty ones contracted when they saw that scene, especially the Divine Elephants.


    The earth-shattering trumpeting of elephants was heard from Ye Futian''s body. Furthermore, he was shining with pure golden light all over. The shadow of a Divine Elephant shrouded his entire body, causing multiple specters of Divine Elephants to appear all about him, stepping into the sky as they moved.


    It was as if he was the king of the elephants.


    The space turned extremely solemn within mere moments. It was as if the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions had been resurrected.


    "I''ve yet to use any of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions'' powers," Ye Futian said to the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    Boom. Another rumble was heard, and yet another raging Divine Elephant shadow stepped forth. He was the top figure among the younger generations of the Divine Elephants and a direct descendant of the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    "Xiang Mang." The mighty ones were all slightly rattled when they saw the one moving to attack. Xiang Mang was an extremely renowned figure in the demon realm, and he had the blood of the Supreme Elephant Emperor flowing in his veins. If the Divine Elephants were to be able to get their hands on the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions, they would have probably bestowed it to Xiang Mang.


    Xiang Mang caused the space around him to shake with just a single step, pinning down the great path.


    The air around Ye Futian felt stifling. He seemed to have seen 18 Divine Elephants stepping in the air at the same time, placing a lockdown on his immediate vicinity, pinning the space all around him dead, causing anyone caught in it unable to move.


    Ye Futian felt such pressure all over him at that moment. Xiang Mang was of a golden body and looked extremely dazzling. He stood in the air and made all around him wonder just how heavy that body of a human form would have to be just to be able to press down on the air around. He definitely had formidable powers, greater than the monster of Yingzhao Mountain Ye Futian faced back then.


    Boom, boom, boom... Terrifying clashing noises were heard, and the sky shook. The great path rattled as Ye Futian shot upwards, stepping out as he went.


    "Get down!"


    Xiang Mang shouted, and an incredibly massive leg of the Divine Elephant appeared, stepping onto the air above Ye Futian''s head, ignoring the distance of the space altogether.


    Furthermore, that leg contained true, formidable might of the Divine Elephants and was enormous. It was far stronger than the Divine Elephant who had fought before.


    Ye Futian lifted his head, and he, too, was clad in a golden elephant silhouette. He raised his arm and threw a punch in the air.


    The spectral punch shot to the air, and countless Divine Elephants trampled, causing a stampede in the air. They rammed into that enormous leg of the Divine Elephant.


    Countless shadows of the Divine Elephant were stomped on and shattered, yet they were still unable to stop the force of that elephant leg from coming down. Ye Futian threw another punch. A beam of divine light shot through the huge leg right away. A stifled rumble was heard, and Ye Futian was thrown down. However, that elephant leg was shattered as well, and it did not manage to shake Ye Futian.


    Xiang Mang cast his gaze down, surprised that the attack had not been able to crush Ye Futian.


    It seemed that the man had inherited the lineage of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions. He was unable to believe that the power from just the bone of the demon emperor activated had been so powerful, so much so that it was able to resist his attacks altogether.


    Xiang Mang''s eyes turned fierce and cold. He then stepped down, and shadows of divine elephants were seen running. He took another step again, and it seemed that the air itself rumbled. Ye Futian''s blood was churning, and he was feeling restless. That one stomp seemed to have shattered the space all around him.


    Boom.


    Yet another step. The sound of the trumpeting rattled the eardrums of all within earshot. Some saints, who had gotten to the place, even went on to shut their senses off. Proving Holiness level saints who were not that formidable even started to bleed from the ears.


    "Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky."


    Those top figures all paid close attention to that battle. Xiang Mang was a top-notch figure among the younger generations and had formidable combat prowess.


    Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky was one of the top spells of the Divine Elephants, enabling one to stomp down the great path in their vicinity. One step would have been all it needed to cause the bodies of targets to tremble and their blood to rage. Consecutive steps would have been able to crush all the organs in the target''s bodies.


    The move was so powerful that it could even pin down souls, and it was lauded as one of the major attacks of the demons.


    Ye Futian hallucinated at that very moment. He was unable even to move using the power of the great path of space. His surroundings seemed to have been stomped down by Xiang Mang in the sky, shrouding everything. The power that was capable of stomping down the great path would, of course, include that of space.


    Boom.


    Yet another step. The might of the great path had gotten increasingly powerful. It gathered the might of the great path of their surroundings into a single entity and brought it all down on the space.


    Ye Futian''s body was trembling violently, and his blood raged even more severely. He looked up at that figure high in the air. Dazzling light shot from his eyes.


    Ye Futian''s pupils seemed to have changed at that moment, becoming unbelievably deep. It was as if he was able to see through the source of everything in the world.


    The winds howled in the sky, stifling the air where the two were. Xiang Mang''s formidable might of the elephant was activated, and the great path melded with his being. He stomped down yet another time, bringing might greater than before. Yet another shadow of the elephant appeared, stepping onto that space as if it was stomping right above Ye Futian''s head.


    Ye Futian''s body was shaken and thrown down with a boom. The blood in his body howled.


    He continued to stare into the air above. There seemed to be a shadow of the Divine Elephant Emperor appearing in his Life Palace, which was stepping into the air as well.


    He had acquired the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions, which contained the will of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the old days. However, it lacked the most direct form of major attacks of the Divine Elephants, and the Divine Elephants seemed to be able to provide him with such spells.


    Boom.


    Another step. Ye Futian was shaken and thrown further down. He then grunted.


    Even so, the spectators were astonished by how powerful Ye Futian was. They were surprised that he was able to last that long. The shocks would have killed common people. None would have been able to take the brunt of the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell.


    At that moment, Ye Futian cast his gaze elsewhere and extended his hand. A golden staff materialized in his hand.


    The shadow of the Divine Elephant shrouded his body. Boundless great path of power gathered all over him. Ye Futian''s body seemed to have become filled with tremendous power.


    Voom. He waved his staff about. That feat of being able to use staff techniques under such heavy pressure served as a testament to the extent of his raw strength.


    Xiang Mang frowned slightly, and his eyes remained cold yet extremely overbearing. He took yet another step down, which caused his surroundings to rattle.


    Ye Futian''s staff lashed out in the air right away. It was as if he was bringing it down on the air itself.


    However, yet another stifled rumbled was heard, and a terrifying explosion sounded in the air. Storms whipped out, and Ye Futian''s body was thrown behind. However, he continued to move forward, and his power grew even stronger.


    Another sweep of the staff flew high up in the air. That terrifying specter of the staff cleaved through the sky, causing all the mighty ones to be astonished.


    "What is this staff technique?" The Dragon Emperor looked at Zhu Yan behind him and asked, "Do you know anything about it?"


    "Seems familiar. According to what he told me, it was something descended from the 81 Strikes of Heaven-traversing Staff Techniques of the apes when he was training in the Lower Worlds," Zhu Yan elaborated.


    The Dragon Emperor nodded and saw Ye Futian bring down yet another strike with the staff. He then added, "It seems to me that it''s how that other one works when he is using a staff. A human youth like this one here is superbly talented."


    Zhu Yan naturally realized that the "other one" that the Dragon Emperor was referring to was the emperor of the apes.


    When Ye Futian struck out with his fourth attack, it was done against the flow, clashing with the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell directly. The space where both of them were seemed about to crumble.


    "The might of that staff technique was actually able to compare with that of the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky?"


    The mighty ones of the demons around were all astonished. The Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky was a major attack of formidable power. It was passed down by the Divine Elephants, after all.


    However, that staff technique actually looked as if it was on par with that attack. Furthermore, it seemed that both attacks were fundamentally identical; they shared a vague resemblance in how the might of the great path was gathered.


    Ye Futian continued to go against the flow and brought the seventh attack to bear. Xiang Mang took yet another step. Elephants trumpeted and were imbued within that leg, while Ye Futian seemed to have melded all staff techniques into that one strike.


    When the attacks clashed, countless shadows of the elephants and the staff were destroyed. Both of them were separated from each other. At that time, it was no longer only Ye Futian moving; Xiang Mang was thrown behind as well.


    Demons, notwithstanding, even top-notch human cultivators were rather shocked at what Ye Futian pulled.


    That was a pinnacle figure among the Divine Elephants, and yet that human cultivator was able to hold his own in such a battle.


    The number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky, Qin He, looked at Ye Futian. He had fought with Zhan Yuan, the one with the supreme body of the great path from the Violet Heavenly Palace, before. While Ye Futian was not of some top-notch force, his talents were undeniably shocking nonetheless.


    "Staff techniques of the apes?" Even Xiang Mang managed to recognize that. He then looked at Ye Futian and asked, "Infusing the great path of power of the Supreme Elephant Emperor''s bone into that staff attack. That''s the might of the Divine Elephant Emperor''s bone that you have acquired?"


    Ye Futian gazed at Xiang Mang and answered, "It''s more than that."


    Trumpeting of elephants shocked the air as soon as he spoke. There seemed to be billions of shadows of Divine Elephants glittering in the air, which proceeded to run in the sky.


    He was extremely glittering all over, shining with golden light. He was clad in the Divine Elephants and took one step that shocked the air around him, causing the minds of the spectators to be rattled as well.


    Xiang Mang, who was standing at the opposite end, experienced this even more so. Dazzling light shot from his eyes as his heart raced. He felt stifled. However, his huge eyes glared at Ye Futian.


    Boom.


    Yet another step. Tens of thousands of elephants trumpeted at once, and the air shook. Xiang Mang was rattled, yet he kept his gaze forward.


    "Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky."


    The spectators all stared at Ye Futian, wondering how it was possible.


    That move was a major attack spell belonging to the Divine Elephants, and they would never pass it to outsiders. It was even more so with the case of human cultivators.


    Furthermore, anyone who was not of the Divine Elephants would face extreme difficulty in picking up the move. Even if they were to truly train in it, they would have only managed to mimic the form and not be able to bring about its power.


    What Ye Futian pulled, however, was the true Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky.


    The mighty ones of the Divine Elephants stared at Ye Futian coldly. Even the Divine Elephant Emperor''s eyes glittered. He stepped forward and put his might down, looking at Ye Futian and asking, "Where did you learn this?"


    Ye Futian looked up at the Divine Elephant Emperor and answered, "I did say that it was the Divine Elephant Emperor who chose me to inherit his path. Right now, I''ve completely internalized the bone of the elephant emperor. I only need to observe attacks of the Divine Elephants to trigger the bone''s power, which will then activate the will of the great path of the Divine Elephant Emperor, enabling the move to be passed to me."


    The Divine Elephant Emperor stared at Ye Futian. He could inherit something like that right away, just by watching the Divine Elephants use them?


    Had Ye Futian truly earned the approval of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions?


    But if he had lied, where could that spell have come from?

 1414 Inquiry with the Empress

    Xiang Mang stared at Ye Futian. He was unable to believe that a human cultivator had been able to use Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky just as he had.


    That spell had been the ultimate skill as well as a significant attack spell on the Divine Elephants.


    Boom.


    Elephant trumpeting resounded in the air, and Xiang Mang continued moving forward. He wanted to see if Ye Futian''s Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky had been authentic.


    Ye Futian stepped out just like Xiang Mang did. Their surroundings rumbled, and the space trembled. Xiang Mang felt unbelievable might shrouding all over him, shaking the insides of his body, causing his blood to boil. There seemed to be a huge Divine Elephant capable of shocking peoples'' souls bearing down on him.


    His expression changed somewhat. The state of being of the attack was just like the one he pulled before. What Ye Futian cast right there and then had not been some cheap imitation, but a true major attack spell of the Divine Elephants.


    Both of them headed towards each other. A terrible storm whipped out in the air. The sound of elephant trumpeting shook the place all around them. Everyone looked up at the two of them. While they had not been clashing with each other just yet, the same spell that the two of them cast made it seem like the place all around them was about to explode. Thousands of elephants trumpeted, and their surroundings were rapidly crushed. The storm drowned out their surroundings, and the golden light blinded the spectators.


    Many saints felt their blood raging. Some even grunted, and their face turned pale.


    "If you want to have a look at the power of the bone so badly, I''d be happy to oblige," Ye Futian said, and an even more dazzling beam of light was cast from his body. A huge, majestic Divine Elephant stepped into the air, appearing right above Ye Futian.


    Thousands of shadows of Divine Elephants appeared at the same time below, right beneath the feet of the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    At that moment, as Ye Futian stepped forward, that shadow of the Divine Elephant Emperor moved forward as well. All of the Divine Elephants moved together, making the scene truly terrifying, as they looked like they were out to flatten the entire place.


    Xiang Mang felt divine might of the great path cast at him. He lifted his feet and intended to step forward, yet the rumbling continued, and boundless might gushed at his body. A Divine Elephant in the air seemed to have stepped onto his body, making his blood boil rapidly and his veins pop.


    Xiang forcefully took a single step out after letting out an angry roar, intending to destroy that attack coming at him.


    Boom. Xiang Mang''s body seemed to have exploded, and terrifying noises were heard from within his body. All of his orifices bled, and his face looked ashen. He returned to his original Divine Elephant form and trumpeted at the heavens, yet that extremely raging attack continued to pound on his body. Eventually, he was unable to withstand the attack any longer and was thrown hard to the ground.


    Ye Futian rescinded his power. The mighty one of the Divine Elephants grabbed hold of Xiang Mang and then looked up at Ye Futian, wondering if that had truly been the might of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions.


    "That was stronger than even a Renhuang ritual implement indeed," many muttered to themselves. The bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions contained the might of the great path of the Divine Elephant Emperor, bursting with greater imperial might. That might, when coupled with the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky, had been able to bring out unimaginable power. Even a being as formidable as Xiang Mang had been unable to withstand such an attack. He was damaged from the shock, and that was something that could have only been mitigated with the use of Demon Emperor class items.


    It was obvious that Xiang Mang was deeply resentful of Ye Futian acquiring the bone of an ancestor of the Divine Elephants, and had brought his greatest might to resist it, which resulted in being injured by such a raging attack. However, he was already considered extremely powerful for being able even to get that far.


    The human cultivators and the great figures of the demons all stared at Ye Futian. It seemed that he had indeed been telling the truth��he had truly internalized the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions completely, so much so that he had been able to make it his own and bring such terrifying might to bear.


    From a certain perspective, Ye Futian had indeed earned the lineage of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions.


    The current Divine Elephant Emperor eyed Ye Futian. The bone had not been surfaced for long, and Ye Futian had gotten it from the Celestial Fox Palace before entering the Origin Mountains. That human had surprisingly been able to internalize it within such a short period of time. Furthermore, it was said that the bone had been something no one wanted; no one but Ye Futian.


    "I apologize for the intrusion." Ye Futian said, "Even if I were not to be the one to acquire the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions, it would have been taken by those from Yingzhao Mountain all the same. At present, I have indeed internalized it."


    He would not have been able to return it even if he wanted to.


    "Senior Elephant Emperor had once been an overlord of the demon realm, and there is no need to be petty with a member of the younger generation. Furthermore, since the kid has already internalized the bone of the Elephant Emperor, then it was indeed a matter of destiny between him and the Divine Elephants. Now that he has learned the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell, he is considered a successor of the past Divine Elephant Emperor. How about you let him study and train under you, Divine Elephant Emperor? That would make him half a member of the Divine Elephants," Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor then said.


    It was evident that he was vouching for Ye Futian. Not only had Ye Futian acquired the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions, but he had also picked up the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell. If he were not to be lumped together with the Divine Elephants, they would have found such a turn of events to be an insult.


    As such, Zhu Yan proposed that Ye Futian be allowed to study under the Elephant Emperor.


    "The kid broke the limit of the Divine Mountain back in the Purple Underworld and refused the Violet Heavenly Palace''s invitations. He also beat every challenge that the ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace threw at him. He let anyone from any plane of sainthood pick their challenge. You''ve seen what he is capable of, Elephant Emperor, and he will not have you down," the head of the Jiang Clan said.


    He naturally knew of the relationship between Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian. At present, Gu Dongliu had acquired the lineage of the Demon Monarch. If Ye Futian were to be able to form an amicable relationship with the Divine Elephants, all of them would have a greater influence in the Demon Realm.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor''s eyes were huge, and his form was extremely imposing. Those bell-like eyes of his stared at Ye Futian, seemingly thinking of something.


    "He learned staff techniques of the apes before, and that will make him a friend of the demons. It is something worth considering, Elephant Emperor," the Dragon Emperor added.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor continued to eye Ye Futian and asked, "Do you mind heading to the Divine Elephant''s place with me?"


    "I naturally wouldn''t refuse such an invitation," Ye Futian replied frankly. The Divine Elephant Emperor was one of the big shots in the demon realm. If he were to get on the wrong side of the Divine Elephants, things would be disastrous for him. It was something that he needed to see through. It might have been a disaster lying in wait, but it could also be an opportunity.


    He had been able to use the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell only by seeing Xiang Mang use it before. If the Divine Elephant Emperor had indeed been willing to teach him some spells unique to the Divine Elephants, the presence of that bone in his body would allow him to pick those spells up quickly.


    "What about him then?" the King of Yingzhao Mountain looked at Gu Dongliu and asked. The matter had not been settled before Ye Futian stole everyone''s attention.


    "Do you all remember the prophet''s words?" A voice was heard at that moment. Everyone looked at the one who spoke. It was none other than the lord of the Sky Demon Court. His words had a lot of weight, and all the monsters turned their attention to him.


    Said lord was basking in the divine light of the sun. He then turned to look at Gu Dongliu and said, "The prophet prophesied that there would be a change in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and significant happenings would take place in the demon realm. Now, I''m sure that the significant happenings began with Origin Mountains. As you can all see, the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm will soon change, although no one knows how such changes will come. In that case, I propose that we go with the flow of things."


    The prophet had prophesied that there would be a major figure, and all wondered who it would be.


    The answer remained shrouded in mystery even then.


    Would it be Gu Tianxing or Gu Dongliu?


    However, none had expected there would be two members of the younger generation caught at the center of the storm. There might have been more to them than what met the eye.


    As such, one simply needed to have their eyes peeled for further happenings.


    Everyone saw fit to see how things would have turned out to be.


    "Become the king of the demon realm? Us old people aside, I''m sure a good number of the younger generation of all demon clans here wouldn''t have agreed to that easily. While Gu Tianxing had bestowed him with extremely formidable talents, the path of cultivation will be anything but easy," the Dragon Emperor said at that moment, and all the top-notch figures of the demon realm nodded.


    Among the top demon clans, there would be many extraordinary demons, like Xiang Mang, and every single one of them would be legendary in their own right.


    Gu Dongliu inherited the Laws of Origin, and he had to be able to first eclipse those younger generation members before coming to surpass those who were his seniors. Only by then could he get anywhere near becoming a king of the demon realm.


    The Sky Demon Court was an alliance. There were several extremely extraordinary younger members within the court, and all of them would have become Gu Dongliu''s match.


    There were no demons who did not want to see the demon realm unified.


    "Let''s go." The Dragon Emperor turned around and left.


    Zhu Yan looked at Zhu Zhao and the others and said, "Time to go."


    The trip would have been a very memorable one for Zhu Zhao.


    Gu Dongliu seemed to be still steeped in his training in the sky. He had inherited too many lineages of the great path. Despite having the protection of the nine divine beings, he needed time to internalize what he had just picked up.


    Mighty ones from all directions were getting ready to leave. Ye Futian was seen casting his gaze elsewhere. There stood the most legendary of empresses in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm��the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Senior, there was once a woman in the Nine States of the Lower Worlds who tapped into your will, Empress. Do you have any impression of that happening?" Ye Futian asked the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky. While he had asked that before, he still hoped the Empress would save Jieyu.


    With the Empress right before him at the moment, there probably would not be anyone else who was clearer about Jieyu''s fate back then.


    The Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky took a plain look at Ye Futian. Those eyes of hers were considered perfect, and every inch of her body seemed to be filled with the essence of everything in existence, making her look flawless.


    "If you know of me, then you know that my will reaches all 3,000 realms. My will fills all of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, and there is no way I can remember everything," the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky said plainly. Ye Futian''s face became ashen after hearing that.


    He had clung to that bit of hope all those years ago, hoping that Jieyu would have been saved by the Empress. And now, the Empress did not even have any recollection of that happening, let alone having actually saved Jieyu.


    In truth, he should have long realized that the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky was a being like no other. She would not have spared any thought to just that one person in all of the living beings in existence and saved Jieyu.


    Ye Futian had only been fooling himself, and he was only doing so because he wished things had been so.


    Xia Qingyuan, who was at Ye Futian''s side, saw how dejected he was. Her hand twitched, and it touched Ye Futian''s hand, but she eventually pulled it back.


    "Farewell," the Empress of the Brahma''s Pure Sky said before turning around and leaving. Those from Brahma''s Pure Sky all followed her lead.


    A group of people went far away in an instant. The Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky, who was in the air, actually flickered. However, that lasted only for an instant and she returned to her usual composure. Nothing else seemed to have been seen in those eyes of hers.


    The mighty ones around left one after another. The storm that was kicked up by Gu Tianxing seemed to have come to an end by then.


    However, the effects of what he did seemed to long from over.

 1415 Divine Elephant Emperors Question

    The mighty ones all dispersed, and there was no more of that demonic aura high up in the air at Origin Mountains.


    Furthermore, the luck contained with that mountain had all been passed down to Gu Dongliu. Everything that was contained within that vast mountain had all been devoured by that divine matrix, which was then siphoned into Gu Dongliu''s body.


    Gu Tianxing had been laying all of that out all on his own, just to create someone who had the potential to step into that supreme plane.


    It was not known, at the moment, if he had succeeded or not.


    All the mighty ones returned one by one. There were dynastic forces at the center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and Renhuang ruled all of those forces. All of those powers were coalesced into a monstrous entity known as the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was at the center of all the dynasties. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been restored after that devastating battle all those years ago. Mighty ones and geniuses emerged like a flood within the past century, making it seem like they were about to reclaim their glory as the utmost supreme force. The Heavenly Dynasty had been the oldest of all the forces found in the realm. Its history and wealth were rich, and it reigned over the dynasties.


    At that moment, in a tall, majestic palace in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Dynastic Overlord sat above, and many Renhuangs were in the hall, making the scene terrifying.


    "Gu Tianxing passed down both the Laws of Origin and the mystical ways onto Gu Dongliu. While that son of Gu Jiangnan is young, he might become a monstrous figure in the future. What do you think about it?" the Dynastic Overlord asked solemnly.


    While Gu Dongliu was, presently, a fragile, insignificant being not worthy of even mentioning, it remained a fact that none of those top-notch geniuses had been able to reach his height.


    The height Gu Tianxing reached all those years ago was even more unimaginable and out of reach.


    As of that heavenly plane, he deemed that it was just Gu Tianxing''s delusion.


    But then again, the overlord saw the need to be on guard nonetheless. There was one who had been passed down by all that Laws of Origin gathered by Gu Tianxing after all. If they were to lower their guard, the Heavenly Mandate Realm might end up facing yet another being capable of threatening them.


    They and the Gu Clan were sworn enemies, after all.


    After that trip to Origin Mountains, both he and the Palace Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace never returned. It was not that they did not want to, but that they knew where they were now. After giving their all to resist attacks from Gu Tianxing''s divine matrix, they ended up injured.


    Furthermore, their injuries were serious. Given the plane they were at, injuries of any kind would be grievous, as injuries hardly happened to them in the first place.


    "While that descendant of the Gu Clan is of no importance right now, it is still best to get rid of him as soon as possible," someone answered. They and the overlord shared the same opinion. The lineage inherited by Gu Dongliu was simply too terrifying, and they were unable to afford to let their guard down.


    It would have been possible that this insignificant figure would become a major threat in the future.


    "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven pretended to have wiped the Gu Clan out all those years ago. None of us expected that they reached a pact instead. Gu Tianxing knew that his days were numbered back in that battle, and there was no way the Gu Clan would have been able to emerge unscathed, so the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the other two major clans teamed up to set things up with the Gu Clan, all so that what happened today would come to pass. Now, they will never easily let the last descendant of the Gu Clan perish," the Dynastic Overlord continued.


    Everyone nodded in agreement. If they were to kill Gu Dongliu, they would have had to wage war again with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heavenly, obliterating them once and for all before they were able to kill Gu Dongliu.


    However, they had just recovered, and if they were fighting such a war again, they would suffer considerable losses again. If that were to happen, the 10,000 Divine Mountain and Brahma''s Pure Sky would be able to get ahead of them.


    Both of those forces had developed into formidable forces with a massive number of mighty ones at their disposal.


    It was due to both the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Gu Clan was backed into a corner in more ways than one, that they went all out to kill each other without considering the consequences.


    Both of them would have remained at the pinnacle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm otherwise, pinning down all the other forces.


    "Overlord."


    Someone was walking in at the moment, bowing solemnly to the Dynastic Overlord.


    "What is it?" he asked.


    "The crown prince has returned." The messenger reported, "He is now a Holiness of Nirvana."


    "Good." The eyes of the overlord sparkled as he cast his gaze far away as if to pierce through the void before him. All the other Renhuang below smiled, and their minds rattled.


    In that battle all those years ago, the previous crown prince plotted and killed Gu Jiangnan, invoking Gu Tianxing''s towering fury, and he went on a killing spree at the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The previous crown prince was dead, and that had been the most humiliating part of their history. They had never suffered a grievous insult. The previous overlord was of extremely formidable training, yet he had fallen in that war all the same.


    None of the princes of Heavenly Mandate Realm from then on out had been able to compare with the previous crown prince until the birth of the youngest prince. Said prince had displayed exceptional talent from a very young age. He was made the crown prince officially when he turned 18.


    He had then been training for over 50 years and had become a Holiness of Nirvana. That was a talent like no other. He was born to be an emperor and the next Dynastic Overlord at that.


    "Congratulations, my son." The Dynastic Overlord cast his gaze far away and saw a figure walking straight into the great hall of the palace. He was dazzling all over like he was clad in divine light. His eyes contained terrifying brilliance as if he was able to see through the void. He was filled with a supreme bearing throughout his entire being.


    "Father." The crown prince bowed and then looked at the others, "Greetings, emperors."


    "The crown prince is of such magnificent talent and is unparalleled in his speed of advancement throughout the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm. Furthermore, his plane is stable, and his aura brimming. It is indeed a pity that all in Heavenly Mandate Realm know only of the crown prince''s existence, but remain oblivious to the extent of the crown prince''s powers," a Renhuang then said.


    "Now that Gu Tianxing created a monster, we can finally get the crown prince to show what he is truly made of," yet another Renhuang added. It was apparent that the Dynasty held the crown prince in the highest regard.


    "My son was born supreme, and none have been able to beat him. It has indeed been hard for you throughout the years," the Dynastic Overlord said to the prince. The people of the realm probably knew only that Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had gotten themselves a new crown prince, yet few had seen the new crown prince in person.


    That was because the death of the previous crown prince left a traumatic blow to the Dynastic Overlord, resulting in him being extremely protective of the crown prince. He had even sent the crown prince on a pilgrimage to other realms.


    And now, the crown prince was already a Holiness of Nirvana, making him only one step away from becoming a Renhuang.


    The prophet of the demon realm prophesized that Heavenly Mandate Realm would see great changes, and everyone wondered who would cause that change in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, reaching the very top.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was making preparations for the future, and so did other top forces. Everyone continued to make preparations after they returned. It was possible that a huge storm would sweep all over the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the near future.


    ...


    There was a huge mountain of rock in the demon realm. That rocky mountain was formed naturally. When seen from afar, the mountain looked like an incredibly huge statue, resembling that of a Divine Elephant, and it looked shocking.


    There were demonic palaces on top of that boundlessly huge Divine Elephant rock mountain. That was where the mighty ones of the Divine Elephants stayed.


    The surrounding areas had countless demonic mighty ones taking up residence. That was an extremely renowned demon city in the demon realm��Divine Elephant City.


    When they gazed upon that skyscraping Divine Elephant Mountain, they would have all sported solemn expressions, hoping to one day train in that mountain, especially the monsters among the Divine Elephants.


    In that huge, majestic Divine Elephant Mountain, there was divine might of the great path that was extremely formidable, making it very difficult for anyone who was below the Saint Plane to venture into it.


    A saintly dazzling screen of light shrouded the entire divine mountain, and a group of people appeared somewhere on the mountain.


    Those people were none other than Ye Futian and the others, who were all arranged to stay there.


    At that moment, the demon emperor, whose bearing was extremely powerful. He then said to Ye Futian, "Come with me."


    "Will do." Ye Futian nodded and followed. The two of them came before a Divine Elephant palace, and there was an overwhelming figure who was found sitting cross-legged outside��the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    "Come and have a sit," the Divine Elephant Emperor said and cast his gaze below the divine mountain.


    Ye Futian walked to the side of the Divine Elephant Emperor and stood there.


    "Sit," the Divine Elephant Emperor added. Ye Futian went on to sit quietly. He cast his gaze forward, which allowed him to see the Divine Elephant City far away.


    "How do you feel here?" the Divine Elephant Emperor asked.


    "Majestic, solemn," Ye Futian answered in a low voice.


    "The Divine Elephant Mountain was crafted by the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions all those years ago, and it remains standing through years of turmoil," the Divine Elephant Emperor said. Ye Futian did not say anything in reply.


    "Do you know why I have invited you to come to the Divine Elephants?" the Emperor continued.


    "I have no idea." Ye Futian shook his head.


    "Some guts you have for still daring to show up." The Divine Elephant Emperor then added plainly, "Say it. How did you manage to learn the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell?"


    Ye Futian was dumbfounded as he looked at the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    "The Divine Elephants have some kind of divine art called Bonecrafting. A demon emperor, even after they have passed, will imbue every part of their body with the will of the great path still. However, Bonecrafting of the Divine Elephants allows our demon emperors to infuse their power in their bones, which will then be passed to future generations. Said bone could be planted into one''s body. With such a part imbued with towering might of the great path in their bodies, if said person were to use attacks of the Divine Elephants, it would then resonate with the bone, making their attacks even more powerful."


    The Divine Elephant Emperor then slowly continued, "But the Divine Elephant bones absolutely did not allow for direct transmission of methods, and no one outside of the Divine Elephants has ever gotten such a function out of the bones by using them. As such, you couldn''t learn the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell through such means."


    Ye Futian felt formless pressure around him. He only realized that the Divine Elephants had such special abilities then.


    "I picked it up when I was fighting before. It might be something that has to do with the bone nonetheless," Ye Futian said.


    The Emperor turned around to look at Ye Futian with a grim expression. "Do you have any idea what kind of a level that spell is at? Do you know what level of comprehension you would need just to take a look and manage to pick it up, even when it still has something to do with the bone?"


    "You don''t believe me?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I believe you." The Emperor then said plainly, "It is impossible for you to have picked the spell up from elsewhere. As such, you could have only learned it while you were fighting with Xiang Mang. You really do have immense talent. So, was that how you picked those staff techniques up as well?"


    Ye Futian''s pupils contracted. He had never expected the Divine Elephant Emperor to have linked the spell to his staff techniques.


    Seeing that Ye Futian was silent, the Emperor continued, "The reason why I didn''t bring you here before was that I heard something. You were said to be the last person the prophet met, no?"


    No one else gave that any thought before, as no one would have thought that the prophet would have passed in meditation because of a human saint cultivator. Ye Futian had only been one of the people who had been summoned by the prophet, which made him no different from the others.


    However, if he were to link how he had been able to learn Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky simply by mere observation, then the Divine Elephant Emperor would not have been able to help but to link that to something else.

 1416 Changes Outside

    Was it just a coincidence that Ye Futian was the last person who the prophet met?


    If one truly did not know him, one would not have had suspicions about anything else, even if he were supremely talented. The prophet was someone very capable and very revered in the demon realm, after all, and the prophet had met a good number of unbelievable geniuses.


    However, even top demonic beasts would have had a hard time meeting the prophet.


    That prophet definitely wouldn''t have been willing to pass just because of the talents of a member of the younger generation being extremely talented.


    If this were not a coincidence, it would have been a testament that there was more to Ye Futian than what met the eye.


    He would have had huge secrets about him, enough to move the prophet to pass on for him.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes to the Divine Elephant Emperor. He never expected to have been able to link the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell to that many things. In truth, he still was unable to fathom what made the prophet do that.


    "I do have some special abilities, which are what resulted in my extraordinarily keen comprehension. Furthermore, I indeed was the last person that the prophet met. However, the prophet simply took a look at me, and I was already out of the Prophet''s Palace. As to why the prophet has passed on, I''m just as baffled about it," Ye Futian elaborated.


    He was telling the truth.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor nodded slightly, but he wondered if it had to do with his keen comprehension.


    Just what kind of comprehension would allow a person to learn Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky with a mere look?


    It was worth noting that the spell itself was some major attack spell that exceeded Ye Futian''s plane. Even those from the Divine Elephants would require a considerable amount of time to pick it up methodically before they could develop any proficiency.


    Ye Futian was but a saint, after all, and he would not have developed such a high comprehension of the great path.


    Furthermore, the staff techniques of the apes reminded the emperor of an old friend back in the demon realm.


    He had once fought said friend many years ago, so he was very familiar with the staff techniques of said friend. While Ye Futian''s staff techniques were rather different, as it had been imbued with what he learned throughout the years, the Emperor was nonetheless able to sense some bit of familiarity with those techniques.


    When such correlations were made, Ye Futian would have been more than he claimed to be.


    If it had not been for Ye Futian being able to use Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky right away, the Emperor would not have thought of it at all.


    However, when he made connections between all those points, he was able to come to something somehow.


    "This is all such a headache," the Divine Elephant Emperor muttered to himself deep down. The mighty ones of the Divine Elephants were most versed in the ways of sheer power, and they did not like using their brains much.


    The Emperor had gotten tired of speculating.


    If that indeed turned out to be accurate, then the prophet had indeed chosen to pass in meditation instead of divulging any severe divine secrets. As such, he saw no point to dwell on the matter any further, as he knew that nothing good would come out of it.


    "The Divine Elephants are of unparalleled strength. When cultivation reaches extreme levels, we can pin down the great path of all around us. The Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions had been able to get close to the heavenly path all those years ago, enabling him to pin down a vast area with just a single step. Now that you''ve acquired the most important bone of our ancestor��the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions��and you''ve internalized it, then we can say that you''re considered to have a part of the Divine Elephants within you."


    The Divine Elephant Emperor said this to Ye Futian instead of delving on the previous matter. That lightened the pressure that Ye Futian felt considerably.


    Seems like the Divine Elephant Emperor has no intention of continuing to ask questions.


    Now that they were where the Divine Elephants were, if the Divine Elephant Emperor wanted to know something, there was no way he could have been able to hide it.


    "All demonic clans will have their extremely formidable spells passed down, and forging one''s bones is one of the ways the Divine Elephants do so. Other than the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky, which is a major attack spell, there is also another ability called Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist. This attack spell is used with absolute power. In ancient times, when all top-notch demon clans warred with each other, all had their specialties. For instance, we of the Divine Elephants were proficient in the ways of overbearing might, and there were also the likes of the Kunpeng and the Roc, who were among demonic beasts proficient in unparalleled speed, zipping about in the air. It enabled them never to be caught at a disadvantage in a confrontation."


    The Emperor then continued, "We of the Divine Elephants have created the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist, which was a major suppression spell. The spell utilizes the great path of extreme might and suppression, allowing a single punch to break the great path of Space with sheer force, pinning down a vast area. I shall now pass that spell on to you."


    Ye Futian looked at the Divine Elephant Emperor with a dumbfounded expression. That was one of the ultimate spells of the Divine Elephants, and he wondered if it would have been alright to just pass it down to him like that.


    "If there is a day when you no longer need the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions, do return it to the Divine Elephants," the Emperor continued.


    "I will, senior," Ye Futian nodded and said.


    An extremely powerful aura enveloped him as soon as he finished. It was as if he had been placed in an independent space.


    The Emperor was standing at the front. A terrifying pressure swept all over the place, and thousands of Divine Elephant shadows appeared all around the Emperor. Those shadows seemed to be about to meld with the Emperor. All force was merged within a single entity. When the Emperor clenched his fist, towering might emerged.


    A terrifying whirlpool of power seemed to have appeared before the Divine Elephant Emperor''s arm. Their surroundings felt stifling. The Emperor then took a step forward and extended his arm, throwing a punch.


    Boom...


    Stifling rumbles were heard. It was as if the space all around them had been shattered, making the attack sound like thunder.


    He then pulled his fist back and then asked Ye Futian, "Are you able to understand it?"


    "I didn''t." Ye Futian shook his head. The Emperor''s plane was just too high. The state of mind achieved when he attacked was not something Ye Futian could easily grasp.


    The Emperor did not say anything and continued to demonstrate the move to him.


    The Emperor went on to demonstrate Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky after a while. The one that Ye Futian picked up from observing Xiang Mang was of a state that was leagues different from that demonstrated by the Emperor. The state of mind imbued when the Emperor used the move was something several magnitudes of order above him.


    While Ye Futian was indeed proficient with the spell, he had not actually truly mastered it. There was still much to learn. What he was able to pick was based on the foundations laid down by Xiang Mang, and what he pulled was equal to Xiang Mang at most.


    However, such major attacks were something that could get increasingly strong as one''s training progressed.


    ...


    Time passed, and many mighty ones from the demon realm stepped into the Origin Mountains again. However, Origin Mountains had been reduced to a simple, common place, and those demons had all returned, disappointed.


    While that storm had indeed come to a close, the effects from it continued to affect cultivators from all over Heavenly Mandate Realm regardless if they were humans or demonic beasts.


    The one genius from Heavenly Mandate Dynasty who had been made the crown prince at 18 and was seldom seen had truly gone into the world to continue training, bringing extremely overwhelming might to bear on many mighty ones and defeating a great many Holiness of Nirvanas within the dynasty''s territory. He was lauded to be a supreme one from birth and was destined to be the one to succeed the Dynastic Overlord when he stepped into the pinnacle of Renhuang Plane.


    The crown prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty caused quite a commotion after going into the world, and many wondered if he was meant to be the one to be at odds with that extreme genius that Gu Tianxing created.


    There was news later that the crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty paid a visit to Brahma''s Pure Sky and sparred with some virgins there. However, they did not clash until their relations became strained, as the crown prince had his eye on Qin He��the number one virgin.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty seemed intent on letting the crown prince be paired with Qin He.


    That seemed to be something meant to take on Gu Tianxing. Gu Tianxing proposed that Gu Dongliu be married to a goddess from Brahma''s Pure Sky, thus allying with the two parties.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty seemed to out only take the first opportunity, being the first to ally with Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    But then again, there was no way the number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky would simply agree to be married.


    As such, that matter had to be put aside for the time being. It was, at the moment, but a proposal from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    They were not the ones doing something, as there were also top-notch geniuses emerging from 10,000 Divine Mountain to begin on their pilgrimage. Everyone was doing something to prepare for the future.


    More shocking news was heard soon after: the Violet Heavenly Palace had gathered cultivators from all over Heavenly Mandate Realm, and they were about to throw a grand feast in order to select a group of extraordinarily talented people to be imparted with the way of lightning.


    That time, it was open to more than just the eight orthodox forces of thunder, as every cultivator from all over the Heavenly Mandate Realm was allowed to participate. Furthermore, top-notch forces from all over the Heavenly Mandate Realm were invited.


    It was said that the Violet Heavenly Palace truly prepared to pass on the strongest great path of lightning, and there was a possibility of being selected to become the personal student of the Palace Lord right away. All top-notch figures began to foster extraordinary future generations one after another.


    One could only imagine the commotion such news caused. During usual days, a figure like the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace, who stood at the very pinnacle, was someone that people would not have the chance to meet.


    Countless ambitious cultivators attended the event, arriving at the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The humans of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were not the only ones affected, as the news caused a commotion that was just as great in the demon realm. Many top-notch mighty ones from renowned forces ventured outside, getting ready to go on a pilgrimage in the human realm.


    Countless cultivators throughout Heavenly Mandate Realm were invited to witness the event at Violet Heavenly Palace shortly after.


    When the grand event was held at Violet Heavenly Palace, Ye Futian and his people came to Celestial Demon City from Divine Elephant City. They then went to the demon emperor''s palace of Celestial Demon City.


    Zhu Yan, the Demon Emperor, received them personally. Zhu Yan then looked at those behind Ye Futian at the hall, surprised to find that the mighty ones of Divine Elephants were present. He was unable to help but quip, "Seems like you''ve earned the approval of the Divine Elephant Emperor."


    "I''m here specifically to express my gratitude, senior." Ye Futian bowed solemnly. If it had not been for Zhu Yan speaking on their behalf, things would have ended very differently.


    "That''s hardly worth mentioning. The Divine Elephant Emperor is a senior of mine, and he has his mind. No words of mine could have swayed him. You''re indeed destined to be with the Divine Elephants, given how you''ve acquired a bone of the Divine Elephant''s ancestor. You have yourself to thank for all of that," Zhu Yan waved and said. He had not been able to discern anything when he had acquired the bone, after all.


    It was indeed Ye Futian''s own doing that led to such turn of events.


    "Make yourselves at home." Zhu Yan left after saying that. Ye Futian looked at Zhu Zhao and said, "Anything worth taking note of from that place? Any news about my brother?"


    "The Heavenly Mandate Realm is very lively these days. It seems like what Gu Tianxing did to that brother of yours has made those top-notch figures unable to sit still. All geniuses from all forces are out in the world for training now. The Violet Heavenly Palace is hosting a grand event now, gathering countless mighty ones from all over the Heavenly Mandate Realm. There is even a good number of monsters from the demon realm attending it." Zhu Zhao elaborated, "As for your brother being taken away by those from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, I''ve no idea where he ended up."


    Ye Futian nodded, and Zhu Zhao asked, "So, you have any plans of staying here at the demon realm to train? Or will you be heading back there?"


    "I''ll be heading back," Ye Futian said.


    "I''m thinking of heading out there myself. Let''s go together," Zhu Zhao said. He had been looking forward to going to the world of human cultivators for a long time.

 1417 The Grand Event at Violet Heavenly Palace

    The northwestern part of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was the turf of the Violet Heavenly Palace��the supreme force of the region. The eight orthodox forces of thunder of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were all found there.


    The most renowned city in that region was no doubt the place where the Violet Heavenly Realm was at��Thunder Punishment City.


    The City was right below the Violet Heavenly Palace, and the entire city was shrouded in lightning, making the will of the great path of lightning extremely thick there.


    One only needed to look up to find flashes of lightning everywhere in that city. The Thunder Punishment City was named after the flashing lightning above.


    When the ones below cast their gaze far away, they were able to easily see the floating city hovering high above in the sky right above Thunder Punishment City itself.


    That floating city had boundless might of lightning all around it. It was as if that was where the will of the great path of lightning shrouding the entire Thunder Punishment City came from, and the floating city hung in the sky like some divine hall.


    One would be able to see that on the edge of that floating city, there seemed to be a boundlessly huge platform, and many blurry figures were gathering on it.


    That was where the supreme force of the region in the Heavenly Mandate Realm��the Violet Heavenly Palace��was found.


    Many mighty ones gathered around the Violet Heavenly Palace to participate in the grand event. There were also many cultivators coming from afar. All of them headed in the direction of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    There were many extremely powerful beings found there for many days. They were all training in various places in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and they had only been able to showcase their frightening talent due to such a grand event being held.


    "I wonder just how many students the Violet Heavenly Palace will accept in this event. I''ve heard that exceptional students from the eight orthodox forces participated in the event this time, taking the opportunity to get into the palace. Furthermore, many cultivators practiced the way of lightning here as well."


    "I don''t care about any of that. There is only one thing in my mind: will the Palace Lord take any personal students, and will any of them be able to compare to the likes of Zhan Yuan?"


    "While it is said that mighty ones are everywhere, but Zhan Yuan is of the supreme body of the great path. He was born with supreme talents in the ways of lightning. He is destined to become someone standing at the pinnacle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. How could anyone compare to him? It''s extremely difficult to get someone who can get anywhere near him already."


    People talked and lauded the one who possessed the supreme body of the great path as unbelievably dazzling��the one who stood at the very tip of a pyramid. Few throughout all top forces in Heavenly Mandate were on par with him.


    A top force could only foster one or two such figures. Getting yet another of such magnificent talents was deemed to be so unbelievably complicated that it was considered almost impossible.


    They were, however, were able to compare with geniuses of top-notch forces who came to witness the event.


    "But then again, it is said that geniuses of other pinnacle forces have shown up en masse as well. It is quite a pity that they are probably not going to fight one another," that person who sang praises to Zhan Yuan earlier continued, feeling that such a situation was a pity.


    "I''m rather curious though, how would the talents of that monster fostered by Gu Tianxing��the peerlessly extraordinary someone all those years ago��fare? Is he so powerful that the top-notch forces will begin fostering future generations just to prepare for what is to come?"


    "Gu Tianxing was the type of person who emerges once in a thousand years. That, coupled with what happened in the Origin Mountains and the younger man being the son of Gu Jiangnan, means the last descendant of the Gu Clan probably can shoot for the skies right away."


    "Even so, I don''t think he''d be so powerful that he could compare to Zhan Yuan, who possesses a supreme body of the great path," someone, who greatly admired the Violet Heavenly Palace, added.


    "That remains to be seen. I have heard things from the Origin Mountains. That young man who messed up the Purple Underground and refused to join the Violet Heavenly Palace��Ye Futian��demonstrated unbelievable talent as well. He was able to even fight with top fighters of the Divine Elephants. He was capable of using Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky��a skill unique to the Divine Elephants. He is now with the Divine Elephant Emperor."


    "That guy who messed the Violet Heavenly Palace up?"


    Someone said this but quickly scanned the place, feeling like what they said was a taboo of sorts.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was beaten in a challenge, and they had been allowed to pick anyone from their ranks, of any of four planes of sainthood, to fight people of corresponding planes. That naturally was not something to be proud of.


    "Yeah, who would have thought that a member of the younger generation who was challenging the divine mountain to see the Emperor of Purple Underground would have such immense talent? There is now also the crown prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty getting into the world in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. That one guy from 10,000 Divine Mountain, the number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky, and that descendant of Celestial Gate of Vast Sky. Who knows who among those people will be able to stand at the pinnacle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the end?"


    The ones there were not the only ones who talked. Many mighty ones throughout Thunder Punishment City were talking about the grand event as well, so much so that even the cities below Thunder Punishment City were all talking.


    Thunder Punishment City was where the Violet Heavenly Palace was located, and the city was below the palace, making it the number one city in that vast region.


    There were many cities in the surrounding areas of Thunder Punishment City, circling around that main city housing the Violet Heavenly Palace. The people of those cities were all under direct rule by those from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    All of that was part of that region''s ruling power��the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Passages in the cities leading to Thunder Punishment City and the Violet Heavenly Palace saw massive traffic of great figures from faraway lands coming.


    At that moment, there was a group of people zipping past in the air, intending to land directly inside Thunder Punishment City. They were stopped by a group of mighty ones right away, who then asked, "Mighty ones of the demons?"


    "The Sky Demon Court, about to witness the event at the Violet Heavenly Palace," an extremely sharp voice said in the air. Those people then burst through the barricade right away, and those who stopped them did not get in their way further, letting them inside Thunder Punishment City.


    All manner of great figures appeared one after another for quite some time, and everyone had gotten very used to things like that happening.


    That grand event at the Violet Heavenly Palace seemed to have become a reason for top-notch forces everywhere to gather around. After what happened back in Origin Mountains, that was the time that all of them were gathered in yet another region again.


    The Sky Demon Court was a supreme force in the demon realm, and there was, of course, no one who would have stood in their way. They continued moving forward and headed straight for the sky stairwell leading to the Violet Heavenly Palace after getting into the city to get on that floating city that hung majestically in the sky.


    The news of the arrival of the Sky Demon Court quickly spread everywhere. Supreme forces of the demon realm began to show up one after another. It looked as if things were about to get increasingly rowdy.


    As more and more mighty ones arrived, news, including rumors of all kinds, spread everywhere in Thunder Punishment City as well.


    It was said that the Divine Elephants were there as well. Furthermore, Ye Futian was not with them. Some said that Ye Futian might have had the bone of that ancestral Divine Elephant Emperor ripped out of him by the current Divine Elephant Emperor and that the Divine Elephants currently imprisoned him.


    Some said that the Divine Elephant Emperor might have killed Ye Futian.


    However, everyone was not actually all that concerned with Ye Futian. They were more concerned about the crown prince of Heavenly Mandate Realm, the number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky, as well as that last descendant of the Gu Clan.


    But then again, Ye Futian would have paid no heed to those rumors.


    At that moment, a group of people appeared somewhere right outside Thunder Punishment City. That place was the entrance to the city, and only the ones permitted entry would have been allowed to step inside the city basking in the might of the great path of lightning.


    The place was garrisoned by a massive army. Many came and reported their identities. They were then inspected before being permitted entry into the city. Despite what it looked like, that was actually considered rather lenient. In the past, getting inside Thunder Punishment City to train would have been very difficult.


    "The Seventh Swordsman, here to witness the event in Thunder Punishment City," a handsome swordsman clad in white said at that moment. His eyes shone with demonic grace, and he wore a sword on his back.


    The guard took a look at him. Countless people wanted entry into the city to witness the event, and that intention alone would not have sufficed.


    Ye Futian unleashed his aura. At the same time, lightning flashed dazzlingly about him, and that was the Infernal Thunder of Wutu.


    "I''m from somewhere under the rule of Purple Underground, and I''ve ventured into the divine mountain and gained the path of Infernal Thunder of Wutu," Ye Futian continued. Only then did the guard allow him to pass.


    Ye Futian had earned the right to enter the city.


    "So you are from somewhere under the rule of the Purple Underground, then?" a group of people called at that moment. They were being inspected as well but were granted passage right away after their identities were verified.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "We are of the Purple Underground. If you ventured into the divine mountain and have gained the way of Infernal Thunder of Wutu, why haven''t you joined our ranks?" a young man asked.


    "My training is not something worth mentioning, and I would have been an insult to the Purple Underground," Ye Futian answered.


    "I see that your will of the great path of the Infernal Thunder of Wutu is actually rather decent. You wouldn''t be anywhere near being an insult." Another one in the group added, "Since we happened to meet here, let''s travel together then."


    "Very well." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He did not expect to run into cultivators of the Purple Underground there. It was quite a coincidence.


    "You go by the name ''Seventh Swordsman,'' then? So, you''re here to witness the event as well?" a young man of the Purple Underground smiled and asked. They continued moving forward as they talked, heading towards the Thunder Punishment City, which was basking in lightning.


    "Indeed. It''s a grand event of the Violet Heavenly Palace, after all. I wouldn''t miss it for anything," Ye Futian smiled and answered.


    "Well said. Such a grand event is an extremely rare opportunity, as well. While our teachers did not request that we participate in the event, we wanted to come anyway," another at his side said. They were not the students at the core of the Purple Underground, or they would have come with their teachers instead of just showing up by themselves.


    "Brother Changqing might have been able to train in the Violet Heavenly Palace this time. I''d, of course, want to take the opportunity to see for myself just how capable he would have been," a female cultivator smiled and said.


    "Zhang Changqing?" Ye Futian looked at her and asked.


    "Is there another Brother Changqing in the Purple Underground?" The woman chuckled and continued, "It seems like you''ve heard of Brother Changqing."


    "I have; the one who withstood 900 lightning strikes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "You have ventured into the Divine Mountain of Wutu before, so you should know how great the pressure of that place was. I see that your ways of Infernal Thunder of Wutu are not weak. How many strikes were you been able to withstand when you were in there?" the woman smiled and asked.


    "A thousand," Ye Futian lowered his voice and said. The ones from the Purple Underground were all baffled.


    A thousand?


    A thousand strikes of the heavenly thunder meant that he had broken the limit, and there had only been one person capable of such a feat. That man was rather renowned all over Heavenly Mandate Realm at the moment. They had all seen what he was like in the Purple Underground. The man seemed humble but was extremely prideful, so much so that he had declined an invitation from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    That man was rumored to have messed up the Violet Heavenly Palace with his people later.


    "Just kidding. A hundred," Ye Futian smiled and said, after seeing how baffled those people were, looking carefree as he did so.


    All of them chuckled. They thought a cultivator from a territory under the rule of the Purple Underground would have been tense seeing them, yet that Seventh Swordsman seemed to have a very powerful aura, and they deemed that he was anything but weak.


    As for that man who withstood a thousand lightning strikes, some wondered if he had been even able to make it out of the Divine Elephants'' place alive.

 1418 At the Heavenly Palace

    Of course, even only inheriting 100 of the Strikes of Heavenly Thunder would make one an extremely powerful figure.


    If they had not previously seen that Ye Futian''s Infernal Thunder of Wutu was so powerful, they would not have called upon him to go with them.


    The group entered Thunder Punishment City. Ye Futian looked up into the sky and saw endless flashes of lightning. Thunder Will flowed across their bodies, making their wills tremble as it entered into them.


    His heart trembled slightly. This was the main city of the area that the Violet Heavenly Palace controlled. Thunder Will was everywhere, covering all of Thunder Punishment City. It was no wonder that the influx of population was controlled.


    If you were to cultivate in this sort of environment, endlessly bathing in Thunder Will ever since you were young, you would have an advantage over everyone else in terms of the environment you grew up in.


    In an environment like this, there would be few difficulties in becoming a Saint. As long as you were not extremely untalented and you bathed in Will ever since you were young, how could you not achieve enlightenment? As long as your state of mind was up to the task, your ability to become a Saint was not in any doubt.


    And the other top forces'' cultivation places were probably no worse off than Thunder Punishment City.


    "Brother, it was a difficult journey to Thunder Punishment City this time. Should we go and explore?" said the woman from the Purple Underworld.


    "Zijun, a great event at the Heavenly Palace is a once in a lifetime occurrence. We can''t miss it. We can explore the city after we have watched the ceremony," said a middle-aged Saint. Zijun was relatively young and had cultivated to only a rather weak level.


    "Right, I''m getting ahead of myself. We have to watch Brother Changqing enter the Violet Heavenly Palace," said Zijun with a smile. She was greatly affected by the environment of Thunder Punishment City, and she was full of respect and curiosity for it.


    "Let''s go. We are still a good ways away from the Violet Heavenly Palace," said the middle-aged man. The group sped up, their figures flashing as they moved forward. From time to time, they would look up into the distant sky. The city built upon the clouds was up there. It was grand and majestic as a temple of a god of thunder, and people could not help but be in awe of it.


    They may have been able to see it, but in reality, it was still very far away.


    Countless people were soaring through the air towards the Violet Heavenly Palace. They were all coming to observe the ceremony as well.


    "I head that the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is here," said Zijun.


    "Not only him. Qin He, the foremost lady Saint of Brahma''s Pure Sky, is here as well. And besides the most prestigious human cultivators, many powerful members of the demon families are coming to the Violet Heavenly Palace to watch the ceremony as well. Since the juniors of the Gu clan have shown up, all of the other top figures came in succession. These juniors have officially started to travel around the world," said the middle-aged man from the Purple Underworld.


    He was getting old, and he had cultivated to the level of an Unblemished Saint, so he had a clear understanding of the situation. This event taking place at the Violet Heavenly Palace was not so simple as just picking a new disciple. The significance behind it was that a new era was about to begin. The younger generation was beginning to take the stage and was getting ready to enter the Imperial Plane; they were getting ready to replace the older generation.


    Now, all of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is taking of this prince. How strong is he?" Zijun asked curiously.


    "The Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty has said that his son''s talent is worthy of respect, and he is full of confidence in him. Moreover, he was officially made a prince at the age of eighteen and has rarely appeared in public since then. It was only once he reached the Nirvana level that he started to come out more. The Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty obviously has great expectations for him. This is obviously very grating for that genius who was created by Gu Tianxing."


    "Gu Jiangnan''s son?" asked Zijun.


    "Yes. You saw him before in the Purple Underworld. He cultivated in the Lower Realms, where he proved his talent. Now, I don''t even know how powerful he is," said the middle-aged man.


    "Can he compare to the supreme body of the Great Path of the Violet Heavenly Palace?" asked Zijun. She had cultivated the Way of Thunder, and thus naturally had a special reverence for the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    "It''s hard to say." The middle-aged man frowned slightly, and thunder flashed in his eyes. Gu Tianxing was so powerful, and he had been training people for so many years, and so it was not an easy answer. This could be clearly seen from the reactions of great figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    And then there was Gu Dongliu, the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. He was certainly not inferior to Zhan Yuan at all.


    In addition, the top figures of the demon families had come out into the realm of human cultivators. Their powers were unfamiliar to human cultivators.


    But how could it be any weaker than theirs?


    "What do you think, Seventh Swordsman?" the middle-aged man asked Ye Futian. He had seen that Ye Futian was silent, and he wanted to know his opinion.


    "Truly?" asked Ye Futian.


    The middle-aged man nodded. "Of course."


    "The Purple Underworld uses a branch of the Violet Heavenly Palace''s eight great thunder methods, and so you all must have a special attachment to the Violet Heavenly Palace. You may be overestimating them," said Ye Futian. The others were shocked and stared at him. They would never have thought that he would say something so bold.


    "The Violet Heavenly Palace is at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. How could we overestimate them?" asked Zijun with a frown. This Seventh Swordsman was speaking nonsense.


    Ye Futian smiled. "Then, I will not express my opinion."


    "Please speak without hesitation," said the middle-aged man. "We will listen."


    "How does Gu Tianxing compare to the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm today?" asked Ye Futian.


    "He is stronger than them, of course," said the middle-aged man. They would concede this point.


    "If so, then Gu Tianxing''s descendant, who is also the inheritor of the Laws of Origin. Given this setup, how could the people that he trains be any worse than others? And if this is the case, then why do you regard the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm so highly?" countered Ye Futian.


    He continued softly, "Also, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Realm concealed his son for decades, so this is not just a simple comparison. On the other hand, the Violet Heavenly Palace is said to be embroiled in some disputes within the Origin Mountains, and it is also said that they have suffered grievous defeats. Those who have supreme bodies of the great path are always very superficial. Everyone regards them highly, but I don''t see them as being able to defeat the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    Everyone listened quietly and did not make any comments.


    What Ye Futian was saying made sense. However, the Violet Heavenly Palace was the ultimate inheritor of Thunder Punishment after all.


    All of the Thunder Methods in the world came from the Heavenly Palace. From this, it could be seen that the Violet Heavenly Palace was the central focus for everyone who cultivated the way of thunder.


    Thus, they were still a bit unconvinced by what Ye Futian was saying. Especially Zijun, who snorted contemptuously.


    But Ye Futian did not care. The group continued forward.


    After a while, they finally arrived below the palace. The feeling of awe grew stronger as they looked up at the distant temple of thunder. It was an astonishing sight.


    The noise was clamorous. One could see many scenes while standing outside of the Sky Stairwell. There was a sea of people there, as countless cultivators had gathered.


    At that moment, some people were walking up the Sky Stairwell. Lightning fell upon them with every step, but some of them continued forward, while others were sent flying back down the stairs, grievously wounded.


    Only those who could make their way up the Sky Stairwell of Thunder could enter the Violet Heavenly Palace and watch the ceremony.


    "A Sky Stairwell of the Great Path has various rules. The higher up you go, the harder it gets. We need to take this seriously, or we won''t earn the right to watch the ceremony," said the middle-aged man at their head. Then he started up the stairway first.


    All the cultivators of the Purple Underworld moved forward at the same time, moving up the stairwell step by step. They moved incredibly quickly. After all, the beginning was relatively easy.


    Ye Futian watched them, then stepped forward himself. He shot through the air, straight as a sword, passing the cultivators of the Purple Underworld in a flash.


    "He''s so arrogant," Zijun said quietly as she watched him. She did not shy away from saying this about him; she expressed herself naturally. If he moved up the Sky Stairwell so quickly, he would certainly pay a heavy price.


    Ye Futian turned into a sword as he flew upwards, and a terrible airflow appeared all around him. Thunder boomed and rolled across him, but it did not affect his progress in the least.


    "Huh?" The middle-aged man from the Purple Underworld watched him. It looked like they had underestimated Seventh Swordsman''s power.


    Thunder boomed as he continued forward. It seemed to be very powerful. He rushed up the stairway, flying over many stairs with each step. A roar came up from the stairway as he shot up it, moving incredibly quickly as it chased after Ye Futian.


    The other cultivators of the Purple Underworld sped up as well. As they continued forward, the thunder grew stronger and stronger. A terrible roar rang out as one of them was sent flying down the stairs.


    "Slow down!" A voice rolled down to them from up ahead of them. The rest of the cultivators of the Purple Underworld no longer forced themselves forward. They slowed down instead.


    An ugly look came over Zijun''s face as she watched the figure charging on undisturbed ahead of them. Were the cultivators of the Purple Underworld not as good as a wandering swordsman?


    They continued up, their eyes full of fierce determination. After a while, they finally reached the top of the staircase.


    When they arrived, a white-robed figure was standing there calmly, as if he had already been waiting there for a long time.


    The people from the Purple Underworld''s expressions changed as they looked at Ye Futian now. They had just watched him ascend the Sky Stairwell. It had been shocking.


    But soon, their attention was drawn to the scene before them. They gazed out into the distance.


    High up in the sky, there were several different areas. The great figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were all there.


    The central area was also the highest. A group of purple-robed figures was seated there. Their auras were overpowering.


    The Assistant Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace was seated in a place of honor in the central area. The people around him were all great figures of the Violet Heavenly Palace. They saw that even the Emperor of the Purple Underworld was only sitting to their side.


    And it was not only him. The Renhuang level figures who were the inheritors of the eight great thunder methods were all there.


    Besides them, many of the Renhuang level figures who were under the Violet Heavenly Palace''s command had come to watch as well.


    Ye Futian noticed a familiar figure. Emperor Qi was there as well. He was also an Emperor of one of the areas under the Violet Heavenly Palace''s control.


    These people represented the most powerful of the infinite territories under the Violet Heavenly Palace''s control. Almost all of the top figures were there.


    Among all these Renhuang level figures, there were only a scant few Saint level cultivators who had the right to be there. One of them was Zhan Yuan of the supreme body of the Great Path!

 1419 Pointers

    "Is that Zhan Yuan?" Several of the people from the Purple Underworld looked at the man with the supreme body of the great path. Lightning flowed over his form, bathing him in divine light. The Thunder Will falling down from the Violet Heavenly Palace fell continuously upon him. It was like he was constantly cultivating.


    "Yes, the foremost talent of the Violet Heavenly Palace, Zhan Yuan. He is an Unblemished Saint, and yet he can fight Nirvana level Saints," whispered the middle-aged man from the Purple Underworld. Their hearts beat wildly when they beheld this legendary figure. They were very familiar with his supreme body of the great path. They had heard about it countless times.


    But this was the first time they had actually seen him.


    "There are so many powerful figures here," sighed the people from the Purple Underworld. Their own clan chief was only of high enough status to sit off to the side. He was not in the center.


    More than half of the greatest figures in the land were there.


    And not all of them were from the Violet Heavenly Palace. All around the palace were people from all over.


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were on the right side of the Violet Heavenly Palace, and the people at their center had incredibly powerful auras. Even if you only caught a single glance of them, you would never forget them. One of them was a figure whose name had been heralded throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm for many years, and the other was the one who was currently the most talked about person in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The first was the most powerful person in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty besides the Divine Overlord: the Divine General. The other was the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    These were the two most important people in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty besides the Divine Overlord.


    Many of the Jiutian Goddess''s people were also there on the right side, and all of them looked stunning. Qin He was there, with her peerless style attracting everyone''s gaze.


    Everyone could not help but look at the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and Qin He. Previously, news had circulated that the Divine Overlord wished for his son to marry her, but Brahma''s Pure Sky did not want this. They would not let their foremost lady Saint marry an outsider.


    Ten Thousand Divine Mountain was there as well. One of the youths amid the crowd of people from the mountain was attracting a lot of attention. His long hair was as black as ink, and his dark eyes were deep. He was tall and broad, and gave off a powerful aura.


    His name was Gao Huang. Although he had not been kept away from society for many years like the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he had still not appeared outside many times. But he was very famous in the area around the Mountain of Celestial Divinity and was greatly admired by many people.


    It was said that Gao Huang had incredible potential and had cultivated many different abilities. He had trained in each ability to the highest level. He had integrated all these abilities together. He even gave others pointers about their cultivation when he went around in the outside world. Many people in the area around the Mountain of Celestial Divinity owed him a debt of gratitude, and thus he had a great reputation.


    Ten Thousand Divine Mountain had never announced his status to the outside world like the Divine Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had boasted of his son''s prowess by naming him a prince. Nor was he boasted of like the foremost Saint Qin He or Zhan Yuan with his supreme body of the great path.


    Gao Huang did not have such high expectations placed upon him, and so he was pretty much able to walk his own path. Now, all of the cultivators of Ten Thousand Divine Mountain assumed that Gao Huang would one day become the heir of the mountain. This would be harder for him then it would be for people like Qin He and Zhan Yuan.


    However, Gao Huang was a little older than them and had already cultivated up to the Nirvana level. He was the most powerful person in Ten Thousand Divine Mountain below the Renhuang level.


    Of the top five human forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, only the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had not come.


    This gave people a bizarre feeling. It seemed like the Violet Heavenly Palace wanted to isolate the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Or rather, their goal was to purposely target the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    The Gu family of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would never produce another Gu Tianxing.


    In fact, other than these powerful human cultivators, many powerful members of the demon clans had come as well. But the vast number of people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm were not acquainted with the cultivators from the Demon Realm, and thus they had no particular feelings towards them. They did not feel such a strong sense of astonishment when seeing them like they did when they saw the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Zhan Yuan with his supreme body of the great path.


    However, powerful demons like the golden bird of the Sky Demon Court, Kunpeng, the Golden Winged Peng Bird, the Phoenix, as well as top cultivators like the Dragon Gods and the Divine Elephants were not any weaker than the most powerful of human cultivators.


    They had come from the Demon Realm to the world of human cultivators. In some sense, they had come to the world of cultivation in preparation for the great changes in the Heavenly Mandate.


    Below all of the great forces was a massive altar with nine thunder platforms upon it. Even lower than that were all the cultivators who had come to watch. There was a sea of people there that filled the area completely.


    "Is anyone looking at we people from the Purple Underworld?" someone asked.


    "Brother Changqing is, over there," said Zijun, pleasantly surprised. They all looked towards a place among the nine thunder platforms and saw a figure there. It was indeed the most outstanding genius of the younger generation of the Purple Underworld: Zhang Changqing.


    "Let''s go." They all moved over there, making their way through the crowd of people. Before long, they had reached where they were going.


    "Why are you all here?" asked someone who saw the group of them moving through the crowd. There were so many people from the Purple Underworld gathered there.


    "All of us wanted to come and watch, so we decided to all come together," said the middle-aged man. The man who had spoken before nodded, then looked at Ye Futian. "Who is he?" he asked coldly?


    "He is Seventh Swordsman, a cultivator from the lands under the Purple Underworld''s control. He once entered Wutu Divine Mountain, so he is extraordinarily powerful," said the middle-aged man. "Seventh Swordsman, everyone here is our brothers and sisters of the Purple Underworld."


    At this point, he wanted to try and convince Ye Futian to join the Purple Underworld.


    But Ye Futian had no intention of doing so. He knew what the middle-aged man was thinking, but he just nodded casually. He did not look too interested.


    The cultivators of the Purple Underworld were naturally aware of the middle-aged man''s intentions as well. But this Seventh Swordsman seemed extremely arrogant and did not seem to want to have too much to do with them.


    They looked at Ye Futian but did not say anything. After a moment, they averted their gazes. At that moment, it could be said that cultivators had gathered there like clouds. Even a force as powerful as the Purple Underworld counted for very little in such surroundings. They were only a mid-level power, and not eye catching at all.


    In such an environment, it was only natural that people would not be paying attention to them. And besides, how could a talented cultivator like Seventh Swordsman not be proud?


    "Who is Brother Zhang Changqing''s opponent going to be?" asked Zijun as she looked up at the battle platform. A figure was standing across from Zhang Changqing with an extraordinary aura.


    "The banquet has been going on for many days already. Those who still dare to go up to the battle platform are all powerful figures. This man has cultivated a strange form of the Thunder Methods and has defeated many people in the previous battles. He is extremely powerful," said the man from the Purple Underworld.


    "As long as Brother Changqing uses all his techniques, he should not have any problems," said Zijun quietly. She had always greatly admired Zhang Changqing.


    "Let''s watch," said the man from the Purple Underworld. The battle broke out in an instant. Zhang Changqing''s Infernal Thunder of Wutu was performed at the highest degree of perfection. Peal after peal of thunder boomed, shaking everyone''s very souls.


    But his opponent was difficult to get a hold of. He was skilled in a strange form of thunder methods. His speed was incredible, and his thunder methods changed into many different forms. Several times he managed to threaten Zhang Changqing as he himself was being attacked.


    The battle between Unblemished Saints was incredibly fierce, and even the smallest misstep would be enough to cost you the match. The battle was strange and did not last very long. Zhang Changqing seized his chance to defeat his opponent, ending the fight.


    "Brother Changqing is powerful, indeed. Even at this point, he is still able to crush his opponents," said Zijun with a smile.


    "He was hurt as well," said Ye Futian.


    Zijun was stunned. She looked back at Ye Futian.


    The cultivators from the Purple Underworld who were standing in front of them looked back as well with surprised expressions. He had been able to see that!


    "It is incredibly difficult to defend against a Thunder Method attack. It is perfectly normal to take a small wound," someone said.


    Ye Futian looked at him indifferently. A small wound?


    "Zhang Changqing is very clever. If he had not intentionally taken a wound from that strange Thunder Method, he would not have been able to defeat his opponent. If they had continued to fight, the outcome would have been in doubt. Thus, he had decided to end the battle quickly. But the price he paid for this was that the Thunder Method hit him. It will probably be difficult for him to continue," said Ye Futian coolly. He did not leave the person he was talking to any room for saving face.


    "What is this nonsense?" snorted Zijun. Had he said that Brother Changqing would have a hard time continuing?


    However, one of the Nirvana level cultivators from the Purple Underworld was staring at Ye Futian. He could see that what Ye Futian had said was not far from the truth. Zhang Changqing''s opponent had been very slippery.


    "Who are you?" came a voice. Everyone turned and saw a figure coming.


    "Brother Changqing!" called ZIzun, her face full of admiration. "This is a man we ran into on the road. You don''t need to listen to his nonsense.


    "I am Seventh Swordsman," said Ye Futian indifferently. "You are indeed the most talented member of the Purple Underworld, but people from all over the area controlled by the Violet Heavenly Palace are here, and many of them are extraordinary, especially those who have fought their way to this point. Everyone who is left is a top talent. Since you took a wound in this battle, you probably will not make it much further. Of course, even so, you will still probably have proved yourself worthy to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace to cultivate."


    Zhang Changqing stared at Ye Futian. He had never heard the name Seventh Swordsman.


    However, the fact that he dared to give pointers to his better showed just how arrogant he was.


    But he had to admit that what Ye Futian had said was true.


    "The people at all levels fighting elsewhere all seem to be quite strong, so we must be reaching the end of this grand event," Ye Futian murmured. "But as long as they can enter the Violet Heavenly Palace, it will be enough. It is just not as glorious as an actual victory."


    "Have you also cultivated the Thunder Methods?" Zhang Changqing was staring at Ye Futian. If he took a wound at the end, and even though he was able to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace he was not able to make it to the final fight, he would still count it as a loss. If the other forces that cultivated the eight great Thunder Methods made a more outstanding display than him, his Master would lose face.


    But as far as he knew, there were several people there who were better than him.


    "Of course," said Ye Futian.


    "Then let me see your Thunder Methods," said Zhang Changqing.


    "Brother!" Many people looked at him, not understanding what he intended. A look of surprise came over the faces of some of those who were older than him.


    Ye Futian reached out, and suddenly, a terrible aura spread out from the palm of his hand. Dark thunder rolled out like the light of death, making everyone suddenly feel cold.


    Zhang Changqing narrowed his eyes when he felt this will. He stared at Ye Futian. There was, of course, no way that he could know that the man before his eyes had appeared before him many times in the past!

 1420 Replace

    Zhang Changqing stared at Ye Futian, feeling the light from the dark thunder overhead. His face fell, and he said, "You are not at a high enough level."


    Ye Futian looked back at him calmly, and let his internal will spread out. It swept out in an instant as light flowed all across him. His will did not have a single flaw, like a piece of beautiful, unblemished jade. It had reached perfection.


    After returning from cultivating with the Divine Elements, he was now Unblemished.


    Zijun and the other cultivators looked at him in shock. Their eyes narrowed. This guy had hidden his power and had pulled the wool over their eyes. They had not seen how powerful he was.


    He was so young for an Unblemished Saint. He was clearly extremely talented. Moreover, he seemed to be a swordmaster, but he had also trained in thunder magic as well as the Great Path of Death.


    He was well trained in many skills and understood many law powers.


    Zhang Changqing felt Ye Futian''s power. He had not been on the Unblemished Saint plane for very long, and thus his aura was not that thick. However, it was still extremely potent.


    He raised his hands, and a horrible crack of thunder burst from his palms. He stepped forward, pressing his hands towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his hands as well, and they smashed into his opponent''s. Terrible thunder rolled across their hands as they pressed their attacks as much as possible. Terrible energy formed between their hands. It was difficult to control so much power in such a small area. They squeezed out as much power as they possibly could, and the destructive energy grew even more fierce.


    As the cultivators of the Purple Underworld watched from all around, they released their auras one by one, cutting themselves off from the awful power. They saw that the two men''s robes were not even blowing in the wind.


    "Cough..." a line of blood trickled down from Zhang Changqing''s mouth. His internal organs were trembling violently. A dull noise rang out as he stepped back. He looked at his hands and saw that they had turned black as Death Will wrapped around them.


    He looked at Ye Futian again, and his expression was unchanged. There was not the slightest trace of disturbance on his face.


    This made the hearts of the people around them from the Purple Underworld beat faster. How strong was this Seventh Swordsman?


    ZIjun''s expression changed as well. Zhang Changqing was the foremost talent of the Purple Underworld, and she had always held him in high esteem. And yet his Thunder Methods had been overpowered?


    "You see?" Ye Futian said to Zhang Changqing. "The world is large. There are many cultivators that you do not know, but they are not necessarily weak. Many of the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had gathered here in the Violet Heavenly Palace. You must have seen many of the other powerful figures here. It will be difficult for you to advance."


    Zhang Changqing stared at Ye Futian, and then his face fell. "Do you wish to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace?"


    Ye Futian did not answer him. He looked up high in the sky, where a group of great figures was seated. From their high vantage point, they could overlook the whole scene.


    When he saw Ye Futian''s expression, Zhang Changqing understood. Of all the cultivators who studied the Thunder Methods, which of them did not want to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace?


    All of the Thunder Methods in the world came out of the palace.


    This was an extremely rare opportunity, where you could display your ability and receive the favor of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    It was only reasonable for wanderers like Seventh Swordsman to come here.


    "You may enter in the name of the Purple Underworld. I will go and ask our Master if we can make an exception and have you replace me," said Zhang Changqing to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Zhang Changqing with no emotion in his deep eyes. "Excellent," he said softly.


    It seemed that Zhang Changqing was a man who knew his limits.


    This way, he would fulfill his purpose in accompanying the Purple Underworld here.


    "Changqing!" called a Nirvana level cultivator from the Purple Underworld. This was an extremely rare opportunity. Even though he was injured, Zhang Changqing could still fight. This was a chance to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace. It would be a pity if he gave up now.


    "You are right," said Zhang Changqing. "I will have a hard time showing my strengths in the next battle. It would be better to step down and allow more worthy fighters to take the stage than to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace in a way like this." He stared at Ye Futian. "I hope you won''t disappoint me."


    Upon saying this, he turned and left.


    The fighting was already in its late stages, and there were not many matched going on anymore. Most of the fighters that he might face next were people that he was familiar with. They had come from other forces that followed the Eight Great Thunder Methods. He knew their strength very well. Even if he had been at full strength, he would have no assurance of victory. Now that he was injured, victory would be even more difficult.


    If he had been the one arranging the fights, then the next opponent that the Violet Heavenly Palace matched him with would be someone from one of the top forces that followed the Eight Great Thunder Methods. If he lost, he would not necessarily be able to enter the palace. Moreover, the Purple Underworld would lose face.


    This grand event was a meeting between the great forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but it was also a struggle between the forces that followed the Eight Great Thunder Methods.


    Ye Futian stood their calmly, watching the large Thunder Platforms.


    There were great stirrings in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The best human and demon cultivators were coming out one after another with a will to fight. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace wanted to form an alliance to deal with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The Heavenly Mandate Realm might come to misfortune.


    He needed to earn a place among those powerful figures before that misfortune came.


    Only in this way could he influence some of the great powers.


    "Why didn''t you enter the Violet Heavenly Palace?" Zijun asked Ye Futian. He had said that he had been to Divine Mountain, and he had shown such outstanding talent here. So why had he not already entered the Violet Heavenly Palace?


    "Why would I want to enter the palace?" countered Ye Futian. Zijun''s face paled. She had no response.


    If Brother Changqing had been willing to give up his place for this man, what could she say?


    Ye Futian turned his gaze, no longer looking at her. After a little bit, Zhang Changqing returned, saying, "The master has agreed to put forward my request, but we don''t know if it will be accepted. We must wait for a while."


    At that moment, Ye Futian could feel someone looking at him. He turned and looked up at the high platform. A figure there was staring directly at him. It was the Emperor of the Purple Underground.


    "It is not a problem if you want to fight. If you have any strength, you had better show it," said the Emperor of the Purple Underground. He wasn''t worried about whether or not Ye Futian was plotting something. Even if he was very talented, he was just a Saint level figure. Would he really dare plot against a Renhuang?


    He could not imagine anyone doing this.


    At that moment, an elder upon the Thunder Platform said, "The first fighter is Wang Xiao of God-slaughtering Mountain. Zhang Changqing of the Purple Underground was wounded and has forfeited his right to fight, and has asked his fellow disciple Seventh Swordsman to replace him."


    "Replace him?"


    Everyone looked surprised. Wang Xiao and Zhang Changqing were the two best people to display the power of the Eight Thunder Methods.


    Wang Xiao was the best Saint level disciple of God-slaughtering Mountain and had forged extremely powerful Demonic Thunder of Lushen. And Zhang Changqing was the genius of the Purple Underground.


    Now, Zhang Changqing had forfeited and had asked someone from the Purple Underground that no one had ever heard of to fight in his place.


    Was Zhang Changqing a coward?


    Perhaps he was indeed wounded and knew that it would be impossible to continue, and that was why he had forfeited.


    Zhang Changqing''s forfeit implied that the Purple Underground had given up. This Seventh Swordsman was probably just being used as a stopgap to make up for the awkwardness of Zhang Changqing stepping down.


    Many of the disciples of God-slaughtering Mountain. Even the Master of God-slaughtering Mountain looked at the Emperor the Purple Underground beside him and asked, "Did Zhang Changqing come here to ask you for permission to give up?"


    "Zhang Changqing took a wound, but he found someone to take his place, so it is all the same," said the Emperor of the Purple Underground.


    "But I have never heard of Seventh Swordsman. Are you just sending out someone to save face?" asked the Master of God-slaughtering Mountain.


    "Watch and see." The Emperor of the Purple Underground''s expression did not change. Up upon the massive Thunder Platform, powerful demonic thunder was flowing over Wang Xiao''s body, making a wild burst of lightning appear on the battle platform that was sealed by matrices. It was incredibly terrifying.


    Ye Futian stepped onto the Thunder Platform as well. Only a few people in the crowd were watching him.


    "Zhang Changqing does not even have the power for one more fight. Since he wanted to give up, why not simply forfeit? Why did he have you come here to waste my time?" said Wang Xiao as he watched Ye Futian. Peals of black demonic thunder roared, falling all around Ye Futian, forming a cage of destructive thunder all around him.


    Ye Futian drew his sword. As it came out, thunder flashed up into the sky.


    Bang! Ye Futian stepped forward, holding his sword in both hands. Suddenly, heavy and dark swords of deadly lightning flew around him. Demonic thunder fell from the sky, making fierce crashing sounds.


    Boom!


    Demonic thunder entered him, flowing through his body with a loud roar. But it did not threaten him.


    He swept his sword through the sky, pulling thousands of catastrophes into it. Lightning flashed in the air, dazzling everyone who was watching. Countless swords appeared, flowing all around Ye Futian. A terrible flow of deadly Qi flowed within each sword.


    Wang Xiao felt how threatening Ye Futian was. He floated up, commanding thunder to fall from the sky. A peal of terrible demonic thunder fell with the power to destroy someone''s spiritual willpower.


    Ye Futian waved his hand, and his swords shot out, splitting through the demonic thunder.


    The lightning was split down the middle. This was the Way of Space.


    "Go!" shouted Ye Futian, and suddenly the thousands of swords shot out towards Wang Xiao.


    "Boom!" Wang Xiao wrapped himself in an armor of dark demonic thunder. He thrust out his fists with incredible strength, and the sky seemed to crack as the swords that were flying towards him shattered.


    But the endless sword will continued to fly through the sky. Wang Xiao gave a great cry, and the phantom of a thundering god of war appeared behind him. It thrust out its fist, making the sky shake.


    The swords surrounding him were endless. Death Will covered the sky, allowing no life to exist. Wang Xiao''s face grew darker. This was too much for him to bear.


    He stepped into the sky, then shot upwards, trying to escape the area.


    Ye Futian pointed towards him. The swords that were shooting towards him contained the power of the Great Path.


    Cracking sounds rang out, one after another. Each sword was more powerful than the last. Wang Xiao seemed to be trapped in a sword pattern. It would be difficult for him to break out.


    "That..." Everyone gasped as they watched the fight between Ye Futian and Wang Xiao with trembling hearts.


    The foremost talent of the Purple Underground had not forfeited?


    How could his replacement be even stronger than him? He was crushing Wang Xiao so badly that he had no power to fight back!

 1421 Li Ba

    The Emperor of the Purple Underground looked at Ye Futian in surprise as well. He had defended against the thunder with his sword. It seemed like a skill from the Golden Clan. The thunder in his sword contained both the Infernal Thunder of Wutu with its overwhelming attack power and the extremely frightening Death Lightning.


    However, this was not the Violet Thunder of Shengmie, one of the eight Thunder Methods.


    He had never thought that there was someone so outstanding in the lands he ruled. There were many incredible talents in the world of cultivators. This one had probably kept his abilities hidden in the past, but now he probably wanted to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace. Thus he had come out, using the power of the Purple Underground to advance himself.


    Of course, he did not care. As long as Seventh Swordsman''s display was good enough, it would bring honor to the Purple Underground.


    Beside him, the Master of God-slaughtering Mountain watched his disciple being crushed. He looked at the Emperor of the Purple Underground and said, "It seems that you hid that one very well."


    "Seventh Swordsman is just one cultivator among many in the Purple Underground. Why should I deliberately hide him? However, his strength is a little surprising. It seems like your disciple doesn''t even have a chance to counterattack." The Purple Emperor was gladdened by what the Master of God-slaughtering Mountain had said, and so he deliberately tried to make him angry.


    This guy was usually haughty and arrogant. It felt good to be able to trample on his prestige a little bit now.


    "Your disciple Zhang Changqing forfeited and asked this one to take his place. He merely waited until the end so that all his opponents would be exhausted. It is a good trick," snorted the Master of God-slaughtering Mountain. Of course, in reality, he knew from the disparity in power that the two fighters were displaying that even if Seventh Swordsman had not waited until his opponent was tired, the battle would still be the same. The outcome was not in any doubt.


    Ye Futian slashed his sword through the sky, graceful as a flowing cloud. He formed a sword matrix, and the Great Path Rules entered into his sword. He continued to bring his sword down, crushing Wang Xiao of God-slaughtering Mountain even further.


    Boom!


    A loud noise rang out as Wang Xiao was sent flying backward. He slammed into the wall of light around the Thunder Platform. All of the swords moved together, shrieking towards him with a fierce whistling sound.


    The outcome of this battle was not in any doubt. He would definitely be crushed.


    Everyone watched Ye Futian with surprise. "Who is this man? Wang Xiao of God-slaughtering Mountain is being dominated. He does not even have the strength to fight back."


    "He''s someone from the Purple Underground," said some of the ones who were discussing this. "Zhang Changqing forfeited, and he showed up. He must have gotten here late. But he is powerful and skilled in many different methods." This battle had obviously attracted a lot of attention.


    Zhang Changqing stood among the crowd of people below the Thunder Platform, watching Ye Futian''s brilliant display. He was a bit troubled by this. What Ye Futian was doing was everything that he had wanted to do, but he had not been able to do it. Now, Ye Futian was taking all the glory.


    It was possible that he would not enter the Violet Heavenly Palace to cultivate. Seventh Swordsman might replace him.


    But he had no regrets. It would be better to stay in the Purple Underground and continue to cultivate rather than being embarrassed here as he tried to force his way into the Violet Heavenly Palace. Thus, he would give this chance to Seventh Swordsman, as this also had the benefit of making the Purple Underground look good. He hoped that Seventh Swordsman would bring them great honor.


    After Ye Futian came down, Zhang Changqing looked at him and said, "Not bad. It seems that you are already ready."


    The people from the Purple Underground who had come here with Ye Futian looked at him in shock as well. Seventh Swordsman had walked alongside them so he could use their position to get into this feast, and thus have a chance to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    In that case, he had used them all.


    Zijun''s face darkened. No wonder he had been so cold and arrogant. But Ye Futian was so strong. Zhang Changqing and the rest of them had all witnessed it. So she could not say anything.


    "There are not many people left at the Unblemished level. If you win about three more battles, you can probably make it to the final battle. How sure are you of victory?" Zhang Changqing asked Ye Futian.


    There were nine Thunder Platforms here. There were four on each side, corresponding to the four tiers of the Saint plane. The four tiers would all fight at the same time. So many people had been eliminated over the past few days, so those who were left over could truly be said to be powerful figures.


    In the end, the final victors of each of the platforms on both sides would face each other in a final battle on the platform in the center.


    Based on how grand this occasion was, most of the people there assumed that the four cultivators who made it to the final battle would probably be directly accepted as disciples of the Violet Heavenly Palace, at least in name. As for how much favor they could win, it would depend on just how talented they were.


    "I am completely sure," said Ye Futian calmly.


    Zhang Changqing felt himself twitch at Ye Futian''s casual words. He was so confident in himself that it was almost crazy. He dared to say that he was sure of victory.


    But Ye Futian was indeed powerful.


    "Before you reach the final battle, your greatest opponent will be Li Ba of the Li clan in Thunder Punishment City. It is said that he is a cultivation genius. He has made it to the Saint level, but he is quite inexperienced, as he has spent all his time cultivating. He has been immersed in thunder ever since he was young. He is not wise in the ways of the world, and so even though Thunder Punishment City is right below the Violet Heavenly Palace, his family never sent him there to study. But now, the Li family vows to seize this chance to show the world how talented Li Ba is in the Way of Thunder by having him directly enter the Violet Heavenly Palace. If he can do so, he will be able to focus on nothing else but cultivation once again," Zhang Changqing told Ye Futian. "Even if I were at full strength, I would not have a chance against Li Ba.


    He was not being modest. He was just very aware of the gap between them.


    Li Ba was one of the most highly regarded Unblemished Saint here. There was probably no one here who could compare with him. If Ye Futian wanted to make it to the final battle, he would have to surpass him. This would be extremely difficult.


    "Are you reminding me?" Ye Futian looked at Zhang Changqing. "If you faced me when you were at full strength, you would not have a chance either."


    "It''s good that you are confident. I hope that you can make it to the final battle. And it would naturally be even better if you could win the final battle," said Zhang Changqing. If a member of the Purple Underground could enter the VIolet Heavenly Palace, it would make for a great story, and it would be beneficial to them as well.


    Seventh Swordsman may not have been a disciple of the Purple Underground, but he had taken the identity of one to replace him in the last battle, so there was no difference.


    Ye Futian still seemed extremely cold and distant. He watched the battles upon the Thunder Platforms, ignoring Zhang Changqing. This made the other disciples of the Purple Underground unhappy. This guy may have been powerful, but his arrogance was simply ridiculous. He did not pay any attention to them at all.


    Zhang Changqing was a great talent, but in Ye Futian''s eyes, it was like he did not even exist. He ignored him in every way possible.


    After a while, Ye Futian fought in his second battle. His swords flashed through the sky, and he once again crushed his opponent. It was very similar to what had happened in the first battle.


    This made many more people take notice of Ye Futian. Previously, most of the people there had thought that Li Ba was without equal on this side of the Thunder Platforms and that no one would put up a good fight.


    Now, it looked like Seventh Swordsman of the Purple Underground had the potential to offer him a good fight.


    Ye Futian was watching how Li Ba fought.


    He was strong, extremely strong. He crushed his opponents in an overwhelming fashion. No wonder someone as strong as Zhang Changqing had said that even if he were at full strength, he would have no chance against him.


    Li Ba achieved absolute victory over many of the cultivators from the Purple Underground. Given his strength, there was no doubt that he would become a disciple of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The Li family of Thunder Punishment City hoped that he would be personally taught by the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Even if he could not achieve that, he could at least be trained by the Vice Palace Lord. Given Li Ba''s personality, this was the only way that they could avoid offending him.


    As the battle continued, practitioners of all of the Eight Thunder Methods all showed their skills, but Seventh Swordsman from the Purple Underground persevered.


    Even the cultivators of the Purple Underground were paying attention to Ye Futian now. The Vice Palace Lord asked the Clan Leader of the Purple Underground, "This Seventh Swordsman is quite strong. Did he study under you?"


    The Emperor of the Purple Underground felt a little bit of trepidation, and so he did not respond. Previously, Ye Futian had used the Purple Underground''s name to participate in the battles, and he had told everyone that he looked on Seventh Swordsman as a disciple. If he told the Vice Palace lord that he was not a disciple now, that would mean that he had been tricking a Renhuang level cultivator from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    He had not thought that Seventh Swordsman was so strong that the Vice Palace Lord would ask about him.


    "Seventh Swordsman has been cultivating in the outside world, so I have not taught him much." The Emperor of the Purple Underground had to lie.


    "Ah. He is good enough to enter our palace," said the Vice Palace Master."


    "Congratulations to the Purple Underground," said the other clan leaders up on the platform. The Vice Palace Lord had spoken, and so there was no longer any question of whether or not Seventh Swordsman would be able to enter the palace.


    Moreover, there would probably be many Renhuang level cultivators willing to teach him.


    The other clan leaders were a bit unhappy, but they still congratulated him. After all, Seventh Swordsman''s status would soon change.


    "Zhan Yuan, what do you think of him?" the Vice Palace Lord asked the man beside him.


    "He is skilled in many different methods, and he is very balanced. He is very strong, which is why he has been able to win so many battles in a row. However, he has not shown off any skills that give him an absolute assurance of victory. In this way, Li Ba is stronger than him," said Zhan Yuan.


    "Mm," The Vice Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace nodded. Zhan Yuan''s evaluation was excellent. Seventh Swordsman was good at everything, But he was not an absolute master of all these varied skills. It could only be said that he had a huge advantage. But to truly be the best, he had to be utterly outstanding in every respect.


    Li Ba could do this. If this were all that Seventh Swordsman could do, then Li Ba would surely defeat him.


    The two of them continued to chat casually. "What about the fighters of the other levels? How are they?" asked the Vice Palace Lord.


    After a while, all of the battles on the Thunder Platforms reached their climax. Almost all of them were epic showdowns.


    "Li Ba of Thunder Punishment City, and Seventh Swordsman of the Purple Underground, step onto the platform," came a voice that drew everyone''s gaze.


    A burly and overbearing figure flew up to the Thunder Platform. Terrifying purple lightning wrapped around him. His bare arms were corded with powerful muscles. A single glance at him gave everyone a feeling of overwhelming power.


    Everyone was watching. They were all very interested in this battle. Li Ba had a very distinctive personality. There were very few people like him on his level, and thus he attracted a lot of attention!

 1422 Extremely Rare

    Ye Futian alighted upon the Thunder Platform as well. Li Ba cast his gaze over him, and overwhelming Thunder will shot out of his eyes, making Ye Futian feel an overwhelming sense of pressure.


    Li Ba watched him with a look of total superiority. And it was not just Ye Futian that he felt superior to; he had felt superior to all of the opponents that he had faced earlier.


    Boom! Thunder boomed as it fell from the sky towards Ye Futian.


    But he stood there calmly. The terrifying thunder fell upon him, washing over his body and flowing around him before it disappeared into nothing.


    Mighty Thunder Will was gathering in the air above the Thunder Platform until it formed a massive image of a god of thunder. Li Ba stepped forward, and the Thunder Will entered into him. He looked at Ye Futian with his lightning-filled eyes, and suddenly, a massive bolt of lightning shot out, locking on to Ye Futian.


    A fierce roaring sound rang out as the massive bolt of lightning smashed into Ye Futian. But he was still standing there. He seemed so small under that giant bolt of lightning, but he still bore the brunt of the assault with nothing but his body.


    "Could his flesh really be so strong?" Everyone looked shocked. It may have only been a will attack, but it had been an extremely powerful one. A Thunder Will attack like that would have shattered an average person of Ye Futian''s level. How could they withstand it like he had?


    It seemed like this Seventh Swordsman might be able to withstand Li Ba.


    Because of this, all of the other cultivators suddenly became interested in the fight.


    "Your attack was too weak." Ye Futian''s body was bathed in divine thunder. He floated up into the sky, brilliant sword will flowing all around him.


    Li Ba was best at attacking. The Thunder Method that he had practiced the most was Sky Booming Thunder, which was able to destroy someone''s body and soul. But Ye Futian had dared to say that his attack had been too weak.


    Overwhelming lightning flashed in Li Ba''s eyes. A mighty divine aura descended, and endless divine thunder gathered together on the Thunder Platform. The figure of a mighty war god of thunder appeared, then was absorbed into Li Ba''s body, making him turn into a war god of thunder himself.


    Not only that, but a Thunder Hammer also appeared in his hands. Thunder boomed, as endless lightning gathered together within the hammer. Both life spirits released their power at the same time, and in that instant, Li Ba seemed to no longer be a human being of flesh and blood. He seemed like a god.


    Boom! A terrible peal of thunder rang out, making everyone''s eardrums tremble. Ye Futian could feel the blood roiling in this veins as his Spiritual Will was shaken.


    Li Ba was taking this fight seriously and putting forth his most powerful techniques. Just the sound of all that thunder would have been difficult for ordinary people at their level to bear.


    At that moment, it seemed like Ye Futian was standing under the foot of a god. All the pressure up in the sky was bearing down on him.


    Everyone shook their heads. "This guy dared to mock Li Ba for having weak attacks." He must have been crazy. Who could bear an attack from Sky Booming Thunder? Even those who were watching from the sidelines felt themselves going numb from all the power.


    Ye Futian felt the pressure as well. Li Ba was one of the greatest geniuses of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. His Thunder method was top notch as well. When you added his natural talent to that, any one of his attacks would be difficult for any opponent to bear.


    Woosh!


    The sound of shrieking swords screamed out from all around Ye Futian. The swords around him lowed in a strange pattern, making the sword will grow stronger and stronger. Many ancient characters appeared and then turned into a massive divine sword that pointed up into the sky.


    A sharp snapping sound rang out, and the sword that had formed out of ancient characters flashed with eye-piercingly brilliant light.


    Boom!


    Thunder crashed as Li Ba stepped up into the sky. The Sky Booming Thunder rolled downwards menacingly, trying to crush everything in the area.


    "Go."


    Ye Futian pointed into the sky, and all of the divine swords that had formed shot through the air, slamming into the falling thunder. In an instant, a shocking destructive power exploded out from where they smashed together.


    The massive Thunder Hammer fell through that devastating power. Lightning wrapped around the hammer-like countless chains, giving it infinite destructive power.


    The swords flashed through the air, flowing along using the power of the Rules of the Great Path as they shot towards the falling lightning.


    There was one more huge sword right above Ye Futian. It drew upon the endless sword will, and shot straight up straight into the sky.


    Boom!


    A huge crack appeared in the sword as it struck the hammer. Brilliant light flashed out wildly. Each beam of light looked like a sword.


    There was a loud noise as the huge sword shattered into nothingness. But in that instant, a figure appeared in the air in front of the hammer. It was Ye Futian. He appeared right in front of the massive Thunder God, another sword in his hand.


    The Thunder God looked at him, and terrible lightning shot out towards him.


    But in that instant, Ye Futian turned into a beam of light and shot right through his opponent''s attack, shooting towards him at incredible speed.


    Crack! Powerful lightning armor appeared upon the Thunder God''s body. Obviously, Li Ba knew that Ye Futian wanted to avoid a direct collision with him. He tried to use his physical strength to take advantage of his weaknesses.


    Frightening sword will seeped out of Ye Futian''s eyes. The endless will wrapped around him. It descended in an instant, piercing towards the Thunder God''s forehead.


    A terrible bolt of lightning shot towards him, but the sword split it in two.


    Slash!


    The sword struck his forehead, but it could not pierce through it instantly. Powerful Thunder Will was seeping out of his forehead, and it covered Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had a cold and sharp look on his face as the thunder rumbled through him. His arms contained infinite power that flowed into his sword.


    Crack!


    The sword penetrated his forehead, and destructive power flowed out of it wildly. Everyone''s expression changed as they watched this, especially those from the Li family of Thunder Punishment City.


    There was a loud noise as the huge image of the Thunder God disappeared, and a figure was sent flying backward.


    As his life spirit was retracted, Li Ba''s original form reappeared. Blood was flowing from his forehead as he stared at Ye Futian.


    Boom! The Thunder Hammer appeared in the sky once again with all of its overwhelming power.


    Li Ba reached out to control it, but Ye Futian''s figure flashed, and he disappeared. He reappeared right in front of Li Ba in an instant.


    He thrust his sword forward.


    Li Ba roared, and thunder shot out from his fist with overwhelming power.


    The sword fell upon his fist, which was as strong and sharp as a soldier''s, but Ye Futian was powerful as well. He had been training his body all along and had cultivated the power of the Divine Elephants. Just his raw strength was impressive, and it was even more so when it was put into his sword.


    Blood appeared on Li Ba''s fist, and the sound of his veins burst in his arm could be heard. But the fist did smash into Ye Futian''s sword, and the lightning struck him, flowing all over his body.


    "Look, Zhan Yuan," said the Vice Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace. "This man''s attack and defensive power are all top-notch. Now, look at Li Ba. His attack power is impressive, but as long as you can block his most powerful attacks, then you can target his weak points."


    "Mm." Zhan Yuan nodded. "This is indeed most unexpected. Seventh Swordsman''s sword is stronger than his lightning. It seems that since Li Ba focused on cultivating the Thunder Methods, he is weaker than him in many aspects."


    "Li Ba has been defeated utterly. It looks like the best Unblemished Saint will turn out to be Seventh Swordsman," said the Vice Palace Lord with a smile. "If you fought him, how much of your strength would you have to use?"


    "About half of my strength," answered Zhan Yuan. Li Ba''s attacks have flaws. Otherwise, there would be no way to defeat him."


    "Mm. Once he enters the palace and receives some of our teachings, they will become perfect. If he can forge his Thunder Method Matrix to be compatible with his Thunder Hammer, he will be on a whole new level," said the Vice Palace Lord with a smile. Li Ba may have been defeated, but if his potential was cultivated, he would be no weaker than Seventh Swordsman. He was a good prospect.


    "Also, once these two enter the palace, we will need to suppress their arrogance. When that time comes, I leave it to you," said the Vice Palace Lord. Zhan Yuan nodded. If the two of them were well trained then in the future they could become his two greatest assistants.


    Many of the other people from the great powers were discussing how powerful Ye Futian was and comparing him to their own disciples.


    "The Purple Underground has a good disciple," said someone beside the Emperor of the Purple Underground. He was a little bit bitter, having heard the tone of praise that the Vice Palace Lord had when he spoke of Seventh Swordsman.


    The Emperor of the Purple Underground smiled but said nothing.


    Upon the Thunder Platform, Li Ba was staring at Ye Futian. His aura rose around him, and his expression was cold.


    "If you had directly tried to resist my attack, you would be the one who lost," said Li Ba coldly.


    Ye Futian looked at him, then turned to leave. Before he walked away, he said, "If I had directly resisted your attack, you would have lost even worse."


    Once he said this, his figure flashed, and he flew down off the platform.


    Li Ba watched him leave in disbelief.


    If he had directly resisted his attack, he would have lost even worse?


    How was that possible?


    Ye Futian had purposely avoided his attack and targeted his weak point.


    "After we enter the palace, I will find you again for another fight," he called down to Ye Futian below him.


    Ye Futian did not approve of this, and so he did not reply. He was not going to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    But given Li Ba''s strength, there was no doubt that he would be able to enter the palace.


    The battles on the other platforms continued, each of the different levels holding their fights at the same time. It was the last fight before the final battle, and the cultivators who were left were all extremely powerful.


    Finally, the battles on the eight Thunder Platforms ended, and there were only eight people left. Everyone was talking about them, and guessing who would win in each of the four tiers of the Saint plane.


    "The eight people who are left are all quite strong, but none of them has a supreme body of the Great Path," said the divine general of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The people around him all nodded.


    Indeed, people who had supreme bodies of the Great Path were extremely rare!

 1423 Admiration

    Thunder fell from the sky upon the platforms in the Violet Heavenly Palace, converging upon the central Thunder Platform.


    A powerful Renhuang level figure walked to the center. He closed his hands, and endless divine lightning converged towards one place. The nine Thunder Platforms merged together, forming one huge platform. Thunder will flowed down from the sky upon the platform, suffusing it with lightning.


    "The eight people who are left will now stand around the platform," said the Renhuang level figure. Eight figures stepped forward and walked up to the curtain of light that surrounded the platform. Their levitating bodies were bathed in Thunder Will, and their auras grew even stronger.


    Ye Futian was naturally among them.


    The cultivators of the Divine Elephants gazed at him. When he had been cultivating with them, the Divine Elephant Emperor had personally trained him. Most of the cultivators of the Divine Elephants did not know the reason for this, but Ye Futian was indeed frighteningly powerful. He had learned their Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky and Divine Elephant Void Splitting Fist techniques, and had trained himself in the Divine Elephant Massive Power. Additionally, he had learned many other techniques.


    Later, there had been friction between him and Xiang Mang, but every time they fought, it seemed like Ye Futian had restrained himself from using his full power. Even so, he had still been able to deal with Xiang Mang, which showed how incredible his combat ability was. Many of the Divine Elephants even mistakenly thought that Ye Futian was one of them.


    After Ye Futian left, the Divine Elephant Emperor''s orders had shocked them.


    Now, he had taken the identity of Seventh Swordsman, and he was just as powerful. He was still not exerting all of his powers, like the techniques he had learned from the Divine Elephants, his staff techniques, his starry spells, and more.


    One of the great figures of Ten Thousand Divine Mountains turned to Gao Huang beside him and asked, "Who do you think is the strongest of these eight people?"


    When he asked who was "strongest," he did not mean in terms of physical power. He was speaking of the differences in their levels.


    Gao Huang naturally knew what he meant. He watched the eight people by the Thunder Platform with his deep, dark eyes. "The seventh Swordsman," he said. "The one from the Purple Underground who defeated Li Ba."


    "Why do you think it is him?" said the man beside him. "The one from the Nirvana level and the Saint of True Self are outstanding as well. Perhaps they are not as good as Zhan Yuan with his supreme body of the Great Path, but if they have the chance to study at the Violet Heavenly Palace, they will not be much weaker than him. They have great potential."


    "Because he is the only one that I can''t see right through," said Gao Huang softly. The man he was talking to nodded slightly. That was true. The other seven were strong, but they had all revealed their most powerful abilities in their previous fights. But even in his fight with Li Ba, it had not been clear if Seventh Swordsman was pushing himself to the limit.


    Beside them, the Divine General of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked at the cultivator from Ten Thousand Divine Mountain. Then he turned to the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and said, "What do you think, Your Highness?"


    "They are all the same to me." Brilliant light flashed in the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s eyes. His voice light and casual, but it was still full of power.


    The Divine General smiled. He knew what he had meant by saying they were all "the same."


    Indeed, His Highness always said that the Prince was a supreme talent. All of these fighters would be the same when facing him.


    If they fought him, they would be crushed.


    The number of people who could face him in the Heavenly Mandate Realm could be counted on one hand. There were probably not more than three.


    His main opponent was probably that genius who had been built up by Gu Tianxing. The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had not come today, but it was easy to imagine that the genius that had been created out of the heavens and the earth by Gu Tianxing would be an extremely formidable foe.


    "Begin."


    The Divine General of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty watched as two Doctrine Saints stepped onto the platform one after another. A great hubbub broke out below them.


    One of the two Doctrine Saints was fro one of the top forces of Thunder Punishment City, and the other one was an extremely young cultivator who had come from far away. He was very talented and had a deep understanding of Thunder Will. Many people admired him and thought that he had a lot of potential.


    The battle started, and in the end, it was the cultivator from the top force in Thunder Punishment City who won. His opponent had not been any less talented than him and was maybe even a little bit better, but it had been their use of thunder techniques that had decided the battle.


    After the battle was over, the Violet Heavenly Palace sent them invitations. They both agreed to enter the palace to cultivate, changing from enemies into fellow disciples.


    But there were many disciples in the Violet Heavenly Palace. Entering the palace meant that they were joining the number one power that used Heavenly Mandate thunder techniques, but how far they could advance would be up to them.


    The second battle was just as exciting. Both of the Saints of True Self were incredibly strong, especially one of them whose genius was so astonishing that the people of the Violet Heavenly Palace trembled to behold it.


    After the battle, the two of them were also invited to enter the palace and become disciples.


    "Now for the battle of the Unblemished Saints: Seventh Swordsman and Zhuo Yuan," came the announcement. Zhuo Yuan was just as highly praised as Li Ba had been. And Seventh Swordsman''s strength had shocked everyone when he had defeated Li Ba.


    Thus, their battle attracted a lot of attention.


    The two of them stepped onto the platform. Sword will wrapped around Ye Futian, with lightning moving through it.


    Lightning flashed in front of Zhuo Yuan as he stood there, giving off sharp crackling noises as they shone like beams of light.


    Lightning fell straight all around Ye Futian, each bolt even sharper than any of these swords.


    Zhuo Yuan''s lightning had incredible cutting power. It was a peculiar quality of his lightning, which made it very strong.


    He floated up into the air, and endless thunderbolts shot out towards the space above Ye Futian in straight lines.


    With but a thought, the swords whirling around Ye Futian rose up and slammed into the falling thunderbolts, creating a sharp, ear-splitting sound rather than the sound of crashing thunder.


    Crack! Crack! The thunderbolts fell like beams of light, covering the whole area. The swords were split and broken, and some of the thunderbolts fell upon Ye Futian.


    He felt a terrible tearing sensation. It was like his very soul was going to be cut open.


    Zhuo Yuan floated towards Ye Futian, and more thunderbolts flashed to life. The swirled around Ye Futian and up in the sky, covering him completely.


    With a solemn face, he formed a seal with both hands, and suddenly the endless thunderbolts shot towards Ye Futian. The entire area was bathed in the light of the thunderbolts.


    Ye Futian reached out with both hands, holding up his infinitely bright sword. He floated up into the air as well, and the sword shrieked through the sky, creating a destructive storm of sword Qi that enveloped him.


    The storm rose upwards, slamming into the falling thunderbolts.


    "Zuo Yuan''s thunderbolt attacks contain Space Rule Power within them. He is quite powerful," said the great figure watching from up above. Many of the disciples of the Violet Heavenly Palace could not even perform attacks like that.


    Woosh!


    But at that moment, a single sword burst through the terrible storm of sword Qi with incredible power. It shot straight towards Zhuo Yuan. Ye Futian was flying on the sword, piercing through the air on a blade filled with Qi.


    Zhuo Yuan reached out, and suddenly a terrible swallowing power appeared in his hands. Endless thunderbolts formed there, forming a terrible space vortex that wrapped around the oncoming sword.


    "Cut," said Ye Futian as he crossed the distance between them. The sword fell, piercing through the vortex. The endless thunderbolts fell into the vortex and were swallowed up.


    Zhuo Yuan''s eyes turned a brilliant purple, and he reached out towards Ye Futian. All of the thunder in the area gathered up in his hand, forming a terrible qi field.


    He stepped out, disappearing from his original spot as he lashed out towards Ye Futian with his fist.


    Woosh! Ye Futian disappeared as well, moving though space and appearing right above Zhuo Yuan.


    Both of them were skilled in Spatial Power.


    Zhuo Yuan looked up and saw Ye Futian staring down at him. With a single thought, thousands of swords appeared in the air, covering the platform.


    The swords were filled with thunder, and in a flash, they all fell.


    Zhuo Yuan''s gaze was cold as he saw what was happening above him. Divine lightning seeped out from his hands. He stepped onto the ground and raised his fist up. A terrible vortex of thunderbolts filled the sky. As the swords fell, they were swallowed up by the vortex and destroyed.


    He held the power of Divine Thunder in his hands.


    The vortex grew bigger and bigger, covering the entire area. The endless divine swords fell, and they were all destroyed.


    A mighty force swept out from Ye Futian. All of his swords were moving with the power of the Great Path Rules. They fell endlessly, but it seemed like they would never fill the vortex.


    But he did not stop moving. Sword after sword fell, each one splitting the air as it did.


    A fierce roar was ringing out without end. The falling swords seemed limitless, and each one was stronger than the last.


    Finally, a sword that was 10,000 meters long formed. Everyone''s hearts trembled when they beheld it.


    The sword seemed to have been formed out of countless swords merging together.


    Boom! Ye Futian stepped forward onto the sword and fell with it.


    The roar shook the heavens. The vortex in Zhuo Yuan''s hands swallowed up the sky, and endless thunderbolts wrapped around the sword. But the huge sword kept falling, piercing into the heart of the storm bit by bit. The vortex was like an abyss of thunder, and it tried to swallow the sword, but incomparably strong tearing power burst forth from the sword.


    The thunderbolt vortex gradually expanded, growing larger and larger, until it was no longer able to support itself, and it collapsed with a loud noise.


    A powerful beam of light shot out, piercing everyone''s eyes. It covered the platform.


    When everything was calm again, Ye Futian was still standing in the air. Zhuo Yuan was standing pitifully on the platform, coughing up blood.


    "So strong!" Everyone''s hearts trembled. The power that had been displayed in this battled was far more impressive than what they had seen in Ye Futian''s battle with Li Ba. Last time, Ye Futian had avoided direct conflict. This time, he had faced Zhuo Yuan directly, giving everyone a huge shock.


    A look of admiration came over the faces of everyone from the Violet Heavenly Palace. If this Seventh Swordsman were well trained, he would have a bright future. And even if he was not as impressive as Zhan Yuan, he was not much worse than him, and he could become an important figure in the palace in the future!

 1424 The Refusal

    "The Seventh Swordsman��Zhuo Yuan."


    At this time, over the lofty platform, the Deputy Palace Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace, who was sitting at the center of the crowd and overlooking the whole scene, announced Zhao Yuan to everyone.


    The scene engaged many people.


    Many figures of top powers, such as the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Brahma''s Pure Sky, took a close look at Ye Futian and Zhuo Yuan. These two people, as well as a Li Ba, all showed their extraordinary talent at the level of Unblemished Saint Plane and definitely would win a place in the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Today, the Deputy Master of the Violet Heavenly Palace had announced it in person.


    "You guessed it," on the other side, the big figure of the 10,000 Divine Mountain said to Gao Huang, with his gaze also on Ye Futian.


    This person was specialized in swordsmanship, and he also cultivated in the Laws of Thunder and many other Laws. In the future, if he strengthened his cultivation of the Laws of Thunder in the Violet Heavenly Palace, he would grasp a broader ability and reach a higher level. At that time, he would be close to the Supreme Master Zhan Yuan.


    Ye Futian and Zhuo Yuan looked up at the Deputy Master of the Violet Heavenly Palace. He was smiling at them down below, saying, "Would you like to enter my Violet Heavenly Palace to cultivate?"


    Zhuo Yuan bowed slightly toward the direction and said, "Yes, sir, it would be my pleasure."


    As a cultivator of Thunder Laws, his ultimate goal was to join the Violet Heavenly Palace. Now, the Deputy Palace Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace had invited him personally. Why would he refuse?


    The Deputy Palace Lord announced this in person, which meant they paid attention to him.


    Seeing Zhuo Yuan nod, the Deputy Palace Lord smiled and turned to Ye Futian, but Ye Futian just stood there quietly and did not answer immediately.


    He smiled and continued, "The Seventh Swordsman, how about you? You can enter the Violet Heavenly Palace and cultivate under my guidance first."


    Many people were a little shocked when they heard this. They all looked at Ye Futian with envy. He could directly cultivate under the Deputy Palace Lord''s guidance.


    Nobody had ever had such an opportunity before.


    What was more, he just came halfway, without participating in many battles, but now he was treated with so much regard.


    The Deputy Palace Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace smiled and still looked at Ye Futian. He thought that Ye Futian did not speak because he wanted to hear a commitment. After all, geniuses were very proud, and just entering the Violet Heavenly Palace was not enough for him.


    So, if he accepted him as a direct disciple, he thought this Seventh Swordsman should be satisfied.


    Countless eyes fell on Ye Futian. After today, there would be another peerless figure in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and he might have a place in the Saint Plane.


    Ye Futian slightly bowed to the direction of the Violet Heavenly Palace, then looked up and said, "I came to this event today to see how strong the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm are, and I do not intend on joining the Violet Heavenly Palace. Besides, I am not specialized in Thunder Laws, so I don''t want to waste time cultivating in the Heavenly Palace. "


    After Ye Futian''s words, the vast space suddenly fell silent. The excited and bustling crowd looked at the figure dressed in white on the stage, stunned. They all looked bewildered.


    What was going on?


    Did the Seventh Swordsman just refuse?


    The Deputy Master of Violet Heavenly Palace personally invited him to cultivate in the Heavenly Palace, and he refused to become his direct disciple!


    This...


    Those people of the top powers were confused, too. Some people showed interested looks. Things were getting more interesting.


    Over the high platform of the Violet Heavenly Palace, the Purple Underground Emperor''s expression subtly changed. He contracted his pupils and stared in the direction of Ye Futian.


    He represented the Purple Underground Sect to fight in place of Zhang Changqing, and now he refused the offer of Violet Heavenly Palace. What did he mean by this?


    He was embarrassing the Violet Heavenly Palace. And as a referee, perhaps he would also offend some people.


    The Deputy Palace Lord looked at Ye Futian. Couldn''t it be that this Seventh Swordsman wanted to cultivate under the Palace Lord''s guidance?


    Thinking of this, he continued, "After you enter the Heavenly Palace, you may also receive the Palace Lord''s personal guidance if your performance is outstanding enough."


    The Palace Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace was a supreme figure��one of the mighty powers in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, a true giant. The Deputy Palace Master was indicating that Ye Futian still had the opportunity to become the Palace Lord''s disciple in the future.


    However, if the Seventh Swordsman wanted to directly become the Palace Lord''s disciple, the Palace Lord was not present, and other people could not make a decision for the Palace Lord.


    "Thank you for your consideration, but I''m not interested in cultivating in Thunder Laws," Ye Futian took a bow and refused again, which made many warriors in Violet Heavenly Palace look mortified.


    Ye Futian was the first person to refuse the offer of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    No one would have thought that on such occasions, the Violet Heavenly Palace would be rejected, and the person who rejected the offer was a peerless talent who they had valued most so far.


    "Seventh Swordsman!"


    At this time, the Purple Underground Emperor''s eyes swept toward Ye Futian. He said, "The Heavenly Palace''s invitation to you is your honor. Entering the Heavenly Palace and studying Thunder Law will only make you stronger, and it will not affect your cultivation in Sword Laws."


    The Seventh Swordsman participated in the battle as a representative of the Purple Underground Sect.


    Now, if he offended the Violet Heavenly Palace, wouldn''t he...?


    Did this jerk dare to cause trouble for him?


    "Brother Changqing." Below, in the crowd of Purple Underground Sect, Zijun looked toward Zhang Changqing. The scene going on was beyond everyone''s expectations.


    Zhang Changqing was also looking downwards. Before, when he saw Ye Futian defeating Zhuo Yuan, he felt a little lonely for himself but also happy, since, at least, it was the Purple Underground Sect''s honor.


    But now, the honor had become a slap on the face of the Purple Underground Sect.


    What was he doing?


    Was he being used by others?


    However, if this b*stard didn''t want to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace, what did he come here for?


    "I used to hear that all the Thunder Laws of the world originated from the Heavenly Palace, and I have been admiring this holy land. This time, I came here to join the battle just to confirm what I have heard about the Heavenly Palace. Since I have already confirmed it, I will not cultivate in the Heavenly Palace," Ye Futian looked toward Purple Underground Emperor and said. "I thank His Majesty for allowing me to participate in this event."


    After his words, the Purple Underground Emperor gave him a black look. Did he just expose him?


    Zhang Changqing was the same. He looked coldly at people around him and asked, "How do you know this person?"


    Zijun and others also realized something, and their faces turned pale.


    They seemed to have been taken advantage of.


    On the vast heavenly palace platform, countless people were discussing.


    The Seventh Swordsman directly called out the Purple Underground Emperor. Was he not a disciple of the Purple Underground Sect?


    If so, did he come to participate in this event just to challenge the cultivators of Thunder Laws over the world?


    In other words, he was targeting the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    But how dare he do that?


    Although in front of all powers of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Violet Heavenly Palace would maintain dignity and not do anything to him, he had offended the Violet Heavenly Palace, and it would be very easy to kill a Saint-Plane person if he became the Heavenly Palace''s enemy. Not to mention the Violet Heavenly Palace, would the Purple Underground Emperor let him go?


    "Interesting." Those people of top powers watched the scene, all excited.


    "Isn''t the Seventh Swordsman your disciple?" at this time, the Lord of the God-slaughtering Mountain next to the Purple Underground Emperor looked at him and asked. Just a while ago, the Purple Underground Emperor was very proud.


    "So, did the Purple Underground Emperor find someone else to replace Zhang Changqing and participate in the battle as a disciple of Purple Underground Sect?" another lord also asked in a sour tone. Before that, the Purple Underground Emperor was high-spirited and talked proudly when the Seventh Swordsman defeated the warrior of the God-slaughtering Mountain.


    But now, the Seventh Swordsman turned out to have been "invited" from somewhere else and was not a disciple of the Purple Underground Sect. Moreover, he even refused the invitation from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Although this event did not require winners to cultivate in the Violet Heavenly Palace, it was considered a default that they do so. The Violet Heavenly Palace organized this event to select talented cultivators to cultivate in the Heavenly Palace Temple and train them as backup disciples.


    Ye Futian refused the offer in public, which was like a slap to their face, especially since he was by far the most valued person, and the Deputy Palace Lord wanted to accept himself as a direct disciple.


    In this way, Ye Futian made them more embarrassed.


    The Purple Underground Emperor''s expression was solemn. There was a coldness in his eyes. He glanced toward Ye Futian in the lower sky. Although, after the thing happened, Violet Heavenly Palace couldn''t do anything to him. He was taken advantage of by a person of the Saint Plane and embarrassed in public, and now, so many people treated him like a joke. One could imagine what his mood was like.


    "So, this time, you came here just to practice with other cultivators in Thunder Law?" the Deputy Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked at Ye Futian and asked. He was one of the top two big figures in the Violet Heavenly Palace, after all, and Ye Futian did not violate any rules of the Heavenly Palace. In his capacity, he would not do anything to Ye Futian in public.


    If he had killed Ye Futian here with a slap, he would surely become a laughingstock.


    It was the Violet Heavenly Palace that invited cultivators from all over the world here. And now, if anyone refused to go to the Violet Heavenly Palace, how could they punish him?


    "Yes, sir," Ye Futian nodded. "Thank you for your understanding."


    "Well, if you don''t want to, the Heavenly Palace will not force you. You can just go." The Deputy Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace still had manners and did not appear angry. Although he was unhappy, he did not show it on the surface.


    He must act as a host.


    In the upper sky, the Supreme master Zhan Yuan took a glance at Ye Futian, looking cold. How dare he strike a pose in the Violet Heavenly Palace?


    "The last battle��the battle between Nirvana Saints," the Deputy Palace Lord announced. Immediately, the last two warriors set foot on the huge platform.


    This battle was still extremely violent, and the two warriors were evenly matched. Both Nirvana-Plane warriors had extremely intimidating powers. The platform continued trembling, and the light of thunder engulfed the vast area.


    However, because of the previous accident, even though this battle was still exciting, many people were unable to concentrate, and all seemed to be thinking about what just happened.


    Probably, the thing was not over yet. But, in any case, this event held by the Violet Heavenly Palace must come to an end!

 1425 The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty

    On the Thunder Platform of the Violet Heavenly Palace, the battle between two Nirvana Saints was still exciting. The final winner''s name was Duan Huang; he was a man with superb talent. The defeated person was older, and he was a figure with fame for many years. His level was at the peak of the Nirvana Plane, and his name was Gai Bo.


    "Duan Huang, would you like to cultivate as my disciple?" The Deputy Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace invited him directly. This time, he was more straightforward than before and directly invited Duan Huang to be his disciple.


    Duan Huang''s talent is extraordinary, and his power was also intimidating. His level was not far from the Renhuang Plane.


    In this grand event, when it came to real strength, Duan Huang should be the first.


    Duan Huang looked calm. He slightly bowed to the Deputy Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace and said, "I''d be glad to be your disciple, Master."


    He was humble and courteous, without any arrogance, in sharp contrast to Ye Futian.


    This made many people sigh. The reason that the Deputy Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace directly took him as a disciple was probably because of Ye Futian.


    "Yes," The Deputy Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace nodded slightly and was quite satisfied. The Seventh Swordsman before really made him feel a little unhappy. Despite his extraordinary talent, he was just a Saint-Plane cultivator, after all. He might have too much of an ego to regard the battle platform as a place for trial.


    "Gai Bo, are you willing to cultivate in the Violet Heavenly Palace? Your cultivation has achieved sublimity, and you are only one step away from the Renhuang Plane. After entering the Palace, if you do not understand anything, you can just come ask me," the Deputy Lord said to another person.


    "Thank you, Deputy Lord. Gai Bo is willing to be a member of the Heavenly Palace," Gai Bo bowed and answered. He was experienced and knew he needed the opportunity. Although he was only one step from the Renhuang Plane, it seemed still far away and hard to touch.


    After entering the Heavenly Palace, he would have a greater chance to set foot in the Renhuang Plane.


    He, as a Nirvana Saint, was already standing at the top of the world and could rule over an area.


    But in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, only Renhuang could stand at the top.


    "Good." The Deputy Palace Lord nodded, and then he said to the people around him, "if you think anyone among them has potential, you can ask if they would like to cultivate as your disciple."


    Those Renhuang figures nodded and sent out invitations. There were indeed many cultivators with potential among those who had been defeated.


    Naturally, figures like Li Ba had to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    This time, more than 30 disciples had been selected by Violet Heavenly Palace at one time. These peoples'' talent was very outstanding, and if they received training in Violet Heavenly Palace in the future, their potential would be discovered more and would be strengthened.


    Those cultivators who had not been selected felt somewhat lost. This time, they should have had the opportunity to ascend to the sky, but they could only watch other people enter the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Zhang Changqing did not enter the Heavenly Palace. Perhaps because he gave the opportunity to the Seventh Swordsman, and after what the Seventh Swordsman did, the Violet Heavenly Palace would show mercy to him by not getting angry at him.


    The Deputy Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace stretched out one hand and grabbed toward the void air. Suddenly, the Thunder Platform rose and disappeared, leaving a huge empty space on the ground.


    The 36 disciples selected by the Violet Heavenly Palace all showed up below the Heavenly Palace seats and lined up, with Duan Huang taking the lead. Among these Saint-Plane figures, many people would become Renhuang in the future.


    The Deputy Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace looked around at the warriors in the vast and endless space and thundered, "You must have heard about what happened in the Origin Mountains not long ago. In the past, Gu Tianxing rebelled in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and his hands were stained with much blood. The Great Law couldn''t tolerate his sins. They gathered the power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and eventually killed him, but we did not expect that his soul did not disperse, and even passed on to his descendant. He had destroyed the Origin Mountains in the Demon Realm and wanted to rebuild a new him. Now, he also had the protection of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. If we leave him be, in the future, I am afraid he will massacre many people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Therefore, we the Violet Heavenly Palace held this grand event here to invite all warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm to participate and enjoy themselves. We hope that warriors of the demon clans will not be bewildered and will help a human cultivator who stole your Laws of Origin. We, the Violet Heavenly Palace, selected the best cultivators to train and prepare for this. The descendant of the Gu Clan must be removed."


    He talked loudly and used a lot of righteous words. It was as if Gu Tianxing was a heinous sinner.


    However, in those days, Gu Tianxing''s hands were indeed stained with many people''s blood, especially in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, countless warriors were killed, and many people of the Violet Heavenly Palace died. But everyone also understood that it was because of Gu Jiangnan''s death that Gu Tianxing went crazy and went on a killing spree, staining the Heavenly Mandate Realm with blood.


    Now, since the descendant of Gu Tianxing grew up and became another him, the first thing he would do was take revenge on the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Therefore, the Violet Heavenly Palace must make arrangements in advance and prepare for this.


    However, these big figures all had their own ideas. Although the giants of the demon world could not directly assist Gu Dongliu, they would not join forces with them the Violet Heavenly Palace. They would just sit by and watch as the situation changed.


    "The words of the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord are very reasonable. As long as the Gu Clan of the past still exists, it will bring disaster to the Heavenly Mandate Realm," the Divine General of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said. The Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord in his mouth was actually the Deputy Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace. He was in charge of the Laws of Heavenly Penalty and ruled the Heavenly Penalty Palace in the eighth heaven of the Violet Heavenly Palace with appalling power.


    "At that time, when the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefectures of the East, the human race and the demon race coexisted and did not distinguish between each other. The so-called Heavenly Mandate Realm was just nominal. Last time, we went to the Demon Realm, and today, warriors of the Demon Realm join us. There was no need for conflict. Today, there were various races in the demon world, and it was your heyday. When is it necessary for you to serve others as kings? Gu Tianxing was just a person full of self-importance."


    The Divine General continued talking. His words sounded polite, but who knew what he had in mind?


    The human race and the demon race coexisted, but how could they not have their own thoughts?


    "Indeed. This time warriors from everywhere of the Realm came to attend the ceremony, and both the human cultivators and top figures of the Demon Realm are all there. If you want the intention, we can discuss Laws and make friends, learn from each other, and witness the prosperity of the Heavenly Mandate Realm together."


    The Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord continued. The Prophet of the Demon Realm said that the Heavenly Mandate Realm would change. Now that human beings and cultivators of the Demon Realm were all here, it was possible to see the strengths of the top figures in all parties and tell their fortunes.


    The Heavenly Mandate would change, and Gu Tianxing had made Gu Dongliu a peerless talented figure; however, Gu Dongliu was just a Saint-Plane warrior. If the change of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were related to him, then the change would come from this generation.


    As for the so-called making friends, it was just a courtesy. Who didn''t want their fortune and power to be unparalleled in the world and win over others?


    Not to mention, between the human cultivators and demon cultivators, even among the supreme powers of human beings in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they were all continually fighting and wanted to stand at the top.


    In the past, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were flourishing for a while, but then they became weak, and all other powers rose.


    Now, the Heavenly Mandate Realm would change again. Who didn''t want to reach the top?


    At the very least, Gu Dongliu could not be allowed to grow; otherwise, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would resume its fortune of the past.


    "I heard that the Imperial Lord hails the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as the inborn supreme warrior, and I want to see if the Crown Prince indeed has unparalleled combat power," a powerful figure of the Dragon Divine Clan said, his voice resounding through the void space.


    After his words, countless warriors bustled in the vast space, and the noise didn''t stop.


    Today, all the top warriors gathered here. They had thought they would just witness the battles of those who wanted to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace, but now it seemed that they could also see those strongest warriors'' performance.


    The Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord seemed to want big figures of all powers to practice combat with others as well.


    "We are also curious. Since the old and new Imperial Lords of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty are all great figures, and now, the Imperial Lord claims that the Crown Prince is superior to him and born to be a supreme figure, is his ability overstated?" a Demon Emperor of the Sky Demon Court asked.


    The Crown Prince was now well known in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, just like Gu Dongliu, and had attracted the most attention in the Realm.


    Everyone wanted to see the Prince''s real strength.


    At this moment, the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was just sitting next to the Divine General. His body was bathed in radiance, and there seemed to be a divine gleam in his eyes. He glanced around at the people. Were they all wondering about his strength?


    "Whoever wants to know about my strength, stand up," the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said slowly. For a moment, the vast land of the arena was silent.


    Was this an invitation to fight?


    He could fight, but whoever wanted to fight must come out on their own.


    The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Dynasty was born to be supreme. Now, he had proved his Law as Nirvana Plane, and he was very likely to be the strongest person below the Renhuang Plane in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, so how many people could fight with him?


    Even when all the warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had gathered here, there were still very few.


    Vroom.


    A flash of golden lightning rushed out and was suspended over the place where the previous Thunder Platform was located. The figure was shining brightly, and the light of the Great Law fell. He was a golden-winged giant Peng bird belonging to the Sky Demon Court. He had unparalleled speed.


    His eyes were extremely sharp. They penetrated the void air and gazed toward the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He obviously wanted to challenge this inborn supreme figure.


    The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty slowly rose and stepped forward, suddenly striding across the void space.


    Bang. He took a step and walked toward the other side. His whole body was bathed in the divine light, just like a deity.


    Appalling beams of glow appeared around the body of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, and his sharp Might swept out, flowing toward the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    However, the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stepped out again, and around his body, a boundless gorgeous scene appeared.


    Above the sky, phantoms of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird shone and soared between the sky and earth. A landscape appeared behind him. It was even more gorgeous than the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, who was actually standing in front of him.


    "This..."


    People''s hearts thumped fast. It was too gorgeous. The Golden-winged Giant Peng Birds were surrounding him.


    "Go!"


    He pointed his finger forward, and suddenly, golden-winged Giant Peng Birds of all skies swept out. It turned into a rapid, cutting off the void air, flying toward the real Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird.


    The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird turned into his original form, its wings spreading out to cover the earth and cut off the sky. But another Giant Peng Bird, exactly like him, rushed out and thrust toward him. He lifted his claws and launched an attack, tearing off the void air. A shocking collision broke out.


    The body of the Crown Prince was suspended in the sky, and endless divine light shrouded his body. A lot of Giant Peng Birds attacked incessantly.


    It was as if he was standing there, able to use the power of phantoms to crush the real divine bird.


    The Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty hid him for many years and called him the inborn supreme Lord. Of course, it was not an exaggeration.


    He didn''t show his strength, which didn''t mean he had none, but when it was time to show off, he would not stop!

 1426 There Is No Place for You Here

    The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird of the Sky Demon Court was the Golden-winged Peng Emperor''s descendant. It had extremely intimidating power.


    He spread his wings, and suddenly, many bright golden divine feathers thrust out at the same time, which turned into thousands of Golden Peng phantoms and collided with the approaching Golden Peng Bird illusions.


    A huge divine bird appeared and turned into its original form. Each divine golden feather was keen like a blade, piercing the void air, and spreading golden cracks over the sky dome.


    The Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty above him took a step out again, and a divine pattern appeared behind him, which opened up and turned into a scroll that covered the sky.


    "The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate."


    In the vast and boundless void air, countless people looked toward the battlefield. The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was indeed born to be supreme. He inherited the ancestors'' strongest Life Spirit��the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate.


    The Life Spirit of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty needed to experience several awakenings to become the strongest form, and the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate was the ultimate evolved form of the Life Spirit. The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had made it and evolved it to the ultimate form.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty engulfed the Great Laws between the sky and earth, and the scroll in the Divine Picture seemed to turn into a real vision of the sky and earth. The imagination and reality blended into one. In that divine picture scroll, the divine Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird flew across the sky, using its Golden Peng slashing technique to tear the sky dome.


    When the divine picture released its brilliance, all seemed to become real, and the boundless void sky was covered with the gorgeous scenery.


    "Terminate." The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Dynasty looked indifferent and extremely calm. After his words, countless Golden-winged Peng Birds ran through the Great Path, thrusting toward the true Divine Bird.


    The Divine Golden-winged Giant Peng was spinning, and his figure could no longer be seen clearly. The spinning body looked like golden flowing light streams, tearing off all existence, and continuously eliminating the Golden Peng figures attacking toward him.


    However, the attack of the Divine Picture of the Great Law seemed to have no end, and the endless void space seemed to be crushed under that attack.


    Bang, bang, bang...


    The sound of the collision came out again and again, and finally, the divine bird was shaken to a very far distance. At this time, he was all covered in blood.


    He looked up at the Golden Peng scroll in the void air and felt a bit lost. Who was the real Divine Golden-winged Peng Giant Bird? How could the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty use the attack of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird at such a high level and make him unable to fight back?


    Vroom. His wings spread apart, and all of a sudden, he returned to his original place without fighting again.


    The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty glanced around the vast world and said, "Who else wants to have a try?"


    Another great demon of the Demon Clan stepped out at a breakneck speed. A dazzling silver spear appeared in his hand, and the Great Law air flow from the sky and earth merged into the spear. The warrior came from Yingzhao Mountain, and he also wanted to challenge the Crown Prince.


    The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty took a glance at him. The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate turned into a picture of divine weapons. In this picture, there were countless divine weapons, just like a scroll of thousand weapons.


    An extreme sharp life force came about, and the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate spread out. Countless divine weapons over the sky dome thrust out, going straight to the other side.


    The warrior of the Yingzhao Mountain launched his spear, and a beam of silver light penetrated the sky. Countless divine weapons thrust out with no end.


    "This ..." Countless peoples'' hearts trembled while watching the fight on the battlefield.


    The Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate was a bit too terrifying, and no wonder it was titled the number one Life Spirit in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    This Life Spirit was indeed horrifying.


    Endless divine weapons showed up and collided continuously with the spear. Even though the warrior of the Yingzhao Mountain was strong, he still had a moment to feel tired. It didn''t take long for his body to be penetrated by the divine weapons, and he was severely damaged. His silver wings flashed in the air, and he went back to the crowd of Yingzhao Mountain.


    "Invincible," people murmured and felt shocked. They looked at the figure standing proudly in the void air. The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Dynasty could be described as invincible.


    Besides the people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, it was the first time for everyone to see the combat of the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. However, he had not used hands yet, but he had already defeated the two talented warriors and showed his invincibility.


    The only ones who were qualified to fight with him were probably high-level warriors like the Supreme Master and Qin He.


    But how many people had their abilities?


    At this moment, a figure walked out. The moment he stepped out, all the warriors of the great powers of the Demon Realm stared at him. Even the top figures of the Demon Realm watched him walking over.


    The person seemed as if they were bathed in fire, gorgeous like the sun. The golden fire also cast boundless sharpness.


    He was a Sun Divine Bird, a three-legged Gold Raven. He was the descendant of the Sky Demon Court. His name was Jun.


    Jun stepped forward and walked to the opposite side of the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Nine suns appeared above the sky dome, from each of which, a golden spear of divine fire appeared, emitting and swallowing dazzling light, trying to break the sky.


    The Crown Prince looked toward that side. He also knew who that person was.


    It was rumored that this descendant of the Demon Lord had appalling strength, and now he had a chance to fight with him.


    The Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate became brighter and brighter. Numerous divine weapons were formed and then thrust toward the other side.


    The sacred fire was shot from the eyes of Jun, and the spear of the sacred fire traveled through the void sky, like beams of divine sunlight. The sky dome directly burned the flames. The fire collided with the sharp divine weapons shot from the divine picture of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They collided in mid-air and then were annihilated.


    The Crown Prince of the Divine Dynasty looked extremely sharp, and the Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate evolved. In the skies, countless Golden-winged Peng Birds roared up, crossing the void sky and engulfing those divine-fire spears.


    There seemed to be suns in Jun''s eyes, and the nine suns behind him rotated and merged into one. From it, the light of the golden divine fire was emitted and turned the sky into a divine sun furnace. It directly smelted the attacks in the void air and burned them into nothing.


    According to legend, the flame of the Golden Raven was the closest to the divine fire of the sun. The flame of the Golden Raven Demon Lord of the Sky Demon Court was the strongest among all Renhuangs. It was the true divine fire of the Sun.


    When the sacred fire was burning in the sky, many suns appeared around Jun''s body as if he was the master of the sun.


    Even the attacks of the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Dynasty had no way to deal with him from a distance, and it could even be said that they were evenly matched.


    Neither of them moved, but the destructive power of the collision in the void was amazing.


    "Who is this demon warrior?" many human cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm asked. This Golden Raven divine bird could even directly compete with the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    They were too strong. The strength released by them made many Saint-Plane warriors despair. If they faced such attacks, they would be killed.


    "The descendant of the demon lord of the Sky Demon Court, so Jun is equivalent to the Crown Prince of the Sky Demon Court," someone said, recognizing Jun''s identity. Seeing this scene, anyone who knew about the Sky Demon Court would have an idea of who he was.


    At this time, the attacks of the two people stopped at the same time. Neither of them continued to attack, and their eyes were fixed on each other. Both of them had appalling eyes.


    "I always admire Sky Demon Court, and the Lord of Golden Raven is also a peerless figure. If there is a chance, I will visit you," the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said. Many people were secretly shocked. One day, if the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty went to visit the Golden Raven Demon Lord, then the Heavenly Mandate Realm would probably be unified.


    Otherwise, what would he go there for?


    "You are welcome at any time," Jun responded slowly. They did not continue fighting, and both turned back to their seats.


    "Good." At this moment, a voice came. The Lord of the Heavenly Penalty Palace looked around at the crowd and said, "Today''s event is exactly what I expected. I really enjoyed the nice discussions and practiced combat skills. Let''s just see the top figures of our Heavenly Mandate Realm, how extraordinary they are. The battle between the two Crown Princes was also wonderful. In the future, the Heavenly Mandate Realm will belong to you.


    "Gu Tianxing wanted to create a hero and let him become the new king of the demon world to dominate the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but there are so many gallant figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Even though Tianxing tried to create chaos in the Mountain Range of Origin, we will not allow him to," he continued, in a quite disdainful voice. "Today, let''s take this opportunity to show people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm how strong our top figures are."


    His words fell on people''s ears, and a few people stepped out. They were the warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace, and the one who took the lead was the Supreme Master Zhan Yuan of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Zhan Yuan glanced at the crowd, and arrogantly said, "On the way to prove Laws, who wants to be my enemy?"


    These words sounded arrogant and full of contempt.


    Many top figures looked at Zhan Yuan with keen eyes. Soon, many figures came out. All of them were among the most gallant heroes.


    Many warriors of demon clans also flashed out and moved forward.


    Who was willing to fall behind?


    The Dragon Divine Clan, the Sky Demon Court, the Divine Elephant Clan, the Purple Gold Rat Clan, the Yingzhao Mountain, and other demon clans all had warriors step forward. Immediately, the demon power swept across the world, and the Fighting Wills around them were appalling.


    Zhan Yuan arrogantly asked who dared to become their enemy on the way of proving Laws.


    In the lower sky, among the crowd, Ye Futian looked up at the void air, and soon his body flashed and soared into the sky. Suddenly he showed up in the upper sky.


    However, there was no top power behind him as a backup, and he stood alone, looking quite lonely.


    Countless pairs of eyes looked toward him. He was exactly the person who refused the invitation of the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord before.


    Did he also want to compete to be at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Many warriors in Violet Heavenly Palace glanced at Ye Futian. How dare he stand out?


    "A presumptuous guy," many people said in their hearts. At this moment, he chose to stand out, which was very meaningful. Of course, everyone understood what he meant.


    However, the figures coming out today were all top figures.


    Zhan Yuan''s eyes also swept toward Ye Futian. He looked cold. The rolling thunder above Ye Futian''s head began to converge. The eight series of divine thunder gathered, and the domineering power reached its apex. Zhan Yuan pointed one finger, and suddenly, the heavenly thunder dropped down.


    "There is no place for you here." His voice fell along with the roaring of thunder!

 1427 I Should Be Counted as One

    Above the sky, the Divine thunder seemed to turn into a roaring dragon, diving down and blasting toward Ye Futian, who was approaching.


    Before, the Seventh Swordsman had rejected the Violet Heavenly Palace, which had already embarrassed the Heavenly Palace.


    Nowadays, he even dared to step out in public. How would Zhan Yuan turn a blind eye? He directly yelled to him, saying there was no place for him here.


    And then, he dropped the heavenly thunder.


    Above Ye Futian''s head, the horrifying thunder fell. He raised his head and looked up to the upper sky, his body surrounded by the appalling sword power. He stepped into the void. His palms crossed the void and opened a crack from the sky. After a noise, the void sky was broken, and the roaring Thunder Dragon split into two and was chopped off.


    He hid the Might of the Space in the sword, with just one strike breaking the sky.


    The sound of the thunder growled and continued falling toward Ye Futian''s two sides. Ye Futian walked through the middle of the Thunder Might, still stepping up, and his gaze swept toward Zhan Yuan.


    "Whether I have the place or not is not up to you."


    The voice coming out of his mouth was as sharp as a blade, making the vast space suddenly quiet again.


    The Seventh Swordsman''s response to Zhan Yuan was forceful.


    He not only participated in the event hosted by Violet Heavenly Palace and showed his unparalleled talent, but now he was confronting him face to face.


    Was that his ultimate goal, to confront the highest-level figures?


    The light of thunder bloomed in Zhan Yuan''s eyes, and it thrust toward Ye Futian. This young man not only embarrassed the Violet Heavenly Palace but now challenged himself. How presumptuous...


    Boom.


    With a dull sound, Zhan Yuan stepped forward. The divine thunder above the sky was even more terrifying.


    Since this Seventh Swordsman was so presumptuous, he only had to use the Great Law to suppress it.


    "Young Brother, since this person wants to know about the Thunder Law of the Place of Origin of the world, I will show him what it is like. You don''t need to do it in person," at this time, a voice came. An Unblemished-Saint figure of the Heavenly Temple of Violet stepped forward. The Might of Thunder was also extremely overbearing and intimidating.


    This man was also a peerless figure in the Violet Heavenly Palace. His name was Xiao Ran. His cultivation of the Thunder Laws was extremely powerful. He was slightly older and entered the Heavenly Palace earlier than Zhan Yuan, so he called him ''young brother''.


    The people in Violet Heavenly Palace nodded slightly. Zhan Yuan''s opponents were those top figures, and even if he fought against the Seventh Swordsman and won, it was still not a glorious thing.


    If a madman came to challenge Thunder Law cultivators, and the Supreme Master of the Violet Heavenly Palace had to fight with him in person, others would say that Violet Heavenly Palace had no other people.


    Xiao Ran stepped forward and came to the upper sky above Ye Futian''s head. He looked down at him, full of pride. It was as if Ye Futian didn''t exist in his eyes.


    "Xiao Ran is the most suitable person for this," a Renhuang figure of the Violet Heavenly Palace said, laughing. He was Xiao Ran''s master and fully knew his disciple''s strength.


    "This young man''s talent was not inferior to Xiao Ran, but he is too ignorant and full of contempt. Thus, he can only suppress it by force. I hope he can repent and know his mistakes, and then we may give him another chance to enter the Heavenly Palace," the Penalty Palace Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace said. The Seventh Swordsman showed so much talent even without cultivation experience in the Violet Heavenly Palace. His talent was unlimited.


    "The Deputy Lord cherishes talents," the Renhuang next to him commented. But even though the Heavenly Penalty Palace Owner wanted to give him a chance, this Seventh Swordsman might not appreciate it.


    Xiao Ran waved his palm, and a thunderstorm appeared over the sky. The Thunder Law of Doomsday shrouded Ye Futian''s head.


    Looking up, Ye Futian saw Thunder Swords of Catastrophe emerging from the thunderstorm. It pointed down into the lower sky. The Divine Thunder roamed over the sword and shot straight down into the lower sky. At this moment, everyone was nervous for Ye Futian.


    The falling attacks were all lethal.


    "You major in swords and also learned Thunder Laws. This time, you came here to get to know about all top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. If so, although I am a common cultivator in the Heavenly Palace, I can still teach you a thing or two," Xiao Ran looked down at Ye Futian in the Lower Sky and said calmly. However, everyone knew Xiao Ran was just modest. He was a very famous figure in the Violet Heavenly Palace. It was also possible for him to set foot in the Renhuang Plane someday.


    Although Xiao Ran''s cultivation speed was not fast, his base was firm, and his progress was steady and stable. His humble words were naturally intended to show how powerful the Violet Heavenly Palace was.


    "The Sword Matrix of Doomsday was born from the Thunder Law of the Doomsday of the Violet Heavenly Palace. You can have a try, and if it is too difficult for you, just leave by yourself in case you get hurt," Xiao Ran continued. Above the sky, there were countless sharp swords of doomsday emerging from the horrifying thunderclouds, which covered the sky dome. Once the swords dropped down, it would be the real doomsday.


    He used the Might to threaten Ye Futian to let Ye Futian admit defeat and leave.


    Of course, if Ye Futian refused, since he had already said it, it was not his fault even if he hurt Ye Futian''s life later.


    Many people felt the chill in their bones. Xiao Ran was so deliberate that he gave Ye Futian a way to retreat, but if Ye Futian refused, he deserved it even if he died.


    Ye Futian was also able to understand what Xiao Ran meant. He embarrassed the Violet Heavenly Palace in public. Even though they didn''t speak openly, they must be displeased. These big figures were all extremely decisive people. If he refused, they would kill him.


    Seeing the Thunder Swords drop down from the sky, he could feel the overwhelming power and the appalling killing ability.


    The strength of Violet Heavenly Palace''s warriors couldn''t be average, especially the figure who was fighting with him. He must be extremely extraordinary. Otherwise, he would not come out and be a disgrace of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    However, Ye Futian''s eyes still looked sharp. He swept upward and said, "Go ahead."


    "This guy is crazy," many people secretly said. Xiao Ran was so coercive and tried to give him a chance, but he let Xiao Ran launch an attack first.


    If Xiao Ran attacked, he would kill him, and Ye Futian might be wiped out under the Thunder Sword of the Doomsday.


    But it had all come to this step. If he retreated, it would be extremely embarrassing, and he had no choice.


    Moreover, he seemed to want to compete with top figures. Perhaps he had an ace in the hole? How could he have the confidence to compete with Xiao Ran?


    "Sure, I will help you achieve your goal." Xiao Ran''s voice was cold. After his voice fell, the thunderstorm roared, and even stronger thunder swords fell, erupting the Great Law thunderbolts of destruction.


    "Fall," Xiao Ran spat icily. After his words, people just saw the sword of doomsday in the thunderstorm matrix drop, intent on killing Ye Futian. It was so fast that Ye Futian had no chance to escape.


    Boom!


    A dull sound came, and everyone saw Ye Futian raise one arm and punch at the light of endless destruction.


    Many people thought he was just looking for death, but when the fist thrust out, the punch penetrated the space. For a moment, he soared into the sky and blasted the endless glow to the other side. The endless Thunder Sword of Doomsday blasted over Ye Futian''s Fist Will and was directly torn and crushed.


    His body turned into a light stream. With a punch, he opened the ancient path of the Great Law and landed in front of Xiao Ran.


    Xiao Ran''s face suddenly turned pale, and before he could react, a punch came and hit his body.


    Boom!


    With a loud noise, Xiao Ran''s body flew upside down like a thunderbolt and smashed into the crowd of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Bang, bang, bang! A staircase below him was directly shattered and was turned into ruins. Xiao Ran''s body even didn''t stop until a Renhuang came to help. He just felt the blood in his body boiling and roaring, as if the one punch had broken all his organs.


    "Cough��"


    He spat a mouthful of blood out of his mouth. Xiao Ran bowed his head, and his life force was weak. He couldn''t gather any strength at all.


    Above Ye Futian''s head, the Thunder Cloud dissipated, and he stood on top of the void sky, still full of arrogance.


    "Your cultivation is indeed average, and you don''t deserve to give me a lesson," Ye Futian said. Many warriors were staring at his arm. What kind of power was this?


    Many people''s hearts thumped fast. Xiao Ran of the Unblemished Saint Plane in the Violet Heavenly Palace couldn''t even bear one punch and was shaken.


    That was to say, the Seventh Swordsman didn''t use his full strength before?


    This power was too appalling.


    Even those big figures were surprised by this punch. They all stared at Ye Futian.


    Was this the enormous power of the divine elephant?


    When he punched, they all felt the power of the divine elephant.


    Who was this Seventh Swordsman?


    Zhan Yuan looked indifferent. He stepped forward and stared at Ye Futian. He could feel that the seventh swordsman that came here this time was to target the Violet Heavenly Palace instead of participating in this event.


    "Who are you?" Zhan Yuan said coldly. The Thunder Matrix of Doomsday converged over the sky dome, even stronger than that of Xiao Ran. The vast and endless void sky was shrouded in the destruction light of thunder, and the world went dark.


    Ye Futian stared at Zhan Yuan without saying anything. The aura around Zhan Yuan''s pupils was dazzling. He took another step forward, and Thunder Law of the Doomsday came down, destroying all life forms in this space.


    Beams of Catastrophe light came from all directions, and the divine bright light appeared over Ye Futian''s body.


    Boom, boom, boom... A roaring sound came out, and suddenly many illusions of a divine elephant appeared between the sky and earth. They made horrifying elephant roars and crushed the Great Law in the space.


    "The Divine Elephant Clan." Zhan Yuan''s voice was cold. Other warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked toward the warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan. Their gazes were not friendly.


    What did the Divine Elephant Clan mean?


    However, why did this person look like a human cultivator?


    Boom. The divine thunder again blasted down. The Divine Elephant roared in the sky. Ye Futian stepped in the void. The sky and earth were trembling.


    The ultimate technique of the Divine Elephant Clan, Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky.


    At this moment, a person''s name occurred to Zhan Yuan.


    "Are you?" Zhan Yuan stared at Ye Futian and asked.


    "I should be counted as one in the Great Law battle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, too," Ye Futian said when stepping forward. His voice shook the world!

 1428 Is that All?

    In the vast land of the Violet Heavenly Palace, countless pairs of eyes were looking toward one direction.


    It was where Ye Futian was. Ye Futian''s face changed, and he returned to his original appearance. Many top people had seen him. He was the person who had obtained the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions and was hunted down in the Mountain Range of Origin because of it.


    The Supreme Master of the Violet Heavenly Palace was one of the people who had chased him.


    Later, he left with the Divine Elephant Emperor and went to the Divine Elephant Clan. Now, he showed up here.


    His disguising technique was so excellent that he even deceived Renhuangs. This should be some special ability.


    Of course, what was more shocking was his strength.


    At this moment, he was confronting Zhan Yuan, claiming that there should be a place for him in a Great Law battle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    As a peerless figure at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Ye Futian wanted to occupy a place.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s face, the Emperor of the Purple Underground released his Might of Renhuang. His eyes were extremely cold. He finally understood why Ye Futian entered the stadium with the identity of Purple Underground Sect disciple.


    He framed him.


    As the dignified Purple Underground Emperor, he was entrapped by Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian clearly came here to challenge the Violet Heavenly Palace, but the Purple Underground Emperor and Purple Underground Sect wanted to express themselves using Ye Futian. From now on, probably they would become a laughingstock.


    "Ye Futian!" Zhang Changqing shouted. His eyes were also extremely cold, emitting Might of Thunder full of fury.


    This jerk, Ye Futian, was had taken advantage of them from beginning to end.


    He was taking revenge on the thing that happened last time. He led people to take down Gu Dongliu and imprisoned him in the Purple Underground, which triggered the subsequent storm.


    This time, the Purple Underground Sect was in a miserable condition because of him. Not to mention, their reputation would be damaged. The Violet Heavenly Palace would have an awful impression of them.


    The Purple Underground Sect, after all, was one of the eight orthodox sects inherited from the Violet Heavenly Palace. If they offended the Violet Heavenly Palace, the Violet Heavenly Palace could support another sect force to replace it.


    Thinking of this, Zhang Changqing became more furious, but he was also powerless. He didn''t even care about Ye Futian at first.


    But now, it seemed that Ye Futian even took no notice of him.


    He had shown contempt at him from beginning to end and always spoke to him with indifference and arrogance. As for strength, he couldn''t compare with him at all.


    Ye Futian didn''t care about him. Not only did the Violet Heavenly Palace chase him and want to capture him, but even the Renhuang of the Violet Heavenly Palace had tried to kill them. Ye Wuchen and Yaya almost died in the Origin Mountains because of this.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace held this feast with their own purpose. They wanted to call on all the warriors to deal with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Ye Futian''s Third Brother Gu Dongliu.


    Now there was a chance, so Ye Futian would not hesitate to destroy their plan.


    In addition, Gu Tianxing wanted to support the Third Brother as the new king of the Demon Realm, and the warriors in the Demon Realm were all watching. Now, among the human cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there were also figures such as the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Supreme Master of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Although the Third Brother inherited the Laws of Origin, it was not easy to get approval from people of the Demon Realm.


    So, now he had a good relationship with the Divine Elephant Clan, and if he showed his unique talents, he might have the opportunity to change the attitude of the Demon Realm. Although they couldn''t serve the Third Brother as the new king right now, at least he could make them pay more attention.


    That was why he claimed that he should earn a place in the Great Law battle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He needed to occupy a place to represent the Divine Elephant Clan.


    It didn''t matter at all whether or not he would offend the Violet Heavenly Palace. In the beginning, when he turned the Violet Heavenly Palace upside down in the Celestial Demon City, he had already offended them. Not to mention the subsequent things, like the hunting incident and Renhuang''s involvement.


    Without a background, the Violet Heavenly Palace could destroy him like an ant and bully him at will, and he could be killed for whatever reason.


    However, he now used the Divine Elephant Clan as his background. He represented the Divine Elephant Clan in the battle against other Heavenly Mandate Forces, which shouldn''t be a problem. There were many other top figures in the Demon Realm beside him.


    However, when he pretended to be the Seventh Swordsman, he could be more provocative and embarrass the Heavenly Mandate Realm. In this way, he could undermine the spirit of the Violet Heavenly Palace and weaken their influence in this event.


    Many goddesses and saintesses in Brahma''s Pure Sky also looked toward Ye Futian. It was him. They still had memories about Ye Futian. He turned over the Violet Heavenly Palace, survived two crises in the Origin Mountains, and obtained the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. Besides, he also inquired people of the Brahma''s''s Pure Sky twice about a lady.


    However, there was no such person in Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Didn''t expect him to be so overpowering, many ladies of Brahma''s Pure Sky thought. Each time they saw him, he seemed to be stronger than last time.


    At this time, standing on the opposite side of Ye Futian, the Might of Thunder roared around Zhan Yuan''s body. His eyes flashed with cold, murderous thoughts. Even after being swallowed up by the tree of death and falling to the destructive abyss, he was still alive and was taken by the Elephant Emperor. After that, he seemed to have new chances.


    Obviously, the Elephant Emperor did nothing to him.


    "Have you broken through to a new Plane?" Zhan Yuan said. Ye Futian had made a breakthrough and entered the Unblemished Plane just like him, so he was so presumptuous and dared to come to the Violet Heavenly Palace to provoke people.


    "In the Great Law competition of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, whether or not you will have a place is unknown."


    Zhan Yuan said, "But if you fight again with the Imperial Bone, I will show no mercy to you."


    Afterward, he elicited the Heavenly Thunder from the sky through his arm, and infinite Divine Thunder roamed around him, entwining with his body.


    Over Ye Futian''s head, the Heavenly Thunder from eight directions converged. Endless thunder divine light shot down and wiped away everything.


    "If the Renhuang had not protected you, you would have already died in the Origin Mountains. I even fought with the Renhuang. Do I need your mercy?" Ye Futian responded coldly. He stepped in the void air, and endless divine elephants appeared in the sky dome, walking over the sky, On his body, a boundless and huge elephant phantom appeared.


    The violent thunder blasted on the elephant''s body but could not break its defense.


    As Ye Futian walked, the divine elephants that crushed the sky seemed almost to flatten the sky, not to mention Zhan Yuan in front of them.


    A thunderous sound burst from Zhan Yuan''s body, and a thunder deity showed up. In front of the thunder deity, there appeared a large thunder matrix of doomsday. Above the sky, the endless Might of Thunder flew in. Even the sky over the top of the Violet Heavenly Palace was full of flowing thunder that converged in the Matrix, and the dim world was like the apocalypse.


    The Doomsday Matrix grew bigger and bigger. From it, divine swords infiltrated. There were the swords of doomsday, which were much stronger than what Xiao Ran had used just now.


    Bang, bang, bang�� The divine elephants walked in the void air, crushing it, and rushed toward Zhan Yuan. Under the pressure of the elephants stomping, Zhan Yuan just felt his body trembling, his organs shaking, and his blood boiling.


    It was the ultimate attack skill of the Divine Elephant Clan, just like the Thunder Matrix of Doomsday in the Violet Heavenly Palace, with immersive offensive force.


    Finally, the sword of doomsday came out, breaking through the sky and wiping out everything. It collided with the marching divine elephants, and a terrible explosion sound broke out. The void air was crazily exploding. The storm submerged all, but Ye Futian was still moving forward, and Zhan Yuan was still converging appalling Might of Thunder.


    "He can fight against Zhan Yuan''s catastrophic sword of doomsday. That''s unusual. This man''s talent is extraordinary," many people remarked, shocked. They did not expect Ye Futian to be so intimidating. After all, his opponent was the best of this generation, the Supreme Master of Violet Heavenly Palace.


    His Thunder Law was far better than others, and so was his Thunder Might of Great Law.


    "Gao Huang, what do you think?" a powerful figure of Ten Thousand Divine Mountain asked.


    "He is good at various Laws, and his combat power is superb. His attack strength was also unparalleled. As a human cultivator, he could cultivate the stomping technique of the Divine Elephant Clan at such a high level. Even with the help of the Elephant Imperial Bone, his own talents are also extraordinary. Just from today''s battle, I can tell there should be his place in the Great Law battle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Gao Huang said.


    How many people were able to fight against the Supreme Master of the Violet Heavenly Palace in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    The vast majority of people of the same Plane were simply vulnerable in front of Zhan Yuan; he would just kill them with one strike.


    But currently, there seemed no sign that Zhan Yuan could beat Ye Futian.


    Boom.


    There was a loud noise from the sky. Ye Futian was walking through the storm. The void sky shook and roared. Although Zhan Yuan''s attack shattered many elephant phantoms, under the elephants'''' stomping, the spirit got higher and higher. The galloping elephants were endless and couldn''t be eliminated. There was no way for Zhan Yuan to stop Ye Futian from moving forward.


    Zhan Yuan looked indifferent. His two hands stretched out, and immediately, in the upper sky above Ye Futian''s head, there was another terrible storm condensing. It seemed to be a new Thunder Matrix of Doomsday. The endless divine thunder gathered toward that side, and a horrifying gloomy cloud also showed up above Ye Futian''s head.


    "He wants to converge a double matrix?" People looked shocked, and all stared at Zhan Yuan. Was this the power of the Supreme Master? How intimidating his Laws of Thunder were! He could use heaven and earth as he pleased.


    Behind Zhan Yuan, endless thundercloud storms converged into a true thunder sword surrounded by the endless destructive Might of Thunder. The power of killing was truly overwhelming. Even a Nirvana Saint would be exterminated.


    Before the sword came out, the world had changed its color. At the same time, eight horrifying beams of thunder light appeared above Ye Futian''s head and fell directly from the sky, destroying everything.


    Two divine matrixes with two attacking forces that thrust out at the same time, who could stop him?


    Boom!


    The sound of elephants trumpeting made the void sky tremble. The Divine Elephant over Ye Futian''s body was shining brightly. He took a step up against the trend. The stomping elephants suppressed the world, and numerous elephant phantoms changed direction and galloped toward the sky dome.


    Vroom.


    The divine sword showed up in front of him. The world was shocked, and the void sky was annihilated.


    Boom.


    Ye Futian took one more step across the void. He took two steps and shook the world. His fists blasted forward, and the light of fist turned into elephants, smashing the Great Law of all skies.


    The sword came again, but Ye Futian punched it away with his fists. What a marvelous scene.


    Under this punch, the space seemed to be torn and shattered. The Great Law was broken, and the void sky was torn apart. The infinitely bright sword was cut in half and was destroyed.


    At the same time, Ye Futian kept going forward. He directly crossed the void, and his fist continued blasting forward.


    Zhan Yuan did not expect this to happen. His body flickered, and the light of thunder flashed. He wanted to dodge, but then he saw a punch bloomed in the air and broke the void sky.


    Boom!


    A dull sound came out, and the space where Zhan Yuan was located was shattered. He was blown away by a punch.


    "Supreme Master, is that all you can do?" Ye Futian said while taking another step forward. His voice resounded throughout the world!

 1429 The Supreme Form of the Great Path

    The Supreme Form of the Great Path, nothing more?


    Countless eyes were fixed there, looking at the battlefield.


    The strongest figure of the young generation of Violet Heavenly Palace��Zhan Yuan, the so-called Supreme Form of the Great Path��was repelled by Ye Futian.


    Although the winner was not determined yet, the scene was still shocking to many since that was the Supreme Form of the Great Path of Violet Heavenly Palace��the Violet Heavenly Palace''s future.


    All the Thunder Laws of the world originated from the Heavenly Palace, and among all the descendants of the Heavenly Palace, Zhan Yuan ranked first.


    What did this mean?


    It meant Zhan Yuan must be undefeatable among his peers. When he was confronted with warriors of the same Plane, except for the few figures also well known in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he should defeat all cultivators in this world. Who dared to make him retreat?


    But now, a nobody who had never been heard before, with one punch, dominated him.


    Ye Futian was the man who once stepped into the Purple Underground Sect and was ignored by the Purple Underworld Emperor and then refused to cultivate in the Purple Underground Sect. Who would have thought that he would be standing at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm now?


    Just as he had said, he should have a place in the Great Law battle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    In this battle, he had proven that his previous ravings were true.


    He was qualified to stand with the top figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and see the scenery of the world.


    Another peerless figure, many people thought. Who could expect it? Even in the Origin Mountains, no one would have expected that Ye Futian''s combat power could be so dominating.


    In the surrounding area, many top figures, such as the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, warriors of the Sky Demon Court, and the goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky, all looked toward Ye Futian.


    This person would also be an opponent on the battlefield of the Great Law.


    Amid the crowd of the Purple Underworld Sect, Zhang Changqing had a dreamlike feeling. Did Ye Futian repel Zhan Yuan?


    At that time, he directly captured Gu Dongliu without paying attention to these two brothers. Nowadays, Gu Dongliu had obtained Gu Tianxing''s teachings and had become a threat to the giants in the Heavenly Mandate Realm that they had to prepare to defend in advance. Ye Futian also showed striking fighting power, which was really like a dream.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was most embarrassed. Their Supreme Form of the Great Path was repelled, and the person had overthrown the Violet Heavenly Palace in Celestial Demon City at the beginning in all four Planes. And now, Ye Futian repelled Zhan Yuan, and if Zhan Yuan were defeated in this battle, it would be a complete defeat.


    Even the Violet Heavenly Palace''s status in the Heavenly Mandate Realm as the supreme power of Thunder Law would be questioned.


    At this moment, people began to understand why Ye Futian did not enter the Heavenly Palace. Did he need to enter the Heavenly Palace to cultivate?


    Even the Supreme Form of the Great Path taught by Heavenly Palace only had such abilities?


    "The Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist."


    These cold words came from the Lord of the Heavenly Penalty Palace. Ordinary people couldn''t tell, but in his capacity, how could he not recognize it?


    The fist skill Ye Futian used repelled Zhan Yuan and directly broke the void air, exterminating everything. Even after Zhan Yuan retreated, he was still affected by the punch. This was the ultimate attack skill of the Divine Elephant Clan��the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist.


    Many warriors trembled when they heard what the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord said. Although many people hadn''t seen it before, the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist was not unfamiliar to them. It was the secret technique of the Divine Elephant Clan and a super attack.


    "The two great skills of the Divine Elephant Clan were both passed on to a human being?" the Divine General of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said. His sharp eyes glanced toward the crowd of the Divine Elephant Clan, and he said slowly, "What is Ye Futian now?"


    They all knew that Ye Futian had obtained the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. After the Elephant Emperor took him away, did he fully recognize Ye Futian and teach him all the secret knowledge of the Divine Elephant Clan?


    "Ye Futian inherited the imperial bones from our ancestors, and now he is the successor of Divine Elephant Clan. Since he is good at various cultivation methods, we will give him the title of Supreme Successor of Laws," said an influential figure from the Divine Elephant Clan.


    "..."


    The warriors in the Violet Heavenly Palace were speechless... Zhan Yuan was the Supreme Form of the Great Path of the Violet Heavenly Palace, so Ye Futian was given the title of the Successor of the Divine Elephant Clan?


    And he had to add the word "supreme". The Supreme Successor of the Great Path?


    What did it mean?


    In fact, if others didn''t ask, the figure of the Divine Elephant Clan would not have given Ye Futian a title at all. Before Ye Futian left, the Divine Elephant Emperor said something, but he didn''t confer a title to Ye Futian.


    However, they had not expected that Ye Futian was so merciless. In front of the world, he just slapped the Violet Heavenly Palace''s face and made a laughingstock out of it.


    At this time, if he were not given a domineering title, perhaps many people would remember it.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace held the event and claimed that they would only fight the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    So, the Supreme Successor of the Great Path of the Divine Elephant Clan also came to fight. Nothing wrong with it.


    "Taking a human being as the Supreme Successor of Laws of the Divine Elephant Clan?" the Violet Penalty Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace said coldly, slightly questioning things. Were they targeting them?


    "Not long ago, didn''t you, Heavenly Penalty Master, say that demon and human cultivators would no longer be distinguished in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?" the powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan asked. "Why can''t we confer a human as the Successor of the Great Law? What''s more, Ye Futian inherited it from our ancestor Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. It doesn''t matter whether his title is Successor of the Law or not. If you want to talk about seniority, Ye Futian''s seniority in the Divine Elephant Clan may be higher than mine."


    Other warriors all understood what he meant. Ye Futian inherited something from his ancestor, so in terms of seniority, how high was his rank?"


    Many people saw the embarrassed look of the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord. It was humiliating. Just now, the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord did say that human cultivators and cultivators of the Demon Realm would not be distinguished from one another.


    They did not doubt what the powerful figures of the Divine Elephant Clan had said either. If they had not absolutely trusted Ye Futian and treated him as a clan member, how could they pass on another ultimate skill of the Divine Elephant Race to him?


    Today, Ye Futian possessed the two strongest techniques of the Divine Elephant Clan and owned the demon bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. It could be said that Ye Futian was more a clan member than the other warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan.


    "Since he is a Supreme Successor of the Great Path in the Divine Elephant Clan, why didn''t you directly send him to join the event? Why did he have to disguise his identity and come here in this way?" the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord snorted and asked. What Ye Futian had done before was clearly aimed at embarrassing the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    "In the territory of the Demon Realm, the Violet Heavenly Palace used to put him in a difficult situation, and even your Renhuang almost killed him. Ye Futian was extremely upset. Compared with what Violet Heavenly Palace had done, it is normal for him to come to challenge the Heavenly Palace people and vent his grievances. We Divine Elephant Clan didn''t know many details."


    The powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan slowly spoke. The two ultimate skills of the Divine Elephant Clan shocked the world and even defeated the Supreme Form of the Great Path of the Violet Heavenly Palace, which was a great honor to them.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was the host of this event, and they let all warriors of this world fight here. Did they have no ambition?


    They must have their own planes. They wanted their Supreme Form of the Great Path to crush all top figures of the Demon Realm and create momentum, to show their prosperity and strength and leave the Demon Realm in awe. At least, they would not be too close to Gu Dongliu.


    However, the Violet Heavenly Palace did not expect that today, Ye Futian showed up. Ye Futian, who was able to fight against Zhan Yuan, their Supreme Form of the Great Path.


    "Since you, Divine Elephant Clan, have an interest, we are willing to keep you company."


    At this time, a cold voice resounded through the void sky. Everyone turned their eyes and looked at the figure in front of Ye Futian.


    Zhan Yuan, who was shaken away, was suspended in the air, and the roars of thunder over his body rang through the world. The horrifying thunder trembled in his body, and beams of thunder light seemed to directly penetrate his figure, erupting infinite divine light.


    At this moment, it seemed that Zhan Yuan was transforming. Above his body, endless beams of Great Law thunder burst out, and those thunder beams penetrated his body and headed toward the vast, endless void air.


    "What was he going to do?" warriors stared at Zhan Yuan and asked.


    The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty contracted his pupils slightly. At this moment, Zhan Yuan made him feel a faint wisp of threat.


    The Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked solemn. He looked at Zhan Yuan and said, "Zhan Yuan was conferred as the Supreme Form of the Great Path, but it is not just a simple title. He was born to have the Supreme Form of the Great Path. Now you all can see the so-called Supreme Form."


    Supreme Form of the Great Path, the Supreme one among all forms of the Great Path.


    Was Zhan Yuan going to reveal his cards?


    The dazzling rays of thunder light connected his body with the Great Path between the sky and earth. The sound of thunder rang through the world. Zhan Yuan''s body was suspended in the sky. The endless gorgeous scene was astonishing. His body seemed to be no longer mortal; it was the form of thunder merging with the Great Law.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced toward him. The Might of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was released, and a cauldron of the Great Law appeared over his body, refining all the Laws of the world. Ancient characters surrounded him. His whole body was bright and sacred. It was as if he didn''t belong to the world.


    Zhan Yuan reached out his hand, and immediately, the endless thunder of sky and earth converged in the sky above his head. A more brilliant thunder sword appeared, which was born of the endless thunder of sky and earth. He pointed his finger forward, and the sword broke up the sky, chopping toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stepped forward, the power of the Elephant Stomping Technique erupted again, and countless divine elephants suddenly appeared, galloping and crushing the sky and earth. He raised his fist and launched a punch, the void sky roaring and shaking.


    Boom... The divine sword collided with the fist, but it did not immediately collapse. The sword was sealed by the endless thunder of the sky and earth, emitting the endless aura of thunder. Ye Futian stepped forward again, and his Fist Will exploded. Only then did the Divine sword collapse and shatter.


    Zhan Yuan looked up at the sky. There was endless thunder in his pupils, resonating with the thunder in the sky. The light of thunder engulfed the vast void.


    "The Supreme Form of the Great Path in harmony with the Law of Nature. All the Thunder Laws between the sky and earth are under my control," Zhan Yuan shouted to the sky. Countless streaks of thunder descended from the sky, and between the sky and earth, Swords of the Doomsday converged and enveloped this void sky.


    At this moment, the battlefield turned into that of a real doomsday.


    "Is this the power of the Supreme Form of the Great Path?"


    Countless warriors looked at that figure in shock. Now, Zhan Yuan''s body was not even concrete. He became the avatar of thunder. He had become the Law itself and merged into it.


    How could the Violet Heavenly Palace Supreme Form be defeated easily?


    However, even figures like the Supreme Form of the Great Path were forced by Ye Futian to such a degree that he had to stop hiding.


    Because of this, Ye Futian was qualified to stand on top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm with other top figures.


    Zhan Yuan had always been the one who vanquished others in his battles with his peers. No one could fight him for more than one round, not to mention let him show his true powers or launch the power of the Supreme Form of the Great Path.


    Warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked indifferent. They had thought that this was the ability to be released only during the fight with the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    But it was fine. Just let them see how strong the Supreme Body of the Violet Heavenly Palace was!

 1430 The Divine Form of the Heavenly Law

    At this time, Ye Futian was staring at Zhan Yuan��the Supreme Form of the Great Path��but in fact, he could only be called the Supreme Form of the Great Thunder Path because he only perfectly fit the Great Law of Thunder.


    At this moment, the divine thunder between the sky and earth was all under his control. The wind and clouds roared above the sky, and the Will of endless thunder fell from the nine skies, all of which turned into his power, and the infinite space became the world of thunder.


    Some Renhuang warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace created defense barriers so that the destructive power would not spread to them.


    Ye Futian, at the center of the Thunder World, at this moment, was almost engulfed by the endless divine thunder. What was even more frightening was that countless thunder swords were pointing at him. Once they fell, the world would be turned into ruins.


    Zhan Yuan seemed to know that Ye Futian''s defense was strong, so he didn''t rush to take action but let the Thunder Sword gather more and more Laws of Thunder. The Catastrophe Thunder of Doomsday raged wildly over Ye Futian''s body, but his whole body was protected by the divine elephant and was not affected at all.


    At this time, in Ye Futian''s Life Palace, the ancient world tree swayed like a towering sacred tree.


    Now, his life palace had been transformed into a world, and each wisp of Life Spirit was integrated with infinite Wills. When the Ancient World Tree Life Spirit swayed, all the Wills flew to the ancient tree. It was as if the ancient tree was the core of the world and could distribute power at its discretion.


    A terrifying storm emerged, and the Ancient Tree Life Spirit merged all the Wills into one and then turned into the power of divine elephants. For a moment, the sound of the elephant roaring in Ye Futian''s body trembled the sky and collided with the thunderous rumbles from Zhan Yuan''s body. The collisions formed a terrifying sonic boom!


    Although the destructive power of the space they were in was shocking, people could still feel the power of the sound explosion. Many peoples'' hearts trembled. These two Saint-Plane warriors had sounds of elephants and thunder in their bodies colliding in the air, which was horrifying. It was the first time for many people to see such a wonder.


    At this time, another amazing scene appeared. The Deed of Thorough Comprehension enveloped Ye Futian''s body, turning it into a cauldron of Great Laws. Over the sky dome, wills of all kinds were condensed and appeared, and then flowed into Ye Futian''s body madly, all being refined in the glory of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. The sound of elephants roaring became more and more terrifying. Giant elephants appeared one after another, and the Divine Elephant Power over Ye Futian''s body was still getting stronger.


    It was as if he could refine the Laws of the world.


    This was including the Laws of Thunder.


    "I have the Supreme Form of the Great Path. It is naturally in harmony with the Great Laws. How can the Thunder Laws be under your control?" Zhan Yuan said. Ye Futian''s eyes looked overbearing. He glanced toward the Thunder Supreme Form of Great Path. All Laws of the world gathered over his body and helped him forge the enormous Divine Elephant Power.


    "You can only use the Thunder Laws. How dare you say your body form is supreme? I can cultivate in all kinds of Laws, so shouldn''t you call me the Master of all Laws��the Divine Form of Heavenly Path?" Ye Futian''s voice caused the sky and earth to tremble. Countless peoples'' hearts were shaking due to his words.


    The Divine Form of Heavenly Laws?


    It was almost ...


    Who in the world dared to name their own body the "Divine Form of Heavenly Path"?


    Heavenly Laws? Divine Form?


    Although it was satirical, it sounded too arrogant and overbearing.


    Those who stood at the top even did not dare to speak about Divine Form of Heavenly Laws.


    He was praising himself far too much.


    How dare he say his body was a divine one of Heavenly Laws?


    Simply shameless.


    However, although they felt Ye Futian sounded too arrogant, they were still in disbelief at the scene before them; it was too gorgeous. Ye Futian was refining the Laws of all kinds. Many people could feel that different kinds of Laws were condensed and integrated into his body, refining his Cultivation Method.


    In the end, they were all merged into the Divine Elephant Giant Power, strengthening the phantoms of the elephants appearing around him. It was as if they were real divine elephants that could crush the Great Path.


    Qi Xuangang was also in the vast crowd, but he was not so conspicuous. He looked at Ye Futian. His disciple was about to surpass him. How long had it taken? Although he knew Ye Futian''s background was not simple, he still had not expected him to grow so fast.


    However, his decision at that time had indeed been correct. The Deed of Thorough Comprehension was the most suitable cultivation method for Ye Futian, which could help him refine the Laws of all beings.


    "Presumptuous," the Heavenly Penalty Palace Master said coldly. The heavenly path had been broken, and he dared to speak the name of the Divine Form of Heavenly Law? This was not just being frivolous; his arrogance came out of his ignorance, and he did not understand what respect meant.


    What was more, just because he was able to cultivate all kinds of Laws, could he really call himself the Divine Form of all kinds of Laws?


    If so, then are all the Saint-Plane cultivators could be called Forms of Great Laws.


    Zhan Yuan''s eyes shot out dazzling light. He ignored Ye Futian''s words and stretched out his palms. His wills shrouded the sky and earth. He pointed one finger toward Ye Futian, and suddenly, all the thunder swords pierced through the sky at the same time.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian stepped into the air. The technique he used was still the Divine Elephant Sky Stomping. Many divine elephants galloped toward the divine swords. At the same time, Ye Futian raised his arm and continuously punched out Fist Wills.


    At this moment, the sky and earth seemed to be penetrated, and the space was in chaos. Each of his punches broke one corner of the world. The divine sword exploded and shattered, and no sword could approach Ye Futian''s body.


    Bang. He continued striding. Countless elephants crushed over the sky dome and crumbled.


    And at the same moment, Zhan Yuan turned into a War Deity of Thunder, and the thunderous light in his body bloomed and blasted out toward the marching elephants in the void air, making them collapse and shatter.


    He was also heading forward. Behind him, a large Thunder Matrix of Apocalypse appeared. At this moment, the matrix seemed to be integrated with his body; he was the Matrix.


    Zhan Yuan came before Ye Futian and wanted to have a melee with him.


    Seeing this scene, many peoples'' hearts trembled. Ye Futian''s cultivation method��the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist��was so powerful! Could Zhan Yuan contend?


    Zhan Yuan became the incarnation of the thunder deity. He raised one arm and blasted forward. His arm was no longer made of flesh and blood. It became a distorted thunderbolt, wiping away the existence of everything.


    Ye Futian didn''t dodge. He stepped forward and lifted his arm. The divine elephant great strength merged into his arm. He punched out. The divine elephant phantom appeared, crushing the space and colliding with Zhan Yuan''s arm.


    The moment the two men collided, Zhan Yuan felt that his body was about to explode and shatter, while Ye Futian felt that the enormous power of the divine elephant in the arm was guarding his body. Still, the thundering force of destruction was penetrating and destroying everything.


    Zhan Yuan was testing who would be the first one to attack and destroy the other.


    The extremely violent collision did not make either of them fall back. They raised their arms and blasted at each other again.


    Bang, bang, bang...


    They collided with each other again and again, and each collision was earth-shaking. Many people were shaking inside. Could their bodies of flesh and blood be able to withstand such attacks?


    This was just crazy.


    When Zhan Yuan attacked, the thunder of all skies fell and spread all over his body as if the battle was going on in the catastrophe. When Ye Futian attacked, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension shone with bright light. His body was surrounded by ancient characters and protected by divine elephants. Both sides launched extremely aggressive strikes.


    With a loud noise, they were separated and moved back to their original positions.


    Over Zhan Yuan''s body, the divine light of thunder shone, but the Might of Thunder over that figure of the Thunder Deity seemed to be a little unstable. Even though he was the Supreme Form and the Law of Thunder went all over his body, filling every part of it and was able to destroy the intruding power, such an attack still made his face pale and blocked the flow of the Thunder in his body.


    Ye Futian was also uncomfortable. At this moment, there were endless beams of thundering light raging over his body. However, the power of the Ancient World Tree could swallow and digest this Will, which allowed him to persist and have a stable life force.


    "Supreme Form of Great Path." Ye Futian raised his eyes and glanced at Zhan Yuan. He asked, "Are you okay?"


    Zhan Yuan''s eyes looked cold. After Ye Futian spoke, a thunder sword directly fell from the sky.


    Ye Futian raised his hand to blow it away with one punch. He walked forward and suppressed the heavens.


    Vroom. Zhan Yuan''s body turned into a flash of lightning. It was extremely fast as it flew toward Ye Futian, intent on killing him.


    Ye Futian stepped across the space and transformed into a bolt of lightning. They continued to collide in mid-air.


    The crowd could only see two flashes fighting from the ground to the upper sky. There were no more fancy skills, only forcible collisions. Even so, it was difficult to see their specific shapes; there were only two glares, divine thunder all over the sky, and a bunch of blasting divine elephants.


    Boom...


    Their bodies were separated again. The thunderous light over Zhan Yuan''s body danced wildly. His face was pale, blood oozing from the corner of his mouth.


    Ye Futian''s life force fluctuated. The destructive thunderbolt merged into the aura of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. Soon, it was swallowed and refined. The momentum from his body was still arrogant. He said, "It seems that your Supreme Form of Great Path is inferior to my Divine Form of Heavenly Laws. What''s wrong with you?"


    Lightning fell from Zhan Yuan''s body, and the sound of thunder was roaring. Until now, everyone had already understood that Zhan Yuan''s attack could do nothing to Ye Futian, but his guy''s physique also seemed unique. Even the ultimate attack couldn''t hurt him.


    If the battle continued like this, the Supreme Form of Violet Heavenly Palace might lose.


    Zhan Yuan, who had released his ultimate power, still couldn''t beat Ye Futian.


    Many people looked at that peerless figure and trembled inside.


    Another peerless figure showed up.


    After this battle, perhaps the whole Heavenly Mandate Realm would know his name.


    Boom! The bright light in Zhan Yuan''s eyes shone, and he dashed straight forward again.


    Ye Futian looked indifferent and also headed toward Zhan Yuan.


    With his arm raised, Zhan Yuan blew out a punch. The light of thunder broke through the void air, rushing at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s body flickered, and his fist also blasted out. This time, instead of banging on Zhan Yuan''s fist, he hit Zhan Yuan''s body.


    Zhan Yuan''s pupils contracted slightly, and he seemed to be aware of Ye Futian''s intention, but at this moment, how could he quiver?


    Boom... The dazzling light of the divine thunder blasted directly over Ye Futian''s body. The violent thunder of destruction destroyed everything. It was as if everything in his body would be demolished.


    But at the same time, his Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist hit Zhan Yuan''s body of the Thunder Deity and directly punched through it.


    Ye Futian''s body was blown back, and the light of his Deed of Thorough Comprehension seemed to be extinguished. The Might of Thunder destroyed him, and the destructive thunder raged on him. His body trembled, blood oozed out from his mouth, but he still, he remained standing.


    Zhan Yuan was blown away with a punch, and the condensed body of the Thunder Deity exploded and shattered. The Might of Thunder over his body continued to be weakened, and he surrendered, coughing up blood continuously, and his life force was weak!

 1431 Stronger Than Me

    In the sky above the Violet Heavenly Palace, there were still Wills of Thunder dripping down.


    However, at this time, the vast Heavenly Palace was very quiet. Countless people were gazing at the battlefield, watching Ye Futian and Zhan Yuan fight.


    Ye Futian was struggling to carry on the attack of thunder while launching a punch at Zhan Yuan.


    It was crazy to withstand the destructive attack of thunder with a body made of flesh. His Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist was absurd, too; even Nirvana-Plane Saints might not be able to endure it.


    This lunatic...


    But at this time, Ye Futian''s status was better than Zhan Yuan''s. Everyone could see that Zhan Yuan was more injured.


    Even more frightening was that, at this time, Ye Futian''s whole body was dazzling, bathed in a sacred aura. A will of life kept washing over his body, making him look sacred in the void air.


    Before, he was fighting and recovering at the same time, but now, when he was injured, the injuries inside his body could be healed immediately. Obviously, Zhan Yuan didn''t have such an ability, which was why Ye Futian always had the advantage.


    The advantage was not just in attack powers.


    Ye Futian was proficient in Laws of all kinds. He seemed to have even released the wills of life and death as if he had really cultivated in Laws of all Ways.


    Had the bone of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions and the Elephant Emperor''s two ultimate skills created another peerless figure?


    However, despite this, Ye Futian''s inborn talents were also uncommonly outstanding, so he could directly become the most talented warrior in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Perhaps it was for this reason that the Divine Elephant Emperor regarded him as the successor of their ancestor and truly recognized him as such. As for the so-called Supreme Successor of the Great Path, it was made up by that warrior of the Divine Elephant Clan. But his purpose was to emphasize Ye Futian''s status in the Divine Elephant Clan, which should be equivalent to that of Zhan Yuan in the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The Emperor of the Purple Underground and Zhang Changqing didn''t know how they should feel. The sudden appearance of Ye Futian turned out to be more shocking than that of the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. After all, the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was conferred as the Crown Prince when he was 18 years old. Even though he had not shown up in public, people had assumed he was amazingly talented and had certain expectations of him.


    However, Ye Futian, a cultivator from the Lower Realm, had brought shock to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    There were not many people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm who were able to quell Zhan Yuan��the Supreme Form of the Great Path of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    What was more terrifying was that although his thunder talent was not as outstanding as Zhan Yuan''s, who had an inborn body form of Thunder that could fit the Great Law of Thunder, Ye Futian was really proficient in various Laws. He could integrate various Laws into the Divine Elephant Massive power, which was more powerful and imposing, and directly went against Zhan Yuan''s Supreme Will of the Great Path.


    Seeing this battle, many people understood that it was nothing for him to lead people to overturn the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Zhang Changqing bowed his head in silence and had mixed feelings. Even though the Purple Underground Sect was outstanding, it was still not at the same level as Ye Futian.


    Even though Ye Futian had trapped them, what could they do?


    He was backed by the Divine Elephant Clan, so, the Violet Heavenly Palace couldn''t do anything to him.


    Zhan Yuan slowly raised his head and stared at Ye Futian. His mouth was still stained with blood, and his body seemed to be broke. He looked to be in extreme pain, but he still persisted. The mental suffering was more difficult to bear than any physical pain.


    As the most outstanding figure of the Violet Heavenly Palace''s young generation, he was the future of the Violet Heavenly Palace. He was destined to compete with the strongest figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. He strived to dominate the future. However, today, he had already been defeated. Also, he lost to Ye Futian��a cultivator who didn''t have any fame at all.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace held today''s event. His battle would be recorded in the history of the Heavenly Mandate Realm''s and become an anecdote. He, Zhan Yuan, would live in the shadows of Ye Futian, who would soon gain fame.


    But why was he defeated?


    He was very clear about his strength, which had been proven many times in the Violet Heavenly Palace, but how could this unknown person be so strong?


    "You have damaged my Divine Form of the Great Path. Supreme Form of the Great Path of Violet Heavenly Palace, it was enough for you to be proud of yourself," Ye Futian said arrogantly, standing in the void sky with his hands behind his back.


    "Uggh..." Zhan Yuan heard his words and spat out a mouthful of blood. He looked extremely cold.


    He should be proud that he had managed to merely injure Ye Futian?


    How ironic...


    "This..."


    Many people looked at Ye Futian, speechless. There was no need for discussion on Ye Futian''s strength and talent; his strength was indeed unprecedented.


    Zhan Yuan should be proud to have hurt his Divine Form of Heavenly Laws.


    Nobody knew what the mood of the people in the Violet Heavenly Palace was like after they heard this.


    But as the old saying went, losers had no right to justify for themselves. Ye Futian had vanquished Zhan Yuan with absolute power. No matter what Ye Futian said, Zhan Yuan and the Violet Heavenly Palace had to listen. How could they argue?


    Strength meant everything, and the defeated had no dignity.


    "The Divine Form of Heavenly Laws?"


    Many people muttered in their hearts. He had come up with that stupid title "Divine Form of Heavenly Laws", and now he actually used the title for himself, which was shameless.


    If they had been Zhan Yuan, they would have spat blood, too.


    "Marvelous," a powerful figure of the Divine Elephant said. "The Lord of the Heavenly Penal Palace said that today, we would practice combat and discuss laws to prove that cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm are no less than the figure created by Gu Tianxing. I also believe that the Divine Elephant Clan is no worse than anyone else. Zhan Yuan could fight with the Supreme Successor of our Divine Elephant Clan at such a high level, which already showed his peerless ability, no matter what the battle result was. This battle also let everyone witness the outstanding performance of the young generation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    Everyone looked at the powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan. What he said was true, but the one who had been defeated was not Ye Futian; it was Zhan Yuan.


    When the Violet Heavenly Palace told the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm to confront each other, they didn''t expect that Zhan Yuan would be defeated.


    If so, what was the point of hosting this event?


    Were they being used?


    "If I remember correctly, this person is Gu Tianxing''s younger brother''s descendant. Initially, he went to the Purple Underground Sect to ask me for that person. The relationship between them is not ordinary," the Emperor of the Purple Underground said.


    The powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan glanced at him, with great majesty in his eyes, and said, "What do you want to say?"


    The Emperor of the Purple Underground frowned slightly. He looked at the powerful figures of the Divine Elephant Clan and saw them also staring at him. The powerful figure continued, "You Purple Underground Sect captured the descendant of the Gu Clan, and now you are afraid? You have a grudge with the Gu Clan. The Divine Elephant Clan does not. I don''t think I promised to deal with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven with you, but now you have started to draw a clear line with me?"


    The Divine Elephant Clan was a peak clan in the Demon Realm, and they were at the same level as the Violet Heavenly Palace. The Violet Heavenly Palace held the event to dissuade all clans of the Demon Realm from getting close to Gu Dongliu.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace, however, did not have the right to decide who the Divine Elephant Clan accepted as a successor and who they should be close to.


    Not to mention, the Emperor of the Purple Underground.


    "My apology," the Emperor of the Purple Underground admitted frankly. But he did not say anything wrong. He intentionally spoke to everyone.


    Ye Futian took advantage of him once today and also demonstrated such peerless talent. Later, perhaps the Violet Heavenly Palace would resent him.


    "In a discussion or combat, victory and defeat are inevitable. I should congratulate the Divine Elephant Clan for receiving such a Supreme Successor of the Great Path," the master of the Heavenly Penalty Palace said in an indifferent tone. Their purpose today was to target the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    However, now the younger brother of the only descendant of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven''s Gu Clan showed off his outstanding talent. What would the world think?


    In the future, if this person climbed to the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and joined forces with Gu Dongliu, wouldn''t the Heavenly Mandate Realm be turned upside down?


    Not to mention, Ye Futian was now backed by the Divine Elephant Clan.


    In this way, it might be more difficult for all forces to deal with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven with them.


    After all, as the powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan said, they had no grudge with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    "Thank you very much," said the powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan, smiling. Ye Futian and Zhan Yuan''s fight today was also beyond his expectations. It was no wonder that he could quell Xiang Mang in the Divine Elephant Clan.


    It seemed that what the Divine Elephant Emperor did had a deeper meaning, and this Ye Futian indeed had unlimited potential.


    First, Gu Tianxing created Gu Dongliu, and now there was Ye Futian. What kind of era would the Heavenly Mandate Realm face in the future?


    In the so-called big change of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, what kind of role would they play?


    "The Divine Elephant Clan is known for its unparalleled strength. Their Divine Elephant Massive power is so powerful that few are able to compete in the land of the Demon Realm. This young man has the ultimate heritage of the Divine Elephant Clan and possesses the bone of the ancestor of the Elephant Emperor. His future is indeed bright," said a big future of the Divine Dragon Clan.


    "You''re welcome. The divine dragon power of the Divine Dragon Clan is also peerless in the Heavenly Mandate Realm," the powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan responded.


    In the Demon Realm, the Divine Dragon Clan and Divine Elephant Clan stood at the peak in terms of strength.


    "Warriors of the Divine Dragon Clan and the Divine Elephant Clan all have innate talent. As a human being, he could make this, which should be the limit of human beings. He must have had intense physique cultivation in addition to cultivating in all kinds of laws. His body is Saint-level, and in terms of strength, I am afraid it is hard for any other human being to reach him," the warrior of the Divine Dragon Clan continued.


    "I am flattered by your comments, sir. I inherited this from the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions and made such achievement all because of the Divine Emperor''s teachings. Speaking of physical strength, my brother is stronger than me." Ye Futian behaved rather modestly at this moment. Since the big figure of the Divine Dragon Clan praised him, he could not act as he had in front of the Violet Heavenly Palace. He was close to the Divine Elephant Clan and had a friendship with Zhu Gan��the Demon Emperor. The Zhu Yan Demon Emperor and the Dragon Divine Clan were old friends, and Third Brother received the heritage of the Origin Mountains.


    With such a background, he''d better get along well with all the Demon Clans of the Demon Realm.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was destined to be on his opposite side.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to kill the Third Brother, so they were destined to be his opponents.


    "Stronger than you?" the warrior of the Divine Dragon Clan said and looked surprised.


    Ye Futian had just shown great power in the battle with Zhan Yuan, and he said his brother was even stronger than him.


    Did he mean there was another top figure?

 1432 The Miserable Violet Heavenly Palace

    Ye Futian nodded and said, "He was born to be a warrior. If body form theory really exists, there are some people who have the Supreme Form of the Great Path and some people with body form of all Laws. His body form should be called the form of Battle Deity, since he is born to fight, and his physical strength is just invincible."


    Many people heard Ye Futian''s words and felt stirred. They had seen Ye Futian''s performance, and the power he displayed in the battle with Zhan Yuan was just astounding. Even the great demon beasts of the Divine Dragon Clan did not dare to say they could beat him with the massive power of the divine elephant.


    However, he said that there was still another person who was stronger than him and had the body form of War Deity and was born for war.


    Who in this world dared to call their physical strength invincible?


    Even the warriors of the Divine Dragon Clan and the Divine Elephant Clan didn''t dare to say their physical strengths were invincible.


    However, Ye Futian had proven how powerful he was with a violent victory. Since he claimed another person was strong, he was probably really strong. Otherwise, Ye Futian wouldn''t just babble in front of so many top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm who could use a fist to test if what he said was true or not.


    Many top figures were a little curious, and all looked at Ye Futian. The powerful figure of the Divine Dragon Clan asked, "Who is this person?"


    Ye Futian glanced at the vast and boundless crowd, seemingly looking for someone, but there were too many people. It was impossible to find someone at a glance, so he shouted, "Yu Sheng!"


    Somewhere in the crowd, Yu Sheng was with other companions. He looked up at Ye Futian in the void, quite speechless.


    You were in the limelight, fine, but what does it have to do with me? he thought.


    Why are you picking me?


    Yu Sheng was a little unhappy, but he still walked to the void sky.


    The moment he showed up, he attracted the attention of countless people.


    He was tall, a head taller than Ye Futian. He looked quite brawny. His shoulder-length black hair looked casual, but his face was sharp, and he had an indescribable temperament. From just one glance, one could get a sense of his power.


    Of course, one''s temperament did not truly display their real strength. All cultivators who had reached the Saint Plane had cast off their mortal body structure, so nobody''s temperament was poor. His real strength was still unknown.


    Ye Futian said his physical strength was invincible, maybe because of their friendship. It should be an exaggeration.


    Amid the crowd of the Violet Heavenly Palace, Tan Zimo, many people recognized Yu Sheng. So had the Jinyi Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky and others.


    Yu Sheng was the person who stood next to Ye Futian and challenged the disciples of Violet Heavenly Palace back then. His physical strength was indeed very overbearing.


    However, it was difficult to tell how strong he really was.


    Jinyi Goddess murmured something to the people of the Brahma''s Pure Sky around her. Many people looked at Yu Sheng. Since Ye Futian had such appalling combat power, this person must not be weak, either. He must be really strong, but people needed more proof of how strong he really was.


    Yu Sheng walked quietly to Ye Futian and said nothing, but the top figures in the void sky were all staring at him, fighting will in their eyes.


    "Sir, this is Yu Sheng of the True-Self Saint Plane. I was really not raving. If I am qualified for the Great Law battle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he should have a place, too," Ye Futian said.


    The warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace didn''t look happy; even the Lord of Heavenly Penalty Palace looked sullen.


    The event today was held by the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    What did Ye Futian think the place was?


    Did he think himself as the master here?


    "Whether his physical strength is invincible or not, I will know only after I fight with him," a cold voice came out. The speaker walked out of the crowd of the Violet Heavenly Palace. The person was also of the True Self Saint Plane and was the strongest warrior of this Plane in the Violet Heavenly Palace. His name was Xu Yin.


    Tan Zimo and others were about to say something, but Xu Yin had already stepped out, so they could do nothing but watch. Now, they could only hope that Xu Yin could win.


    If they failed the battle again...


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was quite embarrassed by Zhan Yuan''s defeat. Seeing Ye Futian introducing other people, how could they submit to them? Xu Yin''s Life Spirit shone behind him. It was a violent giant monster of Thunder. Suddenly, the Thunder Light illuminated the sky. His eyes swept toward Yu Sheng, and he said, "Please feel free to give me instruction."


    Yu Sheng took a peep at Ye Futian.


    "During the Great Law competition today, we should show enough respect to our opponents, so please make sure you put in your full effort," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay," Yu Sheng nodded and walked forward. The light of Buddha and demon shone around him. When he stepped, the void sky made a dull sound.


    "The Buddha and demon gathered in the same body, which made the Law of Demon even more vigorous," other warriors commented. Yu Sheng stepped into the void sky, and the space was shaking. A demon shadow appeared around his body, and behind him, a demon statue showed up.


    It was as if he was the devil himself.


    After entering the Saint Plane of True Self, Yu Sheng''s cultivation had a stunning transformation, and his divine skills became stronger.


    The supreme divine Might came, and Xu Yin of the Violet Heavenly Palace frowned. He felt a thrilling pressure from the Demonic Laws. When he looked at Yu Sheng, he felt as if he was looking at a demon.


    Xu Yin''s eyes shone with thunder. He took a forceful step, and the thunderous, giant beast burst into a roar. Tens of thousands of rays of thunder light annihilated the void sky. He seemed to merge into the thunder beast and moved forward to destroy the demon deity.


    The demonic melody lingered and rang through the world. In addition to the demon statue behind Yu Sheng, there also seemed to be thousands of demon phantoms. He was the peerless demonic deity of the world. He thrust his demonic palm down and destroyed all beings.


    The Might of the violent beast seemed to be completely suppressed. Xu Yin and Yu Sheng''s attacks collided. The Demonic Might suppressed might of Thunder Law.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise. Under the suppression of the demon palm print, the light of thunder dimmed, and the violent thunder monster was penetrated. The palm prints directly blasted over Xu Yin''s body. For a moment, Xu Yin was blown away and thrown back to the crowd of Violet Heavenly Palace.


    He should go back to where he came from.


    Even though Xu Yin was a talented warrior in Violet Heavenly Palace, he was not even at the same level as Zhan Yuan. If Zhan Yuan and Yu Sheng were on the same Plane, they might be able to fight.


    As for Xu Yin, he was obviously not qualified enough, so he could only be suppressed.


    In regards to Yu Sheng''s demonic method, the more he cultivated, the more powerful the method became. Even after the Saint Plane, his demonic power would only become more and more terrifying as he practiced.


    Therefore, since Yu Sheng listened to Ye Futian''s words and didn''t show mercy, Xu Yin naturally couldn''t bear it.


    "This..."


    Many people saw this scene and felt speechless. One could say the previous battle between Ye Futian and Zhan Yuan was like a showdown, a strong duel, a battle between two top figures. Ye Futian had a hard time even though he defeated the Supreme Form of the Great Path.


    Then the battle was a slaughter. They were obviously not at the same level.


    Xu Yin didn''t deserve being to be an opponent for Yu Sheng.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was miserable.


    Many people were thinking, This was a big event held by the Violet Heavenly Palace, but what''s happening now?


    The warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace were beaten one after another, and even Zhan Yuan��their Supreme Form of the Great Path��was defeated.


    Vroom. At this moment, a gust of fierce wind passed by, and suddenly, the violent demonic flows engulfed the world. A demon shadow appeared. His whole body was sharp. Behind him was a huge phantom of a Kunpeng.


    The warrior was a Kunpeng beast from the Sky Demon Court. He was a top character from the Sky Demon Court.


    He straddled the void sky in an instant and landed in front of Yu Sheng. His giant Kunpeng wings behind him swept down and almost opened a crevice into the void sky. They swept toward Yu Sheng.


    "He is Kun��the descendant of the contemporary Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder," many people murmured. The current Kunpeng Demonic Giant Elder was appallingly powerful and was a giant figure in the Sky Demon Court. He even disdained the Golden Raven Demonic Great Elder and was seeking autonomy.


    The descendant of Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder didn''t have very much fame in the world of human cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but in the demon world, he had a great reputation and was considered to be the future master of Kun Clan.


    It seemed that he couldn''t help but have a try.


    Yu Sheng looked up and swept toward the void. He saw the wings coming toward him, and he threw his first out, banging the approaching wings and breaking them.


    Vroom. Kun stirred a storm, and a huge vortex rose between the sky and earth, devouring and tearing everything apart. It headed toward Yu Sheng.


    Bang. The storm drowned yu Sheng, and the horrifying storm tore his body apart. The demon shrouded Yu Sheng. When the horrifying storm raged over his body, he suddenly turned into a terrifying dark whirlwind, devouring this storm frantically, rushing straight toward Kun.


    Yu Sheng forwarded in the storm, and his Fist of Devil penetrated everything and rushed straight toward Kun.


    With wings spread behind his back, Kun flashed toward Yu Sheng. Since Ye Futian had said that Yu Sheng''s physical strength was unparalleled, he wanted to see how strong Yu Sheng''s offensive power was.


    The crowd saw them colliding together and fighting at a very close distance. the Art of Kunpeng and the overbearing demonic powers clashed with each other, and the battlefield seemed to be trembling.


    Countless warriors were staring at them, and every collision made their hearts tremble.


    The Sky Demon Court was a power of the Demon Realm Alliance, of which many great powers were also present. They looked at the battlefield and were quite stirred.


    They knew Kun''s power the best. The Art of Kunpeng and his attacking power were also extremely strong, but at this time, when he collided with Yu Sheng, the demon cultivator was getting stronger and stronger in the fight. Demon statues of all skies appeared over the sky dome, with appalling Demonic Might quelling everything.


    Kun had turned into his original body form, and Yu Sheng transformed into a huge figure of demon deity. They made the void sky tremble continuously.


    Finally, they were separated, and the overbearing demonic shadow was still standing there. Kun was the one who fell back. His wings trembled slightly, and he stared at the other side.


    "Your strength is not bad. You are the strongest enemy I have ever met," Yu Sheng looked at Kun and said. Among all the opponents he had ever met, no one else was stronger than Kun.


    Many powerful figures slightly trembled. His strength was not bad?


    He was the descendant of Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder, with great fame among young generations. And he just said his strength was not bad?


    This guy, as Ye Futian said, was truly overwhelming in physical strength and was peerless in his generation.


    In today''s battle, two top-level figures showed up, and both of them were able to stand on top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Where did these two guys come from?


    Not to mention them, even the warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan had no idea that Yu Sheng, who often stood beside Ye Futian, was so strong.


    Before, nobody had noticed.


    From now on, the Heavenly Mandate Realm would be bustling!

 1433 Take Advantage

    Warriors of the Divine Dragon Clan all looked at Yu Sheng. The Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder was a top power in the Demon Realm.


    The Sky Demon Court once created an air alliance to gather all the strongest bird demon beasts, so nowadays, there were many top demon clans in the Sky Demon Court.


    There was no need to say much about the strength of the Golden Raven Demon Master, but the Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder was also a great power. His strength was no less than that of the Golden Raven Demon Master.


    Kun was the Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder''s offspring. Although he was not best at physical strength, the physical power of the Art of Kunpeng was also extremely overbearing; however, it didn''t affect Yu Sheng at all. It could be seen that Ye Futian''s words were not exaggerated and that Yu Sheng''s power was indeed terrifying.


    "He is really strong, and his demonic skills are impressive, too. Your Master must not be a usual person," said a warrior of the Dragon God Clan.


    "Yu Sheng''s demonic method was taught by a mysterious old guy who said he had unparalleled heavenly strength and was suitable for demonic cultivation. After that, the old guy disappeared and no one else has taught him. As for me, I have many teachers, and now one of my teachers is present. My cultivation method comes from him. Now, by chance, I inherited from Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions and learned the Divine Elephant Emperor''s teachings. I have been extremely lucky on my path to cultivation and have met many good teachers. Otherwise, I would not have made accomplishments like today," Ye Futian said, smartly explaining why their talents were so outstanding.


    Everyone could see that Yu Sheng''s demonic method was extraordinary at first glance. He could only say it was the teaching of a mysterious man. There was no way he could say it was Yu Sheng''s father.


    Otherwise, they were going to wonder what Yu Sheng''s origin was.


    As for himself, he would just attribute his diverse knowledge and skills to the good teachers he had met and good luck. He was not wrong in what he said.


    "First of all, you must have talent and ability, only then can fortune become a factor. You have the opportunity to meet famous teachers and have extraordinary luck, which also proves you are an unusual person," the powerful figure of the Divine Dragon Clan said slowly. "As for Yu Sheng, the demonic method he cultivated is very rare. There are very few people who can teach him in the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    "How about you find a famous teacher for him? It will be his great fortune," Ye Futian said.


    He is too shameless, people thought, staring at Ye Futian.


    This b*stard.


    Even though he had shown his talents, he was still too shameless.


    He had the Divine Elephant Clan as his background and was praised as the Supreme Form of the Great Path by the powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan. Now, he was not satisfied with only having the Divine Elephant Clan as his background but wanted to seek connections with other powers?


    He was very brazen.


    The Divine Elephant Clan and the Divine Dragon Clan were both top demon clans in the Demon Realm. If they were both approached by him, there were really few forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm that dared to touch them. Even the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had to think twice.


    "In our Divine Dragon Clan, there is indeed a powerful figure that could give Yu Sheng some guidance. However, he has a weird temperament and has not received any disciples yet. If Ye Sheng is willing, he can come to my Divine Dragon Clan and meet him. I will recommend him," the powerful figure of the Divine Dragon Clan said.


    Many top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm flashed their eyes. Many of them faintly knew who he was referring to. Not only them, but many warriors who knew something about the Demon Realm had also guessed who he was.


    The Demon Dragon of the Divine Dragon Clan was a superpower, a monster that even the Head of the Divine Dragon Clan could not command.


    The Divine Dragon Clan wanted to introduce Yu Sheng to that figure!


    "He won''t have any opinion. Are you leaving now, sir? Just take him with you. Yu Sheng will belong to Divine Dragon Clan from now on," Ye Futian said.


    "..."


    All warriors stared at Ye Futian with a stunned look. How could he be so shameless?


    Belonged to the Divine Dragon Clan?


    Was he still the peerless gallant figure who had just defeated Zhan Yuan?


    Why did he suddenly become so toady?


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian, bewildered.


    He was speechless. Had he even asked for his opinion?


    Amid the crowd, Qi Xuangang smiled and shook his head. Little Condor muttered, "Master is too shameless. He made Yu Sheng Master lose his dignity."


    "In this Heavenly Mandate Realm, dignity is of no use. In the Origin Mountains, Futian turned the Violet Heavenly Palace upside down and unlocked the secrets of the Imperial Bone. He survived the tree of death and seized the ancient emperor''s corpse. Still, he was hunted all the way, and Zhan Yuan��the Supreme Form of the Great Path of the Violet Heavenly Palace��was still so overbearing."


    Qi Xuangang spoke slowly. Were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng inferior to Zhan Yuan?


    The battle today had proved many things. What they lacked was just a powerful backing.


    As the saying went, a tree that outgrew other trees in a forest would be broken by the wind. Ye Futian certainly understood it. He stood out today and embarrassed the Violet Heavenly Palace. Besides, he was Gu Dongliu''s younger brother. He showed such peerless talent, but if he had no background, the outcome would not be good.


    Ye Futian knew this very well, which was why he asked Yu Sheng to come into the limelight and find someone to back him.


    With the Divine Elephant Clan and the Divine Dragon Clan as their backing, whoever wanted to harm them needed to think twice.


    Besides, he did so perhaps for his Third Elder Brother as well.


    After all, Gu Dongliu had inherited the Laws of Origin. Gu Tianxing wanted to make him the new king of the Demon Realm, but in fact, he was taking big risks, and the probability of success was extremely low. If he lost, he would be eternally doomed.


    But if Ye Futian could make good friends with the two top demon clans in the Demon Realm, there would be less pressure in the future.


    The powerful figure of the Divine Dragon Clan also looked at Ye Futian and felt speechless. This guy didn''t care about his own image at all. Where was the proud person who had just defeated Zhan Yuan?


    However, Zhan Yuan and the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were the same kinds of people. They were born to be extraordinary and had always been at the top of the power. They were born to be supreme. At any time, they had a noble temperament, but Ye Futian was different. He came here all through his own effort and knew better how to survive, even though he could show off his peerless talent and pride when facing Zhan Yuan.


    He knew people like Ye Futian would have a more ambitious life.


    The future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm would change, and it was likely to happen in this generation. After all, it was caused by Gu Tianxing. Then, these top talented people would be extremely important to the future. The Divine Dragon Clan, of course, wouldn''t mind establishing relationships with young figures like them.


    "Good. If so, we Dragon God Clan will take care of Yu Sheng from now on. If that guy refuses to teach him, the Dragon God Clan will teach Yu Sheng to use the power of dragon deity, but it may not fit his own cultivation method," the powerful figure of Divine Dragon Clan said.


    "Thank you, sir," Ye Futian bowed and said. "Yu Sheng, come and say thank you."


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian, speechless. But when he turned to the warrior of the Divine Dragon Clan, he became serious. He bowed slightly and said, "Thank you very much, sir."


    "Shameless," other warriors murmured, seeing Yu Sheng joining the Dragon God Clan, full of jealousy, envy, and resentment.


    With the protection of the Divine Elephant Clan and Dragon God Clan, these two guys could act tough in the future.


    "Congratulations." At this moment, a cold voice came from the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace. He looked emotionless. Had this grand event of Violet Heavenly Palace become the place to fulfill all Ye Futian''s wishes?


    It could be said that Ye Futian had taken advantage of this grand event not only to embarrass them but also to reap benefits for himself.

 1434 Qin He

    Ye Futian looked at the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord. Congratulations?


    Who knew what the mood of the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord was like now...


    But this time, Ye Futian''s purpose was just to destroy the event, and now he had made an extra achievement by establishing a connection with the Dragon Deity Clan.


    "I should thank the Violet Heavenly Palace for the opportunity you provided," Ye Futian saluted and said. He looked very polite. The Heavenly Penalty Lord looked at him. Nobody knew what he was really feeling but himself.


    This time, the Violet Heavenly Palace became Ye Futian''s tool and embarrassed themselves.


    "It''s all right. I am also glad to have been able to see so many gallant figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Besides, I know you''re the Gu Clan descendant''s brother, but you probably don''t know what Gu Tianxing did in the past. Now, since you have the opportunity to cultivate in the Divine Elephant Clan and the Dragon Deity Clan, you should be hardworking and improve yourself." The Lord of the Heavenly Penalty Palace reminded him to keep him away from Gu Dongliu.


    "I will try my best to cultivate and live up to your graciousness, sir," Ye Futian responded.


    The Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord did not look at him but looked around at the crowd, saying, "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven claimed to have drawn a line with the Gu Clan in the past, but now It seems that they didn''t break off relations. Therefore, the Violet Heavenly Palace is preparing to visit the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven after this to question their intentions. I wonder if you would be interested in going together?"


    He didn''t mention the Great Law battle of Heavenly Mandate Realm again. Since the Violet Heavenly Palace had such a disastrous defeat, how could they mention it again?


    So, just put an end to it. If the competition continued, it would not be the business of Violet Heavenly Palace, which would only make people laugh.


    Many warriors were a little surprised when they heard this. Were the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty going to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?


    Were they planning to force Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to hand over the last descendant of the Gu Clan?


    However, since the Lord of the Jiang Family went to the place of origin in person to take Gu Dongliu away, this time, he probably was serious and would not allow the scene from the past to happen again.


    Moreover, at that time, the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Gods occupied all advantages during the battle, but now things were different. They only had two forces, and other forces might not really intervene.


    What was more, Gu Dongliu had a relationship with the Demon Realm, and Ye Futian was also here.


    However, although there was little hope, they couldn''t just sit and watch all this happen. At the very least, they had to go to Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and see if the descendant of Gu Family was cultivating in the Celestial Gate and how much power they had.


    After Gu Dongliu inherited the Law of Origin and Gu Tianxing''s Celestial Method, Gu Dongliu had been sleeping. During these days, perhaps he had already acquired a lot of power.


    Ye Futian stared at the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord. Were the two peak forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm planning to go to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven together?


    However, he also understood that a war was not likely to break out, and there were, at most, small-scale conflicts.


    If a war happened, too many issues would get involved, so they would not dare to gamble. If the situation went the same way as it had between the Gu Family and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty at that time, both sides would lose.


    But since these two top forces wanted to go now, it was tremendous pressure for Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven themselves.


    What they wanted was to exert the pressure.


    As for any other possible purposes, he didn''t know.


    "The grievances of Violet Heavenly Palace, Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven have been around for a long time, but since Gu Tianxing said that he wrote off the matter with us, we Brahma''s Pure Sky don''t want to stir things up. We can go and take a look, but Brahma''s Pure Sky will not get involved."


    A Goddess of Nine Skies said this bluntly, indicating Brahma''s Pure Sky''s attitude.


    They didn''t want to be involved in this storm.


    At least, they wouldn''t get involved until the situation became more clear.


    They had learned their lesson from the past. At that time, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Heavenly Gate of Vast Heaven were the two forces standing on the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. However, after the battle, they were knocked off from their pedestal, and now, they and other top forces were on the same level, and no long prospered like before.


    Otherwise, if the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven still prospered as in Gu Tianxing''s era, and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty still had the power during the old Imperial Lord''s reign, Brahma''s Pure Sky would still be suppressed now.


    "We 10,000 Divine Mountain like joining in the fun. We don''t mind going with you," the powerful figures of 10,000 Divine Mountain said with a smile. Since Violet Heavenly Palace and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to go, they would join them.


    Seeing all these top powers show their attitudes, many warriors were shocked. They did not expect that after they had just experienced the heyday of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Would all warriors gather in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven again?


    "If so, we can go separately," the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord said calmly. Since they were not an alliance, naturally, they did not need to go together.


    He got up and looked at the boundless crowd, saying, "Let''s call it a day. Thank you, everyone, for coming to the Violet Heavenly Palace and joining us."


    The end!


    The Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord obviously wanted to end this unpleasant situation quickly.


    The warriors of the top forces stood up one after another, and the vast and endless warriors also dispersed, leaving the Violet Heavenly Palace. They were not fully satisfied.


    Or one should say, what happened today was a bit dreamy.


    Those who fought fiercely to enter the Violet Heavenly Palace before did not leave much of an impression on people. The audience was more concerned about those top characters, especially Ye Futian, who came out of nowhere and stole the limelight, which should have belonged to the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    In this battle, the ability of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Crown Prince was proven, and Ye Futian was the biggest winner.


    It wouldn''t take long for his name to spread across the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian and Yu Sheng flickered down. Qi Xuangang and other people also walked out, and soon, the group reunited together and then went in the direction of the Divine Elephant Clan.


    "In this battle, you got all the limelight," Zhu Zhao walked beside Ye Futian and said. "But how did you master the ultimate skill of the Divine Elephant Clan on such a level?"


    This guy was not just good at using sticks.


    But was the imperial bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions really that useful?


    "Just cultivate like this," Ye Futian shrugged and said. Soon they came to the crowd of the Divine Elephant Clan.


    "You were bold," a powerful figure of the Divine Elephant Clan said to Ye Futian. Although this guy ruined the plan of the Violet Heavenly Palace, he had also come out and offended the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    "Sir, you didn''t know what happened in the Origin Mountains," Ye Futian replied. After Zhan Yuan and the Renhuang figure''s assault, he had made up his mind to go against them.


    "I heard them talking, and they said, at that time, we Divine Elephant Clan wanted to take you, too," the powerful figure continued. Ye Futian didn''t mind. He got the bone of the ancestor of the Divine Elephant Clan. It was normal for the Divine Elephant Clan to want it back, but it was rude for other cultivators to do it.


    "Good performance." At this moment, a figure came over, and Ye Futian looked up. He was the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor.


    "Thank you, sir," Ye Futian smiled and replied, then glanced at Yu Sheng next to him. He walked toward Zhu Yan Demon Emperor, who was among the crowd of the Dragon Deity Clan.


    "Ye Futian and Yu Sheng are here to salute you, sirs." Ye Futian saluted with Yu Sheng.


    The powerful figure of the Dragon Deity Clan nodded slightly and said, "When do you plan to go to Dragon God Clan with Yu Sheng?"


    "I also want to send Yu Sheng to cultivate the power of the Dragon Deity as soon as possible. But, for now, I guess we will all be going to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. After the trip, I will see if Yu Sheng can go to the Demon Realm with you," Ye Futian said.


    "Okay." The big figure nodded. "Then, we will go first."


    "Take care, sir," Ye Futian said and nodded. Soon the powerful figure and other warriors of the Dragon God Clan left. Many junior warriors were staring at Ye Futian, with their eyes filled with fighting will.


    "Let''s go, too," said a warrior of the Divine Elephant Clan, and very soon, they stepped in the void sky and departed from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Above the Violet Heavenly Palace, endless thunderbolts were still dripping down and looked extremely gorgeous. More and more people were leaving the Palace, and many people were standing there, watching people leave, feeling slightly lost. This time, the Violet Heavenly Palace''s performance was terrible.


    Zhan Huan just stood there and did not leave. This time, he was defeated.


    "Go back first and recover from your injuries," the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord said. Only then did Zhan Yuan turn and leave.


    Outside the Violet Heavenly Palace, countless warriors were flying in the void sky, and Ye Futian was also in the crowd.


    At this moment, a group of people came up. Ye Futian took a glance and saw the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    However, after receiving the answer from the Brahma''s Pure Sky Lord on that day, he had already given up. Now he would still feel the pain whenever he saw people of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    At this moment, he saw someone gazing at him. That pair of eyes was extremely beautiful, and the face was also perfect. That pair of eyes met his eyes in the void.


    "After today''s fight, perhaps no one will not know of Mr. Ye from now on," a soft voice said. It was very touching.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky''s First Maiden Qin He, with perfect looks and talent, was the Goddess in countless peoples'' dreams.


    At this point, she came to Ye Futian''s side and took the initiative to speak to him.


    The scene attracted many pairs of eyes. Many people showed surprise.


    Qin He spoke to Ye Futian.


    "I am flattered," Ye Futian smiled and said. "Everyone is familiar with Goddess''s name in the Heavenly Mandate Realm before I came. Although I haven''t been in the Heavenly Mandate Realm for a long time, I have heard of your name, too."


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Qin He. She frowned slightly. What did the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky come to do?


    "Before your Life Spirit was released, you could defeat the Supreme Body of Violet Heavenly Palace, which is worthy of any praise." Qin He smiled.


    Ye Futian narrowed his eyes slightly and stared at her face, saying, "Did Goddess come just to praise it?"


    "What do you think?" Qin He said with a smile that could charm an entire nation. Even Xia Qingyuan was a little enchanted by her beauty. This woman''s beauty was bewitching.


    "I wonder if Goddess has any thoughts about me," Ye Futian laughed casually and said, looking at Qin He. Did this First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky come to chat only because of his outstanding performance?


    As the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky, she must not be so unrefined.


    But he didn''t know her purpose, either.


    Xia Qingyuan stared at Ye Futian. This b*stard.


    "Do you have a spiritual partner?" Qin He asked.


    Ye Futian did not expect that she would really ask this question in such a way. He froze and then turned his gaze away. His eyes looked slightly dim.

 1435 The Celestial Gate Clan

    Xia Qingyuan was aware of Ye Futian''s emotional changes. She was very clear that after asking the people of the Brahma''s Pure Sky twice, Ye Futian had been trying to stop thinking about it.


    The death of Hua Jieyu was the pain in his heart.


    He didn''t think about it because he wanted to numb himself; he had tried to forget.


    She was his wife, his spiritual partner. Ye Futian naturally thought of Hua Jieyu first when Qin He asked the question.


    "Does it have anything to do with you?" Xia Qingyuan said, glancing at Qin He coldly. Even though she was First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky, Xia Qingyuan was not polite to her.


    Qin He couldn''t help but take a look at Xia Qingyuan. Seeing Xia Qingyuan''s cold gaze, she understood something.


    "I heard that Mr. Ye had asked people of Brahma''s Pure Sky twice about a person''s whereabouts, so I guess the lady named Hua Jieyu was Mr. Ye''s spiritual partner," Qin He looked at Ye Futian and continued. "But, what is her relationship with us, Brahma''s Pure Sky, and why did Mr. Ye ask us about her? What is the story? "


    "Are you done?" Xia Qingyuan cut in, staring at her coldly. Was this Qin He intentionally provoking Ye Futian''s pain?


    "Qingyuan, it''s okay," Ye Futian said. Hearing him talk to her in this way, Xia Qingyuan paused for a second, took a look at him, and then lowered her head, a mixed feeling in her heart.


    "Goddess is the Brahma''s Pure Sky First Maiden, with a transcendent status in Brahma''s Pure Sky. If possible, could you ask Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky if she still remembers a human cultivator whom she had given a Thought to in the Lower Realms?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Hua Jieyu?" Qin He asked.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded, "she is my wife. She once received the Will of Her Majesty and borrowed the Empress''s Thought in a desperate situation, but her soul drifted away, so I want to ask if Brahma''s Pure Sky knew the whereabouts of my wife."


    "I see," Qin He said and nodded gently. "I am sorry to have asked you about her. After I return to Brahma''s Pure Sky, I will definitely ask for Mr. Ye if I have the chance. But since Mr. Ye had asked twice, I am afraid there isn''t too much hope. After all, what Mr. Ye said sounds very vague."


    "I understand. Thank you very much, Goddess," Ye Futian nodded and said.


    "Is Mr. Ye going to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?" Qin He continued.


    "Yes," Ye Futian said, nodding.


    "It will be a very long trip, and it''s better to go with companions. It will also be a good chance to chat about cultivation along the way," Qin He said with a smile. Her smile was extremely gorgeous. It was hard for anyone to refuse her.


    Xia Qingyuan showed a weird look. What did this Qin He mean?


    When they came into contact with Brahma''s Pure Sky previously, these sacred ladies had never taken them seriously, but now, the First Maiden Qin He personally invited Ye Futian to accompany them.


    Was it because of this battle of the Violet Heavenly Palace?


    Ye Futian also felt a little bit strange and did not understand what Qin He''s intention was.


    Qin He was the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky. She had extraordinary talent. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to arrange a marriage with their Crown Prince and her, but Brahma''s Pure Sky had no response, and Qin He never showed an intimate attitude toward anyone.


    Now, although he showed astounding talent in the battle and had a good relationship with the Divine Elephant Clan, did it mean that his strength and position had surpassed that of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Crown Prince?


    Even though he thought so, the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm might not think this way.


    There was no need for Qin He to approach him deliberately.


    So what was her purpose?


    "It''s my honor to go with Goddess," Ye Futian said with a smile. He was curious about what Qin He wanted to do.


    "Shameless," Xia Qingyuan muttered and glanced at Qin He''s enchanting face.


    Had this guy really promised that?


    However, only a fool would decline the invitation of a stunning woman like her.


    "Well, well, well, such a miserable princess," Black Wind Condor muttered in a low voice when he heard Xia Qingyuan''s soft swearing. Xia Qingyuan stared at him with a pair of cold eyes that seemed to be able to kill him. Feeling the killing Will in her eyes, Black Wind Condor shivered and withdrew his head.


    So fierce.


    She thought she finally had the chance, but Master was too charming.


    People of the Violet Heavenly Palace saw Ye Futian and Qin He conversing and even walking together. They looked even more jealous.


    This...


    Did they admire each other?


    Don''t tell us the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky fell in love with Ye Futian, they thought.


    It shouldn''t be possible. She even didn''t have any thoughts on the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Even though Ye Futian was outstanding, he was not outstanding enough to make Qin He like him.


    Many people looked where the warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were crossing the void sky.


    The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Dynasty was also in the crowd. He glanced at Qin He, eyes keen. But it was Brahma''s Pure Sky''s own business, and he couldn''t do anything.


    He headed forward, leading warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to leave.


    The large crowd dispersed. People all returned, and news about what happened in the Violet Heavenly Palace was also spread.


    As many people had guessed, Ye Futian, as a nobody who defeated the Supreme Form of the Great Path of the Violet Heavenly Palace in one battle, immediately caused a sensation.


    His name soon was known in the western part of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and spread toward other realms.


    Especially in the southern region, the news also spread very quickly, because after leaving the Violet Heavenly Palace, many warriors started to head toward the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was located in the southern part of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, so it was also known as the Vast Heaven of South.


    Under the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was the Haotian City. The most powerful families and sects of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were gathered in this largest main city of the southern part of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Besides, the strongest cultivation methods and classics were also stored here.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had existed for many generations. Not like other forces, they believed that the Celestial Gate should only be ruled by the most talented people.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was the Celestial Gate of the whole Haotian City; it didn''t solely refer to any specific clans.


    For example, when other family forces reached the peak level, they would have the opportunity to enter the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and accept the examination of the Celestial Gate. If they passed, they could enter the Celestial Gate and become one of the leaders of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Similarly, if a clan in Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven became weak and incompetent, it was also not qualified to stay in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven anymore.


    Such an environment had made Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven prosper for many years.


    Haotian City also had countless powerful family forces. All clans were continually making improvements and hoping to set foot in the Celestial Gate one day and become one of the leaders of Celestial Gate.


    Of course, being able to gain a place in Haotian City was also an extremely difficult thing.


    In such an environment, many people claimed that Haotian City and the capital of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were the two strongest main cities in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Thunder Penalty City of Violet Heavenly Palace, the main cities of Brahma''s Pure Sky and 10,000 Divine Mountain were all inferior to them.


    Ye Futian didn''t know much about the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, either, until he came to Haotian City. He did not expect that this Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had such a superior system of competition. The Gu Clan should have also reached the top at that time through it.


    If so, at that time, Gu Tianxing and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven jointly decided to abandon Gu''s Clan maybe because Gu Tianxing felt guilty?


    After all, the Gu''s Clan was not qualified to fully represent the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but he almost put the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven in crisis.


    Now, the Violet Heavenly Palace and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had released news that they would come to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. After the news spread, there was also a lot of shock in Haotian City.


    Many people in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven held different attitudes on Gu Dongliu''s return. Some people expected that Gu Tianxing would make him a peerless fighting monster, but some people also thought that he would once again put Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven at the center of the storm.


    At this time, in a palace of Haotian City.


    Gentle melodies were coming out with a sweet and clear sound quality. The changing notes fit the immortal aura in the void air, which was just incredible.


    In the palace, Ye Futian closed his eyes and listened quietly. Not far from him, a peerless lady was playing the ancient zither. Her fingers were slender, and her flawless hands were like a gift from heaven, perfect just like her.


    Under her slender fingers, the melody weaved by the changing notes had a strong penetrating power, which gave him a very pleasant feeling.


    The zither music stopped slowly. Qin He took back her slim hands and looked at Ye Futian with a smile. "What do you think, Mr. Ye?"


    "It sounds perfect," Ye Futian smiled and replied. They had become familiar after the trip.


    However, so far, he had not figured out what Qin He''s purpose was, and she had never revealed anything.


    This puzzled Ye Futian.


    Although they were familiar, she was still like a strange person. Qin He was too perfect and impeccable; he couldn''t see through her.


    "Thank you for your comments, Mr. Ye. I''m not very good at playing the zither. For me, playing instruments is only a way to nourish my spiritual world and rest my body. It has some benefits for cultivation, so I have been practicing it for a few years," Qin He smiled and said.


    "Goddess is humble," Ye Futian said.


    "Mr. Ye can just call me by my name. ''Goddess'' sounds a little strange," Qin He said, smiling.


    "Qin Goddess," Ye Futian said with a laugh. Qin He shook her head with a bitter smile.


    At this time, a cultivator of Brahma''s Pure Sky came and said to Qin He, "The Wang Clan of Haotian City just sent a request saying that Wang Yanbing will come to visit later."


    "Wang Yanbing," Qin He murmured. Obviously, she had heard of the name.


    The Wang Clan had a great reputation in Haotian City. Many years ago, they lived in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and were one of the families in charge of the Celestial Gate. Then they gradually declined and left the Celestial Gate. It was an extremely ancient clan power that had been passed down for many years with a very deep foundation.


    It was said that, in recent years, the Wang clan had begun to revive. There were many warriors in the clan, and they seemed to have a tendency to reenter the Celestial Gate.


    Besides, now the number one figure below the Renhuang of Haotian City was Wang Yanbing, a descendant of the Wang family. It was rumored that he was extremely talented, and even the big figures of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven couldn''t beat him. Soon, he would become another figure that brought the Wang Clan to the apex.


    It was no secret that they had arrived at Haotian City, so he requested to visit!

 1436 Wang Yanbin

    In Haotian City, Wang Yanbing''s visit to Brahma''s Pure Sky''s First Maiden Qin He caused a great sensation.


    Now, all the powerful people had gathered in this city. The Brahma''s Pure Sky Goddesses had arrived, and Wang Yanbing was now the most popular person in Haotian City. His every move attracted everyone''s attention, not to mention his visit to Qin He.


    Above the Celestial Gate, there were Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun, and below the Celestial Gate, there was Wang Yanbing.


    These three people were the three most famous geniuses in the South Vast Heaven. Wang Yanbing was competing with the other two peerless figures from two clans above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. He had not entered the Celestial Gate to cultivate, but many people said that Wang Yanbing was waiting for the day when the Wang clan re-entered the Celestial Gate so he could set foot on the Celestial Gate with his clan.


    After the Gu Clan fell, there were only two clans. Jiang Clan and Hua Clan were in charge of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and the Wang family had been preparing to set foot on the Celestial Gate to replace the Gu Clan.


    For people of Haotian City, Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun were above the Celestial Gate, who they had no chance to approach; however, Wang Yanbing was more real for them, and they could truly feel how horrifying Wang Yanbing''s strength was. Hearing what happened at the Violet Heavenly Palace Event, people of Haotian City all felt pity.


    It was a pity that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven did not participate this time.


    Otherwise, the three giants of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven��Jiang Taichu, Hua Qingyun, and Wang Yanbing��could show up with Gu Dongliu��the talent created by Gu Tianxing. What a strong team.


    They all believed that the current generation of South Vast Heaven was the strongest in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    On this day, in Haotian City, a group of armed soldiers of the Wang Family was trekking. Above the sky, there was a brilliant radiance of divine weapons shining. It was extremely sharp and illuminated the void sky in an instant.


    "Time to go." Many people looked up at the sky and saw the armed warriors of the Wang Clan roaring above them, all of them flickering toward the same direction.


    At this time, within a district of Haotian City, in the inns, on the streets, there were a lot of people looking somewhere high in the distance. There were many stairs below the palace. Standing on the ground, one needed to raise their head to see it.


    Cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky were living there.


    At this time, many people were drinking and chatting in the inns below the palace.


    "I heard that Ye Futian is also living in that palace. After the battle of Violet Heavenly Palace, he came here with the Goddess Qin He and has been accompanying her."


    "Ye Futian was able to defeat the Supreme Form of Violet Heavenly Palace. He is indeed an unusual person. No wonder he is favored by Qin He."


    "Who told you Qin He Goddess favors him? Maybe she approached him for other reasons. He defeated the Supreme Form of the Great Path of Violet Heavenly Palace, but I think Ye Futian''s reputation is undeserved. He is definitely not comparable with Wang Yanbing of our Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven Wang Clan."


    "Wang Yanbing''s strength is indeed horrifying, and he is a Nirvana Saint. If Zhan Yuan meets him, Zhan Yuan will definitely lose, but if cultivators of his Plane meet him, he may not win so easily," some reasonable people said. As the saying goes, every famous person has an advantage over others. The Violet Heavenly Palace was also a top force of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. How could the people they chose be incompetent?


    Prior to this defeat, Zhan Yuan was also in his prime, but after the defeat, in addition to bringing fame to Ye Futian, Zhan Yuan was also questioned by many people.


    Many people thought that perhaps the praises the Supreme Form of the Great Path had received in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were too high and that he was not worthy of his previous reputation.


    "Yes, it is said that Ye Futian is Gu Dongliu''s younger brother, so he also has a close relationship with Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. I hope the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven could make friends with him, and one day, these two Brothers, Jiang Taichu, Hua Qingyun and Wang Yanbing��these gallant figures of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven��could all stand on the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm," a senior remarked.


    However, this idea was difficult to achieve, since many different voices had appeared in Haotian City.


    People had distinct opinions. Because it was Haotian City, more people admired Wang Yanbing, but Ye Futian, on the other hand, did not have much favor.


    Nowadays, the majority of people in Haotian City were young. They didn''t know what happened in the past and did not have strong feelings on the Gu''s Clan. However, elders who had experienced when the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was flourishing and witnessed Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan''s glory were fonder of Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian.


    In Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan''s era, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was very prosperous, and today''s Wang Yanbing was not comparable to them at that time.


    At this moment, there seemed to be an invisible air flow coming from above the sky. Suddenly, many people stood up and looked up toward the void sky.


    In the distance, gorgeous light beams entered their eyes. Divine weapons whistled in the wind, and a bunch of armed warriors came and landed in an instant.


    These divine weapons came down and stopped beneath the staircase of the palace. One by one, warriors got off their weapons and lined up.


    The leader of the group was wearing a silver robe. He had an unusual temperament. His face was very handsome and smooth, like marble, and his whole person was shining.


    Many ladies showed their admiration. He was Wang Yanbing, now the top one person below the Renhuang figure of Haotian City.


    "Wang Yanbing of the Haotian City Wang Clan came here to visit Goddesses of Brahman''s Pure Sky," Wang Yanbing said, and his voice entered the palace.


    On the stairs of the palace, a Goddess appeared and said, "Mr. Wang, please wait a moment. Qin He Goddess will meet you outside the palace."


    "Thank you, Goddess," Wang Yanbing said and saluted, waiting patiently.


    Seeing the scene, people of the Wang Family were quite proud, and everyone around them was also impressed. It seemed that the Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky had also heard the name of Wang Yanbing, and Goddess Qin He even greeted him in person.


    However, at this moment, a few people came out from the palace, and the crowd from a distance saw quite a few ladies come out and arrange seats in the area outside the palace above the stairs.


    Obviously, they were preparing to receive Wang Yanbing outside the palace.


    Some people who just felt proud of Wang Yanbing showed strange looks. They had thought that Qin He was really ready to meet him in person, but it turned out that they just intended to receive him outside.


    This...


    However, Wang Yanbing looked calm and did not feel anything.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky was the peak power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but the Wang Family was nothing but a dismal family and had not returned to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The statuses of both sides were not equal. Before he entered the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, he was not qualified to ask the Brahma''s Pure Sky to treat them equally.


    However, many people of Haotian City were dissatisfied and made complaints.


    "Ye Futian is said to be in the palace, but now, they are greeting Wang Yanbing outside the palace. What do they mean?" someone said unpleasantly. After all, Wang Yanbing had a high reputation in Haotian City, but now he came to visit and was stopped outside the door.


    They didn''t let him enter the palace.


    If Ye Futian had not been inside, maybe they would not have felt anything, but Ye Futian was just a person with a brilliant record in one battle. Now he was in the same palace as Brahma''s Pure Sky''s people. Was Yanbing of Haotian City inferior to Ye Futian?


    In the midst of peoples'' conversations, the place over the top of the palace stairs was simply arranged, and many stunning female figures appeared. When people saw the leading woman, they all shut up and were slightly distracted.


    The lady under the sun looked peerless, and her body of golden proportions, perfectly showing her elegant temperament. She was just impeccable.


    Even though there was some dissatisfaction, the moment people saw her, they just couldn''t be angry at such a woman.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky''s First Maiden��Qin He.


    "Please come in," someone said on the stairs. Wang Yanbing and others walked to the top. They came to the front of the palace and greeted, "Wang Yanbing of Wang Clan is here to salute Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky."


    Qin He was sitting on the chair. She looked at Wang Yanbing and others and said, "It was hasty, so we just made some simple arrangements. I apologize. Everyone, please sit down."


    "Thank you for your time and attention, Goddess," Wang Yanbing nodded slightly and responded, and then he took a seat and sat down. His eyes were still on Qin He. He said, "I have heard of Brahma''s Pure Sky Goddess''s name for a long time. Now, since Qin He Goddess has come to Haotian City, I, as the master of the city, should try my best to play host to you, but I am afraid it may be too abrupt, so I am here to visit you in person."


    "You''re welcome," Qin He said softly. "Even though I have been in the Brahma''s Pure Sky, I''ve heard of your name, too. I know Mr. Wang has beaten all Saint-Plane warriors in Haotian City and is called the top figure under the throne of Haotian City Renhuang, with the same fame Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven."


    Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun were the top cultivators raised by the Celestial Gate. Wang Yanbing could be as famous as them, which proved he was extraordinary.


    Today, Qin He also noticed that his temperament was indeed outstanding.


    "It''s an undeserved reputation," Wang Yanbing said modestly.


    Ye Futian was also sitting beside Qin He''s main seat at this time. He didn''t have an interest in coming, but since Qin He had invited him, he had to sit with her.


    At this moment, he also took a look at Wang Yanbing. He was indeed an unusual person with extraordinary temperament.


    Moreover, Wang Yanbing''s gaze had always been on Qin He, but it did not make anyone feel uncomfortable. He also showed his respect.


    "What brings you here today, Mr. Wang?" Qin He asked frankly. In fact, it was okay for her to decline the invitation. Although Wang Yanbing was extraordinary, she was not willing to waste too much time on him.


    "In recent days, many important events have occurred in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, like the accident in the Origin Mountains and Gu Tianxing''s appearance. In our generation, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Crown Prince has debuted. Gao Huang of the 10,000 Divine Mountain came out of the east of the Heavenly Mandate Realm; Ye Futian defeated the Violet Heavenly Palace Zhan Yuan; Gu Dongliu inherited the Laws of Origin. What is your opinion, Goddess?" Wang Yanbing asked.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Realm is vast and boundless, with countless talented figures, so there must be many gallant heroes rising up. The Prophet has predicted that changes will happen in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It is normal for top figures of top forces to come out and show their strength. Besides, those who stand out among all these talented figures will show even more amazing talent," Qin He said.


    "So, who do you think will stand out? Who does Goddess think will be the strongest among all the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, including the Demon Realm and the generations below the Renhuang figures?" Wang Yanbing asked again. "Will the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven be in the forefront?"


    Everyone in the distance heard Wang Yanbing''s words. They listened carefully.


    Was Wang Yanbing talking to the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky about gallant figures in the Realm?


    Qin He looked at Wang Yanbing. From his words, she could feel that he also wanted to compete with those people.


    "I have yet to see everyone''s performance. During the battle of Violet Heavenly Palace, the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Golden Raven Crown Prince of the Sky Demon Court tied, but many top figures of the Demon Clan didn''t take a shot. Gao Huang of 10,000 Divine Mountain didn''t. The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was not present, so I can''t say who was the strongest," Qin He replied.


    "It''s okay to guess," Wang Yanbing said.


    Qin He glanced at him and continued, "Gu Dongliu of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven obtained the Laws of Origin and Gu Tianxing''s Celestial Laws with the protection of Nine Immortals. There must be a place for him. The Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Golden Raven Crown Prince are also extraordinary. Although Mr. Ye doesn''t belong to any top forces, he defeated Zhan Yuan and should have a place, too. As for other people, I don''t know much about them and can''t comment.


    "In addition, if you say which force should be the strongest, since Gu Dongliu has entered the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty should be the strongest in this generation."


    These two forces that once stood at the pinnacle were still at the apex.


    Wang Yanbing didn''t say much after he heard Qin He''s words. He turned his eyes and looked at Ye Futian, saying, "You must be the Supreme Form of Heavenly Laws��Ye Futian."


    Ye Futian froze there for a moment.


    Wang Yanbing smiled and nodded, saying, "Glad to meet you."


    "Glad to meet you, too," Ye Futian replied. Wang Yanbing looked back to Qin He and continued, "Goddess seems to be quite optimistic about Gu Dongliu''s future. Now, Gu Dongliu has entered the Celestial Gate, so what do you think about the future of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?"


    "This was the internal issue of the Vast Heaven''s Celestial Gate, and I have no comment." Qin He did not respond. This matter was sensitive. As the First Maiden, she represented Brahma''s Pure Sky when she was outside.


    Wang Yanbing did not force her to answer. He said, "The accident of that time started from the turmoil of Gu Tianxing and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, which eventually led to the collapse of Gu Clan and the decline of the Celestial Gate. Many years have passed, and now, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven has gradually recovered its vitality. Above the Celestial Gate, the Jiang Clan and the Hua Clan are both extremely prosperous. There are also many top family forces in Haotian City. With the rise of this generation, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven will be revived one day, and there may be another figure like Gu Tianxing in the future. Even if not, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven will still be able to stand firmly on top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    Qin He looked at Wang Yanbing. His words seemed to be indicating something.


    "What do you mean?" Qin He asked.


    "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven does not need to be nostalgic. Since it made the decision in the past, it should completely cut off its relationship with the past instead of letting the past repeat itself. Not to mention, Gu Dongliu is not Gu Tianxing. Gu Tianxing used to stand on the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and was the strongest figure in the Celestial Gate. Even though Gu Dongliu has the supreme inheritance, he is still just a Saint-Plane figure. How much does it take for a Saint-Plane cultivator to become a top figure of the Heavenly Mandate Realm? It is even unknown if he can survive until then."


    Wang Yanbing continued, "Therefore, I think what the Celestial Gate did was a bit imprudent. Gu Tianxing seemed to have been arranging this for many years, but in fact, he should have not let the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven enter the game. If Gu Dongliu, one day, reaches that level, he can enter the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but that will be a different thing. But now, it seems like he has achieved everything only due to his personal relationship."


    Many people in the distance heard Wang Yanbing''s words and showed surprise. He was aiming at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Wang Yanbing came to visit Qin He and took the opportunity to talk about the matters of the Celestial Gate.


    It seemed that he was deliberately doing so to convey his voice and thoughts to the people of Haotian City.


    Many people also thought Wang Yanbing''s statement made sense. It was indeed a bit risky for the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to do so.


    Ye Futian frowned. Wang Yanbing was questioning what the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was trying to do. This could not happen in any other top forces, but it was possible in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, since the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was the Celestial Gate of all of Haotian City, and anyone could make their own voice here.

 1437 His Cultivation of One Day Was Better Than That of One Year for Others

    Qin He looked to Wang Yanbing. Did he come here just to say this?


    It seemed that, even though he had not yet entered the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, Wang Yanbing was already concerned with many issues, such as who the strongest figure in the Heavenly Mandate Realm was, and whether or not the things the Celestial Gate had done were right or wrong.


    This should not be something he cared about. But what Wang Yanbing said undoubtedly proved that he had regarded himself as one of the top figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Besides, he had also voiced his opinion about the competition of the Heavenly Mandate Realm because he wanted to participate in it. He thought it would all be related to him.


    It seemed the Wang Clan was ready to enter the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Wang Yanbing came here today just to set the stage for this.


    She did not respond. She always watched her mouth. She was the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky, but the matter of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was none of her business, and she would not comment.


    "Is this your idea, or is it the idea of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven Wang Clan?" a lazy voice said. Wang Yanbing moved his eyes to Ye Futian, who was sipping tea.


    People in the distance also looked at Ye Futian. Qin He didn''t even respond. Was Ye Futian trying to join their conversation?


    Wang Yanbing''s gaze fell on Ye Futian. He still looked calm and peaceful inside. He asked, "Is there a difference?"


    "Of course." Ye Futian put down the teacup and looked at Wang Yanbing, saying, "Since I came to Haotian City, I heard that the Wang Clan used to be a Celestial Gate Clan and once was one of the leaders. You left the Celestial Gate after the decay. Now that there is a sign of revival, you may return to Celestial Gate.


    "If what you said is the Wang Clan''s idea, I suggest the Wang Clan better not enter the Celestial Gate because you don''t deserve it."


    After Ye Futian spoke, everything fell silent. Numerous eyes were staring at Ye Futian, and solders behind Wang Yanbing all released a sharp and dangerous life force.


    This statement was utterly presumptuous.


    People below the stairs and in the distance also looked at Ye Futian. This guy liked talking big. How dare he suddenly rave that the Wang Clan didn''t deserve to enter the Celestial Gate?


    There was also a sharp light flashing in Wang Yanbing''s eyes, but he seemed to have good self-control. He did not get angry or release cold wills. He just calmly said, "Please continue."


    "If it''s your idea, I can only say I feel pity for you. You asked who was qualified to stand at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Although I don''t know who it will be, I am sure there will be no place for you."


    Many people in the distance showed anger.


    "Such an arrogant brat," someone in the restaurant slapped the table and said with a cold look. Wang Yanbing was the top one figure under the Renhuang of Haotian City. Even though Ye Futian had a brilliant record in the Violet Heavenly Palace, he did not have the right to be so arrogant.


    First, he insulted the Wang Family. Then he explicitly said that Wang Yanbing was not worthy of competing for the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Why?" Wang Yanbing was still calm as he asked Ye Futian.


    "You said that Gu Tianxing and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven did everything for themselves, and you also said that the storm that weakened the Celestial Gate at that time was caused by the grudge between Gu Tianxing and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty." Ye Futian stared at Wang Yanbing and said emotionlessly, "Let me ask you, what was Gu Tianxing''s identity at that time? What was Gu Jiangnan''s?"


    Wang Yanbing raised his eyebrows slightly. He seemed to know what Ye Futian meant.


    Ye Futian continued, "As far as I know, Gu Tianxing was one of the three leaders of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and among them, he was the strongest. He led the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to reach the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. There were 12 Immortals in the Gu Clan that overtook the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and Gu Jiangnan was also a peerless figure of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. But according to you, Gu Jiangnan''s death was just Gu Tianxing''s problem? Didn''t they belong to the Celestial Gate?


    "As you said, this is a matter of Gu Clan. If so, what kind of sect is the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven? Why do all people only enjoy others'' contributions? Can I assume that if the Wang Clan were useful to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would want you? Otherwise, they could just forget about you."


    Ye Futian''s voice was penetrating. He continued, "If so, how is the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven qualified to stand at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm? It was all because of Gu Tianxing, who volunteered to sacrifice Gu Clan for the Celestial Gate''s future. Now the Celestial Gate took Gu Dongliu back because they owed him. Top figures should have such trust and morality. Who is really selfish? If this is the Wang Family''s idea, isn''t it the failure of the Celestial Gate to let the Wang Family enter the Celestial Gate? Once a clan is useless, just discard it!


    "According to you, if Gu Dongliu stands at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future, the purpose of entering the Celestial Gate for him would not be cultivation but revenge, since the Celestial Gate abandoned the Gu Clan. You want to make progress quietly and grow stronger. You think peerless figures will emerge from the Celestial Gate, but why would that person come from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven? What if that person comes from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Violet Heavenly Palace, or is Gu Dongliu himself? At that time, how will the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven act? Why can''t you fight by yourself?"


    Ye Futian continued, "You don''t have the courage and responsibility to face your responsibilities. You just want to sit down and enjoy other peoples'' achievements. Even though you have talent, you lack belief in yourself and others, so you will be destined to fail in the competition of the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    Ye Futian finished, and the vast and boundless space became even quieter. There was no sound at all. Even in distant inns, peoples'' chatter stopped. They all looked at the white hair figure above the stairs, lost in thought.


    If one said that Wang Yanbing''s words showed his wisdom in making decisions, then Ye Futian''s words, at this moment, reflected a kind of spirit.


    It was hard to say who was right or wrong. Everyone''s thoughts were different and how they judged things also differed. What Wang Yanbing said was not wrong, but Ye Futian''s words could also refute him.


    At this time, many people began to compare them.


    Wang Yanbing, who was born in the Wang Family, seemed to be outshone.


    Qin He had an amazed look on her face. She looked at Ye Futian next to her. She could feel his strong spirit from his words. It was as if there was still a brave young man''s soul in his body, even though he had reached the Saint Plane.


    Wang Yanbing looked at Ye Futian and seemed to be thinking about his words.


    "You have some idealism, but what you think is unrealistic. What you said is just sophistry. You have faith but no strength. If war breaks out, even the figures on top of the Heavenly Mandate Realms can''t defend Renhuang warriors'' attack. No one can escape death."


    After a moment of silence, Wang Yanbing said, "Gu Tianxing and the old Imperial Lord were so powerful back then, but now they are buried underground. As for who can stand at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realms, you can''t make that conclusion. Let''s see who among the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm will stand at the peak in the future."


    Wang Yanbing stood up, bowed to Qin He, and said, "My apology for bothering Goddess. I should leave now."


    Qin He smiled and said, "Take care."


    "Farewell," Wang Yanbing cupped his hand and said. He turned around and walked away. Warriors of Wang Clan all rose and left. Before leaving, they all glanced at Ye Futian. Then they stepped into the air and vanished.


    "His last sentence didn''t sound that ridiculous," Ye Futian whispered, seeing Wang Yanbing leaving. "However, it won''t come true."


    "Among the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, who will stand at the peak in the future?" Qin He murmured. Wang Yanbing was indeed very ambitious.


    However, Ye Futian said his dreams wouldn''t come true.


    "It seems that Mr. Ye believes the top figure of Heavenly Mandate Realm will be dominant in the future," Qin He said with a smile.


    "I''m the Divine Form of Heavenly Law," Ye Futian said. He shrugged and smiled. Qin He looked at his handsome face and no longer felt very disgusted.


    After knowing him for a while, she felt he was not bad.


    But she still didn''t understand why she was asked to approach Ye Futian.


    "The Divine Form of Heavenly Law," Qin He said and smiled. Her sweet smile was breathtakingly beautiful. Ye Futian looked at her smile and slightly felt it was more natural than before.


    "Let''s return."


    Everyone rose to their feet and returned to the palace.


    However, people outside the palace had not dispersed. There were a lot of discussions about the argument between Wang Yanbing and Ye Futian today.


    However, they did not have a real fight today.


    Wang Yanbing was a Nirvana Saint, and his Plane was higher than Ye Futian''s. Their fight was meaningless.


    Let''s just see who will dominate this generation in the future, they thought.


    Perhaps neither of them would be able to do that.


    Time passed. More and more people had entered Haotian City. Many powerful people had gathered in this celestial city, just like in the Thunder Punishment City not long ago, but they did not show up. They stayed quiet in the city.


    After all, this time was not the same as in the Violet Heavenly Palace. This time, the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty came to challenge the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    To the east of Haotian City, there was a celestial gate land that towered into the clouds. It had an immortal atmosphere. This was the territory of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    At this time, at the top of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, in a celestial matrix that connected the sky and earth, ancient characters were circling. Beams of the Great Law drooped down from the sky and fell into the celestial matrix.


    In the center of the celestial matrix, a figure was sitting cross-legged, surrounded by the endless ancient characters.


    He was Gu Dongliu.


    Outside the Celestial Matrix, the Lord of Jiang Clan stood there quietly with his hands behind his back. He was watching Gu Dongliu in the matrix.


    At this moment, a middle-aged figure in a luxurious robe came down. He stood beside the Lord of the Jiang Family and said, "How is it going?"


    "He still stays in the Unblemished Plane," the Lord of the Jiang Family said. "But, his status now, which he cultivated for a day, has taken other people a year to accomplish."


    "Good." The middle-aged man beside him nodded.


    Cultivation required one to take one step at a time. Usually, it was impossible to skip Planes to cultivate. No one had done it before, and even if someone did it, their status would be unstable.


    However, Gu Dongliu was a special case.


    He directly inherited the Laws of origin and absorbed the fortunes of the entire Origin Mountain. There were the wills of tens of thousands of demons in his body, and he also had the Thought of the Demon Monarch.


    In the end, Gu Tianxing sealed his own will and the divine matrix in his body. It protected him with celestial methods. The power was so appalling that it was comparable to the creation power of the sky and earth. That was why big figures of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were scared of this young man. The methods Gu Tianxing had used on him were too strong that they went against heaven''s will.


    Gu Dongliu was in the process of refining and cultivating. He was also digesting the wills of countless warriors. His cultivation in one day was better than what others did in a year.


    However, he was about to reach the limit of cultivation this time. Whether he could break through the Nirvana Plane or not depended on Gu Dongliu''s own comprehension in laws!

 1438 Women Are Trouble

    The day after Wang Yanbing left, shocking news came from Haotian City.


    Haotian City''s Wang Family would enter the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven after seven days and receive an examination from the Celestial Gate.


    This ancient family would return to the Celestial Gate after so many years.


    The news caused a big sensation. It seemed that when Wang Yanbing went to visit Qin He, the Wang Family had already made their decision. So, Wang Yanbing said those words because, on the one hand, he wanted to show the attitude of the Wang Family toward events in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. On the other hand, he wanted to show his ambition.


    The Wang Family should be ready.


    The test of Celestial Gate had not been held for many years. Every time it happened, it was always the most important thing in Haotian City. This time, it was no exception.


    Many people felt strange when they thought of the rules of the Celestial Gate.


    Not only the Wang Family, but was Wang Yanbing also ready for this?


    For a moment, everyone in Haotian City was talking about this.


    At the same time, countless people were looking forward to it.


    During the Celestial Gate''s test, Jiang Taichu, above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, would formally fight with Wang Yanbing below the Celestial Gate.


    The two peerless figures above and below the Celestial Gate would collide for the first time.


    In the end, who would be more outstanding?


    As for Hua Qingyun, his plane was still not enough, and he might not be able to fight with Wang Yanbing.


    Many outsiders were also quite surprised. When the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were about to come, nobody expected that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would hold a big internal event first.


    This time, would the Wang Family return to the Celestial Gate and be in charge?


    In the palace, Qin He and Ye Futian also received the news.


    At this moment, Qin He and Ye Futian were discussing the matter.


    "So Wang Yanbing came here that day was to reveal their attitude. If they enter the Celestial Gate, they might have some influence on your Third Brother," Qin He said to Ye Futian. Obviously, the current rulers of Celestial Gate��Jiang Clan and Hua Clan��had reached a consensus to take Gu Dongliu back to the Celestial Gate.


    However, if Wang Family''s attitude was different, and they entered the Celestial Gate and became one of the ruling families of the Celestial Gate, it would be different.


    Ye Futian frowned slightly. Qin He continued, "The Wang Family chose the right time. They requested to enter the Celestial Gate now, which indicates that they are willing to face the pressure with the Celestial Gate instead of just thinking for themselves. So, from now on, no matter what decisions they make, people will not think they made it for themselves."


    "What is the test of the Celestial Gate like?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The test of Celestial Gate is complicated, but it is also straightforward. There are only three parts," Qin He said. "One is to test the ruler''s competency and see if he has reached the top level of Renhuang Plane. The second is to test the intermediate strength, including whether or not the Renhuang can compare with the Renhuang figures of the Celestial Gate. The third part is to test the ability of their younger generation, to see if their most outstanding figure in the young generation can fight against the best descendant of the Celestial Gate clans.


    "These three parts evaluate the upper, middle, and lower three levels of the clan. It sounds simple, because only three people will take the test, but it is also difficult because there can''t be many clans that can compete with the top powers of the Celestial Gate on all three levels. Just the competition at the peak level will be enough to weed out countless forces. Besides, the leader of the clan must be at an advanced level. Otherwise, victory in the next two parts is meaningless. The Lord of the Wang Family has reached the top level of Renhuang Plane."


    "So, as long as they pass the following two trials, the Wang Family will be able to enter the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven again."


    Qin He explained all of this to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, "I see. How likely do you think it is that the Wang Family will re-enter the Celestial Gate?"


    "The Wang Family has met the first condition, so they only need to complete one of the other two conditions. There is no Renhuang figure in the Wang Family to compete with Renhuang warriors of the other two Celestial Gate Clans, so the key lies in Wang Yanbing. His performance will decide whether or not the Wang Family can return to the Celestial Gate."


    Qin He said, "Today, the top figure below the Renhuang Plane in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven should be Jiang Taichu of Jiang Clan. The battle between Jiang Taichu and Wang Yanbing will determine the fate of the Wang Family."


    "Jiang Taichu was raised by the Jiang Clan of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Can Wang Yanbing beat him?" Ye Futian said.


    "In Haotian City, it is said that ''above the Celestial Gate, there are Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun, but below the Celestial Gate, there is Wang Yanbing.'' These three people have the same fame, which means that Wang Yanbing''s talent is no less than the other two. Besides, the Wang Family also used to be a leader of the Celestial Gate, and the Wang Family also has one of the most powerful Mystical Ways. It is said that Wang Yanbing has cultivated to a very high level. So, it''s hard to make any predictions about this battle. After all, I have never seen them fight," Qin He explained.


    Ye Futian nodded; he had not expected it would affect his Third Brother.


    "What is the Mystical Way?" Ye Futian asked, confused.


    "The Mystical Way is also one of the cultivation methods, but it is different from ordinary cultivation methods. There used to be powerful figures in previous generations of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven who created many Mystical Ways. Some have been lost, and some have been passed down, which some continue to evolve. Until now, the Jiang Clan and Hua Clan both had their own Mystical Ways, and the Wang Clan was the same. The reason why Gu Tianxing was unparalleled at his time was that he created an even stronger Mystical Way on the basis of his ancestors so he could touch the Laws of Heaven."


    Qin He continued, "Beside them, although there are many other powerful forces in Haotian City, none of them have Mystical Ways, so it is very difficult for them to reach the level of those clans. That is unless another peerless figure like Gu Tianxing appears in this world again."


    Ye Futian thought of the Third Brother''s fight in the past. After the awakening of his Life Spirit, there was an immortal aura around the Third Brother, which indeed gave him strength even when he was under the seal. If the seal had been released at that time, the power would have become much stronger.


    A smile flashed across Qing He''s eyes when she talked about this. She said, "As far as I know, in addition to the few major clans today, there is the last place in Haotian City where the only remaining Mystical Way is being sealed. An eccentric person guards it. So far, no one had been able to get it. Are you interested in taking a look?"


    "Even the Jiang Clan and Hua Clan of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven have not gotten it?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "Not yet," Qin He shook her head and said. "An ancestor left it, and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven also abides by his rules. In the past, Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan both were there in person, but both of them failed. Many gallant figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm have also gone, but so far, the Mystical Way is still sealed there."


    Ye Futian''s eyes suddenly lit up. He looked at Qin He and smiled, saying, "When should we go?"


    Seeing Ye Futian look at her, Qin He smiled and said, "You seem to be looking forward to it?"


    "I''m the Divine Form of Heavenly Laws," Ye Futian said, laughing.


    "..." Qin He rolled her eyes. Did this guy think of himself as the Divine Form of Heavenly Laws after repeating it several times?


    Where did this title of Divine Form of Heavenly Laws come from?


    "You are shameless," Qin He said with an embarrassed smile, which made her even more charming. Looking at the stunning face, Ye Futian was lost for a moment. Jieyu used to be like her.


    Somehow, she called him shameless, which drew them closer.


    "So, should we go now?" Qin He asked.


    "Okay," Ye Futian replied. "I''ll call others,"


    "All right. We will meet outside," Qin He said, nodding.


    Ye Futian returned to the palace where he and others stayed, then gathered people for departure.


    Others were getting ready to set out, but Xia Qingyuan was still sitting there.


    "We should go now," Ye Futian told her.


    "No," Xia Qingyuan said coldly.


    "Eh��" Ye Futian blinked and asked, "What happened?"


    "I don''t want to ruin the mood," Xia Qingyuan said. Everyone around them gave Ye Futian a meaningful look.


    They were often together. Who couldn''t read the Princess''s mind?


    Especially those who came from the Lower Realm with Xia Qingyuan. She had made so much effort, and everyone knew why.


    Today, Jieyu would forever become a scar on his heart. After their experience in the Origin Mountains, everyone was expecting that something would happen between Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian.


    Who knew that Qin He could show up and steal Ye Futian?


    What else could they say?


    He was a real two-timer!


    Brahma''s Pure Sky''s First Maiden, with a stunning face, was alluring to men.


    Ye Futian showed a strange expression. He looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "Are you jealous?"


    Xia Qingyuan froze. Her fists were clenched slightly, and her face turned red.


    She raised her head, a pair of beautiful eyes staring at Ye Futian, and stood up. She said, "You must feel really good about yourself."


    As she was talking, she stepped forward and said, "Let''s go."


    "��"


    Ye Futian''s face was dull. Everyone around him was looking at him. Ye Futian saw this scene and felt strange. He said, "What are you guys looking at?"


    Did these guys have some opinion?


    Kong Xuan walked past Ye Futian, showing a bit of contempt. She had seen all the things Xia Qingyuan had done for Ye Futian, but this guy now hung around with the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky Qing He. He was shameless.


    "Peacock, what are you looking at?" Ye Futian asked Kong Xuan when he saw Kong Xuan''s disdainful look.


    What did she mean?


    "Master, I think the First Maiden is better," Little Condor said, for fear that the world would be peaceful. The Maiden looked very gentle, unlike Xia Qingyuan, whose temper was bad.


    "Get out," Ye Futian said, kicking him out.


    Black Wind Condor rolled on the ground and rose, looking up at Ye Futian with some sadness. He was about to say something, but when he saw the faint smile on Ye Futian''s face, he lowered his head again, pretending to be guilty.


    Sir Condor had to take the blame for Master this time.


    Ye Futian sighed and then walked away, thinking that women were indeed trouble!

 1439 Fae Alley

    There was an alley in Haotian City called Fae Alley.


    At the end of the alley, there was a family with an old man living in it. According to the people in the alley, the old man may have lived there for hundreds of years. The people in the alley have lived there for generations, yet the old man was the same as before.


    It was also said that he might have lived for thousands of years.


    Gradually, there were many legends about the old man in the alley, and all had said that he was a fae.


    Furthermore, there were often visits made by some well-known figures to the old man, but most of them returned, disappointed.


    As time went on, there were more and more rumors regarding the old man. The big one was that the old man in the alley had been guarding something. It was said to have been a fae craft of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, waiting for The One.


    It was just that many years had passed, but this fae craft was still waiting for its master.


    The alley was located somewhat remotely in a corner of Haotian City. Those who lived here were definitely not the most recognized of Haotian City. However, many formidable men had come out of this alley. Every few years, there would be an incredibly talented figure that walked out of this alley.


    Generation after generation, out of the many who came out of this alley, a considerable number of them had become existence of Renhuang.


    Therefore, this alley was becoming more renowned, coming to be known as Fae Alley.


    Many were wondering, was the old man someone to be bothered with?


    Just what exactly was he guarding that made him stay there for fo many years?


    This kind of loneliness was not something that ordinary people could bear.


    Recently, this alley had become troublesome again, with many visitors coming daily.


    Moreover, those who visited were all exceptional in temperament.


    At this moment, at the end of the alley, a young man named Qi Yuxuanang was playing chess with an old man. This young man was always staring at the chessboard. He did not dare to be distracted for a moment. The old man''s hand was toying with the chess pieces. He had a mild smile on his face, looking at the young man thinking, It seems that he likes this state very much.


    The youth''s temperament was outstanding, but the old man was very simple. He hadn''t known how many years he had worn his clothes for. It seemed to be the same in many people''s memories.


    "The predecessors have nothing to do, and the junior''s chess skills are shameful." The man in black spilled the chess pieces on the chessboard and shook his head a bit decadently.


    "It has been very good to be able to play for so long," the old man said with a smile, looking very kind.


    "Is this game difficult to solve, or is it difficult to solve the game over there?" The man in black looked up to the side. At the end of the wide alley, there were four statues guarding the alley.


    The four statues were the four spirits.


    Dragon, phoenix, kyline, and black turtle.


    The four statues were guarding this place so that the whole alley seemed to be shrouded in a peculiar atmosphere.


    However, at this time, in front of the four statues, an outstanding young man in a blue robe was playing guqin. His skills were extremely exquisite, and the sound of the guqin attracted the movement of the Great Path in heaven and the earth. One of the statues was faintly releasing radiant beams as if it could perceive the existence of the sound of the guqin, and a certain response was born.


    "Take a guess," the old man smiled at the questioning young man.


    "I guess that game should be more difficult to solve," the young man said with a smile. His gaze was still focusing there, and he asked, "are the Four Spirits really alive?"


    "Of course," the old man replied.


    "How could the statues be living creatures?" the young man whispered, not as if to ask a question but rather just talking to himself.


    The old man smiled without saying a word, and the mood expressed by the sound of the guqin was even more transcendent. It seemed to communicate with the world and resonated with the Great Path. There seemed to be shadows of dragons and phoenixes whistling around the young man, with golden rocs and cranes flying hither. It was a scene so magnificent that the second statue was lit up.


    In the vast world, suffocating pressure of might suddenly enveloped the space, and a low voice was heard. It was the sound of the dragon, and at the top of the sky, an immense shadow of the divine dragon loomed. Its huge eyes stared ahead. Its might shrouded the entire alley.


    At this moment, everyone in Fae Alley could feel a terrible pressure.


    Dong...


    A crystalline sound came out, and the mood created by the guqin was interrupted and stopped abruptly. The young man let out a low moan and showed a look of disappointment. He glanced up at the sky, and the dragon''s shadow gradually dissipated. But the statue still stood there, as if there had never been any change.


    But the scene that had just happened was so real. Not only did he feel it, but so did everyone else in Fae Alley had.


    Figures came to this side. The hearts of the people in Xianren Lane trembling slightly, and there was slight turbulence in their hearts.


    As far as they knew, the statues had not had any reactions for many years.


    Who was it that could let the divine dragon statue come to life?


    It would seem that someone of importance had arrived in Fae Alley.


    When they saw that the young man, who was playing the guqin, was so young, they were all slightly surprised. Moreover, the young man''s temperament was extremely elegant and otherworldly. It was as if he was a disciple of the Fae Clan.


    "The dragon spirit among the four spirits is revived. How fitting for Hua Qingyun of the Fae Clan."


    At this time, a voice spoke up. Suddenly, an extremely sharp breath appeared in the alley. The gaze of the crowd turned to a figure coming forward. Though his walk was very casual, it was enough to exude sharpness to those around him. It was as if he was a divine soldier that was unsheathed, all invincible.


    At the same time, many people were slightly shocked. The handsome young man who played turned out to be Hua Qingyun, the most ingenious talent of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    In the Fae Clan, though many had never seen Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun, they certainly had heard of their names.


    Hua Qingyun looked at the newcomer, and recognizing the other immediately. He said casually, "You are not preparing for the entrance of the Fae Clan, and what are you doing here? Could it be that you also want to give it a shot?"


    The man who arrived was Wang Yanbing. He would be tested by the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven in a few days.


    Many people who were present also recognized him, and many were a little thoughtful.


    Hua Qingyun above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Wang Yanbing below the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were both here. Jiang Taichu was not. Otherwise, these three men, who enjoyed the same renown, would be all here in one place.


    "Just walking around and ended up here," Wang Yanbing said. The Wang clan was once the governing family of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. He naturally knew what was sealed here.


    Unfortunately, until this day, no one had gotten it.


    Even during the times of extraordinary figures, such as Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan, they were unable to take these items when they were in the Saint Plane.


    These mystical ways, to this day, were still sealed here.


    But for the clan principalities inherited through Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, these mystical ways must be obtained.


    It was just that it was uncertain as to when it would be done, or who would be the one to complete the task.


    "Since you are here, we could try together," Hua Qingyun said as Wang Yanbing continued forward until he was in front of the old man. He bowed slightly. "Wang Yanbing greets the venerable elder."


    "The descendant of the Wang clan is also here." The old man smiled. "I just don''t know how many years we will have to wait."


    "When the time is right, naturally, it will be solved," Wang Yanbing responded. He looked at the chess player sitting opposite the old man.


    "Gao Huang." The man nodded with a smile.


    Wang Yanbing''s eyes flashed a strange color. He replied, "Nice to meet you."


    Although Gao Huang of the 10,000 Divine Mountain was not widely known, far less so than Zhan Yuan of the supreme body of the great path and the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he had studied the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Gao Huang was not a simple man; he was a legend in his own right.


    His achievements definitely would never be less than that of Zhan Yuan of the supreme body of the great path.


    "Likewise." Gao Huang nodded in return. Two of the three most excellent people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had arrived today. He sensed that both Hua Qingyun and Wang Yanbing were more complex than they looked.


    At this moment, sounds that came through the sheer air, which caught everyone''s attention. They saw a group of people come out of thin air. They were extraordinary in temperament, especially the woman amongst them, who was stunningly beautiful. Her image was ravishing.


    "How beautiful." Many couldn''t help but express their admiration. In addition, the other two women were also extremely good-looking. One of them, though dressed in men''s clothes, radiated a clear beauty.


    "I didn''t expect the goddesses to be here." Gao Huang smiled. It was truly lively today. Not only was Qin He��the premier maiden of Brahma''s Pure Heaven��here, but Ye Futian, who had defeated Zhan Yun of the supreme body of the great path, had accompanied her.


    Wang Yanbing also nodded slightly to greet Qin He. On the other side, Hua Qingyun looked over there with a smile, saying, "Fae Alley fairy is lively today."


    Ye Futian looked at all who were present. Not only was Wang Yanbing here, but also Gao Huang. If he remembered correctly, this person should be the top genius of 10,000 Divine Mountain. But while at the Violet Heavenly Palace, compared to the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Zhan Yuan, Gao Huang seemed to be even more low-key and restrained.


    It was unexpected that he arrived first at Fae Alley. He was obviously very familiar with Haotian City.


    Then, he looked at the four statues of spirit again, guarding the four directions. Although they were just statues, he could feel a sense of invisible might.


    Not long ago, while he was entering Fae Alley, he even saw a divine dragon descending.


    It should be that statue.


    "Four Spirits of the Fae Alley. Rumor has it that the four spirits must be awakened before the mystical ways can be revealed. For many years, no one had been able to do it," Qin He transmitted her voice to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded gently. So then, among the four spirits, it was the dragon spirit that was awakening, but it only lasted for a moment.


    The old man was standing to the side aside and looking at the people. He stood with his hands behind his back, without any trace of breath from his body. It was the first time that genius characters from all sides came all at once. It was still uncertain if there were some surprises in store for all of them!

 1440 Alliance

    Ye Futian stood there quietly, feeling the atmosphere. Standing in this alley, he could clearly feel the inexplicable and invisible might coming from the front.


    Although the four spirits were only four statues, they gave out a slight sense of might, and the method with which they were made was unknown.


    Or rather, was there a mighty person who had gifted will to the four spirits?


    And just now, how did Hua Qingyun awaken the dragon spirit?


    The people of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Haotian City should have had an even better idea than they did.


    "Does Goddess Qin know what conditions are needed to awaken the Four Spirits?" Ye Futian transmitted his voice to ask Qin He.


    "I don''t know," Qin He responded. "No one knows, or maybe, even if they knew, they couldn''t do it. Or maybe, just awaken them with will so that any means are possible."


    Ye Futian nodded secretly and did not ask again. If it were so easy to wake up the four spirits, then someone would have already done it.


    All these years, with so many great men from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, including peerless characters, such as Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan, all had been unable to achieve it.


    The disciples of the Fae Clan must have tried, but clearly, no one was successful.


    After all, there was a volume of mystical ways hidden here, and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven wanted it more than any other forces.


    The same was true for Wang Yanbing. The Wang clan wanted to return to the Fae Clan. If they could get to the mystical ways hidden in this Fae Alley, it would undoubtedly increase their chances and improve their reputation as the ones who brought the mystical ways to the Fae Clan.


    Thus, Wang Yanbing came here to give it a try.


    Although the chance was slim, one could still try.


    "Hua Qingyun, did you have any comprehension communicating with the dragon spirit just now?" Wang Yanbing stepped forward and asked Hua Qingyun.


    Hua Qingyun looked at him only to hear Wang Yanbing continue, "With your strength alone, I''m afraid it''s impossible. Now that everyone wants it, why don''t we all cooperate and give it a try? As to where the mystical ways ultimately belong, we can fight for it later."


    Hua Qingyun smiled dashingly and said, "To give consciousness with the sound of the guqin and perceive the given will in the dragon spirit, to try to communicate and awaken it. Since it can be awakened, then will must be within them."


    Everyone agreed in their hearts, but in fact, many had also guessed as much. Otherwise, how could truly inanimate objects be awakened?


    "How about trying together?" Wang Yanbing looked at Hua Qingyun, Qin He, Gao Huang, and the others.


    "Sure." Hua Qingyun nodded. "I will still take care of this dragon spirit, but you take care of the others."


    "I will take charge of this Qilin," Wang Yanbing said.


    As he was speaking, they looked at Qin He and Gao Huang. Gao Huang smiled and said, "Ladies first."


    "Phoenix," Qin He replied.


    "Okay, then I will try to wake up this black turtle. But the black turtle is the laziest, and I have stated in advance that I don''t have much confidence," Gao Huang said lightly.


    "Let''s do it," Wang Yanbing said as he stepped toward the statue of the Qilin.


    Hua Qingyun was in front of the statue of the dragon spirit, and his hand lightly rested on the guqin. Gao Huang walked toward the statue of the black turtle. Qin He glanced at Ye Futian next to her and said, "You will stay here and experience it?"


    She was very clear that even for the four of them to join forces, they would not easily succeed. This time, it was mostly just an attempt.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded.


    The group of four stepped forward one by one, and everyone in Fae Alley revealed a strange look when they beheld this scene.


    For these four people, Hua Qingyun and Wang Yanbing were the most genius talents above and below the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Qin He came from Brahma''s Pure Heaven, and Gao Huang was from 10,000 Divine Mountain. It was unknown if the alliance of the top four geniuses could revive the four spirits.


    The sound of the guqin sounded with highly penetrating power, the notes jumping and heading toward the statue of the dragon spirit. Hua Qingyun''s demeanor while playing the guqin was lovely, and a wonderful breath appeared around him, shrouding him with that statue of the dragon spirit.


    Wang Yanbing came to the Qilin, and an extremely sharp breath bloomed from him. Countless divine arms whistled when he stretched out his palm and put it on the statue of Qilin. In an instant, an extreme sharp breath of divine arms bloomed, and Wang Yanbing seemed to be turned into a weapon of divine arms.


    It was as if Wang Yanbing, at this moment, had turned into the king of arms.


    Many of the cultivators in the alley felt that the divine arms that they carried were trembling as if they were out of control, wanting to head for Wang Yanbing.


    Ye Futian also felt an unusual breath, and he looked at Wang Yanbing with surprise.


    Was this the mystical ways of warriors from the Wang family?


    The statue of Qilin was dazzling all over. It was as if the will of the divine arms buried it. Suddenly, a terrible pressure of might pervaded from the Qilin, shrouding Wang Yanbing.


    However, Wang Yanbing was still standing there, and clear sounds of crackling could be heard. The will of the divine arms was broken. He felt an extremely terrible might, but Wang Yanbing did not retreat. He turned his whole person into an extremely sharp weapon of divine arms. As long as the four of them each did their part, and awakened a statue of the four spirits, there may be hope for success.


    Qin He''s slender and delicate hands were also touching the statue of the phoenix. Her body was shrouded in sacred light, which made her even more beautiful and radiant. Various divine thoughts enveloped the statue of the phoenix, seemingly wanting to feel its existence.


    Her beautiful eyes gradually closed, her perception getting stronger and stronger. Shrouded under the divine light, it was if everything between heaven and earth was within her perception.


    Her hands felt a little hot. From this statue of the phoenix, she gradually sensed hot stream that burned her mind and even made her palms feel a burning force.


    This feeling caused Qin He to take it a little more seriously, and she looked extremely focused. Under the sacred light, her divine will released to the extreme as she attempted to capture the spirit of the phoenix. Only in this way could it possibly be awakened.


    Many in Fae Alley looked somber as they felt the change between heaven and earth, the invisible pressure of might seemed to grow stronger. It was as if there was a sacred force shrouding Fae Alley. Many, whose cultivations were weaker, felt a sense of suffocation. Some even felt that their bodies were burning. It was as if they were on fire.


    All three statues had reacted except for the statue of the black turtle. The turtle laid there without any change. The breath on Gao Huang was strong, but he could not make the black turtle react in the slightest.


    Of the four spirits, the black turtle is the hardest to awaken, people in Fae Alley secretly thought. They had heard many stories over the generations. Many great men had come to try it, and the other three statues all had reacted before.


    As the saying went, the thousand-year-old turtle lived so long that it was a lazy b*stard; no one could wake up.


    The old man next to him looked on quietly. A slight smile appeared at the corner of his eyes.


    These many years of waiting with no one able to achieve it, it was not so easy to be woken up.


    It seemed that today was fruitless.


    Ye Futian looked at all this quietly. His eyes were deep and boundless, as if there was a magical luminosity that appeared. At this moment, the entire world seemed to have changed in his eyes. It was as if he could see everything in the nothingness.


    He looked at the statues of the four spirits as if he could see the picture hidden within them.


    Of the statue of the Four Spirits, the statue of the Dragon Spirit seemed to be the most irritable, and a faint shadow of a dragon could be seen. The statue of the Qilin and the Phoenix also had a strange spirit as each opened their eyes.


    Only the statue of that black turtle seemed to have a spirit prostrating underneath the shell of the turtle. It did not react, and no breath was able to be detected from it.


    As if he had detected something, not far away, the old man looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned his gaze to look at him in the same manner, and the luminosity in his eyes disappeared. He smiled. He walked toward the old man and said, "Elder, are any means allowable as long as the four spirits can be revived?"


    "Yes," The old man glanced at Ye Futian and nodded with a smile. Just from Ye Futian''s eyes, he could feel an unusual breath.


    In his realm, when he regarded those eyes, he felt that he was being observed in secrecy.


    "Can the statues be destroyed?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Try it." The old man smiled. Destroying the statues?


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded. "This black turtle does not seem to have any movement. I would like to give it a try."


    Ye Futian walked to the statue of the black turtle.


    Gao Huang saw him coming this way and said, "You want to try?"


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Please." Gao Huang stepped back, making way for Ye Futian.


    "Much obliged." Ye Futian nodded smilingly, and then walked in front of the statue of the black turtle. He reached out and knocked on the statue''s turtle shell, making a crystal clear sound.


    This scene made many onlookers blink.


    Who was this?


    "Turtle elder, if you are indeed a spirit, please show yourself. Otherwise, you''ll have to pardon my tactics," Ye Futian said. There was no response. Many people looked at him, speechless.


    Xia Qingyu and Yu Sheng rolled their eyes. This guy never cared about his image.


    Seeing that the black turtle without response, Ye Futian placed his palm on the shell of the turtle, and a flame manifested immediately. The statue of the turtle was shrouded in an instant, and the flame penetrated every part of the turtle.


    The pressure of might from the other three statues was getting stronger, but still was not waking up. There was just a sense of suffocation, and the statue of the turtle was still motionless, without any reaction.


    Everyone who was watching smirked at Ye Futian. This guy was also asking to be humiliated.


    However, Ye Futian did not feel anything, and the flame was burning still. Inside his body, the ancient tree of the world in his life palace was swaying, turning into a fiery red ancient tree. The Fire Spirit Orb released the terrible light of the flame, and then flowed out along Ye Futian''s arms, turning into the power of flame and burning the statue of the turtle.

 1441 Opening of the Gate

    When Ye Futian released the flame, his eyes also became strange. It was as if they could see through everything in the nothingness.


    Within the statue of the turtle, the spirit of the black turtle still huddled inside the shell, allowing the flames to burn without any reaction and without releasing any breath.


    Ye Futian understood the reason why the turtle had never been awakened before. It was too lazy to move, so how could you wake it up?


    "Turtle elder, hiding inside is not a solution. Why don''t you give me some consideration?" Ye Futian said to the statue of the turtle.


    All who had heard Ye Futian''s words in Fae Alley hesitated.


    Was this guy a fool?


    He was talking to the turtle statue?


    For many years, no one had ever awoken the statue of the turtle, and he was having a conversation with it.


    And what did it mean to give him some consideration?


    Hack! The old man coughed and rolled his eyes. This kid was really funny.


    However, if this was useful, why hadn''t it been tried before?


    Over the years, people had tried everything.


    Attempting to awaken the black turtle by having a conversation with it?


    Wasn''t this a dream?


    When Ye Futian saw that the turtle did not react at all, he sighed and said, "Although the turtle''s shell is hard, is it afraid of fire?"


    As he was saying this, in the life palace, will infused into the spirit orb of divine flame. Suddenly, the golden will of divine flame appeared in the life palace, burning directly in the void toward the figure of the black turtle.


    Boom.


    Suddenly, a boundless and thick breath erupted, suffocating everyone. Ye Futian''s body was directly knocked out, and an invisible wind blew upon him.


    The sudden scene made countless people stare.


    What happened?


    The breath was coming from the statue of the black turtle.


    It actually moved.


    Gao Huang''s eyes flashed a very sharp will, staring at Ye Futian.


    The others also revealed a look of surprise.


    This wouldn''t really be useful, would it?


    Countless eyes were now staring at the statue of the turtle. For many years, the statue of the black turtle had never moved.


    Today, there was a terrifying atmosphere inside this statue, which made everyone feel extremely heavy pressure.


    In the air, choking pressure of might permeated.


    Ye Futian looked forward and saw the sleeping turtle look up, a pair of cold eyes staring at him.


    Ye Futian and the turtle looked at each other, and the spirit of the black turtle slowly emerged from the statue.


    "Can you see me?" A human voice came from the turtle''s mouth, directly sounding inside Ye Futian''s ears, but the others could not hear it.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt an extremely curious breath. It was as if he was in another world, and what he saw was not from the outside world.


    Ye Futian nodded. This time, he did not speak.


    "What about them, can you see them?" the black turtle continued.


    Ye Futian looked at the other three statues and saw a giant dragon shadow hovering above the void. A horrible purple mist was hidden within the shadow of the Qilin, and the phoenix seemed also to want to break through the statue. An invisible fire was released, making the space extremely tight.


    As if something was detected, the three spirits turned their eyes at the same time, looking at Ye Futian.


    At this moment, they seemed to be able to perceive the existence of the other.


    The four pressures of might bloomed at the same time, and everyone saw the four statues light up.


    The hearts of many trembled. Was the alliance this time was successful?


    "What''s your physique?" The black turtle stared at Ye Futian as if talking to himself.


    How could their existence be seen? Even Renhuang could not do it as they could ever only perceive their existence unless a connection was made with them.


    But Ye Futian did not.


    Ye Futian looked bewildered. He had no idea what kind of physique he had. Even though he claimed to have the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path, he meant it more as a joke; some made up stuff that he used to amuse himself.


    Boom.


    The other three cultivators sensed the peculiarity of the statues and released their power to a greater degree.


    There was a sound of dragon chanting. At this moment, a giant shadow of the dragon appeared above Fae Alley, hovering in the sky. A mighty pressure enveloped the endless void. All of Fae Alley was shrouded in this terrifying might.


    Buzz.


    Wind blew past them, and the breath of flames seemed to burn the world. Qin He''s body was directly knocked down by the shock, and she felt like her body was about to be lit on fire. She retreated instantly.


    In the sky above the statue, a divine shadow of a phoenix manifested. The song of the phoenix was heard above the clouds as a divine fire of the Great Path swept out. Many in Fae Alley felt as if they were about to prostrate on the ground, and many whose cultivations were weaker were shocked back.


    Then, it was the divine beast��the Qilin. The majestic and dominant breath appeared in the sky above. The Qilin''s eyes��full of contempt��looked at everyone, and no one dared to look at him in the eyes.


    Three statues manifested at the same time, and three out of the four spirits were awakened.


    In an instant, countless eyes looked at the statue of the black turtle. Only one was left.


    The divine turtle''s gaze was still fixed on Ye Futian, and then, the breath was roaring between heaven and earth, with the will of the Great Path churning and flowing toward him.


    Suddenly, a real figure of the black turtle appeared.


    At this moment, everyone''s hearts were beating wildly.


    The four spirits of Fae Alley were awakened.


    Would the mystical ways finally reveal themselves?


    The old man watched the four spirits waking up. He looked extremely emotional. His arms were trembling slightly.


    He had waited all these years, and finally, it was here.


    His mission could finally be completed.


    The mystical ways could finally find its successor.


    At this moment, the four spirits released brilliant divine light, and suddenly, lines appeared between heaven and earth, turning into a terrible matrix of the four spirits as the four statues exchanged their positions.


    Behind the four statues was the end of Fae Alley. There was a closed up mansion that was called the Fae Palace by those in Fae Alley.


    But there was no doubt that this courtyard must contain mystical ways, which had been sealed for many years.


    "The four spirits are the key that unlock the seal?" Many saw the radiant matrix and revealed a strange look, their hearts beating.


    Qin He looked on rather blankly. Her beautiful eyes drifted toward Ye Futian beside her. Although she felt the strong will inside the statues before, she was unable to awaken it. Then, the situation changed suddenly, and the divine phoenix was awakened. The scene in front of her eyes appeared.


    It was not just the divine phoenix, but the four spirits seemed to be awakened at the same time as if they were stimulated in some way.


    And all of this started when the statue of the black turtle started to release its breath.


    Could it be that the statue of the black turtle was the key?


    Ye Futian was able to provoke a reaction from the statue of the black turtle and subsequently awakened the four spirits at the same time. They manifested one after another.


    "How did you do it?" Qin He asked Ye Futian.


    Out of the statues of the Four Spirits, the one who had never been awakened before was the statue of the black turtle, which was also known as the hardest to awaken.


    But Ye Futian did it today.


    Ye Futian looked at Qin He. Clearly, he couldn''t say that he could see what others couldn''t, so he shrugged and said, "Maybe the black turtle elder heard me and didn''t want me to be embarrassed in front of everyone."


    Qin He blinked, and she looked away silently.


    Shameless.


    This b*stard didn''t even make a good excuse when he was lying.


    Only idiots would believe him.


    If having a dialogue with the statue could awaken them, those geniuses who had tried would probably vomit blood now.


    "The alliance of the four top genius talents indeed live up to their name," the people in Fae Alley said amongst themselves, very shocked. Some people said, "That guy is very tricky. He led the statue of the black turtle to react, and the four spirits woke up at the same time."


    "Very tricky, indeed," everyone said in their hearts, not sure how he did it.


    The four spirits flew into the matrix. A flame seemed to be burning, and it gradually turned into nothingness. Immediately, the front gate of the Fae Palace moved positions, then opened directly to reveal an ancient path, with the four statues standing guard on both sides.


    "The Fae Palace is opened." The eyes of many were blazing hot. All had the urge to step inside.


    At this moment, the old man took a step forward, and a horrific might of Renhuang appeared, suppressing the entire Fae Alley, also suppressing the thoughts on everyone''s mind.


    At this moment, he changed his former temperament, and dazzling divine light flowed upon his body, his long hair flying in the wind.


    The old man''s eyes swept towards the crowd. At the moment, he was faintly struggling within his heart. He had waited for many years. He thought he would feel the excitement of relief at this moment, but he didn''t. As existence of Renhunag, his state of mind ought to be extremely stable.


    But the wait of a millennium had given way to other thoughts inside his head.


    For a moment, he seemed to have made a decision. He said to the four people in front of him, "The four spirits have awakened. The mystical ways will now choose its master. I will unseal the mystical ways while you wait here."


    As he finished, he walked first toward the Fae Palace.


    Ye Futian and the others stood outside quietly, watching the old man step into the Fae Palace.


    "Are the mystical ways finally about to be revealed?" A brilliant light flashed across Hua Qingyun''s eyes. The success this time was unexpected to everyone.


    The same was true for Wang Yanbing; he just came to try but did not expect that the Fae Palace would really be opened.


    Now, they were all thinking about other things, such as who would inherit the mystical ways.


    "The mystical ways are an inheritance of the Fae clan. Now, it is by chance and coincidence that the mystical ways would be revealed to the world. Both Goddess Qin and you are not descendants of the Fae clan. Could you give up the claim to the mystical ways? If one of us inherited it, I''m sure the rewards for you two would be generous," Wang Yanbing said to Qin He and Ye Futian.


    The four spirits were awakened by the four of them, and it should be inherited by one of them.


    However, only Hua Qingyun and he were the descendants of the orthodox lineage of the Fae clan.


    "A generous reward that could unravel the mystical ways?" Ye Futian smiled and asked. Did they think they would give up so easily?

 1442 The Mystical Ways Chooses

    Qin He looked at Wang Yanbing and said with a smile. "Surely, young master Wang is joking. Since these mystical ways were sealed in Fae Alley, not in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, it clearly cannot be said to belong to the Fae clan. Let''s be honest, is young master Wang really a disciple of the Fae clan?"


    Generous reward? What kind of heavy reward were they talking about?


    Now that there was a chance to inherit the mystical ways, no one would give it up so easily.


    These mystical ways had been sealed here for a millennium. Now that it was finally revealed, it must be extraordinary.


    Wang Yanbing didn''t say much when he heard this. The opening of the Fae clan was purely an unexpected event this time, which no one had anticipated.


    Now the mystical ways were about to be unveiled, it was impossible to ask anyone to give up.


    While they were speaking, a dazzling brilliance shot to the sky from inside the Fae Palace, and a very strong breath permeated their surroundings, accompanied by great might of Renhuang.


    "What''s going on?" Everyone''s eyes flashed with uncertainty. What was happening inside?


    "Not good." Hua Qingyun''s eyes suddenly became cold. He said, "Let''s go and see."


    Just as his voice fell, several aggressive breaths came from Fae Alley. Several figures walked directly toward the Fae Palace.


    "Fox guarding the henhouse?"


    Ye Futian''s eyes also showed some surprise, but he didn''t say anything. Perhaps he was wrong.


    However, it was entirely possible.


    This old man should be a guardian of the mystical ways, and it was rumored that he had been guarding it for a millennium. Even for someone in the existence of Renhuang, having been here for a millennium, the state of his mind was perhaps shaken. To think of stealing the mystical ways for himself was not impossible.


    The four spirits previously seemed to be a very strong seal of the Fae matrix, that even the old man himself could not break. The master of the mystical ways had guarded against him taking it away.


    Ye Futian and the others also went toward the palace.


    The gate of the palace was opened wide, and over the stairs, there was a figure standing in front of a palace. It was the old man from before.


    He released a breath of horror, his palm reaching toward the sky, attempting to take down the thing that was above his head.


    It was a scripture. At this moment, this ancient scripture was releasing brilliant light of the divine as if it was locked in the center of the fae matrix, impossible to move for the time being. Even though this Renhuang made an attempt, it was only enough to make the matrix tremble, while that ancient book was still suspended in the air.


    It couldn''t be taken.


    "What are you doing?" Figures descended as Hua Qingyun and Wang Yanbing were followed by those of Renhuang existence, the same with Qin He.


    The might of pressure of Renhuang rained down, aiming toward the old man.


    "I have guarded it for thousands of years," The old man stared at the space above his head, his voice very cross, saying, "but I have never held it."


    He had never thought that it would take this long, and he had wanted to leave it behind, but then a thought took hold of him��he wanted to see just it could open it and take it.


    After he had become used to it, he must admit that it was the getting used to it that was the most horrific. He felt like he was just an ordinary person, and this was his routine every single day.


    Until now, when the gate was opened, there was a great shock that took hold of his mind. It gave birth to thoughts he had never had before.


    He had kept the mystical ways for thousands of years. Why couldn''t he take it?


    Why should he give it to others?


    When his thoughts turned to this, he raised his palm again and grabbed toward the void. A great handprint clawed at the ancient scripture, trying to pull it out of the Fae matrix. Still, he was not able to shake it.


    "You won''t be able to take it," said a Renhuang existence of the Hua clan. The power of might from several Renhuang pressed down at the same time as they raised their hands to press down. Even if they tried to control the range affected by this display of might, the vast and endless void still felt the suffocating pressure.


    Ye Futian and the others felt that it was impossible to move even half a step. Their bodies felt extremely heavy, and they could only watch everything that was happening in front of them.


    Boom.


    As a terrifying storm swept out, the old man''s body shook and was actually able to shatter the oppressive attack directly, demonstrating just how strong his cultivation was.


    Hua Qingyun, Wang Yanbing, and the others beheld this scene with a grave countenance. They had thought that once the gate was opened, the old man who guarded the gate would relinquish the mystical ways proactively. But in fact, he was overtaken by his greed and wanted to possess the scripture for himself.


    "Even if it can''t be taken, I want to take a look," the old man said. His eyes were on the ancient book, and the great handprint forcibly took away the ancient book and opened it.


    The ancient scripture flipped in the void, page by page, but the old man''s face suddenly turned pale.


    It turned out that the book was blank.


    There was nothing, and he didn''t see anything.


    For an instant, he seemed to run out of strength and looked on, powerless. Why was it so?


    At this moment, several breaths of terror came from afar, and the mighty majesty of Renhuang shrouded the heavens as if demanding all beings to submit.


    In the distance, cultivators descended from all directions and all sides, and their breaths were extremely horrific.


    "Xie Ling, how presumptuous of you," an indifferent voice said. The old man looked in the direction where the sound came from. Xie Ling was his real name. Once upon a time, he had followed the master of the mystical ways to cultivate, so that he would have the opportunity to become a Renhuang and reach an elevated realm.


    "I''ve been here for a millennium. What is so presumptuous about taking a mere look at it?" Xie Ling responded, equally indifferent.


    "It was only because of the greatness of Emperor Yuan at that time that you enjoyed the respect I paid you. But I never expected that you would steal that which you guard," the cultivator in the void said coldly. "Go away, and don''t enter this place again."


    Xie Ling glanced at the strong cultivators that populated the void. Several of the major figures had come in person. It wouldn''t be hard for them to take him down.


    He suddenly laughed into the sky and stepped into the air, leaving in an instant.


    "Even though the mystical ways will be inherited, there can never be another like Emperor Yuan." An ephemeral voice came from the void. All the top figures looked somber. Emperor Yuan of yore was indeed fearfully strong. Everyone in the Heavenly Mandated Realm was in awe without exception.


    Even if the mystical ways were passed down, would anyone be able to surpass him?


    "The gate was opened by the four of you?" the lord of the Jiang clan asked, looking down at the four people below.


    And they nodded.


    "Two were not disciples of the Fae clan and are not qualified to inherit the mystical ways." The one who spoke was the lord of the Wang clan. The breath from his body was also very strong and overbearing, and he looked at the lord of the Jiang clan.


    It would only be Wang Yanbing who would compete with Hua Qingyun. Hua Qingyun was extremely talented, but his cultivation was weaker than Wang Yanbing''s. Thus, Wang Yanbing had a high probability of obtaining the mystical ways.


    The lord of the Jiang clan looked down at Ye Futian and Qin He.


    "These mystical ways were Emperor Yuan''s, and they should follow his last wish. Since the four opened the gate together, let them decide amongst themselves," the lord of the Jiang clan said.


    "What do you think?" the lord of Wang clan asked the lord of the Hua clan. The Hua clan had Hua Qingyun, so he also wished that the competition was limited between the two. Thus, the possibility of Hua Qingyun getting it was greater.


    "If you want to disobey the wish of the ancestors, shouldn''t you just take the mystical ways directly to Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and decide there. Why bother arguing?" Ye Futian said lightly. The Wang clan had not yet entered the Fae clan. What qualifications did they have to compete?


    The head of the Wang clan glanced at Ye Futian with a sharp look.


    "Master Ye is right. If the wishes of the ancestors are not respected, why bother fighting when it should have belonged to the Fae clan?" Qin He also spoke, preemptively blocking anything the head of the Wang clan could say.


    Since they didn''t want them to compete for it, then Wang Yanbing would also have no share in it, as he was not qualified to compete.


    "The two young ones speak the truth," the lord of the Jiang clan remarked lightly, while the head of the Wang clan looked rather grouchy. He said, "If you think so, then we''ll follow the wishes of Emperor Yuan."


    "Then the four of you, fight for your share," the lord of the Jiang clan said, looking down at the four below.


    Ye Futian and the others arrived at the center of the fae matrix, underneath the ancient book.


    They saw that the book had been opened, but it was blank. There was nothing written inside.


    "What''s going on?" A few people showed a strange look and released their will, heading for the ancient book, trying to communicate with it.


    Ye Futian was thinking of the time when the black turtle was awakened before. Could it be that...


    His eyes changed again as everything between heaven and earth seemed to change once more. He felt that as his cultivation progressed, he seemed to be able to see more things.


    At this time, in his field of vision, the ancient book was still turning, but above the ancient book, he saw an extremely elusive figure. It seemed to be integrated into the ancient book.


    "This..." Ye Futian''s pupils contracted slightly. He then released his will to communicate with it.


    At that moment, the ancient book released a brighter glow, and sacred rays shot directly toward Ye Futian.


    The ancient book seemed to light up and turn into endless characters. Each character floated toward his will and merged with it. Under the light of the ancient book, the entire person of Ye Futian became extremely sacred.


    "Hmm?"


    Everyone saw the extraordinary event occurring on Ye Futian. The four figures stood underneath, but the light of the ancient book fell on Ye Futian only.


    It seemed to have chosen only him.


    The mystical ways had chosen its master!


    Qin He''s beautiful eyes flashed brilliantly as she looked at Ye Futian next to her. She saw that the radiance from the ancient book was shining down. His entire person was illuminated by a beam of light, holy and sacred.


    Could the awakening of the four spirits have something to do with him?


    This thought arose in Qin He''s mind. All four of them were standing here, so why did the mystical ways only choose Ye Futian?


    There was no need for contention, as it was completely useless. The mystical ways had chosen its own master.

 1443 Celestial Soul Attraction

    The three top figures from Haotian City were also looking at Ye Futian, and a strange look was revealed in their eyes.


    The mystical ways had chosen him?


    Tracing back the origin of the mystical ways, strictly speaking, Hua Qingyun of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Wang Yanbing of the Wang clan were the true descendants of the Fae clan. If the mystical ways must choose a master, then the two of them should be the premier choices.


    However, it had chosen someone completely unrelated.


    The look of the lord of the Jiang clan was particularly different. Back when he was at the Origin Mountains, he had already obtained the bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. It was said that at the Celestial Fox Palace, no one recognized the bones of the demon emperor. Not even Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor could recognize them. But after the bones ended up in Ye Futian''s hands, they were immediately refined by him.


    He had even learned the technique of Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky and later joined the Divine Elephants clan.


    Then, he heard that Ye Futian had defeated Zhan Yuan of the supreme body of the great path at the Violet Heavenly Palace. Rumor had it that he had obtained the most exquisite technique of the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    No one expected that here today, out of the four people, the mystical ways had also chosen him.


    How special was this junior brother of Gu Dongliu?


    If one time was a coincidence, then was this also a coincidence?


    It must be that this man had extraordinary ability.


    Maybe, after Gu Dongliu woke up, they could ask him.


    The face of the head of the Wang clan looked terrible. The mystical ways had finally been revealed, but the one who obtained it was not of the Fae clan.


    Supposing it was Wang Yanbing who took the mystical ways this time, then their return to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was guaranteed. With the two great Fae methods in hand, even the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had to open for them.


    "Will we allow the Fae methods to be passed on to outsiders?" the lord of the Wang clan asked the two lords of the Jiang and Hua clans.


    The lord of the Jiang clan glanced at him and said, "It was the mystical ways that chose its own master��the will of heaven. Do you want to change it by force? We can only say that this man had his purpose with the Fae clan."


    "Of course. I heard he is the junior brother of Gu Dongliu," the head of the Wang clan said.


    Now, the Jiang clan was really considerate as far as the descendants of Gu Tianxing were concerned. He had allowed Ye Futian to participate in the competition of the mystical ways because of it. He would rather choose Ye Futian than Wang Yanbing.


    "What is the problem?" the lord of the Jiang clan asked as he looked at the others. The head of the Wang clan said nothing. He looked at the Wang Yanbing below and said, "Go back. I will see you at the Fae clan a few days from now."


    As he finished speaking, he turned around and took a step out, disappearing between heaven and earth. All the cultivators from the Wang clan stepped into the air, one after another, and Wang Yanbing also left with them.


    If the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven allowed Ye Futian to inherit the mystical ways, clearly, they could not seize it by force.


    The light of the mystical ways continued to flow into Ye Futian''s body. After a long while, the light finally started to fade. The ancient book that was floating in the void became dull and common. It fell from midair, and Ye Futian caught it. It was just a volume of blank pages.


    It was as if the purpose of this book was only to act as a conduit to seal the mystical ways.


    "It''s over." All eyes fell on Ye Futian. The mystical ways that were sealed in Fae Alley for so many years had finally found its master.


    However, this master was not a Fae, which was somewhat surprising.


    "Ye Futian, which Fae method did you receive?" the lord of the Jiang clan asked Ye Futian. Although Ye Futian had already received the inheritance, he still wanted to confirm whether it was really the One.


    "Celestial Soul Attraction," Ye Futian responded. He did not conceal anything. Everyone had seen it, so there was no point in concealing it since the lord of the Jiang clan was willing to let him inherit it. Naturally, he won''t make it hard for him.


    "Celestial Soul Attraction," the lord of Jiang clan murmured. After so many years, finally, it was heard of again.


    "Focus on cultivating," the lord of the Jiang clan instructed Ye Futian. The Celestial Soul Attraction was extremely difficult to cultivate. Even in its time, there were many who could not master this method, for it was extremely demanding of its practitioners. It had been sealed for all these years until now.


    Since this method had chosen Ye Futian, it was highly probable that Ye Futian was a suitable candidate for its cultivation.


    "Let''s go," the lord of the Jiang clan said, and immediately turned to leave with the cultivators of the Jiang clan.


    The people of the Hua clan also left one after another.


    "Let''s also go back," Qin He said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded, and suddenly, the group returned to the crowd and left together.


    In Fae Alley, countless eyes watched Ye Futian as they left, slight tribulation in their hearts.


    From now on, in Haotian City, Fae Alley was no more.


    This legend, which had been circulating for a millennium, had finally ended.


    Furthermore, many people felt that after this, Fae Alley would never be like it was before, producing geniuses as in the past. The four spirits each had its own fortune. Now that the four spirits had integrated into the Fae matrix, perhaps they had truly become four bonafide statues.


    In the void, Ye Futian and his group traveled through the air.


    Next to him, Qin He glanced at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes, full of curiosity. She couldn''t help but ask, "How did you do it?"


    From the awakening of the black turtle, the four spirits awakening at the same time, the mystical ways choosing its own master, she didn''t understand.


    All in all, it felt as if the mystical ways were prepared for him. It was truly incredible.


    "How many times do I have to say it? Divine Body of the Heavenly Path," Ye Futian replied.


    "You are so full of it," Qin He said out of frustration. This b*stard was using this excuse again.


    She knew that she would probably get nothing out of Ye Futian.


    "Do you think my conversation with the black turtle was fake?" Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Are you saying it was real?" Qin He said with annoyance. He was really having a conversation with the four spirits. Yeah right.


    "Of course, it was real. That black turtle also responded to me." Ye Futian smiled, as Qin He gave him a strange look. Previously, Ye Futian''s inexplicable words at the Fae Alley had everyone puzzled, and many people thought that he was an idiot.


    Now Ye Futian claimed that it was for real.


    "Did you know it existed?" Qin He asked.


    "I could see it," Ye Futian said again. Qin He looked at Ye Futian''s handsome profile and was vaguely convinced.


    Perhaps, he really had some special ability that others did not possess, so the mystical ways had chosen him.


    "Then what about the mystical ways? Why did they choose you?" Qin He continued to ask.


    "Your curiosity is not to be deterred." A voice was heard, and Qin He turned her eyes to Xia Qingyuan, who was beside Ye Futian. She smiled and asked, "Is it bad?"


    "It''s not good. Something will happen."


    Xia Qingyuan replied, then accelerated forward.


    "What will happen?" Qin He looked strange. Ye Futian looked totally confused.


    Huh?


    What would happen?


    Back at the palace, Ye Futian began the cultivation of the mystical ways. He sat cross-legged, his breath flowing internally with his hands forming the seal. Suddenly, a breath flowed inside his body, moving around heaven. His body suddenly glowed brightly with light.


    His body suddenly turned into a vortex of the Great Path, and many forces around him merged inside his body, somehow resonating with his body.


    Although the cultivation of mystical ways and the other methods were all cultivations, there were still some differences. When the mystical ways were being summoned, another state was entered.


    The first thing he needed to do now was to find that state.


    Upon his body, the divine light of the Great path was flowing brighter and brighter. It was as if there was divine light falling down. His thoughts covered the infinite world, and countless divine wills were out there, drawing in the power of heaven and earth.


    The divine light was radiant and bright. It was as the breath inside his body flowed. Suddenly, he felt that his soul was outside his body as if he was a part of heaven and earth.


    At this moment, he could see Qin He playing the guqin in the palace. He could see Yu Sheng sitting and cultivating. He could also see Xia Qingyuan sitting in the courtyard in a daze.


    Everything in the world had become extremely clear. This feeling seemed to be similar to his Freedom Meditation, but it was a real application.


    "Celestial Soul Attraction."


    Ye Futian secretly remarked, Is this the state of the celestial soul?


    At this time, he could even sense the spirit of Qin He. It seemed that as soon as his mind moved, he could directly launch an attack.


    But Ye Futian did not do that. The Celestial soul attracted more of the will of the Great Path between heaven and earth and integrated it into the Celestial soul, making one''s own breath immense powerful and strong. They could enter a state of sublimation that would make their attack power even more aggressive and terrible.


    This was not an art of direct attack, but it could make its own abilities more dominant and powerful.


    If it was used in a great attack method, its power would change again.


    He faintly understood the true meaning of those tests. If it were not for him to cultivate, any others would not be able to do achieve it easily!

 1444 Emerging out of Isolation

    Ye Futian trained in the mystical ways quietly for the next several days.


    Training of mystical ways was just like the other methods, and it was only natural that it would have taken him more than just a day to do so. The deeper his comprehension, the more powerful they would be.


    The news of the mystical ways being acquired by an outsider was spread all over Haotian City for quite some time.


    That man was named Ye Futian, and he was the younger brother in training of Gu Dongliu, who was then training in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. In that grand event held at the Violet Heavenly Palace not long ago, he had been able to defeat Zhan Yuan��the one who possessed the supreme body of the great path��by demonstrating legendary talents. That battle shot him to fame, and the conflict of the great path in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had him concluded.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian seemed to have earned the admiration of beautiful women. The number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky��Qin He��did not even bother with the crown prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. She was very interested in Ye Futian instead and had been traveling with him for quite a while. They were at the moment, training in the same palace, and they seemed to share a close relationship.


    At present, he had even acquired mystical ways of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, making it so that accolade upon accolade was given to him, making him on par with those top-notch geniuses who were already famous.


    However, everyone was curious as to how Ye Futian had managed to have the mystical ways voluntarily pick a master.


    There was Hua Qingyun above the Celestial Gate and Wang Yanbing below. However, the mystical ways picked Ye Futian instead, and that baffled many people. There was also all manner of speculations circulating in Haotian City.


    But then again, mystical ways that had been lost for a millennium was finally out in the world, and that was considered a piece of good news nonetheless.


    As time passed, the day where the Wang Clan came to the Celestial Gate was finally upon them.


    Countless mighty ones gathered below the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven on that day.


    Celestial light enveloped the Celestial Gate, making it look extremely sacred.


    Mighty ones were all over the steps of the Celestial Gate. Many mighty ones of the Celestial Gate gathered there, making a huge scene, leaving countless in awe.


    The rules of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven stated that a challenge to the clan was a matter of utmost importance. It could have been said to be one of the most important affairs of the clan, and the clan would definitely take the matter seriously.


    It was more than just a simple ordeal, as it seemed to be something tied to the future of the entire clan, so long as the Wang Clan succeeded.


    The Wang Clan would have returned to the fold of the Celestial Gate, becoming one of the rulers of the clan then.


    That would have been something affecting the fundamental organization and governance of the Celestial Gate. If the Wang Clan were to rejoin the Celestial Gate, then they would have earned the right to make decisions about the affairs of the Celestial Gate.


    The people below were not only there to watch for their own amusement and pleasure. That was something that would have concerned the future of the clan, and the hearts of many were extremely heavy, and they all sported solemn expression.


    "Back then at Fae Alley, the clan leader of the Wang Clan appeared and had indeed reached the required plane. There was no actual need for a test. If everything were to go as it should have, Jiang Taichu and Wang Yanbing would have clashed to decide upon the future of the Celestial Gate," someone said. That was what many speculated before.


    "Wang Yanbing paid a visit to Qin He that day, and Gu Tianxing expressed some of his thoughts regarding what the Celestial Gate did. If the Wang Clan were to join the clan, things would have probably been dire for Gu Dongliu. They would have possibly not wanted the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to pin too much of their hopes on Gu Dongliu."


    "The Wang Clan had been one of the rulers of the Celestial Gate in the past, and they had little to do with the Gu Clan in the first place. It was only natural that they would not have wanted to put too much effort into fostering Gu Dongliu. They would have rather seen the effort being used on Gu Dongliu to allow Wang Yanbing to stand at the pinnacle instead. What Wang Yanbing said that day fully showed his pride. We''ll see who shall stand at the pinnacle of Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    "I wonder what level Gu Dongliu is at right now," many lowered their voices and quipped.


    They had yet to see that rumored Gu Dongliu in person, yet his name was already a very big deal throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm. No one did not know of him despite it being the first time his name was heard throughout the realm due to what Gu Tianxing pulled.


    All of that happened because what Gu Tianxing did was simply too shocking.


    However, Gu Dongliu''s actual powers remained a mystery now, and everyone wondered what kind of surprises he would bring to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The sky above the Celestial Gate was all blue. More and more mighty ones showed up, and Ye Futian''s group was there as well.


    Their appearance caught the attention of many, not just because it was Ye Futian who showed up, but also because there was Qin He and because there were those mystical ways in Fae Alley.


    Ye Futian and Qin He were both at the very front. There was little need to say anything about Qin He''s appearance, and that silver-haired young man clad in white was just as handsome and extraordinary. They would have made quite the couple.


    "It was rumored that the mystical ways sealed within Saint Alley were the method practiced by Emperor Yuan all those years ago��Celestial Soul Attraction. It was said that the art was extremely difficult, and I wonder how well he''s done with it."


    "Training in the mystical ways requires one to enter yet another plane��the Fae Plane. Only by getting this far will one be able to get into the intricacies of the mystical ways. I''m afraid the training needs a long time to be completed," some said as they speculated.


    Ye Futian naturally sensed the eyes of everyone around him. Qin He, who was at his side, then said, "There are many looking at you."


    "How do you know they''re not looking at you?" Ye Futian smiled at Qin He and said, "Don''t you know who you are to them?"


    Qin He shot a speechless look at him. The longer she was around him, the more she found him to be a flirt.


    However, what Ye Futian was the truth. Regardless of where she ended up, she would always be one of those people who caught the most attention.


    "We''re not the main cast of the day." Ye Futian then added, "They''re here too."


    He then looked up at the sky, seeing extremely pointed will permeating the place. While there was no one there just yet, he was already able to sense that extremely pointed aura.


    Divine light glittered, and it seemed as if legendary weapons zipped in the air and dropped down in an instant.


    The mighty ones spread out where the crowd was, creating some empty space. At the very next moment, a group of mighty ones descended from the air.


    The group who had just arrived was none other than the mighty ones from the Wang Clan of Haotian City.


    Wang Yanbing was undoubtedly among them.


    "They''re here."


    Everyone sported solemn expressions. The mighty ones of the Wang Clan then looked up at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven before them. All of them had determined, serious-looking eyes.


    It was especially so in the case of Wang Yanbing. His body was like that of a legendary weapon, emanating brimming, unyielding aura all over.


    The people of Haotian City all said that the key to the Wang Clan''s admission into the Celestial Gate lied with his battle with Jiang Taichu, and that had indeed been the truth. If it had not been for him, the Wang Clan would not have issued such a challenge.


    Wang Clan''s expulsion by the Celestial Gate all those years ago was seen as an eternal insult by those in the clan, and they had held it close to their heart.


    The Wang Clan was thinking about returning to the Celestial Gate all the time, and that had been the teaching that had been passed down along the generations all this time. Their descendants were required to give all they had to allow the Wang Clan to return to the Celestial Gate, reclaiming the glory that had been lost throughout the years.


    On that day, Wang Yanbing swore that he would definitely achieve that feat.


    He swore not to go home until he achieved it.


    He would be far from being qualified to rise to the pinnacle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm otherwise.


    "We of the Wang Clan of Haotian City intend to return to the Celestial Gate," the clan leader stood at the forefront and said. His voice reverberated throughout the place.


    His voice was heard everywhere in the Celestial Gate.


    The Wang Clan intended to return to the Celestial Gate.


    More mighty ones appeared on the steps. The place from the Celestial Gate to the bottom was filled with mighty ones of the Celestial gate.


    Two figures stood side by side above. It was the clan leaders of both the Jiang Clan and the Hua Clan.


    "The Wang Clan was once a ruling force in the Celestial Gate. We left the Celestial Gate and trained in Haotian City, practicing the mystical ways. Our clan was in Haotian City for generations," the clan leader of the Jiang Clan said with a brimming voice. "The Wang Clan is allowed to challenge the right of entry to the Celestial Gate. The people of Haotian City shall bear witness to this."


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was Haotian City''s Celestial Gate. Only forces of Haotian City approved by the Celestial Gate would be allowed entry into the Celestial Gate.


    "Clan leader of the Wang Clan, please demonstrate your plane of training," an elder below announced. The clan leader of the Wang Clan stepped forward and came below the Celestial Gate. His body gradually rose into the air. Celestial light dazzled on his body, and imperial might spread out all over the place.


    Countless below the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven sensed that towering might emanating from him.


    "Renhuang of the Wang Clan, please demonstrate your plane of training," the elder continued. That was a hidden condition. There was a need for a clan to have over nine Renhuang among them.


    In truth, the people of Haotian City all knew that as the pinnacle force of Haotian City, the Wang Clan had long met the requirements of returning to the Celestial Gate.


    Terrifying might of Renhuang burst at the same time in the crowd where the Wang Clan stood. There were ten might of Renhuang sensed, which made it obvious that they had met the requirement.


    "You passed," the elder responded. The clan leader of the Wang Clan returned, and the aura was rescinded. The elder then continued, "The Wang Clan shall now choose a Renhuang and a saint to challenge those of similar planes in the Celestial Gate. You shall be permitted to return to the Celestial Gate should you win one of the two battles."


    Two figures stepped out from the Wang Clan.


    A Renhuang and a saint.


    The Renhuang was named Wang Yu. He had formidable power; however, the people of Haotian City all thought that he had yet to reach the level required by the Celestial Gate.


    Wang Yanbing would have been the only one who was qualified to fight with the top figures in the Celestial Gate.


    It was said that Wang Yanbing had trained the mystical ways passed down the Wang Clan to extremely formidable levels.


    Both of them came below the steps and looked up at the Celestial Gate.


    "Clan leaders, please select your candidates," the elder then said to the clan leaders of both the Jiang Clan and the Hua Clan.


    Two figures stepped out, and, as expected, it was a very powerful Renhuang. The saint was none other than Jiang Taichu.


    Jiang Taichu''s robed appearance made him look extraordinary. His eyes were locked onto Wang Yanbing below. If the Wang Clan intended to return to the Celestial Gate, then Wang Yanbing needed to defeat him.


    "Hold on." At that moment, a voice was heard from the Celestial Gate.


    Many sported puzzled looks at that turn of events. The Wang Clan looked up in the sky, finding it rather astonishing that someone had interrupted such a sacred period.


    The Wang Clan had been preparing for this day for too long.


    Nobody would have been allowed to get in the way of them returning to the Celestial Gate.


    At that moment, celestial light rained down from the Celestial Gate. A figure was seen treading the celestial light as he walked down from above.


    Many quickly recognized that figure soon enough.


    It was an extremely handsome and extraordinary man. His white garb was immaculate, and he wore hair bindings. His eyes were brimming, and he looked dashing in a way impossible to put into words.


    Furthermore, he had celestial light coursing all over him. It was as if he had been enveloped in holy will, appearing extremely extraordinary.


    The clan leader of the Jiang Clan''s eyes smiled when he saw that man.


    "Who is he?" someone asked.


    All from the Wang Clan looked him, and that silhouette reminded them of someone.


    "Gu Dongliu." Those below realized who it was, and their eyes sparkled.


    Gu Dongliu appeared.


    "Third brother." A smile was seen in the eyes of Ye Futian, who was in the crowd. He finally met his third brother again, and his third brother looked incredible.


    "Dongliu," the Sword Saint called as well. The weight on his shoulders was finally lifted.


    Gu Dongliu was now a Holiness of Nirvana.


    The minds of many were rattled. They did not expect that Gu Dongliu would have emerged at such a critical time.


    That legendary figure that Gu Tianxing had created had actually become a Holiness of Nirvana.


    Just how strong was he?


    The Wang Clan intended to return to the Celestial Gate on that day.


    Gu Dongliu of the Celestial Gate emerged from isolation.

 1445 Gu Dongliu vs Wang Yanbing

    Gu Dongliu was seen standing on top of those steps, and he was clad all over in celestial light.


    "If there is to be a fight among the saints, allow me," Gu Dongliu said. He knew that he had been taken into the Celestial Gate by the clan leader of the Jiang Clan and that there was definitely a lot of criticism circulating.


    In truth, despite having trained for all that time, he was nonetheless able to sense a lot going on with the outside world.


    He felt as if he had been in a very long dream all that while, and reality was somehow intertwined with that dream.


    He felt that he had even lived several lives.


    One of those memories that left the most impression on him was that of his grandfather��Gu Tianxing��as well as that of his father��Gu Jiangnan.


    The memories of the figures of two past generations left an extremely significant impact on him.


    His grandfather��Gu Tianxing��was a man of honor, standing tall with the burden of the Celestial Gate resting on his shoulders. He had been creating peerless methods of the mystical ways to break the binds of the heavenly path.


    His father��Gu Jiangnan��was a genius like none other, yet he was unfortunate enough to die an early death.


    Gu Dongliu had wondered why he had been wandering alone outside in the past, but time washed away all those thoughts, and he could now let them go.


    However, everything began anew again.


    He shouldered the will of two of his predecessors and entered the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven again.


    Everything would have begun anew.


    "Very well." Jiang Taichu, who was below, turned around to look at Gu Dongliu above, before walking up the steps. If there were to be a fight between the saints, he would have left it to Gu Dongliu.


    Everyone understood what was going on. Countless pairs of eyes looked at Gu Dongliu, knowing that he needed to fight.


    Countless below looked at the ones who emerged, and they deemed that Gu Dongliu would have been the more appropriate candidate for the fight.


    When Wang Yanbing paid a visit to Qin He, he talked about the matter with Gu Dongliu. If the Wang Clan were to rejoin the Celestial Gate, it would have affected Gu Dongliu directly.


    As such, with Gu Dongliu emerging to fight, he was actually fighting to determine his destiny.


    Wang Yanbing looked up at that figure. He had not expected Gu Dongliu to emerge out of isolation at such a time or that Gu Dongliu had become a Holiness of Nirvana right away. Wang Yanbing became truly impressed with Gu Tianxing, who had been going against the mandate of heaven, so much so that he had even managed to break the rules of the world of cultivators, enabling Gu Dongliu to actually be able to advance in such a short period of time.


    But then again, that would have had a lot of variables at play, and Gu Tianxing alone would not have been able to pull it all off. That man tapped into the will of the Demon Monarch, devouring everything within the Origin Mountains into a single divine matrix before passing it all onto Gu Dongliu. He had even left his will to Gu Dongliu.


    The grandfather gave the grandson everything.


    Gu Dongliu, at the moment, had inherited everything that had belonged to Gu Tianxing. He had even inherited the Laws of Origin.


    However, even so, Wang Yanbing''s expression remained as pointed as always. There was not even a single hint of doubt on his face.


    Jiang Taichu was, too, a legendary figure and of a stable plane. He had long made it into the plane of Holiness of Nirvana and was known as the number one below the Renhuang in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Despite all that he had inherited, he had nonetheless skipped planes to get to where he was at now, and his plane was necessarily as stable as Jiang Taichu''s. Wang Yanbing wondered if it had been the right thing to do for Gu Dongliu, fighting him as soon as he emerged out of isolation.


    Regardless of who was the one standing before him, Wang Yanbing deemed that there was no stopping the Wang Clan from rejoining the Celestial Gate.


    Even if said person was Gu Dongliu.


    Furthermore, he deemed that to be a better turn of events. If Gu Dongliu were to be the one fighting, then there was no doubt that it would have proven the words he said that day.


    Wang Yanbing stated that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven should not have taken Gu Dongliu into their fold.


    "Let''s have the Renhuang do battle," that elder at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven announced at that moment. If the Renhuang of the Wang Clan were to be able to win in the fight, then there would have no need for the saints to fight, as the Wang Clan would have been able to get into the Celestial Gate and become one of the ruling clans of the place.


    The two Renhuangs stepped out and took to the air.


    They eyed each other, and they had yet to fully burst with their aura, yet the crowd throughout that vast place sensed all that stifling pressure nonetheless. It was as if there were two wills of Renhuang coming down at the same time, which felt like pressure coming down from the heavens.


    The robes of the two fighters billowed as their eyes met. It was as if the clash of wills had already begun. Terrifying aura formed around them as if their auras had been compressed to the extreme.


    Swoop, swoop... High pitched noises were heard, and terrifying aura formed around the vicinity of those two fighters. It was as if a formless storm of the great path had been compressed to an extremely small area, preventing the effects from hitting the others.


    Renhuangs were just as eerily impeccable at controlling their powers, and they were known to be at the top when it came to control. They all had absolute control of their own powers and would definitely keep those powers in check as they fought, as fights between Renhuangs could only be done at very, very high altitudes.


    Even without unleashing their powers fully, the crowd sensed that the area where the two were had been rendered as no man''s land. If anyone were to step into it without care, said person would definitely be torn to shreds right away, leaving nothing behind.


    The robes of the two Renhuang continued to billow, and high pitched noises continued to be heard. However, the Renhuang of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven stepped back for a bit at that moment. Shrill cutting noises were heard, and many cuts were seen on his robe.


    On the other side, that Renhuang from the Wang Clan grunted, and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. What was even more terrifying was how even his eyes bled, making the scene look harrowing.


    It was obvious that the Renhuang was injured.


    That stifling pressure dissipated, and the Renhuang from the Celestial Gate cupped his hands and said, "It has been an honor."


    The Renhuang of the Wang clan bowed slightly before retreating, not saying a word as he did so.


    That battle had not rattled the minds of the spectators much, especially those of the Wang Clan. There were two pinnacle forces in the Celestial Gate, and they had deployed their strongest fighter. It was completely normal for the Wang Clan to end up losing. They had long anticipated that happening in the battle, and as such, they never had too much hope about it.


    The true battle lied with Wang Yanbing.


    That number one cultivator below the Renhuang plane from Haotian City, on the other hand, was one who had truly been able to beat top figures from the Celestial Gate.


    Wang Yanbing was of equal renown to Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun.


    "Wang Yanbing." A voice was heard saying at that moment. The clan leader of the Wang Clan looked at him and said, "It''s up to you now."


    At that moment, all of the mighty ones from the Wang Clan looked at him. There were high expectations in every single pair of eyes.


    That solemn atmosphere had even affected the others. At that moment, many had even sympathized with the Wang Clan, hoping that they would be able to rejoin the Celestial Gate again.


    After enduring all that humiliation for over a millennium, they had pinned all those high hopes onto one person. Many had been incapable of relating to said hopes before, yet at that moment, all of them seemed to have understood all that hope was placed onto one man.


    In the Wang Clan''s perspective, it was a battle that they could not afford to lose.


    If they were to lose, such a chance would not come again for the next hundred or thousand years.


    If Wang Yanbing were to end up being beaten, there would have been no telling when another equal to him would emerge.


    As such, the Wang Clan had to win.


    If they were to miss that opportunity, the wait would be forever. The Wang Clan would not be able to wash away all the humiliation they endured all those years ago, and they would never be able to rejoin the Celestial Gate ever again.


    Wang Yanbing, having sensed the hopes in all those eyes, stepped forward. He walked tall and proud, like a sword drawn from its scabbard and thrust forward.


    "I''m not going home if we are not able to get into the Celestial Gate."


    An extremely shrill voice was heard throughout the air. Such was Wang Yanbing''s resolve.


    "I''m not going home if we are not able to get into the Celestial Gate."


    The weight in those words was obvious.


    Wang Yanbing took one step after another forward, with every step howling with the will of divine arms, shooting at Gu Dongliu above.


    Gu Dongliu stepped out after seeing Wang Yanbing move, heading down the steps.


    Wang Yanbing shouldered the thousand-year-old hopes of his clan, while Gu Dongliu shouldered the wills of both Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan, who were both legendary figures.


    Neither of them could afford to lose in that battle.


    Not Wang Yanbing, not Gu Dongliu.


    Countless held their breath as they sensed that solemn air about them, fixing their gaze on the battlefield. That vast space was unusually silent.


    That battle seemed like it would have been more eye-catching than the one fought between the Renhuangs prior.


    Boom. Wang Yanbing stepped out and walked up the steps of the Celestial Gate. He was determined not to go home until he succeeded as he made his steps forward.


    He did not suppress the burst of his aura. There were many Renhuangs around. Regardless of how formidable their auras were, there would have been Renhuangs standing guard nonetheless. As such, there was no need for the saints to hold themselves back.


    In that instant, many mighty ones, who wore divine arms behind the scene, felt their divine arms rattling and ringing. Their swords struggled to shoot out of their scabbards while spears intended to fly forward.


    Frightening aura was conjured around Wang Yanbing''s body. The power of the great path coalesced in the sky above. Such was the way of the divine arms.


    Howling was heard, and swords were conjured, ringing angrily in the sky. The weapons shot forward and appeared right above Gu Dongliu''s head.


    In that instant, there seemed to have been a Divine Arms Diagram appearing in the air.


    Boom. Wang Yanbing continued to burst up the steps. Weapons rained down as he charged at Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu lowered his head and looked below him. He stood around like a mystical figure, looking dashing and unfettered.


    The light of the Nine Symbols circled around his body, causing a frightening aura to appear around his body.


    He then pointed at the sky with one finger, and a huge ancient symbol emerged.


    "Lin!"


    The symbol shot downwards, and the air shook with a stifled tremble. The air seemed to have been placed in a lockdown. All raging attacks were stopped immediately.


    The scene with massive amounts of divine arms raining down was unbelievably terrifying, yet Gu Dongliu had simply pointed his finger upward, and a Lin symbol went on to shroud the sky in its entirely. The strokes of the symbol stood at the center of the myriad of ancient symbols, shrouding everything within.


    Countless had their eyes fixed on that huge symbol. Everyone paid close attention to that battle, and it was more than just Wang Yanbing making his way into the Celestial Gate; it was also the first time Gu Dongliu was seen fighting.


    That legendary figure that Gu Tianxing had created with methods that shocked the mystical regions, everyone wondered how he would have fared.


    Boom. Wang Yanbing remained unfazed at all. He stepped forward again. Mystical light circled around him, and his Life Spirit appeared behind him. That Life Spirit was a symbol as well.


    Bing.


    It constituted of the mystical ways that the Wang Clan��the Art of Yanbing.


    That was where the name "Wang Yanbing" came from, and it was obvious that the Wang Clan had indeed pinned all their hopes onto him.


    The Life Spirit appeared, and celestial light flowed. The thousands of divine arms whipped up a terrifying storm, turning into a maelstrom of divine arms, tearing the Lin seal apart with peerless combative powers.


    Multiple divine arms appeared behind Wang Yanbing as well. All of them were in the form of swords. Many claimed that swords were the king of all weapons, and they were able to break through everything.


    Boom.


    Wang Yanbing continued to step out, bringing that terrifying, all-shredding storm of divine arms at Gu Dongliu. The swords all around him shot forth in an instant.


    Furthermore, all divine arms that emerged from him seemed to be even sharper than true divine weapons. The divine arms all glittered with brilliant light as they resonated with their surroundings, making them able to bring down everything they struck.


    No one was allowed to stand in his way on that day.


    It was all the same, even if the one were to be Gu Dongliu.

 1446 Not Going Home until Making It into the Celestial Gate

    The storm of divine arms rained down in a flurry. The speeds at which the countless weapons traveled were extreme.


    The divine swords before Wang Yanbing thrust forward as well. The will of Bing tore through space, looking even more terrifying than true divine weapons.


    That sharpness enabled all who were far away to sense the will of the divine arms.


    Gu Dongliu remained standing where he was and looked down on the figure below. He did not move, and the celestial light of the Nine Symbols circled all around him. A dazzling celestial figure appeared behind him all of a sudden. He took one step forward, which caused huge Golden Rocs to shot forward howling. They flew while covered in divine golden light, and their wings shrouded the skies when spread, enveloping all of the divine arms into it.


    The divine arms and the Roc clashed intensely, and the crowd shockingly found that the Rocs seemed to have been something that were summoned instead of conjured. They were true divine birds instead of illusory constructs. Their huge bodies had countless symbols of "Bing" glittering on them, causing them to contain a power that could have razed everything before them, and they had indeed stopped those incoming divine arms.


    "He just summoned divine birds?" The crowd watched Gu Dongliu and was reminded of the lineage that Gu Dongliu inherited. He had the luck of all of the Origin Mountains on him.


    However, that formidable display of power did not affect Wang Yanbing''s resolve. Every single step that he had taken caused more divine arms to appear in different directions, shrouding the sky as they moved.


    It took mere moments to make it seem as if the area where Gu Dongliu was was about to be drowned in divine arms. The Rocs that were covering him were all shuddering, and cracks were seen on them.


    "Wang Yanbing has been using the way of "Bing" to the very extreme. That attack was simply too powerful. If it had been other Holiness of Nirvanas, they probably wouldn''t have been able to withstand such formidable attacks." The hearts of all who watched the battle trembled. The attack from every single divine arm made them feel that it was the extreme of saintly methods at work in every instant. The power of that many divine arms raining down on someone was utterly terrifying.


    Wang Yanbing''s plane might not have reached the very extreme of sainthood, but his attacks had definitely brought such powers to bear.


    The mystical ways that the Wang Clan practiced were emphasized on "Bing," which was inherently leaning towards attacks, and those methods were known to be invincible in offensive powers.


    Wang Yanbing looked up at the glittering divine birds. He took another step, and divine arms rained down again. Cracking noises were heard as if a tear was being opened. Those birds then all had cracks all over them, and the rune of Bing began to crack as well.


    Boom! A rumbling was heard, and the runes were destroyed. The divine birds were no more.


    Those killing divine arms seemed to be out to bury the opposing mystical ways.


    Boom.


    In the very next moment, however, Gu Dongliu took another step below, seemingly suppressed that rampaging will of sharpness. Huge demonic beasts charged forward. There were true dragons, black turtles, qilin, and kui emerging.


    Every single of those vast beasts seemed to have been imbued with his will. The runes of the Nine Symbols circled about and crushed all those incoming divine arms, breaking them into pieces.


    That battle was very eerie. It seemed that both combatants were taking strolls in a garden instead.


    What was different, however, was that Wang Yanbing was walking up, as he wanted to enter the Celestial Gate.


    Gu Dongliu, on the other hand, walked down the steps, getting in the way of Wang Yanbing, who wanted to get to the Celestial Gate.


    However, the strides that the two were taking were enough to have the crowd hold their breaths. Every single step they took was perilous, as they were imbued with extremely formidable attacks.


    Both walked towards each other, one step after another. The rampaging auras howled in the chaotic space. It was as if it was a statement saying that Wang Yanbing had no hope of getting past, regardless of how powerful his attacks would have been.


    "The will of Bing on him became increasingly powerful." Someone discovered as he continued walking above. Divine arms continued to shoot at his opponent, while his body grew increasingly sharp. The will of Bing continued to climb as if it was about to reach a critical point.


    "Is he charging up?"


    The crowd came to a possible conclusion, and their minds rattled. The possibility of that happening was indeed high. Wang Yanbing was a genius who had practiced the Art of Yanbing to extreme heights after all.


    That rampaging, boundless way of Bing was indeed a sign of Wang Yanbing charging up.


    At present, those attacks were not only all around Gu Dongliu''s body. Everywhere around the two of them, there were storms of divine arms of unparalleled force.


    Wang Yanbing stepped out again. He looked up at Gu Dongliu and said with an extremely pointed voice, "I''m getting into the Celestial Gate. Despite having acquired pinnacle lineage, you still are not going to get in my way."


    "You are not getting into the Celestial Gate." Gu Dongliu''s voice appeared calm instead. He uttered only one line.


    "That so?" Wang Yanbing replied. He finally stopped and did not move upward any further. He simply looked at the storms in the air, and holy celestial light coursed all about him, making him look incredibly glittering.


    He performed seals, and celestial light covered him all over. He then uttered a line with a solemn voice.


    "At the pinnacle of Yanbing, all laws shall return to a single entity, and I shall be a divine arm."


    His voice was heard, and all the towering storms of divine arms surged into his body right away. Tens of thousands of divine arms gathered into and melded with his body.


    In that very instant, Wang Yanbing had become the king of weapons, and he was the leader of all tens of thousands of weapons in him.


    An extremely sharp aura burst from Wang Yanbing. The clouds in the sky howled as if there was only the way of Bing throughout the vast area.


    At that moment, Wang Yanbing looked extremely dangerous, as he became a manifestation of tens of thousands of weapons in one entity.


    "That''s how it is, after all," many muttered to themselves. It was as speculated by the crowd��Wang Yanbing''s Art of Yanbing had indeed reached such a level.


    An intense beam of light was seen, and the crowd saw Wang Yanbing''s body disappear from where he stood, turning into a beam of light and a sword.


    He did not continue to walk upward; he had instead zipped past the space in an instant, shooting at Gu Dongliu.


    The crowd did not see where Wang Yanbing''s body was again. They simply saw a sword, and he was that sword. He shot into the air as a sword, and an intense aura of sharpness of the sword permeated the air. The weapon was already at its destination before anyone was able to say a word, punching from the body of a demonic beast. One summoned demonic beast after another was reduced to nothing as the blade continued to travel through them. All of them were punched through by just a single attack from the weapon.


    That straight beam of the sword seemed to about to punch through Gu Dongliu''s body right away. It was simply too quick for even the eyes of the spectators to follow.


    Boom. A rumble was heard, and it was only then that the crowd was able to see that sword clearly. It was being stopped by a single being. That was a glittering celestial shadow, which looked as if it was conjured out of Gu Dongliu''s being. That body glittering in celestial light was dazzling, resonating with their surroundings. The Nine Symbols circled all about him. Countless shadows of huge beasts roared at the same time a punch was thrown.


    The punch of Yi blasted onto the sword, stopping that sword that was out to kill everything.


    The sword rang as it stood against that mystical shadow. Shadows of huge demonic beasts were being torn apart one after another.


    Voom. The sword disappeared in an instant, zipping past in the air and appearing in yet another direction, lunging at Gu Dongliu once again.


    Gu Dongliu lifted his head and took a look. That mystical figure seemed to have been able to teleport. It stood right before the sword yet again, throwing a terrifying punch of the great path.


    The space all around them trembled. That sword howled in a frenzy and came from different directions one after another. Yet, the celestial shadow followed wherever the sword appeared as if it had completely locked on to it, chasing it everywhere it went.


    Boom. A rumble was heard, and the sword was thrown behind, hanging in the air. A figure glimmered��it was none other than Wang Yanbing himself.


    His eyes looked extremely pointed. The sword continued to tremble as if his mind was shuddering.


    He wondered how a sword attack like that remained incapable of breaking the mystical defense before him.


    The mighty ones of the Wang Clan all sported glum expression at that scene, as it was obvious that the defense remained unbroken.


    Wang Yanbing had transformed into a sword, yet he still was unable to force Gu Dongliu to back off.


    "You shouldn''t have picked a time like this to do so," Gu Dongliu said to the sword hanging in the air.


    The Wang Clan had been waiting and working hard for a millennium just to rejoin the Celestial Gate.


    Yet, Gu Dongliu just happened to return, shouldering the wills of both Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan. It was impossible and impermissible for him to lose. If he were to lose, then all Gu Tianxing had done would be for nothing.


    All of that had significant weight behind.


    As such, it was destined that Wang Yanbing remain unable to enter the Celestial Gate still.


    The millennium-long wait had eventually ended up being for nothing.


    "I will definitely get to the Celestial Gate." A voice was heard from the sword, which reverberated throughout the air, signifying Wang Yanbing''s resolve. Despite the odds at the moment, his resolve remained adamant��he would definitely get to the Celestial Gate.


    Gu Dongliu did not say anything else. Boundless celestial light rained down, and that celestial shadow returned, shining dazzlingly like a god clad in armor.


    Gu Dongliu''s Life Spirit glittered as it appeared right behind him, which was a matrix diagram.


    The diagram consumed the celestial light and continued to grow in size. The great path of their surroundings howled, and all was consumed by that matrix, infused within the diagram.


    It took just several brief moments before the matrix stood tall in the air, and Gu Dongliu''s body gradually hovered.


    "The Juexian Diagram."


    The mighty ones from the Wang Clan were all ashen when they saw that Life Spirit emerge. Their hearts were bleeding at the scene.


    The humiliation that they had been enduring for 1,000 years remained incapable of being scrubbed away.


    The hope that they held onto for 1,000 years was about to be torn apart.


    None of them anticipated Gu Dongliu to have gained the Juexian Diagram.


    That Juexian Diagram had been renowned throughout the world all those years ago, and there was no one who did not know about it.


    When the Juexian Diagram emerges, all laws shall perish, and all life shall wither.


    Gu Tianxing was a man who was at the brink of death, and all of them wondered how he managed to pass the Juexian Diagram down to Gu Dongliu.


    They wondered if Gu Tianxing was able to still peer into the secrets of the heavenly path, enabling him to lay all that back in the Origin Mountains.


    Countless people below were seen sporting solemn expressions. They seemed to have seen another Gu Tianxing.


    It was more than just a diagram spinning as it worked in the air. There were celestial and demonic shadows on the diagram. Regardless of their origins, all of them sported immense, terrifying pressure.


    One boundlessly huge ancient symbol after another appeared on that huge celestial diagram, making it look like some divine matrix.


    At that moment, the symbol of "Bing" on the Juexian Diagram lit up. Divine arms in the thousands appeared from within the matrix, conjuring divine weapons out of the great path of their surroundings.


    "You shouldn''t have shown up," Gu Dongliu said as he looked at Wang Yanbing. The weapons rained down as he finished the line. The ancient symbol of "Bing" lit up with the brightest light, shining light in the air as if it was a manifestation of billions of divine arms at work.


    On the sword that Wang Yanbing transformed into, extremely formidable power burst. When the divine arms rained at it, the sword thrust forward instead of retreating, zipping past the air and heading straight for Gu Dongliu.


    Boom, boom, boom...


    Terrifying offensive force rained down and blasted on the sword. However, the sword remained adamant and kept moving forward. But then again, the attacks from the divine arms were unceasingly under the will of Bing. It did not matter how strong the attack of that one sword would have been.


    That divine sword that glittered brilliantly was thrown back in a rumble. Wang Yanbing''s body was seen in the air again. Blood was seen at the corner of his mouth, which apparently meant that he was injured.


    Wang Yanbing looked at Gu Dongliu in the air and felt completely helpless.


    The celestial beings and the demons howled below the Juexian Diagram.


    Wang Yanbing witnessed, on that day, the unmatched mystical ways that Gu Tianxing created at work��the work of a man known to be at the absolute pinnacle of the mystical ways. None could have surpassed his achievements.


    Wang Yanbing had transformed into a divine weapon himself, yet he remained helpless.


    He wondered if that was all there was to him.


    He questioned how it would have been possible for him to reach the very top if it truly turned out to be so.


    He wondered if he was even qualified to fight Gu Dongliu.


    Voom. His body charged in the air. Boundless, sharp aura of Bing surged into his body, glittering as he took the form of a broadsword, shrouding the air.


    The blade cleaved the sky at the very moment it was conjured, cutting through the air at Gu Dongliu.


    It seemed as if that blade was the only thing that was found all around them.


    Gu Dongliu took one look at it before lifting his arms and taking flight.


    Countless celestial shadows coalesced into a single entity in the form of a legendary figure. That celestial shadow closed its hands and clapped onto the blade. The light of the blade was immensely dazzling, intending to keep coming down, yet that celestial figure seemed to have absorbed the light of the divine matrix and remained unflinching.


    The hands turned, and the blade was rendered crooked, which was then flicked away and rang in high pitches in the air.


    Wang Yanbing was found within the blade, and his face was completely ashen. So this is how helpless I am? he thought.


    Those from the Wang Clan felt helpless at the scene as well.


    The clan leader of the Wang Clan sighed deep down. They had finally produced Wang Yanbing after years of preparation, yet the outcome remained disappointing.


    "Leave," Gu Dongliu said to Wang Yanbing.


    The blade was shuddering, seemingly wailing in sorrow.


    "Enough," the clan leader looked at the sky at muttered gently.


    The figure within the broadsword turned to look below. He saw the eyes of his clansmen��dimmed and sorrowful.


    All their wishes throughout the years had been for nothing.


    That was the resolve he clung onto growing up, which culminated into the Wang Yanbing that stood there on that day. Getting into the Celestial Gate was what fueled his training.


    At present, that resolve seemed to have come apart.


    He wondered if he should back away.


    Everything had been for naught. If he was incapable of beating Gu Dongliu on that day, it would be the same in the future. All of his efforts were for nothing in the end.


    At that moment, Wang Yanbing was reminded of the conversation he had with Ye Futian, questioning who would have eventually been at the very top of Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    At present, a mountain stood before him, and he wondered if he would remain unable to overcome it.


    He was determined not to go home if he were to not get into the Celestial Gate.


    Yet, at present, there was just no way he could have made good on his word.


    That figure in the air looked up and charged in an instant. The winds howled in the sky, and the will of the divine arms shrouded the air. The broadsword was turned into a sword again, which had a teardrop on it.


    The sword was weeping.


    "Wang Yanbing." The clan leader of the Wang Clan shouted at that scene and added, "Get back here."


    A terrifying aura burst, and he was about to interfere.


    "I''m not going home if I do not succeed." A solemn voice was heard throughout the air. At that very moment, the sword shattered.


    However, that shattered sword conjured thousands of divine swords in its stead, which were imbued with the great path of their surroundings.


    At that moment, countless swords were found in the air. It was as if there were countless Wang Yanbing all over the place.


    He was determined not to go home until he had gotten into the Celestial Gate.


    "Bing, dismantle."

 1447 Weapon, Shattered

    "Bing, dismantle!"


    Countless looked up in the air, and their minds shuddered. It was as if they had been hit by something.


    Wang Yanbing. Bing. Dismantle.


    That person was the number one below the Renhuang outside of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and he was of equal renown to the likes of Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun, yet he used that move just to get to the Celestial Gate.


    It was as if he was making good on his word.


    He would not go home until he had gotten to the Celestial Gate.


    However, many wondered just how he would have been able to go home even if he were to have entered the Celestial Gate using that move.


    They were thinking about metaphors like the mind being one''s home and such.


    And they wondered what would have happened with the body.


    No one knew that an unmatched, legendary genius like Wang Yanbing would have been forced to such extremes. That move was the ultimate killing move of the Art of Yanbing, making the user capable of being completely turned into a divine weapon, becoming a complete manifestation of the way of Bing, entering yet another level.


    However, the cost of doing so was his life.


    "Wang Yanbing!" the clan leader of the Wang Clan shouted angrily. He hoped that Wang Yanbing would have been able to hold a sword as he entered the Celestial Gate, yet he never thought Wang Yanbing would have had to resort to such a move to fight.


    Wang Yanbing was the only extraordinary cultivator produced over the generations, and everyone piled their hopes onto him, hoping that he would be able to help their clan return to the Celestial Gate. Even if the clan were to remain incapable of getting into the Celestial Gate, he would have been around, and he would have been capable of great achievements in the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future.


    He did not wish to see Wang Yanbing trade his life to have their clan rejoin the Celestial Gate. It was the Wang Clan''s wish to enter the Celestial Gate.


    But then again, Wang Yanbing was, too, hope for the clan.


    "Father, let him have his way for once," a middle-aged man held back the shuddering body of the clan leader and said calmly. The man looked at the storm of divine arms in the sky, and there were tears at the corner of his eyes, as that was his son.


    However, regardless of the outcome, he was a son he was proud of nonetheless.


    Wang Yanbing, son of the Wang Clan, and a legendary figure of his time.


    The mighty ones of the Wang Clan watched the scene in the air, and all of them looked heavy-hearted and solemn. Wang Yanbing, the pride of the Wang Clan, was about to die for the clan.


    The eyes of many were reddened, as even Renhuangs had emotions.


    Anybody with a heart was capable of shedding tears.


    That young man might have shouldered too much on him. The fate and glory of the entire clan was tied to a single man, after all.


    His childhood had been imperfect, as he had shouldered too much responsibility. His name��Yanbing��carried the mystical ways of the Wang Clan.


    His name was Wang Yanbing, after all.


    Many great figures of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, including those from the Jiang Clan and the Hua Clan, stood quietly. Their clothes billowed as they saw how Wang Yanbing used one such fatal move, sighing as they watched.


    Did he really have to go that far?


    Every clan had their own fate and destiny, and no one would have been able to ensure that their clan would stay high and mighty forever. Such was the course of history.


    Gu Tianxing brought the Gu Clan to the most glorious of times all those years ago, reaching the absolute pinnacle, but the clan ended with a grim end nonetheless. The Gu Clan was eradicated down to the last man, with Gu Dongliu being the sole survivor of the clan.


    One would have had to withstand pressure corresponding to the heights they were at. They stood at the pinnacle of the Celestial Gate, gaining a vista that no common man would have been able to see, yet they were walking on thin sheets of ice at the same time, shouldering pressures and responsibilities that no common man had to shoulder. They shouldered the rise and fall of their clan, as well as many other responsibilities.


    Taking Gu Dongliu back to the Celestial Gate was an act that carried great pressure on its own, so much so that the act could have brought war to their doorstep.


    Furthermore, there was no guarantee that Wang Yanbing would have been able to fulfill their clan''s wish just by pulling one such fatal move.


    He shouldered a lot of responsibilities, and it was the same with Gu Dongliu. However, unlike Wang Yanbing, it was the vengeance of the two of his predecessors that he shouldered, and he was the hope of the Gu Clan. Unlike the Wang Clan, he was the only man left in the Gu Clan.


    Wang Yanbing could not have afforded to lose, and Gu Dongliu felt this even more so.


    Neither of them could afford to lose.


    "Why, indeed?" Ye Futian sighed as well. He had once said that Wang Yanbing would not be present at the pinnacle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, yet he never expected that Wang Yanbing would have pulled such a move before they were even near fighting to be at the pinnacle of the realm.


    Ye Futian looked at the battlefield. His eyes were on his third brother. Even if that was the move Gu Dongliu was about to take, he definitely would not back down. He knew the significance of that battle for his third brother all too well.


    That was the very first battle he had to fight after inheriting Gu Tianxing''s lineage.


    If he were to lose that battle, then all Gu Tianxing had done, all that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had done, would be for nothing.


    Countless divine swords appeared in that vast space. Every single sword seemed to have contained Wang Yanbing''s will. He turned himself completely into a sword, completely merging with the great path.


    All those divine swords were him��Wang Yanbing.


    Gu Dongliu looked up in the sky, and he felt rather rattled. If it were to be usual times, he might have taken a step back, seeing how insistent Wang Yanbing was. At that moment, however, he was unable to afford to do so.


    Seeing how Wang Yanbing was determined to emerge victorious by any means necessary, it was all the more important for him to win that battle.


    Fate had a way of playing with people. It was indeed a pity that Wang Yanbing had picked the wrong time to do so. If he were to come earlier, shattering himself to fight might have made Jiang Taichu balk, as Jiang Taichu would not have been willing to throw his life away for the fight. He might have been able to send the Wang Clan into the Celestial gate.


    However, such was the time that he had chosen instead. Furthermore, he expressed doubts about the way Gu Tianxing and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven did things. All that cemented the fact that he was unable to afford to back down.


    Everyone had their own missions and stances, and Gu Dongliu''s mission was to keep Wang Yanbing at the steps. There was no other way around it.


    The Juexian Diagram spun, and all methods were activated. Gu Dongliu performed the hand seals, and the Nine Symbols glittered. Divine light shrouded the sky on the Juexian Diagram as if there were countless celestial shadows performing hand seals at the same time. Celestial beings and demons unleashed their powers at the same time, and chants of the great path were heard all over their surroundings, making the scene unbelievably grand.


    Voom. Billions of divine arms zipped past in the air, streaking down as they traveled.


    The ultimate weapon was deployed to bury the celestial being.


    Billions of divine arms rained down at the same time, making it a scene unlike any other. Yet, at the same time, hand seals throughout the air blasted in the air. A rumbling was heard throughout the sky. The great path quaked, and Renhuangs were seen unleashing their power, stopping aftershocks of their battle.


    The battlefield was unbelievably dazzling at that moment. All of those billions of divine arms were manifestations of Wang Yanbing. He was out to kill all the celestial beings and demons before him.


    One seal after another was broken and turned into nothing. However, as the ultimate divine matrix, the Juexian Diagram had yet to stop working. Their surroundings resonated with the Nine Symbols. The great path was in tune, the celestial beings and demons emerged, and the divine arms streaked the sky.


    Even if Wang Yanbing''s killing move had been able to create an eye of the storm in the air, it still would not have been enough to break the offensive power from Gu Dongliu''s Juexian Diagram.


    "Not even going that far had been of any use then?" Many sighed, and they were able to do nothing but sigh.


    Wang Yanbing gave everything into the fight, and still, it proved inadequate.


    Gu Dongliu''s combat prowess was simply unmatched.


    The billions of divine arms were eventually exhausted.


    When there was only one sword left in the air, the weapon seemed to be wailing in sorrow.


    That sword did not continue attacking. It had instead turned around and headed for the steps of the Celestial Gate, slowly moving upward.


    It was as if it wanted to take one last look at the Celestial Gate.


    Many sighed at the scene with the last, lonely sword. They actually felt sad about it.


    Gu Dongliu felt just as sad seeing what happened, yet celestial light rained down nonetheless, getting in the way of that sword and making it difficult for it to move forward.


    Fate had its way of toying with people, and Wang Yanbing was simply born at the wrong time.


    The crowd was astonished and speechless.


    "Wang Yanbing." The people of the Wang Clan felt sad and speechless as well.


    Everyone felt intense sorrow. Wang Yanbing was no longer in the Wang Clan.


    "Head back with me," the clan leader of the Wang Clan said to that lonely sword.


    Yet, at that moment, a figure stepped into the air. His eyes were terrifying. It was as if it had opened the eye of heaven, intending to peer into nothingness.


    Celestial light was at work, and Ye Futian said, looking at the sword, "Why indeed?"

 1448 Magnanimity

    "What is he doing?" A doubtful look was on everyone''s face after they saw what Ye Futian did.


    The people of the Wang Clan all stared at Ye Futian as well. There was no denying the fact that they had already lost. Wang Yanbing had not been able to shake Gu Dongliu even when he pulled such a costly move.


    That was the last sword left, and it wanted to take one last look before the Celestial, but Gu Dongliu stopped it.


    It was not done because Gu Dongliu was some uncaring, unfeeling monster, but that they all had their stances to take.


    Wang Yanbing had simply shown up at the wrong time.


    "Little brother," Gu Dongliu called after he saw Ye Futian showing up.


    "Leave him to me, third brother," Ye Futian said.


    "Will do." Gu Dongliu nodded and gave up his suppression on the sword. That scene astonished many. Those two would, in time, become pinnacle geniuses of Heavenly Mandate Realm. The two would have been able to stand a chance at getting to the top of the realm, and the two of them were brothers in training.


    The future of the brothers was something that invoked the imaginations of many.


    The sword remained incapable of moving forward. Ye Futian''s will shrouded the sword as he walked. He extended his hand, and it seemed that there celestial light enveloping the lone sword.


    "Mystical ways." The crowd fixed their gaze at Ye Futian. The people of Haotian City all knew that he had already acquired the lost Celestial Soul Attraction method from Fae Alley. The method had unpredictable powers, and few had been able to master it, even over 1,000 years ago.


    It had only resurfaced not long ago, and Ye Futian had gotten his hands on it.


    Wait, so he is already capable of entering Mystic Mode? people wondered.


    "It''s the Celestial Soul Attraction." The Wang Clan had once been one of the ruling clans of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, so they definitely knew about that lost mystical way method. The clan leader of Wang Clan stopped any from the mighty ones from the clan, wanting to see what Ye Futian would do.


    Celestial light dazzled all over Ye Futian, shrouding the place around him. One mirage after another emerged from different directions in the space they were in, and all of them gathered at the sword.


    Wang Yanbing''s body had already become very ethereal in the sword. It was as if he would disappear at any given moment. However, he seemed to have been fixed in place. Under the celestial light, it even seemed to take a solid form.


    A powerful aura of life was actually bursting within Ye Futian''s mystical way, which seemed to have jade green branches coiling around the sword form taken by Wang Yanbing, shrouding the weapon within.


    "It was said that Celestial Soul Attraction was capable of targeting the souls of people. Is he trying to reforge Wang Yanbing''s soul?" The crowd shuddered at the scene before them. Ye Futian was trying to save Wang Yanbing.


    Wang Yanbing, who had completely melded into his weapon form, would have almost died for sure, yet it seemed that Ye Futian had some mystical capabilities of reversing that.


    "The will of the great path of life, and it seems that he would be able to resculpt a body as well." The pupils of those top-notch figures contracted, as they kept a close eye on Ye Futian.


    It was said that Ye Futian had demonstrated very, very great abilities back in the Violet Heavenly Palace, and he claimed that he had been of a divine body capable of training in any method.


    He had demonstrated powers of many types of methods back in that battle, even that of death. At present, he was demonstrating the will of the great path of life, and many came to believe that Ye Futian was indeed capable of all methods. It seemed as if there was really no method beyond his comprehension.


    Ye Futian had also found that his World Tree''s powers became increasingly powerful as he progressed with his training, enabling him to shape his ways and comprehend all methods in existence.


    His Life Spirit grew alongside him as he trained.


    He had demonstrated many types of powers in that battle in the Violet Heavenly Palace, and that had been done to set up for the future. As an extreme genius capable of training in any method he chose, no one would have doubted him regardless of the type of methods he came to use, as he had truly been one such genius.


    Thus, it was completely normal for him to use the great path of life.


    Furthermore, the training in Celestial Soul Attraction enabled him to gain some mystical powers.


    If he were to have his current level of powers all those years ago, he would have even been able to save Jieyu. But then again, if he were to have his current level of powers back then, he would not have had experienced all that had transpired since.


    The sword rang, and the sword will was unleashed. That ethereal figure began to take solid form. Wang Yanbing''s body was seen in the air again, wrapped within the boundless will of the great path of life.


    "Oh, hell..." Many shuddered deep down at that scene, finding that Ye Futian was capable of bringing back the dead. He was dragging Wang Yanbing, who was at death''s door, back to the world of the living.


    It was something that not even Renhuangs had been capable of.


    Was this the power of Celestial Soul Attraction?


    They naturally had no idea of knowing that Celestial Soul Attraction was but a guide. The thing that truly saved Wang Yanbing was the latent powers in Ye Futian''s Life Spirit.


    Gu Dongliu watched all of that in silence. He held no enmity against Wang Yanbing. They only had to fight because they had their stances to maintain. He was relieved to see that his little brother was able to save Wang Yanbing.


    Wang Yanbing was a practitioner of the mystical ways, after all, and it would have been a pity if he died.


    Wang Yanbing opened his eyes after a while. His aura fluctuated and seemed somewhat unstable. His eyes were deep as he stared at Ye Futian, feeling rather puzzled and dazed.


    "Why are you doing this?" It was clear back then in the palace that he and Ye Futian did not see eye to eye, and Ye Futian had not exactly been kind to him as well.


    He was puzzled as to why Ye Futian wanted to save him.


    "This is nothing," Ye Futian replied nonchalantly. "Furthermore, while you and I don''t see eye to eye, you''re indeed a genius of Haotian City. Well, although you''re quite a distance away from where I am now, it would be a pity if you were to end up dead. Since you''ll never be my match in the fight for the great path anyway, saving you hardly affects me."


    "..."


    Everyone was baffled by what he said. Was he saving someone here?


    While it was true that Ye Futian saved Wang Yanbing, the former had slighted the latter right away. What the hell was, "you may be a genius, but you''re quite a distance from where I am"? And what the hell is "you''re no match for me anyway"?


    This guy sure is shameless, many thought.


    Wang Yanbing was silent after hearing what Ye Futian said. As someone who had been dead mere moments ago, he naturally would not have taken those words personally. Ye Futian seemed to be of such a personality, just like how he claimed to be the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path.


    He turned around to look at Gu Dongliu, before sighing and saying, "I lost."


    It was indeed a complete loss. He did say that he would not go home until he had gotten to the Celestial Gate, but even after he had shattered his weapon form, he was still incapable of getting there. There was simply no more words for him to say.


    "How many Gu Tianxings could there be in the world anyway? My third brother took the powers of shaping the heavens and the earth. It is completely normal for you to have lost." Ye Futian looked at him and continued, "You have gotten to the plane of Holiness of Nirvana fueled only by your obsession with the Celestial Gate, and I''d say you''ve limited yourself as well. Even though you failed to make it to the gate, since you do have the guts and intentions of getting to the top of the realm, you could actually establish your own Celestial Gate instead."


    Wang Yanbing was speechless. Although the words were sensible, Ye Futian was not him. If Ye Futian were in his shoes, the former would have had known just how obsessive one could be when fighting one such battle before.


    "While the Wang Clan has indeed failed in their challenge to the Celestial Gate, Wang Yanbing is indeed of unmatched talents. Would you like to be my student and study in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?" a voice said. Everyone turned their eyes and found the one talking to be the clan leader of the Jiang Clan.


    It was a critical time for the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The power of the Wang Clan aside, a genius like Wang Yanbing had great potential, and it would have been a pity if he were just to end up dead.


    It would have been better to have him train in the Celestial Gate instead.


    Wang Yanbing turned his eyes in that direction. He never considered such a possibility, as he has always had only one thought��rejoining the Celestial Gate with his clan in tow.


    The clan leader of the Wang Clan below looked up at that moment and said, "Wang Yanbing, you''ve given your all in today''s battle. There will be no regrets for you nor the Wang Clan. Go and train in the Celestial Gate instead."


    Wang Yanbing looked up after hearing what the clan leader said. He closed his eyes and breathed. When his eyes opened, he had put his past behind him. He then bowed in the Celestial Gate''s direction and said, "It would be my honor to train in the Celestial Gate. I, Wang Yanbing, hereby bow to you, my teacher."


    "Good." The clan leader of the Jiang Clan nodded. Such an outcome was indeed perfect in some ways.


    "Ye Futian." The clan leader of the Wang Clan then looked at Ye Futian at that moment.


    "How may I be of service?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Thank you." The clan leader of the Wang Clan then added, "From here on out, the Wang Clan will cease trying to rejoin the Celestial Gate and will remain behind in Haotian City to train. However, the mystical ways of the Wang Clan were not something that should have been limited only to descendants of the clan, and I think others should learn it. Ye Futian, would you like to learn the Art of Yanbing?"


    The crowd shuddered deep down upon hearing that. Ye Futian had already learned Celestial Soul Attraction, and at the moment, the Wang Clan actually intended to pass yet another mystical method to him.


    They were all astonished. Ye Futian was able to turn his enemy into his friend. His action of saving Wang Yanbing spoke volumes of his magnanimity.


    At the moment, the Wang Clan intended to open the doors of passing down the mystical ways and no longer limited it to their own descendants. That, too, spoke volumes of the clan leader''s magnanimity.

 1449 Visit from the Crown Prince

    Many turned their eyes at Ye Futian, waiting for his answer.


    That genius had beaten Zhan Yuan and gained the Celestial Soul Attraction method. Furthermore, he was already able to use it. He would not have been able to save Wang Yanbing otherwise.


    At the moment, he was only a nod away from getting himself yet another mystical way method.


    Such opportunities were indeed astonishing.


    Ye Futian then turned towards the mighty ones of the Wang Clan and replied with a smile, "I''m indeed honored by your magnanimity of being willing to pass the method to outsiders, elder. However, I''ve already trained in a mystical way. Speaking of attacks, I earned one from the Divine Elephants as well. I do not have too much need for offensive powers."


    Many people were baffled by what he just said.


    He refused.


    Every single method that was passed down by the ancestors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was extremely powerful. The Art of Yanbing would have absolutely been a major offensive art, and many would have killed for such an opportunity.


    Ye Futian was only a nod away for being able to learn it, yet he refused.


    This guy sure is confident, many thought.


    But then again, he was right. There was indeed little need, and it was not necessarily a good thing to learn too many offensive methods. Ye Futian acquired the demon emperor bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions before and had learned two of the most powerful techniques of the Divine Elephants. Those attacks would not have been inferior to the Art of Yanbing. As such, adding that method to his arsenal would not have been able to boost his combat prowess.


    However, just when everyone thought Ye Futian would have refused the offer completely, he was heard saying, "However, I do have someone I could recommend to you, senior. He would definitely be a very suitable candidate for learning the Art of Yanbing."


    "Wha..." The crowd looked at Ye Futian with a speechless expression, finding it absurd that he intended to pass the offer down to others.


    "Who would that be?" the clan leader of the Wang Clan asked.


    "A friend of mine by the name of Ye Wuchen. He gained the lineage of Sword Emperor of Hanzhou at Origin Mountains," Ye Futian continued. The clan leader was silent for a moment after hearing what Ye Futian said. The leader said, "If he is someone who was acknowledged by the Sword Emperor of Hanzhou, I''m naturally confident that he will be able to spread the mystical method. If that is the case, I shall pass the Art of Yanbing down to him."


    "Thank you, senior," Ye Futian said as he smiled and bowed. He turned to look at Ye Wuchen, who looked speechless.


    He was baffled that Ye Futian had him train in the mystical ways instead.


    Everyone felt speechless after seeing all that. While it was indeed true that Ye Futian was clever, he was nonetheless a man with a heart of gold. Any common man would have opted to pick up the method before anything else, and friends would have been the last thing they would have thought of.


    Furthermore, there was no stopping him from teaching said friend after mastering the method himself.


    However, Ye Futian opted not to do so, as he deemed it necessary to respect the wishes of the Wang Clan.


    No one would have expected that event of extreme importance to Haotian City would have ended in such a manner. While it was indeed quite regretful, it was perfect in some other ways.


    It would have been very regretful otherwise, be it to be in the case of Gu Dongliu losing, or Wang Yanbing dying.


    If Gu Dongliu were to lose the fight, everything Gu Tianxing had done would have been for nothing, and what the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had done would have been pointless as well.


    At present, Gu Dongliu showcased his impressive capabilities for the very first time. Despite having lost, Wang Yanbing''s insistence of not returning home unless he succeeded had impressed many as well.


    Despite having lost the fight, he remained able to stand proud, and there was no need for him to bow. No one would have blamed him for losing.


    While the concept of honored though defeated had usually been little more than consolation to the loser, it truly was so in Wang Yanbing''s case on that day.


    The mighty ones of the Wang Clan excused themselves and left. Ye Futian promised to pay them a visit with Ye Wuchen some other day. The Wang Clan had been willing to pass down their method to an outsider, after all, so he saw fit to go through with the necessary propriety.


    Wang Yanbing was left behind, as he was about to be admitted to the Celestial Gate.


    Ye Futian, the Sword Saint, and the others came to Gu Dongliu''s side.


    "Big brother," Gu Dongliu called with a smile.


    The Sword Saint flashed a smile as well. When Gu Dongliu was taken by the Purple Underground in the past, all of them felt helpless about their predicament. What happened since then seemed like a dream.


    They never expected Gu Dongliu to have been a descendant of Gu Tianxing, a pinnacle figure who had been lauded to be one found in thousands of years in Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Mingyue would be very happy to know this," the Sword Saint smiled and said.


    "Indeed. If the second sister were to be able to see this, our third brother''s status in the family would be considerably heightened," Ye Futian smiled and added.


    Gu Dongliu turned to look at Ye Futian and asked, "Don''t you think your third brother here is of quite a high status in the family already?"


    "High, very high indeed," Ye Futian answered, trying to stifle his laughter.


    While it was indeed true that his third brother had become a legendary figure, if there was one person that he definitely was unable to beat, it would have been his second sister.


    His second sister was a woman who stuck by her words and decisions back in the cottage all those years ago, after all.


    The Sword Saint chuckled as well. The cottage had eight students, and there were only three of them in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Furthermore, they had been able to advance due to Ye Futian being someone inherently special. The Sword Saint had actually been able to meet the mysterious figure due to Ye Futian, after all.


    As for Gu Dongliu, nobody had expected him to have had such an extraordinary background. It was unknown what kind of path they would take in the future.


    That mysterious figure claimed that he was but a witness of history, and the Sword Saint wondered what he would have witnessed.


    Only time would tell.


    "Care to pay the Celestial Gate a visit?" The clan leader of the Jiang Clan extended an invitation to Ye Futian before adding, "Would the ones from Brahma''s Pure Sky mind joining us?"


    "Thank you for the offer, but I need to head back to the palace to train," Qin He said as she bowed slightly. She was perceptive enough to tell that both the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wished to gain an ally in Brahma''s Pure Sky. Yet, at such critical times, it was indeed inappropriate for her to make clear of Brahma''s Pure Sky''s stance.


    "Very well." The clan leader of the Jiang Clan nodded slightly. Qin He then smiled and said to Ye Futian, "I shall return to the palace."


    She then smiled and left, causing everyone to wear a weird expression.


    The clan leader of the Jiang Clan then said, "Goddess Qin He really is a rare and good match for you here in Heavenly Mandate Realm. Tianxing had hoped that you would be able to marry a goddess from Brahma''s Pure Sky. I''d be happy to do the matchmaking if you''re willing."


    "I''m married," Gu Dongliu then said.


    The clan leader of the Jiang Clan took one look at Gu Dongliu and said nothing else. He deemed that his wife must have been training in the Lower Worlds. Gu Dongliu did not know of his status prior, but from how things were at the moment, his love in the past might not have been a good match for him.


    But then again, the clan leader saw it fit to leave Gu Dongliu as he was instead of interfering with anything. Despite what Gu Tianxing said before, it was absurd just to do everything as he wished.


    "The way I see it, Qin He might be interested in your little brother here," the clan leader then smiled and said. The relationship between Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian was such that if Ye Futian were to end up together with Qin He, it would have been all the same to him.


    "You know how to jest, senior." Ye Futian wore a bitter smile on his face while shaking his head. Although Qin He was extraordinary, he never had such intentions himself.


    The clan leader then smiled and said, "Both of you, take your time."


    He then left the place.


    Ye Futian, the Sword Saint, and the others did not stay for long in the Celestial Gate. They chatted briefly with Gu Dongliu before leaving.


    The commotion was settled, yet Haotian City remained extremely rowdy. Mighty ones from all corners gathered in the city.


    It was said that the ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace were on their way. There were even many mighty ones who came early.


    Ye Futian remained training quietly in the palace as he had always done. He had also paid a visit to the Wang Clan and sent Wuchen to train in mystical ways with them.


    Quite a bit of time passed after that.


    A group of mighty ones came to Haotian City on that day, and their presence caused quite a commotion.


    The one who took the lead was none other than the crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The mighty ones from the dynasty did not head to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven right away but had chosen to stay behind in Haotian City for a bit instead, seemingly waiting to meet up with the other mighty ones. The ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace had yet to arrive.


    On the second day of the crown prince''s arrival, he took the mighty ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and moved, heading towards the palace where Qin He was.


    At present, there were many in Haotian City talking about Qin He and Ye Futian being very close, and they wondered if Brahma''s Pure Sky would eventually ally with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    If Qin He and Ye Futian were to end up as a couple, the chances of that happening would be high.


    No one would have thought about anything like that before, but as honors continued to pile on Ye Futian, and he had such a close relationship with Qin He, which none from the Brahma''s Pure Sky interfered with, everyone began to speculate and thought that it would be possible indeed.


    If the number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky were to end up becoming a couple with Ye Futian, then Brahma''s Pure Sky would definitely end up closer with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, since Gu Dongliu was Ye Futian''s elder brother in training.


    If that were to happen, both the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace would be put on the defensive.


    However, there was nothing they could have done about Ye Futian, as he had the backing of the Divine Elephants. If they were to act against Ye Futian, that would have been tantamount to declaring war against the Divine Elephants.


    A group of people was seen descending from the sky right outside the palace of Brahma''s Pure Sky on that day. The leading figure glittered all over and looked legendary.


    "The crown prince of Heavenly Mandate Realm would like to pay a visit to Goddess Qin He," a voice said, reverberating throughout the palace.

 1450 Reminder

    The crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty got to the palace and paid a visit to Qin He, the number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    People gushed out from the palace at the very moment that voice was heard. The virgins all had serious expressions on them after going outside the palace. It was obvious that they were taking that particular visit more seriously than Wang Yanbing''s.


    The one who came that time was the crown prince of the dynasty, who was of unmatched status in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The Heavenly Mandate Realm reigned supreme throughout the realm for many years. Despite having been weakened, they stood at the very pinnacle of the realm. It was a dynasty that oversaw many dynastic forces, possessing immense history and wealth. It was difficult to imagine just how powerful the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been when Gu Tianxing went against them all those years ago. Bodies littered the fields from that battle, staining the entire dynasty red.


    Some said that half of the Renhuang who participated in that war were killed by Gu Tianxing alone, and that was just how destructive someone at the pinnacle could have been.


    Qin He was seen outside the palace as well. Some by her side said, "Welcome, Crown Prince."


    The mighty ones of the dynasty stepped onto the steps of the palace and arrived right outside the palace. The Crown Prince was able to hog all attention just by standing around as if there was a halo around him. That aura alone was something that many would not have been able to achieve.


    "We have met back at the Violet Heavenly Palace, Goddess, yet we have never spoken. I''ve come to pay a visit after knowing that you have arrived at Haotian City," the Crown Prince said, rescinding his sharp aura somewhat, appearing polite and gentlemanly.


    "Our place has indeed graced by your presence, crown prince." Qin He continued, "I hope you do not mind our humble abode. Please have a seat."


    The people all around the crown prince frowned somewhat, wondering if Qin He had simply intended to host their guest just outside the palace.


    They heard that Wang Yanbing had paid a visit before, but there was no way Wang Yanbing could have been compared to the crown prince.


    From the standpoint of status alone, despite being a clansman of the Wang Clan of Haotian City, Wang Yanbing''s status had apparently paled in comparison to the number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky. Qin He was giving Wang Yanbing face, and so, it was entirely natural to do everything outside the palace.


    But this time, it was the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty they were talking about. There was only one such being in all of the realms, and not even Qin He��a number one virgin��would have had a status as unshakable as that of the crown prince.


    "Do you intend to receive the prince just outside the palace, Goddess?" someone from the dynasty behind the Crown Prince asked, sounding rather displeased. Wang Yanbing''s people were unqualified to be displeased, but not them.


    If that was truly Qin He''s intentions, then her attitude may have been a little too much.


    Qin He looked at the one who talked and then said to the Prince, "The palace is a place where the woman of Brahma''s Pure Sky train. I beg your forgiveness, Crown Prince."


    "Wouldn''t that be a little pretentious of you, Goddess? To my knowledge, there would also be quite a number of men inside the palace," that man from the dynasty continued. Ye Futian had been one of those men who stayed in the palace with a goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky right from the start.


    It would have been alright if Qin He worded it in other ways. Making such an excuse was deemed a deliberate slight to them.


    If Ye Futian and his people were able to stay in the palace, they saw no reason to do all the reception of the crown prince outside the place.


    "Do you think I owe you an explanation or anything like that?" Qin He''s tone turned rather cold all of a sudden as she talked to the one who spoke before. Her words seemed as if they were coated in a faint aura of coldness.


    It was absurd that she had to seek the permission of people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, regarding who she was to allow to step inside.


    The pupils of that mighty one from Heavenly Mandate Dynasty contracted slightly, looking rather glum.


    He wondered if it was indeed as rumored elsewhere that Qin He, the number one virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky, was interested in Ye Futian.


    However, the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was a legendary figure unlike any other, but Qin He never bothered taking even another look at him. He wondered what made her interested in Ye Futian instead.


    That man from Heavenly Mandate Dynasty intended to continue before seeing the Crown Prince waving and stopping him. The Crown Prince then said, "You people are too much. Apologize to the Goddess at once."


    Those from the dynasty were rather puzzled, but they nonetheless cupped their hands and said to Qin He after seeing the eyes of the Crown Prince. "We have overstepped our boundaries. We ask for your forgiveness, Goddess."


    "No matter. I do hope that you do not mind, Crown Prince." Qin He rescinded that coldness about her.


    Everyone took their seats, and the ones from Brahma''s Pure Sky looked at the Crown Prince. They found that the Crown Prince looked rather different from before. Back at the Violet Heavenly Palace, he had behaved in an extremely arrogant manner. At present, however, he seemed rather humble.


    "May I know what brought you here, Crown Prince?" Qin He asked.


    "While I do not venture out into the world much, I have heard about how renowned the goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky are. The Empress'' will reaches all over the 3,000 realms. She trained all over the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Her powers remain unmatched. She is lauded to be the number one figure among the women throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm. My father claims as well that no woman throughout the realm is able to compare to the Empress. Right now, I see that you are capable as the Empress had been at your age, and you are known to be the one to follow the Empress. As such, I''ve always wanted to pay a visit to Brahma''s Pure Sky, and it was quite a pity that my status got in the way. Now that the opportunity to do so presents itself, I naturally needed to pay a visit."


    The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Realm appeared extremely polite and showered praises as he elaborated.


    "You''re too kind, Crown Prince. I dare not compare myself to Her Majesty," Qin He replied with a smile. The Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky was an epochal figure who established a pinnacle force all on her own. She had been known as the number one beauty when she was young and had many pursuers. Even at present, her appearance remained at the peak, yet none dared to act on their wishes with her, for they found it sacrilegious to do so.


    The Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was able to sense the distance from her words. He then smiled and added, "I know what my father said put you rather on guard, Goddess. But rest assured, I have little interest in forming any marriage alliance. While I do admire you, Goddess, I would never link my sentiments with the interest of my family. If you find me pestering you, I will naturally keep my hands to myself. My visit here today is but to make friends with you, and I have no other intentions."


    "Thank you, Your Highness." Qin He nodded. She was indeed finding the marriage alliance to be rather off-putting, just like how she had found Ye Futian off-putting in the beginning. The upper echelons of Brahma''s Pure Sky should not have told her to do something like that, and she was still puzzled as to why she was told to do what she did.


    However, as she had gotten to know Ye Futian better, she no longer held any enmity against him. It was an order from Brahma''s Pure Sky, and it had nothing to do with him in the first place. Furthermore, she found that man to be rather intriguing. He was always capable of pulling surprises.


    "I heard that you have a rather amicable relationship with Ye Futian. May I know what do you think of him?" the Crown Prince asked.


    Qin He was on guard by then. The Crown Prince had just said that he had no intention of offending her, yet he steered the direction of the conversation to Ye Futian. She was puzzled as to what was going on in his mind.


    "Sir Ye is a genius like no other. I believed you witnessed this yourself in that battle back in the Violet Heavenly Palace, and how he managed to awaken that turtle in Faw Alley, who had not been moved a muscle in 1,000 years in Haotian City, subsequently gaining the lineage of the mystical way. Other than having no direct background of any kind, everything about him is extraordinary." Qin He showered the man with praise, hardly paying any attention to what the Crown Prince thought.


    What she said had little to do with stance, and it was pure appraisal based on cold, hard facts.


    "You''re quite reserved with what you say. In truth, he showed what he was capable of back in the Origin Mountains. He had acquired the lineage of the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Ten Directions and picked up ultimate moves from the Divine Elephants, all of which culminated into his surprisingly extraordinary performance in the Violet Heavenly Palace. He indeed is a genius like none other." He then nodded and continued, "It is no surprise that you think so highly of him, Goddess.


    "It is rumored everywhere that you are interested in him. I wonder if that is true."


    Qin He locked her eyes on the Crown Prince, who then added, "Rest assured, Goddess, I bear no ill intentions."


    "I''m just good friends with Sir Ye," Qin He replied.


    The Crown Prince nodded, then smiled, saying, "If you eventually become a couple with Ye Futian, that would indeed be pleasant news. In truth, I wouldn''t mind making friends with Ye Futian. However, due to certain relations between us all, I''m afraid he might not be willing to do so. Regardless, I hope this is how everything is, and nothing else will be brought into these matters. I believe the Divine Elephants wouldn''t mind, as well as those of Brahma''s Pure Sky."


    It became apparent that he was saying that he did not mind Qin He being friends with Ye Futian, so long as none of the matters with the forces throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm were brought into the fold, such as hoping that despite Qin He being good friends with Ye Futian, Brahma''s Pure Sky would not side with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    "It''s not like I have any say in any of those matters anyway," Qin He replied with a smile. The Crown Prince was right; however, given the gravity of the matter, it was definitely up to the Empress to decide, and she would have had no say in those matters.


    "I''m indeed honored that you show such concern, Your Highness." A voice was heard at that moment. Ye Futian and his people were seen walking out of the palace at that moment, looking at the Crown Prince, who was sitting there.


    "But, as you''ve put it yourself, it is destined that we can never become friends," Ye Futian continued. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was a sworn enemy of his third brother, and there was no possible reconciliation between them. The crown prince of the dynasty was destined to be someone who had to fight his third brother sooner or later. Some matters were already decided right from the start.


    "Even if we were are unable to become friends, I do still hope that we don''t become enemies," the Crown Prince said as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "That is something I''m unable to guarantee, Your Highness," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "I''m aware." The Crown Prince nodded. "I don''t wish to see us become enemies, but then again, I don''t mind making another enemy. Ye Futian, you''ve acquired the lineage of a Divine Elephant Emperor, so I definitely won''t act against you on my own will. However, I do believe that the Divine Elephants won''t make their stance clear in the matter for you alone. As such, I do hope that you don''t drag other forces into it for your own interests."


    "Thank you for your concern, indeed, Your Highness," Ye Futian continued.


    The Crown Prince smiled and added, "The power of one man is eventually limited. More so, given that the power of said man is only a saint level. While I do acknowledge that you have superb talent, I do still think that you still fall short of what is required to stand at the pinnacle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    "You''re prideful, indeed, Crown Prince." Ye Futian then continued, "Well, what about your powers all on your own, by the way?"


    "Me?" The Crown Prince then replied, smiling, "I, of course, won''t be alone."


    The two behind him glittered with saintly light as soon as he finished. The will of the great path all around them resonated with them instantly, unleashing extremely powerful pressure.


    "They are all geniuses under the rule of the dynasties reigned by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. There are also princes of the dynasties, who fill every single plane of sainthood. Care to try them out for yourself?" The Crown Prince then added, "But then again, given your powers, they definitely won''t be taking you on in a one-on-one manner."


    Qin He looked at the ones behind the Crown Prince, sensing extremely powerful pressure from them.


    All of them had probably been geniuses fostered in the same batch, specifically for aiding and supporting the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.

 1451 Sworn Enemy

    Ye Futian looked at the Crown Prince''s eyes, which were filled with pride and confidence. It felt rather provocative as well.


    A figure stepped out from behind him before he was able to say anything. That man stepped on the ground outside the palace, shaking the place. It was as if a tower-like figure had emerged. Other than Yu Sheng, there were no others like that.


    Letting Ye Futian challenge the underlings of that Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?


    That would have been a disgrace to him.


    Formidable pressure swept out at the ones from the Dynasty.


    The Crown Prince looked up slightly at that vast, tall figure. He then rose and said, "Yu Sheng performed just as admirably back at that battle in the Violet Heavenly Palace. Ye Futian once claimed that he was of unparalleled strength. In that case, it would be unwise to take him on alone. Coincidentally, I do have several Saints of True Self who serve me."


    He then took a step back and turned around, before walking out again.


    Many from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did as he did. It was as if his movements themselves were absolute orders.


    After those people stepped out, the ones who remained where they stood before looked exceptionally obvious. Their aura burst, and all of them, without exception, were cultivators at the Saint of True Self level.


    Furthermore, when they burst with their aura, all of them actually resonated with one another. The great path became linked into one entity around them, conjuring a terrifying storm of the great path.


    Screens of the great path burst form them, and it seemed as if there were dazzling holy light glittering beneath their feet, which melded into a single entity. At that moment, Ye Futian and the others seemed to be seeing illusions. They saw a single complete entity instead of a group of people.


    Boom... A storm of the great path whipped out right outside the palace all of a sudden, sweeping out like a great wave bashing on everyone''s bodies. The people of Brahma''s Pure Sky retreated one after another, making space for the upcoming battle. However, Ye Futian''s group stood their ground and let the storm hit them.


    Boom. Ye Sheng stepped on the ground hard. The air shook violently, and his body shot out like a raging wave, heading straight for those before him. Demonic might raged and circled around his arm. He then raised the arms and melded unmatched power into that one fist, which he launched straight before him. There seemed to be a devil howling in rage behind him. One could have imagined just how frightening that punch was.


    The space seemed to be about to break under the stress of that punch, yet those mighty ones before him did not retreat at all. They stood their ground steadily, merging with the great path with themselves. They then extended their hands and clapped at the same time. In that instant, there seemed to be a heavenly god-like figure appearing, which then launched a palm attack before them.


    Boom!


    The attacks from both sides clashed in an instant. The air burst with a stifled rumble. The raging winds swept all over their surroundings, causing Ye Futian''s clothes to billow.


    However, his eyes remained fixed forward. Yu Sheng slid back. That stout man was actually thrown back to where he stood before.


    At the same time, the group before him was thrown behind a single step as well. That extremely raging power swept their bodies, and it seemed as if the attack was quickly dissolved by their aura. The light on their bodies shimmered as they were a single, complete entity.


    That scene made Ye Futian''s pupils contract a little bit, as he stared at the scene before him. He was no doubt clear of just how ferocious Yu Sheng''s power was. Despite having done little than throw a punch, the attack was so powerful. Nobody in his plane would have been able to resist it, and superior numbers would have done little to compensate as well.


    However, the group before him was actually able to clash head-on with Yu Sheng as they collaborated, bringing the might of both sides to actually break even. Yu Sheng did not manage to gain the advantage at all.


    Furthermore, he felt that they had been very extraordinary when they attacked. It was as if there was no opening when they fought.


    "You do live up to your reputation of being unparalleled in terms of sheer strength indeed," The Crown Prince praised the stout man while having his back face Ye Futian''s group. He then added, "Before you get to the top, the power of one man will be limited eventually, and you won''t be able to change much of anything. Do not get involved in this haphazardly. The Goddess shall have my blessing whoever she wishes to be friends with, and I''m willing to be their friend as well. But, I do not hope any of that to be involved in the fight among the forces of the realm."


    He finished his line and then stepped forward.


    "When the Heavenly Mandate Realm conferred the title of Crown Prince all those years ago, the Crown Prince disappeared for years right after that. The Crown Prince only appeared before the eyes of the mighty ones of the realm as of late, but a genius would attract attention wherever they went, and it would have been impossible for them to conceal the radiance about them."


    Qin He then turned to look at the Crown Prince''s back and added, "Unless, you were not in Heavenly Mandate Realm throughout the whole time."


    There were 3,000 realms of the great path, and there were nine realms to the Supreme Path Realms.


    She deemed that it was extremely possible that the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been sent away at a very young age, and he had only returned as of late. As such, the Crown Prince had a history that was known to no one in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "You are indeed perceptive and smart, Goddess," the Crown Prince said while having his back turned against them.


    He did leave all those years ago.


    "Your talent would enable you to be a part of top-notch forces of other supreme realms without trouble, I take it." Qin He then continued, "I''ve heard of one thing before as well. It was said that before the Crown Prince disappeared, quite a number of people in Heavenly Mandate Dynasty disappeared as well."


    There were few who knew of something like that, but the top-notch forces of the realm took note of that nonetheless.


    There had been quite a number of people who speculated where the Crown Prince ended up, and they did their fair share of investigations into the matter as well.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky knew a thing or two about the matter, which was why Qin He was able to know something.


    From the current look of things, those people would have, as speculated by those forces, left with the crown prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The Crown Prince stopped his footsteps and did not say anything else. He simply added, "I shall pay you a visit again, Goddess. Please excuse me."


    He then took to the air and left.


    Gu Tianxing had almost ended up bringing a colossal end to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty all those years ago. Since then, the Dynasty began their reconstruction, and after he was made the Crown Prince, a group of the most extraordinary people was selected from the royal members of the Dynasty to be trained alongside him. A great amount of resources had been spent to foster a group of people of extraordinary caliber. Those people were then sent away with him.


    That matter had been overseen personally by the Dynastic Overlord, and only a handful of core members knew of those young people''s whereabouts.


    Among the inner circle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the plan was coined the "Heavenly Awakening."


    At present, members of the Heavenly Awakening had returned to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The members were the strongest group of people gathered among the dynasties ruled under the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty all those years ago.


    After those people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty left, Yu Sheng turned around to look at Ye Futian and said, "They are powerful."


    "I''m aware." Ye Futian nodded. He then frowned and said, "If they had only been strong individually, it would have still been impossible for them to stop that one punch of yours, but they were stronger at combining their ways, resonating with the great path and bringing a force that was far greater than the total sum of their power. It might have been the work of some immensely formidable secret method."


    Speaking of which, there had indeed been a group of people like that around the Crown Prince.


    Furthermore, he was able to speculate from what Qin He said that it was extremely possible that those people returned after training in other realms, thus merging training methods of other top-notch forces with the inherent powers of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, enabling them to bring greater powers to bear.


    "I''m afraid they are after the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven," Qin He turned her eyes to Ye Futian and said. Ye Futian nodded in response.


    At present, Gu Dongliu returned to the Celestial Gate in a very overwhelming manner, causing many forces to be on the move. Gu Dongliu''s potential was unparalleled after all, and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty intended to suppress such a situation.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky was thinking the same thing. At present, there were many forces that had gotten rather close to Ye Futian, which meant that the Crown Prince''s visit served as a reminder somewhat.


    That one-punch-clash above the palace did not escalate into a full-blown battle, so it did not cause too much of a commotion. Only some who saw it from afar claimed that mighty ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty clashed with Yu Sheng, and both sides seemed to be of equal power. Furthermore, the atmosphere where both sides were ready to get at each other''s throats was blatantly obvious.


    It seemed that it was inevitable that the Crown Prince and Ye Futian, both of whom were legendary figures, would stand against each other sooner or later.


    The mighty ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace arrived at Haotian City a day after the Crown Prince paid a visit to the palace. With top-notch people from both the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace getting to the city one after another, it seemed that dark clouds loomed above the city.


    It was obvious that both forces came for the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, intending to lean on them and force them to hand over Gu Dongliu.


    Both top-notch forces did not meet when they arrived; however, the very next day, they seemed to have departed at the same time as if they have made an agreement prior, heading in the same direction��the place where the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was.


    The people of Haotian City were all prepared. They were countless cultivators gathered below the Celestial Gate. Everyone had been waiting for that moment to come.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace made their declarations before, after all, and they were naturally compelled to make good on their word.


    Celestial mist shrouded the place above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, which exuded a mild pressure all over the place. It was as if they sensed the pressure coming from afar.


    The clan leader of the Jiang Clan opened his eyes above the Celestial Gate, looking far away. He then flashed and appeared before a cultivator.


    That cultivator opened his eyes and looked at the clan leader, who then said, "They''re here."


    "Indeed." Gu, Dongliu nodded. The clan leader then continued, "The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is quite a schemer. He sent the Crown Prince away all those years ago and said the Crown Prince would have definitely been of formidable power, more so that what was demonstrated by those from the Violet Heavenly Palace. He will be the most powerful enemy of yours among those of your generation in the realm. Despite having become a Holiness of Nirvana, your plane is ultimately one that is brought about by some machinations of destiny, instead of something forged through your own training. You still lack somewhat, and your plane needs fortification. As such, I hope that you''ll be able to stabilize your plane for a bit before you clash with the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty."


    "But then again, it seems like they have no intention of waiting," the clan leader then added. With the Crown Prince arriving personally, Gu Dongliu would have to fight whether he liked it or not.


    The upcoming battle would definitely be a lot more perilous than the one he fought with Wang Yanbing before.


    While Wang Yanbing was powerful and was trained in mystical ways, he eventually was just of the Wang Clan. It would have been very difficult to compare him to the favorite son of the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    "I understand." Gu Dongliu rose and cast his gaze far away. The strongest of his enemies in the Heavenly Mandate Realm also happened to be his sworn enemy.

 1452 Pressure

    Stifling pressure loomed from far away outside the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Countless looked up in the air outside the Celestial Gate, finding divine light sparkling above and lightning flashed about. It seemed to have overwhelmed the flighty celestial aura from the Celestial Gate. A terrifying aura was sensed, and it seemed to be something deliberate.


    Kabooomm!


    Flashes of lightning rained down from above, as if doomsday was near, flashing in all directions. There were lightning bolts hitting straight into the crowd below, causing the minds of many to rattle. Everyone seemed to have been able to sense that shocking might.


    Thunderclouds rolled and rumbled in the sky, seemingly having darkened the place all over.


    A group of people appeared high in the air before descending slowly, hovering midair as they looked at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven before them.


    In yet another direction, dazzling divine light sparkled above. It was as if a heavenly army have descended from the sky, moving alongside the mighty ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace. Towering might swept out at the Celestial Gate right away, shrouding the vast, seemingly endless area of the Celestial Gate.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky and found two leading figures whom he met before. There was the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord and the other as a general from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Both of them were known to be second-in-command figures in their own respective forces.


    "So, the overseeing Palace Lord and the Dynastic Overlord are not here yet?" A voice was heard from within the Celestial Gate far away. Both the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Dynastic Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been injured by Gu Tianxing back at the Origin Mountains, and it was unknown if they had recovered.


    "The Palace Lord sends his regards," the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord replied.


    "I''m indeed flattered," a cold response was heard.


    "Gu Tianxing of the Gu Clan of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven declared war in the realm all those years ago, causing many deaths. Many forces joined the Celestial Gate, and the Celestial Gate also agreed to cast the Gu Clan out. At present, the sole remnant, Gu Dongliu, remains alive. Why is the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven protecting him?" the Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord said. There seemed to be lightning of divine punishment flashing about as he spoke.


    "You all have had your fair share of blood on your hands in the slaughter all those years ago. With the feud of a generation being over, the matter should have been settled. Gu Tianxing sealed the training of his descendant so as to not to get said descendant involved in the scuffle. It was too bad that you people from the Violet Heavenly Palace refused to let the matter slide and brought him away. That was what set the remnant thoughts of Gu Tianxing into motion."


    The voice from within the Celestial Gate sounded calm and serene. It was as if it was out of that world.


    "Consider the matter settled?" The general from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s pupils took a fearsome glow. "Would the sole descendant of the Gu Clan be willing to end it all just like that? If we were to leave him to his own devices, he would have probably grown into yet another Gu Tianxing, and he might stain his hands with the blood of countless people."


    "Then, it seems like none of us will be able to convince the other." The voice from the Celestial Gate sounded somewhat more serious. "In that case, may I know what brings you all here today?"


    Pleasantries and small talk seemed to have no place in such a situation. All that was left was what to do next.


    "We''re here to advise you to take serious consideration of the gravity of the matter." The voice of that general sounded sharp as always, penetrating the space before him and making sure all from the Celestial Gate were able to hear him clearly.


    "There is no need for that. I''ve made up my mind. If you have no other business, then please return. I''m afraid our air will be ill-suited for all of you." A faint voice was heard, seemingly demanding the guests to leave.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven did not welcome those from the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and they had no intention of concealing their displeasure.


    After the clan leader of the Jiang Clan finished saying that, the air above seemed to have become more stifled. Devastating bolts of lightning continued to flash about. The boundless divine light was shot at the Celestial Gate. Those who stood outside were able to sense the heaviness in the air. It was as if a fight was about to break out at a moment''s notice.


    At that moment, among the people who came to see what was happening, there were also members of other top-notch forces of the realm present. Those who had participated in the grand feast back at the Violet Heavenly Palace seemed to have all gathered there. There were even great monsters from the demon realm present.


    Their eyes were fixed at the air, wanting to see what would happen next, and how that scuffle would end.


    They were all curious if the ones from those two top-notch forces would truly dare to attack the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    If they were to fight right there and then, it would have been a super battle, capable of shaking the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm. No one would know how many mighty ones would perish in such a battle.


    "We''re here, after all, and there is no way we will let the trip be for nothing. His majesty, the Dynastic Overlord, does not wish to declare war against the Celestial Gate, and we would be willing to let you consider the matter further in order to prevent a greater commotion." The general of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty then continued, "It is said that Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun are the strongest among the younger generations of the Celestial Gate. We have quite a number of our younger generations here as well. As such, we would like to have sparring matches with top geniuses of the Celestial Gate, and we would like to find out just how capable Gu Dongliu is. The Celestial Gate might consider changing its mind afterward."


    "We of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven have no intention of doing so." The voice of the clan leader of Jiang Clan was heard. He then continued, "But, of course, if the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty intends to find out what the members of our younger generation are capable of, I do not want to let you down. Other than Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun, we do have quite a number of capable people. I wonder if the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, or the one with the supreme body of the great path from the Violet Heavenly Palace, would be interested in having a go?"


    "There are many capable ones at the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty other than the Crown Prince, and we may not need him to fight personally," that general said plainly. He then waved, and nine mighty ones emerged. All nine of them glittered with divine light, and all of them were of superb bearing, vaguely having the will of Renhuang coursing through their bodies, hinting that they were all exceptional people.


    What was even more astonishing was that the aura of all nine of them seemed to be capable of melding into a single entity, conjuring a terrifying aura.


    Furthermore, they were surprisingly all of the same plane. All of them were Holiness of Nirvanas, and all of them possessed vastly formidable auras.


    "Here are nine of the members of the younger generations of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and they wish to see for themselves just how formidable the mystical ways are. The Celestial Gate is welcomed to deploy anyone to spar against them. Even Jiang Taichu and Gu Dongliu would be welcomed if they''re willing," the general said, causing everyone around him to look serious.


    None had expected those from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to claim to want the nine to challenge Jiang Taichu and Gu Dongliu.


    "I''ve heard that Yu Sheng fought with their people outside the palace of Brahma''s Pure Sky, no?" a mighty one of the Divine Elephants came to Ye Futian''s side and asked in a subdued voice.


    "Yeah. It was a group of nine back then as well. Nine people acting as one, resonating with the great path, bringing powers far beyond what nine people would be able to bring to bear. Furthermore, all nine of them had a terrifying aura, and all of them were Holiness of Nirvanas. Worse still, I feel that the nine here are far more powerful than the nine who fought Yu Sheng back then. The ones before us now are of the same plane with the Crown Prince of the dynasty, and I''m afraid they''re the most formidable sidekicks that the Crown Prince fostered," Ye Futian elaborated in a low voice.


    "Then it should be as you''ve speculated��every single top-notch one has a good number of people serving as aides throughout their growth. Gu Tianxing had many capable people serving him all those years ago. The 12 of the Celestial Gate posed a threat to the dynasty, and that general at the Dynastic Overlord''s side had been following and growing alongside the overlord throughout the years, eventually becoming the second-in-command today. If those people were to all be fostered for the sake of the Crown Prince, aiding him to reach the very top, then all nine of them would be very powerful."


    That mighty one from the Divine Elephants continued, "It is not just one of them being powerful, but every one of them is. If they are versed in synchronized tactics, that will make them all the more fearsome. It is possible that the Crown Prince spars with them often just to hone their powers."


    That mighty one was unable to help but recall those who were at Ye Futian''s side. Yu Sheng, who was known to be unparalleled in terms of raw strength, was about to join the Divine Elephants to train. Ye Wuchen had acquired the lineage of the Sword Emperor of Hanzhou and was sent to train in the Art of Yanbing in the Wang Clan as well. Other than those two, there were also several others.


    All of them would become the most powerful aides by Ye Futian''s side in the future.


    Ye Futian looked in the direction of the upcoming battlefield and looked rather serious. When Yu Sheng clashed with those from the dynasty back then, he was able to sense just how exceptional those people were. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had a long history behind them, and it was a coalition of many dynastic forces. The best of the best among those countless forces were selected to be fostered specifically, so much so that they were even sent outside Heavenly Mandate Realm to train. With so many resources being invested in them, there was no doubt that they were extremely powerful.


    As such, it seemed that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would have a hard time dealing with them.


    A group of people emerged from the Celestial Gate and stood on the steps. All of them wore sharp, severe expressions as they eyed the nine before them.


    Among them, there was Wang Yanbing, who had joined the ranks of the Celestial Gate not long ago. His eyes were extremely pointed as he gazed forward. Celestial light dazzled on his body. He willed, and a storm howled around him. Divine swords were conjured with celestial light shrouding them, making them look tremendously sharp.


    All of those divine weapons basked in celestial light before shooting out at the sky, heading straight for the nine before him in an instant.


    The nine from Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stepped out at the same time. It took only a single step, and terrifying golden screens appeared before them. The divine weapons blasted onto them and were all repelled, unable to punch through at all.


    The eyes of the nine were cold, and the one at the center sparkled with golden shimmer, thinking of just how one person was going to fight all nine of them.


    "Wang Yanbing of the Celestial Gate." The Crown Prince cast his gaze forward and said plainly, "He is in way over his head."


    The one at the center of the nine had little renown in the dynasty and was no way near being famous. Few knew who he was, yet he knew that if he were to step out and fight in that battle at the Violet Heavenly Palace, he would have been able to shoot to fame with just a single battle, just like Ye Futian.


    That person was considered to be in the Crown Prince''s shadow. He was most powerful among his subordinates. Wang Yanbing would have had a hard time just fighting that one man, let alone fighting all nine of the group.


    As such, the crown prince deemed that Wang Yanbing would be in way over his head if he chose to fight alone.


    All nine of them were fostered specifically to fight Gu Dongliu instead of Wang Yanbing, after all.


    Divine arms continued to rain from the air, blasting hard at that golden screens of light, placing the area in a lockdown yet unable to shake the defending ones.


    Wang Yanbing took one step out. Celestial light circled about him, and his entire being was turned into a nigh-indestructible divine weapon. Intense light burst, and he transformed into a sword, leading the charge with the thousands of divine arms behind him, enabling him to almost tear through space.


    The nine from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stepped out again. Solemn voices were heard all around them all of a sudden. That was the sound of the great path.


    The sounds had no form, and it reverberated throughout their surroundings, resonating with the great path in the sky. All nine of them pooled their powers and conjured fierce, formidable will, making it seem as if it was the might of the heavens about to break through the limit of Holiness of Nirvanas.


    "Wang Yanbing is about to lose," the very capable ones of the Divine Elephants muttered. That aura was indeed very powerful.


    Furthermore, it seemed that he heard of such powers before.


    A beam of divine light burst, making it seem like heavenly palm strikes shot forth. The crowd then saw Wang Yanbing''s divine weapon form be blast backward, causing the minds of countless to be rattled.

 1453 Fighting All Nine Alone

    Wang Yanbing was actually repelled with just a single hit.


    While it was true that Wang Yanbing lost to Gu Dongliu a while ago, that was because of the lineage that Gu Dongliu inherited, so it was completely normal for Wang Yanbing to lose despite using a sacrificial move. It was a showstopper before due to the crowd wanting to see just how capable Gu Dongliu would have been.


    As such, Wang Yanbing was the true number one genius studying in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    No one had anticipated him being unable to take that hit.


    Everyone wondered just how powerful that hit had been.


    Everyone in the crowd sensed the might of the great path in that instant earlier. That attack had truly been extremely formidable. It was as if it was out to break the limits of sainthood altogether.


    Countless at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven looked severe. Yet another formidable figure of frightening aura came down��the clan leader of the Jiang Clan. He looked at the nine below him with a severe expression.


    While he was not actually present, he saw that battle taking place nonetheless.


    His serious expression was not a result of seeing Wang Yanbing being defeated, but the kind of power that the nine from before exhibited.


    "The Divine Sound," the clan leader said as he looked down at the scene before him.


    The nine looked up at him, and the general from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did the same, saying, "I''m impressed. You''re actually able to tell that this is the Divine Sound."


    "What kind of power is the Divine Sound?" many below began asking those around them, looking puzzled.


    They wondered if that was some kind of insane powers from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    But then again, none of them had heard of such a spell before.


    If the dynasty actually possessed such an ungodly skill, it should have been all over the place instead of being something no one knew.


    Most people had not even heard of it, and only a handful of very powerful beings of the older generations knew of the Divine Sound.


    "The Divine Sound is not something from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but from some other extraordinary places from foreign realms." A very capable figure of the Divine Elephants elaborated to Ye Futian, "The spell enables one to communicate with the great path using sounds, and if the tune''s connect, it will then resonate with the great path. If another power of the same type were to be used for attacks, the power of said attack would be boosted tremendously with the emphasis on ''tremendously.'' It is said that the boosted power of Divine Sound is measured by the number of people resonating using the spell, with nine being the very limit. With nine resonating with each other, it means that attacks will have a chance of being boosted nine times over."


    Ye Futian felt somewhat shocked hearing that. It was just as speculated by Qin He��the spell was from some foreign realm.


    The crown prince and a group of top-notch people from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been training in the other Supreme Realms, and furthermore, they picked up top-notch skills along the way.


    In the world of cultivators, an advantage in numbers was usually more limited than imagined. In usual circumstances, attacks from nine people working together would have had limited effects nonetheless. If there were to not be one among them capable of breaking through Wang Yanbing''s defense, then Wang Yanbing would have been able to remain undefeated. If there were to be none of them being capable of withstanding his attacks, the outcome would have been the same as well.


    However, due to their attacks being amplified by Divine Sound, their attacks grew several times more powerful. Furthermore, with the limit of such amplification being nine times over, it was nothing less of harrowing.


    Mystical ways would have had a hard time boosting attacks nine times over. If there were one of those studying the mystical ways teaming up with others and using Divine Sound for amplification, boosting attacks by nine times over, one could have only wondered just how powerful such attacks would have been.


    It would have been unimaginable.


    As such, it was hardly surprising why Wang Yanbing ended up losing, despite the fact that the amplification might have been less than nine times over.


    The arts trained in by the nine would be extremely difficult after all, so the requirements for them to pull off something like that would have been anything but easy.


    All from top-notch forces went about with elaborations, and the crowd quickly knew why the clan leader of the Jiang Clan chose to emerge personally.


    None of them had expected top-notch skills from other Supreme Realms, after all.


    It seemed that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been sending out the Crown Prince to train in other Supreme Realms a long time ago, just to set things up for the future.


    With that, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven became having to deal with enormous pressure from then on out.


    If all nine of them were to become Renhangs in the future, then things would have taken a turn for the worse. Furthermore, if those people knew the Divine Sound, there was no reason to believe that the Crown Prince would have been otherwise.


    Those people might have joined the ranks of the same top-notch force, or they would not have been so many of them using the same skills. Personal ethics notwithstanding, imparting top-notch skills and spells to others without consent was a grave taboo throughout the world of cultivators, as it would have gravely offended a top-notch force, making an enemy out of them.


    The greatest possibility of having what was happening before them was that all nine of them joined the same top-notch force. With that, it became apparent that the talent of those nine was terrifying.


    The crowd wondered if the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been going to such lengths just to get to Gu Dongliu.


    "The power of one would always be limited. The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven intends to pin all hope on a single person, and I''m afraid that would be a hopeless move that would have doomed you. Don''t you understand that, clan leader?" The general then added, "Hand Gu Dongliu over, and both the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace shall never touch on the matter again. Everything shall be returned to how it used to be, and all grudges shall be wiped clean."


    The clan leader stood on top of the steps, looking at the general, and said, "You are a Renhuang unlike any other from the dynasty yourself. Don''t you understand the weight inherent in a pledge?"


    The words rang heavily on the minds of all within earshot. Everyone was able to sense the solemnity and resolve behind what was said.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had chosen to make their stance clear, and they were not about to back down.


    Furthermore, that upcoming storm was more than just a war between saints.


    "In that case, we''d like to see how the hope of the Celestial Gate��Gu Dongliu��fare in the fight. Let the world know if he is capable of shouldering such a responsibility," the general of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said. No one expected that the one to challenge Gu Dongliu was someone else other than the Crown Prince.


    The crown prince remained standing among the mighty ones from the dynasty, just right beside the general, watching everything transpire in silence.


    It might have been such that he would not have needed to do anything himself.


    Gu Dongliu then looked at the nine. Someone had elaborated to him telepathically regarding the origins and powers of the Divine Sound. With the Divine Sound being so ridiculously formidable, he wondered just how powerful the Juexian Diagram would have made his powers.


    No one made such deductions before, and nothing would have come out of it as well.


    The answer could have only be found in combat, as the battlefield would have been the best place to test it all out.


    "So the Crown Prince has no intention of fighting then?" many murmured amongst themselves. Everyone had anticipated that day to be the day where the showdown between the crown prince and Gu Dongliu, the two topmost legendary figures among their generation, were to be held before.


    "You said the might of one would always have its limits, so you''d have nine challenging a single combatant then?" someone said. Everyone turned their eyes and saw a person emerging. It was none other than Ye Futian.


    The Crown Prince shot a glance at Ye Futian. The Crown Prince had reminded him before, and he found it to be quite a pity that Ye Futian insisted on getting himself into the mess.


    "So this is how the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty issue its challenges?" Ye Futian continued, "How about letting nine from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven challenge one from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?"


    "Gu Dongliu would naturally be allowed to choose another eight to aid him," the general of the dynasty said as he glanced at Ye Futian, who was below. The general''s eyes appeared rather cold.


    "I take it that you''re clear that with nine unknown combatants from Heavenly Mandate Dynasty emerging, there is no way he could have asked eight others to help him fight," Ye Futian replied plainly. Gu Dongliu was a superstar known throughout the realm at present, with countless pairs of eyes locked onto him. It would have been absurd for him to get another eight to help him just because there were nine who emerged from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Doing so would have soiled his own name and status.


    "Since the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty came all the way here to lean on the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, I do not see the need for such calculations. Wouldn''t it be a lot simpler to just have the Crown Prince issue the challenge instead?" Ye Futian continued sarcastically, "Or is it to say that the Crown Prince is not confident of his odds in the battle?"


    "Who are you to stick your nose into the matter? Since when do the likes of you be qualified enough to meddle in the affairs of the top-notch forces of the realm?" The Heavenly Penalty Palace Lord lowered his head and shot a look at Ye Futian with his purple eyes. The might of lightning was brought down as well.


    The ones from the Violet Heavenly Palace have had a hard time tolerating and behaving nicely towards him, who had dragged the face of the Violet Heavenly Palace through the dirt, in a grand event held by the palace itself.


    Ye Futian had emerged to slap them in the face previously, and they did not expect him to be doing the same thing again.


    "I definitely am less than qualified to meddle with the affairs of top-notch forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but having nine from the dynasty taking on my third brother is something I find personally difficult to stomach." Ye Futian continued, "My third brother is of a status unlike any other at present, and he is not someone that anyone can simply challenge, as it''d reflect badly on him."


    Ye Futian went on further, saying, "If the ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty insist on seeing what my third brother is capable of, the Crown Prince could issue a challenge on the spot, and only by doing so would it not soil my third brother''s name. As for the strength of the Divine Sound, I''d be willing to entertain that just to see if you people are worthy of fighting my third brother."


    Countless pairs of eyes were on Ye Futian. That man, who shot to fame throughout Haotian City for having beaten Zhan Yuan, stated his intention to fight in his brother''s stead.


    In truth, Ye Futian did not actually want to do so, but seeing how the nine collaborated, he found that those from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven who were not his third brother would have a hard time dealing with this. Having possessed measures like the Divine Sound, and the fact that the group consisted of geniuses among geniuses, it would have been a difficult situation for the Celestial Gate to resolve unless they were trained in abilities similar to the Divine Sound.


    As for Gu Dongliu, regardless if he were to win or lose in such a battle, he would gain something from it.


    As such, Ye Futian chose to emerge to clear some obstacles for his third brother. The Crown Prince intended to have Ye Futian''s third brother fight while he kept his hands to himself, and Ye Futian insisted on making it hard for him.


    Ye Futian might not have bothered in the affairs of others, but that was his Third Brother being the center of things, and he deemed it compulsory to stand at the forefront.


    The Crown Prince spoke before the general could, "How do you want to do this?"


    Ye Futian looked at the Crown Prince and said, "My plane naturally means that I''d be fighting Unblemished Saints. You have denied the power of one outside the palace before, Crown Prince, so I shall see for myself just how powerful the geniuses of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty are. I don''t mind fighting nine people all alone."

 1454 Do You Have a Death Wish?

    Ye Futian''s words attracted the attention of the crowd in an instant.


    Heavenly Mandate Dynasty brought a massive force to bear on that day, and it was evident just how formidable the Divine Sound was, seeing how Wang Yanbing was defeated by just a single attack.


    Ye Futian emerged, stating his bold intentions of fighting the nine all on his own.


    Everyone wondered if he would have been able to defeat nine from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty armed with the Divine Sound.


    The crowd naturally acknowledged Ye Futian''s powers, as he had a shining record before. However, given how the forces from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were of such ferocity, it was evident that the ones who practiced the Divine Sound were anything but easy targets. All of them would have been top-notch combatants themselves.


    But then again, Ye Futian''s emergence would be able to help Gu Dongliu out to a certain extent, as doing so would make his third brother''s situation easier.


    Even so, however, if Ye Futian were to be defeated, the outcome would be the same. The ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would have still challenged Gu Dongliu with the Divine Sound, and the Crown Prince would not fight.


    No one incapable of beating the Divine Sound would have been qualified to challenge the Crown Prince.


    The pressure was one-sided. It was all on the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Ye Futian stepped out and hovered, standing before the Celestial Gate.


    "May the better combatant win," Ye Futian gestured respectfully at the mighty ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and said.


    All eyes were on him at the moment. The general''s eyes were pointed. It was as if he was able to pierce through the ones he stared at. The Crown Prince, on the other hand, looked rather unfazed as he said, "Brother Ye here is superbly talented and has formidable combat prowess. If he wants to fight nine combatants all on his own, feel free to answer the challenge."


    Nine combatants emerged from behind him as soon as he finished. All of them were Unblemished Saints.


    The nine looked at Ye Futian with unfettered expressions.


    All of them had been selected and sent away when they were young. They went through thick and thin throughout the years, and among the great many mighty ones out of all the pilgrimages, only tens managed to reach the Divine Palace.


    None of the top-notch geniuses were deemed too extraordinary in the Divine Palace. Even the likes of the Crown Prince did not dare to call himself unmatched. The top-notch geniuses of the Divine Palace were far more powerful than the ones found in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They saw too many legendary figures, and all of them were geniuses capable of making their own name.


    While Ye Futian had indeed shot to fame after his battle back at the Violet Heavenly Palace, it was not enough to shake their minds one bit.


    Ye Futian sensed solemnity as soon as they emerged, with a faint hint of pressure about them all. It was the same feeling he had outside that palace when Yu Sheng fought the nine back then.


    Their eyes were cold and unflinching. While they did not look arrogant at all, Ye Futian was able to sense extreme confidence from them.


    After being honed to a certain level, self-confidence was etched into one''s bones, more so when nine such mighty ones were fighting together at the same time.


    "May the better one win." They arrived before Ye Futian and cupped their hands at him. Their tones of speech were faint, without the slightest hint of emotion in them.


    Boom. Holy light shrouded his body in an instant. The might of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst, with the paths of the world melding into his being. A whirlpool of the great path was conjured in the vast space. Ancient symbols of the great path circled about him, resonating with the world around.


    Ye Futian''s aura seemed to have burst by many times over in an instant. The reason why Ye Futian''s combat prowess had been so formidable was that the power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension melded his will of the great path into a single entity. It was forged into a single path, allowing his powers to be amplified exponentially. As such, he was capable of easily overwhelming all who were of his plane.


    Of course, there was also something built upon the foundations of his plane. All top geniuses of great training had their own means of boosting their combat prowess, which meant that their combat capacity would be far more than what was provided by their own planes. All of them had powerful means of amplifying their powers.


    With that said, the might of one''s combat capacity depended on whose measures proved more powerful.


    Among the amplification of powers, there was amplification through innate powers, amplification through various wills of the great path, amplification through methods and spells, amplification through matrixes, and much more. No one would have bothered with learning powerful attack spells or skills otherwise.


    The Divine Sound was deemed terrifying because it was built upon the power of one''s methods, resonating with the great path and then bringing about amplification several times over. The resulting burst of power would naturally be tremendously formidable.


    Elephant trumpeting was heard after the power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was brought about. The will of the great path materialized in the form of shadows of Divine Elephants, tearing through the space. The pressure was such that Ye Futian''s powers felt even more stifled.


    As he was fighting nine mighty ones working in tandem with each other, he dared not let his guard down. He melded the Deed of Thorough Comprehension in the ultimate skills of the Divine Elephants he learned.


    The nine stepped forward at the same time. The sound of the great path was heard resonating and shaking the sky in an instant, bringing about drastic changes to their surroundings. The crowd sensed immense killing intent in an instant.


    "The Slaughtering Way." The crowd looked at the sky. The nine seemed to have the one at the center serving as the core, letting him take charge of the situation. The power of the great path resonated and eventually coalesced on him.


    "Coalesce," a voice said. That voice was the sound of the great path. Incredibly dazzling divine light burst in the air, coalescing into a huge brush. Slaughtering storms gathered around that brush, with one current after another melding into the construct.


    "The Qianqiu Brush."


    The mighty ones below looked solemn as they witnessed the scene. It was the Qianqiu Brush �� one of the killing ways of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The spell melded well with the Slaughtering Way, with a single brush stroke bringing down the seasons and crushing the landscape.


    "Down."


    That mighty one performed hand seals, and under the work of the Divine Sound, the Qianqiu Brush was imbued with tremendous might of the Slaughtering Way. The killing storm throughout the sky caused many to feel stifled.


    The Qianqiu Brush drew in the sky and cut down from above Ye Futian, looking sharper than the blades of swords and colder than the tips of spears.


    At the very moment, the brush swept down. Boundless currents of the Slaughtering Way were brought down as well, tearing through space and killing everything in its path.


    Ye Futian sensed that towering killing force and took to the air, bursting with Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky, causing his immediate vicinity to tremble and his surroundings to rumble. Shadows of countless Divine Elephants ran at the brush that was being brought down, clashing with it. It whipped out raging currents in the air right away.


    The Divine Elephants and the killing currents crumbled at the same time; however, Divine Sound of the great path continued to be heard, resulting in that will of resonation becoming even more powerful. That Qianqiu Brush above Ye Futian looked as if it was something alive, shaking in the air and bringing down the might of the Slaughtering Way. It seemed as if mountains and rivers were collapsing, the space around them about to crumble.


    Yet another stroke was brought down, and the will of the Slaughtering Way was cranked to the extreme. A gash appeared in the air, causing shadows of Divine Elephants to be cut down one after another. The will of the Qianqiu Brush continued to be brought down on Ye Futian.


    The attack was made from a distance, and Ye Futian''s Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky seemed to have little effect on pressuring his opponents. The force of that killing brush seemed to be able to tear down the terrifying might of his spell.


    Divine Elephants continued to be shattered, and the Qianqiu Brush, which howled and shook in the air, continued its strokes. Every stroke was earth-shaking, capable of killing everything in its path.


    "Some power, indeed." The crowd sensed the power of that Divine Sound of the great path and then looked at the Qianqiu Brush. There was only that devastating storm in the air, seemingly overpowering his Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell. It was as if the killing force of the brush was capable of tearing him apart right then and there.


    Furthermore, everyone believed that if the ones of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were to get such a chance, they might actually land a killing blow. It was Ye Futian who went about asking for a fight instead of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty attack him first. If Ye Futian were to end up dead due to him being of inferior skill, then the Divine Elephants would not have been able to do anything about it.


    Ye Futian continued to take to the sky. The trumpeting of the elephants continued to shake the air as if it was about to tear the sky apart. He then raised his fist and blasted at the Slaughtering Way coming down from above. The Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist tore through space and crushed the incoming killing currents.


    The storm whipped out throughout the vast space caused the Renhuangs around to barricade the area with their powers. The storms that whipped out from the battlefield that they were in seemed to be able to kill anyone caught in it.


    The nine mighty ones continued to step out, and the Divine Sound continued to be heard, the great path of which pained Ye Futian''s ears somewhat. The leader pointed his finger at the Qianqiu Brush, causing it to course with the most powerful of killing currents all over it.


    The leading figure of those from the dynasty thrust his palm down. At that moment, the Qianqiu Brush was brought down together with the killing currents at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took to the sky and blasted with an extreme flash of the fist, clashing head-on with the Qianqiu Brush. The air around them trembled violently. However, the punch did not destroy the Qianqiu Brush but had instead simply tore the killing currents in a frenzy. The brush continued to burst with the divine light of the Slaughtering Way.


    "When an ability is trained to the extreme, one will be invincible." The crowd felt shaken as they looked at the scene. That brush was indeed capable of cutting down an army.


    The leading mighty one of the nine continued to thrust his palm in the air. The Qianqiu Brush spun and headed straight for Ye Futian''s head. The killing storm coalesced into a terrifying whirlpool. The hearts of the crowd raced, as they found the brush was filled with the intention of cutting down Ye Futian.


    The crown prince eyed the scene with an unfettered look. Every single one of the mighty ones who was a saint using the Divine Sound was a top fighter capable of leading a battle.


    As such, not even the likes of Wang Yanbing had been able to withstand a single attack. It was already an impressive feat on Ye Futian''s part, as he was able to hold out for that long.


    "Do you have a death wish?" A cold, unforgiving voice was heard within the Divine Sound of the great path at that moment. It came from that leading mighty one from the dynasty. He glared at Ye Futian as his fingers pointed at the Qianqiu Brush.


    The plain, uncaring voice was very indicative of the underlying arrogance and confidence beneath.


    He actually asked if Ye Futian had a death wish.


    If Ye Futian were to continue to fight, that leading mighty one would have killed him.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at the one who talked to him. His eyes were cold. Ye Futian saw how deep the eyes of his opponent were. That voice sounded so natural that there was not a single bit of arrogance heard. It was something that stemmed from his innate confidence and unbridled nature.


    At that moment, the light of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst with greater brilliance, so much so that it seemed there was celestial light protecting him. It made the figure clad in white look even more holy. It was as if he was a god.


    Ye Futian eyed his opponent unflinchingly and stepped out. He uttered a single line, "I do have a death wish, indeed!"

 1455 Is This Adequate

    "Do you have a death wish?"


    "I do have a death wish, indeed!"


    The exchange between both men was filled with unbridled pride, and both showed absolute confidence in their own powers.


    Ye Futian stated that he had a death wish, challenging the nine from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to kill him.


    The leading figure among the nine looked on with a cold expression, finding it unnecessary to hold back, given how his opponent asked for death.


    The nine burst with the same aura of the Great Path. The Divine Sound circled about them and resonated with the great path. Killing currents coalesced in a frenzy and rampaged about in their surroundings, with the might of the attack being brought to the extreme.


    The Qianqiu Brush burst with unparalleled killing light. The brush tore through the space as if it cut through the ages of the dynasty''s reign.


    Everyone sensed the towering killing intent right above Ye Futian''s head. The brush was enlarged as if it was a divine brush of the heavens, every single stroke able to tear through the space and kill everything in its path.


    Many saints were among the crowd, watching the battle, and all of them sensed how formidable the killing currents were.


    At that moment, Ye Futian, who was right below the brush, looked insignificant.


    However, that seemingly insignificant silhouette burst with a light of increasingly high intensity. Celestial light burst and shot through the heavens. There seemed to be a mystical aura filling the vast space, like a formless being emerging from behind him amidst the tremendous killing currents. It was as if it was a shadow a celestial being.


    Furthermore, that being took the form of Ye Futian.


    "The Celestial Soul." The mighty ones were all shaken. They all looked intently at Ye Futian in the air. That was his Celestial Soul Form.


    "He is unleashing the mystical ways." The hearts of the crowd shook, especially those from Haotian City. The mystical ways were of unparalleled significance to those from Haotian City, and that method, which had been previously lost, was even more so.


    Ye Futian had used it before when he saved Wang Yanbing, but that was him saving someone. The crowd had yet to witness the true use of the Celestial Soul Attraction.


    At present, the Celestial Soul Attraction �� a mystical way which had been lost for over 1000 years �� was to be used in the battlefield, bursting from Ye Futian. Just how powerful was the spell?


    No one knew the answer to the question.


    Yet, everyone was eyeing Ye Futian at that moment.


    The will of the great path throughout their surroundings seemed to have gotten even more powerful as the Celestial Soul Attraction spell burst forth. The currents of the great path gushed into the spell in a frenzy. At that moment, Ye Futian''s silhouette seemed to no longer look insignificant. That silver-haired figure glittered with a divine glow, seemingly making him a true mystical being, and the shadows of the Divine Elephants around him were all shrouded in celestial light as well.


    Boom. Ye Futian stepped out into the air. That step shook the air around him, with thousands of Divine Elephants stomping out throughout the air, pinning down the great path and tearing down the space around them. The force clashed with the incoming killing currents, causing the weather about them to change.


    The rampaging space looked even more chaotic, and it was not only in that very immediate area. The nine, who were all watching from a distance, sensed extremely formidable suppressive power, and all of them seemed to feel a tremendously overwhelming pressure somewhat.


    They frowned slightly, especially the one taking the lead. He sensed an intense threat from Ye Futian at the moment.


    That feeling made him feel very uncomfortable.


    "How do you plan to kill me?" A raging voice was heard. Ye Futian extended his hand as he took another step. All nine of them felt their souls shaking at the moment.


    "The hell..." Their expressions changed drastically. They saw a tall, imposing celestial shadow appear right before them when they looked at Ye Futian.


    It was a very weird feeling. There was nothing right before them, yet that tall, imposing shadow seemed to imprint itself on their souls right there and then. That being''s might pounded on their spirit, causing their auras to lose focus and their synchronization of the Divine Sound to falter. The killing currents in the air were no longer as stable as before; it turned into a chaotic storm, whipping about without order.


    The Qianqiu Brush trembled slightly. However, that tremble differed from before, which made it seem as if the will of the great path that controlled the Qianqiu Brush was affected, causing it to lose stability.


    "What is happening?" some of the nine asked telepathically. They felt as if their souls and spirits were no longer in their control. It was as if Ye Futian was able to manipulate them from a distance, simply by extending his hand.


    That feeling made them extremely uncomfortable, so much so that it affected the Divine Sound that they were casting at the moment, which affected the control of the brush drastically.


    Ye Futian was able to tell that he was right from how the power of the brush faltered. The power of Celestial Soul Attraction was more than just being able to amplify one''s combat capacity. It was also capable of enabling one to suppress their opponents. The Divine Sound needed nine people working in tandem to be formidable. At the same time, the Celestial Soul Attraction was something capable of breaking such synchronization, causing him to be able to suppress his opponents somewhat.


    Boom.


    Ye Futian took yet another step. The sky trembled, and the killing currents were shattered in a frenzy. The Qianqiu Brush, which was being brought down, was repelled right away.


    That scene caused many mighty ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to change drastically. It was apparent that they, too, felt something was off.


    The resonance of the Divine Sound was breaking. With the resonance of the great path no longer in synch, the burst of power would lack somewhat.


    Ye Futian seemed to be able to suppress the Divine Sound after using the Celestial Soul Attraction.


    The crowd was unable to think much about the situation before seeing Ye Futian shooting to the air, stepping through the sky with a single step. The Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell pinned the place down. That time, it was directly on the nine mighty ones, and it was more than just pinning down their bodies; the nine felt as if their souls and spirits were being pinned down as well, so much so that they felt their souls were about to leave their bodies and be crushed. The situation was so severe that they seemed to be unable to breathe, feeling choked.


    A divine punch followed. The Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist blasted onto them right away, pounding on the space where the nine of them were. That one punch was infused with power from the Celestial Soul Attraction. That one punch tore the skies apart and crushed their spirits.


    The nine, who had been standing together, were thrown in different directions immediately. Their formation was crushed, and they grunted. Two of them were even seen spitting up blood, looking ashen.


    "The hell..."


    Everyone''s heart raced. The people of Haotian City felt incredibly shocked deep down.


    So, this is the true power of Celestial Soul Attraction �� the spell that has been lost for 1000 years? they thought to themselves.


    Ye Futian''s Celestial Soul was invoked, and the tables were turned right away, pinning down even the Divine Sound.


    Furthermore, the mystical way seemed to have an extremely potent use. They speculated that they had not been able to feel anything due to not having faced Ye Futian directly. However, the nine from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were greatly affected. They would not have collapsed instantly otherwise.


    Ye Futian''s aura did not dissipate just yet. His Celestial Soul remained active after the nine were repelled. Celestial light continued to circle around his body, and all other might of the great path was suppressed, with him at the very center.


    He lifted his foot and took another step right away.


    Boom.


    Elephant trumpeting spread all over the sky, stampeding through the space. Those nine were being subjected to attacks by the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell, and one Divine Elephant after another trampled them.


    Boom, boom, boom...


    The mighty ones were sent flying yet again. They spat up blood. Their inner circulation was thrown into chaos. Their spirits were shaken, and their auras were dropping sharply.


    Despite being geniuses of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, without the boost from the Divine Sound formation, they did not stand a chance against Ye Futian''s Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky.


    The stampede alone was more than enough to keep them pinned down.


    That leader from before was the only one capable of summoning the Qianqiu Brush and continued attacking with it. The killing currents cut down the shadows of Divine Elephants charging about, but then again, his spirit remained shaken, and his aura trembled unstably.


    At that moment, he felt his body stiffen up all of a sudden. A figure was seen walking towards him. Ye Futian extended his hand and grabbed at the sky. That Celestial Soul figure came down in an instant, and his soul felt trapped. While he knew that it was just a feeling, it was something incredibly unbearable. It was as if there was actually a formless hand grabbing him.


    "How do you plan on killing me?" Ye Futian asked. That mighty one from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked at him with a twisted face.


    He had been the one asking if Ye Futian had a death wish.


    Yet, it was him being thrust to the brink of death at the moment.


    "Do you have a death wish?" Ye Futian asked instead, and that mighty one blanched.


    Boom. Another step was taken, which stepped on his soul right away, causing his entire body to shudder.


    His will was cranked to the extreme as he tried to shake off that feeling. Yet, Ye Futian simply took another step and said, "Answer me."


    Blood spilled from the corner of that mighty one''s mouth. His face continued to look pale. He was unable to move and did not dare to move. It was entirely possible for Ye Futian to actually kill him right there and then if the former wanted to.


    Boom...


    Ye Futian took another step, seeing as how he had yet to answer. He was at the critical point of collapse, and his mind was shaking.


    Countless looked up at that scene, and their minds were rattled.


    Those mighty ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were being trampled on.


    He had asked if Ye Futian has had a death wish.


    At that moment, Ye Futian returned the question to him.


    They deemed that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was at an inconvenient position to do anything now.


    It would reflect very badly on them if they were to do so.


    The trumpeting of elephants shook the sky as they trumpeted in a frenzy. As Ye Futian continued to bring the spell down on his body, again and again. That mighty one felt as if his inner organs were about to be crushed and his soul about to split. He was truly being pushed to the extreme.


    Dejection was seen in his eyes as he finally relented and said, "No, I don''t."


    He felt his entire body relax right after he said so. However, that was just his body. His mind and soul remained pained.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian took one final step and sent his body flying.


    Ye Futian then swept his gaze over all of the mighty ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty before finally eyeing the Crown Prince, saying, "Except for the Divine Sound, none of them could handle one cultivator. So tell me, is the power of one adequate?"

 1456 Fated Battle

    None of them had been able to fight alone.


    After the nine mighty ones'' resonance of Divine Sound was broken by Ye Futian, none had been able to endure a single one of Ye Futian''s strike alone, and all of them were trampled.


    Other than those special geniuses, not even the ones usually lauded as the most powerful would have been qualified enough to fight him when he was combining mystical ways with the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky.


    That one battle enabled others to learn new things about Ye Futian''s powers.


    They learned just how shockingly powerful it would be when ultimate skills of the Divine Elephants��Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky and Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist��were used in conjunction with Celestial Soul Attraction.


    "So that is the Celestial Soul Attraction, which has been lost for a millennium?" Some of the older generations from Haotian City looked at Ye Futian with a solemn expression. Not only was he able to inherit the mystical way, but he had also been able to use it perfectly, letting all in Haotian City see how powerful that lost mystical way was.


    It was indeed fortunate on their part to be able to bear witness to that moment.


    Despite not being of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, he nonetheless fought on behalf of the Celestial Gate on that day. He had also been willing to teach that mystical way to others, and that made many anticipate what was in store for him in the future.


    Many wondered if the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would be able to do anything to stop him and Gu Dongliu if they were to reign supreme at the pinnacle of the realm.


    The one of supreme body of the great path of the Violet Heavenly Palace had already lost, and that happened before Ye Futian used mystical ways.


    A battle would not have been all that much of an issue to him now.


    Many wondered who would be able to take on Ye Futian.


    The man learned two ultimate skills, and he would only get stronger from then on out. The possibilities were limitless.


    The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked at Ye Futian. He talked about the limitations of the power of one when he visited Qin He at the palace, and then had nine mighty ones by his side repel Yu Sheng. At that moment, Ye Futian defeated nine single-handedly and proceeded to ask him how the power of one fared.


    The times they lived in were indeed interesting. He never expected to meet Gu Dongliu, who met Gu Tianxing and inherited the creational powers that Gu Tianxing gathered. He then met Ye Futian, who was able to reign supreme somewhere. He never expected to see the brothers become so unbelievably capable.


    However, he deemed that to be interesting. The higher one climbed, the colder it felt. Being an undisputed champion was sure to be boring.


    The ones from Violet Heavenly Palace looked at Ye Futian and felt restless. It was not only Zhan Yuan who was vexed, as that man who shot to fame at Zhan Yuan''s expense continued to prove just how powerful he was. It was as if he was some unstoppable tidal wave.


    He reminded all in the Heavenly Mandate Realm to remember his name through one extraordinary feat after another. He was fighting to be at the top of the great path of the realm.


    Zhan Yuan knew very well that so long as he remained incapable of defeating Ye Futian, he would remain second class. Everyone who saw them both would always be reminded of that one battle.


    But then again, seeing that mystical way at work, Zhan Yuan came to wonder just how long it would take him to defeat Ye Futian and wash away all that disgrace.


    "The power of one." A voice was heard saying. The crowd turned around and looked at the Crown Prince, who then looked at Ye Futian and replied, "Before you get to the top, there will eventually be a limit, and you will still be weak."


    Divine light dazzled all over his body as he stepped out right after he finished speaking, looking extremely brilliant.


    Holy light seemed to shoot from his eyes. It made him look rather harrowing and intense. His entire being emanated an overwhelming bearing. It was as if he was born to be a supreme being.


    The crowd shuddered somewhat as they stared at that scene. The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was finally about to make a move.


    The Crown Prince extended his palm as he walked out. Boundless killing currents filled the sky. The Slaughtering Way howled, and again, a Qianqiu Brush appeared, falling right into his palm. The might from it was just as powerful as it had been when the nine worked together using the Divine Sound.


    He was a Holiness of Nirvana, and being at such a plane meant that his power was ten times more powerful than that of an Unblemished Saint. Furthermore, due to his superb powers, one could only imagine just how powerful his Qianqiu Brush was.


    The brush commanded the great path of his surroundings as it remained in his hand. It was as if he was able to cut open the space with only a single stroke. Ye Futian stood his ground as his robe billowed behind him. The killing currents howled, and their surroundings were terrifying. Even if the mystical way were to be brought about at that moment, it would still end up being pinned down by the will of slaughter.


    That was a gap brought about by the difference in plane. Furthermore, the one who stood opposite Ye Futian was the crown prince. He was born to be a supreme being.


    Even those of his plane would wonder if there was anybody in the realm capable of suppressing and dominating the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    At that moment, there was yet another figure at the Celestial Gate whose robes billowed. His white attire was white like snow. The scholar dressed in white stepped out as wind blew on him. He walked forward and said, "Allow me, little brother."


    Gu Dongliu understood that the upcoming fight was his.


    The grudges of bygone years meant that he and the Crown Prince would be sworn enemies. This battle was inevitable. It had always been inevitable.


    It was not only he who understood that. Everyone understood that his father died at the hands of the previous crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. That man was the brother of the current crown prince. The Gu Clan perished because of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, leaving Gu Dongliu as the sole survivor.


    At the same time, however, Gu Tianxing alone took out almost half of the mighty ones of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The previous Dynastic Overlord and Crown Prince were both slain by him. The enmity between both parties could not have been any deeper.


    As it stood right now, one was the sole survivor of the Gu Clan, who inherited everything that Gu Tianxing had spent years setting up. The other was the new crown prince, whom the Dynastic Overlord claimed was born to reign supreme.


    One of them was fated to die at the hand of the other. Such was the fate of both parties.


    There were nine who challenged Gu Dongliu while the Crown Prince stayed on the side, keeping his hands to himself, putting both the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and him on the defensive. Ye Futian took care of that battle for him and smoothened things out for his brother. As such, the upcoming battle was now Gu Dongliu''s.


    The clan leader of the Jiang Clan looked at him from behind, saying nothing. It was known to all that the battle was bound to happen sooner or later; however, the clan leader did not wish for the battle to come so soon. Gu Dongliu had been training in isolation after inheriting the lineage, rising through the planes continuously to become a Holiness of Nirvana.


    However, it was due precisely to having inherited too much that his plane remained unstable, and it was impossible for him to have finished processing all that he had inherited. The creational lineage in him was not something he could have processed in a short period of time. In fact, it would have been difficult for him to process it all, even if he had years or even decades to do so. If the lineage that Gu Dongliu inherited was a kind of treasure trove, then he needed to spend more time in such a trove, digging bit by bit to unearth those hidden treasures. He needed time more than anything else.


    The more time he had, the stronger he would get.


    On the contrary, things were rather different in the case of the crown prince. He had been building a solid foundation throughout his years of training, and every single step he had taken so far was unshakable. The decades spent in training allowed him to polish his powers so that they gleamed with perfection, enabling him to use his powers perfectly.


    The later the battle was to be fought, the more advantages Gu Dongliu would gain.


    However, those of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were in a hurry to wage the war that had to be waged. They did not want to wait, and they, too, wanted to see just how much had Gu Tianxing passed down to Gu Dongliu. As such, they showed up en masse just to lean on the Celestial Gate.


    Since those of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were already there, it was a given that those from the Celestial Gate needed to do it. It was a battle that Gu Dongliu had to fight.


    Even if he were to lose, the clan leader was sure that Gu Dongliu would be able to bear the loss. He would not have been able to shoulder such hopes otherwise.


    But then again, the clan leader did not wish to see him lose the fight.


    As such, his eyes were still filled with hope as he looked at the figure who emerged. He hoped to see the legends of those two��that of Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan, both of whom were of extreme renown back in the day��be reborn in Gu Dongliu.


    Furthermore, by the time Gu Dongliu was done processing all that he had inherited, he would become even more powerful than either of his predecessors.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly after seeing his third brother emerge. He then headed sideways to make way for his third brother.


    That was a battle that belonged to his third brother.


    It was a fated battle.


    Regardless if his third brother were to end up winning or losing the fight, he believed that his third brother would inherit the will of those who came before and would continue to walk towards the pinnacle of the realm.


    Gu Dongliu was seen walking out and coming to stand before the crown prince. The two, who were the most talked-about figures of the realm at present, stood on opposing sides.


    Both were sworn enemies, and the clash between the two attracted all the attention of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    That upcoming battle was one for the books.


    Their renown was less due to how powerful they actually were and more to the feud between them, as well as the missions that each of them shouldered.


    The vast space was dead silent. Nobody spoke, and countless watched the two stand against each other without saying anything. Even the great figures of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were doing the same. All of them had their eyes on the battlefield, as the upcoming battle was extremely significant.


    The one who inherited all from Gu Tianxing was to fight against the one born to become a supreme being.


    A formless gale whipped up all around them. It contained the aura of the great path. The space became extremely stifled in an instant, making many saints feel very, very uncomfortable. Those two Holiness of Nirvanas would possibly be the two most powerful ones below the Renhuangs of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Yi Tianyu of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty," the Crown Prince of the dynasty said. His name was Yi Tianyu. Wan Yanbing was named after the mystical way he practiced, while Yi Tianyu was named after Tianyu��Heavenly Mandate.


    The will of the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was clear as day.


    "Gu Dongliu of the Gu Clan," Gu Dongliu replied calmly. Both parties announced their names as if it was but a regular sparring match between both men. There was not a single hint of the enmity between them. Yet, that made it all the more serious.


    Their surroundings raged, and a gale blew violently. Storms of the great path whipped about, and an incredibly dazzling Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate appeared. The diagram consumed the great path of their surroundings. Currents of the great path surged into the diagram in a frenzy, causing it to continue turning and changing. It was as if it was capable of all manner of transformations.


    The Life Spirit of that descendant of the main lineage of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had finally taken its ultimate form��the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate. It had once been lauded as the most powerful of Life Spirits in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Yet at that moment, a Life Spirit of unparalleled power appeared behind Gu Dongliu, who stood opposite Yi Tianyu. It was a diagram. It spun about like a grand matrix of the heavens, seemingly embodying the Daoist yin and yang, as well as the nine symbols and celestial light at work.


    That was the Juexian Diagram. It was something that Gu Tianxing passed down to Gu Dongliu, enabling Gu Dongliu''s Life Spirit to awaken and evolve until it merged with the Juexian Diagram.


    Many wondered which was the strongest Life Spirit in the realm.


    They wondered who among the two most renowned descendants of great figures was the strongest genius of the realm.

 1457 Gu Dongliu vs Yi Tianyu

    The storm whipped up across the sky, and the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate rose to the air, consuming the will of the great path all over the place and multiplying in a frenzy.


    Boundless killing currents shot at Gu Dongliu right away. Yet, he simply shot a glance at the currents and pointed forward.


    The symbol of "Lin" appeared, and the huge ancient symbol stood tall in the sky, shrouding the killing currents right away, preventing the currents from moving.


    However, the killing currents did not seem to have an end to them, causing the symbol to tremble. It looked as if it was about to crumble. What was even more terrifying was that as the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate multiplied, a Qianqiu Brush gave manifested right away and dropped straight down. Yi Tianyu pointed into the air at the brush.


    The brush drew one stroke and crushed that symbol of "Lin," which was already about to crumble. The Qianqiu Brush felt like a divine brush of the great path, weighing thousands of pounds. It could pin down landscapes and tear through space. Boundless killing currents cut down, intending to destroy the space were Gu Dongliu was right then and there.


    Celestial light glittered on the Juexian Diagram. A huge beam of celestial light shot to the air, and an incredibly huge symbol of "Bing" circled about the screen of light. The symbol clashed with the brush and burst with extremely brilliant celestial light.


    Yi Tianyu remained unfazed and kept his eyes forward. The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate continued to multiply in the air. One brush after another materialized one after another. Many brushes were seen right above Gu Dongliu''s head at the same time.


    Every single brush contained extremely potent killing current.


    "The Brush Reigning Supreme through the Eras."


    Yi Tianyu muttered this, and his voice sounded like Divine Sound of the great path. The brushes in the sky resonated, and they all swiped in the sky at the same time. Every single brush tore through the sky as if someone was trying to bring the sky down with the brushes.


    The Qianqiu Brushes moved in a disorderly and unpredictable manner. It was as if they were simply left to do their own thing without control, yet the messy strokes seemed as if they were out to cut the sky to pieces. Such was the power of The Brush Reigning Supreme through the Eras.


    Craccckk...


    A snappy cracking noise was heard, and the screen of light was no more. The terrifying strokes lashed out at Gu Dongliu, intending to destroy the place where he was.


    "So, that is the true power of the Qianqiu Brush." The minds of all who saw it were rattled. The Qianqiu performed far better at the hands of Yi Tianyu��the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��than how it had been when the nine used the Divine Sound. It was as if the power of the move was fused with the great path, and the great path seemed to be about to break when cut.


    The clan leader of the Jiang Clan watched the fight quietly at the Celestial Gate. It was just as he expected. That crown prince was already at the pinnacle when it came to proficiency with offensive arts. His innate talents and his years spent in training in secret made his attacks unshakable, showcasing his master grade proficiency as soon as he made a move.


    The Dynastic Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty lauded the Crown Prince to be one born to reign supreme, and he did not do so with mere intent to boast. It would have reflected very badly on him if things turned out differently, after all.


    While the battle had just begun, what Yi Tianyu showcased without breaking a sweat looked extremely surreal.


    Gu Dongliu was then seen performing hand seals, causing the Juexian Diagram to unleash towering celestial light, circling around him, and there seemed to be a true mystical being right behind him. Holy light shrouded his entire body, and as he continued to perform the seals, one mystical shadow after another emerged from the Juexian Diagram at the same time. All of those shadows unleashed impregnable will. It was as if they were manifestations of divine weapons. The ancient Symbol of "Bing" circled around him, causing the surrounding air to shake.


    The shadows took to the sky in a mere instant, transforming into divine weapons and blasted at the incoming Qianqiu Brushes in the air.


    The Qianqiu Brushes were then right above Gu Dongliu''s head, and the boundless divine weapons blasted at them. Devastating storm of slaughter raged right above his head at that moment, radiating terrifying divine light.


    The Qianqiu Brushes and the divine weapons continued to crumble, destroyed, and dissipated in that terrifying clash.


    Both parties were formidable.


    The crowd looked at the two geniuses, finding that their Life Spirits alone were more than enough to overwhelm an untold number of mighty ones. It was even thought that only a handful of saints would have been able to withstand such attacks from their Life Spirits.


    The attacks of Yi Tianyu��the Crown Prince��were fended off, yet he hardly looked fettered. He flashed and came to the air above, his back against the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate. It was as if his body fused directly with his Life Spirit.


    He extended his hand, and the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate spun, consuming boundless Slaughtering Way. It was as if there was boundless slaughtering lightning falling down onto his extended hand. A Qianqiu Brush, which seemed to have existed for several millennia, fell into his hand.


    He took hold of the brush.


    Voom. A bolt of lightning tore through the sky. Yi Tianyu disappeared with the brush at the same time. There seemed to be a huge gash in the sky. Gu Dongliu sensed an intense looming danger.


    The mystical shadows gathered, and with his palms closed, the divine weapons howled as they tore through the space.


    Thousands of killing currents rained down in an instant. It was as if thousands of beams of divine light rained down. The scene was utterly harrowing. It was as if it was able to tear the sky down in an instant. The explosiveness of the move was nothing short of terrifying, causing the hearts of those who witnessed the scene to shake violently.


    Crack... Countless divine weapons crumbled, and a brush was seen swiped down right before Gu Dongliu, with Yi Tianyu seen on the other end of the brush.


    The Juexian Diagram burst with towering celestial light in an instant, and a stifled rumble was heard in the air. Gu Dongliu''s body was thrown below, and boundless killing currents burst through his Juexian Diagram as if they were to tear it apart.


    Yi Tianyu lowered his head to look at Gu Dongliu, who was thrown behind, and said, "I wonder just how capable Gu Tianxing and Gu Jiangnan had been all those years ago. It is a pity that they are no longer in this era."


    Everyone was able to tell from his words just how arrogant that crown prince was, behaving as if even if both of them were in the same era as he was, he would have been able to overwhelm them all the same.


    Gu Dongliu looked up in the sky. He, too, knew what he lacked when compared to Yi Tianyu. He had yet to be able to finish processing all the powers he had been bestowed with, and he did not have time to train the most powerful of attacks available. At that moment, he was simply able to consolidate all the bits that he had acquired and has broken through the plane of Holiness of Nirvana with them.


    In truth, the clan leader''s concern had been valid��his plane was still unstable. If that fight were to be postponed, he would have had gained a greater advantage.


    But then again, what was to come would have come all the same.


    Even if he had yet to process everything that he gained at the Origin Mountains, that battle was still one he could not afford to lose.


    It had little to do with the significance of the outcome of the battle and more to do with him being unable to bring himself to face his predecessors if he were to lose that battle.


    The celestial light on the Juexian Diagram became even more dazzling. The mystical shadow behind Gu Dongliu grew even more glittering. He unleashed his will, shrouding the Juexian Diagram, which shuddered. In that instant, there seemed to be many demonic beasts appearing on the diagram, arriving as they were summoned.


    Thousands of demonic beasts howled as the Juexian Diagram continued to be at work. Demonic auras filled the sky as the demonic beasts danced and raged.


    Gu Dongliu inherited the Laws of Origin, and there were untold numbers of wills of demon emperors throughout the vast Origin Mountains that ended up consumed by him, after all.


    The howling demons signified their rage, and there seemed to be a feral grace to Gu Dongliu''s face.


    He looked up and shot a glance at the sky. Thousands of demonic beasts howled as they tore through the sky, heading straight for Yi Tianyu.


    The falling killing currents were destroyed in a frenzy. Yi Tianyu held onto the Qianqiu Brush. He looked as if he was going to be overwhelmed by the demonic beasts.


    The Qianqiu Brush in Yi Tianyu''s hand swiped at the sky again, and the incoming demonic beasts crumbled right away under the might of his Qianqiu Brush; however, the demonic beasts seemed to charge without end, heading straight for the Crown Prince and burying him in that space.


    The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate continued to shift, transforming into a Kunpeng, which then merged with the Crown Prince''s body. He took the form of a Kunpeng while, at the same time, the light of Kunpeng burst from with the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate. He then spread his wings and attacked as if he commanded the divine might of Kunpeng.


    "The Art of Heavenly Mandate," many muttered deep down as they watched the scene before them. That was the ultimate move created by the founder of the dynasty, and that spell had once been known as the number spell in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, which was said to be invincible in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He had once used the ability in the battle back in the Violet Heavenly Palace, and at present, the Art of Heavenly Mandate was seen being used again.


    A loud cry was heard as if a true Kunpeng had arrived at the scene. The being then spread its wings open, blocking the sky, then swooped down. Shadows of Kunpeng burst from the diagram at the same time, cutting down at the sky in a furious slaughter, destroying countless shadows of demonic beasts. The Kunpeng form of Yi Tianyu tore through the demonic beasts. The rain of divine golden light cut through the demonic beasts while still holding onto the Qianqiu Brush with its claw.


    Gu Dongliu''s aura faltered. That was a major attack from a true Kunpeng. Everything that Yi Tianyu had picked up was a very formidable attack.


    However, Gu Dongliu''s expression remained steely. The name of his diagram��Juexian��was taken from the fact that it was the pinnacle of the mystical ways, with its power reigning supreme over all mystical ways.


    He continued to step out in the air. The Juexian Diagram continued to work and shine boundless divine light onto his body, which resonated with him. Boundless mystical shadows appeared at the same time around his body. The aura all about him coursed within him as well.


    The light of the nine symbols glittered as they merged within his body. Gu Dongliu truly resonated with the Juexian Diagram at that point.


    Despite the fact that he had yet to train in the top attacks, his teacher once said that overwhelming might triumphed over all techniques.


    When one''s spiritual power resonated with pure force and everything reached the very peak, where one discarded all unrelated thoughts and left all skills and techniques behind, one would have been able to bring the greatest of attacks to bear.


    He stepped out and tore through the air, arriving right before that huge creature that tore through the demonic beasts. He extended his finger, which contained immeasurable power, and clashed with the incoming Qianqiu Brush.


    The space around both of them exploded in a frenzy. Yi Tianyu brought the wings of the Kunpeng down upon Gu Dongliu.


    The light of the nine symbols glowed extremely brilliantly. They burst with the brightest of rays at the same time, which blinded all who saw it. The light caused the wings of the Kunpeng to slow. It was like a will of strength unlike any other that resonated with his surroundings. That one finger was to destroy everything in its path.


    Gu Dongliu, at that moment, looked as if he was some celestial being.


    Boom!


    A stifled rumble was heard, and the spectators saw Yi Tiany��the Crown Prince��be flung far above, forced away by the might from one finger of Gu Dongliu.


    "One finger against the Qianqiu Brush." The hearts of all continued to race. That was confidence and recklessness unlike any other. The great divine diagrams faced off against each other and brought terrifying powers to bear, bringing about massive explosions between them.


    A devastating storm of the great path whipped up between both men, making the scene look extremely harrowing.

 1458 Clash of the Titans

    "They''re fighting up close and personal?"


    The hearts of the spectators raced. At that moment, the battlefield that both of them were on was indeed dark and gloomy. The air was filled with killing intent.


    Both forces clashed head-on. Gu Dongliu took on the Qianqiu Brush with a single finger, and his body was under extreme pressure.


    The Qianqiu Brush of the Crown Prince continued to be shrouded with boundless killing currents. However, Gu Dongliu''s finger was shrouded by boundless celestial light of the weapons. It was as if his body alone had awakened and fused with all the mystical beings and demons there were.


    The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate and the Juexian Diagram continued to be at work. Both constructs continued to shift and resonated with the heavenly path.


    Yi Tianyu''s expression was as pointed as it could have been, as his eyes remained fixed on Gu Dongliu below. His robes and his hair billowed as he looked at the other man. He coldly uttered, "Do you know the true meaning of ''Heavenly Mandate''?"


    Gu Dongliu remained looking at him without responding.


    "It is as the term implies. Heavenly Mandate��the will and way of the heavens. It is thus a mandate, an order, from the heavens," Yi Tianyu elaborated. His voice sounded overbearing. His surroundings resonated with him as he fused the power of Divine Sound with his voice.


    Killing currents rained down in a frenzy as he spoke, drowning the sky below. Countless shadows of Kunpeng dove down, tearing through space. Huge, golden ancient bells dropped one after another. It was as if they were Renhuang bells of the great path, heading straight for Gu Dongliu. The power of all those attacks resonated at the same time as they headed for their target.


    Heavenly Mandate��a mandate from the heavens. A will of heaven that destroyed everything in its path.


    The Juexian Diagram continued to spin around Gu Dongliu. Boundless celestial light burst and thousands of mystical beings and demons roared, charging at that power as they resisted it. Clashes at such close distances made all who saw it feel tingles all over. It was as if that space was about to be completely destroyed.


    Overbearing celestial light from the Juexian Diagrams spun and surged at Gu Dongliu, who, at the moment, looked like a true mystical being. The spinning Juexian Diagrams centered around him. The will of thousands of mystical and demonic beings merged within his body, consuming the way of all under providence. The light of the nine symbols burst on his body, which then spun around him.


    At that moment, Gu Dongliu had completely merged with his Life Spirit. The might of the Life Spirit was that of his own.


    An overbearing shadow of a mystical being appeared above his body. The shadow was huge and connected with his Life Spirit as if the shadow itself was a manifestation of the Life Spirit. The light of the nine symbols burst on the shadow, which pointed forward and brought the weapons charging, destroying the killing currents. The symbol of "Lin" resonated with his surroundings while the symbol of "Dou" destroyed all bells of Renhuang.


    The nine symbols fused into a single being and burst from the shadows, resulting in mystical and demonic beings howling.


    That power actually managed to resist the attacks from Yi Tianyu. That scene caused the hearts of spectators to race.


    "This is formidable, indeed. When Gu Dongliu fought with Wang Yanbing back then, Wang Yanbing hadn''t been able to so much as leave a dent on Gu Dongliu. Wang Yanbing was defeated despite using an ultimate sacrificial attack." The hearts of many from Haotian City raced. Despite being lauded as the number one saint in Haotian City, it was apparent that Wang Yanbing was leagues below both Gu Dongliu and the Crown Prince.


    Both of them were truly the most formidable and the greatest there was, and they would come to represent the pinnacle of two of the most powerful of lineages. They would reign supreme among human cultivators of their generation in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, making them truly beings at the pinnacle of eternal greatness.


    They were so formidable that there probably would not be any from the demon realm capable of taking them on.


    There were many mighty ones from the demon realm present on that day, and they were just as frightened by the fight taking place before them. Talents of human cultivators made them envious, as they possessed the ability to create spells of such levels, bringing their might to the very extreme.


    Yi Tianyu sensed the power of Gu Dongliu. The space around the Crown Prince raged as well. He had to admit that Gu Dongliu was indeed a legendary genius like none other created by Gu Tianxing, seeing how his own attacks still remained incapable of defeating Gu Dongliu.


    "Heavenly Mandate, Godly Advent," Yi Tianyu said solemnly.


    That was the ultimate killing move of the Art of Heavenly Mandate��Heavenly Mandate, Godly Advent.


    The hearts of countless raced. They were surprised at how Yi Tianyu had even finished training in a move of such a high level.


    It was no surprise when the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty dared to come all the way there and why Yi Tianyu was so boastfully confident.


    Towering divine light burst from Yi Tianyu''s body after the line was heard, which blinded all who saw it. The Divine Sound throughout the vast space was heard all over the place, resonating with the great path. Boundless will of the great path rained down on Yi Tianyu''s body. The Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate absorbed the powers of his surroundings, which then surged into his body.


    Yi Tianyu seemed to have clad himself in a nigh-indestructible body, which radiated extremely dazzling divine light. Every single beam seemed to be able to pierce through the space, destroying all who were of his plane.


    He no longer seemed to be himself at that moment.


    Countless saints below cast saintly light for defense, resisting the beams of divine light with their own might. The light from Yi Tianyu was enough to reach and injure them. Even those who were Holiness of Nirvanas felt the same way.


    At that moment, Yi Tianyu looked like a heavenly god.


    "That is really something."


    Everyone below struggled to look up at Yi Tianyu while under the protection of divine light. At that moment, Yi Tianyu simply looked too dazzling. It was too much for the world to handle.


    He was so frightening that even the Renhuangs were shocked.


    They recalled the history of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. As a coalition of absolute imperials in the Heavenly Mandate Realm of old, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was lauded as the divine dynasty, with the ruling class claiming to be gods of the realm, ruling over the dynastic forces. All cultivators of the vast realm needed to pay tribute and worship them.


    Their ancestors created arts so terrifying that they were known to be godly arts��the Divine Art of Heavenly Mandate, with the ultimate move being Heavenly Mandate Godly Advent. It was a move so formidable that all within the Heavenly Mandate Realm needed to bow and worship before it as if it was an advent of a god.


    When such powers were unleashed, many were unable to help but recall the glory of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    It was difficult to imagine just how powerful Gu Tianxing had been all those years ago before he became capable of killing even the previous Dynastic Overlord and ended up being injured by the current one.


    At present, the legendary crown prince seemed to be about to inherit the will of his ancestors and bring about a renaissance to the dynasty. He was still a saint, and yet, he already completed learning the Art of Heavenly Mandate.


    The world lauded Zhan Yuan from the Violet Heavenly Palace to be the one with the supreme body of the great path. However, from the looks of things, it seemed that the Crown Prince was the one who had an unmatched constitution instead. He seemed to be a godly manifestation of the heavenly mandate itself, which was probably why the Dynastic Overlord claimed the prince was one born to reign supreme. He was indeed one who was destined to be a cut above the rest.


    But then again, the Heavenly Mandate Realm had another who claimed that he possessed the godly body of the heavenly path.


    The clan leader of the Jiang Clan locked his eyes onto the Crown Prince as well. He came to understand somewhat why the Dynastic Overlord wanted to send the prince away to train elsewhere in secret. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty suffered a heavy blow all those years ago, and it was within reason that they worried that if there were to be yet another legendary figure emerging, causing yet another war between the top-notch forces, that the dynasty would end up in ruin.


    It was just like how Gu Tianxing''s actions of fostering Gu Dongliu brought about the current state of affairs seen now.


    The clan leader had to admit that Yi Tianyu was indeed a legendary figure.


    The Crown Prince came on that day just for Gu Dongliu.


    He wondered if Gu Dongliu would have been able to stop the Crown Prince on his own.


    The ones in the crowd began to have doubts and began to be concerned on behalf of Gu Dongliu. He was, after all, a member of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and it was Haotian City that the battle was taking place in.


    There were naturally more people hoping that Gu Dongliu would win. Gu Tianxing brought a great many glories to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, after all.


    However, Yi Tianyu was simply too dazzling of a figure at the moment, causing many to have doubts if Gu Dongliu would have been able to stop him.


    Gu Dongliu was actually just as brilliant. The mystical and demonic beings of the diagram of great path circled about him. The nine symbols resonated, and his mystical soul became a true mystical being, which was extremely shocking to those who witnessed it. It seemed as if the battle was no longer a battle fought between mortals, but one fought between gods.


    "Many in the world learned of the Juexian Diagram in that war all those years ago, thinking that Gu Tianxing was unmatched. Today, I shall rectify that with the Art of Heavenly Mandate," the Crown Prince said. He was out to prove the superiority of the dynasty with a rich history behind it, as well as that of the Art of the Heavenly Mandate and the Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate.


    Gu Dongliu looked up at him. The light emanating from both beings continued to clash between them. Devastating aura of the great path raged all over the place.


    Voom. Yi Tianyu was seen descending like a god at a speed faster than lightning. The great path around him collapsed, and everything was shattered. The killing rays rained down as he charged at Gu Dongliu like a god.


    The Kunpeng spread its wings, and he brought down the Qianqiu Brush straight onto Gu Dongliu. Boundless aura of the great path in the sky coursed below as he moved, his divine light destroyed everything in his path. Nothing was deemed capable of stopping the brush.


    Gu Dongliu performed seals, and the Juexian Diagram spun in a frenzy. The mystical shadow was fused with the power of mystical and demonic beings, which then blitzed in the sky. The light of the nine symbols transformed into celestial light of the great path, circling about in the air and clashing with the figure coming down.


    Boom...


    The devastating storm swept through the place, destroying everything in its path. If there were to be anyone below Renhuang caught in its wake, there was no way they could have survived.


    The Qianqiu Brush and the ancient symbols clashed and blasted on that one figure. The symbols circling around the shadow seemed to have cracked, and the shadow trembled, causing Gu Dongliu to tremble as well. His handsome face looked rather twisted at that moment.


    Both of them were shrouded in blinding light, and they looked extremely divine.


    Yi Tianyu''s long hair wore a golden sheen. It was as if every single strand was transformed into golden swords dancing in the air in divine light. His eyes were incredibly pointed as he stared at Gu Dongliu. The Qianqiu Brush in the Crown Prince''s hand was thrust forward bit by bit. It was as if Gu Dongliu would crumble altogether if he were to even flinch.


    Many truly felt stifled at the moment. They locked their eyes on that scene in the midair, finding that Gu Dongliu''s expression was turning increasingly strained, yet his eyes remained filled with resolve.


    At that moment, Gu Dongliu recalled the voice of his grandfather.


    The true meaning of a mystical being was to have their soul and spirit meld with the world, to meld with the great path, and to meld with everything.


    He looked at Yi Tianyu with eyes that remained crystal clear. A shadow seemed to have left his body, merging with the Juexian Diagram and the ancient symbols, and within that towering, imposing shadow. His body seemed to have completely overlapped with that shadow. It had entered a surreal state of being as if he was a mystical being himself.


    Yi Tianyu seemed to have sensed that aura. His blade-like eyebrows frowned, and a beam of very high intensity light blasted, blinding the eyes of all who saw it.


    The devastating storm raged about in their surroundings. When everyone came to see everything clearly, both Gu Dongliu and Yi Tianyu were separated.


    The auras of both men were faltering. They were both soaked in blood. The mystical shadow crumbled while the godly form shattered.

 1459 Power of the Whole City

    In the silent space, warriors were watching those two figures, who were shaken back in the void sky at the same time.


    The violent airflow over the sky dome gradually dissipated, and it soon completely vanished. There was no sound in the void air at all; the silence was somehow a little terrifying.


    Both seem to be injured, but how were their injuries?


    And even at this moment, they were still staring at each other. The strongest inheritors in the Heavenly Mandate Realm seemed to have both been severely injured in this battle.


    Was the Heavenly Mandate Divine Advent Skill still unable to suppress Gu Dongliu? warriors thought to themselves. This was the inheritance that Gu Tianxing gave to Gu Dongliu. Within just a few months, he had skipped many levels and entered the Nirvana Plane.


    After entering the Nirvana Plane, he did not lose in the battle against the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��Yi Tianyu.


    People of Haotian City were exhilarated, and they looked quite agitated. They were not sure about this battle, especially when the Heavenly Mandate Divine Skill was released. When the Heavenly Mandate Divine Advent Skill befell, they all thought that Gu Dongliu would be defeated. Even though Gu Dongliu had the super inheritance, he owned it for a very short time. Yi Tianyu had cultivated in seclusion for many years until now he returned as a Nirvana Saint with a very stable condition.


    And his cultivation method also once was the strongest inheritance in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, so no one would think that Gu Dongliu had any real advantage in this battle.


    Gu Dongliu did not lose in this battle, which was enough.


    He still had time. After Gu Dongliu stabilized his status and fully digested the power of Gu Tianxing''s inheritance, he would keep transforming and become more powerful. At that time, he would be more confident and more likely to defeat Yi Tianyu.


    Between these two destined opponents, Gu Dongliu seemed no longer to be the only one with a disadvantage.


    Many people looked toward the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. In this battle, Yi Tianji��the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��came to fight in person, using the strongest Heavenly Mandate Divine Skill, but he still failed to beat Gu Dongliu. Nobody knew how the Violet Heavenly Palace and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would solve what had happened today.


    At least, they had failed to lower the morale of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Even though Wang Yanbing was defeated, Ye Futian had a triumphant victory and solely vanquished nine opponents, and Gu Dongliu was not defeated, either.


    As for the Violet Heavenly Palace, their strongest figure��the Supreme Form of Great Path Zhan Yuan��had been lost to Ye Futian once, so perhaps the next battle would also be in vain.


    "You are brave to let your soul enter the Path," at this moment, Yi Tianyu finally said after the two of them were separated from each other. He looked at Gu Dongliu and said, "It seems that what Gu Tianxing has done is meaningful."


    After these words, he turned and walked away. He did not continue the fight with Gu Dongliu. When he turned around, his face looked slightly pale, but his gaze remained firm, and his long hair was blowing in the wind.


    In this battle, he was wounded. Gu Dongliu''s last blow collided with him head-on. Both were badly injured.


    Gu Dongliu saw him turn around, so he turned and left, too, with no words.


    Any words would be meaningless. Although during this battle, he didn''t defeat him, he believed that the next time when they met again, he would become stronger.


    However, he also acknowledged Yi Tianyu''s strength. He was the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He was born to be the Supreme. If he had been easy to defeat, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would not have been which it was.


    At this time, the blood in his body was boiling, and his life force was fluctuating. Gu Dongliu''s injury was not slight, either. If he continued to fight, he was not sure if he would win, and Yi Tianyu had no absolute confidence, either.


    This battle had to stop here.


    After all, the collision of the last strike, even for themselves, was not controllable. If they fought again, no one knew what the end would be.


    After they returned, the space became quiet again.


    Warriors of Haotian City looked toward those powerful figures. They were the ones who would decide how everything would turn out.


    The Lord of the Heavenly Penalty Palace and the Divine General of the Heavenly Mandate''s Dynasty did not speak. They stood there quietly, but an extremely depressing atmosphere formed between the sky and the earth, making people feel extremely uncomfortable.


    Heaven and earth once again fell into a dead silence, but it was even weirder this time. The previous silence was due to the end of the battle between the two peak figures. Then, what was it this time?


    No one said anything. Those big figures didn''t speak, so everyone else also had to shut up.


    At this moment, Gu Dongliu passed by the two Lords of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The Lord of Jiang Clan nodded at him, and then he looked up at the void sky in the distance and said, "Since you two have arrived, why do you hide?"


    Many warriors trembled when they heard what the Lord of Jiang said.


    Arrived?


    And they were two people.


    Just for a moment, a thought came to people''s minds and made their hearts tremble.


    Who else besides those two giants could attract the attention of the two Lords of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and watch the fight in the dark?


    At this moment, the oppressive atmosphere became stronger. It was as if the source was here.


    Many people''s hearts thumped fast. They looked up at the sky, which seemed to have turned into a world of thunder. In the endless thunder, there seemed to be a Thunder Shrine, inside of which a figure was standing with his hands behind his back. He had a distinguished bearing.


    He was the Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    "This..."


    Countless people looked up at the sky. Did he turn the vast and endless world into a world of thunder? With a single thought, the world was turned into that of doomsday.


    The other person was standing in another location. He was like a deity, with his whole body fully bright, and his majesty incomparable. He was like the King of all beings.


    He was hailed as the most powerful person in the Heavenly Mandate Realm��the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    These two supreme powers came at the same time. They had been quelled by Gu Tianxing in the Origin Mountains and got some injuries. Now it seemed that they had recovered very well and could directly come to Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Forceful life forces rushed into the clouds from the Celestial Gate, and countless beams of immortal light were released, shrouding the void sky.


    The Lord of the Jiang Clan looked up at the two in the sky and said, "What is your matter?"


    "We are here to ask for a person," the Violet Heavenly Palace Lord said.


    "I am afraid that Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven does not have the person you want," the Lord of Jiang responded.


    "In the past, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had betrayed Gu Clan, so why should you let the descendant of Gu Clan return now? Since we have even come here in person, please hand him over to us. We don''t want to fight against the Celestial Gate again," the Violet Heavenly Palace Lord said. There was a sense of threat in his calm voice.


    Moreover, he also said that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had betrayed the Gu Clan in the past, which was devious. He was trying to alienate the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven from Gu Dongliu. Even though Gu Dongliu did not believe their statement, if they repeated it many times, it would still leave a crack in his heart.


    "You seem unwilling to come. Why are you still here? Please go back," said the Lord of the Jiang Clan.


    Boom! Over the sky, the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty took a step forward and pressed downward with infinite and supreme majesty. Behind him, many Renhuang-level warriors also stepped out. With just one step, they made the sky tremble, and countless people in the lower sky felt a real sense of death.


    Many people trembled slightly.


    Was the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty ready to start a war?


    "What if I will take him away anyway?" the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said arrogantly, his voice shrouding the endless void sky. Many people stared at him, and the sense of killing emitting from his body made the world feel that he might really start a war here.


    Not only that, but after Yi Tianyu retreated, he actually left from behind the crowd under several Renhuang figures'' escort.


    Did everyone guess it wrong?


    People''s hearts beat faster. Did they send Yi Tianyu away in advance in order to prepare for the war?


    Boom... The light of thunder engulfed the void sky and kept radiating out, covering the whole Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven under the glare of thunder.


    "The Violet Heavenly Palace will not see a second Gu Tianxing emerge," said the Heavenly Palace Lord. These two supreme-level figures both launched an attack in person.


    The destructive Laws of Thunder continued falling down. The Renhuang figures behind him followed, and at the same time, stomped down, crushing the sky dome.


    "Let''s go," someone said. Warriors below felt something unusual. Were they going to start a war?


    Once the war began, not to mention themselves, the entire city would be affected, and even disasters would befall all cities around.


    People started to panic, and many were preparing to evacuate.


    Everyone had emitted a sense of war.


    The Lord of Jiang Clan looked up above the void sky, then fell his gaze on the Lord of Hua Clan and the warriors behind him. He said, "In the war of that time, we chose our own interest, so we comprised on some things. Today, after almost a hundred years, it''s time we take these things back."


    In that battle, the Gu Clan was exterminated. They "betrayed" Gu Clan, which led to the Gu Clan''s destruction.


    What about today?


    Would they repeat history, hand over Gu Dongliu, and sacrifice this last descendant of Gu Clan, who was also the most promising and talented figure of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?


    "Disciples of the Celestial Gate, who wants to fight?" the Lord of the Jiang Clan shouted, his voice spreading across the Celestial Gate.


    In the immortal gate, celestial light was blooming. Dazzling Renhuang celestial matrixes were launched, and countless warriors stepped into the void sky.


    "I want to fight."


    "I want to fight!"


    "..."


    Voices came from everywhere in the space. A horrifying aura was formed in the entire Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    "Disciples of the Celestial Gate will never stop fighting until the last one of us dies," the Lord of the Jiang Clan continued. At that time, only Gu Dongliu survived.


    Now, they would not stop fighting until there was only one last person left.


    "We want to fight," at this moment, below Celestial Gate, a group of warriors rose up. They were the Wang Clan, who had just wanted to set foot in the Celestial Gate.


    "I want to fight," in the distance, gradually more figures rose up and shouted. Gradually, countless warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven surrounded warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The power of the whole city shared the same belief.


    An invisible force was formed. The faith of the whole city overwhelmed the world.


    Even the two giants��the Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��felt the pressure.


    Power of the whole city.


    Ye Futian stood among the crowd, and he was slightly touched by this scene. This battle had historical roots for the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but it was also a battle for the third brother.


    A weak faith was the reason for every defeat.


    Today, although Gu Dongliu was not the ruler of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, he could be called the hope of Haotian City!

 1460 Stay Here Quietly

    The forces of Haotian City, large or small, had all stepped out, one after another. At that moment, people began to understand why The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was said to be The Celestial Gate of Haotian City.


    Perhaps it was because the words of The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven Gate Lord triggered people. At that time, the Gu Clan died for the Celestial Gate and fought until only Gu Dongliu was left. Now, they were in the same situation. Only when there was one man could they cease the war.


    This reminded people of Haotian City how glorious the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was in the era of Gu Tianxing, and how prosperous the Haotian City was at that time. No matter where they went, they all were all proud to be a member of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    If the Celestial Gate collapsed, then there would be no Haotian City in the world. Haotian City would be ruled by the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. From then on, they would become vassals, and the forces would not have the status as they had today, nor would they have the opportunity to enter the core of the Celestial Gate. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was an imperial alliance where they would not be allowed to be in charge.


    Of course, it might also be because of Gu Dongliu''s fight, from which they saw his determination and hope for the future.


    Perhaps, he was really a character who could change the times, reviving the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and letting Haotian City return to the top of Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Moreover, this time, it seemed that not only Gu Dongliu but Gu Dongliu''s younger brother Ye Futian was also extraordinary.


    The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace Lord frowned slightly. The faith of all beings could be very powerful. When all people had one faith, they could produce a superpower, which resonated with the Great Law. Their Will shrouded the boundless void sky and could even see the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Crown Prince��Yi Tianyu��,who was preparing to leave.


    Seeing many warriors around Yi Tianyu, forces of Haotian City deployed troops occupying their nearby locations and didn''t show obvious intention to target them.


    However, as long as the war started, they would definitely do something to Yi Tianyu.


    Since the two major forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were coming to attack the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, this storm would be a real war.


    Silence permeated the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and the repressive atmosphere shrouded everyone''s heart.


    Those external top forces stood in different places and watched everything happening. If the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace wanted to forcibly attack the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, they would suffer heavy losses, too. Even if the two forces were really able to exterminate the Celestial Gate, they would also have to lose a lot of vitality.


    What''s more, there was a celestial matrix inside the Celestial Gate, which was the main battlefield of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    This war probably would not happen.


    "Do you really want to protect him, even at the expense of the Celestial Gate''s destruction?" the Heavenly Mandate Dynastic Overlord asked. His voice was cold, and he stood in the upper sky like a god as if he might hit the Celestial Gate at any time.


    "Do you need me to repeat it again? The Celestial Gate will stop fighting only after there is only one person left," the Lord of the Jiang Clan responded. "What''s more, are you sure you can destroy the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven? Even if the Celestial Gate collapses, perhaps then it will be your turn to decline."


    "I only need Gu Dongliu." The voice of the Violet Heavenly Palace Lord contained thunder, trembling in the eardrums of every warrior.


    "How about I give Gu Dongliu to you, and you leave the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Supreme Form of the Great Path of Violet Heavenly Palace here?" the Lord of Hua Clan also said. Just one person?


    How could they hand over this person?


    Could the Dynastic Overlord hand over the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?


    Could the Violet Heavenly Palace hand over Zhan Yuan��their Supreme Form of Great Path?


    "Do you want to fight or not?" asked the Head of the Wang Clan, seeing that they were silent.


    The Dynastic Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty glanced at him and then said coldly, "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven did not keep their promise in the past and took the descendant of the Gu Clan back to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. You should always remember what you have done."


    Immediately after these words, the overwhelming life force of sky and earth quickly dissipated. And when the divine light dispersed, the figure in the void sky stepped away.


    At the same time, the light of thunder also dispersed, and the Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace also left.


    The two giants disappeared directly.


    At this moment, the entire city of Haotian seemed to relax, and everyone''s heart settled down.


    Finally. They were not ready to go to war.


    They were also afraid, fearing they would repeat everything of that year and weaken the strength of the Heavenly Dynasty. Their vitality would be greatly hurt, and at that time, and other forces would benefit from it.


    At that time, the battle made the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty fall from its peak, but it was still slightly stronger than other forces over the years. However, if it experienced such a war again, the Heavenly Mandates could not afford it.


    In fact, today, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace came to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven for a gamble.


    The previous battle and the appearance of the Dynastic Overlord and the Palace Lord, in the end, were all parts of the game. Once the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven lost, the consequence would be disastrous.


    However, it was clear that during this game, Gu Dongliu and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven both showed strong determination, which led to the withdrawal of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Heavenly Palace from Haotian City.


    Their bodies flickered in the air, and the warriors of both sides retreated like tides and soon disappeared into the void sky.


    This grand storm also came to an end.


    However, perhaps today was just the beginning. Later, the undercurrent of conflict would surge in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. At least the clash between the two sides had intensified, and the battle between Gu Dongliu and Yi Tianyu officially announced the direct confrontation of the two peak forces.


    No one knew exactly when this storm would completely break out, but everyone knew its final result would directly affect the political geography of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Was this the change of Heavenly Mandate predicted by that demon prophet?


    But the people of the Celestial Gate were still there. Warriors in Haotian City looked up toward the ladder. The Lord of Jiang Clan stepped forward, saluting the world as he said, "There was an agreement between Jiang Clan, Hua Clan, and Gu Clan during the battle at that time. The Gu Clan was facing extermination, and I promised Gu Tianxing that if there was a chance in the future, I would make the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven prosper again at all costs. Gu Tianxing was able to leave alone at that time, but for the safety of the Celestial Gate, he made his own choice. Now, I have also made my choice, and I will never regret it.


    "People of the Celestial City who are unwilling to intervene, I respect your decision. For those of you who are willing to fight with the Celestial Gate, when the Celestial Gate returns to its peak, we will alter the order and determine how to inherit the Celestial Gate''s Mystical Ways," the Lord of Jiang Clan said loudly. All the people of Haotian City were able to hear his voice.


    Many people were deeply touched. Today would be a turning point for the Celestial Gate.


    Whether it would be destruction or rebirth was unknown.


    "I see many people from forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm are still here. If you are willing to come to visit the Celestial Gate as friends, welcome," the Lord of Jiang Clan continued. These warriors just cupped hands and bid farewell. Nobody went to the Celestial Gate.


    The situation of opposition had been formed, and some of their behavior could easily cause misunderstandings, not to mention entering the Celestial Gate. They didn''t want to be involved.


    Only Ye Futian and his party walked towards the Celestial Gate with no fear.


    The Divine Elephant Clan was his background, but he was not a warrior from the Divine Elephant Clan. Therefore, he did not represent the stand of the Divine Elephant Clan. However, if the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet heaven palace wanted to lay a hand on him, they had to consider the Divine Elephant Clan''s position.


    "Thank you, sir." Ye Futian walked to the Lord of the Jiang Clan and saluted.


    His "thank you" was on behalf of his Third Brother. If the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had not been determined, they would never let go of the Third Brother. The top giants showed up on the scene just to persuade the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to hand him over. If the Celestial Gate had quivered, Third Brother would not have been safe.


    "My young friend Ye defeated the nine strongest warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. I should be the one to thank you first," the Lord of Jiang Clan said with a smile. He was also happy that Gu Dongliu could have such a brother. This young man had extraordinary talents and could, one day, definitely stand at the top.


    "Let''s go to the Celestial Gate," the Lord of Jiang Clan said, and the whole group started heading toward the Celestial Gate. Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu walked together.


    "After today, Ye will still have to be careful," the Lord of the Jiang Clan reminded him. Although the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did not dare to do anything to Ye Futian openly, the Heavenly Mandate Realm was too big. It had too many powerful people, and they might use some special approaches.


    "I understand," Ye Futian said and nodded.


    "During this time, Ye, you can cultivate in the Celestial Gate," the Lord of Jiang Clan said.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded and did not refuse.


    His cultivation of the Mystical Way also needed to stabilize for a while.


    "I see that your relationship with Qin He of Brahma''s Pure Sky seems unusual. If you can get shelter from the Brahma''s Pure Sky Lord, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Violet Heavenly Palace will probably not dare touch you," the Lord of Hua Clan beside them said.


    The Lord of the Jiang Clan had told him that Gu Dongliu didn''t want to marry, so he wouldn''t force him, but now many people were spreading rumors about Ye Futian and Qin He. If they had feelings for each other and got together, it would be helpful for Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu.


    Previously, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty also had this idea and wanted to seek marriage with the Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    It was not an unspeakable thing, just icing on the cake.


    Xia Qingyuan beside them heard those words and was stunned. The sparkle in her eyes changed.


    She sighed secretly to herself. He was a person born to be extraordinary, destined to leave other people behind. When they were in Emperor Xia''s Realm, she was able to help him, but now, she could only act as a sidekick.


    There would always be better people around him, either herself or Qin He.


    In the future, there might be even better women around him.


    Maybe, she shouldn''t have had any thoughts in the first place.


    Some people were destined to be missed.


    "Qin He and I are just friends. We are not like the rumors say," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "If so, just let it be. But Qin He, as the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky, must be very outstanding in all aspects," the Lord of Hua Clan whispered. Ye Futian said nothing. His relationship with Qin He was too distant, and he had no such thoughts.


    The crowd gradually dispersed, and soon people all left. Xia Qingyuan walked alone toward the direction of the cloud sea.


    Ye Futian was talking with Gu Dongliu. He noticed Xia Qingyuan walk towards that side, stop on the edge of a mountain peak above the Celestial Gate, and stand there quietly, watching the sea of clouds.


    "What happened?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I want to go back to the Emperor Xia''s Realm," Xia Qingyuan said softly.


    "Okay," Ye Futian said with a smile, nodding. Xia Qingyuan looked up at Ye Futian. This b*stard��


    "Are you planning to leave now? How do you plan to go back?" Ye Futian said with a smile while Xia Qingyuan stared at him coldly.


    Xia Qingyuan froze. Suddenly, she realized her problem. How could she go back?


    Could she go back with her plane as it was?


    Here was the Heaven Mandate Realm��one of the Nine Supreme Renhuang Realms��and it was even difficult to return to the Crimson Dragon Realm by herself.


    Seeing the smile on Ye Futian''s face, Xia Qingyuan stared at him fiercely.


    Ye Futian smiled and shrugged, saying, "I don''t know how far away it is from Emperor Xia''s Realm, but I suggest Your Highness should stay here."


    Ye Futian patted Xia Qingyuan''s shoulder, then walked away. Seeing him leave, Xia Qingyuan said coldly, "Ye Futian, you b*stard!"


    "Is this the first time Your Highness has realized it?" Ye Futian said carelessly and left. Seeing the receding figure, Xia Qingyuan didn''t know if she should laugh or cry!

 1461 New Hope

    Xia Qingyuan cursed Ye Futian quietly in her heart, but Ye Futian, who turned around and left, also had a bitter smile on his face.


    Over these years, Xia Qingyuan had been accompanying him since they were Emperor Xia''s Realm, and she had helped him a lot. She had gradually changed from the quarrelsome princess to what she was now. Recently, Xia Qingyuan no longer quarreled with him and just stayed quietly beside him.


    How could he not understand her feelings? But in most situations, he could just act silly. He seemed careless, which gave Xia Qingyuan some hope, but in fact, he just had no idea what to do. He didn''t know what to deal with the relationship between him and Xia Qingyuan.


    It was impossible that he didn''t have feelings for her at all. The cold and proud princess had sacrificed a lot for him, and he knew it. But before all, he came to the Supreme Path Realm to find Jieyu.


    He was very clear, and Xia Qingyuan knew it, too. So, in fact, both of them had never thought about other things before. Even though Xia Qingyuan had feelings for him, she would just bury it in her heart.


    But recently, he asked people of Brahma''s Pure Sky about Jieyu twice, and the answers he got made him a little bit unwilling to face reality, and even want to escape from it. He and Xia Qingyuan both knew that all they were doing might be nothing but his illusion. Jieyu was no longer alive.


    Until then, something had changed in Xia Qingyuan''s heart.


    However, it was a bit difficult for him to completely forget Jieyu and stay with Xia Qingyuan. Perhaps, the relationship between them was still a bit distant. Unlike her, Jieyu had been with Ye Futian since they were both young. They had spent the most beautiful years of their lifetime together, and everything between them was natural but also unforgettable.


    However, if he just told Xia Qingyuan to leave, it would be a bit too cruel, so he could only act silly, perhaps, to give both sides more time.


    Above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the celestial mist was everywhere. This was the real celestial land, and the whole Celestial Gate was shrouded in the immortal air.


    Ye Futian would temporarily stay in the Celestial Gate for cultivation; Yu Sheng went to the Dragon God Clan; Ye Wuchen went to the Wang Clan to cultivate in Mystical Ways; the Sword Saint also cultivated the Demonic Sword over the Celestial Gate; Xia Qingyuan chose to cultivate alone in the sea of clouds.


    Now, for Xia Qingyuan, she had no option but to make herself stronger.


    The hazy sea of clouds was like a paradise on earth. A black and white lotus appeared over Xia Qingyuan''s body, being refined, blooming and fading as if it was undergoing reincarnation again and again. There were two distinct life forces flowing around her body, which were two kinds of wills that were even totally incompatible.


    One was the Wills of Life, for living forever.


    One was the Wills of Death, for terminating life.


    But now, life and death��these two opposite forces��appeared in her body at the same time, permeating the space.


    During the storm in the Origin Mountains at that time, she experienced a catastrophic disaster and almost lost her life. Ye Futian took her into the abyss and guarded her so she could survive in that horrible situation.


    But then she was blessed by the misfortune. From the dangerous situation, she understood the will of death, which was the opposite of the Will of Life.


    There was great horror between life and death. Now she understood the wills of life and the will of death, these two Paths, which she thought might refine her cultivation.


    In front of another cliff in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, there was also a place full of clouds and mists. Ye Futian was sitting there quietly and seemed to have entered a state of self-oblivion. There seemed to be a faint sparkle blooming from his body, making his perception extremely powerful. It made his thoughts blend into the world.


    His soul was roaring, into the sea of clouds that suspended in the air, into the white clouds that flew above the sky, into the omnipresent wind between the sky and the earth. Everything was so clear. It was as if he didn''t need to use his eyes but was able to see this world more clearly, and more real.


    He had a faint feeling of detachment as if he had detached from all forms of existence, detached from everything. It was as if his life would be sublimated.


    The so-called Mystical Way was used when the cultivator''s thought merged into the sky and the earth and resonated with them, thus emanating the celestial power.


    Behind Ye Futian, a figure of spiritual soul showed up. It perceived the Great Path Wills of the sky and earth. His perception spread toward the distance, and his celestial spirit seemed to be able to see extremely distant places and continuously extended outward. Ye Futian felt like his soul had left his body, and his whole person was in nothingness, but now he seemed to be able to see more clearly about all the Laws in the world.


    He could resonate with the world with the change of just one thought.


    His figure of nothingness lingered between the sky and the earth, continually drifting away, and even came out of the Celestial Gate.


    At this moment, Ye Futian seemed to perceive something. In the nothingness, the soul shadow looked up at the sky, where there seemed to be a similar life force.


    He looked curiously over there, but the next moment, his body of nothingness trembled violently, and Ye Futian''s heart also thumped hard with it.


    He could actually perceive the existence of another figure of nothingness as if it was right in front of him.


    If that had been all, he would not have been surprised, but he couldn''t be more familiar with that face of the figure.


    His heart shook violently. It was as if he had been hit by something. He released his thoughts madly, and in the nothingness, he looked at that gorgeous figure, his eyes moist.


    "Jieyu," Ye Futian murmured. Jieyu. She was still alive.


    Vroom. In the nothingness, the illusory soul disappeared instantly as if it had never shown up.


    "Jieyu!" Ye Futian shouted, his eyes suddenly wide open. He stood up and ran to the place where she had stood.


    However, there was only endless nothingness. Nothing was there, not to mention a figure like Jieyu.


    "It is impossible..." Ye Futian yelled in his heart. He could not have been wrong. It was absolutely impossible.


    Jieyu left in the form of a spiritual soul, so was she still alive in the form of soul today?


    However, since she was alive and had already come, why should she leave again?


    "Jieyu!" he called. Ye Futian''s eyes became extremely sharp. It was as if he could see through the nothingness. He started to run and chased in one direction.


    Was it a dream or his fantasy?


    He didn''t believe that he would not be able to distinguish between reality and illusion when he had reached such a high cultivation level. Unless it was a very powerful illusion attack, he could not have hallucinations.


    So, it was most likely that it was really Jieyu.


    Jieyu. She was still alive.


    Must be alive.


    "Friend Ye." At this time, someone in the Celestial Gate saw Ye Futian and called him. However, Ye Futian went straight into the distance as if he hadn''t seen him.


    "What''s going on?" the people of the Celestial Gate asked each other, looking at Ye Futian in confusion.


    He seems to be chasing after something. Did anything happen? they wondered.


    Ye Futian ran forward aimlessly. There had been no trace of Jieyu at all, but he just went ahead according to his feelings. In the state of the celestial soul, his perception was unprecedentedly powerful, and that feeling was also so terrifyingly keen that his eyes could even capture bodiless beings.


    Soon, Ye Futian stepped out of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and continued moving in one direction. His speed was very fast, and he didn''t stop at all.


    After a while, Ye Futian looked ahead, and a strange look flashed in his eyes.


    Had he been wrong this time?


    He was too confident, but even in the Saint Plane, could he suffer from illusions?


    Maybe his perception was no longer as keen as before, or was it because he missed her too much?


    Ye Futian took a few steps forward and drifted down slowly without continuing chasing. After he arrived here, that kind of feeling seemed to have disappeared.


    He looked toward the palace in front of him. There were still people outside at this moment. They saw Ye Futian and saluted, "We are glad to meet Mr. Ye."


    "Glad to meet you, too, Goddesses," Ye Futian said and nodded slightly. "Have the Goddesses of the Brahma''s Pure Sky not returned yet?"


    It had been a while since the battle, but Brahma''s Pure Sky''s people were still here.


    So, he had run to where Brahma''s Pure Sky was stationed. Before, he had also lived here, so he guessed that he might have had a hallucination, and perhaps that kind of familiar feeling was because of this palace.


    He had lived here for a long time.


    "Not yet. Sister Qin has been waiting for Mr. Ye," a lady said, Ye Futian pointed at himself and said, "Is Miss Qin still here?"


    "I haven''t bid farewell to Mr. Ye yet, so of course I am still waiting," a gentle voice came. A stunning lady came near with a smile. It was Qin He.


    "That day, Mr. Ye directly entered the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and didn''t say goodbye, so I had to wait here for you. Now, finally, Mr. Ye comes out of the Celestial Gate, so I should bid farewell to you now," Qin He said. Her voice was extremely gentle, just like a spring breeze.


    Besides, her words did not go beyond courtesy, but she also showed her concern for Ye Futian at the same time. Even Ye Futian had to say that she was a bit "dangerous," enough to enrapture every top figure.


    "I didn''t say goodbye that day. It''s my fault," Ye Futian said. "I should apologize to Goddess."


    "Never mind. If you are interested, please come to Brahma''s Pure Sky one day and have a cup of tea with me," Qin He said, smiling. Ye Futian nodded slightly and said, "Absolutely."


    "Okay then, I should leave now."


    "I will see you out," Ye Futian said.


    "Thanks for your kindness, but I am afraid Mr. Ye must have a lot of things to do. I can leave with the people of my sect," Qin He said. Her voice was still gentle.


    "Goddess Qin, take care of yourself." Ye Futian didn''t say much but just cupped his hand and said, "Please."


    "Thank you, Mr. Ye. You take care, too," Qin He said.


    Ye Futian nodded, turned around, and left.


    After he left, Qin He returned to the palace and came in front of someone. The person in front of her was also an unusual lady. As Qin He��the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky��appeared in front of her, Qin He looked quite timid and just stood there without speaking.


    "Let''s return to Brahma''s Pure Sky," the woman said.


    "Aye," everyone nodded and answered. Soon this large group of people left by air!

 1462 The Dragon Abyss

    The land of the Demon Realm was vast and boundless.


    In the vast Demon Realm, the Origin Mountains was the birthplace of the Demon Realm. In addition to the Demon Metropolis, there were several other bustling areas in the Demon Realm.


    For example, the Celestial Dragon Eight Demon Cities City, including Purple-gold Dragon City, Azure Dragon City, Black Dragon City, Fire Dragon City, and Frost Dragon City, and other three form an extremely prosperous district in the Demon Realm. Eight dragon kings ruled the eight dragon cities.


    However, all the warriors in the Demon Realm knew that the ancestral land of the Dragon God Clan was not the Celestial Dragon Eight Demon Cities City, but the Dragon Abyss in their center.


    The Dragon Abyss was an incredibly vast area where many islands were floating in the air. Amid the floating islands, there was an endless abyss. Here, you could often see real dragons looming.


    The endless mountains and islands of Dragon Abyss were also called the Dragon God Mountain.


    Here was the true Holy Land of the Dragon Race, and those mountains were shaped like dragons.


    In this vast area of the Dragon Abyss, one could also see real adult dragons teaching young dragons to cultivate and travel through the mountains and abyss.


    At this time, in this area, two figures were walking in the air. One of them had horns on his head, wore a dragon robe over his body, and had a very strong demonic aura. Apparently, he transformed from a true dragon.


    The man next to him was burly and dressed in a black robe, with a majestic and cold temperament all over him.


    "Dragon Emperor Grandpa, who is this human?" At this time, a hundred-meter-long dragon circled up in the void sky and came in front of two of them. The dragon''s beard was long, but the dragon''s face looked quite immature. Obviously, this dragon was young in the dragon family.


    He was looking at Yu Sheng, wondering who this man was.


    "He is called Yu Sheng. He is here for cultivation," the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan said with a smile. Ye Futian said that he would send Yu Sheng to the Dragon God Clan for cultivation, and he agreed. If that guy was not willing to teach, he would teach Yu Sheng the power of Dragon Deity by himself.


    Since the Prophet predicted that the Heavenly Mandate Realm would change, he had to make some preparations in advance.


    "Where is Dragon Emperor Grandpa taking him for cultivation?" the young dragon asked curiously.


    "Kids don''t need to care about such things. Go cultivate," the old dragon said with a smile. He kept heading forward with Yu Sheng. The young dragon wobbled and circled down, somewhat depressed.


    There were very few humans here.


    These two figures kept moving forward, and after they came to a place, they even went all the way down to the bottom of the Dragon God Mountain Area.


    Yu Sheng was a little confused, and when he looked down, he seemed to perceive a terrifying life force from it.


    "Here, this area is the forbidden place of our dragon clan," the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan said to Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng was even more puzzled. Since it was a forbidden area, why did he bring him here?


    Could it be that the person who the Dragon God Clan wanted to teach him stayed here in the forbidden area?


    With confusion, Yu Sheng went deep into the abyss with him. Yu Sheng''s eyes narrowed slightly as he stared down. In the abyss, he felt an extremely intimidating demonic Will. It was as if it was everywhere in this land of the abyss.


    They went down deep into a place that looked like hellish space of the Demonic Law. It was like the underground of the Dragon Abyss, with many mountains inserted into this district upside down, which seemed to be the extension of the mountains above. Over these countless mountains, there were infinite chains. Each chain was made by divine weapons, reflecting extremely bright light.


    The infinite chains seemed all leading to one place.


    They stopped, and the big figure of the Dragon God Clan raised his head and looked in one direction. Yu Sheng also looked toward that side and saw a huge body curling behind the upside-down peaks. The twisted body was so huge that it wrapped more than ten peaks. The scene was very shocking.


    Its skull was immensely large, and even its eyes were larger than human bodies.


    The dragon scales on it were black, with a terrifying dark sheen.


    "A demon dragon," Yu Sheng murmured, staring at the front. It was definitely a giant-level demon dragon. What was even more shocking was that its huge body seemed to be wrapped with infinite chains. It was as if the endless chains on the peaks were all just used to lock its body.


    "I haven''t come to see you for a long time," the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan, who came with Yu Sheng, spoke to the locked demon dragon.


    The demon dragon''s huge eyes stared at him. His body circled upward, and he didn''t say anything.


    He had been here for over 300 years. It didn''t matter whether or not anyone came to visit him.


    Of course, 300 years was not too far away for him.


    "You must be bored of cultivating here for hundreds of years. I met a human cultivator outside who cultivated in the Demonic Path, so I brought him here and asked if you would accept him as a disciple and teach him."


    The powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan continued to speak, but the demon dragon seemed to have no interest. He took a glance at Yu Sheng and then looked at the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan and said, "I have no interest in teaching disciples."


    His voice was extremely deep. It had a slight sense of depression, which was quite horrifying.


    Yu Sheng stood there and could clearly feel a suffocating oppression. He didn''t know what crime the demon dragon had committed to keeping him locked here.


    "I know," the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan continued, "but he is a little different. It seems he was maybe destined to meet you. You can take a look at him first."


    "Why is he different?" the Demon Dragon said coldly, and his voice still had no fluctuation.


    "It''s hard to tell, but maybe you would be interested. Just take a look, and if you don''t have any interest, I will take him away," said the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan again.


    The demon dragon ignored him and just looked at him quietly.


    "I will get out first, and if you are not interested, you just let Yu Sheng go out by himself, and I will take him away," the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan continued. After these words, he rose into the air and left.


    Yu Sheng showed a strange look. Didn''t he worry if the demon dragon would hurt him?


    What exactly happened between the demon dragon and the Dragon God Clan? In their dialogue, there seemed to be no anger at all, and they both looked very calm.


    When the dragon saw him leaving, his huge eyes glanced over, Yu Sheng. Was it because his previous master was a human cultivator that he sent a human to follow him for cultivation?


    However, he was never interested in teaching anyone to cultivate; he only admired stronger power.


    "Go away," the demon dragon said to Yu Sheng. No matter how talented this human was, he would not be interested.


    Yu Sheng frowned when he heard what he said, a bit unhappy. The character of this demon dragon was a bit weird.


    "I should leave then." He didn''t say much and just rose straight up, about to leave.


    Since he didn''t show any interest, Yu Sheng was not interested in him, either.


    He didn''t need others to teach him to cultivate; he could do it alone.


    The demon dragon also noticed Yu Sheng''s dissatisfaction, and a look of contempt flashed across his huge eyes. He was just of the Saint Plane. How dare he show discontent?


    His sharp claw swept through the air, and suddenly, a rumbling sound came out. Yu Sheng immediately felt extremely strong pressure. He saw a huge demonic claw smashing down at him, crushing the void sky. The dark claw seemed to be transformed from a giant dragon claw, and the power was terrifying.


    "Not everyone is qualified to cultivate in Demonic Power," an indifferent and domineering voice spat out from the mouth of the demon dragon.


    Over Yu Sheng''s body, the demonic power roared and rumbled, and a gust of mighty demonic life force swept out. He stepped in the void sky, and the dark golden light circled around his body. Demon statues appeared behind him, and all the demons rushed out.


    A huge demon palm print blasted out and went straight toward that huge demonic claw. With a loud noise, the claw and the palm print collapsed at the same time.


    The scene made the dragon show a different color in his eyes. Although he deliberately controlled his power and wanted to give Yu Sheng a lesson, warning Yu Sheng that no one was qualified to cultivate in the Demonic Law, he thought it was still enough to crush Yu Sheng based on his Plane. However, Yu Sheng blocked it.


    The dragon''s huge eyes stared at Yu Sheng, and he felt somewhat familiar with the demonic airflow around Yu Sheng.


    Boom�� The huge body moved forward, and the chains made clanging sounds. His huge claw smashed down toward Yu Sheng as if the Might of Heavenly Law befell. Yu Sheng just felt suffocated and fixed his eyes on the claw approaching from the sky.


    This time, the demon dragon did not control his power. One could imagine how terrifying it was.


    The Demonic Might over Yu Sheng''s body snarled and roared, and many demon shadows appeared. But the smashing claw was like a devil''s claw, and the gap of their planes was too large to overcome. Yu Sheng could not even escape and was directly smashed down. He growled wildly, and his big eyes just stared at the other side.


    "How dare you resist. kid?" The demon dragon spoke coldly. His huge body approached, his eyes fixed on Yu Sheng, his claws exerted strength slightly. Yu Sheng was frantically struggling, but it was of no use.


    The claws were still exerting pressure. It was as if he wanted to crush Yu Sheng''s body. Yu Sheng stared at him coldly, the Demonic Might in his body reaching its max. He was on the brink of dying, so he had to use up every ounce of his strength, but even so, it was still useless.


    Boom�� A peerless demonic shadow appeared and used a pair of cold eyes, sweeping toward the other side. When demon dragon saw the demonic shadow, he was stunned first, and then his huge body shivered violently.


    Boom�� As the dragon''s body trembled more and more violently, the whole abyss seemed to be shivering. He let his claw loose, and when the shivering dragon saw Yu Sheng''s chilly gaze, he lowered his extremely proud head and kneeled down as if in worship.


    Boom�� The countless upside-down peaks of the abyss were still shaking. Outside of the abyss, the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan frowned. He looked around and saw the mountains of the Dragon Abyss were trembling. Many warriors of the Dragon Clan rose up and watched this scene in shock.


    This was... What happened?


    Roar!


    The dragon''s snarl rang through the sky and the earth. Many young dragons in the Dragon Abyss were shocked and dropped to the ground, and many adult giant dragons were also trembling and groveling. The whole bottomless Dragon Abyss seemed to be trembling at this moment!

 1463 Abnormal

    The sound of dragon snarling kept coming from the Dragon Abyss. Many Dragon Clan warriors headed toward the direction at the same time.


    The mountains were still trembling, and the dragon snarling lingered around the world for a very long time.


    This sound seemed to come from the forbidden area of the Dragon God Clan.


    It was rumored that a dragon that had sinned was imprisoned in the forbidden area of the Dragon God Clan. This dragon sinner was extremely talented, and at his time, he even had the opportunity to become the Head of the Dragon God Clan. His strength was extremely intimidating. According to the elders of the Dragon God Clan, his strength might not be less than the Head of the Dragon God Clan.


    As for what crime he committed, adult dragons all knew a little bit. After all, a true dragon had a long life, and the adult dragons had lived for many years, so they naturally understood what happened in the past. Some young dragons also had heard some rumors from their elders.


    It was said that he used to be the mount for a big figure at that time. When the serious accident happened in the Divine Prefecture, and he was directly detained in the forbidden area and had not been able to go outside until now.


    However, after hundreds of years of imprisonment, the sound of his dragon snarling came from the forbidden area. How could the Dragon God Clan not be trembling?


    Outside the forbidden area, the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan, who came with Yu Sheng, was standing there, his eyes looking down, full of confusion. What happened?


    Many huge demon dragons heard the sound and came from the sky, all looking over.


    The echo of the dragon snarling gradually dissipated, and many huge eyes were looking at the Forbidden Abyss.


    However, at this moment, a voice came from the silent forbidden area, saying, "Starting today, I will start to guide his cultivation here. Don''t disturb me."


    The sound coming from the abyss resonated in the void sky, which made many of dragon warriors tremble. Who would be guided by him in cultivation?


    They didn''t know what happened.


    "Good." The powerful figure of the Dragon Clan, who came with Yu Sheng, nodded. Did this guy finally agree to accept disciples after being silent for more than 300 years?


    It was a good thing. It seemed that Yu Sheng indeed had potential.


    Otherwise, that guy would not have had such a strong reaction.


    Or maybe, from Yu Sheng, he might have seen a trace of that person.


    The powerful figure did not have much contact with that person and was not very familiar with him. Still, when he saw Yu Sheng''s aggressive demonic attack and outstanding talent, he thought Yu Sheng might be related to the demon dragon, so he brought him here.


    Now, it seemed that his judgment was correct.


    "Nobody is allowed to stay here! You shall not approach the forbidden land," he looked up and shouted at warriors of the Dragon God Clan. Immediately, warriors of the Dragon God Clan circled upward, and their huge eyes still stared down. They soon left with unhappy expressions.


    They were driven away before they figured out what happened.


    But since this spot was a forbidden area, they didn''t dare to break in at will. It was said that that elder dragon who was locked there was extremely ferocious. They dared not provoke him.


    After the warriors had left, the powerful figure of the Dragon God Clan took a deep look down, and then his body flickered, and he also left.


    Yu Sheng was good at using demonic power, and the person the old dragon followed at that time should have also been proficient in human demonic cultivation methods.


    And, since he had brought Yu Sheng here, he could also teach him the power of Dragon Deity.


    He didn''t need to worry about everything here.


    In the future, there would inevitably be one more top figure in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Things that would happen in this young generation must be exciting.


    After he left, the demonic cloud over the forbidden ground kept rolling and restored its former silence.


    Beneath the rolling demonic cloud, no one knew what had happened deep in the abyss, and they would never know that the fierce demon dragon of the Dragon God Clan was kneeling on the ground and worshipping a weak human cultivator.


    ...


    Time flew, and Yu Sheng had stayed in the forbidden Dragon Abyss of the Dragon God Clan and cultivated for a while. Ye Wuchen was cultivating in Mystical Ways in the Wang Family of Vast Heaven City, while Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan cultivated above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    During this time, the Heavenly Mandate Realm seemed extraordinarily calm, but there was also a rising undercurrent beneath the seemingly calm surface.


    Soon, Year 10030 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar had arrived.


    It had been two years since Ye Futian and others came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. In the past two years, it seemed like a lot of things had happened. It was like a dream.


    During this period, another major event happened in the Vast Heaven Dynasty. It was said that when warriors of the Vast Heaven went to their ancestor''s mausoleum to worship, they discovered some secrets left by their ancestors. However, the details were not clear, and further information was blocked by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Probably, only insiders knew something.


    However, according to the rumors from the outside world, this time, the discovery from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty might be extraordinary and might even greatly improve the strength of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Now, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had deployed its imperial warriors in sequence to the land of Imperial Ancestors Mausoleum.


    This had made many people aware of the opportunity, and many top powers also wanted to pry for more information.


    After all, if the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty became stronger, it would directly affect the situation in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and also affect themselves.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven should be the most disturbing one. After all, in such a sensitive period, if the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty became stronger, it would be a disaster for The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Many people were paying attention to the updates of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was as calm as before, without any response.


    However, something seemed to be going on in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    On this day, many warriors appeared in front of the Palace Hall of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty; they seemed to be waiting for something. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Crown Prince Yi Tianyu was also there. If other people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm saw this scene, they would be very suspicious. In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, who was worthy of waiting for the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?


    Perhaps, there were not many people.


    After a while, a dazzling beam of divine light descended over the void sky, and a ray of light shone down from above. The next moment, a group of figures appeared out of nowhere at the front of the main hall of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was heavily guarded, but now, none of the warriors stood up. It was as if they had already known these people would come.


    All the people in this group looked extremely outstanding, especially those in the front row. They were also very young. Although their life forces were very strong, they would not be grown-ups for a long time.


    Seeing them show up, a smile cracked across Yi Tianyu''s face. He walked ahead, and all the warriors behind him followed.


    "I haven''t seen you all for a long time, and you still look great," Yi Tianyu said with a smile. The people behind him were all big figures of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and many of them were even Renhuang-level warriors, but they dared not neglect at this moment because they all knew where these people came from.


    "Brother Yi is the same. You are awesome," another person said with a smile.


    "Thank you all for crossing the Realm and coming here, brothers," Yi Tianyu said. It was clear that these people did not belong to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but were from other realms, But, of course, they were also from one of the Nine Supreme Realms.


    "I heard that Brother Yi was born in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Supreme Power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and used to be the King of Heaven Mandate Realm. I''ve been wishing to visit you, and now I have the chance. Please forgive us if we have disturbed you," another person said with a laugh. They used to cultivate in the same sect, which was an instruction simply for academics, but in fact, they were from different forces.


    Undoubtedly, even in the entire Nine Supreme Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, which Yi Tianyu belonged to, was also one of the top forces.


    "Of course not. This time we Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had a discovery in our Imperial Ancestors Mausoleum, so I invited all of you to come see if it might help our cultivation," Yi Tianchi said with a smile. As they talked, they walked forward. In front of the Hall Palace, armored sergeants were lined up on both sides, and the atmosphere looked extremely solemn.


    It seemed that although Yi Tianyu was extremely arrogant, he was not an unsociable person with no connection with others. Obviously, he made many friends when cultivating outside.


    "Let''s go and meet His Majesty first," someone suggested. Since they had come here, they must first visit Yin Tianyu''s father, the Lord of Heavenly Dynasty. It was basic courtesy.


    "Father has been already waiting for you," Yi Tianchi said with a smile. He kept walking with them.


    They stepped onto the royal staircase and came to a towering temple below. There, they saw a figure standing on the staircase with his hands behind his back, smiling and looking at them, saying, "Welcome to our Heavenly Dynasty, my young friends."


    They stopped, all of them saluting the Lord of the Dynasty. They said, "We are here to salute you, Your Majesty."


    "You are all my son''s brothers, so no need to be excessively polite. Please take a seat," the Dynastic Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said with a smile. There was another important reason that he sent Yi Tianyu away, which was to let him associate with the best people. One would be more motivated to make progress only if he was surrounded by outstanding people.


    What happened in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty soon spread out and was known to the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    It didn''t take long for the world to finally know where Yi Tianyu had been sent to cultivate. At the same time, people were also amazed by the decision of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They even let outsiders enter the Imperial Ancestors Mausoleum, which was the Ancestral Land of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. What on earth did the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty discover there?


    They were even willing to share it with outsiders.


    Just when the news of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had not been fully digested, another supreme force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Brahma''s Pure Sky also had important news. Brahma''s Pure Sky showed the intention to invite warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm to go visit them, and they had even invited the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Some people had speculated that the Brahma''s Pure Sky intended to find a spiritual partner for Qin He, the First Maiden.


    The news caused an earthquake to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. What happened recently?


    So much sensational news came out one after another. When did Brahma''s Pure Sky take the initiative to look for spiritual partners for Saintesses?


    Never. The Saintesses of the Brahma''s Pure were holy and unparalleled, and none of the Goddesses of the Nine Skies were married.


    The First Maiden Qin He would become a Goddess of Nine Skies in the future and even one of Brahma''s Pure Sky''s successor, but now the Brahma''s Pure Sky was looking for a spiritual partner for her. Were they crazy?


    Could it be that Brahma''s Pure Sky wanted to arrange a political marriage?


    If Brahma''s Pure Sky had been the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and had been facing a crisis, people might not be surprised, but now it seemed that Brahma''s Pure Sky had not encountered any difficulties yet.


    So why did they do this? Unless the world guessed wrong... But if it was wrong, what was the reason for Brahma''s Pure Sky to do so?


    Everything was so abnormal!

 1464 Disciples of the Divine Palace

    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven naturally also got news from outside.


    Now, the undercurrent was rising in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and all the information was very sensitive. What happened to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Brahma''s Pure Sky today were significant events that might affect the political geography of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, so they could not ignore it.


    On the misty mountain peak, Ye Futian sat there, with many people around him. Gu Dongliu also came to his side.


    "Brother," Gu Dongliu walked to Ye Futian and said.


    "Third Brother."


    "You must have heard about the thing of Brahma''s Pure Sky, right? Just now, Brahma''s Pure Sky sent someone to invite you to go there," Gu Dongliu said. Ye Futian looked at Gu Dongliu and asked, "Brother, has Lord Jiang said why Brahma''s Pure Sky did this?"


    Before, the Brahma''s Pure Sky invited the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and now he was invited, too.


    Gu Dongliu shook his head and said, "Lord Jiang said that since the Empress established the Brahma''s Pure Sky, there has been no precedent for a Saintess to seek marriage. This time, no one knows the reason, and the only possible explanation is that the Empress is worried about the big change in Heavenly Mandate Realm and wants to seek an alliance through marriage to solidify Brahma''s Pure Sky''s position in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Maybe they want to survive in the changing Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    Ye Futian frowned slightly. Every move of the top forces now touched people''s hearts. Brahma''s Pure Sky''s abnormal behavior was very confusing.


    "I feel like it''s for you," at this time, a voice came from beside him. Ye Futian turned his eyes and saw Xia Qingyuan looking toward him.


    "Me?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Before, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty showed their attitude in seeking marriage, but the Brahma''s Pure Sky ignored it. Later, you and Qin He spent a lot of time together. Perhaps the First Maiden has fallen in love with you and wants to find an excuse to marry. They want to see what you think," Xia Qingyuan said coldly.


    Ye Futian looked at her with a strange look in his eyes.


    Xia Qingyuan saw him staring at her and asked, "What were you looking at?"


    "Your Highness may be right," Ye Futian whispered.


    "..."


    Xia Qingyuan blinked and looked at him.


    "Extremely shameless!"


    People next to them were also stunned. This guy was really cheeky.


    However, Ye Futian was thinking of something else. One couldn''t say that Qin He had fallen in love with him. They just spent a short time together. At best she had begun to like him. It was too rash to say love. After all, they had all reached the Saint Plane after many years of cultivation, and they were no longer in adolescence. Their states of mind wouldn''t change easily, and it was not so easy to like someone.


    However, he still felt that there was something behind it.


    For example, after that battle of Violet Heavenly Palace, although he defeated Zhan Yuan, he was not the most eye-catching person in the Heavenly Mandate Realm; the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had also been there. Why did Qin He treat him differently?


    Qin He made contact with him, and he still didn''t know the reason. He had stayed in the same palace with her. If this was Qin He''s style of doing things, then when Wang Yanbing and Yi Tianyu visited, why had she received them outside the palace?


    This meant that maybe it was not Qin He''s original intention. So what was the purpose of Qin He getting in contact with him?


    Xia Qingyuan indeed made him wonder if this incident would be related to him again.


    There was no logic in this guess. It was a very nuanced intuition.


    He faintly felt that things around the Brahma''s Pure Sky were like mist.


    "Third Brother, do you plan to go this time?" Ye Futian asked Gu Dongliu.


    "Let''s go to the Colloquy Palace first," Gu Dongliu said. Ye Futian nodded, and they walked in one direction. When they came to the Colloquy Palace, many warriors of the Celestial Gate were already here.


    Two elders of the Jiang Clan and Hua Clan were in charge of this matter. The elder of the Hua Clan fell his gaze on Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian. He said, "Ye, has Dongliu already told you?"


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded and replied.


    "This time, the Brahma''s Pure Sky sent an invitation. We were hoping that Dongliu could marry the Saintess of Brahma''s Pure Sky, or marry a Goddess in the future, but Dongliu said he had a wife, so we gave up the idea. Besides, he''d better not go out now," the elder of Hua Clan said. Now, Gu Dongliu''s identity was very sensitive, and he was worried that he would be assassinated.


    Although the probability was very low, they should always be careful.


    "The Saintess of Brahma''s Pure Sky��Qin He��is known to have an unusual relationship with Ye. Before, you also lived together in one palace. Now, the Brahma''s Pure Sky is probably choosing a spiritual partner for her. What do you think of Qin He, Ye?" the elder of Hua Clan continued.


    If the relationship between Ye Futian and Qin He could be taken a step further, it would definitely be beneficial.


    Ye Futian was a little speechless. He could understand the idea of the Celestial Gate. If he could be paired with Qin He, it would be of great benefit for the Celestial Gate.


    However, it would be impossible to be with Qin He.


    "Sir, Qin He and I are just friends. It''s not what you might have thought," Ye Futian said.


    The elder nodded slightly and said, "But even so, we have to do something. In any case, Qin He cannot be with Yi Tianyu."


    Everyone understood this. If the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty married the First Maiden of Brahma''s Pure Sky, it would be a disaster for the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Therefore, this situation could never happen.


    "Gu Dongliu can''t go this time, but Jiang Taichu, Hua Qingyun, and Ye, you have to take the trip," the elder of Jiang Clan said at this time. Even if Ye Futian could not be with Qin He, they had to stop Yi Tianyu.


    Therefore, they must take a trip to the Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Okay," Ye Futian nodded slightly and agreed without hesitation. He also wanted to see what the Brahma''s Pure Sky''s intention was and whether or not it was related to him as he had intuitively felt.


    "Thank you all for your effort," he said. They all nodded, and the elder said, "This matter should not be delayed. You should convene people and depart as soon as possible. You can go back and get ready now."


    "Aye," they answered. All of them exited the Colloquy Palace and went back to prepare.


    After a while, from above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, a beam of celestial light rushed straight into the sky, and a group of people rose up and headed into the distance.


    Their destination was the Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    ...


    Brahma''s Pure Sky was located in the northern part of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, far from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. One even would even pass the territory of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty going between two places. But obviously, those from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would avoid people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Otherwise, who knew what would happen.


    Now, there were powerful warriors everywhere in the Brahma Sky City. This city was the main city of Brahma''s Pure Sky District, which was under the direct control of Brahma''s Pure Sky. What happened in the city could hardly be hidden from them.


    What kind of figure was the Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress? Her mind could connect with the 3,000 Realms. The main city under the eyes of Brahma Sky City was within the coverage of her mind.


    No one ever had the thought about what to do here, and no one could lie to the Empress''s ears.


    Therefore, in this main city, everyone must obey the rules of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Recently, top figures from all sides of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had come here.


    During this time, Brahma Sky City was bustling.


    At this moment, in a restaurant in Brahma Sky City, a group of unusual people had come and rented the whole restaurant. Others could only watch from a distance, showing their admiration.


    This group of people all had superb temperaments. They sat in the restaurant and chatted. Cultivators standing around them in different locations were all Renhuang-level. They hid in different corners and closely supervised anything happening in this restaurant.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Crown Prince Yi Tianyu was in this restaurant. His companions were his brothers.


    "They are from the Divine Palace." People in the distance looked at them and talked with each other, excited. Now that the information about Yi Tianyu''s cultivation had been made public, it was no longer a secret where these people came from.


    They all came from other Supreme Realms, and they were all extraordinary figures.


    In that direction, a melody of the ancient zither came. It had strong penetrating power and flew into peoples'' ears, making them fully enter the mood of the zither music, which was an extremely beautiful scene.


    The restaurant was very quiet at this moment; people tasted the wine and listened to the tunes, quite relaxed, and content.


    The man who played the zither was handsome. He had an outstanding bearing. When he played the zither with two hands, he had an indescribable chic aura about him.


    The melody of the zither gradually shifted from soothing to intense, as if depicting a scene on the battlefield where there were countless metallic weapons and iron horses, and soldiers who had the spirit to conquer thousands of miles of sky. His potent spirit rushed into the sky as if he wanted to compete with heaven to see who was taller. The melody made people in the distance feel their blood boiling, agitated. He had not released his Music Magic yet, but his performance alone still had such a strong influence.


    For a long time, the music became peaceful again until it stopped.


    The music ended, and everyone in the restaurant seemed to wake up from the enchantment. One of them laughed and said, "Good."


    "Brother, your mastery of music has gotten the pith of Uncle-master''s skills. Few people in the Divine Palace can compare with you," a person smiled and praised. Everyone nodded.


    "No wonder you are the heir of the Divine Music Palace. Among my contemporaries in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, no one is comparable to you," Yi Tianyu also commented. The young man looked calm and didn''t show emotions. He put his hands down, looked up at Yi Tianyu, said, "However, someone has unraveled my Divine Sound Skill."


    "Is the man who cracked the Divine Sound Skill proficient in music?" a young man asked.


    Yi Tianyu shook his head. "The man has excellent talent, but he has not shown any musical accomplishments before. The reason why he could crack the Divine Sound Skill was because of his restraint in cultivation methods. The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven has extraordinary Mystical Ways. If you had been present, it had not been cracked."


    "A person ignorant of music could break the Divine Sound Skill... He indeed has something unusual. I never expected that there would be someone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm who could compete with you, Elder Brother. He must be extremely extraordinary," the young man continued. There were direct disciples and ordinary disciples of two types in the Divine Palace.


    These people were all direct disciples of the Divine Palace, whose names could be engraved on the stele of Divine Palace Disciples, which recorded these disciples'' life histories. Every one of them must be super talented. Otherwise, they would be demoted to ordinary disciples.


    And these people were all direct disciples. Among these direct disciples, Yi Tianyu was also an outstanding one, standing at the top of the ranks. Not many people could compare with him!

 1465 Invitation

    In Brahma Sky City, more and more warriors had arrived.


    Ye Futian and his companions from The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had also reached and found a place to stay in Brahma Sky City.


    This time, except for Gu Dongliu, the talented figures of the young generation in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were almost all here.


    Jiang Taichu of the Jiang Clan, Hua Qingyun of the Hua Clan, and Wang Yanbing of the Wang��these three most prestigious warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven��set foot in Brahma Sky City.


    In addition to them, there was also Ye Futian, Ye Wuchen, and others.


    Yu Sheng was cultivating in the Dragon God Clan of the Demon Realm, so he couldn''t come with them.


    However, this time, there were also many top figures from the Demon Realm. The Heavenly Mandate Realm would change, so now both humans and demon beasts had allowed the entrance of the other side and started to communicate with each other. Last time, human cultivators had entered the Origin Mountains of the Demon Realm, and since then, the demon cultivators of the top forces also had set foot in the human cultivation world from time to time.


    They must ascertain what level of strength human cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had.


    After Ye Futian arrived, warriors of the Dragon God Clan came to visit.


    Ye Futian met them in person, and he also wanted to know how Yu Sheng''s cultivation was going in the Dragon God clan.


    "Ye Futian is here to salute you, sir," he said. The Head of the Dragon God Clan was a Dragon Emperor with very unusual temperament. When he stood there, he looked tall and majestic. Next to him was the most talented figure of this generation in the Dragon God Clan��Long Chen.


    Long Chen was an overbearing Divine Dragon of Nirvana Plane, and he was a mutant of the Royal Purple-gold Dragon Clan��the direct bloodline of the Dragon God Clan. This kind of mutant was extremely rare in the Dragon God Clan, and only one case could appear every generation. Besides, a new mutant would show up only after the mutant of the previous generation passed away.


    This situation was extremely weird, and some people speculated that the mutation was too powerful and was envied by heaven, so only one case would be allowed to happen every generation.


    Long Chen was a mutant that had shown up many years. He didn''t go to the Violet Heavenly Palace last time, but this time, he officially came into the public eye and represented the Dragon God Clan.


    Many years ago, the Dragon God Royal family was called the Purple-gold Dragon Royal family, but later, a top figure of the Dragon God Clan mutated due to his cultivation. Mutation happened in the Dragon God Royal family, and that mutated figure vanquished all warriors of the Dragon God Clan in his peak period and defeated the old king. Soon, he was conferred as the new king of the Dragon God Clan. This mutation was an evolution of bloodline.


    Since then, whenever a new mutant showed up in the Dragon Divine Clan, he would be considered as the successor of the King of Dragon God Clan, and such a mutant was called the Purple-blood Divine Dragon in the Dragon God Clan.


    Long Chen was such a Purple-blood Divine Dragon. One could imagine how prestigious he was.


    Not long ago, the Dragon God Clan brought back a human cultivator who woke up the demon dragon. He had been silent for many years and caused the demon dragon to roar so loudly that the sky trembled, and the Dragon Abyss shook. Since then, the demon dragon began to advise the human in cultivation.


    In this regard, warriors of the Dragon God Clan speculated that the demon dragon might have encountered a very rare talent of Demonic Laws who was beyond his expectations, causing such a strong response.


    Yu Sheng��the rising star in the Violet Heavenly Palace��was likely to be underestimated. At that time, Ye Futian claimed that Yu Sheng''s strength was unparalleled, but all the people present at that time were top figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Although they acknowledged the power of Yu Sheng, no one really thought that Yu Sheng''s power was invincible.


    The roar of the demon dragon shook the Dragon God Clan. Everything that happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm recently gave the Dragon God Clan the hunch that the future would change. After Long Chen completed his cultivation, he also officially stepped out of the Dragon God Clan and came to the human cultivation world.


    At this time, Long Chen was looking at Ye Futian and Jiang Taichu. He had heard of Jiang Taichu when he was in the Dragon God Clan a long time ago, but Ye Futian had only gained fame recently and was a bit hit in the Heavenly Mandate Realm now.


    This human cultivator had been given very high praise, and many people even thought that he would become one of the giants in the Heavenly Mandate Realm if he didn''t die.


    "You''re welcome," beside him, the Dragon Emperor of the Dragon God Clan said to Ye Futian. "I am here today to tell you news about Yu Sheng. He is now cultivating in the Dragon Abyss, the Ancestral Land of the Dragon God Clan, and is being guided by a big figure of our Dragon God Clan. You don''t need to worry about him."


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and said, "since the Dragon God Clan took him there in person, I have nothing to worry about."


    He let Yu Sheng go because he knew that as long as the Dragon God Clan had the intention to help, Yu Sheng, with his domineering skills, would definitely attract their attention. Now the Dragon Emperor of the Dragon God Clan came here in person to inform him, which meant the dragon god clan warrior who was teaching Yu Sheng must be an important person with special status in the Dragon God Clan.


    However, warriors of the Dragon God Clan would not tell Ye Futian that the demon dragon had committed crimes and was imprisoned in the forbidden area of the Dragon God Clan. He had not been executed because the Dragon God Clan showed mercy, and so far, he was still a taboo to society. He could only be kept imprisoned in the Dragon Abyss, and perhaps, he would be there forever.


    "This is Long Chen of our Dragon God Clan," the Dragon Emperor introduced. Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun had been guessing the identity of the young man, but they were still slightly shocked when they heard his name. Was this the legendary Purple-blood royal Family successor? It had been hundreds of years since the death of that Purple-blood Dragon Emperor.


    "The Purple-blood Royal Family was the hereditary royal family of the Dragon God Clan. They were above all other dragons of the Dragon God Clan and were born to be kings," Wang Yanbing delivered his voice to Ye Futian to explain the origin of the Purple Blood Royal Family. Ye Futian also felt slightly surprised.


    Now, the top figures that had hidden in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were all coming out.


    "I am Ye Futian," Ye Futian said, slightly cupping his hands toward Long Yan.


    "I have heard about you for a long time," Long Chen said, slightly bowing his head to Ye Futian. Long Chen looked tall and extremely burly. Although he had been in the Dragon God Clan, he still knew something about the changes in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Especially with what had happened in the Origin mountains. If the Head had not dissuaded him for fear that something in the Origin Mountains might affect his safety, he would have been there.


    For the Dragon God Clan, the safety of Long Chen was the first priority. He owned the rare generational inheritance and was born to be the dragon king, so the Dragon God Clan didn''t dare to take it lightly.


    In the Demon Realm, the status of Long Chen and Jun of the Demon Sky Court was basically similar to the status of Crown Prince Yi Tianyu of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Gu Dongliu of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    "I am flattered," Ye Futian replied. With regard to Plane, Long Chen was of Nirvana Saint Plane, and Ye Futian should address him as an elder.


    "Let''s go in and sit down," a warrior of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven suggested.


    "No need. We just came here to tell you news about Yu Sheng, and we should leave now," the Dragon Emperor of the Dragon God Clan said and then bid farewell. Warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven did not ask them to stay and saw them out.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was willing to make friends with the Dragon God clan, but now the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was at the center of the storm, so the Dragon God clan might not be glad to be directly involved in it. They were willing to teach Yu Sheng, but it was completely different from the issue with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and Ye Futian knew this clearly.


    What was more, at that time, in the Origin Mountains, Gu Tianxing wanted to create a new king for the Demon Realm. But perhaps Long Chen was not convinced, so they could even be potential rivals.


    "Brahma''s Pure Sky requests to visit." Someone came to report after Long Chen left, which made the people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven quite surprised.


    "Please let them in," warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven said. Soon, a group of gorgeous figures came in. This time, the visitors from the Brahma''s Pure Sky were all young and beautiful ladies, with no Renhuang figures. And the person who led the group was Jinyi Saintess of Brahma''s Pure Sky, whom Ye Futian had seen before.


    "Jinyi is here to salute elders of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven," the Jinyi Saintess slightly bowed and said.


    "What brings Saintess here today?" asked a Renhuang figure of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    "Jinyi came to inform elders that after seven days, the Brahma''s Pure Sky Saintess Qin He will lead all Saintesses to set up the Xuantian Matrix in the Xuantian Pavilion of Brahma Sky City and welcome a challenge from warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Jinyi said. People of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven showed surprise.


    Would the Brahma''s Pure Sky''s First Maiden Qin He show up in person?


    And this time, she would directly test all cultivators'' strengths.


    Qin He would lead all the Saintesses of the Brahma''s Pure Sky to arrange a battle matrix.


    "Okay, I see," the Renhuang of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven said, nodding slightly.


    Saintess Jinyi looked up toward them, her eyes fixed on Ye Futian. She said softly, "Mr. Ye must go this time."


    Ye Futian froze, and his eyes revealed a strange look. Everyone turned around and looked at him. In fact, Saintess Jinyi did not need to remind him because he would have gone anyway, but her special request sounded very meaningful.


    "You can rest assured that I will be there," Ye Futian said and nodded.


    "Thank you. Then, I can go back and report my task," Jin Yi said and nodded with a smile, then she requested to leave and went away.


    After she left, everyone looked at Ye Futian.


    "It seems you felt right," Xia Qingyuan said. Apparently, she was referring to what they talked about last time: this event was probably because of Ye Futian.


    Now, the Saintess Jinyi of Brahma''s Pure Sky requested Ye Futian in person. Obviously, there must be a deeper meaning.


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "Although it feels right, it is not as simple as you think."


    Now, he had no idea what was hidden behind this thing. He felt as though he were in a mist.


    If it was understood on the surface, this time, the Brahma''s Pure Sky might want to choose a spiritual partner for Qin He. Qin He admired Ye Futian, but in fact, was it really so? Maybe not.


    Soon, top forces had all received the invitation from the Saintesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky. Suddenly, countless people in Brahma Sky City were discussing this matter.


    This time, the Saintess Qin He of Brahma''s Pure Sky personally led cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky to challenge cultivators of all forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    If so, everyone could then see what levels those young cultivators of the top forces were at.


    Since Qin He, the Saintess of Brahma''s Pure Sky, would be the one to lead people to arrange the Xuantian Matrix, it was obviously impossible for one single person to enter and challenge them. Qin He, as the First Maiden, was prominent and extremely powerful. If she was in charge of the Matrix, who could break it?


    This time, obviously, she meant to test the overall strength of young generations of the top forces!

 1466 Xuantian Pavilion

    After the news spread, all the warriors in the Brahma Sky City headed toward the same place��Xuantian Pavilion.


    Xuantian Pavilion was the cultivation place of Goddess Xuantian��one of the Nine Sky Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky in the Brahma Sky City. Court. The Xuantian Goddess of the first generation was conferred with the time here, and since then, Xuantian Pavilion had also become the place where Xuantian Goddess convened disciples.


    Xuantian Pavilion was located in the core of Brahma Sky City, with a staircase tens of thousands of feet long that stretched into the sky.


    Above the stairs of Xuantian Pavilion, one could see the endless area of Brahma Sky City with one glance.


    At this time, many restaurants below the Xuantian Pavilion were full. Numerous people had arrived beforehand and made the place extremely busy.


    Everyone had chosen their seat and waited to see this battle in Brahma Sky City.


    It was a sensation here in Brahma Sky City.


    Here, in a restaurant with a good view, people who occupied the top floor were all important people. They raised their eyes and looked at the Xuantian Pavilion towering into the distance where figures of the Brahma''s Pure Sky Goddesses could be roughly seen.


    They seemed to have just arrived.


    Although they lived in the Brahma Sky City, it was usually almost impossible to see warriors of the Brahma''s Pure Sky fighting with others. In this city, who dared to fight against Brahma''s Pure Sky?


    The First Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky��Qin He��was well-known in the Heavenly Mandate Realm for her stunning beauty, but no one dared to ignore her strength. Now, she would be in charge of the battle. How graceful her demeanor would be...


    Moreover, the people she would confront were also top warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Many people were even wondering if the battle had been arranged by the Empress or Qin He herself.


    No one knew the answer. Maybe both.


    If Qin He wanted to choose a spiritual partner for herself in this way, she would test the candidates'' real strength. In the world of cultivation, fighting was undoubtedly the best test method.


    Today, more and more people in Brahma Sky City came to believe that Brahma''s Pure Sky might be serious this time, and they were probably really choosing a cultivating partner for Qin He.


    "It is said that this time it is not only the top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm that have arrived but also top forces in the Demon Realm. Who do you think will break through the Xuantian Matrix and come to the Xuantian Pavilion to meet Qing He Goddess?" someone asked in the restaurant.


    "They should all have a chance," someone said. Hearing his words, suddenly, many people looked at the speaker, sneering, their eyes full of contempt.


    The young man saw peoples'' eyes and knew he had said something wrong. His face was burning a little, and he looked toward the elder figures at the same table.


    His elder also gave him a stare and said, "If Brahma''s Pure Sky wants to choose a spiritual partner for Saintess Qin He, many people will go all out for this battle. Do you know how powerful Goddess Qin He is, and how powerful the Goddesses below the throne of the Nine Skies are? They are jointly in charge of this large matrix, and it may even happen that no one of this generation in the Heavenly Mandate Realm can crack it."


    "But the people who came this time are also top figures. It shouldn''t be very hard for them, right?" the young man murmured. He seemed afraid of being laughed at, so he lowered his voice a bit.


    "It depends on how well they can cooperate. They are going to face the Brahma''s Pure Sky''s Xuantian Matrix in charge of many Saintesses. At present, no one knows how powerful it will be, but don''t forget what skills the Brahma''s Pure Sky excels at," the elder continued.


    "The Spiritual Soul attack," the young man replied. The peerless Empress of Brahman''s Pure Sky could read minds all over the 3,000 Realms.


    The Brahma''s Pure Sky''s attack power was also absolutely incredible nowadays.


    "Her Majesty hasn''t engaged in any combat for so many years. The world now only knows about her dazzling and unparalleled beauty but has forgotten how majestic Her Majesty was at that time," the elder said with emotion. Many people thought of the rumors of the past, feeling emotional.


    "Not long ago, in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, those warriors of Divine Palace from outside used the extremely powerful way of Sonic Wave��the Divine Sound. However, it was said that Qin He Goddess''s cultivation of the Great Brahma Heavenly Voice was also the top one below the Renhuang figures of Brahma''s Pure Sky."


    "The Great Brahma Heavenly Voice," many people murmured. The Brahma Pure Sky was not specialized in sound wave attacks, and the Great Brahma Voice actually was the power to attack one''s spiritual soul and disturb one''s mind. In cooperation with the Divine Sword of Cleansing, the Great Brahma Voice was almost invincible in killing spiritual souls. It was recognized as the strongest attack skill against spiritual souls in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    And now, all the Goddesses were at the Xuantian large matrix together, of which the power might be inestimable. People would only know it when they saw it for themselves.


    "Brahma''s Pure Sky is also good at the Way of Music?" at this time, a voice said. Although it was not very loud, it seemed to have a strange power, and many people could hear it clearly.


    They followed the voice and saw a group of figures coming from the void sky. Every one of them had an extraordinary temperament, and even though the people who followed behind didn''t release any life force, people all felt an invisible pressure from their glances. These people were all of Renhuang levels.


    They are all warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, people thought to themselves and felt stirred. The person who took the head must be Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Crown Prince��Yi Tianyu��and the people around him should be his brothers.


    Each one of them was a top-level figure.


    It was rumored recently that some excavations had been completed in the Ancestors Mausoleum of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and perhaps these people had become stronger.


    "The Great Brahma Heavenly Voice of Brahma''s Pure Sky is indeed the art of Music and aims to attack spiritual spirits. It is not a pure Music cultivation method," Yi Tianyu said. His brother came out of the Divine Sound Palace and was a direct disciple of the Palace Lord. His accomplishment in the Way of Sound was the best below Renhuang figures in the Divine Palace. As for in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, his ability in music should be unmatched.


    The young man nodded and smiled, saying, "If so, I am looking forward to it even more."


    "I also want to see what the proud lady who refused my brother looks like," a young man with a slightly mature look said with a smile. He was personable and was the most senior person from the Divine Palace. Even Yi Tianyu would address him as his elder brother.


    "Brother, don''t expose my scars," Yi Tianyu said and shook his head with a bitter smile. People around him saw this and looked surprised. It was said that the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was an extremely proud person, but now it seemed that the rumors were not completely true.


    Of course, perhaps only when he was in front of figures as outstanding as him, such as Brothers of the same Sect, the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate would be so humble. If he was facing outsiders, maybe it would be impossible.


    "But there are many sisters in the Divine Palace who admire you, and all of them are very talented and stunning women. But in the Divine Palace, you never thought about having a spiritual partner and just focused on cultivation. Now, you are back in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and have to participate in this. Probably, this is your family''s mission," his brother smiled and said.


    Yi Tianyu didn''t say anything. If it had not been for the family mission, he would have lived more freely.


    However, now the grudges of two generations had fallen on him, and he would naturally do his best to bring the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to an unprecedented height. This was his mission, and he would put his all into it.


    After doing all this, maybe he would pursue the supreme heavenly way as he wanted.


    The path was long and arduous, and he had a long way to go.


    At this time, there was the sound of the wind blowing coming from the void sky. Everyone looked up and saw light shining. Divine birds came down. The divine light of Golden Raven, the glory of Golden Peng Bird, and the aura of Phoenix shone at the same time. How glaring the sky and the earth was...


    Everyone saw this scene and immediately understood that warriors of the Demon Sky Court from the Demon Realm had arrived.


    "The life force is so strong," said a young man next to Yi Tianyu as he looked up to the void sky. All the divine birds in the group were of Saint Plane with extremely strong life forces.


    "You should have all heard of the cultivators of the Demon Sky Court of the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Yi Tianyu said. Everyone nodded. They all knew about the top forces in the Nine Supreme Realms.


    "It seems that this time, we will have a chance to see the most outstanding people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm," someone said with a smile, expectant.


    Although they came from the Divine Palace and were all top figures, they were not invincible, just like the top warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and they might not be stronger than them. Now, since they had the opportunity to cross the Realms and compete with other top figures, they were also looking forward to this chance.


    In the void sky, warriors of the Demon Sky Court glanced down with sharp eyes. In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Demon Sky Court was the top demon alliance and could be said to be the powerful force with most people and the only one. Even the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty couldn''t compete with them from this perspective.


    "The Dragon God Clan," someone said. In the distance, another group of people was approaching. They instantly attracted the eyes of warriors of the Demon Sky Court, including Jun''s. Jun''s eyes fell on one of them��Long Chen of the Dragon God Clan, the warrior who had shared fame with him in the demon world.


    After that, the Divine Elephant Clan, the Purple-gold Rat Clan, the Yingzhan Mountain, and other forces had gradually all arrived. Suddenly, the area around the Xuantian Pavilion was like a gathering of all top figures.


    "Jun, Long Chen, and the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynast have all arrived. Only Dongliu is not here!" people commented. Below the Xuantian Pavilion, countless people were looking up toward the warriors who appeared from different directions. The best warriors of both the human race and the demon race in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had all arrived except for Gu Dongliu, who was tied with Yi Tianyu. It was said that he would not show up.


    "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven has arrived," a voice said. Countless pairs of eyes looked toward one direction, where Ye Futian and his party showed up.


    At the forefront, Ye Futian, Jiang Taichu, Hua Qingyun, and Wang Yanbing��all of them��looked peerless. This lineup was terrifying.


    "The lineup this time is even more terrifying than last time during the Violet Heavenly Palace''s event," many people whispered, their hearts full of anticipation.


    Who could break through the Xuantian matrix led by Qin He, the first Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky?


    Yi Tianyu looked toward the direction of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and whispered, "They are here."


    "They?" people of the Divine Palace asked, looking over there. Then, they saw Jiang Taichu, Ye Futian, and others. Their temperament was indeed extraordinary.


    "The white-haired man broke the Divine Sound Skill," Yi Tianyu said. Suddenly, all of their gazes fell on Ye Futian, especially the best disciple of the Divine Sound Palace next to Yi Tianyu, who was staring at him with a pair of sharp eyes.


    "I would like to see what his ability is like, but let Brother break the Matrix first," the young man said calmly. The purpose for them to come here today was not only to see the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm but also to help Yi Tianyu!

 1467 Embarrassmen

    Ye Futian naturally had also seen Yi Tianyu and others, but he just took a glance at them and looked away.


    He did not expect that the charm of the First Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky would be so great that the lineup of warriors who came this time was even better than that in the Violet Heavenly Palace. Of course, so many events that happened recently might also make the situation in Heavenly Mandate Realm a little bit more intense, which was why cultivators of many forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had become more sensitive.


    At this time, many people looked up toward the direction of Xuantian Pavilion and saw Goddesses in long dresses descending from the sky and landing on different steps. They were all stunning beauties.


    Over the sky dome, there were constantly figures descending. They were like fairies first coming to the world of immortals, and they stood on the steps in different locations and looked tranquil.


    At the highest place, a peerless Goddess slowly fell with breathtaking beauty. She was the First Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky��Qin He.


    Qin He directly landed on the peak of Xuantian Pavilion. She sat on the ground, waving her hands, and an ancient zither appeared in front of her.


    Is it the Great Brahma Heavenly Voice? people thought and felt unsettled. People had heard about this ultimate skill of Brahma''s Pure Sky, but people''s impressions of Qin He from Brahma Sky City had always been of the First Goddess know for her great beauty, and they had almost neglected her strength.


    However, the Great Brahma Voice was the Music of Killing. Nobody knew what things would be like if the killing power erupted in Qin He''s hands.


    "How many Goddesses are there?" someone asked in a low voice and secretly counted the Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky, who appeared on the stairs of Xuantian Pavilion.


    "All the 81 Goddesses have arrived," someone said. People had made it clear that on the Xuantian Pavilion stairs, there were 81 Goddesses.


    In the Brahma''s Pure Sky, there were Nine Jiutian Sacred Ladies, and under their thrones, they were respectively nine goddesses.


    This meant that the 81 Goddesses were all the Saintesses in Brahma''s Pure Sky. Such a lineup was terrifying.


    Of course, the Goddesses with titles did not necessarily have high Planes. In Brahma''s Pure Sky, there were many cultivators whose cultivation levels were higher than that of the Saintesses. Therefore, they could not be called the strongest figures of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    But, at this moment, many more figures walked down from the Xuantian Pavilion; they were other cultivators from the Brahma''s Pure Sky. They descended and showed up around the Goddesses, enlarging the array.


    Seeing the scene, many people showed a different look. How many cultivators had the Brahma''s Pure Sky deployed this time?


    However, even though hundreds of Saint-Plane cultivators had shown up at the same time, when they scattered on the magnificent stairs of Xuantian Pavilion of tens of thousands of feet, they were spread apart and could barely occupy every position.


    At this time, over the Xuantian Pavilion, there was a Renhuang warrior of the Brahma''s Pure Sky. She looked down toward the crowd and said, "Today, Qin He will lead all cultivators of the Brahma''s Pure Sky to challenge warriors of all forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. People from all forces can join the battle this time. There is no limit on the number of people, and we will adjust the number of warriors on our side who participate in battles according to the situation. Anyone who gets hurt will be replaced.


    "One more thing: the killing force in the matrix is not controllable. Therefore, for those who have not cultivated enough, please be cautious and do not enter the battlefield casually. Those who can reach Xuantian Pavilion will be considered as having cracked the matrix. Today, let''s see who can take the lead to enter Xuantian Pavilion first."


    Her voice spread through the void sky, and everyone could hear it clearly. She waved her hand at everyone and said, "Please."


    After these words, she retreated to the Xuantian Pavilion and left the place for Qin He and the other Goddesses.


    At this moment, on the Xuantian Pavilion stairs, Qin He was sitting there alone, looking peerless. She put her slim fingers on the strings as she gazed down.


    She didn''t look to see the people below her. It was as if the bustling and noisy world below had nothing to do with her.


    At this time, Qin He gave people a feeling of loneliness. It was as if she was the only one in the world.


    In addition, Qin He didn''t seem to have the kind of sweetness and gentleness that she usually had. Instead, her temperament was cold. Her long skirt fluttered slightly, and there seemed to be an aura of killing between the sky and the earth.


    Even though the crowd was far from her, they could clearly feel the changes in Qin He''s temperament. Now, she was a completely different person.


    "Cultivating in Music?" The young man of Divine Music Palace next to Yi Tianyu looked up at her in the void sky and whispered, "She is so beautiful."


    "Indeed. If Tianyu could marry her, it would surely be a good story," the Elder Brother said with a smile. Even in the Divine Palace, Qin He''s appearance could be considered peerless. Although cultivators of their levels were free from sexuality, they still admired beauty. Who did not like beautiful things?


    "Someone has started to move." At this moment, they looked in one direction and saw a group of figures walking down the stairs. Their leader looked unusual and was dressed in luxurious clothes. They were very eye-catching, but their faces were quite unsightly.


    They were warriors of the Purple-gold Rat Clan.


    Unexpectedly, the Demon Clan took action first.


    "The Rats are so eager to challenge the Matrix. Do they want to improve their later generation''s facial genes? Stop dreaming," some human cultivators in the surroundings said jokingly.


    In the eyes of human cultivators, the Purple Golden Rats didn''t deserve Qin He. If they had some thoughts, they were absolutely delusional.


    This was probably the reason why the Purple Golden Rats had been working hard. Even though they had become the top forces in the Demon Realm, the world was still prejudiced against them. In the world''s eye, the Rats were low-level demon beasts. Perhaps it would be difficult to change this stereotype with just one generation. It required the efforts of several generations. One day, when they stood at the real peak of the Demon Realm, the world could do nothing but admire them.


    Warriors of the Purple-golden Rat Clan came to the bottom of the stairs. They looked up and said, cupping their hands, "We''d like to seek your advice."


    "32 warriors," people whispered. The Purple Golden Rat Clan sent 32 warriors into the battle.


    After they said it, the radiant purple gold divine light shone all over their bodies, extremely sharp. It was as if golden air flows were emanating from them.


    At the same time, Qin He began to play the piano with both hands above the void sky. The moment the music sounded, a sense of killing shrouded the stairs, making people feel extremely cold.


    Many Goddesses started attacking at the same time, and the holy light over their bodies shone and bloomed. For a moment, the aura seemed to be integrated into the music of the zither. The Great Law between the sky and earth started flowing, and soon people found that the world in front of them had changed.


    On those stairs, there were countless phantoms. It was as if the stairs tens of thousands of feet tall was full of figures of the Goddesses of the Saint Brahma Sky.


    These figures seemed to be transformed from the Goddesses'' Wills. At this moment, they all moved with the sound of the zither, as if led by Qin He. For a time, the super matrix began to run on the stairs.


    Vroom. 32 dazzling beams of purple-gold lights rushed into the sky, reaching the max limit of speed. They could directly penetrate the Great Law.


    Bang, bang... Phantoms in the void sky directly shattered into pieces. The 32 beams of bright purple-gold light rushed above the sky and were indestructible. It was as if they had created some kind of resonance, and the blooming divine glow directly penetrated the Great Path.


    "It''s so fast," people looked at the beams of divine light and remarked, but it was even hard for them to see things clearly.


    In an extremely short time, nobody knew how many phantoms had been destroyed. This scene had led many people to re-evaluate the strength of the Purple-gold Rats. Although the Purple-gold Rats looked extremely ugly, they were indeed very powerful now.


    However, the aura of the Goddesses became more and more bright, and the rhythm became more and more urgent, penetrating the void sky and directly going into the eardrums of those purple-golden rat warriors. They seemed to be in a trance; it was as if they were in an endless mirage, and the phantoms couldn''t be dispelled.


    "They want to break this matrix directly, but the Purple-gold Rat Clan doesn''t have the strength to do it," Huang Qingyun, amid the crowd of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, whispered.


    Ye Futian also agreed with him. How could the matrix of the 81 Goddesses be so easy to break through?


    Unless they had the absolute strength over Qin He, they would be passive if they broke into the field directly like this.


    Warriors of the Purple-gold Rat Clan seemed to be too hasty.


    Maybe it was because they were eager to prove themselves.


    The Great Brahma Voice lingered between the sky and the earth. Even the spiritual souls of people who were not on the battlefield seemed to be strongly disturbed. It was as if the scenes before them had become unreal, and countless Goddesses were dancing in front of their eyes.


    The warriors of the Purple-gold Rats had also realized it. Although they were extremely fast, as they moved up, their Wills became a little shaken, their spirits became unstable, and the Great Brahma Voice entered their eardrums like crazy. The sound also brought illusions and external Wills into their minds.


    Boom. Extremely dazzling purple gold light erupted from the Purple-gold Rat standing at the center, and their speed suddenly skyrocketed, penetrating numerous phantoms directly. Now, they could only continue breaking through the matrix.


    But at the next moment, they found countless phantoms of Goddesses holding divine swords at the same time show up, and the glory above the divine swords directly threatened their spiritual spirits.


    "Be careful," the purple-golden rat in the middle said, but it was too late before he said it. The Great Brahma Voice became more emphatic and powerful. It contained an extremely powerful killing mood. At the same time, in their minds, countless divine swords dropped down, like otherworldly weapons that annihilated everything.


    With this sword out, their souls were pierced through, and the swords seemed to be able to ignore their physical defenses and directly cut their spiritual souls.


    Several vulnerable purple-gold rats let out shrieks. It was as if their souls had been penetrated by tens of thousands of spirits and cut into segments. They spat out blood, and their bodies fell down from the air. The light emitting from their bodies instantly dimmed down, and the aura disappeared.


    Puuuuuuffff��


    Warriors of the Purple-gold Clan kept spitting out blood and fell one after another from the sky. They could not bear such an attack.


    Seeing this scene, everyone sighed. They, who wanted to move first, attracted the world''s attention, but now they had failed and became typical negative examples.


    Today, in this situation, in which Brahma''s Pure Sky had arranged such a large matrix, it was definitely not easy to break it easily. At this moment, their embarrassment was now the same as their sense of fulfillment had been when they entered the matrix in the spotlight!

 1468 The Xuantian Matrix

    Boom!


    As the last warrior of the Purple-golden Rat Clan was knocked to the ground, the powerful Killing Will gradually dissipated. The phantoms disappeared, and everything returned to peace. However, the peerless Goddess at the top of the Xuantian Pavilion stairs was still surrounded by a cold, murderous life force.


    Qin He looked down at the ancient zither in front of her and moved her slender fingers away from it. In the previous battle, it seemed that her zither played a role in leading the willpowers of the Goddesses to launch the terrifying spiritual attacks.


    The vast and boundless space was extremely quiet. People looked down again and saw that the warriors of the Purple-gold Rat Clan, whose bodies had been crushed, stood upright and looked up at the stairs. The defense of the Purple-gold Rats was actually very strong, but their spiritual souls still couldn''t bear the great attacks of the Great Brahma Voice and the Divine Sword of Cleansing.


    The body of the Leader of the Purple-golden Rat Clan shone brightly. Purple-gold light emitted from his eyes as if he was unwilling to give up and still wanted to have another try.


    Hiss�� A sound of something breaking the air came, and the body of the Purple-gold rat leader disappeared. He turned into a beam of purple-gold light rushing directly toward the stairs, leaving an extremely bright light beam in the void sky. It was as if it was about to go straight up the sky.


    Qin He''s long hair was fluttering in the air above the stairs. Her cold and beautiful eyes glanced at the divine light in the lower sky, and then she suddenly struck the strings with her hand. The forceful sound of zither erupted. Almost at the same moment, the Goddesses released their Wills, which resonated with the music of the zither.


    An illusory divine light penetrated the void sky, like a sword of emptiness, pure and flawless. It chopped down over the Rat''s body and stopped the purple-gold divine light in the void sky. The figure of the divine light appeared, which continued breaking through the void sky. The Rat was trying to cross the stairs with his own strength.


    Qin He was still playing the zither with her head lowered and ignored him. Behind her body, a statue of the Divine Goddess showed up. This Goddess seemed to have many arms, each holding a sword at the same time. Countless illusive figures were appearing above the head of the Purple-golden Rat. In the Great Brahma Heavenly Voice, the light of the Divine Sword was shining, purifying everything in the world.


    Boom! The Nirvana-Plane Purple-golden Rat stopped again, trembling, and tens of thousands of swords penetrated his spiritual soul. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and as a beam of light fell, his body again fell into the lower sky.


    His legs were bent, and he was half-kneeling on the ground, blood oozing out from his mouth.


    It was obviously not easy to forcibly go through the Xuantian Matrix alone. Even Qin He''s ability was not less than that of the Rat.


    Besides, even though the Rat had been injured by the shock, Qin He''s zither sound did not stop, and the Great Brahma Voice continued. The Xuantian Matrix turned translucent, and countless phantoms of Goddesses appeared and filled the stairs tens of thousands of feet long.


    Those who looked up from below the stairs could no longer see where Qin He was.


    "Time to retreat," said the Demon Emperor of the Purple-gold Rat Clan. The forcible attack this time was a complete failure.


    They couldn''t shake the Xuantian Matrix in the slightest bit.


    "Qin He seems to be a little different than before," Ye Futian murmured and looked at the dissipating figures in the distance. Qin He was full of Killing Will while playing the zither; she was completely different from the Qin He Ye Futian was familiar with.


    Was it because she was fighting on the battlefield, or was it because of the change of her state of mood?


    "She is indeed a bit different," said Jiang Taichu next to him. "Besides, it is useless to rely on a large number of people to crack the Xuantian Matrix; such a strategy is not even as efficient as having a single top figure challenge it."


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. He had also realized this.


    Earlier, the warriors of the Purple-gold Clan broke into the Matrix, but, in fact, they all fought alone. In the large-scale attack of the Great Brahma Voice and the Divine Sword of Cleansing, all of them received attacks of the same level. Therefore, people with the lowest Plane were injured first.


    "The only solution is to let the whole team have the same level of attacking ability. In this way, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty will be the most promising one to break the Matrix among all the top forces," Hua Qingyuan said in a low voice.


    Ye Futian and others were silent. What Hua Qingyuan said was not unreasonable. Previously, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had performed the combined attack of nine warriors, which had amazing killing power in cooperation with the Divine Sound Skill. Now, many of Yi Tianyu''s Brothers had also arrived, and the effect of their combined attack would undoubtedly be far stronger than that of warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    They would become the strongest force to fight together. Speaking of breaking the Matrix, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was the most promising.


    Everyone present was not ordinary, so they could all tell.


    At this moment, another figure stepped forward. He came out by himself. It was Long Chen of the Dragon God Clan.


    Long Chen knew that their Dragon God Clan was not good at combining attacks. They were afraid that they would be defeated one by one in the Matrix, so it was better for him to try it alone and directly break into the Xuantian Matrix.


    "Long Chen is ready to attack," people murmured.


    Both human cultivators and warriors of the Demon Realm were very concerned when they saw Long Chen come out. This top figure of the Dragon God Clan was equivalent to "Yi Tianyu" in the Demon Realm, but the world was not clear about how strong he really was.


    At most, one Purple-blood Divine Dragon could appear in one generation in the Dragon God Clan, and in this era, the dragon was Long Chen.


    Dressed in a dragon robe, Long Chen stood there with an imposing bearing, like a towering mountain. He looked up at the stairs and then took a step forward, walking directly toward the stairs.


    The moment he stepped on the stairs, he seemed to be surrounded by countless phantoms, and the Great Brahma Voice flowed directly into his eardrums, making his mind confused.


    But then from his body, a horrifying, bloody roar burst out. Suddenly, the void sky turned into the color of appalling blood. He didn''t look at anyone, nor did he see where they were. But the terrifying glow of blood just engulfed the stairs of tens of thousands of feet as if it had covered every corner of the world.


    "Is this the power of the Purple-blood Dragon?" people exclaimed, their hearts beating fast. They even felt that their own blood vessels also had a mysterious reaction and also were roaring and rumbling.


    Long Chen''s Blood Force was indeed horrifying, which might be the strongest one below Renhuang level that no one could compare with.


    Even warriors of the Divine Palace beside Yi Tianyu showed a surprised look. Someone said, "The Purple-blood Divine Dragon of the Heavenly Mandate Realm indeed deserves the fame inherited from his ancestors."


    "Is he the legendary mutant of Purple-blood Royal Family in the Dragon Clan?"


    Long Chen stood on the stairs, his spiritual soul trembling the space. His eyes turned the color of blood, and he raised his hand and clawed toward the void sky. Suddenly, countless blood-colored real dragons appeared and circled around the world. Those exploding gusts of Blood Force at this moment all turned into bloody true dragons. The blood in the Goddesses'' veins was also roaring and tumbling as if this monstrous blood sea devoured everyone.


    "Be careful," a voice sounded in all the Goddesses'' ears. Long Chen was standing on the stairs, and a horrifying dragon shadow showed up over his body, roaring against the sky. The void air was shaking violently. He raised his fist and punched directly into the void space.


    "The power of the Dragon God," people said, hearts beating hard when the fist strike came out. This was the first time for most people to see Long Chen attack. It was so intimidating that he could be considered appalling.


    The punch blasted out, and those bloody dragons roared and dashed toward those ladies. Many ladies in the Xuantian Matrix let out groans. The blood in their bodies seemed to be out of their control, and their delicate bodies were about to break and collapse.


    Bang, bang, bang�� A series of explosions came out, and many ladies have shaken away. The ladies behind them, who had not fought yet, immediately replaced them, but they also felt their blood surging and roaring. Long Chen''s attack was extremely overbearing.


    The zither music became more intense. Wind and clouds danced in the vast void sky. Many Divine Swords of Cleansing showed up, piercing into the sky and thrusting toward Long Chen.


    Roar�� The sound of the dragon roaring trembled the sky. Long Chen''s dragon soul seemed to directly depart from his body and turn into a Purple-blood divine dragon. The gigantic dragon encircled his human body. The horrifying Divine Sword of Cleansing arrived and tried to cut through his spiritual soul, but the defense power of that purple-blood dragon was also amazingly strong. The blood light directly entangled the sword and competed with it.


    Boom!


    Long Chen took a step forward, forcibly approaching the Goddesses. Each time he took a step, the void sky trembled. The blood in Goddesses'' bodies kept growling, and the sound of dragon rumbling shattered the void sky.


    Every step and every growl of the dragon contained the power of the Dragon God, which was extremely overbearing.


    Yi Tianyu watched Long Chen breaking into the Matrix and felt stirred. There was another top figure. It seemed that the current generation of the Demon Realm was not inferior to human cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm at all.


    However, at this moment, with the Great Brahma Heavenly Voice, countless figures were attacking toward Long Chen. Although he was still marching forward, he was also badly affected.


    Another trembling sound of the dragon growling came and shook the world. Long Chen directly transformed into a divine dragon and merged into the dragon soul. He rose up and forcibly cut open many attacks from the divine sword.


    Qin He didn''t raise her head and was still playing the zither. The Wills of many Goddesses resonated. Behind her, the holy figure showed up again, like a goddess with three heads and six arms, glaring at the lower sky. Countless divine swords of nothingness dropped down and chopped toward the body of the dragon. The Divine Dragon let out trembling dragon roars and flew all the way up.


    The Goddess drew many palm prints using her six arms at the same time, and the countless divine swords merged into one and chopped down.


    Boom! The dragon''s body stopped, and the palm print of the Goddess remained in the void air. The finger of the palm once again pointed down, and another divine sword fell again, penetrating directly from the head of the dragon to its body, disregarding its defense.


    Roar�� A loud roar came out, and many more ladies were injured by the shock, but as another sword fell down, the divine dragon could no longer bear the attack and retreated to the lower sky.


    The Divine Dragon turned back to Long Chen. He looked up at the divine lady, who was playing the zither in the void sky, and sighed, "It seems that it is impossible for a single person alone to break Goddess''s Matrix."


    After saying those words, he turned around and left. Despite his failure, the strength reflected in his performance was still shocking.


    Long Chen''s failure also made people realize that it was impossible to rely on a single person to break the Xuantian Matrix. From this perspective, it seemed that there weren''t many top forces in the vast Heavenly Mandate Realm who could break the Matrix.


    Perhaps now, the most promising team was the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. For other forces, it might be almost impossible!

 1469 Rhythmic Sorcery Confrontation

    After Long Chen, the Divine Elephant cultivators tried to break the matrix. Many of the huge beasts reverted to their original forms and trampled on people''s spiritual souls. This was a horrifying sight to see, and many of the Goddesses were wounded an forced to flee.


    But in the end, the Divine Elephants were still defeated. Many of them were using the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky technique, but they still could not block the Xuantian Matrix.


    However, they had managed to seriously threaten the Xuantian Matrix of Brahma''s Pure Sky and had created an incredibly strong breaking force.


    When they stampeded, they could break almost anything.


    Afterward, Yingzhao Mountain tried as well, but they were defeated. They did not even do as well as the Divine Elephants had.


    In terms of team combat ability of the demonic beasts, the Divine Elephants were in the top two. The only ones who could resist them were the Sky Demon Court, who had had many powerful fighters and thus had great individual combat ability.


    Even the Dragon Gods were not as good as them.


    After all, the Dragons Gods could not launch a simultaneous attack like the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky technique, and thus they were not as good at team combat.


    "The Sky Demon Court are the only ones who have not tried yet."


    Up in the vast sky, countless people were watching the top forces that had appeared in every direction. Among the top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Sky Demon Court was the only one who had not tried to break the matrix yet. All of the other forces had tried and failed.


    This made the people watching the battle look very somber. Sure enough, it was incredibly difficult to break through the matrix that was led by Qin He.


    Now, the Sky Demon Court was the only demonic clan that still had a chance to do so.


    It seemed like things would turn out just as expected. Among all the top human powers, only the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could threaten the matrix.


    If Qin He wanted to find a cultivation partner, it would be quite appropriate for her to make her decision based on this matrix that she was in charge of.


    Now, it all depended on who could lead the other cultivators to break the matrix.


    At that moment, another group of figures stepped out. They were the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Under Zhan Yuan''s leadership, they stepped to the bottom of the stairs.


    Thunder boomed all over his body, and brilliant lightning cracked. The people around him were all flashing with the power of Thunder Will. Suddenly, storm clouds rolled over the place where they were standing, making it all look very gloomy.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace seemed to have been holding their breath ever since the feasts in the Origin Mountains and the Violet Heavenly Palace. Zhan Yuan had once been hailed for his supreme body of the Great Path, but ever since his defeat, he had felt more and more like he did not even exist, especially among all the great figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Gu Dongliu were such powerful heroes that it made it so that everyone seemed to forget about the man with the supreme body of the Great Path.


    But Zhan Yuan had been holding his breath all along, and so had the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Qin He had formed the Xuantian Matrix, and no one had been able to break it. If the Violet Heavenly Palace Could, then they could finally take that breath.


    Thunder boomed up in the sky, and the clouds covered the sun, forming a terrible, apocalyptic matrix. All of the Thunder Will of the cultivators in front of Zhan Yuan seemed to flow into him. Zhan Yuan led the matrix, gathering all of the thunder of the heavens and the earth into himself.


    Zhan Yuan led the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace in their assault upon the matrix.


    Endless thunder suffused Zhan Yuan''s body. There was no doubt that he had gathered up the most power here. All kinds of will were there for him to use, and he was an avatar of a god of thunder.


    Thunder boomed as the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace stepped up to form their matrix. At the moment their attack fell, endless apocalyptic lightning swept down, containing the power to destroy one''s very soul. It was able to destroy divine sword light that was shooting towards them.


    This force seemed like it would be able to destroy the Xuantian Matrix.


    The devastating lightning was like a catastrophe of the Great Path. It destroyed everything it touched, including the images of all the Goddesses. Zhan Yuan was in his thunder form. He floated up the stairs without stopping, and everywhere he passed, everything was destroyed utterly.


    All of the lightning of the Great Path is gathered together in his form, and he is using his supreme body of the Great Path to wield it, everyone thought to themselves, trembling. This attack that the Violet Heavenly Palace had launched was incredibly powerful. It seemed like Zhan Yuan was trying to prove himself once again.


    The catastrophe swords shot out towards the endless phantoms, and a groan came from within the matrix as someone was seriously wounded.


    Qin He looked down at Zhan Yuan. Was he trying to wash the Violet Heavenly Palace''s shame by defeating her?


    She strummed a chord, and countless notes filled the air. They resonated with the Great Path. Within the Xuantian Matrix, everyone''s wills joined together. The music seemed to change, becoming more powerful and energetic, as well as harsher.


    She looked down at her instrument and began to play faster and faster.


    The music of Brahma''s Pure Sky transformed into a formless storm of notes that covered all of the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace. Zhan Yuan was at the center of all their power. He might be able to block it, but what about the others?


    Countless images of divine maidens appeared in the minds of all the cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace. They all saw a sword as well, a sword that was completely heedless of all their thunder.


    The powerful music abruptly stopped, but at that moment, the harsh feeling grew even stronger.


    Qin He placed her delicate hands on the strings and rested them there. She looked down and plucked the strings. Suddenly, a harsh sound burst forth from her instrument.


    "Cough, cough, cough..." The cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace all coughed up blood at the same time, as if the total combination of all their techniques was still very weak.


    At that moment, Zhan Yuan went pale. His aura grew weaker. Qin He was looking down at him, and she did not stop. He ran her fingers over the strings, and Zhan Yuan felt countless swords cut into his soul and pierce his body. He felt like he was at the edge of death.


    Blood ran from the corners of his mouth. The sound of thunder still emitted from his body, but a look of deep pain was in his eyes.


    But all he saw looking back at him was a pair of cold eyes. At that moment, he seemed to understand that he had been trying to use this chance to prove himself, but Qin He also had a lot riding on this battle.


    He turned and walked back down. Everyone watched him. They could feel a faint sense of sadness coming off of his supreme body of the Great Path.


    Ever since that battle where he had fallen from grace, it seemed like he had never had a chance to climb back up.


    Your legend could be shattered in a single battle, but to rebuild it, you needed to prove yourself time and time again.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace''s matrix had been defeated, and 10,000 Divine Mountain did not seem to want to participate. Other than the Sky Demon Court, the only forces left were the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    And many people would say that, in truth, this had always been a battle between the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had always wanted to form a marriage alliance with Brahma''s Pure Sky, and it was said that Qin He was interested in Ye Futian.


    But from what they had seen today, it seemed like the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would have a much better chance of breaking the matrix than the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    The vast area around Her Excellency Xuantian seemed extremely quiet. The people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did not move, and it appeared that the people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were not planning on moving either.


    "What do you think?" Hua Qingyun asked Ye Futian. They had no intention of forming a marriage alliance. Qin He may have been very good looking, but if Ye Futian and her became cultivation partners, they would lack the required emotional connection, and so it would be rather dull. This would affect his cultivation.


    He knew the news that had come from the outside world. Thus, he had asked Ye Futian to play the main role in today''s events. If they wanted a marriage alliance, Ye Futian would be the best person to offer up.


    The elder of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven clearly wanted this, but Ye Futian had said that he and Qin He were just friends.


    But now, they had to stop the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty no matter what. At the very least, they absolutely could not allow them to form a marriage alliance with Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    It was better to leave this problem to Ye Futian. Hua Qingyuan did not want to deal with it.


    Ye Futian shrugged. "I have no opinion." They would wait and see what the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did.


    Over on the other side where the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was, Yin Tianyu and the others were watching the people from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The youth beside Yin Tianyu said, "Brother, it seems that they are waiting for us."


    "What is the difference between waiting and being powerless?" said someone beside him. Yin Tianyu laughed.


    No one thought that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would be able to break the matrix, but from what they could see, their matrix had no weaknesses. They had a chance to break the Xuantian Matrix.


    Thus, they could not take this too lightly. They wanted to be the ones to do it, and so they must use their thunder techniques to break the Xuantian Matrix.


    "Brothers, shall we teach the Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky a lesson together?" Yin Tianyu finally said to the people around him.


    "We have been waiting for you to say that."


    "Good." Everyone else nodded as well.


    Yin Tianyu looked behind him and said, "Qin He of Brahma''s Pure Sky is leading the matrix herself, so we must give this our all. Come with me, and we will break the matrix."


    "Yes, Your Highness," they all answered. Two of them had been trained in the Divine Palace. The rest were all common disciples, but they were still extremely talented.


    As the group of them strode forward with such might, everyone watching felt like the Xuantian Matrix was about to be broken.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s matrix was too powerful.


    The people from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty walked to the foot of the stairs. Yin Tianjiao called up to Qin He far above him, "I am Yin Tianjiao, here with my brothers to test the strength of the Goddesses'' matrix."


    After he said this, the musician beside him knelt down. A Guqin Spirit flashed to life, and its power joined with his own in an instant. Divine light covered him. Qin He was sitting at the very top, and he was sitting at the very bottom.


    This young man was named Yan Sui, and he was the most outstanding disciple of the Divine Music Palace. He had been trained in Divine Sounds by the Palace Lord, and his learning ran incredibly deep. He was in the top ten of all the disciples under the Renhuang of the Divine Palace.


    "Divine Sounds are the best way of teaching Brahma''s Pure Sky a lesson," said Yan Sui with a slight smile. He looked up at Qin He in the sky. His expression was relaxed. It was as if there was no pressure.


    Previously, all of the people had been unable to withstand the Rhythmic Sorcery attacks as they tried to break the matrix. Now that he was on the battlefield, he would turn his opponent''s attacks into nothing.


    Qin He looked down at him. Her music rang out with astonishing sharpness. It seemed like the air grew cold and foreboding in an instant.


    Everyone around them who heard the music seemed to be able to sense Qin He''s state of mind.


    Could it be that she had not wished to engage in this confrontation at all?


    But no one had time to think about that. Yan Sui''s music rang out at the same time, and Yin Tianyu and the others stepped up into the air. Divine light suddenly flashed from them. They began to sing, and it sounded like the song of the Great Path. Their voices resonated with the Worldly Great Path.


    Their music was directly integrated into the guqin music. In a flash, all of the cultivators could feel two powerful forces of Rhythmic Sorcery come into being at the same time!

 1470 The Matrix Breaks

    A formless light curtain completely covered the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as they started to fly up the stairs. Yan Sui floated up from where he was sitting on the ground as he plucked at his guqin strings, following behind the rest of them.


    The cultivators in front of him formed up into several different huge matrices, each one with nine people. But all of these matrices together formed a single whole, and they were all controlled by Yan Sui.


    Yin Tianyu was in the foremost one. His body was shining with divine light as if he was the invincible spearhead of the whole formation.


    The music of Brahma''s Pure Sky fell upon them, trying to influence their wills, but the Rhythmic Sorcery that was bursting forth from Yan Sui''s Divine Sounds clashed with it in mid-air. One could not see any physical forces colliding, but at that moment, a suffocating pressure fell upon the Xuantian Matrix.


    As this invisible clash happened, a great deal of will of the Great Path was shattered into nothingness.


    "Brahma''s Pure Sky is unable to seize the upper hand." Below the stairway, all of the cultivators in the vast area were paying close attention to the battle. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was the force with the greatest hope of breaking the power of the matrix. And just as expected, the Divine Sounds were well suited to the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and they resonated with them as they clashed invisibly with the music of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Everyone looked towards Yin Tianyu and saw that all around him, the will of the Great Path was being destroyed.


    The music resonated with the Great Path and coalesced upon Yin Tianyu''s body, pushing his aura, which was already extremely strong, to the limit. It seemed like he would become strong enough to smash the Great Path itself.


    An endless, violent airflow erupted from him and swept up the long stairway. One only had to look at the airflow to feel its power. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was clearly far stronger than the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The sharp music of the Great Path rang out, and a brush appeared in Yin Tianyu''s hand. It was the Qianqiu Brush.


    Not only that, but the resonating of the Great Path also made many other Qianqiu Brushed appear in the air around them. Each one contained incredibly strong killing power.


    Yin Tianyu looked up into the sky and said, "The Goddesses have offended us."


    As he said this, they pointed up at them with the Qianqiu Brush. In a flash, the endless killing airflow swept up towards the Xuantian Matrix, covering the entire staircase as it went.


    Qin He had naturally known that this would be a difficult battle. The Xuantian Matrix was extremely strong, but the power of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s matrix was astonishing as well. Thus, she had to put her all into this.


    Her face turned solemn, and she plucked the strings of her guqin. In a flash, the powerful spiritual will that had gathered together within her spread out through the matrix, as if she were pouring it into it.


    In the Xuantian Matrix, there was a Goddess forming the matrix in each direction, as well as all the cultivators under their command. There were nine Goddesses under the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky, and they were divided into nine different bloodlines. Each bloodline was skilled at different things, and thus the powers that they could wield were different.


    A massive collision rocked the Xuantian Matrix. Yin Tianyu was walking through the air with a terrible purpose.


    The music still played as the image of a Goddess appeared behind Qin He. Invisible swords shot through the air, trying to break the matrix of the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Yan Sui looked up at Qin He and smiled coldly. He plucked his strings, and the music resonated with the Great Path. All of the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty seemed to join together, and terrible divine light bloomed from Yin Tianyu.


    At that moment, a brilliant golden kunpeng bird appeared in a swirl of music, covering all the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It seemed that they had transformed into it.


    Countless swords shot towards them, but they could not break through their defenses. Their defenses were no longer merely of flesh and blood, as their wills had merged and had all been integrated into Yin Tianyu. Under the kunpeng''s curtain of light, Yin Tianyu was able to bear all of the pressure by himself. This was different from the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace, who had been defeated in an instant by a similar attack.


    Golden light shone from Yin Tianyu''s eyes. He waved the Qianqiu Brush and drew out the characters "crush,""power," and "earth."


    In a flash, many cracking sounds rang out as many of the Goddesses in the Xuantian Matrix were struck by a terrible killing will. Their robes were stained with blood as they were sent flying off the battlefield.


    But Yin Tianyu did not cease his attack. He lowered the Qianqiu Brush and descended. Killing light shone as the Divine Sounds played. Everyone watched as the killing will started to cover the entire stairway.


    "You should give up. You can''t stop us," said Yin Tianyu as he watched the images of women continuously appear in the matrix. He continued forward.


    The Xuantian Matrix has lost the upper hand, everyone thought. Both the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s matrix and the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty himself were too strong. With such excellent cooperation between them, the Xuantian Matrix would surely be broken soon.


    "Change the matrix," called Qin He in a cold voice. Suddenly, all the women on the stairway flashed, and more phantoms appeared, filling the whole area. Even the killing will that had come from the Qianqiu Brush could not tell if it was attacking real opponents.


    But it seemed that Yin Tianyu did not care. He pointed into the sky, and a loud cry came from the Qianqiu Brush as more Qianqiu Brushes formed. They shot out in different directions. At the same time, the kunpeng flapped its wings, and golden light burst forth from it, shooting out into the air.


    Since Brahma''s Pure Sky was still resisting, he would let them feel the entirety of his power.


    His father, the Dynastic Overlord, hoped that he would marry Qin He. This would determine the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. But even if they could not form a marriage alliance, he would not care too much. As long as Brahma''s Pure Sky stayed honest and kept to themselves, that would be fine.


    Even without the marriage alliance, their absolute strength would undoubtedly prove to be a good deterrent.


    So, since Brahma''s Pure Sky had set up this matrix, he would not go easy on them.


    Those watching could see people fleeing from the Xuantian matrix continuously, their robes stained with blood. Some of them had been seriously wounded.


    At that moment, the music of Brahma''s Pure Sky rang through the air. Everyone could feel its solemn atmosphere. All of the Goddesses began to chant, and suddenly, the Xuantian Matrix gathered together.


    The figure of a massive Goddess formed in the air above Yin Tianyu. Although she was stunning, she was fierce as well. She had three heads and six arms.


    As Qin He''s music played, the massive Goddess held a sword in each of her six hands. Countless beams of brilliant sword light shrieked out and collided with the onrushing airflow.


    Divine purifying light was shining from her and transforming into heavenly swords. It was like an indestructible cleansing light.


    The many Qianqiu Brushed shot through the air, but they were shattered into nothingness by the purifying swords as they were cut through.


    Only the brushes closest to Yin Tianyu continued to release the terrifying airflow. But the sword light continued to fall until it reached the giant kunpeng. It began to break through its defenses bit by bit.


    Woosh! Life spirits bloomed, and the Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate appeared. The Divine Sounds resonated with it, and divine light covered Yin Tianyu''s body. The kunpeng flashed as it flapped its wings and rose up into the sky up towards where the sword light was coming from. It raked out with its talons, trying to attack the Goddess.


    The Goddess''s arm descended as she slashed out with her sword at the kunpeng''s talon. There was a shocking collision, and a wild storm of the Great Path burst out.


    The kunpeng flapped its wings and continued upwards. The purifying swords turned into endless beams of light that lashed down and struck it.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! The Great Path trembled. Many of the cultivators of both Brahma''s Pure Sky and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had joined together, combining their powers. It was simply shocking to behold. The very sky was shaking.


    Women of Brahma''s Pure Sky were sent flying out of the matrix one after another. Their wills could not bear the assault.


    The kunpeng continued up. Everyone trembled as they witnessed this scene.


    "The matrix is about to break," said Hua Qingshan from among the people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Ye Futian could see it as well, but they had expected this. The Xuantian Matrix could not withstand the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, especially the ones from the Divine Palace who were willing to support Yin Tianyu for the sake of jealousy.


    The Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty may have been arrogant, but he was also very popular.


    "Hmm?" At that moment, a look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face. He saw that within the Xuantian Matrix, Qin He had stopped playing her guqin. She stepped forward, graceful as a fairy, and entered into the image of the massive Goddess, becoming one with it.


    "She''s still not willing to give up?" said Hua Qingyun with a look of surprise.


    "It looks like she''s serious this time," said Jiang Taichu quietly. Once Qin He had entered the image of the Goddess, her attack power increased tremendously. She pressed down upon the rising kunpeng.


    The violet collision made everyone in the area tremble inwardly. Yin Tianyu had used nearly all of his strength in this great battle and used the ultimate arts of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The battle made Ye Futian think of the battle between Yin Tianyu and Third Brother, but this was even more violent since the power of entire matrices had been added in.


    This amount of power seemed like it went beyond the limits of the Saint plane.


    "You still haven''t given up?" came Yin Tianyu''s voice from his matrix. Qin He had not stopped yet.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! There was a series of violent collisions that made everyone''s hearts tremble. Hua Qingyun watched the scene, then looked at Ye Futian and said, "She is fighting so hard against Yin Tianyu. Could it be that she wants someone else to be the one to win?"


    Qin He was fighting so fiercely this time. It was like she had become a different person.


    "Brahma''s Pure Sky has not said anything, we shouldn''t speculate," said Ye Futian softly. He was watching as well and was a little bit surprised at Qin He''s determination.


    Boom!


    The Great Path collapsed, and the sky trembled. A group of figures was sent flying downwards, all of them spitting up blood and with bloodstained robes. They were all cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    The Xuantian Matrix had crumbled. Qin He had been knocked back as well, and her robes were bloodstained. She may have been fiercely determined, but the people of Brahma''s Pure Sky could not bear this battle.


    The Xuantian Matrix had been broken.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been the ones to do it. Yin Tianyu and the others were too strong!

 1471 In an Instant?

    The Xuantian Matrix was broken, and Qin He had been wounded, along with many of the cultivators who had formed the matrix.


    Yin Tianyu''s powerful aura dissipated, and Yan Sui stopped playing. The disciples of the Divine Palace watched Qin He. There was none of the arrogance or disdain of victors in their eyes. On the contrary, most of them looked at her with a sense of respect.


    They were all-powerful figures in that they could jointly support an attack that was being enhanced by Divine Sounds, and they had been able to force such a powerful collision. The Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky were worthy of their reputation as well. They were all top figures in their own right.


    Yin Tianyu walked up the stairs, his fellow disciples following behind him until they made it up to Xuantian Pavilion. Qin He''s robes were fluttering in the wind. Although they were bloodstained, they still could not hide her splendor.


    Her face was cold as she looked at Yin Tianyu.


    "You are supernaturally powerful, Goddess Qin, and the Xuantian Matrix is marvelous. If I did not have my brothers helping me, and it was just me, a simple cultivator from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, trying to break the matrix, who knows what would have happened?"


    This was an unusual attitude for Yin Tianyu. He was being incredibly humble and polite.


    "You have broken the matrix, Your Highness, so please come up to Xuantian Pavilion." Qin He did not display very much emotion as she spoke to Yin Tianyu indifferently.


    Yin Tianyu nodded, and he and the other cultivators walked up the stairs to Xuantian Pavilion.


    But they stopped at the edge of the pavilion and looked down. It seemed that they wanted to watch the others charging at the Xuantian Matrix.


    The people from Brahma''s Pure Sky returned to their original places, but many of them could no longer fight, and so they left the battlefield. The matrix was now missing quite a few people.


    Everyone down below was looking at Qin He. She had just fought very fiercely, putting her all into the battle, which had led to her being wounded. This would probably affect the next fight.


    She could have given up in the last battle, but she had not.


    After the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Sky Demon Court were the only two forces that had not gone yet.


    Dazzling light was shining over where the demons of the Sky Demon Court were. Jun''s eyes seemed to be glowing with golden fire as he looked up at Qin He in the Xuantian Pavilion. "Let''s go," he said softly.


    When he said this, fiery wings appeared behind him. The most powerful divine birds of the Demon Realms flew around him and landed on the stairs to the Xuantian Pavilion.


    Jun looked up at Qin He, brilliant light shining from him. "You just fought a battle," he said. "For us to attack you now would be kind of like taking advantage of your precarious situation. Why don''t you give up, and we''ll come and take a look?"


    "Come up," said Qin He as she looked down at him. When she said this, she lowered her head and played her guqin. The music of Brahma''s Pure Sky rang out once again. Everyone watched the beautiful figure playing all alone and felt a deep sense of loneliness.


    "Pardon the intrusion," said Jun. He spread out his wings, and they covered the sky in an instant. Divine fire burst out, and it pierced through the sky like beams of sunlight, shooting up the stairs. When the phantoms appeared, they were burned up by the fire until there was nothing left of them.


    Powerful auras also burst out from the other divine birds. The figure of a huge demonic beast appeared, blotting out the sun as it flew upwards. This time there was no matrix, but the demons of the Sky Demon Court were number one in the Demon Realms.


    And if you did not include the Divine Palace in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s power, then the Sky Demon Court was the most powerful force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Of course, that was only if the various families of the Sky Demon Court were united.


    After all, at that moment, the Kunpeng Clan wanted to be independent.


    And the Phoenix Clan and the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Clan were also very proud families.


    This was another fierce battle. Jun and the other demons of the Sky Demon Court fought violently, but at the same time, they came under a lot of pressure. Many of the cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky were wounded and forced to flee the matrix, but some of the demons of the Sky Demon Court were wounded as well.


    In the end, the Sky Demon Court broke through the Xuantian Matrix''s defenses, but they did not make the matrix collapse like the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had done. This time, Qin He was not as persistent as before. Perhaps it was because of lingering wounds from the last battle, and the fact that many of the members of the matrix had been forced to sit out of the fighting. This time they were not as strong.


    Thus, the cultivators of the Sky Demon Court also went up to the Xuantian Pavilion.


    They also stood at the edge, standing next to the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Yin Tianyu and Jun looked at each other. They had fought in the Violet Heavenly Palace before, but at that time, they had just been testing each other, and so had not used all of their power. Afterward, the battle between Yin Tianyu and Gu Dongliu had been a real fight.


    But Yin Tianyu and Jun were eminent talents of the human cultivating world and the demon cultivating world. As they stood there, it seemed like invisible fighting will was spreading throughout the Xuantian Pavilion.


    After the Sky Demon Court, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were the last ones left to try.


    But after two battles, there would be a lot less pressure on them.


    After all, the power of the Xuantian Matrix had clearly lessened already. Previously, when they were at full strength, even top forces like the Sky Demon Court would have had a hard time attacking them.


    Everyone was watching the people from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. There had been a lot of rumors about Ye Futian and Qin He spreading throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Was he not planning on doing anything?


    Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun looked at Ye Futian as well. It seemed like he, who was not even a disciple of the Celestial Gate of Vasts Heaven, had become the core member of their group.


    Of course, this did not mean that the people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would place Ye Futian above Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun. It was just that this whole affair was about Qin He and her choice of a cultivation partner.


    Neither Jiang Taichu nor Hua Qingyun wanted to become her partner. Ye Futian was undoubtedly the best choice.


    When he felt all those eyes on him, Ye Futian stepped forward. The rest of the people from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven followed quickly. They all walked towards the stairs to the Xuantian Pavilion.


    When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Qin He looked down at them, her beautiful eyes seeming to pierce through Ye Futian even across the vast distance. She had a conflicted expression on her face. She did not know what to feel.


    She placed her fingers on the strings and got ready to play the guqin.


    Ye Futian was very sensitive, and so he could feel Qin He''s gaze upon him. He could not quite tell what emotions she was displaying in her gaze.


    Besides Qin He, Yin Tianyu and the cultivators of the Sky Demon Court were also watching him.


    "Is this the one who broke through the Divine Sounds?" whispered Yan Sui from beside Yin Tianyu. It seemed like he was very interested in Ye Futian.


    Gu Dongliu, who had fought with Yin Tianyu in the past, was not here today. So they naturally would only focus on the cultivator who had broken through their Divine Sounds.


    All was quiet as Ye Futian looked back at Qin He. "The Xuantian Matrix is already weakened," he said. "A fight would not be fair. Why don''t we try another method?"


    "Please come up, Lord Ye," said Qin He as she looked down at him. Her fingers moved over the strings of her guqin.


    Amidst the melodious music, Ye Futian looked up at her and said, "Pardon the intrusion."


    Upon saying this, he sat down.


    A look of surprise came over the faces of the cultivators of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven all around him as he did this. He had been so polite when he spoke to Qin He, but he had not said how he would fight.


    Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun had let Ye Futian take the lead in this battle. Why had he not said anything to them?


    His every movement was elegant and graceful.


    "What a master!" said many people with praise.


    At that moment, a guqin appeared in front of him. A look of surprise came over everyone''s face.


    A guqin?


    Qin He was playing a guqin on the steps to Xuantian Pavilion, and now Ye Futian dared to pull one out as well?


    This...


    Most of the people there did not understand.


    Boom! Brilliant celestial light flashed from Ye Futian as he activated the methods of the Deed of Thought Comprehension and the mystical ways of Celestial Soul Attraction. In an instant, the will of the Great Path was flowing wildly, and a Celestial Soul slowly materialized behind him.


    At the same time, Ye Futian''s fingers fell upon the guqin. For a moment, his music brought people to the infinite realm of ethereal space. It was like everyone had entered a whole new, marvelous world.


    "The Way of Music!" Everyone''s hearts trembled. Ye Futian was also skilled at Rhythmic Sorcery.


    "Let your Saintly will flow into the music. Do not resist," said Ye Futian. The people from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven looked surprised. Could it be that simple?


    Ye Wuchen, Qi Xuangang, and the others were the first to do so. The powerful will suddenly bloomed out, flowing along with the music and controlled by Ye Futian''s Rhythmic Sorcery.


    Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun did so as well, and soon, all the other people from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven released their powerful Saintly wills one after another, making them resonate with the music.


    Soon the amount of will contained within the music seemed to explode.


    Ye Futian started to float upward into the sky slowly. All the other cultivators followed him. The storm of guqin music gradually grew fiercer. It raged between heaven and earth as the Celestial Soul grew larger. It was like a real celestial coming down to earth.


    What was more frightening was the immense piercing power that the guqin music had. When the music covered the stairs, all the cultivators within the Xuantian Matrix suddenly felt a strong sense of unease.


    Qin He was also surprised by Ye Futian''s skill with the guqin. She suddenly felt that something was not right, and her expression changed. Her hands moved quickly as she watched Ye Futian down below her.


    Ye Futian, who was floating in the air, looked back at her. The Celestial Soul behind him was shining with terrifying celestial light. At that moment, the cultivators in the Xuantian Matrix could feel their souls trembling.


    Ye Futian pointed with his right hand and then placed his fingers on the guqin.


    Ding!


    The guqin music pierced through their souls and destroying countless phantoms within the Xuantian Matrix. A loud moan rang out at the same time as all the Goddesses went pale and were sent flying backward. However, they had not been subjected to a direct attack.


    The Xuantian Matrix collapsed in an instant. Only some of the extremely strong Goddesses managed to remain in place, but they could no longer form the matrix.


    Everyone was staring at the brilliant celestial light coming from the Celestial Soul. It seemed to merge with the Great Path itself.


    "What happened?"


    They did not understand what they were seeing. Had Ye Futian just integrated Rhythmic Sorcery into the mystical ways of Celestial Soul Attraction?


    Had he just broken the matrix in an instant?

 1472 Shangxiao Divine Palace

    hWithin the Xuantian Matrix, Qin He''s slender fingers were still on the strings of her guqin. She stared at Ye Futian, stunned.


    She had not even launched an attack, and the Xuantian Matrix had already been broken.


    Her beautiful eyes were filled with shock. She was stunned for a moment, but then she was relieved.


    Ye Futian was still floating in the air, and celestial light was spreading out from his guqin. He looked up at Qin He and said, "The Xuantian Matrix is incredibly powerful, and so I had no choice but to take you by surprise. Please forgive me."


    He had needed to resort to trickery to break the matrix so quickly and had blended his music into the Celestial Soul Attraction to create Rhythmic Sorcery that would assault their souls in an instant. In this way, he had not even needed to really fight Qin He.


    "You broke the Xuantian Matrix with a trick that I used before. I am very ashamed. All the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm look at Prince Yi Tianyu of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Gu Dongliu of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven as the best cultivators of this generation. But in my view, you are not inferior to either of them, Lord Ye," said Qin He softly.


    Previously, the Xuantian Matrix had used divine swords to cut peoples spiritual souls, defeating the cultivators of the Purple Gold Rat Clan and the Violet Heavenly Palace in seconds. Now, Ye Futian had used the same kind of trick on them, wounding all of the Goddesses within the Xuantian Matrix in an instant.


    Qin He''s words were full of praise for Ye Futian. These days, the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm did indeed look at Yi Tianyu and Gu Dongliu as the best.


    And Qin He had said that Ye Futian was not inferior to either of them.


    This placed Ye Futian above all other cultivators. This showed how she held him in such high esteem.


    "It seems that the rumors are true," everyone was saying quietly. They could see that this outstanding woman, Qin He, did indeed have a high opinion of Ye Futian.


    If this was the case, then wasn''t it highly likely that Ye Futian was the one that she would choose as a cultivation partner?


    Moreover, did the fact that she had praised him so highly mean that she had feelings for him?


    Maybe she had wanted this all along, and that was why she had given Ye Futian this chance.


    "You are too kind, Goddess Qin. All of the people who formed the Xuantian Matrix today are very powerful. Not one of them is anything less than a genius," answered Ye Futian. The praise that the two of them were lavishing on each other made everyone watching from far away look at them with more and more surprise.


    "Please come up, Lord Ye," said Qin He with a nod.


    "Thank you, Goddess." Ye Futian walked forward with the people from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven following behind. They all looked dazed. They had thought this would be a fierce battle.


    However, it had been almost too easy. They had not even come under any pressure. Ye Futian had broken the matrix in an instant, and afterward, Qin He had not kept fighting but had given up completely.


    "He is amazing," said Hua Qingyuan softly. He was worthy of admiration.


    It seemed that the Elder had not been wrong. Ye Futian was indeed a good choice.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was an outstanding talent, and Qin He was the same. Both of them were also incredibly good looking. It seemed to be a match made in heaven. If the two of them were together, it would become a tale for the ages.


    The group continued forward up the stairs to the Xuantian Pavilion. On either side, the cultivators of the Sky Demon Court and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty watched Ye Futian and the others, especially Yi Tianyu and Yan Sui.


    "Was that just the Celestial Soul Attraction mystical way of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?" whispered Yan Sui. He had heard Yi Tianyu say that Ye Futian had used the mystical ways of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to defeat the Divine Sound.


    He must have used the same method to break the Xuantian Matrix. He had used the mystical way as his main attack to assault the souls of the people in the Xuantian Matrix.


    Qin He and the others had not been ready and had been caught off guard. Their spiritual souls had been damaged, and many of the cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky had been wounded. Thus, the Xuantian Matrix had collapsed.


    Ye Futian had been clever, taking advantage of their unpreparedness. He may not have personally experienced the power of these Goddesses, but he could feel how supernatural it was. If he had tried to do this differently, he would not have been able to break the matrix in an instant.


    Yi Tianyu nodded. "Yes, this mystical way had been lost for many years. It was only recently rediscovered and cultivated by Ye Futian. One''s Celestial Soul is lured, and once you have a strong sense of it, you can directly target it with your attacks."


    "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven is a top force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and once had their golden era. It looks like their reputation is well deserved. Their techniques are truly incredible." Yan Sui nodded slightly in praise. Any top force had things that it could inevitably do.


    Moreover, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had nearly climbed to the peak 100 years ago. All of the Nine Supreme Regions, including the Heavenly Mandate Realm, had been a part of that war.


    Gu Tianxing had been quite a character. It was a pity that he was gone now. Otherwise, if he were at the level he had been back then, he would be number one among all the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path in the Nine Supreme Regions.


    They were not talking by means of telepathy, and they did not avoid mentioning Ye Futian and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Ye Futian watched Yi Tianyu and Yan Sui as they talked. They seemed to notice him, and Yan Sui inclined his head with a slight smile. He seemed very polite and relaxed. "I am a disciple of Shangxiao Divine Palace," he said. "My name is Yan Sui."


    Shangxiao Divine Palace was usually just called the Divine Palace because it was the only place in the Higher Heavens Realm that could be called a Divine Palace. It was the most prestigious place for cultivation in the Higher Heavens Realm, and it had no rivals. It was not a place that took part in factionalism, as it was above the petty conflicts of the world. When its disciples appeared in disputes, they were not representing the palace. The Divine Palace merely taught, and thus, many of the most powerful figures of the top forces of the Higher Heavens Realm went there to seek the Path.


    The Shangxiao Divine Palace had trained countless heroes of the Higher Heavens Realm, and thus enjoyed an incredibly high status. Forces from other realms would even send their people to the Divine Palace to seek the Path.


    Thus, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had sent Yi Tianyu and many of the other talented youths of the dynasty to the Shangxiao Divine Palace to cultivate. Some of them had not come back and had joined the DIvine Palace instead. Even their most common disciples became brilliant heroes.


    Yan Sui was a disciple of the Divine Music Palace within the Divine Palace and was the most outstanding and talented figure there.


    "I am Ye Futian, of the Heavenly Mandate Realm," answered Ye Futian. Since Yan Sui had introduced himself, Ye Futian could not be impolite by not doing the same.


    "Your mystical ways are quite excellent, Brother Ye, and you are skilled at Rhythmic Sorcery," said Yan Sui with a smile. "I happen to have also done some small research into Rhythmic Sorcery. We should test our sills sometime."


    "I have cultivated many talents, and Rhythmic Sorcery is the one that I am least skilled in. If you wish to test my skills, you can test them each one by one," said Ye Futian with a smile and a slight nod. He had seen how Yan Sui had taken the lead with his Rhythmic Sorcery, and thus had seen how skilled he was. He had done substantial research into it.


    He was the most skilled at Divine Sounds out of all the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Yan Sui twitched when he heard Ye Futian speak. This guy was laying out all his cards, contrary to common sense. He had even disparaged his own Rhythmic Sorcery, but Yan Sui had seen that the control over Rhythmic Sorcery that he displayed was not inadequate in the least.


    "Very well," said Yan Sui with a nod. He said nothing else.


    No one knew if the Xuantian Matrix would be able to continue.


    Qin He was looking down the stairs. "Does anyone else wish to try?" she asked.


    The Xuantian Matrix was no longer whole. The continuous fighting had made it so that many of the cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky could not go on any longer.


    Of course, just Qin He and a few of the other Goddesses could keep going on their own. As long as their opponents were not at the level of forces like the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Sky Demon Palace, they would have a hard time breaking the matrix.


    At that moment, a voice was transmitted to her. "The Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky have been fighting for such a long time and have used up most of their strength. To try and break the matrix now would be meaningless. I will not try. Can I come up to Xuantian Pavilion?" The speaker was Gao Huang of 10,000 Divine Mountain.


    10,000 Divine Mountain always seemed to be relatively casual like this. They had not participated in the battle at the Violet Heavenly Palace. It seemed that they were always just watching from the sidelines.


    "We at Brahma''s Pure Sky have created this matrix to test the various forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. There is no special meaning behind it. If none of them wants to continue trying to break it, then the people of the ordinary forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm may try," answered Qin He.


    A thoughtful look came over everyone''s face. They were wondering what Qin He meant by this.


    She had said that there was no special meaning behind Brahma''s Pure Sky setting up the Xuantian Matrix. How could that be?


    If there was no special meaning, then why had she fought so bitterly? Previously, she had seemed so serious.


    The fact that she had done this meant that there had to be a meaning to it.


    "If that is the case, then we will not attack the matrix. It will be much more pleasant just to walk up," said Gao Huang with a smile. He was happy just to be an observer.


    As for what would happen, he would just wait and see.


    With a force as powerful as 10,000 Divine Mountain giving up, the other forces decided not to try either. All of the most powerful forces had already made their moves, and so it seemed that this affair had come to an end.


    If you looked at it only from the perspective of conflict, the battle between the cultivators of the Xuantian Matrix and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been the most epic and shocking, and their fighting had been the fiercest.


    If you looked at it from the perspective of efficiency, Ye Futian and the people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had broken the matrix in an instant. No one had thought that that would happen.


    In addition, the Sky Demon Court had also shown outstanding power.


    Thus, if nothing unexpected happened and Brahma''s Pure Sky wanted to form a marriage alliance and Qin He wanted to choose a cultivation partner, there were only these three great forces to choose from.


    The other forces that had lost would not even enter into Qin He''s estimation.


    When she saw that no one else was coming, Qin He rose and put away her guqin. He waved her hand, and suddenly, all of the other Goddesses retreated.


    "We have prepared a feast here at the Xuantian Pavilion, you are all invited," said Qin He to everyone below them. The ones she had invited were naturally the top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The others all knew their place.


    The great forces walked towards the stairs. But for the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Purple Gold Rat Clan, this was not how they had wanted to go up the stairs. They had wanted to go up after having broken the Xuantian Matrix. They all walked up with gloomy expressions.


    However, they were also curious about what Brahma''s Pure Sky was going to do now. This would probably set the future structure of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and so they naturally wanted to be a part of it. They could not leave now.


    As everyone was walking up, Qin He turned and looked at the cultivators of the three great forces in the Xuantian Pavilion. "You are all invited as well," she said.


    "Thank you, Goddess," they all answered. Qin He said nothing else. She walked forward, and without knowing if she meant to or not, she moved towards where the people from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were standing and nodded slightly at Ye Futian.

 1473 Candidates?

    Countless people were still gathered together in the vast area below the Xuantian Palace. All of them were cultivators from Brahma''s Sky City.


    However, as they looked up, all they could see on the stairway were a few women left as guards. The others had all disappeared up into Xuantian Pavilion.


    What would happen up there?


    If Saint QIn He of Brahma''s Pure Sky wanted to choose a cultivation partner, she would probably choose him from among the three camps that had broken the matrix.


    "If Goddess Qin chooses a cultivation partner, who do you all think would be the most suitable candidate?" someone asked those around him.


    "The Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Yi Tianyu. He is a Prince of the Divine Palace, and has a pleasant disposition, in addition to being good at making friends. Many of the great geniuses of the Shangxiao Palace have come to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to help him," said someone with certainty. "As long as Goddess Qin He does not have any objections, then a marriage between the foremost Saint of Brahma''s Pure Sky and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would be a match made in heaven. No one could be more suitable."


    "That''s true. I have heard that the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looks down on everyone; he is extremely proud. Now it looks like the rumors were not true. Yi Tianyu seems modest and humble. If he and Goddess Qin He were together, then Brahma''s Pure Sky would lose there greatest Saint, but in the future, they would gain a queen of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty," someone chimed in.


    Many people thought that Qin He and Yi Tianyu were well suited to each other.


    "You all seem to be forgetting about Qin He''s happiness," someone broke in. "Ye Futian broke the matrix in an instant and is a marvelous hero besides. His family background may be obscure, and he is certainly of lower status than Yi Tianyu, but that just makes it all the more impressive that he is here today. Moreover, Ye Futian is one of the greatest figures of our age. He broke the matrix in an instant! And Goddess Qin He said that he was a contender for the title of the strongest person in this generation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. This means that in Goddess Qin He''s eyes, Ye Futian is absolutely no worse than Yi Tianyu. Moreover, she clearly favors him. Wouldn''t it be even more perfect if the two of them were together?"


    "Ye Futian may have an incredible amount of talent, but it seems that there are no feelings between him and Qin He," said someone.


    "They would make a bad match?" someone asked.


    "Perhaps."


    Qin He was, after all, a Saint of Brahma''s Pure Sky. Looked at from this angle, she and the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were more suitable for each other.


    The people of Brahma''s Sky City were naturally very passionate and curious about the topic of a cultivation partner for the foremost Saint of Brahma''s Pure Sky, and conversations about this could be found throughout the city.


    As for what was happening up at Xuantian Pavilion, they did not dare try to spy on it.


    That was Xuantian Pavilion, the place where the Goddesses of Brahma''s Sky City cultivated. Who would dare spy there without permission?


    Now they could only guess, and wait for news.


    Unfortunately, they had not been born into any of the great forces. Otherwise, they could have gone up to the pavilion and seen what was going on.


    At that moment, a feast had been prepared at Xuantian Pavilion.


    The people of Brahma''s Pure Sky had brought all the people of the great forces to the place where the feast was being held. The cultivators took their seats. Qin He did not sit in the host''s place, but in a seat off to the side. A look of surprise came over everyone''s faces.


    Could it be that some other important figure from Brahma''s Pure Sky was coming?


    At that moment, a group of figures walked out from one of the great halls. Naturally, they were all women.


    The one at their head had an outstanding air about her. She was tall and slender, but with perfect curves. However, there was a fascinating sense of divinity about her, which made it so that people would not dare to lust after her.


    When they saw her, all the people of the great forces bowed in turn and said, "Greetings, Goddess."


    The woman at the head of the group that had just come was one of the Jiutian Goddesses��the Xuantian Goddess.


    Xuantian Pavilion was her place for cultivation within Brahma''s Sky City.


    The Jiutian Goddesses held a very respected position within Brahma''s Pure Sky, only being subordinate to the Empress. Even in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they were considered powerful figures. All of the people who had come here today, who on the surface were powerful figures in their own right, paid their respects when they saw Goddess Xuantian.


    "Welcome to Xuantian Pavilion. There is no need to be so polite, you may all sit," said Goddess Xuantian.


    "Thank you, Goddess." Everyone was still speaking very politely. If Goddess Xuantian had not taken her seat, they certainly could not. In the world of cultivation, no matter what your relationship with somebody was, as long as you were not facing them in battle, you had to show them the utmost respect.


    Sometimes people would even show great respect when facing their enemies.


    Goddess Xuantian did not say anything else. She sat down with a slight smile, and soon everyone else followed suit.


    "Today, we have invited all of you from the Heavenly Mandate Realm for several reasons. The first reason is that we wanted to see the talented cultivators of this generation. The second is that we want to take this chance to have the disciples of Brahma''s Pure Sky teach the cultivators of all the other forces and give them more motivation to cultivate.," said goddess Xuantian. "The Xuantian Matrix was set up by Qin He and the Saints of Brahma''s Pure Sky, but even so, every time you attacked, you put a lot of pressure on them. And you even managed to break it several times. Many people were hurt. This is a great reminder for them."


    "Thank you for your kind words, Goddess. The Xuantian Matrix is incredibly powerful. If we had not used all of our might, it would have been impossible to break it. It was pure luck that we were able to do so as it was," said Yi Tianyu with a smile.


    "The matrix is created by the Saints of Brahma''s Pure Sky, and naturally, they are able to bring a lot of power to bear. You must know that we have come a great distance, and yet since we were able to see the splendor of the Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky, the trip was more than worth it," said a cultivator beside Yi Tianyu. His name was Lin Yue, and he was the oldest of the disciples who had come here from Shangxiao Divine Palace, making him their Elder Brother.


    Even Yi Tianyu showed him respect.


    "Shangxiao Divine Palace itself has quite a powerful matrix. How can our humble matrix compare to yours?" Goddess Xuantian said to Lin Yue.


    "This is not a competition between our matrices. Moreover, Goddess Qin He displayed just as much talent in this battle as even the most powerful figures from Shangxiao Divine Palace. If you are willing, then we would be pleased to have her come and join us there to cultivate," said Lin Yue with a smile.


    Everyone who heard this looked surprised. Would Qin He enter Shangxiao Divine Palace?


    Then she would become Yi Tianyu''s sworn sister. Lin Yue seemed to be speaking casually, but his words had profound implications.


    If Brahma''s Pure Sky were really planning to do this, then Qin He''s choice of Spiritual Partner would certainly be Yi Tianyu.


    "That depends on what Qin He herself thinks," answered Goddess Xuantian. "There was one other reason for this battle, and it was the most important one: determining Qin He''s future."


    Everyone who heard this felt their hearts beating faster. Had they finally reached the main topic?


    When he heard this, Ye Futian involuntarily looked towards Qin He. He saw her nod slightly, but could not see her expression.


    "My disciple Qin He is outstandingly talented. However, she lacks a few things since she has always cultivated here in Brahma''s Pure Sky. Thus, we have decided to let her go out into the mortal world to cultivate and train. However, she will still be a disciple of Brahma''s Pure Sky," said Goddess Xuantian.


    Everyone was clear about what she meant. Indeed, the people of Brahma''s Sky City had been talking about this. It seemed their information had not come out of thin air.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky was indeed going to choose a Spiritual Partner for Qin He.


    Enter the so-called "mortal world" to cultivate was perhaps one reason, but it was definitely not the only one. They all knew this, and Qin He must have known as well.


    "However, Qin He is extremely proud. She is not willing to leave Brahma''s Pure Sky and enter the mortal world, so she and I made a bet. I let her set up the Xuantian Matrix. If no one was able to break it, then she would not have to go to the mortal world. If someone could break it, then she had to promise to leave Brahma''s Pure Sky," continued Goddess Xuantian.


    Everyone was stunned. If none of them had been able to break the matrix, that would have meant Qin He was not inferior to anyone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and she would have no need to get married.


    As Ye Futian listened to this, he saw that she had her head bowed. Was this why she had fought so persistently?


    Everyone had thought that she did not need to do that, but she had indeed fought with all her strength.


    So, she had indeed been unwilling. If that was the case, why was Brahma''s Pure Sky forcing her?


    Was it just so that she would go into the mortal world to cultivate?


    Perhaps they wanted to use her to help arrange the future situation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Under the current situation, no matter who she married, it would change the balance of power.


    It could be said that her marriage would be extremely influential.


    "However, this is an extremely important matter to Qin He. Thus, I ask that you all give her some time. Brahma''s Pure Sky will not influence her choice," continued Goddess Xuantian. Then she looked at Qin He and said, "I leave it to you, Qin He." Having said this, she stood and said, "I will not see all of you off. It is good that you are gathered here together."


    After she said this, she turned and left.


    Qin He was the foremost Saint of Brahma''s Pure Sky, which was a top force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. And she was beautiful besides. If she chose someone to be her Spiritual Partner, how could they refuse?


    Qin He looked up at everyone and said softly, "Everyone, please stay here at Xuantian Pavilion for a while. I must consider this matter carefully."


    On saying this, she rose and walked to one side, leaving behind a crowd of stunned people.


    Was she just going to abandon all her guests?


    Other than a few maids, all of the important people of Brahma''s Pure sky had left.


    There was a strange look on Ye Futian''s face.


    Were all of them candidates?

 1474 Conversation

    Ye Futian was not the only one who was surprised. A look of shock came over all the cultivators at the Xuantian Pavilion.


    Many people were looking at Yin Tianyu of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and then at Ye Futian.


    If there were candidates, the two of them were definitely among them.


    As for the others, they were just secondary characters in this.


    Many serving maids walked among them, saying, "Xuantian Pavilion has arranged places for all of you. We will take you to your places now to rest. Of course, if you wish to leave, you may do so at any time."


    The Xuantian Goddess had already officially announced that Qin He would have to choose a Spiritual Partner. This was a situation that affected almost all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. How could they all just leave? Naturally, they took their places.


    They all looked at each other and then started looking all around Xuantian Pavilion.


    There were also many of the cultivators who studied under Goddess Xuantian there at Xuantian Pavilion. They were cultivating.


    It was a huge area, with many pavilions and gazebos, ancient palaces and temples, and platforms for cultivating, fighting, and martial arts displays.


    Ye Futian and those with him were set up in one of the pavilions. The serving woman said, "If you need anything, just call, and we will come immediately."


    "Thank you," said Ye Futian with a slight nod. The serving woman left.


    The people from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven all looked surprised. Hua Qingyun looked at Ye Futian, saying, "What is Goddess Qin He doing? Could it be that she has not even thought about this yet?"


    Ye Futian did not understand what Brahma''s Pure Sky was doing either. Was this their plan, or had it been Qin He''s idea?


    This was a confusing situation, and it was becoming even more incomprehensible by the moment.


    "Perhaps Goddess Qin He wanted to see how we would react to this. Otherwise, she could end up very embarrassed if she was refused," said Hua Qingyun with a smile. "If Qin He made the offer to you, would you refuse her?"


    "...." Ye Futian said nothing for a while.


    "Qin He would be furious if you refused her. She might even choose the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty," said Hua Qingyun with a smile.


    Ye Futian had a bit of a headache. Perhaps he should take the initiative and seek out Qin He to ask her why Brahma''s Pure Sky was doing this?


    If it was really like Hua Qingyun had said, and Brahma''s Pure Sky and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty made a marriage alliance, then that would be an absolute disaster for the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The first one to be damaged by this would be Third Brother. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted his life.


    "In a bit, I will go and find out what I can," said Ye Futian softly. No one said anything else, and they all parted.


    After a while, someone came as Ye Futian was resting in the courtyard.


    A serving girl walked up to him and bowed slightly. "Lord Ye, Virgin Jinyi wishes to pay you a call."


    "Show her in," said Ye Futian.


    The serving girl nodded and left. After a moment, a magnificently beautiful figure entered. Ye Futian had crossed paths with her several times.


    Jinyi had first seen Ye Futian at Celestial Demon City. Back then, Zhu Yan the Beast had formed a matrix and challenged the human cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Ye Futian had performed admirably then and even outshone the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    However, although he had been outstanding then, Jinyi could not have imagined just how talented he actually was. Before long, he had become one of the foremost figures of the age.


    Although the prophet had predicted that she would become one of the Nine Goddesses, she was still a little bit speechless in front of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had seen the prophet as well on that day. What had he predicted?


    "Lord Ye." Virgin Jinyi bowed to him.


    Ye Futian bowed slightly as well. "We have met several times before, Virgin Jinyi. I trust you have been well?"


    "No need to be so polite, Lord Ye," said Virgin Jinyi with a smile. She looked at the people around Ye Futian. When they met her eyes, Ye Wuchen, Xia Qingyuan, and the others all knew what she was thinking.


    "Very well. What can I do for you?" said Ye Futian with a smile.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Virgin Jinyi warily. Why had yet another beautiful woman come?


    Jinyi nodded slightly, then walked over to Ye Futian''s side. "What do you think of Goddess Qin He?" she said softly.


    Ye Futian was stunned. The people around him looked at Jinyi as well. The Black Wind Condor stretched his head forward, and Xia Qingyuan''s heart tightened. She narrowed her beautiful eyes as she stared ahead.


    Ye Futian looked at Jinyi in amazement. "Goddess Qin is incredible, both in terms of her talent and her beauty. She is one of the best of her generation. In the future, she will certainly become a top figure in Brahma''s Pure Sky."


    "You know that that''s not what I''m talking about," Virgin Jinyi said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked back at her and was silent for a while. Then he said, "If you have something to say, don''t hesitate to say it. I am not quite sure what you mean."


    Virgin Jinyi nodded. "Fine, then I will speak frankly. If Qin He chooses you, will you accept her offer?"


    Xia Qingyuan and the others around Ye Futian tensed. They all looked at him.


    Ye Futian stared at Jinyi. He had said to Xia Qingyuan that Brahma''s Pure Sky must have had their reasons for holding this event, but so far, he did not understand them.


    Thus, Ye Futian did not directly answer Jinyi. Instead, he said, "Brahma''s Pure Sky is the ultimate force in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Anyone would be willing. Remaining neutral would be the best choice for them. They do not need to get involved in any disputes. Otherwise, no matter who they choose to help win, the one who gains the most will not be Brahma''s Pure Sky. Thus, there is no need for Brahma''s Pure Sky to get involved. Also, if this is all because they want to have Qin He enter the mortal world to cultivate, there are many other ways to accomplish that. Why would she need to find a Spiritual Partner to enter the mortal world? Moreover, there is no precedent for this in Brahma''s Pure Sky. I am not clear on their intentions in this. Please enlighten me."


    After saying this, Ye Futian looked at Jinyi and waited for her reply.


    But Jinyi just shook her head at him and did not answer directly. Instead, she transmitted, "I don''t know either. This was an order from the higher-ups at Brahma''s Pure Sky. Even Qin He cannot go against it. She could only make her gamble. If she could have prevented you all from coming up to the Xuantian Pavilion with the Xuantian Matrix, then she would have won. But you already know what happened there."


    There were some things that Jinyi could not casually say in Xuantian Pavilion. Moreover, it seemed that her knowledge was limited. This was an order from up above.


    At the very least, it had come from someone at Goddess Jiutian''s level.


    It had possibly even come from Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress.


    In that case, then there was very likely no room for this matter to change. Was it already set in stone?


    "Lord Ye, Qin He and I have known each other for many years. I know how proud she is. She has practiced for Her Majesty all along, hoping that one day she could reach her level. What is happening now is not what she would have wished, but if she must choose a Spiritual Partner, then she is closest to you in temperament. It is very likely that she will choose you. That is why I specifically came here to talk to you."


    Jinyi was still communicating telepathically with Ye Futian, staring at him the whole time. Last time, when Qin He had returned to Brahma''s Pure Sky with him, she seemed to have evaluated him quite highly. She had not rejected him. She remembered that when she had left, it had been unwillingly.


    Xia Qingyuan could naturally tell that they were transmitting their thoughts to each other. This made her even tenser. What were they talking about that they could not say it openly?


    Was it something shameful?


    Ye Futian was silent. This matter was not what Qin He had wished. Nor was it what he wanted. But if Brahma''s Pure Sky ordered it, Qin He could not go against her masters.


    "Perhaps there is still a way to change things," Ye Futian transmitted to Jinyi.


    Jinyi looked back at him and sighed inwardly. Even though Ye Futian had not directly refused, as he had not said, "no," many people had come here for Qin He. Many of them were powerful figures from powerful forces, and they were all that could be wished for. Yin Tianyu, the prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, was one of them.


    But Ye Futian clearly did not have his heart set upon Qin He. Otherwise, he would not have hesitated and would have answered directly.


    A faint look of disappointment flashed in her eyes. At that moment, there was the sound of a fierce collision from outside, and then the faint sound of guqin music.


    Ye Futian looked up outside of the palace and reached out with his spiritual energy. He could feel the will of the Great Path trembling violently.


    It seems as if a fight had broken out.


    With all these powerful figures from top forces gathered together at Xuantian Pavilion, it was inevitable that there would be some friction.


    Jinyi looked up as well, then said. "Shall we go and see?"


    "Alright," Ye Futian nodded. He did not know how he should respond to Jinyi.


    The group of them traveled upwards. They soon reached an empty space up above Xuantian Pavilion. Many people had gathered there.


    One of the two fighters was from Sky Demon Court. It was a great peacock demon who was astonishingly strong.


    However, the peacock demon was being firmly suppressed. The person who was fighting him was sitting cross-legged as he played the guqin. Each note set the Great Path trembling powerfully. The figures of demonic beasts appeared all around him. There were divine dragons, ancient phoenixes, qilins, and cranes swirling around him.


    The image of a giant, golden-winged bird flew through the air, swooping down towards the peacock demon.


    Ding! The guqin strings trembled, making the clouds themselves move. The Great Path roared as countless Divine Sounds entered into the giant bird. Brilliant divine light burst into being, making a fierce burst of energy explode out of the giant bird.


    Bang! The air trembled fiercely, and the peacock demon was sent flying backward. Many of its feathers seemed to have been torn out.


    This man has integrated Divine Sounds into his attack spells, thought Ye Futian as he watched Yan Sui. This cultivator who had come from Shangxiao Divine Palace was exceedingly talented.


    "The Sky Demon Court is strong indeed, and their cultivators have gathered here like clouds. But my brother Yi Tianyu is still a hero of Shangxiao Divine Palace. Thus, none of you will get to fight him," said Yan Sui with a slight smile. It seemed that he had taken this chance to fight on Yi Tianyu''s behalf.


    When they heard this, many of the other demons wanted to get involved, but Yan Sui seemed to have lost interest. He turned and looked at Ye Futian. He smiled slightly and said, "Right now, the person that I most wish to test is Brother Ye. Why don''t we play a tune?"

 1475 What a Show

    Everyone turned their eyes towards Ye Futian after hearing what Yan Sui said. No one was not aware of the feud between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Furthermore, Ye Futian decided to get involved, and he had beaten nine mighty ones from the dynasty, who teamed up against him.


    Yan Sui was from the Shangxiao Divine Palace, and so, it was apparent that he was even more versed in Divine Sound. His intention was spoken for with his attempt to spar with Ye Futian.


    Qin He was looking for a partner, and everyone in the realm all thought the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty or Ye Futian stood the greatest chance. Judging from Qin He''s attitude, Ye Futian''s chances might have been even greater. If Qin He were to decide according to her own feelings, it was extremely possible that she pick Ye Futian.


    At such a moment, if Yan Sui wanted to help Yi Tianyu out, then the best way to do it would have been to overpower Ye Futian.


    If Ye Futian were to lose to Yan Sui, then he would have practically lost his qualification to fight against Yi Tianyu.


    Ye Futian naturally understood Yan Sui''s intentions. He looked at Yan Sui, who was all smiles and behaved politely, making the other man look mild-mannered and courteous, without a hint of ill intentions found.


    "Music, huh?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Indeed." Yan Sui nodded.


    "So, you majored in music in the Shangxiao Divine Palace, then?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I''m of the Divine Sound Palace of Shangxiao Divine Palace, after all," Yan Sui smiled and replied, behaving in an unusually amicable manner.


    Ye Futian nodded and continued, "I''ve said before that while I know something about music, I''m not very proficient in it. My training in music would be the weakest among all the ways I''ve trained in, and I''m rather rusty. Since you''re from Shangxiao Divine Palace and a student of Divine Sound Palace, I''m sure that you''re very versed in the art of music, and well above me."


    Everyone felt rather puzzled hearing Ye Futian talk, wondering when he had become so humble.


    Zhan Yuan and the others from the Violet Heavenly Palace were especially curious. They all had their eyes fixed at him. Zhan Yuan would have never forgotten just how boastful and unbridled Ye Futian had been back in the Violet Heavenly Palace. He behaved as though everything was beneath him, claiming that he trained in all ways and was of a divine body of the heavenly path. He was cocky unlike any other.


    Yet now, he is this humble? they wondered.


    So much so that he claims that he is below Yan Sui?


    Is he trying to say that he knows that he is no match for Yan Sui when it comes to music, and so he is deliberately humbling himself just to avoid having to face Yan Sui in a showdown of music? they thought.


    Maybe it wouldn''t reflect all that poorly on him even if he loses?


    "Then would you mind sparring by using other powers?" Yan Sui then added, "I''m fine with it."


    "We''ll just do it using music." Ye Futian continued, "Since you''re in favor of music, then it wouldn''t be a bad idea to use music. However, I''d like to use a guqin that was once used by a Renhuang, which contains imperial will. In doing so, I''ll be able to compensate for my lack of training in music. But then again, if you think having me doing so would be taking advantage of you, you''re welcomed to use a Renhuang level instrument as well."


    "Never mind." Yan Sui then continued, "Please do as you wish."


    Ye Futian smiled as he nodded before walking out.


    There was already an empty space before them due to the previous battle, which was huge, given how the crowd had retreated far away, preventing any interference with the session.


    Ye Futian came to sit cross-legged across Yan Sui.


    Both very handsome and exceptional men were sitting across each other. Both of them exuded a scholarly aura about them. Ye Futian''s long silver hair made him appear even more vivid.


    "After you," Ye Futian nodded at Yan Sui and said.


    "After you," Yan Sui nodded in reply. He did not switch the guqin before him for another. That instrument remained a common guqin. It was as if to say that he was absolutely confident in his mastery of the art.


    "Are you not going to swap the instrument for another?" Ye Futian asked.


    "We''ll go about it just like this. I''d swap the instrument for another if I find it inadequate," Yan Sui replied.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly and did not say anything else. Light sparkled, and a guqin appeared right before Ye Futian.


    Pitch black aura coursed about the guqin, which became even more apparent and violent, as Ye Futian infused his will within. It was as if those were auras of the demonic path.


    "A demonic instrument?" Yan Sui looked intrigued, wondering if Ye Futian had trained in demonic ways as well.


    The guqin was something that Ye Futian acquired back when he participated in the Peach Banquet. It was a magic zither. There was no way he would have let go of one such piece throughout the years. He had been attempting to communicate with the instrument and had finally built a relationship with the magic zither to a certain extent.


    Ye Futian put his fingers on the strings and began plucking.


    As the notes danced, extremely powerful demonic will pierced right through the space in an instant, seeping into Yan Sui''s mind.


    Yan Sui''s mind shuddered furiously, and his expression changed somewhat.


    He realized that he might have been too careless before.


    He began plucking the strings on his instrument. The sound of the guqin danced in the air in an instant. The shadows of many divine beasts circled around him, and a shadow of a divine turtle appeared above him, seemingly shrouding his entire being within.


    At the same time, he sent countless notes at Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian did not merely sit by and take the attack. Demonic sound being played, and raging demonic will swept all over the place, sounding extremely overbearing. It punched through those incoming notes right away and gushed at Yan Sui.


    The overbearing notes from Ye Futian banged on the shadow of the divine turtle, causing it to begin cracking.


    There seemed to be an overbearing demon appearing, which lifted its hand and crushed that shadow of the divine turtle right away.


    The demonic sound permeated everywhere, making it extremely ferocious. Even those who were watching from afar felt extremely pained. It was as if their will were to be subdued.


    That boundless overwhelming sound surged into Yan Sui''s mind, as if it was about to sink him. That was done in terms of spiritual will, compelling him to kneel and worship Ye Futian.


    When he looked at Ye Futian, it felt as if he was looking at a legendary demon king.


    Yan Sui''s face changed drastically, and his hands plucked the strings in a frenzy. Divine sound burst all over the place, and he became shrouded in waves of dazzling divine sound, which seeped into his mind as well as being thrown at the terrifying demonic sound.


    Boom. Yan Sui''s body was repelled all of a sudden after a rumble was heard. It was as if he was being thrown away. Light dazzled all about him, and his eyes were shining with blinding divine light when he said, "That should do it."


    Ye Futian, who was playing with his head hung low, stopped playing altogether. That terrifying demonic will disappeared without a trace.


    Ye Futian then looked up at Yan Sui, whose eyes became extremely solemn. His expression changed somewhat.


    He had never expected himself to have made such a grave mistake.


    He had underestimated his enemy.


    It was especially so when Ye Futian claimed to have been inferior, which made him think that he could overpower Ye Futian using music altogether. He never thought that all of that had only been a ruse on Ye Futian''s part. The other man went as far as to humiliate himself, just to show that his proficiency in music was lacking, creating an illusion saying that he would lose easily. With that, one wondered what the crowd thought of the scene when compared to what Ye Futian said before.


    Zhan Yuan glared at Ye Futian and realized why he had behaved in such a humble manner. Ye Futian was doing so just to bring about the effect that was currently seen.


    That guy really has no bounds when it comes to methods. He actually dared to humiliate himself just so to make Yan Sui lose face altogether, he thought.


    "Well played," Ye Futian put the demonic instrument away and said to Yan Sui.


    "Your proficiency in the art of music far exceeded my expectations, sir Ye. Your mastery is on par with masters, and there is no need for you to humble yourself as you did." Yan Sui continued, "It seems like it was me who made the mistake of belittling cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Realm, and now I suffer the consequences. This is indeed quite a lesson, which I shall bear in mind from here on out."


    Ye Futian looked at Yan Sui, not expecting the other man to behave so amicably. He was impressed at the bearing of that genius who was from the Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    If Ye Futian were to be able to make a representative of The Shangxiao Divine Palace slip in their performance, it would naturally reflect poorly on Yi Tianyu.


    "Well, I told you before, little brother, that Ye Futian is a top-notch genius in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. You''ve indeed been careless." A figure was seen walking out, and it was none other than the Crown Prince himself.


    "It was indeed my mistake." Yan Sui nodded.


    "However, it is indeed true that Ye Futian played a trick by sparring with you using a guqin of a demonic emperor, and you were caught off-guard. As such, it is not a true contest of music, and there is no need to mind all that much, little brother. You only need to remember the lesson well," Yi Tianyu continued.


    The ones from Shangxiao Divine Palace nodded and cast their gaze at Ye Futian, which looked somewhat hostile.


    It was apparent that Yan Sui had been set up by Ye Futian.


    At that moment, a cultivator of Shangxiao Divine Palace emerged. He bowed at Ye Futian, saying, "Yue Qing of the Shangxiao Divine Palace. I''d like to spar with sir Ye."


    "So you people are trying to fight yet another round then?" A figure from the side of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven emerged. The one who spoke was Hua Qingyun. He looked at the ones from Shangxiao Divine Palace and said, "You people were the ones who proposed sparring using music before, and Ye Futian had been as honest as he could have been. Yet, you people are reluctant to admit defeat and continue to propose yet another challenge then?"


    "Are you a student of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?" Yue Qing turned to Hua Qingyun and asked.


    "Hua Qingyun of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven," Hua Qingyun smiled and answered.


    "Yue Qing of Shangxiao Divine Palace. After you." Yue Qing bowed slightly at Hua Qingyun, and everyone was baffled. None had expected Yue Qing to have switched his target so quickly and chose to challenge Hua Qingyun, who was of the same plane as Ye Futian.


    The turn of events was indeed unexpected. However, since Hua Qingyun claimed that they were trying to fight another round, then there would have been no problem for one of them to challenge him then.


    Other than the Sky Demon Court and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, those from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were anything but weak as well. While they were unable to compare with those two major forces, they fared a lot better than many other forces, especially when their top-notch figures��Jiang Taichu, Hua Qingyun, Wang Yanbing, Ye Futian, and some others��were concerned. Even if Gu Dongliu had not shown up, the ones present were still the best of the best, and they were all capable of holding their own.


    From the looks of things, it seemed that those of Shangxiao Divine Palace of Higher Heavens Realm were about to clash with those from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    As such, things from then on out would be interesting. Jiang Taichu, Wang Yanbing, and the others had yet to fight, after all.

 1476 Chaos Ensues

    Hua Qingyun looked at Yue Qing and smiled faintly. He stood tall and said plainly, "The students of Shangxiao Divine Palace are indeed dashing and humble in seeking to learn. However, I''m currently not in the mood to ''teach.''"


    Yue Qing, "..."


    The crowd, "..."


    Ye Futian was utterly baffled at how pretentious Hua Qingyun was.


    You''re indeed some genius from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. You really couldn''t have been more ''celestial'' indeed, he thought.


    The student of the Shangxiao Divine Palace frowned. While such ''seeking spirit'' could have had different meanings, especially that between those of the same generation, it would have meant a challenge. Hua Qingyun deliberately went about twisting things around.


    "Well then, I humbly seek your guidance." Despite being momentarily baffled, Yue Qing was hardly fazed and appeared normal. Yue Qing went on to actually ''humbly seek his guidance'' instead.


    "I don''t have the time," Hua Qingyun smiled and replied.


    Humbly seek my guidance?


    What the hell? Hua Qingyun thought.


    Ye Futian was present, and if he were just to nod, Hua Qingyun thought that Ye Futian''s chances would have been unlike any other. Qin He''s attitude in the matter mattered a lot after all. Furthermore, he was able to see that Virgin Jinyi and her people went to look for Ye Futian just to get on with that matter after all.


    If Ye Futian''s chances of being selected were far higher than that of Yi Tianyu, to begin with, Hua Qingyun saw no need to waste their time any further over there.


    The people of Shangxiao Divine Palace intended to show what they were capable of, yet they lost again and again, which Hua Qingyun found boring.


    Furthermore, the matter was not something that could have been decided by determining the winner of sparring sessions, after all. The key to the decision lied with the upper echelons of Brahma''s Pure Sky, as well as Qin He''s own attitude on the matter.


    The people of Shangxiao Divine Palace looked at Hua Qingyun with a baffled expression. They were rendered speechless.


    "Aren''t you from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven? Why are you such a coward?" A sarcastic voice was heard. Hua Qingyun and the others turned around, finding the one who talked to be rather ugly, yet they dressed in extremely lavish clothing. It was a mighty one from the Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    The rats knew that their chances were slim and had only been watching the show so far, seeing how the titans clashed. They never expected Hua Qingyun to behave in such a manner. He was the man who was lauded as the number one among the later generations of the Hua Clan, yet he refused to answer to a challenge.


    But then again, it was also the rats'' wish to not see the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven get any larger than they already were. It would have been better if they were overrun and crushed by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, which would have resulted in utter defeat for both parties, and that would have benefited the rats.


    Gu Dongliu contained the luck of all demon realm in him. Gu Tianxing intended to have Gu Dongliu become the new king of the demon realm, and the rats deemed the older man to have been naive.


    "Since when did you rats have a say in this?" Hua Qingyun turned around and looked at that mighty one from the Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    The rise of the ancestor of the rats had never been something to be proud of in the first place, and he was baffled at how they dared to say something that sarcastic at the moment.


    The mighty one was obviously offended. Intense cold was felt from him, which he directed at Hua Qingyun. The Purple Gold Rat Clan hated being called "rats" above anything else, as they saw it to be the greatest insult.


    It was easy to tell from Hua Qingyun''s tone that the student of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven despised the rats from the bottom of his heart.


    Boom. The rat stomped on the ground and charged forward. Many rat demons followed suit, bringing their might down on Hua Qingyun.


    "We of the Purple Gold Rat Clan are now a supreme force of the demon realm, reigning on par with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. You, a student of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, dare to insult us?" a mighty one from the rats berated in a cold tone.


    Many mighty ones from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven emerged and came behind Hua Qingyun. They burst with overwhelming auras, and auras from both sides clashed in midair, forming a raging current, which spread throughout the Xuantian Pavilion.


    Hua Qingyun remained unfazed and stood tall where he was. He then glared at the other party and asked, "Aren''t the Purple Gold Rat Clan rat demons? If you are indeed rats, why would you need to take offense at being called so? Why would you need to mask your inferiority complex by calling it an insult? If you people are unable to take even that much, why step out and butt into other people''s business in the first place?"


    The mighty ones of the Purple Gold Rat Clan looked grim, and one of them emerged, glaring at Hua Qingyun. He said, "We''re not butting into the affairs of others. We rat demons are just eager to see just what the geniuses of the Celestial Gate are made of."


    "I suggest that you people stop humiliating yourselves further." Hua Qingyun''s voice was mild-mannered. He remained looking nonchalant as he stood around, behaving in a loose, unfettered manner, without the slightest hint of taking a fight seriously, which was a stark contrast to the attitude of those of the rats.


    Voom! That mighty one of the rats turned into a bolt of lightning as soon as Hua Qingyun finished, charging straight at Hua Qingyun. Dazzling golden divine light pierced through space, and the terrifying demonic aura burst ragingly.


    Boom.


    Celestial light burst from Hua Qingyun''s body in an instant, shooting to the heavens. One terrifying mirage after another appeared and burst all over the place, heading straight for that mighty rat.


    Countless mirages of Hua Qingyun lashed out with their palm attacks. A terrifying golden rat demon appeared right above his head, ferociously extending its claws. He tore apart the mirages one after another.


    However, the mirages continued to stack, and they seemed to have grown increasingly strong. A loud rumble was heard, and a celestial shadow clashed with that huge, ferocious shadow of the rat demon. Raging celestial light burst and permeated the place. That mighty rat was shocked and flung behind, repelled to the sky above.


    His eyes remained extremely cold as he glared at Hua Qingyun below. However, the celestial light from Hua Qingyun shot to the heavens. The mirages disappeared, and he remained standing where he was quietly as if he had never made a single move.


    "Mystical way of the Hua Clan��the Mystical Cloud Ladder," the crowd muttered as they witnessed the scene. Both the Hua Clan and the Jiang Clan inherited their own mystical ways, and they were all very formidable.


    The Mystical Cloud Ladder was said to be able to climb the mystical ladder using the power of the great path of the world, breaking the limitations of plane advancement. When trained to the extreme, one would have even been able to break through planes using mystical ways forcefully, and its power was said to be unmatched.


    Such a mystical method was extremely demanding to train, requiring years of excruciating training before being able to make substantial progress step by step. It was said that the Mystical Cloud Ladder had a thousand layers. Rumors claimed that one would only be able to make minor achievements after training for 100 years, and major ones could have only been achieved by training for 1,000 years.


    As such, those of the Hua Clan began training in the method from a very young age.


    The mighty ones of the Purple Gold Rat Clan in the air had gotten increasingly ferocious with their attacks. Purple Golden demonic aura permeated the sky, and there was even an extremely ferocious large creature being conjured. It was a rat demon that was boundlessly huge. It sported golden eyes and appeared extremely terrifying and brutal.


    Many wore puzzled expression at the scene. It had been the ones from the Shangxiao Divine Palace wanting to fight Hua Qingyun before, but none expected the rats to interfere.


    Hua Qingyun looked up at the sky. Mystical shadows burst in layers over his body, melding with the great path all around him.


    A high-pitched screech was heard, and that rat demon pounced on Hua Qingyun yet again. The huge demon lunged with claws extended and fangs bared at Hua Qingyun''s mystical shadows, devouring them as he went. It was as if he was out to devour them all in one go.


    Hua Qingyun extended his hand and waved, and the many mirages in the air did the same. He was seen striking out with his palm, causing his surroundings to shift as countless shadows did the same. That huge rat demon that pounced devoured all the shadows, but its huge frame continued to tremble. It was as if the shadows had all been destroyed.


    Boom, boom, boom... The huge demon rat''s body trembled and roared. A huge mystical shadow appeared in the air as if it was a manifestation of multiple mirages. The air trembled violently as he struck out. That rat demon howled in a frenzy, before being destroyed altogether.


    The mighty one from the Purple Gold Rat Clan behind turned pale. Celestial light sparkled, and Hua Qingyun''s body seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. He clapped at the rat demon. In that instant, the rat demon felt the space it was in was about to be shattered. That seemingly light touch of a palm contained unparalleled powers.


    Pfftt... The rat demon spewed blood and was blasted away.


    "The students of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven indeed live up to their name. Since we''re all here in Heavenly Mandate Realm, we naturally need to see for ourselves what the pinnacle beings of the realm are made of." A voice was heard, and Yue Qing walked out. He charged straight at Hua Qingyun without bothering to seek consent.


    Yue Qing thrust his palm out, and a large palm print capable of shattering space appeared in the air, bearing down on Hua Qingyun.


    The mighty ones of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven frowned at the scene. A figure was seen stepping out in the air, who then thrust a finger at the palm print of the great path. Terrifying pressure appeared in the air.


    The ones from the Divine Palace saw that others were interfering, and more mighty ones emerged with overbearing aura.


    "In that case, we of the Shangxiao Divine Palace shall see what you all are made of."


    Mighty ones from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven emerged to intercept. As such, there were more and more mighty ones from both sides emerging. Many mighty ones from the Shangxiao Divine Palace, Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven emerged, clashing with one another and making the scene look severe.


    It seemed that a single sparring session had spiraled into a group fight instead.


    "This is getting messy." The ones from other forces sported baffled expression, seeing what happened. The scene seemed to have spiraled out of control.


    The mighty ones of the Purple Gold Rat Clan took the opportunity to lash out at the ones from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven without mercy, thinking it best to bring about a war. It would make things worse between the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It could offend those from the Shangxiao Divine Palace, too.


    While the Shangxiao Divine Palace of Higher Heavens Plane did not concern themselves with what their students did outside, the top-notch students themselves were all of impressive backgrounds. There were even some who hailed from top-notch forces of other supreme realms.


    The messier the situation at hand, the better it would have been for the rats.


    Ye Futian''s expression turned cold seeing the scene. There was nothing to say about the conflict between them and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, as both were destined to stand on opposing sides.


    However, he was able to see that the rats had indeed deliberately tried to make things worse, as they could have just watched from the sidelines.


    Furthermore, he had never actually paid much heed to how those of the rats acted against him back at the Origin Mountains, and he certainly did not expect them to meddle in his affairs once again.


    He cast his gaze in one direction and flashed, emerging like a bolt of lightning.


    The world around them shook as Ye Futian stepped out, making the minds of all those around him jump. The Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky spell was extremely overbearing, after all.


    The expression of a mighty one of the Purple Gold Rat Clan changed all of a sudden saw. He Ye Futian emerge right before him, throwing out a punch.


    That punch seemed like Divine Elephants going on a stampede, shattering the space about and with a rumble. That rat demon was sent flying.


    If the rats wanted to be a part of this so badly, it was time to teach them a lesson they''d never forget.

 1477 Its All Too Brutal

    "You''re too much!"


    The mighty ones of the Purple Gold Rat Clan saw how powerful Ye Futian''s aura was, and several of them pounced onto him immediately.


    "Holiness of Nirvanas." Ye Futian took one look at them and found that there were Holiness of Nirvana class monsters among those mighty ones. Many of them launched forward at the same time, extending their demonic auras to shroud the space Ye Futian was in. The huge shadows of the rats pounced and tore down the stampeding Divine Elephants.


    A terrifying shadow of the Divine Elephant appeared above him after seeing several of the rat monsters coming at him. Trumpeting of elephants were heard from above him. The space trembled, and the bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions burst within him.


    Boom!


    When Ye Futian stepped out once again, a terrifying scene appeared above in the sky. The elephants rushed and stomped the sky. The shadows of the rats were crushed outright as they were stomped on by the rushing Divine Elephants.


    Furthermore, those mighty ones of the Purple Gold Rat Clan felt stifled. It was as if their souls were being put under terrifying pressure.


    Ye Futian stepped out again. He looked like a giant god of the Divine Elephants when he stood tall in the air, so much so that the Holiness of Nirvanas among the rats felt an overwhelming pressure all about them.


    Those rats stopped moving. When Ye Futian lifted his feet and began walking, that handsome silver-haired young man seemed to have become extremely tall and imposing, like that of a god. The Divine Elephant shadow, which shrouded his body, moved alongside him.


    Ye Futian stomped at the next moment, causing the Divine Elephant to do the same. Thousands of elephants trumpeted in an instant, as they tore through the sky.


    Boom... One rat was sent flying right while spitting up blood. It seemed that his powerful defenses were unable to do nothing to protect it. The blood in its body raged and howled, while his bones continued to break.


    Boom, boom, boom!


    Trembling noise continued to be heard, and one rat after another was sent flying almost at the same time. One of the rats, who was a Holiness of Nirvana, continued to charge forward. Ye Futian took a look at him and threw a single punch.


    That space exploded in a frenzy at that very instant. The terrifying, devastating attack blasted onto the body of that Holiness of Nirvana rat, causing him to grunt in pain. His bones broke, and blood spilled all over before he was sent flying.


    It took mere moments to cause internal damage to all the rats who were in front of Ye Futian. No one was left standing before him as everyone was downed.


    "The bone of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions." A Holiness of Nirvana rat monster coldly eyed Ye Futian from elsewhere.


    His body then rose to the air, and he began walking towards Ye Futian. Towering demonic aura swept all over the place from his hand, which was holding a terrifying ritual implement��an imperial level piece��causing him to emanate extremely threatening aura.


    He stepped out and walked towards Ye Futian, emanating an extremely terrifying and ferocious aura.


    Ye Futian looked down, gazing at the rat as he stood above in the sky. Those dazzling yet pitched black eyes of his exuded contempt. Celestial light burst, and he shot for the clouds. A celestial soul was conjured above him shortly after.


    Ye Futian''s eyes came to look demonic at that moment. The rat, who was shooting above, flinched slightly as if he sensed the threat posed by that soul.


    Ye Futian looked at the rat and took one step down as if he was stepping onto the soul of that rat. The rat dazzled all over, and an incredibly huge rat shadow appeared, shrouding his soul.


    Voom. Ye Futian walked right to the rat and threw a punch up close. That huge rat lashed out with his claws in retaliation, clashing with Ye Futian''s punch. A raging hurricane whipped out through the sky, shredding the space all around them.


    Yet, there was a silhouette seen within that huge rat shadow. It was as if it was about to be shaken out of the body by the terrifying tremor, causing that huge rat body to stay fixed in the air as if time had stopped altogether.


    Ye Futian threw yet another punch without mercy, blasting at the sky.


    Pfftt...


    Blood was seen spilling from that rat''s mouth as he was sent flying and crashed hard onto the ground. The rat''s body trembled violently, and he looked extremely disheveled. His soul was severely damaged as well.


    The ritual implement that he had taken out was not actually of much use. His soul was overwhelmed and damaged. There was no doubt that if they were to continue fighting, Ye Futian would have ended up killing him.


    That rat was a Holiness of Nirvana, yet he seemed utterly helpless in front of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian did not stop there. He continued stepping out. Every single strike caused a mighty one of the Purple Gold Rats to end up severely injured, allowing others to free up their hands to take on those from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    He, on the other hand, did not do anything against those from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    He behaved as if that had been his plan all along.


    "Enough." A demonic emperor class figure of the rats was heard saying. His voice reverberated throughout the place. His might shrouded the entire battlefield. It was apparent that it was not only the saints who showed up at the scene. Renhuang and demonic emperors of a myriad of forces were present as well, and they were all very powerful.


    Seeing a demonic emperor appear among the rats, the Renhuang of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven emanated towering pressure as well. The fighting throughout the battlefield was halted for the time being, even between the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Everyone turned their eyes to a single direction. That silver-haired figure dressed in white stood tall in the air and looked extremely dazzling. He alone defeated all the mighty ones of the Purple Gold Rat Clan who attacked, causing the rats to look extremely beaten down as they laid there, defeated.


    None of the rats had been able to stand against him, which resulted in that scene right there and then.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes at the demonic emperor of the rats and said, "Didn''t you rat people ask for this in the first place?"


    His actions against the Purple Gold Rat Clan were to serve as a warning. The fighting between the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had nothing to do with the rats in the first place. If the rats intended to meddle in their affairs, then he would have emerged to subdue them.


    The mighty ones who were all downed at the time made it clear that all they did was tantamount to asking to be insulted.


    "Step down," the demonic emperor of the rats said. One rat after another flashed and backed away, looking very displeased.


    That battle was like a slaughter instead, and it seemed as if all of them had been taken down by just a single person, making all talk about fighting to be nothing but a joke on their part. All the other forces, who were only there for the show, were somewhat shocked as well. A force without such top-notch geniuses would surely end up being squashed by one figure after another.


    It was no surprise why Qin He claimed before that Ye Futian was qualified to fight to become the most brilliant one below the Renhuang of the realm.


    Many mighty ones from Heavenly Mandate Realm and Shangxiao Divine Palace eyed him. While the battle was one that was fought in a rush, what Ye Futian had just pulled moments ago compelled them to take him seriously. There was perhaps only a handful, of people even from a place like Shangxiao Divine Palace, capable of fighting him, after all.


    The rats all backed away from the battlefield without saying anything, as they had lost the right to do so altogether.


    Although the fight was brief, things were undoubtedly dire, nonetheless.

 1478 Riddle

    After the Purple Gold Rat Clan backed down, the ones from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and those from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven glared at each other. It seemed as if a formless fire of war had enveloped the entire place.


    "You''re all still at the Xuantian Pavilion, and I implore you all to restrain yourselves." A voice was heard at that moment. The mighty ones were all able to sense that powerful might, which was from the Xuantian Goddess.


    "Please forgive our trespassing, goddess." Lin Yue of Shangxiao Divine Palace bowed and gestured at the air above. They were at the Xuantian Pavilion of Brahma''s Pure Sky, after all, and their action of going for each other''s throats without any regard for the rules was definitely rather rude.


    With the goddess emerging to interfere personally, there was no way they could have continued fighting.


    The students of Divine Music Palace at those from Shangxiao Divine Palace. Yan Sui looked at Ye Futian and said, "I hope to seek your guidance again if the opportunity presents itself, Sir Ye."


    He then turned around and left after saying that.


    The sparring session with music that he extended to Ye Futian saw him losing to the other man, suppressed by the demonic instrument as he had been too sure of himself. Even though he had indeed been tricked by Ye Futian, he was still at fault nonetheless. Ye Futian told Yan Sui that he was about to use a Renhuang class guqin, yet Yan Sui paid no heed to it.


    As such, he ended up being defeated by the demonic tune from the instrument right away.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian''s actions at overwhelming those from the Purple Gold Rat Clan compelled him to reassess Ye Futian''s combat prowess as well. He was not alone in that, as everyone from Shangxiao Divine Palace had probably underestimated that young genius cultivator of Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The people of Shangxiao Divine Palace turned around and left one after another. Yi Tianyu shot a look at Ye Futian as he passed by as well, which seemed to have a lot of weight behind it.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian lowered his voice and said. Everyone turned around and left, heading for the palace which they were staying in.


    Xuantian Pavilion was mostly quiet again after that.


    Night fell, and the blue sky above Xuantian Palace shrouded the entire place in its grandeur. Ye Futian trained in peace in the palace, yet his thoughts remained somewhat restless.


    Footsteps were heard at the moment. Ye Futian opened his eyes and said, "Please come in, Goddess Qin."


    Someone came to him after he said that. She wore a cape and came alone in the night, looking rather lonesome.


    Qin He came before Ye Futian, smiling and asking, "Am I getting in the way of your training, Sir Ye?"


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. "I''m thinking of something as well, so much so that I came to pay you a visit."


    "Well, that sounds like we share the same thoughts." Qin He smiled faintly and sat quietly across Ye Futian. Her jet black hair rested on her shoulders, and her skin looked even more fair and radiant under the moonlight, making her really look like some goddess who was beyond the reach of mortals.


    Ye Futian smiled after hearing Qin He''s words, feeling rather warmed. Qin He looked at his handsome face and chose to sit and continue looking at him.


    "Am I that good-looking?" Ye Futian said in a joking tone.


    "Indeed." Qin He nodded and continued, "Your looks are indeed rare in the world of cultivators."


    "Too bad that one can''t simply rely on looks to get their way about the world of cultivators. I wouldn''t have needed to train otherwise," Ye Futian smiled and said.


    Qin He smiled beamingly at him but quickly became silent. She looked at Ye Futian''s eyes and asked, "I heard that Jinyi came to pay you a visit before?"


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded.


    "What did she say?" Qin He asked.


    "Hardly anything." Ye Futian smiled and continued, "There are many things that I could guess at, even if she were to not say anything, after all."


    Qin He continued to look at Ye Futian''s eyes after hearing what he said. A warm smile was seen in those deep eyes of his, which looked rather wise as well.


    Qin He knew that Ye Futian had really gotten it.


    Even if they were to say nothing, they seemed to truly know what the other was thinking.


    That feeling was something only experienced between soul mates, and it felt mystical.


    "I was sent to train in Brahma''s Pure Sky when I was very young, and becoming the empress had always been a goal of mine. I hoped that I''d be able to create my own era someday, becoming the object of faith for all female cultivators in the world. That is one goal I''ve been working to achieve for years."


    Qin He began to talk about things that seemed unrelated to anything, but Ye Futian chose to listen quietly nonetheless.


    "Training was hard throughout the years. I''ve defeated many and became a goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky. I''m now known as the number one, and I''m one more step closer to achieving my goal. As for the matter of a companion, it was something I had never thought about."


    Ye Futian was able to relate to her. She was a woman who had her sights on furthering her training. Her training was her faith, her religion, yet the ones at the upper echelons of Brahma''s Pure Sky wanted her to marry someone all of a sudden, so she definitely was resistant to it deep down. One''s state of mind would have definitely been very stable if one were to be able to get into Saint Plane in the first place. Even if one were to meet someone they had a liking for, it still would have been impossible for them to be swayed from that faith, which they had been holding onto for so long.


    Qin He looked up at Ye Futian as she said with a smile, "You are of unmatched appearance, and your talents are second to none, Sir Ye. It is so much so that few in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm are able to compare. If I were to have met you when I was younger, I might have actually asked you out on a date and wanted to be with you."


    Her tone sounded somewhat joking, but those were indeed her true thoughts. Qin He really did like Ye Futian, but she did not want to see them end up like that.


    "Please, if you keep showering me with praise, my head is going to float away." Ye Futian smiled and added, "You''re a rare beauty yourself, Goddess Qin. I''m afraid the likes of you are of a handful, even if you were to be compared with everyone throughout the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm. I''m very glad to have one good friend like you, too."


    "A good friend, eh?" Qin He looked at Ye Futian and smiled while saying in a low voice herself, "It is a beautiful thing indeed, and I''m very happy to have gotten t to know you, too."


    "The pleasure is mine." Ye Futian nodded.


    Qin He then rose with a smile, looking up at the crescent moon in the air, and said gently, "I suppose lacking something can be beautiful after all."


    She then left the place shortly after, and he did not say anything more. He did not even send her off. He simply watched as her beautiful silhouette disappeared from sight.


    After Qin He left, Ye Futian then asked, "You done snooping around?"


    Cough, cough... A handsome figure emerged without looking at Ye Futian, who walked past him and said in a low voice instead, "Don''t mind me, just passing by..."


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Qingyun, and it was then he truly realized that the dashing heir of the Hua Clan of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was indeed very thick-skinned.


    "Middle of the night. A man and a woman all alone. No flirting and all riddles. Man, this is boring," Hua Qingyun muttered as he left with his head shaking, seemingly feeling the scene to be quite pitiful. This caused Ye Futian to feel baffled.


    Ye Futian left and came somewhere else. There was someone sitting cross-legged there. Moonlight shone on that man''s robe, making him looking regal and solemn.


    That man opened his eyes and called Ye Futian as the younger man walked by. "Futian," he said.


    "Teacher." Ye Futian came before Qi Xuangang and said, "I need to seek your guidance."


    "About the matter with Qin He, I suppose?" Qi Xuangang asked.


    "Indeed." Ye Futian nodded and continued, "I wonder how I should make my choice, and if my choice will turn out to be correct."


    "I get the idea more or less with the thoughts you two share. Both of you have your own resolves. So what is the problem?" Qi Xuangang asked.


    "I wonder if what I do is too self-centered, and if it will bring about a bad outcome," Ye Futian answered.


    "Everything happening in the world has its own course, and everything is interconnected. All things that have happened have their own causes and consequences. However, no one can truly foresee the future, so how would you know if your choice would lead to a bad outcome for sure? If you were to choose another path, would it be certain that the outcome would be a good one?"


    Qi Xuangang then continued, "This is just like how it was back in Dali all those years ago. Your decision to leave was indeed a good one, but did everything happen as you expected it to afterward?"


    Ye Futian chose to leave Dali without killing Li Yao, yet the Prince Regent went after them all the same. Yan Yuan ended up saving them. Eventually, the royalty of Dali became doubtful of the Imperial Advisor, which led to a series of events from then on out.


    "In hindsight, your decision had indeed been the best. A man will only have to be able to hold their head up high and live up with their conscience with the choices they make. Regardless of what happens in the future, there will be no need for regrets then. What we can all do is to make the best out of the present instead of deciding the course of the future," Qi Xuangang continued.


    Ye Futian felt the weight on his shoulders being lifted after hearing what his teacher said. He then replied, "I understand."


    "Go now," Qi Xuangang said, and Ye Futian left with a nod. Qi Xuangang continued to shut his eyes to train after Ye Futian left. The light on his body dazzled as he melded with the great path.


    Ye Futian ceased thinking about anything else after he returned, choosing to shut his eyes to train instead.


    The silent night seemed unusually long, and Xuantian Pavilion itself seemed unusually quiet as well. Cultivators of all forces trained in silence, waiting for the dawn to come.


    Qin He would come to her conclusion on the next day.


    She could not have simply left all the cultivators hanging, after all.


    Ye Futian entered a mystical, calm, and immutable state in the midnight. It was as if he was so steeped into his training that he turned into a statue, yet he sensed his will spreading and existing everywhere, allowing him to see everything.


    At that moment, a silhouette seemed to have appeared in his mind as he continued to train. It came seemingly out of nowhere.


    That face was one that he was very familiar with. What happened in the world hardly fazed him when he was steeped in training, yet when that silhouette appeared, his heart twitched violently. It was as if he had been hit by something.


    "Jieyu," Ye Futian uttered a single word. His eyes opened all of a sudden. It was as if he had forcibly yanked out of that meditative state in an instant. That silhouette in his mind gradually blurred and eventually dissipated. It was as if it had never been there in the first place.


    He shot to the air, and his eyes looked terrifying. He scanned the place with his will in all directions.


    While it was entirely possible that the phenomenon happened because he missed Jieyu, his plane level would have allowed him to tell the difference. When it happened previously, he thought it was due to his spiritual will being in a shaky state, thus causing a hallucination.


    But a hallucination yet again?


    This couldn''t be.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky. It definitely had something to do with the place.


    He pursued the silhouette all the way when he last experienced the phenomenon, and eventually came to the place where Qin He was. That was a training ground in Brahma''s Pure Sky. The Xuantian Pavilion, which he was currently in, was within Brahma''s Pure Sky''s territory as well.


    Back then, Jieyu was gone because she summoned the will of the empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Was it true that Jieyu was truly still alive and somewhere in Brahma''s Pure Sky then?


    Otherwise, how else could her appearing in my mind twice be explained? he wondered.


    But then again, he was puzzled as to why he was unable to see anyone anywhere.

 1479 Who Were There Fighting?

    It was a sleepless night for everyone, and in the early morning of the next day, countless people gathered in front of the Xuantian Pavilion in Brahma Sky City.


    They had been paying attention to the thing going on in the Xuantian Pavilion, which was related to Qin He''s marriage. It could even affect the political geography of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    However, they heard that Qin He did not make a choice yesterday but instead let the cultivators of the forces stay overnight in the Xuantian Pavilion. On the top of Xuantian Pavilion, a conflict had broken out, and during the battle, Ye Futian vanquished all the warriors of the Purple-golden Rat Clan with overwhelming power, greatly embarrassing them.


    Many people imagined how that battle was like. How powerful was Ye Futian?


    Many people also felt that Qin He was more likely to choose Ye Futian. After all, Qin He had a closer relationship with Ye Futian than with others.


    Today, there should be a result.


    On the Xuantian Pavilion, the people of all forces headed toward one place. They would come to the Xuantian Hall, where the Xuantian Goddess would formally summon the people of all forces.


    In the vast area, all forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had arrived. Everyone looked toward the Xuantian Goddess in front of the Xuantian Hall. Beside her, Qin He was also there.


    Yesterday, Qin He had been thinking for a whole day, and now the Xuantian Goddess would know her decision.


    The warriors of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had arrived, and they stood opposite of each other.


    However, at this moment, they did not look at each other. Yi Tianyu looked toward the direction of Qin He. He knew that yesterday Qin He went to visit where Ye Futian and his companions lived by herself. Not only Yi Tianyu knew, but many people knew about it, too.


    However, would Brahma''s Pure Sky really allow Qin He to make such a decision?


    He had chatted with Qin He in Haotian City. He didn''t mind her and Ye Futian being friends, but Brahma''s Pure Sky would not allow her to get involved with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Now, Ye Futian was standing on the side of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and this time he even came here to represent the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Then, if Qin He chose to make friends with Ye Futian, everything was different, and it would no longer be a matter just between her and Ye Futian.


    Yi Tianyu also wanted to see what Qin He and Brahma''s Pure Sky would do.


    Everyone stayed quiet. Xuantian Goddess''s gaze fell on Qin He. Qin He looked toward the crowd and took a light step out. She took two steps forward and said, "Among all the warriors who broke into the Matrix yesterday, may I ask who wants to seek marriage with me?"


    After hearing Qin He''s words, people looked serious. Was Qin He going to select?


    Sure enough, she would select amongst the people who challenged the matrix, but before, there were only three major forces��Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and Demon Sky Court��which could be considered as entering the Xuantian Pavilion.


    A figure walked out from the crowd of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty quietly. It was Yi Tianyu, and he was the only one who came out.


    In Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, no one but Yi Tianyu was eligible to marry Qin He.


    "I have always admired Goddess and am willing to cultivate with you for the rest of my life. I promise that I will not let you feel lonely on your way of cultivation," Yi Tianyu said. Although he did not need to rely on a woman to cultivate, he wouldn''t mind having such an outstanding woman, such as Qin He, as his spiritual partner. Besides, this was related to the whole Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He pursued the Great Path of Laws, but his priority was to let the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stand on the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Qin He smiled and bowed her head to Yi Tianyu. Many people noticed Qin He''s expression and faintly felt that she seemed to have some changes and looked a little different from yesterday.


    But no one was clear what kind of change it was.


    After Yi Tianyu stepped out, everyone''s eyes suddenly turned to the direction of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, or in other words, fell on Ye Futian.


    Although Demon Sky Court entered the Xuantian Pavilion, they didn''t seem to have the intention to compete, and they were not able to compete with them.


    They were all clear that the spiritual partner selected by Qin He this time would surely be either Yi Tianyu or Ye Futian.


    But at this moment, Ye Futian was standing quietly in the crowd of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, with no reaction at all. It was as if the thing had nothing to do with him.


    Ye Futian also noticed people''s gazes, but he was still very quiet and did not move.


    Many people had strange looks. What was going on?


    Ye Futian, he didn''t want to compete with Yi Tianyu?


    Even the cultivators of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven looked at Ye Futian full of doubt. People all knew that Qin He and Ye Futian had a good relationship, and they once lived in a palace together. When Yi Tianyu went to visit Qin He, Qi He just received him at the gate. The difference between her attitudes toward these two men was obvious.


    If Ye Futian competed with Yi Tianyu, the probability of his winning was high.


    At least, Qin He would be inclined to choose him, as long as Brahma''s Pure Sky did not interfere.


    This time, everyone had assumed that Ye Futian would compete with Yi Tianyu on behalf of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Even the Xuantian Goddess was looking at Ye Futian. Her eyes were so deep that nobody could see what she was thinking, but obviously, she was a little surprised.


    "How about the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?" Xuantian Goddess even asked.


    Hua Qingyun gave Ye Futian a strange look. He overheard some of Qin He''s conversation with Ye Futian yesterday. Did this guy really want to give up?


    So, what would Qin He choose to do?


    Ye Futian looked toward Qin He. Qin He was also looking at him. They smiled at each other as if they understood each other without speaking.


    Qin He knew that Ye Futian understood her.


    Friends were easy to make, but it was hard to find a person who truly understood her. However, at this moment, Qin He indeed felt someone truly understood her, and she enjoyed the feeling.


    "Is there only the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?" Xuantian Goddess asked. Qin He selected her spiritual partner, which made the whole Heavenly Mandate Realm tremble, and all the top forces had come for her. However, in the end, only the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stood out?


    Were others even afraid to have a try?


    No one had expected this situation.


    In the direction of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, someone walked forward and wanted to say something to Ye Futian, but Hua Qingyun waved his hand and stopped them. Just let it go.


    When Jiang Taichu saw the reaction of Ye Futian and Hua Qingyun, he didn''t say anything and just watched it all quietly.


    So, Yi Tianyu was the only one who walked out.


    "If only the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stands out, then there is no need to choose," Xuantian Goddess said. Her gaze fell in the direction of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Ye Futian of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven really did not want to compete?


    Didn''t they care if Brahma''s Pure Sky joined hands with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?


    After her words, the space fell silent. Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven still kept silent.


    "Qin He," the Xuantian Goddess said indifferently, looking at Qin He.


    At this moment, the atmosphere in this space was a bit depressing. People of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked indifferent, but they were smiling inwardly. Nobody expected that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven gave up on their own. They did not understand why Ye Futian did this.


    What he was doing was handing Qin He over to Yi Tianyu.


    Warriors of demon clans were also watching this quietly. Even though the human cultivation world had grown stronger, the demon clans would not be affected. Unless some unusual figures showed up, it was none of their business whether Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would be destroyed or not.


    Some demon clans were even glad to see it happen.


    Therefore, they didn''t care about this result. Even the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven didn''t keep it in mind, so why should they care?


    Ye Futian still had no response. It was as if he and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven came just to watch the show.


    At this time, Qin He looked at Yi Tianyu and said, smiling, "I am honored by Your Highness''s admiration. I have also heard about Your Highness for a long time. Previously, in the battles of Violet Heavenly Palace and Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, you have shown marvelous performance. Today, I have the chance, so I personally want to spar with Your Highness and learn about your cultivation. I wonder if Your Highness can fulfill my wish?"


    Was this Qin He''s last test for Yi Tianyu?


    If Yi Tianyu was defeated, perhaps he would not be qualified to marry Qin He.


    However, although Qin He had strong combat strength, she still might not be able to defeat Yi Tianyu.


    "Since you have shown interest, of course, I am willing to practice with you until you are satisfied," Yi Tianyu said with a smile.


    Qin He stepped forward and walked alone toward the bottom of the Xuantian Hall stairs, then jumped down to the empty ground below. Yi Tianyu''s body flickered, and he also landed there in a chivalrous manner.


    Everyone came to the stairs and looked down at them. Qin He and Yi Tianyu were standing opposite each other with extraordinary grace.


    Yi Tianyu, the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, was one of the most dazzling figures of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty today.


    Qin He was the First Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Please enlighten me, Your Highness," Qin He bowed to salute and said.


    "Goddess first," Yi Tianyu said. He was personable and let Qin He go first.


    Qin He didn''t decline. She waved her hands, and suddenly, the clouds and wind over the sky changed their color, and the Wills of the Great Path converged. Behind Qin He, a sacred goddess showed up. This statue of Goddess also appeared in the previous Xuantian matrix with three heads and six arms, as high as a hundred feet. Countless beams of divine light shrouded Qin He''s body, making Qin He look more divine.


    Many people showed surprise. Qin He used such powerful force at the beginning, but what was her intention?


    When Qin He was drawing palm print, the Goddess also did the same. The Great Brahma Heavenly Voice appeared between the sky and the earth, resounding through the void sky. The Great Path was booming, and the wind and clouds roared above the sky dome. Numerous divine swords emerged, and as the Goddess'' finger pointed down, numerous swords burst into the air and thrust toward Yi Tianyu.


    "What does she mean?" Warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Shangxiao Divine Palace frowned. Qin He''s way of attacking was not like practicing at all.


    An idea occurred to many people. Maybe Qin He was unwilling to marry Yi Tianyu.


    Maybe she wanted to defeat Yi Tianyu.


    Yi Tianyu stood there, and the moment when he saw Qin He''s attack, he understood something. There were not many changes in his eyes, but an outrageous spirit broke out from his body. A dazzling picture of Heavenly Mandate appeared behind him, making his body bathe in divine light.


    Both of them suddenly released extremely powerful forces. They were nothing like a couple who were about to marry.


    Yi Tianyu drew palm prints, and above the sky dome, there seemed to be a deity descending. A horrifying god-like figure appeared behind Yi Tianyu, holding up his hands. Countless palm prints blasted out toward the sky and collided with the approaching Divine Sword of Cleansing.


    For a moment, the void sky oscillated, and the devastating air flow swept across the void air.


    "What''s going on?" countless people below Xuantian Pavilion looked up at the sky above and asked. There seemed to be life forces of horrifying Great Path fluctuating violently as if a fierce battle was breaking out. Besides, they could vaguely see two peerless figures in the upper sky��a goddess and a deity.


    Who were they fighting?

 1480 Determination

    .Many people below Xuantian Pavilion were a little surprised that a fight had broken out in Xuantian Pavilion yesterday.


    Today should be the day for Qin He to choose a spiritual partner. Why was there another battle?


    What was even more shocking was that the goddess figure was used in a technique of Brahma''s Pure Sky, and the deity-like figure was a part of the ultimate skill of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    "The one who is standing on top of the Saint Path is Qin He Goddess," someone said.


    "The other one is Yi Tianyu," someone also said.


    Qin He and Yi Tianyu were fighting.


    Many people were trembling inside. Were Qin He and Yi Tianyu fighting?


    Could it be her last test for Yi Tianyu?


    People looked up at the sky above Xuantian Pavilion and saw the horrifying airflow gradually rising. Two peerless figures showed up above the sky of Xuantian Pavilion. People could be able to see them fighting, and just as they had guessed, these two figures were Qin He and Yi Tianyu.


    Are they mad? many people thought to themselves, hearts beating hard when watching the situation on the battlefield. The Divine Sword of World Cleansing and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty descended. Both of them collided with each other using the ultimate skills. This was no longer a simple practice, but a real battle.


    "I remember the last time when all forces broke into the Xuantian matrix, it also happened," people said to one another, but their eyes were fixed on the battlefield in the void sky.


    The divine light was shining, and the glory of the Great Path fell from the sky. Their battle became more and more violent, and people had noticed that Yi Tianyu was getting more serious, like a true god. His every attack was shocking. Even though Qin He was powerful, too, she was quelled.


    In the end, the divine light of all skies shone down and descended over Qin He''s body. Qin He was hit and flew away, and her delicate body seemed to be penetrated by the divine light. Blood oozed out from her bright red lips.


    Why did he hit her so hard? many people thought and twitched inside. They did not forget what the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Crown Prince came here for. He came here to seek marriage with Qin He.


    But at this moment, he wounded Qin He. People all thought this battle was way too fierce and would hurt the relationship.


    Unless something had happened above... But they didn''t know.


    At this time, above Xuantian Pavilion, warriors who were watching the battle also looked solemn and looked up at the battlefield above the sky.


    Both of them looked radiant all over their bodies. Yi Tianyu was bathed in the divine light, and the power of the Great Path poured into his body frantically. It was as if he had become the true deity.


    Qin He''s temperament was like an immortal goddess, but at this moment, she was injured. There was no change in her eyes, and she was still staring in the direction of Yi Tianyu.


    Yi Tianyu also looked at her with a pair of golden eyes full of penetrating power. He just meant to practice, but Qin He attacked him mercilessly and fought with all her strength, so he had to take it seriously. From Qin He''s fighting attitude, he naturally understood something.


    At this time, although Yi Tianyu still looked calm, he felt a little uncomfortable in his heart. Since Qin He requested to fight, then he had to do it.


    "Is that enough?" Yi Tianyu asked Qin He.


    Qin He stepped forward and wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth. She still had a smile on her face, and her clothes fluttered as she said, "Your Highness is indeed a peerless figure, but Qin He can still fight with you."


    After the words, the glory of divine light fell, and more Goddess phantoms appeared in the surrounding world. Suddenly, the Goddesses waved her arms at the same time, and the vast world was all shrouded within it.


    A touch of coldness flashed in his eyes after Yi Tianyu saw the scene, and he said, "Since Goddess wants to fight, I should accompany you."


    The divine armor over his body moved with the wind. Yi Tianyu raised his finger and pressed it toward the void sky. Instantly, the sky and the earth roared, and the killing light transformed from the Qianqiu brush engulfed the void sky as his original body was moving forward in this devastative airflow. He only took one step and came in front of Qin He, and slapped his godlike palm print forward.


    The Great Path was roaring, and the void sky was trembling. Yi Tianyu''s palm blasted out tens of thousands of divine light beams, and Qin He''s body was wrapped in the Goddess figure. The Goddess held the sword and collided with the deity''s palm print, and the rumbling sound was like the collapse of the Great Path. All the arms exploded and shattered until the divine light also penetrated Qin He''s body. This time, it was more violent than the previous blow.


    Qin He flew back. Her body was slightly bent, and her face turned pale. It took her a long while to stop.


    The battle ceased. There was no sound over the Xuantian Pavilion except for the sound of the roaring of the Great Path airflow.


    People all looked at Qin He. At this moment, they also understood.


    First Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky seemed to be expressing her attitude in this way, and she was by no means willing to marry him.


    "Qin He," Xuantian Goddess glanced up at Qin He and said coldly, "enough."


    Qin He slightly raised her head, and a bright smile appeared on her pale face, but this smile made people feel a touch of sadness. There seemed to be a bit of loneliness hidden in that beautiful face.


    "Qin He can fight again, Master," Qin He said. Her calm tone seemed to hide her determination.


    In a quiet space, only Qin He''s voice echoed between the sky and the earth. Yi Tianyu''s look turned cold, and he felt a little angry.


    He had said that although he was willing to arrange a marriage with Brahma''s Pure Sky, he didn''t care too much about it. Even if it didn''t work, it wouldn''t matter much to him. If he really was looking for a spiritual partner, there were so many excellent women in the world for him to choose. Even if he couldn''t find any in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he could go to other realms.


    However, for his clan, he did not mind having this marriage.


    But now even though Brahma''s Pure Sky had invited them to come, no one competed with him, and Qin He was defeated. Why did she put him in such a situation? How could they do that to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?


    Should they fight again?


    The divine light over Yi Tianyu''s body became even more dazzling. Many people looked up at him and trembled inwardly. They knew that Yi Tianyu was obviously angry.


    Bang! Yi Tianyu stepped into the void sky, raised his hand, and drew a palm print. With the blooming of the divine light, the palm print of the Great Path banged directly over Qin He''s body. This time, Qin He flew out feebly and hit a palace in the distance, and then fell towards the sky.


    This scene made everyone''s heart beat fast.


    Yi Tianyu was attacking violently. As the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he also had his own pride. If it had not been for the revival of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, how could he treat a woman like that? But now, Qin He still had not given him the respect he deserved.


    Now she still wanted to fight, so he would accompany her.


    "It''s time for Goddess to make a decision," Yi Tianyu stood above the void sky and said to Qin He, looking a little bit aggressive.


    At this time, Qin He''s life force was weak. She got up from the ground, but her body was not stable. She looked up and smiled elegantly and sadly.


    "I can still fight," Qin He said in a feeble voice. Apparently, she could no longer fight.


    But even at this moment, she still refused to compromise.


    She did not express her thoughts clearly, but her actions made everyone understand.


    She was unwilling to marry Yi Tianyu, and what she was doing was a silent protest.


    Qin He looked at Yi Tianyu and looked toward the direction of Brahma''s Pure Sky. Her beautiful and sad smile seemed to contain her memories. Since she started cultivation, Brahma''s Pure Sky was her home, and everything of hers was given to her by Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    The title of First Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky gave her a lot of praise about her appearance and her spiritual achievements, and they also came from Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    She could not refute or directly resist orders from her master, so she could only make a silent protest.


    This was not the way she wanted. Instead of accepting all this, she''d rather return everything to Brahma''s Pure Sky, so she would not owe Brahma''s Pure Sky anymore.


    Warriors of Brahma''s Pure Sky were also somehow moved. Many people looked at Xuantian Goddess. Xuantian Goddess still sat there and took a look at Qin He, and then took a look at Ye Futian.


    Qin He went to the palace where Ye Futian stayed yesterday. What did they talk about?


    "Goddess Qin, are you sure you can fight again?" Yi Tianyu stood in the void, looking down at Qin He.


    Qin He looked up at Yi Tianyu, who was still bathed in divine light. She said, "Of course."


    "Okay." Yi Tianyu didn''t say much. Brahma''s Pure Sky didn''t say anything, but Qin He still wanted to fight, so what could he do?


    It seemed that he had to continue.


    Yi Tianyu was bathed in divine light, wearing the divine armor. The dazzling light made many people feel scared. Yi Tianyu raised his hand and thrust it toward Qin He. It seemed as if this strike was enough to destroy Qin He.


    Many people''s hearts thumped fast. Yi Tianyu''s movement was also very slow. It was as if he was waiting for something.


    However, Brahma''s Pure Sky still did not say anything, and Qin He did not compromise.


    With his arm slowly lowering, his body also went down and headed straight toward where Qin He was. The gorgeous divine light engulfed Qin He''s body, making it almost impossible to see her figure.


    All warriors held their breath. No one had expected that things would end like this today.


    The things today were beyond everyone''s expectations.


    Finally, the gorgeous light came.


    Boom!


    After a loud noise, the void sky trembled violently, and people''s hearts thumped hard with it.


    Countless eyes stared at the front. The fairy-like figure was still standing there, not withering. In the sky above her body, a silver-haired figure showed up. His hair was white, and his clothes were white, and he was handsome and unparalleled. The sound of elephant roaring came out, and the horrifying aura of elephant shone between the sky and the earth, containing an appalling Might.


    "Ye Futian!"


    "Did he finally come out?"


    Many pairs of eyes were fixed on him. Just now, at the crucial moment, Ye Futian came across the space and came in front of Qin He, blocking Yi Tianyu''s blow.


    Yi Tianyu lowered his head, and his eyes fell on Ye Futian''s body. The Wills of the Great Path growled, and his expression was extremely cold. He said, "I don''t remember you coming out at the beginning."


    Since Ye Futian didn''t come out at the beginning, he had given up the opportunity to fight.


    But he stood up at this moment. What did he mean?


    Xuantian Goddess was also looking at Ye Futian. Until this moment, she still didn''t mean to intervene even though many disciples of Brahma''s Pure Sky had shown their worry.


    "Today, two supreme powers of the Heavenly Mandate Realm have jointly persecuted a young cultivator. I feel pity for you."


    Ye Futian avoided directly responding to Yi Tianyu''s words and said this ironically. His eyes looked a bit cold!

 1481 Attitude of Yi Tianyu

    Qin He went to him last night, and after their conversation, Ye Futian understood Qin He''s thoughts, and the two also reached a certain understanding.


    Everyone had speculated that Qin He might choose him, but neither he nor Qin He had such an idea.


    Therefore, he did not step out today, nor did Qin He choose Yi Tianyu, but instead, they experienced a great battle just now, which was her intention.


    "Coerce?" Yi Tianyi murmured, and said, "I never coerced anyone. It was Brahma''s Pure Heaven who extended the invitation to this feast, and it was Brahma''s Pure Heaven that informed us od Qin He''s intention to choose a companion in cultivation. So I came from the Heavenly Mandate Realm and did all this. What is the meaning of this? "


    As he finished speaking, he stepped forward and looked at Ye Futian. "Since you didn''t step out, you are not qualified to intervene in this matter."


    "If Brahma''s Pure Heaven wants to make an alliance with anyone, it''s a decision that could be made directly. I don''t think Qin He is qualified to decide for Brahma''s Pure Heaven." Ye Futian looked at Xuantian Goddess and said, "I would humbly ask Xuantian Goddess, what is the meaning of all this?"


    For Qin He to pick a path companion meant that Qin He had the power to decide the alliance by marriage. But judging from all that had happened, he did not think Qin He had such a position in Brahma''s Pure Heaven.


    Coupled with what he saw last night, there must be an ulterior motive for Brahma''s Pure Heaven to do so, and it had nothing to do with Qin He.


    Qin He was just the one that Brahma''s Pure Heaven decided to sacrifice for some yet unknown purpose.


    Xuantian Goddess looked at Ye Futian, and instead of answering Ye Futian''s question, she asked, "Ye Futian, today Brahma''s Pure Heaven is choosing a path companion for Qin He. Are you in, or are you out ?"


    Ye Futian gazed at the other and did not avoid the eyes of the Xuantian Goddess. He looked very serious, and with a hint of indifference, he said, "I do not deal in the sacrifice of another, and Qin He, she is also unwilling to make such a trade."


    Xuantian Goddess looked into Ye Futian''s eyes. Was he refusing?


    Everyone in Heavenly Mandate Realm had thought that today Ye Futian would compete with the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��Yi Tianyu��and because of Qin He''s preference, Ye Futian was the most likely to win Qin He over as her chosen path companion.


    But no one would think that Ye Futian did not participate directly, and Qin He was even more resolute. Their attitude was clearly witnessed by everyone.


    Even though it concerned the institution of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they were still unwilling to go against their hearts and do something against their will.


    Qin He, especially, had even defied the order of her master, and had made a silent protest by fighting against Yi Tianyu��the crown prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��until she could fight no longer.


    At this moment, Qin He took a step forward, her face was still pale, with blood stains at the corners of her mouth. The step she took put her next to Ye Futian. The face of the peerless goddess was beautiful beyond compare, and the white-haired young man was full of spirit.


    In this instant, many witnessed an illusion. It was as if they were really a perfect pair. Moreover, everyone could see that they admired each other. Qin He had openly expressed her admiration for Ye Futian, and Ye Futian protecting Qin He did the same.


    But admiration aside, it did not represent feelings, nor was it entangled with selfish interests. That was not Ye Futian''s intent, nor was it Qin He''s.


    Especially for Qin He, at this moment, she smiled and cast a glance at the white-haired young man beside her. Her admiration of Ye Futian came from her heart. He was so dazzling and outstanding.


    Everyone thought that Yi Tianyu, the crown prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Gu Dongliu of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were the two most talented geniuses and representatives of this generation. But in Qin He''s eyes, everyone had underestimated Ye Futian. Even though he had demonstrated great talent, the world still underestimated him.


    She thought that in the future, Ye Futian would rule over all in the Heavenly Mandate Heaven.


    "Young Master Ye is right. All that Qin He has was given to her by her master. It can all also be taken back by her master. One came to Brahma''s Pure Heaven to seek the Way and see the Way diminished at Brahma''s Pure heaven. There was no resentment or regret. It is just because of clan interest to arrange a marriage. This was not Qin He''s idea."


    Qin He glanced at the Xuantian Goddess. Her voice showed her determination. This was the path of her Way, and she would guard it no matter the cost, even if it meant the destruction of her Way. Her heart remained on its path.


    Many were silent upon hearing what Qin He had to say. The cultivators here were all cultivators of Saint Plane or higher. Even though in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, cultivators of Saint Plane were plentiful, and were not considered to be at a high plane. Yet, it was a plane that had also undergone the test of the mindfulness of the path, and their hearts had experienced transformation.


    Therefore, they were all a little moved. There was a reason why Qin He was able to become the first maiden of Brahma''s Pure Heaven.


    If she accepted the arrangement of Brahma''s Pure Heaven and became path companions with the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, she would still be the magnificent Qin He even when the two became a heavenly couple.


    But at this moment, Qin He, with a touch of sadness, seemed to be even more admirable and deserving of respect.


    In the quiet space, many people had a lot of thoughts of their own, but none of them were easy to express.


    Even Xuantian Goddess was silent at the moment and did not speak. No one knew her thoughts, and no one knew the thoughts of Brahma''s Pure Heaven.


    From the beginning until now, everyone was a little doubtful. They came here to see how the whole thing would turn out.


    "Since Goddess Qin has already said so, then let it stop here. Although I am not a human cultivator, the matter of human marriage should not be forced." A voice interrupted the quiet space, and the one who spoke was the cultivator of the Dragon Gods, Long Chen.


    At this moment, under these circumstances, many people dared not speak, but Long Chen didn''t care so much. The Dragon Gods of the Demon Realm was extremely powerful. Long Chen, as the Purple Blood Divine Dragon, had incredible talent. His status in the Demon Realm was comparable to that of Yi Tianyu in the world of human cultivation.


    Long Chen didn''t care so much, so he spoke up.


    "So, Brahma''s Pure Heaven invited all the forces here with such great flair, tested the Xuantian Matrix, entered the Xuantian Pavilion, under the pretext that Qin He was to choose a companion. All the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm came for this purpose, and this is how it ends?" Yingzhao Mountain''s demonic cultivators remarked, "What is all this?"


    "None of us could breach the matrix, so although we were not qualified to participate, if this is how things end, it really does look like a joke." The cultivators of the Purple Gold Rat Clan had always reveled in chaos; they had always wanted the situation to be more chaotic.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is a supreme principality. Its Crown Prince is an excellent figure in his own right. He is not too concerned about it. If he wants to continue and push Goddess Qin further away, what good would it do? It would just sully the reputation of the two great powers. "At this time, Gao Yuang Ten Thousand Divine Mountain also spoke up, seemingly to calm down the situation.


    Yi Tianyu had been standing above the void, surrounded by divine light, clad in the armor of a god.


    Of all the comments made, what was said by Gao Huang of the Ten Thousand Divine Mountain was actually the most realistic.


    Qin He behaved so resolutely that if he were to continue, the two peak forces of Brahma''s Pure Heaven and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty both pushing a peerless goddess into a desperate situation would definitely not be some glorious matter to boast of.


    But, was he the one who caused everything that happened to reach this point?


    "Now, I, Yi Tianyu, look like the bad guy." Yi Tianyu suddenly laughed, with a particularly sarcastic irony.


    What did it all this have to do with him?


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Yi Tianyu were both innocent.


    He came because of Brahma''s Pure Heaven''s invitation. He tried very hard to do what he could, but now, he had become the one to be accused of doing something wrong. It was as if he was pressuring Qin He, like he wanted to destroy this beauty out of his own narrow-mindedness.


    How ironic.


    "What a joke. The fault of Brahma''s Pure Heaven seems to be my senior brother''s fault." In the direction of Shangxiao Divine Palace, Yan Sui also spoke up, and his tone was laced with some sarcasm.


    Neither Yi Tianyu nor Qin He was wrong. They were both doing what they thought was the right thing to do, and they were insisting on their own Way. All this chaos has been caused by Brahma''s Pure Heaven.


    "Brahma''s Pure Heaven, aren''t you going to say anything?" Lin Yue also remarked, with some dissatisfaction in his tone. Shangxiao Divine Palace came to help Yi Tianyu to bring back the beauty as a contribution to Yi Tianyu''s effort to revive the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    But now, what was this?


    There was nothing more that Xuantian Goddess could say. All of this went beyond anything she could have anticipated.


    "I, Yi Tianyu, am a true and righteous man. I have no concerns over lacking a wife. Since Goddess Qin is not in favor of the union, I will not force it," Yi Tianyu finally spoke his mind, causing everyone''s heart to be slightly disquieted.


    Yi Tianyu was willing to give up. He no longer pressing Qin He on the matter.


    "Senior brother," The people from Shangxiao Divine Palace, such as Yan Sui, wanted to see Yi Tianyu succeed. Many people admired Yi Tianyu in their hearts. Above the Shangxiao Divine Palace, Yi Tianyu was definitely the one and only.


    True and righteous men did not lack mates, but Brahma''s Pure Heaven should not have contrived such a scheme.


    But even so, Yi Tianyu would no longer continue to entangle himself in this matter. This was his attitude on the matter.


    Although he had let it go, Yi Tianyu''s eyes still fell on Qin He, or rather, fastened on Ye Futian.


    "In the past, at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, you intervened in the dispute between the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and my Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Now, in Xuantian Pavilion at Brahma''s Pure Heaven, why do you interfere with the matter between Brahma''s Pure Heaven and me, since you did not participate yourself?


    Yi Tianyu''s eyes fell on Ye Futian. His eyes were extremely sharp. As he took a step forward, the void shook, and the divine light was radiant, shining toward Ye Futian''s direction.


    Ye Futian looked up at Yi Tianyu, and the hearts of many trembled slightly.


    Yi Tianyu had let Qin He go, and the whole affair stopped there.


    But Ye Futian intervened and ruined his chance. That was not something Yi Tianyu intend to let go!

 1482 Battling Yi Tianyu

    "Goddess Qin is a good friend of mine, so this naturally has something to do with me," Ye Futian looked at Yi Tianyu and said. There was a sound of elephants chanting upon his body, which rang through heaven and earth. Above the Xuantian Pavilion, everyone felt as if hundreds of thousands of elephants were running by.


    In an instant, the horrifying storm of the Great path swept out and collided in the void. The hearts of many felt chilled. Ye Futian was facing Yi Tianyu. Did he also want to battle him?


    Yi Tianyu looked as if he was electrified, full of sharp edges. He said, "This is the Xuantian Pavilion of Brahma''s Pure Heaven. I won''t fight here."


    As he finished speaking, he gave another look at Ye Futian and turned around to walk outside Xuantian Pavilion.


    Ye Futian naturally understood what he meant. He stepped into the void and headed outside as well.


    Seeing the actions of the two, many above Xuantian Pavilion followed them at once, and a sublime atmosphere moved outward all of a sudden. It was quite spectacular. Soon, only very few people remained in Xuantian Pavilion.


    Qin He looked up over there but didn''t move. Those from Brahma''s Pure Heaven was still here. Goddess Xuantian looked at Qin He and then said to the others around her, "Take Qin He back to Brahma''s Pure Heaven."


    Her voice was still calm, and no emotions could be detected from it. No one knew her thoughts; even the disciples of Brahma''s Pure Heaven could not tell.


    "Yes." Several people walked toward Qin He. Qin He looked at Goddess Xuantian. Her eyes still expressed some confusion and a hint of loss.


    Goddess Xuantian looked at her and said, "Focus on cultivation in the future."


    When she was done, she walked outside.


    Qin He''s beautiful eyes revealed a strange look. She was still puzzled and did not understand what Goddess Xuantian meant.


    Why ask her to focus on cultivation again?


    At this time, countless people beneath the Xuantian Pavilion felt as if their hearts had been shaken. They looked up above the void and felt an inner shock.


    Could it be that Yi Tianyu��the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��and Ye Futian were finally colliding?


    Previously, everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm thought that this time, when Qin He was selecting a path companion, it would be a game between the two of them. But no one thought it would be in the form of fighting. After all, the cultivation between the two was completely different.


    Even though Ye Futian was one in a million, he was still just an Unblemished Saint. The Crown Prince Yi Tianyu had already proven to be in the Nirvana plane, and may even be the strongest person under Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. At their level, this realm was extremely difficult to cross.


    How could they fight, then?


    "10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor," someone said when they felt the surging momentum from Ye Futian. The two figures walked above the sky, leaving Xuantian Pavilion, and came to the area outside. There seemed to be countless illusions of the divine elephants above the sky. The breath upon Ye Futian was already comparable to that of the Nirvana plane.


    "With the help of the 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor, Ye Futian''s strength is indeed comparable to that of the Nirvana Plane. This makes them equal when fighting one another," many people observed and remarked. The bones of the ancestors of the Divine Elephants had extremely potent power. After Ye Futian cultivated with the Divine Elephants and learned of this unparalleled skill, he was able to resonate with the 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor and burst into supreme power.


    Yi Tianyu, likewise, also continued in the peak form as when he fought with Qin He. The life spirit of the Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate bloomed, the divine light of the Great Path continuing to converge toward his body. This made him the incarnation of the Divine Body of the Great Path��the one and only.


    The scene above the sky was utterly shocking.


    Yi Tianyu, known as the natural supremacy of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, was destined to be extraordinary. He was shouldering the mission of reviving the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Then there was Ye Futian, who had called himself the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path.


    What a battle these two men would have...


    The cultivators of those top principalities landed in different directions, but all were gazing at the battlefield, especially the cultivators of the Purple Gold Rat clan and Zhan Yuan. They were highly interested in this battle.


    Today, Yi Tianyu failed to win the heart of Qin He and make an alliance through marriage with Brahma''s Pure Heaven, but the chasm between Ye Futian and Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had also deepened. This time, perhaps neither Yi Tianyu nor the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would not let the matter go.


    A violent, murderous force swept through the sky and the earth. Above the void, Yi Tianyu was clad in the divine armor of a god. His golden pupils were extremely sharp. His finger pressed toward the void, and a frightening Qianqiu Brush appeared above the void, stabbing directly down from the sky. It broke through the air instantly as thousands of murderous air streams turned into the divine light of the Great Path, aiming straight at Ye Futian.


    There was a sharp howling sound in the void, pricking everyone''s eardrum. Even cultivators standing in the distance could feel that strong will of murder. If there were a chance, perhaps Yi Tianyu would kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his hand and blasted the Great Path to destroy everything, shattering the void. With Ye Futian''s body as the center, a terrible scene appeared around him as thousands of divine elephants rushing past, stomping across the sky and smashing those killing streams.


    There was a terrible storm of the Great Path on the sky, and the two of them stunned everyone with just the initial exchange.


    "The 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor." Yi Tianyu could naturally feel the powerful momentum emitting from Ye Futian''s body, which was faintly laced with the might of with the imperial power of Sovereign. The countless divine elephants that had trampled through the void contained the will of the demon emperor.


    The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate roared in the void, gathering the Great Path of heaven and earth. The world was enveloped by a picture, as the Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate was madly expanding, covering the sun and the sky and shrouding the battlefield where he and Ye Futian were.


    In a moment, an infinite number of murderous air currents fell from the sky, and many Qianqiu Brushes appeared. In Yi Tianyu''s palm, a divine brush seemed to have appeared; it would be able to cut through the Great Path.


    He, who was clad in the divine armor, appeared to be the descendant of the gods. In his hand, he held the pen and smashed it down from the sky. Under the attack of thousands of Qianqiu Brushes, the entire sky seemed to be buried in the slaughter. Ye Futian''s image became extraordinarily small in comparison.


    Ye Futian looked up at the countless divine brushes that descended from the sky, each of which contained the slaying power of the Great Path. It roared through the sky and slashed to his side.


    Ye Futian''s face was somber, and the Deed of Thorough Comprehension exploded. As the Great Path unified, an Idol King appeared upon his body, a Divine Elephant of Golden Armor. With the sound of the Elephant trumpet, it rocked heaven and shook the earth. It was as if everything was about to collapse. The hearts of many beat rapidly, and they were all in extreme shock.


    "How strong." Everyone looked at the battlefield, especially those who were on the Xuantian Pavilion before. They found that this battle was even more violent than the one between Yi Tianyu and Qin He, and the initial exchange of the two was enough to stun everyone.


    Ye Futian''s body, which was enveloped with the Divine Elephant of Golden Armor, had now transformed into the Divine Elephant Emperor. Tens of thousands of elephants trampled towards the sky, colliding with Qianqiu Brushes. There were even an infinite number of killing currents and Qianqiu Brushes that landed on the immense torso of the Divine Elephant of the Golden Armor, unable to shake it in the slightest.


    "Spectacular." The people in the Brahma Sky City below watched this violent battle with trembling excitement. The scene in front of them was simply too sensational. The idol king continued forward toward Yi Tianyu.


    Obviously, Ye Futian did not intend to take a defensive position at all but instead took the initiative to attack preemptively to Yi Tianyu��the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Bang. The method of Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky bloomed, crushing the void and trampling the Great path. The Divine Elephant of Golden Armor moved forward. Its seemingly awkward body arrived in front of Yi Tianyu in an instant.


    "I heard that you were born to be supreme, but your true strength is unknown," Ye Futian said loudly, dominant and overbearing. With his palms raised, he launched a punch at Yi Tianyu, and the void seemed to be shattered and pulverized. Between him and Yi Tianyu, everything was exploded and shattered.


    Yi Tianyu also truly felt Ye Futian''s aggressive and dominant power. He stepped forward, and the giant Qianqiu Brush also pierced ahead. Infinite murderous air currents converged into a storm of slaughter that continued to collide with the might of that and that strike.


    Boom, boom!


    The two forces converged, and the world was overshadowed.


    Bang. Ye Futian continued to take a step forward. The immense divine elephants once again trampled the sky, and the arm once again penetrated heaven and earth. As this strike was thrown, infinite shadows of the punch appeared, and each blow was able to shatter the sky. The power of the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist could crush an entire space.


    The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate released bright dazzling divine light, covering Yi Tianyu. With his body as the center, a storm of the Great Path started to rise. The Heavenly Mandate Divine Book bloomed, and hundreds of thousands of the slaughtering forces seemed to be swallowed up by the Divine Picture of the Great Path. Everything could be wiped out at any time.


    He stared at Ye Futian; his eyes were still proud.


    "Divine Art of Heavenly Mandate?" Ye Futian looked down at him, his body was glowing with Celestial light. With the Celestial Soul gathering, the Celestial Soul Attraction was released!

 1483 Who Could Compare

    Behind Ye Futian, in addition to the tens of thousands of divine elephants galloping, there was a celestial soul that also manifested, emitting extremely and radiant celestial light.


    This scene made Ye Futian''s temperament even more remarkable. Fae and Demon united as one, showing a tantalizing demonic elegance.


    However, Yi Tianyu was not to be surpassed. The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate was bright and shrouded his body. The divine light of the Great Path flowed toward his body and put the armor of a god on him. This armor of a god actually took the shape of a gigantic demon. It transformed into the divine bird Kunpeng battle suit. At this moment, there seemed to be a sacred divine beast of Kunpeng that formed a battle armor. Its gorgeous and divine feathers opened, covering the sun in the sky, and the divine light split through the sky.


    Then a supreme collision!


    The hearts of many cultivators beat wildly. They did not expect that the battle between Ye Futian and Yi Tianyu could be so brilliant, or that Ye Futian, who had urged the 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor, was just like Gu Dongliu before. He was outstanding within the realm, comparable to that of Nirvana, as he battled Yi Tianyu with an indomitable stance.


    Above the sky, the battle will covered the heavens. Ye Futian''s pupils were demonic and terrifying, and he sensed the spiritual souls of Yi Tianyu. He saw that Yi Tianyu''s spiritual soul had put on the divine armor of Kunpeng. It was radiant beyond imagination. Clearly, the divine method of the heavenly realm could also be used on the spiritual soul as a truly top-notch method.


    Yi Tianyu waving both wings, and caused a slaughtering storm above the sky. There were countless divine feathers of the Kunpeng turning into golden slaughtering spears upon the divine armor of Kunpeng, which instantly shot through the void and aimed toward Ye Futian.


    Bang, Bang Bang!


    The bodies of galloping giant divine elephants were directly penetrated and shattered. Ye Futian, who was possessed by the golden divine elephant, kept walking forward. When he stepped out, the sky shook violently. It seemed it would collapse in total destruction. At the same time, a terrifying might of suppression descended. It seemed to freeze the space. Many slaughtering spears above the sky became sluggish; their power had greatly weakened.


    But Yi Tianyu didn''t stop giving up. The wings of the Kunpeng opened up, and the divine wings that sheltered the sky continued flapping. The sky was blowing a storm of the Great Path, but it was the force of the wind that caused a hurricane in the Brahma Sky City.


    The hurricane brought the golden slaughtering spears to descend at the same time in Ye Futian''s direction. Such force, even for troops in the hundreds and thousands, would be wiped out immediately.


    But Ye Futian did not stop; he was still walking in the storm, and each step was earth-shattering. When the power of the 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor was released, the power of the ultimate skills of the Divine Elephants also surged, resonating together. The galloping divine elephants had unparalleled power. His body rushed toward the center of the storm, and as a punch was thrown, the Great Path collapsed, opening up a Great Path of space.


    The golden divine elephants walked in this Great Path of space, crossing the void with a single step, and came in front of Yi Tianyu.


    The divine elephant of golden armor and Kunpen of the divine armor faced each other, and the people in the sky below looked up at the center of the storm. This was no longer a confrontation between Ye Futian and Yi Tianyu; it was more like a confrontation between divine beasts.


    Ye Futian raised his fist and blasted it forward without any flourishing movements. The bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor inside his body burst out into divine glory and merged into the will of his fist. When this punch was thrown, Yi Tianyu, though clad with the divine armor of Kunpeng that was protecting his spiritual soul, still felt the shock of the spiritual soul. Ye Futian''s attack contained a terrible power that was able to penetrate anything.


    Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist, shattering the void.


    At the same time, Yi Tianyu''s divine method bloomed, and a giant illusion of Kunpeng appeared in the sky, grabbing at the giant divine elephant that appeared. They collided above the sky.


    Rumble...


    The sound of a horrible collision hurt the eardrums of the crowd. Looking up, the giant beasts collided, and the sky and earth broke apart.


    Moreover, this seemed to be just the beginning. Ye Futian was still pressing forward while attacking, launching punch after punch. He was facing Yi Tianyu, colliding with the Great Path. This white-haired young man had found no equal.


    With Ye Futian attacking like this, how could Yi Tianyu retreat? The attacks of the Kunpeng''s feathers could pierce the void.


    The crowd saw continuous and violent collisions above the sky, and neither warrior showed any intention of stopping.


    As the collision continued, everyone was shocked to discover that Ye Futian''s attack seemed to be more violent and fierce. In contrast, Yi Tianyu seemed to have suffered some interference, as his power was weakening.


    As a result, it felt as if Ye Futian had taken the initiative to engage in a violent attack while Yi Tianyu was merely defending himself.


    "This..."


    Once, in the battle between Gu Dongliu and Yi Tianyu, Yi Tianyu had not been suppressed and always took the initiative. Now, in his fight with Ye Futian, it actually felt that he was somewhat passive.


    What a shock this was. Could it be the might of the bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor?


    Even so, Ye Futian''s raw strength was still terribly powerful.


    Naturally, they did not understand why Yi Tianyu''s offensive would be increased. Each of Ye Futian''s dominant methods contained a powerful force to suppress and collapse. They directly blasted onto the spiritual soul through Yi Tianyu''s body. Although the spiritual soul was clad with the will of war, under the continuous violent attacks, it was still extremely uncomfortable.


    Boom.


    Finally, with a loud bang, Yi Tianyu''s body was knocked back. He could have continued to fight, but he did not; he chose to retreat instead.


    This step back was a little embarrassing for him. The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, retreated in battle with Ye Futian.


    But he had to take this step back, or he would still be suppressed.


    He needed to retreat so he could advance.


    However, Yi Tianyu''s retreat, as he had thought, shocked countless people beneath the sky.


    Yi Tianyu retreated during the confrontation with Ye Futian.


    "Could it be that Ye Futian is stronger than the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Gu Dongliu?" some murmured, feeling the whole thing to be surreal. Even though Ye Futian''s power was great, perhaps his talent could be ranked in the top five of Heavenly Mandate; however, nobody had ever thought that he could be stronger than Yi Tianyu.


    "It should be the mighty power of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions. After all, it was the ancestor of the Divine Elephants, the royal mount of the demon emperor, an existence that shocked all generations alike," someone responded.


    "Yi Tianyu just took a step back. He needed to pull away to use a stronger method." Someone looked up into the sky with an extremely sharp expression. Sure enough, Yi Tianyu''s aura had become perceivably more terrible.


    The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate engulfed the Great Path of heaven and earth. Countless divine lights of the Great Path seeped into Yi Tianyu''s body. The divine picture also integrated into the body, wrapping it and turning it into a part of the divine armor.


    With dazzling divine light falling down, his long hair that was behind him also turned golden, full of sharp breath. His robe fluttered as he became a god of war, which was the ultimate evolution of the Divine Art of Heavenly Mandate��the Divine Advent.


    Yi Tianyu wanted to morph into a Celestial Divinity.


    However, just as he devoured the divine light of the Great path, the sound of elephant trumpeting was heard, and an incomparable figure appeared above the sky.


    Ye Futian''s silver hair danced with the wind, possessed by the divine elephant, and a long staff appeared in his hand. This long staff seemed to have been formed by the Celestial Way, but it was shining with a brilliant golden light. What was even more terrifying was the power contained in the long staff.


    Stepping onto the sky, Ye Futian glanced at Yi Tianyu below and did not give him any time to gather his divine power. He just unleashed a strike with the staff.


    Shadows of the staff appeared and filled the sky. Among the many shadows of staff, there were also galloping divine elephants. The staff techniques were nine strikes in the heaven, but powered by the immense strength of the divine elephants and incorporating the will of the elephant splitting the sky into it; its strength could only be imagined.


    Yi Tianyu raised his head to sweep a glance over the void. His rage surged to his crown, and his golden hair stood on end like spears. He shot out as if he were one of the gods.


    He raised his hand to point toward the void. His god-like figure was dazzling. As his finger pointed to the sky, moving his way forward, he broke through the Great Path, splitting through the sky. Countless shadows of the staff were now collapsing here. He wanted to open up an ancient path of slaughter, aiming at Ye Futian.


    Yi Tianyu had extreme killing will in his eyes.


    Boom. With a loud bang, Yi Tianyu had caused the divine might of the Great path to collide with the long staff. However, he did not retreat, which showed just how terrible Yi Tianyu was in the state of Godly Advent.


    Buzz.


    The storm of Great Path ravaged, and Ye Futian stepped down, following up with another strike of the long staff with even greater power.


    Behind Yi Tianyu, the Divine Wings of Kunpeng appeared. They lifted up, cutting through the void to shatter the shadows of the staff. Its divine power was incomparable.


    In the area outside of Xuantian Pavilion, countless people in the Brahma Sky City looked up at the sky, their eyes not blinking. They stared at the battlefield, watching this terrifying battle that could make the gods and ghosts weep.


    The sound of collisions blasted out again and again. Each time felt as if there was a collision in their heart, making them feel that their bodies were vibrating and their blood boiling.


    "The staff technique is still getting stronger."


    Those below watched as the staff blast out endlessly, trembling. Even if Yi Tianyu had the body of a god, it seemed that it was reaching the limit.


    When the sixth staff strike blasted out, the supreme power blasted open the void. Yi Tianyu groaned as his body fell from the void. His face was pale, and his spiritual soul trembled.


    The divine elephant descended from the sky, trampling the void, and struck with the staff again. This strike unified hundreds and thousands of the staff shadows into one. Even though it was only one strike, it seemed to be one with the Great Path. It flew toward Yi Tianyu.


    However, Yi Tianyu, who looked like a god from heaven, dared not intercept this attack at this moment. At this time, he was comparable to the body of the god, but still summoned the body of Kunpeng to attack.


    Boom.


    The shadow of the staff fell, the Kunpeng was shattered, and the divine armor was torn apart. A violent power penetrated the defense and exploded upon Yi Tianyu. His body was knocked to the ground from the sky, and all the buildings were pulverized. Countless people backed away as cracks appeared underneath their feet.


    "Yi Tianyu has been suppressed."


    The eyes of many were dull. They couldn''t believe what they had seen. In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, was there someone who could suppress Yi Tianyu?


    As the battle of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, even Gu Dongliu had been unable to achieve it.


    Ye Futian leveraged the power of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions to suppress the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and knocked him to the ground. One could only imagine how strong of an impression this scene had left on people.


    When the dust cleared, everyone looked at the ground. Yi Tianyu, who was bathed in golden rays, stood in the ruins. The ground was already shattered.


    Above the sky, a peerless figure stood there, extremely dazzling. He was the white-haired talent who once again shocked the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    In the fight for the Great Path of Heavenly Mandate, who could be invincible?


    Who could be matchless and rule the times!?

 1484 Master and Disciple

    edAll the cultivators of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven looked at Ye Futian, and there was some disturbance in their hearts. Gu Dongliu was taken back to the Fae clan and was nurtured as its future leader. Although the two major clans shared the same goal and agreed on the same point, to say that everyone was the same as the lord of the Jiang clan without any thoughts regarding their personal interest would be impossible...


    If Gu Dongliu''s performance were disappointing, then Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would not wager everything on him. Last time, Gu Dongliu and Yi Tianzhang ended up in a draw. It was still something people of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven found comforting; after all, there was still a lot of room for improvement for Gu Dongliu.


    But, they did not expect that today, Gu Dongliu''s junior brother��Ye Futian��would also be someone who could rule an era.


    Unexpectedly, he had suppressed Yi Tianyu��the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    What kind of characters would these two brothers be in a few more years?


    What kind of landscape would be in the future for the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Moreover, there seemed to be another figure named Yu Sheng, who had been cultivating with the Dragon Gods. Rumor had it that Yu Sheng had been accepted as a disciple by the Dragon Gods and had been cultivating with its top characters.


    Those of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were also shaken to the core, and their eyes were extremely sharp, including those from Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    Their senior brother had actually been defeated, blasted to the ground.


    Even if the other party had the help of a magical divine item, his own strength was also incredible. Its attack could be considered terrifying. It seemed that one could not afford to underestimate top figures in the Supreme Realm. Undoubtedly, Ye Futian belonged amongst top genius talents. There were few people who could rival Yi Tianyu.


    All the cultivators felt the disturbance in their hearts, and this gave rise to all kinds of thoughts. Goddess Xuantian and the cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Heaven were also watching the battle, staring at Ye Futian.


    At this moment, a slight sound was heard, and from the broken ground below, Yi Tianyu walked emerged. The divine light on his body was still bright and dazzling, which moved many people. Even such an attack could not hurt him seriously, and Yi Tianyu, in the state of Godly Advent, possessed the Body of Celestial Divinity. He was indeed fearsome.


    Ye Futian looked down at Yi Tianyu, a well-known figure of the Nirvana Plane and the most outstanding descendant of the peak Renhuang existence, who would one day be the emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Yi Tianyu, who was hailed as a natural-born supreme, was indeed very strong. Ye Futian''s attack was already at the peak of Nirvana Plane, but even so, it had only slightly injured Yi Tianyu. Although he managed to suppress the other, he was unable to seriously damage Yi Tianyu.


    Yi Tianyu looked up and stared at Ye Futian in the void. He was expressionless, and there seemed to be no disturbance on his face. No one knew what he was thinking or how he felt at the moment.


    The void became a bit oppressed. Yi Tianyu''s eyes never left Ye Futian, and then he stretched out his palms. In an instant, divine light dazzled. A divine pagoda appeared in front of Yi Tianyu, continuously expanding and enlarging in the void.


    "Renhuang implement." Everyone''s eyes sharpened. Yi Tianyu had now also released a Renhuang implement.


    Furthermore, the might of this particular Renhuang implement was extremely aggressive, as it continued flying toward the sky, turning into an immense and endless pagoda. The infinite divine light of the Great Path flooded into it, and the light of the divine pagoda headed toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked up at the pagoda and stepped into the void. The divine elephant roared and headed toward the pagoda. However, under the glory of the divine pagoda, every single one of the divine elephants was shattered into nothingness. The divine light permeated the sky, turning into a storm of destruction and murder.


    Boom! Ye Futian''s Celestial Soul power was faintly restricted. This divine pagoda contained the power to suppress Celestial Soul, which was the prowess of Renhuang.


    There was a loud roar inside of Ye Futian, and the power of the 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor surged to the extreme. An overpowering divine elephant appeared and stepped into the sky. The long staff in his hand swung toward the divine pagoda.


    Yi Tianyu''s body flickered and appeared on top of the divine pagoda. His body became large and turned into a true Celestial Divinity. He held the giant divine pagoda in his hand and hurled it below.


    Illusions of the divine pagoda slammed down. It was as if they could destroy demons and saints. Under the shining glory of the divine pagoda, Yi Tianyu turned into the ancient emperor. It was like the Ancient Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had descended into the world, his towering figure releasing the mighty power of the Great Path.


    "This implement..." The cultivators of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven looked grave. The might of Renhuang from this implement was extremely horrifying. Even if Yi Tianyu''s current state could not release all its power, just a part of its might would be enough to put the fear into everyone''s heart.


    Yi Tianyu obtained this thing from the Ancestral Lands. The implement left by an ancestor and its power was far more than what was being shown.


    Since Ye Futian fought against him using the bones of the mount of the Demon Emperor��the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions��then he would have to suppress him with the implement of his ancestors.


    Boom!


    There was a sound of a shocking collision above the sky. It was extremely horrific, and Ye Futian''s staff technique was suppressed by it. The lights of divine pagoda rushed toward his body. It was like shadows of the divine pagoda directly ran through his body, shrouding that immense and boundless divine elephant and his Celestial Soul was, likewise, suppressed.


    "What a powerful implement."


    The cultivators around were all trembling. It seemed that Yi Tianyu was angered by being overwhelmed by Ye Futian and had now resorted to a super-powerful implement, determined to reverse the tides and wash away his shame.


    The light of the pagoda seemed to be manifold, covering Ye Futian''s body. Each fold of the divine light was extraordinarily terrifying and seemed to want to refine Ye Futian''s body.


    Boom. The divine elephant of golden armor walked on the sky, and Ye Futian was still resisting. His pupils turned toward the sky, and they were extremely fierce. They were both to fight again.


    "Go!"


    Yi Tianyu raised his hand and waved. Immediately, the towering divine pagoda traveled downward and landed on the sky above Ye Futian. Rays of the divine light of the pagoda descended frantically, wanting to bound and imprison Ye Futian within.


    Two terrible forces met and collided in the void, but Ye Futian was under terrible pressure and was likely to be suppressed.


    "Yi Tianyu, you are an entire realm higher than your opponent, and yet after you were defeated, you now have to resort to such a powerful implement? Is this the way of the natural-born supreme of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?" Hua Qingyun said sarcastically.


    At the level of Saint Plane, an entire realm was a vast difference in power, and the differences in strength could be ten times or more, so it could only be imagined how difficult the gap was to overcome. Under such circumstances, as the peak existence of the naturally born supreme, fighting with Renhuang implement, how could the fight be fair or just?


    It was important to note that Yi Tianyu was also the existence of the peak.


    Yi Tianyu ignored Hua Qingyun, as divine light rained from his body and fell upon the divine pagoda. It continued its slaughter on Ye Futian. In those indifferent and profound eyes, there was the intention to kill.


    "Such an unfair battle. That''s enough." Cultivators of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven spoke up. The might of Renhuang was bloomed and released.


    However, almost at the same time, from the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, there was also infinite might of Renhuang that bloomed. In an instant, this space was shrouded in the power of Renhuang.


    It seemed that as long as the Renhuang of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven intend to make a move, then the Renhuang of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would not stand idly by.


    "Many cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty emit thoughts of murder."


    Between the vast space of heaven and earth, many observing cultivators remarked to themselves.


    Prior to this, Ye Futian had obstructed the alliance by marriage between Yi Tianyuand Qin He. He now had revealed his superior talent. At this moment, he had already elicited the intent to kill from the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Boom.


    Above the firmament, the glory of the divine pagoda was getting more and more terrible. The glory of the divine elephant on Ye Futian''s body was becoming dimmer as a terrible force continued to rush into his body, turning his face pale.


    This pagoda of the sky could suppress Celestial Soul Attraction.


    At this moment, a figure walked through the void, and many showed a strange look when they beheld this figure.


    However, the people from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did not stop him. It was just someone from the Saint Plane. Who could compete with Yi Tianyu right now?


    Anyone who wanted to get involved would be easily suppressed.


    The man continued moving forward and was walking toward the pagoda. When everyone saw this, they all showed a strange look. Was this man seeking death?


    Even the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had a look of jeer on their faces.


    What a complete lack of self awareness.


    The man who walked out was Qi Xuangang, who now had the ancient characters of the Great Path appearing on his body. The power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension bloomed. The words that indicated "heaven" and "earth" were on the top and bottom, respectively. A divine picture of the Great Path appeared around him, and Qi Xuangang walked out from under the glory of the divine pagoda, blocking Ye Futian from the divine pagoda.


    "Is he mad?" The hearts of many trembled darkly, and the people from Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven showed a strange color. As far as they knew, this man was Ye Futian''s master. His temperament was extraordinary, showing he was not someone who did this without reason.


    But the glory of the divine pagoda was mighty. For someone in the Saint Plane attempt to compete with his own body of flesh and blood, it was undoubtedly pure foolishness.


    Many people watched as Qi Xuanzhang was suppressed by the glory of the divine pagoda.


    However, as Qi Xuangang stepped into it, the glorious rays of the divine pagoda were cut off. They descended upon his body instead and did not continue to bombard Ye Futian, apparently isolated by his body.


    The crowd found out, much to their shock, that Qi Xuangang was standing inside. The pattern of the Great Path shrouded his whole body, and the power that was blasted down by the divine pagoda to kill seemed to turn into nothingness, unable to destroy him.


    "This..."


    The scene in front of their eyes stunned many people. How was this possible? Yi Tianyu''s strength was already at the peak of the Nirvana Plane. His combat power was top-notch, not to mention that he had the aid of the Renhuang implement. Someone from the Saint Plane, no matter how strong, would only face the fate of being obliterated, under these circumstances.


    But Qi Xuangang was actually dissolving his attacks.


    Rays of sacred light were released from Qi Xuangang, which caused confused looks to appear on the faces of many Renhuang cultivators.


    "Renhuang will."


    Their pupils contracted slightly. From Qi Xuangang''s body, they felt the will that belonged to Renhuang; it definitely did not belong to Saint Plane, but only to Renhuang.


    This man who had already entered Renhuang with one foot could break free of the Great Path at any time and level up his realm.


    "Master," Ye Futian called out. The divine light of the Great Path upon Qi Xuangang''s body shot upward and shrouded the divine pagoda within. Suddenly the oppressive force on Ye Futian''s body disappeared completely.


    He walked across the void and passed his Master Qi Xuangang and the divine pagoda. With a strike of the staff, he slammed down. The sky changed color, and the look on Yi Tianyu''s face, who was controlling the divine pagoda, suddenly changed. In haste, he sent out a great palm print, which was crushed and pulverized. Ye Futian''s staff fell directly on him, this time much more violent than the blow previously. The blast caused Yi Tianyu to spit out blood. He was sent flying, and even the sound of bones breaking could be heard!

 1485 Strong Will to Kill

    Seeing this transpire, the hearts of many skipped a beat. Yi Tianyu''s body flew, back and his mouth was bleeding.


    The staff attack made many people feel a crawling sensation on their scalps. If it were them, that strike would probably be enough to end them.


    Yi Tianyu was beat, once again, and the injury was not minor.


    Who was that? someone wondered silently, glancing at Qi Xuangang. He had stepped directly under the divine pagoda as someone in the Saint Plane, blocked Ye Futian from the attack of the divine pagoda, and even bound the pagoda there.


    Furthermore, he already exuded a trace of Renhuang will, with one foot firmly planted on the other side. It was not that he was just a half-step away from Renhuang, but that he could possibly enter the Renhuang Plane level at any moment.


    Many people in Violet Heavenly Palace looked rather sharp. Some of them recognized Qi Xuangang, Ye Futian''s master, who had shown his strength in the Celestial Demon City in the old days. His power was mighty. His realm was unexpectedly profound.


    Yi Tianyu��the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��probably had never suffered such humiliation before.


    This time, he was invited by Brahma''s Pure Heaven, was prepared to marry the first virgin, Qin He, but Qin He would rather fight to the death with him than stay with him, which made him appeared unnecessarily aggressive. Afterward, Ye Futian stepped forward to fight him, and this was the conclusion.


    In Brahma Sky City, the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had suffered a humiliation that he had never experienced before.


    This should be the first time, but there was a flash of cold light from Zhan Yuan''s eyes. He was the supreme body of the great path from the Violet Heavenly Palace. This was getting more interesting. The hatred between Yi Tianyu and Ye Futian was getting deeper, which would naturally be to the benefit of the Violet Heavenly Palace. After all, the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had a common enemy.


    As he had thought, a strong and overbearing might bloomed. The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, upon seeing Yi Tianyu being injured, finally made their move. The mighty authority of Renhuang shrouded the sky. A Renhuang Pointer struck at Qi Xuangang and Ye Futian, penetrating heaven and earth.


    Those Renhuang of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had also been prepared for this moment. Radiant celestial light was shining, and a figure crossed the void and descended. A celestial sword slashed out at the same time, colliding with the destructive Renhuang Power. A violent storm blew between heaven and the earth. Its fierce pressure of might slammed on the bodies of both Ye Futian and Qi Xuangang, and they were both slammed back. The divine pagoda flew back in an instant and headed toward Yi Tianyu, who put it away.


    Boom, boom, boom.


    Bursts of might of Renhuang erupted at the same time, and as it swept through the sky, the people below really felt the suffocating divine might of the Great Path. They tensed, and their breath quickened.


    Was a major battle of Renhuang about to erupt?


    At this time, in Brahma Sky City, countless people looked up to the sky, and above Xuantian Pavilion, there was a palpable pressure of Renhuang might.


    Ye Futian and Qi Xuangang both retreated into the camp of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Under these circumstances, they no longer could continue in the battle. Even though Qi Xuangang was not far from the Renhuang Realm, the realm of those others was simply way too high. Even if he had already entered the Renhuang realm, it would still be difficult for him to participate.


    Yi Tianyu and the top figures of the Violet Heavenly Palace were here, and then there were the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, who followed them.


    Of course, Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun were also here, and the guardians of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were no weaklings either.


    Therefore, the pressure of might that erupted above the sky was horrific.


    "So, Renhuang can intervene after being defeated?" A voice was heard, and it was the cultivator of Divine Elephants.


    In today''s battle, Ye Futian had shown the cultivators of the Divine Elephants that even human cultivators could fully exercise the inherited techniques of the Divine Elephants so well. He was even better and stronger than their top geniuses. Thus, it was no wonder the Divine Elephant Emperor had told them to guard Ye Futian well.


    It seemed that, previously, when Ye Futian had returned with the Divine Elephants, the Divine Elephant Emperor had already realized that Ye Futian had unlimited potential.


    This battle was enough to prove that he could exist side-by-side with the likes of Gu Dongliu and Yi Tianyu, and that he was no less worthy than the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Previously he had already had several brilliant battles, but the battle today would exemplify his record, which would soon be spread throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Today, Ye Futian interrupted the marriage between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Brahma''s Pure HeavenYe Futian. The Divine Elephants would be wise not to interfere," the cultivator of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said. His voice rang through the void; everyone in Brahma Sky City could hear him clearly.


    If it were not for the sake of being unwilling to involve Divine Elephants in this dispute with the Heavenly Mandate Realm, perhaps the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would have already attacked Ye Futian a long time ago.


    "Renhuang are not allowed to participate in friendly contests of the Saint Plane. This is a rule from the human world of cultivation. Now that your crown prince was defeated, you decided to mobilize your Renhuang to battle, and you intend to prevent me from intervening?" The voice of the cultivator of the Divine Elephants was overbearing. As he walked, the sky shook, making roaring and booming sounds that were terrifying.


    Even though he said this, everyone knew that the fighting had already gone far beyond the scope of a friendly contest. Both Ye Futian and Yi Tianyu had already exerted their true strength.


    "It''s best that the forces of the Demon Realm not interfere in the matters of the human world of cultivation." The Renhuang from Heavenly Mandate Dynasty continued, "Don''t forget, the Heavenly Mandate Realm demarcates the human world of cultivation and that of the Demon Realm. You are all here as guests, and we won''t pursue the matter, but don''t you meddle in it."


    "That''s right, the Divine Elephants shouldn''t forget where they are," the cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace also piped in. They were the allies of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Bang. The cultivators of the Divine Elephants snorted coldly and continued forward. The void shook violently, and many of those in Brahma Sky City, whose cultivation was not as strong, groaned as their faces paled. If that random stomp were to land on them, its invisible might was enough to suppress them.


    "The people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty are right. We are from the Demon Realm, so why should we participate in human disputes?" At this time, a voice was heard. The cultivator who spoke was a figure of Demon Emperor from the Purple Gold Rat Clan. They always thrived in chaotic times.


    The rise of the Purple Gold Rat Clan was due to the chaotic environment.


    Now, if things would get more chaotic, it would undoubtedly be another opportunity.


    He clearly understood that the Divine Elephants chose this moment to interfere. They passed their special techniques on to Ye Futian in an attempt to place a bet in the world of human cultivation. This way, they could have a say in the changing future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    However, this was clearly something the Purple Gold Rat Clan did not wish to see.


    "Why are you rats everywhere?" The cultivator of the Divine Elephant swept a glance over them, his eyes of the Elephant Emperor domineering and full of contempt. The Divine Elephants had always had a lofty position within the demon realm with noble blood to boot. The era of the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions was the golden age when they were the top demon clan in the demon realm. The Purple Gold Rat Clan was nowhere on their radar.


    This was also why the Purple Gold Rat Clan was so sensitive. In the demon realm, many noble demon clans despised them. Even though they had true strength, respect and recognition still eluded them.


    The glory of purple gold glittered and bloomed. The body of the cultivator from Purple Gold Rat Clan was radiant all over. As he moved forward, a demon emperor whispered coldly, "Even us rats would like to experience the power of the Divine Elephants."


    As soon as he said that, he raised his hand and blasted out his attack. Above the sky, an immense and boundless purple gold divine rat appeared, covering the sky and biting at the demon emperor of the Divine Elephant below.


    The demon emperor of the Divine Elephant frowned. This rat actually dared to engage him. But he instantly understood the intention of the other party. They wanted to deliberately keep them occupied so that the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could do what they wanted.


    Stepped into the void, an immense giant Divine elephant manifested, and the great battle of demon emperors had the potential to split heaven and earth.


    At this time, the Renhuang existence of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was moving forward in an arc. In an instant, the divine light of the Heavenly Mandate shrouded the sky, shrouding the vast, endless void within, completely locking down this space. They intended to keep Ye Futian here for the kill.


    "Protect him." The cultivators from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven frowned. These Renhuang of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were really determined. It was much easier to kill lesser characters under their protection than to defeat all of them. Furthermore, they had arranged this layer of the Heavenly Mandate divine light of boundary, delaying them to get to Yi Tianyu on the outside for a while.


    "Be careful," someone said to Ye Futian. This was intended to take Ye Futian''s life. The will to murder had taken hold of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and now, they wanted to execute Ye Futian here.


    Gu Dongliu was already a volatile factor, so it was best to get rid of Ye Futian. Otherwise, two peerless characters were sure to be a big problem in the future.


    The slaughtering divine light drowned out the void and shot directly toward Ye Futian. Renhuang of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven stepped out successively and locked down where Ye Futian was. The celestial light, bright and radiant, cast a celestial matrix.


    However, at this time, there was a character of divine general from the other side, who raised his hand and pierced through the void, shooting straight at Ye Futian. They were not interested in a long fight; they just wanted to kill Ye Futian.


    Celestial light turned into a boundary and blocked the sky above. As that one finger fell, a divine light swept through the heavens. It was as if it had leveled the heavens. It was extremely fearsome to behold.


    The cultivators of the Divine Elephants were restrained by the great demon of the Purple Gold Rat Clan, and the situation seemed very unfavorable.


    In front of so many Renhuang, Ye Futian appeared weaker, and he could not withstand their attacks.


    At this moment, a suffocating power of mighty of the Great Path suddenly came from above, pressing down on everyone.


    Divine light fell straight down, and the faces of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty changed. They raised their heads and looked up at the sky. A gorgeous face appeared. This face was perfect, and in the vast Mandate Heaven, such a face was difficult to find.


    But the majesty contained in those eyes could make people forget the shocking beauty of this face.


    Just a look was enough to make these Renhuang and demon emperors feel inexplicable coercion, and the fighting ceased in an instant.


    "Her Majesty." In Brahma Sky City, countless people worshipped the face above the sky, and many looked extremely moved, for they had now seen the Empress in person.


    "If you want to be disorderly, get out of Brahma Sky City." An extremely arrogant and icy voice came from above. It was authoritative and dominant, disallowing for any doubt. The fight stopped in an instant.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked grim. Brahma''s Pure Heaven was also responsible for today''s blunder, but the Overlord was not there, so who would be eligible to talk with Her Majesty the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Heaven?


    No one dared to question her!

 1486 Above the Brahma’s Pure Sky

    Warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked at the stunning solemn face and cupped their hands, saying, "We apologize for the offense. It''s time to bid farewell."


    Even though they were not happy about it, they couldn''t say anything. Their status was not comparable to that of Brahma''s Pure Sky, so they didn''t dare to turn hostile against Brahma''s Pure Sky. After all, it was about the political geography of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and no one could afford the consequences.


    After speaking, the warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty restrained their life forces. Not only them, but warriors of other powers also restrained their life forces. No one dared to keep fighting.


    "We are sorry to disturb Your Majesty," warriors from Violet Heavenly Palace and other forces said. They all cupped their hands to bid farewell, and then they all flashed and left quickly.


    There was no need for them to stay any longer.


    Many warriors of Shangxiao Divine Palace stared at the Empress''s face, their hearts troubled, but they didn''t say anything and left with the warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Even though they came from the Shangxiao Divine Palace, the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky was a big figure at the top of the Supreme Path Realm. They belonged to the younger generation and dared not act presumptuously. They didn''t have the capital to try, and even their elders were the same.


    In a blink of an eye, most people of top forces had left, but some warriors were still here, such as Ye Futian and others of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Ye Futian gazed at the face in the void sky and didn''t look away. He even wanted to ask something.


    The Empress seemed to be aware of it, and her majestic eyes glanced at him. Soon, she gradually dissipated and vanished.


    The might over the sky also dissipated, and soon the void sky restored its calmness from before. However, the war that just happened and the Empress''s solemn appearance were still imprinted in the minds of countless people in the lower sky above the Brahma Sky City.


    Today''s battle would surely spread throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Even Her Majesty had been shocked. Many people looked excited since this was the first time that they had seen Her Majesty''s face. Even though they lived in Brahma Sky City, it was still very difficult to see Her Majesty, and Her Majesty rarely showed up in public.


    Usually, she either cultivated in the Brahma''s Pure Sky or traveled in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    After the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky had left, Ye Futian didn''t retract his gaze. He still stared into the void sky, and his deep eyes looked like he was lost in thought. After a long while, he took back his gaze and said to the Renhuang figures and demon emperors in front of him, with his hands cupped, "Thank you all very much, Your Majesties."


    During the battle that just happened, these Renhuang-level figures took the lead to protect him. Otherwise, no matter how strong he was, he would be unable to cope with those Renhuang figures of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    "From now on you must be careful. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty intends to kill you," a Renhuang figure of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven reminded Ye Futian. Just now, everyone could clearly tell that people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were trying to kill him.


    A tree outgrowing other trees in a forest was more likely to be destroyed. Ye Futian''s relationship with Gu Dongliu and his stance had already put him on the opposite side of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, In such a situation, killing him before he grew stronger was naturally the best and easiest choice for the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. When Ye Futian reached the Renhuang Realm, if they wanted to kill Ye Futian at that time, they would need to use more manpower, and it would be much more difficult.


    "Thank you for reminding me, Sir. I will be more cautious," Ye Futian said, nodding. He frowned slightly. This time, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had clear murderous intent, so from now on, they might try to assassinate him more frequently.


    Since they had done it once, they wouldn''t care about doing it again, even at the risk of offending the Divine Elephant Clan.


    Ye Futian wondered if he should be proud or not.


    After all, this meant that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty took him so seriously that they took such a big risk to get rid of him.


    "Let''s go back, too," said a warrior of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    "I still have something to do," Ye Futian said. He shook his head slightly. He turned his gaze and looked toward where people of Brahma''s Pure Sky stood in the distance.


    Ye Futian took a step forward and walked towards the place where Xuantian Pavilion was.


    The Xuantian Goddess looked at Ye Futian, who was walking towards her. A different look flashed in her eyes.


    "Ye Futian is here to salute you, Goddess," Ye Futian stopped in front of Xuantian Goddess and said.


    "What else do you want to ask?" the Xuantian Goddess said coldly as if she was dissatisfied with Ye Futian because of the previous events.


    "I want to ask again if Jieyu is in Brahma''s Pure Sky. Goddess, please don''t conceal anything," Ye Futian bowed down and said sincerely. Jieyu appeared twice in his mind, and it should not have been an illusion just because he missed her so much.


    Moreover, all that had just happened made him realize that the thing was not very easy. Why did Brahma''s Pure Sky want to choose a spiritual partner for Qin He?


    Qin He, as the First Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky, had an extraordinary status. Why would they force her?


    From the perspective of Brahma''s Pure Sky, they didn''t seem to want to join hands with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Also, what the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky just did could be considered as helping him.


    He still felt that all these things were related to Jieyu.


    The Xuantian Goddess looked at Ye Futian. Her eyes looked as calm as before, and there was no change in her gaze after hearing Ye Futian''s words.


    Ye Futian''s eyes looked extremely deep. When he asked the question, he fixed his eyes on the Xuantian Goddess as if he wanted to capture something from her eyes, even if it was just a hint of emotional fluctuation.


    However, Xuantian Goddess''s eyes were so calm, revealing no change. It was as if she had just heard an unrelated name and some unrelated words.


    "What are you talking about?" Xuantian Goddess said softly. Nobody would be suspicious of her indifferent tone.


    She still denied it.


    Ye Futian stared at her. Why didn''t she have a look of suspicion?


    Xuantian Goddess really knew nothing about it?


    He didn''t believe it.


    "I boldly request to go to Brahma''s Pure Sky to meet with Her Majesty," Ye Futian bowed and said. The Empress, undoubtedly, was the one who knew most about all these things. Last time, he didn''t get any answers, but he still wanted to try it.


    "Her Majesty has no time to see you," Xuantian Goddess said. "I don''t mind what you have done today. Now, go back."


    "I want to see Qin He," Ye Futian said again.


    "She has returned to Brahma''s Pure Sky," Xuantian Goddess said and left directly, ignoring Ye Futian. She just walked into the void sky and left with other Goddesses of the Brahma''s Pure Sky, leaving Ye Futian there, dazed.


    Qi Xuangang and Yaya came to Ye Futian''s side. Qi Xuangang asked him, "What is on your mind?"


    "Master, I felt the presence of my wife twice during my cultivation, and both situations were related to Brahma''s Pure Sky," Ye Futian looked at Qi Xuangang and said. A surprised look flashed across Qi Xuangang''s face. He had heard about this thing, and in Ye Futian''s capacity, it was impossible for him to be wrong.


    Maybe, she really was alive.


    "I want to go to Brahma''s Pure Sky," Ye Futian said.


    "Then you should go," Qi Xuangang nodded and said. Since he had doubt, he should try hard to find the answer.


    Ye Futian nodded, and after bidding farewell to others, he walked away and headed in one direction.


    Some people came with him, some people left.


    Xia Qingyuan also followed him. Was Hua Jieyu really alive?


    At this moment, she had conflicting emotions, which made her somewhat hate herself. Why did she have inner conflicts, especially for her ruthless side?


    ...


    Brahma''s Pure Sky was located to the north of the Brahma Sky City and was above all of Brahma Sky City.


    Standing at the foot of Brahma''s Pure Sky, Ye Futian looked up at the mountain and the endless stairs in front of him. Clouds and mist were flying over his head, and in the clouds, a celestial city could be faintly seen.


    His body flashed, and he walked upward. Many warriors gazed at him along the way until Ye Futian came to the sky outside of the gate. A Goddess stopped him and released warning might, glaring at him indifferently. She did not speak and did not need to say anything.


    Who didn''t know that this was the heavenly gate of Brahma''s Pure Sky?


    "Ye Futian is here requesting to see Her Majesty," Ye Futian looked up toward the Heavenly Gate and shouted loudly. He knew that, even though he was outside the Brahma''s Pure Sky, the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky claimed to be able to perceive everything in the 3,000 Realms. Although she was not there, her mind could directly reach the sky above Xuantian Pavilion, so his voice must have been heard by the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    The Goddess outside the Heavenly Gate showed surprise when hearing Ye Futian''s name. Not long ago, Qin He had returned to Brahma''s Pure Sky, and they heard something from her. Now, what was Ye Futian''s purpose of coming to Brahma''s Pure Sky?


    There was no response from Brahma''s Pure Sky, and Ye Futian''s voice seemed to be entering the land of nothingness.


    "Ye Futian requests to see Her Majesty," Ye Futian continued.


    However, there was still no sound.


    He said this, again and again, making the Goddess outside Heavenly Gate frown. A lady stepped forward and said coldly, "Ye Futian, enough."


    Ye Futian''s shouting had disturbed some people''s cultivation.


    Some Renhuang figures'' Wills had swept down. Apparently, they had also heard of Ye Futian''s voice.


    Ye Futian had perceived them, too, but he still did not leave and continued shouting loudly.


    He wanted an answer.


    He needed to know whether Jieyu was here or not.


    However, it seemed that everyone would just ignore him.


    ...


    In the land of Brahma''s Pure Sky full of clouds and mist, in front of a Fae Palace, a person, who looked very thin, was kneeling on a futon.


    At this time, the sound of footsteps came. Qin He looked up and saw a figure in front of her.


    "Qin He is here to meet Her Majesty," Qin He bowed her head and said. She wondered why the Empress wanted to see her, but no matter what punishment it was, she wouldn''t care.


    The Empress stood there quietly, looking at Qin He. She was silent for a moment and then said, "From now on, you can cultivate with me."


    Qin He paused a second and looked up at the Empress, but the Empress had turned around and entered the Fae Palace, shrouded by mist.


    Qin He did not show much joy, and she was just a little confused.


    What was all of this about?


    The Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky stepped into the Fae Palace. There was another figure here in this fairyland, sitting quietly. She was also extremely beautiful, stunning like an immortal, and she seemed to be in the dormant state of cultivation.


    The Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky looked at her and said, "You disappointed me. If I knew, I would have chosen her, not you."


    The figure didn''t seem to hear her and sat there quietly. She even ignored the Empress of the Brahma''s Pure Sky when she talked to her. There would be no second person in Brahma''s Pure Sky who dared to do so!

 1487 Reaching a New Plane

    Still, Ye Futian didn''t get to see the Empress. He was ignored at the Heavenly Gate of Brahma''s Pure Sky, and from time to time, some cultivators sent Might to him as a sign of warning.


    After a long while, he stopped shouting but just looked up at the Heavenly Gate.


    Now, no matter how outstanding his talent was, he was just a cultivator of Saint Plane and was not even qualified to talk to the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky. Could he do anything to them even though they refused his request?


    There was nothing he could do.


    He could just stand outside the gate of Brahma''s Pure Sky and watch. He didn''t know what the cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky would think of him.


    "Is Jieyu in the Brahma''s Pure Sky or not?" Ye Futian murmured to himself. It was like an enigma. If Jieyu had been here, she would have found him by herself, unless she was in trouble, so she showed up in his mind twice. Was she trying to tell him that she was still alive?


    Maybe, he guessed it.


    However, if Jieyu was really in Brahma''s Pure Sky, who was imprisoning her?


    Did the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky do this? But why did Her Majesty trap Jieyu?


    He had asked people of Brahma''s Pure Sky several times, including the Saintess, the Goddess, and the Empress, and whenever he asked, the answer given to him was the same. No one acknowledged the existence of Jieyu.


    At that time, Jieyu summoned a wisp of the Empress Thought, but she was very weak at that time and not in the Holy Plane. If the Empress paid attention to her for this reason and brought her Spiritual Soul to the Brahma''s Pure Sky, she didn''t have to let Jieyu stay with her.


    Even though Jieyu, as a cultivator, had potential, she couldn''t be more promising than those Goddesses in Brahma''s Pure Sky. They even didn''t care about sacrificing the Goddess Qin He, so would they care about Jieyu?


    He didn''t understand and couldn''t figure it out.


    Ye Futian looked up at the Heavenly Gate of Brahma''s Pure Sky and said loudly, "Your Majesty, please let me know if Jieyu is in Brahma''s Pure Sky. I will come to visit again later if I have the chance."


    After these words, Ye Futian turned around and walked away. Seen from behind, he looked quite lonely.


    Even though he knew Jieyu might be in Brahma''s Pure Sky and wanted to go inside and take a look, he could not do it. He didn''t have this feeling of powerlessness even when he confronted Yi Tianyu and other people.


    Xia Qingyuan stood behind Ye Futian and felt a little sad to see this lonesome figure walking ahead. However, Ye Futian couldn''t do anything, not to mention herself. Even if her father Emperor Xia had come here in person, the Brahma''s Pure Sky wouldn''t change their attitude, either.


    This was the disparity between different areas. Emperor Xia was an Emperor of a realm, but in the Supreme Path Realm, he was not that important.


    She turned her head and took a cold glance at Brahma''s Pure Sky. Although she had some inner conflict, she felt sad when she saw Ye Futian like this. She also hoped that one day, Ye Futian would be able to forcibly enter the Heavenly Gate, and no one would dare to stop him at that time.


    Many warriors from Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and other forces turned around and also left with Ye Futian. They went away and gradually disappeared into the distance from the Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    There were still many divine Thoughts sweeping down from the Brahma''s Pure Sky, and all of them were withdrawn at this time. Many people knew nothing about it, and only a few people faintly knew some inside information, but perhaps only Her Majesty knew most about the details.


    Ye Futian and his companions left Brahma Sky City. Besides them, other top forces from elsewhere had also gradually left. The storm had finally come to an end, but the final outcome was unexpected. Ye Futian fought with Yi Tianyu, but Qin He chose neither of them.


    In the end, this attempt to seek marriage was not successful, but the conflict between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Ye Futian was intensified, and the world witnessed the rise of another top figure.


    Ye Futian was another hero like Yi Tianyu and Gu Dongliu, peerless and gallant.


    After this battle, people of Brahma Sky City regarded Ye Futian as a hero like Gu Dongliu and Yi Tianyu, but unfortunately, Ye Futian was not of Nirvana Saint Plane in that battle. If he had been, people could tell from the battle between Ye Futian and Yi Tianyu which of them was stronger when Ye Futian had not used the bone of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions.


    In the battle of Brahma Sky City, there was still some controversy since no one could say clearly how much enhancement the bone of Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions had brought. Therefore, it could only be said that Ye Futian was also one of the top figures and stood alongside Yi Tianyu.


    However, there was still doubt as to who was the stronger one. After all, even when Yi Tianyu was injured in the battle, he still showed remarkable combat strength. Although Ye Futian went all out, he could not seriously hurt him, and it was only when his Master joined forces with him that he gave Yi Tianyu a hard strike.


    Even so, their performance was still truly amazing. Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian were Brothers, and this generation of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven they represented had won over the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, plus they had Jiang Taichu, Hua Qingyun, and Ye Futian''s brother Yu Sheng. Such a lineup was horrifying enough.


    In the future, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would have another heyday.


    If so, would the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty be more stressed?


    In addition to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Shangxiao Divine Palace also regarded the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven as a serious threat and would never let them rise to the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Especially now, the strongest descendant of the Violet Heavenly Palace��the Ultimate Form of Great Path Zhan Yuan��had been proven to be incapable of defeating Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu, so they could not afford to gamble on the future.


    When the news began to spread in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, people of top forces all had returned.


    In the South Vast Heaven, above the Celestial Gate, Ye Futian was focusing on cultivation. At this moment, there was a fairy light flowing around him. A celestial soul condensed and was formed, resonating with the sky and earth. With the fairy light cleansing his body repeatedly, the power of the Celestial Path seemed to be merging into him.


    At this time, in addition to the fairy light, a dazzling golden aura flew around Ye Futian''s body, just like the light of Renhuang. He stood up, waved his hand, and blasted out his fist. Each of his punches trembled the distant void sky and seemed to penetrate the space.


    Ye Futian repeated the movement again and again, and his body was coated with dazzling golden light. After a short while, he opened his eyes and murmured, "It''s still wrong."


    After all, the cultivation of Mystical Ways could not be achieved overnight.


    At the highest level of Celestial Soul Attraction, the Celestial Soul entered the cultivator''s body. His physique would be strong as that of an immortal, and such a body was called the Celestial Form.


    Every move of the Celestial Form attack contained the Might of immortal skills, which meant that each of his random attacks would incorporate the immortal spirit into it, and there was no need to deliberately control the immortal skills.


    It was the stage pursued by all warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. In the heyday of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the 12 Immortals had all cultivated to such a level and owned Forms of Celestial Paths. All of them were figures with outstanding talents in the cultivation of Mystical Ways.


    He was obviously still far behind and had not been able to reach this level.


    At this moment, there seemed to be a strong life force coming out. Ye Futian gave a different look since cultivators of the Celestial Gate generally did not create noise like this.


    He moved his gaze and looked toward one direction, where there were bright beams of imperial light rushing into the sky, extremely beautiful. They made the wind and clouds above the sky roar and caused storms of the Great Path. The storms of Great Path contained glorious aura, and the Might of Renhuang erupted from it.


    The Might of Renhuang, Ye Futian thought to himself and looked surprised. Then, as if he had thought of something, his eyes suddenly became bright.


    Ye Futian walked into the void sky directly toward that direction and seemed a little excited.


    And then he saw a figure rising up in the wind, shrouded with the aura of Renhuang, which made his figure even more magnificent.


    "Master," Ye Futian smiled and called. The person was Qi Xuangang.


    It was the first time he had seen someone enter the Renhuang level, and it was his Master.


    When they fought to leave the Great Li Dynasty, Qi Xuangang had already taken a half step into the Renhuang Plane, and after that, he rose again from the collapse. After he was deprived of cultivation, he jumped to the top of Nirvana Plane and was half-way toward Renhuang Plane. After defeating the Ninth Servant��the City Lord of the Crimson Dragon Realm��he followed Ye Futian into the Heavenly Mandate Realm and cultivated for more than two years.


    Today, Qi Xuangang''s cultivation had finally reached this stage. Nothing dramatic happened. It was as if it was just a matter of course, and he entered the Renhuang Realm.


    Qi Xuangang''s body rose up and landed in the sky above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. His body appeared in the center of the storm of Great Path.


    In the sky above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, clouds were tumbling. Many people in Haotian City had noticed and looked up in the direction of Celestial Gate, but they were not too surprised. Although there were not many Renhuang figures in the Celestial Gate, usually, every few years, some people could set foot in the Renhuang Plane, so people were not that surprised about it.


    But they didn''t know who had entered the Renhuang Plane this time.


    Many cultivators in Haotian City smiled. First, there was Gu Dongliu, and then Ye Futian, and now another figure had entered the Renhuang Plane.


    So many years after the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven experienced destruction, its fortune once again prospered, and it was likely to usher in a glorious era again.


    Many people in Celestial Gate also paid attention to Qi Xuangang''s entry to Renhuang Plane. Many cultivators believed in fortune. After being silent for so long, they could also feel that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven seemed to be surrounded by luck again.


    The sound of entering Renhuang Plane was far louder than entering Saint Plane. Although, when entering the Renhuang Plane, there was no catastrophe as there was in the Saint Plane, Renhuang needed time to cast the imperial body and soul. The scene in the void sky was appalling.


    After a long while, the situation returned to calm, and a figure slowly descended from the sky and landed on the Celestial Gate.


    Ye Futian and others ran to him. Ye Futian took the first step and called, smiling, "Master."


    "Master," Mu Chunyang and L�� Chuan also smiled and said. When they cultivated in the Great Li Dynasty, they had never expected that Master would break into the legendary Plane in such a short period of time.


    Renhuang, in realms like Great Li, was equal to the Lord of a Realm.


    "Congratulations," many warriors at Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven also congratulated Qi Xuangang.


    "Thank you very much." Qi Xuanyuan smiled and bowed his head, then looked at Ye Futian and other disciples. Things always happened like this. When he cultivated in the Great Li, he did not have a very strong obsession with achieving anything. Even later, after he experienced great changes, like Ye Futian''s incident, Emperor Li''s suspicion, and being deprived of cultivation, he still had nothing to ask for, and never thought about the later things.


    Not to mention entering the Renhuang Plane.


    However, excessive joy was of no need. Everything had its time, and even though he had not deliberately pursued it, now he had also set foot in the Renhuang Plane. It didn''t mean anything. As Ye Futian''s stage became broader, the road they chose was getting harder.


    He did not know what would happen in the future and would not think about it. He would just wait and see!

 1488 The Fortune of the Celestial Gate

    In front of a magnificent palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, there was a bright golden divine matrix.


    Over the sky dome, countless stars fell down. A map seemed to appear in the starry sky. There was a boundless area on the map, divided into two realms. Among these two realms, there were ten locations that were the brightest and full of glares.


    Shimmering stars fell on that map, and below it, a figure sat in the matrix.


    Outside the field, there were several figures standing there, watching silently.


    At this time, the person in the matrix stared up at the sky, and in an instant, all the stars began to rotate, and countless stars continually flew in the vast land of two Realms. Over the map, many marked coordinates flickered. They kept changing as time passed, just like the transition in history.


    There was a place where the starlight became extremely dim as if it might become completely silent at any time. The scene made some people''s eyes suddenly turn sharp, and a feeling of coldness flashed in their pupils.


    It seemed that the outside rumors were not true. Even though they had two extraordinary cultivators, nothing had changed.


    The starlight was still flowing, and they were waiting as if they were waiting for the dim starlight to disappear completely. However, after a long while, suddenly, countless beams of starlight converged towards the same place, which had already been dim, And, as time went on, the place became brighter and brighter until the light overwhelmed everything, and dazzling divine light erupted from it.


    It even dazzled many people''s eyes.


    In addition, there were several other places where the light was dazzling and some places where the starlight was dim. Suddenly, it seemed that they all became clear and distinct.


    "How come?" people outside frowned and murmured. The dazzling starlight gradually covered everything as if it would engulf the entire map. Finally, a clear sound came out, and the vortex of stars shattered. Countless glimmering stars flew around, and the map disappeared.


    The person in the matrix watched the disappearance of everything and frowned. Everyone''s heart was slightly stirred.


    After a moment of silence, he stood up and turned around, looking at the people next to him, and sighed in his heart.


    "How is it, Sir?" a majestic figure asked with an imposing bearing. He was the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. However, he called the man in the matrix "sir," which showed that the man''s identity was also unusual.


    "Your Majesty has already seen it," said the figure.


    The Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, with a bit of indifference, said, "Sir, does the picture mean that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would have great luck?"


    That person nodded slightly and sighed, "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven''s fortune will greatly prosper and even absorb the Heavenly Mandate''s fortune and outshine all other forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realms."


    "How is this possible?"


    The Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked emotionless. Of course, he did not want to accept such a result. Not only him, but others beside him also whispered at each other.


    Recently, there were rumors in the outside world that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven''s fortune was prospering. The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had Jiang Taichu and Hua Qingyun, and now Gu Dongliu also came with Ye Futian. Besides, it was said recently that someone had just reached the Renhuang Plane. Although entering Renhuang Plane was not an important issue here, so many things that happened together started to get people''s attention.


    Thus, the Imperial Lord paid a great price and invited the person with transcendent status from outside to observe the luck of Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    However, what the person saw was actually the prosperity of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, which was the same as the rumor from the outside world.


    "Cultivators absorb the fortune of the sky and the earth and live with luck. Even though Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven has good fortune, we can still forcibly extinguish their Qi and take away their luck," the Imperial Lord said. He suddenly resumed the domineering spirit. His voice was indifferent, and his tone was full of pride.


    He was the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Although he believed that fortune was important, he didn''t have blind faith in it.


    As the saying went, men could win over Heaven. That was to say, human beings could alter their destinies, and naturally, fortune could also be changed. Otherwise, how could human beings seize the fortune of sky and earth?


    "What do you think, Sir?" the Imperial Lord asked, his voice still very polite.


    "Of course," the man nodded and said. "The art of fortune-telling is only a way of prediction, and it is not absolutely accurate. Between the sky and the earth, there are people who go against Heaven. Their fortune is unpredictable, and they can change their own future. Fortune is changeable, and prophecies are just prophecies. They do not represent what would happen in the future. The results may be different if you predict during different time periods."


    "Thank you, Sir," the Heavenly Mandate Imperial Lord said and felt much relieved after hearing his words, and he made up his mind.


    In fact, he was very clear that although fortune could be changed, it was easy to adapt to the current trend and difficult to overcome the trend. Now, the good fortune was on the other side, and if they wanted to change it, they had to go against the trend, and It was not easy to achieve. He would not be blindly confident about it.


    Of course, even though it was difficult, he would still make every effort to do it.


    The inheritance of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty passed from generation to generation, and they used to be the King of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in the past. Now it was in the current Imperial Lord''s hands, so he would definitely not let it end here.


    If Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had its heyday, it would be the end of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Not only did he understand it, but the person who predicted the fortune was clear about it, too. What he foretold was the luck of the whole realm, which required a lot of energy to predict. The trend of the whole realm would be stable and unshakable, and even though it was easy to change a small pattern of it, it was extremely difficult to change the situation of the whole realm.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to go against the trend, which was not an easy thing.


    However, this was not a thing he needed to think about, and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would do it by himself.


    "Sir, how about my child''s life?" the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty continued asking. Before, the person did not tell him.


    The transcendent figure looked at him and asked, "Do you really want to know the answer?"


    The Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty nodded and said with a solemn look, "My son Yi Tianyu has been gifted since he was a child. He was born with supreme power. I believe his fortune will be strong, and even if not, he could still change his life."


    "I can only say he lives in a wrong time," the person responded to him in these words and then cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I should leave now."


    He turned around and walked away, disappearing in a moment, as if he had never been here.


    "Living in the wrong time!"


    The Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stood there, looking ahead. His eyes constantly changed, and he didn''t look very well.


    His son Yi Tianyu was a rare genius, a peerless figure, born to be supreme. He would take over his throne and become the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in the future.


    However, that person claimed that Yi Tianyu was living in the wrong time.


    He couldn''t help but think of Gu Dongliu, Ye Futian, and all the rumors circulating today in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Everything seemed to match.


    But he didn''t believe it.


    Even if Yi Tianyu lived in the wrong time, he would change his destiny.


    "Don''t tell him about this," the Imperial Lord ordered. He was worried that this would affect Yi Tianyu''s state of mind in cultivation, but after he said it, his expression froze on his face. He turned around and saw a person standing there quietly.


    This area was the very core of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty that few people could enter, so he was not on guard and didn''t spread his thought. Before, he just focused on the fortuneteller and didn''t pay attention to the outside.


    Yi Tianyu suddenly showed up and had heard what he said just now.


    "Do you believe in fate, Father?" Yi Tianyu asked the Imperial Lord.


    The Imperial Lord looked at Yi Tianyu''s sharp eyes. Yi Tianyu continued, "I don''t believe in my fate; it can be controlled only by myself, not by others."


    "Good," the Imperial Lord praised him. "My son is a rare genius. Even if you are trapped by the fortune of your life, you can go against heaven and change it. Why fear it?


    "When will you go back to Shangxiao Divine Palace?" the Imperial Lord asked.


    "What do you mean, Father?" Yi Tianyu asked.


    "You get ready and go back to cultivate in the Divine Palace. I hope you can set foot in the Renhuang Plane as soon as possible," the Imperial Lord said. Yi Tianyu paused a second and looked at his father in surprise, then nodded and said, "Yes, Father."


    "Go to cultivate," the Imperial Lord said calmly. Yi Tianyu requested to leave and then left.


    "Your Majesty?" people around the Imperial Lord looked at him and whispered. Their eyes flashed with wonder, and they had all faintly guessed something.


    "Send someone to the Violet Heavenly Palace to inform him of what happened here today. Let him convene people of the Violet Heavenly Palace to discuss," the Imperial Lord looked forward and said. "Besides, send some people to the Demon Realm and meet the major demon clans, especially the Purple-gold Rat Clan."


    "Aye, Your Majesty," they nodded and answered. They had all understood the intention of the Imperial Lord.


    "Also, don''t forget to send people to other forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm," the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty added. He then muttered, "No one wants to see one force''s fortune outshine everyone else."


    In the past, the reason that many major forces came to Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was that Gu Tianxing of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was too outstanding.


    Today, time had changed, and Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had been silent for many years. No one expected that they could restore its vitality and once again owned the good fortune.


    He didn''t believe it.


    No matter how good their fortune was, just wipe it out, then how could they talk about luck?


    He didn''t intend to take action so fast, but now, he could only do it as soon as possible. The sooner, the better. The threat should be stifled in the cradle, and he could not watch they grow stronger.


    It didn''t take long for all the warriors from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to cross the space and head towards all parties of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    At the same time, Yi Tianyu and the people of Shangxiao Divine Palace launched the super space matrix in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They walked across the void space and left the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They would return to Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    The Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to provoke a war and would not let Yi Tianyu stay here. After all, Yi Tianyu was only of the Saint Plane.


    Suddenly, the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm seemed to be shrouded in a cloud of darkness!

 1489 Composure

    Warriors sent by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had gradually arrived and informed all the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm of what they''d seen about the fortune of Heavenly Mandate Realm. Many forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm began to make plans, and some of them were about to take action.


    The balance of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had been maintained for many years. Especially after the battle between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the balance had reached the ideal status. The two strongest forces��the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven��were both greatly weakened, and the world of human cultivators and the demon world also remained calm. This was a situation that all forces wanted to see. Therefore, it could be said that only the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were the biggest losers of the battle.


    Because of this, a battle between peak forces was hard to break out when the strengths of all parties were balanced. Last time, when the two major forces��the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Shangxiao Divine Palace��came to Haotian City, a war still did not break out.


    But now, the balance that had lasted for many years seemed to be disturbed.


    And it had to be disturbed.


    If no one took the initiative to break it, according to the astrological prediction, in the future, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would seize the fortune of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, become the most prosperous force, and restore its glory in Gu Tianxing''s era. Maybe they would even surpass it.


    Violet Heavenly Palace was the one that least wanted to see this situation because it would be a disaster for them.


    Therefore, as soon as they received the message, the Violet Heavenly Palace immediately sent people to visit the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to discuss the plans.


    After Brahma''s Pure Sky got the news, they seemed very calm and didn''t do anything. The same was true of the 10,000 Divine Mountain, perhaps because the Lord of the Jiang Clan had made the commitment to them.


    In the demon world, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would definitely not go visit the Divine Elephant Clan and the Dragon Gods Clan because of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. The Demon God Court was not very concerned, either. However, the Purple-golden Rat Clan and the Yingzhao Mountain were excited about this, especially the Purple-golden Rat Clan, which always had ambitions and wanted to ruin Gu Dongliu.


    But if Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven restored its power to that of Gu Tianxing''s era again, Gu Dongliu would stand at the peak level. At that time, if they wanted to lay a finger on Gu Dongliu, it would be an extremely difficult thing or even impossible.


    Now, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty seemed to be ready to take action.


    The Purple-golden Rat Clan and Yingzhao Mountain both sent warriors to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to discuss plans.


    The frequent communication between the top forces of the human cultivation world and the supreme demon clans was not a usual thing, so it naturally attracted many people''s attention.


    Soon the news could no longer be concealed, and it gradually spread in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and soon passed to Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    In an instant, the whole Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was shocked, and in Haotian City, countless warriors felt a little uneasy. Many warriors gathered in front of the Celestial Gate and wanted to find out about it.


    If a war broke out, the consequences would be horrible.


    At this moment, below the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, countless warriors gathered. They looked towards the direction of Celestial Gate, and someone said, "I heard that inside the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, there were Spatial Wills of Great Path rushing straight into the sky, and the cross-Realm supreme teleportation Matrix was launched. They must have sent Yi Tianyu and other top young figures away, so they were already ready to take action."


    "Indeed, after being silent for so many years, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven finally has Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian, who have shown peerless talent. Obviously, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty begins to feel anxious. Although they have not yet reached the step of war, they have lost the patience to wait."


    Everyone had made their guess, and many people could see through the situation today.


    "How should we Celestial Gate cope with this?" some people said, worrying about the Celestial Gate.


    "Last time, those two major forces came here to suppress us, but Haotian Celestial City was united as one and overcame it. Today it is the same, why should we fear the war?" someone said with indignation.


    However, the people around him shook their heads and said, "This time is different. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wants to urge the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm to be hostile to us Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. I wonder if there will be other forces involved. If so, it is meaningless even for Haotian City to participate in the war."


    This level of battle still largely depended on the strength of top cultivators.


    "It seems that, as we have guessed, fortune is on the side of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and now the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is frightened."


    Many people nodded. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would do so only because they were afraid. They encouraged other forces to join them so that they could wipe out the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and exterminate the threat.


    Once the war started, any kind of result might happen. In the past, Gu Tianxing and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were good examples. No one could guarantee that warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could safely retreat. Otherwise, they would not let Yi Tianyu immediately return to Shangxiao Divine Palace. Apparently, they were worried about Yi Tianyu''s safety.


    Above the Celestial Gate, the misty pavilion halls were also shrouded by a faint depressive atmosphere. People of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven got the news earlier than the people of Haotian City.


    At this time, in front of a palace hall of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, many warriors gathered. All of them were elders of the Celestial Gate with unusual temperaments, and they were here to discuss the issue.


    In front of the palace hall, two figures stood there. They were Lords of the Jiang Clan and Hua Clan.


    "I assume you all have heard about the thing from outside. What do you think?" the Head of the Jiang Clan asked. He wanted to ask what people had in mind and if they had any good ideas.


    "Should we try to contact the Divine Elephant Clan and the Dragon Gods Clan to let them join us?" someone suggested. These two forces of the demon world were somehow related to Ye Futian.


    Two Lords were silent and did not say anything, just watching these people.


    "Today, countless cultivators were gathering in the Haotian City outside the Celestial Gate. How about we..." another person said.


    Warriors expressed their thoughts, but two Lords still looked nonchalant, as if they could frankly accept all this.


    At the beginning, when they took Gu Dongliu back to Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, they had expected that today would come.


    "Good. You are dismissed," at this moment, the Lord of Jiang Clan said. There was a strange look on everyone''s face, but they still nodded and requested to leave.


    Soon, warriors of Celestial Gate all left, and only these two Lords stayed.


    "What do you think?" the Lord of Jiang Clan asked the Lord of Hua Clan.


    The Lord of Hua Clan shook his head and said, "In this situation, I am afraid that we should not start a war. Not to mention, we may be defeated. Even if we can repel the enemies, how would other forces think of us? Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian have just begun to show their talents. Then, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty invited someone to tell the fortune of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, which indicates that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty indeed wants to kill the two of them first."


    "I didn''t expect it, either," the Lord of Jiang Clan sighed in a low voice. He hadn''t expected that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty invited such a powerful figure to tell their destiny.


    In this way, the uproar would happen much earlier than planned, and many of their ideas would be disrupted.


    "Is the matrix ready?" the Lord of the Hua Clan asked.


    The Lord of the Jiang Clan nodded his head and said, "In the past, Tianxing fought to the death and didn''t reveal the truth until the last moment of his life. Now, so many years have passed, and finally, this matrix can be used again. I don''t know why, but I feel sad. If possible, I don''t want to restart it in my whole life."


    As he talked, he looked toward the Lord of Hua Clan and said, "Thank you for all the years of suffering."


    "At that time, the three of us swore an oath to bring the Celestial Gate back to the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Now, the opportunity has come," the Lord of Hua Clan smiled and said. It seemed that his state of mind was affected by the crisis.


    However, on the contrary, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was eager to destroy them, and the rumors they spread were enough to prove that the future of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was very bright.


    "If so, let us continue to live up to the promises of the past," the Lord of the Jiang Clan said to Lord of the Hua Clan with a smile.


    "Sure," the Lord of Hua Clan nodded and said. They smiled at each other as if, at this moment, they had returned to the time when they were both young.


    "Let''s go." They walked forward at the same time and directly crossed the void sky. With just one step, they came to the top of the Celestial Gate stairs and looked down toward the numerous warriors in the lower sky.


    Many people were stunned when they saw these two people''s appearance. All warriors took a bow and said, "We are here to salute you."


    "Go back and focus on your cultivation," the Lord of Jiang Clan said loudly, and his voice spread through the void sky. Everyone could hear it clearly.


    "Go back?" The warriors all froze. They did not understand. What did the Lord mean?


    At this time, the sound of footsteps came. Warriors of several top forces came, and the warriors who took the lead were from Wang Yanbing''s family. The lord of the Wang Clan was at the forefront, and he looked up and said to people of the Celestial Gate, "If we deploy all the powers of the Haotian City, we could afford the war."


    "And gamble on people''s lives and Haotian City''s fortune?" the Lord of Hua Clan looked at the people and asked. "Remember, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven is the Celestial Gate of Haotian City. Even if the Celestial Gate disappears, as long as Haotian City still exists, and there are cultivators left in the Haotian City, the Celestial Gate will last forever."


    "Next, everyone, immediately go back and focus on cultivation."


    The Lord of Hua Clan announced loudly. People were puzzled but still left.


    "Just go," the Lord of the Jiang Clan waved his hand and said. People hesitated and began to discuss, and some people started to leave.


    Gradually, more and more people began to leave. Warriors of the Wang Clan walked up into the void sky and said, "I still have some cultivation skills. Before, I always wanted to compete with you, but now it seems there is no need."


    Hearing what he said, the two Lords also smiled. This was how warriors of the Celestial Gate should do, in the Celestial Gate style.


    "I should go, too. I have saved a bottle of old wine for this moment. Let''s have a drink," the Lord of Hua Clan said with a smile. The other two people nodded, then turned around and went back to the Celestial Gate.


    In the distance, Ye Futian and Qi Xuangang stood there quietly, looking at these figures with composure. Ye Futian also applauded for them secretly. They were figures with real composure and confidence.


    "Master," Ye Futian looked at Master Qi Xuangang beside him and called. Master had been able to roughly foretell one''s fate, and now he had entered the Renhuang Plane, was he also able to see through all this?


    "Just let it be," Qi Xuangang patted Ye Futian''s shoulder and said. Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu were both people with great fortune. Although the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would go into crisis, it would also be reborn.


    Ye Futian watched Master walking away, speechless. The war was coming, but they were all so calm.


    He shook his head and also walked away.


    However, a few days later, Haotian City would be shrouded in an atmosphere of horror!

 1490 The Battle of Celestial Gate

    In Haotian City, countless people looked up at the sky, and everyone could feel an oppressive atmosphere in the city.


    Above the sky dome, there seemed to be an invisible storm. Under the pressure of the might, the bright sunshine disappeared in an instant. The air became lifeless and depressing, making people feel unsettled and hard to live.


    "It''s coming," everyone murmured, their hearts trembling. They all knew what it meant. For a few days, there had been all kinds of rumors in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, especially in Haotian City. It was said that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty invited an unusual figure to foretell the fortune of Heavenly Mandate Realm, and the figure said luck was on the side of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. For this, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had begun to contact top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm to besiege the Celestial Gate again.


    This time, nobody knew how many forces would come.


    The might was getting stronger and stronger, but the people of Haotian City still had not seen anyone coming. Finally, above the sky, some god-like figures came into view, who exerted pressure and headed towards the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Although battles in the world of human cultivators usually covered a wide range of space, fighters still followed the rules and hardly killed innocent people. Although Haotian City was under the jurisdiction of the Celestial Gate, there was no direct relationship between them. People of Haotian City didn''t belong to the Celestial Gate, so the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could not kill civilians of the city. This was against the Path of Heaven and would damage their fortune, becoming an excuse to let other forces undermine them.


    As for the hostility between them and Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, it was the grudge between two sects, the dispute between two forces, and should be a normal thing. During the chaotic period, such a battle happened frequently, but during peaceful times like today, this kind of top-level battle was not common.


    In addition to these god-like figures, from another direction of Haotian City, countless divine thunder dropped down from the sky, annihilating the void sky. The sky was shrouded by clouds of thunder. It was as if the doomsdays had come.


    "The Violet Heavenly Palace is here," countless people whispered, hearts tremoring. However, it was also within expectation. The Violet Heavenly Palace was the strongest ally of the Shangxiao Divine Palace, and they were direct participants of the past incident. Because of this grudge, Violet Heavenly Palace would not let go of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and would try their best to ruin it. So, after they knew about the prophecy, the Violet Heavenly Palace also made up their mind to immediately destroy the Celestial Gate.


    Warriors of these top forces were all extremely decisive figures. Once they made up their minds, they would take action immediately and could even launch an immense war.


    People of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven all had perceived the intimidating and horrifying life force. At this moment, everyone over the Celestial Gate looked solemn. At the front of Celestial Gate, two figures stood side by side. They were the two Lords of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Jiang Chengzi��the Lord of the Jiang Clan��and Hua Jiangshan��the Lord of the Hua Clan��were standing there, their clothes fluttering in the wind and their bodies shrouded by the celestial light. Numerous people of the Celestial Gate looked toward these two figures as if they were real immortals, detached from the world.


    "How long haven''t we fought side by side?" Jiang Chengzi asked, looking up at the sky.


    "It''s been too long, I can''t remember it," Hua Jiangshan replied. Indeed, it had been too long.


    "This feeling is quite good," Jiang Chengzi smiled at Hua Jiangshan and said.


    "Get away. I have no feelings for you," Hua Jiangshan replied. Jiang Chengzi laughed. At this time, the celestial aura shrouded the space. He just wanted to fly straight up to the sky and fight since he hadn''t experienced this feeling for a long time. It was as if, suddenly, he was young again.


    Countless people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven heard of the conversation between these two Lords and showed strange looks. Usually, these two Lords were solemn people and rarely made jokes. Except during formal meetings, people rarely heard them conversing.


    People didn''t expect their relationship to be so good. Many people''s hearts felt warm.


    These two major clans of the Celestial Gate, in fact, sometimes also had disputes. Now seeing their Lords having conversations like this, warriors all felt a bit ashamed of themselves.


    There was a reason that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven could pass down in this way. Otherwise, the interior would collapse even before the outside forces invaded.


    At this moment, an extremely sharp life force came. A figure with a hard body like a divine weapon stepped forward. He looked forward as if nothing was in his eyes. He was a peerless weapon. He was the Lord of the Wang Clan.


    Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan turned their eyes to him, and the lord of the Wang Clan said in a low voice, "Sorry, did I bother you?"


    "..." Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan were speechless.


    "..." Other people were also speechless.


    However, there was no time to joke around at this moment. Terrifying life force fell from the sky. A group of god-like figures appeared in the distance and released the same life force from their bodies. All of them wore imperial robes and were full of pride. The person who took the lead was the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and he came here to lead the fight in person.


    If he wanted to destroy the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, how could he fail?


    In the hand of the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, there was a gigantic pen, which was the authentic Qianqiu Brush��a horrifying Renhuang-level weapon of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty that could extinguish everything with one stroke.


    Boom! From the other direction, the sound of dull thunder roared. The divine thunder descended from the sky and shrouded the entire Celestial Gate. A group of people appeared over the sky, and the warrior who took the lead held in his hand a Supreme Renhuang-level instrument��Violet Heavenly Divine Hammer. The divine hammer was huge. Endless divine thunder dripped down from it, like apocalyptic light.


    In addition, from another direction, a gust of demonic qi came, and the demon warriors of Yingzhao Mountain had reached. This time, so many great forces joined hands to enter Celestial Gate with the purpose of destroying the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Yingzhao Moutain was not involved in this turmoil. Although they had a grudge with Ye Futian, they didn''t have much hatred for him and did not need to participate in this.


    However, the Purple-golden Rat Clan had participated, so Yingzhao Mountain did not want to miss this opportunity, either. Nowadays, Yingzhao Mountain was relatively weak among all the top powers. If the Purple-golden Rat Clan prospered with this opportunity, Yingzhao Mountain would be put in an embarrassing situation.


    Therefore, they must join this battle and fight for their fortune.


    In addition to these forces that were ready to participate, many top figures had also reached the Haotian City. Most of them were just going to watch the battle. After all, this battle was directly related to the life and death of a top power, and this supreme-level war would directly affect the political geography of the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future.


    Finally, warriors of 10,000 Divine Mountain and Brahma''s Pure Sky decided not to participate but would just look on. They were a bit shocked to see such a lineup. From the situation, they could tell it would be hard for the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to survive this time. Would the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven be destroyed before it was restored to its heyday?


    The warriors of the Divine Elephant Clan had also arrived. Above the sky, the Divine Elephant Emperor came in person and looked down at the sky below. Although Ye Futian had inherited from the Divine Elephant Clan, they couldn''t directly participate in this great turmoil; however, if Ye Futian was in danger, they would help him.


    Moreover, in this battle, Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven should also have some cards.


    Destructive might befell. In the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty above the sky, the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty raised a brush and made a stroke toward the void sky. The sky dome was split into two, and a beam of killing light came down from the sky dome and chopped toward the place where Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was. Just one stroke seemed to be able to destroy the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    He had no reservations and just launched the strongest attack. The destructive force, even the aftereffect of it, was hard for any Saint-Plane warriors to endure. Since the war had started, they would show no mercy and just want to uproot the Celestial Gate.


    Boom! At this moment, a boundless and dazzling matrix was lit up in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The vast and boundless Celestial Gate burst out with infinite celestial light. On the top of Celestial Gate, a complete pattern of the divine matrix appeared and rotated above Celestial Gate.


    "The Juexian Diagram."


    The scene made all the warriors stunned. This was the Juexian Matrix transformed from the Juexian Diagram, which shrouded the boundless area of Celestial Gate. The fortune of the Celestial Gate and the Might of the Great Path were soon swallowed into the matrix, and even the aura of the Great Path between the sky and earth fell down wildly, and everything was swallowed by the Juexian Diagram.


    "Did Gu Tianxing leave this?"


    Many people showed surprise. This was Gu Tianxing''s ability, which did not belong to Jiang Chengzi or Hua Qingshan.


    Could it also be what Gu Tianxing had arranged?


    Boom!


    A frightful sound came, and in Haotian City, countless people''s hearts beat fast, and blood was roaring in their veins. Thunder rolled in the sky, and the thunderstorms of catastrophe appeared in the sky, especially the sky above Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. It was completely covered by the Lightning Matrix of Doomsday.


    In the other direction, a divine spear thrust out from Yingzhao Mountain, and with one strike, it opened the sky. Numerous beams of spear light penetrated the void sky and thrust down.


    Under the ground in front of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the sound of rumbling came out, and cracks constantly appeared on the ground. It was as if there were many figures moving underground, and there was a faint divine light shining from it.


    Warriors of the Purple-golden Rat Clan, people thought. These Rat warriors walked through the ground and wanted to go directly to the interior of the Celestial Gate to destroy it.


    Warriors of the four forces took action at the same time, and all of a sudden, the entire Celestial Gate was completely covered.


    The Juexian Diagram swallowed the fortune of the Great Path and spun around the Celestial Gate. Everyone seemed to be standing over the Juexian Diagram, while Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan stood at the center of the matrix.


    Boom! Countless fairy phantoms surround their whole bodies. Jiang Chengzi rose against the trend in the Juexian Diagram, raised his hand, and launched an attack towards the sky. A loud roaring sound came between the sky and earth, and countless palm prints covered the sky and blasted toward warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Hua Jiangshan also started to move. He stepped into the void, and the life force from his body kept rising and becoming stronger.


    The Lord of the Wang Clan also took action. The celestial light was shining around him. He drew palm prints with both hands and let out a shout. In the matrix, hundreds of millions of divine swords appeared and thrust at the sky dome. At the same time, some divine swords flew to the front of the Celestial Gate and then went down. They smashed madly into the ground and thrust towards the warriors of the Purple Golden Rat Clan underground.


    All of a sudden, a supper battle broke out, and the people who took part in were all top figures. It was difficult for others to participate in a battle this level. Even Renhuang-level figures could only assist, and for Saint-Plane warriors, they were not qualified to stand aside, let alone participate. If they got involved in it, they would likely to be wiped out instantly.


    "Launch the matrix," Jiang Chengzi, shrouded by celestial light, said toward the lower sky. Many people showed surprise. Launch the matrix?


    Wasn''t the Juexian Matrix the matrix he had launched?


    Where was the other matrix that Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven wanted to open?

 1491 Stay or Go

    Above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the whole gate was trembling.


    Extremely dazzling fairy light erupted, and in an instant, countless dazzling rays of light shot in all directions. Even top figures'' eyes were temporarily blinded by the light.


    "What is that?" many people murmured while covering their eyes. When they narrowed their eyes into slits and tried to look at the scene again, they saw a three-dimensional star atlas with countless light beams of the Great Path shooting out of it.


    Besides, this three-dimensional star atlas was being integrated into the Juexian Matrix. Gu Dongliu was sitting in the matrix and was also at the center of the star atlas. There was a gust of strong life force coming from his body, and a phantom of a peerless figure could be faintly seen. It seemed to be Gu Tianxing.


    Around Gu Dongliu''s body, many illusory figures showed up, all surrounded by the flowing fairy light. Not only that, but many Renhuang-level warriors came to form a circle around him and madly infused their energy into Gu Dongliu''s body and launched the star atlas.


    What is this? those top figures thought, puzzled. They found that countless warriors of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were stepping into the Juexian matrix and standing at the eyes of the matrix. Each eye of the matrix was corresponding to one position in the star atlas.


    Boom...


    The world was roaring, and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was collapsing and shattering. All the force of the Celestial Gate seemed to be swallowed up by that terrifying matrix, and the star atlas became bigger and bigger, radiating toward all the nine skies.


    Boom, boom, boom! The Great Path in the sky seemed to be resonating with it. Countless beams of divine light shot down and shone with the divine light emitting from the matrix. They continued moving into the distance and extended in infinitely distant places.


    Some warriors looked up at the sky and saw beams of light directly come out of the sky, and all of a sudden, the light beams seemed to go out of sight.


    All of Haotian city was shaking, and infinite life forces of Great Path rushed into the matrix and merged with it.


    Above the sky dome, a figure was standing there. It was as if she stood alone outside the sky, but at this time, beams of light shot from the side, and in an instant, the light extended to the infinite distance and shot out of the sky dome.


    Her perception reached into the distance, stretching out madly, and she found that her perception could not catch up with the movement of the light.


    "The Path Diagram," she looked down at the matrix in the lower sky and murmured. The star atlas that merged with the Juexian Matrix launched a new matrix.


    It was rumored that when Gu Tianxing traveled outside, he obtained a treasure which had the coordinate positions of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Some people even said that if the secret of the treasure was unraveled, it could lead to the Great Path of all 3,000 Realms in any place.


    However, because no one had seen it, and Gu Tianxing had never used it in front of people, the gossip only lasted for a while, and later, the world forgot it.


    Now, it seemed that the rumor many years ago was true.


    The Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace blanched a little, and they also felt the terrifying power of the Heavenly Might.


    People of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven wanted to escape.


    "Let''s do it," the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty shouted. His finger pointed toward the sky, and the Qianqiu Brush dropped down from his hand. Numerous killing light beams shrouded the endless area and chopped down. The Qianqiu Brush came from the sky and thrust toward the super matrix.


    Boom! The Thunder of Doomsdays engulfed the sky, and the catastrophic thunder covered tens of thousands of miles of Haotian City. In the sky above the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the Thunder of Catastrophe was even more terrifying. The Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace held the Violet Divine Hammer in the sky and smashed down the hammer.


    In just one moment, an extremely stout purple divine thunder penetrated the void sky and blasted down into the lower sky. Everything below it would be wiped out in the heavenly thunder.


    Everyone in Haotian City felt a chill go down their spine. The attack was too horrible, and if it had targeted Haotian City, numerous people would have disappeared from the world in a flash.


    Those who were standing a little close could not dare to watch the battle anymore, and all fled. This level of war could no longer be watched from a short distance. Even the aftermath of the fight might endanger their lives.


    "Let''s open a way," someone said in the endless divine light. A few figures rose from the Juexian Matrix. They were Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan, one of whom headed toward the warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace, and the other went to the warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The Lord of the Wang Family headed toward the warriors of Yingzhao Mountain.


    Three beams of divine light pierced through the sky, making it difficult for people to open their eyes.


    Ye Futian was also in the matrix. When he looked up at these three figures, he felt stirred.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was worthy of the word "Celestial" in its name.


    Warriors were all staring at the upper sky. They saw Jiang Chengzi pass through the destructive thunderstorm, Hua Jiangshan''s finger thrust toward the Qianqiu Brush, and the divine weapon transformed from the Lord of Wang Family colliding with the long spear of Yingzhao Mountain.


    Three glowing beams ran through the sky, and the people in the matrix just saw the thunderbolt matrix of doomsdays above the sky dome be destroyed. All the warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace had to scatter. Even the Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace spat out a mouthful of blood. In the void sky, a beam of light shot toward the void sky, and drops of blood flew down.


    The situation in the other two directions was the same. The arrays formed by warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Yingzhao Mountain were directly separated, and many of the warriors were even injured, which showed how strong the attack was.


    "The Celestial Gate will last forever."


    At this moment, a voice came from the matrix in the lower sky, and the sound made the void air tremble.


    The moment these words were said, another beam of celestial light rose straight into the sky toward those warriors.


    "The Celestial Gate will last forever," another voice came.


    "The Celestial Gate will last forever..."


    The voices came one after another, and the bright rays of divine light shot out. A terrifying scene appeared.


    Many Renhuang figures transformed into intimidating light beams of the Great Path, attacking warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    So many gallant heroes of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven all turned into immortal phantoms at this time and pierced through the void sky.


    Warriors from the Shangxiao Divine Palace and the Violet Heavenly Palace were all hit hard. Many Renhuang figures let out low moans, and even the Imperial Lord and the Violet Heavenly Palace Lord were injured in the first round of attacks. Warriors of the Celestial Gate punched out their strongest blows with the power of the matrix, which penetrated the void sky, and then left.


    But some of them were also seriously injured before leaving.


    Roar��


    At this moment, a giant figure of the Purple-golden Rat King appeared over the crowd. It opened its big mouth, blocked the road, and swallowed a Renhuang warrior.


    Gu Dongliu looked up at the sky and glanced at the Purple-golden Rat King. The next moment, countless beams of spatial light shot directly onto the sky dome, and all the rays in the matrix thrust out at the same instant.


    Pppppppppffffff��


    A series of sound came out, and many Renhuang figures'' bodies in the upper sky were stabbed. Their bodies exploded, and a lot of blood dripped down from the sky and disappeared in the light.


    "What is that?"


    Many people were shocked. Roars that trembled the space came from the sky dome, and people saw that the Purple-gold Rat King was stabbed by countless beams of divine light. Many bloody cuts appeared on his huge body. He shrank his body and ran away instantly. He moved out of the way.


    Sacred light shrouded the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and the matrix rotated and headed toward the sky dome along with countless beams of divine light. A group of figures showed up from all directions and headed straight into the clouds. At the same time, the entire matrix emitted countless beams of terrifying light, shooting toward every direction of the sky dome.


    "The day when the Celestial Gate returns will be the day of your annihilation," voices said at the same time, extremely solemn. The divine light in the surroundings seemed to open the way, and so did all the warriors who fought. As for the center of the large matrix at this moment, countless warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven directly merged into the divine light and disappeared between the sky and the earth in a flash. No one stopped them, and they would head toward the most distant place without interruption.


    "Stop them!" An angry shout came from the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He was shocked to find that all the warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were shrouded in the matrix. At this moment, they turned into countless beams of divine light and shot towards the sky.


    They wanted to take away the whole Celestial Gate.


    Many warriors launched attacks, but the terrifying divine light next to them directly blocked their attacks, protecting the infinite divine light in the large matrix and left. They could have gone beforehand, but they did not. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace wanted to exterminate the Celestial Gate, how could they just let them go without paying the price?


    Although this might lead to injuries and even death, and some people might lose their chances to leave the Heavenly Mandate Realm because the Great Path of Space was attacked, they still did so with no hesitation.


    "The Path Diagram will send them away from the Heavenly Mandate Realm," many people murmured, trembling inside. The whole Celestial Gate would move.


    The day when the Celestial Gate returned, they would be annihilated.


    Those unstopped divine light beams rushed directly into the endless void sky and disappeared. It was as if they opened a road of Great Path and took away all the warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    The Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked up at the void sky, but his majestic face looked extremely embarrassed at this moment. He remembered the time when the figure foretold the fortune of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The fortune of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was almost destroyed. It was extremely dim, but it still existed.


    Wasn''t the prophecy what was happening at the moment?


    Everyone from Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven left, and the Celestial Gate collapsed. Their fortune was almost extinguished, but the people of the Celestial Gate all left.


    People in Haotian City also looked up at the sky. They saw countless beams of divine light shine directly through the sky, and an infinite bright light appeared on the sky dome. All of them disappeared with the divine light.


    Could this matrix take them directly out of the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    That bright Path Matrix might make it possible.


    This matrix is so powerful, but why didn''t they use it in Gu Tianxing''s battle? someone people thought, shocked.


    During the battle of that year, the technique of the matrix was not mature.


    Gu Tianxing had been studying this matrix at that time, but he passed away before the matrix succeeded, leaving it to his two friends.


    "Can those who were blocked by the attack also leave the Heavenly Mandate Realm?" someone whispered.


    "No..." the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty yelled after hearing the whisper. His face turned pale, and he immediately turned around and walked away. He ordered, "Let''s go back!"


    The Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace also realized it. The three big figures who attacked previously rushed out and were obstructed by terrifying forces. They left after forcibly breaking their arrays.


    Those three figures were most likely unable to leave the Heavenly Mandate Realm, or had they never thought of leaving?

 1492 Becoming a Demon

    "What''s going on?" people asked each other. They didn''t get it when seeing the warriors depart from the sky.


    All the warriors of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Shangxiao Divine Palace were evacuated in a very short time. It was as if they were worried about something.


    "The two Clan Lords and the Lord of Wang Family didn''t leave," someone said. "They are still in the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    Before, the three top figures launched an attack with the power of the matrix and directly separated the enemies'' arrays. The power that erupted at that moment even wounded the Imperial Lord and the Lord of Violet Heavenly Mandate, but at the same time, they must have also suffered the same. The extremely strong force of the collision caused the road of Great Path to the sky dome to be incomplete. Only the Celestial Gate Army that was protected in the middle was able to enter the complete road.


    The Celestial Gate warriors who fought in the beginning were trying to escort them.


    As for other warriors, they might have been hindered, but they intentionally did so, most likely because they did not want to leave.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had been passed down for many years. Today, it collapsed under the siege of many top forces, as if it had to repeat the past. How could the Celestial Gate warriors reconcile themselves?


    In the past, they had paid a terrible price for it, and the Gu Clan was totally destroyed.


    Now, would it happen again? Couldn''t the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven obtain good fortune and be at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    They must let them pay a painful price, even if the cost was the breakdown of the Celestial Gate.


    This was the battle they had chosen.


    After hearing the voice, people''s hearts trembled slightly. Didn''t the three warriors leave the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    If so, where would they go?


    Now that Celestial Gate was no longer here, they would have nothing to worry about. It was not hard to speculate where they were going.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Shangxiao Divine Palace, and the other two clans from the Demon Realm wanted to destroy the Celestial Gate and let the Celestial Gate turn into ruins. If there had not been the matrix, nobody of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven could survive, since they wanted to completely get rid of the Celestial Gate.


    In this case, what would Jiang Chengzi do when they left?


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace...


    These two forces were closer to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven than to the Demon Realm.


    "If these two forces can''t catch up with them, I am afraid they will have big trouble," someone said, watching the figures disappear from the sky dome above. Because the top forces came with the purpose to destroy the Celestial Gate, they had deployed their best warriors, including the Imperial Lord and the Palace Lord themselves, to prevent anyone from escaping.


    Currently, the defensive power of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Heavenly Temple of Violet needed to be weakened greatly.


    The Purple-golden Rat Emperor''s face was gloomy. Although his bearing was outstanding, due to the natural ugly appearance of the Purple-golden Rat, he looked even more eerie. His body was stained with a lot of blood; however, he was greatly traumatized.


    "Let''s return to the demon realm first," he said. Immediately, warriors of the Purple Golden Rat Clan also evacuated and returned to the demon world, just in case anything happened.


    Warriors of Yingzhao Mountain also started to evacuate.


    Soon the four allied forces had all left. Many warriors of other forces were still here, lost in thought.


    The battle of the top powers involved too many issues, and if they were not careful, they would face backlash. This was also the reason why wars rarely broke out between top forces.


    Many people secretly left through the sky. They could feel that the super matrix of Celestial Gate had evacuated all the warriors of Celestial Gate. Perhaps, they could cross the realm borders, and the Path Matrix was used to record the coordinates.


    Combined with the large matrix, the treasure obtained by Gu Tianxing at that time could shuttle between different realms.


    Soon, the warriors from all sides of the Heavenly Mandate Realm left, and only the people of Haotian City were still here. They looked at the place where the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was located. Now the gate had collapsed, and all the celestial aura disappeared. All the fortune and energy had been integrated into the large matrix and launched it, consuming all the power of the Celestial Gate.


    "The Celestial Gate, it''s gone," people sighed.


    At this time, the area around the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven seemed extraordinarily quiet, and countless people looked at the front silently. Here was the sacred land of Haotian City, the symbol of it.


    Today, it was a ruin.


    In the distance, there were still figures flashing. All of them were people of Haotian City. Seeing the sight in front of them, everyone felt the desolation, as well as a tinge of sadness.


    "Didn''t the fortuneteller of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty say the Celestial Gate would be full of good luck?" someone said with a sigh, looking up at the sky. Since they had good luck, why did it end up like this?


    Was the fortune of the Celestial Gate really disrupted by the war?


    "As long as the people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven are still alive, the Celestial Gate will still exist," someone said loudly in a somber voice. Previously, including the two Clan Lords and many Renhuang figures, many top figures broke into the opponents'' arrays and escorted the people of the Celestial Gate to leave. What these people did was to save heir hope, and they didn''t mind staying here.


    As long as hope existed, the Celestial Gate existed, and fortune would be on their side.


    "Indeed. Gu Dongliu obtained the power between the sky and the earth, gathered all the fortunes of the Origin Mountains, and received Gu Tianxing''s teachings. He alone owned a great amount of fortune of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Now he left, but by the time he returned, he would revive the Celestial Gate and call on all the Celestial Gate warriors to return."


    "The Celestial Gate lasts forever."


    One after another, these voices came, filled with endless hope. That was the hope for the future.


    They remembered what the Celestial Gate warriors had said before departure. In the future, the return of the Celestial Gate would mean the elimination of all those powers. Today, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace participated in the battle to destroy the Celestial Gate, and in the future, they would have a price to pay.


    Fortune was not easy to be extinguished.


    Those forces couldn''t take it away.


    After this battle, people in Haotian City also seemed to have undergone some changes in their states of mind. Their willpower seemed to become firmer and more unified.


    They finally understood why their two Lords refused to participate in the battle of Haotian City. It turned out that they had long thought about everything and did not want the people of Haotian City to be involved.


    ...


    At this time, in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, a bright beam of divine light appeared, but the light became dimmer and dimmer until it dissipated. A figure showed up.


    The figure had outstanding temperament and was covered with a snow-white robe. His long hair was partly white. Although he was middle-aged, he seemed to have experienced vicissitudes. At this time, there was a bloodstain at the corner of his mouth. The white robe on his body was also torn and stained with blood.


    The figure was the Lord of Hua Clan��Hua Jiang Shan��one of the two clan lords of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    He glanced down at his robe and whispered, "It''s dirty again."


    Then, he took off his shirt and took out another white robe from the storage ring.


    Hua Jiangshan was a neat freak. He put on the new robe and dusted it several times, and only then was satisfied. He also wiped off the bloodstain from his mouth and then looked into the distance. There seemed to be dazzling celestial light in his eyes, which penetrated the infinite space.


    He stepped forward, and suddenly countless white shadows appeared over the sky dome. They were many broken shadows, like countless phantoms of Hua Jiangshan. The scene was shocking. A bright beam of white celestial light appeared over the sky dome and ran across the void sky at an incredibly fast speed.


    Vroom! The white celestial light came from the sky dome, which was so fast that nobody could see his figure inside.


    A Saint-Plane warrior was cultivating in a mountain in the south of Heavenly Mandate Realm. At this moment, he suddenly woke up and opened his eyes.


    "Who''s there?" he shouted. A beam of white fairy light passed directly above his head. He could see nothing but a beam of white light, which frightened him.


    How could he be so fast?


    He was of Nirvana Saint Plane, but he didn''t even see clearly before the figure disappeared.


    In the Thunder Punishment City of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there were warriors guarding every entrance of the city. At this time, a beam of white light landed outside the city.


    "Who''s there?" several soldiers shouted and rose up, trying to stop it.


    Hiss. The white light faded away, and the two soldiers who tried to block him froze in the air, and then their bodies fell into the lower air. Their eyes widened, as if they didn''t believe they were dying.


    They were warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace guarding the Thunder Punishment City. Who dared to kill them like this?


    "What''s that?" in the city of thunder and punishment, countless people looked up at the sky and murmured with confusion. A beam of white light just flew over their heads and headed directly toward one direction.


    It was heading toward the direction of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    On the top of Violet Heavenly Palace, several old men were cultivating. At this moment, they suddenly opened their eyes, as if they had sensed a very dangerous life force. One of them shouted, "What brings you here, Sir?"


    They rose and looked towards the distance. Their voices spread across the Violet Heavenly Palace, shaking every Heavenly Palace cultivator''s heart.


    The white light was still shooting straight towards the Violet Heavenly Palace. A Renhuang-level warrior was moving forward. The thunder light engulfed the sky with astonishing force. He stepped out and launched a destructive punch of the Great Path toward the white light. The sky and the earth made loud roars.


    Boom! The white light and the purple light brutally collided. It was so fast that people''s eyes couldn''t even follow it.


    Finally, the white light stopped and turned into a hazy figure. The hair of the figure in white robe fluttered in the wind, and the fairy light flew around his body. He pointed a finger forward.


    The divine light annihilated the sky. The Renhuang figure let out a scream, and his body gradually disintegrated.


    Sphhhtt...


    Blood splashed out, and the Renhuang figure''s body was shattered directly. The figure in the white robe continued moving forward, and his white clothes were stained by blood.


    Boom!


    A gust of horrifying life force shrouded the entire Violet Heavenly Palace, and some figures broke into the air and came. Warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace trembled. Some people were coming to attack the Heavenly Palace.


    "Hua Jiangshan," an old man said with a trembling voice. The Palace Lord had led people to besiege the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but why would Hua Jiangshan, one of the two Clan Lords of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, show up here?


    Boom!


    The horrible Might shrouded everyone. Hua Jiangshan took a step out and pointed his finger forward. In a short time, the celestial light of the Great Path directly penetrated many warriors'' bodies. Many people groaned, vomited blood, and showed extreme fear.


    How could this be?


    Hua Jiangshan continued moving forward and laid down a finger again. He killed a person in front of him, and the blood splashed on his face. But at this time, he seemed to have no feeling, and his eyes were cold, with no trace of emotion.


    Today, his hands were doomed to be dirty.


    Some people said that a celestial cultivator could turn into a demon with just one thought. He had been cultivating in celestial laws for many years, but today, he had become a demon!

 1493 To Live up to the Glory of the Celestial Gate

    "Launch the matrix!"


    A loud yell came from the Violet Heavenly Palace. The warriors who stayed in the Heavenly Palace gathered together around the palace. In a flash, the destructive Might appeared over the sky dome and swept across the vast sky. The terrifying divine thunder over the sky dome covered the entire Thunder Punishment City.


    People in Thunder Punishment City were shocked, and their hearts kept trembling. At this moment, all of them looked up at the sky and stared in the direction of the Heavenly Palace.


    What happened there? they wondered.


    A while ago, a dazzling beam of white light ran across the sky. Was it because of the white light?


    Someone broke into the Violet Heavenly Palace...


    "The Palace Lord led people to Haotian City today and attacked the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven," someone murmured. His face suddenly turned pale, as if he had just realized something.


    The battle against a top force could backfire on them.


    Had it backfired on them?


    However, this time all the top forces had joined hand. How could they let warriors of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven escape?


    Even though they escaped, why did the top forces not chase after them and let them attack the Violet Heavenly Palace?


    They were puzzled and didn''t know what happened. If the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace had known that there was such a super matrix in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, they must have acted more cautiously, but there was no "if" in reality.


    At this moment, Thunder Punishment City had truly become the land of thunder punishment, and heaven seemed to want to release the power of thunder punishment and wipe out everything.


    The warriors of Violet Heavenly Palace ran madly toward the void sky and entered the super matrix of Thunder Punishment. It was the matrix of world destruction and was guarded and controlled by several senior Renhuang figures of the Violet Heaven Palace. Although the Palace Lord took the best warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace to besiege the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, it was impossible for Violet Heavenly Palace to leave no warriors behind.


    In fact, many Renhuang figures were still here.


    Hua Jiangshan glanced up at this catastrophic super matrix, which was the guarding matrix of Violet Heavenly Palace. He had directly broken into the palace before they had time to launch the guarding matrix to defend the sect.


    But after they launched it at this moment, the power was still appalling.


    The celestial light was shining brightly into the sky. Numerous fairy shadows appeared over Hua Jiangshan''s body and headed towards the sky dome. Numerous fairy shadows constantly descended below the matrix. It was as if they wanted to support this super matrix with flesh and blood.


    Boom! The fairy shadows merged and involved Hua Jiangshan''s body in a supreme immortal shadow. The shadow kept expanding, and he took a step upward. A celestial ladder created by Mystical Ways was released. He seemed to be stepping on the celestial ladder. With every step he took out, his life force became more powerful, and his figure became stronger. It was as if nothing could stop him.


    The Great Path over the sky roared, and Hua Jiangshan''s body turned into a supreme celestial form. He pointed a finger toward the void sky and penetrated the thunder, annihilating the Great Path, and fell directly over the terrifying matrix of doomsday. In just one moment, above the sky dome, countless beams of celestial light like lightning appeared in the large matrix covering all the skies. Countless Wills dropped from the sky above the matrix, which resonated with the two forces below. A rumbling sound came out, and the matrix was trembling, and many cracks appeared on it.


    Boom!


    With a loud noise, countless bolts of thunder and lightning exploded. At this moment, the sky seemed to fall, and the doomsday was coming. The Violet Heavenly Palace was split into many parts, and countless buildings collapsed. In Thunder Punishment City, numerous people let out yells of despair and were destroyed in the aftermath of the matrix. Nobody attacked them deliberately, but the thunderous matrix was so horrible that the forces could not be controlled when the matrix collapsed, causing many people to die.


    Figures of the Violet Heavenly Palace were shaken in the sky. Blood oozed out from their mouths, and their faces turned pale. They launched attacks with all of their strengths. The appalling Renhuang Might overwhelmed the sky, and the Renhuang figures were all staring at Hua Jiangshan. They must guard the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Infinite thunder and lightning penetrated Hua Jiangshan''s body, but he still stood there, stepping forward in the void sky and making all warriors'' hearts tremble.


    Many broken images appeared, and at this time, Hua Jiangshan turned into the ultimate celestial form.


    Plorkk! Plorkk! Plorkk! ��


    One after another, many Renhuang figures were eliminated.


    When Hua Jiangshan stopped, his finger was pointing at the center of a senior warrior''s eyebrows. Blood splashed on him, but Hua Jiangshan looked quite calm. It was as if he was completely undisturbed.


    "Dead, all dead."


    "Elder..."


    "Master!"


    There were many voices coming from everywhere in the space. People of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked up at the sky, all in deep despair.


    Hua Jiangshan, the Lord of Hua Clan��one of the two Clan Lords of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven��naturally stood on the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Except for those few giant figures, almost nobody could fight with him.


    The Renhuang warriors who cultivated in the Violet Heavenly Palace were all peerless figures with fame, but at this moment, they all died at the hands of Hua Jiangshan. How sad...


    This battle would greatly hurt the vitality of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    And, it was not over.


    Hua Jiangshan glanced down. At this moment, the sky above Violet Heavenly Palace became extremely silent, and only the cold wind was whistling.


    "Lord of Hua Clan, aren''t you going to let the young warriors go?" a voice said. Above the silent Violet Heavenly Palace, a figure walked out. He was the Supreme Form of Violet Heavenly Palace��Zhan Yuan.


    He walked out and looked at Hua Jiangshan.


    Today, in the Heavenly Palace, Hua Jiangshan had gone on a killing spree.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace had never suffered such a heavy loss.


    Hua Jiangshan raised a hand and grabbed at the air. Suddenly, a big invisible hand gripped Zhan Yuan and raised him in the air. Zhan Yuan stared at Hua Jiangshan.


    "You don''t need to look at me like that. You know better than anyone what the Violet Heavenly Palace came to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven today for," Hua Jiangshan said calmly. People of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked pale. Of course, they knew why they had come.


    In the past, all the people of the Gu Clan were exterminated. This time, all the top forces joined hands to go to the Celestial Gate because they wanted to repeat the past and let the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven become history and disappear from the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    However, now, Hua Jiangshan was here.


    Hua Jiangshan''s white clothes were stained with blood. Hua Jiangshan looked at Zhan Yuan''s face, and at this moment, he did not see fear from Zhan Yuan''s face, but Zhan Yuan just looked at him indifferently. This made Hua Jiangshan smile. He said, "After all, the Supreme Form of the Violet Heavenly Palace is not a despicable person. Today, I am supposed to kill everyone in the Violet Heavenly Palace. But if I do this, the Violet Heavenly Palace will not be able to witness the future. So today, I will keep you alive to let you one day see who will stand at the top of the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    After these words, he let go of Zhan Yuan. Even though Zhan Yuan was the Supreme Form of Violet Heavenly Palace, he still let him go. As he had said, today, the Violet Heavenly Palace came to exterminate everyone in the Celestial Gate. Now, he had started his killing spree like a demon, and he had nothing to worry about, but he still didn''t kill Zhan Yuan because he wanted to let the Violet Heavenly Palace witness the return of the Celestial Gate.


    As for Zhan Yuan��the Supreme Form of Great Path��there were Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian in the Celestial Gate, so Zhan Yuan would not be a threat to them.


    Vroom.


    He took a step forward, reaching the top of the Violet Heavenly Palace, and then stomped down. All of a sudden, above Thunder Punishment City, the towering castle of the Violet Heavenly Palace was shaking violently. Many cracks appeared, and it began to collapse. Countless giant rocks rolled down, and the Heavenly Palace was reduced to ruins.


    Today, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven disappeared, but the Violet Heavenly Palace should also be wiped out in the same way.


    After doing all this, Hua Jiangshan flashed away and walked into the void sky. The Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace took away their best figures, so although this battle would greatly weaken the Violet Heavenly Palace, it would not hurt their foundation. Those who went to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were the strongest figures.


    But even so, from now on, the Violet Heavenly Palace would be restless because of it.


    A super battle also broke out in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, but the foundation of the Heavenly Mandate dynasty was deeper, and many allied imperial forces surrounded it along with countless warriors. The power of the matrix in the Heavenly Mandate dynasty was also very terrifying. Jiang Chengzi had his killing spree there and killed a lot of warriors and then left. He couldn''t completely break the defense of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, but the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had suffered a significant loss.


    He left just because he didn''t want to give them a chance to fight back. If he waited until the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty returned, it would be impossible for him to escape.


    The Lord of the Wang Clan was not as strong as Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan, and he was not so lucky, either. After he forcibly broke into the arrays, his path of teleportation was blocked. After teleporting for a short distance, unfortunately, he was caught by the Thought of the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, who rushed back home at full speed.


    Warriors of their level could easily cover thousands of miles with his thought, which was a terrifying power. At this moment, in a place of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, a figure turned into a divine weapon and quickly flew forward. However, a person behind him kept chasing him. It was the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Other warriors had received his order and were running back to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty at full speed. Although he was worried, as long as these warriors all went back, it didn''t matter even if he was absent for a while.


    There was killing intent in the eyes of the Imperial Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Both people''s speeds were extremely fast, and the Lord of the Wang Family was completely transformed into a real weapon of the gods and shuttled between the sky and the earth.


    "Do you think you can escape?" the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty shouted. He thrust out a palm from a distance, and the Great Path between the sky and earth roared and swept across the distant void sky. However, this palm slapped over the divine weapon and made the speed of the Lord of Wang Clan even faster. The Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate looked sullen.


    But at this moment, the Lord of Jiang Clan felt a sense of crisis. He frowned, and suddenly, the ground was split into half directly, and a horrifying demon aura swept across the sky. Soon, a horrifying Purple-golden Rat descended and devoured the Great Path between the sky and earth, and was even about to swallow him as well.


    The Lord of the Wang Family immediately stopped and threw out a divine weapon.


    A terrifying dark crack appeared in the void sky, followed by a flash of blood.


    The Lord of the Wang Family had to stop, but his body was dripping with blood. One of his arms was bitten off, and the blood was flowing down madly.


    Boom... A violent attack hit behind him at the same time, making him vomit blood.


    There was no way to go.


    All of a sudden, warriors of both forces arrived.


    "I feel pity for you, having joined the Celestial Gate and seeking your death," the Imperial Lord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said coldly. The Lord of Wang Clan could have just been an outsider.


    "Seeking my death?" The Lord of Wang Family looked up at the sky and suddenly laughed. He suddenly felt relieved.


    For many years, he had regarded the return to Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven as the biggest obsession.


    Now he could let it go.


    "I, Wang Yu, deserve to be a member of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The Wang Family can live up to the glory of the Celestial Gate."


    He said this loudly, roaring to the sky. The sky shook, and countless divine weapons descended from the sky. The divine light of Great Path penetrated his body, and the weapons dissolved.

 1494 Music Master

    The Heavenly Mandate Realm world had been calm for many years since the Battle between Gu Tianxing of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the old and new Imperial Lords of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    But now, another war broke out and shocked the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    This battle involved the five supreme forces and made countless people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm feel unsettled. In a brief period of time, every detail of this war swept across the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm, including the demon world. It had become a real sensation.


    The scale of the war was the largest in the Heavenly Mandate Realm since Gu Tianxing''s period, and the influence was also the strongest.


    In this battle, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was destroyed. The Celestial Gate launched a super matrix and moved all the warriors of the Celestial Gate away. But some warriors who guarded them did not leave, and even the top three figures of Celestial Gate were left.


    Jiang Chengzi of the Jiang Clan went to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and many people were severely injured or killed by him.


    But what was even worse was the Violet Heavenly Palace. Hua Jiangshan��the Lord of Hua Clan��went astray and became a demon. His white clothes were stained with the blood of many Renhuang figures of the Violet Heavenly Palace. It was said that Zhan Yuan and other people''s lives were controlled by Hua Jiangshan, and with one thought, he could have exterminated all the warriors of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    However, Hua Jiangshan did not do so, which made many people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm think that Hua Jiangshan, who went to the Violet Heavenly Palace, was a kind person.


    Most people would have chosen to kill them if they had been in his situation.


    However, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was not so lucky. Wang Yu��the Lord of the Wang Family��wanted to bring his family back into Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven but failed. However, he still went to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven when the Celestial Gate was in danger.


    Wang Yu, during a tragic battle, was disarmed but had severely injured the King of the Golden Rats. He soon passed away, but he had lived up to the glory of the Celestial Gate. It was as if he had never left.


    Although he had some flaws in the past, this tragic battle still showed the loyalty and valor of this top Renhuang figure. He indeed lived up to the glory of the Celestial Gate and deserved to be a cultivator of the Celestial Gate.


    A super battle ended. After that, the top forces such as the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Divine Palace crazily searched for the Renhuang figures of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, who had not left and found that many of them had been killed. However, after that, they also found it out that Hua Jiangshan and Jiang Chengzi also killed many of their Renhuang figures.


    These two people still hadn''t left the Heavenly Mandate Realm, which made the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace restless.


    Besides, it would be challenging to besiege and kill these two Lords. As long as they acted secretly, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Shangxiao Divine Palace could hardly kill them. The Imperial Lord and the Palace Lord also had concerns. They would no longer dare not leave alone to assassinate them unless they had already been found.


    Everyone understood that this would be a long-term war, and the Heavenly Mandate Realm would not be peaceful.


    As for the vast majority of people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, it seemed that they had really been sent away by that super matrix and were no longer in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It was rumored that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace had already begun to send people to other realms to search for those people''s information, and they seemed to try to use this to threaten Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan, who were hidden in the dark.


    Everything that was happening in the Heavenly Mandate Realm confirmed the prophecy of the demon realm that the Heavenly Mandate Realm would change.


    Today, it had changed. The Celestial Gate disappeared, and the Violet Heavenly Palace was rebuilt.


    Was this the beginning of the change?


    Each of the many things that happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm recently seemed to touch people''s hearts.


    In the blink of an eye, two months had passed.


    The whole Heavenly Mandate Realm was still shrouded in the shadow of that battle. At this time, there were many traces of the Great Path on the ground in a place of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Many people came here to see the remnant Wills.


    At this moment, two rays of celestial light came down. The crowd looked up and immediately fell silent. Everyone stopped moving and looked at these two figures that showed up.


    Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan.


    They stood in the void sky and perceived the remaining Wills in this space. They could hardly feel it, and there were only some traces on the ground that were caused by the aftermath of the battle.


    Here was the place where Wang Yubing was disarmed.


    Wang Yu died here.


    They walked down and came to a place. Over the ground, there was a trace of white light, which was a fragment of a broken sword. The sword fragment still contained very strong Sword Wills, and no one dared to approach it.


    Jiang Chengzi walked there, took the fragments, held it tightly in one hand, and looked forward.


    "Jiang Chengzi��the Lord of Jiang Clan of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven."


    "Hua Tianshan��the Lord of Hua Clan of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven."


    Both of them spoke at the same time in a somber voice. They announced loudly, "Today, the Wang Clan is granted to enter the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and become a part of the Celestial Gate."


    After these words, both of them turned into two beams of celestial light and disappeared, as if they had never been here. However, above the sky dome, the echo lingered for a long time.


    The Wang Clan was granted to enter the Celestial Gate, and all the disciples of the Wang Clan would become members of the Celestial Gate.


    People were in shock for a long time and felt their blood boiling. Wang Yu lived up to the glory of the Celestial Gate, and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would not disappoint him.


    Today, Wang Yu''s wish of a lifetime was fulfilled.


    However, the day when the Celestial Gate returned, what would the scene be like?


    No one knew.


    The storm of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was rising, and who knew about the future?


    ...


    The thing that happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, after a while, even spread to other realms.


    When the Super Matrix of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was opened, people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were sent to many different realms.


    In the Higher Heavens Realm, the most sacred place of cultivation was the Shangxiao Divine Palace. It was very solemn.


    In the Shangxiao Divine Palace, over a palace hall, someone was looking into the distance. The person was wearing a gorgeous golden suit, and his eyes were tinged with golden divine light. He was the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��Yi Tianyu.


    The news of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had reached the Higher Heavens Realm, so he had also received the news during his cultivation in the Divine Palace.


    In the beginning, when his Father asked him to leave, he had already known that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would lay a hand on the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Otherwise, Father would not let him go immediately.


    At that time, he had an inexplicable feeling. Of course, he hoped that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would revive and destroy the Celestial Gate, but at the same time, he did not want Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian to fall so early.


    These two opponents on his way of cultivation motivated him to keep moving forward and never relax.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, both of them would become gallant figures of this era.


    However, in the end, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty failed. The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven opened a super matrix and sent their warriors away. It was said that they were sent to many different realms.


    Today, where were Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu?


    At this moment, the sound of footsteps came from behind Yi Tianyu. Someone said to him in a low voice, "What are you thinking about?"


    After she said it, the person came to Yi Tianyu''s side and looked into the distance with him. Her voice was so beautiful that everyone would be curious about her appearance when hearing her voice. Her face was also extremely gorgeous and would not disappoint anyone.


    "Nothing," Yi Tianyu said and smiled at her.


    This lady was also a core disciple of Shangxiao Divine Palace. She was extremely talented and was also a princess of a top force in the Higher Heavens Realm. She had heard that Yi Tianyu encountered some setbacks in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and even his marriage proposal was refused.


    "You are thinking about your family thing, right? I have heard a little bit," the woman smiled and said. "The storm in the Heavenly Mandate Realm suddenly rises up. Maybe all these nine realms would be affected by it. We must work harder."


    "Yes," Yi Tianyu said and nodded. The Nine Realms had been calm for many years, but commotion could rise again at any time. The Heavenly Mandate Realms was a good example. Even though he was a disciple of Shangxiao Divine Palace, a peerless and talented figure, in reality, his current Plane was still not enough compared with other warriors of top forces in the Nine Realms.


    ...


    There was an area in the Higher Heavens Realm called Taixuan Region, and the main city of Taixuan Region was Taixuan City.


    The most prestigious restaurant in the city was named after Taixuan City, which was called Taixuan Restaurant.


    This restaurant had received a lot of big figures.


    The restaurant was very large and magnificent, just like a royal palace comprised of many towering buildings with extremely luxurious embellishments. There were many special seats set in the lofty buildings and in the garden outside.


    At this time, a fragrance of the wine came from the restaurant garden. The scent was so alluring as if one would be charmed just by taking a sniff of it. The Taixuan Restaurant always served the best wine, and all wine and dishes were all very expensive. Ordinary people never dared to enter.


    In such an expensive restaurant, music was indispensable.


    There was a pavilion in the garden. Peach trees around the pavilion were blooming, and leaves were slowly falling down, covering the area.


    Someone was playing zither in the garden. The scenery was beautiful, and so was the zither. The zither music was in harmony with the scene, adding a serene mood to the restaurant.


    Some guests were drinking and looking towards the pavilion. In front of an ancient zither, a figure in white clothes was sitting there, with long black hair loosely falling around his shoulders. His face was flawlessly handsome and made people want to praise his unparalleled elegance.


    He was indeed so in such an atmosphere.


    "Mr. Shen''s accomplishment in music is indeed marvelous. I wonder how powerful it will be when used with the Music Spell," some guests in the restaurant discussed with a smile.


    "I heard that not long ago, some guests had a dispute here, and Mr. Shen soothed their emotions with the music of zither and easily solved the dispute."


    "I don''t know who his master was, but his master must be an unusual person," someone said softly. All the Laws in the world were interlinked, and since he could master the skill of playing zither at such a high level, he must be an extraordinary person.


    Not to mention that Taixuan Restaurant invited him.


    "It is said that Mr. Shen cultivates in Zither Sword and could use the music of zither to release superb power of the sword."


    "Right? If there is a chance, I want to see it."


    When everyone was talking, the music of zither stopped slowly. Someone sitting near the window looked toward the musician in the pavilion and said, "If Mr. Shen is interested, would you like to become my zither teacher?"


    Many people followed the voice and looked up. The person who spoke was a lady with a flawless body and a glamorous face. Nobody could move their eyes from her, but she, as an Empress-level figure, had an intimidating Might in her body.


    The Music Master looked up toward her, rose, and smiled. "Thank you for your appreciation, Your Majesty, but I don''t want to leave yet."


    The Empress looked at him with a smile, and then her body flashed away. Suddenly, several warriors also rose into the air at the same time. A sedan chair appeared in the void sky. Her delicate feet stepped into the void sky, and she entered the sedan chair. She took a look at the young man and left.


    The young man silently put away the zither, then rose up and left. He was Ye Futian, who had changed his appearance.


    He came to the Higher Heavens Realm from the Heavenly Mandate Realm!

 1495 The Trial

    Ye Futian returned to the backyard of Taixuan Restaurant. A young man and a young woman came to him, both with extraordinary temperament.


    "Mr. Shen, I didn''t expect that your zither music would receive praise from Empress Ji. That is great!" the man looked at Ye Futian and said with a smile. Before, the figure who invited Ye Futian to become her zither player was Empress Ji, a figure who had a great reputation in Taixuan City.


    Empress Ji was a big-hearted and extremely charismatic person, a goddess-figure in countless cultivators'' eyes, but they could only look up at her and dare not to fantasize about her. Even though Empress Ji was not married yet, she was the Empress.


    "Mr. Shen''s zither music is very unusual and refined and has a very deep artistic mood. The moment the music starts, people can engage in the atmosphere. No wonder Empress Ji also appreciates your music skills," the lady said and smiled lightly. She looked at Ye Futian''s handsome face, but somehow, could not see through him.


    According to his temperament and his mastery of music, Ye Futian seemed to come from a famed family and should not be of ordinary status. Although he called himself the Zither Sword Master, everyone had only heard of his zither, and no one had ever seen him draw a sword.


    There seemed to be a mysterious life force around him.


    Moreover, with his accomplishments, Ye Futian should not be willing to just work as a restaurant zither musician. Although Taixuan Restaurant was not an ordinary restaurant, everyone knew who the owner of this restaurant was.


    "I am flattered," Ye Futian responded with a smile.


    The two looked at each other, shook their heads, and smiled bitterly. So far, they did not understand what Ye Futian wanted. If he were an ordinary person, it would be good to be a zither musician in the Taixuan Restaurant, but Ye Futian was not ordinary. His Cultivation Plane and his Mastery of Music had proved this.


    "Brother Shen, would you like to visit my teacher with me and become his disciple?" repeated the young man. His teacher was the owner of Taixuan Restaurant.


    In the Taixuan Region, no one dared to look down upon the owner of Taixuan Restaurant. His status in the Taixuan Region was extraordinary. Taixuan Restaurant was the top restaurant in Taixuan City, and no one had dared to make trouble in Taixuan Restaurant all because of the transcendent status of the owner.


    The Lord of Taixuan City and the owner of Taixuan Restaurant were actually Brothers. This was a fact that everyone knew, and it was not a secret. Of course, in addition to their status and strength, they also had a super powerful Master.


    Therefore, it could be said that if the owner of Taixuan Restaurant wanted to take a disciple, it would become a very big sensation, and countless people in the Taixuan Region would crave this opportunity.


    However, Ye Futian seemed very indifferent when he heard the young man''s words. He shook his head expressionlessly. He didn''t come to the restaurant for the lord of Taixuan Restaurant.


    His reaction is what I expected, the young man looked at Ye Futian and thought. Ye Futian had declined a few times.


    Ye Futian didn''t come to the restaurant to visit his teacher. Even though the young man just tentatively asked about it, Ye Futian directly declined and shook his head casually, without any hesitation.


    So, what did Ye Futian come to Taixuan Restaurant for?


    They didn''t see the slightest clue during these days.


    "I''m going for a walk," Ye Futian said with a smile and then went outside. His habit was the same as before. The young man and young woman took a look at each other.


    "Let''s go," the young man whispered and then went out.


    Outside the restaurant, Ye Futian was heading forward. As the main city of Taixuan Realm, Taixuan City, this ancient city, was extremely prosperous and had countless warriors, even including many Renhuang-level figures. It could absolutely be counted as one of the most powerful zones in the entire Higher Heavens Realm.


    The Taixuan Region had a relatively condescending position in the Higher Heavens Realm because a super-giant had been living on the top of Taixuan Mountain. It was a terrifying top figure of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Because of him, this place was called the Taixuan Region. Although he did not establish a sect, his status was as prestigious as that of Haotian City in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. He was a peak figure in the Realm, and all the disciples he had raised were all extremely famed figures.


    Among them, there were the Lord of Taixuan City and the owner of Taixuan Restaurant.


    Ye Futian carefully watched the scenery in the city. In the ancient city, Saint-Plane warriors were everywhere, as if in the Nine Supreme Realm, the Saint Plane was just a common thing. Presumably, this was due to the regional advantage of copious spiritual resources.


    Ye Futian sped up, and with just one step, he entered the void sky. He disappeared from the place in an instant as if he could flash away anywhere in the air.


    After he left, two figures appeared where he was before. They released their thoughts but only found out that Ye Futian''s trace had vanished.


    "So fast," they said. They looked at each other, shook their heads with bitter smiles, and then came back. The speed of the musician was also appallingly fast, and just in an instant, they couldn''t find him anymore.


    "Let''s go to the Realm of Ruin," the man said.


    "Going to the Realm of Ruin?" the woman looked at him and said with a smile. "I heard that the Young Sister of the City Lord Residence would also go there."


    "Don''t think too much. It is said that a great warrior has appeared in the Realm of Ruin recently. Many people were planning to challenge him. There are indeed many of Uncle''s disciples ready to go there," the young man said casually while they were both walking in one direction.


    The Realm of Ruin was a very famous place in Taixuan City, and it was a trial place for countless cultivators of Taixuan City.


    The entrance to the Realm of Ruin was located in the center of Taixuan City, where there was a very mysterious place. The front of the place was like a hazy land of ruins covered by invisible light. If one went near it, it would become an invisible existence.


    In front of the illusory ruins, there was a gate, which was the prestigious gate of the Realm of Ruins.


    Through this huge gate of a height of 100 feet, one could enter the Realm of Ruins, which was an independent space large enough to accommodate a city, such as Taixuan City, easily.


    The history of the Realm of Ruin was extremely ancient. It was said that there was a relic a long time ago. Countless warriors had been there to explore the treasures, but after many years, the Realm of Ruin had now evolved from the land of treasure hunting to a trial ground. Numerous cultivators entered the Realm of Ruins for trials to judge at what level their strengths were at, which was extremely helpful for their understanding of cultivation methods.


    At this moment, outside the Realm of Ruin, a group of figures arrived. Everyone in the group had a very extraordinary temperament. The person who took the lead was a woman with a pair of eyes which seemed able to talk to you, and she fixed her gaze on the two young men in Taixuan Restaurant.


    "Sister Luoyue," the young man called with a smile. Immediately, everyone looked toward the young lady. Had Princess Luoyue arrived?


    The daughter of the City Lord, his most precious girl.


    Luoyue naturally also noticed the young man. She looked calm and nodded gently. She asked, "Are you also going to enter the Realm of Ruins?"


    "Yes, go take a look," the young man responded with a smile. The lady next to him looked embarrassed. Did he just want to take a look there?


    "Okay, good luck, Brother," Luo Yue said and walked toward the huge gate of Realm of Ruin. The moment when she stepped into that gate, a strong sense of thought surged.


    Later, Luoyue disappeared. Not just her, but the people who followed her also lost traces and entered the Realm of Ruin.


    "I don''t know if there will be a good show. Princess Luoyue was also free to come here. In addition to her, several other powerful characters have also entered the Realm of Ruin this time, right?" people discussed outside.


    It was said that all this was related to a mysterious swordsman-in-training.


    Inside the Realm of Ruin, the scene was completely different from the outside world. Here was a real independent space, and it was also a great land of ruins, vast and boundless.


    In one place, there was a gust of sword force passing by and thrusting toward a person''s head in an instant. After the sword passed, blood splashed out, and the man froze there, looking at the figure in front of him, completely baffled.


    The figure changed his thought and disappeared from the Realm of Ruin.


    The Swordsman-in-training who defeated him was dressed in white, and his face seemed to be covered with mist. He could not see his true appearance. Many people who entered the Realm of Ruin would do so to avoid the grievances in the Realm of Ruin being taken to the outside world.


    The figure in white was Ye Futian. When he came to the Shangxiao Divine Palace, he first entered the Taixuan Restaurant and later immersed himself in such status every day. He played zither to purify his heart and cleanse his state of mind, going to the Realm of Ruin to temper his own swordsmanship and improve his comprehension in battles.


    Vroom, vroom, vroom�� Many figures descended from the void sky and showed up in different positions in front of Ye Futian. Every one of them had a very strong life force, and they were all cultivators of Unblemished Plane. When their life force bloomed, a violent storm wrapped around Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian waved his palms, and suddenly a row of swords appeared in front of him. He glanced at the figures in front of him and raised his hand. The swords came out and penetrated through the void sky.


    Boom! Several figures walked up at the same time, and their spirit was amazing. They tried to stop the swords, making the swords shriek and slow down their high speed.


    Ye Futian took a step forward, and his Sword Will grew stronger, like a sword-shaped storm. He pressed his finger forward, and the sword screamed as if he couldn''t control it anymore. The sword attacked those warriors at the same time.


    In only one moment, several warriors were penetrated by the sword force, but behind them, a Nirvana-Plane figure appeared, surrounded by the horrifying force.


    Vroom. Ye Futian walked in the void and headed towards the Nirvana Saint. When he took the step, the sword crossed the sky and shot straight to that figure. That warrior raised his hand and blasted out, making the Sword Will collapse.


    The winds howled, and behind Ye Futian, numerous sharp swords appeared. Each sword seemed to contain one life.


    "Go," he ordered and pointed one finger. A series of swords thrust out. The Nirvana-Plane warrior moved forward and strode in the void sky. His fist punched out, and the void sky trembled violently. All the swords were shattered.


    Ye Futian waved his hands, and around his body, numerous swords surrounded him. Each sword was devouring terrifying sword light as if the swords had formed a sword matrix.


    Vroom. Ye Futian followed the swords. Numerous swords destroyed everything and attacked the warrior. The void sky screamed when he stepped out, and the surrounding space seemed to be exploding and shattering. A terrifying storm of the Great Law swept across heaven and earth. The warrior punched his fists at the same time and smashed the swords crazily.


    However, the sword light circle of the Great Law seemed to be endless, and the Sword Will even seemed to attack the warrior''s soul, which made him extremely unsettled.


    Finally, Ye Futian raised his finger to the other side, and the tens of thousands of Great Law swords were integrated into one at the moment. The Great Law was penetrated, and the Nirvana-Plane figure let out a low groan. His face turned pale. He looked up at the man in front of him in shock. Who was he?


    How could he, as a cultivator of Unblemished Plane, so easily defeat a warrior of Nirvana Plane. It was as if anyone who stood in front of him could be killed by his sword.

 1496 Sword Mudra

    Ye Futian''s shape flickered, and his body turned into a sword. It continued moving and passing the other. He came upon a massive stone pillar. Below the stone pillar was a land of ruin, and on the top was a disc, upon which Ye Futian sat cross-legged.


    The Realm of Ruin was discovered many years ago. It was regarded as a relic. This stone pillar was able to stand for many years without collapsing, which was enough to prove its sturdiness.


    His white robe fluttered, and the sword will flowed upon him, creating a oppressive flow of sword will around him. They were like sword mudras, but also like a sword runes, rotating around his body. But each of the sword mudras that was formed by the sword rune contained powerful sword will and sword spirit. It was as if they were alive, circling Ye Futian''s body.


    The news of the battle at the Heavenly Mandate Realm had reached the Higher Heavens Realm. Ye Futian had also heard about the situation while at Taixuan Tavern. Wang Yu��the lord of the Wang clan��was killed in battle. The two major clan lords of Celestial Gate were still at Heavenly Mandate Realm, leaving the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Violet Heavenly Palace no time to rest.


    Judging from how the battle ended, the truth was that the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven did not suffer significant losses, but the Violet Heavenly Palace and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty paid the price. The Celestial Gate was leveled and forced to move. It was definitely a fate that the people of Celestial Gate found hard to accept. Who would be willing to leave their home?


    The disintegration of the Celestial Gate was a kind of sorrow, but escape was also a kind of sorrow.


    In this Supreme Path Realm of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, even though Saint Plane indicated extreme talent, which would enjoy great renown in times of peace, but in the time of war, it would be the first on the enemy''s hit list. During times of hostility, the most talented would be the first to be eliminated in order to remove any potential threats.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was going to kill the third senior brother and him. The prospect of the Celestial Gate was only going to be ever more prosperous, and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty couldn''t afford to wait any longer, hence the deathblow.


    He clearly realized that only strength was all that mattered, so now he came to the Higher Heavens Realm. He was very clear about what he needed to do.


    The Realm of Ruin was the best place of trial for those of the Saint Plane in Taixuan City. Any cultivators of the Saint Plane could come here to test themselves and without fear. Many were made famous in the Realm of Ruin, known by all.


    However, he came here for the purpose of tempering and improving his strength.


    These days, many had been defeated by his sword, so in the Realm of Ruin, many wanted to find him for an exchange.


    Nowadays, he no longer needed to take the initiative to find opponents since opponents would come to him.


    Several figures came out of thin air, and some came through the ruins. Around the stone pillars where Ye Futian was, there were also some shorter stone pillars. There were people standing on them. The eyes of many were focused on Ye Futian.


    These people all appeared very silent. Some had hidden their faces, while some were exposed to the world without disguise.


    "Who are you, and under what major clan are you cultivating with?" someone who came through the ruins and looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    There was a misty atmosphere hovered in front of Ye Futian. His entire visage was hidden in the mist so that it appeared very vague and unclear. No one could really see his face.


    Judging from his battle record, he should be somewhat well known in Taixuan City, but no one had heard of anyone who cultivated in the sword technique he used.


    Ye Futian still sat there quietly without opening his eyes. It was as if everything outside had nothing to do with him. He was only focusing on his own cultivation, giving a sense of mystery and an extraordinary temperament.


    More sound of footsteps was heard again, and everyone turned their attention to the newcomer. Suddenly, in the ruins, many backed away and opened a path.


    "Princess Luoyue is here."


    Princess Luoyue was the daughter of the city lord of Taixuan City and possessed an extraordinary status. It was rumored that in the future, it was very likely that she would cultivate at Taixuan Mountain. She was a truly excellent lady among ladies.


    Those by her side were no ordinary characters, either. A strapping young man on her left had a battleaxe slung across his back. Just a glance and one could feel his dominant and overbearing personality. His name was Deng Hu. Though his name seemed insignificant, his strength was extremely aggressive, as he was known as the Storm Saint, whose Storm Battleaxe was known for its power to inflict terror. In Taixuan City, he had no opponent within his plane.


    The one on the right was a handsome and elegant young man with a gentlemanly demeanor. His name was Lin Yuan.


    These two men were both trusted disciples of the lord of Taixuan City, and they were both very strong. Now, it seemed that they had both come for this swordsman.


    "Interesting." A voice spoke, and a middle-aged man clad in black appeared next to Ye Futian. When people saw him, their hearts tightened. He had also come. This man did not disguise his face, and in the Realm of Ruin, he was among the few strongest people and had few rivals in the Saint Plane.


    However, he did not come to fight, but purely to watch the show.


    These days, almost every day, this swordsman would enter the Realm of Ruin. After many days of exchanges with these people and demonstrating his extraordinary talent, most people had heard about this, so they all wanted to see who this character was.


    "It is him." Behind Luoyue, a woman looked in the direction of Ye Futian, her eyes hard, and said, "His sword is very fast."


    Princess Luoyue looked stoic. She glanced at Ye Futian. The speaker was her cousin, whose cultivation was also Unblemished Plane. Upon hearing that she had met a master swordsman in the Realm of Ruin who had finished the match in one strike, her cousin was so scared that she immediately left the Realm of Ruin because she was afraid that if Ye Fu were serious, she wouldn''t even have the chance to get out.


    The space of the Realm of Ruin was a curious place; they could be moved out of the Realm as soon as they moved their minds. Therefore, they could boldly go through the trials here and battle. When their safety was endangered, they could always leave with a mere thought. Very few had lost their lives here.


    But that last time when she fought Ye Futian, if his sword was meant to take her life, she had no chance to get out, as there was no time for a single thought. Ye Futian''s sword was unimaginably fast.


    "I heard that your sword is very fast," Princess Luo Yue said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian opened his eyes to look at the speaker, and said quietly, "It serves."


    "Do you remember her?" She pointed to the woman next to her, who had been defeated by Ye Futian.


    "She looks familiar," Ye Futian responded, which embarrassed the woman. She had a deep memory of Ye Futian, but to him, she was just somewhat familiar.


    "It seems that you, sir, have had many victories in the Realm of Ruin," Princess Luoyue said again. The more people that he defeated, the less he would remember those he defeated.


    Ye Futian did not respond. He did experience many battles in the Realm of Ruin. The people in the Unblemished Plane were typically being vanquished quickly, as not many could afford to continue exchanging with him. Although she looked familiar, she did not make a deep impression.


    "I am Luoyue of the City Lord''s Residence at Taixuan City. I''ve come to see your strength," Princess Luoyue introduced herself. Although her status was lofty, she did not possess a dominant or arrogant demeanor. In the Realm of Ruin, the status was a lot less important than strength.


    "Sounds good," Ye Futian nodded. Although the City Lord of Taixuan City was just the master of a city, in actuality, it was considered to be quite a powerful principality. Judging from the position of Taixuan Region in the Higher Heavens Realm, Taixuan City was equivalent to the eight major thunder clans of the Violet Heavenly Palace in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and it would be the strongest clan amongst the eight.


    His master��Lord Taixuan��was a giant figure in the Higher Heavens Realm. This Taixuan Region was named after Lord Taixuan.


    The owner of Taixuan Tavern was also a disciple of Lord Taixuan.


    Therefore, it could be said that Princess Luoyue was also a disciple of Lord Taixuan, so her status was undoubtedly high.


    "The Princess does not need to get personally involved. We also want to experience the strength of this mysterious swordsman personally," someone next to Ye Futian said. Many people wanted to take their shot today, and it would look like they also did a favor for the Princess. It was a win-win situation.


    "My thoughts exactly," another person said.


    "So, who will be first?" someone asked. This swordsman was well known, and it was not easy to defeat him. The one who made a move first wouldn''t necessarily get any advantages.


    "All of you, all together," Ye Futian said. The group of people revealed a surprised look.


    Together?


    This mysterious swordsman was truly audacious.


    "Please, then." A figure walked up, the power from his body bloomed, and suddenly, the space became incredibly heavy. Violent banging sounds were heard, and along with them was an extreme sense of oppression.


    He walked toward Ye Futian. Each step he took was akin to that of an ancient god. Everyone could clearly feel the power of the oppression, and many people''s blood seemed to be frozen in their veins.


    Ye Futian was expressionless. Suddenly, a character sword mudra flew out in front of him, turning into a brilliant light. It traveled through the air, its speed fast to the limit.


    The cultivator didn''t hesitate and blasted out with a punch. The bright aurora of the fist shattered the void. Many shadows of the fists became one with an absolutely domineering stance and aimed the sword mudra.


    There was a sharp piercing howling, and one after the other, the fist shadows were pulverized. A ray of light directly penetrated the row of fist shadows, and then shot straight at the man, right between the eyes.


    Buzz. A ray of light was shining, and the figure disappeared the sword mudra arrived with a roar and landed where he was, and then stopped. Clearly, the opponent had already escaped from the Realm of Ruin.


    "This ..." Many felt a sobering effect inside. How humiliating.


    The sword mudra that was released actually stopped, circled the void, and returned to Ye Futian''s side. Just a sword mudra alone was more than what the other party could bear.


    The character sword mudra around Ye Futian''s body suddenly burst into dazzling divine light. With Ye Futian''s thoughts, all the sword mudra traveled through the air at the same time and aimed directly at all the cultivators who had just walked out to meet him.


    All of a sudden, an extremely violent air current of the Great Path erupted in this space. All the cultivators made their moves at the same time to release the might of Way, and each of the figures was dominant and powerful in their own right.


    But puffing sounds were heard continually, and those bright sword mudras were like the divine light of the Great Path, flowing endlessly between heaven and earth. Wherever they passed, they left nothing living behind. Everything was destroyed, just as the Way.


    In an instant, many were injured and flew back and some were scared to withdraw. The people in this plane were simply unable to compete.


    Ye Futian slowly got up. His body was dazzling all over. The sword light surrounded his body, and a sword appeared behind him. The light of the sword soul was incredibly brilliant, just like a king of swords.


    All methods of the ward were similar. Some powers, after they had been comprehended and understood, when applied to swordsmanship, were equally as powerful. How could these idiots from Taixuan City understand!

 1497 Soul Los

    "What a strong sword."


    Everyone around wore a grave look. At this moment, in the Realm of Ruin, many who were around were geniuses in Taixuan City, whose strengths were inordinate, but when they saw Ye Futian''s sword, they still felt a little astounded.


    The sword that was formed in the shape of the sword mudra contained an extremely powerful sword will as if it had the life of sword spirit. It could defeat the enemy instantly; its power was extremely overbearing.


    Those who were in the same Unblemished Plane as him could not exert their strength at all and was defeated with a blow.


    Princess Luoyue stared at Ye Futian. Just as her sister had said, this man''s sword was very strong indeed. Although he hadn''t shown how fast the sword could be, what power he had shown was already terrifying. The light of the sword circulated around his body, and Ye Futian, at this moment, was like a sword himself. The sword spirit that appeared behind him was his life spirit.


    This was a very pure cultivator of the swordsmanship.


    A trace of the might of the Way flowed over Luoyue, and she was somewhat eager to try. She wanted to see Ye Futian''s strength, but Deng Hu and Lin Yuan took half a step forward and said to her, "Junior sister, let us test his sword first. "


    Deng Hu and Lin Yuan were both of Nirvana Plane, and they were extremely strong. It was as they were the disciples of the City Lord of Taixuan City. They had studied many powerful scriptures of methods, and were famous even in all of Taixuan City.


    Now to say that they wanted to engage with someone in the Unblemished Plane, it would appear that they were bullies. But this swordsman was indeed strong, which was seen by everyone. Even someone of the Nirvana Plane may not be able to defeat him.


    Luoyue hesitated for a moment but still nodded. Deng Hu stepped forward and came to the place above the void, facing Ye Futian. He had a very strong sense of pressure on him. It was as if one could feel his overbearing prowess through the space.


    "Deng Hu of the City Lord''s office. To fight against you in my current plane seemed kind of unfair, but your sword is really strong, so there is no choice but for me to experience it," Deng Hu said as he took off the great ax behind his back. He held the battle-ax casually, slung it over his shoulders.


    An invisible storm suddenly came out of nowhere, raging in this void, like sharp blades that made everyone feel as if every inch of their skin was being cut by a knife. Many who were around felt cold all over. Deng Hu was known as the Storm Saint, and at his level, not many in Taixuan City could rival him in battle, so never mind someone from the Unblemished Plane. There had never been such a battle like this before. He had crossed planes to challenge others because no one could cross the plane to fight him.


    "Are you ready?" Deng Hu asked Ye Futian with a loud and overbearing voice.


    "Please," Ye Futian replied. The disciple of the City Lord of Taixuan City was already someone of extraordinary status. His Master was Lord Taixuan himself.


    With his arm still on his shoulder, Deng Hu moved forward and up. Suddenly, a terrible storm blew from heaven and earth, and the will of these storms turned into tangible entities, like many lines that were capable of cutting through space, scraping toward Ye Futian.


    The sword mudra around Ye Futian''s body swept out, his body as the center. A storm of swords formed, and the two extremely suppressive forces met and collided, making an extremely sharp and harsh sound.


    The storm was getting stronger, and in an instant, it annihilated this space. Even the stone pillar, on which Ye Futian stood, was completely submerged by the storm. The sword mudra could not prevent the storm from invading. Deng Hu took a sudden and violent step down, which seemed to contain extremely domineering power to suppress him as he trampled down. In addition, the storm was sharper than swords, cutting through the void, wanting to cut Ye Futian''s body into pieces.


    If the person who stood in the storm, at this moment, was an ordinary figure of the Saint Plane, being killed right away would be a very probable outcome.


    "Aren''t you ready to make your move?" Deng Hu seemed to have been giving Ye Futian a chance to make the initial attack, but Ye Futian was not at all in a hurry. The sword will encircled his entire body, resisting the force of the storm, and he was immersed in the storm.


    Deng Hu''s left hand stretched out. It suddenly made a grabbing motion in the space, and with a loud bang, a dull sound exploded between heaven and earth. Ye Futian''s space seemed to be squeezed by the storm as the terrible storm continued raging. It was as if wanting to tear his body into pieces. An extremely domineering will of the Way suppressed his body.


    Buzz. The sword spirit behind him chimed, and countless sword mudras surround the sword itself. The sword that was transformed by the sword spirit became sharper and sharper until it turned into a giant sword, piercing the space.


    "Whack," Ye Futian spat out the command, and the sword will hacked at the Way, split the storm in two, and countless sword mudras continued moving forward straight ahead. They turned into countless airflow of swordsmanship, and directly slaughtered toward Deng Hu, who was in the void.


    Deng Hu smiled. No simple person would enjoy such a prestigious reputation. This man had caused such commotion here. Naturally, he was not a simple character.


    With his arms forward, the battle-ax carried a terrible storm. There were countless storms above the sky surrounding the battle-ax. Each storm was like an extension of the battle-ax. This battle-ax was not some high-level magical implement, but it had become well known in the hands of Deng Hu. Therefore, it was known as the Battleaxe of Storm.


    Countless storms lingered above the battle axe. Deng Hu stared at Ye Futian while he wielded the ax in a strike, which opened up the heaven and collided with the sword Ye Futian wielded. In an instant, its domineering will had destroyed the sword qi, which demonstrated its prowess.


    Ye Futian put his hands together with the sword in front, and countless swords mudras now united into one. At this moment, the sword qi was at its greatest, and from his body, rays of sword lights exploded into the sky, aiming for the storm in the void.


    "Go."


    Ye Futian let go his grip, and a sharp, harsh sound was heard. The sword was incredibly fast, and it directly broke through the light of the battle-ax and slaughtered toward Deng Hu in the void.


    Seeing this, Deng Hu revealed a look of surprise. He stomped into the void as his body twirled, and another ax strike was unleashed. Countless storm lights now transformed into an invincible ax will that tried to cut through the void, aiming toward that sword and Ye Futian.


    The battle-ax and the giant sword collided, and terrible light of destruction radiated out. In the next moment, the sword dissipated. It was as if split into countless swords in an instant, cutting through the void like a sword matrix, heading toward Deng Hu.


    Any of these swords was extremely fast. It was as if it contained the will of space, directly crossing the void and slashed toward him.


    Buzz! A sword light crossed near his neck, and he felt a chill all over his body. With a great shout, the battle-ax started to spin, and immense light of the battle-ax wiped out all existence. But the swords seemed to have eyes, seemingly able to avoid its strike and continued their attacks without ceasing.


    "Is the offensive power of his sword this strong?" People were shocked in their hearts.


    That was Deng Hu, the Storm Saint, a disciple of the City Lord of Taixuan City.


    Many glanced at Ye Futian. His entire person seemed to be inside a sword veil, which took the shape of a sword, just enough to shroud him inside. His eyes closed, and with the Great Path of the vast heaven and earth resonating together, the swords on the surrounding swordsmen were all trembling. It was as if they were not under the control of their owners, and even the sword qi in the bodies of these swordsmen was also moving toward him.


    It was not only here, but also in many places inside the Realm of Ruin, many figures flickering over. They were surprised when they saw what took place in front of their eyes.


    With a great roar, Deng Hu spun in the void, and the world was cut in a thread. Many sword mudras were pulverized into nothingness.


    He glanced at Ye Futian. As an existence of the Nirvana Plane, and a disciple of the City Lord, this battle seemed to leave him in disgrace.


    Even though Ye Futian''s talent was extraordinary, he should be able to easily crush him, given his status.


    The Battleaxe of Storm was raised, and at this moment, thousands of storm lights gleamed between heaven and earth like thunder. The hearts of many skipped a beat. Before Deng Hu''s ax had a chance to strike, they had already felt its majestic temperament.


    "Deng Hu is about to release his exclusive skills." Many people''s hearts were beating fast. They had no idea how strong this strike would be when it was used.


    Ye Futian looked up into the void. His expression was normal, still tranquil. The sword spirit appeared directly in the sword that was held in both his hands, puffing out miles of sword light.


    Psst.


    Deng Hu''s ax was slammed down, and a light appeared above the firmament. A line, from top to bottom, chopped down to the place where Ye Futian was.


    "Soul lost."


    Ye Futian spat as his sword struck. It could make someone lose their soul.


    Above the void, the line and the sword collided with one another. It was as if it was the impasse between the ax and the sword.


    "Go again," Ye Futian commanded, and another sword was born from his body, traveling through the air.


    Buzz, buzz, buzz!


    The sword continued to break through the air, and the void seemed to be crushed and shattered, extremely suppressed.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Will of the Way collapsed and shattered. The light of the battle-ax was broken and destroyed. With a loud bang, that giant ax light also collapsed with it.


    The sword broke through the air and descended in a moment in front of Deng Hu, who was in the void. Deng Hu''s battle ax slammed down again, but in that instant, he felt that hundreds of thousands of swords pass through his body, and his spiritual soul trembled greatly, penetrated by the infinite sword will.


    Buzz.


    The crowd only saw a flash of light, and Ye Futian''s figure descended. His palm slapped on the sword, and traces of sword lights pierced through the void. Deng Hu snorted, and his body was knocked out.


    "Deng Hu was defeated." Everyone who saw this changed their expression. Their hearts were greatly shaken, and their bodies surged with excitement and the desire to try themselves. Was this person''s combative power really this great?


    As he had felt everyone''s reaction, Ye Futian''s hands formed a seal in the void. At this moment, the void of the Great Path was filled with sword will. No matter they were, the real sword might was everywhere.


    Swords emerged from the void directly and surrounded Ye Futian''s body, hanging upside down in the sky.


    As Ye Futian''s mind moved, the swords immediately pointed to each of the cultivator, and everyone felt the oppression of their spirit souls.


    "My one sword is enough," Ye Futian said, and even his voice seemed to contain sword will. When his voice fell, everyone felt that countless sword will had descended on their bodies, and the real swords descended soon after.


    In this instant, even though they were cultivators of the Nirvana Plane, they also gathered powerful forces together to resist this strike.


    Boom, Boom, Boom. This sword strike was meant for everyone, including Luoyue. Surging sword might appeared around Luoyue. She also cultivated in the art of swords.


    However, when Ye Futian''s sword arrived, she felt that she was pierced by hundreds of thousands of swords.


    Poof!


    A silent groan. The sword will seemed to penetrate through her body, her mind moved, and she disappeared.


    Not only her, but many people disappeared from where they were, and it was the same with Ye Futian.

 1498 Not So Simple

    Outside the gate of the Realm of Ruin, many figures, who were being sent out from the realm, appeared.


    Strong waves of the will of Way fluctuated, and many were still in the state of battle.


    Luoyue also appeared in another location. She glanced over and assessed the people around her as if she was looking for something.


    It was not just her, but others were are searching, looking toward this space outside the Realm of Ruin, wanting to find the trace of that mysterious swordsman.


    "That guy was really strong."


    A rough voice spoke, and it was Deng Hu. His attitude was aggressive, still carrying the battle-ax on his back. His eyes swept across all directions of the land and lingered for a moment on quite a few people.


    He was the true disciple of the City Lord of Taixuan City, and his talent was considered outstanding, but he was defeated by someone who came from another realm in the Unblemished Plane. This type of combat prowess was incredible, especially that last sword strike, which was able to hack away the spiritual soul through sheer air.


    When the sword will exploded completely, it shook everyone''s soul and spirit. It had been as if they were about to be torn apart.


    In the end, he wiped out all the cultivators with a single sword strike and claimed that a single strike was enough.


    "When did such a powerful person appear in Taixuan City?" he murmured in his heart. His deep eyes swept across the crowd, but he still couldn''t find Ye Futian''s trail.


    Previously, Ye Futian had concealed his face, but his temperament and breath could still be felt. At this time, amongst those who appeared outside the Realm of Ruin, there was no trace.


    "Are you still here?"


    At this time, a voice spoke up. It was Luoyue. Those who participated in the battle and the onlookers in the Realm of Ruin obviously knew who she was referring to, but many people outside the Realm of Ruin were somewhat puzzled. Who was the Princess looking for?


    No one responded. It was exceptionally quiet outside the Realm of Ruin.


    "Did anyone saw a swordsman coming out of the gate of the Realm of Ruin?" Lin Yuan asked the onlookers. If he had come out, then those who were outside of the Realm of Ruin must have seen him.


    Many people shook their heads. They had only seen a group of people being sent out one after another, but no one behaved like a swordsman.


    "Just now I was outside the gate of the Realm of Ruin, all of you almost came out one after another, and there were many," someone remarked. Many who watched the battle before knew that there was nothing to see inside, so they came out.


    "So, he should still be there?" Lin Yuan''s eyes were sharp, sweeping across the surrounding crowd, but he still could not find him.


    "Your swordsmanship was excellent. Why not show yourself?" Luoyue continued to implore.


    "I actually saw that among all who had come out earlier, someone left quietly, seemingly good at the way of space," an older man, who stood in the void, said. Luoyue''s face turned grave. "Someone left? "


    "Yes." The old man nodded. "This man came out with everyone else, and left directly through space, masking his breath. Even his face was obscured."


    "It''s most likely him." Luoyue''s look changed slightly. Why was this man so mysterious? Was there something that he could not reveal?


    "This person''s swordsmanship was superb. He must come from a famous clan. Is it possible for Princess Luoyue to guess who he is?" someone asked. They were also one of the cultivators who was vanquished by Ye Futian.


    As the lady of the City Lord''s Office at Taixuan City, she was bound to be well-informed and know some powerful figures with great swordsmanship.


    "Sword technique that attacks the spiritual soul," Luoyue mumbled. "The strongest swordsman in Taixuan Region was on Taixuan Mountain, but as far as I know, there was no such disciple on Taixuan Mountain."


    Taixuan Mountain was where the master��the City Lord of Taixuan City��cultivated. The sacred land of Taixuan Region had the strongest sword techniques, but Taixuan Mountain did not have such a cultivator. Not to mention, if the other was someone who cultivated at Taixuan Mountain, there was no need for disguise.


    "The other seemed to use the Realm of Ruin as a place of trial, and maybe he will come again tomorrow," next to Luoyue, her younger sister said. Luoyue nodded.


    From the Realm of Ruin, someone came out again. They were two disciples of Taixuan Tavern, and they both walked toward Luoyue, saying, "Did junior sister cross sword with that swordsman?"


    "Umm." Luoyue nodded.


    "How was it?" asked the youth.


    "Very strong." Luoyue nodded, causing the youth to show a color of surprise. He said, "Too bad, I missed it."


    "You didn''t miss anything, junior brother Ma. You wouldn''t be able to fight him, either," Deng Hu said next to him. The young man looked at Deng Hu, as he was the junior brother Ma referred to by Deng Hu. His name was Ma Yi, and like Deng Hu, they were both from Taixuan Mountain, so he could be considered Deng Hu''s junior brother.


    "This person is very strong," Luoyue said, looking at Ma Yi. "All of us at Taixuan Mountain must work hard to cultivate."


    Ma Yi looked at Luoyue, somewhat surprised. This junior sister of his was the precious daughter of the City Lord, who had a lofty heart and was extremely proud. Her talent was outstanding and listening to her tone, it seemed that the battle that took place previously had touched her deeply.


    "If you say so, then he must be really strong. If there is chance, I must meet him," said Ma Yi, "Now, there is an interesting person in Taixuan Tavern, who was very good at guqin and played superbly. Even for us, we would be entranced by it. Are you interested in listening?"


    Luoyue was slightly surprised. Though she was a fan of music, she had just seen such an outstanding swordsman; she did not have much interest in music right at this moment.


    "Uncle hasn''t been to the Tavern for a long time because of the many affairs he was handling, so I would like to invite junior sister and two senior brothers to catch up at the Tavern," Ma Yi continued. The woman beside him gave him a look. Ma Yi was really trying hard to court his junior sister.


    But as a woman, she was more sensitive, and as a bystanders, she could see that Luoyue didn''t share his feelings at all.


    What''s more, even if Luoyue had these thoughts, the person she would choose must be a disciple who cultivated with the masters on Taixuan Mountain or the best among the branches of their clan. Ma Yi''s talent, good though it was, left much to be desired, falling short of Luoyue''s expectations and standards.


    "Very well, we may as well take this opportunity to visit Uncle." Luoyue nodded gently, and the group departed, heading toward Taixuan Tavern.


    ��


    In an attic behind Taixuan Tavern, Ye Futian sat cross-legged, his eyes closed in meditation.


    Thanks to these days of cultivation, his swordsmanship finally made a breakthrough, and he was able to wield the sword of the broken soul. Next, if he concentrated and solidified his comprehension, his swordsmanship would not be less than his other abilities. This way, as a musical swordmaster, it would be enough for him to take firm root in the Upper Heavens Realm.


    Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had mobilized the Super Grand Matrix to move the Fae clan, but all the cultivators were sent to different locations. He had no idea how many people were in the Upper Heavens Realm. Even if there were many, how vast was the Upper Heavens Realm?


    Now, they could only each work hard on their own to cultivate. In this situation, he had to act cautiously. Otherwise, if the people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty got wind of his whereabouts, they would undoubtedly send Renhuang cultivators to come and kill him.


    Even the Overlord himself would issue the license to kill.


    After Brahma Sky City, the determination of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to kill him had become extremely strong.


    Presently, he had no idea of the whereabouts of the master, Eldest senior brother, Wuchen, and Xia Qingyuan.


    It was good fortune that Yu Sheng was cultivating at the Dragon Gods. If Yu Sheng came out of closed cultivation and learned of the news related to them, perhaps he would be angry. But Yu Sheng was discreet; he was not worried.


    "Is young master Shen here?" At this moment, a crystalline voice was heard, and Ye Futian got up and looked down below, he saw a beautiful woman standing there. It was the woman who had been with her brother, Lingling.


    "I am," Ye Futian replied.


    "Today, the master is hosting a banquet to entertain a distinguished guest. Could young master add to the occasion with your music?" the woman smiled and asked. It was not that she did not respect Ye Futian, but that Ye Futian was the Tavern''s musician.


    Now, the House Master of the Tavern was having a banquet. For him to play was just part of his responsibility.


    Moreover, although he was only a musician in the Tavern, everyone was respectful and polite to him. At least, on the surface, the disciples of the House Master had not been rude to him; this was a presentation of their level and breeding.


    "Very well," Ye Futian nodded and walked out of the attic, and came to Lingling''s side.


    "Thank you, young master Shen," Lingling nodded with a smile, then led the way. The two quickly came to the banquet site. When Ye Futian saw the guest, there was a slight disturbance in his eyes, but no one had noticed.


    This guest was someone he had just met not too long ago; it was Luoyue.


    The House Master of Taixuan Tavern sat at the head, and this was the first time for Ye Futian. To his surprise, the House Master of Taixuan Tavern was an empress, who was elegant, noble, and full of grace. Common men hardly dared to look at her directly, but her eyes were very gentle, and she glanced at Ye Futian.


    "Greetings to the House Master." Ye Futian bowed his head to pay his respect. He had heard that the House Master of Taixuan Tavern was the junior brother of Lord Taixuan, but he had not heard any mention of her gender before.


    "Sit," the House Master said casually.


    "Thank you, House Master." Ye Futian nodded and found his place. He then took out his guqin. The sound of guqin was heard instantly. It was extremely ethereal, quiet, and soothing.


    "Has Uncle heard of anyone who is an expert at this kind of swordsmanship?" Luoyue asked the House Master. Apparently, she was talking about what had happened in the Realm of Ruin.


    "Although there is, his disciples couldn''t possibly be in the Taixuan Region, nor would he deliberately hide his identity," the House Master replied.


    "So, is it possible that it was a casual cultivator?" Luoyue continued.


    "I am not sure," he said with a smile. "I didn''t expect that there would be a swordsman that would be unforgettable to you."


    "I just felt that it would be a pity if such a swordsman did not cultivate at Taixuan Mountain," Luoyue said in a low voice.


    "Indeed, there are a lot of top-notch methods over there," the House Master smiled and said. Her Master was Lord Taixuan, a legendary man in the Upper Heavens Realm who collected the treasures of the world. Some said that Lord Taixuan was the cultivator who had the most extensive collection in all of the Upper Heavens Realm.


    "But, Luoyue, don''t mind it too much. A truly excellent person will show their brilliance sooner or later. It can''t be hidden," the House Master continued with a smile. She cast a glance casually at Ye Futian.


    This musician in her tavern was not a simple character!

 1499 Help Others

    Luoyue didn''t think much of it and continued to chat about other things for a while.


    "I heard that the Heavenly Mandate Realm has undergone major changes, with top principalities starting fights. Has Uncle heard of this?" Luoyue suddenly asked again.


    "I have. Why? If you are interested, why not ask your father?" asked the House Master of Taixuan Tavern.


    "He has been out cultivating practicing recently," Luoyue responded.


    "Is that so? Several months ago, a great battle did erupt in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and the Violet Heavenly Palace suffered a considerable impact. Moreover, Yi Tianyu��the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty��had been cultivating at Violet Heavenly Palace, and is said to possess outstanding talent. The swordsman you saw in the Realm of Ruin may not measure up to his level," the House Master said.


    Luoyue nodded. How many geniuses were there in the land of the Nine Realms? Even Taixuan Mountain had some enthralling characters.


    The swordsman in the Realm of Ruin was indeed very strong, but whether or not he could compare with those at the peak was something else.


    "Perhaps," Luoyue whispered.


    "Luoyue, what do you think of the guqin?" the House Master of Taixuan Tavern asked.


    Luoyue turned her attention to Ye Futian, who was playing quietly. Ye Futian lowered his head while strumming the strings. It was as if he was completely unaware of the conversation between the two. His music had already completely integrated into the mood of the banquet. If no one had mentioned it, Luoyue had almost forgotten it. It was not that the music was poor but that it was so elegant that it lured the listeners into feeling that it was part of the banquet, just like the wine and food.


    "It''s remarkable, but hard to pinpoint just what made it so breathtaking," Luoyue replied in a low voice. She glanced at the musician. His temperament was gentle and graceful, extremely handsome. Though he seemed to be quite ordinary, in some ways, he was particularly striking, just like his music.


    "Young master Shen is the Tavern''s musician, and guests of the tavern all praise his superb skills," the woman next to her said with a smile.


    "Great truths are always simple." The House Master of Taixuan Tavern smiled. She looked at her disciple and asked, "What''s his name?"


    She didn''t directly ask Ye Futian, clearly because she didn''t want to interrupt his cultivation, and she also wanted to test his concentration.


    "Master, his name is Shen Jing," the woman responded in a low voice.


    "Shen Jing, simple and unassuming. The name is just like the person." The House Master of Taixuan smiled. At this time, Ye Futian''s music slowed down as he came to a complete stop. He bowed his head slightly and said, "Elder''s praise is hardly deserved by Shen Jing."


    The House Master of Taixuan looked at Ye Futian and smiled. "To play the music without being distracted, your music reflects your emotional state��gentle and humble, handsome, and full of grace. But humility itself is a different kind of pride. You must have seen and experienced many things."


    She was also a lover of the guqin, or she would not have hired a musician in the tavern. With her current cultivation, she was able to detect someone''s personality from their music. Although she did not exhibit her authority and majesty, she was a well-known character within the Taixuan Region. Even in the entire Higher Heavens Realm, disciples of Lord Taixuan were high in rank, never mind just Taixuan Region.


    Those who were ordinary would feel a trace of restraint when they met her, but Ye Futian''s music sounded extremely stable; no trace of unsteadiness could be detected. The identity of this musician was probably more than what met the eye.


    Of course, she did not have much interest in digging. No matter what his true identity was or whether or not he deliberately approached her, it didn''t matter much. In Taixuan Region, no one dared to plot against her. This was a kind of self-confidence.


    Lord Taixuan��whose status in the Higher Heavens Realm was known by all.


    Ye Futian quietly acknowledged the other. He did not expect that by playing a simple song quietly, he had allowed the other to see so much.


    "Here is a little small something for a talent like you. When the opportunity arises, I will recommend you for a tryout at Taixuan Mountain," the House Master continued with a smile. She did not intend for Ye Futian to respond, which surprised the others at the banquet. Luoyue also gave Ye Futian a serious look. Although she could feel the excellence of the music, was Ye Futian''s music that outstanding?


    Taixuan Mountain was a holy land of the Upper Heavens Realm. Everyone there was not simple. Even if there were to be a musician there, only the top ones could qualify.


    Obviously, her uncle greatly appreciated Ye Futian''s musical ability, hence the thought of recommending him to Taixuan Mountain.


    Ma Yi and the other also looked at Ye Futian with some surprise. Clearly, they did not expect their Master to have this idea.


    Ye Futian himself also regarded the other party with some surprise and saw a smile from the House Master of Taixuan when she looked into his eyes. It seemed that his mood could still be affected.


    When Ye Futian detected the eyes of the other, he immediately collected his thoughts and replied, "Much gratitude for elder''s commendation."


    "I only said that I would recommend you. Whether or not you can go to Taixuan Mountain stills depend on your level," the House Master of Taixuan smiled. But Luoyue knew that since her uncle had spoken, there was not much of a chance that this matter wouldn''t go as she wished.


    Her uncle was the youngest disciple of the Grandmaster and was also a woman. Because the Grandmaster mainly spoiled her��the Lord of Taixuan��her wishes, especially for such trivial matters, wouldn''t even be questioned.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly only to hear the other party continue, "You are an expert in melody. Have you heard that Taixuan Mountain has one of the ten famous Divine Melodies in Divine Prefecture? If you were able to enter Taixuan Mountain, perhaps you may have the opportunity to experience it."


    Ye Futian had never heard of such a thing, but after all, he had just arrived and could not have known about so many things here.


    His dark eyes gazed at the House Master of Taixuan Tavern. Ye Futian got up and bowed slightly.


    "As you wish," the House Master of Taixuan smiled casually.


    "I will bid my goodbye," Ye Futian turned and left, and there was a slight turmoil in his heart. After he came to Taixuan Tavern, he had rarely communicated with the others. He had only exchanged a few words with Ma Yi and his junior sister. Ye Futian understood that those two were the disciples of the House Master of Taixuan Tavern, whose status in Taixuan City was very notable. Although they were appreciative of his musical ability, it was more out of curiosity, and they didn''t care too much about his existence.


    As for the House Master of Taixuan Tavern, he did not even know that it was a woman, only that the House Master of Taixuan was a disciple of Lord Taixuan.


    Obviously, he did not anticipate that the House Master of Taixuan would see through him so clearly.


    What was even more surprising to him was that the House Master of Taixuan knew of his intent, but still didn''t seem to mind; she even actively wanted to help him, which made him somewhat thoughtful.


    There were many legends and geniuses in this world, and one should never be too full of oneself. The truth was that were many who were much smarter than himself.


    Ye Futian came to Taixuan Tavern as a musician, indeed aiming for Taixuan Mountain.


    Only at the top places could the best people be met and the best view be had, which would only be that much more helpful for cultivation.


    But he never expected that the House Master of Taixuan Tavern would recommend and introduce him so quickly.


    After Ye Futian left, everyone at the banquet looked at the House Master of Taixuan with surprise. Ma Yi asked in a puzzled way, "Master really intends to recommend Shen Jing to Taixuan Mountain?"


    "Mmm," the House Master of Taixuan nodded. As far as she was concerned, she would not deceive a younger, junior person. Ye Futian also understood that in front of a powerful Renhuang, there was no value in deceiving him.


    "But Master, why?" Ma Yi didn''t quite understand. Just as Ye Futian thought, although Ma Yi was very curious about him, he didn''t really consider him to be at the same level. Even Ma Yi could not enter Taixuan Mountain to cultivate.


    Luoyue and the others were also puzzled. Although the musician''s performance was outstanding, would it worth introducing him to Taixuan Mountain?


    "This tavern has been in operation for many years. Many people from various walks of life have been through here. This is the first time I''ve seen this man, but his melody revealed many things that the eyes cannot see. Shen Jing gave me a feeling that he has more than meets the eye, and I want to see if I am right or wrong," she smiled and said.


    "Uncle was aware that he wanted to enter Taixuan Mountain?" Lin Yuan asked. Obviously, he was a bit more astute.


    "Mmm," the House Master of Taixuan nodded.


    "If he came intending to enter, then why does Uncle still help him?" Luoyue asked.


    "Cultivators of the world, which one of them does not have a purpose? Take you, for instance. Which one of you doesn''t want to enter Taixuan Mountain to cultivate?" The House Master of Taixuan smiled. "Don''t worry too much about that as long as it doesn''t affect you. Besides, it was only as a musician, not as a disciple of Taixuan Mountain. What he can accomplish in Taixuan Mountain will depend on his own efforts and abilities, and it also confirms my judgment. It is a minimal effort to help others, so why begrudge it? And I will still receive his gratitude."


    "Luoyue has been enlightened." Luoyue nodded slightly when she heard those words and lost in thoughts. According to her father, her uncle''s talent for cultivation was extremely high. From this small matter today, she could see uncle''s generosity.


    "It''s late. Luoyue, are you staying here at the tavern for a few days, or are you going back to the City Lord''s Office?" asked the House Master of Taixuan.


    "Luoyue will not disturb uncle''s cultivation," Luoyue replied. The group got up and bid their goodbyes and left.


    What happened today touched Luoyue in her heart. One instance was with that swordsman in the Realm of Ruin, who defeated all others in the Saint Plane with a single blow.


    Then, there was what she had just seen in the tavern. Although it seemed inconsequential, she could still learn from it.


    As the night descended, the tavern was bathed in the quiet beauty of the night sky. Somewhere in an attic of the tavern, sounds of the guqin playing could be heard, which seemed to add more color to Taixuan Tavern.

 1500 Taixuan Mountain

    Taixuan Region was named after Lord Taixuan. This territory was, in reality, the territory of Lord Taixuan. It was not necessarily his intention that it was this way, but when a person grew strong enough, many things tended to happen naturally.


    Moreover, Lord Taixuan himself did not have the idea of ??creating a territory. Otherwise, Taixuan Region would have been even greater.


    Now, Taixuan Region was composed of three main territories, which were the three major forces. The main city��Taixuan City��was next to Taixuan Mountain. Because of its close proximity to Taixuan Mountain, it was the core of the region, and the city lord was the second disciple of Lord Taixuan. Furthermore, the youngest disciple of Lord Taixuan was also located in this city��the House Master of Taixuan Tavern.


    Among the two other territories, one was created by Lord Taixuan''s eldest disciple, who created Taixuanism, and was hailed as the Taixuan Hierophant.


    The Taixuan Hierophant was also the eldest disciple of Lord Taixuan. After so many years, the territory of Taixuanism was now the largest in Taixuan Region. It long surpassed that of Taixuan City, and its influence was great, with many powerful characters within the cult. Lord Taixuan no longer bothered with matters of the outside world, so Taixuanism was considered the primary principality of the Taixuan Region.


    And another force was created by the third disciple of Lord Taixuan. It was named String Palace, and this disciple was named Emperor of String. This was the only one that did not have the name of Taixuan.


    But even so, the branch of Taixuan had long been the absolute ruler in this territory.


    Ye Futian had carefully researched the specific situation of Lord Taixuan these past few days. Previously, he didn''t even know the gender of the House Master of Taixuan but had just assumed male as a matter of course, which was careless on his part. Fortunately, he had no dishonorable motives, so it did not affect anything.


    Since that day, he had not been to the Realm of the Ruin again, which made Luoyue, who had been searching there for many days, a little disappointed. And it was not just Luoyue, but many others were eager to find him but to no avail. The mysterious swordsman had completely disappeared after that glorious battle, and not been heard from again.


    This caused many chatter among the people of Taixuan City. The mysterious swordsman who had a glorious moment in Taixuan City, would he appear again?


    However, Ye Futian was unaware of all this. He spent most of these days cultivating quietly and practicing music. In fact, he rarely practiced music as he had before.


    On this day, Ye Futian finally had an opportunity. The House Master of Taixuan was going to Taixuan Mountain to visit her Master��Lord Taixuan. In addition to her few disciples, Ye Futian was also included.


    There was a fae mountain in the Higher Heavens, named Taixuan, which rose into the sky and shines with the sun and the moon.


    Taixuan Mountain was extremely famous only because of one person��Lord Taixuan.


    On the ethereal and misty Taixuan Mountain, it was exceptionally quiet. Although there were also many cultivators, the expanse of Taixuan Mountain made these many celestial palaces seem tranquil and solitary.


    Many on the mountain got up and paid their respects when they saw the House Master of Taixuan. After all, Lord Taixuan ever only had four disciples, and the four disciples had already achieved fame to exhibit their excellence. The House Master of Taixuan was the youngest in age and ranking only because her cultivation was a little lesser. But even so, she was a big name in the Higher Heavens Realm, so no one dared neglect her.


    The House Master of Taixuan came all the way to the core area of Taixuan Mountain. Above the sky in front of her, there was an unworldly celestial palace.


    She stopped outside the palace, and in front of her, an old man came forward and bowed slightly to the House Master of Taixuan. He was very polite and said with a smile, "Miss Four is here."


    "Uncle Lan," the House Master Taixuan responded with a smile, addressing him as "uncle," showing equal respect. Uncle Lan was also a Renhuang who had been in the service of Lord Taixuan for many years. Even when they were cultivating with Lord Taixuan, the old man was already at their Master''s side.


    Although the old man acted as a steward in Taixuan Mountain, he was considered a close and personal valet of Lord Taixuan. No one dared to disrespect him. In fact, since it was not possible for Lord Taixuan to manage outside matters, he was in charge.


    Therefore, the old man was addressing her as Miss Four, because, after all, he had watched the House Master of Taixuan grow into an empress.


    "Master is not in retreat, is he?" the House Master of Taixuan asked with a smile.


    "No, you came just in time. Great Teacher came to visit my lord as well," Uncle Lan said with a smile.


    His words stunned the House Master of Taixuan. Although her perception was extremely powerful, she could not spy on the household of his Master with Divine Spirit. That would be disrespectful.


    The Great Teacher was her eldest senior brother��the chief disciple of Lord Taixuan, who was now known as the Taixuan Hierophant and was also the strongest among the four of them.


    "Disciple Jun Mu greets Uncle." At this time, a young man with extraordinary temperament came over and bowed slightly toward the House Master of Taixuan.


    Jun Mu��a disciple of Taixuan Hierophant.


    "is the eldest senior brother here to ask the Master regarding matters of cultivation?" asked the House Master of Taixuan. "If so, I will visit Master another day."


    Behind them, Ye Futian watched quietly, and a trace of doubt appeared in his heart as he watched the scene played out.


    Was there discord between House Master of Taixuan and her eldest senior brother?


    She should be happy to see her senior brother here. Why would she want to leave?


    "Ling''er is here," a voice called out. Ye Futian saw a middle-aged man walking forward. His stride was great with each step he took, and he was wearing a loose robe. The breath coming from his body was calm and peaceful, his face was smiling, and his body was full of an unfathomable atmosphere.


    The Taixuan Hierophant��the eldest disciple of Lord Taixuan.


    There were not many who would dare to refer to the House Master of Taixuan by her maiden name.


    "Eldest senior brother," the House Master of Taixuan smiled and said, "if I knew you were here to visit the master, I would not have disturbed your visit."


    "I am only to check in with Master this time. Master knew that you were coming and asked me to come and welcome you, and you actually tried to slip away! Am I that scary?" The voice of Taixuan Hierophant was strong and powerful. Ye Fu Tian faintly felt that the Taixuan Hierophant''s plane was extremely high.


    "Not at all, I''m only afraid that it will disturb the discussion between Master and senior brother." The House Master of Taixuan smiled and then looked at Uncle Lan next to her. "Uncle Lan, I met a musician at the Tavern whose art was excellent. Would you take him to see if he may stay on Taixuan Mountain as a musician?"


    Uncle Lan didn''t ask who he was but just smiled and nodded. "Fine."


    "Shen Jing, come over and meet Uncle Lan," the House Master of Taixuan looked back at Ye Futian and said.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and bowed slightly toward Uncle Lan. "Greetings from Shen Jing to the honorable elder."


    Uncle Lan''s eyes fell on him, and his eyes contained some deeper meaning. He moved his eyes away and smiled. "Rest assured, Miss Four, I will handle it."


    The House Master of Taixuan also glanced at Ye Futian. It was just a look without any emotion, but Ye Futian felt an invisible pressure of might.


    Suddenly he had a feeling. Could there be more to the story?


    "Brother, let''s go to see the Master," the House Master Taixuan said with a smile. They then left together and walked toward that celestial palace.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the palace, where there was a giant figure in the Higher Heaven Realm, which would also be the first top power he was close to in the Higher Heaven.


    The eyes of Jun Mu��the disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant��fell on Ye Futian. He said politely, "I am the disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant, Jun Mu."


    Ye Futian didn''t understand the other''s motive, but on Taixuan Mountain, he wouldn''t make the mistake of acting arrogant, so he also replied with respect, "Musician of Taixuan Tavern, Shen Jing."


    "Brother Shen was able to get a personal introduction into Taixuan Mountain from Uncle, which means your talent must be extremely unusual," Jun Mu said.


    "Not enough to be compared to the disciple of the Hierophant," Ye Futian responded evasively, as there was no easy answer to give.


    "If there is ever an opportunity, I must experience your music," Jun Mu said, which surprised Ye Futian. The word "experience" contained double meanings.


    One was the pure appreciation of the music.


    The second was learning from each other. Musicians in the world of cultivation cultivated in Guqin Path; thus, the appreciation of music could also mean battle.


    What Jun Mu meant was more like the latter.


    "Of course." Ye Futian feigned ignorance and nodded with a smile. No matter which one he meant, it didn''t matter.


    "Young Master Shen, come with me," Uncle Lan said at this time. Ye Futian nodded and then left with Uncle Lan while the other disciples who came with the House Master were waiting outside. Ma Yi couldn''t help but glance at Ye Futian, feeling a little envious.


    Ye Futian had the opportunity to cultivate at Taixuan Mountain.


    Uncle Lan and Ye Futian were walking, and Ye Futian had some doubts but found it inappropriate to inquire at this moment. After all, he was just a musician, not yet qualified to ask anything about Taixuan Mountain.


    "You have questions?" Uncle Lan looked at Ye Futian and asked with a smile.


    "Some," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Speak less, observe more." Uncle Lan smiled and didn''t tell him anything else. They came to a place with two words written outside��String Pavilion.


    The String Pavilion was very quiet. Although it was quaint, it was very clean.


    In the String Pavilion, Ye Futian saw many guqins. On some of them, he even felt the will of the Way. There were also many prestigious guqins.


    In addition, there were also many musical scores on the shelves.


    This place was very elegant. Although it was unoccupied, it felt like it was not devoid of a master.


    "What is this place?" Ye Futian looked at Uncle Lan.


    "This is the place where the Third young master cultivated before. Now whenever the Third young master returns to Taixuan Mountain, this is where he stays. Everything here was left by the Third young master. You will stay here from now on and take care of the String Pavilion and these guqins. Of course, you can also play them, and you are welcome to peruse these music scores," Uncle Lan said with a smile. "Among them, there are quite a few famous ones."


    "The former residence of the String Emperor," Ye Futian secretly exclaimed, a little surprised. His first time at Taixuan Mountain as a musician and he was receiving such great treatment?


    He hadn''t considered all of that before and just wanted to start as an ordinary musician regardless of his status.


    "Elder, there are no tests?" Ye Futian asked.


    Uncle Lan shook his head with a smile. Miss Four introduced Ye Futian, so he understood the implications of that.


    "Take good care of the String Pavilion. You can use it, and you can read, but you are not allowed to destroy the things inside."


    As Uncle Lan was speaking, he left, leaving Ye Futian there!

 1501 Little Phoenix

    After Uncle Lan left, Ye Futian was left alone in the String Pavilion; he was still in a trance.


    He had thought that it would take a long time to come to this absolute holy land in Taixuan Region, observe the cultivation of the people in this holy land, and make contact with its top characters.


    He did not expect everything to progress so fast just because of a few words from the House Master of Taixuan.


    But when he learned that the House Master of Taixuan was one of Lord Taixuan''s four disciples, he was relieved.


    But this favor would not be easy to return.


    Although, officially, he was only the musician caretaker of the String Pavilion, Ye Futian was not so ignorant. He could use any of the Guqins at will and peruse the music scores collected here. What kind of good fortune was this?


    Countless many geniuses of Taixuan Region had difficulty even getting to Taixuan Mountain, let alone guarding the String Pavilion.


    The String Pavilion was very spacious. Many guqins were hanging everywhere, and as to the music scores on the bookshelves, Ye Futian took some and started reading them, soon becoming absorbed.


    His accomplishment in music was extraordinary, but the fact was that he had a solid foundation of spiritual will, and he had cultivated in Divine Melody and demon songs. As for his overall accomplishment in guqin, there was still a lot of room for improvement. After all, he had only studied guqin when he was a youngster, and his knowledge at the time was limited.


    And now, everything in this pavilion seemed to open up another door for him.


    Ye Futian entered a trance and was unaware of the passing of time or whether or not the House Master Taixuan had already departed. However, she should not ask for him again, as her intention was to send him to Taixuan Mountain.


    The String Pavilion also had a backyard. In the backyard, there were ancient mounds connected together. There were many man-made caves and flattened stone platforms. There were traces left by previous occupants everywhere, which were probably left by the String Emperor when he cultivated here.


    Ye Futian''s body flickered and came to the edge of a mountain. In front of him was a sea of ??clouds. The clouds were misty, beautiful, and ethereal, and the scenery was magnificent and out of this world.


    Buzz. Suddenly, a radiant figure emerged from the sea of ??clouds. Its brilliant wings illuminated heaven and earth. Colorful streams of light, along with divine light flowed; it was a divine bird. Ye Futian was stunned to see that it was a phoenix.


    The phoenix glanced at Ye Futian, and there seemed to be some surprise in those rebellious eyes. It then turned around and flew away. In the vast sea of ??clouds in the distance, clouds and fog tossed and tumbled with the occasional appearance of divine creatures, blue cranes, fire phoenixes, and such.


    There was also an ancient guqin on the cliff by the sea. This ancient guqin was engraved with the pattern of phoenix; it was a Phoenix Guqin. There were several large characters carved into the giant stone next to it: Flight of the Phoenix Pair.


    "There is something here." Ye Futian waved his sleeves, wiping away the dust. Below the carving of the words Flight of the Phoenix Pair, lines of ancient golden characters were revealed, just like musical notes, imprinted directly into his mind; it was the music score.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged and was quietly absorbing the music score. After a long while, he opened his eyes and came to the guqin, placing his palms on the strings.


    Accompanied by the movement of his fingers, the rhythm fluctuated. It was like the chanting of phoenix, crystal clear. The guqin played slowly. Its sound drifted toward the sea of ??clouds. The sea of ??clouds rolled in the distance; the bright streaming light came toward this place as if a divine bird��the phoenix, appeared��hovering above the sea of ??clouds, its eyes focused on Ye Futian.


    The notes flickered and penetrated its mind, but its eyes did not waver, but it still focused on Ye Futian. Finally, as if it couldn''t help it any longer, a voice came out of its mouth, "It''s awful."


    The sound of the guqin came to an abrupt stop. Ye Futian turned back to look at the phoenix. He was a little embarrassed.


    He was despised by this phoenix.


    "Sorry, I haven''t mastered this piece of music yet," Ye Futian said awkwardly. This Flight of the Phoenix Pair was a song of the Phoenix Guqin and could resonate with the phoenix, but clearly, he had failed.


    In fact, when he was perusing the music score, Ye Futian thought of Ling'' er��the Dragon Master.


    They could communicate with the dragons by the sound of music, and create resonance, allowing them to control the true dragons directly and even release their abilities through the true dragon. This was the talent of the Dragon Master.


    And this Flight of the Phoenix Pair was similar but even more exquisite.


    "I just needed to practice more," Ye Futian continued when he saw there was no response from the other.


    "Just don''t torment me anymore," the phoenix uttered in a human voice. It said with annoyance, "several other places have the same unusual guqin and music. You could just go and cultivate there instead."


    "��"


    Ye Futian was speechless. This bird really hated him!


    "Every guqin is accompanied by its own piece of music?" Ye Futian asked. How capricious...


    "Well, some were obtained by String Emperor''s predecessors, and some were made by his own hands. You are still far from that level," the phoenix said. His eyes proud, looking at Ye Futian, he said, "Here, there are six prestigious songs left, which can all evoke visions, but it is not so easy to learn. Your attainments are too shallow and are not yet enough."


    "My skill is poor?" Ye Futian was kind of depressed. This was the first time someone had questioned his musical skill.


    "Very poor," phoenix said bluntly.


    "How poor?" Ye Futian looked really confused.


    "Unbearable," phoenix responded.


    "..." Ye Futian''s eyes lingered on this phoenix. A great demon phoenix of True Self Plane, he could easily overcome. It had been a long time since he had unleashed on anyone.


    "Mom, Dad, some people want to hit me," the phoenix sent out a cry into the far distance. Instantly, in the depth of the sea of ??clouds, two phoenix cries were heard, loud and clear. A mighty demon emperor swept through, looming over the heavens, and there was a strong pressure of the Great Path appearing above the sky, landing on Ye Futian across the endless and distant land.


    "I��"


    Ye Futian badly wanted to give the other a beating, but the tone of his voice changed immediately. He said with a smile, "Beautiful phoenix, we can discuss this."


    Did this girl call on her parents?


    Was this fair?


    The fact that there were two phoenix demon emperors deep in the sea of ??clouds, what would this mean for the future?


    No wonder Taixuan Mountain was really a sacred place; there were demon phoenixes in its backyard. Wasn''t this great?


    Ye Futian thought that when he got to this state in the future, he would also raise a great, big hoard... That would be really cool.


    "How do you know that I am beautiful?" The phoenix''s body was dazzling with divine light. She turned into a human form. Her figure, after she shifted into human form, was perfect. Her skin was delicate, and her body was covered in a fiery red feather robe made of divine feathers. She was an extremely sexy woman, hot as fire.


    "I know it just by the voice," Ye Futian said seriously. He couldn''t afford to aggravate her.


    As the progeny of two great demon emperors and born in Taixuan Mountain, this little phoenix was probably created with the best between heaven and earth. Even though her cultivation was of the Saint Plane, but she still behaved like a young girl. Even Kong Xuan, who was also the descendent of the Demon Peacock Emperor, was still unable to compare with this one.


    "Smart guy." The little phoenix assessed Ye Futian seriously, then said, "You look pretty good. Are you the disciple of String Emperor?"


    "No," Ye Futian shook his head.


    "You are not secretly coming here to cultivate on Taixuan Mountain, are you? If so, I suggest you leave immediately," the little phoenix advised.


    "Uncle Lan allowed me to come here," Ye Futian replied.


    "Is that so?" The little phoenix''s beautiful eyes moved around as if thinking about something. No one had been to the String Pavilion for a long time. Now that someone was here to play music, it would be alleviated of some of its boredom.


    "My name is Feng Yan. What is yours?"


    "Shen Jing," Ye Futian replied. "Feng Yan, just as expected, your name is as beautiful as your person."


    Feng Yan revealed a bright smile, and Ye Futian secretly felt a little guilty. Little girls were so easy to appease.


    "Feng Yan, can you tell me a little bit about the situation here?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Sure." Feng Yan agreed readily, but just then, a wave of heavenly might descended. A voice was heard, "Feng Yan, it''s time to cultivate."


    Feng Yan''s face collapsed in an instant. Above the void, a phantom figure of a phoenix appeared, looking down at Ye Futian.


    "Shen Jing greets the honorable elder," Ye Futian saluted slightly.


    "If Mr. Lan let you cultivate here, then focus on cultivating in quiet and don''t disappoint Mr. Lan," that phoenix spoke casually, her voice full of authority and majesty. She then took Feng Yan to leave.


    As Ye Futian had suspected, Feng Yan''s birth was exceptional. She had been born after both of her parents had become emperors, further blessed by spiritual treasure given by Lord Taixuan. Feng Yan was born as a congenital saint and could reach Saint Plane through the natural process of growth. This was a talent only possessed by divine beasts, impossible for humans to achieve.


    Therefore, according to the comparison between the Phoenix clan and humans, Feng Yan was very young.


    This young one was very mischievous.


    However, if Mr. Lan arranged it, she would not do anything.


    Ye Futian watched the other leave and felt a little bummed out. Since Feng Yan had always been here, she must know a lot about the String Pavilion and Taixuan Mountain. If he could have coaxed her to stay, it would save him a lot of trouble.


    However, the looks from that female phoenix were pretty fierce.


    "Crap," Ye Futian mumbled. He could only mumble slowly to himself. He looked at this area. Six famous songs. It seemed that he would not be bored on this Taixuan Mountain.


    ��


    Thus, Ye Futian cultivated alone in the String Pavilion, as if forgotten by everyone else. No one paid attention to his existence, and he was happy to be by himself. Feng Yan would occasionally come to see him secretly, exchanging a word or two.


    However, that female phoenix guarded him like he was a thief or something, which really upset Ye Futian. Was he that kind of person?


    Although Ye Futian was not disturbed, many cultivators on Taixuan Mountain knew of his existence.


    After all, he became the only guardian of the String Pavilion.


    This position was coveted by many but was hard to obtain.


    There were many cultivators on Taixuan Mountain, including many geniuses of the younger generations. At this time, upon Taixuan Mountain, a group was discussing.


    "Yesterday, I passed by the String Pavilion and heard the sound of the guqin inside. It should be the musician who was sent over by Miss Four?" someone said.


    "Shen Jing, what is the background of this person?" someone asked curiously.


    Everyone shook their heads, and one of them said, "It was said that he was a musician at Taixuan Tavern, and because Miss Four valued his talent in music, she took him up the mountain. Mr. Lan arranged for him to stay at the String Pavilion."


    "String Pavilion, on Taixuan Mountain, is the place that many yearn for. Why would someone who had just entered Taixuan Mountain can cultivate n String Pavilion?" When he spoke, he looked at a young man next to him. That young man was also a cultivator of Guqin Path, whose attainment was great, but still,l there was no such opportunity for him!

 1502 Instruction

    String Pavilion, rear mountain, upon the stone platform among the sea of clouds.


    Ye Futian was sitting cross-legged, playing a musical composition. As the sound of music rose, every note that jumped out was akin to the chanting of the phoenix. There was a brilliant divine light accompanying each lively note. If someone was here, they were bound to have the false sense that it was the phoenix singing.


    The sound of the guqin sounded like a phoenix chanting. Those notes surrounded Ye Futian''s body, and in the void, there were illusions of the phoenix, whirling between heaven and earth.


    In the sea of ??clouds, an extremely radiant divine light illuminated, like a picture of a phoenix dancing in nine heavens, beautiful and perfect, a wonder in itself.


    In the distance, the sea of ??clouds tossed and turned, and the light of the golden flame flowed above the sea of ??clouds. A long whistle was heard, which echoed with the sound of the guqin. A real phoenix god bird rushed out of the sea of ??clouds, surging upward, its wings spread, flying directly toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian seemed unaware, still playing in meditation. The sound of the guqin continued, as did the sound of phoenix chanting. Countless notes flowed into the mind of the phoenix and resonated with it. In this moment, Ye Futian seemed to be able to perceive the emotion of the phoenix, even borrowing from its spiritual will.


    There was a smile on the corner of his mouth, but his ten slender fingers were still playing as the little phoenix flew around him. The shadows of the phoenix danced in the sky between heaven and earth, intertwining into a beautiful painting, just like a veritable wonderland.


    The little Phoenix was ??extremely cheerful. Her voice was clear and ethereal, singing in harmony with the sound of guqin. After a long while, when the music slowly stopped, she stopped her dancing and flying, then landed beside Ye Futian, shifting into her human form.


    "The Flight of the Phoenix Pair." The little phoenix stared at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes, a little surprised. She then smiled, "You learn quickly."


    In just over a month, Ye Futian had actually mastered the flight of the Phoenix Pair and was able to induce the vision of heaven and earth, luring the phoenix into its dance, a natural wonder.


    "That''s because I am a genius," Ye Futian quipped jokingly. "Little phoenix, before, when I was playing the music, I could feel the resonance with your spiritual will. Could this help your cultivation?"


    "Mutual help. If your plane is higher, your spiritual comprehension stronger than mine, then it will help me more. On the contrary, if my plane is higher than yours, it will help you a lot," little phoenix said with a smile.


    Flight of the Phoenix Pair itself was a famous piece created based on the phoenix. It was a lovely song in itself, but if used in combat, its power would be equally strong.


    "So, you are taking advantage of me," Ye Futian said again.


    Little phoenix blushed slightly and stared at Ye Futian, saying, "My plane is temporarily lower than yours, but I''m a natural-born Saint; my progression will be rapid. Even Lord Taixuan has said that my future is endless, as the definite candidate as the Divine Phoenix. I''m bound to ride the wind and sail into the nine heavens. Not to mention, when did I ever say that I would cultivate with you?"


    "Fine. It''s me who took advantage of you," Ye Futian smiled. After these few days of contact, he and little Phoenix had gotten familiar with one another. He knew that her temperament was still like a young girl, which made him kind of miss Ling''er.


    "That''s more like it," little phoenix''s face was a faint pink as she whispered. But that girl-like face was paired with a perfect figure. It was inexplicably attractive.


    Fortunately, Ye Futian was already used to it, his mind devoid of other ideas. After all, he was not that kind of person.


    "Again?" Ye Futian smiled and said.


    "Yes, yes." Little phoenix appeared a little excited. It was as if she were a natural fit with the Flight of the Phoenix Pair.


    "Feng Yan," a voice came from the void, and a bright divine phoenix appeared. It was Feng Yan''s mother. She looked at Feng Yan and said, "Let''s go."


    "Oh." Feng Yan suddenly lost her enthusiasm. She gave a quick wink at Ye Futian and then moved toward the sea of ??clouds.


    "Elder." Ye Futian saluted the phantom of the divine phoenix in the void, and that phoenix gave him a deep look of assessment.


    He was able to master the Flight of the Phoenix pair in such a short time.


    She felt a little dazed. Once upon a time, when the String Emperor had also played the Flight of the Phoenix Pair here, the husband and wife were the partners of the String Emperor, and they danced with the music. But then, the Emperor went down the mountain and built his own legacy, leaving the two of them here.


    The phantom illusion of the divine phoenix gradually dissipated, and the little phoenix had also dived into the sea of clouds in the distance.


    Ye Futian watched those disappearing figures and cursed secretly.


    This was��


    Guarding against thieves?


    Unfortunately, he couldn''t win in this case.


    "Is Brother Shen here?" At this moment, A voice that came from outside the String Pavilion that penetrated the void and came to this side, falling into Ye Futian''s ear.


    Ye Futian was a little puzzled. For a month, he had been practicing alone in the String Pavilion, accompanied only by guqin, with only the occasional appearances of the little phoenix. This was the first time someone came to visit.


    Stepping forward, Ye Futian walked toward the String Pavilion, came to the front yard, and saw a group of youths there. They were looking at him.


    The temperament of these people were all very unusual. He knew very well that for those who could enter Taixuan Mountain to cultivate, they would not be simple people.


    "Greetings from Shen Jing to you all." Ye Futian bowed with his hand together in salute, gentle and polite.


    "Long have we heard the name of Brother Shen," The young man in the middle of the group in front also saluted Ye Futian, saying, "Chen Yu of Guqin Valley at Taixuan Mountain. Since the news that Miss Four and Mr. Lan sent Brother Shen to the String Pavilion for cultivation, we have all been curious. Today we have come to visit personally, and Brother Sheng does not disappoint."


    Although the four great disciples of Lord Taixuan were already off the mountain to set up their own perspective settlements, there were still many places for cultivation on Taixuan Mountain, such as Sword Abyss, Guqin Valley, and Alchemy House, all of which were managed by some elders on Taixuan Mountain. They were all early followers of Lord Taixuan but lacked the opportunity to become Lord Taixuan''s personal disciples.


    Many years ago, Lord Taixuan''s five major disciples were also from this group, but later, a disciple had perished, and Lord Taixuan vowed never to accept another disciple as long as he lived. Therefore, even though some possessed unusual talent and had received personal guidance from Lord Taixuan, he still would not accept them as personal disciples.


    After the four great disciples of Lord Taixuan came down the mountain, the Taixuan Hierophant would often send some extremely talented geniuses to persuade Lord Taixuan to accept them as disciples again, but he never did.


    Thus, the people of the Higher Heavens Realm gradually began to understand that Lord Taixuan would no longer have any more disciples.


    Guqin Valley was a place for practicing the art of guqin. Lord Taixuan possessed profound knowledge and broad experience. He was an expert at many abilities. The disciples he guided had all become masters of their own rights. Not only that, but Lord Taixuan''s collection was also very bountiful.


    After Ye Futian heard that the visitors came from Guqin Valley, he guessed something. He was not a disciple of Taixuan Mountain, and after being sent to Taixuan Mountain, he was assigned to guard the String Pavilion. This was not treatment available for just anyone. Not even the disciple of Guqin Valley had such good fortune.


    It occurred to Ye Futian that this was probably how connections worked.


    Who could imagine it was Miss Four who sent him to the mountain? Or that Lord Taixuan only had four disciples in total, and Miss Four was the only female disciple, so her status must be greatly exulted?


    "Brother Chen flatters me. I am just a simple musician, who was fortunate enough to be in the care of Miss Four and Elder Lan and to have this opportunity to guard the String Pavilion here. I am not worthy of all you gentlemen visiting me in person. If I can be of service, just let me know and Shen Jing will come to you."


    Ye Futian saw Chen Yu was polite and respectful, so he did not bother to probe the reasons behind it. He figured that to avoid any problems, he just had to be even more humble and low key than Chen Yu.


    He didn''t come to Taixuan Mountain to bring the focus on himself, and he didn''t want any trouble. He just wanted to cultivate quietly for a while to improve himself.


    When everyone heard Ye Futian''s words, they gave him a deep and meaningful look. This guy was quite humble, and his voice showed sincerity.


    "Brother Shen is overly humble, and since it was Miss Four who personally sent you to the String Pavilion, your attainment of the guqin must be outstanding," another person said next to him.


    "Not at all." Ye Futian shook his head. "I was just a simple musician at Taixuan Tavern, and I have no idea why Miss Four would value someone like me. However, it is my honor to have the opportunity to guard the String Pavilion, so I will do my best and maintain all the guqins here."


    When everyone heard Ye Futian''s words, a strange look appeared in their eyes. This guy was so humble and polite, and they could not find any faults with him immediately.


    No one could outright attack someone so amicable. Shen Jing''s attitude was rather impeccable.


    "There are a lot of scores in the String Pavilion; you must have read them?" At this time, a woman appeared beside Chen Yu, wearing a long skirt, flowing like a goddess. She had an outstanding temperament. She was also a disciple of Guqin Valley. Her name was Li Zhiyin.


    Guqin Valley did not have many disciples nowadays. Chen Yu and Li Zhiyin were among the best.


    "I have read a few, broad and profound, but there are many scores in Guqin Valley. I am afraid that it will be difficult to learn them all in my lifetime," Ye Futian replied.


    "Indeed." Li Zhiyin nodded slightly. "I was fortunate enough to be selected to come to Guqin Valley to observe. I have seen six famous scores, but after many days of cultivation, I was still just scratching the surface. I found it impossible to induce the phenomenon between heaven and earth. It is a pity."


    "Zhiyin, you are too modest. Back then, your rendition of the Flight of the Phoenix Pair was almost perfect," Chen Yu said.


    "Shen Jing, you are now the guardian of the String Pavilion. May I enter and take a look?" Li Zhiyin asked Ye Futian.


    "Please," Ye Futian smiled and nodded. When Mr. Lan asked him to guard the pavilion, he did not forbid the others from entering. If he declined, it might cause controversy. Even though he was invited by the House Master of Taixuan to enter Taixuan Mountain, he still didn''t want to attract unnecessary attention, nor did he want to arouse hatred from others.


    All of them entered into the String Pavilion, and Li Zhiyin went straight to the sea of clouds in the rear mountain. A sense of longing was visible in her eyes. She once mentioned to the elders of Guqin Valley her intention to come to String Pavilion to cultivate, but it was rejected. After all, this was the former residence of the String Emperor, whose position in Taixuan Mountain was high above all others. Naturally, no other disciples were allowed to come here to cultivate.


    But she didn''t expect that Miss Four would send Shen Jing to String Pavilion as a musician. Although he was officially just a caretaker of the pavilion, there were still many conveniences of his job.


    Li Zhiyin sat down on the stone platform in the sea of clouds, her ten slender fingers gently stroking the Phoenix Guqin, then played slowly. All eyes fell upon her at once, and the elegant and crystalline sound of the phoenix was heard. It was especially moving. Under such a mood, Li Zhiyin appeared even more dignified and beautiful.


    The sea of ??clouds rolled and turned, and the illusion of the phoenix begin to manifest. A faint divine light flowed around her body.


    "Phenomenon." When everyone saw this, they were slightly stunned. The six famous songs left by the String Emperor were able to evoke phenomena, so Li Zhiyin''s playing had definitely reached a certain level.


    Ye Futian looked quietly on the side. The phenomenon induced by Li Zhiyin was obviously a bit different from his; it was almost there but still not pure enough.


    When the song was over, Li Zhiyin still sat there, with some regret, and sighed in a low voice, "It''s still lacking."


    "You have done very well already. The six famous scores are so not so easy to master," Chen Yu said. Li Zhiyin nodded gently as she stood up and looked at Ye Futian. The look in her beautiful eyes was a little complicated. A simple musician had such an opportunity to come here. If it were up to her, she would also be willing to guard the String Pavilion as a simple musician.


    "Since Miss Four had sent you here, she must have high hopes for you. Concentrate on cultivating the music scores here. All six famous scores are as profound as they are broad. Even if you can''t learn them all, it would be of great benefit to your cultivation," Li Zhiyin instructed Ye Futian. She was a genius of Guqin Valley and of the Nirvana Plane, so she had the qualifications to instruct Ye Futian.


    "Well, I''ll do my best." Ye Futian didn''t say much, just smiled and nodded.


    "Let''s go," Li Zhiyin said and headed outside. Chen Yu also looked at Ye Futian and said, "Take this opportunity and cherish it."


    "Thank you." Ye Futian smiled and watched the group leave the String Pavilion!

 1503 Sword Abyss

    After Ye Futian sent the group away, he returned to the rear mountain behind the String Pavilion.


    In a quiet environment, alone, he felt a lot more comfortable. This way, no one should be offended, and there should be no one who would disturb him in the future.


    He was very satisfied with cultivating at the String Pavilion, and, indeed, he owed a great favor to the House Master of Taixuan. This kind of condition to cultivate was simply too perfect to be interrupted, so he would not do anything to provoke trouble to change the state of things. He would try to be as low-key and humble as possible. That way, even if someone wasn''t happy with him, they would have nothing to use against him.


    After all, everyone was a genius on Taixuan Mountain. Even if there was some discontent in their hearts, it was impossible to throw a fit without a good reason, as that would have been beneath them.


    "Are they gone?" a voice came. Ye Futian turned back to look at the little phoenix that appeared behind him, saying, "Why are you here again?"


    Wasn''t she taken away by her mother?


    "It was attracted by the sound of the guqin, but it was far worse than you normally are. How can you put up such a front?" Little phoenix looked at Ye Futian with a weird look, somewhat disdainful.


    "This is called keeping a low profile," Ye Futian said with some indignity. Who was putting up a front?


    Where did this little girl get her ideas from?


    "Hypocrite." Little phoenix grunted, then turned around and disappeared just as she had appeared. This place where he cultivated was entirely her backyard.


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head, then went to a place to sit cross-legged and continue to cultivate.


    Just as Ye Futian had predicted, after that day, no one came to disturb him. Even though the disciples of Taixuan Mountain had some opinions of their own because an outsider came to Taixuan Mountain for the first time and was able to cultivate in the String Pavilion, after seeing that Ye Futian was polite and quite gentle and respectful to the disciples of Taixuan Mountain, no one had anything against him.


    Even as the word spread about Shen Jing''s low-key modesty, many people at Taixuan Mountain knew that there was now a humble guardian in the String Pavilion.


    In what seemed like a short time, Ye Futian had cultivated on Taixuan Mountain for half a year. He rarely left the String Pavilion in the past half a year. Besides music cultivation, he was comprehending music scores or cultivating in other arts. But, all in all, without the distraction of mundane matters, Ye Futian was able to concentrate and completely immerse himself in the world of cultivation.


    And he had no choices either. Now, he couldn''t do anything but work hard, because strength was the foundation of everything.


    His realm was even deeper, his mood was more stable, as the Guqin Path was very beneficial to the cultivation of the mood.


    At this time, above the rear mountain, on the cliff, a figure sat cross-legged and was strumming the guqin.


    The sound of guqin was very rapid, and there was a breath of extreme suppression between heaven and earth. The sea of ??clouds was also roaring and tossing as the landscape of this space, changing and morphing it. It gave the illusion that time had changed and spaced had moved. It seemed that the space Ye Futian was in was a world of its own, closed off by the melody.


    Such a magnificent spectacle, if seen by the people of Guqin Valley, they would surely understand that this was a true natural phenomenon, inspired by the sound of the guqin, which was the Worldly Judgment of the six famous music scores of the String Pavilion.


    This piece of music was very arrogant, and its difficulty was also extremely high. Ye Futian has been practicing it for the longest time. Now, he basically had all six of them under control.


    Sonorous notes were still beating, but they gradually eased, and the phenomenon between heaven and earth gradually dissipated.


    Finally, the sound of the guqin stopped, but Ye Futian''s ten fingers still hovered on the strings.


    He looked at the distant scenery and felt the passage of time. Everything was like a dream.


    He still remembered the last time he practiced the guqin like this; it had been with the Grandmaster at Donghai Academy. That year, he was not yet 18. He had just started to come into his own, and Jieyu was with him also.


    In a blink of an eye, decades had passed, and once again, he was studying guqin seriously. It all seemed to be a dream.


    Now, his Guqin Path had been refined by these many years of cultivating, and he could no longer be compared to his past self. Unfortunately, all this could no longer be seen by the Grandmaster.


    Looking at the distant sea of ??clouds, Ye Futian felt something in his heart. He took a deep breath, looked down at the score, and plucked the strings with his fingers. In an instant, a high-pitched sound of guqin penetrated the sky. The crane chanting could be heard in the high heavens.


    In the sea of ??clouds, there was a sound of a long cry. In truth, there were divine cranes that were being awakened and flew above nine heavens as if affected by the sound of the guqin. They cried from the depth of a lake somewhere.


    This song was actually "A Chaotic Nation," but the artistic conception of the music was no longer the same as it was before.


    The sound of the piano was lingering, and the cranes were dancing. They were surrounded by heaven and earth.


    In the depths of the sea of ??clouds, there seemed to be two pairs of extremely bright eyes penetrating the boundless infinity. Their gaze landed on Ye Futian.


    There were two figures standing above the clouds, a man and a woman, with extraordinary temperament. Both were wearing fiery red phoenix robes; they were the parents of little phoenix.


    "He had also learned ''Worldly Judgment,''" the woman whispered, a little startled.


    "In half a year, he has learned all six famous scores. This kind of musical attainment, perhaps he himself was unaware of," the man also said, a little surprised. Compared to the String Emperor of yore, he was not greatly behind.


    They vaguely understood that Miss Four sent Ye Futian to Taixuan Mountain perhaps not entirely because of the third young master.


    Ye Futian''s talent in the ways of Guqin Path was really special, so he was sent here by Miss Four to come to the String Pavilion for self-study.


    In just over half a year, he had actually learned six famous scores.


    His future was limitless, and in the future, he would perhaps be another sensational figure like the String Emperor.


    ��


    After completing the six famous scores, he practiced many other scores again. And on this day, Ye Futian finally walked out to the piano.


    However long he had been at Taixuan Mountain was how long he had been cultivating in the String Pavilion.


    This was the first time Ye Futian had experienced the scenery of Taixuan Mountain. Sometimes he encountered other cultivators on the way, but he didn''t know them. When he was asking for directions, these people of Taixuan Mountain felt even more strange and looked at him weirdly.


    Who was this guy? Was he really a cultivator of Taixuan Mountain?


    He didn''t even know where the Sword Abyss was!


    Was he serious?


    Sword Abyss was located in the southern part of Taixuan Mountain and was the place of sword cultivation at Taixuan Mountain.


    The swordsmanship at Taixuan Mountain was extremely prestigious. Lord Taixuan had collected many sword methods, and whose own swordsmanship was also superb. The second disciple of Lord Taixuan��the current City Lord of Taixuan City��had inherited the swordsmanship of Lord Taixuan. His reputation was enough to shake the world and became a dominant lord in his own right.


    Therefore, when Luoyue��the princess of the City Lord''s Residence of Taixuan City��heard that there was a powerful swordsman in the Realm of Ruin, she went there in person because she also cultivated in swordsmanship.


    Sword Abyss, as its name suggested, was an abyss.


    When Ye Futian came here, he saw a sword peak directly inserted into the ground. Above that giant sword peak, there were ancient palaces located at different points of the peak with excellent views.


    In front of the sword peak, there was a huge canyon. Below, there were many palaces for cultivation, cave residences, and a gymnasium.


    Ye Futian had come from the canyons below, and looked up at the land above and the sword peak in front, with a slight wave in his heart.


    "A good place," Ye Futian admired. Not only that, but the entire Sword Abyss was filled with the infinite breath of swordsmanship��extremely saturated. This was the real holy land of swordsmanship.


    Above the void over the gymnasium, an amazing battle was taking place.


    Above the void, a figure in blue was standing between the heavens and the earth. His fingers were pointing to the sky, and countless divine swords appeared above the sky. It was shocking to behold. Many below looked up and saw the body of his opponent sail across the void, and in an instant, like the catastrophe of swordsmanship, the void seemed to be crushed under the swords.


    Crisp crackling sounds came out, and hundreds of sword marks appeared on the body of his opponent instantly, some of them even stained with blood.


    "Great swordsmanship," Ye Futian praised inside. It was indeed worthy of Taixuan Mountain''s sword technique.


    "Brother Wan''s sword technique is getting stronger," the other disciples of Sword Abyss exclaimed, smiling. Even the one who was defeated just grumbled, "Thank you, senior brother, for your mercy."


    It seemed that he did not care about his injury at all, which was inevitable in such sparring.


    "Your sword progress was not inconsiderable," Brother Wan said to the defeated man. The two went down together and cleared the battlefield to allow others to go up.


    The cultivators stood on the sides watching the battle, and Ye Futian also stood there. The swordsmanship of the two were equally strong.


    It was at this time that senior brother Wan seemed to notice Ye Futian''s existence. He lifted his feet to go toward Ye Futian, and the people around him suddenly realized that this person did not seem to be a cultivator from Sword Abyss.


    "Are you a cultivator from somewhere else in Taixuan Mountain?" Wan Shouyi asked with some doubt. This was the first time he saw Ye Futian. He did not recall ever having seen this person on Taixuan Mountain before.


    "Shen Jing, caretaker of the String Pavilion. Pleasure to meet the brother of the Way." Ye Futian bowed. Suddenly, the people around him were a bit surprised. So this was the musician in the String Pavilion. They had all heard of Shen Jing''s name, but this was the first they had seen him.


    "Disciple of the Sword Abyss, Wan Shouyi," Wan Shouyi responded to Ye Futian and saluted him in return. He said, "I heard that you were cultivating in the String Pavilion. So, what brought you to Sword Abyss?"


    "I know a little about swordsmanship and have cultivated in sword techniques, and have always admired the talent of those who cultivate in swordsmanship. I knew that there was the Sword Abyss��a holy land to cultivate sword techniques on Taixuan Mountain. I desired to come and take a look to see if I could gain some comprehension to help with my progress in swordsmanship," Ye Futian replied. "Please do not laugh. "


    "Brother Shen is dedicated to learning, but specialization is important in cultivation," Wan Shouyi said. "Since Brother Shen has the opportunity to cultivate in the String Pavilion, you should concentrate on that."


    "Quite so," Ye Futian said, still with a smile. "I am only watching from the periphery occasionally, and not immersed in it, and I will still concentrate on the art of the guqin as my main cultivation. Not to mention, in Sword Abyss, I could also practice music, and perhaps I can resonate with the cultivation of swordsmanship."


    Wan Shouyi glanced at Ye Futian and thought that, just as rumored, this musician of the String Pavilion was humble and gentle. He didn''t expect him to be so interested in learning. No wonder Miss Four had helped him.


    "Just as well. But you are not a disciple of the Sword Abyss, so you should take care not to step in places you shouldn''t set foot in," Wan Shouyi instructed. Ye Futian nodded with a smile. "Thank you, brother."

 1504 Coincidence?

    The Sword Abyss was very large and occupied one side of Taixuan Mountain. Aside from what Ye Futian saw in front of him, there was also the Sword Cliffs and Sword Residence behind the Sword Peak.


    Sword Cliffs was also known as Sword Cliffs of Trials. Countless cultivators honed their swordsmanship there, leaving sword marks on many cliff walls, many of which were left by ancestors of great swordsmanship. Sword Residence, on the other hand, was the cave residence where many swordsmen cultivated. It was a blessed place, like heaven on earth. After the cave residences were emptied by the ancestors, they became unoccupied, and there were most likely records of swordsmanship comprehension inside.


    In addition, there were also superb sword techniques inherited from Taixuan Mountain itself. Lord Taixuan was knowledgeable and had many sword scriptures in his collection, some of which were definitely the most supreme.


    Many years ago, Lord Taixuan himself was also a magical talent.


    Ye Futian watched the practice of swordsmanship in the Sword Abyss and watched disciples practicing. He was deep in thought. Although most of the disciples of the Sword Abyss could not beat him in swordsmanship, there must be someone among them with whom he could learn from, not to mention that their swordsmanship had been passed down from Taixuan Mountain.


    The sword that he had just observed wielded by Wan Shouyi was extremely stunning. If the cultivation reached its peak, it would be an incredibly strong sword technique.


    Like the Guqin Path, although he was good at it, he knew that even though he appeared powerful, his true skill was varied and unrefined. In swordsmanship, though he had combined his own comprehension and the Soul-Breaking sword techniques that he had acquired previously, he was relying heavily on the advantages of the Way. In truth, his swordsmanship was far from sufficient, especially in the top-tier of sword techniques. He was not nearly as invincible as was rumored in the Realm of Ruin.


    "What do you think?" Ye Futian was watching the swordplay when several disciples of the Sword Abyss approached him and asked him a question, smiling.


    "The disciples of Sword Abyss are superb in swordsmanship," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "You are an expert in music, and now that you are observing the swordplay, do you have any comprehension?" the person asked again.


    "All methods are connected, including the sword techniques. Before, I saw that Brother Wan''s swordsmanship was superb. After that, I saw several others'' swordsmanship. Though wielded differently, they all had the shades of that one technique. I would greatly like to know if they were all from the same sword technique? "Ye Futian asked.


    "That''s right." The other nodded and said with a smile, "This sword technique is one that all the disciples of Sword Abyss want to learn, but the disciples of Sword Abyss are many. Those in the Saint Plane who can reach the level of Brother Wan are few at best. Even swordsmen of Renhuang Realm at Taixuan Mountain find it difficult to accomplish."


    "What sword technique could be that enticing?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "The Fleeting Divine Sword," the young man smiled and said. "But most people can only cultivate to the first level��A Glimmer of Sky. This first level is the most suitable for those who understand the way of space; its power us the strongest, the most authentic."


    "So it is. But Brother Wan''s sword was more than a glimmer. What level is he at?" Ye Futian asked.


    The other looked at him with a smile and said, "The second level��Cleve of All Things. When cultivated to this level, with a single sword strike, the void will be cut into countless pieces, hence the name."


    "How about the third?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The third level of the Fleeting Divine Sword naturally would be Fleeting. However, only very few Renhuang on Taixuan Mountain have cultivated to this level. Once the sword is deployed, time flows like water, and years go by, hence the name ''Fleeing.'' With the Fleeting Divine Sword, there is no countermeasure, and ultimately, this technique is also divided into different strengths. Only those who are experts at a variety of the strengths of the Great Path can reach the peak. On Taixuan Mountain, only the Lord has reached the ultimate state of the Fleeting Divine Sword."


    The other party smiled and explained, gazing at Ye Futian with interest. They asked, "Brother Shen is interested in cultivating in this technique?"


    "Seeing how unusually powerful this sword technique is, I am a little interested. But my talent is limited. If I choose to cultivate it, I don''t know which level I could reach," Ye Futian replied in a low voice and did not deny his intentions. He did not come to Sword Abyss for frivolity, but to cultivate, so there was nothing to hide.


    "It''s easy for Brother Shen Jing to get started. Although the Fleeting Divine Sword is the ultimate sword technique, the first two levels are not a secret. There will be no problem if you are interested to cultivate. Moreover, the Sword Cliffs of Trials contains many marks of previous cultivations, so you can take a look," the other added. Ye Futian nodded slightly. "Thank you for telling me."


    "It''s but a small matter," the other replied with a smile. They continued, "If there is any problem, brother Shen Jing can come to us."


    "For sure," Ye Futian answered, and the other left.


    Ye Futian watched for a few more moments before leaving Sword Abyss. Afterward, besides practicing in the String Pavilion every day, he also watched the swordsmen in the Sword Abyss.


    Everyone in Sword Abyss knew now that they had a musician who liked to learn. He was also the guardian of the String Pavilion��the one Miss Four personally escorted to Taixuan Mountain.


    Ye Futian was very quiet at Sword Abyss, spending most of his time watching the swordsmen and observing. He rarely spoke to anyone. Occasionally, he would ask some questions, and his humble and studious attitude made many others like him quite a bit. After all, the disciples of Sword Abyss were mostly in the Saint Plane, and they all had extraordinary temperament. Under circumstances that did conflict with their own interests, they were more than willing to answer Ye Futian''s questions when prompted.


    Over time, Ye Futian seemed to have become one of the disciples of Sword Abyss. Many of the cultivators of Sword Abyss were used to his existence.


    However, little phoenix was ??often displeased and secretly complained that Ye Futian dabbled in everything. Instead of concentrating on the Guqin path, he had now gone to the Sword Abyss frequently to study sword techniques. With no one to chat with, the little phoenix was deprived of some enjoyment as she greatly liked when Ye Futian played The Flight of the Phoenix Pair, with which she could resonate. Every time she heard this piece, she would feel herself progress. It was as if she, too, was moving toward the next level.


    On this day, a guest arrived at Sword Abyss, which was a quite lively occasion.


    The young mistress of City Lord''s Residence at Taixuan City, Princess Luoyue, whose father��the City Lord of Taixuan City��had inherited the swordsmanship of Lord Taixuan.


    Previously, Luoyue had also practiced at Sword Abyss for some time. This was the place where she learned her craft, and today, the City Lord of Taixuan took her to visit the Lord, so Luoyue took this opportunity to revisit Sword Abyss.


    Many disciples at Sword Abyss knew Luoyue, and they were accustomed to addressing each other as brothers and sisters.


    At this time, there was a sword cliff behind Sword Abyss and Sword Peak. Many disciples were there. This was a famous sword cliff at Sword Abyss. Upon the cliff wall, there were marks of swordsmanship left by a very powerful elder. Many would come here to observe the sword will that was contained within.


    Luoyue stood in front of the cliff wall and looked at the Sword Cliffs. Although her father was a mighty figure in swordsmanship and derived other methods of battle from his swordsmanship, the attacks even included those of battle ax. Sometimes, however, it still required the expediency of other sects to absorb even more knowledge.


    Her cultivation of the Fleeting of the Divine had encountered a bottleneck at the second level��Cleave of All Things. It was difficult for her to advance any further. Therefore, she wanted to come to Taixuan Mountain again, and so, her father brought her.


    Looking at the cliff, Luoyue''s body could not help but exude a powerful sword will. The sword of eradication was wrapping around this space. For a long time, her shape flashed and pointed toward the void. Suddenly, a great amount of Sword Qi swept through the void. A devastating storm of Sword Qi now appeared, cutting through the sky above.


    "Sister Luoyue''s sword is even more refined. It won''t take long for the Cleave of All Things to become a reality." At this time, a voice spoke. It was Wan Shouyi, a disciple of Sword Abyss, addressing Luoyue.


    "Senior brother praises me too much. I know my level, and it is still a ways away compared to senior brother," Luoyue whispered. She could not help but recall the swordsman she encountered in the Realm of Ruins. His sword was very simple, and a single sword strike sufficed. She wondered how it would compare with brother Wan Shouyi.


    "There''s not much difference. It is already on the verge, and a breakthrough can happen at any moment," Wan Shouyi said. "Luoyue, let me try the sword for you."


    Louyue looked at Wan Shouyi, then nodded and said, "Thank you, brother."


    As they finished speaking, the two walked to one side and were suspended in mid-air. Many figures flashed over this way in preparation to watch the exchange between the two. Clearly, Wan Shouyi intended to use his swordsmanship to guide Luoyue.


    In an instant, Sword Qi was everywhere, and as everyone expected, as outstanding as Wan Shouyi''s sword, he had left some room because his goal was to guide Luoyue, step by step.


    Luoyue''s sword was very similar to his, but there always seemed to be something missing.


    At this moment, suddenly, the sound of guqin was heard. It merged into the sword. It was as if the sound of the guqin perfectly matched the exchange of swordsmanship. Some continued to watch the swordplay, while some glanced in the direction of the music. It was Shen Jing, who had been playing often recently, and no one was surprised by it.


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue''s swords were getting stronger. Wan Shouyi began to apply pressure in an attempt to force Luoyue to unleash her sword, but Luoyue still felt that she somehow fell short.


    At this moment, the sound of the guqin flowed into her ears, and an illusion appeared in her mind. The sound of music was like that of the sword. She could not help but wave her hand. In an instant, the sword light was shining, and a flash of radiant sword light also crossed Luoyue''s beautiful eyes. As her heart surged, in an instant, the sword will form her body was getting even stronger.


    Buzz!


    One sword manifested. It brightened the nine heavens and collided with Wan Shouyi''s sword. At this moment, the two storms intertwined. The sword was annihilated, and the battle stopped.


    After a while, everyone saw that the Sword Qi had gradually dissipated, and in the void, the two stood opposite each other.


    "Congratulations, junior sister," Wan Shouyi said with a smile.


    "Success." All the disciples were a little shocked. Senior brother Wan tried the sword for Luoyue and successfully led her to comprehend and reach an epiphany, leading to a breakthrough in swordsmanship. Now, her strength was even more superb.


    At this moment, Luoyue was still in a daze. The feeling of the sword just now...


    "Thank you, senior brother, for trying the sword with me." Luoyue bowed slightly to Wan Shouyi.


    "You were only a step away. You would breakthrough sooner or later. It had little to do with me." Wan Shouyi smiled.


    "A single step could be a trap for a long time." Luoyue shook her head. This was something she understood.


    At this time, she turned her eyes and looked at the figure on a boulder in front of the cliff. Ye Futian sat there with a guqin in front of him, but at this time the music had already stopped.


    She remembered the musician at Taixuan Tavern��Shen Jing��and had heard that he was now guarding guqins in the String Pavilion. He was very eager to learn and had come to the Sword Abyss to cultivate


    "Was that moment just now a coincidence?" Luoyue murmured in her heart. That flash of spiritual light seemed to be guided by the sound of guqin.


    "Shen Jing greets Princess Luoyue." Seeing Luoyue looking at him, Ye Futian smiled and nodded at Luoyue.


    "Mmmm." Luoyue looked at Ye Futian, and seeing that the other did not appear out of sorts, thought that she was thinking too much.


    "Uncle sent you to Taixuan Mountain just as a musician, but there are still many opportunities. Concentrate on cultivating," Luoyue said to Ye Futian and then left!

 1505 Stealing the Ar

    Ye Futian remained there, his eyes on the cliff, and continued to meditate his sword techniques.


    Luoyue was the daughter of the City Lord of Taixuan City, but she was not overbearing. Whether in the battle of the Realm of Ruins, or the meeting at Taixuan Tavern, he had felt positive about her. Not to mention, she was also related to the House Master of Taixuan as a disciple of Taixuan Mountain.


    His admission into Taixuan Mountain to cultivate was a favor. When he saw that Luoyue needed help, he was able to help her with the music without being too obvious about it. After all, even without him, Luoyue would make a breakthrough on her own sooner or later. To him, it was just an easy task that cost him nothing, so there was no reason to be stingy. It was just as how the House Master of Taixuan had helped him to get to Taixuan Mountain.


    "Shen Jing, when I listen to your guqin, it matches perfectly with the battle of swordsmanship. It seemed as if I had heard nothing at all. It didn''t appear to be intrusive." A person next to him said, "I guess to get to this point, your expertise in guqin superb and you must also have a deep understanding of swordsmanship?"


    Ye Futian looked at the speaker and smiled. These days, many recognized him in Sword Abyss, so they would often talk to him.


    "In front of the disciples of Sword Abyss, how dare I speak about the understanding of swordsmanship and show off?" Ye Futian said with a smile, full of humility, as usual. The other was accustomed to it as well and smiled. "Could it be that you deliberately hide yourself and your skills? I have never seen you practice the swords in Sword Abyss."


    The speaker''s tone was very casual. They were obviously joking.


    "I came to Sword Abyss to observe the swordplay. As for practicing, I better practice in secret when I go back so you guys won''t laugh at me," Ye Futian responded with a smile. Many around him smiled. Yet another said, "But I think that you, Shen Jing, are hiding your skills. Maybe, you have already have made some achievements in swordsmanship."


    Ye Futian shook his head without saying anything more. His gaze continued to be fixed on the cliff wall. He was meditating.


    There was nothing more important than cultivation. With this opportunity for cultivation at Taixuan Mountain, naturally, he would not waste it; he would use this opportunity to elevate his cultivation.


    On the other side, Wan Shouyi and Luoyue left together. Luoyue was still thinking about the breakthrough that had just happened. Although she thought it was a coincidence, that sound of guqin so perfectly helped her. Perhaps even Shen Jing himself was not aware of it.


    Shen Jing''s music was transparent. Its mood was extraordinary, and it was indeed a talent was far as the Guqin Path was concerned. Perhaps this was the reason why Uncle sent him to Taixuan Mountain in the first place, but it was not clear why he came to cultivate his swordsmanship.


    "Brother Wan, what do you think of Shen Jing?" Luoyue asked.


    "Not bad. Humble and studious, his future is promising. But it''s unknown just how talented he is. But since Miss Four endorsed his entrance into Taixuan Mountain, there must be something outstanding about him," Wan Shouyi responded, which was also his honest opinion.


    "Well, there is a charm to his music. It''s very pure." Luoyue nodded slightly. "Brother Wan, if you have the opportunity, keep an eye on Shen Jing. We have met once, so we knew each other, and because he was also sent by Uncle, don''t let him be isolated because he''s not a disciple of Taixuan Mountain."


    "Relax, Shen Jing is well-liked, and many disciples of Sword Abyss also take good care of him." Wan Shouyi smiled. "Even without your instructions, because of Miss Four, we will do what we can."


    "Very well." Luoyue nodded gently. "Thank you, brother."


    Her instruction was considered returning the favor of the other, who had no idea how he had accidentally helped her to break through the realm of swordsmanship.


    Best wishes for him to achieve something great here.


    Louyue couldn''t help but think of the mysterious swordsman in the Realm of Ruins. If he came to Taixuan Mountain to cultivate, he would certainly have infinite potential.


    Unfortunately, after that day, the mysterious swordsman disappeared.


    How would she know that the swordsman she was thinking of was cultivating swordsmanship at Sword Abyss? It was the same person she had asked to be taken care of.


    Without noticing, some time had passed. Ye Futian cultivated daily.


    On this day, in the land behind the String Pavilion, he stood on the edge of the cliff in front of the sea of clouds.


    He held a sword in his right hand.


    His palms were stretched out as if time and space were still, but there was an invisible might in the surrounding heaven and earth. It was extremely suppressed. This sense of might seemed to permeate into every corner between heaven and earth, and it was everywhere.


    The palms passed over, and in an instant, a dazzling golden divine light flashed and disappeared. A golden trace appeared in the sea of ??clouds in front oh him, which seemed to be bisected, but Ye Futian''s movements did not stop there. His feet moved forward, and his arms passed over again, and another golden line bisected the space. It seemed to be cut through.


    This was the first level of the Fleeting Divine Sword of the ancient sword, A Glimmer of Sky. With each strike, a line in the void would cut through the sky.


    As he moved forward, Ye Futian unleashed sword strike after sword strike, and the sea of ??clouds turned from a state of calmness to highly turbulent, with the storm of swordsmanship tossing and turning. Countless sword marks crisscrossed. It was as if, unconsciously, the swordsmanship had transformed from the first level��A Glimmer of Sky��to the second level��Cleave of All Things.


    After a moment, Ye Futian stopped and stood quietly above the sea of ??clouds.


    "You practiced this long, and this is it?" At this time, a clear voice was heard, and Ye Futian knew that it was the little phoenix. He looked up to Feng Yan, feeling the breath that came from the other. There was a smile in his eyes, "You broke through?"


    "Yes, now I''m the same as you," Feng Yan said with swagger.


    "Not bad. You broke through without even realizing it," Ye Futian said under his breath, a little envious in his heart. This kind of talent for cultivation was something that even many geniuses could not possess. The natural-born Saint was indeed powerful.


    "That''s because I am the Divine Phoenix." Feng Yan held her head up high and looked at Ye Futian with some contempt. "Unlike you, instead of practicing Guqin Path, you ran over to Sword Abyss to practice swordsmanship, and after such a long time, your Fleeting Divine Sword is still at this level. Did you just pass the first level?"


    "Uh..."


    Ye Futian looked confounded. Was he being made fun of?


    He looked at the little phoenix with a smile. It seemed that after the breakthrough, Feng Yan was a little puffed up.


    At this moment, Feng Yan was staring at him without blinking. Judging from her posture, she was clearly a little excited and wanted to give it a try.


    "Do you also know of the Fleeting Divine Sword?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "There are many at Sword Abyss who know of this sword technique in Taiyuan Mountain, so how could I not?" Feng Yan said proudly. Ye Futian nodded. The disciples of Sword Abyss had also claimed that there were many who had cultivated the Fleeting Divine Swords, but few were able to accomplish it because its power was great. So all those who cultivated in swordsmanship wanted to learn it, but very few were ever able to reach the peak of its power.


    "Good. Since you know this technique, how about we give it a try?" Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Great." Just as Ye Futian had guessed, Feng Yan came because she was eager to try it. Now, seeing as how Ye Futian offered, she immediately agreed. This time, she would make this guy so embarrassed. It would be a change from his usual air of haughtiness.


    "Let''s get started." Feng Yan seemed a bit impatient, and the moment her words faded, Ye Futian instantly felt the temperature between heaven and earth rise sharply. In just a moment, it was like a furnace. An imaginary divine flame enveloped the world, and Ye Futian seemed to be wrapped within it.


    There was a long whistle, the whistle of the phoenix reached the nine heavens. A giant illusion of the divine phoenix appeared above the sky. The sea of ??clouds was branded red under the flames, and Ye Futian''s body also seemed to be burning.


    However, he was still standing there quietly, extremely calm. With some movement from his mind, sword will traversed the vast space; it was seemingly everywhere. The sharp whistling of the sword came out, a little piercing. The entire void was filled with an extremely sharp breath.


    "I''m going to make a move." Ye Futian looked at Feng Yan.


    "I''m going to make a move too." Feng Yan''s pupils were burning with divine flames that shot toward Ye Futian''s eyes. Ye Futian felt his will was also burning.


    He smiled as he stepped forward, disappearing in an instant, and the sword in his hand also sailed across with his body.


    Boom! The divine flame on Feng Yan also exploded at this moment, burning the world, but Ye Futian''s figure disappeared in front of her.


    She found out, much to her shock, that in an instant, Ye Futian''s illusions were all around her. It was as if he was everywhere, and everywhere he passed, his sword did too.


    An extreme sense of danger came over her, and Feng Yan''s face changed suddenly. She felt that the space she was in seemed to be shattering. She was in a prison forged by Cleave of All Things. Countless crisscrossed sword marks were about to smash this space.


    "Dad, Mom!" Feng Yan closed her eyes and shouted.


    Buzz. A figure disappeared in a flash, and Ye Futian pulled Feng Yan''s body out of there as if intentionally leaving a gap.


    Below, the space was cut into countless fragments as if completely pulverized.


    Feng Yan opened her eyes and looked down, rather fearful. Then she raised her eyes and stared at Ye Futian angrily. "You were playing for real?"


    Ye Futian looked at her innocently.


    "You actually had the heart to strike..." Feng Yan was extremely upset.


    "��"


    Ye Futian had no response.


    Two extremely dominant authorities of heaven descended, and a pair of phoenix demon emperors appeared in front of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s mouth twitched. Was she calling her parents again?


    How could they play?


    "Shen Jing greets has the elders." Ye Futian''s heart was galloping, but on the surface, he was still politely showing his respect.


    Two demon emperors stared at him. Their pressure of might bloomed. One could only imagine how much pressure Ye Futian felt at this moment and how wronged he felt.


    "Dad, Mom, he bullied me," Feng Yan said aggrievedly in a weepy voice.


    Ye Futian was almost weeping himself. How shameless.


    "You want to show off and now you are in trouble?" the mother phoenix said to Feng Yan. It was not a bad thing for this girl to taste some hardships. She did not know her limit.


    "Elder is wise." Ye Futian was grateful. As heaven was his witness, when did he bully Feng Yan?


    "You are not some good bird yourself. She is but a child. Why did you unleash such strong technique?" the mother phoenix stared at Ye Futian and asked.


    "Er..." Ye Futian looked stunned, and he really wanted to rebuke with something like "You are the bird, and, in fact, your whole family is..." but he dared not.


    Feng Yan, a child?


    As a mother, she was on the side of her child no matter what.


    "You learned your sword technique from Sword Abyss?" Feng Yan''s father asked.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded, and the other fell silent. The two demon emperors looked at each other, and their hearts were a little shocked.


    This guy had learned all six famous songs, and in such a short time, he had achieved the second level of the Fleeting Divine Sword.


    Was he here to guard the String Pavilion or was he here to steal the art?


    If this continued, would all the secret inheritances of Taixuan Mountain be stolen?

 1506 Sorrow in Beauty

    As the end of the year drew close, the number of cultivators visiting Taixuan Mountain was increasing, and many of those who had gone to cultivate in the outer realms had all begun to return.


    On this day, Taixuan Mountain was lively. Lord Taixuan''s third disciple��String Emperor��had come from the String Palace to visit his Master Lord Taixuan, which caused many on Taixuan Mountain to chatter.


    Moreover, many thought of Shen Jing, the guardian of String Pavilion. Now that the String Emperor had returned, no one knew what he would think of Shen Jing.


    If Shen Jing''s luck held up, maybe he could become a disciple of String Emperor.


    Soon after the String Emperor Qin went up to Taixuan Mountain, Miss Four of Taixuan Tavern in Taixuan City had also come back, which caused more chatter among the disciples of Taixuan Mountain. Miss Four and the String Emperor still enjoyed a great relationship. Every time the String Emperor appeared, Miss Four would not be far behind.


    In the palace of Lord Taixuan, there were bursts of hearty laughter. Those who heard it all sighed and thought Lord Taixuan was probably only this merry when his disciples came to visit.


    There were many rumors that Lord Taixuan''s favorite was Miss Four. Miss Four who was the youngest and was the only woman among the four disciples, therefore, she was naturally favored. Lord Taixuan treated her like his daughter. The String Emperor was also younger and liked by Lord Taixuan.


    Ye Futian cultivated in the String Pavilion this day and did not go to the Sword Abyss. He was the only one in the String Pavilion, so he was not very aware of the goings-on outside.


    At this time, he was still cultivating guqin in the rear mountain.


    The quiet space, the misty sea of ??clouds, the sound of guqin was melodious, beautiful, and had a strong penetrating power. Between the seas of clouds, there was a dazzling divine brilliance. It was gorgeous and radiant. A beautiful divine bird phoenix could be seen shuttling back and forth between the clouds in cultivation as if inspired to dance by the sound of guqin.


    Flight of the Phoenix Pair was the piece Ye Futian played most often because it was helpful to Feng Yan. Although he didn''t say anything and even often argued with her, Ye Futian still played this song once in a while to resonate with the little phoenix.


    Although the girl''s habit of often calling her parents for backup had greatly annoyed him, he was not in the habit of arguing with children.


    The rhythm of Flight of the Phoenix Pair was extremely beautiful. As the song ended, its mood still lingered. Ye Futian''s ten fingers moved away from the strings as if he felt something. Suddenly, he looked up. A middle-aged man clad in white fur stood there quietly. Without a trace of his breath, his whole person seemed to have blended into the space between heaven and earth.


    Ye Futian secretly shuddered. Someone had come near him and he did not even feel it. Yes, he was concentrating on playing the guqin, but his realm was of a certain level. If the other had wanted to attack him, he would not have even known it, so one could only imagine the prowess of this person.


    Of course, anyone who could achieve this level had no need to resort to an ambush as he could kill him at will.


    Ye Futian got up calmly. He faced the middle-aged man in the white fur and bowed slightly. "Shen Jing, the guardian musician of the String Pavilion, greets the elder."


    The person who came here undetected was naturally a cultivator of Taixuan Mountain, and a powerful Renhuang at that. His status in Taixuan Mountain must be high above all others. Ye Futian had some idea who this person might be.


    "Shen Jing," the man repeated in a low tone, and Ye Futian nodded. He raised his eyes and looked at the other and saw that the man appeared to be in his 30s or 40s. He looked elegant and gentle with an excellent spirit and was very attractive. Such a temperament must be irresistible to women.


    In the distance, the sea of ??clouds rolled over, and a gorgeous divine light shone between heaven and earth. The two figures appeared directly in the sea of ??clouds not far from Ye Futian. It was the pair of divine birds, the phoenixes. Their eyes were fixed on the man. They said, "You have returned."


    Upon hearing their words, Ye Futian knew that his guess was correct.


    Their master had returned.


    The master of String Pavilion, the third disciple of Lord Taixuan��the String Emperor.


    "Hmm." The String Emperor nodded slightly only to see the little phoenix fly over in a hurry. Her beautiful eyes looked curiously at the String Emperor in front of her.


    "Feng Yan, where are your manners!" Next to her, her father prompted her, and the little phoenix came to and bowed. "Feng Yan greets the String Emperor."


    "She is all grown up." The String Emperor revealed a gentle smile. He looked at Feng Yan; his eyes were extremely gentle and kind. He had witnessed Feng Yan''s birth and blessed her so that Feng Yan was born with a unique gift��a natural-born Saint.


    Later on, he visited more infrequently and had not seen Feng Yan much. Now, in the blink of an eye, she was already growing up to be a fine young lady of the Unblemished Plane.


    At this time there were footsteps. The two phoenixes shifted their gazes there. They bowed again, saying, "Miss Four."


    Ye Futian also looked over there. Not far behind the String Emperor, someone walked quietly this way. It was the House Master of Taixuan who had sent him to Taixuan Mountain to cultivate in the first place. She exuded noble temperament, and her statuesque figure was somewhat seductive.


    "Elder," Ye Futian bowed and said.


    The String Emperor turned to look at the House Master of Taixuan, whispering, "Junior sister."


    But the House Master of Taixuan didn''t look at him. She walked right past by him, and her gaze landed on Ye Futian. "How is cultivation on Taixuan Mountain? Have you gotten used to it?"


    "It''s been very good so far, and the disciples of Taixuan Mountain have been taking great care of me." Ye Futian nodded and added, "All thanks to you, elder."


    "Well," the House Master of Taixuan nodded, "all this talk of ''elder'' is making me feel quite old. Call me ''sister''."


    "..."


    Ye Futian looked stunned. This was not right; it was very wrong.


    Although he had met the House Master of Taixuan once and also accepted a favor from her, when did their relationship become so intimate?


    Sister?


    Not exactly.


    This must be some kind of scheme.


    Many thoughts flashed past his mind in just a moment''s time. Just then, the String Emperor had called out to the House Master of Taixuan, and she did not respond. Technically, the String Emperor was her senior brother, and her response was very unusual. The two possibilities could be that one, they had a poor relationship, or two, they had such a good relationship that common protocol did not apply.


    If it was very poor, then the House Master of Taixuan would not have come at all. And then, recalling Uncle Lan''s initial attitude of sending himself here directly, Ye Futian suddenly seemed to understand something, and there was a sense of enlightenment.


    Ye Futian suddenly thought of the piece he had just played��the Flight of the Phoenix Pair. It was about the phoenixes traveling in pairs, and it had exceptional significance.


    When he considered this, Ye Futian felt tense all over. This was tough. Did he dare to call her "sister"?


    Ye Futian said nothing, panicking inside.


    "What? Do you think I''m old?" The House Master of Taixuan smiled softly and looking charming. She beautiful beyond description.


    Old?


    In the world of cultivation, such a concept did not exist, especially for those whose status was of an empress, as they were eternally youthful. The charm of the empress was so attracted that no one could even imagine them to be that old.


    But the String Emperor was looking on right beside him. Without a clear picture of the relationship between the two, would he dare?


    If he got killed, he wouldn''t even know how he died.


    "Don''t joke with the likes of me. I dare not," Ye Futian replied honestly because he really dared not to do so.


    The House Master of Taixuan still looked at him with a smile, but now, there was a bit of contempt in those beautiful eyes. Ye Futian was fine with that. He was perfectly willing to give up when necessary; his life was more important.


    "This is Shen Jing, a musician in my tavern. Not only is he handsome, but his musical skill was of a high level, so I sent him here to Taixuan Mountain. My original intention was to have him cultivate in Guqin Valley, but I didn''t expect Uncle Lan to place him here."


    Just then, those beautiful eyes of the House Master of Taixuan turned to the String Emperor at her side. She said, "Since senior brother has returned, I will take him away. Shen Jing, apologize."


    Ye Futian was a little speechless. He did not believe that the House Master of Taixuan was unaware that Uncle Lan had placed him here.


    That day when she sent him, she went up the mountain to visit Lord Taixuan while Uncle Lan sent him to the String Pavilion. At that time, she had not left yet.


    This was too hypocritical.


    Ye Futian looked at the String Emperor, bowed slightly to pay his respects, and just as he was about to speak, the String Emperor spoke first, "Not necessary."


    Ye Futian''s body stiffened. He was caught in a dilemma.


    "Since Uncle Lan put you here to cultivate, let''s say it was fate. I don''t come often, so it is good to have a musician to guard the pavilion for me. In the future, you should continue to cultivate here," the String Emperor said to Ye Futian.


    A lot of ideas came into Ye Futian''s mind. If he continued to stay in the String Pavilion, would the String Emperor use that opportunity to secretly get his revenge?


    If it was because of that unspoken "sister" that he was now angry. It was truly unfortunate.


    "Thank you, elder." Ye Futian dared not reveal what he was actually thinking. He bowed to show his appreciation.


    "But, he is my person," the House Master of Taixuan said, looking at the String Emperor.


    "..." Ye Futian wanted to die. He didn''t deserve to be set up like that.


    Since when was he the person of the House Master of Taixuan?


    "Then loan me your person to help me take care of the String Pavilion, and I will owe you a personal favor," the String Emperor said.


    "Since senior brother has put it that way, then I''d be happy to oblige," the House Master of Taixuan smiled and said. "Shen Jing, from now on, you should guard the String Pavilion well."


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Three days later, Master will speak at Taixuan Palace, and all disciples of Taixuan Mountain can go and listen. You should go with them."


    To listen to Lord Taixuan speak!


    Ye Futian was slightly surprised, but he nodded and replied, "Certainly."


    This was also a rare opportunity. Lord Taixuan was a man of colossal intellect who knew all things from past to present. He was known as a legendary person in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    After the House Master of Taixuan glanced at the String Emperor, she turned to leave without saying another word. This made Ye Futian quite confused about the two''s relationship.


    But he always remembered Uncle Lan''s words: speak less, observe more.


    So, very wisely, he kept his mouth shut.


    The String Emperor moved his step and walked to Ye Futian''s side. His eyes fell on the Phoenix Guqin. Ye Futian wisely gave way so that the String Emperor could sit down in front of the guqin. He stroked the strings with both hands. He whispered, "I''ve not played it for a long time."


    As he was speaking, he plucked the strings with his fingers, and in a flash, the sound of the ethereal music was heard. It had a very strong penetrating power.


    The two phoenix demon emperors soared, and gorgeous divine light was extremely bright, covering the String Pavilion.


    The sound of the guqin gradually bloomed, piercing the sea of ??clouds. It penetrated Taixuan Mountain. The sound of phoenix chanting was crystal clear and resounded through the space. The two demon emperors danced above the sky, flying together. It was unbelievably spectacular.


    Ye Futian looked up into the sky, and all he saw was beauty. But what he felt in his heart was a faint sense of heartache. This was the beauty of the guqin, the faint sorrow hidden within the beauty!

 1507 Lord Taixuan Teaches the Way

    The music stopped within String Palace. The two Empresses stood behind String Emperor, their hearts full of many different emotions. They had not been like this in a very long time.


    They had originally wanted to follow String Emperor when he left and went out into the world, but he had asked them to stay at Taixuan mountain.


    String Emperor looked up, his fingers still resting lightly upon the strings of his guqin. He looked over at Ye Futian and asked, "Which of the six songs is your favorite?"


    "Flight of the Phoenix Pair," answered Ye Futian.


    "Why?" asked String Emperor.


    "I think that music makes the emotions linger. It reflects the player''s sorrow and joy, their pain, and their pleasure. Only if they have deep feelings can they play with soul. Flight of the Phoenix Pair contains the deepest emotions of any of the songs," answered Ye Futian. "Thus, I think that Flight of the Phoenix Pair is the best one of these six songs."


    String Emperor''s gaze rested upon him, then slowly shifted. He looked at the guqin that he had been playing and whispered, "It does not make any sense to waste String Palace by keeping it for my return. From now on, if you see anything you like, you may take it, including these guqins. There is no need to ask anyone for permission."


    Ye Futian was stunned when he heard this. String Emperor was giving String Palace to him.


    At first, he had entered Taixuan Tavern while hiding his identity to come up to Taixuan Mountain. He wanted to spend some time there cultivating, but everything that had happened afterward had gone surprisingly smoothly. The House Master of Taixuan had brought him up the mountain, and Uncle Lan had brought him to String Palace.


    And now, String Emperor was giving everything within String Palace to him.


    He was not sure what all of this meant. He was not even particularly excited by this prospect.


    He looked back at String Emperor. Would he really give away String Palace with a single sentence?


    Perhaps the House Master of Taixuan must have had something to do with this.


    But really, he was probably overthinking this. String Emperor was a powerful figure. Why would he care about the petty machinations of the House Master of Taixuan? There was nothing that he could do to hurt him.


    "Thank you, senior." Ye Futian bowed in thanks. Although he was not excited by this, he still would not refuse it.


    The two Empresses stared deeply at him. This guy had not been on Taixuan Mountain for very long and had already stolen so much! Now he had obtained String Palace. If the disciples of Taixuan Mountain knew what he had gained today, they would not be so friendly towards him!


    ...


    The 10,030th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar drew to a close. On that day, Taixuan Mountain, which was usually so peaceful, became quite lively. In addition to all the disciples who had returned from being abroad, the four great disciples of Lord Taixuan were there as well, and they had brought many of their own disciples.


    On this day, Lord Taixuan would teach the Way.


    Everyone gathered together in front of Taixuan Palace early in the morning. Although Taixuan Mountain did not accept as many disciples as a lot of other places, there were still countless cultivators there.


    Cultivators from Guqin Valley, Sword Abyss, and other places were all gathered together. For a time, the area outside the palace was incredibly lively.


    Ye Futian also came quietly. He had come with Little Phoenix. Although he had met many powerful figures and had even been personally taught by the Divine Elephant Emperor, this was the first time he had attended a lecture in this style; this would probably be very helpful for his cultivation.


    In addition to the countless Saint level disciples, there were also some Renhuang level figures there, sitting in the foremost seats.


    Ye Futian saw many familiar faces. The place that he knew the most disciples from was Sword Abyss. Some of them smiled and nodded when they saw him.


    "Shen Jing," came a voice. Ye Futian turned and saw a group of people walking up. At the front were Wan Shouyi and Princess Luoyue, as well as Deng Hu and the others who had fought at the ruins. The people from the City Lord''s Office had all come.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded at them.


    "How has this period of cultivation been for you?" asked Wan Shouyi with a smile.


    "Not bad," answered Ye Futian, "but I am a little bit confounded whenever I practice swordsmanship. If we have a chance, I must ask you to teach me."


    Wan Shouyi nodded. "That makes sense. It is the guqin arts that you are skilled in. If you run into any difficulties, I can give you a few pointers." His words were modest yet confident.


    "Thank you," said Ye Futian with a nod.


    "Brother Shen Jing," came another voice. He saw Ma Yi and his sworn sister of Taixuan Tavern walking over. Ma Yi was interested in Princess Luoyue, and when he saw her and Wan Shouyi together, his face changed a bit.


    "Sister Luoyue," he called.


    "Brother," replied Luoyue.


    "I never thought I''d see you here. The last time we were together was at Taixuan Tavern," said Ma Yi with a smile. "Shen Jing, I haven''t seen you since the Lord sent you up to Taixuan Mountain. How has your cultivation been going?"


    "Very well," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    "It makes me a little jealous how well they treat a guqin master like you. Keep cultivating diligently," said Ma Yi. Then he turned to talk to Luoyue. Without realizing it, he was soon standing next to her, and they were walking together.


    Ye Futian smiled to himself when he saw this. He was like an open book.


    May Yi was incredibly competitive. But this was not something that he needed to worry about.


    "Shen Jing," came another voice. A look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face. Since when had he been so popular here on Taixuan Mountain?


    This time the people coming to welcome him were Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu of Guqin Valley. Li Zhiyin had played Flight of the Phoenix Pair at String Palace. He was incredibly talented.


    Ye Futian smiled slightly and inclined his head.


    "How has it been cultivating at String Palace? Which of the six songs are you best at?" asked Li Zhiyin.


    "Each of the six songs is deep and brilliant. I have only touched upon them as of now. I must put more effort into them all," said Ye Futian.


    "None of the six songs are simple, and becoming specialized in one of them is no easy thing. If you want to learn a lot about one of them, then I am afraid it will be difficult to get good at all of them. Given this situation, your best chance is to choose one song and work on it diligently," said Li Zhiyin.


    "What you say is true, but given Shen Jing''s surroundings, I can''t blame him. If I were in his place, I would want to study all the songs too," said Chen Yu with a smile. Li Zhiyin agreed. If she were cultivating at the String Palace, it would probably be the same. She would want to study all six of the songs.


    But this was incredibly difficult.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "Very well, I will keep that in mind." The others had no more to say, and so the people from Guqin Valley left him there.


    Ye Futian smiled ruefully. Would anyone else come and seek him out today?"


    "It seems like you are very popular on Taixuan Mountain," Little Phoenix whispered to him. Ye Futian rolled his eyes.


    "But although they''re being polite to you, I can sense that there is another attitude as well," said Little Phoenix said gloatingly. "They are very protective of String Palace."


    Ye Futian naturally understood this. He had entered Taixuan Mountain under the guise of a guqin master, and had kept things low key, humbly concealing his skill. Thus, although the disciples of Taixuan Mountain were polite to him, they did not respect him that much and did not look at him as an equal.


    But Ye Futian did not mind this. After all, this was the result that he had hoped for, and he had worked to create this effect.


    Otherwise, how would he be able to cultivate in peace?


    "Great Teacher and Second Teacher are coming!" came an excited cry. Everyone made a path for them. The two of them were walking together. Everyone bowed to them, saying, "Greetings, Great Teacher. Greetings, Second Teacher."


    They were the head teacher of Taixuan Mountain and the City Lord of Taixuan City.


    The head teacher of Taixuan Mountain stepped forward. His aura was exquisite, and there was a sense of majesty about him. He raised his hand and said, "Today Lord Taixuan will teach us the Way, so there is no need to be so polite towards us. We have come here to listen to him, just like all of you."


    "Yes, teacher." Everyone rose, but their gazes were still full of respect. Great Teacher was such an important figure. His power was widely famed. It was said that he was on the same level as Lord Taixuan, and was thus one of the most powerful figures in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Of course, no one was clear on exactly how strong he was.


    Not long after, String Emperor and the House Master of Taixuan arrived, but not at the same time. One followed the other. String Emperor came first, and the House Master of Taixuan came after.


    Most of the people there did not notice, but a few people understood what this meant.


    String Emperor walked to the front and bowed to the head teacher of Taixuan and the City Lord of Taixuan City. "Greetings, brothers."


    "There is no need to be so polite, brother. Please sit," said the head teacher of Taixuan Mountain with a smile. String Emperor nodded and sat down. The House Master of Taixuan said nothing; he just sat down beside them. The four personal disciples were sitting in the very front row.


    At that moment, a figure slowly walked out of the palace. In a flash, everyone stood up and bowed, including the four great teachers. "Greetings, Lord Taixuan," they all said.


    Everyone moved as one. The respect that they felt for him was plain on their faces.


    The fact that Lord Taixuan was willing to teach them the Way was enough to make him worthy of their respect.


    After all, in the face of a powerful figure like this, even Saint level people were little more than ants.


    Moreover, Lord Taixuan would no longer take on new disciples. There was nothing that could be said to sway him on this.


    Thus, when he taught the Way, the ones who were present would be the only ones to ever benefit from it.


    "Please be seated," said Lord Taixuan to everyone. Everyone took their seats, and Lord Taixuan sat on a rush hassock in front of them all.


    Although Ye Futian had been cultivating at Taixuan Mountain for a while, this was the first time that he had seen Lord Taixuan. He had white hair, a white beard, and a cultivator''s robe. He had the demeanor of a transcendent being, and he was so graceful that he seemed to not be of this world, but was rather a truly celestial being.


    Lord Taixuan waved his hand, and suddenly a character was floating in the air in front of everyone. "The Way."


    The character was full of vigor and power as if it had been written in the air by an ink pen. "What do you see here?" asked Lord Taixuan.


    "A character."


    "The way," people answered.


    "Is that all?" asked Lord Taixuan. Everyone looked at the character with a confused expression. They did not understand.


    All they could see was a character that read "The Way." Could it be that this character held some mysteries?


    They all released their Divine Spirits and perceived the character in detail. But though they could see it floating there, they could not feel any unusual aura coming from it.


    The vast area became incredibly quiet.


    "When I teach the Way to you today, I will only speak of this character here," said Lord Taixuan. "Can no one see anything else?"


    Everyone was still silent. No one could answer Lord Taixuan''s question.

 1508 Lord Taixuan

    The people who were closest to Lord Taixuan were naturally the four disciples that he taught personally. They looked at the character in front of them and sensed something. But they did not say anything.


    They were Lord Taixuan''s personal disciples and had often heard their master teach. Today, the main focus was on the other disciples of Taixuan Mountain.


    The character that read "The Way" floated in the air above them. It looked normal, but also abnormal at the same time. But no one could really say what was abnormal about it.


    Ye Futian stared at the character as well, and his eyes slowly changed as his gaze grew deeper. In that vast space, the world all around him changed. He seemed to see endless beams of light floating between heaven and earth. The will of that character filled the air. He could see the changes of all things.


    What he was seeing was not a character; it was "the Way" itself.


    However, he did not say anything. He just sat there quietly. Among all the disciples of Taixuan Mountain here today, as a guqin master, it was best if he said nothing.


    Although Ye Futian said nothing, it seemed that, at that moment, Lord Taixuan sensed something. He looked over towards Ye Futian. Their gazes collided. Ye Futian found himself looking into an infinitely deep pair of eyes, so deep that they seemed to be filled with the Way.


    But the feeling disappeared in an instant. He immediately averted his gaze, but he heard Lord Taixuan say, "What is your name?"


    Ye Futian''s heart began to beat faster. He told himself that he had been a little bit too careless. Lord Taixuan was such a powerful figure, and his perception was so sharp. He had looked at the character through the eyes of meditation, and Lord Taixuan had obviously been able to sense that.


    He rose and bowed, saying, "Greetings, my Lord. My name is Shen Jing."


    "Please sit, Shen Jing," said Lord Taixuan. "What did you see?"


    Many people looked at Ye Futian. They had no idea why Lord Taixuan was asking Ye Futian this. Perhaps he had just randomly chosen someone from the crowd.


    Ye Futian was silent for a time. He did not know if he should speak or not.


    Seeing that he was silent, everyone''s expressions changed. The House Master of Taixuan said, "Master, Shen Jing is a guqin master that I brought up to Taishan Mountain. This character is profound and mysterious. How could he possibly answer you?"


    "That does not matter. You may answer freely." Lord Taixuan seemed extremely kind and gentle as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "I see "the Way," answered Ye Futian with a bow. As he said this, a strange look came over everyone''s faces. Some of them even frowned. Would he really give such a simple answer?


    If he did not know, then he could just say that he did not know. The Lord had just randomly picked him, and he would not blame him if he got it wrong.


    Everyone could see that the character read "the Way." Everyone had already answered that. Lord Taixuan had asked them what else they had seen.


    But Ye Futian had still answered that he saw "the Way."


    But as they were all thinking this, Lord Taixuan asked another question: "What Way?" This made a look of surprise come over everyone''s faces.


    Lord Taixuan had asked him another question.


    "The Way of Swordsmanship," answered Ye Futian.


    Everyone was speechless when they heard this. Had he seen the Way of Swordsmanship?


    This Shen Jing...


    "Do not say such foolish things." Ye Futian heard a voice in his mind. Someone was transmitting to him. It was Princess Luoyue.


    Although Lord Taixuan would not mind, if Ye Futian spoke foolishly, it would still be bad. It would affect the people of Taishan Mountain''s opinion of him. In that case, it would have negative effects on his future cultivating at Taishan Mountain, and it would not be easy for him to find a chance to become a disciple.


    Ye Futian had unknowingly helped her, and so she took the time to remind him of this.


    However, Ye Futian seemed not to hear her reminder. He sat there quietly, looking very calm as if he was not distressed in the least.


    If Lord Taixuan had casually chosen to ask him a question, then he would answer him casually.


    "Mmm." Lord Taixuan nodded, then turned his gaze away from Ye Futian.


    He did not say whether he was right or wrong, but everyone could see that his questioning was over. Lord Taixuan would not delve any deeper into Ye Futian''s answer. After all, he had just been asking casually.


    At that moment, an aura bloomed from the character and flowed through the area. In a flash, the giant character became extraordinary as an invisible will covered Taixuan Mountain.


    At that moment, it seemed as if the only thing that anyone could see was the character.


    "How about now? What do you see?" Lord Taixuan asked everyone.


    "Will," everyone answered. They all felt an incredibly powerful will that seemed to contain the will of the Great Path within it. This character was indeed supernatural.


    Lord Taixuan nodded slightly and waved his hand again. The character floated up, and divine light shone from it, spreading down Taixuan Mountain. The clouds in the sky changed color, and the will of all things became exceedingly clear. The light shone upon all of Taixuan City.


    At that moment, countless people in Taixuan City looked up to Mount Taixuan, trembling within their hearts as they did so.


    As the light of the Great Path shone, the seemed to be able to see a character that read "the Way," and an old man who was as graceful and elegant as a celestial being.


    "Lord Taixuan." in that instant, they all bowed, showing their respect to that figure. Inside themselves, they were in turmoil.


    Was Lord Taixuan teaching the Way?


    Countless Saint level figures were sitting there, diligently sensing everything. Lord Taixuan was transmitting the Way into Taixuan City, letting them all feel that the Way was everywhere.


    The people on Taixuan Mountain could feel it the most clearly. They seemed to be able to see everything in the world. The true fire of the sun fell, and water flowed to the deep places of the earth. Invisible space will was everywhere. They saw flowers blooming and dying, and they saw demonic beasts riding the winds high up in the sky. They could feel the wind flowing around them.


    "This is the Great Path of All Things..." Everyone''s hearts trembled. At that moment, their perception of everything became incomparably clear. It seemed as if they could see through things to their true nature.


    "How about now?" Lord Taixuan asked again. Everyone was still silent, but they were shaking.


    In that instant, an even more powerful aura spread out. Lord Taixuan''s form seemed not to be real. A phantom appeared up in the sky, and soon, it was everywhere at once. The character that read "the Way" was linking everything together.


    At that moment, the marvelous will expanded even more. It spread out from the vast Taixuan City all throughout the Taixuan Region.


    In the distance, the people of Taixuan City were looking up into the sky, and their hearts were trembling wildly.


    Was this the aura of a god?


    Everything in the world became clearer. The people in Taixuan saw countless images. They were images of everything in the world.


    "What is the Way?" Lord Taixuan was no longer asking what everyone saw; he was asking what the Way was.


    "No one lights the sun and the moon, and yet they burn brightly. No one arranges the stars, and yet they are well ordered. No one creates beasts, and yet they are born. No one stirs up the wind, and yet it blows. No one pushes the waters, and yet they flow. No one plants the trees and grass, and yet they grow. You do not try to breathe, and yet you do. You do not make your heart beat, and yet it does."


    Lord Taixuan seemed to be speaking to himself. "Everything in the world is born into something, or into nothing. Everything in the world has its reasons for moving. We humans cultivate the Way in order to chase after these rules. However, the higher the level you cultivate to, the more you feel your own insignificance. Saints feel like they have grasped the Way, but they have only touched one corner of it. Seeing some of these rules and operations is called understanding the Way, and is called Sainthood."


    Everyone on Taixuan Mountain who heard these words felt a little ashamed, especially those who were proud and thought of themselves as cultivators. At that moment, they truly felt their own insignificance.


    "Cultivation is hard. Becoming a Saint is very hard, and becoming a Renhuang is even harder. But although I say it is hard, at the same time, it is not hard. When you understand the Way and understand the motions of the sun and the moon, then you will shine along with them. When you understand the motions of the stars, you will move along with them. But are the sun and moon and stars and everything in the world well ordered? If they are not ordered, how can you understand their changes?


    "Although ''the Way'' is but one word, it is incredibly difficult to see through."


    Lord Taixuan sighed, and his sigh seemed to cause the sun, moon, and stars to move.


    He stood up and waved his hand, leaving a deep impression on the peak of Taixuan Mountain. Far away in Taixuan City, countless people could still see the character.


    "My Lord!" Everyone''s hearts were trembling.


    "Master!" Even Lord Taixuan''s four disciples looked shocked as they looked at him.


    "Is the Master going to break through to the next level?" said the head teacher of Taixuan. Suddenly, everyone''s hearts beat even faster. If Lord Taixuan was going to break through to the next level, what level would that be?


    "That''s out of the question. It is just that in these past few years of cultivation, I have had a feeling. I am teaching the Way today for the sake of teaching it to you, but at the same time, I am teaching myself," said Lord Taixuan. "I must spend a period of time locked away in cultivation."


    "I will stay here on Taixuan Mountain and guard it for you, Master," said the head teacher.


    The other three stood as well and bowed. They would all stay on the Mountain and guard it for him.


    Lord Taixuan nodded slightly, then turned to leave. With a single step, he disappeared.


    Everyone on Taixuan Mountain was still looking at the character that read "the Way." The character contained the actual will of the Great Path.


    And it was not only the people on Taixuan Mountain who were looking at it. In Taixuan City and all throughout the Taixuan Region, everyone was looking across the vast distance towards the mountain. The character filled all their visions.


    Let us go to Taixuan Mountain, they all thought. They all made their preparations to set out for the mountain.


    At that moment, as far away from Taixuan Mountain as could be, in an elegant hall in Shangxiao Divine Palace, a figure opened his eyes. His gaze seemed to pierce across the vast distance. "Lord Taixuan," he whispered.


    And it was not only in Shangxiao Divine Palace. At that moment, many people in the Higher Heavens Realm felt something. They all immediately set out towards Taixuan Mountain!

 1509 Friends from Far Away

    The whole Taixuan Region was shaken. None of them knew what had happened, but when they looked up, they could see a character that read "the Way" flashing in their eyes.


    Something incredibly important must have happened on Taixuan Mountain. Countless cultivators headed over there.


    Within Taixuan City, cultivators were walking towards the mountain from all directions as quickly as they could. They flew on the wind and rode on swords, their hearts trembling fiercely. Those few Renhuang level figures among them were even more disturbed. They could faintly feel that Lord Taixuan was possibly about to enter a new level.


    Once he did this, the whole Higher Heavens Realm would be shaken.


    Of course, the most shocked were still the cultivators upon Taixuan Mountain. Lord Taixuan had said that he would lock himself away in cultivation. The head teacher of Taixuan Mountain, speaking for the four great disciples, had said that they would guard Taixuan Mountain for him. What did this mean?


    All the disciples felt their hearts beating quickly. Even Ye Futian felt his heart fluttering. Lord Taixuan was already at the very peak of the Renhuang level, yet there was still more for him to learn. If he broke through to a new level, would that be the level that Gu Tianxing had broken through to all those years ago?


    The people of the Higher Heavens Realm did not know either. But after Gu Tianxing, no one in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had reached that level. It was said that the old Dynasty Overlord had possibly been close to or had even reached that level, but that he had been slain by Gu Tianxing in battle and had grievously wounded Gu Tianxing at the same time.


    After these two great figures fell, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty never again had any figures at their level. The current Dynasty Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky had not reached this level yet.


    Ye Futian could only imagine what would happen when Lord Taixuan reached this level.


    He looked at the floating character, and his gaze seemed to fall deep into it. Just this single character was enough to make them understand. This was truly how to teach the Way.


    The City Lord of Taixuan looked behind him at everyone and said, "All of you cultivate on your own in order to understand this." Then the four disciples walked away towards where Lord Taixuan was shut away.


    Everyone else was left there, looking at the character. They were unable to calm the storm raging inside all of them.


    "Is Lord Taixuan going to break through to the next level?" someone asked.


    "Very possibly. He might just make it to a new level," someone answered. "He is already at the very peak of his current level."


    Everyone nodded. Given Lord Taixuan''s current level, he could only look up.


    "Shen Jing, did you truly see the Way of Swordsmanship before?" someone asked Ye Futian. It was Wan Shouyi, a disciple of Sword Abyss. Previously, he had not seen anything in particular. The character contained all the myriad things in the world and all the laws of motions of the earth. Thus, any answer that he could have given would have been fine.


    Now, it seemed like Ye Futian had said that the Way of Swordsmanship was the right answer. His heart was set on swords, and so he had seen the Way of Swordsmanship. Before, most people had ignored his answer, but now it seemed like they were having second thoughts.


    Could it be that this guqin master, who had been brought up to Taixuan Mountain by Fourth Sister, was also an incredibly talented swordsman and had seen a strand of sword will within the character?


    "These days, I have been observing the swordsmanship of Sword Abyss. Seeing how skilled its cultivators are, and this has been imprinted in my mind. Thus, when I looked at the character, I seemed to see some sword will," said Ye Futian. Wan Shouyi nodded. Ye Futian''s answer seemed reasonable enough.


    He knew that Ye Futian had indeed been spending a lot of time at Sword Abyss. He went there to observe every day. He had probably watched them so much that he had swords on the brain.


    The others all relaxed. If this were the case, they could understand what had happened.


    "Even if that is so, why did the cultivators of Sword Abyss not see swords?" someone asked at that moment. This made them all go pale. They turned to look at who had spoken.


    "Jun Mu."


    Many people looked surprised when they saw him. He was the head teacher of Taixuan''s disciple, Jun Mu.


    When Ye Futian had first come up Taixuan Mountain, Jun Mu had left an impression on him the first time he saw him.


    "Do you remember me, Brother Shen?" Jun Mu walked up to Ye Futian and smiled.


    Ye Futian nodded. "How could I forget such a memorable figure?"


    "So, it must have been fate that I saw you coming up to Taixuan Mountain," said Jun Mu with a smile. "Fourth Uncle brought you up to Taixuan Mountain, and Elder Lan let you enter String Palace. Now, Third Brother has returned, and you are still cultivating in String Palace. Apparently, you are worthy of Third Brother''s favor. Now, you were able to see the Way of Swordsmanship within that character. Why should you be so modest? I think that you must be outstanding in some way, and you have just been humble and restrained."


    Jun Mu''s words made everyone look back at Ye Futian. Could it be that he had been downplaying his own abilities?


    If so, then he was incredibly clever.


    "You are exaggerating, Brother Jun. All of the disciples of Taixuan Mountain are incredible; thus, I must be humble and restrained while I am here. Moreover, I have no right to boast. Fourth Sister brought me here and has been very good to me, and so I must concentrate on cultivation." Ye Futian was neither haughty nor humble. He simply and calmly answered Jun Mu.


    "Well, now you have been cultivating on Taixuan Mountain for a while. Have you had any success?" asked Jun Mu.


    "I have benefited greatly from my time here," said Ye Futian with a nod.


    "I once said that if I got the chance, I would like to enjoy your music. I wonder if I might take this opportunity to listen to you play." Jun Mu had been smiling all along, but everyone could feel a different sort of atmosphere. Some of the older folks understood what was going on, but the younger people were not clear on why Jun Mu was being this way.


    It seemed that he wanted to make Shen Jing do something.


    But what was it that he wanted to see?


    Did he want to see if he was strong, or if he was weak?


    "All the disciples of Taixuan Mountain heard Lord Taixuan teach the Way today. I was fortunate enough to be here as well, and so my heart is full. How could I dare to play a song here on Taixuan Mountain now? Everyone would laugh at me," said Ye Futian with a slight bow. "Farewell."


    "Will you really be so disrespectful to me?" said Jun Mu coldly. An invisible pressure spread out from him and fell upon Ye Futian. "I must ask you to satisfy my curiosity once again."


    Ye Futian felt the pressure falling upon him, and said, "Lord Taixuan is shut away, and the four Elders have gone to guard him. I am very grateful to Fourth Sister for bringing me here to cultivate, but I am just a guqin master of String Palace. I would not dare fight the disciple of the head teacher of Taixuan. If you insist on fighting me, I will be ashamed of my own inadequacy, and yet I will have to bear it."


    Everyone looked surprised. This Shen Jing was very frank. He would not fight back, but given how powerful Jun Mu was, fighting back would be meaningless anyway.


    "Jun Mu, why are you antagonizing Shen Jing?" asked Wan Shouyi.


    "If you want to test yourself, there are many disciples here on Taixuan Mountain. Why have you sought out Shen Jing?" said Princess Luoyue. She was a little bit upset. She kind of knew why Jun Mu was putting pressure on Ye Futian. Now that the elders were occupied, the disciples could do what they wanted.


    Jun Mu smiled slightly when he heard what they were all saying. He bowed to Ye Futian and said, "Forgive my rudeness."


    As he said this, his aura dissipated. He turned and sat down, his gaze fixed upon the character that read "the Way."


    "Why don''t you go, Shen Jing?" said Wan Shouyi to Ye Futian. Princess Luoyue looked at him as well.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Farewell," he said with a bow, and then turned and left.


    Jun Mu had tried to force him into a fight, but his heart was as calm as still water. He was not distressed at all.


    He still remembered his identity. At Taishan Mountain, he was just a guqin master. How could he fight one of the disciples of the head teacher of Taixuan?


    What would he do if he won?


    When he returned to String Palace, Ye Futian looked back up at the character that floated high above Taixuan Mountain. However, at that moment, a figure appeared beside him. It was Little Phoenix. She looked at Ye Futian and said, "Why did you yield?"


    Although she often quarreled with Ye Futian, she and he had become very familiar with each other after spending so much time together. She knew how talented he was. He had been successful in cultivating the Six Famous Songs and the Fleeting Divine Sword. How many people on Taixuan Mountain could say the same?


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "Are you worried for me?"


    Little Phoenix looked at him with disdain and said, "I''ve just never seen you be so cowardly."


    Ye Futian laughed and shook his head. "Little Phoenix, your personality is terrible, but you have a good heart. Your parents are a little fierce, but they have never been that way to me. And String Emperor and Fourth Sister have been so good to me. Why should I have gotten into a fight over such a trivial matter? That would just be giving into my personal feelings."


    Today was the first time he had seen Lord Taixuan, and he had met with String Emperor only a few times and had talked with him very little. And it was the same with Fourth Sister. But he was still grateful for the way they had treated him.


    Compared to that, the affair with Jun Mu was not even worth mentioning.


    "Alright, I am going to cultivate." Ye Futian sat cross-legged and looked up at the huge character. The process of Freedom Meditation began, and his eyes became incomparably deep as his gaze pierced through the air towards the character.


    At that moment, Ye Futian could faintly feel his soul leaving his body. It entered into the realm of the Way that floated in the air.


    A voice appeared in Ye Futian''s head. "All things are either born into something or into nothingness." No matter whether or not you could feel it, the Way was there. It was everywhere.


    Ye Futian seemed to be able to feel the ordered sequence of everything in the world from that character. His will stretched out continuously into the distance. He saw all of Taixuan Mountain and then continued downwards. He saw countless figures heading towards the mountain, as well as the chaos within the mountain.


    ...


    On New Year''s day of the 10,031st year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, countless figures had gathered below Taixuan Mountain. This had led to a huge disturbance within Taixuan City. Many of the people there were powerful figures, including some of the top figures of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    On the first day of the year, an invitation came down from Taixuan Mountain. All the people from the top forces were invited up onto the mountain to meet with Lord Taixuan.


    Lord Taixuan''s four disciples were standing outside Taixuan Palace and looking over the invitations.


    The signature on each of these invitations was enough to cause a sensation throughout the Higher Heavens Realm.


    "Why have you done this, Brother?" said the City Lord of Taixuan to the head teacher. At that moment, the great figures of the realm were handing them their invitations. If they ignored them, it would be impolite.


    "Our friends have come from far away. How can we be impolite to them?" said the head teacher. "We must invite them up the mountain and set up a feast for them."


    "Won''t this disturb our Master''s cultivation?" asked the City Lord of Taixuan.


    "I agree with our Brother. Since these people are here, why don''t we invite them to come up the mountain?" said String Emperor. The City Lord of Taixuan glanced at him but did not reply immediately.


    "In that case, I will go and make arrangements," said the City Lord of Taixuan after a while. Then he turned and left.

 1510 Make Trouble

    On the first day of the 10,031st year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, the usually very peaceful Taixuan Mountain shook all of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    It was announced that everyone who had come could go up the mountain.


    For a time, countless cultivators were climbing the mountain.


    Taixuan Mountain was vast, so even though they had come from all directions, it was still not too crowded.


    Most of the people who had come were from the Taixuan Region. They had come with a desire to advance towards Sainthood. After all, this was the holy land of the Taixuan Region.


    Moreover, Lord Taixuan was shut away, cultivating, trying to break through to the next level. Was it possible that he could do this?


    And if he did, what would happen?


    Would Lord Taixuan start a whole new school of thought?


    Shangxiao Divine Palace was, without a doubt, the most influential force in the Higher Heavens Realm as they had countless powerful figures and taught people from all over the world, so they had trained countless heroes. Many of the top families would send their younger members to Shangxiao Divine Palace to cultivate, and even some people from other realms would make the journey here, sending their younger members to seek the Path.


    Thus, when talking about influence, Shangxiao Divine Palace was certainly worthy of being called the most influential force in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    In addition to them, several other forces stood at the peak. Compared to them, Taixuan Mountain was not so brilliant, even though Lord Taixuan was so powerful. The Taixuan Region was not that big. This was because Lord Taixuan had not set up his own school of thought. He had only taken four disciples. And it was only because his own disciple the Taixuan Hierophant had set up his own school that the Taixuan Region had expanded at all.


    Many of the cultivators in the Taixuan Region had thoughts about this situation. They hoped that Lord Taixuan''s influence would increase and that he would take on more disciples, giving them a chance to go to Taixuan Mountain to cultivate.


    Now, if Lord Taixuan had a chance to advance a step, his influence would certainly increase. This would shake the Higher Heavens Realm. If he started his own school of thought, then cultivators would flock to him.


    That was obvious from what was happening now.


    Countless people looked up at the character that read "the Way" floating above Mount Taixuan. They seemed to be able to see the Way of All Things. It was an incredibly magical feeling, which was enough to make them stare in wonder for a long time. But right now, Taixuan Mountain was not a good place for cultivating. Too many cultivators had come.


    At that moment, everyone saw a group of figures coming forward. It was Lord Taixuan''s three disciples besides the Taixuan Hierophant. The City Lord of Taixuan was at the forefront. They walked towards a group of figures with powerful auras. One could tell how extraordinary they were at a glance.


    "The people from the Divine Palace," someone whispered. He recognized who this group was. Some of the great figures of the Divine Palace had come here to Taixuan Mountain along with their disciples.


    It seemed that Lord Taixuan''s actions had truly shaken the Higher Heavens Realm.


    "Greetings, Lord of the Divine Music Palace," said the City Lord of Taixuan with a slight bow. The old man who was in charge of the Divine Palace had deep eyes and wore a silver robe. He truly looked like he was the Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace.


    "No need to be so polite," said the Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace. His tone was cool. Although he said that there was no need to be so polite, he accepted the politeness quite naturally. After all, it was due to his station.


    "How is Lord Taixuan''s cultivation going?" he asked. This was the question on everyone''s mind. Had Lord Taixuan broken through to the next level?


    "Right now, he is locked away. Our Brother is guarding him. We are not sure how his cultivation is going at this moment," answered the City Lord of Taixuan. "We have prepared a feast on Taixuan Mountain. Please come with us."


    On saying this, the City Lord of Taixuan led the way. The Palace Lord of Divine Music Palace followed behind him with all his disciples.


    Afterward, the cultivators of many top forces arrived one after another. The City Lord of Taixuan greeted them all politely.


    At that moment, a powerful aura spread through the air. Everyone looked up and saw golden light falling, brilliant to the extreme. They all covered their eyes with their hands, leaving only cracks so they could look up into the sky. A group of brilliant figures was descending amidst the dazzling light.


    "The Divine Nation." Everyone''s hearts trembled when they saw these figures. Even people from powerful families were stunned.


    There was an incredibly old family in the eastern part of the Higher Heavens Realm who called themselves descendants of the gods. Golden blood flowed through their veins, and they were full of so much vitality that it was said that they could not die, and their bodies could not be destroyed. They had founded an ancient nation in the east: the Golden Divine Nation.


    The Golden Divine Nation was the absolute overlord of the eastern portion of the Higher Heavens Realm. Their power was beyond compare. But the people who had come were not the rulers of the Divine Nation, just some of the top figures. They were the divine generals of the Divine Nation.


    According to rumors, there was another top figure of the Divine Nation who was a general under Donghuang the Great of the Divine Prefecture. The Divine Nation had gone to war on Donghuang the Great''s behalf and had achieved great victories. Now they had treasures that had been gifted to them by Donghuang himself, which made the Divine Nation a force to be reckoned with. They were truly awe-inspiring.


    The crowd parted to let them pass. The cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation stepped forward, and the City Lord of Taixuan and the others rose to greet them. They were a little bit distressed by this. They had not thought that Lord Taixuan locking himself away would have caused such a stir that top forces like Shangxiao Divine Palace and the Golden Divine Nation would come here.


    "Where is Lord Taixuan?" came an overpowering voice. Everyone on Mount Taixuan frowned and looked towards where the voice had come from. They saw a group of figures in black robes coming towards them. All of them had incredibly imposing demeanor, and their bodies were surrounded by fierce auras.


    This was especially true of the man at their head. An overwhelming sense of power covered him from head to toe.


    The City Lord of Taixuan and the others all watched them, and their expressions changed slightly. So, they had come as well.


    "The Luo Family of the Divine Capital of Xiling!" All the cultivators on Taixuan Mountain were shaken. Another top force had arrived, and it was the Prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling himself, Luo Chongyang, who had come personally.


    The Prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling had been cultivating for many years and was very powerful. Although he was only a prince, he was still a top figure. Plus, his father was Old Demon Luo. The two of them were absolutely dominant, and no one dared question their majesty.


    The Luo family of the Divine Capital of Xiling controlled a vast area.


    Old Demon Luo was not there, and no one knew if he was coming or not. But Luo Chongyang was there, and that was enough to make people take notice.


    No wonder he had dared to directly ask where Lord Taixuan was as soon as he arrived. This was Luo Chongyang, and there was nothing strange about that.


    "I am Luo Chongyang of the Divine Capital of Xiling. I have heard that Lord Taixuan is teaching the Way, and I have come to pay a visit to him," he said clearly. His voice was very loud, and it rang throughout Mount Taixuan, making a look of surprise come over everyone''s face. The people of the Taixuan Region were a bit upset. Was he trying to disturb Lord Taixuan''s cultivation?


    But he was Luo Chongyang, so they did not dare say anything against him.


    "Luo Chongyang, if you are going to be so rude, then get off the mountain," came a voice from a distance. Everyone looked to where it had come from and saw a figure emerge from the depths of Taixuan Mountain. It was the Taixuan Hierophant. His aura was overpowering as he walked towards Luo Chongyang with a cold expression.


    "You are mighty indeed, Hierophant," said Luo Chongyang with a bright and honest smile. "I have come to visit Lord Taixuan. Am I not welcome?"


    "He is shut away cultivating right now. If you have come to visit him, you will have to wait quietly. My brothers will attend to you," said the Taixuan Hierophant coldly.


    "How long until he comes out?" asked Luo Chongyang.


    "I don''t know," said the Taixuan Hierophant.


    "How long will I have to wait? If Lord Taixuan is going to break the shackles of orthodoxy, why wouldn''t he want the people of the world to witness it and admire his magnificence?" Luo Chongyang had obviously not just come to pay a visit to Lord Taixuan. The Luo family of the Divine Capital of Xiling did not have a friendly relationship with Taixuan Mountain. Now, Lord Taixuan was possibly about to break through to the next level, and it was natural that they would be worried about this.


    Luo Chongyang had probably come to Taixuan Mountain to make trouble. He wanted to disrupt Lord Taixuan, thereby preventing him from breaking through to the next level.


    "That is for Lord Taixuan to decide, Luo Chongyang, not for you," said the Taixuan Hierophant coldly. At that moment, all the people on Taixuan Mountain could see that Luo Chongyang had come for a nefarious purpose.


    "Indeed," said Luo Chongyang with a smile. He looked up at the giant character that read "the Way," and said, "Lord Taixuan is clearly at a higher level than any of us. He carved a character into Taixuan Mountain and taught the Way to all of these disciples. He must have created many powerful figures today. I did not come to disturb him, but I would be so bored just sitting here. I always need to have something to do. You all go and test how powerful the disciples of Taixuan Mountain are. Make sure to seek out their advice and see your own flaws."


    "As you command, My Prince." As he said this, the figures behind him stepped forward towards the disciples of Taixuan Mountain. This made the people who had come from around the Taixuan Region look a little worried.


    Luo Chongyang had indeed come to make trouble; there was no question of it. He had directly asked the people he had brought with him from the Divine Capital of Xiling to get into fights. Nominally, they were just asking for advice, but in reality, they were going to provoke and challenge the people there to cause a disturbance.


    The powerful cultivators stepped forward, their mighty auras sweeping out. The people from the Divine Capital of Xiling were about to start fighting. They were worthy indeed of being Old Demon Luo''s messengers.


    The disciples of Taixuan Mountain all looked at the Taixuan Hierophant and saw that his expression was cold. His robes flapped in the wind. His mighty aura bloomed, but Luo Chongyang just smiled at him. He looked like he was just waiting for him to attack. He had asked his juniors to challenge the disciples of Taixuan Mountain. If a Renhuang level figure attacked, he would naturally have to fight back.


    A battle between Renhuang level figures could easily cause Taixuan Mountain to collapse. Lord Taixuan''s cultivation would be disrupted, and he would not break through to the next level.


    Boom! At that moment, the cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling launched their attacks. A dark Death Airflow flowed through the air, and overpowering demonic power swept out. Their attack power was overwhelming and carried fierce killing power with it. They were not holding anything back.


    They were not just testing themselves.


    "I''m still waiting to see what you do," said the Taixuan Hierophant coldly. Suddenly, all the Saint level cultivators of Taixuan Mountain released their auras one by one and stepped forward.


    At that moment, a chaotic battle broke out on Taixuan Mountain.


    At that time, Ye Futian was still cultivating in String Palace. His will seemed to be immersed in the character, and he could feel the will of the Great Path. At the same time, he could naturally feel what was happening on Taixuan Mountain.


    There were those who did not want Lord Taixuan to break through to the next level, and so they had found an excuse to attack!

 1511 Whos Sword?

    A chaotic battle had broken out upon Taixuan Mountain. A group of Saint-level cultivators had begun fighting wildly.


    The cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling had overwhelming attack power, and there was a sense of excitement about them. It seemed that they would not show any mercy.


    At that moment, at a certain place among all the chaos, a cultivator from the Divine Capital of Xiling stepped through the air. Demonic power rolled and broiled around him. An airflow of death surrounded him, and a demonic image floated behind him, which was frightening to behold.


    He struck out with his fist. His opponent brought his hands together to block him, but fist will pierced through his guard. A terrible dark airflow penetrated him. In a flash, countless dark airflows appeared upon the cultivator from Taixuan Mountain. Death will was infecting his body.


    The people from Taixuan Mountain all looked shocked. The cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling were not being polite in the least. A fist swept out, and there was a loud noise as the cultivator from Taixuan Mountain''s internal organs shook. His body was filled with deadly Qi as he was sent flying back and landed on the ground.


    "This is ruthless!" The cultivators of Taixuan Mountain began to look angry as they beheld this scene. The man stepped forward and thrust out his fist again, wounding the man in front of him. No one could stop him.


    "He is the Prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling��Luo Youming." Someone had recognized the Saint-level figure who was attacking. He was another one of the princes of the Divine Capital of Xiling. He was incredibly strong.


    At that moment, he walked towards Luo Youming. He struck out, and his fist collided with Luo Youming''s. Just when everyone thought he would be sent flying backward, they saw that the figure was unmoved. Both of their wills burst forth, and the air around them seemed to be shattered. They stepped back at the same time.


    "Jun Mu." The Disciples of Taixuan Mountain looked at the man who had stepped forward. It was the disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant��Jun Mu. But his face had turned ugly after he had stepped back. Death currents were raging through him, infecting his vitality.


    Luo Youming smiled at Jun Mu and said, "You''ll do."


    On saying this, he stepped forward, and the two of them began to fight.


    While that was going on, other battles were breaking out all over the place, leaving the onlookers astonished. The cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling were at a disadvantage in terms of numbers, but they pressed forward and took a commanding position on the battlefield. They had obviously prepared for this.


    One could see the disparity in power between the two sides, but there was nothing unusual about this. The Divine Capital of Xiling was a great power, and Lord Taixuan had not founded his own school of thought. After the four great disciples had succeeded at making names for themselves, Taixuan Mountain had no more figures who had the potential to become famous throughout the Higher Heavens Realm. After all, Taixuan Mountain was not that kind of holy land.


    In that respect, Shangxiao Divine Palace was naturally the strongest holy land.


    The Taixuan Hierophant and the others watched the battle with dark looks on their faces. Their master was shut away, cultivating at the moment, and they had had a feeling that someone would come to make trouble. Thus, they had been left here to guard Taixuan Mountain for him. And indeed, people had come. The Divine Capital of Xiling had come.


    Luo Chongyang had been staring at the Taixuan Hierophant all along. It was as if he was waiting for him to act. He wanted to take on this great challenge.


    However, the Taixuan Hierophant was quiet and contained his anger. Even as he saw many of the disciples of Taixuan Mountain be wounded, he said nothing. He had a calm expression on his face.


    "Lord Taixuan personally taught them the Way, yet the disciples of Taixuan Mountain are nothing to write home about," Luo Chongyang said as he swept his gaze over the battlefield. There was a bit of disdain in his voice that made the disciples of Taixuan Mountain feel humiliated.


    Wan Shouyi and the disciples of Sword Abyss pressed forward with their swords, cutting through the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling like bamboo and wounding many of them. But a group of their opponents came forward. A hand swiped through the air, and in a flash, countless dark death currents pierced through the air like sharp swords, forming a terrifying death storm.


    "Hmph...."


    A sword cut through the sky. Wan Shouyi''s body became phantom-like as he cut among the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling. Blood flowed from their bodies, and they were sent flying backward as they were wounded by his swordsmanship.


    At that moment, a massive demonic image appeared in front of him. Two massive demonic cultivator hands materialized, and in a flash, 3,000 death currents pierced through the sky towards Wan Shouyi.


    An afterimage of Wan Shouyi appeared as he shot forward. He slashed his sword, using the Cleave of All Things. He collided with his opponent and became tangled up with him.


    At the same time, the other cultivators of the Divine Cultivator of Xiling formed seals. The demonic seal of death descended from the sky, pressing down on the disciples of Sword Abyss.


    The disciples of Sword Abyss were scattered in an instant, and many of them were wounded.


    Luoyue was on the battlefield as well. She was forced to retreat. One cultivator seemed to be staring at her. Countless death currents snaked through the air, covering her within them.


    She stood there holding her sword, sword will shrieking all around her.


    The demonic cultivator from the Divine Capital of Xiling stared at her with a cold smile. He formed a seal with his hands, and suddenly, countless death currents shot out like swords towards her.


    Woosh! Sword will swept through the sky as Luoyue''s figure flashed. The images of thousands of swords appeared, and they collided with the death currents that were rushing towards her wildly.


    "The Fleeting Divine Sword," whispered the cultivator from the Divine Capital of Xiling. "What an excellent sword method. Unfortunately, your swordsmanship still needs some work."


    As he said this, demonic power billowed up into the sky. He pointed down, and in a flash, the countless black death currents seemed to transform into deadly spears. They shot down towards Luoyue wildly.


    She flung her sword away and used her now free hands to form a seal. Countless sword images appeared and spiraled upwards. Her attack smashed into his, but in the end, her swordsmanship was overwhelmed, and Luoyue was smashed down towards the ground.


    Finally, her sword returned to her hands. She gripped it, and sword light burned as a sword curtain spread out around her.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    The attacks continued to fall. She was forced further and further down. Finally, she groaned and her face turned pale.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise as Luoyue set foot on the ground, her face white as a sheet.


    Divine light bloomed as she summoned her sword life spirit. It melded with the sword in her hands, and a beam of divine radiance flashed. The sword cut through the air, and in a flash, everything in front of her was shattered. At the same time, blood was flowing from the corner of her mouth.


    The sword cut into the cultivator from the Divine Capital of Xiling, and his face quickly became very solemn. He stepped through the air, and demonic figures appeared, covering the sky. They tried to cover Luoyue.


    "Go!" Luoyue''s sword cut through the air, shining brilliantly. But all the demon images attacked at once, and the deadly spears fell upon the sword as well. There were also overwhelming palm prints that made the sword stop in mid-air, shaking. Every time it shook, more blood flowed from Luoyue''s mouth, and her face grew paler and paler.


    Cold will bloomed from the City Lord of Taixuan''s body as he beheld this scene. His daughter was being attacked, and he was not about to just let that go.


    His power surged, but at the same time, a Renhuang level figure from the Divine Capital of Xiling released his power as well. It seemed that if he got involved, the cultivator of the Divine Capital of Xiling would attack him immediately.


    Boom! There was a burst of incredibly sharp air that seemed impossible to suppress. It seemed that if his opponent dared to do anything, the City Lord of Taixuan would attack him as well.


    Within String Palace, Ye Futian''s will seemed to link up with the character that read "the Way." He could clearly see the battle on Taixuan Mountain. Many of the disciples of Sword Abyss had been wounded, and Luoyue was being suppressed.


    Taixuan Mountain had no conflict with the outside world and did not train its disciples as part of a faction. But even though the tree may crave serenity, the wind would not stop. Just because they did not have any conflicts, did not mean that others did not have conflicts with them.


    He looked at the character on the peak of Taixuan Mountain and could feel the Great Path of All Things. He could feel the flow of the aura of all things between heaven and earth.


    At that moment, a sword appeared in his eyes. A sword seemed to appear within the giant character as well.


    The atmosphere on Taixuan Mountain became very harsh. Everyone was watching Luoyue''s battle. The daughter of the City Lord of Taixuan seemed to have already been pushed to her limit. Blood stained her robes.


    However, her eyes were still filled with a cold determination. Sword will covered her until her body seemed to be made out of swords. She shot up into the sky, forming sword seals with her hands. Sword will shrieked through the air. It seemed that she would still fight.


    Woosh!


    Sword will shot through the air above her. A terrible, harsh sword formed, and many other swords began to materialize.


    After the first sword, another came, and then a third... In a flash, there were countless swords in the air above Luoyue.


    "What is going on?" The City Lord of Taixuan was stunned. Those swords...


    It was not only him. Everyone else looked surprised as well. Luoyue still had a trick up her sleeve?


    But surprisingly, a look of confusion came over Luoyue''s face as well. These were not the swords that she had summoned.


    "Cut!" she cried out and released her sword. But at the moment she yelled this, countless swords moved at the same time, forming a line as they cut through the air.


    The huge line of swords transformed into a worldly prison of swordsmanship.


    The cultivator from the Shangxiao Divine Palace looked surprised. He cried out, and demonic will billowed from him. The death currents transformed into spears and shot out.


    Crack!


    The spears were destroyed in an instant. Countless swords cut into the space where he was standing. It looked like countless crosses crashing into each other.


    "The Cleave of All Things!"


    It was the Cleave of All Things��the second strike of the Fleeting Divine Sword��and it was perfect. It was the best possible interpretation of the strike. Even Wan Shouyi could not have displayed such a perfect Cleave of All Things.


    Was Luoyue transforming in the middle of battle?


    There was a terrible cry as the cultivator of Shangxiao Divine Palace was pierced by countless cries. He was covered in blood, and his aura weakened. He seemed to have been completely crippled. He fell to the ground, looking like he was in a daze.


    "What a powerful sword!" All the cultivators on Taixuan Mountain were looking at Luoyue. The City Lord of Taixuan''s daughter was really this outstanding?


    So why had she been losing earlier?


    Had she been hiding her power, or had she just made it to the next level?


    Some of the Renhuang level cultivators felt that something was not right, but none of them could say specifically what it was. They looked up at the character that read "the Way." It seemed that a burst of power had put the character into motion, and it was resonating with heaven and earth, and sword will was spreading out from it. Had Luoyue done this?


    "What is going on?" The City Lord of Taixuan had some doubts in his heart as well. This did not seem like a sword that Luoyue could have summoned.


    And he was also having a mystical feeling.


    He looked at his daughter. She herself looked a little bit confused by all of this. She seemed very surprised by that sword; it was not hers.


    But the sword was truly powerful!

 1512 I See It Clearly

    The cultivator from the Divine Capital of Xiling frowned slightly. Many of the fighters looked over to where Luoyue was. Death will wrapped around the cultivator from the Divine Capital of Xiling. There was a cold look in his dark eyes.


    "You truly are the daughter of Lord Taixuan''s second disciple. What are you all looking at? Get back to fighting!" When Luo Chongyang roared this, the other cultivators suddenly stepped forward towards where Luoyue was. As she stood there, Luoyue could feel an intense amount of pressure.


    Boom! Several of the cultivators stepped forward, and Luoyue seemed to be able to feel the power of a god of death in the air. Invisible death will was spreading through her body, infecting her.


    But she saw that the powerful sword in the air above her was still circling. She formed a sword seal, and in a flash, a formless brilliance emitted from the giant character that read "the Way" on the peak of Taixuan Mountain. Sword will formed all around her until a terrifying storm of sword Qi appeared. It swept through the sky.


    At that moment, Luoyue realized that the person who had helped her was still there, helping her in secret.


    She did not hesitate. She gripped her sword and pointed it up into the sky. In a flash, countless divine swords whistled through the sky, leaving streaks in the air. Many of the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling looked surprised. They released their powerful demonic will to block the onrushing sword will.


    The countless swords cut through the air. It seemed like the entire area would be shattered by the storm of sword Qi.


    Crack! Crack! Crack! Lines of blood flew through the air, and many cultivators cried out bitterly. All of the cultivators who had been coming to attack Luoyue had been grievously wounded. They were covered in blood and they fell limply to the ground.


    Luoyue''s battle had taken a lot of the pressure off the other disciples of Sword Abyss. Wan Shouyi looked at her in shock. He had cultivated the second strike of the Fleeting Divine Sword��the Cleave of All Things��for many years and still did not fully understand it. Now, Luoyue had used this technique. She must have reached a new level.


    Moreover, she had used the will of the Worldly Great Path to resonate with the character that read "the Way." This showed how prodigiously talented she was.


    When had Sister Luoyue gotten so strong?


    "Who is helping her secretly? Why can''t I see you?" Luo Chongyang swept his gaze over the giant character that read "the Way." His expression was cold. Given his level, he was able to sense that this was not Luoyue''s sword. The daughter of the City Lord of Taixuan was just not that good. He sent some people to surround her. He wanted to see if the one who was secretly helping her would act again so he could pinpoint his location.


    But he discovered that the hiding person was using his will to interact with the character that read "the Way" floating at the peak of Taixuan Mountain. He was unable to find out where the man was by using his spiritual will.


    Many people were cultivating on Taixuan Mountain and had not come here; however, there was no one there at the Nirvana level. They were all contemplating the character, and people who were below the Nirvana level did not have the ability to do this. Even Nirvana level figures would have trouble doing this.


    Thus, his level was not high enough to find the person.


    A look of surprise came over everyone''s face when they heard Luo Chongyang''s words. They were stunned. Was this really not Luoyue''s sword?


    Someone was helping her secretly.


    But who could produce such brilliant swordsmanship from a secret position? This was a sword that was able to use the second strike of the Fleeting Divine Sword��the Cleave of All Things.


    Even Wan Shouyi could not do this.


    "Didn''t you want to test the power of the disciples of Taixuan Mountain? Do they have to stand right in front of you for you to test their power?" the Taixuan Hierophant said to Luo Chongyang. He also did not know who it was, but it was not important. What was important was that they had gained a little bit of time. They had to fight for more time for their master.


    Time was extremely precious to Lord Taixuan, who was about to break through to the next level. He naturally did not want Lord Taixuan to be disturbed.


    "Who knew that she had a Renhuang level figure helping her?" said Luo Chongyang coldly. He looked up at the character that read "the Way." He stretched out his hand, and in a flash, the sky darkened. A huge palm print appeared in the sky and slammed down into the character.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise as all of Taixuan Mountain trembled violently. The character that read "the Way" was shattered. In that instant, all the people on Taixuan Mountain could no longer feel its mystical will.


    All of the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain looked coldly at Luo Chongyang. Old Demon Luo had always been overbearing and unreasonable, and now it seemed that Prince Luo Chongyang had inherited his temperament. He was just as overbearing. He had actually directly destroyed the character that Lord Taixuan had carved.


    The Taixuan Hierophant looked up at the peak of the mountain. At that moment, he realized that since his opponent wanted to make trouble, he would not delay for too long. No matter what, he would find an excuse to attack.


    The people from the Divine Capital of Xiling had come here to disturb Lord Taixuan and make him unable to reach the next level.


    When you reached the Renhuang level, every time you tried to advance, you were making a gamble with heaven and earth. This was especially true of someone at the peak of the Renhuang level. They must have profound insight, and then they had to seize an opportunity to break their shackles. Once their concentration was broken, the Way would be blocked, and there was a high probability that they would fail and would have no way to break through to the next level.


    The character that read "the Way" was not only for the benefit of the people who had come here to cultivate; Lord Taixuan had also carved it for himself. He had used the character to connect himself to the heavens and the earth and to help him understand things.


    Now, Luo Chongyang had raised his hand and destroyed it.


    "Luo Chongyang," said the Taixuan Hierophant coldly. "That character was carved by our master. If you had come here as guests, we would have welcomed you, but you came here to cause trouble, so go on back to Xiling."


    He stepped forward as he said this. In a flash, mighty will pressed down all over the mountain, covering everyone within it, including both the disciples of Taixuan Mountain and the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling. It seemed that if Luo Chongyang did anything, he would be burying everyone else along with himself.


    Luo Chongyang allowed his aura to burst forth as well. He stood there like a god of death. He looked at the Taixuan Hierophant with his black eyes. Taixuan Mountain went dark, and death will wrapped around everyone. If any Renhuang level figures acted, any Saint-level figures would be about as useful in the fight as ants.


    "If you want to fight, then fight. No need to inflict suffering on the innocent." The God of the Golden Divine Nation released his dazzling golden radiance, covering himself and the cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation. He had formed a golden light curtain.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace took a small step forward as well. The heavenly music of the Great Path rang out, protecting the disciples of the Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    An invisible storm of the Great Path swept through the air, terrible to the extreme. The Saint-level cultivators there felt that they were insignificant in the face of its might.


    Many of the people regretted having come to Taixuan Mountain. They should never have come here.


    Once the battle really started, the consequences would be too disastrous to imagine.


    The City Lord of Taixuan and String Emperor stepped out, and their might covered all of Taixuan Mountain. It seemed like once their opponents started fighting, they would do whatever it took to defeat the cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    But at that moment, they saw a cold light flash in Luo Chongyang''s eyes, and he smiled. He seemed to be mocking them.


    "Lord Taixuan is your elder, and under his tutelage, your cultivation has reached the heavens. I came here to pay a visit. How could I have come here by myself?" said Luo Chongyang coldly. As he said this, the Taixuan Hierophant''s expression changed a little bit, as did the others''.


    In reality, the Taixuan Hierophant had thought of this. His spiritual will covered all of Taixuan Mountain, but he had not sensed Old Demon Luo. But there was a possibility that his level was just too high, and so he could not sense his existence.


    "This isn''t good." The Taixuan Hierophant suddenly sensed a powerful danger. Although he still did not sense an aura, someone''s incredibly high level still made him feel that indescribable threat.


    Indeed, at the moment that he felt this, a burst of terrible demonic power descended. A hand stretched down from the sky. It was a demonic palm print from the heavens, smashing into Taixuan Palace at the peak of Taixuan Mountain.


    Boom! There was a loud noise, and the palace at the top of Taixuan Mountain was reduced to dust.


    In the next moment, everyone saw a demonic figure appear in the sky. It was the Lord of the Divine Capital of Xiling��Old Demon Luo.


    "I had heard that Lord Taixuan was about to break through to the next level, and so I came to pay my respects," said Old Demon Luo, his voice shaking the heavens and the earth. The people of Taixuan City could not help but tremble. Old Demon Luo had come here himself just to stop Lord Taixuan from breaking through to the next level. He had not hesitated to start a battle and destroy Taixuan Palace. His determination was obvious.


    The Divine Capital of Xiling did not want to see Lord Taixuan advance to the next level.


    "My Lord!"


    The Taixuan Hierophant and the others looked up. Everyone''s gaze fell upon the ruined palace.


    Taixuan Palace had stood at the peak of Taixuan Mountain and had stood as a symbol for them. Now, it had been destroyed by Old Demon Luo.


    Amidst the ruins, a figure gradually opened his eyes. Lord Taixuan was dressed in a simple robe, and his body was covered in dust, but this could not hide his elegance.


    The Taixuan Hierophant and the others bowed. "We were not strong enough to protect you. We let them disturb your cultivation."


    "Old Demon Luo of the Divine Capital of Xiling came. How could you have defended me?" Lord Taixuan answered indifferently. He obviously did not blame them. Old Demon Luo was at his level and had brought his son Luo Chongyang. If his opponents wanted to forcibly disturb his cultivation, they would have had no way to stop them.


    "Long time no see, Lord Taixuan," said Old Demon Luo calmly just like they were old friends. There was none of the fierceness from before.


    Lord Taixuan nodded. "Indeed. I have missed you all this time." At that moment, everyone in Taixuan City felt a suffocating pressure. The two of them were talking casually, but they could feel an incredibly threatening atmosphere.


    The Worldly Great Path flowed, and the weather changed. A brilliant light shone from Lord Taixuan''s arms. It was sword light. At that moment, all of the vastness of the world seemed to shine with sword light.


    There were swords everywhere. Lord Taixuan himself was suffused with brilliant light as if he was a sword himself.


    "The third strike of the Fleeting Divine Sword is Fleeting Swordsmanship. I see it clearly," said Lord Taixuan. His voice rang out across Taixuan Mountain. Everyone''s faces became very solemn as they looked towards him.


    Was he talking to someone?


    Or was he speaking to all of the swordsmen on Taixuan Mountain?


    The third strike of the Fleeting Divine Sword was the most powerful, and it was the final one.


    Everyone was staring at him. As they watched him, he raised his arms and pointed at the sky!

 1513 Breakthrough?

    On Taixuan Mountain, at this moment, it seemed that there was only Lord Taixuan.


    The moment his finger fell, the vast and endless space seemed to stand still. Everyone felt an inexplicable breath, and their thoughts seemed to have stopped. Between heaven and earth, there was only that one sword.


    As this sword was unleashed, the sky glimmered, and the figure of Lord Taixuan became illusory. While he seemed to be in the same place, his actual body had appeared in front of Old Demon Luo. That finger��a sword��pierced through the sky.


    When Lord Taixuan made his move, Old Demon Luo had already sensed it. The demonic might on his body exploded instantly, sending pressure across thousands of miles of mountains and rivers. The sky turned to darkness, pitch black. His palm slammed down without any hesitation, colliding with that sword.


    In an instant, the world was dimmed and dull. Darkness fell in front of many people''s eyes, and they felt that death had descended. But in the darkened sky, an incredibly bright sword light pierced through the sky, and the divine light penetrated from Old Demon Luo''s body, reaching directly above the sky dome.


    In the next moment, the endless divine light of swordsmanship pierced the darkness, causing the light to shine through. Old Demon Luo''s body drowned in the sword light, awash like the water, and Old Demon Luo''s body seemed to turn illusive. All the will of the Way was broken.


    Under this ultimate attack, time seemed to stand still. The crowd seemed to witness the struggle of Old Demon Luo. Up and down Taixuan Mountain, even the people of the entire Taixuan City felt the power of this blow.


    Countless ideas came into their heads, but in fact, it was perhaps only for a moment.


    Buzz!


    The divine light sailed across. The crowd saw a sword stab at the sky. Countless divine swords pierced the darkness, and the demonic might roiled nonstop. Old Demon Luo''s body shot straight above the sky dome and gradually faded until it disappeared.


    However, soon, a face appeared in the sky; it was Old Demon Luo''s face. At this time, the face was somewhat distorted. Its eyes were extremely cold. Many did not even dare to look at those eyes. It was as if they would fall into them.


    "You broke through?" Old Demon Luo''s voice was gloomy.


    Lord Taixuan didn''t answer his question. His eyes swept up to the place above the sky. He said, "Divine Capital of Xiling put in such a great effort because you didn''t want to see me breakthrough?"


    He had the disciples provoke disputes, and the Crown Prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling��Luo Chongyang��pinned down several of his disciples. At the same time, Old Demon Luo attempted to destroy Taixuan Palace. This was not only just to interrupt his cultivation, but to possibly injure him severely, completely stopping any hope of him making a breakthrough.


    As a major demonic figure of Xiling, Old Demon Luo was ruthless and vicious. He showed absolutely no mercy.


    "Just want to take a look at your present state. Now that I have seen it, Divine Capital of Xiling will bid our goodbyes," Old Demon Luo said. Suddenly, Luo Chongyang and the others were eager to retreat. He could see that one sword strike just now had already injured his father.


    Lord Taixuan had wounded his father with one blow, which showed that there was another breakthrough in his realm. Taixuan Mountain clearly was not a place for him to tarry any longer.


    "Do you think you can come and go as you please?" Lord Taixuan said as he waved his hand toward the void. A huge character of the Way appeared suddenly, hanging high above the sky.


    "Luo Chongyang, previously, when you destroyed my character of the Way, I didn''t pursue the matter on account of your junior status. Now, walk out of this character on your own. You are not allowed to use power of any kind," Lord Taixuan said to Luo Chongyang. Luo Chongyang''s expression suddenly stiffened as he glanced at the word.


    At this moment, the power of the character was even more tyrannical and contained a terrible power of destruction.


    His face was sullen as he glanced at Lord Taixuan. Eventually, he stepped into the void and walked toward that character, actually entering right into it.


    Infinite sword will condensed and manifested from the character of the Way, tearing at Luo Chongyang''s body. He seemed to be suffering under a terrible might of the Way. His surroundings were distorted, and his body seemed to be pierced by infinite divine swords of the Great Path. Blood dripped from him.


    Every drop of blood contained the horrible will of the Way.


    Bang. Luo Chongyang''s hair, disheveled, was flying in the wind. His body seemed to have stepped into the swordsmanship of Lord Taixuan. Although Lord Taixuan stood below, the character seemed to be one with his mind, emitting sharp, scraping sounds. Luo Chongyang walked through it step by step, and when he passed through the character completely, his body was covered in blood. The wild breath above his body was also floating.


    "What does my lord think?" Luo Chongyang asked Lord Taixuan.


    Everyone who witnessed this scene blow was trembling. Luo Chongyang had suffered such humiliation, but Old Demon Luo did not come out. It was obvious that the old demon must be injured so that he did not intervene, allowing Luo Chongyang to suffer such disgrace.


    Just how strong was Lord Taixuan at this moment?


    Had Lord Taixuan really made a breakthrough?


    Some prominent figures, such as the Palace Lord of Divine Music Palace and the divine general of the Golden Divine Nation, fixed their attention on Lord Taixuan. The strength of Old Demon Luo was well known to them, but now, Old Demon Luo not only failed in the sneak attacks but was also wounded by Lord Taixuan. It was obvious that Lord Taixuan had grown more fearsome than before.


    The position of Taixuan Mountain in the Higher Heavens Realm would change again.


    "We have finished with the matter of you destroying the character of the Way. Next, since the disciples of the Divine Capital of Xiling wanted to spar with the disciples of Taixuan Mountain, and you were the one who forcibly interrupted the whole affair, the discussion is not yet over. Let''s continue with the exchange," Lord Taixuan said again, intending to deal with each and every one of the transgressions.


    First, it was Old Demon Luo, then it was Luo Chongyang, and finally, it would be those disciples of the Divine Capital of Xiling, who came to pick a fight.


    Moreover, he even re-added the character and re-engraved it in the void. Was it to allow those who had made their moves before to continue leveraging its power?


    The disciples of the Divine Capital of Xiling were no longer aching to fight. Their king of the Divine Capital, Old Demon Luo, was defeated, and the Crown Prince Luo Chongyang was forced to walk through the character of the Way. It could be said that they had completely failed, having been unable to affect Lord Taixuan''s breakthrough. What was the point of continuing to fight?


    Disciples of Taixuan Mountain, on the other hand, looked rather sharp. At this time, Ye Futian still sat in the String Pavilion. He looked at the character of the Way and resonated with it. There were some waves in his heart.


    The sword strike that was previously unleashed by Lord Taixuan was too profound. The Fleeing Divine Sword. With one strike, yin and yang were thrown into pandemonium, causing the passage of time, which was destroyed. One point of the finger was one strike, and one strike caused the fleeting passage of time.


    Such a strike, even at his utmost, was impossible to comprehend fully. He had only observed the magnificence of the Fleeting Divine Sword and was perceiving what kind of technique it was.


    Now, was Lord Taixuan reminding him to continue fighting?


    Although the advantage was entirely theirs, it was still really difficult for the disciples of Taixuan Mountain to defeat the disciples of the Divine Capital of Xiling. Therefore, Lord Taixuan may still allow him to continue to strike back.


    When his thoughts turned to this, Ye Futian''s mind moved, and in an instant, in the land above Luoyue, the sword will whistled as if calling her.


    Luoyue revealed a strange look. Was the sword looking for her?


    This was clearly wanting to use her for the strike. It was as if it was really her sword.


    Luoyue had no words but still cooperated. Her palms were outstretched, and a sword was born, clamoring in the void. With the vast sky, the light of countless divine swords was whistling this way, surrounding her sword. The sword qi turned destructive, leaving sword marks between the sky and earth.


    "Go." Luoyue pointed her finger through the air. Although the others were making their move, it did not prevent her from controlling her sword. But the other swords also followed hers, cutting at the disciples of the Divine Capital of Xiling, who were in the void.


    The second level of the technique��Cleave of All Things��though not as powerful, was equally terrifying. Countless blood splattered, and many of the disciples of the Divine Capital of Xiling were pale as they were bleeding. There were even cultivators whose bodies were penetrated by the swords.


    "The character of the Way resonates." Many on Taixuan Mountain looked up at the character in the void, and they all felt the power of its resonance. It was as if this character was hidden within it. Therefore, it urged the terrible fight of swordsmanship on the battlefield.


    In a blink of an eye, almost all the cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling were injured by sword qi with varying degrees of injuries.


    A moment later, the whistling swords stopped. Those cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling, who were arrogant and overbearing when they arrived, now appeared exhausted and powerless.


    "Take your people and get out of here. Next time, if you dare to come to Taixuan Mountain like this again, don''t blame me for being ruthless," Lord Taixuan looked at Luo Chongyang and admonished him. Suddenly, Luo Chongyang hung his head and led his cronies away.


    Without any hint of anger, Luo Chongyang waved his hand and led the people from the Divine Capital of Xiling away from Taixuan Mountain.


    Watching the disappearing figures in the void, everyone on Taixuan Mountain felt strong feelings of emotion and shock.


    "Lord," one after another, the voices called out as their eyes looked toward Lord Taixuan. Did Lord Taixuan make the breakthrough?


    "Master." The four disciples of Lord Taixuan also looked at their master because even they did not know if their Master had broken through or not.


    "Congratulations to Lord Taixuan for great success this time, and the realm is deeper," the Palace Lord of Divine Music Palace said and bowed slightly to Lord Taixuan.


    "Congratulations to our lord," others said one after the other. They bowed in the direction of Lord Taixuan.


    That thought of those who cultivated on Taixuan Mountain reappeared. Would the master establish a clan and pass on his teachings?


    Now that the Master had stepped into another level, even prominent characters as powerful as Old Demon Luo could not withstand his attack. If Lord Taixuan took this opportunity to establish his own clan, many superior cultivators would flock here, answering his call.


    When their thoughts turned to this, many in Taixuan Region were very much looking forward to the future.


    "No need for the formalities." Lord Taixuan waved his hand!

 1514 In Retreat Again

    On Taixuan Mountain, with the defeat of Old Demon Luo, there would be no more trouble, and everyone was feeling relaxed.


    Lord Taixuan looked at the crowd and said, "Today, Taixuan Mountain is honored by the arrival of so many people in the Upper Heavens Realm. However, as I still need to continue my retreat and cultivate for some time, I''m afraid I won''t have time to spend with all of you. Soon, my disciples will entertain our guests in my stead."


    Upon hearing Lord Taixuan''s words, everyone looked a bit tense. It seemed that Lord Taixuan had not completely finished his breakthrough. Before, he had been forced out of retreat by Old Demon Luo and had to come out to fight him.


    Now that Old Demon Luo had taken the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling away, Lord Taixuan was ready to continue his cultivation in solitude.


    Everyone nodded to demonstrate their agreement. They had come here to see if Lord Taixuan could step foot into another level. At such a crucial state, Lord Taixuan was unlikely to spend time relaxing.


    "My lord''s retreat is an important matter. What happened before was nerve-wracking, but fortunately, my lord''s swordsmanship defeated Old Demon Luo. However, this exposed the weaknesses of Taixuan Mountain''s defense. My lord did not accept disciples for a long time, and if I''m to be honest, the disciples on Taixuan Mountain nowadays leave much to be desired in their cultivation."


    At this time, a voice spoke up. The cultivators of Taixuan Mountain were greatly embarrassed upon hearing those words, but they also knew that what the other said was true. Taixuan Mountain had been neglecting the cultivation of its disciples.


    The person who spoke was a divine general from Golden Divine Nation, whose momentum was magnificent and super powerful.


    Everyone was puzzled as to why he was saying this now.


    Lord Taixuan looked at him, waiting for the other to continue.


    "My lord''s cultivation is now matchless, and a clan and school ought to be established," the divine general continued. Everyone continued to pay attention to him. Some divine general from the Golden Divine Nation actually took the initiative to persuade Lord Taixuan to establish a clan and school.


    With Lord Taixuan''s strength, if he retreated for a period of time, his cultivation might reach a terrifying level. Once a clan and school were established, in time, a new superpower would be born in the Upper Heavens Realm. To the Golden Divine Nation, this was not a particularly beneficial situation. Otherwise, Old Demon Luo would not have paid such a heavy price to stop Lord Taixuan''s breakthrough.


    Of course, in this midst of all this, there was also their personal grudges.


    But the Golden Divine Nation had no reason to persuade Lord Taixuan to establish his own school and set up his own clan unless there were some ulterior motives.


    "Gai Shi Shi��the prince of our Divine Nation��received the inheritance of the Overlord, but has not yet met a worthy teacher. Previously, there were plans of sending him to Shangxiao Divine Palace to cultivate for a while, but it so happened that my lord made a breakthrough. If my lord wishes, he might accept him as a disciple and allow His Highness to cultivate under my lord," the divine general continued.


    Suddenly, everyone understood his plan. Now that Lord Taixuan was about to enter another level, if the prince of the Divine Nation could become his disciple, it would indeed be a win-win situation for both parties.


    The Golden Divine Nation had been bestowed its power by Donghuang the Great. Its background was profound, and it was absolutely a force in its own right at the peak of the Higher Heavens Realm. Lord Taixuan had extensive knowledge of many things and knew much about the past and present. If he were to ally with the Golden Divine Nation, it would definitely be of great benefit to Taixuan Mountain.


    As long as Lord Taixuan desired to establish a clan and school, the Golden Divine Nation could be of service.


    Furthermore, it would be of great significance if he accepted Gai Shi Shi as his disciple.


    Gai Shi Shi was also quite renowned. His talents were extraordinary. It was rumored that the inheritance of the Golden Divine Nation had gone on for ten generations, hence the meaning of his nation��more powerful than ten generations. It was an extremely arrogant name. He did not disappoint his elders, and there was indeed a powerful temperament about him. If it wasn''t for a few older brothers, whose cultivations were higher, he would probably have already been named the Crown Prince of the Golden Divine Nation.


    The Master has not accepted any disciples for many years. It would be a happy event if he made an exception and accepted Gai Shi Shi as his disciple, some thought. They looked toward Lord Taixuan, wondering if he would make such an exception today.


    Even Lord Taixuan''s four disciples looked at their Master. Over the years, the Taixuan Hierophant had advocated that their master take another disciple numerous times, but Lord Taixuan never did accept a fifth person.


    However, the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain wore an odd look. They were a little displeased. Never mind that the other had bluntly stated that there were no decent cultivators on Taixuan Mountain, but in the matter of the fifth disciple, all the cultivators at Taixuan Mountain had been waiting for such an opportunity. Now that the other wanted to skip everyone, it was naturally a cause for embarrassment for the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain.


    But the one thing they had to admit was that Gai Shi Shi''s aura was much more dazzling than any of theirs. He was indeed more suitable than anyone else to become the fifth disciple of Lord Taixuan after he broke through the shackles of the realm.


    Lord Taixuan glanced at Gai Shi Shi, who stood next to the divine general of the Golden Divine Nation. He saw the peerless mettle of this young man. The golden robe on his body fluttered even though there was no wind. His eyes were also golden, and from them was terrible divine light that exuded extreme sharpness. One could even vaguely feel the majestic breath inside his body. With just one glance, Gai Shi Shi''s outstanding talent was apparent to all. Everyone felt the sharpness he exuded.


    Young and gallant, and his aura was just like his name.


    "I assume you all know that I once said I would not accept any more disciples. Even now, I will not break this promise. The prince is outstanding and peerless, and he does not need to worry about not finding a suitable teacher," Lord Taixuan responded, making everyone on Taixuan Mountain feel a sense of pity.


    It seemed that Lord Taixuan really wouldn''t accept any more disciples if he was now refusing someone as exceptional as Gai Shi Shi.


    "I heard about my lord''s vow at the time, but now that the talent on Taixuan Mountain is dwindling, giving way to the disciples of Divine Capital of Xiling to do whatever they want, my lord need not insist upon those words of the past," the divine general of the Golden Divine Nation continued. The disciples of Taixuan Mountain all revealed a strange expression. They were so bluntly demeaned by outsiders, which embarrassed them. If it were not for that mysterious character, who struck just now, they would have been defeated.


    "Disciples of Taixuan Mountain are not entirely as useless as elder has described," a voice said. It was Jun Mu��the disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant. Before that, his master had wanted to send him to Lord Taixuan to cultivate, but Lord Taixuan did not agree to that either.


    Now, the people of the Golden Divine Nation were being so blatantly disrespectful, so he felt greatly displeased.


    The divine general glanced over. At the same time, Gai Shi Shi, who was next to him, also looked at Jun Mu. Those eyes emitted a divine golden light that were able to penetrate through everything. Jun Mu felt a sharp pain in his eyes. Everywhere he shot his gaze, there was a towering golden beam, which made his eyes feel very uncomfortable.


    "Luo Youming��the son of Old Demon Luo��couldn''t bear the power of my halberd," Gai Shi Shi said lightly, slight contempt in his eyes. Previously, in battle with Jun Mu and Luo Youming, they were suppressed, and now he dared to claim that Luo Youming could not bear the power of his halberd.


    But Luo Youming''s reputation in the Higher Heaven''s Realm was indeed quite a bit behind Gai Shi Shi''s.


    "Although the cultivators on Taixuan Mountain are not as talented, didn''t you see that there was a sword that repealed everyone?" Lord Taixuan said with a smile. Everyone was surprised. It seemed that it was a swordsman of the Saint Plane on Taixuan Mountain.


    But just who was it? Whose swordsmanship was so advanced?


    Could it be that the Sword Abyss had disciples with hidden strength?


    Luoyue wanted the most to know who it was. Before, the other had borrowed her sword, which made it look like she was the one in control of the sword. When had the Sword Abyss have such a powerful person?


    "This youngster is pretty good. Who was it?" The palace lord of the Divine Music Palace asked. To be able to resonate with the character of the Way and use the will of the Way in the character to form a sword and unleash the second level of the Fleeting Divine Sword was indeed commendable. His perception of the Way was bound to be extremely strong, and his talent must be unmeasurable.


    "He didn''t want anyone to know, so the palace lord need not pursue it further," Lord Taixuan smiled. Probably, only he, as the one who had engraved the character of the Way and who was one with the character, would know who it was that used his will to ignite the Will of the Way.


    Others could not connect with the character of the Way, so they couldn''t perceive it.


    A strange look flashed across Gai Shi Shi''s eyes. It seemed that Lord Taixuan greatly valued the mysterious disciple who didn''t reveal himself. Could that be the reason Lord Taixuan refused him as a disciple?


    No matter how strong the opponent was, how strong could they really be?


    Ye Futian watched all this and took everything in. Gai Shi Shi must be a tyrannical character. He was the prince of the Golden Divine Nation, whose name was arrogant and unparalleled.


    He was also somewhat surprised. He didn''t expect Lord Taixuan to conceal the truth for him and did not expose him. What happened today attracted Lord Taixuan''s personal attention. In fact, exposure had a limited impact on him, but Lord Taixuan still respected his choice.


    "Very well, I should get back to cultivating. Anyone who comes to Taixuan Mountain can meditate me with me here, but if someone else is looking for trouble again, don''t be upset if I don''t react well to it." Lord Taixuan''s tone suddenly became harsher. He said to the Taixuan Hierophant, "Take care of our guests."


    "Yes, Master." The Taixuan Hierophant nodded and saw the master walk forward. As he raised his hand and waved, suddenly, an ancient peak appeared out of thin air, rising from the ground. He waved again, and Taixuan Palace appeared. He took a step and walked into it, sitting there. He was one with the character of the Way, comprehending and cultivating.


    In an instant, heaven and earth changed color, and the will of the Way roiled toward the endless void, flowing into the distance. Many looked yonder with a solemn look. Lord Taixuan was using that character to perceive the world.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace did not leave; neither did the cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation or the representatives of many top principalities. They were all standing there and watching. Even if it was only observing Lord Taixuan cultivate, they could still gain some insight from it.


    As for those youngsters, the impact on them was even greater. That character of the Way alone was enough for them to meditate.


    It seems that our lord will really be stepping into another level, many people thought as they looked over there, preparing to witness this event together.


    On Taixuan Mountain, Ye Futian came to the crowd as he looked in the direction of Lord Taixuan. He was now closer than he was at String Pavilion and could see everything more clearly.


    It just so happened that Luoyue was standing next to him. She glanced at Ye Futian, who had come to her side, and said, "How come I didn''t see you before?"


    "I was cultivating at the String Pavilion," Ye Futian replied. Luoyue''s tone indicated some displeasure.


    But when she thought that Ye Futian was just of the Unblemished Plane, Luoyue thought that she did not need to get angry with him about his failure to participate in the battle. Instead, she said, "This character contains the true will of the Great Path; you must take care to meditate with it."


    "Hmmm." Ye Futian nodded slightly!

 1515 Song of the Lost Divine

    On the top of Taixuan Mountain, Lord Taixuan sat above the palace, bathed in the divine light of the Great Path.


    His body seemed to be connected with the Nine Heavens. Above the endless void, the will of the Way entered the body and created a certain wondrous resonance with it. And that character of the Way, likewise, also bloomed in endless radiance, connecting the boundless vast area, covering the entire Taixuan Region.


    Anyone within Taixuan Region, even if they were hundreds of thousands of miles apart, could still feel the impact Lord Taixuan had on breaking into the realm. Such an extraordinary state was enough to make countless many yearn and dream, even those who had already proved the existence of Renhuang, were still looking solemn, gazing in the direction of Taixuan Mountain.


    When this step was crossed, Lord Taixuan would be a giant figure standing at the peak of the Higher Heavens Realm, and even beyond the Higher Heavens Realm, he would probably be the very top of all of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    There were still many preeminent characters in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, but those who had taken this step were probably the minority.


    Ye Futian did not know how many such old monsters still existed in the Higher Heavens Realm, but according to what he knew, in the Heavenly Mandate Realm where he was, only Gu Tianxing was at that level. The old overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty may have been another, but after the destruction inflicted by both sides, there may be no one left at this level at the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Of course, if there were the existence of hidden masters, that was beyond his knowledge.


    Therefore, he clearly understood the significance of Lord Taixuan''s breakthrough. Not only did he understand it, but everyone else understood as well. Otherwise, Old Demon Luo of Divine Capital of Xiling would not have attacked and tried to forcibly interrupt Lord Taixuan, even wanting to wound him.


    The powerful Golden Divine Nation even wanted to have their most outstanding prince��Gai Shi Shi��to be his disciple. From this, one could understand the significance.


    The palace lord of Divine Music Palace did not leave; neither did the divine generals of the Golden Divine Nation. All the other top principalities were all in attendance, watching Lord Taixuan impacting the realm. It seemed as if it was some great attraction to them.


    In fact, not only them, but as time passed, more and more prominent characters had arrived, except that they did not show themselves. Some were covered by thousands of miles of divine will, and some were around Taixuan Mountain or inside Taixuan City.


    It would not be an overstatement to say that the breakthrough this time, was a highly anticipated event in all of the Upper Heavens Realm.


    The light of the character of the Way was getting more brilliant, and its will was getting stronger. Ye Futian sat cross-legged, and, like many disciples of Taixuan Mountain, he was quietly comprehending and cultivating as Lord Taixuan''s breakthrough was another kind of teaching. Such opportunity was pure luck could not be sought out. It all depended on themselves how much one could comprehend.


    Ye Futian''s will blended with the character of the Way, wandering between heaven and earth. He felt the power of creation in heaven and earth, as well as the omnipresent Way. Gradually, Ye Futian gave way to a very strong sensation, allowing him to control the Way more freely. This sensation of freedom was extremely gratifying. It was as if no matter the distance, he was still able to exert control.


    In a blink of an eye, many days had passed, but the people on Taixuan Mountain seemed to have forgotten the time. Many woke up from cultivation and looked at Lord Taixuan.


    Had there still been no breakthrough?


    Now, the divine light had reached the Nine Heavens, and the Way flowed between heaven and earth. Even so, Lord Taixuan seemed to have not yet reached the limit needed to break through.


    All four disciples of Lord Taixuan were guarding and protecting his surroundings, preventing anyone from interfering with Lord Taixuan''s cultivation.


    "It seems that this realm is hard." Not far from Ye Futian, Wan Shouyi looked at Lord Taixuan, frowning, as if worried for him. As a disciple of Sword Abyss, of course, he wanted Lord Taixuan to breakthrough.


    However, it seemed extremely difficult to break through this realm.


    "Old Demon Luo dared to venture here and disturb the grandmaster because he knew that this realm would not be easy to get through. He didn''t expect that the grandmaster had already transformed before the actual breakthrough, being able to defeat him with a single blow." Luoyue glanced over with a solemn look on her face. "Although it is difficult, I believe the grandmaster can do it."


    "Well, it''ll take a thousand years to form one sword. Lord Taixuan did not establish a clan or school, and he was rarely involved in external disputes all to maintain a peaceful state of mind. He is a true and pure cultivator." Wan Shouyi also nodded in response.


    "Senior brother, on Taixuan Mountain, are there swordsman with tremendous sword technique?" Luoyue seemed to have thought of something and asked Wan Shouyi.


    "You are asking about those from before, right?" Wan Shouyi instinctively understood her intention but shook his head. "I cultivate in Sword Abyss, and I''m pretty confident in my swordsmanship. My cultivation of the second level of the Fleeting Divine Sword is incredibly skilled. However, when that sword appeared, I realized I was but a frog at the bottom of a well. The man who controlled the sword has skills that far surpass mine, but in daily practice in the Sword Abyss, I was unaware of the existence of such a swordsman and have no idea who it was that concealed their true strength."


    "Senior brother, do you think it''s possible?" Luoyue suddenly said to Wan Shouyi.


    "Impossible," Wan Shouyi said decisively. "If so, would Lord Taixuan deliberately elevate the disciples of Taixuan Mountain?"


    Lord Taixuan had already said that it was a disciple of Saint Plane from Taixuan Mountain, so it must have been so.


    "I''m being silly," Luoyue said. She felt that she was indeed a little crazy. Because of the power and mystery of that sword, she had wild thoughts, to the point that she was even questioning the words of Lord Taixuan.


    But as soon Wan Shouyi said that, she didn''t think about it anymore.


    There probably were some disciples with hidden strengths in the Sword Abyss.


    At this moment, a breath of terror flowed about. Above the Nine Heavens, countless divine light of the Great Path fell in the direction where Lord Taixuan was. It penetrated his body so that his entirety was radiant. It was as if he was on the verge of transforming into a divine body.


    The mighty holy pressure was now overwhelming the space. Lord Taixuan''s eyes suddenly opened, and he looked toward the sky. This look seemed to have penetrated the boundless void, looking beyond this world.


    "The Heavenly Path is incomplete," an ephemeral voice said, which seemed to contain endless sigh. It was as if the gods were sighing.


    This mournful sound made countless people felt a deep sense of sorrow. It was as if they were involuntarily affected by it. Such influence was astonishing. Just a voice alone was enough to affect everyone.


    The Heavenly Path was incomplete!


    Those preeminent characters also looked up at the sky, for they also knew that the Heavenly Path was incomplete.


    At the peak of Taixuan Mountain, Lord Taixuan took out a guqin and plucked at the strings with his fingers. In an instant, the sound of music penetrated the endless void along with the Great Path and fell into countless peoples'' ears.


    The melody was like the sound of the Great Path. When the music started, many felt a sadness, a mood that seemed to speak of endless regrets.


    "The lost sound of the Great Path, the Song of Lost Divine." The eyes of the palace lord of Divine Music Palace instantly became extremely sharp, as if penetrating the void. He looked toward Lord Taixuan as if to watch every move Lord Taixuan made. He listened to each musical note to brand them into his mind.


    "Listen carefully," he said to several disciples from Shangxiao Divine Palace who were next to him. The lost sound of the Great Path, the Song of Lost Divine was one of the ten divine melodies. It was known as the true divine sound of the Great Path.


    It was rumored that the epitome of sword technique at Taixuan Mountain��the Fleeting Divine Sword��was created by combining the Song of the Lost Divine and swordsmanship.


    Now, Lord Taixuan was playing the Song of Lost Divine upon Taixuan Mountain. Even though he was the palace lord of Divine Music Palace, he wanted to brand the entire melody in his memory.


    At this moment, Ye Futian also looked very grave. He sat cross-legged, and his eyes became endlessly deep. His entire person entered an extremely curious state. It was as if he had completely forgotten about himself and had become ethereal, immersed in the sound of the music.


    This melody carried with it endless regret and sadness. It seemed to be describing the sorrow of cultivation. After cultivating for a lifetime, he had no choice but to refuse the Way, desolate, and filled with pain. There were also regrets.


    Upon hearing this music, many cultivators, who were not determined enough, now sensed a strong pessimism. At this moment, they seemed to want to put down all that they had worked for and completely forget about their cultivation.


    Even as the will of the Way reversed, the breath inside their bodies became disorderly and moved out of their control.


    Soon, some peoples'' eyes became bloody red. It was as if they were in a trance, entering an uncontrollable state. Some even started damaging their own foundations.


    "Don''t be affected by the music," someone alerted the others. Ye Futian also shared the same feeling as the breath in his body became jumbled. What kind of existence was the composer who created this melody?


    The will of the Great Path roared wildly between heaven and earth. Accompanied by the sound of the melody, the breath inside of Lord Taixuan was also roaring wildly, making booming sounds. The world was changing.


    The sound of guqin soared as if to compete with the Great Path, disregarding fate, aiming to contend with the Heavenly Path. There was a long river racing between heaven and earth, which made Taixuan Mountain tremble. Everyone within Taixuan Region felt a terrible shock.


    Finally, with the last note, a divine light seemed to penetrate the Nine Heavens. Lord Taixuan stood up, the robe on his body fluttered wildly in the wind. The will of the Way beat about his body. He looked incomparably great and insufferably arrogant.


    At this moment, the entire Taixuan Region shook once, and then, all the breath between heaven and earth began to calm down.


    "Success?" The disciples of Taixuan Mountain murmured and stared in that one direction.


    At this time, people came from all directions, possessing supreme temperaments. Some were immortal, some were domineering, but there were also extraordinary empresses among them.


    "Congratulations to Lord Taixuan," a voice said. The palace lord of Divine Music Palace looked at Lord Taixuan with a very complicated look in his eyes.


    "Congratulations," many stepped into the void and paid their respects to Taixuan Palace. Everyone who arrived was a great, powerful existence in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    When the people of Taixuan Mountain saw what they were doing, they were extremely moved. Did he succeed?


    "Congratulations to the lord." The disciples of Taixuan Mountain bowed down to worship him.


    The divine general of the Golden Divine Nation looked in the direction of Lord Taixuan. His eyes were a little complicated. Lord Taixuan had actually achieved this step, and from this moment on, he was no longer qualified to talk to Lord Taixuan as an equal, but must respectfully refer to him as an elder.


    Beside him, Gai Shi Shi''s eyes emitted divine golden light. Had he made the breakthrough?


    Ye Futian watched all this quietly.


    He looked towards Lord Taixuan. From this day forward, Lord Taixuan''s status in the Higher Heavens Realm leaped again, and he now stood at the pinnacle of giants!

 1516 Quota

    Lord Taixuan didn''t seem to be too joyful. Instead, he took a look at the sky and sighed.


    The Heavenly Path was incomplete.


    Turning his gaze to everyone, Lord Taixuan held his hands up and thanked them, "You are all too kind."


    Afterward, he came to the crowd, and the four great disciples led by the Taixuan Hierophant came behind him. They finally let go of their worries. Now, they would not be worried about someone making trouble, and no one dared to try.


    Even that Old Demon Luo of the Divine Capital of Xiling would have to be more cautious when he met Lord Taixuan in the future. If Lord Taixuan intended to settle matters of the past, that Old Demon would lose.


    "Today, Lord Taixuan comprehended the Way on Taixuan Mountain. It is a major event for cultivators in the Higher Heavens Realms," the palace lord of the Divine Music Palace said. Many cultivators nodded in agreement. The influence of a top character was very great.


    "Just a few more years of cultivation than any of you." Lord Taixuan appeared very calm.


    "One cannot surpass this realm with time alone," the palace lord of the Divine Music Palace shook his head and said. "On behalf of Shangxiao Divine Palace, we congratulate you, My Lord. After bringing back such great news, I believe that all people in various palaces will also be overjoyed for My Lord."


    "Palace Lord is too kind. Please give my regards to everyone when you return. If there is ever a chance, I will pay you a visit," Lord Taixuan responded politely.


    "If My Lord ever wants to come to the Divine Music Palace, there will soon be a chance," the palace lord of Divine Music Palace smiled and said. "Everyone in the Divine Music Palace must be looking forward to talking with My Lord."


    Lord Taixuan seemed to think of something when he heard the words of the palace lord of Divine Music Palace. He smiled and knew what the other meant.


    Many powerful figures on Taixuan Mountain thought of one thing when they heard his words. Someone said with a smile, "Ten years have gone by in the blink of an eye, and it is time for the opportunity of trials once more. It is indeed a blessing to all young cultivators in the Higher Heavens Realm."


    "Shangxiao Divine Palace preached to the world, benefiting the world of cultivation, and doing great deeds," Lord Taixuan nodded and said. Shangxiao Divine Palace was indeed a place worthy of admiration.


    "Shangxiao Divine Palace is a treasured land within the Higher Heavens Realm, which can nurture the Great Path. For many years, it has adhered to its mission of preaching as a matter of course," the palace lord of Divine Music Palace replied. It was well known to everyone in the Higher Heavens Realm that Shangxiao Divine Palace was located in the most treasured holy land in all of Higher Heavens Realm and had trained many powerful great characters. Therefore, for many years, it had been preaching to the world, never getting involved in disputes.


    Of course, if it were not so, many of the top principalities in the Higher Heavens Realm would have long been rifted with malice, and Shangxiao Divine Palace would not have occupied such a lofty status.


    "It''s a pity that the fruit grown in the Divine Palace is limited; otherwise, it could help more people to comprehend the Way," the palace lord of Divine Music Palace continued. "My lord has not yet established a clan, so in the years past, Taixuan Mountain had just a quota of five spaces. But now that my lord has had a breakthrough, I will discuss with other palace lords when I return about increasing the number of places for Taixuan Mountain to 15 people."


    "Many thanks." Lord Taixuan nodded with a smile. He glanced at the disciples of Taixuan Mountain behind him. Although 15 spaces were still far from enough compared to the disciples who cultivated on Taixuan Mountain, considering those who had a real chance to break through into Renhuang Plane, 15 spaces were a lot. It was definitely enough.


    After all, it was not that easy to become a Renhuang.


    "The palace lord of Divine Music Palace is biased. Why not add some more spaces for us?" said a powerful person next to him.


    "If everyone could be like my lord, then there would be no problem," the palace lord of Divine Music Palace said with a smile. Suddenly, everyone revealed a dull expression. Could one break through the realm just because one wanted to? Would this kind of character be so rare in the Higher Heavens Realm?


    Never mind in the Higher Heavens Realm, even in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, there were not many.


    "Very well. Now that my lord has broken through, this matter is over, and we should be getting back. After everyone gets back, you can discuss the matter regarding the candidates. Now, we should get ready to go." The palace lord of Divine Music Palace smiled and said, "When My Lord has free time, please come to the Divine Palace to sit and chat. "


    "Good." Lord Taixuan nodded.


    "Farewell." The place lord of Divine Music Palace put his hands together and then left with his people.


    "We should be getting back, too. Goodbye." All the cultivators saluted and left as well. Lord Taixuan watched them as they left. The divine general from the Golden Divine Nation stepped forward and asked, "Won''t you consider our previous proposition?"


    "I already said that I would not accept any more disciples," Lord Taixuan shook his head. The other nodded and took Gai Shi Shi and turned to leave. Other cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation also left with them. The golden divine light opened up the road of Great Path, and soon, they disappeared between heaven and earth.


    "People of the Divine Nation are really too proud," Lord Taixuan whispered as he watched those who were leaving.


    "The Golden Divine Nation claimed to be the descendant of the ancient Golden God. It had some connection with the Great Emperor and enjoyed great prosperity in the past. If it were not for the master''s breakthrough, they would probably not have taken Gai Shi Shi to us," said the Taixuan Hierophant.


    Lord Taixuan said nothing more. As the crowd gradually left, there were fewer and fewer people on Taixuan Mountain, and the cultivators of the Taixuan Region also bowed and left. With this matter over, they had no more reason to linger there.


    After a while, Taixuan Mountain seemed to have returned to its former tranquility. Not many people were still there, save for the disciples of Taixuan Mountain.


    At this time, the disciples of Taixuan Mountain were still focused on Lord Taixuan. Even at this moment, they had not completely calmed their minds. Lord Taixuan was already someone at the peak. He had now gone one step further. With so many powerful figures in the Higher Heavens Realm congratulating him, they could very clearly feel Lord Taixuan''s current status, which was now truly beyond this world. Even the palace lord of Divine Music Palace was extremely polite and invited Lord Taixuan to lecture at Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    Furthermore, ten more spaces were given to them.


    With this in mind, many disciples in Taixuan Mountain could not hide the anticipation in their eyes, especially those whose cultivation was already in the Nirvana Plane. For them, this was an extremely rare opportunity that happened only once every ten years. In the Higher Heavens Realm, only the Divine Palace could provide such an opportunity.


    All the top figures of all principalities in the Higher Heavens Realm would head over to the Divine Palace to prove themselves.


    However, even with 15 spaces, it was, perhaps, still not enough. Besides the disciples cultivating on Taixuan Mountain, Lord Taixuan''s four disciples each also had their own disciples to consider.


    In addition, some elders on Taixuan Mountain also had descendants of their own.


    Lord Taixuan looked at everyone in the crowd and saw in their eyes that revealed their admiration, worship, and expectations. In addition, a few people also felt lost, clearly realizing that they had no chance.


    Lord Taixuan could read everyone''s thoughts with one glance. He said, "You must have heard the words of the palace lord of the Divine Music Palace at Shangxiao Divine Palace. Soon, there will be the once in a decade opportunity at Shangxiao Divine Palace, which is mainly focused on those at the pinnacle of the Saint Plane, so there is an opportunity to enter the Renhuang plane. Of course, it is only an opportunity. The key to success is still your own talent, perception, and state of mind."


    Everyone listened attentively. This was something they knew.


    "The Divine Palace is the first holy place for cultivation in the Higher Heavens Realm rumored to be able to forge the basis of Renhuang. For cultivators, it is indeed valuable. This time, the Divine Palace gave Taixuan Mountain ten more spaces, all because the grandmaster broke through. Other top forces only have ten spaces in total."


    Jun Mu, a disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant, spoke. Lord Taixuan nodded. The top forces in the Higher Heavens Realm received ten spaces in ten years. They had never established a clan nor opened a school. They used to have only five spaces, but this time, they were given ten more for a total of 15.


    "So, 15 spaces. Five spaces for the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain. You four may each choose two disciples, so two places each. How about that?" Lord Taixuan said to everyone. His four disciples would get two spaces each, and cultivators of Taixuan Mountain would get five spaces, which was considered evenly distributed.


    Everyone nodded and didn''t have any qualms. Lord Taixuan''s suggestion was relatively fair, and he took care of the needs of both sides.


    "What about the other two?" the Taixuan Hierophant asked. Five plus eight only accounted for 13 spaces.


    "I have other plans for them," Lord Taixuan responded. The Taixuan Hierophant nodded and said nothing more. Since Lord Taixuan had other plans, there was nothing else for them to comment on.


    Ye Futian had been listening quietly, without speaking, because there was no room of him to speak here. But he was slightly moved when he heard that Lord Taixuan had left two spaces.


    Could it be that Lord Taixuan was leaving one of the two spaces to him?


    Moreover, this time it was heading toward Shangxiao Divine Palace, which was where Yi Tianyu cultivated. Not long ago, at the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he had also had some conflicts with the disciples there.


    However, he had heard that the Divine Palace did not actually get involved in the battles of the disciples outside, as it was just a place of cultivation. Now it seemed that the rumor was true.


    Because whether or not there were people such as Yi Tianyu, it didn''t really matter.


    However, it did not matter if he thought too much of it. It was very pleasant to cultivate on Taixuan Mountain, and he was making great progress these days.


    "Well, you may all go and prepare your own candidates," Lord Taixuan said, and then turned to leave.


    After Lord Taixuan left, many were talking about it.


    "Let''s go back to Sword Abyss," Wan Shouyi said.


    "Senior Brother Wan should be able to get a space," Luoyue whispered. Wan Shouyi was extremely talented, and there must be a space for him.


    "I''ll do my best," Wan Shouyi said frankly, not being humble. This was an extremely rare opportunity. "I hope I can go to the trial with you."


    Luoyue was the daughter of the city lord of Taixuan City, so naturally, there would be a space for her.


    Ye Futian was also on his way back, ready to return to String Pavilion.


    "Shen Jing," Wan Shouyi shouted. Ye Futian looked back at him.


    "Soon, there will probably be some discussion at Taixuan Moutain, and same with Sword Abyss. You can come around from time to time to help you comprehend swordsmanship," Wan Shouyi advised Ye Futian, kind of watching out for him.


    "It is indeed a rare opportunity." Luoyue looked at Ye Futian and nodded in agreement. This time, the final selection would inevitably result in some competition. By observing the battle, Ye Futian could also make some progress.


    "Sure, I will definitely go," Ye Futian nodded with a smile and responded.


    "Well, then you go back now," Wan Shouyi said. And so, Ye Futian bid his goodbye and went toward the String Pavilion!

 1517 Departure

    Soon after, a grand forum battle was held on Taixuan Mountain. The selections for the four great disciples of Lord Taixuan was easy, as they each had a quota of two spaces and could decide themselves.


    But since there were five spaces for all the cultivators on Taixuan Mountain, a competition was essential for deciding on those candidates. As a result, there were exciting battles one after the other, until eventually, five candidates were chosen to be sent to Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    But for the four great disciples, such as the Taixuan Hierophant, the matter was settled internally, with each deciding on their own candidates without participating in those competitions.


    Many were curious about who would be filling the remaining two spaces, which had been reserved by Lord Taixuan himself.


    Ye Futian had been cultivating in the String Pavilion. On the day that Lord Taixuan broke through, he had been on the side comprehending and had received many insights, which he needed time to fully digest. This included the Divine Melody of the Great Path and the Song of the Lost Divine, which also took him a long time to understand. He had tried to play the song but had only made small progress.


    On this day, Ye Futian was still cultivating in the String Pavilion, and a fiery red shadow descended before him, calling out, "Sheng Jing."


    "Do you have any manners?" Ye Futian was a little speechless. This little phoenix was so comfortable with herself and interrupted him so blatantly.


    "I don''t," Feng Yan said without a care. "Shen Jing, you must have heard about what''s happening on Taixuan Mountain. Shangxiao Divine Palace gave Taixuan Mountain 15 spaces, so 15 people can go there to seek the opportunity of the Great Path. This is the chance to become a Renhuang."


    "I heard that, but you have just entered the Nirvana Plane. The Realm of the Demon Emperor has nothing to do with you for the time being," Ye Futian said bluntly.


    "How do you know that I have a space?" Feng Yan looked at Ye Futian and said with a smile. "It seems that you also know that my talent is unparalleled and that I will undoubtedly be selected by Lord Taixuan. This is an opportunity that comes only once in ten years, and countless people would like to be selected but won''t be. I heard from my mom and dad that many powerful Renhuang were willing to make great sacrifices in order to get a place just because this opportunity is rare. So, are you jealous?"


    Ye Futian was able to ascertain that this little girl had come to show off.


    "Jealous." Ye Futian was quite speechless. The parents of the little phoenix enjoyed a great relationship with the String Emperor. They may be String Emperor''s demonic beast partners. When little phoenix was born, she received the blessing of Lord Taixuan and was also a natural-born Saint, so it was no surprise that Lord Taixuan would give her a space.


    "Hypocrite," little phoenix said.


    "..." Ye Futian was a little speechless. Little phoenix showed a smug look and laughed. "However, you must wish you were me."


    "Yes, I do." Ye Futian smiled and shook his head.


    At this time, footsteps were heard.


    "Young friend Shen Jing." A voice was heard, and Ye Futian looked forward and said, "Elder Lan.."


    His voice fell, and Ye Futian saw a figure walking in their direction. He came to Ye Futian and little phoenix. It was Uncle Lan, the housekeeper of Taixuan Mountain.


    "Feng Yan is there, too," Uncle Lan said with a smile.


    "Mmmm." Feng Yan nodded. "Why are you here, Uncle Lan?"


    "I''m looking for Shen Jing." Uncle Lan looked at Sheng Jing and said with a smile, "You should know everything that''s happening at Taixuan Mountain. Lord Taixuan wanted to give a space to me, but what use do I have for it at my age? So, I''m giving it to you."


    Ye Futian was surprised. He was not too surprised that he would get a space, but that Uncle Lan came and gave it to him was a shock.


    But who told Uncle Lan to do so?


    Ye Futian thought that perhaps it was Lord Taixuan''s instruction. Lord Taixuan wanted to avoid being too obvious, so maybe he had asked Uncle Lan to inform him?


    After all, Lord Taixuan deliberately concealed what had happened last time and did not expose him.


    "Uncle Lan, you are giving him your space?" Little phoenix showed a strange expression when she heard what Uncle Lan said. This meant that Shen Jing also got a space?


    "Yes." Uncle Lan nodded. Ye Futian smiled and did not decline his offer. He bowed slightly to Uncle Lan and said, "Many thanks to you, elder."


    "Miss Four sent you up here. I saw that your appearance and manner were extraordinary. There must be a bright future for you," Uncle Lan said with a smile. "Come on. They are already there discussing the matter. I will go with you two."


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded and left with little phoenix and Uncle Lan. Little Phoenix looked strange all along the way, murmuring, and seemed a little puzzled. Not long ago, she was showing off to Ye Futian, and now it turned out that Ye Futian also got a spot.


    Could it be that Lord Taixuan knew?


    This guy hid a lot deep inside, but Lord Taixuan was all-knowing, so there was still a possibility that he may know.


    As they came to Taixuan Palace, many people had already gathered here, and many of them were familiar faces to Ye Futian. They turned around, and when they saw Ye Futian, they all looked rather surprised.


    "Uncle Lan." Everyone bowed to Uncle Lan slightly, and Uncle Lan smiled and nodded. Luoyue directed her gaze toward Ye Futian and asked, "Shen Jing, why are you here?"


    As the daughter of the city lord of Taixuan City, she clearly occupied a space.


    "Like Miss Luoyue, he will also head to Shangxiao Divine Palace," Uncle Lan said with a smile, and his words astounded everyone.


    Shen Jing was also going to Shangxiao Divine Palace?


    "Uncle Lan, are you joking?" Luoyue didn''t quite believe it. Out of the two spaces reserved by Lord Taixuan, the one given to Feng Yan was easily understood, but the other one was given to Shen Jing?


    "Would I dare joke with Miss Luoyue? It was I who led Shen Jing to Taixuan Mountain and placed him at the String Pavilion. Since then, Shen Jing has taken good care of the String Pavilion. I will not use the space that Lord Taixuan gave me, so I gave it to Shen Jing instead," Uncle Lan said with a smile.


    Taken good care of the String Pavilion?


    Everyone looked a little spasmatic. Was this even a reason?!


    Uncle Lan was clearly making up an excuse for giving Shen Jing his spot. It was said that Uncle Lan had a great relationship with the String Emperor and the House Master of Taixuan, and Shen Jing was also sent here by the House Master of Taixuan. He was placed in the String Pavilion, and it meant that he had some connection with the third and fourth disciples of Lord Taixuan.


    Could it be that Uncle Lan favored him because of this?


    "Doesn''t Uncle Lan also have disciples?" Luoyue said.


    "Those few disciples of mine will be useless there. It is best to give it to a suitable person," Uncle Lan said quite casually.


    "Although our friend Sheng Jing was sent here by Miss Four, and even though he may be extremely talented, he is just an Unblemished Saint. Such an opportunity bestowed on someone of Unblemished Realm is giving them too much face," someone said. If Luoyue had been expressing her doubts, this person was now instigating.


    This speaker was precisely the disciple of Taixuan Hierophant, Jun Mu. He had also been selected and would be going to Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    Ye Futian looked up to Jun Mu. He seemed to feel his gaze. Jun Mu''s expression was still relaxed as he nodded to Ye Futian apologetically, saying, "Please excuse me, brother Shen Jing. I''m not deliberately opposing you. It is just that this trip to the Shangxiao Divine Palace is to seek the Path of the Doctrine. Brother Shen Jing has great talent, but the realm is still a bit off. Only those of the Nirvana Plane will exert the greatest influence. It is really not suitable for you to go."


    "It''s really unsuitable," several people agreed. They also felt that it was a complete waste of a space given Shen Jing''s realm.


    This was an opportunity to test the Renhuang Realm, and even if the probability of success was extremely low, it was still an opportunity.


    Ye Futian did not know how to rebuke Jun Mu''s words so quickly.


    "But I''m very optimistic about Sheng Jing. Although his realm is a little lower and cannot impact Renhuang, it could form the basis of the fruit of the Way in the body ahead of time, which would still have great benefits for cultivation in the future. One day, when the time comes, a breakthrough of the realm will be a matter of course," Uncle Lan said calmly. "Since Lord Taixuan is letting me do as I wish, and I chose to give it to Shen Jing, what is so inappropriate about that?"


    Jun Mu''s eyes were slightly perturbed. Uncle Lan was insisting on helping Shen Jing.


    "Enough. Now that you have made your decision, there is nothing more to argue about," a voice said as a godly figure appeared above the palace. It was Lord Taixuan. The four great disciples of his were standing next to him.


    "Yes. I will obey," Jun Mu lowered his head and responded. Instantly, he became extremely compliant.


    Lord Taixuan glanced at the disciples. There exactly 15. His gaze lingered for a moment on Ye Futian, but it was just an instant before he moved on.


    "Since all the candidates have been chosen, you may depart. The people of other principalities must have already embarked on their journey," Lord Taixuan said. Everyone nodded and didn''t bother to argue about the matter. Even though they felt that the space had been wasted, with Lord Taixuan''s approval, the matter was settled without further discussion.


    "Feng Zhu, I will trouble you to take them." Lord Taixuan looked into the distance. As soon as his voice fell, a burning might descended, and a gigantic figure of the demon emperor appeared. It was the father of little phoenix. He was a tyrannical demon emperor. Obviously, this time, he came to lead the way for them.


    "Go, and make sure to send them off before you head back," Lord Taixuan ordered again. 15 people stepped onto the phoenix. With a loud chant from the phoenix, the divine bird launched toward the sky and disappeared in an instant.


    "Thank you for escorting us, elder." Everyone on the back of the demon emperor successively expressed their gratitude.


    "Dad, are you also keeping an eye on me, by the way?" little phoenix mumbled. Feng Zhu was not in the mood to deal with her but merely sailed through the wind.


    "Shen Jing, you are a really lucky man." Wan Shouyi, who had also been selected, appeared to be in a good mood and was feeling appreciative of everything in the outside world.


    "Well, I must recognize all the care given to me by all the elders and the disciples of Sword Abyss." Ye Futian nodded as he looked at the rolling sea of ??clouds.


    Shangxiao Divine Palace was such an unexpected coincidence. In the past, the cultivators of Shangxiao Divine Palace descended in Heavenly Mandate Realm, and now, as Shen Jing, he was on his way to Shangxiao Divine Palace. It was unknown if he would meet those he knew or what would happen there.


    Yi Tianyu was cultivating at Shangxiao Divine Palace. How was he doing?


    The phoenix divine bird crossed the sky and left a radiant divine light in the sea of ??clouds. At the same time, in all the major areas of the Higher Heavens Realm, cultivators of all sides had set off and started on their journey to Shangxiao Divine Palace!

 1518 The Sea of the Path

    Shangxiao Divine Palace was located in the central district of the Higher Heavens Realm, surrounded by the Sea of the Path. It stood in the middle of the inland fairy mountains.


    It was said that in the Higher Heavens Realm, the Sea of the Path and the fairy mountain, where Shangxiao Divine Palace was located, were both the most precious sacred, pure lands in the Higher Heavens Realm. These pure lands were used by the Shangxiao Divine Palace for preaching and were the true holy lands for cultivation.


    To enter the Shangxiao Divine Palace, one needed to cross the Sea of the Path from Linxiao City. This big city in the central district had always been a prosperous but unclaimed land. In fact, there were many top powers fighting for hegemony in the central district, but none of them had ever touched Linxiao City. This city near the Sea of the Path was the place leading to the Shangxiao Divine Palace. Those top powers didn''t dare to touch it, but they all had their own influence in Linxiao City.


    In the past few days, Linxiao City had been extremely busy. The decennial journey project of crossing the sea and seeking the Path had been launched, and the Shangxiao Divine Palace had given quotas to many powers of the Higher Heavens Realm. Cultivators of the top powers would cross the sea and enter the Divine Palace to seek for the Paths.


    Restaurants near the Sea of the Path were already overcrowded. During these days, all the people from different realms had gathered here. When the messenger of Shangxiao Divine Palace arrived, all the warriors from different powers would start to cross the sea.


    The people of Taixuan Mountain had also arrived. The Phoenix Demon Emperor sent the 15 cultivators of Taixuan Mountain here and left. Later, they could only depend on themselves. No one else could help them.


    At this time, cultivators of Taixuan Mountain were standing on the rooftop of a restaurant near the sea. The city was bustling, and there were sometimes warriors passing by in the void sky who could clearly feel the lively atmosphere below.


    At another place in the restaurant, people looked at them and whispered, "Are they cultivators of the Taixuan Mountain?"


    "Yes. Not long ago, Lord Taixuan broke shackles and beat Old Demon Luo with one single finger, and now he must be stronger. The Divine Palace gave a quota of 15 participants to Taixuan Mountain," someone said.


    "Lord Taixuan has been absorbed in cultivation for many years and is always diligently seeking knowledge of the Path, so now he can reach the apex. We should all learn from him."


    The people of Taixuan Mountain heard this and felt proud. They could feel that the status of their Lord was different from before.


    "However, although Taixuan Mountain has 15 seats, as the Lord has refused to accept new disciples, the strength of the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain..." someone said and stopped. Many people had heard the news that the disciples of Taixuan Mountain were defeated badly by warriors of the Divine Capital of Xiling, but then a mysterious warrior defeated the people of Xiling God Capital with the "Tao" spell.


    "The Divine Palace is a holy place for seeking the Path, but it is not absolutely fair to everyone. The powerful forces in the Higher Heavens Realm have quotas for seeking the Path, but for those cultivators who were born into ordinary families and did not enter the top powers to cultivate, they do not have the opportunity to get quotas. Are they weaker than those selected ones?"


    A figure of the Saint Plane drank alcohol alone and spoke, not afraid of offending people. It was probably because he had no chance to go to Fae Mountain to seek the way, so he was satisfied with complaining.


    "There are so many cultivators in the world. How could the Divine Palace be absolutely fair?" Some people argued for the Divine Palace.


    "To put it bluntly, it still depends on one''s family background," that person said and smiled, taking another sip.


    "Why were you born into an unprivileged background?" someone asked. Suddenly many people in the restaurant laughed, but all of them were just joking, and no one took it seriously.


    At this time, many people turned their heads and looked in a direction. In the distance, the qi of swords whistled above the void sky, and many sharp swords passed by. A group of swordsmen-in-training came from the sky and landed directly above the restaurant.


    They were all dressed in white, with keen temperaments. Many people from Linxiao City in the restaurant immediately recognized these visitors and were slightly surprised.


    In the Central District, the Divine Sword Li Family was a famed family of sword art and was also known as the strongest family of swordsmanship in the Higher Heavens Realm. All their cultivation methods were supplemented by swordsmanship, and they had developed countless horrifying sword techniques.


    The disciples of the Divine Sword Li family were all very outstanding. Those who were not excellent enough were not even qualified to walk outside in the name of the Divine Sword Li family. The family''s discipline of the younger generation was extremely strict and could even be called harsh. Only in this way could superb swordsmen be produced from the family.


    In the Central District, people were in awe of the Divine Sword Li family. They were extremely strict with their internal disciplines, and their way of coping with external affairs was also hard and fast. They always advocated speaking with the gun.


    It seemed that they came for the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain.


    "We are from the Li family and are here to see our Taoist friends from the Taixuan Mountain." These visitors stepped forward and came in front of cultivators of Taixuan Mountain, cupping their hands.


    "Divine Sword Li Family," Wan Shouyi whispered. The disciples of the Sword Abyss cultivated in swordsmanship, which he as the top one swordsman in the Higher Heaven Realm, was very clear, but this was the first time they saw cultivators from the Divine Sword Li Family. After all, Taixuan Mountain was very far away from here. If it were not for crossing the sea to seek the Path, they usually would not come here.


    "What brings you here, my Taoist friends?" Jun Mu said. The 15 people who came were actually the third generation of cultivators of Taixuan Mountain. Jun Mu was the direct disciple of Lord Taixuan''s chief follower Taixuan Hierophant, so among the 15 cultivators, he took the lead to speak up. Presumably, he thought he was the lead, and other people would not compete with him.


    "Now we are in the prosperous era, and since many of you came to visit us from distant places in the Upper Heavens Realm, we Li family are half of your host. Therefore, we prepare a banquet in Wanghai Restaurant and want to invite all parties that crossed the sea to seek the Path here. We came to know that Taoist friends of Taixuan Mountain are here, so we came to invite you," one of the visitors said very politely.


    Jun Mu looked at others of Taixuan Mountain and asked, "What do you think?"


    "Since the Divine Sword Li family has invited us, we will attend the banquet for sure," Li Zhiyin, a disciple of Taixuan Mountain Guqin Valley, said. She was also an outstanding figure in Taixuan Mountain, who was able to play Flight of the Phoenix Pair at a considerable level. She was also among the 15 candidates. In addition to her, Chen Yu of the Guqin Valley was also selected.


    Wan Shouyi also nodded. Those who practiced swordsmanship naturally wanted to see the genius of the Divine Sword Li Family.


    It was said that this marvelous genius of the generation in the Divine Sword Li Family was now practicing in the Palace. He was extraordinarily talented.


    Jun Mu''s eyes fell on Luoyue. Luoyue nodded lightly, and when she saw that Jun Mu was looking at the man of the Divine Sword Li Family, she said, "If that''s the case, my Taoist friend, please lead the way for us."


    "Please," the person of Li family said. Soon, everyone rose up and flew towards the sky.


    Ye Futian and Feng Yan were at the end. The two stepped into the void sky and followed the crowd. Their opinions didn''t seem to matter very much, and they were totally ignored by Jun Mu. So, they just needed to follow up.


    Because of this, the Little Phoenix pouted, somewhat dissatisfied. Not just because of this, but along the way, Jun Mu had been ignoring their existence.


    They quickly arrived at the Wanghai Restaurant. This was the tallest building in this area. The view from the top was excellent, and one could directly look at the Sea of the Path from the building. Powerful warriors were staying at each floor below, but at this time, everyone was paying attention to the top floor because several top-level disciples in the Higher Heaven Realm were at the top.


    When the people of Taixuan Mountain landed, a lot of people on the huge platform in the front had already entered the seating area. At a glance, they saw the people of Divine Capital of Xiling. Previously, they had a war on Taixuan Mountain, so they could be said to be impressed.


    This time, the team of Divine Capital of Xiling was headed by Prince Luo Youming. His eyes were cold, and his pitch-dark eyes swept toward the crowd of the Taixuan Mountain. In the last battle, they defeated their opponents, but in the end, they were subdued by a mysterious swordsman-in-training. He believed that that swordsman-in-training was most likely a Renhuang figure who pretended to be in Saint Plane to go against them. Otherwise, he would not be able to resonate with the character of Tao and trigger the Fleeting Swordsmanship.


    In addition to the warriors of Divine Capital of Xiling, the warriors of the Golden Divine Nation were also present, and Gai Shi Shi was sitting there. His golden eyes still looked extremely keen, and the beams shooting from his eyes were like golden, sharp swords.


    In addition, there was another group of guests, each with extraordinary temperament. The disciples of Taixuan Mountain had never seen them before, but they suspected that they should belong to one of the other two top forces in the Central District. However, it was said that the Divine Sword Li Family and the Sky Burying God Clan had a deep grudge, so they should be another top force��the Changfeng Family.


    The origin of the Changfeng Family was also very unusual. It could date back to the ancient Changfeng country that dominated the Central District many years ago, so to say, they were descendants of the ancient country, the overlords in the past. One could imagine how strong they were.


    "It seems that we are the last to arrive," Jun Mu said, self-mockingly.


    Ye Futian was standing behind the crowd. The atmosphere of Wanghai Restaurant made him feel a little uncomfortable and slightly depressed. The people here were all the top-ranking figures of the young generation and had an aura around them. The invisible pressure they exerted over others was very unsettling.


    But many people below this floor were very excited. A lot of them also came from big forces, but the people on the top were the descendants of the uppermost forces and naturally attracted more attention.


    "Your Lord broke the shackles, so the Divine Palace gave you a quota of 15 candidates. You dared to accept them? Aren''t you ashamed? What is the point of you coming here?" a cold voice came out, and the speaker was Luo Youming. Obviously, he showed contempt for the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain because of the previous battle.


    "How is Old Demon Luo''s injury?" Jun Mu looked at Luo Youming and countered.


    Luo Youming put down the wine glass, and a mark appeared directly on the table. Rays of death surrounded his palm, which looked extremely depressing.


    He smiled and said, "There was none of your Lord''s blessing on the way of seeking the Path in the Divine Palace. After you entered the Sea of the Path, you can only depend on yourself. You''d better think it carefully and then decide whether you should enter the Sea of the Path."


    The people of Taixuan Mountain heard Luo Youming''s threat and were anxious. Was he implying that he wanted to hurt them after entering the Sea of the Path?


    "Thank you for reminding us, but there is no need for you to bother," Jun Mu replied.


    "You are the guests, please come and sit down," a voice in the front said. The speaker was wearing a white gown, with sharp temperament. He was the peerless talent of swordsmanship in the Divine Sword Li Family, Li Xun.


    "Thanks a lot," Jun Mu replied and then found a place to sit down. A slight unpleasant look showed on his face.


    "You may enter the Sea of the Path at any time, and now let''s just have a drink with peace of mind. Other things can be discussed later when we enter the Sea of the Path," Li Xun said to the people. He invited everyone to come and wanted to see who would enter the Sea of the Path this time.


    Although they were sitting together at this moment, everyone knew clearly that this did not mean they were friends.

 1519 Long Time No See

    Luo Youming and Jun Mu no longer competed against each other, but the grievances had been settled since the battle of Taixuan Mountain and would continue after they entered the Sea of the Path.


    "During this trip to the Sea of the Path, the top forces directly own quotas, but the ordinary cultivators in the Higher Heavens Realm are not so lucky to have quotas to enter the Divine Palace," Li Xun said. "However, the Divine Palace considers things carefully. For those who enter the Divine Palace to seek the Path, they will enter the Sea of the Path before us. Countless people will compete for some opportunities to enter the Palace. Among the people who are present in this room today, is there anyone who wants to enter the Palace?"


    Everyone naturally understood that what he meant to enter the Divine Palace was to study the Path under the guidance of the Divine Palace.


    In fact, Li Daozi, the strongest talent of the Divine Sword Li family, used to cultivate in the Divine Palace and had gained a great reputation.


    The people of Taixuan Mountain were impossible to do it. Taixuan Mountain was a force with influence, and if a disciple belonging to Taixuan Mountain also entered the Divine Palace, it would be the same as having a foot in both camps. However, the top clan forces like the Golden Divine Nation and the Changfeng Family were able to do it.


    "Brother Gai, have you thought about it? With your talent, you will surely be able to get top-level resources for cultivation after you enter the Divine Palace," Li Xun asked Gai Shi Shi.


    Not long ago, Gai Shi Shi wanted to become the Lord Taixuan''s disciple, and masters of such level did exist in the Divine Palace. However, becoming their disciples was an extremely difficult thing, and even Gai Shi Shi was not likely to make it.


    "I seek for the power that dominates the world, and it does not conform to the idea of the Divine Palace cultivation, so I will not enter the Palace," Gai Shi Shi said. The Divine Palace didn''t get involved in secular disputes, which, in his view, was too pedantic.


    "Brother Gai, you refuse to go to the Divine Palace because their idea doesn''t fit in with yours, which indeed shows your boldness of vision," Li Xun smiled and said. Among the disciples who cultivated in the Divine Palace, how many of them would really stay in the Palace and hold the same philosophy as the Palace?


    Very few of them.


    "May I know what philosophy Brother Gai holds?" Li Xun asked.


    "I hope the Path of Martial Arts dominates the world, and where the glory of the Divine Nation passes by, all beings kneel down and worship," Gai Shi Shi said. The character he worshipped was a truly unparalleled one like Donghuang the Great Emperor, the only one who ruled over the Divine Land.


    If one day he could reach that level, wherever the glory of the Golden Divine Nation covered, he would enjoy everyone''s worship.


    Everyone looked at Gai Shi Shi and thought he was just as his name suggested. The Divine Nation took this name for him, which destined his character.


    "The Path of martial arts should dominate the world!" Li Xun smiled and said. "Isn''t it something all the cultivators in the world are pursuing? But the only thing is, not to mention the vast divine land, only the Higher Heavens Realm had numerous strong warriors. In this trip to the Sea of the Path, besides us, there were other disciples selected from the Divine Palace this time. Of course, the stronger ones might have already entered the Divine Palace. My elder brother Li Daozi is among them. In this generation, who could dominate the world and be unparalleled?"


    Who dared to say like that!


    Li Daozi of the Li family, that figure of the Sky Burying God Clan, or the other few warriors in the Divine Palace?


    "What about you?" Gai Shi Shi looked at Li Xun and asked. "The Divine Sword Li Family has already had Li Daozi, is there another place for you?"


    "I never think about comparing myself with my elder brother. The world is so big that it could accommodate many top characters. For me, it is enough if wherever the Divine Sword passes, no other sword can compete with it," Li Xun said.


    "Do you think your swordsmanship is invincible?" Gai Shi Shi glanced at the direction where disciples of Taixuan Mountain were located and said. "The Lord is also good at using sword. Now, I''m afraid that his swordsmanship is the best in the Upper Heavens Realm. Taixuan Mountain has Sword Abyss. Now, their swordsmen-in-training must have arrived."


    "The Lord''s Divine Sword is indeed a supreme sword technique, but I still think that the Divine Sword Li family''s Divine Sword is the best one in the Higher Heavens Realm," Li Xun said slowly. He looked at the people of Taixuan Mountain and said, "After entering the Sea of the Path, there will be opportunities to consult about the Fleeting Divine Sword of Taixuan Mountain. I am curious about what level of cultivation you have reached."


    "On that day when the Lord made the breakthrough, it was said that there was a mysterious cultivator crossing the sky with a sword who accomplished the second level of the Fleeting Divine Sword��Cleave of All Things. If he is of Saint Plane, he should be the strongest one cultivating in Fleeting Divine Sword below Renhuang level in the Taixuan Mountain, right?"


    At this moment, a handsome young man of the Changfeng family said, "Is that person here?"


    The people of Taixuan Mountain were speechless for a moment, and the strongest swordsman they had here was Wan Shouyi. They still didn''t know who that mysterious swordsman-in-training was.


    "Do you think he really was a swordsman-in-training?" Luo Youming said sarcastically. "He must be a Renhuang in disguise."


    "It should not have had anything to do with the Lord," Chang Fenglie from the Changfeng Family said. He thought that the Lord would not do so as a man of such a high level of cultivation.


    "Then ask the people of Taixuan Mountain, where is the swordsman-in-training?" Luo Youming said with a somewhat contemptuous tone.


    "Why can''t he be concentrating on cultivation in Taixuan Mountain?" Luoyue responded coldly. She had thought about it before, but after being reminded by Wan Shouyi, she saw others questioning Lord and was displeased.


    "So, who was this swordsman-in-training? Did you deploy the sword at that time? Was it you yourself?" Luo Youming asked. He wanted to know if there was such a swordsman-in-training in Taixuan Mountain.


    Luoyue was speechless for a while, and she indeed did not know.


    Luo Youming sneered and didn''t say anything. Everyone fell silent, and the atmosphere was a bit cold.


    "Let''s put the topic aside," Li Xun spoke up to break the awkward atmosphere. He then said, "During this trip, there must be someone who could prove themselves Renhuang. Let''s see who will have this opportunity."


    Nobody answered, and everyone just looked at the Sea of the Path in the distance. On this trip, the big figures of the Upper Heavens Realms would gather together. Besides them, many top characters from the Upper Heavens Realms would also participate. Who could prove themselves?


    All Nirvana-Plane cultivators were craving for the chance.


    "Huh?"


    At this moment, some people looked toward the direction of the Sea of the Path, where there were many people coming by boat to this side of the coast.


    Suddenly, many people''s eyes fell on them, including Ye Futian. Were these people from the Divine Palace?


    It caused a sensation in the lower floors. Many people in Wanghai Restaurant looked over there, and many warriors gathered toward the coast, too. Soon, many small boats approached the coast, and someone announced aloud, "Tomorrow, for those who want to enter the Palace to study, please come to the Sea of the Path and receive the assessment from the Palace. This assessment may result in hazardous consequences, so please think carefully before making the decision.


    "In addition, after seven days, people from the top forces who are going to enter the Sea of the Path will be received by someone."


    His words caused a huge sensation. Tomorrow, the Palace would select disciples, so immediately, countless cultivators were stirred and wanted to have a try. If they succeed this time, they would also have the opportunity to compete with those from top forces with quotas and the disciples inside the Palace and earn the chance to prove their Paths.


    After his words finished, the people of the Palace drove the boats and entered the Sea of the Path, and their figures disappeared quickly.


    However, there were countless warriors heading towards the Sea of the Path, and there were many people flashing down from the Wanghai Restaurant and heading towards there.


    "The event happens once every ten years, and there is an opportunity to prove one''s cultivation. Previously, there were cultivators at the peaks of Nirvana Plane who were reluctant to enter the Palace. This time, for the opportunity of making the breakthrough to Renhuang Plane, they may also participate in this event for the quota," Li Xun said, walking to the front and looking at the Sea of the Path in the distance.


    Many people stood up and looked there. They all understood that the Higher Heavens Realm was too big, and there were still many extraordinary characters and even many senior cultivators who were very old but had been trapped in Nirvana Plane. Among them, some had even almost stepped into the Renhuang Plane.


    "It''s an honor to meet you here today. After some days, we may become opponents on the journey to seek the Path," Li Xun turned to the crowd and said. "Now, you are free to go."


    "We will see you again in the trip to the Sea of the Path," many figures asked to leave and then flashed out, leaving Wanghai Restaurant.


    "Let''s go," Jun Mu said, and people of Taixuan Mountain left.


    "I want to take a walk alongside the Sea of the Path to walk," Ye Futian said.


    After speaking, he walked alone. Little Phoenix saw him and flashed and followed him.


    "Let''s go together," Wan Shouyi also said. He and Luoyue also headed towards the Sea of the Path. The group just spread out, and they all flickered away in different directions.


    Ye Futian came to the coast of the Sea of the Path. He could even vaguely perceive the existence of the Path from the boundless sea.


    "It is said that after crossing the edge of the Sea of the Path and entering the real Sea of the Path, one could feel the omnipresent Path," Wan Shouyi walked to Ye Futian and whispered. "In fact, I''ve been dreaming of coming here, and now, I finally have the opportunity to take a look around."


    "Why have you never thought about trying your luck in the Shangxiao Divine Palace?" Ye Futian asked. There were some ordinary disciples in the Shangxiao Divine Palace. With the strength of Wan Shouyi, he could easily enter there even though he might not be able to become a core disciple.


    "There are not many choices in a lifetime. Taixuan Mountain is a very good place to cultivate for me. I have been at Taixuan Mountain for decades and have been in Sword Abyss. The world is too big, and even the Higher Heavens Realm is boundless. Even a saint will be satisfied to find a place to cultivate peacefully if he spends most of his time on the road. However, now that I have reached my current Plane, it''s time for me to go outside. Even without this opportunity, I will still take a tour," Wan Shouyi smiled and said.


    When he said going outside, he really meant taking a walk on the land of the Higher Heavens Realm, to see the scenery of the entire Higher Heavens Realm and even to other realms, although it might take a lot of time, it was also a journey of seeking the Path.


    "How about you? You also cultivated in Taixuan Mountain for a while. I didn''t hear you talk about your past except knowing that you were sent by the Fourth Mistress. I sometimes feel that your character is too good and too humble to be true. You are not like a Saint-Plane cultivator," Wan Shouyi smiled and said.


    "Really?" Ye Futian said, smiling. He didn''t know whether Wan Shouyi noticed anything, but it didn''t matter.


    "My luck is good and bad. Although my cultivation time is not very long, I have traveled through many places," Ye Futian said with a smile. It seemed that he was always on the road because the starting point of his cultivation was too humble. He didn''t know who thought of such an idea to throw him in this corner of the world.


    However, it seemed that it was not easy to trace some things now...


    "You also have some stories to tell," Wan Shouyi smiled and said. "You are humble and studious, low-key, and forbearing. Maybe among the 15 people who came on this trip, your achievements will be the greatest."


    Ye Futian glanced at Wan Shouyi, smiled, and said nothing. He looked ahead.


    On the seashore, a woman in white was walking quietly. She looked very clean. Although she was not a peerless beauty, she made one feel comfortable.


    Comfortable, and also a bit lonely.


    When Ye Futian saw her, a bright smile appeared in his eyes.


    Long time no see.


    It didn''t take long, but it seemed like a long time had passed!

 1520 The Guide

    Ye Futian lifted his feet and walked toward the Sea of the Path.


    Wan Shouyi was perplexed when he saw Ye Futian walking away. Where was he going?


    Ye Futian moved forward and walked toward a woman, which causing Wan Shouyi to be even more curious, and little phoenix blinked as she looked yonder.


    The woman in white seemed to have sensed something. She stopped and lifted her head slightly, looking at Ye Futian, who was walking toward her. There was a sharp sword will in her eyes, and her temperament seemed to have transformed in an instant.


    "Is our little girl so fierce?" Ye Futian said with a smile as he raised his hand toward the head of the woman in white.


    The woman in white stared at him, and a powerful sword will spat out ferociously. A powerful murderous intent bloomed, and the whole space was shrouded in an atmosphere of carnage.


    Ye Futian seemed not to care at all, still extending his arm. Out from the woman''s eyes came a terrible sword will that enveloped Ye Futian''s entire body. It seemed as if Ye Futian''s hand moved forward a bit more, she would have slain him.


    "You are still the same as before." Ye Futian smiled, and the woman''s eyes stiffened. Then Ye Futian''s hand landed on her head, and the woman looked him in the eyes. At this moment, that murderous intent dissipated like fading tides. She lowered her head slightly, with a gentle smile in her eyes.


    Clearly, she recognized Ye Futian, because only he would do that.


    "Won''t you say hi? "Ye Futian''s familiar voice said, and the woman gave him a nasty look, but there was no malice.


    Seeing the other stared at him, Ye Futian gave her a silly smile. "Fine, don''t say hi."


    The woman in white was Yaya, and she had also come to the Upper Heavens Realm. She had come to this Sea of the Path.


    "You want to enter the Sea of the Path?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Mmm." Yaya nodded gently. Now her realm was already Nirvana. At the time, she laid down her life to protect Ye Futian in the Heavenly Mandate Demon Realm and then cultivated for a long time after that. Now, she had not returned to the magnificent state she once was, but because of her experience, she was even stronger than the Sword Saint of the Void.


    So, she came here, wanting to seize this opportunity to prove the supreme Way pursued by all in the two realms��the realm of Renhuang.


    Of course, now her vision was different from before. For the Sword Saint of the Void in the past, Renhuang was the apex, but in this realm, she had already seen many Renhuang.


    "Are you going too?" Yaya asked. She didn''t ask Ye Futian why he had changed his appearance; he was different from her. In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Ye Futian was too high-profile, and there were too many who knew him. If there are any prominent figures from the Heavenly Mandate Realm who were here, they would easily recognize Ye Futian''s true identity.


    "I was cultivating at Taixuan Mountain, and there was a spot for me," Ye Futian said. He glanced at the vast crowds around the Sea of the Path and asked, "Shall I go with you?"


    "No need." Yaya shook her head.


    "We can watch each other''s back," Ye Futian said. There were numerous strong cultivators on this trip, and he was not sure if Yaya should go there alone.


    Yaya looked up at him and looked into her eyes, Ye Futian smiled and shook his head, saying, "Very well, you will go by yourself."


    He had always thought of Yaya as the girl who once came from the Tombkeeper Village, and it was easy to forget that she was once the Sword Saint of the Void. Two lifetimes of cumulated cultivation and she was stronger than he had imagined. Several times when he was in danger, Yaya was there, guarding him every time.


    But now Ye Futian thought that she had the ability to take care of herself.


    However, Yaya also needed to have her own experience in cultivation.


    "Shen Jing." At this time, Luoyue came over and asked him, "Is this your friend?"


    Yaya cast a glance at Ye Futian. Shen Jing should be an alias.


    "My little sister," Ye Futian responded with a smile. Yaya was a little speechless, but she was used to it.


    "A swordsman?" Luoyue asked. From Yaya, she could feel a similar breath��sharp. That was the breath of swordsmanship.


    "Mmm." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Your little sister''s realm is stronger than yours." Luoyue looked at Ye Futian, a little lost for words.


    "My little sister is way more talented." Ye Futian smiled, and Yaya was silent. She clearly understood how talented Ye Futian was. He was the existence of a unique record in the Heavenly Mandate Realm that no one had broken. Even in that battle with Yi Tianyu, he still had the upper hand.


    Yi Tianyu was also cultivating in Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    "No wonder you went to the Sword Abyss to learn the swords. It seems that it was because you are not as good as your sister," Luoyue whispered, and immediately guessed the "truth" behind it��that Ye Futian''s swordsmanship was not as good as his sister, so he decided that he would go to the Sword Abyss at Taixuan Mountain to watch and learn, working on surpassing his sister.


    If Ye Futian knew what she was thinking, he would admire her imagination.


    Next to him, little phoenix made a face. She scoffed at Luo Yue''s conclusion. Watching Ye Futian''s expression, she wanted to beat him up because he was so hypocritical.


    Who better than her to know more about Ye Futian''s swordsmanship?


    This guy was truly pretentious. He stole the famous music piece from the String Emperor and stole the sword method, but those people at Xuanshan were still oblivious to the truth.


    "Well, you guys talk, we won''t keep you," Wan Shouyi said, and then left with Luoyue and the others.


    Ye Futian looked at little phoenix and saw that she had no intention of leaving. When she saw Ye Futian''s look, she gazed at the sea and said, "I am checking out the scenery."


    "Okay, take your time," Ye Futian said with a smile, then started moving forward with Yaya following him. The two walked side by side. Little phoenix stole a glance, following their footsteps. Was this really his sister?


    Why was he so suspicious?


    Ye Futian''s words had no credibility with her.


    "How have you been these days?" Ye Futian asked Yaya while ignoring little phoenix, who was trailing behind.


    "Just business as usual��cultivating," Yaya said casually. But, in fact, ever since she stepped into the Upper Heavens Realm, her experience had been unusual. She had had several battles in which she faced great dangers more than once, but these were things of the past, and there was no need to worry Ye Futian unnecessarily now.


    "I heard that Lord Taixuan broke through not long ago, but I didn''t expect you were cultivating there. What plans do you have for the future?" Yaya asked proactively.


    "Things can wait. Set foot in Renhuang realm as early as possible." Ye Futian looked into the distance. The cultivation of Saint Plane was nothing in the Nine Supreme Regions of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Only those at the level of Renhuang had true eligibility to participate.


    Now he was devoting all his energy to elevate his realm to that of Renhuang.


    "Hmm." Yaya nodded, agreeing with Ye Futian''s thoughts. In this cultivation world, where strength was above all else, only Renhuang could have a real foothold.


    The two chatted. At dusk, the setting sun illuminated the Sea of the Path sea with a glowing red, and red clouds appeared in the sky. They could vaguely make out some ethereal place in the distance. There was a flat dinghy. The scene in front of them was like a beautifully painted picture.


    When they were tired of walking, they sat on the beach, basking in the dusk watching the sunset, and watching the stars when the night fell.


    This night the beach next to the Sea of the Path was extremely lively, for all those who had come from all sides were gathered here, waiting.


    The next day, when the sky began to light up, many were looking forward, gazing at the Sea of the Path intently.


    Finally, they saw the small dinghies appearing in the Sea of the Path, and without being aware of it, they seemed to be near already.


    "Those who wish to enter the Divine Palace, enter the Sea of the Path," a Renhuang cultivator announced loudly in a clear voice that had a strong power of penetration. At this moment, all of Linxiao City could hear his voice.


    Suddenly, those on the shore of the Sea of the Path walked toward the sea, and even in the distant Linxiao City, there were people continuously coming through the air. In an instant, the shore of Sea of the Path was crowded with countless cultivators.


    Furthermore, most of them were of Unblemished Saints, the third realm of the Saint Plane, and Nirvana, the fourth realm of the Saint Plane.


    This time, it wasn''t simply for the purpose of seeking the Way at the Divine Palace, but also to bear testimony for their Way.


    Therefore, there were more people from the other two realms.


    There were people in all kinds of attires, and some were even white-haired elders, who had already reached the top of Nirvana. This time, though the chances were slim, they still wanted to fight for an opportunity.


    As people entered into the sea one after another, Yaya looked at Ye Futian and said, "I''m going now."


    Ye Futian nodded gently and said, "Watch yourself."


    "I will." Yaya moved forward and stepped into the Sea of ??the Path. A sword appeared at her feet and suspended in the sea, replacing the sailing vessel with a sword. She moved forward, and her white garment fluttered. She appeared carefree and unfettered.


    After a long while, those who came as guides turned towards the depths of the Sea of the Path, and countless people walked deeper into the sea.


    "Goodbye," Ye Futian whispered. In a few more days, he would meet up with Yaya.


    After everyone left, the seaside looked a lot empty. Although there were still many people there, it seemed to be much quieter compared to before.


    "Lover?" A voice was heard, and Ye Futian looked back at little phoenix. He said in a condescending tone, "Little kids are not to comment on adult matters."


    Little phoenix blinked and asked, "Who''s little?"


    Her face was angry. Her fiery red clothes accentuated her sexy figure perfectly. She was the equivalent to a young human woman. Indeed, she could not be said to be little in any way. However, in Ye Futian''s view, her mindset was indeed that of a child��quite immature.


    "Little everywhere," Ye Futian retorted with contempt. A fire of anger sputtered out from little phoenix, and she couldn''t wait to beat Ye Futian to a pulp, but it seemed that winning would not be likely...


    In a blink of an eye, a few days later, there were once again many cultivators who came to the Sea of the Path, but this time, instead of going to the Sea of the Path, they had come to watch those who had entered the Sea of the Path.


    Above the sky, the golden divine light shone, and Gai Shi Shi stood proudly above the void. Countless people looked up to that brilliant golden glory. Cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation were here.


    There was another terrifying dark demonic will of death circling; it was Luo Youming of the Divine Capital of Xiling, whose group had arrived.


    With sword qi whistling, the cultivators from the Divine Sword Li Family were now here.


    After the arrival of the Divine Sword Li Family��a group of cultivators with unusual temperament��stepped in the void. The breath exuded from their body was unfathomable. They stood shoulder to shoulder with the Li family. The cultivators of Sky Burying God Clan were here.


    Afterward, the Changfeng Family also arrived.


    The people of Taixuan Mountain were there already early on. Ye Futian looked at the many figures in the void.


    In the distance, in the Sea of ??the Path, another small dinghy appeared, and it was the guide from Shangxiao Divine Palace!

 1521 The Land of Proving the Way

    "They are here."


    Next to the Sea of the Path, all eyes were on the guides, as these most outstanding people selected by the Upper Heavens Realm, who possessed the admitting quota to enter the Sea of the Path, and they were about to set off on their journey.


    To seek the Way in The Sea of the Path was a once-every-ten-year event. Every ten years, there were those who returned, having proved themselves to be Renhuang. Some, having overwhelmed all the others, proved themselves to be unparalleled. And then there were also geniuses who fell from the altar.


    It''s a pity that they wouldn''t be seeing any of it and could only wait here.


    The Sea of the Path was immense and vast. If not a disciple of the Divine Palace and there were no guides to lead the way, they would not be able to cross. It was a feat that even those of the lower Renhuang realm would be hard-pressed to achieve, never mind those who were just in Saint Plane.


    "Let''s go," said the guides. Immediately, everyone walked forward. Some transformed their will into dinghies that landed on the sea upon which they traveled. Some transformed their will into leaves upon which they sailed through the winds. Then there were also people of the Divine Sword Li Family who turned their Way into sharp swords, shuttling upon the sea.


    "Departure," Jun Mu said in the direction of the 15 people from Taixuan Mountain. Suddenly, everyone stepped into the sea. Ye Futian''s Will turned into a dinghy upon which he stood, and traveled along with everyone, following the guides who were in the distance.


    On the shore of the Sea of the Path, countless eyes gazed at those who were fading away in the distance. It was difficult to calm down for a long time. Some of them left, but some stayed, ready to wait here until the day they returned to see the results of this journey.


    In the vast sea, the cultivators of all camps appeared in different directions and darted forward.


    As they went deeper into the Sea of the Path, they all sensed that this Sea of the Path was a place hidden with real Way, nurturing infinite will of the Way. The boundless Sea of the Path was giving them an extremely fantastic feeling as if the sea itself was alive.


    "Beholding such a sight, there is an urge to sing out loud." Not far from Ye Futian, Wan Shouyi, riding upon the sword, was surveying at the vast sea. He felt ambition in his heart, and he looked forward to everything that was to happen��looking forward to the Divine Palace, looking forward to the many top personalities he would encounter at this moment and in the future.


    Although he cultivated at Taixuan Mountain, he had longed for the Divine Palace for many years, and now he finally had the chance.


    Ye Futian smiled slightly when he heard Wan Shouyi. Presumably, everyone on this trip felt tremendous pridefulness in their hearts.


    As a top character, it was natural to want to witness all the extraordinary figures of the world.


    This time, it proved that they all came together, and they were called by the Divine Palace, which added more excitement to the whole affair.


    "With this scenery and at this moment, won''t junior sister Zhiyin play something for us?" Some cultivators from Taixuan Mountain said with a smile. Li Zhiyin was a guqin master in Guqin Valley, and her talent in music was extraordinary. The mood expressed by her playing was very powerful. At this moment, if it was accompanied by music, it would be a tremendous pleasure.


    "I must respectfully decline," Li Zhiyin responded calmly. She turned her gaze to look at Ye Futian, saying, "Shen Jing has been staying in the String Pavilion for a while, comprehending the music left by String Emperor. He has reviewed many of the scores, so he must have learned quite a lot of pieces that would fit the mood right this moment."


    "That''s true. Brother Shen Jing has been at Taixuan Mountain for some time, cultivating in String Pavilion. Yet, we have never heard Brother Shen Jing play," Chen Yu, a disciple of Guqin Valley, said while laughing heartily. The reason why he wanted to invite Ye Futian to play was not malicious in intent, but Ye Futian entering the String Pavilion had attracted their attention, and they had deliberately paid a visit to the String Pavilion.


    Now, Ye Futian had obtained one of the two places left by Lord Taixuan. They were curious about Ye Futian and wanted to see how he accomplished he was in music.


    Ye Futian smiled when he heard Chen Yu. He nodded, saying, "Very well, but my musical attainments are limited, so I won''t be playing any pieces of the String Emperor. However, I will play something that I wrote before."


    "That works." Chen Yu nodded with a smile. Ye Futian did not disappoint this time.


    The Way of the wind wrapped around the dinghy, moving it forward. Ye Futian sat cross-legged, and a guqin appeared in front of the dinghy. Ye Futian placed both hands on the strings and began to pluck the strings.


    The sound of the guqin was quiet, peaceful, and very pleasant. It could easily lure the listeners into that mood, like the peaceful life of an ordinary young man��sunny and simple.


    Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu listened carefully, as they were both well-acquainted with the art of Guqin. Ye Futian''s music was very pure. From the standpoint of Guqin, it had a very solid foundation. He had immersed his entire being into the music.


    The waves from the Sea of the Path were lighting splashing him. They seemed to also caress the strings��muffling but powerful��and actually integrated into the mood of the music. The gradual change in the sound of the music seemed to make the listeners feel the waves of life. The mood was no longer one of ordinary routine but moved forward in adversity.


    "The sound of guqin is perfectly integrated into the natural mood." Luoyue listened quietly. Once, she had heard Ye Futian playing in Taixuan Restaurant. Now, listening to it again, it was a different kind of feeling. Ye Futian''s music was very pure. There was no trace of fault.


    A dinghy shot forward and shuttled in the Sea of the Path. He bowed his head, stroking the strings. The sound of guqin gradually became higher. As its clear sounds sailed across the waves, reaching the sky, it caused the listeners to involuntarily feel a sense of pride as if they were riding the wind and waves.


    "Excellent playing," Wan Shouyi praised. This piece of music seemed to fit his heart. And not only him, but many seemed to have been immersed in the sound of the guqin, listening quietly.


    The sound of music was not becoming louder and louder, breaking the giant waves, hitting the nine heavens. The sound of music filled the vast Sea of the Path as Ye Futian was completely immersed in his performance. Those who were around, listening to the music, also seemed to be immersed within it. A smile appeared on Wan Shouyi''s face. He said, "This is how a real man should be��filled with great enthusiasm and confidence. One man, one sword. Whoever asks must first try the sharp point of his sword, and one sword ought to be enough to break all obstacles."


    He looked at Ye Futian and marveled. Shen Jing, when cultivating on Taixuan Mountain, was humble and low-key. He was extremely restrained, but it was unexpected that he could perform such ambitious music.


    It was said that the sound of music reflected the human heart. The music played by Ye Futian reflected his state of mind.


    So, what kind of state was he in at this moment?


    Was this the real him?


    Wan Shouyi smiled. Low-key and restrained, humble, and eager to learn. This was the Shen Jing who cultivated on Taixuan Mountain.


    Today, in the Sea of the Path, there was a great sense of pride in the music, which had broken through the nine heavens. For all those talents in the world, no matter who was in front of them, they would move forward without a second thought.


    Were the Shen Jing on Taixuan Mountain and outside Taixuan Mountain different? He was rather looking forward to it.


    Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu were also slightly moved. When the music stopped, their moods were also quite affected by the sound of the guqin. Li Zhiyin praised and said, "I understand now why Miss Four sent you to Taixuan Mountain."


    Perhaps, Miss Four had sensed Ye Futian''s extraordinary talent in the arts of music.


    Ye Futian merely smiled. Li Zhiyin looked at him in earnest and said, "You have the String Pavilion as a companion. You should work harder and not waste your talents."


    "Thank you." Ye Futian responded with a smile to Li Zhiyin. In the void not far behind them, a sarcastic voice was heard: "I didn''t expect that they admitted those who were just Unblemished Realm. No matter how ambitious the music is, in the face of power, everything is just fluff. "


    The speaker was Luo Youming. They had been following not far behind the people from Taixuan Mountain. On this journey to the Sea of the Path, they would probably do something to the people of Taixuan Mountain.


    Now that everyone was still following the guides forward, so they had no plans to make their move yet.


    The people of Taixuan Mountain all displayed a look of displeasure, but they didn''t say much. They had already resolved to take caution in their hearts, but Ye Futian didn''t seem to have heard what he said, nor did he look in Luo Youming''s direction.


    Everyone was shuttling forward. After a long time, they had gone deep into the Sea of ??the Path, and a giant wave roared in front of them. A behemoth appeared in the waves, and it was a divine turtle that had obtained the Way. His torso was immense, almost palace-like. He regarded everyone with his giant eyes.


    "Turtle Emperor." Many people were slightly shocked. Even the guides were bowing in salute.


    "You may go," the divine turtle said to the guides. Suddenly, the guides nodded and left via air.


    The divine turtle looked at everyone and said, "Follow me."


    As he finished speaking, he turned around and plunged his huge body into the water. He continued to move forward in the Sea of the Path. The crowd followed close behind. Not long after, they saw the divine turtle hitting forward as if to break something. Seawater now fell from the sky. When everyone passed through a slew of giant waves, though they were still in the Sea of the Path, many felt that they seemed to have entered another space within the Sea of the Path.


    The forward movement of the divine turtle had slowed. As they continued to move forward, in the Sea of the Path, they saw a mountain peak that was inserted into the Sea of the Path. It rose high into the sky.


    "Mountain of the Sea."


    Many people were a little amazed. But when they went forward, sometimes, there would be a mountain peak that came into their view. It was strangely shaped, and the will of the Great Path was incredibly rich and concentrated here.


    Finally, they saw a fantastic landscape. In a space from quite a distance in front of them, there seemed to be a mirage of Fae Palace sitting on an ancient peak, surrounded by mountains with what seemed to be countless strange-looking peaks.


    Not only that, but with a closer look into the distance, one was able to discern that in this space between heaven and earth, there were already many people waiting. It was as if they had come earlier and had been waiting for a long time.


    "We are here," everyone said in their hearts. This should be the end of their journey.


    The body of the divine turtle floated to the top of the water, and a sound came out of his mouth. Its powerful vibration seemed to be heard by everyone in this area.


    "Up there is the end of the Sea of the Path. At the end of the Sea of the Path, there is a road to the Great Path," the voice came from the mouth of the divine turtle. He said, "Go."


    When his voice fell, everyone broke through the air at the same time with incredible speed.


    The swordsmen of the Divine Sword Li Family traversed the void with their swords. Not to be outdone, the cultivators from the Sky Burying God Clan and the people of the Changfeng Family traveled by wind. The cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation flashed the golden divine light, and wherever the golden divine light passed, it was blinding to those who were present.


    "Let''s go," Jun Mu said. The people of Taixuan Mountain also galloped out, and each moved forward. Ye Futian drove the flat boat forward with flying speed.


    At the end of the Sea of the Path ought to be the so-called The Land of Proving the Way!

 1522 Take Care of the Kids

    Shadows of figures shuttled between the Mountains of the Way, moving in the same direction. There seemed to be a mountain range connected together, forming a mountainous island in the Sea of the Path. That ethereal fae palace seemed to be standing on top of the mountain peak.


    There seemed to be the destination that was pursued by everyone.


    Everyone''s speed was incredibly fast. Ye Futian and his group shuttled through the sky. Above the void, demonic magic came in waves, and Luo Youming, who had been following them closely before, glanced beneath him. His body was surrounded by a demonic will of death, shrouding the sky while countless death currents turned into death spears.


    Luo Youming''s finger pointed downward, and instantly, many death spears traversed the void, slaughtering toward the disciples of Taixuan Mountain. They were extremely savage and decisive. It seemed that the progeny of Old Demon Luo from the Divine Capital of Xiling had inherited his overbearing characteristics.


    Wan Shouyi looked up in the sky as the sword will above his head screamed. His finger pointed at the void, and countless sharp swords broke through the air, cleaving through the sky. They collided with the death spears. At the same time, other cultivators of Taixuan Mountain made their strikes one after another, defeating the attack.


    Their eyes were cold and indifferent; they weren''t expecting that Luo Youming would move against them.


    Luo Youming stepped into the void, and the Great Path boomed. Demonic death will roared wildly in the void, and it was not just him. Behind Luo Youming, ten other demonic cultivators of the nirvana realms simultaneously released will of the Way. The demon might above the sky grew stronger until it enveloped the heavens.


    Boom.


    A huge visage appeared above The Sea of the Path, like the face of the true god of death. This dark face shot out rays of darkness that directly penetrated everyone''s eyes so that all the disciples of Taixuan Mountain had the will of death in their eyes. This death will directly invaded their bodies and turned into death currents that drilled them deeply.


    At the same time, the booming sounds came out, and giant spears of infinite darkness condensed to manifest like a sharp mountain of death. They slammed down at those who were from Taixuan Mountain.


    "Watch out," Jun Mu said. His body rocketed toward the sky. He drove his blasts at one of the death mountains. All 15 cultivators of Taixuan Mountain spread out, each facing the battle to destroy the death mountain. However, they were separated by distance, so they were far from one another.


    "Take care of Shen Jing and the others," Wan Shouyi shouted as he elevated into the air to split open the death mountain. Shen Jing and little phoenix were weaker; if they were separated, he was afraid they might not be able to withstand such an attack.


    "You two, get close to me. Shen Jing, accompany my guqin. Feng Yan, come to me," Li Zhiyin called out. The Guqin Spirit appeared in front of her, and her fingers were ready to pluck the strings.


    However, at this moment, the sound of guqin was already heard, and a loud chime of phoenix rang throughout the void, high-pitched and melodious.


    Although Li Zhiyin was a little jealous of Ye Futian''s cultivation at the String Pavilion, her nature was extraordinary, after all, and she did not take it too seriously. Now that all the disciples from Taixuan Mountain were under the same attack, they ought to unite as one. Thus, she allowed for Shen Jing and Feng Yan to get close to her.


    However, Li Zhiyin did not expect that before she even started playing, the music she had wanted to perform was already ringing in her ears.


    Glorious divine light shone, and Ye Futian seemed to bath in its divine beauty, as the illusion of the phoenix appeared and surrounded him, turning it into a wondrous sight. The body of the little phoenix swayed upward. Making a clear sound of phoenix chiming, it integrated into one with the guqin with powerful penetrating power as if to resonate with Ye Futian''s music.


    Flight of the Phoenix Pair! Li Zhiyin thought. It was an incredibly pure rendition of Flight of the Phoenix Pair. Each note seemed as if it were sung by the phoenix, and with every beat, a phoenix was born again from the ashes.


    Rays of radiant divine light rushed into Feng Yan''s body, and the mood relayed by the guqin completely fell on her body. The glory of divine light was extremely dazzling, and when both of her wings opened, the sky and the sun were shielded. A breath of divine fire appeared from her mouth, which completely dispersed and burned up the infinite death currents in the sky.


    "We came today to seek the Way. Don''t waste time on them," Ye Futian said. Though they were in mid-battle, their forward momentum had not been stopped. They were still maintaining an incredible speed, though they were still lagging behind the others.


    After several consecutive attacks failed, Luo Youming''s eyes were cold and hard. He continued moving forward without being too obsessed with the fighting. After all, they also knew the main purpose of this visit, thanks to Ye Futian''s reminder.


    The demonic cultivators in the void and the people of Taixuan Mountain below moved forward in tandem. The breaths from their bodies roared as if they could erupt into great battle at any moment.


    But Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu were not feeling serene. Ye Futian had always appeared extremely modest. However, the music that he played at that moment had given birth to an unnatural vision. The music of Flight of the Phoenix Pair penetrated the void, which even Li Zhiyin could not accomplish.


    Obviously, Ye Futian had not wasted his time at the String Pavilion. He had practiced hard in the art of the guqin, and had learned the famous Flight of the Phoenix Pair in its entirety.


    It seemed that they had ignored the modest Shen Jing.


    "Not bad. Perfect concealment that you have accomplished this famous piece. No wonder Uncle Lan gave this spot to you." Wan Shouyi, riding the sword in the air, laughed heartily at Ye Futian. Now, even he had come to realize that Ye Futian was not ordinary. This Flight of the Phoenix Pair still amazed him.


    In this way, he and Feng Yan cooperated with one another. Thus, they were able to protect themselves.


    Passing through all those Mountains of the Way, some had already stepped onto the giant island in the sea. Some stopped momentarily while some continue to move forward.


    Except for those top characters who had been given a spot, Ye Futian also saw a group of people climbing the mountain. They were surely the disciples who were selected to cultivate in the Divine Palace this time.


    Ye Futian leaped and landed on the Mountain of the Way. A thick will of the Way rushed to him as if this mountain range was a very pure mountain of the Great Path, containing the infinite will of the Great Path.


    After descending on the Mountain of the Way, the group moved forward like lightning. Little phoenix''s eyes were full of excitement, staring at a lonely peak in the distance. There seemed to be a divine tree of flames, with flame-colored fruits growing on it. An extremely rich will of the flaming Great Path was released from it, rendering the whole mountain peak red as the flames. Its temperature was extremely high.


    "Fruits of the Way," Ye Futian whispered. He had done some research before coming here. It was rumored that the fairy mountain where the Divine Palace was located was a land of treasure, nurtured by the Great Path of heaven and earth. It was able to produce magical objects, such as the fruits of the Way.


    Little phoenix rushed over there, Ye Futian following close behind. Some people were in the same direction as they were, but there were others heading toward other places. There was more than one place on this mountain that nurtured fruits of the Way.


    "Watch yourselves," Wan Shouyi shouted at Ye Futian and little phoenix, reminding them. He and Luoyue were going in the other direction, clearly with different targets.


    Soon, Ye Futian came to the mountain. He saw that the surrounding space was filled with an extremely hot airflow, which seemed to be able to incinerate all things. The flamed-colored mountain peak transmitted an unusually high temperature. The sap of the Path Tree was like magma.


    Boom. The will of flame erupted, and little phoenix rushed directly inside. Her body was bathed in the glory of the divine flames. Ye Futian was the same. With flames burning on his body, he rushed inside as well. His body was still swallowing and absorbing will of the flames.


    But at this moment, a powerful pressure of the Great Path came down, and a giant flaming palm print appeared on the sky, slamming down through the air. The dazzling flaming palm print could incinerate everything. It aimed toward Ye Futian and little phoenix.


    This was the Land of Proving the Way of the Divine Palace, but it was also a place of controversy. Where there were opportunities, competitions would ensue. The greater the opportunity, the stronger the competition.


    Buzz. Ye Futian''s body turned into a flash of lightning, the sword light appeared, and a sliver of the sky appeared in the heaves, The sky had been cleaved.


    With a popping sound, the giant fiery palm of flame was directly split in two, from the middle.


    Ye Futian stood in front of little phoenix and looked up to the place not far ahead. A red-haired old man bathed in fire with aggressive eyes, staring at him and Feng Yan.


    Little phoenix''s eyes were full of flames as she stared at the old man. A slight disagreement and he made a killer move. This old man was seriously savage.


    However, the old man smiled and appeared extremely friendly, completely without the nastiness that he displayed just moments ago when he went for the kill.


    "Young friend, your swordsmanship is quite good. There are three fruits of the way on this tree, and here we are��exactly three. How about one each?" the old man said with a smile. He had fought his way from the crowd this time and took the identity of an ordinary disciple, hence the opportunity to come here; it was an opportunity to test himself.


    "Great." Ye Futian nodded with a smile, readily agreeing.


    "If so, you two little friends can pick first." The old man''s smile was still kind and friendly. He let Ye Futian and his people choose first.


    "Little phoenix, you choose," Ye Futian said.


    "Hmm." Little phoenix nodded, and her figure flickered toward the ancient tree of the Great Path ahead. Ye Futian looked at the old man with a smile.


    While little phoenix was getting closer to the Path Tree, Ye Futian was still staring at him. The old man''s expression didn''t waver, but the surrounding atmosphere seemed to have fluctuated faintly.


    Boom!


    A surge of dark red flame erupted instantly. It gave out a great sense of danger, and the old man instantly launched his attack on little phoenix.


    However, at this moment, he felt the resistance of the Great Path of Space, and then Ye Futian moved, traveling through the void.


    The old man suddenly turned around and raised his hands to blast toward Ye Futian. The giant dark red palms were like grinding discs that were directly locked onto Ye Futian''s body. It was extremely accurate, as it was right where Ye Futian reappeared as he emerged from the void.


    Buzz!


    Ye Futian, using a finger as a sword, struck out and created a terrible vortex of swordsmanship in front of him, cutting through the void. Instantly, the terrible palm print was shattered into nothingness. Ye Futian''s finger continued forward as the old man''s expression turned to one of alert, and he attempted to retreat.


    But Ye Futian was moving fast and arrived in an instant. The sword finger penetrated the old man''s entire body with the air of the swordsmanship. He looked down at his own body as his eyes were filled with fear.


    "How ruthless!" The old man viciously looked toward Ye Futian, and with a popping sound, his body was pulverized into nothing while sword will was still raging.


    Little phoenix picked the fruits of the Way and handed two fruits to Ye Futian, saying, "This phoenix will reward you two fruits."


    But her eyes were fixed on the fruits. She seemed a little peckish. Ye Futian smiled and took only one, telling her, "As your elder, I have to take care of the kids."

 1523 Plunder

    Little Phoenix stared firmly at Ye Futian. Even when she realized how powerful he was, she still did not bother to be polite to him. She tossed two fruits of the way into her mouth.


    In a flash, flame light was burning all over her body, like she was a goddess of fire. A burst of terrifying divine fire light filled the air. Little Phoenix stretched out as if she was enjoying the sensation.


    "Is it really so magical?" As Ye Futian watched her response, he threw a piece of fruit of the Way into his mouth as well. In an instant, he could feel the blood boiling in his veins as they burned. His body involuntarily resonated with the Worldly Great Path of Flames. Endless flame will flowed through him.


    His veins seemed to turn into flowing magma, burning eternally. His organs were wrapped in flames, and even his bones were branded with the mark of fire.


    This reaction continued for a while before it ended. The disturbances with him disappeared, and fire of the Great Path shot out of his eyes.


    "Divine fruit," gasped Ye Futian. He looked at the Divine Tree of Flames. What kind of place was this?


    "My father said that the fruit in this place was grown directly from the Great Path once every ten years. People who have cultivated up to the peak of the Nirvana level can use the fruit to attune themselves to the rotation of the Great Path, create their bones and blood out of the Great Path, and form a body of the Great Path. A Renhuang''s body and soul are always in accord. Once you have created a Divine Wheel of the Great Path, you will truly become a Renhuang," said Little Phoenix.


    "Your father has taught you much," said Ye Futian with a smile. They walked forward as they talked, both of their figures flashing as they did so.


    He was already an Unblemished Saint and was only one level away from reaching Nirvana. He naturally wished to understand the Renhuang plane. That was another level. Countless Saint-level heroes wanted to reach that plane, but it was extremely hard. One needed to forge a Renhuang body, realize a Renhuang soul, and finally meld the two together, forming a Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    The Divine Wheel would turn in accord with the River of the Great Path as it flowed through heaven and earth. It would shine with the sun and the moon, and live as long as the world. As long as you were not killed, you would never die.


    He understood how the Master had been reborn back at the Dali Dynasty, and how he had stood back up after he had broken through to the next level. He had recognized his Renhuang soul, so although his physical body had been so heavily damaged that it could not recover, his soul already had touched the Renhuang plane, and afterward, it had reshaped his flesh. Finally, in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he had forged a Divine Wheel of the Great Path and entered the Renhaung realm.


    And this fruit seemed to be able to give people a chance to forge a Renhuang body, thereby lessening the difficulty of proving oneself. Thus, countless people wanted to come here, as it was a step on the road to becoming a Renhuang.


    After eating the fruit, Ye Futian suddenly felt a little bit greedy. Although he had not yet reached Nirvana, even at the Unblemished Saint level, he could establish a foundation for what would come after. After the fruit had been digested, he could already feel real changes happening.


    Perhaps this would help him reach Nirvana ahead of schedule.


    Moreover, even if he did not need it, Yaya did.


    At that moment, the sound of fighting broke out in many places. The mountain range was vast, and he could faintly see other divine trees.


    "Quickly." Phoenix also seemed to be excited by the hint of sweetness that she had tasted and rushed off in a certain direction.


    There was a trembling golden tree on the mountainside. Every leaf seemed to have been forged of pure gold. They emitted a clear sound every time they shook. Even the ground around the tree was golden. There were four cultivators fighting wildly off to one side.


    Woosh!


    At that moment, they all felt something, and they suddenly turned their gazes. They saw the figure of a sword piercing through the sky. It cut down one of the pieces of fruit, then continued, forming a magnificent arc. It cut down two more pieces of fruit. All of the fruit fell upon the sword.


    Space will enveloped it. The sword turned back as if it knew what would happen if it lingered.


    The four cultivators'' expressions changed, and they stopped fighting. Someone had actually taken the opportunity presented by them fighting to seize some of the fruit. That was simply outrageous.


    One of them lashed out with a giant golden palm print that covered the sky. However, the sword was incredibly quick. It pierced through the air, and at the moment that the palm print came down, it crossed through space, making the palm print fall upon only empty air.


    The four cultivators stepped forward and saw that the sword had returned to the hands of a youth wearing white robes. What was more outrageous was that the white-robed youth had opened his mouth wide and swallowed each piece of fruit one after another.


    "What??"


    Little Phoenix stood to his side, watching him. Was his mouth really that big?


    Could he eat an entire piece of fruit in one bite?


    A crisp crunching sound rang out as Ye Futian chewed the fruit. It was incredibly tough. His teeth ground it up, and once the fruit went into him, his body shone with brilliant golden divine light. It was like he had transformed into a golden body of the Great Path.


    The four cultivators watched him in shock, staring at him fixedly.


    "Burp!"


    Ye Futian belched, and flames rose up in the four pairs of eyes that were watching him. Their murderous intent swept out through the air.


    "I''ve eaten this fruit. There is more right in front of you. You take this opportunity to grab what is left," said Ye Futian as he gazed at them from across the distance.


    "Shameless, incredibly shameless..." Beside him, Little Phoenix blushed so red that the heat from her face could have boiled water. It was fine that he had plundered the fruit, but to eat it all right there made her ashamed to be seen with him.


    "Do you have a death wish?" one of the cultivators asked coldly. A golden halberd pierced through the air towards Ye Futian. Terrible golden beams of light shot out in all directions, causing a terrible shrieking sound to ring out.


    They knew that they should be using this time to pick more fruit, but they could not stomach his insolence.


    Ye Futian''s body turned golden and indestructible. A golden river seemed to flow through him. Even his World Tree life spirit turned into a Golden Divine Tree that flickered with golden light.


    He brought his hands together, and a golden palm print appeared in the sky. The fist clenched, and it smashed down into the oncoming golden halberd. The golden palm print was destroyed, but the golden halberd shattered inch by inch as well.


    "If you keep wasting time, you will end up with nothing," said Ye Futian innocently. Their faces all darkened. This man was actually quite strong. He was able to withstand a Nirvana level cultivator''s attacks.


    "Let''s go. We''ll come back and get him later," said one of them.


    "Fine, why don''t we temporarily make an alliance?" said another one of them. The four of them turned away, still talking among themselves. The four people who had just been fighting over a piece of fruit had instantly turned into allies.


    This...


    "Amazing," thought Ye Futian. At that moment, Little Phoenix was amazed by how thick he was.


    "Is it good?" Little Phoenix stared at him angrily. He had not even left one piece for her.


    That was too much.


    "You have cultivated flames. What are you looking at?" said Ye Futian disdainfully. Other than making him feel a little full, the fruit did indeed make him feel good. Not long before, he seemed to have forged veins of divine fire within his body, which had then turned golden.


    "Shameless," said Little Phoenix contemptuously.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian flashed up into the sky. He was prepared to plunder some more. In addition to the people who were allowed to be here due to the quota, there were also some ordinary disciples in the palace. They had probably wanted to give them a chance, but most of these disciples were of no real account, and many of them would probably fall here.


    However, this was their own choice. The road to proving one''s worthiness was difficult. The fruit only bloomed once every ten years, and there were not many of them. It was impossible to divide it all up among them. Even the disciples of this palace had to fight for the right to divide the fruit up among themselves. Many disciples came here to fight for the fruit, and they would have to compete with the top figures of the Higher Heavens Realm, who were part of the quota.


    Ye Futian was not the only one plundering fruit; there were some other powerful figures doing the same thing. For example, when some of those top forces who had been part of the quota walked together, the ordinary disciples of the Divine Palace had to join together to even have a hope of beating them.


    Moreover, there were some incredibly powerful beings here.


    For example, Gai Shi Shi was leading the group of cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation. He was holding a divine golden spear that was casting rays of divine light. When he saw someone ahead of him plundering the fruit, he stepped forward through the air and called out, "Leave the fruit there!"


    As he said this, he thrust his golden spear through the air. As it fell, golden light pierced the sky. The person below him who had taken the fruit tried to block it, but the brilliant golden light was too overpowering. It shattered his defenses and pierced into his body, pinning him to the ground.


    The other cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation seized the fruit, even stealing the piece that the man had held in his hand.


    The people of the Divine Sword Li family were also incredibly overpowering. The rode a sword through the air, moving at their fastest speed in order to seize as much of the fruit as they could.


    In addition, the cultivators of the Sky Burying God Clan were there. They could summon starry steles to crush everything beneath them, which made them very powerful. And either intentionally or unintentionally, the cultivators of the Divine Sword Li family and the Sky Burying God Clan were advancing in different directions and clashing with each other.


    One of the cultivators of the Divine Sword Li family looked off into the distance. "The fruit of that tree is shaped like swords!" He suddenly moved very quickly, turning into a sword and rushing over to it.


    At the same time, Wan Shouyi, Luoyue, and the others saw it as well. They moved as quickly as lightning, turning into swords and racing over towards the tree.


    An inexhaustible flow of sword will appeared around the tree, wrapping around it. It wrapped around the fruit itself very thickly, giving it the shape of a sword.


    "Hmph!" Divine sword light shone from high above as many swords descended from the sky, cutting towards Wan Shouyi and Luoyue.


    "Forgive us for crushing your swords beneath our feet," came Li Xun''s voice. They were the ones who had sent the swords to crush the people of Taixuan Mountain. Many people were saying that Lord Taixuan was the most powerful figure in the Higher Heavens Realm now.


    "Destroy those swords, and be careful." Wan Shouyi''s sword Qi surged as he slashed with his sword, forming a line through the sky. His sword collided with the oncoming swords, and in a flash, the crashing sword will seemed like it would split the very air itself. An astonishing air flow was left behind where the sword had passed.


    The cultivator from the Divine Sword Li family waved his hand, and suddenly, countless swords cut at Wan Shouyi. Each sword arrived in an instant, seeking to bury Wan Shouyi within them.


    The intensely powerful flow of sword Qi in this area naturally attracted the attention of many people. Ye Futian looked over there from across the distance.


    There was a clash of swords going on there. If the fruit there had anything to do with swords, he needed to have it!

 1524 Guqin and Sword in Tandem

    In front of the ancient tree of swordsmanship, Li Xun thrust his sword through the air. He formed countless afterimages as he moved, and more swords appeared in an instant until Wan Shouyi was enveloped in sword Qi.


    Wan Shouyi activated his sword spirit, which shrieked as the sword will billowed out into the sky. He placed one finger upon his sword and drew the blade across it. Flesh blood flowed out of his finger and was absorbed into the sword.


    "Warrior spirit."


    Wan Shouyi''s hair flew in the wind as the sword Qi within his sword spirit grew stronger. Countless sharp swords whistled through the sky, turning into a terrifying vortex of swords that cut through all the after images around him.


    There were endless "cracking" sounds as the afterimages were destroyed one after another. The remaining images returned to Li Xun, and he appeared in the air above Wan Shouyi. He was holding a sword as well. He looked down and said quietly, "Eternal."


    As he said this, the sword will around Wan Shouyi materialized into actual divine swords. Each of these swords was shining with brilliant light.


    The Divine Li Family''s Instant Swords and Eternal Swords were in perfect harmony.


    A terrifying sword seal appeared on Li Xun''s brow. He gripped his sword with both hands, and an incomparably brilliant beam of divine sword light pierced through the air. If fell from the sky, making all the other swords resonate with it as it shot down towards Wan Shouyi. The sword had not even come into its full power yet, and just its sword will was enough to place a suffocating pressure on the space below it. The sword spirits in front of Wan Shouyi shrieked. He looked up into the sky, his hair dancing wildly in the wind.


    Up there in the air, Li Xun looked like the descendant of a sword god.


    This was the sword of the Divine Sword Li family. They had always considered themselves to be the best swordsmen in the Higher Heavens Realm. There was no one who could compare to them.


    Woosh!


    Terrible divine sword light blew all around Wan Shouyi. His blood flowed from his body into his sword. It was as if his internal aura was pouring into the sword. He grew weaker and weaker, but his mind was seeking the Path, and he was deep in thought. He had wanted to find an opportunity to prove his worthiness. Now the sword-shaped fruit was right in front of him. If he could not win this battle, how could he speak of proving his worthiness?


    The sword spirits above him trembled violently. A series of destructive sword cut marks appeared, sweeping up into the sky and trying to destroy the sword prison that his opponent had set up.


    The swords around Wan Shouyi all broke, cut in half by his sword spirits. Li Xun''s gaze grew sharp. He looked down at Wan Shouyi and said, "Your Fleeting Divine Sword Technique is incredible. Unfortunately, your swordsmanship level is not high enough."


    As he said this, divine radiance bloomed from him. His body transformed into a Divine Body of Swordsmanship. The terrifying sword will in the sky transformed into a single Falling Sky Sword. All of the sword will in the area flowed wildly into this sword. All of the other swords shrieked as they resonated with it. Even the swords that the other cultivators of the Li family were holding resonated.


    The Falling Sky Sword was like a king among swords. All other swords were its subjects.


    "A divine sword apocalypse," said everyone as they looked up into the sky. The other cultivators that had resisted the Li family, Luoyue and the disciples of Taixuan Mountain, stared up at the sword. The top sword technique of the Divine Sword Li family was truly apocalyptic.


    When the sword came out, all other techniques were destroyed, the air itself was split, and everything turned to dust.


    At that moment, the clouds fled as the sword Qi crossed through the sky. It was as if the only thing in the world was that sword.


    Its sword will grew stronger and stronger. Down below, Wan Shouyi could feel an immense amount of pressure. The flow of sword Qi around him was distorted by it, and his own swords were shattered. Sword cuts appeared in his robes, and blood began to pour out of them.


    "Give up, Wan Shouyi," Jun Mu called out to him. Wan Shouyi could not last long under this sword. If he continued to persist, he would very likely be destroyed.


    The Divine Sword Li family was so strong, and they had their hearts set on the sword-shaped fruit. If anyone else wanted it, they would have to fight them for it.


    Given Li Xun''s skill at swordsmanship, it would be difficult for anyone else to defeat the Divine Sword Li family.


    And Wan Shouyi did not even need the sword-shaped fruit.


    It was not worth this fight.


    But Wan Shouyi still held his sword and did not give up. There was a fierce determination in his eyes. He could accept being defeated in battle, but to put down his sword and hang his head in submission was not something he could accept.


    At that moment, there was the faint sound of music, which made a look of surprise come over the faces of everyone on the battlefield.


    There were two figures floating there. One of them was wearing white robes, and he descended in front of Wan Shouyi. He was holding a guqin in his hands and playing a song. In a flash, countless notes erupted, full of harsh will. They seemed to be perfectly in accord with the mood on the battlefield.


    Jun Mu frowned. It was Shen Jing.


    What was he trying to do?


    As the notes erupted, strange illusions appeared everywhere. The wind and the clouds surged, and sword will flowed into the sky. The notes seemed to flow into Wan Shouyi''s mind, from which they entered into his sword.


    "Worldly Judgement!"


    Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu, the disciples of Guqin Valley looked shocked. Strange illusions were appearing in the sky, and the Great Path was flowing backward. This was one of the Famous Songs: Worldly Judgement.


    Flight of the Phoenix Pair was not the only one of the Six Famous Songs of String Palace that Ye Futian had learned. He had also learned Worldly Judgement as well.


    Such skill...


    Thinking of how he had once given pointers to Ye Futian, and told him to study hard in String Palace, Li Zhiyin felt embarrassed. Apparently, Shen Jing''s musical skill was far greater than she had thought. Even she was not as good as him.


    He had learned two of the Six Famous Songs: Flight of the Phoenix Pair and Worldly Judgement.


    That being said, Uncle Lan must have included Ye Futian in the quota on purpose so that he could support them with his guqin music, and make them stronger.


    But they had thought it was just to let Fourth Miss save some face.


    The guqin music seemed to accord with Wan Shouyi''s swordsmanship perfectly. Wan Shouyi seemed to feel the sword will around him getting stronger, and countless images of swordsmen floated in his mind.


    His sword clattered as the sword light that was spilling out of his sword spirits made the will of the Great Path surge all around him.


    "Why can I sense a bit of the Song of the Lost Divine? Could it be that the rumors are true? Worldly Judgement itself evolved from the Song of the Lost Divine?" said Li Zhiyin. She still remembered when she had heard her master playing the Song of the Lost Divine. It was imprinted on her memory.


    "Not only that, but it seems to be perfectly matching the sword will." She felt like she was in a dream. A look of shock also came into Luoyue''s pretty eyes. The guqin and the sword were in tandem and produced a certain resonance.


    She remembered that her father had once said that Lord Taixuan had been able to rapidly advance to the next level because he obtained the Song of the Lost Divine. His understanding had increased, and he had integrated the song into his other abilities. For example, when he had integrated it into his swordsmanship, he had created the shocking sword matrix known as the Fleeting Divine Sword.


    At that time, she had doubted that a song could really be so magical.


    But now that she saw the guqin music and the swordsmanship working in tandem and resonating together, she realized that she had been wrong. The Great Path was connected to everything, and extremely powerful cultivation methods, even musical ones, could reach it.


    Up in the sky, the thousands of swords moved as one, merging into a single sword. Li Xun seemed to have realized that something was wrong. He pointed at the sword and yelled, "Fall!"


    When he said this, the sword fell from the sky, smashing everything beneath it. Sword marks appeared all around as everything was destroyed.


    Wan Shouyi watched the sword fall. An incomparably brilliant sword light shone from his eyes. He moved his hand, and his sword shot out. The Fleeting Divine Sword cut out once again. At that moment, the sword arced across the sky like a rainbow. The sword that his opponent had sent against him could not withstand the current of sword will and began to move backward. The terrifying Fleeting Divine Sword raged between heaven and earth, destroying everything.


    The two swords collided. Divine sword light bloomed, and everything around them was turned into dust that flew in all directions. The wave of Qi that this kicked up made everybody raise their hands to block it.


    The guqin still played, the music growing wilder and wilder. The terrible Rhythmic Sorcery was powerful enough to change the very positions of the stars. Wan Shouyi himself seemed to be immersed within that will. His sword was in accord with the guqin music, and after the destruction caused by the first collision, he struck out again.


    "This guqin music..." Everyone was watching Ye Futian. The music caused substantial changes to occur in Wan Shouyi''s sword.


    One of the cultivators of the Divine Sword Li family was staring at Ye Futian. He waved his hand, and a line of divine swords appeared in the sky. They shot through the air as one, heading straight for Ye Futian.


    Luoyue was standing in front of Ye Futian. She calmed her mind and could feel the guqin music working in tandem with her sword. She thrust it out, forming a terrible storm that destroyed all the swords rushing towards her.


    At that moment, Wan Shouyi rose up. He waved his sword many times, making clouds flow around it like water as it cut through the air.


    Crack! An ear-splitting noise rang out as Li Xun''s sword was shattered. His sleeves were torn by sword Qi, and scratches appeared on his arms. Blood stained his robe, and terrible sword will raged within his body.


    He looked at Wan Shouyi, and then at Ye Futian up in the air. The guqin music had melded with the sword. Could it really have transformed so much?


    Previously, Wan Shouyi had been no match for him at all.


    Wan Shouyi did not continue his attack. He looked up at Li Xun. Li Xun looked back at him and said, "Lord Taixuan is truly impressive in that he has been able to simultaneously cultivate swordsmanship and music and meld them together perfectly. I have been defeated by you two, so the fruit is yours."


    On saying this, he left with the rest of the cultivators of the Divine Sword Li family. His defeat was different than Wan Shouyi''s. He had lost to two people working together, and so this was not a loss of face for the Divine Sword Li family. Before, he had been absolutely crushing Wan Shouyi.


    As he watched Li Xun leave, Wan Shouyi felt conflicted. In reality, he had lost. But he never would have imagined that this music could be so marvelous, and work together with his swordsmanship so well.


    He looked back at Ye Futian with a smile. He had already sensed that this Shen Jing was special, but he was still shocked.


    "The fruit." Little Phoenix flashed over towards the fruit but found a burst of invisible sword will blocking her way. It was the sword will that was emitting from the tree.


    A figure appeared before Little Phoenix and looked at everyone. "There are five pieces of fruit. How will you divide them?"


    There were 15 people there from Taixuan Mountain.


    Little Phoenix looked at him. "Divide them? Those two were the ones who won this fruit. It should go to them."


    If they were going to be shared, then Wan Shouyi and Ye Futian would be the ones to share them.


    Jun Mu raised his eyebrows. This fruit could be used to prove one''s worthiness. Even if it was not useful for you specifically, you could trade it with someone for their fruit. It was extremely precious.


    And they had all fought for it. How could they give it up?


    "Wan Shouyi and Shen Jing defeated Li Xun, but the rest of us blocked the other cultivators of the Divine Sword Li family. Otherwise, Wan Shouyi would have been defeated earlier. Wan Shouyi and Shen Jing should each get one piece, and we will guard the other three for the time being. We can divide them up when this is all over," said Jun Mu. If Ye Futian had not reversed the situation, he would not have been able to get even a single piece of fruit!

 1525 Divine Wheel of the Great Path

    Ye Futian stared at Jun Mu. He and Wan Shouyi would each get one piece of fruit, and Jun Mu would watch over the other three pieces?


    It seemed that Jun Mu was leaning on his position as a disciple of Taixuan Mountain. He was indeed at the head of the other disciples of Taixuan Mountain. He wanted to divide the fruit up according to his own desires and even take a piece for himself.


    However, when one had cultivated up to their level, there were countless other people in the HIgher Heavens Realm who were fighting for this very chance that they had now. They wanted to break out from the crowd of ordinary disciples and have a chance to take part in this event. They would face a lot of challenges just to have this opportunity.


    Even though they had such a slim chance, countless people still came here. This showed just how much the people of the Higher Heavens Realm valued the fruit. Was Jun Mu worthy of taking charge of and dividing up something so precious?


    However, perhaps it was the very preciousness of the fruit that had conjured feelings of greed within him. What did friendship between fellow disciples even count for anyway? Moreover, Jun Mu had never looked favorably upon Ye Futian ever since the day that he had come to the mountain, probably because of the relationship with his master.


    "Why would you be the one to guard them?" Little Phoenix stared at Jun Mu in surprise. "Before Shen Jing got here, you had already counseled Wan Shouyi to give up the fight. That is equivalent to giving up your right to the fruit. Then Shen Jing came and strengthened Wan Shouyi''s swordsmanship. This is why they are able to have the fruit in the first place. Now, you want to seize the fruits of their labors?"


    "Feng Yan, our Master has given you a place on this quota, so your conduct will reflect upon the two Demon Emperors. Taixuan Mountain has been so good to you, and yet you still plot against them? You should know your place," said Jun Mu coldly. As he spoke, he was already walking towards the tree. He was going to pick the fruit.


    Woosh!


    A beam of sword Qi whistled down from the sky, shooting straight towards the tree. Jun Mu frowned as he reached up to slap it away, destroying it. He looked back at the one who had done this. It was Wan Shouyi.


    "What is the meaning of this, Brother Wan? Do you think that you should be the only one to have the fruit?" Jun Mu''s face turned ugly. Although there were many pieces of the precious fruit, they were difficult to obtain. The most powerful people had already fought their way through and seized many of them, and many other cultivators had seized more of them. It would be very difficult for the fifteen cultivators from Taixuan Mountain to get 15 pieces of the fruit.


    Given that, Taixuan Mountain had managed to obtain five pieces of fruit. How could they let them all go?


    Would he not get even a single piece of fruit?


    He was at the Nirvana level. It was not easy to cultivate up to that level, and to break through to the Renhuang level was even more difficult.


    Who of the people who had made it to his level would not want to forge a Renhuang body, activate the Wheel of the Great Path, and shine with the sun and the moon?


    When he took this step, he would have the right to pursue a higher level. Before he did so, even though he was a genius, he would forever be far away from the next level.


    "Brother Jun, Feng Yan is correct. We had lost the fruit, but then Shen Jing used his guqin music to transform my swordsmanship into something much more powerful. Otherwise, Li Xun of the Divine Sword Li family would have defeated me. Thus, Shen Jing is the one who has the right to divide up the fruit. Even I don''t have the right to ask for a piece," Wan Shouyi said politely to Jun Mu. He seemed very courteous, but he was firmly stating his position.


    It was not that he favored Shen Jing. This was just the right thing to do.


    Even if Ye Futian did not give him any of the fruit, he would not say anything. After all, without Ye Futian, he would have lost, and may even have been crippled by Li Xun.


    When a battle broke out while seeking the Way, even if he was killed or wounded, his elders could not seek revenge. It would have been his own choice that had led him down that path.


    "I think that what Brother Wan said makes sense. It is for Shen Jing to divide up the fruit," said Luoyue, looking at Ye Futian as she spoke. This made Jun Mu hesitate as he walked towards the tree. He could not force his way through to pick the fruit.


    Given the current situation, if he picked the fruit, it would probably cause infighting between them.


    "Lord Taixuan broke through to the next level, and thus Taixuan Mountain was allotted 15 people to come here. I never thought that a single tree would cause a situation like this to happen. If we go on like this, how can we be of one mind going forward?" asked Jun Mu coldly.


    "So if you divide up the fruit, we will be of one mind, but if Shen Jing does it, we won''t?" Feng Yan looked at Jun Mu angrily. He was clearly just like all the others. He wanted to seize the fruit. But this was normal, after all. Everyone was greedy.


    "I am a disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant. Who is Shen Jing? Even though Fourth Miss brought him to the mountain, he is still just a musician who has received many favors from Taixuan Mountain, which is why he was able to cultivate this Famous Song. He may have been successful in forcing the people from the Divine Sword Li family to retreat, but that was due to an ability that Taixuan Mountain gave him. Even the fact that he was on the quota was thanks to Taixuan Mountain. So who do you think should divide up the fruit?"


    Jun Mu''s words were harsh. He wanted to differentiate him from the rest of Taixuan Mountain and make him lose heart.


    After all, what he was saying was true. Ye Futian was only a musician on Taixuan Mountain and did not have the status of a disciple. And Jun Mu was the personal disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant, making him a sort of grand-disciple of Lord Taixuan.


    A look of surprise came over the faces of the other disciples of Taixuan Mountain. They had not thought that there would be any infighting. But given the current situation, there was not one among them who did not want a piece of the fruit. After all, they were not a family like the Divine Sword Li family. They did not have a definite leader like they did.


    They had all vaguely considered Jun Mu to be their de facto leader since he was the disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant. But Jun Mu was not powerful enough to defeat them all. If he had been able to defeat Li Xun, then he would have been mighty indeed.


    But now it seemed like he had not been mighty enough, which is why they were facing this current dilemma.


    In this way, it would be difficult for them to get any more fruit. Moreover, spending time here debating was a waste of time in and of itself.


    Some of them looked at Ye Futian. Hopefully, he would take the imitative and make a concession.


    "There are five pieces of fruit, and I will give up two of them. One of them will go to Wan Shouyi, who fought in this battle, and the other one to Luoyue. The other ones will stay with me," said Ye Futian. He stepped forward as he said this. Standing here talking nonsense was indeed wasting the time that still remained to him to strive for other pieces of the fruit.


    Jun Mu stared at Ye Futian. He was indeed greedy. Other than the two people he had said, Wan Shouyi and Luoyue, he would be the only one to get the fruit.


    He looked at the others. "This is someone who came to Taixuan Mountain to seek the Way. What do you think of this, Brothers?"


    "You are being unreasonable, Brother Shen Jing," said Ma Yi. He had been made a part of the quota by the House Master of Taixuan. He had always been curious about Ye Futian, but then he had entered String Palace to cultivate. He was thinking that this musician, who had been brought to Taixuan Mountain, was not showing enough gratitude for what his master had done.


    Moreover, he seemed very close to Luoyue. This changed Ma Yi''s attitude towards him.


    "Since we have all agreed to divide it up like this, go and receive your share, brothers. Trying to work together has led us to this situation. It is ridiculous," said Jun Mu mockingly.


    "I regret that it came to this as well, but I will stand by what I said. If someone comes to take the fruit," Wan Shouyi raised his sword, "after we return, I will beg for forgiveness from Lord Taixuan."


    It was clear that if someone tried to pick the fruit, he would cut them down.


    Ye Futian stood behind Wan Shouyi. He was still holding his guqin. Thinking of how powerful the two of them had been when they worked together, Jun Mu''s face suddenly turned ugly. Li Xun had been defeated by the two of them. He knew he was not as strong as Li Xun, so if he fought them, he would not only probably not get the fruit, but he would be hurt as well, which would make it harder to fight for more of the fruit in the future.


    "Good for you," said Jun Mu with a wave of his sleeve. He stepped forward and said, "You can see for yourselves what they are like. Those who want to can come with me."


    The other disciples of the Taixuan Hierophant naturally followed close behind him. Ma Yi followed as well, and then a few more people. After all, Jun Mu was very strong.


    "Shen Jing, pick the fruit," Said Wan Shouyi to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded. He picked the five pieces of fruit. He gave one each to Wan Shouyi and Luoyue, then ate one piece himself. This left two more.


    "What about mine?" Feng Yan gave him a pitiful look.


    "You want one too?" Ye Futian looked at her disdainfully. This girl asked too much.


    "You''re so mean." Little Phoenix snorted.


    Ye Futian looked at the other people who had stayed and said, "I will not guarantee that any of you will get any fruit. If you seize it for yourself, then you are naturally entitled to it, but if I get it, then only after I have taken a certain number will I share it."


    Taixuan Mountain had been good to him, but he could not share all the fruit with the disciples of Taixuan Mountain. After all, he was not all that friendly with any of them. Other than Wan Shouyi, who he was on relatively good terms with, the others were all casual acquaintances at best.


    Should he treat them as old friends and share the precious fruit with them based on such a casual relationship?


    Then what about Yu Sheng, Wuchen, and Yaya?


    So he would not promise anything, nor would he be stingy. He had left two pieces of the five that he had taken.


    A look of surprise came over several people''s faces when they heard what he said. He may have said that he would be the one to divide up these five pieces, but what he was saying now was even more arrogant. It seemed that he would be deciding everything from now on.


    The people who had been part of the quota were no ordinary cultivators. They did not look at Ye Futian as their leader.


    He had learned the Famous Songs in the String Palace on Taixuan Mountain, and yet it seemed as if he regarded them as nothing.


    As he watched them leave, Ye Futian knew that he had offended them, but it was better to speak the ugly truth now to avoid a situation like what had just happened than to have them be bitter at him later.


    There were only five people left now: Ye Futian, Little Phoenix, Wan Shouyi, Luoyue, and Deng Hu, who had come with Luoyue. He was a subordinate of the City Lord of Taixuan.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian, and began to leave. Wan Shouyi watched him. Ever since Ye Futian had been in his mind, he had seemed different than before. His modest demeanor had gradually disappeared, and now there was an overpowering will about him.


    Perhaps his true self was finally showing.


    His figure flashed, and Wan Shouyi was soon riding on his sword. "When you played your music, I could feel the true will of swordsmanship. It seemed like the true final strike of the Fleeting Divine Sword," he said.


    "The music comes from the same root as the Fleeting Divine Sword," answered Ye Futian.


    "But I could only feel the will. It is difficult to use the true Fleeting Divine Sword." Wan Shouyi seemed regretful. "Otherwise, when I create my Divine Wheel of Swordsmanship, every time I strike, it will be with a Fleeting Divine Sword."


    The Divine Wheel of the Great Path could directly connect heaven and earth. All of the Divine Great Wheels that cultivators created were different from one another. They had different strengths and weaknesses, and they even had different numbers of them.


    Wan Shouyi''s entire mind was set upon seeking the Way of swordsmanship. He naturally wanted nothing more than to create a giant Divine Wheel of Swordsmanship!

 1526 The Favor of the Sword of Taixuan Mountain

    Ye Futian and the others continued forward. But after several battles, most of the fruit had already been picked off the trees and taken away. They came upon places where people were fighting, but there was no fruit left on the trees.


    This was an opportunity for everyone to prove their worthiness to advance to the next level and fight for the right to move forward along the Great Path. If they had to fight for it, then they would all do so. No one was worried about being polite, or about differences in rank.


    Ye Futian and the others managed to win another piece of fruit, after which they discovered that there were no more anywhere around them. But everyone was heading towards the tallest mountain. There seemed to be a celestial palace at the top of that ancient peak. It seemed illusory, but everyone could faintly sense the majestic spirits of the heavens and the earth and the will of the Great Path there. The mountain seemed to be wrapped in will.


    Everyone was moving towards there as they fought. As they got closer, more and more battles were breaking out at the foot of the mountain. The will was so thick that many gods had been born here.


    When Ye Futian and the others arrived, they could feel an astonishing pressure, both solemn and divine. The whole mountain was covered thickly in will. It was like they were walking through a fog that slightly blurred their vision.


    Boom! The sound of thunder came to them, and lightning was falling from the sky somewhere else in the fog, making the whole area tremble. But the mountain was incredibly sturdy. It stood there, unmoved and full of divine majesty.


    When Ye Futian arrived, he saw several people off to the side, recovering from their wounds. There was a tree there that had endless divine lightning wrapping around it. There was only one piece of fruit on the tree, but it was bigger than the ones he had seen before. It was bathed in the divine lightning of the Great Path, and thunder was booming in the sky above it. Every time the thunder boomed, the fruit became a bit riper, and the will grew thicker and stronger.


    "It is baptized in thunder, just like the catastrophe of the Great Path." Ye Futian''s heart trembled. This was truly a wonder of the world. This piece of fruit surely contained even more of the will of the Great Path than the others. There was only one piece of fruit on this tree, but he did not know if there had always just been one or if the others had been taken by other people.


    Given the situation that they were seeing before them, it was very likely that there had always just been one piece of fruit. All of the will of the Great Path had been sucked up by that singular piece of fruit.


    The piece of fruit was wrapped in curling lightning and rolling thunder, making it look like a bright and clear Spirit Orb. Beside it was a giant divine thunder dragon. It was wrapped around the tree, seemingly waiting for the fruit to ripen even more. It seemed that it would eat the fruit once it had become as ripe as possible. In this way, it would be of the most use to him, allowing him to break through to the level of a Demon Emperor.


    There was a purple-robed old man before him with purple eyes. Endless lightning was shooting out of his eyes, and brilliant divine thunderbolts traveled over his robes. A millstone shaped thundercloud appeared in the sky. It roared and roiled constantly, resonating with the old man''s body.


    "He has a spirit of the Great Path!" whispered Wan Shouyi, an imposing look on his face. The dragon was a great demon cultivator, with a huge form and brilliant lightning traveling through its every scale. It seemed as if he had cultivated his thunder body as much as possible. The old man had taken an extremely important step towards becoming a Renhuang, and it could be said that he was already only a half a step away from that plane. If he could carve a Wheel of the Great Path here and use the fruit to activate his Renhuang body, then he would be able to prove himself worthy of becoming a Renhuang.


    Ye Futian could also feel how deep this old man''s power was. He seemed to even be a step further along the path than his teacher had been when he came out of Emperor Li''s Palace. Thus, as far as he was concerned, this opportunity was extremely important. He needed this piece of fruit more than anything.


    "You should all go somewhere else." The old man naturally sensed Ye Futian and the others coming. He swept his gaze over them, and in an instant, the lightning of the Great Path was piercing through Ye Futian''s eyes. It pressed down on his spiritual will. He was obviously trying to make him realize how difficult this would be and thus retreat. There was no misunderstanding that.


    "You are at such a high level. You will soon be an Emperor. Why don''t you give that piece of fruit to those of us who are at a much lower level?" said Ye Futian with a grin. Beside him, Little Phoenix snorted. But she had already grown used to Ye Futian''s shamelessness.


    Boom! The old man pointed up into the sky, and suddenly, the millstone shaped cloud flashed with lightning. It was filled with the mighty power of thunder. The figure of a god of thunder appeared up in the sky, huge and powerful. It pressed its palm down towards the ground. All of this happened without the old man saying a word.


    Because he was only a half step away from the Renhuang plane, he needed the fruit more than them. This was especially true because this fruit was of particular use to him. It would very likely bring him even closer to the Renhuang plane.


    Anyone who dared block his path would have to die.


    Wan Shouyi pointed his sword into the air. It cut through the sky, and he rose along with it. The sword cut into the thundering palm, and lightning covered his body. But at the same time, the giant palm was shattered.


    Ye Futian looked up into the air. He flicked his sleeves and sat down, cross-legged. The guqin rang out once again. This old man was truly fierce. He had not shown them the least bit of politeness.


    The guqin music suddenly became loud and sonorous. Wan Shouyi entered the state that he had been in before. When the music entered his ears, it resonated with his sword will. The endless will of heaven and earth entered into his sword.


    When he felt the power of this will, a look of surprise flashed in the old man''s eyes. He turned towards Wan Shouyi and stretched out his hands as thunder will covered him. Suddenly, the will of heaven and earth grew even stronger than before. The entire Great Path of Thunder was under his control.


    Ye Futian looked up into the sky. He realized that a Renhuang with a spirit of the Great Path was frighteningly powerful, but their opponent was not quite strong enough. Otherwise, he would be able to wield shocking power like his teacher had at the battle at Brahma''s Sky City. He had stretched out his Renhuang will, truly pushing himself to the limit. Not long after that battle, his teacher had entered the Renhuang plane.


    He saw the old man''s finger point downwards. The divine thunder of the Great Path split the sky, and thunderbolts that looked like dragons shot towards both Wan Shouyi and Ye Futian.


    Luoyue moved, the guqin music resonated with her as well. Her sword moved, forming a Barrier of All Things above Ye Futian. She did not protect Wan Shouyi. He was already at the Nirvana level, and with the resonance of the guqin music, his power had transformed. He did not fear his opponent''s attack.


    "If you continue to just watch, Elder Dragon, we will have to withdraw," said Ye Futian to the demon dragon as he continued playing the guqin. Was he waiting there to collect the spoils of victory without lifting a finger to help?


    The demon dragon looked at Ye Futian. The old man had indeed threatened him, but as long as he was protecting the fruit, he was not afraid. If the situation changed at all, he would just eat the fruit.


    He was already protecting the fruit; it was already basically his. Why would he participate in the battle?


    Ye Futian''s words were simply ridiculous.


    He was waiting for the fruit to ripen. Once it had become as ripe as possible, he would eat it. All he needed for this was the fruit itself.


    When he saw that the dragon did not move, Ye Futian complained to himself that the people here were too savvy. It looked like they would have to rely on their strength instead.


    The guqin music grew more and more steady until it was as regular as the passing of the seasons. Wan Shouyi slashed out with his sword again and again. He had already forced the old man to come out and fight in person.


    While fighting, he could still feel the pressure from the guqin music. The music seemed to be leading the sword will to attack his spirit. His spirit may have been so strong that it could not be damaged, but it still made him very uncomfortable.


    The battlefield grew wilder and wilder. The old man was still as sturdy as a mountain, and Wan Shouyi''s sword was getting stronger and stronger. But he still could not hurt the old man at all.


    At the same time, the endless notes floating through the air merged with the sword, becoming a river that flowed between heaven and earth.


    The old man could faintly sense that something was not right, but he had no way of knowing precisely what it was. He seemed to have a faint sense of something threatening him.


    Crack! A sharp sound rang out as Wan Shouyi cut at him. The old man transformed into a thunder body, and his spirit materialized, becoming real. He slammed his fist into the sword, and suddenly there was a terrifying burst of energy.


    "That is the sword of Taixuan Mountain, but you are not skilled enough to wield it." The old man''s hair flew in the wind. Lightning shot out from his eyes towards his opponent.


    But as the two of them collided, the notes from Ye Futian''s guqin were flowing through the air like a river of swordsmanship. They enveloped the old man. He looked up and suddenly felt a serious threat.


    "This isn''t good." He slammed his hand down fiercely, trying to break free of his entanglement with Wan Shouyi. At the same time, terrifying thunder magic burst forth from his body, forming a thunder curtain around him.


    But at that moment, the flowing river of swords suddenly turned into killing swords. They pierced through the sky, leaving sword marks in the air. They crisscrossed and overlapped, until everything in the space where the old man was coiled up in destructive swords.


    "No..." the old man''s expression changed. Countless sword slashes suddenly appeared on him. He seemed to have been cut by thousands of swords. A look of fear came over his face. Wan Shouyi thrust his sword forward, cutting right through the body that his opponent had formed with his spirit.


    In a flash, the old man''s body became illusory. He looked down in pain on the scene below him, with a fierce sense of displeasure. He was so close to the Renhuang level, how could he fall like this?


    Boom! The old man''s body shattered into nothingness. Wan Shouyi withdrew his sword. He looked up in surprise at what was happening above him.


    And not only him, Luoyue and the others'' hearts were pounding. That was not Wan Shouyi''s sword.


    The guqin music had activated this final sword. It had used the Cleave of All Things, the perfected Cleave of All Things.


    This was just like what had happened on Taixuan Mountain. It seemed that the sword of Taixuan Mountain looked upon them with favor.


    Fifteen people from Taixuan Mountain were part of the quota. They all believed that Lord Taixuan would not lie to them. The mystery cultivator must be someone on the Divine Path. So why was he not among them?


    Why had Lord Taixuan reserved two places on the quota?


    Now, they all knew why.


    He was there!

 1527 The Stream of Life

    Wan Shouyi drew back his sword and lowered his head. There was an unmistakable look of shock in his deep eyes as he looked at the elegant and handsome young man.


    He thought of the brief time that Ye Futian had been cultivating at Taixuan Mountain. He had entered String Palace to cultivate the guqin arts and had gone to Sword Abyss to study the sword. He had been quiet and unassuming, modest and restrained. He had not fought with anyone.


    Who would have thought that this man, who had been cultivating so quietly at Taixuan Mountain, the one whom everyone thought was just a lucky young man, was actually someone who had learned the Famous Songs of String Palace and had completed the second strike of the Fleeting Divine Sword��the Cleave of All Things. He had defeated the genius cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling using only his own power.


    He was such a powerful person, and yet the people of Taixuan Mountain had not sensed the smallest bit of pride in him. He was so restrained.


    Indeed, he had only been cultivating at Taixuan Mountain for a few short months.


    Luoyue felt the same way, and her heart was in turmoil. When she thought of how they had constantly exhorted Shen Jing to study hard, her face turned red.


    It seemed that the one who had helped her discharge so much swordsmanship back then was Shen Jing.


    So, when she and Brother Wan Shouyi had been fighting, Shen Jing had played the guqin. The guqin music had helped stimulate her swordsmanship, and it was not just luck that this had happened. Shen Jing had purposely played the guqin to help her. She felt a little bit gloomy. She should have realized that as soon as Ye Futian played his masterpiece.


    "Was it you who helped me break through to the next level back then?" she whispered to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at her and smiled. "No need to worry about it, Princess Luoyue. You were only a step away from the next level. Even without my music, you would still have been able to do that soon."


    "Why did you choose to assist me with my swordsmanship?" Luoyue asked. Her tone and attitude were completely different than they had been before. She was feeling conflicted


    "Because me coming into contact with you back in Taixuan City turned out to be very lucky," said Ye Futian with a smile. Luoyue was stunned. Then she seemed to realize something. She looked at Ye Futian as if she was in a trance. It seemed that he was the mysterious swordsman as well.


    She smiled sweetly and said, "Thank you."


    Ye Futian smiled again but said no more on the subject. He looked in another direction and said, "We should take care of this matter."


    At that moment, the demon dragon was still on guard. His massive body was hovering there, and he stared at Ye Futian. He seemed very vigilant. These people had actually killed the old man.


    The old man had been powerful enough to threaten him. It seemed like if it came to a fight, he would not be able to withstand these human cultivators.


    "There is no way you will get this fruit. You are strong enough to go and seize fruit from somewhere else, why waste your time here?" The dragon''s voice rolled like thunder. If they attacked him in force and he could not withstand them, he would just eat the fruit right away.


    "If you eat the fruit, then we will have no choice but to feast on dragon flesh and drink dragon blood," said Ye Futian with a smile. When he heard what Ye Futian had said, the dragon''s expression grew dark. Terrible lightning flashed in his eyes as he stared fixedly at Ye Futian.


    This human was completely shameless.


    A low roar erupted from his mouth. Divine lightning flashed, and a fierce light shone in his eyes.


    Ye Futian stepped forward, still holding his guqin. Wan Shouyi, Luoyue, and the others followed him, subconsciously accepting him as their leader.


    They now understood Lord Taixuan''s wishes. Ye Futian was their greatest safeguard here.


    It was unfortunate, then, that when Ye Futian had helped them defeat Li Xun and seize the fruit, Jun Mu had gotten greedy. Given the strength and talent that he had shown, then even without them, Ye Futian could have defeated Li Xun by himself and taken the fruit. Why would he have given any of the fruit to Jun Mu? He had tried to steal it.


    Giving them two pieces of fruit was already exceedingly kind.


    Jun Mu doing this had made it so that they had needed to part ways. Otherwise, the other people from Taixuan Mountain would have been able to see what had just happened.


    Ye Futian''s eyes became incredibly frightening. They seemed endlessly deep, like two black holes as he stared at the dragon. The dragon suddenly became irritable, and a series of low roars came from him. He could feel his spiritual will being infected.


    Terrible lightning shot out of his eyes towards Ye Futian''s, but he could sense a spiritual storm swallowing him.


    "Roar!" The dragon gave an earth-shaking roar that thundered through the air. Thousands of bolts of divine lightning fell from the sky. Ye Futian stared at him as he was bathed in endless thunder, saying, "I will only ask you this one more time: will you withdraw?"


    The dragon roared as he heard the unmistakable threat in Ye Futian''s voice. He became incredibly violent, but he could feel that there was actual danger here. It seemed like the human before him actually held his life in his hands. If he tried to fight or ate the fruit, things would go very badly for him afterward.


    In the end, he could not withstand the pressure that Ye Futian was putting on him. He gave another earth-shaking roar that made the air itself tremble. He rose up and flew towards the mountains, leaving the fruit behind.


    Ye Futian walked up to the tree. Beside him, Wan Shouyi said, "This fruit bears the will of the Great Path of thunder, and it is still growing. The will within it gets stronger by the moment."


    Ye Futian nodded. "Mmm." His figure slashed as he rushed towards the tree and picked the fruit. Although it was not completely grown yet, he did not have time to wait. Before, the demon dragon and the old man''s struggle had happened because they were both placing all of their hopes upon this one piece of fruit. But Ye Futian was different. This piece of fruit was not his only target. It would be far from enough to sate his ambition.


    Crunch! A clear sound rang out. Little phoenix and the others watched in shock as Ye Futian bit into the giant piece of fruit. He was eating it right there on the spot!


    This...


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue looked at Ye Futian. This was not happening like they had imagined. Little bolts of lightning were flashing from Ye Futian''s mouth. This piece of fruit was even bigger than the ones before, but it seemed that Ye Futian would finish it in no time.


    Lightning flashed all over Ye Futian''s body for a time, and within him, a world of lightning formed. The terrible lightning seemed like it would never dissipate. It ran through him, turning his life spirit, the World Tree, into a tree of lightning. All of his internal organs and bones were filled with the power of lightning.


    Boom! Ye Futian took a step forward, and a thunderous boom erupted off of him. "Let''s keep moving forward," he said.


    He felt that his level became more secure. If he could get a few dozen or a few hundred pieces of fruit and eat them slowly, he would eventually be able to break through to the next level.


    If the cultivators of the Divine Palace knew he wanted to do this, they would probably try to kill him. Each piece of fruit here was very precious. Even if they managed to get a piece of it, most people would save it until they had cultivated up to the peak of their level. He was thinking of breaking through to the next level solely by eating the fruit.


    Moreover, the fruit contained will within it. It would naturally remain undigested for a while.


    The five of them continued forward. Now that they had witnessed Ye Futian''s strength, they knew that he was the one who had used the sword of Taixuan Mountain. Thus, they had a lot of confidence in him. He would probably bring a lot of benefits to them in the future.


    Luoyue looked off into the distance. "What is that over there? It has such a strong life aura." Ahead of them was a place filled with a mystical fog. It was as if a life aura had spread out between heaven and earth.


    Ye Futian looked over there and could faintly see a towering tree there. The mystical fog was all around the tree, and it seemed like it was actually a life aura.


    "Let''s go take a look." The group sped up. As they got closer, they could see an incomparably giant tree. All of the fruit had already been picked, and what was more frightening was that there was a stream under all the fog.


    It was the Stream of the Birth of the Way.


    Ye Futian''s heart trembled. This was a legendary place. The water of this stream was the legendary water of life. Every drop had the power to save lives, and could even bring life back to dead bones.


    At that moment, some people were bathing in the stream, but it was not truly for the purpose of washing, but rather to absorb the life will. Life will was not just useful for saving your life. People who cultivated the Way of Life were incredibly vigorous. People with a strong life aura were physically very strong and were very difficult to kill.


    The people who were bathing in the stream saw Ye Futian and the others as well. They looked up sharply at the newcomers. Their eyes were cold, but also very beautiful. All of them were women.


    One of the people bathing in the stream was as beautiful as a life goddess with her exquisite features. These were all disciples of the Divine Palace and were all incredible beauties.


    "This is a good place." Ye Futian could not help but marvel. As he said this, their gazes grew even colder. The discharged their auras, and they all fell upon Ye Futian.


    "Have you seen enough?" came a cold voice.


    "If you don''t mind, could you make some room for me?" Ye Futian walked forward. It seemed like he wanted to enter the stream.


    "Get out of here!" roared the cold voice. Several of the women''s expressions changed. They stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced around, then said, "Don''t worry. The stream is so big. I am sure there is room for a few more people."


    He continued forward as he said this, and stepped directly into the water. How could he pass by such a wonderful place without experiencing it? It could both nourish his world tree life spirit and strengthen his body.


    Indeed, the instant he stepped into the water, he could feel his soul become incredibly light. It seemed as if his very organs were relaxing. It was such a wonderful feeling. The power of life was, after all, the power of all things in the world.


    Little phoenix and the others all watched Ye Futian with mouths wide open. He was just going to go in the water?


    Although the others were not truly bathing, they still presented a lovely scene. And he was actually...


    Wan Shouyi blinked. He felt the image he had conjured up in his mind collapse a little bit. Would he really be so shameless?


    Luoyue reddened as she beheld this scene. This was going very differently from how she had imagined!

 1528 Give an Inch, Want a Mile

    When those women saw that Ye Futian had gone into the spring, violent, murderous intent swept out. Suddenly, the entire spring was shrouded by a strong will of the Way. It was as if it was an endless pure white silver lightning walking about in the spring, and swam toward Ye Futian.


    Boom. An extremely majestic breath erupted from Ye Futian''s body, which turned into a radiant golden body, and a savage power swept out along with sharp and piercing sounds. Ye Futian stood there, his body immense, like a god, difficult to shake.


    "Get out." That most beautiful woman, whose eyes were extremely cold, was staring at Ye Futian.


    "The Divine Spring of the Great Path, where all goddesses bathe in it, why do I have to get out?" Ye Futian spoke lightly. The power of the fountain of life instantly entered his body. It flowed across his four limbs and the torso. The ancient tree of the world turned into a divine tree, swaying inside the Life Palace, absorbing the will of the Divine Spring.


    This spring water contained a richness of life that far exceeded that of the previous fruit of the Way. If it could be completely refined and absorbed into the body, how vibrant would his chances of life be? Perhaps even the physical body would be difficult to destroy.


    When his thoughts turned to this, the ancient trees of the world absorbed this power frantically. In an instant, his body seemed to have turned into a terrible vortex, causing the spring water to rush into his body madly.


    In an instant, Ye Futian was overwhelmed by the richness of the breath of life.


    The women in the Divine Spring looked bewildered. What was going on?


    They bathed in the Divine Spring, gradually digesting and absorbing the will of the Way contained within. After this man had stepped into the Divine Spring, his body seemed to have turned into a vortex. It was trying to devour the entire spring.


    Wan Shouyi and the others, likewise, were equally puzzled. This guy... he intended to swallow up the entire Divine Spring?


    "Stop him," the woman who was in the lead scolded. Suddenly, all the women in the Divine Spring moved toward Ye Futian. In an instant, many methods bloomed at the same time and rolled toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s entire body seemed to be cast in gold, and there immense amounts of thunder and lightning swept out. The breath inside his body was magnificent and extremely dominant. Although he was only in the realm of Unblemished Saint, under that majestic momentum, it was definitely at the breath of Nirvana-level.


    "This..." When Wan Shouyi and Luoyue saw this, their hearts were trembling. Just how strong was this guy?


    Previously, they had seen Ye Futian swallow the fruit of the Way when he had gotten it. Ye Futian was indeed an expert at these kinds of abilities. It seemed that he was good at more than just music and swordsmanship.


    However, although he exhibited many abilities, Ye Futian''s attack at this time was still in the realm of swordsmanship. As Sheng Jing, his disguise was a musician swordsman, so these two abilities played a major role while all the others were only ancillary.


    Seeing these many attacks coming toward him, Ye Futian pointed his finger forward, and a terrifying vortex storm of swordsmanship appeared in front of him, wrapping all the incoming attacks inside. Even more terrifying was that the Sword Will of Cleave of All Things also contained the power to attack divine souls. Bodies were flying out, and many of the goddesses were injured. Some made muffled groans while others'' clothing was stained with their own blood.


    Ye Futian didn''t seem to harbor any tenderness for the ladies.


    "Goddesses, the Way was hidden within this Divine Spring. It is meant as an opportunity to prove the Way and can be used by anyone. If the goddesses act so insolent as to prevent others from using it, then don''t blame me for being merciless," Ye Futian said as he stepped forward. The sword will was murderous as it shrouded the Divine Spring.


    What was even more terrifying was that the spring water in the Divine Spring was continuously decreasing and was still being swallowed madly by Ye Futian. His body was like a bottomless hole, draining the Divine Spring.


    The divine tree nourished the life water of this spring, and it was impossible to move it. It could only absorb its will of the Way. But Ye Futian, did he want to swallow it completely, or move the Divine Spring into his body completely?


    Moreover, was he cultivating the Path of Devouring?


    There did not seem to be any the sensation of the breath of devouring the Great Path, so how did he do it?


    The woman in the lead saw that Ye Futian was so overbearing in his stance. With a cold countenance, she released her breath and stepped forward, saying, "You should also know that this place is run by the Divine Palace, so this place, by right, belongs to the disciples of the Divine Palace."


    This proving ground originally belonged to the Divine Palace, but it gave the outsiders the opportunity to cultivate, so that made them eligible to compete for it.


    Many disciples of the Divine Palace were unhappy about this, but there was nothing they could do. Except for a few top characters, others could only come and compete with the geniuses from the outside. According to the elders of the Divine Palace, this was also a powerful trial for the disciples of the Divine Palace.


    The woman''s name was Lu Qingyao. She was a direct disciple of a prominent figure of the Divine Palace. She was walking in the Divine Spring, and as her body emerged from the Divine Spring, her silvery-white dress was spotless. An extremely majestic might now rolled through the world. In an instant, this world turned into a world of frost; everything was about to be frozen.


    Luoyue shuddered. She glanced down at her hands and body. There was a snowy white frost invading her body, and the sword will in the surrounding space was also solidified, seemingly frozen. Her ability to sense the outside world was reduced yet again. It was as if she had entered an independent space.


    Likewise, Ye Futian also felt that his blood flow slowed down as the icy cold will of the Way now invaded his body, affecting his senses. He felt that he was no longer in the spring but was now in a frozen world. His perception of the outside world had also slowed.


    "What a powerful technique. It affects the perception of the others and leads one into a space of illusion," Ye Futian secretly remarked. At their level of cultivation, everyone''s strength was unfathomably strong. Any kind of carelessness was a matter of life and death. Once the sense of perception was limited, the result would be devastating.


    On the outside, Lu Qingyao looked coldly ahead, and her eyes seemed to turn white, like snow. Her long skirt fluttered as she moved forward. The world was filled with flying frost. The vast and endless space turned a snowy white, and everything was becoming slower; it was the same with Ye Futian''s body. Gradually, the hoarfrost would cover everything, and its will of the Way would continue to invade Ye Futian''s body until he lost all consciousness.


    But at this moment, she seemed to feel something suddenly. Her brows were knitted together slightly. She looked up at the void as if she felt an invisible will of the Way flowing between heaven and earth, traversing that violent, icy will of the Way.


    Boom.


    With a loud bang, the world of ice seemed to collapse and shatter. Countless sword will suddenly exploded, tearing the nothingness apart.


    The look on her face changed slightly as if she looked down at Ye Futian. She saw a pair of terrible sword eyes. It was as if many sharp swords had penetrated her eyes, rushing into her sight and passed through the world of hoarfrost, piercing the sword spirit in the depth of the world.


    In her pupils, Ye Futian''s shadow seemed to be getting closer and closer. She saw the other pointing in the air with his finger, and that finger was like a sword. The moment it struck, time seemed to stand still once again.


    "Ahem..."


    A muffled groan was heard. In the world of white snow, blood trailed down Lu Qingyao''s mouth, dripping onto her white skirt. An extremely strong life spirit wrapped around her body, repairing her injury with incredible speed.


    Watching the scene, the Divine Palace''s disciples came to Lu Qingyao''s side in a flash, but Lu Qingyao was still staring at Ye Futian inside the Divine Spring. Her eyes were very cold.


    "There is still some water in this Divine Spring. If the goddess would like to bathe together, you would be welcome to do so," Ye Futian said. His body was still devouring the life water in the Divine Spring as if he really wanted to move the spring of life that had nurtured this divine tree for many years into his own body.


    "Who are you?" Lu Qingyao stared at Ye Futian.


    "A nobody. I am Shen Jing," Ye Futian replied.


    "Shen Jing." Lu Qingyao indeed had never heard of the name, but now she would remember it. The Divine Spring was drying up at a speed that was visible to the naked eye. She didn''t bother to go down anymore, but stood there, watching the whole thing from there.


    She did not believe Shen Jing was a nobody. Would a nobody be able to break her technique, as she was a direct disciple of the Divine Palace?


    And the several people behind him all had extraordinary temperament. In addition, the sword technique that he used before was very likely from Taixuan Mountain.


    It didn''t take long for the spring of life to dry up completely. It was absorbed by Ye Futian. At this time, Ye Futian was wrapped within a very abundant breath of life. That will of the Way was like a cocoon that made Ye Futian feel that the energy of life was incredibly vibrant. It was as if waves of a river were rushing through his body.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and felt that this spring of life''s will of the Way was sufficient to support his cultivation to the realm of Renhuang. Of course, the premise was that he could break through other areas. Now, if he could refine these powers some more, when the moment the Deed of Thorough Comprehension erupted, this vibrant will of the Way surging inside his body would not beneath the Nirvana Plane.


    "By the way, do any of you have some fruit of the Way? I have a friend who also cultivates in the will of life and would like to borrow a couple of fruits of the Way." Ye Futian saw that Lu Qingyao and the others from the Divine Palace had not left. After sensing the majestic Will of the Way inside his body, he thought of Xia Qingyuan. If he didn''t save anything for Xia Qingyuan, it would seem unreasonable.


    "..."


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue stared at Ye Futian, stunned. This guy had devoured an entire spring of life. Now, he wanted to continue robbing the disciples of the Divine Palace?


    And that Lu Qingyao had extraordinary strength. They had felt her prowess when she released the will of the Way. Judging from her status, she was very likely a direct disciple of the Divine Palace.


    After Ye Futian swallowed the spring of life, he wanted to rob the fruit of the Way for his friends?


    This...


    It was simply too imposing!


    Even Luoyue found it slightly unbearable. Did he really have no manners around the ladies?


    If she only knew that Ye Futian was going to rob the beauty of the Divine Palace in front of her for another woman, what would she think?


    Lu Qingyao''s face turned white and then green. The coldness on her body swept around the world. The frost above the sky roared and roiled.


    As the direct disciple of the Divine Palace, although her beauty could not be said to be unparalleled in this world, it was still remarkable. She had always been a proud daughter of heaven. When had she ever suffered such humiliation?


    Feeling the chill, Ye Futian whispered under his breath, "If we fight for real, I''m afraid the goddess will not be an adequate opponent. I really don''t want to hurt you..."


    "Shameless."


    Each of the regular disciples from the Divine Palace, who were next to Lu Qingyao, had a sour look on their faces. They had never seen such a brazen, shameless person.

 1529 Divine Tree of Comprehension

    Ye Futian didn''t care how the others regarded him. A chance like this was not easy to fall upon. He would, of course, try to procure more fruits of the Way. This was the fruit that could bring those at the peak of Saint Plane closer to Nirvana Plane, so the more, the better.


    On this trip, all he saw was everyone competing with one another, plundering goods at every chance. He was no exception.


    With a chill wrapped around him, Ye Futian saw Lu Qingyao and the others looking at him coldly. His eyes shot out a terrible aura of the sword, and he stepped forward. The invisible sword will flowed between heaven and earth, ready to annihilate, which made the surging will of the Way from his body even more majestic.


    As the disciples of the Divine Palace felt the sword will that flowed between heaven and earth, their expressions became even more awkward. They realized that Ye Futian would deal with them unkindly. But if they were to hand over the fruits of the Way to Ye Futian just like that, where would their dignity be as the disciples of the Divine Palace?


    "Move," a low voice said, and the tyrannical will of the Way erupted again. It seemed that they still wanted to give it another shot.


    Buzz. At the moment they started, Ye Futian''s body turned into a residual shadow, fast to the limit. Before someone could even finish their thought, he had appeared in front of them and unleashed an attack with a single finger. That disciple of the Divine Palace tried to counterattack, but she was in no shape to bear Ye Futian''s sword attack.


    A bloody trail bloomed in the air as her pupils contracted, but she found that there was only a residual image in front of her, and Ye Futian was no longer there.


    One after another, the shadows sailed across the void. Soon, Ye Futian returned to where he was before.


    When his figure finally solidified, that sword will suddenly erupted as all the forces from the attack were destroyed. What was more terrifying was that a terrible storm of sword qi had started inside the space, slashed through by countless sword lights.


    Poof... One after another, muffled groans were heard. Under his sword, everyone was resisting his sword will. Lu Qingyao stood among the crowd, staring at Ye Futian. She clearly felt that someone was being injured.


    None of the disciples of the Divine Palace could bear one of his sword attacks.


    "If the goddess would like to continue, the next strike will be stronger," Ye Futian said. Lu Qingyao''s face was gloomy. She stretched out her white palm, and on it, there was a fruit of the Way, rich with life.


    "Just one?" Ye Futian looked at Lu Qingyao and asked. This divine tree gave birth to a Divine Spring; there should have been more than just one fruit.


    Lu Qingyao''s face was somber as Ye Futian smiled and said, "If I were to search you, it wouldn''t be good for you."


    As she waved her palm, two more fruits of the Way appeared in her hand. She tossed them toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian caught them without much formality and put all three fruits of the Way of life away. Those were for Xia Qingyuan.


    After Lu Qingyao passed him the fruits, she ignored Ye Futian and turned around to walk away. One could imagine her feelings at that moment.


    Everyone else glanced at Ye Futian coldly and then left with Lu Qingyao.


    Ye Futian didn''t pursue them again. Three fruits of the Way was about the right amount; it was quite the harvest!


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue seemed a bit numb. Was this the same humble and low-profiled Shen Jing they knew at Taixuan Mountain?


    This was too much of a difference!


    It was as if they were two different people. Ye Futian, who stepped into this land of trial, had completely transformed into a predator.


    Little phoenix approached at Ye Futian and looked at him with pleading eyes.


    "What are you looking at?" Ye Futian said, looking at her.


    "Everyone needs the will of the Way of life," little phoenix said feebly. He had taken three fruits, and he had no plan to give one to the cute little phoenix?


    Ye Futian ignored her and turned to walk forward. He replied in a low voice, "There''s not enough."


    "The friend that you are going to give them to, is it a man or a woman?" little Phoenix asked, running after him.


    "A woman," Ye Futian replied.


    "I knew it..." Little Phoenix looked at Ye Futian and whispered, "I am also your friend. How come you are not giving me some?"


    Was she not pretty enough?


    Or not cute enough?


    "You..." Ye Futian glanced back and saw that little phoenix gave him a gentle smile, and there was even some charm to it. She blushed a little bit. Ye Futian looked rather baffled and said, "Sorry, we are not friends like that."


    He turned around, moving forward in great strides.


    "You jerk!" little phoenix cursed loudly. She could forget about getting that precious fruit of the Way.


    He was so heartless, denying her even one fruit.


    They continued forward and plundered more along the way. On their way to that immortal Fae Palace, they had stolen even more fruits of the Way, and Ye Futian had reaped a lot and had eaten even more fruits of the Way.


    He was feeling a little bit too full...


    From every other direction, the direction of other cultivators was consistent with his. They were all going toward that immortal Fae Palace.


    Moreover, as he approached, more and more cultivators were also coming. Many of them were geniuses of the top forces, and some were disciples of the Divine Palace.


    As Ye Futian and his group walked all the way up the mountain, the Divine Fae Palace became even clearer. The sky above them and the ancient mountain were filled with the holy power of the divine might of the Great Path, and it was getting stronger.


    From all directions of the mountain, people were walking up one after another, and they could all feel a sacred breath.


    It seemed that there was something holy residing above them.


    "What is that?"


    When Ye Futian saw that in front of the immortal Fae Palace at the top, there seemed to be an immense divine tree planted there. What was even more amazing was that this tree had infinite colors, and the color of each giant tree branch was different. They stretched out in different directions and were extremely beautiful.


    "This tree is so huge," little phoenix looked up and murmured.


    "It has all kinds of fruits of the Way, all kinds," Wan Shouyi whispered. There were different fruits on the radiant branches of the divine tree. It was as if this tree alone produced many different fruits with different wills of the Way. The whole tree was dazzling and contained boundless and powerful will of the Way.


    Next to the ancient tree, many were standing there. In front of each fruit, there seemed to be at least one or many cultivators guarding it. It was as if they had already laid claim to those fruits of the Way.


    "The products have the essence of the sun, the moon, and the sky." Ye Futian looked up. Many had already arrived here, and there seemed to be a dividing line there. Above the mountain, it was forbidden.


    Someone tried to ascend by force, but a divine golden light on the mountain was descending from the sky. It was a long spear of gold that directly pierced the void and nailed the cultivators who tried to trespass.


    "Gai Shi Shi."


    Ye Futian looked at that figure and saw that he was clad in a golden robe, stately and imposing, guarding a golden fruit that was bigger than any of the ones Ye Futian had seen before. It was releasing a golden glow that covered Gai Shi Shi. Gai Shi Shi seemed to be comprehending something in tranquility. He was not eating the fruit but was comprehending in front of it.


    It was not just him, but also other prominent characters were present as well.


    "I never expected the Divine Tree of Comprehension in the legend would actually be true." Wan Shouyi was startled. One could comprehend before the divine tree. It was rumored that in the Sea of the Path to prove the truth, enlightenment could be obtained before the divine tree, and one could become a Renhuang.


    Moreover, it was said that the fruits produced from the divine tree of Comprehension each contained enough will of the Way for someone at the peak of the Nirvana Plane to cast a Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Its will of the Way was immeasurable.


    In another direction, a group came forth. It turned out to be Jun Mu and the others. Apparently, they had also seen Ye Futian and Wan Shouyi. Jun Mu''s eyes revealed some disbelief. They had also arrived?


    But going further up was perhaps an impossibility.


    The people above would not allow anyone to snatch away their opportunity of the Great Path. Those were the most prominent figures on this trip, including many who were the direct disciples of the Divine Palace.


    "Wan Shouyi, Luoyue, how has your trip with him been?" Jun Mu asked Ye Futian and his party. On this trip, they had profited some along the way.


    Luoyue looked at Ye Futian and said nothing. If only Jun Mu knew that Ye Futian was the swordsman who made that strike on Taixuan Mountain, she wondered how he would feel.


    "If you want, we still have a chance to join hands to try it together," Jun Mu continued. Even he was not certain that he could force his way to the top and see the divine tree of Comprehension for himself. Naturally, he, too, wanted to sit under the divine tree and meditate.


    But those under the tree would not allow anyone to disturb their own meditation, nor compete with them. Therefore, anyone who crossed the boundary would endure their attacks.


    "Infighting already?" a cold voice asked. It was from a group of cultivators walking up the mountain. They were from the Divine Capital of Xiling. With the clashes that were taking place now, all who were victorious would start moving toward this place.


    Those who came for the trial would eventually appear here.


    After all, as soon as they arrived, they could see the palace resting at the peak!

 1530 No One Could Get Up

    Ye Futian cast a glance at Luo Youming. The prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling seemed to have remembered them.


    However, although death and injury were inevitable in this place of trial, it was still a troublesome thing to kill a prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling in front of everyone. There were so many people here that it would be impossible to do such a thing without having outsiders find out. To attract the attention of a peak character such as Old Demon Luo was definitely not ideal.


    Luo Youming seemed to perceive something, and his eyes moved toward Ye Futian, He saw that this musician of Taixuan Mountain regarded him with an incredibly indifference and contempt. It was as if, in his eyes, Luo Youming was someone not worth noting. His attitude was condescending.


    A chilling intention of murder flashed across his eyes, extremely frigid. All the descendants of Old Demon Luo had inherited Old Demon Luo''s temper.


    However, although many had come one after another from below, everyone in front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension was still calmly meditating and cultivating as if immersed in their own perception of the Great Path. But everyone knew that as soon as someone crossed the boundary, that person would feel the force of attack from above.


    A while ago, there were already a few cultivators who had perished under these kinds of attacks.


    "Let''s go up," a voice commanded. Not far from Ye Futian and his group, Jun Mu took few people with him, preparing to rush through. Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu of Guqin Valley followed him, after all, ready to join forces. There was also Ma Yi with a few others. If they joined hands together with Jun Mu, naturally, their chance of success would be greater.


    Of course, Ye Futian and Wan Shouyi had already demonstrated much greater strength than Jun Mu. However, since Ye Futian had already made it clear that he would not necessarily give them the fruit, that only left Jun Mu as a partner.


    When Luo Youming and the other cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling saw that Jun Mu and his group were about to move upwards, they also immediately stepped up and said, "Luo Youming of the Divine Capital of Xiling wants a space."


    Anyone who occupied a space above was not an ordinary, simple person. He introduced himself by name because, with his status and strength, there had to be a space for him.


    There were also several others who took the initiative to step up and were prepared to take advantage of this opportunity to rush through together so that there was a greater chance of succeeding.


    Instantly, an extremely arrogant might of the Way erupted, and everyone stepped up, walking on the mountain path on their way to the Divine Tree of Comprehension.


    Above them, everyone watched. Everyone who was there was an extraordinary character. Among them were Gai Shi Shi of the Golden Divine Nation, Li Xun of the Divine Sword Li Family, Chang Fenglie of the Changfeng Family, and Qin Zang of the Sky Burying God Clan.


    There were also several direct disciples from the Divine Palace, each of whom was an extraordinary figure with an exemplary breath. Those who were able to stand there had already experienced a great battle, so if anyone else wished to go up, then they must be even more outstanding than the people who were already there.


    Otherwise, there would be no place yielded for them there.


    In front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension, many eyes were now on the place below. All the figures were indistinct as divine will shrouded the void, and the will of the Way flowed between heaven and earth. Ye Futian could clearly feel a domineering might brewing and could explode at any time.


    "These people seem to have reached a certain tacit agreement," Ye Futian marveled secretly. As his voice fell, he saw several people moved at the same time. In the sky above Li Xun, countless swords manifested, and a sword river appeared directly between heaven and earth, slaughtering toward the sky below. In an instant, everyone was attacked by the sword river.


    Bang. Luo Youming was extremely forceful. He lifted the great demonic palm print and blasted toward the sky above, smashed the swords directly, and continued upward. Other cultivators all launched counterattacks to shatter the power of swordsmanship that came for them.


    However, this only seemed to be the beginning. After Li Xun''s sword, Qin Zang of the Sky Burying God Clan turned radiant all over, the starry lights flowing. He took a single step, and ranges of mountains descended from the sky, bombarding the crowds below.


    For a time, destructive turbulence of methods raged wildly.


    But, this did not stop. Afterward, Chang Fenglie attacked, and Gai Shi Shi pointed downward to unleash the golden spear from the sky. The sound of violent collisions was heard, and under the continuous attacks of several top characters, many were unable to bear the attacks and retreated from the shock.


    "There is no place for you here," a forceful and overbearing voice said, and another figure in front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension made a move. That person emanated a terrible breath. There seemed to be a ghostly figure behind him. This apparition merged into the Great Path of heaven and earth when the other person''s palms made a squeezing motion in the air.


    Suddenly, everyone who was battling below felt that their spirit was being held captive.


    An extremely strong sense of crisis was born, and their countenance changed. What was this ability that could directly ignore external defenses and attack the spirits instead?


    The apparition squeezed in the air again. Puh... Some people vomited blood, their faces pale as sand, and fell to the ground. Others spat out blood, their faces pale, and felt their circulations impeded.


    "That''s his disciple." Many people instantly remembered a man, a great man in the Divine Palace, who did not have many disciples. His ability in cultivation was very rare and required a very special talent.


    The person who attacked looked very young. They were fair-skinned like a woman. His demeanor was very delicate, and he had a head of dark hair freely hanging. But his dark eyes added a sense of gentleness.


    It was a direct disciple of the Divine Palace, Bai Xiu.


    He was also brilliant among the direct disciples of the Divine Palace, but in the battles within the Divine Palace, he lost to another more powerful person, so he did not get a place and needed to come here to fight for it.


    But his strength was definitely horrific, especially his cultivation ability.


    "It is the direct disciple of Lord Underworld. Lord Underworld is an expert in methods that directly attack the spirit. It was very fearsome and could kill invisibly. Judging from this person''s appearance, it should be Bai Xiu��the youngest of all Lord Underworld''s disciples. Although he did not get a placement this time, in time, he will be even more terrible. This trip will strengthen his realm," Luoyue explained. Her father, the City Lord of Taixuan City, was a disciple under Lord Taixuan. He was a prominent figure in his own right, so Luoyue knew quite a lot about the outside world.


    Ye Futian nodded. There was a strange ability floating in the void, like an apparition that had integrated into the Great Path of heaven and earth. This may be the life spirit ability, a special talent.


    He also cultivated a similar ability��Celestial Soul Attraction, which was a mystical way inherited from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but even Celestial Soul Attraction was slightly different from this.


    As the top principality of the Higher Heavens Realm, the Divine Palace taught throughout the world, and it was completely expected that there would be all kinds of abilities within the Divine Palace.


    After a series of continuous attacks, all the cultivators were now suppressed, and the majority of them were injured.


    Even Luo Youming and other cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling were the same, just like Jun Mu and his party. Several of them had been hit hard, and their faces were pale. For example, Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu, who were experts at melody, suffered a great injury to their spiritual powers under Bai Xiu''s attack, which directly aimed at the spirit, Along with all the other attacks launched at the same time, they were instantly crippled.


    Jun Mu also suffered a slight injury. He was knocked down by the attack. His expression was unpleasant.


    Were these people preventing the others from going up?


    "It seems that the benefits have been distributed, and those who arrive later will have a hard time partaking any further," Wan Shouyi said as he watched the scene play out before him. The meaning of their alliance was easy to understand.


    The previous battle had determined the power structure up there. Next, they wanted to stabilize the configuration without allowing more players to participate. Even if they were better than the people who were already in it, it was difficult to get up there. It was not as simple as they had thought.


    At this time, a group of people traveled upward in a flash. The person in the lead was extremely beautiful. It was Lu Qingyao, who had been robbed by Ye Futian not long ago. She looked up and said, "Brothers, may I have a place? "


    "Doesn''t junior sister Lu just comprehend in the fountain of life?" a young man asked. He was also a disciple of the Divine Palace.


    Lu Qingyao''s face changed slightly. She turned her head looked in a certain direction, which was just where Ye Futian was.


    "It was taken away by someone," Lu Qingyao replied.


    The people above were silent and looked in one of the directions, and from what seemed to be the top of the DivineTree of Comprehension, someone glanced at Lu Qingyao and said, "Sister Qingyao, come up."


    "Thank you, Senior Brother." Lu Qingyao nodded and moved upward. Gai Shi Shi and the others revealed surprise in their eyes. They glanced at the person who spoke. But, in the end, they didn''t say anything. Their silence wasn''t entirely out of fear, but the speaker was definitely one of the most excellent people here. If there were a conflict with him, the consequences would be unpredictable.


    After all, there were still some spaces left in front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension.


    "That fruit of the Way, then, is yours." The speaker pointed to a fruit of life. Lu Qingyao responded by nodding. "Thank you."


    The looks on the face of the people below were not so good. Such a precious fruit was now distributed to someone just like that?


    The direct disciples of the Divine Palace were such good sports.


    "What should we do?" little phoenix whispered to Ye Futian.


    "I''m waiting for someone." Ye Futian said, and he looked to the side. After a while, there was a figure traveling with a sword, coming toward this way. Upon seeing that figure, Ye Futian smiled.


    Yaya had arrived.


    After Yaya arrived, she saw Ye Futian and came to his side in a flash.


    "You are here." Ye Futian smiled. He took out two fruits. One was filled with powerful sword will, and the other contained a strong breath of life. He said, "Eat them first."


    Yaya looked at Ye Futian. This guy, really... she thought. But she nodded gently anyway, took them, and ate them both.


    Ye Futian had given them for her to eat, so there was no need to be coy.


    All around, whoever perceived the breath of these fruits, all looked in Ye Futian''s direction. They couldn''t help but show a strange look. How dare they devour the fruits of the Way in front of them like this?


    Jun Mu also looked bewildered. Besides the sword-shaped fruit that he had captured from the hands of the Divine Sword Li Family, did he also take the fruit of life?

 1531 One Strike

    Little phoenix looked at Ye Futian, unhappy, and gritted her teeth, This b*stard!


    Before, he was reluctant to give her even one fruit when she asked him, but now, he had given two fruits to the woman who just came. This was ridiculous.


    And this woman was not even that beautiful!


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue were speculating about the relationship between the two. Shen Jing called her his sister, but she didn''t seem like his sister in any way.


    Path companion?


    Not really.


    So, what was their relationship?


    Others also stared at Ye Futian. He tossed out the two fruits just like that. Did he have any more on him?


    That gesture was generous enough.


    Yaya sat cross-legged, digesting the power of the fruits of the Way. Within her body, a powerful sword will and life will flowed back and forth until the sword will became more magnanimous. The infinite sword will wrapped around her. It seemed to engrave the true will of swordsmanship into the meridians and skeletons of her body and transform them.


    Ye Futian looked down at Yaya. Once upon a time at the battle of the Demon Realm, Yaya guarded him at all costs and suffered grave injury, but she also gained a lot. After returning to the Nirvana realm, it had deepened another layer of comprehension in her cultivation. Her swordsmanship had become more mature and powerful than before, and she had a greater comprehension of swordsmanship. This allowed her to perfect her own attack techniques, such as the Sword Matrix of the Void, making it even more excellent.


    Now that she had just eaten two fruits of the Way, it would allow her to advance to the next level in the Nirvana Plane.


    "How many fruits do you have?" Yaya was still cultivating when a voice was heard. The person who spoke was Luo Youming of the Divine Capital of Xiling. Obviously, he had some thoughts about Ye Futian.


    They had not bothered with Ye Futian and the others from Taixuan Mountain before, because they were busy seizing this time to raid all the fruits of the Way here.


    But now, almost all the fruit was gone, and all sorts of opportunities had been taken away. Perhaps only here at the Divine Tree of Comprehension could there be a possibility to meditate the Great Path.


    But the people above had already made their arrangements, and they were unable to force their way in.


    Since this was the case, they had no choice but to settle for the second option.


    Ye Futian looked up at Luo Youming. There was a bit of coldness in his eyes. He didn''t want to haggle with the other, but it seemed that Luo Youming had plans for the fruits of the Way that were in his possession.


    "Quite a lot," Ye Futian smiled at Luo Youming and said.


    Ye Futian''s answer stunned not only Luo Youming but the people all around them.


    A lot?


    And, he admitted it so blatantly?


    Was he looking for trouble?


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue also expressed a look of surprise. This guy really was This was a totally different person from the Shen Jing on Taixuan Mountain.


    The others were also somewhat moved as they turned their attention to Ye Futian.


    "Is that so?" Luo Youming took a step forward, and the demonic will on his body was tossing and rolling. He smiled a cruelly at Ye Futian. After these people from Taixuan Mountain had fought each other, they were still so arrogant, unaware of their impending death.


    "If so, why not give them to me?" Luo Youming stepped forward and spat with a creepy and eerie tone.


    "Sure, come and get it," Ye Futian replied.


    When Luo Youming saw that Ye Futian was so confident, in turn, he was a little doubtful. At this level of cultivation, his intelligence should be higher, not lower, right?


    Then, where did Ye Futian''s boldness come from? This stopped Luo Youming in his tracks, and he seemed to be second-guessing his own judgment.


    Unless he was emboldened because of Wan Shouyi and the others?


    He looked at Wan Shouyi and the others and saw that Wan Shouyi was standing right behind Ye Futian at the moment, which made him even more suspicious.


    "Aren''t you going to come and get it?" Ye Futian looked at him and continued.


    Previously, Luo Youming was not too concerned with Ye Futian, but now that he was being so bold, he was suspicious and dared not act lightly.


    "Of course," Luo Youming said, and with the will of the Way roaring, the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling around him also released great and strong will. A sense of death rushed directly toward Ye Futian and the others. Even Luo Youming''s eyes released a terrible will of death that rushed directly into Ye Futian''s eyes.


    However, where the dead air entered, it was drowned out by the majestic will of life and had no effect on him at all.


    "In the old days, when the Divine Capital of Xiling entered Taixuan Mountain, you wanted to experience the cultivation of the disciples of Taixuan Mountain. At the time, I had just arrived at Taixuan Mountain as a musician. Now that I have learned a few things from Taixuan Mountain, I will enlighten you today."


    The moment he finished, a tremendous sense of will erupted fiercely from him. In an instant, the sky above him shrieked, the sword qi wailed, and countless divine swords were beginning to form.


    Not only that, but streams of sword will went toward the void, flowing between heaven and earth. Looking up, the currents of sword will were visible to the naked eye, flowed through every space, as if omnipresent.


    Many looked at the battle here and felt the magnificent will erupt from Ye Futian. Many showed a peculiar look. Was this might that was released by someone of the Unblemished Realm?


    Even someone of the Nirvana Plane would not be able to surpass this by much.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian''s vitality was booming. His entire body was shining brightly, dazzling with divine light. At this moment, he was like a divine sword that had been unsheathed.


    "This strong?"


    Jun Mu and the others were confounded. What was going on?


    Didn''t Ye Futian cultivate in music at the String Pavilion and then went to Sword Abyss to watch the swordplay by the swordsmen? Why was his swordsmanship this strong?


    In front of Ye Futian, the endless flowing sword will now condensed into a real, sharp sword.


    At this moment, Ye Futian closed his eyes as if he no longer needed to see with his eyes. He no longer needed to use movements to control the sword.


    Psst�� A sharp shrieking sound was heard. It was extremely harsh and made many feel very uncomfortable. The currents of sword will flowing between heaven and earth formed a terrible sword river of true will, roaring and howling toward the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    In this instant, all the cultivators of Xiling felt an unparalleled power of slaughter. It was as if everyone was inside this sword river and could not escape.


    People all around felt the strength of this sword will, and many evaded and gave way to the battlefield to avoid being affected.


    Ye Futian''s body gradually levitated in the air. He sat there in midair with a sword in front of him. As his mind moved, the sword struck.


    Between heaven and earth, a real sword river appeared, sweeping through the void. The infinite sword will was unleashed at the same moment, cutting through the void. Those Saint Plane cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling were all of a powerful existence, which is why they were given a space to come here. But at this time, under this strike, they all felt inconsequential.


    The violent demonic might exploded, and darkness shrouded the world. But wherever the sword qi passed, everything turned into nothingness, and all was wiped out.


    The murderous sword river traversed this space, and sounds of muffled groans could be heard. Many of the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling stiffened and stood in place, blood trailing down the corner of their mouths, and their faces were pale as sand.


    And that brilliant sword strike took direct aim at Luo Youming across the space.


    Luo Youming''s face changed because he could already sense how strong this strike was going to be.


    A terrifying demonic might erupted, and behind him, a body akin to a death demon appeared, and with it, numerous death spears were launched. However, under that sword will, there was no way for the spears to gain an upper-hand, as they were immediately shattered and pulverized.


    In this instant, he seemed to have returned to the same scenario that day on Taixuan Mountain.


    Boom. A great palm print of the demon god smashed out, and Luo Youming rapidly retreated leverage its momentum. But Ye Futian was still sitting upon the void with his eyes closed, and as the sword chimed, he was clearly controlling the sword remotely.


    The dazzling divine sword was going forward without resistance, headed directly for Luo Youming.


    Boom, boom, boom��The sword penetrated everything, and no matter where Luo Luoming retreated, the sword was still right there. Even the currents of the sword will between the heaven and the earth drowned his body, bisecting the void as if to bury him within the sword.


    Luo Youming''s face paled. Suddenly a terrifying might of pressure exploded from his body, and an implement now appeared in his hand, emitting the intention of a demonic emperor.


    "Is he looking for death?" When people saw this, they exclaimed secretly in their hearts. Sure enough, a destructive divine light of the Great Path suddenly spilled down from the sky above. It smashed down on that Renhuang implement. The same destructive divine light of the Great Path also attacked Luo Youming at the same time, and he was hit instantly. His body fell weakly downward as he kept vomiting massive amounts of blood.


    The Divine Palace gave an allotted quota to the top principalities of the Higher Heavens Realm so that their disciples could come to prove themselves and compete for the opportunity of the Great Path. It was not an occasion for them to show off with divine implements. Anyone who dared to resort to a Renhuang level implement would be immediately detected and dealt with, hence the scene that had just played out.


    It was a wretched affair.


    Luo Youming''s body fell heavily to the ground. The sword will was chilling, and Ye Futian''s sword pointed to his forehead. It was as if with a turn of Ye Futian''s mind, hundreds and thousands of swords would descend.


    "It''s you." Luo Youming stared at the sword pointing at him. This was d��j�� vu, similar to what happened on Taixuan Mountain before.


    This was the same sword as on Taixuan Mountain.


    Actually, it was a more mature sword, except the sword on Taixuan Mountain had taken the advantage of the character of the Way.


    The sword was still pointing at him, and Ye Futian didn''t respond. Jun Mu''s face instantly became extremely disturbed, but he was not alone; it was the same for several other disciples of Taixuan Mountain who followed him.


    It was the same sword.


    That extremely radiant sword on Taixuan Mountain, at this time, was blooming here.


    "How could it be him!"


    Many people felt a little surreal. Li Zhiyin, Chen Yu, and Ma Yi had seen Ye Futian first come to Taixuan Mountain. They had watched Ye Futian practice music in Guqin Valley.


    However, how could he be capable of such a radiant strike by the sword? It was the second level of the Fleeting Divine Sword��the Cleave of All Things.


    "The allotment of space."


    When their thoughts turned to this, they realized that Lord Taixuan had known all along, and that was why he had sent Ye Futian to accompany them.


    "How many positions do you think this sword deserves? "Ye Futian''s eyes opened. He didn''t bother with Luo Youming, but instead, he looked up at the Divine Tree of Comprehension.


    For the Divine Tree of Comprehension, his goal was not simply one space!

 1532 A Song of Swordsmanship

    In the sky above, in front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension, all eyes were gazing down at Ye Futian.


    This sword strike, indeed, qualified him to meditate before the Divine Tree and obtain the fruit of the Way.


    However, Ye Futian had come late.


    Lu Qingyao''s eyes were indifferent. A ray of cold air drifted out from her, and a young man not far from her looked at her and asked, "Is this the person who robbed junior sister Spring of Life?"


    "Mmm." Lu Qingyao nodded, and swiftly, several disciples of the Divine Palace stared at that figure.


    This time, a number of outstanding figures had converged from each of the top principalities. Gai Shi Shi of the Golden Divine Nation was extraordinary in strength and was extremely arrogant. He was unwilling to enter the Divine Palace to cultivate, but his combat power was not any less than its direct disciples. Of all the direct disciples here, none had the confidence that they would overcome Gai Shi Shi.


    Qin Zang was of the Sky Burying God Clan. His attack power was equally as powerful, and he was unmatched.


    And now, this swordsman, who came from Taixuan Mountain, seemed to be very strong. Moreover, he claimed to be a musician of Taixuan Mountain. Yet, his one sword strike was able to thrash all the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling, including the son of Old Demon Luo��Luo Youming.


    And what was really wild was this man dared to raid the disciple of the Divine Palace and filch the fountain of life and the fruits of the Way on their home territory. It was truly unimaginable.


    Gai Shi Shi and his cohort also looked at Ye Futian. On the day of the Battle of Taixuan Mountain, Gai Shi Shi had been present and witnessed the sword that defeated the disciples of the Divine Capital of Xiling, which caused great embarrassment to the cultivators of Divine Capital of Xiling. At the time, many thought that there had been a Renhuang secretly aiding, but now it appeared that it was the young man before them, that inconspicuous musician Shen Jing.


    Furthermore, his sword method of the Fleeting Divine Sword had far exceeded that of Wan Shouyi. Therefore, was it possible that he was the disciple hidden by Lord Taixuan?


    Lord Taixuan claimed that he would not accept any more direct disciples. He had been unwilling to accept Gai Shi Shi as a disciple, but now it seemed to all be an excuse. It was likely that Lord Taixuan had already had a disciple but had not publicized it.


    So, was this the reason why Lord Taixuan was unwilling to accept him?


    If it was a competition of swords, then Shen Jing, indeed, was more suitable than him.


    But the truth was that Gai Shi Shi was overthinking the matter. While it seemed to be logical, but, in fact, except for the grand event on Taixuan Mountain that day, Ye Futian had never seen Lord Taixuan. So, how could he be his disciple?


    Lord Taixuan left a space for him merely because he knew that the sword back then was from him.


    However, this man''s swordsmanship was superb. He had incredible strength. Although he was only in the Unblemished Plane, his whole body was radiant, and the will of the Way in him was glorious. It was as if he had ingested several fruits of the Way, which boosted the body''s vitality and essence. The will that was flowing out of him was no less than that of the Nirvana Plane.


    But even so, it was still difficult to force his way through by force.


    "There is no place for you here," in front of the Divine Tree, the young man next to Lu Qingyao said quietly. Suddenly several disciples of the Divine Palace expressed a look of sympathy.


    Even though he had demonstrated tyrannical prowess, there was still no place for Ye Futian.


    If he said no, then, naturally, there would be none.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky and the Divine Tree of Comprehension. There was no place for him?


    He stepped into the void and said with a smile, "What if I insist?"


    "Then try, and you will know," the young man from the Divine Palace continued, his tone indifferent but firm as if there was no room for doubts.


    Insist?


    Perhaps, if he had reached Nirvana Plane, he would have a chance at a fight, but for now, as someone of the Unblemished Plane, he was not qualified to ask this question.


    Ye Futian glanced at the sky above, then walked toward Luo Youming. He looked at the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling. He said, "Hand over the fruits of the Way that you have."


    "..."


    Luo Youming regarded him with an extremely somber countenance.


    A sword was circling Ye Futian. The sound of the sword chiming hurt their ears as the sword moved forward. It was now circling Luo Youming, who was heavily injured.


    "If I had to do it myself, it would cost you much more than just some fruits of the Way," Ye Futian said again. If they wanted his fruits, then they would have to pay the price. It would not be so cheap.


    Luo Youming was not weak, and with the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling, they should have robbed him of the fruits right away. Furthermore, as the son of Old Demon Luo, no one dared to fight Luo Youming for it, and only he should be the one controlling the fruits.


    "You sure you want them?" Luo Youming stared at Ye Futian. There were hints of demonic will in his pupils.


    Psst. The sword came down, and a terrible storm of sword qi went directly toward Luo Youming. His face was extremely gloomy as he stretched out his palm, and three fruit of the Way appeared suddenly. He tossed them toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian caught them and put them away. He smiled and looked at Luo Youming, saying, "Judging from your strength, there ought to be more than three."


    The Divine Capital of Xiling had ten spaces, and with an average of one fruit of the Way per person, they would need to raid no less than ten fruits of the Way to share them evenly. Even if not everyone received a fruit, three fruits of the Way was simply too few.


    Base on Luo Youming''s character, he would definitely kill and plunder. From their entry into Taixuan Mountain, intending to forcibly interrupt Lord Taixuan''s breakthrough, their overbearing stance was more than obvious. Therefore, they could not possibly have so few fruits in their possession.


    "It seems that I have to check myself." Ye Futian walked forward. Luo Youming''s face was gloomy. He said, "Shen Jing, I will remember your name."


    As he finished speaking, he waved his palm. One after the other, fruits of the Way flew toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian stretched his hand and took them with a flick of his sleeve. He was able to take them in one swooping motion. There were five of them in total.


    As he expected, Luo Youming had taken eight fruits; he first handed over three, wanting to hide the other five.


    "Then, you better remember it well." Ye Futian turned around with a smile, without pursuing the matter further. With eight, he was already somewhat satisfied. In addition to the other fruits he had plundered before and the Divine Tree of Comprehension above, the harvest this time was bountiful.


    "He means business." The people all around couldn''t help but twitch a bit. In this land of trial, many didn''t even get so much as one fruit, and others had been robbed of theirs.


    Ye Futian took care of the Divine Capital of Xiling and took eight fruits of the Way.


    Coupled with what he already had, it was no wonder that he could afford to be so generous. He had given two fruits of the Way to the woman in front of him.


    Jun Mu''s face was becoming even more disturbed. The more outstanding Ye Futian was, the more it accentuated his pettiness from before. He could see that the eyes of the people around him had changed already. They were thinking that Shen Jing had gotten so many fruits that perhaps even Wan Shouyi and Louyue would all be able to partake.


    And they had, up until now, only procured two fruits by Ju Mu, which was simply not enough for everyone.


    These two fruits of the Way probably wouldn''t even be enough for Jun Mu himself. It was likely that he would never hand them over but had saved them for himself.


    After he finished this, Ye Futian looked up and stepped forward, facing Wan Shouyi. He said, "If I gift you a song, would you dare fight me?"


    Wan Shouyi was stupefied. Was Ye Futian asking him to fight?


    Glancing at the figures above, there was Li Xun of the Divine Sword Li Family, who had defeated him before, as well as Qin Zang of the Sky Burying God Clan. There was also Gai Shi Shi of the Golden Divine Kingdom and several direct disciples of the Divine Palace. Every one of them was of a genius-level existence, and they were was not people he could contend with by himself. He knew this very well.


    But Ye Futian wanted him to fight.


    Clearly, Ye Futian wanted to enhance his swordsmanship with his music.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s eyes, Wan Shouyi''s enthusiasm was peaked once again, as it had been when he first entered the Sea of the Path. He replied, "What is there to be afraid of?"


    He stretched out his hand. The sword will moved about on his body, and the spirit of the sword appeared instantly. The palm of his hand went over the spirit of the sword, and drops of blood dripped down. A breath of terror flowed over the spirit of the sword, and the breath upon his body was madly rushing toward the spirit of the sword.


    Above the firmament, the sword will rolled in waves, and there seemed to be infinite sword qi being born.


    "Sword, come!" Wan Shou shouted, and in an instant, infinite sword will poured into his body. It poured into the spirit of the sword, forged a dazzling divine sword. His body was bright all over, sharper than ever. The man and sword were now one.


    Behind Wan Shouyi, Ye Futian sat cross-legged, playing the guqin with both hands. When the music sounded, many felt their hair stand on end. Their bodies tensed up, and their hearts beat faster. Above the sky, wind and clouds were moving. Infinite melody integrated into Wan Shouyi''s mind, and the music and the sword became one. At this moment, Wan Shouyi had a feeling that though he knew that he would lose, he was unafraid. Though the Great Path was imperfect, he would still break the shackles and compete with heaven and earth.


    At this moment, he wanted to howl into the sky. The sound of guqin complemented his mood at the moment perfectly, and it also completed the sword.


    "Thanks."


    Wan Shouyi raised his head to look into the void and took a step forward. This expression of gratitude was naturally for Ye Futian.


    No matter victory or defeat, it was enough that he had this song to enhance this sword.


    "This is impossible��"


    Jun Mu couldn''t help but make a sound. His face changed rapidly, and he even appeared a little pale. His eyes fixed on Ye Futian. This was absolutely impossible.


    The hearts of Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu were also beating violently. They felt a little unreal when they regarded Ye Futian.


    They had cultivated in Taixuan Mountain for many years and spent many years in String Valley, but they had never seen anyone from Taixuan Mountain perform this song, never...


    And Ye Futian, how could he possibly know it?


    This song actually matched the music played by Lord Taixuan that day. Although it was far from the artistic conception conveyed by Lord Taixuan, it possessed quite some sophistication.


    This was the lost sound of the Great Path��the Song of the Lost Divine.


    Was Shen Jing a direct disciple of Lord Taixuan?


    Li Zhiyin couldn''t help but ask herself if this was also the reason for Jun Mu''s unrequited love affair. Ye Futian''s knowledge of the Song of the Lost Divine could only have one explanation.


    On Taixuan Mountain, only the String Emperor had cultivated the Song of the Lost Divine and would not easily pass it on to ordinary disciples.


    Unless...


    But Lord Taixuan made it clear that he would not accept disciples any more. Once upon a time, her master��the Taixuan Hierophant��had wanted to send her to Lord Taixuan as an apprentice, but this had ultimately been refused by Lord Taixuan.


    Not only the disciples of Taixuan Mountain were full of suspicion, but everyone else thought so, too, such as Gai Shi Shi.


    Today, at this place of trial, someone actually performed the lost sound of the Great Path.


    A song of swordsmanship.


    Wan Shouyi''s sword broke through the air. At this time, he had completely entered a state of ecstasy and total selflessness. When the Way had been revealed, death was no longer fearsome. At this moment, he had the illusion that the Way was upon him.


    Li Xun of the Divine Sword Li Family emitted a dazzling sword light from his pupils. He took a step out, and countless divine swords fell down, slamming at Wan Shouyi.


    Wan Shouyi waved his sword, and the sword countered the Great Path. Li Xun''s swords were torn and smashed instantly. A glimmer of the sky opened up, straight through the firmament!

 1533 No One in Particular

    Li Xun''s expression changed rapidly, the spirit of the sword condensed and manifested, and infinite sword will descended from the sky. The divine sword of doomsday was born and fell straight down.


    "Open!"


    Li Xun shouted, and with it, the sword descended. At the same time, Wan Shouyi''s sword approached, and the two swords collided. In an instant, a violent storm of swordsmanship raged and swept wildly in all directions.


    Li Xun''s sword was the Sword of Doomsday, meant to destroy all existence. Wan Shouyi''s sword was the Sword of Reversal. The song of the lost sound of the Great Path signified the imperfection of the Great Path, and the only remedy was the sword.


    The sound of guqin could still be heard in the void, as countless notes merged into the sword, forming a reverse current of swordsmanship, which caused the sword river to reverse its course and flood toward Li Xun.


    Buzz!


    Everyone saw Li Xun''s sword retreating, knocked back into the void while Wan Shouyi was surrounded by infinite sword will. He took a step and reached for the sword and pointed it toward the sky. Instantly, a devastating storm of sword qi circled upward, intending to shatter the sky.


    Li Xun''s expression was terrible. He had been defeated once before already; Ye Futian and Wan Shouyi teamed up and defeated him. Now, this piece of music was even more powerful than the one performed previously, and Wan Shouyi''s sword was, likewise, stronger.


    But at this moment, someone else made a move. Qin Zang''s palm pressed downward, and a force that could suppress the heavens came down. With it, stone tablets appeared between heaven and earth, and each tablet contained inscriptions composed of signs and symbols, camouflaging the will of the Great Path.


    Qin Zang squeezed his palm, and suddenly, the many stone tablets revolved around Wan Shouyi''s body. At the same time, the infinite will of the Great Path that was hidden within the inscription of the tablets shot toward Wan Shouyi, like golden flashes of lightning.


    Boom, boom�� Under the endless will of the inscriptions, Wan Shouyi seemed to be trapped in it. Many stone tablets loomed over him, seemed to try to bury him.


    The Sky Burying God Clan claimed to be able to bury the Great Path of all heavens, arrogant beyond compare. Qin Zang, as the genius existence of the Sky Burying God Clan, was super powerful. He was nearly at the peak, not far from Renhuang. One could only imagine his prowess.


    The Great Path was buried in it. Countless golden lightning shot toward Wan Shouyi, wrapping around his sword and destroying his will.


    But the melody of the music was still the same, as the music became more and more urgent. Wan Shouyi swiped his palm across the sword in front of him, and there was blood on the sword, releasing a brilliant bloody light.


    At this moment, Wan Shouyi closed his eyes. He wanted to forget about his sword, and immersed himself in the swordsmanship within the music, for that was the true Great Path.


    A momentous force came slaughtering toward him, Wan Shouyi unleashed the sword strike, and the sword opened up the sky. In an instant, the sword light diffused, and silence filled the surrounding space. Everything seemed to be standing still. In the next moment, the crowd saw the stone tablets shattering bit by bit, disintegrating, and turning into dust in the void.


    "Senior brother Wan!"


    Below, Luoyue was shocked to witness this scene. Her heart beat wildly, and her eyes were fixed on the sword above the sky��what seemed to be a strike that was quite unremarkable.


    "Fleeting."


    Luoyue murmured under her breath. This was the Fleeting Divine Sword. As time passed, all things withered away.


    Even if it was just a hint of fleeting, it was still so mighty, so powerful that it simply smashed Qin Zang''s overbearing attack, leaving no room for doubt.


    However, Senior brother Wan hadn''t even truly mastered the second level of the Divine Sword��Cleave of All Things��so how could he have released Fleeting?


    Was it because of the music?


    The lost sound of the Great Path, the Song of the Lost Divine.


    The song had allowed Wan Shouyi to experience the Way; it was a true experience at that. Since he had already experienced the feel of it, then he would most certainly get to that place someday in the future.


    Could the Song of the Lost Divine really be this magical?


    She had heard her father saying that Lord Taixuan had comprehended the Way from music, and realized many abilities, including the ultimate swordsmanship, the Fleeting Divine Sword, and many other methods. All were from his own cultivation and integrated with his comprehension of the lost sound of the Great Path, which finally formed his own method.


    The stone tablets were shattered, and Wan Shouyi continued upward. Another sword strike was unleashed, and even that Divine Tree of Comprehension let out some noises. The other cultivators changed their expressions when they saw what he was doing. More golden divine lightning came down from above. It was absolutely domineering. A figure seemed to directly stop the Great Path of Insight. Instead, he stepped out and came to the sky above Wan Shouyi. It was Gai Shi Shi of the Divine Golden Nation.


    One after another, golden spears penetrated the void, moving toward Wan Shouyi. The heaven and earth cried out as if on the verge of destruction. The endless golden spears came down murderously. But under the Fleeting Divine Sword, everything was annihilated into nothingness.


    But there was an even more disturbing scene above the dome. An ancient golden god stood in the sky and merges one with Gai Shi Shi, so that he seemed to have been transformed into an ancient god. He was even more dominating and incomparable.


    The ancient god held out his hand, and the countless golden spears above the sky gathered into one. They transformed into a substantial golden divine spear and aimed straight down below.


    There seemed to be endless golden lightning around the golden spear, and this blow seemed capable of destroying and shattering the world.


    Wan Shouyi still didn''t retreat. The sword went straight for the golden spear. The Fleeting Divine Sword collided with the long spear of Celestial Divinity. Countless golden lightning drowned and pulverized it, but the sword also retreated.


    "How strong."


    The crowd looked at the golden spear of Gai Shi Shi, whose attack was extremely overbearing. It caused the formation of a destructive vortex of a storm in the space where they were.


    "Wake up." In the void, the disciple of Divine Palace��Bai Xiu��squeezed his palm in midair. Instantly, Wan Shouyi felt very uncomfortable. It was as if all his senses were isolated.


    However, Wan Shouyi still did not retreat. He dragged his sword toward the void, his eyes still closed, moving toward the sky above step by step.


    The sound of guqin was so pure in his ears that, at this moment, no matter the outcome, whether it was winning or losing, he would able to accept either.


    Boom. Gai Shi Shi moved again. The golden divine spear passed through heaven and earth as other cultivators also attacked in unison. But Wan Shouyi still moved forward and unleashed the last strike.


    The crowd saw a sword light, brilliant like fireworks. The glory of that instant was so dazzling that it moved and shocked everyone who beheld it.


    The moment the sword light fell, everything withered, and many methods of attack around him were pulverized into dust.


    Even that golden spear was breaking inch by inch. It shattered until it became nothing.


    "One sword breaks all methods." Anyone who stared at this scene was trembling and speechless. Wan Shouyi was actually able to unleash such a sword strike.


    "Ahem..."


    A light cough was heard, and there was blood trailing down from the corner of Wan Shouyi''s mouth. His breath was weakening rapidly. He was clearly unable to fight any longer.


    In fact, in his previous battle with Li Xun, he had served the Sword Spirit with blood, and even more so in this battle. He had exhausted the strength of his body to the extreme, thus making that final instant of glory possible.


    Although he could fight no longer, Wan Shouyi''s eyes revealed a smile. This was swordsmanship. He finally understood.


    "I''ve been enlightened," Wan Shouyi said to those in the void, then turned to leave and did not continue to fight.


    The others also did not pursue the fighter and did not take advantage of him. They were all top figures from all places. Though they were not friendly toward Wan Shouyi, they would not make their move at a time like this to do something beneath their honor.


    Wan Shouyi ought to be proud of this battle, even though he had the accompaniment of the music.


    Wan Shouyi returned to Ye Futian''s side, bowed, and smiled. "Much thanks to you."


    "Brother Wan has advised me many times before. I''m only doing what I should, "Ye Futian said. He took out a fruit of the Way and handed it to Wan Shouyi. "Eat."


    Fruit of Life.


    Wan Shouyi looked up at Ye Futian.


    "You really need it now," Ye Futian said. As for what Xia Qingyuan needed, he would have to get it from above.


    Smiling, Wan Shouyi didn''t refuse, but took the fruit directly and swallowed it. The feeling of his weakened breath rapidly recovering was indescribably buoyant.


    Little phoenix was a little jealous seeing all this. What about her?


    She couldn''t compete with the women, but not even men?


    This guy must be jealous of her beauty and talent, afraid that she would kick him aside if she had taken the fruit of the Way.


    Jun Mu and the others lamented when they saw Wan Shouyi taking the fruit, and several others around him felt regretful.


    Ye Futian did not promise them anything and even made it clear that he would not share his fruits with them.


    But at this time, he gifted a song of Swordsmanship to Wan Shouyi and gave him the fruit to eat, all of which was to aid Wan Shouyi in his transformation.


    After this trip, Wan Shouyi''s strength would reach to a whole new level.


    "When did you learn to..." Luoyue looked at Ye Futian, halting in her question. She wanted to know about the Song of the Lost Divine.


    "Didn''t Lord Taixuan played it once?" Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "That day on Taixuan Mountain? But it was just the one time," Luoyue said.


    "Because I was good at other well-known songs, I connected with the song that Lord Taixuan performed. I had some foundation that I could leverage. In reality, it was far from being the lost sound of the Great Path," Ye Futian said. If it were the complete lost sound of the Great Path, with his assistance, Wan Shouyi''s sword would have had no problem dealing with those people above.


    Luoyue was a little speechless upon hearing Ye Futian''s response. Could it be that she was wrong?


    Ye Futian was not a disciple who was secretly accepted by Lord Taixuan?


    But talent such as this was, frankly, a little too frightening.


    Ye Futian glanced at Luoyue, then stepped forward. Inside his body, the ancient tree of the world was swaying. Many wills of the Way had now turned to swordsmanship. In one turn of the mind, great changes had taken place within the Great Path, and only the sword remained eternal.


    He walked under the Divine Tree of Comprehension, looked up at the sky, and said, "Since none of you will relinquish your space, I guess I have to take it myself."


    As his words fell, he walked forward toward the mountain.


    "Delusional."


    The look of the cultivators from Divine Palace was one of great indifference. This man was extremely proud; even the disciples of the Divine Palace were never being taken seriously by him.


    He had even robbed Lu Qingyao, a direct disciple.


    The speaker was Bai Xiu. As he looked down at Ye Futian, his eyes seemed to be apparitional, like an invisible will flowing between the sky and the earth. When those eyes gazed upon him, Ye Futian felt his life spirit seemed to have been locked on to.


    Bai Xiu��a disciple of the Divine Palace��was an expert of the attack on spiritual soul, and his master was Lord Underworld.


    Likewise, Ye Futian also glanced at the void. His pupils became extremely terrifying, even emitting a demonic breath. Those pupils seemed to penetrate all the nothingness. They directly penetrated into Bai Xiu''s eyes, causing the slight change in Bai Xiu''s expression.


    "Whoever makes a move, that''s the position I want," Ye Futian said, continuing upward, toward no one in particular, but everyone above!

 1534 One Man

    Each major cultivator had already occupied a position in front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension and had no intention to make room for anyone else. Whoever attempted to go up would be crushed by all the cultivators there.


    Everyone also saw what happened just now and that everyone above had attacked together.


    Now, Ye Futian claimed that whoever made a move, that would be the space he wanted.


    This was no longer aimed at any one of them, but to anyone who dared to make a move. That could be everyone who was currently up there��what a pompous attitude.


    In front of the Divine Tree, everyone looked indifferent as their eyes pierced Ye Futian. Whether it was the top characters or disciples of the Divine Palace, they had never seen anyone so arrogant. Even in the Divine Palace, there was no disciple who dared act so presumptuously.


    But Ye Futian stepped up and was indeed by himself, walking toward the top. The wind howled desolately, and the will of the Way flowed, all blowing on him, causing his white robe to flutter rapidly. Watching his back as he walked away from the crowd, everyone could feel a sense of haughty loneliness.


    One man alone, walking toward the Divine Tree.


    Bai Xiu''s eyes were terrifying. A mysterious air flow was surging, enveloping the world. At this moment, even the people watching the battle from below felt the pressure of the spiritual soul. In the sky above, a ghostly face appeared faintly until it blended in with the sky and became one. A pair of terrifying eyes looked down, and many people felt that their spiritual souls were trembling.


    Lord Underworld did not have many direct disciples, but every one of them was very dangerous in their own right. This kind of attack on the spiritual soul was extremely perilous, as it could directly target the spiritual power of cultivators. It was truly threatening.


    Clearly, Bai Xiu also felt that Ye Futian was an expert of spiritual power because his countenance was particularly grave. Those ghostly eyes locked onto the others'' spiritual soul, rushing into Ye Futian''s eyes. But it was ultimately useless. Ye Futian''s eyes were equally terrible, and the sword will everywhere on his body could directly destroy the power he released.


    Stretching out his palm and swiping downward, suddenly, a great handprint appeared in the void. It was directly aimed at Ye Futian''s spiritual soul.


    "Hand of the Underworld."


    Many ordinary disciples from the Divine Palace trembled as they saw this scene in front of them. Bai Xiu''s strength was so great that even some whose cultivation was stronger than his lost because they could not resist the power of attack on their spiritual souls.


    It was still unknown if Ye Futian could contend with Lord Underworld''s disciple, Bai Xiu.


    The others made no move and were just watching Bai Xiu. They wanted to see just how far this arrogant swordsman from Taixuan Mountain, who wanted to fight everyone, could go.


    Ye Futian''s perception was so powerful that he naturally perceived an immense great Hand of the Underworld grabbing toward him silently. It was not directed at the flesh but at the spiritual soul. This attack was similar to Celestial Soul Attraction.


    But after Ye Futian had cultivated the Celestial Soul Attraction, he further combined the Celestial Soul Attraction with his method. He was confident that it would be way stronger than the other''s power from the Underworld.


    Bang. Ye Futian continued to march upward, and the momentous power from his body rolled out. The veins inside his body seemed to be transformed into veins of swords. In the world of the spiritual soul, the ancient tree of life took on the shape of sword. Sword spirit chimed in his life palace, clamoring to rush out.


    Above Ye Futian''s body, there were countless currents of swordsmanship flowing, following his footsteps. They went up against the trend.


    The whistling sword gave a sense of suffocation between heaven and earth. A pressure of might descended invisibly. The great Hand of the Underworld slammed down, but it was penetrated by the countless airflow of swordsmanship. In an instant, the great Hand of the Underworld continued to collapse and shatter, turning into nothingness under the sword will.


    Buzz.


    Ye Futian took a step. His pupil was as sharp as a sword. It aimed at Bai Xiu''s eyes. He said, "Since you made a move, give up your position."


    As his voice fell, he pointed his finger up. A sword opened a glimmer of the sky, penetrating the void. It moved toward Bai Xiu, full of murderous intent.


    This sword could extinguish the soul.


    Bai Xiu''s expression changed. He was extremely good at the spiritual soul attack, so he was slightly lacking in other areas. However, the spiritual soul attack did not seem to be able to suppress Ye Futian, and the opponent''s counterattack power, like him, contained the spirit attack power.


    Poof!


    The sword penetrated the void, and Bai Xiu''s body seemed to have been pierced through, but there was no blood. The figure gradually disappeared into a shadow. Bai Xiu appeared next to it. Both seemed a bit surreal.


    "The Eye of the Underworld."


    Bai Xiu''s eyes suddenly turned a dark blood-red, and in a flash, the sky changed color. It was as if a god of the underworld appeared. Ye Futian seemed to have fallen into it completely and had entered another space. All he could see was a pair of bloody eyes��the Eyes of the Underworld.


    "Refine."


    Bai Xiu''s eyes ignited a fire of the Underworld, and in a moment, the fire of the Way was burning. The space Ye Futian was in was wrapped up in the fire of the Underworld. It was an attempt to melt his spiritual soul.


    "This��"


    The heart of the people below trembled, for Ye Futian was in trouble. Although Bai Xiu was young in age, no one expected that he had already cultivated his master''s art to such a fearsome state. The Eye of Underworld and the Fire of the Underworld.


    Being shrouded by this force, Ye Futian felt greatly uncomfortable. His eyes were cold and indifferent, his hands outstretched. Suddenly, an infinite number of swords appeared around him. His eyes closed, and the sword will grew stronger. The roaring storm of sword qi flooded the space instantly.


    Finally, he opened his eyes to look up at the sky. It was a pair of sword eyes, directly piercing the void.


    His palm pointing to the void, and hundreds of thousands of swords unleashed at the same time. The Great Path reversed course, the constellation of stars changed position, and in a flash, the swordsmanship broke through the shrouding of the Eyes of the Underworld and rolled toward the sky. Furthermore, the sword in the sky above resonated with the Great Path, shattering everything into nothingness, and aiming toward Bai Xiu in the sky above.


    "Fleeing Divine Sword."


    Seeing this scene, Wan Shouyi and Luoyue were both shocked to their cores. Ye Futian had already mastered the essence of the third level of the Fleeting Divine Sword��Fleeting Years. The song he played just now not only enlightened him but also allowed Ye Futian himself to comprehend the Fleeting Divine Sword.


    This attack had already encompassed the heart of the Fleeting Years. Although it had not created the Divine Wheel of the Great Path and was thus unable to release the true might of Fleeting Years, even so, the destructive scene of the storm of swordsmanship annihilating the void was still awesome to behold.


    Many were worried about Bai Xiu. When the sword slammed toward him, Bai Xiu was wrapped inside the sword storm, and a brilliant divine light was shining and blooming there. With a wet sound, Bai Xiu groaned, and his face had gone pale. He spat up blood.


    His body was also knocked back, struck far away from the sky above the Divine Tree of Comprehension. His breath was greatly weakened, and even rays of dark currents now appeared on his face.


    Only Bai Xiu himself could know just how powerful this sword strike was. It was not simply the Fleeting Divine Sword, but it also contained within it sword will that was meant to destroy the spiritual soul.


    "All the direct disciples were defeated."


    Everyone below who had seen the two of them dueling in the air was greatly shaken in their hearts. Shen Jing was truly powerful.


    He was the strongest person from Taixuan Mountain.


    It seemed that this time, Taixuan Mountain was also about to produce a top, prominent figure.


    Lu Qingyao was not surprised to see this. She had suffered badly at Ye Futian''s hands, so Bai Xiu''s defeat did not surprise her. However, Ye Futian''s spiritual power was so impressive that the fruit of Life had probably added even more to enhance his spiritual soul.


    "His position is mine," Ye Futian said while he continued moving upward, full of pride and confidence, showing that was he was unafraid of confrontation.


    "Allow me to experience your sword," Li Xun said. Twice, he was defeated by Wan Shouyi. Even though it was the power of the music that helped to augment its power, he had already felt frustrated and questioned his own swordsmanship, so he wanted to try again.


    The Divine Sword of Doomsday was born, and Li Xun took a step forward. He moved out of his position and unleashed an amazing sword strike from the firmament. He destroyed everything in its path.


    "I oblige you."


    Ye Futian stepped up and unleashed a strike of his own. The two swords collided, and countless currents of swordsmanship rolled in the direction of the other, immense and endless. The space, likewise, made an incredibly sharp and harsh sound, which made everyone''s scalps crawl. Many who were below felt suffocated. If they were between the two swords, they probably would be torn to pieces.


    The sword qi inside Ye Futian''s body was majestic, flowing ceaselessly. Though the two appeared to be in a stalemate, Ye Fu''s momentum was gaining, and Li Xun was getting weaker.


    As a muffled sound came out, the sword was clearly broken. Li Xun''s body seemed to be penetrated by the sword will and flew backward.


    "Two positions," Ye Futian said, continuing to move forward. He was not moving fast and even looked a little slow as he moved toward the sky above. That lonely but proud figure seemed to dare to make enemies with the geniuses of the Upper Heavens Realm.


    "How powerful," the people underneath exclaimed secretly. Previously, all the cultivators wanted to force their way but couldn''t, and they were all kicked off.


    Now, only Ye Futian was walking alone up there.


    Jun Mu watched him with some jealousy. What other cultivators on Taixuan Mountain would know the name of Ju Mu any longer? This Shen Jing seemed to have become the symbol of Taixuan Mountain. And even if there was no Shen Jing, there was still Wan Shouyi. What would become of Ju Mu?


    Moreover, whatever occurred before had only tainted his name.


    Other cultivators from Taixuan mountain also felt a little dreamy. The disciples of Taixuan Mountain were powerless, and now, a musician was going up there alone, contemptuous of the disciples of the Divine Palace, who were also the top geniuses of the Upper Heavens Realm.


    No matter who made the move, they would now need to make way.


    Perhaps this could be considered as peerless.


    "Lord Taixuan''s breakthrough was known throughout the Upper Heavens. Only such a magnetic personality could match the reputation of Taixuan Mountain today," Wan Shouyi said under his breath. The fight on that day on Taixuan Mountain and the flight today both provoked many thoughts in him.


    The disciples of Taixuan Mountain were all too weak and were unable to do justice to the name of Lord Taixuan. Only a few direct disciples of the Hierophant himself could match their reputation. As for the third generation, there was literally no one who could be a proper representative.

 1535 Crazy?

    Upon the Mountain of the Way, before the Divine Tree of Comprehension, all eyes were fastened on Ye Futian.


    After the successive defeats of Bai Xiu and Li Xun, if they allowed this man to force his way onto the Mountain of the Way in such a fashion, then none of them on the mountain right now would ever be able to lift their heads after this day.


    When Ye Futian uttered those pompous words, he was destined not to have the opportunity to go near the Divine Tree of Comprehension.


    Watching that figure move up step by step, an invisible storm of the Great Path rose between heaven and earth, and several different breaths came descending down, oppressing Ye Futian''s body. It seemed that if he continued to force his way up the mountain, then those above would all join hands to stop him.


    A terrible hurricane gathered around Chang Fenglie of the Changfeng Family, while there was a starry river coursing over Qin Zang of the Sky Burying God Clan. As to the absolute genius of the Golden Divine Nation��Gai Shi Shi��his entire body radiated golden divine light as he looked down at Futian.


    Whoever tried to stop him, whoever would need to vacate their position?


    A cultivator of Unblemished Realm, even if he had really inherited it from Lord Taixuan, what of it? It was true that The Song of the Lost Divine and Fleeting Divine Sword were both great treasures of Taixuan Mountain, but they, too, were in control of the powerful methods of their own influential families.


    Gai Shi Sh, who was known as the future leader of the Golden Divine Nation, as well as the most genius existence of his generation of talents, was standing here, so how could he allow Ye Futian to make these wild claims and make his way up this mountain?


    At this time, Gai Shi Shi had no other doubts and firmly believed that Ye Futian was a secret disciple of Lord Taixuan, that this was the first time he tried to prove himself to the outside world.


    Even before he came along, Lord Taixuan had already made a choice.


    Moreover, the person chosen by Lord Taixuan did not disappoint. This Shen Jing was indeed extraordinary, whether it was his talent in swordsmanship or music. Furthermore, Shen Jing was incredibly patient in keeping all this to himself. Everyone on Taixuan Mountain thought that was just a mere musician, not even the disciples knew. Judging from that, he was quite a frightening character.


    It was just that now, as things stood where they were, there was no choice but to continue one way or the other.


    Boom��


    The glory of stars shone brightly, and the stone tablets of the Great Path Stones condensed and manifested, appearing all around Ye Futian. The bright divine light that was released from those tablets shrouded Ye Futian.


    An audible rustling sharp sound started, and Ye Futian continued upward, ignoring the oppressive force of the Great Path.


    But that the stone tablet of the Great Path circulated around Ye Futian''s body. As the other closed his palm, in an instant, an infinite number of stone tablets enveloped Ye Futian''s body and sealed off heaven and earth. Dark clouds shrouded the sky and became invisible to the eyes.


    Psst...


    A sharp sound was heard as Ye Futian raised his finger, pointing to the sky. Immediately a devastating storm was raised, annihilating those bombarding stone tablets of the Great Path.


    Qin Zang''s two hands were forming the seal, and violent booming sounds came out loudly. Stone tablets that were even greater than before now descended, coming from all directions. In an instant, this space turned into a starry world. It was as if they had been transported to another element.


    What was even more terrifying was that every stone tablet contained the will of the Way, and the will in these stone tablets bloomed and radiated toward Ye Futian at the same time. Ye Futian seemed to be in an absolute starry world. He felt like he was being Imprisoned inside.


    Boom!


    Each stone table was releasing a superbly powerful light of destruction that wanted to obliterate all existence in its path. Countless lights of destruction were simultaneously falling down, with him as the center. It was as if he was in the very center of the storm; there was nowhere to run and nowhere to hide.


    At this time, looking from the outside and below, everyone could see that the storm of the Great Path surrounding Ye Futian had vaguely turned into one giant ancient character��Bury.


    In this whole destructive space of the Great Path, it was just like that giant word "bury" indicated��everything in that space was to be destroyed and buried. As one of the top forces in the Upper Heavens Realm, the prowess of the Sky Burying God Clan was terrifying.


    The will from the stone tablets was constantly smashing down on him. Ye Futian''s body seemed to have turned golden, radiant and dazzling without compare. But when that will of the Great Path rushed inside his body, Ye Futian clearly felt that the power inside his body seemed to be buried and imprisoned.


    There was a power of the Way that could block all other will; this was the power that sealed the Great Path.


    Ye Futian''s looked internally, and he seemed to see that there was a character that had been engraved upon his body. It was the spell of entombment.


    From inside to outside, this character was everywhere, wrapping him up in it, layer by layer. It was completely buried and destroyed.


    "The will of the Great Path is the same. Whoever can suppress the other depends on who''s stronger," everyone said in their hearts. An extreme divine light of the Great Path erupted from Ye Futian''s body as if urging all his power forth. His body screamed, the blood in his veins roiling. The force of the fruit of the Way that he swallowed before now burst out violently and with great force, turning into the same power of the Great Path��the path of destruction.


    This power of the Great Path roared madly within the body, destroying the shackles inside. At the same time, Ye Futian''s sword spirit shone through. He held the sword in his right hand, pointing to the sky. He unleashed the Fleeting Divine Sword. All things passed away like time. All that was around now dissipated and perished at a rapid rate.


    Boom, boom, boom! The stone tablets were smashed and exploded directly as the people below looked at Ye Futian. Although there was only one sword, this sword seemed like thousands of swords striking all at once.


    "Still can''t be taken?" many people secretly said as they watched Ye Futian continue walking up the Mountain of the Way.


    Even Qin Zang of the Sky Burying God Clan was useless and could not crush Ye Futian.


    But at this time, there was a stunning golden divine light shining and blooming above the sky. Many were watching the battlefield of the two previously, ignoring what was above. In another direction, a golden ancient god appeared.


    This golden ancient god was radiant all over, like a golden statue, or a golden god of war. Divine light of the Great Path between heaven and earth all gathered towards his body, endless and infinite, creating an incomparable body of the golden ancient god.


    "The Golden Ancient God Clan." Everyone recalled the myth of the Golden Divine Nation. It was rumored that the royal family of the Golden Divine Nation claimed to be the descendants of the ancient god clan. They were born differently from all the others and were of the most supreme bloodline of the human race. Golden divine blood flowed in their bodies, so they were born with unparalleled power.


    In this era, it was said that a cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation was the divine general of Donhuang the Great. How glorious...


    At this time, infinite golden divine light created a golden divine spear. This divine spear was cast by gold. Just one look, and one could feel the domineering power. Gai Shi Shi stood above the void, looking down at Ye Futian, who was below.


    Before, many people believed that Gai Shi Shi was probably the strongest among all who were present. Although those direct disciples of the Divine Palace were also extremely outstanding, ultimately, they were not the most outstanding from the Divine Palace. Those who were of the most genius existence were qualified to obtain the fruits of the Way, thus receiving better treatment.


    But Gai Shi Shi was truly the unparalleled character of this generation of Golden Divine Nation. By comparison, Luo Youming, the son of Old Demon Luo of the Divine Capital of Xiling, could hardly be compared with him.


    Many people agreed that Gai Shi Shi was one of the strongest people on this trip, and perhaps may even be the strongest of them all.


    Now, even he would have to fight Ye Futian?


    They heard that Gai Shi Shi went to Taixuan Mountain and had intended to be a disciple of Lord Taixuan but was refused.


    And Ye Futian, very possibly, could be a secret heir of Lord Taixuan.


    When Ye Futian broke Qin Zang''s attack, that was when Gai Shi Shi made his move. That peerless divine general took the golden divine spear and lanced to the space below. In an instant, countless golden spears fell down simultaneously, tearing up the void.


    Everything was about to be smashed away. The golden divine spear aimed straight toward Ye Futian without any frills. Golden divine light appeared between heaven and earth.


    At this time, Ye Futian felt an extremely powerful oppressive force, watching the golden divine spear coming toward him, unstoppable.


    The attack was boundlessly domineering, and the technique of the attack was befitting of its name.


    Above Ye Futian''s body, an incomparably strong breath erupted, the will of the Way rumbled and roiled, all gathering within the sword. The sword unleashed and went for the golden spear.


    Boom.


    There was a loud boom, and there seemed to be countless golden lightning directly rushing into Ye Futian''s body. The golden divine light raged within his body, wreaking havoc.


    Ye Futian''s body was knocked back by the force, and for the first time, he could not continue to move forward but stumbled backward instead.


    He looked up at the indomitable figure in the void, while also feeling its power inside his body.


    "Entirely too strong. Is this Gai Shi Shi?" Everyone looked at the invincible figure in the void, as he was blocking the top along with Qin Zang. It seemed that Shen Jing would not have a chance to break through this heavy defense.


    "Who else do you want to try and vacate?" Gai Shi Shi looked down at Ye Futian below and asked. As the golden god of war, who could block him and ask him to give up his position?


    He wanted to see just how Ye Futian would try and achieve that.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky above. Gai Shi Shi''s reputation was well-deserved. This man''s attack power was very strong, but it was better this way.


    "Just Unblemished, after all." Gai Shi Shi looked down at Ye Futian below, the divine light blooming. The sky turned to gold. Qin Zang continued to attack as countless stone tablets surrounded Ye Futian''s body, pressuring downward. The will of the Way exploded and locked onto Ye Futian''s body. At the same time, Gai Shi Shi''s golden divine spear once again smashed down with unstoppable force.


    The two top characters in the Upper Heavens Realm moved in unison. Was this an attempt to kill Ye Futian?


    But it seemed that they would need to at least consider the reaction of Taixuan Mountain.


    Ye Futian''s body went up against the resistance. He deliberately did not avoid it, but directly moved to confront and destroy the will within the stone tablets. His sword went straight for the divine spear.


    Bang!


    The power of the golden divine spear directly penetrated through the body. Turbulence raged inside Ye Futian, and a golden divine light flowed through the veins in his body, tearing and smashing. At the same time, there was an incredibly abundant breath of life that was repairing the power inside of him.


    Ye Futian seemed to have completely ignored his injuries as he moved again toward Gai Shi Shi.


    Yaya saw Ye Futian''s movements, and a disturbed look flashed in her eyes. What was he going to do?


    Suddenly, she seemed to have thought of a certain possibility as her face suddenly turned pale. She looked at Ye Futian coldly. This b*stard was too crazy!

 1536 No Mountain High Enough

    Both of their attacks collided again. Ye Futian''s sword had the advantage, but Gai Shi Shi''s golden divine spear had no frills; it was purely dominant.


    The Divine Spear contained not only a mighty power but also the might of the space. The descendants of the ancient gods possessed golden divine blood, which was used to form the divine spear. His attack power was known as the Divine God Spear.


    The violent storm of sword qi continued to burst and shatter, destroying all things with the Divine God Spear. The Great Path was about to be penetrated as Ye Futian''s body seemed to be tumbling and screaming inside. It was like all his nerves and veins were bursting and crushing.


    There was a loud bang, and his body was knocked back again. His body whirled and shuttled through the void, but he was still moving forward.


    "You''ll die."


    Lu Qingyao chided coldly as an ultimate chill descended over everything. Everything was frozen shut. With Ye Futian''s body as the center, all flows in this world seemed to have slowed down as a terrible ice-cold might now tried to invade Ye Futian. Previously, Ye Futian had injured her and robbed her of her fruit of the Way. Clearly, she had forgiven nor forgotten either.


    Frost covering his body, Ye Futian''s speed seemed to slow down. Qin Zang glanced at him and made a grabbing motion in the air. Many stone tablets projected the divine radiance of the Great Path, shrouding Ye Futian within it. The word "bury" once again appeared as the tablets moving forward, locking Futian in that will of the Way and burying him.


    The people below felt shocked when they saw what was happening before them. Though Shen Jing''s talent and strength were incredibly strong, he still seemed to have underestimated these top and excellent opponents. Gai Shi Shi and Qin Zang both were absolutely capable of becoming direct disciples. It was said that Gai Shi Shi was just unwilling to cultivate at the Divine Palace, which Qin Zang might very well join later.


    Not to mention, there were also Chang Fenglie, Lu Qingyao, and the others. He ignored all these top characters and tried to force his way to the front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension. It never would have been an easy thing. As tough as he was, he still couldn''t get up there.


    At this time, endless golden divine light raged upon the sky and fell on the divine spear. The figure that was transformed into the golden ancient god took the divine spear in his hand and pointed to the sky below. When he saw Ye Futian''s sword had broken Qin Zang''s destructive method, the golden light from his eyes was extremely cold.


    It didn''t matter that Lord Taixuan refused him as a disciple. He didn''t need anyone''s help in cultivation, but he would never admit that he was any less than anyone in the Upper Heavens Realm.


    "Shen Jing is in danger."


    When many people saw this, they exclaimed in their hearts. Gai Shi Shi had gathered the momentum of the Great Path; its might dominated the world. When this divine spear smashed down, it would be a disaster for Ye Futian.


    Luoyue''s expression also changed. Wan Shouyi''s body now permeated with sword will. He stepped into the void, intending to join the battle.


    "Don''t interfere," next to him, Yaya glanced at Wan Shouyi and said.


    Looking into Yaya''s eyes, Wan Shouyi was stunned momentarily. Don''t interfere?


    "This is the Divine God Spear. Its attack power is superior. There are not many other methods that could match the Divine God Spear," Wan Shouyi said. And Gai Shi Shi himself was a descendant of the ancient gods. Golden blood flowed in his body, and he had cultivated with the Divine God Spear for many years, so the two were moving in great harmony.


    If the Divine God Spear and the Fleeing Divine Sword were of a certain level, Gai Shi Shi''s mastery of the Divine God Spare was definitely not any lesser than Ye Futian ''s comprehension of the Fleeting Divine Sword. He had been immersed in it since a young age, and it perfectly complemented his method. With his natural suitability for its cultivation and his current realm of Nirvana, it was not hard to imagine the extent of its prowess.


    Now, Ye Futian had been repeatedly hindered, with several powerful cultivators teamed up against him. Obviously, Gai Shi Shi''s counterattack would be merciless and deadly. If no one were to lend him a helping him, Ye Futian would most certainly be in danger.


    "Trust him." Yaya''s tone was still very cold, but there was absolute confidence in this cold indifference. Looking at those eyes, Wan Shouyi started to think that perhaps she knew that Shen Jing possessed more strength.


    Yaya was different from Wan Shouyi. Wan Shou had only seen one side of Ye Futian, but Yaya had been with Ye Futian for many years. She knew Ye Futian too well and had already guessed what Ye Futian was about to do.


    Despite what might appear to be crazy antics, if he made that choice, it must be that he was sure of his judgment. In that case, she would choose to trust him, so she didn''t get involved.


    Wan Shouyi retracted his sword will and did not proceed to make a move, his eyes focused on the sky above.


    On this trip, Ye Futian had been kind to him, so if Ye Futian were really in a jam, he would pledge his sword no matter the cost.


    Psst.


    Sharp and shrilling sounds came out from the void, but in the next moment, there seemed to be immense pressure from the sky. A god was descending, divine spear in hand, cleaving open heaven and earth, and the divine spear made of gold directly moved toward Ye Futian. Countless golden divine lights flooded this void, piercing Ye Futian''s eyes and body.


    His sword swung out, and the endless sword will was about to bloom but was destroyed immediately. A dull groan was heard as countless golden divine lights rushed into Ye Futian''s body, seemingly penetrating his body.


    He looked up at the figure that was trying to slaughter him. Gai Shi Shi of the Gold Divine Nation had incarnated into the battle form of Divine God with an immense and domineering spirit. His eyes radiated of golden glory that others dared not look directly at. The light pierced his dark eyes, sharp beyond compare.


    This spear was meant to destroy.


    Endless power of destruction rushed into Ye Futian''s body. At this time, Ye Futian''s insides were turning into a roaring sea of ??the Way. The Great Path roared and raged. Veins and nerves were broken, the blood inside his body was roiling, and even all of his internal organs were tumbling and on the verge of destruction. His breath seemed to be weakening rapidly. He seemed about to be wiped out under such a violent blow.


    Ye Futian''s eyes revealed nothing but endless tranquility.


    The space below was infinitely silent. Everyone was looking at the scene in the void. Would Ye Futian be incapacitated?


    A coldness flashed through Jun Mu''s eyes. Even though he had been dazzling for a moment, he was too conceited, after all. If he could have kept a low-profile and been patient like he was at Taixuan Mountain, he might have had the chance to grow. But unfortunately, in a place of trial like this at the Divine Palace, with all those domineering characters, no mercy would be shown him in such direct confrontations.


    This blow was enough to destroy Ye Futian''s talent.


    Although the place where the two collided was still ravaged by endless will of the Way, the two figures seemed to have stopped, their bodies motionless. Cracks now appeared in their swords as if they might break at any time.


    Ye Futian''s body was still rumbled, but a vigorous will of life now wrapped around his body, and Ye Futian''s eyes actually showed a smile. Seeing this smile, Gai Shi Shi frowned; how could he smile?


    However, the next moment, he seemed to detect something and vaguely felt that something was wrong.


    Ye Futian''s weaken breath was actually increasing against the odds, and there was a violent will of the Great Path in his body that roared. The blood in his veins tossed and turned, and a divine will now swept out as his breath rapidly climbed, becoming stronger and stronger. He soon had returned to the peak and was still increasing in strength.


    The people below also felt it, and countless eyes fastened on Ye Futian. How could this be possible, and was he leveraging the situation for a breakthrough?


    In the realm of Saint Plane, the level of Unblemished was already an indicator of perfection without fault, hence Unblemished, so why was there still a Nirvana above it?


    Nirvana was actually a transitional state. From Saint to Renhuang, to enter Renhuang, one must first achieve Nirvana.


    Therefore, this realm was extremely difficult to achieve. This was a threshold that had blocked countless other cultivators.


    Nirvana was but a heart that was not bound. The Great Path formed naturally, and everything inside the body was rebuilt. The mind was, at this point, transformed, and the Divine Wheel of the Great Path had been made to make way for the Renhuang realm.


    This realm was the transformation of the Saint Plane; it was the preparation before stepping into Renhuang Realm.


    Ye Futian had devoured several fruits of the Way successively. He had cultivated for several years, and his will of the Way was strong enough to reach this level. His state of mind had been stable. Now he was dedicated to seek the Great Path, and nothing could stop him from entering the Way. All he needed was an opportunity.


    This trip was such an opportunity, and this battle was his opportunity, so he wanted to use the power of these people to forcibly reshape himself.


    This was actually somewhat risky, but he had swallowed the life spring water and taken the fruit of life. Even if he failed, he could bear the consequences; therefore, he was unafraid.


    At this moment, he was rebuilding the meridians of the Great path. The reshaped meridians in his body seemed to leave engraved marks, and the same was on his bones. The vitality of all his internal organs was even more robust and vigorous as the breath inside his body continued to become stronger, reaching for higher limits.


    In the Life Palace, the ancient tree of the world was swaying. It was as if the world of the Life Palace had become broader, and the will of Way stronger.


    The sword howled in the sky. Above the firmament, infinite sword will flowed around Ye Futian, entering his body, invading his sword spirit. The cracks on the sword were repaired, becoming straight as a terrifying storm of Sword qi surged upwards. It wrapped around the sky and took aim at the body of the divine god. Millions of sword will penetrated the god-like body, trying to tear it apart.


    Gai Shi Shi slammed into the void. The golden divine spear vibrated, and the two bodies separated. Gai Shi Shi reappeared above the sky, looking down at Ye Futian below.


    By his power, Ye Futian had broken into Nirvana.


    He actually became the instrument that made Ye Futian.


    Ten thousand swords now returned, and the sword will seemed to flow within the vast expanse. Ye Futian looked at the few people in the void, including Gai Shi Shi, and smiled. "Many thanks to you."


    At this time, the breath from his body had already crossed Unblemished and entered Nirvana.


    He was one step closer to Renhuang.


    "You did it." Yaya looked at Ye Futian, a rare smile revealed in her eyes; Ye Futian had also stepped into Nirvana. That young man, who once wanted her to call him "brother" at the Tombkeeper Village, grew one step at a time and was now in the same realm as her. He would chase that legendary realm with her.


    "He broke through the barrier of the realm in this manner?" Wan Shouyi looked on speechlessly at the scene in the void. How magnificent this was, and was this still that humble musician he knew?


    If he had failed, what kind of painful ending would it be?


    At least, he would not dare, and not many others would not take such risks.


    It was really insane.


    "He forcibly entered the Mountain of the Way while in Unblemished Plane, and now has passed the trial and achieved Nirvana. To him, this mountain is probably not high enough," Luoyue murmured next to him. Wan Shouyi also looked at that mountain, and said with a smile, "Indeed, this mountain is not high enough for him."


    Those on the Mountain of the Way, who else could stop him?


    His mountain should be higher.


    Ye Futian looked down below. He was extremely calm. He glanced at the Divine Tree of comprehension and said, "It seems that all the positions are mine!"

 1537 Sigh of the Divine God

    "Nirvana!"


    Gai Shi Shi murmured. But even so, what of it?


    In his eyes, the golden divine light was still there, breathtaking. He had a brilliant talent that was ranked first in this generation of the Golden Divine Nation. No one could overtake him. The Golden Divine Nation had great hopes for him to surpass Renhuang and achieve even a higher and more supreme realm.


    Many people believed that in the future, Gai Shi Shi would inherit the Golden Divine Nation and became its master.


    Of course, he would not dwell on these matters. Power, to him, was as fleeting as the clouds. What he wanted was the ultimate strength, so that, at a certain level, everything would come easily.


    "To enter Nirvana... Can you withstand the spear of the gods?" Gai Shi Shi surveyed the space below. At this moment, the figure akin to the divine god stepped out. He held a golden divine spear in his palm, radiating endless divine light.


    Feeling the war intent upon Gai Shi Shi, the other strong cultivators were also equally aggressive. Although their hearts were not quite at peace, they were not too concerned. Even if Ye Futian broke through the realm, he would be at the same level as them, so there was nothing to fear.


    Boom...


    A dull bang sounded between heaven and earth as the golden divine light pierced the sky. The Divine God Spear jabbed down again straight at Ye Futian.


    Those who had attacked before now released the might of the Way at the same time, intending to take down Ye Futian directly and end the fight.


    Although they were still unafraid, Ye Futian was already extremely tyrannical while in the realm of Unblemished. Now that he had proved himself worthy of Nirvana, he would only be getting stronger. There might be a chance to be chased out in front of the Divine Tree.


    Ye Futian glanced up at the sky above, and all swords became one. They turned into one sword and drove toward the golden divine spear that fell from the void. The two collided and made a dull sound. Countless air currents of swordsmanship flowed from that sword and rolled upward, destroying all might of the Way.


    Around Ye Futian''s body, there was a storm of swordsmanship as if using the sword method of the Fleeting Divine Sword in defense rather than attack.


    For a time, the stars around his body were in the turbulence of the swordsmanship, and all the invading methods were broken, unable to approach him by even half a step.


    "Junior sister Luoyue, watch closely." Wan Shouyi released his divine will as he stared at the sky above, wanting to perceive Ye Futian''s sword clearly.


    The fleeting years in the divine will from Lord Taixuan was too strong and distant from them. Its realm was too high. Hence, it was difficult to understand. It required the ability to comprehend to capture its essence. However, Ye Futian was in the same realm as them, but his comprehension of swordsmanship was far superior.


    Now that he was releasing the sword method in front of them, naturally, they were giving it their full attention.


    Ye Futian''s swordsmanship could teach them a lot, and they should take this opportunity to learn.


    Luoyue''s expression was grave and nodded seriously, staring at the void above like Wan Shouyi.


    Even back when they were in the Realm of Ruin at Taixuan City, Ye Futian had left a deep impression on her; today, it was even more so.


    The divine sword in the air collided with the golden divine spear. The sword will of the Great Path flowed, and his body was wrapped up by the sword screen. Ye Futian looked up at the Mountain of the Way and said, "If you guys don''t want to come down, I have to invite you down here."


    As his voice fell, around his body, there was a sword breaking through the air. It escaped into the space of the void in an instant.


    Then, there was the second sword, the third, and many, many more. Countless divine swords shuttled through in the void, and everyone looked up. It was filled with the shadows of swords.


    Did he want to bury the sky with swords?


    "What a strong divine will."


    Yaya also looked up at the scene in the void, and her heart was greatly shaken. Of course, she did not doubt Ye Futian''s strength. He had been improving ever since those years at the Holy Zhi Palace, constantly surpassing people who were stronger than him. Knives sharpened knives. Along with his opponents, his world became broader, stronger. He would never fall behind.


    The realm of Nirvana was the focal point of the Divine Path, but it was also the foundation on which the Divine Wheel of the Great Path was based. Ye Futian broke through to the realm of Nirvana, which meant that his heart and his mind could both accommodate a wider world, such as his controlling countless divine swords in space, where each sword had its own trajectory of the Great Path and brewed swordsmanship within. Even for her, with her foundation firmly rooted in Nirvana Realm, it was still difficult to achieve.


    "The sword of Taixuan Mountain��the Fleeting Divine Sword��pleased to meet you." As Ye Futian''s voice fell, countless divine swords descended. In this instant, everyone who was on the Divine Tree at the top of the Mountain saw the currents of swordsmanship coming toward them, closing in for the kill.


    They looked up and watched the coming swords with incredibly unpleasant countenances. He was controlling the swords through the air and releasing the Fleeing Divine sword.


    The temperature around Lu Qingyao''s body dropped again, and frost covered the world. It intended to stop all the forces in the surrounding space, but when the sword passed, it left a sword mark, and this was only the first sword mark.


    A squealing noise came out, and sword marks crisscrossed, appearing around her body. The swordsmanship penetrated her methods, and more and more sword marks came through the void, cutting through all methods. This was the Cleave of All Things.


    However, this sword had not stopped its attack. Gradually, the entire space was about to be annihilated and smashed, burying everything. Wherever the sword passed, everything turned to dust.


    Lu Qingyao''s face was pale. She was furiously resisting this force, but proud as she might be, she felt a sense of powerlessness as the destructive sword qi left a bloodstain on her, turning her white robe red.


    Not only was Lu Qingyao being attacked by the Fleeting Divine Sword, but Chang Fenglie of the Changfeng family, Qin Zang of the Sky Burying God Clan, and the disciples of the Divine Palace were all attacked mercilessly by the swordsmanship.


    Before, he was forcing his way onto the mountain.


    This time, Ye Futian was putting everyone under his sword at the same time.


    At this moment, all the strong cultivators were experiencing the swordsmanship of Taixuan Mountain at the same time. The Fleeting Divine Sword.


    "Fleeting Years!"


    Wan Shouyi stared into the void. This sword had already surpassed the limit of Cleave of All Things and entered the level of Fleeting Years.


    As the sword was unleashed, none of the cultivators had time to care for the others; they were busy defending against his sword.


    "Psst��" Lu Qingyao was the weakest of them all. Before, in the battle fighting for the Life Spring, she was already defeated. Now, how could she be Ye Futian''s opponent when he had stepped into the Nirvana realm? Under the Fleeting Divine Sword, she couldn''t bear such an attack. As blood stained her white clothing, this direct disciple of the Divine Palace, like a withered flower, shook in the rain and wind under his swordsmanship.


    Finally, with a soft groan, she was unable to fight any longer. As swords descended and landed around her body, each and every one of these swords had the chance to kill her.


    "How awful." Many were sympathetic in their hearts. Ye Futian was seriously ruthless. He showed no mercy at all. This sword strike was brutal.


    Lu Qingyao was a direct disciple. Such a devastating loss under the Divine Sword was truly embarrassing for her.


    Of course, it was not just her; even Chang Fenglie and Qin Zang also felt great pressure.


    Though Ye Futian was controlling the sword remotely, it seemed that the attack each person suffered was released directly by him.


    In front of Qin Zang, countless stone tablets appeared, and the will of the Way inside the tablets suppressed the heavens. Still, there were infinite divine swords flowing between heaven and earth, continuously pulverizing the stone tablets around him until he was completely vanquished.


    "It''s already done."


    When the people below saw this, they could feel that Ye Futian''s Fleeting Divine Sword was now perfected. While he was still fighting with Gai Shi Shi in person, his sword everywhere launching attacks on everyone, challenging all the cultivators with his raw strength alone.


    He had just entered Nirvana Realm. Could he already be invincible in Nirvana?


    These were people who had already stood at the top level of Nirvana.


    Li Xun and Bai Xiu both withdrew early, unable to fight anymore. Under the long river of his swordsmanship, it was hard for the others to continue.


    There were golden divine lights all around Gai Shi Shi''s body, and that god-like figure regarded Ye Futian below. While fighting with him, he didn''t concentrate on the fight at hand but was also attacking all the other cultivators. It was incredibly arrogant and fully demonstrated his conceit.


    However, the strength of this swordsmanship... Even he had to recognize and acknowledge this prowess.


    This "musician" from Taixuan Mountain seemed to have received the true arts of Lord Taixuan, and his swordsmanship was the first among this generation on Taixuan Mountain. He was far ahead of all the others.


    Bang!


    The golden spear in his hand burst and shattered inch by inch, and the golden divine light shot through the void. Gai Shi Shi''s expression was still extremely dominant. Seeing the sword will roll towards him, the golden divine blood inside him roiled and howled, and the divine god''s body that was formed from gold was releasing a dazzling divine light, which was able to counter the sword will.


    Gai Shi Shi was forming the seal with both of his hands, and a curious sound seemed to be heard from above the sky, and there seemed to be the sound of the Great Path that chimed nonstop in the sky.


    Above the sky, indomitable ancient gods appeared with mighty power. They descended at the same time, appearing around Gai Shi Shi. Suddenly, in the sky above Ye Futian, a divine mansion seemed to hover there.


    "Summon the ancient golden god."


    Everyone looked up in the sky, their hearts trembling violently. How strong... Gai Shi Shi was truly deserving of his reputation. This superb genius from the Golden Divine Nation showed unparalleled combat power, which had not been fully unleashed before.


    Until this moment, Ye Futian finally forced out his full strength. Ye Futian''s sword had already defeated several people. The other genius talents in the void were unable to contend with Ye Futian''s sword, but Gai Shi Shi now wanted to launch a counterattack to suppress Ye Futian. In comparison, their levels were revealed instantly.


    "The ancient golden god descended from heaven. It is the Sigh of the Divine God." Wan Shouyi focused on the void. His expression changed slightly. This method was the supreme way of the Golden Divine Nation and was the highest form of magic. It was rumored to be an inheritance leftover from the times of the ancient gods. Under the sigh of the gods, even the gods would perish, and it was extremely difficult to cultivate.


    Had Gai Shi Shi completed the cultivation of the Sigh of the Divine God?


    "Unexpectedly, Gai Shi Shi is already at such a powerful level," others also exclaimed. Today, they were actually witnessing a showdown here. Even among future direct disciples of the Divine Palace, these two were the stuff of legends.


    Ye Futian also felt the mighty power of the will of the Way that came from the void at this time. The god of the Great Path appeared, and the pressure of might descended to suppress all. The breath that erupted out from Gai Shi Shi, at this moment, was many times greater than before and seemed to be another transformation.


    "Gai Shi Shi''s strength has already set him apart from all the other direct disciples, and they are no longer one the same level," Ye Futian remarked to himself as he felt this power. Ultimately Gai Shi Shi should be at the same level as those who automatically received the quota for the fruits of the Way, like the Crown Prince Yi Tianyu of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Yi Tianyu was certainly not stronger than Gai Shi Shi.


    The momentum inside Ye Futian''s body was getting more magnificent, and above his body, a stronger sword will swept out and flowed to the sword of heaven and earth.


    Bang!


    There was a violent noise that came from the void. Chang Fenglie''s body was penetrated by the sword. He was bloody all over, his breath was weak, and Qin Zang, likewise, was also injured gravely by the sword.


    In front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension, all the genius talents fell one after another under Ye Futian''s sword!

 1538 Incomparable

    At that moment, the most powerful direct disciple in front of the Divine Tree of Comprehension was the one who had previously let Lu Qingyao go up. His power was extraordinary. He had resisted the Fleeting Divine Sword for the longest time, but in the end, he had been similarly unable to block the killing sword.


    Ye Futian was still down below. His sword will filled the sky as it flowed all through the vast area. Everyone except for Gai Shi Shi of the Golden Divine Nation had already fallen, and they had no more power to fight. Some of them had directly tried to seize the fruit of the way, but they had been pierced by Ye Futian''s sword, leaving shocking sword slashes on their bodies. They had been wounded internally, but they would recover in a short time.


    The sword will completely covered the Divine Tree of Comprehension, leaving the people below him as shocked as could be. He was trying to take the whole tree for himself, and not let anyone else take from it. Even the top figures were not allowed to, not even the personal disciples of the Divine Palace.


    "He is so arrogant!" they all said to themselves. But Ye Futian had the right to be. The power he had displayed had been simply frightening, and now, there was only one person still capable of fighting. If Gai Shi Shi could not beat him, then no one could.


    Figures of imposing deities appeared up in the sky. It was as if the gods were truly coming down from the heavens and crushing everything below them. A burst of pressure from the Great Path covered Ye Futian. The gods seemed to be singing, making it seem like this area of the sky would be crushed by golden power. Gai Shi Shi''s aura surged. At that moment, there were few at the Nirvana level who could match him. His law body was so powerful that even a forged Renhuang body would probably not be as good.


    The sword will was suppressed. Gai Shi Shi held a golden divine spear. And it was not just him, but all of the figures of gods gripped divine spears as well. They chanted, and destruction followed. It seemed that there was no one in the world who could stop Gai Shi Shi.


    Even Ye Futian, with his incomparable talent, would have to bow before the chanting of these gods.


    The golden light seemed to form a celestial curtain. It covered Ye Futian when it fell, making it so that he could not escape. The endless golden light seemed to be formed of golden spears that spanned the sky. At the same time, Gai Shi Shi finally moved. The gods thrust their spears downwards. Their chanting rang out. Everything was destroyed wherever the sound went, and nothing was left.


    "His will is so strong, even a Nirvana level cultivator would not be able to withstand a single attack!"


    Although the people watching the battle from below were outside the range of the attack, they could still feel the killing power and shocking will within it. It was far beyond the limits of what they could withstand. There were even Nirvana level cultivators within them, but they thought that even they would be killed by that attack. They would die from a single strike.


    That swordsman from Taixuan Mountain had Lord Taixuan''s Fleeting Divine Sword. Could he the chanting of the gods and the attack from their spears?


    Ye Futian stood in the air, his body resonating with the Great Path. His World Tree swayed, and the will that he had previously absorbed burst forth violently, integrating itself into his sword. A huge divine furnace seemed to appear within him, refining all the will of the Great Path. But those watching could not see it very clearly, due to the golden light enveloping him.


    Gai Shi Shi was no weaker than Yin Tianyu��the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. At that moment, Ye Futian was feeling the pressure of the twin attacks of the gods'' chanting and their spears. The gods'' chanting was particularly difficult to bear as it increased the power of Gai Shi Shi''s aura and the Heavenly Great Path by several orders of magnitude. He had to take this seriously.


    He reached out, seeming to hold up the very sky with his hands. Suddenly, brilliant, flashing divine swords appeared in his hand. Each one contained sky-breaking sword will. When he saw the spears coming towards him, he formed a sword seal. His divine spiritual sorcery flowed, and his swords slashed out.


    The swords'' shrieks pierced everyone''s ears and then became softer until there was no sound at all. It seemed as if they had gone beyond the limits of sound.


    The spears collided with the Fleeting Divine Swords, but all the people watching from below could see was a flash of destructive light. Everything was shattered into dust, and the Great Path flowed backward. They saw the divine spears that had been formed of golden radiance, and the swords that had been formed out of spiritual sorcery shatter into nothingness and disappeared.


    Was their power evenly matched?


    Time seemed to stop as everyone''s eyes were on the battlefield.


    Something was wrong. The battle had not stopped yet.


    Everyone''s hearts were pounding as they gazed fixedly into the sky. Although the swords had been destroyed, the burst of sword will was still there. The Great Path was flowing in reverse, and the river of stars was rotating. Everything had been turned to dust under the destructive power of the River of the Great Path. But the dust was moving towards Gai Shi Shi and trying to swallow him up.


    Gai Shi Shi was a proud man. When he saw that his attack had been destroyed and the energy from his opponent''s attack was still sweeping towards him, his face turned dark. Brilliant golden light flashed from him as the power spread towards him.


    A shrill sound rang out as it swept over Gai Shi Shi''s body and then disappeared into nothingness. The fighting will that Gai Shi Shi had used as armor had already been destroyed, and now blood was flowing from his golden body. But the blood was glowing with golden light as if it was the ichor of a god.


    "Golden blood!" Everyone''s hearts trembled fiercely. It seemed that the legends were true. The people of the Golden Divine Nation were descendants of the old gods, and golden blood flowed through the old gods'' veins. And now, they were seeing that golden blood with their own eyes.


    What was frightening was that Gai Shi Shi had already started to forge his body of the Great Path. His bones, veins, and organs were all transforming.


    But even so, he had still been wounded in this battle.


    The two figures were standing in the air. One of them had an arrogant expression on his face, his white robes flapping in the wind. He looked up into the sky. The mountain was covered with people that he had wounded in this battle. None of them could withstand his swords.


    The other person''s golden robes were stained with blood. Golden light still shone from his eyes, but it was not as brilliant and imposing as before. He had the bold manner of someone who was unparalleled in heaven and earth, but at this moment, he seemed a little dazed.


    Gai Shi Shi had not thought that he would ever be defeated before he entered the Divine Palace.


    He had thought that his opponent would be one of the people from the Divine Palace. Previously, he had not given a second thought to Ye Futian. Even if his opponent had reached the Nirvana level, he still would have been confident in his victory. He had the blood of the golden old gods and the chanting of the gods. How could he lose?


    But his spears were not as sharp as his opponent''s swords. The one whom Lord Taixuan had chosen had beaten him.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over Gai Shi Shi and then stepped forward, shooting towards the mountain like a beam of sword light. He paid no more mind to Gai Shi Shi.


    Everyone was speechless as they saw Ye Futian head towards the mountain. This man had crushed the proud son of heaven of the Higher Heavens Realm and then had ascended to the peak of the Mountain of the Way.


    Who would have thought that a musician from Taixuan Mountain would be the one to defeat all opponents? Even the proud cultivators from all over the Higher Heavens Realm could not compete with him, not even the disciples of the Divine Palace.


    Perhaps only those few personal disciples of the Divine Palace who had not come were qualified to fight him. But based on his battle with Gai Shi Shi, there would probably even be very few of them who could withstand the Fleeting Divine Sword. There were probably incredibly few people who were powerful enough to fight him.


    "Wait for me to finish my cultivation, then you can fight again." Ye Futian swept his gaze over all the people he had defeated. They were all speechless. They were all losers; what could they say?


    "This tree can accommodate many cultivators. You can''t take up all those places by yourself, even if you take all the fruit of the way." The wounded Lu Qingyao had used her life will to heal her injuries. She looked at Ye Futian as she spoke. She wanted to stay here in order to understand more.


    "Previously, none of you were willing to save a place for me," answered Ye Futian. He looked down at Yaya and Wan Shouyi and said, "Come on up."


    Yaya Nodded and flashed up into the air. Wan Shouyi, Luoyue, and the others came up as well, heading towards the Divine Tree of Comprehension.


    Seeing that Wan Shouyi and Luoyue were getting a chance to cultivate at the Divine Tree of Comprehension, Jun Mu and the others felt conflicted. Li Zhiyin felt a little bit regretful. Who would have thought that the musician from Taixuan Mountain��Shen Jing��would have the strength to crush all the proud sons of heaven from the Higher Heavens Realm?


    "You are cultivators of Taixuan Mountain, so you may come up as well," said Ye Futian to Li Zhiyin and Chen Yu. The two of them were stunned. They looked up at Ye Futian in the air. When they saw his eyes, they felt a little bit


    ashamed.


    Ye Futian nodded at Ma Yi. "Brother Ma Yi," he said. Ma YI suddenly lowered his head, feeling ashamed as well.


    They flashed over to the Divine Tree of Comprehension. Li Zhiyin looked at Ye Futian and said, "Why are you doing this?"


    "The little bit of friction between us is no need for enmity. We all came here from Taixuan Mountain. There are plenty of places for all of us, so this is no great matter," answered Ye Futian. The Great Path itself flowed through Saints, making them one with heaven and earth. These little misunderstandings were not worth remembering. When one set their heart on the Heavenly Great Path, none of the pettiness of the mortal world should remain.


    "We were too narrow-minded," said Li Zhiyin with a bow towards Ye Futian. She felt that ever since Ye Futian had come to Taixuan Mountain, she had always been skeptical of his being able to get into String Palace.


    These narrow-minded thoughts had indeed affected their cultivation. This was probably why her guqin and the people from Sword Abyss''s swords were not as good as Ye Futian''s.


    "If you could disregard our previous transgressions, we would blush from shame," said Jun Mu as he took a step forward. He wanted to come up as well.


    Woosh!


    A burst of sword will descended suddenly, stopping Jun Mu in his tracks. He looked up into the air.


    "I''m sorry, there is no place for you here," said Ye Futian coldly. Cultivators had big hearts, but there were some things that they could not forgive.


    Jun Mu''s face darkened. Seeing that everyone was looking at him, he cast a cold glance at Ye Futian and then turned and left.


    "Jun Mu will hate you for that," Wan Shouyi transmitted to Ye Futian. But Ye Futian did not care. What could a Nirvana level cultivator do to him?


    "Let us cultivate." Ye Futian looked at the giant tree before him. He walked forward towards the center of the tree, making Wan Shouyi look surprised. There were many pieces of fruit on the tree, and all were full of the essence of heaven and earth. They could produce will in people that would resonate with the Great Path. That was why, in the past, so many people had plucked this fruit in order to aid their comprehension.


    So why was Ye Futian walking towards the center of the tree?

 1539 Realization

    Ye Futian walked up to the towering tree and looked up at it. He could feel many different types of will in this place.


    The tree made him think of the World Tree within him, his life spirit, that could also hold all kinds of will of the Great Path.


    Could there be some kind of connection between them?


    It was probably just a coincidence. The World Tree was his life spirit, and this tree was a divine thing in the middle of the sea of the path. It bore fruit of the way that could be used to comprehend the Great Path.


    He swept his gaze over the trunk of the mighty tree. As his eyes traveled downward, he saw that it seemed to be rooted in the Mountain of the Way. Its countless roots stretched out in all directions.


    "This is the Divine Tree of Comprehension. We can use it to comprehend the will of the Great Path much more efficiently," Ye Futian said to himself. He sat down cross-legged beneath the tree and did not bother to form a resonance with any of the pieces of fruit on it.


    He closed his eyes and cast away all distracting thoughts. He did not think about anything in the outside world, but sank deep within himself, immersing himself in a mystical plane. He seemed to forget himself.


    Although his eyes were shut tightly, he could see more clearly than if his eyes had been open. His divine spirit covered a boundless area, and there was nowhere where he was not present. He could sense everything.


    A crisp wind blew by, seeming to contain the Way within it.


    He sensed a fiery piece of fruit of the way. His divine spirit entered into it, and in a flash, he could feel blazing flames burning in the sky. It seemed that these flames reached up to the heavens, and they burned his divine spirit.


    He also felt a piece of lightning fruit. He suddenly felt like he was in a world of lightning, and he was bathed in the Great Path of Thunder.


    He felt many other kinds of will. Every piece of fruit on the tree contained a frightening amount of the will of the Great Path.


    The people from Taixuan Mountain were all there as well. They could sense the will contained within the fruit of the way. They sat there, sensing the world around them quietly. Will flowed over all of their bodies, except for Ye Futian''s.


    Below them, everyone was looking up into the air. Many of them had their eyes closed and were using their other senses. Although Ye Futian had expelled the people who had been here previously, he had not forced them to leave. They could still sense the will of the tree from below the mountain, and thus it was still beneficial to their cultivation.


    Ye Futian sat there quietly as if he could sense the world more clearly now. As time passed, Ye Futian sank deeper into himself, until he felt like he had turned into a tree himself.


    The tree had worked its way into his very veins. The World Tree was spreading through him, and different kinds of will flowed on every one of its trunks. The will of the Great Path was very potent there, and it burned like the sun in the sky. Brilliant light gradually began to shine from him, and a powerful force began to spread out from his body.


    The will resonated with the Divine Tree of Comprehension, and suddenly lines of will were flowing from the tree towards him. They penetrated him.


    With a thought, Ye Futian formed sword will within himself. All of the will of the Divine Tree of Comprehension within him turned into sword will that flowed to every part of his body.


    To become a Renhuang, one had to forge a Renhuang body, comprehend a Renhuang soul, and form a Wheel of the Great Path.


    As Ye Futian thought of this, endless sword will flowed through his veins, and even into his bones and organs. Outside, sword will was also flowing down from the Divine Tree of Comprehension and over Ye Futian''s body. His entire body was soon covered in sword will.


    Below, some people looked up at him. There was so much sword will; was Ye Futian trying to forge a Body of Swordsmanship?


    Ye Futian was bathed in sword will. The current of sword will was growing stronger and stronger as it went into him until it formed a closed loop. It would not flow out of him. It seemed like all of this powerful sword will was locked up within him.


    When one formed a law body and a law soul, one was on the inside, and the other was on the outside. The law body was internal, and the law soul was external. Once the two had been forged, they would resonate, and only then could one form forge the Wheel of the Great Path, know everything under heaven, shine with the sun and the moon, and have one''s every movement be in accordance with the Way.


    This was a place to prove one''s worthiness. It gave people a much better chance to become a Renhuang. Everything that Ye Futian did here was something that many people would fight to have a chance to do.


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue seemed to feel something. They opened their eyes and saw that endless sword will was falling from the Divine Tree of Comprehension and entering Ye Futian''s body. This distressed them greatly. This genius was truly unpredictable.


    Ye Futian''s need for will was terrifying, but the will contained within the Divine Tree of Comprehension seemed to be endless. As time passed, Ye Futian''s body seemed to be translating into a Body of Swordsmanship. Everything about him seemed to be made of sword will, both inside and out.


    "Can he really comprehend this much, even without using any of the fruit of the way?" everyone asked themselves. This Ye Futian was frighteningly talented.


    After a while, Ye Futian had completely transformed into a sword, a sword that was sitting there with his eyes closed.


    "Shen Jing seems to be forming a law body," said the people who were watching him from below.


    "This is a rare opportunity, so naturally, he must seize it. Let us also continue to comprehend the way," said someone, and he closed his eyes.


    After a few days, Ye Futian''s body was like the blazing sun. The air around him seemed to be burning. He shone in all directions, making a look of surprise come over everyone''s faces. But most of them were immersed in their own cultivation, and so they did not pay him too much heed.


    In what seemed like the blink of an eye, Ye Futian and all the others had been cultivating at the Mountain of the Way for more than two months. During this whole time, Ye Futian had not risen once. He was completely immersed in a state of self-forgetfulness.


    He could sense that there was far more to this tree than even he could see. At this moment, he was in a mystical state, and he could sense that the tree connected the whole mountain together. Its roots reached to every corner of the mountain.


    And it was not just the Mountain of the Way. They reached to the entire mountain range. This tree''s roots connected the entire area.


    The tree was truly massive.


    All of the trees in the area were really one.


    At that moment, a brilliant light shone from the palace at the peak of the mountain. Everyone looked up at it. Some of them did not understand, but the disciples of the Divine Palace knew that the time had come.


    The dawn light of the Great Path spread out, covering the entire area and enveloping the Mountain of the Way within it. Ye Futian ceased his cultivation and opened his eyes. He looked towards the palace and saw that it was as mystical as an illusion. It gave off a sense of unreality. He guessed that it was probably an image of the Divine Palace.


    A burst of marvelous energy descended. A voice rang through the air.


    "Time is up. Prepare to leave," came the faint voice from the palace. Ye Futian stood up immediately. With a single thought, all of his swords shot through the air, cutting down all the giant pieces of fruit on the tree then bringing them to him.


    When they saw this, the people of Taixuan Mountain stopped cultivating and looked at Ye Futian. They were already perfectly satisfied with the amount of will they had been able to comprehend, and it was all thanks to the fact that Ye Futian had not blamed them for their transgressions against him. They may have had vain hopes to get more of the fruit, but now, Ye Futian had taken them all. They felt a bit disappointed by this, but it was only right and proper.


    The fruit on this tree was incredibly valuable. It was said that a single piece of fruit was enough to support a cultivator in forging a law body and forming a Wheel of the Great Path. If you used one when you were at the peak of the Nirvana plane, it could help you break through to the next level.


    He could not lightly give up any of this fruit, even for the sake of his friendship with Taixuan Mountain.


    Little phoenix looked piteously at Ye Futian. Was he really so heartless?


    "We have been here cultivating for so long that I will give you two more pieces of fruit to help you reach Nirvana." Ye Futian waved his hand, and two pieces of fruit flew over to little phoenix��a flame fruit and a life fruit. Both were ones she had gotten before and had not come from the Divine Tree of Comprehension.


    "So petty," whispered little phoenix as she took them.


    "If you don''t want them, give them back." Ye Futian stared at her. Feng Yang put the fruit in her mouth as quickly as possible.


    Give them back? How could she do that?


    Everyone watching envied little phoenix a little bit. Ye Futian had not even thought of them. He had already done everything he needed to do. If they were not happy with him, was there anything they could really say?


    The light that covered the area grew brighter and brighter. There was a roar in the sky as another powerful beam of light shot out from the palace, swallowing up all the cultivators.


    In the next instant, everyone could feel the stars revolving as the scene before their eyes changed completely.


    Ye Futian was stunned. He looked around him and saw the endless Sea of the Path. Everyone was there. The mountain, the tree, and the whole land had disappeared abruptly. It was like it had all been a dream that had never happened.


    There was a crashing sound in front of them, and a huge demonic beast broke through the waves, then floated on the surface of the water. It was the black turtle that had brought them here before.


    He looked at everyone and said, "Come with me."


    On saying this, he turned and continued on through the sea. Everyone formed boats and followed him. Along the way, Ye Futian could feel many eyes on him.


    Men of talent always aroused the envy of others.


    Moreover, he now had all the fruit of the divine tree. It was obvious that he would attract a lot of attention.


    If they were not in the Sea of the Way, but rather at the Divine Palace, he would probably have a fight on his hands right about now.


    Once they had left, there were no more rules to entangle them. People could even use Renhuang implements. And everyone there was extraordinarily powerful and had some impressive ritual implements.


    "Are we going to the Divine Palace?" Ye Futian asked Wan Shouyi.


    Wan Shouyi nodded, "Yes. Don''t you want to go and see such a legendary place?"


    Ye Futian looked off into the distance. Far away, he could faintly see a celestial palace. It was just like before; it seemed both like a reflection in the water and real at the same time.


    "We will be there soon." Ahead of them, the black turtle sped up, flying over the waves. He was heading towards the place that Ye Futian was looking at.


    Everyone else saw it as well. Other than the disciples of the Divine Palace, everyone else was curious. They all had their own expectations about it.


    "Of course I do," answered Ye Futian with a smile at Wan Shouyi. He wanted to take a trip to the Divine Palace.


    As they got closer, they could already see a mystical island rising out of the Sea of the Way.


    This was the place where the premier holy land for cultivating in the Higher Heavens Realm, the Shangxiao Divine Palace, was!

 1540 Powerful Deterren

    As everyone got closer, they realized that the mystical island that rose up out of the Sea of the Way was quite vast.


    Everyone was looking forward with solemn expressions on their faces as the boats flew across the water.


    "We are here," they all thought to themselves. The black turtle slowly sank back down to the depths of the sea. Everyone''s figures flashed as they shot through the air and landed on the island.


    Ye Futian and the others landed on the island as well. The air around them was thick with the aura of the Great Path, and the vast island was covered with will.


    There were several figures waiting on the shore. They were a few messengers who had come to welcome them. When they saw the cultivators coming, one of them said, "Those of you who passed the Sea of the Way entrance examination should familiarize yourselves with the Divine Palace. A bell will ring tomorrow, and when it does, you should all join together. Someone will be there to lead you in your cultivation. Those others among you who were part of the quota may stay in the Divine Palace to cultivate if you wish. If you do not wish to do this, you may leave whenever you want."


    Previously, many people had fought for the right to be part of the quota to go to the Land of Proving the Way and thus had undergone a test at the Divine Palace. Those who were successful were already considered disciples of the Divine Palace. As for the people from the other top forces and the geniuses from throughout the Higher Heavens Realm, if they wished to stay and become an ordinary disciple of the Divine Palace, it would naturally be quite easy. As for whether or not they could become a personal disciple, that would depend on their performance at the palace.


    "For the time being, you all may do as you please," continued the messenger, and upon saying so, they all turned and left, surprising all of those who had just arrived. Was the Divine Palace really so casual?


    "Does this mean that they don''t care about us?" someone whispered. The Divine Palace truly did things in a unique way.


    "Aren''t they worried that we will cause a disturbance?" someone asked.


    "Once you enter the Divine Palace, you are not forbidden from going anywhere, but that is because you are expected to take responsibility for whatever happens wherever you go. The Divine Palace is not responsible for whether you live or die," transmitted one of the personal disciples of the Divine Palace coldly. This was the Divine Palace, and there were not too many rules. As long as the place you wanted to go was somewhere that you were able to get to, you were allowed to go there.


    If something happened to you, the Divine Palace would not care.


    "This sounds like the Divine Palace, alright. They are very willful," whispered Luoyue.


    "Do you think that our actions here can escape the notice of the people of the Divine Palace?" said Ye Futian with a smile.


    Luoyue nodded and said, "You are right."


    There were many people of high levels in the Divine Palace. Their thoughts covered the entire place. No matter what they did, there was no way they could hide it from these high-level figures.


    The messengers who had come to greet them had left, and the disciples of the Divine Palace flashed away one by one as well, each returning to their places of cultivation.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian. They stepped forward into the Divine Palace. There were many Mountains of the Way all over the island, and there were celestial figures flying towards the mountains. All of them were of the Saint level or higher.


    As they went inward, they saw that there were places for cultivation in between the rolling mountains. There palaces on the tops of mountains and in the valleys. As for cavern residences and blessed places, they seemed endless. The air was thick with will.


    These places were all places where the people of the Divine Palace could cultivate. Those temples and palaces were naturally places where the great figures of the Palace could teach the Way, and the cavern residences and blessed places were places where the disciples could train.


    Ye Futian discovered that many people were following him. In addition to the disciples of Taixuan Mountain, many of the other people were staring at him. At that moment, he had many of the incredible, precious pieces of fruit of the Way. He was an easy target for people''s greed. It was absolutely impossible that none of these powerful Saints wanted to rob him of them.


    Moreover, it seemed that the Divine Palace would place no restraints on them doing so.


    "They seem to be following you," Wan Shouyi transmitted to Ye Futian.


    "Let them," replied Ye Futian. He naturally knew what they were thinking. If they tried to steal his fruit of the way, he would not be polite at all.


    He stopped and said to everyone, "We are in the Divine Palace now. Everyone should go and see if you can find a chance to reach the Great Path. I will wander around here as well. There is no need for us to go together, so we should split up." The previous events had made the others from Taixuan Mountain look at him as their leader. They were all following him, which made him a bit uncomfortable.


    Moreover, if a huge battle broke out, the disciples of Taixuan Mountain were all of a lower level, and it would be hard for them to defend themselves, so it was better not to let them get involved.


    "But you..." Li Zhiyin looked all around them. She could naturally see all the people staring at Ye Futian.


    "I will be fine. I was able to take care of myself at the Mountain of the Way. There is no one here at the Divine Palace who can touch me," said Ye Futian confidently. Li Zhiyin was used to Ye Futian by now. Given the power that he had displayed, it was indeed true that few people could threaten him.


    "Fine, then we will split up," said Li Zhiyin with a nod. They all went in different directions.


    "You should go too," said Ye Futian to Wan Shouyi and Luoyue. He had helped them as much as he could on this journey. He had used his song to empower Wan Shouyi''s sword. The next time he fought, he would have to rely on himself.


    "Very well," said Wan Shouyi with a nod of his head, and he left as well.


    Yaya turned and prepared to leave, which shocked Ye Futian. "You are leaving as well?"


    Yaya nodded. "Yes. I am going to spend some time here, cultivating."


    "Alright." Ye Futian knew why Yaya was doing this. Although she had not attracted much attention in the past, it was not certain that no one had been watching her. There was nothing out of the ordinary about her and Shen Jing knowing each other. After all, it was unlikely that she would not know anyone in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    But if she were always spending her time with Ye Futian, it would be impossible to avoid drawing attention.


    "And what about you? What are you going to do here?" Ye Futian asked Little Phoenix.


    "I am going to do my own thing, what does that have to do with you?" pouted Little Phoenix. She would not admit that she had been following Ye Futian.


    "I''ll travel with you once I get back. Until then, go off and play," said Ye Futian with a smile. Little Phoenix stared at him. Did this guy take her for a child?


    "If you''re going to go, then go." Little Phoenix spread her wings and flashed away, leaving Ye Futian alone. If someone really attacked him, then having Feng Yan by his side would be a burden.


    Now that he was left alone, he could relax a little. He could do whatever he wanted.


    He continued forward. He sensed an aura off in the distance and said, "If you want to steal these from me, then just try it. Why hide? You don''t want to shame Old Demon Luo."


    When he said this, a burst of mighty demonic energy filled the air. A group of figures appeared in the sky above him. It was indeed Luo Youming and the others from the Divine Capital of Xiling. He had been wounded by Ye Futian at the Mountain of the Way, and he had spent all this time healing. It was obvious how much bitterness he felt towards Ye Futian.


    The trip to the Land of Proving the Way was over, and Ye Futian was the only one who had many pieces of fruit of the way. And his fruit was the most precious. How could Luo Youming not be greedy?


    The will that burst forth from Luo Youming was terrible. Endless death will swept out, covering the space below him where Ye Futian was. The other cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling beside him prepared to attack as well. They blocked off all the different directions in the air above Ye Futian.


    "You made everyone else leave. You''re not scared that I would attack the people from Taixuan Mountain, are you?" Luo Youming''s eyes were cold, and his voice was full of killing intent.


    "If you can take the fruit from my hands through trickery or artifice, do you think that you and the Divine Capital of Xiling will be able to withstand Lord Taixuan''s wrath?" said Ye Futian coldly. Right now, Lord Taixuan dominated the Higher Heavens Realm. The Old Demon of Xiling had been defeated by him. If he wanted to attack the Divine Capital of Xiling, who could stop him?


    The strength of the elders was the greatest protection for the younger generations.


    Right now, the disciples of Taixuan Mountain were a little bit weak, but no one would dare to harm them.


    A strand of sovereign power appeared upon Luo Youming. He obviously knew that he was no match for Ye Futian in terms of combat ability. If he wanted to seize the fruit, he would have to use the power of his ritual instrument.


    Boom! Someone suddenly launched an attack. Death spears pierced through the air, rushing towards Ye Futian.


    "You must have a death wish." Ye Futian swept his gaze through the air, and suddenly, sword will filled the sky. The death spears were immediately destroyed, and the sword will continued onward, leaving sword slashes in the air.


    Poof!


    Sword light pieced through the air, and slash marks appeared on the demonic cultivator. Blood spurted from his head as he stared at Ye Futian below them. Then, he gradually slackened and fell to the ground below.


    He had been killed by a single sword stroke.


    "He''s gotten stronger." When Luo Youming felt the power of that sword, his heart trembled. Obviously, cultivating for two months, had Ye Futian even stronger than when they had fought. His sword had pierced through the air. A common Nirvana level cultivator was no match for him at all.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had used a killing move right away.


    This made Luo Youming and the other cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling look at him coldly. They could not forget this easily.


    "I know that you have a Renhuang implement, but how do you know that I don''t? I don''t want to cause any trouble, and I don''t like it when other people cause me trouble. If anyone else attacks me, they will die," said Ye Futian coldly. He was not only speaking to Luo Youming. He was reminding everyone who was watching him in secret. It was not good that these people were always thinking about him, so he had executed one as a warning to the rest.


    Moreover, the man from the Divine Capital of Xiling had attacked him first, and he had just counterattacked. Although he was only a musician from Taixuan Mountain, Lord Taixuan had personally mentioned him by name. If an elder came after him due to this matter, he would have to think about how Taixuan Mountain would respond.


    When he heard Ye Futian''s unmistakable threat, Luo Youming''s face became livid. Imperial power was still blooming from him, but it was just like Ye Futian had said. He had a Renhuang level ritual implement, but how did he know that Ye Futian did not have one as well?


    If it really came down to a fight, his opponent would probably not hesitate to kill them. If things were like they had been before, they would not be up to the task.


    "All the rest of you, stop following me. Otherwise, my sword will be merciless," said Ye Futian. Everyone watched as he flew through the air, going faster and faster. The sword light cut a swathe through the air as he went off into the distance.


    A group of figures walked out and watched the retreating figure with cold expressions. But in the end, none of them followed him.


    Gai Shi Shi walked out as well, golden divine light flashing on him.


    This man had offended many of the cultivators of the Divine Palace. It would be impossible for him to enter the palace without causing a disturbance!

 1541 Sword Comprehension Mountain

    Within the Divine Palace, all the disciples returned to their places of cultivation.


    At that moment, there were several figures standing around and chatting on a cultivation platform within one of the halls.


    One of them was outstandingly good-looking and had a celestial aura about her. It was Lu Qingyao.


    "He seized both the water of the Stream of Life and the fruit of the way?" asked a youth, standing up and bowing to Lu Qingyao.


    Lu Qingyao nodded. "Mm. My cultivation has been too shallow. I must spend some time locked away cultivating."


    "This man is nearly a demon. He defeated all the other cultivators by himself and took over the Divine Tree of Comprehension. This has nothing to do with the level of your cultivation, Sister Lu," said a woman standing down below. At that moment, another figure entered, looked at them, and asked, "Someone took over the Divine Tree of Comprehension by himself?"


    "Yes, it was the swordsman from Taixuan Mountain, Shen Jing. He fought everyone by himself and defeated all comers. No one was a match for them. Gai Shi Shi of the Golden Divine Nation, Li Xun of the Divine Sword Li Family, and Qin Zang of the Sky Burying God Clan were all defeated in that battle. None of them could stand before him."


    "Can this be true?" The person who had entered gazed at Lu Qingyao in shock.


    Lu Qingyao nodded slightly and said, "I had originally thought that besides those personal disciples from within the palace, I could be ranked among the strongest of those who had been chosen to go, even if I was not the strongest. But I would never have thought that the gap between us would be so great. Maybe Shen Jing was incredibly strong, but it is still my fault that I lost. Shen Jing did not even become a Nirvana level cultivator until the battle."


    "So you are saying that he took so much of the fruit by himself, yet he did not prove himself worthy of becoming a Renhuang, but instead only managed to reach Nirvana?" A surprised look came over the young woman''s face. She had heard that when people went to the Land of Proving the Way, they would often use it as an opportunity to reach the Renhuang plane. But this time, one person had taken most of the fruit.


    "Mm." Lu Qingyao nodded again. "After taking over the Divine Tree of Comprehension, he spent more than two months cultivating there. Will was flowing over him constantly the whole time. It is possible that he was able to use this to forge a law body. It is highly likely that he became stronger. When added to the amount of fruit of the way that he got, it would be enough to lessen the time he would need to cultivate by several years, stabilize his attainment of the Nirvana plane, and even start to forge a body of the Great Path."


    "In that case, it seems that a genius has come to our Divine Palace." There was a bit of excitement in her eyes.


    This was not the only place that people were talking about this. The news was spreading all throughout the Divine Palace. For example, Li Xun was in Sword Palace, telling someone about all of these events. There were many swordsmen behind the man he was talking to, sword will wrapping around them. But no matter how powerful they were, they were all standing behind the youth in the black robes.


    He was the strongest member of the Divine Sword Li Family of that generation��Li Daozi. Now, he was the strongest person in the Sword Palace below the Renhuang level. His swordsmanship was nearly perfect. Many people said that he could kill anyone below the Renhuang level with his sword.


    Of course, there were several people within the Divine Palace who were not inferior to him in terms of swordsmanship.


    "I had originally planned that after you entered the Divine Palace, I would shut myself away in cultivation and not come out until I had reached the Renhuang level. Now it seems like there may be someone whom I can test my swordsmanship on before I break through to the next level," said Li Daozi softly. He was at the peak of the Nirvana level and had forged a law body. He would soon break through to the next level.


    And now, another powerful swordsman had entered the Divine Palace.


    Li Daozi stepped away.


    Where are you going?" asked Li Xun. Was Li Daozi going directly to seek out Ye Futian?


    "I am going to Sword Comprehension Mountain," answered Li Daozi without turning his head. "I will wait for him there."


    Ye Futian was a swordsman of Taixuan Mountain, and his swordsmanship was outstanding. Now that he had entered the Divine Palace, there was one place that he had to go. That was Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    Thus, Li Daozi was preparing to go there to wait for him.


    ...


    Shen Jing''s name had circulated throughout the Divine Palace in a very short time. The disciples of the palace all knew his name and knew that he had defeated the proud cultivators of the Higher Heavens Realm all by himself and had taken over the Divine Tree of Comprehension.


    Many of the personal disciples of the Divine Palace who had not gone to the Land of Proving the Way wanted to go and see him.


    At the same time as this, the news that Li Daozi had gone to Sword Comprehension Mountain to wait for Shen Jing made its way through the palace as well, which excited many people. It was said that this swordsman from Taixuan Mountain had easily defeated Li Xun. So, how would he compare to Li Daozi, the foremost swordsman under the Renhuang level at the Divine Palace?


    It was said that Li Daozi would soon reach the next level, and would soon become a Sword Emperor. He was the best swordsman in the Divine Palace under the Renhuang level; it would be difficult to find any swordsman in the Higher Heavens Realm who could match him.


    Ye Futian did not know that Li Daozi had gone to Sword Comprehension Mountain. He did not even know that there was a Sword Comprehension Mountain in the Divine Palace, or what it was.


    After he asked the others to leave, he strolled through the palace alone, going where he pleased. He was very relaxed. Since the Divine Palace was so casual, there was no need to stand on ceremony. The celestial will of the island was extremely thick in the air. There must be many places here that were good for cultivation. He wondered if he would find a place that would help him break through to the next level.


    "The will is so strong!" At that moment, Ye Futian sensed something. He flashed over to a place in the distance and soon came to a place between several high mountains. The ancient mountains surrounded this place, and incredibly thick will was spreading out from it.


    Ye Futian flashed around the area around the mountains. Suddenly, he could sense an incredible amount of pressure in the area. It seemed to be powerful enough to crush the very sky.


    He felt his body tighten as the incredible pressure fell upon him. A figure was sitting on a huge rock in front of him, with his back to him. He had short hair, and he looked neat and clean. His robe was incredibly broad. He was sitting there motionless, just like a statue.


    "I am Shen Jing from Taixuan Mountain. I apologize for disturbing your cultivation," said Ye Futian to the man with a slight bow. This figure was also at the Nirvana level, but his aura was thick with power. His heavy breathing was powerful as well. His every breath seemed to be filled with the will of the Great Path.


    "A swordsman of Taixuan Mountain." The man still had his back to Ye Futian. "Have you come to prove yourself worthy of following the Great Path?"


    "Yes, after going to the Land of Proving the Way, I have come to the Divine Palace," answered Ye Futian.


    "Since you are a swordsman, you should go to Sword Comprehension Mountain. This is not a place for you," said the man indifferently.


    A look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face. "Sword Comprehension Mountain?"


    "Yes, that is the place for cultivating swordsmanship," the man continued. He had been cultivating here all along, and thus had not heard the news that had come from the outside world.


    Ye Futian looked around at the mountains and asked, "Sword Comprehension Mountain is the place to go for cultivating swordsmanship. So what is this place? I thought that this would also be a good place for me to cultivate."


    The man was not the least bit surprised by Ye Futian''s words. After a moment, he rose slowly as Ye Futian watched, then turned and looked at him.


    Ye Futian looked up at the figure and suddenly felt a burst of incomparably majestic pressure of the Great Path descend. The figure seemed incredibly tall, and he stood there like a god. The pressure fell upon Ye Futian, and, at that moment, Ye Futian felt that he should surrender.


    "This..." As Ye Futian looked at the mountains, he seemed to be able to see them moving. Divine power of the Great Path burst forth from them. The figure who was standing there became one with the mountains, or perhaps it was just his will integrating into them. His eyes seemed to be beholding infinite power.


    "See for yourself." The figure stood there calmly with his hands clasped behind his back. The power coming out of those mountains pressed down upon Ye Futian. They seemed to come to life, and each one contained the power of the Great Path.


    Crack!


    The stones beneath his feet shattered and were ground into dust.


    "I see." Ye Futian could feel the mountains pressing down on him. At that moment, he seemed to see many figures. The mountains seemed to contain the will of the Great Path. Their power was truly frightening.


    Every mountain seemed like it was a statue.


    Ye Futian floated up into the air. The man glanced at him, then stepped forward, causing a huge roar to ring out between heaven and earth.


    But Ye Futian stepped forward as well.


    Boom!


    Two forces collided in a violent explosion in the air, making all of the mountains shake.


    The man looked at Ye Futian in surprise, then looked at the mountains around them.


    "You moved the mountains with a single thought." He stared at Ye Futian. "You are a swordsman?"


    "I am Shen Jing��the swordsman of Taixuan Mountain," said Ye Futian. In fact, he was surprised. This man had put a lot of pressure on him. In his previous battle, he had defeated all his opponents, and he had thought that no one within the Divine Palace would be a match for him. But he had run into an incredibly strong opponent just while walking around the palace.


    "I am the personal disciple of Divine Palace��Zhuang Hong," answered the man. He looked at Ye Futian. "I heard that Lord Taixuan has not personally taken a disciple in a long time. Are you his youngest disciple?"


    Ye Futian shook his head. "Lord Taixuan said that he would never take a disciple again. I have not even been cultivating at Taixuan Mountain for a year. How could I be Lord Taixuan''s disciple?"


    "You are so talented, and yet Lord Taixuan has ignored you?" asked Zhuang Hong with a smile. "Have you come to the Divine Palace to try and become a personal disciple, or have you just come to cultivate for a short while?"


    "I''ve just come to cultivate," said Ye Futian.


    "Well, the Divine Palace is the best place in the Higher Heavens Realm to do so. Just this place where we are now is good enough to cultivate in for several years."


    "What about Sword Comprehension Mountain, which you mentioned before?" asked Ye Futian.


    "That is a holy land for cultivating swordsmanship. It is surrounded by 81 sword mountains. If you can completely comprehend the way of swordsmanship on Sword Comprehension Mountain, you will certainly be able to forge a Wheel of the Great Path out of swords and become a Sword Emperor," said Zhuang Hong. Sword Comprehension Mountain was the place where the swordsmen of the Divine Palace went to cultivate. Many of the elders of previous generations had broken through to the next level there.


    "In that case, I would like to go there," said Ye Futian quietly.


    "Of course you do," came a voice. Ye Futian looked up and saw a figure standing on the peak of one of the mountains. He clasped his hands together and bowed to Zhuang Hong, saying, "Brother Zhuang."


    Zhuang Hong nodded slightly and said, "What did you mean by that?"


    "Li Daozi of the Divine Sword Li Family has already climbed Sword Comprehension Mountain and is waiting for him there," said the man with a smile. He obviously already knew who Ye Futian was.


    "Li Daozi," muttered Ye Futian. This was not the first time he had heard that name.


    "He is the foremost swordsman of the Divine Palace below the Renhuang level, and he only has the final three sword strikes left to comprehend." Zhuang Hong looked at Ye Futian. Li Daozi was actually waiting for him?

 1542 Focus

    Zhuang Hong looked at Ye Futian curiously and asked, "What did you do?"


    He knew a little bit about Li Daozi. He was proud and aloof by nature, but his swordsmanship was unparalleled. There were few people in the Divine Palace whom he considered worth his time, and it was said that he was rushing towards the Renhuang level. There were only three swords left for him to comprehend on Sword Comprehension Mountain, and once he did so, he could forge a sword Wheel of the Great Path and reach the Renhuang plane.


    If he was waiting for Ye Futian on Sword Comprehension Mountain, then this man before his eyes must have done some incredible things at the Land of Proving the Way.


    "Nothing. This is probably because I defeated his little brother," said Ye Futian.


    "No, given Li Daozi''s personality, if it had just been the fact that his little brother was defeated at your hands in the Land of Proving the Way, he would not go through the trouble of waiting for you on Sword Comprehension Mountain. He wants to test himself by fighting you. Thus, you must be an uncommonly skilled swordsman yourself," said Zhuang Hong with a smile. Ye Futian had called himself the swordsman of Taixuan Mountain.


    "Shen Jing defeated all the proud sons of heaven by himself at the Land of Proving the Way, including Bai Xiu��a personal disciple from our own palace," said the man who had come with a slight smile. Zhuang Hong looked at Ye Futian. So that''s how it was.


    In that case, there was nothing strange at all about Li Daozi waiting for him on Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    "Are you going now?" he asked with a smile. A man who could move mountains with a thought was naturally no ordinary man.


    "What is this place?" asked Ye Futian. These mountains were all Mountains of the Way and were holy lands for cultivation. Since he had come here, he naturally wanted to spend some time cultivating.


    "These are the Celestial Worthy Mountains," answered Zhuang Hong. "A celestial worthy from the Divine Palace once used this place to comprehend the Way, and his will still exists in all of these mountains. It is very well suited to one of the techniques of the Divine Palace. Here you can sense the Way of pressure and power."


    "You so must have cultivated this technique, Brother Zhuang," said Ye Futian. Zhuang Hong nodded.


    "In that case, I am going to spend some time here cultivating," Ye Futian continued.


    "What about Sword Cultivation Mountain?" asked Zhuang Hong.


    "He is the one who is waiting for me. I don''t want to go to him," said Ye Futian with a smile and a shrug. Zhuang Hong was stunned, but what he said made sense.


    "Then go ahead and cultivate," he said with a smile. Ye Futian nodded and sat cross-legged on the ground. Then he brought out a piece of fruit of the Way and popped it into his mouth, biting into it right as he sat there.


    "...."


    Zhuang Hong looked at Ye Futian in shock.


    He was so shameless!


    Ye Futian looked at Zhuang Hong''s darkening expression and blinked. He took another bite. "This piece of fruit of the way is very large," he said while he was chewing. "It is truly worthy of being from the Divine Tree of Comprehension."


    Upon saying this, he continued chewing with relish. He quickly finished eating the fruit as Zhuang Hong watched him wide-eyed and slack-jawed.


    "I am going to cultivate now, Brother Zhuang," said Ye Futian when he had finished eating. He closed his eyes, and suddenly, the sound the roaring Great Path rang out from within him, filling the air in a flash. It resonated with the mountains. In that instant, Zhuang Hong felt a terrible pressure.


    He looked up at the mountains around them and saw that they seemed to come to life. Faces appeared upon all of them.


    "Amazing!" said Zhuang Hong approvingly. Shen Jing''s feeling for and comprehension of the Great Path was simply astounding. No wonder he had been able to move the mountains with a single thought.


    As he thought of this, he returned to the stone that he had originally been sitting on and shut his eyes in cultivation.


    For a time, the two of them had terrible power of the Great Path bursting forth from them, putting pressure on everything in the vast area.


    ...


    Ye Futian kept cultivating there quietly. Although he was traveling around under the identity of the swordsman Shen Jing, he could not really only cultivate swordsmanship. In order to reach the Renhuang level, he had to forge a Wheel of the Great Path, and he naturally did not want to forge just one kind.


    His World Tree life spirit gave him a great advantage in terms of cultivation that he would be able to continue to use when he reached the Renhuang plane, so how could he waste it? So, he ate another piece of fruit. At this moment, he needed the fruit of the way far more than anyone else.


    A day passed. Sword Comprehension Mountain had many ancient peaks, and each one was its own sword mountain that contained mighty sword will. Many people had gathered there. Some had come to cultivate, and some had come to join in the fun.


    The news that Li Daozi had come to Sword Comprehension Mountain to wait for Shen Jing had spread, and many people wanted to watch. Li Daozi was the foremost member of the younger generation of the Sword Palace. Who would be stronger? Him or the swordsman from Taixuan Mountain?


    At that moment, many people were standing before one of the sword mountains. Someone asked, "Has Shen Jing still not come?"


    "Someone said that Shen Jing is cultivating at the Celestial Worthy Mountains," someone beside him answered.


    "The Celestial Worthy Mountains are not a place for swordsmanship. What is he doing there?"


    "Who knows?" Many people were discussing this. Wan Shouyi and Yaya were there as well. They had not come because of the news, but because they wanted to comprehend the way of swordsmanship.


    Dong!


    At that moment, the sound of a bell ringing filled the air. Everyone looked off in the distance. It seemed that a wave of divine power was spreading throughout the heavens and the earth.


    The bell rang again, and suddenly a group of figures soared through the sky in the directions that the divine power was coming from.


    The Divine Palace had summoned its new disciples. Of course, many of them did not go but stayed there cultivating.


    Soon, many people were gathered together in a public square in the Divine Palace. Many of the disciples of the Divine Palace had come to join in the fun as well.


    Up on a stairway, there were several elders of the divine palace as well as some of their personal disciples. They were looking down at the new arrivals, and one of them said, "Here we go again. I wonder how the new disciples will be this time."


    "Given their trip to the Land of Proving the Way, there should be many powerful figures among them."


    "There are also many people from top forces who were on the quota here. They are prepared to enter the Divine Palace."


    "Li Daozi''s brother, Li Xun, is here as well." Someone pointed to where Li Xun was. He was going to enter the Divine Palace to cultivate.


    Someone looked off in a certain direction and smiled. "How is it that you had time to come here today, Brother Yi?" At that moment, a figure with an imposing presence appeared. He had a powerful aura that seemed to be innate.


    It was the Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Realm��Yi Tianyu.


    "The master must have asked you to come here and choose disciples," said one of the young men with a smile."


    "These new disciples are certainly lucky that you came out here to greet them personally," said someone else beside him. Yi Tianyu smiled slightly and nodded. He walked to the edge of the stairs and looked down at everyone. There was another outstanding looking person beside him. The two of them were so imposing that few people dared look directly at them. But everyone''s attention was on them.


    One glance at the two of them was enough to tell that they were extraordinary, even within the Divine Palace.


    "I heard that a genius appeared during this trip to the Land of Proving the Way," whispered Yi Tianyu.


    "You''re interested in that matter, too?" asked the woman beside him with a smile.


    "Li Daozi went to Sword Comprehension Mountain because of him. He must be outstanding in some way, so I want to meet him. I wonder if he came here because he wants to join the Divine Palace," said Yi Tianyu.


    There were few people in the Divine Palace who could compare to him, but Li Daozi of Sword Palace was one of those few.


    "He probably won''t come," said the woman. "I heard that he is cultivating at the Celestial Worthy Mountains. Zhuang Hong is there as well."


    "Zhuang Hong. He must be close to the Renhuang level by now," Yi Tianyu said quietly.


    The woman nodded. "However, you must be even closer than Li Daozi and Zhuang Hong, right?"


    Yi Tianyu looked off into the distance. "What does it matter how close I am? I still have a long way to go. And even once I do take that step, I will still have a long road ahead of me."


    The Renhuang level was not his destination; it would only be the start of his cultivation journey.


    At that moment, he involuntarily thought of two people: Gu Dongliu of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Ye Futian.


    Where had they gone after the dissolution of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven? How far had they gone in their cultivation?


    Whenever he thought of this, Yi Tianyu was reminded that he could never let himself relax. He needed to advance faster than the two of them. They would fight again in the future, continuing the battles that they had fought before.


    At that moment, the elders of the Divine Palace walked out and began selecting disciples.


    Of course, none of this had anything to do with Ye Futian. He had been cultivating at the Celestial Worthy Mountains all along. He could not miss the chance to cultivate in such perfect surroundings. He was prepared to spend some time here at the Divine Palace, which must have many incredible places like this.


    Nearly a month passed in the blink of an eye. Ye Futian spent the whole time cultivating at the Celestial Worthy Mountains. Li Daozi spent the whole time at Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    One day, brilliant sword light shone from the highest three peaks of Sword Comprehension Mountain. Sword will rushed into the sky, and everyone all throughout the Divine Palace looked up and saw a dazzling sword.


    "Li Daozi had comprehended yet another sword. He only has two more to go," everyone thought. In less than a year, the Divine Palace would have a Sword Emperor.


    "That swordsman from Taixuan Mountain hasn''t gone there yet?" someone asked.


    "He has been cultivating at the Celestial Worthy Mountains all along. Is he trying to avoid Li Daozi?"


    "According to what the people who went to the Land of Proving the Way said, this Shen Jing is extremely proud. He defeated all kinds of heroes all by himself. He is not afraid of fighting. He must truly just be cultivating there. Moreover, someone went there and felt all the will there. He is certainly resonating with the Celestial Worthy Mountains. He is not only cultivating in swordsmanship."


    At that moment, a divine power covered the Celestial Worthy Mountains, as if something was coming to an end. In a flash, infinite will of the Great Path entered Ye Futian''s body, making him become incredibly tall and mighty. He opened his eyes and slowly rose. In front of him, Zhuang Hong opened his eyes as well and said, "Have you finished cultivating?"


    Ye Futian nodded. "Yes."


    "Where are you going next?" asked Zhuang Hong.


    "To Sword Comprehension Mountain," replied Ye Futian.


    Zhuang Hong smiled. "I will go with you.


    On saying this, the two of them began walking together. Some people saw Ye Futian and Zhuang Hong leaving. A look of surprise came over their faces. Had he finally finished his cultivation?


    The two of them shot through the air off into the distance in a certain direction.


    "They are going towards Sword Comprehension Mountain," someone said. Soon, the news was all over the Divine Palace. Ye Futian had left the Celestial Worthy Mountains and was heading for Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    When they received the news, many people left what they were doing and began traveling. Even those powerful personal disciples would be there at Sword Comprehension Mountain!

 1543 Arrogance

    Many cultivators had gathered together at Sword Comprehension Mountain. Some swordsmen had been cultivating here all along, and others had come because they had heard about Shen Jing and had specifically come to see him.


    He was the genius who had defeated all the other geniuses of the Higher Heavens Realm. Although he was already so famous throughout the Divine Palace, the more he refused to show his hand, the more the people of the palace wanted to know how strong he was.


    Especially since a swordsman as powerful as Li Daozi was waiting here at Sword Comprehension Mountain for him.


    At that moment, two figures were streaking through the sky towards the mountain. Everyone stared at them as soon as they appeared. He had finally come.


    They had all been waiting for a long time.


    "Brother Zhuang Hong!" whispered everyone when they saw the figure beside Ye Futian.


    Zhuang Hong was another extremely prestigious figure within the Divine Palace.


    Apparently, Shen Jing had been spending his time at Celestial Worthy Mountain, cultivating with Zhuang Hong.


    "Brother Zhuang," people said as the two of them arrived, and many of them bowed. This made a look of surprise come over Ye Futian''s face. He looked strangely at the man beside him.


    It seemed like he had an incredibly high position within the Divine Palace. No wonder he had put so much pressure upon him when they had first met. However, they had not fought; otherwise, he would truly know Zhuang Hong''s power.


    Ye Futian saw some familiar faces. Fighting will appeared in many of their eyes when they looked at him. It seemed like they wanted to see just how strong this man who was so highly regarded was.


    Moreover, there was someone else there who surprised Ye Futian. Yi Tianyu was there as well.


    However, Ye Futian''s gaze did not linger on Yi Tianyu. He just looked at him for a moment and then looked elsewhere.


    "Zhuang Hong," said Yi Tianyu.


    Zhuang Hong turned his gaze upon him, then at the woman beside him. "Are you two together?"


    Previously, although there had been developments in the relationship between the two of them, they had not reached the step of actually being together. But now, they were standing shoulder to shoulder. Could it be that he had been completely focusing on cultivating up to the Renhuang level and thus had overlooked things going on the Divine Palace?


    Yi Tianyu smiled thinly but did not answer. His gaze fell upon Ye Futian, and he said, "I am Yi Tianyu, a disciple of the Divine Palace."


    "I am Ye Man, a disciple of the Divine Palace," the woman beside him said to Ye Futian. Although she was smiling at him, Ye Futian could faintly feel her powerful arrogance. She had a sense of nobility about her that seemed inborn. She seemed to be a good match for Yi Tianyu.


    Moreover, her surname was Ye, just like his.


    "These two are not from the Higher Heavens Realm; they come from other realms within the Nine Supreme Regions. However, they are both members of top forces. It is said that one of them is the prince of a divine dynasty, and the other is a princess of an ancient nation, so they both are of incredibly high status. They are both very talented and are very well suited to each other," Zhuang Hong transmitted to Ye Futian, giving him a simple introduction to these two.


    Ye Futian knew of Yi Tianyu but had never realized that Ye Man was also not from the Higher Heavens Realm. Was it because they were both far from home that they developed feelings for each other?


    "I am Shen Jing of Taixuan Mountain." Ye Futian nodded to each of them in turn.


    "I have heard of the peerless swordsman of Taixuan Mountain, Shen Jing. Now all the disciples of the Divine Palace want to see you, and this has now become my wish as well," said Yi Tianyu with a smile, seeming very polite. At that moment, Yi Tianyu was acting completely different than when he had seen him in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Of course, this could be because he was in a different mood.


    "No need to be so polite," said Ye Futian with a slight smile. Yi Tianyu said no more. He had come today only because he was curious. Li Daozi was, after all, someone who was at the same level of fame as him. Thus, the battle between him and the swordsman from Taixuan Mountain was worth paying attention to.


    At that moment, an incredibly cold will descended upon Ye Futian. He frowned and turned his gaze. He saw a group of figures appear. These people were surrounded by an incredibly cold aura that felt as cold as ice that would never melt in a thousand years. There seemed to be wind and snow in their eyes, and everyone they looked at seemed extremely cold.


    There was someone in the group that Ye Futian recognized, one whom he had left a deep impression on. After all, he had seized the Stream of Life from her and then taken her fruit of the way. How could he have not left a deep impression?


    The woman was Lu Qingyao, and there was a young man in a white robe with her. His hair was as white as snow, and his facial features were exquisite, but his aura was cold. He was the one who had the strongest aura among them.


    He looked back at Ye Futian when he felt his eyes on her. At that moment, Ye Futian felt he had entered another world��a world of endless snow and ice. His thoughts seemed to freeze as if he was in a field of snow. His blood seemed to have been infected by ice as well.


    With just a glance, Ye Futian seemed to have been covered in a layer of ice, and it seemed like he had turned into an ice sculpture.


    "Huh?" A look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face. Li Daozi had not done anything yet, and someone else wanted to fight Ye Futian first?


    Moreover, this was a personal disciple of two of the palaces within the Divine Palace. That was how talented he was. Two of the top figures of the age were teaching him. Lu Qingyao was his sworn sister, and Bai Xiu, the personal disciple of Lord Underworld, who had been wounded by Ye Futian, was his sworn brother. This man was also a personal disciple of Lord Underworld.


    This was Jiang Ce, one of the top figures within the Divine Palace.


    Ye Futian''s blood rushed faster when he felt the cold will enter him. Terrible yet majestic sword will swept out from within him, driving away the cold will. His eyes flashed like swords as he looked back at his opponent. In a flash, the space around the two of them was subject to an immense amount of pressure.


    Falling snow seemed to fill the sky, and there was incredibly sharp sword will among the flying snowflakes.


    Neither of them moved, but they seemed to have entered another world. It was a world of endless snow and sword will. Ye Futian stood facing his opponent. This Jiang Ce had already formed a soul of the way, and his divine spirit was incredibly frightening.


    Jiang Ce was trying to freeze his spiritual soul.


    "What are they doing?" A look of surprise came over the faces of the people on Sword Comprehension Mountain. The temperature around them was falling continuously, and sword will had already spread off into the distance. But the two of them still had not moved. It seemed that they were both in a meditative state.


    "Their spiritual souls are fighting," someone said.


    Woosh! A wild ice storm blew all around them, swallowing up Ye Futian and the others. But the fierce sword will was not diminished. It continued to flow around them endlessly.


    A destructive sound rang out as the Great Path roared within Ye Futian, destroying everything. There was a clear, crisp sound as if something had snapped. Suddenly, the ice storm began to weaken, and the sword will dissipated as well.


    The ice on Ye Futian melted, and Jiang Ce''s eyes became normal once again.


    He looked long and hard and Ye Futian, then said, "It seems that Sister Lu''s defeat was not a fluke."


    Beside him, Lu Qingyao glanced at him. She was speechless. It seemed like Brother Jiang Ce was also admitting how powerful this man was.


    "Do you wish to test me any more?" Ye Futian asked Jiang Ce.


    "Li Daozi has been waiting here for you for a long time. This matter is now between the two of you," answered Jiang Ce. The snow and ice disappeared, as he was no longer unleashing his power. Previously, he had just been testing Ye Futian to see how powerful his spiritual soul was. The will within him could not be stopped. He was clearly a powerful being.


    Ye Futian turned and looked towards Sword Comprehension Mountain with its 81 peaks. Each peak looked like a sword reaching up into the heavens, trying to pierce through the clouds.


    His eyes seemed to pierce across the distance. Within all of those sword peaks, he saw a figure sitting quietly in front of the second to last mountain. He seemed to not have realized that Ye Futian had arrived, and was not paying attention.


    Ye Futian started forward. At that moment, someone rose into the air, looked towards where Li Daozi was, and called out, "Brother Li, Shen Jing is here."


    Li Daozi seemed not to hear him. He still sat where he was. But at that moment, sword will burst out from among the sword mountains, and sword light flashed all around. The sword will seemed endless as it flowed around. The one who had called forth all this power seemed to be the man who was sitting there without moving.


    "You are the one I have been waiting for. Let us comprehend the next sword stroke here and now," came a misty voice that resounded through the air. Everyone could hear the arrogance in that voice.


    He had been waiting here for Shen Jing for a long time. But if Shen Jing could not comprehend the next sword stroke then and there, then what right did he have to make him wait? And what right did he have to make him draw his sword?


    Li Daozi did not only want to fight this battle because Ye Futian had defeated his brother Li Xun. If that had been all, then he would not come here.


    What he wanted was to find a swordsman who was his equal so that he could prove himself.


    Everyone''s eyes were on Ye Futian. Someone said, "Alright, Shen Jing. Comprehend the next sword stroke."


    A look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face when he heard this. He smiled and walked towards the mountains. He could see sword will flowing within the mountains.


    "I did not come to Sword Comprehension Mountain to challenge anyone, nor to prove anything. If I comprehend the next sword stroke, it won''t be for anyone else. It will simply be because I am cultivating the way of swordsmanship."


    Ye Futian stepped forward as he said this. His thoughts flowed, and in an instant, endless sword will shot up into the clouds, transforming into a sword that stuck up from one of the mountains.


    Then another one came from a second mountain, then a third. Brilliant sword light shone from the peaks one by one, making everyone stare at the sight.


    Was he comprehending the sword strokes?


    How was he doing it so fast?


    Li Daozi had his pride. If Ye Futian could not comprehend these swords right in front of him, then he would not be qualified to fight him.


    Ye Futian was the same. He had not come here because Li Daozi was waiting for him, nor because he wanted to challenge Li Daozi. He had only come because this was a good place to cultivate swordsmanship.


    Everyone watched as Ye Futian walked forward. With every step, more swords shot up from the mountain peaks around him. The sword will of the Great Path burst forth, flowing towards him and casting brilliant light.


    "This..."


    Everyone was speechless as they watched this scene!

 1544 Sword Comprehension

    How had he comprehended these swords so fast?


    Even the personal disciples were staring at Ye Futian, especially the people of the Sword Palace of the Divine Palace. They were looking at him particularly sharply.


    Sword Comprehension Mountain was the place you had to go if you were a swordsman. But as far as they could remember, no one in their generation had comprehended the swords this fast.


    Had Li Daozi��the most powerful person below the Renhuang level in the Sword Palace��even been able to do that?"


    "That was amazing." Zhuang Hong looked at Ye Futian speechlessly. It was enough that he had moved the mountain with a single thought, and now he was able to comprehend swords so effortlessly?


    Yi TIanyu and Ye Man came up to him, and Yi Tianyu said, "He comprehended the swords with a single thought. Is there anyone else in the Sword Palace who can do that?"


    "Historically, there probably was someone," said Zhuang Hong. "But as far as I know, no one in this generation has done so. When Li Daozi first joined the Sword Palace, he was able to comprehend 49 swords in a single day, which shocked everyone in the Divine Palace, and the Lord of the Sword Palace took him as his personal disciple."


    "So, he wants to break Li Daozi''s record," said Yi Tianyu softly. "You came here with him, so must have been able to sense how extraordinary he is. Have you ever fought him?"


    Zhuang Hong shook his head, saying, "This man is extremely interesting."


    Ye Futian had moved the mountains with a single thought when he came to the Celestial Worthy Palace, which had made Zhuang Hong very interested in him. Later, he had spent his time cultivating and had eaten a piece of fruit of the way right in front of him. He was truly shameless.


    "Who do you think is a better swordsman, him or Li Daozi?" asked Yi Tianyu. He was also quite interested.


    "We will know when they fight," answered Zhuang Hong. Li Daozi had been cultivating in the Divine Palace for many years and had been taught swordsmanship personally by the Lord of the Sword Palace, so his current combat ability was incredible. Even though Ye Futian had made a name for himself during the battle at the Land of Proving the Way, he would not dare say that he would definitely defeat Li Daozi.


    It was hard to see which one of them would be stronger.


    Endless sword will flowed between the peaks as Ye Futian strode forward. Sword will flowed out from each peak that he passed. It was as if the swords were resonating with the Great Path. He shone with celestial brilliance as the sword fill swirled around him.


    The sword will was even flowing through his veins and engraved and on his bones. His blood surged and seethed.


    "Is he even human?" Wan Shouyi had been cultivating swordsmanship on Sword Comprehension Mountain for a while, but his progress had been slow. Now that he saw how well Ye Futian was doing, he was speechless. He was one of the best swordsmen of Taixuan Mountain. Otherwise, he would not have been chosen to come here.


    So why was the distance between him and Ye Futian so great?


    "Look at his eyes," said Luoyue beside him. She was staring at Ye Futian''s eyes, which at that moment were extremely enchanting. They were deep beyond all compare. They were like sword eyes, and also like eyes of the way. They could see through the Worldly Great Path with a single glance.


    "Perhaps he has cultivated some special power that lets him see the sword will within Sword Comprehension Mountain." Wan Shouyi was also fixated on his eyes. In fact, it seemed that he had actually guessed the truth.


    Ye Futian naturally did not know what they were all thinking. At that moment, he was completely immersed in a state of selflessness. He could not see other people, only swords. Within his divine spirit, those mountains were no longer mountains; they were made of sword will.


    The sword will that each mountain contained was different. It seemed that the elders of the Divine Palace had inscribed the sword will on each mountain. In his current mystical state, each of the sword mountains seemed to transform into swords. Unreal figures practiced swordsmanship, engraving it upon his mind, and endless sword will flowed into him, making it feel like he was under incredible pressure.


    His life will was so magnificent that it pushed his body to its limits. He took out a piece of fruit of the way and put it in his mouth.


    "He''s doing it again..." Zhuang Hong had the urge to hit Ye Futian.


    Everyone else watched with mouth and eyes wide open, especially those who had competed with him in the Land of Proving the Way. Those who had been defeated in battle by him were even more speechless as they watched this.


    This was too much!


    "How many sword mountains is that?" someone whispered. He seemed to be asking himself.


    "The sword will is flowing from 32 sword mountains, and they are all resonating with him," someone answered quietly. They all trembled inwardly. Although Ye Futian was slowing down, he had not stopped yet. It was just that the length of time between each step was growing.


    He finally stopped walking forward. He returned to his original place and stood there quietly, sensing the world around him. The sound of sword will whistled throughout him.


    "He finally stopped," said many people.


    However, after only a short time, he moved again. He was submerged in endless sword will as he stepped forward, and powerful sword will flowed out from the mountains behind him once again, shooting towards him.


    "Interesting," many people thought to themselves. Ye Futian had very quickly surpassed everything that Li Daozi had done.


    Li Daozi and Ye Futian had spoken to each other arrogantly. Now, the swordsman from Taixuan Mountain had responded to Li Daozi with his actions. He had come here to comprehend the way of swordsmanship. It had nothing to do with Li Daozi.


    "48 swords." Many of the people on Sword Comprehension Mountain were very interested in Ye Futian now. It was very common for people to come to Sword Comprehension Mountain to cultivate the way of swordsmanship, and most people would not pay them any attention. But Ye Futian had attracted a lot of attention because of the issue with Li Daozi. Then he had shocked everyone with the number of swords he had comprehended. Now everyone forgot about their cultivation, and they watched him comprehend the way of swordsmanship.


    As Ye Futian continued forward, the swords of the 49th sword peak whistled as they flowed towards Ye Futian.


    Within about an hour, he had comprehended 49 swords.


    This had taken Li Daozi an entire day.


    At that moment, Li Daozi was still seated in cultivation at the second peak, not caring about anything else. It seemed as if none of this mattered to him. His body shone with brilliant light, and his sword will surged to the heavens. It seemed like he would be able to cut through the very heavens with a single thought.


    Li Xun appeared not far behind him. He had been watching Ye Futian all along. He sighed inwardly. He would never have thought that such a genius swordsman would come from Taixuan Mountain.


    At that moment, Li Daozi suddenly asked a question with his eyes closed. "49 swords?" He seemed to be talking to himself.


    "Yes, 49 swords." Li Xun had a dark look on his face.


    Li Daozi nodded slightly, then continued to cultivate with his eyes closed. He still lacked two swords, but he was not far from the Renhuang level. He had needed a strong swordsman to appear so that he could test himself.


    It was good that Ye Futian was here.


    He was not surprised at all that Ye Futian had completely surpassed what he had done before. He was completely calm, and he waited quietly.


    He had already confirmed that Ye Futian could make it to where he was now.


    Ye Futian stopped once again after having comprehended 49 swords. He sat back down in his original place. He had finished his fruit, and his whole body was covered in endless sword will, like he was in a cocoon.


    This time he stopped for a while. It was not that he was unable to understand the next ones; it was just that he had realized the first 49 words were different from the ones that came after.


    The first 49 swords were of a single style. This meant that no matter how many there were, at their most basic level, they were all the same sword.


    But after these swords, the rest were different.


    "It seems like he sensed it," thought the people of the Sword Palace as they watched Ye Futian. The first 49 swords were the foundation of Sword Comprehension Mountain. A genius swordsman of the Divine Palace had once put forward the idea that all of the different sword styles in the world could trace their roots to these 49 swords. As long as you had these 49 swords as your base, you could create infinite different sword styles.


    After the genius swordsman had created these 49 swords, the sword cultivators of the Divine Palace had carved their sword will into the mountain peaks.


    Afterward, many powerful Sword Emperors had taken these 49 swords as their foundation and created many different sword styles. These were carved into the later mountains.


    Thus the current Sword Comprehension Mountain had been created.


    Ye Futian sat there calmly, without any distractions. It was as if he had entered into a word of pure swordsmanship. The images of 49 swords appeared around him, and each one was different. It felt like these 49 swords were carved into his mind.


    Even though this was not some incredible sword art or ultimate school of swordsmanship, Ye Futian could still fell the brilliance of those swords. If he could completely comprehend these 49 swords, then he could cultivate any sword art in the future. It would be possible for him to create even greater sword arts with less effort.


    Time passed, and Ye Futian was still sitting there without even the slightest reaction. It seemed as if he was completely immersed in comprehending the way of swordsmanship.


    "How has he still not moved?" A look of surprise came over everyone''s face. Half a day had already passed. He had comprehended 49 swords in about an hour, but he had not moved since then.


    "He''s waiting," said someone.


    They waited for more than a day. Ye Futian was still sitting there, not reacting to anything around him.


    "In the past, Li Daozi comprehended 49 swords in a day, but it seemed like he was able to advance quickly from there. Shen Jing comprehended 49 swords in an hour, but he has not moved since then. Could it be that he was resorting to trickery? Maybe he had not truly comprehended them, and is now spending all this time to do so?" someone surmised. One day was actually a very short period of time, and it was normal to be comprehending for this long. But Ye Futian had performed so brilliantly before. He had comprehended 49 swords in an hour, which was at odds with what he was doing now.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had not reacted to anything in all that time. He was just cultivating.


    Everyone waited like this for three days. Everyone thought that it would have been quicker, but Ye Futian sat there the whole time, comprehending the way of swordsmanship.


    Some people ran out of patience and said, "It looks like we expected too much. Let''s go."


    On saying this, they flashed away.


    Once they had taken the leave, other people followed, feeling a bit disappointed. They did not know how long they would have to wait. They had their own cultivation to work on and did not want to waste too much time here.


    However, at that moment, the endless sword will flowed back into Ye Futian''s body. He opened his eyes and looked forward. He stood up.


    "He is finished..." Everyone was speechless. The time they had waited for had finally come.


    "Three days. Perhaps we expected too much," said Ye Man as she saw Ye Futian move.


    "We''ve already waited three days, might as well watch," whispered Yi Tianyu. Ye Man did not say anything else. Ye Futian walked forward to the fiftieth peak.


    "49 swords in three days, and from now on, he will be even slower. I don''t know if I can wait until he finally fights Li Daozi," someone said.


    Ye Futian continued forward step by step and walked past the 50th peak.


    Just as everyone was discussing this, the sword mountain suddenly burst forth with sword light that shone upon Ye Futian''s body.


    He was bathed in brilliant sword light, and he continued walking forward. Then, the 51st mountain lit up!

 1545 Rejoice

    He had comprehended a sword in a single step!


    Those who had been about to leave suddenly froze, as if they were completely unable to move. They stared at Ye Futian in shock.


    He had comprehended 49 swords in a single hour, then had sat in contemplation for three days.


    And just when everyone had been sure that he would spend even more time here, he had finally returned to his former state. By the time he had taken a single step, a sword had already been comprehended.


    But how was that even possible?


    After the first 49 swords, the rest were no longer representative of a single sword style. How could he have comprehended one of them with a single thought?


    A group of figures flashed over towards Ye Futian. They stared at the figure that was bathed in the endless, brilliant light of the Way.


    No one in the Divine Palace could compare with the speed with which he had comprehended the first 49 swords. Was he trying to create some sort of unprecedented historical event here?


    Could it be that the three days he had spent in contemplation had been used to form the basis for today''s performance?


    "This guy is putting the disciples of Sword Palace to shame." Zhuang Hong had stayed the whole time. How could the swordsmen of the Sword Palace maintain any of their dignity after watching Ye Futian?


    Although Li Daozi had comprehended 49 swords in a day, he had needed to spend a little bit of time after each sword, as each one grew more and more difficult.


    But Ye Futian had gone right to the 51st sword after the 50th as if there had been no difference between them and the first and second swords. He had comprehended them in a single thought.


    Yaya was among the crowd as well. She had comprehended many swords in the past few days as well, but at that moment, she was also speechless seeing how easily Ye Futian comprehended these swords.


    When had the swords of Sword Comprehension Mountain been this easy to comprehend?


    At that moment, Ye Futian was walking through the mountains. He looked at the fifty-second sword peak with eyes still flashing with a brilliant, marvelous light. In a flash, the images of swords were imprinted in his mind. He could tell just by looking at what kind of sword will that was.


    Great oaks grow from the smallest acorns, and everything rises up from the cornerstone. He had spent three days contemplating swordsmanship. He had thoroughly comprehended everything on the basis of those first 49 swords. He had achieved mastery through a comprehensive study of swordsmanship. Now, any sword that was born from those 49 swords would not fail him. Now he was even able to easily comprehend the first few swords just by looking at them.


    Suddenly, more sword images appeared in Ye Futian''s mind. Sword will moved towards him from the peak, and sword light shot up into the sky. He began to walk forward again, as light and easy as a cloud.


    He had comprehended the 52nd sword.


    Although Ye Futian was carefree and unrestrained, the cultivators who were watching him were absolutely speechless. Although he had paused for a moment, it had only been for a brief period of time. He had still comprehended the next sword with a single thought.


    Many people were thinking the same thing as Yaya. Could the swords of Sword Comprehension Mountain really be so easy to comprehend?


    It seemed to have been absolutely effortless. But if so, why could the disciples of Sword Palace not do it so easily?


    Could this swordsman from Taixuan Mountain really be that talented?


    None of the disciples of Sword Palace could compare to him?


    Afterward, he contemplated the 53rd sword, the 54th, the 55th...he began to slow down. He was no longer able to comprehend them in a single moment. But even though he was slowing down, that was only compared to everything that he had done before. As far as those watching were concerned, he was still doing it in the space of a single thought. He looked at each sword mountain for only a moment, then he would comprehend the sword.


    He was going so fast that within an hour he had comprehended up to the 72nd sword.


    "How many days did it take for Li Daozi to comprehend 72 swords?" the disciples of Sword Palace asked each other. They were naturally comparing him and Ye Futian.


    "Seven days," someone answered. The memory was still fresh. After all, when Li Daozi came to the Divine Palace to seek the Way, he had gone to Sword Comprehension Mountain and had caused a stir. Thus, many people still remembered it. The amount of time that he had taken to comprehend all those swords was something that most people could not match.


    Now he had been surpassed. In fact, the word "surpassed" was not strong enough to describe what had happened.


    Li Daozi had taken seven days to comprehend 72 swords. Ye Futian had done it in an hour.


    This made everyone feel as if they were in a dream. A single hour! It was almost frightening.


    "It is meaningless to compare him to Li Daozi," said the man who had spoken before with a sight. "As far as I know, this is the fastest that anyone in the history of the Divine Palace has comprehended 72 swords."


    Many people heard him say this, and they blinked in surprise as their hearts trembled once again.


    A swordsman from Taixuan Mountain had come here and broken the record.


    This...


    At that moment, many elders opened their eyes within various halls and temples in the Divine Palace. Their senses stretched out through space and descended upon Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    One of the elders in Sword Palace even stopped cultivating. He stepped high up into the air and looked across the distance towards Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    At that moment, several figures walked to his side and looked off into the distance, whispering, "72 swords."


    "Mm, 72 swords, and in only one hour," answered the elder softly. He seemed very calm, but he was disturbed on the inside. Otherwise, why would someone who was as high level as him care about some junior? Moreover, why would he go out himself and reveal to the world that he was paying such close attention?"


    "Is that a record?" asked the man beside him.


    "Yes," answered the elder with a nod. It was only one word, but everyone there could feel the weight of that word.


    He had set a record for contemplating the first 72 swords, and now there were only nine left. But the record for these last nine swords could probably not be broken. After all, this depended on the cultivator''s level, and Ye Futian was not at a high enough level.


    Comprehending the 81st sword meant that you would forge a sword Wheel of the Great Path and become a Sword Emperor. And the elder had heard that Shen Jing had just reached the Nirvana level at the Land of Proving the Way. How could he become a Renhuang so quickly?


    But even so, this record for comprehending 72 swords was enough to prove this man''s genius talent.


    "Is he a personal disciple of Lord Taixuan?" someone asked. Such an outstandingly talented swordsman who had cultivated at Taixuan Mountain could not be just an ordinary cultivator. Moreover, he had been part of the quota of people who went to the Land of Proving the Way.


    This implied that Taixuan Mountain had known how outstanding he was.


    "Lord Taixuan said that he would never take another disciple. Perhaps they are not master and disciple in name, but are in reality," someone answered. Everyone nodded to themselves. This was probably the case. Such a talented swordsman must have been personally taught by Lord Taixuan.


    "If that is the case, then it is truly a pity," sighed the old man. He was a man who appreciated talent, and he wished to take a disciple. But since this man was a disciple of Lord Taixuan, he would not be able to steal him. Also, Shen Jing had not expressed any interest in entering the Divine Palace.


    Moreover, there was only one person at the Divine Palace who could compare with Lord Taixuan given his current level, so how could he even think of stealing his disciple? Even if the Sword Palace made a move, they would not have the advantage.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was not thinking about any of this. How could he know that an elder in the Divine Palace had already taken notice of him?


    After the 72nd sword, Ye Futian''s steps slowed, but he continued forward. He looked at the 73rd sword peak. His eyes seemed to be filled with radiant light. He could clearly feel the true will of swordsmanship within that peak. This was the reason that he had been able to comprehend the first 49 peaks so easily.


    But at that moment, even though he could feel the will within, and he wanted to link up with it, it would not be easy.


    The image of a sword appeared in his mind, seeming to be extremely profound. This was an ultimate sword art that had been formed from the first 49 sword arts. Even he would have a hard time comprehending this one.


    Ye Futian stopped for a moment. Finally, the 73rd sword peak shone with brilliant light. It resonated with Ye Futian, and a bridge of sword will seemed to form between them.


    "He''s still so fast!" Everyone was shocked by this. Endless sword will appeared around Ye Futian as well. Sword will flowed through his veins, and he had forged a swordsman''s body.


    He continued forward and began comprehending the 74th sword.


    This time, he spent half an hour comprehending it.


    The 75th sword took two hours.


    The 76th sword took five.


    The 77th sword took an entire day.


    Everyone waited three whole days before he comprehended the 78th sword.


    There were only three sword peaks left that he had not comprehended.


    In less than ten days, he had comprehended 78 swords, and there were only three left.


    Everyone felt numb. They had no words to express the astonishment in their hearts. They had never seen talent like this before.


    However long it took him to comprehend the final swords, the people here would wait that long.


    Before Li Daozi had come here this time, he had also only had three swords left, and now he only had two. But how long had it taken until he had reached this point?


    And how long had it taken Shen Jing of Taixuan Mountain?


    Ye Futian''s body had transformed into a sword body of the Great path, and sword will flowed all over him.


    He looked towards the last three sword peaks. Sword will wrapped around the 79th sword peak. From what he could see, this was not just a simple mountain but was instead a sculpture of a sword god. The Great Path filled the mountain.


    He saw the image of a sword god and then saw many sword shadows appear, each one looking incomparably powerful.


    "You cannot comprehend this sword. Take some time to sit and contemplate it," said Li Daozi as he sat there. Ye Futian looked at him, then smiled and nodded. He did not continue trying to comprehend it. It seemed as if he had taken the other man''s words to heart, and so he sat down and began contemplating.


    This made everyone look surprised. Ye Futian really trusted Li Daozi that much?


    In fact, Ye Futian had not stopped because of Li Daozi''s words. He had done so because, as soon as he had seen that sword art, he had realized that he could not comprehend it.


    The first 49 swords were one level, and the next ones had been another level. These last three were at a level all their own.


    If he wanted to comprehend them, he needed to thoroughly understand all of the previous sword arts.


    Thus, when he heard what Li Daozi said, he sat right down and began cultivating. In fact, even if Li Daozi had not said anything, he would have done that.


    Li Daozi did not look back at him, but when he sensed what Ye Futian was doing, he rejoiced inwardly. He rejoiced that this swordsman from Taixuan Mountain was even more talented than he had imagined. He rejoiced that even though they were foes, he was still willing to listen to his advice.


    This was an opponent who was worthy of respect. He was looking forward to their battle!

 1546 Battle of Swordsmanship

    Ye Futian was cultivating in front of a sword peak, acting like nothing in the outside world mattered to him. At that moment, the only things he was thinking about were swords.


    The images of countless swords appeared in his mind, but Ye Futian still was not able to comprehend their most important elements. Although he could clearly see what kinds of swords they were, he could not understand their essence.


    He knew that this sword art was fast, extremely fast. You would become one with your sword. There would be swords everywhere, and you would be everwhere.


    After comprehending for a while, Ye Futian shifted his gaze from the sword peak and looked to another one to his right. This was the mountain that Li Daozi was at, the second of the sword peaks. Their two mountains were not very different, and in fact, it could even be said that they were parallel.


    At that moment, Li Daozi was immersed in his cultivation.


    As Ye Futian was looking at the sword peak, sword will flowed across his body, making everyone look surprised. What was Ye Futian trying to do?


    He had still not comprehended the third mountain. Was he planning on skipping it and going right to the second one?


    Ye Futian could sense endless sword will gathering at the sword peak. Thousands of swords appeared in his mind, producing a certain resonance with each other and with the Great Path. This formed a particular frequency, and in the end, all the swords merged into one, making the sword will become even more terrible.


    "So sharp!" Ye Futian said quietly. Although he was not able to comprehend these two swords, he could still sense what the essences of these two sword mountains were.


    In the past, the cultivators of these sword mountains had informed everyone that they could use the 49 sword styles as the basis to create more sword styles. In the end, all the swordsmanship was the same, and each style had the same two essences.


    Speed and sharpness.


    Incredible speed and incredible sharpness were what every swordsman sought after.


    The sword was the king of the battlefield, the master of all attacks. It was fast and fierce. If a sword were not fast, then at this level, it would be hard for it to hurt anyone. If it was not sharp, it could not break through anyone''s defenses.


    Swordsmen pursued ultimate speed and ultimate sharpness. They all pursued a superior form of swordsmanship.


    Ye Futian had not been comprehending for very long. He stared at the sword peak with a profound look in his eyes. His thoughts entered the mountain, but he soon withdrew his divine spirit. He understood now. No wonder Zhuang Hong had said to him that when he comprehended the 81 swords, he would be able to forge a sword Wheel of the Great Path.


    In fact, one could say that sentence in the negative as well. If you could not forge a sword Wheel of the Great Path, then you could not comprehend the 81st sword.


    The two were connected. He was absolutely unable to comprehend this sword right now. He did not know if he had to actually reach the Renhuang plane before he could comprehend it, but at the very least, it was impossible to do in such a short time.


    Once he had understood all this, Ye Futian returned to the third mountain. He looked at the endless fast swords and the countless sword shadows.


    He sat there in contemplation for seven days.


    No one left over the course of these seven days, and even more people came to watch. He only had three swords left, and they wanted to see if he could comprehend them all, or at least how many of them he could comprehend.


    Once he had done so, would Li Daozi fight him?


    At that moment, Ye Futian was dazzling. He seemed to have formed a true sword body. And it was not just him. The sword peak was shining brightly. Endless sword will flowed over it.


    A beam of sword light shot up from Ye Futian into the air, cutting through the sky. It moved incredibly quickly, then disappeared in an instant. A sword slash appeared in the air.


    Woosh!


    Then there was a second sword, and then a third... Sword after sword shot into the air, and beams of sword light bloomed. Soon, endless sword marks appeared on Ye Futian''s body, and countless sword shadows were flying through the air.


    It seemed to be responding to Ye Futian. Sword shadows shrieked across the sword peak and then shot up into the clouds.


    He had comprehended the 71st sword.


    Shen Jing had done the same thing as Li Daozi. Only the last two swords were left.


    Moreover, the time that Shen Jing had taken to do so was not at all comparable to the time that Li Daozi had taken.


    It was a new record for sure.


    "He''s going to go all the way," whispered Zhuang Hong. "He is going to continue. He is going to comprehend all the swords except for the last one."


    "He is truly a masterfully talented swordsman," Yi Tianyu said. He now wanted to fight Ye Futian more than ever. How would he have felt if he had known Ye Futian''s true identity? Would he still want to fight him?


    The disciples of Sword Palace were speechless. Would Ye Futian be able to comprehend all the swords?


    He had already comprehended so many in such a short time and had caught up to Li Daozi.


    At that moment, Li Daozi opened his eyes as he at there cultivating before the eightieth Sword Mountain. He stood up and turned around. His long robe whipped in the wind. Sword will flowed out of his eyes as he looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had comprehended 79 swords, just like him.


    Ye Futian could naturally feel Li Daozi''s sword will. He looked back at him.


    He was the foremost junior member of the Divine Sword Li Family, the strongest person below the Renhuang level at Sword Palace, and one of the strongest people in the Divine Palace. He had been waiting for him here. If he had not been able to comprehend this many swords, then he would not have had the right to face him and would have no right to be arrogant.


    But he had not comprehended all these swords because of Li Daozi. He had done it just for the purpose of comprehending swordsmanship.


    But at this moment, he and Li Daozi were standing at the same point. They were both right in front of the 80th sword peak.


    Li Daozi looked at Ye Futian and said, "I am Li Daozi, a member of the Li family and a disciple of Sword Palace."


    Li Daozi obviously wanted to fight. The fact that he had introduced himself like that showed how much he respected his opponent.


    The fact that Ye Futian had made it this far showed that he was worthy of respect. He would fight Ye Futian to test his swordsmanship and to seek the Path.


    His swordsmanship was not quite good enough, so he had to seize any opportunity he could get to improve. He was not sure if this talented, brilliant, famous swordsman from Taixuan Mountain would be able to give him this opportunity.


    "I am Shen Jing, a musician and swordsman from Taixuan Mountain," said Ye Futian. Previously, he had introduced himself as a musician, but now that he had displayed his talent for swordsmanship, he had begun introducing himself as both a musician and a swordsman.


    "The two of us have comprehended the same amount of swords. Neither of us will have the advantage in this battle," said Li Daozi. As he said this, he raised his hand. In a flash, endless sharp swords appeared on all the peaks, then floated up into the air. They shone with brilliant light and reflected off of each other.


    All of the swords pointed at Ye Futian.


    Previously, Zhuang Hong and Ye Futian had moved mountains at Celestial Worthy Mountain. Now Li Daozi was using mountains as his swords.


    Everyone looked up at the 79 peaks. Swords floated in the air above them all, and all of them were pointed towards Ye Futian. Terrifying sword will spread out from each one of them, and at the same time, they were trembling and resonating with each other.


    And not only that, but sword will was flowing around the swords as well, and each thread of sword will seemed like an actual sword.


    Li Daozi stood on the 80th mountain like a sword master. He was bathed in endless sword light.


    "What powerful sword will!"


    Everyone was looking up into the air at the floating words. This was Li Daozi''s power. He was the most powerful person at the Sword Palace below the Renhuang level, and he was not far from reaching the Renhuang plane.


    Li Daozi waved his hand and then chopped it towards Ye Futian. "Instant Sword!" he spat.


    This was the Instant Sword of the Divine Sword Li Family, but Li Daozi had used the endless sword will from the mountains to form it. At that moment, endless sword light pierced through the air and shot towards Ye Futian in an instant. There were 79 sword mountains and 79 swords.


    Ye Futian was about to be destroyed by this sword will. It seemed like he would be turned into dust.


    As Li Daozi attacked, Ye Futian seemed to produce a certain resonance with the sword mountains. As the swords descended from the sky, he pointed upwards.


    As he pointed, a beam of brilliant sword light erupted above, and a light curtain swept out around him.


    No one could see Ye Futian being covered by all the swords; it just looked like a chaotic scene. 79 swords descended, surrounded by endless sword will, and they smashed into Ye Futian. But Ye Futian pulled out a single sword, and this sword resonated with the sword mountains. The 79 sword peaks linked up with his sword, forming a celestial sword curtain that protected Ye Futian from above.


    The disciples of Sword Palace trembled as they beheld this scene. The two of them were displaying dazzling swordsmanship. It was simply terrifying.


    Both Li Daozi and Shen Jing were geniuses with a sword.


    When he saw that he had been blocked, Li Daozi still had no expression, and there was not the slightest trace of disturbance in his eyes. He stepped forward, his robe flapping in the wind. Not a single sword above Ye Futian had been destroyed, and they produced a sharp sound. The sword will around them grew stronger and stronger, and more swords flew over from the mountains.


    Li Daozi stretched out his hand downward. A powerful pressure surged down, and every one of the swords shrieked as they cut through the sword curtain bit by bit as they were forced downward.


    Ye Futian stretched out both his hands, and the sword will flowing off the sword mountains not only transformed into a sword curtain, many sharp swords formed and appeared around him.


    "Go," he said. Countless swords spiraled upwards, sweeping out from within his sword curtain and smashing into his opponent''s swords and violently destroying them. A powerful storm of sword will whipped up between them.


    "They are well-matched," thought everyone. Their swords seemed to be of equal power as they faced each other and were destroyed.


    At that moment, they were not the only ones who were watching the battle. They could faintly sense that there seemed to be people from the Divine Palace whose divine spirits were descending upon them. They were observing the fight.


    Many Renhuang level figures must have been secretly watching.


    At that moment, there were several Sword Emperors within the Divine Palace standing together and looking off into the distance.


    "Li Daozi has been cultivating at the Divine Palace for a long time, and his sword arts are quite impressive. Shen Jing is incredibly talented, and he has a powerful ability to comprehend swords. But in terms of comparing their sword will, I am more interested in Li Daozi," said one of them.


    "It is unlikely that he will lose," said someone else. No one else expressed their thoughts.


    The elder nodded, then continued to watch the battle from a distance. Even he could not see the outcome of this battle. After all, the two of them were displaying incredible power!

 1547 A Single Sword Stroke Cleaves Anything

    Li Daozi stared at Ye Futian. The two of them had both comprehended 79 swords, and thus were well matched in terms of how well they were able to use the sword will of the sword peaks. Victory or defeat would be determined by their own power then.


    Li Daozi''s body shone brilliantly. He formed a seal with both hands, and dazzling light bloomed from his body. Endless sword Qi flowed over him and swept up into the sky where it formed a divine sword.


    When this sword was formed, there was endless chanting between heaven and earth, and it seemed as if all things were bowing down to it.


    This was Li Daozi''s sword spirit. In the instant that it appeared, strange illusions appeared in the sky, and endless sword light shone. Golden runes descended from on high, filling the vast area. Each one seemed to contain sword will.


    The sword spirit split apart. The one sword split into two, then into three, then into countless swords. Soon, the sky was filled with swords, each one with a rune filled with sword will etched upon it.


    Ye Futian looked all around him as they fell. The endless runes were flowing towards him, summoning sword will from the mountain peaks. Li Daozi''s swords covered Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    Sword will surged within Ye Futian. His sword spirit appeared, and although it was not as brilliant as Li Daozi''s, it had a more powerful aura, which made a terrible burst of sword light sweep out around him.


    Crack!


    There was a sharp sound the swords imprinted with runes fell swiftly towards Ye Futian, leaving golden sword marks in the air itself.


    Woosh! Ye Futian looked up, and with a single thought, a sword pierced through the storm of sword Qi, leaving a slash mark through the air as it cut through the sky.


    At the moment that the two swords met, they cut through each other. They both shattered into pieces and then disappeared.


    However, the sky split open, and there was a horrific noise as more golden divine swords fell from the air towards Ye Futian.


    Heaven Splitting Swords appeared all around Ye Futian, destroying the oncoming golden swords. But up in the sky, the golden swords had formed a river of swords that was rushing wildly towards Ye Futian to swallow him up.


    Ye Futian looked up into the sky. All of the swords would reach him in a moment.


    Powerful sword will surged from him, and he let loose with the Cleave of All Things. In a flash, countless words slashed into the air with the Cleave of All Things. They were not only fast, but they were also cutting in different directions, completely destroying the river of swords.


    Countless people were watching from a distance. The area where the two of them were fighting had been swallowed up by swords.


    "This sword will..." The cultivators who were watching were speechless. Anyone of those swords could have killed a Nirvana level cultivator. With so many swords falling, they could have destroyed an army of Saints.


    The 79th sword peak resonated with the two of them, and sword will surged up into the sky.


    Li Daozi looked at Ye Futian and stepped forward. He was floating up in the air, and endless sword will gathered together around him, integrating itself into his sword spirit. At the same time, numerous divine swords appeared around his sword spirit. They all shot forward at once, as if propelled by a single thought.


    Woosh!


    The swords fell, making it seem like they were in a world of swords, and the apocalypse was coming. Heaven-slaying Sword Light shone from a massive Falling Sky Sword up in the air and shot towards Ye Futian.


    Endless sword will thundered above Ye Futian''s head as the Cleave of All Things swept all around him. He raised his sword spirit with both hands and sliced it into the sky. The sword will flowed backward, destroying everything within it.


    Slice! Slice! The terrible sound of swords slashing rang out, and the air itself seemed to be cut by terrible sword marks. A divine sword descended from the sky through the backward-flowing sword will, resisting all methods used to stop it. Even the Fleeting Divine Storm could not disrupt it. It cut through the storm of Fleeting Divine Swords as it fell towards Ye Futian.


    "The Divine Sword Li Family''s Sword of Doomsday versus Lord Taixuan''s Fleeting Divine Sword. Which one is stronger?" Everyone was shaken as they watched the magnificent scene unfolding before their eyes. The wanted to see which of the two combatants was stronger.


    The Sword of Doomsday was the ultimate technique of the Divine Sword Li Family, but the one that Li Daozi was using now surpassed even that. He had integrated what he had learned in the Divine Palace into it. Each sword seal in the river of swords contained incomparably terrible killing power within it.


    Ye Futian''s eyes grew cold when he saw the Sword of Doomsday piercing through the storm. He pointed into the sky, and the Fleeting Divine Swords suddenly dissipated, then reformed and shot towards Li Daozi.


    The Fleeting Divine Swords could not destroy the Sword of Doomsday, but neither could the Sword of Doomsday destroy the Fleeting Divine Swords.


    The two of them used different sword techniques. Their attacks had destroyed each other, but they could not pierce each others'' defenses.


    Li Daozi looked at the oncoming swords, but his expression was unchanged. His body transformed into that of a sword god, and endless sword will burst forth from him. Swordsmanship flowed through his veins, and sword marks were etched into his bones. His whole self seemed like a sword.


    His thousands of swords gathered together into one, and incomparably brilliant sword light shone from him. If he could not block the Fleeting Divine Swords, then he would not try to.


    Crack! Divine sword light pierced through him, but he still looked unperturbed. Countless sword runes appeared all over his body, giving forth powerful sword will that collided with the oncoming swords.


    Even amidst the destructive storm, he still gazed down at Ye Futian. He had already forged a sword body, which he had transformed into. The Fleeting Divine Swords would never be able to destroy him.


    He wanted to see if Ye Futian could withstand the Sword of Doomsday.


    "A sword body of the Great Path!" Everyone trembled as they stared at Li Daozi. This was crazy! As the two swordsmen fought, it was not a battle between two swords, but rather a battle between a man and a sword.


    As he watched the Sword of Doomsday coming towards him, Ye Futian''s figure flashed, and he disappeared from where he had been.


    The Sword of Doomsday seemed to have locked onto him, and it pursued him, but Ye Futian pierced through the heavens and the earth like he was a word himself, and flew up to the highest part of the sky.


    "Li Daozi withstood his sword, could it be that Shen Jing does not dare to directly face Li Daozi''s sword?" someone asked. However, Ye Futian had not yet forged a sword body of the Great Path, so there was nothing unusual about this.


    But this Shen Jing was so fast. He was skilled at the Great Path of Space.


    Woosh! The Sword of Doomsday flew back to Li Daozi and entered his body, reconnecting with his sword spirit. His sword will grew even more ferocious. He had felt his opponent''s Fleeting Divine Sword threaten his life spirit, and so he had summoned his sword spirit back to defend himself.


    Ye Futian had reached the highest part of the sky, and he was level with the mountain peaks. He looked at Li Daozi. He had cultivated his defenses to be incredibly formidable, so even the Fleeting Divine Sword could not destroy them.


    He had a boy of the Great Path, and his flesh was made of pure will. He was truly at the limits of the Saint plane.


    Li Daozi''s flesh resonated with the Great Path. He looked up at Ye Futian. Was he trying to avoid his sword?


    He closed his eyes and sensed the Great Path of Swordsmanship with his divine spirit. An incomparably brilliant light shone from all the sword peaks, and many divine swords shot forth from them, floating through the air as they covered the sky.


    In a flash, the entire area was completely covered in flying divine swords.


    "Burying Swordsmanship!" The disciples of Divine Palace felt their hearts tremble.


    Moreover, this was not the end. Li Daozi continued to form sword seals, which flew through the air endlessly. Suddenly, countless swords appeared within all the sword will, all of them pointing at Ye Futian. The sword light that streamed from them was powerful enough to split the air itself.


    "Rending Swordsmanship!" Everyone trembled once again. Li Daozi stepped forward, and everyone could see that he was flying among not only swords but also human figures. These human figures merged with the swords as they flew through the air.


    "Transforming Swordsmanship!" The disciples of the Divine Palace were shaken to their core. This was a sword technique that only someone who had formed a soul of the Way could perform. Li Daozi was still a step away from doing so, but he had still managed to use Transforming Swordsmanship, meaning that he was breaking through his limits.


    He had sought out Shen Jing so that he could test himself and break into the next level.


    In the end, there were thousands of swords pointing at Ye Futian, and he was buried within them.


    "How is this sword?" Li Daozi said to Ye Futian. Previously, Ye Futian had evaded his sword, but how could he do that with this one?


    "You have a lot of swords here, but this is all just a bit too flashy. Since you have cultivated the Way of Swordsmanship, you must know that a single sword can cut through a thousand," answered Ye Futian.


    Li Daozi looked at him and said, "Show me."


    One sword could cut through a thousand? How could that be?


    He had so many swords, and none of them was anything less than a masterpiece of craftsmanship.


    Even those watching the battle thought that Ye Futian was being arrogant. He actually thought that Li Daozi was being too flashy! Every one of the swords that he had formed was incredibly powerful.


    How could Shen Jing cut through them all with a single sword?


    His Fleeting Divine Sword was not strong enough. It would not be able to defeat Li Daozi''s sword technique.


    Ye Futian looked down, with sword will flowing all around him. All of the sword peaks lit up with sword light.


    "Come here, swords!" called Ye Futian. Suddenly, countless swords flew from the peaks towards him, circling in the air above him. The people watching could see many of the peaks lighting up, including the 80th.


    "This..." everyone looked shocked. He had comprehended the 80th sword. There was only one left.


    In the instant that the 80th sword peak lit up, the countless swords roared and shook as they resonated with Ye Futian''s body. A terrible storm of sword will whipped through the sky.


    "Return to each other!"


    The countless swords that were resonating at the same frequency merged together, and suddenly a burst of sword will exploded, causing all the swords in the sky to clank and clatter.


    "Attack!" shouted Li Daozi. His swords buried the sky, but at that moment, a terrible storm of sword will was building up on Ye Futian''s sword.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    All of the swords were shattered into dust. Every sword in the sky was destroyed.


    Everyone watched this scene in shock. How strong was this sword of Ye Futian''s?


    Ye Futian formed a seal with both hands, and the countless sword images that stretched as far as the eye could see lit up and resonated with each other.


    At that moment, it seemed like there was only a single sword.


    "Go," said Ye Futian, and the sword shot out.


    Everything in this sword''s path was destroyed. The Sword of Doomsday in front of Li Daozi shot out to meet it, but it was still shattered by the oncoming sword.


    The sword reached its destination, appearing right in front of Li Daozi''s forehead!

 1548 Simply

    One sword to break all methods!


    Everyone''s eyes were fixated there, staring at the scene in front of them.


    Ye Futian did not exaggerate; he did it with his sword. All swords resonated into a sword, and no matter what was thrown at it, be it burying, splitting, turning, or even the Divine Sword of Doomsday, they were all smashed and destroyed with only his sword.


    Feeling the sword might spreading out from the sword in front of Li Daozi''s brow chakra, many gradually came to their senses again.


    As the first person of the Divine Sword Li Family, and the direct disciple of the Palace Lord of the Divine Sword Palace, and the premier swordsman under Renhuang��Li Daozi��was defeated by Shen Jing, the swordsman from Taixuan Mountain.


    Li Daozi, who was one of the strongest figures in his generation at the Divine Palace, had lost some of his luster in the eyes of the others.


    However, everyone was more shocked by Ye Futian''s strength. This disciple, secretly taught by Lord Taixuan, who had given him instruction on swordsmanship and music, aside from his absolute domineering comprehension of swordsmanship.


    There were 81 sword peaks on the Sword Comprehension Mountain. He only heard that the last sword peak remained unsolved. Now he relied on the comprehension of the 80th sword peak to defeat Li Daozi by the sword. The battle of the trial and the battle today was enough to spread the name of Shen Jing from Taixuan Mountain all over the world.


    After today, there would definitely be a place for him in the future of the Upper Heavens Realm.


    Of course, the premise was that he would not fall before he got there.


    Li Daozi gazed at the sword in front of his brow chakra. He felt extremely complicated at the moment.


    He had lost to a swordsman from Taixuan Mountain.


    This battle was initiated by him, and it wasn''t simply because he wanted revenge for Li Xun, as that would be meaningless. What he wanted was to use Ye Futian''s sword to refine his own sword, so he kept waiting until Ye Futian had resolved the sword before him. Otherwise, he thought that the other really did not even have the qualifications to challenge him.


    His patience was rewarded. Ye Futian had finally arrived, and he did not disappoint. He exhibited super abilities in swordsmanship, and in the end, the 80th sword of the solution finally pointed to him.


    "So, this is the 80th sword," Li Daozi mumbled. Just as his voice fell, the infinite sword will between heaven and earth resonated, and an extremely brilliant divine light erupted from his body, just like a sword.


    The resonating swordsmanship finally united, and an extremely bright glow of the swordsmanship bloomed from his body, directly breaking the sword in front of his brow chakra.


    Ye Futian didn''t interfere but merely looked at Li Daozi quietly. The 80th sword peak and Li Daozi had created a certain resonance, and there was sword will flowing to his body.


    Li Daozi leaned slightly forward toward Ye Futian, saluted him with the sword, and then turned to walk toward the last sword mountain. This bow appeared to be showing Yefutian his gratitude for testing his sword.


    Even though he was defeated, his strength was, in fact, progressing.


    Although Li Daozi was the first person of the descendant of the Divine Sword Li Family, the family had high hopes for him, and Li Daozi had always carried these many hopes and dreams on his back. However, he never thought that he would be unparalleled. There would always be someone else out there stronger than him.


    For example, in the Divine Palace, there was a person that even he would need to respect��someone by consensus of the Divine Palace regarded as the first person of the descendants.


    Now there appeared a genius talent who had defeated him. This was not an entirely unacceptable reality.


    What he wanted to do was to continually surpass himself, not just be invincible in the world.


    In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, there were countless outstanding figures. Who could truly be invincible?


    That man was hailed as the first of the descendants at the Divine Palace and was even reputed as the strongest this generation had seen in the Upper Heavens Realm. No one could compete with him. Maybe there was no one who could match his likes in the entire 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    In the way of cultivation, only by constantly surpassing oneself could one surpass all others naturally, even those who he once looked up to.


    His sword did not seek to be unparalleled but only to move forward.


    As long as he did not retreat, he would not dishonor the swordsmanship.


    Ye Futian watched as Li Daozi was walking away. Li Daozi had come to the last sword peak to comprehend. It was as if he wanted to unlock the last sword to cast the Divine Wheel of the Great Path and complete this last step to break through into Renhuang.


    Everyone at Comprehension Sword Mountain understood Li Daozi''s intention. No one would look down on him because he was defeated. How many in this generation at Divine Palace dared to boast that they could best Li Daozi?


    If someone could, then there was probably only one person who could do it. What right did they have to look down on Li Daozi because of his defeat?


    Li Daozi''s defeat was not because he was weak, but only because he had met a stronger opponent. Ye Futian had unlocked one more sword than him, and perhaps it was because of this sword that Li Daozi was slightly at a disadvantage. Supposed Li Daozi had unlocked the battle of the 80th sword a little earlier. There would no telling about the outcome.


    Of course, there were no "ifs."


    Defeat was defeat.


    It''s just that, even in defeat, Li Daozi was still the peerless swordsman, the extraordinary figure of the Divine Palace.


    Likewise, Ye Futian walked toward that last sword mountain. Everyone thought that he had already broken the record of Sword Comprehension Mountain, and only the last sword was left. Could it be that he would not overlook this sword?


    However, he was not yet at the realm, so it should be difficult to resolve it.


    Ye Futian studied it for a moment and then gave up. He knew that he could not unlock the sword for the time being. Turning around, Ye Futian moved away, wanting to leave.


    Everyone was slightly relieved. He had given it up after all. If Ye Futian were able to unlock this sword, it would be an unimaginable horror, as he had just broken into Nirvana not that long ago.


    "How about it?" Yi Tianyu smiled and asked Ye Man, who was beside him.


    Ye Man looked at Ye Futian and said, "The speed of his unlocking the sword is unparalleled, and his perception is extremely outstanding. He''s a rare talent. If he is willing to stay at the Divine Palace to cultivate, there must be many powerful characters who would be willing to accept him as a direct disciple."


    "That goes without saying. His battle with Li Daozi was probably seen by many at the Sword Palace," Yi Tianyu whispered. He was obviously correct on that account.


    Indeed, the Sword Palace had watched this battle closely.


    "Let''s go." Lifting his feet, Yi Tianyu walked toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian naturally noticed Yi Tianyu coming this way and stopped. Yi Tianyu laughed, saying, "Brother Shen Jing''s sword, would be hard-pressed to find its equal at the Divine Palace."


    "Not even you?" Ye Futian suddenly asked. Yi Tianyu was surprised when he heard the question. Clearly, he didn''t expect Ye Futian to speak like this. There was no match in the Divine Palace, and Yi Tianyu himself was also a disciple of the Divine Palace.


    Next to him, Ye Man frowned when she heard Ye Futian''s blunt words. This was clearly a sign of contempt for anyone other than himself. To her, this was a great disrespect to Yi Tianyu.


    "Just thinking out loud, please don''t take it to heart," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "It''s okay." Yi Tianyu didn''t mind. He appeared quite diplomatic in the Divine Palace.


    "Of course, not including him," said Ye Man, who was next to him. Yi Tianyu may not have cared, but she cared. She looked at Ye Futian with cold indifference. Even though Shen Jing was talented enough, he lacked respect for others in his speech.


    Ye Futian glanced at Ye Man and smiled. "If there is ever a chance, I would like to experience it for myself."


    As he finished speaking, Ye Futian walked past Yi Tianyu. Since their first battle, hopefully, Yi Tianyu had not just been sitting around and had made no progress?


    They tested the land of trials, and the top disciples from the Divine Palace each had their own share of fruits of the Way, and Yi Tianyu also had this qualification. If he was progressing, then Yi Tianyu must have been progressing as well. It was just that his level of strength at this point was an unknown.


    However, it was bound to be stronger than the previous battle.


    Ye Man had great confidence in Yi Tianyu.


    Yi Tianyu was a little surprised. His intention was to be friendly with Ye Futian, but Ye Futian seemed to be of the mind of rejecting such goodwill. How did he and Zhuang Hong come together before?


    As Yi Tianyu watched Ye Futian''s departing figure, Ye Man''s face displayed some displeasure. She said, "This victory over Li Daozi presumably made him think that he is invincible when it comes to Divine Palace. He is a little too conceited."


    "It''s normal for such characters to be proud like this." Yi Tianyu didn''t take it to heart but felt that this cultivator from Taixuan Mountain was very sure of himself.


    Ye Man was speechless when she heard Yi Tianyu''s response. Presently, Yi Tianyu''s personality seemed to have changed, and there was no telling if it was related to what had happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Actually, trying is also fine. It could be exciting," Zhuang Hong, who was next to him, said with a smile. Yi Tianyu glanced at him and asked, "Why didn''t you guys try it before?"


    "He didn''t ask me to try." Zhuang Hong smiled.


    "Now, do you think Shen Jing can be beaten?" Yi Tianyu asked.


    "I''m not sure, and now there''s only one person at the Divine Palace who could say that with certainty," Zhuang Hong said. He was not so delusional; he wasn''t even sure if he could beat Li Daozi.


    Except for him, no one could boast of confidence in defeating Shen Jing, who had bested Li Daozi.


    "For a definitive victory, indeed, it was only him," Yi Tianyu nodded in agreement, demonstrating just how much they respect this "he" that they were all talking about.


    Publicly recognized at Shangxiao Divine Palace as the premier talent who represented this generation, and regarded by the elders of the Divine Palace as the future leader of Divine Palace, he was the hope of the Divine Palace. It was thought that he might become its strongest character.


    Ye Futian didn''t know what Yi Tianyu was thinking. Yi Tianyu did not recognize him and therefore wanted to be on his good side, but he and Yi Tianyu were destined to stand on opposite sides, and naturally, he would not be too friendly with him.


    At this time, Ye Futian flickered. Suddenly, he seemed to detect something and stopped involuntarily, asking, "Who''s there?"


    Just as his voice fell, two shadows descended like swords. They came in front of Ye Futian. One of them showed a surprised look and asked, "Did you feel it?"


    "Well," Ye Futian nodded and looked at the other, "what can I do for you?"


    "You have excellent swordsmanship, and someone in the Sword Palace wants to see you. Would you be willing to go?" the person asked Ye Futian. A surprised look flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes.


    At Sword Palace, someone wanted to see him.


    Li Daozi was the first person of the descendants at the Sword Palace. This battle must have attracted the attention of Sword Palace. Now, they wanted to see him. Their intention was self-evident.


    He also guessed that the person who wanted to see him was not a simple character.


    Otherwise, it was not sincere enough.


    Li Daozi was a disciple under the Palace Lord; if he defeated Li Daozi, who should he be under?


    "I do not wish to go," Ye Futian replied. The Renhuang opposite him was stunned for a moment when he heard his reply. He looked at Ye Futian, somewhat bewildered.


    This was the first time they encountered someone who refused so quickly, without hesitation. Shen Jing must have already guessed this person''s identity.


    Even so, he still refused without hesitation. He must be, without a doubt, a disciple of Lord Taixuan!

 1549 Sorry to Disturb

    Seeing that the other was still looking at him, Ye Futian couldn''t help but ask, "Is there anything else the elder wishes to say?"


    "��" Several Renhuang from the Sword Palace looked at Ye Futian, shocked. Then one of them said, "Sorry to disturb you."


    "Then allow me to bid you farewell." Ye Futian smiled and bowed with his hands together, then flickered away. Several Renhuang from the Sword Palace looked awkward. One murmured, "He''s pretty confident."


    "We are getting old, and we don''t understand young peoples'' world anymore," those on the side also remarked with a sigh. Even if he was really the secret disciple of Lord Taixuan, the Palace Lord of the Sword Palace was not some nobody; if he wanted to meet Ye Futian, Ye Futian was more or less obliged to accept.


    Even if it were just some random advisement, it would only do him good.


    But he made everything so simple.


    "Let''s see where he''s going," they continued. If Ye Futian was unwilling to meet with the Palace Lord of Sword Palace, where was he going?


    "Watch him," another also said. They weren''t deliberately following Ye Futian to hurt him, but that they were feeling mad about the whole affair. At the same time, they were curious to see how he planned to cultivate in the Divine Palace.


    Ye Futian was well on his way. He didn''t really have any thoughts about not wanting to meet the Palace Lord of the Sword Palace; he just didn''t think it was necessary. After all, he would never cultivate under the Palace Lord of the Sword Palace, so there was no need to waste time. With so many treasured holy lands in the Divine Palace, like Celestial Worthy Mountain and Sword Comprehension Mountain, wouldn''t it be nice to just cultivate there?


    He had brushed aside the people from Taixuan Mountain and little phoenix, just so that he could cultivate in peace for some time. Since there were such great conditions for cultivation, he couldn''t let it just go to waste.


    Next, Ye Futian went around different places to cultivate. There were palaces for enlightenment, mountain caves to seek the Way, and even in the process of this, he had some confrontations with the disciples of the Divine Palace.


    It was not intentional on his part, but now that Shen Jing''s name was well-known, there were some genius-level characters at the Divine Palace who wanted to practice with him. They would deliberately find excuses to fight him. The result was always the same, and he brutally beat many disciples of the Divine Palace without mercy.


    There was even a woman with outstanding talent who was also beaten badly by him. He didn''t show any pity or exception, which shocked everyone that he could have been so brutal.


    In a brief time, Shen Jing made a fierce reputation for himself at the Divine Palace. Many looked was him and wanted to beat him, but most of them would not succeed. Everyone really felt that there was only one person at the Divine Palace who could definitely beat Ye Futian.


    But why would he make a move? Now, his only goal was to cast the Dive Wheel of the Great Path, not just the Divine Wheel of the Great Path in the simplest sense, or he would have done it already. He had been suppressing his own realm, wanting to cast the Divine Wheel of extraordinary magnitude.


    Now, more and more people in the Divine Palace were paying attention to Ye Futian''s movement.


    At this time, Ye Futian came to a place with beautiful scenery. Stepping across the stairs, there was a lake in front of him. It was very vast, like a miniature of the Sea of the Path. At the end of the lake was a most sacred palace, and this scenery seemed familiar.


    When Ye Futian went to the Sea of the Path for trial, he had seen something like this scenery before him. Except over there, the landscape was a little ethereal and surreal, and over here, the scene in front of him was more real. It was as if an actual fae palace right in front of him.


    "What place is this?" Ye Futian whispered. He moved forward and walked to the edge of the sea. There was a very strong will of the Way that permeated from the front, which compelled him to move over there to take a better look.


    He faintly felt that there seemed to be something calling him, but of course, this slippery feeling was hard to discern. Was it real or not? It was difficult for him to say.


    No matter where this was, Ye Futian understood that it must have been an extraordinary place.


    In the direction of the two banks, a group of sacred palaces congregated, exuding a solemn feeling.


    Traces of sword will whistled and turned into a sword, and the sword entered into the Path River. Ye Futian stepped forward and walked on the sword that he had summoned. He drove toward the Path River.


    No matter where this was, the receiving receptionist had already told him when he entered the Divine Palace that he was once in, he could go anywhere in the Divine Palace as long as he was physically able to do so; however, he would be doing so at his own risk.


    Because of this, he had been wandering around inside the Divine Palace as long as it was suitable for cultivation. There was no restraint in his heart because his goals were very simple.


    Cultivate, and cultivate some more.


    To cast the Divine Wheel of the Great Path as soon as possible, and set foot into the realm of Renhuang.


    Everything else could wait until the entry into the realm of Renhuang.


    The Saint Plane may be regarded as powerful among common folks, but among those top forces, it was far from enough.


    But his talent was destined to be the center among all the top forces, not existing in some mediocre crowds.


    Therefore, the only way was to become stronger.


    From the moment when Ye Futian stepped into Path River, there was an uproar at the Divine Palace.


    The news spread quickly, and at this time, somewhere inside the Divine Palace, a group of disciples from the Divine Palace were talking amongst themselves.


    "Shen Jing stepped into the Path River?" someone asked.


    "Mmm." The person next to him nodded. "It is said that the sword has entered the Path River."


    "No one blocked him?" asked the man who just spoke.


    "No one."


    "Are the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace to be polluted by outsiders?" That disciple''s expression slightly changed." And they didn''t stop him?"


    "Perhaps the elder at the Divine Palace had their own thoughts on this. But even if he had entered the Path River, it is still impossible for Shen Jing to enter the ancestral temple." The person next to him did not seem to mind, saying, "Even though his talent was unmatched, but over the years, who have you ever heard of entering the temple? "


    "It''s him," the person next to him whispered. That legendary figure from the Divine Palace was the first in the world, an undisputed first at that.


    "Yes, and now, he is there. If Shen Jing goes, he might meet him there," the person next to him said. "Shen Jing really knows how to choose a place. He had to choose the Ancestral Temple. Unless he asked around and knew of the place?"


    At this time, not just the disciples of the Divine Palace, but even many of the prominent figures were also closely watching Ye Futian''s every move.


    At the Sword Palace, the Sword Emperor, who had invited Ye Futian on that day, was there. Looking into the distance, he could vaguely see a sacred palace.


    "He actually went there." The Sword Emperor looked disturbed. Ye Futian had gone to many places these days, but now he had found his way there.


    "Extraordinary people will go to extraordinary places. It is expected that he would eventually find his way here. It''s just that he''s been wreaking havoc in the Divine Palace, and many disciples have suffered at his hands. He needs to be put in his place," the person next to him said with a smile, kind of expecting Ye Futian to be humbled.


    He was really getting out of line and needed to be taught a lesson.


    Otherwise, he would really think that there was no one to defend the Divine Palace.


    Moreover, he went to various places to cultivate and often reaped great rewards. It would be refreshing to see him being humbled for once, not always getting whatever he wanted so easily.


    At the Sword Comprehension Mountain, Li Daozi was still unlocking the last sword. At this time, that last sword mountain was shining brightly, and there seemed to be swords flowing. Likewise, there was also a terrible breath of swordsmanship that flowed upon the body of Li Daozi, which was felt by many. They knew faintly that after that battle, Li Daozi was getting closer and closer to the breakthrough.


    Li Daozi unlocked the sword here, but Shen Jing went to the Path River instead.


    Wan Shouyi, Luoyue, and Yaya were still here unlocking the swords. At this time, Wan Shouyi came to Yaya''s side and said, "He has gone to Path River."


    "So I heard," Yaya replied.


    "The premier person of the current generation at the Divine Palace is there. I heard that this person could have become an emperor already, but would not enter the gate of the Great Path even when he could, all for creating a most extraordinary Divine Wheel of the Great Path. It was said that this person not only ranks number one of the current generation at the Divine Palace but was also known as the first person under Renhuang in all of Upper Heavens Realm," said Wan Shouyi.


    Yaya looked indifferent, and Wan Shouyi had no idea what she was thinking, so he continued, "At the end of Path River is the divine temple��an ancestral land of the Divine Palace, mysterious and unknown. If he goes there, will he..."


    "What do you want to say?" Yaya looked at Wan Shouyi.


    "Should we persuade him to come back?" Wan Shouyi said to Yaya.


    Ye Futian''s talent could be described as unparalleled. Naturally, he trusted him implicitly. Before, he had heard a lot of things about Ye Futian, and none of them caused any concerns except this time. He was a bit worried.


    The first among the current generation of Upper Heavens Realm at the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace.


    No matter the former or the latter, it was enough to give people pause. After all, Ye Futian was not a disciple of the Divine Palace, so it was difficult to predict what kind of danger he would encounter should he embark there.


    Yaya seemed to be deep in contemplation. The Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace?


    A look of worry flashed across her eyes, and upon seeing Yaya''s expression, Wan Shouyi knew that she felt the same as him, fearing any accidents that could happen to Shen Jing.


    "If any accidents occur in the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace, will the Divine Palace blame him?" Yaya asked Wan Shouyi.


    "Huh?"


    Wan Shouyi looked at Yaya without blinking. What would happen if there was some accident at the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace? Not what would happen if something happened to Ye Futian?


    Looking into Yaya''s eyes, he thought, Is this girl for real?


    "What accident could happen at the Ancestral Lands?" Wan Shouyi took a breath and asked.


    "Like, if it was demolished or something else?" Yaya asked in a low voice, "Would the Divine Palace blame us?"


    "..."


    Wan Shouyi was speechless. He looked at Yaya with a strange look. He was worried about Shen Jing, but this woman worried about the ancestral land of the Divine Palace?


    This��


    What was the thinking behind that?


    It seemed that Shen Jing''s friend was not normal.


    When he came to his senses, Wan Shouyi whispered, "I shouldn''t think so."


    "Oh," Yaya nodded, "I''m going to continue to cultivate, then."


    Wan Shou glanced at Yaya and said, "Sorry to disturb you..."


    Then, he turned away. Sorry for the disturbance!

 1550 Cross in One Step?

    Ye Futian''s entry into the Path River caused a great sensation in the Divine Palace. The disciples of the Divine Palace were all focused on this event. This person who had defeated Li Daozi, the first person of the current generation of the sword palace, had now gone to the most sacred place in the Divine Palace.


    For so many years, only one person had stepped into it, and now he was in it.


    Shen Jing, a swordsman from Taixuan Mountain, would he be able to enter?


    Ye Futian had no idea that his trip had caused such great unrest. He didn''t even know the exact place he wanted to go. He just had a feeling that this place was extraordinary; a place where hidden paths might be, certainly be suitable for cultivation, so he wanted to take a look.


    He even had doubts in his heart. Why is this place so quiet? he wondered.


    In the Path River, there was no one else but him, and there were no disciples of the Divine Palace.


    This left Ye Futian somewhat baffled. Were the disciples of the Divine Palace that lazy?


    Was it because they didn''t cherish the spiritual resources in the Divine Palace?


    He had no idea about the kind of place that he had come to. It was not because the disciples of the Divine Palace did not want to come; it was a question if they could get in?


    The sword entered the Path River and drove toward the palace. In Ye Futian''s present state, he thought that he would soon reach his destination. Although this river was very long, it could not be easily crossed. However, he found that even as the sword moved forward, it was still in Path River, and it seemed to stop when it reached the center of the river. Or rather, the distance to the palace ahead always remained the same.


    He looked down at the sword under his feet. The sword was still moving forward, even causing some ripples as it shuttled in the water. However, no matter how far he moved, it seemed that he was still in the same place.


    "What''s going on?" Ye Futian looked confused. He couldn''t get close?


    It seemed within reach, clearly in front of him, but at the same time, it seemed to be far beyond the horizon.


    But he was in the pinnacle of Saint Plane, so there was no way he did not understand his own feelings. This time, the mysterious palace was real and solid, unlike the nebulous quality of The Land of Proving the Way. If so, how could it be?


    He couldn''t understand it.


    Unless there was Way to prevent him?


    This was the only explanation.


    However, what kind of will of the Way could possibly produce such a condition?


    Ye Futian appeared deep in thought, and he stopped. The sword did not move forward. Everything seemed to be standing still.


    "Space Will of the Way."


    Ye Futian whispered. Only the Space Will of the Way could produce such a spectacle. He and his sword were in a space of the Great Path, bound by the Great Path, unable to fathom its truth.


    But this time, he didn''t even feel the existence of the Space Will of the Way in reality. If there was really a space of the Great Path, then it must also exist in the void.


    Psst... The sharp sound of sword roar emerged, and swords appeared around Ye Futian''s body. Some of them directly broke through the sky and shot toward the front, wanting to cross the Path River and reach the palace. However, he realized that although the swords were extremely fast, they could never reach the destination. He integrated his spiritual will into them, but he still couldn''t sense the cause.


    Many swords now appeared at his feet. Ye Futian sat directly on the sword and closed his eyes, quietly experiencing everything around him as if to imprint all that he saw in the Path River into his mind.


    If everything was so clear, then what was the power that prevented him from moving forward?


    Ye Futian himself also cultivated the Way of space, but at this moment, he fell into the Way of space again. It only showed that his Way of space was still not quite where it needed to be and was far from perfection. Otherwise, he would not have been trapped by the Way of space.


    "So close yet so far." Ye Futian''s eyes were tightly closed, and everything seemed to have stopped. Time and space stopped flowing in Ye Futian''s mind as if he was the only one between heaven and earth at this moment.


    He sat there quietly. At this moment, he was like a lonely boat in the vast ocean. Loneliness surrounding him, he wanted to find the answer.


    As time passed, Ye Futian sat there as if he had never moved.


    This caused a lot of discussion inside the Divine Palace. Sure enough and as expected, even though Ye Futian had defeated Li Daozi, he was still trapped in the Path River and could move no further.


    This was Path River. It led to the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace, and there were no other shortcuts. Only by crossing the Path River could one gain entry into the Ancestral Land.


    For many years, how many excellent characters wanted to enter but couldn''t?


    Ye Futian''s talent was widely recognized by people of the Divine Palace. Even if many of them were unhappy with him, they still had to acknowledge Ye Futian''s powerful perception. However, this was the Path River, after all.


    Sure enough, he was still trapped inside, unable to move forward.


    Even some others had gone to the place where the Path River was and watched the figure who was stuck in the Path River, unable to move forward. The figure sat on the sword seemed lonely. It was as if he was the only person in the world.


    Zhuang Hong also came. He looked at Ye Futian and felt some strangeness. Where couldn''t this guy go? But he had come to the Path River. Never mind that the Path River was difficult to cross because even if he could, there was still the one that restrained inside to consider.


    But Ye Futian seemed to understand everything in this instant. There was no one at the Path River. This Beyond Reach alone was enough to repel countless geniuses because they simply could not get across.


    It was just a short distance away, yet it was beyond reach.


    The sword didn''t move, and Ye Futian didn''t seem to have stopped moving at all. But he got it; he now knew what it meant to be beyond reach.


    "What''s going on?" Just then, there was a cry of exclamation at the edge of the Path River, and many people looked in Ye Futian''s direction in shock.


    "It''s getting closer, isn''t it?"


    They were shocked to find that Ye Futian was getting closer to the Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land.


    "How could this be? He didn''t seem to have moved?" Someone frowned, puzzled.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was still approaching the Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land. He sat there as if he had done nothing at all.


    "Awesome," Zhuang Hong praised. What an incredible display.


    "Brother Zhuang, what is going on?" a disciple from the Divine Palace asked.


    "How would I know?" Zhuang Hong replied.


    "Eh..." The man looked at him, dumbfounded. If he didn''t know what was going on, why the excitement?


    "However, I could venture a guess," Zhuang Hong replied. "Everyone at the Path River of the Ancestral land knows that this place is beyond reach, probably because it has the Way of space hidden within it. Therefore, the only thing that could unlock the Way of Space in this place is the Way of space."


    To overcome the Way with the Way.


    Zhuang Hong''s deduction was correct. Ye Futian opened his eyes and saw that he was very close to the Divine Palace of the Ancestral Land.


    There was Beyond Reach in the Path River, and the only thing that could unlock it was to reach for the beyond.


    Ye Futian finally understood at this moment. It was not that no one wanted to come here, but that they could not get here.


    But how many at the Divine Palace could get through Beyond Reach?


    Beyond Reach, Reaching the Beyond. Anyone who wanted to cross the Path River must first need to understand the Way of space and unlock it.


    Except Reaching the Beyond, he couldn''t think of any other ways to solve it, but perhaps other top geniuses had other solutions.


    The sword was already near the palace in front, and every time he moved forward, he was getting closer.


    At this moment, suddenly, another invisible force descended, causing the forward-moving sword to stop.


    Time and space seemed to have once again fallen into a state of arrest. This time it was not a stillness dictated by him but was forced upon him.


    Everything seemed to have stopped flowing. Even the will of the Great Path between heaven and earth had stopped.


    In Ye Futian''s perception, everything seemed to disappear at this moment. It was as if there was only this Path River in the world.


    There was no Path, only river.


    The swords beneath Ye Futian disappeared into thin air. He was suspended alone on the Path River with no will of the Way. It was as if he could float there naturally.


    But except for this, there was just nothingness.


    "What is this now?" Ye Futian was a little speechless. Was this Path River so difficult to cross?


    It was just that Beyond Reach seemed simple and easy to unlock, but the truth was that it was extremely difficult. If it was any other person, they might have never been able to take that step.


    However, he had just made that step and immediately fell into such a situation again. Where was this exactly?


    What place is this Path River? he wondered. And what exactly was that sacred palace in front of him?


    Why was this place so difficult to enter?


    It seemed that no one came here, not because of their laziness in cultivation, nor because it was an ordinary place for cultivation.


    But because everyone knew that they may not be able to cross.


    So, what place was this?


    What was the sacred palace in front of the Path River?


    What would happen after crossing over?


    When his thoughts turned to this, Ye Futian was a little jittery. He suddenly realized that the place he came for this time might not be quite so innocuous.


    But the matter at hand seemed to be how he could cross the Path River to reach that sacred place.


    Ye Futian, who seemed to have been stuck in a space of absolute stillness, lifted his feet to walk forward. There were ripples under his feet as if he was stepping on water. There was a booming sound coming from inside his body. It was as if the Way inside his body was extending outward, moving forward.


    However, this was the same situation as before. Shockingly, Ye Futian found he was standing in the same place, unable to move forward.


    This was��


    Ye Futian''s face was becoming incredibly entertaining to behold. This time, it was obvious that they were not being trapped by Beyond Reach, which could not be unlocked by the method used previously.


    So, what was it this time?


    "He''s stopped again." Many disciples of the Divine Palace gathered by the shore and watched Ye Futian''s every move. It would not be easy to cross the Path River.


    Just as they were thinking about it, traces of invisible breaths inside Ye Futian''s body spread throughout the world and seemed to link with heaven and earth. Soon, he seemed to once again getting a grip on perceiving the real world.


    Lifting his feet, Ye Futian took a step, and his body disappeared from where he was.


    His figure crossed the Path River directly and appeared at the end of the Path River.


    Countless eyes were fixated on this scene. Everyone looked at Ye Futian in amazement.


    Was it really as simple as stepping over?


    This mad a lot of people feel strange. In all these years, the Path River that had only been crossed by one person in the past, had it really blocked Ye Futian?


    At this moment, had Ye Futian really crossed the Path River?


    Ahead, there should be other obstacles blocking his way!

 1551 Moving Forward with Force

    Once Ye Futian took this step to cross the Path River. Beyond Reach and Reaching the Beyond seemed to be separated by one step.Once Ye Futian took this step to cross the Path River. Beyond Reach and Reaching the Beyond seemed to be separated by one step.


    Unable to pass, He would always be in the Path River. But if he was able to, he could cross it in one step.


    At this time, Ye Futian was standing in front of a golden Great Path. The Divine Palace in front stood towering above the sky, magnificent and sacred, impervious to spiritual will. There were palaces standing on the left and right of it. To Ye Futian, each palace exuded the might pressure of the Great Path.


    This golden Great Path was an ancient Great Path, which contained extremely powerful might of the Great Path. To walk through might not be an easy task.


    Furthermore, the end of this ancient golden Great Path was sacred and ethereal. There seemed to be someone standing there, but it was somewhat unreal.


    Was someone finally there?


    It seemed that someone was here, after all.


    At this time, Ye Futian had realized that this place was unusual, and whoever could come was definitely the most top genius at the Divine Palace.


    Ye Futian didn''t know that, at the moment, only one person had ever come to this Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace before him. It was the premier person of the current generation of the Divine Palace, hailed as the most unparalleled genius of Upper Heavens Realm.


    Unparalleled in the world meant overshadowing Yi Tianyu and Li Daozi. With everyone else at one level and him at another level, he could not be called unparalleled.


    "What is this place?" Ye Futian was becoming more and more curious. What exactly was this sacred place?


    Could it be that it was the place of cultivation for the great figures of the Divine Palace?


    Or were there hidden secrets in the Divine Palace?


    No matter what place this was, he wanted to go in and take a look.


    Ye Futian lifted his feet and walked forward. Just one step, and there was an extremely violent storm of the Great Path that came from this ancient golden Great Path. There was great pressure everywhere on this ancient Great Path. Ye Futian had a feeling that divine gods were standing there, guarding the front of the ancient path that he walked on.


    All these statues of the gods seemed illusory and yet solid at the same time. His spiritual will felt it, and the oppressive forces of the Great Path that bloomed from it also felt so real.


    This moment gave Ye Futian a familiar feeling, like the feeling he had when he was at a place of comprehension in the Divine Palace��Celestial Worthy Mountain, where he met Zhuang Hong.


    But the coercion of the gods here was even more real and terrifying; it was stronger than that of Celestial Worthy Mountain.


    The blood inside Ye Futian''s body roiled and roared, making a booming sound of the Great Path. He lifted his feet and forcing his way forward. He let out a violent roar. His clothes fluttered, and his hair was flying.


    His body seemed to bear a great amount of weight, and it was not easy to take even one step forward.


    Boom. Ye Futian moved forward one step at a time. Each time he took a step, there was be a roaring sound of the Great Path that burst from his body. The Great Path was unified into one. It turned into a path of boundless power, forcing each step forward.


    He walked past a palace, but on this road of the golden Great Path, this distance seemed insubstantial. The road of the illusory Great Path seemed so long in his eyes.


    At this moment, Ye Futian suddenly developed a strong sense of crisis. In the perception of will, he seemed to perceive a ghostly figure again. It was as if the god of the underworld appeared directly in his mind.


    He seemed to see a pair of ghostly eyes, piercing his mind and attacking his spiritual soul.


    "This is..." Ye Futian''s face showed concern. On his journey to the trial, he had met a direct disciple from the Divine Palace��Bai Xiu��who seemed to be a disciple of Lord Underworld. So, what kind of ability was this?


    There were all the Ways preached by the Divine Palace hidden within this ancient road of the Great Path. Various types of abilities erupted here and transformed the Ways to attack those who were coming forward.


    If so, would he be subjected to later attacks of melody? Sword method? Or any other aggressive attacks?


    The flesh and spiritual soul had to brave tremendous force of oppression at the same time. Ye Futian struggled to move forward under such oppression. Sure enough, he had not taken a few steps before he heard a melody. The Great Path resonated with it and sharply increased the intensity of the previous oppression.


    Boom! Under the terrific impact of the Great Path and its power, Ye Futian''s body stumbled backward. He slid several steps before he could get a hold of himself. His brows were knit tightly together.


    His eyes glanced at the ancient road of Great Path ahead; was this road really that difficult to get through?


    But just exactly what road was this? One had to withstand all kinds of attack methods of the Divine Palace, and the combat strength of each force seemed to be determined according to his own strength and the strength of his realm.


    The stronger he was, the stronger the attack power of the Great Path. There was nowhere to hide.


    Ye Futian stopped. Instead of rushing forward, he took his time to adjust his breath.


    Previously crossing the Path River required comprehension, but now what really mattered was one''s own true great strength. There were no shortcuts on this road, and there were no tricks to get around it. Forcing his way through was the only option.


    At this time, on the other side of the Path River, many were standing on the bank of the River. They looked ahead, but Ye Futian was no longer visible.


    Ye Futian had already disappeared in the Path River.


    "Has he gotten over and entered the Ancestral Land?" someone asked.


    "Not yet." A genius talent who knew something about Path River shook his head and said, "it''s just a small step to cross the Path River. The road afterward is even more difficult to walk."


    "More difficult?" someone mused. "Then why did this Path River trap so many other extraordinary characters?"


    "Difficulty is relative. It is not that the Path River was not difficult to cross; even many of the disciples of the Path Boat at the Divine Palace could not cross the Path River. There are only very few who could cross. Look, someone is trying right now."


    The speaker pointed ahead, and there were already several people who were walking toward the Path River. When Ye Futian crossed, they wanted to try it themselves also, but they were still there, unable to advance after the first step. "So, how difficult is it to get into the Ancestral Land?"


    "For so many years, there was only one person who entered it. It was more than just ''difficult''," the person next to him said thoughtfully. That person looked in the direction of Path River when he heard this. How outstanding was that unusual character who had crossed the Path River and entered the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace?


    Even the disciples of the Divine Palace had not many opportunities to see him, much less speak to him. He was not just a direct disciple, but the disciple of the Nine Halls.


    The Nine Halls taught one person jointly, unheard of in the Divine Palace. It was said that the Divine Palace intended to train him to become the true premier person in the Upper Heavens Realm in the future. He was also moving toward that goal. No one else could surpass him, as it was difficult enough to even catch up with him. He was in his own realm. No one else could be mentioned with him in the same breath.


    After rumors spread that he was a descendent of the divine gods, some people claimed that there was divine blood in his body. Some even said that he was the reincarnation of the Almighty.


    No matter the rumors, it all served as a testament to his strength.


    Today, an outsider appeared in the Divine Palace and also had forced his way into the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace. He had already crossed the Path River.


    Would the two of them meet in the Ancestral Land?


    Would Shen Jing��a swordsman from Taixuan Mountain��cross the road?


    It was probably very difficult.


    Indeed, incredibly difficult.


    Ye Futian was still in front of the golden ancient road of the Great Path at this time. His body was radiant all over, and there was a roaring sound of the Great Path resounding inside his body. There was a strong and powerful breath of the Great Path circulating inside of him.


    His entire person seemed to have turned into a sword��an indestructible and omnipresent sword. The sword moved forward. It traversed the void and stepped onto the ancient road of the Great Path.


    Extreme pressure of the Great Path came forth and slammed on him, but from inside Ye Futian''s body, there was a whistling sound of the sword. Sword will reached for the sky. It crossed through the pressure of the Great Path and continued to shuttle forward without slowing. On the contrary, he seemed to want to speed up and pass through it quickly.


    Boom... The melody sounded again; that was the power of Divine Sound, which caused the Great Path to resonate in unison and expanded its oppressive forces.


    Psst!


    Sharp and shrill sounds were heard, and Ye Futian''s body also seemed to emit the sounds of melody, resonating with the sword. A power of the fleeting swordsmanship now swept out and defied the Great Path. All around Ye Futian, a terrifying storm of the Great Path now surged.


    Boom, boom, boom!


    This ancient road of the Great Path was alive, and it seemed to be able to perceive everything that Ye Futian was doing. As Ye Futian accelerated forward, godlike statues appeared at the same time, and infinite sword will erupted and swept toward Ye Futian.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian felt this continuing increasing strength, and he suddenly stomped. The Great Path inside his body roared, and the sound of a thundering elephant came out. It resonated with the Great Path. The Divine Elephant stomped on the sky. It was like a bona fide divine elephant had come down to the world. The shadow of the divine elephant shrouded the body, towering like a demon god, stabilizing the body by sheer will power. It continued to step forward savagely.


    This was the secret method of the Divine Elephants��the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky.


    If this ability had erupted outside, Yi Tianyu should have recognized him easily, but according to his observations of the Divine Palace, it was true that it did not interfere with the quarrels of the outside world and did not participate in the friction between disciples. Otherwise, as an outsider, he would not have been allowed to wreak such havoc in the Divine Palace, plunder many treasured lands to cultivate, and beaten many of Divine Palace''s own disciples. No elders had come forward to mediate but had just let them do whatever they wanted.


    Therefore, the grudge between him and Yi Tianyu would not be mediated by the Divine Palace. It did not matter if the Divine Palace knew his identity.


    He seemed to be goaded by this ancient road of the Great Path to become extremely competitive. The more he was not allowed to set foot in it, the more he wanted to force his way through.


    Under the technique of Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky, he was even more centered, and the power of the Great Path was more violent and terrifying. Every step he took shocked the earth and suppressed all the offensive attacks.


    He would like to see how the road of the Great Path could block his way.


    Boom, boom, boom��


    Statues descended, and the entire ancient road of the Great Path was full of incomparable power. On this road of the Great Path, there was a tremendous storm. The Great Path roared between heaven and earth, trying to destroy all existence.


    In Ye Futian''s mind, godlike statues appeared. At this moment, he was withstanding such indescribable pressure of might.


    The Celestial Soul Attraction also bloomed, and the divine will rushed toward the sky. To counter against the attacks of the divine will within the Great Path, the Divine Elephants Stomping the Sky was integrated into the momentum of heaven and earth. Every step was earth-shattering, and the sword will of the Great Path surrounded his entire body. Ye Futian''s entire body was holy and radiant, like the furnace of the Great Path. Each step he took was forcibly passing through this golden road of the Great Path!

 1552 Must Cultivate

    In the golden ancient road of the Great Path, the roaring sound of the Great Path continued as Ye Futian forced his way forward. He used all the will of the Way that his body could muster in order to fortify his own might to the extreme. His goal was to cross the golden ancient road in the most aggressive manner possible and reach the end.


    Those illusive and surreal statues collapsed and shattered, and the pressure that had descended finally dissipated completely. Ye Futian stood at the end of the ancient road, which was also in front of that sacred palace.


    A holy and solemn atmosphere enveloped this space. Faintly, the ancient noble atmosphere could be felt, which made Ye Futian even more certain that this place was very likely very important in the Divine Palace. It seemed it was fate that he had mistakenly broken into it as a place of comprehension and spiritual cultivation.


    He thought it was a place of common comprehension before, but he did not expect that it would be so difficult to get in. Judging from the level of defense, could other disciples of the Divine Palace step in here?


    If the answer was no, he could totally believe that.


    But ahead, there seemed to be a person.


    The great doors of the sacred yet ethereal palace were wide open, but that figure sat outside the palace. He was dressed very simply, and his hair casually fell on his shoulders. He sat atop the stairs with his eyes closed, not releasing any breath released from his body. Although Ye Futian was here, he still sat there quietly as if he was completely unaware of it at all. It was as if he was the only person in this world.


    Ye Futian glanced at the man in front of the palace above the stairs, and all he saw was his back. Although he did not know the man, he could feel his loneliness. He sat there as though he were independent of this world, that all the entanglements of the world had nothing to do with him.


    What kind of realm was this?


    One was reluctant to disturb his cultivation even in the slightest. Here, it seemed that any little movement would be a transgression.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly for a moment. He then slowly raised his feet and walked up the stairs, step by step, toward the upper ground. After a while, he came behind the figure, facing the sacred palace that was in front of them. It was a palace filled with great mystery.


    The cultivator who had been sitting there, had he entered it already?


    The person seemed to have been sitting here for a long time, so he should have gone inside already.


    Ye Futian looked at him again, and when he saw that the other was still irresponsive, he raised his feet and prepared to walk past him.


    "You are not a disciple of the Divine Palace?" At this time, a voice came out, and it was from the mysterious figure who had been sitting there. His voice was clear and powerful. It was as if it could imprint itself onto the minds of the others.


    Even though he was speaking, he sat there with his eyes closed, not turning his head. He did not even look at Ye Futian.


    "No," Ye Futian replied, "I was invited by the Divine Palace for the trial, and then entered the Divine Palace to cultivate and came here.


    "May I ask, what is this place?" Ye Futian asked. He was becoming more and more curious. What was this place? It was so mysterious, solemn, and magnificent that even the most genius talents could not come here at all.


    "Ancestral Land. Divine temple," the man answered. Ye Futian heard his words, and his heart trembled slightly. Even though he had guessed that this place was highly unusual, the response still shocked him.


    The Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace��the divine temple.


    Divine Palace was the premier holy land in Upper Heavens Realm as well as its most prestigious holy place for spiritual cultivation. This was the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace.


    No wonder it was so difficult to get in. Just that river and the ancient road of the Great Path alone were enough to deter most people. It was basically impossible for the disciples cultivating at the Divine Palace to come.


    He had come accidentally, but the figure sitting in front of him was surely an exception as well.


    "If not a disciple of the Divine Palace, then don''t enter the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace. Go back," the figure continued. His voice was extremely calm, without any trace of emotion. It was as if stating something that was extremely ordinary, and his tone did not betray any feelings.


    Ye Futian didn''t get angry when he heard the response. It was not entirely unreasonable. The Ancestral Land was of great significance to principalities of spiritual cultivation, and it was unlike ordinary places of cultivation as it may truly contain the core of inheritance.


    Since he was not admitted to the Divine Palace to cultivate, he was not a disciple of the Divine Palace. It would be inappropriate to say that he was seeking inheritance in the Ancestral Land.


    However, it had taken him a lot to get here, and to not enter now as he was right in front of the door was, more or less, an unreasonable request.


    Although, in theory, it was inappropriate for him to enter the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace, the Divine Palace had not stopped him after all. The guides had also said that any location was allowed so long as one could reach it. Therefore, he had gotten here with his own power, and he would enter the Ancestral Land as long as he could. He did not consider that against the rules of the Divine Palace.


    "I still want to go in and take a look," Ye Futian said. The other did not respond.


    Ye Futian looked ahead and lifted his feet, walking toward the divine temple. He spat, "Just because one is not a disciple of the Divine Palace does not mean they should not enter the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace. However, the elders of the Divine Palace once said that as long as one could enter, then one may enter. So, my apologies in advance."


    As he was speaking, he continued to move forward, wanting to enter the Ancestral Land.


    "Quite right. As long as you are able to enter, you may enter. However, whether you can enter the divine temple is not really decided by you." At this time, a hollow and ethereal voice came and sounded in Ye Futian''s ears. He glanced at the person in front of him, frowning. The person who spoke was not the one in front of him.


    There were others in the divine temple?


    He stopped advancing. His eyes were fixed on the divine temple.


    "What''s your name?" That ethereal voice was heard again. This time, he faintly felt that the person who spoke was the divine temple itself, not the figure who was in front of him; it was someone using the temple to speak.


    "Shen Jing of Taixuan Mountain," Ye Futian replied.


    "Wrong," the other responded. Ye Futian''s expression changed. "How?" he asked.


    "You are not a cultivator from Taixuan Mountain, nor are you Shen Jing," the other said.


    Ye Futian''s heart trembled slightly. Suddenly, caution flashed across his eyes. He refocused his eyes.


    "I did come from Taixuan Mountain," Ye Futian responded.


    "Everything is an illusion. Is it true just because you came from Taixuan Mountain?" the other continued. Ye Futian understood that his disguise might have been detected by the other. He felt as though, standing before this divine temple and being shrouded in that sacred breath, he no longer had any secrets.


    Everything would be easily exposed.


    "What is true, and what is false?" Ye Futian continued, "Is what''s true and false really that important?"


    It didn''t matter what his true identity was. If the Divine Palace did not participate in external disputes, then it mattered not who he was.


    Whether he was from Taixuan Mountain or the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there was no difference to the Divine Palace.


    The other was silent for a moment, as if to contemplate Ye Futian''s statement. A few moments later, a sigh came from the divine temple.


    "You are right. What is true, and what is false? The world is false, and so is the Great Path. What is the point of pursuing the truth?" After a moment of silence, the other let out a gentle sigh. It was a sigh that made everyone felt a sense of desolation.


    Ye Futian was surprised when he heard this.


    What did it mean?


    The world was false, and the Great Path was also?


    He didn''t understand.


    "I don''t understand," Ye Futian looked in front of him and said.


    "Why do you cultivate?" The other did not respond to Ye Futian directly but asked instead why he cultivated.


    Ye Futian also asked himself for what did he cultivate?


    He thought about it for a moment but realized that he understood nothing.


    "In the past, I cultivated in many things, and it is the same now, but my mentality at the moment is that I must cultivate. There are too many things that require cultivation." Ye Futian sighed with emotion. It was as if he no longer remembered his original intention for cultivation.


    What for? The pride of being born an emperor?


    He seemed to have forgotten the lofty ambitions he once had.


    Now, he was asked the reason for his cultivation. It was mostly that time was carrying him forward and that he no longer had a choice not to cultivate.


    "I had to cultivate!"


    A low mumble was heard as if to discern Ye Futian''s answer.


    This reflection told the stories of many cultivators.


    Out of those who cultivated in the world, how many still remember their original intention? Too many of them were forced to continue with their cultivation.


    Sailing against the currents, if not advancing, retreating was the only outcome. Yet retreat was not possible.


    That mysterious breath disappeared, and the ethereal voice seemed to no longer exist.


    "Elder," Ye Futian asked, but there was no response.


    "May I enter?" Ye Futian asked. There was still no response. It was as if the other had completely fallen into a state of quietude, leaving Ye Futian to choose for himself.


    At the very most, he probably would not interfere.


    "I will assume that elder''s silence means agreement," Ye Futian bowed slightly and said. Since there was no outward disagreement, then it was up to him. As long as he could enter, he would enter.


    As he was speaking, Ye Futian continued to move forward.


    Ye Futian passed by the figure who was sitting there, trying to walk past him. However, at this moment, he suddenly stopped. An extremely powerful force of the Great Path fell on him and compelled him to stop.


    As his eyes slowly moved, Ye Futian looked at the figure sitting there, and on the other''s body, an extremely bright divine light was released.


    Boom.


    An extremely unbridled breath slammed into Ye Futian''s body. It even rushed into his spiritual will. The breath of the Great Path inside his body roared as if it encountered a great threat, hence the roar.


    The young man who had been sitting there opened his eyes. He looked forward.


    Anyone who was not a disciple of the Divine Palace had no right to enter the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace!

 1553 Huang Zhong

    On the bank of the Path River, many Divine Palace disciples showed up, and they all gazed at the Path River in the distance.


    Now, nobody knew what happened to Ye Futian. Had he stepped into the Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land? Had he met that person? Was he having a difficult time?


    There were many figures in the Path River at this time, and some talented cultivators had already entered the Path River.


    Among them, someone had even crossed the Path River and embarked on the golden road, which made many people watch in awe.


    However, the person was not a disciple of the Divine Palace but from the outside. He was the disciple of the Golden Divine Nation��Gai Shi Shi.


    At this moment, Gai Shi Shi was stopped by the Golden Ancient Road of Path. He was bathed in golden divine light, and golden beams were shot from his eyes. He looked straight forward. Even though his cultivation in martial arts was accomplished, he still could not break through the golden road and was trapped here.


    He saw that Ye Futian had walked out of the ancient road and stepped in front of the palace in front of him. Besides Ye Futian, there was another figure.


    Gai Shi Shi had heard of that man. Although this person rarely walked outside, he was very famous. Even though he had not yet become a Renhuang, he had already attracted the attention of the world, especially among the top powers who all knew his name.


    Gai Shi Shi''s elders also often mentioned this person to him. Some thought that he would inherit the position of the Divine Palace Lord, and some said that he would not stay in the Divine Palace forever, that there would be a place for him in the Higher Heavens Realm��the center of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. They all gave high praise to him.


    He was the disciple of the Nine Palaces, jointly cultivated by all masters of the palaces. He was a symbol of a generation. Before, Gai Shi Shi was somewhat dissatisfied when he first heard about him and had sought opportunities to fight with him. This time, he also wanted to meet him in the Divine Palace. However, the person had entered the ancestral land, but he was blocked outside.


    Not only that, but he also met another person on this trip, Shen Jing of the Taixuan Mountain. Shen Jing defeated him and stepped on the Golden Ancient Road.


    Gai Shi Shi began to question himself. Could it be that he was inferior to those two?


    Thinking of this, his body became more dazzling in the divine light, and he continued striding forward. He wanted to walk there. Behind him, there even appeared many phantoms of the ancient golden deities, whose Might suppressed the world. The sigh of the deities came, which made the Might of the Great Path burgeon from his body.


    He immediately stepped forward and set off a storm of the Great Path. He would not yield to anyone and did not think he was inferior to others.


    ...


    Ye Futian looked at the figure sitting forward and asked, "What do you mean?"


    The men of the Divine Palace didn''t stop him, but this disciple of Divine Palace sat here and wanted to stop him?


    The person didn''t speak, still sitting there quietly. He looked at the palace in front, with a pair of eyes lacking luster. He said, "You should retreat."


    He didn''t explain why but just wanted to let Ye Futian retreat.


    Looking at him, Ye Futian could feel that this lonely figure seemed to contain ultimate pride.


    The Great Path in Ye Futian''s body roared. He watched the person and continue moving forward. He didn''t say anything, either. Even the elders of the Divine Palace didn''t care, so how dare a disciple of the Divine Palace tell him to retreat?


    However, he could tell that this person was strong��very strong��and might even be the strongest disciple in the Divine Palace. He was more powerful than Li Daozi, who gave him much pressure. Otherwise, he would not be here.


    However, even so, how dare he let Ye Futian who had come here go back?


    Since he had come to the Divine Shrine of the Ancestral Land, Ye Futian had to take a look inside.


    "My name is Huang Zhong," the person in front of Ye Futian said. His voice was sonorous like the bell of the Great Path. The moment his voice fell, there seemed to be countless golden ancient bells appearing between the heaven and the earth. The sound circulated around the world and completely wrapped Ye Futian inside.


    The bells rang through the world, and the sound of the Great Path roared. The destructive storms of the Great Path directly attacked Ye Futian, forming one giant storm of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian instantly felt a terrifying force of attack on the Great Path. It was not only from the flesh but also from the soul. That person was standing still and didn''t even look back at Ye Futian. He was looking forward, and those ancient bells of the Great Law just rotated around his body frantically. The power of the attack was just the killing power of the Great Path brought by the sound of bells.


    Those killing powers were like golden lightning, splitting the void sky and breaking the souls of the deities. This attacking power of the Great Path was stronger than Li Daozi''s sword.


    Ye Futian could feel that Huang Zhong had indeed reached the limit between Nirvana and Renhuang Planes. The ancient bells of the Path all over the sky were transformed by the mind, and the roaring Might in his body seemed to become light of the wheel of the Great Path.


    This person might have already become half a Renhuang and was only a step away from the Renhuang Plane.


    In fact, Ye Futian still underestimated Huang Zhong''s level. Huang Zhong had been in his current Plane for many years, and he could actually enter the Renhuang Plane at any time, even at this moment. But he still chose not to enter the Renhuang Plane because he wanted to build a different Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Only in this way, after entering the Renhuang Plane, could he be different from other Renhuang figures and have a higher starting point. He was born extraordinary, so he was supposed to do extraordinary things. The Renhuang Plane people dreamt of others was nothing important to him. Even if he became a Renhuang, he would just want to be a peerless one.


    The fairy soul bloomed from Ye Futian''s body, and there was fairy light shining around his body as if a fairy phantom showed up.


    At the same time, the sound of divine elephants roared in his body. The Great Path roared, and there seemed to be numerous phantoms of divine elephants that suppressed the eternal sky. Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky was released, and Ye Futian forcibly moved forward. The power of the Divine Elephant swept out with the dazzling sword of immortal souls, annihilating the light of the Great Path.


    Huang Zhong slowly turned around and looked at Ye Futian. He still looked so ordinary, but the light of the Path surrounding his body was so unusual.


    This was the first time Huang Zhong turned around to look at Ye Futian and feel the life force from his body. He said, "Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky Skill of the Heavenly Mandate Realm Elephant Clan, Celestial Soul Attraction of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, Swordsmanship of Taixuan Mountain."


    Ye Futian heard Huang Zhong''s words and showed surprise. A real top-level talented figure like him could recognize the unique abilities being released at one glance. He had much more knowledge than normal people.


    Here was the Higher Heavens Realm, and Huang Zhong cultivated in the Shangxiao Divine Palace. Yet, he could easily recognize two abilities obtained from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, which reflected how vast his knowledge was.


    "It seems that you are from the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Huang Zhong continued. Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky and the Celestial Soul Attraction came from the Demon Divine Elephant Clan and the fairy power Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, respectively. Still, this person could use both of them, so he could tell Ye Futian was not a simple person. It was no wonder he could get here.


    "I''m from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Ye Futian."


    In the palace, the lingering voice came out again, which made Ye Futian stunned. He felt quite impressed in his heart. In front of the great people of the Divine Palace, not only was the technique of disguise easily seen through but after he showed his skills, his true identity was also easily recognized.


    But this was also normal. Huang Zhong was a disciple of the Divine Palace, and although he might not know what happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the battle of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was very influential. It even affected the whole political pattern of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Some disciples of the Divine Palace were also there. Elders of the Divine Palace must know about the event and maybe had been concerned about the matter, so it was normal for them to recognize him.


    "Sir, since you know me, you should understand that I use the name of Shen Jing, given my current circumstances. Please forgive me," Ye Futian looked at the shrine and said. Since the other side knew him, then he should also know about the disintegration of the Celestial Gate and could understand why he was disguised.


    The other side was silent for a moment, and Huang Zhong did not continue to attack. And then, another voice came from the shrine.


    "The two most legendary descendants of the Heavenly Mandate Realm today are Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu. Now, one of them is here. The person standing in front of you is the most legendary person of the young generation of the Higher Heavens Realm. It could be accidental, but it could also be inevitable," the voice said from the shrine. The most legendary figure was destined to meet the same legendary character because they had no other opponents.


    It was destiny.


    Ye Futian glanced at Huang Zhong when he heard these words. This person was hailed as the most legendary figure of the younger generation in the Higher Heavens Realm. No wonder he was here alone, and he was so powerful. Although they hadn''t started to fight, Ye Futian could feel strong pressure from him; far from what Li Daozi could offer.


    It seemed that this person was not at the same level as Li Daozi.


    "Now I get it," Huang Zhong whispered as if he also felt relieved. No wonder Ye Futian could come here. Was it because he was one of the most legendary figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Even so, since his Realm was far superior to that of Ye Futian, if the two confronted each other, it would still be unfair.


    Looking at Ye Futian''s figure, Huang Zhong raised his hand, and the ancient bells of the Great Path suddenly covered the sky and chimed together, like making a chant of the Great Path. Terrifying golden lightning madly thrust out. Above the sky, there seemed to be many towering phantoms showing up like real deities.


    Huang Zhong''s finger pointed at Ye Futian, and there seemed to be golden divine wheels of the Great Path sweeping out. They suppressed the eternal world, breaking the void sky, and destroying the souls. At this moment, everything seemed to be on the brink of collapse.


    The light of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension exploded from Ye Futian''s body, and the Might of the Great Path was released to the limit, and a majestic giant phantom of the shocking divine elephant appeared. He raised his palm to bombard the void sky, and the elephant rushed out. The Fleeting Divine Sword also swept out to defend the approaching attack.


    Clang��


    It seemed that as the ancient bell of annihilation sounded, the Wheel of the Great Path destroyed everything. Giant phantoms of the elephants collapsed and shattered, and the light of the sword was annihilated into nothingness. In front of the ancient bell of the Great Path, everything should be shattered into nothingness.


    Clang, clang, clang!


    The bell resounded through the world, and the sound of destruction lingered for a long time. Ye Futian''s body roared and flew out of the shock. The body was about to burst, but there was a strong Might wrapping around the body and sustaining his life force.


    His body descended from the stairs, but he still looked up at Huang Zhong.


    With the physique of the Great Path��the soul of the Great Path��Huang Zhong was not just half a step from becoming a Renhuang. It could even be said that he was but a line away from the Renhuang Plane.


    He stood there and took a glance at Ye Futian, then turned around and sat there again. His eyes were closed as if nothing had happened just now.


    "Go in," Huang Zhong said. He didn''t stop him anymore!

 1554 The World Has Imperfections

    Ye Futian glanced at Huang Zhong and didn''t know what he meant. Previously, he wanted to stop him, but after he shot, now he just stopped.


    With his ability, if Huang Zhong wanted to stop Ye Futian, it was not easy for Ye Futian to break into the shrine. Huang Zhong gave up and did not hinder his way.


    Ye Futian retrieved his Thoughts and kept walking forward toward the shrine where his Thought could not invade.


    Ye Futian stepped into the shrine, and an extremely strong sense of the Great Path enveloped his body, and the Will was very intense. Ye Futian looked up into the void sky and could perceive that there were endless ancient characters of the Great Path dripping down. His eyes became extremely bright. He was able to see through the nothingness.


    This world seemed to have changed accordingly, as well. The infinite characters floating between the sky and earth seemed to contain some kind of mysterious power.


    They are all laws of the Great Path... Ye Futian thought, his heart trembling. Here was the ancestral land of the Divine Palace��the Holy Shrine.


    No wonder Huang Zhong did not allow himself to set foot in it. The real ancestral shrine contained the true essence of Divine Palace.


    In such a place, there were no guards to stop him. Huang Zhong also came here to comprehend the Path, and of course, even the golden road of the Great Path itself could stop countless people.


    Ye Futian kept walking forward. Among the endless characters floating between the sky and the earth, there were also some statues, like the deities he''d seen before. Whether it was Celestial Worthy Mountain or the Sword Mountain, or the power released by Huang Zhong, they all somewhat shared similarities. It was as if they all came from this shrine.


    "Swordlord," Ye Futian walked to a statue and murmured. The infinite sword spells floated between the sky and the earth and turned into flowing rivers of swords. He had the same feeling once in the Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    The statue was also engraved with handwriting, which recorded the life of this heroic figure.


    Wanliu Swordlord invented the 49 Techniques of Comprehension Sword and derived infinite sword skills from the 49 techniques. He once slashed off the seven layers of Celestial Ditch with one single strike.


    "What does this mean?" Ye Futian whispered. He looked at the statue as if there was very intimidating Sword Will hidden above the statue. Here was a more suitable place than Sword Comprehension Mountain to comprehend the Path.


    This Wanliu Swordlord should be the ancestor of the Sword Palace.


    Ye Futian looked at it for a moment and walked to the other side. He saw a statue like a god. That was the Zhenshi Skylord, who made a breakthrough in the Path, suppressed the world, and could shatter the seven layers of the Celestial Ditch.


    Ye Futian frowned. He continued to look at the next statue. One of the statues was sitting and playing the zither. There were infinite notes floating in front of the statue. Ye Futian knew from a glance that this statue should be the ancestor of the Divine Music Palace.


    Ye Futian walked through the statues, a little bit shocked. Eventually, he came to the front of the shrine, where there was no statue, but only a stone stele, which released very bright light of the Great Path, enveloping the whole shrine. Above the stele, there were two lines of writing:


    "Have a heart for the world and establish a life for the people."


    These two lines of writing went straight into Ye Futian''s mind as if it turned into a voice echoing in his mind. It was like the sound of the Great Path, lingering for a long time.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt a sense of awe. He was deeply moved, and his heart beat fast.


    Have a heart for the world and establish a life for the people, inherit the sacred knowledge of the past, and create peace for the future.


    What kind of bravery was this, and what kind of place was this top one holy land in the Higher Heavens Realm?


    He only knew that the Shangxiao Divine Palace preached to the world and was never involved in worldly affairs. It seemed to be a place for academic study, so after they opened The Land of Proving the Way, all the top forces in the Higher Heavens Realm were invited to enter. In each and every aspect, this place was indeed a respectable and pure Holy Land for cultivation.


    However, if it was just a Holy Land for cultivation, why did they have such a bold mind?


    What kind of mission did the Divine Palace carry?


    And undoubtedly, here was the most powerful place for cultivation in the Divine Palace. The statues of the ancestors of the Nine Palaces stood here, and the mysterious life force of the Great Path enveloped the entire shrine.


    If so, why was it so difficult to set foot here?


    In his view, apart from Huang Zhong, for other disciples in the Divine Palace, even close disciples like Yi Tianyu and Li Daozi, it was not easy to set foot here.


    He remembered that when he was outside the shrine, there was a voice inside, asking him why he cultivated.


    He replied that he had no choice but to cultivate.


    After that, the other side didn''t say anything. Was this question a test?


    Ye Futian looked at the gorgeous handwriting. It was as if it could be imprinted in his mind. He bowed slightly to the stele, full of respect. The boldness reflected in these two lines of handwriting was worthy of respect and awe.


    Ye Futian lifted his head, looked at the stele, and said, "Sir, I have some doubts and need your advice."


    Although there was no one in the temple, there was the voice. Naturally, someone was here, even though he couldn''t see it.


    Ye Futian''s words echoed in the shrine. After a moment of silence, finally, a voice sounded.


    "You can tell me," a hazy voice said. It was hard to tell where it came from. It seemed as if it was everywhere.


    "Where am I?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Divine Shrine. The ancestral land of the Divine Palace," the voice responded.


    "Who built it?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "Ancestors of the Divine Palace, of course," the other side said again.


    "Why was it built?" Ye Futian asked again. There was silence in the shrine again, and the response was no longer fast.


    "The answer is what you have seen," the other side responded after a moment of silence. Apparently, he was referring to the handwriting on the stone stele��for the world and for the people.


    "I don''t know what you mean," Ye Futian said. He was not questioning it; he just didn''t understand.


    "The Divine Palace is the Top one holy place for cultivation in the Upper Heavens Realm, and even people from other realms come here to study. Since this is the case, why not let the disciples of the Divine Palace cultivate in this holy land of cultivation?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "The world has imperfections. If they can''t get here, it''s useless for them to come," the other side responded. Ye Futian''s heart trembled.


    There were imperfections in the world.


    On that day, on the Taixuan Mountain, when Lord Taixuan made the breakthrough, he sighed and said that the world had imperfections.


    "Why does the world have imperfections?" Ye Futian asked again. He was more and more confused.


    "The Path of the heaven collapses," the other side said.


    Ye Futian''s heart trembled. The Path of heaven collapsed, so the world had imperfections.


    "Sir, you have said before that the world we see is not real, so what is the real world?" Ye Futian asked again. He didn''t understand this sentence when it came from the shrine.


    "It''s just like when I see you; you are not the real one. As for the real world, you need to explore it yourself," the other side responded with a certain expectation in its voice.


    "The purpose of this shrine is for us to comprehend these ancestors'' Paths, right? Why did Wang Zhong sit outside to cultivate?" Ye Futian continued.


    "The purpose here is not to comprehend the ancestors'' Paths," the other side said. Ye Futian was puzzled and asked, "What is it, then?"


    "The world has imperfections, and the Great Path also has imperfections. The Wheel of the Great Path made by cultivators is also flawed, not the perfect Wheel of the Great Path. It can be said that there are obvious defects and cracks," the other side slowly said. Ye Futian was very shocked when he heard this.


    "Even the Divine Wheels of the Great Path created by Renhuang figures are also flawed?" Ye Futian asked. When reaching the Renhuang Plane, one had already become a Renhuang of a district with great prestige. However, their Divine Wheels of the Great Path were also missing?


    This was unimaginable.


    "Some people call it the ordinary wheel of the Great Path and say that Wang Zhong wants to create an Ultimate Wheel of the Great Path, but, in fact, in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, the Divine Wheel of the Great Path, which was built by the vast majority of Renhuang figures, could be said to be incomplete. It means this is the Great Path; it has imperfections."


    Ye Futian listened quietly. Did many Renhuang figures know this cruel fact?


    He said that the world he saw was not a complete world, so what was the truth of this world?


    "The true Divine Wheel of the Great Path is the golden Divine Wheel, and what''s more, it is the Divine Wheel that contains dazzling light. Once it blooms, it is dazzling. The Great Path is as one, and the sun and the moon shine together." The hazy voice sounded quite emotional. It said, "Only those who have seen the real Divine Wheel will know the flaws of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path."


    "So, is this the meaning of this shrine?" Ye Futian asked. He sensed that there seemed to be a very wonderful force in the shrine. It was likely that this force also cast the trees in the Land of Proving the Way.


    "That''s exactly the case," the other side responded. "The shrine has become a world itself, making up for the defects of the Path. Here, the Path is not missing. If one can cultivate here and become a Renhuang, one can cast a complete Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Of course, it is much more difficult than casting an ordinary Wheel of the Great Path. If one can''t cross the River of the Path and walk through the Golden Road, it is meaningless to cultivate here. However, you and Huang Zhong were able to come here."


    Ye Futian was lost in thought. At this moment, many things came to his mind. It seemed that a lot of things were related to it.


    Or to say, from the beginning, his life had been given an extraordinary meaning; he was destined to be inextricably linked to this "truth of the world."


    "There must be a treasure in the shrine to make up for the defects of the Path. If it is not the strength of the shrine itself, I am afraid it will bring bloody conflicts to the world," Ye Futian whispered. The moment his voice fell, suddenly, a strong pressure came onto him.


    Ye Futian looked normal and calmly looked forward. He heard the voice continue, "You are right. Although the palace is the top one holy place for the cultivation of the Higher Heavens Realm, the threat always exists. Once the Divine Palace is weakened, It will bring many bloody conflicts."


    Ordinary people didn''t know, but how could the top characters not know the secret of the imperfection of the world?


    There was a treasure in the Divine Palace to make up for the defects of the world. One could imagine how many people were coveting it. What Ye Futian said was very impolite.


    "I get it," Ye Futian said and nodded. He didn''t ask the impolite question deliberately. He just wanted to confirm one thing. He had experienced many things on his way of cultivation, and he was a secret himself.


    "What do you get?" the voice asked.


    Ye Futian looked at the stele in front of him. The world had imperfections, but the Divine Palace wanted to raise a cultivator without imperfections.


    "Thank you for solving my confusion," Ye Futian saluted the stele slightly and said. Then he walked to a statue and sat down, cultivating with his eyes closed.


    He didn''t answer because it also was his own secret.


    The world had imperfections, but his Path had no imperfections!

 1555 Get Ou

    Ye Futian understood it; he really did. Although he still did not understand the truth of the world, he knew that his Path must be the perfect one.


    Although he had many Life Spirits, his Natal Spirit was always just the World Tree. It was the World Ancient Tree that gave him many Life Spirits and endowed him with the gift of cultivating various Paths and even merging the Great Paths.


    This was probably related to his life experience. He was born to be extraordinary, and his godfather said that he was destined to be a king in the future. Although he did not know his identity, even a powerful person like Lord Taixuan could not escape the fate of the world and had sighed that the Great Path was lacking when he made the breakthrough.


    Even the strongest figures could not escape their fates, but Ye Futian could easily cross over his own from the moment of birth. He was very clear about that even in this imperfect world of cultivation,


    His Path must be the perfect one. The Divine Wheel of the Great Path he would create when he set foot on the Renhuang Plane in the future must also be a Wheel without defects, which was to say, the extraordinary Wheel of the Great Path in the eyes of the world.


    His Life Spirit could make up for the shortcomings of the world. He stopped talking because he knew what it meant.


    The Divine Palace had a treasure to make up for the defects of the Path, so they always had to be alert to any crisis that might be brought by it. The reason why no one dared to touch it was because of the Palace''s power, but what about Ye Futian? If someone knew that his Life Spirit could make up for the defects of the Path, he would instantly become a target, and how many people would be staring at him?


    Even the top figures in the cultivation world would be coveting it, and he might even end up dying without knowing who killed him.


    No wonder his godfather told him not to show his Life Spirit outside when he was young. Ordinary people might not know it, but those powerful people were likely to be able to spy something from him. The powerful person in this shrine could see through his disguise at one glance, and if his Life Spirit was revealed from his Life Palace, how could the person not perceive its peculiarity?


    Ye Futian didn''t talk anymore and just cultivated quietly in the corner, perceiving the true meaning of the ubiquitous Great Path. He was totally absorbed in cultivation, so the person would not doubt anything.


    As expected, after seeing Ye Futian cultivate, the powerful figure in the shrine also fell silent and did not speak again.


    Soon, the shrine was quiet again.


    In the shrine, Ye Futian was comprehending and cultivating, and there was a roaring sound in his body.


    Outside the shrine, Huang Zhong was also cultivating. More precisely, Huang Zhong was comprehending, and what he wanted to do was to build what he thought was the perfect Wheel of the Great Path. Only in this way could he live up to his knowledge and talent.


    The two were cultivating inside and outside the shrine. Many of the disciples in the Divine Palace were challenging the Golden Ancient Road and the River of the Path. Gai Shi Shi of the Golden Divine Nation had tried many times and failed, but he was still trying. He could endure that the peerless talent of Higher Heavens Realm, Huang Zhong passed it, but now, Ye Futian had also entered the shrine.


    Gai Shi Shi was not content.


    Ordinary people might not know the truth of this world, but as the top descendant of the Golden Divine Nation, Gai Shi Shi knew more than ordinary people. The top one figure of the Golden Divine Nation was a general of Donghuang the Great Emperor, so the senior leaders of the Golden Divine Nation knew some truths in the world, and Gai Shi Shi also knew a little bit.


    He knew, so he wanted to be stronger.


    However, the Golden Ancient Road was full of many powerful attacks, and although he could break through some, he had never been able to cross completely and could only struggle again and again.


    In fact, what Gai Shi Shi had achieved was beyond ordinary cultivators'' ability. More people could not even pass the River of the Path, and just one step was extremely far to take. Although the shrine was just in front of them, for the disciples of the Divine Palace, it was endlessly distant and unreachable.


    At this time, many people inside and outside the River of the Path looked forward, and many of them were disciples of the Divine Palace.


    "Both Gai Shi Shi and Shen Jing have crossed the River of the Path. Did they enter the shrine?" Many people discussed the matter amongst themselves.


    "It''s not an easy thing for them."


    "Who is more promising to enter?"


    "Shen Jing," someone said. "In those two battles, he proved his unparalleled talent, and in the Land of Proving the Way, he defeated Gai Shi Shi. This time Lord Taixuan chose an extraordinary figure to inherit his swordsmanship, and he has gained fame on this trip to the Divine Palace."


    "Is Shen Jing''s trip to Shrine also guided by Lord Taixuan?" someone wondered aloud.


    "Very possible." Many people said and began to think. There was no doubt that the swordsman-in-training Shen Jing of Taixuan Mountain was a direct disciple of Lord Taixuan. Everyone had known about it, and it did not require confirmation.


    If Lord Taixuan had known that he got a direct disciple out of thin air, nobody knew what he would think. Perhaps, he would turn the Divine Palace upside down, or perhaps, Lord Taixuan wouldn''t mind at all.


    Time passed by, and Gai Shi Shi eventually gave up and returned, which made many people sigh. Some people asked Gai Shi Shi whether Shen Jing of Taixuan Mountain had entered the shrine, but Gai Shi Shi did not answer.


    He did not leave, either. He chose to stay outside the River of the Path.


    On this day, the last peak of Sword Comprehension Mountain suddenly gleamed with brilliant light, and then, the 81 peaks of the Sword Comprehension Mountain shone together, and the Sword Will rushed up to the sky.


    At this moment, every cultivator in the Sword Comprehension Mountain looked in one direction, their hearts beating fast.


    In the Divine Palace, there were also many warriors looking at the direction where Sword Comprehension Mountain was located, with light shining in their eyes.


    "A new breakthrough," someone whispered.


    "Another Sword Emperor was born! Was he before Huang Zhong?"


    Many people discussed, and their hearts trembled.


    Did the previous war really help him break his shackles?


    On the last sword peak of Jianshan, a figure like a sword stood proudly on the top of the mountain, and there was a monstrous Sword Will flowing all over him. A terrifying sword river appeared between the sky and earth and turned into a giant sword of the Great Path.


    That was, the Divine Wheel of Great Path being cast.


    Li Daozi, who made the breakthrough, would become a Sword Emperor.


    Many people of the Divine Sword Li Family were also here and were all excited while watching this scene. Although there was a defeat, it did not affect Li Daozi''s state of mind. No wonder he was the most outstanding figure of their generation in the Divine Sword Li Family.


    On the top of one Sword Mountain, Wan Shouyi gazed in the direction of Li Daozi. Luoyue said, "Li Daozi was defeated in that battle, but shortly after that, Li Daozi made a breakthrough. It seems that Li Daozi''s heart of sword was clear and was not affected at all, and the battle became his aid instead."


    "He was looking for someone to quench the sword, and he only needed two more parts. After that battle, Shen Jing helped him complete one part, and only the last part was left. Now he accomplished it and succeeded," Wan Shouyi said. "It is indeed outstanding. We still have a long way to go."


    "Does this also prove that he is more outstanding?" Luoyue whispered.


    "Of course," Wan Shouyi nodded and said. "Among ten thousand cultivators, you can only find one like Li Daozi in the world, and in the whole generation of the Higher Heavens Realm, there were only two people like him. Now, they are at the end of the River of the Path."


    "Can he enter the shrine?" Luoyue asked. These days, there were many questions about whether or not Shen Jing could enter the shrine. Every day, people discussed this matter.


    Wan Shouyi looked towards Yaya and remembered the conversation with her that day. At this moment, Yaya was still fully absorbed in her cultivation. She was a sword fanatic and was marvelous at swordsmanship, and even such a person had unparalleled confidence in Shen Jing.


    So, he also had expectations.


    What if he really made it?


    After all, Shen Jing had been in there for many days.


    Many months had passed. Although many people had left River of the Path, there were more and more discussions about Ye Futian. The longer he stayed on the other side of the River of the Path, the more possible it was that he had entered the shrine. Gai Shi Shi''s silence also made many people suspicious.


    On this day, there was no one here on the bank of the River of the Path, and only occasionally would someone come by to have a look.


    At this time, a figure came to the bank of River of the Path. He passed by and took a glance at the river. The towering palaces stood on both sides, but the whole space was still very quiet.


    "Not yet," the man whispered, about to leave. He had no idea whether he had entered the shrine or not.


    But at this moment, just as he was just about to leave, he seemed to have noticed something. He paused a second and turned around and saw a figure standing above a sword and slowly coming from the River of the Path.


    "He''s come out," he thought to himself. His pupils contracted, and his heart trembled. Swordsman-in-training Shen Jing of the Taixuan Mountain walked out of the River of the Path.


    His temperament became more and more outstanding, and his life force was unfathomable. The sword floated above the River of the Path, and he steered the sword and came slowly towards this side at a steady speed. In his bright and deep eyes, there was no emotion.


    Seeing Ye Futian getting closer, he asked, "My Taoist friend, have you gotten anything during this trip?"


    Ye Futian looked up at him, smiling, and did not respond.


    "Have you ever entered there?" the man asked Ye Futian. Since Ye Futian didn''t answer, instead of turning around, he just asked directly.


    "Where is there?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Ancestral Land," the person stared at Ye Futian and said.


    "Maybe, I''ve been there," Ye Futian whispered. He came up onto the bank of River of the Path. The man gave him a deep look and then flashed away in the air.


    Soon, the whole Divine Palace knew that Ye Futian walked out of the River of the Path.


    Suddenly, the Divine Palace became noisy again.


    One after another, their bodies flickered, and the cultivators all moved in the same direction, toward where Ye Futian appeared.


    In the Divine Palace, the news made the whole palace boiling.


    Shen Jing of the Taixuan Mountain entered the ancestral land of the Divine Palace��the Shrine.


    For many years, only one disciple of the Divine Palace had stepped into the shrine. This person was still cultivating in the ancestral shrine: Huang Zhong��the top one figure among the descendants in the Upper Heavens Realm.


    Today, there was one more person.


    Many people in the palace were even reluctant to believe it. Some cultivators in seclusion came out and wanted to ask Ye Futian in person.


    At this time, in the Divine Palace, Ye Futian walked towards the direction of Sword Comprehension Mountain. This trip to the Divine Palace was perfect for him. He completed all tasks and even had unexpected gains.


    It was time to leave after cultivating in the Divine Palace for so long.


    However, people kept coming towards him. Around him, disciples of the Divine Palace appeared one after another, all staring at him. The emotion in their stares was complicated, but no one stepped forward; they all just looked at him.


    As if he was a monster!

 1556 Sword Unlocking 81

    Ye Futian came out and headed toward Sword Comprehension Mountain. He came on this trip as a swordsman from Taixuan Mountain. Besides Yaya, the others that he was acquainted with were those from Taixuan Mountain, like Wan Shouyi, Luoyue, and little phoenix. Besides little phoenix, there were several others who were cultivating at Sword Comprehension Mountain, which was the place to cultivate swordsmanship.


    As for the others from Taixuan Mountain, they were outside of his control.


    Disciples of the Divine Palace continued gathering and appearing beside him. Some disciples approached and asked, "Shen Jing, did you really get into the Ancestral Land?"


    To the Divine Palace, this news was too shocking, especially for the direct disciples. They knew how difficult it was to enter the Ancestral Land. Now, Ye Futian claimed that he had entered the Ancestral Land. One could imagine the shock felt by the disciples of the Divine Palace.


    An outsider had stepped into their Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace?


    The elders of the Divine Palace did not stop him?


    Huang Zhong, who was at the Ancestral Land, didn''t stop Ye Futian either?


    With Huang Zhong''s realm of strength, who below Renhunag could surpass him?


    "What answer you wish for is the answer you''ll get." Ye Futian glanced at the other. He no longer wished to respond anymore. There were still so many questions, and if he said that he didn''t go, no one wouldn''t believe him. If so, there was no need to spend time chattering. The people of the Divine Palace could think whatever they wanted to.


    Since none of the great figures at the Divine Palace minded, the thoughts of the disciples of the Divine Palace were completely unimportant. Thus, Ye Futian did not care either.


    The words carved on the stone tablet in the divine temple perhaps were the foundation of the Divine Palace.


    "Brother Shen, what was in the divine temple of Ancestral Land?" someone walked up to Ye Futian and asked, his eyes full of curiosity.


    Seeing this person, everyone was speechless for the moment. It was Zhuang Hong. This guy actually thought of exploring the secrets of the Ancestral Land from Shen Jing.


    Indeed, apart from the key figures of the Divine Palace, probably only Huang Zhong would know what was in the Ancestral Land. Now that Ye Futian had gone inside, how could they not be curious?


    "This is the secret of the Divine Palace. Should I keep it or tell you?" Ye Futian looked at Zhuang Hong with a smile.


    Zhuang Hong looked stunned. He glared at Ye Futian and said in a low voice, "You are an ass."


    Since he said that it was the secret of the Divine Palace, as the direct disciple of the Divine Palace, how could he dare to question any further? It would amount to probing secrets of the Divine Palace.


    Why couldn''t this guy just reveal a little? Just a little bit...


    "Try hard to enter it, and there you will see the real Divine Palace." Ye Futian patted Zhuang Hong''s shoulder, which made Zhuang Hong''s eyes shine with excitement as he stared at Ye Futian. How thrilling was his suggestion!


    Only, he was even more curious!


    What would the real Divine Palace look like?


    Was the Divine Palace that they saw a fake?


    "I want to, but I am afraid I won''t be able to," Zhuang Hong mumbled to himself. The Path River was not so easy to cross.


    Ye Futian didn''t say anything more; it was really difficult to get through.


    At this time, Ye Futian stopped and saw a figure standing in front of them. He was blocking Ye Futian''s way forward.


    "Yan Sui." Ye Futian looked at the person in front of him. It turned out to be an acquaintance. This person had traveled to the Heavenly Mandate Realm with Yi Tianyu and was a good friend of Yi Tianyu. He was a disciple of the Palace Lord of Divine Music Palace. Now Yan Sui, who had already entered Nirvana Realm, was blocking his way.


    "Yan Sui, disciple of Divine Music Palace." Yan Sui bowed slightly to Ye Futian, his demeanor cordial and measured.


    "No need for formality since you are blocking the way," Ye Futian said with a smile. Blocking the road was, in itself, an act of rudeness.


    "What can I do for you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Recently, I have been cultivating in solitude. After I came out, I heard that a legend had appeared in the Land of Proving the Way. I heard that Shen Jing, a swordsman from Taixuan Mountain and a disciple of Lord Taixuan, defeated many powerful cultivators with one sword. I heard that even Li Daozi was no exception. Furthermore, he had entered the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace, which is rumored to contain the ultimate method of the Divine Palace. Since Brother Shen had returned from the Ancestral Land, and maybe I''m overestimating my own strength, I would love to experience what Brother Shen learned in the Ancestral Land."


    Yan Sui spoke politely. Even if it was a challenge, he was still courteous, exhibiting great diplomacy.


    At this time, many disciples of Divine Music Palace and Yi Tianyu were also present. They looked at Yan Sui, and Yi Tianyu and Yan Sui were quite familiar with one another. Having seen the battle between Ye Futian and Li Daozi, he was afraid that Yan Shi might not come out of this battle victorious.


    However, Yan Sui had always been arrogant. If he wanted to try, he couldn''t really stop it. So he didn''t speak but looked on quietly.


    In fact, many people thought that Yan Sui would definitely be defeated. After all, Li Daozi was more famous than Yan Sui. Recently, Ye Futian had returned from Ancestral Land, so YanSui could not possibly be his equal.


    However, it was possible to see whether or nor Ye Futian''s strength had improved any more and whether or not he had gained anything in the Ancestral Land.


    "You cannot."


    Ye Futian glanced at Yan Sui. His answer was straightforward, and he didn''t give Yan Sui any leeway.


    He was also wondering, when did the people in the Divine Palace hear that he was a disciple of Lord Taixuan?


    He had only met Lord Taixuan once that day, and to call him a disciple was somewhat preposterous. What would Lord Taixuan think if he knew? Would he think that Ye Futian was leading people to believe he was his disciple?


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, everyone in the Divine Palace was silent for a while. He was truly blunt about it.


    Yan Sui did not expect Ye Futian to be so frank, dismissing him with just two words: "you cannot."


    "Please advise," Yan Sui said, his voice was solemn. As his voice fell, lingering divine sounds of the Great Path meandered in the air. It turned into infinite musical notes, complementing the Way of heaven and earth.


    A series of golden characters turned into terrible lightning and attacked Ye Futian. The roaring golden characters turned into a salient golden-winged Roc, hacking through the void.


    Ye Futian was on the move, and everyone saw illusive afterimages, like golden lightning, sail across the void as a squealing sound was heard.


    Puh��


    Everyone saw that the golden remnant of the shadow passed through the golden-winged Roc. Ye Futian actually directly split open the golden-winged Roc using his hand in place of a sword. His entire body was dazzling, and he radiated a terrible divine light of swordsmanship. His finger pointed forward at Yan Sui.


    In this instant, the divine sound of the Great Path resonated throughout heaven and earth in harmony with Ye Futian''s finger. It created a supreme swordsmanship.


    "Divine Sound." Yan Sui''s expression changed to one with shock as the finger descended instantly and landed. With a popping sound, his body flew backward, and blood dripped down along his hanging arms. In that momentary confrontation, without much drama, Yan Sui bled from the corners of his mouth. His clothes were also stained with blood. His arms hung helplessly as blood continued to drip down.


    "This��"


    The hearts of many trembled. Though they could not see the swordplay clearly, they felt the Divine Sound and the swordsmanship. As for their true strength, it was unfathomable to many disciples of the Divine Palace.


    "He has cultivated the Divine Sound, entered into the Ancestral Land, and the method of the Divine Palace truly exists in the Ancestral Land." Everyone was shocked. They focused intently on Ye Futian. If so, didn''t that imply this swordsman from Taixuan Mountain was stealing the arts from the Divine Palace?


    Ye Futian continued forward, walking past Yan Sui as his arms were just hanging there. He let Ye Futian walk past him, unable to do anything to stop him. Although the disciples of Divine Music Palace were not happy about it, no one tried to stop him again. With Ye Futian''s strength, except for the one who was cultivating at the Ancestral Land, no one was certain they could stop him.


    Ye Futian continued ahead like a sword until he had arrived at Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    A person stood on top of the first mountain of Sword Comprehension Mountain like a sword from the heavens, looking down at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his head to looked up at him. It was Li Daozi of the Divine Sword Li Family, and the breath exuded from his body was the breath of Renhuang.


    "Proving the Way of Renhuang," Ye Futian said to himself. Whether it was a strengthening of his power or a transformation of his mind, he viewed Renhuang differently than he did before. Once, Emperor Xia and Emperor Li were legends to him��mythical figures who were unattainable.


    But today and right now, he felt that Renhuang was not so far out of reach.


    Especially when the person who had lost to him not long ago had now entered the realm of Renhuang. Naturally, he was not likely to be impressed. It was only that different people experienced the Way on different timelines, and Li Daozi''s realm was deeper than his.


    Ye Futian didn''t speak. He only looked up at Li Daozi, who seemed to be waiting for him here.


    Li Daozi looked at Ye Futian. Although he had entered into Renhuang, Ye Futian had entered the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace. Which was more difficult?


    Realm of Renhuang. There were many at the Divine Palace, but how many could enter the Ancestral Land?


    Therefore, there was nothing much to be proud of.


    "Congratulations," Li Daozi said.


    "Same." Ye Futian smiled. It looked like that Li Daozi was not here to fight. Indeed, it would be meaningless to pick a fight after the other had already entered Renhuang.


    "Thank you for trying the sword," Li Daozi said again. He then shape-shifted into a sword and flickered away.


    Ye Futian smiled. This heir of the Divine Sword Li Family was kind of interesting.


    He continued to move forward and entered the Sword Comprehension Mountain.


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue looked at him with emotions in their hearts. Since this guy came down from the mountain, he began to show his edge and was becoming more and more legendary.


    Was this still the Shen Jing that they knew?


    They hardly seemed to be the same person.


    Ye Futian smiled at them and walked forward until he reached the last Sword Mountain. The sword will flowed upon him, and the aurora of the sword shot out from his eyes.


    After a while, he turned and said to Wan Shouyi and Luoyue. "Let''s go back," he said.


    "Very well."


    The two nodded and went along with him, Yaya also followed quietly. As soon as they turned around and started walking, they saw that the last sword peak of Sword Comprehension Mountain was shining with a brilliant sword light that rushed toward the sky. Then, 81 Sword Mountains lit up at the same time. The sword qi roared and circled the heavens as if to send them off.


    "This��"


    Everyone''s heart beat violently, especially those disciples from Sword Palace of the Divine Palace.


    Without being in the realm of the sword emperor, the 81 swords had been unlocked; even the last one was the same.


    This was another new record. No one had done it before.


    What exactly did he obtain in the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace?


    In the void, Li Daozi, who was leaving, turned his head and glanced toward Sword Comprehension Mountain, many turbulent emotions in his heart.


    Not an emperor, yet he unlocked the 81 swords.


    Compared to him, he seemed to be lesser again. This title of sword emperor was nothing to be proud of at all.


    It seemed that, in the future, he still needed to concentrate on cultivation.


    Ye Futian walked toward the outside of the Divine Palace, prepared to leave. Many of those who had followed him into the Divine Palace were also leaving with him. After having stayed at the Divine Palace for many days, partially for his own private reasons. However, now that what needed to be done had been done, and since he didn''t choose to cultivate at the Divine Palace, it was time to go back!

 1557 Murderous Inten

    In Linxiao City, it had been a long time since the guides from the Divine Palace had led the cultivators into the Sea of the Path. Since then, many had returned, bringing with them news and rumors.


    For example, in the battle of the proving ground in the Sea of the Path, the strongest person was not Li Xun of the Divine Sword Li Family, nor Qin Zang of the Sky Burying God Clan, nor Gai Shi Shi��the genius talent of the Golden Divine Nation. It was not even a disciple of the Divine Palace. Instead, it was someone that few people had heard of before.


    A swordsman from Taixuan Mountain��Shen Jing.


    This swordsman from Taixuan Mountain, who was famed in one battle, had defeated all enemies in the land of the Land of Proving the Way. He alone had plundered the Divine Tree of Comprehension. Because of him, everyone from Taixuan Mountain was able to get into the Divine Tree to comprehend. Afterward, as many cultivators had entered the Divine Palace, less and less news made way to Linxiao City.


    Furthermore, although many had returned, those key characters, such as Shen Jing, who became famous in the one battle, as well as Gai Shi Shi and Qin Zang, had not been seen since. Could it be that they had all entered the Divine Palace to cultivate?


    Many had already left, but some were still cultivating in Linxiao City, waiting for news. They wanted to see what would happen this time.


    Naturally, all the top forces were stationed at Linxiao City as well.


    At this time, on the coast of the Sea of the Path, many walked on the beach, and some enjoyed a drink or two in the taverns, looking out over that vast Sea of ??the Path. It was said that this sea was endless. The Divine Palace was located above the fae mountain of the Sea of the Path, but for those who were not disciples of the Divine Palace, unless taken by guides, there was no other way to enter the Divine Palace.


    Although there were countless who longed for it, they had no chance to enter.


    At this time, there was a sudden sound that came from the coast. Many turned their attention that way, looking in the direction of the Sea of the Path. Curiosity flashed through their eyes as they looked at the sea. Their eyes became brighter and brighter until finally, they saw in the distance, where the sea met the sky, figures sailing toward them. It was as if they were coming from the other end of the sky.


    "They are back!" Someone trembled inwardly. Those who had gone to the Divine Palace had returned from the Sea of the Path.


    Many heard whispers and turned to look over there. They saw that the group was not together but was made of different camps in different positions, but from a distance, it was as if they were all together. However, as they got closer, they could be seen more clearly.


    "Cultivators of the Divine Sword Li Family are here."


    "And the cultivators of the Sky Burying God Clan."


    Everyone talked amongst themselves. Sure enough, it was the return of those who had gone to the Divine Palace to prove the Way.


    It was unknown what they had gained on this trip.


    "Who is Shen Jing?" someone inquired.


    Many did not yet know who Shen Jing was.


    Everyone searched, and quickly, their gaze fell in one direction. Over there, Ye Futian, Wan Shouyi, and Luoyue were together. However, there were still a few others from Taixuan Mountain who were willingly following behind them.


    "There are the people from Taixuan Mountain, and the handsome figure in the front must be Shen Jing. He became the apparent leader of those from Taixuan Mountain." Someone pointed in the direction of Ye Futian. Suddenly, many were sizing him up.


    When he entered the Sea of the Path before, no one had noticed him. But now, he became famous because of the one battle. So, naturally, he was the focus of all the attention.


    Ye Futian and his party went all the way from the Sea of ??the Path, escorted by the guides from the Divine Palace. When everyone got to the shore, the guides from the Divine Palace turned around and left in the boat, carefree and at ease.


    Ye Futian stood on a dinghy. The wind from the sea caressed his robe.


    As the dinghy docked, he stepped off and said, "Let''s go back to Taixuan Mountain."


    "Very well." Wan Shouyi nodded.


    Ye Futian''s body flickered, and he landed on the shore. The group walked forward, preparing for their trip back home.


    In the Sea of the Path, people came through the air one after another, and they all went ashore.


    The people of Linxiao City wanted to know what happened but had no idea who they should ask.


    "Huh?" At this time, someone realized that all the cultivators had gone in the same direction.


    Someone''s eyes sparkled, and a faint smile flashed across their face. "Quite interesting," they said.


    Clearly, he had realized something and immediately caught up with the group.


    Ye Futian and his group kept moving forward, and they quickly reached Linxiao City. He did not hurry, though. Instead, his brows were knitted together.


    Next to Ye Futian, Wan Shouyi and Luoyue took on a cold expression. Obviously, they both discovered that after they landed from the Sea of the Path, many did not go back but had followed them instead.


    Had some kind of tacit agreement had been made?


    Or had it been discussed in the Divine Palace in advance?


    More and more people had now gathered inside Linxiao City, and many cultivators, while sensing something unusual, couldn''t help but become greatly interested.


    It seemed that although everyone had returned from the Divine Palace, the matter was far from over.


    There was going to be a show to see.


    "They are here for you," Wan Shouyi transmitted his voice to Ye Futian. It was easy to understand that in the Divine Palace, Ye Futian''s strength was unparalleled and that at the Divine Palace, it was not easy for anyone to touch him.


    Now that everyone had returned, they would soon be on their way back home, just as Ye Futian would also go back to Taixuan Mountain. If they did not make a move now, they would not have another chance.


    No one would forget that Ye Futian, while in the Land of Proving the Way, had taken many fruits of the Way himself.


    Those fruits were fruits that could form the body of the Great Path; it was especially helpful to impact the realm of Renhuang.


    In addition, Ye Futian had obtained the inheritance of the Divine Palace in the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace, which was equally alluring to the others.


    Therefore, if everyone wanted to make a move on Ye Futian together, it would not be so unexpected.


    Ye Futian nodded as he understood that as long as the people of the Divine Capital of Xiling was there, Luo Youming must have hated him and wanted to slaughter him mercilessly.


    Now, the people of the Divine Capital of Xiling were in the dark.


    And Gai Shi Shi of the Golden Divine Nation had followed along as well.


    In addition, there were some other cultivators whom Ye Futian didn''t even know; they had fought for the fruits of the Way in the Land of Proving the Way with him. Their realms were all unfathomable, and they were characters who had reached the top of the Saint Plane. They all desired the fruits.


    Presumably, they already had the same idea, and now that they had left the Divine Palace, they wouldn''t want to miss the opportunity again.


    Ye Futian not only did not hurry to escape but slowed down his pace instead, casually walking around the city. His spiritual will shrouded his surroundings.


    Unconsciously, the space where Ye Futian was became somewhat suppressing for others, and those around him pulled away. It was as if they could predict what would happen.


    "You don''t need to follow me," Ye Futian said. His body suddenly accelerated. He ditched Wan Shouyi and the others in an instant.


    "You..." Luoyue saw this and pointed forward, but Wan Shouyi caught her hand and shook his head.


    If those who were to attack were the top genius figures, they wouldn''t be of great use to him. Except for Wan Shouyi''s extraordinary comprehension of swordsmanship, everyone else might actually become Ye Futian''s burden.


    And with Ye Futian''s unparalleled strength, even if he was on his own, it was far easier to deal with him than with them. That, at least, there wouldn''t be any constraints.


    Ye Futian walked forward alone, sword will whistling around him. His spiritual will shrouded the vast void around him. The wind and clouds roared above the sky, and there was a terrible death light lurking about. There were even places where bright golden divine light shot out, falling down with frightening breath.


    In the void, Gai Shi Shi and the other cultivators were there.


    Ye Futian wouldn''t be able to get away so easily.


    He took away the fruits of the Way and entered the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace. He was not a disciple of the Divine Palace. Thus, even if he was taken, it would have nothing to do with the Divine Palace. Moreover, they also wanted to know what secrets were hidden in the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace.


    Boom. Divine thunder rolled above the sky like the apocalypse was upon them. Thunder clouds roared, blocking the sun overhead. A mighty power of Renhuang permeated and cascaded down, exuding a strong sense of threat.


    "Shen Jing, you alone took possession of the fruits of the Way��a greedy act. Since you don''t cultivate in many of the methods, why don''t you give up some of the fruits, and we''ll leave?" a voice said from the void, obviously unwilling to start a war with Ye Futian. However, for the opportunity of proving the Way, they had to fight for it.


    "The might of the Renhuang divine implement." Ye Futian glanced up at the void. The Land of Proving the Way strictly forbade the use of Renhuang-level divine implements. But in reality, many of those who entered the Sea of the Path were powerful figures who were equipped with Renhuang-level divine implements.


    Now, outside of the Sea of the Path, if it was strength alone, no one could best Ye Futian. But this was a pillage; who would care to be fair? Clearly, any means would be used.


    Ye Futian''s expression was cold and indifferent. Sword will circled his body, and there was murderous intent in his eyes.


    They were out of The Land of Proving the Way, and they were all out of the Divine Palace. Were they still unwilling to give up?


    The fact that this person was in possession of a Renhuang-level divine implement didn''t bother him. What alarmed him was that someone like Gai Shi Shi, whose divine implement must be supremely powerful, was surely extremely powerful.


    And these people were staring at him. They could strike at any time.


    "Respectfully, I would like to advise everyone to leave now, and I will forget that this ever happened. However, if you make a move, I will see that as an attempt on my life. For those people, I will kill without exception." Ye Futian''s voice was extremely cold. If these people were serious about threatening his life, he would be merciless.


    "As soon as I have the fruit, I will leave immediately. I only want one," the man in the void said in a cold and indifferent voice. Ye Futian''s spiritual will captured and locked onto the speaker. It was a middle-aged cultivator holding a divine hammer. Thunder and lightning filled the sky aggressively and with absolute dominance. Divine light of infinite thunder and lightning of heaven and earth gathered and turned into a chain of thunder.


    At this time, Ye Futian looked up at the divine thunder tumbling above the sky. Bright sword light of murder shot out from his eyes, piercing the void, and into the other man''s eyes. When the middle-aged man saw those eyes, he felt that his spiritual will was sliced through by swordsmanship. It was glaring and blinding.


    "You asked for you it," a cold voice sounded in his mind, making him feel a very strong threat.


    At the same time that the voice fell, Ye Futian''s body turned into an afterimage. Its dazzling sword light traversed the void and rushed into the thundering sky with extreme speed.


    The middle-aged man changed the expression on his face. The divine thunder was extremely violent, he raised his arm and blasted out divine light of thunder that swept through the void, but the residual shadow blinked and disappeared.


    Psst...


    A very slight sound emerged as the destructive thunder rolled and roared between heaven and earth, but the man''s eyes showed tremendous fear. The divine implement fell from his hands. He held his neck with both hands as a crack appeared, and blood flowed out and stained his hands red.


    The sword was that fast!

 1558 Battle Again with Gai Shi Shi

    In the void, the sword in Ye Futian''s hand was stained with blood as he looked at the figure falling from the sky. This strike not only slashed the throat but also contained the power to slash the soul, so the other was unable to save himself.


    Now that these many cultivators had come to suppress him in unison, wanting to leverage divine implements to smite him and take away the fruits, if he didn''t make an example of him, they would most likely be undeterred.


    His hand made a grabbing motion in the air, and Ye Futian captured the divine implement of the other, then took it as his own.


    That suffocating will of the Way still shrouded the space, but no one wanted to be that bold again. It was as if they were cowed by Ye Futian''s sword.


    A sword traversed the void and directly slashed the throat of someone who was at the top Nirvana plane, holding the Renhuang divine implement. After having cultivated in the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace, Ye Futian should be even stronger than when he fought with Li Daozi. His sword was no longer confined to the Fleeing Years of the divine will. The sword that had been deployed just now was the ultimate fast sword.


    "Those who want to die, continue as you wish," Ye Futian said as he walked forward, holding the sword with one hand. He stepped into the void, and the vast void resonated with the Nether Swordsmanship. It was extremely sharp. The sword will of the heavens clamored.


    In Linxiao City, in the vast and endless area beneath the sky, countless people were shocked. Many swordsmen felt that their swords and their own sword will were also resonating with that swordsmanship. It was as if all the swords of the world were about to be controlled by it.


    "Shen Jing, on this trip to the Divine Palace to prove the Way, everyone competed for the fruits of the Way, which was the opportunity bestowed by the Divine Palace. People of all principalities were to share the opportunity, but you snatched all the fruits for yourself. You were selfish, and you didin''t think about anybody else," said a cold and indifferent voice. The speaker was Gai Shi Shi. He stood higher up in the void as the golden divine light of his body cascaded down.


    Ye Futian''s sword deterred all the cultivators, and no one dared to come forward. It looked like he had come out himself.


    But in reality, what he wanted was not as simple as the fruits of the Way.


    After hearing Gai Shi Shi''s words, many felt the same sense of outrage. This Ye Futian was indeed too domineering. He had seized many fruits of the Way. He had taken advantage of the opportunity from the Divine Palace to prove the Way. This rather selfish behavior was unjustifiable to the others.


    Ye Futian glanced up at the sky, and a sarcastic smile flashed in his sharpened eyes. He said, "What a joke. If it weren''t for me, other people could obtain the fruits? Don''t forget who occupied the Divine Tree of Comprehension at the time. Who had gotten it then? You were one of them. Exactly whose way did I block when I went alone to take from the Divine Tree of Comprehension?


    "Gai Shi Shi, if you want to fight, then fight. Don''t bother encouraging the others to die along with you. It''s really beneath your reputation and the Divine Nation''s," Ye Futian said sarcastically. He knew of the reputation of the Golden Divine Nation, and Gai Shi Shi''s talent was truly outstanding. However, his conduct was rather unbecoming.


    Swordsman Li Daozi of the Divine Sword Li Family, in comparison, was more straightforward and was not faking anything.


    "You asked to fight. I will oblige you," Gai Shi Shi said loud and clear. His voice shook the void. As his voice fell, golden divine lights descended from the sky, seemingly transforming into many golden divine spears that slaughtered downward. A terrifying divine power descended. Giant faces appeared in the sky; they were golden faces. There were faint traces of ancient golden gods in the sky. They sighed.


    A mighty will of the Way came down and shrouded Ye Futian. Gai Shi Shi took out a divine implement, which was a golden spear. The divine light that puffed out from within seemed to be able to break through the heavens above. Just the golden brilliance that it released was enough to hurt the eyes of those who beheld it.


    Gai Shi Shi, at this moment, under the glory of the golden divine spear, seemed to be covered in golden armor. He looked just like a god of war would. The clothes on his body were shining and shimmering with a golden luster.


    "How strong is the divine implement?" Many raised their hands to shield their eyes. Even though they were hundreds of miles apart, the people of Linxiao City felt it as their eyes were being stung by the divine light of that divine implement. The might of Way contained there was unfathomable in its horrific power.


    Between heaven and earth, the golden divine light flowed and converged upon the spear. The golden divine spear seemed to be burning, burning with the golden divine light.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were extremely grave. What mighty power was the Golden Divine Nation? They were one of the most powerful forces in the Upper Heavens Realm, definitely among the top three. Outside of the Divine Palace, there was no other principality that dared to say that it could crush the Golden Divine Nation. One could only imagine what powerful divine implement the Golden Divine Nation would bestow upon Gai Shi Shi, who was the finest of its descendants. No other Renhuang divine implement would be comparable.


    "At the beginning of the year, I went to Taixuan Mountain to visit Lord Taixuan. Even now, I am reluctant to smite the people of Taixuan Mountain. If you were not so greedy and had been willing to divide the fruits equally, I might have forgiven you," Gai Shi Shi said. There was a righteous air about him. He acted as if he was serving justice in this matter.


    "Since when does a loser dare to be so arrogant?" Ye Futian said mockingly. Upon hearing his words, Gai Shi Shi raised the divine spear. Its might of divine light pierced the void. Golden divine light shot out from his eyes as he replied coldly, "Since you are hard-headed and refuse to come to your senses, the spear of the gods will represent the will of the gods. The divine light will wash away your sins."


    His voice was solemn, like a real god. Above the sky, many divine illusions let out a sigh. In an instant, the pressure of might soared to the limit. This kind of unparalleled power was unrivaled below Renhuang realm. Even those at the top of the Nirvana plane who surrounded Ye Futian were terrified.


    Gai Shi Shi, at this moment, was too frightening. If he launched his attack against them, he would be unstoppable.


    There was also what Gai Shi Shi had said. It seemed as if those words were from the powerful Divine Nation, from divine general who had served under Donghuan the Great. Only those kinds of characters could have such a vision to speak such aspirational words.


    The spear of the gods would represent the will of heaven, and the divine light would wash away all sins.


    The divine light bloomed as the divine spear in Gai Shi Shi''s hand pierced toward Ye Futian. With the sigh of the divine god, all the divine lights penetrated the sky and earth. They fell at the same time, covering the sky and shielding the sun. They slammed toward Ye Futian''s body in an instant.


    Sword screamed in the sky, and infinite sword will of the world resonated and turned into a sword of slaughter, which penetrated the void. It collided with the divine light and collapsed and shattered together. A terrible storm of destruction manifested in the void as the endless golden divine light sprinkled down. Ye Futian felt a strong oppressive force, and those golden divine lights seemed to be inexhaustible, suppressing him.


    What was even more terrifying was that Gai Shi Shi came with the divine spear through the void, and the divine spear stabbed out forcefully, intending to nail Ye Futian to the void.


    Looking at the dazzling figure that bathed in the golden divine light, Ye Futian had no doubt that Gai Shi Shi would really kill him if he wanted to. His daring confidence came from the power of the Golden Divine Nation that feared nothing and no one.


    The void seemed to split as the golden divine spear opened up a road of the Great Path. Ye Futian controlled the flow of the sword river in the Great Path, but everything was still annihilated and pulverized. He was unable to block the power of the divine spear. Even if Gai Shi Shi was not able to mobilize too much of its power, as a supreme Renhuang divine implement, the spear was still extremely fearsome.


    Under the spear of the gods, everything would be pulverized. In an instant, it had already descended on Ye Futian.


    Many people endured the sting to continue looking at the battlefield. Under the dazzling divine light, it was almost difficult to see what was happening. With this blow, would the magnificent swordsman from Taixuan Mountain perish?


    Bang!


    A dull sound came out, shattering the sky and earth as the divine light exploded. It swept out toward the external surroundings and turned into a terrible light screen of the Great Path.


    Many couldn''t help but continue staring there. The golden divine Spear did not pierce through Ye Futian''s body. Around Ye Futian, an immense and sacred Divine Elephant appeared. It let out a booming sound.


    At this moment, the Great Path seemed to collapse and shatter. The roars continued resounding between heaven and earth.


    The towering Divine Elephant stood like a demon god. An inexhaustible demon god''s brilliance flowed through the heavens. Ye Futian''s whole body was shining, and the bones of the supreme Elephant Emperor integrated into the Life Spirit of the Divine Elephant so that the battleform of the Life Spirit contained the incredible power of the demon emperor.


    Gai Shi Shi''s attack with a most powerful Renhuang divine implement forced him to resort to the power of the Divine Elephant. Gai Shi Shi himself was one of the top geniuses in the Upper Heavens Realm. Coupled with the great divine implement of the Golden Divine Nation, how powerful could he be? Anyone under Renhuang could be killed.


    Therefore, Ye Futian could only summon the power of the supreme Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor to counter the slaughter from the other''s divine spear.


    Suffocating pressure of might enveloped the sky, and countless eyes were fixed in the direction of the battlefield.


    "What was that?"


    "Life Spirit. Divine Elephant Life Spirit." Wasn''t Shen Jing a swordsman from Taixuan Mountain?


    His Life Spirit seemed to be more than just sword. But, at a critical point, he no longer contended with just sword alone, instead deploying the Life Spirit of the Divine Elephant. In this Life Spirit, it also seemed to be integrated into the magic of the demon emperor, which accounted for its incredible defense power, which could block the attack of the divine spear.


    "This is the power of the Divine Elephant. I have heard that the land of the demon realm in the Heavenly Mandate Realm is where the Divine Elephant Clan resides. What an incredible ability!" Among those who watched, there were some who were well-informed. A look of surprise hung on their faces. Was Shen Jing from Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    "Divine Elephant." Gai Shi Shi also looked down at Ye Futian. His golden eyes were extremely sharp. He asked, "Who are you?"


    The sound of elephants trumpeting oscillated in the void, just like the sound of the Great Path. The sky seems to be crushed under this sonorous sound.


    Bang! With a loud boom, the Divine Elephant stepped into the sky, repelling Gai Shi Shi''s body with its shockwaves. Ye Futian raised his fist and blasted out. It was Divine Elephant Split the Sky.


    Giant shadows of Divine Elephants trampled across the sky. The fist aurora suppressed the void, and the divine light upon Gai Shi Shi continued to shine. The divine spear in his hand continued to strike, and countless divine spears collided with the Divine Elephants and fist aurora. The battlefield where the two made their exchanges gave out loud rumbling sounds.


    "So powerful."


    Everyone''s heart trembled. Gai Shi Shi had released the Sigh of the Divine God, and he couldn''t be overpowered even with the use of such terrifying divine implements. He had even been repelled while Ye Futian continued his counterattacks. Such combative power was definitely at the top of Nirvana. Few possessed such strength.


    The two separated. Ye Futian wore an expression of cold indifference, and Gai Shi Shi looked at him as cold murderous intent flashed through his golden eyes. "It seems that there are other secrets you carry. If so, the inheritance of the Divine Palace and the fruits of the Way definitely should not be taken by you."


    As he finished speaking, his eyes glanced at those who were present. He asked, "What are you waiting for?"

 1559 Slaughter

    As Gai Shi Shi''s words fell, a force of destruction around him shrouded Ye Futian.


    With Gai Shi Shi as the leader, then hoard was a little encouraged. But their goal was the fruits of the Way, not to kill Ye Futian. If he were killed, the next task would be for Gai Shi Shi.


    Many speculated that Ye Futian was a secret disciple of Lord Taixuan. Under such circumstances, they would not harm him.


    Among those who came for the slaying, the cultivators from the Divine Capital of Xiling were also there. Luo Youming, who was severely injured by Ye Futian in the past, was hidden in the darkness. A strong death current circulated around Luo Youming, wrapping him within On Luo Youming''s body, a strong will of death gathered, like a god of death, with an extremely dangerous atmosphere. Those ghostly eyes stared at Ye Futian below, and there was murderous intent in his eyes.


    The strength of this man from Taixuan Mountain was so great to the point that it made him a little alarmed. Even Gai Shi Shi could not kill him when he took out the divine spear.


    Ye Futian looked at the cultivators from all areas. People in the Saint Plane had a stable state of mind and often acted with decisiveness, which was being demonstrated at this moment. Even though they were risking their lives, and under great danger, these people still refused to give up and wanted to loot the fruits of the Way.


    This state of mind was resolute and decisive. He had killed one of them, and it still did not deter them.


    "I will give you one last chance. Those who haven''t attacked, I will never pursue this matter further." Ye Futian''s voice was indifferent, yet it exuded an extremely dominant spirit. It seemed that even with all the powerful cultivators teamed up against him, he was still confident that he was invincible.


    "This kind of boldness, what peerless magnificence." Countless people in Linxiao City looked up into the sky. They were all quite shaken. Who would have thought that a swordsman from Taixuan Mountain could be so magnificent in the face of so many powerful cultivators aiming to take his life? He was calm and confidant. It seemed as if those who were around him would fall behind so that he could face the strong enemies alone.


    One man faced many. What strength must he possess?


    It was important to note that those who besieged him were extremely fearsome characters, even including top genius talent from the Golden Divine Nation like Gai Shi Shi.


    Even so, his arrogance could not be restrained.


    Ye Futian''s words faded, but no one moved. All those who were surrounding him for the kill were of the Nirvana plane, and they could hardly be threatened by words alone. The destructive might of the Way was still powerful, and it enveloped Ye Futian''s body. It seemed that with a single thought, an attack could be launched.


    Ye Futian''s eyes swept toward the crowd, and when he saw that no one vacillated, he knew that this battle would end in a bloodbath.


    "It''s not easy to cultivate in the Great Path. The Nirvana Realm is only a step away from proving the Way. The fruits of the Way are not a determining factor," Ye Futian said. "Is this necessary?"


    As his voice fell, and the sound of elephant hollering could be heard through heaven and earth. The dazzling golden Divine Elephant engulfed the Way of heaven and earth. Its majestic torso was still expanding, and it was erected between heaven and earth.


    Bang��


    The Divine Elephant stepped into the void and deployed the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky. At this moment, countless cultivators in Linxiao City let out a muffled groaning sound. As their hearts and spirits were shaking, their blood was roiling with their breath. Whether it was their body or their mental state, they were enduring an unparalleled power of repression. It was as if the Great Path in the world was suppressing them, holding them there in place.


    They wanted to move but found that it was difficult even to lift their feet; even their hands were trembling.


    Their hearts were beating quickly, and they looked toward Ye Futian, who was in the void. Ye Futian''s whole body was dazzling with divine light, and there was a celestial shadow blooming behind him. It seemed to be possessed a celestial soul. With the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky, they felt its step directly on them, leaving their flesh and spiritual soul both suppressed.


    At the same time, a Space Will of the Way was covering the endless space.


    At this moment, the entire world seemed to be suppressed and solidified, on the verge of stopped flowing.


    In the void, all eyes were fixed on Ye Futian. Everyone''s expression was very grave. One step to suppress the void. This was to suppress the Great Path, the Way of Space.


    Ye Futian''s body moved. He crossed the void in a single step and walked toward a person. The man''s eyes gazed at Ye Futian, whose figure continuously enlarged in his pupils. It was as if this far distance was within reach.


    His entire body started burning up, turned into a war god of flame. It broke through that suppressive force. There were flames of Renhuang-grade that flowed and moved toward Ye Futian to swallow him.


    Ye Futian blasted out a punch. It was the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist, whose destructive force of the Great Path destroyed everything. Under the guidance of the Celestial Soul Attraction, all spirit souls were destroyed and suppressed.


    Boom...


    An explosive sound came out, and everyone saw a ball of fire erupting. It was a Renhuang-grade divine implement. It fell down from the sky. As for that cultivator of Nirvana Realm, his soul and spirit dispersed completely, and he disappeared entirely.


    One punch destroyed everything, leaving nothing left.


    Those below watched this punch, and they were greatly afraid. Just how terrifying was its power?


    When the other cultivators saw this, their expression changed, and their hearts were pounding. They had all broken out of the bondage of the might of Way and launched a simultaneous attack on Ye Futian.


    Many destructive methods came toward Ye Futian, trying to entomb him. However, when the attacks descended, they seemed to get close to Ye Futian but were somehow unable to touch him. At this moment, many people had the illusion of Beyond Reach.


    Again, the utilization of Space Will of the Way.


    Buzz. The brilliant divine light of space was shining, but Ye Futian''s body had disappeared from where he was. As those methods and blasted together, causing the eruption of a shocking destructive force, Ye Futian had already completely detached himself from the attacks and appeared on high ground.


    But at this time, a golden divine light descended from the sky, which was the strongest among those who besieged him. It was Gai Shi Shi. The golden divine spear penetrated the void, bringing down with it the endless golden divine light and came straight down, aiming for Ye Futian''s head.


    Ye Futian walked in the sky. The earth shook, and the sky roared as both of his fists broke through the air at the same time, blasting out infinite aurora of the fist. The radiant will of the fist punched through the void and collided with those golden divine lights that were coming at him.


    Just as Ye Futian and Gai Shi Shi confronted each other, there was a sudden intrusion of death will. Infinite light of darkness appeared around Ye Futian, breaking through the air in an instant. It seemed to be able to lock onto his spiritual soul and move towards him, trying to slaughter him. At a glance, it was endless darkness that covered this space.


    This endless flow of dark death current was like countless nails, which caused a shock to his Celestial Soul. It seemed as if it was nailed in the void. Countless death air currents came for the kill at the same time, like countless nails that descended simultaneously.


    These attacks were all invisible attacks, unconcerned with the power of offense or defense. Their only aim was the spiritual soul.


    The Celestial Soul behind Ye Futian fluttered, and there were traces of dark will that enveloped the Celestial soul and flowed inside Ye Futian''s body.


    His eyes swept in one direction, and he saw Luo Youming��the prince of Divine Capital of Xiling. At this time, his Celestial Soul seemed to have been peeled away from the body and turned into a god of death. This attack had precisely been released from there.


    Boom... Ye Futian''s Celestial Soul shook, and a brilliant celestial light erupted. There were actually countless air currents of swordsmanship directly blooming from the Celestial Soul as the Celestial Soul Attraction stamped the sword into the Celestial Soul Attack. There seemed to be endless swords of spiritual soul sweeping out, destroying those death currents.


    Simultaneously, the force of Gai Shi Shi''s attack descended again, as well as his person, carrying with him the golden divine spear and the power of the divine gods to attack at close range. Its might was unbelievably aggressive.


    The Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky. Ye Futian raised his eyes and glanced toward the other. One step, and thousands of elephants rushed across, crushing the void. They slammed toward Gai Shi Shi spear. Ye Futian disappeared as a sword like a brilliant streamer of light, deftly avoiding the attack that was forming the other side.


    With a wave of his hands in the void, suddenly, countless swords between heaven and earth were born.


    Many looked up at him and saw that the sword light was shining brightly. There seemed to be many sword rivers of the Great Path that appeared to flow between heaven and earth.


    Psst�� His figure disappeared again and went in another direction. It was the one who had just attacked him.


    That cultivator''s expression changed slightly. The strength exhibited by Ye Futian was also the one that he was afraid the most.


    Clad in armor, his entire body burst out with an unparalleled heavy force. He walked like a war god of the great Path. His body was like a Renhuang battleform. With the magnification of the divine implements, it was not any less than the true Renhuang Battleform. His entire body erupted with divine light.


    Bang. Both fists blasted through the sky and earth, directly slamming toward Ye Futian, who was zooming in. The void seemed to have been punched through and pulverized; its strength was immeasurable. But Ye Futian did not make an effort to evade it. Instead, his sword-like figure moved directly down.


    There was a resonance of thousands of swords between heaven and earth, and the terrible sound of elephants rumbling. The Great Path was one. There was an immense sense of swordsmanship in his body that turned his body into a sword.


    Bang!


    The fist was penetrated and destroyed. A sword light crossed the void, and that nirvana figure disappeared completely, save for a sword mark left in the void. Another Renhuang divine implement, which was picked up by Ye Futian.


    "Hunt to kill!"


    Everyone''s heart was pounding. Cultivators were hunted down by Ye Futian, one after another. He had temporarily avoided the strongest of them all, which was Gai Shi Shi, and escaped being tied down. He could not defeat Gai Shi Shi instantly, but he was able to kill any others in seconds.


    Gai Shi Shi''s attack was unable to restrain Ye Futian, nor could anybody else.


    Many people looked at the figure in the void and thought that Taixuan Mountain had really produced an extraordinary genius talent. He had used his own power to contend with all the powerful cultivators. Not only was he not at a disadvantage, but he was hunting the others one by one.


    This kind of people was too terrifying.


    At this time, Ye Futian standing there with his hands forming the seal, the ancient tree of the world swaying within him. The blood inside of him howled, and the will of the Way tossed and turned as a majestic breath erupted from his body. Behind Ye Futian, majestic figures akin to divine gods could vaguely be seen.


    Many Divine Elephants surrounded him, trampling wildly between heaven and earth to block the attack from outside. As he closed his eyes, his spiritual will radiated outward, shrouding the boundless space.


    At this moment, the swords on many people in Linxiao City were trembling. Some even flew out of the sheaths. It was as if the sword will in their bodies was flowing outside of their controls. Above the sky, countless divine swords appeared, circling around heaven and earth, thus wrapping the vast and boundless space within it.


    Ye Futian''s body seemed to be the master of all swords, and the infinite divine sword resonated because of him. Divine swords, one after the other, ran through the void, tearing it, like a meteor sword, leaving sword marks between heaven and earth.


    "He meant to kill them as a group!"


    Everyone''s heart pounded. Wan Shouyi watched from afar. His pupils contracted as he stared at the scene.


    He felt the real Fleeting of Years!

 1560 Ambush

    Inside Ye Futian''s body, the dazzling glory of swordsmanship gleamed. Shadows of swords appeared. It was as if all the veins of his body had turned into veins of swords, and his blood had turned into a sword river. His entire body was now the sword that ruled all other swords.


    "Sword body of the Great Path."


    Many people were trembling in their hearts. Was this an indication that the Sword body of the Great Path was about to be forged?


    Thousands of swords returned against the current. It was no longer the swordsmanship that was released from Ye Futian, but an infinite sword that was born from heaven and earth, coming toward Ye Futian.


    This could only be accomplished by someone who had gathered the soul of the Way, but Ye Futian clearly had not yet reached that level of intensity. This could only mean that his spiritual will was stronger than the power of ordinary men.


    Countless divine swords reversed as the swords locked onto the sky. Roaring sounds of the Great Path came out of all the cultivators, and an amazing power exploded forth. Some raised their hands to attack, destroying the coming swords, but several other swords came toward them as they tore the void, leaving a sword mark as they continued to the target.


    He continued to attack but saw more and more swords. Left and right, top and bottom, there were divine swords on all sides. It was endless. This scene caused a great disturbance in Ye Futian''s heart. It was as if he was facing the illusion of the divine wheel of the Renhuang swordsmanship.


    Bang, bang, bang... One sword could not execute the killing, but what about countless swords?


    Moreover, the sword was getting stronger, turning into a storm that countered the Great Path, destroying all methods.


    It was not just him, but everyone was contending with this imprisoning swordsmanship. A swordsmanship storm appeared in every direction, and this swordsmanship storm was resonating with one another as if to become a giant storm that would annihilate the existence of everything.


    The people in Linxiao City looked up into the sky. At this time, there were countless Divine swords. Ye Futian was standing in the center of the storm, and those countless Divine swords resonated with his body as the center.


    "It''s so strong." Everyone trembled. What had they experienced in the Divine Palace?


    Gai Shi Shi also stared at Ye Futian with indifferent eyes. Golden divine spears were flowing around his body and collided with the swords. The extremely holy and godlike figure stood there and could not be shaken. Such swordsmanship alone from Ye Futian would naturally not affect him, but if this continued, the others would end up in great misery.


    The golden divine spear was raised, and the divine light shot out from it. However, at this time, Ye Futian''s eyes opened, and an extremely overbearing divine aura came out of them. He raised his hand, and suddenly, the sky was covered with suffocating pressure. His fist blasted toward the front, dazzling with divine light, but no one knew what he intended to do.


    When he blasted out the aurora of the fist, he stepped out simultaneously and crossed the void in a single step. He appeared in front of a man who was fighting against the Swordsmanship. The divine spring had already penetrated the void and was charging downward.


    Boom!


    There was no hesitation. Under the shocking sound of elephant trumpeting, as thousands of Divine Elephants rushed by, the Great Path collapsed. The man''s body was directly punched through as his soul scattered, and he was knocked away, powerlessly, into the distance.


    "Dominating." Everyone''s heart trembled. Under the attack of the divine sword, coupled with the power of the Divine Elephant, it was invincible.


    Ye Futian continued to step forward. He appeared in another spot in an instant. Only those cultivators who had Renhuang divine implements dared to confront Ye Futian. Therefore, even though his swordsmanship was superior, it was only able to trap them but not eradicate them.


    However, Ye Futian, whose body contained the bones of the supreme Divine Elephant Emperor, had a close-quarter attack that was enough to break his opponent''s defense.


    Bang!


    Bang!


    Bang!


    A series of dull sounds came out, and each sound was accompanied by the fall of a Nirvana plane character, which struck fear in people''s hearts. These were all people who were qualified to enter the Divine Palace. None of them was an easy opponent, as they were all of the strongest existence in Nirvana Realm. But at this moment, they seemed to have become mediocre, which was the result of the suppression of their talent as well as the crushing of their combat power.


    Any genius talents would still look unremarkable in front of peerless characters.


    All the cultivators seemed to be reduced into supporting roles at the moment, probably just to accentuate the name of Shen Jing from Taixuan Mountain.


    Boom...


    It was unknown how many died in the continuous attacks. Those who were still resisting Ye Futian''s swordsmanship finally felt a strong sense of fear. Ye Futian was not joking; he was killing for real.


    Furthermore, he also could battle. If they continued to fight, it would probably only spell death form them.


    "Let''s go."


    Many people thought about leaving at the same time. Although they had a tenacious state of mind and were willing to risk fighting to obtain the fruits of the Way, the situation now could no longer be solved by taking a risk. Ye Futian had demonstrated superior fighting power that was enough to kill them all.


    Continuing to fight could only mean death.


    Those who had not yet perished kept pulling back, ready to evacuate from the battlefield. Ye Futian glanced at them, but the swordsmanship still attacked forward, chasing them, forcing them to continue their retreat into a distant area so that they disappeared from this battlefield.


    Ye Futian did not continue to pursue them. He was surrounded and attacked, and he had no choice but to kill his opponent. However, he knew that killing them would not benefit him at all.


    He turned his eyes in a direction, then stepped into the void. The sky oscillated as the Divine Elephants rushed through the sky. He walked toward a man who was retreating.


    The man was Luo Youming, and this was not the first time that the prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling had provoked him.


    The Renhuang divine implement he was equipped with seemed to have the effect of attacking and destroying spiritual souls.


    Luo Youming was also retreating. He had realized that it couldn''t be done. Even the joint attack could not ensnare Ye Futian. The combat power exhibited by this man too terrifying; he was and stronger beyond imagination. There was indeed superior and powerful Renhuang magic in his body.


    Under such circumstances, he had to give up.


    However, at this time, he saw Ye Futian coming toward him, which caused Luo Youming''s pupils to shrink. Did this guy only pursue him?


    A giant figure of the underworld appeared above the sky, and the world was rendered dark and dim as the will of death shrouded the world. It seemed that there was a pair of dead eyes that stared at Ye Futian. Death will directly invaded and rushed into his eyes to corrupt all his veins, nerves, and internal organs so that they lost their vitality.


    However, Ye Futian not only ate the fruit of life but also swallowed the fist of life in the Land of Proving the Way. If the wills of the Way were to be ranked, then will of life would rank the highest, as its abundant vitality seemed to turn into a sea of ??life inside the body, flooding and eradicating the invading will of death.


    Luo Youming looked badly. His palms were waving, and there appeared to be a formation of the Nether Matrix in the void, with numerous dark currents shot out from the matrix. Ye Futian felt that his spiritual soul was exposed. Those dark currents, like nails, nailing onto his spiritual soul.


    This attack was extremely strange. It was as if the spiritual soul was not strong enough. He would have been killed directly.


    Ye Futian''s spiritual soul bloomed. The Divine Elephant inside his body roared, and the Divine sword was unleashed. At the same time, he raised his hand and tightened his fist as if taking hold of the nether shadow in the void. Luo Youming''s body stiffened, and he felt that his spiritual soul was imprisoned. Just as he had attacked Ye Futian''s spiritual soul, the same tactic was used on him by the other.


    Boom. Ye Futian continued stepping forward, and each step seemed to suppress the Great Path, destroying the spiritual soul. Countless Divine Elephants trampled between heaven and earth, creating a scene that was shocking to behold. Luo Youming felt tightness all over his body, enduring a terrible force of oppression.


    But Ye Futian''s body is still radiant, and the will of the Way was extremely abundant. This was something that Luo Youming could not compare with at all.


    Both of Ye Futian''s fists blasted out simultaneously, and explosive sounds continuously came from Luo Youming''s body. It was as if he had been pierced through while in the air, and the shadow of the underworld was also shattered in the void. Luo Youming let out a shrill scream as his body was flying through the air. Blood came out of his mouth, and he looked terribly pale.


    "How dare you." At this moment, a cold voice came from above the sky. An incredibly powerful Great Path descended. Its might pressed against Ye Futian''s body, locking him in. Several supremely strong characters descended from the sky like divine gods. The breath released from them was the breath of Renhuang.


    Those who surrounded Ye Futian today all possessed extraordinary status and came from great principalities. Among them, two were the strongest: Gai Shi Shi and Luo Youming. One was the strongest descendant of the Golden Divine Nation, and the other was the prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling. Those who had guarded them before on their journey to the Divine Palace had not left but had always remained inside Linxiao City.


    But all the cultivators had started to attack Ye Futian, so they merely watched on the side in secret. However, now that Ye Futian had threatened Luo Youming''s life, they couldn''t remain on the sidelines any longer, so they walked over to reveal themselves.


    Ye Futian was experiencing an extremely powerful oppressive force that seemed to imprison his spiritual soul. As the death will descended, his entire body slowed down, and his mind became dim.


    It was then that a strong murderous intent came behind Ye Futian. Gai Shi Shi had not been made any attacks because he was waiting for an opportunity. Now that the Renhuang cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling had joined the fray, this was his opportunity.


    "Careful."


    Yaya''s expression changed as she shouted her warning loudly. Wan Shouyi, Luoyue, and the others also exclaimed in surprise, and their faces were extremely concerned. Gai Shi Shi of the Golden Divine Nation was supposedly a peerless and respectful figure. Still, he had employed such a low approach to unleash his most deadly attack when the other Renhuang were suppressing Ye Futian so that Ye Futian''s attention was divided.


    "Shameless."


    The disciples of Taixuan Mountain were extremely angry. No matter what they thought of Ye Futian before, Ye Futian had treated them well in the Land of Proving the Way. Coupled with Ye Futian''s unparalleled and talented combat power, they had now all recognized Ye Futian as one of their own and admired him greatly. He was the representative of their generation of Taixuan Mountain. He was much stronger than Jun Mu, as the two were not even on the same level.


    Presently, Taixuan Mountain needed such a person to represent them to the outside world. Jun Mu and the others would only bring shame to Taixuan Mountain and Lord Taixuan.


    Under such a situation, they had already thought of Ye Futian as one of them. Upon seeing Gai Shi Shi''s lowly ambush, there was great anger in their hearts!

 1561 Crushed II

    The people of Linxiao City were moved when they saw this scene. The Golden Divine Nation had flourished for a time and had stood at the top of the Higher Heavens Realm. Gai Shi Shi was the talented prince of the nation. How could he have known that his reputation would suffer like this?


    However, he had not hesitated to resort to underhanded tricks to kill Ye Futian. But although it was dishonorable, one could see from this just how fierce he was at heart. He was fierce to others and to himself. Even though he was an outstanding talent, he did not care about his own reputation and did not care how others saw him. He only wanted to achieve his goals.


    People like these were truly frightening and truly deadly.


    For Ye Futian, Gai Shi Shi''s surprise attack had been extremely deadly as well.


    Moreover, even when he saw Gai Shi Shi attack, the Renhuang from the Divine Capital of Xiling kept up his pressure on Ye Futian and did not withdraw it. It seemed as if he had no other goal than to see Ye Futian die at Gai Shi Shi''s hands.


    If Gai Shi Shi killed Ye Futian, then Taixuan Mountain would have to seek out the Golden Divine Nation to exact revenge.


    Ye Futian could naturally sense how threatening this situation was. He swept his cold gaze over the figure in the sky. The branches and leaves of the World Tree life spirit flowed through every part of his body, and his divine light shone through heaven and earth. At the same time, the Ten Thousand Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor were activated, and an elephant''s trumpeting sound rang out through the air.


    There was a loud boom as the illusions of countless divine elephants wrapped around him. At the same time, the image of a lordly divine elephant covered his body. He did not have much time to react, so he could only use his most powerful defensive techniques to block Gai Shi Shi''s attack.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise that made the heavens and the earth shake fiercely. Gai Shi Shi drew in close to attack, and his Golden Divine Spear pierced through countless illusions in an instant while also twisting wildly. A beam of brilliant golden light that could destroy everything pierced through the body of the divine elephant, shattering it to pieces as it wrapped around Ye Futian.


    Bang! The beam of golden light slammed into Ye Futian''s back, its power making him stumble forward. At the same time, the Renhuang''s pressure that had been oppressing him finally disappeared, but he was startled when he saw the blood staining his back.


    He moved forward, flying off into the distance with blood streaming from the corners of his mouth. But his eyes were still incredibly cold.


    And Gai Shi Shi''s attack was not finished yet. He continued to pursue. He could leap through space just like Ye Futian, and he was incredibly fast. He thrust out with the Golden Divine Spear again, and beams of golden light pierced through the air, turning into more golden spears. They sought to destroy the whole area, so there was nowhere to go to avoid them.


    Boom! Ye Futian stepped through the air, making the sky tremble. He did not try to evade. The Ten Thousand Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor let lose an intense radiance, and his World Tree wrapped around his bones, making it all the same kind of power. At that moment, all the will in his body transformed into divine elephant power.


    It was not that divine elephant power was the strongest power that he possessed, but it was his strongest treasure. Therefore, he would use the divine elephant power so that he could use it to its fullest potential.


    The Deed of Thought Comprehension glowed brilliantly as his body transformed into a divine furnace. His divine elephant life spirit burst forth as well, merging with his bones. In a flash, he seemed to transform into the inheritor of the Divine Elephant Emperor. He formed an elephant law body that could crush the very heavens.


    His body became golden, and divine elephant light wrapped around him. Everyone felt their hearts tremble as they beheld this scene. The attack had not managed to seriously wound him?


    How powerful were this guy''s defenses?


    He must have a law body; otherwise, an attack of that magnitude would have destroyed him. He would not have been able to recover in so short a time.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Golden light shining with divine radiance slammed into him, but could not break through his defenses. Gai Shi Shi''s power descended upon him as he floated high up in the sky, looking down. He was like a celestial prince as he thrust out with his spear again and again.


    His attacks still did not cease. The divine light shot forward wildly, making terrible booming sounds every time it hit Ye Futian. If he were just an ordinary Nirvana level cultivator, he would already have been destroyed by this attack.


    But he was not. He stood rooted firmly in place like a divine elephant. He would stagger slightly every time the spear hit him and pierced through him, making it pierce through his afterimages as well.


    The dazzling light arced in front of him. This level of power was enough to destroy a Nirvana level cultivator, but Ye Futian reached out with both hands and grabbed for the spear.


    "Hm?" Gai Shi Shi frowned. Endless light shone from the Golden Divine Spear as it shot towards Ye Futian. Was he trying to grab his Renhuang implement?


    A burst of incredible force hit Ye Futian. It was so strong because it had come from such a short distance. Ye Futian was only able to withstand it because he had formed a law body and activated the Ten Thousand Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    Bang! There was a loud noise, and Ye Futian''s hands shook as he was sent flying backward. He had not managed to grab the spear. The endless light shot towards, putting him under even greater pressure.


    But this time, Ye Futian faced Gai Shi Shi directly. He stopped moving backward and gazed at his opponent. Gai Shi Shi was like a divine general, ready to conquer the world. The Golden Divine Spear shot out, endless light flowing out of it. But unfortunately, Gai Shi Shi was not strong enough to bring forth its ultimate power.


    Ye Futian grabbed for it with both hands again, and the mighty figure of a deity appeared behind him like a lord of the Great Path, suppressing everything before it. He stared at Gai Shi Shi, then stepped forward. Countless divine elephants charged with him, colliding with the oncoming beams of light and destroying them all.


    Boom! He stepped out through the air, and images of celestial worthies and elephants appeared as he walked towards Gai Shi Shi. Everyone felt their hearts trembled as they watched this. Did he want to get into close combat with him?


    Gai Shi Shi gripped his spear. His attack power was so strong, and yet Ye Futian still wanted to fight him at close range?


    Perhaps it was because he knew that he had no way to destroy his opponent from a distance due to his Renhuang implement, so his only choice was to get in close.


    Brilliant divine light shot out of Gai Shi Shi''s eyes. As the light fell towards the ground, he raised the Golden Divine Spear and thrust it out once again, right towards where Ye Futian had appeared.


    Countless divine elephant images were charging towards him, and they collided with the spear. Ye Futian threw a punch, and the divine elephants cracked the very air. It seemed like they could destroy anything.


    Bang!


    In the instant that their attacks collided, space itself was distorted. The people below them could no longer see the two combatants as the light of the Great Path pierced their eyes.


    As Ye Futian lashed out with his fist, the divine spear shook, and he moved in quickly from the side, striking at Gai Shi Shi''s body directly.


    Before the fist reached him, Gai Shi Shi felt that his life spirit was under fierce attack. The fist will was not just attacking his flesh.


    His face grew dark, and golden light shot out from his eyes. He swept out with his spear as he flew through the air, trying to evade Ye Futian''s attack.


    But Ye Futian''s thoughts had locked onto him, and he moved through the air with him. Gai Shi Shi could not escape.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian''s fist split the air as it crashed into Gai Shi Shi while his Golden Divine Spear slammed into Ye Futian at the same time.


    Ye Futian seemed to have done this on purpose. He had allowed his opponent to strike him so that he could get his attack in.


    Gai Shi Shi was sent flying backward, his life spirit shaking. His golden body had been badly damaged, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. The body was breaking apart, and golden blood flowed from it.


    Ye Futian groaned as well, but his aura was still solid. In a flash, he was moving forward again, crossing a great distance through the air.


    "This..." Most of the people watching down below were shocked by this.


    Gai Shi Shi was in trouble.


    His attacks with his Renhuang implement were incredibly strong, but his defensive power was nowhere near as strong as Ye Futian''s. He could not withstand Ye Futian''s powerful attack.


    Ye Futian continued forward. In a flash, he had launched yet another attack. This time, as the Air-splitting Divine Elephant Fist lashed out, countless elephant images charged along with it towards Gai Shi Shi, who had already been wounded. He raised his spear to block them, but Ye Futian continued to lash his fists out, and more elephants charged, making Gai Shi Shi''s life spirit shake uncontrollably. He groaned many times in succession as golden blood flowed out of him.


    Bang!


    Finally, there was a loud noise as a fist landed directly on Gai Shi Shi''s body. The spear was knocked out of his hands, and he was sent flying downwards. His face had gone pale.


    "He still lost?" Everyone trembled at this. Even with a surprise attack, he had still lost to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian reached out and grabbed the Golden Divine Spear, gripping it in his hand. He stepped forward, looking down coldly at Gai Shi Shi, who had fallen to a lower part of the sky. There was murderous intent in his eyes.


    Boom! He stepped downwards, holding the spear. Everyone trembled as they beheld this scene. Was Ye Futian going to kill Gai Shi Shi?


    Ye Futian transformed into a beam of light, but at that moment, another burst of the power of the Great Path descended. Endless Golden Divine Spears fell from the sky.


    Ye Futian looked up and saw golden stone pillars descending from above, giving off a fierce roar.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! The golden stone pillars fell, forming a golden cage around him that locked him in place.


    Everyone looked up into the sky and saw a group of gold armored Renhuangs descending from the sky.


    It seemed that Gai Shi Shi had some Renhuangs protecting him!

 1562 Violet Empress

    The golden armored Renhuan cultivators were like gods. The brilliant light that shone from them lit up the whole area.


    They stared at Ye Futian with sharp eyes. They had been watching the battle in secret. Since it was a battle between people on the same level, it had not been easy for them to interfere in favor of their Prince. Besides, this battle was a kind of training for Gai Shi Shi.


    Unfortunately, he had been defeated in the end.


    However, the man he was fighting was truly powerful.


    He possessed many different abilities, He had the ultimate technique of the Divine Elephants of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and he seemed to possess the mystical ways of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. In addition, he had Lord Taixuan''s Fleeting Divine Sword and the ultimate technique of the Divine Palace. He was skilled with them all, and will roared throughout his body with mighty power. He had a body of the Great Path.


    In addition, his divine spirit was extraordinary.


    From his body to his spirit, from his attacks to his defenses, there was not a single weak point. He was almost perfect. Thus, the talented genius prince of the Golden Divine Nation��Gai Shi Shi��had lost to him.


    If this man did not die, he would become a great figure in the future. With the talent and strength that he had displayed today, he would not have to prove himself worthy to become a Renhuang. It would only be a matter of time. Although it was difficult to break through to this level, truly great figures could not be stopped from reaching it.


    Ye Futian looked back at them with an ugly look on his face. More Renhuang level cultivators?


    These top figures whom he had originally seen off had apparently stayed in Linxiao City, waiting for the Divine Palace''s journey to end.


    The Divine Capital of Xiling was just like this, and so was the Golden Divine Nation.


    The golden pillars locked him in place, forming a golden cage around him. He could not leave. There was an extremely ugly look on his face. He rushed forward and thrust the spear he was holding directly forward, slamming it into the golden pillars and shattering them. He continued rushing forward.


    He had broken through a prison created by Renhuang level cultivators.


    Everyone watched the scene unfold in the air. This guy was truly strong. In fact, he could be said to be an absolute hero. He had defeated so many cultivators in this battle all by himself. No one was a match for him. Gai Shi Shi and Luo Youming had been defeated. In fact, they had been crushed.


    However, he could not crush Renhuang level cultivators.


    One of them glanced at his spear, then stepped forward, reaching out his hand. Suddenly, a terrible golden divine wheel appeared in his hand.


    In a flash, many beams of divine light shot forth from the divine wheel, transforming into chains that shot towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s expression changed when he saw this. There were golden chains everywhere, and the divine wheel lit up the whole area. It was using all the will in the area, creating a prison with a single thought.


    This was the power of a Renhuang level cultivator. He had forged a divine wheel that shone with the sun and the moon.


    A crashing sound rang out, as the endless chains descended from the sky. Ye Futian rushed through the air in a certain direction. Divine elephants charged all around him, trampling through the air, but the chains seemed to be divine. They ignored all defenses.


    Bang!


    A golden chain lashed against him. At that moment, Ye Futian could feel the Great Path collapse. He groaned, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.


    Then, endless chains wrapped around him, and another chain wrenched the spear from his hands. He did all he could to hold onto it, but the chains lashed against his arm, and swept the spear firmly away from him, pulling it into his opponent''s hands.


    And his body was held in place by the endless chains that were seemingly attached to the air itself. How could he withstand the power of a Renhuang''s Wheel of the Great Path?


    The Renhuang cultivator began to pull slowly, and the chain that had wrapped around Ye Futian began to pull him forward. He looked at his opponent with a cold expression.


    "Are the Renhuangs of the Golden Divine Nation so cruel?" Wan Shouyi stepped forward. And not only him, but the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain and Yaya did as well. They had dark looks on their faces. This was simply too much.


    Everyone had seen clearly that in the last battle, Gai Shi Shi had attacked Ye Futian in order to steal his fruit of the Way and had even not hesitated to launch a surprise attack. Ye Futian had been defending himself, and once he had won, the Renhuangs of the Golden Divine Nation had interfered.


    The Renhuang of the Golden Divine Nation swept his gaze over them. Piercing light shot out of his eyes. He said nothing and continued to pull Ye Futian towards him. Below them, Gai Shi Shi had risen as well. He had been wounded badly, and he was covered in blood. He looked coldly at Ye Futian.


    He rose slowly into the air. The Renhuang tossed the Golden Divine Spear to him, and he reached out to catch it.


    At that moment, brilliant light shone down from the heavens. The Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation''s expression changed, and he looked up into the sky. At the same time, someone raised his hand and brought out a huge golden palm print into the air, where the light seemed to be coming down from.


    Bang!


    The palm print was instantly destroyed, and there was another roaring sound. Everyone saw Gai Shi Shi, who had been rising upward, disappear from his original place.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise that made everyone''s hearts tremble fiercely. They looked up, but the ground below them cracked, and fault lines spread out in all directions. Gai Shi Shi was thrown back to the ground.


    This time it was worse. He was trampled to the ground by a foot.


    And the Renhuang implement known as the Golden Divine Spear did not return to his hands. It was snatched away as it flew to him. The one who snatched it was the one who had trampled him to the ground.


    "This..." Everyone''s hearts trembled fiercely. Had someone else come?


    Moreover, they had managed to crush Gai Shi Shi underfoot?


    What kind of person was Gai Shi Shi? He was the most talented young cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation, and the nation''s hopes were placed upon him. He was likely to be their future ruler.


    He could be defeated, but to be trampled to the ground was an incredible humiliation.


    How could someone be so casual? It was crazy. Did they not fear offending the Golden Divine Nation?


    Everyone stared over there. They saw that the one who had trampled him had a pair of thin legs, so thin they seemed to not have any bones. It was a woman.


    Though her legs were thin and weak-looking, she was filled with explosive power as she trampled Gai Shi Shi.


    She was incredibly beautiful and wore a fiery red robe. She had a heroic and valiant bearing. As she stood there tall, she was not only beautiful but also had an air of nobility about her. It was the aura of an Empress. There was a hint of laziness amidst all this nobility, though. There was a cold smile on her fiery red lips.


    Who was she?


    Gai Shi Shi looked up at the woman. He looked very embarrassed to have been trampled by a woman like this. She had purposely humiliated him.


    Golden light exploded from him, but he was completely unable to break free. He stared at the woman who was stepping on him. He recognized her. He had seen her at Taixuan Mountain.


    "This is a good spear." She held up the Golden Divine Spear and looked it over. Terrifying divine light shone from it. She lifted it up and aimed it at Gai Shi Shi, making his face turn pale.


    "How dare you!" The Renhuang from the Divine Golden Nation''s face turned ugly as he gazed at the woman coldly. She had humiliated Gai Shi Shi so badly. He was the strongest young person in the Golden Divine Nation.


    "How dare I?" The woman smiled coldly. The thrust the spear down towards Gai Shi Shi''s brow. It seemed like if she put even the slightest bit of pressure on it, she would pierce Gai Shi Shi''s head.


    "This is a good ritual implement," she said with a grin, but her voice had a hint of murderous intent to it.


    At that moment, Gai Shi Shi did not dare move even an inch. His face was deathly pale.


    His very life was in danger.


    He had heard about this woman back in the Golden Divine Nation. She was crazy��extremely crazy. There was nothing that she would not do.


    "What are you going to do?" The Renhuang level cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation''s expression had changed as well.


    "What am I going to do?" There was a hint of mischief in the woman''s eyes as she looked at him. "I should ask you what you are doing. Do you think that Taixuan Mountain doesn''t exist, or do you think that the Golden Divine Nation is invincible, letting you do whatever you want?"


    "Fourth Miss!" called Wan Shouyi and the others from Taixuan Mountain. They were relieved of the worries that they had had previously. Now that Fourth Miss was here, nothing bad would happen to Ye Futian.


    The Golden Divine Nation had gone too far today, so it was no wonder that Fourth Miss''s anger had moved her to take action. She had dragged Gai Shi Shi out of the air.


    She was naturally the fourth disciple of Lord Taixuan��the House Master of Taixuan.


    She had been the one to bring Ye Futian to Taixuan Mountain.


    Ye Futian was locked down and could not move, but he watched the House Master of Taixuan with mouth and eyes wide open. This beautiful Empress really had such a violent side to her?


    Her foot...


    It was very beautiful, just as beautiful as the rest of her.


    Ye Futian realized that she was more beautiful than he had first thought.


    "Let us both release our captives," said the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation to the House Master of Taixuan.


    The House Master of Taixuan smiled sarcastically and said, "Then let him go."


    Her opponent frowned as he stared at her. "We''ll let them go at the same time."


    "You''re trying to set terms?" The House Master of Taixuan pressed the spear down, piercing Gai Shi Shi''s forehead down to the muscle and making a stream of blood run down his face. Gai Shi Shi went even paler, but he kept his eyes open, staring at the woman.


    There was a cracking sound as the chains tightened, putting pressure on Ye Futian''s bones, making him groan in pain.


    "It seems as if Gai Shi Shi is not important to the Golden Divine Nation since no one cares if he lives or dies." The divine spear continued down bit by bit. It seemed like it would soon pierce into the center of his head.


    "Stop!" called the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation angrily. "Don''t you care about his life?"


    "He is just a musician at Taixuan Mountain. If you don''t care about Gai Shi Shi''s life, then I don''t care about his," said the House Master of Taixuan. Ye Futian''s face darkened. She was heartless!


    "Such a talented musician?" said her opponent coldly. "He must be a personal disciple of Lord Taixuan."


    "It doesn''t matter if you believe me," said the House Master of Taixuan. "I will count to three, and if the chains have not been removed, then the strongest youth of the Golden Divine Nation will die here today."


    "One.


    "Two."


    She did not wait for her opponent but immediately started counting. There was a clanking sound as the chains on Ye Futian''s body were suddenly retracted.


    A look of surprise came over everyone''s face. Everyone had seen that the House Master of Taixuan had intervened for Ye Futian''s sake, but she had been right to guess that the man from the Golden Divine Nation would not dare gamble with his prince''s life.


    The fourth great disciple of Lord Taixuan was a difficult person to handle!

 1563 Mistreatmen

    After the Renhuang of the Golden Divine Nation had let Ye Futian go, he said to the House Master of Taixuan, "Will you let him go as well?"


    The House Master of Taixuan moved the spear away from Gai Shi Shi''s forehead, then looked at the Renhuang with a smile. "Don''t worry. I am not as underhanded as you. I won''t kill your junior."


    As she said this, Ye Futian flashed over to her side and said, "House Master."


    The man from the Golden Divine Nation looked at her, waiting for her to let Gai Shi Shi go. She handed the Golden Divine Spear to Ye Futian and said, "Take it."


    Ye Futian hesitated, but in the end, he still took it.


    The House Master of Taixuan laughed and said, "The battle between the two of them is not over; it was interrupted. Continue."


    Ye Futian was stunned, and a look of surprise came over his face. Golden light shot out of the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation''s eyes, and his aura swept out, covering the area.


    "Since the Prince of the Golden Divine Nation has entered into a life and death contest with you, launched a surprise attack on you, and had his Renhuang interfere, there is no need to be polite. The battle is not yet over, so you can do whatever you want. You can even kill him," the House Master of Taixuan said to Ye Futian with a smile.


    Ye Futian looked at her stupidly. He could even kill him?


    He could not tell how much of what the House Master of Taixuan was true and how much was false.


    "Empress Yan," said the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation. Empress Yan was the House Master of Taixuan''s title. Few people knew her real name, which was Yan Muxue. After all, few people called her that, but many people knew her as Empress Yan.


    "Although there are not many people in Taixuan Mountain, we still cannot allow this kind of bullying. Big sister is here, so there''s no need to be afraid," said the House Master of Taixuan with a smile. There was a hint of wickedness in her smile.


    She had called herself that again.


    Ye Futian''s face darkened, but he still nodded. He walked in front of Gai Shi Shi, still holding the spear.


    Gai Shi Shi had indeed come here today, seeking Ye Futian''s life. He had broken out of the cultivators'' encirclement, used the Golden Divine Spear to attack him, launched a surprise attack, and then had a Renhuang level cultivator interfere. All along the way, he had fought with killing force. All of this had been done to kill him. He had not shown any mercy.


    The Prince of the Golden Divine Nation had done all of this without any scruples at all.


    He lowered his head and looked down at Gai Shi Shi. The cultivators watching this scene from a distance felt their hearts tremble.


    They had all thought that Empress Yan would let him go. They had not thought that she would not act, but would let Ye Futian continue their previous fight.


    Previously, Gai Shi Shi had already lost, and his Renhuang implement had been taken. If they continued, he would most certainly be killed. It would be just like before.


    That was how the situation was shaping up before the Renhuang had appeared. Now, things were back where they had started.


    Blood trickled down Gai Shi Shi''s forehead. Brilliant golden light shone in his eyes as he stared at Ye Futian. Powerful will blazed in those eyes as if he were warning Ye Futian.


    He was the Prince of the Golden Divine Nation, the most outstanding young person there. He did not believe that his opponent would dare kill him.


    "I really don''t care whether you live or die, even if you are the strongest member of the younger generation of the Golden Divine Nation. But if I let you go after all the things you''ve done, I won''t be able to forgive myself. So, what do you think I should do?" Ye Futian asked Gai Shi Shi.


    "The things that have happened here today have canceled each other out. Let us return to our homes and cultivate, never to bother each other again," said Gai Shi Shi.


    Woosh!


    As he said this, Ye Futian brought his arm down. Gai Shi Shi twitched fiercely and gave a terrible grown. He stared up at Ye Futian, then looked down at his chest. The divine spear had been inserted right next to his heart, and terrible will was surging through his body. It seemed as if it could destroy his flesh at any moment.


    Everyone who was watching felt their hearts tremble fiercely. This was so cruel.


    Ye Futian had actually stabbed him.


    "You''re funny." Ye Futian moved the spear. His expression was still calm and undisturbed as he watched Gai Shi Shi.


    The things that had happened here today had canceled each other out?


    "Finally, things are getting interesting."


    Ye Futian looked back and saw Empress Yan smiling coldly. She seemed very satisfied.


    When someone from Taixuan Mountain had been abused like this, it was not something that could be resolved with words.


    The Master had broken through to the next level not long ago, and the Golden Divine Nation still dared to look down on them? Who were they kidding?


    If Ye Futian had been defeated, she would not have been able to say anything. If he couldn''t win, then how could Renhuang level cultivators get involved?


    Golden blood flowed, staining Gai Shi Shi''s golden robes. Everyone watching from a distance was shocked by this. Even the cultivators from top forces and those who had fought Ye Futian before felt their hearts tremble.


    Gai Shi Shi had tried to kill Ye Futian today, but now the Prince of the Golden Divine Nation had been mistreated by two people in a row. It was complete humiliation.


    It was quite awful.


    Of course, this was the price that he had to pay for what he had done.


    "Empress Yan," came a cold voice. Golden light fell from the sky upon Empress Yan and Ye Futian. It was filled with terrible power. It seemed as if Empress Yan''s fragile body could be pierced by this golden divine light at any moment.


    "Are you trying to start a war between the Golden Divine Nation and Taixuan Mountain?" said the Renhuang coldly.


    "Are you trying to scare me?" Empress Yan looked up into the air. "When you first interfered, how did you not realize this would happen? Did you think that if the Golden Divine Nation struck the first blow, Taixuan Mountain would not dare respond?"


    She rose up into the air slowly. A burst of incredibly powerful will swept out, filling the whole area.


    "Now, we must repay you for the harm that you have done to Taixuan Mountain." Empress Yan''s smile was still beautiful and mischievous, but there was a coldness to it as well.


    A burst of radiant light bloomed from Empress Yan. At that moment, she seemed even more divine and noble. It was as if she was the Empress of the whole world. Billowing will surged through her body.


    Woosh!


    Everyone saw brilliant beams of light flash into life. In the next moment, a pair of wings appeared behind Empress Yan, shining with dazzling golden light that covered the earth and filled the sky.


    Her body transformed as well. Divine light covered her, transforming her into a goddess. The illusions of countless divine wings appeared, and endless will descended from the heavens, resonating with them. It seemed as if all of this was happening due to her power.


    A storm of the Great Path whipped through the area. It blew through Linxiao City, and everyone felt as if their flesh would be torn apart. Everyone looked up at the Empress in the sky, and their hearts trembled unceasingly.


    Would a battle between Renhuangs break out in the sky above Linxiao City today?


    The three Renhuangs from the Golden Divine Nation stood in three different places. One was in front, and two were behind him.


    The Renhuang in front could naturally feel how powerful their opponent''s aura was. He knew that he was the only one who could fight this battle.


    Incomparably brilliant golden light exploded from him, hurting everyone''s eyes. There was a clanging sound as golden chains shot through the air, covering the sky. They were trying to enclose the whole area.


    "How should this debt be settled?" said Empress Yan with a smile as she stood there in the air like a goddess. As she said this, she flapped her wings, and suddenly, the storm that was whipping through the sky knocked over the people watching down below in Linxiao City. What was even more frightening was that countless divine wings slashed out, cutting through the golden chains and then moving on towards the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation.


    Every single wing was like a Falling Sky Sword.


    The Renhuang of the Golden Divine Nation shone with incomparably brilliant golden light, and it seemed as if a divine wheel had flashed to life within him, its golden pattern giving off an incomparably dazzling radiance. Endless golden chains shot through the air, locking down the entire area.


    Woosh!


    A wild wind blew, and the frightening storm made it so that the Saint level cultivators could barely stand. In fact, they were blown away. Even Ye Futian, who was standing behind Empress Yan, could clearly feel how powerful the wind was. He was firmly planted in place, one foot upon Gai Shi Shi. If Gai Shi Shi''s body was not so strong, Ye Futian''s foot would have crushed him.


    But even so, Ye Futian was putting a lot of pressure on him because he wanted to stay in place, which was making Gai Shi Shi bleed even more. His expression was full of murderous intent. This was a great humiliation.


    Ye Futian looked back and saw the storm heading far away, carrying away several Renhuangs. He still saw Empress Yan flapping her wings, seeming to split the sky in two and cutting through the golden chains.


    The House Master of Taixuan was so strong that those Renhuangs would probably not survive.


    After all, she was one of the four great disciples of Lord Taixuan, even if she was the youngest of them.


    Ye Futian looked back at Gai Shi Shi and said, "Have you thought it through?"


    Gai Shi Shi looked at him with humiliation and anger. He had once set foot on Taixuan Mountain, seeking to become a disciple of Lord Taixuan, but he had been refused, which had made him unhappy. As a Prince of the Golden Divine Nation and the foremost young talent, joining Taixuan Mountain as a cultivator would be a confirmation of their strength. And yet he had been refused at the gate.


    Thus, he had targeted Ye Futian.


    However, how could he have known that a day would come when Ye Futian would be stepping on him?


    Ye Futian still looked indifferent when he saw Gai Shi Shi''s expression. Gai Shi Shi was naturally talented and was a Prince of the Golden Divine Nation. He was even said to be a candidate for the future ruler, so he was incredibly arrogant. When he acted, he gave no thought for the consequences. With such a high status, he was not afraid of anything.


    So, he had tried to kill Ye Futian.


    Even up until now, he did not realize what he had done.


    "It seems like you have not given it enough thought yet." Ye Futian lifted the spear and thrust it down. This time, he thrust it right into Gai Shi Shi''s heart.


    Gai Shi Shi was incredibly powerful. Even though the spear pierced his heart, it would still not be easy for it to kill him. After all, he had a body of the Great Path.


    But in the instant that the spear came down, his heart stopped beating. His eyes narrowed as he stared at Ye Futian!

 1564 Many Renhuangs Appear

    Gai Shi Shi seemed to realize that he and the man who was looking at him were very similar. He may have called himself a simple musician of Taixuan Mountain, but when he was angered, he also did not care about the consequences.


    The golden blood seemed to stop flowing within him as if it was congealing. His life aura began to flow away from him. It would be difficult for this spear piercing his heart to kill him, but if Ye Futian kept on like this and did not give him a chance to recover, his life energy would all be used up, and he would die.


    "What do you want?" he asked. He had already realized that Ye Futian might not want to kill him, but also did not want to let him go.


    So, he must want something.


    Ye Futian looked at Gai Shi Shi with a cold expression. "The Sigh of the Divine God cultivation spell," he said.


    He was more interested in increasing his own power than taking Gai Shi Shi''s life. This was the only thing that had surprised him in his battle with Gai Shi Shi. It was like a god descending to earth and then giving a sigh that could increase one''s combat ability. It had increased Gai Shi Shi''s already formidable combat ability to the next level, pushing him to his limits.


    His combat ability was already incredible, but who would not want to become even stronger? If he cultivated the Sigh of the Divine God, how powerful would his attack power become?


    People said that Gai Shi Shi was an incredible talent and that he was the future heir of the Golden Divine Nation, but he had been defeated, so what was the harm in letting him live? If he could crush him once, he would always be able to do so.


    "A life for a spell." Gai Shi Shi stared at Ye Futian. "It would be too great a threat for you to kill me, but if you get the spell of the Golden Divine Nation, are you sure you will be able to handle it?"


    The Sigh of the Divine God was the ultimate technique of the Divine Golden Nation, and only the royal family had the right to cultivate it. Some of the Renhuang level cultivators had never cultivated this spell. Among the top powers, an ultimate technique like this would not be permitted to pass to the outside world. If someone stole it, they would have to be killed.


    Did Ye Futian think that he would be free from danger if he learned this technique?


    "You said a life for a spell. This is very fair," said Ye Futian.


    Gai Shi Shi stared at him, then said, "Fine, I will give it to you."


    "I would have thought that the Prince of the Divine Golden Nation would have struggled at least a little bit to protect his nation''s ultimate technique. It seems that you fear death even more than I thought, " said Ye Futian mockingly. He did not care about the consequences when it came to killing others, but he feared his own death.


    He was cruel to others and merciful to himself.


    Lines of golden light bloomed from Gai Shi Shi''s forehead. This was the power of his divine spirit. Ye Futian did not block them, but let them enter him. Under these circumstances, Gai Shi Shi could not play any tricks, as he could end his life at any time.


    The lines of divine spirit transformed into memories as they entered his mind. Ye Futian did not immediately let Gai Shi Shi go but instead spent a moment sensing. The memories evolved in his mind. He could picture a divine god descending to earth. He knew that this was a true law power.


    Gai Shi Shi did not want to put his life in danger. After all, the spear was still in his heart.


    Those who were watching saw all this happen with their own eyes, and their hearts trembled. Ye Futian had stolen the ultimate technique of the Golden Divine Nation��the Sigh of the Divine God.


    This guy was incredibly cruel.


    He actually dared to do it, Wan Shouyi thought to himself. Even though Fourth Miss had interfered and told Ye Futian to do whatever he wanted, it still took a lot of guts to face the heir apparent of the Divine Golden Nation and do what he had done. With this, Ye Futian had offended the entire Divine Golden Nation.


    But he could understand why Ye Futian had done this. Gai Shi Shi had tried to take his life again and again, so how could he put an end to it by simply letting him go? The enmity between them was already set.


    Thus, Ye Futian had taken the Sigh of the Divine God, as it would be very advantageous for him to have the ultimate technique of a powerful force.


    A terrible storm of the Great Path was still raging through the air. Ye Futian turned and looked up into the sky, where he saw four great Renhuangs fighting amidst a dazzling light.


    Empress Yan was facing three Renhuang by herself. She was bathed in divine light and had transformed into a goddess. She was tall and mighty, and her Wheel of the Great Path seemed to be formed of divine wings. It was as if it had evolved out of her life spirit. Her wings covered the sky, and they cut through the air ceaselessly as she fought. She had learned the sword arts of Lord Taixuan as well, and she was using her wings as swords.


    Two of the Renhuangs of the Golden Divine Nation had already been injured. Many ancient golden gods appeared around the Renhuang who had attacked Ye Futian before. Countless golden pillars fell from the sky, but this time he was not using them to attack, but rather to defend. These giant pillars formed up around him, forming golden divine gates that revolved around him, seeking to block the attack power that was coming towards him.


    Countless divine wings fell from the sky, every feather containing incomparable slicing power. When they fell on the golden divine gates, an ear-piercing sound would ring out, difficult for those watching from below to bear.


    The golden gates split open as cracks appeared in them. The wings cut through them.


    The Renhuang within the gates looked surprised. His divine wheel surged with power, and endless beams of light covered him. His giant body turned golden. It was as if it had been forged of pure gold. As his Wheel of the Great path surged, the incomparably brilliant golden pattern shot forth golden chains. They raced through the air in an instant, then latched onto the onrushing divine wings, seeking to stop them.


    But at that moment, the people below saw incomparably brilliant divine light covering Empress Yan. Even more divine wings burst from her. She was bathed in the light of the Great Path as she stepped forward. Everyone could only see a beam of light crossing through the sky. They could not even tell how fast she was moving.


    In the next instant, they saw a burst of powerful light explode as the light of the Great Path descended from the sky, hurting everyone''s eyes. Even the Saint level cultivators had to close their eyes and sense things with their divine spirits. But even their divine spirits could sense how powerful this was.


    Even though the fighting was taking place far away and high up in the air, their bodies still shook. Many buildings within Linxiao City collapsed and shattered, or were split open. Cracks appeared in the ground. They could not bear such a powerful aftershock.


    Amidst their daze, they seemed to be able to see Empress Yan rush towards her opponent. He thrust her slender hands forward, and light wrapped around them. An incredible destructive power burst forth from them, destroying the endless chains. The brilliant golden pattern shattered as well. When the attack struck her opponent, it made cracks appear in the Renhuang''s Wheel of the Great Path, and it smashed a hole into his body, sending him flying back.


    "Cough..."


    A mouthful of golden blood fell out of the air. The Renhuang''s blood was the blood of the Great Path, and every drop contained the power of the Great Path within it. Even those who had not cultivated to high levels could feel the will within it. But it was rare to get to see it, since battles between Renhuangs were so rare, and one of them being wounded was even rarer.


    But a battle of this level had broken out at Linxiao City today.


    "Is there anyone else here today who wants to attack a disciple of Taixuan Mountain?" The House Master of Taixuan swept her gaze over everyone. She also looked down at the Renhuangs from the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    Old Demon Luo of the Divine Capital of Xiling had once personally launched a surprise attack against her master at Taixuan Mountain in order to stop him from breaking through to the next level. He had been defeated, wounded, and forced to flee, and her master had broken through to the next level. Ever since, Taixuan Mountain''s status within the Higher Heavens Realm had changed.


    It was very rare for a top-level figure to break through to the next level.


    Who would have thought that even after that defeat that the people of the Divine Capital of Xiling still hadn''t had enough, so they would covertly send Renhuangs to interfere?


    If her master had not told her to rush over here, the consequences would have been serious. Ye Futian would probably have been crippled by these people.


    Woosh! She flapped her wings, and a storm of the Great Path whipped up. The terrible light from her wings shot towards the Renhuangs from the Divine Capital of Xiling, ignoring the distance between them.


    But at that moment, the House Master of Taixuan frowned and looked off in a certain direction. There she saw divine golden light descending. It looked like there were two golden roads extending, and two figures descended upon them.


    The two figures were suffused with radiance and looked like they were made of gold. They were at the Renhuang level, and the one in front had a particularly powerful aura, with sharp eyes that seemed to pierce through the air.


    "The Golden Divine Nation!"


    "It is Gai Shi Shi''s brother��the Prince of the Golden Divine Nation!" Everyone''s hearts trembled.


    Afterward, more powerful auras came over towards them, and several more Renhuangs appeared. But they were not from the Golden Divine Nation. They had come from another force.


    "The Renhuangs of the Divine Sword Li Family" The Renhuangs stood high in the air, ready to fight at any time. Everyone could feel their surging sword will. It seemed as if their swords would be unstoppable.


    "What is going on?" Everyone''s heart beat wildly. Although there were many Renhuangs among the various forces, this was limited to the top forces only. For the countless souls in the Higher Heavens Realm, the Renhuang plane was the absolute pinnacle for cultivators. The truly great people were those who could start their own force and teach people.


    The greatest of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were not like this, but in the smaller realms, a Renhuang would rule over the entire realm.


    But now, many Renhuangs had appeared here in Linxiao City due to this battle. What was going to happen?


    They could not have come from many different forces. Their appearance could only mean one thing��they had already been within the city, and thus they had been able to rush here.


    The previous cultivators had all come from the Divine Palace. Could it be that these Renhuangs had come from there too?


    This battle had attracted the attention of many Renhuangs!

 1565 Using the Great Path as Strings

    Ye Futian frowned as he watched the scene unfolding in the air, and a doubtful expression came over his face. Why had so many Renhuang level cultivators come?


    Moreover, while more Renhuangs from the Golden Divine Nation had appeared, the House Master of Taixuan was still all alone. Would she run into difficulty?


    However, her expression was still calm, and she did not seem surprised by this. She had come from the Divine Palace, so she knew that there were many Renhuangs there. Moreover, he did not have any fear of what was happening back home. Her master was there, and everything that was happening was taking place within his field of view.


    "It''s still the same. You can''t beat me, so you send more people after me. The Divine Golden Nation gets weaker generation after generation." The House Master of Taixuan stared at the Prince of the Divine Golden Nation as he came towards her. His name was Gai Jiutian. The names of the Princes of the Divine Golden Nation were each more arrogant than the last. Gai Jiutian''s name meant "Cover Nine Heavens," and Gai Shi Shi''s name meant "Cover Ten Worlds." How overbearing!


    Perhaps they meant to inspire the younger members of the Divine Golden Nation to cultivate harder with these names so that they could live up to them.


    Gai Jiutian stood in the air, his golden eyes staring at the House Master of Taixuan and Ye Futian. He naturally saw Gai Shi Shi as well. His little brother, a Prince of the Divine Golden Nation, had been beaten so miserably.


    Was Taixuan Mountain really going to be so arrogant just because Lord Taixuan had broken through to the next level?


    "Whether or not the Divine Golden Nation is weakening is not for you to judge," said Gai Jiutian icily. A burst of monstrous Great Path power burst from him. His Wheel of the Great Path appeared indistinctly, making his body tall and powerful as he transformed into a golden god of war.


    The Wheel of the Great Path that he had forged took the form of a statue of a golden ancient god. It seemed to have been cast from pure gold, and endless will had been carved into it. Once it was activated, the figures of countless golden gods appeared in the air and descended, filling the sky. Everyone could feel a burst of tremendous power coming from them, which made it difficult to breathe.


    It was said that the Princes of the Divine Golden Nation were descended from ancient gods. In this generation, they were all extremely talented and widely famed. Gai Shi Shi was said to be the best of his generation, and word of his talent had spread throughout the world. But his brother was extremely powerful as well, and the blood of ancient golden gods flowed through his veins too.


    When these incomparably brilliant golden gods flashed into being, a divine melody seemed to fill the air. It was as if they were singing. Their song contained incredible power. Endless golden light shone from them as they descended from the sky, making it so that people could not help but kneel on the ground in reverence.


    "They''re so strong!" The cultivators in Linxiao City trembled slightly as they looked up. The figures in the sky seemed like actual gods. The man who had just arrived was far stronger than the previous Renhuang. After all, the previous Renhuang had not truly been an heir of the Golden Divine Nation, and the blood of gods had not flowed through his veins.


    And now, Gai Jiutian was here. He, on the other hand, truly was an heir of the divine blood of the Golden Divine Nation. As the gods descended, everyone felt the urge to lay prostrate. Their power and their brilliant radiance made it seem like gods were truly coming down to earth to purify it of all sins.


    This time, the House Master of Taixuan could feel the pressure too. The opponent before her was much more powerful than the previous Renhuang. And it was not just that he was stronger. He would probably not be easy to deal with.


    Her divine wings covered the sky, casting endless light. A storm of the Great Path whipped up. The extreme majesty of the Empress standing there in the air made people want to bow down as well.


    Gai Jiutian formed a seal with both hands, and the sound of heavenly singing filled the air. Many divine figures materialized, and endless golden light covered the area. There was nowhere to go to avoid it; it covered everything.


    Boom! A low sound rang out as Gai Jiutian thrust out his golden hand. And it was not just him, the descending gods thrust out their golden hands all well, filling the sky with fists that shot towards Empress Yan.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian could feel an extremely heavy pressure, making him put his feet back on solid ground, leaving a footprint. It was not just him; all the other cultivators found it hard to stand under such pressure. Their legs bent, and they squatted down on the ground. Many people in Linxiao City were knocked over.


    Empress Yan flapped her wings, and the images of many more brilliant divine wings appeared in the air. They cut through the sky, colliding with the oncoming fists. This created a terrifying storm of the Great Path.


    Gai Jiutian took a step down. He had not thought that a single blow would be enough to defeat Empress Yan. Lord Taixuan only had four great disciples, and all of them were famous. Although Empress Yan was the youngest and the weakest, her talent and combat prowess were undeniable.


    The power of the Great Path surged through the sky, and even more images of golden gods appeared, then shot towards Empress Yan in a flash, trying to engage in close-combat with her. When her wings lashed out, the golden gods stretched out their hands to block them or exploded as they slammed into them.


    Gai Jiutian transformed into a beam of golden light and descended in front of Empress Yan. Calling upon the Sigh of the Divine God, he reached out with both hands. A golden light shot through the sky and sought to pierce through Empress Yan.


    However, everyone saw Empress Yan rush towards he opponent, not trying to evade at all. She was bathed in the light of the Great Path as she lashed out with her fist. Incomparable power burst forth from her beautiful and delicate body, enough power to break the air itself.


    The Renhuangs who were standing around them were not surprised when they saw her lash out. She had cultivated the Ways of Space, Storms, and Swordsmanship. She had been very violent in her youth, and thus her attack power was incredible. Before she had reached the Renhuang plane, she was already very famous. Although she was a woman, she fought viciously. Even when facing Gai Jiutian, she did not have any desire to evade, and instead, she met him head-on.


    When the two of them collided, brilliant light dazzled everyone as it filled the air. People who were only at the Saint plane could not see what was going on inside. They could only hear dull thuds. It seemed like they struck each other many times quickly. Each blow made the people watching from below feel the blood surge in their veins as the will within them screamed.


    Many buildings swayed and shook, then collapsed. More and more cracks appeared on the earth. It was as if an earthquake had started. But these were just the tremors caused by the battle up in the air.


    The other Renhuangs from the Golden Divine Nation stepped forward as well, shining with brilliant light. It seemed like they might intervene at any point. And the other Renhuang, who had been wounded by Empress Yan previously, stepped forward as well, looking at Ye Futian down below him.


    He still had Gai Shi Shi in his clutches and had wounded him badly.


    In addition, Ye Futian had forced Gai Shi Shi to teach him the ultimate technique, known as the Breathe of the Divine God. This man could not be allowed to live.


    Ye Futian frowned as he felt a terrible pressure on him. He glanced at Gai Shi Shi and put the Golden Divine Spear to his throat. If the Renhuang did anything, he would stop being so polite.


    "You already have what you want. Why have you not let him go yet?" said the Renhuang. Ye Futian''s expression remained cold. This matter was not over yet. If he let this man go now, it would surely lead to his doom.


    The Renhuang continued forward, and terrible killing light flashed out of his eyes. Ye Futian could feel it infecting his thoughts, and his divine spirit trembled. He put a little bit of pressure on the spear, piercing into Gai Shi Shi''s throat. A drop of blood appeared on the spear''s tip.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Golden pillars fell from the sky once again, sealing off the area and trying to imprison Ye Futian within them. The Renhuang continued forward, his golden light still terrible. He knew that Ye Futian would not dare kill Gai Shi Shi, lest he was killed himself.


    Once he had killed Gai Shi Shi, he would have nothing to protect himself with and would be killed for sure.


    At that moment, they heard a phoenix''s call from off in the distance. The heavens and the earth shook. A look of surprise came over Little Phoenix''s face as she watched from below. She looked in the direction that the phoenix cry had come from and whispered, "Mother and Father."


    And indeed, once she said this, brilliant divine light bloomed in the sky. Two divine phoenixes appeared, rushing towards the battlefield. They circled Gai Jiutian and Empress Yan, guarding against the Renhuangs approaching from the side.


    A heroic-looking middle-aged man appeared in the air above Ye Futian and floated there. As he stood there, he swept his gaze over the Renhuang, who was approaching Ye Futian. He had a cold expression on his face.


    "String Emperor!" The Renhuang''s expression changed. A brilliant light shone from String Emperor, and a brilliant divine guqin appeared. An invisible force swept out, and in an instant, countless guqin strings appeared all around them.


    String Emperor stretched out his pale-fingered hand. He plucked the strings in the air, and at that moment, the strings of the Worldly Great Path trembled. Endless beams of light shot out, striking everything.


    The Renhuang groaned. It was as if he had been pierced by one of the beams of light. His divine spirit trembled fiercely, and his face grew dark.


    String Emperor continued plucking strings. Endless notes of the Great Path flowed through the air, and many beams of light flashed, shooting towards the Renhuang and ignoring his defenses.


    The Renhuang tried to retreat, his face growing pale. His divine power seemed useless at that moment, as the notes'' attack power continuously infected his divine spirit. He groaned again and spat out a mouthful of blood.


    Everyone felt their hearts tremble as they beheld this scene. This was String Emperor��the third disciple of Lord Taixuan. He was at a higher level than Empress Yan, and so it was only natural that his opponent could not withstand him.


    "He is using the Great Path as strings!" Everyone trembled. This was the power of a Renhuang-level musician. The Wheel of the Great Path that he had created was a string wheel, and he could use the Worldly Great Path as his guqin strings!

 1566 Revealing His Identity

    Ye Futian looked at String Emperor and saw that his body was shining brilliantly. A guqin appeared in his hands, full of the light of the Great Path. Moreover, it resonated with the Worldly Great Path, making many huge guqin strings appear in the air. Every string was a part of the guqin.


    "So, this is a Wheel of the Great Path?" Ye Futian said to himself. When a Renhuang level cultivator forged a Wheel of the Great Path, they shone with the sun and the moon, and could use all of the Worldly Great Path. They could use their life spirit to change in an evolutionary manner.


    Renhuang level cultivators had the Great Path etched onto their very bones and immersed in their veins once they forged their Wheel. Thus, their descendants could directly inherit their Divine Wheel life spirit, giving them outstanding power.


    Once they reached this level, their every movement was filled with will. Their Divine Wheels were even more powerful than ritual implements, and thus ritual implements of their level were, in fact, useless to them. Only those ritual implements that transcended their level were of use to them.


    At that moment, String Emperor strode through the air with incomparable power. He stretched out a hand and waved his fingers through the air. The strings of the Great Path crossed over each other as they danced through the sky.


    Many of the cultivators in Linxiao City covered their ears, but they still could feel their spirits tremble. It was incredibly difficult to bear. But this was not directed at them; it was directed at the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation.


    The countless strings of the Great Path resonated with the Renhuang''s body, and he trembled violently in conjunction with the strings. It seemed like his spirit was being pierced through again and again. His face grew more and more pale, and his aura grew weaker.


    Other Renhuangs from the Golden Divine Nation tried to rush over to help, and their will bloomed as they charged at String Emperor. But String Emperor reached out his other hand and moved his fingers. The Great Path flowed backward, and countless rays of formless light shot towards the Renhuangs. It seemed to pierce right through them, and it bound up their will.


    Moreover, the vibrating strings intertwined into a piece of music. It was one of the Six Famous Songs of String Palace, Worldly Judgement. The destructive storm grew more and more powerful, and the Renhuangs were put under great pressure as they were shaken by the vibrating strings.


    "He''s so strong!" Below them, everyone who was watching felt their hearts tremble. The Renhuangs who had come from all the great powers saw this as well. They were not surprised. This is what they had expected to happen. String Emperor was at a high enough level to crush several of the Renhuangs from the Golden Divine Nation.


    And this was why String Emperor was actually being merciful. Otherwise, these Renhuangs would be suffering more injuries than just being bound up by the music.


    Bang! A loud noise rang out. Gai Jiutian and Empress Yan flew apart and floated in the air. The two phoenixes were still guarding them as they circled around, making an ugly look come over Gai Jiutian''s face. At the same time, String Emperor plucked the strings again, and a high-pitched sound rang out. Several of the Renhuangs from the Golden Divine Nation groaned and spat up mouthfuls of blood. Their auras grew weaker. It was clear that they had been badly wounded.


    "The next time I see you bullying a junior from Taixuan Mountain like this, I will not be so polite," said String Emperor calmly. He was usually gentle and merciful, but now his tone carried a hint of coldness. It was obvious that he was showing as much mercy here as he ever would.


    "I have long heard your name spoken, String Emperor. You have learned much from Lord Taixuan, and you are truly a master musician," said Gai Jiutian. "However, your junior here has stolen an ultimate technique from the Divine Golden Nation. What do you think of that?"


    "That is an easy problem to solve. Gai Shi Shi sought to kill him previously. So, let us first let him kill Gai Shi Shi, then we can talk about him stealing your ultimate technique. How does that sound?" answered String Emperor.


    Golden light flashed in Gai Jiutian''s eyes.


    "You people from the Divine Golden Nation have no spine," said Empress Yan mockingly. "He traded your ultimate technique for his life. How about we clean this filth away for you, and then we will return your technique? Also, the Prince of the Divine Golden Nation launched a surprise attack on our disciple, and you have not said a word about how your Renhuangs got involved, too. What is the meaning of this?" She could not believe that he still wanted the ultimate technique back.


    It had been seized, and so it was seized. Gai Shi Shi had chosen to trade it for his life.


    If they had not been there, Ye Futian would have been killed. Would the people of the Golden Divine Nation have slain Gai Shi Shi to pay for his life?


    The people of Linxiao City were watching everything that was happening. The battle between people at the peak of the Saint level had led to many Renhuangs appearing. A battle had broken out between the Renhuangs of Taixuan Mountain and the Divine Golden Nation.


    Moreover, considering the situation, the fact that String Emperor was here meant that it was highly likely that there were even more powerful figures from the two great powers present.


    It was very likely that they were within the Divine Palace. All of them had come from that direction. No one knew what this conflict would evolve into.


    At that moment, a terrible airflow descended from the sky. A group of figures appeared, all of them cultivators from many different powers. Many of them were at the Renhuang level. Ye Futian noticed some of the talented individuals who had traveled to the Divine Palace with him among them.


    The Divine Sword Li Family, The Chang Feng Family, the Sky Burying God Clan, and more were all there.


    The Divine Palace itself had even sent cultivators. The Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace had come personally.


    Some of the top figures of the Divine Capital of Xiling had come as well. He saw the Prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling, who had come to Taixuan Mountain to make trouble. His aura was mighty, and he gave off a powerful pressure.


    There was another familiar figure as well. It was the divine general from the Golden Divine Nation who had brought Gai Shi Shi to Taixuan Mountain. His body shone brilliantly with light that incomparably beautiful. He looked at Ye Futian, making him feel as if he could not breathe.


    He had brought Gai Shi Shi to Taixuan Mountain to seek to become Lord Taixuan''s disciple, but he had been refused. Now that he watched this battle, he could tell that the man who had resonated with the character that read "the Way" and used the Fleeting Divine Sword was the young man before his eyes.


    He clenched his fists. Suddenly, Ye Futian involuntarily released the spear in his hands, dropping it. If he hadn''t, his whole body would have followed it.


    The Golden Divine Spear fell directly into his opponent''s hands. A burst of golden light covered Gai Shi Shi''s body. Ye Futian narrowed his eyes, but he couldn''t stop it. He could only watch as his opponent took Gai Shi Shi away.


    But in this current situation, there was no longer any use for him to continue threatening Gai Shi Shi.


    The great figures of both sides were all here. There was no more point in people threatening each other.


    Gai Shi Shi returned to the sky, but he was still badly wounded. He looked down at Ye Futian, his eyes full of murderous intent. His mission to kill Ye Futian had failed miserably, and he had lost a lot of prestige and respect. He had launched a sneak attack, not caring about what others would think. If he had won, he would have been called a king. If he lost, he would be called a fool. He only cared about results. But in the end, he had been defeated and humiliated.


    Ye Futian had made a mockery of everything he had done.


    The divine general of the Golden Divine Nation looked down at Ye Futian but did not do anything against him. He had seen everything that had happened before. In reality, both sides of this conflict had their own plans. It seemed like this man had a very high position within Taixuan Mountain. Could he be Lord Taixuan''s secret disciple?


    There definitely seemed to be some secrecy about him.


    "Your cultivation methods seem to be from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. We would at least like to know where this man who has stolen our ultimate technique hails from," said the divine general to Ye Futian. His power descended. Ye Futian knew that he could not withstand him.


    In the previous battle, many cultivators had used Renhuang implements to attack him, so he had needed to use up a lot of his power. Of course, maybe Lord Taixuan had already noticed what was going on, but he had not come to investigate.


    There was no point in hiding his identity any longer.


    The flesh of his face transformed, and his dark hair turned silvery white. A more handsome face appeared.


    Everyone''s eyes fell upon Ye Futian. So he had been using the Art of Disguise! Moreover, this heroic figure, with his handsome face, his snow-white hair, and his dark eyes that were so deep they seemed to be without end, seemed to be full of stories.


    This man may not have the outstanding family background that Gai Shi Shi had, but he had much more experience than him.


    "It''s you!" came a cry from beside the Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace, full of shock. It was Yan Sui, the disciple of the Divine Music Palace.


    He had been badly beaten by Ye Futian at the Divine Palace. Now that he saw his true face, and knew that this was the young man who had fought Yi Tianyu at Xuantian Pavilion, how could he not be shocked?


    He had become incredibly strong, and what was worse, he had come here to the Divine Palace, Yan Sui''s home ground.


    "You know him?" the Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace asked Yan Sui. Yan Sui nodded, and his face became ugly.


    "I am Ye Futian. I am here on a journey from the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    As he said this, the whole area became incredibly quiet. This man had come from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Moreover, he was a casual cultivator?


    Ye Futian had once traveled with the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but he was not their disciple. He had learned the ultimate technique of the Divine Elephants, but he was not a member of their clan. He was indeed a casual cultivator. He had not truly joined any power.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace looked at him. He already knew that when Yi Tianyu had returned to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, a battle had broken out there.


    He was not the only one who realized this. Many others knew it as well.


    A cultivator from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had defeated many outstanding cultivators from the great forces of the Higher Heavens Realm, including at the Land of Proving the Way, and now he had defeated Gai Shi Shi and others. In addition, he had come to the Divine Palace. This was magnificent.


    This must be the most powerful member of the younger generation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    What was even more amazing was that he had learned the ultimate techniques of so many great powers, but he was just a casual cultivator.


    Ye Futian looked at String Emperor and Empress Yan and said, "Before I came to the Divine Palace, I went to Taixuan Mountain, and it was indeed to seek the Way. I only hid my identity because there are those who wish me harm."


    Not far away, Wan Shouyi heard what Ye Futian was saying, and suddenly, many things made sense. No wonder he had been so restrained at Taixuan Mountain. He had put all of his energy into seeking the Way. He had not wanted to stir up trouble at all.


    If he had not been attacked by Gai Shi Shi today, he would still not have revealed his identity. He would have returned to Taixuan Mountain to cultivate quietly.


    "I was the one who brought you to Taixuan Mountain to cultivate. I don''t care who you are," said Empress Yan. If she cared, she would not have brought him there. She had known what kind of person he was when she had heard his music. She had known that he was extraordinary. But she had not thought that he would be this outstanding.


    "No matter who he is, since he came to Taixuan Mountain, he is our disciple," said String Emperor. Now, the Golden Divine Nation looked at Ye Futian as an enemy, and it seemed that there were those who had already borne ill will against Ye Futian. They naturally needed to protect him!

 1567 Seclusion

    Ye Futian was filled with emotion as he remembered the first time he had met the House Master of Taixuan and String Emperor.


    The first time he had met the House Master of Taixuan, he had played her a song, and then she had brought him to Taixuan Mountain.


    He had met String Emperor at String Pavilion, where he had given him a famous guqin and told him he could take anything within String Pavilion.


    At that time, he was just a musician, not a disciple of Taixuan Mountain. But the two of them had not cared about who he was. It was just the same now. No matter who he was, as long as he was cultivating at Taixuan Mountain, he was their disciple, and they would not let the Golden Divine Nation hurt him.


    A look of surprise came over the faces of the people of Linxiao City. String Emperor and Empress Yan had not even known Ye Futian''s true identity. It seemed like he was not Lord Taixuan''s secret disciple then.


    He was incredibly talented. He had come from the Heavenly Mandate Realm and was probably one of the most powerful cultivators there. Yan Sui seemed to recognize him, and the Renhuangs from the great powers seemed to know a little bit about him as well.


    With so much talent, there was no way that he was unknown in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    How could a casual cultivator be so talented and so powerful?


    Now, it seemed like Taixuan Mountain would certainly protect him.


    The Renhuangs of the Golden Divine Nation could naturally see this as well. String Emperor and Empress Yan had both shown that if anyone wanted to hurt Ye Futian, they would do their best to make that impossible.


    This was their attitude, and it was also Taixuan Mountain''s attitude. Both of these disciples of Lord Taixuan were powerful, and they represented the will of Taixuan Mountain.


    In the past, the Golden Divine Nation would have needed to worry about the will of Taixuan Mountain. But now things were different. Once Lord Taixuan had broken through to the next level, everything had changed.


    Taixuan Mountain''s status would never be the same.


    "I was a rare opportunity for Lord Taixuan to receive an invitation to a sparring session at the Divine Palace, and for his juniors to take part in the journey to the Land of Proving the Way. He certainly did not want to miss the chance to test himself against others, and to see the great figures among the youth of the Higher Heavens Realm," came the Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace''s voice. "He is a guest in the Divine Palace even as we speak. All of the great forces have people here, so what use is there in disturbing this harmonious atmosphere? Why don''t we let the Divine Palace keep some face and end this here?"


    The situation had reached a stalemate. No one wanted to act. The Golden Divine Nation was clearly in the wrong here, as Gai Shi Shi had attacked Ye Futian, but they had not succeeded and had instead suffered great losses and been humiliated. Their ultimate technique had even been stolen. It could be said that they had paid a heavy price for what they had done.


    If Taixuan Mountain did not protect him, then Ye Futian would die. But Taixuan Mountain was taking such an aggressive stance that if the Renhuangs continued fighting, then Lord Taixuan himself would probably come.


    The Golden Divine Nation had to accept this humiliation. Gai Shi Shi had simply not been good enough.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace was playing the peacemaker. The divine general of the Golden Divine Nation knew that things could not continue like this, and so he looked at Ye Futian and said, "I do not wish to see our ultimate technique in your hands, and I do not wish to see it fall into anyone else hands. Think about this."


    Brilliant divine light pierced Ye Futian''s eyes, and the divine general''s voice carried a hint of threat with it. The divine general continued, "Since the Lord of the Divine Music Palace has spoken, we will end it here. Let''s go."


    On saying this, he turned and walked away. The cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation glanced at Ye Futian, then turned and followed him. Dazzling golden light flashed in the sky as they all disappeared.


    At that moment, the Prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling looked at Ye Futian and said in a cold voice, "I look forward to our next meeting." Then he and his people turned and left as well.


    "What a pack of rats," said String Emperor mockingly. He had always borne a grudge against the Divine Capital of Xiling for their surprise attack. At that time, the Master had only punished them lightly and not pursued the matter, but if it had been him, he would not have let it go. He would have taught all of the Divine Capital of Xiling a lesson that they would not soon forget.


    There were many people here from all the great powers, and many of them were at the Renhuang level. They looked at Ye Futian. This proud son of heaven who had come from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had entered the Divine Palace. In the future, he would probably become like Huang Zhong.


    Empress Yan''s aura disappeared, and she walked over to String Emperor''s side. "Should we return to the Divine Palace?" she asked, "Or return to Taixuan Mountain?"


    "Let''s go back to Taixuan Mountain. The Master will naturally return himself at some point," answered String Emperor. Dazzling divine light flashed, and the phoenixes alighted before him. He turned to Ye Futian and said, "We are heading back to Taixuan Mountain."


    Ye Futian nodded. "Very well."


    Empress Yan turned and looked at Wan Shouyi and the others from Taixuan Mountain. "What are you waiting for?"


    They all finally reacted. They all mounted the phoenixes. With a cry, the phoenixes rose into the air and flew away.


    All of the cultivators left. The great battle that had just taken place had devastated the area, making them all sigh. This battle had been started because of someone pursuing Ye Futian, but from this, they had all seen the disunity between the great powers. There would certainly be some trouble in the future.


    Upon the phoenix''s back, Empress Yan looked at Ye Futian with interest. He narrowed his eyes when he saw her looking at him.


    "White hair, white clothes, and a noble bearing," she said appreciatively. "You are much more handsome than the stranger you were before."


    Ye Futian''s face darkened. He looked furtively at String Emperor beside him. He had realized that although Empress Yan was a woman, she was most improper.


    Wan Shouyi and the others were embarrassed as well. Fourth Miss was up to her old trick again.


    However, Ye Futian was indeed much better looking now than he had been as Shen Jing. His aura was also far more outstanding, and his silvery-white hair made him much more charming and heroic.


    "Don''t worry. I''ll look after you from now on." Empress Yan patted his shoulder. Ye Futian feared that String Emperor was going to hit him.


    Heaven only knew what the relationship between those two was. In any case, it was not simple.


    "House Master, is Lord Taixuan at the Divine Palace?" asked Ye Futian. He was changing the subject as he had a strong desire to keep living.


    "Yes, the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace invited him for a sparring session. Many people have gone to watch, including Renhuangs, from all the great powers. That is why you saw so many Renhuangs there," answered Empress Yan. "Did you really enter the ancestral land in the Divine Palace? The Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land?"


    Ye Futian looked at her and then nodded.


    "What was in there?" She looked at him in eager anticipation. She seemed very interested in the temple.


    "All of the great teachings o the Divine Palace," said Ye Futian.


    "That''s all?" Ye Futian''s answer had clearly not satisfied her curiosity. Of course, the great teachings had been there, but was that all there was?


    Why were they so serious about hiding it then? There were so few people who could enter the Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land.


    She did not believe that there were no secrets.


    Ye Futian felt a bit helpless. "House Master, this..."


    He could not be so casual about revealing the Divine Palace''s secret.


    "Sister," said String Emperor, "it was Ye Futian''s luck to be able to enter The Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land, and so he is keeping their secret for him. We should not force him to be dishonorable."


    Empress Yan looked at him, then seemed to lose interest, saying, "So boring."


    But she did not pursue the matter. She walked over to one side and sat down.


    "The Ancestral Temple of the Divine Palace naturally is connected to cultivation." Ye Futian smiled and said no more. He really could not reveal anything more. Even though he wanted to, this was a major secret. The Divine Palace had not prevented him from entering, and so if he gave up their secret so easily, it would be quite dishonorable.


    Empress Yan had evidently realized this as well and did not want to make him dishonor himself, so she did not ask anymore.


    The phoenixes flew quickly, shooting through the air towards Taixuan Mountain.


    ...


    Within the Divine Palace, the things that had happened in Linxiao City spread quickly. Once Yan Sui returned, he sought out Yi Tianyu.


    At that moment, Yi Tianyu was standing before a palace hall. When he heard that Shen Jing was, in fact, Ye Futian, he did not know what to feel.


    He had appreciated everything that Shen Jing had done at the Divine Palace. He had been outstandingly talented and very prideful as well.


    Although he had not let him keep face, how could he blame him? Who did not have some arrogance in his heart?


    And now he knew why.


    So that was why he had advanced so quickly. He had reached Nirvana, entered the Ancestral Temple of the Divine Palace, and comprehended the 81 swords.


    At that moment, he felt like he was under pressure.


    Li Daozi and Gai Shi Shi had both lost to Ye Futian. If he and Ye Futian fought now, what would the outcome be?


    For that day would come sooner or later.


    "What are you thinking about?" whispered Ye Man beside him.


    "I must go into seclusion and continue cultivating," said Yi Tianyu.


    Ye Man nodded. "Ah. I will go with you."


    "Excellent." Yi Tianyu turned and left. He needed to reach the Renhuang plane more quickly.


    ...


    Once Ye Futian returned to Taixuan Mountain, he continued cultivating at String Pavilion. Although he had caused a major disturbance, as far as he was concerned, nothing had changed. He needed to keep on like before and cultivate without drawing attention to himself.


    Now, his identity had been revealed. Although Taixuan Mountain was protecting him, he had offended the Golden Divine Nation, and he needed to reach the Renhuang plane eventually in order to be able to protect himself.


    Many of the people on Taixuan Mountain were discussing all that Ye Futian had done. He had quickly become a legendary figure there, and many people went to String Pavilion to visit him. But Yaya, who had come back from the Divine Palace with him, turned them all away. She gave them all the same answer: Ye Futian was cultivating in seclusion.


    Everyone was saddened by this, but they realized that it was the right thing for him to do. A man this legendary had the right to be proud.


    Lord Taixuan returned to Taixuan Mountain as well, but he did not seek out Ye Futian. He busied himself with his own cultivation as if nothing had happened at the Divine Palace.


    Everything went on just as it had before.


    Moreover, this time Ye Futian planned to be in seclusion for a long period of time. Yi Tianyu, and even the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, would soon hear news that he was at Taixuan Mountain. Under this situation, he could not leave the mountain whenever he pleased. So, there was only one thing to do: cultivate.


    He planned to forge a body of the Great Path and a soul of the Way for himself. If he could directly become a Renhuang, that would be best. If he couldn''t, he wouldn''t come out until he couldn''t go any farther!

 1568 The 10,034th Year of the Divine Prefecture Caldendar

    Ye Futian sat upon a mountain at String Pavilion, clouds floating all around him.


    His eyes were closed, and not one bit of his aura was going outside his body. An image of himself sat within his Life Palace. Here, the World Tree towered over him, will seeping out of it as it soared into the sky. His life palace seemed like a world of its own. Many spirits curled around the World Tree, giving off different kinds of will.


    Ye Futian seemed to be carving something into the ground. There were many different patterns: sword patterns, divine elephant patterns, and starry patterns. Each pattern was an incredible artistic conception, and will seemed to seep out of them.


    He looked at the patterns, but he seemed to be dissatisfied with them. He waved his hand and erased them all.


    For those who were not cultivators, rushing to the Renhuang plane seemed like an impossible task. It was impossible by its very nature. One had to forge a body of the Great Path and a soul of the Way, link the two together, and make them resonate with the Great Path. Only then could one finally forge a Wheel of the Great Path and reach the Renhuang plane.


    But Ye Futian considered it further. He needed to consider what kind of Wheel of the Great Path he would forge. He would not be stepping onto the Renhuang plane in a simple manner.


    In order to forge a Wheel of the Great Path, one needed to use one''s body of the Great Path as the basis, and then take things step by step. If each step was different, the Wheel of the Great Path that you forged would be different. Ye Futian had read many ancient texts about becoming a Renhuang, and thus he wanted to create a prototype of his Wheel of the Great Path.


    Moreover, how many wheels would he forge?


    An ordinary cultivator would never dare to even think about this. Reaching the Renhuang plane was already nearly impossible, but if he wanted to go further, he would need to set up an ideal foundation from the very start.


    The legendary Renhuang level was not the end, but merely another starting point. It was the starting point of becoming the most powerful person in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Thus, he needed to be more cautious.


    Huang Zhong had already reached the next level and was at the peak of the Saint plane. He could already become a Renhuang, but he had not yet taken that step. Why?


    It was because extraordinary people had extraordinary ambitions. They were not content with merely becoming a Renhuang. They wanted to create outstanding Wheels of the Great Path. Once they became Renhuangs, they would dominate other Renhuangs. Only the most powerful people would dare dream of this.


    Ye Futian thought of all the battles he had experienced both inside and outside the Divine Palace: his battle with Huang Zhong and the battle where he was suppressed by the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation. When comparing the two of them, although Huang Zhong was not yet a Renhuang, when his bell of the Great Path rang out, the Great Path itself had collapsed. He had incorporated many types of will into his bell. If he forged it into a Wheel of the Great Path, then when the endless divine bells appeared, they would be able to shake someone to death in an instant.


    A Wheel of the Great Path could take all kinds of will into it. Even life spirits and the spells of the Divine Palace could be used as a foundation for a Wheel of the Great Path.


    This was why Ye Futian was still thinking.


    He continued to carve patterns into the ground. Each one of the patterns contained powerful sword truths within them. But when he finished drawing them, he wiped them away yet again. It seemed that he was still not satisfied.


    He closed his eyes again and fell into a state of forgetting himself. Within his mind, he pictured all the great figures that he had met over the years, of the power that they had displayed, and the forces that they had let loose. Among them, the strongest was naturally Gu Tianxing of the Demon Realm when he had taken advantage of the situation and fought against the Dynastic Overlord and several others. He remembered the scene vividly. But this type of power did not suit him.


    He thought of Lord Taixuan, of Old Demon Luo, and of String Emperor. Guqin music began to play within his mind.


    The music gradually formed a picture.


    He drew on the ground for a while, quickly forming a pattern. The pattern contained countless notes. Each note looked like a sword. He looked at the pattern and finally did not erase it. It seemed that this pattern was finally what he was looking for.


    He looked at it for a while. Suddenly, the people in the outside world could feel a disturbance coming from where he was.


    He opened his eyes, full of determination. It seemed that he had made his mind up.


    Boom!


    A burst of terrible will roared through his body.


    Puff!


    After a moment, he spat out a mouthful of blood. His aura weakened, and his divine spirit retracted. His face was very pale.


    He had decided to try and rush towards the Renhuang plane. There was no need to pretend any longer. From now on, he would constantly be heading forward, never retreating.


    Ye Futian had cut his own life spirit a second time.


    He needed the guqin spirit to return.


    He had envisioned the first of his Wheels of the Great Path. It would be a guqin wheel.


    Clouds rolled through the sky. Someone seemed to be watching him from a distance with a puzzled look. What had that guy done to himself?


    Had he really hurt himself when everything was in perfectly good condition?


    Did all young geniuses cultivate this way nowadays?


    Once he had recovered from his wound, Ye Futian left String Pavilion to visit Lord Taixuan. Some people on Taixuan Mountain could faintly hear divine music playing.


    After a month, Ye Futian was once again on the mountain behind String Pavilion, sitting cross-legged and playing his guqin. The music was a song of remembrance for the Great Path.


    The music lingered, and there were countless notes of the Great Path integrated into Ye Futian''s sword will as it flowed around his body.


    Brilliant golden sword-shaped notes flowed through his veins and were carved on his bones. Another tree seemed to grow within him, and its trunk, branches, and leaves transformed into his limbs and skeleton. All of it was integrated together, and he was infused with the will of the Great Path.


    His blood surged through his veins as the music grew more lively. The sound of Sword Qi could be heard, and his body seemed to grow to fill a vast area. He was filled with infinite will, and his flesh, bones, and blood felt as if they were bearing the blows of a thousand hammers. They were forging him into a body of the Great Path.


    After a few months, he had created a body of the Great Path, but he did not stop there. He used the power of the Divine Elephants to forge yet another one. The massive strength of the Divine Elephants surged continuously throughout his body, turning into countless Great Path particles that were carved into his veins, bones, and organs.


    Cultivators were not only able to create a single Wheel of the Great Path. There was no limit to cultivation, and people''s potential was endless. They could even carve different marks of the Great Path within their bodies.


    After a Renhuang had fallen, their descendants could feel many different kinds of will coming from their blood and bones.


    Ye Futian was an outstanding cultivator, and so he naturally was not going to only forge a single Wheel of the Great Path.


    As far as he was concerned right now, his flesh was already at the level of a body of the Great Path when he had been at the Divine Palace. Now, he was just perfecting it.


    He would be cultivating here for a long time.


    ...


    In the 10,034th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, Ye Futian had already been shut away in cultivation for more than two years. It had been more than three years since he had come to the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Many things had happened in the Higher Heavens Realm over these two years, and much had happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Many people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had heard news of Ye Futian, including his enemies. They knew that Ye Futian had gone to Taixuan Mountain to cultivate. But even though they knew this, they had no way to act against him.


    Once Lord Taixuan had broken through to the next level, he was at the same level as Gu Tianxing. In the past, there had perhaps been two people who had reached this level, and Gu Tianxing had possibly reached the level of the old Dynastic Overlord. Now, it was clear that there was no one at that level now, at least publicly. As for if anyone had reached it in secret, no one knew.


    At the very least, the present Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the palace lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace had not reached that level. So, it would be impossible for them to go to Taixuan Mountain to seize Ye Futian. Nor could the Golden Divine Nation seize him. If they went themselves, they would be rebuffed, and so they would rather make plans in secret and stir up trouble from a safe position.


    These past few years, the Tai family and the Hua family had caused trouble many times. No one knew where they were cultivating now. None of them could be found.


    The Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky had hut herself away. It was said that she was cultivating with the foremost Saint of Brahma''s Pure Sky��Qin He��and teaching her the Way. Some said that Qin He was becoming very powerful and would soon break through to the Renhuang plane.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace was working hard to train its younger members. However, even Zhan Yuan, with his Supreme Body of the Great Path, had been defeated several times, and it was not easy to train someone else up to this level. Geniuses like him were few and far between.


    There was someone in the forbidden land of the Dragons Gods of the Demon Realm who it seemed was being gradually forgotten by the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    In the forbidden canyon in Longyuan, countless dark chains filled the area. Within the dark depths, a jet black, monstrous demon sat in cultivation. The images of demonic figures floated around him, making him seem even more powerful. It seemed as if he were a demon monarch who would conquer the world.


    An incomparably huge black dragon hovered at the peak of a dark mountain, endless demonic will spilling out from him. These past few years, he had devoted all his energy towards the uninvited guest who had come more than three years ago.


    The cultivators of the Dragons Gods had come a few times, but they had never entered. Perhaps they thought that he was only searching for a suitable person to pass on his demonic arts to. But in reality, he was the only one who understood why.


    It was the same as the reason why he had been imprisoned here.


    At that moment, lines of dark demon light spread out behind the figure. It gathered together into the image of a demon god, with demon generals all around him. But they all seemed incredibly polite.


    The demon dragon watched the scene taking place below him and began to move. His master was truly cruel in that he had asked him to wander about in the outside world.

 1569 Only Himself to Blame

    A figure walked out of a cave residence within the Sword Abyss of Taixuan Mountain. Sword will wrapped around him, and his eyes were full of sword light.


    "Brother Wan has come out of his seclusion," someone called as everyone looked towards the man who had emerged. Wan Shouyi smiled slightly and nodded to them.


    "His aura has changed," someone in the distance said.


    A few of them walked towards him, calling out, "Brother!"


    Wan Shouyi had shut himself away in cultivation once he had returned. This had lasted for more than two years. Now that he was emerging, he must have advanced a lot.


    "Why are you all looking at me?" he said with a smile as he saw the group of people coming towards him. There was a note of happiness in his tone. He was obviously in a good mood.


    "How was your cultivation, brother?" someone asked.


    Wan Shouyi gave a smile that was full of meaning. The disciples of Sword Abyss reacted to this in many different ways. They looked at him and asked, "Brother, please tell us in detail."


    "I have almost touched upon the Renhuang path." He looked up into the air, full of emotion. Many people had successfully completed the journey to the Divine Palace, the Sea of the Path, and the Land of Proving the Way, and he had experienced a lot on this trip. He had felt the will of the Sea of the Path as well as its incomparable vastness. This gave birth to lofty feelings within him.


    But everything that had happened afterward showed him that although he had great ambitions, he was not strong enough to realize them. But Ye Futian had helped him with his song, adding strength to his sword and increasing his perception greatly. This had greatly moved him, and thus, once he had returned, he had locked himself away in cultivation.


    It was not until now that he emerged from his seclusion. Moreover, he had truly touched the Renhuang plane. It was not empty boasting.


    He could already feel that the Renhuang plane was not far away.


    Everyone was stunned. Wan Shouyi had always been at a higher level than them, and he was the senior brother in Sword Abyss. He was an outstanding swordsman, but he was still far away from the Renhuang plane. They all knew that he must have advanced a lot while shut away in cultivation this time, but they would never have thought that he would touch the Renhuang plane.


    They were familiar with Wan Shouyi''s moral character. He would not lie about something like this.


    "Congratulations, brother," someone said with a bow.


    "You are the first person in Sword Abyss to prove yourself worthy," someone said with a sigh of emotion.


    "Not just Taixuan Mountain. With the level that you have now reached, no one on Taixuan Mountain can compare with you," someone else said.


    When he heard this, Wan Shouyi waved his hand and said, "Stop praising me to death, brothers. All the success that I have achieved today is due to what he gave me. When he is here, he is the foremost disciple of Taixuan Mountain. Everyone else can only hope to be number two."


    A figure flashed in everyone''s mind as he said this. It was the white-haired young man who had come back with Wan Shouyi. Everyone was familiar with his deeds, but they were not too sure about the concrete details of what had happened.


    But Wan Shouyi had said that all his success today was thanks to him.


    "Brother Wan, is Shen Jing��no��is Ye Futian really that strong?" someone asked. Before, Ye Futian had often come to Sword Abyss to cultivate, and many of the disciples there knew him. Thus, they still called him Shen Jing.


    "He is not just strong." Wan Shouyi thought back to the trip to the Land of Proving the Way. "The song that he gave me back then had as much impact on me as if it was at the Nirvana level. That was why my understanding of swordsmanship increased by leaps and bounds then. Afterward, he gave me a piece of fruit of the Way and captured the Divine Tree of Comprehension for us to cultivate at. That was why I was able to comprehend so much. Afterward, I came back and shut myself away in cultivation. Ye Futian''s help allowed me to skip over at least several dozen years of hard cultivation."


    Even though he was already at the peak of the Nirvana level, the time it would take him to reach the Renhuang plane should still be measured in at least decades. But Ye Futian''s assistance in the Land of Proving the Way had made it so that he was already close to achieving his goal.


    His heart was full of wonder and excitement.


    "Forget Taixuan Mountain. In all of the Higher Heavens Realm, there is probably no one who can compare with him, save for Huang Zhong of the Divine Palace," Whispered Wan Shouyi. Ye Futian had defeated many cultivators, including heroic figures like Li Daozi and Gai Shi Shi. This kind of combat talent was incredibly rare.


    Everyone was silent when they heard what Wan Shouyi said. Although they had heard of the things that Ye Futian had done, hearing someone who had personally touched the Renhuang plane praise him so highly was still a little shocking.


    It was a pity that they had not gone to the Divine Palace and witnessed everything that he had done themselves.


    "Has he come out of his seclusion?" Wan Shouyi asked suddenly.


    "He is probably still cultivating at String Pavilion. Just like you, he is rushing towards the Renhuang plane," someone said.


    "In that case, he must not be far from achieving his goal?" someone else asked.


    "Not necessarily. My level was higher than his in the beginning, and it was not long ago that he broke through to the Nirvana level. In fact, it happened on the trip to the Land of Proving the Way. In such a short time, he wouldn''t necessarily be able to cultivate faster than me, even with the fruit of the Way," said Wan Shouyi. "After all, I also have had good luck. But no matter if he reaches the Renhuang plane quickly or slowly, it is just a matter of time. After Li Daozi was defeated by him, he ascended to the Renhuang plane, then thanked Ye Futian for defeating him. Could he say that he was stronger than him? For someone as talented as Ye Futian, how long it takes him to reach the Renhuang plane does not mean anything."


    Upon saying this, he walked away, everyone following him on either side.


    Wan Shouyi''s words made their way around Taixuan Mountain very quickly. He went to String Pavilion and learned that Ye Futian was still shut away in cultivation, so he had to go back. On the way, he ran into Jun Mu and Luoyue.


    Jun Mu glanced at him over his shoulder and said, "I heard that you touched the Renhuang plane? Is that due to the help he gave you?"


    Wan Shouyi looked back at him. Some unpleasant things had happened between Jun Mu and Ye Futian at the Land of Proving the Way. He had stood by Ye Futian''s side through it all, so there was some friction between him and Jun Mu.


    "Let us leave past problems in the past. I believe he does not care about what happened," said Wan Shouyi. They were all cultivators of Taixuan Mountain. Jun Mu was the personal disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant, and the conflict between them should not be any cause for enmity. They could let it go. After all, it had all been for the sake of getting fruit of the Way, so Ye Futian would probably not pursue the matter."


    "I am speaking of something else." Jun Mu turned to face Wan Shouyi. "I have been fortunate enough to see some success in my cultivation over these last two years. I would like to see how much you have advanced."


    "Brother." Beside him, Luoyue frowned, seeming unhappy. Jun Mu had been in the wrong in the past, and now he was making trouble once again.


    Everyone around them looked at them. It seemed there would be a conflict between the two of them.


    Wan Shouyi and Luoyue had not purposely spread the news about what had happened, and thus the people of Taixuan Mountain were not very clear about the details. Only those who were there knew.


    People like Li Zhiyin of Guqin Valley and Chen Deng. These two strode over to them now.


    After the incident, Ye Futian had invited them to cultivate with him at the Divine Tree of Comprehension. Afterward, they admired Ye Futian greatly. Jun Mu stood alone.


    "This has nothing to do with you," said Jun Mu to Luoyue. She was Second Uncle''s daughter, and so she had no right to get involved.


    "If you persist in this, it will affect your cultivation," said Wan Shouyi.


    Jun Mu frowned when he heard this, and an unhappy look crossed his face. "Are you trying to teach me?"


    On saying this, he strode forward, and his aura bloomed.


    Wan Shouyi felt a burst of pressure. Powerful sword will suddenly burst forth from him.


    In a flash, endless swords filled the sky, covering the entire area.


    Everyone''s eyes fell upon him. They all felt shaken. His sword will was so strong.


    "Join the swords."


    As he said this, Wan Shouyi transformed into a sword and shot forward like a beam of light that dazzled everyone.


    The Great Path roared within Jun Mu, and a burst of incredibly powerful Qi exploded out of him. He could feel an astonishing amount of pressure. Each step forward caused him great pain.


    He raised his fist and slammed out with his fist will. However, the Great Path flowed in reverse, and his fist will was blocked. Wan Shouyi descended upon him. He struck out with a single finger, and all the swords returned together.


    Woosh!


    The tip of the sword hit the fists, and divine light pierced through Jun Mu''s body. At that moment, the area where Jun Mu was standing lit up with dazzling sword light that then disappeared in a flash.


    Wan Shouyi returned to his original position as if he had never moved at all. But blood was flowing from the center of Jun Mu''s fist. He groaned, and more blood poured from his mouth. His face was pale, and his aura was very weak.


    "A single stroke!"


    Everyone felt their hearts tremble fiercely. Wan Shouyi had defeated Jun Mu with a single sword stroke.


    Jun Mu had been the leader back during the journey to the Land of Proving the Way.


    And after two years, he had been surpassed.


    He looked like he was in a daze. He did not understand. How could this be?


    "He has come out from his seclusion." At that moment, someone walked towards them. The voice was somewhat unexpected, and it seemed that his words did not fit the situation.


    However, this sentence still affected everyone greatly.


    He had come out of his seclusion.


    In a flash, everyone forgot about the fight.


    "He''s coming!" someone else said. In the distance, a figure was coming towards them. He had white hair and white clothes. He had a powerful aura and a heroic air about him.


    "His aura has changed." Everyone seemed to forget about Jun Mu, and they all looked at Ye Futian. His aura was now even more outstanding.


    Ye Futian walked over to them. He naturally saw Wan Shouyi and Jun Mu. Wan Shouyi turned and walked over to him, saying with a smile, "You''ve come out."


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. "Yes."


    All around them, people were drawing nearer.


    Among them were Luoyue, Li Zhiyin, Chen Yu, and more. They were the ones who had gone with him to the Land of Proving the Way. Now they all stood on either side of him. From this, it was obvious how high a place Ye Futian held within their hearts.


    Ye Futian seemed to sense something, and he looked at Jun Mu. He saw a bit of enmity in his eyes.


    He did not understand. Why would he bear a grudge against him?


    "That affair back in the Land of Proving the Way probably affected his state of mind," said Wan Shouyi. "There''s no need for you to worry about it." He still hoped to avoid friction between Ye Futian and Jun Mu. After all, Jun Mu was a disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant.


    "I don''t mind," said Ye Futian. He continued forward, passing by Jun Mu. It was not just that he didn''t mind; if Jun Mu had not been standing right in front of him, he would have forgotten about him.


    "Wan Shouyi has touched the Renhuang plane, have you?" said Jun Mu as he passed by. "You''ve been shut away for more than two years. How has your cultivation gone?"


    "Not bad," said Ye Futian softly, "but I am still not quite a Renhuang."


    "Let me try you," said Jun Mu, and his aura flared to life once again. Countless palm prints of the Great Path burst forth, shooting straight at Ye Futian.


    "Enough!" shouted Wan Shouyi, but Ye Futian just stood there without moving. The palm prints descended in an instant, slamming into his back, but the light of the Great Path flashed upon him, and the palm prints were destroyed. He had not moved a muscle.


    Not even his feet had moved.


    "Are you up for it?" Ye Futian said calmly, not even turning his head. Jun Mu''s face went white. How could this be?


    Although his palm prints were not his strongest technique, they were still astonishingly powerful. And yet Ye Futian was still standing there calmly.


    "If there is nothing else, then I will say farewell," continued Ye Futian. He stepped away, leaving Jun Mu staring after him with eyes and mouth wide open!

 1570 Lord Taixuans Old Friend

    Ye Futian walked away, leaving the place.


    It was as if Jun Mu did not exist to him.


    There were many people on Taixuan Mountain, all of them looking at Jun Mu. This disciple of the Taixuan Hierophant was exceedingly talented and had previously even tried to become Lord Taixuan''s personal disciple. He was considered the most powerful young person on the mountain. But now, everyone felt a faint sense of sorrow for him.


    He had been cultivating for so many years, but now he was ignored. He had thought there would be a fight, but Ye Futian had not even bothered to lift a hand against him. He had never considered him a worthy opponent.


    Jun Mu had directly launched his attacks against him but had not even been able to move him. This meant that Ye Futian''s body of the Great Path had already been completed. He had truly forged a form from the power of the Great Path.


    And he was also very strong. Judging by Wan Shouyi and Li Zhiyin''s attitude, in terms of popularity, Jun Mu was far inferior to Ye Futian, who had only come to Taixuan Mountain recently.


    What had happened on the trip to the Land of Proving the Way?


    At that moment, a voice came from the distance. "Jun Mu."


    Stunned, Jun Mu looked up in the direction of the palace where Lord Taixuan was. He bowed and said, "Master."


    He could naturally tell that the voice he was hearing was that of his master��the Taixuan Hierophant.


    "You must shut yourself away in seclusion to cultivate. Do not come out until you have achieved success," said the Taixuan Hierophant. Jun Mu trembled slightly, and his face turned as white as paper. Was his master punishing him as well?


    "Yes, Master." Jun Mu did not dare protest. He bowed and went to do as he was told. Everyone pitied him as they watched him leave. Many of them sighed to themselves. He was both detestable and pitiable.


    Wan Shouyi sighed to himself as well when he saw this. Cultivating was not easy. Someone of Jun Mu''s level should not be reduced to this. But this was because everything that had happened on the trip to the Land of Proving the Way had presented a huge obstacle to Jun Mu. He had persistently stuck to the wrong course, and thus he had come to this point.


    Today''s events would certainly affect his state of mind and could even affect his future success.


    Ye Futian continued walking forward until he reached Lord Taixuan''s cultivation temple. Several figures appeared on the stairs. In addition to Lord Taixuan, the Taixuan Hierophant and the other great disciples were there as well. They had probably come to discuss some matter.


    Ye Futian bowed in greeting. The people on the stairs looked at him. There was a deep look in Lord Taixuan''s eyes as he said, "How was your period of seclusion?"


    "I have forged my body of the Great Path, but I was unable to connect it to the Worldly Great Path. I do not understand it well enough," he said. "Moreover, I felt that it would be useless to continue cultivating. I do not think that I can break through this barrier through cultivation. Thus, I have come to ask you for instruction."


    "The Renhuang plane is like a barrier. Although many people are blocked by the prospect of forging a body of the Great Path, this is only a single hurdle that is difficult to cross over. In reality, comprehending a spirit of the Way is much harder. One can rely on external power to forge a body, such as the fruit of the Way. You have used what you gained on the trip to the Land of Proving the Way to help you forge a body, but it has only been a short time since you reached the Nirvana level, and so you are missing some crucial experiences. You need to find opportunities to experience these," said Lord Taixuan.


    "Previously, you were only an Unblemished Saint. Then you reached the Nirvana plane on the trip to the Land of Proving the Way. Then you came back and shut yourself away in cultivation. In such a short time, you have already advanced by leaps and bounds, and yet you are still not satisfied? You still want to advance to the Renhuang level?" asked Empress Yan with a grin.


    The speed that he was advancing at was putting many people to shame. Of course, this also had to do with his experiences on the trip to the Land of Proving the Way. In reality, this trip and his sojourn at the Divine Palace had been very advantageous to him, and he had learned a lot. That was why he was able to forge a body of the Great Path. His perception had become very deep, and he cannot have been too far from the Renhuang plane.


    But under normal circumstances, it would take many years to reach this level.


    "Uncommon people have uncommon ways of thinking. We can''t understand him," said the City Lord of Taixuan with a smile. When his daughter had returned from the Divine Palace, he had heard Ye Futian mentioned many times, and she had praised him to high heavens. But the man was indeed incredible. Elders like him were really no match. The new generation would soon supersede the old.


    At that moment, Lord Taixuan rose and walked over to the stairs. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "I heard that you are a casual cultivator from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. I know that you cultivated in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven before. Who was your previous master?"


    "I have had several masters, but none of them are at your level," said Ye Futian with a bow.


    "Oh?" Lord Taixuan was surprised. Then he asked, "Who was it that taught you how to cultivate?"


    "My recent cultivation methods were taught to me by a master who was not of a high level. Certainly nowhere near your level. You have probably never heard of him," answered Ye Futian. He did not know why Lord Taixuan was asking this.


    "He was not at a high level?"


    "Mm. Who only became a Renhuang several years ago," said Ye Futian with a slight nod.


    Lord Taixuan nodded slightly and did not ask any more questions. He said, "You are now at a bottleneck in your cultivation, one that would indeed be difficult to break through simply by shutting yourself away and cultivating. You lack the opportunities to break through to the next level. If you wish, I will send you somewhere to cultivate. A good friend of mine is there. This will be a good experience for you. Perhaps you will find an opportunity to break through to the next level."


    Ye Futian was silent for a time. Lord Taixuan was at such a high level. Even before he had reached his current level, he was one of the most powerful Renhuangs. His good friend must be someone at the same level as him and must be an excellent cultivator. Moreover, Lord Taixuan must be sending him for a good reason.


    "I do wish to go," said Ye Futian.


    "It is not in the Higher Heavens Realm," said Lord Taixuan.


    "No matter. One can cultivate anywhere," answered Ye Futian.


    "Mm." Lord Taixuan smiled and nodded. "Go and rest now. You have a long time in cultivation, so you should relax. I will let you know when it is time to leave."


    "Thank you, Master," said Ye Futian with a bow. He was very excited.


    He had only met Lord Taixuan face to face a few times and was not his personal disciple like many people thought, but Lord Taixuan was still willing to help him. He truly was generous.


    He was very lucky to have met an elder like him.


    "Master, many people are watching him now. Where are you sending him?" asked Empress Yan. She was a little curious, and she did not know what her Master was thinking.


    "I am sending him to an old friend," answered Lord Taixuan. "Ye Futian might have some sort of deep connection with him."


    "What deep connection?" asked Empress Yan.


    "I am not entirely sure. We will know once he goes there. This young man is incredibly talented and thus is well suited to go there to cultivate. Perhaps he will have a chance to break through to the next level there. Once he is a Renhuang, he will be able to protect himself much better," said Lord Taixuan. He naturally knew that many people in the outside world were watching Ye Futian now.


    It was not just the people from the Golden Divine Nation. The people who had come from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had probably come because of what had happened there.


    Ye Futian returned to String Pavilion. Yaya was there cultivating. She opened her eyes when she heard him coming and asked, "What''s wrong?"


    "Nothing, I''m just watching you," he answered with a smile. Nowadays, Yaya was even more powerful than she had been. She had gained a lot from the trip to the Divine Palace as well.


    Yaya rolled her eyes at him, then ignored him. She shut her eyes and continued cultivating.


    "..."


    Ye Futian''s face darkened, but this was just how Yaya was.


    He smiled then. Yaya was the only one of his friends here in the Higher Heavens realm. He did not know how the others were faring.


    How was Yu Sheng doing cultivating with the Divine Dragons? Where had elder brother, third brother, Wuchen, and that cold and arrogant princess gone? Where were his Master and the others? Three years had passed in the blink of an eye. As his level increased, time seemed to move faster. It passed without him realizing it.


    Now he stopped and thought of the time when they were all together.


    He also thought of Brahma''s Pure Sky. He would have to return there.


    But everything rode on him being able to become a Renhuang.


    "Brother Ye," came a voice from outside.


    Ye Futian''s will moved towards the voice, and he said, "Come in."


    Soon, a figure walked over towards the mountain they were on. He realized it was Li Zhiyin of Guqin Valley.


    Ye Futian naturally remembered her. The first time she had come to Guqin Valley, she had been very proud and had a chip on her shoulder. Now she was calm and had a clear look in her eyes. She bowed to him and said, "I saw that you emerged from your seclusion, so I came here to bother you."


    Ye Futian smiled slightly and said, "What can I do for you?"


    "I have a question about music that I hope you can help me solve," she said. Not far away, Yaya opened her eyes and looked at her. Did Guqin Valley not have their own elders? Why come running here to ask Ye Futian?


    But she did not really care about that. She was just upset that her cultivation had been disturbed.


    "Of course," Ye Futian nodded.


    "Then, I will play a piece for you," said Li Zhiyin. She played a song on her guqin. It was melodious and well written.


    "Do you think it''s missing something?" asked Li Zhiyin.


    "The composition is full of depth, and it is technically beautiful," said Ye Futian with a slight smile. "But it needs more of an artistic conception. When I listened to it, I did not let go of myself and become immersed in the world of music."


    Ye Futian felt like he wasn''t able to help her too much. These problems were not hard to see, but would be incredibly difficult to fix. However, Li Zhiyin had definitely already known this, so there was no need for her to ask him for help.


    But she had come to him for help, so he could not refuse her. They chatted for a while, and then Li Zhiyin said farewell.


    Afterward, Luoyue came as well. She also had a question about cultivation. She wanted his help with swordsmanship.


    But Luoyue was different than Li Zhiyin. She was honestly looking for help and did not have ulterior motives.


    Ye Futian did not make too many suggestions. He just showed her a sword stroke and played some music to help her. Luoyue learned the sword stroke on the spot and dedicated herself to practicing it. She left with a smile.


    Later, a legend about Ye Futian spread throughout Taixuan Mountain. Whenever disciple came to String Pavilion asking for help, he would not refuse them, but would instead discuss cultivation in-depth with them. This was a form of mutual learning, as it let him see if he was able to help others with the cultivation that he himself had attained.


    He had been in seclusion for so long that he naturally would not want to cultivate alone anymore. Lord Taixuan had asked him to wait, and so he would wait calmly.


    Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. Finally, Lord Taixuan summoned Ye Futian!

 1571 The Sky River Great Elder

    On the Taixuan Mountain, Ye Futian came here to see Lord Taixuan. There was no one else, not even Yaya. He didn''t know where she was, and he planned to let Yaya stay on Taixuan Mountain to cultivate. Ye Futian didn''t have too high expectations for Yaya, and for him, it would be enough as long as she could break the shackles and enter the Renhuang Plane and be safe.


    In the future, Yaya could travel around the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and settle down in a realm and become an Empress.


    Of course, this was his idea. If Yaya knew, who knew what she would think.


    "Do you want to depart?" Lord Taixuan asked Ye Futian directly when he came.


    "Lord, would you go in person?" Ye Futian said. Beside Ye Futian, the Lord was here alone, so obviously, he was not going to bring other people with him.


    "I have not seen my old friend for a long time. This time, I want to go to visit him, not just because of you," Lord Taixuan said with a smile.


    "Okay," Ye Futian nodded and said, "then let''s go."


    Lord Taixuan raised his hand, and suddenly, a bright beam of sword light shone. A giant sword appeared in front of the two. Lord Taixuan walked directly up there, looked back at Ye Futian, and said, "Come with me."


    Ye Futian stepped up to the giant sword. The next moment, the giant sword flew through the air. It disappeared in an instant and traversed an infinite distance.


    The giant sword was wrapped in a sword curtain, blocking the outside wind. Ye Futian couldn''t feel a trace of external force in it, but he could perceive that the changing of seasons was rapidly going on.


    In just a moment, Ye Futian found that he was no longer on the ground, and he could not even see the buildings. There was only deep and endless emptiness in front of his eyes.


    "Are we out of the Higher Heavens Realm?" Ye Futian asked, looking at Lord Taixuan beside him.


    "Yes," Lord Taixuan nodded and said, "look down."


    Ye Futian took a look below and could vaguely see a boundless huge tectonic plate, which was releasing light. It laid between the sky and earth.


    It was the Upper Heavens Realm. In fact, they were already in an extremely distant place, but because the Upper Heavens Realm was too large, it could still be seen.


    Ye Futian was a little surprised, but he was not shocked because he knew Lord Taixuan''s strength. Lord Taixuan''s ability exceeded that of a Renhuang figure, so how fast could he go? It was impossible to estimate.


    The boundless Upper Heavens Realm was extremely vast in the eyes of Saint-Plane cultivators, but no realm among the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was large enough for Lord Taixuan.


    The more powerful a person was, the less he or she would be affected by the barrier of distance, or the influence could be none.


    "Is this the world of starry sky? Why can''t I see the endless stars?" Ye Futian whispered. In the past, the cross-border travels he had were all aided by spatial matrixes. This was the first time he directly crossed the realm with human power. Everything he saw was so clear.


    The boundless world gave him a very strange feeling. This was not like the description of the universe, nor like the imaginary gorgeous starry sky, but was lonely and deadly silent. There were turbulent torrents drifting around, and sometimes even they even encountered storms of the Great Path.


    In this boundless space, Ye Futian had an illusion that his speed seemed to slow down and that he could see everything more clearly.


    "Lord, what kind of world is this world?" Ye Futian asked. He had some doubts. Last time, in the ancestral shrine, the mysterious man said that the world was unreal. What did it mean?


    "The world where sky and earth collapse," Lord Taixuan whispered. "As for the truth of the world, you need to explore it yourself."


    Ye Futian''s talent for cultivation was outstanding, and his potential was limitless. Now he was at the height of his youth, Lord Taixuan didn''t want him to know the cruel truth of the world too early. Perhaps this would be a blow to his state of mind.


    "The Path of the World collapses." Ye Futian had heard of these words several times. Was this deadly silent world a result of the collapse of the Path of the World?


    Then how prosperous the world was before the collapse of the sky and earth?


    "Where are we going on this trip?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "Tianhe Realm," Lord Taixuan replied. Ye Futian showed doubt. Tianhe Realm did not belong to the Nine Supreme Realms. He had never heard of this realm.


    However, Ye Futian didn''t continue asking. Since Lord Taixuan took him, he naturally had his reasons. Lord Taixuan''s old friend must also be a great character.


    The two walked through the lonely, deep and endless space. After a while, Lord Taixuan said to Ye Futian, "We will arrive soon."


    On his way, Ye Futian had been observing, looking at this endless space. He heard Lord Taixuan''s words and looked down. Then the sword penetrated directly into another space, where Ye Futian saw the land and mountains, rivers, and seas.


    The azure sky was clean as if it had been washed. They flew under the clouds, and their speed dropped. Because it was Lord Taixuan who steered the sword, after they slowed down, their speed was still very fast. Ye Futian noticed that there were very few human traces along the way and felt somewhat curious. Even in the wilderness of mountains, there should have been a lot of people cultivating.


    "Tianhe Realm experienced a catastrophic war many years ago, and its vitality was severely damaged. Many cultivators died, and later, a lot of cultivators migrated and left. After many years, Tianhe Realm has recovered, but it is no longer as prosperous as before," Lord Taixuan said. His voice was calm, but what behind his words was an epic war that destroyed a realm.


    Ye Futian couldn''t imagine how cruel it was. Who caused such a terrifying war?


    What was it for?


    "My friend is revered by people of the Tianhe Realm as the Sky River Great Elder. When he preached in the Tianhe Realm, he was the most famous and prestigious person here. He had 3,000 disciples who scattered all over the world," Lord Taixuan continued. Ye Futian was a little surprised when he heard this title.


    This was the Tianhe Realm, and for someone named "Tianhe Great Elder," one could imagine how honorable the title was.


    "However, after that war, he sent away all his disciples. I don''t know how he is now, whether or not he is still preaching and cultivating," Lord Taixuan murmured as if talking to himself. They keep moving forward, and Ye Futian kept all the Lord''s words in mind.


    After a while, they saw human traces and city buildings. They passed through the crowds and came to a land of fairy-like, misty mountains. It seemed that even Minds were isolated from these mountains, and the atmosphere was very mysterious.


    "I haven''t seen anyone for many years," at this time, a voice said from the mist. The person seemed to be aware of their arrival and immediately told them they were unwelcome.


    "Even me?" another voice said. In the next moment, Lord Taixuan directly showed up on a fae peak.


    Sitting on Xianren Peak, there was an old man with white hair. His hair was scattered on his shoulders, and he looked quite scruffy. Ye Futian could hardly imagine that such a big person of the realm would be so careless about his own image.


    The old man with white hair looked at Lord Taixuan, then smiled and said, "How come you are here to see me?"


    "I haven''t been here for many years," Lord Taixuan said with a smile. "By the way, today, I bring a young man to visit you."


    Sky River Great Elder took a look at Ye Futian and saw that his hair was also white. He could not help but smile as he said, "A young boy with white hair. He must also have a sad story."


    "Ye Futian is here to see Great Elder," Ye Futian said and bowed to him in respect.


    Sky River Great Elder nodded slightly. He asked Lord Taixuan, "Your disciple?"


    "No," Lord Taixuan shook his head and said. "I haven''t seen you in years. Do you want to play Go with me?"


    "Sure," Sky River Great Elder nodded and said. He waved his hand, and all of a sudden, a Go board appeared in front of him. He pointed at Lord Taixuan and said, "You sit on whichever side you want and get your own Go pieces."


    Lord Taixuan nodded and sat directly in front of the Go board. And these two old men really started to play Go.


    Ye Futian stood aside to watch quietly. He was also proficient in Go, but when he saw two seniors playing it, he only felt that there was a great horror. The computing power of people of their realm was too great for him to understand, and it was completely beyond the level of Go.


    "So many years have gone. Are you still thinking about things from that year?" Lord Taixuan dropped a piece and asked.


    "I have forgotten," the old man shook his head and said.


    "You have forgotten? Is there anyone other than you here?" Lord Taixuan asked. "How grand the scene was. You used to have 3,000 disciples, and your disciples were all over the world. Where are they now?"


    "There is a limitation to a person''s ability," the old man shook his head and said with a smile.


    "No," Lord Taixuan shook his head and dropped another piece, saying, "you are just blaming yourself and think it is all your fault."


    "Did you come from afar just to tell me these things?" the old man said and also dropped a Go piece, but he did it slowly and casually.


    "Some time ago, Ye Futian proved his Path in the Shangxiao Divine Palace and entered the Ancestral Shrine," Lord Taixuan said.


    The old man looked up at Ye Futian again, smiling. "From first glance, I could tell you have a good fortune. Although the road of cultivation can be tough, a prosperous future is waiting for you. You are bound to stir up a storm in the future."


    "You see it?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    "I haven''t seen anyone''s fortune for a long time," the old man shook his head and said. "You came here because of this young man. What is the matter? Just say it."


    Lord Taixuan did not respond but dropped a Go piece, and then turned to look at Ye Futian next to him, and said, "Show your cultivation method to show this senior."


    "My cultivation method?" Ye Futian asked, puzzled.


    "Yes." Lord Taixuan nodded and said, "The cultivation method that used your body as the melting furnace of the Great Path."


    Ye Futian didn''t know when Lord Taixuan had seen it. He remembered the Lord also asked about it before departure.


    Despite some doubts, he still did as he was told and released the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. Suddenly, the light of the Great Path shone brightly, and he turned into the furnace of the Great Path.


    Seeing this scene, the old man put down the Go piece in his hand and straightened up. He gazed at Ye Futian and asked, "Who taught this skill to you?"


    "My teacher," Ye Futian said. Could it be that the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was related to this elder?


    Did Lord Taixuan bring him here because of this?


    "Who is your teacher?" the old man stared at Ye Futian and asked.


    Ye Futian also looked at him. Lord Taixuan said, "You can tell him."


    Ye Futian nodded. He trusted that Lord Taixuan would not harm him, and there was no need to worry.


    "Qi Xuangang," Ye Futian said.

 1572 One Story

    Qi Xuangang!


    When Sky River Great Elder heard the name, his arms trembled slightly. He stared at Ye Futian and was silent for a moment.


    Ye Futian narrowed his eyes slightly. From Sky River Great Elder''s look, he could tell that Sky River Great Elder knew his teacher. There must be a reason for Lord Taixuan to bring him here.


    Moreover, Lord Taixuan brought him here because of his cultivation method, so did it mean that this cultivation method was related to Sky River Great Elder?


    Could it be...


    He thought of a possibility.


    "How is he doing now? Is he okay?" after a moment of silence, Sky River Great Elder pulled back from thoughts and asked Ye Futian.


    "I had some troubles in the Heavenly Mandate Realm before, and my teacher and I were separated. Now I don''t know where he is, but I think he should be fine," Ye Futian said. After all, Teacher was in Renhuang Plane.


    "What is his cultivation level?" Sky River Great Elder asked.


    "He entered the Renhuang Plane a few years ago," Ye Futian replied.


    "His progress is too slow. How could he enter Renhuang Plane just a few years ago?" Sky River Great Elder shook his head and said. "At that time, his cultivation was slow, but I didn''t expect it would get even slower."


    "Sir, you are my Teacher''s��?" Ye Futian asked, even though he had his own speculations. Hearing Sky River Great Elder''s words, he had had his answer.


    "The Deed of Thorough Comprehension is my cultivation method," Sky River Great Elder said to Ye Futian.


    "It''s just as I thought," Ye Futian thought, his heart shivering. He gazed at the old man and then bowed down to the Sky River Great Elder again. This time, he saluted carefully and said, "Ye Futian is here to salute you, my Grandmaster."


    "Your teacher is my son-in-law," Sky River Great Elder said again. Ye Futian was stunned and felt pain in his heart.


    "What happened to Teacher''s wife..." Ye Futian murmured. He could slightly tell something bad had happened to her, but he still wanted to be hopeful. Teacher raised Feixue alone, so it was very possible...


    "It has been many years since she passed away." The old man sighed and looked up at the sky. There was still sorrow in his eyes.


    "It''s been so many years. Time to let it go." Lord Taixuan sighed.


    Sky River Great Elder didn''t reply and looked at Ye Futian. Somehow nervous, he asked, "Does your teacher have a daughter ..."


    "Yes," Ye Futian said and nodded.


    "How is she?" Sky River Great Elder asked, staring at him with anxious eyes. Ye Futian speculated that he very likely knew about Feixue, which was why he was worried and even doubted whether or not Feixue was still alive.


    "She''s fine, but there is some problem with her eyes," Ye Futian said. Sky River Great Elder sighed with relief and nodded, saying, "Good."


    "However, now that he is determined to leave, why do you show up here?" Sky River Great Elders whispered. He did not understand. The Heavenly Mandate Realm was one of the Nine Supreme Realms. He had ambition there, so why should he return? Was it because of the white-haired young man?


    Lord Taixuan said that he broke into the ancestral land of the Divine Palace, and he brought Ye Futian here personally. He also noticed that this young man was indeed a person with good fortune. Perhaps Qi Xuangang was willing to venture out because of the young man.


    "From now on, tell the outside world that you are my disciple and that I taught you the Deed of Thorough Comprehension," Sky River Great Elder looked at Ye Futian and said. "Do you understand?"


    Ye Futian shook his head. He was confused and said, "Does my teacher have foes?"


    "Yes," Sky River Great Elder nodded and said.


    "Very powerful?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I can''t fight them at all. Even Taixuan now has no way to do it," Sky River Great Elder said. Although he obviously knew that Lord Taixuan had entered a higher Plane, he still said that even Lord Taixuan had no way to fight them. One could imagine how powerful the foes were.


    Ye Futian''s face turned pale. How could Teacher offend such a powerful enemy?


    Was it because of the thing in Feixue''s body?


    That thing had attracted the Life Spirit World Tree once when Ye Futian''s Plane was low. Now it seemed that this thing was likely to be a divine treasure of the Great Path, which naturally contained Path. Because of that thing''s existence, Feixue had been under threat of death and needed deep sleep. After he controlled the thing with his Life Spirit, Feixue''s progress in cultivation was incredibly fast.


    That treasure could perfectly fit Feixue''s body.


    However, with Teacher''s Saint Cultivation Plane at that time, it was nearly impossible for him to obtain such a treasure unless it was the Sky River Great Elder who got it.


    So, Teacher was his son-in-law.


    "Although I am not clear on what happened back then, I know a little bit. It is said that it triggered the battle that destroyed the realm. Your Grandmaster used to preach around the world, and the Tianhe Realm was extremely prosperous. His students scattered all over the Tianhe Realm, but numerous of them died in that battle. So did your Teacher''s wife," Lord Taixuan said.


    "Were my Teacher and Feixue the only ones alive?" Ye Futian murmured. He couldn''t imagine the battle that destroyed the realm, but he suddenly understood many things that happened previously and could better understand his teacher as a person. Did some of his ideas also come from the Sky River Great Elder?


    He remembered that when he said the Path was boundless, Teacher was quite touched. Although he did not have many disciples, his philosophy should also inherit from the Sky River Great Elder. However, unlike the Sky River Great Elder, he could only create the Great Li Academy in the Great Li Dynasty.


    "When I escorted your teacher away, he was also severely wounded and in a dangerous situation. I don''t know anything about him later," the Sky River Great Elder said.


    "Emperor Li is gracious to Teacher," Ye Futian thought of this, and suddenly, he understood something. No wonder Teacher asked for death and only asked for Feixue to leave at that time. He had no regrets.


    Perhaps in Teacher''s eyes, nothing was important anymore as long as Feixue lived.


    "Who offended Teacher? What is the thing in Feixue''s body, and why did Teacher''s foes want to destroy the realm?" Ye Futian asked, anxious. There were many doubts in his heart that he wanted to solve.


    "You know about the thing in Feixue''s body?" Sky River Great Elder asked, looking at Ye Futian, a little surprised. It seemed that Ye Futian knew a lot of things. How could Qi Xuangang value him so much?


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded. He would not say that he had helped Feixue control that thing.


    Sky River Great Elder gave Ye Futian a serious look.


    "It is a long story," Sky River Great Elder said with a sigh. "In fact, it has nothing to do with your teacher. He is also a victim. If I had not married Nongyue to him, he should have had a prosperous future."


    "May I know more?" Ye Futian bowed and said. He wanted to know what happened at that time.


    "Sit down and listen to me," the old man said with a sigh. He sat down in front of Lord Taixuan. Ye Futian nodded and sat down beside the two. He wanted to hear his teacher''s story carefully.


    It was about Teacher''s past, and he wanted to know more.


    He was clear how the Dali Imperial Advisor treated him. When he was in the Crimson Dragon Realm, Teacher could have killed him and taken the credit, but he didn''t do so.


    "I don''t know where to start," Sky River Great Elder said and seemed to be caught up in memories. Lord Taixuan said, "In fact, the story is not complicated. It was probably a beautiful mistake for you to be together."


    Ye Futian froze. Did this matter involve Great Elder''s wife?


    "You have been to the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Upper Heaven Realm of the Nine Great Supreme Realm. I guess you have not been to other realms yet. In one of the Nine Great Supreme Realms, there is a super force with a long history. Your grandmaster has a very deep relationship with them and was even tied in marriage with one talented lady of the clan who was your grandmaster''s wife. At that time, the couple was the envy of everyone," Lord Taixuan said with emotionally. He was very young when he met Sky River Great Elders.


    "At that time, she was still so beautiful, stunning," Sky River Great Elder recalled the beauty of his wife.


    "You were also charismatic and gallant back then," Lord Taixuan said, smiling.


    "It was many years ago," Sky River Great Elder shook his head and said.


    "All of this may be due to the character. If you had entered the force with her then, you would now have a transcendent status in the Supreme Realm, but you chose to preach in the Tianhe Realm," said Lord Taixuan.


    "What I pursue is different," Sky River Great Elder shook his head and said. "She is also willing to follow me and preach in the Tianhe Realm. The majority of my disciples, good or bad, were excellent. Qi Xuangang was one of my disciples; however, he is not an outstanding one among them."


    Sky River Great Elders looked at Ye Futian and said, "However, although your teacher''s talent is not very outstanding, his state of mind is transcendent, somewhat similar to mine. Although his cultivation was not fast, he was definitely the type that could achieve great success. Therefore, I gave special attention to him, so your teacher got familiar with my daughter.


    "It was not supposed to be a problem, but the blood of that clan also flowed in Nongyue''s body. They had other thoughts, but even so, she and I still had our right to speak up. But the problem was, that thing was involved."


    The Sky River Great Elder showed pain in his eyes. "Your teacher''s Masteress��my wife��had extremely outstanding talent. During the competition of that thing, it was actually she and I who obtained it. Her clan negotiated with us, and in the end, we decided to place that thing in my daughter''s body��that is to say, into the body of your teacher''s wife. As she grew up, she was the attention of the whole family, and her status in the family was also important."


    "However, she fell in love with my teacher," Ye Futian whispered. This might be the sin. The Grandmaster also said, "Your teacher''s state of mind was extraordinary, and he could have been successful later in life, but after all, his talent was not the best at that time. As the successor of the top family who was reared with high expectations, she was not allowed to fall in love with a man like him."


    Probably, this was the original sin.


    "If I let them break up at that time, maybe it would only be painful for a while, but the two most important women in my life are much more stubborn than me. No wonder they are mother and daughter." Sky River Great Elder sighed. "Later, the situation became worse, and countless people in Tianhe Realm stood up for it. In the end, it caused irreparable consequences. The Shen Clan was furious and exterminated the whole realm, and the Tianhe Realm was stained with blood. It was my sin."


    "What about her?" Ye Futian''s heart shivered. Teacher''s wife passed away, but what about Sky River Great Elder''s wife?


    "She was taken back and imprisoned in the clan. I don''t know if she is alive or dead," Sky River Great Elder said, looking up at the sky!

 1573 Coming Back

    Ye Futian was speechless.


    The Sky River Great Elder and the lady of the divine clan came together, which seemed to be a romantic but poignant story. He was a genius with qualifications, so the divine clan had no complaints.


    The Great Elder''s daughter, the Teacher''s wife, had a similar story in the Tianhe Realm. But this time, the couple was opposed by the authoritarian Divine Clan. The Teacher''s wife was the chosen successor of the divine treasure, the hope of the clan. All members of the clan had fixed their eyes on her, how could they allow her to be with a man whose talent was not very outstanding.


    The successor chosen by the Divine Clan must be a peerless genius, a lady of her time beyond compare, with the blood of the divine clan flowing in her body. She was the daughter of the Sky River Great Elder and the daughter of the Divine Clan, but she chose Teacher as her partner. Ye Futian did not know whether he should be happy for Teacher or not. Although Grandmaster said that Teacher''s talent was not top-notch, his status of heart was extraordinary. Ye Futian also felt that his teacher��the former Great Li Imperial Advisor��deserved all these things.


    Humans were fortune''s fools. For these two remarkable women of the Divine Clan, Teacher''s wife departed this life, and Grandmaster''s wife was brought back to the clan. Grandmaster didn''t know if she was alive.


    Moreover, they also experienced the disastrous war, which let rivers of blood flow in the Tianhe Realm. All that had happened was too cruel.


    Lord Taixuan said that Grandmaster had students all over the world, and he taught at least 3,000 disciples personally. Many of his disciples must also be on his side, who completely provoked anger in the Divine Clan. The furious divine clan came down from the Supreme Realm and annihilated the whole Tianhe Realm. How cold-blooded they were.


    "Without these two ladies, no one would have been able to survive, and I might have also died in the war. They were so outstanding. Both Xuangang and I couldn''t compare with them," Sky River Great Elder sighed. One fought for death, and the other one sought death.


    Hearing the old man lament, although Ye Futian didn''t experience the events of that time, he seemed to be able to see the peerless elegance of these two women. They sacrificed themselves to save their lovers.


    No wonder the Teacher''s hope was just that Feixue could live well. As for anything else, maybe he didn''t care at all. He also understood that there was no hope for revenge in this life. Some families were strong enough to make one despair. Living in the shadow of the destruction of a realm, how could he not despair?


    "Since there was a great disparity in strength, why did they choose to go to war?" Ye Futian sighed. Why did they go to that point? Shouldn''t they give up the idea when being compared with life?


    Being alive meant hope.


    "You may not know the character of your Teacher''s wife. Although she was young at that time, her personality was extremely strong. She gave Feixue the treasure without the consent of the family. She wanted her to inherit it, thinking that the family would compromise and accept your Teacher as well as Feixue because of it. However, she still underestimated the persistence of the clan and how obstinate the clan was. They wanted to take Feixue to the family and take out her bones to get the thing. Of course, your Teacher and his wife couldn''t tolerate it. A battle quickly broke out, and then the whole situation went out of control."


    The Sky River Great Elder sighed. He could still remember all things that happened in the battle. Although he was revered by the people of Tianhe Realm and was titled Sky River Great Elder, he always thought that he was not as prestigious as his wife; she was truly a peerless lady.


    "It is the story. So many years have passed, and I didn''t expect I would mention it to a young man like you, but it is not a secret. From now on, you should just keep in mind that your Deed of Thorough Comprehension was taught by me. When you are outside, just say you are my disciple. Don''t let people know the existence of your Teacher; otherwise, it will be very bad for you, "Sky River Great Elder said.


    After the things of that year, the Divine Clan still did not give up searching for Qi Xuangang and Feixue. The treasure was still in Feixue''s body. Although they were the ones who actually obtained them, the Divine Clan always regarded it as a treasure belonging to the Divine Clan. They later gave up after they failed to find it. After all, it was impossible to pay attention to countless realms forever, and they didn''t have so much manpower to handle the task.


    However, once there was a clue, people of the clan would definitely investigate it to the end, so if they saw Ye Futian''s Deed of Thorough Comprehension, they would definitely recognize it.


    "I see," Ye Futian replied carefully, nodding.


    "During this time, you can stay here to cultivate," the Sky River Great Elder said again.


    Ye Futian looked at this old man with white hair, the top figure known as the Sky River Great Elder, who wore a lot of wrinkles of time on his face. The things that happened in the past must have hit him very hard.


    "Grandmaster, don''t you blame my Teacher?" Ye Futian asked. Except for Teacher, everyone in the Sky River Great Elder''s family stood on the peak of the realm with extraordinary life experience, but because of the Teacher and his wife''s marriage, all the tragic things happened. Didn''t the Sky River Great Elder regret allowing them to be together?


    "If I had blamed him, would he become my son-in-law?" the Sky River Great Elder said carelessly. "At that time, I had many disciples. Many of them were top-notch people, and countless people had outstanding talents. Even the Divine Clan sent their cultivators to study under my guidance. As a teacher, I should have favored the most talented disciples. However, your Teacher''s temperament was closest to mine, and he was most like me. Even though his talent was lacking, I knew he would still become a master one day. Cultivators are never short of time. As long as he could hold on, he would be able to surpass me, and with his status of mind, he would certainly survive the time.


    "Unfortunately, such an opportunity was not given to us. I heard you said that he hadn''t entered the Renhuang Plane until a few years ago, and I can understand that his state of mind must have been greatly hit, but since he had become emperor, he must have gradually come out of the shadow of that time."


    Lord Taixuan said, "It''s been so many years. You should come out as soon as possible. How spirited the Sky River Great Elder was in those days, but now you are just listless. I am afraid that the people of Tianhe Realm will forget you soon."


    "I am afraid the Tianhe Realm will not forget me," the Sky River Great Elder said. He felt he was the sinner of the Tianhe Realm.


    "Come on," Lord Taixuan shook his head and said, "I will not persuade you anymore. I have known you for so many years. You used to be more outstanding than me and should have also entered my Plane, but you still can''t make the breakthrough. It''s time to reflect on yourself. I sent you your successor, and now you should have an idea of how to teach him. He has entered the ancestral land of the Divine Palace, a very important disciple to your son-in-law. In the future, he can be a great person," Lord Taixuan said. "I''ve finished my task, so I won''t bother you anymore."


    When he talked, Lord Taixuan stood up and got ready to leave.


    "Sir, will you go back?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes. You focus on cultivating. Changing to another environment and seeing different scenery can help you make a breakthrough," Lord Taixuan said. Ye Futian nodded and didn''t say anything. A person like Lord Taixuan could naturally come and go as he pleased.


    The friendship between noblemen was as pale as water. He had shown his sincerity by coming to see the Sky River Great Elder and send Ye Futian here.


    "I''ll take care of that girl for you, don''t worry. Now many people in the Upper Heavens Realm are aiming at you. No one will know that you are here," Lord Taixuan said, smiling. He then looked at the Sky River Great Elder and said, "I should go now."


    "Okay," the Sky River Great Elder said calmly, nodding. Lord Taixuan stepped out and disappeared directly.


    After Lord Taixuan left, Sky River Great Elder turned to Ye Futian and said, "You only mentioned that your teacher was separated with you in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Where is Feixue? Isn''t she with you?"


    "No," Ye Futian said, shaking his head.


    "Where is she?" The old man asked.


    Ye Futian looked at him and wanted to say something, but he was silent again. The old man nodded when he saw his reaction and said, "You don''t have to tell me anymore."


    "Teacher has several disciples besides me. They are taking care of Feixue, and Feixue''s cultivation is progressing very fast now. She is totally safe," Ye Futian said.


    "Good," the old man said and nodded, "you are very cautious."


    "Grandmaster, I ..." Ye Futian stuttered, looking embarrassed.


    "But you are right, don''t absolutely trust anybody except yourself and your teacher," Sky River Great Elder got up and said. "Follow me."


    He walked forward, and Ye Futian followed him.


    On the ancient peak, the Sky River Great Elder arranged a lot of barriers. They came to a huge cave for cultivation. The old man walked in first, and Ye Futian followed him through a long corridor in the cave. They entered the inside of the mountain.


    The sight became bright suddenly. The cave was huge, and the divine light was shining. Inside the cave, ancient characters were suspended in the air, rotating and spinning.


    "Qian, Kun, Li, Kan..." Ye Futian looked at these characters, each of which was corresponding to one ancient character in the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    These characters seemed to take away the power of the world inside the cave, forming a vacuum and converging into a beam. In the middle of the lower space surrounded by ancient characters, a phantom figure condensed and emerged. It was not a real person, but a phantom body formed by the Path of sky and earth.


    "Although your teacher has taught you the cultivation method of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, I guess it is not complete, and the mood is lacking. Here is engraved by me and contains the true meaning of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. You can cultivate here for a while to fully comprehend it," Sky River Great Elder told Ye Futian.


    "Thank you, Grandmaster," Ye Futian replied, nodding.


    "The Deed of Thorough Comprehension was not created by me. I also obtained it by coincidence. Its knowledge is extremely mysterious and deep. Even though your talent is outstanding, you should still spend time cultivating it carefully. At least it could assist you in cultivating until you reach my Plane, and even higher," Sky River Great Elder said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded.


    "I will get out. You can practice here," said Sky River Great Elder. He turned and left, leaving Ye Futian alone in the cave, and went outside.


    Sky River Great Elder came to the edge of the cliff and looked up at the sky. At this moment, his slightly cloudy eyes became extremely sharp, as if his fierce stare could pierce through the sky.


    However, at the next moment, he lowered his head and regained his original appearance. He still wore that dejected look and walked towards one direction in the mountain.


    ��


    At this time, outside the Tianhe City, a figure was standing in the crowd. He wore a straw hat and was looking up to the front, a little dazed.


    After so many years, he finally came back.


    He had thought he would never return, but today, there was nothing to worry about anymore. After separating from his disciple, no one would know the relationship between them. It was good since, in this way, he could cut off his link with the past!

 1574 The Inheritor of the Mantle

    Ye Futian had been cultivating in the cave since he came to the Tianhe Realm. The scope of knowledge of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was great. With it, Ye Futian could refine the power of Sky and Earth for his own use, let his own body serve as the furnace of the Great Law and melt all beings of the world, making his own life force extremely powerful.


    At this time, in the cave house, Ye Futian was sitting on the illusory figure. He and the phantom became one, and he could clearly feel the glory of the ancient characters descend on his body, Ye Futian felt that he was not sitting in a cave house but wandering in a secret world.


    Qian, Kun, Li, Kan... Each of these ancient characters seemed to have some kind of mysterious power. He sat there, perceiving the sky and the earth. He could feel the boundless space and could even see his true self.


    Time flew fast. Ye Futian sat quietly in the cave house to meditate and cultivate. Sometimes he went out to take a breath and perceive the spirit of sky and earth. After each cultivation, he would grow a feeling and felt that his perception of sky and earth became clearer.


    Above the lone mountain, everything seemed exceptionally quiet all the time. One day, Ye Futian walked to the edge of the mountain, and there was a voice coming from the bottom of the mountain.


    His eyes beamed, and the light directly pierced through the void sky. He looked in the distance and saw several figures standing there at the foot of the mountain. These people all looked quite young with extraordinary temperament. They seemed to be aware and also looked toward the mountain. Dazzling light flashed in their pupils.


    From a distance, Ye Futian''s eyes and their eyes met in the air, and they both saw each other.


    They showed surprise and exchanged looks with each other. One of them bowed slightly toward the ancient mountain and said, "We sincerely request to see Great Elder and are willing to cultivate under the Great Elder''s guidance. Since Great Elder has made an exception to take in disciples, could you please also give me an opportunity?"


    "Great Elder is where the belief of the Tianhe Realm lies. Since you have made an exception, please also kindly give us an opportunity," the people nearby also bowed and requested. All of them came to request following the Great Elder. The Sky River Great Elder was famed in the Tianhe Realm many years ago. At that time, this place used to be extremely prosperous, and he had countless disciples.


    Moreover, the cultivation method used by the Sky River Great Elder could help cultivators perceive the Path of sky and earth and were of great use in casting the soul of the Way and challenging the Renhuang Plane. Therefore, there had been people coming to request guidance during these years, especially those who cultivated in the late stage of the Saint Plane and prepared to challenge the Renhuang Plane.


    For many years, the Sky River Great Elder had never accepted any disciples. However, today, there was someone on the mountain, and he was very young, so they naturally thought that the Sky River Great Elder had made an exception and taken a new disciple.


    No one responded. Top figures are so charming, Ye Futian thought to himself. Even after so many years, there were still people who came to seek knowledge from him.


    "I said, I won''t accept you as disciples, don''t come again," at this moment, a voice said from behind Ye Futian. Ye Futian turned around and saw Sky River Great Elder there.


    "Sir, you have already made an exception. Why don''t you preach to the world as you did in the past?" asked someone.


    "It''s impossible," the Sky River Great Elder responded carelessly.


    "Since you have accepted a disciple, you are willing to give young people a chance. Tomorrow, we will also come here to plead for you to change your mind," someone said, unwilling to give up.


    "I say it again: don''t come." The Sky River Great Elder''s voice was cold, and it seemed a bit impersonal.


    "Why?" someone asked.


    "I have found someone who will inherit my mantle. One person is enough. I will teach him all the knowledge I''ve obtained in my lifetime and will no longer be involved in worldly affairs from now on," the Sky River Great Elder said slowly. It was as if he had seen through the vicissitudes of the world. It seems that he had taken the young man on the mountain as a disciple, in order to find a successor and inherit everything he had.


    Obviously, they were not selected, and the young man on the mountain was selected by the Sky River Great Elder.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly. The Sky River Great Elder must say like this in order to protect him. In this way, no one would have any doubts. He was peerless, but of course, the Sky River Great Elder''s inheritor had to be peerless.


    The cultivators wanted to say something, but the Sky River Great Elder spoke up, "I have decided, this is the last time to remind you: feel free to come if you want, but it is just a waste of time."


    The people at the foot of the mountain were speechless. They were silent for a moment and bowed, saying, "it''s time to say goodbye to you, Sir."


    Having said that, they all left.


    Ye Futian sighed in his heart. Seeing the bleak scene here, he could not imagine how grand it was in the past.


    He looked toward the Sky River Great Elder. The Great Elder said, "You have heard it, if you have the opportunity, go to Tianhe City for a walk. When you are outside, you will be my only successor. I have taught the Deed of Thorough Comprehension to you.


    "Understood," Ye Futian replied. He understood the Sky River Great Elder''s intention. On the one hand, the Great Elder wanted to clarify Ye Futian''s position. On the other hand, he did not want to be disturbed by others anymore and wanted to focus on cultivation.


    It''s just, with the status of his heart being of such a high level, would the Great Elder forever be so despondent?


    After entering the Renhuang Plane, shouldn''t his state of heart be the strongest?


    The Sky River Great Elder stepped away from here, like an ordinary old man. He had seen through the world, and it seemed that he only wanted to find someone to inherit his mantle so that he could completely hide in the mountain.


    ��


    Tianhe City was a megalopolis. In the past, there were countless gallant figures in Tianhe City, and all of them were proud of studying under the Sky River Great Elder''s guidance. However, the catastrophic war turned Tianhe City into ruins, and it was only after so many years that it had recovered some vitality.


    Recently, shocking news came from Tianhe City. After so many years, the Sky River Great Elder finally accepted another disciple who was also his last disciple. The Sky River Great Elder personally announced that this disciple would inherit his mantle.


    The Tianhe Realm was not a Supreme Realm, and the title of Sky River Great Elder was conferred by people of the realm. The Sky River Great Elder was absolutely the strongest person beyond compare. For many years, countless people had entered his door to seek the Path, but no one succeeded, until now, the Sky River Great Elder found an inheritor of his mantle. One could imagine how shocking this news was in Tianhe City.


    Almost everyone was talking about this matter, and at the same time, they were also talking about the inheritors of the Sky River Great Elder. Who was he? How could the Sky River Great Elder allow him to inherit his mantle?


    When countless people talked about it, in Tianhe City, a white-haired young man traveled in Tianhe City. This handsome white-haired young man, of course, was Ye Futian, who had left the mountain.


    The Great Elder asked him to go down the mountain, and he understood what he meant, so after a period of cultivation, he came to this giant city.


    On his way, many people noticed Ye Futian. His handsome face, white clothes, and white hair, plus his temperament, were quite noticeable in Tianhe City. Many people wondered if this person belonged to an important force.


    Ye Futian came in front of a restaurant. He looked up and stepped into the restaurant. He came to the top of the open-air building, asked for a pot of alcohol, several plates of appetizers, and sat quietly in a corner drinking by himself.


    Although he didn''t speak, many people still noticed him. Ye Futian not only had an outstanding temperament, but he also gave people a mysterious feeling.


    "Are you alone, Sir?" At this time, not far from Ye Futian''s side, a girl in a long green dress sitting in front of a wine table looked at Ye Futian. Her smile was gentle and charming. Although her face was not stunning, she was definitely a beauty, and her charisma could endear her to many people.


    Ye Futian glanced at her, nodded gently, and didn''t say anything.


    "I am Mu Qingyu of the Mu Residence. May I ask you to have a drink?" the girl said with a smile. Many people in the restaurant were a little surprised. She was Qingyu of the Mu Residence, The Mu Residence was a family of Renhuang level, and Mu Qingyu was the lady of the Mu Residence with excellent talent. Now, she had entered the Saint Plane and had a lot of courters.


    Mu Qingyu noticed Ye Futian when he was outside the restaurant. She could tell this person''s cultivation must be very high, and his temperament seemed to be in harmony with the world. He was so young and with an outstanding disposition. However, she did not know his name.


    "Thank you, but there is no need," Ye Futian said softly and looked out of the window. It seemed that he had no interest in this lady of Mu Residence at all.


    This made many people in the restaurant show surprise, and they were even more curious about Ye Futian.


    Mu Qingyu was a bit shocked, and then she smiled again. "It''s my fault to disturb you, sorry, Sir."


    She didn''t have much to say, and she didn''t feel uncomfortable because of this. Since the man had no intention of knowing her, she would not make herself unwelcome in front of him, but she still had curiosity.


    Ye Futian was still drinking quietly. He was alone and seemed a bit lonely. Mu Qingyu glanced at him from time to time. Many people in the restaurant were talking about the news that the Sky River Great Elder had accepted a new disciple.


    "The Sky River Great Elder once had 3,000 disciples, and among them, there were so many talents. Now that he had found the inheritor of his mantle. How strong is he? I really want to see how he fights."


    "He doesn''t have to be strong. Things are different from the past. At that time, even the Supreme Realm sent people to study under his guidance. Although he belonged to Tianhe Realm, how prestigious was the Sky River Great Elder''s identity? He even married the lady of the Divine Clan. But now, the peerless young cultivators will not choose to be his disciples, and only people in Tianhe Realm..." someone whispered but didn''t continue.


    Many people nodded secretly. They all knew the reason. Although the strength of the Sky River Great Elder was still there, after all, it was not the same as before. He had grudges with the Divine Clan, and some top characters were afraid to offend the Divine Clan of the Upper Realms.


    People chatted casually, and Ye Futian didn''t cut in. It was as if it had nothing to do with him.


    After a long while, a group of people flashed in the distance, and their life forces were very unusual. Many people in the restaurant looked at that side, and not long after, outside the restaurant, a young man stood in the void sky and looked in the direction of the restaurant. His eyes were sharp.


    "It''s him," Mu Qingyu looked at this person and murmured, apparently able to recognize this most prestigious figure in the young generation of the Tianhe Realm who had always wanted to become the Sky River Great Elder''s disciple.


    Soon, more figures flickered over and came to the restaurant. Some of them stood on the top of other buildings, and some stood in the void sky; some people walked directly into the restaurant and sat down. The atmosphere instantly changed.


    Ye Futian naturally knew that they came for him. When he went down the mountain, he knew that some people were staring at him, presumably those who wanted to find out his identity.


    At this moment, people''s gazes fell on him, but he did not take it seriously and kept drinking.


    Did they come for him? Mu Qingyu looked at Ye Futian and thought to herself. There was a slight wave in her heart. More and more people were approaching, and many were extraordinary cultivators!

 1575 The Sweep

    Ye Futian lowered his head as he drank. It was as if everything happening around him had nothing to do with him.


    Next to the tavern, a man walked in the void and came to him, and it was the one who sought apprenticeship under the mountain that day. The man''s name was Ren Kuangsheng. He was a descendent of the Noble Family of Ren from Tianhe City. Besides his famous name, he was extremely talented, and he was now at the top of the Nirvana Plane, wanting to obtain the realm of Renhuang.


    Ren Kuangsheng, as his name suggested, was proud and impertinent. Still, he could afford to be flippant. The only thing he was never flippant about was that, for several years, he had often traveled to the cultivating place of the Sky River Great Elder and asked to be seen beneath the mountain, hoping to be accepted by the Elder as a disciple. He was always sincere, and he never showed any disrespect.


    Many people thought that Sky River Great Elder would be moved by Ren Kuangsheng''s sincerity and accept him as a disciple.


    But before that day had come, they heard that Sky River Great Elder had found an heir to pass on all his crafts to and that he was no longer looking for any disciples.


    Then, what was Ren Kuangsheng doing here now?


    Looking at the others, they were genius talents of the younger generation in Tianhe City. Many were from well-known families without exception. No one from the older generations was there. The reason for their attraction was very obvious.


    The heir of the Great Elder, many thought instinctively. After all, the entire Tianhe City had been discussing this matter recently.


    Many descendants of the famous families have appeared, and it seems that many of them want to be disciples under the Sky River Great Elder. Who did they come for? many wondered. They turned their eyes slowly turned and finally landed on a place where all the gazes converged.


    Over yonder, the man with white hair sat there, drinking quietly. It was as if he was outside of this world.


    This man is the heir to the Great Elder? many people secretly exclaimed. The man''s temperament was indeed extraordinary. With his white clothes and white hair, he seemed to be one with the heavens and the earth. However, no one had ever seen him before. In Tianhe City, there had never been such an outstanding figure of the Saint Plane.


    Where did the Great Elder find his successor?


    "Ren Kuangsheng of the Noble Family of Ren." Ren Kuangsheng stood in the void. His eyes landed on Ye Futian. He continued, "I saw you that day under the mountain. I take it that you must be the successor of the Great Elder."


    "Indeed."


    Everyone''s hearts trembled slightly. Some in the tavern were just talking about him not so long ago. They didn''t expect that person to be sitting right there.


    Ye Futian put down the wine cup. He slowly raised his head to look at Ren Kuangsheng, saying, "Is there something I can help you with?"


    "It''s nothing really. It was just that I have wanted to cultivate under the Great Elder for a long time. After I saw you that day, and when I heard that the Great Elder had already found his successor, I wanted to meet you. Now that you are here, I''ve come to take a look," Ren Kuangsheng said.


    "There is no difference except that my physique is better," Ye Futian whispered. He continued to drink by himself.


    Many people expressed a look of surprise. This guy was not the least bit humble.


    Next to him, Mu Qingyu smiled a little. She didn''t expect that the disciple of the Great Elder would have a sense of humor, or that his physique was indeed very appealing.


    "No, your temperament is also extraordinary. For many years, the Great Elder has not accepted any disciples. Since he chose you as his successor, we, naturally, would never doubt the decision of the Great Elder."


    Not because of Ye Futian, but because of Sky River Great Elder.


    Would the first person in Tianhe Realm choose someone mediocre to inherit his crafts?


    No matter what other people had thought, at least he would not believe them. He had gone to visit many times before, but he was refused by the Great Elder. Didn''t the Great Elder know his talent?


    Many people used to think that the Great Elder was not as picky about the disciples as before and that he may not be able to select the ones that were too outstanding. However, upon hearing the words of Ren Kuangsheng, they were a little skeptical. After so many years, the decision to accept a disciple as a successor perhaps was not made lightly.


    This white-haired young man may be more than what meets the eye.


    "It''s just that..." At this time, Ren Kuangsheng continued, "The Great Elder is the first person of cultivation in Tianhe Realm. Even though his decision is not to be questioned, I still want to see the heir he picked. I want to know, after so for many years of not accepting any disciple, who is worthy of the Great Elder."


    Many people nodded when they heard this. Ren Kuangsheng was still Ren Kuangsheng, after all.


    "So?" Ye Futian asked.


    "So, a lot of people came," Ren Kuangsheng said. Indeed, many had come. There were cultivators all around the tavern. They were here for Ye Futian, whose name had spread throughout Tianhe City as the heir of the Great Elder.


    Ye Futian''s right hand rested on the table, still holding the wine cup. He looked up at everyone and said, "So, are you going to come up one by one, or all together?"


    "Li Ku, ask the successor of the Great Elder for advice." At this time, in another direction, a young man with a thin build spoke, and an extremely dangerous will of the Way flowed from him.


    "As do I." In another direction, someone also stepped forward. Suddenly, the vast world was shrouded in sword will, and the chiming sound of sword whistled between heaven and earth. In that direction, a young man, who carried two swords on his back, moved forward. There were a few strands of white hair at his temples, making him appear extremely captivating. The sword will increased a few degrees with every step he took.


    Many people in the tavern started to get up and move away from this place of strife. The entire tavern was shrouded by the will of the Way, and this small tavern couldn''t afford to get in the middle of those who had come here. Every one of them was an extraordinary figure in Tianhe Realm, so if they got involved somehow, no one would care about their welfare.


    Above the sky, some people of the Saint Plane stepped down. Many looked up, and some recognized the person and let out a surprised shout. It was the madman of the Wild Clan. Normally, it was unusual to see all these extraordinary people gathered in one place, and today, they came for just one man.


    "I also want to experience the strength of the successor of the Great Elder," said a rough voice from the void. The world was rocked by it. The tavern made a rumbling sound as if experiencing an earthquake. It seemed that it might collapse at any moment.


    "Miss." Several people around Mu Qingyu released the might of Saint Plane to protect her, cautioning her.


    Mu Qingyu nodded, then got up and backed away. Her beautiful eyes glanced at Ye Futian, who was in the center of the storm. The wine table in front of him was trembling, but the hand that was holding the wine cup was as steady as ever. He sat there quietly as if nothing had happened. His calmness surprised many onlookers.


    Although he was the successor chosen by the Great Elder, everyone who had arrived was an extraordinary character. Each one of them was a genius character who could be ranked in Tianhe City, as they all had a great chance to enter Renhuang Plane. Under such circumstances, Ye Futian''s face-off with all of them would not be an easy task.


    Clink! A clear sound came out, and the wine glass in Ye Futian''s hand shattered under an invisible sword will, directly turning into dust.


    Ye Futian''s hand was suspended there, and then he slowly lowered it. Another sound came out. This time, the table in front of him was shattered and collapsed at his feet.


    Boom.


    Finally, the chair that Ye Futian sat on was also shattered into nothingness, unable to withstand the pressure. Ye Futian stood up, in the center of the storm. His white robe fluttered as all the will of the Way fell down, covering his body.


    Looking at people in all directions, countless more in the distance stared at the lone figure on top of the tavern, where only Ye Futian was.


    At this time, the ancient characters around Ye Futian shone brilliantly, and different characters surrounded the sky. Suddenly, the power of the Great Path between heaven and earth rushed madly into his body. His body turned into the divine furnace of the Great Path, refining the Way of heaven and earth.


    "What a powerful breath." All felt the breath of the Great Path within Ye Futian''s body. Everyone around him wore a grave countenance; they dared not to be careless.


    "If you don''t make a move again, you will not have a second chance," said a voice from the tavern, which surprised everyone. Even when facing such powerful cultivators, Ye Futian still had such arrogant words for them.


    Bang.


    Diagonally, in the sky above, a figure stepped forward and rocked the void. A vast pressure of might pressed against Ye Futian''s body as a giant vortex storm appeared above. There were mountain peaks within the storm, and in an instant, this extremely violent might of the Way frightened those who were in the distance. Rumbling sounds came out as the tavern began to collapse, and the ground was shaking.


    Buzz.


    The characters around Ye Futian''s body were getting brighter and brighter, and they resonated with the Great Path. The character that signified Heaven was now illuminated with radiant divine light.


    Boom.


    A dull sound was heard as the mountains of storm attacked downward, crushing a corner of the sky. Ye Futian raised his hand and pointed ahead, and the character of Heaven flew out instantly, emitting a radiant divine light. It directly collided with that storm.


    Bang, bang, bang... The crowd saw that storm, and the mountains continuously exploded and were pulverized. The character that signified Heaven directly penetrated both while continuing its way forward, attacking the man in the void who had made a move.


    Boom!


    Boundless great force blasted in front of the other, causing that cultivator to fly out. The character of Heaven bloomed in gloriously divine light as other characters also flew high above the sky, revolving around the world, expanding their circumference with each rotation. The sky filled with a frightening storm of the Great Path, and Ye Futian was at its center.


    A holy illusion appeared upon Ye Futian''s body, just like the divine body of the Great Path, gathering from the world.


    When the nearby cultivators saw this, they finally made their move. There was swordsmanship that cleaved through the sky, endless palm strikes, and also a great urn that slammed down from the sky.


    However, endless characters suddenly appeared around Ye Futian.


    This endless character transformed into a light screen. When all attacks descended, they were all being blocked outside.


    "Deed of Thorough Comprehension."


    Those who were watching the battle from afar trembled in their hearts. On the successor of the Great Elder, the methods cultivated by the Great Elder and the Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst forth in radiant glory.


    Ye Futian''s body slowly levitated from above the tavern. With his body moving upward, the storm of the Great Path would cover an even stronger area until the glory of the characters was even more radiant.


    At this time, Ye Futian raised his arm, and when he had gathered the power of the infinite Great Path, he threw a punch directly in front of him.


    When this punch blasted out, those characters seemed to be transformed into the will of the fists, sweeping in all directions.


    In a short while, on the other side of the tavern, above the void, and on the streets in the distance, loud booming noises were heard. Those who had come to slaughter him seemed to have been penetrated by something, and their bodies were knocked away as they spat out blood!

 1576 Junior Brother

    Ren Kuangsheng''s body was constantly being blasted backward, and the vast world was covered by the might of the Way. The suffocating pressure enveloped him as the giant characters pushed back everything. He groaned and started bleeding from the corners of his mouth. His breath vacillated violently.


    His eyes were focused on the white-haired figure standing in the void, and he was extremely shocked. It was not just him; at this time, in the vast area around the tavern, countless people were focused on Ye Futian. The divine light released by the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was still dazzling beyond compare.


    One man, one hit. Everything was swept away. Of all the many extraordinary characters of Tianhe City, none was his equal.


    Mu Qingyu stared at that white-haired figure, and her heart was racing. He was so strong. If they were in the same Nirvana Plane, why was he so much stronger?


    Indeed, there was always someone better out there.


    Sky River Great Elder had not accepted any disciples for many years, but now he had finally chosen a successor, whose first battle had shocked the world.


    His realm was definitely already at the top of Nirvana.


    His combat power was unlikely to find its equal from anyone below Renhuang Plane in all of Tianhe Realm.


    "Incredible strength. It seemed that the Great Elder''s successor was not selected at random." The people in the distance shuddered. No wonder that the Great Elder wanted to live in seclusion. Perhaps it was because his heir was so outstanding that he wanted to pass on all his crafts to him so he could completely dissociate himself from the outside world.


    In fact, in recent years, Sky River Great Elder had not involved himself much with the outside world, either. He had been concentrated on his cultivation in the mountains and did not seem to have completely gotten over the events that happened years ago.


    "The body of the Great Path," said a voice from the void. A figure stepped down from the sky. But this time, it was an old man holding a sword in his hand.


    "Sky Sword Elder." Everyone who saw the old man couldn''t help but tremble inside. The Sky Sword Elder did not have any extraordinary talents like Ren Kuangsheng and the others did. He had cultivated for many years and yet was still unable to step into the realm of Renhuang. Many felt that he was limited by his talent and might not overcome that bottleneck.


    But the Sky Sword Elder was extremely persistent, and his state of mind was extraordinary. He was not willing to give up so easily, so he devoted himself to cultivation, exhausting all his efforts on the art of swords, continuously making progress, ever approaching the limit of Saint Path. He had stayed in Nirvana for many years, and his sword was always improving. In the endless years, he crafted the Sky Sword. Rumor had it that the Sky Sword could put an end to any cultivators under Renhuang.


    Even though those genius talents in Tianhe Realm might possess superior gifts compared to the Sky Sword Elder, as far as cultivation and combat power went, they definitely were not his equal.


    Long ago, there was some talented person who challenged Sky Sword Elder but was wiped out by a single strike. Because it was an open duel of life and death, the opponent''s family did not pursue the matter further.


    "Heir to the Sky River Great Elder, please enlighten me." Sky Sword Elder''s eyes were poignant. From a glance, it looked like an extremely fierce sword light came down from the sky, stabbing Ye Futian''s spiritual soul. A terrible storm of sword will manifested between heaven and earth, splitting the void.


    Countless sword light shone, and the Sky Sword Elder held the sword in his hand. It was as if his entire person had turned into a sword. Inside his body, the blood roiled in his veins as the will of Way was flowing within. It was as if the body was no longer just simply flesh and blood but was now the body of the Sky Sword.


    Sky Sword Elder did not cultivate a very powerful technique of attack because he lacked the required powerful background. However, he relied on countless trials of life and death and countless perilous situations to temper his sword into the Sky Sword, which was extremely fast and extremely sharp.


    There was a saying in Tianhe City, "When the Sky Sword is unleashed, demons and gods will weep alike. Anyone beneath Renhuang will be executed."


    Ye Futian looked up at the old man in the void. His white hair danced in the wind, and asked lightly, "There is a murderous intent on you. Have I offended you?"


    "It has nothing to do with anything. It''s just that I cultivate in swords," the old man responded. "I have cultivated in the swords for many years, and the Sky Sword had already reached its realm. There are few rivals under Renhuang, so there was no one with whom to try my sword on. You are the successor of the Sky River Great Elder and possess extraordinary fighting power, so I came because of it. When I unsheathed my sword, it would be hard to predicate life and death, so I advise you not to be merciful."


    Ye Futian understood that the old man had been trapped in this realm for too many years and wanted to seek the Way. Now that they had met today, he wanted to try his sword in seeking the Way. This could be the strongest sword strike from the old man.


    "The elder chose the wrong person," Ye Futian replied. In reality, he came here for the same purpose as the old man, which was to seek the Way. However, he was no longer the Ye Futian who was undergoing the trail at the Divine Palace. Back when Li Daozi had chosen him to try the sword, the timing had been good.


    Now, there was no such opportunity for the Sky Sword Elder.


    "Right or wrong, my pursuit is the ultimate of the sword. One day, I will find the answer that I''m looking for," the old man said curtly. As his voice faded, an extremely sharp light pierced toward him like an invisible sword that chopped down from the sky.


    In the next moment, he saw a beam of light; it was sword light.


    The old man had already disappeared. It was as if he had merged into the sword light, or rather, he had turned the Way into a sword.


    "Pursue the ultimate of the Saint Plane," Ye Futian said in his heart. He wanted to break the limit as a method to comprehend the Way. His reasoning was not false, but it was not always useful.


    In the vast world, countless people looked at the sword, and at the moment when the sword light bloomed, cracks began to appear on the ground. Even those in the distance could feel that their spirit souls were being torn apart.


    His white hair flew about in the wind, but Ye Futian was standing there without moving. The light of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension bloomed like the divine furnace of the Great Path that would refine the Way of heaven and earth into one. The spiritual will caught the sword light that came in for the kill, and as his palm raised, he pointed toward the sky.


    The dazzling sword light flooded the void. The sword was approaching, and the infinite sword light penetrated Ye Futian''s body like haloes. But Ye Futian stood there, motionless. His finger fell on the sword, and the force of that one finger was enough to stop the sword in its track.


    Clink!


    A clear sound came out, and countless Path light poured into the sword. In the next moment, the sword flew back and forth twice, and the old man''s figure appeared there. With a loud sound, he vomited a big mouthful of blood. His face was pale, and his breath deteriorated quickly. He was greatly weakened.


    "This��"


    Everyone in the crowd was extremely shocked. How could he be so strong?


    The Sky Sword Elder was at the top limit of the Saint Plane, and he couldn''t even stop the force exerted by one finger?


    Since when was his sword so feeble?


    They couldn''t understand, and that included Ren Kuangsheng. But their hearts were filled with fear and shock.


    Such strength was so great that it made the others feel completely hopeless.


    "Even between limits, there are degrees of separation." Seeing the old man looking down at him, Ye Futian spoke. When the old man heard those words, he seemed to be deep in thought. He let out a long sigh, feeling a little bit sad.


    Indeed, even though he had dedicated his life to continuously surpassing his own limits, he had obtained some prestige in Tianhe City and won over many Nirvana-level geniuses. However, if those people had reached the same level as him, then perhaps he wouldn''t be able to compete with them.


    Just as Ye Futian had said, there were degrees of separation even between limits. It was as truthful as it was cold and indifferent.


    And this gap could not be bridged after the fact.


    "There is no need for Elder to take this to heart. Presently, those who can best me under Renhuang Realm are not of Tianhe City," Ye Futian continued. He was being subtle when he said that Tianhe City did not have anyone who could beat him. Judging from his current state, it was indeed not an easy task to find someone in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path who could best him in the same realm.


    But even so, the people around him were still shocked by his cocky claims.


    There was no one in Tianhe City?


    How impertinent to include all of the cultivators of Tianhe Realm in this category? However, having witnessed this battle, they, too, could not think of anyone under Renhuang Realm who could beat Ye Futian.


    Even at this moment, it was unknown just how much Ye Futian''s strength had expanded.


    This successor of Lord Tianhe was terribly powerful.


    The Sky Sword Elder gave Ye Futian a long look. He held his hands together to bow. He said, "Thank you for your enlightenment."


    As he finished speaking, he walked away. Despite the words of consolation from Ye Futian, he still felt disappointed. All the cultivation that he possessed was not enough to counter the power of one finger. What kind of gap was that?


    Even if the opponent was the successor of the Great Elder, this should not be how it ended.


    "Who else wants to try?" Ye Futian surveyed the crowd, but no one spoke. Even Ye Futian had claimed to be under the Renhuang Plane, and no one could fight with him. Judging from this combat power, it was indeed difficult to find an opponent.


    His body drifted down and landed on top of the tavern. However, at this time, he saw rays of divine light descending from the sky, and a group of people appeared out of thin air as if they had shuttled over from a distance.


    This group of people possessed extraordinary temperament. The person in front was clad in a luxurious robe. He looked to be about forty in age. Of course, his actual age must be far greater than that. He stood there, seeming to be one with the Great Path. He was definitely an existence of Renhuang Realm.


    "Your Royal Highness." Ren Kuangsheng saw the comer and bowed slightly.


    Afterward, many of the people below turned to this Renhuang and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."


    Ye Futian looked up at the newcomer. His Royal Highness?


    Did Tianhe Realm, like the Crimson Dragon Realm, have its own ruling royal principality?


    Before, he had heard Lord Taixuan saying that the Sky River Elder ought to be the strongest person in Tianhe Realm.


    There was indeed a royal family in Tianhe Realm. The Realm Palace of Tianhe Realm was now in Tianhe City. Tianhe City was the main city of Tianhe Realm.


    The person who had just arrived was from the Realm Palace of Tianhe Realm. He was the cultivator of the royal family, and he was in the realm of Renhuang.


    The eyes of that Renhuang landed on Ye Futian. With a smile on his face, he looked extremely gentle and comforting without any harshness of authority.


    "Junior brother." That Renhuang looked at Ye Futian and called out to him with a smile, which stunned Ye Futian.


    Junior brother?


    A look of doubt flashed through his eyes. Was the Renhuang cultivator of Tianhe Realm also a disciple of the Sky River Elder?


    "No need to question. Our Master had been in retreat for many years and never expected to accept another disciple after so many years," that Renhuang smiled and explained. He stepped down and came to Ye Futian without showing any superiority.


    Ye Futian understood when he heard his words that this man was a disciple of the same clan as his master. He might even be his Uncle-Master.


    However, the Great Elder had not mentioned it to him but had only asked him to go down the mountain and walk around.


    He was rather speechless. Once upon a time, in the battle that destroyed the realms, how many of the 3,000 disciples did the Great Elder lose? If there were still some survivors, wouldn''t they all be his "brothers," technically speaking?


    Moreover, this man was a member of the royal family of Tianhe Realm. In the battle that destroyed the realms, did the royal family survive that catastrophe unharmed?


    At this moment, there were many thoughts flashing through in Ye Futian''s mind!

 1577 Little Uncle-Master

    Ye Futian remained silent and continued to size up the other. That Renhuang walked in front of Ye Futian and smiled. "Duan Qing of the Duan clan at the Realm Palace in Tianhe Realm. My brother, you may address me as Senior Brother Duan."


    Duan clan at the Realm Palace in Tianhe Realm.


    It seemed that it was really the ruling royal principality in Tianhe Realm, and it held a supreme status in Tianhe Realm. No wonder those descendants of Renhuang also bowed down to pay their respect and saluted him as their Royal Highness.


    "Senior Brother Duan," Ye Futian said calmly, but without too much emotion. The other prince was so enthusiastic and was a respected brother of his Master, so he wouldn''t be so rude as to ignore him.


    "Mmm." Duan Qing nodded with a smile. "Master has been in seclusion for many years, disinterested in outside affairs. How many excellent characters in Tianhe Realm desired to be accepted as his disciple but did not get so much as a glance from him? I didn''t expect that after so many years, Master would accept my brother as his successor. It is truly a rare occasion. However, when I saw my brother in battle, the reason couldn''t be more obvious."


    "Senior Brother is too generous. It is just that my realm is a bit deeper," Ye Futian said. At present, his realm was indeed very deep; it was at the top of the Saint Plane.


    "You are too humble. The Sky Sword Elder was defeated by my brother with one finger strike. With such strength, how many people of the Saint Plane in Tianhe Realm could compare?" Duan Qing continued. He glanced at the tavern below and said, "When I learned that the Master had chosen a successor, I thought we ought to drink a few rounds together. But the tavern here has collapsed, so why not go to the Realm Palace? There were many in the Realm Palace who were also master''s disciples, and it will give them a chance to meet you."


    Ye Futian thought for a moment, a few reservations his heart. The news that the Great Elder had found a successor seemed to be widely circulated. The other was the prince of the Realm Palace. He should have already heard, yet he did not visit at the time. It seemed that his relationship might not be as close as expected, or he would have visited as soon as he had heard.


    Another thing was that the Great Elder asked him to go down the mountain to tell the world that he would be inherited from the Great Elder.


    The Great Elder, it seemed, had taken Duan Qing''s appearance into account?


    If this was the case, then he may have to go with the flow.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded after a moment of contemplation, ready to go with Duan Qing. He was not worried about being in danger. Sky River Great Elder was the mentor of Tianhe Realm; he was their number one cultivator. If he had asked him to come off the mountain to visit, nothing bad would happen.


    Duan Qing nodded with a smile. He looked at the people around him again. "Ren Kuangsheng, Girlie from Mu clan, and other geniuses of Tianhe Realm, since you are all present, why not come with us to the palace and have a few drinks? It would a good way to celebrate with my junior brother."


    "Thank you, Your Highness." In the distance, Mu Qingyu smiled and curtsied. Others also nodded one after the other. Naturally, they would not decline the invitation from the Realm Palace.


    The battle before had made them admire Ye Futian''s strength, as it was not something with which they could compete.


    ��


    The Realm Palace of Tianhe Realm was magnificent and awesome. Full of solemn ancient halls served by throes of guards and cultivators alike, many of which were of Saint Plane existence themselves.


    This palace was like a city within a city, extremely vast.


    Duan Qing, as the prince and a Renhuang existence himself, he possessed a complex of palaces of his own, known as the Prince''s Palace.


    At this time, there was a grand banquet being held in the banquet square, and beautiful maids kept coming forth to serve precious wine and delicious food.


    Duan Qing sat in the main position as the host, while Ye Futian sat directly opposite him as the honored guest.


    With such treatment, Duan Qing showered him with enough prestige to raise his status tremendously.


    "Today, I am fortunate to have met my brother, and my master was also fortunate to have such a successor. I will drink to my junior brother." Duan Qing raised the glass. A maid knelt behind Ye Futian to serve drinks, especially for him. Ye Futian raised the glass and then drank up.


    As the wine poured down his throat, it was extremely fierce, like burning flames that actually refined his meridians, veins, and blood.


    "What strong wine," Ye Futian said secretly to himself. There was Way hidden in the wine, which was the kind of fine wine that could only be served by extraordinary principalities.


    "I heard my brother introduce himself as being from the Ye clan. Yet there is no Ye clan in Tianhe Realm. My brother is so talented that it only served to reason that you were born into a powerful family. Unless my brother is not from Tianhe Realm?" Duan Qing asked. As a prince of the Realm Palace, Duan Qing was well aware of all the great principalities of Tianhe Realm, and there were no royal family principalities with the surname Ye.


    "Well," Ye Futian nodded slightly, "I came from another realm."


    "Is that so?" Duan Qing revealed a rather interesting look. He continued, "I''m just curious that since the Master has been cultivating on the mountains and rarely went out in recent years, how was it that the Master chose you as his disciple? And the successor who would inherit all his crafts, no less?"


    Is he prying? Ye Futian thought. Instead, he smiled and replied, "It was quite a bit of a coincidence, and I still don''t know the reason why I was chosen by the Master until today. Brother might want to find some time to go on the mountain and let Master tell you himself."


    Naturally, he would not reveal the matter. If Duan Qing asked no more questions for him and went to the mountains to visit the Great Elder, it wouldn''t be too late to apologize to him.


    "It''s true that I haven''t visited the Master for quite a while. I will find some time to visit." Duan Qing nodded slightly, and his eyes revealed nothing unusual.


    "How long has my junior brother been cultivating the Deed of Thorough Comprehension? And your achievement was quite astounding," Duan Qing asked mindlessly. He seemed quite casual.


    "Several months," Ye Futian replied.


    "Several months?" Duan Qing looked at Ye Futian and said, "Brother, stop joking with me. The Deed of Thorough Comprehension is broad and profound, and it took me many years of cultivation to complete it. The power that was displayed previously could not have been achieved in a few months."


    "Talent." Ye Futian smiled nonchalantly. He did lie this time. He had been cultivating the Deed of Thorough Comprehension for many years; however, the time he had spent cultivating the Deed of Thorough Comprehension when he came to Tianhe Realm was a short, so it was a half-truth.


    Whether the other believed it or not, it didn''t really matter.


    "If my brother says it was due to talent, I will believe it," Duan Qing replied with a smile. "Unfortunately, it would be so much more interesting if junior brother entered the clan back in the day. You could have witnessed the grandeur of the disciples of the 3,000 Great Paths. Within the same clan, how many excellent characters were among us? Of course, with the talent of my brother, even in those days, you would, no doubt, be the most outstanding."


    "Father."


    At this time, two figures appeared at the same time, and everyone''s eyes focused on them. It was a man and a woman, both of whom were extraordinary in temperament. The man was handsome, and there was a spirit between his brows that was similar to that of Duan Qing.


    The woman was extremely beautiful. She was dressed in courtly clothes, which brought out her noble elegance to the fullest.


    These two were the progenies of Duan Qing.


    Duan Qing nodded and introduced them to Ye Futian, "Brother, this is Duan Huan and Duan Yu."


    Huanyu��the Universe, Ye Futian thought.


    Duan Qing pointed to Ye Futian, who was next to him and introduced, "This is your Uncle-Master Ye."


    They both shifted their focus to Ye Futian.


    As descendants of the royal family, both of them had an air of arrogance, and Duan Huan faintly exuded a sense of majestic authority. He might not have been older than Ye Futian, and his cultivation was not any lesser than Ye Futian''s. Now, he was also at the top of Nirvana.


    Duan Yu was a little less; she was Unblemished Saint Plane.


    They had also heard that Sky River Great Elder had accepted an heir, and it must be this was the "Uncle-Master" in front of them.


    It''s just that this uncle was so young and seemed to be the same age as them, so it was not so easy to address him.


    "Little Uncle-Master." Although Duan Huan found it hard to say, he didn''t disobey Duan Qing''s will and addressed Ye Futian as such, but his attitude was not so respectful. After all, they were from the same generation.


    Duan Yu had a strange expression on her face as she stared at Ye Futian. Ye Futian also returned her gaze. Duan Yu''s eyes seemed to point to something, but Ye Futian had no intention to cut her a break. He was unmoved by her look, which forced Duan Yu to address him, "Little Uncle-Master."


    But her tone was rather chilly.


    Her eyes drifted to the others, and she saw some acquaintances who she did not expect to have been invited to the palace.


    "You are both too polite." Ye Futian had seen their attitude but did not take it to heart. How much respect could he have expected from the two descendants of the royal family who were his peers?


    Ye Futian''s calm expression indicated that he could not afford to go easy on them.


    "The Grandmaster hadn''t accepted disciples for many years. Once, I also requested a visit but was not able to go. Now, Grandmaster has accepted Little Uncle-Master as his successor, so it must be that the Little Uncle-Master has an extraordinary talent." Duan Huan''s words attracted the attention of many people who were present.


    "The Great Elder has excellent perception, and his chosen successor must be highly gifted with unparalleled talent." At this time, a voice was heard, as many people started walking together from outside. They came directly to the banquet, their eyes on Ye Futian.


    "Brother Ye, I told you before that in addition to the many disciples who had been accepted by the Master, there were also countless people in the palace of the Mountain, including the royal family. What you see in front of you are seekers of instruction from the Master," Duan Qing said with a smile.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Ye Futian greets all the elders."


    Although he was polite, he sat there without bothering to get up.


    They smiled and looked at Duan Huan, who had just spoken, asking, "So, do you want to test the perception of the Grandmaster?"


    "Precisely." Duan Huan nodded with a smile. "I just don''t know if Little Uncle-Master would be willing to enlighten me?"


    He was not completely aiming at Ye Futian. The Great Elder had said himself that this was the person to pass on his crafts to, so Duan Huan also wanted to give it a try.


    This Uncle-Master had better not be a fraud.


    "You are not your Uncle-Master''s equal," Duan Qing said lightly.


    "How would Father know without me trying first?" Next to him, Duan Yu piped up. Duan Huan''s body emitted a magnificent momentum, and he said, "Just asking Little Uncle-Master to teach me."


    "Don''t be rude," Duan Qing reprimanded.


    "It''s quite all right. Since I''m his Uncle-Master, instruction in cultivation was a matter of course," Ye Futian replied. He was unclear as to the real purpose of Duan Qing''s invitation for him to come here.


    "It''s good to teach them a lesson so that they know there is always someone better out there." Seeing Ye Futian speak, Duan Qing did not try to intervene again but only made a comment very quietly. The moment his words fell, a breath of terror erupted in an instant and swept toward Duan Huan!

 1578 Betrayal

    Duan Huan frowned and glanced at Ye Futian. This Little Uncle-Master didn''t even stand up to make his move?


    He took a step forward, and the pressure of the Great Path exploded. In a moment, a heavy atmosphere enveloped heaven and earth. At the same time, the majestic might of the Way from Ye Futian pressed toward him with incredible surging power.


    Bang!


    A dull, muffled sound came out, and an invisible storm of the Great Path was blowing around Duan Huan. He took stopped abruptly, and he even backed up a few steps in succession.


    Psst��


    As footsteps rubbed against the ground, sharp and harsh sounds came out. Duan Huan shook his head as he seemed to be in a trance, during which time, his spirit soul was also suppressed and attacked.


    The expression on his face changed abruptly, and a shocking pressure of might broke out. The divine light of the Great Path flowed around his body, circulating around and protecting him and his spiritual soul within the divine light.


    The expressions of everyone else also changed. What an arrogant breath...


    However, those who had seen Ye Futian in battle before were not surprised. The strength of the Sky Sword Elder was already at the top of Nirvana, and there weren''t many opponents under Renhunag. Even Duan Huan, who was a descendant of the royal family, would be hard-pressed to best the Sky Sword Elder.


    Previously, the Sky Sword Elder had lost to the power of a single finger strike. Duan Huan would not fare much better, and he could not possibly be Ye Futian''s opponent. Regarding this, Duan Qing understood this very clearly in his heart.


    The majestic might of the Way still roared, rolling out surprise attacks that suppressed Duan Huan. Ye Futian stood up and walked out of the banquet area. Under his absolute control, the power did not even leak outside to affect the banquet.


    Above the body, there were methods of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension blooming. His body was like a great divine furnace of the Great Path, and his breath was strong and majestic. Just like a real divine body, it was incomparably radiant.


    He walked a few steps forward. His pace was very light, but with each step, an even stronger pressure swept out. Seeing the protective divine light about Duan Huan, he took a step as his fist landed on the protective light.


    Crystal clear sounds came out, and the protective divine light shattered and collapsed instantly. Traces of fist will rushed into Duan Huan''s body after cleaving through the protective divine light. It greatly shook all his internal organs and seemed to crush them. Despite the abundant breath inside the body, the pain was still palpable.


    Boom.


    Finally, the domineering Duan Huan could no longer bear this extremely powerful might of the Way. As his body continued sliding back, he spat out a mouthful of blood, and his breath quickly weakened.


    Bang.


    After he slid back hundreds of meters, Duan Huan was able to stabilize himself. His face was pale, and he looked up at Ye Futian with some shock. This force was simply unstoppable.


    "Little Uncle-Master is indeed powerful," Duan Huan said while wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. Many people in the banquet narrowed their eyes slightly and looked at Ye Futian; this successor of the Great Elder was incredibly strong.


    They were quite clear about Duan Huan''s strength, which was absolutely top-notch, yet he could not block a single punch.


    "There are not many under Renhuang who can withstand my punch, so you need not take it to heart," Ye Futian said calmly. Although he was telling the truth, he was young, after all, and his tone was an elder lecturing someone younger; it was slightly outlandish for those who were not used to it.


    He was not the least bit humble.


    On the side, Duan Yu was also speechless. Her elder brother couldn''t even block a single punch. Was it true that the successor of the Grandmaster was this powerful?


    Duan Yu had heard many of the stories about the Grandmaster since she was a child. He was definitely a legend��a young genius who was peerless in his days. After he had gained fame in Tianhe Realm, he traveled the world and married the daughter of the lord of God Clan in the Supreme Path Realm with no objection from the lord himself. This demonstrated the renown of the Sky River Great Elder when he was young.


    However, he did not stay in the God Clan. After traveling around the world, he returned to his homeland��Tianhe Realm. He taught the world, and his students spread all over Tianhe Realm. He was worshipped by the people of Tianhe Realm, and his name became the symbol of Tianhe Realm, reigning high above all royal powers.


    Even the people of the royal family in the Realm Palace also sought to cultivate under his guidance. Her father, the prince of Realm Palace, was sent very early on to cultivate under the tutelage of the Great Elder.


    She had also heard some gossip related to the past, saying that her grandfather��the master of the Realm Palace and supreme existence of Tianhe Realm��would bow and salute to the Sky River Great Elder without exception. She hadn''t experienced those times and had no idea how prestigious the Sky River Great Elder used to be. She just knew that he was so very strong; he was the first man in Tianhe Realm.


    But living in the royal family of the Realm Palace, Duan Yu was also a proud person. The suggestion that the Royal Master had to salute to the Sky River Great Elder made her feel very uncomfortable.


    And now, even the heir of the Sky River Great Elder was also this impressive. Her brother had been crushed. She had not seen the Sky River Great Elder in action before, but now she had seen Ye Futian in action, and she was greatly discomforted by it.


    Moreover, her father treated him so politely.


    "My son was accustomed to always look higher. Today, my brother had taught him a thing or two. It''s something he ought to remember." Next to him, Duan Qing smiled and continued, "Take a seat."


    Ye Futian returned to his seat as suggested. On this trip to the palace, although Duan Qing was still kind to him, he could feel some subtlety in the atmosphere, which could be detected from Duan Huan''s attitude and Duan Yu''s eyes.


    These royalties were not as respectful to the Sky River Great Elder as imagined. If Duan Qing regarded the Great Elder as a teacher, then his children should also be extremely respectful to the Great Elder because of his example, but this was not the feeling he got.


    It seemed that things were not as simple as they appeared.


    This time, Duan Qing''s invitation was probably a test.


    Duan Huan and Duan Yu also sat down but did not continue to provoke Ye Futian, sitting quietly aside.


    Ye Futian had been interacting rather casually without much thought, and Duan Qing must have felt it. However, he didn''t really care. Until he understood the relationship between Duan Qing, the Great Elder, and the master, he couldn''t be too invested.


    If he was wrong, he could always apologize later.


    "It''s been a while since I''ve been out today. I should be getting back to cultivate." Mid-banquet, Ye Futian raised his cup to Duan Qing and bid his goodbye. Duan Qing nodded and toasted him in return. "I will be visiting Master in a while, and we can get together again then."


    "Very well." Ye Futian nodded. He drained the wine from the cup, then stood up and put his hands together to bid his goodbye. Everyone at the banquet also stood up to send him off.


    "Goodbye, everyone." Ye Futian bowed to the crowd slightly.


    "You two go ahead and send your Uncle-Master off," Duan Qing said to Duan Huan and Duan Yu.


    "Please don''t bother." As Ye Futian was replying, he turned to leave. Many people in Tianhe City also begin to leave. Mu Qingyu wanted to go up, but when she saw those fluttering white hair, she hesitated. She didn''t do it. She was in a position that could be exposed to many extraordinary talents, but there were still some who were difficult to approach.


    Undoubtedly, Ye Futian belonged to the latter.


    After Ye Futian left, Duan Qing looked to Duan Huan and asked, "What do you think?"


    "At the top of Saint Plane, and the body of the Great Path has been formed. He is stronger than anyone I have dealt with before in this realm, and he is an expert at attacking the spiritual soul," Duan Huan said.


    "In Tianhe Realm, you are one of the top characters, but the gap was still so great. If you go to the Supreme Realm in the future, how are you going to compete with those top figures? Probably just looking. So, get back and continue to cultivate," Duan Qing concluded.


    At this time, most of the people at the banquet had left. Except for the three of them, there were only two others who remained.


    "Father, after so many years, shouldn''t we know some of the things that happened in the past?" Duan Huan said.


    "It''s okay to let Duan Huan stay," a person next to him said. Duan Qing thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "The things of the past are very simple. For the future of the family, we made some necessary sacrifices."


    "What sacrifice?" Duan Huan asked.


    "Ethics, conscience." Duan Qing looked into Duan Huan''s eyes, and Duan Huan was silent. The fact was, he had already guessed some things as the years had gone by. Even if no one had ever mentioned them, he could figure out out a thing or two from the interactions of all parties.


    When the battle erupted to destroy the realm in the past, the Duan clan was outside of the royal family and had a deep relationship with the Sky River Great Elder. However, not only was it not destroyed in the crisis, but it became even stronger, which, in itself, was an extremely abnormal occurrence.


    "Cultivation, in itself, is a cruel process. It''s the same, even for the royal family. If we had chosen ethics, the whole Realm Palace, the descendants of the royal family, and countless others would have been buried in the disaster. Sometimes, difficult choices have to be made," Duan Qing continued.


    "I can understand," Duan Huan nodded.


    Duan Qing didn''t say much. He looked at the two next to him and said, "What do you think?"


    "This man''s talent is so powerful, yet he is not from Tianhe Realm. His origin is mysterious. But the Great Elder had chosen him as his heir, so there must be some unknown matters," one responded.


    "A few months ago, there was a mysterious man who visited the master. Afterward, news came out that the master had chosen an heir," Duan Qing said.


    "Who?" someone asked.


    "I don''t know. Master was there, and I dare not snoop too much; Otherwise, I would be found out," Duan Qing continued. "This has to be reported up."


    "Reported up?" Duan Huan whispered as he looked at his father.


    Duan Qing pointed up, and Duan Huan immediately understood. However, it was as it should be, since the Realm Palace had forsaken ethics and conscience. Thus, their position was naturally that of the other, and no wonder the Grandmaster and Realm Palace coexisted in peace now.


    Because there was still someone above!

 1579 Xu Pingan

    There was an old house on the edge of Tianhe City. The house was not large and was a little dilapidated.


    Those who lived around them knew that the old house was occupied by a couple and their daughter. The couple was getting on in age and suffered from injuries that had not been fully healed for many years.


    The couple only had a daughter named Xu Ping''an, which sounded like a man''s name. But judging from the name, it was clear that the couple wanted nothing more than to have their daughter be safe and sound.


    At this moment, however, a battle was taking place outside the old house.


    A group of people stood haughtily above the void and looked indifferently toward a woman who had been injured. The woman looked to be about 20-something and was of the realm of Noble Plane. Although she dressed plainly, her beauty still could not be hidden.


    It was hard to imagine that the two older people in this old house had such a beautiful daughter.


    But, at this time, Xu Ping''an didn''t seem to feel at ease. Her lips were stained red with blood, and her beautiful face was pale. However, she still held firmly in her hand a rusty iron sword that was without luster. It did not appear to have any power. It was difficult to imagine that such a sword could be used in combat.


    "Xu Ping''an, are you going to return the thing that you borrowed from us?" the speaker was a burly noble figure, and he sounded cold. He was middle-aged and had cultivated for many years, but he was still of Noble Plane. Maybe this realm was considered adequate with mere mortals, but in Tianhe City��the major city of Tianhe Realm��it could only be regarded as being on the fringe, with no possibility to go higher at all.


    He had been cultivating for many years but was still in Noble Plane, unable to break through the threshold of Sage Plane. He lacked in the areas of mental state and talent. But now, he had forgotten about all that, and just wanted to be able to exist in a corner of Tianhe Realm.


    His eyes fixed upon Xu Ping''an, who was young, beautiful, and talented. He knew all the details about her, better than most. If it was many years ago, someone like Xu Ping''an was someone he wasn''t even qualified to look up to.


    But now, she was at his mercy.


    "You set me up?" Xu Ping''an said coldly.


    "What do you mean ''set-up''? If you borrowed something, don''t you think you have to return it?" the middle-aged man said coldly. Xu Ping''an''s eyes were cold, but there was perseverance in them.


    "If you really can''t, then you will pay back with your person, how about that?" the middle-aged man said again, stepping forward, oppressing Xu Ping''an.


    "Get out of here." Xu Ping''an''s eyes were frosty. When the man heard her words, he narrowed his eyes slightly, then waved his hand. Immediately, a group of men stepped forward and approaching Xu Ping''an. The breath from their bodies shrouded her.


    "Ping''an, give the sword to them." At this time, an ancient voice was heard, and Xu Ping''an turned her head. Two elderly people were walking over. The one who spoke was her father, Xu Haoran, whose hair was white. His face was full of wrinkles, and even his eyes were slightly cloudy and not so bright.


    However, looking at the outline of the old man''s face, one could still vaguely see the handsomeness of his youth, and even when he was this ancient, he still had an extraordinary temperament.


    "Father." Xu Ping''an turned her head to look at her father.


    "Give it to them," Xu Haoran said, and Xu Ping''an seemed a little reluctant.


    "That broken sword in her hand?" the middle-aged man glanced at the rusty iron sword in Xu Ping''an''s hand, and a trace of doubt flashed through his eyes.


    "Old man, who are you kidding?" another said coldly.


    "That is the sword left by my father. Do you want it, or don''t you?" the old man said. Upon hearing his words, the pupils of the middle-aged man contracted slightly, and he nodded, "Yes."


    Moreover, his eyes were fixed at the sword with a strong sense of greed.


    Compared to this sword, beauty meant nothing.


    "Ping''an, give it to him," the old man said. Xu Ping''an''s arm was trembling slightly, but after seeing her father''s eyes, she finally threw the sword out, which the man immediately caught. He glanced at the sword, though still with some confusion. He turned around decisively and said, "Let''s go."


    The group of people flickered away quickly, even intentionally avoiding others'' attention. However, he was reluctant to put away the sword, still holding it in his hand. He seemed to want to unlock the mystery within the sword.


    "Who is it?" When they entered into an alley, suddenly, a sense of danger descended. As he raised his head to ask, when his voice faded, a sword qi directly pierced through his throat, leaving a bloody mark. It was not just him, but all the others also. The surrounding sword will slashed their throats, just like a silk sword.


    All those in the group were wide-eyed, filled with fear and despair as if they had felt yet again the sorrow of being so insignificant that they didn''t even know how they had died.


    A figure clads in simple clothes and wearing a hat came to the place where the sword had fallen and picked it up, holding it firmly in both hands. The person looked solemn, with reddened eyes. The hand holding the sword trembled slightly.


    In another direction, Xu Ping''an and her parents returned to the old house. Xu Ping''an looked at her parents and said in a low voice, "I was useless."


    Xu Haoran turned around and held out his aged, quivering hands, stroking Xu Ping''an''s cheeks. "It''s me who should apologize. I had wanted to maintain a bloodline for your grandfather so that before your mother''s injury had a chance to completely deteriorate, she had you. This was a mistake, and it was me who brought you into this world to suffer."


    There was a strong sense of guilt in the eyes of the old man, and there was even a trace of tears at the corners of his eyes.


    "Father and mother, why haven''t we left for so many years? Will they always keep tabs on us forever?" Xu Ping''an looked at her parents and said.


    "Ping'' an, many things seem to be accidental, but were, in fact, inevitable. Some things we cannot escape. We only seek to survive in peace, but the troubles are endless, so there is no escape."


    Xu Ping''an bowed her head in disappointment. Indeed, all these years, their family had never been able to get out of trouble.


    "Why not ask him for a favor," Xu Ping''an whispered.


    "It''s useless. We are all in a bind. If you go to see the old man, it will only get worse." The old man shook his head. His heart was hurting as he watched his daughter helplessly.


    Xu Ping''an''s beauty and talent were both outstanding. At this age, she should have been enjoying the most wonderful years of her life, but instead, all they could only think about day and night was about how to survive.


    He had failed his daughter.


    Xu Ping''an''s head was also hanging. There was none of the innocence in her beautiful eyes like those of her peers. There was only sadness and strength��the sadness that she could not change anything and could not protect her father and mother.


    "Father, it doesn''t matter. No matter what we face, we are together as a family," Xu Ping''an looked up and smiled, especially radiant.


    "Mmm," Xu Haoran nodded with emphasis. He held his daughter and looked up at the sky with a smile in his eyes.


    Although it was such a bleak life, if you asked him whether or not he regretted the past, he would say no, because that was his father''s choice.


    "Who is it?"


    At this moment, coldness flashed through Xu Ping''an''s beautiful eyes. As she turned around, a figure had already stepped into the yard. Her face was slightly pale. She wasn''t even aware of the intruder until he had already come in.


    She turned around and fully released the breath of the realm of Noble Plane. There was a hint of desperation in her eyes. Would they still refuse to let them go?


    The man was wearing simple ordinary clothes and wearing a hat. He appeared extremely common. The rusty iron sword that was held in his hand was the sword that was relinquished by Xu Ping''an before.


    "Who are you?" Xu Ping''an asked.


    As the visitor removed his hat, He looked at Xu Ping''an, with a kind gentleness in his eyes, which surprised Xu Ping''an. This man did not seem to harbor malicious intent.


    Old man Xu Haoran looked at the visitor, and his body shivered slightly. He wiped his eyes as if he couldn''t believe what he was seeing.


    The visitor was Qi Xuangang.


    He looked away from Xu Ping''an, took a step forward, and came directly in front of the old man. He looked at that extremely weathered face in front of him, full of the wrinkles of the years, and there was the air of death already upon his body.


    Qi Xuangang''s eyes were red. His hands stretched out to hold on to the old man''s shoulders, he shivered and said in a low cry, "Haoran."


    The old man also shivered slightly, and tears flowed out of his cloudy eyes. The old woman next to him also wept with her head lowered.


    Xu Ping''an watched all this with a blank face.


    Who was he?


    "Uncle-Master," the old man called out with a trembling voice.


    "Uncle-Master," the old woman next to him also looked on with teary eyes and said.


    Tears flowed from Qi Xuangang''s eyes; he had thought that he would never cry again.


    Once upon a time, these two were so on the top of their game. They were an envious couple. But now, they were so advanced in age. After all, their cultivation had been destroyed, so how else could they withstand the erosion of time?


    "I thought you were all gone, that I had failed you all." Qi Xuangang stepped forward and gently hugged the old man, only to feel the pain in his core.


    He failed too many people. Too many people had perished because of things in the past that concerned him.


    Although he did not wish it, he was the cause.


    "Since Uncle Master is alive, why come back?" the old man asked. Qi Xuangang looked at him, and then looked at Xu Ping''an behind him.


    "Some unfinished business that I must take care of." He had thought he would stay in Dali all his life, but because of Ye Futian, his life path changed, and he went to the Supreme Realm.


    Now, he should let go of everything.


    Some things had to be done.


    "Ping''an, come over and meet your Grand Uncle Master," the old man said to Xu Ping''an, who then walked in front of Qi Xuangang. Qi Xuangang looked at her, his eyes full of kind love but also great sadness.


    He thought of Feixue, whose life previously was extremely bleak. However, he didn''t think that Xu Ping''an was also living a miserable and bleak life here. She was still so young, yet she had shouldered unbearable weight.


    "Grand Uncle-Master," Xu Ping''an called.


    Qi Xuangang noded with emphasis, and took Xu Ping''an''s hand to put the iron sword back in her palm. He whispered, "This is your grandfather''s sword. Your grandfather often said that only when all the artifices have been washed away could one be qualified to use the sword. Your grandfather was full of righteousness and was a gentleman of the sword. He was the number one swordsman in all of Tianhe Realm."


    After he put the sword in Xu Ping''an''s palm, Qi Xuangang turned to face the sky and knelt on the ground. His head touched the ground three times. It was as if there was a peerless swordsman that had appeared above the sky.


    "Elder senior brother Master, I came back to see you."


    Qi Xuangang''s voice was full of sadness, and Xu Ping''an couldn''t help but shed tears when she witnessed this scene.


    Xu Ping''an was humble all her life, but her grandfather was a gentleman in the sword, the indisputable and widely recognized gentleman sword emperor in Tianhe Realm, its number one swordsman.


    Still, she had never seen her grandfather before!

 1580 Depart in Peace

    After Ye Futian left the Realm Palace, he returned to the mountains. Sky River Great Elder was still cultivating, so he did not ask much.


    However, the master must already have some idea about the matter. So, if the master did not start the conversation, he wouldn''t ask any questions.


    He also went back to cavern residence to cultivate, and he continued to study the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    The next day, on the mountain path below, a young and very beautiful woman came toward the mountain. She looked up at the mountain in front of her with lots of emotions in her heart.


    The woman was Xu Ping''an.


    Yesterday, the Grand Uncle-Master left soon after he appeared, but it touched her deeply. He had asked her to go up the mountain, so she was now making the trip.


    As she walked up the mountain, there was an old man standing there, waiting for her.


    The old man''s hair was scattered and looked rugged. It was as if he had been through a lot in life. However, Xu Ping''an knew that the man who stood in front of her was the legendary old man who had been imprinted in her memory but she had never met.


    Xu Ping looked at the old man and proceeded to kneel on the ground and bowed down to pay her respect. "Disciple Xu Ping''an greets the Grandmaster."


    "Get up." Somehow the old man appeared in front of her, holding her arm with both hands, helping her up. Xu Ping''an looked at the kind gentleness in the old man''s eyes, and her heart was filled with emotion.


    His name had been part of her life, and her parents had mentioned it countless times. They were all in Tianhe City, but this was the first time that she had really met this Grandmaster. The number one cultivator in Tianhe Realm��Sky River Great Elder��was also her grandfather''s mentor, who had nurtured her grandfather into the first sword emperor of Tianhe Realm.


    She would like to go back in time and experienced that era it was and see for herself what a glorious past it was.


    Naturally, Sky River Great Elder knew of Xu Ping''an. He had always known, and he had seen her, though not in person. He knew that the descendant of his eldest disciple Xu Haoran had a daughter to continue theirs.


    Even Xu Haoran''s name was given by him. His father��the Gentleman Sword Emperor��was full of righteousness, hence the name. Once upon a time, he had high hopes for the little guy. However, that once talented boy was now gray-haired and weakened by age. How sad it made him when he thought of it...


    "I''m sorry for not having taken care of your family." Sky River Great Elder sighed, and his voice was full of guilt. Xu Ping''an bowed her head slightly. It was not her place to comment on matters between her elders. Her parents had never complained; all these were her grandfather''s own choice.


    Her father had often said that even in the muddy world, they still need to be the bright light that would shine through it.


    "I have been waiting for you, too," Sky River Great Elder said again.


    "I''ve always wanted to see the Grandmaster also, but father told me not to come and disturb your cultivation," Xu Ping''an replied.


    "Your father was afraid of involving me," Sky River Great Elder smiled and replied. He knew better than anyone that although he survived from the ordeal back then, he was still a sinner in the eyes of the God Clan. This mountain was his prison; he was an invisible prisoner.


    Xu Ping''an also understood. She knew many things.


    "Grandmaster, Uncle-Master is back, and asked me to bring you a message," Xu Ping''an said.


    Sky River Great Elder''s arm twitched slightly. Even though he had many disciples, he knew who Ping''an meant as soon as she mentioned it.


    He had come back, after all. And not long ago, Lord Taixuan had also sent his disciple here.


    "Uncle-Master wanted you to know that he regrets that he could not come see you," Xu Ping''an said.


    "Indeed, it was regrettable." Sky River Great Elder''s eyes looked into the distance.


    "Uncle-Master also said that he had accepted several apprentices on your behalf, and that you have seen one of them already, and that he asked you to please take care of that apprentice."


    Sky River Great Elder did not speak. It seemed that he knew everything that had happened here, and knew them very well.


    The news of Sky River Great Elder had appointed a successor had been spread all over Tianhe City. Now that Qi Xuangang had arrived, it was impossible that he had not heard about it.


    "Anything else?" Sky River Great Elder asked.


    Xu Ping''an was silent for a moment, and then said, "Uncle-Master said that there was one more thing, but that the Grandmaster would understand his intention after seeing me."


    Sky River Great Elder looked at Xu Ping''an. Of course, he understood.


    This disciple of was his was indeed disobedient. Everything was arranged just for him.


    However, even without his instructions, would he do anything differently?


    "Lass, you will stay on the mountain to cultivate from now on," said the Sky River Great Elder. "And bring your parents here too."


    Xu Ping''an was dumbfounded for a moment as she looked up at the Grandmaster, remembering the words she said before.


    She was a little confused before about what Grandmaster would understand when he saw her.


    Now she understood.


    The third thing Uncle-Master had asked was to let the Grandmaster take care of her...


    When her thoughts turned to this, Xu Ping''s felt a little bitter but also was warmed by it. Her life had been miserable, and no one excepted that her parents had ever given her this feeling. But now, both Grand Uncle-Master and the Grandmaster cared about her.


    "My father told me to go back after I relayed the message," Xu Ping''an said while bowing her head.


    "If you have the heart to continue seeing your parents like this, then listen to your father," Sky River Great Elder said. Xu Ping''an clenched her fists, then nodded decisively. Clearly, she had made a decision in her heart.


    "Grand Uncle-Master also asked me to bring a message to Uncle-Master," Xu Ping''an said again.


    Sky River Great Elder nodded. Then Ye Futian, who was cultivating, heard his voice. Soon, he came over and saw Xu Ping''an.


    Ye Futian was a little puzzled and didn''t know who Xu Ping''an was.


    "This is Ping''an��the grandchild of my eldest disciple, who was also your older Uncle-Master. He was the premier sword emperor of Tianhe Realm, who perished in that battle. Ping''an''s parents also had their cultivation destroyed, and Ping''an took care of them by herself," said the Sky River Great Elder.


    This short remark made a great impression on Ye Futian. It rendered him speechless for a moment. The Sky River Great Elder, in a few words, had told a thrilling but tragic story.


    And some, because of that battle, and because of the things related to his teacher.


    "Your master was there too, and visited Ping''an and her parents, and asked Ping''an to give you a message," Sky River Great Elder continued. Ye Futian''s heart was troubled again. Had Master arrived as well?


    Ye Futian looked at Xu Ping''an and saw that she was bowing slightly to him, saying, "Uncle-Master."


    In terms of seniority, Xu Ping''an had to address Ye Futian as "Uncle-Master."


    "Mmm," Ye Futian replied. The Master had visited them must be because he had great been affection for them, or else he would not risk so much. Back then, Master''s senior brother, the premier sword emperor of Tianhe Realm, gave his life because of the thing involving the master.


    The Master must have felt guilty.


    "Grand Uncle-Master asked me to tell Uncle-Master that from now on, you do not know him when you meet. Concentrate on cultivating, and don''t forget the words he gave you, no matter when, where, or who you are facing," Xu Ping''an said.


    Ye Futian''s expression suddenly changed. Those words gave him a very ominous feeling. It was as if he was telling giving his last testimony and will.


    As if he noticed Ye Futian''s expression, Sky River Great Elder asked Ye Futian, "What did he say?"


    "As heaven always moves strongly, the gentleman ought always improve himself." Ye Futian looked at the Grandmaster. His face was a little gloomy.


    "And then?" Sky River Great Elder asked.


    "Gentleman does not stand on an unstable wall," Ye Futian replied. "The Master was telling me to completely sever the relationship with him��no matter when, where, or who I am facing. I am to deny that I knew him."


    When he heard Ye Futian''s words, Sky River Great Elder was silent. Naturally, he understood as well.


    Ye Futian told him that Feixue could now concentrate on cultivating, so he had nothing to worry about?


    After all, he still came back.


    "Grandmaster, what happened in the past, and what did my master intend to do?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Some things are hard to resolve, and some things must be faced sooner or later," Sky River Great Elder looked at Ye Futian, but those murky eyes seemed unusually firm at the moment. "So, I respect your master''s choice."


    Ye Futian''s face was slightly pale. "You go back with Ping''an and take her parents here."


    "Very well," Ye Futian nodded and looked at Xu Ping''an. "Let''s go," he said.


    "Yes," Xu Ping''an nodded. She left with Ye Futian to pick up Xu Haoran and his wife.


    At the old house, Ye Futian and Xu Ping''an were coming over.


    "Dad, Mom," Xu Ping''an called out, but no one responded. Sensing that something was out of sorts, Ye Futian''s body flickered, and he headed toward the inside of the house.


    Xu Ping''an seemed to feel it too. Her face changed as her figure flickered to enter the old house. Ye Futian and Xu Ping''an''s footsteps suddenly stopped, and they could not move another step.


    Xu Ping''an''s body was shaking as were her legs. Looking at the two figures leaning quietly there, endless tears continued sliding down her cheeks.


    After what seemed to be a long time, she walked over next to the old man and knelt down, saying, "Father and Mother, but why?"


    In an instant, tears fell like rain.


    Ye Futian also walked up quietly and looked at the elderly couple; they were his senior brother and sister-in-law, but they were so old. Suddenly he felt a pain in his heart.


    What had the master gone through? And what was he carrying in his heart?


    Xu Ping''an was lying on top of the old couple, but Ye Futian saw a letter next to them. He crouched down. Xu Ping''an, at this moment, was so fragile, like a powerless girl.


    "They left peacefully and left you a letter," Ye Futian whispered. They did not suffer but had left peacefully.


    Xu Ping''an was sobbing. She picked up the letter, and her tears were falling on it.


    "Ping''an, don''t be sad. If it weren''t because we wanted to spend more time with you, we would have left already, but we have been reluctant to let you go. You will understand the meaning of your Grand Uncle-Master after you are at the mountain. Although we know it was selfish of us, we hope that you will stay with the Grandmaster so that at least you will be protected when you are in danger, not like when you were with us and we couldn''t protect you."


    There are many other things in the letter, but they were all words of regret. As Xu Ping''an was reading it, she couldn''t stop crying. She had never complained about her destiny. Never.


    "Ping''an, don''t forget the words of your parents, even if you are in the muddy world, still shine your light through it. We can''t see your future, and our only wish is for you to be safe, always." the letter. The letter was soaked with tears that had blurred the handwriting.


    Ye Futian felt bitterness in his heart. Master went far away for Feixue''s sake. However, after Feixue''s matter was resolved, the master followed him. Now he knew that Master was bearing such a heavy weight. That constant concern aside, he would accompany him to the Upper Realm.


    Same with Ping''an''s parents!

 1581 Visitors from God Clan

    Ye Futian knew very well that the old couple, because their cultivation had been destroyed, had relied on their daughter to take care of them all these years. Furthermore, Ping''an needed to seek medicine frequently in order to preserve their vitality. The incident yesterday was the result.Ye Futian knew very well that the old couple, because their cultivation had been destroyed, had relied on their daughter to take care of them all these years. Furthermore, Ping''an needed to seek medicine frequently in order to preserve their vitality. The incident yesterday was the result.


    They didn''t want to keep dragging Ping''an down, so they decided to depart this world peacefully. No matter what happened in the future, with Ping''an following the Great Elder, even if there was a dangerous situation, she would be far safer than she would with them.


    What happened yesterday was the reason for their choice.


    Ye Futian brought the bodies of the old couple back to the mountain for burial. The old man had always regarded himself as a disciple of the Sky River Great Elder, and he believed this deeply. Although Ye Futian had not personally had these experiences, he could deduce and draw many conclusions from the dialogues he heard and things that had happened.


    Ping''an''s grandfather, the elder senior brother of the master, the eldest disciple of Sky River Great Elder, the Gentleman Sword Emperor, must have been admired by all.


    But he and his descendants ended like this.


    There was an additional tomb now on an area of the mountain. Aside from Ye Futian and Ping''an, Sky River Great Elder was also present. He stood there quietly, and his ancient face appeared exceptionally calm.


    But he knew everything in his heart.


    "This was the place where your grandfather cultivated, but it was abandoned later. Burying Haoran and his wife here is the only thing I can do for them," Sky River Great Elder whispered. "Ping''an, let the dead rest in peace and don''t be too sad. Your parents must have suffered all these years, so they decided to leave this world in peace."


    "Mmm." Ping''an knelt in front of the graves. Her tears seemed to have run dry, but her eyes conveyed a firm resolution. She would live well, not for herself, but for her parents and for her grandfather, because she was the only one who would carry on the bloodline.


    "From now on, you will follow me to cultivate. If you have any questions regarding cultivation, you can always ask your Uncle-Master. Of course, you will address him as Uncle-Master while on the mountain, but in the outside world, you have to address him as Grand Uncle-Master," Sky River Great Elder advised.


    Ping''an nodded. When Grand Uncle-Master deliberately asked her to bring the message to separate his relationship with Uncle-Master and that they were never to acknowledge one another whenever they met again, she understood the meaning behind it and how she should act.


    "Futian, ??you should also remember your master''s words," Sky River Great Elder added.


    Ye Futian turned to look at the Great Elder, then nodded seriously. He knew that some things might happen in the future, but for the master, it was an unbearable weight. There were some things the master needed to face himself.


    It was just that some things required him to make a choice, no matter the price. Just as the grandmaster respected the choice of the master, he would respect it too.


    ...


    In the Realm Palace, where Duan Qing resided, someone came with a message.


    "Are you saying that someone killed the person who went to the Xu residence to pick a fight, and then Xu Haoran and his wife committed suicide?" Duan Qing looked at the messenger.


    "Mmm." The messenger nodded, and Duan Qing looked up into the distance, revealing a touch of sadness. Xu Haoran was considered his nephew in cultivation, someone whom many of their brothers watched growing up. After his cultivation was destroyed, there was, in fact, not much point to his life. Now that it was finally over, perhaps it was a relief of some sort.


    "May you have a safe journey," Duan Qing whispered. His oldest senior brother was unrivaled and full of righteousness, but because of it, he lost his life. His stubbornness had spelled the misery for his entire family. It was so unnecessarily painful.


    There was no need for many to die.


    "Do you know who killed those people?" Duan Qing asked.


    The man shook his head. "He left soon after the killing. It''s been so many years, and we did not really follow Xu Haoran much anymore."


    "Indeed, it''s been so many years. But somehow, I had a feeling that something was going happen," Duan Qing mumbled to himself. First, it was that his master had appointed a successor, and then it was the suicide of Xu Haoran and his wife, and then their daughter was sent to the mountain to cultivate.


    Although these seemed to be common, trivial matters, the deaths of those unremarkable people made Duan Qing feel a little uneasy.


    Who was the mysterious man that had killed them?


    "Investigate carefully to see if there are any clues," Duan Qing commanded.


    "Yes, Your Highness." The man nodded, then bowed and left.


    Duan Qing was still standing there, looking thoughtful. Although things had passed for a long time, as long as the master was still alive, it would be a hidden danger concerning the Realm Palace.


    The master''s strength was too powerful, as the premier person in the Tianhe Realm. Therefore, even though everything had passed by many years, they had always been watching the mountain.


    As soon as there was the slightest movement, they would know immediately and report to the top.


    He knew very well that the reason why his master did not die at the time was that someone above him was also protecting him. After all, he was the son-in-law of the God Clan, and maybe it was all set up for the return of that descendant.


    Therefore, after the news that Sky River Great Elder had taken a successor, he decided to report to the top.


    ��


    Several days later, in the land above the Realm Palace, a bright ray of light suddenly fell from the sky dome.


    The entire Realm Palace was in shock, and countless eyes looked at the void above. Some frowned. Who dared to be so bold and appear directly above the Realm Palace?


    Some also faintly realized something. Their pupils contracted slightly, and they vaguely guessed what had happened.


    The divine light directly fell into the Realm Palace as if the entire palace was covered with a sacred glow. A group of people appeared directly above everyone.


    All of them were going in that one direction.


    Naturally, Duan Qing was there too, leading everyone to the ground below that group of people. He raised his head slightly, looking at those figures that descended from the sky. The proud Renhuang of Realm Palace was now slightly bowing to pay their respects.


    Not only him, but many people in the Realm Palace were also paying homage at the same time. Their action alarmed those who did not quite realize it before, but finally, they understood just where these people were coming from.


    Supreme Realm, the God Clan.


    Although the Tianhe Realm was regarded as a very powerful realm with many Renhuang existences, also in close proximity to the area of Supreme Realm and belonging to the extended interface of the Supreme Realm in front of the behemoth that was the God Clan of the Supreme Realm, it was still not worth mentioning. Once upon a time, when the God Clan had passed down its judgment, that vast and endless the Tianhe Realm had faced the danger of extinction.


    It was on account of the mediation done by the Realm Palace and having chosen the right path that the Tianhe Realm was able to continue standing until now. Otherwise, after that war, the Realm Palace of the Tianhe Realm would very possibly cease to exist.


    Those who came were bathed in divine glory. The man who headed the delegation looked to be about 30 or 40 years of age. He was also a Renhuang existence with astonishing authority and power. Standing beside him was a young man with deep-set eyes that seemed to contain terrible divine aurora. When the two were standing together, they looked somewhat alike as father and son.


    On both sides of them, there were several elders, but the light emitted from them was far more restrained, and their breath was hardly detectable. However, Duan Qing felt that these were actually the stronger characters, especially the old man standing in the very back. When his eyes glanced at Duan Qing, it made Duan Qing feel a sense of imminent danger.


    He was a Renhuang existence, which just accentuated how terrifying the old man''s realm was.


    Clearly, this time, the delegation that was dispatched to come down to the bottom was very strong.


    Any matter concerning the Sky River Great Elder, no matter how great or small, would not be taken lightly by the God Clan.


    At this time, in the direction of the highest hall inside the Realm Palace, an old man came through the void. The old man was wearing a golden royal robe, and he was extremely majestic. Many people bowed down to worship, as the person who had arrived was the master of the Realm Palace of the Tianhe Realm��Emperor of the Tianhe Realm.


    "Everyone came from the Upper Worlds. You must be tired. I have ordered a feast for you," the Realm Emperor said. Many were shocked to hear that the Realm Emperor had personally greeted these guests, and only those from the Upper Worlds could enjoy this treatment.


    "The Realm Emperor is too kind; there is really no need. Let''s get to business first," said the person who headed the delegation of the Upper Worlds, his eyes surveying the crowd. He asked, "Respectfully, Realm Emperor, who do we talk to regarding this business matter?"


    "Duan Qing." The Realm Emperor looked at Duan Qing just as Duan Qing took a step forward.


    "Tell us everything in detail," the man said to Duan Qing. Duan Qing nodded and gave a detailed account of the recent events. The other looked calm after hearing it, and it was hard to tell how they felt.


    "Uncle has not had any visitors in a long time. Let''s visit uncle since it''s been many years." As the man spoke, he turned and walked directly toward the mountains where the Sky River Great Elder was cultivating.


    "Uncle!"


    Many people in the Realm Palace heard this appellation. With a quiver in their hearts, they thought that the Sky River Great Elder was indeed powerful. He was accepted by the God Clan. If he did not walk the wrong path, he would definitely be at the top of the Supreme Realm.


    Even for those prominent men from the God Clan, when they saw him, they still had to call him uncle. Conversely, those at the Realm Palace trembled and shivered when they saw the people from the Upper Worlds.


    "You, go and see," the Emperor of Tianhe Realm said to Duan Qing. Duan Qing nodded and followed along, walking in that direction.


    On the mountain, before they even arrived, Sky River Great Elder had already sensed it.


    At this time, he and Ye Futian were standing in front of the mountain while Xu Ping''an stood quietly at the back, gazing into the distance.


    "They are here," Sky River Great Elder whispered. Ye Futian did not ask. He would know who was coming when he saw them.


    Sure enough, shortly after, radiant divine light descended, and a group of people seemed to cross the void and appear directly in front of the mountain, standing above the void.


    They stopped there, with Duan Qing behind. When he saw this, Ye Futian knew who was coming.


    The people of the Upper Worlds had arrived!

 1582 The Demand

    The Sky River Great Elder also looked at those who came from the God Clan. His expression was indifferent, and he did not appear to be disturbed.


    He knew very well that even if the God Clan did not arrive here today, they had never stopped monitoring him. Once he walked out of Tianhe City, the God Clan would know immediately.


    At this time, the middle-aged Renhuang, who was the head of the God Clan. stepped forward and bowed in the direction of the Sky River Great Elder on the mountain, saying, "Shen Yao greets uncle."


    This powerful clan that once almost destroyed Tianhe Realm had an extremely rare surname. With the surname "Shen," otherwise known as "God," they were therefore referred to as the God Clan. It stood above the Nine Heavens, and even in the Supreme Realm, it was a clan that stood above the clouds.


    "Using ''god'' as a surname." Ye Futian expressed a look of disbelief. Was this the true meaning of the God Clan?


    Unless a clan was incredibly confident in their own prowess, they would not use such a surname. All the other surnames, no matter how domineering, would be inconsequential in comparison.


    However, if a small clan used "god" as their surname, they would probably soon change it because such a name would bring disaster upon the clan.


    Sky River Great Elder glanced at him and said, "Time passed so fast that you are already Renhuang."


    "It''s indeed gone by very quickly. At that time, I often followed Uncle and asked you to teach me about cultivation. In a blink of the eye, all that was before is gone." Shen Yao looked up at Sky River Great Elder. There were indeed many emotions in his heart.


    The Sky River Great Elder was indeed a peerless figure, even among the God Clan, there were few who were stronger than him. This uncle of his was also powerful in his teaching method and was well known because of it. He still remembered how he followed behind Sky River Great Elder and his aunt in seeking the art.


    But the past belonged to the past, and everything no longer existed and would never be again.


    Back then, that most treasured daughter, who was the light that was looked upon by countless people��his aunt��would never be the same either.


    "I don''t suppose you are here to reminisce about the good old days," Sky River Great Elder said, looking at Shen Yao.


    "I came to see how my uncle is doing, but also to let you know my father send you his regards," Shen Yao replied.


    "How is she now?" Sky River Great Elder asked. Shen Yao naturally knew of whom he spoke.


    "Please understand that the God Clan specifically ordered that my aunt''s condition is not to be divulged to Uncle. Please don''t take it personally," Shen Yao said.


    Sky River Great Elder didn''t say much. He had no way of knowing any news from the God Clan, but, presumably, the God Clan would not be willing to kill her.


    It''s just that it had been so many years, and how was she today? They had betrayed the God Clan and warred against them, so she was regarded as a traitor. She had been taken away heavily injured and then imprisoned. The fate of his beloved wife was unknown.


    Perhaps, as it had been for him, it had been very painful.


    "Please tell her that she doesn''t need to think about anything else. As long as she is well, it is enough for me." Sky River Great Elder looked at Shen Yao and continued to ask, "Is there anything else besides seeing me?"


    "I heard that Uncle has accepted another disciple to inherit your crafts, so I have come to take a look." Only now did Shen Yao''s attention turn to Ye Futian, who was next to Sky River Great Elder. There were only three people on the mountain. Besides Ye Futian, there was only Xu Ping''an. It was very clear who the successor appointed by Sky River Great Elder was; it was naturally the young man with the white hair.


    Judging from his temperament, he was indeed extraordinary. It was said that that his strength was also incredibly powerful. He was at the peak of Saint Plane and already obtained the body of the Great Path. Many genius talents of Tianhe Realm were not his equal; they were not even at the same level.


    "Now, you have seen him," Sky River Great Elder said.


    "I saw." Shen Yao nodded slightly. "Why did Uncle decide to accept a successor after so many years of cultivating in retreat?"


    "Can''t I pass on my whole life''s worth of cultivation?" Sky River Great Elder looked at Shen Yao and asked. "He is only of Saint Plane. Even if the God Clan is worried about it, they wouldn''t be acting up right now?"


    Shen Yao smiled and shook his head, saying, "Uncle thinks too much. The God Clan won''t worry about uncle taking on a successor. Even if Uncle had accepted disciples all these years, the God Clan would not have intervened. These things are not something worthy of God Clan to worry about. Even if your successor wanted to get revenge on uncle''s behalf, they would not care."


    He wasn''t lying. This was the pride of the God Clan. The mighty God Clan that had stood at the top of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had no need to fear the successor of the Sky River Great Elder.


    "If so, now that you have seen him, you can go back now."


    Sky River Great Elder spoke nonchalantly.


    Shen Yao shook his head and continued, "After all these years, don''t you understand the thoughts of ??the God Clan? Everything the descendants of the God Clan ever did was to enable the God Clan to stand at the peak for all generations and pass from one to another for all eternity. There was a time when the God Clan was willing to trust you and my aunt, as well as my younger sister. However, you have all failed that trust."


    Sky River Great Elder knew what the other was referring to, and that divine item was passed down from their branch.


    "The so-called trust is based on absolute control and absolute obedience to the will of the God Clan; such trust is not worth having," Sky River Great Elder said sarcastically. The God Clan was strong enough to believe that it could control everything. Therefore, they trusted them, and everything needed to follow the will of the God Clan.


    Until one day, they did not choose to do the will of the God Clan; hence the storm of that year erupted.


    "The will of the God Clan is above everything," Shen Yao said.


    "So, your coming here today is also because of the will of the God Clan?" Sky River Great Elder looked sharply at the other.


    "Naturally, we came by the will of the God Clan," Shen Yao said. His attention then turned to Ye Futian. "We need to bring him back to the God Clan. If there is no problem, we will send him back without any issue."


    When Ye Futian heard this, he felt a chill run down his spine.


    This was the God Clan from the Upper Worlds. How arrogant were they to demand to take him to the God Clan?


    Just because the Sky River Great Elder wanted to pass on his craft to him as his successor, they wanted to take him. Was this a move to unveil all the secrets that he had?


    The God Clan wanted to know if he had anything to do with what happened in the past, and if it had anything to do with the disappearance of Qi Xuangang.


    Ye Futian knew very well that this was not because the God Clan had guessed anything but that they wanted to find what was inside Feixue''s body. They would not overlook any possibilities. His appearance was obviously suspicious to the God Clan. Therefore, they wanted to take him directly to the God Clan to verify things.


    There was no evidence; there wasn''t even a need to guess, just the need to execute their will.


    That was all��clear and simple. But from this, one could detect just how overbearing and powerful the God Clan was.


    The God Clan would not take Xu Ping''an away because they knew everything about Xu Ping. Even though the Sky River Great Elder also instructed her in cultivation, the God Clan didn''t really care.


    Shen Yao''s voice caused the space to fall into a short silence. No one spoke. All the cultivators of the God Clan also looked at Sky River Great Elder, as well as Duan Qing and others behind them, who also stared at the Great Elder and Ye Futian.


    Even though the master had aged, his status remained.


    And the God Clan, as always, was still so arrogant.


    All of this was brought on by real power. In contrast, the master of the Tianhe Realm��the Realm Palace��appeared somewhat inconsequential, not at all like the real commander of the Tianhe Realm.


    Sky River Great Elder looked up at the people from the God Clan. At the moment when his eyes swept past, an invisible will of the Way flowed upon the mountain. The heaven and earth were changing, as was the sky, and a suffocating might of the Great Path spread between heaven and earth.


    Shen Yao raised his eyebrows slightly, only to hear the Sky River Great Elder say, "I don''t trust you. In that incident in the past, among 3,000 disciples, how many died at the hands of the God Clan? Now, should I repeat the same mistake?"


    At this moment, the long hair of Sky River Great Elder flew wildly, but he was standing straight. He proclaimed, "He will not follow you back to the God Clan."


    Feeling this coercion, the cultivators of the God Clan also released a strong breath to resist the coercion. Even after so many years had passed, the anger of the Sky River Great Elder was still enough to change the sky. This mountain range had already been covered by his will. Although this area looked to be extremely vast, for people like Sky River Great Elder, it could be covered easily with a simple command.


    "Uncle, why do you have to be as persistent as in the past?" Shen Yao asked Sky River Great Elder.


    "Since even my only successor is now in danger of being taken away from me, then you go back and invite ''him'' to come. The only way to take my disciple away is over my dead body." Sky River Great Elder sounded extremely determined. The "he" that he was referring to was naturally the most powerful man of the God Clan. In the battle that nearly exterminated the realm, it was this man who led the God Clan to come down to the Lower Worlds.


    Shen Yao had already guessed that the Sky River Great Elder would not easily let anyone take his person away, but still, he didn''t expect such an extreme stance. Over his dead body...


    If so, although there were some extremely powerful cultivators that had come today, to want to take someone from this uncle of his, it was still kind of impossible.


    As for that mighty man, he would not easily go to the Lower World. It was impossible for him to attend to all the matters concerning the God Clan himself.


    "Why does Uncle want to make the whole thing difficult? The God Clan just wants to see him. They won''t do anything to him," Shen Yao said.


    "You have already seen him." Sky River Great Elder''s response was still domineering.


    Shen Yao fell silent. With the Sky River Great Elder there, it seemed that it was impossible he would make way for them. He had some understanding of his uncle''s personality and knew that what happened in the past was not for no reason.


    He was too persistent in his own beliefs, unwilling to change in the slightest.


    "Since uncle won''t let him go, can he come closer so I may take a better look at him?" Shen Yao didn''t continue to insist, for he knew it would go nowhere otherwise.


    "No," Sky River Great Elder replied simply.


    Shen Yao frowned slightly. This was already as accommodating as he could be.


    If the Sky River Great Elder still would not agree...


    "There is no harm in them taking a good look at me." Shen Yao found that the person who spoke was Ye Futian himself, and he could not help but look astounded.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was looking at Sky River Great Elder, who was also looking back at him.


    "The master is here, so what if they take a good look at me?" Ye Futian smiled indifferently. With the Sky River Great Elder''s watchful eyes, what could the cultivators of the God Clan do?


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Sky River Great Elder was silent for a moment. He nodded and said, "Then you can do as you wish."


    "Hmm." Ye Futian stepped forward and came in front of all the cultivators from the God Clan, a faint smile on his handsome face.


    God Clan, how did it compare with power such as the Golden Divine Nation!

 1583 Making an Appearance

    Ye Futian stood in front of Shen Yao, and in front of all the cultivators from God Clan.


    Traces of breaths fell on him as if trying to spy on his secrets. Shen Yao''s brow chakra seemed to be opened, sending out a terrible divine light. This divine light shrouded Ye Futian''s body in a moment, and Ye Futian felt as if he was imprisoned by a divine light.


    Boom. An extremely sacred pressure of the Great Path descended, and suddenly Ye Futian felt the oppressive force of suffocation. It was the pressure that came from the spirit soul. He felt as if his spirit would come out of his body and be bound and suppressed by the divine light.


    Ye Futian felt that he was trapped in an illusion. In this wonderful world of illusion, his consciousness and the spiritual soul had separated from the body. Under the eyes of the sky, countless reflections of Shen Yao, like godly statues, rushed directly into his spiritual soul, asking to be let into his conscious to see his deepest secrets.


    This ability was incredibly terrifying.


    It could directly spy on the secrets of others.


    No wonder the Sky River Great Elder disallowed the God Clan from taking him away. At this moment, the Sky River Great Elder was focusing his attention on Ye Futian. The pressure of might permeated from his body. As soon as Ye Futian could no longer bear the weight of it, he would directly intervene by force.


    "Shen Yao, you have really grown up." Sky River Great Elder spoke lightly, and his voice was commanding without being arrogant. He dared to forcibly spy inside Ye Futian in front of him. This was enough to prove that little fellow who had once followed behind him was now a Renhuang and the backbone of the God Clan.


    Certainly, having entered Renhuang, his style and manner of handling things were different. Gone was the childishness of yesteryears, and what was left now was the majesty and strength of Renhuang.


    Ye Futian closely guarded his spirit, and at the same time, the power of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension bloomed out, refining the Way inside his body. Inside the Spiritual Soul, the ancient characters of the Great Path seemed to be surrounded to guard the will and blocking the forceful invasion of the other.


    "Humph." Shen Yao snorted coldly. The divine light from his brow chakra grew even stronger. Miles of the radiant glory sprinkled down, and an infinite beam of light seemed to pierce directly toward Ye Futian. At this moment, Ye Futian appeared miniscule under that divine light.


    The man he was facing was not some ordinary cultivator of Renhuang Plane, but someone who came from a clan that ruled the Upper Worlds��Renhuang of the God Clan, its blood flowing in his body, and he belonged to the main branch of its bloodline. Sky River Great Elder was his uncle through marriage since his aunt was married to him. She had been the most coveted beauty at the time.


    For a person of such background and lineage, never mind someone from the Saint Plane, even Duan Qing from the Realm Palace of Tianhe Realm��the direct disciple of Sky River Great Elder��was hardly of enough weight to stand in front of him because they were simply not at the same level.


    At this time, Shen Yao was a little surprised. Normally, it was difficult for any ordinary Renhuang to defend against his divine eyes. But today, a man from Saint Plane was able to offer some resistance. It was no wonder his uncle had picked him as his successor; his talent was truly astounding.


    "Forgive me, Uncle, since you refused to let me take him back to the God Clan, this is what I have to do," Shen Yao said. The pressure of might was still getting stronger, and Ye Futian''s spirit soul was quivering slightly. The coercion from the Sky River Great Elder was getting stronger and stronger. It was as if it might bloom at any moment.


    At the same time, behind Shen Yao, several prominent figures of the God Clan stepped forward. All of them were releasing a terrible breath to take on the oppressive force meted out by the Sky River Great Elder.


    The entire mountain range was now in a state of suffocation, and many whose realms were weaker felt difficulty breathing, as they were greatly suppressed.


    "Your Highness."


    However, at this time, there seemed to be a very strong breath coming from afar. This breath came from a very distant place��the Realm Palace of the Tianhe Realm.


    "Father." Duan Qing raised his head and looked surprised when he sensed this breath. Why did his Father��the Emperor��suddenly appear now? What had happened?


    "Huh?" Shen Yao, the cultivator from the God Clan who was oppressing Ye Futian at the moment, also frowned. The old man next to him asked, "What does the Realm Emperor mean by this?"


    "Qi Xuangang has returned," a voice came said, and everyone perked up when they heard his words. Shen Yao''s breath dissipated quickly from Ye Futian''s body, as the rest of the cultivators also withdrew their breath. They all concentrated their attention toward the sky.


    Duan Qing''s heart was quivered. Qi Xuangang had returned?


    He didn''t expect that he would actually come back.


    A trace of disturbance flashed across the face of Sky River Great Elder. He had come back after all.


    Ye Futian''s heart trembled. He tried hard to control his expression so that he appeared calm.


    On the side, Xu Ping''an''s face turned pale, and it was a detail not missed by Shen Yao. Judging from the looks of it, when Duan Qing reported that someone had saved Xu Ping''an, that someone must have been Qi Xuangang, who had returned.


    He came back and had gone to see Xu Ping''an''s parents, but he didn''t go up on the mountain.


    If so, then the white-haired young man may have nothing to do with Qi Xuangang.


    "Where?" Shen Yao asked.


    "Outside the Realm Palace," the voice said. "He wants to see Duan Qing."


    "Let''s go back," Shen Yao spoke lightly, then immediately turned around to leave. Not only him, but all the cultivators of God Clan and Duan Qing, all turned and stepped into the void to leave.


    "Are you going?" the Sky River Great Elder transmitted his voice to Ye Futian and asked whether Ye Futian would go there or not.


    Ye Futian understood the meaning of the question. Since Master had chosen to appear, it meant that he had decided to face everything.


    If he went, could he control his emotions?


    "I will go," Ye Futian responded, and without saying anything more, the Sky River Great Elder nodded. The storm of the Great Path rolled toward Ye Futian, and the two disappeared directly from the mountain.


    "Grand Uncle-Master." Xu Ping''an''s eyes looked toward somewhere far away, her face extremely pale.


    ��


    At this time, outside the Realm Palace of Tianhe Realm.


    A figure stood there quietly, and in front of him were great groups of mighty cultivators and even the Realm Emperor of Tianhe Realm. He stood there, watching the figure that had appeared.


    Qi Xuangang had come back. He had arrived in such blunt fashion, standing in front of him like this.


    And, he was also now a Renhuang.


    Having experienced the great upheaval that happened and having left with just a grievous injury, it was not easy for him to step into the Renhuang realm at all. It was no wonder Sky River Great Elder chose him for his daughter.


    In the distance, many people gathered together. Qi Xuangang was an unfamiliar name to the Tianhe Realm today. But, once upon a time, the upheaval that was raised in Tianhe Realm because of him was a near disaster that almost destroyed the realms. Therefore, until today, many still remembered him��disciple and son-in-law of the Sky River Great Elder.


    Qi Xuangang had taken off his hat now. He stood there calmly and with honest majesty. There was no anger or fear on his face, only indifference. It was the kind of indifference that was only possible when everything had been let go of.


    He didn''t plan to appear so early or in this way. But once he knew that the God Clan was coming and had gone directly to the mountain, he decided to come out in advance; he would end it all in his own way.


    Above the sky, there was divine light descending, followed by the cultivators of the God Clan. They appeared directly at the top of the stairs, looking at Qi Xuangang.


    After Qi Xuangang was seriously injured back then, they had searched for him for many years, but they couldn''t locate him. Perhaps Qi Xuangang had been wandering about, and perhaps he had gone to some very distant place.


    They had never expected that he would come back by himself.


    Then, Duan Qing also appeared. His eyes fell on Qi Xuangang in an instant. This was outside of his expectations.


    After so many years, the man who had disappeared had come back by himself. He was not the descendant that they had guessed.


    Qi Xuangang watched the appearance of everyone quietly. It wasn''t until the Sky River Great Elder came that his eyes seemed to come alive. He turned around and looked at the old man who appeared there.


    Qi Xuangang knelt down in the direction of Sky River Great Elder, touching his forehead to the ground.


    "Since you have come back, why not go up the mountain and visit? This is already out in the open, are you still worried that it will hurt me?"


    "The disciple was inconsiderate." Qi Xuangang looked up at the Sky River Great Elder, saying, "For what happened then, the disciple could never make it up to Master and Masteress. How could I return to the mountain to see you?"


    "If you felt you couldn''t come see me, why would you come back?" asked the Sky River Great Elder with a bit of coldness. "Since you have already disappeared from this world, what can you do by coming back?"


    "There are some things that if I don''t come back to solve, my heart will not be at peace," Qi Xuangang replied. "Even though I did not visit Master on the mountain, I still have a glimmer of hope that I will see Master one more time."


    Sky River Great Elder looked at the figure, and he was speechless.


    At the time, he quite liked Qi Xuangang; otherwise, he would not have accepted him as a son-in-law. Qi Xuangang possessed a calm state of mind. The intention of his heart was extraordinary, and their philosophy was in line with one another. If Qi Xuangang was given time, he could become a great cultivator who could inherit his crafts. Unfortunately, the upheaval of the past had destroyed everything.


    "You''re quite the pupil," Sky River Great Elder responded with some displeasure. What was the price of a glance?


    Now that Qi Xuangang had appeared, the God Clan would take him away at all costs.


    His appearance meant that he could never leave again.


    "Since Junior Brother is this thoughtful, why should Master be displeased?" At this time, a voice came; it was Duan Qing. He looked at Sky River Great Elder and said, "Junior Brother returned this time, presumably so that the master may be freed from all this."


    Sky River Great Elder glanced at Duan Qing and said, "I do not have disciples who lie and cheat their teacher, seeking their destructions. You are not worthy of being my disciple."


    Duan Qing was stunned. Although what had happened was known by many back in the days, and everyone had guessed it somewhat, but it was always talked about in secret, never in public. Even Sky River Great Elder had never mentioned it.


    However, at this time, he was openly accusing him of cheating and seeking the destruction of his master. He understood that perhaps because of Qi Xuangang''s return, everything would end, and the master no longer cared.


    "I have done nothing wrong," Duan Qing said to the Sky River Great Elder. Everyone was born with their own life and their own position. He did not think that he had done anything wrong. He was a person from the Realm Palace with the blood of the royal family in his veins. All descendants of the God Clan took the will of the God Clan as their own highest will, and he was no exception. The interest of the Realm Palace was the highest interest without question.


    It was impossible for Duan Qing to watch the Realm Palace go down with Qi Xuangang. He needed to protect the Realm Palace because this was his clan, and he had to do something so that the family would continue on and emerge from that upheaval.


    Therefore, he had no regrets, and his conscience was clear. If he had to do it again, he would still choose to do the same.


    Ye Futian had been watching all this quietly, and his heart was extremely turbulent, but his face remained expressionless. Qi Xuangang had not looked at him from beginning to the end. It was as if they were really just two strangers!

 1584 To Kill

    "You''ve done nothing wrong!"


    Qi Xuangang turned to look at Duan Qing; his eyes showed chilling murderous intent. "Think about how our older senior brother treated you? Like his own brother, and taught you as if he was a father to you. When the master had no time, it was he who led you in cultivation. When you had problems in cultivation, you also asked the older senior brother for instruction. Do you remember how you led the people from the God Clan to kill the senior older brother yourself? And you''ve done nothing wrong?


    "Our older senior brother was the Gentleman Sword Emperor. He lived his whole life in the light without deception, always full of righteousness. Whenever any of our junior brothers had the need, he had always lent a helping hand, and he was betrayed by his own junior brother. When the sword was broken, he did not look at anyone else but you and asked you why. Is this how you have done nothing wrong?"


    Qi Xuangang''s voice was stern, and every word he said was full of condemnation.


    Duan Qing''s expression changed, and countless people outside the Realm Palace had heard what Qi Xuangang had to say. They were greatly shocked. Although there were rumors circulating at the time, hearing Qi Xuangang''s account of the events in public was still shocking.


    The Realm Palace had betrayed the Sky River Great Elder.


    "Do you remember how our seventh senior brother treated you? He had promised his own sister to you in marriage. And once in a dangerous situation outside, he lost an arm protecting you and almost lost his own life. Do you remember the way the seventh senior brother and his sister looked at you when they were dying? This is what you mean when you say have done nothing wrong?"


    Qi Xuangang continued to interrogate him. At the time, many of them could have escaped, but all this was caused because of the traitor, Duan Qing. None of them had thought that Duan Qing, who was fleeing with them and whom they regarded as one of their own, had secretly colluded with the God Clan and sold them out so that they were all wiped out.


    In the end, the masteress and the master fought at all costs and ended up on the verge of death. The masteress tried everything to send them away, but in the end, she sacrificed herself so that he and Feixue could escape. To him, that period of time was the darkest in his life. If it weren''t for Feixue, he would have chosen to come back and die fighting alongside his wife.


    "I needed to make a choice. Although it was difficult, I chose family," Duan Qing said. Although he looked upset, his mind was unperturbed. It was true that the master and his brother were dear to him, and he was guilty of taking part in their deaths, but if he didn''t make that choice, what would have become of his own family?


    What about the Realm Palace, then?


    Everything would have been destroyed.


    "For the family?" Qi Xuangang laughed sarcastically. "Cowards can always find an excuse for their actions. What was the attitude of the Realm Emperor when he came to our master''s door asking for your admission, calling the master the symbol of the Tianhe Realm? All these many years of knowing each other, only to have you lie about fighting together. Feigning your disdain toward the God Clan only to find out you are their lackey in secret. Is it really because all you wanted to do was to protect yourself?


    "If this was the case, you could have openly ended the relationship to draw the land and stand on the side of the God Clan. Would the God Clan destroy the Realm Palace?" Qi Xuangang looked at Duan Qing and asked, "Is this what you meant by saying you did nothing wrong?"


    The sound of his voice rocked the void, sending shockwaves into everyone''s mind.


    He had done nothing wrong? Because it was for the survival of his family?


    What a noble-sounding excuse. In truth, it was because the Sky River Great Elder was getting too powerful and had become the unofficial king of the Tianhe Realm. Thus, the Realm Palace devised a plan of destroying the Sky River Great Elder by the hands of the God Clan, so that it would become the true ruler of the Tianhe Realm.


    "Qi Xuangang." A sonorous voice came out, and the robe that was upon the Realm Emperor was flying. His gaze was fixed on Qi Xuangang. He said loudly, "While you questioned the others, you didn''t think that all this started with you?"


    Qi Xuangang looked at the Realm Emperor of Tianhe and said in a deep voice, "I am guilty. That''s why I am back."


    Some things needed closure.


    "Since you are back, come back with us to the God Clan." In another direction, the divine light that dazzled upon the body of Shen Yao of the God Clan had now descended upon Qi Xuangang. But besides that, the breath of the other cultivators of the God Clan also fell upon Qi Xuangang, already locking onto him.


    Since Qi Xuangang had come back himself, he must be taken away today, even if the Sky River Great Elder could not intervene. The great ones of the God Clan would come here to take him away.


    The moment when Qi Xuangang appeared, everything was already determined, and no one could change it.


    "That''s fine." Qi Xuangang looked at Shen Yao and said, "But before that, I want to resolve this issue between Duan Qing and me."


    The people from God Clan were watching him. The reason why they did not immediately act was that Sky River Great Elder was present, and they were still unclear about his position.


    "Master, the last thing I ask of you is that if anyone tries to intervene, no matter who it is, kill me directly, as if you are cleaning your house, and get rid of this undeserving disciple," Qi Xuangang said to the Sky River Great Elder. His voice contained a determination that alarmed those from the God Clan.


    Qi Xuangang did not ask Sky River Great Elder to stop them because Qi Xuangang did not want his master to directly engage the God Clan. He had asked Sky River Great Elder to kill him instead.


    "Very well." Sky River Great Elder nodded in agreement. A terrible might of the Way shrouded the vast space, falling directly on Qi Xuangan as if he really would kill Qi Xuangang at a moment''s notice.


    This caused those from the God Clan some concern.


    "Since he demanded a fight, Duan Qing, you will fight," Shen Yao looked at the people from the Realm Palace and said. "People from the Realm Palace are not to interfere."


    He was giving Qi Xuangang a chance to handle the grudge himself.


    But no matter how this was to end, Qi Xuangang''s fate would not change. The God Clan was determined to take him away; there was no other alternative.


    "Very well." Duan Qing also nodded and took a step forward. "After so many years, I also want to see the result of your cultivation."


    The Deed of Thorough Comprehension bloomed instantly on Qi Xuangang''s body. He stepped forward, and the void trembled violently, the divine light of the Great Path flowing about, covering Qi Xuangang''s body. In just a moment, his body transformed into the divine furnace of the Great Path, refining the Way of the world.


    "Did you feel any remorse when our older senior brother questioned you?" When Qi Xuangang moved, a voice came out, reverberating between heaven and earth, booming in Duan Qing''s mind.


    Likewise, there was also a magnificent might of Renhuang that bloomed upon Duan Qing. In an instant, as his robe fluttered, a brilliant golden glory enveloped his body. Its magnificent momentum was not any less than that of Qi Xuangang.


    Even people in the distance felt the powers of the two Renhuang and trembled inside. Some found the pressure hard to bear and stepped back in retreat, but the Sky River Great Elder and the cultivators of the God Clan still stood there without moving.


    Ye Futian also stood there, behind Sky River Great Elder, watching his master battle.


    He knew that this might be his master''s last battle.


    The endless glory of the Great Path radiated downward and descended on Qi Xuangang. The characters that signified Heaven, Earth, Water, and Fire surrounded his body and multiplied. Ancient characters filled and enshroud the endless void. They moved around the firmament until countless characters also appeared to surround Duan Qing''s body.


    The five elements of heaven and earth and the Great Path of heaven and earth, as if driven by some sort of exercise, formed a giant pattern with Qi Xuangang''s body as its center. It was the diagram of the Great Path of heaven and earth. Inside the diagram, countless characters rotated, and inside Qi Xuangang, it seemed, that there was also a similar diagram like this, which was the Divine Wheel of the Great Path that resonated with the world.


    "Our brothers died with unavenged sorrow. When they looked at you in their dying moments, did you ever feel any remorse?" Qi Xuangang asked again. He continued to step forward. Under the operation of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path, different mights of the Way appeared in the diagram, but all of them contained a majestic pressure that could destroy the world.


    At this moment, Duan Qing felt a pressure, but he wasn''t too concerned. This junior brother of his was not a top-notch talent back in the days, but through self-cultivation, he had formed a system of his own, valued by their master. It seemed that he had made something of himself and that he was actually able to incorporate the Deed of Thorough Comprehension into the Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    However, Duan Qing was no weakling, either.


    The power of the Divine Wheel erupted, and terrifying golden divine light swept across the land, struggling against the diagram of Heaven and Earth. There was a terrible sound of friction, sharp and harsh, as the two forces collided in the void.


    Qi Xuangang asked if he was remorseful.


    He was not. Even if the things he had done had hurt the others, he did nothing wrong.


    After all, there was a difference between Master and family. If everyone was an individual, then the family was the entirety. When choosing between the family and the master, especially when the master was under siege, he made the best choice he could.


    When he looked into Duan Qing''s eyes, he knew the answer.


    Under the Deed of Thorough Comprehension, the divine furnace of the Great Path turned, and its divine light was even brighter. Sacred rays of light flowed toward the diagram of the Great Path from his brow chakra. They integrated into each ancient character. At this moment, he closed his eyes, and the countless characters seemed to contain the will of Qi Xuangang. The coercion was extremely terrifying, launching its attack at Duan Qing.


    Duan Qing''s hands were forming the seal, and his body suddenly grew grander. Under the golden divine light, his body seemed to have turned into a statue of god. Facing the strong attack from Qi Xuangang, he had temporarily taken a defensive posture.


    Bang.


    Qi Xuangang took another step and went directly over the head of the statue. His eyes remain closed, but everything from the outside world could be seen in his mind.


    Qi Xuangang tilted his head up slightly. At this moment, his body seemed to be burning under the divine furnace, and his will was also burning. The ancient characters that surrounded the diagram of heaven and earth were breaking down again. Above the sky, countless characters of the Great Path appeared, seemingly without end, covering the sky.


    Qi Xuangang, at this moment, was like a god. His hands were forming a seal, and suddenly, all the infinite characters between heaven and earth came toward him, melting into his mind, into his body, and into the divine furnace.


    As endless divine light descended, Qi Xuangang, at the moment, seemed to be absorbing some incredible power. Blood came out of his closed eyes, which was shocking to behold.


    "No regrets?" Qi Xuangang whispered, and the cultivators from the God Clan in the sky frowned. One of them instantly emitted a strong breath, and Shen Yao also felt something was not quite right. He said, "Stop him."


    However, at this moment, an incomparable divine light came down. It was as if Qi Xuangang''s spiritual soul had come out of his body and came along the divine light that descended from the heavens. It landed directly in front of Duan Qing, like the divine god, and with the drop of a finger, countless characters sprinkled down with it.


    In this instant, Duan Qing''s spiritual soul was penetrated by the divine light of the Great Path, and the penetration each time burst with madness. His face showed great fear; it was completely absent of all blood and color.


    "Now, do you regret it!" A voice came through Duan Qing''s destroyed spiritual soul, and his face turned terrified. At this moment, his life passed before his eyes, and he thought of the times when he had cultivated under the tutelage of the Sky River Great Elder. He also thought of his senior brothers and their despair before they died.


    Truly, no regret at all?


    Bang!


    The dazzling light came down, and Duan Qing''s body shivered. He then fell down from the sky; his soul and spirit scattered had evaporated.

 1585 The Choice Between Life and Death

    Duan Qing��the Prince of the Realm Palace, and a Renhuang level cultivator��had fallen here.


    The two of them were at the same level, and since Duan Qing had reached that level earlier, his knowledge of it was deeper. He had already forged three Wheels of the Great Path and reached the next, most powerful part of the Renhuang plane. However, he had been wiped out by Qi Xuangang. His Divine Spirit had been destroyed, and his life force had been scattered. He had never been given a chance to surprise.


    Of course, Qi Xuanguang had used techniques that hurt himself in order to forcibly increase his power. At the same time he had killed Duan Qing, he had needed to wound himself. This is what made the others look so worried. They did not care whether Duan Qing lived or died. On the contrary, they cared more about Qi Xuangang. They couldn''t let anything bad happen to him.


    He was the only one who still knew about the disappearance of the divine item.


    At the moment that Duan Qing died, a burst of terrible energy pressed down on Qi Xuangang. His Divine Spirit returned to him in a flash, but it burned up in the furnace of the Great Path. Endless divine light from the sky still pierced his mind, and the countless characters of the great path exceeded the limit of what he could bear.


    His Divine Spirit and his body were bathed in divine fire. The burst of powerful energy began to dissipate. The endless light burst and shattered, and the will within his mind was burned away to nothingness. In a flash, his level decreased, and he was no longer as strong as before.


    "What have you done?" Terrible divine light shot out of Shen Yao''s eyes as he looked at Qi Xuangang. He could feel Qi Xuangang''s soul weakening. Previously, he had burned away his own soul in order to create will and forcibly use it in an attack. In addition to killing Duan Qing, he had also destroyed a part of his own soul.


    Qi Xuangang opened his eyes and looked up at Shen Yao. He looked incredibly calm. It was as if everything ended here with him.


    "You burned your own soul. Did you destroy a part of your memory?" The cultivator from the Shen clan strode forward, staring daggers at Qi Xuangang. But he no longer cared. He looked as if he was now free.


    He knew he had wiped away many of his own memories, and he had forgotten which ones they were. It was probably information about Feixue, and about his escape. In this way, even though the Shen clan had powerful techniques, they would have no way to gain any valuable information from his mind about Feixue.


    He had wiped away these memories. So now, Feixue must be safe, right?


    He did not know, as he no longer had those memories.


    He had forgotten, but he felt at peace.


    Jie Huang of Realm Palace walked over to Duan Qing. He cradled the body in his arms and looked at Qi Xuangang, his eyes full of killing intent.


    Today, Qi Xuangang had returned, and before everyone''s eyes had killed his son Duan Qing. He was the heir who had made great contributions to the Realm Palace. He had created the palace''s current prosperity with his own hands.


    But he had been slain by Qi Xuangang like this.


    However, he understood that the Shen clan would not allow him to take revenge.


    The Shen clan would not let Qi Xuangang die.


    "All his memories are fractured. They have been wiped away," said a powerful figure from the Shen clan, looking at Shen Yao.


    There was an ugly look in Shen Yao''s eyes. He would never have thought that his Uncle''s disciple would be so fierce. It seemed that he had already thought of everything before he had returned and had cut it all away, removing all hope for the Shen clan. Although he had returned, he did not give them a chance.


    Qi Xuangang had returned just to put an end to this matter and to kill Duan Qing.


    "This is the way things are. So give him to me," came a voice. The one who had spoken was naturally the Sky River Great Elder. He walked forward towards Qi Xuangang.


    Shen Yao looked at the Sky River Great Elder and said, "He came here to bring matters to an end of his own free will. You should not worry about this anymore."


    He would naturally not doubt the Sky River Great Elder again. Qi Xuangang had come to bring matters to an end, so he could definitely not give the information to the Sky River Great Elder. That would be foolish. Would the Sky River Great Elder be in danger because of this? Judging by Qi Xuangang''s present actions, this was impossible.


    By doing this, the Shen family could not get the information they wanted. Back when Qi Xuangang had just fled, the powerful figures of the Shen clan had searched through all of the Tianhe Realm thoroughly. Then they had spent several years searching throughout the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path for some trace of him. But they had not found him, so they had given up.


    Now he was here, which left only Feixue. And Feixue had been young when she had left. After so many years, her appearance and aura would be totally different. Even if they traveled through the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path and covered them all with their spiritual will, they would not be able to recognize her.


    But they had to bring Qi Xuangang back with them to see if they could obtain any clues from him.


    The Sky River Great Elder''s aura was terrible. It surged out from him, but Shen Yao stood in front of him calmly. Qi Xuangang turned his head with great difficulty to look back at the Sky River Great Elder and said, "Master, your disciple has not been filial. I can no longer remain by your side to take care of you, nor can I inherit your mantle."


    The Sky River Great Elder pointed at Ye Futianand said, "Your disciple can inherit my mantle. And your granddaughter is safe. I will teach her to cultivate."


    Qi Xuangang looked at Ye Futian and saw him step forward, up to the Sky River Great Elder.


    The people of the Shen clan had said that his master had ruined his own memory. It seemed that his memory of him had been wiped away as well.


    "Don''t worry, brother. I will cultivate well and take care of Master," said Ye Futian to Qi Xuangang. He bowed to him, but only him and the Sky River Great Elder understood the meaning behind the bow.


    "Mm." Qi Xuangang nodded. His face was pale, and his aura was growing weak. He looked up into the sky. He seemed to see a beautiful figure there. He should have already been with her. Why was he still alive?


    Qi Xuangang himself did not understand why he was not seeking death.


    He did not understand, but the Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian did.


    "Bring him back to the Shen clan," said Shen Yao. Chains of the Great Path fell upon Qi Xuangang, binding him up and carrying him into the sky.


    "Take care, Uncle," said Shen Yao to the Sky River Great Elder with a slight bow. Then he turned and flew up into the sky.


    Brilliant divine light flashed, and Qi Xuangang was pulled up into the sky. He grew more and more distant until, finally, he disappeared.


    Qi Xuangang looked down at his master as he was being pulled up with a calm smile. He seemed to be free from worry. He did not know why, but he felt very relaxed.


    He looked at Ye Futian as well. Why did this man look so familiar? It must be because he was another one of the Master''s disciples.


    The two of them had the same origin.


    From now on, the Master would have to rely on this other disciple.


    "Come back to us," whispered the elder as he watched the disappearing figure. Ye Futian nodded. The two of them turned and walked away as if nothing had happened. They seemed very calm, but there was some sorrow in their tranquility.


    The Sky River Great Elder was getting old.


    There were times when he felt powerless in the face of all this. If it had been in the past, he would have fought. He would not have allowed the Shen clan to take Qi Xuangang.


    But this time, he had not fought. And he had seemed calm the whole time.


    Perhaps he was truly getting old.


    Many people were looking at Tianhe Palace and at the tall and mighty emperor, as well as the fallen Duan Qing. It seemed that the Emperor had sold out the Sky River Great Elder, resulting in his three thousand disciples being killed.


    Perhaps he was numb due to the things that had happened back then��so numb that there was no passion left in him.


    Three thousand of his disciples had been killed, and now Qi Xuangang had been taken away. Would this incite him at all?


    Even Qi Xuangang had come back, willing to kill the traitors at any cost.


    He had questioned and killed Duan Qing outside the palace.


    The old man and the young man walked side by side.


    The elder''s voice appeared in Ye Futian''s mind. "Your master came here, seeking death."


    "I know," answered Ye Futian mentally. His Master had not planned to leave here alive. He had come seeking death.


    His death would be beneficial for many people.


    Feixue was well taken care of, as she was set up in a Supreme Region. His Master would not seek to drag her into any more trouble, and so he would have no contact with her. Thus, he had returned to the Tianhe Realm alone.


    "But he did not die," said the elder.


    "It''s because of me. As long as he is alive, the Shen clan''s eyes will remain on him. No one will worry about the won who will inherit his mantle," said Ye Futian. Death would be easier for his Master. He already had the will to die. But he had come to the Tianhe Realm as well, which changed his Master''s plans. When he learned that the Shen clan was coming, he had appeared earlier, right outside the palace. He had cut off any road of retreat for himself. Moreover, he had destroyed his own memory.


    Life was harder than death for him.


    Life would be full of humiliation. The Shen clan would torture him, which was something he was not willing to undergo. But as long as he was alive, they would not pay any attention to Ye Futian. When the Master was there, why would they pay attention to a disciple?


    As the two of them were talking, they reached the mountain. They stood there calmly, looking out into the distance. When she saw that they had returned, Ping''an calmed down. But she did not see Qi Xuangang, which made her sad.


    "He thinks that his death will put an end to things. But it is not that simple." As the two of them descended upon the mountain, the Sky River Great Elder looked up into the sky.


    An end?


    How could it bring an end?


    Could killing the traitor Duan Qing and dying himself bring an end to things?


    It was too early.


    Ye Futian looked at the old man.


    It was not that simple.


    "You should not leave the mountain again. You should stay here and cultivate. Then you will reach the Renhuang plane faster," continued the Sky River Great Elder. Ye Futian nodded.


    The elder looked off into the distance and said Ping''an coming towards them. He smiled warmly when he saw her pretty face.


    "Ping''an," he said.


    "Teacher." Ping''an looked at him. She looked like she was going to say more, then stopped. She wanted to ask something, but she did not.


    "Do you want to live somewhere else? Find a spiritual partner? Give up everything and choose a different life?" asked the Sky River Great Elder.


    Ping''an looked up at him, and her eyes hardened. She shook her head. She did not say anything, but her answer was in her eyes.


    The elder nodded slightly. He reached out and gently patted her on the shoulder. He looked off into the distance.


    If she didn''t want to, then she didn''t have to!

 1586 Breaking Through

    Things calmed down as the news of what had happened at the Realm Emperor''s Palace spread. Even after these things happened, the palace was still standing, and was, in fact, even more prosperous than before. Many people could faintly guess what was going on.


    But those who had actually been present for the events kept their lips sealed, and no one brought them up. The Sky River Great Elder did not ask about anything that had happened. He seemed to have been badly shocked, and gradually people stopped trying to guess what had happened to him. Moreover, since he did not ask about outside affairs, the Realm Emperor Palace soon became an invincible force within the Tianhe Realm.


    But now the Realm Emperor Palace''s power was called into question. Qi Xuangang''s questioning voice still rang through everyone''s ears. The Realm Emperor Palace had thoroughly sold out the Sky River Great Elder. By extremely despicable means they had been allied with him on the surface, while secretly working with the Shen Clan in order to wipe out his disciples.


    Duan Qing had certainly deserved to die. He had done everything for the benefit of his family, but what about all those who had died as a result of his actions?


    However, winners wrote history books. Even though people knew of the Realm Emperor Palace''s treachery, they still stood at the peak of the Tianhe Realm, so no one dared to say anything.


    Presumably, they had always been afraid of the Sky River Great Elder.


    They had not done anything about Duan Qing''s death.


    As time passed, fewer and fewer people were talking about these events. Ye Futian spent his time cultivating on the mountain.


    The Deed of Thorough Comprehension contained the will of the five elements and the eight trigrams, making it extremely mystical. It even allowed one to use these powers in their own cultivation. This was incredibly useful to someone like Ye Futian, who cultivated many different techniques.


    Moreover, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was connected to the Worldly Great Path. Just like the people of the Tianhe Realm wanted to become the Sky River Great Elder''s disciples and get closer to him, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension allowed one to get closer to successfully forging a spirit of the Way and rush towards the Renhuang plane.


    Ye Futian cultivated day by day, and his understanding grew deeper and deeper. He felt that it would not be long before he reached the next level. His divine spirit was integrated into the Worldly Great Path. He was one with the Way. He had no personhood nor self, no possessions, nor self-image. He was the Way.


    He was being raised to a higher level. This was why, although the next level seemed to be only a step away, it was a very difficult step to take.


    The 10,034th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar gradually drew to a close. Ye Futian had been here for almost a year. It began to snow in Tianhe City, and for many days, the city was covered in a blanket of white, making it look magnificent.


    The mountain that Ye Futian was on became snowy as well. The land and sky around him became even more ethereal.


    Upon the snowy mountain, an elderly man was training a woman in the art of cultivation. The two of them were very serious about this.


    Naturally, this was the Sky River Great Elder and Ping''an. She had been advancing very quickly under his tutelage. She was already very talented. After all, the blood of the foremost Sword Emperor of the Tianhe Realm flowed through her veins. Thus, she was naturally skilled at swordsmanship.


    Xu Ping''an was training with the sword amidst the snow. The Sky River Great Elder watched her calmly. His gaze gradually lifted into the sky. He whispered, "It''s been almost 50 years."


    "What has been almost 50 years, Master?" came a voice. A white-haired figure strode towards him through the snow, leaving footprints behind him. He was dressed all in white. It was as if he was a part of the snow. Only his eyes were dark.


    Ye Futian strode to the Sky River Great Elder''s side, and the two of them watched Xu Ping''an train.


    "How is your cultivation going?" the Sky River Great Elder did not answer Ye Futian''s question, instead asking a question of his own.


    "I will not need too much longer," said Ye Futian. He had a feeling that he was not far away from full comprehension.


    "Ah. Well, if you have an epiphany, don''t rush yourself to break through to the next level. Don''t become a Renhuang for the time being," said the elder.


    "Why?" A look of doubt came over Ye Futian''s face. What did he mean?


    He had told him to rush towards the Renhuang plane, but not to actually enter it.


    "Didn''t you ask what had been almost 50 years? Something is going to happen next year," said the Sky River Great Elder.


    Ye Futian was silent for a moment, then nodded. He did not ask anymore.


    "How old are you, Futian?" the Sky River Great Elder asked curiously.


    "I will be 50 this year," said Ye Futian.


    "Exactly 50?" asked the Sky River Great Elder.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Yes." Without realizing it, he had reached the age of 50. If he had been a normal person, he would already be old.


    "What a coincidence," said the Sky River Great Elder with a smile. He did not say anything else.


    "Coincidence?"


    Ye Futian did not know what the Sky River Great Elder was speaking of. He did not say anything else, and Ye Futian did not ask.


    Ye Futian sat down, right on the snowy ground beside the Sky River Great Elder. He watched Ping''an training before them.


    Although she was at the Noble level, she still seemed like a little girl in his eyes. This must have shown a change in his state of mind. In the past, he had looked at Nobles as if they were so high above him. He thought they could be rulers of their own small countries.


    Now when he looked at them, they seemed like his juniors. He could not quite express the feeling this gave him, but it was only natural that this should happen.


    And in reality, he was only 50 years old. In the past, many Nobles had been much older than that.


    This showed how his state of mind had gradually changed. Even though he was only 50, he had much more experience than most people his age. He had even lived a more colorful life than some people who were several hundred years old.


    Fifty years of cultivation. He had come from the smallest mortal world all the way to the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, the Supreme Realm. Every step had been sure and steady, and he had experienced so much. His state of mind was probably better than those old men who were hundreds of years old.


    "You are still watching Ping''an cultivate," came the Sky River Great Elder''s voice from behind him, bringing him back to the present.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. His gaze was still upon Ping''an, watching her train with the sword. His eyes softened. It was as if he was watching his own junior. Ping''an was indeed his junior. He knew that the Master felt a great deal of guilt towards Ping''an. She was the last member of the former Sword Emperor of the Tianhe Realm''s bloodline.


    Snowflakes filled the air. Although her sword will was full of murderous intent, Ye Futian could still feel the beauty of her swordsmanship. As she trained in the snow, her sword cut through flying snowflakes. Ye Futian watched her, once again falling into distant memories.


    He thought of when he was young. The snowflakes that filled the air seemed to pull him back to decades long ago. When he was still young and cultivating at Qingzhou Academy, Yu Sheng had been there, as well as Jieyu, Qin Yi, and Master Hua Fengliu.


    He would never forget that time. It seemed so wonderful when he remembered it now.


    He also thought of Donghai City, of the Cangye Kingdom, of the Eastern Barren Territory, of Book Mountain, and of the Cottage.


    More figures appeared in his mind: Yi Xiang, Ye Tianzi, Mr. Du, forming scenes from his memories. These memories were imprinted in his mind, and he would never forget them. Thinking back on them now, it was like they were happening right before his eyes. That was how beautiful they were.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was very relaxed, more relaxed than he had ever been before. He had not felt like this since he had come to the Supreme Realm because he had so much on his plate and had experienced so much. Just this year, he had seen his Master get taken away, and who knew what kind of effect that had had on him?


    He had been silent at the time, so only he knew what he had been feeling.


    The wind blew, and snowflakes fell upon Ye Futian. He was still watching Ping''an train. She seemed to blur before his eyes.


    Gradually, her figure seemed to grow further and further away. She was no longer right in front of him. His consciousness seemed to fly to a faraway place. He was no longer standing on the ground but was high up in the sky.


    His consciousness became a snowflake in the wind. He danced in the air. He could see not only Ping''an, but also the entire snowy mountain, then the entire mountain range. All of it was before his eyes.


    The snow grew deeper and deeper as he danced in the wind like a feather. He did not know how long he remained like that. Finally, the sword stopped, and the sword will dissipated. Ping''an had stopped cultivating. Previously, the snowflakes could not fall upon her due to the sword qi, but now that she had stopped, they began to land on her.


    She reached out and picked up a handful of snow. A bright, beautiful smile appeared on her face, as pure and unblemished as jade.


    "What is wrong with him?" A look of confusion came over her face when she saw that Ye Futian was completely covered in snow, standing there as peacefully as a snowman. His breathing was even. Other than the snow that had been melted by the heat of his breath, the rest of him was covered in snow.


    He did not react when Ping''an stopped cultivating. A strange look came over her face. Could it be that he was cultivating?


    Thinking of this, she decided not to disturb him. She feared she would break his concentration.


    At that moment, a burst of wind blew over the mountain, sending snowflakes flying. The snow danced as it flew off of Ye Futian.


    The wind blew on Ping''an as well, making her shiver. She seemed to feel something, but could not quite grasp it. It was a marvelous feeling.


    "What is this?" she whispered. As the wind blew, Ye Futian opened his eyes and stood with a smile.


    "You''re awake," said Ping''an.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Yes," he said. "PIng''an, I have cultivated swordsmanship as well, and thus have some small understanding of it. Let me show you something. Perhaps it will be helpful."


    "Alright," said Ping''an with a slight nod. Was Ye Futian going to teach her some of his swordsmanship?


    He had taught her a little bit already, but not like this.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s eyes became brilliant, and sword will seemed to swirl around them.


    "Do not resist," he said. He looked at Ping''an, and she felt spiritual will enter into her mind. She saw one sword at first, and then countless swords of the Great Path. Each word seemed to contain the essence of the Great Path.


    In a flash, her mind was filled with swords. All that was left in the world were swords. She had entered into a world of swords.


    Ye Futian looked away quickly, and his eyes became calm again. The understanding of swordsmanship that he had gained over the years had been directly imprinted into Ping''an''s mind in a unique way. How her swordsmanship would develop from here depended on her.


    Ye Futian turned and walked away through the snow. Snowflakes were still falling upon him.


    Ping''an still stood there, as if she had frozen. Sword will flowed through her endlessly. After a while, her sword qi rose within her. Xu Ping''an had broken through to the next level!

 1587 350 Years

    The snow continued at the end of the 10,034th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar for a while. The flying snowflakes dyed Tianhe City a silvery color.


    On the last day of the year, the city was very busy. Lantern light lit up the night sky until it was as bright as day.


    Every household had lit their lanterns, and people were walking and running through the streets.


    Within the Realm Palace of the Tianhe Realm, many of the halls were lit up with brilliant divine light. The light shot out into the sky, lighting up the dark night with divine radiance.


    This was fated to be an extraordinary night.


    In Tianhe City, a little girl pulled at an elder''s hand and asked, "Grandpa, why is it so lively tonight?" She was very curious. She was more than ten years old and knew many things. She had seen new year celebrations before but had never seen an atmosphere like this.


    It seemed as if Tianhe City was particularly looking forward to the coming year. Even the Realm Palace seemed different. It was taking this very seriously. The whole city was rejoicing together.


    "It''s because this is going to be a special year," answered the old man.


    "A special year?" The girl did not understand. "Why is it special?" she asked.


    "You will understand when you are older." The old man patted her head with a smile, his eyes full of kindness. He looked up into the sky. Many years ago, the Tianhe Realm had experienced a great storm. The chaos of the world seemed like it would never stop, but the contributions that they had made were invaluable in bringing an end to a dark and chaotic time.


    Up on the snowy mountain, Ye Futian was seated in cultivation. He could sense the merriment in Tianhe City in his thoughts, and could not help but feel a little confused. Did Tianhe City really make such a big deal about the New Year?


    Over the years, he had found that the place he had felt had had the most New Year''s spirit was Qingzhou City, where he had started out. As he had come to more and more impressive cities and more powerful realms, he had found that the New Year''s spirit weakened. The people were concerned with pursuing power and cultivating, and so they lacked some of the passion of the people of Qingzhou City.


    Now he was seeing such a marvelous sight here in Tianhe City. Could it be that this was some kind of tradition?


    At that moment, a figure walked to his side. She looked off into the distance, and her thoughts seemed to go out over there as well. She seemed to remember something, and a tear trickled down from the corner of her eye.


    "Ping''an," Ye Futian looked to the woman beside him and said softly, "are you thinking of your parents?"


    "Yes." Ping''an smiled slightly and nodded. She looked at Ye Futian and said, "I must look like a fool to you."


    "Their wish before they died was for you to live peacefully and happily. Ping''an, do not be sad," said Ye Futian comfortingly.


    "I''m not, I''m just thinking of when I was with them. It is not purely sadness," said Ping''an with a smile. "Let''s go out into the city and celebrate the New Year with everyone."


    "Alright," said Ye Futian with a nod. The two of them smiled at each other, then stepped through the air down the mountain.


    Before long, they had come to Tianhe City. People walked on the roads in an endless stream. There were no conflicts between people on this day, and no one challenged anyone else to a fight. Everyone was very modest and accommodating. Even if there was friction between them, they had only to smile, and things would sort themselves out.


    Many people took their children out with them onto the streets to experience the friendly atmosphere.


    "It would be wonderful if the world was always like this," said Ping''an with a smile as she watched this beautiful scene.


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. This was definitely just a flight of fancy.


    They two of them wandered aimlessly. They were not headed anywhere in particular; they were just sightseeing. Perhaps Ping''an wanted to walk on familiar roads, ones that she had trodden in New Year''s past.


    "Do you have anyone that you miss?" Ping''an looked up at Ye Futian beside her. His white hair melded into the white snow, and it was impossible to tell them apart. With his handsome face and piercing eyes, he clearly had some stories to tell.


    He was refined and cultivated, handsome and kind, and had a great amount of talent. There must be many women chasing him. So why did he have white hair as a young man?


    He may have been 50, but for a cultivator at the peak of the Saint level, this was quite young. Even if his cultivation did not advance at all, his face would still be unchanged after several hundred years.


    "Of course," said Ye Futian with a smile. "There are many people that I miss."


    "Who?" asked Ping''an curiously.


    "My love, my teachers, my friends, and my brothers. I miss many people," said Ye Futian.


    "If you miss them, why don''t you go and find them?" asked Ping''an. Her level was too low, so she had been unable to protect her parents. But Ye Futian was very powerful. He was at the peak of the Saint plane, and there was no one below the Renhuang level who could match him.


    "It is impossible to be satisfied in all aspects of life. Everyone has hardships. I want to be with them, and that is why I cultivate," said Ye Futian.


    Ping''an nodded. "I understand." Was her own cultivation not also to protect her parents?


    Ye Futian must have his own stories as well.


    "Is there a lake in Tianhe City?" asked Ye Futian.


    Ping''an nodded, "Yes, there is. Do you want to go see it?"


    Ye Futian nodded. "Yes."


    "Then I''ll take you." Ping''an led the way. Before long, they had come to the edge of a lake. It was very busy here as well, with people sailing across the lake on small boats. Some of them were lighting lamps and making wishes.


    It was an incredibly familiar scene.


    A bright smile came over Ye Futian''s face. He loved lakes, perhaps because all his best memories took place beside them. They were memories from his youth.


    At that moment, brilliant, beautiful light flashed in their eyes. Ye Futian looked up and saw that the sky was full of fireworks. At that moment, his memories seemed to overlap, and time seemed to flow backward.


    Many cheers rang out over the lake as the fireworks bloomed in the sky.


    The 10,035th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar had finally come.


    "It''s so beautiful," whispered Ping''an. She looked at Ye Futian. In the light from the fireworks, his handsome face looked even more extraordinary.


    A beautiful woman and a nobleman were perfectly matched for each other.


    Perhaps Ye Futian was just such a man.


    When he smiled like that, was he thinking of the person that he loved?


    This was fated to be an extraordinary night.


    ...


    The Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Higher Heavens Realm were both members of the Nine Supreme Realms. Thus, they stood at the peak of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    However, the strongest of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had no conflicts. It was the realm that stood at the center of the Nine Supreme Realms��the Imperial Realm. All of the Nine Supreme Realms acknowledged this without hesitation.


    The Shen clan was a power of the Imperial Realm. Thus, even the Tianhe Realm, which was under their control, was very strong. Many powerful Renhuangs came from there, including the Sky River Great Elder.


    In the center of the Imperial Realm was a mighty divine palace, so tall that it reached into the sky and pierced through the clouds. It was holy and mighty.


    The palace was covered in endless divine light. Everyone who walked by it felt incredibly pious and bowed down before it.


    This was the symbol of the Imperial Realm��Void Emperor Palace.


    It was said that this place was once the personal palace of Donghuang the Great.


    Now there was a statue of the great emperor within the palace. It was said that he had left some of his Divine Spirit within the image.


    At that moment, nine clouds were floating above Void Emperor Palace.


    Incomparably holy divine light shone down from the sky, forming into seven beams of light. All of the clouds in the vast, endless sky seemed to be surging.


    At that moment, a beam of divine light shone down from the high heavens upon the tall palace.


    Afterward, an invisible wave swept down from the heavens.


    Dong!


    The sound of a bell ringing spread throughout the sky.


    The sound melded into the world, becoming a formless rhythm. It sounded like thunder that pierced through the sky.


    There were many top powers, tall palaces, and mighty halls within the Imperial Realm. Many people were praying to heaven, and thousands of people knelt behind them.


    Dong!


    The bell rang again, and the people praying to heaven bowed as if they had known the sound of the bell would come.


    "The prophecy is coming, and we await it here," said a solemn elder up on the sacrificial platform. They were all waiting for a prophecy to come from Void Emperor Palace.


    The Shen clan was one of the top forces in the Imperial Realm.


    But at that moment, many members of the Shen clan were gathered together, looking off into the distance.


    Dong!


    The bell rang again, filling everyone''s minds with its sound.


    And it was not only them. The Imperial Realm''s seemingly endless land made it the largest of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. At that moment, countless souls heard the ringing of the bell.


    What was more, the bell was ringing throughout all the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. It went out towards the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Higher Heavens Realm, and all of the Nine Supreme Realms.


    It rang out in the Divine Palace of the Higher Heavens Realm, in the Golden Divine Nation, and on Taixuan Mountain.


    It rang out in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, in Brahma''s Pure Sky, and in the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    No one knew how to describe this sound. It was a miracle, truly the work of the gods.


    As the bell rang, a group of figures wearing identical clothing walked out of Void Emperor Palace. They flashed away in different directions. It seemed like they were heading to the Nine Supreme Realms.


    Far away in the Tianhe Realm, Ye Futian and Ping''an had returned to the snowy mountain. Light bloomed in the sky, lighting up the clouds, and sunlight fell.


    As the 10,035th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar started, it seemed as if everything was starting anew.


    Dong!


    At that moment, the sound of the bell rang over the mountain. Ye Futian opened his eyes as he sat there cross-legged. He looked up into the sky, and his thoughts stretched out. A look of surprise came over his face. He felt the ringing sound descend from the sky. It was everywhere at once. It filled Tianhe City.


    "Where is that sound coming from?" His heart was in turmoil. He rose into the air, trying to find the source of that sound.


    An elder stepped out onto the snowy ground, looking up into the sky.


    "Master." Ye Futian alighted beside the elder, a questioning look on his face.


    The old man was still looking into the sky. He said, "The 10,035th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar is the start of a new era. Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture 350 years ago. If we count from this, we can also say that it is the 350th year of Donghuang''s Calendar!"

 1588 Gods Relic

    It was the 350th year of the Donghuang Calendar.


    It had been 350 years since Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing unified the whole world.


    Ye Futian was moved when he heard what the elder said. It all seemed so far away from him, but he still felt that it was connected to him.


    He was 50 years old this year.


    He had been born 300 years after Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing had unified the Divine Prefecture.


    And it seemed that there had been nothing ordinary about his birth.


    Thus, it seemed that Tianhe City was not just lively because of the New Year, but also because this year had special meaning. It was also a nice round number year for the Divine Prefecture. His own age was also at a nice round number. This clearly meant something.


    100 years marked an era in the Divine Prefecture. 50 years would then be half an era.


    "Does anyone actually use the phrase ''Donghuang Calendar''?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Some do," said the Sky River Great Elder with a nod. "When Donghuang the Great unified the world and the many realms of the Divine Prefecture became one, he and Emperor Ye Qing naturally had the right to make a new calendar. But they did not. Even so, many people still count time by the Donghuang Calendar. But since he didn''t change it, people still mainly use the Divine Prefecture Calendar."


    "Where is that bell coming from?" asked Ye Futian. The ringing sound was coming from the sky and sounding throughout Tianhe City.


    The elder looked up into the sky and said softly, "Every 50 years, a bell rings out from the Empty Imperial Palace in the Imperial Realm, meaning that the prophecy is coming into the world. If I''m not wrong, divine messengers should be coming out of the Empty Imperial Palace right now."


    "The Imperial Realm." Ye Futian''s heart trembled. Was this ringing coming from the impossibly distant Imperial Realm?


    Naturally, he knew of the Imperial Realm��the greatest of the Nine Supreme Realms of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    The Imperial Realm was also known as the Central Emperor Realm, and it was the head of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. The other eight Supreme Realms surrounded it, and the other realms of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path surrounded them.


    How could this ringing sound cross through so many realms?


    "There''s nothing strange about this. The bell ringing in the Empty Imperial Palace announces the prophecy, and it rings at the Great Emperor''s command. Its ringing goes out to the Nine Supreme Realms, and from there to all of the other realms. The Tianhe Realm is within this area, and that is why we are able to hear it," explained the elder.


    "What is the Empty Imperial Palace? And what is the prophecy?" asked Ye Futian. There were too many things that he did not understand.


    A single bell could be heard throughout countless realms. What kind of power would allow it to be heard throughout the Nine Supreme Realms?


    "The Empty Imperial Palace is the emblem of the Imperial Realm. It is the Great Emperor''s home among the 3,000 Reams of the Divine Path. If there is nothing special about this prophecy, it will be the same as always. It will speak of God''s Relic," explained the Sky River Great Elder. "This is why I wanted you to temporarily delay becoming a Renhuang. I wanted you to go there."


    "God''s Relic," whispered Ye Futian. He understood. This relic of "God" would be different than the ones he had encountered before. The fact that it invoked the name "God" showed how extraordinary it was.


    The so-called "God''s" Relic was very likely real.


    "Why is it the ''Empty Imperial Palace,'' and not just the ''Empty Palace''?" asked Ye Futian softly. "Where is Renhuang the Great if not in the Imperial Realm?"


    "He is there, and yet he is not there," answered the Sky River Great Elder. "This world is not the true world."


    "Then what about the true world? Is it the same there?" asked Ye Futian.


    The Sky River Great Elder looked at him and said, "If you are successful in the god''s trials, you will have a chance to find this out for yourself."


    "When will I go?" asked Ye Futian.


    "The prophecy is coming, and soon all the Nine Supreme Realms will receive it. At that time, they will all send out their disciples. Then, the God''s Relic will be open for a period of time. However, we can go early. The prophecy will not come to the Tianhe Realm. Thus we need to find a power that will receive it and go with them," said the Sky River Great Elder.


    "Can all of the Nine Supreme Realms take part in this?" asked Ye Futian. "Who is going to receive the prophecy?"


    "Technically, anyone in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path can take part. However, only those powers that receive the prophecy will be able to bring them there. Thus, if one wants to go to the God''s Relic, they must first receive the approval of one of the powers that received the prophecy. As for who will get the prophecy, the Empty Imperial Palace have their own plans for that. If there are no mishaps, it will be the greatest forces in the Nine Supreme Reals," answered the Sky River Great Elder.


    "In that case, Taixuan Mountain will receive it as well," whispered Ye Futian. If that was so, he could naturally go with them. If not, then the Divine Elephants from the Heavenly Mandate Realm would work as well.


    If he wanted to take part, they would definitely let him.


    "How strong are the people below the Renhuang level at Taixuan Mountain?" asked the Sky River Great Elder.


    "They are not that strong," said Ye Futian. There was a great gap between the disciples of Taixuan Mountain and those of the Divine Capital of Xiling. The only ones who could truly count were the four great disciples of Lord Taixuan. The younger generation was not as good. When compared to the people from the vastness of the Nine Supreme Realms, they would be at a severe disadvantage, and would not be able to put up a fight.


    During the trip to the Divine Palace, the disciples of Taixuan Mountain had all been clearly inferior, save for him.


    This time, it would not only be the top forces of the Higher Heavens Realm but all the forces of the Nine Supreme Realms.


    And in reality, that meant the top forces of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. All of them would likely be there.


    The God''s Relic opened once every 50 years. It was the training that Donghuang the Great had prepared for them. Thus, it was obvious how prestigious this event was. It would naturally shake the Nine Supreme Realms, and even the entire world.


    The bell that was ringing throughout the Nine Supreme Realms was just the start.


    "In that case, you need some allies. I will consider for a while, then send you to a force that will take you to the Imperial Realm and grant you success at God''s Relic," said the Sky River Great Elder. Ye Futian saw that he had fallen into deep thought and did not disturb him.


    In reality, given his current level, even though the cultivators from the Nine Supreme Realms would gather like clouds, there were few who would be a match for him.


    Now, people like Li Daozi and Yi Tianyu were no longer a match for him. Only people like Huang Zhong of the Divine Temple would be able to challenge him, or people who were even stronger.


    Although Huang Zhong was said to be the most powerful person in the Higher Heavens Realm below the Renhuang plane, there would certainly be other people in the Nine Supreme Realms who were stronger.


    The Nine Supreme Realms were so vast, and the Imperial Realm was at their center. There would certainly be many heroic figures.


    Empty Emperor Palace was at the center of the Imperial Realm. The Sky River Great Elder had known to tell him not to break through to the next level for the time being. Would the top figures of the Central Emperor Realm know to do that as well? Certainly, some of them would suppress their level for this.


    This time, the cultivators would certainly gather like clouds.


    He did not say anything. His Master was clearly thinking about things for him. As long as he could find him an ally, he didn''t mind.


    "What time should I leave?" asked Ye Futian.


    "How has your cultivation been going?" replied the Sky River Great Elder.


    "There have been no problems," said Ye Futian. The Sky River Great Elder looked at him. In reality, he could already sense this. He nodded slightly, then turned to look at the woman cultivating in the distance.


    "Ping''an," he called. "Keep cultivating on the mountain. Do not go down. Ye Futian and I are leaving for a while."


    Ping''an looked back at him. "Alright," she answered.


    "Let''s go," said the Sky River Great Elder to Ye Futian. There was no need for him to stay in the Tianhe Realm, so why not bring Ye Futian to the Central Emperor Realm a little early?


    Ye Futian nodded. "Alright." A burst of powerful will covered him, then the two of them shot up into the air.


    This was the second time that Ye Futian had been transported across realms. The first time was when Lord Taixuan had brought him to the Tianhe Realm.


    This time, he was going from the Tianhe Realm to the center of the Nine Supreme Realms. Indeed, it was the center of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path: The Imperial Realm.


    ...


    The Central Emperor Realm, the largest of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, had many powerful forces within it, and endless cultivators.


    In this realm, when cultivators went outside, they did not dare be too arrogant. There were simply too many of them.


    Among those forces that stood at the top of the Central Emperor Realm, any one of their names was enough to make it so that a common cultivator would find it hard to breathe. There were many ancient clans that had passed down their techniques since ancient times, as well as families that had weathered generations of hardships. All of them were powerful and had depths beyond measure.


    The most powerful forces of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were gathered here, as well as the most powerful figures.


    The greatest heroes of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were finally gathered together in one place.


    A member of the Shen clan walked out towards a magnificent palace. "What is it?" came a voice from within.


    "The Sky River Great Elder has left the Tianhe Realm. He is likely already on the way to the Imperial Realm. It is probably because of the bell," the man answered with a bow.


    "I understand," came the voice from within the palace.


    "Should we do anything about it?" asked the man.


    "He is focused on the person who is going to inherit his mantle. For the time being, we don''t need to do anything," answered the man within the palace. "Did we find out anything from Qi Xuangang?"


    "Not yet." The man lowered his head.


    "Heal him. Help him recover his divine spirit and his memory," said the man within the palace. They had Qi Xuangang in their hands, and so there was no more information that the Sky River Great Elder could provide them. Now, all they could do was work hard to help Qi Xuangang recover. Even if he only regained a little bit of his memory, it would be good.


    "Yes, sir." The man bowed, then turned to leave.


    While this was going on, the Shen clan was very busy. Many of them were preparing for the God''s Relic.


    And it was not only the Shen clan; the Nine Realms had all heard the prophecy, and so they were all preparing for this. Other realms were even busier as they prepared for this magnificent time.


    When the bell rang, the Nine Realms were thrown into turmoil.


    In a foggy place within the Imperial Realm, there was a magnificent divine mansion that reached into the clouds.


    Below it stretched many tall mountain peaks. They were like pillars that held up the mansion.


    In front of the mansion, there was a sky stairwell that went down from the sky, connecting it to a faraway place. As it went on, the sky stairwell reached the mansion, which was extremely spectacular.


    This was an extremely prestigious place within the Imperial Realm: the Sky Reaching Peaks.


    At that moment, two figures appeared before the sky stairwell. One was young, and one was old. The old man was very noble, and the young man had white hair. The two of them had powerful auras.


    It was the Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian!

 1589 Lowered Head

    The Central Emperor Realm had the most and the strongest forces.


    And the Sky Reaching School occupied a place all its own.


    The divine mansion upon the Sky Reaching Peaks that the Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian had arrived at was the Sky Reaching School.


    The Vice Hierophant of the Sky Reaching School and I were once friends. The school''s disciples were also once very powerful. If you go with them to the God''s Relic, it will perhaps be a little easier for you," said the Sky River Great Elder. Countless cultivators would be going on this trip. All the heroes of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were gathered together for this chance given to them by the Great Emperor.


    Although Ye Futian was incredibly talented, it would be extremely difficult for him to do this by himself. A little carelessness would lead him to a dead end.


    "However, the Sky Reaching Master is very proud, and his disciples all have a bit of that characteristic as well. I was friends with the vice hierophant in the past, but things are different now, and I might be refused. You should not get your hopes up too much," said the Sky River Great Elder. Ye Futian nodded slightly.


    It seemed like he had given this a lot of thought and had a clear view of the situation. He had once been a son in law of the Shen clan with great power and a bright future. Now things were different, and it would be perfectly normal if he was refused.


    But he had come anyway, placing his honor on the line. He was the Sky River Great Elder, and so it was easy to imagine what kind of proud figure he had been in the past. The years had affected him greatly, and his personality had changed as well.


    The two of them ascended the sky stairwell. Ye Futian looked at the scene before him. Below the stairs was an endless abyss in addition to the huge mountain peaks that reached into the sky and supported the mansion. The abyss was filled with a frightening aura, and flames of the Way danced within it while destructive lightning flashed. It was a terrible mixture of destructive power, and terrifying light shone upon the stair continuously.


    They could feel an incredibly threatening atmosphere at the top of the stairs.


    What was more frightening was that they could see figures cultivating down in that abyss of chaotic destruction. An infinite abyss was actually being used as a place for cultivation.


    The two of them walked up to the mansion. There was a huge gate in front of it, with two guards outside. They looked at the two people coming towards them.


    At that moment, a figure walked out of the gate and bowed slightly to the Sky River Great Elder. "The Vice Hierophant knows you have come, and he ordered me to come and greet you. Please come in."


    The Sky River Great Elder nodded. "Thank you." He did not feel like there was anything strange about this. They had just come up the sky stairwell, so it was only natural that someone would be waiting for them.


    The Sky Reaching School was very large, like a real mansion. Walking into from the outside, they had to greatly increase their speed in order to reach a magnificent ancient temple within. A middle-aged man wearing a robe patterned with dark flames walked out to meet them. His jet black hair hung down to his brow, and he had a dark beard. He was broad-shouldered and imposing.


    "It has been many years, Sky River Great Elder. You have changed a lot," said the middle-aged man. His voice was like thunder, shaking in people''s eardrums as he spoke. For someone at Ye Futian''s level, hearing him talk shook his very state of mind. It was obvious that this was a powerful man.


    Moreover, he had not done this on purpose. He was naturally like this.


    "I have indeed been most impolite," said the Sky River Great Elder with a smile. "Futian, this is the Vice Hierophant of the Sky Reaching School. He is an old friend of mine."


    "Greetings, elder. My name is Ye Futian," said Ye Futian with a bow. He did not hide his identity. All the powerful cultivators of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were going on this trip, especially those from top forces. Thus, there was no point in hiding himself.


    Even though the people of the Central Emperor Realm had heard of him, and most of them knew he had once been Lord Taixuan''s disciple who was the Sky River Great Elder''s good friend, the people of the Higher Heavens thought that he was still Lord Taixuan''s disciple. The people of the Shen clan knew the truth, that Lord Taixuan had sent him to the Tianhe Realm, but they would not think too much of this.


    If his previous master had not shown up, the Shen clan would have investigated him. But since they had taken his previous master, they were not paying any attention to Ye Futian. They had already taken Qi Xuangang, so why would they pay any more attention to his disciple?


    Master Qi Xuangang had really only appeared twice. The first time was at the battle of Demon God Mountain, where few people knew him. The second time, more people had seen him. He had defeated Yi Tianyu, but no one heard his name. He did not care about people knowing about his name. The people of the Great Li Sacred Dynasty only knew him as the Imperial Adviser.


    If someone wanted to investigate him, they would see how talented his student Ye Futian was. He had cultivated at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, had once defeated Yi Tianyu, had cultivated at Taixuan Mountain and had defeated all opponents at the Divine Palace. Thus, people would have ignored Qi Xuangang.


    Thus, unless they thoroughly investigated everything about him from top to bottom, there was basically no chance of exposing the fact that they had been master and student.


    The Vice Hierophant looked at Ye Futian and said, "I would never have thought that the Sky River Great Elder would take another personal disciple. You must be incredibly talented."


    There were a few disciples by the Vice Hierophant''s side. Their eyes were like lightning, and their auras were magnificent as they looked at Ye Futian.


    "I am getting old, and so, naturally, I wished to find someone who could inherit my mantle," said the Sky River Great Elder. "Futian is indeed incredibly talented. He is now at the peak of the Saint plane. I brought him here to ask you a favor: can he go to the God''s Relic trials with the students of the Sky Reaching School?"


    A deep look came into the Vice Hierophant''s eyes as he looked at Ye Futian. He was silent for a while, then said, "Sky River Great Elder, you and I were once very close. Anything you ask, I will do for you. But you know, the God''s Relic is incredibly important at this time, and we can''t afford any mistakes. Even my master is paying close attention to it. If I let you disciple come with us, it might attract hostile attention from the Shen clan, and it might make them our enemies. This would not be a good thing for the Sky Reaching School. Thus, I fear I have no power to do this for you."


    When he heard what the Vice Hierophant was saying, the Sky River Great Elder nodded slightly and said, "I do not wish to trouble you any further, friend, so I will say no more. Farewell."


    "Won''t you stay for a while?" asked the Vice Hierophant.


    "I can''t, I have to bring him to other places," said the Sky River Great Elder.


    "Very well, then I won''t see you off." The Vice Hierophant did not stay any longer, and so they said farewell and left.


    The two of them gradually faded in the distance, then disappeared from vision. The Vice Hierophant sighed and said, "I never thought the Sky River Great Elder would come here begging for us to take his disciple to the God''s Relic. He is indeed getting old."


    This is something that absolutely never would have happened in the past.


    He was the Sky River Great Elder. He had married a daughter of the Shen clan and dared to defy them.


    Now, his heroic days were long past. He only wanted to pass on his mantle.


    "There will be many cultivators on this trip to the God''s Relic, and the Sky River Great Elder is asking us to oppose the Shen clan for his disciple. He thinks a little too highly of himself," said a youth beside him whose eyes shone with the light of thunder and fire. His voice was cold and mocking. He had no respect for an elder like the Sky River Great Elder.


    When the Sky River Great Elder had made a name for himself, he had not been born yet.


    The Vice Hierophant smiled. The Sky River Great Elder had always regarded himself very highly. After all, back then, he had the right to. But now things were different.


    It was said that not long ago, his wife had been taken away by the Shen clan. Now his last hope was to pass on his teachings to a disciple.


    But how could they get around an obstacle as huge as the Shen clan?


    Could he do so by teaching a new disciple?


    It was absolutely impossible.


    After the Sky River Great Elder brought Ye Futian away, the two of them visited two more forces. Each time was the same: they were refused.


    Although everyone would greet him politely because he was the Sky River Great Elder, there was no enthusiasm in their greetings, and they were frankly refused. Who would offend one of the top forces for the sake of the Sky River Great Elder?


    Moreover, there was no benefit to them for bringing Ye Futian along.


    They did not think they could gain anything from him. Even though he was the Sky River Great Elder''s heir, not many people cared about that. As far as they were concerned, bringing him along was tantamount to directly defying the Shen clan. Wouldn''t that just be an extra burden?


    At that moment, the Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian were traveling. Ye Futian looked at his master and asked, "Are we going to visit another place?"


    They had already been refused three times in a row. Even the Sky River Great Elder was beginning to feel a bit humiliated. But he had said he did not care. Since his master still persisted, he would not complain.


    "No, those were the only people in the Imperial Realm who I am on good terms with," replied the Sky River Great Elder.


    "Then where are we going next?" asked Ye Futian.


    "To the City of the Ruins, the entrance to the God''s Relic," answered the Sky River Great Elder. "We will wait there for Taixuan."


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and said nothing. He looked at his master.


    In reality, he was starting to feel some doubts.


    At first, he had thought that his master really simply wanted to find a force for him to travel with, but had reminded him that there was little hope of this.


    But they had been refused three times in a row, so he no longer thought this.


    It was clear that they were going to be refused, but his master had still persisted. Seeing his master''s attitude, Ye Futian thought that he was doing this on purpose.


    Other people might not be able to see it clearly, but he was right by his master''s side and could see what he was doing. He thought that his master was doing this to put on a show for someone.


    Could it be for the Shen clan?


    Then what was his master''s goal in doing this?


    Did he want the Shen clan to underestimate him?


    Although Ye Futian had his doubts, his master did not say anything, so he did not ask.


    The two of them continued on, rushing towards the City of the Ruins. They were not the only ones. At that moment, countless cultivators from the Central Emperor Realm were rushing there.


    The news that the Sky River Great Elder had returned to the Imperial Realm gradually reached many people. Soon they all learned that he had visited three powerful forces and been refused by all of them. All of his former glory was gone. The people of the Imperial Realm all sighed. The hero had grown old.


    The Sky River Elder, he had once refused to lower his head under the pressure of the Shen clan was now lowering his head for his heir!

 1590 The City of the Ruins

    The City of the Ruins was not a grand ancient city. Although it was called a city, in reality, the City of the Ruins had long become an area of dilapidated ruins.


    It was an area that had been abandoned since ancient times. It appeared vast and endless.


    This area of ruins was the entrance to God''s relic. Hence, the denizens of the Central Emperor Realm called this endless place of rundown ruins the City of the Ruins.


    However, this area of ruins had now become the most prosperous area in the Central Emperor Realm. Everyone from all the Nine Realms, and even the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, went there. The usually abandoned City of the Ruins instantly became an area of bustling activity.


    This was a special event that occurred every 50 years. The dilapidated ruins turned into the center of the Nine Realms. Restaurants and inns popped up in many areas. Some people served food and drinks to welcome those who came free of charge. Even so, the people coming to the City of the Ruins were extremely generous. Hence, the providers reaped huge gains.


    Among those who had arrived in advance, the daily topic of conversion was always which major force from the Nine Realms had arrived.


    However, most of the people arriving there were from the Central Emperor Realm. They were relatively more familiar with the top forces, as well as the prominent figures in the Central Emperor Realm. They were not so familiar with powerful cultivators from other realms unless they specialized in reconnaissance and had investigated all the top forces, as well as the exceptionally prestigious people at and below the level of Renhuang throughout the entire Nine Supreme Regions.


    A lot of people were peddling information in the City of the Ruins. After all, many of the people who were entering God''s relic needed such information.


    There was an exceptionally spacious open-air tavern that was rather shabby, but the customers there did not seem to mind the place and were very generous.


    "To be able to witness the opening of God''s relic, this grand event of the Nine Realms that only occurs every 50 years, I can die content," someone said. "It is just a pity that I cannot even tell the top forces of the Nine Realms apart."


    "Buzz!"


    In the sky above, a gale swept past. A group of people was traversing the sky.


    Far off in the distance, Sword Qi whistled. A group of swordsmen wielding swords in the air was flying over the City of the Ruins.


    At a glance, such a scene was playing out everywhere else. The people in the tavern were used to it. When they heard a sound, they raised their heads and looked up with no surprise in their eyes. They had long grown accustomed to it. It had been like this every day for the past few days.


    "Indeed, I cannot distinguish between them," another person beside the first teased. "Even if a member of the top forces from the Nine Realms sat down in front of me, I would not be able to recognize them."


    "The members of the top forces all have an extraordinary temperament. Their auras are extremely powerful. Besides that, they are led by powerful figures. You can still recognize them from these traits," another person explained. Voices sounded in the tavern one after another as an elder and a young person walked in and sat down.


    These two people were Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian.


    No one noticed the two of them. Ye Futian glanced at the silhouette of the person who had just spoken. Sky River Great Elder was a major figure, but the other party could not recognize him. Indeed, even if a prominent figure walked up to you and sat down next to you, you would not know who sat beside you, Ye Futian thought.


    Such a situation was common in the City of the Ruins.


    "Grandmaster, if you have the time, can you check and see whether Lord Taixuan has arrived?" Ye Futian transmitted his thoughts to Sky River Great Elder. If Lord Taixuan had arrived, they would meet up with him. Taixuan Mountain must have received a prophecy. Before this, Ye Futian had been rejected by three major forces of the Central Emperor Realm. He only followed along Taixuan Mountain to enter God''s relic.


    "Alright." Sky River Great Elder nodded in agreement. His will swept outward. Instantly, the people in the tavern felt a strange sensation. However, they did not know what was happening. In that instance, Sky River Great Elder''s will had swept past all of the people present.


    After a short while, Sky River Great Elder retracted his will and transmitted his thoughts to Ye Futian, saying, "I did not sense him. He is most likely behind us. Many powerful figures have also arrived. It is not too polite to sweep my will across like this. Other people''s wills can also locate us. We should not use this method too frequently."


    As expected, Ye Futian felt a strange sensation. It was as if someone was watching him.


    He knew that it was the will of a powerful person sweeping over him.


    "We will wait a few more days then," Ye Futian replied.


    "Hmm, since he is coming from another realm, Lord Taixuan would need some time to prepare and choose the disciples that will enter the ruins," Sky River Great Elder said. "There might be some people who want to enter God''s relic and will join various top forces to do so. If that is so, it may take Lord Taixuan some time." Ye Futian understood that.


    Prophecies were only bestowed upon the top forces. Ordinary cultivators never received prophecies. Only by joining the top forces was one able to receive the qualification to enter God''s relic.


    There might have even been people from outside the Nine Realms who wanted to seize such an opportunity.


    The two of them stayed at the tavern for some time before leaving. Ye Futian prepared to find a place to continue cultivating in peace for a few days while waiting for God''s relic to open. The members of Taixuan Mountain were bound to arrive sooner or later. Even if Lord Taixuan did not come, some powerful cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm would.


    The days passed by. The day that God''s relic would open steadily approached. More and more cultivators also arrived.


    The various top forces in the Nine Realms gradually arrived after receiving the prophecy.


    The top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm also arrived.


    Some of the top forces had formed alliances before coming. For example, Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Violet Heavenly Palace arrived together due to their previous alliance. Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty made an appearance as the commander. Violet Heavenly Palace''s Palace Lord had not come. The two fellows from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were still out there. Both Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Violet Heavenly Palace still needed to be on their guard. Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was powerful and had exceedingly strong defenses, so they could still hold off the two fellows. Violet Heavenly Palace was somewhat at risk. Hence, their Palace Lord had stayed behind to hold the fort and had placed the members of Violet Heavenly Palace in the care of Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Currently, the team formed from the alliance of those two powers had many powerful cultivators. They even had many Renhuang Plane cultivators. Zhan Yuan, the Violet Heavenly Palace''s supreme body of the great path, was also there. However, Yi Tianyu was not among them. Yi Tianyu was set to arrive with members of Divine Palace from the Higher Heavens Realm.


    In the City of the Ruins, the members of the Nine Realms had a mutual understanding that the members of each realm would each occupy a domain. After all, members of the same realm were familiar with each other, so it was relatively harder for conflict to arise between them.


    When the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm arrived one after the other, be it consciously or subconsciously, they gathered together in a domain.


    "Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky has arrived," Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said. "Let''s go for a walk."


    As he spoke, he immediately walked over to a spot. There, Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky led a group of cultivators. Jiutian Goddess and the various virgins had arrived. Among them, Virgin Qin He was the leader. Her current level was extremely high, almost approaching the level of Renhuang.


    Some people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm speculated that it was likely that Qin He could already reach the Renhuang Plane but had stopped herself before ascending on the Great Path.


    Becoming a Renhuang was not easy. Achieving this plane was very difficult. Even geniuses usually broke through to the plane naturally and did not hold themselves back unless they had previously decided to enter God''s relic. Most of the members of the Central Emperor Realm had made such a choice. This was their home turf, so they were the most prepared to be chosen to enter God''s relic. Among the people from other realms, only those with exceptionally outstanding talent and who were about to break through to a higher plane within the year suppressed themselves from having a breakthrough.


    In the end, everyone had to choose for themselves. Many people chose to not suppress themselves to enter the ruins. After all, this also posed a certain risk. Immediately reaching the level of Renhuang smoothly was in and of itself the goal of countless people.


    "Brahma''s Pure Queen!" Dynastic Overlord shouted out to her and asked, "Although we have had our differences before, when entering God''s relic this time, why don''t we, the forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, stick together? We can look out for each other and let our juniors have a better chance. How about it?"


    "Is Yi Tianyu not around?" Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky swept a glance at the crowd.


    "He is with some friends from Divine Palace," Dynastic Overlord said. "Although the talents of the members of the Heavenly Mandate Realm are not weak, it is different this time around. In the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm, no one dares claim that they can walk out of God''s relic alive."


    This time, not just the Heavenly Mandate Realm was involved. The Nine Realms were all involved.


    Among the Nine Realms, the Heavenly Mandate Realm was still considered one of the relatively weaker Realms. Even the Higher Heavens Realm was more powerful than the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    On top of that, there was the terrifying Central Emperor Realm, as well as other realms. Even Yi Tianyu was not confident that he could walk out of God''s relic alive after learning that Ye Futian had entered Divine Palace.


    "There is no need for us to do so." The queen''s figure was dazzling. Her sacredness could not be defiled. Even against Overlord, she nonchalantly said, "When we enter the ruins, even as fellow members of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there is no trust between us to speak of. Why should we bother with such an alliance? Since we are entering God''s relic, we will bow to our own fates."


    Such an alliance was too volatile.


    "Such boldness from Brahma''s Pure Queen," Dynastic Overlord calmly replied. He led his men and immediately left. He had already given her face by going over to greet her. Unfortunately, Brahma''s Pure Sky didn''t seem to appreciate the gesture.


    After they left, among Brahma''s Pure Sky virgins, Qin He''s gaze looked into the distance. She did not know whether he had come.


    Rumor had it that previously he was cultivating in Taixuan Mountain of the Higher Heavens Realm. Right now, she did not know where he was.


    The forces from the Higher Heavens Realm arrived one after another. Divine Palace had the largest contingent followed by Golden Divine Nation, which was brilliant and eye-catching.


    Taixuan Mountain had also come. Lord Taixuan led a group of powerful cultivators. However, there was still no hope for their Taixuan Mountain this time around. He had come just to meet Ye Futian.


    The number of people in the City of the Ruins increased at a terrifying rate. People were seen everywhere.


    Another two silhouettes walked into the City of the Ruins. One was an aloof middle-aged figure while another was a woman dressed in male clothes. The latter was very beautiful. Anyone was able to tell that she was a beauty at a glance.


    "There sure are a lot of powerful cultivators," the middle-aged figure said as he walked. His gaze swept from left to right. Cultivators at the Saint Plane were everywhere. As he walked, many were at his level, the Renhuang Plane.


    "It should be so for such a grand event of the Nine Realms," the woman beside him said.


    "The Supreme Path Realm truly is different. A place like our Emperor Xia''s Realm pales in comparison. We can only reside in our little corner." The middle-aged figure laughed and asked, "Are you certain that the brat will come?"


    It turned out that the Renhuang who arrived was actually Emperor Xia.


    The woman beside him was Xia Qingyuan.


    The members of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were all sent to different places. Xia Qingyuan was sent to the Lower Worlds. In a time like this, she was only able to get help from her father, the only person she could contact, Emperor Xia.

 1591 Meet Up

    Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian cultivated in a corner of the City of the Ruins. Suddenly, Sky River Great Elder opened his eyes and looked into the distance. He said, "The party from Taixuan Mountain has arrived."


    Ye Futian, who was next to him, gradually opened his eyes. He also looked into the distance. After waiting for a few days, the party from Taixuan Mountain had finally arrived.


    "The party from Taixuan Mountain seems to be with some other forces from the Higher Heavens Realm in a domain," Sky River Great Elder said. "Let''s head over there now."


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded his head. With a flash, their two figures headed in the same direction.


    The party from Taixuan Mountain was gathered together. Lord Taixuan was waiting. He was the one who had actively sought out Sky River Great Elder with his will and transmitted his thoughts over to the latter. Now, he knew that the other party was rushing over to meet them.


    Many cultivators from the Higher Heavens Realm were in the surrounding domains. They also had their eyes on Lord Taixuan.


    They had heard that Lord Taixuan had made a trip before. After that, Ye Futian had not made an appearance for the past year. Among the members of Taixuan Mountain on this trip, as expected, Ye Futian''s silhouette was nowhere to be seen. Where had he gone off to?


    Divine Palace, Golden Divine Nation, and many other forces of the Higher Heavens Realm were still concerned about Ye Futian''s whereabouts.


    Ye Futian was someone who could reign supreme among a generation of cultivators. Among those below the Renhuang Plane in the Higher Heavens Realm, he ranked among the top three. Huang Zhong from Divine Palace Ancestral Lands was the only person who could suppress him.


    At the moment, many people looked up into the distance. They had sensed something and could not help but reveal bizarre looks.


    Ye Futian had appeared. However, he had appeared with another elder who was not Lord Taixuan. They were headed in this direction to meet up with Lord Taixuan.


    After a short while, in front of the members of Taixuan Mountain, two silhouettes descended from the sky and appeared before the crowd.


    "Lord Taixuan." Ye Futian bowed slightly at Lord Taixuan, who had sent him to the Tianhe Realm. Although it was unintentional, it had allowed Ye Futian to learn about his master''s situation. Otherwise, Ye Futian would have most likely not known that his master had been captured by the Shen clan.


    "How has your cultivation been this past year?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    "After cultivating with Master for a year, I have already approached the Great Path," Ye Futian replied. When Lord Taixuan heard Ye Futian''s reply, he smiled and nodded in approval. Sky River Great Elder''s cultivation methods were suitable for reaching the Renhuang Plane. Sending Ye Futian over had not been a waste.


    Since Ye Futian claimed that he was approaching the Great Path, he was likely close to having a breakthrough.


    "I approached the Great Path a year ago. Until now, I have yet to have a breakthrough. From the looks of it, you will manage to catch up with me again," a silhouette from behind Lord Taixuan said with a smile. It was Wan Shouyi, the cultivator from Taixuan Mountain Sword Abyss. Back then, he had been aided by Ye Futian and gained insight in his swordsmanship. After returning to Taixuan Mountain, he stumbled upon an opportunity and managed to approach the Great Path. This past year, he had spent almost all of his time cultivating, but he always seemed to be one step away.


    Although he had always felt that he was inferior to Ye Futian, he still believed that he would reach the Renhuang Plane first. However, from the looks of it now, even that was not certain.


    The speed at which this fellow improved his cultivation was too frightening.


    Wan Shouyi had truly been unable to break through to the next plane. He was not suppressing his cultivation. If he was able to break through to the next plane, he would not intentionally suppress his cultivation. He would have gone with the flow and stepped into the Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian smiled. Wan Shouyi''s disposition was extremely good.


    When he heard Ye Futian address Sky River as Master, Lord Taixuan asked Sky River Great Elder with a smile, "Sky River, what do you think about the disciple I sent you?" For Sky River Great Elder to have accompanied Ye Futian, Lord Taixuan wondered whether he had overcome his previous trauma.


    Lord Taixuan was unclear about the exact relationship between Ye Futian and Sky River Great Elder. He did not know that the protagonist of the series of events back then was Ye Futian''s master.


    A chill suddenly descended upon them. In mid-air, a group of silhouettes walked over. They shone with divine light.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked in the direction of the silhouettes. He was greeted with blinding divine golden light. They were cultivators from Golden Divine Nation. Gai Shi Shi was among them.


    The contingent of Golden Divine Nation was extremely powerful. This time around, it was only second to that of Divine Palace. The bodies of the Golden Divine Nation''s Renhuangs radiated divine golden light that was blinding. Many Taixuan Mountain disciples shielded their eyes with their hands.


    Lord Taixuan raised his head at the contingent of Golden Divine Nation and asked, "What business do you have with us?"


    "We saw that Lord Taixuan was here, so we came to pay a visit," the divine general of Golden Divine Nation said. His voice was calm. When his gaze swept over Ye Futian, it was extremely sharp. Gai Shi Shi kept staring at Ye Futian. He was sure to pay back Ye Futian for previously humiliating him.


    Gai Shi Shi''s cultivation had greatly improved, but he did not know what level Ye Futian was at now. With the combat ability that Ye Futian had previously revealed, it was rather difficult for Gai Shi Shi to defeat him.


    "You are too kind," Lord Taixuan replied. "I see that the Lord of the Golden Divine Nation has not come. Please extend my greetings to him."


    "Certainly," the divine general responded. Both parties seemed to be speaking with no animosity. It was as though they were having a normal conversation and were extremely polite. However, everyone sensed the rivalry between them.


    Ye Futian took the Sigh of the Divine God from Gai Shi Shi. This was the magnum opus of Golden Divine Nation. Now that it was in the hands of an outsider, how could they possibly be at ease?


    "Lord Taixuan." Another voice also called out. Another group of silhouettes approached. The leader was a powerful cultivator from Divine Palace. Ye Futian saw many familiar faces. They were all prominent figures in Divine Palace.


    To the side of the Divine Palace members were members from Divine Sword Li Family, Chang Feng Clan and Sky Burying God Clan.


    In the distance, behind this group of people, there were also cultivators from Divine Capital of Xiling. Old Demon Xiling led the group and stood at the very front. His gaze was deep and cold, causing others to be frightened of him.


    Prominent figures from all across the Higher Heavens Realm had gathered there.


    Among the Divine Palace members, Ye Futian even saw that Huang Zhong was present. One to two years ago, Huang Zhong had already qualified to break through to the Renhuang Plane. However, he wanted to hone his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. He sought perfection and wanted to exceed his limits. There was still another year before he would enter Divine Palace Ancestral Lands. Since Huang Zhong still had not broken through to the next plane, one could imagine how powerful he was at the Saint Plane. He was almost without equal.


    A person like Huang Zhong had long outgrown pursuing the Lower Renhuang Plane.


    Yi Tianyu was also present. His gaze landed on Ye Futian. When he discovered that Shen Jing was Ye Futian, he had been greatly affected. Now, he had finally met Ye Futian again. This time, Ye Futian had already returned to his original appearance. His temperament was even more outstanding than back then in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Are you the one who entered Ancestral Lands?" Huang Zhong asked as he looked at Ye Futian. Before this, Huang Zhong had encountered Ye Futian when he was disguised as Shen Jing.


    "I am," Ye Futian replied as he looked at Huang Zhong.


    When he sensed the aura on Ye Futian''s body, Huang Zhong muttered, "You have reached a higher cultivation plane. I wonder how much of an improvement you have made since the last time we met."


    Ye Futian smiled.


    "Ye Futian and Divine Palace can be considered to have entwined destinies. If you don''t mind, after entering God''s relic, you all can look out for one another," a senior of Divine Palace said. Ye Futian had entered Divine Palace Ancestral Lands before. He was considered to have forged an unbreakable bond with Divine Palace.


    "I do not need others to look out for me. After entering God''s relic, I will not waste my time on them," Huang Zhong retorted. After he entered into God''s relic, he would travel alone. Although they were from the same sect, his relationship with the other Divine Palace disciples was not close. He had no time to take care of others.


    This was God''s relic. How could he waste time on other people?


    "I was only offering a suggestion. As for how things turn out, suit yourselves," the senior from Divine Palace said. Divine Palace never meddled in the affairs of others. They were there was because they had also received the prophecy. Hence, they had brought their disciples.


    As for what would transpire after the disciples entered God''s relic, the seniors could not and did not want to control it.


    Many people looked at Huang Zhong. He was renowned as the top existence below Renhuang in the Higher Heavens Realm. As expected, he had some character.


    However, with Huang Zhong''s might, he was likely highly ranked among the Nine Realms. He could have even possibly been one of the top 10 existences in the Nine Realms.


    On the outskirts of this domain, a lot of cultivators had gathered. They all knew that the people there were members of the top forces of the Higher Heavens Realm. After receiving the prophecy, many people wanted to visit these forces and enter God''s relic through them.


    Such a scene was very common. If they wanted to enter God''s relic, many figures at the pinnacle of the Saint Plane without major backgrounds relied on the help of these top forces.


    Hence, near the outskirts of this domain, there were many cultivators standing guard. They sealed it off and forbid outsiders from simply stepping into the domain.


    "Such a large contingent." Among the crowd, Emperor Xia looked around and found the place interesting. "This contingent is too powerful. That fellow has found friends in such high places."


    Recalling the youth in the Emperor Xia''s Realm back then, Emperor Xia felt that this was somewhat surreal.


    Before this, he was Lord of a Realm. Here, the people around the outskirts of this domain were not weaker than him. There were quite a few Renhuangs.


    Emperor Xia felt somewhat disheartened. How was he going to keep his cool before Ye Futian from now on?


    "Friend, I am looking for someone who is in the domain," Emperor Xia said to the person who was guarding the outskirts.


    However, the Renhuang before him swept an indifferent glance at him and ignored him.


    "I truly am looking for someone," Emperor Xia continued saying.


    "They all are." The Renhuang swept a glance at their surroundings. Emperor Xia glanced at the crowd. His face involuntarily turned red.


    "Ye Futian!" Helpless, Emperor Xia could only shout out.


    In the distance, Ye Futian, who was with the contingent, heard Emperor Xia''s voice. He turned his gaze toward Emperor Xia. When Ye Futian saw his silhouette, he subconsciously revealed a look of surprise. He dashed over in a flash.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s actions, many powerful cultivators looked at him. They saw Ye Futian come up to Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan.


    "Your Highness, Princess." When he saw the two of them, Ye Futian revealed a smile. He was naturally happy to see Xia Qingyuan safe and sound.


    "Hmm." Emperor Xia nodded as he smiled slightly, putting on the airs of a Renhuang who was Lord of a Realm. However, Emperor Xia saw that there was a group of people approaching them. Each of them had auras that were unfathomable. Someone merely glanced at him and he felt his heart tremble. Emperor Xia''s previous aura instantly dwindled.


    The company that this fellow kept was too good. He had no place to show his face.


    "Futian, who is this?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    Although Emperor Xia did not know what plane Lord Taixuan was at, he could tell with just a glance that Lord Taixuan was far more powerful than he was. They were not on the same level.


    "Senior," Emperor Xia greeted as he bowed slightly.


    "No need for formalities." Lord Taixuan nodded slightly in acknowledgment.


    "This is Emperor Xia, a senior of mine," Ye Futian said. "And, this is my good friend, Xia Qingyuan."


    "So, they are your old friends," Lord Taixuan said and nodded. "Please continue with your conversation."


    As Lord Taixuan spoke, he walked away. Yaya walked over and greeted, "Emperor Xia."


    "You are also here," Emperor Xia said when he saw Yaya. "The two most powerful Great Swordsmen in Emperor Xia''s Realm might both be here."


    "Swordmaster of Lihen has also arrived?" Ye Futian asked.


    "He should have," Emperor Xia replied. "Not long after the events in the Emperor Li''s Realm were over, Swordmaster of Lihen abdicated Lihen Heaven and came to the palace to bid me farewell. He said that he wanted to go on a training journey and would be coming to the most powerful Central Emperor Realm. It has been many years since then, so he should have arrived in the Central Emperor Realm. If that''s the case, it is possible that he will come here."


    Ye Futian gently nodded. Swordmaster of Lihen had been very devoted back then. He only pursued swordsmanship. He finally decided to cast away his former shackles and leave Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    "If he truly has come here, he should be finding ways to join some force to be qualified to enter God''s relic," Emperor Xia said. "Coincidentally, if you encounter him, you can lend him a hand."


    "Naturally," Ye Futian replied. Swordmaster of Lihen had been kind to him. If Ye Futian encountered an old friend, he would undoubtedly help out as much as he could.

 1592 The Nine Realms

    Ye Futian turned his gaze to Xia Qingyuan and asked, "Princess, have you been doing well these past few years?"


    During the battle at Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the teleportation grand matrix had sent everyone away to different places. Ye Futian was very happy that he was able to meet Xia Qingyuan again.


    Xia Qingyuan glanced at Ye Futian but ignored him.


    Ye Futian was confused.


    When had he offended this little princess again?


    "Qingyuan was sent to the Lower Worlds," Emperor Xia said with a smile. "After I took her home, she kept saying that she wanted to find out where you were. When she was in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, she heard that you were in the Higher Heavens Realm. After that, the bell sounded in the Nine Realms, so Qingyuan guessed that you would come here. As expected, we found you here. A grown girl can''t be kept at home. As her father, I have never experienced this treatment before."


    Emperor Xia was puzzled. What was this girl thinking? Didn''t she notice the people who were now with Ye Futian? Even as the Lord of a Realm, Emperor Xia could only shudder before these mighty figures. His girl was concerned about Ye Futian, yet she acted cold when they finally met.


    Women, tsk!


    If she was unable to let go of her ego, she would suffer a great loss sooner or later.


    Upon hearing his words, Xia Qingyuan stared at Emperor Xia with an innocent face.


    Huh?


    What kind of father was this?


    He ratted her out so decisively.


    "I have also been worrying about Princess these past few years," Ye Futian replied with a smile. "Now that I have seen you with His Highness, I can put my worries to rest."


    "I believe you," Xia Qingyuan said to Ye Futian. Her eyes locked on him. Upon studying her gaze, Ye Futian felt uncomfortable. What was with her gaze?


    Would he lie to her?


    "When I had my trial in Divine Palace, I obtained many items. These are for you." Ye Futian took out a few fruits of the Way, which emanated the rich will of Way of Life, and handed them over to Xia Qingyuan. Sensing the dense will from the fruits, Xia Qingyuan was momentarily stunned. She slightly raised her head to look at him. Her gaze had turned much gentler.


    Xia Qingyuan extended her hands and received the fruits without any hesitation. She quickly put them away. Her heart was warmed.


    Emperor Xia, who was standing beside them, felt somewhat helpless as he watched his daughter''s antics. Even though she had a high plane of cultivation, her temperament was still that of a teenage girl. There was wisdom to the old saying that women were all fools when it came to certain aspects.


    "I still have some of these fruits with me, however, Your Highness has no use for them," Ye Futian said. "If Swordmaster is here, he can benefit from the fruits. I will go and check whether or not Swordmaster is in the City of the Ruins."


    "How will you check?" Emperor Xia asked.


    "I will ask for Lord Taixuan''s help," Ye Futian replied. "He can do a quick sweep with his will and scan through the entire City of the Ruins."


    Emperor Xia revealed an embarrassed expression.


    This...


    Emperor Xia''s will could also cover a large area. However, there were now countless extremely powerful figures in the City of the Ruins. He didn''t dare use his will to casually scan around their surroundings Even though he was at the Renhuang Plane, he was a lower level Renhuang at the third tier. If he used his will to scan those mighty cultivators, it might annoy them. If they attacked him with their will, could he stand against such attacks?


    Ye Futian made it sound simple.


    "That is a good idea." Emperor Xia solemnly nodded his head. He felt slightly embarrassed.


    Ye Futian knew nothing about Emperor Xia''s emotions. After all, Ye Futian was used to using that method of locating other people. However, Emperor Xia was Lord of a Realm. He had been pampered in the Emperor Xia''s Realm, where his word was law. Although he was keenly aware that there were many people in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path who were stronger than he was, he still needed time to adjust after seeing so many of them gathered together.


    "Then, let''s head over there." As he spoke, Ye Futian turned and headed in the direction of Lord Taixuan''s location. He said, "Lord Taixuan, I would like to request your help in finding someone and seeing whether he is in the City of the Ruins."


    Grandmaster Sky River Great Elder was at a lower cultivation plane than Lord Taixuan. Hence, it was more suitable for Lord Taixuan to carry out a sweep search. Even if his will swept past other top figures, such a meager incident couldn''t cause any trouble. After all, both of them were top existences.


    However, it was different for a lower level Renhuang like Emperor Xia. If one was scanned by another person of the same level or a higher level, one could pretend that nothing had happened. How could one let a person who was at a lower level scan them as they pleased?


    If Emperor Xia scanned over a cultivator who was ill-tempered, they could immediately attack him from a distance. For such powerful figures, such a distance was insignificant. They were able to attack anywhere their will covered.


    Hence, ordinary Renhuang did not dare to simply scan around. Even upper-level Renhuang needed to think twice before doing so, such as how Sky River Great Elder had before.


    "Very well. Show me his appearance, " Lord Taixuan said. Ye Futian''s will emanated from his glabella and entered into Lord Taixuan''s eyes.


    "That will suffice." Lord Taixuan nodded. His powerful will instantly expanded outward and enveloped the entire City of the Ruins within itself.


    Soon, he found the person Ye Futian was looking for in a corner of the City of the Ruins. The person had indeed arrived in the city.


    ...


    Among the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms were situated at the center of the Three Thousand Realms.


    Eight of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms revolved around the Central Emperor Realm.


    They were the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Higher Heavens Realm, Emperor Star Realm, Mountain Realm, Myriad Realm, Solar Realm, Shadow Realm, and Hidden Land Realm.


    The Nine Realms were the absolute center of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. Each Realm had top forces.


    To be considered one of the top forces of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, a Realm needed to have at least a powerful upper-level Renhuang at the seventh tier of the Divine Wheel to hold the fort. In reality, just having an upper-level Renhuang at the seventh tier of the Divine Wheel was insufficient to rank among the top forces. A Realm needed at least an upper-level Renhuang at the eighth tier of the Divine Wheel as the lead and another upper-level Renhuang at the seventh tier of the Divine Wheel to act as support.


    Most top forces had a powerful figure at the ninth tier of the Divine Wheel as the lead, along with another at the seventh or eighth tier of the Divine Wheel as support.


    Back then, Yi Tianyu from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s Dynastic Overlord, and Lord Taixuan were all above the ninth tier of the Divine Wheel.


    Renhuangs were divided into three levels: upper level, middle level, and lower level. Each level was divided according to strength. For instance, even cultivators that were both from the Nirvana Plane had different levels of ability. At the Renhuang Plane, such differences were huge depending on the cultivator''s depth of cultivation. Thus, each level was further divided into three smaller tiers according to the strength of the cultivator''s Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Upper-level Renhuangs were categorized into the seventh, eighth, and ninth tier of the Divine Wheel, with the ninth tier of the Divine Wheel being the strongest.


    The Myriad Realm also had many top forces.


    There was one extremely powerful force known as Heavenly Sword Hall.


    Heavenly Sword Hall was a legendary Myriad Realm swordsmanship force. The most powerful swordsmen from the Myriad Realm were mostly from Heavenly Sword Hall.


    Heavenly Sword Hall was even heralded in the Myriad Realm as the top swordsmanship force among the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    Heavenly Sword Hall had a unique cultivation method, which was different from many other swordsmanship forces. Those who wished to become the disciples of Heavenly Sword Hall had to fulfill one requirement. They had to possess a Sword Spirit. People with only Life Spirits were not destined to practice swordsmanship. Even those who had practiced swordsmanship before were not accepted into Heavenly Sword Hall.


    Their cultivation method focused on cultivating their Sword Spirits. They focused less on sword techniques. Their goal was to refine their Sword Spirits until they reached their utmost limit, converting their Sword Spirits into their natal implements. Thus, they strived to master the ultimate swordsmanship.


    Besides that, there was another benefit to this cultivation method. The cultivators had more advantages when they broke through to the Sword Emperor Plane.


    Their Sword Spirits were better at merging with the Great Path of All Things. Moreover, Sword Spirits that had been cultivated for years nurtured the physical bodies of their owners.


    In Heavenly Sword Hall, the members prioritized the practice of Sword Spirits. In comparison, sword techniques and sword mudra were not as important.


    Heavenly Sword Hall''s cultivation method was extremely harsh and difficult. The threshold was very high. Many people had trained their Sword Spirits to the point of crippling their Sword Spirits. However, they also managed to cultivate a group of powerful swordsmen.


    God''s relic was opening soon, so Heavenly Sword Hall would not miss the opportunity.


    In the domain where the cultivators from the Myriad Realm were gathered, many cultivators from Heavenly Sword Hall had arrived. Combat had also erupted in this domain.


    In a huge empty space in the City of the Ruins, Heavenly Sword Hall constructed a tall platform. Many cultivators stood on the platform and looked upon the battles.


    Before them, there was a battle between swordsmen.


    Around them, many cultivators had gathered to spectate. Many of them were members of other forces from the Myriad Realm.


    They knew that many people had come to the City of the Ruins wanting to gain the qualification to enter God''s relic by going through the top forces. However, most of the top forces were not lacking in numbers.


    Similarly, many swordsmen had come seeking Heavenly Sword Hall. Unlike other forces, Heavenly Sword Hall did not directly reject these people. Instead, they offered them an opportunity. Those who sought them out would battle against the swordsmen of Heavenly Sword Hall. As long as the other swordsmen won, Heavenly Sword Hall would take them into God''s relic. The swordsmen were even able to join Heavenly Sword Hall to practice swordsmanship.


    Many people understood that this was just a form of training for the disciples of Heavenly Sword Hall before entering God''s relic. They used these swordsmen to train their disciples'' swordsmanship, slightly improving their abilities before entering into God''s relic.


    Those who accepted the battles understood that fact but still wanted to give it a go. To this end, many paid with their lives. The battles between swordsmen were perilous. The swordsmen of Heavenly Sword Hall had exceptionally powerful attacks. Once they sent out a killing blow, they could not retract it.


    Even so, there were still people who wanted to try. Swordmaster of Lihen was one of them.


    Out of the two swordsmen who were currently exchanging blows on the battlefield, one of them was Swordmaster of Lihen from Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    In the battlefield, endless Sword Will surrounded Swordmaster of Lihen. Countless sword flashes crisscrossed in mid-air, attempting to tear the space apart. However, the swords were suppressed by the opponent''s swords, which were hanging in mid-air with their tips pointing down. Each of the opponent''s swords was broader than normal swords, and they were engraved with runes of thunder. The swords emanated terrifying lightning.


    The lightning was blinding. Swordmaster of Lihen raised his head to stare at the myriad of Swords of Blitzing Thunder. Runes of thunder lit up on every sword. The gigantic Sword of Blitzing Thunder in the middle spanned across the sky. Its tip pointed down as it frenziedly absorbed Way of Thunder from the surrounding. Its might was unfathomable.


    Sensing the domineering sword might, Swordmaster of Lihen was well-aware that this attack might take his life. However, his gaze remained calm. He had traveled through many Realms years ago. His swordsmanship had reached a plateau in Emperor Xia''s Realm. No one in Emperor Li''s Realm was a threat to him. Finally, he decided to venture out to explore the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path and the legendary Central Emperor Realm.


    As expected, he still had a long way to go.


    He was revered by all in Emperor Xia''s Realm as Swordmaster of Lihen. However, he was unable to defeat a disciple from Heavenly Sword Hall. His opponent''s Sword Spirit was far more powerful than his Sword Spirit. His opponent''s Sword Spirit was forged over countless battles with the power of the Great Path.


    Swordmaster of Lihen felt a pang of regret. He should have ventured out into the Realms when he was much younger. Back then, his potential was greater. He would have had a lot more room for improvement, even though it was more dangerous.


    Actually, Swordmaster of Lihen had misunderstood. The disciples who were chosen by Heavenly Sword Hall to enter God''s relic were all very outstanding. Even though Swordmaster of Lihen was from Emperor Xia''s Realm, he had exceptional comprehension in swordsmanship since he had immersed himself in cultivating the art for years. For him to be qualified to fight with a swordsman of Heavenly Sword Hall was already an achievement.

 1593 Exchanging Blows

    The Swordmaster of Lihen executed sword mudra with both hands. His gaze was calm and determined as he looked up in the void.


    The Worldly Sword Will coalesced. A sword appeared gradually in his body. The fierce sound of a vibrating sword resounded everywhere.


    Countless swords emerged and flew towards the gap in the sky, fast as lightning.


    In midair, the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall cast a glance downward. His finger pointed towards the ground. The Swords of Blitzing Thunder enveloped the space, blocking all the other swords and shattering them directly.


    Did he still intend to resist?


    At the same time, Swordmaster of Lihen''s figure disappeared, leaving behind a dazzling trail in the sky. The trail transformed into a sword. Shadows of swords took shape among the innumerable Swords of Blitzing Thunder. Both the sword and the shadows were materialized by the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    Bam! Bam! Bam! One by one, the Swords of Blitzing Thunder turned to dust. The sword flash tore apart the empty space, causing the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall to feel slightly threatened. He felt that his body was going to be mangled and that his spiritual soul was going to be cleaved into two, as though there were legions of Sword Qi entangling him.


    This sword embodied the sorrow of farewell.


    Many shadows appeared around his body. They were all shadows of the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    The Sword Spirit of the cultivator of the Heavenly Sword Hall floated in front of him. The cultivator''s finger stroked the sword. In an instant, many gleaming Swords of Blitzing Thunder surrounded his body, forming a protective barrier of swords. Those Swords of Blitzing Thunder surrounded him at the center of the barrier. Each sword unleashed an astonishing divine being of the Great Path, annihilating everything.


    At the same time, the shadows approached the cultivator. It was as though there were many images of Swordmaster of Lihen attacking all at once, but the attacks were shut off by the swords surrounding the cultivator.


    "Your ability is not bad." The cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall glanced at the shadows. In the sky, myriads of swords plunged downwards and sealed off the space. Everything was sliced into pieces by the swords; the shadows were obliterated too. Soon, only the actual body of the Swordmaster of Lihen was left standing. His sword was still stabbing into the protective barrier of the cultivator, unable to pierce through.


    The sword flickered, and the Swordmaster of Lihen tried to retreat. However, the opponent would not give him the chance to do so. The Sword Spirit plummeted and pursued its prey. The Swordmaster of Lihen had no choice but to receive this attack head-on.


    Boom... Numerous divine beams of light poured out from the Sword Spirit of the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall, crashing into the Sword Spirit of the Swordmaster of Lihen. Cracks appeared on the Sword Spirit of the latter. Even the body of the Swordmaster of Lihen was engulfed by the Swords of Blitzing Thunder. The light of runes surged into his body.


    "Go." The opponent did not cease attacking. His finger pointed forward, and the Thunder Sword Spirit slashed forward and kept ravaging the body of the Swordmaster of Lihen. Even if he were spared from death, he would be crippled.


    "Show mercy!"


    A voice sounded from afar. The swordsman in training from the Heavenly Sword Hall took a quick look in the distance, but he did not stop attacking. His sword continued to slash downwards. The Swordmaster of Lihen tanked the continuous attacks of the Great Path with his physical body and spiritual soul, but his sword did not break.


    Both man and sword were one. When the sword broke, the person would also perish.


    Buzz. The light of Renhuang shone, and a lotus flower descended, wrapping the body of the Swordmaster of Lihen within. The lotus flower emanated a rich life will. At the same time, the petals unleashed authority of the Way, forming innumerable Catastrophe Swords, which then blocked the incoming Sword Spirit.


    The Sword Spirit returned to its master. The cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall raised his head and saw a group of people descending from the sky. The group of people then landed among the crowd below.


    Emperor Xia was the first to step forward. The lotus flower coiled around the body of the Swordmaster of Lihen while the life will healed the injuries on his body.


    "That was close," Emperor Xia exclaimed. Fortunately, Ye Futian had asked the Lord to take a look at the situation here. Otherwise, Lihen would be in danger.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen landed on the ground. He arched his back slightly and spat out a mouthful of blood. Sensing the life will in his body, he turned around and looked at the people who had arrived. "Your Highness," he greeted, slightly surprised.


    Not only did he see Emperor Xia, but he even saw Ye Futian as well as Xia Qingyuan soon after. He instantly understood everything. It seemed that the white-haired youth from back then had reached his level. Hence, he had also come here.


    "Everyone," a chilly voice said before the Swordmaster of Lihen could catch up with the people who just arrived. Standing on the platform, the cultivator of the Heavenly Sword Hall, who was a Renhuang, stared at them while asking, "What do you mean?"


    These people seemed to be very powerful. They might be from the top forces as well. Moreover, there were more and more people coming. They were cultivators who followed Ye Futian here, including those from the Divine Palace and the Divine Sword Li Family.


    However, the intruders irritated the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall.


    A disciple of their Heavenly Sword Hall was exchanging blows with someone. So many powerful cultivators had come. What was their intention?


    "Junior''s name is Ye Futian. This is a senior of mine. Since the battle has concluded, please show mercy," Ye Futian said to the cultivator of the Heavenly Sword Hall as he walked towards the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    "Didn''t you see that the battle has yet to end?"


    In midair, the youth who defeated the Swordmaster of Lihen seemed annoyed. This was not a major issue; however, for so many powerful cultivators to come over, and for all of them to be from powerful forces from other Realms, this made the cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Hall feel dissatisfied. Why did it seem as though these people had come over to threaten them?


    "The victor has been determined. Friend, why must we fight to the death?" Ye Futian asked as he raised his head.


    "It was his choice to do so. How does this concern you?" The youth in midair had a sharp gaze as he looked straight at Ye Futian down below.


    "I owe Senior Lihen a debt of gratitude for instructing me in the past. His matters indeed concern me." Ye Futian then suggested, "Sir, if you insist on fighting to the death, what if I battle you in his stead?"


    "Even to the death?" the youth in midair asked.


    "That is fine." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Alright," the youth agreed. Ye Futian looked towards the Swordmaster of Lihen and said, "Swordmaster, please rest at the side for a while."


    "Be careful. His Sword Spirit is very powerful," the Swordmaster of Lihen whispered.


    "I know." Ye Futian nodded in response. Only then did Swordmaster of Lihen move to the side and secretly transmit his voice to Emperor Xia, asking, "Your Highness, is he confident in winning?"


    "You should take care of your wounds first," Emperor Xia replied. Seeing that Emperor Xia looked calm, the Swordmaster of Lihen said nothing more and turned his attention to the battle.


    In the sky above, countless Swords of Blitzing Thunder appeared. Upon each divine sword, there were bright runic lines. These runes emanated an astonishing authority of the Way.


    Ye Futian had a sense of deja vu. Back then, Bai Luli cultivated the Life Spirit Carving Spell Scroll. If Bai Luli had cultivated it to such a level, it should be similar to the other party''s cultivators. Such an attack would be even more domineering.


    "Descend."


    The cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall''s gaze swept downward like a sharp sword. He pointed his finger downward, and countless Swords of Blitzing Thunder shot downwards in an instant. The Swords of Blitzing Thunder destroyed everything in their path. Lightning flooded the space.


    The members of the Divine Palace, the members of the Divine Sword Li Family, as well as many other powerful cultivators looked towards Ye Futian. They were all more concerned as to what level of ability Ye Futian had currently reached.


    There would be no suspense to this battle. Although the Heavenly Sword Hall of All Creations was renowned as the top swordsmanship force in the Nine Realms, how could this disciple have any chance of winning against Ye Futian in battle?


    If his opponent knew of Ye Futian''s battle records in the Divine Palace, he would not have agreed to this battle.


    Seeing the countless Swords of Blitzing Thunder descending upon him, Ye Futian raised a finger and pointed it to the sky. Beams of divine light radiated. With a crackling sound, the countless Swords of Blitzing Thunder were directly shattered and turned to dust.


    Ye Futian did not continue to attack. He merely raised his head and looked at the cultivator of the Heavenly Sword Hall in midair, asking, "Will this be enough?"


    He did not attack. Before entering God''s relic, he did not want to offend a top force here. He had only come over to bring the Swordmaster of Lihen away.


    As he looked at the disappearing Swords of Blitzing Thunder, the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall in midair was stunned. His attack was destroyed in just one blow.


    He extended both hands. His expression was solemn. He had turned much more serious. Before this, Ye Futian regarded the Swordmaster of Lihen as his senior, so the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall did not take him seriously; he even belittled Ye Futian. However, from their brief encounter just now, he could tell that the swordsmanship of this white-haired youth was very profound.


    His Sword Spirit let out a thunderous wail. Streaks of lightning flashed past. In the sky, countless gigantic Swords of Blitzing Thunder appeared, covering the sun.


    Runes of Great Path were imprinted on every single gigantic sword. The intense sword will seemed to want to destroy the entire space. When countless swords appeared in midair at the same time, their destructive power was startling.


    Boom. A brilliant divine sword appeared on top of Ye Futian. The Great Path in his body resonated and transformed into a furnace, forging a divine sword, which became one with his body.


    When the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall in midair saw this scene, he pointed his finger downwards. In the sky, endless destructive Swords of Blitzing Thunder descended from above. This attack was even wilder and fiercer than the previous attack.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    In an instant, myriads of swords fell from the sky and crashed down towards Ye Futian. The swords did not even have an organized attack pattern. More and more swords filled the space, burying Ye Futian within.


    However, everyone could see that the sword that enveloped Ye Futian''s body was still shimmering with dazzling divine beings. Endless will of Great Path surged and fueled the divine beings, causing them to be indestructible. When the myriads of swords closed in on Ye Futian, the light of runes of Great Path transformed into a destructive power, but it could not cleave Ye Futian''s sword veil.


    Ye Futian did not attack; he merely remained on guard. However, the opponent could not break through his defense.


    The expression of the youth standing in midair changed. The scene before him made him doubt his own swords.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen was dumbfounded, too, when he saw what happened. Then, he was emotional and lamented, "I''m old."


    He still remembered the adamant youth who intruded Lihen Heaven and challenged the disciples of Lihen Heaven to a battle. The youth used to be young and presumptuous.


    Now, the youth had changed.


    A shocking sword flash erupted from the sword forged by the furnace in Ye Futian, destroying all the gigantic Swords of Blitzing Thunder, which had closed in on him. However, Ye Futian''s sword disappeared along with the opponent''s swords.


    "Your attacks are extraordinary. I am honored to have experienced them," Ye Futian commented as he stared at the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall. "Why don''t we stop here?"


    The corner of the cultivator''s mouth twitched as he was at a loss for words.


    The surrounding onlookers were speechless as well. Extraordinary attacks?


    The cultivator of the Heavenly Sword Hall did not even break through Ye Futian''s defense barrier. Could the former''s skill really be called extraordinary?


    However, Ye Futian clearly had no intention to fight. Otherwise, he would not have just defended passively. At this moment, everyone could tell that this white-haired youth was very strong. At the very least, he was stronger than the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall; he might even be more powerful.


    The battle here attracted the attention of many people. One by one, many cultivators of All Creations gathered. Was the swordsman-in-training of the Heavenly Sword Hall in conflict with a swordsman-in-training from another Realm?


    Could it be that someone was here to challenge the Heavenly Sword Hall?


    From the looks of it, the cultivator of Heavenly Sword Hall was being suppressed!

 1594 The Power of All

    The swordsman temple cultivator could naturally also see that the disciple who attacked was not an equivalent opponent of Ye Futian.


    Moreover, this person was also a swordsman in training.


    "Where do you train?" the cultivator of the Heavenly Sword Hall looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "The junior practiced swordsmanship for a while in Taixuan Mountain of the Higher Heavens Realm, and also practiced swordsmanship in the Divine Palace," Ye Futian responded.


    Although the Heavenly Sword Hall was a force with the Power of All, how could the name of the Divine Palace be something that he had never heard of? The Higher Heavens Realm had the holy land, and the Divine Palace in the Nine Realms belonged to the more famous force.


    In contrast, although Taixuan Mountain was a known entity, its presence was not as strong as the Divine Palace. However, according to rumors, Taixuan Mountain''s Lord Taixuan, had broken through the Renhuang''s nine Realms.


    Well, amongst those who came and stood behind Ye Futian, there should be the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain and the Divine Palace. They would have come from the forces of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    "The previous matter ends here. The Heavenly Sword Hall is not going to investigate in the previous battle," the cultivator of the Heavenly Sword Hall said. In fact, he was no longer investigating the matter involving the Swordmaster of Lihen, as it was a small matter. However, it was a mere issue of pride. In reality, they didn''t care too much about the life and death matter of the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    "However, if you also practice Swordsmanship, you can discuss Swordsmanship with the people that practice within the Heavenly Sword Hall." The other party continued to talk big, from sword cultivation from the upper realm to giving no qualms about the Swordmaster of Lihen leaving. He took on a position that made the Heavenly Sword Hall appear feeble. Even on the eve of entering the relics, the Heavenly Sword Hall entered the relics with defeat, so it was certainly not very nice.


    Alas, things did not turn out the way they wanted. They were unable to compete with the other forces in the relics.


    Everyone who heard this statement understood the intentions of the Heavenly Sword Hall. Such a defeat would end here. The pride of the number one force of Swordsmanship force within the Nine Realms had to be maintained.


    "This junior''s swordsmanship is still shallow, and naturally, it is not as good as the Heavenly Sword Hall. I, therefore, believe we no longer have to compete further," Ye Futian said. It was not a fear of a battle, but he just did not want any trouble. If the Heavenly Sword Hall truly got involved, could he guarantee his win? Even if he managed to sweep through the entire force, after today, the matter would not come to an end either.


    "Excessive self-humility is rude," the strong swordsman said coldly, as Ye Futian was far better than the disciple lost but said that his opponent''s swordsmanship was extraordinary. Instead, he chose not to carry on the fight. What was he trying to do?


    Was he expressing disdain to fight with the disciples from the Heavenly Sword Hall?


    Ye Futian pondered for a moment, then saw a figure stepped forward from behind him. He said, "I am from the Higher Heavens Realm. Divine Sword Li Family''s Li Xun. I am currently a disciple of the Higher Heavens Realm''s swordsmanship. I have long heard of your famous name. To meet you today, why don''t I instead test your swordsmanship. What do you think?"


    The swordsman cultivator glanced at Li Xun. The Divine Sword Li Family of the Higher Heavens Realm. A family of swordsmen.


    It was unexpected that he would step forward.


    The people around showed a hint of anticipation. Heavenly Sword Hall versus the Divine Sword Li Family. Would this be a showdown in this holy land?


    "Elders, let me, your disciple, take on the challenge." Amongst the cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Halls, a figure walked and paid his respects to the leaders of the Heavenly Sword Hall.


    The Divine Sword Li Family''s reputation had long been heard and talked about. With this opportunity, it would be an exceedingly rare opportunity to go against the Divine Sword Li Family.


    "Okay." The leader of the Heavenly Sword Hall nodded. The swordsman in training took a step forward and landed on the void. Sword Will roared around him.


    Li Xun did the same and walked forward. His sword spirit exploded in a flash and enveloped the heavens.


    A violent swordsmanship aura was formed around the body of the two people. In the city of relics, many people in the distance could felt the battle happening. They looked towards the battlefield. Some everyone flicked towards it and moved closer.


    Among them, there were many people with top forces.


    The Heavenly Sword Hall''s representative had a sword soul that was like a meteorite sword, albeit it being a really huge sword and extremely heavy. When the sword strikes, the world was engulfed in a massive roar that spread far and wide. Countless meteorites fell from the sky, and it made people feel extreme pressure on their bodies.


    Li Xun also summoned the spirit of his sword. A Divine Sword fell down from the sky above. It was an extremely overbearing sword. As both swords interlocked and battled one another, they both did not compete in a way that suggested that this was an exchange of skills. It seemed more like an actual battle instead.


    Boom. Two terrifying sword wills approached each other. When the soul of the sword locked on, countless meteorites fell from the sky once again. The Meteorite Sword was extremely heavy, suffocating the space, and suppressed the broken void. Li Xun''s sword counteracted against them as it shattered the falling meteorites that were falling.


    The sky was turned into a doomsday scene, and it looked extremely terrible. The suffocating pressure in the air turned into a violent storm. The two cultivators stood in the middle of the storm. Their swords collided with each other.


    Ye Futian glanced up at the land above him and saw that two were still emitting extraordinary amounts of swordsmanship from their bodies. There seemed to be an imaginary sword shadow emerging, and there was a spiritual soul blending into the swords. The sword''s aura was stronger and stronger, tearing everything in the void.


    The Great Path shattered and collapsed, and a brilliant light curtain caused by the Swordsmanship swept outwards, smoothing out all existence. The endless falling meteorites were smashed into nothingness, with the countering Swordsmanship also annihilated in the void. The two quickly retreated at the same time and returned to their original positions on both ends.


    Li Xun groaned, and his body felt a little heavy. On the mouth of the Heavenly Sword Hall''s cultivator, blood seeped out. He was apparently injured as well.


    It seemed that the Heavenly Sword Hall still hadn''t been able to restore their lost pride from the previous battle. It was obvious that this battle was not in their favor as well.


    However, in Ye Futian''s view, the Divine Sword Li Family gained no advantage in this battle. This was, after all, a Swordsmanship family home. The number of cultivators was limited. Li Xun was already the core figure of the family, and there should be more disciples within the Heavenly Sword Hall who were definitely more powerful. They did not participate as they probably were preparing for God''s relic instead.


    "The Heavenly Sword Hall''s swordsmanship quenches the soul of the sword. Sure enough, there is something unique about it, and I have learned much." Li Xun did not have a proud look and gestured at the other. "Why not. Is this the end of this exchange? Let''s stop here."


    Over on the Heavenly Sword Hall''s side, a few figures walked forward. Stop here?


    Two defeats, and that was not good at all. Today, it felt like people were coming over to smash their reputation.


    "This trip was originally for the relics. Any further battle for a higher ranking must happen after the relics, for it doesn''t make much sense right now. If the Heavenly Sword Hall wants to redeem itself and defeat Ye Futian, it may not be that easy. After all, at the Battle of the Divine Palace, he was the one that defeated the Proud Sons of Heaven from the Higher Heavens Realm. If the Heavenly Sword Hall must fight, I am afraid that only your strongest disciples will stand a chance against him."


    Li Xun spoke, and his words made the glances of the Heavenly Sword Hall''s cultivators stagnate. Then, their eyes turned around, and they looked at Ye Futian once again.


    In the battle of the Divine Palace, he defeated the Proud Sons of Heaven from the Higher Heavens Realm?


    Hearing the tone from Li Xun''s speech, he was likely one of them who was defeated. However, though he lost to Ye Futian, he was nevertheless highly respectful toward him.


    This meant that he indeed deliberately suppressed his own strength and did not give it his all against the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Hall.


    "The search for the God''s relics. Hidden treasures indeed." The senior cultivators in the Heavenly Sword Hall looked at Ye Futian and said, "A junior who appeared by accident actually turned out to be one of the top cultivators in the world. In this case, your collision shall then be left here within God''s relics."


    These elders would not participate in the fight. However, they still wanted a collision to happen.


    The Battlefield within God''s relic.


    "The Heavenly Sword Hall will just leave it like that? Why did the cultivator hail as the next-in-line leader of the Heavenly Sword Hall not participate?" A voice came out from nowhere. It was from a distant figure standing above the void. He gave off a weird but wonderful vibe, albeit rather illusory. He appeared to be there, yet not there, all at the same time.


    The Heavenly Sword Hall cultivators looked towards him. One of the top forces in Wanxiang Realm��Illusion Island. They were naturally familiar.


    "If your disciples from the Illusion Island want to see him fight, you will see it in the relics," a Heavenly Sword Hall cultivator said.


    "This is not necessarily the case. Some of the others here will most likely want to go and challenge him right now." The person from the Illusion Island smiled and looked at the others. Amongst them, there was also another top force, also from the Wanxiang Realm.


    This person standing above the void gave off a strong sense of killing intentions. No strangers should be able to enter this space. No one should be able to get close to them within a radius of their lands. If they did, a killing gas field around the space would be activated. It was an extremely terrible setup. People who got too close to it would feel a shortness of breath, feeling like they could die at any time.


    There was, however, a special area in Wanxiang Realm, which was called the slaughtering world. Those people who come from the slaughtering had strong killing intentions and were generally viewed as extremely dangerous.


    When they enter the relics, they will set off a storm of blood, kill off the Nine Realms, and carry out a mass massacre.


    The cultivator of the Heavenly Sword Hall looked at them, and the people in the slaughtering world were indeed a headache. However, when they entered God''s relics, it would only be the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Hall who would face the practitioners of the slaughtering world.


    All from the Nine Realms would face them together.


    "The others and I shall bid farewell." Ye Futian retreated as he paid his respects to the people from the Heavenly Sword Hall. When he left, he looked at Illusion Island and the cultivator in the slaughtering world. From both forces, he felt it. There was a very unusual atmosphere surrounding them. It was as if the people in Illusion Island were unreal, and the people in the slaughtering world were dangerous.


    They were merely one of the few top forces in Wanxiang Realm. There were also the Solar Realm, Shadow Realm, Emperor Star Realm, Hidden Land Realm, Mountain Realm, and the strongest of them all, the Central Emperor Realm. One could only imagine how bloody this tour of God''s relics would be.


    "How does the Swordmaster feel?" Ye Futian asked the Swordmaster of Lihen as they left.


    "I''m okay, nothing of the matter," Swordmaster of Lihen said with deep emotions in his heart. After so many years, he had cultivated himself and reached new heights. Li Xun was also now a Proud Son of Heaven. One could only imagine how glorious it was to be in his position, with a few strong cultivators around him, walking alongside him.


    "Here, I have two fruits of the Way. the Swordmaster can take it, and can also be used to impact the Renhuang Plane." Ye Futian took out two fruit of the Way, namely the sword and the life fruit of the Way.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen looked at Ye Futian. He was different from Xia Qingyuan. Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian had experienced a lot together. Naturally, there was no need to be polite with one another, but this fruit was especially precious to him.


    "I have a lot of them," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "..." Swordmaster of Lihen said nothing and then took it.


    "Swordmaster''s cultivation is already very high, but there are some shortcomings in some aspects. The Fruit of the Way can make up for it. If there is a chance in the relics, I will also help the Swordmaster," Ye Futian said. The Swordmaster of Lihen had helped him before, so he would try his best to help the Swordmaster of Lihen make a breakthrough in his realm and cultivate to become a Renhuang!

 1595 My Master

    Cultivators from all walks of life in the city of the ruins continued to converge here, and Ye Futian was still there.


    At the time of the Battle of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, everyone dispersed and were sent to different regions by the divine matrix, so that everyone was separated from those that they knew.


    This time, it was an opportunity to gather together again.


    The bell resounded through the Nine Realms, and even the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path would know of the news. This once-in-fifty-years feast would attract all those who were interested.


    At least, it was possible that Yu Sheng would be here.


    He had been cultivating at the Dragon clan, and there was no way of knowing how he was in his cultivation.


    The demonic clan in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had not yet arrived.


    In addition, Ye Futian had to wait for the Little Condor. Their minds were linked. In fact, Ye Futian had always known the circumstances of the Little Condor, but the two were very far apart, and one was sent to one of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    What was more interesting was that this b*stard actually got himself into a Renhuang family and hung out with their daughter day and night. According to the Little Condor, once he had become a demon beast companion, the others viewed him with great importance. Of course, this was all according to his own account.


    And now, that family was also on its way to the Central Imperial Realm and was almost there, but there was still some time before they arrived.


    Ye Futian seriously suspected that that jerk of a Little Condor was deliberately being untruthful.


    He could perceive that the distance between the Little Condor and him kept getting closer.


    He wondered if Wuchen would show up or not.


    He knew of all the news regarding Yu Sheng and Little Condor, but he didn''t worry about them. He didn''t know where Ye Wuchen was at the moment, but, being guarded by the sword morphed by the Sword Emperor of Hanzhou, he should have no problem taking care of himself.


    Then there were his older senior brother and third senior brother; he had no idea how they were doing.


    On this day, many demonic tribes in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had arrived one after another.


    Many demonic tribes such as the Dragon Gods, the Divine Elephants, and the Sky Demon Court seemed to come together. Their united front was awesome to behold, almost a little terrifying.


    The mighty throngs of cultivators had arrived and found the encampment of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Although they had some issues with the human cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, now with all Nine Realms converging, comparatively speaking, they were closer to their human compadres than with any other party.


    This time, with the convergence of a countless number of forces and countless prominent characters, there would be a great storm in the Nine Realms.


    Among the Dragon Gods, there were many pure-blooded dragon cultivators at the peak of Saint Realm. Among them, Long Chen was its unquestioned leader, as his strength had reached the peak of the Demon Saint. He was only a step away from being Demon Emperor. After this expedition, he would become the demon emperor.


    Many cultivators of the Dragon Gods followed behind him, but there was a figure that seemed out of place. He stood with a demon emperor of the Dragon Gods.


    The young man was clad in something pitch-black. It was as if he was covered by a dark armor. His build was hefty and full of domineering spirit; just that temperament alone was enough to stop one''s breath.


    "I''m going out," the youth said.


    "Are you going to find him?" The demon emperor of the Dragon Gods next to him looked at the youth.


    "Mmm," the young man nodded. He had heard from the people of the Dragon Gods claiming that he was now cultivating at Taixuan Mountain in the Upper Heavens Realm and that he had had an adventure at the Divine Palace. If he went over to Taixuan Mountain''s camp area, he should be able to find out some news about him.


    "You don''t plan to stay with us?" asked the demon emperor of the Dragon Gods. This guy was truly loyal to Ye Futian. After following the Demonic Dragon in cultivation for so long, his relationship with the Dragon Gods still seemed less than familiar.


    The youth was, obviously, Yu Sheng. He did not respond.


    "Come on. I''ll take you," the demon emperor of the Dragon Gods said. It seemed that he was worried about Yu Sheng''s safety.


    However, it was because of Ye Futian''s behest that he took Yu Sheng to cultivate with the Dragon Gods. At the time, Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu were considered to be the two most likely to change the political landscape of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, so the Dragon Gods were glad to grant this one favor to Ye Futian. In addition, Yu Sheng was extremely powerful, so he was greatly valued by the Demon Dragon, who had been teaching him cultivation deep in Longyuan.


    Compared with the time when he first entered Longyuan, Yu Sheng was not the person he once was. Sometimes it seemed that he was a little different than he was before, but as for the specifics, he could not really say; it was just a curious feeling in general.


    "Together." A group of people came toward this way. The Demon Emperor of the Dragon Gods looked up and saw it was the group led by Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor. His son Zhu Zhao was also there. They, too, had dealings with Ye Futian, and Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor had helped Ye Futian before.


    "Good idea." The Demon Emperor of the Dragon Gods nodded and then flickered away. On the other side, other cultivators came along as well, and they were the cultivators of the Sky Demon Court. The Peacock Demon Emperor was also among them. He was followed by Kong Xuan.


    On the way there, they encountered the cultivators of the Divine Elephants, which made quite an impression on the demon emperor of the Dragon Gods. It seemed that Ye Futian had an extensive network in the demonic realm, and he was acquainted with many parties.


    At this time, where Ye Futian was located, Lord Taixuan opened his eyes and said to Ye Futian, who was a distance away, "Many demon tribes from the Heavenly Mandate Realm are coming. I think they are coming for you."


    Ye Futian, who was cultivating, stood up and looked up into the distance. Soon, he saw a mighty group of people coming this way. There were many parties with all sorts of cultivators.


    And he saw many familiar faces.


    Yu Sheng, Kong Xuan, Zhu Zhao, and many elders had all arrived.


    Yu Sheng stepped out and walked directly toward Ye Futian. He towered over Ye Futian, who had to raise his head slightly to meet his eyes.


    Stepping forward, Ye Futian reached out and slapped Yu Sheng on the shoulders. But Yu Sheng''s body was firmly rooted like a tower; it didn''t move even a little bit.


    "How have you been these few years cultivating at the Dragon Gods?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "Do you want to try?" Yu Sheng asked.


    "..." Ye Futian''s smile froze, looking confused. He looked at Yu Sheng and spat out, "Get the hell away."


    Yu Sheng then grinned and said to Ye Futian, "I''ve made great progress these few years. I''ve already stepped into Nirvana."


    "You think your wings are strong now." Ye Futian glared at Yu Sheng, knowing that he had teased him in jest, but still, he would like to punch him.


    However, whether or not he could succeed in hitting him was questionable.


    Yu Sheng could take quite a beating in a fight. Ye Futian hadn''t seen anyone who could take a beating like Yu Sheng, and he was absolutely unmoved when he took the beating. However, if Yu Sheng caught someone, it would be something quite serious. This had happened many times before and was a proven fact.


    Now, no one knew just to what extent had his physical body had evolved.


    Those who were following behind watched the interactions of the two, secretly exclaiming that the friendship between these two was extraordinary.


    Ye Futian looked at the people behind Yu Sheng and said, "It''s been a long time since I have seen you, elders."


    "I heard that you are out of control in the Upper Heavens Realm," the Demon Emperor of the Dragon Gods said. The news of the atrocities committed by Ye Futian at the Divine Palace had already reached the Heavenly Mandate Realm, so they all knew.


    "What realm are you now?" the cultivators of the Divine Elephants asked. Ye Futian and the Divine Elephants had an unusual relationship. Even now in his body was the imperial bones of their ancestor��the Divine Elephant Emperor of Ten Directions.


    "Nirvana," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "I know, I was asking, how far are you from Renhuang?"


    "Should be soon." Ye Futian smiled while everyone looked at him, speechless. His cultivation was faster than most.


    Kong Xuan was a little flabbergasted. Was he almost Renhuang?


    The speed of his cultivation had far surpassed hers, leaving her behind.


    "Peacock Demon Emperor, you are here, too." Emperor Xia walked over, looking rather surprised when he saw the Peacock Demon Emperor. They were old neighbors, but they did not expect to see each other here.


    "Aren''t you here to join in the fun, too?" the Peacock Demon Emperor responded.


    "Well, we can keep each other company. I was fretting about being bored," Emperor Xia said with a smile.


    "Elders, please sit down," Ye Futian greeted. With so many people around, he didn''t know who to talk to first.


    "No, Yu Sheng wanted to come over, so we walked with him here. Afterward, when you enter the God''s relic, you might have to face powerful opponents from all sides. If the need arises, we could join forces to form a united front against the others. Of course, if there are conflicts between us, remember to be merciful," said the Demon Emperor of the Dragon Gods. After all, once they entered the God''s relic, anything could happen.


    "I understand." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Well, we will go over there first." The cultivators of the Dragon Gods left, and many others nodded slightly toward Ye Futian. They soon left one after another.


    ��


    In the Central Imperial Realm, there was another large group traveling. On the journey, they frequently met up with others who were also going in the same direction��the City of the Ruins.


    At this time, in the middle of this vast crowd, there was a woman with outstanding beauty, whose spirit was hard not to take notice. Her eyes were closed as if cultivating. Sitting beneath her was a giant Black Wind Condor, whose wings spread out to cover the sky, shielding the sun and sailing with the wind.


    "We are almost at the City of the Ruins," Black Wind Condor said, his eyes shining.


    "How do you know?" The woman asked, her eyes still closed. She didn''t think he had ever been to the Central Imperial Realm.


    "I told you, my mind is linked with my master. Presently, he is in the City of the Ruins."


    "You only have one master��me," the woman said coldly.


    Black Wind Condor wanted to speak some more, but it saw the woman open her eyes, and then a faint murderous intent enveloped the Black Wind Condor.


    "There was once a woman as arrogant and unreasonable as you, and she was a princess," the Black Wind Condor said.


    "And?" the woman asked nonchalantly.


    "And she was particularly well-behaved in front of my master," the Black Wind Condor replied. Xia Qingyuan, who was far away at the City of the Ruins, sneezed.


    "Then, what do you want to say?" The murderous intent shrouded the Black Wind Condor. This b*stard was really asking for it now. Without his daily beating, he soon returned to be the punk that he was.


    "My master looks amazing, and countless women are crazy about him. He is greatly talented, and no one can match him. Those genius guys you are talking about are not even worthy of polishing shoes for my master. His light is more dazzling than the sun. Wherever he walks, legends about him spread. In short, you better fix your relationship with me now, like offer an apology or admit a mistake; otherwise, after you see my master, you will not be able to extricate yourself, and I will not be there to help you," the Black Wind Condor said. He proudly raised his head.


    The woman, green in the face, said coldly, "You are so shameless. Does your master know?"


    Black Wind Condor said indignantly, "There was once a demon princess, beautiful and proud, just like you, and later..."


    Bang.


    He hadn''t even finished speaking when the woman finally lost her patience and hit him on the head with a punch, so the Black Wind Condor glided freely in the air!

 1596 The Return

    In the City of the Ruins, cultivators were still coming one after another.


    At the moment, a group of people entered the City of the Ruins. They were from the Yuanyang Realm, one of the realms belonging to the outer region of the Imperial Realm. Similar to the Tianhe Realm, it was not too far away from the Central Imperial Realm and was covered within the boundary of the Central Imperial Realm.


    One could have said that the Yuanyang Realm was actually a branch of the superpower that was the Imperial Realm.


    Many years ago, a super-powerful pillar of a figure emerged from the Yuanyang Realm, who was its Region Lord. Later, he was not satisfied with the Yuanyang Realm alone, so he warred and conquered all that was in his sight. He eventually arrived at the Central Imperial Realm. Once there, he was a force to be reckoned with. He was the founder of the Yuanyang Clan, which was now the top clan of the Central Imperial Realm. It dominated the area.


    When the family first came from the Lower Worlds, they did not have great numbers. Thus, Emperor Yuanyang absorbed cultivators from the Lower World but still did not abandon his control over the Yuanyang Realm. He continued to absorb cultivators from the Yuanyang Clan. Now, many years later, the Yuanyang Clan had grown into a superpower in the Central Imperial Realm.


    Bamboo Emperor was a Renhuang from the Yuanyang Realm. He had started his own clan in Yuanyang Realm. They had also come to the City of Ruins to fight for an opportunity for their younger progeny.


    The daughter of the Bamboo Emperor, Zhu Qi, was greatly gifted with talent. While she was cultivating in the Yuanyang Realm, she was already well-known. She once cultivated at Yuanyang Palace. The Palace Lord of Yuanyang Palace was from the Yuanyang Clan in the Imperial Realm.


    "Here we are." In front of the group, the Bamboo Emperor said, "Yuanyang Palace should have already arrived, so let''s go there."


    As long as they were in contact with Yuanyang Palace, the Yuanyang Clan would send someone to bring some of them into God''s relic.


    Many cultivators had their own ways of entering God''s relic. The Bamboo Emperor from the Yuanyang Realm was no exception.


    Everyone nodded. The group continued to sail across the void, heading toward the City of the Ruins.


    "Are they going to Yuanyang Palace?" In the crowd, Black Wind Condor''s eyes were swollen. He blinked and said, "My master is already in the City of the Ruins and knows that I am coming. If my master takes you into the ruins, and you serve my master well, he will make you as happy as a lark."


    The woman glanced down at Black Wind Condor and said, "It seems that I was too easy on you. There will be many other cultivators on this trip into the City of the Ruins. It would be useless to keep you around. It''s much better if we just roast you and eat you for a meal."


    The Black Wind Condor shrunk his head and whispered, "How cold. After all, we have been kind of intimate."


    "Don''t think I''m reluctant to kill you." A murderous intention permeated throughout Zhu Qi''s body. When that bastard met her, he was accustomed to talking trash. He often teased and flirted with her, so she tamed him and made him her mount. The indisputable truth was that that the Black Wind Condor was very powerful. Even though his state was not superior to hers, he had some extremely unusual means. She was from a higher realm, but he often made her suffer loss and was much more battle-worthy than even the pure-blooded dragon.


    So, she let the Black Wind Condor be her training partner to sharpen her combat power. The Black Wind Condor was indeed competent and showed his power.


    The only issues were that trashy mouth of his and he seemed to ask for a beating all the time.


    Now, she had found out he had a master.


    This bastard was so shameless, so how serious could his master be?


    He also dared to call himself as handsome beyond word and talented without a match. He was truly shameless.


    "As you please. I will wait for my master to pick me up. After you get to know my master, try to control yourself, and don''t get too deep into it. If you ask me for help, you''ll lose face." Unable to escape, the Black Wind Condor could only grumble and admit defeat for the time being, but he had already informed Ye Futian.


    The two were connected psychically. Ye Futian knew his location and would come pick him up.


    It didn''t take long for the Bamboo Emperor to find the place where the cultivators from the Yuanyang Realm had gathered. The Palace Lord of Yuanyang Palace had come in person. Many of the cultivators from the Yuanyang Realm converged in one area. This area was most closely tied to the superpower behind the Yuanyang Realm, the Yuanyang Clan.


    The Yuanyang Clan naturally had received the prophecy. Any principalities that had received the prophecy could take its people into God''s relic. There was no limit to the number of people who could enter, as long as their realm was below Renhuang. If one wanted to bring a legion, they could, but all the principalities kept good control over the number of people and allotted some spaces for their direct reports.


    The Yuanyang Clan naturally gave the Yuanyang Realm many spaces and allowed Yuanyang Palace to choose their people.


    At this time, the group led by the Bamboo Emperor descended. Many people acknowledged their arrival. "The Bamboo Emperor has arrived."


    "Everyone came here so quickly." The Bamboo Emperor saw the presence of several Renhuang from the Yuanyang Realm. All of them were top figures in the Yuanyang Realm. Now, they were here with the best of the Saint Planes from their respective forces.


    "Zhu Qi." Several youths looked at Zhu Qi. They had followed Zhu Qi to cultivate in Yuanyang Palace, so they knew each other.


    "Let''s go there and let them know first," the Bamboo Emperor said. He kept going forward. Because of the large number of people, a temporary palace was built. It was also the current location of the palace lord of Unhanging Palace.


    Black Wind Condor followed quietly behind, but there was some excitement in his heart. His master was already there. He had not seen his master for years and greatly missed him. He also did not know what had happened to Little Princess and little peacock.


    Was the Little Princess''s temper still foul?


    He didn''t know if Master Yu had arrived or not.


    Ye Futian had come after having received the intention from Little Condor. This time, he didn''t bother Lord Taixuan or Sky River Great Elder. He had been troubling both of them in various matters before, but not this time.


    They were now with Emperor Xia and Peacock Demon Emperor. Peacock Demon Emperor had previously looked over Little Condor. When he heard that he was coming, they decided to come along.


    In the direction of the temporary palace, Bamboo Emperor was chatting with other Renhuangs. Zhu Qi and Black Wind Condor stood to the side. Black Wind Condor said, "My master is here to pick me up. I have to go."


    Zhu Qi turned her head to look at him. Could it be that this jerk was not lying? Does he really have a master and it was not just some figment of his imagination?


    "I know you will miss me, but I already have a master," Black Wind Condor said.


    "Is that so?" Zhu Qi gave him a cold look. "I want to see what kind of master can raise such a shameless beast like you."


    Black Wind Condor blinked his eyes and replied, "OK, but don''t regret it, and control yourself."


    As he was speaking, he swaggered his way toward the periphery. His head was raised high up on his neck. He felt quite majestic.


    Zhu Qi sneered at him, but she followed behind Black Wind Condor. She wanted to see for herself.


    They soon arrived at the periphery. In the distance, they saw a group of people waiting in front. The one leading the group had a head of white hair like snow and was striking in appearance. He looked gentle and elegant. Zhu Qi was shocked by what she saw. The man was truly stunning with an eye-catching appearance.


    "The man with white hair, isn''t he beautiful? Did I lie to you?" Black Wind Condor looked at Zhu Qi, who was next to him.


    Zhu Qi snorted. Although he looked good, the kind of servant he had reflected the kind of master he was. This beast was shameless. How much better could his master be?


    Black Wind Condor flapped its wings and created a gorgeous arc as he came in front of Ye Futian. He said, "Master, I have missed you to death all these years."


    As he was speaking, he made a gesture as if to pounce upon him.


    "Get away."


    Ye Futian violently shuddered. He hadn''t seen him for quite a few years, so there was no telling what he was playing at.


    Black Wind Condor stopped in his tracks and shakily smiled. He looked at Ye Futian''s side and asked, "Is the second master also here?"


    "Princess Peacock and Princess Qingyuan, both of your majesties are here." Black Wind Condor wanted to say something more. When he saw Emperor Xia and Peacock Demon Emperor, he didn''t dare talk flippantly. He just stood there on his best behavior.


    "You are still alive," Xia Qingyuan coldly remarked.


    Black Wind Condor''s wings stiffened. His large eyes looked at Xia Qingyuan while sneaking a glance at Emperor Xia, who was beside her. He decided to keep quiet for the time being.


    Ye Futian''s eyes went past Black Wind Condor and looked at Zhu Qi, who was behind him. This woman was likely the one Black Wind Condor was talking about.


    He put his hands together and bowed slightly. "Thank you for taking care of Little Condor these past few years. I am here to take him back."


    "Is he your beast?" Zhu Qi asked Ye Futian. Although she had formed a prejudice against him because of Black Wind Condor, he seemed to be polite enough. Perhaps it was carefully disguised.


    "Mmm," Ye Futian nodded.


    Zhu Qi looked at Ye Futian and said, "Black Wind Condor once disrespected me. He was subdued by me and surrendered to me. Now, I am his rightful master." It seemed that she did not want to return Black Wind Condor so easily. This was also the real reason why Black Wind Condor asked Ye Futian to take him home. The woman refused to release the condor.


    Ye Futian glared at Black Wind Condor. It seemed that he had greatly exaggerated their relationship as partners.


    "You jest, my friend. Little Condor and I are linked with our minds. Otherwise, I would not have known that he was here." Ye Futian said, "If he has offended you in the past few years, I would very much like to compensate you for your trouble."


    "No party lasts forever," Black Wind Condor said, looking at Zhu Qi. "On the account that we have been acquainted, do you want to leave with me and enter the ruins for trial with my master?"


    "Did I say you could leave?" Zhu Qi swept a glance at the Black Wind Condor and looked back at Ye Futian. "This beast has offended me way too many times. I can''t let him leave like this."


    Ye Futian frowned and cast a glance at Black Wind Condor. He bowed slightly at Zhu Qi and said, "If Little Condor has offended you, I''m here to apologize for him."


    After he saluted, he looked at the Black Wind Condor and said, "Let''s go."


    As he was speaking, he turned and started to walk away.


    "Hey, where do you think this place is?" Several figures came from the void. All of them were from Yuanyang Palace. Their momentum was astonishing. They raced toward Ye Futian to shroud him within.


    Ye Futian stopped to reply, "I didn''t intend to start a dispute, but this beast is my partner. I have to take him with me." He continued to walk away, saying, "Goodbye."


    "Humph."


    There was a cold snort sound heard. Several figures walked toward Ye Futian at the same time. Zhu Qi also released the breath from her body. She wanted to see for herself the true strength of Black Wind Condor''s master.


    The strapping young man in black armor next to Ye Futian suddenly moved. He turned around, took a step forward, raised his fist, and threw a punch across the air.


    The whole space instantly seemed to solidify. The few people who were walking toward Ye Futian came to an abrupt stop as an unparalleled punch descended from the air.


    Boom!


    The space seemed to be shattered by the suppression. Several people grunted. Their bodies flew straight back. Their faces were pale.


    The violent wind, likewise, shocked Zhu Qi backward as well. She was horrified. The man in black indifferently turned around and continued to follow the person in front of him as if he had done nothing at all.

 1597 Preparation

    "How powerful."


    Zhu Qi secretly remarked as she looked at the back of the man clad in black. Under the fist will, the entire void had been suppressed.


    The people on their side who had acted were all top cultivators at Yuanyang Palace.


    "Who dared to be so rude?"


    An indifferent voice suddenly sounded. A group of people was walking from the side where the palace was located. Zhu Qi and the others turned their attention in that direction. It was the young Palace Lord of Yuanyang Palace, who was also the leader of the Yuanyang Realm. It was said that he would cultivate at Yuanyang Clan in the future, and his combat power was extremely fierce.


    The moment his words faded, a pattern appeared in the void where Ye Futian and the others stood off in the distance. A brilliant light sprinkled down. Large stone pillars descended from the sky, suppressing the void and blocking their way forward. At the same time, he stepped forward. His appearance seemed indifferent. When the young man in black had dealt that blow from afar, he had already felt its great shocking power.


    However, Ye Futian and his group still moved forward. It was as if they didn''t see any of his movements and continued their way out of there.


    The young Palace Lord of Yuanyang Palace took another step forward. More radiant patterns appeared above the sky. They were like sharp thorns hanging above them. The young man in black turned around and glanced at him.


    Bang!


    With a violent stump of the foot, the earth quaked. The young man in black walked over. Rumbling noises were heard. Every step seemed to shatter the void. The patterns collapsed and were pulverized.


    The face of the young Palace Lord suddenly changed. It only took the young man in black a few steps to walk in front of him. He raised his fist and blasted it out again without any fancy moves.


    A huge roar was heard as the fist suddenly morphed into a dark demonic dragon. Containing the power of the dragon god, it crushed through the void.


    A brilliant pattern appeared in front of the young Palace Lord of Yuanyang Palace. He tried to block the attack of the dark demonic dragon. However, broken crackling sounds were continuously heard as the fist will penetrated it.


    Boom! With a loud bang, the young Palace Lord of Yuanyang Palace was shocked by the force and flew backward. He groaned and spat out a mouthful of blood. His breath was shallow, and his face was pale.


    The people around him were shocked by what they saw.


    Could he be that strong?


    The strength of the young Palace Lord was well-known to them. In Yuanyang Realm, he was known as the perfection existence below Renhuang. However, he had been knocked backward by a single blow and had no strength to resist. How aggressive was this power?


    As Renhuang Will of the Way descended, the Yuanyang Palace Renhuang cultivators stepped forward. They wanted to approach, but the young Palace Lord raised his hand and stopped them. He said, "Let them go."


    Several Renhuang stopped and did not continue the chase.


    "The City of the Ruins is filled with strong cultivators. In comparison, our Yuanyang Realm is insignificant. The other party has no intention of picking a fight," the young Palace Lord of Yuanyang Palace said as he looked at the figure in black that was walking away. With such powerful fighting power, he was not some small character without renown.


    They were all City of the Ruins for God''s relic. Although he was the young Palace Lord of Yuanyang Palace that controlled the Lower Worlds, he knew his limit. The top forces of the Upper Worlds were a lot stronger than them. Strictly speaking, their reason for being there was merely the fact that they were from the Yuanyang Clan of the Imperial Realm.


    Therefore, he didn''t want to escalate the matter.


    Ye Futian and his group moved further away. They soon disappeared and could no longer be seen.


    Zhu Qi looked at the disappearing figures. It took her a long time to regain her calmness.


    The young man in black was strong. In fact, he was the strongest person in Saint Plane that she had ever seen. The young Palace Lord was blasted away by a single punch.


    Previously, the Black Wind Condor had called the man in black "Second Master."


    Since there was a second, there had to be a first. Who could that be? It was likely the man at the center and the master of the Black Wind Condor. It was the young man with white hair.


    Because of the trash-talking by the Black Wind Condor, her initial impression of Ye Futian had not great. To have such a demonic beast, the master was probably not someone of great quality. The moment she thought of it, Ye Futian had been polite and not rude at all. He appeared elegant. Judging from the dominance of the young man in black, one could imagine that his talent was very strong.


    Could it be that the shameless bragging of Black Wind Condor was true?


    Just who was his master?


    ...


    When Ye Futian and his men returned to their station, he turned around to look at the Black Wind Condor. Seeing Ye Futian''s smiling eyes, Black Wind Condor shrunk his head. Speaking in an extremely obsequious tone, he said, "Master, what do you command?"


    "I''m thinking that it''s about time to find a new demonic beast to serve me," Ye Futian whispered.


    "Don''t, Master, Black Wind Condor is loyal and honest. Although I''ve been outside, I always thought of returning to Master all the time." Black Wind Condor had been away for a few years. Not only had he not been degraded, but he had also increased its power. Cultivation was for ascension. His spiritual intelligence was fully opened. He thought it was no different from human beings. He was no longer the little demon from before.


    In the words of the Black Wind Condor, he was already a demonic saint, a big demon beast.


    "You were bullied outside but still thought about coming back." Ye Futian looked at him and considered Zhu Qi''s attitude. This guy had not lost his sharp tongue, and Zhu Qi''s eyes didn''t look right. Presumably, she was dragged by this guy. Ye Futian had every reason to believe that Black Wind Condor said a lot of things that should not be said.


    "In the future, if I get wind of you tarnishing my reputation, you will be handed over to Qingyuan for discipline," Ye Futian said as he stared sternly at him.


    "Ah..." Black Wind Condor let out a sigh and weakly glanced at Xia Qingyuan, who was beside him. He saw Xia Qingyuan look at him with a smile. Black Wind Condor felt a tingling in his scalp. That woman was too aggressive. He never wanted to fall into her hands.


    "Enough of that," Ye Futian said. "Many days have passed, and the day of the opening of God''s relic draws near. We should make all the necessary preparations and try not to cause any trouble." Everyone had arrived. He had already met up with many people there, which made him happy.


    Now, all of their focus needed to be directed at the God''s relic.


    The relic was under the control of Donghuang the Great. It only opened up once every 50 years, so it was the event of the Nine Realms that affected the cultivators of all of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    Many notable figures had converged upon the City of the Ruins, which was not considered a large city. Everyone was waiting for the opening of God''s relic.


    Without a doubt, once everyone had entered the relic, there would be bloody fights.


    Once the top cultivators of the Nine Realms were in one place inside God''s relic, it was easy to determine what would happen.


    Moreover, many principalities did not come by themselves. They also brought with them ruling forces from other realms. Some of those who had more people with them entered like a large army.


    For instance, among the forces that had recently arrived, the force that was closest to Ye Futian, as far as he knew, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, had brought with them many cultivators.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty ruled all the surrounding imperial dynastic forces. All the top cultivators of the Saint Plane among those principalities were called together to enter God''s relic.


    Among all the cultivators, Yi Tianyu was the strongest.


    As they waited, Ye Futian quietly cultivated and continued to make preparations to enter God''s relic.


    This time, he was about to face his peers, who were those cultivators at the peak of their power in all of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian was not alone in his preparation. The other cultivators from all sides were doing the same.


    In an area of the City of the Ruins occupied by the cultivators from the Solar Realm, there was a mountain. It was possessed by a force from the Solar Realm. The entire mountain had been transformed into the color of flames. Solar palaces had been cast upon the mountain.


    On the edge of the mountain, a group of people was standing and gazing at the movement of the people in the distant City of the Ruins.


    Divine light from the sun was released from the bodies of those who were standing there. Even their eyes were like the eyes of the sun. They released the burning fire of the sun as the sun''s crown dazzled above their heads.


    Legend had it that the Solar Realm was transformed by a divine item and could illuminate everything in the world. Those who were born in the Solar Realm inherently possessed extremely strong flame attributes. In the Solar Realm, some were from the bloodline of the legendary Sun God.


    "This time, after God''s relic is opened, there will be cultivators from everywhere, such as the Imperial Realm, Mountain Realm, Ziwei Realm, and Solar Realm, as well as many other extraordinary principalities," the man in the middle of the group said. "After entering God''s relic, we should avoid catching too much attention. Of course, whatever is necessary for us to fight and get it must be done. This is an extremely important opportunity for all of you who had come."


    "Yes," the people next to him slightly nodded. They were the most famous from this generation of the Solar Realm. Normally, their peers were nothing to them, but this time it was different.


    Those who were entering the relic were similar to them.


    In another area, inside a forged great hall, a middle-aged man wearing a starry robe looked down at the crowd below. He wore a crown. He was like an emperor on earth, majestic and regal.


    The people there were the cultivators from the top forces of the Ziwei Realm.


    "In the past, several outings to God''s relic were the most violent battlefields, with many proud geniuses from all realms losing their lives there," the man with the crown, who was like an emperor in the midst of them, said to the cultivators. "Therefore, the journey to God''s relics is also a battlefield where geniuses perish. Of course, your strength is unquestionable, but you will do well to remember that what you will be facing the existence of equal strength from all Nine Realms. Thus, you are not allowed to treat this with any slightness or negligence. Any enemy who stands in front of you is worthy of your most serious attention."


    The people gathered there were all the best of the best. Yet, among them, many were going to perish in God''s relic. That was an unquestioned fact. Even so, they still had to progress, but he also had to remind them of the hidden danger.


    All major principalities were making final preparations for God''s relic. Gradually, the once lively City of the Ruins started to sober up and become somewhat oppressed.


    Everyone understood that they would be facing the most brutal trial in their lives, which could be said as the most severe trial within all of the Nine Realms.


    The day had finally arrived.


    In the area above the City of the Ruins, a mesmerizing divine light cascaded down from the sky. Sacred figures stood high above the sky. They were clad in armor and as magnificent as divine generals.


    They were from the Empty Imperial Palace, known as the Divine Priests, and commanded by Donghuang the Great.

 1598 Keep a Low Profile

    A Divine Priest descended. A series of horrific Divine Will shrouded the vast expanse of the void, covering the entire City of the Ruins within.


    A Divine Priest made the announcement. "When God''s relic is opened, those of you who have received the prophecy, please present the prophecy to bless the people you have chosen to enter the relic. Those who have not been blessed by the prophecy must leave the City of the Ruins within the hour. Any offenders will be without exception," Immediately, those who were in charge came out and took out the prophecies they had received. They were golden scrolls with pictures. The light of the prophecy bloomed to cover those cultivators who were to be blessed.


    Suddenly, those who had not received the blessings all went away. There had been quite a few among them who were outstanding. However, if no one was willing to help them, they could only leave in disappointment.


    Of course, many of those who had come found opportunities.


    Ye Futian and his group had been blessed by Lord Taixuan.


    The cultivators not sheltered by the prophecy scrolls successively left. Before too long, they had all walked out of the City of the Ruins.


    Brilliant lights shone brightly on the Divine Priests. After watching those who were departing, another Divine Priest stepped forward. He looked down from the sky and said, "Those who are Renhuang must leave the City of the Ruins within five minutes."


    The announcement was heard throughout the City of the Ruins. Instantly, breaths of horror bloomed. Many figures quickly started walking to leave the City of the Ruins.


    "Be careful," Emperor Xia said to Ye Futian. "Look after Qingyuan."


    "Yes." Ye Futian slightly nodded.


    "Safety first in everything," Sky River Great Elder reminded Ye Futian. Lord Taixuan also gave them advice. All the elders flickered away after relayed their concerns. They quickly disappeared.


    In the City of the Ruins, everyone left realized how many cultivators of Renhuang had converged here. Of course, all the Renhuang in the City of the Ruins were from the Nine Realms. One was easily able to imagine what a grand occasion it was. Aside from the opening of God''s relic, there was almost no chance for such a grand occasion to repeat itself.


    Ye Futian and the others felt that solemn atmosphere. Looking up at the Divine Priests above the firmament, no one dared to disobey their will. The Divine Priests from the Empty Imperial Palace were doing the biddings of Donghuang the Great. In the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, none dared to rebel against the will of Donghuang the Great.


    Although Donghuang the Great did not reside in the Empty Imperial Palace, it was rumored that Donghuang the Great monitored the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. Everything was within his field of vision. Whatever he wanted to do was done in a single command.


    Therefore, no one dared to chance it. All the Renhuang evacuated, not wanting to violate his command.


    Once the five-minute time limit was up, there were no longer any Renhuang cultivators remaining inside the City of the Ruins. The only ones left were from the Saint Plane.


    A majority of them were at the pinnacle of the Saint Plane.


    "Once God''s relic is opened, all consequences after entering the relic are at your own risk. You must have already deduced some of the things that might happen. Here, Renhuang are not allowed to step inside God''s relic. Once you enter the relic, you are no longer bound by any rules or restrictions. It is somewhere we are unable to go."


    In the void, a Divine Priest had spoken. As everyone looked up at the void, they all understood that there were no rules of engagement for God''s relic, which only opened once every 50 years. It was merely the realm of entry that was restricted. All others entered once the relic was opened.


    After that, whether one lived or died was up to fate.


    Because of that, those who were in the top forces regarded God''s relic as the most dangerous trial. It was a burial ground where talented geniuses perish. No trial in the Nine Realms was quite like that of God''s relic. Although it was dangerous, there were great opportunities to be had.


    Otherwise, there would have been no reason for the top principalities to send their descendants there, and it would not have caused such a sensation in the Nine Realms.


    Moreover, the powerful figures from these top principalities vaguely knew something about God''s relic. Even just a sliver of the truth was enough to shock them.


    "Open the door to the relic."


    In the void, a Divine Priest''s loud voice was heard. Suddenly, divine light fell, descending upon the entire City of the Ruins. An indescribable terrifying breath reached up to the sky. Above the sky, it seemed that divine lights fell inside the City of the Ruins.


    In the next moment, it was as if something within the City of the Ruins had been awakened. Countless lights and patterns were emanating everywhere.


    The whole city seemed to come alive.


    "This is��"


    Ye Futian looked at the scene in front of him in complete shock. He saw the City of the Ruins was lit up with unparalleled light. At the moment, they only felt the previous City of the Ruins had been an existence of nothingness. These countless light patterns had constructed a new world to replace the City of the Ruins.


    A booming and rumbling noise was heard as the earth roared. Under the endless divine light, the void gates appeared inside the City of the Ruins.


    The divine doors stood in the void, bordering heaven and earth. They contained an unparalleled sense of spatial will. It was as if they could send them to another world.


    "Spectacular."


    Xia Qingyuan looked at an elusive divine gate that appeared in the void. Like all the others inside the City of the Ruins, she was quite shocked.


    It turned out that this was the true meaning of the entrance to God''s relic.


    The entrance to God''s relic was directly overlaid on top of the City of the Ruins.


    The divine gates wrapped the City of the Ruins within. The Divine Priests in the void quietly looked on. Finally, one of them said, "Once you have stepped into the gates of the void, you may enter God''s relic. You cannot exit until the gates of the void appear again inside God''s relic."


    As soon as his voice faded, someone walked through the void''s doors.


    It was as if they could no longer wait.


    One by one, they walked through the air, continually heading toward the gates of the void. They successively entered the gates. Once they went through the doors, they immediately disappeared like they were entering into another world.


    Ye Futian and his group were not taking any action. They were all waiting on Ye Futian.


    Many of the cultivators from the demonic clans flickered and walked toward the gate of the relic and entered.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said when he saw that more and more cultivators had entered. He was not too anxious. There was no need to fight for that little bit of a time difference.


    God''s relic was not going to be so simple.


    For them, there was no advantage to have gone in moments earlier.


    When he finished speaking, he started walking toward one of the void''s doors. Behind him, many others, such as Yu Sheng, Yaya, and Xia Qingyuan, followed him. They walked through the same door of the void with him. They hoped that when they reached God''s relic, they would all still be together.


    Soon, Ye Futian''s figure disappeared. In the next few moments, everyone disappeared one after another.


    The massive number of cultivators in the City of the Ruins disappeared without leaving a single person behind. They left an empty city in dead silence. Only the divine lights remained.


    Soon, the spatial doors closed and disappeared. The shining light beams inside the City of the Ruins also gradually disappeared.


    When everything calmed down, the Divine Priests walked away to return to the Imperial Empty Palace.


    Outside the City of the Ruins, powerful figures stood above the void, glancing at the empty city. Each of them turned to leave as well.


    Of course, some stayed to wait.


    What happened next depended on their fortunes.


    ...


    In God''s relic, Ye Futian''s figure appeared in another place. He had an extremely curious feeling when he passed through the door. In just a moment, he had come across and entered into another world.


    Naturally, he was no longer in the City of the Ruins.


    After that, figures quickly appeared one after another. Just as they had guessed, after passing through the same door to enter the City of the Ruins, they appeared in the same place. Ye Futian felt greatly relieved that he didn''t have to go looking for his people everywhere. It would have been troublesome and dangerous.


    Buzz��


    A strong breath suddenly came from afar. Ye Futian and the others froze. As they lifted their eyes to look in the distance, they saw the sky above the area where the noise had come was changing. The will of the Great Path fell. The sacred golden radiance sprinkled on one of the figures. They could vaguely feel a breath of Renhuang.


    Boom��


    The sacred brilliance surged upward and spread out toward the distance. It appeared extremely radiant.


    Seeing this, Ye Futian was momentarily stunned. A look of surprise flashed across his eyes.


    It was not just him. Everyone else was also stunned. They looked on in amazement at what was happening in front of them


    "Is this allowed?" Ye Futian murmured. He had not anticipated this. It seemed that he was still too naive.


    "Awesome!"


    The eyes of the Black Wind Condor also focused there. This was something quite possibly more awesome than himself.


    A man was casting the Divine Wheel of the Great Path and had broken into the Renhuang Realm.


    "This is to suppress the realm right at the point of breakthrough," Swordmaster Lihen said. "Despite the limit of a breakthrough being reached, they delayed until this moment. Once they entered God''s relic, the breakthrough immediately happened."


    Ye Futian nodded. The rule of God''s relic was that those from the Renhuang Plane were not allowed to set foot in it, but there were no other rules. Nothing was said about not being able to breakthrough into Renhuang after entering.


    Those who were at the peak were obviously far more experienced.


    Boom!


    In another direction, a massively dominant Will of the Way emitted. It was the breath of the Great Path of Renhuang. Ye Futian and the others turned their focus and looked in another direction. In the distance, there was a similar divine glory that surged upward and turned into one storm of the Great Path.


    Obviously, there was more than one person who had this plan in mind.


    Boom, boom, boom�� To their shock, Ye Futian and his group found the same scene playing out in at least 10 other locations, and that was just what they could see. There might have been many others happening in other places that they could not see.


    This was also within expectation. A great number of cultivators had entered into God''s relic. The top forces of the Nine Realms brought tens of thousands of people into God''s relic. Among those cultivators, there must have been some people who had suppressed their realm at a critical point. As soon as they entered the relic, the breakthrough into Renhuang took place.


    Watching all this glory of Renhuang, Ye Futian and the others felt a touch of pressure. It seemed that they would also be facing more than just the top geniuses at the peak of the Saint Plane.


    In just a little time, perhaps there would still be more Renhuang being produced.


    "Is there anyone who needs to breakthrough?" Ye Futian looked at those around him. Everyone looked at him without saying a word.


    Could anyone breakthrough at will?


    Ye Futian rubbed between his eyebrows and said rather depressingly, "It looks like we have to keep it on the down-low."


    It was a pity that although his realm was almost there, he hadn''t reached that critical point and couldn''t break through at will. He needed more time or an opportunity to cultivate there in peace for a while.


    In God''s relic, could anyone cultivate in peace?

 1599 First Tragedy in the Relic

    Ye Futian seriously looked at his surroundings. The white sky had no clouds. The dull wind gave off a heavy sense of depression.


    The aura was somewhat curious. It was ancient and solemn.


    However, Ye Futian felt the omnipresent aura between heaven and earth, as well as the breath of the Great Path. It was as if they permeated every corner of the world.


    When they quieted down and observed their surroundings, everyone felt how different it was there. It was not like a closed-off world of ruins. It was more like a vast expanse of space that was not too much different from the outside world. Of course, the area might have been so vast that the boundaries of the relic were impossible to detect.


    "God''s relic, are there really gods in this world?" Ye Futian whispered. In the world of cultivation, gods were nothing more than a respectful title for powerful cultivators. Just like fairies, Buddha, or demons, there were all kinds of titles. Gods only signified a kind of power that was beyond imagination.


    Perhaps the Imperial Realm above Renhuang was god-like.


    "I asked the grandmaster before I came, and he mentioned some things about God''s relic. According to his knowledge, there is a little-known term for God''s relic," said a woman next to him. It was the daughter of the City Lord of Taixuan, Luoyue.


    This time, Ye Futian and the others joined up with the disciples of Taixuan Mountain to enter God''s relic.


    The disciples of Taixuan Mountain also had trust in Ye Futian''s cultivation strength.


    "What''s it called?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Tombs of the gods," Luoyue replied.


    Ye Futian shuddered at the thought of the tombs of the gods.


    Had God''s relic buried all of the gods?


    If so, the origin of God''s relic was terrifying.


    By the order of Donghuang the Great, the prophecy was given to open God''s relic, which shocked the nine realms and brought the cultivators together. Ye Futian knew that God''s relic was extraordinary. When he heard that title, he still felt his insides shudder.


    Tombs of the gods!


    Doesn''t that mean that this ruin was the burial place of the gods?


    In that case, how terrible was it?


    Where had they gone to?


    This place was perhaps not the simple ruin they had imagined.


    No matter how terrible the origin of God''s relic was, they had not time to spend thinking about such things.


    Although they were not in a hurry, they couldn''t keep standing there waiting and chatting.


    "Follow me," Ye Futian said as he started walking away.


    Everyone nodded and followed Ye Futian. They gathered together and headed in the same direction. They didn''t know where Ye Futian was going, or why he had picked that particular direction. They didn''t ask any questions. This was clearly a demonstration of absolute trust.


    Yu Sheng transmitted his voice to Ye Futian. "We have a small number of people. If we have to take care of them and battle at the same time, we will be in trouble. We may not be able to take care of them." Ye Futian''s strength was not a concern, but the people inside God''s relic were not simpletons. Many of them were standing at the peak of the Nine Realms. Now, some were breaking into the realm of Renhuang.


    If there were conflicts, even if he had no confidence of winning, it would be more complicated having to take care of the others.


    "We need someone to lead the way," Ye Futian said. Yu Sheng was puzzled when he heard Ye Futian''s words, but he didn''t ask any more questions.


    Since Ye Futian had a plan, he just needed to follow.


    "Boss, where are we going?" Black Wind Condor''s eyes were shining with excitement. After being servile for so long, he was finally getting a chance to show off.


    Ye Futian was in no mood to answer him. He continued to move forward at a very fast pace.


    The cultivators had entered from different entrances into God''s relic. Ye Futian came in later because he was observing those around him to see which entrance they used. After entering God''s relic, he deliberately observed the location of those people and whether or not they were consistent with the location of the gates they had used outside.


    Although the distance was much farther than before, the locations did correspond.


    Therefore, he walked toward the west.


    That direction was the previous location of the cultivators of all the principalities from the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    All the top forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had arrived, and the same was true with the demonic realm. Many from the demon realm arrived together, but some forces still preferred to move alone. It seemed that this was the same relationship they had with other demon clans.


    For example, although it had become the top power among the demonic clans, the Purple Gold Rat Clan still felt that it was not respected by the other demonic clans.


    The Purple Gold Rat Clan called itself the Purple Gold Divine Rat. The leader who took them inside God''s relic was the grandson of the Purple Gold Rat Emperor, Shu Huangsun, whose strength was also very dominant. He had come out for the occasion after spending many years in seclusion.


    Through sheer hard work, the founder of the clan had created the glory of the Purple Gold Rat Clan. To continue to expand that glory, they needed the concerted efforts of every generation of Rat Clan''s descendants to work harder than other demonic clans. After all, the talents they were born with were still much more inferior than the demonic clans of the real dragon, divine phoenix, and Kunpeng.


    Therefore, they had saved their strength to come to God''s relic. If they had a great opportunity this time, they could potentially maintain the status of the Purple Gold Rat Clan and continue to expand their glory in the future.


    Although the appearance of Shu Huangsun was consistent with that of the rat family, his thieving face landed slightly on the ugly side. Yet, his temperament was quite extraordinary. The Vajra shining upon his body gave him an unusual stature. It suggested power that commanded some noble dignity.


    They went forward, rushing in one direction. They were ready to discover the treasures in the relic.


    The Purple Gold Rat Clan was an expert at this. It was a talent that belonged to them, so they did not want to partner with others.


    Furthermore, the Purple Gold Rat Clan kept a low profile under the leadership of Shu Huangsun. Instead of traveling by air, they shuttled on the ground and maintained a steady speed to avoid attracting the attention of others. The Purple Gold Rat Clan was not considered superior in the demonic realm of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It was regarded as strange and alien by many other more noble demonic clans. In the entire Nine Realms, it had no strong position to speak of. Thus, it worked better for them to keep a low profile.


    "Huh?" Shu Huangsun suddenly seemed to have felt something. He stopped and turned to look around.


    He faintly felt that someone was peeping at them with divine will and still approaching.


    "Go and see," he said. Behind him, two rat demons levitated. The golden lights on their bodies shimmered as they headed toward the sky. Their eyes turned golden. It was as if they could penetrate the void directly and look into a very distant place.


    Their golden pupils pierced through the space. A white-haired figure traveled through the air with incredible speed. It was coming toward them. At the same time, the white-haired figure was condensing a seal in both hands. Suddenly, numerous currents of swordsmanship appeared around him. In the distant void, countless divine wills suddenly appeared to resonate with the divine swords. A strong sword will burst out.


    They soon saw the bright and sparkling eyes of the white-haired youth. He seemed to be smiling at them.


    In the next moment, the sword came directly through the void.


    "Watch out!"


    The two shouted. As their voices faded, the radiant sword light appeared as countless divine swords manifested above the sky. Two of the swords sliced through the void and headed toward the two men.


    "Psst��"


    It was almost too fast for them to react. The swords penetrated through, carrying with them the will of the Great Path of Space. The two Demon Saints of the Purple Gold Rat Clan looked pale. Why were they so fast?


    Wherever the divine will turned, it instantly landed.


    Sword Qi raged in their bodies. More swords descended from the sky, piercing through their bodies and killing the two demons.


    When they saw the swords descending from the sky, the rest of the demonic beasts of the Purple Golden Rat Clan were appalled. Many rat demons escaped and fled beneath the ground.


    In the blink of an eye, countless divine swords rained down. The sounds of bodies being stabbed continued. The divine swords seemed to be alive as they pierced the ground and continued to chase. Fresh blood leaked spread on the ground.


    Growl! A terrifying angry roar was heard. Shu Huangsun''s face was extremely gloomy as he witnessed the scene in front of him. His real nature manifested itself. He turned into a giant purple gold rat demon. He opened the great basin of his golden mouth and devoured the incoming divine swords. He ferociously chewed them up.


    They had just entered God''s relic, yet someone was there to assassinate them.


    Two figures stepped out of the void. The man in front had white hair like snow. His white robe was flying in the wind. The man behind him wore a black robe and showed an indifferent murderous intent in his eyes. He exuded an air of aggression.


    "Purple Gold Rat Clan, you participated in the attack of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven." Ye Futian spoke lightly. His voice was indifferent as he announced the crimes committed by the Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    With a turning of his will, countless divine swords appeared. They enveloped the vast and endless void. They quickly and madly fell down. They did not kill the demons. Instead, they locked them into the space.


    "Yu Sheng, kill those rats who fled beneath the ground," Ye Futian commanded. Yu Sheng stomped his foot. An indescribable heavy sensation exploded. His dark armor on him shone with radiance. He was like a dark demonic god that had descended directly from the heavens.


    He threw a punch at the ground. When the punch made contact, the earth made a dull sound as huge cracks appeared. The ground was being torn apart.


    Beneath the ground, many miserable sharp screams were heard. As fresh blood mixed into the earth, the ground turned dead silent. No breath of life was detected.


    In an instant, the casualties were more than half of the clan.


    Every one of the Demon Saints of the Purple Gold Rat Clan shivered. Their faces showed anger and fear. They looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng in terror.


    How were they so strong?


    These two had once appeared at the feast of the Violet Heavenly Palace. At that time, they had demonstrated extraordinary combat effectiveness, but they were not that strong.


    Now, they were invincible.


    This was to avenge the past participation of the Purple Gold Rat Clan in the attack of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Shu Huangsun let out a low growl and exposed his sharp golden fangs. He looked terrifying and menacing. His eyes were fixed on Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    After they entered God''s relics, they had intended to go about their business as inconspicuous as possible. In less than five minutes after entering, they had been followed and hunted. Now, more than half of their people were slain.


    Behind Ye Futian and the others, Black Wind Condor had also rushed over. When he saw what was in front of him, he blinked and remembered Ye Futian talking about keeping a low profile. He felt deeply troubled.


    The low profile the boss had spoken about really confused Black Wind Condor.

 1600 Control

    Ye Futian was still standing in the air with countless divine swords falling all around him. They were everywhere, locking down the area. With Yu Sheng there as well, there was not even room for a mouse to move.


    The cultivators from the Purple Gold Rat Clan who had come to the ruins had been frightened by the two men. This made them feel a little bit sad.


    They had thought that they would be able to thrive with the greatest powers of the Nine Realms on this trip to the God''s Relic and seize it for themselves. They had not thought that right at the beginning...


    Things were going very badly.


    Ye Futian looked at the cultivators of the Purple Gold Rat Clan and said, "I will give you a choice. Submit or die." His eyes were cold. There was not even a hint of emotion in his voice.


    He was considering what Yu Sheng had said. There was no lack of powerful figures who had come to the God''s Relic. The two of them naturally had no major problems. For the others, once a major battle broke out, it would be difficult to take care of them.


    He needed to get a few servants to take care of them.


    The Purple Gold Rat Clan were without a doubt the best choice.


    "Submit?" Shu Huangsun grew larger. His body was extremely hideous. His fur was golden and shiny. As a member of the Rat Clan, it still did not give anyone even the slightest feeling of beauty.


    His golden fur stiffened and grew as sharp as knives. He stretched out his incredibly sharp claws. An aura like that of a demon emperor spread out from them. As they pressed forward, everyone could feel a terrible tearing power coming off of them.


    The Purple Gold Rat Clan stood at the peak of the Demon Realm. However, they were being taken lightly by this human. Did he take them for common rats?


    Was he really trying to make the members of their sovereign family submit?


    Many of the Purple Golden Rat Saints angrily glared at Ye Futian. Was he trying to humiliate them?


    Yu Sheng looked up and felt the cold demonic aura surging from the Purple Gold Rats. His eyes were cold, and his gaze was full of murderous intent.


    "It would be an honor for you," he said. His dark demonic armor flashed with a terrible light. Many dark, sharp blades appeared in his arms, which was a shocking sight. This made the Demon Saints of the Purple Gold Rat Clan feel an immense amount of pressure. This demonic cultivator was much more frightening than Ye Futian. There was not even a hint of emotion in his dark eyes. It was like he was nothing more than a killing weapon.


    Shu Huangsun swept his gaze over Yu Sheng. The light shining on his sharp claws grew even stronger. He planned to use his claws to tear through Ye Futian''s and Yu Sheng''s heads.


    He was using the finger bone of a powerful ancestor of the Purple Gold Rat Clan to enhance his claws. It contained terrible will within it. When light burst forth from it, the space in front of him seemed like it would be torn in two.


    Ye Futian naturally felt its aura. There was a roaring sound within him as the Supreme Elephant Emperor''s bones released their power. In a flash, a burst of incomparably powerful aura filled the area.


    Woosh! Shu Huangsun flew through the air at an incredible speed. He reached out with his giant claws toward Ye Futian''s head. His claws expanded until they filled the air. Ye Futian''s whole was likely to be covered by this attack.


    Without any hesitation, Ye Futian raised his arms and slammed them forward. The Great Path roared so loudly that the heavens shook. The sound of bones breaking was instantly heard. Shu Huangsun felt his bones shattering.


    He soon saw a pair of ice-cold eyes. They were deep enough to make one feel like they had fallen into an abyss.


    In his mind, Ye Futian''s image grew larger and larger. It was imprinted on his divine soul. A terrible energy storm raged through him. He groaned as his massive body began to shake.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise as fists slammed into his head. He gave a pitiful cry as powerful will surged into him, eating up his own will and draining him of any power he had to resist.


    He cried out as if he had realized something. He had made his final resistance.


    He was from the Purple Gold Rat Clan and a sovereign family. How could he have fallen so far as to be the servant of humans and obey their orders? This was a massive humiliation.


    Boom! There was another loud noise as his divine soul was struck again. The more he resisted, the worse it got. Ye Futian was using his attacks to waken his willpower. Ye Futian saw the image of a purple gold rat within his opponent''s divine soul. He knew this was his main spirit. Powerful will surged into him through the raging energy storm, leaving an imprint behind.


    At that moment, all his power to resist disappeared.


    "Kneel," Ye Futian coldly said. Below them, the cultivators of the Purple Gold Rat Clan watched and trembled in fear. Up in the air, Shu Huangsun was kneeling. It seemed he had willingly submitted to Ye Futian.


    This made them feel a deep chill come up from their souls.


    They were finished.


    They had just entered the God''s Relic and had hoped to have some success. Instead, what had been waiting for them was disaster.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and placed a foot on Shu Huangsun''s back. He swept his sharp eyes over the Purple Rat Clan cultivators below him as he said, "I will kill anyone who does not submit."


    Woosh! Several of the Purple Rat Clan demon Saints tried to flee.


    Bang! Yu Sheng quickly strode forward, moving an incredible distance in a single step. The power with which he brought his foot down made the earth shake and split open. He reached out. Terrible demonic light burst forth, transforming into swallowing power. All the Purple Gold Rat Clan cultivators were slowed down. In the next instant, countless beams of dark light wrapped around them. They turned into dark claws that pulled them firmly backward.


    Roar!


    One of the Purple Gold Rat Clan cultivators transformed with a roar. Golden light flashed from him. He tried to break the power of the claws that were holding him. There was no way he could have succeeded. He was pulled right back into Yu Sheng''s arms.


    A snapping sound rang out as Yu Sheng''s hands turned into sharp demonic claws that pierced into his opponent''s flesh. It was a shocking sight.


    Thump! There was another loud noise as Yu Sheng stepped into the sky. Countless beams of dark demonic light swept out toward the other Purple Gold Rat Clan cultivators, covering the entire area.


    As the cultivators below watched Yu Sheng, there was a loud splitting sound as the cultivators who had tried to flee were smashed to death one by one. There was no hope of escape. They all died on the spot.


    Before long, everything had calmed down. There was no sign that a struggle had taken place.


    The Purple Gold Rat Clan cultivators felt that things were hopeless. It seemed that they had no other choice but to accept their fates. They had lost any hope of victory as soon as they had entered the God''s Relic.


    Ye Futian took several steps forward. As he stood in midair, a brilliant light shone from him. The cultivators of the Purple Gold Rat Clan lowered their heads. They had no more power to resist. They despaired inwardly, but what did it matter? There was a simple choice before them now.


    They had to choose to live or die.


    Ye Futian looked at the Purple Gold Rat Clan cultivators, whose heads were lowered, without any sympathy or pity. In addition to having participated in the siege of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, they had tried to steal the Divine Elephant Emperor''s bones at the Origin Mountains and kill him.


    "From now on, you are no longer permitted to resist." Ye Futian walked back and forth in front of them. He began to take full control of them. Their bodies trembled. Before long, they all knelt on the ground with incredibly sincere looks in their eyes. They were now fully obedient to Ye Futian.


    Behind them, Luoyue and the other cultivators of Taixuan Mountain looked surprised. What was this?


    Ye Futian seemed to be able to control demons.


    Once all the demons of the Purple Gold Rat Clan were controlled, Ye Futian turned and said to the people of Taixuan Mountain, "This ability is not appreciated by the demon clans. I trust that you will all keep my secret."


    "Don''t worry," Luoyue said with a nod. There were not many people there from Taixuan Mountain. After all, Taixuan Mountain was rather weak. They had mostly come there to observe. As far as they were concerned, the most important thing was to stay alive. They were not about to deny any good fortune that came their way.


    Ye Futian knew all the people who had come. Moreover, he knew they would all obey him. Those who had cultivated to the Saint level would not run their mouths and give away secrets.


    Once all this was done, Ye Futian swept his gaze over the Purple Gold Rat Clan. With a single thought, they all suddenly began burrowing into the ground and went off in different directions.


    At the same time, one of them burrowed right below their feet, guarding them from below. He was not going to leave them. This rat cultivator desired to give his all to defend them. When they needed it most, he would defend Xia Qingyuan and the others.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen walked up to Ye Futian and whispered, "Are you sending the rat demons out to scout?"


    Ye Futian nodded. "Yes. I sent them out in different directions. It is said that these rats have some particular talents and are well-suited to scouting and finding treasure. If I spread them out, they can cover a greater area. Even if they are discovered, the people of other forces will not consider a single rat to be a threat. They will probably just ignore them."


    The Swordmaster of Lihen slightly nodded. If any of the rats were discovered and targeted, a single rat had no hope of standing on its own. He inwardly sighed. After so many years of experience, this young man, who had once been swayed by personal feelings, was becoming more mature.


    Of course, he did not pity these rats at all. When he heard what Ye Futian had said, he knew there was great enmity between the two sides.


    "In that case, we do not need to worry too much as we make our way," Ye Futian said. The group continued forward. They were not moving very fast. The rats had gone out in all directions, but he did not know yet know what direction to go to find ruins left by the gods.


    While Ye Futian was controlling the Purple Gold Rat Clan, the other forces that had come to the God''s Relic were moving as well. They were all going in different directions. The cultivators who had reached into the Renhuang plane were the fastest, and their senses covered the widest area. They already had an advantage and hoped they could discover the ruins as fast as possible.


    They knew very well that as more time passed, the number of Renhuangs in the God''s Relic would increase. Many powerful figures were likely to break through to the next level.


    However, no great battle had broken out yet. Other than Ye Futian''s fight with the Purple Gold Rat Clan, the other forces were temporarily at peace and did not attack each other. They all knew that this was only because the time was not yet right.


    Once a ruin left behind by the gods was found, a vicious battle would certainly break out.

 1601 School of the Emperor Star

    Ye Futian and the others slowly traveled through the ruins. They soon discovered that these ruins were starting to seem more and more like a world of their own. The area was vast, with mountains, streams, rivers, lakes, and forests.


    They had even come across some small demons and wild beasts. On the whole, it was a barren wilderness. It seemed like no one lived there. It was ancient and dead silent.


    "Is the God''s Relic a realm of its own?" Ye Futian whispered. A thoughtful look appeared on the others'' faces. They had also wondered that. The God''s Relic was not like any of the ruins they had experienced before. It was vast without end.


    "Why do you think that?" the Swordmaster of Lihen asked.


    "I once heard my master say that in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, there were a few realms that had been destroyed in war," Ye Futian quietly said. He had his own ideas about what was going on. "They are supposed to be barren and silent, without any signs of human habitation. Some of them can recover, and people will return to them. If a realm is truly turned uninhabitable and someone controls it, if no one is allowed to enter, how can it recover?"


    "This does seem a bit like a realm of its own, so perhaps you have guessed right," the Swordmaster of Lihen softly said. He had asked Ye Futian because he had been thinking the same thing.


    The God''s Relic, which had shaken the Nine Realms, was possibly a realm of its own. It had been sealed off by Donghuang the Great. People were only allowed to go there once every 50 years.


    This realm had a ruin left behind by the gods. If what Luoyue had said before was true, then this was the realm where the gods were buried.


    The Purple Gold Rats Ye Futian was controlling were getting further away and beginning to spread out. They were shooting off into the vastness of the realm. Along the way, they ran into other cultivators who had come, but the Purple Gold Rats burrowed into the ground. The powerful figures had not bothered with rats who hid in the ground. They were not considered a threat.


    At the same time, a group of figures was traveling through another section of the God''s Relic. There were only a couple dozen people in the group, but all of them were elites. Other than a few of them who were Unblemished Saints, the others were all at the Nirvana level. The age range among the group was very wide. Some of them were young, and some were old. It was not only young geniuses who were there, but some elders had cultivated at the Saint plane for many years.


    All of them had a peculiar aura about them. They were arrogant and noble. Their eyes shone like stars while also being infinitely deep.


    An old man wearing a starry robe was leading them. Magnificent starlight shone from him. A small star matrix seemed to hang in the air in front of him, sucking up all the life force from the world around him while also connecting him to heaven and earth.


    A point of light in this small star matrix seemed to be pointing the way forward.


    The people behind him were following the light as if they trusted it implicitly.


    These people had come from the Ziwei Realm. They were cultivators from the top force in the Ziwei Realm, the School of the Emperor Star. Their power within the Ziwei Realm was clear for all to see. It was an ancient force that had once dominated the Ziwei Realm, just like the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    It was said that the elder of the School of the Emperor Star was also the ruler of the Ziwei Realm. He was known as the Star Lord of Ziwei and incredibly powerful. Of course, that could only be learned from ancient books. No one knew the actual history.


    As they continued walking, a building appeared ahead of them. Their eyes grew sharp as they looked at it. They could faintly see a gate on it.


    They unconsciously began moving faster. The elevation gradually rose. After a while, they could see a heavenly gate that seemed like the legendary Gate of the Heavenly Palace. It was tall and mighty, as well as hundreds of feet tall.


    However, it was broken. A third of it was gone. Everything before it was a desolate ruin that seemed to stretch off into the distance. It seemed like a long war had taken place there.


    The people of the School of the Emperor Star had found the ruin, yet they were not excited. As the top force in the Ziwei Realm, this was not the first time they had been there. Several in their group had entered in the past and taken notes after they had emerged. Some of their current elders had even entered the ruins and described to the others what they had found inside.


    To have found the ruin was not necessarily good luck. It was also a potential sign of danger.


    As to what that danger was, there were many possibilities. Thus, it was important for them to be exceedingly careful.


    They passed through the broken gate and strode through the ruins. There were no complete buildings left. All of them were damaged and had collapsed. They could not see anything of value that had been left behind. Moreover, others had definitely come before them seeking treasure, but even they would have found it hard to find anything.


    Among the group of people from the School of the Emperor Star, a young man suddenly stopped. He closed his eyes. A spiritual map instantly appeared in his mind. There was a ruin marked on the map that was very similar to the scene before their eyes. It seemed to beckon him.


    The elders of the School of the Emperor Star had once been here, so they were now guiding them.


    They had been able to quickly find this place. In addition to having special skills, they also had the guidance of their elders.


    The young man bent down and placed his hands on the ground. In a flash, the earth shook with a roar. A storm of the Great Path swept out. The ruins around them were swept away or smashed into dust.


    The storm grew stronger, clearing out all the ruins. They soon saw an ancient road stretching out that had been buried under the ruins.


    Many corpses had been uncovered by the storm. Most of them were insignificant skeletons that had been picked clean long ago.


    As the road went on, they saw a palace under the earth with a broken gate hanging open. The gate had already been destroyed by others.


    The people from the School of the Emperor Star''s eyes flashed. Their elders had said there were things in these ruins that they had been unable to take back with them last time. They had asked them to seek them out first. Thus, they had immediately come to this place.


    The group continued forward. They stopped outside of the palace gates. Many of them waved their hands, weaving enchantments that locked everything up inside the gate and blocking other people''s divine souls from entering. That way, no one would have been able to know what they had done.


    Up high and off in the distance, stood another group of figures. The person at their head seemed to have veins in his eyes, which made him look rather strange. Spatial divine light shone from him as he looked at them across the vast distance. It was as if they were right next to each other.


    "The ruin is there, " he said. "It looks like we were right to follow the School of the Emperor Star."


    These people had come from another top power of the Ziwei Realm and had followed the School of the Emperor Star.


    "What do you see?" someone beside him asked.


    "They''ve blocked it off with enchantments, so I couldn''t see clearly," the man said. "After clearing away some of the ruins, they entered an underground palace and set up enchantments. Should we go now or wait?"


    "We will go," the man beside him said. The group started to move. They crossed the great distance very quickly.


    Meanwhile, another group of people rushed forward from a different direction. It appeared that there was not just one force watching the School of the Emperor Star.


    It was obvious that the School of the Emperor Star held an important position within the Ziwei Realm. At least, these powers placed a lot of trust in them. They believed they would find the ruins.


    There was also a rat demon underground outside the ruins. He felt an incredibly powerful aura pressing down on him. He sensed two forces arriving one after another, and both of them were very powerful.


    Off in the distance, Ye Futian sensed everything through the Purple Gold Rat. "Something is happening," he said.


    Yu Sheng turned and looked at Ye Futian.


    "With three great forces there, this won''t be easy to handle," Ye Futian said. "Yu Sheng, the two of us will go."


    Yu Sheng nodded. "Alright."


    "The three forces are probably from the Star Lord of Ziwei, and they will all be very powerful. We should not bite off more than we can chew. Let''s go," Ye Futian said. Once a fight broke out in the ruins, it would certainly be very fierce. Having more people with them was not necessarily a good thing. Ye Futian had seen the forces at the ruins, and there were very few people among them. It meant that they were all probably quite powerful.


    After saying that, the two of them sped up and rushed toward the ruins.


    At the same time, the two forces had arrived and were casually chatting. There was no friction between them yet. They were working together to break through the enchantments and enter.


    A group of majestic figures descended. Once they had broken through the enchantments, the two forces stood there in shock. They saw a group of figures standing there, but they had not entered the ruins. The figures stood there, shining with brilliant light.


    Incomparably brilliant light suddenly burst from the ground, forming a terrifying diagram.


    "That''s not good. Flee!" A loud voice sounded out. Powerful auras burst forth from the people of both forces. They realized they had been ambushed.


    The cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star looked cold, without the slightest hint of emotion. They started up the large pattern. Endless starlight bloomed, transforming it into a giant pattern of stars. Terrible killing will erupted from it. In the instant the starry pattern was set off, the area was filled with endless beams of killing starlight that cut through the air. There were multiple screams of pain. Many people were instantly pierced by the starlight and cut open.


    Blood flew through the air. Many people used their power to block the attack and fled from the center of the pattern. They floated up into the air with cold expressions. They looked down on the cultivators from the School of the Emperor Star.


    In a flash, almost one-third of the people from the two great forces had been slain by the pattern.


    "Did you really think we did not know you were watching us?" an elder of the School of the Emperor Star coldly asked. They had pretended they did not know and set up their enchantments to block their opponents'' senses. Afterward, they had set up their trap.


    In the God''s Relic, any competitor was an enemy who needed to be killed.


    There was no mercy in this place.

 1602 Chaotic Battle

    The cultivators from the two great forces looked to where many of their allies had been slain and disappeared. A dark look appeared on their faces.


    In a flash, the area filled with terrible and intense pressure.


    The School of the Emperor Star was the most ancient force within the Ziwei Realm. After all, it was said that the Star Lord of Ziwei was once the ruler of the Ziwei Realm.


    The other top powers of the Ziwei Realm had impressive origins as well. Any power that was able to stand near the top was not simple. Otherwise, they would never have made it to that step.


    These two major forces were the Dou tribe and Clan of the Seven Slayers.


    It was said that the Dou tribe descended from the God of Battle. After the God of Battle had been defeated, his bloodline spread throughout the world. The elder of the Dou tribe realized he had that bloodline, so he had formed the Dou tribe. It was said that they were the most powerful attackers in the Ziwei Realm.


    The Clan of the Seven Slayers proved their worthiness through killing. Two forces were recognized as the best at the Way of Slaughtering: the Slaughtering World of the Myriad Realm and the Clan of the Seven Slayers of the Ziwei Realm.


    However, these two forces cultivated very differently. The Dou tribe also proved their worthiness through killing, but the cultivators of the Slaughtering World used killing for their mindset and set up killing matrices. Meanwhile, the Clan of the Seven Slayers cultivated the Seven Tricks of the Killing Gods. They mainly focused on cultivating Slaughtering Qi and Slaughtering Will. Thus, they went in different directions, but there were similarities as well.


    The Seven Tricks of the Killing Gods was made up of seven attacks. After those seven attacks, if one''s opponent did not die, one would. Thus, the disciples of the Clan of the Seven Slayers cultivated nothing but slaughter. They only lived if their opponent died. They had to kill their opponent within seven attacks.


    These three forces stood at the top of the Ziwei Realm. They were naturally very familiar with each other. Otherwise, the Clan of the Seven Slayers and the Dou tribe would not have followed the School of the Emperor Star. They obviously placed a lot of faith in their abilities.


    Now, the School of the Emperor Star was their opponent.


    "What is in the underground ruins?" a fair faced-youth from the Clan of the Seven Slayers asked. There was some murderous intent in the tone of his voice. He was one of the Seven Slayers of his generation. He was ranked last among them, number seven, and not famous at all.


    The other six Seven Slayers were all at the Renhuang level, which showed how high the requirements were to become one of the Seven Slayers.


    Their disciples had to undergo a lot of training outside to train their desire to kill. Each of the Seven Slayers had risen to their position on a mound of bones and a sea of blood.


    "You will know when you go in and see." A from the School of the Emperor Star swept his gaze over the Seventh Slayer. The youth who had spoken, Bei Chen, was the personal disciple of the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star. He had cultivated to the peak of the Saint plane. He was very famous within the School of the Emperor Star, as well as throughout the Ziwei Realm.


    Of course, he was not the only famous person there. The Seventh Slayer and Dou Zhao of the Dou tribe were the most famous people of the younger generation in the Ziwei Realm. They were also the junior leaders of their respective forces armies. They were all incredibly powerful.


    The cultivators of the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers looked at the man from the School of the Emperor Star. The matrix was still there. If they tried to break out, they would surely suffer.


    "Go and take a look," Dou Zhao said. Suddenly, several of his people rushed toward the underground palace. They clenched their fists and lashed out through the air, slamming their hands into the exterior of the palace. Cracks appeared in it.


    Boom! A loud noise rang out as the underground palace trembled fiercely. The palace, which already had cracks in it, gave no sign of collapsing. This palace, which had been buried among the ruins, seemed incredibly sturdy.


    It seemed like they could not go in that way. If they wanted to enter, they had to force their way in. Unfortunately, the cultivators from the School of the Emperor Star were blocking their way.


    "If we go in together, all three sides will fight," Dou Zhao said as he looked off into the distance. "If the School of the Emperor Star wants to seize these ruins for themselves, we must temporarily ally ourselves with the Clan of the Seven Slayers to deal with them."


    The people from the School of the Emperor Star looked cold. If they let them go, they would form an alliance against them.


    "There are two forces, but we will only permit one of you to go inside. You must choose which one it will be," an elder next to Bei Chen said. He was extremely skillful. A single sentence from him had changed the whole situation.


    This meant that between the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers, only one of them could enter. Thus, they had to fight each other.


    "If we fight each other first and waste our energy, won''t the School of the Emperor Star have even less reason to let us go?" There was some divine radiance in Dou Zhao''s eyes. They shone with golden light as he looked at the Clan of the Seven Slayers and said, "There''s no need to waste time talking. Let''s just break in."


    The Seventh Slayer nodded. "Very well." He had no objections. The situation before them was simple. Their two forces had the advantage in terms of numbers, but their opponents held a favorable position since they had formed a starry matrix. This had formed a delicate balance between the two sides. If they wanted to break the deadlock, they had to work together against the School of the Emperor Sar.


    Whoosh! A wild fighting aura swept out. Divine fighting light shone upon Dou Zhao. His whole body was brilliantly shining. Cracking sounds emitted from his bones. His robes were torn.


    The sharp cracking sounds continued as his robe split. Dou Zhao grew larger, turning into a God of Battle. His bare chest contained incomprehensible power. He had a bit of Renhuang majesty about him that seemed to meld with his flesh.


    His arms trembled and made a cracking sound. Behind him, the cultivators of the Dou tribe slammed their fists into him. In a flash, his arms were covered in flowing divine light that entered into his body and made his fighting will even stronger. He grew even larger.


    The cultivators of the Clan of the Seven Slayers started emitting powerful Slaughtering Qi. It spread throughout the area with an ear-splitting whistling noise. Each thread of Slaughtering Qi was as sharp as a knife and could kill a man.


    As the thousands of threads of Slaughtering Qis spread through the air, it was like there was an endless army of Slaughtering Gods marching.


    The cultivators from the Clan of the Seven Slayers stepped forward. The Seventh Slayer had a frightening look in his eyes. With a single thought, endless Slaughtering Qi descended toward the cultivators from the School of the Emperor Star below.


    The cultivators from the School of the Emperor Star engaged their starry matrix again. In a flash, endless starlight bloomed. Beams of light crisscrossed. It activated all the power in the area. Once the Slaughtering Qi entered the area, it would be torn up and destroyed.


    The Seventh Slayer took another step forward. He was now standing in the air right above the matrix. He held a long spear in his hands. It was the Slaughtering Spear.


    Bang! He took another step forward. The Slaughtering Qi gathered in endless amounts. The Slaughtering Way roared as seven cultivators from the Clan of the Seven Slayers stepped up from behind and followed him. The seven of them instantly transformed into gods of slaughter.


    Below them, a scepter appeared in Bei Chen''s hands. Endless will swept out from it. The light from all the stars in heaven gathered within it.


    In the next moment, the Seventh Slayer gathered all the Slaughtering Qi together for an attack to try and break through the matrix. His spear fell. The endless starlight was destroyed. Bei Chen raised his scepter. Suddenly, even more terrible starlight appeared, forming many orbits for stars. Actual stars appeared within these orbits, imprisoning the Seventh Slayer within them.


    "Destroy." Bei Chen raised his scepter and pointed it. Endless killing starlight shot out of it. Each beam of light contained enough power to cut through space and time. It was strong enough to shatter the entire area into many pieces.


    The Seventh Slayer exploded with Slaughtering Qi that slammed into the oncoming starlight. He stepped within the matrix and used the Seven Tricks of the Killing Gods. Figures that looked like gods of slaughter appeared. They shot out across the matrix.


    At the same time, Dou Zhao rose into the air. He had taken on the form of a god of war. He shot through the air. He saw an area full of stars ahead of him, which were blocking his way. He pierced through them with his fist and continued onward.


    Whoosh!


    There was a loud noise as countless stars rotated around Bei Chen. With a single thought, even more stars appeared. At that moment, the stars all cracked as Dou Zhao''s attack slammed into them.


    While they were fighting, the cultivators from the Dou tribe and Clan of the Seven Slayers were rushing toward the matrix, preparing to force their opponents to flee from it.


    Suddenly, a violent attack made the whole area tremble fiercely.


    Bei Chen took several steps back. Dou Zhao from the Dou tribe was just as strong as the legends said. It was said that he was the member of the Dou tribe in whom the blood of the God of Battle flowed the most strongly. He had an offensive and defensive Renhuang item within him, which showed that the Dou tribe looked at him as their presumptive heir.


    The ground split. The area around the underground palace shook. The palace itself was not affected at all.


    Off in the distance, two figures were standing and watching the battle. They were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    "A battle between people at the peak of the Saint plane has broken out." Ye Futian was in no hurry to rush forward. He looked at Yu Sheng beside him and asked, "Do you have any Renhuang level items?"


    If he did not have any, it would cause them some trouble. Many of the people they were about to fight had them, especially the most powerful of them.


    Yu Sheng nodded. "I do." The Demon Dragon had given him one before he left the Dragon Gods.


    Moreover, it was no ordinary treasure.


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian. "When?" That simple word naturally meant, "When are we going to act?"


    Ye Futian was speechless. Even when confronted with a violent battle between such powerful figures, Yu Sheng still wanted to get involved. He felt like they would be crushed.


    Ordinary Saints trembled before such a battle.


    They were not that far away. With their thoughts covering the whole area, their opponents surely knew they were there. Yet, they ignored them.


    The three top forces of the Ziwei Realm were fighting. What could two lone cultivators possibly do to affect the outcome?


    There was only one road ahead of them. Thus, they ignored them.


    The great battle continued. The cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star were finally forced out of the matrix. The Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers pressed forward, stepping on the ground above the underground palace.


    The underground palace was quite large and had a massive gallery in front of it. There were many skeletons on both sides of the gallery. The skeletons that contained any will seemed to have already been taken away. There were no weapons left either.


    However, at the end of the gallery, within the depths of the palace, a terrifying aura was seeping out.

 1603 Fighting Will

    Violent noises were continuously heard from the underground palace. There was not nearly enough space down there for a battle between people at the top of the Saint plane. An ordinary palace certainly would have collapsed by this point. However, even though the underground palace was constantly shaking, it had not been destroyed.


    Outside the palace, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had advanced a little bit and were watching the palace.


    "I can''t sense anything," Ye Futian whispered. Should they go in or not?


    "Should we go in?" Yu Sheng asked.


    "Let''s wait a little longer," Ye Futian replied. The battle within was extremely chaotic. The cultivators of the three greatest forces in the Ziwei Realm were locked in battle. If they rushed in now, they would be nothing more than cannon fodder.


    At the very least, it was best to wait until all three sides had been weakened.


    Ye Futian did not doubt that even though their opponents had completely ignored the two of them, if the two of them rushed in to try and seize the advantage, their opponents would not hesitate to destroy them first.


    Yu Sheng quietly stood there. He was a little disheartened. Since there were no Renhuangs among these three great forces, why wait? They should have started fighting right away. This guy was still quite lazy.


    The sounds of violent battle continued. Although their divine spirits were blocked by the underground palace, they could still imagine how fierce the battle within was. Just the sounds were enough to shake their courage.


    As long as those sounds continued, Ye Futian was in no rush. The battle was clearly still going on.


    After a while, all suddenly became quiet within the underground palace. There were no more wild sounds of battle.


    "Did they stop?" Ye Futian was surprised. He stared at the underground palace. He was unable to see the end of that long gallery in front. Had the winners and losers been decided?


    He strode forward but stopped after a single step. He saw figures emerging from the underground palace. They soon reached the outside. A look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face when he saw them. There were people from all of the three forces.


    Had they made peace?


    "Did those two leave on their own, or should we see them off?" one of them asked. Ye Futian slightly frowned. Why were they suddenly thinking of them?


    Could it be that the people inside had come to an agreement?


    Would they first take care of the people watching from outside?


    Yu Sheng''s eyes were cold. A thread of demonic power rolled off of him. Ye Futian said, "I know we want to go in and take a look, but let''s stay put for the time being."


    Whoosh! A powerful killing will suddenly erupted from the cultivator of the Clan of the Seven Slayers. Endless threads of Slaughtering Qi surged with horrifying force. The cultivators from the School of the Emperor Star and the Dou tribe released powerful auras as well, which pressed toward Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    One of the figures moved. The cultivator from the Clan of the Seven Slayers pierced through the air, ignoring the great distance between them. He descended in front of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng and thrust out with his spear. Slaughtering Qi filled the air. It covered the two of them within it. The spear contained an incredible amount of killing will. It made the two of them feel like their divine souls were under threat.


    Yu Shen stepped forward. At nearly the same instant, demonic energy rolled off of him. A dark demonic flow of Qi swept out, colliding with the Slaughtering Qi. His fist turned into a claw, which he raked across his opponent''s spear.


    As the spear pressed down, incomparably powerful Slaughtering Will erupted from it. It tried to pierce through Yu Sheng''s hand and into his arm, but Yu Sheng had already transformed his hand into a demonic claw. The Slaughtering Will seeped into the claw, but it was blocked. It seemed that Yu Sheng''s arm was not made of human flesh and blood. It was filled with the hard bones of a demon dragon.


    The man reacted incredibly fast. He dropped his spear, took a step back, and transformed into a beam of light to flee.


    Yu Sheng ran his hand over the spear from top to bottom. He suddenly took a step forward, which made a loud booming sound. All the air seemed to flee the area as the suppression of the Great Path made the world stagnate. Time and space seemed to stop. He reached out toward his opponent.


    Boom! There was an incredibly loud noise. Within the moment that time had stopped, he had pierced the spear through the fleeing cultivator from the Clan of the Seven Slayer''s chest. He slammed into one of the ruined walls, spitting up a mouthful of blood. His internal organs shook from the blow. Blood flowed continuously from his wound.


    "You''re still so violent!" When he saw what had happened, Ye Futian was nearly speechless. "They had not seen each other for several years, but Yu Sheng''s combat style was still simple and direct. It was clean and tidy, without any unnecessary complications. But his destructive power was astonishing. Even if the cultivator from the Clan of the Seven Slayers had not been killed, he would not be getting back up anytime soon.


    When they saw this, everyone''s hearts beat faster. Some of them thought back to their elders'' orders and felt like they had made a mistake by taking these men who had come to the God''s Relic too lightly.


    In the face of the three great powers, no matter how individually powerful they were, two Saint-level cultivators were no threat at all. Once Yu Sheng acted, they sensed that these two were far stronger than they had originally assumed.


    Bang! Yu Sheng rushed forward at the crowd of enemies. The sky was filled with raging, dark demonic energy. It seemed like a black demonic dragon had appeared. He reached a claw through the air. The dark dragon suddenly roared and charged toward his opponents. The other cultivators rose into the air, scattering and fleeing.


    Whoosh! Ye Futian rushed forward as well, appearing in front of the underground palace. He stepped inside and said, "I will go and take a look."


    There had been no movement inside. Their opponents had sent people out to deal with them, so he wanted to go in and see what was going on. As for what was happening outside, he left it to Yu Sheng. He had absolute confidence in his abilities and believed he would solve the problem very quickly.


    There were some corpses in the long gallery in front of the palace, as well as many wounded people. All of them had been left behind after the recent battle. Of course, Ye Futian saw many skeletons.


    There were shafts of light, but it still was rather dark. That was probably because it had been buried underground for so long. Judging by the gate, which was so large, and how sturdy the palace was, it must have once been the cultivation place of some great figure.


    He thought that if his guess was correct, this had once been its own realm. What happened to lead to its destruction?


    Luoyue had said that this was the burial place of all the gods. Could it be that this realm had a war in the distant past? Had it led to the annihilation of the history of an entire realm full of cultivators? If so, when Donghuang the Great had conquered this area, he had set this up as a place for his descendants to train.


    Ye Futian continued forward. He moved deeper into the gallery. He finally saw the three forces that had previously been fighting.


    The cultivators were no longer fighting. They were all just standing there.


    In front of them was the end of the hall, which contained a throne. In front of the throne was an incredibly imposing figure. His eyes seemed to be able to peer through the ages. He possessed incomparably powerful fighting will. He held a spear that was stuck into the ground. Dazzling fighting will swept out from the spear, transforming into a light curtain that lit up the whole area.


    He''s dead, Ye Futian thought. The figure was insubstantial. It was not the man''s true body. It was not even his ghost. There was no breath of life left within him. All that was left was his ferocious fighting will.


    Had he transformed into fighting will that would not dissipate after his death?


    His spear seemed to have inherited all of the fighting will he had had in life.


    Compared to that fighting will, Dou Zhao of the Dou tribe''s fighting will seemed rather lackluster.


    The Dou tribe was skilled in battle and said to be the descendants of the God of Battle. When they were able to give full play to their advantages, their fighting will could fill the heavens and their power was pushed to its limits. However, it was still far less than the fighting will within that spear and unreal image. They were not even on the same level. It was like comparing a firefly to the full moon.


    This was the fighting will of a true legend. Even after thousands of years, it had not dissipated. It had seeped into the spear. There was so much fighting will that the people could not get near it. This showed how terrifying it was.


    There was a fire burning in Dou Zhao''s eyes. It was like this place had been prepared for him. If he was able to obtain this fighting will, how much would his power increase? He might have even been able to fight Renhuangs.


    Right now, none of them had even gotten close to it. Thus, they had stopped fighting.


    There seemed to be no more use in fighting. Whoever obtained the fighting will would certainly be the winner.


    Suddenly, a stranger entered. Everyone''s gaze turned and fell upon Ye Futian.


    The people they had sent out had not managed to deal with the two of them. In fact, they had even let one of them in.


    It seemed that these were no common cultivators.


    They released their auras at him. Suddenly Ye Futian was under an immense amount of pressure. He looked at the crowd, smiled, and said, "I am just here to watch. You may continue."


    "Just here to watch?" Everyone looked at him coldly. Was he really going to play the fool with them here?


    He had been able to get this far. Was he really just going to watch?


    One of them stepped toward Ye Futian. It was a cultivator from the Dou tribe. His fighting will wildly surged. His aura was astonishing. It climbed right up to the Saint level.


    Boom!


    There was a roar as he stepped forward again. Divine light shone from him. He shot through the air toward Ye Futian, flying like a sacred spring. A flow of divine light followed him through the air.


    Ye Futian calmly stood where he was without trying to dodge. When he saw his opponent''s fist coming, he threw out his fist.


    Bang!


    There was a loud noise. The underground palace trembled with a ferocious rumbling. The cultivator from the Dou tribe was extremely strong, but he had taken it for granted that he would be able to crush Ye Futian. It seemed that the reality of the situation was different from what he had imagined. With a violent noise, the cultivator from the Dou tribe was sent flying backward. His arms made a snapping sound. It was as if his bones had been shattered.


    When he hit the ground, he began to retreat. Blood was streaming from his mouth. This made everyone look very surprised. They saw that Ye Futian''s eyes had become a little more serious.


    The Dou tribe was famous for their skill in battle, and they were unparalleled in close-combat. However, when their fists had collided, he had been defeated. How strong was this white-haired youth who had just appeared?


    Dou Zhao turned. His gaze fell upon Ye Futian. Violent fighting will fell upon him. It was extremely overbearing.

 1604 Battle of the Underground Palace

    Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao. He felt a burst of pressure hit him. Dou Zhao was incredibly strong.


    As the future heir of the Dou tribe, Dou Zhao was surrounded by a halo of light and had the body of a god of battle. His mighty fighting will rolled off him in waves. Once he opened his eyes, they revealed a terrifying look. As he took a step toward Ye Futian, a loud boom sounded. The figure of a god of battle instantly roared to life out of him. It quickly turned solid and shot toward Ye Futian.


    When he saw that, Ye Futian thought, Can he create gods of battle with his fighting will? Was this what it was like when the will of the Great Path and fighting will merged?


    The god of battle lashed out with its fists, causing the underground palace to shake. Incomparably majestic power crushed down toward Ye Futian. Dou Zhou wanted to see the true strength of the white-haired youth who had broken into the underground palace.


    In a flash, there was the loud and clear sound of an elephant trumpeting. It was loud enough to shake the air. Ten thousand elephants charged through the air. They gathered into a single image of a huge and mighty divine elephant. It rushed forward and smashed into the oncoming god of battle.


    Boom! A dull roar was heard as the two powers collided. It whipped up a mighty storm that swept out through the hall.


    Dou Zhao''s expression did not change. It was as if he had anticipated this. He took another step forward. The divine light coming from him grew even more brilliant. More figures of gods of war materialized and thrust out their fist wills. Endless fist will instantly covered the area, confining Ye Futian to a very narrow space. Within this underground palace, there was nowhere to escape. His only option was to try and withstand it. This place favored those with powerful attacks. Those who were good at close combat had the advantage.


    Ye Futian stepped forward. The divine elephant charged through the air again. It looked incomparably huge and contained unimaginable power. The massive power of the Divine Elephants made them one of the strongest forces in the Demon Realm. They were domineering and direct and could crush both heaven above and hell below.


    The endless fist will swept out, but the divine elephant broke through it. Suddenly, an even more powerful storm swept through the underground palace. The booming sound made everyone''s eardrums shake. All the cultivators around them released their powerful will to protect themselves. They fixedly gazed at the battle between the two of them.


    Ye Futian had not wilted in the least while facing Dou Zhao''s attacks. Even though Dou Zhao was just testing him, judging from Ye Futian''s response, he could respond to any of Dou Zhao''s tests with the same kind of tricks.


    Dou Zhao did not have any advantage over him.


    Moreover, when judging who had the advantage, both of them were on the Saint plane and not far from the Renhuang plane.


    The cultivators from the Dou tribe were naturally the most shocked by this. They knew Dou Zhao''s strength. He was said to be the one who would revitalize the bloodline of the Dou tribe. The powerful blood of the god of battle flowed through his veins. He was the only one of his generation who could use the willpower of the Sevenfold Fighting God. How powerful did one have to be to do that? That was something that only the elders of the Dou tribe could do. Moreover, Dou Zhao had the potential to keep improving.


    If he attained the level of the Ninefold Fighting God, he would reach the level of the legendary elders and become a true god of battle.


    Even though it had only been a probing attack, it still was immensely dangerous with Dou Zhao''s power. His attacks were overpowering, but this stranger had directly withstood it.


    Could it be that this man was the top figure of some other realm?


    If so, why had they only sent two people to the God''s Relic?


    This seemed to go against common sense.


    "Not bad." Dou Zhao swept his sharp gaze over Ye Futian. He had actually been able to withstand his pressure.


    "You are not bad as well," Ye Futian indifferently replied.


    Dou Zhao''s stalwart body grew fiercer until it was full of infinite power. His gaze seemed to pierce through Ye Futian. In a flash, many gods of battle seemed to be pressing on Ye Futian''s mind. Behind Dou Zhao, another image of a god of battle appeared. At the same time, a divine light shone between his eyebrows. It was the mark of a god of battle. At that moment, all the will in the area around him flowed into his forehead, making him even more powerful.


    Ye Futian felt the pressure on him growing stronger. His expression grew a bit more serious. The person he faced was the strongest disciple of one of the top forces of the Ziwei Realm. Moreover, special power flowed through him. Just like his own Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor, it made him even stronger.


    The sound of elephants trumpeting made the underground palace shake and echoed throughout the hall. Dou Zhao pulled his arms back and slammed them forward again. His body instantly pierced through the air as he teleported through space and appeared right in front of Ye Futian. He lashed out violently with his fists. The amount of power he unleashed was enough to suffocate those around them.


    "Dou Zhao is more serious now, so he is using the willpower of the Fighting God!" Bei Chen of the School of the Emperor Star and the Seventh Slayer of the Clan of the Seven Slayers both looked surprised. Dou Zhao had used this power when fighting them. He was no longer fighting them. Now, he was fighting someone who had come in from outside.


    Ye Futian responded without any hesitation. He out his fists. He was not the least bit flashy in his technique. He had decided to firmly resist. The impact made his bones tremble. His blood boiled in his veins. It seemed that all the power in his body was being used. The strength of his Body of the Way poured into his fists. The domineering light of the Divine Elephants burst forth.


    Bang!


    There was a dull bang. Although the underground palace still stood firm, everyone felt their bodies shaking.


    The two of them separated and retreated. This was the first time Dou Zhao had been forced to retreat after a collision with someone at his same level. His feet scraped across the ground, which made an ear-splitting noise.


    Ye Futian was also questioning himself. Although his flesh was not as strong as Yu Sheng''s, it was still astonishingly strong. But that attack had been incredibly powerful, which showed just how strong Dou Zhao was.


    They clashed several more times in succession. Each one was incredibly straightforward. By now, their surroundings had gone strangely silent.


    Dou Zhao stared at Ye Futian and asked, "Who are you? What force do you come from?"


    His voice was loud and powerful. It rang out throughout the underground palace. He was becoming very curious about Ye Futian. How could this unnamed disciple withstand his attacks? Even someone at the peak of the Saint plane was unable to do that. A single punch destroyed their internal organs.


    "I am the disciple of the Sky River Great Elder of the Tianhe Realm, Ye Futian. I also once cultivated at Taixuan Mountain," Ye Futian replied.


    Dou Zhao looked at him. The Tianhe Realm? That was not one of the Nine Realms. He seemed to remember it had something to do with the Shen clan of the Central Emperor Realm. As for Taixuan Mountain, he had also heard of it. It was said that a year ago, Lord Taixuan had broken through beyond the Renhuang level. That made the top forces of the Nine Realms take notice of him.


    Now, a youth who was connected to both of those forces was present and equally matched with him.


    "You are very strong, but this is far from my limit," Dou Zhao said. "If you want to compete, you probably have no hope of victory. You should leave."


    "You are powerful as well, but this is not the kind of fighting that I am good at," Ye Futian said. "My friend outside is stronger than I am. In a little bit, you two can test each other. As for the ruins, this fight is meaningless. How about we just let whoever can take the fighting will out of here have it?"


    "Even so, only those who have the necessary qualifications to take it can even try," Bei Chen said. That was an additional risk, not to mention the fact that Ye Futian had a friend outside.


    If he wanted to take the power, he had shown himself to be at least on the same level as them. He was definitely strong enough to do it. And, they did not even know exactly how strong he was.


    "In that case, you three can leave," a voice said. Bei Chen looked behind Ye Futian. He saw a figure walking toward them. It was likely the friend who had come with Ye Futian.


    He had obviously already dealt with the people outside.


    This was surprising to the people in the palace. It seemed that Ye Futian was not the only one who was strong.


    Not only that, but this man also seemed quite arrogant. He had said that the three of them could leave. Did he mean that they were not qualified to take the fighting will compared to Ye Futian?


    Within their generation, the three of them stood at the peak of the Ziwei Realm. Now, someone was daring to be arrogant at them and saying they were not qualified. That really was too much.


    Bei Chen looked at them. Endless starlight gathered around him. His terrifying aura spread out. Lightning flashed and covered his body. Booming thunder filled the hall. A divine purple sword appeared before him. It was bathed in the light from the lightning. It seemed like a king among swords.


    Ye Futian looked at Bei Chen in surprise. He was also holding a scepter, but he had called forth sword will as well. Moreover, this purple sword seemed to suppress all the will in the room. It cut through the air, leaving a smile-shaped gash in space as well as tiny dots of destructive light.


    The destructive points of light instantly shot out throughout the underground palace. Lightning and Slaughtering Sword Qi immediately filled the area.


    Images of purple swords appeared throughout the underground palace. All of them were pointing at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. It seemed like the two of them were trapped.


    In the past, the Star Lord of Ziwei had been one of the most powerful figures in the world and was skilled at many different abilities. He had controlled everything in the Ziwei Realm and managed all their attacks. Even if they were not methods that he had focused on cultivating, he was still strong in all of them.


    "Go," Bei Chen said. The purple swords shot through the air at the same time, trying to directly kill the two men who had come in. There was nowhere they could go to escape.


    The swords moved with a single thought. They moved so fast that it was impossible to react to them.


    They were on a path that would at any moment cut through Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s bodies, slicing through their flesh and destroying their souls.

 1605 Possessed by the God of Battle

    Roar!


    A dragon''s roar rang out, resonant and clear. At the instant that the divine swords reached him, Yu Sheng took a step forward. His dark demonic light enveloped him, and Ye Futian and the image of a godlike demonic dragon appeared.


    The swords tried to pierce through the light, and the strongest of the purple swords managed to touch Yu Sheng''s forehead. But he stretched out his dark arms, and black dragon scales appeared all over them. It seemed as if they were no longer regular arms, but were instead dragon limbs. He reached out with his dragon scaled arms and grabbed the sword.


    The was a clear snapping sound, and divine light burst out that tore through his scales. But he was still able to stop it. He tightened his grip, and suddenly the sword broke, becoming nothing more than dust.


    The godlike demonic dragon curled around Yu Sheng, blocking all of the divine light. Within the oppressive atmosphere of the underground palace, there was only an overpowering demonic aura. Bei Chen stared at Yu Sheng. He was shocked.


    Although he had not been sure that this attack would destroy the two of them, he still would not have thought that Yu Sheng would be able to destroy it in such an overwhelming manner. Was this man from Taixuan Mountain as well?


    Boom! Bei Chen did not have much time to wonder, for Yu Sheng took another step forward, crossing a great distance. The footstep echoed and roared throughout the underground palace.


    Bei Chen suddenly felt an overwhelming pressure. Yu Sheng was coming towards him, responding to the swords he had sent.


    Yu Sheng raised his draconic arms and slammed them down. They contained overwhelming might, and their draconic power was integrated into his demonic arts. Thus, his fists seemed powerful enough to break the very air itself.


    Bei Chen lifted his hands. Stars appeared, wrapping all around him, making the area around him look like a dazzling field of stars. The stars that swirled around him produced a marvelous resonance that protected him completely.


    Boom!


    There was another ear-splitting sound as the stars were destroyed. The power of the dragon coalesced into a demonic black dragon that swept out and shattered the curtain of stars.


    Bei Chen''s expression changed slightly. Such a small space was not conducive for him to display his strength. The whole area seemed to be shrouded by the dragon''s fist, so he could not escape it. He put his scepter in front of him, and starlight bloomed from it as he retreated.


    Bang!


    There was a dull roar as Bei Chen was thrown into a stone wall, making the whole underground palace shake. He groaned in pain.


    He got an ugly look on his face and suddenly rose to his feet. He floated up into the air as if he had not been wounded in the least. He gripped his scepter tightly, and starlight shone from his eyes, spreading throughout the whole hall in an instant.


    The other cultivators from the School of the Emperor Star within the underground palace rose into the air as well. In a flash, starlight filled the hall. The figures floating in the air all fixed their gazes on Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Clearly, these two were now their targets.


    The hall had turned very bright under all the shining starlight. Ye Futian swept his gaze over Bei Chen and said, "We should value harmony over violence. Why does this have to come down to a fight? We should let whoever can take the power for themselves have it." He turned to Yu Sheng and said, "I''ll leave him to you."


    "Excellent," said Yu Sheng with a nod. He stepped towards Bei Chen.


    The cultivators of the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers were stunned when they saw this. This guy was really shameless. He was leaving the most powerful among them, Bei Chen, to Yu Sheng, and he himself turned to deal with the other cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star.


    Yu Sheng stepped right through the air towards Bei Chen, his body filled with powerful demonic energy. Everyone could faintly feel the aura of a Demon Emperor. Could it be that this man was the descendant of some great demon?


    But he was not a demonic beast. Why had he cultivated the power of a true-blooded dragon?


    Ye Futian strode towards the cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star, who were standing in mid-air. In a flash, guqin music appeared. But at that moment, all they could feel was a sharp aura.


    Then, countless divine swords appeared. They cut through the air as they shot out.


    The cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star frowned when they felt this sword will. Ye Futian pointed into the air, and Rhythmic Sorcery of the Great Path pierced their ears. It felt like countless divine swords had pierced their divine souls. At the same time, the underground palace seemed to be filled with swords. This was the Cleave of All Things of the Fleeting Divine Sword.


    The people from the School of the Emperor Star looked shocked, and their starlight shone all around them, protecting their flesh. The divine swords flew right into the group of them. For someone at Ye Futian''s level, there was little difference between attacking a single person an attacking a group.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Each figure was sent flying back. Others were less able to defend themselves and were torn apart by the flying swords. They gave out piteous cries.


    Ye Futian continued forward, making the room shake. Rhythmic Sorcery entered everyone''s ears again. It was like the divine music of the Great Path. As it played, the swords continued to fall.


    "Go." Bright light shone from Ye Futian''s eyes. The swords went out once again, piercing through the air.


    His swords were incredibly fast and incredibly strong.


    With a single thought, the swords traveled along countless different paths through the underground palace, leaving terrible sword marks in the air. The cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star''s starry defenses were shattered, and blood flew through the air. They went flying backward with pale faces.


    None of the cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star could stand before that sword.


    On the other side of the battlefield, Bei Chen was being pressed hard by Yu Sheng. In the narrow space of the underground palace, Yu Sheng was at a major advantage. His fists were everywhere; there was nowhere to avoid them. Bei Chen could only try to withstand his attacks. Attack after attack hit him. He was once again flung fiercely into a wall, blood pouring from his mouth.


    Just as he stood up, a sword flew through the air towards him.


    Bang! There was a loud noise as the sword touched his head, even cutting off some of his hair.


    Bei Chen did not move. He could feel cold sweat all over his body. If the sword moved even just a little bit, it would pierce right into his forehead.


    He lifted his head and had a dark look on his face. He saw that after Ye Futian dealt with the other cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star, he walked over to join Yu Sheng, looked at Bei Chen, and said, "You may leave when you wish."


    He had said that only those who were qualified could fight in the God''s Relic. Obviously, the School of the Emperor Star had lost that qualification.


    They had suffered a crushing defeat. If their opponents had not shown them mercy, they would have already slaughtered them.


    This battle had been a disaster.


    Two people had beaten all of them and kicked them out.


    Bei Chen said nothing. He turned around and left with the rest of the cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star following him. They clenched their fists, but they said nothing either.


    Defeat was defeat. They had got here first and set up an ambush. But they had never thought that they would be driven out by two people.


    After the cultivators from the School of the Emperor Star left, Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao and Seventh Slayer, asking, "What are you planning to do now? Do you want to see who is able to take the power here, or do you want to solve this like you were going to before?"


    The people of the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers looked at Ye Futian. Could he really be so arrogant?


    Did he think that no matter what they chose, he would be the one to take the terrifying fighting will?


    "Each of us will take one of them?" Dou Zhao asked Seventh Slayer.


    "That works," said Seventh Slayer with a nod.


    "I''ll take him." Dou Zhao pointed to Yu Sheng. Previously, Ye Futian had said that Yu Sheng was stronger than him, and he wanted to see for himself just how powerful this demonic cultivator was. He was different from Bei Chen. The Dou tribe was famous for its attacking power, so he would not be crushed by Yu Sheng. He wanted to see how much of his power Yu Sheng could force him to use.


    "Alright." Seventh Slayer looked at Ye Futian like a hunter staring at his prey. The Clan of the Seven Slayers proved their worthiness by killing.


    "Do you want to go outside?" asked Ye Futian.


    "It will be quicker if we just do it here," answered Dou Zhao. The underground palace''s walls were firm and would not fall. Although it was spacious inside there and could accommodate many people, it was too narrow for people like them to fully bring their power to bear.


    But it would be quicker to do it here, and more dangerous. It would be a true competition with no room for tricks.


    He and Seventh Slayer were both good at fighting. What use would there be in going outside?


    Really, it was the cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star who were best suited to fighting outside.


    "Fine." Ye Futian had no objections. He walked towards Seventh Slayer while Yu Sheng moved towards Dou Zhao.


    Dou Zhao''s gaze became sharper, and divine light bloomed from him. His fighting will surged. The second and third marks of the God of Battle appeared on his forehead in succession. In a flash, incomparably terrifying fighting light swept out through the underground palace. Facing someone as powerful as Yu Sheng, he had directly used three fighting seals.


    Bang! Dou Zhao stepped towards Yu Sheng. He was being extremely direct. Both he and Yu Sheng were skilled at battle, so he did not need any fancy tricks. He assumed the demonic cultivator before him was the same.


    Just as he had thought, Yu Sheng stepped forward as well, his arms transforming into demon arms. He activated the power of the divine dragon, and everyone could faintly hear a dragon roaring.


    They two of them clashed without any hesitation, and violent splitting sounds filled the air. A terrible whirlwind swept through the area in all directions. This time, Dou Zhao took a few steps back. The people of the Dou tribe felt their hearts beating wildly as they watched.


    Dou Zhao had actually been forced back.


    This demonic cultivator was really that powerful.


    Dou Zhao''s gaze sharpened and seemed to become more divine. Another divine mark coalesced on his forehead, and incomparably divine light suffused his body. He roared, and snapping sounds rang out from him, making it seem like his body was splitting. The image of a God of Battle materialized behind him. It seemed as if he had been possessed by the God of Battle.


    "The fourth seal. He has summoned the God of Battle." The cultivators of the Dou tribe shook as they beheld this. Dou Zhao''s power had reached a new level.


    Demonic power rolled off of Yu Sheng when he saw this. The figure of a massive demon god appeared behind him at the same time. Its demonic eyes were incredibly frightening, and it seemed like all he had to do was look at someone, and they would have to kneel before him. Unparalleled demonic figures appeared all around him, seeming to regard him as their king. It was extremely spectacular!

 1606 Defeat of Demon Peacock Emperors Realm

    Kong Xuan recalled how she provoked and insulted every day at the Demon Peacock City by both Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor during the very first day of the Battle of Empty Realm. From the looks of things, all he did was precisely for this very day.


    Beings as powerful as Jialou Feng refused to heed her orders, and the Bull Demon also ended up giving fake orders to take the army tasked with garrisoning Demon Peacock City, to cut down the imperial flag at Emperor Li''s City. The implications were apparent.


    It all meant that Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had already lost in the Battle of Empty Realm from the very beginning. With the Bull Demon being controlled, it would have been easy for their enemies to cut down the imperial flag at Demon Peacock City, so easy that they would have been able to do it at any time. However, the Bull Demon did not end up doing so, or rather, Ye Futian was not in a hurry to kick them out of the competition. That was because the forces of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm still had their use, in Ye Futian''s eyes. That was what led to the battle happening right before them.


    From the looks of things, the siblings were made pawns from the very beginning. It was all so ironic, and one could only guess what was going through Kong Xuan''s mind at the moment. What transpired hurt her far more than any words she had been hurt by.


    "I beg your forgiveness, Princess, for all my transgressions so far. All is fair in the Battle of Empty Realm, but I have no intention of fighting to the death with your forces from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. You''re free to step out of the battlefield. When the Battle of Empty Realm is over, I''ll let those mighty ones from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm go back to your side," Ye Futian said as he apologized to Kong Xuan. It seemed as if his target was never the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, to begin with.


    Kong Xuan understood that while Ye Futian''s words sounded brutal, the forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm had long lost in the Battle of Empty Realm, and it was rather pointless for them to continue fighting. But then again, being played to such extent��their demonic beasts having been controlled by Ye Futian and those from the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm being reduced to pawns��was still something she found incapable of stomaching.


    Nine-color divine light shone, and imperial might emanated from the feathers of Kong Xuan''s voluptuous body. The light shone everywhere, and many mighty ones throughout the battlefield turned their eyes in her direction. The divine feathers behind Kong Xuan spread out, and as she was basked in the divine light, she looked like some unparalleled goddess, emanating a feral grace. One look was all it would take to etch such beauty in the minds of those who saw it, making them succumb to her astonishing beauty. However, there was without doubt that the beauty on display was extremely lethal. It was especially so for Ye Futian. He was able to sense an impending crisis looming over him.


    Kong Xuan, the beloved daughter of the Demon Peacock Emperor, was on par with Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia''s Realm. She came to the battlefield armed with items of the Demon Peacock Emperor himself. Nine feathers from her father were infused in the divine feathers behind her. His powers were etched with them, and those items were of incredible strength, as they were true items of the Renhuang. Furthermore, the feathers melded well with Kong Xuan, fitting into her peacock feathers perfectly.


    An extremely massive shadow of the peacock appeared. Its wings spread, blocking out the sky, and even her enemies were unable to help but marvel at its beauty. However, there seemed to be eyes all over the feathers of that huge peacock. Kong Xuan extended her hand and shrouded Ye Futian within. He felt as if he was being pinned down by the light of the peacock. Terrifying devouring powers threatened to consume everything around him, so much so that even the might of the great path was not to be spared either.


    That devouring power seemed to be imbued with divine light out to destroy any power of rules as well, tearing apart all powers that Ye Futian was able to gather. The nine-color divine light pierced his body. Under Kong Xuan''s unreserved, all-out attacks, Ye Futian looked incredibly puny and insignificant. It was as if he was about to be destroyed within that extreme beauty.


    Ye Futian held on tight to the Halberd of Time and Space in his hand. That time, however, the Halberd of Time and Space, Nothingness, which was ranked third on the Divine Implements of the Nine States Rankings, seemed to be completely overpowered by that of his enemy. But then again, given Kong Xuan''s status and might, it all seemed completely normal.


    Kong Xuan''s divine implement aside, even the Divine Armoring Cauldron behind Gongsun Zhong from Divine Cloud Valley, would have been on par with the Halberd of Time and Space. The lord of Divine Cloud Valley was the number one armorer in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm, after all.


    Light of rules coursed all over Ye Futian''s body. While his physical body was extremely formidable, he needed to fortify defenses using rules. The nine-color divine light hit him. His physical body rattled as the rules were broken, and the divine light blasted straight onto his body, shaking his insides tremendously.


    Kong Xuan, who was not yet a saint, was already able to threaten his physical body, which he had tempered with the medicinal baths. That meant that the attacks that Kong Xuan unleashed onto him by borrowing the power of Imperial Feathers of the Demon Peacock Emperor had considerably eclipsed that of the light of catastrophe of the Great Path. The devouring power that was out to devour the great path shrouded Ye Futian''s body. Everything in their surroundings seemed to be flowing to where Kong Xuan was standing.


    Ye Futian was also caught in that terrifying whirlpool and being gradually drawn to where Kong Xuan was. He held tightly onto the Halberd of Time and Space as his body burst with dazzling light. His body looked somewhat taller as the Seven Star acupoints throughout his body were activated. The limits on his physical body were lifted, and he became even far more powerful. Under such a state, he felt as if he had touched the great path, feeling as if his physical body itself was an embodiment of the great path, holding unparalleled amounts of power.


    Boom. Terrifyingly devastating light of calamity of the storm was unleashed, sweeping everything around them. A sliver of storms of the light of calamity hit the peacock behind Kong Xuan. Scenes of doomsday were seen around them, and Kong Xuan felt as if her spiritual will was being severely rattled. Harrowing might of the calamity struck directly into her mind.


    Ye Futian''s body moved at the same time. He no longer attempted to resist the devouring power and chose to move with it instead, bringing out the highest speed he was able to achieve, in the form of the Extreme Shadow. He lashed out with the halberd in his hand and burst with devastating light of the calamity, fusing the light within the weapon. The devouring shadow of the peacock crumbled as the attack was brought about with extreme speed. Kong Xuan, however, was hardly fazed when the peacock shadow was penetrated. Her slender hand clenched into a fist, and nine-color divine light coursed on it, fusing with her fist will before she threw it out straight before her. Her fist seemed to have been infused with the light of the Demon Peacock Emperor, clashing head-on with the Halberd of Time and Space.


    Boom. Ye Futian was thrown behind with a rumble while Kong Xuan''s arm felt rattled. Even with the power of the Demon Peacock Emperor extending to protect her body, she felt her arm going numb as she took on the attack from her opponent''s weapon. It was a testament to Ye Futian''s immense power.


    At the very next moment, Kong Xuan saw her opponent draw a dazzling arc with his body and continue to launch straight for her. That attack seemed to have packed more punch than his last. Her beautiful wings flapped, and she took one step forward, throwing out yet another punch. The peacock shadow was seen, and thousands of dazzling feathers of nine colors were unleashed, intending to bury Ye Futian right.


    Ye Futian was thrown back yet again. He felt as if he had taken an untold number of hits within that split second, yet he continued to draw a dazzling arc in the air and dove down. Kong Xuan spread her wings and took flight, seeing how Ye Futian was growing increasingly powerful. Both figures continued to clash in midair with earth-shattering force emanating throughout their surroundings. Violet shockwaves were thrown about as the nine-color divine light shot to their surroundings. Any top-notch figures that even attempted to get close were penetrated by the nine-color divine light and died on the spot.


    None of them were able even to withstand the aftershock brought by the battle between Kong Xuan and Ye Futian. It was undoubtedly a testament to the immense power the human and demonic beasts were unleashing at each other.


    Some turned their attention to the battle between the two. Ye Futian seemed to have split himself into thousands of clones, as afterimages were seen throughout as if there was no end. The afterimages attacked furiously. Despite being shrouded by the divine light of the peacock, the looming power was entirely incapable of pinning Ye Futian down. At that very moment, thousands of Extreme Shadows merged into one being. Their surroundings howled as rules, and the great path resonated. He lashed out with an attack of the halberd with earth-shattering might.


    Boom. A rumble was heard as Kong Xuan''s body was thrown behind violently. Her arms trembled, and the light behind her seemed to have dimmed somewhat. Time and space seemed to have stopped moving, with Ye Futian at the center. The nine-color divine light swooped by, shattering the rules of the great path and tearing the binding powers of space rules apart. Kong Xuan''s eyes were locked onto Ye Futian. She felt as if a terrifying tidal force was sweeping in her direction. It grew in power as it moved. It was as if it was a tsunami of rules out to destroy everything.


    Terrifying light of calamity hit her as the incoming force clashed with the nine-color divine light. Ye Futian took one step after another. The space shook as if it was about to shatter. He seemed to have fused with the space altogether, and the great path resonated with him.


    Voom. A space afterimage came and went in a flash, streaking through space. Dazzling divine light crashed onto the incoming force, yet was torn down by that one attack with the halberd. That was the most powerful attack from the halberd named as the weapon itself: Nothingness.


    Everything under the heavens was reduced to nothing.


    A shadow of the peacock appeared in a dazzling manner right behind Kong Xuan. Boundless nine-color light swooped by and threatened to drown Ye Futian in it. Kong Xuan''s demonic eyes glared at Ye Futian unflinchingly. Her arm was thrown right before her, with boundless divine light streaking through the air, heading for Ye Futian.


    The Halberd of Time and Space was unleashed. At that moment, the nine-color divine light seemed to have been split open, gushing at Ye Futian''s side, drowning the space around them. That power rendered Kong Xuan''s face ashen. Light of the divine feathers shrouded her body. One divine feather after another fell and clashed with the incoming weapon.


    Doom. The power of the Halberd of Time and Space seemed to have penetrated the protection of the divine feathers with a loud rumble, hitting Kong Xuan''s body. Her body was thrown back as her wings were opened, many cracks appearing. Her stunning face looked rather pale, and blood was seen at the corner of her mouth.


    "Kong Xuan!" Kong Zhan called. He was fighting Xia Qingyuan at the moment. He flashed and left where he was after seeing his sister''s predicament. He glared coldly at Ye Futian as he headed towards Kong Xuan.


    "I lost." Kong Xuan looked rather pale. She had lost to Ye Futian, the silver-haired cultivator who went to her city every day to provoke her. The forces of the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm were reduced to becoming pawns of the enemy. They suffered an overwhelming loss at the Battle of Empty Realm. Even though she had been bested by someone else personally, they had practically lost in every front in that year''s Battle of Empty Realm.


    Kong Xuan was brimming with confidence when she came to command her forces in the Battle of Empty Realm, devoting herself to returning victorious with the forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. None of them had expected to suffer such a brutal end.


    "The forces of Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm, I advise you to back away from the battlefield," Ye Futian said to Kong Xuan while high up in the air. He then turned his attention to the other battlefield. It would have been embarrassing for the mighty ones from Emperor Xia''s Realm if they were incapable of getting the situation under control while the enemy was busy fighting themselves. When the army from Emperor Xia''s Realm joined the fight, they pulverized enemy formations within a short notice, killing many mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm. Furthermore, the forces from Emperor Li''s Realm had already retreated without any intention to fight any further. It could have been said that they had suffered a humiliating defeat.


    Li Yao, Yuan Jin, and the others retreated far away with their army, preparing to regroup and defend Emperor Li''s City. All hope was not lost if their imperial flag was still left standing!

 1607 Game Over

    There was a vast army garrisoning Emperor Li''s City. Li Yao and Yuan Jin led the army to assault Emperor Xia''s City with Demon Peacock City, so there was naturally a need to watch over their base, preventing it from being ambushed. The victor of the Battle of Empty Realm was decided by whose imperial flag was left standing, after all.


    As such, not only did they send people to keep an eye on things at Demon Peacock City, but they had also begun to watch for any movements of the army of Emperor Xia''s City before they reached the battlefield, checking to see if anyone was leaving the city they were about to sack. All of that was done to prevent their imperial flag from being stolen. However, a terrifying pressure was sensed looming right outside Emperor Li''s City, which was demonic in nature.


    "The enemy is at our door. Mighty ones of Emperor Li''s City, assemble and defend the imperial flag," a voice said loud and clear. One silhouette after another was seen flashing about, heading in the same direction. All of them appeared around the imperial flag and laid out their formations in an instant. Not only were there people left behind to defend the place, but the forces that were left behind were also of formidable strength and were versed in defensive matrixes. All of them were mighty ones explicitly nurtured for the task, courtesy of the imperial advisor himself. Their powers were very similar to each other, enabling them to attack and defend as a group easily.


    One cauldron after another flew in the sky, and countless appeared, surrounding the imperial flag in a heartbeat. They spun about in the air, emanating frightening saintly might. The Cauldron Matrix, a skill that was both offensive and defensive, enabled all to form the matrix and act as a single entity. The crafting of the divine implements that they were armed with was commissioned personally by the imperial advisor of the Dali Dynasty for the Battle of Empty Realm.


    The imperial advisor had indeed poured his heart and soul into his job for the sake of the regime he served, which guaranteed him a prestigious position of serving only a single being while standing on top of tens of millions. The crown prince revered the imperial advisor as the teacher, so much so that he needed to perform proper gestures when seeing the imperial advisor and address the imperial advisor by his title.


    "Dali and Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm are now allied against Emperor Xia''s Realm. What do you all think of this?" a young man of exceptional bearing said with a brimming voice in midair, addressing the people of Emperor Li''s Realm manning the matrix below.


    "The alliance between both armies does not affect the fight between the two forces. When the imperial flag of Emperor Xia''s City is taken down, it would then be our turn to fight each other. We shall take down the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City and bring an end to the Battle of Empty Realm," the Bull Demon elaborated in a loud, booming voice. He then roared and turned into a green Kui. Thunderstorms of raging magnitudes began to appear all of a sudden as they fell from the heavens. Formless light was unleashed by the cauldrons surrounding the battle matrix, blocking the power of the thunderstorm, preventing it from doing any damage.


    "Raging Bull Matrix," the Bull Demon roared. The mighty ones of the demon oxen took their formations, and rumbling noises were heard throughout their surroundings. Emperor Li''s City was shrouded in terrifying thunderstorms. The demon oxen took their formations impeccably, a boundless shadow of the demon oxen appearing high up in the air. A towering demon ox king appeared amidst the storm vaguely, looking down terrifyingly as if it was an ox god.


    There were some mighty ones from the Empty Realm on the battlefield very far away from Emperor Li''s City, looking at the frightening scene taking place in the city. They were shaken. Saints were forbidden from taking part in the battle and affecting things in the Battle of Empty Realm. Even sages took serious precautions when stepping onto the battlefield, as combatants from any of the three sides posed a threat to them. However, there were still many coming to check on things after hearing about the showdown. Of course, most gathered and watched outside Emperor Xia''s City, but no one would have expected such a terrifying battle to take place at Emperor Li''s City as well.


    "Storm the city and take the flag!" the Bull Demon roared with earth-shattering voice. The towering ox god''s shadow, high in the air, dove down. The demon oxen below charged straight at their quarry. The demon oxen had always been a raging bunch and were of formidable strength. The black oxen were people that dared to clash head-on through brute force, even against the likes of rocs and dragons. They had no fear of death when they turned berserk and knew only to charge, bringing down any mighty one who dared to stand in their way.


    Terrifying storms whipped about, bringing down the heavens where the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City was. The mighty one that led the defense then shouted, "Bring the cauldrons!" The cauldrons circled about in the air as soon as the order was given, bombarding the silhouette of the diving ox god.


    The air rumbled violently as if heaven and the earth were about to split apart within that very instant. Buildings toppled down one after another within the city. Towering lightning strikes shot forth, destroying everything in their wake. Within a single heartbeat, there were already ruins in Emperor Li''s City.


    Boom, boom, boom! The towering ox god continued to charge below, tearing all defenses that were standing in its way. One cauldron after another crumbled instantly. A golden nine-horned giant cauldron appeared in the defending battle matrix, circled by a golden dragon around it. Cauldrons that surrounded the golden cauldron rang, and the light emitted from the cauldrons shot at the ox god with a very destructive force.


    A wave swept about the place as such terrifying attacks were being carried out. The air seemed to be exploding maniacally. The Bull Demon transformed into an enormous Kui and seemed to have melded with that towering ox god. He then roared, "Take down the matrix at all cost!" The oxen charged as soon as the order was given. One demon ox after another charged at the circling cauldrons in the matrix without any fear of death. Booming rumbles were heard all over the place.


    Furthermore, more than one demon ox was doing so. All of the oxen dove without care and in a frenzy. Even the leading Bull Demon had, too, merged within the ox god and charged at that humongous cauldron.


    "Are you all mad?" a mighty one from Emperor Li''s City shouted. Demonic beasts were known to be unruly, and the oxen were even more so. Do they have to go this far? he wondered. Are they really throwing their lives to break the matrix? How are they going to cut down the imperial flag even if they succeed?


    Rumbling noises continued to be heard as one ox after another exploded in the clash. Their blood spilled all over the air. Their efforts rattled the defending cauldrons, and the matrix shook violently. The divine light barrier enveloping the place began to tear.


    Pfftt. A puffing sound was heard. Some within the matrix were no longer able to withstand the shock of the charge and spat up blood, looking pale.


    "Take down the matrix!" the Bull Demon roared and continued to dive.


    Those from far away felt their minds rattle as they watched the devastating scene taking place. Are the Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm forces that adamant in taking down the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City? they thought.


    At that moment, far above Emperor Li''s City, figures dropped from the devastating storm above, one of them being a Black Wind Condor. The bird''s eyes were cold as it stared at the battlefield. With the bird around, Ye Futian''s plans could be carried out seamlessly.


    Those who went there were naturally cultivators from the Nine States. Ye Futian left the Sword Saint to be in charge of them, leading them to take down the imperial flag. Despite the mighty ones from both sides engaging each other in an intense battle, they were alerted to the presence of Ye Futian''s people. Ye Futian had long enthralled the Bull Demon, so he naturally felt nothing. But then again, not all demonic beasts were subjected to Ye Futian''s control. Most of them were only following Bull Demon, who pretended to have received orders from Kong Xuan, telling them to hit Emperor Li''s City and cut down the imperial flag. Mighty ones from Emperor Li''s City were furious, wondering why mighty ones from both Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm and Emperor Xia''s Realm were there at the same time.


    "We''re here for the same goal��to take the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City. So we joined hands," the Sword Saint held onto the demonic blade and said.


    "Alright," the Bull Demon answered. None of the other demonic beasts had anything else to say. They had no idea what was happening at Emperor Xia''s City. Since they were there to cut down the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City, it made no difference whether they were cutting down someone or joining hands with someone. But of course, the demonic beasts did not let their guard down. They knew humans to be a shrewd bunch, and they had to watch out for themselves to prevent being ambushed.


    "Take the matrix down," the Sword Saint said. Demonic will shot up in a towering manner in that instant from his demonic blade as he finished his sentence. The demonic will was then converted into a dark flash of the blade, sweeping down from above at a cauldron. At the same time, Yu Sheng held onto the Battleaxe of Judgment. He cut down a cauldron with a roar.


    Ye Wuchen summoned thousands of sword wills, shooting up to the sky before diving downward again. Light of Nine Words circled Gu Dongliu and transmuted into shadows of his battle matrix, blasting the target below. There were also Bai Luli, Xia Nan, Tong He, and many other mighty ones from the Nine States, attacking the two battle matrixes that were in a deadlock.


    The two battle matrixes were of equal power, and there was no way they could have taken additional attacks from above, unleashed by the mighty ones of the Nine States. The cauldrons exploded and shattered right there and then. With one whole corner crumbling, the humongous cauldron sunk and cracks began to show on the barrier of light. Many mighty ones manning the battle matrix were subjected to indescribable pressure.


    Voom. A gale swept by, and the Black Wind Condor''s body grew exponentially in size, becoming a huge, overbearing demonic bird. It dove right there and then at a corner. Its dark golden claws flashed straight downward, tearing the space below and causing the battle matrix to rattle.


    Yu Sheng took the form of a devil and leaped from above, bringing down the Battleaxe of Judgment hard. All of those top-notch geniuses from the Nine States brought their best game to bear.


    The shadow of the ox god continued to roar as it bore on its opponent below. The cauldron exploded and was reduced to bits with a rumble. Yet another crack appeared on the battle matrix, and many of Emperor Li''s Realm defending mighty ones spat up blood.


    "Kill them all." The Bull Demon let out a low rumble and dived, messing up the battle matrix altogether. Yu Sheng and the others charged down as well, barging into the crowd. Yu Sheng, who held the Battleaxe of Judgment in his hands, swung wildly in his devil form. Every single strike ended up killing someone. The most powerful ones from Emperor Li''s Realm were sent to the battlefield at Emperor Xia''s City. There was simply no one else capable of standing in Yu Sheng''s way one-on-one.


    Other than Yu Sheng, the Sword Saint and Gu Dongliu were both extremely formidable figures when it came to one-on-one combat. With the Black Wind Condor, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, and the others around, it was as if tigers had charged into a herd of sheep. Blood was spilled endlessly. Yuan Jin left a batch of elites to guard the place, and yet, said elites were being wiped out in a bloodbath.


    "Abandon your post. Retreat!" mighty ones from Emperor Li''s Realm shouted. They eventually despaired, and they knew that there was no way they could have held their ground for long. If they were to stay any longer, they would have only died pointless deaths. Even if they were to be executed later, they would have had nothing else to say.


    Pfftt... Blood spilled everywhere. Yu Sheng brought his axe down again and yet another mighty one was split open. The army of Emperor Li''s City was almost all eliminated, with only a handful being able to escape. The imperial flag swayed in the wind high up in Emperor Li''s City. A great monster headed that way and roared, "Cut it down!"


    A sharp howl was heard and dark golden claws threw that monster out of the way. The condor zipped past like a bolt of lightning and landed its claws on the imperial flag of Emperor Li''s City. Its proud eyes turned around to scan the demonic beasts from Demon Peacock Emperor''s Realm. It then said, "You''re dismissed." With the imperial flags of Emperor Li''s City and Demon Peacock Emperor''s City in their grasp, the Battle of Empty Realm was actually over!

 1606 Fighting to the Limi

    The people of the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers could sense that Yu Sheng and Dou Zhao were very similar. They were both skilled in pushing their power to its limits and at attack spells.


    The fight between the two of them was like a clash between a God of Battle and a demon. They used only the most direct methods in their violent battle, and it was so overwhelming that those watching trembled.


    The two of them clashed again as everyone watched. Neither of them had used any spell attacks yet, just strength, pressure, destruction, fighting will, and demonic will. The underground palace shook, and everyone''s hearts trembled continuously as well. They were so strong. If they had been faced with such power, they were sure that they would not be able to withstand it.


    Just the aftershocks of their violent collisions were enough to knock them back.


    Seventh Slayer looked over at their battle, then looked back at Ye Futian. He pointed his spear at him, and killing will swept out. The killing will seemed to coalesce into something solid, and countless beams of it shot towards Ye Futian. But brilliant light appeared all around Ye Futian, which blocked them.


    Boom!


    Seventh Slayer took a step forward, thrusting his spear at Ye Futian. The endless streams of killing will gathered together on his spear as it shot straight towards Ye Futian''s body. The distance between them seemed to not even exist; any attack of theirs could reach its target in an instant.


    Bang! Using the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky technique, Ye Futian took a step forward. Divine Elephants trampled through the air, crushing all the killing will. The spear crashed into the elephants'' massive bodies, breaking through them. But its momentum was lessened until there was no more strength in the thrust.


    However, in only a moment, an even more powerful stream of killing will burst forth, splitting into many streams that slammed into the images of divine elephants.


    The spear thrust out again, piercing through the air. The divine elephants that were trampling through the air were all destroyed.


    But Ye Futian did not stop moving forward. With another step, more elephants were charging. They collided with the spear yet again.


    Woosh!


    His opponent suddenly disappeared. In the next moment, Ye Futian looked up and saw Seventh Slayer standing there holding his spear. The slaughtering will that was surging from him made it difficult to breathe. And it was growing stronger.


    Under the Seven Tricks of the Killing Gods, one''s slaughtering will was constantly pushed to its limits. The seventh trick was powerful enough to make the earth shake and the gods weep. If it did not kill his opponent, then he himself would die.


    The light was so strong that it hurt to look at. It seemed to have been formed out of pure slaughtering will. Seventh Slayer lashed out with his spear yet again, and a beam of light appeared in the air, cutting through everything.


    Ye Futian continued forward, the thousand elephants still trumpeting, their voices resonating with each other. His power had climbed to its limit. He raised a fist and slammed it into this third spear strike, sending his opponent backward. He had still not let him get any closer to him.


    A powerful wind whipped up as a storm of slaughtering will swept through the underground palace. Seventh Slayer waved his spear, and many images of himself appeared. These were not exterior incarnations of him; they had been formed from his slaughtering will.


    He thrust his spear out with magnificent power, using the fourth trick. However, Ye Futian''s spiritual will had been increasing as they fought, growing stronger and stronger. The elephants'' trumpeting made the earth shake, and the image of a divine elephant appeared within him. He pushed the power of the Ten Thousand Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor to their limits, and the elephant''s mighty image merged with his body. It was as if he had transformed into an elephant himself.


    Seventh Slayer''s spear was no ordinary weapon. When he lashed out with the fourth trick of the Killing Gods, many beams of slaughtering light appeared in the air. The figure of a mighty elephant appeared, following Ye Futian as he moved forward. He had summoned it. It crushed everything beneath its feet. Ye Futian lashed out with his fist, splitting the very air itself. Many of the other images of Seventh Slayer were destroyed.


    "This..." The people of the Clan of the Seven Slayers watched the battle in shock. Dou Zhao and Yu Sheng''s battle was already incredibly furious.


    Now, Seventh Slayer and Ye Futian''s battle was the same.


    The ultimate techniques of the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers were fairly similar. One of them was based on the willpower of a Fighting God, while the Clan of the Seven Slayers'' was based on extreme slaughtering willpower. Both were able to push one''s own power to the limit. Of course, the Clan of the Seven Slayers'' technique only had seven forms, while it was said the Dou clan''s had nine.


    The fourth spear thrust was still unable to shake Ye Futian. More unparalleled slaughtering will entered Seventh Slayer''s body and into his spear. This time, he seemed like a god of slaughter.


    Woosh! Divine slaughtering light shot through the air. Seventh Slayer charged towards Ye Futian again. When his spear fell, the air around them became stifling.


    Ye Futian did not hesitate at all. His blood surged through his veins, and the marks of the Great Path that were imprinted on his bones flared to life. Endless divine elephants appeared in the air and then merged into one. He thrust out a fist, and the divine elephant, with its head at the ceiling of the underground palace and its feet on the floor, charged forward, following his fist. The whole room shook.


    Boom! Fierce light erupted from Seventh Slayer''s body as he connected the fifth and sixth spear techniques together. Slaughtering light appeared all over the huge divine elephant, followed by many cracks. It seemed like it was about to fall apart.


    But at that moment, the light of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension erupted, and vigorous life will covered Ye Futian. The divine elephant reformed and gave a mighty trumpet as it forced Seventh Slayer back.


    "He still lost!" The people of the Clan of the Seven Slayers were speechless as they watched this. Even the sixth technique had not been enough to wound Ye Futian.


    The attacks were so powerful that even the first technique could destroy someone at the peak of the Saint plane. But even the sixth technique had not been enough to wound Ye Futian.


    And it was not only here. On the other side of the battlefield, Dou Zhao had activated up to the sixth level of the Fighting God''s will, and yet he had not been able to beat Yu Sheng. The two of them were at an impasse.


    Soon, they would only have one last chance to attack each other.


    This was the same for both Dou Zhao and Seventh Slayer.


    If Dou Zhao activated the seventh level of the fighting god''s will, he would pay a high price. He would be using power that was not his own, and he would no longer be in harmony with the power. The elder of the Dou tribe had told him that if he activated the seventh level of his fighting will, it would be enough to threaten a Renhuang.


    But after the battle, he would be weakened for a period of time. Even if he was able to beat Yu Sheng, what about what was happening on the other side of the battlefield?


    And if he couldn''t beat Yu Sheng, it would be even worse. Moreover, was it worth doing this for these ruins?


    Seventh Slayer was in the same situation. It was said that if you could not kill your opponent with the seventh of the Seven Tricks of the Killing Gods, then you would be the one to die. Thus, it was obvious that this was a one time attack. If he could not kill Ye Futian with it, then Ye Futian would be able to resist him.


    Dou Zhao and Seventh Slayer were both in a difficult situation and were facing a hard choice.


    Should they act, or should they surrender?


    Dou Zhao looked at Yu Sheng and suddenly smiled. "I am skilled in fighting will, and he is skilled at the spear arts. The School of the Emperor Star discovered this place, but what it contained was terrible fighting will and a spear. This, the prizes here are more suitable for the two of us. But these two who just arrived ruined our plans."


    This was difficult to believe. Before the battle had begun, who would have dared to think that two people would come who were powerful enough to defeat the three greatest figures of the Ziwei Realm? People who were nearly as strong as it was possible to get below the Renhuang plane...


    "If you can withstand my next attack, then I will leave this place for you," Dou Zhao said to Yu Sheng. He had clearly made his choice.


    He would fight!


    The Dou tribe was naturally skilled at combat. Now that he had finally met an opponent who was a match for him, how could he not fight?


    Divine light flashed in his eyes, and the seventh seal of the Fighting God appeared between his eyebrows. Beams of divine light burst from his forehead, and his fighting will surged. More beams of light shot out of his body, and snapping sounds could be heard as his blood boiled and his bones grew.


    His legs became thick and powerful, and he grew taller. His hands became stronger as well. There was a booming sound as his body continued to grow. Under the will of the seventh seal of the fighting god, his eyes seemed different than before: they had turned into the eyes of a fighting god, containing nothing but endless fighting will.


    The figure of the fighting god that he had summoned earlier merged with his body. He had used the will of the Sevenfold Fighting God to activate his ancient blood and transform into a fighting god himself.


    Dou Zhao had completely transformed. He was no longer himself. As he stood there, everyone could feel his incomparable power. Seventh Slayer looked at him, feeling his aura. He was speechless.


    Even if he let loose the seventh trick of the Killing Gods, he would not have an aura that powerful.


    Dou Zhao''s ultimate power was stronger than his own.


    "If Dou Zhao cannot win like this, then there is no use in continue to fight," said Seventh Slayer. Could Yu Sheng really fight this?


    At that moment, Dou Zhao was comparable to a Renhuang. His fierce will was powerful enough to make it hard to breathe.


    Ye Futian turned to look at Dou Zhao. He was also a little surprised at the amount of power he could feel from him. He would never have thought that his first battle since coming to the God''s Relic would be so violent. But this was the God''s Relic, where the greatest figures of the Nine Supreme realms had gathered. They were the strongest people in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Could someone with an aura like this fight a Renhuang?


    Bang! Dou Zhao took a step forward and lifted his arms. Fists made out of fighting will shot out, seeming to break the air before them. Yu Sheng raised his hands to defend himself. Then there was a loud noise as he was continuously forced backward for quite a distance. But in the end, he was still standing firm, and his aura was not fluctuating too wildly.


    "Such a strong body and soul," Dou Zhao said to Yu Sheng. "You are the best at fighting of anyone I''ve ever seen. But today, the fighting will here can only belong to me."


    Yu Sheng did not say anything. His eyes went dark, like those of a demon god. Demonic power spread out from him, covering his body. At that moment, demonic clouds covered the sky and then filled the underground palace. Everyone could faintly see countless demonic images appearing, bowing before Yu Sheng.


    It seemed as if Yu Sheng, who was surrounded by infinite demonic power, was the king of demons.


    "Hmm?" Dou Zhao frowned. Yu Sheng''s aura was changing as well. An ancient aura seemed to be spreading throughout the underground palace. A sound rang out, seeming to come from the depths of history. It sounded like demons worshiping their demon god.


    The Dou tribe called themselves the descendants of a fighting god. Could this demonic cultivator be the descendant of a demon god?

 1607 Inheri

    When Yu Sheng had first entered the state of demonization, he had not been able to control the incredibly powerful demonic will, and would thus become extremely violent. But as he grew stronger, his control over his power grew greater as well, and things became different than before. After all, he had reached the peak of the Saint level.


    Black demonic light filled the underground palace, and the sounds of demonic will seemed to curl through the air. Countless demonic phantoms appeared, looking to Yu Sheng as their master.


    At the same time, demonic armor spread out over his body. It seemed to have been forged out of dragon scales. A terrible, black demon dragon wrapped around him as if it were a demon child that he was raising.


    The dragon was terrifying in the extreme. When it looked at Dou Zhao, he could feel an incredible sense of danger. The dragon''s eyes seemed to have life in them. This was the creation of an incredibly powerful demon.


    This was what the demon dragon had given to Yu Sheng. He could clearly remember that before he left, the demon dragon had pulled out his own dragon spirit, causing him unthinkable pain, and then given the power to him. This had made the dragon extremely weak. Yu Sheng did not know why he had done this. Wouldn''t it have been enough for him to just train him in his cultivation?


    He could kind of sense that the dragon had some sort of feeling towards him. He probably knew him, or at least knew his master, and thus had a special understanding of him. This must have been why he had done this.


    He sometimes thought of what his father had said to him when he was young. He had naturally known that Ye Futian was extraordinary, and he had said that he was born to walk the path of the emperor. And Yu Sheng would help him by smoothing out all the obstacles on this road. This was what he believed.


    As for what he himself was, he did not want to think about that too much.


    He strode forward, and demonic power surged through the underground palace. Thousands of demons screamed, their Qi flowing out in mighty rivers. The area transformed into a demon realm, burying all the power within and blocking the Slaughtering Gods.


    In the same instant that Dou Zhao saw Yu Sheng move, he moved as well. In his Fighting God form, he could feel an incredible amount of pressure. He stepped forward, and his eyes became divine, shooting out beams of willpower. The fighting will transformed into divine light that shone throughout the underground palace. It seemed like it would dispel the demonic power. The seven marks of the Fighting God on his brow cast dazzling light, making his power reach an even higher level.


    He struck out with a fist full of the fist will of a Fighting God.


    At that moment, two massive figures appeared in the hundred-foot-tall hall. One was a Fighting God, and the other was a Demon God. They completely occupied the whole underground palace. They clashed immediately, their unbreakable fists slamming into each other.


    Boom!


    The very air itself shook, and violent winds swept out. The observers activated their defenses, but they were still knocked back by the wind. Many of them had to take many steps backward and lost their footing, but their eyes were still fixed firmly on the battlefield.


    What level of fighting was this?


    In the first battle since coming to the God''s Relic, they had encountered such fierce resistance. Cultivators who were new to the Renhuang level would not even have been this powerful.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Beams of divine light pierced through the Fighting God''s body, and it seemed like they would break him apart. A clap of thunder rang out as the Fighting God''s body collapsed. Dao Zhao was sent flying, and he slammed into a wall. His Fighting God form disappeared, and he returned to his original size. The seals of the Fighting God on his forehead went dark as well.


    "Cough, cough..."


    He gave a light cough, and streams of blood flowed from his mouth. Dou Zhao looked at Yu Sheng, then wiped the blood away. He smiled and said, "I thought that in all the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, there was no one below the Renhuang level who would be able to hurt me once I had activated the seventh seal, though it is not unmatched in terms of power. I would never have thought that I would lose to you in our first real battle. But sure enough, you cannot underestimate the warriors of the Nine Supreme Realms. I would probably have needed to activate the eighth seal to fight you."


    "You are already very strong," said Yu Sheng. In reality, he did not need to be modest. He had met few people who could challenge him at that level; probably, the man beside him was the only other one. But they were not going to fight anymore, so practically speaking, Dou Zhao was the only one.


    Thus, he was obviously very strong.


    Dou Zhao could tell that Yu Sheng really meant this, but for some reason, it still felt like mockery. If Dou Zhao, who had lost to him, was still very strong, did that mean he was praising himself as being even stronger?


    But, in the end, he had lost, and there was no use thinking about any of that.


    "Although this fighting will is naturally suited to me, I have lost, and so I give it to you. I am sure that Seventh Slayer will have no objections either," said Dou Zhao. Since he had lost, Seventh Slayer had no hope of victory. He was quite confident about that. It was not possible that there were multiple people here who were stronger than him.


    Seventh Slayer indeed had no objections and did not think about using the seventh spear art. Dou Zhao had been defeated in this way, and so it would be futile to fight anymore. The cost would be too high.


    Dou Zhao would probably have to rest for a while after this battle, which would delay his training.


    "Let''s go." Seventh Slayer turned very abruptly and left without the least bit of nostalgia. They had originally come here to seize the fighting will from the School of the Emperor Star, but since they couldn''t get it, they had no reason to stay. There was no need to waste time here.


    Soon, all of the people from the Clan of the Seven Slayers had left the underground palace.


    "Yu Sheng, go and try it out," said Ye Futian. If the fighting will was suited to Yu Sheng''s natural power and the power of the dragon, how much stronger would he get?


    But Yu Sheng shook his head and said, "I am not skilled in that sort of thing. I am not the one who should take it. You go."


    His impression was that there was nothing that Ye Futian could not take if he would just reach out for it.


    He was fine with being called the killer of the God''s Relic, and Ye Futian had some abilities that were not suitable to be used here. They might face Renhuangs later, and thus it would be more suitable for Ye Futian to inherit the fighting will.


    Ye Futian did not argue any further. He looked at Dou Zhao, and a piece of fruit of the way filled with life will appeared in his hand. He gave it to Dou Zhao.


    Dou Zhao looked at the piece of fruit in shock. He looked back to Ye Futian.


    You are very powerful, so I''d like to be friends. If you run into any problems in the God''s Relic, we can work together. This fruit of the way will help you heal quickly," said Ye Futian.


    Dou Zhao was silent for a while after Ye Futian said this. But he was a clever man, so he smiled and said, "I am Dou Zhao of the Dou tribe."


    On saying this, he took the fruit and took a bite. These two men who had just come were truly marvelous.


    "We are Ye Futian and Yu Sheng," said Ye Futian. "I wish to take the God''s Relic for myself, so I may need you to leave."


    "Fine," said Dou Zhao with a nod. He did not say any more. He rose, then led the rest of the members of the Dou tribe out.


    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian speechlessly. He was so generous, and yet he himself had none of the fruit.


    He did not think this because he was bitter at Ye Futian. It was just that Dou Zhao had not needed it.


    He must have given it to him because Dou Zhao was straightforward. The tricks that people used in battle often reflected their personalities. Moreover, Dou Zhao was truly powerful. Of the three people they just fought, when Dou Zhao unleashed the seventh seal of the Fighting God, he was the most powerful.


    If they continued on in this conflict between the Nine Supreme Realms, they were sure to face many more cultivators from top forces. Moreover, they still had many enemies fro before. There were several powerful forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Golden Divine Nation in the Higher Heavens Realm, and now the Shen clan was their enemy as well. They did not know what the future would hold. If they could make friends with the heirs of some other powerful forces, it would certainly not be a bad thing.


    Who said that everyone they met in the God''s Relic had to become their enemy? If they hadn''t fought, they never would have met.


    Fighting was a way to make friends, as was shown by Dou Zhao and Yu Sheng''s fight.


    After the people from the Dou tribe had left, Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were the only ones left in the underground palace.


    Ye Futian walked towards the end of the hall, where the fighting will formed an insubstantial light curtain. As he drew near, he could feel a powerful pressure. He had to work hard to make each step forward.


    Boom! He was sent flying backward as the fighting will entered into his body.


    This fighting will that had remained here coalesced for thousands of years was incredibly strong.


    Leaves and branches spread through Ye Futian''s body.


    "I will go outside and guard the door." Yu Sheng turned and left the palace. Ye Futian''s life spirit was blooming, and his dazzling divine tree covered his body, stretching out through the palace. It even covered the area before him where the fighting will was.


    The tree swayed, and golden light bloomed from within it. An imperial seal appeared on the tree. As the fighting will was drawn into it, it covered Ye Futian as well.


    As the leaves and branches touched it, the fighting will was gradually absorbed by the World Tree.


    The Deed of Thorough Comprehension activated, and Ye Futian''s body became a furnace of the Great Path, making the world tree absorb the fighting will even faster. It spread out even closer to the origin of the fighting will as it sucked it up.


    Ye Futian strode forward towards the throne, covered by the divine tree. He looked at the incomparably frightening spear and the image that looked as divine as a god. The fighting will that had not dissipated had formed the image of an ancient divine general that had remained to this day.


    The tree''s leaves and branches covered the spear as well. When he felt the powerful fighting will within, Ye Futian slowly reached out and grasped it. Suddenly, it surged into him. His body lit up with incomparably terrifying divine light, making him look like an Emperor in a world of mortals. As he swallowed up and refined the fighting will, it became stronger and stronger. It seemed like his whole body was on fire.


    Outside the palace, Dou Zhao sat there recovering. Yu Sheng walked out of the gate.


    "Why are you coming out?" Dou Zhao asked him.


    "He is inheriting the fighting will," answered Yu Sheng.


    Dou Zhao did not say anything, but he was thinking: if Yu Sheng is so good at fighting, why should he not be the one to inherit the fighting will?


    But he was not going to ask that.


    Before long, a figure emerged from the underground palace. Dou Zhao looked up at Ye Futian and asked, "Why are you coming out?"


    "I''m all finished," said Ye Futian.


    What?


    Dou Zhao stared at Ye Futian. Who was he trying to fool?


    "The spear is not bad." Ye Futian reached out a hand. Light flashed, and a spear appeared there, radiant and brilliant. Fighting will was pouring out of it.


    "...."


    Dou Zhao felt like his mind was in turmoil!

 1608 Sword City

    Before Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had arrived, the three forces had already stopped fighting. But even though they had tried, they had been unable to get closer to the area covered by the fighting will. Otherwise, they would have already taken the spear and inherited the fighting will.


    But now, Ye Futian had done both of those things incredibly quickly. Dou Zhao suddenly felt a little bit inferior. He now understood why it had been Ye Futian who had inherited the fighting will and not Yu Sheng.


    Could this even be called "inheritance?" It seemed like the spear had been placed there to wait for Ye Futian to take it.


    As for how he had taken it, Dou Zhao suddenly remembered how Ye Futian had told them to leave. It seemed that he purposely did not want them to see what he did. But no matter what trick he had used, he had done it incredibly quickly.


    "Where are you planning to go next?" Dou Zhao asked Ye Futian.


    "To the east. Many people seem to be going somewhere in that direction. It seems like something happened," said Ye Futian. The cultivators of the Purple Gold Rat clan had gone out in many directions. This was not the only place where things were happening; they were happening in other directions as well.


    The demons of the Purple Gold Rat clan had some tricks of their own, and their sense of smell was very sharp.


    "The God''s Relic has a lot of history. Many of the elders of the top forces have been here before, so they probably know some things about this place, just like the School of the Emperor Star," said Dou Zhao. The cultivators of the Dou tribe were not the first ones to come here. Those cultivators who had made it out alive had naturally recorded their experiences of what happened in the God''s Relic. Otherwise, how would they have known to follow the School of the Emperor Star?


    Ye Futian gave a slight nod. "Mmm."


    "However, there is something I should remind you of," said Dou Zhao.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Go ahead."


    "According to what the elder of my tribe said, if you continue on in one direction until you reach the end, you will run into the Great Relic."


    A look of surprise flashed in Ye Futian''s eyes. When they had followed the Purple Gold Rats, they had seen that many many forces were indeed traveling in a single direction and not stopping.


    Was the Great Relic something that had truly been left behind by the gods?


    The God''s Relic seemed to be an entire world and was said to be the tomb of the gods. But could it have been rebuilt?


    Ye Futian nodded again. "Then, I will go into the east to have a look first, after which I will continue on eastward."


    When Ye Futian said this, Dou Zhao seemed to realize something, and a strange look came over his face. "If you are here, then how do you know where the others are going?"


    The more he learned about Ye Futian, the stranger he felt. What kind of person was this man?


    At first, it had seemed that these two had just been secretly following behind them, trying to take advantage of the situation. Now, they somehow seemed to know what was happening in other places. From Ye Futian''s tone, it sounded like he even knew concrete details about what was going on. This...


    Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao and smiled. "I am using the mystical powers of the Great Path to foresee everything, both in the past and in the future."


    "..." Dou Zhao''sface went dark. He didn''t have to tell him, but did he really have to lie so obviously?


    He may have been very powerful, but was there anyone in the world who would dare claim to have the power to see the past and the future?


    "You rest here for a while. We''ll go on ahead." Ye Futian was naturally joking. He took his leave and began walking off into the distance.


    Dou Zhao watched the disappearing figure speechlessly. The cultivators of the Dou tribe beside him looked at him and asked, "How are you?"


    "I need a bit more time to recover." After saying this, Dou Zhao closed his eyes and said no more. The piece of fruit of the way that contained powerful life will was truly marvelous. It was not only able to restore his life aura, but it was also able to repair his damaged spiritual willpower.


    The fruit contained the power of the Great Path of life and had infinite vitality. This was the basis of all human beings. When their vitality was strong, their spiritual will would be strong as well. The two of them were connected. When one''s life aura, or vitality, grew weak, their spiritual will would grow weak as well. This is why, when people were wounded in battle, it was easier to destroy their willpower.


    Thus, due to this fruit, although they might have to stay behind for a little while, it would not be too long. Now, he just had to patiently recover.


    Those two guys did not know what kind of storm they had just whipped up in the God''s Relic. He would guess that those two were the greatest dark horses here.


    He did not know who would be unlucky enough to run into the two of them next.


    ...


    The entrance to the God''s Relic was in the City of the Ruins, which was in the Central Emperor Realm. Thus, if you wanted to talk about who understood the God''s Relic the best, you would have to mention the top forces of the Central Imperial Realm. These powers were ancient and prosperous with vast and deep secrets. Thus, they were certainly among the forces that understood the God''s Relic the most.


    Other than them, there were also the powerful elders of other top forces who had been to the God''s Relic before. They probably knew a little bit more.


    Thus, when they entered the God''s Relic, those forces who knew some things could head directly for their goals. For example, the School of the Emperor Star had done this, and the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers had followed them.


    The other forces besides the School of the Emperor Star would naturally know some things about the God''s Relic.


    For example, the Yuanyang clan, Heavenly Sword Hall, and other forces had all headed directly east once they had reached the God''s Relic.


    The Yuanyang clan''s formation was incredibly large. After all, they controlled the Yuanyang Realm, and thus all the cultivators of that realm were their subjects and had depended on them to have a chance to come to the God''s Relic. Thus, once they had come here, they formed a massive and imposing formation.


    Zhu Qi, who had once been with Little Condor, was one of the people who came from the Yuanyang Realm.


    At that moment, the massive crowd of people was standing outside of an ancient city. The city''s gates were broken, and there were no signs of life from within.


    But as they stood there outside the city, the cultivators of the Yuanyang Realm looked solemn. The entire massive city was covered by sword will. They could sense that the city had been pierced by countless swords, all of which seemed elegant yet insubstantial. They were all made out of sword will.


    This was an ancient city of swordsmanship. A great swordsman must have once ruled over it.


    Another force appeared outside the city in another spot. It was the cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Hall of the Myriad Realm. There were not as many of them as there were of the people from the Yuanyang Realm, but every one of their swordsmen had a terrifying aura of swordsmanship, and they were gazing at the city fiercely.


    They had felt the sword will here from far away.


    In another spot, another group of imposing figures stood there. They seemed to shine with divine sunlight, and they were very swift and fierce.


    These cultivators had come from the Solar Realm and were one of the top forces of that realm: Chixiao Divine Mountain.


    Although they were not purely focused on swordsmanship, they did teach it, and thus they had come here.


    In addition, a force from the Heavenly Mandate Ream had come as well. They were a group of women, Brahma''s Pure Sky. Qin He was leading them. They stood a little bit farther back than the other forces.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky was one of the top forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but in reality, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were the strongest. The Demon Realm had the Divine Dragons and the Sky Demon Court. Thus, Brahma''s Pure Sky was not at the very top. When looking at the whole of the Nine Supreme Realms, they did not stand out very much.


    Thus, Qin He knew what she should do and what she should not do.


    "Be careful when we go in. The whole city is filled with sword will." The young man at the head of the Yuanyang clan was wearing a robe and had an impressive bearing. After he reminded everyone of this, he strode forward towards the ancient city.


    Everyone was very vigilant. It was said that many people had fallen here in the past, and the sword will that was anywhere could threaten their very lives.


    Afterward, the people from the Heavenly Sword Hall and Chixiao Divine Mountain entered the city as well.


    "Let''s go in," ordered Qin He of Brahma''s Pure Sky. The Goddesses all stepped forward one by one, entering within.


    Once they had entered the city, sword will wrapped around them. Only powerful cultivators could protect themselves against sword will that was everywhere at once. They let it enter their bodies so they could sense it better.


    Outside the city, another group of figures was coming towards the city from a distance. There were two figures at the very front. They were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Behind them came Little Condor and the others.


    Although Dou Zhao had told him that the Great Relic was at the end of this road, he was not just going to give up on the other things that he found along the way.


    "Should we go in?" Yu Sheng asked Ye Futian beside him.


    "If there are no Renhuangs, then there are no threats," answered Ye Futian. "If there''s anyone in there we can''t handle together, we can flee."


    There were many sword cultivators among them: the Swordmaster of Lihen, Yaya, Luoyue, and more. He himself had cultivated the sword, and thus he had decided to come there.


    Moreover, not long before, he had gotten a new spear and inherited some fighting will. If no Renhuangs appeared, it would be difficult for anyone to threaten him and Yu Sheng.


    When he and Yu Sheng had fought Dou Zhao, and he had activated the seventh seal, that had been the most challenging battle they would face.


    "But the sword will in this city is extremely strong. You should all be careful," said Ye Futian to the people behind him. Yaya and the others nodded.


    When Ye Futian looked back at the city, his expression changed, becoming surprised. It seemed as if he could see through the illusion. The whole city, from top to bottom, was filled with sword will. There was nowhere left untouched. It filled the whole city.


    Moreover, the farther one went into the city, the stronger the sword will became. He could faintly see some Lingtian Sword Will.


    Ye Futian and the others strode forward, passing through the broken city wall. As they entered the city, they saw that everything was in ruins. In addition to the surging sword will, there were countless sword marks left everywhere.


    Ye Futian did not resist; he let the sword will enter him. More sword will spread out from him at the same time.


    "This sword will is all different. It is actually many different kinds of sword will," the Swordmaster of Lihen whispered. The sword will had obviously come from different people.


    "There are many broken swords here as well," said Yaya as she looked all around her. There were broken swords everywhere, stuck into the ruins. They were all filled with sword will, and had very likely been left here by an ancient sword emperor.


    But they could not see any corpses here. There was one possibility: they had been destroyed by the sword will.


    Ye Futian walked a little further in and grasped one of the broken swords. He could feel the sword will within it. "The swords are broken, and the people are dead," he said, "but the people are gone, and the sword will remains."


    In the past, these broken swords would have been extremely valuable to him. But at his current level, they were useless.


    "Let''s go to the center of the city," said Ye Futian as he continued forward.

 1609 The Owner of the Relic

    Sword City was barren and dead silent but also had an incredibly tense atmosphere. There was sword will everywhere.


    Ye Futian had already forged a sword body of the Great Path, so the sword will could not affect him. But many of the people behind him had to actively resist it.


    "The whole city is locked down by sword will. What was left here?" whispered Ye Futian. If an apocalyptic war had broken out here in the past, the ruler of the city must have left something behind before he died, which is why he had made the sword will covering the city not dissipate even after thousands of years. He wanted to seal it here.


    Perhaps it was just to remind future generations that he had once lived.


    Yaya pointed and said, "There is a sword over there." Ye Futian saw it as well. Off in the distance, there was a sword floating in midair. Sword will was falling all around it, forming a terrifying matrix of swordsmanship. The sword will was particularly strong there, much stronger than the sword will where they were standing.


    However, the people who had entered the city before them seemed to be much more focused on the Lingtian Sword Will, and they were all heading in that direction.


    Ye Futian and the others continued on through the ruins. Powerful sword will would occasionally pass in front of them. "Follow me," said Ye Futian to those behind him, "Only walk where I walk. Do not stray from the path."


    Everyone nodded. They had discovered that killing sword will would sometimes fall on them. Some people who had been ahead of them had already been hit, as they found bloodstains on the ground. But there were no bodies. They had been completely destroyed by the sword will. Judging by the bloodstains, they had died not long ago.


    "This is getting more and more dangerous," whispered Ye Futian. His eyes were like those of a god, able to pierce through all illusions. Moreover, he had the ability to sense danger in advance. Thus, they had been able to avoid all danger so far.


    Up ahead, a large group of figures had stopped and were not continuing on into the city.


    There were cultivators from the Yuanyang clan, the Heavenly Sword Hal, and Chixiao Divine Mountain there, as well as some from Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    They were missing a few people, and some of the people who were there were wounded.


    When Ye Futian and the others reached them, all eyes turned on them. Many of them recognized him, as he had once come into conflict with the Heavenly Sword Hall because of the Swordmaster of Lihen and had fought the people of the Yuanyang clan for Little Condor. It was only the people of Chixiao Divine Mountain that he had never come in contact with.


    "Have you been here before?" the young head of the Yuanyang clan asked Ye Futian. They naturally knew there would be people behind them. Previously they had not cared, but they had discovered that Ye Futian had marvelous means of avoiding danger.


    Thus, they had stopped to wait for him.


    "I have not," said Ye Futian.


    "No?" The young head of the Yuanyang clan was named Yuan Hong. A look of doubt came over his face when he heard Ye Futian''s denial. "How did you avoid the danger then?"


    "I can predict threats," answered Ye Futian.


    "Then may we walk with you?" asked Yuan Hong. "Then, we can share all our adventures."


    The people from Chixiao Divine Mountain and the Heavenly Sword Hall were looking at him as well. If he didn''t agree, then something would happen here that was worthy of a story.


    Ye Futian thought for a moment, then smiled and nodded. "Alright, all of you may follow me."


    "Thank you." Yuan Hong had not thought that Ye Futian would answer so sincerely. He smiled in appreciation.


    Ye Futian and the others continued forward through the crowd, with Zhu Qi staring at him and Little Condor. Previously, Yu Sheng''s power had shocked her, and she would never have thought that they would come here. She did not know what was going to happen.


    "Long time no see, Lord Ye," said Qin He of Brahma''s Pure Sky with a nod. Many of the other Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky beside her looked at Ye Futian as well. He was obviously very familiar to Qin He. Her memories of the battle of Brahma''s Sky City were still fresh.


    "You are looking even more elegant than before, Goddess Qin," said Ye Futian. Qin He nodded. Ye Futian was walking in front of the whole group. The people from the other forces were a bit surprised. They had not thought that they might know each other, and it seemed like they were, in fact, relatively close.


    However, Ye Futian''s formation was really quite weak.


    Divine light was still shining in Ye Futian''s eyes as he led them through Sword City. After a while, they reached the center of the city. There was a sword palace there, in front of which stood a huge sword matrix. Countless swords were there, blocking the entrance.


    Hundreds of feet above the sword matrix, there was another sword floating in the air, with many beams of light shooting out of it in all directions. This was where the sword will was coming from.


    Some of the people''s faces darkened. The sword will here had put them under a lot of pressure, so much that it had been difficult to bear.


    They could faintly see a faint and blurry figure sitting on the sword. It was probably the left-over will from the ruler of the city.


    "Some people have already been here," said Yu Sheng. There were six swords stuck into the sword eyes around the sword matrix, leaving sword marks that stretched out in all directions and made the sword matrix light up in many places.


    This had clearly all been done by people who had come here before.


    However, the matrix was missing three sword eyes and three swords. If they had been taken, it probably would have undone the matrix.


    "Of course they have. Some of our elders have been to these ruins before and told us about this place. If we can find the last three swords and put them in the matrix, perhaps we can then inherit the swords themselves." Yuan Hong looked up at the sword floating in the air. "That sword is not as simple as it looks. Perhaps the inheritance of the swordsman who ruled this city lies within it."


    "If that''s so, then we should go find the last three swords," said Ye Futian.


    Yuan Hong nodded. "We will go look for them together. We will activate the sword matrix and see whether or not we can make an adventure out of this."


    Yuan Hong was a leader of the Yuanyang clan, but he spoke in a friendly manner, without the least hint of arrogance. Moreover, everything seemed very harmonious here. There was no conflict.


    However, this was probably because the ruins were locked down and had not opened up yet. It was also probably because the Yuanyang clan was the strongest force here. Right now, Yuan Hong''s only goal was to open the ruins. Once that happened, it was most likely that they would be able to get what was inside.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Alright. I know where one of the swords is, I will go get it."


    Yaya and the Swordmaster of Lihen looked at him.


    "That sword we saw before that was floating in the air," said Ye Futian. "I will go get it. You wait here." He turned and left. His decisive manner made the other cultivators look at him in surprise. Why did he feel like he was free to do as he pleased?


    "I will go with you," said Yaya.


    "Alright," said Ye Futian with a nod. The two of them left together. The cultivators of the Yuanyang clan and the Heavenly Sword Hall left as well, going to find the other two swords.


    "How do you know that that sword is the right one?" Yaya asked him telepathically.


    "I sensed it," answered Ye Futian with a smile.


    "Why are you doing this?" Yaya did not understand. Everything that Ye Futian was doing was too honest. He did not need to do this.


    "I know where the other two swords are as well," said Ye Futian. With his divine eyes, he could see through all illusions. Once he had seen that sword and the matrix, he had known that the whole city was actually within a sword matrix.


    Yaya looked at him in shock. If that was true, then she understood even less than she had thought. Wouldn''t it be easier to wait until their opponents had been defeated and then come take the swords?


    "Yaya, it is likely that I will become a Renhuang here in the God''s Relic," said Ye Futian. The color drained from Yaya''s face as she looked back at Ye Futian.


    Renhuang, the once legendary plane. Would Ye Futian really reach that level?


    Since Ye Futian had said that, he must be able to feel how swiftly it was approaching. It was not far now.


    "Over the years, the farther and higher I''ve gone, the harder it has gotten to avoid entanglements with other powerful forces. That is the drawback of strength. The stronger you get, the stronger the people you meet. And similarly, the more talented you are, the more people will pay attention to you," Ye Futian told her. "Once I become a Renhuang, I will no longer be a junior. I will be regarded as powerful by all of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. At that time, I will definitely come into contact with the other great forces."


    Yaya nodded. Naturally, she understood this.


    Once Ye Futian became a Renhuang, things would be different. With his talent and strength, he would truly attract the attention of the people of the Nine Supreme Realms.


    "When a man of unparalleled talent walks alone through the world, he could possibly make the whole world his enemy. I faced this situation before in the Barren State. I hope that on my way to dominate the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, I will make many more friends. Here in the God''s Relic, we have many juniors, all of them heirs of many different forces. They will be in charge of their respective forces in the future. They will influence the situation in the Nine Supreme Realms," said Ye Futian. He did not continue explaining. There were still some things he wanted to do. But doing them by himself, even as a Renhuang, would be nearly impossible.


    He was probably the most skilled person here in the God''s Relic. If he had to fight, he could fight them all. But if he did that, then when he left, he would have made an enemy of all nine supreme realms.


    Yaya stared at his handsome profile. Her mood seemed to change.


    Would Ye Futian be able to dominate the whole world when he became a Renhuang?


    "One can inherit the will of the swordsman who once ruled this place here. It is a wonderful opportunity, but it is also dangerous. In fact, I don''t want to put you in danger. As long as you are safe, all will be well. But you and the Swordmaster of Lihen both have a chance to inherit the will. Do you want it, or should it go the Swordmaster of Lihen?" Ye Futian suddenly asked, changing the subject. Now they were talking about who would inherit the will. If the other forces knew of this, who knew how they would feel?


    From what he said, it was clear that despite the goodwill that Ye Futian had expressed, he was not going to just give up on the things that he should fight for. There were some things that could only be given to the people that he trusted the most.


    "Give it to the Swordmaster of Lihen. Even if it''s dangerous, he won''t want to miss this opportunity," said Yaya. She had known the Swordmaster of Lihen for many years.


    "Very well," said Ye Futian with a nod.

 1610 Decisions

    Yuan Hong and the other Yuanyang Clan cultivators, as well as the cultivators from Heavenly Sword Hall and Chixiao Divine Mountain, were waiting in front of the central Divine Sword Matrix.


    After a short while, Ye Futian and Yaya returned carrying a sword in their hands.


    "You managed to get one?" Yuan Hong exclaimed as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded his head and said, "Give it a try."


    As he said this, he waved his palm. The sword immediately flew out with a whistling sound and landed directly in one of the nine major points of the divine matrix. Countless sword rune lines lit up in an instant. They were even more dazzling when they were lit up.


    Clearly, there were no issues with this sword.


    Many people glanced at Ye Futian. He actually managed to find something. Yuan Hong was somewhat curious, so he asked, "What makes you so sure?"


    "This sword stood out too much," Ye Futian answered with a smile. Yuan Hong was somewhat doubtful. Was it truly so simple?


    Was it really that easy to retrieve the swords?


    If it was so easy to do so, then why had all the people who had previously entered God''s relic only managed to obtain six swords?


    "Our members and the members of Heavenly Sword Hall have also discovered a sword. They are attempting to retrieve it as we speak," Yuan Hong said. Ye Futian nodded in agreement.


    However, they took a long time to retrieve this sword. When they returned, quite a few people were missing, and there was even a person who was injured. It was one of the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall that was a step away from becoming a Renhuang. He and another top figure of the Yuanyang Clan had joined forces to retrieve this sword.


    A cultivator from Heavenly Sword Hall walked up and inserted the sword into the matrix. Instantly, countless streams of Sword Qi burst forth from the vast divine matrix and covered the entire Sword City. Only the last major point was left. Many swords were already clanking in harmony. They seemed to have formed some sort of resonance.


    "Only one sword is missing." The rest of them looked at the Divine Sword Matrix. They only had to obtain one more sword, and they could unlock the Divine Sword Matrix. It would be a great fateful encounter.


    However, Sword Will was everywhere in this Sword City. There were many swords dispersed throughout the city. Which sword was it?


    "Have you discovered anything?" Yuan Hong asked. The rest of them all shook their heads.


    "Should we gather all the swords in the city and test each sword one by one?" Yuan Hong continued saying. Ye Futian was speechless. As expected of a top figure from the Central Emperor Realm''s Yuanyang Clan. It was difficult for ordinary people to compare with such spirit. How much effort would they have to expend in order to retrieve all of the swords in this place?


    Many people would most likely have to lose their lives for them to achieve such a feat.


    "If we get it wrong, we might end up destroying the foundations of the sword matrix," the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall exclaimed.


    Yuan Hong scowled and said, "That means that our only choice is to find the last sword. Do you have any ideas on how to do so?"


    The members from Heavenly Sword Hall all shook their heads. They did not have any leads at the moment.


    "I know where the sword is," Ye Futian said. Immediately, everyone''s gazes fell on him.


    "Where is it?" Yuan Hong asked.


    Ye Futian walked towards a spot not far to the side of the Divine Sword Matrix. There was a broken sword there. He picked up the broken sword. He could clearly sense that the broken sword also contained a powerful Sword Will.


    He carried the broken sword and walked towards the sword matrix. Yuan Hong and the rest revealed strange looks on their faces.


    The sword was right beside the sword matrix?


    Was it also a broken sword?


    Many people were somewhat doubtful.


    "Hold on," the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall cried out as they saw Ye Futian walking towards the sword matrix. Ye Futian looked towards them.


    "How can you be certain that it is this broken sword?" the leader of the members of Heavenly Sword Hall was renowned in the Myriad Realm. He had cultivated for many years and was still a Sword Saint, but his ability was unfathomable. He was known as Sword Saint of Avici.


    "The sword matrix led me to it," Ye Futian said as he looked towards the Divine Sword Matrix in front of him.


    "Are you certain?" Sword Saint of Avici opened his eyes and stared at Ye Futian. There was a divine light in his eyes, and his gaze was extremely frightening.


    "It won''t be a problem," Ye Futian replied.


    "If you are wrong and the sword matrix is destroyed, you will pay the price," Sword Saint of Avici said. After that, he did not say anymore. Yu Sheng frowned when he heard these words. This person''s tone was very arrogant. Who did he take Ye Futian to be?


    Was Ye Futian their errand boy?


    If Ye Futian made a mistake, he would need to pay the price?


    Ye Futian smiled and kept walking. He inserted the broken sword into the final point of the matrix. Sword Will lingered, and everyone''s gazes stared at the divine matrix. The next moment, the nine swords lit up with a frightening glow. The broken sword seemed to have been restored to its original unbroken state. Divine light flickered as though divine swords were inserted in the nine points of the matrix.


    At this moment, the Divine Sword Matrix began to flow. The central pattern of the sword matrix also began to rotate. From all around, countless Sword Qi streaked towards the divine matrix. The sword matrix''s light screen was opened, and they could now walk into it.


    "We did it!" Many people were astonished. That broken sword was actually one of the swords they needed. How did this fellow know that it was the one?


    Could it be that the sword matrix had actually led him to it?


    Ye Futian ignored what the others thought about him. His gaze was aimed at the Divine Sword Matrix. His eyes were extremely bright and could see through everything. Within his field of vision, the Sword Will in the entire city was flowing towards that divine sword. The Sword Will then descended into the center of the pattern. Such a Sword Will was something that he could not stand against.


    As expected, it is not something that is easily inherited, Ye Futian thought.


    The members of the few top forces were about to make a move, especially the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall. They were the purest swordsmanship force among the top forces.


    However, they had also sensed the might of this Sword Will. Wanting to inherit this Sword Will was most likely not going to be easy. It could even pose a danger to their lives.


    "The sword matrix has opened. Please send a representative to give it a try. My side will go last. Whoever manages to get the sword can lay claim to it. How about it?" Ye Futian suggested as he faced the crowd. Yuan Hong looked at Ye Futian and nodded his head slightly, saying, "I agree. Let the various forces take turns."


    Ye Futian had the greatest contribution in activating this matrix. He was already being gracious by letting them go first.


    The cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall did not say anything and remained staring at the matrix. With the strength of Ye Futian''s party, what else could he do but let them go first?


    Even if Ye Futian allowed them to go first, could it be that he believed that he could still obtain the sword in the end?


    No matter what happened, it would never reach his group''s turn.


    "Since young master Ye is here, we will not participate," Qin He said with a faint smile. Other people might not know much about Ye Futian, but she did.


    Moreover, there was some level of friendship between Ye Futian and her. Since they would not be in the running, they might as well declare it.


    "Thank you, goddess." Ye Futian smiled as he nodded his head. Some people looked at Qin He''s group. This woman had a stunning appearance, but she acted so subdued before Ye Futian. Could it be because of Ye Futian''s looks? Ye Futian was indeed a fine specimen of handsome looks.


    However, if it was so, wasn''t she too shallow?


    For cultivators, especially male cultivators, they did not value appearances at all. One''s ability would always come first.


    "Everyone, please go ahead," Ye Futian said with a smile. How could inheriting this sword possibly be that easy?


    It was not just him who knew this; the other forces also knew this. Their expressions turned slightly serious.


    "Heavenly Sword Hall is a swordsmanship force. You may go first," Yuan Hong from Yuanyang Clan said to the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall, inviting them to go first.


    Sword Saint of Avici''s gaze turned towards the center of the sword matrix. He was not very confident.


    "Who will go?" He asked the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall. They were all somewhat hesitant. If they succeeded, it was possible that they could inherit the Divine Sword. However, if they failed, it was possible that they would die.


    The first person to go would have a great but dangerous opportunity.


    "I will go." An elder from Heavenly Sword Hall walked out. He walked towards the center of the divine matrix. In an instant, a frightening Sword Will flowed in. Step by step, he walked to the center of the pattern on the divine matrix. Instantly, endless Sword Will descended. He reached out his hand to grab hold of the Divine Sword.


    Buzz.


    In Sword City, endless Sword Will surged into the Divine Sword. Sword Will descended, penetrating the elder''s body.


    His facial expression changed drastically. Within his body, a powerful Sword Will burst forth. Even his Sword Spirit had appeared.


    Hiss...Hiss...


    Sword Will seemed to form physical swords that collided with his Sword Spirit. The elder let out a scream. Continuous streams of Sword Will descended, and his body then gradually dissipated into nothingness.


    Those who witnessed this scene felt their hearts shiver. The elder had failed.


    As expected, he paid the price for failing with his life.


    The face of Sword Saint of Avici turned sullen. He looked towards the cultivators from the other forces and said, "It''s your turn."


    The cultivators of Yuanyang Clan, as well as Chixiao Divine Mountain, stared at the divine matrix. They had all fallen silent.


    Under such circumstances, they were also not confident that they could obtain the sword.


    "We have decided to continue observing for now," the cultivators of Chixiao Divine Mountain declared.


    "Does anyone want to give it a try?" Yuan Hong looked towards the cultivators of the Yuanyang Clan and declared, "Whoever obtains it can claim it as their own."


    With the previous example, no one dared to act. They were all not confident that they could succeed.


    This Divine Sword was not so easy to obtain.


    Looking at this scene, Yuan Hong turned towards Ye Futian and said, "It seems that you all should still go first."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. He walked forwards into the center of the sword matrix. When the others saw this, they revealed strange looks. Was he personally attempting to retrieve the sword?


    When Ye Futian walked into the divine matrix, he felt the endless Sword Will descending upon him. Deed of Thorough Comprehension activated and became a divine furnace. Nine Words circled him, and heaven and earth resonated. At the same time, inside his body, there were countless branches and leaves enveloping his core. When the Sword Will flowed into him, it was consumed within his body.


    "Huh?" The crowd was staring at Ye Futian. His response seemed mild.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the Divine Sword above him. His eyes were frightening. In this instant, he seemed to have entered the world of the sword. Within this world of the sword, there was an illusory figure that was practicing sword techniques.


    This is... a Sword Spirit, Ye Futian thought.


    After a short while, a dull thud came from within the Divine Sword Matrix. Ye Futian stepped out from within it.


    He walked out unscathed. However, he did not manage to inherit the Divine Sword.


    The Yuanyang Clan and cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall all glanced bizarrely at Ye Futian. Did he manage to walk out alive?


    However, he must have been through a great deal.


    "How was it?" Yaya looked at Ye Futian.


    "I''m alright," Ye Futian said in a low voice. His heart wavered slightly as he looked at Swordmaster of Lihen and transmitted his thoughts, saying, "Swordmaster of Lihen, are you willing to inherit this sword?"


    Swordmaster of Lihen revealed a strange look as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "Just now, I have already investigated it. There is a Sword Spirit hidden within this sword. It should have been left behind by the previous owner of the Divine Sword," Ye Futian explained. "If Swordmaster of Lihen wishes to inherit this sword, when you step up to the sword, you must first sense the existence of the Sword Spirit. Do not hesitate and directly inject your spiritual soul into the sword and merge it with the Sword Spirit. However, I am not certain what will happen after this. It is very likely that you will pay with your life if you fail. According to my estimation, the chances of you succeeding is only 50 percent."


    Swordmaster of Lihen was silent. He looked at Ye Futian and asked, "If it was you?"


    "100 percent." Ye Futian did not hide anything and continued saying, "It is of little value to me. Hence, Swordmaster of Lihen should decide for himself."


    Swordmaster of Lihen had been cultivating for many years. Although his combat ability was not considered to be exceptionally powerful, his state of mind had experienced years of tempering and was extremely stable. He had also been constantly pursuing even higher levels of achievement.


    Hence, even though there was some risk, Ye Futian still let Swordmaster of Lihen decide for himself!

 1611 Destruction and Reconstruction

    After Swordmaster of Lihen heard Ye Futian''s transmitted thoughts, he fell silent. Back then, when he was cultivating in the Emperor Xia''s Realm, he had always wanted to venture out after he reached the Nirvana Plane.


    He had been in Lihen Heaven for many years and had accomplished all that he had wanted to. For him, there was only the pursuit of great achievements in swordsmanship. Hence, he could only aim to step into the legendary Renhuang Plane.


    However, for him, this step had been as difficult as reaching the heavens. Hence, he had ventured out from Emperor Xia''s Realm. It took him many years of trials and tribulations before he managed to traverse the boundaries and arrive in the Central Emperor Realm. These past years, he had always been on the road and had endured many hardships. He had also reached the limits of his Plane, but he was still far from reaching the Renhuang Plane.


    He understood that his talents were limited. Even though his state of mind was transcendent, he still could not break through to the next realm.


    This was a threshold for him.


    Now, Ye Futian was confident that he had a 100 percent chance of inheriting the divine sword. Yet, Ye Futian had given him the opportunity.


    He knew that Ye Futian was not lacking in fateful encounters. His talents were too dazzling to behold. The youth who had ascended the 33rd Layer of Heaven and had battled Wang Chuan back then could no longer be mentioned within the same breath as the youth before him now.


    On the other hand, the Swordmaster of Lihen was missing such a fateful encounter.


    Ye Futian claimed that the Swordmaster of Lihen only had a 50 percent chance of success. If he failed, it was very likely that he would end up like the previous cultivator and pay with his life.


    "Even if it was merely a 20 percent chance, it would still be worth a try, let alone 50 percent," the Swordmaster of Lihen exclaimed through his transmitted thoughts. If the Swordmaster of Lihen had relied on himself, it would have been impossible for him to come across such a fateful encounter. Before this, in order to enter God''s relic, he had wanted to seek help from Heavenly Sword Hall to bring him along with them. It was only due to Ye Futian''s arrival and that Ye Futian had brought him along with him that he had the chance of entering God''s relic.


    Here in the Central Emperor Realm, the Swordmaster of Lihen''s previous status before coming here was not worth mentioning at all.


    Therefore, he would certainly give inheriting the Divine Sword a try.


    "Alright," Ye Futian responded. He turned his gaze towards the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall and said, "Are you going to try again next?"


    Ye Futian had attempted it just now. Even if the Sword Saint of Avici tried his hand at it, he would most likely not be able to decipher the secret of the Divine Sword in one go. This was enough for the Swordmaster of Lihen to have this opportunity.


    "Yes," the Sword Saint of Avici merely responded with one word. This time, he personally came forward and walked towards the pattern of the sword matrix beneath the Divine Sword. If Ye Futian could walk out alive and unscathed, what did the Sword Saint of Avici have to fear?


    He wanted to see how profound this Divine Sword was exactly.


    The Sword Saint of Avici walked into the sword matrix and felt an extremely powerful pressure. Sword Will poured down on him. Brilliant golden divine light lit up around his body. His pupils looked towards the Divine Sword. Innumerable beams of golden light enveloped it. He wanted to directly seize it. His will swept out and was extremely domineering.


    Buzz... The divine matrix activated, and endless Sword Will flowed in from the entire city. Sword Will kept descending upon him. A frightening scene exploded on the Divine Sword Matrix. The Sword Saint of Avici let out a low groan. His face suddenly turned pale. However, his will still did not give up on observing and invading the Divine Sword. He seemed to vaguely sense something.


    This Divine Sword seemed to have a spirit within it.


    The Sword Spirit seemed to have become a sword. It came towards his spiritual soul along with countless Sword Will. His expression suddenly changed. With a loud rumble, golden divine light flashed. He let out a dull moan, and his body immediately vanished and appeared below. The Sword Will tore large holes in the clothes on his body. A streak of blood flowed out from the corners of his mouth.


    "Is he injured?" The cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall looked at the Sword Saint of Avici. Was he also injured?


    However, the Sword Saint of Avici directly turned to look at the Divine Sword. He had already caught a glimpse of the mystery behind it. With a few more chances, he was confident that he could decipher its secret and seize control of it.


    Ye Futian glanced at the Sword Saint of Avici. This person was more powerful than he imagined.


    "I will try again." The Sword Saint of Avici walked forward, wanting to continue trying.


    "Sir," Ye Futian yelled out. The Sword Saint of Avici turned and looked at him.


    "Since we have agreed on the rules, let''s all follow them. That way, we can all be amicable. They should be the ones to go next." Ye Futian turned to look at the cultivators of Yuanyang Clan and Chixiao Divine Mountain.


    The Sword Saint of Avici glanced at Ye Futian. He had an intense penetrating gaze. At a glance, it was as though a sword was shooting over at Ye Futian''s eyes from a distance. When Ye Futian sensed that Sword Will, he raised an eyebrow.


    However, the Sword Saint of Avici did nothing after that and still backed down. Since he could not manage to do it in one try, the others should also not be able to do so.


    This time, Yuanyang Clan and Chixiao Divine Mountain did not just observe. They also personally participated. However, their attempts still ended up in failure.


    Ye Futian looked at the Swordmaster of Lihen and saw him taking a step forward.


    "Swordmaster of Lihen," Ye Futian took out another fruit of the Way and handed it to Swordmaster of Lihen, saying, "Swallow this."


    Swordmaster of Lihen looked Ye Futian in the eyes and then nodded his head. He received the fruit of the Way and swallowed it. The next moment, his life aura swelled up majestically. His Spiritual Energy was powerful, and his condition was pushed to its extreme.


    "This is..." The crowd gave the two of them strange looks. With such a sense of ceremony, why did it seem as though this person was certain to succeed?


    The Swordmaster of Lihen took a step forward and entered the matrix. He faced the same Sword Will that the others had experienced. His life aura exploded out furiously. The Sword Will around him flowed. His eyes stared right at the Divine Sword in the air above his head. His spiritual soul directly invaded it.


    Unparalleled Sword Will descended as though wanting to eradicate him. As he withstood the extremely intense pain, there was an incredible staunch look in the Swordmaster of Lihen''s eyes.


    Rumble! Similar to the previous cultivators, he too sensed the world of the sword and the existence of the Sword Spirit.


    The Sword Spirit immediately descended upon him, along with endless Sword Will.


    Before this, the Sword Saint of Avici had also reached this point. However, he had evaded the Sword Will.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen did not evade it. His spiritual soul pressed forward, allowing the Sword Will to penetrate it as it continued to charge towards the Sword Spirit.


    In this instant, he only sensed that his entire spiritual soul was on the brink of being destroyed. It also seemed as though he was no longer a person, but instead had become a sword and was undergoing tremendous pain.


    The Will of the fruit of the Way furiously exploded at this moment. It protected his life aura and made it even stronger.


    The crowd faintly saw a sword in the body of the Swordmaster of Lihen. It was his Sword Spirit.


    Right now, the Swordmaster of Lihen was going through an intense struggle of choice.


    If I die here today, may my Sword Spirit return to Lihen Heaven, the Swordmaster of Lihen thought. The next moment, a ferocious aura burst out from inside his body and merged into the ethereal divine sword. At the same time, the accompanying endless Sword Will descended. Cracks appeared on his Sword Spirit.


    "Has he gone insane?" Many people were looking at the Swordmaster of Lihen. However, up until now, he was actually still alive and had not been eliminated by the Sword Will.


    Before this, didn''t this person want to join their Heavenly Sword Hall? After being rejected, he had been taken away by Ye Futian.


    Now, he actually wanted to inherit the Divine Sword?


    "There can be no construction without destruction," Ye Futian mumbled. He had still somewhat underestimated the might of the Divine Sword. Letting the Swordmaster of Lihen inherit it was indeed extremely risky. However, this was Swordmaster of Lihen''s decision. If something truly went wrong, Ye Futian would definitely take action to try to save his life.


    However, right now, the arrow had already been drawn.


    They could only continue pushing forward.


    Ding! With a sharp whistling sound, the Swordmaster of Lihen''s Sword Spirit cracked, and the Divine Sword descended, appearing inches above his head. Swordmaster of Lihen''s entire person seemed to have fallen into a state of absolute deadly silence. In the sky above the entire vast and endless Sword City, countless Sword Will came down and landed on the Divine Sword. They then penetrated his body as though they were baptizing his figure.


    Ye Futian''s senses were extremely sharp. He could clearly sense the pain that Swordmaster of Lihen was experiencing now. Swordmaster of Lihen appeared to be deadly silent, but in reality, he was withstanding unparalleled pain. Tens of thousands of swords were passing through his body. The only thought in his mind was to keep on bracing it. He was facing the baptism of all the Sword Will in the entire Sword City.


    "Is this considered a success?" Ye Futian clenched his fist slightly as he witnessed the majestic scene in the divine matrix.


    If the Swordmaster of Lihen succeeded, it would be a metamorphosis for him. Like a butterfly emerging from a cocoon, the Swordmaster of Lihen would complete this baptism. For Ye Futian, this would not be of much benefit. However, it was different for the Swordmaster of Lihen. It would be a truly transcendent metamorphosis for him.


    Thump.


    Sword Saint of Avici took a step forward. There was a golden divine light in his eyes. His eyes pierced through the empty space and stared straight ahead. A golden divine sword appeared with a flash.


    This person was actually showing signs of succeeding.


    Construction after destruction. This person, who had previously wanted Heavenly Sword Hall to bring him along into God''s relic, was actually about to inherit this Divine Sword?


    Was Ye Futian''s prior attempt just to pave the way for this person?


    Qin He also noticed this. Her beautiful eyes glanced at Ye Futian. Did he give this fateful encounter to the Swordmaster of Lihen?


    "Sir, what are you doing?" Ye Futian stepped forward and stood before Sword Saint of Avici, saying, "We have laid down the rules before this in order to be amicable and to see who was destined to inherit this Divine Sword."


    "It has always been that those with ability would seize the fateful encounters of God''s relic. What rules are there to speak of?" The Sword Saint of Avici said indifferently. After he said this, countless golden divine swords appeared around him. Each divine sword was branded with golden space runes. They were very eye-catching and seemed to be able to traverse space to eliminate his opponent directly.


    It was not just around Sword Saint of Avici; many golden divine swords even appeared around the matrix. They pointed straight at the Swordmaster of Lihen in the matrix. At this moment, the Swordmaster of Lihen most likely could not block them.


    "Yu Sheng," Ye Futian shouted. Yu Sheng immediately understood and stepped out with large steps.


    Buzz. The golden divine swords pierced the empty space and attempted to kill the Swordmaster of Lihen. However, a demonic silhouette descended from the sky. A demonic wall appeared around the Swordmaster of Lihen, blocking off the space around him.


    When they saw this, the cultivators from Heavenly Sword Hall stepped forward one after the other, their bodies leaping into the air. In an instant, Sword Will covered the sky, enveloping boundless space. Countless divine swords howled and let out sharp screeching sounds. The majestic Sword Will contained extremely intense killing aura.


    They looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. A cold look of indifference flashed past in their eyes. Since they had found out the method to inheriting the Divine Sword, how could they just let the Swordmaster of Lihen, a person who had even requested their help to enter God''s relic, do so?


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng wanting to hold them off appeared to be a futile attempt.


    "Those with ability can seize them?" Ye Futian looked at Sword Saint of Avici, "Of the three remaining swords, I alone obtained two of them. After opening the Divine Sword Matrix, I never thought of claiming the Divine Sword for my own and instead let everyone contend for it fairly. Since you claim that those with ability can seize this fateful encounter, then so be it."


    The members of Heavenly Sword Hall revealed cold smiles when Ye Futian said this. Could it be that he still believed that he could block their swords?


    Could he even block the sword of just Sword Saint of Avici alone?


    At this moment, a dazzling godly spear appeared in Ye Futian''s hand. Fighting will filled the air. Alone, he was prepared to take on ten thousand. He had an unparalleled aura around him. He pointed the long spear at the leading Heavenly Sword Hall cultivator, saying, "Those who step forward will die."

 1612 Invincible Spear

    The handsome figure stood in mid-air, like a white-haired God of War.


    At this moment, the fighting will of Ye Futian was intense. The cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Hall frowned; Sword Will surged out from their bodies too.


    Those who stepped forward would die.


    Ye Futian was attempting to stop the Heavenly Sword Hall alone!


    Moreover, he had the audacity to utter such a presumptuous statement, having no respect for the Heavenly Sword Hall at all.


    The cultivators of Yuanyang Clan stared at Ye Futian with great interest. They had not expected him to be such a domineering figure. However, could he really stop the Heavenly Sword Hall?


    Swoosh... swoosh�� Dazzling Sword Will erupted and charged towards Ye Futian ferociously. A swordsman beside the Sword Saint of Avici took a step forward. Countless hurricanes and storms appeared all around them as a myriad of swords was unleashed from the eyes of the storms, aiming straight for Ye Futian. The swords attempted to tear the space apart.


    Those who stepped forward would die?


    He wanted to see for himself how he would die.


    Buzz. Ye Futian''s figure moved. His arm shook, and the spear became a beam of light that directly charged into the storm. With just his body of flesh and blood, he pierced right into the eye of the storm.


    At this moment, a golden hole seemed to appear in the storm. A godly spear appeared and swept across the sky.


    Bang!


    A soft thud sounded. The swordsman that had attacked saw a golden illusion. The next moment, the spear directly pierced through his glabella. Fresh blood seeped out. The scene was horrifying.


    How is it possible? This final thought emerged in the swordsman''s mind. After that, his consciousness dimmed, and his spiritual soul shattered. His body directly plummeted down to the ground.


    He was killed in one blow.


    "I am not fooling around," Ye Futian said indifferently as he pointed his spear at the members of the Heavenly Sword Hall before him. A suffocating Sword Will enveloped the space around them. Many Sword Spirits directly appeared from thin air and floated behind the cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Hall.


    Not fooling around?


    He actually killed someone.


    Alone, Ye Futian stood in mid-air in front of the cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Hall, threatening that anyone who stepped forward would die.


    This scene was extremely embarrassing for the members of the Heavenly Sword Hall. Not only was it because one of their companions had fallen, but it was also because this was a disgrace for the Heavenly Sword Hall. A person who had wanted to join Heavenly Sword Hall in order to enter God''s relic had now snatched the teachings of the Divine Sword from right in front of them. As for them, they were being held back by a man with a spear.


    As the strongest swordsmanship force in the Myriad Realm, the Heavenly Sword Hall had never encountered such a disgrace.


    Moreover, this time, their commander was the powerful Sword Saint of Avici.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Hall wielded their Sword Spirits together. They mainly cultivated Sword Spirits. Their Sword Spirits were very powerful. Each Sword Spirit had frightening rune lines imprinted on them. Their Way was imprinted on them. A Sword Spirit guiding a cultivator in their cultivation could increase the chances of them breaking through to the Renhuang Plane.


    Each Sword Spirit was forged through many hardships. When they reached the Renhuang Plane, their Sword Spirits could directly serve as the foundation for their Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    In an instant, countless Sword Spirits pointed towards Ye Futian at the same time. It seemed as though the space was about to be ripped to shreds. Each Sword Spirit contained different Ways, but they were all very sharp.


    Sword Will howled with sharp ear-piercing screams. Who could possibly survive an attack from so many of these swords?


    This time, they wielded their swords but did not advance. It seemed that the death of the person before had caused them to grow cautious, even though they were dissatisfied.


    On Ye Futian''s body, Renhuang level fighting will furiously burst forth. He had an imposing aura. Ye Futian stood alone against so many of them. He became a peerless God of War. With a spear in hand, he was invincible.


    The swords attacked, and the space was torn apart. The sharp howl of swords ringed in the ears of all present. Destructive winds filled the air. Countless Sword Spirits attacked Ye Futian at the same time, all of the swords flying together. Each of them was an extraordinary weapon. This scene was grand and domineering.


    Ye Futian took a step forward. His fighting will that was bursting forth swelled to its limit. Great Path aura surged forth. The spear in Ye Futian''s hand pierced forwards into the space.


    Although he had not practiced spear techniques, he had practiced halberd techniques. Their Great Paths were interconnected, and there were similarities between spears and halberds.


    The spear was like a dragon that rumbled forward with an unparalleled fighting will.


    Rumble!


    A dull sound exploded in the space. Once the spear landed, the entire space before Ye Futian was blown apart.


    The Sword Spirits trembled violently. Cracks even appeared on some Sword Spirits. The swords shook, and some Sword Spirit immediately shattered while cracks appeared on others.


    Dull sounds reverberated in the surrounding space. Many people spat out mouthfuls of fresh blood. Their faces turned pale. The Sword Will of some of these people dissipated, their auras rapidly weakening.


    In just an instant, the auras of the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall were drastically weakened.


    One spear.


    It was still just one spear.


    Everyone else was astonished. This white-haired youth was actually powerful to such an extent. Who could receive a strike from his spear?


    With him standing there, no one could take a step forward.


    Among the Yuanyang Clan, Zhu Qi was shocked. The master of the Black Wind Condor was so powerful. His abilities were actually so terrifying. It actually was as that despicable Black Wind Condor had said. Compared to Ye Futian, the monstrous figures that she knew of paled into insignificance. Among Yuanyang Palace, the ruling power of the Yuanyang Realm, who could take a hit from this spear?


    Even among the members of the Heavenly Sword Hall of the Nine Supreme Realms, no one could do so. It was even more so for them, a force from a Lower World ruled by the Yuanyang Clan.


    She recalled that this person had a friendly attitude and that he had actively sought out the swords for the crowd. He had also suggested that they all took turns to try and inherit the Divine Sword based on destiny and luck. Zhu Qi had believed that he had done so because he was weak.


    Now, as she looked at him again, he was so outstanding.


    It was as though the person from before and the person now were two completely different people.


    Let alone Zhu Qi, even the commander of Yuanyang Clan, Yuan Hong was extremely astonished inside. That spear strike was definitely stunning. This person''s elegance and talent were comparable to the figures at the pinnacle of the Nine Realms. Such a person was actually a nobody. Yuan Hong had not known of him before this.


    Yuan Hong even believed that today''s contest for the Divine Sword was unrelated to this white-haired youth. After all, Ye Futian''s group was weak. Such a lineup could not possibly contend for the Divine Sword. Even if Yuan Hong followed the agreement and did not contend for it, would the other forces also agree to do so?


    Just as Yuan Hong had predicted, Heavenly Sword Hall did not agree to this and directly attacked.


    When Heavenly Sword Hall snatched the Divine Sword away from the Swordmaster of Lihen, Yuan Hong would then snatch the Divine Sword away from Heavenly Sword Hall.


    However, Yuan Hong had not imagined that a man and a spear was standing against Heavenly Sword Hall.


    When one man guarded the pass, ten thousand men would not be able to get through.


    The spear in Ye Futian''s hand emanated a powerful Renhuang level fighting will. It was most likely an item he acquired from God''s relic.


    With Ye Futian''s talent, the person who inherited the Divine Sword by right should not be the Swordmaster of Lihen. Unless, Ye Futian intentionally gave up the opportunity to the Swordmaster of Lihen. Ye Futian''s attempt prior to this was not to inherit the Divine Sword, but to examine it and search for ways to inherit it.


    Moreover, he had successfully carried out what he had intended to do. Hence, they witnessed the success of the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    Giving up the teachings of the Divine Sword willingly; what kind of disposition was this? Did he look down on such teachings?


    As the direct heir of the Yuanyang Clan, Yuan Hong was well-aware that God''s relic was not a site left by modern age swordsmen. It was an ancient battlefield. The teachings left here were a complete Great Path. The reason why God''s relic caused such a huge commotion in the Nine Realms was that many fateful encounters were hidden here. Anyone who was fortunate enough to seize it would leave this place as an extraordinary Renhuang.


    The maidens of Brahma''s Pure Sky stared at Ye Futian. Their eyes glistened with light. He had grown stronger, far stronger than when they met him at Xuantian Pavilion. Right now, even if he was faced with Yi Tianyu again, the latter would most likely be no match for him.


    Besides, Qin He was Virgin Jinyi of Brahma''s Pure Sky. In the past, she visited the prophet when she was in the Demon Realm. She first met Ye Futian there.


    Suddenly, she recalled an incident. Back then, not long after Ye Futian had entered the Prophet''s Palace, the prophet committed suicide. Since then, there was no prophet in this world.


    Prior to his death, the prophet had prophesied that there would be a huge occurrence in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Everyone had their attention drawn to Gu Tianxing and Gu Dongliu, so nobody drew a connection between the death of the prophet and Ye Futian, the last person whom the prophet had met before he died.


    However, as Jinyi recalled this incident now, she was struck by the sudden realization.


    Her heart was throbbing. Could it be that Ye Futian was the one who would transform the Heavenly Mandate Realm, as predicted by the prophet in his prophecy?


    If the death of the prophet was related to Ye Futian, what was the hidden story behind the case?


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng guarded the pass, ensuring that no one could disrupt the Swordmaster of Lihen from inheriting the teachings of the Divine Sword. The party from Taixuan Mountain was a tad bit jealous of the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    Ye Futian treated this swordsman really well. The swordsman was most likely a senior that Ye Futian had a lot of respect for. Hence, Ye Futian offered such an important fateful encounter to him.


    Endless Sword Will circulated; all the Sword Will in the entire Sword City continued to gush towards the sword matrix, where the Swordmaster of Lihen was. As weak as he was, his body persevered through this stage; his Sword Will gradually recovered in his body, strengthening him once again.


    In front of Ye Futian, the Sword Saint of Avici''s pair of golden eyes remained fixed on him.


    As expected, no one from Heavenly Sword Hall could take one step further. In the previous attack, only swords had been sent out. No one had advanced.


    However, the Sword Saint of Avici had not sent out his sword.


    Dazzling golden light emanated from the body of the Sword Saint of Avici. In his figure, a divine sword with countless golden rune lines appeared. It hovered above his head. He formed sword mudra with both of his hands. In an instant, sword shadows covered the sky.


    With Ye Futian''s body as the center, countless divine swords imprinted with golden rune lines appeared, blocking out the sky. Beams of divine swords descended, forming a frightening spatial sword veil. They actually formed an astonishing light shroud that sealed Ye Futian within it.


    "Spatial Divine Swords." Ye Futian raised his head and glanced around. There were golden divine swords everywhere around him.


    The divine sword in mid-air above the Sword Saint of Avici''s head seemed to be a Sword Spirit that had merged with a Renhuang implement. It emanated a gorgeous Renhuang light. Swords resonated with clanking sounds. Endless Spatial Divine Swords floated in the sky.


    "Go," the Sword Saint of Avici uttered this word. Divine swords swept across the space towards Ye Futian. Almost all at the same time, in the sky above, countless Spatial Divine Swords traversed the space and descended instantly, slashing across from afar.


    Rumble. A savage fighting will erupted from Ye Futian. As he took one step forward, the air around him tightened as though the space was under his choke, slowing down the speed of the swords. Billowing fighting will surged out from Ye Futian''s body. He lunged, and the spear went for its target. In an instant, the overwhelming fighting will was transformed into countless spear shadows, colliding with the divine swords.


    The heavens and earth shook. Destructive power swept up into the sky. However, Ye Futian''s body instead became a beam of brilliant divine light that immediately pierced through the space and charged straight ahead. The spear''s straight tip landed on the strongest divine sword.


    A brilliant glow was emitted. The divine sword flew back, and the Sword Saint of Avici let out a dull groan. A formless power sent his body flying backward from the shock. He collided into the cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Hall behind him before finally coming to a stop.


    Cough.


    A soft cough was heard. A streak of blood flowed out from the corner of the mouth of the Sword Saint of Avici.


    It was still just one spear. It was invincible!

 1613 Goal

    With one skill, he countered all other techniques.


    With a long spear, Ye Futian blocked in front of Heavenly Sword Hall. Whoever stepped forward would die.


    In all the Nine Realms, there were very few people that were as imposing as he was now.


    The Sword Saint of Avici raised his head and looked at Ye Futian. The tip of the spear still emanated frightening fighting will. The will of a God of War also lingered on Ye Futian''s body, causing his combat ability to be extremely powerful.


    The Sword Saint of Avici was very aware of his own ability. He could not be described as weak. In the Myriad Realm, he was one of the pinnacle figures below the Renhuang Plane. Even among the Nine Realms, he could still be ranked among those at the top. However, in his first battle after entering God''s relic, Heavenly Sword Hall, which was led by him, was being held off by a man with a spear. This made him feel somewhat depressed.


    Although he knew that God''s relic would certainly be full of strong cultivators this time around and that there would be no lack of heaven-defying monstrous existences, as someone who was peerless below the Renhuang Plane in Heavenly Sword Hall, the Sword Saint of Avici still believed that he had a fighting chance. He felt that he was qualified to battle against the pinnacle figures of the Nine Realms. This crushing defeat even made him doubt his own ability.


    Ye Futian was also looking at him. He retracted his arm and lowered the long spear in his palm. As Ye Futian stood there, he was like a peerless God of War. No one could advance past him.


    Prior to this, he had used very gentle means for them to contest for the Divine Sword. His method did not offend nor cheat people and prevented the top forces of the Nine Realms from forging grudges. However, if such a party insisted on defying their agreement, he could only use his ability to force them to submit.


    "Do you still want to try?" Ye Futian said as he looked at the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall. The Sword Saint of Avici glanced behind Ye Futian. The Swordmaster of Lihen was inheriting the Divine Sword. All the Sword Will in the entire Sword City was surging towards him.


    From the looks of it, the Sword Saint of Avici would not be able to seize it from him anymore.


    "Let''s go," the Sword Saint of Avici immediately ordered. He then turned to leave. This was not the only ruin in God''s relic. There were other, greater fateful encounters to be contested. Although they had failed miserably here, their combat ability was not weakened by much; they still had the ability to put up a fight.


    If the Sword Saint of Avici continued to fight Ye Futian to the death, he could not predict what kind of price he would have to pay in order to kill Ye Futian.


    The cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall retreated after the Sword Saint of Avici. They also looked at the Swordmaster of Lihen with deep looks in their eyes. Among them was the swordsman who had crossed swords with the Swordmaster of Lihen back then. They all felt somewhat dissatisfied. They might have felt better if Ye Futian had inherited the Divine Sword himself. However, for a person who found it hard to even enter God''s relic to inherit the Divine Sword, they naturally found it hard to accept this.


    They could only say that this person''s luck was heaven-defying. This fateful encounter would most likely change his destiny.


    Although, as of now, they still did not know what benefits the Divine Sword would bestow onto the Swordmaster of Lihen. The accumulation of the Sword Will in all of Sword City, together with that Divine Sword was enough to cause him to undergo a metamorphosis. He had already destroyed his own Sword Spirit and was now reconstructing it.


    Very quickly, the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall left one by one. The members of Chixiao Divine Mountain also did not say much and did not even leave behind any words before turning to leave decisively. Since someone had already inherited the Divine Sword, and they also had no confidence in taking down Ye Futian, remaining here was a waste of time.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky would naturally not contend with Ye Futian over the Divine Sword. However, Qin He did not leave and instead remained there.


    Although currently Qin He had improved greatly and was already halfway to reaching the Renhuang Plane, she still knew her own limitations well. Her abilities would be top tier in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but in the Nine Realms, she held no advantage.


    She could not contend against Ye Futian.


    Right now, there was an opportunity before her to travel together with Ye Futian.


    Currently, only Yuanyang Clan still had the ability to contest for the Divine Sword.


    Ye Futian turned his gaze towards Yuan Hong. However, Yuan Hong smiled and said, "Congratulations. Since the relic has been obtained by you, we will be taking our leave."


    "Many thanks," Ye Futian replied while nodding in appreciation. Among the few forces, the Yuanyang Clan from the Central Emperor Realm posed the largest threat to them. For Yuan Hong to voluntarily give up this Divine Sword was naturally the best outcome. Ye Futian did not have to worry about offending them as well.


    "I''m Yuan Hong from Yuanyang Clan. May we meet again," Yuan Hong said while saluting Ye Futian with his fists.


    "I am Ye Futian, a disciple of Sky River Temple of the Tianhe Realm. May we meet again," Ye Futian replied. Sky River Temple was the name of the organization name of Sky River Great Elder when he was teaching swordsmanship in the past. It also referred to the mountains where the Elder resided. Ye Futian came to the Central Emperor Realm as a disciple of Sky River Great Elder; naturally, it was most suitable for him to declare himself as a disciple of Sky River Temple.


    Moreover, his master was Qi Xuangang, who was indeed a disciple of Sky River Temple.


    "The Tianhe Realm." Yuan Hong had heard of it before. In the past, a huge conflict erupted between Shen Clan and the Tianhe Realm. It was caused by that. Could it be that Ye Futian was related to it?


    Yuan Hong did not dwell on this thought. With a smile, he led his army and left.


    Here, no one else was contending with Ye Futian now.


    Only then did Ye Futian look in the direction where Brahma''s Pure Sky was, saying, "Goddess Qin, is your group not planning to take a look at other places as soon as possible?"


    "We will travel with Young Master Ye," Qin He answered with a smile. Ye Futian was stunned. Qin He''s eyes revealed a glint of joy; it was enchanting. "Why? Does Young Master Ye not welcome us?"


    "For Goddess Qin to be willing to travel with my party, it''s a hard-to-come-by opportunity," Ye Futian said with a smile while nodding. He did not reject them since it had been his hope to get to know Brahma''s Pure Sky more.


    With Brahma''s Pure Sky, he still had unfinished business.


    "Thank you, Young Master Ye." Qin He bowed slightly. The Virgins from Brahma''s Pure Sky stared at the two of them. Back when they first met at Xuantian Pavilion, if Ye Futian had truly ventured there for Virgin Qin He, and they had ended up together, their love story would have been the stuff of legend.


    The two of them were a match made in heaven.


    Clearly, all the Virgins from Brahma''s Pure Sky regarded Ye Futian as a suitable husband candidate. Even if their greatest beauty, Virgin Qin He, would have to lower her status to marry him, the rest still thought of them as a good match for each other. The Virgins were all impressed by Ye Futian.


    Before this, everyone had considered Gu Dongliu and Zhan Yuan as the most outstanding people among this generation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Now, the Virgins felt like Ye Futian should instead be regarded as the most exceptional one.


    Ye Futian knew nothing about their thoughts. His gaze shifted to look at the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    At this moment, the space surrounding the Swordmaster of Lihen had become a cocoon of swords. Countless Sword Will crisscrossed and enveloped his body inside the cocoon. The Sword Will in the entire Sword City flowed here. From being very weak, his aura recovered and became even stronger and more powerful. It was as though he could faintly resonate with the endless Sword Will all around him.


    The Divine Sword contained a Sword Spirit within it. Now, this Sword Spirit had already fused together with the spiritual soul of the Swordmaster of Lihen, and they had become one. His Sword Spirit had been reforged, being reconstructed after being destroyed. Right now, the Swordmaster of Lihen himself saw that he had completely entered a certain state. It was as though he had become a sword. He was the center of this world of the sword. He could sense Sword Will in the entire Sword City. It seemed as though his will was everywhere.


    Ye Futian quietly waited on him. He did not know how long the Swordmaster of Lihen would remain in this condition.


    After a period of time, there was some strange movement in the Sword Will surrounding the Swordmaster of Lihen. An intense wave of Sword Will appeared around his body. Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the area in the sky above. An extremely miraculous sensation swelled up inside of him. It seemed like the Swordmaster of Lihen could already control the Sword Will in the surrounding space.


    It felt like there was a willpower that permeated all around them. That was the will of the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    Right at this moment, the Swordmaster of Lihen opened his eyes. He looked at Ye Futian and called out, "Futian."


    "Swordmaster of Lihen, how do you feel?" Ye Futian looked at the Swordmaster of Lihen. The gaze of the Swordmaster of Lihen was sharper than before. His temperament also seemed to have changed. It was as though he had gained a true body for swordsmanship and had become a sword himself.


    "I feel that I can take that final step to reach the Renhuang Plane. I also feel completely different from before. This sensation is hard to describe," the Swordmaster of Lihen said. Ye Futian revealed a smile. From the looks of it, the Swordmaster of Lihen had already completed his metamorphosis.


    "Have you had a breakthrough in terms of Plane?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Hmm. It seems as though everything is within my grasp," the Swordmaster of Lihen replied.


    "You should be in between the Saint Plane and the Renhuang Plane. Once you pass this point, you will be a Renhuang," Ye Futian explained.


    "Hmm," the Swordmaster of Lihen nodded his head slightly, "I no longer need to be guarded, but I still need to cultivate for some time. I do not know how long I will need. God''s relic has many more fateful encounters in store. You do not need to stay here and guard me. Go ahead and seek out fateful encounters of your own."


    Ye Futian had already done more than enough for him. Ye Futian had given him a fruit of the Way and had given such an important opportunity to him that made him go through a metamorphosis. This debt of gratitude was difficult to express in words. He could only remember it in his heart.


    "Alright." Ye Futian also did not refuse. As the Swordmaster of Lihen had said, they indeed could not afford to delay any longer. Before this, he was concerned for the safety of the Swordmaster of Lihen. However, now that the Swordmaster of Lihen had already gained control of all the Sword Will in Sword City, even if Heavenly Sword Hall returned here, they would no longer be able to do anything to him within this Sword City.


    "Swordmaster of Lihen, I will go on ahead first. After you have finished cultivating, head east. I will be heading in that direction," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright. When I am done cultivating, I will come find you," the Swordmaster of Lihen replied as he nodded.


    "I will be off." Ye Futian did not say anymore. After he uttered these words, he turned and left the place.


    The others glanced at the Swordmaster of Lihen. Some were calm, and others were in awe of him. They followed Ye Futian and left the place together, hoping that they would also come across other opportunities.


    "Yaya, would you think badly of me?" Ye Futian asked Yaya, who was beside him, as his group traveled at high speeds across the sky.


    After seeing the metamorphosis of the Swordmaster of Lihen, he did not know whether Yaya would have any thoughts regarding this.


    "Will you mistreat me?" Yaya asked as she turned her gaze and looked into Ye Futian''s eyes.


    "Erm..." Ye Futian was stunned. He replied with a smile, "I won''t."


    Yaya shifted her gaze and did not say anymore, as though Ye Futian himself already knew the answer.


    This made Ye Futian speechless. He felt pressure as heavy as a mountain weighing down on him.


    "Head east," Ye Futian instructed. The Purple God Rats that had scouted out the various directions discovered that many top forces were traveling in this direction. This place was previously the lands of a Realm. Many ruins had been searched by people before. Ye Futian might be able to obtain the things that they had left behind and had not taken away, but for him, these things would not give him any substantial benefit.


    He went to two different places and had guarded the Swordmaster of Lihen for some time. He could not continue to delay any longer.


    Hence, he was prepared to fly past all the ruins that they passed by along the way and head forward at full speed to the end.


    Dou Zhao would most likely not have lied to him.


    His group traveled extremely fast. They were like shooting stars that swept across the sky in God''s relic. However, they were not the only ones to do so.


    Right now, from all corners of God''s relic, people were rushing over at full speed. Some of the fastest ones were the top forces of the Central Emperor Realm. They had more intel, and they had a clearer goal than those from other Realms!

 1614 Gathering

    While heading east, Ye Futian ordered the members of the Purple Gold Rat Clan to head in the three other cardinal directions as well.


    Dou Zhao claimed that after entering God''s relic, they would encounter a Great Relic if they headed in one direction. Did that mean that there would be different Relics in different directions?


    Why was that so?


    The Purple Gold Rats made haste as they headed north, south, east, and west. The range that Ye Futian could sense was also constantly expanding.


    However, after traveling for a period of time, Ye Futian, who was heading east, suddenly stopped. His eyes revealed a strange look.


    "What''s wrong?" Yaya, who was beside him, asked as she looked at him. Yu Sheng also looked incredulously at Ye Futian, who had suddenly slowed down.


    Ye Futian''s brow revealed a look of contemplation. He looked towards Luoyue and asked, "You heard Lord Taixuan mention about God''s relic on Taixuan Mountain. Have you ever heard about what sort of places these Great Relics are in?"


    Luoyue shook her head. "Taixuan Mountain''s knowledge of this place is also limited."


    Ye Futian understood. Taixuan Mountain''s ability was average. It was likely that they did not know much.


    In comparison, a force like Divine Palace might know more about these Great Relics.


    "Is something wrong?" Luoyue asked.


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded, "When we entered God''s relic, due to the fact that the spatial doors were all in different places, we all ended up in different regions. However, we still could sense each other''s auras from far away. That meant that the distance between us was not too far and that we were all still in the same region. Under such circumstances, if all of us headed out in different directions, shouldn''t we have ended up heading further away from each other?"


    "Of course," Luoyue replied as she nodded her head.


    "If it was so from the start, then why is it that we ended up closer to each other?" Ye Futian asked.


    He noticed a strange phenomenon. He and the members of the Purple Gold Rat Clan were originally heading in different directions. Before this, the distance between them was also indeed growing larger. However, as they continued forward, the Purple Gold Rats, who were traveling in one direction, seemed not to be moving further away from him, but instead were drawing closer.


    He thought that he had sensed it wrongly. After all, when he controlled the Purple Gold Rat Clan, he could faintly sense how far away from him they were. However, he could not determine their exact location. He could only get a rough feel.


    However, as they continued, he sensed a similar sensation coming from the members who went in the other two cardinal directions. He could not help but be suspicious of the possibility that they were actually coming closer together.


    "There is one possibility," Xia Qingyuan said.


    "What possibility is that?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Suppose this God''s relic is a single plane of existence, a spherical world like a planet. Then, if we appeared in the same region and then headed in opposite directions, the distance between us would first increase and then decrease," Xia Qingyuan explained.


    "You are right," Ye Futian nodded. Xia Qingyuan''s deduction was the same as his.


    "Let us continue on our way," Ye Futian did not say anymore. He kept this in mind and continued heading east with haste.


    The sensations he felt after this also confirmed his hypothesis. The distance between him and the Purple Gold Rats was indeed getting closer.


    After a long while, an endless wasteland appeared before Ye Futian and the others. The members of the Purple Gold Rat Clan that headed in the other three cardinal directions were still heading forward in haste. However, Ye Futian already discovered that the distance between them was already very near. Of course, this was relatively speaking.


    If they continued to head forward, they would end up gathering at one spot.


    Based on what Dou Zhao had described, they would encounter a Great Relic by heading in one direction. Was it possible that the Great Relic that they encountered at the end of the four cardinal directions was actually the same Relic?


    It was just that nobody knew that it was the same Relic?


    That meant to say that the people who entered God''s relic before this had never traversed the entire place?


    "We should be arriving soon," Ye Futian said in a low voice. If Dou Zhao''s information was not wrong, each direction had a Great Relic. That meant that it could only be at the intersection point of the four cardinal directions.


    In this place, he could already see the remnants of the will of humans. There seemed to have been a huge battle here before.


    "What is that?" Yaya looked into the distance across the barren mountain range. In front of them, they could see a huge golden skeleton standing erect in the wastelands.


    They sped up and headed over to the giant skeleton.


    "It''s a dragon corpse," Ye Futian mumbled.


    This skeleton was tens of thousands of meters long. Its size was gigantic. Lying here, up close, it was a striking sight to behold. One could imagine how powerful a divine dragon it was when it was alive. Unfortunately, now it was just a pile of bones.


    However, even as a pile of bones, it still contained intense will.


    "No one has actually taken this away," Luoyue exclaimed.


    "Take it away?" Ye Futian said, "Why don''t you try to take this away from here?"


    Luoyue was stunned. She took a step forward and touched the dragon bones. She wanted to try and lift one of them up, but she discovered that the dragon bones that stood erect in this wasteland did not budge. She could not lift them at all.


    "A Golden Divine Dragon leaves behind golden bones," Ye Futian explained in a low voice. "This one was at the Demon Emperor level. One single bone is enough to create a Renhuang implement. Such a huge golden dragon corpse is practically an absolute treasure. However, the people who can enter God''s relic are at lower Planes. They cannot lift it and hence cannot take it away with them." Even those who broke through to the Renhuang Plane in God''s relic could not do so.


    "What a waste. The value of the bones of this Golden Divine Dragon is immeasurable," Luoyue exclaimed softly. The rest of them understood how she felt. There was such a treasure here, but no one could take it away. It was very frustrating.


    The people who had come to God''s relic before this must have also felt this way.


    "There seems to be more up ahead," Ye Futian said. He felt a will that was all around them. Up ahead, there was an extremely frightening area of flames.


    The group continued to advance along the wasteland''s mountain range. Not long after, they saw another pile of huge bones. These bones contained a very powerful will of fire. It caused the area where it was to be marked red. It was as though this was an area of flaming mountains. The temperature was exceptionally high.


    A Fire Kylin. The group trembled inside when they saw the bones of the huge divine beast. This was the skeleton of a huge Fire Kylin. It had set this area ablaze. Even from where they stood, they could sense its intense will.


    If it was a person who cultivated flames, they could even gain insight into their cultivation here.


    What was this place? Xia Qingyuan was shocked. This mountain range in the wasteland was deadly quiet. However, the corpses of these dead divine beasts astonished everyone. It was difficult to remain calm in this place.


    What exactly had happened here?


    Were gods truly buried in the tomb of the gods?


    Could it be that there was a graveyard waiting for them further ahead?


    They continued forward. Very quickly, they saw another extremely frightening huge beast. Its pair of wings were outspread and blocked out the sky, casting a shade over the vast space. Even though it had fallen and was just standing erect there in the wasteland, it was still a king of demons. It stood there, posed as though it was roaring towards the sky.


    "A Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird."


    The corpse of this Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird was complete. It was not a skeleton. Its flesh was still intact. It emanated bright and divine golden light, and its color had not faded even after countless years of exposure. Its proud head was that of a king of the sky. However, its spiritual soul was already destroyed, and it no longer had any life aura.


    If one could control the corpse of this Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, even a Renhuang would not be able to harm it.


    These frightening demons and divine beasts were all killed by humans?


    Why were these corpses here? What else lay ahead?


    Ye Futian''s group continued on their way. Many other skeletons of Demon Emperor level beasts could be seen as they made their way forward.


    It was as though this was a cemetery of divine beasts.


    At long last, Ye Futian spotted a human silhouette.


    It was also the silhouette of someone that he was familiar with.


    It was the pinnacle figure of Sky Demon Court, Jun.


    In the Demon Realm, Jun was equally famous as Dragon God Long Chen. He was comparable to the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Yi Tianyu of the human cultivators.


    Right now, he appeared to be sitting and cultivating in front of a beast''s corpse. The beast was a Three-legged Golden Raven. It was homologous with Jun.


    Jun''s original form was also a Three-legged Golden Raven.


    Seemingly sensing something, Jun opened his eyes and looked in the direction of Ye Futian''s group.


    "You all have also arrived," Jun noted.


    "What is this place?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I do not know. Sky Demon Court has records of a divine beast cemetery in the eastward direction of God''s relic. It turned out to be true," Jun said. "I was wondering whose handiwork was this to have caused all the Demon Emperors to submit to them."


    "You mean to say that all these Demon Emperors had a master when they were still alive?" Ye Futian exclaimed.


    "That''s right," Jun nodded his head and said, "I sense that this region of beasts is a habitat created by a supreme being for nurturing beasts to guard this place."


    "Nurturing Demon Emperors?" Ye Futian looked at Jun. He had to say that this idea was extremely bold.


    "Hmm," Jun nodded. "Quite a number of people have gone ahead. Take a look and you will understand."


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked ahead. He also sensed the frightening aura coming from that direction. He could faintly see unparalleled divine light shining radiantly from there.


    What was over there?


    He did not hesitate, moving forward directly. After they traversed through the barren mountains, they saw dazzling divine light glowing. When they reached an elevated spot on the barren mountains, Ye Futian came across some familiar figures.


    Many members of the Demon Clan from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had gathered here. Members from other forces, such as Sky Demon Court, Dragon Gods, and Divine Elephants were present too.


    Besides that, Ye Futian also saw many other cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They were cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Violet Heavenly Palace, and Ten Thousand Divine Mountain. Including the cultivators of Brahma''s Pure Sky who came together with Ye Futian, it seemed that all the top forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had assembled here.


    Other than that, there were also some top forces from the Higher Heavens Realm. Of course, some other top forces from the Nine Realms were here as well.


    The top forces of the Nine Realms were distributed across the four cardinal directions. Top forces from various Realms could appear at any of the four cardinal directions. However, the top forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had actually all appeared in this corner. No one was certain as to whether their gathering was a coincidence, or they had spied on and followed each other here.


    Ye Futian''s arrival attracted the attention of many people. When people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm saw him together with Virgin Qin He from Brahma''s Pure Sky once again, they revealed strange looks. Were the two of them truly not in a relationship?


    Many people could not help but stare in the direction of Yi Tianyu. However, Yi Tianyu also had an exquisite beauty standing beside him. She was elegant and cool; as expected of Ye Man from Divine Palace.


    Both Yi Tianyu and Ye Man gave Ye Futian a glance. Then, they saw Qin He too.


    "Is that the Virgin from Brahma''s Pure Sky?" Ye Man asked Yi Tianyu softly. She could more or less guess Qin He''s identity.


    "Hmm." Yi Tianyu nodded.


    Ye Man examined Qin He carefully. Was this maiden the person whom Yi Tianyu almost married due to the arrangement of the clan?!

 1615 How Inopportune

    Although Ye Man cultivated in the Shangxiao Divine Palace, she was not from Higher Heavens Realm. Instead, not only was she from the Snow Divine Kingdom��a top principality from the Shadow Realm��but she was also the princess of the Snow Divine Kingdom.


    The Shadow Realm and the Solar Realm were two opposite realm. Each contained the qi of ultimate yin and ultimate yang. In the Snow Divine Kingdom, it was covered by extremely cold snow year-round, and the cultivators there were also extremely cold in nature, like the un-melted ice of thousands of years. The Snow Divine Kingdom dispatched Ye Man to Shangxiao Divine Palace in the hopes that she would cultivate at other peak forces and learn from them.


    After Ye Man had cultivated in the Divine Palace for so many years, her temperament had indeed changed a great deal. Her unique characteristics inherited from the Snow Divine Kingdom could no longer be observed in everyday life.


    However, at this moment, the people around her exuded an extremely chilling sensation, and even their eyes were like ice and snow. One look was enough to turn the others into frost.


    Ye Futian naturally also felt the gaze from Yi Tianyu and Ye Man. He and Qin He both turned their gazes and looked over there with an indifferent expression.


    In the past, Yi Tianyu��the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynast��might have been able to give him certain pressure, but now, this Crown Prince of the Divine Dynasty could no longer pose any threat to him.


    His gaze didn''t linger on Yi Tianyu for too long before he moved his eyes away and looked toward that extremely dazzling place in front of the crowd.


    "What place is this?" Ye Futian saw the magnificent scene in front of him, and his heart trembled. What he saw was a brilliant temple interwoven with an incomparable space light beams. Here, the temple stood upon the mountain in the wilderness, and it completely covered this space. Its immensity was incomprehensible; even divine will could not perceive its boundaries.


    "Divine items, divine implements." Ye Futian''s heart trembled. Countless golden space beams seemed to divide this vast expanse into different areas, like a part of this vast and boundless Spatial Sacred Hall. And these areas, where the space was partitioned, seemed to house a dazzling divine item.


    Were these the divine implements in the divine hall?


    If the crowd had just walked past a cemetery of a demonic emperor, or a demonic beast raised by a Supreme Being, then the scene in front of them might very well be a treasure trove collected in an entire lifetime by a supreme character.


    He saw many different treasures, such as swords and spears... Common divine items that were a must, but there were also some rare artifacts.


    However, these artifacts seemed to be clearly visible to the naked eye, but no one who was present attempted to enter to fight for them. Could it be that they were unable to enter?


    He glanced at the periphery around the divine hall again. There were corpses on the ground, clearly indicating that fighting had already broken out, which meant that someone was fighting for the divine items.


    What was happening here?


    "What''s going on here?" Ye Futian looked in a direction and asked Xiang Mang, the cultivator from the Divine Elephants. He and the Divine Elephants went from way back and had many exchanges with Xiang Mang himself when he was at the Divine Elephants and saw him as a worthy adversary.


    "There are many artifacts sealed in that Spatial Sacred Hall. Each treasure is separated from the other and needs to be opened individually to release it." Xiang Mang explained to Ye Futian, "You see that in front of each treasure, there was an independent space with a pattern of its own; only when the pattern has been cracked can it be opened."


    "If so, how come no one is doing anything?" Ye Futian asked in doubt.


    "They have," Xiang Mang responded, "but this Spatial Sacred Hall is very odd. After the pattern has been cracked, the treasure will fly out of the sky from above, so even when you have broken the seal, the treasure itself wants to escape. Proactively solving the puzzle would only be creating opportunities for other cultivators who lay in wait. Gradually, some choose to wait and see even when they have the opportunity, acting more cautiously."


    Ye Futian nodded. He finally understood what was going on.


    Anyone would hope that once they opened the seal, the treasure would be theirs. But if the treasure flew out and thus taken by others, then there was not much point in it.


    Who would be such a fool?


    Hence, the situation in front of them.


    "Just how many treasures are hidden in this Spatial Sacred Hall, and is it difficult to open?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It''s very difficult to open. Looking at it, there ought to be many treasures," Xiang Mang replied. "They should all be at the top grade of Renhuang."


    Ye Futian nodded, and his heart was disturbed. At this time, some Purple Gold Rats went to another area of the ruins. The speed of these Purple Gold Rats was still very fast, not much slower than when they first arrived here.


    In one of the areas, a Purple Gold Rat met many sacred trees and precious flowers. It was just like when Ye Futian once crossed the Sea of the Path when he went to the land of proving the way, and there were many fruits of the Way.


    Aside from that, there were golden sacred trees towering into the sky, with endless lotus flowers that nurtured the Great Path, and many other exotic plants.


    This made Ye Futian felt as if it was a divine garden.


    Moreover, Ye Futian clearly felt that the Purple Gold Rat was very close to him, and very possibly in the same ruin, only in different positions.


    If this was really a complete, larger relic, including all four major directions, then, is this a treasure trove of an incredible character? These demonic emperors were guarding here, and were those grounds the garden of a supreme existence?


    Ye Futian felt that this relic was called "God''s relic" because it might really be the relic left by the legendary ancient gods.


    Is God the most supreme of the Imperial Realm? he wondered.


    He glanced at his surroundings and saw that all the top forces from the Nine Realms had gathered here. Among them, there was even the existence of Renhuang, so no one dared to act rashly.


    At this time, a group of men came toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s attention turned to them and saw that it was the cultivators of the Dou Tribe, who had fought with him in the underground palace before. The one heading of the group was Dou Zhao.


    And it was not just them. All the top forces that had twice competed for the relic had arrived one step ahead of him.


    Ziwei Palace, Clan of the Seven Slayers, Heavenly Sword Hall, Yuanyang Clan, and Chixiao Divine Mountain were all present to add to the grandeur of this occasion.


    Under such circumstances, no one dared to act rashly.


    Which force dared to claim to be invincible?


    Even if they were really invincible, would it be enough to beat out the alliance of the others?


    "Did you just get here now?" Dou Zhao asked. He had reminded Ye Futian to head east, but Ye Futian had arrived later than him.


    "I went to another relic, and it took some time," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Dou Zhao gave Ye Futian a meaningful look. After he seized the spear and the intent of battle, did this guy go ahead and inherit another relic?


    "Have you recovered from your injury?" Ye Futian asked.


    "That fruit of the Way was quite good, thank you," Dou Zhao said brightly. "As a way of thanking you, I plan to lead the Dou Tribe to join hands with you and split the treasures 50-50. What do you think?"


    "Get outta here." Ye Futian spat those words out. How could this loser propose an even split?


    "Thirty-seventy, then; Thirty for us and seventy for you." Dou Zhao didn''t seem to mind, and continued with a silly smile on his face.


    He was thinking that judging from the speed with which Ye Futian took hold of the godly spear, there should be a ton of treasures in this Spatial Sacred Hall for the taking.


    Ye Futian looked up without looking at him.


    "Twenty-eighty," Dou Zhao gritted his teeth and said. They definitely could not go any lower.


    He was the descendant of the Dou Tribe, with the blood of the Fighting God flowing in his body; how could he be humiliated by bargaining like this?


    "I don''t need anyone''s help." Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao with a smile.


    "Wha..." Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian and felt an urge to punch his face. Didn''t he say that he wanted to be friends?


    So callous.


    He was the descendant of the Fighting God, and yet he kept retreating again and again... Forget it.


    "You decide, then," Dou Zhao said. Judging by the conflicts that had just occurred, he felt that if there were treasures, he had no hope of getting any of them. He was not afraid of those in Saint Plane, but there were several Renhuang in this area with many other top characters. It would be hard for him to compete.


    "..."


    Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao, stunned. He had guts.


    "Deal," Ye Futian immediately agreed immediately without dissent.


    Indeed, he had been beaten by Yu Sheng into submission.


    Dou Zhao looked at him, sighing inside. He had to submit because he was less skilled, a party that was defeated.


    Many people of power looked this way, especially those who were acquainted with Ye Futian. There were even cultivators of top principalities who came to him for alliance, but his attitude...


    This also made the likes of Yi Tianyu and Zhan Yuan frown deeply. Even those at the peak of power were willing to help him?


    Could he really be so powerful?


    Yi Tianyu had witnessed Ye Futian''s strength later when they were at the Divine Palace, but Zhan Yuan had only heard of what happened at the Divine Palace.


    "Help me take care of a person first," Ye Futian said to Dou Zhao.


    Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian as if to say, "You are badass."


    "Who?" he said, gritting his teeth.


    "Him." Ye Futian pointed in a direction. Over there, Zhang Yuan, the supreme body of the Great Path from Violet Heavenly Palace, who was looking at Ye Futian, was stunned for a moment.


    Ye Futian was pointing at him.


    "This man is known as the supreme body of the Great Path; one of a kind. Although you have the body of the Fighting God, your victory is not guaranteed. Since you have nothing to do, why don''t you give it a try," Ye Futian said.


    Nothing to do...


    After Ye Futian arrived here, everything in this space seemed to have changed.


    But how come this felt kind of strange?


    "Fine." Dou Zhao gritted his teeth, then turned and walked in the direction of the Violet Heavenly Palace, where Zhang Yuan was located. "Dou Zhao of the Dou Tribe from Ziwei Realm is here to experience the supreme body of the Great Path."


    Zhan Yuan''s face was gloomy, and his eyes were fixed on Ye Futian. This b*stard didn''t bother to make a move himself, but let people from the other forces attack him instead.


    Boom. A violent thunder will of the Way exploded and swept across the sky in an instant, blasting violently toward Dou Zhao.


    Bang. Dou Zhao took a step into the void, and a dull sound came out between heaven and earth. He seemed to have turned into a god of war, with divine light shining about him that directly opened up the will of the god of war. Three Marks of God of War appeared around his brow chakra, which opened up the third layer.


    The supreme body of the Great Path ought to be incredibly strong.


    Ye Futian looked down on everyone, so he had would give this supreme body of the Great Path a good beating to vent his anger.


    But how inconvenient it was for Zhan Yuan!

 1616 Not Picky

    Zhan Yuan looked at Dou Zhao. Although he was angry, he also felt Dou Zhao''s dominance.


    At this time, a Mark of the God of War appeared at Dou Zhao''s brow chakra, and there an ethereal shadow of the God of War loomed behind him with a horrific will of might.


    The flash of divine thunder shone in the sky, and in an instant, this world seemed to be facing the apocalypse as the endless thunder now roamed between heaving and earth, casting a matrix of apocalyptic thundering all around him. As he stepped under the matrix, the Sword of Doomsday appeared in front of him, swallowing and tearing apart all the thundering divine light.


    Zhan Yuan, the supreme body of the Great Path from of Violet Heavenly Palace, was facing a great enemy.


    Buzz.


    A golden divine light exploded, and Dou Zhao started his attack. His body directly pierced through the void as the golden divine light penetrated the space, traversing through it and appearing in front of the body in a flash.


    "Kill!" Zhan Yuan shouted angrily, roaring like thunder with the thunder god''s wrath as the Sword of Doomsday was released as if to destroy everything in front of him.


    However, Dou Zhao slammed his fist of flesh and blood onto the sword without dodging and without retreating.


    There was a terrifying burst of noise between the two. The wandering destructive divine thunder engulfed Dou Zhao entirely. At the same time, a horrific power of terror sent shock waves through Zhan Yuan''s body, like rays of golden divine light that penetrated regardless of the divine sword.


    Bang! Bang!


    A horrible sound erupted from the inside of Zhan Yuan''s body. He groaned and forced his mouth to close. Then his body flew out backward as his face turned bright red, and finally, a mouthful of blood spewed out, and his breath rapidly weakened. The bones and nerves in his body seemed to be shattered.


    His eyes fixed on Dou Zhao, who was being engulfed by the destructive light of the thunder. The purple thunder shone and floated above his strapping and overbearing torso and then gradually dissipated, exposing that powerful and overbearing physique.


    Dou Zhao''s eyes contained golden divine light. He stared at Zhan Yuan in front of him, who had no sign of injury. Clearly, he was disappointed.


    "Supreme body of the Great Path?" Dou Zhao mumbled, looking at Ye Futian and said, "Did he give himself that title?"


    He was not too durable.


    Poof��


    When Zhan Yuan heard what he had said, another mouthful of blood spewed out again, his face red with incredible shame.


    He was the first person among the descendants of the Violet Heavenly Palace known as the Supreme body of the Great Path. His name resounded in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. He was a magnificent figure in his own right in Heavenly Mandate Realm before, but all this changed after Ye Futian''s appearance.


    Today, he was thusly humiliated.


    The cultivators from Violet Heavenly Palace stepped out to come behind Zhan Yuan, all of them staring coldly at Dou Zhao. The breath from their bodies was frightening.


    "Perhaps." Ye Futian smiled.


    "So, what kind of body are you?" Dou asked curiously.


    "Divine Body of the Heavenly Path." Ye Futian replied.


    "..." Dou Zhao felt that he shouldn''t have asked. No one could have been as shameless as this.


    What kind of concept was the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path?


    Under the Heavenly Path, what other kind of constitutions could be compared?


    So shameless.


    "How are they going to deal with this?" Dou Zhao asked, looking at the cultivators releasing their breaths toward him.


    "Do you think this kind of strength is worthy of competing here?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Not worthy." Dou Zhao responded. He was not even sure of himself in the competition, hence his proposition to join hands with Ye Futian. In comparison, Zhan Yuan and the others were even more unworthy.


    "Then you can decide what to do with them," Ye Futian said. Dou Zhao then stepped out and rushed into the crowd of the Violet Heavenly Palace, violently swinging and blasting the golden divine fists. No one from the Violet Heavenly Palace could counter even one single punch from him.


    Watching all those who were being blasted and falling, Ye Futian''s expression was one of pure indifference. It wasn''t that the Violet Heavenly Palace was weak, but that Dou Zhao had opened up the third layer of Fighting God''s will. In this realm, there were not many equal opponents; there weren''t many even in the entirety of the Nine Realms.


    Dou Zhao''s combative prowess was definitely top-notch.


    "How sad," many who witnessed this scene remarked secretly to themselves. However, most of them were not too sympathetic. The aim of those who came here was to compete with each other. Such inferior strength indeed had no place in the competition.


    Violet Heavenly Palace, in comparison, was still relatively weak.


    People from the Heavenly Mandate Realm felt the most complicated. Now, someone who was willing to follow Ye Futian proactively had made a move and crushed the Violet Heavenly Palace without even giving them a chance to fight back.


    The cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace were full of grief and indignation, for they had never suffered such great humiliation. If it were to avenge the grudge of the past, Ye Futian could have struck directly. However, he didn''t even bother to move, merely ordering Dou Zhao to do his bidding, and they were still abused to such a degree.


    "Enough." A cold voice was heard, and the speaker was the Crown Prince Yi Tianyu of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. This time in the God''s relic, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace were considered allies. In addition to the Snow Divine Kingdom, where Ye Man was located, these three principalities had formed a rather considerable force.


    Dou Zhao was born to the Dou Tribe, a top principality in Ziwei Realm. Previously when he hadn''t been getting along well with Zhan Yuan, Yi Tianyu didn''t intervene on account of not wanting to make more enemies. But now that he saw the cultivators of Violet Heavenly Palace being sorely beaten by one man, he had no choice but to step out and say something.


    Boom. Another violent blast from the fist and two figures were knocked out in a flying fashion. Dou Zhao turned his head to look at Yi Tianyu and found that there was a Renhuang on Yi Tianyu''s side, an old man from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He had been suppressing his realm until after the entrance of God''s relic, and his breakthrough was a way of protecting the Heavenly Mandate Realm to improve their chances in God''s relic.


    Dou Zhao turned his attention to Yi Tianyu, saying, "Do you fancy a try?"


    Yi Tianyu stared at Dou Zhao. If they were to fight, he wasn''t so sure if he could overcome Dou Zhao. This man had crushed the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace with great ease. Judging from the combative power he had demonstrated, he must be stronger.


    "Enough," Ye Futian said. Dou Zhao turned his head to look at him, somewhat perplexed. He had wanted him to attack, so why stop now?


    He walked back to Ye Futian and said in a low voice, "I have given you plenty of prestige. If there were any benefits to be had, you should know what to do."


    "..."


    Ye Futian looked a bit shocked. Watching this godlike figure next to him, he felt a little curious.


    This guy seemed to be multifaceted; he was wild and crazy on the outside, but inside, he was a bit... cute.


    If Dou Zhao knew the word that Ye Futian used to describe him, what would he think?


    At this time, all the cultivators from Violet Heavenly Palace glanced at Ye Futian. Their numbers were considerable, and there were many cultivators from the eight major branches of the Violet Heavenly Palace among them. Back when they took away Gu Dongliu, he went to make trouble, but the other refused to turn him over. How high and mighty were they then.


    But now, Ye Futian looked at them with some contempt, saying, "People of the Violet Heavenly Palace can get the hell out now. There is nothing concerning you here."


    Boom... The light of thunder flashed, and the cultivators from the Violet Heavenly Palace were extremely incensed when they heard such humiliating words used on them. But when Ye Futian cast his glance toward them, after seeing the gradually sharpened look in his eyes, no one dared to challenge him. All they could do was to look away, endless humiliation filling their hearts.


    "Let''s go," Zhan Yuan said. His group left with their dead and wounded.


    After the people of the Violet Heavenly Palace left, the space was quiet again. The strength of Zhan Yuan''s group was not spectacular, to begin with, so they had a minimal effect on the situation at hand.


    No one moved, and neither did Ye Futian as he stood there quietly. Although he believed he could unlock the seals of the treasure within the temple, he was unwilling to be the first to make a move and, presumably, everyone else thought the same as well.


    No one wanted to be so careless in their actions.


    At this moment, someone walked forward. It was not just one person, but many cultivators from one single top principality now walked toward the Spatial Sacred Hall. At the same time, many more stayed outside on guard, and one of them said, "Since none of you are acting, from now on, any looters who dare to touch the items released by us will be killed at all costs."


    These words contained incredible murderous intent. Many looked at the man speaking and knew that these people were from the Central Emperor Realm.


    "Where are they from?" Ye Futian asked Dou Zhao. Judging from these arrogant words, they must have possessed great self-confidence in their own strength. If anyone were to rob them of their treasure, they would not hesitate to kill others as a way to deter any looting.


    "The Martial God Clan from the Central Emperor Realm, one of the top ancient clans." Dou Zhao responded to Ye Futian via voice transmission. The Central Emperor Realm was the center of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, and the top forces among them were mostly clans; very ancient clans as a matter of fact. Many of them claimed to have descended from the gods and said that divine blood flowed inside their veins.


    The surname of the Martial God Clan was "Martial," indicating the combative power of those in the clan. It was said that their ancestor was the Martial God of War.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. Among those present, there were some powerful Renhuang who were the only ones that could pose a real threat to them.


    "In that case, let''s not interact with one another, and we will each take our own," the cultivators of Yuanyang Clan also proclaimed as they started walking forward, stepping into the temple.


    All the cultivators began to move, one after another. Many of them now entered the Spatial Sacred Hall.


    Next to Ye Futian, many looked at him for a cue. When they saw Ye Futian walking towards the interior, many followed suit.


    This Spatial Sacred Hall was extremely vast. It was filled with space will of the Way everywhere. The endless space divine light turned the space into countless segments, and as soon as they stepped into it, they could clearly feel the strong and arrogant breath from inside. Many divine implements and weapons had mighty breaths permeating amongst them.


    "What do you want?" Ye Futian asked the people around him.


    "As many as possible, we are not picky," Dou Zhao responded honestly.


    "Get the hell away..." Ye Futian looked at this brazen man next to him. As such, he wasn''t picky either.


    Some of those who were around were a little speechless when they heard Ye Futian''s words. Although there was a treasure trove inside with many divine items, were they so easy to obtain? It was extremely difficult to crack even one of the seals, and Ye Futian was asking what his people wanted?


    Could he get whatever his heart desired?


    "There is an ax over there. Yu Sheng, why don''t we get that for you to chop some wood?" Ye Futian said.


    "Chop wood?" Dou blinked.


    Clearly, he did not know the story of how Yu Sheng used to chop wood at the Cottage on the mountain.


    "Mmm." Yu Sheng nodded. He was really not picky at all, as long as it was suitable for his explosive power, and the battle-ax sounded like a match made in heaven!

 1617 The Luck of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty

    Ye Futian headed in one direction. He wasn''t fast, but he moved very carefully.


    The entire golden temple was filled with countless spatial threads, especially in the places where the implements were sealed within. Each of the implement in this golden temple was sealed by an independent golden space, and all the independent spaces there were connected to become a whole and constituted this treasure trove.


    Ye Futian and the others walked to a place. In front of them was a battle ax suspended in mid-air and releasing radiant golden light. Renhuang-level light emitted from it. Standing here, they felt as if they were standing under a great pressure of might on the verge of splitting it in two.


    And around that suspended battle ax was a seal created by countless spatial divine lights. These divine lights were flowing to create a three-dimensional pattern, and that battle ax seemed to be locked within the pattern.


    "Has anyone tried to split it open by force?" Ye Futian asked Dou Zhao.


    "They died miserably; nothing was left," Dou Zhao responded. Ye Futian nodded, for this was well within his anticipation. Whatever sealed inside was a very powerful divine implement. Therefore, it must have taken a considerably higher level of power to seal such weaponry within.


    To forcibly break the seal, there was no kind of realm that could have achieved this. As soon as the seal was disturbed, the golden divine light inside would start flashing, and the intruder would be torn apart by those infinite golden lights, leaving nothing behind.


    "These treasures were like the collection of some great being; they are likely to contain the spirit of the implement so that they will fly out after the seal has been lifted. Even if the implement is freed, it is not so easy to obtain it," Ye Futian whispered, and Dou Zhao nodded in agreement. Ye Futian''s speculation sounded about right.


    Dou Zhao sobered up and said in all seriousness, "And, even a miscalculation in unlocking the seal could spell great disaster. As soon as you provoke the power within, terrible consequences may ensue. Just now, even those in the vicinity could be affected. Before you came along, many had fallen here, which was the reason why everyone was extremely cautious and careful."


    Ye Futian nodded. Everyone was outside when he came, and not only for fear of being robbed by others. Before this, someone had already learned the lesson the hard way.


    Now, none of them dared to act rashly.


    "Then how do we break it?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You are asking me?" Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian with surprise. This guy had only gotten hold of that divine spear in a few moments, so he should easily break at least a dozen to 20 seals to be worthy of his trust, right?


    He was the descendant of the Fighting God and had forsaken his dignity in this endeavor. If he didn''t get a few treasures out of the ordeal, wouldn''t that be terrible?


    "I''m testing you. Otherwise, how could I demonstrate how different I am from the others," Ye Futian replied.


    "..." Dou Zhao felt that Ye Futian must have been the most shameless genius talent he had ever encountered. He was absolutely the most shameless one.


    He wanted to see just how many seals he could break today.


    Ye Futian''s eyes became like the divine wheels; rims of the wheels seemed to be reflected inside his eyes. In an instant, his eyes seemed to be able to see through the Great Path and into all of the nothingness.


    The flowing will of the Way seemed to slow down in his eyes, and the lines of the pattern gradually became clearer. The pattern that sealed the battle ax gradually took shape in his field of vision like a golden divine gate.


    To unlock the seal, opening this golden divine gate ought to be the key.


    The surroundings became exceptionally quiet, as Ye Futian''s eyes kept staring at the pattern. Those next to him were all looking at him, and the others couldn''t really understand what he was doing.


    As if he felt the eyes of those who stared at him, Ye Futian whispered, "I have already seen through some of it."


    "How much longer?" Dou Zhao asked.


    "Almost," Ye Futian replied.


    But after a while, Ye Futian was still watching.


    "So?" Dou Zhao asked again.


    "Not too difficult." Ye Futian sounded rather confident.


    "Then open it." Dou Zhao looked at him.


    Ye Futian turned his attention back and rubbed between his brows. He looked at Dou Zhao as if he was looking at an idiot.


    "This is all set up by the great power of the ancients, and we cannot afford to be careless. We must only proceed when we are absolutely sure. Wait for me to observe it for a while longer to ensure my calculation is correct."


    "Do you get it?" Ye Futian''s eyes were full of contempt.


    "..." Dou Zhao clenched his fists. Didn''t he just say that it wasn''t too difficult? So, what were all these reasons for not getting a move on?


    As if he was an idiot!


    He felt the urge to hit someone, but looking at Yu Sheng, who was right next to Ye Futian, he thought better of it.


    "Let''s observe the other seals first." Ye Futian turned and walked to the side, where each seal occupied a different position, forming a separate entity of its own.


    "..." Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian. Was this considered fast? No difficulty?


    Even Qin He seemed to do her best not to laugh. An enchanting smile appeared in her beautiful eyes. She hadn''t seen Ye Futian like this before.


    Was he holding on?


    However, even Ye Futian couldn''t resolve it at the moment and dared not to act rashly, demonstrating just how strong the pattern of this seal was.


    People from other principalities around Ye Futian didn''t bother to disguise their contempt. If he couldn''t do it, he should just admit it. Was this guy really for real? His shamelessness was second to none.


    However, even Dou Zhao of the Dou Tribe in Ziwei Realm was following him.


    The space next to the battle ax also contained another divine implement��a dagger, which released a dark luster, with a terrible breath flowing from it, giving out a dangerous signal. However, like the battle ax, it was locked inside the flowing spatial divine light, as countless divine lights flowing back and forth, isolating the dagger in its place.


    "You see, the others were useless, also. Each of the implement here is sealed by different means, so the method of unlocking is bound to be different. Otherwise, they would all have been opened long ago. You have not even unlocked the seal of the battle ax, yet now, you are looking at something else. I''m afraid it''s all for nothing," Dou Zhao said to Ye Futian.


    "Who told you that it was sealed by different means?" Ye Futian asked.


    Dou Zhao was stunned when he heard Ye Futian''s question and replied, "This is known by everyone."


    "Oh," Ye Futian responded, his eyes still fixed on the pattern of the dagger.


    When Dou Zhao heard Ye Futian''s response, the urge to beat him was even stronger. What did he mean by that?


    What Ye Futian saw was different from what Dou Zhao had said. The spatial lines were indeed different, so the patterns that were formed were also different. However, they were not formed by different means.


    On the contrary, he found that both seals shared something in common. In those flowing golden divine lights, if he slowed it down, the vision became clearer, and he could see a door.


    This was the same ability, except that the timing of the arrangement was different. Or rather, it was possible that the supremely powerful character had sealed the divine implement here at will, so it was the same sealing ability, only because of different timing so that he details were slightly different.


    If it was really as he had suspected, that this here was an armory where the supreme being stored the divine implements. If he was that supreme being, would he really set a different method to seal each implement?


    No.


    If he were really so powerful, the implement would be sealed as soon as he tossed it into storage, why would he take on more trouble with them?


    Sometimes, things were complicated by overthinking because it was the wisdom of the ancestors that they were facing.


    However, considered in reverse, an entirely different angle now opened up.


    It didn''t take long before Ye Futian walked in front of the third divine implement and continued his observation that roused Dou Zhao''s curiosity. What was this guy doing?


    Qin He and the others were also puzzled, but they trusted Ye Futian. Although he sometimes seemed less than reliable, he had often surprised them.


    In the next few moments, Ye Futian continued his walk inside, observing all the implements as time slowly passed by, little by little. The others had already begun to try to unlock the seals.


    "If you really can''t do it, then give it up, don''t force it," Dou Zhao finally said.


    "Once I start my move, I''m afraid your heart won''t be able to bear it," Ye Futian said with much contempt.


    "Hehe." Dou Zhao said nothing but merely looked on quietly to see how much longer Ye Futian could act this way.


    At this moment, a strong light shot out as the cultivator of the Martial God Clan unlocked a seal, but he paid for it. A divine light flashed, and a divine implement rushed out, along with the cultivator of the Martial God Clan, who would not let it slip away so easily.


    Many figures now flashed out of the golden temple.


    "Whoever dares to snatch it will be killed without exception." An overbearing and indifferent voice was heard as the cultivator of the Martial God Clan threatened.


    Some cultivators continued to rush out, but no one dared to intercept the implement. The divine implement was a Heavenly Halberd. It was full of fierce breath. When a cultivator of the Martial God Clan attempted to take it, the horrific divine light of the halberd rushed into his body and shook his body violently.


    Bang. His body was knocked out, and the Heavenly Halberd flew out of his hand. All the cultivators rushed toward the void at the same time, not willing to let the treasure slip away.


    Ye Futian still remained within the golden temple, and even the cultivators of the Martial God Clan seemed to have figured out the skills to unlock the sealed gates, which was to destroy the circulation of the matrix that sealed the gate and allow the divine implement to come out by itself. However, this method was very dangerous, and may even cause the backlash of the matrix and end with the death of those who tried to breach it.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were also making the same attempt. However, even though they were extremely careful, they still made a mistake, leading to someone being directly killed by the divine light.


    "Almost," Ye Futian said to himself. His eyes were looking toward where the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was congregated, and a very brilliant light seemed to have bloomed from his eyes, like a divine light. In no time, a light seemed to have directly invaded the seal matrix.


    In the next moment, strong golden threads flowed about, and a radiant divine light suddenly burst out. A divine implement rushed out as the seal was broken. The implement bloomed a brilliant light, rose into the sky, and burst out of the golden temple.


    "It''s broken." The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty shuddered suddenly and immediately started chasing after the divine implement.


    Some people looked that way, struggling inside. There were people on the outside who saw the emergence of more divine implements, and they were eager to move.


    Still waiting? Ye Futian remarked secretly in his heart, only to see another seal matrix opening up once again, and it was still at the place where people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had gathered. Another divine implement broke through the air and flew straight into the sky.


    "Another one?"


    The hearts of everyone trembled. As they watched the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty rushing toward the divine implement, the inner throbbing of their hearts could no longer be contained, and some cultivators went after it as well!


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had sent out an impressive team this time and had scattered many people at different parts of the temple. They were not all stayed in front of one divine implement but were stationed at different locations.


    When they saw that two divine implements consecutively landed in their hands, a strange looked showed on their faces. Just as a cultivator from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked up outside, the seal matrix in front of him suddenly lit up as another divine implement became available.


    "What the hell!" the cultivator from Heavenly Mandate Dynasty remarked silently. This surprise was a bit unexpected.


    However, no matter the reason, the divine implements were the top priority.


    "Take them down." Every one of the principalities outside could bear it no longer as three divine implements were unearthed in a row. They wondered if the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had found a method to crack the code!

 1618 Slight Difficulty

    In the space above the Spatial Sacred Hall, Yi Tianyu had already obtained a divine implement. The Heavenly Mandate Realm had a Renhuang level cultivator, so they possessed some advantages.


    In this region, there were only five cultivators of the Renhuang Realm, and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had one of them.


    At this moment, Yi Tianyu held on to the divine implement tightly. It was a Renhuang pen, similar to the Qianqiu Brush that he used for his expertise. This was why he paid special attention to this particular divine implement. The pen was shining with terrible golden divine light as Yi Tianyu held it tightly. The radiant divine light rushing into his body continuously and bathing Yi Tianyu in a golden glow.


    There was residual willpower in the pen, and he needed to conquer it in order to control the pen.


    The divine light of the Heavenly Mandate was shining, with the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty standing protectively beside him, watching over him. However, at this time, divine implements shot into the void in two other directions, and more curiously towards the positions where people of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were located.


    At this time, all the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty flew out successively to seize the divine implements.


    "What''s the matter?" Yi Tianyu wondered. The seals on the implements in the Spatial Sacred Hall were extremely difficult to crack, but they seemed to have some luck in breaking the seals. And before he even had time to figure out the situation, two more implements had revealed themselves, one after another?


    How could the Heavenly Mandate Realm have such good luck? Did they get a large dose of it somewhere?


    "This is bad," Yi Tianyu thought. At this moment, even the appearance of a single divine instrument would make others jealous, so the appearance of three divine instruments in a row was not luck, but disaster.


    Sure enough, just as Yi Tianyu thought, a dreadful Renhuang breath descended, covering the void. Three consecutive divine implements appeared, and the other cultivators could endure it no longer.


    At times like this, how could they not snatch them?


    "Be careful!" the Renhuang from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty yelled out as he was guarding Yi Tianyu. He saw another Renhuang-level cultivator heading straight toward those from the Heavenly Mandate Heaven to fight for them Renhuang implement.


    One of their descendants was in that position.


    A force full of destruction enveloped the vast void, and the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had also realized that something was wrong. In the next moment, they saw countless dark air currents appearing around the space they were in, like spears of death from hell that came to attack them.


    "Go!" A shout came out as they tried to rush out of this space, but the surrounding space had been blocked already. Black mountain ridges now appeared in the area behind them. They laid across the sky, a blockade to all the heavens. Then, the dark spears of endless destruction went toward them like the apocalypse.


    Poof�� A sound came out, accompanied by the screams of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, as all of them were penetrated by the light of darkness and slaughtered. At the same time, the place where the third divine arm appeared had a very similar ending with different players.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was attacked at the same time by many cultivators who were strangling them, and even some existences of Renhuang were attacking them.


    It was in an instant that the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had become the target of the masses.


    Everything was happening so fast that there was no time to think carefully. As soon as the implement was freed, everyone could only think of getting it in their own hands. There were very few forces in the Nine Realms who could claim that they had implements at such a level. For some, to have even one or two would be considered fortunate, indeed.


    Under such circumstances, could anyone suppress the desire to loot?


    The moment the divine implements appeared in front of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, they should have, by all rights, belonged to them. How could they just let them go?


    This terrible scene before them was the result of it. In only a very brief moment, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty on both sides were killed off. Nobody was spared. With the two Renhuang and many other strong cultivators involved, there was no chance for any of them.


    Boom. The Renhuang from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was furious. In a flash, they had suffered heavy casualties, including one of his own descendants who had perished in front of his eyes. His rage was completely expected.


    The power of Renhuang erupted. He took a step forward and raised his finger. The Qianqiu Brush, which contained a powerful murderous intent, exploded. The Renhuang pen dropped down as the light of death swept through the world, heading toward those who had murdered his descendant.


    The Renhuang who took the shot was one of the most superior beings from the Hidden Land Realm. When he saw the Renhuang pen coming to attack, he put his hands together, and his whole body was like a plain in which countless sharp blades extended to lock in the space he occupied. Those black blades were extremely sharp, like countless dark spears, constantly extending to cover the sky and the sun. Each blade was thick and sharp, like sharpened mountain peaks slamming toward Yi Tianyu, his party, and everyone else.


    Other cultivators rushed toward the divine implement, too busy to care about the ongoing battle here.


    A chaotic scene now played out in the void, as the three divine implements had appeared at the same time, causing a melee.


    Yi Tianyu''s face was extremely hard, as he was also attacked while trying to control the divine implement. When the other two divine implements had arrived just now, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty should not have done anything to allow others to fight for them.


    They were the first to make a move and became the targets of the others, sacrificing their lives in vain. This time, they had dispatched all the elite of his generation from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. In just a moment, they had suffered heavy losses, losing many of their brightest descendants right on the spot.


    Boom... A violent destructive power swept toward them. The Renhuang from the Hidden Land Realm was at war with the Renhuang beside him. Many other cultivators walked toward Yi Tianyu. It was as if they had begun to remember the Renhuang-level divine implement that was clutched in his hands.


    At this time, the cultivators of the Snow Divine Kingdom descended. Ye Man and the others came to Yi Tianyu''s side. Her look was cold as she swept a glance to those who were surrounding them.


    Buzz!


    A splendid divine light erupted from the Renhuang pen as Yi Tianyu took it and held it in the palm of his hand. His breath was floating. He had finally successfully controlled this Renhuang divine implement, but when he saw those that were around him, it seemed that this divine implement was not so easy to keep after all.


    If they had concentrated their power in retrieving just this one implement, perhaps there may not have been much of a problem, but now everyone wanted what was in his hand.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty consecutively broke three major seals and released three divine arms. How did you do it?" A voice came from nowhere. No one in particular appeared to be the speaker, but now, all eyes were focused on Yi Tianyu sharply.


    With so many cultivators present, it was difficult to get their hands on even one divine arm. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had broken three seals in a row, quite possibly because they had seen through the sealing method and found a way to crack it.


    Seeing the look on everyone''s face, Yi Tianyu knew it was going to be bad. How the hell did he know how seals were unlocked?


    He had no idea how this seal was unlocked and had mistakenly thought it was luck. As for the other two, he couldn''t even wrap his head around what had just happened.


    Who could explain it to him?


    Even if they assigned it to the good luck of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, it was such bad timing for them that it was more bad luck than good.


    But at this time, inside the temple created by endless spatial divine lights, Ye Futian and the others looked up at the chaotic war outside.


    Qin He''s beautiful eyes showed a curious look. Her eyes retracted from the sky above, and she looked at Ye Futian''s profile. She was wondering if it had something to do with this guy.


    "Let''s go and see." Ye Futian''s body flickered to the outside, and the others followed suit.


    "Don''t you want to lock them?" Dou Zhao looked at him and asked.


    The group came outside. Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao and said, "No hurry. These seals are easy to break; it''s just a matter of turning a thought. We''ll get them sooner or later. If we are too obvious, we will end up just like them, targeted by everyone."


    Ye Futian''s voice was not disguised, and everyone could hear him. Many were rendered speechless. They could also see that this man was brazenly shameless.


    The seals could be cracked with a mere turn of thought? Seriously?


    "Then break one for me to see me first." Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian with shocked amazement.


    "You don''t believe me?" Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao. How come, whenever he spoke the truth, no one believed him? It was indeed a matter of thought alone.


    Otherwise, how were the other three divine implements released?


    "I don''t believe you," Dou Zhao said sincerely.


    Ye Futian pointed at Yi Tianyu, who was in the void and said, "This man is Yi Tianyu, the crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He is known as the natural-born supreme. He was extremely distinguished in the Heavenly Mandate Realm but is still quite beneath me. If Yi Tianyu could break three major seals, I can do better."


    "..." Dou Zhao did not feel much like talking after that whole exchange.


    Ye Futian looked up at the battlefield in the void and said aloud, "Brother Yi, when you were at the Heavenly Mandate Realm, His Majesty called you unparalleled in the world. Your talent is incomparable, and there is nothing you can''t accomplish. Today, you cracked three major seals in a row, which is befitting of your sterling reputation as the crown prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. If only the Overlord knew, he would be most proud of you."


    The people around Yi Tianyu sobered up when they heard what Ye Futian had said. They didn''t expect that Yi Tianyu''s reputation was so great in the Heavenly Mandate Realm that he was considered unparalleled in the world. They wanted to see for themselves just how strong the incomparable power from the Heavenly Mandate Realm was.


    Yi Tianyu''s face was all twisted. Was this b*stard trying to kill him?


    He hadn''t suspected that this was Ye Futian''s doing. After all, Ye Futian didn''t even come close to them. Could he have unlocked the seals from afar? How could this be achieved? Not to mention, he was unwilling to believe that Ye Futian could have even possessed such supreme abilities.


    "There are many divine implements here in the temple. Why not turn over the method to unlock the seals so that everyone can choose what suits them? It''s a win-win situation, and no one will need to monopolize all the weapons," someone said.


    "Whether you believe it or not, what happened before was indeed a coincidence," Yi Tianyu said.


    "Brother Yi is unparalleled in the world. He has no fear of the geniuses of the Nine Realms. Remember the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s dream of once again ruling over the Heavenly Mandate Realm. If these divine implements of God''s relic can be obtained, then the revival of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is just a matter of time. Long Live the Heavenly Mandate!" Yu Futian continued. Yi Tianyu''s eyes were extremely cold, and he wished he could destroy Ye Futian on the spot.


    "Shut your mouth." Ye Man, the princess of the Snow Divine Kingdom, stared coldly at Ye Futian. He was piling hatred on Yi Tianyu, making him a public target.


    "Cultivating at the Divine Palace and favored by the princess of the Divine Kingdom of the High Heavens Realm, who is willing to follow you. I really admire that," Ye Futian said with a smile. It was not easy to find more enemies of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    However, with so many cultivators here, how would they empty the temple?


    It seemed that there were some slight difficulties!

 1619 Exposed

    Ye Man looked coldly at Ye Futian, and her eyes contained murderous intent.


    But at the moment, she seemed to ignore Ye Futian. The will of the Great Path from the cultivators around them shrouded her and Yi Tianyu.


    "I cultivated with him in the divine palace at Upper Heaven Realm. I can assure you that he did not know how to crack those seals. It was all just a coincidence," Ye Man looked at the crowd and explained. If they became a target, it would be trouble, to say the least.


    Buzz. A divine sword was slashed toward them. Without bothering with more words, someone had made a move.


    Then, a horrific pressure of might erupted as a mighty battle broke out in front. The storm enveloped the endless space as everyone was now wrapped up in it.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly, watching the battle. In the strong storm, his clothes and his long hair were flying in the strong wind.


    There were many cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty who came here, forming a powerful alliance with the Snow Divine Kingdom. With a Renhuang existence among them, their alliance was a force of considerable power here. However, many of their people were exterminated right off the bat. Now being under siege, even if the Heavenly Mandate Realm was stronger, they would still be in the same suppressed situation.


    "Aren''t you going to go for it?" a voice asked; it was Long Chen of the Dragon Gods who had walked up next to Ye Futian.


    "Do I need to?" Ye Futian replied calmly. "Why don''t you fight for those divine implements?"


    Long Chen shook his head. "You didn''t either."


    "If I wanted to, I could get them at any time. No need to fight for them now," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "I believe you," Long Chen said. Ye Futian glanced at him. He didn''t expect the Purple Blood Divine Dragon of the Dragon Gods to actually believe in him.


    "You are the Ye Futian that''s from the Heavenly Mandate Realm?" A voice came from the side. Ye Futian turned his attention to a group of monks that was coming their way. Their eyes were clear but gave an aura of unpredictability.


    "And you are��?" Ye Futian asked.


    "We are from the Mountain Realm," the monk replied.


    "Which temple in the Mountain Realm are you from?" Dou Zhao asked, looking at them.


    "We have been seeking enlightenment between the mountains and the wild," the monk responded.


    "No temple?" Dou Zhao looked at them with curiosity and said, "They are not the monks from Shenxing Clan, are they?"


    "Precisely." The monk nodded slightly, and Dou Zhao was even more astonished. It turned out to be this group of bald donkeys.


    Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao and heard him said, "Shenxing Clan was originally Shenxing Temple, but because they did not observe the rules, they were ousted by the monks of the Mountain Realm. Because they were not allowed to build the temple, Shenxing Temple became Shengxing Clan. These bald donkeys were not here for good. They committed many evils and were greedy beyond imagination. It was an insult to their religion. Therefore, they were called unruly monks in the Mountain Realm."


    When Dou Zhao said this, it was not via voice transmission but said out loud, so there was no concealment from those who belonged to Shengxing Clan.


    However, when the monk of Shenxing Clan heard what he said, there was not the slightest disturbance in his eyes, and no anger at all, as if he had just heard a few common words.


    What was so good about keeping the rules? The world of cultivation was a cruel world. They were just following the path to cultivate when opportunities rose, unlike those other monks who were hypocritical in obeying those rules.


    This was how they were, and they didn''t mind what people had to say about it.


    "I have long heard of your clan by reputation," Ye Futian said with a fake smile. "But what may I do for you, oh great masters?"


    "As to what my Lord Ye had said previously, though the others may not believe, we have faith in you," the other replied.


    "What?" Ye Futian had a look of surprise on his face.


    "Lord Ye just said it was easy to unlock the seals, and we believe you," the monk said with a smile. Ye Futian looked at the other and smiled in return, "And what of it?"


    "Previously, in the temple, no one had taken notice, but I actually felt the power of Lord Ye''s psychic power. I imagine the seals opened by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were with the help of Lord Ye." The monk faced forward without opening his mouth. He was communicating with Ye Futian through voice transmission.


    "The ability that could open three seals in a single thought would have no problem opening up the whole temple. No wonder you are the genius talent who could have stepped into the ancestral land of the divine palace," the other party continued, but Ye Futian''s eyes gradually grew cold.


    He didn''t expect to be noticed by some people, but the perception of these bald donkeys was admittedly strong.


    Moreover, they even knew of some of his previous doings.


    "And then?" Ye Futian continued to inquire.


    "Our strength is relatively strong here, with one of the five Renhuang being ours. How about working together?" The monk still did not look at Ye Futian. Those next to Ye Futian were all looking at the monk, obviously knowing that the two were communicating via voice transmission.


    "What if I don''t agree?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Lord Ye has a deep grudge with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. But why is the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty under siege like this?" the monk responded with a smile.


    Clearly, this was a threat. If he refused to cooperate, would they be besieged?


    "I will consider it," said Ye Futian. He was just thinking about how to empty the temple and didn''t expect to be exposed so quickly. Indeed, he should not have thought so highly of himself. After all, there were many able people here, and these monks from the Mountain Realm kept a low profile before. No one had really sensed their presence before.


    However, it seemed that they had been paying attention to the movements of the others, which was insidious indeed.


    It seemed that it was time to rethink his plan.


    "My Lord Ye is a wise man," the monk smiled and said nothing more. They did not press him too tightly, giving Ye Futian time to think it over.


    Under such circumstances, cooperation with them was undoubtedly the most beneficial.


    He believed that Ye Futian would definitely make the right choice.


    "What are you two talking about?" Dou Zhao was very curious just what were the two talking about?


    As far as he knew, these bald donkeys were not good news.


    "Chatting with the ''Masters,''" Ye Futian responded casually, looking at the battlefield in the void. The alliance between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Snow Divine Kingdom, likewise, demonstrated extremely aggressive resistance, but to no avail. They were being steadily suppressed, and many of their people had already perished in the battle.


    "Princess," a cultivator from the Snow Divine Kingdom transmitted his voice to Ye Man. Although the two were in an alliance, such a great sacrifice was something they were unwilling to make.


    Ye Man had a terrible look on her face. She glanced at Yi Tianyu.


    "This matter has nothing to do with you. Get out of here," Yi Tianyu said. As he released a punch, he was knocked backward. He looked at the crowd that surrounded him, saying, "I can give up this divine implement to you, and will no longer participate in the battle for the other artifacts in the temple. Would this be enough for you to believe that I did not do what you thought I did before?"


    He didn''t want to admit defeat, but under such circumstances, continuing to battle would not guarantee the procurement of the divine implement by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. It only offered the strong possibility that his entire army might be wiped out.


    He had to do it.


    A series of tyrannical coercions loomed over Yi Tianyu. Ye Man looked at the figure above, and she understood Yi Tianyu. As proud as he was, the siege and the relentless attacks forced him to submit, asking for reprieve. He even offered to exit the battlefield of the relic proactively.


    "Supposed he could really break the seals at will, how could he break the seals of three divine implements in a row and not know that it would lead to disaster?" Ye Man also piped in. "Perhaps this is someone deliberately trying to provoke a dispute."


    "If it was not you who provoked the fight, who would it be?" someone demanded aggressively. Although there was some truth in what Ye Man said, it was still impossible for them to let go so easily.


    "Didn''t someone claim to be able to unlock the seals at will? Why couldn''t it be him?" Ye Man said coldly.


    Many people frowned and knew who Ye Man was speaking of.


    Ye Futian had been ranting and raving before with crazy words. Who would believe his bullsh*t?


    "Do you guys really think that he was just some shameless madman?" Ye Man continued. "When Ye Futian decimated the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he claimed to have the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path, one who could do anything and had defeated all the Heavenly Mandate geniuses. Later, after he became well versed in the mystical ways of Haotian Celestial Gate, he caught the attention of Lord Taixuan, who facilitated his entry into the divine palace to cultivate. In all these years, only one person from the divine palace had ever been able to enter the ancestral land. Ye Futian was not a disciple of the divine palace, and yet he was able to push his way into the ancestral land, defeating all the disciples of the divine palace with his sword."


    Ye Futian had a weird look on his face. Was this woman now trying to use what he had said about Yi Tianyu back on him?


    Ye Man didn''t necessarily know that it was his doing, but simply wanted to re-direct the attention at him.


    "Why do you think that the top geniuses of the Dou Tribe followed him closely? Do you really think that he was just some arrogant moron?" Ye Man''s everyone word was driving into the ears of those who could hear, and many people turned their attention to Ye Futian.


    Previously, their impression of Ye Futian was that he was very shameless.


    "Before, Ziwei Palace, the Dou Tribe, and the Clan of the Seven Slayers did encounter a relic that was inherited by him, so..." Bei Chen of Ziwei Palace looked at Ye Futian. Doubts started to plague his mind. Dou Zhao was a proud man, yet he was willing to follow Ye Futian. Just exactly what had happened to the underground palace after they left?


    "Now, this also reminded me of something. Previously when we were in the Sword City, this man took the inheritance of the divine sword on behalf of the person that was with him."


    The Sword Saint of Avici from the Heavenly Sword Hall was also present. When he was thinking back on all that had happened in the Heavenly Sword Hall, it all became so clear to him what happened at the time.


    It was Ye Futian who helped that swordsman to seize the heritage of the divine sword. It must have been that he had uncovered the secret of the inheritance. In light of what the cultivators from the Ziwei Palace had said, it could be deduced that this man possessed extraordinary talents in cracking the relics.


    The pupils of Yi Tianyu and Ye Man contracted slightly.


    Before, they hadn''t suspected Ye Futian. However, after listening to the two sides, they really felt that Ye Futian had his own agenda in the matter.


    Could it be him who actually cracked the seals?


    And it was not just doubt; even if Ye Man''s words were not credible, it was impossible that the other two top powers also harbored some grudges against Ye Futian and intentionally set him up.


    Therefore��


    What he was saying before was not the ranting of a madman.


    Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian, who was next to him. His expression was one of surprise. Were the seals of those three divine arms were cracked by him after all?


    But the thing was, he never saw Ye Futian make a move.


    The words of all three parties inadvertently echoed with one another, and this was no longer a coincidence. Everyone''s attention now instantly shifted from Yi Tianyu to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stood there, brows tightly knitted as he was feeling the coercion from all sides.


    Unwittingly, and by sheer chance, Ye Man, Ziwei Palace, and the Heavenly Sword Hall stumbled upon the truth and left him exposed!

 1620 One of Our Own

    "Do you really believe I can beak the seals with just a thought?"


    Ye Futian spoke to those around him but saw the determinations in their eyes as they moved toward him.


    Apparently, they totally believed it.


    The monks from the Mountain Realm somehow appeared next to Ye Futian. These monks were treacherous and may have gotten some clues before. Thus, they believed even more that it was Ye Futian''s doing all along. Ye Futian might have set the whole thing up to cause the decimation of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and to exhaust their strength in the process.


    "My Lord Ye, don''t you think we are sincere in our attitude?" said the monk of Shenxing Clan next to him.


    Ye Futian narrowed his eyes to look at the monk next to him and cursed the bald donkey in his heart. What he said had sold him out completely, with no chance for explanation.


    He would have no choice but to own up to it.


    "The master is right, of course." Ye Futian, with a smile still on his face, said to the crowd, "My apologies. It was purely by accident that I broke the three seals without holding back."


    Everyone''s eyes were on Ye Futian. It was really him who did it.


    Breaking the seals with just a single thought.


    Many looked at Ye Futian with fiery eyes. This was even more horrific than the assumption that Yi Tianyu had a method for unlocking the seals. If a trace of his thought was enough to unlock the seals, wouldn''t it be possible for him to take all the treasures away from the Spatial Sacred Hall?


    In the past, no one had ever done it before. All they were able to do was take away a few treasures.


    Ye Futian was almost like a living treasure himself.


    Next to him, Dou Zhao also blinked. He didn''t really expect this guy to do what he said he would.


    For now, Ye Futian was the center of all the attention, and the area became a little quieter. However, the attention of all the cultivators was fixed on Ye Futian alone.


    "We need to neutralize him first and keep him under control. Then we''ll make him surrender the method of unlocking the seals," a cold voice said. It was Ye Man. In the battle that just took place, both the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Snow Divine Kingdom suffered heavy losses. All of this was because of Ye Futian, and it must be avenged.


    If it were not for her redirecting the attention back to Ye Futian, Yi Tianyu may have very well perished here.


    "The grievance between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and me has nothing to do with you. Why do you want to get involved?" Ye Futian glanced at Ye Man, then looked at the others and continued, "I have always been straight forward in everything I do. To be honest, there is some bad blood between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and me, so I apologize that I used all of you for revenge. Now you all know that I can break the seals with my mind, and I can empty all that is in this temple. I will share the treasures with all of you to show the sincerity of my friendship, what say you?"


    Many had a curious look on their faces. Ye Futian was facing a different situation than that of Yi Tianyu. Yi Tianyu really had no way of cracking the seals in the relic, and no one listened to his explanation, so what could he do other than be beaten?


    But Ye Futian freely admitted that he was the one who could unlock the seals, so it was up to them to choose to be friends or enemies.


    Now, this was an interesting proposition. Those monks were standing next to Ye Futian at the moment, as well as those from the Dou Tribe and the cultivators from Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    When Ye Man heard what Ye Futian said, the look on her face changed.


    "If you want to make friends, how do you propose to divide all these goods?" the cultivator of the Martial God Clan from the Central Emperor Realm asked Ye Futian.


    That was something the cultivators from other forces were also curious to know.


    "It all depends on the depth of our friendship," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "You mean you will be the one to decide?" the cultivator from the Martial God Clan asked.


    "If you were the one who could obtain all these the divine implements by unlocking the seals, would you allow someone else to decide who gets what?" Ye Futian replied, knowing that not everyone would accept his rationale.


    As expected, many sneered upon hearing Ye Futian''s response and looked quite unimpressed. Clearly, many people were dissatisfied with his answer.


    "If you do this, you will be greatly pressured" beside him, Long Chen reminded him.


    "We all came from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The principalities from the demonic realm and I go way back. You shouldn''t be at odds with me, right?" Ye Futian said to Long Chen and other cultivators of the demonic clan.


    There were no questions about the alliance of the Divine Elephants, and Yu Sheng took care of the Dragon Gods. Kong Xuan and the Peacock Demon Emperor had the Sky Demon Court under their influence. Additionally, his third senior brother was the heir to the way of the Demon God. No matter how he looked at it, the demonic powers from the Heavenly Mandate Realm should be firmly by his side.


    "I want some good ones," Long Chen said.


    "Sure." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Sky Demon Court cannot be treated lesser than the Dragon Gods," Jun, suspended in the air, said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "So, I have to treat everyone equally because I don''t want to offend anyone."


    Almost all the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm in this area had arrived, their powers being the strongest. Out of five Renhuang cultivators, the Heavenly Mandate Realm had two. One was the Renhunag from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and the other was the demon emperor of Sky Demon Court.


    Divine Elephants were not a concern. Ye Futian had cultivated with them before, and the Divine Elephant Emperor specifically ordered his cultivators to support Ye Futian, demonstrating their extraordinary relationship. Naturally, they were on Ye Futian''s side.


    This turn of event was an embarrassment to Yi Tianyu. Ye Futian had united the top forces of the demon realm behind the scenes, and it would greatly influence the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It may even be very unfavorable to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Qin He from Brahma''s Pure Heaven was also very close to Ye Futian.


    "It seems that it would not be good for me to stand against the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Gao Huang from the Ten Thousand Divine Mountains mused.


    "You are welcome anytime," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "It''s been a long time since we had this much harmony in the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Gao Huang said with a smile. Perhaps it was because there hadn''t been anyone quite like Ye Futian who could make all his peers admire him. Yi Tianyu, the Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Realm, did not achieve this, and neither did Jun or Long Chen of the demonic realm.


    Subtly, Ye Futian had become a symbol for this generation in Heavenly Mandate Realm, having replaced and far surpassed Yi Tianyu in the influence he exerted.


    With all the principalities of the Heavenly Mandate Realm standing behind Ye Futian in an alliance together with the Dou Tribe, Ye Futian and his party had formed a rather powerful force.


    Everyone was surprised. They didn''t expect Ye Futian to wield such a strong influence in Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    In comparison, Yi Tianyu, who was previously praised as unparalleled in his world, seemed far inferior to Ye Futian.


    Their levels of influence were immediately clear.


    Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian and thought admiringly, "Impressive."


    This man was truly remarkable. Judging from the influence he had demonstrated, this man was tremendously gifted in his talent, and it seemed that there was no shame in his being defeated by this man.


    "Previously at Sword City, Brother Ye had been extremely honest in his conduct. Yuanyang Clan would be honored to call such a man friend." Yuan Hong was heard making the remark, indicating that there was yet another top force joining Ye Futian''s camp. In the current situation, they were not any less inferior than their opponents but had less Renhuang entities.


    Of course, it also depended on the attitudes exhibited by the monks from Shenxing Clan.


    Shenxing Clan''s attitude seemed to be particularly critical.


    "What do you think?" Ye Futian asked the cultivators from the Martial God Clan.


    "I have a proposition," the monk from Shenxing Clan said.


    Ye Futian and the others directed their attention at him and heard the monk saying with a smile, "Divide the implements from the hall into five portions, and each side will receive two portions. Isn''t this a win-win proposition?"


    "How about the other portion?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Naturally, that''s for us," the monk replied with a smile. Shenxing Clan would want the portion that was the best.


    "The master is also a jokester," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "If my Lord Ye does not accept it, why not listen to what the others might propose?" the monk smiled and said to the cultivators on the other side. Now, their position was of great importance, and may directly affect the situation on both sides. Under such circumstances, why shouldn''t they spearhead the effort to come to an agreement?


    "The master can get a portion as well as the rest of us, isn''t that great?" The cultivator of the Martial God Clan looked at the Shenxing Clan monk. They didn''t short the monks what they felt they deserved.


    "I don''t disagree; however, if Lord Ye accepts my proposal, I am still willing to give him a chance. After all, us monks do not like to get involved in all this killing. Peace is priceless," the monk said with a smile. Looking at his smiling face, Ye Futian inexplicably felt somewhat amused.


    "No wonder you ''masters'' have been expelled by real Buddhists. That''s some wishful thinking you have," Ye Futian said with a smile. Did Shenxing Clan think that they deserved to have a portion entirely for themselves?


    Now he was overthinking it.


    The monk was not angry, but both wore fake smiles on their faces. He continued, "What is my Lord Ye''s final decision?"


    "The seals of the Sacred Hall can only be opened by me. Therefore, only I can be the one who distributes the content. I will not accept any other suggestions." Ye Futian said with a smile, "Whether you are to be an enemy or a friend, it''s completely up to you."


    "My Lord Ye is quite bold." The monk smiled and looked at the cultivators from the Martial God Clan. "Can you guarantee that we will receive one-fifth of the portion?"


    "Shenxing Clan has one of the four great Renhuang. Of course, we can guarantee it," the Martial God Clan responded.


    "Very good." The monk nodded with satisfaction, then said to Ye Futian, "Take care, Lord Ye."


    With that said, he stepped toward the other side as if to say goodbye to a friend.


    And so, the two sides were clearly separated, forming two major alliances. Gone was the scattered sand that they were before. This was probably something that had never happened before.


    All this was because of one man.


    "To the rats below, shouldn''t you be showing yourselves now?" the cultivators of Shenxing Clan asked nonchalantly. When his words faded, he saw golden figures breaking out of the air, and they were all cultivators of the Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    "Brother Yi, will our rat clan get some of the treasures?" Shu Huangsun asked Yi Tianyu.


    "Of course." Yi Tianyu nodded.


    "Ah, so you are one of our own. My apologies." The monk of Shenxing Clan smiled.

 1621 The Death of a Renhuang

    Both alliances had been formed. They were on the verge of breaking out into a fight; the atmosphere in the Sacred Hall turned solemn in an instant.


    In terms of ability, the alliance of the Martial God Clan was obviously more superior. Yi Tianyu seemed to have forgotten about the vendetta he had with Martial God Clan as well since he had decided to join forces with them to attack Ye Futian''s party.


    Now, it was four against one among the cultivators at the Renhuang Plane. Martial God Clan had a strong advantage against Ye Futian''s party.


    The four Renhuangs were from the Martial God Clan, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Shenxing Clan, and the Hidden Land Realm, respectively.


    On the other hand, in Ye Futian''s alliance, there was only a Demon Emperor from Sky Demon Court. The disparity in ability between the two alliances was obvious.


    A cultivator at the Renhuang Plane could take down a group of people alone. Even though there were a few exceptional figures in Ye Futian''s party who could barely stand against the Renhuangs, they were still at a disadvantage. Moreover, the opponent team had other talented cultivators as well. The situation of the battle was conspicuous.


    The alliance formed by Ye Futian was clearly the weaker party. This was the reason why the Shenxing Clan had raised the price when forming a deal just now. If the Shenxing Clan had joined Ye Futian''s party, the tables would have been turned. The addition of a Renhuang and the support of a top force would result in an entirely new ball game.


    Rumble. Terrifying aura burst forth. The murderous intent of the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was the strongest. In the previous battle, they suffered the greatest losses; they were almost eradicated. Even Yi Tianyu had to back down, and the Renhuang was also injured. They were close to being wiped out.


    All this was caused by Ye Futian. How could they not hate him?


    Hence, their murderous intent was burning.


    The rest of the cultivators did not have much vo a vendetta against Ye Futian. However, in order to seize the treasures in the Sacred Hall, they had to take him down.


    "Be careful. Don''t kill him," the leader of the Martial God Clan ordered. His name was Wu Zhan. He was not a Renhuang, but his bloodline was noble in the Martial God Clan, so he was crowned as the leader for this mission. There was a chance of him advancing to the Renhuang Plane in this God''s relic.


    Clearly, they could not kill Ye Futian.


    Over the years, no one had ever had such a fateful encounter, as to be able to unlock the seal to the entire Sacred Hall. Now, they had encountered someone who had managed to do so. This was a heaven-sent opportunity. How could they possibly let it slip past them?


    The crowd naturally understood that anyone here could be killed, except Ye Futian.


    Rumble.


    In this instant, law power swept across the sky above. Immediately, countless law power attacks blasted down from above. The entire space was thrown into chaos. Destructive law power was everywhere.


    There were divine swords in the air that slashed down from afar. There were scorching flames that set the world ablaze. There were destructive ancient mountains that descended from the sky, crashing down from above.


    Ye Futian took out a long spear. He stood in mid-air, his white clothes fluttering in the wind. Fighting will swept out and enveloped his body. His fighting will was at the level of a Renhuang. It caused the aura on his body to skyrocket to a frightening extent. His Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst forth, and his Great Path coalesced, merging into the spear. The spear emanated terrifying golden divine light.


    "Kill him."


    In an instant, both sides charged towards each other. Ye Futian stabbed out with the long spear in his hand. The law power that was blasting down on him was shattered. His long spear was like lightning. It actually was directly aimed at the Renhuang from Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    So presumptuous. Yi Tianyu''s expression turned cold when he saw that Ye Futian completely ignored him as an opponent. Ye Futian actually charged straight towards the Renhuang of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Did he want to battle a Renhuang?


    That was more than just being presumptuous.


    The Renhuang of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty also revealed a strange look. The Divine Wheel of the Great Path in his body rumbled and roared. A myriad of Qianqiu Brushes, which were tainted with murderous intent, lunged towards Ye Futian with the intention of burying him underneath them. At the same time, a massacre brush appeared in the hand of the Renhuang, and he pointed it forward.


    The trumpeting sound of elephants could be heard from Ye Futian''s body, causing his energy to increase multiple exponentially. He thrust the spear forward, tearing the space apart. His spear actually penetrated through the myriad of Qianqiu Brushes and closed in on the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty snorted. Was Ye Futian countering his attack with a head-on attack?


    The Great Path of All Things came together and surged into the body of the Renhuang. A dazzling massacre brush of Renhuang appeared in the sky, causing the surroundings to appear dim in comparison. Many people from both alliances were engaged in battles now, but the fight between those of the Renhuang Plane still caused the other people to palpitate in terror.


    "Kill."


    The cries of a massacre reverberated. The gigantic massacre brush and the spear collided. An alarming sound of collision erupted. However, Ye Futian was actually not driven back by the attack. His fighting will burst forth once again; his body emanated a brilliant glow, as though he was a mighty God of War.


    The expression of the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty turned extremely solemn as well. His gaze was deadly fixed on Ye Futian. His finger pointed at the brush of Renhuang. The Great Path of All Things flowed into the brush of Renhuang, causing its might to scale up ferociously.


    Buzz. Ye Futian was sent flying into the sky by the repulsion. Then, he dove and launched another attack. His will, surging with murderous intent, traversed the space and charged at the Renhuang. At the same time, innumerable shadows of spears appeared in the sky. Buzzing sounds rang all around, as though the shadows of spears were drilling holes in the space.


    The Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty put his palms together. He was actually forced to go all out when faced with Ye Futian''s attack. The Renhuang had a divine halo around him. Before him, one by one, the brushes of Renhuang materialized, charging toward the spear. At the same time, with a flash of the divine glow of Renhuang, he took a step and pointed his finger forward. A brush of Renhuang popped up, and it expanded to more than a hundred Zhang tall, wiping out everything in front of it.


    Rumble. Ye Futian advanced to execute his opponents, accompanied by rampaging fighting will. The Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stabbed out with his hundred-Zhang-tall brush of Renhuang. It clashed with Ye Futian''s attack. A destructive storm swept up all around them.


    However, at this moment, the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty frowned, seemingly alerted to an intense sense of danger.


    The golden silhouette that had passed by him and charged over to the other side suddenly dashed towards the Renhuang of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, leaving a golden afterimage. Frightening sharp claws that bore the aura of Demon Emperor slashed down. It was aiming to slice his head apart.


    "Vermin."


    The Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty cursed, but right now, he did not have any time to think more of it. The claws of this Rat Demon had an aura at the level of a Demon Emperor. If it landed on his head, it would be split apart.


    His thoughts shifted, and he raised his eyes and looked up into the sky above. Light flashed over the Renhuang, and the Divine Wheel of the Great Path in his body burst forth with blinding divine light. A brush of Renhuang directly shot towards Shu Huangsun.


    Bang. The furious attack blocked the sharp claws of Shu Huangsun. With that split-second opportunity, the dominance of a Renhuang was fully on display. Even if one used a sneak attack on a Renhuang, it would still be blocked and would not succeed.


    Poof.


    A soft sound was heard. The body of the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty shook once. He slowly lowered his head and looked downwards. A silhouette that was covered from head to toe with endless fighting will had appeared before him. The long spear in its hand had pierced straight through his throat.


    In the instant that his attention had been diverted to block off Shu Huangsun''s sneak attack, Ye Futian''s attack had exploded and directly pierced through the Renhuang''s own attack. In that instant, the long spear had penetrated his throat.


    In a battle between pinnacle cultivators, a mere lapse in thought would determine life or death.


    Ye Futian was still only at the Saint Plane. Even with that increase in fighting will, how did he manage to penetrate his own attack?


    There was a look of despair in the eyes of the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He was very dissatisfied.


    Rumble. The power of his Divine Wheel of the Great Path burst forth. Terrifying aura swept out. However, the fighting will on Ye Futian''s long spear also furiously exploded out. The head of the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty immediately exploded. His spiritual soul was eradicated. His body fell down to the ground below, turning into the corpse of a Renhuang.


    God''s relic was renowned as the land where proud sons of heaven would fall. He was the first Renhuang to fall in God''s relic this time around.


    Initially, Ye Futian did not want to reveal Shu Huangsun''s existence so early. However, if he did not do so, the difference between the Renhuangs of both sides was too great. One against four was rather tricky to deal with. Once the battle played out, the destructive power of four Renhuangs would be too frightening. Hence, they needed to first kill two Renhuangs. That was why he let Shu Huangsun reveal himself and carry out a sneak attack to kill off one Renhuang first.


    When Yi Tianyu, who was fighting over on the other side, saw this scene, his facial expression turned extremely ugly.


    "Vermin," he cursed out loud.


    He never imagined that the Purple God Rat would suddenly go for the kill. Back then, the Purple Gold Rat Clan had also participated in the ambush against the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The Purple Gold Rat Emperor was also involved in the murder of the Wang Clan clan leader. This score could never be wiped clean. They were destined to stand opposed to Ye Futian.


    Hence, Yi Tianyu had never even suspected the Purple Gold Rat Clan. It was the same for that Renhuang. Why would they suspect the Purple Gold Rat Clan after knowing the grudges between Ye Futian and the Purple Gold Rat Clan? However, the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was suddenly ambushed by Shu Huangsun, causing his attention to be diverted from blocking Ye Futian''s fatal blow and resulting in him being killed with a stab from Ye Futian''s spear.


    Just like that, a Renhuang had died without any premonition. It was such an injustice.


    The number of Renhuangs now stood at three to one.


    A fatal blow was delivered in the other fight, which happened concurrently. As soon as the fight began, the Demon Emperor of Sky Demon Court and the Renhuang from Hidden Land Realm engaged each other in close-quarter combat. The fighting scene was practically shocking. Demonic beasts were good at close combat; they would counter an attack with another attack. Every one of their strikes went for the kill. Meanwhile, the remaining two Renhuangs from the opponent team had their hands full as well. Jun led the members of Sky Demon Court to hold off a Renhuang while cultivators like Yu Sheng and Long Chen joined forces to attack the other Renhuang.


    The most fatal blow happened at the critical moment when the Demon Emperor was battling the Renhuang from Hidden Land Realm. A shocking murderous power erupted while the cultivators of the Clan of the Seven Slayers were exchanging blows with the demonic beasts of Sky Demon Court right beside the former fight. The Seventh Slayer especially activated the seventh trick of Seven Tricks of the Killing Gods.


    This lethal attack by the Seventh Slayer did not charge towards the members of Sky Demon Court. It instead slew the Renhuang from the Hidden Land Realm.


    The Clan of the Seven Slayers was proficient in killing. When they activated the seventh trick, they were betting their own lives on the success of their attack. If their opponent lived, they might instead be killed by their own strike. When used together with a ritual implement, this attack reached the level of Renhuang. It penetrated through the defense of the Renhuang from the Hidden Land Realm and made a slash on his body directly.


    A streak of blood appeared on the Renhuang''s body. However, even so, he still sent the Seventh Slayer flying outwards with one blow, causing the Seventh Slayer to throw up a mouthful of fresh blood in mid-air.


    Swoosh.


    However, in this instant, the sharp claws of the Demon Emperor of Sky Demon Court immediately ripped Renhuang''s head apart. One could imagine how the battle would end when one received such a fatal blow during such a fierce battle.


    Rumble!


    A ferocious aura sent everyone in the surroundings flying backward from the shockwave. The other two Renhuangs also knocked back all the cultivators around them. They stood alone in mid-air. Their expressions were extremely sullen.


    Two Renhuangs were killed off one after another. They had also died in the same manner. Both of them had been backstabbed.


    The Purple Gold Rat Clan switched sides. The Clan of the Seven Slayers also went against their alliance and helped their opponent slay a Renhuang.


    Their huge advantage of having four Renhuangs against their opponent''s one Renhuang was immediately reduced to two against one.


    The power difference was no longer that conspicuous anymore. There was also the coup d''etat of two large forces.


    "Why?" Wu Zhan cried out angrily.


    Ye Futian looked in his direction. His eyes bore a chilly look.


    "When the four Renhuangs were here, they had already decided to split the spoils four ways. If you all truly obtained the treasures of the Sacred Hall, what would the others get? Did you take the others as fools?" Ye Futian mocked out loud. Before the battle began, Ye Futian had transmitted his thoughts to the Seventh Slayer of the Clan of the Seven Slayers!

 1622 Incited Defection

    God''s relic itself was a place for looting. If it were to belong to whoever could unlock its seal, then this battle would have never taken place.


    Since they were all looting, if they truly managed to subdue Ye Futian and make him unlock the seal of the Sacred Hall, would they distribute the spoils equally?


    It was clearly impossible. Everything still depended on ability, and the four top forces with Renhuangs would undoubtedly claim the largest portions. They would even distribute everything amongst the four of them. After that happened, the four top forces would then turn on the rest. It would be practically perfect.


    Moreover, even if they managed to subdue Ye Futian, was it certain that they could force Ye Futian to unlock the seal?


    Conversely, if Ye Futian''s side won, it was different. Ye Futian himself was the person who could unlock the seal. The most crucial point was that he would naturally not mistreat them.


    In the underground palace, they had battled before. In the end, Dou Zhao of the Dou Tribe actually followed Ye Futian willingly. This meant that their opponent''s character was solid. On top of that, almost all the top forces in the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm were siding with Ye Futian. Hence, rather than trust the Martial God Clan, they might as well put their trust in Ye Futian''s side.


    This was a matter of choice. The Seventh Slayer was somewhat hesitant before this. However, when Ye Futian transmitted his thoughts to the Seventh Slayer, he immediately made his decision.


    As for School of the Emperor Star and Heavenly Sword Hall, before, this Ye Man had spoken up and betrayed Ye Futian without any hesitation. Clearly, in the underground palace as well as the Sword City, they were dissatisfied and were naturally destined to oppose Ye Futian.


    At the same time the Seventh Slayer''s massacre power exploded, the other cultivators of the Clan of the Seven Slayers also immediately slaughtered the alliance members of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The scene played out without any premonition. Even Ye Futian''s side had not imagined that they would do such a thing. In a short while, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s side suffered heavy losses. The other members of their side also frantically retreated backward. They looked all around, their gazes filled with looks of caution.


    With two large forces defecting at the same time, how could they not be cautious?


    Who knew whether another defecting force would appear?


    The cultivators of the Clan of the Seven Slayers returned to Ye Futian''s side. Ye Futian threw a fruit of the Way to the Seventh Slayer, saying, "Good work."


    The Seventh Slayer immediately consumed it, swallowing it into his mouth. In this bout, he had also received the retaliation of the Renhuang right before he died and had suffered severe injuries.


    "After this, it is fine if you just rest," Ye Futian said. Now, the two sides were no longer so unevenly matched. With the addition of the Clan of the Seven Slayers, there was almost no difference between the two sides. Adding on the severe losses of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as well as the Snow Divine Kingdom, Ye Futian''s side even held the advantage now. As long as they could handle the opponent''s additional Renhuang, there should be no problem for them to deal with their opponents.


    Their positions were suddenly reversed. Many people on Ye Futian''s side were secretly celebrating. This sudden sneak attack had killed off two Renhuangs. They could not help but consider it to be well executed.


    Due to this, they felt that the pressure on them had lessened and was not as heavy as before. They should be able to handle the situation now.


    "Clan of the Seven Slayers from the Emperor Star Realm." The Hidden Land Realm''s top force was the Prison Fort Clan. Due to the Seventh Slayer''s sneak attack, they had lost their only Renhuang to the Demon Emperor of Sky Demon Court. In that regard, their Prison Fort Clan would no longer hold any advantage now.


    They had established a vendetta between them. However, the Clan of the Seven Slayers did not seem to care.


    Each time people entered God''s relic, various massacres would take place. There were countless people who had died before this. Their Clan of the Seven Slayers was the top force of the Emperor Star Realm. Would the Prison Fort Clan from the Hidden Land Realm dare to seek revenge on them?


    "Back then, in the battle where the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty ambushed the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the Purple Gold Rat Clan was also involved. What are you all thinking by pulling this off?" Yi Tianyu coldly questioned as he glared at Shu Huangsun. The death of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s Renhuang was because of Shu Huangsun.


    Purple Gold Rat Clan had offended both sides. How were they going to survive in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    The first to be eliminated would be them.


    "Yi Tianyu, now almost all of the forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm are on Ye Futian''s side. Could it be that you still have not understood the situation? Going with the flow of things, I will naturally side with whoever has the higher chances of winning. As long as I help Ye Futian eliminate Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the grudge between Purple Gold Rat Clan and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven will naturally be a thing of the past," Shu Huangsun said with a sharp voice. Hearing his voice, Yi Tianyu felt that it was exceptionally ear-piercing.


    "As expected of a lowly Rat Demon," a member of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty immediately insulted him. The expressions of the members of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty who heard Shu Huangsun''s words turned sullen.


    Had he actually defected just like that?


    Also, was the Purple Gold Rat Clan prepared to pledge their allegiance to Ye Futian?


    How dare he. Were they prepared to join the other demonic beast clans to oppose the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?


    "Do you believe that the demonic beast clans in the Demon Realm will see eye-to-eye with you? At the end of the day, your Purple Gold Rat Clan is only suitable to be slaves." Yi Tianyu''s voice was as cold as ice when he said this. The divine light of the Heavenly Mandate shone on his body. His murderous intent was terrifying.


    The first person that Yi Tianyu wanted to kill was Shu Huangsun.


    The members of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and Demon Realm forces beside Ye Futian felt somewhat baffled. Ye Futian actually persuaded the Purple Gold Rat Clan to betray the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and stand on his side?


    This...


    When did this happen? Could Shu Huangsun make this call?


    However, Kong Xuan was calm since she knew what had happened without a doubt. Back then, she had also fallen for this trick. Right now, Ye Futian was using this trick to sow discord among the forces on the opponent''s side. This trick was too ruthless. However, she naturally would not tell anyone about it, including the other demonic beast clans from the Demon Realm.


    Ye Futian looked around at the crowd and loudly proclaimed, "Feel free to go all out. We are sure to win this battle. Even if something else comes up halfway, don''t be surprised."


    When the members of the forces on Ye Futian''s side heard what he had said, they revealed strange looks. As for their opponents, their expressions turned extremely sullen.


    Could it be that there were other traitors hiding in their alliance?


    Right now, the two major forces in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty alliance were the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Snow Divine Kingdom. Their stand was undoubtedly firm. The other forces that sided with them were Martial God Clan, Shenxing Clan, Heavenly Sword Hall, School of the Emperor Star, and Chixiao Divine Mountain, which had not spoken much all this while.


    The Martial God Clan of the Central Emperor Realm was ambitious, so their loyalty was more or less affirmed. Prior to this, Heavenly Sword Hall and School of the Emperor Star betrayed Ye Futian together, so the possibility of them becoming traitors now was slim.


    On the other hand, Shenxing Clan sided with whoever could offer them the greatest benefits. If the situation changed, it was possible for them to make a deal furtively with Ye Futian.


    As for Chixiao Divine Mountain, nobody knew what they were thinking. The swordsmen of Heavenly Sword Hall were aware that back in Sword City, Chixiao Divine Mountain was present too. Could it be that Chixiao Divine Mountain had been coaxed by Ye Futian to side with him?


    As they thought of this possibility, the swordsmen of Heavenly Sword Hall looked at Chixiao Divine Mountain with doubtful gazes.


    Suddenly, the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was in a precarious state. Everyone in the team was suspicious of each other.


    Ye Futian snickered internally when he saw this scene. In reality, he had indeed tried to persuade Chixiao Divine Mountain to join him, but they did not declare their stance clearly. However, they did not reject him blatantly as well. As for the Shenxing Clan, Ye Futian had no intention of cooperating with them, so he did not even bother asking them through voice transmission.


    Ye Futian had spoken in order to incite suspicion among the opponents.


    As soon as he spoke, Ye Futian''s team had had the upper hand in this psychological warfare.


    "Everyone, pick your opponent and avoid all-out brawls," Wu Zhan said to the monks of Shenxing Clan, "Renhuang of Shenxing Clan, please handle the Three-legged Golden Ravens. Are you fine with this arrangement?" Now, he dared not ask everyone to engage in an all-out brawl like what they had done before; he was afraid that his team might receive yet another surprise attack.


    "Okay. Leave the brutes of the Three-legged Golden Raven Clan to us," the monks of Shenxing Clan replied. Right now, they didn''t bother to be picky. They understood that any further haggling might cause their alliance to break apart. When that happened, no one would benefit.


    "No problem. Leave Yuanyang Clan to us," Wu Zhan said. Both Martial God Clan and Yuanyang Clan were from the Central Emperor Realm; they knew the abilities of each other. As for the Renhuang of Martial God Clan, he was naturally in charge of defeating Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was very powerful; he could even match a Renhuang. They could tell this much about him based on his performance in killing the Renhuang of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty just now. Moreover, he could unlock the seal. Naturally, the Renhuang of the Martial God Clan wanted to capture him personally. It would be difficult for others who were not Renhuang to capture Ye Futian alive.


    Seeing that Wu Zhan was assigning tasks, Ye Futian secretly transmitted his voice to the leader of Chixiao Divine Mountain, saying, "Martial God Clan is giving orders now. If Chixiao Divine Mountain still does not want to declare your stand, we can only go into battle. Sir, you should be able to gauge the current abilities of both alliances. It will be difficult for your team to take me down. If we go into battle, many from Chixiao Divine Mountain will be injured or killed. Please consider your stand wisely."


    "There are still two Renhuangs in your opponent''s team. How do you plan to handle the Renhuang of the Martial God Clan?" the leader of Chixiao Divine Mountain responded with a secret voice transmission. This was his first time replying seriously. Obviously, he was starting to waver.


    Or rather it should be said that he knew that he had to make a decision.


    Once he chose wrongly, not only would their ritual implements be taken, many of them would most likely die in battle.


    "I will handle it," Ye Futian responded. "There is no point in saying any more. Decide for yourselves."


    "Our Chixiao Divine Mountain will be in charge of helping you attack the two major forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm as well as the Shadow Realm," the other party said decisively and did not say anything anymore. Clearly, he had already made his decision. However, they had chosen to attack the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as well as the Snow Divine Kingdom, and not the other forces like the Martial God Clan and Shenxing Clan.


    Obviously, even though they were standing on Ye Futian''s side, they did not want to take too big of a risk. Martial God Clan and Shenxing Clan were originally powerful, and they had Renhuangs to hold the fort. The risk of fighting against them was much higher. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Snow Divine Kingdom had suffered severe losses in the previous battle. They were the easiest to attack.


    "Alright," Ye Futian immediately agreed to that. With Chixiao Divine Mountain acting, he only needed to arrange for Brahma''s Pure Sky as well as Purple Gold Rat Clan to deal with the two forces. It would be easier for the forces of the Demon Realm, Dou tribe, Clan of the Seven Slayers, and Ten Thousand Divine Mountain to go against the remaining forces of their opponents.


    Rumble.


    A loud thud was heard. The Renhuang of Shenxing Clan took a step forward. His Divine Wheel of the Great Path exploded. It actually resembled a giant golden foot.


    This was where the namesake of the Shenxing Clan originated.


    With a stamp of his foot, golden feet stamped down from the sky above onto the cultivators of Sky Demon Court. It took up half of the battlefield.


    Buzz. The Demon Emperor of Sky Demon Court spread out his wings. They blocked out the sun and the sky. Golden divine wings that were covered in flames swept up into the sky. They slashed at the golden feet. For a moment, it seemed as though the heavens and earth were ripped apart. Most cultivators were sent flying from the shockwave.


    At the same time, the Renhuang of the Martial God Clan also stepped forward. His Renhuang aura pressed down on Ye Futian as he directly walked over in Ye Futian''s direction.


    Prior to this, two of their Renhuangs had actually been taken down. For causing the fall of the other two Renhuangs, Ye Futian could not be forgiven.


    Now, he would personally take on Ye Futian. Anyone who got in his way would die.


    Ye Futian''s body rose up and became a bolt of lightning that shot off high in the sky. In another direction, Yu Sheng also took a step forward and flew up.


    Now, they could open up the battlefield and go all out!


    ...

 1623 Battling Renhuang

    Ye Futian flew up high in the sky. The Renhuang of Martial God Clan naturally pursued him. Ye Futian was the only person who could unlock the seal.


    Three silhouettes flew up into the sky together, leaving afterimages.


    Above the Sacred Hall, many people raised their heads to look up into the sky. This fellow drew the opponent''s extra Renhuang away to avoid their battlefield involving others. He was rather righteous.


    However, could Yu Sheng and Ye Futian withstand the onslaught of a Renhuang?


    Prior to this, they had also held off the other two Renhuangs. However, that was just containing them for a short amount of time. If they truly continued to battle against the Renhuangs, they would have certainly lost to them. The difference in their Planes was clear as day and was difficult to overcome.


    Dou Zhao raised his head and glanced high up in the sky above. His eyes burned with a flaming fighting will. He really wanted to battle Renhuang together with Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. However, Ye Futian had not called him to come. There were other cultivators here waiting to be dealt with by Dou Zhao. Before he left, Ye Futian had already arranged their tasks. Each of them already had their assigned opponents.


    Dou Zhao felt a faint feeling of anticipation inside. When his will of the Sevenfold Fighting God erupted, his combat ability was definitely at the level of a Renhuang. Since Yu Sheng could defeat him, Yu Sheng was naturally also at that level. As for Ye Futian, he had always been secretive of his cultivation. Up until now, Dou Zhao did not know what level Ye Futian''s cultivation was at. If Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were existences at the level, it might be possible for the two of them to go against the Renhuang.


    However, for him, it was unfortunate that he would not have the opportunity to do battle against a Renhuang. Regardless, he could finally go all out today and enjoy a good fight.


    "Open," Dou Zhao roared.


    Endless fighting will surrounded him. The divine light was blinding; his golden pupils were terrifying. On his glabella, the Six Path War God appeared, activating the fighting will of the Sixthfold Fighting God. He was approaching his upper limit.


    His body swelled up while his fighting will shot up to the sky. He had transformed into a God of War.


    At this moment, he, Dou Zhao, was the Six Path War God.


    "Bei Chen, you scums of the School of the Emperor Star are shameless. If it was not for the fact that the others showed mercy, could you guys have left the underground palace alive?" Dou Zhao took a step forward. His thunderous voice reverberated in the space, saying, "Let me teach you how to behave."


    Then, he leapt across the air, striding towards the cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star. Other cultivators from Dou Tribe followed behind him and rushed in the direction of the School of the Emperor Star.


    The task that Ye Futian assigned to Dou Zhao was battling the School of the Emperor Star. In this underground palace, Ye Futian sensed that, relatively speaking, Dou Zhao was the strongest in their alliance. The Dou Tribe would most likely not suffer great losses when they fought against the School of the Emperor Star.


    Dou Zhao agreed to Ye Futian''s assignment without hesitation.


    Both alliances pounced onto their opponents. The war had begun. Everyone in Ye Futian''s party had a specific target, respectively.


    Yi Tianyu, the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, unleashed his strongest attack, Divine Art of Heavenly Mandate. Like a Divine God, he lunged at Shu Huangsun, with the intention of killing this traitor. The Purple Gold Rats were engaged in battle with the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    As for the cultivators of Snow Divine Kingdom, they were fighting against the Virgins from Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Ye Man targeted Qin He, the greatest Virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky. Ye Man''s attacks were swift and aggressive, desiring Qin He''s life. However, Qin He''s ability had improved a great deal, so the battle between the two of them was fierce.


    Bang. A loud thud sounded. Shu Huangsun was at the short end of the stick when dealing with Yi Tianyu''s attacks. Right at the moment, a group of cultivators approached them, shining with the dazzling glow of the sun. The glow was scorching hot and blinding. Their target seemed to be the Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    "I don''t need you here. Go help the others," Yi Tianyu said loudly. Due to the previous incident and Ye Futian''s provocation, Yi Tianyu bore a sense of distrust towards other forces, especially Chixiao Divine Mountain, which he knew little of. He knew almost nothing about this force of the Solar Realm.


    "Isn''t it better to combine efforts to eradicate a force first?" Gleaming divine light descended and struck towards Yi Tianyu. Clearly, the force which was to be eradicated was not the Purple Gold Rat Clan, but the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The facial expression of Yi Tianyu was grim. As expected, another top force had betrayed their alliance. The two alliances had equal strength initially, but now they had become the weaker team.


    The war turned white-hot in this space.


    Sky Demon Court and Divine Elephants joined forces to attack the Shenxing Clan. The Clan of the Seven Slayers and Ten Thousand Divine Mountain collaborated to attack Heavenly Sword Hall. The Dragon Gods put up a fight against Prison Fort Clan while the opponent of Yuanyang Clan was naturally the Martial God Clan.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky, Purple Gold Rat Clan, and Chixiao Divine Mountain were working together to fight the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Snow Divine Kingdom. Ye Futian''s alliance had the advantage in every one of the battles. Their alliance was even winning in some of the battles. After they defeated their targeted opponents, they helped out in other battles.


    The Shenxing Clan was suppressed by Sky Demon Court and Divine Elephants. The monk who was the leader had an ugly expression. He had not expected that there would be so many traitors among them. Initially, he thought his team had the game in their hands. However, judging from the current situation, unless the Renhuang could defeat Ye Futian; otherwise, the rest of them here would be considered very fortunate not to be killed.


    If the monk knew this was going to happen, he would have chosen to side with Ye Futian. Then, the party that he was in could defeat the opponents effortlessly. It was just that Ye Futian was too petty.


    Now, he could only put his hopes on the Renhuang of the Martial God Clan. The Renhuang was up against Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, who were both at the Saint Plane. The Renhuang couldn''t possibly be that weak, right?


    ...


    In mid-air, Ye Futian left behind afterimages as he traversed the space. The Renhuang of the Martial God Clan was called Wu Meng. His pupils were frightening as he stared at the sky above them. His will enveloped the vast space, pressing down on Ye Futian''s body.


    A figure at the Saint Plane wanted to escape from him?


    Where could he escape to?


    He could have cut off Ye Futian earlier, but he had not done so due to self-interest.


    Ye Futian controlled the method of unlocking the treasures of the Sacred Hall. If he could capture Ye Futian and force the method of unlocking the seal out of him, it was the same as possessing a huge treasure trove. Its value would be immeasurable.


    All the ritual implements of all of the top forces within a Realm combined could not compare to such a huge treasure trove.


    If he could force the method of unlocking the seal out from Ye Futian, anything he decided after this was his prerogative. He could maximize his own benefits. If he killed off Ye Futian, he could then dictate what happened to the treasures of the Sacred Hall.


    Hence, he did not mind that Ye Futian was running further away.


    From below, there was another figure at the Saint Plane chasing up to him. The Renhuang of the Martial God Clan paid him no heed. How could figures at the Saint Plane stand against him?


    The brilliant divine light came to a halt. Ye Futian stood in mid-air.


    This should be a good spot. With his speed, even though it had not been long, he had already covered a very large distance. Even the will of a Renhuang could not reach this far.


    He had just stopped when a silhouette from below traversed the space and appeared opposite him and stood in mid-air. The light of Renhuang shone on his body and was insufferably arrogant. It was Wu Meng.


    Ye Futian naturally also saw that Wu Meng had intentionally allowed him to escape further away. Of course, Ye Futian understood his scheme. Who didn''t want to monopolize the treasures of the Sacred Hall?


    Martial God Clan should be the strongest force on the opponent''s side. For Wu Meng to have his own interests in mind was to be expected.


    "Why aren''t you running away anymore?" Wu Meng said indifferently as he looked at Ye Futian. His face was expressionless. He did not mind letting Ye Futian escape further away.


    Ye Futian smiled. With the spear in his hand, he pointed it at Wu Meng and said, "I have yet to truly face a cultivator at the Renhuang Plane head-on. Unfortunately, you will be the first."


    "Unfortunately?" Wu Meng stared at Ye Futian. A figure at the Saint Plane actually called him unfortunate when faced against him. It was truly outrageous.


    "You have never faced a Renhuang head-on before? Have you never experienced it either?" Wu Meng asked.


    "If I don''t count the previous exchanges I have had, I have indeed never meaningfully exchanged blows with a Renhuang," Ye Futian said. He had encountered Renhuangs before, but those exchanges could not be considered true battles.


    "No wonder," Wu Meng nodded and said, "If you had truly fought against a Renhuang, you would not say such things. Today, I will educate you on what a Renhuang is."


    As he said this, the light of Renhuang in his body burned even brighter. It appeared extremely divine as it extended up into the heavens.


    His Divine Wheel of the Great Path burst forth. In an instant, the vast sky was lit up by his light of Renhuang. In the sky above, golden pagodas appeared and descended, pressing down towards Ye Futian.


    It was as though this space had become an absolute space and was his own domain.


    The will of Renhuang. Ye Futian looked at the golden pagodas descending upon him. Each one of them contained the frightening might of the worldly great path and seemed as though they could suppress all existences.


    The Divine Wheel of the Great Path of the cultivators at the Renhuang Plane communicated with the heavens and the earth. With just a thought, the heavens and the earth were at his bidding. The might of his will was all around.


    Wherever his will was, he could exert his vast authority.


    Under the influence of this authority, a cultivator at the Saint Plane seemed miniscule.


    Buzz. The inside of Ye Futian''s body became a divine furnace for the Great Path. Ancient characters like Qian, Kun, Li, and Kan surrounded his body. The World Tree in his body became a will. Monstrous fighting will swept out, causing his Spiritual Will to explode. His aura also expanded greatly together with it. It was an extremely powerful fighting will at the level of a Renhuang.


    At the same time, he also activated the Ten Thousand Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor. The sound of trumpeting elephants shook the heavens. Divine Elephants trampled across the space and merged into his Renhuang level fighting will. They collided with the pagodas crashing down from the sky. The sound of loud collisions roared.


    Wu Meng was not surprised. Ordinary cultivators of the Saint Plane could not even withstand the will of a Renhuang and could be directly killed off. However, the most monstrous figures of the top forces could already resist the will of a Renhuang. Otherwise, how could the other two Renhuangs possibly be killed off by sneak attacks from them?


    As the commander of an alliance, Ye Futian''s ability was naturally beyond doubt. Wu Meng clearly knew this.


    However, no matter how powerful Ye Futian was, he could not surpass the difference between Realms.


    The will of the Renhuang shifted, and he extended his hand towards the sky. The heavens and his Divine Wheel of the Great Path resonated. A gigantic golden pagoda appeared and spun in the sky. It emanated beams of divine light that enveloped all around him.


    "Descend." He closed his palm, and the pagodas immediately dropped down upon Ye Futian. The spinning pagodas emanated unparalleled divine light that eradicated all existence.


    Storms descended. Ye Futian naturally felt a pressure pressing down on him from above. The aura on his body exploded to its limit. He stepped in mid-air. The sound of trumpeting elephants roared all around them. The long spear in his hand, covered with lingering monstrous fighting will, stabbed out, straight and true, into the empty space before him.


    Clang!


    The sound of a loud collision caused the heavens and earth to tremble. Ye Futian thrust the long spear towards the pagodas. Beneath the gigantic pagoda, his silhouette seemed exceptionally small. The divine light that emanated from the spinning pagodas could easily eradicate him. The Great Path storm swallowed up his body.


    However, Ye Futian still remained standing firmly. A frightening power exploded on his long spear. It caused cracks to appear on the gigantic golden pagoda. The cracks propagated throughout it frenziedly until there was a loud rumble. The pagoda collapsed and turned to rubble.


    "It seems that this is all there is to a Renhuang," Ye Futian said as he glanced at Wu Meng!


    ...

 1624 Flawed Renhuang

    Wu Meng raised his head and glanced up. His gaze was locked on Ye Futian, whose body was covered from head to toe in lingering fighting will.


    Ye Futian''s fighting will and his spear should have been obtained from within God''s relic.


    As for Ye Futian''s attack power, it had indeed already reached the level of a Renhuang. Otherwise, how could Ye Futian have possibly shattered his pagoda?


    Ye Futian''s plane should not be far from the Renhuang Plane.


    "For you to have cultivated the Saint Plane to your level, it must not have been easy," Wu Meng said. "With such talent, you are sure to have a bright future. I also do not want to destroy such a talent. Give me the method for unlocking the seal, and I will let you go."


    Even though Ye Futian possessed an attack at the level of a Renhuang, at the end of the day, he was still not a true Renhuang. How could Ye Futian possibly win against him?


    Behind Wu Meng, Yu Sheng had also arrived. The demonic might on his body churned, and Wu Meng actually felt a faint pressure coming from him.


    The Renhuang of Martial God Clan had not imagined that he would encounter two such figures in one day. These two figures were possibly not weaker than Wu Zhan of his Martial God Clan.


    "You sure are confident in yourself. However, we still don''t know who will leave here alive," Ye Futian said. The instant he finished uttering his words, golden divine light flashed, and he directly traversed the empty space between them. His spear stabbed out straight towards Wu Meng.


    For him, the distance between them was just a step away.


    Rumble.


    Wu Meng clenched his fists. The light of Renhuang spread upward. With a shift of his will, the pagodas swept out. With his Divine Wheel bursting forth, almost all of the power of the Great Path in this part of the sky became pagodas that kept crashing towards Ye Futian.


    It was as though there was a light shroud of pagodas. Again and again, they crashed down on Ye Futian. This was the might of the will of Renhuang and the Divine Wheel bursting forth. No one could block it. Hence, those who had weak cultivation would not be able to withstand the will of a Renhuang.


    The spear covered in lingering fighting will pierced right through the pagodas constantly as though they were made of bamboo. A brilliant protective light shroud of the Great Path appeared around Ye Futian''s body. The shadows of the pagodas kept shattering. Shocking explosive sounds filled the space, spreading across a region of hundreds of miles.


    Buzz.


    Wu Meng took a step forward and also walked towards Ye Futian. He raised his arm and sent a punch bursting forwards.


    The will of a Renhuang''s punch was powerful. Before his punch arrived, the gigantic pagoda shadow crashed onto the spear and was mostly shattered. When the punch landed on the spear, a humongous divine pagoda appeared. It spun at an extremely high speed, sweeping and destroying this space. It swept up an astonishing storm.


    Clang. The spear collided with the punch. A shocking sound of metal clashing erupted. Ye Futian''s body was sent flying backward. The spear in his hand hummed as it trembled. His arm was also slightly shaking. The force of the punch even directly entered into his body and wanted to shatter his flesh. However, he had already forged a powerful body of the Great Path. It was not easy to shatter his body.


    Wu Meng also took a step backward. He relaxed his fist and then clenched it again. He sensed a faint numbness in his hand. In the attack just now, he sensed an absolutely strong power become a frightening destructive force that wanted to tear apart his fist.


    He glanced at Ye Futian. He was standing opposite him. He had indeed lost some face for being knocked back by a junior at the Saint Plane.


    He stepped forward, and his body approached the part of the sky where Ye Futian was. He extended both of his hands at the same time. The Divine Wheel within him exploded with the might of an emperor. At this moment, in the sky above, countless golden pagodas kept appearing. They were all physical pagodas that were like divine arms. Each pagoda was spinning and releasing frightening windstorms.


    Ye Futian was once again buried within all of them. The power of this attack was clearly much more powerful than that of the first.


    The pagodas descended and flattened mountains and rivers alike.


    Ye Futian''s spear stabbed forth and shattered a pagoda. However, a second pagoda came crashing down. There was no time gap between them. They did not give Ye Futian time to even attempt to retract his spear.


    Ye Futian''s arms shook, and his spear trembled. His fighting will surged forward and frenziedly burst out from his spear. His fighting will shattered the pagodas that continued to rain down upon him. His body was also knocked downwards, as though he was about to fall.


    Rumble!


    A domineering aura burst forth. Golden divine lights shone brilliantly. Ye Futian''s body turned gold in color as though he was made of pure gold. From the sky, the divine sound of the Great Path rang. Golden divine lights erupted from Ye Futian''s body continuously. Under the divine furnace of the Great Path, the sky turned luminous gold.


    Divine sound could be heard continually from the sky, and it resonated with the Great Path of All Things. One by one, golden ancient god figures appeared behind Ye Futian, as though deities were descending to the earth.


    Bang.


    There was a huge explosion. Ye Futian''s body was still being knocked downwards. However, Wu Meng, who was in mid-air, was frowning slightly. This seemed to be a magnum opus from an ancient force from the Higher Heavens Realm. It was the Sigh of the Divine God from Golden Divine Nation. The Golden Divine Nation had some affiliation with Donghuang the Great. Hence, Wu Meng knew a little about the Golden Divine Nation.


    How could Ye Futian be proficient in a powerful art of sorcery from the Golden Divine Nation?


    Right now, it was as though Ye Futian was possessed by a god. Within his golden figure, the trumpeting of divine elephants shook the heavens and the earth, seemingly able to suppress all things. Combined with the lingering fighting will on his body as well as his Deed of Thorough Comprehension, when these magnum opuses burst forth at the same instant, Ye Futian''s power at this moment had already reached an astonishing level.


    The spear in Ye Futian''s hand shook as his pupils looked up at the sky. He took a step forward, and his body forcefully halted. The sound of the Sigh of the Divine God could be heard. His spear trembled, and golden divine light pierced the heavens. Ye Futian''s body shot up into the sky. One by one, the pagodas were shattered.


    High up in the sky above, Wu Meng lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian below. He saw Ye Futian''s body become golden divine light and smashed through his attack as though he was splitting bamboo. Ye Futian kept rapidly advancing towards him, as fast as though he was a golden shooting star.


    Could combat power at the Saint Plane actually reach such a high level? Wu Meng secretly thought to himself. He lowered his head and looked down at Ye Futian below. Such combat ability at the Saint Plane might have already surpassed that of Wu Zhan of the Martial God Clan.


    However, what of it?


    Even if Ye Futian''s ability was vast, he was still a Saint.


    The difference between a Saint and a Renhuang could not be overcome with just an increase in combat power. It was a difference in terms of quality.


    Ye Futian''s movements were like flowing light. The pagodas came raining down. Most of them were shattered. Right then, Wu Meng waved his hands.


    Clang!


    There was a huge clang like the sound of the Great Path of All Things. The heavens moved in sync with the sound. Countless shadows of pagodas merged into one and fused into Wu Meng''s body. The pagoda Divine Wheel in Wu Meng''s figure could be clearly seen. It lit up the endless space.


    The shadows of pagodas in the sky began to flow. They contained unparalleled killing power. They were like ripples. Even ripples could coalesce into huge and powerful waves, what more for the pagodas moving in sync.


    Wu Meng extended a hand and looked at Ye Futian, who was charging upwards against the flow of his attack. Wu Meng''s huge palm slammed downwards.


    Clang!


    As this palm strike descended, there was another huge clang. The heavens and earth shook, and thousands of shadows of pagodas appeared. They covered this part of the sky and loomed over Ye Futian''s body.


    In just an instant, they collided directly with Ye Futian''s spear that was stabbing upward so fast that he had no time to react.


    Dull thuds could be heard. Finally, the spear did not continue to split apart the pagodas. Ye Futian was once again knocked back and fell downwards. When Ye Futian finally came to a stop, his arms were shaking, and fresh blood was flowing out from the corners of his mouth. The bones in his arms were nearly shattered from the shock.


    The might of the thousand shadows of pagodas was too astonishing.


    In the other direction, the demonic might on Yu Sheng''s body churned and howled. He was prepared to provide support at any moment. However, Ye Futian wanted to truly experience the power of a Renhuang as he was about to break through to the next plane. Hence, Yu Sheng had not interfered and had let Ye Futian battle the Renhuang alone.


    "Now do you see?" Wu Meng looked down on Ye Futian below and said, "No matter how powerful your combat ability is, a cultivator at the Saint Plane is still just at the Saint Plane. There is a great difference between the Saint Plane and the Renhuang Plane. This difference cannot be surpassed with mere combat ability. How could you possibly overcome it?"


    While Wu Meng was talking, his will of Renhuang loomed over Ye Futian. His Divine Wheel radiated brilliant divine light. There were still countless shadows of pagodas crashing down towards Ye Futian.


    The Renhuang controlled his Great Path of All Things, causing the way of the heavens and earth to be at his bidding. It was as though he had his own Great Path zone. For a Renhuang to go against a cultivator of the Saint Plane, it was like a king of a domain quelling an invader; there was no suspense worth mentioning at all.


    The Renhuang could kill any and every cultivator of the Saint Plane.


    He extended his palm, and pagodas descended, thousands of shadows of pagodas appearing again.


    "Yes, I see now," Ye Futian nodded his head and replied, "In terms of quality, the difference between the Renhuang Plane and the Saint Plane is indeed difficult to surpass."


    "Since you now know that, then hand over the method of unlocking the seal, and I will let you go. You won''t need to go through this pain." Wu Meng continued to walk down towards Ye Futian as though he was a god.


    "However, some people can still surpass it in the end," Ye Futian continued saying. Wu Meng scowled. Why was Ye Futian so full of himself?


    However, the next moment, Wu Meng saw Ye Futian''s body radiate bright divine light that pierced the heavens. These beams of divine light shot out in all directions. There seemed to be countless leafy branches extending everywhere. They consumed the Great Path of All Things in all directions and fused with the power of all creation.


    Ye Futian''s blood vessels were screaming. His figure was burning. At this moment, Ye Futian felt that the Great Path of All Things was his to command.


    "This..." Wu Meng''s facial expressions changed. Right now, Ye Futian was standing there, shining radiantly like an emperor of the human world that demanded worship from all. Ye Futian''s eyes were shining brightly, as though they could see through all things, like a king of the world that looked upon all things.


    Ye Futian looked towards Wu Meng''s Divine Wheel. It seemed as though he could see through it with just one glance. He actually seemed to have found the cracks in his Great Path.


    His Heavenly Path was flawed. Wu Meng''s Divine Wheel of the Great Path was flawed, and it was not a perfect Divine Wheel.


    At this moment, Wu Meng felt a great sense of danger. He actually felt threatened by a cultivator at the Saint Plane.


    The more horrifying thing was the aura emanated by Ye Futian. How was it possible?


    Wasn''t he from the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    The spear of Ye Futian struck. His fighting will overflowed from the spear and merged with the divine light.


    "Flawed Renhuang, I will send you on your way," Ye Futian said. He took a step forward, and divine light immediately shot across the space. He seemed to have instantly traversed the distance between them, his body immediately appearing before Wu Meng.


    Wu Meng hurriedly raised his hands to attack. How was it that Ye Futian was so fast this time?


    Bang!


    The spear hit directly on Wu Meng''s Divine Wheel. Cracks appeared on the Divine Wheel in Wu Meng''s body, then it shattered into pieces. Appalled, Wu Meng stared at Ye Futian. Swoosh. The divine light penetrated through Wu Meng''s body as Ye Futian''s silhouette appeared behind him.


    After that, the body of Wu Meng exploded, turning into dust!


    ...


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 1625 Spare a Life

    Ye Futian turned around to look at the disappearing figure. Even though he had killed a Renhuang, he didn''t feel joyful. In terms of ability, he was already half a Renhuang. Many of his skills had reached the tipping point. When he activated the will of the emperor, he could comprehend the limits of the Great Path.


    His spear attack just now had directly breached the limits of the Great Path.


    Besides that, the Great Path of the Renhuang of Martial God Clan was flawed. Ye Futian wondered how strong would a flawless Renhuang be?


    In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, there was most likely only a limited number of flawless Renhuangs. Moreover, all of them were cultivators from the top forces of the Nine Realms. One would need some great luck in order to encounter them, especially the cream of the crop among them.


    The divine halo dissipated. Ye Futian could sense that he had exhausted much of his energy. Even though he had reached the peak of the Saint Plane, activating the will of the emperor still placed a huge toll on his body. However, Ye Futian also felt somewhat happy at his current progress. For him to activate the will of the emperor now was similar to Yu Sheng activating his demonic method; Ye Futian would no longer fall unconscious due to fatigue.


    He popped a fruit of the Way into his mouth. A majestic aura of life enveloped his body, recovering his lost energy quickly.


    Yu Sheng stood at the side and observed everything calmly. He was not surprised at all, as though killing a Renhuang was but an ordinary thing to do.


    "Let''s head back," Ye Futian said. Then, he rushed back the same way he had come. At the same time, Life Will surrounded his body, and his body recovered quickly.


    After they had eliminated the Renhuang of Martial God Clan, there was only one Renhuang left in the opponent''s team. When they left, their alliance was not at a disadvantage. As long as Chixiao Divine Mountain fulfilled their promise, Ye Futian''s side had a great advantage, and they would surely be able to manage the battles well.


    When Ye Futian and Yu Sheng joined the others at the main battlefield, they could wipe out the remaining opponents directly.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng traveled in the air at the same speed.


    At the moment, the battles which were happening above the Sacred Hall were getting more intense. Most of the cultivators here were existences at the peak of the Saint Plane. They were Saints who had experienced Nirvana. The commotion caused by their fights was huge. Their fights affected a large area, and everywhere the battles took place, the sky trembled and the earth shook.


    The entire sky seemed to be buried underneath the overwhelming crossfire.


    Bang. A loud thud sounded. Wu Zhan and Yuan Hong moved away from each other. Their auras fluctuated. Wu Zhan put on an overbearing expression as he stared at Yuan Hong, saying, "Yuan Hong, you are the descendent of Yuanyang Clan from the Imperial Realm, and you are actually assisting others in this battle. Are you expecting them to ''bestow'' you with a few ritual implements? Join us, and we will plunder the entire Sacred Hall for its treasures. Wouldn''t that be better?"


    "It depends on whether or not you can get your hands on the treasures," Yuan Hong responded with a smile. When they were in Sword City, not only did Ye Futian activate the teachings of the Divine Sword for the Swordmaster of Lihen, he also defeated the cultivators of Heavenly Sword Hall with a spear. This time around, nobody knew just yet which party would emerge victorious.


    "Although you have a slight advantage in this battle, did you believe that the two of them could stand against Martial God Clan''s Renhuang?" Wu Zhan retorted with a cold smile and continued saying, "Once we capture him, everything will naturally come to an end. When Wu Meng returns, how will you handle yourselves? Should I or should I not kill the Yuanyang Clan?"


    "What if you are the ones who lost?" Yuan Hong asked.


    When Wu Zhan heard Yuan Hong''s retort, he revealed a mocking look and said, "Yuan Hong, no matter how we put it, you are also a descendant of a top force of the Imperial Realm. You actually said such laughable things. You actually hope that a cultivator of the Saint Plane can win against a Renhuang. Don''t you feel like you are dishonoring your clan?"


    Yuan Hong raised his eyebrows slightly. He had also not imagined that Ye Futian would choose to lead the Martial God Clan''s Renhuang away with Yu Sheng. This was indeed somewhat risky.


    However, right now, he could only believe in Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Apart from the Martial God Clan, who was still doing relatively fine, other forces were being suppressed by Ye Futian''s alliance. Before Ye Futian left, he had assigned his teammates to fight against specific targets.


    Among all the forces, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Snow Divine Kingdom had it the worst. Brahma''s Pure Sky and Purple Gold Rat Clan were not very powerful, but the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Snow Divine Kingdom had experienced a massacre prior to the battle. Many of their cultivators had been killed. Moreover, they still needed to handle the sneak attacks from Chixiao Divine Mountain. The battle was practically a one-sided beating.


    One by one, cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Snow Divine Kingdom were killed. The facial expressions of Yi Tianyu and Ye Man were ugly beyond comparison. They fought even more valiantly, but Ye Man couldn''t get the upper hand when faced against Qin He. Yi Tianyu was powerful, but since Shu Huangsun and a top figure from Chixiao Divine Mountain had joined forces to attack him, he was fully occupied. Even when Yi Tianyu went berserk, he couldn''t shake off the two of them.


    The top figure from Chixiao Divine Mountain seemed to still be deliberately holding back. He had chosen the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as well as the Snow Divine Kingdom as opponents because these two forces were weakened and there was no risk involved. He had no plans to kill Yi Tianyu and Ye Man. One was the Crown Prince, and another was a princess. Although he was not afraid to kill them, he had no need to completely offend their two forces. He only needed to complete what he had set out to do.


    There was a huge rumble. Yi Tianyu stood proudly in mid-air. There seemed to be shadows of deities standing behind him.


    Yi Tianyu looked towards Ye Man. She had also distanced herself from Qin He and was glancing over at Yi Tianyu.


    "I''ve caused trouble for you," Yi Tianyu said.


    "There was always a price to be paid for looting in God''s relic. How can this be considered trouble? We just need to hang on until the Renhuang of the Martial God Clan returns. Then, it will be their death hour," Ye Man replied. Yi Tianyu nodded his head slightly as he looked up into the sky.


    Would the Renhuang of the Martial God Clan be able to capture Ye Futian who had left?


    The members of their alliance were all waiting for Wu Meng to return with the captured Ye Futian.


    As they were all waiting, a golden divine light shot down from the sky above. Instantly, the crowd below sensed a wave of aura.


    "He has returned," Wu Zhan looked up into the sky. The pagoda in his hand crashed down and forced Yuan Hong back. Wu Zhan sinisterly said, "You will all pay the price for what you have down."


    "He has finally returned." Ye Man''s gaze was sharp and cold. She stared at Qin He and said, "Greatest Virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky, you will fall here in God''s relic."


    As long as the Renhuang had returned and they were more cautious, their alliance would certainly bulldoze over each battlefield. After all, it was already impossible for the previous sneak attacks to happen again now. They would also no longer give Ye Futian''s side the opportunity to sneakily attack them. Everything before had happened too quickly for them to be able to guard against.


    The forces on the side of the Martial God Clan were all waiting in anticipation. It was because they were being suppressed that they had this sense of anticipation.


    Radiant light shone down on them. Two silhouettes traversed the space and stopped in mid-air. The facial expressions of many people changed as though they had already sensed something. When the white-haired silhouette and the burly youth, who was clad in demonic armor, appeared in the sky above, the expressions of the forces of the Martial God Clan alliance turned ghastly pale. It was as though they had plummeted into a freezer. They felt a chill in their hearts.


    The Renhuang of the Martial God Clan, Wu Meng, had not returned. The people who had returned were Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    What did this mean?


    It was impossible for figures at the Saint Plane to shake off a Renhuang, unless...


    "No." Ye Man felt her heart turn icy cold when she saw the white-haired silhouette. She was in despair. How was it that the person who had returned was Ye Futian?


    Where was the Renhuang of the Martial God Clan?


    Yi Tianyu also raised his head and looked at the silhouette in mid-air. The clothes of the silhouette fluttered in the wind, and his eyes were exceptionally calm. Had he emerged victorious?


    Had Ye Futian and Yu Sheng defeated the Renhuang of the Martial God Clan?


    Yi Tianyu had been considered to be born supreme. In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he was without equal in his generation. He had believed that he was invincible among his peers. At least in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, no one could stand as his equal. That was until Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu appeared.


    Ye Futian had actually advanced even faster than him.


    What did Ye Futian and Yu Sheng returning signify? It meant that the Renhuang would most likely never return.


    "Impossible..." Wu Zhan mumbled in a low voice.


    He raised his head and looked towards Ye Futian. His expression had also changed. Wu Meng was a Renhuang. How could he have possibly lost to them?


    Opposite him, Yuan Hong looked at him with a smile, "From the looks of it, it seems that your Martial God Clan''s Renhuang has dishonored your clan."


    "Yu Sheng, go and settle the members from the Hidden Land Realm," Ye Futian said. The cultivators of the Hidden Land Realm''s Prison Fort Clan were being handled solely by the Dragon Gods. This force was also very powerful and did not show any signs of losing. Letting Yu Sheng head over to them could directly determine the outcome of the battle.


    Bang.


    Yu Sheng took one step forward and headed down below. His demonic might churned and howled, as though a peerless demon was descending from the sky. He immediately headed over to where the Dragon Gods and Prison Fort Clan were battling.


    Before his person had arrived, Yu Sheng had already raised his hands and sent an attack crashing out towards them. A Demonic Dragon howled and consumed the sky. Bearing the power of the Dragon Gods, it crashed towards the cultivators of Prison Fort Clan.


    Bang. A number of cultivators were sent flying by the Demonic Dragon. They threw up mouthfuls of fresh blood, their faces pale. Another violent trembling sound that shook the heavens and the earth rumbled as Yu Sheng joined the battle. Everywhere his punches passed by, no one could withstand them. One by one, the cultivators of Prison Fort Clan were directly sent flying.


    On the other side, Ye Futian lowered his head and looked at Yi Tianyu. Under the effects of the divine method of the heavenly realm, the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate flowed and spun in the sky above, gathering the power of the Great Path. Yi Tianyu was indeed considered a figure without equal. Currently, his cultivation was also at the peak of the Saint Plane, almost approaching the Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian''s long spear pointed downwards at the sky below as he said, "Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. You were born supreme. Now, can you stand against a strike from my spear?"


    Yi Tianyu raised his head and looked towards the voice in the sky.


    One strike from his spear. Was Ye Futian trying to humiliate him in this manner?


    The Divine Picture of the Heavenly Mandate floated in the sky above. Right now, Yi Tianyu was like a deity. He was one with his Great Path. On the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate, endless divine light surged into his body.


    Buzz.


    In this instant, Ye Futian moved. Bright golden light shot across the space.


    Nearby, Ye Man''s gaze was locked on them. Bright light flooded the space. Destructive power swept out into the distance. Her clothes fluttered in the wind. Deep within her pupils, two silhouettes were reflected.


    The two silhouettes stood opposite each other. One wielded a spear in his hand and still stood proudly in the sky above. The other was bent over, fresh blood flowing out from his mouth. The once stubborn and arrogant figure was now bent over, as though it had lowered its proud head.


    Could he take a strike from this spear?


    He was born supreme.


    "I''ll spare your life. My Third Elder Brother will come to claim it," Ye Futian said. He had preserved Yi Tianyu''s life for Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu and Yi Tianyu were enemies. Their families had been engaged in a feud for generations.


    This feud would soon be ended by his Third Elder Brother.


    Other than that, Ye Futian had spared Yi Tianyu''s life so that he could leave here alive and trigger the conflict between Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    How could the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty tolerate this grudge?


    Yi Tianyu''s eyes were smiling, portraying the irony and forlorn hope he felt.


    Sparing his life was worse than killing him.


    For Ye Futian to show mercy on him, it was a great humiliation. Ye Futian was belittling him. Ye Futian had not viewed him as a worthy opponent; thus, he had let him go!


    ...


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 1626 Total Victory

    Due to the bitterness between Ye Futian and Yi Tianyu, there was no reason for him not to kill him. They were already lifelong enemies, why would have any scruples about doing this?


    So by not killing him, he was showing incredible disdain for him. This kind of disdain towards Yi Tianyu, who had once been called an ultimate talent, would be an unimaginable humiliation.


    But reality was indeed that cruel. Once again, the winners wrote the history books.


    He had not even been able to withstand a single spear thrust.


    In this battle, all the other forces besides the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had stood on Ye Futian''s side. When they saw the spear thrust, they had felt many conflicting emotions.


    After that spear thrust, the Heavenly Mandate Realm truly had a number one junior, one whom no one could compete with.


    If Yi Tianyu could not even withstand a single spear thrust from him, who could compete with him?


    The young master was gone, and the Renhuang of the Martial God clan would never return.


    Ever since GuTianxing fell, the Heavenly Mandate Realm had fallen behind the other realms, and there was no one within it who could stand among the most powerful figures. But now, in the younger generation, Ye Futian had the potential to stand at the top.


    Would this affect the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    The Demon clan thought back to the prophecy from years ago. Could it have had to do with Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over Ye Man, then said coldly, "For the sake of letting the Divine Palace keep face, I won''t deal with you. Get out of here."


    "Get out of here..."


    Ye Man went pale. As a princess of the Snow Divine Kingdom who had been sent to the Shangxiao Divine Palace, she had never been humiliated like that. She had never had someone of the same generation as her look at her and tell her to get lost.


    What was most painful was that she did not even have the right to protest.


    Letting her go was a form of forgiveness in that he would not kill her. Did she dare refuse?


    Would she dare to trade her life to keep her honor?


    She did not, and so she kept her mouth shut, despite how hard it was.


    Looking at Yi Tianyu, she felt a burst of sadness. She and him had been heroes at the Divine Palace, envied by countless people. But now they had come to such a tragic conclusion. It was bitter, indeed.


    "Let''s go." There was no emotion on Yi Tianyu''s face. He walked off into the distance. Everyone could feel his sadness as they watched the retreating figure. Ye Man watched him go as well. The spear thrust must have hurt him badly.


    She lowered her head, then followed him as he left.


    There were not many people left from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Divine Snow Kingdom, and many of them had been wounded. They had no more power to fight. They left the battlefield in a desolate manner, as they no longer had the right to keep participating. Ye Futian letting them live was his forgiveness.


    After they left, Ye Futian looked at the other fights going on. Although the other battlefields were far away, everyone else knew what he had done. When he returned, all eyes would be on him. Everyone would be paying attention to him.


    There was no doubt that the Renhuang level cultivator from the Martial Gods clan would not be returning.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had been able to cut down a Renhuang when they teamed up?


    How had they done that?


    The Martial Gods clan had no more heart to fight. Yu Sheng had cut his way through them like a tiger through a flock of sheep. Everyone he went, there was no one left behind who could stand. Cultivator after cultivator fell to the ground, crippled. The reason they had not been killed was that Ye Futian did not want it to be so final, so he had asked Yu Sheng to not slaughter them.


    After all, they could always just leave, so he had left them some leeway.


    Ye Futian''s figure flashed as he moved again. Everyone watched him. Who was he going towards?


    Golden lightning split the sky, as the spear wrapped in incredibly powerful fighting will struck out again. A figure went flying backward. It was the leader of the Martial Gods clan, Wu Zhan.


    His body slammed into the mountain behind him, making it shake. Blood streamed from a wound in his chest, as well as from his mouth. His face was pale, and he felt like his internal organs had been cut to pieces.


    He looked up and saw Ye Futian standing before Yuan Hong. His spear pointed at him. "Do you still want this ritual implement?" he asked.


    Wu Zhan looked at him, then said resolutely. "I have lost, and so I admit defeat. I will take my people and leave."


    There was no point in continuing to fight. If this had been a fight to the death, he would have already lost his life. The spear thrust that Ye Futian had hit him with could have killed him.


    Ye Futian pulled back the spear and said, "Go and find another ruin. You may not come back to this one."


    Wu Zhan nodded. "Fine." At this point, he would do whatever Ye Futian said.


    Whatever happened here from now on had nothing to do with them.


    The fighting stopped all across the battlefield. All of the cultivators separated.


    Ye Futian looked down at his own people and said, "If you want to keep pursuing this, you can keep fighting, and I will help you. If not, let''s leave it here."


    In fact, he could perform a terrible slaughter here, but if he did that, there would be endless consequences. After all, he was only one man. If others used this as an excuse to make an enemy of him after he left, he would not let them off easy again.


    No one said anything. In reality, Ye Futian''s people had the upper hand. They were all crushing their opponents and had taken a few casualties. Their opponents had many more dead and wounded. If they stopped fighting, they could end their losses here, making the whole situation a lot less serious for them.


    On the contrary, if they were the ones with more dead and wounded, they would not be able to stop fighting. But they had had the advantage ever since the beginning of the fight.


    The Martial Gods clan''s alliance naturally could not say anything. In reality, they had no right to choose. They were the losers, and their fate was in their opponents'' hands. Since their opponents were willing to stop fighting, what else could they do but leave in defeat?


    Many figures turned to leave the battle. Some of them looked dejectedly at the Spatial Sacred Hall.


    "Wait!" called Ye Futian. They all stopped.


    "Leave all of the treasures that you got in the Sacred Hall before. You are free to go, but you must leave the spoils of war here," he said with a smile. All the people of the great forces, including the Martial Gods clan, looked crestfallen.


    "We got these things before our fight. Why should we leave them?" Wu Zhan stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at him, and a strange look came over his face. "I am the one who broke the seal," he said. "Why do you want to steal what is rightfully mine?"


    Had he really asked that?


    He had lost so badly, and he still had the gall to ask why he should leave his ritual implements?


    Wu Zhan stared at Ye Futian. Ye Futian''s eye twitched, and several lines of cold killing will appeared from his brow. When he saw this, Wu Zhan trembled. He clenched his teeth, pulled out two magic weapons, and flew over towards Ye Futian.


    Then several more ritual implements appeared and fell into his hand.


    "Benefactor Ye," said the monk from the Shenxing clan with a smile, "We have gotten along fairly well. If you ever find the time to come to the Mountain Realm, please come visit the Shenxing clan."


    Ye Futian held out his hands to him in an expectant gesture. "I think you''re forgetting something."


    He had gotten back two of the divine arms that he had unlocked. One of them still remained with the Shenxing clan.


    He had not yet given it back, and yet the monk was speaking of friendship?


    How could they be friends?


    "Benefactor Ye, we still have a Renhuang. If this comes to a conflict, I fear it will not go well." The monk was still smiling. The Renhuang beside him had fought a Demon Emperor of the Sky Demon Court not long before.


    "The Martial Gods clan had a Renhuang too, but he died." Ye Futian was smiling insincerely as well.


    The monk''s mouth twitched, and his smile disappeared slowly."Do you really want things to come to that point?"


    "I will ask you one more time. Will you give it to me or not?" asked Ye Futian with a smile. The monk from the Shenxing clan was silent for a while, then he pulled out the ritual implement and threw it to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian caught it, then nodded in satisfaction. "Take care of yourself, teacher."


    "No need to see me off." The monk left Ye Futian''s side, and the other cultivators followed him. Soon they had disappeared off into the distance.


    "The monk from the Shenxing clan has always been said to be insidious and cunning. He may seem like he''s given up, but he might be trouble int he future," said Yuan Hong of the Yuanyang clan to Ye Futian. Although the Shenxing clan had lost a lot of people, they still had their Renhuang. Judging by their previous attitude, they were still ambitious and unhappy with how things had turned out.


    "Many forces were pulled into this fight. It could have ended in a massive slaughter. Will the Yuanyang clan be willing to protect me for the sake of the friendship between us?" Ye Futian asked Yuan Hong.


    Yuan Hong shook his head. "They won''t."


    "Then that''s the way it is." Ye Futian smiled and said no more. After all, all the forces here would make for advantageous allies. Even though some of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm were his friends, in the end, they were only heirs. If he wanted to really fight other great powers, it would be difficult to get them involved.


    If he had killed a lot of people here, once he left, many would come to him seeking vengeance. Even though Lord Taixuan would help if they all moved against him, would Lord Taixuan be enough?


    Yuan Hong said no more as well. He understood that even Ye Futian would not be able to withstand the Yuanyang clan''s wrath if he slaughtered their cultivators.


    "However, if the monk wants to provoke me, next time he won''t speak so politely," said Ye Futian. He looked down at the battlefield. Their alliance had won a crushing victory.


    Thus, the treasures within the Spatial Sacred Hall could be safely taken out.


    The next step was to divide up the treasure.


    Beside him, the people from the other great forces looked down with burning gazes. They all had their own expectations. There was a whole hall full of treasure. Even if Ye Futian was stingy, he would still be able to give several treasures to each force.


    In any case, they had been strong enough to break the seal, which they would not have been on their own. And they had not taken many losses in this battle!


    ...


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 1627 Gate

    Ye Futian stepped towards the Spatial Sacred Hall and said, "Come with me."


    Everyone else followed him expectantly. He was able to break a seal with a single thought, and so the divine arms within the treasure house of the Spatial Sacred Hall would soon be theirs.


    As they all entered, Ye Futian continued forward, saying, "Each force may take three divine arms. You go and find them, and I will break the seals for you."


    He thought to himself that these already very powerful figures were receiving a frighteningly incredible gift here. Every one of the divine arms was earth-shaking. Once they fell into the hands of the top forces, they would increase their power many times.


    "Please go and take your pick," he said. "Once you have chosen, let me know. Everyone quickly moved off in different directions and began searching through the artifacts. Ye Futian walked up to the battleax and said, "Yu Sheng, you go first. You should take the battleax."


    Yu Sheng nodded. "Alright." He floated up into the air towards the top of the Spatial Sacred Hall. Ye Futian''s eyes changed, and it seemed like he could now see through all illusions. His thoughts swept out through the hall and seemed to form a key for the gate that affected the way the light curtain flowed. A crack appeared in the gate, and the battleax began to fly through the air.


    Boom! Ye Futian was sent flying backward as the battleax shot upwards. Yu Sheng''s demonic aura surged, and he reached out towards the battleax to grasp it. A terrible aura spread out as his body began to tremble slightly. The battleax carried him up into the air with it.


    "It''s so powerful," said Dou Zhao, his eye twitching.


    "Don''t worry, it''s not a problem," said Ye Futian, looking up into the air. The process of obtaining a divine arm was a test in and of itself.


    "How are you unlocking these things?" he asked Ye Futian. The man had really not explained how. To be able to release them with a single thought was too marvelous.


    "Do you really think I''m going to tell you?" Ye Futian looked disdainfully at Dou Zhao. Dou Zhao rolled his eyes.


    "I want that scepter." Dou Zhao pointed towards a scepter sealed away, shining with a divine jade green light. A shockingly powerful life aura was emanating from it. It seemed like it would be able to heal anything in a short amount of time.


    Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao then muttered, "You should broaden your horizons."


    "I..." Dou Zhao clenched his fists. He had an impulse to hit Ye Futian, but when he saw how he was smiling, his temper abated. Wu Meng of the Martial Gods clan had been killed by him, so he probably should not hit him. Moreover, he was depending on him to unseal the ritual implement.


    He, the mighty descendant of the Fighting God, had lost face for his elders. This must make him the lowest of all the heirs of the Dou tribe in history.


    "Get ready," said Ye Futian.


    "Alright!" Dou Zhao, who had just been dejected, suddenly brightened up and looked happy.


    After all, this would increase his strength. What did his reputation matter?


    When Ye Futian unsealed the ritual implement, the whole golden Spatial Sacred Hall lit up with jade green light, and a life aura covered everyone. At that moment, everyone felt the life energy and spiritual energy that they had used up while fighting be restored. They all thought that if they could get their hands on that scepter, they would have unlimited recovery ability and could fight until the heavens and fell, and the earth cracked apart.


    "That was a good choice," someone said, looking up at Dou Zhao. The scepter did not have a great amount of repelling force, and so Dou Zhao was able to grasp it without difficulty. Once he had formed a connection with it, he cried out, "Wonderful!"


    His fighting ability was impressive, and when he used all the Sevenfold Seals of the Fighting God, he was stronger than a Renhuang. But the aftereffects were devastating to him. Now that he had this scepter, he could fight and recover at the same time. Just imagining this made him excited.


    Xia Qingyuan looked up at the scepter and felt a little bit jealous. She was a cultivator of life energy herself.


    "Everyone used up a lot of power in the last battle, so I am letting them choose the things that they want. There are many ritual implements in the Spatial Sacred Hall, including some that are arcane and mysterious. I will leave those for you and Emperor Xia," said Ye Futian.


    "Oh," said Xia Qingyuan with a nod. She had not used up any of her power as she had basically just been watching the battles.


    "I want this one." At that moment, Yuan Hong of the Yuanyang clan pointed to one of the treasures. It was a map scroll from which radiant light was emanating. Ye Futian did not even bother looking at what it was. "Get ready for it," he said.


    "Oh." Yuan Hong stepped forward as Ye Futian directly unsealed the item without even really looking at it. He had promised everyone that he would give them ritual implements, and he would keep his promise. They could have any items that they chose. He did not care what they were.


    "I want this one," said Seventh Slayer of the Clan of the Seven Slayers. Ye Futian unsealed it for him.


    Then, people were constantly choosing the ritual implements that looked powerful and were well suited to themselves and to their forces. Many seals were broken for the many people in the Hall.


    "Hmm?"


    At that moment, many people looked up into the air and saw that someone had broken through to the next level after receiving their ritual implement. It was Seventh Slayer of the Clan of the Seven Slayers. He had formed a connection with his ritual implement, which had been enough to launch him to the next level.


    Endless whisps of Slaughtering Will filled the air and swallowed up all the Worldly Great Path in the area. He had forged a Wheel of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian watched Seventh Slayer breaking through to the next level. Divine slaughtering light suffused Seventh Slayer''s body. A strange look came over Ye Futian''s face as he watched this.


    There seemed to be two kinds of will fighting within Seventh Slayer''s body.


    Boom! Cracks seemed to appear in the very air. The divine arm that he had received was a spear, and it was eating up the Worldly Great Path and pumping it into his body. A look of intense pain was on his face.


    "What''s wrong?" someone whispered.


    Yuan Hong''s eyes shone with divine light. So it was true. If he had had the good luck to reach the Renhuang plane here in the God''s Relic, he would have been able to forge an unblemished Wheel.


    The Wheel of the Great Path slowly materialized. Ye Futian looked at Seventh Slayer and said, "If he breaks the will that he had previously, what will happen?"


    "He will likely be crippled," answered Dou Zhao.


    "Ah." Ye Futian said no more, but he still looked into the air. The others were all watching as well. After a while, Seventh Slayer''s Wheel of the Great Path was formed. Divine light emanated from him, and his slaughtering aura spread to every corner of the room.


    "A Celestial Level Wheel!" said Dou Zhao.


    A look of confusion came over Ye Futian''s face. "What did you say?" he asked.


    "I am talking about his Wheel of the Great Path," said Dou Zhao. "Do you not know the different levels of Wheels of the Great Path?"


    "I know of the different levels of Renhuangs, the three ranks and nine tiers. There are different levels of Wheels as well?" asked Ye Futian.


    "There are, though only the top forces of the Nine Supreme Realms make this distinction. Among the common forces, things are not so clear since all of their Wheels are Common Level," said Dou Zhao. "When Wheels of the Great Path are created, they are divided into different levels based on their strengths and weaknesses. The vast majority of Renhuangs have Common Level Wheels. Those who are incredibly talented can forge golden wheels that shine with brilliant light. At the higher level, you have Celestial Level Wheels. Wheels at this level are extremely strong, and few people can forge them. This is the kind of Wheel that Seventh Slayer just forged. Of course, legends say that there are even Wheels above this, perfect Wheels that shine with dazzling divine light. These are called Divine Level Wheels. There are those who say that the reason all Wheels of the Great Path are called Divine Wheels is that they all originally start at the Divine Level. But when there are flaws in one''s will, you get Wheels of lower levels. All Wheels are imperfect, and so we of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path have made these distinctions. In reality, any Wheel below the Divine Level is commonplace. There should only be perfect ad imperfect Wheels."


    "I understand." Ye Futian looked up at Seventh Slayer up in the air. His Divine Wheel was stronger than that of Wu Meng, who he had just fought. Huang Zhong, who cultivated in the ancestral lands of the Divine Palace, had wanted to forge a perfect Divine Level Wheel of the Great Path.


    He had heard those mysterious people in the Divine Palace talk a little bit about this, but they had never spoken about the different levels in concrete terms.


    Seventh Slayer had forged his Wheel here in the God''s Relic. The divine arm he had taken had given him this chance, and thus he had forged a Celestial Level Divine Wheel. But it was still flawed as it was not at the Divine Level.


    He had just been wondering, if Seventh Slayer attacked someone with his wheel, what would it be like?


    Of course, he could not say this. This was Seventh Slayer''s personal path of cultivation, and their friendship was not very deep yet. They could not speak of matters of life and death casually yet.


    Each force finally selected three divine arms, but they all still wanted more. They felt that three was not enough. They hated to leave.


    "Can''t we pick some more to take back to the people in our clans?" Dou Zhao asked tentatively.


    "You were only choosing for yourselves before?" Ye Futian''s face darkened. They were so shameless!


    Dou Zhao smiled awkwardly and said, "I am the most prominent junior member of the Dou tribe after all. One day I will be the leader."


    Ye Futian felt that in some aspects, he was not Dou Zhao''s equal.


    He looked at the others and saw their expectant gazes.


    "Fine, each force way choose two more. Chixiao Divine Mountain and Brahma''s Pure Sky expended a little bit less power, so they don''t get to," said Ye Futian. Chixiao Divine Mountain had been hesitant and had only decided to join them at the last moment. In addition, they had only fought the weakest of opponents, so loyalty was not assured. Right now, they were in an alliance, but after they left, who knows if they would be friends or enemies? He could not trust them too much.


    As for Brahma''s Pure Sky...


    Qin He looked at him with a smile then said to him telepathically, "Are you really going to be so cruel to me, Lord Ye?"


    "Forgive me, Goddess Qin. You can keep the ritual implements yourself. If Brahma''s Pure Sky wants them, then when the Empress asks me, I will surely give them to her," answered Ye Futian.


    Qin He stared at him. Did he have some ulterior motive with this?


    The people from Chixiao Divine Mountain''s expressions changed. They did not say anything, but they were clearly unhappy.


    But the other forces were all quite glad. They seemed to like this new turn of events.


    In reality, Ye Futian had originally planned to give each force five divine arms.


    Soon, the various forces had each chosen two more items. Ye Futian walked down the vast hall until he finally discovered that it was blocked off. There was a gate blocking off one side of the hall.


    In front of the gate was a pearl shining with brilliant golden light. All the light in the hall seemed to be gathering towards it and forming countless lines of light.


    Obviously, the God''s Relic did not end here. There must be more land beyond the gate!


    ...


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 1628 Creator of History

    "What is this?" whispered Ye Futian as he stood before the pearl. All the light in the Spatial Sacred Hall was gathering in this one place. It was clearly a supernatural object. What kind of secrets did it contain?


    He looked back over his shoulder. If this hall was truly the treasure trove of some great figure, then the gate was probably the entrance to the treasure room. The pearl was the first thing in front of the gate. Could it be that it was the key to the whole Spatial Sacred Hall?


    Divine light flashed in his eyes, making him able to see through anything. He saw how the pearl connected with the entire Spatial Sacred Hall. All of the seals on the treasures seemed to be one with it. Many illusory spatial gates appeared in all directions. It seemed like they were everywhere. It seemed like if he could master this pearl, he could unlock all the gates with a single thought.


    He let his thoughts enter into it and saw, brilliant, dazzling light emit from the pearl. The light covered everything in the hall, making it so that it was painful for people to keep their eyes open.


    "Be careful."


    As the whole hall lit up with dazzling radiance, Yaya could feel the spatial power in the room strengthening. In the instant that she said that, Ye Futian was covered in spatial light. All of the illusory gates overlapped on top of him, swallowing him up completely.


    A group of figures flashed over towards him, but countless gates appeared in front of them. Their expressions turned dark.


    "What is that thing?" said one of the people who had rushed over. This sudden change had made it so that they were unable to reach Ye Futian. They thought that he had already completely mastered the Spatial Sacred Hall. He had never thought that this pearl that had not been sealed away would have had such hidden danger.


    No one could get closer to it. They were all blocked by the spatial gates. Even being a few inches away was like being oceans apart.


    in the same instant as Ye Futian''s consciousness entered the pearl, the endless gates appeared in his vision, one after another, covering his consciousness. In that moment, his thoughts seemed trapped. There were no divine arms round him, only gates. It was like he was in a huge spatial prison.


    His expression changed slightly. He had been a bit careless here. This pearl was perhaps the most mysterious ritual implement within the Spatial Sacred Hall. It had not been sealed because it itself was the seal.


    This pearl was the origin of all the seals.


    Endless spatial light flowed out. There was no sense of order to these gates, and they could not be controlled. Perhaps it was because the master of the Spatial Sacred Hall had died.


    This is dangerous, thought Ye Futian. The spatial light continued to flow. If it was going to attack him, he would not be able to withstand it.


    Thinking of this, he began to shine with brilliant divine light. His eyes became incredibly frightening. Even his divine spirit seemed to become a real, golden object. He could perceive all the deep mysteries of the world.


    The principles of these gates were similar to those in the outside world, but there were too many of them. When countless gates appeared in a single instant, his senses were overloaded. But if he slowed down and deeply thought about their secrets, he could unlock them one by one.


    When he realized this, he gradually relaxed and stabilized his mood. His divine spirit flowed out towards the gates.


    "Open."


    His divine spirit descended, and a spatial gate opened, then a second one, then a third. The endless spatial gates seemed to form a tunnel that he was trapped inside.


    Ye Futian did not dare be even the least bit careless. He continuously opened the gates as he continued on towards the depths of the tunnel.


    As time passed, the people on the outside began to look very worried, especially Ye Futian''s friends. Although they had great faith in Ye Futian''s abilities, this was no ordinary place. The pearl was clearly something extraordinary and nobody knew what would happen with it.


    But there was nothing they could do. They could only wait.


    A thought appeared in everyone''s minds. They stared forward.


    Time seemed to slow, and that moment seemed to take a very long time.


    In that moment, the whole Spatial Sacred Palace lit up with brilliant light. All the spatial power in the hall flowed towards the pearl, as if it was returning to the source.


    "What is happening?" Everyone looked into the hall. The endless beams of spatial light were slowly disappearing. The pear seemed to possess infinite space as it swallowed up everything.


    "The ritual implements are going into it too!" said someone. Everyone realized that the space where the ritual implements were sealed was being sucked in as well. The pearl began to spin quickly, giving off brilliant light that lit up the whole hall. It seemed like it would never be filled. The inside of the pearl contained infinite space.


    Everyone found it hard to keep their eyes open as they saw all the space in the hall being swallowed up. When the light dissipated, the Spatial Sacred Hall had disappeared as well. The vast hall had vanished without a trace.


    The pearl was still spinning and giving off spatial light. Ye Futian''s figure appeared in front of it.


    Golden light was shining from his brow, producing a mystical connection with the pearl. The light connected him to it like they were of one body.


    "He''s alright!"


    Everyone sighed when they saw him. He had escaped the terrible seal.


    At that moment, Ye Futian opened his eyes, and the pearl disappeared along with the light coming from his forehead. In addition, the ritual implements and divine arms disappeared as well.


    "This..."


    A look of shock flashed in everyone''s eyes. The pearl had swallowed up everything in the Spatial Sacred Hall, as if it was the source of everything.


    "Is something wrong?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian shook his head and smiled. "It was a false alarm."


    On saying this, he rubbed his forehead and a strange expression came over him. He had wanted to take everything in this treasure house. At the very least, he would need a few ritual implements. In that case, things would be a little difficult. First, he would need to spend a lot of time and energy. But he had never thought that it would all be resolved by a little bit of fright and shock.


    He had received the pearl that sealed all the ritual implements and divine arms in the Spatial Sacred Hall. Now, he had formed a connection with it and he could use it at will.


    "You refined it?" asked Dou Zhao in shock. This guy was crazy!


    He could do this too?


    He thought back to when Ye Futian had taken the spear that had fighting will swirling around it in the underground palace. It seemed that it had been quite easy for him.


    Was there anything he could not do?


    It was difficult for others to obtain ritual implements, but Ye Futian was good at at it. He could unseal them with a single thought. Now, he had directly refined the source of the Spatial Sacred Hall, obtaining all the ritual implements at once so that he did not need to master them one by one.


    This...


    After seeing him fight the God of Battle, he would just have to accept it if he felt wronged in the future.


    It seemed there was no reason for him to be too arrogant.


    "I don''t know," said Ye Futian with a shrug.


    He did not show the treasure he had gained.


    Dou Zhao looked at him. He didn''t know?


    Ye Futian turned and walked towards teh gate. The divine arms had been divided up, so now they should continue heading inwards.


    The Purple Gold Rats who had gone in the other three directions had reached their ruins already. Even from here he could feel that they were very close. If they were far away his perception would be very hazy, but since they were close it was extremely clear.


    They were in four different places.


    Ye Futian looked at the gate, and brilliant divine light shot out of his forehead. It flowed towards the gate, lighting it up.


    The people behind Ye Futian trembled. He had already mastered the ability to control the gates?


    It was possible that nobody had ever entered that place before.


    Could it be that something that had never happened before was going to take place here in the God''s Relic today?


    A booming sound rang out and a crack appeared in the gate. Light poured through it. As everyone watched with trembling gaze, it opened up inwards, as if where they were standing was actually inside the gate.


    Ye Futian raised a hand to shield his eyes. He had found the way to break the seals, and it had worked for the gate as well.


    What would be inside it?


    ...


    Ye Futian had come from the eastern side of the God''s Relic. Just as he had guessed, there were ruins in the other three directions as wel.


    There were many divine trees in the south upon which grew many pieces of fruit of the Way that grew thick with will. A rare kind of grass grew there as well.


    To the north there was a collection of books. In this collection were sacred and valuable texts that recorded many powerful and mystical arts.


    To the west were many statues of armored soldiers, as well as statues of divine beasts that contained powerful will guarding the.


    At that moment, many people were still searching in the south and the west and fighting each other constantly. There had been many casualties.


    Within the book collection to the north, the battles had already ceased as the cultivators had come to the end of it.


    There was a huge wall covered in bookcases there that looked like a gate. There was a book in front of it, one that seemed divine. Golden light circled around it. It was very large and the light coming from it lit up the room.


    At that moment, a figure was standing calmly before the book, one who was clearly someone extraordinary. He was young, and had an unforgettable look to him. His face was bright and clear, and his eyes shone with divine light. There were many people behind him, cultivators from all the Nine Realms. And they were all top figures. They belonged to many different factions.


    But they all stood behind this young man. No one went up to disturb him.


    Shockingly powerful figures appeared in every generation, and this one was no exception. In fact, this man was even more dazzling than those who had come before him. He came from the Central Emperor Realm. Many years ago when he was still a junior he had already made a name for himself. Now, he had naturally been among those who came to the God''s Relic.


    Among ten thousand secrets of the Way, there were none that he had not discovered. Now, would he be able to unlock this divine book?


    The book collection had originally been sealed, but now it was open and wind blew through it, making the young man''s robes swirl. The golden light upon the book glowed even brighter as ancient characters flew out of it, imprinting themselves in the young man''s eyes. It was like they were flying directly into his brain.


    There was a sound of the bookcase moving, and everyone''s hearts beat faster. They could see that the bookcase was beginning to open!


    ...


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 1629 Tianshen Academy

    The divine golden gate opened. Ye Futian and the others looked inside. Was this the true end of this ruin?


    Ye Futian stepped right through the doorway, and the other cultivators followed behind.


    "Destroyed palaces and ruins." Ye Futian swept his gaze around. They seemed to be in the wreckage of several palaces. People had obviously once been here. Could some high-level battles have broken out?


    The broken palaces all seemed to have been built out of some supernatural material. This was like a divine treasure house. It was impossible to imagine just how magnificent this place must have once been. The whole area was filled with magnificent will.


    "Look over there." Some of the people were looking up into the distance. As the destroyed palaces continued, they could faintly see an incomparably glorious celestial palace floating in the air up ahead. It looked like a divine ruin: a ruin left behind by a god.


    Was this the true meaning of the God''s Relic?


    Boom!


    A sound rang out, making all the cultivators look towards it. Their formation was suddenly broken and thrown into confusion. Before they had come here, they had all been working together, but if this was truly the God''s Relic, would they really let each other have it?


    Probably none of them would. They would all fight for it.


    Ye Futian took a step forward, but he was not too concerned. He knew that this place was truly the core. The main places in each of the four directions seemed to be a treasure trove, a library, a garden, and now this in front of them.


    This must have been a place where an incredibly powerful figure had lived. This whole God''s Relic that people were fighting over was nothing more than his treasure trove.


    If there were something in here, it would probably be extremely difficult to steal.


    They flew through the air towards the ruins that were floating high above, passing through destroyed palaces and ruins. They finally reached the floating palace and looked up at it.


    An incredible pressure covered the cultivators, giving them a feeling of awe. It seemed that even after so many years, the palace still contained supreme majesty.


    A thread of invisible force appeared in front of them, blocking their path. There was an incredibly spacious road of the Great Path ahead of them that went all the way to the palace. They could see some statues standing guard in the distance that looked like real people, though they could tell there was no life within them. But they still stood guard below the palace.


    They were guarding a set of stairs that went up to the palace. It seemed that going up those stairs was the only way to get there.


    "Imperial majesty!" Ye Futian''s heart was trembling fiercely. There were hints of imperial majesty left behind at this palace. He himself had some of the will of the emperor, and so he was naturally familiar with how it felt.


    In that case, the master of this palace must have been someone at the same level as the Great Emperor. This must have been the place where he had cultivated.


    If that was so, did that mean when the people of the world spoke of the gods, they were really talking about Great Emperors?


    They were as strong as gods.


    "Hmm?"


    Everyone was still trembling on the inside, but they suddenly sensed that many powerful auras were coming towards them. They suddenly turned and saw a group of figures coming through the air from behind them. It was a group of cultivators who just so happened to have come to the same place as them.


    "What is going on?" Looks of surprise came over all their faces. Those others had not been here before, how had they gotten here?


    Ye Futian had not told anyone about the ruins, so they did not know about them yet.


    Those cultivators who had just arrived looked at Ye Futian''s group in shock as well. One of them even said, "How did you get here?"


    "I''d like to ask you the same question! Where did you come from?" someone replied. No one knew what was going on.


    "It seems that our elder guessed right. Traveling in each of the four directions here at the God''s Relic will lead you to the same place in the end," came a voice from the crowd. Everyone looked surprised at this.


    Each of the four directions led to the same place?


    A figure stepped out from the group who had just arrived, handsome and imposing. In the instant that he appeared, everyone''s gaze fell upon him.


    "So, he has come." Surprise flashed in Yuan Hong of the Yuanyang clan''s eyes. This man was famous throughout the Central Imperial Realm. He was the standout figure of his generation. And now, he was here.


    "He''s at the Renhuang level!" Yuan Hong trembled when he sensed the young man''s aura, remembering that he had not been at that level yet when he had first entered the God''s Relic. Moreover, given his talent, he would not have been willing to hastily enter the Renhuang plane. So, he must have had an incredible opportunity to do so.


    He was so talented; what kind of Wheel of the Great Path had he forged? Could it be a perfect, unblemished one?


    Yuan Hong looked back at Ye Futian beside him. Although he came from the Yuanyang clan of the Central Imperial Realm, Ye Futian''s talent still shocked him. He had made history all by his own strength and had brought them all to this unknown place. If the God''s Relic was really here, Ye Futian actually had a chance of competing for it.


    But now, looking at this man who had reached the Renhuang level, Yuan Hong could feel Ye Futian''s hopes evaporating.


    It could even be said that he had no hope at all.


    It was no wonder that they had come here. It was because that man was with them, and he had reached the Renhuang level.


    Ye Futian looked at the young man as well. So someone had guessed correctly. Moreover, the man who was speaking gave him the feeling that he was incredibly powerful.


    "Do you know him?" Ye Futian asked Yuan Hong. He could feel that Yuan Hong was comparing him to that man.


    "Have you heard of the most prestigious academy in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path?" asked Yuan Hong.


    Ye Futian shook his head. "No."


    Yuan Hong looked at him. This guy really didn''t care about anything.


    "Tianshen Academy in the Central Emperor Realm is known as the foremost place in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path for seeking the Path. It contains countless ancient texts, and countless people go there to study. However, even though they are all great talents, none of them are able to enter the core of Tianshen Academy. But this man is considered the greatest member of the younger generation there. Before him, all the heroes of the Central Imperial Realm pale in comparison," Yuan Hong whispered to Ye Futian. "Even including me."


    Ye Futian was surprised. Yuan Hong, who had been born into the Yuanyang clan, was a very proud and confident man. But he had said that he was no match for this man. This showed just how talented he was. He was truly an overwhelming figure.


    He was the foremost young man at Tianshen Academy. He was someone who could crush all foes.


    Moreover, he was from the Central Emperor Realm.


    No wonder he had felt that he was special as soon as he had seen him.


    "Is he Jian Qingzhu of Tianshen Academy?" asked Dou Zhao from beside them.


    "Yes, that is the greatest talent of Tianshen Academy, Jian Qingzhu," said Yuan Hong with a nod.


    A look of surprise came over his face. He turned to Dou Zhao and asked, "You know of him too?"


    Dou Zhao was from the Ziwei Realm. If it was some great figure, it would be natural for Dou Zhao to know him. But Jian Qingzhu was of the same generation as Dou Zhao, but even given the vast distance between their realms, he still knew of him. This was very out of the ordinary.


    "My elder said that once I inherit the leadership of the Dou tribe, I will stand among the greatest figures of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Jian Qingzhu will be another one of them," said Dou Zhao. "This man was born into the Jian clan, the founders of Tianshen Academy. When he was young, he read through all the books there and learned all the different methods therein. There is nothing he cannot do."


    "So powerful," said Ye Futian. He was a man whose name shook the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and made the other proud sons of heaven of the same generation as him say they were not as good as him. This was a man whose talent could shock the world.


    Previously, he had met Huang Zhong at the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace, whom no one could compare to. Now here was Jian Qingzhu, who played a similar role in Tianshen Academy.


    Moreover, the fact that he had made it here meant that he had uncovered the secrets of the God''s Relic.


    The people who had gone in the other two directions had not made it here yet, and they would not necessarily ever do so.


    At that moment, Jian Qingzhu''s gaze fell upon Ye Futian. "Did you come from the east?" he asked.


    "Yes," said someone with a nod. "Did you come from the north?"


    Jian Qingzhu nodded as well, saying, "If my elder guessed right, the east must have had the skeletons of many demonic beasts and a divine hall full of ritual implements?"


    Jian Qingzhu was of high birth. He was from the Jian clan, which had founded Tianshen Academy and had sent expeditions to the God''s Relic before. Thus, he knew a little bit more about this place than others. They had never shared this information with the outside world.


    He had decided to go to the trove of a book, as that was the area he was most skilled in. Events had proven that he had made the right choice, and he had gotten a lot of the things that he had wanted. After all, he had broken through to the next level there, and then come here.


    "Who was it who opened the gate between the divine hall and here?" he asked. Since he had come here, he knew just how hard it was to do so. He had thought he would be the first, but someone had gotten here first.


    Everyone''s gaze fell upon Ye Futian, including Jian Qingzhu''s.


    "I am Jian Qingzhu of Tianshen Academy," he said to Ye Futian with a nod.


    "I am Ye Futian, the heir of Sky River Temple in the Tianhe Realm," answered Ye Futian. A look of surprise came over Jian Qingzhu''s face at his introduction. The Tianhe Realm?


    Could it be that he didn''t come from any of the Nine Supreme Realms?


    The Sky River Temple must be the place where the Sky River Great Elder cultivated. A conflict had occurred there between him and the Shen clan.


    "What was in the north?" asked Ye Futian curiously.


    "A trove of books with many ancient texts," answered Jian Qingzhu as if he did not care at all.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. It was just like he had sensed from the Purple Gold Rats.


    "What you said before must be right. No matter which direction you go in, you will always end up here in the end," he said.


    Everyone''s gaze fell upon the white-haired youth. Could Ye Futian of the Tianhe Realm do the same things as Jian Qingzhu, even open one of the gates?


    If what Jian Qingzhu had said was correct, that the east held a trove of ritual implements, had Ye Futian and his people taken them all?


    ...


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 1630 Seeking the Way in the Garden

    There was one person in the crowd who could not restrain him and began walking towards the floating palace.


    This was their destination in the God''s Relic. Moreover, Jian Qingzhu and Ye Futian had had the same idea, that the four directions would all go to the same place in the end. This meant that this place was the actual "God''s Relic."


    Despite their extraordinary minds, they still found it hard to control themselves, and thus this one man rushed forward.


    An invisible imperial aura covered the sky above the palace, throwing back the figure who rushed towards it. He landed with wobbly knees.


    He looked up at the palace. How could mortals contend with this power that came from the gods?


    The area in front of the palace was completely blocked off. There was absolutely no way to get into the palace from the air. Perhaps the only way was to go up the road of the Great Path and step onto the divine stairway.


    Although he had been forced back, the figure could still feel the mighty power coming from the palace. There was so much pressure on him that he felt like he was being crushed by a mountain. There was a roar as the Great Path surged within him. He straightened himself out and stood up, taking a determined step forward towards the road.


    Boom! A low roar sounded from the road. He walked up towards the palace while everyone else watched calmly. Although many of them found it hard to restrain themselves as well, they understand when they saw this situation that it would not be easy to get to this palace.


    It would probably be even harder than it had been to get here.


    There were many statues standing guard in front of the stairway that looked like ancient divine generals. When the figure reached that place, one of the statues lit up with brilliant radiance. A burst of terrible will swept out, making an illusory image appear. It looked like a battlefield.


    Bang! There was a loud noise as the figure was sent flying backward. Blood poured from his mouth as he slammed into the ground. The power of the Great Path descended upon him, making so he could not stand up. Crimson blood stained his robes.


    All the cultivators frowned when they saw this. It was just as they had guessed. That cultivator was from one of the top forces as well, but even he was being kept outside.


    Ye Futian was staring forward as well. He seemed to sense a burst of powerful will. Even though many years had passed and they had turned into statues, they still possessed will.


    Moreover, there were many statues over there. It would not be easy to pass them. He was not sure he could do it.


    Jian Qingzhu was just like Ye Futian. The genius cultivator, who was known as the foremost young member of Tianshen Academy, did not move. He looked at the celestial palace, then pointed at it and said, "If this palace was left behind by the gods, then the entrances from the other two directions must be around here too. Go and see if we can open them up from the inside."


    "Open them up?" The people around him looked surprised. At a time like this, when the number of people he had to compete with was decreasing, Jian Qingzhu was going to let the cultivators from all the top powers of the Nine Supreme Realms come here?


    "Yes," said Jian Qingzhu with a nod. "There is only one chance to obtain the God''s Relic. Since people have already come here from the divine temple, there must be nothing there. I haven''t been in the other two directions, and I''d like to go see them."


    He had chosen to come from the collection of books because that was what he was most skilled in, but that did not mean he didn''t want to see what the other three directions held. All of the areas of the God''s Relic were extraordinary.


    Now that he had a chance, he naturally wanted to go and see the other ones and see if he could get anything from them. Even if he could not get as much out of them as he had at the collection of books, it was still worth going.


    The people from Tianshen Academy around him all looked surprised. If anyone else had the advantage of coming here first, they would not have acted like Jian Qingzhu and thought to open up the ways to the other parts of the God''s Relic.


    His way of thinking was truly different from other people''s.


    But looking at it from a different perspective, this showed just how absolutely confident Jian Qingzhu was in himself. It seemed like no matter how many people came to the God''s Relic, it would still be his in the end.


    If he could not get it, then no one could.


    "Alright." Someone nodded and turned to leave. This person had no desire for the God''s Relic. This was Jian Qingzhu''s ambition. Other than a few of the other disciples from top forces, no one else at Tianshen Academy could compete with him.


    "If the gates can be opened from the inside, I will go to the garden with you in a little bit," said Ye Futian to Xia Qingyuan.


    "The garden?" A confused look came over Xia Qingyuan''s face. She looked at him uncomprehendingly.


    "Yes, the garden," said Ye Futian with a smile. "For us, and even for the Nine Supreme Realms, this is something that a god left behind, and thus it is called the God''s Relic. But for him, it was just his home. Those bones of the demonic beasts and those treasures were probably the remains of beasts that he raised and rode, and some treasures that he collected. And the divine tree and celestial plants in the other direction were probably just his garden."


    "..." Xia Qingyuan was speechless at Ye Futian''s words. But he seemed to make some sense.


    For the people of the world, this was the God''s Relic. But to the god himself, it was just his place of cultivation.


    Ye Futian meant that this place was just the home of an incomparably powerful man.


    "Why do you want to go to the garden?" asked Xia Qingyuan curiously.


    "Is your life spirit not that of a lotus? Of course we should go to the garden to see if there are useful things for you there," said Ye Futian. There was a Purple Gold Rat hidden there who had not fought anyone, so no one had paid attention to it. Thus, he knew more or less what was going on there.


    Xia QIngyuan stared at him. Was he showing that he cared for her?


    When he saw the way she was looking at him, Ye Futian smiled and said, "Your personality isn''t really that good, Princess, but I won''t hold it against you."


    "..." The emotions that had just been born in Xia Qingyuan''s heart instantly evaporated. She looked at Ye Futian coldly.


    That b*stard.


    Absolutely shameless.


    What was wrong with her personality?


    At that moment, a voice came from the distance. Another powerful aura was spreading towards them, making a look of surprise come over Ye Futian''s face.


    Was it opening?


    Could it really be that simple?


    Apparently, it was hard to get in from the outside, but easy to get out from the inside. After all, this had been someone''s home.


    Boom!


    Brilliant light shot towards them as even more powerful auras spread out. Renhuang level cultivators were arriving.


    Ye Futian looked up and saw a familiar figure.


    It was Huang Zhong, the most powerful young member of Shangxiao Divine Palace and a Renhuang level cultivator.


    When he had gone to the Divine Palace to train, Huang Zhong had only been a step away from the Renhuang Plane. He had just wanted to forge a perfect Wheel of the Great Path. Now, here in the God''s Relic, he seemed to have found his opportunity to do so. He had successfully created the Wheel of the Great Path that he had wanted.


    After all, he was said to be number one within the Divine Palace.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said to Xia QIngyuan. "Let the others do as they will."


    On saying this, the two of them left. No one would probably be able to inherit what was left behind in the Gods'' Relic for a while, so he wanted to see the other places here. The fruit of the Way that he had gotten while training at the Divine Palace was limited, and he was using them up quickly.


    Yu Sheng did not go with him. He wanted to see what would happen here.


    Soon, more and more people gathered. The people of all the Nine Supreme Realms were gathering here.


    At that moment, Ye Futian reached the gate on the south side. He stepped out as if everything going on behind him had nothing to do with him.


    When he stepped out, he saw that there was a willow tree beside him. It seemed to be extremely ordinary, except for the fact that it was very old, and thus very large. Countless branches drooped down from it, and there was a pavilion under it.


    At that moment, there was a monk within the pavilion, looking dignified and stately. His eyes were closed as he cultivated assiduously. He seemed to be coming to some realization there under the willow tree.


    "Brother," said Ye Futian to the monk. He sensed that the monk had a special aura about him, forming a force field around the area.


    He must be a cultivator from a top force from the Mountain Realm, Ye Futian thought to himself. He was the only person there under the tree.


    "What are you looking at, sir?" came a voice. Beside him, Xia Qingyuan could hear it too. It was not telepathy, but the monk''s mouth did not move.


    "There are many divine trees and celestial plants here. Why are you cultivating under this ordinary willow tree?" asked Ye Futian.


    "Perhaps, in your eyes, this willow tree is ordinary, but in my eyes, it is divine," said the monk. "When I look at the mountains, they are not mountains. When I look at the lakes, they are not lakes."


    He was speaking of the three levels of zen. At the first level, when one looked at mountains, one saw mountains, and when one looked at lakes, they were lakes. At the second level, when one looked at mountains, they were no longer mountains, and when one looked at lakes, they were no longer lakes. At the third level, the mountains were once again mountains and the lakes were once again lakes.


    "I would have thought you would have already gone past the second level, master, and reached the third. I would think that you would see mountains and lakes," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    "My body is a bodhi tree, my mind is a mirror," the monk said to Ye Futian with a smile. Although he had not yet opened his eyes, Ye Futian still felt like he was looking at him.


    "I did not mean to interrupt you cultivation, master," said Ye Futian. He and Xia Qingyuan began to walk away.


    "Why were you two talking in riddles?" asked Xia Qingyuan, a look of confusion in her eyes.


    What had they been talking about?


    "He had given up all the divine trees and celestial plants and was cultivating under an ordinary willow tree. His mind was as clear as a mirror; thus, he was able to see right through that tree," said Ye Futian. "The willow tree was not as simple as it seemed."


    As he said this, a powerful aura suddenly spread out behind him. He stopped and turned around. Xia Qingyuan looked over her shoulder as well. They saw brilliant light shining under the tree, shooting up into the clouds. They saw a huge golden Buddha form there that then transformed into a divine wheel. The willow tree became golden as well and swayed without stopping. At that moment, countless willow leaves began to swirl around in the air as divine light poured through them, falling upon the monk.


    The monk''s body had turned gold, and he slowly rose into the air.


    He had entered the Way and become a Buddha.


    This was the Renhuang plane.


    "He formed a perfect Wheel of the Great Path," whispered Ye Futian. Xia Qingyuan looked at the incomparably bright willow tree in shock, then looked at Ye Futian beside her and asked, "What was that tree?"


    "I don''t know. Perhaps the god who lived here used to cultivate beneath it," said Ye Futian with a smile. "Let''s go and find a chance for you to become a Renhuang!"


    ...


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 1631 Lotus in the Lake

    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian, only to see him with a smile on his face that seemed to be full of confidence. It was as if he already knew where to look for opportunities.


    She knew that Ye Futian could control the demons, and he must have dispatched the Purple Gold Rats to all sides. It was possible that Ye Futian might already know of the movements here and was just taking her on a trip.


    The two figures flickered straight to their destination.


    They passed many divine trees and enchanted plants, but Ye Futian just glanced at them without interest. After a while, they came upon a lake.


    The lake was large, with pavilions next to it that looked like places to rest.


    In the middle of the lake, there were lotus flowers blooming like a sea of ??flowers.


    "The breath of life is strong," Xia Qingyuan mumbled to herself. She looked toward the center of the lake. In the middle of the sea of lotuses, there was one that was blooming in six colors, swaying in the lake with each petal a different color.


    This one lotus was huge. It was as if it was the chief of all the lotus flower with its six petals.


    There were many people standing in the middle of the lake, and they were all floating on the surface of the water as if they were weightless. All of them were stationed in different positions, and it seemed that they were all fighting for that single lotus. Clearly, they all realized that this lotus was extraordinary and was born of the Way.


    Seeing Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan coming their way, many glanced at them, but they looked calm and unconcerned. Obviously, the two did not cause too much concern. These two cultivators were only of Saint Plane, and the cultivation of the woman was not even worth much consideration at all.


    The white-haired youth possessed unusual temperament, but they didn''t know him. They had not seen him in this area before. Perhaps he was someone who had arrived later than the others.


    "God''s relic has already appeared. Don''t you want to go see?" Ye Futian said. Many of the figures floating on the lake turned to look at Ye Futian, and one of them said, "God''s relic has appeared?"


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded and said, "Jian Qingzhu from Tianshen Academy traveled from the north, passed over the land of the book collection, and entered the true location of God''s relic. The gates leading toward other major directions were ordered to open, which confirmed the fact that all four directions eventually led to the same destination: The Heavenly Palace in God''s relic. Now everyone is rushing to get there, but it seems you didn''t know that yet."


    "Are you serious?" A lady with extraordinary temperament asked as the faces of those in the group altered slightly. Her eyes were sharp, and she looked intently at Ye Futian.


    Had the real God''s relic had been opened?


    "How could this be fake? Go see for yourselves, and you''ll know," Ye Futian said.


    "Why don''t you go?" The woman looked at Ye Futian cautiously.


    "Jian Qingzhu and many other genius talents were there. I am avoiding the spotlight for a while." Ye Futian said with a smile. Everyone looked at him as if they understood something. This man must have known that there was no hope for him to compete, so he came here.


    The purpose of informing them of God''s relic was probably to lure them away so he could take the lotus flower himself.


    This lotus flower was extremely unusual. They felt its existence before they even arrived here, so they came to fight for it with one another. None of them were able to take it away yet.


    "See you guys later," someone said as he went into the distance, clearly believing Ye Futian. He didn''t appear to be lying. They, too, had felt some movements but had no idea what was happening.


    "You are not going?" Ye Futian asked. "That''s the inheritance of the gods."


    The woman who spoke before glanced at Ye Futian. It was not as simple as making them leave.


    Even if God''s relic had really appeared, it would certainly be another bloody storm of battles, and it would take some time for the dust to settle. In light of that, this lotus became the priority.


    "You all have been fighting for it for a long time without result, and you can''t take this lotus flower with you anyway. Why waste time here? You are better off trying your luck at the Heavenly Palace, where you might receive the inheritance of God," Ye Futian continued to incite.


    When everyone heard what Ye Futian said, they looked baffled. The woman asked, "You claim to come from there, so how do you know that we have been fighting for this for a long time?"


    It was as if he had seen all that had happened here.


    "I also know that you are the daughter belonging to the Xiao family of the Central Emperor Realm," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    In this area, the daughter from the Xiao family in the Central Emperor Realm was very eye-catching and was quite an attention-getter. Her name was Xiao Muyu, and her strength was powerful and aggressive.


    There was some confusion in Xiao Muyu''s eyes, and then those eyes that were watching Ye Futian grew cold.


    Just exactly where was Ye Futian coming from?


    How did he know of her?


    "This lotus is useful to me. You all have already fought each other for it before. Fighting aside, it is difficult for you to take the flower easily, so why not let me give it a try?" Ye Futian continued.


    No one paid any attention to Ye Futian, totally ignoring him.


    "Xiao Muyu, he''s right. It makes no sense for us to continue like this. Why not enter the Lotus World together, and whoever can take it may have it?" a young man in black across from Xiao Muyu said.


    "I agree." In another direction, someone else also spoke up, agreeing with the other.


    Now, except for Ye Futian, there were only three other parties left.


    Aside from Xiao Muyu from the Central Emperor Realm, there was also the Fate World from the Hidden Land realm. This was the force behind the young man in black who just spoke. The other force that spoke after him was Illusion Island from Myriad Realm.


    All of them were the most powerful principalities in the Nine Realms. Just now, a major force had left them. Otherwise, it would be the four major powers competing for this one lotus. It could be deduced that this lotus was extraordinary.


    "Agreed. Count me in." While Ye Futian sailed toward them, he was transmitting his voice to Xia Qingyuan at the same time, "Wait for me outside."


    Xia Qingyuan stood in the lake and waited quietly.


    Whatever Ye Futian wanted, he could surely get his hands on. She felt a warmth in her heart. Would this be the first time Ye Futian gave her a gift?


    "There is nothing for you."


    The eyes of the man in black from the Fate World swept toward Ye Futian. Those eyes seemed to contain a will of fate that could swallow up the will of men. Ye Futian''s eyes directed toward the man and instantly felt torrents of wills of the Way invading him.


    With a vibrant will of life enveloping his body, Ye Futian was still moving forward. Laughing, he said, "Since it''s a fair competition, you should count me in."


    A lotus bloomed underneath the feet of the cultivator in black with each step he took, but it was a dark lotus. The lotus was black like ink, emitting a gloomy feeling.


    The black lotus flew toward Ye Futian and enlarged, turning into a giant black lotus that wanted to devour Ye Futian.


    The black petals extended out to cover the sky and the sun, seemingly intent on swallowing Ye Futian whole. A terrible air of death puffed out from it and meandered toward Ye Futian.


    Buzz.


    Ye Futian was submerged in a sea of black lotuses. As Ye Futian raised his finger to point, a horrific sword will fell on the petals.


    With a loud boom, the black lotus collapsed and shattered. The air of death screamed in the sky, turning the surrounding space pitch black.


    "The items in God''s relic are free to all to take. I arrived late, but I only asked for the opportunity to compete. If you still want to continue, you will have to speak with your strength from now on," Ye Futian said with nonchalance. No matter what happened, he would get what he came for.


    Since he had promised it to Xia Qingyuan, he had to get the lotus.


    He didn''t want to resort to outright robbery because he didn''t want to appear to ruthless.


    Otherwise, there would be no competition from the others.


    The man in black frowned. Was he being threatened?


    Although that sword was incredibly powerful, how dare he act so haughty?


    He took several steps upon the lake, and then the man in black from the Fate World stepped into the air above the lake. With a turning of his mind, countless dark lotuses instantly appeared on the lake as the air of death filled the space.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky that was filled with black lotuses, a spear appearing in his hand with intentions of war shooting out from it. He asked, "Why are you like this?"


    As he took a step, his body traversed the void and aimed towards the young man.


    "Humph."


    The man in black made a cold snorting sound, and his dark eyes looked into Ye Futian''s eyes. At this moment, countless black lotuses transformed into their own world that buried Ye Futian within. Countless black lotuses opened and closed around him, blocking off the void.


    The death currents flowed madly toward Ye Futian. The petals of the black lotus flew out, turning into the light of darkness and slashing at Ye Futian.


    Space locking?


    Ye Futian kept moving, letting the death currents flow over his body. The spear in his hand lanced at the sea of black lotuses that was drowning him.


    In an instant, the void seemed to have collapsed, accompanied by a loud bang. The black lotuses in front were shattered as his body turned into a stream of light, continuing to move forward.


    When he saw this, the man in black frowned. Countless dark lotus flowers hovered around him, opening at the same time and turning into a black hole that engulfed Ye Futian as he came attacking.


    The dark air of death that filled the sky cut through the void at the limit of its speed, just like a death storm that intended to obliterate Ye Futian here and now.


    Bang.


    There was another loud noise, and without any delay, the white-haired youth rushed out of the collapsed black lotus, carrying with him the spear that exuded horrific intentions of war.


    A giant black lotus protected the man in black so that the spear blasted on the lotus instead. With a loud noise, the body of the man in black was knocked out with the divine implement.


    Boom. Menacing breaths came out as the will of death overwhelmed the sky. Many cultivators from the Fate took a step forward at the same time. Instantly, the sky turned to twilight, as if becoming a world of death.


    Ye Futian took one look at the cultivators from the Fate Realm, stepping into the air.


    "Get out of here!"


    As the voice came down, there was a tremendous amount of martial will in him. At the moment when the spear was released, countless shadows also appeared at the same time. A mighty will enveloped the entire lake as if the god of war himself had descended.


    Boom!


    An extremely violent explosion was heard. Many men flew backward, and even some cultivators from Fate World were penetrated by the shadow of the spear.


    "There''s nothing more for you guys to do here. Anyone who doesn''t accept that will die," Ye Futian said coldly, denying the Fate World further participation.


    He had promised Xia Qingyuan the opportunity, and he would deliver it to her. He could not allow anyone to interfere!


    ...


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 1632 The Lotus Chooses Its Master

    The cultivators of Fate World had extremely hard expressions on their faces. One strike of the spear directed at them was enough to repel all the cultivators and send them running.


    And now they were forbidden to compete, or they would be killed.


    "Who are you?" the man in black released a dark light from his eyes and asked Ye Futian, his eyes were fixed on him.


    They had never heard of this man, so why was he so strong?


    The cultivators from the Xiao Clan and the illusion Island looked shocked. They did not expect Ye Futian to be so strong.


    If the cultivators from the Fate World couldn''t sustain that single strike, would they fare any better if the strike was aimed against them instead?


    "Ye Futian from Tianhe Realm." Ye Futian replied. He looked at those from the Xiao Clan and the Illusion Island and said, "Now, can I participate in the competition?"


    "Fine." Xiao Muyu agreed. Ye Futian had such strength, was it possible to keep him from participating?


    The leader of the Illusion Island also nodded without saying anything more. Now they could only rely on luck. Clearly, this man was stronger than them.


    Ye Futian smiled, and said, "Isn''t it great that we can reason together? There was no need to resort to violence."


    He had always used reason to convince the others.


    But if they couldn''t be convinced...


    What the third senior brother had said held true even today.


    The cultivators from the Xiao Clan and Illusion Island twitched when they heard him. Reason?


    Was there any room for reasoning in the matter of competing for treasures? They thought that it only mattered who was the strongest.


    "My friend will follow me." Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan, who was behind him. He was uneasy about leaving Xia Qingyuan out here by herself, so he wanted to take her with him.


    "Sure." No one from the two major principalities disagreed.


    "Thanks a lot." Ye Futian was very satisfied with their response. As disciples of the top principalities, they knew how to be reasonable.


    "Let''s go." The four of them moved forward together, and the people from Fate World did not act rashly again. Ye Futian still had the spear in his hand when he was walking and looked at them from time to time with a friendly smile on his face. However, no one had forgotten about the impressive strike that just took place.


    The four of them walked to the middle of the lake. The lotus bloomed with all six petals and opened up, its brilliance enveloping the surrounding heaven and earth. Ye Futian''s eyes suddenly brightened. At a glance, he could feel that the lotus appeared to possess self-will.


    All things in the world were filled with spirit and contained life, and it was the same with the lotus. Containing life was not equivalent to possessing self-will, but this blooming lotus gave Ye Futian a feeling that it did.


    Divine light in six colors suddenly bloomed and enveloped the vast space. Countless lotus flowers seemed to appear around Ye Futian and the others, wrapping them inside. In just a moment, Ye Futian seemed to have entered a world of lotuses that isolated them from the outside world.


    "Amazing," Xia Qingyuan whispered. Beneath their feet, lotus flowers also appeared.


    "Huh?" Xiao Muyu frowned. This was a slightly different situation from what she had encountered before.


    In a flash, she was heading toward the sky below, racing to the center of the lotus.


    However, just as she was about to touch the core, she saw gleams of radiance, and the lotus flower disappeared right in front of her. It was as if it had turned into an infinite number of lotuses floating between heaven and earth.


    "It''s gone."


    Xiao Muyu looked surprised. They had come out from the previous space, and countless lotus flowers floated on the lake, appearing just like ordinary lotus flowers.


    "Illusion, indeed." The eyes of a cultivator from Illusion Island became terrifying and looked at the lotus below. However, each lotus flower was almost the same, except for a few that were brighter than the others. His figure flashed as he waved his palms. The strength of the palm strike shattered the lotuses as he tried to eliminate the others from the True Lotus.


    However, those lotus flowers regenerated again and again, floating silently on the lake surface as if they would never disappear.


    Xiao Muyu waved her sleeves, wanting to draw the lotus into her sleeves. However, whenever a lotus disappeared, there would be more that appeared underneath without end, forcing her to stop immediately.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian because she did not understand what was going on.


    "It is reluctant to leave here, and wants us to leave on our own," Ye Futian said.


    "Reluctant to leave?" Xia Qingyuan said, "Do you mean that the lotus has its own will?"


    Ye Futian shook his head. He didn''t really know either. It was said that a monk comprehended the Way under the willow tree, and he became a Buddha through a matter of a thought before entering the Renhuang Realm. That willow tree gave him an extraordinary sensation, as it seemed to contain life. And could life give spirit to all things?


    What kind of realm was this?


    "Perhaps, the gods like to meditate in the lake and nurture the spirit of the lotus." Ye Futian said. The illusion magic was so strong that he couldn''t discern which lotus was the real one. His eyes were able to detect all kinds of unreality, but it couldn''t detect the real lotus itself. What could this mean?


    It meant that the lotus contained the same level of inheritance as his eyes.


    It was born out of the nurturing of the Great Emperor, and clearly, it had already obtained the Way.


    There were many ancient trees and divine plants in the Relic Garden, and many of them clearly held opportunities that caused many to compete. Although this lotus was extraordinary, only a few forces came here because of their similar abilities in cultivation. But they did not really understand. As for the willow tree, only the monk was comprehending under it. Perhaps many people knew that the willow tree was extraordinary, but they could not really comprehend anything from it.


    Everyone had their own opportunities.


    It seemed that Xia Qingyuan''s chances were better than he imagined.


    Ye Futian walked on the surface of the lake, passing many lotus flowers. He looked at those lotuses and said, "All these flowers here are just one, aren''t they? There is no difference between you and the others."


    He sat on the lake and put a lotus in his palm. This was why he might not see a distinction in any area. It was because they were all the same.


    "It''s just that the person you have been waiting for will probably never come back. Instead of enduring thousands of years of loneliness, it''s better to find someone new," Ye Futian said to the lotus. People from the Xiao Clan and other cultivators watched on with great curiosity.


    This guy was actually talking to the lotus.


    They all came from top principalities and knew that all creatures possessed spirits. But they had never seen this type of situation. Could it be true that this lotus flower really contained life?


    Then that would mean that it had already obtained the Way.


    "Qingyuan, sit down." Ye Futian looked up at the Xia Qingyuan, who was beside him.


    Xia Qingyuan sat obediently next to him.


    "Release your life spirit." Ye Futian said. Xia Qingyuan nodded, and her life spirit was released. A radiant lotus appeared. Its petals opened and closed. At this moment, Xia Qingyuan was like a fairy with a ray of sacred glory upon her.


    "She is like you. Her life spirit is also a lotus. Lotuses are a part of life, and you could grow and accompany her cultivation of the way of life. If you merge into her life spirit and become a part of her, there will be someone growing with you so that you won''t feel lonely anymore," Ye Futian murmured softly. The breath from his body was gentle, and a bright divine light flowed in the palm of his hand.


    Everyone around looked at Ye Futian with a strange look.


    Xiao Muyu''s eyes were full of curiosity. This was the first time she had seen someone grab treasure like this. Was he in a dialogue with the lotus? And asking it to select its own master!


    They had never seen anything like it.


    If it was in another circumstance, she would think that there was something wrong with Ye Futian.


    However, this man was extraordinarily handsome. His white garment matched his white hair, gentle and elegant. Somehow, his dialogue with the lotus gave her a very mysterious feeling, as if he was a guru of some sort.


    "Crazy."


    Xiao Muyu thought to herself that this man''s age should be close to hers, yet he exuded an air that was not of this world.


    Moreover, he was not fighting for the lotus for himself, but for the woman next to him. Was she the one he loved?


    The light from Ye Futian''s palm had a trace of wondrous breath. The lotus flower gradually released rays of light, slowly floating upward and actually drifting toward the life spirit of Xia Qingyuan.


    "What is this��"


    Everyone was shocked when they witnessed what was before them. Everything they saw now was incredible, but it was really happening in front of them.


    Did this work too?


    If they had known, they would have talked with the lotus already, without waiting for Ye Futian.


    The light was getting brighter and brighter, and countless lotus flowers were now integrated into the lotus flower that floated above Xia Qingyuan''s head. The six-petal flower released a radiant divine light. Indeed, all the lotus flowers were one.


    It truly understood.


    At this moment, everyone was getting antsy.


    However, at this time, Ye Futian got up, pointing the spear in his hand in the air, and said with a laugh, "I always believe in reason. Please respect the lotus''s choice."


    Respect a lotus''s choice?


    When everyone heard what Ye Futian said, they felt an urge to beat him up. However, they also felt the fighting intention of the spear, and no one dared to act rashly.


    "You are not here to fight for yourself. Who is this?" Xiao Muyu asked, eyes on Xia Qingyuan.


    "My friend, but what''s the difference?" Ye Futian smiled.


    "Why not give me the lotus? Xiao Muyu of the Xiao Clan could also be your friend." Xiao Muyu smiled provocatively and unleashed her charm. She was already a very beautiful woman with elegant temperament, and at the moment, she was working with all she had. She possessed extremely lethal skills of seduction.


    Ye Futian was tempted for a moment but then smiled at Xiao Muyu. Ye Futian was not someone who could be swayed by beauty.


    "I''ll consider it if the Xiao Clan wants to propose marriage to me," Ye Futian said with a smile. Did it mean that he would no longer need to cultivate with such effort if he married the daughter from the top force of Emperor Realm?


    "Shameless."


    Next to him, Xia Qingyuan was feeling warm and fuzzy, but when she heard Ye Futian''s words, she couldn''t help but swear in a low voice. What a shameless b*stard.


    In the future, if she could ever be moved by him again, she would...


    Xiao Muyu also froze and stared at Ye Futian. She must have been blind not to see that he was a shameless b*stard.


    "I''m just kidding! Do you really think I''m that kind of person? This lotus and my friend fit together perfectly, and it took the initiative to choose its master. Naturally, it belongs to her. Whoever disagrees will have to go through me and my spear," Ye Futian said, standing guard next to Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan was again warmed in her heart.


    It seemed that maybe he was not so shameless, after all.


    No one dared to move lightly. They watched the lotus flower merged into the Xia Qingyuan''s life spirit. In a flash, Xia Qingyuan''s life spirit released an extremely radiant glory as lotuses filled the sky. The way of heaven and earth poured into Xia Qingyuan''s body madly as she closed her eyes to meditate, absorbing the way of heaven and earth and perceiving the true meaning of the lotus.


    The divine light shrouded her body. As Ye Futian glanced at her, he saw that Xia Qingyuan''s face was also illuminated by divine light, just like a glorious goddess.


    Although she was rather fierce, if she put on something feminine, she should be pretty enough!


    ...


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 1633 Princess of Emperor Xias Realm

    Xiao Muyu looked at Xia Qingyuan, who was sitting on the lake, and there was a faint sense of envy in her heart. The Great Path was born of the lotus and nourishing the life spirit. This woman''s talent seemed unremarkable and lacked outstanding cultivation. But with such an opportunity, she was destined to go through a remarkable transformation.


    In hindsight, she could see that although she had paid a lot of attention to this lotus before, her assessment of it was still off. This lotus had already contained spiritual wisdom and was thus able to understand Ye Futian''s persuasion. It may have been nurtured by the spirits of the gods or the master of the relic.


    Such an opportunity was taken by another when it was so close at hand.


    All this was because of that white-haired young man, Ye Futian, from Tianhe Realm.


    This b*stard... How dare he claim that he had won by reason?


    This was clearly a robbery.


    It was just that he had given such a precious gift to the woman next to him. Judging from his flirty words before, it did not seem like they were Path Companions. Otherwise, he would not dare to be so bold as to joke about entering the Xiao Clan as a son-in-law.


    She was considering whether she should still try to snatch the flower. If she did, could the people of Xiao Clan deal with Ye Futian''s spear?


    "I know I am extraordinarily handsome, but you don''t have to stare at me like that," Ye Futian said just as Xiao Muyu was thinking. "The God''s relic has already opened, and there are still many other opportunities. Do you really plan on spending more time here?"


    Xiao Muyu looked at Ye Futian and couldn''t fathom how could someone at the peak of Saint Plane so accomplished in combat could be so brazenly shameless.


    Extraordinarily handsome?


    Xiao Muyu took a closer look at Ye Futian. Well, he wasn''t really lying...


    "Farewell," Xiao Muyu said as she turned to leave. After all, she had decided to give it up. It was a gamble to start a war with Ye Futian, and the odds were not good. It was far better to go somewhere else to seek other opportunities.


    After sending off the Xiao Clan, he looked at others again with a smile. Soon, the people from Illusion Island and Fate World started to leave one after another, until only Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan were left. All of a sudden, it seemed extremely quiet.


    "Some peace, finally," Ye Futian whispered. He glanced at Xia Qingyuan beside him, who was still bathed in the sacred lotus light screen. Ye Futian smiled and said, "Princess, look how much I have sacrificed for you."


    Xia Qingyuan gave Ye Futian a sideways glance. She suddenly smiled and said, "How do you want me to reward you?"


    Ye Futian gasped when he saw Xia Qingyuan''s smile, and said rather carefully, "Cultivate with peace of mind, knowing that I am here standing guard for you, Princess."


    As he was speaking, he turned to sneak aside. This woman actually knew how to smile?


    Horror.


    However, it was a truly beautiful smile.


    "Chicken," a contemptuous voice was heard from behind him.


    "..."


    Ye Futian had a look of slight outrage and wanted to say something tough, but he thought better of it and said nothing.


    The was a faint sense of loss in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes when she saw how Ye Futian had behaved, but then she closed her eyes and cultivated in peace. The lotus opened up all its six petals and extended toward the sky. Countless rays of the Great Path fell down into the lotus itself.


    Ye Futian looked over at her. A life spirit was the foundation of cultivation. The divine lotus of the emperor was now integrated into Xia Qingyuan''s life spirit, and that was enough for Xia Qingyuan to complete a transformation.


    Occasionally, someone was attracted to the lake by the movement, but when they saw Ye Futian standing guard with the spear on the lake, those who came would leave quickly. Anyone who had received the opportunity by themselves and remained standing would not be someone to be trifled with.


    They were not so blind after all. There are things that would cost them their lives if they insisted on fighting for them.


    Many had already fallen in this place before.


    Time passed slowly, but Ye Futian was in no hurry.


    After a while, a breath came from within the petals, which attracted Ye Futian''s attention. He smiled, realizing that she had broken through the realm. With such a rare opportunity of the Great Path, the breakthrough was not surprising.


    Moreover, that breath was still getting stronger. For Xia Qingyuan, it was a total transformation inside and out, to improve the body of the Great Path and cleanse the spiritual soul.


    The glorious brilliance shone between the heavens and the earth in six colors, intertwined and dreamlike. After some time, this light returned, flowing toward the lotus before it disappeared.


    The lotus petals also disappeared along with it, transforming into a sacred lotus and entering the life palace of Xia Qingyuan.


    At this moment, Xia Qingyuan seemed to have undergone a metamorphosis. Even her temperament had changed, and she was radiant.


    Ye Futian''s eyes fell on her, looking at her eyes and face.


    Xia Qingyuan seemed to sense the surprise in his eyes, and she slightly lowered her head and asked, "What are you looking at?"


    "Nothing." Ye Futian came to his senses. This woman seemed to have gotten even more beautiful.


    However, he shouldn''t say anything.


    "Why don''t you continue to cultivate for a while? The lotus contains the Way, enough for you to comprehend for a long time," Ye Futian asked. It was not possible for Xia Qingyuan to digest it so quickly.


    "It has already integrated into my life spirit and is one with me now. Why should I rush? The relic is open. I don''t have time to cultivate here," Xia Qingyuan responded. It was one thing if she was here cultivating alone, but for Ye Fu Tian to stand guard here would delay his chance to fight for the relic.


    In her view, the relic left by the gods of the Heavenly Palace should belong to him.


    "Huh?" Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan with surprise.


    "What are you doing?" Xia Qingyuan felt that Ye Futian was acting quite strange today.


    "Since when is the princess so understanding?" Ye Futian murmured.


    Xia Qingyuan glared at him with her mouth pursed. When was she not understanding?


    "Let''s go look elsewhere," Ye Futian said, and then turned to leave with Xia Qingyuan trailing behind him. Her light footsteps caused gentle ripples upon the lake.


    Ye Futian''s divine will was permeating toward the far distance, with the Purple Gold Rats exploring the way underground. The top characters in this region had all been informed one way or another and converged on the real God''s relic. After all, that was the center of focus. Who wouldn''t want to fight for the relic left by the gods?


    As for this side, there were still many lesser cultivators competing for the opportunity who were not so high among the top forces. They understood that the relic left by the gods was out of their reach, so the main thing was for them to find more opportunities that suited them. At least they had to make the trip worthwhile.


    At this moment, in front of a golden divine tree, there were many cultivators gathered. The golden leaves made rustling sounds, and every leaf was of a golden color that revealed a sharp sensation. The tree also bore golden fruits of the Way, and all of them were precious.


    The people around them looked at Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan alarmingly. Ye Futian said, "You have fought enough for this tree. Our princess is somewhat interested in it, could you give the rest of them to our princess?"


    Xia Qingyuan blinked her beautiful eyes, but still remained calm. Her eyes focused forward, understanding that she couldn''t say anything to explain herself.


    Everyone stole a sideways glance at Xia Qingyuan. Xia Qingyuan, who had just gone through a metamorphosis, was dazzling. Someone asked with alarm, "What princess is this and from where?"


    Was she from the Divine Kingdoms or the ancient tribes?


    "It''s rather far away. Perhaps you have never heard of it before," said Ye Futian.


    "Which realm of the Nine Realms?" someone asked. Most of the people here came from the Supreme Nine Realms.


    "None of the Nine Realms. Princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm in the Crimson Dragon''s Region under the Nine Realms." Ye Futian actually sounded proud and arrogant.


    Below the Nine Realms, Crimson Dragon Region? Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    What small, unknown, crappy realm was this in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path?


    Everyone''s face changed drastically as they felt the humiliation.


    "Get out..." someone scolded in anger. They were not fit to proclaim the title of "princess" before them.


    "I have always convinced people with reason and was willing to discuss the matter with all of you. I didn''t expect you to be so disrespectful to our princess. In that case, I have to take action." Ye Futian took out the spear, and everyone sneered. However, in the next moment, a powerful intent of battle swept across the sky, and many became greatly alerted.


    Buzz. A shadow sailed across, with illusions of the spear filling the sky. In a short moment, everyone was lying flat on their backs.


    Ye Futian, being greatly satisfied, stepped over to pick all the fruits of the Way. Soon the Golden Tree lay bare except for the trunk.


    "Princess, these people have been punished for disrespecting you. Let''s go look elsewhere," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan. Xia Qingyuan''s face darkened with gloom. Even in victory, she felt greatly embarrassed.


    Whether robbing or plundering, there was no need to be so blatant and shameless.


    After Ye Futian left, all the geniuses from the top forces were so mad that they were shaking.


    They had never seen such a brazen cad in their lives.


    Whoever heard of such justification for blatant plundering?


    This crappy Emperor Xia''s Realm from Crimson Dragon Region must have been some kind of scum of the lowest kind from the Nine Realms.


    Looking at the tree that now stood bare, they just wanted to cry.


    "This is the Princess of Emperor Xia''s Realm. Could you all please give away some opportunities from here?" a voice could be heard vaguely in the distance that made the eyelids of all the cultivators present twitch uncontrollably as they mourned in silence for those in the distance.


    After a while, two figures were seen emerging from the relic and moved toward the way back to the Heavenly Palace.


    These two were Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    At the moment, Ye Futian felt as if the spring breeze was caressing his face, and he was happy. This trip was full of rewards.


    "Next time, can you not use my name?" Xia Qingyuan said through gritted teeth. She felt completely humiliated.


    The Princess from Emperor Xia''s Realm was going to be famous.


    "I will remember what Princess has said," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Xia Qingyuan knew what she had said was in vain, "You''ve already emptied out a temple, why bother with these fruits?"


    All the divine implements in that temple were perhaps more than the power of all the top forces within a single realm.


    This meant that the wealth possessed by Ye Futian alone was comparable to that of a single realm.


    "The poor have no ambition," Ye Futian said.


    "That was before," Xia Qingyuan said with loathing. He wasn''t poor now.


    "Princess has never been poor, so you wouldn''t understand," Ye Futian said, and Xia Qingyuan had no response. In the past, she was a princess of one realm, but that was nothing in the situation they were currently in.


    "Cultivation is not an easy task," Ye Futian said while taking out a fruit of the Way and tossing it into his mouth, making a clear, crisp sound.


    He was eating it like any ordinary fruit.


    Xia Qingyuan''s eyelids quivered as her innards trembled. Indeed, like some poor b*stard, he was treating the fruit of the Way like any common fruit.


    "Does Princess want one?" Ye Futian handed one to Xia Qingyuan.


    "I''m not eating it." Xia Qingyuan firmly refused to be the same kind of ignorant fool as him.


    "The Way contained in this fruit can cast the body to the Great Path faster," Ye Futian said.


    Xia Qingyuan ignored him and stretched out her hand silently instead. She put the fruit to her mouth and took a gentle bite, feeling the Way enter her body with an enjoyable and refreshing feeling!


    ...


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 1634 Convergence of Cultivators in Nine Realms

    Beneath the Heavenly Palace, cultivators gathered in droves from every direction. All the notable figures of the Nine Realms were assembled in one place.


    The God''s relic was definitely a place attended completely by the talented geniuses of the current Nine Realms. All the best from the Saint plane would make an appearance here.


    At this point, there were already many cultivators who had attempted to break into the divine path to set foot on the stairway to the Heavenly Palace.


    But so far, no one had succeeded, and that immortal celestial palace that stood above the sky seemed unreachable.


    When Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan came back here again, there were already many more people present than before. Previously there was only the group that was led by him and the group led by Jian Qingzhu. With the additional passages gained by two other channels in addition to those who arrived later, quite a gathering had formed in this place.


    The arrival of Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan did not attract too much attention, and they were only noticed by some who knew him.


    For example, many in the Upper Heavens Realm knew Ye Futian, and many cultivators from Divine Palace, Divine Sword Li Family, and Sky Burying God Clan had seen him before. That was in addition to his own notoriety.


    Of course, there was also the Golden Divine Nation.


    There was a sharpness in Gai Shishi''s eyes as a golden divine light shot out from his eyes, directed at Ye Futian. The humiliation of the past battle was still difficult for him to swallow. That was the greatest humiliation yet in his life.


    Huang Zhong from the Divine Palace, who had already entered the Renhuang Realm at this moment, also took a look at Ye Futian. He could have broken through to the realm earlier, but he had waited until he entered God''s relic. His presence was very different from what he was before.


    Of course, those who were defeated by Ye Futian in the past also took notice of him, such as the Martial God Clan, Heavenly Sword Hall, Ziwei Palace, and other forces that were previously expelled. They were all back now. Ye Futian had forbidden them from participating in the battle for the divine implement at the Sacred Hall, but he had emptied out the entire Spatial Sacred Hall and opened that door. So, they were here too, but their eyes were cautious as they regarded Ye Futian with vigilance.


    And Xiao Muyu and the others gave Ye Futian a dirty look.


    "What are you looking at?" At this time, there was a place among the crowd that attracted attention. The people gathered there possessed extremely superior temperament, and one of them asked the youth next to him.


    "His disciple." The young man''s eyes turned to Ye Futian, his look extremely sharp.


    "Him?" asked the person next to him with some doubt.


    "The one from Tianhe Realm," the young man responded. It turned out that this man was a disciple of the Shen Clan. Not long ago, he went to Tianhe Realm with his father, Shen Yao, to make their demand of the Sky River Great Elder. He had met Ye Futian then, so he recognized him.


    "Sky River Great Elder." The cultivators from Shen Clan immediately understood when they heard the youth. Suddenly their eyes turned, and they regarded Ye Futian from afar.


    The people from the Shen Clan evoked a sense of fear, as no other forces dared to get too close to them as they stood there. Everyone maintained a certain distance from them, so it was particularly conspicuous.


    Ye Futian noticed the cultivators from the Shen Clan in an instant. He felt the gaze from the others. Likewise, his eyes were looking over as the two sides stared at each other.


    "Disciples of Shen Clan." Ye Futian recognized them instantly and made a note to himself.


    The Shen Clan had once gone to Tianhe Mountain, intending to take him away before taking his teacher Qi Xuangang to the Shen Clan at Central Emperor Realm. How could he have forgotten that?


    "Who are they?" Xia Qingyuan seemed to sense something. She asked Ye Futian via voice transmission. These men did not look friendly, and they seemed to scrutinize Ye Futian very closely, which made her feel a little uneasy.


    Could they be forces that Ye Futian had offended?


    She had been transported to other realms before, so she did not know what had happened to Ye Futian.


    "At the Central Emperor Realm in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, I''ve had some exchanges with the Shen Clan," Ye Futian responded, and Xia Qingyuan frowned slightly. The top power of the Central Emperor Realm was enough to cause her concern.


    She believed that Ye Futian had no need to fear anyone in the competition at the God''s relic because his own talent would not be inferior to those from the top powers. However, if there were grudges, then it was not a matter simply limited to the younger generation. Ye Futian''s talents, no matter how impressive, couldn''t contend with the top forces of the Central Emperor Realm.


    Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan returned to Yu Sheng and the others. Many powerful cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm were in this position. Next to them were the mighty cultivators from Dou Tribe and Yuanyang Clan.


    Yuan Hong from Yuanyang Clan glanced at the direction of the Shen Clan. Ye Futian claimed to be the successor of the Sky River Temple, so he must have known that there would be grievances with the Shen Clan. Now, it seemed that he had already understood the implications.


    "He was a formidable figure once upon a time, but in his old age, his obsessiveness caused self-destruction. After so many years, to have accepted an inheritor, it must be because he has high hopes in this successor." In the direction of the Shen Clan, their leader spoke softly, without the disguise of voice transmission. Although they were separated by quite a bit of distance, Ye Futian could hear it clearly.


    When the other spoke, their eyes were still focused on him.


    "I heard that he had personally escorted this inheritor to the City of the Ruins," the man beside him added.


    "At its peak, there were three thousand disciples in Sky River Temple. What is the point of accepting another disciple now, other than just to inherit his craft and give him some comfort in his later years?" The young man continued, "If he had known what would happen today, why bother destroying everything back then?"


    When he finished speaking, the youth withdrew his attention and no longer focused on Ye Futian. They did scrutinize Ye Futian, but now that Qi Xuangang had been taken down by the family, he wouldn''t deliberately pick on Ye Futian. That would be beneath him.


    Sky River Great Elder and the Shen Clan went way back in origin. They would let him keep this one inheritor that would eventually inherit all of his craft.


    Yuan Hong also heard what the other had said, and his eyes drifted toward Ye Futian. Even though he had witnessed Ye Futian''s talent, there was indeed a huge gap between the two of them in terms of status. Ye Futian would probably be subjected to great pressure in the future.


    Moreover, he knew that the young man who had spoken was the strongest of the current descendants of the Shen Clan. It was one of the most dazzling figures among his peers in the Central Emperor Realm, Shen Hao.


    Shen Hao was destined to be extraordinary. His father was a fabulous cultivator in the Shen Clan, and since birth, he was destined to embark on a glorious path. He did not disappoint. Since the beginning of his cultivation amongst the children of countless clansmen, he was always invincible. In the future, he would undoubtedly inherit his father''s crafts.


    Moreover, there was a good chance that he would become the future helmsman of the Shen Clan.


    Previously, in his fight for the Spatial Sacred Hall, Ye Futian had offended many top principalities. But as his alliance was powerful, there was not much issue. However, now in the fight for the relic left by the gods of Heavenly Palace, status and background were all within consideration. The question was, could he do it?


    Therefore, no matter how powerful was Ye Futian''s talent, the pressure he would be subjected to would be unimaginable.


    "Princess had a breakthrough?" Yaya noticed the transformation of Xia Qingyuan''s temperament as her breath became even more overpowering. It seemed that Ye Futian had found an opportunity for her.


    "Mmm." Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly and glanced at Ye Futian beside her.


    "I haven''t found anything suitable for you yet," Ye Futian said to Yaya.


    "I know." Yaya didn''t say anything more, as she didn''t have any other thought. Previously in Sword City, Ye Futian had let her choose. It was she who first gave the opportunity to the Swordmaster of Lihen. She understood that as long as there was an opportunity, Ye Futian would never treat his people poorly.


    "Boss, what about me?" The Little Condor looked at Ye Futian pitifully. Even that vicious woman had broken through. Would that spell future misery for Lord Condor?


    "What are you fretting about?" Xia Qingyuan looked at the Little Condor with a smile.


    Seeing the look in Xia Qingyuan''s eyes, the Little Condor felt goosebumps all over, and muttered, "Oh boy, she wants to be the mistress."


    Without further ado, Ye Futian pressed his head down fiercely as Xia Qingyuan was heard saying, "After you go out, leave the Little Condor to me for a few days. I will share some opportunity with him."


    "Ah..." The Little Condor looked at Ye Futian tremblingly.


    "Seriously." Ye Futian was speechless for the time being. Xia Qingyuan and Little Condor were entangled for good.


    "How is the situation here?" Ye Futian asked Yu Sheng.


    "Everyone has arrived, but no one can approach the sky stairwell." Yu Sheng kept his eyes forward and said, "The statues seem to be alive. It is as if they still contain the will of their previous lives. There were even mirages when one stepped inside that appeared real enough."


    Ye Futian nodded. This was well within expectation. After all, this was the cultivation place of the fabled Great Emperor, which would not be so simple to breach.


    This had happened several times with God''s relic. For more than 300 years, each time it was opened, the genius from all Nine Realms would enter. But so far, no one had ever entered.


    This time, it was because of him and Jian Qingzhu that they were able to open two of the doors and activate the other two passages, hence the situation at hand.


    "Jian Qingzhu left." Ye Futian looked to the other side and didn''t see Jian Qingzhu in the direction of Tianshen Academy.


    "He said that he was going to see two other places," Yaya said, and Ye Futian nodded in acknowledgment. Jian Qingzhu had similar thoughts, but he only went to the Garden of Gods. As for the remaining place, it resembled more of an entrance. Many relics had already been trespassed upon and were not worth visiting.


    At this time, the sound of air breaking was heard, and the group of captivating characters from Tianshen Academy came forward. The person in the lead was none other than Jian Qingzhu.


    Eyes fell upon him, and they were very serious. Before, when they were at the entrance, it was the people of Tianshen Academy who opened the sealed door. It was said that Jian Qingzhu had commanded it.


    It also meant that it was Jian Qingzhu who came here and activated all the passages so that they could gather together here.


    After coming here, everyone focused on the Heavenly Palace and did not talk about anything. They had no idea that the people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm led by Ye Futian came earlier than Jian Qingzhu. The people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and other forces like Yuanyang Clan would not disclose this information on their own, as that would only cause more trouble for Ye Futian.


    Never mind that Jian Qingzhu opened the gate to the ultimate relic. Many notable figures had known his name as the first person among the descendants of Tianshen Academy. Even those who had never heard of him would have heard of him by now when they arrived.


    If it were not because the God''s relic of Heavenly Palace was right before them, the gathering of all of the most excellent figures of the Nine Realms would only tempt them to compete against one another!


    ...


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 1635 Decision

    "What''s the situation?" Jian Qingzhu asked those around him after returning to where Tianshen Academy was positioned.


    The person next to him shook his head and said, "No one can crack it. I''m afraid that ordinary people can''t pass."


    Those who could come here were all qualified to be called geniuses in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Being considered "ordinary" was dependent on context. Those powerful cultivators who had gathered in front of them were considered geniuses by the top forces and were only "ordinary" in comparison to the best.


    Jian Qingzhu understood what he meant, and he could also see that it was difficult. Unless top geniuses were willing to render aid in the effort to crack it, there was not much hope.


    "Everyone has arrived. Hasn''t anyone tried?" Jian Qingzhu looked at the cultivators around him, many of whom he had met before. Several of them were the same extraordinary geniuses who were also from the Central Emperor Realm just like him.


    He recognized Shen Hao of the Shen Clan, that princess, and several other extraordinary individuals.


    In addition, not only the Central Emperor Realm had arrived this time. Other realms within the Nine Realms were also represented by their own top talents. The strongest from each realm was bound to be unusually outstanding. Ye Futian, for example, who led his group coming from the east, was not a simple man. Like him, he would be a creator for the history of God''s relic.


    "Has anyone here got a clue how to solve the mystery?" Jian Qingzhu asked the crowd. As the first person among the descendants of Tianshen Academy and someone in the Renhuang Realm, he exuded an ethereal aura. As soon as he spoke, he attracted everyone''s attention.


    "This road is the only way to enter the Heavenly Palace. This means that we must gain passage through these statues. However, until now, no one could solve the meaning of these statues," said Shen Hao from the Shen Clan rather calmly. He stood there with a divine light shining upon him.


    "Well," Jian Qingzhu nodded, "it seems that it is not easy to decode the meaning of this statue. But we have here a gathering of many genius talents from the Nine Realms. Is there someone who would like to be the first one to give it a shot?"


    "Tianshen Academy is the leading institution of all the academies. Its disciples are all colorful figures in their own rights. Not to mention, Brother Jian was also the first person who set foot into the relic, hoping to gain entry first. Why doesn''t Tianshen Academy take the lead in solving this mystery?" some cultivator from a top force in the Emperor Realm suggested, hoping Tianshen Academy would take the lead in this.


    "I''m not the first person to set foot here," Jian Qingzhu said, and the others didn''t seem to pay him any mind. This wasn''t important, after all. Jian Qingzhu did not bother to explain anything. He merely looked at a young man next to him and said, "Ziyu, how about you give it a try?"


    Hearing his words, many became expectant. For those from the top powers of the Nine Realms, everyone knew of the reputation of Tianshen Academy as the academy that stood inside the Central Emperor Realm. It was known as the premier institution in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    It was only appropriate that disciples from Tianshen Academy would step up in situations such as this.


    "Very well." The young man next to Jian Qingzhu nodded, and then walked toward the ancient path in front of him with countless eyes fastened on him.


    This young man, Han Ziyu, was a well-known figure in Tianshen Academy. Because of Jian Qingzhu''s presence at the Academy, Han Ziyu was not as dazzling in comparison. But on the Book List at the Academy, his ranking was rather high on the list.


    Above the Heavenly Palace, as divine might descended, Han Ziyu stepped forward. His long robe fluttered even though there was no wind.


    The crowd looked at the Heavenly Palace above, which seemed to be closed despite the fact that it was still quite a distance away. The ancient path in front was about ten kilometers long, but this was nothing to the cultivators of this realm.


    As Han Ziyu moved forward, his temperament transcendent, the will of the Way was released from his body. He quickly walked in front of a statue, and suddenly a terrible will erupted from it. It was as if there were ancient peaks blasting onto Han Ziyu, but it was also akin to thundering attacks on the spiritual soul.


    Bang.


    Han Ziyu''s feet planted themselves firmly into the ground. His eyes became extremely sharp as he stared at the statue, and a magnificent spirit exuded from him.


    "Worthy disciple of Tianshen Academy." Many who saw him praised him. Indeed, the reputation befitted the man himself.


    Cultivators of the Divine Palace were also concerned because the Divine Palace was a famous place for cultivation and held a supreme position in the Upper Heavens Realm. However, its reputation in the Nine Realms was certainly not superior to Tianshen Academy''s.


    There seemed to be a dazzling and radiant divine light that shot out from the eyes of Shen Hao.


    Ye Futian''s eyes also changed. He seemed to be able to look beyond falsehood.


    He observed that the statue seemed to be able to perceive Han Ziyu''s approach as an extremely overwhelming will emanated from the statue. In the next moment, a terrible will of the Way spread and converged between heaven and earth.


    "Birth of illusions," many whispered, staring closely.


    On the ancient path, some changes were taking place as a suffocating will of the Great Path appeared. Many could vaguely see a purple radiance, ruinous thunder, and the mountain peaks.


    It was hard to distinguish between illusions and reality.


    Ye Futian was able to see it a little more clearly and saw a region of the Great Path appeared there.


    Han Ziyu was enveloped by that region of the Great path. That region was closed off by ancient peaks guarding it on all sides, blocking all directions except for a sliver of the sky above. Dazzling golden divine light fell, and there was also a terrible purple light of destruction that continued shining.


    Han Ziyu must be under tremendous pressure at this moment, Ye Futian thought. Han Ziyu saw that countless purple divine swords suddenly emerged from the sliver of an opening in the sky, like the sword of the end of days, instantaneous diving towards him.


    Under the pressure of the Great Path, he could hardly move.


    However, he was a talented genius from Tianshen Academy. An extremely sharp divine light flashed through his eyes, and an overpowering will erupted. Suddenly, there were many radiant golden swords that flew toward the sliver in the sky.


    Click!


    A violent sound came out, and many did not actually witness the destruction but heard the terrible sound of the Great Path instead. Han Ziyu''s long hair suddenly loosened and spread out, dancing wildly in the wind.


    Bang!


    There was another loud bang, and he continued to retreat. In that illusion, he felt that he was extremely small. It was as if he was competing with heaven. No matter how hard he tried, he still could not overcome it.


    An incredibly strong will of the Way burst from him. His eyes were extremely firm as his will became even more determined. The crowd saw many swords rush out of Han Ziyu''s body to illuminate the space he occupied.


    "This genius talent from Tianshen Academy is quite impressive, and his will is tough enough. He''s still hanging on," Dou Zhao said, his eyes turning golden as he saw much more than many others.


    The divine light of destruction fell down like an illusion, and yet seemed all too real.


    Accompanied by a loud bang, Han Ziyu spat out a mouthful of blood. His body was quickly weakening. He bowed his head and dared not look at the statue in front of him.


    Bang!


    A wave of divine might blasted on his body and knocked him backward. Jian Qingzhu reached out with his hand, and suddenly, an invisible light blocked Han Ziyu''s backward momentum and stopped his fall.


    Han Ziyu retreated after steadying himself and whispered, "I have failed."


    "The statue''s will was far too aggressive. Failure was not surprising." Jian Qingzhu comforted him, and Han Ziyu said nothing more but simply returned to the crowd from Tianshen Academy.


    Many felt somewhat disappointed, having witnessed the power of the statue. Han Ziyu from Tianshen Academy had failed, and this was only one of them. It was probably going to be extremely difficult to pass them.


    "Tianshen Academy gave it a shot. Do any of you want to test the remaining will of might in the other statues?" Jian Qingzhu asked, eyeing the crowd.


    Han Ziyu''s failure at least shed some light on one of the statues.


    Since all the cultivators from the Nine Realms wanted to enter the Imperial Palace, it was unreasonable for just Tianshen Academy to do all the heavy lifting.


    "Shen Clan will give it a try," Shen Hao said, but he did not make the move personally, either. Instead, he looked at a cultivator from Shen Clan beside him, who took the cue and walked toward another statue. Before he had time to get close, he felt like he was suffocating, and his heart was about to stop beating as well. Similarly, he seemed to have also entered an invisible phantasmal space where everything had become unreal.


    After a few moments, he met the same fate as Han Ziyu. In even less time, he was injured and knocked out.


    After that, many cultivators from various forces tried their best. Most just wanted a taste without letting their most powerful person take the risk, so they had all ended in failure.


    "Each of the nine statues contains a different will. In order to get through the passage, the will of might from all nine statues has to be broken at the same time." Jian Qingzhu continued, "And, in my opinion, it would be difficult for someone to break the will of the nine statues at the same time. Therefore, I have a suggestion."


    All the cultivators looked at him, and someone asked, "What suggestion?"


    "Select nine people from the cultivators of Nine Realms and rush in at the same time, cracking the will of the statues in one fell swoop," Jian Qingzhu said. All previous attempts ended in failure, but Jian Qingzhu wanted all nine people to walk out with success at the same time, breaking apart the statues'' will.


    But this ambition was not something commoners dared to consider.


    In the Nine Realms, it was not so difficult to find nine top contenders.


    "How?" someone asked.


    "If there are exactly nine statues, then each of the nine realms may choose one representative. If someone thinks that he is more suitable than the others chosen by the other realms, he can fight for the opportunity on the side." Jian Qingzhu asked everyone, "How about it?"


    Central Emperor Realm was the strongest among all nine realms and had the most top contenders. One position was clearly not enough, so they could compete with the others selected from the other realms. If they thought they were more suitable candidates, they could grab additional positions from the other realms.


    Obviously, after one attempt, Jian Qingzhu did not plan to continue testing slowly but wanted to solve the mystery in the most direct way and enter the sky stairwell.


    "Sounds good." The people from Shen Clan nodded and did not disagree. They, too, wanted to get it over with instead of wasting any more time here.


    The top figures from Central Emperor Realm are indeed more decisive, Ye Futian thought. If there were any selections from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there should be no question!


    ...


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 1636 Absolute Suppression

    The cultivators of various forces each had their own thoughts about this. Even Han Ziyu of Tianshen Academy could not crack the statues.


    From the looks of it, it would also be difficult for most of them to do so as well. After all, many people had already tried, and none had succeeded.


    Hence, the idea proposed by Jian Qingzhu of Tianshen Academy was reasonable. The denizens of each Realm would choose their strongest cultivator as a representative. The nine chosen ones would then crack the nine statues at the same time. The Ancient Road would then be opened; they could then access the sky stairwell and reach the Heavenly Palace.


    However, there was an issue that still remained: what would happen to the rest of them after they had successfully chosen the nine representatives?


    Right now, nothing was certain. However, there was a huge probability that the nine chosen ones would seize the greatest opportunities, and they had the highest chances of getting the relics.


    Even if the rest didn''t agree with this idea, what could they do?


    They could not crack the statues by themselves. Therefore, everyone acquiesced to Jian Qingzhu''s proposal. The minority who had opposing ideas could only hold their tongues.


    "Since the rest do not have any objections, then may the Nine Realms each choose their respective representative," Jian Qingzhu said. The top forces of the Central Emperor Realm numbered the most here. They also had the most top figures here. If they were to descend into an all-out brawl for a spot, it would most likely escalate into a frightening war.


    Since Jian Qingzhu made such a proposal, he probably wanted this spot. Rather than fighting with Jian Qingzhu over it, the other figures of the Central Emperor Realm might as well fight for the spots of other Realms.


    "My older brother has already reached the Renhuang Plane and is the top scholar on the Book List of Tianshen Academy. Does anyone object to him representing the Imperial Realm to crack the statues?" a cultivator from Tianshen Academy asked loudly. He was also a prominent scholar on the Book List and had some fame in the Central Emperor Realm.


    However, it was impossible for anyone in Tianshen Academy to contend with Jian Qingzhu.


    "We can compete fairly," Jian Qingzhu said. "If anyone has any objections and they are at the Renhuang Plane, we can spar to see who is superior. If they are at the Saint Plane, I will also not take advantage of them. We can try to crack the same statue to see who succeeds. These statues seem to contain powerful wills. It seems that cracking these statues is unrelated to one''s cultivation. It is just nice for us. We can also check in advance whether cracking these statues will bring about any changes to the Ancient Road."


    If cracking the statues beforehand was also counted, they could save some trouble. They would only need to wait for the rest to crack the other statues themselves.


    Jian Qingzhu''s words were very reasonable. No one in the Central Emperor Realm went against him; there was no need to contend with Jian Qingzhu.


    He was the top scholar of the juniors of Tianshen Academy. Now that he had reached the Renhuang Plane, defeating him was too difficult.


    The other cultivators from other Realms were also debating. On the Heavenly Mandate Realm''s side, everyone was clearly very harmonious. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Violet Heavenly Palace, and the forces that opposed Ye Futian had already lost pathetically to Ye Futian''s forces. The other forces all had good relations with Ye Futian and also acknowledged his ability. Not long ago, in the battle in the Spatial Sacred Hall, they also came to realize that no one in the Heavenly Mandate Realm could contend with Ye Futian.


    Hence, very tacitly, everyone looked in the direction where Ye Futian was.


    "You should go." Beside Ye Futian, Qin He said to him in a low voice, "Among the top figures of the Nine Realms, there will most likely be members from other Realms who will want to seize our Heavenly Mandate Realm''s spot. Rather than that happening, we are more confident if we give the spot to you."


    As she said this, her gaze swept over the crowd beside them. She asked, "What does everyone else think?"


    "Hmm." Long Chen nodded in agreement. This time, it was subtly a contest to see who was strongest in the Nine Realms.


    In reality, Ye Futian was also considered the hope of the Heavenly Mandate Realm in this contest.


    On the Higher Heavens Realm''s side, there was also no suspense. Almost no one could compete with Huang Zhong from Shangxiao Divine Palace. The representative from the Higher Heavens Realm was naturally him.


    Among each of the Nine Realms, there were only a few people who could claim the top positions within the Realm.


    After a short while, Jian Qingzhu asked, "Let us begin with the Central Emperor Realm. I am willing to step forward and give it a try. Does anyone wish to challenge me for this spot?"


    As expected, no one said anything.


    "If that is the case, I will take a spot first." Seeing no one responding, Jian Qingzhu said, "Next, the Mountain Realm. Who is your representative?"


    "I wish to give it a try." At this moment, a silhouette walked out. Ye Futian glanced over at the monk who had walked out. It was the monk who was meditating under the willow tree not long ago. His demeanor was stern. The light of Buddha circled around him. His temperament was extraordinary.


    "I am Divine Monk Gui Zang from Tianxian Temple." Every cultivator in the Mountain Realm knew of Divine Monk Gui Zang. Divine Monk Gui Zang''s cultivation method was extremely bizarre. When he was young, his cultivation advanced at an extremely slow rate. He traveled all around preaching. However, once he meditated, he would do so for a few years and break through multiple Planes consecutively.


    There were rumors that claimed that there were no signs of distinction of the Saint Plane on his body at all. He had broken through from below the Saint Plane all the way to becoming a flawless Renhuang in one swoop. He had defied the common knowledge of many people. Some claimed that it was because he had accumulated his cultivation over many years. His state of mind was extraordinary, and he had superb dharma. Due to that, he only needed to deepen his Way of Buddha, and he would naturally break through to higher Planes and attain Nirvana.


    Currently, it seemed that he could no longer be considered a monk at the Saint Plane. After becoming a Renhuang, he was a Buddha.


    When the cultivators of the Mountain Realm saw Gui Zang walk out, they gave up on the notion of competing. Prior to this, the members of the Shenxing Clan had also joined the crowd. However, after seeing the monk Gui Zang, they could only curse internally. They did not want to offend this bald monk. He could easily exorcise anyone here.


    "Emperor Star Realm?" Jian Qingzhu continued asking. On the Emperor Star Realm''s side, Dou Zhao was initially eager to give it a try. However, Ye Futian transmitted his thoughts over to him and asked, "Among those of the Emperor Star Realm, how high would you rank yourself in terms of ability?"


    "I would be first place," Dou Zhao said without any shred of humility.


    "..." Ye Futian was speechless. He felt that compared to Dou Zhao, he paled in comparison when it came to shamelessness.


    "I am the descendant of Fighting God. My will is only below that of Sevenfold Fighting God. If it wasn''t because I encountered the guy beside you, who else could defeat me?" Dou Zhao said, annoyed. He gave Yu Sheng a glance.


    Ye Futian acknowledged the ability of Dou Zhao. In reality, in order to defeat Dou Zhao, Yu Sheng had used all his triumph cards. Hence, one could tell how domineering Dou Zhao was when he unleashed the will of Sevenfold Fighting God.


    When Dou Zhao said he was ranked first in the Emperor Star Realm, he wasn''t bluffing.


    "Even if you are ranked first in the Emperor Star Realm, you will surely face challenges issued by those from the Central Emperor Realm when you step up. Can you fight against them?" Ye Futian asked.


    Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian and revealed a strange expression, asking, "Are you afraid that I might contend with you for the spot?"


    "Fine. Do as you please." Ye Futian rolled his eyes at Dou Zhao. If the nine representatives cracked the statues, they might indeed end up fighting against each other.


    "Nevermind. I am already quite satisfied with what I got on this trip. I will leave this opportunity for you." Dou Zhao did not volunteer himself. The Seventh Slayer, who was now at the Renhuang Plane, represented the Emperor Star Realm. There was another Renhuang from the Emperor Star Realm, but his reputation was obviously not as good as that of the Seventh Slayer, so he didn''t volunteer himself either. As for those at the Saint Plane, when they saw that the Seventh Slayer was now a Renhuang, they gave up too.


    After that, each Realm decided on their representative. In the end, the cultivators of the Myriad Realm chose a Renhuang from the Slaughtering World. He was also a top figure who had broken through to the Renhuang Plane in God''s Relic.


    Unsurprisingly, Huang Zhong of Shangxiao Divine Palace represented the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Then, one by one, the Solar Realm, Shadow Realm, and Hidden Land Realm elected their representatives. All who were chosen were top existences.


    Naturally, Ye Futian represented the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    When other cultivators saw Ye Futian emerge and that no one had fought with him, the facial expressions of those who knew him changed. Those who had suffered losses at the hands of Ye Futian put on strange looks. There were also people who cast skeptical gazes at Ye Futian. For example, the cultivators of Shen Clan were puzzled. It seemed like this inheritor of Sky River Great Elder was quite capable. He could actually convince everyone from the Heavenly Mandate Realm to support him. Was this the person who had traveled from the Heavenly Mandate Realm to the Tianhe Realm in order to learn under the Sky River Great Elder?


    Jian Qingzhu was not at all surprised. Ye Futian was the first person to reach here after opening the door of the Relic. There was no doubt that the Heavenly Mandate Realm would choose him.


    The nine representatives who had been elected were as follows:


    Central Emperor Realm - Jian Qingzhu of Tianshen Academy.


    Heavenly Mandate Realm - Ye Futian.


    Higher Heavens Realm - Huang Zhong of Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    Mountain Realm - Master Gui Zang of Tianxian Temple.


    Emperor Star Realm - the Seventh Slayer of the Clan of the Seven Slayers.


    Myriad Realm - Qin Lin of Slaughtering World.


    Hidden Land Realm - Lian Jiuyou of the Clan of the God of Ghost.


    Solar Realm - Di Wu of Solar Divine Palace.


    Shadow Realm - Chang Xi of Youyue Divine Palace.


    These nine cultivators formed more or less the strongest lineup of the Nine Realms.


    However, this nine-person-lineup was only the initial arrangement. Next, people from any Realm could eliminate them and take over their spots.


    After all, this time, their target was not merely choosing one representative from each Realm. They needed to form the strongest lineup of the Nine Realms.


    "Everyone, in the interest of time, if you intend to challenge any of these nine cultivators, each force will only get one chance to do so," Jian Qingzhu spoke again. If multiple cultivators from each force competed in this elimination, it would take forever to decide on the lineup.


    Each force only had an opportunity. The winner would take the spot, and the loser would be eliminated. There was no second chance.


    Shen Hao was the first to take a step forward. Brilliant divine light enveloped him. He stared at the Seventh Slayer, saying, "Since your Divine Wheel of the Great Path is flawed, you should not occupy a spot."


    The Seventh Slayer glanced at Shen Hao. Murderous intent surged out from his pupils and stabbed towards his opponent.


    Buzz. A divine halo shone brightly on Shen Hao''s body. His Divine Wheel could be vaguely seen. His gaze was sharp, piercing directly into the eyes of the Seventh Slayer. He ignored the domineering murderous intent emanated by the Seventh Slayer.


    The two of them exchanged blows from a distance. An alarming collision of the Great Path had actually taken place in the space between the two of them.


    Bang.


    An overbearing might of Renhuang descended from the sky, intruding the body of the Seventh Slayer. The halo of the Divine Wheel of the Seventh Slayer was suppressed by the might of Renhuang. Even though the murderous intent of the Seventh Slayer was strong and endless killing aura intended to burst forth, they were restrained and could only flow around his body, unable to break through.


    "There are only two types of Divine Wheel: a perfect one or a flawed one. The two of them are worlds apart. Let alone cultivators at the same Plane, even if you are a Plane higher than me, I can still suppress you," Shen Hao spoke with the authority of heaven as his might of Renhuang continued to lash down on the body of the Seventh Slayer. The latter let out a groan of pain, and he actually took a step backward. His murderous aura had experienced an absolute suppression.


    Ye Futian revealed a look of surprise when he saw this scene. The Divine Wheel of the Seventh Slayer had encountered an absolute suppression. Some cultivators divided the Divine Wheels into four tiers. However, in the eyes of the top figures, there were only flawless Divine Wheels and flawed Divine Wheels.


    Shen Hao had forged a flawless Divine Wheel. He was ranked first among the younger generations of the Shen Clan in the Central Emperor Realm. The experiences and resources he had were not something ordinary cultivators could replicate. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.


    Even in the Shen Clan, Shen Hao was the only one in his generation to have forged a flawless Divine Wheel.


    The might of Renhuang dissipated. The halo on both of them disappeared. The Seventh Slayer remained silent. In his first battle after he had become a Renhuang, he was suppressed.


    His spot was seized by others!


    ...


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 1637 Shen Yuan

    Shen Hao managed to suppress the Seventh Slayer and steal the spot of the Emperor Star Realm. The Central Emperor Realm now occupied two spots.


    However, this was also normal. After all, the Central Emperor Realm was the center of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Be it in terms of number of top forces or the ability of their cultivators, the Central Emperor Realm was more superior than other Realms.


    Shen Clan was one of the most powerful forces in the Central Emperor Realm. Shen Hao was the strongest cultivator among this generation of cultivators in the Imperial Realm; he stood head and shoulders above the rest of the Shen Clan members of the same generation. He had forged a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path. It was impossible for the Seventh Slayer to be able to stand against him in a battle.


    Moreover, this was just the beginning. After this, most likely other cultivators from the Central Emperor Realm would continue to seize other spots.


    Due to great distances between Realms, the cultivators in the Nine Realms actually knew very little about each other. They only recognized the top forces and the top figures; they wouldn''t know much about the younger cultivators. This trip to God''s relic had gathered all of them together.


    Other than judging one''s ability based on their Divine Wheel, another method was looking at their origins and which force they had come from.


    Everyone here more or less knew about the forces which stood at the peak in each Realm.


    For instance, it was unlikely for one to not know about top forces such as Tianshen Academy and Shen Clan.


    Another example would be the Divine Palace of the Higher Heavens Realm. It was also a renowned place for cultivating. In terms of ability and teachings, the Higher Heavens Realm would be ranked first.


    Solar Divine Palace of the Solar Realm and Youyue Divine Palace of the Shadow Realm were both the strongest forces in their Realms, respectively. The former focused on the teachings of the utmost Yang while the later focused on the teachings of the utmost Yin. Their ways of teachings were also overpowering.


    Tianxian Temple was the holy land for Buddhists in the Mountain Realm. It was located on Buddha Mountain and was praised as the greatest temple in the Mountain Realm.


    Compared to these forces, although the position of Slaughtering World in the Myriad Realm, as well as the position of Clan of the God of Ghost in the Hidden Land Realm, was considered among the top forces, they were different from the forces mentioned before. They were not at the absolute peak of the pyramid and were not as immovable.


    Thus, it was more likely for Qin Lin from Slaughtering World as well as Lian Jiuyou from Clan of the God of Ghost to be chosen as targets.


    However, the members who previously traveled together with Jian Qingzhu and the others, as well as those who had battled against Ye Futian, such as Xiao Muyu from Xiao Clan, would not think so.


    That fellow was definitely not an easy target.


    At this moment, another silhouette walked out. When she emerged from the crowd, countless gazes landed on her person. A fairy-like aura swept over them.


    In reality, prior to this, many people had noticed her presence. This was because the woman had a stunning appearance. Chang Xi from Youyue Divine Palace was already considered a stunning beauty. However, this woman was actually even more outstanding than Chang Xi. Her body emanated a fairy-like aura, as though there was a formless light that would cause others to feel ashamed of themselves at a glance.


    She was a female Renhuang. That was the reason she had such a supernatural temperament.


    Even the gazes of the top figures of the Central Emperor Realm revealed looks of appreciation when they looked at her. Emperor Nan inspired awe throughout the realm and was a huge and legendary figure in the Central Emperor Realm.


    This woman was the only daughter of Emperor Nan. She was the princess of Nantian Divine Kingdom, Nan Luoshen.


    Emperor Nan''s wife''s family name was Luo, so he named his daughter Luoshen.


    This was the origin of Nan Luoshen''s name.


    Jian Qingzhu was also looking at Nan Luoshen. This princess of Nantian Divine Kingdom would certainly claim a spot.


    When Nan Luoshen walked out, a divine light radiated from inside her body. Her Divine Wheel could faintly be seen. Unparalleled divine light enveloped the heavens and the earth. At this moment, it was as though she was a true goddess that could not be defiled.


    Flawless. Ye Futian exclaimed internally when he sensed her Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Based on what he knew, perfect Divine Wheels were extremely rare. Even among Proud Sons of Heaven, they were rarely seen. However, just today, he had encountered several, one after another.


    It even made him feel as though flawless Divine Wheels were not rare at all and could be found everywhere.


    "What do you think of this woman?" Dou Zhao asked through transmitting his thoughts with a smile when he saw Ye Futian''s look.


    "Who is she?" Ye Futian asked.


    Dou Zhao revealed a bizarre look. This fellow truly knew nothing about the Central Emperor Realm.


    "She is Emperor Nan''s only daughter, Nan Luoshen, the princess of Nantian Divine Kingdom. Based on what my old man said, Emperor Nan''s ability can be ranked among the forefront of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path," Dou Zhao transmitted his thoughts.


    Ye Futian blinked. Was this woman from such an incredible background?


    It seemed that they were a force that could compare with Shen Clan.


    "What are you scheming?" Dou Zhao muttered when he saw Ye Futian''s eyes shining. It was possible that this shameless fellow was planning something.


    "Am I that kind of person?" Ye Futian speechlessly looked at Dou Zhao. What kind of person did Dou Zhao imagine him to be?


    "I haven''t said anything, and you have already understood what I wanted to ask you on your own?" Dou Zhao said in surprise.


    "..." Ye Futian felt accused.


    "I understand. The daughter of Emperor Nan is the dream companion of countless monstrous figures in the Central Emperor Realm. She is definitely the first choice of many." Dou Zhao explained with a smirk, "There is not much hope for you. Take a look at what sort of background Jian Qingzhu and Shen Hao come from. It is not that the other top forces of the Central Emperor Realm are not powerful. It''s just that the strongest cultivators of those top forces are coincidentally not at the same Plane, so the other top forces stand out less."


    Ye Futian naturally understood that encountering flawless Renhuang required some luck as well.


    However, he had met enough top figures this time around.


    "The two of you, what are you whispering?" A mutter sounded from beside Ye Futian. Ye Futian glanced at Xia Qingyuan, who was standing beside him. "Nothing," he said.


    "This maiden is really beautiful," Xia Qingyuan said while looking at Nan Luoshen. Even as a girl, Xia Qingyuan was amazed by the beauty of Nan Luoshen.


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded his head in agreement.


    Xia Qingyuan turned to look at him. He truly wasn''t subtle about it.


    Nan Luoshen''s gaze looked towards Lian Jiuyou of the Hidden Land Realm''s Clan of the God of Ghost. She said, "Do we need to fight for the spot?"


    Lian Jiuyou felt the pressure coming from the other party''s Divine Wheel. He was speechless.


    A flawless Divine Wheel. He had long heard his seniors mention this before. A flawless Divine Wheel had an overwhelming advantage against other Divine Wheels that could not be overcome. However, even though Lian Jiuyou had spent such a huge effort to come here to God''s relic in order to break through to the Renhuang Plane via a fateful encounter, he still fell short and could not succeed.


    He naturally knew who the woman opposite him was. There were few women in the Nine Realms who had such an appearance and temperament. This daughter of Emperor Nan had also reached the Renhuang Plane. Due to her father''s presence as well as her absolute beauty, it was easy for people to forget about her astonishing talent.


    "Since Princess wants this spot, you may have it," Lian Jiuyou responded. He gave his spot to Nan Luoshen right away.


    Of course, even if the two of them battled, he had no hope of securing his spot.


    He might as well reserve his energy for later. It was just that he had not expected that Nan Luoshen would pick him as a target.


    Now, the spot of the Hidden Land Realm had been snatched away. The Central Emperor Realm had claimed three spots as of now.


    "Jian Qingzhu, just now, you mentioned that each force could only challenge once. The winner will stay while the loser will be eliminated." Shen Hao suddenly said, "However, since we are selecting the best nine people to crack the statues, the forces who are capable should be able to claim more than one spot. Don''t you think so?"


    Jian Qingzhu looked at Shen Hao, inquiring, "What do you mean by that?"


    "I think if a force is capable, its cultivators should claim more spots. Here, power is law. There is no need for us to take care of the weak," Shen Hao explained. After pondering for a moment, Jian Qingzhu looked at the crowd, asking, "Shen Hao''s words are not wrong. What do all of you think?"


    All of them wanted to crack the statues; naturally, they should choose the strongest cultivators to do so. If any force could provide more than one powerful cultivator to take on the task, by right, it shouldn''t be a problem.


    Everyone revealed shocked expressions when they heard Shen Hao''s suggestion. The cultivators of Shen Clan did not attempt to mask their greed at all; they were not satisfied with having only one representative.


    "I don''t mind," Nan Luoshen said nonchalantly. Apart from Shen Hao, she did not see the others from the Shen Clan as worthy of being threats.


    No one opposed this suggestion. After all, most of them were not involved in this matter. The only people who were affected by this suggestion were the few who were elected just now. Clearly, nobody would raise any objection and offend Shen Clan.


    "In that case, feel free to do as you please." Jian Qingzhu said nothing more. In his opinion, it was not an easy feat for Shen Clan to snatch another spot on top of defending their current spot.


    "Shen Yuan, you should go," Shen Hao said to a youth beside him. The cultivator from Shen Clan took a step forward. The aura on his body was astonishing.


    Ye Futian had seen this person before. Back then, in the Tianhe Realm, he was together with Shen Yao.


    Shen Yuan most likely stepped forward because of Ye Futian.


    As expected, Ye Futian saw Shen Yuan''s gaze land on him.


    There was a natural look of arrogance in Shen Yuan''s gaze. It was as though he was someone who stood in the heavens above and was looking down on the people below.


    Shen Clan had a long history. They were established in the Central Emperor Realm and had been powerful and prosperous for generation after generation. Even the top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were no different from aboriginals in the eyes of the core members of Shen Clan. In their opinion, the top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were merely from a slightly better background from the rest.


    They only considered a few of the large top forces in the Central Emperor Realm to be worthy of notice.


    As a junior, Shen Yuan did not know much about the incidents back then. However, he had also heard the legend of this peerless woman of Shen Clan. He did not understand why she had married Sky River Great Elder. With their Shen Clan''s proud bloodline, she had married a person beneath her status and ended up being betrayed by him. In Shen Yuan''s eyes, the actions of the Sky River Great Elder were a betrayal towards the Shen Clan.


    Now, the Shen Clan had captured Qi Xuangang. They did not care much about this inheritor of Sky River Great Elder and had allowed him to live.


    However, Shen Yuan still walked out, wanting to walk all over Ye Futian.


    He wanted to do so for no other reason than the pride of their Shen Clan. He would not allow their name to be stained.


    Some cultivators of Shen Clan wanted to avoid humiliating the Sky River Great Elder, but Shen Yuan had no such concern. He even did not understand why the senior figures of the clan still bore some respect towards Sky River Great Elder.


    Hence, Shen Yuan''s gaze turned towards Ye Futian. His cultivation was at the peak of the Saint Plane. Aside from wanting to seize a spot, he himself had come for Ye Futian.


    "I am Shen Yuan from the Shen Clan."


    Shen Yuan''s tone was slightly arrogant. His eyes revealed a haughty look. Shen Yuan seemed to be reminding Ye Futian that he was from the Shen Clan.


    Ye Futian naturally could sense the arrogance coming from Shen Yuan''s gaze. Ye Futian''s expression was calm, without a trace of being affected by Shen Yuan.


    "I am Ye Futian, disciple of Sky River Great Elder," Ye Futian said.


    He added another line internally, "I am Ye Futian, disciple of Qi Xuangang!"


    ...

 1638 Can You Withstand a Strike from My Sword

    The corner of Shen Yuan''s mouth twitched to reveal a mocking smile. Was he the disciple of Sky River Great Elder?


    In the past, Sky River Great Elder betrayed the Shen Clan, and all three thousand of his disciples were eradicated. Now that Sky River Great Elder was in his twilight years, he had taken in another inheritor. Was he plotting on making a difference?


    Shen Yuan strode towards the Ancient Road of the Great Path. Clearly, he intended to fight Ye Futian under the authority of the emperor. Under the pressure of a huge might, their battle would be a clear cut fight. It would be difficult for them to even dodge each other''s attack; they could only battle head-on.


    Shen Yuan had absolute confidence. He would crush Ye Futian with the most decisive method.


    Similarly, Ye Futian walked forward and entered the Ancient Road. The might emanated by the Heavenly Palace enveloped both of them. However, both of them appeared unconcerned and continued to advance.


    In the past, in order to find Feixue, the Shen Clan launched a destructive war. They went to the extent of obliterating the Tianhe Realm, resulting in the death of countless people. The three thousand disciples of Sky River Great Elder were almost wiped out. If their master had stayed in the Tianhe Realm to cultivate quietly, all of them would have had a bright future. However, everything had changed due to that war.


    Based on this instance, one could discern how overbearing the Shen Clan was. Anyone who disobeyed the Shen Clan would be killed.


    Shen Hao turned his gaze towards Shen Yuan. Among the Shen Clan, although Shen Yuan''s talent was not on par with his, he was also an extremely extraordinary figure among the juniors. Shen Yuan had trained and developed together with Shen Hao. His ability was very powerful. Now that Shen Hao had reached the Renhuang Plane, if he could bring Shen Yuan along to pass these statues, there might be a chance for a fateful encounter for Shen Yuan.


    As for Ye Futian, Shen Hao did not care much about him. What Shen Yuan wanted to do to Ye Futian was of no consequence.


    Among the Ancient Path, two silhouettes came to a stop. Under the pressure of the might of the Great Path, powerful might of the Way burst forth from their figures. They were extremely frightening.


    The cultivators of various forces turned their gaze toward the two silhouettes. Some people sympathized with Ye Futian. After all, from their point of view, Ye Futian was a pushover that was destined to be taken down. Even if Shen Yuan had not made his move, others would have done so.


    However, there were some people who did not see it as such.


    Although Shen Yuan was not as famous as Shen Hao, he was also a monstrous figure of Shen Clan. His ability was extremely powerful.


    However, Yuan Hong still thought that Ye Futian had the upper hand in this battle.


    After all, the Renhuang of Martial God Clan Wu Meng had not returned alive after leaving with Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. In the battles that followed, no one could withstand a strike from Ye Futian''s spear.


    Such combat ability was already at the true limits of the Saint Path.


    Yuan Hong suddenly revealed a bizarre expression. He still believed that Ye Futian would win this battle. However, if Ye Futian defeated Shen Yuan, how would the members of Shen Clan take it?


    Xiao Muyu from Xiao Clan stared at the battlefield. Up to this day, she was still brooding over the fact that Ye Futian had plundered the lotus and gifted it to Xia Qingyuan. Now that Shen Yuan had made his move, it would be best if Shen Yuan could crush this fellow and help her vent her frustration.


    The crowd all had their own thoughts. They did not know whether Ye Futian from the Heavenly Mandate Realm could hold on to his spot. If he could not, it was possible that the Central Emperor Realm would dominate with four spots.


    "Will this be a battle with ritual implements or a battle with only our own ability?" Ye Futian asked as he stood across from Shen Yuan. Since the very beginning, his gaze had been very calm. His voice was also indifferent, his mind as steady as still water.


    "Up to you," Shen Yuan replied as he looked at Ye Futian. Regardless of which type of battle it was, the end result would still be the same.


    "Alright," Ye Futian did not pretend to be polite. He nodded and said, "Then, let''s not rely on external powers and battle it out with our own abilities."


    Shen Yuan laughed sinisterly. It seemed that Ye Futian also knew that Shen Yuan was from the Shen Clan and that the Shen Clan''s ritual implements would certainly be more powerful, and thus had deliberately said so.


    If Shen Yuan had known that Ye Futian had managed to seize a treasure trove not long ago, would he still have believed that he had an advantage in terms of ritual implements?


    Let alone the mountain of treasures, even the spear that Ye Futian was using was already an extraordinary divine weapon.


    Rumble. A dazzling golden aura burst forth from Shen Yuan''s body. Even under the authority of the Great Path, he still stood firmly, and his body was bathed in the brilliant light. A terrifying might of the Great Path volleyed and thundered.


    A beam of divine light lit up on his glabella, as though it was a pair of Divine Eyes. It shot directly on Ye Futian. For a moment, Ye Futian felt that his spiritual soul was under the control of the gaze of his opponent. He saw illusions in his eyes. It was as though he was not facing Shen Yuan, but a deity.


    Ye Futian had experienced this kind of power before. It was an innate talent possessed by Shen Clan. In the past, when Shen Yao led the members of Shen Clan to intrude the Tianhe Realm, Shen Yao had attempted this method on Ye Futian. He intended to pry into Ye Futian''s memories for any secrets inside.


    Now, this skill was once again used by Shen Yuan.


    Divine Eyes of Shen Clan. The cultivators of the Central Emperor Realm were well-aware of the tyranny of Shen Clan. The pair of Divine Eyes was enough to drive anyone into endless despair.


    Bang.


    Shen Yuan took a step forward, and his Great Path fulminated. Endless golden lights surrounded his body. His cold voice sounded, "Can you withstand a stare from my Eyes?"


    His stare pressured the spiritual soul of Ye Futian. Ye Futian felt as though a deity was walking towards him; the deity was undefeatable.


    Ye Futian''s eyes also changed. His pitch-black eyes seemed to transform into deep, endless darkness. Faintly, a frightening spiritual storm seemed to be contained within them. The light within the storm seemed to be able to see through nothingness. They directly pierced through the power of the Divine Eyes and looked towards Shen Yuan.


    "What''s so special about your Eyes?" Ye Futian calmly said as he also took a step forward.


    This caused Shen Yuan to frown slightly.


    Ye Futian had actually ignored the effect of his Eyes?


    The light from his glabella became even more dazzling. It kept surging into Ye Futian''s mind, attempting to trap Ye Futian within his Divine Eyes. However, Shen Yuan only saw an endless storm.


    He could not locate Ye Futian''s spiritual soul.


    "What are you looking for?" A silhouette emerged from the deep and endless storm abyss. It was the silhouette of Ye Futian. He directly transmitted a thought into Shen Yuan''s mind.


    The two of them were conversing with their wills.


    Shen Yuan''s will, which had transformed into a deity-like illusory figure, approached Ye Futian, intending to reveal Ye Futian''s spiritual soul. However, the storm retaliated. It transformed into countless swords made of will, and they swept out towards Shen Yuan.


    The storm flooded everything, including the deity-like illusory figure. An alarming Sword Will shot out from Ye Futian''s eyes. It penetrated the Divine Eyes of Shen Yuan.


    A terrifying imprint appeared on Shen Yuan''s glabella. His head shook, and the light in between his brows dissipated; his Divine Eyes had been sealed.


    "That''s all you got?" Ye Futian said as he looked at Shen Yuan.


    The facial expression of Shen Yuan changed slightly. The few words seemed to be mocking him.


    That''s all he got?


    From behind Shen Yuan, a horrifying pair of golden Divine Eyes appeared. Shen Yuan''s pupils turned exceptionally radiant as well. Under the gaze of his pupils, all the will in the heavens and earth seemed to have materialized.


    What was even more frightening was the golden light that burned brightly on Shen Yuan''s body. Similar to the flame of God, it hurt the eyes of those who looked at it; it even injured their spiritual souls.


    Suddenly, myriads of golden lights beamed from his body, shooting straight towards Ye Futian. These divine lights actually caused people to feel a strong sense of danger. It was as though a deity was emanating its halo. The lights could pierce through one''s body; they could even threaten one''s spiritual soul.


    Celestial light shone from Ye Futian''s figure. A faint Celestial Soul seemed to appear behind him. His opponent could constantly attack the spiritual soul of a person. However, Ye Futian was also proficient in a similar ability. It was a mystical way of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, Celestial Soul Attraction.


    Innumerable Sword Will suddenly appeared all around his body. Celestial Soul Attraction merged into the Sword Will while it collided with the divine lights.


    Endless brilliant divine lights plummeted. They suppressed Ye Futian''s Sword Will and intruded his body continuously.


    Shen Yuan was staring at Ye Futian. His gaze was extremely frightening. His body emanated a divine halo that could counter all law powers.


    So domineering. Many spectators of the battle exclaimed internally. These divine lights seemed to be able to suppress the Way of others.


    The divine lights invaded Ye Futian''s body unceasingly. Ye Futian glanced at his opponent. As expected of Shen Clan, the top force that stood at the peak of the Central Emperor Realm. They naturally had extraordinary talents and had received remarkable teachings.


    It was just that this battle had a special meaning for Ye Futian.


    Hence, no matter how powerful Shen Yuan was, the end result was the same.


    Brilliant divine light radiated. Ancient characters floated around Ye Futian''s body. It was the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. At this moment, his body had become a Divine Furnace of the Great Path.


    The ancient characters of Qian, Kun, Li, and Kan floated in mid-air, forming Halos of Great Path that blocked the golden divine halo from invading his body. As for inside his body, the Spirit of the World Tree swayed. It merged with every part of his body. At this moment, majestic will within his body was frenziedly being released. In his blood vessels, skeleton, organs, and limbs, will furiously circulated. As he howled, he entered the Divine Furnace of the Great Path.


    The power of the Great Path in this place also trembled. It seemingly also surged into Ye Futian''s body, becoming a part of the Divine Furnace of the Great Path.


    The ancient characters that circled the heavens and the earth suddenly transformed into swords. They emanated astonishing Sword Will. Countless Sword Qi was created in the surroundings, rivaling the divine halo that shot out from Shen Yuan''s body.


    Rumble. The Divine Furnace, transformed by the body of Ye Futian, roared and churned. Under the light shroud of the ancient characters, the Divine Furnace extracted the Great Path of All Things. Countless divine swords buzzed, stirring up a destructive storm in the space. The divine swords tore the space apart. The facial expression of Shen Yuan changed slightly. The halo around his body shone even more brilliantly, transforming into layer upon layer of golden divine walls. The divine walls would block all attacks.


    A sword appeared gradually from Ye Futian''s body. It was a sword forged using the Way by the Divine Furnace of the Great Path. Countless divine swords hummed as though musical tones were being played in the space.


    "Can you withstand a strike from my sword?"


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept towards Shen Yuan. Once he said this, his sword struck out.


    The Divine Sound of Great Path lingered and followed the sword. Around it, countless divine swords merged into one. In the instant before the swords slashed forward, they merged into the divine sword. Right now, there was only one sword on the battlefield.


    Shen Yuan''s expression drastically changed. Innumerable divine walls flickering with golden runes appeared in front of him. When the sword closed in on him, one by one, the golden divine walls were blasted into pieces.


    Bang!


    There was a huge rumble. Shen Yuan sacrificed a ritual implement to block the attack. However, his body was still sent flying outwards. At the same time, the pressure of the Great Path in this space came pressing down on him. He let out a low grunt. His body slumped down, half kneeling on the ground. His expression was pale!


    ...

 1639 The Nine Representatives

    Under the might of the Great Path, the Ancient Road was dead silent.


    Countless gazes focused on Shen Yuan and the white-haired silhouette. The former was half-kneeling on the ground while the latter stood opposite him, looking indifferent. The situation now formed a strong contrast as compared to that of before.


    Before the battle, Shen Yuan was arrogant. In comparison, Ye Futian had remained calm throughout.


    However, right now, Shen Yuan''s once-proud figure was kneeling on the ground.


    A strike from Ye Futian''s sword. Could Shen Yuan withstand a strike from his sword?


    Shen Yuan, a monstrous figure of Shen Clan, did not manage to withstand a strike from Ye Futian''s sword.


    This outcome caused many people to reveal strange expressions. Was Ye Futian really as easy a pushover as they had thought?


    Defeating a talented figure of Shen Clan with a strike; how many cultivators in the Nine Realms could do so?


    Aside from those few monstrous figures at the peak of their respective Realms, there were definitely not many others who could do so.


    Right now, Shen Yuan was as humiliated as he was arrogant prior to their battle.


    The clothes on Shen Hao''s body fluttered even though there was no wind. Faint aura emanated from his body. His gaze was staring straight ahead at the battlefield. Clearly, he had not anticipated such an ending to their battle.


    Ye Futian was the last inheritor of Sky River Great Elder. Sky River Great Elder had sent him into God''s relic.


    It seemed that Shen Yuan had grossly underestimated the inheritor that Sky River Great Elder had found.


    Ye Futian represented the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Prior to their battle, it seemed that no one had objected to him being the representative. That meant that Ye Futian had quite a reputation in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Xiao Muyu from Xiao Clan was staring intently over in their direction. Shen Yuan had lost?


    Although she knew that Ye Futian was very strong, she had not expected him to be so powerful.


    He had achieved this victory with a domineering strength.


    "Deed of Thorough Comprehension," Jian Qingzhu from Tianshen Academy mumbled. As the inheritor of Sky River Great Elder, when challenged by Shen Yuan from the Shen Clan, Ye Futian must have intentionally revealed his Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    He must have done so to prove something.


    However, the end result of this battle was also within expectations. After all, Ye Futian was the same as Jian Qingzhu. Both of them had opened the Door of the Relic.


    Of course, Shen Yuan himself also understood why Ye Futian had released his Deed of Thorough Comprehension. This was to inform all that Shen Yuan, a monstrous figure of Shen Clan, had lost to the inheritor of Sky River Great Elder.


    Ye Futian''s voice caused many people to reveal bizarre expressions. This person was truly going too far; he had no intention of avoiding humiliating Shen Yuan.


    However, this was also normal. Shen Yuan had challenged Ye Futian and had stood before him with an extremely haughty attitude. Now, why would Ye Futian spare him from any embarrassment?


    When Shen Yuan heard what Ye Futian said, his heart twitched inside. He gradually stood up and looked at the silhouette opposite him.


    Did he still want to try Ye Futian''s sword again?


    Should he try, or should he not try?


    If he tried to face the sword, what would happen if the end result was the same?


    If he did not try to face Ye Futian''s sword, it would be such an embarrassment.


    The divine light on his body shone. His eyes revealed a look of dissatisfaction. Frightening light shot out of those eyes.


    Even if he took another hit from that sword, what could possibly happen to him?


    He was not prepared when the sword came down just now. He would not repeat the same mistake.


    "Shen Yuan." At this moment, a voice suddenly called out. Shen Yuan turned around and looked in the direction of Shen Clan. Shen Hao was speaking, saying, "Since you have been defeated, step down."


    A look of discontentment flashed past in Shen Yuan''s eyes. Nevertheless, he also knew that he had already failed. He still dragged his feet back to where Shen Clan stood. From behind, his silhouette looked kind of bleak.


    Ye Futian looked towards the Shen Clan and saw that Shen Hao''s gaze was directed at him. This time, Sky River Great Elder had found an impressive inheritor. Was Ye Futian the hope of Sky River Great Elder''s twilight years?


    It still could not change anything.


    Ye Futian naturally understood the meaning behind Shen Hao''s gaze. Ye Futian smiled. The proud Shen Clan that stood at the peak of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path had many powerful cultivators in their clan. They had many more monstrous figures aside from Shen Yuan and the others. This was only the strength of the younger generation of the clan. The backbone of the Shen Clan was built on the Renhuangs that were already at the peak.


    How could Ye Futian, who was still at the Saint Plane, compare to these Renhuangs? Back in the day, Sky River Great Elder and his three thousand disciples were eradicated with just a word by the Shen Clan. In the Shen Clan''s search for divine items, they even eradicated an entire Realm.


    What could Ye Futian amount to?


    Even if his talent was extraordinary, that was all there was to him. Why would Shen Clan be concerned about him? Especially Shen Hao, who was a candidate for the successor of the Shen Clan.


    Once he became the person at the helm of Shen Clan, he would be a truly major existence in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. With a mere thought, he could control the lives and deaths of countless people.


    Ye Futian walked out of the Ancient Road and returned to his position. After witnessing this battle, those who wanted his spot would most likely need to think it over. Defeating Shen Yuan would have saved him a lot of trouble.


    As expected, no one else came out seeking Ye Futian. Instead, they challenged another person, Qin Lin, who was from the top force of the Myriad Realm, Slaughtering World.


    However, a few challengers lost consecutively at the hands of Qin Lin. His Slaughtering Divine Heart was extremely frightening. It directly activated the Slaughtering Way to the limits. The Divine Slaughtering Matrix was terrifying. There was a person who was even directly executed by Qin Lin on the spot.


    This made many people realize that the remaining nine representatives were all tough targets. Qin Lin from Slaughtering World could be the next outstanding personage of the Myriad Realm. His combat ability was exceptional, on par with that of those top figures of the Imperial Realm.


    There were other people who challenged Di Wu of Solar Divine Palace as well Chang Xi of Youyue Divine Palace and similarly lost.


    These two personages of the top forces of the Solar Realm and Shadow Realm had abilities that lived up to the crowd''s expectation. They were extremely powerful.


    After a round of battles, aside from Shen Hao and Nan Luoshen at the very start, no one actually managed to seize another spot.


    It seemed that it would be very difficult to want a spot now.


    In the end, after one last battle, no one else made a move.


    It was still the same nine representatives.


    When Jian Qingzhu saw this, he said, "We chose nine representatives so that we could crack these Ancient Road statues in one go. No one knows what will happen after this yet. Let''s stop our exchanges here. After all, no one knows when the doors of God''s relic will close shut. We do not necessarily have a lot of time."


    The crowd did not say anymore. They seemed to have acknowledged his words that it was too difficult to seize a spot and that they might as well sit back and wait and see how the nine representatives cracked the statues.


    If the nine representatives succeeded, there was indeed no one who knew what would happen after.


    Seeing that no one objected, Jian Qingzhu''s gaze swept across the crowd as he said, "If that is the case, let us begin."


    As he said this, he walked forwards. The other eight representatives also advanced, heading towards the Ancient Road.


    Very soon, nine silhouettes appeared at the same time on the Ancient Road. They looked majestic.


    Shen Hao from Shen Clan replaced the Seventh Slayer of Clan of the Seven Slayers while Nan Luoshen of Nantian Divine Kingdom seized the spot of Lian Jiuyou from Clan of the God of Ghost. Apart from that, the cultivators in the line-up remained the same.


    "Each person will take on a statue. We must succeed," Jian Qingzhu said. After he finished giving the order, he took the lead and walked towards one of the statues in the middle.


    At the Ancient Road, the might from the Heavenly Palace enveloped the nine representatives. All of them advanced towards their targets with resolved looks in their eyes.


    These nine people were the most powerful cultivators among those from the Nine Realms who were currently in God''s relic. If they couldn''t crack the statues, the others would have even slimmer chances of doing so.


    Ye Futian moved forward along the Ancient Road.


    Unbeknownst whether it was coincidental or intentional, Shen Hao ended up right beside him.


    Neither of them spared a glance at each other. Step by step, they strode forward. The might of the Great Path emanated from the Heavenly Palace became stronger. The statues were located at different spots; hence, some of them had arrived at a statue while some of them were still moving towards their targets.


    Nobody knew the strength of these nine statues, so it was meaningless for them to be picky.


    When Ye Futian approached a statue near him, a terrifying will swept out towards him. The Great Path fulminated and flooded the space.


    In an instant, he was drowned in the illusions of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian was not alone; the other eight representatives encountered the same situation as well. The nine representatives came face-to-face with the nine statues. All of them were surrounded by an alarming aura of the Great Path. Moreover, the illusions that they experienced were different.


    The space that Ye Futian was in seemed to be a primeval battlefield. He was no longer standing in front of the statue; instead, he found himself in the middle of the primeval battlefield.


    His gazes turned extremely sharp. He intended to see through the illusions. However, he was still trapped in this space, unable to decipher anything.


    Clearly, it was impossible to decipher the secret of the statue with this method.


    Such a strong will.


    Ye Futian exclaimed internally. Everything before his eyes was so real. It was as though he had arrived in another domain.


    On the battlefield, many armored soldiers who guarded the Heavenly Palace appeared. They wore dazzling silver armors and emanated an intense murderous aura. They dashed towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was very aware of what he was up against. The master of the statues might have fallen eons ago, but there were still remnants of his will lingering here. The remnants of his will felt so real.


    No matter how high Ye Futian''s Plane was, he was still affected by it.


    Rumble. Frightening light burst forth from Ye Futian''s body. The will of the Great Path howled.


    The shadows of armored soldiers directly passed through his body. They were not real existences. However, even though they were the ethereal power of will, they still made Ye Futian feel as though there was an ancient suffocating pressure acting on him.


    Many people had tried before, but they could not withstand the pressure and ended up collapsing.


    In this place, success was unrelated to one''s Plane.


    Of course, it was also possible that cultivators at the Renhuang Plane had stronger wills.


    Ye Futian''s expression changed slightly. Another shadow of an armored soldier charged towards him. A very real murderous fighting will oozed forth. It invaded his body, as though it wanted to kill him off.


    He attempted to release some aura to block the attack, but his efforts were in vain. The murderous intent still penetrated through him.


    Ye Futian had never felt this way before. He looked ahead. He felt as though the statue was alive. He could actually sense that the statue was moving, and a pair of eyes were staring at him.


    With a glance from the pair of eyes, the majestic might of the army troops enveloped his body.


    At the same time, war drums sounded. The beating of the drums reverberated in the space.


    Dong!


    With a loud thud, Ye Futian felt his spiritual soul tremble suddenly. His heart was beating fast while his breathing came to a halt. He felt terribly sick.


    He raised his head; his gaze was piercing. No wonder everyone before this had failed the mission. Prior to them, there were many monstrous figures who had attempted this task, yet they had all failed. Hence, Jian Qingzhu had come up with the idea of having the nine strongest representatives attacking simultaneously.


    Right now, beside them, countless cultivators of the Nine Realms were spectating the battle. They saw illusions everywhere. The nine top figures were situated in nine different environments, but they were all experiencing tremendous pressure. Even those at the pinnacle, like Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, and Nan Luoshen were not excluded.


    ...

 1640 Giving Up

    Who could crack the will of a statue first? the crowd exclaimed internally.


    The nine representatives all did not disappoint. They all displayed extremely powerful abilities as they battled the wills of the statues within the frightening illusion.


    After all, they were exceptional figures chosen by the cultivators of the Nine Realms. They were personages at the peak of the Nine Realms.


    People were most attracted to the trio from the Central Emperor Realm��Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, and Nan Luoshen. With their origins and their talents, they were destined to receive more attention than the others.


    Of course, the other representatives were not weak too.


    Right now, Master Gui Zang from Tianxian Temple at Buddha Mountain of the Mountain Realm transformed into a golden Buddha. He released beams of golden light. He was a true Buddha. Anyone who became a Renhuang would be crowned as a Buddha at the Mountain Realm. The golden Buddha put his palms together, and his demeanor was solemn; the halo of Buddha shone for miles. He remained steadfast when he was attacked by the powerful will.


    Di Wu of Solar Divine Palace transformed into God of Sun, shining down light on the world. A Golden Raven, the divine bird of the sun, circled over his head. It was enchanting.


    On the contrary, a cold moon appeared behind Chang Xi of Youyue Divine Palace. The space around her turned into night. Both Chang Xi and Di Wu could alter nature.


    Even Qin Lin, who was the most overlooked, stepped onto the Divine Slaughtering Matrix and was slaughtering all in sight. It seemed that no human nor will could shake his Slaughtering Divine Heart.


    Compared to these cultivators, Ye Futian''s area was the calmest. Although there was also light shining from his body, it was not as dazzling and eye-catching as that of the others.


    Right now, on this frightening battlefield, countless armored soldiers were swarming towards him. The sound of war drums thundered, attempting to shatter his spiritual soul. He looked forward while guarding his mind. The statue seemed to have completely come alive. It was like a divine general on a battlefield. When it glanced at him, countless war drums thundered at the same time. The innumerable armored soldiers roared like a tide, swallowing everything in the path.


    In this illusion, Ye Futian felt that he was miniscule. His spiritual soul was constantly trembling. His will was shaking, and even his body quivered slightly. It was as though he was about to collapse from the attack of the will.


    Within Ye Futian''s body, the branches of the World Tree extended to every part of his body. It was as though his body had become a divine tree that was rooted firmly in the ground. An unparalleled, majestic Way of Life enveloped his figure, causing his aura to grow even more powerful. His powerful life force swelled to its extreme. His Spiritual Will also became stronger and sturdier, seemingly becoming indestructible.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged. He actually sat down in the middle of the Ancient Road. His eyes were closed. He allowed the sound of war drums to attack his spiritual soul and let the monstrous will sweep over his figure. Even though his body trembled and his spiritual soul shook, he still remained firmly rooted to his spot. Will enveloped every inch of his body.


    "What is he doing?" Some people revealed bizarre looks when they saw what Ye Futian was doing. He actually sat down.


    It was as though he was meditating and cultivating in the midst of that frightening will.


    Due to the fact that Ye Futian was acting differently from the other eight representatives, many people were looking at him. Shen Yuan''s gaze was also fixed on Ye Futian. Was he having difficulty standing against the will of the statue?


    "The will of the statue will not disappear on its own. How long can he withstand the will by doing this?" someone asked.


    Wasn''t doing so the same as waiting to die? How could he crack the will of the statue in this manner?


    The other eight representatives were all withstanding the will of the statue. They were not just withstanding it, but they were also seeking the method of cracking the statues. They were searching for ways to defeat the will of the statue and crack the statue. Only by doing this could they make it past this Ancient Road and head to the sky stairwell that led up to the Heavenly Palace.


    At this moment, from inside the body of Ye Futian, who was sitting cross-legged, a formless will swept out. There was actually a faint sound of a guqin playing. This caused many people to reveal strange expressions.


    "This is Flesh Becoming Way. His Way is that of Rhythmic Sorcery?" someone questioned. Before this, when Ye Futian and Shen Yuan were battling each other, Ye Futian had not displayed such an ability. Flesh Becoming Way preserved the Way in the body of the cultivator, allowing the cultivator to resonate with the world. Since the sound of guqin could be heard, it meant that Ye Futian had merged Rhythmic Sorcery into his body of the Great Path.


    Rhythmic Sorcery started playing amidst the howling illusion. A terrifying Sword Will accompanied the music. Sword Will and the music merged harmoniously.


    When the music of Rhythmic Sorcery collided with the beating of the war drums, it formed a complex symphony. On the battlefield, the sounds of guqin and war drums competed with each other, revealing murderous intent. The brilliance of the Great Path gradually lit up around Ye Futian, subtly resonating with the heavens and earth.


    "Is he cultivating?"


    Xiao Muyu had been paying attention to Ye Futian all this while. This fellow left a very deep impression on her. He had snatched her divine lotus and given it to another girl. Moreover, he shamelessly declared that he wanted to be the son-in-law of the Xiao Clan. Hence, among all representatives, she was most curious about Ye Futian and was very attentive towards him.


    Right now, when she saw how Ye Futian handled the illusion, she had a feeling that Ye Futian was utilizing the illusion to comprehend the Great Path. He was meditating.


    Out of the nine selected representatives, almost all of them were Renhuangs; only Ye Futian and Qin Lin were at the peak of the Saint Plane. The rest had found their own fateful encounters of the Great Path in this God''s relic and had broken through to the Renhuang Plane.


    Originally, Xiao Muyu could have such an opportunity too. If she had gotten the lotus, she would have had a high chance of breaking through to the Renhuang Plane. In the end, what happened had indeed proven that the lotus was even more extraordinary than what she had imagined it to be.


    However, there was no use in asking what if. The lotus had been snatched by Ye Futian, and the girl beside him had used the lotus to advance to the next Plane. Unfortunately, she did not use it to become a Renhuang; she was practically wasting a rare item.


    So now, was Ye Futian meditating amidst this illusion in order to comprehend the will and break the shackles between Planes?


    "Perhaps he is using his own Way to defend against the invading will," a cultivator of Xiao Clan who stood beside Xiao Muyu said.


    Meditating under such circumstances was indeed too daring. Was Ye Futian not worried about his body of the Great Path shattering and his spiritual soul being severely injured if he made a slight mistake?


    He was under the domineering might of the Great Path.


    The Rhythmic Sorcery of the Great Path surged out, attempting to control the battlefield. A guqin appeared in front of Ye Futian. His eyes were still closed, but his fingers were placed on the strings. He played without looking.


    The sound of guqin echoed in the battlefield, resonating with the Great Path and his body of the Great Path.


    "What song is this?" As soon as the crowd heard the song, someone sensed that this song was remarkable and asked about it.


    "It is the Song of the Lost Divine from Taixuan Mountain," a cultivator of the Higher Heavens Realm answered.


    Lord Taixuan. Some people revealed looks of surprise. Lord Taixuan from Taixuan Mountain of the Higher Heavens Realm was proficient in Rhythmic Sorcery. He had acquired the Song of the Lost Divine during a fateful encounter.


    Rumor has it that Lord Taixuan did not have exceptional talent. Initially, it would have been hard for him to achieve his current Plane, especially in terms of breaking the shackles between Planes. All his current achievements were, however, due to the Song of the Lost Divine.


    "Is Ye Futian a cultivator of the Tianhe Realm or a cultivator of the Heavenly Mandate Realm? Why is he suddenly related to Lord Taixuan?" someone asked quizzically. Ye Futian had introduced himself as a disciple of Sky River Great Elder, yet he represented the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Now, he showed off the Song of the Lost Divine that he had learned from Lord Taixuan.


    "This man is from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. He used to cultivate in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. After that, he escaped to the Higher Heavens Realm and studied in Taixuan Mountain," Gai Shi Shi of Golden Divine Nation explained. Clearly, he knew more about Ye Futian.


    "Lord Taixuan and Sky River Great Elder are good friends," a cultivator of Shen Clan added. "It seems like Lord Taixuan sent him to the Tianhe Realm so that he could study under Sky River Great Elder."


    Ye Futian was still so young, yet he had trained in so many places.


    In the Nine Realms, unless the cultivators had reached the Renhuang Plane, otherwise they seldom crossed the Realms to cultivate. Only those at the Saint Plane and above were qualified to cross the Realms, but it was still very risky.


    The sound of Rhythmic Sorcery grew stronger, transforming into a terrifying storm and eradicating all things in its path. When the sound of the war drums closed in on Ye Futian again, the sound of the qin could actually penetrate it. Slowly, the Song of the Lost Divine affected the whole illusion.


    "He has actually mastered playing the Song of the Lost Divine." Princess Luoyue of Taixuan Mountain, who had followed Ye Futian here, got emotional when she heard the Song of the Lost Divine. Grandmaster had an inheritor now. However, she was puzzled as to the reason why Grandmaster refused to accept Ye Futian as his disciple.


    Although Grandmaster had sworn to never take a disciple again due to the death of youngest Uncle-Master, when Grandmaster came across such a person, why didn''t he make an exception?


    It would have been wonderful if Ye Futian could have cultivated in Taixuan Mountain.


    "He is seizing the initiative."


    Right now, the crowd felt that the pressure of the will of the statue that Ye Futian was experiencing seemed to have weakened. Or it should be said that it seemed to have been weakened by the Song of the Lost Divine.


    The sound of the qin could already gradually suppress the will of the statue.


    An alarming storm swept out, as though the Great Path was flowing back out.


    The storm that was frightening beyond comparison started spinning outwards in the other direction and headed towards the statue.


    Bang!


    There was a huge shocking sound. The statue trembled violently. After that, the crowd saw the statue being knocked back until it was below the sky stairwell.


    From the heavenly palace in the sky above, a beam of divine light shone down upon the statue. The illusions around Ye Futian disappeared without a trace.


    He cracked it. When the crowd saw this scene, their hearts trembled inside.


    Ye Futian was actually the first person to crack the will of the statue.


    Ye Futian was still performing. The robes on his body danced about, fluttering in the wind. The light of the Great Path descended upon him, surging into his body. The crowd saw a beam of brilliant divine light burst out from inside him. The current of the Great Path of the heavens and earth frenziedly gushed into his being.


    "This is..." Many people had astonished expressions.


    Excited looks flashed past in Xia Qingyuan and Yaya''s beautiful eyes. Even Yu Sheng was clenching his fists in anticipation.


    These were the signs that Ye Futian was about to break through to the next Plane.


    Ye Futian''s body seemed to have become a bottomless pit. It frenziedly devoured the will of the Great Path in his surroundings. The sound of the qin gradually came to a stop. Ye Futian retrieved a fruit of the Way and immediately threw it into his mouth. A crisp chewing sound could be heard.


    Very quickly, he had consumed a fruit of the Way. He took out a second, and then a third...


    Xia Qingyuan stared wide-eyed at the scene. Other people were also equally speechless.


    Had anyone broken through to the next Plane in such a manner?


    How many fruits of the Way did he need to replenish his Way?


    A frightening roar of the Great Path came from inside Ye Futian''s body. However, just as the crowd believed that he was about to forge his Divine Wheel, Ye Futian suddenly opened his eyes and stood up.


    What was he doing? Many people looked at Ye Futian. Why didn''t he directly break through to the next Plane in one go?


    Ye Futian turned his gaze towards the Heavenly Palace. He had a look of anticipation in his eyes. Right now, it was not yet the time to break through to the next Plane. He was still waiting for an even greater opportunity!


    ...

 1641 Plundering and Fighting

    He was too arrogant!


    Many people thought this as they looked at Ye Futian. He had seen the gateway to becoming a Renhuang and had not taken it. How arrogant was that?


    There were countless cultivators who would never reach the Renhuang plane in their entire lives.


    When one became a Renhuang, they would automatically be considered a great figure within the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Although perhaps this did not count for much for those who were here today, they were all from the top forces of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    In the Divine Prefecture, many of the lords of various realms were nothing more than ordinary, lower level Renhuangs.


    "What is he trying to do?" Everyone tried to guess as they stared at him. The fact that he had chosen not to break through to the next level showed that he had even greater ambitions. He wanted to forge and even more powerful Wheel of the Great Path. He must have some opportunity in mind.


    The celestial palace that was floating in the air was near. Could it be that he thought his chance might come there?


    But would he really be able to forge a more powerful wheel if he waited until then?


    It made sense that it would, but if he did not become a Renhuang now, how would he compete with the others for it?


    It could not be forgotten that Jian Qingzhu of Tianshen Academy was beside him, as well as Shen Hao of the Shen clan, and Nan Luoshen of the Nantian Divine Kingdom.


    Moreover, they were all at the Renhuang level now and had forged perfect Wheels of the Great Path.


    Even if he himself were at the Renhuang plane, Ye Futian would have a hard time fighting them, to say nothing of the fact that he was still just a Saint.


    Bang! At that moment, someone was breaking through the statues'' will. It was Jian Qingzhu from Tianshen Academy. It was just like it had been when they reached the God''s Relic. Ye Futian was there first, and Jian Qingzhu had followed after.


    More sounds rang out, one after another. It was as if the powerful figures of the Nine Supreme Realms had talked it over. Now that Ye Futian had figured out how to proceed, they were breaking their shackles as well.


    Shen Hao, Nan Luoshen, Gui Zang...


    But at that point, Ye Futian and Jian Qingzhu were not thinking of the others. Their gazes were fixed ahead. They saw all of the statues below the stairway as if they were still guarding it. But brilliant, golden divine light was falling from the palace onto the statues, making them seem illusory. It was as if they could disappear at any time.


    "This is..." There was a frightening look in Jian Qingzhu''s eyes. It was as if he could see through anything. Soon, he could sense incomparably powerful will seeping out from the illusory looking statues. It seemed as if all the will the god had possessed before he died was being released now.


    The will was coming from the statues was a little bit similar to that which he had sensed earlier. It put a lot of pressure on him, just like a god of war on a battlefield would.


    As he was sensing the will from the statues, another person broke through. Before too long, the nine great cultivators had all succeeded, breaking through the statues'' will. It was just like Jian Qingzhu had thought. The most powerful people from the nine realms had been selected to inherit the statues'' will, and they, thus they had been able to break out.


    Even more powerful divine light shone from the palace. The statues gradually transformed into pure will, and they seemed to become even more illusory and insubstantial.


    "We have all done this together. Each of us may inherit one of them," said Jian Qingzhu. As he said this, he took a step forward towards the statue that he had broken through. He stepped right into the now illusory figure, letting it overlap him.


    At that moment, divine radiance covered him as he was enveloped in pure will.


    "He truly is a worthy heir!" everyone said as they watched. This was an incredible opportunity for him.


    Not only was the inheritance falling upon him, but even the will that was falling down from the palace began to disappear.


    This made a powerful aura sweep out over everyone until they began to tremble.


    Woosh! Shen Hao, Nan Luoshen, and the others began to come forward one by one, each of them entering their own statue.


    Ye Futian did not move. Instead, he called out, "Yu Sheng, you go."


    He was already at the edge of breaking through to the next level and would be able to do so soon. However, Yu Sheng still was a little ways away. Moreover, the power that he had sensed earlier was very well suited to Yu Sheng. Thus, he was prepared to give this inheritance to him.


    When he heard this, Yu Sheng stepped forward towards the statue.


    But just as he did so, a Renhuang level force descended, covering him. It seemed to contain fierce killing will.


    Ye Futian looked over his shoulder, then yelled, "Be careful!"


    Yu Shen naturally sensed this as well. He suddenly turned and raised his battleax. He lashed out with it without any hesitation. Destructive demonic light split the earth and sky as the ax descended, leaving a slash of dark light through the air.


    But something took control of the dark light, and an incomparably brilliant golden radiance descended, lighting up the whole area. A destructive golden spear pierced through the battleax, releasing a burst of power.


    Bang!


    Yu Sheng was sent flying backward. He landed on the ground, making an incredibly loud sound as his feet hit. The arm that was holding the battleax was shaking.


    Someone who could knock Yu Sheng back with divine power was clearly not someone at the same level as him.


    The person standing before him was a Renhuang, one from the Golden Divine Nation.


    Among the other cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation behind him, Gai Shi Shi''s eyes were cold and full of killing intent.


    Previously, he had not competed for the God''s Relic, knowing that he would not be able to win. The battle outside the Divine Palace had ended badly. Ye Futian''s glory was practically unlimited, and his name shook the Higher Heavens Realm. Now, he was still showing his brilliance in the God''s Relic, taking a place among the best of the nine realms.


    Moreover, he had succeeded in breaking through the statues'' will. He had the right to inherit it.


    Unfortunately, the authority of heaven of the Great Path had disappeared, and the will from the statues was gone as well. Under the same situation, Ye Futian had chosen not to enter the Renhuang plane. He had chosen to go down this dead-end path, so what could he use to compete for the inheritance?


    And it was not only the Golden Divine Nation who thought this. The other cultivators had made their move as well, all of them rushing over here. Their most important targets were Ye Futian and Qin Lin of the Slaughtering World, for no other reason than the fact that the two of them were not Renhuangs and thus were the weakest and easiest to defeat.


    The other seven were all Renhuangs and were top-level figures anyway with perfect Divine Wheels. Even other Renhuangs would have trouble defeating them, to say nothing of Saints. They would not try and defeat them as they could not guarantee they would survive the attempt.


    So, the only ones they could deal with were Ye Futian and Qin Lin.


    If Ye Futian had decided to enter the Renhuang plane, they perhaps would have been hesitant to attack him. But with the opportunity they now had, they could not afford to miss it.


    The road to the palace was quite long, but to cultivators of this level, the distance did not matter.


    Even if a battle erupted, it would be extremely close-range.


    This was especially true for people on the Renhuang plane. They could cover the entire area with a single thought.


    At that moment, the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation unleashed his Wheel of the Great Path, and golden radiance shone from it. Incomparably sharp golden knives shot towards Yu Sheng while terrible golden cauldrons pressed down from the sky, burying Yu Sheng within them.


    His Wheel of the Great Path had been forged of divine cauldrons.


    Under the power of the Wheel, the cauldrons crushed everything beneath them as they tried to smash Yu Sheng''s body to bits.


    The countless points of incomparable pressure smashed into Yu Sheng, but a dark demonic airflow swept out from him. The images of ancient demons appeared all around him. A figure like a demonic god appeared behind him.


    With a terrible roar, a black dragon wrapped itself around him, its dark eyes full of life. It looked at the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation coldly.


    A look of surprise came over the Renhuang''s face. He felt like an actual demonic dragon was looking at him as if it had not just been formed out of will.


    "Kill him," came Gai Shi Shi''s cold voice. It was not only Yu Sheng, whom he wanted to kill. After they killed him, he also wanted to kill Ye Futian.


    This was a once in a lifetime chance. They would not only be able to deal with Yu Sheng and Ye Futian but the other cultivators as well.


    At that moment, many people rushed over towards Ye Futian, hoping to fight him. There were so many powerful cultivators from the Nine Realms here, how could they just sit back and watch Ye Futian and Qin Lin, two Saint-level cultivators, inherit the will from these statues? Was this not the time to fight?


    At that moment, Lian Jiuyou, the cultivator from the Clan of the God of Ghost in the Hidden Land Realm who had been eliminated by Nan Luoshen, moved towards Ye Futian as well.


    Nan Luoshen a perfect Divine Wheel, and was the daughter of Emperor Nan, making her the only princess of the Nantian Divine Kingdom. Thus, there was nothing Lian Jiuyou could have done to defeat her. But now, there was a place in the inheritance of the God''s Relic that could belong to him.


    He strode forward, his body seeming to burn with dark flames. Destructive death power spread out from him. He made a single thought, and suddenly Ye Futian felt like he was trapped in a dark prison.


    Woosh! Cold, dark ghostly flames swept out towards Ye Futian. The cultivators of the Clan of the God of Ghost in the Hidden Land Realm kept their methods relatively secret. Since they did not adhere to moral principles when they fought, once they had decided to seize something, they would kill those who stood against them to prevent them from being a threat later.


    After all, Ye Futian was already at the gate to the Renhuang plane. If they gave him any time, he could possibly break through to the next level. Then, it would be much harder to kill him. So they had to solve this problem as soon as possible.


    Ye Futian''s life aura surged, and a light curtain of the Great Path appeared around him. However, the dark death flames fell, burning the light curtain away to nothing. These were flames from the underworld and were at the Renhuang level.


    A cold look came into Ye Futian''s eyes, but at that moment, Lian Jiuyou''s expression suddenly changed.


    A powerful killing will covered him. He suddenly disappeared from where he had been standing, transforming into a dark airflow. In the instant that he disappeared, a spear full of slaughtering will pierced towards him, leaving a black hole in the air where it hit.


    It had come from the Seventh Slayer of the Clan of the Seven Slayers.


    He, like Lian Jiuyou, had tried to seize an opportunity and had been eliminated by Shen Hao. But now, he was acting against Lian Jiuyou.


    Up in the air, Lian Jiuyou frowned and said, "There are two places left, we can each take one."


    He thought that the Seventh Slayer wanted to take Ye Futian''s place for himself.


    The Seventh Slayer ignored him. He was good at killing, so there was no need to speak too much. He charged towards Lian Jiuyou!


    ...

 1642 Death Threa

    At first, the Seventh Slayer had fought Ye Futian at the underground palace, but he had been defeated and thus no longer had a chance to compete for the spear there.


    Later, they worked together at the Spatial Sacred Hall, where he had made a surprise attack on a Renhuang from the Martial Gods Clan''s alliance. He had been wounded then but had chosen a divine arm that had helped him reach the Renhuang plane. Although there was not the least bit of friendship between him and Ye Futian, he had had some modest success on this trip to the God''s Relic, and his previous defeat at Ye Futian''s hands had not been too hard on him, and Ye Futian had not been cruel to him when he was wounded.


    As far as the Seventh Slayer was concerned, he had received Ye Futian''s favor. Now that Lian Jiuyou was attacking Ye Futian, he would act in order to repay him.


    Lian Jiuyou was a top figure in the God of Ghost Clan and was a Renhuang just like the Seventh Slayer. His Tricks of the Seven Killing Gods could hinder his opponent, but whether or not Ye Futian could deal with the others would be up to him.


    The Seventh Slayer summoned up his fighting prowess, then forced Lian Jiuyou back up into the air, not letting him affect the battle below. On the other side of the battlefield, The Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation was crushing Yu Sheng with his cauldrons.


    The black dragon that circled around Yu Sheng got a cold look in its eyes. With a sky-shaking roar, it surged forth, sweeping out towards the cauldrons. There was a loud ringing sound as the cauldrons were sent flying backward.


    The terrible dragon circled in the air, swallowing up all the will. Yu Sheng appeared upon the dragon''s head. The Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation frowned. The feeling he had had before was even more clear now. When the dragon stared at him, it felt like he was being stared at by an actual demon emperor.


    "You are seeking your own death," said the dragon, making the Renhuang gasp in the surprise. What was going on?


    How was there an actual Demon Emperor within Yu Sheng? If that was the case, that meant that the will of the Empty Imperial Palace was behind him. That could not have happened under the watch of the divine general of the Empty Imperial Palace.


    "No, even though he has the aura of a demon emperor, he is not truly one." A look of surprise came over his face. Could he be a dragon spirit?


    A great demon emperor had given a dragon spirit to Yu Sheng?


    But now, it seemed that a demon emperor had not cared about the cost and planted his dragon spirit into this demonic cultivator.


    This even shocked the cultivators of the Divine Dragons. Long Chen stared at this scene before him. No one understood the Divine Dragons more than he did. The elder who had been imprisoned in the abyss had actually done this for Yu Sheng?


    This meant that he looked at Yu Sheng as his heir. Since he himself was imprisoned, had he placed all his hopes on Yu Sheng?


    How much trust did he place in him?


    Threads of demonic power rolled off of Yu Sheng as he began to take in all the power in the area. He rushed forward, the dragon merging into him. At that moment, his body seemed to be that of a dragon as well.


    Dark demonic light fell from the sky. As Yu Sheng lashed out with his ax, the image of a terrible dragon surged forth with it.


    The Renhuang from the Divine Golden Nation shot forth brilliant golden light from his Divine Wheel. He raised his hand towards the oncoming attack. It was a truly shocking scene.


    Bang!


    There was a loud noise as the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation suddenly came under a ton of pressure. Both people were sent flying backward. To his shock, he found that Yu Sheng, whose eyes had turned black, had inherited the power of a dragon, and thus had the power to resist a Renhuang.


    Ye Futian watched them fight. When he saw that Yu Sheng was unharmed, he relaxed. It seemed that the divine Dragons had given him a trick to hide up his sleeve. In that case, he would not worry about him anymore.


    Many of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had gotten involved and were blocking him, including the Demon Emperor from the Sky Demon Court, who was a Renhuang. There were many cultivators there, and they were only targeting two people. One of them was Qin Lin, and the other was Ye Futian. This showed how seriously they took him. Three Renhuangs by themselves would not have been enough.


    Qin Lin of the Slaughtering World was in a worse situation than he was. He was completely surrounded.


    Ye Futian slowly rose up into the air, holding his spear. Fighting will surged out of him, and he unleashed the Deed of Thorough Comprehension as well. Golden light wrapped around him, and his body seemed to become golden. The terrible sound of elephants trumpeting rang out within him.


    Many illusory images appeared in the sky, looking like gods.


    Gai Shi Shi looked at Ye Futian, and a dark look came over his face. That was the Sigh of the Divine God. Ye Futian was throwing it in the faces of all the Golden Divine Nation, using the technique that he had stolen from Gai Shi Shi. This was, without a doubt, intended to humiliate him.


    "If anyone wants the inheritance, they must gamble their life to get it," said Ye Futian coldly, his voice shaking the air.


    "Attack!" came a cold voice. There were so many forces there. How could they fear the combat ability of one man? Some cultivators directly attacked him, a terrible pattern of suffering appeared above his head like a formation of dark gods. Destructive black lightning flashed from it, destroying everything in its path.


    Ye Futian looked up at the cultivators in the sky, then took a step forward. He stabbed out with his spear, and his fighting will surged into the sky and swept out in all directions. Golden light burst from the spear. Everyone saw the black lightning smash into the golden light.


    Powerful light stung everyone''s eyes as they watched divine golden lightning shoot up into the air and destroy the black lightning. It smashed into the formation, completely annihilating it.


    But at almost the same instant, destructive killing power came from all other directions towards Ye Futian. For example, a mountain range in which each mountain was as sharp as a knife fell on him, and destructive spatial swords shot towards him, all arriving at the same time.


    Given the distance between him and his opponents, the attacks would only take a moment to reach him.


    The divine elephants within Ye Futian trumpeted as he stepped through the air. A mighty and radiant golden elephant covered his body. As the attacks fell upon him, they were destroyed. Even the spatial swords only made a high pitched sound as they hit him. They could not pierce through his defenses.


    There were few people on the Saint plane who could hurt him.


    Everyone looked shocked when they saw this. Did he really have such amazing defenses?


    None of them had been able to hurt him!


    Every step that Ye Futian took made the air shake. He disappeared from his original place. The gods in the air around him were sighing the sighs of death.


    He stabbed straight forward with his spear.


    It pierced through the air, shocking all the cultivators in front of him. The countless divine swords flying through the air formed a sword matrix, but under the attack of the spear, the matrix was utterly shattered. The spear cut through it like a knife through bamboo.


    Crack!


    One of the cultivators was pierced through, an Unblemished Saint from the Heavenly Sword Hall. He looked at Ye Futian in shock before his body shattered. And he was not the only one. All of the cultivators from the Heavenly Sword Hall around him were sent flying back, many of them with blood streaming from their mouths. The spear''s will had cut through their flesh and crippled them.


    "You should not have made the same mistake again," said Ye Futian. He had not fought them at Sword City, and even during the struggle at the Spatial Sacred Hall when they had allied with the Martial Gods clan against him, he had not done anything to them.


    Now, the Heavenly Sword Hall was attacking him again.


    Why should he let them live?


    The other cultivators all looked back at Ye Futian. Even when they had attacked him all at once, his spear had been unmatched.


    The Renhuang level fighting will seemed to slam into them, and even the cultivators who had not been directly struck were wounded by it.


    Ye Futian stood there, gripping his spear. He swept his gaze over the other cultivators and said, "Before, I told some people that it was not worth fighting any further, and then we opened the door to the God''s Relic and came here. I don''t care that you followed me here. But if you continue to fight me, then no matter what, I promise you that you will not leave this place."


    He was naturally speaking to the people from the Martial Gods clan and the School of the Emperor Star.


    They bore him a grudge due to their earlier conflicts and thus wanted to attack him. He had let them go once already, but this time he would show no mercy.


    Indeed, his words had a great demoralizing effect, which made the cultivators who had been rushing forward stop in their tracks. Even Wu Zhan of the Martial Gods clan looked shocked.


    Their only Renhuang had been killed. Although they were one of the top forces of the Central Emperor Realm, their power in the God''s Relic was limited. The important thing was that Ye Futian had taken many opportunities away from them. And now he was threatening them.


    But his tone of voice actually made him feel threatened. He was shocked.


    He was of the Martial Gods clan and could contend with the top powers of the Central Imperial Realm. He had never felt like this before.


    "You opened the door to the God''s Relic?" said someone else with a look of surprise. Ye Futian had said that he was the one who had opened the door. Hadn''t it been Jian Qingzhu?


    "Wu Zhan, your previous battle with Ye Futian has proved some things. Ye Futian was the first to open the door to reach this place. What would be the point of continuing to fight him? He has already shown you mercy, and if you force his hand, things will not go well for you," said Yuan Hong of the Yuanyang clan. A desire to retreat gripped many of the people who had come from that direction. They understood that though they may not like it, Yuan Hong''s words were true.


    "He was the first one to open the door?" Many of them looked at Ye Futian in shock. Wasn''t it Jian Qingzhu?


    Ye Futian ignored their attention. He stepped away from them towards where Gai Shi Shi was standing there with a dark look on his face. When he saw Ye Futian coming towards him, his eyes narrowed. He felt a powerful threat to his very life!


    ...

 1643 The Perfect Level

    Ye Futian stepped forward, holding his spear out towards the people from the Divine Golden Nation.


    Since Gai Shi Shi had come to him asking for trouble, he would help him find it.


    The enmity between them had come to its inevitable conclusion. His opponent had a strong desire to kill him, and the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation had tried to do so to him and Yu Sheng. In that case, he had no choice. It was kill or be killed.


    Boom! At that moment, a powerful surge of the energy of the Great Path shot out towards him. A golden cauldron fell towards him, seeming like it had fallen from the heavens.


    The Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation had acted. Although he was fighting Yu Sheng, he was still a Renhuang after all. Using his Divine Wheel, he could cover the entire area, including where Ye Futian was.


    Seeing the power that Ye Futian had just unleashed, he could not just let him attack Gai Shi Shi. It was too dangerous.


    Bang! There was a loud noise as Yu Sheng''s power struck him as he was dealing with Ye Futian. The wild power sent him flying. A Renhuang had been knocked back, his Divine Wheel trembling.


    Ye Futian struck out with his spear at the same time, smashing it firmly into the falling cauldron and shattering it.


    "Careful, there is someone behind you trying to take your place!" someone told him telepathically. It was Dou Zhao. Ye Futian looked behind him and saw a cultivator rushing towards the statues. He wanted to take the inheritance.


    Moreover, he was a Renhuang and had many other cultivators around him.


    A dark look came over Ye Futian''s face. There were too many cultivators here, making the situation very complicated. It was hard to deal with everything at once.


    "I will watch them for you." A seal of a god of war appeared upon Dou Zhao''s brow. He moved forward towards where Gai Shi Shi and the others were. The cultivators of the Dou tribe surrounded the cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation. A wild burst of pressure swept out.


    Gai Shi Shi stared at Dou Zhao, saying, "Why are you interfering with the affairs of the Golden Divine Nation?"


    The Dou Tribe of the Ziwei Realm was an ancient family with incredible combat prowess. He had no desire to provoke them.


    "Don''t you feel that it is rather shameless to sit there and attack people when they are distracted?" asked Dou Zhao. "Moreover, do you really think you are worthy of fighting him?"


    He was confident that there were few among the Nine Supreme Realms of his generation who could defeat him. He was not familiar with Gai Shi Shi, but he showed scorn for him anyway. Even if he had reached the Renhuang plane earlier, he would not have worried.


    An ugly look came over Gai Shi Shi''s face. Dou Zhao''s words seemed to have hit a sore spot. After all, Ye Futian had beaten him quite severely.


    Dou Zhao looked at him with disdain. More and more seals appeared on his brow. Beams of divine light shot through his body as his will became even more powerful. His aura continued to rise, and the image of a fighting god appeared behind him.


    Bang! He stepped forward, staring at Gai Shi Shi. He raised his fist and lashed out.


    The sound of a god sighing rang out. Gai Shi Shi gripped his spear and thrust it out.


    Golden lightning clashed in the air as a wild pressure swept out. Gai Shi Shi was sent flying backward. And it was not only him. The other cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation around him were all knocked back by the storm.


    "Truly weak." Dou Zhao''s eyes were full of disdain. This made a dark look come over Gai Shi Shi''s face.


    On the other side, Ye Futian was naturally watching the others trying to inherit the will from the statue that he had left for Yu Sheng. But at that moment, a strong force moved over there, pushing through the crowd. A Renhuang level figure was among them as they moved towards the statue.


    It seemed that they wanted the inheritance as well.


    They were very strong and seemed rather unyielding. Previously, other cultivators had been fighting them, but they had been swept aside.


    They were from Celestial Worthy Temple in the Central Imperial Realm, one of the top powers of that ream. Previously they had only been observing. Although they had not directly competed for the statues'' will, there were nine places, and one of them should naturally be there.


    The Central Imperial Realm was at the center of the Nine Realms and had the most forces within it, but they had only won three places. This was not nearly enough. Although the people from Celestial Worthy Temple were not the most powerful members of their generation, they still deserved a place.


    When Ye Futian turned around, the Renhuang from Celestial Worthy Temple looked at him and said, "You may have unlocked the statues, but there is no place for you here. Go and find something else to do."


    No matter how talented Ye Futian was, it meant nothing. Talent was talent, and background was background, but you also needed to consider one''s background.


    No matter how powerful or talented you were, it was not enough for the people of the Central Imperial Realm. Even if you were at the peak of your abilities, what did it matter?


    Ye Futian gripped his spear tightly, and Renhuang level fighting will surged out of him. But this was not a place where he could unleash his will of the emperor. The Renhuang before him seemed stronger than Wu Meng of the Martial Gods Clan. If he couldn''t unleash the will of the emperor, it would be tough to deal with him.


    Seeing that Ye Futian was still standing there, the Renhuang from Celestial Worthy Temple raised an eyebrow and asked, "You are not willing to fight?"


    If he didn''t want to fight, then what was he doing?


    Powerful fighting will wrapped around Ye Futian, growing stronger and stronger like a terrible storm.


    Feeling the aura coming off him, the Rehuang did not continue on to the statue. Instead, he raised his arm and waved his fingers through the air.


    In a flash, a suffocating power covered the sky. Ye Futian felt the world change, like a supreme being was pressing its fingers down upon him. Each finger was like a golden mountain, thick enough to crush the sky, yet sharp enough to cut through the very air.


    He was crushed within them, and he felt like he could not breathe.


    Impossibly brilliant fighting will wrapped around him. He stepped forward, and the sound of an elephant trumpeting shook the sky. There was another sound of a god sighing, and he pushed his spear forward towards the five golden fingers.


    Bang!


    There was a loud noise as the two incomparably strong forces collided. The five-finger mountains shattered with a booming sound and pieced rained down. But Ye Futian was knocked down to a lower part of the sky as well until his feet landed on the ground with a slam. The arm that was holding the spear trembled.


    This man was clearly much stronger than Wu Meng.


    "You won''t be able to handle the inheritance," Ye Futian said to the cultivators of the Celestial Worthy Temple.


    "You may speak to me only once you have reached the next level," said the Renhuang. His aura was overpowering. He knew that Ye Futian was about to break through to the next level, and had conquered realms before, but he did not care. Even if he broke through to the next level, what would it matter? The Renhuang would already have the inheritance.


    At that moment, powerful sword will shot over from a distance, and the Renhuang felt an aura of the same level as his own. A Renhuang''s thoughts were sweeping towards him.


    He looked up into the air, and his expression changed. Brilliant golden divine light appeared in the sky. He could sense even more powerful sword will.


    He raised his hand and shot a palm print across the distance. The five-fingered palm print shot up into the air, where it split the sky. A brilliant divine sword was falling from the heavens, leaving a line in the air as it fell.


    Woosh!


    A powerful aura descended along with the sword as it cut through the palm print, turning it into nothingness. The sword had lost some momentum though, and it shrieked as it stopped in the air, then flew back up.


    In the distance, a figure stepped forward through the air. The sword entered his body. It was clearly his sword.


    "Who are you?" The Renhuang from the Celestial Worthy Temple could feel a powerfully threatening aura. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at the figure in the distance.


    Ye Futian looked at the descending figure as well, then a smile appeared on his face.


    "So he''s broken through to the next level," he thought to himself. The person before his eyes was the Swordmaster of Lihen. He had now become a Renhuang.


    He had only rushed here after cultivating for a long time. He had finally reached the legendary realm that he had always wanted to reach. This was definitely something worth getting excited about for the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    Now, the Swordmaster of Lihen''s aura had changed. The Great Path was one with his form. He stood there straight as a sword reaching up to the heavens.


    "Congratulations, Swordmaster," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen looked at Ye Futian and inclined his head with a smile. This was something he had dreamed about for a long time, and he had finally achieved it. Not only had he reached the Renhuang plane, but his entire self was also transformed. The endless sword will of Sword City had baptized him.


    Ye Futian had given him this chance. This went far beyond just a gift.


    He even dared to wonder if he was more powerful than His Majesty Emperor Xia now.


    He swept his gaze over the Renhuang from the Celestial Worthy Temple, then towards Yu Sheng''s battle. Yu Sheng was facing a Renhuang as well.


    "How can we deal with this?" he asked.


    "Attack!" answered Ye Futian. It was as simple as a single word.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen said nothing else. Incomparably brilliant divine light shone in the air, lighting up the sky. Below him, Yu Sheng and the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation felt a threat to their very lives. They both looked shocked.


    They suddenly looked up and saw incomparably dazzling divine swords falling from the sky.


    The Renhuang''s Wheel of the Great Path surged with power, making more cauldrons descend from above.


    Crack!


    The sword light pierced through the sky, descending towards the earth.


    In the next instant, the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation froze in place.


    "Impossible!" he yelled. Just as he said this, his body split in two.


    "No!" The cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation watched this in shock. They all began to feel afraid.


    Their Renhuang had been killed. Moreover, he had been killed by a single sword.


    "Are you at the perfect level?" Ye Futian asked the Swordmaster of Lihen, joy in his eyes.


    It seemed like the Swordmaster had gambled correctly. He had destroyed his own path and reforged his sword, putting the sword will from Sword City into it and baptizing his body and soul in it, thus forging a Wheel of the Great Path.


    He had had a perfect opportunity to forge a perfect, unblemished Wheel of the Great Path. This was something that would have been impossible before!


    ...

 1644 Fallen

    This sword was brilliant. It had slain a Renhuang with a single strike.


    Everyone could feel the aura of the Swordmaster''s Divine Wheel. Its brilliant, perfect radiance covered the area in sword will. Even the people from top forces looked surprised by this.


    Everyone knew a little bit about the Divine Wheel''s level, but those core few who were from the top forces without a doubt knew the most.


    Especially the people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Higher Heavens Realm, and the Myriad Realm, who had seen the Swordmaster of Lihen be defeated by the swordsman from Heavenly Sword Hall. They looked more surprised than anyone else.


    He had improved so quickly. Was it even possible for him to have changed so much?


    So what was the meaning of being a so-called "proud son of heaven?" This obviously went against common sense.


    Yuan Hong of the Yuanyang clan had been at Sword City. He looked at the Swordmaster of Lihen. He had really forged a perfect Wheel.


    The Great Emperor had unified the world, and every 50 years opened up the God''s Relic. It was said that there would be opportunities to forge perfect Wheels within the God''s Relic, giving it an independent place in the world. It had the same use as some of the secrets of the top powers, but it was even more unique.


    Thus, the people how had come here before did so both for the God''s Relic itself but also for the chances it afforded to prove themselves worthy of advancing to the next level.


    Shen Hao, Nan Luoshen, Jian Qingzhu, and more had all forged perfect Divine Wheels here.


    However, although the God''s Relic was an extraordinary place, it was not guaranteed that one would be able to forge a perfect Divine Wheel here. It still depended on the opportunity that one received and their base level of power. The Swordmaster of Lihen had clearly been lacking quite a bit, and so he should not have been able to do what he did.


    The only explanation could be that at the battle at Sword City, the Swordmaster of Lihen had destroyed his own foundation in order to forge it anew.


    That would have taken great courage. Moreover, he had had no choice. He could only fight for his life. Either he would have died under the divine sword will, or he would have broken and then stood up again later. All the sword will in Sword City had gone into him.


    However, this had all happened by chance. If the choice was given to him now, would he have the courage to gamble again?


    Yuan Hong thought there was about a fifty-fifty chance that he would.


    This was not only true for the Swordmaster of Lihen. Anyone who created a perfect Divine Wheel would stand among the top figures of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    Indeed, many of the rulers of the Nine Realms did not even have perfect Divine Wheels.


    As a descendant of one of the top figures of the Central Imperial Realm, Yuan Hong was very clear about his own


    quality.


    When Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, and Nan Luoshen had succeeded, he had not been too disturbed. After all, they were already fated to be the future rulers of the Nine Realms. But the Swordmaster of Lihen was different. This was truly shocking.


    Without a doubt, the people who were most shocked were the people from the Golden Divine Nation, Gai Shi Shi, and the others.


    The person who had been killed was their Renhuang.


    They had lost a Renhuang, and the Swordmaster of Lihen had arrived. The tables had turned completely. If Ye Futian wanted to kill all of them, how could they stop him?


    Bang! An incredibly loud sound rang out as Gai Shi Shi was sent flying by Dou Zhao''s fist. He could hear Dou Zhao''s voice rolling like thunder. "Now, do you know what fear is?"


    Previously, when he had taken advantage of these people when they were weak, he had not been the least bit polite.


    When the Swordmaster of Lihen killed the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation, those cultivators who had wanted to steal Ye Futian''s statue fled. They seemed to have abandoned their previous plans. Why hadn''t they dared to do this earlier?


    It was because the others were all very strong. Talented Renhuangs were the top figures here in the God''s Relic.


    Now that the Swordmaster of Lihen was here, Ye Futian''s side had one as well. If they wanted to steal from them, they would be seeking their own doom.


    After killing the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation, the Swordmaster of Lihen began moving towards Ye Futian. With every step, brilliant sword light shone, descending upon the cultivators from Celestial Worthy Temple. Sword will filled the air.


    The Renhuang from Celestial Worthy Temple frowned. He could feel his Divine Wheel come under a great amount of pressure. Although he had not been able to forge a perfect Divine Wheel, his was still at the Celestial Level. When added to his position as the proud son of heaven of Celestial Worthy Temple, he was incredibly strong.


    But even so, he still felt like he was under pressure.


    He raised his fist, his fingers like five divine golden mountains. He reached out towards the Swordmaster of Lihen up in the sky.


    Endless sword will appeared in the air, swallowing up all the radiance. The Swordmaster of Lihen moved, and his sword flashed out.


    With that one slash, it looked like thousands of swords were born.


    Each of the fingers were cut through, one by one, and shattered violently. The Swordmaster of Lihen pierced forward towards the Renhuang from Celestial Worthy Temple below him.


    Up in the air, a Falling Sky Sword was descending. It transformed into countless swords that seemed like they would destroy the entire area.


    Feeling that terrible sword power, the cultivator from Celestial Worthy Temple unleashed brilliant light. The Swordmaster of Lihen''s sword was incredibly fast, and it reached him in the time it took to think a single thought. But it was blocked by a golden mountain. Below it, the Renhuang from Celestial Worthy Temple was waving his hands.


    "Go!" he said. The other cultivators from Celestial Worthy Temple disappeared from their original places.


    Bang!


    There was a loud noise as the swords fell and destroyed the mountain. But the cultivators from Celestial Worthy Mountain were already far away, turning into golden afterimages. And they were getting even farther away.


    "A ritual implement." Ye Futian stared at his opponents. They had moved extremely quickly. "There''s one more over there, Swordmaster." He was looking up into the air. The Demon Emperor from the Sky Demon Court was fighting another Renhuang. It was another person who wanted to steal one of the statues.


    "Alright." As the Swordmaster of Lihen said this, his figure disappeared as he flew quickly through the air.


    Brilliant sword light appeared in the air, and blood seemed to be dripping from it. Everyone''s hearts beat faster when they saw this. There was another sword. Two Renhuangs had been slain by a single sword, and the one from Celestial Worthy Temple had only escaped due to his ritual implement.


    It seemed that there was no longer any doubt about who would get this inheritance. No one could compete for it."


    "Yu Sheng, go ahead," called Ye Futian. Yu Sheng retracted his aura and walked towards Ye Futian.


    "Go on." Ye Futian looked at the statue and saw the divine light falling upon it. It was glowing brilliantly. Yu Sheng did not say anything; he just walked over there and stepped into the statue.


    Ye Futian watched him. Previously, Yu Sheng had been at a lower level than him and had never been as close to the Rehuang plane. Now, this inheritance would be enough to let him overtake him. He would rush all the way towards the Renhuang plane.


    He turned his gaze to the other battlefield. He narrowed his eyes. Killing will was spreading out.


    He was not thinking of giving up now.


    Dou Zhao had been pressing Gai Shi Shi all this time, but when he saw Ye Futian coming, he made way for him. The Dou tribe had surrounded the cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation. None of them had escaped.


    Ye Futian looked at Gai Shi Shi and saw that his face had gone pale. There seemed to be a deep fear in his eyes. He could see the killing intent in Ye Futian''s eyes.


    "How do you want to die?" asked Ye Futian. His voice was extremely calm, but it made a dark look come over Gai Shi Shi''s face.


    Ye Futian had truly come to kill him this time.


    Last time, when he was leaving the Divine Palace, Ye Futian had not dared kill him.


    But now, he was not sure. At the very least, Ye Futian''s desire to kill him was clear in his eyes.


    Ye Futian reached out, gripping his spear, fighting will wrapping around it. Terrible spear light shone from it.


    "If you can survive this spear strike, I will let you go." Ye Futian pointed the spear at Gai Shi Shi.


    There was a gloomy look in Gai Shi Shi''s eyes as he stared at Ye Futian. Was he seeking to humiliate him?


    A single spear strike.


    But given Ye Futian''s power, Gai Shi Shi could not be sure of surviving even a single spear strike.


    He said nothing. The golden blood that flowed through his veins surged, and his body became golden. It was as if he had been forged of it. He gripped his golden divine spear and stepped forward. His endless will transformed into the figure of a celestial god. He stepped into the air.


    He was Gai Shi Shi, the foremost junior of the Golden Divine Nation, with enough talent to shock the world. Could he really not bear a single spear strike.


    "Are you ready?" asked Ye Futian. Even more powerful fighting will burst out from him towards Ye Futian. At this moment, Gai Shi Shi felt that he was not facing Ye Futian, but a god of war.


    Woosh! Golden light shone brilliantly as the sound of a God sighing rang out. A golden ancient god descended from the sky towards Ye Futian. Gai Shi Shi was not going to take his lying down, but would instead attack. He was skilled at attacking, and, in fact, there were few in the Higher Heavens realm who could match him in that regard. He had the initiative, so he would naturally take that opportunity to attack. He would like to see Ye Futian try to kill him with a single spear strike.


    Ye Futian saw Gai Shi Shi coming towards him, then stepped forward, making the air shake. He struck out with the spear, as powerful as a dragon, and a terrifying storm whipped up.


    Neither of them tried to avoid their opponent''s attack. The spears collided, unleashing a terrible, destructive light as they clashed.


    Everyone saw the divine spear trembling, and then they saw Gai Shi Shi''s arm shaking. Then his body.


    Bang!


    A terrible sound came out of his golden body.


    Then, as everyone watched in shock, many booming sounds rang out from his body. Then he began to crack apart.


    "No..."


    A look of shock came over Gai Shi Shi''s face. When he said this, golden blood began to pour out of him. His body disappeared, leaving no trace.


    "He''s really dead." Everyone trembled as they saw this, particularly the people of the Higher Heavens Realm. That was Gai Shi Shi, of the bloodline of the Golden Divine Nation. Ye Futian had really killed him.


    Moreover, what kind of power was this?


    A single spear strike had destroyed Gai Shi Shi''s body. Just how strong was he?


    He had absolutely crushed Gai Shi Shi. What kind of level was this?


    One of the top figures of the Higher Heavens Realm had fallen in the God''s Relic!


    ...

 1645 Alter

    The God''s Relic was the burial place of many proud sons of heaven.


    This time was just like it had been in the past. Many people had fallen here.


    However, it was very rare for people of Gai Shi Shi''s status to fall here. For one thing, everyone there was very strong, and for another, their opponents would usually show mercy. After all, he was the heir to the Golden Divine Nation. If other members of top forces fell here, it is possible that the people here would not care. After all, there was nothing unusual about that.


    But they would definitely care about someone like Gai Shi Shi dying.


    Even though in the past, people of his level had been killed, they had been killed by people who were even more powerful than them. For example, the people of the Central Emperor Realm could ignore it if their fellows were killed by people from the other top forces since they were very strong themselves.


    But Ye Futian was someone without any background. He called himself the disciple of the Sky River Great Elder and had killed Gai Shi Shi. This was not something that made sense.


    But everyone knew that war was chaotic, and when deep enmity was involved, things did not always make sense.


    After all, the people from the Golden Divine Nation had attacked him and Yu Sheng. If Yu Sheng had not been strong enough, he would have died at the Renhuang''s hands.


    Ye Futian stood there in the sky, holding his spear. He swept his gaze over the people from the Golden Divine Nation and said, "Get out of here."


    He had not slaughtered them all, killing only Gai Shi Shi and the Renhuang. They were the main figures of the Golden Divine Realm here anyway.


    As for whether the rest of them lived or died, he really didn''t care.


    If he let them return, they could report what had happened to the Golden Divine Nation. They would tell them who had struck first.


    The people from the Golden Divine Nation turned and left. What would be the point of remaining there?


    They had not gained much from this trip to the God''s Relic, and most of what they had gained had gone to Gai Shi Shi. With his death, it could be said that the trip was a complete disaster. It would be difficult for them to explain themselves when they returned.


    "You''re letting them go?" Dou Zhao whispered. Ye Futian was very kind. If it had been him, he would not have let even a single one of them go. He would have slaughtered them all.


    "There would be no point in killing them all," whispered Ye Futian. He turned and walked over to the statues. He could see Yu Sheng bathed in the statue''s light. Brilliant divine light was falling from the palace in the sky, making Yu Sheng''s body change continuously. His eyes were closed, and it seemed like he was calmly taking everything in. The Great Path was resonating within him.


    "When will I get a chance like this?" Dou Zhao watched Yu Sheng enviously. That guy had been able to defeat him when he used the will of the Sevenfold Will of the Fighting God even though he was at a lower level. Once he had forged a law body just like Dou Zhao had, he would get even stronger. At that point, even the Sevenfold Will of the Fighting God wouldn''t be enough.


    "You are truly not polite at all," Ye Futian praised him.


    "We''re all family here, why should I be polite?" said Dou Zhao cheerfully. He hadn''t forgotten that this guy had many treasures taken from the sacred hall.


    "You are right," said Ye Futian with a smile. Dou Zhao was well suited to his own temperament.


    His combat ability and capacity for violence were similar to Yu Sheng''s. His personality was not that sincere. He was brazen and shameless. It could be said that he was a combination of Yu Sheng and Little Condor.


    "Since you also say we are family, I will also not be polite the next time I need a weapon," said Dou Zhao, looking at Ye Futian. He obviously still had the idea that he needed magic weapons. If he could equip the elders in his family, they would be able to directly sweep into the Ziwei Realm.


    They were not able to wield the full power of the weapons from the Spatial Sacred Hall due to their level. Their true power could only be unleashed in the hands of Renhuangs.


    "Are you serious..." whispered Ye Futian. Five weapons was not enough?


    Why did he feel like this guy had just ruined the mood?


    By that point, all of the fighting had calmed down. The heirs all appeared within the nine statues, and no one else was bothering Yu Sheng. Two Renhuangs had already fallen. The people of the Celestial Worthy Temple had fled, and the Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation had been killed. Who else would dare interfere?


    As for the other battles, Qin Lin of the Slaughtering World''s inheritance had been seized...


    Although the Slaughtering World was not weak, they were not strong enough to withstand attacks from many other forces. They had no choice but to give up their spot.


    "Futian." At that moment, the Swordmaster of Lihen flew downward and landed beside Ye Futian. He had recalled his powerful sword will, but even so, he still looked like a sharp sword.


    Ye Futian smiled brightly when he saw him. He had a perfect Divine Wheel and had the power to kill a Renhuang with a single strike. He was so happy for him.


    He remembered that he and the Swordmaster of Lihen had misunderstood each other the first time they had met. At that time, he had fought his way to the 33rd layer of Lihen Heaven and defeated Wang Chuan. But the Swordmaster of Lihen had not only not blamed him for this, but he had also given his sword to Ye Wuchen.


    Afterward, the sword that he had given Ye Wuchen had played a key role in the Battle of the Empty Realm. After that, he had participated in the Battle of the Crimson Dragon Realm. As far as Ye Futian was concerned, he owed him several times over. He was a man of measure and grandeur.


    Otherwise, even given a chance like he had just had, he would not have been able to forge a perfect Divine Wheel.


    Now, seeing that the Swordmaster had finally reached the level that he had been pursuing for so long, and had, in fact, succeeded far beyond his hopes, he was naturally very happy for his friend.


    "You have a perfect Divine Wheel, showing that your following of the Way is flawless. I hope that your sword will one day sweep through the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    "I can feel that my sword has become incredibly strong. In the past, I felt His Majesty''s power, and thus challenged him on purpose in order to learn more. But now that I''ve formed my own Wheel, I can feel that it is different. It is a flawless feeling. Is this what is called a Flawless Divine Wheel?" the Swordmaster of Lihen asked. It seemed that he still did not really understand Divine Wheels.


    "Yes," said Ye Futian with a nod. "Even people who rule an entire realm, like Lord Taixuan, will not necessarily have perfect Wheels. As far as I know, the God''s Relic is a special place. When added to the fact that you reforged yourself, this allowed you to forge your perfect Wheel. There are few people in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path who have done this."


    When he had been in the ancestral land of the Divine Palace, the mysterious person there had told him some of this. Cultivating at the ancestral land would give one the chance to forge a perfect Wheel. Thus, he speculated that the God''s Relic and the ancient Renhuang who had fallen here were different. He must have been a Renhuang from before the collapse of the heavens.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen was shocked when he heard what Ye Futian said. He could feel that his Wheel of the Great Path was different, and the previous battle had proved his strength. But he had not thought that it was quite this extraordinary.


    If that was the case, then he, a swordsman who had come from Emperor Xia''s Realm, ad become one of the top swordsmen in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path in a single step?


    Would he have to abandon His Majesty then?


    This made him feel very strange. After all, he had followed Emperor Xia for many years.


    "Perhaps this is fate," said the Swordmaster of Lihen with a smile. He was not terribly excited. Swordsmen had to focus on swordsmanship. No matter how strong or weak they are, they needed to have an indomitable will to move forward.


    It was the same for Saints and Renhuangs. It was the same in the past and now. He would follow his own sword path to the end.


    "Congratulations," came a voice. It was Yaya. She and the Swordmaster of Lihen were old friends. In the past, the two strongest swordsmen in Emperor Xia''s Realm, the Swordmaster of Lihen, and the Sword Saint of the Void were often compared to each other.


    "Ye Futian is the one who gave me this chance. I have taken the first step onto the Renhuang plane, and I will wait for you here," said the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    Given the relationship between Ye Futian and Yaya, he would certainly not deny her an opportunity.


    "Mmm," said Yaya with a nod. She looked at Ye Futian.


    "Uhhh..." Feeling Yaya''s eyes on him, Ye Futian shifted his gaze and looked at Yu Sheng. "It''s taking him a long time."


    Ye Futian had a strong desire to survive.


    The Swordmaster had been lucky enough to find a chance to break through to the next level. He had no way of guaranteeing that Yaya would be able to have a chance to forge a perfect Wheel. He had no choice but to play dead.


    Yaya stared at him, but in reality, she did not care too much. She would not force the issue.


    As they were speaking, someone came out of his statue. It was Shen Hao.


    In the instant that he stepped out, the statue that was bathed in light from the celestial palace above disappeared.


    He opened his eyes, and a beam of divine light shot out of them, incredibly sharp. He seemed to have changed.


    He swept his gaze over the people before him, then at those beside him. Next, Jian Qingzhu, Nan Luoshen, and the others finished as well. They came out of their statues one by one, each statue disappearing into nothing once they exited. It was as if they never existed.


    Once they exited, some of them looked at Ye Futian and the Swordmaster of Lihen, and others looked at Yu Sheng.


    Although they had been inheriting the will of the statues, they knew what had been happening outside. The battle that had just taken place had been brilliant. Moreover, a swordsman who had forged a perfect Wheel of the Great Path had appeared.


    And Ye Futian had given his own chance for an inheritance to his friend.


    Before he had even reached the Renhuang plane, he had given his opportunity to another. It did not need to be said that this Ye Futian was an extraordinary person with incredible talent.


    Yu Sheng was the last one to enter a statue. Thus, he was the last one to come out.


    As he opened his eyes and stepped out, the Great Path resonated within him. He looked at Ye Futian, and Ye Futian looked back at him with a bright smile.


    Then the statue disappeared like an illusion. At that moment, the light coming down from the celestial palace, which had been restrained at first, burst with brilliance.


    Boom!


    A fierce rumbling sound rang out as the palace began shaking. An invisible force had covered the sky stairwell that went up to the palace, but now it collapsed and split apart.


    Soon, the Sky Stairwell disappeared, making it seem like the celestial palace was no longer rooted to the ground. It burst with incomparably brilliant light, and one beam of the light shot up into the clouds like a bridge connecting the palace to the sky.


    "Is the final inheritance going to appear?" Everyone trembled on the inside. They held their breath in anticipation. This was the first time anyone on the trip to the God''s Relic had gotten this far. This was the first time they had gotten to the end.


    What was hidden here?


    ...

 1646 Shadow of the Emperor

    Inside the relic, everyone was looking up at the Heavenly Palace as if it were the real divine residence.


    Numerous rays of sunlight sprinkled down from the sky above, and the light beam that penetrated downwards had activated the passage to heaven. The divine will of some Renhuang level cultivators had moved in that direction, but they found that their will was blocked and could not penetrate the brilliance of the sun''s rays.


    "Heaven has opened," Ye Futian murmured. The view in front of him was incredibly beautiful.


    "What''s that?" Above the Heavenly Palace, an illusory shadow loomed, gradually solidifying.


    It slowly turned into an extremely sacred figure, standing high above the Heavenly Palace.


    It seemed to be the true divine god.


    Is that the master of God''s relic? many people wondered. After they came here, they had speculated, and so had Jian Qingzhu. All four sides of the relic led to this place. And judging from all angles, this place was clearly the location of a supreme palace.


    This supreme being was once the master of this place. Whether it was the treasure inside the Spatial Sacred Hall, those divine trees, or the books, they all once belonged to him.


    Then the figure that appeared before them could very well be the existence of god.


    The Great Emperor!


    At this moment, everyone looked solemn, for no one in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had reached that level. This was someone who stood at the top of cultivation��the being that was truly supreme.


    Whether it was the number one genius of the Tianshen Academy, the heir to the Shen Clan, or even the princess of the Nantian Divine Kingdom, each had a look of respect in their eyes. No matter if this supreme being still existed in the world, they dared not be disrespectful.


    Many even bowed slightly to salute the supreme figure in the void, which was their way of paying respect to the supreme being.


    The phantom seemed to be alive, yet ethereal and untouchable. Ye Futian looked at the sky above and recalled similarities to the time when he first encountered Emperor Ye Qing.


    But this supreme being only had a trace of will that remained in the world. Was that trace finally awakened because someone had arrived here?


    What kind of place was this?


    After Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing unified the world, why did they open God''s relic to allow the people from the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path to come here to cultivate? Was it to give the cultivators of 3,000 Realms of the Great Path an opportunity, so that they had a chance to create a truly perfect divine wheel?


    From what he knew, the two emperors were hoping that the world would preach and make martial arts prosper, so there was indeed such a possibility.


    So, was he coming here to receive the inheritance of this ancient Great Emperor?


    It was not only Ye Futian who was guessing. Everyone else also had their own ideas. Those of the top forces also believed that this might be the inheritance left by the gods. The ethereal shadow that appeared at this moment- could that be the fallen Great Emperor from the ancient wartimes?


    They all had a strong desire and expectation in their hearts. If they could really have the chance to obtain the inheritance of the Emperor''s relic, such an opportunity would be completely based on luck. Among all the countless inheritances that existed within the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, none could compare to this level of inheritance. At least for now, no one had discovered an Emperor''s relic elsewhere.


    Some time ago, the demonic emperor''s inheritance appeared in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but the demonic emperor did not show up. It may have been that the demonic emperor''s will had been integrated into the demonic realm, so it was not really an inheritance from the emperor.


    Even Shen Hao of the Shen Clan showed a very strong sense of expectation in his eyes. If he could obtain the true emperor-grade inheritance, then perhaps one day in the future, the Shen Clan could stand at the peak of the 3,000 Realm of the Great Path.


    Moreover, he would also have the opportunity to pursue the supreme realm.


    Jian Qingzhu from Tianshen Academy stared at the void, also with great anticipation. He didn''t expect the Great Emperor to really exist in the relic.


    Nan Luoshen''s beautiful eyes also hovered over the Heavenly Palace. This time, could she take it?


    Everyone had the same idea, and that was to obtain the inheritance. They had even forgotten about their own strength, talent, and whether they could compete with those top figures.


    With this kind of opportunity right in front of them, who could resist?


    As long as they got it, they would have the opportunity to become the top figure in the 3,000 Realms of the Great path, just like Jian Qingzhu from Tianshen Academy and Shen Hao from the Shen Clan.


    At this time, the Heavenly Palace shot out incomparable divine light that scattered between heaven and the earth. In an instant, countless sacred flashes of brilliance fell upon the area below the Heavenly Palace as if containing the real imperial might that covered the entire range below.


    Feeling the incomparably brilliant glow, a figure stepped out. It was Shen Hao of the Shen Clan. He walked underneath the Heavenly Palace and entered the area where the divine light was spilled. In an instant, a supreme pressure fell on him, and his body fell from the sky under the tremendous pressure.


    Seeing Shen Hao''s movements, many slowly understood something. The divine light that spilled from the Heavenly Palace penetrated through the heaven and the earth, like a light beam that could reach into the sky. Was this the final test?


    Likewise, Jian Qingzhu also moved forward and stepped inside without any hesitation. After that, top figures such as Nan Luoshen, Gui Zang, and Di Wu all entered one after another.


    The moment they stepped inside, will of the Way exploded fiercely from their body, and their will was urged to the limit to resist the sacred glory that fell on them. But even so, they were still forced to fall downward.


    "Go." A group of figures whizzed out, and all headed there. However, some had just entered that area when the sacred brilliance fell on their bodies. Their bodies were no longer just simply falling, but rather being slammed down before hitting the ground. Their will almost collapsed, and their faces paled.


    Boom, boom, boom!


    Bodies kept falling from above, and in just a short moment, a countless amount had fallen to the ground, hitting it hard. Some couldn''t even get up.


    If this were the final test of the relic, it would not be easy. Even though the real God''s relic was right in front of them, it didn''t mean that anyone could get their hands on it.


    Ye Futian and his party gathered together, Yu Sheng by his side. All of them looked forward.


    "Is the pressure this strong?" Dou Zhao whispered.


    "Emperor level. You want to try it?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Sure, I''ll give it a try." Dou Zhao nodded and stepped forward with a bang. This time he didn''t hesitate to use the will of the Sevenfold Fighting God. When he walked, he was like a god descending upon the earth, heading toward the Heavenly Palace. Shen Hao, Jian Qingzhu, and the others were all under tremendous pressure, so Dou Zhao dared not give anything less than his very best.


    He knew exactly what level this pressure of might was.


    Boom! The moment Dou Zhao stepped inside, his body was suppressed downward, and under the divine pressure, his body kept falling down.


    "It has nothing to do with realm." Ye Futian kept his eyes forward and said, "It seems to be similar to before. It is the suppression of will again."


    "What is the purpose of this test?" the Swordmaster of Lihen whispered. He was somewhat puzzled.


    "You probably have to go in personally to find out," Ye Futian said as people continuously entered, with most of them being shaken off on the ground as they couldn''t bear the pressure. Those whose wills were not strong enough would just lie there as if suffocating.


    Ye Futian glanced at that phantom, and wondered if it could be some Great Emperor from the ancient times?


    If he urged the will of the emperor, was it enough to counter this suppression of will?


    Ahead of them, as Shen Hao and Jian Qingzhu gradually adapted to the pressure of might, they were actually able to withstand it and began to travel upward. As they looked up at the Heavenly Palace, their divine will was curious to enter the palace to see what was inside. Where did that sacred beam lead?


    "Go in," Ye Futian said, and suddenly a group of people all stepped forward, moving towards its interior. Whether they could withstand the pressure or not, they had to try, even if it meant failure.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Swordmaster, Yaya, Xia Qingyuan, and many others walked into the lower part of the Heavenly Palace.


    In just an instant, Ye Futian had felt that most sacred might of the Emperor.


    Regardless of cultivation and realm, when the emperor''s might suppressed downward, all beings were forced to prostrate. This was different from the trace of will of the emperor that he possessed. This was the true legacy of the real Great Emperor. Its power was beyond imagination.


    Infinite divine light fell down as his body was suppressed down. His tyrannical will bloomed fiercely, resisting that might.


    He raised his head and looked in the direction of the Heavenly Palace. He saw countless rays of light, a beam of light that reached into the sky, and a most sacred figure, like a god. Rather, it was a true god, standing there and overlooking everything in the world. Just a look from him and the feeling would be unbearable.


    The majority of the people who were present had stepped into this space. However, except for the top figures of the major forces, everyone else was being suppressed without any doubt as they were unable to resist it.


    Those who could remain standing were people who had extraordinary will.


    Boom.


    At this moment, a dull sound came out, and under the Heavenly Palace, someone was walking up against the momentum. It turned out to be Shen Hao.


    He urged the blood and vigor inside his body so that his whole body was now able to see through everything and detected the secrets of the Heavenly Palace. Would the true inheritance of the relic be inside that palace?


    "How powerful."


    Many people looked at Shen Hao, the strongest man in this generation of the Shen Clan. Could he resist the emperor''s might and inherit God''s relic?


    "Jian Qingzhu is also going up." Someone looked in another direction and saw that Jian Qingzhu, Nanluo Shen, and Gui Zang were all going up. Gui Zang had turned into a golden Buddha in an attempt to resist the will of the Emperor.


    His eyes seemed to be able to see through nothingness. Even though his divine will was not sufficient to penetrate this power and enter into the Heavenly Palace, he could perceive that the secrets of God''s relic were inside the Heavenly Palace. As long as he could enter the Heavenly Palace with his divine will, it was possible for him to detect it and even possible for him to receive the inheritance of the relic.


    In this Heavenly Palace, standing on God''s relic, even the incarnation of the will of the Great Emperor had appeared. The inheritance of the Great Emperor must not be far away.


    The same idea had also occurred to Ye Futian. His divine will went up, wanting to break through this might so that he could enter the palace and see what was inside!


    ...

 1647 Divine Item Unearthed

    Ye Futian''s divine spirit headed against the flow towards the Heavenly Palace. However, in front of him, there seemed to be an emperor''s shadow standing there and suppressing him. The countless divine lights turned into might that prevented his divine spirit from invading.


    It was hard to make a breakthrough.


    Boom. The intent of battle lingered around Ye Futian, and even his Celestial Soul appeared. He opened both of his eyes and looked directly at the sky above. His eyes seemed to have turned gold, containing a dreadful divine aura.


    He still couldn''t get in?


    A trace of the most sacred breath diffused from Ye Futian''s body, merging into the divine spirit and directly rushing toward the Heavenly Palace.


    There was a dull noise, which sounded as if he had been able to force open a gap. Under this pressure of might, his divine spirit invaded the Heavenly Palace.


    However, what he saw after the invasion of the divine spirit was still just chaos. He could feel that he had entered the Heavenly Palace, but all that he could perceive around him was the golden divine light. There was an extremely curious feeling that inside here, everything seemed to be surreal and dreamlike. Nothing could be seen or could be seen clearly.


    Could it be that there is nothing inside the palace? Ye Futian thought.


    That''s impossible.


    His eyes were extremely sharp, and his divine spirit faintly perceived that this Heavenly Palace held many mysterious auras. It was as if there were many divine items around his divine spirit. His divine spirit wanted to touch them, but couldn''t perceive their exact location. They seemed close by, but also seemed to be far away and inaccessible.


    The omnipresent shadow of the emperor was still imprinted in his mind.


    Could it be that only when one had perceived the items within the palace, could they be clearly seen and touched? Ye Futian thought. But how?


    His divine spirit had entered the Heavenly Palace, but was is still no use. Everyone was here for the first time, and no one knew just what to do.


    Inheritance, inheritance... Ye Futian''s thoughts turned again and again, and many thoughts appeared in his mind instantaneously. Inside the Heavenly Palace, the divine spirit was under tremendous pressure at all times, and he had no time to waste.


    "Huh?" At this moment, he felt the power of another divine spirit. Obviously, the divine spirits of the others, like his, had come inside this Heavenly Palace. They had also encountered similar obstacles.


    This divine spirit was that of Jian Qingzhu��the first descendant of Tianshen Academy. His divine spirit, like Ye Futian''s, had invaded the Heavenly Palace.


    At this moment, he continued to move upward, and an incomparably bright will of the Way dazzled on his body to invade the Heavenly Palace along with his divine spirit.


    "What is that?"


    At this moment, Jian Qingzhu knew what to do. He did not miss such an opportunity and was completely immersed in it.


    Boom. The terrifying divine might suppressed his divine spirit, causing his mind to vibrate and his body to tremble slightly. It was as if it might collapse under the pressure at any time.


    Almost. A thought appeared in Jian Qingzhu''s mind, and he could almost see it clearly. How could he give up at a time like this?


    No matter how strong the pressure was, he had to make it out.


    An incomparable brilliant divine light burst from Jian Qingzhu. There seemed to be countless scrolls flying into the sky, submerging Jian Qingzhu within them. He urged his own will to the limit, and the power of his divine spirit had also reached its limit. Infinite will of the Way and power surged into the Heavenly Palace.


    At this moment, that illusory figure gradually became clearer and could already be seen.


    It turned out to be a volume of a book, radiantly dazzling to behold.


    Buzz.


    A wind blew inside the Heavenly Palace, and a most sacred brilliance fell down. The crowd could see that below the Heavenly Palace, and an even more dazzling ray of light flew out of the endless brilliant golden light.


    It seemed to be a book scroll.


    This extremely sacred scroll flew directly in the direction of Jian Qingzhu.


    "The unearthing of the divine item."


    In an instant, countless people raised their heads to look at the light in the void, their eyes revealing the extreme shock they experienced.


    Had the divine items inside the palace come out?


    They also clearly saw that the book flew directly to Jian Qingzhu.


    Without any hesitation, Jian Qingzhu raised his hand and grabbed it. He then put it away without taking a closer look at all, which shocked many people.


    Jian Qingzhu of Tianshen Academy had he inherited the relic of Heavenly Palace?


    Many disciples of Tianshen Academy looked at Jian Qingzhu, and they were happy for him. However, they were also a little jealous. To say that they hadn''t thought of themselves would be a lie. Who didn''t want to get the heritage of this relic?


    However, there was only one Jian Qingzhu in the world.


    Boom!


    Jian Qingzhu''s body was knocked down. He had spent a lot of energy and will to resist. Before he could make out the scroll clearly, it flew out. Now, it was impossible for him to immediately repeat the whole process all over again. He would need some time to recover.


    "What''s going on?" Even Jian Qingzhu himself hadn''t figured it out yet.


    Judging from the previous situation, it seemed that as long as one could perceive and make out the things inside the palace, it was enough to make them fly out and become obtainable?


    And why was it this scroll?


    Was it a coincidence that it actually complemented what he cultivated in?


    Jian Qingzhu guessed that this might not be a coincidence.


    It was not that they were solving the secrets of the Heavenly Palace to receive the inheritance, but that the Heavenly Palace was choosing them.


    Moreover, the person must first be able to withstand this pressure before becoming eligible to be favored by the Heavenly Palace and be selected.


    It was almost unbearable even for him. He was almost unable to persist and risked wasting all his previous efforts.


    Although everyone from the Nine Realms was a top genius, he understood that there were only a few who were truly qualified to compete for these items. Among these very few, there might be hope that they would encounter the same situation as him.


    A faint joy flashed in his eyes. As the divine object passed down from the Heavenly Palace, he thought that volume of the book must be a most extraordinary object that may have been left by the Great Emperor. It was a priceless prize.


    Although he was pleasantly surprised, Jian Qingzhu was in no hurry to read it. It was simply not the right time.


    Buzz!


    At this moment, another dazzling divine light flickered from the Heavenly Palace, and it seemed that another divine item flew down from the Heavenly Palace.


    There was a loud banging sound that came out successively, and the golden Buddha that was formed by Gui Zang collapsed and shattered as if being blasted by the Great Path.


    However, Gui Zang raised his hand and grabbed the flying divine item directly into his palm.


    He opened his palm and looked. The divine item was suspended just above his palm, and it was a seed.


    "Virtue."


    Gui Zang smiled and squeezed his fist, and the seed integrated into his blood. At the same time, roaring sounds continued to be heard as Gui Zang''s body was continually suppressed downward.


    The second person after Jian Qingzhu turned out to be Gui Zang, which clearly was unexpected.


    It appeared that this master from the Mountain Realm possessed terrifying talent and strength.


    No one even thought of plundering these divine items that came out of the Heavenly Palace, not when the ones in question were Jian Qingzhu and Gui Zang. They were at the pinnacle of their cultivation, those who had cast the perfect divine wheel of the Great Path. At the very least, they were the pinnacle existence in God''s relic. How would plundering be possible?


    Whoever dared to be the first to strike would undoubtedly die, unless those top figures were fighting amongst themselves.


    Buzz. At this moment, two rays of light flew out at the same time, and suddenly two figures emerged at the same time, grabbing toward the rays of light.


    They were Shen Hao of the Shen Clan and Nan Luoshen of the Nantian Divine Kingdom.


    Obviously, these two peerless figures had also perceived some object inside the Heavenly Palace.


    Ye Futian''s divine spirit was still inside the Heavenly Palace. He saw the divine items in the Heavenly Palace fly out, and he felt it the moment they did. He also knew who received what on the outside. For a moment, a thought occurred to him, and it seemed to echo with the expertise of his cultivation.


    A tyrannical will of the Way blended into his divine spirit on the note of this thought. At this moment, his divine spirit seemed to have turned into the divine spirit of swordsmanship. He was intending on piercing the great power of heaven.


    Sure enough, in that illusive Heavenly Palace, something faintly became clear. It was as if it were being perceived by him.


    His divine spirit went there, and he saw a sword floating inside the Heavenly Palace. Or rather, it saw a sword that was transformed by a trace of sword intent.


    Buzz.


    A dazzling sword light flew out, headed towards the outside of the temple, and aimed straight at Ye Futian.


    That trace of sword intent entered into his will. It was extremely terrifying with considerable destructive power, causing its body to tremble. It also fell toward the ground below.


    The life spirit inside Ye Futian whistled, and the ancient tree of the world swayed toward the sword intent. That terrifying sword intent, after encountering the ancient tree of the world, actually became gentle and was then sealed inside the life spirit.


    "Huff..." Ye Futian took a deep breath. He was just fretting about what gift to give Yaya, and this sword intent should not be any weaker than Xia Qingyuan''s lotus. That would be enough to help Yaya''s enlightenment.


    All eyes were on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian seemed to have also received a divine item, which appeared to be a sword.


    However, with the presence of the Swordmaster of Lihen and the great battle that just took place, it would not be wise to provoke Ye Futian.


    Raising his head, Ye Futian took a step, and with a powerful intent that swept out, he took to the sky once again.


    Clearly, this was not enough for him.


    "Recovered so soon?" When many people saw Ye Futian''s action, they couldn''t suppress their curiosity. Jian Qingzhu and the others had not even recovered when Ye Futian went straight up again. Was this to loot the divine items in the Heavenly Palace now that he had gotten a taste of it?


    The Heavenly Palace was the last inheritance of the God''s relic. Any divine items unearthed in the palace may contain the will of the Great Emperor because it was something that was used by the Great Emperor.


    Just one item would justify the whole journey here, worthy of great benefits. If someone could have gotten two...


    At present, only a few people had gotten just one. No one dared to even dream of getting two.


    In years past, no one had ever come this far. This time everyone had reached the end of the relic. Now, they had even gotten the things left behind by the Great Emperor. It was entirely conceivable that this time, a group of top figures that could cause a great disruption to the Nine Realms was in the making.


    Once Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, and Nan Luoshen walked out of here, how would they change the future of cultivation?


    Perhaps they may become the strongest generation in many years!


    ...

 1648 Tomb of the Gods

    Divine light was shining above the Heavenly Palace.


    Yu Sheng, under the pressure of the Great Path, tossed and turned his own demonic might until he resembled an overpowering demonic god.


    As his demonic thought invaded the Heavenly Palace, he saw an extremely heavy and dark object. His demonic thought moved, and a rumbling sound was suddenly heard. He felt his own demonic thoughts being impacted violently, and inside the Heavenly Palace, a black object flew out of the bright divine light. It immediately attracted the attention of many.


    "What is that?"


    Many people postulated when they saw the black object. Even across such a long distance, they could still feel the weight of that black object.


    "It looks like a rock," someone whispered as the black rock gave out an extremely heavy sensation.


    The black rock flew directly toward Yu Sheng and was caught in Yu Sheng''s palm. In an instant, the rock penetrated his body.


    Boom.


    With a loud bang, Yu Sheng''s body was being suppressed downward, and even his domineering demonic torso seemed unable to bear it.


    It seemed that Yu Sheng had also received a corresponding divine item.


    Afterward, a few more divine items flew out. Many expressed a look of wonder. They found it an amazing coincidence that whoever had received divine items were basically the same people who had previously received the inheritance of the statue, except for Ye Futian.


    But the statue was decoded by Ye Futian, so he should also count for half of it.


    So, could it be that because they had inherited the will of the statue which made their will even stronger? Was that how they were able to resist the divine might of the Heavenly Palace and obtain the treasures?


    Or rather, it was because of their own great strength that they were qualified to inherit the statue so that it was only natural for them to receive the divine items?


    Of course, the most likely possibility was that they were strong in their own right, so they inherited the statue. After that, they became even stronger, so all that had happened was completely reasonable.


    Everything that happened could be coincidental, but could also be a matter of strength.


    Out of the ten people who had gotten the divine martial spirit, nine happened to be those who inherited the statue, with Ye Futian as the exception. The arrival of the slaughter world decoded the secret of the statue, but the qualification to inherit the statue was taken away by others. He didn''t get the divine item, and his luck was pilfered by others.


    In this way, Ye Futian was more outstanding than Qin Lin. He was the only one who did not inherit the statue but had obtained the divine item.


    These people, including Shen Clan and many top figures in Tianshen Academy, all seemed unwilling to accept failure and tried again and again.


    But after one failure, they found that the pressure on the second try was even greater, or rather it was because they had consumed so much energy before.


    Even so, Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, and a few others still stubbornly moved upward, standing beneath the Heavenly Palace. They wanted to perceive the divine items inside the palace.


    Aside from the divine items, was there also God''s inheritance?


    Not only did they think that, but Ye Futian also thought the same. Since it was God''s relic, it should have God''s inheritance.


    This Heavenly Palace was the last relic, and the shadow of the emperor had already appeared.


    Bathed in the golden glow, an extremely brilliant radiance emerged from his body. His eyes changed and turned into golden divine eyes that could see through the ages.


    Boom.


    The moment the divine spirit rushed into the Heavenly Palace, a sacred phantom of the palace itself manifested in his mind and released all of its brilliant glory.


    Rumbling sounds were heard, and the entire Heavenly Palace was trembling. The emperor''s shadow seemed to glance down from the sky. At this moment, there were two lines of sight that seemed to converge at the same time.


    Inside the Heavenly Palace, Ye Futian felt that there was a great emperor standing in front of him, with his hands folded behind his back like the Lord of this Heavenly Path.


    A terrifying pressure of might penetrated Ye Futian''s body, invading his eyes like the true will of the Great Emperor.


    "So it is."


    At this moment, a sigh from ancient times seemed to sound in Ye Futian''s mind. In the next moment, the emperor''s shadow disappeared, and the Heavenly Palace bloomed with endless rays of light that were madly falling down. Those below only felt a violent shock to their divine spirits, and it was hard for them to open their eyes.


    "What''s happening?" Many people resolved to close their eyes and withdrew their divine spirit, afraid to look or even peep.


    Shen Hao opened his divine eye, wanting to get a closer look, but a most sacred emperor''s shadow appeared, and the pressure of the might stung his eyes so much that there was even a faint blood trace coming out. He let out a muffled groan and closed his eyes, daring not to peek anymore.


    What happened?


    Not just Shen Hao, but everyone else was asking, what had happened?


    They didn''t understand why the emperor''s might suddenly became stronger and was now suppressing everyone.


    Only Ye Futian''s eyes were still open. Everything around him had become surreal. Countless divine lights pierced down and sprinkled on his body, like the true Great Emperor descending into the world. Except for him, there was no other divine spirit that dared to snoop, let alone with their physical eyes.


    So, this was it?


    What was the meaning of this sigh?


    Afterward, the incomparable sacred light poured directly into his body, and all the light in that Heavenly Palace went toward him.


    "Will of the emperor."


    Ye Futian clearly felt that this was another will of the emperor rushing into his body. At this moment, the will of the emperor in his body seemed to be urged completely, releasing an endless glow. Ye Futian, with his robe fluttering, seemed like a supreme ruler.


    However, no one saw this spectacle at all.


    The ancient tree of the world swayed, blooming with extreme brilliance, swallowing up all the will that descended and glowing with extremely dazzling divine light.


    "It''s time." A thought came to Ye Futian. With a turning of his mind, endless divine light of the Great Path poured into his body and converged. Inside, many life spirits appeared at the same time. An invisible will of the Way turned into rounds of sacred brilliance, sweeping across the world.


    There were sounds of rhythm, along with sword intent.


    The divine light gathered as an immense shadow enveloped Ye Futian''s entire body. It was a guqin, and every string seemed to be cast by a sword with extreme sharpness.


    There seemed to be a series of musical notes floating between heaven and earth, and with countless sacred brilliance raining down, the guqin gradually took shape and merged into Ye Futian''s body.


    The divine light of the Great Path, the will of the Way from the ancient trees of the world, and the infinite will between heaven and earth were now unified. If someone could open their eyes, they would see that there were countless guqin appearing in this space. All the guqin merged into one from outside to inside, until finally all of them integrated inside of him and turned into the divine wheel.


    "Someone broke through the realm?"


    Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, and the others could no longer perceive anything in the outside world, but they had a feeling. It was an elusive feeling and unpredictable, but it was like someone was breaking through the realm, and the sound of music could be faintly heard.


    After a while, another immense phantom of the golden divine elephant appeared. Countless idol phantoms of the divine elephant appeared between the heaven and the earth, trampling across the sky, which was extremely magnificent.


    Impressive and majestic divine elephants ran over the void, and then unified into one, accompanying the radiant divine light to merge into Ye Futian''s body. Even the 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor inside of Ye Futian were integrated into the divine wheel.


    The divine wheel he cast was extremely radiant. Previously, the Swordmaster of Lihen had also released a perfect divine wheel, but it was not nearly as brilliant as Ye Futian''s. Besides, this divine wheel had incorporated an extremely sacred breath.


    Boom!


    A tyrannical divine spirit rushed into the sky. Ye Futian felt that the whole world had become different, and his divine spirit became even stronger as if he himself was representing the Great Path.


    Renhuang, sharing the same glory as heaven and earth, lived as long as the sun and the moon existed.


    At this moment, Ye Futian broke through into Renhuang Realm.


    His pupils became even more radiant, penetrating the Heavenly Palace, and looking at the line opened by the heaven and earth, his divine spirit seemed to rush into it.


    At this moment, Ye Futian''s divine spirit seemed to travel through time and space. He saw an extremely spectacular scene, and his heart trembled violently.


    "What is that?"


    His heart trembled fiercely because of what he saw. What could be the meaning of all this?


    Boom! An incomparable divine might of the Great Path descended as if the Heavenly path was now closing. The eye of heaven was also closed. Ye Futian''s divine spirit was shaken and knocked back, and afterward, the divine light gradually dimmed. The Heavenly Palace, likewise, became dimmer as well.


    Ye Futian retracted the power he had released, and everything seemed to return to normal. All eyes opened, looking at everything outside. What had happened just now?


    "The Heavenly Palace is closed." Many people saw the closure of the Heavenly Palace as the divine light dissipated, and the emperor''s shadow had also disappeared.


    What is happening?


    No one knew. They looked at each other, and then they realized that Ye Futian''s temperament seemed to have changed.


    "Renhuang." Many people''s eyes narrowed as they scrutinized Ye Futian. How could he have broken through in such a short time?


    Unless he had received some great advantage?


    However, Ye Futian had swallowed many fruits of the Way before, and he already had the opportunity to make a breakthrough. By lingering without breaking through, the will of the Way inside of him was sufficiently strong that it could almost support him in casting the Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    It''s just that before he didn''t break through into the Renhuang Realm when he could, but chose to do it now that made one wonder about his timing.


    Ye Futian didn''t notice the others'' gaze, for his gaze was still focused above the void. It was something he could not describe, but that he had seen before.


    Outside the sky dome, he seemed to see countless other spaces, as if those were all parts of God''s relic.


    At this moment, he remembered something he had heard before- another name for God''s relic.


    Tomb of the gods!


    The Heavenly Path collapsed in ancient times. Could this be the tomb of the gods left by the fall of the gods?


    Was God''s relic part of the tomb of the gods?


    He could not imagine what was in there, and who was in control of its entrance.


    Countless questions seemed to make him forget the joy of breaking through.


    What he saw just now had a great impact on him.


    "Did you see what happened before?" Jian Qingzhu asked Ye Futian. He had sensed that someone was breaking through the realm, and now it was proven that his perception was correct. Ye Futian had the breakthrough, at a time when he couldn''t have seen anything.


    Then, did Ye Futian see anything?


    "I saw it," Ye Futian said. Suddenly, all eyes narrowed and stared at him.


    "I saw the awakening of the Great Emperor, which resonated with me, so he bestowed his inheritance to me. I felt the call of the gods and saw the inheritance of the gods. As witnessed by the gods, and as destiny dictated, I have proven the Way and broke through the realm," Ye Futian announced with a most solemn voice.


    However, everyone''s expressions changed. This guy was now in Renhuang realm. Could he behave more appropriately?


    ...

 1649 Dignified Descendant of Fighting God

    Donghuang the Great awakened and resonated with Ye Futian, bestowing his teachings upon Ye Futian?


    The various deities bore witness to this and Ye Futian''s breakthrough was mandated by the Heavens?


    This was practically�� Although this was a Renhuang proving his Way, for members of the top forces of the Realms, Renhuangs were not existences that dwelt high above. Why would deities come to witness a Renhuang breaking through the Plane?


    Mandate? What mandate?


    The top figures of the Nine Realms had seen countless powerful existences as well as monstrous figures. They themselves were such figures. They had never seen someone blow his own horn to such an extent. Ye Futian practically had no sense of shame.


    If he was a Child of Destiny, then what did Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao and Nan Luoshen amount to?


    How was it that he was the only one that saw the deities?


    No one believed Ye Futian''s nonsense. However, there were some who were still suspicious of whether or not Ye Futian had obtained any divine item.


    Or, he might not have been able to see anything like the others. Under that pressure, he had chosen to prove his Way and become a Renhuang, bearing the divine might.


    "Did you or did you not get any divine items?" In the direction of Shen Clan, Shen Yuan asked in a cold tone as he stared at Ye Futian. He had been pathetically defeated by Ye Futian before this. Now, he had seen Ye Futian and Yu Sheng both obtain divine items with his own eyes. Some schemes naturally arose in his mind.


    Ye Futian looked towards Shen Yuan and answered, "I did not."


    "Then, why did you choose to break through the Plane just now?" Shen Yuan continued pestering him.


    Ye Futian swept an indifferent glance at Shen Yuan. His gaze was as though he was looking at an idiot.


    Ye Futian did not answer this question. He turned and walked away.


    He had already answered the question of whether or not he had obtained something. No one believed him; instead they continued asking him the same question again. When he gave the opposite answer, they still did not believe him.


    If that was so, why did he need to answer them?


    No matter how he responded, it would be meaningless.


    "Whether you believe the former or the latter, suit yourself," Ye Futian said plainly. He was not answering Shen Yuan, but instead said this to the crowd.


    Asking was meaningless.


    Responding was also meaningless.


    They would believe whatever they wanted to believe.


    Shen Yuan narrowed his eyes. He had accepted that Ye Futian had not obtained anything at all. In the situation just now, everyone had their eyes shut. Even Jian Qingzhu had questioned Ye Futian. It was obvious that even Jian Qingzhu could not see anything at that time. Hence, Shen Yuan would of course not believe Ye Futian to be more outstanding than everyone here.


    Or it might be that Shen Yuan did not covet what Ye Futian had obtained later, but rather the divine item that Ye Futian had obtained prior to this.


    Shen Yuan turned his gaze towards Shen Hao. Right now, Shen Yuan could not decide which was the truth.


    Before this, Shen Yuan had lost to Ye Futian. Now that Ye Futian had proven his Way, his Divine Wheel was at least at the Celestial Level and could possibly be flawless. Counting in the Swordmaster of Lihen, unless Shen Hao joined in the fight, otherwise the Shen Clan would not be able to deal with Ye Futian''s group.


    Jian Qingzhu did not ask anymore questions. It seemed that there was no way to clear out the truth of the closing of the Heavenly Palace. It might have been due to God''s relic itself. The ten of them had obtained divine items. It might be that this Heavenly Palace only had ten divine items. It was hard to tell.


    The others who had obtained divine items also did not inquire further. They each had their own spoils that were also treasures compatible with their own cultivation methods. This already made them very satisfied. This trip had not been in vain. Once they left this place, they would certainly study the divine items in detail and incorporate it into their training.


    Each person had their own fortunes. Once they obtained their own share, it was impossible for them to want to seize the shares of others. Aside from themselves, there were another nine people. Would they seize all of the divine items for themselves?


    If they only focused on one person, would other people have the same idea as them and come over to seize theirs?


    Each person had their own fateful encounter. They would sooner or later face each other on their path of cultivation and see who would emerge at the top of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    Those who were scheming were all those who had not obtained divine items. This included the crowd aside from the ten of them, such as Shen Yuan from the Shen Clan and the cultivators of the other forces.


    However, the ability of Ye Futian, the Swordmaster of Lihen and the rest of their group was a powerful deterrent. Even if anyone had any ideas, they would most likely be unable to successfully seize the divine items from them. The battle prior to this had already proven many things.


    "How are you doing?" The Swordmaster of Lihen revealed a look of anticipation in his gaze when he saw Ye Futian walking over. With Ye Futian''s talent, the Divine Wheel of the Great Path that he forged should be a flawless one. Ye Futian did not need to reconstruct his Great Path like the Swordmaster of Lihen had done.


    With a smile from Ye Futian, the Swordmaster of Lihen understood what he meant. As he had expected, Ye Futian had forged a flawless Divine Wheel.


    "Swordmaster of Lihen, after we leave this place, let''s go find His Highness to have a few drinks," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Erm..." The Swordmaster of Lihen was stunned. He then smiled at Ye Futian and said, "You rascal. Even though you are a Renhuang, His Highness is still His Highness."


    As the Swordmaster of Lihen said this, he glanced over at Xia Qingyuan. He did not know how far the relationship between Ye Futian and the princess had progressed. Back then, the princess had watched as Ye Futian ascended Lihen Heaven''s 33rd Layer of Heaven. The Swordmaster of Lihen naturally had hopes for the two of them.


    Xia Qingyuan also glared fiercely at Ye Futian. What did he mean when he said he was going to have drinks with her father?


    "Of course, I am only going to find His Highness to have a drink with him. I have no other intentions," Ye Futian said with a smile when he saw Xia Qingyuan''s murderous gaze.


    "Hmm." The Swordmaster of Lihen nodded his head. His Highness had been at the Renhuang Plane for many years. Although he was a lower-level Renhuang, his Plane should still be higher than their own. His Divine Wheel was at least at the peak of the second tier. It was even possible that he had a third tier Divine Wheel.


    However, the level of Emperor Xia''s Divine Wheel should not be high. Although the Swordmaster of Lihen had not fought Emperor Xia before, he could faintly sense that flawless Divine Wheels had a suppressive effect on other Divine Wheels. That meant that he had a more powerful Great Path. If he was against someone with a flawed Divine Wheel, he might be able to take on his opponent, even though his opponent was on a higher Plane than he was.


    Of course, the Swordmaster of Lihen needed to actually pull it off before he could know for sure. Although he had previously slain Renhuangs, they were all Renhuangs who had just reached the Renhuang Plane for the first time in God''s relic.


    "Yaya." Ye Futian looked at Yaya beside him.


    Yaya raised her head slightly and looked at him.


    "I got you your present," Ye Futian said and smiled.


    Along the way, when facing many life-and-death situations, if it wasn''t for Yaya protecting him, he would have already died many times. He had long considered Yaya to be his own sister. He would not hesitate to give her even a divine item. The moment he obtained the divine item, he immediately thought of Yaya.


    "Oh," Yaya calmly responded. Ye Futian blinked. Was that all to her reaction?


    He did not feel any sense of accomplishment.


    "Let''s go. While we still have time, let''s see whether we can cultivate here," Ye Futian said. This relic was special and different from the outside world.


    As he said this, he immediately headed off in the direction of the Divine Tree.


    The rest saw Ye Futian leave. No one chased after him.


    "Let us also go and have a look." someone said. Even though the Heavenly Palace had already closed, they still had some time. They should take a look and see whether there were other fateful encounters in other corners of God''s relic. They did not need to waste time here.


    Dou Zhao followed behind Ye Futian. He mysteriously walked up to Ye Futian''s side and asked, "Did you actually have anything to do with the Heavenly Palace closing?"


    "I have already said. Donghuang the Great awakened and bestowed me his teachings. The various deities bore witness to this and my breakthrough was mandated by the Heavens," Ye Futian replied.


    The corner of Dou Zhao''s mouth twitched, saying, "There is no one else here. Can''t you tell us the truth?"


    "I am telling you the truth, but you don''t believe me." Ye Futian didn''t bother to elaborate further. He was not lying.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s expression, Dou Zhao knew that he had been ignored. Dou Zhao could never fully understand Ye Futian.


    "Who are you exactly? Where are you from?" Dou Zhao muttered. Was this fellow really from the Tianhe Realm''s Sky River Temple?


    Why did Dou Zhao feel like the origins of Ye Futian were somewhat suspicious?


    His talent was astonishingly high.


    Ye Futian brought Yaya to the willow tree, where Gui Zang was cultivating beneath just now. This old willow tree seemed ordinary, but Gui Zang had comprehended the Way and transformed into a Buddha here. Surely, this was a great place for meditating.


    "Yaya, sit under the tree," Ye Futian ordered.


    Yaya sat down under the willow tree obediently. She raised her head to look at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian sat opposite Yaya, saying, "When I received the divine item, I have refined it into my will. You need my guidance in order to control it."


    Yaya nodded her head. Then, a dazzling Sword Will lit up from Ye Futian''s gabella and it entered into Yaya''s mind along with his will.


    "I will assist you in refining it," a voice sounded in Yaya''s mind. In an instant, both their gabellas were seemingly connected by a streak of brilliant sword flash. The willow tree waved, stirring up a rustle. A formless Sword Will was born out of the blue in their surroundings and it gushed towards Yaya.


    The corner of Dou Zhao''s mouth twitched. It was a divine item excavated from the Heavenly Palace. The divine item might very possibly contain the will of Donghuang the Great. Ye Futian gave it away so easily?


    Why hadn''t he known Ye Futian sooner��


    It was not too late for him to get close to Ye Futian now, right?


    Ye Futian presented the opportunity in Sword City to the Swordmaster of Lihen, allowing the latter to forge a flawless Divine Wheel. Then, he passed the teachings of the statue to Yu Sheng. Now, he gave Yaya the divine item of the Heavenly Palace. It seemed like he had also gifted Xia Qingyuan a fateful encounter.


    When he thought of all these��


    Dou Zhao had made up his mind. From now on, Ye Futian would be his sworn brother. He would not leave Ye Futian no matter what. He was the dignified descendant of Fighting God; since he had acknowledged Ye Futian as his sworn brother�� they would share all their resources in the future.


    After a while, Ye Futian opened his eyes. Yaya''s body was shining. Endless Sword Will descended and encircled her, forming a cocoon of swords.


    The willow tree swayed and rustled. The leaves moved without any wind. Gradually, Ye Futian and the rest could sense a mysterious aura coming from the willow tree.


    This rocking willow tree seemed to have stirred up endless will, causing a storm of the Great Path to suddenly appear in this vast space. The storm surged frenziedly towards Yaya.


    "What tree is this?" Dou Zhao was shocked. The slender branches of the willow tree draped down, enveloping Yaya''s body. The Great Path descended continuously and formed some sort of resonance with Yaya''s body.


    Ye Futian could vaguely see an illusory figure. It was none other than the ethereal shadow of the Emperor.


    "Has Donghuang the Great cultivated here before?" Dou Zhao asked Ye Futian, who was standing beside him.


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded.


    Hopefully, Yaya would have a similar fateful encounter like that of the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    As time passed, Yaya was completely enveloped by the willow tree and the unceasing will.


    At the same time, countless streaks of light suddenly brightened up God''s relic. Doors of Space suddenly appeared at every corner of the relic. It was as though a spatial divine item had connected God''s relic with the outside world.


    Most likely only Donghuang the Great had the ability to create such a scene.


    When everyone saw these Doors of Space, they understood that it was time to leave.


    In God''s relic, many people raised their heads in yearning, attempting to search for an opportunity at the very last minute. However, in the end, they crossed the Doors of Space and disappeared from sight.


    One by one, the cultivators left. Those who left first were people who were most disappointed with the outcome of their trip.


    "It''s time to go," Ye Futian murmured while staring at Yaya. If they were given a little more time to cultivate, it would be the best. Perhaps Yaya would have the opportunity to prove her Way in God''s relic. However, from the looks of it, it was too late now.


    Sword Will surged. Yaya''s figure broke out of the cocoon of swords. The Sword Will she emanated was sharp and intense. She looked at Ye Futian.


    From Yaya''s gaze, Ye Futian knew that even though she had yet to prove her Way, she was not far from doing so.


    "Let''s head out," Ye Futian said. After that, those who followed him started flying up into the sky.


    Dou Zhao took a step upwards. When he was in mid-air, he suddenly looked down. Then, he turned around and walked up to the willow tree. He hugged the enormous trunk of the willow tree with both his arms. His arms could only cover a small portion of the trunk. Without any premonition, he exerted his strength.


    Rumble. An intense sound could be heard. The willow tree shook as though it had sensed danger.


    However, Dou Zhao did not have any sympathy for it. His body shone with divine light. He activated the will of the Fighting God and directly pulled the willow tree from the ground.


    Under the wide-eyed look of Ye Futian who was in mid-air, Dou Zhao uprooted the willow tree and then carried the huge willow tree as he traveled in the air.


    "Impressive. Impressive..." Ye Futian stared at Dou Zhao in adoration. As expected of the dignified descendant of the Fighting God!


    ...

 1650 Trouble

    In the City of the Ruins, Doors of Space appeared in various locations. Many silhouettes walked out from them, appearing in different locations.


    After they emerged, they took a deep breath and looked back at the Door of Space, seemingly with a sense of nostalgia. As expected, the will that they sensed in this space paled into significance when compared with that in God''s relic, especially when compared with the area of the Heavenly Palace. The will in the two spaces could not even be considered to be on the same level.


    However, they were also aware that in this lifetime, it was possible that they would never have the chance to enter the City of the Ruins again.


    This was unless their Planes remained stagnant, and they never reached the Renhuang Plane. This was also not what they wanted. If they could not reach the Renhuang Plane in fifty years, their cultivation journey would be near its end.


    Clearly, everyone hoped that they could have a better future.


    More and more people emerged from the Doors of Space. They divided themselves into groups. Members of the same force all walked out of the same door and also appeared in the same location.


    Ye Futian''s group also came out of God''s relic. They were all together. Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao, who had just appeared and asked, "Have you hidden the willow tree?"


    A glint of embarrassment flashed past Dou Zhao''s eyes. However, he bit the bullet and said, "You have also reaped many treasures from God''s relic. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black."


    The willow tree was also a treasure. Their behaviors were no different from each other.


    "You''re right." Ye Futian pondered for a moment and realized he could not refute Dou Zhao''s words.


    Dou Zhao''s expression returned to normal. Speaking of treasures, most likely, Ye Futian was the biggest winner among all who entered God''s relic this time around. This fellow had obtained a Spatial Sacred Hall, which was full of treasures. In comparison, Dou Zhao had only plucked a tree. When he thought of the difference between them, Dou Zhou felt despondent.


    However, Dou Zhao stared at Ye Futian with a fervent gaze, saying, "Ye Futian, we have faced life-and-death situations together during this trip. From now on, you are my sworn brother. I am the dignified descendent of Fighting God, and I have unwavering loyalty. I only make friends based on one''s personality and not one''s origins."


    "You''re loyal." Ye Futian was somewhat touched.


    "You''re right," Dou Zhao continued, "In the future, feel free to call me for any matters. My resources are yours."


    Ye Futian blinked. Wait a minute�� What did he mean by "my resources are yours"?


    In that case, did it mean that Dou Zhao could also claim Ye Futian''s resources as his?


    Why did Ye Futian feel like this was somewhat sketchy?


    "What are you staring at?" Dou Zhao saw Ye Futian''s gaze. What kind of look was that? He was so cautious...


    "Let''s not rush into becoming sworn brothers. It will be better if we start as friends," Ye Futian said after pondering for a moment. He couldn''t help but be cautious of Dou Zhao!


    "You..." Dou Zhao pointed at Ye Futian, stunned. He had not imagined this fellow to be this kind of man. In any case, he was the descendant of Fighting God.


    "Fine. Regardless of whether or not you recognize me as your sworn brother, I have considered you to be my brother," Dou Zhao proclaimed. His "righteousness" soared through his words. Ye Futian had to agree to Dou Zhao''s idea no matter if he wanted him as a brother or not.


    "This brat is more shameless than me��" Little Condor, who was beside them, stared at Dou Zhao wide-eyed. This brat wanted to be Ye Futian''s third brother?


    In that case, wouldn''t Dou Zhao be a rank higher than him?


    This was impossible. Dou Zhao had to line up and wait for his turn.


    Everyone around Ye Futian also stared at Dou Zhao with perplexed looks. They were impressed.


    However, even though this heir of Dou Tribe was somewhat shameless, he was quite interesting.


    One by one, many cultivators came out from God''s relic. Numerous powerful wills covered the area where they were at. Before this, many top figures had left when God''s relic opened. Then, as time passed, many top figures were waiting outside for their juniors to return.


    After all, among these Proud Sons of Heaven that had entered God''s relic, some of them were from impressive backgrounds. For example, Nan Luoshen was the only daughter of Emperor Nan and Empress Luo. How could the Nantian Divine Kingdom not attach importance to her?


    After everyone had emerged from God''s relic, the Doors of Space gradually disappeared. Within the City of the Ruins, the unparalleled Space Will of the Way also dissipated. Everything returned to its original state, as though nothing had ever happened.


    Brilliant lights shone. Up above, a carriage traveled across the sky, entering the City of the Ruins.


    Ye Futian clearly sensed that many wills were sweeping across him. They were not aimed at him. Instead, it was the major figures of the top forces searching for their own juniors.


    "Dou Zhao," a voice cried out.


    Dou Zhao turned around and saw a group of people walking over. The leader of the group was a burly middle-aged man with an extremely dominating presence. There was strong pressure coming from his body. He was a top figure among the Dou Tribe.


    "Second Uncle," Dou Zhao greeted when he saw the person who had come over.


    "How was it? Did you get anything?" Dou Zhao''s Second Uncle''s voice was like thunder. It was extremely loud and clear. He was full of energy.


    "I have not become a Renhuang. However, that is not important. In God''s relic, I have reaped the greatest benefit," Dou Zhao replied.


    "Oh?" The major figure of the Dou Tribe revealed a look of mild interest and asked, "What benefit did you manage to obtain?"


    "I have gained a brother," Dou Zhao said in a serious tone. He pointed somewhat proudly at Ye Futian and said, "This is the brother that I have sworn to in God''s relic, Ye Futian."


    ???


    Ye Futian''s face darkened. Was this person forcefully swearing himself as his brother?


    Dou Zhao''s Second Uncle''s gaze turned towards Ye Futian. His gaze was dignified as he appraised Ye Futian.


    "Junior''s name is Ye Futian," Ye Futian greeted as a thought flashed past in his mind. Dou Zhao was too shameless.


    "Not bad." The gaze of Dou Zhao''s Second Uncle seemed to contain divine light. With his Plane, he naturally could tell that Ye Futian was somewhat extraordinary. He said, "Dou Zhao is a proud fellow. Since he is willing to be sworn brothers with you, he must have noticed something extraordinary about you. If you have a chance in the future, please come visit our Dou Tribe."


    A proud fellow? Ye Futian glanced at Dou Zhao. He could not tell.


    "Many thanks, senior. If I get the chance, I will surely pay a visit," Ye Futian said as he nodded his head.


    "Futian," a voice called out.


    Lord Taixuan, as well as Sky River Great Elder, walked over together. They had always been around the area, observing the activity in this place. When they saw that the door of God''s relic had opened, they came over.


    "Lord Taixuan, Teacher," Ye Futian greeted them from afar.


    "You have become a Renhuang." The two of them looked at Ye Futian. Lord Taixuan revealed a smile.


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded his head.


    Dou Zhao''s Second Uncle, who was beside them, recognized Lord Taixuan when he saw him. This was the person from the Higher Heavens Realm that had broken through the Plane.


    From the looks of it, Ye Futian''s relationship with Lord Taixuan was not ordinary.


    Lord Taixuan and Sky River Great Elder looked at the Swordmaster of Lihen. Before entering God''s relic, the Swordmaster of Lihen appeared very ordinary to them. However, now, he actually had an extraordinary temperament. He had also proven his Way at the Renhuang Plane. Xia Qingyuan, Yaya, and Yu Sheng also showed changes in their temperament.


    From the looks of it, they had reaped many benefits from this trip.


    In mid-air, the major figures of the other top forces also arrived, one after another. In one specific corner with the strongest group, a carriage of phoenix opened a path, and clouds filled the sky. There were many cultivators there. Two silhouettes emerged from the carriage. The man was a rare handsome figure. The woman''s appearance was stunning, as though she was a goddess.


    "Emperor Nan, Empress Luo." Many people bowed slightly in their direction. Even the major figures of the top forces also bowed and greeted them.


    Emperor Nan was the ruler of Nantian Divine Kingdom. Empress Luo was his queen. The two of them had come here in person. Many major figures of the top forces also had to bow and greet them when they saw them.


    Emperor Nan nodded slightly. His gaze instead turned towards Nan Luoshen. His eyes revealed a doting smile. Although Nan Luoshen was already a Renhuang, she was still his daughter. No matter what her cultivation Plane was, that would never change.


    "You have broken through to the Renhuang Plane. It seems like our princess has come across a fateful encounter," Emperor Nan said while smiling.


    "Why did father come personally?" Nan Luoshen asked. Other people envied her. However, she herself was not too happy about it. She even secretly sighed inside. She was already a Renhuang, and her parents were still worried about her.


    "We were just passing by, so we dropped in to take a look." Even though Emperor Nan was a major figure at the peak of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, before Nan Luoshen, he showed no signs of majesty. He had clearly come over intentionally to escort her back, but he claimed that they were just passing by. After all, they only had Nan Luoshen as a daughter. God''s relic was renowned as the place where Proud Sons of Heaven fell. How could they not be worried?


    Some people were born with a starting point much higher than countless others. Many people who saw the scene play out over here lamented. This was especially true for those who were sidelined members of the top forces. Even though they had entered God''s relic, they were only there as support.


    Others could only admire the background of Nan Luoshen.


    Emperor Nan was one of the giants of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. It was difficult to even meet him on normal days. For his daughter, he had come to wait to escort her back home.


    "Junior''s name is Shen Hao. Greetings to Emperor Nan and Empress Luo." A handsome figure appeared below Emperor Nan. The figure bowed when he saw them.


    Emperor Nan looked at Shen Hao. He nodded in acknowledgment and asked, "Are you a junior from Shen Clan?"


    "Yes." Shen Hao nodded.


    "Not bad." Emperor Nan nodded briefly and said nothing more. Shen Hao was an outstanding junior of Shen Clan, but with Emperor Nan''s status, it was sufficient for him to give a one-line comment.


    "Junior will take my leave now." Shen Hao also didn''t say much. After he glanced at Nan Luoshen, he turned around and left.


    There were many Proud Sons of Heaven in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Similarly, there were many exceptional maidens. However, among their generation, it was hard to find another woman with talent and status like Nan Luoshen.


    The seniors of Shen Clan saw what Shen Hao did as well. They didn''t comment on it. If Shen Hao could build a good relationship with Nan Luoshen, Shen Clan would naturally be happy about it.


    At the same time, terrifying auras could be sensed coming from various corners of the City of the Ruins. Murderous intent was hidden in those auras.


    Many cultivators had returned from God''s relic with bountiful rewards after seizing their fateful encounters.


    However, there were some people who stayed behind forever in God''s relic. They had lost their lives in the relic.


    One of them was Gai Shi Shi of Golden Divine Nation.


    Right now, the team from Golden Divine Nation emanated dazzling lights as they traversed the space. They strode decisively in the sky and stopped in mid-air. They unleashed their might downwards; their might was churning with murderous intent.


    Below them was the party of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his head slightly. The golden halo was blinding. His gaze was calm. He had expected this situation. He had killed Gai Shi Shi; he knew that he would surely face some trouble after he came out from God''s relic.


    However, it was impossible for him to have kept Gai Shi Shi alive; the latter had attempted to kill him a few times.


    They would sooner or later be arch-nemeses.


    Lord Taixuan frowned as his gaze swept across the sky. The leader of the incoming group was the divine general who brought Gai Shi Shi to Taixuan Mountain for a visit in the past.


    "Ye Futian," another chilly voice rang. The aura of the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was terrifying. It swept towards Ye Futian.


    Half of the people from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty who entered God''s relic had actually been killed. They suffered severe losses.


    Even Yi Tianyu was heavily injured. Moreover, he seemed to be greatly traumatized!


    ...

 1651 Provocation

    The voice of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Dynastic Overlord resounded in the space. For an instant, it surprised many people, especially the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The cultivators of Divine Elephants were the first to walk over to Ye Futian''s side.


    "Let''s take a look," the cultivators of Dragon Gods also said.


    After that, Sky Demon Court, 10,000 Divine Mountain, and the other forces also came over.


    Very quickly, many cultivators were heading over to the area where Ye Futian was. For an instant, it drew the attention of many top figures.


    "Ye Futian," some cultivators of the top forces that had emerged from God''s relic mumbled when they heard this name. Then, they said, "Let''s go over and take a look."


    This person was unknown to others before he entered God''s relic. However, he stirred up a storm of controversy in God''s relic. Compared to Ye Futian, the cultivators of Tianshen Academy, as well as Shen Clan, had far fewer conflicts. This was because no one dared to contend with them.


    If they were asked who had been the most active in God''s relic, their answer would definitely be Ye Futian.


    The people who gathered around the area naturally included the members of some of the forces that had grudges against Ye Futian. He had offended many forces in God''s relic.


    Some of their grudges ran deep while some were shallow.


    Of course, the reason why Ye Futian''s name was such a strong attraction was that he and Yu Sheng each had a divine item. They were the only group of people that had obtained two divine items.


    "What''s going on?" Lord Taixuan''s Plane was high. He instantly sensed that something was off in the City of the Ruins. Why were cultivators from various forces heading in their direction?


    He glanced at Ye Futian, who was in front of him. What did this fellow do in God''s relic?


    Emperor Xia and Demon Peacock Emperor came later. Their Planes were not that high, so they had come a bit later. When they saw the changes in Ye Futian, the Swordmaster of Lihen and Xia Qingyuan''s temperament, Emperor Xia and Demon Peacock Emperor revealed bizarre expressions. The two of them glanced at each other and saw the look of astonishment in each other''s eyes.


    They were all Renhuangs now. The Swordmaster of Lihen had also proven his Way.


    However, right now, it seemed as though they did not have time to reminisce.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced towards the divine general of the Golden Divine Nation as well as the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Dynastic Overlord. He asked, "Gentlemen, what business do you have with me?"


    Having reached the Renhuang Plane, Ye Futian''s temperament had also changed. A faint light of Renhuang circled his body. Currently, he was also an emperor-like figure.


    "What is the meaning of this, sir?" An astonishing aura similarly swept out from Sky River Great Elder''s body. His aura held off the dazzling aura from the cultivator of Golden Divine Nation.


    Lord Taixuan also frowned as his gaze swept over towards the silhouette in mid-air.


    "What happened?" Many senior figures of the top forces asked their juniors who had emerged from God''s relic. The cultivators of Sky Demon Court, Dragon Gods as well as Divine Elephants all asked this at the same time.


    "The members of Golden Divine Nation tried to kill Ye Futian in God''s relic and got killed instead. Prince Gai Shi Shi was killed. Many cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty clashed with Ye Futian''s side. Many were also killed. Yi Tianyu was humiliatingly defeated by Ye Futian with one spear strike," the members of the various forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm briefly talked about what had happened. The crowd immediately revealed strange expressions.


    Had this fellow caused such a ruckus in God''s relic?


    The Crown Prince of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Yi Tianyu, was renowned as being born supreme. The Dynastic Overlord placed extremely high expectations on him. Had he been defeated by a strike from Ye Futian''s spear?


    From the looks of it, the dispute over the talents among the current generation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm could already come to a close.


    Yi Tianyu, a monstrous presence who was believed to be standing at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, was defeated with a spear strike.


    "Lord Taixuan, Ye Futian killed the prince of my Golden Divine Nation in God''s Relic. I will be sure to take Ye Futian with me," the divine general of the Golden Divine Nation said in a cold tone.


    Lord Taixuan turned his gaze towards Ye Futian. Ye Futian replied in a mocking tone, "Senior of Golden Divine Nation, you surely jest. Last time, outside of the Divine Palace, Gai Shi Shi had tried to kill me once. I let him go that time. In God''s relic, your people tried to kill me, relying on having a Renhuang with them. May I ask, was I supposed to just stand there and let your Golden Divine Nation prince kill me?"


    "As for the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, you are even more laughable. Your Crown Prince, who you consider to be born supreme and without equal in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, could not even take a stab from my spear. I spared his life. Since the Dynastic Overlord is a huge figure in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, I need to spare him the humiliation."


    "You defeated him with one spear strike and spared his life?" The Dynastic Overlord''s heart trembled. He finally knew what sort of trauma Yi Tianyu had faced. His eyes were full of murderous intent. Back then, he had wanted to immediately kill Ye Futian. He never imagined that Ye Futian had actually grown so fast.


    Ye Futian had now become the prick in Yi Tianyu''s heart.


    The Dynastic Overlord had spent so much effort on Yi Tianyu. When Yi Tianyu was still young, the Dynastic Overlord had sent him to cultivate in the Divine Palace. The Dynastic Overlord believed that his son, Yi Tianyu, was born supreme. Even if Yi Tianyu could not dominate the Nine Realms, he would at least be without equal in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    However, a prodigy like Gu Dongliu had appeared. Now, Ye Futian was another one.


    Violet Heavenly Palace also arrived at the scene. They also discovered what had transpired in God''s relic. The members of their Violet Heavenly Palace had suffered greatly in God''s relic and had been cast aside.


    "Lord Taixuan, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty has a grudge with this young man. I hope that you will not interfere," the Dynastic Overlord said as he looked at Lord Taixuan. Ever since Lord Taixuan broke through to the next Plane, Dynastic Overlord became very cautious of him. He was a figure on the same level as Gu Tianxing back in the day.


    "Yi Tianyu was crowned as someone who was born supreme, yet in the end, he was as pathetic as a drowned mouse," Ye Futian taunted. "No wonder the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is going downhill. You lack tolerance. Even the Purple Gold Rat Clan has forsaken you for a better alliance."


    Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    When members of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty heard Ye Futian mentioning the Purple Gold Rat Clan, their facial expressions turned extremely ugly.


    "These vermin," the members of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty cursed as their gazes swept towards the Purple Gold Rats. Coincidentally, the Purple Gold Rat Emperor had come in person. Right now, he was still in a daze and did not understand what had happened.


    "You owe me an explanation," the Dynastic Overlord said as he glanced at the Purple Gold Rat Emperor.


    The Purple Gold Rat Emperor emanated a terrifying aura; his gaze was fixed on Shu Huangsun.


    "What happened exactly?" he questioned.


    "Grandfather, Yi Tianyu indeed pales into insignificance when compared to Ye Futian. Why should we collaborate with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?" Shu Huangsun voiced up, "This time, I have worked with Ye Futian and have reaped many benefits. Our clan got a few top-class ritual implements."


    "Fine..." The Dynastic Overlord roared when he heard Shu Huangsun''s words, "Very well. What do you think about this?"


    Purple Gold Rat Emperor''s face was clouded with anger. This rascal had actually collaborated with Ye Futian in God''s relic to fight against the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty without consulting him first. Their Purple Gold Rat Clan had put in a lot of effort all these years to reach their current status. Shu Huangsun''s treachery would undoubtedly put them in an even more difficult situation; they would be belittled by both alliances. Not to mention their relationship with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was now up in flames.


    Right now, the Purple Gold Rat Emperor was holding a wolf by the ears.


    Apart from handing Shu Huangsun over to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he couldn''t think of a better way to resolve this grudge.


    However, his grandson said that he had gotten a few top-class ritual implements.


    "Since the Purple Gold Rats have forsaken darkness for light, I will let bygones be bygones. In the future, we can still collaborate when the opportunity arises," Ye Futian said loudly. The aura of the Dynastic Overlord churned, and his murderous intent was petrifying.


    Was Purple Gold Rat Clan planning to betray the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty now?


    "How many ritual implements did you get? What rank are they?" Purple Gold Rat Emperor asked Shu Huangsun through secret transmission.


    "Three. All of them are top-ranked. They will make Grandfather stronger. There are both offensive and defensive ritual implements. I have chosen them especially for you," Shu Huangsun replied. He was very "filial."


    Purple Gold Rat Emperor silently nodded his head in approval. With those ritual implements, he might be able to fight against the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Since it had come to this, it was too late now to explain anything. Purple Gold Rat Emperor could only play along.


    "Brother Yi, I am sorry," Purple Gold Rat Emperor said. Clearly, he had made a decision, and he did not plan to give the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty an explanation.


    It meant that their alliance had fallen apart. The collaboration between Purple Gold Rat Clan and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had ended.


    In reality, this was no longer as simple as terminating a partnership. It was impossible for the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to tolerate this act of betraying and sneakily attacking them. The Purple Gold Rat Clan was more detestable than those enemies that came at them directly.


    "Well done!" the Dynastic Overlord exclaimed. Then, he didn''t look at the Purple Gold Rat Emperor again.


    He would remember this grudge. When they returned to their Realm, he would pay him back. However, now was not the time for it.


    Ye Futian watched everything in silence. After he obtained the treasures in the Spatial Sacred Hall, he did not treat the Purple Gold Rat Clan shabbily. He had done so exactly for this moment.


    He would let the Purple Gold Rats improve their abilities; in turn, they would fight against the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in the future. It was such a perfect plan.


    Emperor Xia and Demon Peacock Emperor glanced at Ye Futian with discerning gazes. Of course, they knew of Ye Futian''s trick. This fellow was digging a pit for the two top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Lord Taixuan." The divine general of Golden Divine Nation couldn''t help but cue for Lord Taixuan again since the latter still remained silent.


    Be it the divine general or Dynastic Overlord, most likely neither of them were a match for Lord Taixuan now.


    Hence, everything depended on Lord Taixuan''s stand.


    "The incident has been made clear. The two juniors attacked Ye Futian when they were in God''s relic, but their skills were weaker than that of Ye Futian. Therefore, there is nothing left to be said. As seniors, it is not befitting of your status to come and demand that I hand over a junior." Lord Taixuan looked at both of them and said, "Whatever happened in the relic, it is a matter among the juniors. What is done is done. That''s all."


    The cultivators of the two top forces fell silent. It seemed like Lord Taixuan was going to interfere in this matter.


    "Lord Taixuan has advanced to the next level, but the Golden Divine Nation has been rooted in the Higher Heavens Realm for many years. Our strength is not something Taixuan Mountain can compare with. Lord Taixuan is shielding someone who is not related to you. Is he worth your care?" the divine general of Golden Divine Nation challenged. If the deceased was any other man, perhaps he could accept the fact.


    However, it was Gai Shi Shi. Even the divine general could not bring himself to inform His Highness of this news.


    "Ye Futian has trained in Taixuan Mountain before. Even though I didn''t accept him as my disciple, he is still counted as one. Now, he is trained by my good friend. He is not unrelated to me." Lord Taixuan responded indifferently, "If you plan to escalate this feud between the juniors to a battle between Golden Divine Nation and Taixuan Mountain, it''s your decision."


    The divine general wanted to use the Golden Divine Nation to pressure him?


    "Benefactor Ye explored God''s relic with great ease. He seized a Spatial Sacred Hall that contained countless top-ranked ritual implements. Even though many of the ritual implements have been given to others, there was still a treasure trove left untouched. Moreover, he obtained the divine item left by the Great Emperor. He is such a talent. It is impossible for you to want to take him away easily, sir," a voice sounded abruptly. Many top figures narrowed their eyes when they heard the words.


    Ye Futian had obtained a treasure trove?

 1652 Joining the Battle

    A treasure trove in the God''s relic. What did it signify?


    Even the hearts of the top figures leapt when they heard about it.


    When Ye Futian heard this, his eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a glint of murderous intent. He stared in the direction of Shenxing Clan. The person who spoke up was naturally a member of the Shenxing Clan. That bold monk had threatened him when they were in the God''s relic. In the end, he didn''t collaborate with the Shenxing Clan, and they chose to join the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Shenxing Clan left after they were defeated. Surely, they must have felt dissatisfied.


    Right now, as the monk brought this topic up, his motive was execrable.


    "There were plenty of treasures in the God''s relic. Many people obtained them. Even though I seized a treasure trove, I have distributed most of the treasures to the forces in my alliance. I kept very few of them," Ye Futian retorted with a cold voice. "Bald monk, your sneak attack in the God''s relic failed. Now that we have left the relic, you are still plotting evil schemes. Are you so desperate to enter purgatory?"


    Ye Futian released streaks of Renhuang''s might to pressure the monk. The cultivators of the Shenxing Clan frowned. A Renhuang blocked in front of everyone. He put his palms together, and his gaze was stern. "My Shenxing Clan disciple has merely spoken the truth. There is no need for Benefactor Ye to be enraged by his words."


    "The monk''s words are not false. Even though he has given out many treasures to others, he still kept a huge portion to himself. He kept all the top-ranked Renhuang ritual implements," someone testified for the member of Shenxing Clan. The speaker was a swordsman of the Heavenly Sword Hall. Sword Saint of Avici, the leader of Heavenly Sword Hall, was killed by Ye Futian when they were in God''s relic. Many of the remaining members were killed too. Only a few of them came out alive; their situation was pitiful.


    "Indeed. We saw that with our own eyes," a cultivator of School of the Emperor Star agreed.


    Shen Hao stood in mid-air in the distance. His gaze was sharp as it shot over to where Ye Futian was. He actually obtained another treasure trove before this?


    "Is this person the inheritor of Sky River Great Elder?" an elder of Shen Clan asked.


    "Hmm." Shen Hao nodded.


    "How are his ability and talents?" the Shen Clan elder asked.


    "Very impressive. He was one of the ten people who managed to obtain a divine item in the end. He utilized the might of the Heavenly Palace to prove his Way. His Divine Wheel is probably a flawless one," Shen Hao said. His words caused the cultivators of Shen Clan to reveal strange looks as they glanced over at Sky River Great Elder.


    "Your lot did not dare nor had the ability to snatch the treasures in God''s relic. Now that you have come out of God''s relic, are you preparing to ask your seniors to do it for you?" Dou Zhao said as he looked at those who had spoken. "You all are a disgrace to your ancestors."


    "Dou Zhao, you yourself have stooped so low. You must have benefited greatly from following behind Ye Futian. It seems that you feel very proud," the cultivators of School of the Emperor Star continued. Their tone was unfriendly.


    "Show yourself!" Dou Zhao could no longer hold his temper. He took a step forward and yelled at the other party while pointing at them. The expression of the cultivators of the School of the Emperor Star turned ugly. The senior figures also frowned.


    "Don''t just hide behind there and instigate. Come out and try to seize the treasures from Ye Futian if you dare," Dou Zhao roared. "Many people have obtained treasures in God''s relic. You all really know how to choose your targets. You all did not have the ability to seize the treasures when we were in God''s relic. Now that you see a chance, you are preparing to instigate your seniors to act? Why don''t we let Ye Futian just stand here, and if you dare to come out alone to take his treasures, I, Dou Zhao will call you ''lord.'' If you don''t dare to do so, then just shut up and keep quiet behind there. Don''t just hide among the crowd and yell. It is such a disgrace."


    Dou Zhao''s thunderous voice caused everyone''s eardrums to tremble. The expressions of the members of the School of the Emperor Star turned even uglier.


    Right now, Golden Divine Nation and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were against Ye Futian. These fellows were standing behind, throwing oil into the fire. They were undoubtedly putting Ye Futian in a very disadvantageous position.


    If each and every force wanted to intervene, it would become very troublesome.


    Rumble. Right at that moment, an unparalleled divine might descended from afar, causing many people to raise their heads to look up to the sky above. The pressure from the might was domineering. It immediately pressed down on the entire City of the Ruins.


    Many prominent figures looked up into the sky. From the distance, the brilliant divine light of the Great Path shone down from above. In an instant, golden divine light flooded the sky, blinding the eyes of those present.


    The gazes of the top figures pierced the sky above. The silhouette of an unparalleled deity seemed to be traversing the space, heading in their direction. Before his person had arrived, the pressure of his might was already felt.


    Emperor Nan looked up into the sky in the distance. He had not imagined that the Lord of Golden Divine Nation would come in person.


    From the looks of it, Golden Divine Nation Dynastic Overlord had high expectations for Gai Shi Shi. Gai Shi Shi''s death caused him to personally come to the City of the Ruins.


    "I have heard that Lord Taixuan has shattered the shackles of the Plane. I wonder how your current ability is now." A voice came from the sky and was extremely domineering.


    Lord Taixuan looked up into the sky. The might of the Great Path from his body enveloped the heavens and the earth. He then took a step forward. His silhouette disappeared immediately.


    In an instant, he seemed to have traversed hundreds of miles. Far off in the sky above, the roar of the Great Path rumbled. The space shook, and the two of them seemed to be battling in the sky. However, even over here, everyone else could feel how frightening their attacks were.


    Many people revealed strange looks. They never imagined that they would witness a battle between figures at the peak of the Realms.


    Silhouettes flew up into the sky. Their will swept out across the sky as they observed the battle from afar.


    Even figures like Emperor Nan were somewhat interested in the battle. In the Nine Realms, battles of such caliber were rarely seen. It was hard to come across one in several years.


    The reason why Emperor Nan had personally come to escort his daughter Nan Luoshen back home was that there would always be some commotion after God''s relic closed. He was worried, and he doted upon Nan Luoshen greatly. Hence he had come in person. With him present, no accidents would happen.


    Ye Futian glanced at the sky above. The two of them seemed to be battling far away. He did not know how far away they were. Even his will could not cover such a far-off distance, let alone his eyesight.


    They could only hear faint rumbles and a faint melody. Lord Taixuan mastered the Song of the Lost Divine. Ye Futian wondered whether Lord Taixuan could put up a fight against the Golden Divine Nation Dynastic Overlord.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Dynastic Overlord had a cold and stern expression. Seeing that Lord Taixuan had disappeared, his gaze fell on Ye Futian. Right now, who else could protect Ye Futian?


    "Capture him," the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Dynastic Overlord immediately ordered.


    In an instant, his might of Way swept over the space.


    However, at this moment, a palm print struck out directly at the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Dynastic Overlord. He looked towards his attacker. To his surprise, it was Sky River Great Elder.


    Rumble.


    A fierce will swept over the land. In an instant, an astonishing storm of the Great Path swept up in the surrounding space. The City of the Ruins could not withstand a battle of such caliber.


    Many top figures defended their juniors from the waves of the Great Path. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty Dynastic Overlord and Sky River Great Elder began to battle.


    Both of them were at the same Plane. They were both upper-level Renhuangs at the ninth tier of the Divine Wheel.


    Many cultivators were shocked. They had not expected that the Dynastic Overlord and Sky River Great Elder would engage in battle right away.


    "Second Uncle, Ye Futian is my sworn brother. You can''t stay out of this," Dou Zhao said as he looked at his Second Uncle. Second Uncle glanced at Dou Zhao, surprised. This kind of battle would involve many parties. Even though Dou Zhao was carefree, he was someone who considered the bigger picture.


    After all, Dou Zhao was trained to be the next tribe leader of Dou Tribe. He was the only one among the younger generations who could unleash the will of Sevenfold Fighting God. His intelligence was without question.


    If he involved himself in the battle, Dou Tribe might offend the forces that were at feud with Ye Futian.


    "Dou Zhao, are you sure?" Second Uncle secretly transmitted his voice and questioned Dou Zhao. Their eyes were locked on to each other.


    "I''m sure," Dou Zhao said while nodding his head.


    "Okay, " Dou Zhao''s Second Uncle said no more. Dou Zhao was close to breaking through to the Renhuang Plane. Since he was trained as the successor of the tribe, he would sooner or later be in control of the entire Dou Tribe. Up until this point, this matter was probably Dou Zhao''s first decision, which would affect the outcome of the conflict among the top forces. Since Dou Zhao was so determined about it, then he would obey his command.


    Bang.


    As soon as he agreed, an extremely powerful will of Fighting God erupted from his body. His body was encircled in brilliant light, as though Fighting God had descended into the world. He shot up into the sky, sending a punch in the direction of the divine general of Golden Divine Nation, who was pursuing Ye Futian.


    Bang.


    There was the sound of explosions. The punch directly traversed the sky. The arm of a golden God of War that was a thousand meters long appeared in the sky. The punch crashed towards the opponent''s spear, immediately adhering to the opponent''s attack and shooting up to the sky.


    This punch directly traversed hundreds of miles, shooting up to the battlefield high in the sky.


    The Dou Tribe joined the battle.


    "Many thanks," Ye Futian said to Dou Zhao.


    "Since we are sharing our fortunes, we will naturally endure the hardship together," Dou Zhao replied while looking at Ye Futian. "I am a dignified descendent of Fighting God. I am not who you imagined me to be."


    "You are loyal," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    A huge battle instantly erupted in the sky above. Many auras were pressing down in this direction. Although the cultivators of many forces had yet to attack, they were eyeing to do so intently.


    For example, the forces that bore grudges against Ye Futian such as the Snow Divine Kingdom, Emperor Star Realm, Heavenly Sword Hall, Violet Heavenly Palace, and Prison Fort Clan, as well as Martial God Clan from the Central Emperor Realm, all stood at one side with their gazes staring in this direction. Wu Zhan''s gaze was exceptionally sharp.


    If it weren''t for Ye Futian, the Spatial Sacred Hall would have been theirs for the taking. Their Renhuang, Wu Meng, had died at the hands of Ye Futian.


    Aside from them, many other forces like the Shenxing Clan, Celestial Worthy Temple, Clan of the God of Ghost, Divine Capital of Xiling, and Fate World were also staring at the battlefield.


    All of them stayed out of the battle for now. They were observing how the situation would change.


    Of course, there were many forces, which had good relationships with Ye Futian, such as the alliance forces from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The cultivators of Divine Elephants had been following Ye Futian closely; they had a close relationship, to begin with.


    Besides that, there were Dragon Gods and Sky Demon Court. At the moment, the seniors were all communicating with their juniors through secret sound transmissions to find out what had happened in God''s relic.


    After they knew what had happened, their hearts trembled slightly. The strongest cultivator among the younger generation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was undoubtedly Ye Futian.


    Aside from the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there were still a few forces that looked kindly on Ye Futian, such as Yuanyang Clan and Clan of the Seven Slayers.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept over the battlefield in the sky above. His body gradually floated up into the air with his long spear in hand. It emanated astonishing fighting will and was extremely sharp.


    This scene caused the gazes of many people to be glued onto him. Ye Futian seemed to be preparing to personally join the fray. He was the center of this storm. If he made a move, he would be putting himself in danger.


    However, Ye Futian was not bothered by this concern. Now, he had proven his Way and had entered into the Renhuang Plane. He had forged a perfect Divine Wheel. He was confident that he could defend himself. Of course, he was qualified to join the battle!

 1653 Divine Intervention

    Besides Ye Futian, the Renhuangs of Dou Tribe and Taixuan Mountain also flew up into the sky.


    A gaze locked on Ye Futian. Someone asked, "Are you capable of handling this?"


    Ye Futian turned and saw a beautiful face. It was none other than Taixuan House Master, Empress Yan, who recommended him to Taixuan Mountain in the past.


    "House Master, you underestimate me," Ye Futian replied wryly.


    His body shot up into the sky in a straight line.


    Empress Yan blinked. Both she and the String Emperor followed behind Ye Futian and flew up into the sky. They were worried that he might be harmed.


    After all, this fellow had just broken through to the Renhuang Plane not long ago. His Plane was still not stable. In a battle between the Renhuangs of the top forces, a moment of carelessness would result in death. The two Dynastic Overlords of Golden Divine Nation, as well as the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, had personally come here. This battle was not just a simple spar. The other party would really try to kill Ye Futian.


    "Be careful." The String Emperor swept a glance at the sky above. He saw a powerful Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation heading over towards Ye Futian. The String Emperor extended his five long and slender fingers. He grabbed at the air, and countless strings of the Great Path seemed to appear in the heavens above and blocked the attack from the other party.


    He plucked the strings of the Great Path with his hand, and Sword Will swept out. String Emperor''s body immediately leapt over Ye Futian''s figure and shot up into the air as he forced the other party back.


    "Many thanks, senior," Ye Futian said. His gaze swept towards the other direction. Then, with a flash of his silhouette, he headed in that direction.


    Over there, there was a cultivator of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty at the Renhuang Plane. His Plane was that of a lower-level Renhuang, and his Divine Wheel was only at the second tier.


    The Renhuang saw Ye Futian heading towards him. A cold look flashed past in the eyes of the Renhuang. The Divine Wheel in his body burst forth, and his will swept out. Even though Ye Futian''s talent was extraordinary, he had just broken through to the Renhuang Plane. Was Ye Futian planning on using him to try out his powers?


    Buzz. Ye Futian swept a glance at his opponent and directly traversed the space. After reaching the Renhuang Plane, his speed was even quicker. In an instant, he immediately landed in front of his opponent and engaged in close-quarter combat.


    The expression of the Renhuang changed slightly. Ye Futian was acting so presumptuous.


    Ye Futian had just proven his Way, and he dared to engage in close-quarter combat?


    Bang. The spears collided. The onlookers were blinded by a dazzling light. The next moment, the Renhuang disappeared.


    The will of the Renhuang still lingered in the space, yet his figure was nowhere to be found. He had been penetrated by the spear and turned into dust.


    Instant kill!


    Everyone widened their eyes when they saw what happened. It was as though the person that Ye Futian had killed was not a Renhuang. The Renhuang did not even manage to defend himself and was killed instantly by a strike from Ye Futian''s spear. He most likely did not even know how he was killed.


    The Divine Wheel of the Great Path was forged when a cultivator broke through to the Renhuang Plane. There was a stark difference between every tier of the Divine Wheel. The might of the will, unleashed by a second-tier Divine Wheel that resonated with the Great Path, could surely suppress the will unleashed by a first-tier Divine Wheel.


    However, even so, the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was instantly killed with a spear strike. He did not even have the opportunity to use his power.


    The difference in Divine Wheels.


    Upon seeing this scene, everyone conjectured that the Renhuang of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty most likely had little experience in fighting against other Renhuangs. Some top forces from the Central Emperor Realm had the best understanding of how much a difference it would make for cultivators with different tiers of Divine Wheels to engage in a battle.


    Ye Futian instantly killed his opponent with a spear strike. It proved that the difference between their two Divine Wheels was huge and could not be overcome at all. Even though the Renhuang of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was on a higher level, he was still killed in one shot.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had not even shown his Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Even for top forces, a cultivator at the Renhuang Plane was considered the mainstay of a force. It was hard to cultivate a Renhuang. However, when battles arose, a Renhuang was killed so easily. It only took a strike from the spear.


    In the sky below, Emperor Xia raised his head. His face twitched when he saw the spear that Ye Futian wielded. He looked at the Demon Peacock Emperor beside him.


    The Demon Peacock Emperor also looked at him. There were looks of astonishment in both of their eyes. Ye Futian was a Renhuang just like them.


    How powerful was his ability now?


    Rumble. Suddenly, an enormous power of the Great Path spurted towards Ye Futian.


    Swiftly, Ye Futian turned around and thrust his spear forward. Like a meteorite, his spear shattered the incoming spear.


    However, an alarming pressure surrounded his body all of a sudden.


    A body forged of gold appeared above Ye Futian. The figure was brilliant; his Divine Wheel of the Great Path shone. He was a golden ancient god.


    Ye Futian had seen this person before. Back then, this person had even attacked Ye Futian. It was none other than the prince of Golden Divine Nation and the elder brother of Gai Shi Shi, Gai Jiutian.


    Last time, outside of Divine Palace, Gai Shi Shi had lost to Ye Futian. This Gai Jiutian was overbearing.


    Right now, Gai Jiutian one again came charging towards him. The pair of golden eyes contained fierce murderous intent.


    Ye Futian killed his younger brother.


    He did not say anything, merely standing proudly in the sky. All around him, figures of golden ancient gods descended from the sky. They suppressed this side of the sky. Gai Jiutian was like a deity that shone with the sun and the moon.


    The light of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path swept out; the golden ancient gods pounced downwards. The Divine Sound could be faintly heard; it was the Sigh of the Divine God.


    Gai Jiutian was a lower-level Renhuang at the third tier of the Divine Wheel. Ye Futian exclaimed internally when he sensed his opponent''s aura. His opponent was at the same level as Empress Yan. Back when they were outside of the Divine Palace, Ye Futian had fought against Empress Yan.


    Gai Jiutian''s Divine Wheel was at the Celestial Level.


    As the Crowned Prince of Golden Divine Nation, the Divine Wheel that he had forged was naturally not ordinary. It was a Celestial Level, third-tier Divine Wheel. One could imagine the domineering might of his Divine Wheel.


    "Let''s go," Emperor Xia said. He and the Demon Peacock Emperor were ready to lend a hand. Their Divine Wheels were only at the third tier; moreover, theirs were Gold Level Divine Wheels. In other words, Gai Jiutian, the Crowned Prince of the Golden Divine Nation, was stronger than both of them.


    Although Ye Futian had exceptional talent, he had just broken through to the Renhuang Plane. With Ye Futian''s first-tier Divine Wheel, the difference between his ability and his opponent''s was too great. How could he possibly win in this battle?


    Right now, battles were happening at every corner of the sky. There were few people left; Emperor Xia and Demon Peacock Emperor could no longer sit out of this.


    "Your Highness, please wait," a voice rang. Emperor Xia turned around and saw the Swordmaster of Lihen; the former put on a perplexed look.


    "Your Highness, let''s watch for a while more," the Swordmaster of Lihen suggested.


    "Swordmaster of Lihen, the difference in tiers between Ye Futian and his opponent is huge," Emperor Xia raised his concern.


    "The level of Divine Wheels can make up for the difference in tiers," the Swordmaster of Lihen said, "If Ye Futian really can''t handle him, only then will we join the battle."


    Even if Ye Futian could not defeat his opponent, he would not be crushed in a short amount of time. He definitely had the power to put up a fight.


    "The level of Divine Wheel?" Emperor Xia revealed a shock expression. The level of Gai Jiutian''s Divine Wheel was already very high. It dazzled with a blinding divine light. Could it be that the level of Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel was even higher?


    Despite having doubts, Emperor Xia accepted the suggestion of the Swordmaster of Lihen. He didn''t join the battle; he looked at the battle in the sky and was ready to lend a hand when necessary.


    In the sky, Ye Futian stood undeterred as he was flooded by the golden statues.


    From inside his body, brilliant light suddenly burst forth. This light covered the sky and pierced the endless space. It was as though there was divine light of the Great Path circling his figure. The Worldly Great Path resonated with his. He truly achieved the state of becoming one with the world.


    In the sky above Ye Futian, a dazzling strange phenomenon appeared. Endless will of the Great Path appeared like waterfalls that churned towards Ye Futian''s body. Dazzling divine light radiated outwards, covering thousands of miles.


    It could truly be called the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Its divine light covered the sky.


    "His Divine Wheel is flawless. It is at the Divine Level."


    The major figures of the Nine Realms lowered their heads and looked over in Ye Futian''s direction. In their eyes, there were only flawless or flawed Divine Wheels.


    Only a flawless Divine Wheel was a complete Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Only then could it be considered divine.


    Divine light covered the sky, radiating three thousand miles. When Emperor Xia saw this Divine Wheel, his heart trembled inside him. At this moment, he felt that his own Divine Wheel was a joke. Could the Divine Wheel that he forged when he reached the Renhuang Plane truly be considered a Divine Wheel of the Great Path?


    If he were to compare his Divine Wheel with that of Ye Futian, his own would probably pale into insignificance.


    Flawless. This was a truly flawless Divine Wheel. The heavens revealed strange phenomena, and divine light covered the sky.


    Many people were mesmerized by this gorgeous scene. Although many cultivators that had forged flawless Divine Wheels had appeared in God''s relic, in reality, those were all the flawless Divine Wheels that normal cultivators would encounter. Once outside of God''s relic, among the innumerable cultivators of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, how many had flawless Divine Wheels?


    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, before Ye Futian, there were none who had flawless Divine Wheels.


    Even the top figures of the Realm did not have flawless Divine Wheels.


    This also meant that the difficulty of forging a flawless Divine Wheel was far greater than the difficulty of becoming a top force. Once one completed this step, it was possible for them to stand at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Even Emperor Nan and the cultivators of the Shen Clan were paying close attention to Ye Futian. Strange looks flashed past in their gazes.


    Not only did Ye Futian have a flawless Divine Wheel, but divine phenomena had also appeared.


    "Did this person have a huge fateful encounter in God''s relic?" Emperor Nan asked Nan Luoshen, who was beside him.


    "He should have from the looks of it." A strange look flashed past Nan Luoshen''s beautiful gaze. This person''s Divine Wheel was actually even more dazzling than her own.


    Endless strings of the Great Path seemed to appear around them. The sound of qin could be heard playing on its own. With the Great Path as its strings, it actually suppressed the Sigh of the Divine God.


    Beams of radiant divine light shot out like flawlessly sharp swords. They pierced towards the statues of the golden ancient gods. An intense rumbling sound thundered.


    No one knew how much will the Divine Wheel of the Great Path that Ye Futian forged had consumed. Ye Futian had consumed so many fruits of the Way. With the support of the World Tree, the foundation of his Great Path was extremely solid.


    "A first-tier Divine Wheel is going against a third-tier Divine Wheel."


    The crowd revealed bizarre expressions. The aura on Ye Futian''s body was actually not at a disadvantage at the slightest. His power of the Great Path also showed no signs of being suppressed.


    Gai Jiutian''s facial expression changed slightly. A flawless Divine Wheel. This was the goal of all the disciples of Golden Divine Nation all this while, but Gai Jiutian had failed to forge one. Initially, Gai Shi Shi had a chance to forge a flawless Divine Wheel upon entering God''s relic this time. However, he had been killed by Ye Futian and had perished.


    Even though Ye Futian had a flawless Divine Wheel, what of it? There was still a difference between their two Planes. He did not believe that the tier of Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel could overcome it.


    Gai Jiutian''s Divine Wheel was also at the Celestial Level.


    Gai Jiutian raised his hand. The heavens and earth resonated, and the Great Path roared. A palm print directly struck out from his palm. In an instant, a gigantic golden palm print appeared in the sky above Ye Futian''s head. Patterns of the Great Path seemed to be carved on the palm print. It appeared like the face of a deity. It was as though a deity had descended from the heavens and wanted to destroy all of existence.


    Aside from a flawless Divine Wheel, the other Divine Wheels were all Common Level.


    Ye Futian extended his left hand. He pointed a finger at the heavens, and countless divine swords resonated. A storm of Sword Qi swept out and formed a sky shattering sword. It immediately shattered the gigantic palm print!

 1654 Emperor Xia Turns Hostile

    The divine swords pierced through the sky. Gai Jiutian once again shot out a palm print to block them.


    "A perfect Wheel of the Great Path!" Gai Jiutian''s heart trembled. Would this be enough to ignore the difference in their levels?


    This was a flawless Divine Wheel, whereas his was at the Celestial Level. Why was there still such a huge gap?


    Ye Futian was a bit surprised as well. In fact, he had just ascended to the Renhuang plane. Although he had forged at perfect Divine Wheel, he did not know how big the gap between the two of them was or how powerful his combat ability was. After all, this was his first battle since becoming a Renhuang.


    It seemed he was even more powerful than he would have imagined.


    Gai Jiutian was no ordinary person. He was one of the eminent talents of the Golden Divine Nation with a Divine Wheel at the Celestial Level. But in this conflict, Ye Futian did not feel any pressure from his Divine Wheel.


    Thinking of this, he pulled his spear back. It seemed like he was thinking too much. He did not need to fight Gai Jiutian.


    His body was bathed in brilliant divine light, and the power of the Great Path was falling upon him. As he was bathed in the dazzling light of the Great Path, the white-haired Renhuang in the air looked like a god. Everyone was in a daze as they watched. Had he really just ascended to the Renhuang plane?


    Many mid-level Renhuangs were not that glorious.


    Even some of the core members of great powers did not understand why he was like this. There was clearly a huge gap between the two of them. Had the elder not said that the distance between levels on the Renhuang plane was like the distance between heaven and earth, that there was a huge disparity in terms of strength?


    So what was happening right before their eyes?


    Ye Futian seemed to be subverting their views on cultivation.


    The sound of shrieking swords swept out, merging with the music. He was using the Great Path as his strings, and each string seemed to be made of swords. The music that was playing seemed to be the Song of the Lost Divine. And the sword will was the sword will of the Fleeting Divine Sword.


    Ye Futian stretched out a finger and seemed to pluck the strings of the Great Path. For a time, the Great Path flowed backward. Endless sword light pierced through the air, destroying everything in its path. Countless swords shrieked out, cutting their way through the sky.


    At the same time, he lifted his hand and slammed it out towards Ye Futian. At that moment, countless golden gods shot out towards him, and the image of a massive golden god appeared in the sky. This strike seemed to contain the fury of a god and the fury of Gai Jiutian. It swept through the air.


    Under the music, the countless strings of the Great Path resonated with the endless sword will. The power of Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel burst out. At that moment, he shone with the radiance of heaven and earth as he used the Worldly Great Path to its fullest extent.


    Thousands of beams of light fell like waterfalls. At this time, Ye Futian seemed like an immortal, like a god of the nine heavens. His silver hair danced in the wind. His features had always been handsome, but now they were incomparably heroic. Now that he had become a Renhuang, he had a Renhuang level aura. The light that was bursting from him now made a few of the women, who had not cultivated to a high-level, stare at him in a daze.


    Xia Qingyuan stared mutely at the figure in the air. It seemed that he was the only person that existed in her eyes.


    Beside her, Emperor Xia trembled on the inside. He looked at his daughter and sighed. His own precious daughter had fallen for Ye Futian. The poison already ran deep.


    But the young man was quite good looking. Even if he was only 70 or 80 percent as handsome...


    Divine light bloomed in the sky. Ye Futian pointed up. At that moment, it seemed like a divine sword had been drawn and was cutting through the heavens.


    The light from that single sword stretched out for three thousand miles.


    Many people seemed like they couldn''t tell that it was a sword. They only saw a beam of light, and endless sword will shot through the heavens.


    The beam of light crashed into the descending golden god, causing many more beams of light to burst out. The golden god was pierced through, and a hole appeared in it, after which it cracked and shattered. At the same time, the divine sword light descended in front of Gai Jiutian.


    Gai Jiutian thrust out his hands with a cry. When the sword reached him, there was a loud rumbling sound as cracks appeared in his Divine Wheel, making his will rapidly weaken.


    "Go and find Gai Shi Shi." Ye Futian waved his hands over the strings of the Great Path. The image of the sword swallowed up the sky. The sword transformed into a sword-shaped storm. Gai Jiutian''s body broke apart piece by piece until it became nothing.


    In an instant, his body completely disappeared. Only sword will was left where he had been.


    A second Renhuang of the Golden Divine Nation had been lost.


    He had been killed by Ye Futian.


    He had not shown any mercy. This time he had killed the man himself. Gai Jiutian had wanted to kill him, and now he was dead. It was kill or be killed.


    Killing one or killing two, there was no difference between them.


    Given the power of the Golden Divine Nation, they could absolutely not forgive him. They had wanted to kill him. Under this situation, he naturally had to weaken them.


    The Golden Divine Nation had hidden reserves of power and countless cultivators. But they could not all come to the City of the Ruins. Only a few Renhuangs had come.


    "He killed him!" Everyone''s hearts trembled. Ye Futian, who had just reached the Renhuang plane, had slain Gai Jiutian with his third-tier Divine Wheel. There had been a competition. When he had unleashed his Divine Wheel, his opponent had been doomed.


    How great had the gap between them been?


    Many of the great figures from top powers sighed inwardly. Not even ten people had forged perfect Divine Wheels on this trip to the God''s Relic.


    These ten people included Jian Qingzhu of Tianshen Academy, Shen Hao of the Shen clan, and Nan Luoshen, the daughter of Emperor Nan.


    But now, they all remembered only one of them. Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s first battle at the Renhuang plane had been enough to make his name resonate throughout the Nine Realms.


    "I''m getting old," whispered Emperor Xia, but he smiled brightly. As the ruler of Emperor Xia''s Realm, he suddenly felt old and feeble. He had watched Ye Futian grow from a weak young man into who he was now.


    In this battle, he had cut down Gai Jiutian, which implied that even he, Emperor Xia, was no match for him.


    How could he not sigh at this?


    "No need to sigh. There are few people like him in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path," said the Demon Peacock Emperor. Emperor Xia nodded. He naturally understood this, but when he thought of the family background that Ye Futian had hidden, he felt a bit relieved.


    He was so used to Ye Futian causing trouble in Emperor Xia''s Realm that he seemed to have forgotten his possible origin.


    "Qingyuan, how has your relationship with him developed?" Emperor Xia asked.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at her father. "What?"


    How had it developed?


    "Don''t blame me for asking. Time waits for no man." Emperor Xia felt gloomy. He knew that this young man would become a great force in Emperor Xia''s Realm. If he didn''t get a handle on things now, well, it was not like he could fight him...


    "It''s not like you think," said Xia Qingyuan, blushing.


    "No? Then where did you get your opportunity to ascend from?" Emperor Xia asked. "Don''t think I don''t see what''s going on."


    He did not believe that Xia Qingyuan could have seized the chance on her own.


    Without a doubt, Ye Futian had helped her.


    This kid was still very empathetic. He knew how to hurt people.


    "You are thinking too much, father." Xia Qingyuan looked at her father frankly, then lowered her head.


    "Oh, daughter, you are too cold. Sometimes you have to take the initiative," urged Emperor Xia. It was no wonder that he was so urgent. At that moment, Ye Futian had Lord Taixuan and the Sky River Great Elder behind him. There were many beautiful women in the Nine Supreme Realms. There was the woman from Brahma''s Pure Sky not far away, and many beautiful goddesses. They were all threats.


    In addition, there were Nan Luoshen of the Nantian Divine Kingdom and Chang Xi of Youyue Divine Palace, who were like goddesses themselves. They were both glorious and fair, making them threats as well."


    "Kong Xuan, come here. Your father has a few things to tell you," said the Demon Peacock Emperor to his daughter.


    Emperor Xia was stunned. He looked at the Demon Peacock Emperor, and his face darkened.


    "You had better not be getting any ideas, Peacock," he warned.


    "It''s a fair competition," said the Demon Peacock Emperor disdainfully.


    "....." Emperor Xia scolded him, "Old Peacock, people, and demons have different paths. You should not be so shameless."


    "What do you know? This way, there will be more feelings between them."


    "I might turn hostile..."


    "Should I be afraid of you?"


    Before this, the two of them had shared drinks and entertainment. Now they were speaking of turning hostile towards each other.


    Beside them, Xia Qingyuan and Kong Xuan were shocked into silence. They looked at each other then looked away. There was a bit of killing intent in their eyes...


    It was not only Emperor Xia and the Demon Peacock Emperor. All the Demon Emperors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had this same idea.


    He had a perfect Divine Wheel and was the foremost person in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. At this moment, Ye Futian could sweep away anyone of his generation, no matter if they were human or demon.


    Suddenly, the great figures all thought of the prophecy that the Heavenly Mandate Realm would change. At first, they had thought it would be because of Gu Tianxing and Gu Dongliu, but it seemed that they had guessed wrong.


    Wait...


    A prophecy.


    A prophecy about Ye Futian.


    "Did the prophet ever see Ye Futian before he died?" a great figure from the Demon Realm asked his elder.


    "I believe so, or at least heard his voice," someone answered.


    "He did see him. Ye Futian was the last person he saw before he passed away," said a Demon Emperor. But at that time, no one had paid attention to this. It had just been a coincidence.


    But now it seemed like...perhaps it was not a coincidence?


    He was the foremost member of the younger generation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. He had forged a perfect Divine Wheel and was incredibly heroic. He was perhaps one of the top figures in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. If the prophet had seen him, he would certainly have been able to tell how extraordinary he was.


    If the prophet had seen it back then, then...


    They all realized a possibility, and their eyes involuntarily narrowed.


    Had the prophet died because of Ye Futian?


    However, even though Ye Futian was incredibly talented, why would the prophet have chosen to pass away?


    There must be a secret hidden in all of this.


    "Some secret is being kept. We should not let it out nor bring it up again," ordered the Demon Emperor.


    It seemed that they had been pulled into some sort of secret.


    Had the prophet chosen to die in order to keep this secret?


    Thinking of this, they looked at YeFutian differently. If they had guessed correctly, Ye Futian would be the one to change the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future. In fact, he might even rule it in the future.


    Many of the forces of the Demon Realm had good relations with him. They might benefit from the changes he would bring!

 1655 Besieged on All Sides

    This battle would make all the cultivators of the Nine Realms remember Ye Futian.


    Previously, the Shen clan had not cared about the Sky River Great Elder''s heir, but now it looked like they had underestimated him.


    "It certainly makes sense that Lord Ye was the one to get the treasures in the sacred hall and was the first to open the gate of the Great Emperor. He reached enlightenment under the Imperial Palace. This genius who received the divine items of the Great Path and the inheritance of an ancient emperor is truly magnificent." The person sighed as he said this. It seemed that he admired him greatly.


    "Now it looks like the people of the Shen clan guessed right. Even though Lord Ye''s talent is unmatched in the Nine Realms, he did not break through to the Renhuang level until he was under the celestial palace. At that time, I had a vision. I saw that Lord Ye really gained something, which must be the inheritance of the Great Emperor, and thus proved his worthiness to be a Renhuang," continued the person, chattering excitedly. "He came from the Tianhe Realm and strode through mountains of knives and seas of blood as he defeated all the proud sons of heaven beneath the celestial palace. The Great Emperor awakened at his summons, and he inherited his will. All the gods witnessed this in accordance with heaven''s will. I believe what Lord Ye said. He truly saw all the gods there in the God''s Relic."


    This person seemed to have unlimited admiration and adoration for Ye Futian. He praised him without end. Those who did not know the character of the people from the Shenxing clan would be fooled by this man''s solemn, serious, and sacred expression, especially because he was a monk.


    This monk from the Shenxing clan was named Seven Evils. He was an independent member of the clan, was truly an evil monk.


    As he said this, everyone looked at him. Everyone had previously thought that Ye Futian had been lying to them. Now, seeing his perfect Divine Wheel and his incomparable talent, in addition to the fact that someone like Seven Evils was so entranced by him, it seemed that it was a bit more believable.


    The elders of the various forces looked at him as well. A cultivator from the Shen clan directly asked, "What does he mean?"


    All of the great powers had questioned those who had gone to the God''s Relic. Now they had their answers and were lost in thought.


    The God''s Relic was also called the grave of the gods. Could it be that he had really inherited something, seen something?


    Ye Futian''s people looked upset at Seven Evils''s words, especially Yu Sheng. Terrible murderous intent flashed in his eyes.


    When Ye Futian had said that, he had just been speaking casually, without thinking. No one believed him. But this was different. When someone else said it, it gave it some wait, made it materialize.


    This evil monk''s words would get people killed.


    Ye Futian heard it as well, and his eyes went cold. He looked at Seven Evils.


    He could clearly feel powerful lines of thought sweeping out from him. The cultivators of the top forces were basically unscrupulous, but why would they care about a junior like him? Although he was a Renhuang with unparalleled talent, there was still a huge difference between him and the giants of the top forces.


    "If you believe what you''re saying, why don''t you and the people of the Shenxing clan do something about it?" Ye Futian looked at Seven Evils coldly.


    "There is no enmity between us, Lord Ye. Why would we do this?" Seven Evils''s voice was sincere. Those who did not know him would probably believe him. "However, you have obtained all the treasures of an entire trove, more than one person can possibly use. Now, all the top forces are here, so why don''t we share them? This would let all of the top powers greatly increase in strength. Wouldn''t that be wonderful? As for the divine item you got, you could let the Nine Realms see it and enrich their experience. What do you think, Lord Ye?"


    Seven Evils spoke very generously, and on behalf of others. He seemed perfectly impartial, but he was actually very insidious. He had brought all of the Nine Realms into it by asking Ye Futian to share the Divine Implements and bring out his divine item. He meant for Ye Futian to divide up his spoils.


    Moreover, if this situation actually happened, it would not be as simple as just sharing out the objects. Ye Futian would certainly die, which showed just how wicked Seven Evils was.


    As he said this, Ye Futian could feel the people from the top forces all looking at him a little more intensely. It seemed that they were ready to act and could attack at any moment.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was still on the battlefield. The Renhuang from the Golden Divine Nation had seen Gai Jiutian die, and his fighting will had burst forth, making the very air tremble. But Dou Zhao''s second uncle was also at the level of a god of war with shocking power. He would not give him a chance to divert his attention.


    High up in the sky, the battle between Lord Taixuan and the Dynastic Overlord of the Golden Divine Nation was causing waves of pressure to sweep downward. The air trembled. The Dynastic Overlord must have sensed that he had lost a son.


    Ye Futian cast his gaze around the battlefield. The Renhuangs from Taixuan Mountain and the Dou tribe were engaged in battle, for which he was very grateful.


    "Did you really obtain a divine item and the inheritance of the Great Emperor, Nephew?" came a voice. One of the cultivators from the top powers was looking at him, and had called him "nephew".


    Ye Futian had seen the man before, before he had gone to the God''s Relic. The Sky River Great Elder had brought him to all of the top forces of the Central Imperial Realm in order to convince them to bring him to the God''s Relic.


    This person was the Vice Headmaster of the Sky Reaching School. He had been refused by him, probably so as to not stir up the Sky River Great Elder.


    Disciples of the Sky Reaching School had naturally gone to the God''s Relic as well, but they had not been very noticeable. They must not have been the most outstanding students. After all, there were so many forces there, and many of them did not have a strong sense of power.


    However, this man calling him "nephew" gave people the feeling that he was trying to win Ye Futian''s affection by artifice.


    Moreover, he had an ulterior motive in asking this question. He was bringing up the fact that he and the Sky River Great Elder were once friends.


    "Of course," said Ye Futian. "And I was not the only one who felt the power of the Great Emperor beneath the celestial palace, all the cultivators did. And they all received their own inheritances as well. Moreover, ten people received divine items from the celestial palace."


    "Oh," said the Vice Headmaster of the Sky Reaching School with a slight nod. "In the past several trips to the God''s Realm, no one had this much good fortune. You had such a wonderful opportunity to go to a treasure trove. Could you bring out your treasures to show us? If there are ones that we like, we can trade you our own treasures for them."


    The Vice Headmaster of the Sky Reaching School had reached a bottleneck in his cultivation, and with his power as well. He needed an opportunity to improve. Although he hadn''t been able to go to the God''s Relic, he had heard that Ye Futian had gained some top level ritual implements. He wanted to see if any of them were special and if they would give him a chance to advance a step.


    Thus, he had said what he did.


    "Trade?" Ye Futian looked at the Vice Headmaster of the Sky Reaching School. Did he think he was an idiot?


    "Ye Futian, you killed Wu Meng, a Renhuang of the Martial Gods clan. How can we solve this issue between us?" said Wu Zhan. He was taking advantage of the situation.


    Ye Futian was in a dangerous position now. The Golden Divine Nation and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty both wanted to kill him. Although he was incredibly talented, he was in a precarious situation. The slightest bit of carelessness would destroy him.


    In this situation, did he value his treasures more than his life?


    "The Prison Fort Clan lost a Renhuang as well," said a cultivator from the Prison Fort Clan.


    "The Celestial Worthy Temple was supposed to have received the inheritance from one of the statues," said a cultivator from the Celestial Worthy Temple.


    All of them were coming to Ye Futian to settle accounts.


    In reality, Ye Futian had already shown mercy in the God''s Relic, as he had not acted as decisively as he could have. After seizing the treasures within the Spatial Sacred Hall, he had let almost everyone go, fearing just this sort of situation.


    But the others did not seem to appreciate it.


    "You are all cultivators from top forces, and yet you are seeking out a junior to settle accounts for the conflicts that happened in the God''s Relic. Don''t you think that is shameful?" asked a cultivator from the Yuanyang clan. They had gained five ritual implements, and according to Yuan Hong they had a good relationship with Ye Futian, so it was not difficult for them to pay back his good will.


    "You and your clan gained some powerful ritual implements. Of course you don''t care," said a cultivator from the Martial God''s clan mockingly.


    The battle had still not calmed down. Waves were rising, and there were enemies on all sides.


    Ye Futian was in a bad situation right now.


    "The conflict in the God''s Relic was caused by things that happened there. Why don''t you go and find the others who obtained divine items?" asked the cultivator from the Yuanyang clan.


    "So, the powers that obtained ritual implements are not prepared to share them with the other forces of the Nine Realms? Of course, since you have these items, your power will increase greatly. It is a good idea for you to defend him then," said the cultivator from the Martial Gods clan with a cold smile.


    "You all want ritual implements?" Ye Futian asked them all.


    "We will trade you for them. We won''t take them for nothing," said the Vice Headmaster of the Sky Reaching School. He was saying it like he was trying to let Ye Futian save face.


    Ye Futian watched as they drew nearer to him, all staringat him.


    He knew that they would not let this go easily. Although he was completely protected from the attacks of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Golden Divine Nation, it would not be easy to escape.


    Magical treasures moved men''s hearts, and there had been more treasures in the Spatial Sacred Hall than any of the top forces of the Nine Realms had. This showed how incredible this was. It was enough to change the situation of a top power, or even several top powers.


    This would make even the top figures of the realms have greedy thoughts. After all, this was the world of cultivation, and everyone in the world sought to increase their power!

 1656 Ye Futian the Conman?

    Ye Futian looked at all the forces coming towards him. All of them bore him some sort of grudge, making them very unhappy with him.


    They would not let this chance get away from them.


    "You are all being unreasonable," came a voice. Ye Futian turned and saw a cultivator step out. He looked at the crowd and said, "Common people can only cultivate to seek the way, while we of the top forces had the chance to compete fairly at the God''s Relic. Many of you had grand adventures there. You are all leaders of top forces. Don''t you think it is shameful to bully someone who has just reached the Renhuang level like this?"


    Ye Futian looked at the man who was speaking. He was from Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    Ye Futian had once entered the ancestral land of the Divine Palace, making it so that he had a natural affinity with them. However, he was still moved by someone from the Divine Palace speaking on his behalf.


    "The predatory nature of the world of cultivation has never changed," said one of the top cultivators of the Sky Demon Court. Both the worlds of demons and humans. It was just that the Demon World was more direct about it, and humans were a bit more polite.


    For example, the Vice Headmaster of the Sky Reaching School had called him nephew, saying that he would trade for the treasures. In reality, he was just trying to seize things for himself.


    "You all are indeed bullying him," said a cultivator from the Dragon Gods. Some cultivators from the Divine Elephants strode forward as well. Suddenly, there were quite a few people standing behind Ye Futian. They had not cooperated with the Golden Divine Realm previously. The enmity between Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had originally been put aside, but these people were now taking advantage of the situation. They could not stand for it.


    Many of the forces of the Heavenly Mandate realm had obtained treasures and had direct connections to Ye Futian. They could not just sit by and watch this happen to him.


    However, the other forces just swept cold gazes over the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Although there were many of them, there were not enough. At that moment, the number of forces who wanted divine arms for themselves was extremely great.


    And there were many powers there from the most powerful realm, like the Central Imperial Realm. The Shen clan had been there all along, watching everything like a tiger watching its prey. They naturally did not have any good feelings towards Ye Futian. After all, he was the disciple of the Sky River Great Elder.


    In addition to this, the Martial Gods clan, the Celestial Worthy Temple, and the Sky Reaching School each had very powerful formations.


    Ye Futian knew that if he wanted to get out of here in one piece, he would need several powerful forces to speak up for him.


    They came from Tianshen Academy.


    "Hmm?" The cultivator from Tianshen Academy furrowed his brow, a look of surprise coming over his face. He answered telepathically, "Do you have something to say to me?"


    "I have heard that Tianshen Academy is the premier holy land for cultivation in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Once this is all over, several friends and I would like to go there to seek the Way for a time. Would that be possible?" asked Ye Futian.


    Tianshen Academy was indeed the foremost holy land for cultivation. There must have been many cultivators there with powerful spells. When he had time, he would bring Yu Sheng, Xia Qingyuan, Yaya, and some others there to spend some time shut away in cultivation.


    The elder from Tianshen Academy looked surprised at this. When all this was over?


    The question now was whether or not Ye Futian would be able to escape in one piece. Was he asking them for help?


    Given Ye Futian''s talent that had allowed him to forge a perfect Divine Wheel, there was no question that he would be able to get into Tianshen Academy. And his friends would probably be powerful as well.


    "I was immersed in celestial radiance along with Jian Qingzhu and the others from Tianshen Academy, all of us gaining an opportunity from heaven. Thus, I want to spend some time devoted to cultivation. I also gained some ritual implements in the God''s Relic. If you permit my friends and me to come to Tianshen Academy and cultivate, I will not be stingy with them. I am willing to give out ten of them as a reward, letting you choose which types you want, we can allow this. And my friends and I will pass the test of the classics just like our own disciples."


    The ten ritual implements could be said to be an initial investment, but it was conditional. The first condition was that they needed to extricate themselves from the present situation, and the second was that Ye Futian would be able to bring some other with him to Tianshen Academy.


    The other thing was, how long would he cultivate at Tianshen Academy? For that whole time, the danger he was in would face the whole academy. Thus, they needed this initial investment.


    Right now, the only thing he had in abundance was ritual implements. He did not want to give any of them to those forces who wanted to forcibly take them from him. But it was either give them up or lose his life. Why not share some of them out to save himself?


    "Ten?" A look of surprise came over the elder from Tianshen Academy''s face. He understood that Ye Futian was sacrificing a lot to escape.


    "You can choose the first one on the way," said Ye Futian.


    "Very well," answered the elder. "However, there are many forces who want your ritual implements. Even though I have agreed, the others will not necessarily allow us to leave."


    "I understand. Your promise is enough, elder," answered Ye Futian. Their thoughts were exchanged extremely quickly, so this all happened very quickly.


    But even so, many people looked shocked when they saw Ye Futian standing there in a daze. He seemed to be struggling and hesitant.


    "I have often heard your name spoken," said Ye Futian to Emperor Nan telepathically. He guessed that Emperor Nan was the strongest of the people gathered here today.


    This powerful figure from the Nantian Divine Kingdom had come personally in order to pick up Nan Luoshen. The other top forces of the Central Imperial Realm had not come in such power.


    Thus, as far as Ye Futian was concerned, Emperor Nan was the most important person here in the God''s Relic right now.


    Moreover, he had not been trying to steal his treasures. He had just been watching from the side.


    Emperor Nan looked at him when he heard his telepathic message.


    "If you have something to say, just say it." He knew that this man wanted him to help him.


    "Okay," said Ye Futian telepathically. "Previously, I consulted with the elder of Tianshen Academy. After this affair is over, I will go and study there for a time. I will have a great appreciation for the people of the Central Imperial Realm. Princess Luoshen performed admirably in the God''s Relic. If I had a chance, I would like to give her some advice. I obtained some ritual implements in the God''s Relic, of which I would be willing to give five to her."


    Emperor Nan was a powerful figure, so he didn''t necessarily need any ritual implements. But Nan Luoshen was relatively weak, and so ritual implements would be incredibly precious for her.


    Moreover, Emperor Nan doted upon his daughter. In addition, since Tianshen Academy had already made their decision, Emperor Nan now had this chance to make his answer as well.


    Emperor Nan looked deeply at Ye Futian. This man could not bear to part with his treasures, but he knew that he had to make sacrifices in a situation like this. Thus, he had promised treasures to Tianshen Academy and the Nantian Divine Kingdom, in order to ask for their help.


    "Fine, if Tianshen Academy is also willing, I will help you break free of this situation," answered Emperor Nan. Since he was after Tianshen Academy, he had a chance to see if Ye Futian was tricking them.


    If he wasn''t being honest, then he wouldn''t have to help him.


    "Thank you, Your Highness," said Ye Futian with a nod. Now that two great forces had agreed to help him, things were looking better.


    "Nephew Ye, why don''t you give us your answer?" said the vice headmaster of the Sky Reaching School. Given the current situation, there was no point in delaying anymore.


    Ye Futian looked at the vice headmaster of the Sky Reaching School. Three of the great powers of the Central Emperor Realm had already been pulled into this: the Yuanyang clan, Tianshen Academy, and the Nantian Divine Kingdom. Their current formation was very strong.


    "Goddess Xiao," he said telepathically. This time, his target was Xiao Muyu of the Xiao clan.


    A look of surprise came over her face when she heard this. She cast a cold glance at Ye Futian and asked telepathically, "What are you doing?"


    This man had not been the least bit polite before. He had given her Divine Lotus Spear to Xia Qingyuan. Now he spoke to her so sweetly. Was he going to promise to become her son-in-law?


    "I have offended you greatly. In order to make up for it, I will give you three ritual implements," answered Ye Futian. Xiao Muyu''s gaze hardened.


    Did he think that was enough?


    Was he trying to get them to help him?


    "I''m afraid we will not be able to help you in this situation,'' said Xiao Muyu.


    "Don''t worry goddess. I have already convinced Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan to help me. As long as you stand behind them, it will be enough. I will repay you for that with three ritual implements," said Ye Futian.


    Xiao Muyu looked at Ye Futian. He had actually convinced Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan?


    If he had the Xiao clan behind him as well, he could really get out of this.


    But why had he chosen her?


    It had been simple for Ye Futian to choose her. Although there was bad blood between them and Xiao Muyu did not like him, the Xiao clan had still not directly gotten involved. Under that situation, he was willing to give her three ritual implements, which would make them a bit more powerful. After all, the Xiao clan, the Martial Gods clan, the Sky Reaching School, the Celestial Worthy Temple, and the Shen clan all came from the Central Imperial Realm.


    Xiao Muyu thought for a moment, then answered telepathically, "I will try."


    Obviously, she did not have the right to decide. She had to ask her elder.


    "Good, thank you, goddess," said Ye Futian. Xiao Muyu looked at him. Right now, he was speaking very kindly.


    Obviously, he wasn''t trying to seduce her or anything, right?


    After Ye Futian and Xiao Muyu spoke, he turned to Gui Zang of the Mountain Realm and said telepathically, "Master, the two of us have a connection. I have many ritual implements, and I am willing to give two of them to you."


    "What?" Gui Zang was dumbfounded by this. He looked at Ye Futian with his golden eyes.


    "Do you need Tianxian Temple to save you?" he asked.


    "If you wish. I saw you under the Divine Tree back then, and could feel that it was fated. It is good that I have many ritual implements. If I get out of here, I will let you choose two of them, with no exceptions," said Ye Futian. He was living like a conman.


    Tianxian Temple was the greatest temple in the Mountain Realm, and would be able to crush the Shenxing clan later.


    "Excellent." Gui Zang put his hands together and bowed to Ye Futian.


    "Goddess Chang Xi, you shocked everyone in the God''s Relic with your magnificence, and all the women in the world envy you. After today, I will be willing to give you two ritual implements," Ye Futian said telepathically to Chang Xi of Youyue Divine Palace.


    Youyue Divine Palace was the most powerful force in the Shadow Realm along with Ye Man''s Snow Divine Kingdom.


    Chang Xi looked at Ye Futian. She had shocked everyone, and everyone envied her?


    "You do not need to think too much. I don''t need an answer yet, as long as I leave here alive, I will fulfill my promise," continued Ye Futian.


    Brilliant light shone from Chang Xi. She stood there like a goddess of nine heavens. A look of surprise flashed in her eyes.


    Did this man have some intentions towards her?


    ...

 1657 Solved by Taking Advantage of the Situation

    It was no wonder that Chang Xi would be thinking this. If Ye Futian had asked her to help him, she would be able to understand that.


    However, Ye Futian had just spoken several sentences full of admiration for her and had said that he would give her several ritual implements for free. This made her speechless.


    "In that case, thank you, Lord Ye," she answered. The white-haired young man before her was a powerful figure, but who knew if he would be able to extricate himself from his current situation?


    "Nephew Ye, so many people are waiting for you. Why don''t you talk to us?" said the vice headmaster of the Sky Reaching School with a little bit of coldness in his voice. Was he delaying?


    Why was he being silent?


    The great battle in the air had been inconclusive for a while, and even now that Ye Futian had won, he had found himself in this present situation.


    It was not good that he was facing so many top forces.


    "Alright," said Ye Futian with a nod. "Since you mentioned it, I will naturally not refuse you. In that case, why don''t we trade right now? Tell me which ritual implements you want. However, the divine arms are precious, and the items you trade them for must be the treasures of your clan. What is the strongest cultivation technique of the Sky Reaching School?"


    The vice headmaster''s eyes narrowed slightly when he heard this. A cold light shot out of them.


    He wanted the strongest cultivation method of the Sky Reaching School in trade?


    Was he dreaming?


    The other top forces all seem unconcerned. This man was a genius who had forged a perfect Divine Wheel. He certainly was well aware of the situation he was facing.


    "I am your master''s old friend, and thus I call you ''nephew.'' I wish to help you escape, but if you are going to be like this, I''m afraid I won''t be able to," said the vice headmaster of the Sky Reaching School calmly, as if he really had Ye Futian''s best interests in mind.


    "Old friends?" Ye Futian could feel the sarcasm rising within him. When one was in dire straits, it was much easier to see people''s true faces. When his master had married a daughter of the Shen clan, they had probably been good friends then.


    Now that he had stabbed his friend in the back twice, he was not being even the least bit polite.


    "In that case, what do you wish to trade?" asked Ye Futian.


    "You have just entered the Renhuang plane, I will trade things that will be useful to your cultivation," said the vice headmaster of the Sky Reaching School. This was highway robbery.


    "Is that so?" said Ye Futian with a smile. "Do you really think I need techniques of that level? Why don''t you have your disciples try me? If any of your lower level Renhuangs can beat me, I will accept this."


    The cultivators of the Sky Reaching School were gradually losing patience. Was he playing dumb?


    "Thank you, Master. If this is the way it is, then I won''t trade," said Ye Futian. He looked at the others and said. "I will remember all of your goodwill."


    A look of surprise came over everyone''s face.


    Did Ye Futian think this was finished?


    "Enough, why do you feel the need to bully a junior like this?" At that moment, a group of figures approached them. They were the cultivators from Tianshen Academy. The one at their head looked at Ye Futian and the others and said, "According to Jian Qingzhu, many people forged perfect Divine Wheels on this trip to the God''s Relic. This is a gift from the Great Emperor. We are a place of cultivation for all the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. It is good that all of you are here now, as we are pleased to extend an invitation to all of the proud sons of heaven here to come to Tianshen Academy for a sparring session."


    "If we get a chance, we will definitely come," said many of the people from top forces, nodding. Many of them wanted to go and see Tianshen Academy.


    "Excellent," said the elder of Tianshen Academy with a nod. "Ye Futian, you have forged a perfect Divine Wheel. You may come to Tianshen Academy whenever you want and test out our disciples."


    "I will certainly do so," said Ye Futian with a bow.


    "Great," said the elder with a nod. This scene stunned many of the people from top forces.


    What did this mean?


    Things were not finished here, and yet Tianshen Academy was inviting Ye Futian to go there and cultivate?


    "Luoshen has also always wanted to go to Tianshen Academy. Since you are giving out invitations, can she go as well?" asked Emperor Nan.


    "Nan Luoshen is incredibly talented. If she is willing to join us, she is certainly welcome. I''m sure our disciples would be happy to have her," said the elder with a smile. Nan Luoshen was thought to be one of the most outstanding women in the Central Emperor Realm. Whether it was due to her talent or due to her looks, she would be welcome in Tianshen Academy.


    "Excellent," said Emperor Nan with a slight nod. "There have been many conflicts during this trip to the God''s Relic, but those are all in the past, and we don''t need to pursue them any farther. Now that Tianshen Academy has made this invitation, we can all send our disciples there. The future of the world of cultivators will eventually be placed in their generation''s hands."


    The elder from Tianshen Academy continued speaking with Emperor Nan, making the battlefield all around them fall silent.


    Was Emperor Nan speaking on Ye Futian''s behalf as well?


    The words of Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan carried a lot of weight here.


    Especially Emperor Nan, who was the strongest person here.


    Moreover, the top forces of the Central Emperor Realm would not lightly offend Emperor Nan. After all, without some major conflict, who would dare offend someone who stood at the peak of the realm?


    But Ye Futian did not know either Emperor Nan or the elder of Tianshen Academy. So why would they speak on his behalf?


    Could it be?


    When they thought of this, their faces turned uncomfortable. Had Ye Futian been asking for help during his silence?


    If that was the case, had they just played the role of matchmaker between Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan?


    Not only were Emperor Nan and Tianshen Academy doing a good thing, but they might also get some ritual implements out it.


    "After this trip is over, I will not stop you from going wherever you wish to go, Nephew Ye," said the vice headmaster of the Sky Reaching School.


    Were Tianshen Academy and the Nantian Divine Kingdom going to take all the spoils for themselves?


    "You are the Sky River Great Elder''s friend, so why would you try to seize his disciple anyway? You are not acting as an elder should. You have lost some prestige today." At that moment, another voice rang out. Everyone turned to see who it was. It was a cultivator of the Xiao clan.


    "There were many opportunities within the God''s Relic, but if Ye Futian does not want to trade them, then he doesn''t have to. It is shameful for you all to try and force him like this," continued the cultivator of the Xiao clan. Now that Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan had gotten involved, he naturally did not mind joining in.


    Of course, if Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan had not spoken before him, he would not have dared to offend the other great powers.


    "The techniques of the Sky Reaching School truly do not let people see through you," said a cultivator from the Yuanyang clan. The four top powers of the Central Emperor Realm had all shown their attitudes.


    A surprised look came over Yuan Hong''s face. He had not thought that Ye Futian would use this trick.


    The people who wanted to seize his ritual implements would not get them. Ye Futian was preparing to give them to those who had not tried to steal them. This was very similar to the alliance that had taken place in the God''s Relic.


    Many people''s expressions changed. The situation seemed to be changing.


    "Excellent!" At that moment, a divine voice seemed to flow around them like the sound of a great bell. A monk of Tianxian Temple in the Mountain Realm clasped his hands together and said, "In our realm, those of the Shenxing clan are traitors against holiness who falsely use the name of Buddha. But they always do despicable things. Now, they want to stir up trouble here. Do not believe them. Lord Ye has forged a perfect Divine Wheel. He is someone with an important fate. Do not do him any harm."


    Had Ye Futian purchased Tianxian Temple''s loyalty as well?


    "I have often heard the name of Tianshen Academy, the foremost place for cultivation in the Three Thousand Realms of the Divine Path," said Chang Xi of the Youyue clan. "I am willing to go there for a period of time. Now that Emperor Ye has broken through to the Renhuang plane and forged a perfect Divine Wheel, I would like the chance to test his capabilities.


    "How can I not accept your invitation?" said Ye Futian with a smile and a nod.


    Everything was going as he had planned.


    Everything in the world was based on momentum. Previously, he was beset on all sides, and everyone wanted to be his enemy. This was one kind of momentum. Under this situation, no one would speak for him.


    But now Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan had gotten involved, along with the Xiao clan, and the power behind him had become a kind of momentum as well.


    He had just said he would give ritual implements to Tianxian Temple and Youyue Divine Palace, so they were giving a little bit of their strength in return. This accelerated the situation.


    In reality, although Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan had said they would support him, that didn''t mean they would succeed. But they went into it with an attitude of wanting to try. What happened next made both the cultivator of Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan look at Ye Futian.


    This momentum trick was quite good.


    In this way, the Nantian Divine Kingdom, the Xiao clan, the Yuanyang clan, and more would have their power increased by the ritual implements that Ye Futian would give them. In contrast, those that had wanted to seize them would not get any. Having the other realms on the same level as them get stronger would be equivalent to them getting weaker. When others advanced, those who did not advance took a step backward.


    This many many of the people from the Sky Reaching School look upset. Had they been the catalyst that brought their enemies together?


    Now, Ye Futian''s side consisted of Tianshen Academy, Emperor Nan, the Yuanyang Realm, the Xiao clan, Tianxian Temple, the Dou tribe, Taixuan Mountain, and some of the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Divine Palace and the Clan of the Seven Slayers would stand with him as well.


    With this powerful formation, it would be extremely difficult to seize anything from Ye Futian.


    For a time, no one spoke.


    Ye Futian saw that everyone was silent, then clasped his hands together and said, "Thank you all for showing consideration for me. However, as long as you are all still willing to trade equivalent items, I will have no objections. Of course, I do not have too many ritual implements myself. After all, I need to give many of them to my friends and elders, after which I''m afraid there won''t be many left. Those who wish to trade with me had better do it soon."


    "..."


    Everyone stared at Ye Futian. Had he done this on purpose?


    He was going to share them?


    The people of the powerful forces felt their hearts twitch. Who was he going to share them with? It went without saying.


    They would not get any.


    "If none of you have anything else to say, I will be done here. If you wish to find me, you may go to Tianshen Academy, where I will be cultivating for a while," continued Ye Futian. He was not lying.


    He was not prepared to go anywhere else. He was ready to spend some time cultivating.


    Both his cultivation and the aftermath of what had happened here today would need time.


    What had happened here today would cause a lot of problems when it spread throughout the realms. At some point, the people who had been sent to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would probably seek him out when they got word.


    He did not know where Ye Wuchen and the others were cultivating, and the cultivators of the Celestial Gate were scattered throughout the realms. Once his cultivation was stabilized, and the chaos had subsided, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven could be reorganized, and they could return to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    But before that, he had to deal with the Golden Divine Nation!


    ...

 1658 Secre

    The crisis here had been resolved. However, the battlefield was still chaotic. The various Renhuangs were scattered across different battles. The entire City of the Ruins was enveloped in a terrifying storm.


    The crowd standing over here could clearly sense the intensity of the storm.


    At this moment, the cultivators of the various forces had different expressions. All of them were having different thoughts.


    The cultivators of Shen Clan had been watching from the side all this while. They had not expected that Ye Futian actually took advantage of the situation and resolved this crisis. They initially believed that even they could seize a few ritual implements from Ye Futian. However, from the looks of it now, it would be impossible.


    Ye Futian had clearly sought help from Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan. Their Shen Clan couldn''t step out and object at this moment. The overall situation was set; there was no need for them to offend Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan. If their Shen Clan truly wanted to deal with Ye Futian, there was no place in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path that Ye Futian could run to that they could not also reach. It was just that they did not plan to do so.


    Right at that moment, beams of spatial divine light shone down from the sky. Endless golden light rained down from above. The next moment, figures descended from the heavens above and stood high up in the sky.


    Among this group of people, every single one of them was an existence at the Renhuang Plane. Their auras were frightening. The aura of their leader was even more unfathomable.


    "Greetings, Envoys of the Emperor," many people said as they saluted with their fists. The group that had arrived were members of the Central Emperor Realm''s Empty Imperial Palace.


    The Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace lifted his head and looked around in the sky. His eyes seemed to penetrate the endless space. He saw the battle between Lord Taixuan and the Dynastic Overlord of the Golden Divine Nation. The Palace Lord merely said, "Gai Cang, that''s enough."


    The Palace Lord''s voice immediately pierced the heavens. The Dynastic Overlord of the Golden Divine Nation, who was battling fiercely with Lord Taixuan in the sky, cast a glance down below.


    Gai Cang was the name of the Dynastic Overlord of the Golden Divine Nation.


    The Dynastic Overlord glanced at Lord Taixuan. He never imagined that Lord Taixuan''s mastery of the Song of the Lost Divine was so powerful. In this battle, Lord Taixuan had completely withstood against his attacks.


    Buzz. Golden divine light flew down below. Gai Cang did not continue fighting. Very quickly, he appeared in the City of the Ruins below. His gaze turned towards the Envoys of Empty Imperial Palace.


    No one dared to humiliate Empty Imperial Palace.


    Even the forces that stood at the peak of the Central Emperor Realm did not dare to offend Empty Imperial Palace.


    A senior of Gai Cang served directly under Donghuang the Great. He was an existence at the level of a divine general. His senior knew the Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace. Hence, Gai Cang also knew the Palace Lord, and both sides had dealings before.


    "Donghuang the Great established a law for God''s relic to open once every fifty years," the Palace Lord said. "It is an opportunity for the various forces of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path to seek fateful encounters. It is a chance for the true Proud Sons of Heaven to advance even further. It is not for you all to pillage and massacre each other. This time, Gai Cang, you have overstepped your boundaries."


    The Palace Lord''s words caused Gai Cang''s expression to change slightly.


    Based on what Gai Cang knew, every time the trip to God''s relic ended, conflict would surely erupt. There had never been a time where things ended peacefully. All these years, the Empty Imperial Palace had not even participated before, let alone the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace personally coming over.


    Why now?


    "This time, it is the first time since the opening of God''s relic that the Emperor''s relic has been cracked," the Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace continued. "Since they have had such a fateful encounter, in the future, they will all have the chances to be figures at the peak of their Realms. Gai Cang, heed my advice and give up on your agenda."


    He wanted the Golden Divine Nation''s Dynastic Overlord to stop here.


    The cultivators around the area all revealed strange expressions. As expected, it was because the secret of the God''s relic had been cracked. Ye Futian was one of the ten people who had received the teachings of Donghuang the Great.


    After Donghuang the Great dominated the world, he had always hoped that all forces would prosper. Based on the information that they had heard, the rise of Tianshen Academy, which became the greatest academy in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, was the doing of Donghuang the Great. He had been controlling things from behind the scenes.


    Ye Futian had a great fateful encounter in God''s relic and had also forged a flawless Divine Wheel. Hence, even the cultivators of Empty Imperial Palace had appeared to protect him and to force the Golden Divine Nation to cease their actions.


    Even Ye Futian himself had not imagined that the Empty Imperial Palace would appear. After all, he knew nothing about the Empty Imperial Palace.


    "Then, has my son died in vain?" Gai Cang questioned as he looked at the Palace Lord. The golden divine light on his body shone. His own ability was extraordinary. His brother was a divine general under Donghuang the Great. Standing against the Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace, he still did not lose the majesty of the Dynastic Overlord of the Golden Divine Nation.


    "Gai Cang," the Palace Lord frowned as he said. "If you want to act, you can. This is not my responsibility. However, I will be reporting what transpired. When the time comes, if Donghuang the Great questions this incident, you will bear the consequences yourself."


    Gai Cang''s pupils shot out cold golden light that had a sharp aura. He swept a glance over at Ye Futian, his murderous intent ablaze.


    A junior figure had killed two of his heirs. They were his two most important heirs.


    However, the Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace actually came to protect Ye Futian. This made the Dynastic Overlord of the Golden Divine Nation realize that those who obtained divine items in God''s relic would draw the attention of even Donghuang the Great''s underlings.


    If the Dynastic Overlord killed Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great questioned him, it would most likely be difficult for him to answer as the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation.


    This would most likely also get his brother involved as well.


    When he thought about this, Gai Cang swept a cold stare over at Ye Futian. He then turned around and left.


    A beam of blinding golden divine light pierced the space. Ye Futian had to close his eyes as it was extremely blinding.


    When he opened his eyes, Gai Cang''s silhouette had already disappeared. He had left angrily.


    Although he had left, Gai Cang''s murderous intent towards Ye Futian was still extremely strong. This matter would most likely not be easily resolved.


    "Many thanks, senior," Ye Futian said as he bowed slightly at the Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace.


    "Hmm." The Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace glanced at Ye Futian and nodded his head slightly. He then turned his gaze towards the crowd and said, "You can all disperse now. 50 years later, the God''s relic will open once again."


    God''s relic would open again? Many people revealed strange expressions when they heard his words, their minds running wild. Based on what those who had come out from God''s relic had said, the relic of Donghuang the Great had already been cracked. What was this about it opening again?


    What exactly was God''s relic?


    "Let''s go."


    Right now, at the other end of the battlefield, the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty also issued an order to retreat. With Lord Taixuan being present and the Dynastic Overlord of Golden Divine Nation giving up on the battle, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did not stand a chance to win.


    They could only leave.


    Sky River Great Elder and the cultivators of Dou Tribe did not pursue after the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, allowing them to leave.


    With Ye Futian''s current influence in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, it would most likely be very difficult for the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to want to harm Ye Futian in the future.


    The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty realized this problem as well. Ye Futian first came into prominence when they were fighting against each other at the Violet Heavenly Palace. At that time, nobody had predicted that he would grow up so fast. Ye Futian asserted his influence among his peers and had now become the leader of the younger generations of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. He had built connections with various forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The Dynastic Overlord carefully observed everything that happened today. Now, Ye Futian had a strong influence over the Demon Realm of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. With the aid of ritual implements owned by Ye Futian, he could lead the Demon Realm forces to achieve new heights.


    Of course, the Dynastic Overlord despised the betrayal of the Purple Gold Rat Clan the most. He would surely get even with this group of vermin after they left this place.


    This incident had come to an end. Ye Futian secretly breathed a sigh of relief as well. Nobody knew that he had received the teachings of the Emperor. Before this, he claimed that Donghuang the Great awakened, and various deities bore witness to it, but his words were merely a feint to confuse everyone. Ye Futian had guessed that a fight would ensue due to the palace full of treasures and the identity of people he had offended in the God''s relic.


    However, the incident seemed to be over for now.


    "Many thanks to all the seniors for your assistance. If I have the chance, I will certainly pay you all a visit to show my gratitude," Ye Futian said as he saluted the cultivators of the various forces with his fists.


    This time around, aside from the various forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Divine Palace, Dou Tribe, Yuanyang Clan, Clan of the Seven Slayers as well as some other forces had also stood beside him. He would remember this debt of gratitude.


    "What do you plan to do next?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    "I will first head over to Tianshen Academy to train for a while. Once my Plane is stable, I will return to the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Ye Futian replied.


    After that, he had a few matters that he still needed to attend to.


    The first was to train and let this turmoil gradually subside and fade into oblivion.


    The second was to wait. He had to wait for the members of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to appear and regroup to reestablish the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Of course, after these two matters, he still had a few more that he truly wanted to attend to.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Jieyu, and Master.


    "Xiang Mang, since you are in the Central Emperor Realm now, you should stay and follow Ye Futian to Tianshen Academy. You can broaden your horizons," a senior of Divine Elephants said to Xiang Mang. The senior intended to leave his junior with Ye Futian.


    "Alright." Xiang Mang nodded in agreement.


    "Oh, I need to apologize for something," Ye Futian spoke up, "I have accidentally merged 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor into my Divine Wheel. However, I will compensate your force with another ritual implement."


    "It''s fine." The cultivators of Divine Elephants were not too concerned about it. Right now, the importance of 10,000 Bones of the Divine Elephant Emperor had diminished.


    "Long Chen, you should also go train in Tianshen Academy for a while. Try to prove your Way as soon as possible," a cultivator of the Dragon Gods ordered.


    "Jun..."


    "Gao Huang..."


    One by one, cultivators called out the names of their juniors, planning to leave them behind to train in the Central Emperor Realm.


    Ye Futian had also thought of this situation before. Hence, he had told the cultivators of Tianshen Academy that he would bring along a few friends to train in Tianshen Academy. It was a rare opportunity.


    First, he could train to improve his ability. Secondly, he could reinforce his influence in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He could even gain control over the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    If a cultivator did not have a force of his own, he would be at the mercy of others everywhere he went.


    "Kong Xuan, you should catch up on your cultivation as well. From now on, you will follow Futian for training," Demon Peacock Emperor said. "Ye Futian, I will leave Kong Xuan to you. Please take care of her."


    "Erm��" A glint of embarrassment flashed past Ye Futian''s eyes. Demon Peacock Emperor''s words sounded a little like...


    However, he was indebted to the Demon Peacock Emperor because of the previous battle at Dali Dynasty and the incident regarding Little Condor. Therefore, Ye Futian naturally could not reject his request.


    At the same time, Emperor Xia, who was standing beside Demon Peacock Emperor, glanced at the latter. "???"


    Was Demon Peacock Emperor snatching his line?


    "Qingyuan, you should pay more attention to your matter with Futian. From now on, when I am not by your side, Futian will take good care of you," Emperor Xia announced after glaring at Demon Peacock Emperor.


    Speechless, Xia Qingyuan stared at her father. What kind of matter did she have with Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian, who was standing at a side, kept quiet and stayed out of this conversation.


    "Your Highness, I also want to pay a visit to Tianshen Academy," Qin He said to Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress in another area.


    The Empress looked at her and then glanced towards Ye Futian. Right at that moment, Ye Futian was also similarly looking at her.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress was still an unparalleled beauty. She was like a goddess.


    "You will not," she rejected.


    Qin He''s expression froze. She did not understand why.


    "Empress, since Goddess Qin wants to go, why stop her?" Ye Futian asked. Could it be that this Empress had a vendetta against him?


    He had a growing suspicion that this Empress was hiding something regarding Jieyu from him.


    Qin He looked towards the Empress.


    "Let''s return now," the Empress ordered with a harsh tone. She had no intention of letting Qin He stay.


    "When we were in God''s relic, I joined forces with Goddess Qin, so I still owe her two ritual implements. When I return to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, I will go personally to visit Brahma''s Pure Sky," Ye Futian said. The Empress left without responding to him.


    Ye Futian watched the silhouette leave. He was even more certain about some things!


    ...

 1659 Settling Down

    After everything was settled, Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan and said, "Lord Taixuan, I will go directly to Tianshen Academy for training now."


    Ye Futian did not say any words of appreciation. The things that Lord Taixuan had done for him could not be summarized with just a few words of gratitude.


    Back when Lord Taixuan broke through the Plane, he once mentioned that his Heavenly Path was flawed, and he could not become the Way. Ye Futian hoped that one day, he would be capable of assisting Lord Taixuan in overcoming this bottleneck.


    "Hmm. Since there are seniors of Tianshen Academy around to lead you there, I will not send you off," Lord Taixuan replied while smiling.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded slightly. He took out a storage ring and handed it over to Lord Taixuan, saying, "I have prepared this for Taixuan Mountain. String Emperor and House Master will benefit from it too."


    "This little fellow sure is sincere." Empress Yan, who was beside him, smiled slightly and said, "I did not send you up Taixuan Mountain in vain."


    This little fellow was developing very rapidly. He could already kill Gai Jiutian alone. Even she was no longer a match for Ye Futian.


    This combat power was indeed somewhat frightening. Ye Futian had just reached the Renhuang Plane and could already kill Gai Jiutian.


    This also seemed to not be his full strength.


    She was a little curious as to the limits of Ye Futian''s current combat ability.


    "Alright. I will keep this." Lord Taixuan nodded. It is said that Ye Futian had obtained a treasure trove worth of ritual implements, so Lord Taixuan did not need to be courteous when receiving Ye Futian''s gift. The four disciples of Lord Taixuan could indeed benefit from the ritual implements. Since Ye Futian gave the storage ring to Lord Taixuan sincerely, the latter would not reject the gift.


    "Grandmaster, do you need any ritual implements?" Ye Futian transmitted his thoughts to Sky River Great Elder, who was beside him. Ye Futian did not know what type of ritual implement was suitable for the Grandmaster; hence he had transmitted his thoughts to ask him.


    "I do not need any," Sky River Great Elder transmitted back to Ye Futian. He said, "Train hard in Tianshen Academy."


    Ye Futian''s approach was very clever. Once he entered Tianshen Academy, he would be very safe for the time being. It was far safer than being in the Tianhe Realm.


    Even if Shen Clan discovered anything, they could not attack Ye Futian while he was at Tianshen Academy.


    "Grandmaster..." Ye Futian still wanted to say something.


    "Train longer. Strengthen your Plane," Sky River Great Elder interrupted Ye Futian. Then, he looked at Lord Taixuan, "Let''s go."


    "Alright." Lord Taixuan nodded. He turned to the cultivators of Taixuan Mountain and said, "Let''s head back."


    As she said this, their group waved goodbye and left, free and easy.


    This was the Central Emperor Realm. They were returning to the Higher Heavens Realm.


    In the City of the Ruins, people were constantly flying up into the sky and leaving.


    However, the members of the top forces of the other Realms left behind their monstrous juniors as well as some Renhuang cultivators as bodyguards. They were prepared to let their juniors head over to Tianshen Academy to train for a while.


    Emperor Nan and Empress Luo also brought Nan Luoshen up onto their carriage in the sky.


    "Senior, what about the ritual implement?" Ye Futian shouted at Emperor Nan through a secret sound transmission.


    "Luoshen will head to Tianshen Academy soon. You can pass it to her then," Emperor Nan responded. His carriage traversed the space and left, disappearing in the blink of an eye.


    Ye Futian looked at the remaining people. He secretly transmitted a message to each and every one of them. Since everyone was heading to Tianshen Academy, it would be easier for him to hand over the ritual implements to them when they were at Tianshen Academy.


    He felt no regrets or reluctance about giving away the ritual implements to others. Right now, the things he had the most were ritual implements; it did not bother him to give out a few. It would be beneficial for Ye Futian should these forces become stronger. In contrast, those forces which intended to snatch his ritual implements earlier would feel very uneasy when they knew about his generosity.


    "Let''s also head out," a cultivator from Tianshen Academy said.


    "We will be in your care, senior," Ye Futian said as he bowed slightly. Then, the group stepped out and headed off into the void.


    The various forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm saw the cultivators of Tianshen Academy leave. Who knew what the future had in store for them.


    "Let us head back." The cultivators of the various forces returned to their own Realms. Not long after, the cultivators in the City of the Ruins all left. It once again returned to being a land of decrepit ruins. It was as though everything that had happened before had all been just a dream.


    ...


    Tianshen Academy was situated in the most prosperous region in the east of the Central Emperor Realm, Dongsheng State.


    In Dongsheng State, there were countless magnificent cities and millions upon millions of citizens. There were innumerable cultivators and many extremely prosperous ancient clans as well as dominant forces. They made up one of the most prosperous regions of the Central Emperor Realm.


    It could even be said that this place was not just the most prosperous region in the Central Emperor Realm; even among the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, this region could be considered one of the most powerful regions.


    The elite figures that cultivated until they reached the peak of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path would eventually end up gathering in this place.


    The most famous academy in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, Tianshen Academy, was located in the central region of Dongsheng State. Tianshen Academy was surrounded by majestic cities.


    Tianshen Academy itself was so enormous that it could be considered a city on its own. It stretched for miles without any end in sight.


    Right now, Ye Futian''s group was traversing over a city. His gaze glanced downwards. It was bustling with activity down below.


    "This is where the outer-sect disciples of Tianshen Academy train. Of course, there are also cultivators from various other forces. This place is not off-limits to outsiders. Anyone may enter here," Jian Qingzhu explained beside Ye Futian. This group of people had come here together and got to know each other along the way.


    Jian Qingzhu was also very curious about this cultivator, who had also opened the Door of the Relic and forged a flawless Divine Wheel like he had. He also bore no animosity towards Ye Futian. Jian Qingzhu himself was a person who had extreme self-confidence. He was personally very happy to see Ye Futian and the other monstrous figures coming to Tianshen Academy together to train.


    Wasn''t it more interesting for a lot of top figures to cultivate together?


    "Does Tianshen Academy have a lot of outer-sect disciples?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Many." Jian Qingzhu nodded. He continued saying, "People from various corners of the world come to seek the Way at Tianshen Academy. With the exception of those outstanding figures, most people start cultivating as outer-sect disciples. They will train step-by-step, and only the really talented ones who pass the final selection can enter Tianshen Academy.


    "Moreover, everyone who comes to seek the Way starts at a different Plane. Some of them are very young and are at a low Plane, but those who have exceptional talent are recruited as outer-sect disciples. When they grow up, they will finally become members of Tianshen Academy. Of course, teachers who teach the Way are actually cultivators of Tianshen Academy too. For example, since I am a Renhuang now, I can teach here as well."


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded in realization. According to what Jian Qingzhu said, outer-sect disciples were actually not counted as cultivators of Tianshen Academy. Outer-sect disciples existed because Tianshen Academy spread the teachings of Way indiscriminately to all who wanted to learn, so they needed a title to group everyone. Tianshen Academy would later choose their official disciples from these outer-sect disciples.


    Many popular training spots practiced this model. Even Divine Palace used this method, but there were some differences in the details.


    "We have arrived," Jian Qingzhu said as he looked in front of them.


    Ye Futian gazed in front of them. He saw that there was actually a sky stairwell that measured ten thousand Zhang extending upwards to the sky from the ground. It seemed to reach the clouds in the sky above. He could faintly make out a gate in the sky.


    Down below, many people were looking up into the sky.


    "Brother Jian has returned from the God''s relic. I wonder what he encountered. I guess he has surely proven his Way and broken through to the Renhuang Plane," someone said. Many people put on envious gazes. They looked at Jian Qingzhu and the others as they traversed in mid-air and landed on the sky stairwell directly. They stood before Heaven''s Gate.


    Tianshen Academy. Ye Futian stood at the stairs, which were 10,000 Zhang tall. The gate contained a very strong Space Will of the Way. There were veins of the Great Path on the gate, as though it was a grand matrix. When the cultivators of Tianshen Academy arrived, the veins on the gate changed continuously. Then, the veins turned transparent, and the cultivators of Tianshen Academy entered the gate directly.


    Ye Futian followed behind them, and he could immediately sense the world on the other side of the gate.


    Inside and outside of the gate were completely different spaces. The inside of the gate had extremely rich Worldly Spiritual Qi. A mere breath was enough for one to sense the endless Spiritual Qi as well as the aura of the Great Path.


    Among the mist, towering mountains stood tall, as though this place was a fairyland.


    The group continued forward. Ye Futian discovered that Tianshen Academy was like a dimension of its own. There were many palaces here. They were all training grounds for members of Tianshen Academy. There were also many suitable spots for training.


    "I will give the order for someone to bring you all to choose a spot to train. You all can focus on training there," the elder from Tianshen Academy said to Ye Futian and the others.


    "Thank you, but I will have to decline your invitation," Ye Futian said. "I am not a disciple of Tianshen Academy. It would naturally be inappropriate for me to occupy a training ground in Tianshen Academy. I will train in the outside world. I only need Senior to grant me permission to freely enter Tianshen Academy, as well as allow me to access the manuscripts in the academy."


    He did not want to train here because he felt that it was troublesome. The people here were the core figures of the academy. There were strong cultivators everywhere. It would most likely be inconvenient for him to do anything. He had also yet to join Tianshen Academy, so it was somewhat inappropriate for him to train inside here.


    "I will also do the same," cultivators from other forces also said this.


    "Alright. Regardless of what your choice is, you can all freely enter Tianshen Academy," the elder from Tianshen Academy replied. He accompanied them along the way as they continued forward. In the ancient palaces below, the wills of many cultivators swept over them. Some smiled and spoke up, their voices directly piercing through the space, "Congratulations, Younger Brother Jian."


    "Younger Brother Jian has proven his Way," somebody else said after that. There were even some people who flew over here.


    Not long after, their group descended onto an area with many ancient palaces. Many people walked over to them. The people here all had extraordinary temperament.


    The crowd also noticed Ye Futian and the others. They were also curious. Why had Jian Qingzhu brought back so many strangers from the God''s relic this time?


    Could it be that they also wanted to join Tianshen Academy to train?


    "Ye Futian, come with me," the elder from Tianshen Academy said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded his head and followed the elder towards a palace hall. The members of the other forces from the outside world immediately understood when they saw this. Ye Futian most likely had made some agreement with the cultivators of Tianshen Academy.


    Jian Qingzhu and the other cultivators of Tianshen Academy began to chat. Very quickly, the cultivators of Tianshen Academy roughly knew what had transpired in the God''s relic. Their gazes turned towards the unfamiliar faces, full of interest.


    They were actually top figures from other Realms?


    It looked like Tianshen Academy was going to be very lively from now on.


    "Will Nan Luoshen come here?" someone asked.


    "Hmm," a cultivator who returned from God''s relic replied. "On top of Nan Luoshen, most likely top figures from other Realms will soon come to train at Tianshen Academy as well."


    "This is interesting." The crowd was getting more hyped up.


    After a while, Ye Futian came out from the palace. The elder appeared beside him, saying, "From now on, all of you can come in and out of Tianshen Academy freely. You are permitted to go to any places that nobody is using for training. If you want to train outside, I will have someone prepare accommodation for all of you."


    "Senior, thank you so much," everyone said while bowing to the elder.


    "Alright. You are dismissed," the elder concluded with a smile. All of them were top figures from various Realms. Naturally, they did not need to be micromanaged. They knew what to do.


    "Please excuse us." One by one, the silhouettes flew onto the sky and left the place. All of them headed towards different directions.


    "Are we really training outside?" Dou Zhao asked Ye Futian, "The environment here is obviously more suitable for training. Are you too shy to train here?"


    "No. I have my own considerations. You can train inside here if you want," Ye Futian replied.


    "I plan to explore inside here," Long Chen announced his plan to Ye Futian and the rest.


    "Okay. Everyone should focus on their own training." Ye Futian smiled, and their group once again spread out, moving towards different directions. Even though most of them were cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there was no need for them to stick together all the time.


    Everyone had their own path to pursue.


    "I will stay with you." Dou Zhao still followed after Ye Futian. He was determined to stick around Ye Futian no matter what.


    "Alright. It doesn''t make any difference anyway." Ye Futian accepted Dou Zhao''s decision with a smile. They could move around Tianshen Academy freely anyway.


    Ye Futian, along with Dou Zhao, Yu Sheng, Yaya, Xia Qingyuan, Kong Xuan, Little Condor, and the Swordmaster of Lihen, left Tianshen Academy and settled down in a palace outside.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen had passed down the teachings of Lihen Heaven to other people. Hence, he could focus on comprehending the Way now. It was the reason why he had followed Ye Futian to Tianshen Academy.


    After everything had been settled, Ye Futian planned to train quietly for a period of time. He had proven his Way and became a Renhuang in a rush; there were still some things that he had not verified. He intended to continue forging his second and third Divine Wheel.


    There were two Life Spirits with him that seemed to be undergoing some changes.


    Inside and outside of Tianshen Academy, the arrival of Ye Futian and the members of various Realms drew a lot of discussion. It seemed that for the foreseeable future, Tianshen Academy would be quite lively!


    ...

 1660 Terrifying Visions

    After half a month, the cultivators from the various Realms slowly grew accustomed to Tianshen Academy. Aside from training by themselves, they would occasionally head over to Tianshen Academy to have discussions about their Way with other Renhuangs.


    Ye Futian was very leisurely. Every day, aside from training, most of his time was spent going in and out of Tianshen Academy.


    On Daozang Peak in Tianshen Academy, clouds and mist lingered. There were waterfalls plummeting down from the high peaks, like the Milky Way against the backdrop of the heavens.


    Above the waterfalls, there was a 33-floor pavilion. Occasionally, there would be people walking about outside of the pavilion, coming in and out of the place. Sometimes, they could even see people coming from different directions through the sky and landing outside of the pavilion. It was as though this was truly the land of fairies.


    Daozang Peak was the archive of Tianshen Academy. There were countless cultivation manuscripts here, from the simplest to the most advanced, from the lowest Plane to the highest Plane.


    Tianshen Academy''s Daozang Peak was considered a holy archive of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. It contained the most manuscripts in the world.


    Of the 33 floors, the manuscripts in the bottom 22 were allowed to be brought out to the outside world for training. They could even be circulated outside. That meant to say that after the disciples of Tianshen Academy finished cultivating them, they could teach these manuscripts to the outside world. Hence, the law powers that many people in Dongsheng State cultivated originated from Daozang Peak. One could imagine how significant the existence of Daozang Peak was.


    Some of the top figures of Tianshen Academy also created new law powers that would be stored within Daozang Peak.


    "I have heard that Elder Brother Jian placed the manuscripts that he obtained from the God''s relic in Daozang Pavilion. Those manuscripts were part of Donghuang the Great''s personal collection," someone said. At this moment, a group of youths outside the pavilion was walking into the building. The temperament of this group of people was extraordinary. They were all disciples of Tianshen Academy.


    "Hmm, the manuscripts were from all sorts of genres and were stored on different levels. Some manuscripts were even stored on the 33rd floor," another person said as he smiled. "No wonder Elder Brother Jian managed to forge a flawless Divine Wheel and prove his Way. Even his generosity is awe-inspiring." The group was calm and cool as they talked about Jian Qingzhu.


    These three were the members of the top forces of the Central Emperor Realm.


    "The members from the various Realms also cannot be underestimated. Rumor has it that ten of them forged flawless Divine Wheels. After emerging from God''s relic, the disciple of Sky River Great Elder, Ye Futian, also displayed extremely powerful ability," another person to the side said.


    "We are not underestimating them. Those who managed to forge flawless Divine Wheels were originally legendary figures among a generation. We have yet to even prove our Ways. How are we qualified to look down on them? We are merely having a discussion and are comparing them to Elder Brother Jian. I still believe that Elder Brother Jian is the best in the world," yet another person said with a smile.


    They nodded their heads and walked into Daozang Pavilion.


    The 30th floor of Daozang Pavilion was a place that only disciples of Tianshen Academy could step foot on. However, right now, Ye Futian was also in this place.


    Ye Futian had spent ten ritual implements to enter Tianshen Academy to train. He had negotiated so that he and his friends could study the manuscripts in Tianshen Academy like ordinary disciples of Tianshen Academy. Hence, it was not just him; the Swordmaster of Lihen, Yaya, and the others were also in Daozang Pavilion.


    Even though the Swordmaster of Lihen had forged a flawless Divine Wheel, he still lacked law powers to match it. This place was very suitable for the Swordmaster of Lihen to find some.


    After entering, Ye Futian also discovered that Daozang Pavilion had rich resources for training. The price of ten ritual implements was truly not considered a loss. After all, it depended on what one needed. For Ye Futian, he had too many ritual implements. Using them to exchange for useful things was naturally not considered a loss.


    Right now, Ye Futian opened a black manuscript in his hands. On it, the characters "Eye of the Reaper" were carved.


    Eye of the Reaper. Ye Futian felt his heart tremble. It was such an overbearing name. He opened the manuscript. The black book seemed to form a connection with him as though an eye was staring back at him. Ye Futian''s Divine Spirit entered into the book. The next moment, he felt the entire world change, and he was thrust into endless darkness. A terrifying will of death enveloped his own will and invaded his mind. Inadvertently, an aura of death appeared on his body.


    It was as though he was seeing the silhouette of the Reaper.


    After a short while, Ye Futian''s Divine Spirit emerged from the manuscript. The black book in his hands was still normal and did not appear to be anything special. However, there was new information within his mind. The most advanced cultivation methods required the practitioner to engrave the method with their own Divine Spirit in order to pass it on. These law powers could not be inherited through writing.


    It was very overbearing. Ye Futian thought to himself. He naturally could cultivate this Eye of the Reaper. However, it was not outstanding enough.


    In reality, with his current cultivation method, even those very powerful law powers were of little importance to him.


    He sought law powers, but not with the intention of only mastering the attacks.


    Infinite Excision. Ye Futian continued to flip through the manuscripts beside him and tried to comprehend the content. If anyone paid attention to him, they would notice that Ye Futian was focusing on manuscripts related to Spirit Elemental and Eye Sorcery.


    Ye Futian glanced through many other manuscripts before he left the place.


    After he left Tianshen Academy, he returned to a palace outside of the Academy. He arrived at a training hall.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged in the training hall. In his Life Palace, an alarming storm was raging. There was a pair of eyes in the storm.


    It was a Life Spirit. The Eyes of the Storm. This was originally not a Life Spirit that Ye Futian owned; it was given to him by Emperor Ye Qing.


    At the moment, the Eyes of the Storm were extremely terrifying. The storm that it initiated engulfed the will in its surroundings frenziedly, as though it was a black hole. Every strand of it contained the domineering will of the Great Path. Moreover, it grew larger and larger, seemingly wanting to swallow the entire space.


    This kind of situation had never occurred before. Apart from using this Life Spirit to tame beasts, Ye Futian seldom used it. It could strengthen his will power too. However, it was not a method that he trained in, after all. Since it had been given to him directly, it did not match perfectly with him.


    Another thing that was undergoing transformation was Ye Futian''s Natal Spirit, The World Tree.


    The World Tree had not been calm recently. Terrifying will seeped out of it continuously.


    Ye Futian was unsure of whether this abnormality was induced by the teachings that he had inherited from the Heavenly Palace, or by his breakthrough to the Renhuang Plane. Perhaps both reasons played a role in causing the abnormality.


    Rumble. The Life Spirit of Eyes of the Storm blossomed. Suddenly, two beams of unparalleled, intense, divine light shot out from his pupils. The light contained very domineering will power, and their gravity was as strong as that of a black hole.


    In an instant, will from all around billowed and gushed towards Ye Futian''s body. It formed a terrifying storm of the Great Path with Ye Futian at the center of the storm.


    His eyes were seemingly everywhere. Even though he was sitting here, he could see everything in the world clearly. He saw countless people cultivating outside of Tianshen Academy.


    In his body, there was another powerful will rushing towards his pupils.


    Intense rumbling sounds could be heard. Ye Futian''s eyes were undergoing the baptism of the Great Path. Before he became a Renhuang, he had practiced the body of the Great Path before. Now, he was using the will to refine his pair of eyes.


    He was refining his pupils.


    For the past few days, he had been searching for related manuscripts at Daozang Peak. Some of the manuscripts were training diaries written by cultivators, while some were techniques for meditation. All his preparation was for this moment.


    The area outside of Ye Futian''s palace was a training ground for outer-sect disciples of Tianshen Academy. People from other Realms were cultivating here too.


    Right now, many people looked in the direction of the palace. A terrifying tornado hung down from the sky. It was a storm of the Great Path.


    This storm of the Great Path covered almost the entire sky above the palace. It spun downwards furiously. Horrifying rumbles could be heard too. It was impossible for others to not notice these terrifying visions.


    Someone seemed to be breaking through to the next Plane. Many cultivators flew up to the sky and looked in the direction where the visions occurred.


    "I heard that the party of Ye Futian, the disciple of Sky River Great Elder, is training over there. Is one of his friends advancing to the next Plane?"


    "It is causing quite a commotion," someone muttered.


    Many cultivators here had witnessed others becoming Renhuangs before. Divine visions would take place while the Great Path surged into the body of the cultivator, forging the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. After one succeeded in becoming a Renhuang, they would shine as bright as the moon and the stars; they would enjoy longevity with the heavens and earth.


    "It seems like Ye Futian himself is causing these visions," someone commented.


    "Ye Futian? Hasn''t he already broken through to the Renhuang Plane and proven his Way?" another person asked quizzically.


    "Perhaps he is forging a second Divine Wheel," the person who commented just now spoke again. A lot of people narrowed their eyes when they heard this. Rumor has it that the Divine Wheel that Ye Futian had forged was a perfect one. How would his second Divine Wheel be?


    Previously, he had advanced to the next Plane in God''s relic and forged a perfect Divine Wheel with the help of a fateful encounter. If he was forging a second Divine Wheel now, would it still be a perfect one?


    The onlookers knew that many monstrous figures would not be satisfied with forging just a single Divine Wheel. However, it was definitely rare to encounter one with two perfect Divine Wheels. They had never heard of any success stories before.


    The visions lasted for a long time, and it was still ongoing. This caused the crowd to reveal strange expressions.


    The terrifying visions in the sky intensified. How long was it going to take for Ye Futian to forge a Divine Wheel?


    Could it be that he was really forging a second perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path?


    More and more cultivators gathered around this place. Even those who were far away rushed over. They could see these abnormal visions from miles away.


    "How long has it been?" someone asked.


    "It has been two hours. The visions show no signs of disappearing."


    What the crowd did not know was that Ye Futian was not only forging a Divine Wheel, he was also attempting to merge his law power into his Divine Wheel. This was the Life Spirit given to him by Emperor Ye Qing, but now he intended to refine it into his Divine Wheel.


    Since he was going to do so, then he should refine it into a unique ability of his own from now on.


    Many images flashed past in Ye Futian''s mind. The law powers he saw at Daozang Peak of Tianshen Academy, the techniques he used when he was training in the past, the scene at the God''s relic where he refined the Spatial Divine Orb; one by one, these images played out in his mind.


    His body entered into a marvelous state. He had forgotten himself. He had no intention of hiding the terrifying visions that he caused. This was also the reason why he chose not to train inside of Tianshen Academy. He was worried that he would stir up a commotion, and the top figures in Tianshen Academy would detect what he was up to.


    Even though Ye Futian training outside might still attract the attention of some people from Tianshen Academy, it was relatively safer.


    His training lasted for a whole day. More and more cultivators of Tianshen Academy walked out from the gate and stood at the sky stairwell. All of them stared at the direction where Ye Futian was training.


    Those who were in Tianshen Academy stared towards where Ye Futian was as well. Slowly, they got a little numb from waiting.


    What kind of Divine Wheel of the Great Path was Ye Futian forging?


    ...

 1661 Presumptuous Thoughts

    Three days later, the divine visions subsided. The palace regained its silence.


    The sky stretched for miles without any clouds. The sky was clear, as though nothing had happened before.


    However, the areas around the palace were packed with people. Many cultivators stood at the top of buildings as they stared wide-eyed in the direction where Ye Futian''s palace was.


    It was as though the palace was being surrounded. Many cultivators were observing it.


    In the distance, a group of cultivators of Tianshen Academy was standing at the sky stairwell. All of them looked in the direction of the palace. There were even Renhuangs among them.


    "If someone is proving their Way and advancing to the Renhuang Plane, three days is considered a short amount of time. However, this is my first time encountering someone who caused divine visions for three days just to forge a Divine Wheel," someone mumbled. Even though there were not many cultivators at the Renhuang Plane in all the Realms, Tianshen Academy was no ordinary place. The cultivators here witnessed quite a few breakthroughs every year.


    Most of the disciples around looked at an elder of Tianshen Academy. The elder pondered for a while, then he said, "I received news that when Ye Futian was at Daozang Peak, he read a lot of manuscripts about methods. It seems like he is applying what he has learned in forging the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. I guess he does not want to forge a simple Divine Wheel; instead, he is merging some cultivation methods into it. It will cause his Divine Wheel itself to contain very formidable destructive power. This process of merging has lasted for three days.


    "He has combined the entire merging process with the forging of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Therefore, it has caused continual divine visions to occur," the elder explained.


    Everyone around nodded in realization. This explanation was logical, but it was still rare for this situation to occur. This fellow indeed had a bizarre training method. He was actually comprehending the Way while forging the Divine Wheel, inducing continual divine visions.


    "I wonder what level of Divine Wheel has been forged this time," someone said in a low voice. "Is it a flawless Divine Wheel?"


    "Regardless of what level of Divine Wheel it is, the opening of God''s relic this time has also reminded everyone that many legendary figures will be born from this generation. You all need to train even harder," an elder concluded. Then, he turned and walked towards Tianshen Academy.


    "Understood." The disciples bowed their heads slightly. They felt pressured, but at the same time, motivated.


    The golden eyes slowly closed. When Ye Futian once again opened his eyes, his deep, jet black eyes returned to normal, as though nothing had occurred.


    I succeeded, Ye Futian exclaimed internally.


    "Ye Futian," a voice called out.


    Ye Futian walked out, and he saw a group of people traversing in the sky. They landed at his palace. The leader of the group was none other than the daughter of the leader of Xiao Clan, Xiao Muyu.


    "Goddess Xiao," Ye Futian called out to her with a smile.


    "Where are the ritual implements that you promised to give me?" Xiao Muyu asked without any hesitation. She came over to Tianshen Academy after returning to Xiao Clan. She never imagined that she would encounter this fellow cause divine visions.


    "What kind of ritual implements does Goddess Xiao need?" Ye Futian inquired.


    "Show me what you have, and I will pick myself." Cautious, Xiao Muyu stared at Ye Futian. This fellow was so cunning. If she let him select the ritual implements for her, wouldn''t he just randomly pick a few to deceive her?


    "Goddess Xiao, do you not trust me?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I do not," Xiao Muyu replied decisively. She would not be tricked by this pretty face.


    "Alright," Ye Futian said as he smiled bitterly. "Goddess Xiao, please follow me."


    As he said this, he led the way. Xiao Muyu followed him alone. The two of them reached a training ground inside the palace. Ye Futian''s will shifted, and a golden Spatial Sacred Hall immediately flickered into existence, enveloping the two of them inside of it.


    "Goddess, please pick," Ye Futian invited.


    "Are these all the ritual implements that you have?" Xiao Muyu was somewhat doubtful. Didn''t he get a whole palace full of ritual implements? There were only about 20 items left here.


    "Goddess Xiao, these ritual implements are not just for you. Prior to this, I have already given out many. I am still a Renhuang, and my character is upright. Would I deceive you?" Ye Futian said magnanimously.


    A righteous person like Ye Futian had only hidden a hundred ritual implements from her.


    Xiao Muyu regretted it. She should have picked her items earlier. Ye Futian had asked for the help of many forces, especially Tianshen Academy. He most likely had distributed a large portion of his ritual implements to Tianshen Academy. Clearly, other forces had seized many items too.


    As for how many ritual implements Ye Futian had given out, it was impossible for anyone to cross-check. He would just keep her guessing.


    "Princess Nan Luoshen also needs to select her ritual implement after she arrives. By choosing before her, Goddess Xiao still has some options. If you chose after Nan Luoshen made her pick, you probably wouldn''t have much of a choice," Ye Futian said consolingly as he tried to make Xiao Muyu feel better about it. When he put it that way, she seemed to be at a greater advantage compared to Nan Luoshen.


    Xiao Muyu''s gaze sized up Ye Futian. Why was it that this face seemed to be so deceptive?


    Ye Futian stared at Xiao Muyu with an innocent gaze.


    "I trust that Young Master Ye will not be so shameless as to deceive a weak maiden. If you are deceiving me, wouldn''t it make you worse than an animal?" Xiao Muyu said.


    Ye Futian''s heart twitched. Such a mean woman�� He actually had no words that he could use to retort.


    "You are right," Ye Futian agreed with a smile.


    "Then, I will pick mine," Xiao Muyu said nothing more. Even though she was still doubtful, she couldn''t possibly force Ye Futian to cough up what he was hiding. She looked at the ritual implements with a serious expression.


    Now was the crucial period for her to prove her Way. Many people had forged perfect Divine Wheels when they were in God''s relic. This had affected her greatly. Naturally, she hoped that she could forge a powerful Divine Wheel when she was proving her Way.


    "I will take these three." Xiao Muyu pointed at three ritual implements.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded and handed the three ritual implements over to Xiao Muyu.


    "Many thanks to Young Master Ye." After Xiao Muyu got her ritual implements, she bid him farewell, saying, "I will take my leave now."


    "Goddess Xiao, may you have a safe trip." Ye Futian did not keep her around.


    Xiao Muyu took a few steps forward. Then, she turned around and asked Ye Futian, "Speaking of which, what level is the Divine Wheel that Young Master Ye has just forged?"


    "It is just an ordinary Divine Wheel, unworthy to be mentioned," Ye Futian answered humbly.


    "It is not a flawless one?" Xiao Muyu put on a puzzled look. She inquired in detail, "How ordinary is it?"


    "It is only slightly stronger than my previous Divine Wheel. There is only a slight difference in the strength of the two Divine Wheels, so there is nothing special about it," Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    Xiao Muyu''s face twitched.


    "Goodbye." Xiao Muyu turned around and left. As expected, his Divine Wheel was very "ordinary."


    Xiao Muyu was even more certain that this b*stard was hiding many ritual implements from her.


    Ye Futian was a shameless lowlife.


    "Finally, I can relax," Ye Futian mumbled in relief as he watched Xiao Muyu leave. She actually mumbled that he was a lowlife?


    After Xiao Muyu left, Ye Futian immediately sat within the Spatial Sacred Hall. The Spatial Sacred Hall kept expanding. Countless spatial lines crisscrossed each other. They formed Doors of Space that immediately sealed off this space. Not only did they block off other people''s field of vision, but their divine spirits also could not invade this space. The space was completely segregated from the outside world.


    Ye Futian waved his hand, and all the ritual implements instantly moved to one side. A huge empty space appeared in the center of the Sacred Hall. Ye Futian sat down cross-legged.


    With a flash of his will, a divine tree suddenly appeared in the middle of the Spatial Sacred Hall. Its radiation enveloped the entire space, blinding everything around.


    Terrifying will seeped out from The World Tree. The will was so powerful; Ye Futian sensed that there was something unique about the will. It seemed to be different from all the other will in the heavens and earth.


    When he was proving his Way, he consumed the great worldly path in order to forge the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. After he had proven his Way, The World Tree went through some changes as well. It gave Ye Futian a feeling that he actually did not need to forge a Divine Wheel. This tree itself was more powerful than the Divine Wheel that he forged.


    A rustling could be heard. The World Tree was transforming. It instantly became an ancient fiery-red tree. Each leaf on it was scorching hot, as though they were on fire.


    However, the next instant, they became cold as ice, and each leaf was covered with frightening frost.


    After that, each leaf became extremely sharp, as though they contained invincible sharp swords. Ye Futian extended his hand, and a leaf landed in his palm. His hand swiped past, and the leaves were slashed apart. A beam of brilliant sword flash immediately lit up.


    The World Tree could refine the Ways of the world and incorporate them into its own Way.


    Before this, when Ye Futian was in the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace, he was already confident that his Way was flawless.


    Right now, that confidence was even stronger.


    When he thought about it now, why was it that his Way was flawless?


    What was the difference between different Ways?


    What differed between a flawless Divine Wheel and an ordinary Divine Wheel?


    Why was it that in some extraordinary secret zones like the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace and God''s relic, there was the chance of forging a flawless Divine Wheel?


    After pondering on these questions for a while, Ye Futian got up, and a door opened in the Spatial Sacred Hall. He immediately walked out. Not long after, Ye Futian and the Swordmaster of Lihen entered into the Spatial Sacred Hall together. The Door of Space closed once again.


    "Swordmaster of Lihen, what are your thoughts on the issues I told you about before?" Ye Futian asked.


    "You mean regarding the fact that the Heavenly Path is flawed and whether or not it is impossible for current day cultivators in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path to forge flawless Ways?" The Swordmaster of Lihen guessed. "It seems possible in some secret zones."


    "I was also thinking the same thing. Swordmaster of Lihen, can you test the difference of our Ways with me?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Sure." The Swordmaster of Lihen nodded.


    Rumble. A powerful aura radiated, and countless guqin strings seemed to appear around them. Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel burst forth, and guqin strings were everywhere. Sword Will burst forth from the body of the Swordmaster of Lihen at the same time and resisted this power.


    "What do you notice?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Our Ways are similar," the Swordmaster of Lihen answered. Both of them had perfect Divine Wheels.


    As soon as he finished speaking, a more dazzling divine light shone. Visions appeared in the space. Twilight enveloped this endless space. The might of Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel grew stronger.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen could sense that he was being slightly suppressed.


    "How about now?" Ye Futian asked again.


    "Your Way has a unique style. I feel slightly suppressed." The Swordmaster of Lihen was shocked. The level of Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel was higher than the perfect level?


    Ye Futian said nothing. Suddenly, countless vines appeared in the Spatial Sacred Hall. The vines spread and filled the entire space, enveloping the Swordmaster of Lihen in them. The leaves rustled as though they were sharp swords.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen felt his heart tremble. He could sense a flowing Sword Will that completely suppressed his own Sword Will.


    "Your Way is unique," the Swordmaster of Lihen said.


    Ye Futian narrowed his eyes, saying, "Swordmaster of Lihen, try absorbing the will."


    "Okay." The Swordmaster of Lihen nodded. Then, he absorbed the will emanated by the leaves and merged it into his body.


    "Yours is also Sword Will like mine. But for some reason, it is different. It seems to be purer. I don''t know how to explain this," the Swordmaster of Lihen said while his heart trembled in shock. "This feeling is somewhat similar to what I felt when I received the swordsmanship in Sword City, but it is different in some aspects."


    "Hmm."


    Ye Futian nodded his head. With just a thought, everything disappeared without a trace.


    However, he felt extremely uneasy inside.


    The Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace had a stone tablet. The God''s relic itself was an extraordinary space.


    At that moment, he suddenly had a very presumptuous thought!


    ...

 1662 Verification

    Ye Futian''s eyes revealed a look of contemplation.


    He thought of something related to the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace and God''s relic. He recalled the conversation he had with the mysterious cultivator of Divine Palace when he was in the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace. Since Divine Palace had the Ancestral Lands, a place where it was possible to forge flawless Divine Wheels, then it meant that other top forces might also have places or divine items which served a similar function like the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace.


    At the very least, it was highly possible for the few top forces of the Central Emperor Realm to have such places or items.


    However, the existence of such places or items would most likely be top secret, guarded by the various forces.


    Ye Futian recalled another incident too. Back when Shen Clan was hunting Master for that divine item, Ye Futian saw the divine item in Feixue''s body. He had always thought that his Life Spirit, The World Tree, suppressed the divine item and healed Feixue. Besides that, he sensed a similar aura at that time.


    Now that he thought about it, could it mean that��


    Feixue had inherited that divine item, so it was highly possible that she could naturally forge a flawless Divine Wheel. According to Grandmaster, the divine item had always been inherited by the successors appointed by Shen Clan. The successor prior to Feixue was Masteress.


    Grandmaster''s wife was very likely also an owner of a flawless Divine Wheel.


    When Ye Futian thought of this, his heart quivered. His inference verified something. The World Tree was an ultra-powerful Life Spirit similar to divine items.


    In that case, would The World Tree have a similar function as that of the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace and God''s relic?


    "My Way is unique," Ye Futian mumbled to himself. He could also sense that his Life Spirit, The World Tree, was unique. The divine items which contained the will of Donghuang the Great seemed to have such effect as well. He could transform his Life Spirit into an independent space and let other cultivators refine his will within his Life Spirit.


    If the other cultivators refined Ye Futian''s will in his Life Spirit, would they have a similar experience as that of training in God''s relic? Would they have a chance to forge a flawless Divine Wheel too?


    Even in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, owners of flawless Divine Wheels were rare. Only the selected top forces had control over the resources of the relics. Apart from that, other people could only seek their chances in God''s relic.


    Under such circumstances, if Ye Futian could build a group of cultivators with flawless Divine Wheels, what did this mean for the future?


    It meant that tens of years from now, he could construct the strongest army in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    Something was off. Ye Futian suddenly thought of something else, and he frowned slightly. Back then, only Huang Zhong entered the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace. He lived up to everyone''s expectation and forged a flawless Divine Wheel. The Divine Palace had every intention of cultivating more geniuses like Huang Zhong, but even with the help of the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace, the chance of cultivators forging a flawless Divine Wheel was slim. Hence, the cultivators needed to at least be qualified to enter the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace before they could think about forging a flawless Divine Wheel.


    It was the same situation when they were in God''s relic. Only a few had succeeded. Even monstrous figures like the Seventh Slayer of Clan of the Seven Slayers failed. Lian Jiuyou from the Clan of the God of Ghost failed too. Both of them forged Celestial Level Divine Wheels instead of flawless Divine Wheels.


    Top forces like Shen Clan and Tianshen Academy would have this kind of secret zone divine items too. However, Ye Futian had not heard of these forces having many cultivators with flawless Divine Wheels.


    This meant that even with the help of the secret realm of the relic, one would need to consider their talents when they wanted to break through the threshold and forge a flawless Divine Wheel. It was not an easy feat.


    Ye Futian speculated that in terms of the Way, the relic in the Ancestral Lands of Divine Palace was most likely less complete than God''s relic. God''s relic might be the highest-ranked secret zone; one would have the highest chance of forging a flawless Divine Wheel when they were there. Hence, the opening of God''s relic caused all the top figures in the Nine Realms to gather. All the monstrous figures wanted to get into God''s relic.


    Then, if he utilized The World Tree as a divine item, what result would it produce?


    Ye Futian''s gaze turned towards the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    "Swordmaster of Lihen, you managed to forge a flawless Divine Wheel because you destroyed and reconstructed your original one and reforged your swordsmanship?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Hmm." The Swordmaster of Lihen nodded his head and said, "If I didn''t do it that way, I should not have been able to forge a flawless Divine Wheel."


    This was crucial. Ye Futian thought to himself. When cultivators trained, they already comprehended the will of the Great Path when they reached the peak of the Saint Plane. They proved their Way and became Renhuang in order to reach the core of the Way. They would become their Way with just a thought and would forge a body of the Way and soul of the Way. They would shine as bright as the moon and the stars; they would enjoy longevity with the heavens and earth.


    That meant that in order to forge a flawless Divine Wheel, the cultivators would need to refine their Great Path again.


    "What are you thinking about?" The Swordmaster of Lihen asked Ye Futian. Ye Futian seemed to be pondering on something.


    "I am thinking about some things. However, I still need to verify them," Ye Futian replied. He retracted his aura. The Spatial Sacred Hall then disappeared, and everything returned to normal.


    "I will make a trip to Daozang Peak," Ye Futian said.


    "Be on your way." The Swordmaster of Lihen nodded.


    Ye Futian got up and left the palace, heading once again to Daozang Peak. Many people in Tianshen Academy heard about the divine visions that occurred when he was forging his Divine Wheel. They were even more interested in Ye Futian.


    This Ye Futian actually came once more to Daozang Peak. Regardless of how talented he was in his cultivation journey, he was, at the very least, extremely hardworking.


    Ye Futian spent a few days studying on Daozang Peak. However, this time was different from the previous one. He kept searching for manuscripts that were related to space, be they cultivation methods or matrix methods.


    Based on what the members of Tianshen Academy said, they had seen Ye Futian in a daze many times over the last few days. He sat alone in a corner with his eyes closed and deep in thought, as though he had fallen asleep. However, it was obviously impossible that he had actually fallen asleep. They knew that Ye Futian must have had some epiphany and was cultivating.


    After another few days, Ye Futian left Daozang Peak. Some people were curious as to what exactly he was doing.


    After some time, some people claimed that a grand matrix had appeared in Ye Futian''s palace. This grand matrix was a matrix that could refine the Great Path of All Things. This type of matrix was not uncommon in Tianshen Academy. Many people would use this type of method to comprehend the power of the Great Path.


    Hence, there was nothing strange about it.


    For a period of time after this, Ye Futian remained cultivating in his palace all the while. He was acting rather mysteriously, but no one disturbed his cultivation. This was also the reason why Ye Futian had come to train in Tianshen Academy: he could truly seclude himself and train for a period of time here.


    Dou Zhao returned to the palace one day and met Ye Futian.


    "What''s up?" Ye Futian asked when he saw Dou Zhao.


    "I feel like I am close to experiencing a breakthrough. These past few days, I have been exchanging blows with people at Tianshen Academy. However, very few of them are a match for me. I am a bit disappointed," Dou Zhao ranted.


    "..."


    Confused, Ye Futian stared at him.


    "So, do you want to try fighting against me?" Ye Futian asked as he looked at Dou Zhao.


    "Get out of here." Dou Zhao''s facial expression turned sullen. This fellow was already a Renhuang. Fighting against Ye Futian?


    Would that be similar to inviting someone to punch him?


    "I mean, I am close to breaking through to the Renhuang Plane. Do you have any divine items from God''s relic that I can borrow? I will use it and see whether I can prove my Way and forge a flawless Divine Wheel," Dou Zhao explained to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian finally understood Dou Zhao''s intention.


    "As a dignified descendant of Fighting God, do you need the assistance of divine items to forge a flawless Divine Wheel?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I..." Dou Zhao glared at Ye Futian. He actually had no words to refute Ye Futian.


    What happened to them being sworn brothers?


    "I will teach you a cultivation method. After you have made some progress with it, you can find me again," Ye Futian said.


    "Did you get it from God''s relic?" Dou Zhao''s eyes sparkled.


    "No. It is a cultivation method of the Tianhe Realm. It can aid you to prove your Way. After you have mastered it, you can be considered half a disciple of Sky River Temple," Ye Futian explained.


    "What advantages does it have?" Dou Zhao inquired. A cultivation method of the Tianhe Realm? Was it better than the cultivation method of his Dou Tribe?


    "Do you want to learn it or not?" Ye Futian threw a question back at him.


    Dou Zhao stared at Ye Futian suspiciously. "Do I get a reward from you if I mastered it?"


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and ignored Dou Zhao.


    "I will cultivate it," Dou Zhao said. "From now on, I will be a disciple of Sky River Temple. Your teacher is my teacher. We are sworn brothers."


    "Sit properly," Ye Futian ordered. Then, he taught Dou Zhao the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    "Go and practice it on your own," Ye Futian said after he finished teaching. Dou Zhao glanced at him, dumbfounded. He left afterward.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and continued meditating. The World Tree rustled in his body. Terrifying visions occurred in his surroundings. The heavens and the earth shifted and transformed into a space of the Great Path. The sun and the moon shone at the same time while the stars surrounded the space.


    Hopefully, Dou Zhao will succeed. Ye Futian prayed.


    After a few days, Dou Zhao came to look for Ye Futian again.


    "Did you succeed?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Hmm. I have made some progress with it." Dou Zhao nodded.


    "Great." Ye Futian nodded in approval. With a shift of his will, a dazzling light of matrix shone, and the divine light enveloped the entire space, forming a domineering grand matrix. The will of the Great Path poured down and gushed into the grand matrix.


    "What are we doing?" Dou Zhao raised his head and took a look at the powerful fluctuation of the will.


    "For this coming training, you need to activate Deed of Thorough Comprehension and forge a furnace of the Great Path," Ye Futian explained. "You need to refine the Great Path of All Things so that you can use it for your own. You might even need to destroy the Way you have cultivated before and reconstruct another body of the Great Path. I will help you throughout the process."


    Dou Zhao was extremely doubtful. He stared at Ye Futian and saw the seriousness in the latter''s eyes. Dou Zhao knew that Ye Futian was not joking with him.


    Did Ye Futian actually obtain something in God''s relic?


    "Alright, I will follow what you say." Dou Zhao nodded his head seriously and was exceptionally focused.


    "Let us begin." Ye Futian had barely uttered these words when endless will circulated around them. Very soon, Dou Zhao sensed the space that he was in changing. The sun and the moon both appeared in the sky, and the stars revolved around them. It was as though Dou Zhao was being enveloped by an independent space. The runes of the characters Qian, Kun, Li, and Kan orbited the sky. He could faintly hear the rustling of leaves, but he could not see any trees.


    It was as though this place was another dimension.


    Dou Zhao closed his eyes and activated his cultivation method. He released his Deed of Thorough Comprehension and refined the Way in this space.


    At the same time, in the world outside of this space, endless will surged into the space from all around, becoming the will of the space.


    "What is Ye Futian doing now?"


    The people around the palace could not help but reveal strange expressions when they sensed the intense will descending from the heavens above. Was Ye Futian causing another large commotion?


    "It seems to be a grand matrix that is refining the Great Path of All Things. He is activating the completed matrix."


    "What is inside of that space?" Someone noticed that the will of the Great Path was surging into a sealed-off space. An extremely powerful aura of the Great Path was flowing into it.


    ...

 1663 Accepting A Disciple For His Master

    The movement within Ye Futian''s pavilion once again invited the attention of several people. This was also the reason Ye Futian chose to cultivate outside and not within Tianshen Academy.


    He was afraid that he would attract the attention of too many notable figures if he cultivated in Tianshen Academy. Even though he also could not hide it outside, he would attract the attention of relatively fewer people.


    His cultivation this time lasted several days. The Swordmaster of Lihen and Yaya were outside the Sealed Land. The Swordmaster of Lihen had his guesses when he saw the movement within the pavilion. He thought about the conversation he had with Ye Futian a few days ago. Could he be��


    There was a ripple in his heart. What would it mean if things were as he had guessed?


    "Void, you''re about to prove your path soon, right?" the Swordmaster of Lihen said to Yaya, who was by his side. Ye Futian had given her the Item of the Great Emperor. She should be about to prove her path after she cultivated under the willow tree in God''s Relic. She should not be too far away from proving her path, now that she had come out and cultivated for some time.


    "Yes." Yaya nodded.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen smiled. He was certain that Yaya would forge a perfect Divine Wheel. Ye Futian had even given her the Item of the Great Emperor. He would definitely do all he could to make sure that Yaya forged a perfect Divine Wheel. If his guess was right, he had only coincidentally encountered Dou Zhao. Ye Futian was using him to confirm his conjecture.


    "What are you smiling about?" Yaya asked the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    "Nothing." The Swordmaster of Liben shook his head. He thought about the years when he and the Sword Saint of the Void followed by the side of Emperor Xia. They were the two most powerful swordsmen in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Now, they were cultivating by Ye Futian''s side and were about to forge a perfect Divine Wheel.


    All of these events were rather interesting.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was sitting silently within the independent Sealed Land. There was a terrifying aura emanating from Dou Zhao''s body. The figure of an immensely radiant War God was faintly visible from within his body. It released a terrifying battle intent that enveloped the entire space. It caused the Great Path space to be covered in a horrifying battle aura.


    Rumble�� The Great Path rumbled. Dou Zhao opened his eyes and raised his fists. He then clenched his fists and was suddenly filled with extremely wild power. His entire aura changed. When he stood up, it felt as though he was the War God reborn.


    "I''ve succeeded." Dou Zhao''s voice was a little excited. He had missed his opportunity to prove his path at the God''s Relic. However, he had succeeded in the outside world.


    "You''ve succeeded." Ye Futian also smiled. He had received a confirmation for his conjecture.


    That way, everyone around him would have a chance.


    Ye Futian knew exactly how meaningful that was.


    "Yes." Dou Zhao nodded forcefully. Even though he was a careless person, he was extremely serious when it came to cultivation. Furthermore, he was carrying a mission. He was the future successor of the Dou tribe. If he were to fall behind the successors of the other factions, the Dou tribe would definitely be weakened in the future.


    It was not hard to imagine the feelings he had when he took this step forward.


    This person hid the fact that he had obtained the legacy of the Great Emperor, Dou Zhao thought.


    Dou Zhao had a glimmer in his eyes as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "Elder Brother��"


    Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao''s shimmering eyes and was utterly confused. Who was his elder brother? he thought. We were siblings before, but now I''ve become his elder brother?


    "The greatest thing that I, a descendant of the War God, obtained at the God''s Relic was getting to know you," Dou Zhao said sincerely.


    Scram�� Ye Futian thought. All he felt was goosebumps all over his body.


    "But, as I have said previously, you''ve cultivated the Deed of Thorough Comprehension. Whether you use it or not in the future, you are considered half a member of the Sky River Temple," Ye Futian said.


    "Your disciple pays respects to you, Master," Dou Zhao bowed and greeted.


    Ye Futian''s expression darkened. This person sure has thick skin! he thought.


    "I''m not that old." Ye Futian stared at Dou Zhao. This person should not be younger than me, he thought.


    "Why don''t I call you my senior?" Dou Zhao continued. He had to solidify their connection, be it in terms of "Brother" or "Senior." Only that way would he have a status and a stake in any future benefits.


    "Have you trained under any master?" Ye Futian asked.


    "No, I was trained by my family," Dou Zhao replied.


    "Alright, I''ll take you in as a disciple under the name of my master. You shall become my junior. What do you think about that?" Ye Futian said.


    "Greetings, senior." Dou Zhao brought his hands together and instantly got into the rhythm of things.


    "Eh." Ye Futian did not say anything.


    Teacher is currently trapped by the Shen clan. I''ll first accept a disciple for him, he thought.


    "The successor of the Dou clan should be rather substantial.


    "Also, do not reveal the level of your cultivation when you go out in the future. Leave this place secretly. Don''t attract any attention. Treat whatever happened here today as if it never happened," Ye Futian instructed.


    "Understood." Dou Zhao looked at Ye Futian.


    He knew that Ye Futian had obtained the greatest legacy of the Great Emperor. He should never reveal that.


    Ye Futian looked at the sky. The space instantly scattered. An unparalleled amount of will penetrated Ye Futian''s body. This caused Dou Zhao to have a strange expression. He asked, "This is also a Divine Wheel?"


    "Go," Ye Futian told Dou Zhao.


    "Alright." Dou Zhao did not probe any further and immediately turned to leave.


    "Swordmaster, Yaya," Ye Futian shouted. The two of them walked over.


    "How did it go?" the Swordmaster of Lihen asked.


    "It was a success." Ye Futian nodded. The Swordmaster of Lihen inhaled deeply, then finally flashed a smile.


    If he was given time, the youth before his eyes could transform into a top-notch figure. He might be able to become the greatest faction within the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    "Do you want to set up a clan?" the Swordmaster of Lihen asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head. He was the disciple of the Cottage, as well as the disciple of Qi Xuangang. There was no need for him to set up a clan.


    "Yaya, I''ll teach you a set of cultivation techniques. Come look for me when you are gunning for the Renhuang Realm," Ye Futian said.


    Even though Yaya had a divine item, there was a greater chance of her forging a perfect Divine Wheel if she had his help.


    "Mm." Yaya gently nodded.


    "Boss." A voice rang out in Ye Futian''s brain. It was the voice of Little Condor.


    "What is it?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Two clan leaders are here," Little Condor replied. Ye Futian froze, then scanned through the pavilion with his divine spirit. At that instant, a mob of happiness flashed past his eyes.


    "Let''s go."


    Ye Futian''s figure shimmered as he arrived outside the pavilion. In front of him were two dusty figures. They seemed to be hiding their aura and were acting in an incredibly ordinary manner. They were unremarkable. It was no wonder that he had not noticed them when he was chatting with the Swordmaster just now.


    "Seniors." Ye Futian let out a radiant smile when his eyes met theirs. He was elated to be able to meet the two of them here.


    Jiang Chengzi��the clan leader of the Jiang clan from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven��as well as the clan leader of the Hua clan��Hua Jiangshan.


    The two of them were also smiling.


    "You''ve reached Renhuang."


    "Yes." Ye Futian smiled as he nodded, "Let''s go. Let''s talk inside."


    He reached out and pointed the way as he spoke. They walked into the pavilion.


    "Have the two of you always been in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes." Jiang Chengzi nodded. "Since they caused the Celestial Gate to topple, how could we allow them to roam free? We even went to the Violet Heavenly Palace when the God''s Relic opened some time ago. We then decided to temporarily pause whatever we were doing at the Heavenly Mandate Realm and came here after we heard about what happened to you. We thought that the people from the Celestial Gate of the Nine Realms would continuously swarm into the Central Emperor Realm when they heard your name and that this might be a good opportunity to join up with you."


    "I was thinking that too." Ye Futian nodded. Since these two clan leaders had such a thought, the others would also think this way when they heard his name.


    ''There''s one more thing." Jiang Chengzi''s expression became more serious, "You''ve joined forces with the Purple Gold Rat clan?"


    In the battle back then, the clan leader of the Wang clan had died in battle after being ambushed by the Purple Gold Rat Emperor and the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. There was no way that this debt could be resolved peacefully. Otherwise, they would be letting down the Wang clan, which had fought for the Celestial Gate when the Celestial Gate was facing its crisis.


    "Don''t worry, I am not that impudent," Ye Futian said. "I am merely making use of them."


    The two of them heaved a sigh of relief. Even though they had ascertained Ye Futian''s character from several past incidents, the rumors had been relentless. In fact, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was about to engage in battle with the Purple Golden Rat clan. They felt more at ease now that they heard that Ye Futian was merely using them for his own benefit.


    "Please follow me," Ye Futian said. The group arrived at the cultivation ground. Ye Futian summoned the Spatial Sacred Hall from out of thin air and waved his palms at the same time. An array of radiant divine arms instantly floated within the Spatial Sacred Hall.


    "This was everything I obtained from the God''s Relic. Please pick whatever weapons you need. They might prove useful in the future battle," Ye Futian said. All of the divine arms here were powerful divine weapons in the ancient era. The collection of the Great Emperor might be the best of the best.


    The abilities of the two clan leaders paled in comparison to the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. However, they might stand a fighting chance if they had the power of the divine arms on their side.


    The battle was inevitable if the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was to regain its standing in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    What they were doing now was to prepare for that battle.


    "Alright." The two of them did not hold back. They sensed the assortment of weapons and chose a weapon that was suitable for them.


    "Seniors, I have no use for these many ritual implements. Equip the offensive and defensive ritual implements, and perhaps not long after, we will be able to attack the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty," Ye Futian said. The two of them turned around and looked at Ye Futian.


    "In the God''s Relic, I''ve joined forces with the other factions in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. We are on rather decent terms. I''ll find a way to continue solidifying our relationship. This battle will not be too far away," Ye Futian continued. With their previous alliance, as well as the ritual implements he had given them previously, Ye Futian believed that he now had a considerable influence over the factions of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Now that he had grasped the method of forging a perfect Divine Wheel, there was a chance that he would be able to pull the factions of the Heavenly Mandate Realm into his camp.


    This was what he had to accomplish next.


    Jiang Chengzi and Hua Qingyun looked at each other. Each chose a ritual implement.


    "One for offense and one for defense. That''s enough," Jiang Chengzi said, "Ye Futian, we''ll stay by your side after this. You''ve come into conflict with several factions in the Central Emperor Realm and the God''s Relic. You need people by your side."


    "If that is so, thank you, seniors." Ye Futian nodded. He chose the Tianshen Academy precisely because it was relatively safer.


    With the two clan leaders defending him by his side, he should be able to deal with anybody attacking him even if they were from top-notch factions, as long as they weren''t the best of the best!


    ...

 1664 Seeking a Teacher, Declined

    Ye Futian''s team could be said to be extremely strong with the addition of Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan.


    The two of them were at the upper levels of the Renhuang Plane. Jiang Chengzi had a ninth-tier Divine Wheel, while Hua Jiangshan''s Divine Wheel was at the peak of the eighth tier. They, along with Gu Tianxing and the 12 Deities of the Celestial Gate, made the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven able to compete with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty at its peak.


    They encountered a great tribulation later on, which caused the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to keep a low profile and not be as attention-grabbing in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The strength of several other factions was enough to put pressure on them.


    However, the two of them were still top-notch figures. Now that Ye Futian had gifted them with ritual implements, their battle capabilities were undoubtedly extremely powerful. As long as they did not encounter the best of the best fighters, there should not be any problems on Ye Futian''s side. They might even be able to retaliate against the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty if he came.


    Ye Futian immersed himself in his cultivation for the next few days. The matrix in the pavilion was always activated. It was a Path Matrix that was used to attract the will of the Great Path. It caused the pavilion to be perpetually enveloped by an aura of the Great Path.


    Slowly, the people outside the Tianshen Academy got used to the phenomenon. They were no longer surprised by whatever Ye Futian did.


    This day, in an area outside the Tianshen Academy, a youth was walking on the road. This youth was carrying a sword on his back. He had an exceptional demeanor and gave off the impression that he was incredibly sharp. His cultivation was also impressive at Nirvana Saint Plane, though it did not seem as exceptional in this area.


    There was a Renhuang fighter in the group of pedestrians who were walking not far away from the youth.


    This group of people was an influential family in one of the cities outside the Tianshen Academy with powerful members. Even though they were not as strong as the factions that stood at the top, they did have members in their family who were at the upper-level Renhuang Plane. They had considerable strength.


    There were several great clans like theirs in the Dongsheng State. However, only a few areas in the Central Emperor Realm could tolerate factions at this level.


    "Yunxi, you have to be sincere when you greet your teacher this time," an elder told the girl by his side. This girl was wearing a long green skirt. She looked simple yet well-trained. She had a slender figure and was extraordinarily beautiful. Her demeanor was like that of ice.


    Lin Yunxi''s gaze landed on the Sky Stairwell in the distance. She had a determined gaze.


    "That is my dream," Lin Yunxi said.


    "The strongest person of this generation of the Shentian Academy, Jian Qingzhu, had already reached the level of Renhuang. He might become the manager of Tianshen Academy in the future. You learning under his wing is naturally the best choice. However, with Jian Qingzhu''s status in Tianshen Academy, he would not accept disciples easily. He would more often be meditating and cultivating. After all, he is still young. There''s no need for him to waste his time on these matters," the elder said.


    Lin Yunxi naturally knew about Jian Qingzhu. In reality, Jian Qingzhu was regarded as a legendary figure amongst the people of her generation. Now that he had reached the level of Renhuang, he was destined to be an exceptional figure.


    "Even if I do not get him as my master, I will be able to step on that Sky Stairwell and enter the Tianshen Academy by training on my own," Lin Yunxi said. She had a determined gaze, as well as a faint arrogance.


    "I naturally believe that. The family believes in you too," the elder said, "During the trip to the God''s Relic this time, Jian Qingzhu was the only one in the Tianshen Academy who managed to prove his path and forge a perfect Divine Wheel. It would be difficult for anyone else. However, there are quite a number of people cultivating in the Tianshen Academy this time. Ye Futian is one of them. This person displayed extraordinary potential when he came out of the God''s Relic. He slew the prince of the Golden Divine Nation, Gai Jiutian, who had a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path. If he continued cultivating like this, he would definitely become a top-notch figure in the future. If you study under his wing, you would be able to learn more about the God''s Relic or even the way to forge a perfect Divine Wheel. It would only be beneficial for you."


    "Why did you choose him?" Lin Yunxi asked.


    "You can look at the rest of the people who had forged a perfect Divine Wheel. Shen Hao from the Shen clan and the princess of the Nantian Divine Kingdom, Nan Luoshen. Even the people from the other realms were successors to the Solar Divine Palace and the Youyue Divine Palace, as well as people whose status was equal to theirs. The probability of them accepting disciples are extremely low. Ye Futian had encountered the attacks of several factions when he just came out of the God''s Relic. That was because his background was not powerful enough and that he did not have a strong enough influence. It is rumored that he had taken the Sky River Great Elder as his teacher and came to the Tianshen Academy for his safety. If we actively display our goodwill, Ye Futian is the most likely person to take you as a disciple."


    The elder whispered. After all, Ye Futian needed "friends."


    Even though they were not as strong as the top-notch factions, they were still rather influential within the Dongsheng State. Thus, in his opinion, it was very likely that Ye Futian would accept disciples.


    If Lin Yunxi could become the disciple of Ye Futian and cultivate under him, not only could she understand the God''s Relic and the perfect Divine Wheel, but there was also a chance that she could obtain a premium ritual implement in the future. To the Lin clan, that would be of extreme assistance.


    "Alright, let''s not talk about that anymore. See whether you can train along with Jian Qingzhu if you manage to enter Tianshen Academy and cultivate there in the future," the elder told Lin Yunxi. Lin Yunxi nodded. They did not talk about anything else. After all, they were soon arriving at their destination.


    Not far away, the youth was walking in the same direction as the group. He could faintly hear their voices, but he did not dare infiltrate them with his Divine Spirit as there was a Renhuang fighter present. He only listened in on their conversation as best as his ears could.


    Of course, this was not a remarkable matter. For that reason, the other party did not restrain themselves when they were talking.


    Soon, the group arrived outside the pavilion. The first thing they saw was a black condor. It raised its head high and looked at the group, then asked, "Why have you come here?"


    The condor now had considerable status. It did not pay much regard to an ordinary Renhuang.


    "Lin clan of the Dongsheng State. We are here to pay our respects to Emperor Ye." The elder at the front of the group brought his hands together and displayed the appropriate manners.


    "I''ll ask him for you." The black condor sent a message to Ye Futian, then said, "Go in."


    The group from the Lin family smiled as they entered the pavilion. The elder had his usual expression, while Lin Yunxi swept her gaze toward the black condor. This black condor was extremely arrogant. Even though it was only a Demon Saint, its gaze was more arrogant than a Demon Emperor. It did not show respect to even a Renhuang.


    In the pavilion, Ye Futian received the group in the yard. Even though he did not know what kind of faction the Lin clan of the Dongsheng State was, he should give the appropriate formalities when he had visitors.


    "Lin Mu of the Lin clan from Dongsheng State. I pay my respects to Emperor Ye." The elder cupped his hands together as he spoke. He swept his gaze past the two people behind Ye Futian and was rather shocked. He could not determine the levels of those two people.


    "You are too formal, elder," Ye Futian replied. "You''re visiting because��"


    "I heard that you had been exceptional in the God''s Relic, having forged a flawless Great Path and a perfect Divine Wheel with peerless elegance. Many people within the Lin clan admired you. Yunxi is a junior from our clan and is now training in the outer sect of Tianshen Academy. She had frequently heard people talk about you in recent times and was coincidentally training in the area. Thus, she wants to train under you."


    "Seeking a master?" Ye Futian was rather surprised. He did not expect a person from a family to seek him out as a master.


    However, he also knew that after he proved his path, he was now different from who he was before.


    A Renhuang fighter was powerful enough to establish his sect.


    That was the reason a Renhuang fighter was holding up an entire realm in the Central Emperor Realm, Emperor Xia''s Realm, and Emperor Li''s Realm.


    Thus, seeking them out as a teacher was an ordinary occurrence.


    "I am Lin Yunxi. I pay my respects to you, Emperor Ye." Lin Yunxi took a step forward and gave Ye Futian a slight bow of respect.


    Ye Futian glanced at Lin Yunxi. She was extremely beautiful and had reached the Saint Plane at a young age. Her talent and mental state were exceptional. However, he did not have any intention of accepting a disciple.


    "Elder, I came to Tianshen Academy as I wanted to concentrate on my cultivation for some time. I do not have any intention of accepting a disciple," Ye Futian told Lin Mu.


    "I understand. Emperor Ye, you had just proven your Great Path and would naturally want to focus on your cultivation. You only need to give Yunxi a few pointers during your free time if she trains after you. She would not hold up the time you need for cultivation. Furthermore, the Lin clan is rather influential in the Dongsheng State. The Lin clan can lend you a helping hand if you have any other miscellaneous matters outside of cultivation," Lin Mu continued.


    Ye Futian knew in his heart that Lin Yunxi had come to seek him out as a mentor today because the Lin clan had favored his potential or his experiences within the God''s Relic. Another reason was the ritual implements he had obtained.


    "Please do not blame me, Elder. I am already busy enough and have no intention of accepting a disciple," Ye Futian continued to smile as he said. With Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan by his side, he already had enough manpower to deal with the ordinary affairs. There was no need for him to tap on the strength of the other party.


    Furthermore, he would inevitably have to repay any favors he owed in the future.


    At this moment, a youth had already come here behind the members of the Lin clan. He stood there silently and did not disturb the conversation.


    However, Ye Futian, Jiang Chengzi, and the rest of the group noticed him. They had a look of joy in their eyes.


    "Please, wait a moment. A friend of mine has arrived," Ye Futian said apologetically. He then looked toward the youth and said with a smile, "It''s been a long time."


    "It''s been a long time." The youth nodded, then took a step forward. He bowed toward Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan. "I, Wang Yanbing, pay my respects to you two clan leaders."


    This youth was Wang Yanbing of the Wang clan. He was the one who wanted to reenter the Celestial Gate by challenging Gu Dongliu.


    He fought with all his might but ultimately lost. However, in that battle, he displayed an extraordinary spirit.


    "Spare the formalities," Jiang Chengzi stepped forward and said. "My worries have eased now that I see you."


    The clan leader of the Wang clan had died in battle. Wang Yanbing was the future successor of the Wang clan. Jiang Chengzi naturally did not want Wang Yanbing to get into any trouble.


    "I was coincidentally in the Central Emperor Realm. I came when I heard about the events in the God''s Relic," Wang Yanbing said.


    "Mhmm." Jiang Chengzi smiled and nodded.


    "We''ll not disturb you anymore, Emperor Ye. We''ll take our leave." Lin Mu could only know his place and announce his departure when he saw that he was being ignored. Ye Futian turned around to look at Lin Mu and the rest of the group. He said, a little apologetically, "I''m sorry, Elder."


    The members of the Lin clan turned to leave. They walked out of the pavilion, each one of them speechless.


    "That Ye Futian is a little too arrogant." A powerful fighter from the Lin clan was rather unhappy. Ye Futian had not given them any face. He had disregarded them even though they were a premium family faction in the Dongsheng State.


    Lin Yunxi also felt a little uncomfortable. It was the first time she was seeking out a teacher, yet she was rejected. In fact, Ye Futian had not looked at her seriously.


    "He had forged a flawless Divine Wheel and had clear talent. He is a frontrunner in the nine realms. It is normal for a person like this to be arrogant," Lin Mu said. He was a little disappointed. Even though Ye Futian had been polite, he could feel the arrogance radiating from Ye Futian''s body. Ye Futian had not paid any heed to them.


    "He is a person seeking the protection of Shentian Academy and might be killed by his enemies at any time if he goes out. What right does he have to be arrogant?" a junior of the Lin clan said sarcastically. He seemed indignant.


    He had just finished his sentence when he saw a teen dressed in white robes walking toward them on the opposite side.


    The teen then stopped in his tracks in front of them.


    Lin Yunxi looked at the white-robed teen and thought to herself about how suave he was and how exceptional his demeanor was.


    "You''re blocking the way," the junior who spoke just now knitted his brows and said with a cold tone. He was feeling unhappy but understood where he was. He suppressed his unhappiness and only had a relatively icier tone.


    However, the white-robed teen continued standing in front of them. He looked at the junior with a cold gaze.


    The members of the Lin clan knitted their brows. Lin Mu said, "You!"


    The actions of the white-robed teen were extremely disrespectful. However, they did not dare to act recklessly, given that they were outside Shentian Academy.


    The white-robed teen scanned past the youth. His eyes were extremely strange. It only took a glance for the youth to let out a pathetic cry. He covered his eyes with both hands as if he had suffered from a serious attack!


    ...

 1665 Assemble

    The expression of the Lin clan''s powerful fighters changed. They released bolts of pressure and enveloped them around the white-robed teen.


    Lin Mu stared at the other party. All he saw was that the eyes of the white-robed teen were exceptionally devilish. Even his appearance was enchantingly handsome.


    They were just outside Shentian Academy. In fact, this place could be regarded as a training ground for the outer-sect disciples of Shentian Academy. Many disciples from influential families trained here. They could even encounter juniors from Shentian Academy. Thus, they addressed the person that blocked their way with respect and asked him to move aside.


    However, they did not expect the other party to attack them directly.


    No matter how influential he was, an action like this was rather insolent. After all, the Lin clan of the Dongsheng State was rather influential.


    Boom. Lin Mu took a step forward and pressed the pressure of his Divine Wheel forward. His aura of a Renhuang enveloped the white-robed teen. Even though he might be a junior from an influential faction, Lin Mu had to teach him a lesson for his insolence.


    The strength of a third-tier Divine Wheel erupted instantly. Even though he had deliberately suppressed his aura, he could no longer cover up his will. It instantly attracted crowds from the area around them. Who would create conflict here?


    The white-robed teen glanced at the other party. He continued to step forward. He had no intention of retreating.


    Rumble��


    An immensely violent aura pulsed forward. The devilish eyes locked onto Lin Mu''s gaze. In that instant, Lin Mu''s eyes seemed to be absorbed into those devilish eyes. Within the pair of devilish eyes, he felt as though he saw a terrifying image. There were tens of thousands of demons, such as Golden-winged Giant Pengs, Phoenixes, Divine Apes, Pure-blooded Dragons, Kunpengs�� The terrifying gigantic beasts seemed to press toward him following his will. They charged directly into his brain through his eyes.


    Deep within the pair of devilish eyes seemed to be the figure of an almighty Demon God.


    Rumble! Violent booms erupted. A harrowing Great Path tempest burst out around them. Not only did his will get attacked, but Lin Mu also felt his body and Divine Wheel get assaulted by an unparalleled, barbaric force.


    He felt as though he saw a Divine Matrix behind the white-robed teen. Within the Divine Matrix were tens of thousands of demons and a swarm of heaven-slaying Divine Beasts.


    His Divine Wheel suffered the impact of a Great Path attack. He felt as though he was going to be split apart with every rumble. An unending glory of the Demon God fell upon him as it manically assaulted his body.


    It was as though they were suffering from absolute suppression.


    A dull grunt was heard, followed by a loud noise. Lin Mu continuously staggered backward. The expression on his face was extremely exaggerated as he stared at the white-robed figure on the other side.


    Divine Wheel Suppression.


    Perfect level.


    Rumble�� A devilish Great Path tempest swept past them. Lin Mu retreated continuously. The people who were approaching them from afar were shaken into retreat. Only then did the white-robed teen restrain his aura. He stood there silently, but his eyes were still coldly locked onto the other party.


    Lin Mu stood there, dazed. His body was trembling slightly. He had been shaken by the aura of a Renhuang with a first-tier Divine Wheel. His body had been shaken into retreat.


    It was only now that he realized how exceptional the white-robed teen in front of him was.


    But, he screamed in his heart, "How are there so many perfect Divine Wheels?"


    Why would a person with a perfect Divine Wheel, which was rare even in the Central Emperor Realm, suddenly appear here? Furthermore, his demeanor was clearly different from the people who had come out from the God''s Relic. The names of the people who had forged a perfect Divine Wheel had already spread throughout the Central Emperor Realm. Lin Mu would naturally know about who they were, where they were from, and where they were training at.


    However, the white-robed teen who had appeared before his eyes did not fit the description of anyone he knew.


    Many figures flickered around them as they appeared. Their eyes were trained on the white-robed teen, equally dazed. They clearly had the same thoughts as Lin Mu.


    When did the perfect Divine Wheel become so common?


    A powerful fighter at the first level of the Renhuang Plane had suddenly appeared. He had forged a perfect Divine Wheel and directly suppressed a Renhuang with a third-tier Divine Wheel.


    "Who are you?" Lin Mu''s voice was rather deep. He looked at the white-robed teen as he asked.


    The white-robed teen did not look at them. Instead, he raised his head and looked toward a group of figures who were walking toward him from behind the members of the Lin clan. His gaze landed on a suave young man who was also wearing a white robe.


    Lin Mu also seemed to have noticed something and turned around. He saw that Ye Futian and his group had arrived.


    He saw the immensely radiant smile in Ye Futian''s clear eyes. His eyes were locked on the figure in front of him. It was clear that they knew each other.


    Lin Mu understood why the other party would block their way and attack them directly. It was because they had talked bad about Ye Futian just now.


    By Ye Futian, Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan also had a relieved smile when they saw the figure that appeared.


    The plan they had for many years might have failed, but it had never once been extinguished. Passing on the Demon Realm''s Law of Origin to one person ultimately created an immensely powerful figure.


    The person who came was Gu Dongliu, the person who had obtained the legacy of the Demon Monarch of the Origin Mountains.


    "Third Senior," Ye Futian smiled as he shouted. It had been a long time since they met. His Third Senior had also proven his path and reached the Renhuang Plane. Furthermore, he also obtained the perfect Divine Wheel.


    However, that was normal. His Third Senior had obtained the legacies of Gu Tianxing and the Law of Origin. In fact, he even had the will of the Demon Monarch. That could be considered to be a legacy at the level of a Great Emperor. He had been internalizing all of these legacies when he was at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven back then. Now, he should be able to more perfectly combine the abilities of the legacies.


    The powerful fighters of the Lin clan felt their hearts get twisted.


    Third Senior?


    Both the senior and the junior had forged perfect Divine Wheels.


    Furthermore, this person had not proved his path and forged his Perfect Divine Wheel in the God''s Relic.


    Gu Dongliu walked forward. He walked directly past the powerful fighters of the Lin clan and completely disregarded their existence.


    "I heard about the news of you in the God''s Relic and rushed over." Gu Dongliu said, "Clan leaders, you''ve also arrived."


    "Mm." Jiang Chengzi smiled and nodded, "Your grandfather would feel relieved if he could see the current you."


    The plan Gu Tianxing had put into place back then had all been for Gu Dongliu.


    Now, Gu Dongliu had forced the perfect Divine Wheel. That, coupled with all of the legacies he obtained, might allow him to truly surpass Gu Tianxing in the future.


    "The glory of the Celestial Gate would be realized again in the hands of your generation," Hua Jiangshan said emotionally. Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu both had perfect Divine Wheels. Furthermore, they were both top-notch geniuses. Ye Futian also had Yu Sheng by his side.


    They were rather looking forward to the future.


    "The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven." Lin Mu only realized now that the two elders by Ye Futian''s side were the two clan leaders of the top-notch faction in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    This devilish teen was the junior who had caused quite the commotion in the Heavenly Mandate Realm back then. He was the person who had inherited the Law of Origin, the grandson of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven''s Gu Tianxing, Gu Dongliu.


    "Third Senior, let''s first go to the pavilion." Ye Futian was elated. His Third Senior had finally met up with them. His First Senior and the rest should arrive sooner or later when they hear the news.


    The group turned to leave. They did not care about the members of the Lin clan. The Lin clan looked extremely haggard. Lin Mu was overcome with emotion as he said, "Let''s go."


    Lin Yunxi had complicated emotions. She had come to seek a teacher, but her family had instead been taught a lesson. Furthermore, she had witnessed the splendor of a perfect Divine Wheel directly suppressing her elder.


    Ye Futian and the rest of his group returned to the pavilion. Gu Dongliu did not talk about the incident with the Lin clan, nor did Ye Futian ask him about it. His Third Senior would have a reason for his actions. He did not have to ask about it.


    Beside them, Wang Yanbing''s heart was also filled with emotion. However, he would not compare himself with Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian. All he did was remind himself to put in more effort in his cultivation.


    "I heard the conversation among the Lin clan when I was traveling here. Both the Lin clan and that girl wanted to learn under Jian Qingzhu of the Tianshen Academy. They must have an ulterior motive for seeking out a teacher here." It was Wang Yanbing who spoke about the incident.


    "En." Ye Futian did not pay too much heed. It was normal for people to want to learn under Jian Qingzhu. This was Tianshen Academy. Jian Qingzhu had considerable status within Tianshen Academy.


    As for them heading here to seek out a teacher, they definitely had an ulterior motive for that.


    Ye Futian wanted to have a good talk with his Third Senior. They had not met in a long time and naturally had much to talk about. He did not know how his Second Senior was doing. He could not help but think about her, who would also protect him just like his Third Senior did, when he saw his Third Senior.


    However, bolts of energy were coming toward them. Several powerful fighters were approaching them one after the other.


    "Please come in, elders," Ye Futian shouted. He saw multiple figures walking toward them. They were powerful fighters from the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Demon Realm. There were powerful fighters from the Dragon Gods, Sky Demon Court, and Divine Elephants.


    The major factions were always accompanied by powerful Demon Monarchs when top-notch figures like Long Chen and Xiang Mang came to train. They would silently remain in the area.


    Gu Dongliu''s appearance had caused them to come forward.


    Back then, Gu Dongliu had schemed for the legacy as he wanted to create a new king in the Demon Realm. He wished that Gu Dongliu, who had inherited the Law of Origin, would be enough to become the new leader of the Demon Realm.


    Now, with his reappearance, Gu Dongliu had become a Renhuang and had forged a perfect Divine Wheel.


    "To think that Gu Tianxing actually succeeded," a Demon Monarch said. Even though he knew that Gu Dongliu would become exceptional when he inherited the Law of Origin, he realized that Gu Tianxing had half-succeeded in whatever he had set out to do back then when he saw Gu Dongliu today.


    He then looked at Ye Futian. The Heavenly Mandate Realm would become the territory of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven in the future.


    However, they were fortunate that they were on good terms with Ye Futian, nor did they offend Gu Dongliu in any way.


    The Demon Realm would remain the Demon Realm.


    "It''s good that you guys have come. Help me find Long Chen, Xiang Mang, Jun, and the rest. I have something to talk to you guys about," Ye Futian said.


    He was on good terms with the factions from the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the demon clans. He had already thoroughly impressed the disciples from the demon clan while he was in the God''s Relic and they all faintly regarded him as their leader. Now that they had come out of the God''s Relic, the factions of the demon clan would stand behind him.


    However, he seemed to be lacking something.


    If he just took just another step, he would be able to obtain the loyalty of the factions from the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Demon Realm.


    However, if he could not clearly see what that step was, then he would have nothing much to say for himself. All he could do was support the factions that were willing to enter the battlefield with him.


    He had to obtain the loyalty of the factions from the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the demon clans for the things he wanted to accomplish!

 1666 Ye Futians Ambition

    The demon clans of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had all come to the pavilion, and the core figures of the younger generation had all been summoned.


    Even the cultivators of Ten Thousand Divine Mountain and Gao Huang had been called there.


    They all knew that Gu Dongliu had forged a perfect Divine Wheel. This matter had already been told at the Divine Palace. The existence of any perfect Divine Wheel would attract attention. Gu Dongliu had even fought here, which naturally attracted even more attention.


    "Futian, is there something you''d like to discuss?" an elephant emperor from the Divine Elephants asked.


    "I once went to the Demon Realm for the sake of Third Brother, and each of the demon clans took good care of me. The Divine Elephant Emperor personally showed me his ultimate technique, and the Dragon Gods taught Yu Sheng their divine power. I have always felt close to the Demon Realm of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. I also formed an alliance with Long Chen and the others in the God''s Relic and fought alongside them," said Ye Futian. Everyone looked at him. Was Ye Futian speaking of emotions now?


    He should have been paving the way for the future.


    "Secondly, my Third Brother received the inheritance that had been left behind by Gu Tianxing in the Origin Mountains. This was the inheritance of a Demon Emperor. Presumably, you all know that Third Brother has reached the Renhuang plane now as well and has forged a perfect divine wheel. It could be said that he has truly inherited the mantle of a demon emperor."


    The cultivators of the Demon Realm said nothing. Gu Dongliu''s future would likely be just as glorious as Gu Tianxing''s.


    "In addition to this, although I have never had any contact with Ten Thousand Mountain before, I still allied with them in the God''s Relic. During the troubles in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they not only did not support the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, they actually supported me a little bit. I have always remembered this."


    The cultivators of Ten Thousand Divine Mountain were a little bit curious. Why was Ye Futian speaking of his emotions?


    "The humans of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Demon Realm are divided by boundaries. The power of the Heavenly Mandate Realm has been lessened due to some events in the past. Now, is the Heavenly Mandate Realm the weakest of the Nine Supreme Realms?" said Ye Futian.


    Although they didn''t want to admit it, the other forces all knew this to be true. The Heavenly Mandate Realm of the present day was the weakest one. In the Higher Heavens Realm, the Divine Palace had a top figure, Taixuan Mountain had Lord Taixuan, and the overlord of the Golden Divine Nation was incredibly powerful.


    In this generation, the Heavenly Mandate Realm had no one at this level.


    Ye Futian''s words were bitter, but they were true. Long Chen had felt this in the God''s Relic as well. He stood at the top of the Demon Realm, and Yi Tianyu was the top human cultivator of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but they had not performed well in the God''s Relic.


    They could not compete with people like Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, Dou Zhao of the Dou tribe, Wu Zhan of the Martial Gods clan, and the monk of the Shenxing clan.


    "If a war breaks out between the Nine Realms, would the Heavenly Mandate Realm be able to resist the top forces of the other realms?" asked Ye Futian.


    "What are you saying?" asked a dragon emperor of the Dragon Gods.


    "I want to change the Heavenly Mandate Realm''s future," answered Ye Futian. All the cultivators narrowed their eyes. Did he want to change the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    What an arrogant thing to say!


    He was one man, and one that had just entered the Renhuang plane, and yet he was arrogant enough to say he wanted to change the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "How will you change it?" asked the dragon.


    "The forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm will ally, and stop fighting each other. The whole realm will act as a whole. At the same time, we will train the younger generations. The people of this generation will cultivate along with my Third Brother and me. In the future, they will all be incredibly powerful," said Ye Futian.


    "You are quite ambitious," said an elder from Ten Thousand Divine Mountain with a smile. The Heavenly Mandate Realm would act as a whole? Without a conqueror, who would be the leader?


    If all the people of the younger generation cultivated with Ye Futian, it would naturally be him.


    Did he want to become the overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had worked hard for this, but they had never been able to achieve it. In the end, they had suffered a terrible reversal of fortune.


    "You want to unify the Demon Realm and the humans?" asked a demon elder. It was a Kunpeng from the Sky Demon Court whose juniors had come here to cultivate.


    Although Ye Futian was the strongest person in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and had even more potential for the future, everyone there was a powerful figure in their own right. For a junior to talk about unifying the realm was sheer arrogance.


    "You mistake me. I have no interest in uniting the Heavenly Mandate Realm. That would be too much work," said Ye Futian with a smile and a shake of the head. "The realm will naturally be governed by all the great forces together. I just hope that they will work together more closely, forming a unified alliance. I hope that we can form a force that is dedicated to teaching and that everyone''s disciples can come there, like Tianshen Academy and Shangxiao Divine Palace. Moreover, all the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm will be invited to cultivate there."


    "Teaching?" A look of surprise came over everyone''s faces. Did Ye Futian truly want to train the next generation? He wanted to form an academy.


    "Correct," said Ye Futian with a nod.


    A look of surprise came over Gu Dongliu''s face. He looked at his fellow disciple.


    He thought of their master, of their academy, of the Cottage.


    Everyone else looked thoughtful. They had not thought that this was Ye Futian''s goal.


    "What about the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?" someone asked. They had thought that Ye Futian had summoned them there to ally against the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    After all, they were the greatest threat to him.


    "For the Heavenly Mandate Realm to join together, those forces that wish to destroy it must first be dealt with," said Ye Futian frankly. Everyone looked at him deeply.


    Apparently, Ye Futian was still just as he had always been. Although he wanted to establish a new place of education, he wanted to first wipe out a power.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty occupies the center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. That would be a good place to set our place for education," said Ye Futian. Everyone''s hearts twitched. This man was truly ruthless. He wanted to pull the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty up by the roots.


    He would even cover the very land they were built on.


    So ruthless.


    "Who will be the first master?" someone asked.


    "My master, the Sky River Great Elder. I will try and see if I can invite him to come and take charge. Lord Taixuan and he are old friends and are both my elders. If he does come, Lord Taixuan will serve in our court. All the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm can choose people to send as well to serve as teachers."


    Ye Futian had clearly already been thinking about this. He had even decided who would be a good first master.


    Moreover, it seemed very suitable. He did not come from any of the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. In addition, he would bring the powerful Lord Taixuan along with him.


    "Interesting idea," said Gao Huang with a smile. Ye Futian was indeed a clever man.


    Moreover, other than the fact that he wanted to use the other forces to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, there was no other selfish motive behind this. He seemed to really be thinking of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    But destroying the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was not that simple. Bringing battle to the most powerful force in the realm was quite frightening.


    "Will Lord Taixuan act against the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?" someone asked.


    If Lord Taixuan didn''t act and the Dynasty Overlord escaped, it would be very bad.


    "Lord Taixuan has helped me ever since I went to the Higher Heavens Realm," answered Ye Futian. "Moreover, there is no enmity between him and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, so I have no reason to ask him to join us."


    Lord Taixuan had already done everything that was possible to help him, including fighting the Emperor of the Golden Divine Nation.


    However, it had all been to protect him. Asking Lord Taixuan to attack the Heavenly Mandate Realm would be too much.


    "At this moment, we cannot take responsibility for this decision," said the Dragon Emperor of the Dragon Gods. The question of going to war with the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Violet Heavenly Palace was too great. This would be a war of the highest level. Only the elders could decide this.


    "Fine," said Ye Futian with a nod. He turned to Long Chen and said, "Who among you is approaching the level of a Demon emperor?"


    "Several of us," said Long Chen. He and Gao Huang were both close.


    "Mmm. Then you stay here and cultivate, there is a great matrix within the pavilion," said Ye Futian. "The rest of you, please consider my words."


    "Alright." Everyone nodded. Long Chen felt a bit surprised. There were many secret cultivation zones withing Tianshen Academy, and so they naturally would have many matrices. Why did Ye Futian want him to stay here to reach the next level?


    Everyone left, leaving behind only the three who were approaching the next level.


    After half a month, three figures exited Ye Futian''d pavilion. Not long after, the people from the other forces came to tell Ye Futian and the others that they would be returning to prepare for the establishment of an academy for the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They would wait for him back in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    In the pavilion, Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu were together.


    "What is your plan?" asked Gu Dongliu.


    "For the academy?" asked Ye Futian with a smile. "Why don''t we call it The Heavenly Mandate Cottage?"


    Gu Dongliu was silent for a while, then nodded. "It''s a good name."


    The word "cottage" had special meaning for them. That had been their master''s dream.


    If the Heavenly Mandate Cottage was successful, it would be very meaningful.


    "Once this is over, we should bring Second Sister the others here," said Ye Futian with a slight smile. When all the forces allied to build the Heavenly Mandate Cottage, its power would be immense. It would become a symbol of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Good idea," said Gu Dongliu with a nod. He also missed Zhuge Mingyue.


    Ye Futian thought of some of his old friends as well. When the time came, they would all come to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, including his master Hua Fengliu and the masteress. At that time, the family would be together again!

 1667 Target?

    Over the next few days, the cultivators who had left the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven began to return.


    The first ones to come back were the Renhuangs. It was easier for people of that level to cross vast distances, so even those who had been sent to other realms eventually made their way to the Central Emperor Realm. They naturally heard of the events of the God''s Relic and then returned home.


    In addition, some of the people who returned had been cultivating in the Central Emperor Realm. Of those below the Renhuang plane who had returned, most of them had happened to be there. Ye Futian knew that if they had not been there, it would have taken them longer to get the news and return.


    However, they could begin rebuilding their power now, and once they returned to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, the other people from there would soon find out.


    Once the Cottage was established, the first people who were trained would naturally be the disciples of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Of course, Ye Futian would not refuse the cultivators of the demon forces either. After all, some of them had been very close to Emperor Ye Qing.


    One day, a guest came to Tianshen Academy from the Nantian Divine Kingdom. It was Princess Nan Luoshen. She had said she would come to cultivate for a while, but first, she had gone home to stabilize her own level.


    She did not directly enter the academy but came to Ye Futian''s pavilion first, where he personally greeted her.


    He naturally knew she had not come for his good looks, but because he still owed her a debt.


    He owed her five top ritual implements from the God''s Relic. This was a huge gain even for the Nantian Divine Kingdom. Moreover, when Ye Futian had made his plea to Emperor Nan, he had said he would give them to Nan Luoshen. He would certainly not mind his daughter having many protective ritual implements about her.


    The moment Nan Luoshen reached the pavilion, the whole place grew brighter. Both her looks and her personality were extraordinary. She could truly be called a goddess among women. Even if she were not Emperor Nan''s daughter, even if she were not a talented cultivator, just her looks and her personality would make even powerful figures want to bow before her.


    Cultivators were not the kind of people who only paid attention to looks, but when someone was as beautiful as Nan Luoshen, it was a different matter.


    "Greetings, Princess Luoshen," Ye Futian said with a bow, a warm smile on his face. Although she was so extraordinary, Ye Futian was used to beautiful women, so he was not too flustered by her.


    Of all the women she had seen, only the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky could compare to Nan Luoshen. She was another unique woman.


    "No need to be so formal," answered Nan Luoshen. Her voice was warm, so she seemed very calm.


    "Please come in," said Ye Futian, extending his hand. He knew why she was here, so there was no need to ask. He would just directly give her the ritual implements she had come for.


    Nan Luoshen nodded and stepped in. She seemed satisfied with how Ye Futian was treating her.


    She did not like too much hypocritical politeness. For people at their level, it was rather meaningless.


    When she entered the pavilion, the Spatial Sacred Hall was already set up, its golden spatial gate opened. Everything was ready.


    "The ritual implements are all inside. You may go in and choose," said Ye Futian. Nan Luoshen walked inside and saw more than a hundred ritual implements. She thought to herself that Ye Futian was probably the one who had gained the most out of the trip to the God''s Relic.


    This was a treasure trove.


    If Xiao Muyu who had come previously had seen his scene, she might have had the urge to kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had told her that Nan Luoshen would not have as many choices as she had.


    However, when Nan Luoshen had come, Ye Futian had brought out all the hidden ritual implements.


    Of course, he had left out the ones that were useful to him. He would definitely not let Nan Luoshen choose those ones. But he did bring out the vast majority of them, and all of them were incredible. He was certainly not stinting her.


    Nan Luoshen and Xiao Muyu were different. Nan Luoshen was the only daughter of Emperor Nan and Empress Luo. She could speak to Emperor Nan whenever she wished. Previously, Ye Futian had personally asked Emperor Nan for hep. If he bit the hand that had fed him by cheating Nan Luoshen, what would Emperor Nan think?


    He did not need to antagonize the top figures in the Central Imperial Realm for the sake of hiding a few ritual implements.


    With Xiao Muyu, he could be much more casual. She was not even a Renhuang, and Ye Futian had not made contact with the elder of the Xiao clan at the God''s Relic, but rather with Xiao Muyu directly. And it had been enough for them just to follow Tianshen Academy and Emperor Nan.


    Nan Luoshen looked around the Spatial Sacred Hall and selected three ritual implements. She did not continue taking more.


    "Princess Nan, I promised Emperor Nan five," said Ye Futian.


    "My father only said a single sentence on your behalf. He expended very little energy. Three is enough," said Nan Luoshen.


    For Emperor Nan, it had indeed just been a matter of a single sentence, but its effect on Ye Futian''s situation had been massive.


    But through this, Ye Futian could sense Emperor Nan''s attitude. These were powerful implements, and that sentence was not worth two more of them.


    "Give my thanks to Emperor Nan," said Ye Futian with a slight nod. He did not owe Nan Luoshen any more ritual implements. Emperor Nan and Nan Luoshen had made their decision, so there was no point in saying anything more on the matter.


    "I have chosen my ritual implements, so I will depart." Nan Luoshen was extremely direct and did things without leaving the least bit of ambiguity.


    "Alright, I''ll see you off," said Ye Futian with a nod.


    Nan Luoshen was a little surprised. She had met countless people, and most of them would try to speak with her more if given the chance. Even if they didn''t have a chance, they would try to manufacture one. But Ye Futian seemed not to have any intentions along those lines. He did not try to delay her.


    "No need, Lord Ye," she said. As she exited the pavilion, she stopped and looked back at his handsome face. She suddenly said, "How many perfect Divine Wheels have you forged?"


    Ye Futian was stunned when he heard Nan Luoshen''s words, then he suddenly smiled. It seemed that she was curious as well.


    It seemed that she knew a little bit about what had happened.


    "You will know soon enough," he said with a smile. Nan Luoshen did not pursue the matter. She just nodded and left. She had only asked because she was curious.


    After she left, Ye Futian was still gazing outside. Xia Qingyuan frowned and said, "What are you thinking?"


    "What could I be thinking?" he said, smiling at her.


    "The only princess of the Nantian Divine Kingdom with unparalleled talent and looks, what else could you be thinking?" she said.


    "When I first came to Emperor Xia''s Realm, you were unparalleled in both talent and looks as well, but did I have any thoughts like that?" said Ye Futian, tilting his head and smiling.


    Was he teasing her?


    Upon hearing that, her expression froze. She looked up at him and said, "Only you can answer that."


    Seeing the way Xia Qingyuan was looking at him, Ye Futian was stunned.


    Something seemed to be wrong with this picture.


    "The weather is good today, it is a good day for cultivating," said Ye Futian, looking up at the sky. He turned and left. Xia Qingyuan smiled as she watched him go. But even as she did, her eyes were a little sad.


    She was trying to change.


    "Ye Futian." At that moment, several figures quickly rushed toward the palace. One of them was Kong Xuan, who had been cultivating within Tianshen Academy.


    Ye Futian, who had wanted to spend some time cultivating, felt his thoughts be drawn back to the present. "What is the matter?" he asked.


    "There is a conflict between Yaya and the people of Tianshen Academy. There are Renhuangs who are getting involved," she said.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian began to move quickly. Kong Xuan felt will begin to cover her.


    Behind Ye Futian, several figures rose into the air in a defensive formation, following him.


    "What happened?" Ye Futian was moving extremely quickly, moving across great distances with every step. He descended upon the sky stairwell and began walking up towards Tianshen Academy.


    "Yaya got into a fight with one of the top figures of Tianshen Academy. She couldn''t contain her power and wounded her opponent, so some other Renhuangs from Tianshen Academy got involved. The Swordmaster of Lihen was there, but they probably won''t be able to stop their opponents," Kong Xuan explained simply. "I doubt that the people of Tianshen Academy planned this. They know that she has ritual implements from the God''s Relic."


    Ye Futian did not say anymore. He entered Tianshen Academy with Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan following him. There was basically no more to ask.


    All of the Nine Realms knew he was here and had guessed that he had traded ritual implements to convince Tianshen Academy to let him in. Now, all the great powers were here. Thus, he was not worried that they would do anything to him.


    In that case, Tianshen Academy''s reputation would be worsened.


    Thus, this was probably not the will of the higher-ups at Tianshen Academy; it had just been done by several of the people there. After all, it was a huge academy with many disciples. There were all kinds of people there.


    At the same time, many of the people in the academy seemed to know a little of what had happened, and they were coming from many different places within the academy, all of them walking in the same direction as Ye Futian and the others!


    ...

 1668 Almighty Eye

    On the Divine Altar Peak of Shentian Academy, circling between the various peaks, there were giant sword-like ancient mountains that pointed toward the sky, about to pierce through the clouds.


    Celestial fog circled the area. There were intense ripples of energy coming from Sealing Matrices. It was as if the entire area harbored a Path Matrix.


    At this moment, there was a group of people facing off on the Divine Altar Peak.


    Yaya was sitting cross-legged. Energy was pulsing from her body as her Sword Will circled her. There seemed to be traces of blood on her clothes. It was clear that she had been injured.


    In front of her, the Swordmaster of Lihen stood with his sword in hand. He was blocking her off.


    However, on the other side of the Swordmaster of Lihen was also a Renhuang. He was a Renhuang with a third-tier Divine Wheel. He looked like a middle-aged man, almost at the age of 40. He had a cold expression. His will exerted pressure on the Swordmaster of Lihen and also enveloped Yaya.


    There was also an injured person behind the middle-aged man. He was a teenage figure who had reached the Saint Plane. His aura pulsed around him. Blood dyed his robes red.


    The rest of the people present were witnessing the event by the side.


    The Renhuang on the other side of the Swordmaster of Lihen was a person who had been training at the Red Forge Peak of Shentian Academy. The person who had been injured by Yaya had also been training there. He was a junior of that Renhuang.


    "Seeing that you are visitors of Shentian Academy, the Red Forge Peak would not put you through too much trouble. Get her to follow me. The Red Forge Peak would give her a lighter punishment." The name of the Renhuang was Luo Zhao. He was not an influential figure in Shentian Academy, but since he was a powerful fighter in the Renhuang Plane, coupled with the fact that he might become a mid-level Renhuang at any time, he did have a certain level of status in the Red Forge Peak.


    He might even have the chance to step into the level of an upper-level Renhuang if he trained for several hundred years more.


    Not everyone had the right to become a top-notch figure. That applied even in Shentian Academy. In the 3000 Realms of the Great Path, people who had the potential to train themselves to the level of an upper-level Renhuang would definitely become someone influential factions would focus on nurturing. The factions would invest a lot of resources on them.


    People like Jian Qingzhu were incredibly rare. Even Shentian Academy only had one person like that in this generation.


    "I don''t think she did anything wrong," the Swordmaster of Lihen said. He had his sword in hand. He would not compromise.


    He would definitely have been defeated if this was his past self. It was just like when he fought against the people from the Heavenly Sword Hall.


    Thus, under the situation where the other party was being overbearing, Void made use of a Sword Will and severely injured the other party. The other party did not hold back in that situation. Void would not have been able to control the outcome of that attack.


    After he had been injured, the Renhuang directly interfered and injured Void. Now the Renhuang wanted to bring her away? What was the meaning of that?


    However, the Renhuang also knew who this territory belonged to.


    At this moment, a cluster of auras descended from far away. The Renhuang saw a group of people walking on thin air. They directly leaped through space and arrived at the scene. The white-robed teen leading the group immediately walked to Yaya''s side.


    Yaya raised her head slightly and looked at Ye Futian, who had just arrived. She heard Ye Futian ask, "Are you alright?"


    "I''m not too seriously injured." Yaya shook her head.


    Ye Futian took out a Fruit of the Way and fed it toward Yaya''s mouth. Yaya moved her head back, but Ye Futian still managed to stuff the fruit into her mouth. All she could do was look at Ye Futian in frustration and swallow the Fruit of the Way.


    What was even more overbearing was that Ye Futian rubbed her on her head.


    Yaya felt that she had lost all face, but she could not bring herself to be angry.


    After all, she had already reached the peak of the Saint Plane.


    "Hurry and cultivate to charge past this plane," Ye Futian whispered. Even though Yaya had obtained the Great Emperor Sword Will, but she had not reached the zenith of the Saint Plane.


    The people on the Heavenly Altar Peak observed Ye Futian. Did this person just disregard everyone present?


    Recently, there had been many rumors regarding Ye Futian circulating within Shentian Academy. Under normal circumstances, he would be compared to the likes of Jian Qingzhu. Even though most of the people thought that there was no way Ye Futian could be as powerful as Jian Qingzhu, merely comparing him with Jian Qingzhu represented just how powerful Ye Futian was. He was already considered one of the best of the best.


    Luo Zhao''s gaze landed on Ye Futian. It was rumored that he had executed the prince of the Golden Divine Nation, Gai Jiutian, who was a lower-level Renhuang with a third-tier Divine Wheel when he came out of the God''s Relic.


    He was a little curious. Was the battle capabilities of a perfect Divine Wheel that powerful?


    Ye Futian did not ask, but the Swordmaster of Lihen informed Ye Futian about what happened through telepathy.


    It seemed like the motive of the other party was to get Yaya to attack.


    Even though he did not know who the other party was and what kind of status they held in Shentian Academy, injuring Yaya with an attack of a fighter from a Renhuang Plane was not to be tolerated, no matter what their motive was.


    Ye Futian looked up at the Renhuang on the other side. He brought his hands together and announced, "Ye Futian."


    "I''ve frequently heard about your name recently, Emperor Ye, but have never managed to see you in person. Now that I''ve seen you, I must say that you have extraordinary flair," Luo Zhao said to Ye Futian. He did not introduce himself.


    "However, even though you are a guest, your subordinate had severely injured a disciple of the Red Forge Peak. She had been too merciless with her attack. She has to come with me to the Red Forge Peak," Luo Zhao continued.


    "She''s not my subordinate. She''s my younger sister," Ye Futian said. A strange look flashed past Luo Zhao''s eyes. It was no wonder that he was willing to give this girl an item of the Great Emperor. It seemed like there were strong feelings between the pair of siblings.


    "My younger sister is young and ignorant. She doesn''t know how to regulate the power of her attacks. Please understand," Ye Futian brought his hands together and said, "However, as her elder, I cannot bear to see her get punished. Since this incident had been caused by a spar, let''s end it with a spar. I''ve always wanted to learn from an elder of Shentian Academy. Since I''ve had the chance to encounter you today, please give me some pointers. If I lose, I''ll get my younger sister to follow you and give you two ritual implements that I found in the God''s Relic. What do you think about that?"


    Luo Zhao had a strange expression when he heard Ye Futian''s words. This expression was already showing respect to Ye Futian. Otherwise, how could he tolerate Ye Futian''s overwhelming confidence in his abilities?


    "And if you win, Emperor Ye?" Luo Zhao asked.


    It was clear that he was a little tempted. It was improper for him to take Yaya away. However, things were different if Ye Futian said it that way. He could directly take Yaya away and even obtain two premium ritual implements. How could he resist that?


    The rest of the people present also noticed that even though Ye Futian''s words and tone were polite, it did stem from his overbearing confidence. He did not think that he would be defeated.


    "If I win, then please give me some face and let the matter be resolved like that. Furthermore, I''ll try my best to restrain myself. I''ll not act as my younger sister did," Ye Futian replied. He did not require anything if he won. All he needed was for this matter to have never happened.


    There were no problems with this method. However, the second half of the sentence that promised to restrain himself came with a little provocation. It was clearly meant to agitate Luo Zhao.


    "You sure are confident about your abilities, Emperor Ye." Luo Zhao would not be provoked just by one sentence. However, since Ye Futian had voluntarily given him an opportunity to legitimize his claims, he would naturally not miss the opportunity.


    Of course, since Ye Futian was powerful enough to slay Gai Jiutian, it was clear that he was strong. He should not be too careless.


    "I heard that you have obtained many top-notch ritual implements from the God''s Relic," Luo Zhao said.


    "I won''t lend you the ritual implements," Ye Futian replied.


    "Since that is the case, show me your flawless Divine Wheel," Luo Zhao said. As he finished his sentence, he released a formless pressure. He displayed all his might as a Renhuang as he stood on the air. In that instant, the entire area of the Divine Altar Peak was enveloped by his pressure.


    Many Divine Spirits were approaching them from far away to observe the battle.


    "Please give me some pointers." Ye Futian took a slight bow. He had just finished his sentence when he leaped into the air. He landed on thin air and looked down directly on Luo Zhao, who was standing below him.


    Luo Zhao shot a glance at Ye Futian and released the aura of his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. A ray of golden light illuminated the surroundings. It seemed as though there was a radiant golden thunderbolt attacking toward Ye Futian.


    He looked at Ye Futian''s eyes. A battle was not won by comparing who stood at a higher spot.


    However, when he looked into Ye Futian''s eyes, he saw that Ye Futian''s pupils had changed. They had turned into the abyss.


    "Eye Sorcery." Luo Zhao wanted to avert his gaze. However, in that instant, he saw that the pair of eyes had devoured the entire world. Everything in his surroundings had ceased to exist. It was as though this was an independent area.


    A golden Space Prison seemed to be falling down directly at him, about to imprison him within. Luo Zhao let out a cold grunt and activated his will. The Divine Wheel in his body released an immensely radiant ray of golden light. Countless bolts of golden lightning lashed out around him and destroyed everything it came across. It tore the Space Prison apart.


    Boom�� The gold cell seemed to have exploded and was completely destroyed. However, at the next moment, Luo Zhao saw a second, identical jail cell.


    Luo Zhao raised his hands and blasted forward. His punch penetrated the boundless void and smashed all of the Space Prisons into pieces. However, at the next moment, Luo Zhao was shocked to realize that the thing trapping him was an endless layer of Space Prisons. It was never-ending��


    The next moment, the Space Prisons suddenly contorted and formed a golden black hole-like tempest. It seemed to transform into an infinite array of golden divine swords that could cut through the void. The swords swallowed him.


    An immensely strong spiritual storm suppressed everything. It pushed Luo Zhao downward. He knew that this was an empty existence, but it felt incredibly realistic.


    Rumble�� A violent aura erupted. Luo Zhao''s body seemed to have been clad with golden armor. He looked like a War God.


    The golden divine swords unleashed an unending barrage of attacks and blasted themselves on Luo Zhao''s golden armor. Terrifying sounds of impact rang out. Luo Zhao was submerged in the frenzied assault. Both his body and his soul were buried by the violent power.


    "The almighty eye, an unending massacre." A voice rang out in Luo Zhao''s head. His spirit seemed to have taken the brunt of an unending massacre. The terrifying storm infiltrated his body. Luo Zhao felt a wave of pain that came from deep within his bones.


    "Stop!" He let out a scream, but no one heard his voice. At this moment, he was trapped in the territory of Ye Futian''s Eye Sorcery. His voice had been sealed off by the Space Prison.


    "Your abilities are rather extraordinary. Have a good feel of this." Ye Futian''s voice appeared once again in Luo Zhao''s brain. Luo Zhao''s appearance gradually started to contort. The unending Sword Will pierced through his body and seemed to reap his soul!


    ...

 1669 Concubine?

    On the Divine Altar Peak, several spectators witnessed the battle. Many Divine Spirits also came from far away to steal a peek at the battle between Ye Futian and Luo Zhao.


    It was a battle, but the two of them did not move.


    A terrifying divine light erupted from within Ye Futian''s body. Ye Futian''s eyes communicated with the will of the heavens and caused multiple Great Paths to descend. The Great Paths transformed into countless Space prisons and directly assaulted Luo Zhao.


    With his eyes as the Divine Wheel, he had cast an Eye Sorcery of the Great Path.


    With Ye Futian''s body in the middle, an infinite amount of Earthly Will swarmed toward him from all around the Divine Altar Peak. The Earthly Will formed a tempest. It was like a Worldly Jail formed to imprison just Luo Zhao.


    Luo Zhao also stood in his original position. The power of his Divine Wheel also erupted from his body, but it felt as though he had succumbed to the Eye Sorcery. Both his body in the outside world and the mental state were being attacked at the same time. His counter-attacks felt futile. There was no way that he could dispel the Worldly Jail.


    What was more terrifying was that the Worldly Jail transformed into a sealed Great Path space. There was only Ye Futian''s path within the space. Luo Zhao seemed to have lost the ability to use his path. It was as though his connection with the world had been severed.


    A powerful fighter at the Renhuang Plane was as glorious as the sun and moon. He was connected to the world. His Divine Spirit was fusing with the world. His Divine Spirit of the Great Path was one with the world.


    What did losing the means of communicating with the world mean?


    It meant that he was rendered half useless and could only depend solely on the powers of the Divine Wheel.


    "Senior Luo." The expression of the person at the Saint Plane, who was injured by Yaya, changed. Even he could tell that something was off. Luo Zhao seemed to have been imprisoned by Ye Futian''s path.


    Furthermore, within the unending layers of Space Prisons, there seemed to be an infinite amount of Great Path Divine Light piercing directly into Luo Zhao''s body. It caused Luo Zhao''s expression to contort and change constantly. It seemed that he was in immense pain. He seemed to want to say something, but the outside world could not hear him no matter what he said.


    At this moment, he could not imagine the pain Luo Zhao was experiencing. Within the Almighty Eye, the power of the unending massacre was boundless. Luo Zhao soon found that he could no longer sustain himself. His Divine Wheel was being suppressed. His spiritual will was being pressed on relentlessly. The unending Sword Will was piercing his soul. At this moment, no one could imagine the pain Luo Zhao was going through.


    "Enough, I admit defeat." Luo Zhao''s voice entered Ye Futian''s brain.


    Creak creak�� His soul seemed to be about to be split apart. Luo Zhao let out a pained roar. He seemed to see a gargantuan figure deep within his eyes. The figure looked like a deity. It was scrutinizing him. Its gaze was filled with disdain and directly imprinted itself within his soul.


    His body was trembling in pain, but he could not free himself no matter how he retaliated.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian was unwilling to stop the attack. He only realized now what Ye Futian''s words meant.


    If he won, he could bring Yaya away and win the ritual implements.


    If he lost, he naively believed that Ye Futian would let him go.


    From the start, Ye Futian had not intended to let him off. The words he said just now were to make him take action.


    This was not a spar between equals. This was a one-sided massacre.


    Ye Futian was humiliating him in front of everyone present.


    The current Ye Futian had no intention of being compassionate. He was expressionless. He would not let a person who lusted over Yaya''s divine item and dealt with Yaya with such an excuse off, even if he was a Renhuang of Tianshen Academy. He would leave Luo Zhao with a deep impression. He would make him remember this moment forever.


    "Enough." Two Renhuangs from the Red Forge Peak walked forward from behind Luo Zhao. One of them was as strong as Luo Zhao, while the other had a second-tier Divine Wheel. However, how could they not see that Luo Zhao was undergoing an absolute suppression at this point? He had succumbed entirely to Ye Futian''s Eye Sorcery.


    Luo Zhao''s expression seemed to be extremely pained.


    The Divine Wheels in their bodies burst forth. The divine light of the Great Path swarmed toward Ye Futian as they attempted to force him to stop.


    However, they saw two figures step forward at the same time. One was a teen in a white robe who was incredibly charismatic. He released his aura. The surroundings seemed to contain a heavenly Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Light radiated in all directions. A terrifying phenomenon appeared behind Gu Dongliu.


    Countless ferocious, ancient beasts seemed to have appeared. They reared their heads and howled before they charged directly toward one of the Renhuang.


    On the other side, the Swordmaster of Lihen had stepped forward. He lifted his divine sword in the air and sent out 10,000 swords. Even though it was not as extravagant as Gu Dongliu''s attack, it was also extremely exquisite. The light it released was as radiant as that released by a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Roar��


    Boom.


    The roars of the giant beasts shook the surroundings. A powerful fighter with a third-tier Divine Wheel was directly pressured into retreating. The powers of the Divine Wheel in his body were extremely suppressed. He was rendered unable to approach Ye Futian.


    The other Renhuang with the second-tier Divine Wheel was also forced back by the Sword Will. Faced with the Sword Will, he only stopped when his body had retreated far away.


    The rest of the powerful fighters around them looked at Ye Futian, Gu Dongliu, and the Swordmaster of Lihen in shock.


    Even though most of the people in Shentian Academy had heard about them, personally witnessing the attacks of the three great Renhuangs and the splendor of their Divine Wheels still had an extreme impact.


    These were three perfect Divine Wheels.


    In their generation, only Jian Qingzhu had managed to forge a perfect Divine Wheel.


    From far away, many figures approached the scene. They were the people who had been training in the area and had stolen a peek at the battle with their Divine Spirits. They naturally could not contain themselves after witnessing this exciting scene. They personally descended onto the area and looked on at the exaggerated scene.


    The levels of the three Renhuangs from Tianshen Academy were higher than their three opponents. However, they were all being suppressed.


    Ye Futian did not stop. He did not mind blowing up the matter a little more. Luo Zhao had selfishly taken action against Yaya and blew the matter up. Tianshen Academy still wanted to preserve their reputation. They would not do anything to him.


    Currently, many people from premium factions of all the realms were training at Shentian Academy. Many of them had come to watch.


    Luo Zhao''s body was no longer just trembling; it could be described as convulsing. He looked extremely pathetic.


    The powerful fighters had a look of sympathy when they looked toward Luo Zhao. Luo Zhao was a Renhuang, but he was experiencing such a merciless massacre. It must have a large impact on his psyche.


    It was clear that Ye Futian planned for this.


    "Princess Luoshen," a voice rang out. Nan Luoshen had also come. She had just entered Tianshen Academy not long ago. She had entered just after she obtained the ritual implement from Ye Futian. She had just visited an elder from Shentian Academy when she noticed the movements in the area. She then rushed over when she saw that Ye Futian was taking action.


    The person who greeted her was Shen Hao from the Shen clan.


    Many of the people training within Tianshen Academy did not know what to feel.


    "That person sure is merciless," Xiao Muyu said after she swept her beautiful eyes past Ye Futian. She also glanced toward Nan Luoshen and Chang Xi. She thought that she was extraordinarily beautiful, but she could not compare to the two of them.


    Nan Luoshen and Chang Yi were people who would shock anyone who glanced at them.


    However, she had already been exposed to Ye Futian''s modus operandi when she was in the God''s Relic. He had snatched over their Divine Lotus with a smile on his face. There was a blade hidden within his smile.


    However, Xiao Muyu felt a complicated mix of emotions when she saw the three powerful fighters with their perfect Divine Wheels.


    She had not managed to seize the opportunity back in the God''s Relic. It would be difficult for her now. Even though she had great potential, she was not the most powerful fighter within her family. She would be able to change her fate if she managed to forge a perfect Divine Wheel. However, if she doesn''t, the best resources would never be invested in her. She had submitted her application for the ritual implements back then, but none of the items made it into her hands.


    Boom!


    A sound was heard at this moment. The spectators saw that Ye Futian had stopped. Luo Zhao''s body was pushed directly onto the ground. A person at his level should not be so haggard, but he was already at the edge of breaking down. He was no longer very conscious.


    Even though Ye Futian had stopped, Luo Zhao still felt as though he was trapped within the terrifying Eye Sorcery.


    "Senior." The person behind him stepped forward. He saw that Luo Zhao had become soberer and was standing up. Luo Zhao did not have any obvious injuries but was incredibly weak.


    He knew what he had just experienced.


    "Thank you for holding back," Ye Futian said. Luo Zhao''s expression was so sullen that it was terrifying.


    Luo Zhao looked at the figures around him, then turned around and said, "Let''s go back."


    He immediately walked away after he said that. He knew that he was too ashamed to stay in this place.


    The people from the Red Forge Peak left one after the other. Ye Futian and his group restrained their auras. Everything seemed to have returned to normal. However, Luo Zhao''s mental state had been impacted greatly.


    Ye Futian looked at his surroundings. Many figures were standing in the air around the Heavenly Altar Peak. He had seen many of them in the God''s Relic.


    "Ye Futian."


    A voice rang out at this moment. Ye Futian looked up at the person who spoke. It was Shen Hao.


    He looked toward Shen Hao with curiosity.


    "You have some animosity with the Shen clan. Your teacher, the Sky River Great Elder, was once a member of the Shen clan, though something unfortunate happened later on. However, you have now forged a perfect Divine Wheel. The Shen clan can disregard the unhappy incidents that happened in the past. Are you willing to join the Shen clan and train with us?"


    Many people were shocked. Shen Hao was inviting Ye Futian to train with the Shen clan.


    It was worth it to pull a person with a perfect Divine Wheel toward their side. Furthermore, Ye Futian and his group had three Renhuangs who had perfect Divine Wheels. They also each possessed a piece of treasure.


    Ye Futian glanced at Shen Hao in shock. He had noticed that Shen Hao paid no heed to him back in the God''s Relic. The people from the Shen clan all had the same attitude toward the disciples of the Sky River Great Elder.


    However, he did have his value now that he had forged the perfect Divine Wheel. The conflict between the Shen clan and him was different than that with his teacher.


    If Shen Hao knew that his teacher was Qi Xuangang and that his teacher had been brought away by the Shen clan, Ye Futian guessed that Shen Hao would not say those words.


    "You can head to the Tianhe Realm and ask my teacher. I do not have any objections if he agrees," Ye Futian said with a smile. Did Shen Hao want him to join the good guys or betray his teacher?


    It was not strange for Ye Futian to reject Shen Hao. All Shen Hao wanted to know was if Ye Futian would be tempted, even for a moment.


    "Emperor Ye, what do you think about the Xiao clan?" Xiao Muyu smiled and said when she saw Shen Hao initiate the conversation. In the past, her clan had instructed her to establish a closer relationship with Ye Futian.


    Her clan would be elated if she managed to pull the three powerful fighters with perfect Divine Wheels into the Xiao clan. Of course, she knew that she had no hopes of doing that.


    "Being the son-in-law of the Xiao clan?" Ye Futian smiled and said as he looked toward Xiao Muyu. Of course, only Xiao Muyu understood what he said.


    "If you are willing, I can consider it." Xiao Muyu smiled gently. She seemed a little flirtatious.


    "But I already have a wife. Since that is the case, I might have to let you suffer a little," Ye Futian said, a little conflicted.


    Suffer?


    Xiao Muyu froze. Her expression then changed when she understood what Ye Futian meant. She then glared fiercely at Ye Futian.


    That b*stard wanted me to become his concubine?


    ...

 1670 This Shameless B*stard

    Xiao Muyu ignored Ye Futian. He was the most shameless Renhuang she had ever seen.


    He did not have the magnanimity of a Renhuang at all. Aside from his face being handsome...


    "Aside from Sword Will, did you obtain other divine items in God''s relic?" A voice asked. Instantly, the gazes of the crowd turned in the direction of the voice.


    A silhouette that was bathed in sunlight stood in mid-air, as brilliant and dazzling as a Sun God.


    It was Di Wu, the God of Solar Divine Palace from the Solar Realm.


    His gaze, which contained the divine light of the sun, landed on Ye Futian.


    In the battle just now, Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel of the Great Path was unique. As the battle progressed, it immediately sealed off the space. It was as though his Way was the only Way in the space. It completely suppressed Luo Zhao''s Way.


    Di Wu was one of the ten people who obtained divine items. He had also begun to use the divine item to cultivate. Hence, he clearly understood more than anyone what Ye Futian''s battle signified.


    It was not just him. In reality, other people also wanted to ask Ye Futian about it, especially those who had obtained divine items in the God''s relic.


    Their guesses were similar to that of Di Wu.


    They clearly knew that even if they managed to forge a flawless Divine Wheel, in battle, the Divine Wheel would only make them slightly more powerful by attracting the power of the Great Path from their surroundings with the power of the Great Path it contained. In terms of the "essence" of their Way, there was no difference; they were still the same.


    However, when they utilized the divine items, some changes would occur. They could forge an enclosed domain of the Great Path. Their Way would become even more powerful.


    Just now, when Ye Futian was fighting against Luo Zhao, he gave off this feeling.


    Ye Futian''s gaze turned towards Di Wu. Di Wu was observant. This Pupil Divine Wheel was forged from the spiritual storm Life Spirit. The Life Spirit was not Ye Futian''s own item, but something given to him by Donghuang the Great. The Great Path it contained was naturally not the same as Ye Futian''s own.


    This was before Ye Futian released his fourth Divine Wheel. If he released his fourth Divine Wheel, he wondered how Di Wu would think. His fourth Divine Wheel was a complete Great Path domain. It was an enclosed space and an absolute Great Path domain.


    "In the God''s relic, I was bathed in the divine light of Donghuang the Great and relied on it to prove my Way and forge a Divine Wheel of the Great Path, so the results will naturally be different," Ye Futian said. "Unfortunately, all of you broke through the next Plane too soon. Fortunately, I suppressed my Plane. Hence, when the Heavenly Palace in the God''s relic opened, I managed to prove my Way and forge a Divine Wheel."


    What Ye Futian said was also a possibility. After all, he had indeed suppressed his Plane and had proven his Great Path under the Emperor''s might of the Heavenly Palace.


    If that was so, did they really miss out on a fateful encounter like Ye Futian had said?


    "Does that mean that it is the same for your Guqin Divine Wheel?" Di Wu''s gaze remained the same. However, he was somewhat suspicious. The battle between Ye Futian and Gai Jiutian after they emerged from the God''s relic gave off a different feeling from what they had just witnessed.


    Ye Futian looked at Di Wu and revealed a nonchalant smile. He did not respond.


    Whether or not it was the same, did Ye Futian need to tell Di Wu?


    "Unleash your Guqin Divine Wheel and let us see," Di Wu ordered as he looked at Ye Futian. If it were different, it would prove that it was possible that Ye Futian had received other benefits in the Heavenly Palace of the God''s relic that the rest of them did not know of.


    "Unleash my Guqin Divine Wheel for all of you to see?"


    Ye Futian swept a glance at Di Wu. The God of Solar Divine Palace was truly rude and arrogant.


    If Di Wu had used the words "please" or "could you kindly," Ye Futian might have considered doing so.


    Di Wu seemed to have forgotten that the person standing across from him was also a top monstrous figure who forged a flawless Divine Wheel like him.


    Ye Futian smiled. He turned and walked up to beside Yaya.


    After eating the fruit of the Way, Yaya had already recovered. Her aura was stable, and Sword Will revolved around her. She actually showed signs of having become stronger. The aura in her body seemed to have reached a critical point.


    This caused Ye Futian to reveal a strange look. It might be that being suppressed by Renhuangs was a blessing in disguise for her.


    After receiving the teachings of Donghuang the Great, Yaya''s cultivation had already improved by leaps and bounds. Having cultivation knowledge of two lives, she made up for the things that she was previously lacking in. Hence, her improvement was very rapid.


    When she was still Sword Saint of the Void, she had already reached the Holiness of Nirvana. That was why Ye Futian did not feel her rapid improvement was strange.


    Seemingly sensing something, Yaya opened her eyes, and the Sword Will around her dissipated.


    "Let us head back first," Ye Futian said.


    "Hmm." Yaya nodded. Between Ye Futian and her, there was no need for thanks. They had faced life-and-death situations together. Ye Futian had always treated her as a sister. However, her feelings for Ye Futian were somewhat complicated.


    This feeling was difficult to describe.


    Gu Dongliu and the Swordmaster of Lihen also walked up to them. Their group immediately walked away from this place, ignoring the surrounding crowd.


    Ye Futian was not interested in being surrounded and observed by a crowd.


    When Di Wu saw this scene, he frowned. The gaze he gave Ye Futian was somewhat cold. However, this was Tianshen Academy and not his own territory. In the end, he did not stop Ye Futian and his group. Of course, he could not stop them from leaving. The two people behind Ye Futian had very strong abilities.


    Chang Xi glanced at Di Wu. The Solar Realm and the Shadow Realm were diametrically opposed. Di Wu''s standing in the Solar Realm was similar to her position in the Shadow Realm.


    Di Wu''s identity and status naturally did not need to be mentioned. As the God of Solar Divine Palace, he was considered without equal. Now that he had forged a flawless Divine Wheel, it was highly possible that he would inherit Solar Divine Palace in the future.


    However, he was underestimating Ye Futian. This disciple of Sky River Great Elder dared to kill Gai Shi Shi and Gai Jiutian. One could tell what sort of person Ye Futian was.


    Also, from Ye Futian''s current performance, he did not seem to be weaker than they were. In terms of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path that they forged, he was already way ahead of them.


    Currently, Ye Futian already displayed two flawless Divine Wheels.


    Chang Xi stepped out and left this place immediately. The other cultivators also dispersed. Prior to this, Nan Luoshen had asked Ye Futian how many flawless Divine Wheels he had forged. Ye Futian merely answered that she would know sooner or later. If so, did that mean that he only had two?


    She had a faint feeling that it was possible that he had more than two.


    Nan Luoshen also left the place. When Shen Hao saw Nan Luoshen leaving, he also followed behind her. He cried out to her, "Princess Luoshen, after having proven my Way and becoming a Renhuang, I am still unsure of a few matters. May I ask you for advice?"


    Nan Luoshen turned around and glanced at Shen Hao. She replied, "I myself am unsure of many things."


    Although she had been brought up under the pampering of Emperor Nan and Empress Luo, she was already a Renhuang. How could she not understand Shen Hao''s intention of approaching her?


    "If so, wouldn''t it be more interesting if we figure out what we are unsure of together?" Shen Hao suggested with a smile. His tone was gentle and bore an air of elegance.


    "There are many seniors in Tianshen Academy. Since we have come to Tianshen Academy, I am certain that the seniors of Tianshen Academy will naturally be willing to offer some pointers to us. Farewell," Nan Luoshen still replied calmly. Then, she immediately stepped into the air and disappeared from her spot.


    Shen Hao smiled as he watched Nan Luoshen''s disappearing silhouette. It was as expected of the princess of Nantian Divine Kingdom and the only daughter of Emperor Nan. In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, there were few maidens that could catch his eye. This was the first time he had been rejected when asking a girl of his generation to have a discussion about their Ways.


    However, he did not get worked up over it. This response was fitting of Nan Luoshen''s status.


    In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, who, aside from Nan Luoshen, could become Shen Hao''s Spiritual Partner?


    Shen Hao turned around and walked off in a different direction. Although he was interested in Nan Luoshen, in his heart, his cultivation would always come first. A Spiritual Partner was just an embellishment on one''s cultivation journey. After training alone for so many years, it was hard to come across a woman that could catch his eye. He naturally did not want to let her slip by him.


    ...


    After Ye Futian returned to his palace, he noticed that someone was actually following behind him. Surprisingly, it was Xiao Muyu from the Xiao Clan.


    In the courtyard, Ye Futian looked somewhat suspiciously at Xiao Muyu. He asked, "Goddess Xiao, could it be that you are actually interested in me?"


    Before this, Ye Futian was merely joking. Could it be that Xiao Muyu truly wanted to be his concubine?


    Was this the power of his charm?


    Xiao Muyu''s gaze turned cold. She realized that even though this fellow had exceptional talent and had proven his Way to become a Renhuang, he was really shameless.


    "Before this, Renhuang Ye claimed that there were not many ritual implements left. I am here because I am curious. I want to see which ritual implements Nan Luoshen has chosen," Xiao Muyu said. Right now, she did not believe a single word that Ye Futian had uttered the other day.


    "Since Goddess Xiao has made your pick, there is no reason for you to take another look at the pile," Ye Futian rejected her request decisively. His eyelids twitched.


    This young mistress from Xiao Clan actually did not believe him?


    "Is Renhuang Ye guilty of something?" Xiao Muyu asked.


    "Since Goddess Xiao has no trust in me, naturally, I have nothing to say to you," Ye Futian responded indifferently.


    "Humph," Xiao Muyu coldly snorted. "Renhuang Ye is aware of what you have done. I will not bring it up again. However, I am here today not on behalf of my clan. We met in the God''s relic, and the treasure I targeted was snatched by Renhuang Ye; despite that, I still helped Renhuang Ye to resolve your crisis. We can be considered as acquaintances, right?"


    Ye Futian smiled. Her help was exchanged for with ritual implements. He did not feel indebted to her.


    This Xiao Muyu was somewhat odd.


    "Naturally." Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    "If that''s the case, may I ask Renhuang Ye for some help?" Xiao Muyu''s gaze was somewhat dodgy. It was as though she was struggling to ask for something. She was also a very proud and image-conscious person. She had struggled with herself before coming forward to seek help from him.


    Ye Futian was stunned. Did this mean that she had intentionally mentioned ritual implements before to make him feel guilty?


    "Goddess Xiao, please tell me what you need of me. If it is within my power, I will naturally do my best to help you," Ye Futian said.


    "All cultivators know the difficulty of forging a flawless Divine Wheel. However, in this generation, three Renhuangs around Renhuang Ye have forged flawless Divine Wheels. You must certainly have some experience in forging flawless Divine Wheels..." Xiao Muyu said.


    Three powerful cultivators had all forged flawless Divine Wheels. Even though they themselves were talented, they should have had some prior experience to guide them.


    There were certainly similarities between the three cultivators.


    "For the three of them to forge flawless Divine Wheels, it was also fate. Goddess Xiao should know the difficulty in forging flawless Divine Wheels," Ye Futian said.


    When Xiao Muyu heard Ye Futian''s words, she was slightly disappointed. She did not know whether or not his words were true. However, even if Ye Futian knew of any method, he would most likely not teach it to her.


    "Is there really no technique that I can learn?" Xiao Muyu inquired.


    "It is too difficult," Ye Futian said.


    Xiao Muyu did not press the matter further. She said, "Farewell."


    Then, she turned around and prepared to leave.


    "However, there is still hope," Ye Futian added on. This caused Xiao Muyu to pause in her tracks.


    She turned around and stared at Ye Futian. Did he really know of a method?


    "You know of a method?" Xiao Muyu asked.


    "This depends on what price Goddess Xiao is willing to pay," Ye Futian probed with a smile.


    When Xiao Muyu saw Ye Futian''s equivocal gaze, she felt a chill down her spine. This shameless b*stard actually...


    ...

 1671 Kidnapping

    Xiao Muyu''s gaze turned cold gradually. How was it possible that such a shameless Renhuang existed?


    Forging a Divine Wheel was her utmost priority. The level of her Divine Wheel would not only reflect her cultivation, but it would also affect her position in the clan in the future.


    Even though the chances of forging a flawless Divine Wheel were slim, she still wanted to give it a try. She was willing to work for any opportunities.


    However, she had not expected that Ye Futian would be this shameless.


    In her opinion, when the cultivators reached the Renhuang Plane, aside from those who practiced demonic cultivation methods, it was rare to encounter one who drooled over beauties.


    She was quite confident of her appearance, though she didn''t pay too much attention to it. As compared to her looks, she cared more about her own cultivation. However, it did not mean that she would sell her body in exchange for cultivation methods.


    "I must have misjudged you before this," Xiao Muyu said with a chilly voice. "I thought, since Renhuang Ye could forge flawless Divine Wheels, surely you are someone with an exceptional temperament. I have not expected you to be this despicable."


    When Ye Futian heard Xiao Muyu''s words, he could no longer maintain his smile. He revealed a strange expression. Despicable?


    When he saw Xiao Muyu''s gaze, he suddenly understood what was going on in her mind. This woman, did she think that...


    Ye Futian was speechless. Surely this woman''s imagination was running wild.


    "Has Goddess Xiao misunderstood something?" Ye Futian said.


    "Despicable and filthy fellow. I cannot work with you since there is little common ground for understanding between us." Xiao Muyu turned around and left.


    "Wait a second." Ye Futian''s expression was sullen. Xiao Muyu turned to look at Ye Futian with a frosty look. Today, she came alone without any clan members accompanying her. She came with the hope of seeking help from Ye Futian.


    "Goddess Xiao, could it be that you think�� I am interested in you?" Ye Futian was bewildered.


    "Aren''t you?" Xiao Muyu coldly snorted. Prior to this, Ye Futian had mentioned that he wanted to be the son-in-law of Xiao Clan, and he hinted her to be his concubine. In addition, his gaze was frivolous. It was hard for her not to think of him in that way.


    "Qingyuan, Kong Xuan, please come over here," Ye Futian called. Xia Qingyuan and Kong Xuan approached Ye Futian while staring at him quizzically.


    Ye Futian put both his hands on their shoulders. He glanced at Xiao Muyu and said, "Is my princess not pretty? Goddess Xiao, with your appearance, where do you get such confidence?"


    Xia Qingyuan and Kong Xuan revealed strange expressions, especially Xia Qingyuan.


    This shameless b*stard...


    He actually...


    He was too shameless.


    Xia Qingyuan, who was about to throw a fit, became composed instantly. She softly bit down on her lip. Then, she turned around to look at Xiao Muyu. One could even detect tenderness in her gaze.


    The ladies'' responses caused Xiao Muyu to be dumbfounded. Her expression turned even stranger.


    Ye Futian did not have such intention?


    The beauty of Xia Qingyuan and Kong Xuan was indeed on par with hers. In fact, their appearances could even be said to be more outstanding than hers. Moreover, both of them had unique temperaments that made them distinct from each other.


    However, Xiao Muyu had not expected that Ye Futian would actually mock her appearance. Her facial expression turned sullen once again. This b*stard!


    "Goddess Xiao, could it be that you believe that I am truly into you?" Ye Futian''s voice sounded strange. "Or could it be that Goddess Xiao believes that I will help you with just one word without any cost?"


    Ye Futian lowered his hands. Xia Qingyuan looked at her shoulder and then looked at Ye Futian''s face from the side.


    He was shameless and heartless.


    "What price is Renhuang Ye asking for?" Xiao Muyu asked.


    "I indeed have some experience accumulated from the learnings of three people. However, I need to pay a high price in order to help you. I also need to teach you a magnum opus level cultivation method. This is a method that I cannot share with outsiders. How can I help you with just a request?" Ye Futian had a look of a charlatan. His words confused Xiao Muyu until she could not make out which parts were true and which were lies.


    Xiao Muyu was hesitant. She believed that it was definitely not easy to forge a flawless Divine Wheel. If Ye Futian truly mastered some method, it would certainly require an extremely high cost.


    Aside from her own body, she did not have anything to be offered that Ye Futian would bat an eye at. After all, he himself had forged flawless Divine Wheels and possessed a palace of treasures.


    Ye Futian couldn''t help but sigh when he saw Xiao Muyu standing there.


    To his surprise, the dignified young mistress of Xiao Clan was actually a naive soul.


    He had already hinted to her that he would teach her a method that could not be shared with outsiders, but she still could not understand what he was trying to imply.


    "A few days ago, someone came to ask whether or not they could be my disciple. However, my cultivation methods are very precious, and it cannot be taught to random outsiders," Ye Futian said indifferently, seemingly lamenting on a past event.


    Xiao Muyu''s face twitched when she heard Ye Futian''s words.


    Becoming his disciple?


    Ye Futian and Xiao Muyu were of the same generation. They were even at the same Plane when they first entered God''s relic, but Ye Futian was a step faster than her in proving his Way and breaking through to the Renhuang Plane. However, she still thought of him as someone who was of the same generation as her.


    Hence, she had not considered the possibility of becoming his disciple before.


    "Goddess Xiao, have a safe trip," Ye Futian wished her off, seemingly wanting her to leave now.


    Xiao Muyu''s gazes kept shifting like the clouds. Finally, she made up her mind and said, "I am willing to become a disciple of Renhuang Ye, seeking the Way and cultivating under your guidance."


    "I suppose this is inappropriate," Ye Futian said as he looked at Xiao Muyu. "Goddess Xiao is the young mistress of Xiao Clan. You have exceptional talent. I am but a nobody. Besides that, my method can only increase the chances of you forging a flawless Divine Wheel; it is not a guarantee of success."


    Prior to Xiao Muyu, Lin Clan of Dongsheng State had approached him before. Ye Futian indeed had no intention of accepting Lin Clan as his disciples. However, when Xiao Muyu came to find him today, he felt that Lin Clan''s suggestion could be taken into consideration.


    His disciples would be the grand-disciples of his master, Qi Xuangang.


    When the Grandmaster was in danger, it would be appropriate for the grand-disciples to help out, right?


    The clans of the grand-disciples would need to join in the aid too, right?


    Before this, Ye Futian had accepted Dou Zhao of Dou Tribe as his junior on behalf of his master. Now, it would most likely not be a big deal for him to accept a disciple.


    "Disciple is willing to give it a try." Xiao Muyu seemed to have accepted her role, addressing herself as "disciple."


    "Accepting a disciple is a serious matter. It is no joke. If you regret it in the future and bear hatred towards me, it will cause both of us to turn against each other," Ye Futian said evasively. "I still think it''s not appropriate."


    "Disciple has made up my mind. Regardless of success or failure, I am willing to serve under Master," Xiao Muyu continued to persuade Ye Futian. She could not accept trading her body for cultivation methods. However, becoming one''s disciple was a proper means to do so. She was willing to become Ye Futian''s disciple in order to seize a higher opportunity of forging a flawless Divine Wheel. As long as Ye Futian was sincere in helping her, she would not have any grudges against him. Even if she failed, she would not blame him.


    "I heard that in order to show their sincerity, the cultivators of Upper Worlds would prostrate when their Masters first accepted them as disciples. I am not a fan of formality, so a simpler salutation will do��" Ye Futian said.


    As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Muyu knelt down in front of Ye Futian and knocked her head thrice on the floor, saying, "Disciple Xiao Muyu will be under Master''s tutelage starting from today. From now on, I will respect Master, obey Master''s rules, study diligently, and uphold the manners between a disciple and a master. If I go against my word, may disaster fall upon me."


    Ye Futian stared at Xiao Muyu, who was prostrating on the floor. His gaze turned serious; his demeanor was different from his casual state just now.


    The reason why he acted mean towards Xiao Muyu was that he wanted to see how determined and sincere she was. If she could not reach his requirement, he would not take the risk of helping her.


    Otherwise, not only would he lose a disciple that he trained, she might even repay his kindness with animosity.


    He had been observing Xiao Muyu to see how devoted she was.


    Extending his hands, Ye Futian helped Xiao Muyu to get on her feet. Xiao Muyu raised her head and stared at Ye Futian. Her gaze had clearly changed, too, showing hints of respect now. Since she had decided to be his disciple, her attitude towards him could not be the same as before.


    "Why do you trust me?" Ye Futian asked.


    He was merely trying his luck, but Xiao Muyu had really accepted him as her Master.


    "Firstly, I want to seek the Way. Secondly, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm trust you. Dou Zhao trusts you. Two possessors of flawless Divine Wheels trust you too," Xiao Muyu explained. "Hence, I also trust you."


    Ye Futian was under the guidance of two figures who were at the peak. Before this, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm crowned Ye Futian as their leader.


    Dou Zhao of Dou Tribe willingly followed Ye Futian too. He even asked his tribe to be involved in Ye Futian''s dispute with the other top forces.


    Right now, there were two other possessors of flawless Divine Wheels beside Ye Futian.


    Prior to this, she had been doubtful and struggled. Ye Futian was still the same generation as she was. However, once she thought about it carefully, in reality, that was an illusion. She only felt so because she had encountered Ye Futian in God''s relic. Would she feel the same if she had not encountered him?


    Was there any issue with following a master that was a Renhuang who had forged flawless Divine Wheels?


    Setting aside Ye Futian''s character, he was still qualified to be her teacher.


    Ye Futian most likely had some agenda for accepting her as a disciple. He most likely wanted to gain access to her force. However, winning over Ye Futian was the wish of many large forces. By becoming Ye Futian''s disciple, Xiao Clan would be inextricably linked with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled. As expected of the daughter of a large clan, she did not hold back.


    "As your master, I will teach you a magnum opus level cultivation method. You must practice and comprehend it well," Ye Futian said. From his glabella, a light of divine spirit shone towards Xiao Muyu. Xiao Muyu closed her beautiful eyes and quietly received all of this.


    Not long after, both of them opened their eyes. Ye Futian said, "These next few days, you should head over to Tianshen Academy to train. Your master needs to prepare a grand matrix. I will need to expend a lot in order to do so. I will try to create an opportunity for you to prove your Way and forge a flawless Divine Wheel."


    As he said this, Ye Futian placed his hand on Xiao Muyu''s head. He advised, "Keep this in mind. do not disappoint your Master."


    Xiao Muyu lifted her head and glared at Ye Futian. There was a look of suspicion in her eyes. Why was it that she could not bring herself to trust him?


    An extremely huge cost?


    Although this so-called magnum opus level cultivation method was very miraculous, it was not as unfathomable as Ye Futian had made it out to be.


    Ye Futian looked at Xiao Muyu. What was with this girl''s expression?


    As he thought of this, his hand was still caressing Xiao Muyu''s head. Since she was his disciple, as her master, Ye Futian naturally could touch her head.


    Xiao Muyu gritted her teeth. She felt as though she had been tricked.


    "Disciple will certainly not fail to live up to Master''s expectations," Xiao Muyu said through gritted teeth. "If there is nothing else, I will go and train first."


    "Go ahead. Master believes in you," Ye Futian said as he patted Xiao Muyu''s shoulder.


    Xiao Muyu fled.


    She felt as though she had signed a deal with a devil...


    "This disciple is not bad. Her level of comprehension is high," Ye Futian said as he watched Xiao Muyu''s leaving silhouette. From this day onwards, he was also a person who had a disciple.


    Seemingly noticing something, Ye Futian''s gaze shifted. He saw Xia Qingyuan looking at him with a forced smile.


    "Is there anything you need, Princess?" Ye Futian asked.


    Xia Qingyuan was even more angered when she saw Ye Futian acting foolish. This b*stard actually acted ignorantly after having achieved his goal. He even managed to kidnap a beautiful female disciple.


    "Shameless," Xia Qingyuan muttered in a low voice. She then turned and left.


    Ye Futian watched her leave. She must have been jealous!


    ...

 1672 Xiao Muyu’s Metamorphosis

    Prior to this, even though Ye Futian had accepted disciples in name, in the true sense of the word, Xiao Muyu was considered his first official disciple.


    However, she seemed to have become his disciple due to his sweet talk.


    Indeed, Xiao Muyu trusted Ye Futian; otherwise, it was impossible for her to truly become his disciple. Although up until now, she was still suspicious of her teacher''s moral standard, she trusted him whole-heartedly in terms of cultivation. Hence, she had been practicing Deed of Thorough Comprehension diligently recently.


    As expected, she felt that she was closer to proving her Way.


    When she entered God''s relic, she was already half a Renhuang. She was not the only one. In fact, most of the cultivators who were elected to lead the teams in God''s relic were the cream of the crop in their respective forces. Therefore, most of them were close to experiencing breakthroughs.


    When Xiao Muyu was practicing, Yaya had finally broken through to the Renhuang Plane. With the help of Donghuang the Great''s Sword Will, she managed to forge a sword matrix Divine Wheel. Since she received help from Ye Futian on top of having Donghuang the Great''s Sword Will, the Divine Wheel that she forged was naturally flawless.


    Ye Futian clearly realized that, as compared to God''s relic, his Life Spirit was an even more suitable environment for cultivators to prove their Way and forge flawless Divine Wheels.


    Sometimes, he wondered, what exactly was this Life Spirit?


    On this day, Xiao Muyu went to Ye Futian''s palace and was ready to try breaking through to the Renhuang Plane.


    She stood in the spatial matrix set up by Ye Futian. She could see the sun, moon, and stars hanging in the sky, as though this was a completely independent space.


    "Master, what kind of matrix is this?" Xiao Muyu was astonished. A powerful will circulated in the space.


    Ye Futian did not respond to her question. He seemed tired.


    "Master, what happened to you?" Xiao Muyu asked.


    "It took me a great effort to set up this matrix. I have exhausted myself in order to complete this," Ye Futian replied weakly. "However, you are worthy of my effort. Do you still remember my advice?"


    A glint of doubt flashed past Xiao Muyu''s eyes. Were his words true?


    Even though the character of her Master was questionable, judging from this powerful matrix, she supposed his words were most likely true.


    "Hmm. Disciple remembers everything the Master said by heart," Xiao Muyu said while nodding her head.


    Ye Futian walked up to Xiao Muyu and patted her head. He seemed weary.


    Xiao Muyu raised her head to look at him. Ye Futian said, "You are my only disciple. Even if I need to exhaust my life, I will do all I can to help you prove your Way. You don''t have to be too touched by my actions. It''s my responsibility."


    "..."


    Xiao Muyu blinked.


    "Oh." Ye Futian nodded and removed his hand from Xiao Muyu''s head. However, instead of retracting his hand, he pinched Xiao Muyu''s face with it. Sounding like an elder, he said, "Muyu, since I have accepted you as my disciple, I treat you as someone who is a generation younger than me. It is said that ''a tutor for a day is a father for a lifetime.'' You are like a child to me. Please don''t mind my action."


    Xiao Muyu was close to tears�� He was really treating her like a little kid.


    Had Master seen a child who was half a step away from the Renhuang Plane?


    If Ye Futian was really an old man, Xiao Muyu was fine with it. The problem was he had a young and handsome face...


    "Disciple is used to it now. Master, can we start now?" Xiao Muyu had a feeling that she could no longer escape from the hands of Ye Futian.


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded. He returned to his spot and sat cross-legged, saying, "Let''s start."


    ...


    A few days later, Xiao Muyu''s body shone while divine light surged out from her. A terrifying sound of the Great Path rumbled in her body, causing the surrounding will to go berserk. This situation lasted for a long while. Then, the endless divine light retracted and seeped into Xiao Muyu''s body.


    She opened her eyes slowly. As compared to before, Xiao Muyu''s eyes were glowing with sparkles now. Her temperament changed too. She was even more beautiful now. Her skin was radiant and smooth. Not a hint of deformities could be found on her.


    Her long hair fluttered even though there was no wind. Xiao Muyu''s eyes sparkled like the stars as she revealed a smile.


    Did she really achieve her goal?


    She was a female Renhuang now. Moreover, she was a female Renhuang who had forged a flawless Divine Wheel.


    She looked in the direction of Ye Futian. The illusion around her had disappeared; only the matrix was left standing. However, Ye Futian''s aura was weak, as though all his vigor had been drained out of him. He even showed signs of dying.


    "Master." Xiao Muyu was shocked, and she quickly moved towards him. She had her doubts before this. However, this matrix was so powerful and could directly assist her in forging a flawless Divine Wheel. She speculated that Ye Futian had really exhausted his vigor in order to maintain this gigantic matrix.


    "I''m fine," Ye Futian assured her while waving his hands nonchalantly. "Master is satisfied to be able to witness your success."


    "How are you feeling?" Xiao Muyu squatted down and supported Ye Futian from the side.


    She felt slightly ashamed for doubting him before this. Even though he was frivolous, he had a kind heart. He even paid such a great price to help her.


    "I''m fine. I merely used up all my energy and depleted some of my vigor. However, I can refine my Life Will, so my body will recover by itself," Ye Futian explained.


    Xiao Muyu was deeply touched. How could his current condition be considered fine?


    "What can Disciple do for you?" Xiao Muyu asked.


    "I feel languid, and my whole body is aching now. You can give me a massage," Ye Futian requested.


    Xiao Muyu was a little doubtful. Would a massage really help?


    However, she still nodded her head seriously and replied, "Alright."


    As she replied, she actually began to massage Ye Futian''s back.


    "Your master is pleased seeing that you are so filial." Ye Futian nodded his head contentedly. It was very comfortable.


    How many people could have such treatment as a female Renhuang massaging their backs?


    Since Ye Futian had accepted a disciple, he should enjoy himself to the fullest.


    At that moment, a silhouette walked over. It was Xia Qingyuan. When she saw Ye Futian''s dispirited expression, she said to Xiao Muyu, "Let me do it."


    Xiao Muyu looked at Xia Qingyuan and then looked at Ye Futian. In a low voice, she asked, "Master, is this person Mastress?"


    Ye Futian had mentioned that he had a wife. However, how many Mastresses did Xiao Muyu think he had?


    "Don''t simply call her that." Ye Futian''s expression turned dark.


    Xia Qingyuan blinked her eyes. Mastress?


    Her gaze flickered. Then, she approached them and said, "Muyu, leave this to me."


    "Alright." Xiao Muyu nodded her head and made space for Xia Qingyuan obediently. Judging from Xia Qingyuan''s friendly tone, she was most likely Ye Futian''s fiance.


    No doubt. That had to be it.


    Master was blessed.


    Crack. A soft pop sounded. Just when Xiao Muyu was feeling both touched and warm, Ye Futian''s back actually made a cracking sound when Xia Qingyuan hammered it.


    "Ouch!" Ye Futian immediately leapt up and said, "Princess, are you trying to kill me?"


    Xiao Muyu was stunned for a bit. What was wrong with this scene?


    Why was it that Master''s weariness had instantly disappeared?


    It could even be said that his dying look had completely vanished.


    Xiao Muyu came to her senses. Her face was flushed red instantly. She gave Ye Futian a deadly stare.


    This shameless Master.


    Sensing that Xiao Muyu''s gaze was unfriendly, Ye Futian said, "Muyu, don''t get the wrong idea. When I sensed your filial piety, I was so touched, and because of it, I recovered instantly."


    "Hmm. Disciple naturally ''believes'' in Master," Xiao Muyu said as she bit her lip gently. Recalling that she had felt touched and warm, it was practically��


    "That''s how it should be. Muyu, return to your clan to stabilize your cultivation Plane," Ye Futian said. "Remember what Master has instructed you."


    Xiao Muyu nodded her head. She glanced at the two of them and said, "Master, Mastress, then I won''t disturb you two. Disciple will come visit again after a few days."


    As she said this, Xiao Muyu turned to leave.


    "Don''t simply run your mouth," Ye Futian said, speechless.


    "This child is still immature. Princess, don''t mind her," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan glanced at Ye Futian. In a low voice, she said, "I feel that Muyu is quite nice. Don''t pick on her in the future."


    "??" Ye Futian blinked.


    Before this, weren''t the two of them at loggerheads with each other?


    After leaving, Xiao Muyu''s expression was still bizarre. Everything that had occurred over the past few days was like a dream. As she recalled the events of the past few days, she revealed a radiant smile.


    "Master," Xiao Muyu mumbled to herself. She felt a sense of warmth within her.


    It felt nice.


    She arrived at another place. There were many cultivators of the Xiao Clan in that place. When they saw Xiao Muyu returning, their silhouettes dashed over. Someone asked, "Young Mistress, you have broken through to the next Plane?"


    Xiao Muyu nodded and said, "Let''s return to the clan."


    After she said this, her group flew up into the sky and prepared to return to Xiao Clan.


    Xiao Clan was situated in the northern region of the Central Emperor Realm. As one of the top forces of the Central Emperor Realm, the Xiao Clan''s home was like an ancient city. It reached high into the sky layer by layer. Its highest point was as high as the Heavenly Palace.


    After Xiao Muyu returned, she headed towards a spot. Many people bowed to her in respect as she passed.


    She passed by many ancient halls and arrived at a wide, open space. A group of figures came towards her. The person leading the group was a youth with extraordinary temperament.


    "Xiao Muyu," the person cried out to her. His voice had a faint sense of authority to it. He was a Renhuang of Xiao Clan. However, he was not from the same branch family as Xiao Muyu. They were both of the direct line; however, their relationship was one of competition.


    "What''s the matter?" Xiao Muyu''s voice was cold and indifferent.


    "You finally broke through to the next Plane?" The youth revealed a nonchalant smile and said, "You are too late. You returned empty-handed from God''s relic. What meaning is there in breaking through to the next Plane now? However, you still managed to prove your Way. Go and make your report."


    During her journey to the God''s relic, she had indeed not reaped many benefits. However, after she emerged from the God''s relic, she obtained three ritual implements. His branch family would not get even one of them.


    "Xiao Ran," Xiao Muyu said. The youth looked at her.


    "In the future, don''t use this tone to talk to me. I don''t like it," Xiao Muyu said indifferently.


    "Huh?" Xiao Ran revealed a look of interest. He smiled and asked, "As expected, after having proven your Way, you have changed. Are you itching to try out your power?"


    As he said this, the might of Renhuang on his body burst forth. His Divine Wheel was at the second tier.


    Large clans usually allowed the clan members to compete among themselves. This was the only way that they would be motivated to improve. Hence, such a situation was very common.


    Xiao Muyu swept a glance at him. She then took a step forward.


    Rumble. Terrifying divine light of the Great Path swept out. An extremely brilliant light shone down from the heavens. Alarming might of the Way came crashing down, suppressing the other party''s Divine Wheel.


    At this moment, Xiao Muyu''s entire body was bathed in radiant twilight. It was as though she was a goddess with matchless elegance.


    The expressions of those who had returned with Xiao Muyu instantly became very excited. Their hearts trembled inside.


    A flawless Divine Wheel!


    Xiao Ran''s expression changed drastically as he stared at Xiao Muyu.


    At the same time, many people in the distance seemed to have sensed something. Wills swept over this place, followed by many silhouettes leaping up into the sky.


    "I hope that this will not happen again in the future," Xiao Muyu said calmly. She stepped forward once again and directly walked past Xiao Ran.


    The members who followed behind Xiao Muyu swept indifferent glances at him. From this moment forth, Xiao Muyu''s position in the clan was completely different.


    Xiao Ran was not qualified at all to contend with her.


    "Xiao Muyu, come straight to the main hall," a voice called out from afar. Silhouettes leapt into the sky and headed towards one direction. Xiao Muyu lifted her head slightly and looked towards the Xiao Clan Heavenly Palace in the distance. Her long hair fluttered in the wind.


    At this moment, that place did not seem so unreachable anymore!


    ...

 1673 Such a Shameless Master

    For the next couple of months, Ye Futian focused on cultivating.


    At the end of the 10,035th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, Yu Sheng broke through to the next level and became a demonic emperor.


    And just as expected, he forged a perfect Divine Wheel.


    Moreover, even though he had not needed Ye Futian''s help, he was still able to do it.


    Now, of the people beside Ye Futian, Gu Dongliu, Yu Sheng, Yaya, and the Swordmaster of Lihen all had perfect Divine Wheels, as well as Ye Futian himself and many others in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. If they had Dou Zhao and Xiao Muyu as well, then their total number of Renhuangs would be comparable to any of the other powers that had gone to the God''s Relic with Ye Futian.


    However, this matter was not widely known yet and had not caused too much of a disturbance.


    Otherwise, all of the Nine Realms would be shaken by this news.


    On this day, a group of people came to Ye Futian''s pavilion. Among them was a Renhuang with a sixth tier Divine Wheel, showing how powerful their formation was.


    But they did not directly rush into the pavilion. They stopped outside and asked permission to enter.


    Ye Futian had seen several of the people among them before; they had shown up with Xiao Muyu. They must be from the Xiao clan.


    Several months ago, she had broken through to the next level and left as Ye Futian had asked her to temporarily return to her family.


    She did so, and there had been no news from her in several months.


    Now, seeing the cultivators from the Xiao clan coming, Ye Futian guessed that they were probably bringing her.


    "We are here from the Xiao clan, Emperor Ye," said the old man at their head with a slight bow. Although he was in the mid-tier of Renhuangs, he was still very polite to Ye Futian. In ordinary circumstances, this man would absolutely be Ye Futian''s senior.


    There was a huge gap between him and the sixth tier of the Divine Wheel.


    "No need to be so polite, elder," said Ye Futian with a bow. "Why have you come?"


    "Several days ago, the Goddess of the Xiao clan decided to invite many heroes to observe a ceremony. We are here to extend the invitation to you," said the elder with a smile.


    A look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face. He did not know the Xiao clan that well. Did the Goddess mean to pass on their inheritance?


    "You could have sent someone to notify me; there was no need to come in person," said Ye Futian. But the man had said he had come to offer an invitation, not just to notify.


    He had guessed something.


    A smile appeared on the elder''s face. "The Goddess personally asked us to. You are her master, so she should have come personally. She originally intended to, but there are many family matters that she must attend to, so she had to send me instead. Please forgive the impropriety."


    In the God''s Relic, the most outstanding people had been Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, Nan Luoshen, and some others. Those who had forged perfect Divine Wheels and then received ritual implements were now bright symbols and were now the most prestigious people in their forces.


    But there were many top disciples who were at the top of the Saint plane, but would now not necessarily be their forces'' heirs.


    This had been the case for Xiao Muyu.


    But now the Xiao clan had made her a Goddess and invited everyone to the ceremony. That must mean that she was now like Shen Hao and Nan Luoshen: she had become one of the bright stars of her faction.


    "That''s amazing," Ye Futian thought to himself with a smile. He also knew that man who had come to give him the invitation was very kind.


    "I thank you for the invitation. Should we go now?" asked Ye Futian.


    "The Goddess would like to see you first, so she hopes that you can come as soon as possible. Of course, if you are busy, we can wait for you," said the old man with a smile.


    "Wait for me just a moment.'' Ye Futian turned and said, "I am going, you all stay here."


    "Futian, I will go with you," said Jiang Chengzi. Over the past few days, he had grown to understand just how powerful Ye Futian was. This was a man who could change the world. No wonder the oracle had made that prophecy about him.


    Thus, there would always be people following him. Between him and Hua Jiangshan, one of them needed to go.


    "Alright," said Ye Futian with a nod.


    "I will go as well," said Xia Qingyuan, stepping up beside him.


    She had warm feelings towards Xiao Muyu, and it would soon be the 10,036th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar.


    Ye Futian looked at her, then nodded slightly. "Alright. You may come with us as well. Three people are enough. We will stay there for a few days then return."


    Everyone nodded. Right now, the most important thing for them was cultivating, so they could not all go to the Xiao clan.


    Ye Futian, Jiang Chengzi, and Xia Qingyuan walked down to the cultivators from the Xiao clan.


    "Let''s go, elder," said Ye Futian.


    "Alright," said the elder with a nod. They all rose into the air and disappeared in a moment.


    At that moment, people from various forces were arriving at the Xiao clan.


    Ye Futian and the others were flying through the air.


    "Elder, will this ceremony be very grand?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Gods and Goddesses of the Xiao clan are the heirs of our family. Once they have their title bestowed upon them, the whole family will assist and prepare for the future management of the family. A ceremony celebrating this will naturally be grand," said the elder with a nod. "Announcing this to the world is also a kind of protection for the Goddess."


    Ye Futian nodded in understanding. This would likely be similar to when a Dynasty bestowed a title upon a prince. Once they held the ceremony, the prince would officially become the heir. From then on, outsiders would not dare to attack them lightly.


    This was just like Shen Hao and Nan Luoshen. Who would dare attack them? Doing so would be declaring war.


    "Why did they choose Muyu?" asked Ye Futian.


    "She forged a perfect Divine Wheel when she broke through to the Renhuang plane, as you know. She also performed admirably at a sparring session within the family not long ago, dazzling everyone. Thus, the family made this decision," said the elder.


    "I understand." Ye Futian thought that the Xiao clan must have its own assessment method.


    It seemed that Xiao Muyu had completely changed after forging a perfect Divine Wheel.


    ...


    The Xiao clan was the second place that Ye Futian had gone in the Central Emperor Realm after Tianshen Academy.


    The majestic mansion of the Xiao clan rose up level upon level, made up of temples and castles. If Tianshen Academy seemed like a celestial realm, the Xiao clan seemed like a divine residence.


    Once Ye Futian and the others entered, they attracted a lot of attention. Many people bowed to them while others watched from afar.


    Not long before, they had heard that Xiao Muyu, who had just been bestowed the title of Goddess, had a master.


    Moreover, the master was extremely young and not of that high a level. But he was still a legendary figure. He had forged a perfect Divine Wheel within the God''s Relic and performed outstandingly.


    This made many people surprised. Why would their Goddess treat this Ye Futian as a master?


    Later news had spread through the Xiao clan that Xiao Muyu had only been able to forge a perfect Divine Wheel with his help.


    As for how much he had helped her, no one knew. Perhaps Xiao Muyu was the only one who did.


    "The Goddess has moved into the Goddess Palace, Emperor Ye." The elder who had led them here pointed it out. They continued on, passing over countess temples and castles. It was like they were heading to the palace of heaven itself.


    The Goddess Palace had a style all its own. It was tall and mighty.


    When Ye Futian and the others arrived, they saw a group of people coming out to greet them. The woman at their head wore a long black dress that hung down to the ground. She looked radiant under the bright sunlight, as noble and profound as a black pearl.


    This woman was naturally Xiao Muyu.


    "Does she have the aura of a queen?" Ye Futian watched the woman coming towards him. She seemed completely different than before, even different than when she had first become a Renhuang. She seemed extraordinarily confident and noble, just like a real queen, both beautiful and outstanding.


    Of course, cultivation was able to make people change. Before, if Xiao Muyu had stood before Nan Luoshen and Chang Xi, she would not even be noticed. But now, she was much more noticeable.


    It seemed that a lot had happened over the last few months. Xiao Muyu had changed a lot.


    Xia Qingyuan was stunned when she saw Xiao Muyu''s transformation. She wondered if she would change that much when she reached the Renhuang plane.


    "Greetings, master," said Xiao Muyu with a bow as she reached Ye Futian. Then she looked up at the young man before her, a slight smile in her eyes. Although her master was quite unorthodox, he had truly changed her life.


    "Not bad," said Ye Futian with a smile and a nod. She was truly worthy of being his disciple.


    "Please come in," she said, leading the way. Suddenly, the people behind her stepped to both sides, leaving a path. They were all acting extremely politely. From this, it was obvious how high a position Xiao Muyu held.


    Ye Futian did not stand on ceremony, but walked directly forward, following Xiao Muyu. Xia Qingyuan followed behind him. When Xiao Muyu saw her, she whispered, "Sister."


    Xia Qingyuan nodded back to her as she walked forward, a strange look on her face. She followed Ye Futian, her head slightly bowed.


    "Farewell, uncle," Xiao Muyu said to the elder who had brought Ye Futian to her.


    "Take good care of Emperor Ye," said the man.


    "Mmm," said Xiao Muyu with a nod. "You may all leave, I have some things to talk to my master about."


    After they left, Xiao Muyu followed Ye Futian into the Goddess Palace. Only she, Ye Futian, and Xia Qingyuan were there.


    "I hope I have not embarrassed you in any way, master," said Xiao Muyu with a smile.


    "You have done well," said Ye Futian with a nod. He found a place to sit, then looked at her and said, "Come here and let me see you more clearly."


    Xiao Muyu walked up to him, looking at him a little warily. Was he going to pat her on the head again?


    "I am a Goddess now, so you should treat me honorably," she said as he reached out to her.


    "Shouldn''t you respect your master?" said Ye Futian.


    She narrowed her eyes at him. What did respecting her master have to do with being patted on the head?


    What a strange habit of his!


    She glared at him, but still came forward and lowered her head, a little bit of indignation in her eyes.


    She was a Goddess after all, and everyone in the Xiao clan looked at her with respect. Those of her generation were even more respectful.


    But here...


    No use thinking about, she would just endure it.


    "Good," said Ye Futian with a smile. "I have come so far to visit you, and my shoulders are a bit sore."


    "Let me massage them for you," she said, gritting her teeth and walking behind him. She was about to have a ceremony held in her honor, and here she was rubbing his shoulders.


    "That feels great!" said Ye Futian, closing his eyes. Then he whispered, "Why would one accept female disciples if not for enjoyment!"


    Did male disciples just not have this talent?


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian coldly. She had never seen such a shameless master!


    ...

 1674 Clan Banque

    On the second day, there was a banquet at the Goddess Palace to welcome Ye Futian.


    There were countless cultivators there. The person sitting in the place honor was not Xiao Muyu, who was about to be named a Goddess, but was instead her grandfather Xiao Qianshan.


    Below him on the left sat Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan, and Jiang Chengzi. On the right were Xiao Muyu''s father Xiao Hanjiang. Xiao Muyu sat behind him.


    Of the cultivators there, Jiang Chengzi was naturally the strongest, but he had still come here following Ye Futian.


    Xiao Qianshan and Xiao Hanjiang were both Xiao Muyu''s elders, so they were sitting in places of honor.


    The day before had been Ye Futian and Xiao Muyu''s private meeting, while today was the welcome banquet for Ye Futian from Xiao Muyu''s family.


    "The land remains the same, but each generation is stronger than the one before. You are so young, Emperor Ye, but your name makes the Nine Realms tremble. Muyu is so grateful to you that she cannot even express it. I raise my cup to you and Elder Jiang." Xiao Qianshan raised his cup towards them as he spoke.


    He was the highest-ranked member of the Xiao clan but was not as powerful as Jiang Chengzi. Thus, there was no question that he should call him "elder."


    Although the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was currently far less powerful than the Xiao clan of the Central Imperial Realm, Jiang Chengzi was still the clan lord, the strongest member of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    "Thank you, elder," said Ye Futian, raising his cup. Jiang Chengzi did so as well, and the three of them drained their drinks.


    "Your guidance was instrumental in Muyu being able to prove herself worthy of being a Renhuang. Now she is being made a Goddess. Thus, we raise another cup to you," said Xiao Qianshan, raising another cup and draining it.


    "My father is correct. Muyu has not told us in detail what happened, but since you are her master, she must have succeeded due to your guidance. As Muyu''s father, I will drink a cup in your honor as well," said Xiao Hanjiang. He looked to be about forty and had cultivated to the rank of a mid-level Renhuang.


    He naturally knew his daughter very well. He was quite talented and had a strong mind for cultivation. He was an above-average member of his clan. But in the Central Emperor Realm, he was not considered to be at the top level.


    Xiao Hanjiang thought that Xiao Muyu had missed her chance in the God''s Relic, and would not be able to forge a perfect Divine Wheel. She would have had very little chance of becoming a Goddess then.


    But he had never thought that after returning from Tianshen Academy, she would forge her perfect Divine Wheel and become perfect. In her assessment, she gave a stunning performance that proved her worthy of becoming a Goddess and becoming the future head of the clan.


    Ye Futian had a perfect Divine Wheel himself, as did several of the people around him. He naturally understood Divine Wheels. So although he was shocked, he could accept it. But he didn''t know just how much Ye Futian had contributed.


    Xiao Muyu had not told him in detail. She had just said that Ye Futian had expended some energy to set up a life energy matrix that had helped her forge her perfect Divine Wheel.


    Xiao Hanjiang felt that his daughter was hiding something, but he was not concerned about what it was. He approved both of Ye Futian''s talent and the help he had given to his daughter. This was a man with a lot of potential.


    "You are too kind, Elder Xiao. I just helped her a little bit. Muyu herself is very talented, and she achieved her perfect Divine Wheel on her own. After all, everything in cultivation is based on one''s self," said Ye Futian modestly. Of course, he would not say that it was all due to him.


    He had asked Xiao Muyu not to reveal too much, but rather to just say that he had helped her out by using his own experience. After all, he was her master, so she would not be able to hide his help completely.


    Xiao Muyu looked at him deeply. When had her master ever been so modest?


    "You helped me advance to the next level. How is that just a little bit of help? I will always respect you for that, and I will always..."


    "Ahem!" Ye Futian coughed, cutting off Xiao Muyu''s words. He saw that she was smiling at him and said, "I only did what anyone else would have done. Keep cultivating well, Muyu. This will be the best way to thank me."


    Was this girl trying to expose the whole truth?


    How improper.


    "I understand," said Xiao Muyu with a smile. Xiao Hanjiang did not understand their conversation, but he said, "Emperor Ye, I am Muyu''s father, you are her master. Although there is a great gap in our ages, we are both equally her elders. There is no need for you to call me elder and be so modest. You can call me Brother Xiao, alright?"


    "If you say so, I will, of course, do so, Brother Xiao," said Ye Futian, clinking his cup with Xiao Han Jiang''s. Xiao Hanjiang was trying to pull him closer. He had already accepted Xiao Muyu as a disciple, and now Han Jiang was trying to improve their relationship even closer. Of course, Ye Futian would not refuse.


    "Please drink as much as you''d like, Brother Ye," said Xiao Hanjiang, drinking another cup. Xiao Qianshan smiled as well.


    "Now you are calling Hanjiang brother," he said, "and you are Muyu''s master. From now on, you are family. If there is anything you need, just say it, and I will do anything in my power to help you."


    He had a perfect Divine Wheel and infinite potential. Moreover, he was very close to Xiao Muyu.


    "I hope that you will not become annoyed when I take you up on your often," said Ye Futian jokingly.


    The banquet had a very harmonious atmosphere. There was not one thing that seemed discordant. After all, Xiao Muyu had a completely different status now than before. Everyone in her family, from oldest to youngest, would do anything in their power to help their future goddess.


    Boom!


    At that moment, there were footsteps in the distance; they sounded very heavy.


    Everyone looked off into the distance and saw a group of people coming, seemingly very slow. But they reached the stairway up to the banquet very quickly. They began walking up the stairs.


    Everyone stopped feasting. Xiao Qianshan frowned, seeming a bit unhappy.


    Things were already settled. What were they doing here?


    Boom! The footsteps were not actually that loud, but they rang out in everyone''s minds. The man at their head was an elder, someone who was very powerful. He was an upper-level Renhuang who was considered to be a great figure.


    "People from the other bloodline within the clan. Previously, one of their juniors hoped to be the future heir. It is that youth there named Xiao Lan. He is a mid-level Renhuang, with a fourth tier Divine Wheel," Xiao Muyu said to Ye Futian telepathically.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over them, stopping for a moment on the young man in the second row.


    "If someone in the clan does not have a perfect Divine Wheel, they won''t name them a God or a Goddess unless they can surpass the clan leader," answered Ye Futian. Since the position had previously been empty, if Xiao Muyu had not forged a perfect Divine Wheel and displayed her immense talent, then the position would have been empty forever. This would have let all the disciples of the Xiao clan grow up, hoping they could claim it.


    This would last until the strongest one of them emerged.


    But Xiao Muyu had shown such strength that the clan had decided that she was the only one who was worthy. Fighting among themselves would only consume their power, and thus they had held this ceremony. All of the clan''s power would be bestowed on this one person.


    "The clan has already chosen you as Goddess, why are they here? What do they hope to accomplish?" Ye Futian could naturally see that they had not come for a good purpose.


    "Probably because they are upset. Once the ceremony is over, they won''t be able to do anything about it. At that point, I will be the highest-ranked person in the clan besides the clan leader, and they won''t have any more opportunities," answered Xiao Muyu.


    This is their last gasp, Ye Futian thought to himself. A goddess was similar to a Prince in terms of position. They were the highest-ranked people besides Dynastic Overlords.


    "Why have you come, elder brother?" Xiao Qianshan asked the man who led them. The elder was a little older than Xiao Qianshan, which was why he called him elder brother.


    "I heard that Muyu''s master is here, so I came to greet him and see how majestic he must be to have trained a Goddess of our clan," said the elder. He was naturally speaking of their future goddess, as before the ceremony, she did not have this status yet.


    If she had already received this title, there would not have been a point in him coming.


    Ye Futian noticed that the man''s first utterance had been about him. It seemed that by becoming Xiao Muyu''s master, he had suddenly become a member of the Xiao clan and had created an heir. This would affect a lot of people.


    "This is Master Ye, one of the people who forged a perfect Wheel of the Divine Path in the God''s Relic. He is Muyu''s master," said Xiao Qianshan, introducing him. "This is my elder brother."


    "Greetings, elder," said Ye Futian politely to the man.


    The elder nodded to him, showing not the least bit of disrespect.


    "You helped Muyu advance, creating a Goddess for our clan. I owe you my infinite thanks." The elder''s tone was completely proper, and not rude in the least. "My junior, Xiao Lan, is also rather talented. He is a mid-level Renhuang with a fourth tier Divine Wheel. Might I ask you to teach him a thing or two? Perhaps you could aid him in his cultivation."


    A look of surprise came over everyone''s faces. Ye Futian had just entered the Renhuang plane. Although he was very talented, how could he teach a mid-level Renhuang anything?


    However, the elder had not said what Ye Futian should teach him. So it would not necessarily come to a fight between them. Thus, this was actually a test for Ye Futian, one that might cause him a lot of trouble.


    After all, Ye Futian was the Goddess''s master. Asking him to teach Xiao Lan was, at least on the surface, not the least bit improper.


    "You can refuse, brother Ye," Xiao Hanjiang said to him telepathically. The elder was clearly unhappy and had deliberately sought out Ye Futian. But everything was already arranged. If Ye Futian refused, there would be no problem.


    After all, he was a member of the family. The elder couldn''t really do anything to him.


    "Master, ignore him," said Xiao Muyu telepathically.


    Ye Futian was silent for a moment. Then he put down his cup and looked at Xiao Muyu. "You are about to become a Goddess. If I don''t do anything, won''t that make you lose face?"


    On saying this, he smiled, stood up, and said, "I accept!"


    ...

 1675 Distance

    Ye Futian stepped forward. The gazes of everyone present instantly fell onto him.


    Xiao Muyu was a little shocked. Even though Ye Futian was her teacher, his cultivation level was the same as hers. It had not been long since he proved his path. He could have rejected the offer directly.


    For some reason, Xiao Muyu sensed enormous confidence radiating from Ye Futian when she saw his back.


    Xiao Qianshan sat at the front. He was also shocked by Ye Futian''s actions. However, he did not stop him.


    Ye Futian was a powerful figure whose reputation had shaken the nine realms. He was the only person in the most prominent group within the God''s Relic that had not been nurtured as a successor by a premium faction. He was a powerful figure who had helped his granddaughter forge her perfect Divine Wheel and accepted Xiao Muyu as his disciple.


    Xiao Qianshan himself wanted to see how powerful Ye Futian was.


    Ye Futian walked forward one step at a time. The elders, who were standing by the side of the stairway, made way when they saw him walking toward them. "This way, Emperor Ye."


    The elders then retreated to the side and gave the stage to Ye Futian and Xiao Lan, who was still standing on the steps.


    Xiao Lan was a mid-level Renhuang with a fourth-tier Divine Wheel. He was the person who was worthy of fighting for the spot of a successor before Xiao Muyu forged her perfect Divine Wheel.


    Ye Futian stopped. His gaze landed on the figure in front of him.


    As a Renhuang with a fourth-tier Divine Wheel, Xiao Lan radiated an immense authority of a Renhuang. He was looking calmly at the figure in front of him with his hands behind his back. He announced, "Xiao clan, Xiao Lan."


    "Xiao Muyu''s teacher, Ye Futian," Ye Futian stopped in his tracks and replied.


    "How do you wish to spar, Emperor Ye?" Xiao Lan asked.


    Ye Futian did not speak. He had a faint smile and was calm and casual. There seemed to be a breeze blowing past the stairway, which caused Ye Futian''s white hair to dance slightly. His white robes also swayed with the wind.


    Ye Futian raised his leg and took a step forward.


    Thump!


    This footstep seemed to have produced a dull thud. It caused the Goddess Pavilion to tremble slightly. A buzz rang out from the ground. The ground seemed to be shaking. It was as if the area was about to collapse. A sacred and authoritative aura spilled out. A boundless golden ray of light descended from the sky.


    Ye Futian, who was standing under the ray of light, bathed in the golden glory. He looked like a deity.


    This footstep landed directly on Xiao Lan''s body. It might even have landed on his soul. It harbored unparalleled pressure.


    It was clear that this was the most direct mode of competition. There was nothing simpler than this.


    Thump.


    Life and death.


    Ye Futian sensed Xiao Lan''s will. The disciples of the Xiao clan should have cultivated both of these wills. This was also the reason that Xiao Muyu fought for the lotus back then.


    Xiao Lan''s eyes changed. His pupils turned into black and white. They became bottomless. Images of life and death appeared as his pupils spun. Those eyes seemed to be about to devour Ye Futian when Ye Futian looked toward him.


    This gaze caused the immense Will of Life and Death in the surroundings to envelop Ye Futian. It was as though a true Yinyang Formation of Life and Death had descended and had directly charged into Ye Futian''s brain.


    "Eye Sorcery."


    Ye Futian was expressionless. His eyes had also changed. It was deep and boundless like an endless abyss. In that instant, the terrifying black hole devoured everything. Images of space directly suppressed and enveloped the images of life and death.


    "A perfect Divine Wheel." Xiao Lan still had his hands behind his back. Even though he had lost to Xiao Muyu in the competition, that had not been a direct battle. At this moment, he was facing off against a perfect Divine Wheel in every sense of the word. He had an even clearer sense of the perfect Divine Wheel.


    "Even though you have a perfect Divine Wheel, how are you going to bridge the gap between our cultivation level?" Xiao Muyu murmured to himself. A terrifying Yinyang Image of Life and Death appeared on the horizon. It created a horrifying Death Ray, which cleaved toward Ye Futian''s body. At the same time, a similar scene appeared in his eyes. The scene in his eyes attacked Ye Futian''s soul.


    Creak creak�� The Sword Will crashed against the Death Ray. The place of the banquet was not far away. However, the battlefield of the two fighters had been enveloped by a destructive tempest. The tempest did not affect the banquet in the slightest. The two areas were clearly separated. It was a miraculous scene.


    Boom.


    Ye Futian once again took another step forward. Countless rays of golden splendor appeared around him. The rays of light circled the area like individual divine sculptures. It suppressed the descending Death Ray. Even though many of the divine sculptures were shattered and destroyed in the process, Ye Futian still stood there with a calm expression. His expression did not change, even though the surroundings were crumbling around him.


    "Even though your will is much stronger, your cultivation level is too low. However, this battle is not fair to you," Xiao Lan said. He did not become sarcastic because he had a slight upper hand. He knew clearly that a battle between people with such a difference in cultivation level was extremely unfair to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian smiled when he heard Xiao Lan. He took another step forward and said while being bathed in radiant divine light, "My Great Path is perfect. Who in the 3000 Realms of the Great Path dares to speak to me about fairness in terms of the path?"


    He had just said this when an unparalleled radiance shot out from his body. He took a step forward and transformed into a true ray of light. He pierced through the air and arrived directly in front of Xiao Lan. He shot out a single punch.


    The violent authority that had gathered in front of Xiao Lan shattered. The current of the Great Path was torn apart by the will of the punch. Xiao Lan raised his hand and pushed it forward. He shot out a palm with a dull grunt. It looked like the palm print of death.


    Boom��


    A dull noise rang out. The fist and palm collided and created a harrowing tempest. Xiao Qianshan personally stood in front of the banquet. His will swarmed out and blocked off the violent tempest from the area of the banquet.


    Xiao Lan''s body was pushed back repeatedly, his footsteps rubbing against the ground. He only stopped when he reached the side of the steps. He even had to stomp down with one leg and directly shatter the steps to stop himself.


    Xiao Lan looked up at Ye Futian. Ye Futian was surrounded in gold light. That magnificent radiance looked flawless.


    Who in the 3000 Realms of the Great Path dared to talk to him about fairness in terms of the path?


    Xiao Lan suddenly let out a smile. He glanced toward Ye Futian, then turned to look at Xiao Muyu, who was at the banquet area. He said, "Mu Yu, I am looking forward to your splendor during the conference ceremony."


    He turned around after he spoke and walked down the steps. He left one step at a time.


    "Who dares to call themself unparalleled in the 3000 Realms of the Great Path?" Xiao Lan looked up at the horizon. He knew that he was not that person.


    Could someone be able to do that?


    "Thank you for your pointer, Emperor Ye." An elder by the side looked toward Ye Futian. He then looked in the direction of the banquet and said, "Qianshan, congratulations to you and Muyu."


    He then smiled and left.


    The rest of the people left after that. It was like nothing even happened.


    Ye Futian was still standing on the stairway and looking at the leaving figures. He had a faint smile. They were ultimately people from the same clan and had all trained to the level of Renhuang. They could afford to take the loss.


    Even though they were indignant, they must have found closure during this journey. Judging from the words they said before they left, they must have honestly accepted the result.


    When Ye Futian turned around, he saw that everyone from the banquet was looking at him.


    "What''s the matter?" Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Who in the 3000 Realms of the Great Path dares to speak to me about fairness in terms of the path?" Xiao Qianshan mumbled softly to himself. There were many powerful figures in the 3000 Realms of the Great Path, yet Ye Futian had arrogantly said that no one could defeat him in a fair fight. That required an immense amount of spirit.


    "You''re the first person I''ve seen who has defeated a fourth-tier Divine Wheel with a first-tier Divine Wheel," Xiao Qianshan said emotionally, "This battle has made my indignant brothers speechless."


    "You praise me too much, elder. The perfect Divine Wheel does come with a natural advantage." Ye Futian smiled as he returned to the banquet. Xiao Muyu''s gaze was locked onto Ye Futian. Her young teacher was more exceptional than she imagined. Even though he was not very proper, the moment just now was incredibly charismatic.


    She also had a perfect Divine Wheel. However, there was no way that she could win against Xiao Lan.


    "Don''t idolize me. Train well in the future." Ye Futian smiled and said when he saw Xiao Muyu staring at him.


    Xiao Muyu smiled, then raised her cup at Ye Futian and said, "I pay my respects to you, teacher. Thank you for teaching me."


    Ye Futian smiled and raised his cup. The two of them gulped down the contents of their cup.


    The people returned to where they came from after the banquet. Ye Futian sat silently in the yard of the Goddess Pavilion.


    Xia Qingyuan came and sat by Ye Futian''s side.


    "Did you intentionally reveal your abilities because you want to borrow the strength of the Xiao clan in the future?" Xia Qingyuan asked softly.


    Ye Futian glanced at Xia Qingyuan and nodded with a smile.


    "The arrangement in the Heavenly Mandate Realm should be enough to deal with the situation in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Do you have something you are worried about?" Xia Qingyuan asked as she looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the horizon as he heard Xia Jingyuan speak. He remembered the charismatic advisor of Dali.


    His teacher was still in the Shen clan.


    Dou Zhao, Xiao Muyu, as well as the people in the Heavenly Mandate realm had cultivated the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    Without speaking, Ye Futian extended his left hand and patted on Xia Qingyuan''s shoulder. He said softly, "Qingyuan, prove your path and become a Renhuang as soon as possible."


    He stood up and turned to leave as he said that.


    Xia Qingyuan turned her head and looked at his figure. She could sense his unparalleled charisma, as well as his loneliness.


    Xia Qingyuan looked down slightly. There was a slight hint of dejection in her eyes. All these years, she believed that he liked her. However, there was always a faint distant feeling that she could not explain.


    ...

 1676 Treatmen

    During the first day of the 10,036-year history of the Divine Prefecture, the northern regions of the Central Emperor Realm had been extremely lively. This was especially so for the Northern Plain State where the Xiao family was at. Many of the influential families from the main cities in this area gathered in the core city of the Northern Plain State, the Northern Plain City occupied by the Xiao family.


    In fact, many of the influential factions from all around the Central Emperor Realm sent forth powerful fighters to congratulate them.


    The Xiao clan was about to officially confer someone as a Goddess. The influential family that lorded over the Northern Plain State was about to welcome a successor.


    It was imaginable how large a commotion that created. All of the powerful families from the Northern Plain State had to be present. After all, the Xiao clan was the absolute overlord of the region.


    At this moment, many powerful fighters from all over the land were arriving outside the manor of the Xiao clan one after the other.


    There were also several people engaged in discussion outside the manor.


    "Rumor has it that Xiao Muyu will be the one who will be conferred as a Goddess."


    "I''ve met her once in the past. However, even though Xiao Muyu has exceptional talent within the Xiao clan, she did not display an overwhelming advantage. There were still people who could suppress her, and she did not prove her way in the God''s Relic. How could it be that she forged a perfect Divine Wheel after that?" some quizzed.


    "Perhaps she obtained an opportunity in the God''s Relic and achieved a complete understanding," some guessed. Not many people knew that Xiao Muyu had sought out a mentor.


    At this moment, outside the Xiao manor, a group of people descended from the sky. They arrived at the scene from beyond the horizon.


    "The Celestial Worthy Temple pays its visit," a voice announced. This group of people stepped forward and caused countless people below them to raise their heads and look at the sky.


    The Celestial Worthy Temple, one of the most influential factions in the Central Emperor Realm, had arrived.


    After that, influential figures from factions like the Shen clan, Sky Reaching School, and the Nantian Divine Kingdom arrived one after the other. As top-notch factions of the Central Emperor Realm, they had to show their respect to the invitation of the Xiao clan. All of these factions sent over their men.


    The influential Xiao clan had gathered many of the powerful fighters from all over the Central Emperor Realm on this day. The event happening within the manor was grand.


    "Teacher." At this moment, Xiao Muyu arrived at his side.


    Xiao Muyu was even more radiant and beautiful today. Not only was she dressed in a magnificent black long gown, but she was also even wearing a Goddess Crown on her head. She was stunning. Her aura as a queen had become more intense.


    "What are you looking at, Teacher?" Xiao Muyu could not help but ask softly when she saw Ye Futian observing her.


    "Why does it feel like I am marrying my daughter off?" Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Xiao Muyu was a little speechless.


    "What kind of feeling is that?" Xiao Muyu smiled as she asked.


    "I''d naturally feel a little longing if I were to marry such a beautiful disciple off. Who''s going to serve me if you get married?" Ye Futian joked, "But, my disciple is about to be conferred as a Goddess. I''m happy."


    Xiao Muyu was used to Ye Futian''s flippant attitude. She said, "Teacher, I have to go prepare. They have come to help you change your clothes."


    "Change?" Ye Futian blinked as he looked toward the maids behind Xiao Muyu.


    "Yes, you''re the teacher of the Goddess in today''s grand celebration. You will be sitting somewhere prominent, so you can''t be too casual," Xiao Muyu said with a smile.


    Ye Futian felt a little weird. The powerful Xiao clan and many influential figures from all around the area were here, yet he, a person with a first-tier Divine Wheel, was going to be seated at a prominent spot. It did not feel suitable.


    However, if he were to look at it from the perspective of the teacher of the Goddess, the arrangement felt completely natural.


    In the world of cultivation, the status of a teacher was equivalent to that of a parent. A teacher would be treated as a parent.


    "I can''t even keep a low profile even if I wanted to." Ye Futian sighed.


    Xiao Muyu looked at him, speechless, "Then you have to act even more properly."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. He did not reject the offer. He said, "Though, all of the maidens from all around the land would only look at me if I were to sit there."


    "Madam, are you not going to care about him?" Xiao Muyu was completely at a loss for words. She glanced toward Xia Qingyuan at the side.


    Xia Qingyuan froze. She looked at Ye Futian, only for Ye Futian to shout at Xiao Muyu, "Stop talking nonsense, go quickly."


    "Mm." Xiao Muyu nodded, then turned to leave.


    Ye Futian looked at Xiao Muyu''s departing figure and whispered, "In the past, I thought that accepting a disciple would be extremely cumbersome. If I knew that it would make me feel so good, I would have accepted hundreds of disciples."


    "Female disciples, you mean," Xia Qingyuan said casually. She seemed to fully understand Ye Futian.


    "Of course. Look at how filial female disciples are," Ye Futian smiled as he said. All of the maids who had come with Xiao Muyu had weird expressions. They felt that the teacher of the Goddess was a little improper.


    Even though Ye Futian looked young, they guessed that he was actually several hundred years old.


    How else could he have become the teacher of the Goddess?


    Ye Futian might have blasted them away if he knew what they thought��


    The main hall of the Xiao manor reached up to the skies. It was like a Heavenly Palace, stern and sacred. Its glory radiated for miles.


    Outside the main hall was a giant empty field.


    At this moment, many powerful fighters gathered under the stairs. They were split into separate camps, each hailing from their respective factions. It was bustling.


    Many powerful fighters from the Xiao clan were welcoming them. The factions from the Northern Plain State were welcomed by the juniors, while the elders of the Xiao clan attended to the visitors from the influential factions. It was properly organized.


    Ye Futian followed a faraway flight of stairs up. At this moment, he was dressed in a majestic white long robe. The people from the Xiao clan had put in the effort. They did not change his style but made him look more exquisite and generous with the cutting of the robe. The material of the robe was also special. It sparkled under the sunlight and was simple, yet elegant. In comparison, the clothes Ye Futian wore previously were much more casual.


    His long hair had been managed and draped gently behind him. The thin wisp that was his mustache was curled downward, giving him an extra hint of charisma.


    He attracted the attention of several people while he was walking. They could tell that he was an extraordinary figure just from his demeanor. The girls would especially steal a few more glances at him, unable to contain themselves.


    "Ye Futian." A person was mumbling to himself when he noticed Ye Futian. He then walked toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian noticed that the other party had stopped before he smiled and said, "How have you been?"


    The person who approached him was Yuan Hong from the Yuanyang clan. He had already become a Renhuang. They had also interacted in the God''s Relic and joined forces in battle. Yuan Hong locked himself up and trained after he returned and proved his path to become a Renhuang.


    "I heard that you are Xiao Muyu''s teacher? Is that true or false?" Yuan Hong asked. His family had told him the news. That was why he asked Ye Futian when he saw him.


    "Mm." Ye Futian nodded slightly.


    Yuan Hong let out a strange expression. Did that mean that Ye Futian might have had a hand in helping Xiao Muyu forge her perfect Divine Wheel?


    He had not been able to see through Ye Futian when he was in the God''s Relic. He did not know how many secrets Ye Futian hid.


    "Tell me the truth, did you land a hand when Xiao Muyu was proving her path?" Yuan Hong asked softly.


    "I helped a little," Ye Futian smiled as he said.


    Yuan Hong looked at him suspiciously. Why did he not believe him?


    "Why didn''t you tell me about such a piece of great news?" Yuan Hong was a little depressed. He had not managed to forge a perfect Divine Wheel.


    "You didn''t ask," Ye Futian replied. Ye Futian could not have run to the Yuanyang clan and said that he was going to take Yuan Hong in as a disciple. He would be chased out.


    If not for Xiao Muyu personally visiting him and asking for his help, he would not have thought to accept her as a disciple.


    That could be fate.


    Yuan Hong smiled bitterly. Did that mean that I missed out on the opportunity?


    "It''s alright. Do you have a lady in your clan that''s about the same age as you? I can accept her as a disciple," Ye Futian said.


    "Why must it be a lady?" Yuan Hong asked.


    "Cough��" Ye Futian glanced at him, a little speechless. Did he have to ask that?


    "Female disciples are more obedient and easy to nurture."


    Yuan Hong''s expression darkened. Ye Futian was shameless.


    He only accepted female disciples?


    "Are you sure that you can forge perfect Divine Wheels?" Even though he could sense Ye Futian''s shamelessness, he had to accept it if Ye Futian could truly forge perfect Divine Wheels.


    "Of course I''m not sure," Ye Futian said.


    "Which means to say that you are only responsible for accepting the disciples and not the results?" Yuan Hong said.


    "Your thoughts are improper. Come speak to me after you change them." Ye Futian patted on Yuan Hong''s shoulder, then continued to walk forward.


    Yuan Hong looked at Ye Futian''s back, speechless. He only accepts female disciples, yet he said that my thoughts were improper? Yuan Hong thought.


    "Yuan Hong, what''s your relationship with Ye Futian?" an elder by the side asked.


    "I worked with him in the God''s Relic. I also stood on his side when we came out. We are quite close with each other," Yuan Hong said.


    "Invite him to the Yuanyang clan if he is free. It''s good to establish a friendly relationship with that person," the elder said. Xiao Muyu''s perfect Divine Wheel was still a mystery. They could only guess that Ye Futian had contributed a great deal to her perfect Divine Wheel. Even if it was only a minor contribution, it was better for them to be his friend than offend him.


    "Understood." Yuan Hong nodded. This youth who had displayed his prowess in the God''s Relic must have attracted the attention of many premium factions today.


    Many factions like the Celestial Worthy Temple, Sky Reaching School, and the Shen clan had noticed Ye Futian. There were many people here who were within the God''s Relic back then. They all knew Ye Futian.


    At this moment, several people raised their heads and looked toward the main hall of the Heavenly Palace. They saw multiple figures step out from within the Heavenly Palace at the top of the stairway. In that instant, the vast space gradually became silent. Countless gazes shot in that direction.


    The elders of the Xiao clan appeared there one after the other. That group of people helmed the Xiao clan. Xiao Qianshan was also there. A group of people stood beside him on either side.


    Someone guided Ye Futian up the steps. Xiao Qianshan spoke when he saw Ye Futian, "This way, Friend Ye."


    Ye Futian walked toward him. Under the witness of countless people, Xiao Qianshan guided Ye Futian to the highest position on the right. The rest of the people from the Xiao clan seemed to have accepted such an arrangement. It was clear that this action had been discussed before this day.


    On the other side of Ye Futian, at the highest position on the left side, was the Supreme Elder of the Xiao clan.


    "This��"


    Everyone present, including Yuan Hong, was shocked.


    What kind of treatment was this?


    The pupils of the powerful fighters from various influential factions dilated. Ye Futian was the teacher of the Goddess. Such an arrangement would be appropriate if Ye Futian were an upper-level Renhuang.


    However, he was still a beginner in the Renhuang Plane. The attitude of the Xiao clan was clear as day when they arranged for him to take that position.


    "Who''s that youth?" Many of the powerful fighters from the factions of the Northern Plain State felt their hearts shake. They asked around for Ye Futian''s identity and secretly thought of him as a charismatic man!

 1677 Conferring a Goddess

    The people who were standing in front were elders of the Xiao clan. Thus, Ye Futian looked even more eye-catching from his position. He would steal someone''s attention the moment they glanced at him.


    He was so young, yet he had such a high status?


    Other than the helmsman of the Xiao clan who had not appeared, that position only paled in comparison to the Supreme Elder of the Xiao clan.


    How could anyone not be alarmed?


    More importantly, Ye Futian should not be a member of the Xiao clan. Even though Xiao Muyu was about to be conferred as Goddess, no one in this generation should be able to rival the status of the Goddess Xiao Muyu. What did an outsider appearing at that position mean?


    Most of the factions in the Northern Plain State did not know that Xiao Muyu had sought out a mentor. At this moment, they felt that they could not understand anything. They could not guess the other party''s identity no matter how hard they tried.


    Their gazes landed on the people from the top-notch factions who were standing on higher ground. They saw that those people had strange expressions but were not overly alarmed. It was clear that they knew who the youth was.


    Could he be a premium figure from another faction, the future spouse for the Goddess? some people thought in their hearts. However, they quickly tossed this idea to the side. Even if that was the case, the person should not be standing in front of Xiao Muyu''s elders. Even Xiao Muyu''s grandfather, Xiao Qianshan, was standing behind him.


    In actuality, even Ye Futian was shocked. He had already felt that the situation was rather grand when Xiao Muyu brought people along to help him change. He knew that he would stand in a rather important position, but he did not expect to be where he was now.


    It would be alright if his cultivation level were powerful enough. It would be understandable if he stood in front of Xiao Qianshan if that was the case. That was because even though Xiao Qianshan and Xiao Hanjiang were Xiao Muyu''s elders, they were both members of the Xiao clan. In terms of their relationship, everyone present could be said to be Xiao Muyu''s elder. However, the clan was an organization. Once Xiao Muyu was conferred as the Goddess, her status in the family would, in some sense, surpass that of her grandfather and father.


    However, he, as a teacher, was different. He was not from the Xiao clan. Thus, no matter how exceptional his disciple became, they had to be respectful toward him.


    However, his being here despite his cultivation level was rather unsuitable. This could only show that the Xiao clan was being extremely respectful toward him.


    However, if that was the case, the people of the influential factions might suspect that he had a big role to play in Xiao Muyu''s process of proving her path, given that the Xiao clan was treating him with such respect.


    Otherwise, how could they explain how he helped Xiao Muyu forge her perfect Divine Wheel?


    Even so, they would not think that it was all because of Ye Futian. Xiao Muyu must have been talented enough to begin with. However, they suspected that they might not have noticed when Ye Futian obtained some kind of benefit in the God''s Relic.


    This was also what the other factions were thinking. They did not think that Ye Futian could create Renhuangs that wielded perfect Divine Wheels. Even all of the factions in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms could not create wielders of perfect Divine Wheels, much less Ye Futian.


    Who would suspect that Ye Futian was able to accomplish something that even the most powerful factions in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were unable to achieve?


    Out of all the factions present, the most unhappy was the Shen clan. It was for no other reason than the fact that the Shen clan had animosity with Ye Futian''s teacher.


    The Sky River Great Elder was Ye Futian''s teacher. Now that the Goddess of the Xiao clan had become Ye Futian''s disciple, didn''t that mean that Xiao Muyu also hailed from the Sky River Temple and had to call the Sky River Great Elder her grandmaster?


    They would have been happy if this had happened several years ago. The Goddess of the Xiao clan would have become the junior of the Shen clan''s son-in-law. But now��


    If the people from the Shen clan knew that Ye Futian''s teacher was Qi Xuangang and that he was currently in the Shen clan, who knew what they would think? They might think that whatever Ye Futian did today was for the ultimate goal of attacking the Shen clan.


    "Friend Ye."


    At this moment, the Supreme Elder of the Xiao clan, who stood on the other side of Ye Futian, Xiao Tan, nodded toward Ye Futian with a smile. As the Supreme Elder, Xiao Tan managed everything within the Xiao clan. He was the most knowledgeable about several things, and he naturally knew about whatever happened in the Goddess Pavilion yesterday.


    The Xiao clan did not know just how much Ye Futian contributed in allowing Xiao Muyu to break through to the next level, but they did not need to know. The Xiao clan did not even hope that Ye Futian would help them nurture more wielders of the perfect Divine Wheel. That was impractical.


    They thought highly of Ye Futian because of his potential and future. Ye Futian, Gu Dongliu, and the other swordsman. All three of them had perfect Divine Wheels. What kind of force would they become in the future?


    Also, according to their knowledge, Ye Futian''s buddy also obtained a divine item in the God''s Relic back then. He had exceptional talent and was stronger than Xiao Muyu. He could do anything Xiao Muyu could do, especially with the help of Ye Futian.


    Furthermore, the two ladies by Ye Futian''s side also obtained the inheritance of the Great Emperor. They were given to them by Ye Futian.


    This force might not be eye-catching, but it was worth looking forward to.


    Furthermore, even if they did not consider those factions, Ye Futian himself also had extreme potential.


    Since that was the case, coupled with the fact that he was Xiao Muyu''s teacher and that he was on good terms with the Xiao clan, why would they not extend the appropriate amount of respect?


    This form of respect was a simple thing for them. They did not have to spend anything. Why would they not do it?


    "Elder." Ye Futian nodded in reply.


    "I didn''t go visit you even though you''ve been here for several days. Have you gotten used to your stay in the Xiao clan?" Xiao Tan asked with a smile. He was making small talk.


    "You''re too polite, elder. How could I not be used to the place with Muyu taking care of me?" Ye Futian said. Xiao Muyu had treated him extremely well. It was for that reason that Ye Futian considered if he should take in more female disciples so that he could relax and live a good life when he grew old.


    "That''s good. Since you''re already here, feel free to stay for a few more days. Get Muyu to serve you well. She''s a little busier these few days and must not have taken good care of you," Xiao Tan said.


    "If how she treated me was not ''good care,'' then I might not bear to leave in the future," Ye Futian smiled in reply. It was no wonder that he would want to take in a few more disciples. He would have a good life even if he remained in the Xiao clan.


    Of course, it was impossible for him to stay for long. He still had many things to do. He came this time to interact with the Xiao clan.


    Many of the elders by his side laughed. Someone said, "You can stay here indefinitely if you cannot bear to leave. You can give the unpromising juniors a little pointer if you do."


    "That''s right. Those juniors are extremely arrogant. They''ll know that there''s always someone stronger than them if you can help us teach them a lesson."


    These were jokes, of course. However, he could see the attitudes of the Xiao clan from those words. Everyone in the chain of command was giving him the appropriate amount of respect. This must be the intention of the person at the very top.


    It was at this moment when everyone''s gaze shifted toward the same direction. They saw a figure step out from within an ancient sacred hall above the stairway.


    Ye Futian also looked in that direction. At this moment, Xiao Muy was bathed in sacred splendor. Her long gown radiated magnificent rays of light. In that instant, the gazes of everyone present was locked in on her.


    "Is that Xiao Muyu?"


    Many people who had seen Xiao Muyu in the past had a shock in their hearts. The transformation in her demeanor was too great. Even the pupils of the people from the top-notch factions who had seen her in the God''s Relic dilated. The elegance of Xiao Muyu before their eyes did not pale in comparison to Chang Xi.


    Xiao Muyu walked down the stairs one step at a time as she propped up her black gown. She smiled and glanced toward Ye Futian when she passed him by, then continued walking downward till she reached the center.


    She was proper, sacred, beautiful, elegant. She was a queen-like existence. She would become the future Goddess of the Xiao clan, the next successor.


    At this moment, another figure appeared at the ancient sacred hall that pierced into the clouds. Countless gazes shot in that direction. Ye Futian also looked over.


    It was the helmsman of the Xiao clan, the clan leader of the Xiao clan, Xiao Dingtian.


    A terrifying existence that was unmatched in the nine realms.


    He stood there like a deity. Countless people looked up to him.


    At this moment, everyone from the Xiao clan bowed.


    Then, the powerful fighters who had come from all around the region to observe the ceremony followed suit and bowed. No matter what motive they had for coming here, no matter what kind of emotion they had, they had respect for one of the strongest figures of this era. All of their eyes, at this moment, were filled with sincere respect.


    "From this day on, Xiao Muyu will become the Goddess of the Xiao clan. The Xiao clan will nurture and prop her up." A fleeting sound spread from the ancient hall. Everyone in the vast Xiao manor heard the voice.


    "Yes, clan leader." The powerful fighters of the Xiao clan bowed. Xiao Dingtian scanned through the crowd, then said, "The Supreme Elder will host the grand ceremony."


    He then turned around and went back into the divine hall after he finished his sentence. Everyone felt that it was natural. He was Xiao Dingtian.


    The fighters from the Northern Plain State that came to witness the ceremony felt incredibly excited. Xiao Dingtian was a legendary figure who defined the era.


    The rest of the major factions were better off. However, to the Northern Plain State, Xiao Dingtian was a living legend. He was a totem of this era.


    Following that was the conference ceremony. It was a bunch of formalities, but everyone present played along. No one from the influential factions caused any trouble. They had come to witness the ceremony.


    After all of the procedures were over, everyone, other than the Supreme Elder of the Xiao clan, bowed and greeted Xiao Muyu, "Greetings, Goddess."


    Ye Futian silently observed as the events unfolded. In the past, he had thought that there was no need for the conference ceremony. However, it seemed that it was very necessary.


    Such a stern, serious ceremony would leave an imprint in the hearts of everybody present. They would make people truly feel the status of the Goddess. This way, Xiao Muyu''s status as the Goddess would truly be displayed within the family, which would boost her authority in the future.


    It was only with this ceremony that they could accomplish the goal of getting the entire family to support Xiao Muyu.


    Xiao Muyu raised her hand. Ye Futian smiled when he witnessed the scene. After the ceremony, Xiao Muyu would also become more confident and act more and more like a queen.


    His first disciple was becoming a queen.


    After the formalities, it was time for the Xiao clan to give the Goddess presents. They were all items related to cultivation.


    Several great factions from the Northern Plain State also presented their gifts. However, they all handed their gifts to the members of the Xiao clan for safekeeping. The influential factions also presented their gifts as a symbolic gesture.


    Ye Futian walked toward Xiao Muyu. Many people had a strange expression when he saw his movement. They did not know Ye Futian''s identity until now.


    They should be able to see that there was something off between them now that Ye Futian was walking toward Xiao Muyu alone.


    "Muyu." Ye Futian came to Xiao Muyu''s side. He observed the Goddess disciple before him.


    "Teacher," Xiao Muyu shouted. The hearts of the people from the factions of the Northern Plain State shook. Teacher?


    They would not have expected Ye Futian to be her teacher. Ye Futian was too young.


    However, only the status of a teacher was able to explain what happened just now.


    "I didn''t prepare anything. Let these two ritual implements be your present for today." Ye Futian took out two ritual implements that were suitable for Xiao Muyu and handed them to her.


    The members of the Xiao clan were moved when they saw this scene. They knew exactly what Ye Futian meant when he said, "ritual implements." They must have come from the God''s Relic.


    Xiao Muyu looked at the handsome youth in front of her and let out a sweet smile. She fetched over the ritual implements and said, "Thank you,


    Teacher."

 1678 Partnering Up

    After the conference ceremony, the Xiao clan hosted the people from the other factions in a banquet.


    Many heroes had gathered here for the conference of the Goddess. Aside from those factions in the Northern Plain State, influential factions from all over the regions had arrived. The Xiao clan, who was hosting the event, had to tend to them. They could not just chase the people off after they observed the ceremony.


    The banquet was split into two separate areas. The influential factions of the Central Emperor Realm occupied an area, while the powerful fighters from the factions of the Northern Plain State occupied the area behind them.


    The Xiao clan had made the appropriate arrangements. Everyone got to freely enjoy the wine and delicacies.


    Ye Futian was also in the area of the banquet where the major factions of the Central Emperor Realm were. Just like his previous position, he was sitting in an esteemed position.


    As the clan leader of the Xiao clan, Xiao Dingtian, was not going to attend the banquet, the Supreme Elder held the highest position and sat at the main position. The two seats to his left and right were occupied by Ye Futian and Xiao Muyu, who had just been conferred the title of Goddess.


    The rest of the people were influential figures within the Xiao clan.


    Every influential faction from the Central Emperor Realm occupied an area in the banquet. They were not arranged to occupy the same area. The area where the Xiao clan was hosting the banquet was enormous. Thus, there was no need for them to mix the various factions together. Instead, they made the appropriate arrangement and demarcated an area for every faction.


    "Today is the Goddess Conference Ceremony of the Xiao clan. Thank you for showing us the respect and coming over to observe the ceremony. I propose a toast to all of you." The Supreme Elder of the Xiao clan raised his cup and gulped down its content. In that instant, everyone from the other factions followed along and raised their cups. After all, Xiao Tan was a man of high status.


    Xiao Dingtian of the Xiao clan did not probe too much about the matters of the family. In actuality, Xiao Tan was the direct manager of the Xiao clan. He had high seniority and was immensely powerful. Everyone who had come today could call him their senior.


    The consequent banquet was bustling. The conversations were also relatively more relaxed.


    "Elder Xiao, the Shen clan is rather curious about several things and hope that you can enlighten us." At this moment, a person from the direction of the Shen clan spoke out. Xiao Tan looked over. The person who spoke was one of the leading figures in the Shen clan. He had a high status within the Shen clan.


    "Please speak." Xiao Tan nodded.


    "That''s right." Xiao Tan nodded.


    "I don''t have to describe the difficulty of forging a perfect Divine Wheel. We would not be confused if the Goddess Xiao Muyu had proven her path at the Xiao clan. However, she had proved her path with the help of Ye Futian. I wish to ask, what kind of divine item did he use?" the powerful fighter of the Shen clan asked. He glanced toward Ye Futian as he spoke. In actuality, he was directing the question toward Ye Futian.


    This was not just the doubt of the Shen clan. The rest of the factions also wish to know the answer. Not many other factions in the 3000 Realms of the Great Path knew more than them about how difficult it was to prove their path and forge a perfect Divine Wheel.


    "I''ll not lie to all of you, but I do not know. Friend Ye is Muyu''s teacher and must have given Muyu a few pointers. However, the Xiao clan would not pay attention to things that we shouldn''t pay attention to," Xiao Tan said with a smile. He was hinting that this was something the Shen clan should not be paying attention to.


    How Ye Futian helped Xiao Muyu was Ye Futian''s business.


    Everyone present understood what the other factions were thinking.


    They were suspecting that Ye Futian had obtained something in the God''s Relic.


    "Also, we have resolved the incident in the God''s Relic in the City of Ruins. There''s no need for us to harp on it," Xiao Tan continued. The saga that happened in the City of Ruins had embroiled nearly half of all of the factions in the nine realms.


    Ye Futian had made it out of the saga safely. The other factions had not cared back then. However, now that they were suspecting that Ye Futian had managed to obtain something, they wanted to bring up that matter once again.


    "I was merely curious." The person from the Shen clan smiled. He did not care about the other party''s attitude. In terms of ability, the Shen clan could be placed in the top few within the Central Emperor Realm. They were much more powerful than the Xiao clan and were naturally more arrogant.


    "Ye Futian, is your teacher alright?" the powerful fighter from the Shen clan suddenly asked Ye Futian.


    "Naturally so," Ye Futian replied calmly.


    "I heard that you had a chat with Shen Hao back in Shentian Academy. The Shen clan had already put down the incident that happened back then. We do not wish to do anything to your teacher. Please relay that to your teacher if you have the chance to. If he wishes to forget everything that happened back then and come have a look at the Shen clan, there might be room for us to return to how we were in the past," the other party continued.


    Ye Futian looked up at the other party. The faint smile in his eyes hid the indifference in his heart.


    Was this pity?


    Did they want the Sky River Great Elder to head to the Shen clan and admit his mistake?


    Also, when did the Shen clan let the matter go? Then what did they bringing his teacher away mean? The Shen clan did not deal with the Sky River Great Elder, but they had set their sights on Feixue.


    Furthermore, his grandmaster had his wife taken away, his daughter murdered, and his disciples massacred. Yet, they wanted his grandmaster to head to the Shen clan and admit his mistake?


    Ye Futian smiled but did not reply.


    The people from the Shen clan noticed Ye Futian''s indifferent attitude. Ye Futian had become a powerful figure of this generation. He had also become the teacher of the Goddess Xiao Muyu and was on close terms with the Xiao clan. He must have many thoughts of his own.


    If they noticed that Ye Futian threatened the offspring of the Shen clan, then they would have to quell this threat while it was still in the cradle.


    At least for the time being, the Shen clan did not pay too much attention to Ye Futian.


    He had great potential but was still too weak.


    Ye Futian also noticed the expressions of the people from the Shen clan. He knew that the Shen clan had not paid too much heed to him. Even though he had appeared with the identity of his grandmaster''s disciple, the Shen clan who stood at the zenith of the Central Emperor Clan would not care too much about him.


    However, currently, the Shen clan had truly acknowledged his existence. They might attack him sometime in the future.


    Thinking about that, Ye Futian knew that he had to prepare for the future and be warier of the Shen clan.


    He picked up his wine cup and toasted Xiao Tan. He deliberated for a moment, then said through telepathy, "Elder Xiao."


    Xiao Tan looked up toward Ye Futian. It looked like Ye Futian wanted to speak to him about something. Otherwise, there was no need for him to use telepathy.


    "Feel free to speak your mind, Friend Ye," Xiao Tan said.


    "I might set up a cultivation academy in the Heavenly Mandate Realm sometime in the future, a place similar to Tianshen Academy and the Divine Palace. When that time comes, influential factions from the Heavenly Mandate Realm will join. I intend to get my teacher, the Sky River Great Elder, to manage the academy and invite Lord Taixuan to become a minister," Ye Futian continued with telepathy, "Thus, I wanted to ask if the Xiao clan was interested?"


    Ye Futian did not think about this matter just now. However, he had noticed the attitude the Xiao clan had toward him. That, coupled with the threat of the Shen clan, made him think about what the Shen clan would do to him if they felt threatened by him setting up his own school.


    Thus, he wanted to get the Xiao clan to join him.


    Xiao Tan was a little shocked. He did not expect Ye Futian to want to set up an academy at such a young age. Furthermore, it seemed that he was doing that on a large scale. The factions from the Heavenly Mandate Realm were going to participate and enter. If he managed to rope in Lord Taixuan and the Sky River Great Elder, then it would be at the scale of a path-spreading academy.


    "Friend Ye, you are Muyu''s teacher. The Xiao clan will definitely go observe the ceremony when you open your academy," Xiao Tan said. He did not directly agree to Ye Futian''s question. After all, he did not know what exactly Ye Futian''s motive for setting up an academy was.


    What if he wanted to do battle with the Shen clan in the future?


    If that was the case, the Xiao clan being embroiled in the battle was no ordinary affair. There were too many implications.


    It was not hard to understand why he thought that way. The manager Ye Futian appointed was the Sky River Great Elder. What kind of relationship did the Sky River Great Elder have with the Shen clan?


    "You can ease any concerns you have, elder. This academy is only for spreading my path and nurturing people who are cultivating their path. It will not involve the personal vengeance of my teacher and I. I was worrying if this academy could safely stand within the Heavenly Mandate Realm and thus wanted to borrow the strength of the Xiao clan," Ye Futian said directly.


    Xiao Tan would naturally be cautious when he mentioned the Sky River Great Elder. Thus, Ye Futian directly voiced out his thoughts.


    Pulling the Xiao clan into his camp was merely to protect himself. He would not actively target anyone. Furthermore, he was truly hoping to set up a school.


    As for the matter with the Shen clan, as long as the Xiao clan got aboard and he gradually got stronger, coupled with his relationship with Xiao Muyu, how could the Xiao clan separate themselves from the matter?


    Xiao Tan was a little hesitant. He heard Ye Futian continue, "What I think is that this academy would be able to nurture at least a dozen wielders of a perfect Divine Wheel in the future."


    Xiao Tan''s pupils dilated when he heard Ye Futian. He raised his head and looked gravely at Ye Futian.


    "You truly are confident of nurturing Renhuangs with perfect Divine Wheels?" Xiao Tan said through telepathy.


    "That requires fate and talent. There''s hope if the person''s talent is greater than Muyu''s. I think that you still do not know, but Dou Zhao as well as a few of my friends by my side have already become wielders of perfect Divine Wheels." Ye Futian continued to throw out another piece of jarring information.


    "Alright, count the Xiao clan in," Xiao Tan immediately promised. He did not have any hesitation. He had to be decisive when he needed to.


    Judging from Ye Futian''s words, he might truly have obtained a divine item and could nurture wielders of perfect Divine Wheels like the sacred lands of the premium factions.


    How could he miss this opportunity?


    Xiao Tan did not have a way to deal with Ye Futian. Now that Ye Futian was on good terms with the Xiao clan and could help them, only a fool would treat Ye Futian''s benevolence with animosity. Even if they managed to do that, who could guarantee that Ye Futian would obediently follow their instructions?


    Xiao Muyu looked at Xiao Tan and Ye Futian with a strange look. Were the two of them interacting?


    "Friend Ye." At this moment, a powerful fighter from the Yuanyang clan said, "Yuan Hong had high praises for you when he came back. If there is a chance, you can come to have a look around the Yuanyang clan."


    Ye Futian had a strange expression when he heard the other party''s words. He suddenly thought that since he already pulled the Xiao clan into his camp, he might as well go all out and also pull the Yuanyang clan into his group.

 1679 Return

    Ye Futian raised his cup toward the powerful fighter from the Yuanyang clan and said, "I''ll definitely head to the Yuanyang clan to have a look if there is the opportunity."


    The two of them raised their cups toward each other. Ye Futian then told the people from the Xiao clan, "I''ll go raise a few toasts."


    "I''ll head there with my teacher," Xiao Muyu said as she stood up with her wine cup.


    Xiao Tan saw how proactive Xiao Muyu was and nodded slightly. Ye Futian was willing to become closer to the Xiao clan. Xiao Muyu was a good bridge between them. Furthermore, Xiao Muyu was very respectful of Ye Futian. Even though they had not been master and student for very long, they did get along rather well with each other.


    Ye Futian wanted to reject her. After all, Xiao Muyu now had the status of the Xiao clan''s Goddess. However, he did not say anything when he saw Xiao Tan nod his head.


    The two of them stood up together. Xiao Muyu followed beside Ye Futian. In that instant, several people looked toward them.


    Ye Futian walked to the area where the Yuanyang clan was in. Yuan Hong immediately freed up a seat and said, "You can sit here."


    The person beside him cooperated and stood up.


    Ye Futian did not reject the offer and sat down. Xiao Muyu sat down behind him. That caused many people to be rather shocked. Xiao Muyu no longer had an ordinary status, yet she willingly took up a supporting role at this moment. It seemed like her respect for Ye Futian stemmed from deep within her heart.


    "Thank you for what you did in the God''s Relic. I''ve come specially to give you all a toast." Ye Futian smiled as he raised his cup toward the group.


    "I also wish to help my teacher extend his gratitude." Xiao Muyu followed Ye Futian''s actions.


    The elder of the Yuanyang clan smiled as he nodded. If they were not master and disciple, the two of them did look like a fine pair.


    "Friend Ye, is the Goddess your first disciple?" the elder of the Yuanyang clan asked.


    "She should be my first official disciple," Ye Futian nodded as he said, "However, with a disciple like Muyu, I suddenly have the urge to take in even more disciples."


    "I know, female disciples." Yuan Hong laughed as he chimed in from the side.


    "No, I might set up a school when I return to the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future. I''ll spread my path and teachings. Isn''t taking in a bunch of disciples one of life''s greatest joys?" Ye Futian said half-jokingly.


    "School?" Yuan Hong was a little shocked. Ye Futian''s abilities were still rather weak.


    If they were in the lower realms of the 3000 Realms of the Great Path, Ye Futian''s current battle capabilities were enough to rule over a realm.


    However, his strength would not be enough for him to set up a school in one of the Nine Supreme Regions.


    "That''s feasible." Yuan Hong nodded.


    "However, I just said that casually. If I truly set up a school and want to take in disciples in the future, the Yuanyang clan must send me a few students with good potential. It''s best that�� You know it��" Ye Futian said as he squinted.


    "..." Yuan Hong''s expression darkened. This lad''s reputation had spread across the realms, yet he did not know how to pay attention to his image.


    "Alright, I''ll gather a few good students for you when that time comes and get them to enter our school. But don''t play favorites," Yuan Hong promised. He knew that Ye Futian was only joking. Xiao Muyu was a female disciple. What could Ye Futian do to her?


    They were merely kidding.


    "Then that''s a deal," Ye Futian said.


    "I''ll await that day. I will keep my word," Yuan Hong promised.


    "I''ll also give you my word in place of Yuan Hong," the elder of the Yuanyang clan smiled as he said.


    "Then let me give you my thanks." Ye Futian did not go into detail and merely narrated his plan in a joking manner. The Yuanyang clan would naturally understand him when the time comes. It was up to them what they would do.


    He could not elaborate his plan in detail like how he had told it to Xiao Tan. He had to hide a little of the truth.


    Ye Futian chatted for a while here, then went to propose a toast with Shentian Academy and the Nantian Divine Kingdom to thank them for their actions outside the God''s Relic. This was only a way of strengthening their relationship. He did not expect them to be his allies if something happened in the future, but he wanted them to not be his enemies when that time comes.


    After the banquet, the powerful fighters of various factions left one after the other. Although the Xiao clan politely got them to stay, those were mere formalities. None of the factions would stay for real.


    It was evening. Ye Futian bade his goodbyes and prepared to leave.


    "Teacher, can you not stay for a few more days?" Xiao Muyu asked Ye Futian.


    "Friend Ye, Muyu is not wrong. This journey has been rushed, and we have not treated you appropriately. If you do not have anything urgent to attend to, why be in such a hurry to leave?" Xiao Tan also tried to get him to stay. It would be good if Ye Futian could stay and give the juniors of the Xiao clan some pointers. If he took a fancy to any of them, Ye Futian might even take them in as his disciple and nurture them as he did with Xiao Muyu.


    Xiao Muyu nodded her head seriously. She looked at Ye Futian longingly and said, "I haven''t had the chance to serve you well."


    Ye Futian looked at Xiao Muyu''s pitiful expression. Xiao Muyu was even pulling on his sleeve. He did not bear to leave.


    "Muyu, we are family. You don''t have to put on an act in front of me," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Xiao Muyu''s expression darkened. She released her hand and rolled her eyes toward Ye Futian. "Didn''t you say that you want to be served well by your disciple. I really can''t bear to see you leave so soon."


    "I believe you," Ye Futian said with a smile. However, she was acting more exaggerated than she was before. Her pretense was too obvious�� She had underestimated him as his teacher.


    Ye Futian turned to look at Xiao Tan and the rest of the people and said, "Elder, we''ll have many chances in the future, but I really have several things to accomplish."


    "That''s fine." Xiao Tan did not insist after he saw that Ye Futian was determined to leave. He said, "Come frequently if you have the time. You can inform us if you encounter any trouble."


    "Alright. Thank you, elder." Ye Futian nodded, "I''ll take my leave."


    He then said to Xiao Muyu, "You''ve already become the Goddess of the Xiao clan. You have to train well. As the chief disciple, you must not tarnish my reputation."


    "I know," Xiao Muyu said in frustration.


    "I''m leaving," Ye Futian said. He then left together with Xia Qingyuan and the three other people in his group. His group disappeared into the horizon in the blink of an eye.


    Xiao Muyu dragged her long black gown and walked forward. She only stopped when she reached the front of the steps. She got into a daze as she looked at the figures gradually disappearing into the horizon.


    Fate was a wonderful thing. She remembered that she had met Ye Futian because he had snatched her lotus in the God''s Relic for Xia Qingyuan.


    Now, he had become her benefactor.


    Even though he was very improper, he left a deep impression in her heart. They had only interacted for a short time, yet he had taken up an important position in her heart.


    "You can''t bear for him to leave?" Xiao Tan asked as he walked to Xiao Muyu''s side.


    "A little," Xiao Muyu nodded as she said.


    "That lad is exceptional. Who knows what kind of storms they would create in the 3000 Realms of the Great Path now that they had left," Xiao Tan muttered, "We can only wait and see.


    It was clear that he thought highly of Ye Futian.


    ��


    Ye Futian continued to train silently when he returned to Shentian Academy.


    Time passed without him knowing. Half a year has passed. Ye Futian did not cause trouble during this time. No one in Shentian Academy disturbed him.


    Half a year later, Ye Futian and his group secretly left Shentian Academy. However, he still invited the attention of several people.


    After all, many people in the area outside Shentian Academy were paying close attention to Ye Futian. However, no one expected Ye Futian, who had trained silently for a year, to suddenly disappear with the rest of his group. When several people came to the pavilion the next day, they realized that it was empty. The Matrix was also destroyed. It was as if Ye Futian had never come here.


    Shentian Academy naturally caught wind of the news. However, Shentian Academy and Ye Futian had a transactional relationship. They naturally did not care if Ye Futian stayed or not.


    In the Tianhe Realm, within the mountain ranges. This place felt like paradise. It was extremely quiet. No one disturbed the area.


    A young lady was training at the peak of a mountain. She was surrounded by Sword Will.


    However, she seemed to have sensed something. She opened her eyes and looked up in the sky, only to see a powerful aura descending into her surroundings. Her expression suddenly changed. She turned around and moved quickly, but her grandmaster already knew of her intentions. He stood in front of her silently.


    "Ping'' an, it''s your Uncle-Master," the Sky River Great Elder said. Xu Ping''an froze for a moment, then turned around and looked up in the sky. She saw a figure descend from the sky. He had white hair and was dressed in a white robe. He was incredibly charismatic. It was Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s figure descended in front of Xu Ping'' an. He reached out and stroked Xu Ping'' an''s face and said, "Ping'' an, how''s your cultivation coming along?"


    His teacher, Qi Xuangang''s, senior had died in battle for him. His son had also committed suicide and left behind the lone Xu Ping'' an. Ye Futian truly saw Xu Ping'' an as his junior and family.


    "I''ve broken through the first level," Xu Ping'' an said, "Uncle-Master, your demeanor has changed."


    "Your Uncle-Master is already a Renhuang," the Sky River Great Elder said. He walked over and looked at the powerful fighters in the air and asked, "Are they all your partners?"


    Ye Futian nodded, "We''ve come here to get you to come out of the mountains, grandmaster."


    "For what?" the Sky River Great Elder asked.


    Ye Futian told the Sky River Great Elder his plans of setting up a school at the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The Sky River Great Elder fell silent.


    "I''ll definitely attract the attention of the Shen clan if I leave. The Shen clan might seem to have forgiven me over the years, but they are always keeping an eye on me," the Sky River Great Elder said.


    "Thus, we''ll have to trouble Lord Taixuan and pull the members of the Xiao clan into the school when that time comes. That way, we would be able to resist the pressure of the Shen clan," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright." The Sky River Great Elder nodded, "Come notify me when that time comes, I''ll head there directly."


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded. He turned back and saw Little Condor flying to his side.


    "This is my demon beast partner. Its thoughts are connected to mine. It''ll stay here so that I can notify you when the time comes," Ye Futian said. That way, he need not make another trip here.


    "That''s good." The Sky River Great Elder nodded.


    "Since that is the case, I''ll have to head back to the Heavenly Mandate Realm first," Ye Futian said directly. He had no intention of staying.


    "Go." The Sky River Great Elder did not attempt to hold him back. Ye Futian nodded, then looked at Xu Ping'' an and said, "Ping'' an, work hard. When that time comes, you can come to the Heavenly Mandate Realm with the grandmaster and train."


    "En, I know." Xu Ping'' an nodded. Her Uncle-Master saw her as a child, but her cultivation level was not low!


    "Grandmaster, I''ll head off now," Ye Futian said as he sliced through the air and left. He brought his group from this place back to the Heavenly Mandate Realm!

 1680 Return to the Heavenly Mandate Realm

    Recently, the Heavenly Mandate Realm was not peaceful. In the past year, conflicts kept erupting.


    The source of the conflicts was due to the clashes in the God''s Relic. Shu Huangsun from Purple Gold Rat Clan had suddenly killed a member of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and joined forces with Ye Futian''s group to go against them.


    How could the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty tolerate such a betrayal?


    After the top forces returned to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, a few large wars had erupted.


    Currently, the Purple Gold Rat Clan obtained three top-tier divine arms. Their combat power had also risen greatly. Although it was still impossible for them to take on the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Purple Gold Rat Emperor was cunning. He did not stay in the Purple Gold Rat Clan at all, instead leading a group of elite Purple Gold Rats outside of his territory. This made the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty cautious. He did not dare to directly send troops to destroy the Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    After all, the two clan lords of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were still alive. If the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty destroyed the Purple Gold Rat Clan, then Purple Gold Rat Emperor would be like the two clan lords of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and be trouble in the future for the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Hence, the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty gave the Purple Gold Rat Clan a way out. If they surrendered their three divine arms to his Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, he would let bygones be bygones.


    Purple Gold Rat Clan had only obtained a total of three divine arms, and they had managed to do so by completely offending the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. How could they possibly hand the divine items over with just a word from the other party?


    Hence, the two parties had been at a standstill. The Purple Gold Rat Emperor only agreed to surrender one ritual implement to settle the score between them.


    The Purple Gold Rat Emperor was not a fool. If he actually surrendered the three ritual implements, would his opponent truly let them go?


    He feared that if he did so, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would destroy them all regardless.


    The rise of the Purple Gold Rat Emperor was originally not glamorous. He had seen many despicable acts and had committed many atrocities himself. He had betrayed and murdered his masters before. How could he possibly compromise so easily now?


    After that, the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty took another step back and only demanded two divine arm ritual implements to settle the matter.


    However, the Purple Gold Rat Clan was not foolish either to reject the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and kept dragging on the negotiations.


    During this process, small skirmishes kept occurring, and many cultivators from the Purple Gold Rat Clan perished.


    They had sought reinforcements and asked for aid from the demon clans in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. However, no one answered their call for aid. The forces of the Demon Realm originally looked down on the Purple Gold Rat Clan even though they had all joined forces with Ye Futian in the God''s Relic. On the surface, they seemed to have been in the same alliance as the Purple Gold Rat Clan.


    However, in reality, things were not that simple, especially after a few of the top figures among the juniors of Demon Clan returned, having forged flawless Divine Wheels. Everything became even more obvious. The Purple Gold Rat Clan was not included in Ye Futian''s plans at all. That meant that Ye Futian had intentionally given them three ritual implements in order to stir up conflict.


    As for the three top tier ritual implements, they would not be going anywhere. If everything went according to Ye Futian''s plan, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Purple Gold Rat Clan would most likely have nowhere to run. When that time came, wouldn''t the ritual implements still end up back in Ye Futian''s hands?


    After the few members of the Demon Clan that managed to forge flawless Divine Wheels returned, they had been cultivating in seclusion. News of them becoming Renhuangs was tightly guarded. The people of the outside world did not even know that they had broken through to the next Plane. Only their own forces knew about it.


    Now, they only needed to wait for news to arrive. Ye Futian was obviously going to slaughter his way back here.


    That day should also be not too far away.


    In the lands of the Dragon Gods in the Demon Realm in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    For the Dragon Gods, everything was as usual. There was nothing out of the ordinary.


    Right now, there was a rumor circulating among the Dragon Gods. Rumor had it that Long Chen might have already become a Demon Emperor and that he might have already broken through to the next Plane in Tianshen Academy. However, this news had yet to be verified.


    After he returned here, Long Chen had been in seclusion on Dragon God Mountain and had not come out at all. The seniors among the Dragon Gods also did not speak of this matter. Hence, there was only a rumor; no one knew the truth.


    At the moment, many Demon Emperors of Dragon Gods looked up to the sky in the distance. Their demonic aura churned.


    There were a few very powerful auras heading in their direction.


    Soon, dazzling divine light descended, and a group of silhouettes appeared in the sky above Dragon Gods. Many dragons flew up to the sky and roared at the incomers, showing signs of animosity.


    This group actually dared to invade Dragon Gods directly?


    A few figures walked out from the Purple Gold Dragon God Fortress, located amidst a mountain range. When they looked up to the sky, they spotted the leading white-haired youth at a glance. His silver-colored hair was dancing in the wind while his white robe fluttered; his temperament was unparalleled.


    "All of you, back off," a voice rang. All the dragons which were in the sky retreated. Those who had seen Ye Futian before recognized that he was the leader of the group.


    Ye Futian and the group advanced without stopping, heading straight towards the tallest Purple Gold Dragon God Fortress, which was located in the distance. Above this Purple Gold Dragon God Fortress in the mountains, huge dragons spiraled. The scene was extremely awe-inspiring.


    A majestic silhouette garbed in a long purple gold robe with a crown on his head walked forward. His temperament was extraordinary. A single gaze gave off an overbearing sensation.


    This was the Patriarch of the Dragon Gods, King of the Divine Dragons, Purple Gold Dragon Emperor.


    The figures of Ye Futian''s group descended unto the steps of Dragon God Fortress. They raised their heads and looked up at the Purple Gold Dragon Emperor in the sky above.


    "I am Junior Ye Futian, Your Highness Dragon Emperor." Ye Futian bowed slightly and said, "In order to avoid the notice of others, we directly appeared within the territory of Dragon Gods. May Your Highness pardon our intrusion."


    "It is of no consequence," Purple Gold Dragon Emperor said indifferently. His authoritative gaze swept across the crowd, and he said, "You may all leave."


    "Understood." The various dragons were full of doubt, but they still left the area.


    Dragon Master actually personally welcomed Ye Futian. The group behind Ye Futian was also very powerful. They seemed to be cultivators of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Why did they directly come to Dragon Gods?


    Ye Futian''s group and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were sworn enemies, the type that would not cease until the other party was wiped off the face of the earth. It was naturally impossible for them to appear in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s territory openly. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would certainly go all out to try and kill them.


    Hence, their first stop upon returning to the Heavenly Mandate Realm was Dragon Gods'' territory.


    "Come on up," Dragon Master said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded, and a part of his group headed up the stairs. However, many of them also remained down below.


    "Arrange rooms for them to rest in. Let no one from the outside know about this," Dragon Master ordered. His tone was extremely dignified and overbearing.


    "Understood."


    Servant dragons walked out from the side and headed down to arrange rooms for the people below.


    Ye Futian secretly approved inside. Purple Gold Dragon Emperor understood what Ye Futian wanted to do by returning this time. Hence, he had temporarily given the order to prevent news of Ye Futian''s return from leaking out.


    If news of Ye Futian''s return were to leak out to the ears of the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, wanting to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in one swoop would not be so easy.


    "Let us talk inside." Dragon Master turned and brought Ye Futian inside Dragon God Fortress. At the same time, he ordered, "Summon Long Chen."


    The inside of Dragon God Fortress was resplendent gold. Huge dragons were carved into the stone pillars and appeared extremely majestic. The infrastructure here was massive. Just the inner layer was already hundreds of meters tall. It itself was built inside the mountain range and was very magnificent.


    Ye Futian only brought Jiang Chengzi, Hua Jiangshan, Yu Sheng, and a few others with him.


    "Sit," Dragon Master said. He himself sat in the seat of the Dragon Emperor. He then turned to Ye Futian and said, "Many thanks for helping Long Chen."


    "Senior, you do not need to be so polite. I did not help him unconditionally; therefore, you do not need to thank me," Ye Futian replied.


    "Long Chen will take my place in the future. Things have become even more perfect than I planned. As for your previous request, I also know of it. Establishing an academy in the Heavenly Mandate Realm is not an issue. Our Dragon Gods are willing to be a part of this," Dragon Master said very decisively.


    The prophecy foretold that the reason behind the changes that occurred to the mountains where the Demon Realm originated was all to confirm one thing. The powers in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were about to shift. This was inevitable.


    Dragon Master also glanced at Gu Dongliu beside Ye Futian. Gu Dongliu had inherited the teachings of the Demon Monarch.


    "Many thanks, Your Highness Dragon Emperor." Ye Futian nodded his head slightly and said, "Junior has no intention of seeking dominance in establishing an academy. I merely wish for the academy to train the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm equally, be they humans or cultivators from the Demon Realm, and improve the ability of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. In the future, if another figure like Long Chen appears in Dragon Gods, I am confident that I can do the same as I did with Long Chen."


    "Prior to this, although Senior Gu Tianxing said that he wanted to establish my Third Elder Brother as the new king, my Third Elder Brother is of the same mind as me. He only wants to pass on teachings at the academy. If, in the future, an Imperial Realm figure truly appears in our Heavenly Mandate Realm, then..." Ye Futian assured.


    Dragon Master naturally understood what Ye Futian meant to say. Ye Futian wanted to put his mind at ease that he would not contend for dominance.


    However, if an emperor truly appeared in the world, then there was nothing much to be said; that person would certainly become the master of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Or perhaps, an emperor was not needed.


    The cooperation between Dragon Gods and Ye Futian was also a way for Dragon Gods to be a part of all this. Otherwise, if they were to be completely detached, Ye Futian would cooperate with other forces, and they would be left standing alone.


    Ye Futian was doing what Gu Tianxing himself had not been able to do back in the day. This sort of person was difficult to encounter even across hundreds of years.


    If a person who had just reached the Renhuang Plane had said this to Dragon Master, that person would most likely have been immediately killed by Dragon Master with a slap.


    "What about the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as well as Violet Heavenly Palace? What are you prepared to do about them?" Dragon Master inquired. This matter certainly needed to be settled before establishing the academy.


    Ye Futian said that the location of the academy would be in the territory of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. That was the center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    This also implied that before that happened, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would definitely disappear.


    "Your Highness Dragon Emperor, could you help me inform the other forces and ask them to gather here to discuss this matter?" Ye Futian asked. Since he had decided to act, he would do it in one fell swoop and not leave any loose ends.


    The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was not a pushover. He had to die. They could not allow him to escape here alive; otherwise, he would be a huge problem in the future!

 1681 The Plan

    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was situated in the center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and had prospered there for generations.


    The rise of Gu Tianxing caused the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to begin to decline. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was currently in the weakest state of its history.


    Hence, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was anxious to cultivate another peak figure, and they had chosen Yi Tianyu.


    Yi Tianyu, who was considered to be born supreme, shouldered the heavy burden of reviving the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. However, things do not turn out the way people want them to. At this point, the members of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty realized that it would most likely be difficult for Yi Tianyu to bear this responsibility.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm alone, there were already a number of people who surpassed him.


    Ye Futian alone was already a tall mountain that was insurmountable for Yi Tianyu. He was previously an insignificant existence; now, Yi Tianyu was not even qualified to stand at the same level as him.


    In the God''s relic, with just one spear thrust, Ye Futian had spared his life.


    Right now, outside the main palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stood there. An authoritative will surrounded his body.


    Below the stairs in front of Dynastic Overlord, someone was bowing on all fours and reporting something to him.


    The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had a stern expression. A faint sense of authority emanated from his body.


    Ye Futian had left Tianshen Academy.


    After emerging from God''s relic, the energy and will that Ye Futian displayed made even the Dynastic Overlord feel threatened. If he could, he would have killed Ye Futian in the City of the Ruins. However, he was unable to do so.


    After that, Ye Futian had convinced the various forces to speak up for him and save his life. He then went over to Tianshen Academy.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty naturally also sent its members over. They actually sent quite a few over separately. The members trained outside of Tianshen Academy. They did not deliberately keep an eye on Ye Futian. In that region, Ye Futian''s every move could be seen by many people; they did not need to spy on him intentionally.


    They would naturally also catch wind of Ye Futian having left the academy.


    If it had just been Ye Futian who left, it might not have attracted their attention. However, this time, Ye Futian had brought everyone with him when he left Tianshen Academy, including the members of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, who were heading over to regroup.


    "Can we deduce where they have gone?" the Dynastic Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked.


    "Your Highness, if our guess is correct, they might have returned to the Tianhe Realm. They might have also returned to Taixuan Mountain in the Higher Heavens Realm," the other party responded.


    Before this, Ye Futian remained in Tianshen Academy as a form of self-preservation. It was because many people had their eyes on him after he emerged from the God''s Relic. Hence, he had trained in Tianshen Academy for more than a year to let this issue gradually fade into memory. As long as he trained in Tianshen Academy, they could not touch him. As time passed, this matter also faded from people''s minds.


    Ye Futian also did not waste this time. He distributed many ritual implements to the point that he didn''t have many left himself. Other than that, he became the master of Goddess Xiao Muyu from Xiao Clan, forging an intimate relationship with Xiao Clan.


    The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty nodded his head slightly. The possibility of Ye Futian having returned to the Tianhe Realm and Taixuan Mountain was indeed high.


    It was slightly better if Ye Futian had returned to the Tianhe Realm. If he had returned to Taixuan Mountain and managed to convince Lord Taixuan to stand against their Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, who among the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could withstand Lord Taixuan?


    However, Lord Taixuan would probably not come running over to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to begin a massacre for Ye Futian. There was no reason for him to do so.


    Of course, even if the possibility was not very likely, the Dynastic Overlord had also made preparations for such an eventuality. He had already sent people to keep an eye on Taixuan Mountain. If there were signs of any large mobilization, he would hear of it.


    As for Sky River Great Elder, the Dynastic Overlord was not afraid of him. Even though the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was not what it once was, it still had its foundations. If the mob from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven that was dispersed, with an additional Sky River Great Elder dared to approach their Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Dynastic Overlord would make sure that their group would never leave Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s territory alive.


    "Keep an eye on the Demon Realm as well," the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty instructed. The forces of the Demon Realm had close ties with Ye Futian. In God''s relic, the juniors of the Demon Realm had joined forces with Ye Futian. When they were in Tianshen Academy, rumor had it that they also came in contact with him.


    Although the chances of the forces of the Demon Realm rising up to deal with their Heavenly Mandate Dynasty for Ye Futian were extremely slim, the Dynastic Overlord still had to be concerned about the possibility.


    "Understood. It is just that it is not easy for our men to infiltrate the Demon Realm. We won''t be able to get firsthand information," his subordinate replied. Although the previous huge incident in the Demon Realm had caused the human cultivators and the cultivators of the Demon Realm to no longer have any obvious divide between them, it was impossible for humans to approach the regions where the main forces of the Demon Realm resided. Once they approached the territories of these forces, they would stick out like a sore thumb.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could only rely on demonic beasts to help keep an eye on these regions. They also could not control demonic beasts that were too powerful, and so could not manage a tight watch.


    "No matter. Just keep an eye out for any movements," the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty simply responded. He was not too concerned. Although they had to be wary, they did not need to be too anxious and spend too much energy on the matter.


    He turned around and headed into the main palace behind him. He entered into the magnificent palace. There was a silhouette sitting quietly inside. The silhouette had an extremely sharp gaze. His gaze seemed to glow with golden divine light. The aura on his body was frightening.


    "Any news on Ye Futian?" The silhouette asked as he turned towards Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. He did not show much respect. He seemed to not be ordinary.


    After all, in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Dynastic Overlord was a supreme existence. Everyone had to refer to him as "Your Highness."


    However, the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did not feel as though anything was wrong. His expression was very calm as he nodded his head, "So you overheard it. Ye Futian has left Tianshen Academy. Where do you think he has gone?"


    "I have sent people to keep an eye on the Tianhe Realm. If there are any signs of movement there, they will come and report to me," the other party answered. Clearly, they both had rough estimates on the whereabouts of Ye Futian and believed that he would head to the Tianhe Realm.


    "Alright," the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty nodded his head slightly. While thinking about Ye Futian, a cold gleam flashed past in his eyes. "If Ye Futian had stayed in Tianshen Academy, we wouldn''t be able to do anything to him. However, since he has left, I would like to see where he can run away to."


    It was hard to imagine that a top figure that shook the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the commander of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, would be so concerned about a junior and be so anxious to eliminate him.


    If Ye Futian knew about this, would he feel honored?


    Of course, Ye Futian and the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty happened to hold the same view.


    The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to kill Ye Futian to avoid future trouble; it was also the same for Ye Futian.


    In the territory of Dragon Gods, powerful cultivators furtively arrived one by one. Their trip here did not draw the attention of any outsiders.


    Moreover, those who came were all influential figures in the Demon Realm. Their arrival caused the hearts of the guards, who stood on guard outside of Dragon God Fortress, to tremble. What were these top figures doing here?


    The guards noticed that even the Demon Emperor of the Sky Demon Court had arrived. Divine Elephant Emperor was here too. The underlings who came together with the two Emperors were also powerful figures in their respective forces. They were famous in the Demon Realm.


    There was hardly any connection among these three demon clans before this. Dragon Gods and the Sky Demon Court were not even on good terms with each other; they were secretly competing to see who was better.


    The two Emperors of the demon clans would not usually meet each other too.


    However, today, the Golden Raven Demonic Great Elder came and set foot in the Dragon God Fortress.


    In the main palace hall, the Dragon Emperor, the Demon Emperor, and the Divine Elephant Emperor were all gathered. Ye Futian was here too.


    "How''s Xiang Mang''s training going?" Ye Futian asked the Divine Elephant Emperor. Prior to this, three cultivators broke through to the Renhuang Plane, but Xiang Mang was not one of them. He was not even half a Renhuang yet. Naturally, it was impossible for Ye Futian to lend him a hand in proving his Way.


    "He is already preparing to attempt a breakthrough. He has been waiting for your news," Divine Elephant Emperor replied.


    "After we settle this affair, let''s start an academy and let Xiang Mang cultivate in the academy," Ye Futian suggested. The Divine Elephant Emperor nodded in agreement. Actually, the Divine Elephant Emperor had the closest relationship with Ye Futian; naturally, the former did not need to worry about Ye Futian treating the Divine Elephants shabbily.


    "I also have a junior who is at the Saint Plane. In the future, I will need your help too," said a cultivator who was standing beside the Golden Raven Demonic Great Elder of the Sky Demon Court. Ye Futian looked towards him; he knew who the speaker was.


    The speaker was Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder of Sky Demon Court.


    In reality, Golden Raven Demonic Great Elder and Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder were not on good terms. However, after Jun returned to the Sky Demon Court, Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder found out that he had actually forged a flawless Divine Wheel. Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder was shocked, and he regretted his decision of not asking his juniors to cultivate alongside Ye Futian.


    "No problem. After we have set up the academy, Junior will not keep the knowledge to myself. Senior, you can relax," Ye Futian said.


    "Many thanks," Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder replied. He was not close to Ye Futian. Ye Futian helping his junior was considered a huge debt of gratitude. Hence, he could only return the favor to Ye Futian in advance.


    The few influential figures of the demon clans were impressed by Ye Futian. Ye Futian possessed the ability to produce Renhuangs with flawless Divine Wheels, yet he did not keep the skill to himself. Instead, he chose to help them. Ye Futian''s temperament was one of a kind.


    After all, in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he had been without equal.


    "Let us discuss our next action. What do you have in mind?" the Golden Raven Demonic Great Elder asked. Since they were going to deal with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, his thoughts were the same as Ye Futian''s. They would eliminate this threat in one fell sweep to avoid any future troubles.


    "Both Senior Golden Raven Demonic Great Elder and Senior Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder are proficient in speed, are you not?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Our speed should be the fastest in the Demon Realm," Golden Raven Demonic Great Elder said as he nodded his head.


    "Senior Divine Elephant Emperor is proficient in the Great Path of Suppression?" Ye Futian inquired.


    "Hmm." The Divine Elephant Emperor nodded his head.


    "Can you suppress and seal off the entire Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?" Ye Futian asked.


    "As long as I am not interrupted by people from the same Plane, it should not be a problem," Divine Elephant Emperor answered. If another person of the same Plane were to break his Way or attack him while he was using his Way, it would affect him.


    "Understood." Ye Futian nodded his head and said, "I think that the operation this time must be a one-hit-kill. We can call it a beheading operation. Our first target is the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. We must not let him escape and must kill him. Next are the upper-level Renhuangs of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. We must keep an eye on all of them and try to kill them all. After that are the middle-level as well as lower-level Renhuangs. As for the members below the Renhuang Plane, they won''t be able to escape even if they tried."


    For the members at the lower Planes, even if they escaped, they would be of no threat.


    Hence, their targets for this operation were clear. The stronger the person was, the more they had to be killed on the spot.


    "Cultivators of Dragon Gods and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven will be in charge of offense. You will kill your way through the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty," Ye Futian ordered. "Divine Elephants will be in charge of suppression, sealing off the entire Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Cultivators of Sky Demon Court are proficient in speed, so you will guard outside the seal and hunt any cultivators who attempt to escape. We will not let anyone slip through the net."


    "How about the Violet Heavenly Palace?" asked a cultivator of Divine Elephants. Ye Futian would most likely hunt them too, right?


    "While I was on my way here, I issued an order to 10,000 Divine Mountain, asking them to keep an eye on the Violet Heavenly Palace," Ye Futian said. "After we eradicate the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, we will move towards the Violet Heavenly Palace directly." This time, he would surely kill all of them!

 1682 Heading Ou

    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, everything was as usual. Nothing was out of the ordinary.


    In the vast Heavenly Mandate Realm, there were countless cultivators. Everyone was busy with their own matters, working hard in their training. Battles, pillaging, and massacres were happening all the time.


    In Brahma''s Pure Sky, high above the clouds.


    In a palace where clouds and mist lingered, a stunning figure quietly sat. Her jet-black hair danced in the wind behind her. In her mind, there were countless images flashing past. The images seemed to be situations that were really playing out in various parts of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    The images included small clans, ruins, and powerful forces. The countless images were like memory fragments. They formed a complete picture within her mind.


    Suddenly, a silhouette directly appeared in her mind. It seemed to occupy her mind. It also became more real and clearer. The aura on her body fluctuated and released a chilly will. Her dazzling eyes opened.


    At that moment, the surrounding mist and clouds churned endlessly.


    "Your Highness?" Down below, a goddess looked up at the sky above when she sensed this aura fluctuation.


    "I''m alright," Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress said calmly. Her voice contained a somewhat cold and indifferent tone. She stood up. Her stunning figure was like that of a model in a painting, transcending the mundane world around her.


    She looked into the distance. Why was she feeling uneasy? She felt as though something big was going to happen.


    Her perception was very sharp. The images that flashed in her mind was not something she made up.


    "Has something happened in the outside world recently?" Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress asked as she stared at one of her underlings.


    "Aside from the conflict between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Purple Gold Rat Clan, there is not much happening," a goddess replied. Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress went silent for a moment, then she said, "Monitor what''s happening in the outside world. If anything arises, report it to me immediately."


    "Yes, Your Highness." Someone received the order while bowing, then left the palace.


    At the same time, at the majestic Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Many cultivators appeared at a corner outside of the Violet Heavenly Palace. They were on guard against all possible dangers. A few silhouettes moved towards them. The visitors did not release any aura, appearing exceptionally friendly. However, the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace, who knew the identity of the visitors knew that they should not let their guards down now.


    Even the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace walked out from the palace and stared at the three visitors who were approaching them.


    Swiftly, the three figures arrived before the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace. The Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace asked, "What brought you here?"


    "I have been meditating on the mountain and have lost touch with the outside world. I am here to get some fresh air while visiting my old friend," Lord of 10,000 Divine Mountain said with a smile. "Since I am passing by the Violet Heavenly Palace, I thought of meeting up with the Palace Lord, whom I have not seen in a long time."


    Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace naturally would not believe whatever Lord of 10,000 Divine Mountain had just said. Would the other party really come to visit him if he did not have anything in mind?


    "What matters do you have with me? Stop beating around the bush," the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace said directly.


    "Nothing. I am just thinking of having a chess match with the Palace Lord at the Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder. What do you think?" Lord of 10,000 Divine Mountain replied. The Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder was a secret realm in the Violet Heavenly Palace. It contained Jiutian Divine Thunder. Only the core disciples of the Violet Heavenly Palace could access the place and cultivate in it.


    Besides that, the terrifying Way of Thunder was stored in the Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder. Hence, outsiders were forbidden from entering it.


    Lord of 10,000 Divine Mountain wanted to enter the place. Could it be that he wanted to make use of the place for cultivating?


    "We are old friends. Palace Lord, you won''t be so stingy with me, right?" Lord of 10,000 Divine Mountain provoked with a smile.


    "Since you are so interested in it, then you are welcome to come in." The Palace Lord of Violet Heavenly Palace actually did not reject his request and agreed to this suggestion right away.


    "After you," the Lord of 10,000 Divine Mountain said with a smile. Then, both groups moved into the heavenly palace. In it, endless thunders volleyed in the sky, as though it was a world of thunders.


    The Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder was in the palace.


    ...


    In the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, in front of the main palace, another person had come to make a report.


    "What''s the matter?" A voice came from the main palace.


    "Your Highness, there is some movement in the Demon Realm," the subordinate reported.


    After he said this, the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty stepped forward. In an instant, he had arrived before the sky stairwell. He looked down at the member below and asked, "What movements are there?"


    "Recently, in the Demon Realm, there have been faint sightings of cultivators leaving the Sky Demon Court, Dragon Gods as well as Divine Elephants," the subordinate reported.


    "How many cultivators are there, and where are they headed?" the Dynastic Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty inquired.


    "We are not very sure. Our men could only notice that there was movement, but they could not determine any more information," the other party replied. Their men did not dare to approach near the territory of the Demon Realm to spy. They could only obtain very obscure information.


    As for where those cultivators had gone, the spies were even less certain as it was impossible for them to track them.


    "That means that their numbers are few?" the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked.


    "It should not be too many," the other party replied.


    "Continue to monitor the situation," the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty said.


    "Yes, Your Highness," the other side responded. He then left.


    The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty frowned slightly. What were these forces from the Demon Realm planning to do?


    "Father."


    At this moment, a silhouette walked up from behind the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. It was the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Yi Tianyu.


    Not long ago, he had finally reached the Renhuang Plane. In reality, he had been close to the Renhuang Plane for a very long time. Back then, when he was training in the Divine Palace, he was already infinitesimally approaching the Renhuang Plane.


    His original intention was to enter the God''s relic and, when he encountered a fateful encounter, break through the shackles of the Plane and prove his Great Path.


    However, in the God''s relic, he had encountered Ye Futian. One spear thrust from Ye Futian had immediately severed all these thoughts of his. His state of mind had received an extremely heavy blow. After emerging from the God''s relic, for a very long time, he had been unable to readjust back to his old self.


    Not long ago, he had finally proven his Great Path, a whole year later than he had initially expected.


    It was also naturally impossible for him to forge a flawless Divine Wheel. He only managed to forge a Celestial Level one.


    Currently, Yi Tianyu''s temperament had become even more extraordinary. After reaching the Renhuang Plane, he no longer had his previous arrogance. He had become more restrained. However, his temperament had become even more outstanding.


    "Why have you come over? Has your Plane become stable?" the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked.


    "Hmm." Yi Tianyu nodded and asked, "Has he left Tianshen Academy?"


    The Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty naturally knew who Yi Tianyu meant. He nodded his head slightly and said, "Although you were slower than Ye Futian in reaching the Renhuang Plane, the Renhuang Plane is just a beginning. It is not impossible for you to catch up with him in the future."


    "Father, you do not need to console me. In the future, I will only focus on surpassing my own limits," Yi Tianyu said. His state of mind was different from before. Prior to this, he had always been in the shadow of Ye Futian.


    However, now, Yi Tianyu had walked out from that shadow. On his cultivation journey, he would no longer desire to compare with anyone else. Instead, he would focus on his own Way and keep on advancing.


    As for Ye Futian, Yi Tianyu could only acknowledge that if Ye Futian did not die, he would certainly advance even further than himself.


    "It is best that you can look past all this," the Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty nodded his head slightly and said. "After Ye Futian has fallen, you should go out and travel around."


    Yi Tianyu did not say anymore. He knew that his father had always kept an eye on the movements of Ye Futian and would certainly want to kill him.


    Right now, Ye Futian''s existence was already a threat to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They definitely could not just sit back and wait for him to develop further. They were well aware of this point.


    ...


    In the Demon Realm, within the territory of Dragon Gods, many dragons circled above. The roars of dragons reverberated in the sky.


    Ye Futian was there too. He sat on a gigantic, divine dragon, inspecting the dragons which were roaming in the sky. His gaze was piercing as he looked into the distance.


    Dragon Master had left. Next, the rest of them would move towards the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty at the same time, with the goal of eradicating the latter in one swoop.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian ordered. As soon as he spoke, the roars of dragons thundered in the heavens and the earth. Even those who were outside of the territory of Dragon Gods could hear the shocking roars of dragons.


    Countless powerful demons raised their heads and stared in the direction where Dragon Gods were. In the sky, many gigantic dragons traversed through the space, covering the sun and moving towards the far distance.


    "This..." When a demonic beast saw this scene, it trembled in fear as it fought the urge to prostrate. After the dragons left, the demonic beast ran as fast as it could. It was going to spread the news.


    Where were the Dragon Gods going?


    On top of Dragon Gods, the cultivators of the Sky Demon Court and Divine Elephants also started their journey. Their movement stirred up a commotion. They were moving in the direction opposite of the Demon Realm, where the human cultivators resided.


    This alarming news spread like wildfire. Like an earthquake, the entire Demon Realm was shocked by it.


    Top figures of the Demon Realm were charging towards the territory where human cultivators resided. Was a war between demons clans and humans about to erupt?


    However, there were no signs of war prior to this. Why did the demon clans suddenly start a war?


    Could it be that the Demon Realm wanted to conquer the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    The humans had been at peace with the Demon Realm for decades. It had been a long time since a war erupted. Now, was the peace about to be destroyed?


    It did not occur to the cultivators of the Demon Realm that the three top demon clans were not planning to conquer the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Instead, they were joining forces to attack one specific force.


    Everywhere the three demon clans passed, chaos arose.


    The armies led by Upper-level Renhuangs advanced at an incredible speed. They left the Demon Realm, crossed the border marker, and appeared in the territory where human cultivators were.


    When the human cultivators saw the armies of the Demon Realm led by Demon Emperors, their hearts quivered in fear.


    What was happening?


    The area ruled by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was still as calm as still water. However, the three demon clans were approaching!

 1683 Cusp of an Invasion

    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was once the absolute overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It dared to claim itself as the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as it was the ruler of the Heavenly Mandate.


    This dynasty, which stood in the central region of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, ruled over a boundless territory. Several other dynastic factions surrounded the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, with each of these factions ruling over a piece of unending territory.


    All of these factions made up the overlord-like status of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    If not for the battle many years ago, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty might still have been the absolute overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They even once wanted to reunify the Heavenly Mandate Realm and restore the former glory of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Gu Xingtian, a man who had appeared out of nowhere, crumbled all of their plans. The battle back then was earth-shattering. Blood was shed everywhere.


    Ever since then, no one dared to attack the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Even the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, who was said to have the 12 Deities, was ultimately dissolved and destroyed in their battle with the dynasty. It was imaginable just now powerful the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was back then. The 12 Deities of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were all upper-level Renhuangs. Even though the current Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was ailing now, it still harbored extraordinary strength, just not as powerful as before. They were not as prosperous and powerful as they were back then.


    The battle back then made the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty never to have the thought of unifying the Heavenly Mandate Realm ever again. Instead, they pinned their hopes on the next generation''s Yi Tianyu.


    The central region of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was ruled by the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. All of its territory were its spheres of influence. The first dynastic faction was the vast army of the Demon Realm. When they stepped onto the central regions of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, it was the Yi Dynasty.


    At this moment, behind one of the city walls governed by the Yi Dynasty, people within the city suddenly felt a suffocating pressure. The people then looked up at the faraway horizon. The next moment, their figures started to tremble greatly.


    "That is�� the demon clan," some people said with trembling voices. What did they see?


    Divine Dragons were flying past the horizon. Kunpengs blocked off the sun when they extended their wings. A wave of terrifying demonic pressure descended onto the surroundings. It caused the legs of several people to go limp.


    Then, the sky suddenly darkened. When they looked up, they saw that the great demons had completely covered the sky.


    They turned back to look at the demons. They looked into the distance. If they continued straight in that direction, they would ultimately reach the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Many people felt suffocated when they thought about that.


    The sky was changing.


    "The Demon Realm is about to start a battle." A sound rang in the surroundings. The Demon Realm was charging directly in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They were not here as guests this time around. Furthermore, there had not been any warning of this. The messengers would not be able to head to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as fast as the demons could. They might not even have time to relay the news using telepathy.


    What was this, aside from war?


    Emperor Yi stood in a large majestic hall in the palace of the Yi Dynasty. He looked up and into the distance. His heart was also trembling violently. Even though he was much more powerful than most of the people in his dynasty. Even though he was merely the ruler of a border dynasty, he was still a middle-level Renhuang with a sixth-tier Divine Wheel. He was immensely powerful. He had sensed the movement when the demons were still far away.


    Something big was about to happen.


    Hum! A radiant divine light flashed past. He was incredibly fast as he turned around and sprinted in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    He was the ruler of the Yi Dynasty, but at the same time, he was also a subordinate of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Furthermore, he had a considerable relationship with the Yi clan in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. After all, every ruler of the respective dynasties could only take the position of the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty approved of it.


    A ray of golden divine light of unparalleled radiance shot out from above the faraway horizon.


    At the next moment, a golden figure instantly broke past the sky. The figure moved past the air like it was teleporting. Its powerful aura landed directly onto Emperor Yi. Its aura was terrifying.


    Emperor Yi''s expression changed drastically. His speed drastically increased until he was at his limits. There were only his blurry after-images on the horizon. No one could see his main body.


    "Emperor." Countless people from Emperor Yi''s palace looked up to see the vanishing figure. They also saw the incandescent golden figure on the horizon. It was a terrifying existence that was at the level of a Demon Emperor. The figure was surrounded by radiant illusory figures. It was a Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird.


    The demon army that was advancing on the horizon did not slow down in their invasion. It was as if they did not see anything. They continued moving forward.


    At this moment, the people on the ground felt a sharp pain in their eyes. They saw an infinite golden divine light. The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird vanished from its original position. When they saw it the next time, it was at a faraway place. There seemed to be an immense figure of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird on the horizon.


    A gentle voice rang out. At the next moment, several people saw a figure fall from the sky.


    "Emperor." When they looked over in that direction, several people raised their heads and looked at the sky. They saw the falling figure. It was Emperor Yi.


    Their hearts shook violently. The ruler of a dynasty had been killed on the spot. He had lost his life.


    Furthermore, it only took one hit.


    The radiant figure who was dressed in a long golden robe walked forward on thin air and joined up with the army. It was as if nothing had happened.


    "An upper-level Demon Emperor." The hearts of many people were shaking violently.


    An existence that could murder Emperor Yi in one hit was undoubtedly an upper-level Demon Emperor.


    Furthermore, it should have been a Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird from the Sky Demon Court.


    An extraordinary existence of the Demon Realm.


    A ruler of a dynasty was murdered without even a chance of retaliation.


    In the air, on the back of a Divine Dragon, Ye Futian stood silently. His long robe crackled in the win. He looked on at the scene unfeelingly.


    He knew of the relationship between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the surrounding dynasties. Today, anyone who interfered with them would be killed.


    That Emperor Yi must have been doubtful about why the army of the Demon Realm had descended. However, he did not expect that his erroneous judgment of wanting to notify the Heavenly Mandate Realm caused him to be killed on the spot. He stood no chance.


    Countless people looked at the sky in a daze. At this moment, no one doubted the motive of the demon army.


    They directly killed the ruler of a dynasty without saying a word.


    Did this need to be elaborated?


    They had come to extinguish the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Soon, the demon army on the horizon started to become blurrier. Then, they disappeared from the field of vision of the spectators.


    Countless people gathered at the same location. They looked toward the place where Emperor Yi had fallen. They looked at the corpse in a daze. It was as if all of this was not real.


    "Will the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty collapse?"


    Some people muttered as they looked at the vanishing army far away. At this moment, all of them felt an unprecedented sense of crisis. This might be the downfall of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Someone else had come to attack the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty after Gu Tianxing did back then. This time, the battle would be even more terrifying than back then.


    "Does anyone know what happened?" a figure asked. He was also in a daze. It was like this was a dream.


    Why would the army of the Demon Realm come to attack the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?


    Who could tell them the reason?


    "I think I saw him," someone said softly. He was still looking at the sky in a daze.


    "Who?" Countless gazes landed on the person who spoke.


    The person who spoke turned to look at the crowd. Back then, he had attended the celebration at the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Thus, he recognized the white-haired youth.


    "Ye Futian!"


    ��


    The army of the Demon Realm charged forward. Finally, the dynasties near the central region of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were shaken. It was like a tsunami. It had come suddenly, yet ferociously.


    Several figures came forward from the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They were powerful Renhuangs. They had grim expressions, their auras pulsing intensely around them. They were all headed directly toward the Sacred Hall of the palace.


    The Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had sensed the commotion. He had already stepped out and was standing on the steps.


    "Emperor, we are being attacked by the army of the Demon Realm," a voice rang out. The voice felt like a bolt of lightning on a sunny day. It rang clearly within the ears of the powerful fighters in the palace.


    The army of the Demon Realm had attacked!


    "What factions of the demon clan are there?" the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked.


    "The Divine Dragons, Sky Demon Court, and Divine Elephants. Three armies of the Demon Realm." It was another alarmed voice. The Renhuangs in the palace could no longer sit still. They took to the skies and moved in the direction of the Sacred Hall.


    The Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty clenched his fists tight. An unbelievably overbearing aura swelled outward and enveloped the boundless Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The glory around his body radiated upward and illuminated the sky.


    At this moment, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked like a deity. His body rose upward slowly until he stood high up in the air.


    The thing that he had thought to be impossible was happening.


    The formation of an alliance by the juniors in the God''s Relic had turned into a large alliance of the Demon Realm in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He did not understand.


    He closed his eyes slightly. Countless powerful fighters appeared all around him. They were all looking at him. At this moment, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was calmer than usual.


    He closed his eyes and spread his Divine Spirit outward. It expanded continuously. Soon, the boundless Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was enveloped within his Divine Spirit.


    Countless images appeared in his mind. His Divine Spirit raided the area manically. Many people clearly felt his Divine Spirit brush past him. It even felt as though they could see the deity-like figure standing in the air above the Sacred Hall.


    It was the emperor.


    At this moment, in the Imperial City, a figure was walking on the road. He had no aura and was extremely silent. He was like an ordinary person.


    However, at this moment, he stopped in his tracks and sensed the Divine Spirit sweeping past him.


    He looked up toward the direction of the palace.


    The next moment, a violent aura erupted from within his body.


    Boom��


    In an instant, the unbelievably violent aura surged out and swept past the bodies of countless people with him in the center. Several people trembled as they looked toward him.


    Who was this person?


    Thump! The ground was crumbled with a footstep. The figure took to the skies and stepped on thin air. With every step he took, several people on the ground spat out blood.


    "Why?" A voice spread toward him. It was the voice of the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. At the same time, his Divine Spirit continued spreading outward. At the other two directions of the Imperial City, terrifying auras also burst forth and applied pressure on the entire city!

 1684 Embattlemen

    Four powerful fighters appeared in each of the cardinal directions of the vast Imperial City of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They stood on the horizon. Their terrifying authority spread out around them and radiated throughout the Imperial City. Their aura enveloped the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The four of them had ninth-level Divine Wheels and came from four different factions.


    Of course, including the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, who was standing in the air above the palace, there were five unparalleled fighters in the area.


    The four powerful fighters who appeared were the Dragon Master of the Divine Dragons, the Golden Bird Demonic Lord of the Sky Demon Court, the Divine Elephant Emperor of the Divine Elephants, and Jiang Chengzi of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Any one of them was an existence that stood on the apex of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They were people who could cause the Heavenly Mandate Realm to tremble with the stomp of their foot. They had infiltrated and hidden in the Imperial City of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty before the army had set off.


    That was because they had to keep an eye on the powerful fighters of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Even though they were a great distance apart, it felt like they were looking at each other in close range within the radius of the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s Divine Spirit.


    It was unsurprising that Jiang Chengzi would attack the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They were factions that stood on opposite sides. The animosity between the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven stemmed from a long time ago. It was destined to end with one party dying.


    However, why would the three great Demon Emperors of the Heavenly Mandate Realm''s Demon Realm help the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?


    He did not understand. Was this solely because of the one-time alliance their juniors had in the God''s Relic?


    Even though those juniors could become the future successors of their respective demon clans, how could they have influenced a war of such a proportion? Why would three people at the level of a Demon Lord take action?


    Thus, his question was naturally directed toward the Dragon Master and the two other powerful fighters.


    He could not understand.


    There was no reply. The four powerful fighters only had one motive for coming here, which was to kill the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Since they were going to kill him, there was no need for any redundant words.


    Thump.


    Everyone felt insurmountable pressure. This was especially so for the people in the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Those with lower cultivation levels found it hard to steady their feet. They rose and looked into the distance in fear.


    Boom.


    Another dull thud rang out. The majestic palace shook fiercely. The magnificent hall that pierced into the skies trembled and looked ready to fall.


    The Sky Stomping Technique was the Divine Elephants'' most powerful technique. This time, the Divine Elephant Emperor was personally releasing this ability.


    All of the powerful fighters in the palace took to the skies. Yi Tianyu had also appeared. He stood in front of the hall and looked into the horizon. Within his incandescent gold eyes, he saw a majestic illusory divine figure that looked like a Demon God. The figure was infinitely large. The figure of this Divine Elephant had its four legs planted firmly in the four cardinal directions of the palace. It caused the entire palace to be suffocated under an authoritative aura. He also felt as though there was an entire sky above his head. It was heavy and suffocating.


    His father had asked for a reason, but the other party did not answer. However, Yu Tianyu faintly had an answer in his heart.


    Was it because of him?


    Why could he do things to such an extent? He was able to get people at the peak of the Demon Realm to fight for him. He was a person at the lower levels of Renhuang. No matter how exceptional his potential was, he did not have the right to even speak to such powerful figures. Furthermore, he managed to get these powerful figures to work for him, even at the cost of igniting a battle of epic proportions in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Rumble�� At this moment, the palace was trembling. Countless rays of golden light suddenly shone out from the ground under the palace. Incandescent symbols shone with divine light. From the sky, one could faintly see a majestic array.


    The endless glory spread toward the body of the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The vast sky and the Great Path in the surroundings swarmed into his body. At this moment, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked as though he was the master of this world and was resonating with the Great Path of this universe.


    His body was clad in a Divine Armor of the Great Path, and he had a crown on his head. Even though he was still standing in his original position, everyone sensed that everything had changed. At this moment, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked like a deity.


    The ultimate technique of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was the Heavenly Mandate Deification Technique. It transformed a person into a deity and imbued him with limitless abilities and an endless stream of Great Path.


    At this moment, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was like a deity. He raised his hand and pointed in the air. A radiant ray of golden divine light burst forth in the sky. Millions of divine rays of light pushed forward. It was as if one finger of a deity was enough to extinguish many realms. The attack flew straight toward the Divine Elephant Emperor, who was suppressing the surroundings.


    He knew what the intentions of the Divine Elephant Emperor were. He wanted to suppress the entire palace and capture everyone in one swoop, to extinguish his Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The sight of a million rays of light piercing into the sky was majestic. However, it had not reached the Divine Elephant Emperor when a figure blocked off the position. It was the Dragon Master, the Purple Gold Dragon Emperor.


    According to the plan, the Divine Elephant Emperor would not need to attack in the battle against the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Purple Gold Dragon Emperor, Demon Lord of the Sky Demon Court, as well as Jiang Chengzi, would be responsible for attacking the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Not only did the Demon Lord of the Sky Demon Court specialize in long-range attacks, but his speed was also equally terrifying. That, coupled with the Purple Gold Dragon Emperor''s violent offense and Jiang Chengzi''s support, it was impossible for the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Realm to escape alive if they worked together. Even if they could not kill the emperor at the moment, they could at least trap him.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor and the rest of the powerful fighters were responsible for exterminating the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and killing everyone else to ensure that there were no mistakes.


    Seeing the assault of the million rays of divine light, the Dragon Master of the Divine Dragons punched forward. In that instant, the horizon seemed to have shattered. It was not an illusory feeling, but something material that could truly be felt.


    The sky roared and trembled. The strength of the Dragon God erupted. Countless illusory Purple Gold Dragons seemed to appear on the horizon. They blasted the Great Path back and caused the sky to crack. The endless stream of divine light was also destroyed.


    This attack had happened in the sky, but it caused the hearts of countless people on the ground to jump intensely. It was uncomfortable. People who were at a lower level than Renhuang let out dull grunts. They felt incredibly heavy. Even though this attack had happened an extreme distance away from them and could be said to not involve them, the attack still impacted them. The feeling they got was extremely uncomfortable. Their organs were flipping around in their body and felt that they were about to shatter.


    The two attacks scattered after they hit each other in the air. The powerful fighters who had been standing in the four cardinal directions now appeared in three corners with the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in the center.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor was alone in his corner. That made the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty realize that the Divine Elephant Emperor would not participate in the battle against him. Instead, the Divine Elephant Emperor''s target was the entire Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The three other powerful fighters were the ones who were here to kill him.


    At the same time, in the palace. The vast army had arrived. They were split into three camps. They charged straight for the palace.


    "They''re here."


    The people became numb. Other than the four powerful fighters who had come here first, the army behind them had also arrived.


    Three armies from the Demon Realm. Furthermore, they were all made up of Demon Emperors. None of them were under the level of Renhuang.


    In a battle of such a proportion, any resistance put up by people under the level of Renhuang was useless. They were a burden. In fact, even lower-level Renhuangs would not have too large of an impact on the battle.


    The people who could directly influence the battle were the apex-level figures. The outcome of the battle would only depend on the lower-level fighters if the people fighting at the very top were at a stalemate.


    "Ye Futian, Gu Dongliu."


    Some people saw two figures in white robes standing side by side. One was dressed in a white robe and had white hair. He was absolutely charismatic. Even though many people had not seen him before, they did hear about him on multiple occasions. Who else could he be other than Ye Futian?


    The person beside him was naturally Gu Dongliu.


    Many years ago, Gu Tianxing had come to attack them. Now, his grandson, Gu Dongliu, had also stepped into the Imperial City of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Furthermore, they walked in just like that. They could only step in like that with absolute confidence. They were not afraid that the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would kill them.


    That was because the forces of the two camps were unequal. No matter how powerful the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was, could they deal with the alliance of three great Demon clans and the return of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven?


    These were four apex-level factions.


    Furthermore, each one of these apex-level figures had brought along ritual implements.


    The powerful fighters by Ye Futian''s side included the Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder, Golden Giant Peng Bird Emperor, Hua Jiangshan, as well as powerhouses from the Divine Dragons and Divine Elephants. They all had eighth-tier Divine Wheels. That, coupled with their ritual implements, allowed them to defend against their enemies for some time, even if they were two powerful fighters with ninth-tier Divine Wheels.


    Furthermore, with the four influential figures ganging up on the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there was no chance for the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to launch a full-powered attack toward them.


    Thus, they dared to charge forward and invade the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They pushed forward under the witness of countless gazes.


    Finally, their figures stopped. Ye Futian looked up at the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. The other party also looked at him. They interacted with their gazes. One was an existence that stood at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The other was a junior who had just stepped into the level of Renhuang. Their statuses were completely unequal.


    However, at this moment, the white-haired youth had caused the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to step into despair.


    The divine authority of the Great Path pressed toward where Ye Futian was at. The Great Path crashed around him. However, the influential figures around Ye Futian released their aura and sealed off the space they were at. They did not give the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty any chance of killing Ye Futian.


    "How did you convince them?" the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty asked Ye Futian as he stared at him. He could not understand why the three great Demon clans would aid Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at him and did not give a direct answer. Instead, he said, "The reason is no longer important. Today, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty will be destroyed."


    "The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty will be destroyed!" The Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty glared at Ye Futian. Indeed, his Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would definitely be defeated by such an unequal formation. They had no chance.


    However, there was intense killing intent in his eyes. That gaze seemed to signal that Ye Futian would definitely die.


    Ye Futian shifted his gaze away from the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and looked toward another figure. He looked at the prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Yi Tianyu. This was his Third Senior''s place of destiny.


    His animosity with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty paled in comparison to his Third Senior. His Third Senior''s animosity with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was a vengeance that spanned three generations.


    Let it all end today!

 1685 Final Battle

    In Brahma''s Pure Sky, the Empress finally understood why she had the persistent feeling that something big was about to happen.


    Her beautiful eyes seemed to pierce through the void while she was in her large hall. Her eyes saw the situation that was happening incredibly far away. That was the direction of the central regions of the Heavenly Mandate Realm where the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was.


    A breeze blew past and caused her robes to sway. She could not have expected this.


    This day, the three great demon clans had moved out together and wished to exterminate the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    An uprising had suddenly risen in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. There had been no warning.


    "I''ll head out for a moment." The Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress took a step forward, and her figure immediately disappeared. The goddesses under her looked up to see that the Empress''s figure had disappeared and let out confused looks. They had the feeling that something was off. Did something happen?


    They realized why the empress was acting weird not long after. The news spread from the Brahma Sky City into the Brahma''s Pure Sky. Ye Futian had led the three great demon factions, the Divine Dragons, Sky Demon Court, and Divine Elephants, as well as powerful fighters from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven in an invasion into the central regions of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    They might already have reached the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The news came like lightning. It caused countless hearts to tremble.


    Was the Heavenly Mandate Realm going to undergo massive change?


    Many years ago, Gu Xingtian had been unable to exterminate the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, but he had caused the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty to become weakened. Ever since then, the dynasty had never restored itself to its former glory, but the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven also paid a heavy price.


    However, the person who attacked the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty this time was not Gu Xingtian, nor was it the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Instead, it was four top-notch factions.


    This time, it was possible that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would be exterminated.


    The once-absolute overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had been weakened from its glory days. This day, it might walk toward extermination.


    At the same time, in the Violet Heavenly Palace. A powerful fighter rushed around manically. He charged directly into the Violet Heavenly Palace. He had not arrived, but his voice could be heard from far away.


    "Ye Futian had led the three great demon clans and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven in an invasion of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty." His voice was like lightning in the horizon, exploding suddenly within the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    The Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder had terrifying divine thunder. Amidst the countless bolts of lightning, two figures were sitting cross-legged in the air. They were in the middle of a game of chess.


    However, at this moment, the voice that rang throughout the Violet Heavenly Palace rang out. A bolt of lightning landed directly on the chessboard. The palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace placed his piece down.


    Rumble��


    His action was a little heavy. It caused the chessboard to be blasted into pieces by the lightning.


    The palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked up toward the other figure who was also sitting cross-legged. There was a destructive lightning aura in his eyes as he stared at the opposite figure.


    "You already know about this?" he asked.


    This day, the master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain that he did not have many dealings with suddenly arrived at the Violet Heavenly Palace and wanted to play a game of chess with him.


    He did not think too much about it just now. He had thought that the other party wanted to experience the Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder.


    However, at this moment, he suddenly realized something.


    The demon clans were not the only ones who had joined forces with Ye Futian in the God''s Relic. There was also the 10,000 Divine Mountain.


    If Ye Futian had convinced the three great demon clans to attack the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, then was the 10,000 Divine Mountain convinced along with them?


    After all, the two parties had a commonality. They had gotten into an alliance with Ye Futian in the God''s Relic.


    More coincidentally, the master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain had come to the Violet Heavenly Palace. He had appeared here.


    "Our game of chess is not over. Are you destroying the board just because you are about to lose?" The master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain smiled. He waved his palm. Instantly, a new chess board appeared between them. The chess pieces appeared out of thin air and landed in their original positions.


    It was as if everything was normal.


    He raised his hand and placed a piece down, then looked up at the palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace. He smiled and said, "It''s your turn."


    The palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace understood the situation when he saw the other party''s reaction. The other party had not answered him, but at this point, there was no need for an answer.


    It was clear that the other party knew about this.


    Then, the reason that he came to the Violet Heavenly Palace was to��


    "The Divine Dragons, Sky Demon Court, and the Divine Elephants?" the palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace guessed, "How did he convince you guys?"


    Four top-notch factions had stepped out for Ye Futian.


    It felt ridiculous, no matter how he thought about it.


    "Play out your move first, palace master," the master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain said casually.


    The palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace looked down at the board, then casually tossed out a chess piece.


    The master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain smiled, then placed a piece down. At this moment, the black pieces of the palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace were surrounded by the white pieces on the board. The piece that the master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain placed just now was not eye-catching, but it seemed to be the most important move.


    "There was no special reason. It''s just that it has been many years. The Heavenly mandate Realm might become different; it should become different," The master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain lowered his head and murmured. It felt like he was talking to himself.


    "How different?" The palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace was confused.


    He did not understand.


    "Back then, Gu Tianxing appeared out of thin air and suppressed an entire generation. He could be described as incredibly charismatic and unparalleled in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Even so, I was still rather indignant. Even though I am far from comparable to Gu Tianxing, Gu Tianxing was ultimately unable to become the person that would define his era. He was ultimately just a little off."


    The master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain said, "His outcome was as I imagined. He died while he was at his peak. It was a pity."


    "What do you wish to express?" the palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace asked.


    "Now, the person who would define his generation has appeared." The master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain looked up at the other party. He stood up slowly. An unparalleled pressure of the Great Path swelled out.


    Rumble�� Ancient lightning peaks in the Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder collapsed. The mountains crashed downward and swallowed the Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder. At the same time, on the horizon, countless divine mountains appeared and blocked off the sky.


    At this moment, countless people from the Violet Heavenly Palace looked up to see the divine mountains floating in the air. The divine mountains were pressing downward. They enveloped the Violet Heavenly Palace within an endless stretch of divine mountains.


    It was as if this space had been buried and sealed off.


    At this moment, in the Absolute Territory of Heavenly Thunder, two figures took to the skies and headed straight for the clouds. One of them was bathed in an infinite divine aura of lightning. Rings of lightning circled him. They looked like divine lightning that could destroy worlds and instilled fear in the hearts of people.


    The figure on the other side seemed to have a contract with the divine mountains that sealed off the Violent Heavenly Palace. It seemed as though they were one entity.


    At this moment, the palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace finally realized why the other party only brought two people along with him. He had brought the two other strongest people from the 10,000 Divine Mountain.


    Of course, it was to make it convenient for him to do battle. There were no burdens.


    If they were to fight in the Violet Heavenly Palace, everyone in the Violet Heavenly Palace was a burden.


    How could he fight this battle?


    If the battle were to start, the Violet Heavenly Palace would crumble.


    No one under the level of Renhuang would survive.


    ��


    In the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had the same reservations as the palace master of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    This was the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, their home ground. However, in a battle of such a proportion, the home ground might not give them the advantage. The destructive capabilities of a peak-level Renhuang were too terrifying. Back then, he had joined forces with his father to do battle with Gu Tianxing. However, it caused many deaths. Many powerful fighters had died.


    Furthermore, the powerful fighters of the other party wielded the absolute advantage today.


    Of course, in such a situation, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was facing a crisis of extinction. However, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to take a gamble.


    Ye Futian claimed that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would be exterminated.


    However, he felt indignant.


    "Tianyu, get into the sacred hall and take care of yourself," the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty told Yi Tianyu using telepathy. He had just said this when his deity-like figure took to the skies. He was like a golden bolt of lightning piercing straight for the heavens.


    "All of you, leave."


    Having cultivated his abilities to such a level, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was also an extremely decisive man. Even though he wanted to take the gamble on a slim chance, it was more than likely that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would be exterminated.


    While he took to the skies, the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty transformed into an intensely shiny Divine Matrix. Countless symbols within the Divine Matrix shone and gathered around his body. His aura reached an extreme. This scene caused the powerful fighters to feel that if not for their embattlement, if only one figure at the same level of the emperor had come to fight him, they might have been trapped here by the other party.


    Boom. A dull thud rang out. The power of the Divine Elephants that was holding down the sky seemed to have been shattered. The Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty charged out and wanted to escape from the battlefield.


    He knew that if he left, the other parties would definitely follow him. The three top-notch figures had come to deal with him.


    There would be a chance that he could reverse the situation if they chased after him.


    A violent wind blew past. It brought about an unparalleled scorching will. A Divine Sun Bird appeared in the sky. It was humongous and melted everything in its path. It scorched the heavens like a sun swallowing everything around it. It dragged its opponents into a Sun World. At the same time, the Dragon Master and Jiang Chengzi charged over.


    Just as he had guessed, the three powerful figures were here to kill him.


    "Retreat."


    The powerful fighters from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to escape, but they saw the Divine Elephant Emperor walk on air and release giant rumbles. The divine authority of the Great path descended and nearly caused the entire palace to collapse and fall. The powerful fighters knew that even though the emperor wanted them to retreat, they might not actually be able to.


    At this moment, a figure walked out from the crowd. Yi Tianyu looked at the figure who was walking out. It was Gu Dongliu.


    In the past, when he attacked the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven with the Heavenly Dynasty, Yi Tianyu had also walked toward Gu Dongliu like that. However, he did not achieve victory in that battle.


    Now, the scene of Gu Dongliu walking toward him felt familiar.


    Powerful fighters from the demon clans walked out. Their pressure enveloped the battlefield that the two people were at to prevent anyone from launching a sneak attack on Gu Dongliu. Ye Futian looked at the battlefield calmly.


    He had spared Yi Tianyu''s life in the God''s Relic. He had said that he had to leave Yi Tianyu for his Third Senior.


    This was their destiny.


    Rumble�� A perfect Divine Wheel burst forth. It shone with incredible radiance and blinded Yi Tianyu.


    His father wanted him to leave, but he did not do it. He wanted to face the situation directly.


    This was his destined battle. He did not escape.


    It was just that this destiny was a little different from the one he imagined.


    Yi Tianyu released his pressure as a Renhuang and stepped forward. This was the first battle he was going to have since he stepped into the level of Renhuang, but this might also be his last battle!


    ...

 1686 One Hi

    The powerful fighters of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty realized that they could no longer escape. At this point, the prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Yi Tianyu, had no choice but to take the battle head-on.


    This destined battle that had spanned three generations had erupted in the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    In the past, Gu Tianxing had also fought the old emperor here.


    In this generation, Gu Dongliu stood in front of Yi Tianyu.


    No matter if it was the past or present, it felt as though the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was at a disadvantage. Was this the reason for the decline of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?


    The perfect Divine Wheel had an incredibly radiant divine light. The Divine Wheel was naturally made up of Juexian Diagram. It could also be called the Juexian Divine Wheel.


    An incredible divine light radiated from Gu Dongliu''s body. It was as if deities had descended onto the mortal plane. He was truly charismatic. At this moment, he looked like a fairy.


    The Juexian Divine Wheel spun around the heavens and turned into a Divine Image that blocked off the sky. An endless divine glow was pulsing and resonating with the Great Path in the surroundings. That image became larger and larger. It completely blocked off the sky and covered the battlefield where the two of them were standing on.


    Pure-blooded Dragons roared. Ancient Phoenix danced in the sky. Ferocious beasts like the Taotie and Qiongqi appeared. It was as if all of the Demon Gods had appeared in the image. Light of the Nine Words circled the fighters. Countless ancient words descended onto the surroundings at the same time. It was everywhere.


    Gu Dongliu might not have needed to activate such a powerful technique today. However, he recalled that his grandfather had once done battle here. Since that was the case, he should put the matter to rest.


    The Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate was also released as the Deification Technique erupted. Yi Tianyu was like a deity. However, compared to the radiance of the other creatures, he looked like he had lost a little luster from the old days. He looked a little dull.


    Even though he had incredible talent, there was someone stronger than him.


    The pressure of the Divine Wheel and the authority of the descending ancient words continuously impacted Yi Tianyu''s body and soul.


    Indeed, the distance between them was great.


    He could never have expected that the two people who were once on equal footing as him when he reached the Renhuang Plane would have pulled the distance between them this far apart.


    It was clear that he was the one left behind.


    Boom�� An exquisite lethal will bloomed. An incandescent fairy light radiated from the Juexian Diagram. The surroundings were in resonance. The radiance released by the Nine Words turned the Great Path in the surroundings into one.


    His swords looked like the swords of the Mystical Way.


    Mystical light radiated throughout the surroundings. Everything under the Juexian Diagram was destroyed.


    Yi Tianyu knew how the battle would end when he sensed the pressure. Everything had been decided when the perfect Divine Wheel appeared.


    He took a step forward and moved toward Gu Dongliu. He used the rest of his strength to walk toward the endless words made out of Sword Will that was crashing down.


    In that instant, blinding light erupted from Yi Tianyu''s body. It was as if all of the light in his life was shining at this very moment.


    Swords were destroying everything under the glorious light. However, there was no end to the descending symbols. Finally, the words pierced through his shining body, and Yi Tianyu stopped in his tracks.


    He looked at Gu Dongliu, then shifted his gaze toward another direction. He looked in the direction of Ye Futian.


    Actually, if not for the fact that they were born into different camps, if Ye Futian had gone to the Divine Palace, they might have become friends.


    Perhaps, this was destiny.


    Under the blinding light, the prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the person who was hailed as the Almighty Son, Yi Tianyu, vanished into the brilliance and died.


    The powerful fighters of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty witnessed this scene. The prince of the dynasty had been killed. Furthermore, the emperor was being attacked by three powerful figures and was also in deep trouble. Under such a situation, no one could have protected Yi Tianyu.


    They were in the same predicament. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was facing a crisis of extinction.


    Would the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty who had stood at the peak of the Heavenly Mandate Realm for countless years be completely destroyed today?


    Ye Futian had a calm expression when he saw Yi Tianyu vanish. However, his heart was overcome with emotion. The once-arrogant prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had died just like that. However, he ultimately displayed his spirit as the prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in the final battle. He was unafraid and had died in battle.


    Rumble��


    Dull thuds rang out in the sky. The Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty knew that Yi Tianyu had died. He forced back his grief and wanted to create a path of blood. However, the combined abilities of the three top-notch figures and the premium ritual implements they wielded did not pale in comparison to the treasure in his hands.


    He could not leave. The three powerful fighters were in no rush to kill him. They trapped him relentlessly. Otherwise, it would be troublesome for them to give the emperor an escape route if they were not careful.


    Thus, they would rather be more cautious and slowly trap and kill him than give him a glimmer of hope.


    There was a blood-colored glow in the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty''s eyes. Were they still not going to attack?


    He had charged up into the sky for the gamble of a slight chance. He had hoped that his allies would take action and deal with Ye Futian. However, the other party had not attacked even now.


    Even though his so-called allies were not dependable, he could not accept the fact that the other party had so mercilessly witnessed the scene.


    However, even so, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty did not betray them.


    He hoped that they would be able to accomplish a one-hit-kill.


    At this point, all he hoped was for Ye Futian to be killed in one hit. As long as Ye Futian died, there was a chance that this crisis could be resolved. Ye Futian was the core figure in the alliance of the four great factions.


    If he died, there might be a chance that this alliance would be dissolved.


    "Take action," Ye Futian said. The powerful fighters of the demon clan and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven stepped forward and went in search of their enemies. They had the numbers advantage in this battle. That, coupled with the Divine Elephant Emperor blocking off the sky, made the outcome of this battle clear.


    Ye Futian had made this plan to kill the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in one strike. He had trapped all of the top-notch figures of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and had not allowed them to leave.


    Boom��


    In the air, the Divine Elephant Emperor stomped his foot down. The Divine Elephant seemed to take a step forward in the endless space. Several fighters of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were unable to withstand the attack. They spat out blood and crawled on the ground. Even the fighters at the level of Renhuang let out dull grunts. If not for being wary that he might take his allies down with him, the terrifying Divine Elephant Emperor would have stomped down on a larger scale.


    Even so, the fighters saw four massively thick legs of the Divine Elephant step on the four cardinal directions. They were like four Divine God pillars.


    Four powerful fighters at the level of Renhuang were directly crushed to death. They did not even have the chance to retaliate.


    Buildings also crumbled at a manic rate. Everyone was flustered. This day was the doomsday of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    "Hm?"


    At this moment, the Divine Elephant Emperor glanced at the Sacred Hall of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty that was still standing. Even though it had suffered from an immense tremor, it still stood stably in its place. It did not collapse.


    This Sacred Hall might have been specially built and could harbor a Spell Matrix. He scanned the area with his Divine Spirit and found that his Divine Spirit was blocked off by the hall.


    This Sacred Hall could obstruct the Divine Spirit.


    He stomped down once again with his foot. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had to be destroyed. There was no need for the Sacred Hall of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, which symbolized the highest authority of the dynasty to continue to exist.


    The giant leg of the golden Divine Elephant landed on the air above the Sacred Hall. A loud rumble could be heard. The air above the Sacred Hall caved in and pushed the hall into the ground. However, the Sacred Hall did not collapse completely even though several cracks have appeared.


    At this moment, horrifying energy suddenly erupted from within the crack.


    The expression of the Divine Elephant Emperor changed slightly. He lifted his leg and pushed it down quickly. The Divine Elephant shook the skies and wanted to crush the Sacred Hall under its foot.


    At the same time, a ray of divine light suddenly erupted from within the Sacred Hall and pierced out into the surroundings. It caused many people to be unable to open their eyes.


    "Careful!" the Divine Elephant Emperor roared. He unleashed his suppressing Great Path to its extreme. He had clearly realized that something was wrong.


    There was someone in the Sacred Hall. Furthermore, that person was a top-notch existence.


    More terrifyingly, the other party had held himself back for this long and had not taken action all these while. He had not done anything even though Yi Tianyu had died before him.


    What was his motive?


    It was similar to their motive for coming to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, to kill with one strike.


    However, his warning seemed to have come too late. An incandescent ray of golden light pierced through the air. A divine spear penetrated the skies and flew straight toward Ye Futian''s body. For a top-notch figure, the distance between them was negligible.


    The expression of the Divine Elephant Emperor changed. The target of the other party was Ye Futian.


    Rumble, rumble�� Countless sounds of impact rang out. The bodies of the Golden Wing Roc Emperor and Hua Jiangshan were blasted backward. They could not defend against the attack. The golden divine spear pierced through the air and arrived before Ye Futian.


    Everyone''s expression changed to reveal a look of shock. The golden divine glow was exceptionally blinding.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian''s body was covered in a golden Sacred Hall. The Sacred Hall was then blasted backward. Inside, Ye Futian crashed fiercely onto the walls of the Sacred Hall. Buildings collapsed while he was retreating. The golden Sacred Hall finally came to a stop. It did not shatter. It did not even have a crack on it.


    "Whoo��" Everyone took a deep breath. It was too close.


    They had thought that Ye Futian would be killed. A charged strike of a top-notch fighter was indefensible.


    However, a space ritual implement had saved Ye Futian''s life.


    He must have also gotten that from the God''s Relic.


    It was no wonder that he would step foot on the battlefield. As it turned out, he had a treasure like that in his possession.


    Ye Futian looked at the figures on the other side while he stood in the Sacred Hall. It was not just one person. Two other powerful fighters emerged. However, they were all suppressed by the Divine Elephant Emperor''s Great Path of Suppression and did not have much destructive capability.


    "The Golden Divine Nation!" Ye Futian did not expect the powerful fighters from the Golden Divine Nation to appear within the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Had they always been waiting for him here?


    ...

 1687 Finished

    The lineup Ye Futian brought today already overshadowed the strength of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. After all, it was the four top forces banding together.


    Naturally, he had not counted the Golden Divine Nation. The Golden Divine Nation, located in the Higher Heavens Realm, was not one of the powers of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Furthermore, how would they have known that he would come to the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Golden Divine Nation aside, even the Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could not have anticipated that he would come to attack. Even the Golden Divine Nation did not have the ability to predict the future.


    Then there was only one possibility left. The Golden Divine Nation would rather wait for an opportunity while staying at the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They were not necessarily waiting for him to come but waiting for an opportunity to deal with him. It just so happened that he attacked at this time.


    If the Golden Divine Nation were able to predict the future, then there would be more than just three cultivators. Even if they added three more, it would never surpass the lineup presented by Ye Futian and the others.


    Of course, this was because no one knew that he would persuade the four principalities to form an alliance. If the battle were to be waged in another way, such as the battle between the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in which three major characters from the Golden Divine Nation were blending in under cover of another, then it would be enough to determine the outcome of the battle. That would be enough to demand his life.


    Three major characters of great power came to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty just to wait for a chance to kill him.


    Clearly, this was an order from the lord of the Divine Nation.


    After the slaying of his two descendants, the lord of the Divine Nation was presumably still unwilling to let the matter rest even with the intervention from the Empty Imperial Palace. So he had employed another method to deal with Ye Futian by blending into the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The reality of the situation was quite similar to what Ye Futian had imagined. In the turmoil at the God''s relic, the cultivators of the Empty Imperial Palace came and spoke so that none of the top forces were in a position to attack Ye Futian freely.


    After all, everyone knew that the Empty Imperial Palace was under the command of Donghuang the Great.


    The Golden Divine Nation also had other concerns. Empty Imperial Palace had given a warning. He had to take it into consideration, but how could he forgive the deaths of his sons?


    What kind of man was the Overlord of the Divine Nation, that he would really let Ye Futian off the hook with just a few words?


    Should his two sons die in vain?


    Ye Futian''s death would then have nothing to do with the Golden Divine Nation.


    Today, Ye Futian happened to come and attack. Once Ye Futian entered the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, would they not resist? Killing Ye Futian here and now would free them of any future worries.


    However, with the arrival of Ye Futian this time, the lineup was frightfully strong. Even with their three strong cultivators, they were at an absolute disadvantage. They did not make themselves known. They had even kept quiet when Yi Tianyu died. They were only waiting for the moment when the other party relaxed their vigilance so that they might vanquish him with one blow.


    Killing Ye Futian would cause the alliance to collapse, and then none of these forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm would dare to keep them.


    How strong was the Golden Divine Nation? In the Higher Heavens Realm, the Golden Divine Nation was probably the strongest power outside the Divine Palace. However, because the Divine Palace cared not for the grievances from the outside world, it could be said that Golden Divine Nation was the strongest power in the Higher Heavens Realm. This could be seen by Gai Shishi''s daring attack on Ye Futian outside the Divine Palace without any concerns.


    There were powerful men in the Divine Nation who acted as divine generals under the command of Donghuang the Great. And now there was no power that could be regarded as a threat to the Golden Divine Nation.


    It could be said that even in the times when the old Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was in charge, the Golden Divine Nation would still be able to suppress it.


    It was a pity that this mortal blow failed to end Ye Futian''s life as she wished, and a spatial divine implement saved Ye Futian''s life.


    If it were just armor worn on his body, no matter how excellent of an implement it was, Ye Futian would still die. That might of the Way was enough to kill him through the defensive armor. Even a divine implement would still depend on who was using it, and it was impossible to use it against peak Renhuang. However, in that case, the person who used it would die while the divine implement would still stay intact. Unless the realm was higher than the level of the divine implement, it was impossible to destroy the implement through attack only.


    Therefore, a spatial divine implement happened to be of use.


    Of course, this kind of divine implement did not appear to have a substantial effect, and the efforts in refining one such divine implement could be used to refine many other divine implements. As such, it was very rare.


    Even so, Ye Futian was injured through the air, but his injury was not serious.


    "One Divine Wheel Ninth Order and two Divine Wheel of the Eighth Order." Ye Futian stared at the opposite side. Such a lineup was truly worthy of him. Even forces at the level of the Golden Divine Nation were able to send this kind of power, waiting for their opportunity at the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Boom! Suddenly, heaven and earth became extremely heavy, and many cultivators felt it was difficult to move. A majestic and massive golden divine elephant suppressed the sky from above and stomped down. The Divine Elephant Emperor himself turned into the golden divine elephant, and an aura of the demonic emperor enveloped heaven and earth. He stepped into the sky and stomped on that cultivator of the Ninth Order from the Golden Divine Nation.


    At this time, he couldn''t care less about suppressing the inside and outside of the palace. The presence of someone of the Divine Wheel Ninth Order was too great a threat, and could only be dealt with by him. In order to prevent the opponent from having a chance to kill the others, he had to drag the opponent with all his strength to prevent him from threatening the lives of the others.


    "Go!" he spat in a strong and powerful voice.


    It was for the demonic clan and the cultivators from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to evacuate. Of course, it was not really an evacuation, but to have them leave his attack range. When someone of his caliber unleashed all of his power to attack, he could take down a whole city. But now only one person was his target.


    There was no need for him to say anything more. A terrible storm swept out, and it was not up to anyone to decide whether they wanted to go or not.


    Ye Futian was inside the Spatial Sacred Hall, and under that violent storm, the Hall was knocked loose and flew out, taking him with it.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor did not directly attack but repelled everyone with a shockwave. Otherwise, one stomp from him would kill not only the enemy but also his own people.


    In the center of the vast palace ground, the giant foot of the golden divine elephant smashed down, and the world seemed to collapse under this single stomp. Endless storms came down to destroy all the buildings below as they were shattered and pulverized madly at this moment, turning into fragments.


    In just an instant, more than half of a majestic imperial palace was shattered and reduced to ruins.


    Somewhere far away, the people who watched the battle from the imperial city of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were trembling. They had never thought that there would be such a day.


    Someone wanted to destroy the dynasty.


    The divine general of Golden Divine Nation seemed to turn into a divine god. His body suddenly elongated. As the ancient golden god stood upon the ruins, endless divine light bloomed from him, casting light into the endless space. That breath was truly astonishing.


    They were thinking how fortunate it was that Ye Futian was not killed in that blow.


    Even Ye Futian secretly sighed in relief. Fortunately, he had reaped a lot in the God''s relic, and after studying the divine implements, he found that this spatial implement possessed the ability for defense. Otherwise, facing a Renhuang of the Divine Wheel Ninth Order, he never could have dodged if they attacked suddenly.


    After all, no one had thought that there would be such a top-level Renhuang inside the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Accompanied by a loud noise, a golden storm swept out centered on the palace grounds, and all the ruins swept backward. At this moment, some other buildings in the palace that hadn''t collapsed were destroyed and spilled outside the palace.


    Ye Futian glanced at the battlefield yonder. Although the opponent was a Ninth Order Renhuang, the divine elephant had no problem dragging him down with its strength.


    "Don''t let them go." Ye Futian said as he glanced at the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in the distance. Even with the three powerful cultivators from Golden Divine Nation, the strength was still extremely unbalanced. It was very clear to them that there were still three top figures above who were besieging the Overlord.


    Now that they were doomed to be defeated, to flee was the only way. If they stayed alive, then they still have a chance for revenge.


    But clearly, Ye Futian could not simply watch them go.


    "I have divine implement to protect me, don''t worry about me," Ye Futian continued.


    "Good." As his words fell, demonic emperors and the Renhuang from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven attacked at the same time. Simultaneously, demonic emperors also appeared on all sides of the palace, mainly the great demons from the Sky Demon Court. They had surrounded the area according to Ye Futian''s prior instructions, to prevent the Renhuang from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty from escaping.


    The Kunpeng Demonic Great Elder and the Golden Wing Roc Emperor aimed directly at those two who were the Divine Wheel Eighth Order, while Hua Jiangshan stayed by Ye Futian''s side. Although Ye Futian had ordered them to unleash their attacks, it was impossible to have no one left by his side.


    The battlefield instantly expanded and continued to grow larger in the sky above the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had a very deep background. If it was a single power, the number of Renhuang in the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, no matter in numbers or realms were definitely the strongest in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. If it was not for the alliance of several top forces, it was impossible to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    However, this was destined to be a battle of great disparity. Just like when the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace besieged the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven disintegrated right away. But this time, Ye Futian didn''t want to give the opponent a chance to escape.


    "Master Hua, you go as well. Don''t you want to slay the enemy yourself?" Ye Futian said to Hua Jiangshan.


    Hua Jiangshan was the clan lord of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, so naturally, he wanted to participate in the fight, but both Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu must be protected.


    "Rest assured that we are not so weak. If we can''t stop it, I will summon the divine implement for defense," Ye Futian said.


    "Very well." When Hua Jiangshan heard Ye Futian say so, he also stepped forward to join the battle.


    Even with the three great Renhuang of the Golden Divine Nation joining in, it was still a one-sided situation.


    "It''s over." In the distance, countless were watching this battle, and the sound of collisions sounded in their ears again and again, causing their hearts to beat violently.


    The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been dominating the Heavenly Mandate Realm for many years. It was about to meet its end today. Everyone could see it.


    Just as Ye Futian had said, the dynasty should be destroyed.


    It was just that no one thought that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would be destroyed at the hands of a white-haired young man who was new to the realm of Renhuang. He had not even been famous for long!


    ...

 1688 Death of an Era

    When the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky arrived at the imperial city of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the war had already been going on for a long time. She stood far above the sky, looking at the battlefield.


    The entire palace had been turned into a ruin, with many from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty buried underneath. Some were of the Renhuang existence.


    The entire imperial city was permeated with a terrible storm of the Great Path. There were battles taking place in different places, and there were also Renhuang figures who had fallen.


    A quarter of the buildings in this most prosperous main city of Heavenly Mandate Realm were destroyed, with cracks appearing on the ground. What was before everyone''s eyes could no longer be discerned as a place that was once the most prosperous place in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The collapse of a dynasty.


    Even though she was an empress at the peak of her power, the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky was still not at peace. She gazed at the white-haired figure who was standing above the palace.


    Had it really been destroyed for good?


    Of course, she could also see the battlefield where the Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was located. At this time, the Overlord was hit with another violent impact. The punch from the Dragon Master that could break apart space blasted on the armor that he was wearing. A mouthful of blood came out of his mouth, and the Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was already very weak at this moment.


    Encircled and suppressed by three people of the same level power, he could not keep fighting for much longer. But he couldn''t leave now even if he wanted to.


    If it weren''t for the three great cultivators who were being overly cautious and choosing not to take too much risk, perhaps the battle would have ended already. However, because they were so sure of their victory, they were in no hurry. They chose to consume the energy of the other until death so that none of the three were injured.


    There were also Renhuang, who took action against Ye Futian. Renhuang who were lower in rank were not stopped by anyone but were allowed to be obliterated by Ye Futian and the others. Only those of the Divine Wheel Fifth Order or above were stopped by the others. If Renhuang who were positioned higher above unleashed their attack remotely, Ye Futian and the others would enter the spatial divine implement.


    They didn''t leave him with even a glimmer of hope or opportunity.


    "Retreat." The three cultivators from Golden Divine Nation knew that no more could not be done today. It was not their time to kill Ye Futian. If they persisted, it was highly likely that they would also end up dying here.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor stepped forward, wanting to chase them down, but Ye Futian merely said, "Let them go."


    The main target today was the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and it was not so easy to detain the other party. Another reason was that they planned on destroying the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty once and for all, but Golden Divine Nation was a different story. If the Divine Elephant Emperor had really dragged them into killing the top figures of the Golden Divine Nation, then the Overlord of Divine Nation would have an excuse to kill them in return.


    He didn''t want to drag down his allies.


    "I''ll go up and help," the Divine Elephant Emperor said. The overall situation had been determined, and now they just need to detain the Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Then this war would be completely over.


    However, he had not yet reached the battlefield when the fiery flames above the sky flooded the void. It was a golden sacred fire that burnt heaven and earth as a golden divine solar spear pierced through the armor worn by the Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. In an instant, the infinite golden divine solar fire rushed into the other''s body.


    Instantly, the Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty turned into a man on fire, a divine general bathing in the divine fire, except that the divine fire was burning his body madly.


    Boom! The fireball dropped down from the sky, and someone else descended. The Dragon Master''s Purple Gold Divine Fist blasted on his opponent''s body, stopping the Overlord''s fall, and causing his body to tremble violently.


    As the bright celestial light bloomed, Jiang Chengzi added another blow.


    Numerous people in the imperial city raised their heads and looked there. They saw the master of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, falling down weakly from the sky above.


    With a loud bang, the body of the Overlord was smashed into the ruins, with the three top figures landing at the same time, appearing in three different locations. Even at this moment, they were still guarding against his possible escape, displaying a degree of caution.


    There was a sound that came from the ruins as a figure climbed out from the inside and stood on top of it. His whole body was still radiant all over, even though he had almost nothing left. It seemed that he was still unable to let go of his dignity as the Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. That brilliant divine light seemed to be burning up the last of his power.


    Those eyes looked past through the void toward Ye Futian, who was in the distance. He had never thought that he would fall into the hands of a youngster. Once upon a time, he had not even considered Ye Futian as an opponent for his son, Yi Tianyu.


    But the white-haired young man who had been standing there was the one who choreographed this battle and the destruction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    How very sad was all this...


    "Your Majesty." There were those from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty who were still alive, and they looked at the Overlord who was standing there, feeling extremely sad.


    He suddenly smiled, somewhat ironically, and said, "I have stepped over Gu Tianxing, but not a youngster. However, Gu Tianxing still did not win. If it were not for you, I wouldn''t necessarily lose."


    Gu Dongliu was also at Ye Futian''s side. He admitted that he had lost to Ye Futian, but he still did not admit that he had lost to Gu Tianxing. The one who defeated the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was not Gu Dongliu.


    "It''s just that time has moved up a little," said Ye Futian, expressionless and looking at the Overlord of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Without him, the third senior brother would not show up so quickly, so he would bear it and cultivate until one day, he could set foot on the Heavenly God Realm under his own power.


    Actually, the battle between third senior brother and Yi Tianyu had proven many things.


    "Let me understand it before I die: how did you persuade them?" The Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked at Ye Futian, and then at the top figures of the three major demonic clans, "Giants of the three major demonic clans would rather take orders from a youngster?"


    At this moment, he still felt all this was extremely absurd.


    He didn''t understand why he had lost.


    "Why did war erupt between the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and Heavenly Mandate Dynasty?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Gu Tianxing was too domineering," the other responded.


    "Because Gu Tianxing was too strong, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty felt threatened. It was not because he was too domineering, but because the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty would not allow him to have the same kind of overbearing existence as themselves, is this correct?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes," the Overlord explained.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is powerful, so you would never allow another to be stronger than yourself. Any force that threatens the position of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is not allowed to exist, isn''t that right? So, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty will always be the overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but the upper limit of the Heavenly Mandate Realm will always only be the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty."


    Ye Futian sarcastically said, "Even without us, there would have been another Gu Tianxing. The destruction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was just a matter of time.


    "You don''t have the true strength to climb to the top, and yet prevented the others from crossing over. How could you not be destroyed?" Ye Futian continued, "After the destruction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, I will join forces with other principalities in this land to create an academy for the realm, to preach to the world so that all cultivators of this land would have the opportunity to become stronger and pursue the Great Path.


    "I never thought about being the overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, nor did I want to command all the venerable figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. That that was the reason why they were willing to help me."


    The Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty looked at that figure and was silent for a moment. Suddenly he smiled, a little presumptuously. He looked at those around him, the Dragon Master, the Golden Raven Demonic Lord, and the Divine Elephant Emperor, and said," Do you believe him?"


    However, he found, sadly, that the three powerful cultivators just looked at him indifferently. His presumptuous voice, in the ears of the others, seemed to be just pathetic.


    He understood the expressions behind these eyes, and he discovered, sadly, that the three major demonic masters actually believed it all.


    They believed that Ye Futian could deliver.


    People are different from each other. The Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Ye Futian were clearly different kinds of people. Perhaps, the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could never understand Ye Futian, but everyone else did. The facts were in front of them that Ye Futian had allowed their progeny to cast the perfect divine wheel, and also promised to build the academy for preaching.


    If Ye Futian did not wish to see someone else become stronger than him and didn''t want to look over his shoulders, he, Gu Dongliu and the few others would have been the sole owners of the perfect divine wheels in Heavenly Mandate Realm, and he wouldn''t have the idea of establishing the academy.


    Therefore, in this battle, they withheld their opinion by mutual understanding, and the master of 10,000 Divine Mountain was of the same mind. So he told the palace lord of Violet Heavenly Palace that Gu Tianxing was not the one who could lead them, but Ye Futian would be.


    "You can die now." Ye Futian looked at the Overlord, who was laughing wildly and then lost his voice. There was some pity in his eyes.


    The Overlord understood the meaning in his eyes. As a dominant figure of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Ye Futian was looking at him with pity in his eyes.


    He suddenly laughed again, arrogantly, as a terrifying divine light erupted from him. The extremely powerful way of killing directly slew toward Ye Futian, ignoring the space distance between them.


    Above him, the giant foot of the golden divine elephant stomped down, directly on top of his head.


    Boom!


    A dull sound came out, and the will of the Way dissipated. The ruins were flattened by one stomp, and a huge pit appeared.


    In the distance, some from inside the imperial city of Heavenly Mandate Dynasty couldn''t bear to look. After all, it was the Emperor of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the giant who had commanded the Heavenly Mandate Realm for many years. Dying in such a miserable manner was a sad affair, to say the least.


    The Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky also trembled in her heart; had that one single stomp killed him?


    She turned to walk away, but her heart was not at peace. She was thinking about Ye Futian''s words and also thinking about the destruction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    Ye Futian also left. And what followed was naturally the clearing out of the battlefield.


    At sunset, everyone had already retreated. Some were still crying in the ruins, but more were looking at the ruins and try to sort out a myriad of emotions.


    "An era is over," someone whispered, which resonated with many others.


    The divine dynasty that had ruled the Heavenly Mandate Realm for countless years, and dominated the central area of ??the Realm for many more had been annihilated in a day. The era that belonged to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was now over.


    "A new era will also begin," someone said, and everyone was looking at the speaker.


    The end of an era naturally meant the beginning of a new one.


    "I will wait here for the establishment of the academy," the speaker whispered. Many people''s eyes showed a fierce passion, which also expressed their heart''s true desire.


    This ruin had buried the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, but there would be a better era yet!


    ...

 1689 Outcome

    This was indeed the end of an era, as the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was not the only force that had been completely destroyed.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace, from which all the thunder in the world came from, had also encountered a horrific disaster.


    When Ye Futian and the others reached the Violet Heavenly Palace, the Palace Lord and the master of Ten Thousand Divine Mountain were no longer there. But the incomparably majestic palace had half-collapsed.


    In addition, none of the cultivators seemed to be there.


    One of the greatest forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was now empty.


    Of course, there were still many people there, buried under the palace forever.


    Just as Ye Futian and the others arrived, two more figures descended and walked up to them. The two of them had frightful auras, and each carried top-level ritual implements.


    "The Palace Lord has abandoned the Violet Heavenly Palace and fled, but the Mountain is pursuing him," said one of them.


    Upon hearing the news, the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace had struggled, but he had known that his force had ended. Three great demon forces had allied against him, as well as the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty could not bear it and had been destroyed.


    The cultivators of 10,000 Divine Mountain had descended upon the Violet Heavenly Palace, watching them.


    They could not just sit back and not fight.


    After the battle started, he had realized he could not handle the master of 10,000 Divine Mountain, and in the end, had not dared to delay. He had abandoned the Violet Heavenly Palace and fled.


    "We left some people here, but the vast majority fled," continued the man who had come. These were the two strongest people in 10,000 Divine Mountain beside the Mountain Master, the only two who had Divine Wheels at the eighth tier. They also had powerful ritual implements. If they had not faced the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace, there were probably no people who could have stood up to them.


    In a battle between top figures, numbers mattered little. Moreover, the hidden techniques of the Violet Heavenly Palace were far inferior to those of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    So, the two of them had not said that they had been able to defeat the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace, but given the ritual implements they carried, they could not have been defeated. Once they had started fighting, the people of the Violet Heavenly Palace had started to flee.


    Ye Futian nodded. "Farewell." He turned to those beside him and asked, "Can any of you track him based on his aura of the Great Path?"


    "Thank you," said Ye Futian with a nod. It was definitely best that the Golden Raven Demon go. He was the fastest.


    "If the others hide their auras as they flee, it will be difficult to track them," said a Dragon Master.


    "I understand. Elders, please use your divine senses to search through the area around the palace. The rest of you go out in different directions and try your luck. Why don''t we just look for those who are mid and upper-level Renhuangs?" said Ye Futian. There were few people at those levels outside of the Violet Heavenly Palace, so it would be very easy to distinguish them. If they ran into one, it was highly likely they would be from the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    When people of lower levels lost themselves in a crowd, it would be impossible to find them.


    "Mmm," said everyone, nodding. Many figures rose into the air, going off in different directions.


    "We will wait here. The Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace will not escape," said Ye Futian. One of the ritual implements he had given to 10,000 Divine Mountain was an item that increased speed. He had asked the Mountain Master of 10,000 Divine Mountain to stick close to the Palace Lord of the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    Ye Futian and the others landed on the Violet Heavenly Palace, standing outside the ruin. He remembered the first time he had come here for one of their banquets.


    At that time, he had defeated Zhan Yuan, a member of the Violet Heavenly Palace who had a Supreme Body of the Great Path.


    "Elder, there has been great enmity between the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty for many generations. I leave the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty in your hands, and the three Demon clans will split the Violet Heavenly Palace between them, alright?" Ye Futian said to Hua Jiangshan, who was still standing guard beside him.


    Obviously, this was showing favor to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, but the three Demon clans understood. Ye Futian and they were very close, and in the battle between them and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, they had been sorely pressed, suffering the worst losses. Now that things had turned, Ye Futian wanted to build them up again.


    "We will talk again when this is over," said Hua Jiangshan. Ye Futian nodded slightly. Several top figures were not there, so it was indeed a bit too early to speak of this.


    Time passed. They were not waiting for the Golden Raven Demon to return, but for the cultivators of the eight great thunder methods to descend upon them. Of the eight method masters, only one was missing: the Purple Underworld.


    But the other seven all came.


    Obviously, the Purple Underworld knew their own limits.


    Seven Renhuangs came to the Violet Heavenly Palace, looking up at Ye Futian and the others as they stood in the sky. They bowed slightly and said, "We have come here to ask your forgiveness."


    They had taken part in many different things and had thus wrought their own collapse.


    Ye Futian was just a junior, and he was at a lower level than them. However, he was famous and prestigious, and moreover, they could not clearly see what the current situation was.


    The Violet Heavenly Palace had been destroyed, and the Palace Lord had fled.


    They thought of fleeing as well, but for one thing, they did not want to abandon the foundations of everything they had created, and for another, who knew if Ye Futian had left people behind to "deal with" them? If he had, then they would never escape.


    Thus, they could only swallow their pride and come here to ask for forgiveness.


    Moreover, even if Ye Futian had not left people behind to deal with them, and even if they could escape, Ye Futian would eventually remember them and send people to kill them. There would be nowhere safe in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They could only flee to other realms.


    Ye Futian looked down and swept his indifferent gaze over all of them. There was no expression on his face, and he did not answer.


    "Were they there back then?" he asked Hua Jiangshan.


    "Yes," said Hua Jiangshan with a nod.


    "Elder Hua, Emperor Ye, we did not dare disobey the orders of the Violet Heavenly Palace," said one of them with a bow. He was distressed as he naturally remembered the grudge between them.


    "As far as I know, you are not the Violet Heavenly Palace''s vassals," said Ye Futian.


    "We are not, but we all follow the thunder methods. Although we are not direct vassals, we all understand that we cannot gainsay a single word that the Violet Heavenly Palace says," said the man sincerely.


    "One more thing. Before we came here, we went to the Purple Underworld to invite them to come and beg for forgiveness. They refused, and so we put them down. They are under control now, and you may deal with them as you wish," said another Renhuang.


    A look of surprise came over Ye Futian''s face. So it was not that the Emperor of the Purple Underworld knew his own limits. He had just not wanted to come.


    And so he had been killed?


    He looked at the figures below him. Clearly, one had to be fierce in order to cultivate up to that level.


    They had not even given the Emperor of the Purple Underworld a chance to speak. They had probably been afraid that he would drag them down with him, and so had cut him off.


    After all, the Emperor of the Purple Underworld was the one that Ye Futian had the deepest enmity toward. He had tried to kill him several times and had captured Gu Dongliu.


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Jiangshan behind him and said, "You may decide, Elder."


    Really, his targets had just been the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    As for the followers of the eight great thunder methods, he had truly forgotten about them.


    But they had been afraid, and so had taken the initiative to come and apologize.


    "Alright," said Hua Jiangshan with a nod. "In that case, execute them."


    The seven cultivators'' hearts twitched fiercely.


    "Elder!"


    "Master!"


    They looked up at Hua Jiangshan, eyes full of fear.


    In that case, execute them.


    The words were so simple and spoken so lightly. And yet he wanted to kill them.


    "Will you do it yourself?" said Ye Futian. Since this was what Hua Jiangshan wanted, he had no objection.


    The world of cultivators was not a place for mercy.


    If the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had not fled in their divine formation, they would have been completely wiped out by these people.


    And now they came here asking for mercy?


    If these people could ask for mercy, anyone in the world of cultivators could.


    "They are not worthy," said Hua Jiangshan. "Kill them, but as for their factions, leave them be."


    The battle had been decided by the leaders, so the eight of them needed to die. The others could be spared.


    "Yes, sir." A Renhuang from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven flashed over, soon descending upon the seven men who had come to admit their guilt. They had put their lives in his hands.


    These Renhuangs seemed very vulnerable right now.


    One''s level and one''s power were always relative.


    Even legendary figures sometimes stood at the bottom and looked up at others.


    Of course, Ye Futian and the others were just the same. Except they currently stood at the peak of the world of cultivators.


    Afterward, more people returned, bringing with them a familiar figure. It was Zhan Yuan, the member of the Violet Heavenly Palace with a supreme body of the Great Path.


    Zhan Yuan would never have imagined that this day would come. Ye Futian stood above the Violet Heavenly Palace, holding his life in his hands.


    "Cripple his ability to cultivate." Ye Futian did not pay too much attention to him, saying only the single sentence. It was as if in his eyes, Zhan Yuan was only worth that single sentence...


    After a while, the Mountain Master of 10,000 Divine Mountain and the Golden Raven Demon returned. The Mountain Master had been wounded, but not badly. His aura was not that stable, though.


    Ye Futian watched them as they came.


    The Mountain Master grinned and nodded at him, while the Golden Raven Demon said, "There''s not even a skeleton left of him."


    "Farewell, elders," said Ye Futian, as if what they had told him had not affected him at all.


    But when he turned to look down at the Violet Heavenly Palace, there was something in his eyes.


    The Golden Raven Demon''s words meant that yet another top figure was gone from the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He waited for the other cultivators to return. Once they had killed some of the cultivators of the Violet Heavenly Palace, they began heading back.


    The three great demon clans returned to the Demon Realm, while the people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven returned to Celestial City. The whole city came out to greet them in a glorious celebration.


    At the same time, these events sent waves throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Everyone was talking about them.


    In Brahma''s Pure Sky, the Empress had been feeling a little uneasy the past few days.


    As for the Demon Realm, the Purple Rat Emperor was conflicted. He did not know what to do.


    As for Yingzhao Mountain, they were trembling. They wanted to go and admit their guilt, but the followers of the eight thunder methods had shown them that this was not a good idea!


    ...

 1690 Visi

    The Purple Gold Rat clan was resplendent and magnificent. Since the Purple Gold Rat Emperor had reached the peak of his power and founded the clan, they liked to keep everything luxurious. Perhaps this was because they had once been used to living underground.


    Now, down in the golden earth, the Purple Gold Rat Emperor led a group of cultivators, preparing to set out for Celestial City in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Although there had been some enmity between them before, they had formed an alliance in the God''s Relic. Ye Futian had destroyed the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace, but had not sent people to watch them. It seemed that they were not worth destroying.


    After thinking for a while, the Emperor decided to go and admit his guilt. He brought some of their treasures as well as the rat, who had once offended Ye Futian in the mountains to ask for forgiveness.


    The Purple Gold Rat Emperor was a figure capable of bending and stretching to accommodate.


    Moreover, today they were going to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. If Ye Futian would not forgive them, they could only fight to the death, trying to take Ye Futian with them.


    "Let''s go," said the Purple Gold Rat Emperor. Suddenly, beams of golden light shone out as they prepared to set out.


    "Hmm?" Just at the moment they were about to leave, the Purple Gold Rat Emperor suddenly frowned. He felt that something was not right.


    Then, his expression changed.


    Soon, several powerful demonic auras descended, as if they had come from a great distance. The Purple Gold Rats'' expressions all changed. They looked up into the sky, where four cultivators appeared at the same time. Three great demon masters were there, in addition to Jiang Chengzi.


    At that moment, the Purple Gold Rat Emperor''s heart froze.


    They were finished!


    This was the formation that had destroyed the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    What did that alliance mean?


    Ye Futian had never planned to let the Purple Gold Rat Emperor go. The head of the Wang clan had died at the Emperor''s hands, so if he let them go, how could he maintain relations with the Wang clan? The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would not let them go either.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was very aware of what was happening in the Purple Gold Rat clan. They had discussed how to destroy him if there was a change in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Boom! Without any words, the four great figures attacked. They had always hated the Purple Gold Rat Emperor.


    Several of the rats showed strong looks of regret in their eyes. Why had they provoked Ye Futian?


    Of course, this was not the main reason why they were being destroyed.


    Three of the great powers of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had been destroyed, completely changing the balance of power within the Heavenly Mandate Realm. But what was strange was the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm did not think that this change would weaken the realm very much. They even thought that the weakening would only last for a little bit. In the future, they would become even stronger.


    Perhaps this was because the Heavenly Mandate Realm had never been very unified. And the youth whose name shook the Nine Realms had said he would found an academy there where all the people of the world would be allowed to pursue their own Path. They would not prevent others from becoming stronger.


    Moreover, all of the top figures of the realm seemed willing to believe that he could do it.


    And if that was the case, why wouldn''t others believe it?


    The 10,036th year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar would be one that was entered in the history books of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    In Celestial City, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven began rebuilding. Countless people from the city came to help. Seeing the people of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven returning naturally made them very happy.


    As the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven began to take shape, the cultivators from Yingzhao Mountain arrived. They had been afraid for a time after the Purple Gold Rats had been destroyed, but no one had come to destroy them. Thus, they had been relieved, knowing that Ye Futian was not planning to attack them.


    Ye Futian did not have any hostility towards them, but the three great demon clans went there to seize their treasures. This hurt them deeply, but they did not dare complain.


    Afterward, they could only lower their heads and promise not to cause trouble. The Demon Realm of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was destined to be controlled by the Divine Elephants, the Dragon Gods, and the Sky Demon Court.


    From then on, the turmoil within the Heavenly Mandate Realm was ended.


    Now it would be a different story.


    Ye Futian, Jiang Chengzi, Hua Jiangshan, Gu Dongliu, and more were all at the Celestial Gate.


    They watched all the busy figures at the gate. Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan both had appreciative smiles on their faces.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was finally recovering from their disaster. The threat from the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had been completely eliminated.


    "Elder, when is the Celestial Gate planning on accepting new disciples?" Ye Futian stood above the Celestial Gate, hair flying in the wind and looking off into the distance. "Right now, the people of Celestial City are clamoring to train here."


    "First, I want to send our Renhuangs out through the various realms to bring back our people who scattered. Only then will we accept new disciples," said Jiang Chengzi. There were still many disciples of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven who were far away. Many of those who were below the Renhuang level did not have the power to cross through realms.


    "In realms like the Nine Supreme Realms, the Renhuangs will have limited influence. It might be hard for them to find people," said Ye Futian.


    "So the two of us are planning to go ourselves," said Jiang Chengzi with a smile. He and Hua Jiangshan would go as well.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. The two of them would obviously not abandon the disciples of the Celestial Gate.


    "So, what will happen here?"


    "Is Gu Dongliu not here?" asked Jiang Chengzi with a smile. "We have discussed this. In the future, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven will not have several clan lords. All of the clan''s power will rest with the elders and one single clan lord. This will reduce the amount of intrigue."


    Ye Futian looked at Jiang Chengzi in surprise. It seemed that he had guessed something.


    "Are you planning..."


    Jiang Chengzi nodded and said, "Dongliu, I give you the position of clan lord of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven."


    A look of surprise came over Gu Dongliu''s face. He looked at Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan and said, "I am not worthy."


    Both in terms of experience and level, he could not contribute enough to the Celestial Gate.


    "In the past, your grandfather built the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven with his own hands. If it weren''t for him, we would never have experienced our period of prosperity. Although there were three great clans then, everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm knew that your grandfather was the emblem of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. In the end, he sacrificed the Gu bloodline for the Celestial Gate to protect it. At that time, we also did some things we did not wish to. Now, you have inherited everything from your grandfather. There is no question that we should give the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven to you. You are worthy of it."


    In the past, the three great clans had come together, sacrificing the Gu clan and even taking action against them. Although it had been many years ago, it still weighed upon them. Gu Tianxing had been the one to come up with it, but it still made them uneasy.


    Gu Dongliu wanted to say something, but Hua Jiangshan smiled and said, "For many years, I have been trapped at the eighth tier of the Divine Wheel. You have allowed me to put aside some things and find peace. Perhaps I will find a chance to advance to the next level. You young folks should worry about the affairs of the Celestial Gate."


    Now that the other two had said these things, there was nothing more that Gu Dongliu could say. He was silent for a moment, then nodded and said, "Alright."


    He was the last member of the Gu bloodline.


    He would inherit his grandfather''s will and lead the Celestial Gate forward.


    "in that case, I can relax," said Jiang Chengzi with a smile. Given Gu Dongliu''s close relationship with Ye Futian, not to mention his incredible talent, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would surely continue to advance. As for whether or not they would remain clan lords, that was not important.


    "Futian, when are you planning to build the academy?" asked Jiang Chengzi.


    "Once the Celestial Gate has stabilized, " said Ye Futian. "Before that, there is somewhere I need to go."


    "Where?" asked Jiang Chengzi.


    "Brahma''s Pure Sky," answered Ye Futian.


    "I will go with you," said Jiang Chengzi. Ye Futian did not refuse. At the moment, many people were watching him.


    Several days later, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was finished rebuilding. There were celebrations throughout the city.


    Later, the two great clan lords Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan announced that from then on, there would only be one clan lord: Gu Dongliu.


    This news shook the Celestial City.


    On that day, Gu Dongliu of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven appeared before the people of the world for the first time in his capacity as clan lord. He stood on the steps, a halo of divine light around him and marvelous illusions in the air. The Great Path descended from the heavens, shocking everyone.


    This was the first time they had seen someone with such a brilliant Wheel of the Great Path. He was heroic and noble, and those who had any objections to him being named clan lord could not say anything. He would surely lead the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven into a new era of prosperity.


    On that day, almost all the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were there for the celebration. But the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky was not there.


    Ye Futian watched everything quietly from the side, a little bit of regret in his heart.


    Third sister was not seeing this scene.


    The other disciple of the Cottage was not there.


    The next day, Ye Futian and Jiang Chengzi left.


    Xia Qingyuan stood in the air high above the Celestial Gate, watching their retreating figures.


    ...


    All of the Goddesses of Brahma''s Pure Sky were there, standing in front of the Empress, bringing news.


    Gu Dongliu had become the clan lord of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    Everything that had happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm recently was like a dream. It did not seem real.


    The whole Heavenly Mandate Realm had turned on its head.


    The Empress had a calm expression on her face. She asked the goddesses to leave, then sat there alone. She could not quiet her mind.


    "Hmm?"


    At that moment, the hair on the back of her neck stood up. She looked off into the distance. She seemed to be able to sense something.


    Two figures appeared below Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Greetings, Empress. It is I, Ye Futian," came a voice that rang through Brahma''s Pure Sky. Everyone''s hearts began to beat faster.


    There could be no other reason. These days, wherever Ye Futian went...


    ...

 1691 The Hurt That Wont Be Forgotten

    This was not the first time Ye Futian had come to pay a visit, but he was refused before by the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Would Ye Futian''s visit be denied again this time?


    Ye Futian had not embarked on his journey alone to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace.


    In Brahma''s Pure Sky, all the goddesses looked at the sky beneath, and Ye Futian clearly felt all their divine spirits focusing on him. However, as he looked up, his eyes showed no disturbance.


    Jiang Chengzi stood quietly next to him. Ye Futian had no quarrels with Brahma''s Pure Sky and had no plan to do anything harmful there, so it was enough with just him by his side.


    In today''s Heavenly Mandate Realm, perhaps no one would dare not making some allowances for Ye Futian.


    The fact was, Ye Futian could influence all principalities other than Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    However, for some reason, Brahma''s Pure Sky seemed to intend on setting a boundary with Ye Futian. Last time, Ye Futian had also invited Qin He to the City of the Ruins. However, the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky did not permit it and brought Qin He back with her.


    Jiang Chengzi was a little puzzled about all this, and he wasn''t clear why Ye Futian wanted to visit Brahma''s Pure Sky. However, he didn''t probe. He and assumed that Ye Futian must have his own reasons.


    At this time, there were goddesses coming down from the Brahma Pure Sky, and the one in the lead was an unparalleled beauty, with the most alluring temperament; it was the premier virgin of Brahma''s Pure Sky, Qin He.


    Qin He alighted in front of Ye Futian, her eyes were full of smiles, and she whispered softly, "Since we parted ways at the God''s relic, Young Master Ye, you are now famous in the Nine Realms."


    "Don''t tease me, goddess," Ye Futian said smilingly. He was always on good terms with Qin He, but they were not here today to chat about old times. He asked, "Is Her Majesty ready to receive me?"


    "Well, Her Majesty asked me to come to greet Young Master Ye." Qin He nodded slightly and said, "This way."


    Ye Futian took a deep breath. This time, did the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky finally decide to receive him?


    Lifting his feet, Ye Futian stepped up, walking toward Brahma''s Pure Sky, but his steps were somewhat heavy. Even when he was destroying the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and Violet Heavenly Palace, he had not felt this way. But at this moment, he was inexplicably somber and nervous.


    He was afraid that the result would not be what he wanted.


    His every step was heavy. He had always wanted to come to Brahma''s Pure Sky to find out in person, but at this moment, he was walking rather slowly.


    What was making him so nervous?


    Stepping across the buildings and crossing over Heaven''s Gate, they walked in the direction of Heavenly Palace.


    Finally, a staircase appeared in front of them that led directly to the peak of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Her Majesty is waiting for young master Ye up there," Qin He said to Ye Futian. She then stood aside, not intending to go along with him.


    "Wait for me here," Ye Futian said to Jiang Chengzi.


    "Very well," Jiang Chengzi nodded. Today in Heavenly Mandate Realm, no one would dare to make a move against Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian walked up along the staircase, and it was very high. With heavy steps, Ye Futian climbed, and finally, he could see what was above.


    Raising his head slightly, he continued up, and misty clouds now appeared under his feet.


    Finally, he climbed off the staircase and came to Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    In just an instant, his body seemed to freeze, and he could no longer take another step.


    Time seemed to stand still at this second.


    In Brahma''s Pure Sky, a woman stood there quietly, peaceful and beautiful, just like someone in a painting. Refreshing and one of a kind, she was not so unapproachable as the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky to make one felt out of reach. Her beauty was of the world, but that which could satisfy all imaginations about beauty, so that even in the world, she was not any less inferior to those goddesses.


    But it was not her beauty that touched Ye Futian, but the fact that it was such a familiar face. Countless times, this face that had appeared in his dreams, imprinted in the depths of his memory, an unforgettable face.


    Scenes from the past replayed in his mind. Her name was Hua Jieyu, a talented girl in the Qingzhou Academy. In her time, she had been a goddess worshipped by those at the Academy.


    At the end of that year, the girl took his hand while watching the boats sailing around Qingzhou Lake and the fireworks that spread from the sky, she asked him if they were in a relationship or not.


    The goddess of his youth, innocent and beautiful.


    From Qingzhou Academy, Nandou Clan, Nandou Nation, to Eastern Barren Territory, they had gone through many storms together and finally come out together.


    However, all of this was destroyed in that battle. In the battle that took place at the Barren State and under siege from all the holy lands, she laid in his arms and told him that in the future, he must find a better woman because his empress ought to be someone who would make all others pale in the Nine Heavens.


    She had also said not to be bossed around by that woman, however. Because in this life, she was the only one who could order him around.


    Scene after scene emerged. It was as if a lifetime had passed in front of his eyes. An instant could be so interminably long.


    There were tears in Ye Futian''s eyes, but they were not tears of sadness, but of joy.


    This outcome seemed better than he had expected.


    He was so afraid that he would found nothing on this trip to Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    He walked up to her and reached out, wanting to caress her face again. However, before he could do that, someone appeared in front of Ye Futian, standing between the two.


    Noble and unapproachable.


    Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Because of Hua Jieyu, Ye Futian had ignored her presence, but she was always there.


    Ye Futian frowned and wanted to speak.


    "She is not the person you are looking for," the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky spoke first.


    "No matter what you have done, I can look past them; I owe you a favor," Ye Futian said. Since Hua Jieyu was still alive, then it was the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky who had saved her.


    He would not pursue the reason why she had concealed the truth.


    As long as Jieyu was alive, it was enough.


    "Your wife is dead." The Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky stared into his eyes, Ye Futian''s heart trembled, and his face suddenly paled as he looked at Hua Jieyu.


    "You know this better than anyone else. Your wife died for you. What you see in front of you now was formed from what was left of her soul. Although I reshaped her physical body, she is no longer your wife," the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky continued.


    Ye Futian remembered that battle, in which Hua Jieyu was left only with a trace of her soul, and it dissipated between heaven and earth.


    But seeing Jieyu standing in front of him with his own eyes, he couldn''t believe it.


    "Jieyu," he looked at her.


    Hua Jieyu returned his gaze, and Ye Futian saw that her eyes were as calm as stilled water. There seemed to be no disturbances in her eyes. It was as if he was indeed just a stranger.


    At this moment, Ye Futian''s heart suddenly ached.


    Wasn''t it?


    How could it not be?


    The woman who had appeared in his mind countless times was now standing right in front of his eyes.


    "What did you do to her?" Ye Futian stared at Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky, and his eyes suddenly became extremely cold. Those eyes, cold as steel, actually made the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky felt a sense of chill.


    "I already told you that she is not your wife. Now, she is my direct disciple, and she will inherit my craft. In the future, she will inherit Brahma''s Pure Sky and become the next Lady who rules Brahma''s Pure Sky." She looked at Ye Futian indifferently.


    "Your disciple?"


    Ye Futian stared at the other, "Even if she had really forgotten about everything, she is still my wife, even if it was just a remnant of her soul, it won''t change anything."


    "She''s leaving with me."


    The Lady looked at him and said coldly, "If she''s willing, I will not stop her."


    Ye Futian walked past her and stood in front of Hua Jieyu. He looked at her and stretched out his hands. However, seeing Hua Jieyu''s eyes, he hesitated. So, he put his hand down again and whispered, "Jieyu, it''s me."


    Hua Jieyu turned around and walked away, then just sat there.


    Ye Futian''s heart seemed to be struck by a sword. It was so painful that he felt like his heart was broken.


    "Qingzhou Lake was where we fell in love. Don''t you remember?" Ye Futian looked at her and asked.


    "Book Mountain, on our wedding day, the Eastern Barren Territory came to congratulate us. Jieyu, don''t you remember?" Ye Futian continued.


    Ye Futian''s voice was trembling.


    "Everything that had happened, you should know better than anyone else, so why bother deceiving yourself?" Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky turned to look at Ye Futian, saying, "Your wife already perished in that battle."


    "I want to take her away from here," Ye Futian insisted.


    "You have vanquished the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, the Violet Heavenly Palace, and the Purple Gold Rat Clan, so if you really want to do this, I can''t stop you. If you want to forcefully take her away against her will and disregard her feelings, then do what you will," the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky said calmly. Ye Futian felt a pain prick at his heart.


    He walked to Hua Jieyu and said with a smile, "You little devil, did you really forget me?"


    With her eyes closed, Hua Jieyu simply sat there quietly.


    Watching her, Ye Futian suddenly felt weak all over. Even though he was Renhuang, it was as if he had exhausted all his strength.


    "Then, I will come see you another day." Ye Futian displayed a bright smile, but it seemed somewhat forced. On the bright side, at least, she was still alive, right?


    Ye Futian looked at Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky''s Pure Sky and said, "I may come from time to time in the future. I beg your forgiveness in advance."


    Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky frowned, seemingly displeased.


    Ye Futian ignored her reaction and turned to walk down the stairs.


    He went all the way down and didn''t seemed to hear Qin He even when she greeted him. He left with Jiang Chengzi.


    After his departure, Brahma''s Pure Sky remained quiet.


    The Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky looked at Hua Jieyu, who was sitting there. Two trails of tears had streaked from her tightly closed eyes. When those beautiful eyes opened again, they were full of tears.


    "When did his hair turn all white?" A heartbreaking voice spoke. It seemed to contain endless sorrow and pain.


    It must have been hard for him to bear. The desperation must have been overwhelming.


    Would she forget about him?


    How could she forget?


    Even if she had forgotten who she was, or the whole world, she would never forget him.


    "Forget, and you don''t have to endure this kind of pain," a voice said. It was the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky who spoke to her.


    Hua Jieyu raised her head to look at the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky, and suddenly she smiled and replied, "It is because it hurts that I won''t forget!"


    ...

 1692 I Am You, If You Win

    The Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky looked at her. It was because it hurt that wouldn''t forget?


    "That''s your past life, not this life. Why endure the pain of your past life in this life?" the Lady asked.


    "Since I remembered, then there must be just the one life," Hua Jieyu looked at her and responded.


    Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky looked on coldly, and an invisible breath bloomed from her, covering the space. Terrible light was released from Hua Jieyu''s body. Hua Jieyu''s body trembled suddenly. It was as if she was enduring extreme pain.


    Her face was distorted, and from her body, shadow after shadow was stripping out, and there seemed to be thousands of them being peeled away, all of them appeared around her. These shadows did not look like Hua Jieyu but were that of the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    Hua Jieyu''s figure became elusive, no longer appeared real. Like a vague shadow, it could dissipate at any time.


    Finally, there seemed to be a light that switched on. And in this light, many paintings could be vaguely made out, and all those paintings were of the same person. If Ye Futian were there, he would find that every one of these paintings was a depiction of their shared memories, which had also appeared in his mind not long ago.


    "Do you want the past life or this life?" Many voices spoke as the many shadows that were surrounding here asked her at the same time.


    At this moment, that elusive figure seemed so fragile and precarious. It was as if it might disappear at any moment.


    "You should know that even if he had destroyed the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Violet Heavenly Palace, he could do nothing to me."


    That elusive figure suddenly laughed and said, "Then your hundred generations'' worth of cultivation will disappear with me."


    The Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky fell silent. They both knew that this was the truth. Back then, when she rescued Hua Jieyu, the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky felt the opportunity of enlightenment in her, so she had chosen a woman from the Lower Worlds to be the perfect embodiment of herself.


    However, it seemed that it might not have been so perfect after all.


    Her previous life had too strong of a hold on her; it was too strong to be erased.


    "Since it''s a no-win situation, let''s make a bet." Finally, the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky turned around and said, "Put out the lamp. I will let you go with him to cultivate. If I win, you are me. If you win, then I will be you."


    Hua Jieyu looked at her and asked, "How could I trust you?"


    "If you agree, I will cut off my own recourse," said the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Very well." Hua Jieyu nodded.


    "Starting today, I will be cultivating in retreat. From now on, everyone in Brahma''s Pure Sky will need to assist Hua Jieyu. After I go into the retreat, if the Heavenly Mandate Academy is established, Jiutian Goddess will escort her there to cultivate."


    As the voice fell, the sacred hall suddenly lit up.


    Hua Jieyu looked ahead, then turned around and walked toward the staircase, looking down at the sky below. There were tears dripping down from the corner of her eyes, but a steely determination could be seen in those eyes.


    "If I forget about you, you would forgive me, right?" she said in a heartbreaking voice. She suddenly smiled and continued, "At least, I will be by your side again."


    Leaving was for a more perfect return.


    Brahma''s Pure Sky was shaken up, but no one knew just what kind of agreement they had made, or exactly what was at stake.


    ...


    Ye Futian returned to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Now, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had been re-established in the Celestial City with Gu Dongliu as the master of the Celestial Gate.


    Next, it should be the establishment of the Academy.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had already dispatched its cultivators to the location where the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty once resided. They would work together to build the Academy at Heavenly Mandate Realm. Now, all the top forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were getting busy. This was the first time that all of them were working hard toward the same goal simultaneously.


    Xia Qingyuan had also been working hard at cultivation. After receiving the lotus flower in God''s relic, she made rapid progress, transforming her life spirit and merging one with the divine lotus. She had already experienced a transformation.


    On this day, she finished cultivating and walked toward the person in front of her. The man stood quietly on the edge of the palace, looking into the distance. He appeared quite lonesome.


    She walked next to him and asked softly, "Did you find what you were looking for?"


    "Yeah," Ye Futian said with a smile, "I did."


    In any case, she was still around, right?


    Although the outcome was not exactly what he had hoped for, it was not bad either.


    That was why he told the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky that he would be visiting again.


    Xia Qingyuan''s beautiful eyes were slightly turbulent, but then she smiled a brilliant smile and said, "After so many years of hard work, you have finally accomplished your wish; why didn''t you take her back with you?"


    "She refused to come back with me," Ye Futian said.


    Xia Qingyuan looked surprised. "But why?"


    "She had suffered such a grievous injury back then, maybe that''s why she forgot everything. But as long as she is still alive, it''s enough, isn''t it?" Ye Futian didn''t know whether he was talking to Xia Qingyuan or to himself.


    He once thought that she had disappeared completely from his life, and it was Xia Qingyuan''s intel that gave him a glimmer of hope. But he also knew very well that he had been tricking himself all these years with this desperate and illusive wish until he saw her in those elusive dreams.


    Now that he had seen that she was still alive, despite being a little disappointed, it was better than he had expected.


    Xia Qingyuan was taken aback at first, but then she understood what Ye Futian meant. Had she really forgotten everything?


    "She will remember it," Xia Qingyuan said. "And you won''t give up either, will you?"


    "Mmmm," Ye Futian nodded.


    He turned around and looked at Xia Qingyuan with a smile. "Thank you."


    Over the years, he had never thanked Xia Qingyuan properly.


    If it weren''t for Xia Qingyuan, he wouldn''t have even started looking, and he wouldn''t have this little bit of hope.


    Xia Qingyuan looked into his eyes, then smiled brightly and said, "Not at all. You helped me a lot too."


    She continued, "I have to cultivate now, and maybe it won''t be long before I can become a Renhuang, just like my father."


    After Xia Qingyuan finished speaking, she turned to leave. Ye Futian looked at her and saw her footsteps speed up. It was as if she was running away.


    With her back to Ye Futian, tears flowed freely from those beautiful eyes that had smiled so brilliantly.


    Just "thank you"?


    This wasn''t what she wanted.


    However, it was still a very happy ending. After all, he finally found the one he loved, hadn''t he?


    Perhaps this was the best outcome.


    When she entered the realm of Renhuang, she would return to Emperor Xia''s Realm and become Empress so that her father could rest.


    Well, that would also be perfect!


    ��


    The center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was once the territory of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, and it had been extremely unstable during this period of time. First, it was the destruction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty that, like a thunderbolt, shocked the hearts of countless many. It could not be assuaged for a long time.


    As the symbol of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had stood for countless years. Its destruction was like a dream.


    But now, after the destruction of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, its ruins had been cleared up. An academy was rising from the ground, and the area covered by this academy would be even greater than the former imperial palace.


    Many went to watch the buildings grew out of thin air inside the academy, which had elicited all kinds of emotions.


    After the destruction of a dynasty, would there be another stronger force replacing it?


    Numerous cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had come here, especially many young people. They dreamt of entering this academy with their minds set on seeking the Way. They all knew that this academy would be the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, its strongest holy land for cultivation.


    At this time, outside the academy that was still under construction, there were many excellent figures that gathered there.


    Among them, there were two young people. It was a man and a woman. The man was unparalleled in his temperament, and the woman was unparalleled in her looks. When they walked together, they look like a perfect match, a golden couple.


    "I didn''t expect this," the young man said with a smile. "It has only been a few years since we came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm together, and now his name rings through the entire realm. It is said that he is renowned even in Nine Supreme Realms. The history of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was also rewritten because of him."


    "It''s surreal, all right," the woman said with a small smile. "I wonder how the others are doing with their cultivation."


    "In any case, I am afraid that no one can overshadow his fame," the young man laughed. "Fortunately, we had no conflict with him back in the days; otherwise, even my father would not be able to hold him back."


    These two were indeed Ye Futian''s friends from Crimson Dragon Realm. Chi Shang, the son of the Crimson Dragon Emperor, and his wife, Yu Shifei. After the two married in Crimson Dragon Realm, they came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm together.


    "How could you, given your character?" Yu Shifei smiled.


    "Shifei, do you think there would be a shortcut for us if we wanted to go to the academy to cultivate?"


    "We are not that lousy, are we?" Yu Shifei said in a low voice. They were the most outstanding cultivators in the Crimson Dragon Realm. They should be qualified to cultivate in the academy of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "That''s right. We all came here together. A shortcut would be incredibly shameful." Chi Shang laughed. Moreover, he was the Prince of the Crimson Dragon Realm, who came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm with Ye Futian. If he had to rely on his relationships to get in the Academy that Ye Futian established, it would be too dishonorable.


    Aside from them, many people who knew Ye Futian had come here as well. For example, Emperor Qi that Ye Futian had met when he first arrived at the Heavenly Mandate Realm, as well as people from the Yun Clan, like Yun Qianyue, who had always wanted to be his student. It was not until he was forced to save Yun Qianyue that he finally agreed.


    Yun Qianyue knew that this was not what her teacher wanted, but she just wanted to see him from a distance and watch.


    The Academy was starting to form with the joint efforts of all principalities. It would not be long before it was completed. By then, who knew what could be achieved?


    On the opening day of the Academy, would all the top figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm make an appearance?


    ...

 1693 The Cottage

    These days at the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, there were powerful cultivators of Renhuang Realm who departed successively, heading toward different places, some even to different realms.


    The academy that was built on the ruins of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty gradually took shape over time, magnificent and impressive. However, it lacked the depth of history and charms from the past. After all, this was a brand-new institution.


    And it would wait for someone to write it into history.


    Many cultivators had gathered at the center of Heavenly Mandate Realm, and the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm was in an uproar. Everyone wanted to be there to witness this great occasion.


    Not just the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but other forces of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms had received the news and sent their people into the Heavenly Mandate Realm right away.


    After he came out of the God''s relic, Ye Futian became famous in the Nine Realms. His name was known by all. Now he had set off another wave in Heavenly Mandate Realm, and it would not go unnoticed in the Nine Realms.


    Although the turmoil of the past had faded away, there were still many who had Ye Futian in their minds. Even though he exerted great influence now in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, there were some principalities who didn''t. It was still Empty Imperial Palace that gave these principalities pause.


    Empty Imperial Palace was the first to come forward and offered him protection; thus, no one wanted to be the first to make a move on Ye Futian, not even the Golden Divine Nation who harbored deep animosity toward him. As it turned out, they would only send men to lay in wait at the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty for an opportunity. If Ye Futian took the initiative to invade because they had defied Empty Imperial Palace''s order and attacked him first, then the consequence would be very different.


    However, when the Heavenly Mandate Realm was steeped in turmoil, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was quiet by contrast.


    But surprisingly to some, as time passed, Ye Futian remained unstirred and did not let on when the academy would be finished, so it kept many in suspense.


    However, time was measured differently for those who cultivate. Several months could go by in just a blink of the eye for them.


    But the center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm became quite lively. As more and more cultivators arrived, including those who were from other parts of the Nine Realms, it was inevitable that some altercations and disagreements would occur.


    No one knew what Ye Futian was waiting for.


    But Ye Futian was waiting for someone; the group was not yet complete.


    At the very least, the opening of the Heavenly Mandate Academy should be witnessed by the disciples who used to belong to the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    There were also a few others that he would like to see, hoping to be there together.


    It turned out that after the older senior brother, Sword Saint, was teleported, he did not return to the Heavenly Mandate Realm but went to the Crimson Dragon Realm, which was closer, and returned to Qianye City.


    Therefore, Ye Futian, who had not planned on receiving those from the Crimson Dragon Realm, met in advance a group of people whom he had wanted to see but not yet seen. In Ye Futian''s calculation, the time was not yet ripe. His power may be strong enough in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but there were still great potential risks.


    Therefore, he had planned to wait a while longer, but as soon as Renhuang from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had found his older senior brother, the Sword Saint, there was no way they could be stopped.


    As a result, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven became even sportier.


    Many had arrived.


    And they all wanted to see it with their own eyes.


    "Little brother, what are you thinking?" A clear voice was heard asking. Ye Futian turned and saw two people walking toward him. The man was peerlessly handsome, and the woman had an unbridled beauty.


    It was none other than Zhuge Mingyue.


    "My brother, you must miss me." A head popped out, and the beautiful Long Linger came to Ye Futian''s side and sat next to him. They hadn''t seen each other for years, but it was as if they had never been apart.


    "Don''t be naughty," Ye Futian said smilingly. This little girl seemed to never grow up.


    "Second senior sister," Ye Futian called out and stood up. Zhuge Mingyue walked up to him and stretched out her hand. Then she stood on her tiptoe and patted Ye Futian''s head.


    Ye Futian looked quite indignant. As Renhuang, he didn''t expect such treatment.


    "You don''t seem to be any different now that you are Renhuang," Zhuge Mingyue said with a light smile, "but you seemed to be a little better looking."


    Ye Futian looked resigned to his fate. It seemed that his senior sister just wanted to experience the feeling of patting a Renhuang on the head.


    What could he do?


    "Would you allow me some dignity?" Ye Futian saw many around him were looking at them and felt that his image was completely destroyed.


    "Yes, after all, you are now the legendary Renhuang they all talked about," Zhuge Mingyue nodded in agreement.


    Back in the days in the Eastern Barren Territory, those in the Sage Realm were legends in their own right.


    They have never even heard of Renhuang.


    And now, their little brother was a Renhuang himself.


    "But, third senior brother is a Renhuang too," Ye Futian smiled weakly; how about not bullying the wrong person?


    "True, but he doesn''t much feel like one at all." Zhuge Mingyue glanced at Gu Dongliu with a smile, who was right next to her. And Gu Dongliu always had a gentle smile on his face.


    "When you bring Jieyu here, then the group would be complete," Zhuge Mingyue said again.


    Ye Futian''s eyes darkened, and he could say nothing.


    "Don''t think so much about it. It is enough that Jieyu is still alive. No matter what had happened to her, she''s still there, so what does it matter? Even if she had forgotten some things, you could always start over again." Zhuge Mingyue already knew what happened because Ye Futian had told them.


    In that battle, countless people in the Holy Zhi Palace watched Hua Jieyu''s demise, as the wife of the Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace, die on the battlefield. Even if the battle was won, that victory had come with an extremely heavy price tag. After that, Ye Futian departed to Qingzhou City. That was when all his hair turned white.


    When Zhuge Mingyue learned that Ye Futian had seen Hua Jieyu, she was very happy for him because she had lost all hope.


    In fact, anyone who had witnessed what happened with their own eyes, except Ye Futian himself, would have lost hope. Ye Futian, because he cared too much, he almost wanted to deceive himself of what really happened.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. She was right. Worst come to worst, they would just have to start over again.


    He did not completely trust the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky, but even at the very least, Jieyu was still alive.


    "Futian." At this time, a man walked toward him, and it was the Swordmaster of Lihen, who was followed by another man, Wang Chuan.


    Previously, Wan Chuan had been cultivating in the Crimson Dragon Realm and happened to meet the Renhuang from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, so he came along with them.


    His master, the swordmaster of Lihen had already become the Sword Emperor.


    "Swordmaster," Ye Futian called out.


    "The Celestial Gate had gone to all realms and rounded up more than half of all their disciples; They wanted to know when do you plan to depart?" Swordmaster of Lihen asked.


    "Then let''s go," said Ye Futian. It was unrealistic for Celestial Gate to round up all of their disciples all at once. Now that several months had gone by, everyone was waiting; it was no longer appropriate to continue the delay.


    "Good, let me tell them," the Swordmaster acknowledged.


    Not long ago, the mighty cultivators of Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven gathered together there. Now that the Heavenly Mandate Realm was for all practical purposes, under Ye Futian''s command, even if there was no one left at Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, there was no fear that it would be attacked.


    This time, everyone at Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven was prepared to attend the ceremony to show their support.


    "Depart!"


    In an instant, a mighty force of cultivator embarked, heading toward the sky.


    ��


    Ye Futian and the others descended in the center of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, where the newly-constructed academy was located. Right on their heels, the cultivators from the demonic clans, as well as those from 10,000 Divine Mountain, also appeared, preparing to discuss matters regarding the establishment of the academy.


    The cultivators of the Nine Realms had received the news, and soon, many cultivators of the top principalities in the Nine Realms left to go to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Among them, there were those who were highly respected, but also just simple folks from various clans.


    At the same time, Taixuan Mountain and Tianhe Realm had also departed for the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "The Dragon Master, the Golden Raven Demonic Lord, the Divine Elephant Emperor, and the Lord of the 10,000 Divine Mountain seemed to have all arrived." Outside the newly completed academy, many people made the observation. They saw that these top figures of all sides had appeared after Ye Futian''s arrival.


    Indeed, Ye Futian was the real center of all the attention.


    At this time, all the top figures were inside the Academy.


    "Have you decided on the name of the Academy?" asked the Divine Elephant Emperor.


    "Well, it''s simply called Heavenly Mandate Academy, the place of preaching the Way," Ye Futian said. "However, the Academy will be divided into ordinary disciples and core disciples. The conditions are more relaxed for ordinary disciples, while core disciples will be put under careful scrutiny. At the same time, they will need to meet certain criteria, because these core disciples will be the elites of Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    Everyone agreed. Tianshen Academy and the Shangxiao Divine Palace were not too different in their operations; the places of preaching were always more or less the same.


    "In addition, among the core disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, we will select the most genius talents, and they will become the real backbone of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Even more, they would be the soul of the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    Everyone looked somber and said, "If so, the criteria must be higher in comparison."


    "Of course." Ye Futian nodded. "The door could only be entered by those who possess the perfect divine wheel."


    Although they had already anticipated it, it was still a surprise when they heard Ye Futian''s pronouncement.


    Only those who possessed the perfect divine wheel would be allowed in. Exactly what kind of disciples did they intend on creating?


    "I have already thought of a name for this central power inside the academy; Heavenly Mandate Academy, The Cottage." Ye Futian continued, "It will not be announced to the public, only we would know who are the disciples of The Cottage."


    Previously, he had already discussed with the third senior brother that he liked the name Heavenly Mandate Cottage, but it was rejected by his second senior sister, Zhuge Mingyue.


    She thought it was inappropriate. The Cottage was not simply just a name, it had special meaning, and not just anyone could be qualified as a disciple of The Cottage.


    Therefore, Ye Futian changed his mind and gave up the idea of naming the Academy as Heavenly Mandate Cottage. Instead, he would name it the Heavenly Mandate Academy and set up the Cottage as a part of it.


    And only those who possessed the perfect divine wheel could have a chance to be admitted into The Cottage. This also meant that Ye Futian was almost certainly would be the one to control the process personally, without announcing it to the public.


    If so, how awesome would the future disciples of the Cottage be?


    "Very well." Everyone nodded, and there was no disagreement. So, the weighty news was officially released to the public. The name of the academy was to be the Heavenly Mandate Academy. After seven days, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be officially open its door in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and invite everyone to come. And everyone was invited to come and observe the Opening Ceremony!


    ...

 1694 Precaution

    The first batch of disciples had already been internally decided when Ye Futian and the rest of his group decided to set up an independent cottage within Tianshen Academy.


    Ye Futian did not take on the role of dean in the new cottage. Instead, he naturally became the cottage manager of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The first batch of candidates for the cottage consisted of Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Yaya, the Swordmaster of Lihen, Long Chen, Jun, Gao Huang, etc. Gu Dongliu was already the master of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and thus would not be training in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. However, this was unimportant. They were the first disciples of the cottage.


    Judging from this, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was merely a splinter of the cottage.


    Several days after the news was released, the first batch of powerful fighters from the Dou clan arrived early. They brought along Dou Zhao from the Dou clan.


    Ever since Dou Zhao forged his perfect Divine Wheel, he listened to Ye Futian''s instructions and returned to his clan. He trained in solitude for a period to stabilize his level and cultivated his Will of the Fighting God to an even higher level.


    "Senior, I''m here," Dou Zhao said with a smile as he quickly walked forward when he saw Ye Futian. Ye Futian had told him to call him his senior. Otherwise, he might have called him "brother" or "teacher."


    "You sure are early," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Of course. After all, I am also a member of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. How could I be left out of the academy''s creation? That''s why I came early," Dou Zhao said naturally. He did not see himself as an outsider and instead saw himself as a member of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    However, Ye Futian did not mind that. How could he refuse the successor of the Dou clan from coming to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to train?


    Furthermore, Ye Futian had also thought to leave a spot in the cottage for him in the past.


    Several people walked over. Some of them recognized Dou Zhao, while many others did not.


    "Oh right, I can now consistently activate the seven-fold Will of the Fighting God and have faintly touched on the eighth level. I''ve been rather lonely in the family. Do you want to spar, senior?" Dou Zhao was a little feisty. No one of the same generation as him in the family could satisfy him anymore after he forged the perfect Divine Wheel and could consistently activate the seven-fold Will of the Fighting God. He triumphed over any low-level Renhuang with absolute certainty.


    He could not help but have this thought: Being invincible was too lonely.


    "I''ll find someone to spar with you," Ye Futian said with a smile, "Yu Sheng."


    Yu Sheng stepped forward from behind Ye Futian. His muscular body was laced with an unbelievably wild pressure. An aura at the level of a demonic emperor radiated toward Dou Zhao.


    When did this guy become a Renhuang?


    Judging from his aura, he should also have a perfect Divine Wheel. Wouldn''t that mean that my level was the same as his?


    What kind of battle would it be? I won''t have the advantage in terms of strength.


    "That''s fine too." Ye Futian nodded, "We''ll all be brothers after the academy is set up. To prevent loneliness, you can talk about cultivation with Yu Sheng frequently in the future. I''ll set up an independent, sealed platform. You won''t be able to leave until you are defeated."


    "Senior, the members of my family are here. Give me some face," Dou Zhao told Ye Futian through telepathy. He then continued, "We should focus on training after the academy is set up and give our juniors some pointers from time to time. Yu Sheng is around the same level as me. We do not need to discuss our cultivation."


    "Cough, cough��" Dou Zhao coughed as he said his piece.


    He was the descendent of the Fighting God and was now seen as the War God in the Dou clan. Ye Futian should give him some face.


    Ye Futian smiled. He looked toward the people behind Dou Zhao and said, "Your journey here must have been hard, please."


    "You''re too polite, Emperor Ye." The group nodded. They felt rather uneasy. The people from the outside world did not understand, but the powerful fighters of the Dou clan were clear that Ye Futian had something to do with Dou Zhao forging his perfect Divine Wheel. When they heard Ye Futian''s words, they sensed that Yu Sheng, who was standing behind Ye Futian, had also forged a perfect Divine Wheel. In their minds, there was now one more wielder of a perfect Divine Wheel.


    The potential of this new academy was terrifying.


    As time drew closer, another terrifying aura descended from the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy. A group of figures flew down. Many people within the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked up to see that the two people in front of the group were elders with an exceptional demeanor.


    "Lord, teacher." The people saw a figure step onto the sky to actively welcome the two figures. The people naturally knew who the white-haired figure was. Behind him, several influential figures also took to the skies. The two figures were clearly very respected.


    "Lord Taixuan of the Taixuan Mountain in the Higher Heavens Realm. The other person should be the Sky River Great Elder." Many people knew about the happenings in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realm. They had heard many things about Lord Taixuan. It was rumored that he had already broken through the bottleneck and reached the level Gu Tianxing was at back in those years.


    "En." The two figures nodded. The group walked toward the academy. The Black Wing Condor dived down from the sky and arrived at Ye Futian''s side. At the same time, a beautiful figure dressed in a fiery-red long dress also came to Ye Futian''s side. It was Little Phoenix from Taixuan Mountain.


    "Why is Lord Taixuan and the Sky River Great Elder here?" Countless people in the Heavenly Mandate City engaged in a discussion. The Sky River Great Elder was Ye Futian''s teacher. Could he also be here to enter the academy?


    Just how many influential figures would there be in the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    Just who would be the first dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    "Futian, I''ve already heard about your thoughts from your teacher. Your teacher is also willing to take up the position as the dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Since that is the case, I shall take on the role of guest minister," Lord Taixuan said with a smile. Ye Futian was making a contribution to the world of cultivation by setting up the Heavenly Mandate Academy to spread his teachings. Furthermore, aside from his relationship with the Sky River Great Elder, Lord Taixuan saw the Sky River Great Elder''s disciple very highly.


    "Thank you, Lord." Ye Futian then said with a smile, "If that is the case, the first guest minister of the Heavenly Mandate Academy is decided."


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was set up in collaboration with several factions of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Naturally, there would not be only one guest minister. The heads of the various factions would not take up any specific roles in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Thus, they would all be guest ministers of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They would also send powerful fighters from their factions to take up specific roles in the academy.


    Ye Futian had promised in the past that he did not set up the Heavenly Mandate Academy to rule over the Heavenly Mandate Realm. This was not only his academy alone. However, everyone knew that Ye Futian would be a pivotal figure in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Dou Zhao, since you are entering the academy to train, has any of the seniors in the Dou clan considered becoming a guest minister of the academy? Of course, they can also take up the position of elder," Ye Futian said as he looked at Dou Zhao. A guest minister was a title, while an elder was a specific role.


    "I''ll discuss it with my family. There should be no problems," Dou Zhao said.


    "Thanks for your effort, junior," Ye Futian said with a smile. Several powerful fighters looked toward Ye Futian. Did this person want to pull in influential factions from all over the realm?


    However, most of the people understood his intentions. He wanted the Heavenly Mandate Academy to be stable. After all, many people had their sights on him.


    Another person descended from the sky. Several people looked up in the air. They saw that an enchanting figure had appeared in the sky. They were all charmed.


    "The Jiutian Goddess of Brahma''s Pure Sky has arrived," someone said.


    "Who''s the person in the middle?" Several people let out looks of shock. No one had seen the enchanting lady in the middle. Even the Jiutian Goddess was standing beside her?


    Furthermore, Qin He was standing behind her. Many people were suspicious. Could she be the true successor of Brahma''s Pure Sky?


    Ye Futian looked up. His gaze froze in that spot when he saw the figure. He was not the only one. The Sword Saint, Zhuge Mingyue, and Gu Dongliu also could not shift their gazes away from that figure.


    The battle in the Barren State was still fresh in their minds. They were all alive, but the female master of the Ultimate Holy Palace had died in the battle.


    Now, she had once again appeared before their eyes.


    "Sister Jieyu," Long Ling''er murmured to herself in a daze.


    "Under the orders of the Empress, her personal disciple, Hua Jieyu, will enter the academy to train," a goddess in the air announced with a loud voice.


    Ye Futian''s gaze did not leave Hua Jieyu''s body. He deliberated for a moment, then said, "Please."


    He had just said this when the figures of the group from Brahma''s Pure Sky descended into the academy.


    Ye Futian turned to look at them. He saw the ladies from Brahma''s Pure Sky bow toward the influential figures, "Greetings to you, elders."


    Several people felt that was something strange going on. Ye Futian''s emotion was off.


    They saw a figure walk forward. It was Zhuge Mingyue.


    She appeared in front of the people from Brahma''s Pure Sky. Her gaze landed on Hua Jieyu''s body. She had a warm and radiant smile. This was the lady that her junior loved the most. She had seen her junior grow up with Hua Jieyu. How could Zhuge Mingyue not be happy now that she had seen her again?


    "Jieyu, do you not recognize me?" Zhuge Mingyue''s tone was gentle. However, Hua Jieyu only glanced coldly at her. There was no emotion in her eyes. Her gaze was bleak.


    "Second senior," Ye Futian shouted. Zhuge Mingyue turned to look at him. At this moment, she finally understood what Ye Futian was feeling.


    "Jieyu, can I chat with you in the future?" Zhuge Mingyue asked Hua Jieyu.


    "You''ve got the wrong person." Hua Jieyu turned around and walked to the side.


    Zhuge Mingyue looked at her figure. She stood there silently for a long time.


    It was not only her. Everyone who was once from the Holy Palace took a few steps forward.


    "Brother." Long Ling''er grabbed onto Ye Futian''s arm. She was worried about him.


    "I''m alright," Ye Futian said. Just what did the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky mean by this?


    She knew that Hua Jieyu had died. Why did she still use her name?


    "Futian?" Lord Taixuan asked Ye Futian.


    "My wife." Ye Futian collected himself and gave the lord a simple explanation.


    The influential figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm felt their hearts shake.


    "Ye Futian," the Dragon Master said to Ye Futian, "I heard that the technique practiced by the one in Brahma''s Pure Sky is extremely unique. This might not be a simple case of memory loss."


    "The technique cultivated by the Empress of the Brahma''s Pure Sky is a secret to this day," the master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain said, "You have to be wary of a possibility. She might be using your wife for her cultivation."


    Ye Futian''s pupils dilated. He involuntarily released a cold aura.


    "What do you mean by that, elder? What''s she using her for?" Ye Futian said.


    "You have to be wary of that possibility. If that is the case, your wife will make use of you in her cultivation. Furthermore, you''ll be willing to do so," the master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain continued.


    Ye Futian''s expression turned ice-cold. The other party got Jieyu to come train at the academy. There was indeed that possibility!


    ...

 1695 Creation of the Academy

    Ye Futian knew that Jieyu had secretly cultivated a technique. She should have obtained the technique when she was training outside with Xia Qingyuan the other time. It was because she cultivated the technique that she caught the attention of the empress during the battle at the Holy Palace.


    It might also be the reason that she could still exist in this world. Otherwise, the last vestiges of her soul would have long scattered into the universe.


    If he thought about it that way, what the influential figures told him was probably true. That technique was the only reason Jieyu managed to stay alive, but her life was no longer her own.


    Also, there was one more incident that could prove the theory. In Brahma''s Pure Sky, other than the Empress, there was also the Jiutian Goddess and the Great Virgin Qin He. However, why would Jieyu become the personal disciple of the empress and the core figure in Brahma''s Pure Sky? Why would the Empress pay so much attention to her?


    However, if that was the case, wasn''t the Empress worried that he would find out about the truth if she sent Jieyu to train by his side? Or in other words, the other party did not mind that at all.


    Ye Futian looked in the direction Jieyu was. He knew that the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky had won. What could he do about the situation even if he knew about it? Attack Jieyu?


    Alternatively, he could go to Brahma''s Pure Sky and attack the Empress. However, he did not know if Jieyu would disappear entirely if he did that.


    At this moment, Ye Futian''s heart was in a mess.


    It''s wrong! A thought flashed past Ye Futian''s brain. He remembered something. In the past, he had sensed Jieyu''s existence twice. Did that mean that even though Jieyu was being controlled by the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky, she had not fully lost her sense of self? There might be a shred of consciousness hiding within her.


    That was why he could sense Jieyu''s existence.


    A ray of hope shone in his heart when he thought about this.


    No one in the surroundings disturbed Ye Futian. This incident shocked all of the powerful fighters. Ye Futian''s wife was being controlled by the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Goddess Qin, you can also train together with her in the academy," Ye Futian suddenly looked toward the group from Brahma''s Pure Sky and said. Qin He turned around and looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. She was a little hesitant. She had wanted to train with Ye Futian in the past, but the Empress did not let her.


    "You can stay too," a goddess by Qin He''s side told her.


    "Alright." Qin He nodded with a smile. She felt extremely conflicted. The disciple that the Empress had accepted was Ye Futian''s wife��


    It was no wonder Ye Futian had asked about her in the past. As it turned out, everything was true.


    All he could do about Jieyu was to slowly consider the circumstances. Since the Empress of Brahma''s Pure Sky had sent her here to train, he had time in the future to investigate the matter.


    "Seniors," Ye Futian said. He led the powerful fighters toward the area where the banquet would be held.


    In reality, it was not only the Dou clan and Taixuan Mountain who had arrived in the Heavenly Mandate City today. Many powerful fighters from top-notch factions of the other realms had also arrived and were mixed within the crowd.


    The large ripple that happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm after Ye Futian left Shentian Academy had spread to the other realms. Currently, the Heavenly Mandate Realm was almost unified. Even though the main aim of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was to spread teachings, all of the factions in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were now standing on the same side with the help of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They have become a superpower.


    Now, other than the fact that Ye Futian''s cultivation level was still rather low, he already had the strength to fight against any of the top-notch factions.


    The soon-to-be-formed Heavenly Mandate Academy only lacked people who stood at the very top of the world. Thus, Ye Futian had invited Lord Taixuan.


    Finally, the day that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be set up had come.


    Heavenly Mandate City was filled with cultivators from all over the realm, especially those who had come from the areas around the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The city was packed. One would not be able to find an empty spot on the streets from the sky. Every area was filled with humans.


    A majestic affair like this was unprecedented in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. At the very least, nothing of this scale had happened in the last hundred years.


    Sunlight fell onto the area that was once the Imperial City of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. It created a grand sight. The surroundings also had an ancient aura and the vicissitudes of history. Of course, the Heavenly Mandate City was no longer the Imperial City of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. It would become the outer city of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The fate of this city was now inextricably linked to that of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The tallest building in the academy was unique. It was a library. The structure of the building looked like pages of ancient scrolls piled up together to form an outer coating. At the tallest point of the library was an open ancient scroll that was ten zhang tall.


    At this moment, several people were standing in front of the ancient book. Countless people looked over. They saw several top-notch figures such as the white-haired Ye Futian, the Dragon Master of the Divine Dragons from the Demon Realm, the Divine Elephant Emperor, the Golden Raven Demonic Lord from the Sky Demon Court, the master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain, Lord Taixuan, the Sky River Great Elder, and Gu Dongliu.


    Every one of them had exceptional status. Below them, on the lower floor of the library, was an even larger group of powerful fighters. They were influential figures from top-notch factions. Jiang Chengzi and Hua Jiangshan from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven were there. The two of them were once leaders of the Celestial Gate.


    Several people got a faint understanding when they witnessed the scene.


    Everyone on the highest level, other than Ye Futian, were all masters of an entire organization. That included Gu Dongliu. He was now the only master of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    The people on the next level were the powerhouses of various factions.


    "Seniors, please inscribe your words," Ye Futian said with a smile. The Dragon Master, Divine Elephant Emperor, Golden Raven Demonic Lord, and the master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain walked toward the cover of the ancient book. Each one of them inscribed a word. They were forceful, overbearing, suppressing, and splendid.


    The Dragon Master inscribed the word "Heaven." The word harbored unparalleled weight. The Golden Raven Demonic Lord inscribed the word "Mandate." Golden divine flames fell and caused the ancient book to release a radiant glow.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor started the word "Academy" with overbearing arrogance. The master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain finished the word. He exuded radiance and his free-spirited will.


    The words released extreme radiance and glory. It caused countless hearts to throb with passion.


    Heavenly Mandate Academy!


    "Please inscribe your word, Lord," Ye Futian said with a smile. Everyone''s gaze landed on Lord Taixuan.


    Lord Taixuan nodded. He inscribed a word in the book. The word he inscribed seemed to float outside the book.


    Path!


    As the word landed on the book, the will of the Great Path seized the surroundings. The entire Heavenly Mandate Academy seemed to be enveloped in the splendor of the word "Path." At this moment, countless people looked at the word "Path." Several people even wanted to sit down and cultivate on the spot.


    That was true even for powerful fighters at the Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian let out a smile. Back in Taixuan Mountain, Lord Taixuan etched a word in the sky when he surpassed his bottleneck. Now that he had effortfully invited Lord Taixuan here, he could not "let him go." Thus, he got the first guest minister of the Heavenly Mandate Academy to inscribe the word "Path."


    This way, everything was perfect.


    The words on the book implied that the Heavenly Mandate Academy was a place for spreading the Great Path.


    The group turned around and looked toward the distance. There were countless figures in the Heavenly Mandate City. There were groups from the sky to the ground. They all witnessed this lavish event of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Futian, you can make the announcement." Countless people looked at Ye Futian. Even though he did not take up the role as the first dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy due to his cultivation level, the creation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was largely attributed to him. At this moment, it was natural for him to step out and announce the creation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Alright." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. He did not hold back. He stepped forward and stood on the sky alone. He looked down at the endless crowd.


    A breeze blew past. His white hair flew, and his robe fluttered in the wind. Countless gazes landed on him. This charismatic figure who had risen within the Heavenly Mandate Realm within the span of a few years and had his reputation spread throughout the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms had changed the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Zhuge Mingyue stood within the academy and looked up at the figure in the sky. Ye Futian had not left the Crimson Dragon Realm for many years, yet he had made it this far. He sure lived up to his reputation. The greatest genius from the Eastern Barren Territory, the Barren State, and the Nine States was like that no matter where he went.


    Furthermore, he would continue walking forward to create a history that belonged to him.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen, Yaya, Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, Huang Jiuge, Wang Chuan, and the rest of the people who had been friends with Ye Futian for many years looked at the figure in the sky. Their hearts were also overcome with emotion.


    "Brother��" There was a radiant smile in Long Ling''er''s eyes. Her eyes were teary. She could not help it though she was not sad.


    Within the group of people from Brahma''s Pure Sky, Hua Jieyu also had her gaze on the figure. There seemed to be a ripple in her eyes, but she quickly suppressed it. Her eyes once again turned cold and without emotion.


    "Today, the Heavenly Mandate Academy has been officially created. We''ll spread the Great Path in the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Ye Futian announced directly without any superfluous words, "Lord Taixuan will be the first guest minister of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The Dragon Master, Golden Raven Demonic Lord, Divine Elephant Emperor, master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain, and the master of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven make up the first batch of the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s first guest ministers. The Sky River Great Elder will become the dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    The hearts of everyone present shook. This arsenal seemed to consist of every top-notch faction in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The masters of the various factions made up the first batch of guest ministers, while the Sky River Great Elder took on the role of dean.


    Every one of them was a figure with commanding influence.


    At this moment, a radiant ray of divine light descended from the skies. One figure floated down from the sky. Countless people looked toward the direction, only to see a terrifying pressure. The pressure had not been released deliberately. It was innate.


    "The Dou clan of the Ziwei Realm extends our congratulations," the person in front said with a bright voice, "The Dou clan is willing to present a thousand ancient techniques, a hundred Renhuang-level ritual artifacts, a thousand saint-level artifacts, three relics, two elders, one guest minister, and a hundred disciples. However, the elders, guest ministers, and disciples are willing to accept the tests of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Congratulations on the creation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    The hearts of several people shook. What a generous gesture. The Dou clan of the Ziwei Realm was the most influential faction in the Ziwei Realm. They had come forward to congratulate Ye Futian and present their gifts.


    "Thank you for your gifts." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. He did not hold back. He intended to accept everything, including the disciples.


    Another ray of divine light descended from the sky. Another group of figures flew down. The person in front was incredibly beautiful and charismatic. She was a lady with an extraordinary demeanor. She was dressed in a long black robe and looked like a queen.


    "The Goddess of the Xiao clan from the Central Emperor Realm brings along members of the Xiao clan to extend our congratulations," a voice rang out. The hearts of many people shook. Was that lady the Goddess of the Xiao clan from the Central Emperor Realm?


    "Your disciple, Xiao Muyu, pays her respects." Xiao Muyu bowed toward Ye Futian with a smile on her face.


    A goddess as his disciple.


    Many people took a deep breath as they looked at Ye Futian. Was Ye Futian already that reputable in the other realms?!


    ...

 1696 The Overbearing Shen Clan

    Ye Futian nodded with a smile. He heard Xiao Muyu say, "To congratulate the creation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, I, representing the Xiao clan, am giving you 3000 ancient books, 100 Renhuang-level ritual implements, 1000 saint-level ritual implements, and five of the ancient relics the Xiao clan had obtained in the past. As for the matters regarding the guest minister, elder, and the disciples that would come to learn, I''ll discuss it with you later."


    "Thank you for the Xiao clan''s gifts, Muyu. It''s been hard on you," Ye Futian nodded and said.


    "The Clan of the Seven Slayers of the Ziwei Realm is here to extend our congratulations." Another voice rang out at this moment. The powerful fighters from the Clan of the Seven Slayers descended from the sky.


    "The Yuanyang clan of the Central Emperor Realm is here to extend our congratulations." The Yuanyang clan had also arrived. Yuan Hong personally led the group here. Ye Futian had hinted at him when the Xiao clan was conferring a goddess back then. Now that the Heavenly Mandate Academy had been set up, they were deliberating about whether to join the academy or not.


    "The Shangxiao Divine Palace of the Higher Heavens Realm is here to extend our congratulations." Another batch of powerful fighters arrived. Several people had looks of shock. The Higher Heavens Realm neighbored the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Shangxiao Divine Palace was a sacred place of cultivation in the Higher Heavens Realm and had remarkable status. They had also come today.


    "The Youyue Divine Palace of the Shadow Realm is here to extend our congratulations." A crisp voice rang out. A group of figures appeared in the air. There were not many people in the group, and their faction seemed much weaker than the rest of the powerhouses. The person in front was unbelievably charismatic. Her aura did not pale in comparison to the Goddess of the Xiao clan, Xiao Muyu. She might even have the upper hand in terms of appearance. She looked like a goddess from the Youyue Divine Palace.


    The Goddess of the Youyue Divine Palace, Chang Xi, had come to witness the spectacle. She did not expect that many factions to pay Ye Futian their respects. Since that was the case, she also stepped forward to congratulate Ye Futian.


    "Thank you, Goddess Chang Xi." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. At this moment, several powerful fighters were standing in the air in front of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It was quite a spectacular scene.


    Beneath them, the Heavenly Mandate City was engulfed with commotion as they looked up at the figures.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was created today. It was a festive occasion of an unparalleled scale. Factions from all over the nine realms had come to congratulate Ye Futian. Furthermore, these factions were all powerhouses. How glorious was this scene?


    Was this the influence that the white-haired teen had?


    What exactly did Ye Futian do when the God''s Relic opened last year?


    "Let''s enter the academy," Ye Futian said. The people nodded and stepped forward. All of them entered the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian looked at the crowd. He had wanted to say something when he suddenly saw a radiant ray of golden divine light coming from the horizon. The light let out an immense roar.


    Lord Taixuan knitted his brows and raised his hand toward the golden divine light. In that instant, a giant palm appeared in the air and pushed directly toward the golden divine light.


    Boom!


    A loud noise was heard. The golden divine light scattered. The giant palm was also shattered. However, even so, a ray of golden light still managed to pierce through the air and drill itself into the ground of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. A loud sound accompanied the impact. A hole appeared within the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Who is it?" Several people let out an unusual look. Who would dare to mess up this festive occasion?


    Who would dare to be this insolent?


    Boom.


    Rays of golden divine light covered the sky. Countless people looked up at the sky and felt their hearts shake. They saw that a golden throne had appeared in the sky. A figure was sitting on the throne and looking down at everyone. The figure looked like an almighty deity.


    Many figures appeared behind him. All of the figures were clad in golden armor and looked just like deities.


    "The Golden Divine Nation of the Higher Heaven Realm!" many people exclaimed. The animosity between Ye Futian and the Golden Divine Nation was no longer a secret. Powerful fighters from the Golden Divine Nation had also appeared when Ye Futian and his group were attacking the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. They had wanted to kill Ye Futian. However, they were unable to succeed as the forces Ye Futian had gathered to attack the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty were too strong.


    Now that the Heavenly Mandate Academy was created, the king of the Divine Nation had come personally. He was a true powerhouse, a figure which stood at the very top.


    He still acted in such an arrogant manner even though many factions had come to congratulate Ye Futian today. He sat alone on the throne in the sky. Other than Lord Taixuan, no one who came today could hold their own against the king of the Golden Divine Nation.


    The king of the Golden Divine Nation sat silently on the throne. He had a piercing gaze as he scanned through the crowd at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He did not speak, but he had terrifying authority just by sitting there.


    Presently, everyone in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms knew about the animosity between Ye Futian and the Golden Divine Nation. Two of the king''s sons had died by Ye Futian''s hands. Now that Ye Futian was trying to set up a faction in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, was he trying to retaliate against the Golden Divine Nation in the future?


    These factions who were joining the Heavenly Mandate Academy today seemed to not fear the king at all.


    Today, the king displayed an attitude just by sitting there.


    If he did not fear the Empty Imperial Palace, the king would have attacked Ye Futian directly.


    Ye Futian''s gaze swept toward the figure in the air. He had a cold gaze. The king of the Golden Divine Nation was posing a threat by sitting there. Ye Futian had no way to deal with him.


    Lord Taixuan also glanced at the other party. However, the other party did not directly cause trouble. He merely sat in the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Great Elder, now that you left the Sky River Temple, do you intend on setting up a faction of your own?" Another voice spread toward them. A group of spirited fighters appeared in the air. Their divine aura enveloped the air. It was incredibly terrifying.


    Who are these people?" many people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm asked.


    "Fighters from the Shen clan of the Central Emperor Realm," someone said. It caused the hearts of countless people to tremble.


    They naturally had heard the name of the Shen clan. They were extremely overbearing. They were a superpower that stood at the top of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms.


    It looked like, despite Ye Futian''s massive influence, he also had a considerable number of enemies. This Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan were extremely unhappy about the creation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Of course, this unhappiness was also a form of fear.


    In the past, not many people would think much about Ye Futian training in Shentian Academy to avoid trouble. They allowed him to train there. However, no one expected him to engage in such terrifying actions after he left Shentian Academy. He had become the overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The three greatest factions of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had been exterminated because of him. Even though the top-notch factions like the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan did not care about that, it did come across as a bad omen. The creation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy directly linked many influential factions together. It felt faintly like an alliance. This, to them, was clearly a bad thing.


    Especially when the Sky River Great Elder was the dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. What would the Shen clan think about that?


    If the Heavenly Mandate Academy was to become sufficiently strong, would the Sky River Great Elder not make use of the might of the Heavenly Mandate Academy to attack the Shen clan?


    This posed a direct threat to the Shen clan.


    Ye Futian had finally been regarded heavily by the Shen clan.


    The more festive the occasion was today, the worse matters looked to the Shen clan.


    "The saga back then had passed. I came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy today to help my disciple spread his path," the Sky River Great Elder looked up at the powerful fighters of the Shen clan and said. They had come as he expected.


    The Shen clan had not truly forgiven him.


    "Great Elder, you should return to the Tianhe Realm. This place does not suit you," a powerful fighter from the Shen clan said. His tone was calm and collected, but it felt exceptionally forceful. He wanted the Sky River Great Elder to leave. He did not allow him to take up the role of dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    They could let the Sky River Great Elder off if he stayed silently at the Tianhe Realm. However, they would not allow him to set up another faction.


    Furthermore, the magnificent parade of today''s Heavenly Mandate Academy would pose a direct threat to the Shen clan in the future.


    Ye Futian was difficult to deal with. However, they would never allow the Sky River Great Elder to stay here.


    "Is the Shen clan trying to control his freedom?" Lord Taixuan had a cold tone. He had not participated in the saga back then, nor could he have helped. Otherwise, he would also be implicated in the crisis. Today, the Shen clan was still being that overbearing.


    "Yes," the person standing in front of the Shen clan''s group replied. He looked toward Lord Taixuan and said, "Lord, this is a matter between the Shen clan and the Sky River Great Elder. We know that he is your old friend and we do respect you. However, you shouldn''t interfere in this matter."


    Lord Taixuan knitted his brows slightly. The Shen clan was as overbearing as always. However, the strength of the Shen clan was real. Even he, as he was today, could not fight against them directly. Furthermore, even if he disregarded the Shen clan, the king of the Golden Divine Nation, who was sitting on the throne in the sky, was also itching for a fight.


    If they were to erupt into conflict with the Shen clan, the Golden Divine Nation would not be polite and would join the battle.


    The king of the Golden Divine Nation had an extremely piercing gaze. He had expected the Shen clan to come. That was why he personally made a trip here. This was a threat. He wanted to see how confident the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was.


    Many top-notch factions had stepped forward to congratulate Ye Futian and would send disciples into the Heavenly Mandate Academy to train. It looked like they were about to form an alliance. However, the king wanted to see how stable the alliance would be.


    Could they step forward to resist the overbearing Shen clan for this matter?


    In actuality, several top-notch factions in the crowd had animosity with Ye Futian. For example, the Martial God Clan from the Central Emperor Realm, the Celestial Worthy Temple, as well as the Sky Reaching School. However, they had only come to witness the fanfare. Their animosity with Ye Futian was not deep, and they did not need to step out. With the Shen clan around, all they had to do was witness the spectacle.


    The atmosphere quickly became suppressed. The vast space felt a little silent. There was no longer the bustle of the past. However, several people were still silently asking about the situation. They had not fully understood the animosity between these factions.


    A powerful member from the Xiao clan took a step forward. He had not spoken a word when a powerful fighter from the Shen clan interrupted him, "I''ll repeat myself. This is a matter between the Shen clan and the Sky River Great Elder. It has nothing to do with the other factions. It is best that the rest of the people do not interfere!"


    They only targeted the Sky River Great Elder. However, in actuality, they were instilling fear within the Heavenly Mandate Academy!


    ...

 1697 Courage

    Overbearing.


    The members of the Shen clan who have come today were pushy and overbearing. They did not listen to anyone and wanted to get the Sky River Great Elder back to the Tianhe Realm.


    The Shen clan would never allow the Sky River Great Elder to leave the Tianhe Realm. Even more so, they would not allow the Sky River Great Elder to nurture his own faction, especially a faction like the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    A formless pressure enveloped the Heavenly Mandate Academy. This academy that had just been created was facing pressure from the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan. If the Sky River Great Elder was to announce that he would resign from the role of the dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, then everything that happened today could only be described as ridiculous.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy took its name from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It would become a symbol of the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future. Powerful fighters from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had stepped forward to observe the ceremony and congratulate Ye Futian. There were even people from other realms who had come to congratulate him. What would it mean if the dean was forced to resign in the blink of an eye?


    The reputation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy would collapse immediately.


    The Shen clan claimed that this was animosity between them and the Sky River Great Elder. However, they had stepped forward at this moment to put the Heavenly Mandate Academy on the spot.


    The Shen clan clearly did not wish to face a powerful Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The Sky River Great Elder swept his gaze toward the members of the Shen clan. Indeed, the Shen clan was as overbearing as they were before


    He was once an influential figure in the Central Emperor Realm. What a joke. After the crisis he encountered in the Tianhe Realm, the Shen clan still wanted to establish total control over him and not allow him to have freedom.


    He was an existence at the peak of Renhuang, yet he did not have any dignity.


    However, the Sky River Great Elder was extremely calm. It was as though he had grown used to this. He had made it past the war back then. There was nothing he could not tolerate.


    Compared to the Sky River Great Elder, the rest of the people present had ugly expressions. The powerful fighters of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, as well as the people who had come to celebrate, such as the Xiao clan, Dou clan, and the Yuanyang clan, had been in high spirits just now. However, the overbearing Shen clan had directly shattered their celebratory mood.


    It was as though the Shen clan had not considered their point of view. The Shen clan did not adopt a pacifist approach in dealing with this matter. Instead, they stepped forward directly with an obvious motive. They wanted to suppress the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The old man''s calm voice seemed to harbor a hint of fury. He gave the Shen clan a forceful reply.


    In the past, Lord Taixuan had traveled the realms and discussed the Great Path together with the Sky River Great Elder. He had been powerless during the saga back then and had always blamed himself. How could he tolerate the situation now that he had broken past the bottleneck and saw that the Shen clan was bullying the Shen clan and suppressing the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    He had nothing more to ask now that he had cultivated his abilities to this level. This was the endpoint of his cultivation. Thus, he would rather do as his heart wished and feel better about himself. He did not care if he had to face the Shen clan or the Golden Divine Nation.


    While he spoke, a formless pressure of the Great Path enveloped an infinite space. The clouds in the sky were dyed golden. Many people looked up to see the radiant, golden clouds. The entire world seemed to have been enveloped by authoritative pressure. Anyone who was below the level of Renhuang found it difficult to breathe.


    Even though the war had not broken out, the pressuring aura made them feel extremely uncomfortable.


    The lord ultimately stepped forward and made his attitude known.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt a little guilty. In actuality, he had pulled Lord Taixuan over to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to make use of his strength. The Heavenly Mandate Academy required a figure of his level to oversee the place. Only then would the academy be stable. Otherwise, they would still lack a force that stood at the very top even if all of the factions in the Heavenly Mandate Realm came together.


    That was why he pulled the Sky River Great Elder over to be the dean and the lord to be a guest minister.


    Before he came, his grandmaster, the Sky River Great Elder, had gone directly to the Taixuan Mountain. The great elder then came together with the lord. Ye Futian knew that the two elders understood his plans. They knew of Ye Futian''s intentions, yet they were still willing to help him.


    The powerful fighters of the Shen clan were rather surprised. Lord Taixuan had taken the stage and gave a forceful reply.


    The king of the Golden Divine Nation remained seated on his golden throne. He was authoritative and overbearing. It was as if all of this did not concern him and that he had just come to witness the spectacle.


    "Lord, are you intending to interfere with the matter between the Shen clan and the Sky River Great Elder?" the powerful fighter leading the Shen clan''s group said coldly.


    "It is the Shen clan that is forcefully interfering with the creation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Furthermore, what right does the Shen clan have to stop the Sky River Great Elder from being the dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy?" Lord Taixuan continued, "I''ll repeat myself. You can come in to have a drink if you want, but please excuse yourself if you have any other matters."


    The Shen clan was extremely powerful. They could be said to be one of the most powerful factions in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. However, unless a figure who stood at the very top came, what could they do against Lord Taixuan?


    He wanted to see if the Shen clan would attack.


    The powerful fighter from the Shen clan laughed when they heard Lord Taixuan''s words. He lived up to his reputation as an existence who had broken through the limits of cultivation. He was forceful indeed.


    Though, did he want to fight against the Shen clan?


    The powerful fighter leading the Shen clan turned around and swept his gaze across the fighters on the ground. He said with a bright voice, "How many people in the Tianhe Realm lost their lives because of the incident involving the Sky River Great Elder back then. 3000 disciples. They were almost exterminated. Why, does the Heavenly Mandate Academy want to continue implicating the people cultivating in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?"


    There was an immense threat in his voice. He continued, "If the Sky River Great Elder were to become the dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, then the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be regarded as members of the Sky River Great Elder''s faction. Thus, I wanted to advise all of you from the Heavenly Mandate Realm to be cautious."


    The word ''cautious'' spread throughout the surroundings and impacted the ears of everyone who listened. The unbridled threat spread throughout the Heavenly Mandate City. It caused the countless fighters in the city to become silent instantly.


    Nearly 3000 of the Sky River Great Elder''s disciples had been slaughtered by the Shen clan back then?


    They were not hiding anything.


    If the Sky River Great Elder were going to become the dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, then the Shen clan would make it such that no one would dare to cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The king of the Golden Divine Nation, who was sitting on the throne, was also an immense threat. It was as though the heads of everyone present was doused with cold water. Countless people who had wanted to enroll in the Heavenly Mandate Academy to train seemed to have become more alert.


    "I am also curious as to how many disciples the Heavenly Mandate Academy can attract," the king of the Golden Divine Nation also said.


    The Shen clan had first suppressed the Sky River Great Elder. Now, they were interfering with the disciples. Their methods were vicious and forceful.


    As a place of spreading the Great Path, it would be humiliating if no one dared to enroll into the academy to train.


    "Since the Sky River Great Elder is going to be your dean, then you guys can continue," the powerful fighter of the Shen clan said coldly. He continued standing in the air high above the academy and looked down at everything under him. It was as though he was enjoying the power he wielded.


    Ye Futian looked toward the powerful fighter from the Shen clan and the king of the Golden Divine Nation. He then looked at the vast crowd under him. He said loudly without hesitation, "The Heavenly Mandate Academy will accept disciples from all over the world. They have to go through a test. Those who pass the test can train in the outer sect of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The core disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy shall be chosen from the outer sect disciples.


    "The selection period for the first batch of outer sect disciples will continue for three months. It starts immediately. Those who wish to enter the academy to train can directly enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy and take the test."


    Ye Futian surveyed the crowd after he spoke.


    There were countless figures in the vast Heavenly Mandate City, but none of them walked out. Several people whispered to one another. The atmosphere was dull.


    One could imagine just how bustling the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be if the Shen clan and the Golden Divine Nation was not here.


    Powerful fighters would have stepped into the Heavenly Mandate Academy one after the other to become the first batch of the Academy''s disciples.


    However, under the threat of the two powerhouses, no one dared to act recklessly.


    The king of the Golden Divine Nation scanned the area under him. There was a faint look of mockery in his golden eyes. The Heavenly Mandate Academy had created quite the spectacle. They would be reduced to a joke if things ended like this.


    The Heavenly Mandate Realm would remember this ridiculous day.


    The powerful fighter of the Shen clan did not look down. Instead, he shot his gaze in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. His gaze was ice-cold. Did the Sky River Great Elder think that he would be free of the Shen clan if he did this? Or did he plan to use the strength of the Heavenly Mandate Academy to resist the Shen clan in the future?


    There was a group of people in an unassuming place amidst the endless crowd. A lady stepped forward.


    "Qianyue," someone shouted. Yun Qianyue turned to look at the members of her family.


    "I want to go," Yun Qianyue shouted. Her life had been given to her by Ye Futian. She knew that Ye Futian had admitted that she was his disciple only to save her, but in her heart, she forever regarded Ye Futian as her teacher, no matter if her teacher remembered her existence or not.


    The powerful fighters of the Yun clan were rather hesitant. Those were two powerful factions. The king of the Golden Divine Nation was sitting on his throne. There were also powerful fighters from the Shen clan. No one dared to step out because they were afraid of being the first one.


    The first person who stepped out would definitely offend the two superpowers. Who knew what would happen to them?


    Thus, no one dared to be the first to step out.


    "Qianyue," the current clan master of the Yun clan looked toward Yun Qianyue and said, "Go."


    If not for Ye Futian back then, his lineage would have been destroyed.


    He had to repay the kindness.


    "En." Yu Qianyue nodded with a smile. She then stepped forward and walked to the front.


    She walked past many figures and traversed through the crowd. Many people looked at her with a weird expression. What was she trying to do?


    Yun Qianyue''s cultivation level was not high, and she was a lady. Did she want to be the first person to step forward?


    Yun Qianyue walked forward a step at a time and arrived at the perimeter of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. At this moment, countless gazes fell onto Yun Qianyue. Even the gazes of the Golden Divine Nation and the powerful fighters of the Shen clan landed on her.


    She was trembling slightly. Even though those were gazes, she felt a suffocating pressure. No one could understand what she was feeling right now.


    However, she continued to walk forward with her head held high. She did not retreat even though her body was trembling slightly. She walked into the Heavenly Mandate Academy and said, "I wish to train in the Heavenly Mandate Academy and take the test."


    "Qianyue." Ye Futian had a look of shock when he saw her. This was the lady he had first met when he entered the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He had almost forgotten about her existence.


    He did not expect her to step out at this moment.


    Yun Qianyue let out a radiant smile when she met Ye Futian''s gaze. Her teacher might have forgotten about her, but she would never forget him!


    ...

 1698 Strength of the Shen Clan?

    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Yun Qianyue had a radiant smile as she looked up at Ye Futian. She did not know what to call him. Would she embarrass Ye Futian if she called him his teacher?


    "Qianyue," Ye Futian shouted with a smile, "Come to my side."


    "En." Yun Qianyue nodded seriously. She moved to the area behind Ye Futian.


    "Who else is willing to attend the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s test?" Ye Futian continued to ask as he looked at the crowd.


    He saw two other figures step out.


    Ye Futian let out a shocked expression when he saw the two figures. They were both familiar faces.


    The prince of the Crimson Dragon Realm, Chi Shang, and his wife, Yu Shifei.


    The two of them walked forward. People from the cast crowd recognized them. Amongst the people who recognized them was an exceptional teen with the light of the Divine Fire in his eyes. He came from the Crimson Dragon Realm. It was Luo Yang. He had come to the Heavenly Mandate Realm along with Ye Futian back then.


    He was a little surprised that Chi Shang and Yu Shifei would step out at this time.


    The two of them walked into the Heavenly Mandate Academy and smiled at Ye Futian, "We''ll accept the test of the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    Ye Futian nodded toward them and smiled, "Alright."


    The king of the Golden Divine Nation, Gai Cang, and the powerful fighters of the Shen clan looked at the people. They did not expect there to be such courageous people at this time.


    They wanted to see how many people would display such courage and dared to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy to train.


    "I am willing to join the Heavenly Mandate Realm." Another person walked out. He had an exceptional demeanor, and his cultivation level was at the peak of the Saint Plane. He was dressed in a long-sleeved shirt and looked free-spirited and unrestrained.


    "Chu Yu." The people in the Heavenly Mandate City let out a look of shock. Chu Yu was reputable within the Heavenly Mandate City and had exceptional potential in terms of cultivation. Even the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty wanted to pull him over to their side.


    Back then, the prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Yi Tianyu, had personally tried to sway Chu Yu and sparred with him. He praised Chu Yu highly and invited him to train together with him.


    However, Chu Yu had not accepted his invitation. He said that he did not want to join the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty for the moment. Instead, he wanted to focus on proving his path and entering the Renhaung Plane. Yi Tianyu did not force him. He said that he would look for Chu Yu after he reached the Renhuang Plane.


    Many people thought that Chu Yu would become a member of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and support Yi Tianyu after he stepped into the Renhaung Plane.


    However, the dynasty had been destroyed before Chu Yu reached the Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian knew what the other party meant when he heard that he was Chu Yu from Heavenly Mandate City. He knew that the other party was worried that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would exclude people who have had contact with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy does not care about your background," Ye Futian said, "Welcome."


    Chu Yu nodded and walked forward into the academy.


    Back then, he had not joined the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty as it had not been a faction purely focused on cultivation and spreading the Great Path. Even though Yi Tianyu thought of him highly, he would have to listen to Yi Tianyu''s orders if he entered the dynasty. He would not have entered the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty even if he entered the Renhuang Plane.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was a good fit for him.


    As for the threat of the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan, he would have to face it sooner or later unless he decided never to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Since his fate was tied to that of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and that he had already come to a decision, why not join the academy earlier?


    This way, with his talent and potential, he might be able to come into contact with the top-notch figures of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Opportunities were always presented alongside crises.


    After Chu Yu walked out, several cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate City walked out one after the other and moved toward the Heavenly Mandate Academy. With someone in the lead, the rest of the people felt more courageous. It was most difficult for the people who were the earliest to step out.


    Many figures wavered in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate City as they walked toward the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Of course, the combined cultivation level of the people gathered around the Heavenly Mandate City was pathetically low. The situation would not have happened this way if the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan was not here.


    Many of the cultivators had no choice but to consider the future of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It was an extreme risk. It would be bad if a war were to break out.


    They hoped that the academy that had just been set up in the Heavenly Mandate Realm would not topple that quickly. This had significance across the generations. If the academy were to crumble, the Heavenly Mandate Realm would be forced into a slump and be tossed behind by the top-notch factions of the other realms.


    Time passed. The vast space was still extremely quiet. Ye Futian, Lord Taixuan, and the rest of the powerful fighters looked on at the scene quietly. The Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan did the same.


    Finally, the number of people entering the Heavenly Mandate Academy got fewer and fewer before the stream of people stopped. Ye Futian counted the number of people. A little more than 300 people had entered the Heavenly Mandate Academy and were willing to take the test.


    He also noticed that most of the people were at the Saint Plane. They all had exceptional demeanor. People who had the courage to step out during such a time proved several things.


    Most of the people in this group would have an exceptional talent for cultivation.


    "We''ll stop here today," Ye Futian announced, "The first batch of core disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy will have a thousand people. The people who entered the Heavenly Mandate Academy today will be exempt from the test and will immediately become a core disciple of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. What do you think about that, lord and teacher?"


    "Sure." Lord Taixuan nodded. He did not mind the arrangement.


    This caused many people to let out a look of shock. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was set up jointly by many influential factions. Undoubtedly, the factions from the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the factions who had come here to congratulate Ye Futian would send many people into the Heavenly Mandate Academy to train and occupy the spots for core disciples. That, coupled with the 300-odd people who had entered the Heavenly Mandate Academy today, meant that there might not be much of the 1000-disciple quota left.


    This meant that those who wished to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy could only fight for an extremely limited spot. The rest of the people would have to become outer sect disciples.


    Indeed, the first batch of people who entered the academy would receive special attention. They would be heavily nurtured.


    Of course, that was logical.


    Ye Futian knew that if the Heavenly Mandate Academy could exist stably within the Heavenly Mandate Realm, it would become a top-notch academy within the 3000 Realms of the Great Path in the future. He did not have to worry about the issue of the core disciples.


    Of the people that would be heavily nurtured by the Heavenly Mandate Academy, talent was but one aspect. They also had to have exceptional character. Only then could the academy flourish through the generations.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy has been officially created. We''ll be accepting disciples for the next three months. Today''s session will end now. Please do as you see fit," Ye Futian said as he looked at the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan. He sent them off.


    "That means to say that the Heavenly Mandate Academy intends to stubbornly go about their matters?" the powerful fighter from the Shen clan asked. He naturally referred to the matter of the Sky River Great Elder being the dean of the academy.


    "None of your business," Lord Taixuan replied directly. Now that he had trained himself to the level he was at, he had a calm state of mind. However, he felt a little angry at this moment.


    The Shen clan was meddling in too many things.


    "Lord, you sure have a good amount of free time to be playing along with these cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It is just that you have no strength, just relying on the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. You wish to create a fabled land for spreading the Great Path just with this?" the powerful fighter from the Shen clan said with a cold laugh, "In the nine realms, only Shentian Academy and the Shangxiao Divine Palace could stand throughout the generations. How long can the Heavenly Mandate Academy last?"


    Several people let out a weird expression. That was a direct threat to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The Shen clan would never allow the Heavenly Mandate Academy to prosper.


    The existence of the Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian was a threat to the Shen clan.


    "What strength?" Ye Futian asked, "Everything in this universe starts from zero, as do any faction. Similarly, no matter how strong a faction is, there would come a day when it collapses. The Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had stood in the Heavenly Mandate Realm for countless years. But today, it had been buried under the foot of the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    "Conceited arrogance." The powerful fighter of the Shen clan looked at Ye Futian. Was he threatening the Shen clan?


    What big words.


    "You are right. However, in the countless years that the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty had existed, how many factions in the Heavenly Mandate Realm rose and collapsed? What can a newly created academy produce to compare itself with a top-notch faction that stands at the top of the nine realms?" the powerful fighter of the Shen clan replied calmly.


    "At least in my generation, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will become stronger than the Shen clan," Ye Futian replied forcefully.


    "You sure do not mince your words." Pressure radiated from the body of the powerful fighter from the Shen clan. It enveloped the surroundings.


    He was going to become stronger than the Shen clan in his generation?


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had produced three wielders of the perfect Divine Wheel in this generation. Was he disregarding the Shen clan because of that?


    While it is true that only Shen Hao had forged a perfect Divine Wheel in the Shen clan in this generation, but overall, the Shen clan had countless powerful fighters. How could the Heavenly Mandate Academy compare to the Shen clan?


    "Mince my words?" Ye Futian looked at the other party. The powerful fighter of the Shen clan thought too highly of himself.


    "Do you wish to have a go?"


    He had just said that when the entire space became momentarily silent. Ye Futian was asking the Shen clan if they wanted to have a go at it!


    Was he challenging Shen Hao from the Shen clan?


    Shen Hao stood within the Shen clan''s group. Divine light radiated from his body as he stepped forward. However, the person at the front of the Shen clan''s group stopped him and said, "Shen Ling, you go."


    "Alright."


    A voice replied. At that moment, a youth with exceptional flair stepped forward. He was a lower-level Renhuang and had a third-tier Divine Wheel. He had exceptional abilities.


    He knew that the other party had three wielders of the perfect Divine Wheel and thus would not be so careless as to send a person with a first-tier or second-tier Divine Wheel into battle. Thus, he chose Shen Ling.


    Shen Ling''s battle capabilities were extremely strong. He nearly forged a perfect Divine Wheel in the past.


    Shen Ling glanced toward Ye Futian. A terrifying divine light shot out from his eyes.


    "Your opponent is not me." A radiant ray of golden divine light shot out from Ye Futian''s eyes when he saw that Shen Ling was staring at him. He said, "Yu Sheng."


    The opponent had an exceptional demeanor and must be extremely powerful. His Third Senior, Gu Dongliu, was the master of the Celestial gate, and it was not convenient for him to fight. The Swordmaster of Lihen would find it difficult to achieve victory.


    Thus, Yu Sheng was the natural candidate.


    Boom. A figure stepped forward from within the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The earth shook when he stepped forward. Everyone in the vast surroundings felt the dull thud.


    Yu Sheng''s muscular figure stood in front of Shen Ling. In the academy, Ye Futian said, "Even though the Shen clan sent out a wielder of a third-tier Divine Wheel, it''s enough that the Heavenly Mandate Academy sent out a disciple with a first-tier Divine Wheel. Today, I hope to witness the strength of the Shen clan."


    ...

 1699 Origins

    Yu Sheng stood before Shen Ling. They stood some distance apart. The might of the Renhuang Plane enveloped this space.


    Shen Ling''s eyes changed, becoming a pair of divine eyes. They directly penetrated Yu Sheng''s eyes. However, he only saw a pair of frightening demonic eyes looking back at him. It was as though a demon was emerging from Yu Sheng''s eyes.


    Bang.


    Yu Sheng took a step forward. A loud thud could be heard. In an instant, the space where Yu Sheng stood seemed to sink downwards. Behind him, a towering figure appeared. It was hundreds of Zhang tall, as though it was a peerless demon.


    In the instant that the hundred-Zhang-tall demon appeared, illusions of demons seemed to appear everywhere. Tens of thousands of demons immediately covered the entire space. Shen Ling raised his head and looked around him. The domineering illusions of demons immediately sealed off this part of the sky.


    The vast might of the demons was everywhere, pressing down from the heavens above.


    "The flawless level." The cultivators of the top forces of the Nine Realms stared at Yu Sheng. After Ye Futian, the Swordmaster of Lihen, as well as Gu Dongliu, was another flawless level presence at the Renhuang Plane. He was a demonic emperor.


    Rumor has it that Yu Sheng was previously one of the ten cultivators who entered the Heavenly Palace of God''s relic. He had also obtained a divine item. In that case, him forging a flawless Divine Wheel was not too astonishing. It was still somewhat acceptable.


    The cultivators of Shen clan had ugly expressions.


    This was the fourth possessor of a flawless Divine Wheel in Ye Futian''s group.


    No wonder his tone was so arrogant.


    At this moment, dazzling divine light burst forth from Shen Ling''s body. It was as though his body was on fire. His blood vessels churned and bellowed. The brilliant light of Renhuang pierced through the demonic aura. Although Yu Sheng was a possessor of a flawless Divine Wheel, his Plane was still lower than that of Shen Ling. Shen clan had naturally considered that his opponent would be a flawless Divine Wheel possessor before sending him out to battle.


    Divine light swept out and cut through the space like sharp golden swords.


    Rumble. However, at this moment, Yu Sheng took another step forward and stepped into the sky. At that moment, a truly peerless demon seemed to appear in the world. It stomped down with one foot. Under such immense pressure, Shen Ling''s body actually sank downwards.


    This was the suppression of the Great Path.


    Bang.


    Shen Ling''s aura was still bursting forth when Yu Sheng took another step forward. Even the Divine Wheel in Shen Ling''s body trembled. His body was once again pressed down. It was as though this part of the world was a space controlled by the demon.


    Such a dominant Demonic Cultivator. Countless cultivators in Heavenly Mandate City looked towards Yu Sheng''s silhouette. His figure had not grown larger, but in the eyes of countless people, he had already merged together with the illusions of demons and had become tall and stalwart. It was as though he was a demon incarnate.


    Yu Sheng took another step forward. This time, he traversed the space in one bound, directly stomping on Shen Ling''s body. The illusions of demons around him seemed to all move at the same time. Shen Ling raised his head, and the sky above him was covered by these illusions of demons. This one stomp contained an unparalleled Great Path of Suppression that immediately penetrated his figure.


    Rumble. This step descended from the heavens and forcefully stomped down on Shen Ling. With a huge rumble, Shen Ling''s figure was stomped down into the ground. Cracks appeared, and a huge footprint formed on the ground.


    What level of power is this? many thought.


    The hearts of the crowd were beating furiously. The cracks in the ground extended into the distance and appeared below their feet. Many people lowered their heads and then looked up again at the demonic emperor in mid-air. He stood there like an eternal demon and was extremely overbearing.


    A flash of blinding light shone. Shen Ling appeared from under the ground. He looked extremely pathetic. Although his attack had blocked most of Yu Sheng''s power and caused the power to pass through him and dissipate into the ground, he had still lost terribly.


    This was the first time he had lost so miserably in his life. It was humiliating.


    The cultivators of Shen clan stared at Yu Sheng. This person''s ability was not limited to just having forged a flawless Divine Wheel. Aside from that, his own Demonic Power was extremely frightening.


    It would most likely be difficult for anyone at the lower-level Renhuang Plane to faze him.


    Shen clan''s understanding of cultivation and flawless Divine Wheels definitely surpassed that of most people. Ye Futian''s group made Shen clan feel very uncomfortable.


    "Shen clan has rich and strong foundations. Why do you send such weak cultivators out to fight? We invite Shen clan to not hide and let the world see the powerful foundations of Shen clan," Ye Futian, who was in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, cried out loudly behind Yu Sheng, who was standing in mid-air. He appeared to be holding Shen clan in high esteem, but it was in mockery.


    This was the strong foundation of the Shen clan?


    It could not even withstand a single blow.


    It was stomped on by Yu Sheng with his foot.


    Shen Hao''s figure stepped forward. He wanted to step out, but the cultivators of Shen clan still prevented him from doing so.


    Shen Hao was the symbol of this generation of Shen clan. There was no meaning even if he defeated this opponent.


    If Shen clan had to send Shen Hao out to do battle just because the Heavenly Mandate Academy sent out one of its students, they would rather not battle.


    "We hope that you will not regret your decision today," a cultivator from Shen clan said to Ye Futian. They then turned and walked off. However, they did not leave the place, instead heading in the direction of Heavenly Mandate City.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was recruiting disciples. They would remain here and watch. At the same time, they would send cultivators back to Shen clan to report on the situation.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had four flawless Divine Wheel cultivators. Adding on to the relationship between their Shen clan and Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had to be restricted. Shen clan could not let the Heavenly Mandate Academy grow stronger and become a threat to them in the future.


    The ruler of Golden Divine Nation, Gai Cang, swept a glance at Ye Futian. He then got up from his golden throne and led the cultivators of Golden Divine Nation as he turned and left. He left immediately by ripping apart the very fabric of space.


    Now, Ye Futian''s group had offended the Shen clan again. Golden Divine Nation, on the other hand, had nothing to worry about at the moment.


    "They left." The crowd felt uneasy when they saw the two major forces leaving. Today, they witnessed the grand occasion of the establishment of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. At the same time, they also saw two top forces come over to disturb the Heavenly Mandate Academy. This storm would most likely not settle anytime some and could even continue for a very long time.


    It would most likely be difficult for Heavenly Mandate Academy to solidify their standing in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They would need to first get past Shen clan.


    The crowd was wondering: what would happen if Shen clan actually sent troops to the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Although the members of the Heavenly Mandate Realm did not know how powerful Shen clan was, they had heard that they were ranked among the top three forces of the Central Emperor Realm.


    Although Shen clan was at a disadvantage this time, there were only a few cultivators of Shen clan here. This was merely a warning for Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    In the next three months, how many cultivators would join the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    Yu Sheng turned and returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Ye Futian looked at the crowd and said, "We will stop here for today."


    As he said this, he also turned and came before the group of cultivators before him and said, "Arrange the newly joined disciples of the academy so that they can settle in."


    "Understood." Someone came forward to make the arrangements.


    "Step down," Lord Taixuan said. Immediately, a group of people descended from the sky and joined the group of cultivators.


    "For now, I will stay in the Heavenly Mandate Academy," Lord Taixuan declared. He had already revealed his stance on the matter. Facing Shen clan was still going to be tough. He naturally would not just leave right now.


    "Many thanks, Lord Taixuan." Ye Futian nodded.


    "If the situation was the same as it was back then in the God''s relic, Shen clan might have made their move. However, right now, Shen clan does not dare to openly attack Heavenly Mandate Academy." Lord Taixuan then continued, "If Shen clan wants to declare war against the Heavenly Mandate Academy with so many forces backing it, they will need to bear the consequences. This time, it is different from back in the Tianhe Realm. Shen clan will not commit to such an endeavor."


    "If I am unable to assume the position of College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, why don''t you take it?" Sky River Great Elder suggested as he looked at Lord Taixuan. In reality, Lord Taixuan was more suitable than he was to assume the position of College Chief. It was just that it was not appropriate for Ye Futian to be the one to bring it up. After all, Ye Futian and Lord Taixuan were not related in any meaningful way, and Lord Taixuan was a member of the Higher Heavens Realm who cultivated on Taixuan Mountain. He could help out as a guest, but Ye Futian had no standing to ask him to assume the position of College Chief.


    "There is no need to do so. If Shen clan refuses to give up, I will accompany you and permanently reside in the academy." Lord Taixuan had clearly been angered. His expression was stern.


    "Today, the Shen clan was indeed being overbearing. An academy established by the power of the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm is no pushover," Dragon Master said in a cold tone. Today, both Golden Divine Nation and Shen clan had completely looked down on the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "Master, I will also train in the Heavenly Mandate Academy for the time being," Xiao Muyu spoke up. Ye Futian looked at her. He naturally knew that Xiao Muyu was doing so for the Heavenly Mandate Academy. That way, the cultivators of Xiao clan would also be here; Shen clan would be even more reluctant to act hastily.


    "We will also report back to the clan. If Shen clan wants to act, they will need to consider it carefully," a cultivator from Xiao clan said. The Heavenly Mandate Academy already had four possessors of flawless Divine Wheels. Their potential was too frightening. No wonder even Shen clan could not sit still.


    "Thank you, Seniors, for your assistance." Ye Futian nodded his head slightly.


    ...


    Right now, Heavenly Mandate City was in an uproar. Almost everyone was discussing the events of the day. Information regarding the grudge between Shen clan and Sky River Great Elder also gradually went around, as well as info on Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian''s relationship.


    After understanding all of this, the crowd began to comprehend Shen clan''s motives.


    They were afraid of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Right now, in an inn in Heavenly Mandate City, many people were discussing this. A silhouette was sitting quietly in the corner, listening in on the discussions of the crowd.


    At that moment, a group of figures came up to the second floor of the inn. Immediately, all eyes turned towards them. The inn instantly fell incredibly silent.


    The group that had arrived were members of Shen clan.


    They walked towards a corner and sat down. One of their members said, "Did anyone see which lineage that Demonic Cultivator was from?"


    The crowd shook their heads and said, "There are very few incredible Demonic Cultivators in the world. Rumor has it that he had previously trained in Dragons Gods."


    "Order some men to investigate their origins. There is certainly more information about them in the Heavenly Mandate Realm," the cultivator of Shen clan continued saying. The might of Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and their group had drawn the attention of the Shen clan. They were beginning to investigate the origins of Ye Futian.


    "Hmm." The others nodded their heads.


    Then, the group fell silent. They remained very quiet, causing the entire inn to feel somewhat depressing.


    However, at that moment, a silhouette stood next to the cultivators of the Shen clan.


    The members of the Shen clan frowned. They looked towards the youth and asked, "What business do you have with us?"


    "I believe I know some things about the origins of Ye Futian''s group."


    ...

 1700 Seeking Someone

    Luo Yang quietly stood before the cultivators of Shen clan. His temperament was extraordinary. After all, he was from the Luo Clan, one of the most powerful clans in the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Ever since he arrived in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, even though his training was advancing, he had also encountered training blocks many times. In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, his talent was no longer that impressive. It would not be easy for him to want to reach the Renhuang Plane in the future; he needed to have a powerful force backing him.


    Before the establishment of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, when he saw that both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were already Renhuangs, he felt somewhat jealous. Back then, they had all cultivated in the Crimson Dragon Realm. Now, the two of them had already left him far behind. Of course, this jealousy did not brew into hatred; it merely strengthened the longing and sense of urgency he had for his training.


    He needed an opportunity.


    Luo Yang had also seen Chi Shang as well as Yu Shifei. Prior to this, he had also wanted to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy as they had. However, the appearance of the Golden Divine Nation and Shen clan made him realize that doing so would be accompanied by a huge risk. Also, even if he joined the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian would not necessarily see him. After all, they had fought before during the Crimson Dragon Realm''s Peach Banquet.


    Right now, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had many cultivators. Luo Yang wanted to find an opportunity.


    Now, there seemed to be an opportunity right in front of him; he was undoubtedly going to seize it.


    Shen clan was an ancient clan that stood at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    "Speak," the cultivators of Shen clan said as their gazes landed on Luo Yang.


    "Ye Futian and the others are from the main realm of the Heavenly Mandate Realm''s Lower Worlds Crimson Dragon Region, the Crimson Dragon Realm." Luo Yang said, "There, he is a City Lord of a city that he conquered. Most of the members beside him are also from that place, including Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng was previously well known in the Crimson Dragon Realm."


    Was he from the Lower Worlds? The cultivators of Shen clan revealed strange looks. They asked, "How do you know about this?"


    "Back then, I was in the same line as them. We all crossed over to the Heavenly Mandate Realm from the Crimson Dragon Realm," Luo Yang continued.


    The cultivators of Shen clan looked at him. A look of disdain flashed past in their eyes.


    "Does that mean that you were former companions?"


    Although cultivators who sold out their friends were useful to them, the cultivators of Shen clan still looked down upon such people with contempt.


    "What do you want?" the members of Shen clan asked.


    "I want an opportunity," Luo Yang responded. "An opportunity to join and train in Shen clan."


    The members of Shen clan nodded their heads indifferently. It appeared that he was only doing this in order to seize an opportunity to train further.


    "Follow me then," Shen Hao said. "What else do you know? For instance, his birthplace, or who his master was?"


    From their perspective, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng''s backgrounds must be extraordinary.


    "Based on what I know, Ye Futian''s rise in the Crimson Dragon Realm came out of nowhere. No one knows where he was from. However, prior to his rise, he had a master. However, his master was only at the peak of the Saint Plane and could not be considered to be powerful," Luo Yang said. Based on what he knew, Ye Futian''s master was the imperial advisor of Dali, who had previously killed the Ninth Servant.


    In the Crimson Dragon Realm, Ye Futian''s master was considered outstanding. However, before supreme forces, he was not worth mentioning at all.


    "Ye Futian seems very diligent in seeking out new masters," Shen Hao commented indifferently. Ye Futian seemed to have also been a disciple of Sky River Great Elder.


    That meant to say that his previous master could not be compared with Sky River Great Elder at all.


    "His master is at the peak of the Saint Plane?" the leading elder of Shen clan mumbled in a low voice. He seemed to be pondering something. He looked at Luo Yang and asked, "What is his master called?"


    "I do not know." Luo Yang shook his head.


    "Transmit his master''s appearance to me through your will," the other party continued.


    "Alright." Luo Yang nodded his head. A beam of light then radiated from his glabella and entered into the elder''s glabella.


    After he saw the image from the will clearly, the elder suddenly fell silent for a while. He slowly got up and looked up in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the distance.


    So that was how it was!


    No wonder Sky River Great Elder had suddenly gained an additional inheritor.


    That meant to say that Ye Futian had his eyes on the Shen clan for a long time.


    "What''s the matter?" Shen Hao asked.


    The elder looked at Shen Hao with a sharp gaze. He said, "Ye Futian should refer to Sky River Great Elder as grandmaster and not master."


    The cultivators of Shen clan were all stunned. Then, one by one, they stood up. They all had exceptionally serious expressions.


    Clearly, they had all realized the same thing.


    Sky River Great Elder had 3,000 disciples. Most of them had fallen during the battle back then. His disciples would naturally also have many of their own disciples. However, Shen Hao and the others did not consider any other person except one.


    Qi Xuangang.


    They never thought that they had actually been tricked all this while.


    That meant to say that Ye Futian''s master was currently being imprisoned in their Shen clan.


    Then, why did Ye Futian establish the Heavenly Mandate Academy and asked Sky River Great Elder to assume the position of College Chief?


    His target seemed to be their Shen clan.


    It seems that the Shen clan had not made this trip in vain. Coincidentally, they wanted to investigate Ye Futian''s background. They never imagined that they would discover this secret.


    Ye Futian and Qi Xuangang were both from the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    Then, Qi Xuangang''s daughter should also be there.


    After so many years, they actually found more information.


    "Immediately head back to report this to the clan," the leading elder from Shen clan said as he looked at the cultivators beside him. "The rest of you, follow me."


    All of them nodded their heads. They naturally understood what the elder meant.


    They had to go to the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    There was not one moment to lose.


    Luo Yang revealed a strange look. From Shen clan''s response, he could faintly detect that there were still some secrets about Ye Futian.


    ...


    In the palace of the Crimson Dragon Realm, Crimson Dragon Emperor was training. His entire body was bathed in divine fire.


    He suddenly sensed something. He stepped forward and headed up, high into the sky. He raised his head and looked up into the heavens above.


    He saw a group of silhouettes heading in his direction from far away. They were as fast as lightning. Their wills swept out and enveloped the entire imperial city.


    They seemed to have detected the Crimson Dragon Emperor. Their gazes swept over in his direction. Crimson Dragon Emperor crossed gazes with the other party. His heart trembled intensely.


    What was going on?


    Why had such powerful existences descended upon the Crimson Dragon Realm? Crimson Dragon Emperor was at the middle-level Renhuang Plane. His Plane was considered very powerful. However, against the mighty existences of Shen clan, he instantly felt the difference in their powers.


    "What matters does Senior have here to have descended upon the Crimson Dragon Realm?" the Crimson Dragon Emperor said loudly.


    His voice could be heard across the entire palace. It caused the hearts of countless people to tremble inside. They all raised their heads and looked up into the sky.


    "It does not concern you," a voice called out. The other party immediately headed off in another direction, towards the outskirts of the imperial city.


    Across the vast and endless regions, many cultivators could see the dazzling divine light in the sky above. The Crimson Dragon Emperor stepped forward and followed them.


    What did the Crimson Dragon Realm have that could cause such mighty figures to make a trip over here?


    When the cultivators of Shen clan arrived in Qianye City, they immediately descended. The present-day Qianye City was already very prosperous and was considered an extremely powerful city. However, before the cultivators of Shen clan, it was the same as an ant.


    Pressure descended and immediately enveloped the entire city. Countless people in Qianye City raised their heads and looked up at the sky. The figures in the sky were like deities.


    "Is this the place?" the cultivators of Shen clan asked Luo Yang.


    "Yes." Luo Yang nodded.


    "I don''t see anything." a cultivator of Shen clan said in a low voice.


    "Back then, where did Ye Futian stay?"


    "The City Lord Office."


    The cultivators of Shen clan continued forward and descended directly above the City Lord Office of Qianye City. The cultivators in the City Lord Office trembled. The aura of these people was too terrifying.


    The cultivators of Shen clan did not say anything. Their divine eyes radiated with unparalleled frightening divine light. Their gazes immediately swept over the cultivators in the City Lord Office. In that instant, the cultivators in the City Lord Office felt their consciousness being invaded, as though they were not in control of their own bodies. They felt like they were floating in mid-air.


    They felt helplessness and despair. Such a sensation could not be understood unless experienced personally.


    They were clearly aware that their consciousness was being invaded. The other party directly pried into their memories. Very quickly, countless images appeared in the minds of the cultivators of Shen clan.


    After a short while, the frightening divine light disappeared. The cultivators in Qianye City''s City Lord Office felt as though they had experienced a nightmare. They were drenched in a cold sweat.


    "Qi Xuangang was here before, but he has been taken away." The leading cultivator of Shen Clan said, "Search the Crimson Dragon Realm. If you find nothing, search the other regions of the Crimson Dragon Region."


    He guessed that Qi Xuangang must have come here before returning to the Tianhe Realm.


    "Alright." The cultivators of Shen clan nodded and immediately left.


    As for the details of Ye Futian''s birth, it was no longer that important. Since they knew about Ye Futian''s relationship with Qi Xuangang, everything else already did not matter. Right now, finding Qi Xuangang''s daughter was their number one priority. Even if they had to turn the Crimson Dragon Region upside down, they had to find her this time.


    As the cultivators of Qianye City watched them leave, their hearts were still trembling. What level were these intruders?


    Why had they come to Qianye City?


    The Crimson Dragon Emperor also arrived above Qianye City. He frowned. The other party seemed to be seeking someone.


    Also, those people were brought over by Luo Yang. What had Luo Yang done?


    What had happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Crimson Dragon Emperor believed that he should head over to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to take a look.


    ...


    In Shen clan in the Central Emperor Realm, within the Shen clan''s Sacred Hall, a silhouette walked out.


    The silhouette stood there like a deity. It was as though the entire world lay beneath his feet.


    Were they about to find the person?


    After so many years, what initially belonged to Shen clan should be taken back.


    A beam of brilliant divine light enveloped his body. The next moment, his figure had disappeared from the spot without a trace.


    When he appeared once again, he seemed to be above a heavenly palace. There was a grand seal matrix that sealed an entire palace within it.


    At that moment, the sealed door opened, and he walked right into it.


    Within the palace, a white-haired woman sat quietly. It seemed that she had no response at the arrival of the other party.


    "How have you been?" the person who came asked.


    The woman did not respond and continued to sit there quietly. It was as though she had not heard what the other party had said.


    "After so many years, have you not let it go? For your sake, I have kept sparing his life. What else do you want me to do as a father?" the person who came continued saying.


    "Did you come just to talk about feelings?" the woman asked indifferently. Her voice was calm, but it gave off an extremely chilly sensation. There was not a hint of emotion in her voice. After that battle where her daughter was killed by the clan, she no longer had any emotions.


    "Feixue has been found," the person who came said calmly. He had barely uttered his words when the woman slowly got up. She looked at the other party for the first time since he entered the palace. In that instant, the temperature in the entire palace suddenly plummeted.


    "Regardless of whether you can or cannot let it go, this matter should come to a close," the other party said. He then turned and left immediately!


    ...

 1701 The Chief Elder of Shen Clan

    The cultivators of Golden Divine Nation and Shen clan seemed to have left Heavenly Mandate City. This caused some people to actually join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to seek their Way.


    Of course, the number was still too few. With the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s position and appeal in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, it was enough to send the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm into an uproar. Countless cultivators should be fighting to get in. However, the current Heavenly Mandate Academy was not experiencing such popularity.


    It might be said that many people were waiting for this storm to settle.


    Before that happened, many people would certainly be observing the situation and would not dare to easily commit to joining the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian walked out from a matrix in the academy. He then went over to one of the palaces.


    This place was the training area of the members of Brahma''s Pure Sky. Many of them had returned, but there were still some members who had stayed behind to train. Among the Jiutian Goddess'', Xuantian Goddess and Shatian Goddess had stayed behind. This showed Hua Jieyu''s standing in Brahma''s Pure Sky. Seeing this made Ye Futian acknowledge the fact even more.


    The Jieyu that he saw might have truly been the incarnation of Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress.


    "Young Master Ye." Qin He smiled gently when she saw Ye Futian walking over to her.


    "Goddess Qin, remember to train inside the matrix," Ye Futian reminded her.


    "I know." Qin He nodded. She knew that Ye Futian had set up a path matrix in the core training grounds of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The interior of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was set up as the archive training grounds for the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s absolute core figures.


    "After she emerged from the matrix, she has been training to stabilize her Plane." Qin He saw Ye Futian''s gaze shift over in the direction of a training matrix. Inside, a beautiful silhouette was sitting quietly there. It was Hua Jieyu.


    The aura that emanated from her body was also the aura of a Renhuang.


    Not long ago, Ye Futian had helped Hua Jieyu prove her Way.


    "I just dropped by to check in on her," Ye Futian said softly. Qin He did not say anything.


    Ye Futian walked up close to Hua Jieyu. He gazed quietly at her face. That beautiful face was so familiar, yet right now, it also seemed foreign. He knew that he might currently be used by the Empress. However, he was still willing to be used by her.


    At the very least, she was truly here.


    Seemingly sensing Ye Futian''s gaze, Hua Jieyu opened her eyes and saw Ye Futian standing there. A strange look flashed past in her eyes, as though she was contemplating something.


    Then, she saw Ye Futian reveal a bright smile.


    "Is your training progressing all right?" Ye Futian asked softly.


    "Be at ease and focus on your training. If there is a chance, I will bring you somewhere far away to take your mind off of things," Ye Futian said as he looked at Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu''s eyebrows twitched slightly. It was as though she was deciding on whether to agree to Ye Futian''s invitation.


    After a moment of silence and seeing that Ye Futian was still smiling as he looked at her, Hua Jieyu finally nodded her head and replied, "Alright."


    "I''ll leave you to your training then," Ye Futian said as he turned and left.


    Hua Jieyu watched as he walked off and then closed her eyes again.


    Qin He looked towards Ye Futian and then Hua Jieyu. She was speechless.


    Ye Futian headed over to a different training ground. This was the House of Swordsmen established in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which focused on training swordsmanship.


    The Wang Clan oversaw the House of Swordsmen. The leader was the new clan leader of Wang Clan, Wang Yanbing, who was also training here.


    Aside from him, the Swordmaster of Lihen and Yaya would also teach swordsmanship to the disciples who joined the Heavenly Mandate Academy here.


    In the center of the House of Swordsmen, a divine sword was inserted. Sword Will pierced the heavens. The divine sword contained a frightening aura of Sword Way. It caused the cultivators in the House of Swordsmen to be constantly bathed in Sword Will.


    Right now, in one corner of the House of Swordsmen, a silhouette was quietly meditating. Sword Will lingered on his body.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen stood beside the person. His body also emanated Sword Will, and he seemed to be instructing the person in his training.


    "Swordmaster of Lihen, Wuchen," Ye Futian cried out. The two of them stopped training. Their gazes turned towards Ye Futian.


    "How is it going?" Ye Futian asked. Back then, at Lihen Heaven, the Swordmaster of Lihen had given him a sword, and they had formed a bond of friendship. The Swordmaster of Lihen held Ye Wuchen in high regard.


    "Having an ancient Emperor Jian giving pointers is much more effective than me doing so," the Swordmaster of Lihen said as he smiled. On the other hand, Ye Wuchen said, "Swordmaster of Lihen has his own unique insights to swordsmanship, which is equally helpful in my training."


    Ye Futian smiled as he approached them. Ye Wuchen had previously obtained a sword in the Demon Realm that was the incarnation of the ancient Emperor Jian. Ye Wuchen had always kept it by his side.


    These past few years, Ye Wuchen had traveled to many places. His current Plane was already at the Nirvana level.


    "Do you still have fruits of the Way?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes. With so many fruits of the Way, it is enough for my training. I do not need anymore," Ye Wuchen said. "Moreover, I still have a few top-notch divine swords."


    "I had originally set them aside for you. That way, your training can advance quicker," Ye Futian said with a smile. Even if Ye Futian had to exhaust all his resources, he would train another flawless Renhuang.


    "If you have more, why don''t you also give me some?" a youth to the side said as he walked over. He was the disciple of the Swordmaster of Lihen, Wang Chuan.


    "One should not be too greedy," Ye Futian said. He naturally would not treat the disciple of Swordmaster of Lihen shabbily.


    Wang Chuan was also just joking. Currently, he had some understanding of his master''s Plane. As a Renhuang with a flawless Divine Wheel, even if Emperor Xia was around, he might not be able to defeat his master.


    "Futian."


    "Big brother," Ye Futian replied.


    "Crimson Dragon Emperor is here at the academy," Sword Saint informed Ye Futian while walking towards him.


    "Crimson Dragon Emperor?" Ye Futian revealed a surprised look. Then, he walked off while saying, "Let''s go over to have a look."


    Quickly, Ye Futian and the rest headed over and met up with Crimson Dragon Emperor. Chi Shang and Yu Shifei were around too; they were discussing something with the Crimson Dragon Emperor.


    "Senior," Ye Futian called out while approaching them.


    The Crimson Dragon Emperor stared at Ye Futian with a serious expression.


    After Crimson Dragon Emperor had arrived at the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he found out everything Ye Futian had done in the Realm. He was extremely shocked.


    He had not expected that the Crimson Dragon Realm would actually give rise to such a monstrous figure.


    The intruders the other day might most likely bear ill intention towards Ye Futian.


    "Ye Futian, I am here to tell you something," Crimson Dragon Emperor got straight to the point. "A few days ago, a group of Renhuangs came to the Crimson Dragon Realm. They were very powerful. They went to Qianye City, then they left."


    Ye Futian''s facial expression changed in an instant. He guessed the identity of the intruders right away.


    "I will transmit the information to you through my will," the Crimson Dragon Emperor said. Then, he transmitted the images to Ye Futian through his will.


    As expected, the intruders were the cultivators of Shen clan. Ye Futian''s guess was correct.


    Fortunately, the members of Ye Futian''s group who were staying at Qianye City had been relocated here by the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Otherwise, Shen clan would surely not let them go.


    Unfortunately, the relationship among Ye Futian, Master, and Feixue might have been exposed already. Ye Futian knew that Master had already made plans to evacuate Feixue and the rest, but since Shen clan had made a move, they would most likely turn the entire Crimson Dragon Realm upside down in order to find her.


    There was a high possibility that Feixue would not be able to escape.


    There was a familiar figure in the images��Luo Yang.


    Had everything that Ye Futian planned actually been ruined by someone whom he had never paid attention to before? Ye Futian had even forgotten about this person.


    He was well-aware that Luo Yang was most likely here due to the establishment of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Luo Yang then formed an alliance with the Shen Clan.


    "Most likely the descendent of Luo clan brought them there. However, it was inappropriate for me to meddle in this affair," Crimson Dragon Emperor said to Ye Futian. He could not hinder the alliance between Luo Yang and Shen clan.


    Crimson Dragon Emperor ruled over the Crimson Dragon Realm, but he was not the sole ruler. This was clearly not something he could interfere with.


    "Junior understands." Ye Futian nodded. For the Crimson Dragon Emperor to purposely come here and warn him, Ye Futian was more than grateful.


    "Are the members of Luo clan still in the Crimson Dragon Realm?" Ye Futian asked.


    Crimson Dragon Emperor nodded and answered, "Hmm. However, this matter should be of Luo Yang''s own doing; it has nothing to do with his clan."


    "I understand," Ye Futian replied. "However, Luo Yang will need to pay the price."


    Crimson Dragon Emperor did not say anymore. What Luo Yang had done had already involved Ye Futian''s loved ones. If Ye Futian had relatives and friends in Qianye City, it was possible that they had also been involved in this.


    Hence, no matter what Ye Futian did, Crimson Dragon Emperor could understand where he was coming from.


    Luo Yang''s actions were somewhat ruthless. Was this all for his Plane?


    "Senior, will you be returning to the Crimson Dragon Realm now?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Will you return with me?" Crimson Dragon Emperor turned towards Chi Shang and Yu Shifei. Before this, he had already roughly understood what had transpired. This storm would most likely escalate into something huge. If Chi Shang remained here, danger would surely come along.


    "This place is very nice. Shifei and I will continue to train here. Father, you should head back first," Chi Shang said. They had already joined the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Since they had made this decision, they would not regret it.


    They were disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy; however, Crimson Dragon Emperor was not. Hence, Chi Shang did not want Crimson Dragon Emperor to remain and be exposed to this danger.


    "Alright." Crimson Dragon Emperor nodded in agreement.


    "Senior, I will let a friend escort you home," Ye Futian said. Crimson Dragon Emperor was well-aware that Ye Futian intended to send someone over to the Crimson Dragon Realm to capture Luo Yang.


    Ye Futian assigned a demonic roc from Sky Demon Court to escort the Crimson Dragon Emperor. The roc would then capture the descendant of Luo clan at the Crimson Dragon Realm.


    After Crimson Dragon Emperor left, Ye Futian gathered the mighty figures of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He was wondering whether he still had a chance to locate Feixue before the other party found her. However, it was highly possible that Feixue had already been captured by the Shen clan.


    Just as they were having a discussion, suddenly, a terrifying might of the Way descended from the sky.


    Endless divine lights poured down from the sky. The entire Heavenly Mandate City was bathed in the divine light. Many people raised their heads to look above. A beam of light flashed, and a god-like silhouette walked out from the light He appeared in the space above the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Lord Taixuan, Sky River Great Elder, and many other powerful cultivators leaped up into the sky at the same time. They had all sensed this extremely powerful aura; an aura that was at its peak.


    Ye Futian also looked over in the direction of the aura. He felt an extremely powerful threat approaching.


    Beside him, a cold chill emanated from Sky River Great Elder''s body as he looked at the silhouette that had appeared.


    Sky River Great Elder would certainly not forget that silhouette. Back then, during the catastrophe in the Tianhe Realm, this person had descended from Shen clan and instigated a terrifying war. Almost all of Sky River Great Elder''s 3,000 disciples were killed off.


    "Chief Elder of Shen clan, Shen Ji," Sky River Great Elder muttered.


    Everyone who was standing in the air above the Heavenly Mandate Academy revealed serious expressions.


    This was the first time many of them met Chief Elder of Shen clan. However, they had long heard about him before. Since many years ago, he had been standing head-and-shoulders above all in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He had gained his fame long before the rest did!


    ...

 1702 Reverse Cultivation

    Shen Ji stood up in the sky, looking down at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "I am taking two people away," he said. His tone was extremely calm. It was as if he had said something completely ordinary.


    The two people he was talking about were naturally the Sky River Great Elder and Ye Futian.


    Countless people in Heavenly Mandate City looked up at him. Within his calm tone lurked an unmistakable meaning. It was as if his words were the will of a god, and no one could go against them.


    There was a cold look in the Sky River Great Elder''s eyes, but he slowly calmed down.


    Today, he would no longer run.


    "This is the Heavenly Mandate Academy," said Lord Taixuan, striding forward. He stood in the air above the academy, directly facing Shen Ji.


    He had never met Shen Ji of the Central Imperial Realm before. But he could sense his arrogance in everything that had happened in the Tianhe Realm.


    Now he was experiencing it himself.


    Shen Ji looked at Lord Taixuan, then past him to Ye Futian.


    "Qin Xuangang is lucky to have a disciple like you. You and your master should come to the Shen clan for a while," said Shen Ji calmly. When he heard what he had said, Ye Futian realized that the Shen clan knew the truth.


    The people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy all looked surprised. But at a time like this, they didn''t have time to think about it.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy has been founded. In addition to the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Xiao clan and other clans are here as well. The Shen clan should not be so overbearing in their actions," said an elder of the Xiao clan. There were cultivators from many different forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm there. The Xiao clan and the Yuanyang clan both came from the Central Imperial Realm and had helped to found the academy.


    The Shen clan had come here to take away the Sky River Great Elder, the elder of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and Ye Futian, the soul of the academy. They clearly thought themselves better than everyone.


    "We have come to take them," said Shen Ji in an indifferent voice. "Those who are not involved should stand to one side, or suffer the consequences." As he said this, a terrible aura bloomed from him, and brilliant divine light covered a vast area.


    A divine eye opened on his brow. Endless divine light shone out of it.


    At that moment, even more divine light fell from the heavens, covering the whole of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Obviously, Shen Ji knew that the academy would not easily give up their people. So, they could only do this by force.


    In an instant, divine light swept towards all the cultivators.


    Lord Taixuan stepped forward, and an invisible light curtain covered Tianshen Academy. Endless guqin strings appeared, each one formed out of the Great Path. The countless strings covered the academy as well, giving off terrifying music.


    Endless light came from the sky like a divine knife. The strings trembled, and some of them were cut through. The light continued on downward.


    Crack! A figure lay on the ground within the academy in a daze. He could not withstand the attack power.


    The divine light swept through the academy, destroying many of the disciples. At that moment, more beams of divine light appeared, forming a second and third layer of protection that covered the rest of the people within. All of the great figures there had gotten involved.


    But since the light had been so fast, it had still killed many people.


    The sound of elephants trumpeting filled the air as a mighty, massive elephant image appeared within the academy, looking like it was made of pure gold. It wrapped the academy within itself.


    "The Shentian Cleave of the Shen Clan is the ultimate use of the spatial great path. It contains double cleaving power, as it can cleave both body and soul. We can''t let its attack power reach the academy," said the Sky River Great Elder. He clearly remembered how Shen Ji had destroyed the Tianhe realm all those years ago.


    The divine light covered the area. Everywhere it went, all light was snuffed out.


    In the space of a single thought, the people were plunged into an abyss of mystery.


    At that moment, Shen Ji was still holding back. After all, there were still top figures of the Central Imperial Realm within the academy who he did not dare to directly kill. That would cause trouble for the Shen clan.


    "Divine Elephant Emperor, protect them. The rest of us Emperors will fight together," said the Dragon Master.


    "Let''s go," said the Golden Raven Demonic Lord of the Sky Demon Court. The Heavenly Mandate Academy had been founded by all the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and it represented the whole realm. If the Shen clan wanted to attack them, they would. They did not care about them at all.


    Shen Ji had made his name many years ago and had broken many powerful figures. But he was still weaker than another within the Shen clan. He was stronger than any of them, but he was not without equal.


    Many figures shot up into the air, but they saw the endless divine light transform into a terrible spatial storm that ripped through space itself. Tears in space appeared before them.


    Boom!


    Terrible tears in space ripped open all around the Heavenly Mandate Academy, seeking to tear through the academy and swallow it up.


    The cultivators observing from around the academy turned wildly in order to flee the area. The people of Heavenly Mandate City felt their hearts tremble. But ridiculously, they wanted to get closer to watch. What was happening now truly meant that even the slightest aftershocks could completely destroy them.


    "Let''s go."


    Even the cultivators far away in the Heavenly Mandate City could feel that something was wrong. They turned and scattered. If two powerful figures fought at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the aftershock would affect those in the city.


    Guqin music filled the air, the Lost Sound of the Great Path. the Song of the Lost Divine.


    In addition to the destructive spatial storm, a storm of swords appeared in the air as well.


    Shen Ji stood high in the sky. His palm stretched out like the hand of a god. He waved his arm slightly, and a booming sound rang out, sweeping through the Heavenly Mandate Academy and those inside. The Divine Elephant Emperor stood within, trying to block it, but the power of the hand up in the sky pressed down, ripping through space. Everyone felt their bodies float up along with the academy.


    All the cultivators of the great forces looked surprised. The Shen clan was truly powerful.


    Even though the cultivators of the great forces were all there, they still acted so forcefully, not showing any mercy.


    The endless strings shook together. As the Lost Sound of the Great Path rang out, the Great Path flowed backward in the sky, seeming to forcibly destroy the spatial great path that Shen Ji controlled. It made the floating academy fall back down. It landed on the ground with a boom.


    Lord Taixuan stretched out his hand, using the Great Path as his strings. Endless divine swords flew out, slamming into the spatial light. Millions of swords appeared in the sky and swept out towards Shen Ji.


    However, Shen Ji''s body melded with the air itself, as if he had disappeared in an instant.


    Woosh!


    In a flash, a terrible wave appeared in front of Lord Taixuan, followed by Shen Ji. He pointed at Lord Taixuan, and endless spatial light ripped through the air. Dark cracks appeared, seeking to swallow up Lord Taixuan.


    At the moment that he appeared, Lord Taixuan acted at well. He raised his sword, making the Great Path flow backward. This was the Fleeting Divine Sword.


    Their attacks slammed into each other, making a destructive spatial storm sweep out through the sky. In an instant, the storm swept through Heavenly Mandate City, destroying many people. Countless buildings disappeared.


    "No..." someone called out in shock. They saw their friends and family turn to dust as if they had never existed.


    Shen Ji and Lord Taixuan broke apart. Shen Ji appeared high up in the air, bathed in endless divine light that made him look like a god.


    "Shen Ji, let us fight higher up in the sky," said Lord Taixuan. The people of Heavenly Mandate City would not be able to withstand it if they fought there.


    "You did not hand them over." Shen Ji stood there in the sky, endless divine light falling upon him. The storm covered Heavenly Mandate City.


    At that moment, a figure appeared in the air.


    Lord Taixuan''s gaze froze as he looked at the newcomer. It was the Sky River Great Elder.


    The Sky River Great Elder looked at the storm raging through the city. This scene was very similar to what had happened in the Tianhe Realm all those years ago.


    "I will return to the Tianhe Realm, then go with you to the Shen clan to bring an end to this matter," he said, looking up at Shen Ji.


    "There is one more person," said Shen Ji.


    "He will not go. If you do not accept, we will keep fighting," said the Sky River Great Elder.


    Shen Ji thought for a moment. He had come here alone, so he would not necessarily be able to defeat all of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Since the Sky River Great Elder was willing to compromise, he could leave Ye Futian for another time.


    "Alright," said Shen Ji with a nod.


    "Let''s go," said the Sky River Great Elder.


    "I will go with you," said Lord Taixuan.


    "No need," said the Sky River Great Elder, shaking his head. "I leave the Heavenly Mandate Academy to you."


    Lord Taixuan looked him in the eye. Were these words of farewell?


    "I will take up the post of Elder of the Heavenly Mandate Academy," said Lord Taixuan.


    "Excellent," said the Sky River Great Elder with a nod. "We have known each other for a while, and you have always been so good to me. From now on, you will not know me anymore.


    Lord Taixuan did not understand. What did that mean?


    The Sky River Great Elder did not say anything more to him. "Let''s go," he said to Shen Ji.


    On saying this, he turned and walked away into the distance.


    Shen Ji had not thought that his opponent would be so accommodating. He looked down at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, then followed the Sky River Great Elder. He would bring him back to the Shen clan, then he would finish this matter.


    Everything needed to be brought to a thorough end.


    He had not directly captured him. He knew that he was much stronger than the Sky River Great Elder, and he could not escape him.


    "Why do you want to go to the Tianhe Realm first?" he asked.


    "I want to bring some things with me when I see her," said the Sky River Great Elder.


    Shen Ji looked at him, then nodded and said, "Alright."


    The Sky River Great Elder had once been a member of the Shen clan. He would fulfill his wish.


    After they left, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was a scene of tragedy.


    Ye Futian stood high up in the air, watching the disappearing figures.


    What had his master meant by what he said before he left?


    The Deed of Thorough Cultivation could cultivate backward?


    ...

 1703 Destruction

    Two figures descended into the sky above the mountains in the Tianhe Realm. They were Shen Ji and the Sky River Great Elder, who had come from the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The Sky River Great Elder descended into the mountains. Everything here was so familiar, but after today, he would never live here again.


    "Get whatever it is you need quickly," said Shen Ji coldly. Him allowing the Sky River Great Elder to come here was already the height of kindness. He was doing it because of past friendship.


    In the past, the Sky River Great Elder had swept away all the other top figures. If he had not wanted to leave the Shen clan and come here to the Tianhe Realm to teach, then none of these things would have happened.


    The Sky River Great Elder would even have had the chance to inherit Shen Ji''s position and become a great elder of the Shen clan.


    But unfortunately, after the things that had happened, he had been unable to recover. He had spent his days here in the mountains like a living dead man.


    "Alright," said the Sky River Great Elder with a nod. He walked into a cavern residence. Shen Ji''s thoughts were locked onto him. In his perception, the Sky River Great Elder walked deeper in, surprising Shen Ji.


    "Enchantments and matrices!" In Shen Ji''s perception, he could see a path through the mountains. The mountains seemed to have been forged with enchantments and matrices on the inside.


    Cold light shone from his eyes, and divine light flashed from his body. He reached out, and suddenly booming sounds rang out without ending. The mountains collapsed.


    Several of the mountains were directly shattered, but his attack seemed to be blocked. He discovered there were many overlapping enchantments.


    He frowned. The Sky River Great Elder seemed to be hiding something.


    He descended until he stepped directly onto the mountain range. Suddenly, the vast, endless mountains collapsed wildly and were flattened.


    The ground below collapsed as well. At that moment, he could sense that there was an empty space below ground that was covered by the enchantments.


    He descended even further until he touched down on the ground with a boom. A hole opened up in the ground as the vast expanse of land began to collapse.


    Beneath, Shen Ji could see the Sky River Great Elder. He stood there alone amid a massive matrix.


    The matrix stretched out incredibly far. He had not thought that he had underestimated the Sky River Great Elder. He thought he had given up. He would never have thought that he would have set up a giant matrix.


    But what could this matrix change?


    "What is the point of this?" Shen Ji asked coldly. His voice was still arrogant and powerful. It was as if he never considered the Sky River Great Elder worthy of attention.


    "Can a matrix make up the difference in power between us?" said Shen Ji, looking down at him, speaking with a cold voice. Why was the Sky River Great Elder that confident?


    "Are we really that different in terms of power?" said the Sky River Great Elder, looking up at Shen Ji. "The Heavenly Path is flawed, and you cannot escape your fate. Do you know what this is?"


    "Hmm?" A look of surprise came over Shen Ji''s face. He finally noticed that the Sky River Great Elder was standing right in the middle of the matrix.


    There seemed to be a stone tablet there with many words on it. The characters seemed to be incredibly ancient. Under the light of the matrix, it was hard to make them out. But when he sensed it carefully, he could feel a shocking aura coming off it.


    "This is a divine item, the one the Shen clan has always wanted to find. In the past, we actually got two. One was given to Nong Yue, which Feixue now has. We did not dare reveal the other one because it was too powerful. Instead, we carefully hid it. Only the two of us know about it. I have carefully forged it over several decades, and even now, I have only completed part of it.


    The Sky River Great Elder looked up at Shen Ji, speaking as if he was explaining something normal. As he spoke, his aura gradually changed. Lines of blood-colored dark light appeared around him. A suffocating aura spread out from him.


    "A divine item." Shen Ji''s face fell. The aura was growing stronger and stronger. The matrix on the ground stretched out further as it grew. The endless blood-colored dark light filled the sky, transforming into an infinite flow that sped through the air.


    The aura was extremely violent, overpowering, bloodthirsty, and emotionless.


    This was the aura of the Great Path of Destruction.


    "I wanted to spend more time trying to understand it. If I knew more about it, I could control it better. I never thought that things would come to this, that I would have to use it so early," continued the Sky River Great Elder.


    "So, the reason you brought your heir to the Central Imperial Realm to seek out old friends was just to create a false appearance. You found a true heir and gave everything to him, paving the way for him, and even not hesitating to lose face on his behalf?" said Shen Ji. "You did all this to fool us?"


    "Yes."


    The Sky River Great Elder looked up. Terrible blood-red dark light flowed in his eyes as well, making them terrible and frightening. The lines of light made people feel wild; it was as if they could not control themselves.


    What was even more frightening was that the matrix and the divine item were connected. A terrible flow of the Great Path stretched out, making a destructive storm sweep out over a vast area. The Sky Rive Great Elder was right in the center of the storm.


    "The Shen clan knows all about your hatred. Thus, we have never stopped watching you. But we never thought you would spend decades trying to make us relax, then spend decades underground hiding. Just how much do you hate us?" A divine eye appeared on Shen Ji''s brow, and a cutting storm swept out. Divine Light destroyed everything around him. "However, even if you have a divine item, can you really hope to face me?" he said loudly. Light cut through the air towards the Sky River Great Elder.


    "Who says I have not reached the next level?" the Sky River Great Elder''s voice came out slowly. As he said this, the formation began to flow backward, covering the sky. Endless destructive blood-colored light shot into the clouds. Endless characters flew through the storm.


    He seemed to be using heaven and earth as a furnace to forge the Great Path of Destruction and refine the sky.


    Boom!


    A terrible, apocalyptic thunderclap rang out as the skies changed. The endless, dark, destructive storm contained blood-red catastrophe light. The whole sky seems like it would be refined.


    Shen Ji was swallowed up by the storm. All around him was transformed into a world of destruction. And it was not only there, but the vast mountain range and even far away in the imperial city of the Tianhe Realm were also covered by the storm. Everyone looked up into the sky and trembled with terror.


    Many figures stood up, and some of them rose into the sky, their bodies shaking.


    "What happened?"


    "That is Sky River Temple over there!"


    Bang!


    There was a loud noise as destructive light swept out.


    "Let''s go!" someone yelled. As he said this, the destructive light surged towards them and swept over them. Many buildings were cut through, and many figures were destroyed and swallowed up in an instant. Some cultivators were also killed by the destructive airflow.


    Boom!


    A low roar rang out. It seemed as if a terrible battle had broken out in Sky River Temple. Everyone fled wildly from that place, not daring to stay and watch.


    If they stayed, they would surely die.


    At that moment, the Sky River Great Elder stood in the sky, the divine item having already melded into his body. At that moment, he seemed to have completely changed. He seemed to have regained his vigor, becoming much more youthful. His black hair flew in the wind, and his face was full of murderous intent. His eyes were even more terrible as blood-red light suffused them.


    A blood-red seal appeared on his forehead, like the seal of a god.


    All around him, the Deed of Thorough Comprehension formed a closed circle. The breath of the Great Path flowed through his body; then, it flowed out into the world.


    "You are feeding the Great Path with your body. This is only false power." Shen JI''s aura surged as he gazed at the Sky River Great Elder.


    Cold, blood-red light shone out of the Sky River Great Elder''s eyes. He did not reply but stretched out his right hand. Suddenly, the Great Path of Destruction surged. It seemed as if massive, invisible, destructive seals formed, wrapping around everything.


    Endless divine light shot out of Shen Ji''s eyes, cutting through the air and the divine seals as it raced towards the Sky River Great Elder.


    The Sky River Great Elder thrust out his fist. Suddenly, thousands of destructive seals shot out.


    The Tianshen cleave bloomed into life, ripping holes in the fabric of space and cutting through the seals. At the same time, it pierced through the Sky River Great Elder''s mind, trying to cut his very soul.


    Crack! The Tianshen cleave passed by, and incomparably brilliant divine light shone from Shen Ji''s eyes. He tried to destroy the Sky River Great Elder''s soul. But to his surprise, he discovered that as the cleave passed through, it was not able to kill him.


    In the next instant, endless destructive seals filled the air and began to descend.


    Divine light blazed as a destructive spatial storm whipped up around Shen Ji. But the endless destructive seals continued to descend.


    Boom!


    Shen Ji was knocked backward. The Great Path of Destruction infected his body. A dark expression came over his face.


    Suddenly, countless images of the Sky River Great Elder seemed to appear around him. They were everywhere.


    The Sky River Great Elder was using his body to feed the Great Path. Had he also mended his soul into the world itself?


    Thus, he had not been able to completely cut through his soul.


    Boom! Destructive light shot up into the clouds, trying to mold the very sky and make it flow into Shen Ji.


    The endless characters whirled through the air, enveloping Shen Ji.


    Shen Ji sensed the Sky River Great Elder''s aura and suddenly felt that he should flee.


    He formed a seal with both hands, drawing a line in the air. He turned into a beam of spatial light that cut through the storm, splitting the air as he fled.


    The Sky River Great Elder stared at him. It was difficult to hold Shen Ji in one place.


    He looked up into the sky and stepped forward. Suddenly, he disappeared.


    Soon, he came to the Imperial Palace of the Tianhe Realm. Many cultivators appeared there, including the Emperor. He looked at the Sky River Great Elder, who had turned young, and trembled on the inside. He bowed and said, "Greetings, elder."


    The Sky River Great Elder stood high up in the air. He reached out, and suddenly, the entire building was covered in destructive power.


    In a flash, all the figures rose up into the air, giving off plaintive cries.


    "Please spare us, elder!" begged the Emperor, bowing. At this moment, the Sky River Great Elder was terrifying. His eyes were like those of a god of death!


    ...

 1704 Shake the Nine Realms

    The Sky River Great Elders stretched out his hand, slamming it towards the Emperor of the Tianhe Realm as it streamed with lines of dark, blood-red light. There was a loud boom, and the Emperor''s expression twisted. His aura surged in response.


    However, he found that the blood-red characters swirling around him had melded into his own will, and had begun to mold his body.


    His own aura was pulled out of him. The will of the Great Path of Destruction destroyed his flesh and spirit.


    "No..." The Emperor''s voice was shaking. Even though he was an upper-level Renhuang, he was still filled with deep fear. It had been a long difficult road to reach his current position as the Lord of an entire realm.


    But now he had encountered his greatest difficulty.


    "Your Highness!" The other people in the hall watched this scene in shock. Fear spread through them, and their hearts trembled.


    "Go!" Someone shouted. Many figures tried to flee. The Sky River Great Elder had become a demon, a true demon. A terrible seal of demonic destruction had appeared on his forehead.


    Go?


    Where would they go?


    The vast palace was filled with the airflow from the Great Path of Destruction. Blood red light wrapped around everything. The endless red characters were full of destructive power. Everyone was covered as they fled.


    At that moment, the whole palace transformed into a blood-red furnace.


    Outside the palace, everyone trembled as they beheld this scene. They did not dare go back in to look. They simply turned and fled.


    The Sky River Great Elder had become a demon!


    After so many years of forbearance, suppressing his desire for vengeance deep within his heart, he had finally exploded, becoming a demon with a single thought.


    "I have offended you, elder. Please spare my life!" The Emperor''s face twisted. He could feel his aura growing weaker. His will had completely collapsed. He knelt on the ground, though he seemed to have difficulty doing so.


    "Save your pleas for the souls of the dead." The Sky River Great Elder''s voice seemed to come from the abyss. In the past, he had taught here in the Tianhe Realm with no desire to conquer it. The palace had even sent the prince to Sky River Temple to cultivate. But in the end, the palace had sold them out, letting their 3,000 disciples die at the hands of the Shen clan. Almost all of them had died.


    Forgiveness?


    How could he forgive them?


    A blood debt could only be repaid by blood.


    At that moment, the Sky River Great Elder''s blood-red eyes became even more demonic. His whole self seemed to be infected by negative emotions, making him violent and bloodthirsty. He could not control the overpowering divine item he had taken, which was the reason he had not used it before. Anyone who took it would bring disaster with them.


    Boom!


    There was a loud noise as the people in the city looked back towards the palace. They saw a blood-red storm of destruction filling the palace.


    The destructive storm rose up into the clouds, dying the sky red. Its power rolled through the heavens. It began to spread out from its center point in the palace until the only thing in the sky above the city was destructive power.


    Had he broken through to the next level?


    He was refining the sky itself.


    Terrible dark cracks appeared all around the storm, ripping through the air. A beam of blood-red light shot up into the clouds, and the people seemed to be able to see a line of light shoot through it and disappear.


    "Did he leave?"


    Everyone''s hearts were beating fiercely. The clouds of destruction were still rolling outward, though they gradually calmed down. The people in the city stopped fleeing. They stared up into the sky in shock.


    Had the Sky River Great Elder, the man who had once dominated and taught the Tianhe Realm, and been admired by everyone, started on the path of vengeance?


    "He''s gone," someone whispered.


    "Yes, he has probably gone to the higher heavens."


    Now that the palace had been destroyed, his next target for vengeance would probably be the Shen clan.


    They were all thinking that the all-powerful Sky River Great Elder, who had been patient for so many years, a man who had cultivated up to the peak of the Renhuang plane, had been burdened with his humiliation for so many years due to the disaster he had faced. He had endured so much for so long.


    They could understand why he had become a demon. Anyone who had experienced so much over the years would probably go crazy. But he had not been crazy before. He had born it patiently until today when he had erupted.


    He had repressed his emotions until his anger, his desire for vengeance, and his ferocity had erupted.


    "Has he broken through to the next level?"


    "Of course. He is the Sky River Great Elder, and he should have done so earlier. The reason he didn''t was just that the Shen clan had paralyzed him."


    Everyone was discussing what had just happened.


    "But even if he did reach the next level, can he withstand the Shen clan?"


    Many people doubted it. But they were not sure.


    At the very least, he had defeated a powerful figure from the Shen clan, forcing him to retreat in humiliation. Did this mean that now that the Sky River Great Elder was a demon, he had become even more powerful?


    This was fated to be an interesting day.


    The palace had been destroyed, the Sky River Great Elder had become a demon, and he had attacked the Central Emperor Realm.


    On this day, corpses were piled up in the Shen clan''s city, and countless people lost their lives.


    On this day, many of the branches of the Shen clan were destroyed. The Sky River Great Elder had been an in-law of the Shen clan at one time, so he was very familiar with them.


    On this day, many of the members of the Shen bloodline were killed.


    What was terrifying was that the Shen clan did not help them, because they were afraid that if they did the Sky River Great Elder would attack them.


    And what they feared came true: the Sky River Great Elder attacked the Shen clan. Blood stained the ground all around the Shen clan as a huge battle broke out there. In the end, the Sky River Great Elder was wounded and fled, but in order to accomplish this, both the clan lord of the Shen clan and Shen Ji were wounded as well.


    In that battle, it was said that the heavens had collapsed, and the earth had split. The two great figures of the Shen clan had both had to resist the Sky River Great Elder and protect the other members of the Shen clan. Now that he had become a demon, the Sky River Great Elder did not show any mercy. The blood that flowed from his kills became a river.


    In the end, he had not stayed but had fled in pain. No one knew if he would be able to make a comeback. An oppressive atmosphere hung over the Shen clan.


    They would never have even dreamed that this disaster would come about due to something that had happened years ago.


    This battle was the most terrible battle that had taken place in the Central Imperial Realm in many years.


    One man had attacked the Shen clan.


    The battle shook the whole Central Imperial Realm.


    After all the top figures received news of this, their hearts were in turmoil. The Sky River Great Elder had become a demon and had attacked the Shen clan!


    The Shen clan, who had once launched a war to destroy a realm, had paid a terrible price for what they had done years ago.


    It was what they had done to him and the Tianhe Realm that had made the Sky River Great Elder so crazy. He had thoroughly become a demon and killed the members of the Shen clan indiscriminately.


    This news did not only shock the Central Imperial Realm. It made its way to the other realms very quickly. Soon, all the top forces of the Nine Supreme Realms heard about it.


    This affair had great effects. When Gu Tianxing of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had attacked the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, it had attracted the attention of all the Nine Realms. Moreover, today''s events had taken place in the Shen clan of the Central Imperial Realm.


    In addition, the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which had already attracted the attention of the Nine Realms, was involved. The storm had been caused by the Shen clan trying to deal with them and take the Sky River Great Elder away.


    ...


    The news came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy as well.


    The cultivators of the Xiao clan brought the news to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, telling them of what had happened in the Tianhe Realm and the Shen clan.


    Everyone at the academy was shocked. Lord Taixuan now understood the words that his old friend had said to him before he had left. "After this, you won''t know me."


    Apparently, he already knew what path he had started down: a road of vengeance with corpses piled high upon it.


    His old friend had seen through him too clearly.


    Now that he had become a demon, what would they do?


    All the people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were gathered together as Lord Taixuan had summoned them.


    Now, Lord Taixuan had taken the Sky River Great Elder''s place and become the headmaster of the academy instead of just an honored guest.


    Previously, he would not have done that. He liked peace and quiet and would rather spend his time calmly cultivating.


    But now his attitude had changed. He suddenly wanted to do things, and be wild with the young people one more time.


    Everyone was there, including the Xiao clan. The Dou tribe, the Yuanyang clan, and the cultivators of other realms were there as well, looking at Lord Taixuan.


    "Everyone knows about what happened in the Shen clan," said Lord Taixuan to everyone. Everyone nodded. They had heard the news.


    "Futian, you may speak," said Lord Taixuan to the man beside him.


    Ye Futian nodded, then looked out at everyone. He bowed slightly and said, "I must apologize to everyone. It was selfish of me to found this academy and invite people from all the top forces here. I knew that I had offended people in the God''s Relic, and so I hoped that having so many powerful people here would act as a deterrent. Thus, my master and Lord Taixuan have been drawn into this matter."


    Everyone listened quietly. They naturally knew this, but they had come here on their own free will. There was nothing for him to apologize for.


    "Moreover, there is something that I have not told any of you. The Sky River Great Elder is my master, and he was taken away by the Shen clan for my sake," continued Ye Futian. "However, despite that, everything is still the same as I said before. I founded this academy in order to teach. My selfishness is not for now, but for the future. Once the academy became strong enough, I would have handled this matter myself. But obviously, I was wrong. I underestimated how forceful the Shen clan would be. Even though we had so much power here, they still dared to come here in force. Their elder, Shen Ji, attacked the academy. The reason he dared be so wanton was that he had absolute confidence in himself and that no one would dare stand up to the Shen clan, even the other forces that had come here to cultivate. This was not him being arrogant; it was him being realistic. If the Shen clan dares to do this, in the future, the ruler of the Golden Divine Nation will dare it as well. But if they knew that someone like our master was here, would they have dared?"


    Of course, they would not have.


    He had been so forceful because of his absolute confidence. If someone else like the Sky River Great Elder had been there, someone who was willing to directly attack the Shen clan and kill so many of them that their blood flowed in rivers, would he have attacked?


    The Shen clan knew that the Xiao clan and the Dou tribe would not dare to go to war with them just because they attacked Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "There are two paths for the academy''s future. We can either scatter and be destroyed, or become the foremost academy in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path," said Ye Futian. "The Shen clan will come at us with force. If we do nothing, we can only flee. If we want to become the greatest academy in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, I don''t think that even all the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm are enough to bring about this future. So, today I ask all of you, do you want to go to the Shen clan with me?"


    The foremost academy in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Go to the Shen clan with him.


    Everyone sat there in silence.


    A brilliant aura swept out from Ye Futian, making them all look surprised. Incomparably brilliant divine light shone in the sky as the aura of a perfect divine wheel stretched out.


    Yu Sheng walked to Ye Futian''s side, his demonic power rolling out from him. His perfect Divine Wheel erupted as well.


    Then Gu Dongliu stepped forward.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen came over as well, followed by Yaya.


    All of them had Perfect Divine Wheels.


    "One more!" Everyone looked at Yaya.


    More people stepped out of the crowd, Long Chen, Jun, and Gao Huang came out one by one and stood by Ye Futian''s side. Their Wheels of the Great Path shone brightly with radiant light, lighting up the heavens.


    Everyone''s hearts beat faster. Even the most powerful figures among them felt their hearts shake.


    The foremost academy in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    This was not just empty talk.


    "If the Shen clan came to us to find some of our people, so we will go there and find some of theirs. We will announce to the world that they cannot bully the Heavenly Mandate Academy," said Lord Taixuan as he got to his feet. "If no one else is willing, Futian and I will go, and the academy will be dissolved."


    ...

 1705 City Under Siege

    oThe ancient Shen clan in the City of the Gods in the Central Emperor Realm was known as one of the top three forces in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    It was said that there were three top figures in the Shen clan. Among them, two of them guarded the clan itself. One of them was the current patriarch of the clan, and the other was a clan elder, Shen Ji, who had attacked the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    However, this force that stood at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had encountered a disaster not long ago.


    The Sky River Great Elder had slaughtered them, killing many cultivators in the City of the Gods, then attacking the Shen clan itself where he had buried many more. Only when the patriarch and the elder had acted was he wounded and driven away.


    No one had thought that the ancient Sky River Great Elder would one day become a demon. If they could have imagined that, they would not have left him alive.


    At that moment in the divine hall of the Shen clan, a young woman was floating helplessly in the air in the midst of a brilliant matrix like a rootless plant. She looked weak and pitiful. She was covered by countless rays of divine light that seemed like they wanted to cut into her. Beams of terrible light flowed off of her.


    Almost all the great figures of the Shen clan stood around her, including the current patriarch.


    And these powerful people had used their strength against this woman.


    Behind the matrix was another prison in the air with three people in it, imprisoned by interlocking bars of spatial light. They watched the scene before them with red eyes, as if they were about to go mad. But they had no power. They could only watch what was happening.


    These three were Qi Xuangang, Yan Yuan, and Nan Zhai.


    As for the floating woman, it was naturally Feixue.


    These days, the Shen clan was constantly healing Qi Xuangang, trying to recover his erased memories in order to find Feixue. However, before he had recovered his memories, they had sent people out to find her, and they had seen her and Yan Yuan. They had also gotten some thoughts from Qi Xuangang from time to time.


    Despite this, he had never thought that the Shen clan would get him.


    At this time, he cursed himself for his powerlessness. He could not protect his own daughter.


    Yan Yuan and Nan Zhai also looked quite bitter. Their red eyes were filled with endless guilt. Before their teacher had left, he had asked them to protect Feixue, but they had not.


    Now, seeing her current situation, they felt like knives were piercing their hearts.


    "There is no way to refine it," said one of the Shen clan cultivators to his elder, ignoring the prisoners'' mood.


    "It''s already inside her. Of course there is no way," said Shen Ji.


    The patriarch of the Shen clan was silent for a while.


    The patriarch of the Shen clan naturally knew what that meant. They would have to cut open this woman in front of them.


    If it had been anyone else, they already would have done so. But what could not be denied was that the woman before them was related to him. Her grandmother was his own daughter.


    "Elder, we need the divine item," said someone.


    The patriarch thought of the battle that had happened before. The Sky River Great Elder had fought his way into the Shen clan all by himself, staining the land with blood.


    If the Sky River Great Elder had only broken through to the next level and had not done all the other things, he would be no match for the patriarch. But he had activated the power of the divine item and become terrifyingly powerful.


    This made the Shen clan want divine items to bring back to their clan even more.


    Boom! A dull roar rang out in the distance. Everyone in the Shen clan could feel a terrifying shaking. The cultivators all frowned. More dull roars rang out. They knew where they were coming from.


    The Sky River Great Elder had gone crazy and used his body to feed the Great Path. He had turned from a man into a demon. She was crazy as well as she wildly attacked the matrix that held her, trying to break free.


    If it wasn''t for how strong the giant matrix was, she would have broken it.


    "Alright," said the patriarch. He had finally made his decision.


    Hearing his words, Feixue seemed to understand her fate as she floated there powerlessly. Tears flowed from her eyes.


    She was not afraid of death; it was just that this was not how she wanted to die.


    No one would want to leave the world in such a casual fashion.


    And she knew that if the Shen clan killed her, her father, Brother Yan Yuan, and Brother Nan Zhai would all die as well.


    Her heart hurt to think of it.


    As the tears fell, a figure appeared in her mind. He healed her eyes, allowing her to see light again and letting her body accept the "ominous thing" within her so that it became part of her flesh.


    After he had left the Crimson Dragon Realm, she had often wondered when she would see him again. She had never thought they w be parted forever.


    "Elder!" came a voice from outside. The patriarch frowned and said, "Didn''t I tell you not to disturb us?"


    The person outside felt his heart tremble, but he said, "Elder, several top figures have suddenly descended upon the City of the Gods."


    The patriarch of the Shen clan frowned. First, it had been the Sky River Great Elder, now who was coming to make trouble?


    "Who is it?" he asked coldly.


    "The Xiao clan, the Yuanyang clan, and another one from the Ziwei Realm, the Dou tribe," said the man outside, trembling. "Three people from these three great powers have come. Their clan leaders have come personally."


    The patriarch of the Shen clan''s expression finally changed. And he was not the only one. All of the great figures of the Shen clan looked shocked. If they had been outside, they would have sensed this, but they were busy with Feixue.


    The elders of three powerful forces had come. What did this mean?


    The Sky River Great Elder''s attack had shaken the Shen clan. Had these people come to kick them while they were down?


    Although these were the top forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, in normal times, they would not even be worthy of the Shen clan''s attention. Each of them only had one top-level figure, and the Shen clan had three. Even if one of them was gone, he and Shen Ji could still protect them.


    Who in the vast world would dare disturb them?


    But today was different. The affair with the Sky River Great Elder was not yet finished, and the Shen clan had experienced great turmoil. Now, three great figures had come here together. If they had come to attack, the Shen clan could not stop them.


    Looking away from Feixue, the patriarch said coldly, "We will leave this place first."


    On saying so, he turned and walked out of the hall.


    A dark look came over the faces of the cultivators of the Shen clan as they followed him out.


    On the steps to the hall, the patriarch looked off into the distance. His thoughts swept out, spreading far away in an instant.


    Soon, he a figure standing on top of a building with his hair dancing in the wind. He recognized him. It was Xiao Dingtian of the Xiao clan.


    It was said that he had not appeared in the outside world for many years.


    The patriarch''s thoughts continued to sweep out until he saw two more people. One of them was carefree and unrestrained, sitting there peacefully, while the other was eating and drinking in a pavilion. This one had a husky figure. Everyone in the pavilion where he was eating had evacuated, and no one dared come near. His aura was too frightening. It seemed as if it would be impossible to breathe if one sat beside him.


    The three of them were all in different places in the City of the Gods. They had not appeared together, and they were not coming towards the Shen clan.


    However, since they had all appeared at the same time, no one would think that was a coincidence.


    This was the homeland of the Shen clan. How stupid would one have to be to think that it was an accident that three great figures had appeared there at the same time?


    There was a cold look on the patriarch of the Shen clan''s face. These three top figures would not normally cooperate. There was only one reason for them to make common cause: their descendants were all very close to Ye Futian of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    All of this was because of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    They dared attack the Shen clan because of that academy.


    At that moment, he seemed to sense something. He looked through endless space, off into the distance. There, a terrifying aura seemed to be approaching, getting closer and closer.


    The City of the Gods was one of the greatest cities in the Central Emperor Realm.


    Now, a mighty aura was spreading through the sky above the city. It was the aura of a mighty army that was traveling through the air.


    Countless people looked up at it. It was made up of Renhuangs.


    A low roar rang out from the mouths of terrifying dragons. The sun was blotted out as Kunpengs flapped their wings. Overpowering elephants charged through the clouds.


    An army of Renhuangs rode on the backs of the dragons, elephants, and Kunpengs. They were descending upon the City of the Gods.


    There were two people at their head: one old one young. The old one had an incredible aura, and the young one was heroic and had hair as white as snow.


    "The forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm!" The people of the City of Gods soon guessed who they were. The Heavenly Mandate Academy had been founded not long ago, shaking the Nine Realms. It was said that a cultivator of the Shen clan had gone there in force seeking someone. The Heavenly Mandate Academy had refused him, after which Shen Ji had attacked the academy.


    Why had the academy come here now?


    First, it had been the Sky River Great Elder, who had turned into a demon. Now it was the army of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Moreover, it seemed like three powerful figures had come here before them.


    When had such a powerful storm ever befallen the City of the Gods?


    When had the Shen clan ever been in this much trouble?


    "This is too much," said someone, looking up at the army in the sky and trembling. The people involuntarily followed the army towards the Shen clan. Of course, only Renhuang level people dared follow them closely.


    In the pavilion, the mighty and powerful figure put down his cup and stood up. He looked out towards the Shen clan, and an oppressive aura swept out all around him. Countless people looked at him. He stood there in the pavilion like a god of war, facing the Shen clan.


    The elder of the Yuanyang clan and the Xiao Dingtian of the Xiao clan let their auras spread out as well. They stood atop buildings, and as they let their auras out, the people in the area around them began to tremble.


    These were top-level people.


    Three powerful auras were descending upon the Shen clan at once.


    And at the same time, a powerful army had appeared as well!


    ...

 1706 Greetings to the Master

    The Shen clan was vast and boundless, its interior was akin to an ancient city, with an unknown number of cultivators.


    At this time, many figures levitated into the sky from the Shen clan. They focused on the outer sky, at the great army that had descended.


    There were still those who had no qualms about attacking the Shen clan.


    Last time it was the Sky River Great Elder, and this time, it was the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Lord Taixuan levitated into the sky alone, heading toward the direction of Shen clan. He took a step into the void.


    Bang. Loud sounds were heard, and buildings inside the Shen clan collapsed and shattered. A terrible storm of sword qi blew through the Shen clan, and some from the Shen clan perished immediately under the sword.


    Shen Ji''s body rose into the air. He opened his divine eyes, and the divine light reaching toward Lord Taixuan. He said in a chilling tone, "Lord Taixuan, do you know what you are doing?"


    "Naturally," Lord Taixuan responded, "when Shen clan slaughtered countless cultivators in the attack of Tianhe Realm, have you ever thought that the Sky River Great Elder would one day come to avenge them? Likewise, when you forced your way into the Heavenly Mandate Academy, you never expected that one day the Heavenly Mandate Academy would dare to come to the Shen clan."


    "Everything that was done by the Shen clan must be repaid." Lord Taixuan stepped out again, and the Sword Will set off a terrifying storm, as many ancient temples of the Shen clan were flattened by the sword qi, just like what Shen Ji did to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    How could the Shen clan be so self-assured, thinking that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would not fight back? Just because the Shen clan was strong and powerful, Shen Ji was bold enough to be so aggressive as to uproot the newly established Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    However, at this moment, Lord Taixuan was telling him that whatever Shen clan dared to do, they would also.


    The clan lord of Shen clan was still standing below, as his divine spirit swept toward the top figures in the other three directions. The three of them were at different locations outside the Shen clan and observing from afar; it was as if they were not here to fight, but merely to observe.


    "How about you guys?" asked the clan lord of Shen clan.


    He could hardly believe that the three top peak forces would also dare to go to war with them. If they started a war, both sides would suffer. Those who were at the pinnacle of power perhaps would not perish, but their young ones would most certainly be decimated.


    Who could afford to pay such a price?


    It didn''t seem that they were at the point where they need to all perish together.


    His tone was extremely calm, without any emotion, as if he was just stating a casual matter.


    Clearly, they would not perish together, nor do they really wish a full-blown war; it was a price that no one could afford. But it was true that the Shen clan was the instigator in this conflict, and it was hard for all the principalities here to act without prejudice. After all, who could overlook such blatant offense?


    By coincidence, Sky River Great Elder invaded the Shen clan, with Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian following closely behind. Under such circumstances, they had no choice but to come along.


    Since the Shen clan thought that they didn''t dare to go to war, they wanted to see if the Shen clan dared to start a war all by themselves?


    And now, they were inside the Shen clan.


    In this world, no one lacked courage, especially those who had cultivated to the level that they were in. By daring to come here with prominent figures of all top forces, Ye Futian displayed fearless courage.


    Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian were right. If this humiliation was tolerated, then the newly established Heavenly Mandate Academy would never be able to stand up in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    So here they were.


    "The young ones couldn''t let go such slight, so us old ones had to come over and keep an eye on them. Or else, it may be like last time in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, getting killed off by Chief Elder Shen Ji." The clan lord of Yuanyang clan piped up. His tone, though nonchalant, was clearly full of strong resentment.


    Today, all three great cultivators came to protect their young. They stood here and watched to see whether or not the Shen clan would dare to make a move.


    If the Shen clan did make a move, then they would have no choice but to oblige.


    The wager for today''s gamble between both sides was the entire Shen clan. If the Shen clan dared to play the game, it could possibly be annihilated.


    Four mighty figures plus the top forces from Heavenly Mandate Realm. No one had any doubts that they could very well destroy everyone except the two major figures of the Shen clan.


    Of course, this was not a step anyone wished to take. However, it would be impossible to spare the two major figures of the Shen clan, so this was a poison pill they had to take.


    Once, Shen Ji had wagered that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would not retaliate. Today they bet that Shen clan dared not make a move, which was also a strong response to the Shen clan.


    A divine dragon was moving forward, with Ye Futian standing on top of it. Behind him, there were some who traveled with him, and they were very young. Every one of them was the top-figure of their generation.


    On both sides, people from the top forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were standing guard for them.


    "Bring them," Ye Futian said. A divine dragon came forward, and several men were clasped within its sharp claws.


    In one direction within Shen clan, Shen Hao was there.


    Behind him, Luo Yang paled.


    Seeing the situation right now, he knew that everything had gone wrong. He had thought that facing the powerful Shen clan, the Heavenly Mandate Academy lacked the power to fight back and would not risk any sudden moves.


    But the Heavenly Mandate Academy had unleashed swiftly upon the Shen clan.


    "Luo Yang," Ye Futian called to him, but Luo Yang stood there without moving.


    "Bastard..." Luo Yang''s father was imprisoned by the sharp claws of the divine dragon, and his eyes were bloody red. He definitely did not expect that Luo Yang to cause such a grievous disaster in the Upper Worlds. He participated in this kind of power play intending to benefit from it, but he didn''t know he was, in fact, playing with fire.


    "Father, I''m sorry." Luo Yang''s face was pale, but he couldn''t die now. Shen Hao had already agreed to take him in cultivation. If he stepped out now, everything would be over.


    If he could stay alive, then there was still hope.


    Ye Futian stared coldly at Luo Yang in the distance. Did he think he could survive this?


    The divine dragon continued moving forward. Ye Futian put out his hand, and the Spatial Will of the Way swept out, as a giant hand pressed down through the void. This golden giant hand from the space caught Luo Yang, and slowly lifted him up.


    "Save me," Luo Yang had a look of terror on his face. But when he looked at the cultivators behind him, no one paid any attention to him.


    To the Shen clan, Luo Yang was but a nobody; no one cared about whether he lived or died.


    Luo Yang saw those indifferent eyes looking at him, and he felt cold all over.


    The giant palm imprisoned him and moved him in front of Ye Futian.


    Boom. Flames descended, engulfing Luo Yang''s body.


    "Let me die quickly," Luo Yang''s face was distorted, he looked terribly wretched.


    Ye Futian stared at him indifferently, ignoring the miserable howls let out by Luo Yang, who was also well-versed in the art of flames. However, under the Flames of the Way, his body disappeared little by little until there was nothing left but ashes.


    All the cultivators watched what was happening in front of them, and remarked on its ruthlessness.


    Luo Yang''s family members looked on with bloody red eyes, but who could they blame at this moment?


    All of this was Luo Yang''s own doing.


    "People from Luo clan will never be allowed to leave Crimson Dragon City, or else the entire clan will be eradicated. You may go back now," Ye Futian said. Divine dragon loosened its claws, and people of the Luo clan left with their lives, but their hearts were cold.


    They would not be allowed to leave Crimson Dragon City for as long as they were alive, never mind about Crimson Dragon Realm.


    This was how Ye Futian forbade their clan to even contemplate revenge for generations to come.


    Crimson Dragon Emperor would be keeping close tabs on them.


    Luo Yang''s death was just an aside. The fact was that not many people here cared much about whether Luo Yang lived or died. But if it weren''t for Luo Yang, none of this mess would have happened. It was because of the news that Luo Yang gave to the Shen clan that started the chain of events.


    Even as Luo Yang was unimportant, Ye Futian had to be killed.


    He looked in the direction of the Shen clan, and said loud and clear, "Ye Futian from the Heavenly Mandate Academy, come to bring back my master Qi Xuangang, senior brother, and Feixue."


    This voice rolled like thunder, resounding through heaven and earth, heard throughout the entire Shen clan.


    His master Qi Xuangang had been trapped for many days. Now the senior brother and Feixue had also been brought here by the Shen clan. Today, he came to bring them home.


    Sky River Great Elder was not successful, so he could not fail today.


    In the distance, the clan lord of the Shen clan looked at Ye Futian from afar. This was the first time he saw this white-haired young man. Before this, he had only heard people below talking about him a few times.


    Qi Xuangang''s own talent was not spectacular. Back then, the Shen clan opposed his marriage to Nongyue, causing a series of bad events. No one could anticipate that Qi Xuangang''s disciple was so outstanding.


    He knew clearly that today''s siege on Shen clan by the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the three top figures, was because of this disciple of his.


    To be able to do all of this, even he, as one of the pinnacle figures of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, had to admit that it was truly amazing.


    Shen clan stood on the top of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, and had never been so passive and overwhelmed by an opponent like they were today.


    No wonder he was able to create the Heavenly Mandate Academy by himself. It seemed that they had underestimated him.


    "Bring Qi Xuangang and the other two," the clan lord said. Someone stepped into the temple, and soon, three figures emerged. It was Qi Xuangang, Yan Yuan, and Nan Zhai.


    Feixue was not one of them.


    Obviously, to the Shen clan, different values were ??placed on Feixue, Qi Xuangang, and the others.


    Qi Xuangang, Yan Yuan, and Nan Zhai looked into the distance and saw the white-haired man who came on the divine dragon.


    Qi Xuangang renounced his relationship with Ye Futian years ago and suffered alone, precisely because he wished to spare Ye Futian.


    He never thought that there would be a day when Ye Futian would lead an army to the Shen clan and came for him.


    "Unfit disciple Ye Futian now come to bring the master home." Looking at the frail Qi Xuangang at this moment, Ye Futian felt a deep sorrow; he was a most incompetent disciple. Once, he had watched his master being taken away by the Shen clan, while he didn''t dare to make their relationships known. After such a long time, he was finally here.


    Fortunately, the master was still safe and sound.


    "Dou Zhao from the Dou clan in Ziwei Realm greets the master and two senior brothers." At this time, Dou Zhao also took a step forward, bowing in the direction where Qi Xuangang was. This was the first time he met his master since Ye Futian accepted him as his junior brother, and he had to pay his respect.


    Qi Xuangang was taken aback, unaware since when was Dou Zhao a disciple of his?


    "Long Chen from the Dragon Gods in Heavenly Mandate Realm; greetings to the grandmaster."


    "Jun from the Sky Demon Court in Heavenly Mandate Realm; greetings to the grandmaster."


    "Gao Huang from the 10,000 Divine Mountain in Heavenly Mandate Realm Mountain; greetings to the grandmaster."


    "Xiao Muyu from the Xiao Clan in the Imperial Realm; greetings to the grandmaster."


    Many emerged, saluting Qi Xuangang in the distance.


    At this moment, Qi Xuangang was a little confused!


    ...

 1707 The Gods Have Spoken

    The clan lord of the Shen clan showed a look of surprise. Were all these people Qi Xuangang''s disciples?


    Every one of them represented a mighty principality to be reckoned with.


    What a genius was this white-haired disciple of Qi Xuangang''s...


    "Master, my fellow junior brothers and Muyu have cultivated in the Deed of Thorough Comprehension before breaking through the realm, as it was greatly helpful to prove the Renhuang Realm. I taught them on behalf of the master, so they are now master''s disciples," Ye Futian said, speaking loudly. "My junior brothers and I have come to take the master home."


    Qi Xuangang was silent. He knew this was Ye Futian''s design to help set him free, accepting disciples on his behalf, all for today''s showdown.


    "How are you planning on bringing them home?" The clan lord of the Shen clan spoke from the sky.


    Their rival had come in an alliance so that the Shen clan would not dare to act rashly. However, would these people really dare to start a war with the Shen clan?


    Were they not afraid of angering the Shen clan and causing mutual destruction?


    Put it bluntly, in this game, though they were in a passive position, it was still the resolve on both sides that were tested.


    Except this time, they did not have the upper hand.


    Ye Futian glanced into the distance. The massive body of the divine dragon moved forward, drove into the sky above the Shen clan. All his people were standing with him on both sides.


    Behind him, the great army moved forward, along with him.


    In the void, as well as the City of the Gods, the four great figures shrouded the Shen clan with their spiritual will.


    It was as if the war of mutual destruction could explode at any moment.


    "I came here today with no plan on retreating. If I can''t get out of here alive, I will take down the entire Shen clan to be buried with me, or I will take my people back," Ye Futian replied. The divine dragon continued moving forward, not fast, but with an extremely firm attitude.


    There was no mistaking the great determination in his calm voice.


    No one in the Shen clan doubted his determination. The moment Ye Futian stepped into the Shen clan, he risked death at any moment, because he was facing the entire Shen clan plus two major figures.


    But still, he came with a great army. Now that they were here, clearly, he had prepared for all eventualities.


    They either fight and everyone dies, or the Shen clan releases their people to them.


    There was no third option.


    Inside the Shen clan, many cultivators rose into the sky, and within the vast Shen clan, a terrifying aura of Renhuang swept toward that great army.


    Even the cultivators of the Shen clan could felt great pressure at this moment.


    But the fact was that as long as it had less Renhuang at the peak level, then the Heavenly Mandate Realm was still unlikely to compete against the Shen clan. This was also the reason why Shen Ji dared to move against the Heavenly Mandate Academy with aggression. However, today, Ye Futian only had four people at the peak level on his side.


    "I''ll give you a chance." At this time, the clan lord of the Shen clan outside the temple said to Ye Futian and the others, "Since you want to take your master back, I will allow it. Anyone who is related to Qi Xuangang, as long as someone could get to them, I will let you take that person with you. Only the Lower Renhuang of the Shen clan will defend."


    He could see that those who called Qi Xuangang master were all of the Lower Renhuang realm.


    The realm of Renhuang was divided into Nine Order of the Divine Wheel, but, in fact, there were only three major realms. Therefore, it was appropriate that he would send the Lower Renhuang to battle.


    But even so, how many cultivators did Shen clan have? Many of them were at the top level of Lower Renhuang, so they were still at a great advantage.


    This was his compromise to give the other a way out.


    It was meaningless to keep Qi Xuangang and the others any longer, but today''s battle was about the dignity of the Shen clan.


    He couldn''t just let them go.


    But it seemed difficult to not let them go either. Ye Futian would not give up until he got what he came for.


    "You feel it is justified for the few of them to fight against the entire Lower Renhuang of the Shen clan?" said Xiao Dingtian in the distance, a bit of sarcasm could be detected in his indifferent tone.


    How brave was the Shen clan...


    Ye Futian knew that the attitude of the Shen clan was not as aggressive as they were before with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They did not dare to gamble. If the two sides clashed, the Shen clan would definitely be the first one to be destroyed, because this fight was on their territory.


    He smiled sarcastically while looking at the clan lord of the Shen clan from afar and said, "Although I will take my people home no matter what, I will take this opportunity to expose just how easily the Shen clan can be crushed. The profound heritage that you are so proud of is, in fact, nothing, and won''t stand up to our strike."


    As his voice faded, he stepped forward and dismounted the Divine Dragon.


    Next to him, Yu Sheng, Yaya, the Swordmaster of Lihen, Gu Dongliu, Xiao Muyu, and other powerful cultivators stepped out at the same time, standing shoulder to shoulder with Ye Futian in the sky.


    Every single one of them was outstanding in their own way.


    This battle would be the first battle where all of Qi Xuangang''s disciples fight together.


    "After having proved the Way, in this first battle, we will trample the Shen clan Renhuang," Ye Futian said, and stepped forward.


    "Dou Zhao, descendant of the Fighting God, will overpower the Shen clan today." Dou Zhao let out a howl, feeling inexplicably emotional as blood boiled inside of him. Multiple marks of the Fighting God appeared around his brow chakra. In an instant, his aura increased wildly by leaps and bounds.


    A giant towering shadow of the Fighting God appeared, and the light of the Divine Wheel swept out. He clenched his fists as his hulking torso merged into the shadow of the Fighting God. As soon as he took the first step, endless divine light penetrated his body. Its bright dazzle was incomparable.


    "Will of the Fighting God, open seven-folds." With a loud roar, the Fighting God walked across the sky, and when he saw the Shen clan cultivators ahead, he raised a fist and punched through the void.


    The aura of that Shen clan Renhuang swept out, but before he was fully ready, he saw Dou Zhao''s fist blasting through the air toward him.


    Bang.


    A golden divine light pierced through the space, and an explosive sound was heard. That Renhuang from the Shen clan looked down at his own chest and abdomen. He saw that a gaping hole in the shape of a fist there, where it had punched through.


    This sudden and dominant display shook many to their core. Dou Zhao of the Dou clan, with his perfect Divine Wheel, had just executed a Renhuang of the Shen clan, completely without mercy.


    Dou Zhao didn''t care so much about that. This was sanctioned by the clan lord of the Shen clan, so he didn''t need to hold back.


    He had permission to kill!


    "Perfect Divine Wheel," the cultivators of the Shen clan secretly remarked. Dou Zhao of the Dou clan in the Ziwei Realm had cast the perfect Divine Wheel.


    The rest of the Lower Renhuang of the Shen clan finally came to and released an explosively tyrannical breath, not giving their opponent another chance to attack them at will.


    A mighty destructive force swept out. The cultivators of the Shen clan cultivators were many, could these few really think that they could shake every one of the Lower Renhuang of the Shen clan?


    Somewhere else at this time, a Shen clan cultivator reached forward, and suddenly an incomparably radiant golden pattern bloomed, rotating between heaven and earth as the pattern was getting larger and larger. In front of the pattern, a golden spatial sword appeared.


    Hundreds and thousands of divine swords rotated, and a rain of golden swords in the sky slew toward Ye Futian and the others. The whistling will of the Great Path was tearing up everything.


    Thump. At this moment, the earth boomed in a roar, and an overbearing dark figure strode forward and walked directly into the sword rain. His hulking and dominant torso moved under the sword will, and the sword rain that was full of terrifying power to slaughter was unable to shake him.


    The massive dark figure moved its arms backward, clenched the fists, and then smashed them forward, blasting on the pattern that contained hundreds and thousands of divine swords.


    "You asked for it."


    That Renhuang spun his hands, then slapped them forward, as countless divine swords penetrated the void, eradicating everything in front of him.


    Yu Sheng answered with a blast of his fists and created an absolute space in the falling sword rain. All the swords had to detour around it, or they would be pulverized and shattered.


    Boom!


    When the fists landed, the pattern was punched through, and with it, the falling sword rain shattered. The fists then blasted on the opponent''s head, and as it exploded, its soul and spirit also scattered.


    There were several other Renhuang standing high above the sky together. Their divine eyes opened at their brow chakra and swept down at the few people beneath. As the divine light fell, the divine eyes intruded the others'' consciousness.


    However, several figures levitated into the air at the same time, Xiao Mu''s Divine Wheel exploded forth, and it was equally perfect as the others. Her beautiful eyes shot toward the others, as a Yinyang Image of Life and Death appeared in her eyes.


    Yaya summoned up the Sword Matrix of the Void, and as she stood upon it, that massive Sword Matrix was the Divine Wheel which she had cast.


    Buzz. The Sword Matrix of the Void bloomed brilliantly, and a sword light engulfed the sky, slaughtered a Renhuang in its wake.


    Jun and Long Chen acted at the same time. While Jun morphed into the Golden Raven, the divine solar light shot out and went through the opponent''s eyes, so that even the flames now appeared in those divine eyes. He spread his wings as the divine solar light traversed the void.


    Not to be outdone, Long Chen raised his hands, and a purple blood storm appeared.


    Standing high above in the sky, Gu Dongliu unleashed the Divine Picture of Heavenly Mandate, which summoned the gods and demons of All Heavens.


    In a blink of an eye, every Renhuang from the Shen clan who had made their moves, fell one by one. By contrast, perfect Divine Wheels bloomed one after another. The sky where they were at was already submerged by a glowing light, and the vision of heaven and earth attracted endless divine light.


    All of them were perfect.


    Cultivators of the Shen clan watched in complete horror. How could this be possible!?


    All of them were perfect, without exception.


    Even the clan lord of the Shen clan and the Great Elder Shen Ji were mesmerized by what they saw. Their eyes fixed on the gorgeous display in front of them, and their hearts were troubled.


    In this generation, besides them, were there really so many geniuses who had cast the perfect Divine Wheel in the Nine Realms?


    It seemed, almost.


    This was almost like something from a dream.


    "How could it be!" All the Shen clan Renhuang looked on blankly. It was the goal of every cultivator who had proved Renhuang to cast the Perfect Divine Wheel.


    But in this generation of Shen Clan, Shen Hao was the only one who had achieved it.


    However, at this moment, there was a whole group of cultivators that had apparently done it.


    The battlefield that had just exploded seemed to be quieted again. But in the hearts of the Shen clan cultivators, the silence was especially terrifying.


    They slowly turned their gazes at the white-haired man in the crowd. At this time, he walked forward in the void, facing countless stares.


    "How did you do it?" The clan lord of the Shen clan looked at Ye Futian, and intuition told him that this shocking reality had everything to do with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at him across the air, continued to move forward, and said slowly, "I have witnessed the awakening of the Great Emperor, which resonated with me. The Great Emperor had given me his inheritance, and I have felt the calling of the gods and listened to their will. And the gods had spoken, that the Shen clan should be eradicated."


    ...

 1708 Opportunity

    The deities had decreed that the Shen clan had to be eliminated.


    Right now, Ye Futian''s white hair fluttered in the wind. Brilliant divine light appeared on his body. Divine signs appeared and reverberated with the Great Path.


    This scene caused other people to hallucinate. It was as though he was truly inheriting the Will of the Deities.


    Many people were familiar with this saying. Ye Futian had also said such words before in the God''s relic when the other cultivators questioned him. It was just that back then, many people believed that he was joking and spouting nonsense.


    However, the halo over Ye Futian''s body was glowing brighter and brighter. Was that truly a joke?


    He witnessed the awakening of the Great Emperor and heard the will of the deities.


    Right now, many people could not help but believe that what Ye Futian had said was true. In the God''s relic, he had witnessed the awakening of the Great Emperor and received the teachings of the Great Emperor. Hence, he had been changing rapidly. Even the people around him were forging flawless Divine Wheels.


    Shen clan had always wanted to obtain divine items. There might be such divine items or the teachings of the Great Emperor on Ye Futian.


    Shen Hao also looked at Ye Futian. He remembered the dazzling divine light that radiated at the last moment in the Heavenly Palace in the God''s relic back then. The light was blinding and caused the crowd to be unable to open their eyes. They could not even release their will.


    At that time, had Ye Futian received the teachings of the Great Emperor?


    Did Ye Futian turn out to be the biggest winner of the God''s relic?


    As for Ye Futian''s last sentence, it was completely ignored by Shen clan. The deities did not know Shen clan and would not concern themselves with Shen clan.


    "Shen clan had to be eliminated" was just the arrogant nonsense spouted by Ye Futian.


    If Shen clan was eliminated, Ye Futian, the giant figures, as well as all the members at lower Planes, would be buried here.


    However, the cultivators with flawless Divine Wheels still gave the cultivators of Shen clan a huge sense of astonishment.


    They roughly understood why the three top forces of Xiao clan, Yuanyang clan as well as Dou tribe had come over.


    It might be that they wanted to rely on Ye Futian to completely reshuffle the forces in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. That way, they could completely surpass some forces that they could not surpass in the past.


    Such as their Shen clan.


    Today their battle with Shen clan would be a very significant battle for them. Coincidentally, Sky River Great Elder, who had slaughtered his way into Shen clan, had provided them with an opportunity. It was as though that was how things were playing out to be.


    They did not say anything. It was not easy to reach the Renhuang Plane. The Renhuangs of Shen clan might have underestimated their opponents before this. However, right now, seeing that all of them were possessors of flawless Divine Wheels, how could they not understand that this was going to be a truly vicious battle?


    When the clan leader ordered the lower-level Renhuangs of Shen clan to hold off these few Renhuangs, many members of Shen clan were full of disdain. In the end, they had paid the price for doing so with their blood. There were a number of Renhuangs who were instantly cut down when they exchanged blows with Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The destructive power of the possessors of flawless Divine Wheels was extremely frightening.


    Right now, the Renhuangs who had advanced alone began to retreat. The Renhuangs in the distance also advanced forward to regroup with them.


    In a short while, the group of Renhuangs stood before the crowd. Might of Renhuang instantly burst forth from their bodies. The Divine WheeIs in their bodies burst forth with a brilliant glow.


    Even though their individual Divine Wheels were all different, the same scene played out on their glabellas. They all opened their divine eyes. This was the talent of their Shen clan.


    In the sky above, brilliant divine light suddenly shone. The power of the Great Path in the world actually resonated with their divine eyes.


    Ye Futian''s group felt an unparalleled majestic pressure of the Great Path pressing down on them. They stopped in their tracks as the terrifying force stood before them. At that moment, there were many Renhuangs of Shen clan joining forces, forming a large formation in this part of the space.


    It was as though the heavens were separated. Their movements seemed to have been slowed down. There was a frightening spatial Great Path flow that was everywhere.


    Around Ye Futian''s group, illusions of deities appeared. When the divine eyes of Shen clan gazed at Ye Futian''s group, they clearly felt as though they were being brought into an independent spatial world. In that world, deities appeared in the sky above as though they had been summoned.


    As one of the top clans in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, the Renhuangs of Shen clan naturally were not pushovers. Even against a group of possessors of flawless Divine Wheels, they still possessed an advantage in terms of Plane and numbers.


    Ye Futian naturally also sensed the majestic force. When the cultivators of Shen clan released the same ability, it created a resonance. It was as though they had become the masters of this part of the world and completely controlled this space.


    In that instant, the cultivators of Shen clan had turned the tables to suppress them.


    "Kill them!" an extremely solemn voice ordered.


    Their opponent had already tried to kill them; the Renhuangs of Shen clan naturally would not be merciful. Regardless of the consequences, since their opponents dared to take them on, their Shen clan would also do the same.


    His order had just been issued when endless divine light directly ripped the space apart. This was Shen clan''s grand massacre technique, Tianshen Cleave. All of their opponents would be buried under this technique.


    Rumble. The auras of Ye Futian''s group frenziedly exploded outwards. Their flawless Divine Wheels of the Great Path formed an independent space of the Great Path around them, blocking the Tianshen Cleave technique. At the same time, they also felt a soul cleaving power.


    Ye Futian raised his head. His eyes became very strange. In a loud voice, he asked, "Do you know what flawless Divine Wheels signify?"


    Pairs of divine eyes swept towards Ye Futian. At the exact same instance, Ye Futian''s eyes also became extremely frightening. His eyes directly penetrated their gazes and imprisoned them in an Eye Sorcery Zone.


    "It means that we have absolute control over Way. In terms of the Great Path, we have absolute suppression." Ye Futian''s figure gradually rose into the sky. He stood at the center of the endless massacre divine light, but the frightening divine light went around his body when it came in contact with it.


    "Lower-level Renhuangs, before me, you are unqualified to release the might of your Way."


    As Ye Futian spoke, his body kept floating upwards. He stood unaffected amidst the endless massacre of divine light. At the same time, around his body, streaks of divine light of the Great Path extended outwards. They directly penetrated the opponents'' space of the Great Path, breaking through the layers of protection and enveloping the endless space.


    Many people seemed to hear the sound of a guqin of the Great Path. The streaks of divine light of the Great Path became guqin strings of the Great Path. Sword Will also emanated from them.


    Inside Ye Futian''s body, unparalleled divine light exploded from his Guqin Divine Wheel.


    Even the illusions of the deities in the sky above could not suppress him.


    Ye Futian pointed a finger at the heavens. He drew his finger across the sky, and divine swords slashed across the sky.


    "Shatter!"


    A crisp voice sounded everywhere. As this word was uttered, the crowd sensed the Great Path shattering. The spatial Great Path that suppressed this part of the world was destroyed by Sword Will in that instance. Beams of light from the divine swords ripped apart the heavens. In the end, they formed a stream of swords that shot directly over in the direction of the cultivators of Shen clan.


    With a huge rumble, divine light exploded, and the formation of the Renhuangs of Shen clan instantly collapsed.


    Bang.


    The heavens shook. In the instant that their formation collapsed, the crowd saw two silhouettes appear at the same time. They seemed to be intrinsically linked. These two silhouettes were both overbearing and were full of endless power. One of them had illusions of demons behind him while the other had the illusion of the Fighting God behind him. At that moment, the two war-god-level figures seemed to be astonishingly in sync. They sent out a punch towards the Renhuangs at the same time.


    There was another intense vibration. A loud rumble could be heard in the sky. It was as though those two punches had shattered the space.


    As the punches traversed the space, countless afterimages that contained unparalleled power also penetrated the space.


    The figures of the Renhuangs of Shen clan were sent flying outwards at the same time. Cracks appeared on some of their Divine Wheels. Some of them coughed up blood, while others had ruptured internal organs.


    In an instant, the attack had negated the terrifying formation that was set up by many Renhuangs from Shen clan.


    The cultivators in the sky could all see this battle. Their hearts began to waver. Even the top figures of Xiao clan, Yuanyang clan as well as Dou tribe could not keep calm.


    This was the perfection that cultivators sought. Although they had broken through to the shackles of their Planes, one reality was clearly being displayed before them.


    Those who had flawed Great Paths could not become emperor. They could only be called false emperors.


    They also knew that true perfection was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. Even those who had broken through the shackles of the Great Path were no match against someone with a ninth tier Divine Wheel.


    This was a flaw that they could never compensate for.


    Hence, when they knew that Ye Futian had a group of possessors of flawless Divine Wheels around him, they had decided to come out and stand with Heavenly Mandate Academy. Or rather, they came out to stand with Ye Futian against Shen clan.


    They also dreamt that one day, their descendants could obtain what they could not achieve.


    If there were such a day, they would have no regrets.


    It might be said that it was what the leader of Shen clan had imagined. Them standing against Shen clan today was a fate of circumstance.


    This battle would most likely be one for the history books. It would cause a huge shift in the hierarchy of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path in the future.


    They clearly knew that although they were all top forces, in reality, the hierarchy of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was already set in stone, and it was extremely difficult to ascend. Ascending their ranks required the continuous effort of generations of people and needed the appearance of peerless monstrous figures who did not die in the process of advancing their cultivation.


    Wishing for change in this hierarchy was too difficult.


    Ye Futian''s appearance might have been an opportunity.


    An opportunity for a complete reshuffle of the top forces in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    However, they also understood that there would be powerful resistance to such a change. When they were standing here, they had already thought it through. Since such an opportunity had appeared before them, no matter what happened, they would fight for it at all costs!


    ...

 1709 Battle Between Two

    Amidst the cultivators of Shen clan, after Ye Futian''s three-man team pushed back the Renhuangs, they continued advancing in the direction of the sacred hall.


    Ye Futian''s group was not afraid of the top figures of Shen clan there.


    They did not fear those figures attacking them. Since they had come here, they had already thought things through clearly. It was either they perished and brought Shen clan down with them, or they succeeded in rescuing their target.


    Ye Futian believed that the dominant and powerful Shen clan would not dare to take such a risk when faced with the true danger of their clan being eradicated.


    Shen clan would rather preserve their own lives.


    Ye Futian''s figure accelerated as he advanced. Dou Zhao and Yu Sheng cleared a path in front of him to his left and right. There were no fancy attacks. If they encountered any Renhuangs, they merely attacked them in close quarters directly. Dou Zhao immediately activated the will of the Sevenfold Fighting God. Based on his battle against Yu Sheng in the God''s relic, Dou Zhao was not much weaker than Yu Sheng with his current condition.


    Hence, the cultivators of Shen clan merely saw the silhouettes of Renhuangs directly sent flying from their attacks. No one could stand against them.


    On Ye Futian''s left and right, the swords of Yaya and the Swordmaster of Lihen also opened a path across the space. High above and behind Ye Futian, Juexian Diagram appeared on Gu Dongliu''s body. It was as though he had summoned deities and demons.


    Among Shen clan, no one at the lower-level Renhuang Plane could stand against this assault.


    The lower-level Renhuangs of Shen clan in all directions began to retreat. They knew that facing such an attack was almost guaranteed to fail; they had no chance of winning at all.


    Renhuangs with flawless Divine Wheels were far more powerful than ordinary Renhuangs. The former could ignore the small difference between Planes.


    Although Ye Futian had only attacked once, he had shattered the formation established by the combined might of the Renhuangs of Shen clan. It was just as he had said: before him, lower-level Renhuangs did not stand a chance.


    Among Shen clan, there was most likely only one person of the same Plane that could do battle against Ye Futian. He was the most powerful monstrous figure of this generation of Shen Clan, who similarly possessed a flawless Divine Wheel - Shen Hao.


    "Those with first and second-tier Divine Wheels, stand down," Shen Hao ordered. His body gradually rose into the air. As he stood in mid-air, behind him were all the cultivators of Shen clan who had third-tier Divine Wheels. There weren''t many of them, and they were all elite figures.


    Many Renhuangs had downcast expressions. Although they were reluctant, they still descended to the ground and landed among the cultivators of Shen clan.


    Right now, the spatial power of the Great Path permeated the sky above the entire Shen clan. This power separated Shen clan from the rest. That way, the people below would not be dragged into the ferocity of the battle.


    Shen Hao stood in mid-air. Brilliant divine light emanated from his body. Behind him, a group of lower-level Renhuangs with third-tier Divine Wheels similarly unleashed extremely powerful auras of the Great Path. Endless divine light gathered together. In front of them, a spatial divine wall, that stretched as far as the eye could see, appeared. There seemed to be countless spatial runes shining on the wall as it separated this part of the sky.


    Bang!


    Two loud crashes could be heard. Yu Sheng and Dou Zhao directly collided with the spatial divine wall. In that instant, cracks appeared on the dazzling golden divine wall.


    Soon after, two brilliant blades of light swept out and crashed into the cracks. It was quickly followed by the sound of the space shattering; the divine wall was blown apart into dust.


    However, Yu Sheng and the others also slowed down and then stopped in their tracks. They looked towards Shen Hao and the other cultivators before them.


    Dou Zhao seemed somewhat excited. The person before him was Shen Hao, the top figure in this generation of Shen clan.


    In the entire Central Emperor Realm, Shen Hao was definitely considered one of the top figures of this generation. Even among the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, it was still the same.


    Battle intent lingered on Dou Zhao''s body. He wanted to charge forward and battle it out with Shen Hao.


    This top figure cultivated by Shen clan would certainly be extremely powerful.


    Nevertheless, Dou Zhao did not mind. Even if he lost, wasn''t there still Ye Futian and Yu Sheng?


    Buzz.


    Just thinking about this made Dou Zhao somewhat unable to hold himself back. His figure flashed past and traversed the space. He directly charged in Shen Hao''s direction.


    The cultivators of Dou tribe were born with a love for combat. Dou Zhao had inherited the bloodline of the Fighting God. The desire for battle flowed within the blood in his veins. How could he let such an opportunity slip past him?


    Rumble!


    As he advanced, his entire person became that of a war god. The will of the Sevenfold Fighting God was completely unleashed. His power burst out to its limit. The entire sky seemed to be crushed by his will.


    Ye Futian did not stop Dou Zhao when he saw him charging forward. He naturally knew that Dou Zhao loved to fight. With Dou Zhao''s ability, even if Shen Hao was extremely powerful, it would be impossible for him to instantly kill Dou Zhao. Even Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could not do so.


    Dou Zhao''s resistance to take hits was also very high. His defense was astonishing.


    Shen Hao''s divine eyes looked towards Dou Zhao. He only glanced at Dou Zhao. Shen Hao was as arrogant as a deity that had descended upon the mortal plane. From Dou Zhao''s perspective, Shen Hao''s silhouette was as tall as a mountain. It was as though he was a deity that was covered in endless divine light.


    This made Dou Zhao feel dissatisfied. This dazzling figure was shining more brilliantly than he was.


    Rumble!


    Dou Zhao raised his arms and sent out a punch. The punch of the Fighting God seemed to cause even the space itself to collapse. A dull thud could be heard in the space.


    Shen Hao''s gaze was unbelievably calm. It was as though he was unmoved when he saw Dou Zhao''s overbearing punch.


    Shen Hao''s figure that floated there remained uninhibited. The divine light in his deep gaze was frightening. The aura from his flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path burst forth from his body. He opened his arms and slowly rose up.


    In that instant, a spatial storm swept up in that vast and endless space. Countless spatial divine lights swept out. The spatial storm raged frenziedly, emitting a high-pitched sound.


    Although it was a storm, there was no wind. There was only destructive power that tore apart everything.


    In a mere instant, Dou Zhao''s lofty and domineering figure was swept into the countless divine lights. The spatial storm swallowed up the sky and buried him within itself. Within the storm, each beam of spatial divine light contained extremely potent power. When countless beams of divine light burst forth at the same time, its might was astonishing.


    Dou Zhao''s excited expression suddenly changed. It wasn''t because Shen Hao was powerful, but rather than this type of ability was somewhat of a counter to him.


    Rumble! His war-god-like silhouette adorned dazzling golden armor. The Fighting God sent a punch crashing out. It immediately penetrated the space, piercing through the storm. The storm that engulfed him ravaged his body. At the same time, it also surged into his mind and attacked his will.


    Sharp cracking sounds could be heard. The armor on Dou Zhao''s body was torn apart. The storm wanted to turn his entire person to dust.


    Dou Zhao''s body penetrated the storm and continued to crash towards Shen Hao''s figure. However, he did look somewhat pathetic. His imposing manner had been knocked down a few notches.


    Shen Hao took a step forward and pushed his arms forward. The endless spatial storm circled in front of him and consumed Dou Zhao''s figure.


    Dou Zhao did not retreat. He would not retreat. He merely advanced.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    The terrifying sound of collisions kept sounding. Dou Zhao finally made it through the storm. Unfortunately, under the effects of the storm''s frightening might, his body had also finally come to a halt. Streaks of blood appeared on his arms. His defense had been torn apart, and, in the end, he still could not reach Shen Hao.


    Shen Hao was proficient in using the Way of Space. He also had a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path like Dou Zhao. It was very difficult for Dou Zhao to have an advantage over him.


    This attack left Dou Zhao somewhat dissatisfied. Shen Hao did not give Dou Zhao the chance to take on him face-to-face at all.


    Shen Hao swept a glance at Dou Zhao. His gaze then shifted and landed on Ye Futian.


    When Shen Hao met Ye Futian in the God''s relic and had heard that he was the inheritor of Sky River Great Elder, he still had not properly looked at Ye Futian. At that time, Shen Hao''s attitude was arrogant. What was an inheritor of Sky River Great Elder compared to himself?


    In fact, Ye Futian could only be considered the grand-disciple of Sky River Great Elder.


    However, now that Sky River Great Elder had slaughtered his way into Shen clan alone and killed many cultivators of Shen clan, Ye Futian had descended on Shen clan with cultivators from various forces. With the forces at Shen clan''s gates, they threatened the existence of Shen clan.


    Ye Futian''s party even killed the Renhuangs of Shen clan.


    All this felt like a dream.


    This youth, who was now renowned in the Nine Realms, also established Heavenly Mandate Academy and helped the people at his side forge flawless Divine Wheels.


    Most likely, after today, Ye Futian''s fame would resound in the Nine Realms and surpass that of their Shen clan.


    Ye Futian might even become the most brilliant existence of this generation in one fell swoop.


    Be it Shen Hao himself, Nan Luoshen, or Jian Qingzhu, all of them had never caused such sensational events like Ye Futian had. Ye Futian was leading a large army to slaughter their way to Shen clan!


    Shen Hao had to strike down Ye Futian today and defeat him here.


    Otherwise, Ye Futian would step over him and Shen clan to become famous everywhere.


    Ye Futian also looked at Shen Hao. Of course, he knew that Shen Hao had not considered him a threat at all back then. It was not just Shen Hao. None of the other cultivators of Shen clan had ever looked at him properly.


    Of course, Ye Futian did not need their attention.


    On the day that Ye Futian''s master had been taken away by Shen clan, he knew that one day, he would certainly come face-to-face with them. It was just that he had never imagined that that day would come so soon.


    "All of you, step down," Shen Hao commanded. The other members of Shen clan looked at him with strange looks on their faces, but they still obeyed Shen Hao''s order and stepped down.


    In Shen clan, Shen Hao''s position was extremely high. It was especially so after he emerged from the God''s relic.


    "You all have already killed many of my Shen clan''s Renhuangs. Since you have come here today, I believe that you only wish to take your master away and do not wish to die here. For the remainder of this battle, the both of us will suffice," Shen Hao said as he looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian knew that what Shen Hao had said was not wrong. It was impossible for Ye Futian to truly start a massacre. This time, they were here to take his master away. Currently, his group was not yet a powerful force. If they truly angered Shen clan completely, both sides would end up perishing together.


    This was not the ending he wanted.


    Ye Futian extended his hand, and the others understood what he meant. They similarly backed down. Yu Sheng also stepped down. Dou Zhao felt somewhat depressed. However, he still headed in another direction and left the battlefield.


    At this moment, in the sky above Shen clan, there were only two people left standing across from each other on the battlefield.


    The top figure of Shen clan''s current generation, as well as the future leader of Shen clan - Shen Hao.


    The grand-disciple of Sky River Great Elder, who established Heavenly Mandate Academy, a genius figure who shook the Nine Realms with his emergence��Ye Futian.


    This battle would be the pinnacle battle of their generation!


    ...

 1710 Weaker Than Expected

    Among the Shen clan, countless gazes landed on these two silhouettes.


    If it was said that Ye Futian leading a large force into Shen clan was significant and could change the situation with the forces of the Nine Realms, then Ye Futian and Shen Hao''s battle could determine who would be the hero of the next generation.


    Ye Futian had already reached this stage; he had to win.


    It was the same for Shen Hao. If he lost, Shen clan would be completely crushed.


    The two of them stood across from each other and had yet to attack. Around them, an unparalleled frightening storm of the Great Path swept up.


    Divine light shone down all across the sky. It was as though endless divine halos were being created. Shen Hao''s divine eye opened on his glabella. It directly penetrated Ye Futian''s eyes. Ye Futian also similarly released his Eye Sorcery. Both of them wanted to directly invade each other''s consciousness.


    Faint illusions of deities could be seen. Right now, Shen Hao was insufferably arrogant.


    Ye Futian''s eyes were similarly extraordinary. He had forged Eyes of the Divine Wheel. Shen Hao saw overlapping spatial prisons wanting to rush into his mind and imprison his consciousness. How could Shen Hao possibly let Ye Futian do as he wished? Under his divine eye, a frightening spatial storm swept up. Both of them collided in mid-air.


    Coincidentally, both of them were using the spatial power of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian''s Eye Sorcery Divine Wheel was extremely overbearing. It kept attacking Shen Hao. Shen Hao revealed a sinister look. An even more frightening aura radiated from his body. In an instant, the divine halos that covered the sky showered down. It was like a divine sign.


    Tianshen Divine Halo was also a natural-born ability of Shen clan. Rumor has it that it could suppress all powers of the Great Path.


    Only members of the direct bloodline of Shen clan possessed this ability.


    When the divine halos showered down, Ye Futian also sensed his Way being suppressed. He felt a miraculous sensation. This power was similar to the halos of deities. From the looks of it, a great-emperor-level existence might have appeared before in Shen clan''s history.


    All around them, a spatial storm was also brewing. Countless divine light ravaged their surroundings and enveloped the space around Ye Futian''s figure within it. Under the effects of the storm Divine Wheel in Shen Hao''s body, this space was consumed by the spatial storm.


    The Guqin Divine Wheel in Ye Futian''s body similarly burst forth. Astonishing rays of light shot out, and the sound of a guqin was created involuntarily with the Great Path as its strings. A storm of Sword Qi enveloped the sky and interweaved with the spatial storm.


    However, around Ye Futian''s body, a countering flow of swordsmanship appeared. The storm of Sword Qi cleaved everything and resisted the power of the spatial storm. An extremely high-pitched sound could be heard.


    Both of their figures remained motionless, both standing on their spots. It was just the confrontation of powers of the Great Path, but it was already extremely fierce and frightening. If either one of them were weaker than the other, they would most likely be vaporized under the will of the Great Path.


    The space where they were was already swallowed up by the raging storm of the Great Path. Both of them were within the endless destructive storm and appeared somewhat blurry.


    At this moment, the crowd was blinded by a bright light. Countless divine halos shone down on Shen Hao. It was like a pair of God''s wings had appeared on his body. Illusions of deities appeared, as though they had been summoned from ancient times.


    Then, Shen Hao finally moved. He took a step forward. The next moment, his figure disappeared without a trace into the spatial storm.


    Ye Futian watched as Shen Hao''s silhouette vanished. His expression remained the same. He immediately extended his arm and pointed a finger forwards.


    In that instant, a beam of brilliant divine light appeared where Ye Futian''s finger pointed to. This beam of light was extremely sharp until it sliced the very fabric of space apart.


    A divine sword formed at the tip of his finger and became a divine sword that clashed with Shen Hao''s attack. It caused a high-pitched sound to explode in the space. The light of the divine sword ripped apart the space as it kept advancing. However, that destructive power of Shen Hao also disappeared in an instant along with his body.


    Sizzle. Behind Ye Futian, another beam of extremely dazzling light radiated. This time, Ye Futian did not dodge it. Brilliant golden divine light instantly burst forth from his body and flooded the sky. A towering golden divine elephant appeared, and the divine elephant Divine Wheel in his body burst forth.


    A third Divine Wheel.


    The cultivators of Shen clan observing the battle were astonished. All of his Divine Wheels were flawless.


    Even Shen Hao had only forged two flawless Divine Wheels.


    Bang. The sound of a terrifying explosion reverberated in the space. The golden divine elephant trampled the sky. Divine halos became sharp blades that slashed at the body of the golden divine elephant, cleaving it apart. One could imagine how powerful the attack power of the blades was.


    However, Ye Futian turned around and immediately sent out a punch. 10,000 elephants stampeded across the sky. Divine elephants ripped apart the space, and the collapsing Great Path shattered everything. Shen Hao''s silhouette wanted to become ethereal once again. This time, the spatial storm in front of him was directly blown apart, causing his silhouette to be forced to appear as he was sent flying from the shockwave.


    Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist contained the power to split apart space itself and collapse the Great Path. It could shatter space and counter Shen Hao''s powers.


    Ye Futian''s gaze was locked on Shen Hao. He said, "Is that all that the top figure of this generation of Shen clan has to show?"


    Shen Hao''s gaze was as sharp as daggers. He extended both of his arms, and tens of thousands of divine halos descended at the same time. In his body, another Divine Wheel burst forth. In the sky above, endless golden illusions of spatial divine spears appeared.


    The blood vessels in Shen Hao''s body churned and roared. His divine blood was boiling.


    Right now, Shen Hao was bathed in endless divine halos and had become a true deity. The divine halos directly merged with his body. At the same time, a divine spear appeared from inside his body. It appeared amongst the divine halos that covered the sky.


    Shen Hao extended his hand and wielded the spear Divine Wheel in his hand. He pointed it towards Ye Futian.


    The divine halos showered down on where the divine spear was pointed to. Illusions of spears covered the sky and rained down on Ye Futian.


    Buzz. Shen Hao''s figure moved again. This time, he charged straight towards Ye Futian like a deity descending upon the mortal plane. His divine spear stabbed out and was followed by the divine halos in the heavens above as well as the astonishing spatial storm. His attack immediately suppressed the Great Path in this part of the sky completely.


    It was as though only this spear existed within this space.


    Ye Futian discovered that Shen Hao''s temperament had changed. Ye Futian stepped into the air. Divine elephants also followed suit, their trumpeting shaking the world around them. He sent the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist crashing out, shattering the spatial storm.


    Shen Hao''s spear descended and penetrated the power of Ye Futian''s fist. The spear landed directly on the body of the gigantic divine elephant.


    Kacha.


    A crisp crack sounded. Cracks appeared on the illusion of the elephant. The spear attempted to break the divine elephant into pieces.


    Bang.


    Ye Futian''s body was pushed back due to the shockwave. Shen Hao stood high above in the sky. His divine spear was bathed in endless divine halos. The halos enveloped the sky, suppressing all the will of the Great Path. The Great Path in this territory was all under the command of Shen Hao.


    With divine halos surrounding him, Shen Hao attacked once again.


    Ye Futian remained calm. Divine Sound was played, and illusory figures of the deities appeared one by one in the space. This time, they were not summoned by Shen Hao, but Ye Futian.


    It was the magnum opus of Golden Divine Nation - the Sigh of the Divine God.


    The divine elephant Divine Wheel was activated. Ye Futian strode upwards and ascended into the clouds. A terrifying rumbling sound could be heard. 10,000 elephants rushed across the space and covered up half of the sky. Ye Futian sensed that his Divine Wheel could definitely suppress Shen Hao, but the latter had activated the natural-born ability of Shen clan to make up for the difference in power between them.


    However, even if they were competing in terms of attack power, Ye Futian was not afraid of Shen Hao.


    When faced with Shen Hao''s attack, Ye Futian sent out a punch. 10,000 divine elephants broke loose at the same time. The heavens and earth shook; it was as though the Great Path had collapsed.


    The same technique would unleash different powers depending on the strength of the users. Right now, the top figures of Divine Elephants had to admit that even they could not master the magnum opus of their clan as well as Ye Futian had. Regardless of its law power or its strength, Ye Futian had the absolute advantage.


    Rumble.


    A shockingly loud bang sounded. Shen Hao''s body was sent flying into the air. Countless divine elephants were still stomping towards him, attempting to bury him beneath them.


    Shen Hao''s facial expression was ugly. Did he still lose even after he had used his natural-born ability?


    He stared at Ye Futian, who was beneath him. An even more terrifying aura burst forth from within him. An ancient aura seemed to be emanating from Shen Hao''s body. It was the power of the divine item. Spatial doors appeared in the space and engulfed the stampeding divine elephants. The elephants disappeared behind the doors.


    Huh? Ye Futian frowned as he looked at Shen Hao.


    Was this�� the divine item Shen Hao got from the God''s relic?


    Back when they were at the God''s relic, all of them who stood beneath the Heavenly Palace had each gotten a divine item. Ye Futian had given his to Yaya.


    "You have lost," Lord Taixuan said coldly. His voice was being transmitted through the space.


    "Lord Taixuan, it''s okay." Ye Futian responded, "Even with the divine item, he is no match for me."


    When Shen Hao heard Ye Futian''s words, his face turned pale green from anger. Today''s battle was a humiliation for him.


    All his techniques were useless on Ye Futian. Right now, he even needed to use the divine item he got from the God''s relic to aid him in battle.


    "This item has already been refined by me. It is already a part of me," Shen Hao said.


    The spatial storm Divine Wheel burst forth, This time, a spatial door that consumed everything seemed to appear within the spatial storm. It swallowed up the space that Ye Futian was in.


    Ye Futian sensed the space that he was in change. It had transformed into an enclosed spatial world.


    Shen Hao stood in the sky as he looked down at Ye Futian. The former was still bathed in divine halos. He said, "In here, I am the master of the Great Path."


    Ye Futian checked his surroundings and noticed that he was in a similar situation when a normal Divine Wheel Renhuang was faced with a flawless Divine Wheel Renhuang. He experienced absolute suppression in terms of control over the Great Path.


    Buzz. Shen Hao''s figure dove downwards. The divine spear pierced through the sky and crashed straight towards Ye Futian.


    This time, Ye Futian was sent flying from the shockwave of the divine spear. It was as though his opponent suppressed his power of the Great Path.


    "Are these all your trump cards?" Ye Futian asked as he raised his head and looked towards Shen Hao.


    Shen Hao scowled. From the look in Ye Futian''s eyes, it was as if Ye Futian believed that nobody on earth could beat him. It was as though he was still unconcerned about his current situation.


    Such a look made Shen Hao very unhappy.


    If Shen Hao wasn''t already at his limit, why would he be relying on a divine item to fight? This naturally was his trump card.


    "The number one Proud Son of Heaven of Shen clan is much weaker than I expected," Ye Futian said softly. "I thought I would at least be pressured a little."


    When Shen Hao heard Ye Futian''s words, his expression turned ashen.


    Did Ye Futian mean to say that against him, Ye Futian did not feel pressured at all?


    ...

 1711 Let Them Go

    Countless people were watching the battlefield at the Shen clan. The two figures there seemed to have disappeared as they were covered by the Great Path of Space.


    Shen Hao and Ye Futian were gone.


    "He used an item to engage the Domain of the Way." Lord Taixuan and the others could naturally see that Shen Hao had used an incredibly powerful divine item.


    But Ye Futian had asked him not to intervene.


    Even so, Lord Taixuan believed Ye Futian could deal with him.


    The fierce will of the Great Path of Space raged as endless divine light descended from the sky and entered into everything.


    Within, Shen Hao''s body shone with brilliant radiance as he stared at Ye Futian below him.


    Ye Futian was arrogant beyond words. He was even weaker than he had imagined.


    "This is my world," he said to Ye Futian coldly.


    "Your world?" Ye Futian looked back at him, a hint of disdain in his eyes. "We''ll see."


    As he said this, the area changed yet again. The sun and the moon appeared in the sky, surrounded by stars.


    They seemed to be in another world. Divine flames descended from the sun, while the lonely moon seemed filled with cold will.


    Each of the stars that surrounded them contained majestic power.


    It was as if everything was acting on its own volition.


    "The fourth Divine Wheel," thought Shen Hao, his heart trembling fiercely. Ye Futian was using his fourth Divine Wheel! And this wheel stood alone in the world in that it could open up a world of its own, like a miniature realm.


    He felt his power come under pressure.


    But how was this possible? He could only do this by using the Divine Item he had taken in the God''s Relic.


    Could it be that Ye Futian was just like him...


    "This is my world," said Ye Futian coldly. Thousands of stars swirled around Shen Hao, moving faster and faster. There was a shrieking sound up in the sky as the whole area was covered in a suffocating force.


    Boom! The stars fell towards Shen Hao, each one seeming incomparably huge.


    Divine radiance bloomed from him, and beams of spatial light swept out, transforming into a terrible storm that swallowed up all the stars.


    But all the stars fell at once, pressing down on the spatial storm, shattering it and continuing on towards Shen Hao.


    Shen Hao lashed out with his spear, and endless afterimages bloomed from it. They slammed into each of the oncoming stars. This showed just how much attacking power he had.


    But at that moment, there was a roar in the sky, and Shen Hao felt immense pressure. It was as if the air itself was about to collapse. He looked up and saw a god-like figure descending, possessed by the Divine Elephants, and holding a long staff. He was coming towards him.


    Shen Hao felt that his radiance had been suppressed. The long staff swept out, smashing into his spear, which cracked.


    Boom!


    There was a low roar, and Shen Hao was sent flying backward. His Great Path collapsed as he was swept away by the staff.


    Ye Futian continued forward, his eyes incredibly cold.


    The people outside their little world were still staring at that area. They could faintly hear terrible, fierce roars.


    Bang!


    There was a breaking sound, and they saw a figure swept away, flying powerlessly off into the distance and leaving a trail of blood behind him in the air.


    "Shen Hao!" The cultivators of the Shen clan looked gloomy. The one who had been swept away was Shen Hao.


    The foremost member of their clan in his generation, who had a perfect Divine Wheel, had been directly swept away. This was extremely embarrassing. His tattered clothes were stained with blood. His aura was growing weak. He had nowhere near the energetic will he had before.


    The people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm did not get too strong a sensation from this, as if they had always known it would be like this. Everything that Ye Futian had done had given them absolute confidence in him. Even when a proud son of heaven, like Shen Hao, was standing before him, they still believed that Ye Futian could win.


    When the three top forces, the Xiao clan, the Yuanyang clan, and the Dou tribe, beheld this scene, their hearts trembled. They knew what this battle meant.


    Shen Hao had fallen. From now on, the white-haired youth standing in the sky above the Shen clan would become the most glorious figure of the age, second to none.


    Although he had never fought with Jian Qingzhu, Nan Luoshen, or a few others, everything he had done today could not be done by anyone else of his generation. There was no one who could repeat his deeds.


    The great figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were also a bit disturbed. The will of heaven had changed. It had not only changed, but it was now influencing the situation in the Nine Realms. Ye Futian was a man who could change the history of the heavenly mandate.


    It was just as the Mountain Master of 10,000 Divine Mountain. In the past, Gu Tianxing had not been an epoch-making man. But Ye Futian was this kind of person. That was why he had been willing to intervene on his behalf.


    Ye Futian retracted his aura and took several steps forward. Yu Sheng and the others followed behind.


    They all stood in the air above the Shen clan, with countless cultivators of the Shen clan looking up at them. They strode to the highest part of the Shen clan, where the Divine Hall was.


    No one stopped them. Lower level Renhuangs could not stop them.


    The cultivators of the Shen clan brought Shen Hao down. He watched Ye Futian pass over them, then spat up another mouthful of blood.


    He had clearly lost this battle.


    Ye Futian had crushed him, the Shen clan, and their reputation.


    Ye Futian strode to the front of the Divine Hall. A powerful figure of the Shen clan was standing there, watching him closely.


    At that moment, they had one move that could easily kill him. It would completely destroy this man with the perfect Divine Wheel.


    But if they did this, it would be meaningless. If they killed Ye Futian and the others, they would no longer threaten the Shen clan''s future. This was because the Shen clan would disappear.


    But both sides understood that Ye Futian coming here still required great amounts of courage and daring.


    He was gambling his life against the survival of the Shen clan.


    "Teacher, brothers," said Ye Futian, looking at Qi Xuangang, Yan Yuan, and Nan Zhai. Everything that had happened all those years ago played before his eyes. In the Crimson Dragon Realm, his teacher had ignored his own safety. He had always said: as the heavens'' movement is ever so vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive.


    Big brother had accompanied him for a long way, facing the Royal Family of the Dali Dynasty, finally sending him away from them.


    "Master, we have come to bring you back." Dou Zhao did not think this was the least bit strange, and he smiled as he spoke.


    They turned their gaze to the cultivators of the Shen clan behind Qi Xuangang.


    "Let them go," they said and stepped back in compliance with their agreement to let Ye Futian take Qi Xuangang.


    "There is one more," said Ye Futian, looking at the cultivators of the Shen clan. Feixue was not there.


    He knew that Feixue was the Shen clan''s target. She had the Divine Item that they wanted within her.


    "You have already got what you came for. We only promised to release three people," said the elder of the Shen clan.


    Those three were of no further use to them. Feixue had the Divine Item within her, so they could not let her go.


    "I will take them all," said Ye Futian coldly.


    The elder of the Shen clan swept his cold gaze over Ye Futian and said, "Fine, once we have taken our Divine Item out of her, you can have her."


    "It is not yours; it is my teacher''s," said Qi Xuangang coldly.


    "Don''t forget who your sister is," the elder said, glancing at him.


    "I am going to take her away from here intact," said Ye Futian.


    The elder of the Shen clan did not look at Ye Futian but at Lord Taixuan and the others.


    "You have all come here to the Shen clan together today, and we have been most accomodating. But if you give an inch," said the elder, looking to the sky. "it''s war, then."


    Ye Futian was not the only bold one.


    Shen Ji had attacked the Heavenly Mandate Academy, so it was only natural that they would retaliate.


    But they had gambled that the Shen clan would not go to war over this. Were the great powers of the Heavenly Mandate Realm prepared for that?


    All but the greatest figures of the great powers and Shen clan would probably die as soon as the war started.


    Who could bear that?


    A suffocating pressure descended upon the Shen clan. Lord Taixuan and the three top figures'' aura covered the area.


    For a time, the silence was frightening.


    The only thing that anyone could feel was tension.


    Boom!


    At that moment, A blood-red storm appeared in the air above the City of the Gods.


    The elder of the Shen clan looked over there and saw the storm growing stronger and stronger. A terrible vortex appeared within the storm. It was as if someone had opened up the Ancient Road of Space.


    Lord Taixuan, Ye Futian, and the others all looked over there as well. The aura was terrifying, and the storm grew fiercer and fiercer, covering an endless area as it spread out towards the Shen clan.


    Red light fell from the sky like streaks of blood.


    "Everyone, go back down," said the elder coldly. Suddenly, all the cultivators of the Shen clan descended from the air.


    At that moment, he could clearly see the deep fear in their eyes.


    Ye Futian suddenly guessed who it was.


    Before they had come, the Sky River Great Elder had attacked the Shen clan by himself, killing many cultivators. Moreover, he had completely wiped the Imperial Palace away from the Tianhe Realm.


    He did not know what his teacher had experienced to become so powerful. His aura was completely different from before.


    Of course, he did not blame his teacher for anything he had done.


    It was a monstrous blood feud. They could not live under the same sky as each other.


    It was hard to imagine that the normally peaceful Sky River Great Elder had so much strength within him and had been patient for so long.


    The vortex that seemed to have opened up from the Ancient Road of Space within the storm spread out, and everyone could faintly see a dark figure within, like a god of blood.


    The Shen clan elder''s gaze pierced through the storm. The Sky River Great Elder had been wounded in their battle. If there had not been four great enemies here, he would have directly gone into the storm to seek him out.


    But now, he did not dare.


    "Let them go!"


    A voice pierced through the blood-red storm and came from the distance. A gloomy look came over the faces of the cultivators of the Shen clan.


    If there was someone who would dare to go to war no matter the consequences, that person was without a doubt the Sky River Great Elder. He had become a demon!


    ...

 1712 The Shen Clan Compromises

    The sky turned into a blood-red storm. Within this powerful vortex, destructive red light fell from the sky, descending upon the Shen clan.


    At that moment, all the cultivators of the Shen clan looked up and stared into the sky.


    It was oppressive. So oppressive.


    The Sky River Great Elder had entered the situation, and things had changed. A madman had been added to the equation.


    He had slaughtered the cultivators of the Shen clan when he had attacked them all by himself. There was nothing that he would not do. The Shen clan needed to consider the possibility that if they did not let the people go, the Sky River Great Elder would attack them.


    If he did, would the other four top figures take part or just sit and watch?


    If they got involved, it would b a huge battle.


    If this battle broke out, the Shen clan would be at a massive disadvantage. What would happen then?


    No one knew. They could only imagine.


    The elder of the Shen clan was silent for a time, as were all of the top figures.


    Ever since the Divine Prefecture had been conquered, the Shen clan had not experienced a situation like this.


    They were a force that stood at the top of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. Now a single man had attacked them, they were being interrogated, and they were being forced to release their prisoners.


    Woosh!


    The blood-red storm descended from the sky towards the Shen clan. Shen Ji stepped out, standing beneath the storm. Endless spatial light bloomed from him, pressing against the oncoming storm. But on the other side of the storm, an overpowering demonic image stepped forth, seeming like it could reach them at any time.


    Lord Taixuan might have scruples, the Xiao clan, the Yuanyang clan, and the Dou tribe might have scruples, but the Sky River Great Elder had none. He had experienced terrible war in the past. Perhaps he wanted to bring another such war to life?


    Would he even care?


    When he had named Ye Futian his heir, he seemed to have used that to lull the Shen clan into a false sense of security. They thought he had found a hair so that he could give his knowledge to him, but that he himself had accepted the cruelty of fate.


    But what was the reality?


    Did he care if Ye Futian lived or died? Did he care if Qi Xuangang lived or died?


    Who knew?


    "Bring them out!" A voice broke the silence. It was the elder of the Shen clan.


    Suddenly, several cultivators appeared from within the Sacred Hall, bringing a figure with them.


    It was a woman wearing blue robes. She looked very frail, and her hair was disheveled, but a clear light shone in her eyes. She looked at Ye Futian and smiled brightly.


    But as she smiled, tears ran down her face.


    She was finally able to see his face.


    It turned out it was just like she had imagined it would be.


    "Yes," she said, nodding. She already knew what he was going to ask. "I have cultivated to a higher level, so I can see again."


    In the past, Ye Futian had fixed the problems within her body. Afterward, she had melded the Divine Item into herself, cultivating at an astonishing speed. The Divine Item had naturally contained the power of the Great Path, and now she was already a Nirvana level Saint.


    Her eyes had been gravely wounded, but once she reached the Nirvana level, her dead eyes were once again filled with light.


    She had always wondered when she would see Ye Futian again. She had thought it would never happen.


    She had never thought that, at the most hopeless moment, when the Shen clan was about to act against her, he would arrive.


    "You''re just like I imagined. So beautiful," said Ye Futian with a bright smile. He had faced many unknown threats at the Shen clan. Now, the two of them were standing there, smiling at each other.


    This smile seemed to come from the depths of Feixue''s heart. Although she had gone through so many hardships, life was so beautiful. Even in the depths of despair, there was light.


    What a wonderful feeling.


    "You can get out of here," said the Shen clan elder coldly. No one could guess what he was feeling now. As one of the top figures in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, he had still been forced into this position. He had no choice but to hand her over.


    "There is one more person," came a cold voice from the sky.


    The elder of the Shen clan looked up into the sky, his eyes going extremely cold.


    He naturally knew whom the Sky River Great Elder was talking about.


    Ye Futian looked there as well. He had not thought of it before, but the Sky River Great Elder and him were different. He naturally wanted to save his wife.


    The heroic and powerful daughter of the Shen clan was Ye Futian''s master''s wife. Was she still in the Shen clan?


    Boom!


    Deep within the Shen clan, there was a dull yet fierce roar. Ye Futian and the others looked over there. Terrible divine light was blooming from there; it was as if someone was attacking.


    An attack on the innermost part of the Shen clan.


    At that moment, everyone guessed what was happening.


    "You have everything you want, and you still won''t go?" The elder of the Shen clan swept his gaze over Ye Futian and Lord Taixuan.


    The one who was imprisoned within the Shen clan was his daughter. She was a member of the Shen clan.


    "There is one more person," said Lord Taixuan. Obviously, he had decided to aid the Sky River Great Elder.


    If they left now, the Sky River Great Elder would not be able to save his wife on his own.


    "This is a family affair." The elder of the Shen clan looked coldly at Lord Taixuan. "Do the three of you want to get involved?"


    "Let her go," said Ye Futian, looking at the elder of the Shen clan. The one who was imprisoned was the Sky River Great Elder''s wife, his master''s masteress, and Xuefei''s grandmother.


    Since things had already reached this point, where they had already offended the Shen clan as much as possible, he did not care if they went a bit further.


    A dark look came over the elder of the Shen clan''s face. He stared at Ye Futian, then said coldly, "You truly do not fear death."


    "When I came here, I had already put life and death out of my mind," said Ye Futian. The elder of the Shen clan could destroy him just by lifting his hand, but he still stood there in front of him.


    Did he dare destroy him?


    He didn''t. He would let her go.


    "When Shen Ji came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, I never would have thought they would drag in all the other powers. Since the Shen clan dared to do it, they can only accept what is happening now," said the elder of the Dou tribe, his voice ringing throughout the city.


    How could Shen Ji have known that his assault on the academy would have stirred up such great waves, making the Shen clan face this desperate situation?


    If they had known, they would not have made enemies of the Heavenly Mandate Academy so carelessly.


    But who could have imagined this?


    "Let her go," said the elder of the Shen clan, his voice ringing out loudly.


    At that moment, the people of the Shen clan were speechless.


    Were they finally compromising?


    Many of the top figures of the Shen clan left, walking towards the great matrix. Soon, bright light pierced everyone''s eyes. In the distance, a powerful aura came towards them.


    A figure strode through the sky. In a flash, she reached them.


    Even for many of the members, this was their first time seeing her. After all, those events had happened many years ago. Some of the Saint level and below people had not even been born yet.


    They just knew that the head of the clan had a daughter and that she was imprisoned.


    Ye Futian looked at the figure. Her white hair danced in the wind, looking disheveled, some of it even falling down over her face. She was very thin, as she had been imprisoned for so long.


    But her eyes still burned with fearsome brilliance.


    The wind blew her hair, revealing a weathered face. But it was clear that behind that, she was very beautiful. She had once been the treasure of the Shen clan. She was very famous in the Central Emperor Realm, and many famous people had pursued her.


    "Masteress," said Qi Xuangang. Tears appeared in the corners of his eyes. Men do not cry easily, especially one as powerful as him. But when he saw her, he felt weak in the depths of his heart.


    He felt very guilty towards his master and masteress. If it had not been for him, those things would not have happened. Nongyue would have found someone more talented, and the master and masteress would have maintained their place at the top of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    The once brilliant masteress was now so haggard.


    "You were not so weak in the past," said the woman, casting her gaze over Qi Xuangang, her voice cold. There was very little emotion in her deep eyes.


    Qi Xuangang wiped away his tears. He knew how powerful the masteress was. Otherwise, she would not have dared to resist her own clan and go to war with them.


    But at this moment, his emotions ran so deep.


    The woman looked at the elder of the Shen clan, her father.


    Then she looked up into the storm, seeming to see right through it to the figure on the other side.


    But at that moment, the storm gradually disappeared.


    The woman stepped into it, but it closed itself off.


    She froze, watching it disappear into the sky.


    Why couldn''t she see him?


    "Where is he?" the woman asked Lord Taixuan. Naturally, she knew him.


    Lord Taixuan shook his head and said, "Come back with me to the Heavenly Mandate Realm first."


    "I am going to find him." The woman stepped into the air to leave.


    "Grandmother." A soft voice rang out, making the woman stop. She slowly turned and looked down. Her gaze fell upon Feixue.


    Her movements seemed to have become incredibly slow as she walked towards Feixue.


    She placed a trembling hand on her face.


    "You are Feixue..." said the woman, staring at her. At that moment, it seemed like she was seeing her own daughter. She looked just like her.


    "Yes," said Feixue with a bright smile. She looked at the face hidden behind white hair, and tears fell from her eyes. This strong woman had scolded Qi Xuangang and faced her own father, the elder of the Shen clan, without any problem. But seeing her, she began to cry.


    "Child." The woman softly hugged Feixue.


    Feixue leaned up against her quietly. At that moment, she seemed to feel her mother''s warmth. Her mother must have been just like her grandmother.


    Ye Futian was very moved by this scene.


    "Masteress, let''s go back to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. We will find the master," said Qi Xuangang, walking up to them.


    The woman nodded softly. This time she did not refuse.


    She took Feixue''s hand and said, "Let''s go."


    Ye Futian smiled. This was excellent.


    "Let''s go back," said Lord Taixuan. Suddenly, the great army began to leave. When they left, so did the three great figures within the City of the Gods.


    Within the Shen clan, a powerful aura still pressed down on them. It was as silent as the grave.


    The elder of the Shen clan watched the disappearing figures. His daughter had not said a single word to him as she left!


    ...

 1713 Postpone

    The battle at the Shen clan shook the Nine Realms.


    The Central Imperial Realm seethed at the news. No one could have imagined that the incomparably powerful Shen clan would be invaded twice in just a few short days. After beating back the Sky River Great Elder, Ye Futian had led an army of cultivators to their city.


    And this time, the great army of the Heavenly Mandate Academy contained Lord Taixuan, the Xiao clan, the Yuanyang clan, and the Dou tribe.


    When added to the Sky River Great Elder, these four giants had descended upon the Shen clan, saving the people they had come to save and killing many Renhuangs.


    Although they could not damage the base of the Shen clan, this still had great implications. How much of an effect would it have on the rest of the world for the Shen clan, one of the top forces in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, to be invaded?


    And in that battle, many cultivators with perfect Divine Wheels had emerged. These were people who would rewrite the history of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian had defeated Shen Hao in single combat.


    There were too many things to talk about in that battle, and the news spread at a frightening speed.


    Even the greatest forces of the Central Imperial Realm trembled when they heard the news. Many of them even gathered their top figures to discuss the matter. This would probably affect the war for the future of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. They could not ignore it.


    However, none of that had anything to do with Ye Futian.


    Once they had freed the captives, they returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. When they arrived, the news had naturally not reached the academy yet. The people of Heavenly Mandate City thought it was a bit strange. The army of the academy had gone out and then returned. Where had they gone?


    Now that they were back, it probably meant that a battle had broken out someplace. Many people guessed that.


    However, none of them were bold enough to think that the battle had taken place at the Shen clan in the Central Emperor Realm.


    They did not dare imagine it.


    After all, the Shen clan was a true top power. Shen Ji had come alone and shaken the entire Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Even with Lord Taixuan there, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was nowhere near powerful enough to face him.


    But if they had not gone to the Shen clan, then where?


    Many cultivators had gathered together in a large restaurant in Heavenly Mandate City. One of them said, "The Heavenly Mandate Academy''s army is back. I wonder who they fought. They did not suffer great losses. It''s like they didn''t run into too much trouble."


    "Is the Heavenly Mandate Academy still accepting disciples?" asked a young man.


    "Yes," nodded the man beside him. "Are you planning to go and try to join?"


    "That''s right. Otherwise, there would have been no trouble for you to join them, and you would already be a core disciple," said the young man with a smile.


    "Right now, not many people are joining the academy. Although most of the places were taken up by people who joined the academy on the first day, since then, there has been little competitions. It is not difficult to become a core disciple now," chuckled the man beside them.


    "Saint Lan is a woman of great influence in the Heavenly Mandate City. I say that the academy should invite her personally to show their sincerity."


    Everyone around them smiled, but these were words of high praise. Although the Heavenly Mandate Academy had run into trouble and no one was joining them now, they were still a place for teaching the Way. If someone was not incredibly talented, there was basically no way that the academy would personally invite them to come and train.


    At that moment, a group of figures entered the restaurant, looking around at the crowd.


    "There is news from the academy," said one of the ones who had come. "They are temporarily not accepting disciples. The selection process is postponed for a month." As he said this, a look of surprise came over everyone''s face.


    What did this mean?


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had already said that they would be accepting disciples for three months. Now they had announced that they were stopping for a month.


    Could it be that they were facing a great threat?


    Everyone in the restaurant was whispering to each other, guessing what had happened and why the academy had announced this.


    This restaurant epitomized what was going on all over Heavenly Mandate City. Everyone was confused and discussing this matter.


    What had happened?


    Was the Heavenly Mandate Academy really in such dire straits?


    But at that moment, some disciples who had already been accepted into the academy rushed back to their families with great excitement. Not long before, Ye Futian and the others had returned, and the people at the academy had received some shocking news.


    Many of the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were from families in Heavenly Mandate City.


    They rushed to their families to tell them the news, for no other reason than that they were so shocked by it.


    Soon, the news had spread throughout the city.


    Ye Futian and Lord Taixuan had led an army, allied with three other great figures, and descended upon the Shen clan, taking back Ye Futian''s master and the Sky River Great Elder''s wife.


    This simple news had implications that were simply astonishing.


    In the restaurant, the host personally came forward and looked at the people discussing this, then took a deep breath and said, "I have news for everyone. The army of the Heavenly Mandate Academy went to the Shen clan and rescued some people there, including Ye Futian''s master and the Sky River Great Elder''s wife."


    Boom!


    This voice seemed to resonate in everyone''s minds. Many of them stood up, their hearts trembling fiercely. They looked at the host and said, "Is this true?"


    "How could the Heavenly Mandate Academy attack the Shen clan?" someone asked. It was simply impossible.


    "It''s completely true. The news came from the academy itself, from the disciples. They saw Ye Futian bring those people back with their own eyes. It is said that in addition to the academy, the elders of the Xiao clan, the Yuanyang clan, and the Dou tribe of the Ziwei Realm went as well," continued the host. His heart was beating wildly at that moment as well. Even Saint level cultivators could not stop their hearts from trembling.


    This information was absolutely shocking.


    "Moreover, Ye Futian fought Shen Hao in this battle, and few could have guessed the outcome. In addition to that, it is said that the Heavenly Mandate Realm has many cultivators with perfect Divine Wheels," he continued. Every new piece of information was like a lightning bolt, shocking everyone that heard it.


    Now they thought about why the Heavenly Mandate Academy was postponing its acceptance of new disciples.


    When news of this battle got out, it was easy to imagine that the academy would become far more prestigious.


    And for a time, people from not just the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but all of the Nine Realms, would gather there.


    At that point, how much competition would people who wanted to enter the academy face?


    Becoming a core disciple?


    Becoming an ordinary disciple would be hard enough.


    The woman known as Saint Lan''s face went white. She looked at the young man who had praised her before. A core disciple? The academy would personally invite her?


    "I''m going back to cultivate." She rose and walked out of the restaurant.


    As she rose into the air, the wind buffeted her, making her robes flutter.


    Her thoughts were in disarray.


    She seemed to have missed something...


    And it was not only her. On that day, countless people in Heavenly Mandate City had the same thought.


    They seemed to have missed their chance.


    The disciples who had already entered the academy would very likely surpass them.


    ...


    Ye Futian and the others naturally did not care about what people on the outside thought.


    To postpone for a month was Lord Taixuan''s decision. Since he was now the headmaster of the academy, he naturally had the right to decide this. Moreover, Ye Futian was very happy that he had done this. This meant that Lord Taixuan was truly accepted his role.


    In addition, he was taking actions in his capacity as headmaster.


    As for the reason Lord Taixuan had made that decision, it was extremely simple. After the battle, anyone could tell that the academy would grow extremely prestigious. In that case, why not summon the most excellent disciples there to cultivate?


    The people of Heavenly Mandate City and the Heavenly Mandate Realm had already had a chance to enter the academy first, but they had not dared to due to the danger. Thus, they would now have to compete with the cultivators of all the Nine Realms.


    On the Great Path, there were no realms. The Heavenly Mandate Academy taught the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, but they did not only accept disciples from there.


    Within the academy, everyone had settled in. Only Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Qi Xuangang, and some others were left outside.


    It was only now that Shen Luoxue was able to figure out the relationships between these people and how this affair had begun and ended.


    Her eyes fell upon Ye Futian, then on Qi Xuangang.


    "You yourself are not that great, but you have a good disciple," she said. Qi Xuangang smiled, not the least bit angry at her comment.


    This was the first time Ye Futian had seen this side of his master. But the one he was talking to was his masters'' masteress, so, of course, she could take him to task.


    "Do you know how the Sky River Great Elder is?" Shen Luoxue asked Ye Futian.


    "After he left, he told me that the Deed of Thorough Comprehension could help you cultivate backward. If it can, then one must use one''s own body to guide it and use heaven and earth as the forge," said Ye Futian. "My master changed when he broke through to the next level. He probably paid a heavy price."


    Shen Luoxue was silent for a moment, then said, "He had a divine item that he got at the same time as the one that was within Feixue. But it was much too powerful, so he never brought it out."


    Ye Futian thought back to the scene when the Sky River Great Elder had appeared at the Shen clan. It had been horrifying.


    "Don''t worry too much. He will learn to control it," said Ye Futian. "You should stay here and get some rest."


    Shen Luoxue was silent for a while.


    "Grandfather will be back sooner or later," said Feixue softly. "You should stay here so that I can take care of you."


    Shen Luoxue looked at her, then nodded softly. "I will teach you how to cultivate."


    On saying this, she turned to the others and said, "You may all leave."


    "Alright," said Ye Futian, nodding. The Sky River Great Elder''s wife must have been just as powerful as her husband in the past. Although she had been imprisoned for many years, she had probably not stopped cultivating.


    "Xuefei, take care of your grandmother while she rests," said Qi Xuangang. Then they all left.


    When they exited, Dou Zhao called out to Qi Xuangang, "Master!"


    "Teacher!" The others all called out. Qi Xuangang smiled bitterly, then looked at Ye Futian beside him.


    "Teacher, I will teach them the Deed of Thorough Comprehension for you. You can set your mind at ease about that," said Ye Futian with a smile. Now, this was all in the past.


    He looked off into the distance. Due to the influence of that battle, no one would dare take the Heavenly Mandate Academy lightly again!


    ...

 1714 Visiting Old Friends

    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had been busy in recent days. Many powerful cultivators from the Xiao clan, Yuanyang clan, and the Dou clan from Ziwei Realm all converged there. They had brought with them many resources and invited several powerful figures known for their spatial skills in the Central Imperial Realm to help cast a spatial teleportation grand matrix at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    In the battle with the Shen clan, although the three top figures took no action and were there strictly as observers, the meaning behind their action was extraordinary in itself, relegating them on the same side as the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    This matrix that was currently being cast at the Heavenly Mandate Academy would connect the Heavenly Mandate Academy with the three superpowers, as well as other peak principalities in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Therefore, should any troubles arose, the teleportation matrix could be initiated immediately, and mutual assistance could be rendered instantly.


    This way, the position of the Heavenly Mandate Academy could be secured, and no other force would dare to provoke it with impunity.


    Aside from that, the three major forces were also in discussion with Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian for more cultivators to come and cultivate at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Their future generations would come to see the Heavenly Mandate Academy as their main place of cultivation, a place for emerging excellence. Naturally, Ye Futian was in agreement with this proposal.


    His purpose for building the Heavenly Mandate Academy was also in the hopes that it would become a holy land for spreading the Way and exert influence on the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    In addition, they were also building some other grand matrices for cultivation purposes, as well as defensive matrices. However, this type of matrices had no practical purposes, as no great powers would take the risk to provoke the Heavenly Mandate Academy, given its current strength.


    But for now, no one in the Nine Realms had been able to set up a super matrix that could transcend the realm of Renhuang. If such a matrix was possible, then this person could traverse the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path at will. After all, anyone who could set up this kind of matrix probably was already at the top of his power.


    Besides, an ancient tree for seeking the Way had appeared in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It was planted by Dou Zhao. He planted the sacred tree taken from the God''s relic in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Of course, the expansion of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was inevitable. After all, the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm could already be foreseen.


    As powerful as the Shen clan, they could only swallow this shame for now, for they could do nothing for the time being.


    Unless the situation was truly desperate, no one would choose mutual destruction.


    These days, many had come to pay their respect at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Naturally, they were all from the top principalities, such as the cultivators from the Shangxiao Divine Palace. Other powers in the Higher Heavens Realm, such as the Divine Sword Li Family and Youyue Divine Palace in the Shadow Realm that had once come to congratulate them, were here once again. This time, even the goddess Chang Xi was in attendance in addition to other prominent figures from Youyue Divine Palace.


    This also demonstrated the status of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, from being the attention of the public to its imminent weakening when facing the crisis of its survival to enjoying its fame in the Nine Realms once again, its light brightening the whole world.


    It was hard to imagine that all this happened in just a month''s time.


    A month later, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was recruiting disciples again. This time, the entire Heavenly Mandate City was filled with cultivators. Countless many had come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy for assessment.


    As the details of that battle came to light, many people knew that the Heavenly Mandate Academy had produced many who possessed perfect Divine Wheels, and it created great a great sensation.


    At this time, Lord Taixuan, Ye Futian, and many other prominent figures of the Heavenly Mandate Academy stood in a great hall at the academy, looking at the mighty figures in front of them, a grand occasion.


    There, countless people looked up at Ye Futian.


    This unique and outstanding commander who had led the Heavenly Mandate Academy into the Shen clan, with several Renhuang in possession of the perfect Divine Wheels, decimated the Lower Renhuang of the Shen clan, while he himself had crushed Shen Hao. Today, many people proclaimed that within the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, Ye Futian was the number one among his generation.


    His fame had surpassed that of Jian Qingzhu and Nan Luoshen of the Nantian Divine Kingdom. He became the idol of countless young people. A legendary figure who came into his own without relying on familial influences, and created a prosperous dynasty based solely on his own power.


    Since the unification of the world by the Twin Great Emperors, Ye Futian was the only other person who had done so. To name him as the most dazzling talent after the unification of the Divine Prefecture would not be an overstatement.


    In the time of little over 300 years, there had not been many genius talents. After all, the time was too short, and many of them had already achieved fame from before. In terms of influence, it was true that no one had quite achieved it to the level as Ye Futian had.


    The appraisal of the disciples was done by others at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and it was no something for Ye Futian to worry about. But now, many of the cultivators from other forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm had also come to offer their help.


    At this moment, a bright divine light descended from the void, and many looked up at the sky and saw a group of people appearing in the sky above.


    Everyone beneath the sky was astounded, the cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan had arrived, and everything that had happened afterward made many people a little afraid. It wouldn''t be people from these two forces again, would it?


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky above, and when he saw those who were coming, he revealed a look of surprise.


    "Greetings to the Divine Priests." Ye Futian bowed slightly and saluted the guests.


    "No need for formality, Emperor Ye. We didn''t come to congratulate you on the opening of the Heavenly Mandate Academy last time, so we are coming to take a look this time." The old man in the lead said with a smile; this group of people actually came from Empty Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian had seen them outside the God''s relic.


    "Thank you, Divine Priests, this way, please." Ye Futian extended his hand and pointed the way.


    The figure in the void nodded, and the group descended upon the hall where Ye Futian and the others were. Lord Taixuan and the people of other major powers were disquieted in their hearts. As a general rule, the Empty Imperial Palace did not participate in outside affairs, and it was even rarer to appear at the location of other principalities.


    But now, they had descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The meaning behind this action was extraordinary.


    "Divine Priests." Lord Taixuan and the others nodded slightly to the visitors with respect. After all, the person who commanded the Divine Priests of the Empty Imperial Palace was none other than Donghuang the Great.


    "No need to pay attention to me, just treat me as if I am one of the spectators," said the old man with a smile. He turned and looked at the figure in the distance, and continued, "The Great Emperor, after the unification, also dedicated setting up academies as places of preaching martial arts in the hopes that martial arts would flourish. Emperor Ye and Lord Taixuan now established the Heavenly Mandate Academy to preach in the Heavenly Mandate Realm is a great undertaking for a noble cause."


    If it were ordinary forces engaged in preaching, he would not have cared so much. But the Heavenly Mandate Academy had caused such a sensation in the Nine Realms, and its influence now was close to that of the Tianshen Academy.


    "The elder praised us too much. We are just doing whatever within our power to do," Ye Futian said politely, but he could feel that the other party was being genuine.


    And strictly speaking, they had helped him out last time at the City of the Ruins.


    The old man smiled. "Emperor Ye is much too humble. Not many in this world could achieve such a grand endeavor."


    "It is indeed great merit," the cultivators from Shangxiao Divine Palace also smiled and added. Shangxiao Divine Palace held the same philosophy about preaching to the world.


    Ye Futian smiled and didn''t say anything more; he couldn''t very well agree with them in complimenting himself.


    "You have traveled a long way. Allow me to prepare a banquet so we can drink and celebrate," said Ye Futian.


    "Emperor Ye need not trouble, we''ll be leaving as soon as we have a chance to check everything out." The old man smiled and shook his head, saying, "I heard that Emperor Ye received the Great Emperor''s inheritance in the God''s relic?"


    Ye Futian looked at the Divine Priest, then nodded in silent admission.


    It could hardly be considered receiving the Great Emperor''s inheritance, but this was something that he wanted to reveal deliberately. After all, this was observed by everyone in the God''s relic. On the other hand, the secret of the world''s ancient tree was something that could not be revealed, and it had to be camouflaged as an inheritance.


    "I have witnessed the awakening of the Great Emperor, which resonated with me. The Emperor had given me the inheritance, and I have felt the calling of the gods and listened to their will," the old man murmured, his voice was ethereal. He smiled and said, "Emperor Ye''s talent and courage deserve our admiration. If you can accomplish such a great feat at your age, your future achievements are immeasurable."


    "The praise of the elder makes me speechless." Ye Futian smiled in resignation.


    "Well, I''m just here to take a look at the situation in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Now, I shall take my leave," the old man replied.


    "Elder, don''t get me wrong, I didn''t mean anything by it," Ye Futian explained.


    "Hahaha." The old man laughed heartily as he got up to leave. "If chance allows, we will meet again in the future."


    After that, he took the group and left, coming and going like a shadow.


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. He didn''t mind, and he knew that the other party''s action had nothing to do with what he said.


    "The visit of the Divine Priests from Empty Imperial Palace meant that the Heavenly Mandate Academy will have no trouble for a long time," Lord Taixuan said, which stunned Ye Futian. However, looking at Lord Taixuan and pondering on the significance of the visit, it all made sense, and he was relieved.


    Indeed, the visit of the Divine Priests from Empty Imperial Palace could very well be instructed by powers from above.


    Although the visit was brief, merely a few moments standing inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy to exchange a few words but it was enough for the Heavenly Mandate Academy to stand firmly in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Shen clan, Golden Divine Nation, or any other forces who might want to make a move on the Heavenly Mandate Academy, would have more angles to consider.


    "So, I owe the Divine Priests a favor," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "I''m going now," Ye Futian said as he walked down the great hall and heading toward the Heavenly Mandate Academy. His heart was at peace.


    Many matters had been settled gradually, and finally, he could really relax for a while. At least for now, there didn''t seem to be any imminent threats.


    Mindlessly, he wandered once again to the place of cultivation for Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "Goddess Qin." Ye Futian found Qin He at a palace where Brahma''s Pure Sky was located.


    "Fancy seeing Master Ye here," Qin He said with a smile.


    "What is the Lady up to now in Brahma''s Pure Sky?" Ye Futian asked.


    "When Jieyu was sent down from the mountain, that''s when the Lady began her retreat, and she probably won''t come out for a while," Qin He replied.


    "Retreat?" Ye Futian nodded. "I''ll go see Jieyu."


    With that said, he continued to walk inward and came to the place where Hua Jieyu was cultivating.


    Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian.


    "Is the realm stabilized after these few days of cultivation?" Ye Futian asked.


    Hua Jieyu looked at him and nodded gently.


    Ye Futian walked up to her with a bright smile. "I want to go and visit some old friends. Do you want to come with me?"


    Hua Jieyu looked stunned, and her eyes were searching his for the meaning behind his suggestion. After a moment of silence, she then gently nodded. "Sure!"


    "Okay, I''ll pick you up then." Ye Futian said with a smile, then turned to leave.


    ...

 1715 Unreal

    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was a picture of great prosperity. Cultivators from the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms were still arriving at the Heavenly Mandate Realm just to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate.


    What happened at the Shen clan made them realize that Ye Futian''s original intention of creating the Heavenly Mandate Academy was to preach. His intention was not selfish, and he would hold nothing back, or else there wouldn''t be over a dozen of cultivators who possessed the perfect Divine Wheels.


    This could only mean that Ye Futian did not mind helping others to create the perfect Divine Wheels. Of course, the premise was that one had to be able to get in touch with him and with a strong enough talent of one''s own. Therefore, the only way was to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy and become a core disciple.


    However, currently, it was extremely difficult to become a core disciple because there were not many spaces left. Countless people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm regretted that they had missed their best opportunity.


    Just as the Heavenly Mandate Academy was immersed in its prosperity, Ye Futian and his group left quietly one by one, without alerting too many people or causing too much attention. Only a few key members of the Academy were aware because all eyes of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms were now focused on him.


    He must be careful while traveling, especially if he was to go to the Lower Worlds on this trip. If he were followed by those who meant him harm, it would put him in danger.


    Though the Shen clan and the Golden Divine Nation dared not attack him outright, if they were to learn of the routes of his departure, it was not above them to plot a secret assassination.


    ...


    A few days later, at Crimson Dragon Realm in Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    In Emperor Xia''s Palace, Emperor Xia was reprimanding several princes, and the eldest prince, Xia Rong, was among them.


    "Xia Rong is about to attain Nirvana? How much faster can he speed up his cultivation?" Next to him, Queen Xiao smiled and interceded. Since Emperor Xia returned from the Supreme Region, his personality had changed. He was more severe in his attitude, and none of his heirs were able to please him.


    Queen Xiao knew that Emperor Xia wanted to pass on his throne as soon as possible so that he could be free to either travel wherever he pleased or go to the Supreme Region.


    However, his several heirs were still too far away from achieving Renhuang Realm.


    "It''s a pity that Qingyuan is not here; otherwise, she would be able to take over in a few years," Emperor Xia lamented.


    "I miss our little girl, too. It''s been so many years since she''s visited us." Queen Xiao''s voice was gentle. She did miss her daughter.


    Now, upon hearing their father''s intention to have Xia Qingyuan take over the throne, the princes found the idea somewhat unbearable.


    "Do you think she cares?" Emperor Xia glanced at Xia Rong casually. "If Qingyuan was willing to come back, I wouldn''t have to look to you guys."


    "Why won''t she return? Is it because of him?" Xia Rong asked. "Would Father allow Qingyuan to follow him around just like this?"


    Naturally, he was referring to Ye Futian.


    Emperor Xia looked at Xia Rong deeply. He hadn''t talked to everyone about what happened at the Supreme Region, nor had he mentioned Ye Futian''s current state. The gap was far too great between them, so it would make no sense to even mention it. It would only cause needless disruptions in their minds.


    He sighed silently in his heart. If things didn''t happen the way they did back then, he could probably have Xia Rong follow Ye Futian to the Upper Worlds.


    But now, it was clearly impossible.


    Although Ye Futian wouldn''t pursue the matter further, some things, once done, could never be undone.


    Perhaps, not even Xia Rong himself would know just what he had missed.


    At this moment, there was a golden brilliance sprinkled from above the sky.


    Emperor Xia was taken aback, raising his head to look up in the sky. Not only Emperor Xia, but at this moment, the people of the entire Emperor Xia''s City were looking up.


    They saw that from outside the sky, an extremely sacred divine bird had come and torn through the firmament, covering the endless space with a brilliant glow.


    "Divine bird."


    "What brilliance! What kind of divine bird is this?"


    The people of Emperor Xia''s City exclaimed. At this moment, all the demonic beasts in the city prostrated on the ground, shivering. Their eyes focused on the divine bird that came from the sky, as worshiping it.


    Likewise, all the demonic beasts inside Emperor Xia''s Palace prostrated also.


    Outside the palace, Xia Rong''s mount made a low groan, then laid down.


    When Xia Rong took notice of this, he was extremely shocked. What kind of divine bird was this?


    And who was it exactly, that descended to Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    "Your Majesty." A voice came from atop the divine bird, and Emperor Xia stood up with a smile on his face. He didn''t expect that the one he was thinking about was coming at this precise moment.


    The divine bird stopped in the sky above Emperor Xia''s Palace, and Emperor Xia slowly levitated into the sky to meet them. Below them, Queen Xiao and the others looked at the figure on the divine bird, and their eyes fixed there.


    The one in the lead was Ye Futian.


    Xia Qingyuan was there, too.


    "Father, Mother!" Xia Qingyuan called out. She walked toward the sky below. There were many others next to Ye Futian, and they were of the older generation from the Lower Worlds, and Emperor Xia recognized them. In addition, Jiang Chengzi was there also, whose duty was to ensure Ye Futian''s safety.


    If there was a real emergency, they could deal with it efficiently.


    That divine bird now turned into its human form, clad in golden divine armor with a sharp look about him. It was an extremely powerful demon emperor. The pressure of might that was inadvertently released from his body alone terrified Emperor Xia.


    "Greetings to the Elders," Emperor Xia bowed slightly and said. For such characters, he still had to maintain certain etiquette. Just because they came with Ye Futian, it did not mean that he was exempt from showing his respect.


    "No need for formality," Jiang Chengzi responded. The demon emperor nodded slightly.


    What was played out in front of them shocked many present.


    Elders!


    Their Father had to respectfully address that demonic beast as "elder," and Ye Futian was riding on the back of the demon emperor.


    This��


    Xia Rong watched all this, feeling a little shocked.


    Moreover, Ye Futian''s breath was unfathomable. As he stood there casually without releasing any breath, he still felt like he was facing his father.


    Was this how Renhuang felt?


    But how was this possible?


    They all agreed that Ye Futian''s talent was outstanding. He might even be the best in all of Emperor Xia''s Realm. But it was only a matter of a few years that had passed.


    "Your Majesty left in a hurry last time, so I came back this time to see you. It just so happened that Qingyuan also wanted to come home. She would like to see if Your Majesty is willing to go to the Supreme Region to cultivate," said Ye Futian.


    "To go to the Supreme Region?" Of course. Emperor Xia wanted to. He had the idea since last time, but there was no one to take over Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Therefore, he ended up here, reprimanding these few heirs of his, which could not be compared with Ye Futian.


    Without comparison, there were no hurt feelings.


    "I have built an academy in Heavenly Mandate Realm. Now, there are many people cultivating there. The Swordmaster and the others are there also. If Your Majesty agrees, we can go back together, and Qingyuan could be looked after. Perhaps, Your Majesty could also ask those elders who participated in the battle of the Crimson Dragon Realm, and see if they are willing to go to the Heavenly Mandate Realm with me on my return trip," Ye Futian proposed. It was a way to return the favor of the past.


    In the battle of the Crimson Dragon Realm, in addition to the Swordmaster of Lihen, many people, including the Great Shaman, had all participated.


    "You mean to siphon from my realm," Emperor Xia said.


    "Your Majesty understands my meaning," Ye Futian said with a smile. It all depended on personal desires. One would be hard-pressed for the opportunity to rise by staying in Emperor Xia''s Realm, but one could grow firm roots here. Venturing to the Heavenly Mandate Realm was taking a risk that could end up with them realizing just how big the world truly was.


    Depending on the choice that was made, he would not force the issue. Even if they chose not to go, he would leave something here for everyone.


    "Father, the Heavenly Mandate Academy he founded is now recruiting disciples, and it will become a symbolic place in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. In it, there are top figures acting as deans, and there are also many Upper Renhuang. You should tell them and let them make their own decisions," Xia Qingyuan added. She was worried that her father and the others would not understand what Ye Futian''s invitation meant and would miss out on something valuable.


    Emperor Xia''s heart palpitated. He had witnessed a war of the top figures at the God''s relic, which started because of Ye Futian.


    This man, in a blink of an eye, had created another terrifying turn of events again.


    "I understand," Emperor Xia nodded.


    "Then, Your Majesty, I will go to the Nine States first, and come for Your Majesty on my way back." Ye Futian smiled and asked, "Qingyuan, you are staying here, right?"


    Xia Qingyuan had not come back for a while.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian, then at Hua Jieyu behind him, and nodded gently.


    Emperor Xia also took notice. He looked at Ye Futian and asked, "Are you leaving?"


    "I have to come back on my way back anyway, so I''ll let Qingyuan spend some time with Your Majesty and the Queen without further disturbance," Ye Futian said with a smile. "Your Majesty, I''ll take my leave now."


    With that, the divine bird shapeshifted as Ye Futian stepped onto it, and the group departed.


    "He''s not going to use the palace matrix?" Queen Xiao asked in a low voice.


    Emperor Xia glanced at her and whispered, "The old man next to him is an Upper Renhuang. That divine bird demon emperor is probably also an Upper Demon Emperor. At this level, they can reach the Nine States in just a few moments, probably faster than using the matrix."


    Queen Xiao was speechless when she heard what Emperor Xia had told her. "What realm is Ye Futian?"


    "Renhuang. He''s much stronger than I am. Even Lihen no longer heeds me much. Just now, I saw Yu Sheng and the others in the void, and they also seem..." Emperor Xia trailed off while looking toward Xia Qingyuan.


    "They are all emperors now." Xia Qingyuan nodded.


    Queen Xiao was stunned, feeling a little unreal.


    "It took just one to bring up the others," remarked Emperor Xia. "Now, do you understand why I reprimanded them? Ye Futian may become the one we all have to reckon with in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, and they are nowhere near Renhuang Realm."


    "Not long ago, he launched a battle in the Central Imperial Realm, which established the position of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Now, he is known throughout the Nine Realms," Xia Qingyuan whispered beside him.


    Emperor Xia blinked, not knowing what else to say.


    "Qingyuan, the woman behind him..." Emperor Xia asked suddenly.


    "Yeah." Xia Qingyuan''s eyes darkened a little, and then she nodded gently. "His wife."


    Emperor Xia looked at Xia Qingyuan''s eyes and sighed secretly in his heart. Could she really be alive still? Initially, they had thought there was only a glimmer of hope.


    Xia Rong and the others looked on all this quietly, feeling a little numb inside.


    Renhuang. Ye Futian.


    Since the moment he arrived, Ye Futian didn''t even bother looking at him. When the subject was breached on taking various people to the Upper Worlds to cultivate, he made no mention of Emperor Xia''s heirs.


    Wasn''t this obvious?


    Ye Futian respected his father and was willing to help his father, but it had nothing to do with him.


    3,000 Realms of the Great Path. The pinnacle.


    Why did this all feel like a dream?!


    ...

 1716 Investigating Background

    Before Ye Futian arrived in Emperor Xia''s Realm, a group of cultivators had arrived before him. However, they had not alerted Emperor Xia''s Palace.


    This was because they had found useful information among the memories of commoners in Emperor Xia''s City. They naturally did not need to disturb Emperor Xia anymore and draw attention to themselves.


    After Ye Futian and his army descended upon the Shen clan, the Heavenly Mandate Academy became known throughout the Nine Realms, and they began to accept disciples.


    However, the Shen clan had come up with another plan. They decided to investigate Ye Futian''s background and origins. Although, currently, they could not do anything to Ye Futian, they might accidentally stumble upon something by doing so. In the future, when they truly went to war against Ye Futian, they might have some trump cards up their sleeve.


    Hence, this time, they did not plan to alert Ye Futian. They decided to carry out all of this in secret. Otherwise, they would cause Ye Futian to be cautious.


    Only by acting in absolute secrecy and clearly investigating Ye Futian''s background could they use the information during a critical moment in the future.


    Being the proud Shen clan, they initially weren''t bothered to do things in such a manner. However, the Shen clan''s battle with Ye Futian was the first time they felt such a sense of danger. Out of curiosity about Ye Futian''s background, as well as in preparation for the future, the Shen clan decided to descend to this Realm.


    As they continued descending past Emperor Xia''s Realm, they arrived at the lowest level of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, the mortal world of the Nine States.


    Here, figures at the Saint Plane were already legendary figures that stood at the top.


    By surpassing the mortal Planes, one would become a saint. All Planes below that of the Saint Plane were considered mortal Planes. From the perspective of the Shen clan, a place like the Nine States was weak and pathetic.


    Ye Futian had emerged from such a place.


    However, they were not too surprised. After all, rumor has it that the Twin Great Emperors had also trained in the mortal world. There were even rumors that the homelands of Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing were in the Lower Worlds. Such rumors were usually unreliable and were just embellishments to their legends in some places.


    Members of ordinary forces might not be aware of such rumors. However, the Shen clan was a force that stood at the top of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path; they knew far more than most people did.


    The life of Donghuang the Great was extraordinary.


    The Shen clan was only afraid of one thing: was Ye Futian also such an existence?


    If Ye Futian were such an existence, that would spell trouble for the Shen clan.


    However, amongst the various memories that they had investigated up until now, it was highly likely that Ye Futian was truly born and raised in the Nine States. It seemed that he had been here since he was very young and very weak.


    Even if huge figures were to send their descendants here to train, would they begin to do so at such a young age?


    In the Barren State of the Nine States, in the Zhongzhou City region''s Crouching Dragon Mountain, the Zhuge Family was extremely lively.


    Today, it was the birthday celebration feast of the Crouching Dragon Mountain Mountain Master and the head of the Zhuge Family, Zhuge Qingfeng. Members from all Nine States had come to celebrate and congratulate him.


    Ever since many Saint Plane figures appeared in the Barren State, the position of the Barren State could not be compared to what it once was before. Multiple large holy lands appeared in the Barren State. Crouching Dragon Mountain was one of them.


    Also, due to the relationship between Zhuge Qingfeng and Ye Futian, who in the Nine States would not show him some respect?


    Even the most powerful Saint Xia from Summer State would regularly mingle around with the various saints in the Barren State. Before, this would have been impossible. However, the saints of the Barren State were now held in high esteem because of their relationship with Ye Futian.


    There was the Douzhan of Sage Hall, Ye Futian''s master, as well as Zhuge Qingfeng, Ye Futian''s uncle, his second elder sister''s father. There was also You Chi of Alchemy City, Ye Futian''s older brother''s father-in-law, and Yuan Hong from Taihang Mountain, who was a sworn brother of Ye Futian. Each and every one of their backgrounds was extraordinary.


    Saint Xia occasionally visited Emperor Xia''s Realm to find Emperor Xia. Emperor Xia would personally instruct him to take good care of the saints in the Barren State. What sort of position were they in to receive such treatment?


    Currently, the Planes and abilities of the saints of the Barren State were no weaker than his own.


    There was still very strong competition between the younger generation of the Nine States. However, the figures at the very top instead had a much closer relationship. The major figures of the Nine States had all arrived for Zhuge Qingfeng''s birthday feast. Crouching Dragon Mountain was a lively place.


    Many people were reminiscing about the good old days, laughing and chatting away. Occasionally, they would bring up Ye Futian and the others, wondering how their cultivation was now.


    The city at the foot of Crouching Dragon Mountain was also very lively. Many people had come to join in the fun. In an inn, many people were discussing Zhuge Qingfeng''s birthday feast.


    "Right now, on top of Crouching Dragon Mountain, have the various saints of Summer State also arrived?"


    "Naturally. Saint Xia has also come. Crouching Dragon Mountain is held in high regard in the Nine States. It is one of the training holy lands in the Barren State. Lord Zhuge is also a great figure. Back then, he joined Ye Futian in many wars and survived through countless perils. The young mistress of the Zhuge Family, Zhuge Mingyue, Ye Futian''s second elder brother, Zhuge Family son-in-law Gu Dongliu and Ye Futian''s third elder brother all became famous after the battle on Crouching Dragon Mountain."


    "Are you referring to the battle with Bai Luli? Until now, people still talk about it," someone to the side said as they reminisced about the past.


    "Is Ye Futian that incredible?" At that moment, in a corner of the inn, a few youths dressed in fancy clothes were sitting quietly and drinking wine. When they heard the people in the inn discussing this, they could not help but speak up.


    These youths had deep gazes, but their auras were restrained. Their cultivation auras could not be detected at all. Nevertheless, from their temperament, it was clear that they were not ordinary people.


    "Do you not know of Ye Futian?" the person to the side asked. He revealed a strange look. Ye Futian was a famous figure in the Barren State, even in the Nine States. He had long become an existence of legend. There were still people who did not know of him?


    "I have heard of him, but I do not know how incredible he is. Could you share a bit about him, good sir?" one of the youths asked with a smile. Not long ago, they had already searched the memories of some people. They roughly knew about Ye Futian''s exploits, but still did not know the core issues. They wanted to know more.


    "Sure." The person to the side was somewhat excited as he began, "I remember back then..."


    The person began to tell his tale. The members of the Lower Worlds had ordinary levels of cultivation. Hence, they were even more passionate about the stories of these legendary figures. As he began to speak exultantly, the youths all fell silent and listened intently.


    Although they looked down on this mortal world in disdain, Ye Futian had proven how outstanding he was in the Nine Supreme Realms. Hence, they also listened attentively. They lamented inside. They never imagined that Ye Futian had actually come from the mortal world and reached the Upper Worlds through bloodbaths and battles.


    Here in the land of the Nine States, Ye Futian had already experienced life-and-death battles.


    In the mortal world, this story would not lose to the story of Ye Futian leading an army to attack their Shen clan in the Nine Supreme Realms.


    "Since you mentioned that Ye Futian was small and weak, then where did Ye Futian come to the Nine States from?" a member of the Shen clan asked.


    "I believe he came from the Barren State. As for specifically which area in the Barren State he was from, I am not sure." The person pressed on, "Why? Are you starting to show interest in him too? "


    "I want to pay tribute to his place of birth," the member of the Shen clan replied with a smile. "I am wondering, did he manage to achieve his current achievements because he was someone with an extraordinary background, to begin with?"


    "Of course not." A pretty maiden joined the conversation. She was young and beautiful, seemingly a girl from a respectable family.


    "He came here from Eastern Barren Territory. When he was in Eastern Barren Territory, he studied at Book Mountain, a popular place for training," the maiden said softly. "Moreover, he only entered Book Mountain when he was 18. The disciple of College Cottage went to meet him personally to bring him into the college. Prior to that, he grew up in an even more isolated place. He moved his way up slowly and relied only on his own ability. He was a bonafide legend."


    When she mentioned the name of College Cottage, one could hear the pride in her tone.


    Ye Futian''s enrollment into College Cottage was not a secret. Many people in the Barren State knew about it. It was just that she knew slightly more than the others.


    After all, the man was her Uncle Ye.


    However, it had been a very long time since she last met Uncle Ye.


    "Miss, you seem to know quite a lot," the youth said to her with a smile.


    The young maiden glanced at the other party and nodded her head as she revealed a faint smile. She did not say anymore after that. After all, she was not familiar with them and would not talk too much with them.


    Everyone was up on Crouching Dragon Mountain. She got bored staying up there, so she came down the mountain. By chance, she encountered people discussing Uncle Ye in the inn, so she couldn''t help but comment.


    "Eastern Barren Territory?" the youth muttered under his breath, "Miss, you said Ye Futian went to study in Eastern Barren Territory from an even more isolated place. Where is that place? Is it Ye Futian''s birthplace?"


    The young maiden wanted to reply, but the elder beside her cast a glance at her. Then, she said nothing and just smiled.


    "Young mistress, let''s head back," the elder beside the maiden urged gently. He sensed that the few youths were not simple. Their temperament was too extraordinary; their gazes were not that of youths as well. It was as though they could pierce through the others with just their gazes.


    "Miss, can we talk to you in private?" one of the youth asked. They could get the information they needed by searching this maiden''s memory. After that, they would have no more business with her.


    "Sir, our young mistress still has matters to attend to. Farewell," the elder said as he dragged her off. The young maiden also got up and prepared to leave.


    However, they realized that they were surrounded by a golden divine halo. They couldn''t move as they wished.


    What''s happening? The people in the inn were shocked. The few youths were still sipping their wine without a care in the world. Then, they put down their glasses and made a grab in the air, leaving the inn with the maiden. The maiden was seized by them even though they were not touching her. She was forced to move with them. She couldn''t resist them at all.


    So powerful. The crowd was astonished. What Plane were they at?


    Were they at the high-level Sage Plane?


    They directly stepped out of the inn with a single step. They saw a tall, burly silhouette already standing in the air ahead of them. The silhouette walked over towards them and shouted, "Presumptuous."


    His voice was as loud as thunder. Powerful Saint Plane aura descended upon the youths.


    The elder was actually a figure at the Saint Plane.


    It was the City Lord of Alchemy City. The surrounding people were astonished when they saw the silhouette that had appeared in mid-air. It was the City Lord of Alchemy City, You Chi.


    You Chi''s expression was sullen. The maiden who was captured was his granddaughter, the daughter of Xue Ye and You Xi, who was You Chi''s daughter. You Chi came to check on her since she left the mountain. To his surprise, someone would actually act so brazenly in the territory of Barren State.


    However, he noticed that the few youths were unaffected by his aura.


    From afar, powerful auras approached one by one. On Crouching Dragon Mountain, the Saint Plane figures detected the abnormality happening here, and they traversed the space to come here. They appeared from various directions.


    The few youths frowned. Initially, they just wanted to search through the maiden''s memory furtively. Unfortunately, it seemed like this maiden''s identity in the mortal world was not simple. No wonder she knew more than the other commoners.


    It seemed like their cover had been blown.


    Now, the problem was: should they kill their opponents?


    ...

 1717 Dealing With

    Many cultivators, including Saint Xia, Saint Li of Nine State College, Moon Saint of Yue clan, Zhuge Qingfeng, and Yuan Hong were around. Their cultivation had reached the Saint Plane, the peak at the Lower Worlds. It took them only a few steps to traverse from Crouching Dragon Mountain to the inn.


    Right now, they were all standing at different corners. They unleashed their auras and enveloped the few youths.


    However, they felt slightly uneasy. Under the pressure of their might, the few youths, whose aura could not be detected, still stood unperturbed. It was as though they sensed nothing. They did not speak up either, seemingly communicating through sound transmission.


    Shen clan had come here this time on a secret mission. They wanted to act furtively and investigate the past and relatives of Ye Futian. Then, they would leave quietly and pretend that they had never appeared here before. After all, they were well aware that if their trip here were made known to Ye Futian, the information they got would be meaningless. It would not help the Shen clan at the crucial moments to deter Ye Futian.


    Could it be that they would need to kidnap everyone who was related to Ye Futian?


    If they did so, Ye Futian might intrude on the territory of the Shen clan once again.


    Their kidnapping would be futile.


    Hence, now that they had been discovered, the youths of the Shen clan were considering all the possible solutions. They were communicating via sound transmission.


    "We will not get into a fight with them; we just have to intimidate them. Then, we can proceed with our original plan. This is the mortal world. It is possible that they have lost contact with Ye Futian," the leading cultivator of the Shen clan announced their final decision.


    They decided not to kill the Saint Plane cultivators.


    It would be too risky for them to do so.


    If they did not start a massacre, perhaps this matter would not be found out by Ye Futian. Even though these Saint Plane cultivators had close connections with Ye Futian, it was all in the past. Now, the former was in the mortal world while the latter was in the Nine Supreme Regions. They were so far apart; maybe these cultivators had lost contact with Ye Futian.


    "I am fond of this girl. I will bring her around on an excursion. Don''t worry. I won''t hurt her," said the leading cultivator of the Shen clan, who was named Shen Jian.


    "Let go of her." You Chi emanated a terrifyingly sharp aura. His gaze was fixed on Shen Jian. He could not possibly allow a stranger to take his granddaughter away.


    Shen Jian swept an indifferent look towards You Chi. Then, a vast might of Renhuang suddenly burst forth from his body. In an instant, a suffocating pressure enveloped the entire city, including Crouching Dragon Mountain within it.


    In that instant, the expressions of Saint Xia, You Chi, and the others changed drastically. Their hearts trembled inside.


    This aura�� it was that of a Renhuang!


    "This is her fate," Shen Jian said indifferently. His voice was extremely powerful. The two people behind him similarly released powerful auras. They were actually Renhuangs as well.


    Everyone in the city was suffocating. The members around the inn even nearly knelt on the ground to worship them.


    They were Renhuangs.


    Wasn''t Emperor Xia, who was the true master of the Nine States, the only Renhuang?


    The three of them were all figures at the level of Emperor Xia!


    The person who had been bragging about Ye Futian in the inn before this also felt his heart tremble. He felt his face turn red hot. They had actually bragged about a genius in front of Renhuangs.


    No matter how much of a genius Ye Futian was, the Renhuang Plane was still only a distant dream.


    Back then, Emperor Xia had only sent representatives to the Lower Worlds, and the Nine States already trembled in fear.


    The expressions of Saint Xia and the others changed drastically. Three Renhuangs stood before them.


    Currently, in the entire Emperor Xia''s Realm, there was only one Renhuang, Emperor Xia.


    Why had such existences appeared in a Lower World like their Nine States?


    "Can we go now?" Shen Jian extended both of his arms forwards. In an instant, the saints in mid-air felt that their bodies were unable to move. This group of figures that stood at the peak of the Nine States was like ants before these opponents.


    Renhuangs.


    Even if Emperor Xia were standing here today, he would most likely be unable to do anything.


    Rumble! A powerful aura from Shen Jian enveloped Xue Cao. There seemed to be a divine eye on his glabella. In an instant, he had invaded Xue Cao''s memories and obtained a lot of information.


    Eastern Barren Territory, Book Mountain, Cottage, Gu Dongliu.


    It seems that they still had to make a trip to Book Mountain to know exactly where Ye Futian had come from.


    This young maiden''s identity was also actually someone so close to Ye Futian. She was the daughter of his elder brother.


    Xue Cao''s weak and frail figure floated in mid-air limply as the power directly invaded her mind. She did not even understand what the other party was doing. After all, her Plane was too low. Before her opponent, it was basically negligible.


    "Let her go." You Chi''s eyes were crimson. His body heated up, and his clothes ripped apart. It was as though his body had been branded red.


    Xue Cao was his granddaughter. No matter how powerful his opponent was, how could he possibly stand this?


    Bang. Douzhan also took a step forward. His expression was extremely ugly. However, when they saw Shen Jian simply extend his hands forward, they felt the absolute suppression of Planes and learned the meaning of despair.


    This space turned absolutely quiet.


    Buzz. Once Shen Jian obtained the information that he wanted, he raised his hand and swung Xue Cao towards You Chi. Since they had already been seen through, there was no reason to sneak around anymore. Xue Cao was of no use to them anymore. They would not touch Xue Cao and these members of the mortal world. This way, word of this incident might not get out.


    "Let''s go." The three silhouettes immediately walked off and disappeared from their original spots. They instantly appeared high in the sky above.


    No one in the Nine States could stop them. It was impossible for anyone in the Nine States to stop them. They were not even on the same level.


    Rumble.


    At that moment, a violent sound came from the heavens above. Everyone raised their heads and looked up. In the sky above, it seemed as though the huge hand of a deity had appeared from afar. It suppressed everything and directly headed towards the three Renhuangs.


    Frightening divine light suddenly burst forth from the bodies of the three Renhuangs. The light swept across thousands of miles of space. At that moment, the people below truly felt the might of Renhuangs.


    From their perspective, the Renhuangs were like deities.


    The huge hand that was descending from the sky was actually a golden claw. In an instant, it grabbed hold of the three Renhuangs. From the sky, it slammed them forcefully downwards into the ground, causing a district in the city to be blown apart. Countless cracks appeared.


    A huge, endless claw immediately subdued the three Renhuangs on the ground below, imprisoning them below the claw.


    Countless people in the city felt that this scene was like a dream.


    The three Renhuangs were directly knocked out of the sky by a claw that came from afar without showing any signs of resistance.


    They were Renhuangs, existences at the same level as Emperor Xia that loomed high above the rest of them.


    Buzz.


    Brilliant golden divine light shone down from above like the authority of heaven. It was a divine bird, the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird.


    He spread its wings and blocked out the sky and the sun. His golden divine wings seemed to be sharper than all divine arms. No one dared to look into his indifferent monstrous eyes.


    This Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird was a mighty existence in the Peng Bird clan. He had reluctantly served as a mount because they needed to make haste this time. In reality, he had wanted to request that Ye Futian aid one of his descendants in his training. Otherwise, as an upper-level Demon Emperor, how could he possibly become a mount?


    After all, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was not a powerful force, and Peng Bird clan were not subordinates of Ye Futian.


    Right now, the members of Crouching Dragon Mountain felt terror and awe.


    Even Saint Xia, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others were trembling inside. The divine bird that had appeared could easily crush them all.


    "Father," a gentle voice cried out. After that, the crowd saw a woman jumping off the back of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird that was high in the sky. Her white dress fluttered in the wind, and she appeared cool and beautiful. Beside her was a scholar dress in white. He was handsome and looked extraordinary. His temperament was astonishing.


    "Master, Uncle," another voice called out.


    A group of silhouettes leapt off one after another. By the time the Saints of the Nine States clearly saw the silhouettes that appeared before them, the gazes of the people down on the ground were frozen as they looked up into the sky.


    The silhouettes were all too familiar.


    Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng!


    There was also Hua Jieyu.


    This...


    "It''s Ye Futian."


    Down below, voices gradually cried out, instantly causing an uproar. It was Ye Futian.


    Good heavens, what were they seeing?


    Ye Futian and the others had returned. They were like deities that had descended upon the mortal plane. Existences at the Renhuang Plane were immediately suppressed by the claws of a demonic beast.


    This was just too surreal.


    Douzhan, Zhuge Qingfeng, and the others stood there stunned for a long while. In the end, they finally realized that they were not seeing things wrong. It was Ye Futian. He had returned.


    "Master, seniors, I will deal with them first," Ye Futian said. He then lowered his head and looked at the three Renhuangs on the ground.


    The members of the Shen clan had actually investigated until they reached this place.


    After suffering defeat at his hands, had they begun to investigate his background?


    He shuddered slightly at the thought. Fortunately, he had returned, and they had encountered the three Renhuangs. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable.


    "We never planned to do anything to them," Shen Jian said as he looked at Ye Futian. He was also extremely shocked. Wasn''t the Heavenly Mandate Academy busy accepting disciples?


    Ye Futian had actually come over to the Lower Worlds, and they had coincidentally encountered each other.


    "Senior, could I trouble you to deal with them?" Ye Futian said as he looked at the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird. The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird immediately dove down and grabbed the three Renhuangs with his claws. He then flew up high into the sky.


    "Ye Futian..." the three Renhuangs shouted. "Shen clan has already given you some leeway last time. If you kill us, Shen clan will certainly know of it. Do you truly wish to go to war?"


    "As long as you all aren''t afraid to do so, I don''t care," Ye Futian said. "Kill them."


    He had barely uttered his words when the skies were filled with blood-curdling screams.


    Fresh blood rained down from above.


    This was practically...


    Many people did not dare to look up at the sky. Renhuangs were torn apart just like that?


    That was too cruel.


    Ye Futian indeed was not concerned. For the Shen clan to have investigated until here in secret, they were practically provoking him. Of course they had to be killed immediately.


    It was still the same as last time in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. As long as the Shen clan was not afraid, their Heavenly Mandate Academy would also not be scared of them.


    However, since Ye Futian had discovered the Shen clan, he had to take some people away from here.


    Ye Futian would definitely not leave any loose ends.


    Who knew whether or not the Shen clan would send people again to the Lower Worlds.


    "Uncle Ye." Down below, a silhouette walked up to Ye Futian. It was Xue Cao. She appeared somewhat timid. After having not seen him for so many years, she did not know whether Uncle Ye would feel distant.


    However, she had always missed Uncle Ye. She remembered that when she was younger, Ye Futian had especially doted upon her.


    "Little Cao has become a young maiden," Ye Futian said softly.


    "Ye Futian." Figures came forward one by one. Ye Futian revealed a smile as he looked at the group approaching him and said, "Seniors, everyone is here. That will save a lot of trouble. The people just now were members of a force that I had offended in the Upper Worlds. This force is very powerful. Hence, they have searched until they arrived here. Coincidentally, I came back to bring Master and seniors to train in the Upper Worlds."


    Regardless, Master, Uncle Zhuge, and the others were the people that were close to Ye Futian. He had to take them away from here to prevent the Shen clan from threatening him in the future.


    As for some others who were just old friends, it would not be an issue. Shen clan was not foolish enough to believe that capturing a few people who were acquainted with him would be sufficient to threaten him.


    "Let''s head back to Crouching Dragon Mountain first, and then we''ll talk," Douzhan said. He had yet to wrap his head around all that had happened!


    ...

 1718 Tears

    Ye Futian and his companions had returned to Crouching Dragon Mountain. The city went into a frenzy upon receiving this news.


    Today was the birthday celebration for Zhuge Qingfeng. All the powerful cultivators of the Nine States had gathered, and the situation was lively. However, the few Renhuangs who intruded the place had suppressed everyone who was present.


    Yet in the blink of an eye, those Renhuangs were killed.


    This was practically a dream.


    Did the legendary figure of the Nine States really achieve this level of dominance?


    What Plane was Ye Futian at currently?


    According to those who witnessed the happenings, when they saw Ye Futian, they felt as though they were gazing at a deity.


    It was highly possible that Ye Futian was a Renhuang now.


    Renhuangs were existences that most residents of the Nine States had never encountered before. It was difficult for them to meet a Saint Plane figure, let alone a Renhuang.


    On top of Crouching Dragon Mountain, the return of Ye Futian, Zhuge Mingyue, and the rest livened up the gathering even more.


    Ye Futian briefly explained his encounters and invited the Saints of the Nine States to come with him to the Upper Worlds. Many of the Saints were tempted to accept the invitation. In reality, with their age and Plane, nothing in the Nine States could excite them anymore. Now, everyone in the Nine States was at peace with each other; it was too mundane for the Saints.


    If they went to the Upper Worlds, especially to the Nine Supreme Regions, they might have a chance to advance further in their cultivation.


    However, some of them were worried about their juniors. Ye Futian assured them by saying that Emperor Xia would take care of everything here. Besides that, he would push for the establishment of a pathway between the Upper Worlds and the Nine States, so that Renhuangs from the Upper Worlds could occasionally descend to teach the Way in the Nine States. It would further prosper the development of martial arts in the Nine States.


    All the Saints said they would need a few days to consider the offer. Ye Futian dismissed the gathering. Then, he went to the Holy Zhi Palace, gathering all the disciples for a lecture. The disciples of the Holy Zhi Palace were thrilled when they found out that their Palace Lord, Ye Futian, had broken through to the Renhuang Plane.


    Even though Ye Futian had left for many years, he was still an iconic leader for the Holy Zhi Palace. He was the emblem of the Holy Zhi Palace.


    In the past, the old Palace Lord used his own death to establish the succession of young Ye Futian as the next Palace Lord of the Holy Zhi Palace. After that, Ye Futian led the Holy Zhi Palace through terrifying battle after terrifying battle. Finally, they secured their spot at the peak. Up until now, this tale was still deeply engraved in the hearts of many disciples.


    Ye Futian brought many top cultivation manuscripts from the Upper Worlds and left behind many items. He then left the Palace.


    ...


    Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple in the Eastern State was previously disbanded back in the day. However, several years ago, the Lady of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, Glass Saint, had returned and rebuilt it. The disciples of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple that had left gradually returned. They had tears in their eyes. They had finally waited for the Lady to return and rebuild the Holy Temple. This had been the dream of the disciples of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple for many years.


    After hoping for so many years, Glass Saint had finally returned.


    After Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple was rebuilt, it had remained very quiet and rarely caused any commotion in the outside world. It had merely quietly passed on teachings and trained disciples. However, many people in the Eastern State discovered that the female disciples that occasionally emerged from Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple had abilities that were astonishingly powerful. This caused countless young women in the Eastern State to join the Holy Temple and train.


    In the years after, Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple''s fame grew, and its influence spread throughout the Eastern State. There were rumors that after returning from her travels, Glass Saint''s current Plane was already without equal in the Nine States. However, she herself kept an extremely low profile and did not contend for anything. She merely quietly passed on teachings. Ever since she reestablished Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, Glass Saint had never left Lapis Lazuli Mountain. No one from outside of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple had seen this legendary woman.


    This aroused the curiosity of countless people towards Glass Saint. Previously, the grudge between Glass Saint and Great Zhou Sacred King from Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty had ended with the demise of the Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty. Now, had the once top beauty in the Eastern State already desired nothing in this world?


    Let alone the people in the Eastern State, even the disciples of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple were very curious about Glass Saint.


    Right now, at the bottom of the steps leading to the main temple of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple, a few silhouettes were walking down. Their temperaments were all extraordinary, and their appearances were all stunning, each with their own unique features. However, right now, they wore worried expressions in the faces.


    "Master was in a daze again?" one of the women said softly.


    "Hmm. These past few years, she has always been like this. I feel sad just watching her like this. I wonder what Master is thinking of."


    No one knew what Glass Saint was thinking inside, not even her direct disciples.


    Glass Saint''s current behavior was extremely indifferent. Aside from instructing disciples in their training, she did not have a strong desire to improve her own Plane. Although she still trained every day, regardless of whether she improved or hit a bottleneck, she still remained calm. There was no rise or fall to her emotions.


    Her disciples thought that it would have been better if Master were to be angry and scold them from time to time. However, Glass Saint had never done so. She showed no emotions to anyone. Even if their training had gone off course, she would still calmly instruct them.


    "I know, right? Watching Master being in a daze on her own makes my heart ache. I feel that Master is too lonely and has no friends. She doesn''t even have anyone to talk to. She has also never come in contact with the other Saints of the Nine States."


    The Saints of the Nine States would regularly send people to invite Glass Saint to join them. However, Glass Saint had always declined their invitation.


    At that moment, the sound of footsteps came from the stairs below. Their gazes shifted downwards, and they saw a white-haired youth walking up the stairs. Although his hair was white, he seemed very young, and his temperament was otherworldly. He appeared amazing in their eyes.


    It was as though they could not take their eyes off him once they saw him.


    "Who are you?" a maiden asked.


    "Senior, we couldn''t stop him," a female disciple who was at the bottom of the stairs reported.


    "I am Ye Futian." The youth smiled gently while saying, "I''m here to meet your Master."


    "Ye Futian," the few girls whispered. The next moment, their pupils constricted as they pointed at Ye Futian. "Which Ye Futian?"


    Clearly, they had realized the identity of the person standing in front of them.


    He was the legendary figure of the Nine States. Both Great Zhou Sacred Dynasty and Xihua Sacred Mountain were annihilated by him. Rumor had it that in the past, Glass Saint had traveled with him.


    He was the Ye Futian!


    Now, he was here to look for Master.


    Could it be that��


    Ye Futian looked at them with a smile. The few girls felt slightly nervous and excited. His tender smile seemed to be affirming them that he was indeed the Ye Futian that they were thinking of.


    "I will tell Master that you''re here," said one of the girls.


    "I''m sure your Master will not want to see me. I will leave after I have a look," Ye Futian said while smiling. Then, with a step, he disappeared right in front of them. The few girls looked at each other, shocked. This��


    They gazed at the top of the temple.


    Ye Futian reached the top of Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple. A stunningly beautiful figure was leaning against the railing quietly. She was gazing into the distance.


    Her silhouette looked like an outcast when matched with the background. She seemed so lonely as she stood there.


    A breeze came, and her hair fluttered in the wind. Her beauty did not fade as time passed. Not only did the once top beauty in the Eastern State maintain her beauty, but her temperament had also become more extraordinary as she aged. The loneliness accentuated her beauty.


    Seemingly sensing something, she turned around and saw a white-haired youth standing there. A hint of fluster flashed past Glass Saint''s eyes the moment she saw the youth. However, she regained her calmness in the blink of an eye. Then, she turned and stared at the clouds again, as though she had not seen him.


    Ye Futian moved forward and walked up to her side. He leaned against the railing and stared at her side profile, asking, "Why did you leave without saying goodbye?"


    When they were in the valley of the Demon Realm of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Glass Saint left and did not return. To Ye Futian''s surprise, she had actually returned to the Nine States.


    Glass Saint did not answer him. She stood there in silence.


    Ye Futian did not mind her silence either, saying, "This time, I am back to visit a few old friends in the Nine States. I am bringing them to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to train there. I heard that you were back, so I dropped by to pay you a visit. Do you want to follow us back?"


    "What happens after I go there?" Glass Saint spoke for the first time since Ye Futian arrived. She stared at Ye Futian with her enchanting eyes.


    Ye Futian was momentarily stunned, then he replied with a smile, "Of course, you will train there. Right now, all the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm have established the Heavenly Mandate Academy together. If you train there, you can become a Renhuang one day."


    "Training. Becoming a Renhuang," Glass Saint murmured. She continued to gaze into the distance, whispering, "What happens after I become a Renhuang?"


    "After you become a Renhuang, your beauty will last for an eternity while your lifespan will never come to an end. Isn''t this what every cultivator dreams of?" Ye Futian revealed a perplexed look.


    "Then, what happens next?" Glass Saint asked again.


    "��" Ye Futian was speechless.


    "Don''t you have any other desire after the incident of the Great Zhou Sacred King?" Ye Futian asked softly.


    "I do," Glass Saint replied.


    "What is it?" Ye Futian asked curiously.


    "I still have not settled my vengeance with you for what happened in the past," Glass Saint responded.


    "This..."


    Ye Futian naturally understood which incident Glass Saint was referring to. This was awkward.


    "Back then, I was forced to do so." Ye Futian''s voice didn''t sound convincing. "If Glass Saint wants to seek vengeance from me, I will agree with whatever you come up with."


    "Are you certain?" Glass Saint looked into Ye Futian eyes.


    Ye Futian stared back at those beautiful eyes and said, "What do you think?"


    "If I want you to take responsibility?" Glass Saint asked.


    "..."


    Ye Futian was speechless. He had a bizarre look in his eyes. The beautiful eyes of Glass Saint still stared at him. Her gaze then shifted to looking into the distance. She softly said, "Being in Lapis Lazuli Holy Temple is rather nice. I will always continue to pass on my teachings. The Upper Worlds are not suitable for me."


    Ye Futian stared at the strands of hair fluttering on her forehead. He nodded slightly and said, "Alright. If, at any time, you wish to come, head to Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Heavenly Mandate Realm."


    Glass Saint nodded in response.


    Seeing that Glass Saint had no intention to continue the conversation, Ye Futian left quietly. His figure disappeared in an instant.


    After he left, Glass Saint still stood at her original spot and gazed into the distance.


    A few figures walked up to her carefully, calling, "Master."


    Did Ye Futian leave just like that? What did he say to Master?


    Glass Saint did not respond to their call and remained standing in silence.


    "Master..." the girls called once again. Then, only did Glass Saint turn around slowly. When the few disciples saw Glass Saint''s face, they felt their hearts skip a beat. They stared at Glass Saint, their Master, with dumbfounded gazes.


    Right now, on that gorgeous face...


    There were actually tears!


    ...

 1719 Nianyu

    Hundred Lands of the Eastern Barren Territory, Nandou Nation, East Sea.


    A dark golden Black Wind Condor spread its wings flying over the East Sea.; it was not moving very fast.


    There were two figures on the back of the Black Wind Condor; it was Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    Ye Futian had traveled all this way from the Barren State. First, he went to the Book Mountain in Eastern Barren Territory, and then he traveled to Nandou Nation and the Cangye Kingdom until finally, he passed through the academy in the East Sea before making his way to Qingzhou City.


    Of all the people that traveled together with them, there was now only him, Hua Jieyu, and the Little Condor.


    Back then, the Little Condor had also come from Qingzhou City, somewhere in the mountains.


    Thinking back all those years, it felt like centuries ago.


    They were in no hurry. Otherwise, with Ye Futian''s current realm, they would be able to reach Qingzhou City with just one step.


    But he didn''t do that. Instead, he chose to walk the roads of the olden days, enjoying the tranquility. Perhaps, he wanted Hua Jieyu to experience it too.


    Hua Jieyu remained silent on their journey. Ye Futian had no way of knowing what she was thinking about, though he did try to pry into her thoughts. In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, as soon as he saw Hua Jieyu, he had asked Feixue to keep an eye on her.


    He did not disclose Feixue''s special talent to anyone from the outside. It would prove to be a great advantage in future training for core figures in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    According to Feixue, when Hua Jieyu was around him, her emotions were extremely calm, like water without waves. There was no love, hatred, nor any other emotions.


    "This here is the East Sea. Back then, the Master, the Little Condor, and I flew over the East Sea from Qingzhou City to go to Donghai City. And the first place we went to was the Nandou clan to take a look. At the time, you were cultivating at Donghai Academy." The sea breeze was caressing their faces as Ye Futian spoke softly.


    Along the way, he said a lot. Hua Jieyu listened quietly, occasionally nodding, but rarely responding.


    "I remember when I first saw you at Donghai Academy, and I also remember seeing you in Ziwei Palace last time." Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu''s profile. Of course, she was still as beautiful now as she was then, but it was a different kind of beauty from before. The beauty that she had was youthful, a young girl''s demeanor, like a fairy who was full of spirit.


    "Still, I prefer the person you are now."


    Ye Futian smiled softly as he stretched out his hand and took Hua Jieyu''s hand in his.


    Hua Jieyu dodged his gaze. Instead of looking at Ye Futian, she kept her eyes forward. But she did not withdraw her hand, allowing Ye Futian to hold it tightly in his.


    "Jieyu, after we see the Master and the Masteress, I will tell them that you were injured so severely that you temporarily lost your memory. You are the only child of the Master and the Masteress. You can understand that, can''t you?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    After seeing Jieyu, the Master and the Masteress would undoubtedly act very loving toward her. He worried that Jieyu would react strongly. This might hurt them even more; they had been so sad for so many years.


    Hua Jieyu gave the matter some thought.


    "Mmm." She nodded gently, and Ye Futian smiled with relief.


    "Sit now." Ye Futian took Hua Jieyu and sat on Black Wind Condor''s back. It was as if they had been transported back many years ago. Looking at the island in the distance, a smile gradually appeared on Ye Futian''s face. Of all the many places that he had been, it was this small island city that brought him the most peace.


    Qingzhou City was so peaceful. It was as if it was apart from this world and asked nothing from it.


    In front of the cottage on the shore of Qingzhou Lake, some men were playing chess while the others gathered to watch.


    Among them, a middle-aged gentleman was dressed in all white. Although he was middle-aged, he was still elegant and handsome. If he were 20 years younger, he would have been an eye-catching character.


    Over the years, Hua Fengliu''s greatest hobby had been chess. After so many years, he had developed a habit of enjoying peace and quiet in leisure.


    There were many people watching.


    At this moment, two people walked behind the crowd and watched quietly, not disturbing anyone.


    However, the temperament of the two newcomers was so outstanding that the people around them couldn''t help but look back at the two, thinking that they were a beautiful couple.


    Moreover, the man looked so young but had a head of silver hair. And the woman, upon closer look, also appeared quite familiar.


    "Young lad, you know something about chess?" asked an old man next to him. Those who watched chess were usually long in the tooth.


    "A little." Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    "How is that guy''s chess skill?" the old man asked, pointing at Hua Fengliu.


    "Not very good," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Wow, you sound very confident." The old man smiled. "Then, you should go in later and challenge him."


    No one had been able to beat this man in chess in the vicinity, and he didn''t know if this young man was bragging or not. However, for once, he would be happy to see someone beat that guy.


    "I have something else to attend to. Let''s call it a day with this game," the person opposite Hua Fengliu said, then begin mixing up the chess pieces. Everyone around them laughed because they knew this guy had lost.


    "Lad, give it a try?" The old man next to him turned his head and looked at Ye Futian, who was behind the crowd.


    "Sure." Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "It''s just that I dare not beat him."


    Previously, Hua Fengliu''s attention had been on the chess game. Over the years, he hadn''t cared much about the world; he had even lost interest in cultivating, so he was a lot less vigilant much than he was before, and he rarely kept watch over his surroundings.


    But, at this moment, when he heard this voice, it sounded so familiar.


    Lifting his head, he looked at the man with the white hair in the crowd, a little stunned. Then he smiled and said, "Why come back when there is nothing for you to come back to?"


    "If I didn''t come back to see you soon, I was afraid I would forget Master," Ye Futian joked.


    "What is forgotten shouldn''t be remembered. I never cared much about you as a disciple, either." Hua Fengliu appeared calm, but Ye Futian knew that this had always been his demeanor.


    Ye Futian was smiling, but his heart was full of pain. The Master had more white hair on his head, and his temples were now gray.


    "Master, look who this is." Ye Futian stepped aside. Behind the crowd, a beautiful figure stood there quietly. When Hua Fengliu saw her, though he was sitting there quietly, the chess piece in his hand fell to the ground.


    He stood up unsteadily. His eyes reddened in an instant.


    "Jieyu." Hua Fengliu walked out to the crowd and came to Hua Jieyu. He stretched out his hand, shakily. His fingertips touched her hair and her face. It was as if he wanted to see if she was real or not.


    His fingertips were also trembling.


    Ye Futian felt even sadder when he saw this. He was sorry for Jieyu and Master. Even though Jieyu was brought back, she was not completely herself just yet.


    "Jieyu, what''s wrong?" Hua Fengliu couldn''t help but ask when he detected the strange look on Jieyu.


    "Master, Jieyu was injured badly. She has forgotten many things. But she will definitely recover in the future," Ye Futian comforted him. That was all he could say for now.


    Hua Fengliu was taken aback. Amnesia?


    There seemed to be a battle in his mind. Then he looked at Hua Jieyu and said, "As long as you are still there."


    All these years, he often thought about his daughter. In his dreams, in his memory, that clever and beautiful figure was a pain that could not be erased.


    Although she had forgotten much, she came back alive. This was already a good outcome, wasn''t it?


    "Jieyu, do you remember me?" Hua Fengliu asked with a trembling voice. It was as if this was too extravagant of a hope.


    Hua Jieyu looked at him quietly, and Hua Fengliu understood. He retracted his hand but found nowhere to place it. He was a little nervous.


    "Let''s go home firs and see your mother." Hua Fengliu wanted to take her hand but soon thought better of it and didn''t.


    "Mmm." Hua Jieyu nodded gently. On the way over, Ye Futian had already prepared her so she would not reject the idea.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian took Hua Jieyu''s hand and followed Hua Fengliu as everyone around watched them leave.


    "Is he Fengliu''s disciple?" an old man asked. Ye Futian, at one time, had caused a great sensation in Qingzhou City, and he was still a legend in the hearts of many young people.


    "Ah, he''s back. How handsome." The others who were around all nodded in agreement.


    Hua Fengliu, Ye Futian, and the others came to the hut. Before they even went in, Hua Fengliu called out, "Wenyin, come and see who is back."


    Before they even got to the inner courtyard, two figures emerged from inside the hut.


    Nandou Wenyin had a smile on her face, but the moment she saw Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, she could no longer move.


    "Jieyu." Nandou Wenyin spoke in a trembling voice, and in just an instant, tears were streaming down all over her face.


    "Daddy," a bell-like voice called out. The figure next to Nandou Wenyin went running toward Hua Fengliu, pulling on his hand.


    It was a little girl about five or six years of age. She was very beautiful; it was just as if she was from a fairy tale. Just one look at her would make anyone involuntarily adore her.


    Ye Futian was just about to address the Masteress before the little girl took over his attention, and he could not look away.


    He seemed to see a shadow of Jieyu''s former self on the little girl. Although the two had a great gap in age, they still bore a great resemblance to one another.


    The girl took Hua Fengliu''s hand and raised her head to look at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. A childish voice came from her mouth, "Daddy, she is so beautiful, like a goddess."


    When Hua Fengliu heard this, he couldn''t help the tears that streamed down his face.


    Yes, little did she know that was her sister, her very own sister.


    Ye Futian stooped down. His eyes were a little red as his hand gently touched the girl''s face. His touches were so light. It was as if a little more power would hurt the girl.


    "What''s your name?" Ye Futian asked softly, his voice extremely gentle.


    "Hua Nianyu." The girl looked at Ye Futian curiously, as a childish voice came out of her small mouth.


    In just an instant, Ye Futian could no longer hold back the tears as they streamed down from his reddened eyes.


    Nianyu. What a beautiful name.


    But this name made his heart break.


    How did the Master and the Masteress get through these difficult years!


    ...

 1720 Smiles

    "Why are you crying?" Nianyu asked Ye Futian softly, as tears covered his face. She reached out with her little hand to wipe away the tears on his face.


    "Because I''m so happy to see Nianyu, and couldn''t help crying out of happiness," Ye Futian said softly.


    Nianyu nodded innocently, just like a porcelain doll. Her big eyes looked at Hua Jieyu. She asked, "Fairy sister, what is your name? How come I feel like I know you?"


    When she heard Hua Nianyu''s childish remarks, Nandou Wenyin burst into tears and walked toward the two of them.


    Hua Jieyu looked down at the little girl in front of her. Even though she had been indifferent until now, she stooped down at this moment and answered softly, "My name is Hua Jieyu."


    "Hua Jieyu." Nianyu repeated after her, then looked up at Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin, who were coming toward them. She looked at Hua Jieyu again and whispered, "Are you my sister?"


    Hua Jieyu looked at the girl with a strange look, then nodded gently, "Mmm."


    Nianyu opened her little arms, then stepped forward to hug Hua Jieyu gently around the neck. She said in a low voice, "Sister, why did you just now come back to see me? Father and mother missed you so very much, and I have been wanting to see you."


    Hua Jieyu''s arms stiffen a bit, but then she hugged the girl gently.


    "Jieyu." Nandou Wenyin came over and knelt down, hugging the two sisters tightly. Just now, Hua Fengliu had told her through voice transmission that Hua Jieyu had suffered amnesia. Nandou Wenyin found this an unbearable reality, but when she thought about the fact that Jieyu had returned alive, she was happy.


    At the time, they had watched Jieyu disappearing in front of them. The pain was unforgettable, and not a day had gone by that they didn''t think of it. They never expected that Jieyu would come back one day.


    Tang Lan also came out, standing a distance away and watching them; her heart felt their pain.


    Over the years, she knew how Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin spent their days. Only after having given birth to Nianyu did they have a new human being upon which they could focus to relieve the pain of the past. But like a thorn at their side that would not be forgotten, they could only pretend that it didn''t exist.


    They had even told Nianyu that her sister had gone to a faraway place.


    Now, it was great to see the family reunited.


    She wiped the tears away from the corner of her eyes. They should all be happy today.


    "Auntie Tang." Ye Futian smiled and called out to her when he saw Tang Lan.


    "Mmm." Tang Lan nodded and said softly, "I''m going to cook now."


    ��


    The small town was very quiet. As Ye Futian settled down in Qingzhou City, many who learned of his return would come over and watch him from afar from time to time. After all, he was Qingzhou City''s very own legend.


    Hua Jieyu''s demeanor was still cold and aloof, but occasionally, when she interacted with Nianyu, there were moments of tenderness.


    However, it was not possible for her to call Hua Fenliu and Nandou Wenyin


    "Mom and Dad."


    Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin had accepted that and thought nothing further. For them, they had once thought that Jieyu left them forever, now felt truly blessed as long as they were able to see her there every day. To them, this was simply a wish come true.


    As long as they could see her.


    Outside in the yard, Ye Futian and Hua Fengliu each sat on a wicker chair, on each side of the doorway, lying there lazily like two door guards.


    "When do you plan to leave?" Hua Fengliu asked softly.


    "You are not coming along?" Ye Futian looked at Hua Fengliu beside him and asked.


    "It''ll be good for us to stay here with Nianyu. It''s better for her to just be an ordinary person, much simpler." Hua Fengliu whispered, "We won''t worry as long as we know that Jieyu is well. When you have time, just bring her back to visit us."


    After having been through so much, Hua Fengliu''s mentality was very different from the one he had in the past. He now preferred simplicity and quietude, and even hoped that Nianyu could live out her life in simplicity and happiness.


    "It''s not so simple." Ye Futian said, "I have enemies, and they have found me at the Barren State. For you to stay here may not give me peace of mind."


    Hua Fengliu was stunned. Had they already chased him to the Barren State?


    He rubbed between his brows and felt a little helpless, saying, "Since accepting you as a disciple, there hasn''t been a day of peace. I don''t know what evil I did in my previous life to deserve this."


    "No matter what, your disciple is now a Renhuang, can you please give me a break?" Ye Futian replied with some resignation.


    "Renhuang," Hua Fengliu murmured. This was the first time he heard Ye Futian talk about his realm, but he still appeared quite casual. He looked at Ye Futian and asked, "Is it very extraordinary?"


    He didn''t seem to understand the concept of Renhuang.


    "Not really." Ye Futian felt completely deflated under Hua Fengliu''s gaze. He figured that even someday, when he became an emperor, it would still be the same in front of this man, who had never spared him any dignity.


    It was pretty soul-crushing.


    "Master, don''t worry, if something happens, I will send someone to escort Nianyu, Master, and Masteress out of there as soon as possible," Ye Futian replied.


    "It''s up to you then," Hua Fengliu said with resignation. Since Ye Futian had already said as much, he could only go along with it. Even though he liked the peace and quiet at present, in reality, he was still worried about Jieyu. If Jieyu really were to come back once several years, he would certainly miss her very much.


    Both he and Nandou Wenyin wanted to watch over Jieyu, regardless of whether she would ever remember him as her father.


    Of course, there was also Ye Futian.


    Although he had never spared Ye Futian in words, his true feeling about Ye Futian was well-known to those who were around him all these years.


    Since many years ago, the two of them��master and disciple��had depended on each other. When Ye Futian walked out of Qingzhou City, carried him on his back, they were already like father and son.


    Over the years, Ye Futian had had many masters, and every one of them had treated Ye Futian very well. But the one that he was truly close to was Hua Fengliu because he was the only one he could communicate freely.


    At this time, Nianyu came over with Hua Jieyu, asking Ye Futian, "Big brother, I will take you and my sister out to play."


    "You take me?" Ye Futian looked at Nianyu.


    "Yep." Nianyu blinked her big eyes and nodded earnestly, "Qingzhou Lake is beautiful at night, and every day there are many pretty girls on the boats."


    "Nianyu has the best ideas." Ye Futian squeezed Nianyu''s face and nodded with a smile, "However, you should call me ''brother-in-law.''"


    "Nianyu likes to call you'' big brother,''" Nianyu said with a chuckle.


    "Fine, whatever you like." Ye Futian got up and picked up Nianyu, saying, "Let''s go."


    Hua Fengliu looked at the three of them leaving. Ye Futian, carrying one in his arm and holding hands with the other. A smile radiated from his slightly aged face.


    Eyes closed, he was enjoying the sunshine quietly, with a smile on his face.


    ...


    For this quiet little town, Qingzhou Lake was quite lively.


    The temperament of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu easily attracted attention, not to mention there was a girl next to them who looked like a porcelain doll.


    "What a handsome pair and what a beautiful child." Many people exclaimed silently, and they smiled when they walked by Ye Futian. Such a beautiful picture lightened up the mood of many.


    This must be a very happy family.


    "Look at how clean and nice other children are, and then look at you." Someone behind them reprimanded a little boy who was six or seven years old, dirty, and obviously naughty.


    "Why don''t you look at that big brother and sister? It''s obviously hereditary, what can I do?" the little boy retorted.


    Ye Futian smiled warmly when he heard the voice behind him. Clearly, many people had mistaken Nianyu as his and Jieyu''s child.


    Of course, there were resemblances.


    Hua Jieyu felt strange when she heard this. Ye Futian looked at her, and realized he kind of wanted a child.


    At this instant, he somewhat understood what the master was feeling.


    After experiencing so much in the outside world, sometimes this kind of simple happiness was really wonderful.


    The shore of Qingzhou Lake was a familiar place with familiar scenery.


    Ye Futian put Nianyu down, holding her with one hand and Hua Jieyu with the other, and said softly, "Jieyu, this is where we held hands for the first time."


    With nightfall approaching, there were more and more boats. Looking at all this, Hua Jieyu, too, felt that it was a very beautiful sight.


    "Big brother, shall we go on a boat?" Nianyu looked up at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stooped down and said to Nianyu, "Nianyu, would you like big brother to play guqin for you?"


    "Sure, my dad likes to play guqin too." Nianyu nodded happily.


    "Let''s go then." Ye Futian took Nianyu''s hand and walked to the shore of the lake. They found a place to sit on the ground, and a guqin appeared in front of him; it was the famous guqin that once belonged to the String Emperor at Taixuan Mountain.


    Nianyu sat quietly next to Ye Futian, holding her little head in her hands, extremely adorable. Everyone around them was looking at them.


    At this time, the sound of the music moved slowly.


    The moment the notes started, the crowd quieted down involuntarily.


    This was a very beautiful tune. With the beating of each note, brilliant lights flashed around Ye Futian, surrounding him.


    "What beautiful music."


    On Qingzhou Lake, many people on the boats looked toward the lake''s shore.


    The white-haired young man, a girl that could only be from a fairy tale, and behind them, a goddess-like beauty.


    Of course, there were those who recognized Ye Futian, and while they were excited inside, they didn''t go up to disturb him; they just listened quietly.


    The sound of guqin gradually became louder, like a phoenix singing, with an even more brilliant light now surrounded Ye Futian. Under the night sky, a radiant divine bird slowly took shape.


    "Look, it''s a phoenix," someone exclaimed, and all eyes were on Ye Futian. The sound of guqin sounded like phoenix singing, and around Ye Futian, a pair of phoenix flew around him, a rather dreamlike sight.


    At this moment, many women on the ships could not help but look intently.


    How beautiful.


    Nianyu also stood up. She came to Ye Futian and watched the phoenix flying around him, a bright and innocent smile on her face. She extended her hand, wanting to touch the phoenix, and saw that the phoenix now flew and danced around her.


    "Big brother, they are following me." As Nianyu began to run, the phoenix trailed around her. The girl smiled brightly, and her laughter rang under the night sky by Qingzhou Lake, made everyone smile.


    This was such a heartwarming event.


    Hua Jieyu watched all this with undivided attention, and a smile actually appeared on her face.


    ...

 1721 Warmth

    After staying in Qingzhou City for a couple of days, Ye Futian left with Hua Fengliu and his family. When the Black Wind Condor spread its wings to depart, many from Qingzhou City watched them leave.


    Although many already knew who Ye Futian was, no one disturbed him except for an occasional stare from a distance. No one expected that he would leave after only two days, so this caught many by surprise.


    There was a woman standing in front of the house, watching them as they were leaving. She stood there for quite a long time afterward.


    With the kind of cultivation that Ye Futian possessed, a single sweep of his divine spirit was enough to see through everyone in Qingzhou City. However, this time he just stayed there quietly for two days without causing any excitement.


    Just as the master preferred peace and quiet nowadays, although his cultivation was superior, he had not interfered with other people''s lives. He could easily change people''s destiny, but in doing so, their course of life would change accordingly. Who knew what the future would bring?


    Qingzhou City was a paradise in his heart.


    But what Ye Futian didn''t know was that after he left, the island city upon the East Sea was gradually being swallowed up by heavy fog and became ever more elusive.


    Upon the East Sea, immediately outside the island city, under the shocked observation of those ships that were traveling in the vicinity, the island became increasingly blurry until it had completely disappeared from their field of vision. All they could see was a cloud of mist.


    In the following month, there were those who left Qingzhou City, entered into the mist, and were never seen again. Gradually, except those who had families in Qingzhou City, no one dared to venture into the mist.


    A few months later, the mist dissipated, but Qingzhou City had completely disappeared; it was as if there had never been such a city that existed in the East Sea.


    Qingzhou City was nothing but an island in the East Sea of ??the East Sea City inside the Nandou Nation. Although it had caused some discussion in the East Sea City, it was soon forgotten by the others. At most, it would only be mentioned years later as an unsolved mystery.


    ��


    Ye Futian too his time on the way over, but when he returned, it took only moments. He had picked up some people on the way, met up with them in the Holy Zhi Palace in the Barren State, and then departed toward Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    After that, from Emperor Xia''s Realm to Crimson Dragon Realm, he took advantage of Crimson Dragon Realm''s teleportation grand matrix to return to Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    It took very little time for him to get back.


    So that by the time they got back, the assessment at Heavenly Mandate Academy had not yet concluded, and countless cultivators from the Nine Realms were still converged inside Heavenly Mandate City.


    Were it not for the cultivators of the Shen clan, Ye Futian might not have brought so many people back. But, since what had happened, he must now guard against the Shen clan. At the very least, those who were close to him could not be left behind in the Lower Worlds for fear that their safety might be threatened by the Shen clan.


    On the back of the Roc, those from the Nine States looked down at the vast crowd below. They also saw the people taking part in the assessment outside the Heavenly Mandate Academy and felt an incomparably powerful breath of the Saint Plane bloomed and filled the space.


    At a glance, cultivators of the Saint Realm were packed in densely like sardines, and all the saints from the Nine States were dumbfounded.


    They were all people at the top in the Nine States, transcendent and holy. However, in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Saint Realm actually looked quite different.


    The hearts of many palpitated. They had thought that the Supreme Region would definitely be different, but they never expected it to be so terrifying.


    "Dongliu, is Saint Plane the general level cultivation of the Heavenly Mandate Realm?" Zhuge Qingfeng asked Gu Dongliu who was beside him. Gu Dongliu and Zhuge Mingyue both stood next to him.


    "No." Gu Dongliu shook his head and said, "Actually, people above the Saint Plane were in the minority. It was just that now we are basically only in contact with those above the Saint Plane, and some were even in the Renhuang Plane. The Heavenly Mandate Academy is the preaching holy land of Heavenly Mandate Realm, all the cultivators of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms have come to participate in the assessment of the Academy, which means that the people you see in front of you were all the elite of the Nine Realms."


    Zhuge Qingfeng nodded. This was easy to understand. People at different levels would naturally be surrounded by different levels of people.


    "Of course, the greater environment of the Upper Worlds and the Lower Worlds is different, much easier for cultivation, and the Saint Plane is not as difficult to achieve as in the Lower Worlds," Gu Dongliu added.


    "Do you all feel very discouraged?" Zhuge Qingfeng smiled as he looked at Douzhan and others next to him. A few of those old guys completely had no place here.


    They all smiled a feebly.


    There were too many people below, and at a glance, it was just a vast crowd, and all of their cultivation was so high that it was a bit frightening.


    The Roc spread its wings and came to the outer peripheral of Heavenly Mandate Academy. The people below saw the white-haired young man on the back of the Roc, and suddenly many people bowed and called out, "Emperor Ye."


    "Greetings to Emperor Ye."


    Many people bowed and saluted Ye Futian, demonstrating a lot of respect, especially the youngsters.


    Now, Ye Futian was a legend among the younger generation; he was their belief and their idol.


    Their respect was from the heart. Who else had the courage to lead a great army and challenge the Shen clan?


    They looked at each other, and there was shock in their eyes. Ye Futian didn''t explain to them the actual situation here.


    Ye Futian''s status seemed to be very high and lofty.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly toward the people below, as the Roc entered straight away inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, swooping down toward the center.


    When the Roc landed, Ye Futian said, "Here."


    As he was speaking, they went down, and the Roc turned into human form. Around them, many a figure flickered their way over, many of them were prominent figures from the academy. They were saying, "You are back."


    "Mmm." Ye Futian nodded.


    Then, there were some youngsters who rushed over. Not many knew Ye Futian had gone away this time. After he returned with so many people in tow, inevitably, it would attract a lot of curiosity.


    The saints from the Nine States felt the aura from those people, and they couldn''t help but feel a little nervous. The strongest person they had ever seen before was Emperor Xia, but from Emperor Xia''s Realm to the Crimson Dragon Realm, and then to Heavenly Mandate Realm, they all understood that Emperor Xia was simply no comparison with the older generation of cultivators here because they were simply not on the same level.


    Those people who stood there felt unfathomable. Just how strong were they? Only heaven knew.


    They had never come into contact with such strong people.


    Although Hua Fengliu had feigned disdain when he was in Qingzhou City, he certainly understood that Ye Futian was a true power now, and he had reached an unattainable height.


    Of course, Hua Fengliu was not too surprised. He was one of the few people who knew Ye Futian''s greatest secret. Back then, in front of Emperor Ye Qing''s statue, he was the one who protected Ye Futian with his own life, when this guy claimed to be a natural-born emperor as a teenager.


    It was just that he had no concept of what an extensive impact it would have at the time.


    "Big brother." Hua Nianyu walked next to Ye Futian, took his hand, and looked up at him timidly.


    After all, Hua Nianyu, who grew up in Qingzhou City, was only a five-year-old girl. She was a little scared because she had never seen anything like it.


    Ye Futian bowed slightly and picked her up in his arms, and said softly, "Don''t be afraid. From now on, everyone here will be your grandpas, uncles, and aunties. You can call them whatever you want, and they will all like you."


    "Mmm." Nianyu nodded gently, still holding onto Ye Futian''s neck tightly.


    A five-year-old child was very sensitive to the sentiments of those around her. Ye Futian''s was so gentle and indulgent toward her so that even though she couldn''t quite understand it, she was very close to Ye Futian.


    Even her own sister, Hua Jieyu, was not so close to her. After all, although Hua Jieyu was very good to her, she rarely smiled.


    "What a cute little thing." Many people showed a kind look when they saw Nianyu. This little thing was way too adorable.


    "She''s pretty." Xiao Muyu stepped forward and pinched Nianyu''s cheek. She then smiled and said, "Let me give you a hug?"


    "Big sister, you are so beautiful." Nianyu grinned and then turned around in shyness, still holding on to Ye Futian''s neck.


    Xiao Muyu blinked and looked at Ye Futian, asking, "Master, whose child is this? She''s so smart."


    "Your grandmaster''s child, Jieyu''s younger sister," Ye Futian smiled and answered. Then, he looked at Hua Fengliu and Douzhan next to him and said, "This is the grandmaster, this is also..."


    "..."


    Xiao Muyu''s expression was particularly worth watching. But she still bowed to Hua Fengliu and Douzhan and said, "Disciple Xiao Muyu greets the grandmaster and other elders."


    "How did you trick them into becoming your disciples?" Hua Fengliu whispered.


    He could see that this beautiful woman with extraordinary temperament had a very high level of cultivation.


    "Master, what do you mean ''trick''? They were perfectly willing. Ask Muyu if you don''t believe me." Ye Futian was a little offended.


    "Grandmaster, it was out of my own will to follow the master," Xiao Muyu said with a small smile. She could see that these people were probably the master''s family.


    The master, who was considered as the most genius talent in the Supreme Region, had indeed come from the Lower Worlds.


    "Hello, two masters, disciple Dou Zhao here!" Dou Zhao jumped out and shouted cheerfully.


    "You are everywhere." Ye Futian said with a laugh. But this guy''s cultivation was somewhat similar to that of master Douzhan. As for the names of Sage Douzhan and Saint Douzhan, they were both honorific titles, and his real name was not known to many.


    "Dou Zhao, this master is suitable to cultivate methods from your clan. You two can figure it out yourselves." He pointed to Douzhan.


    "Sounds great! The master can choose any top methods you like," Dou Zhao said readily.


    "Isn''t it a little inappropriate for me to do that?" Douzhan could tell that Dou Zhao''s realm was far stronger than him.


    "Master need not be polite. If he''s willing to give, you can choose at will," Ye Futian smiled.


    "Yes, Yes, Master needs not be polite." Dou Zhao nodded in agreement.


    Douzhan smiled a little weakly.


    "Futian." At this time, Lord Taixuan and the others also came over and asked, "Family?"


    "Mmm." Ye Futian nodded and introduced to everyone, "Lord Taixuan, the dean of the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    "Greetings." When everyone heard Ye Futian''s introduction, they knew that this must be an esteemed person, and they were all being respectful.


    "No need to be so formal." Lord Taixuan said, "Futian, since it is your family, you will do well to get them settled."


    "Yes."


    "What''s the girl''s name?" Lord Taixuan looked at Nianyu.


    "Grandpa, my name is Hua Nianyu," Nianyu said softly.


    "Good girl, give me a hug?" Lord Taixuan was kind and gentle, just like any other ordinary elder.


    This time Nianyu looked at Ye Futian first, and when she saw Ye Futian nodding, she reached out with her hand.


    Lord Taixuan took her and held her carefully, revealing a loving smile that had never been seen before. After living for such a long time, he had not yet enjoyed this kind of joy.


    "Since Nianyu called me grandfather, would you mind me treating her like my own granddaughter?" Lord Taixuan looked at Hua Fengliu and said with a smile.


    "The elder''s affection is Nianyu''s blessing," Hua Fengliu smiled and nodded. Before, he had hoped that Nianyu would spend a normal life in Qingzhou City. However, since they were here now, it was better for them to adapt to things.


    With the affection of such a prominent figure, how could he mind?


    "Lord Taixuan and all the elders, Nianyu''s talent may be a little lacking by nature, but we will leave her cultivation to you in the future," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "That is no problem, I''m still here, aren''t I?" Lord Taixuan said with a smile. His realm was enough to change lives and alter destinies, so a little lacking in natural talent was of no concern to him.


    Many were looking at the little girl in Lord Taixuan''s arms, and they all knew that the girl''s future was bound to be extraordinary.


    Of course, they could also see that Ye Futian''s position in this Heavenly Mandate Academy was significantly superior!


    ...

 1722 Thoughts

    The people from the Nine States stayed in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The Academy looked like a city after expansion and had enough rooms to accommodate the large group of people from the Nine States.


    After that, Ye Futian introduced the guests one by one and asked some people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy to help the guests from the Nine States to cultivate.


    Zhuge Qingfeng and other members of the Zhuge Family obtained the thunder methods after defeating the Nine Cloud Palace, which was well known for the thunder methods back in the days. The Zhuge Family also occupied some Thunder God relics of the Nine Cloud Palace. Therefore, Ye Futian invited people who pursued the thunder methods to cultivate at the relics.


    In the meantime, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven would help the Zhuge Family cultivate. Gu Dongliu was the clan lord of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and had no problem with attending to his father-in-law.


    Ye Futian asked Douzhan to follow the seniors of the Dou tribe to cultivate.


    As for Yuan Zhan and Yuan Hong, Ye Futian introduced them to Zhu Yan the Demon Emperor and the Demon Emperor of the Thunder Gods. Yuan Hong and the others belonged to a Golden Ape Clan and were naturally excited about the meeting.


    Ye Futian had arrangements for the rest of the people as well.


    Ye Futian would certainly make sure that they made headways in cultivation since he brought these people to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They could achieve breakthroughs even if they reached bottlenecks before.


    Ye Futian wasn''t worried about Nianyu''s cultivation progress at all. He had confidence in Nianyu, as much as he did in Feixue. Feixue had her grandmother as her mentor while Nianyu had Lord Taixuan and many other masters in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. She could learn anything she wanted in the future.


    Ye Futian had been busy taking care of these matters recently. The Heavenly Mandate Academy also wrapped up the disciple''s selection. Some people were eliminated, yet some were ecstatic to be the first class of disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The small group of cultivators who became the core disciples were especially thrilled.


    Maybe they would have a chance to develop the super Divine Wheel when they attempted the Renhuang Plane if they could be lucky enough to receive some help from Ye Futian in the future.


    The people from the Nine States eventually dispersed, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy returned to normal. However, it was still bustling and lively because of the new disciples.


    Besides, the population of Heavenly Mandate City grew as well. Even though many left, there were still plenty of people who chose to stay and cultivate in Heavenly Mandate City.


    Ye Futian finally had some free time after having his hands full for many days straight.


    Although Hua Jieyu spent most of her time cultivating, she would still set cultivation aside to indulge Nianyu whenever she saw her.


    At the moment, Ye Futian was watching the conversation between Hua Jieyu and Nianyu at where Hua Jieyu cultivated. Of course, Nianyu was the one talking most of the time, while Hua Jieyu responded every now and then.


    Looking at the pleasant and delightful scene, Ye Futian cracked a gentle smile. How wonderful it would be if Jieyu came back for real. She must be very happy to see Nianyu.


    However, Ye Futian started to suspect Hua Jieyu''s real identity more and more. He previously speculated that Hua Jieyu might be possessed by the Brahma''s Pure Sky Empress. But why would someone like the Empress be interrupted by a little girl in the middle of her cultivation? She probably wouldn''t bother to talk to Nianyu at all.


    Besides, the feelers he put out before, like holding her hands, were eventually accepted by Hua Jieyu in spite of her initial resistance.


    It made him believe that Hua Jieyu was not controlled by the Empress. She seemed more like a blank piece of paper in Ye Futian''s eyes as she was not interested in anything else but cultivation.


    But maybe she was drawn to Hua Nianyu by nature.


    Just now, a person walked toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian focused his eyes on the incoming woman. Her face was beautiful and ethereal.


    "How can I help, Goddess?" Ye Futian asked with a smile. The woman was the Xuantian Goddess.


    "This girl is disrupting her cultivation by coming here frequently," answered the Xuantian Goddess. She was ordered by the Empress before she came here that Hua Jieyu''s cultivation was more important than anything else in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "It''s not necessary for you to interfere if she doesn''t think so herself." Ye Futian answered, smiling.


    The Xuantian Goddess frowned slightly. It seemed that Hua Jieyu didn''t stop Nianyu from coming to play indeed.


    "She came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate. I hope you can keep a tight rein on her," said the Xuantian Goddess.


    Ye Futian gazed at Nianyu and smiled softly.


    "That is your purpose, not mine." Ye Futian replied in a calm voice, "You can leave anytime you want if you don''t like it. I won''t stop you."


    After that, Ye Futian walked to Hua Jieyu.


    The Xuantian Goddess shot a cold glance at Ye Futian. As one of the Jiutian Goddesses, she enjoyed a high status in the Brahma''s Pure Sky. As talented as Ye Futian was, he was only a junior in her eyes.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian didn''t show due respect for her at all now.


    She certainly understood that the Ye Futian here and now was no longer the same person who went to the Xuantian Pavilion back in the days. The Brahma''s Pure Sky couldn''t possibly manipulate him anymore.


    This white-haired young man was almost the king without a crown in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    He could lead the army to attack the Shen clan with one order. He had already wiped out the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Nine Cloud Palace. They were standing right now on where the Palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was in the past.


    Even the Empress probably wouldn''t be able to pressure Ye Futian inside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, let alone her.


    She had no choice but to back off.


    "Jieyu," Ye Futian walked to her and called her name.


    Hua Jieyu raised her head and looked at Ye Futian. Her beautiful eyes were as calm as usual.


    "Let''s go to cultivate in the matrix together." Ye Futian offered his hand. Hua Jieyu hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded slightly and placed her hand on Ye Futian''s palm.


    "Brother, I want to cultivate with you too," Nianyu lifted her chin and said to Ye Futian.


    "Have you visited Grandpa Xuan today?" Ye Futian rubbed Nianyu''s head and asked.


    Nianyu lowered her head and pursed her lips, then said in a quiet voice, "Grandpa Xuan doesn''t like Nianyu anymore."


    "How so?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "Grandpa Xuan said he wants to rebuild the foundation for me and asked me to sit there without moving. It''s so tiring. I have so much stuff in my head every time he is done, and I can see different colors around me. Am I sick?" Nianyu raised her eyes and looked at Ye Futian innocently.


    "How could you be sick? That stuff is the Worldly Spiritual Qi that can make you prettier, among many other things." Ye Futian laughed.


    "Oh." Nianyu nodded gently, said, "No wonder it seems like it''s easier for me to learn when I hear father playing the guqin."


    Ye Futian smiled. A few people walked past the Xuantian Goddess. Ye Futian turned back and took a brief look at her, said, "I have something to tell you. I told Jieyu''s parents that she lost her memory and was saved by the Empress Her Majesty. I hope you don''t put me in an awkward position in the future. Otherwise, I have no choice but to show you the door."


    The Xuantian Goddessf''s face turned somber. Ye Futian was threatening her.


    Ye Futian had the confidence to do so nowadays.


    Staring at his receding figure, the Xuantian Goddess knew that it would not be easy to take Hua Jieyu back even though they sent her here to cultivate in the first place.


    Ye Futian wouldn''t let Hua Jieyu go.


    The Empress wanted Hua Jieyu to make progress in the Academy, while Ye Futian set his heart on keeping her here. Therefore, he didn''t mind helping Hua Jieyu cultivate.


    The Xuantian Goddess had no solution in the face of Ye Futian''s threats.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was Ye Futian''s territory.


    She only realized now that nothing was up to them anymore since they came here.


    While walking, Ye Futian looked at Nianyu and asked, "Nianyu, can we go see Grandpa Xuan?"


    "Yes." Nianyu nodded sweetly.


    "Loulan, take her there." Ye Futian turned his head and said to Loulan Xue.


    She had been taking care of Nianyu these days.


    "Yes." Loulan Xue stepped forward. Nianyu let go of Ye Futian''s hand and left with Loulan Xue.


    Ye Futian went to the cultivation grounds and met Xia Qingyuan.


    She looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu and darted a glance at their hands holding together. A strange look flashed in her eyes yet disappeared shortly. They were husband and wife, after all.


    "Qingyuan, do you need me?" Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    "No." Xia Qingyuan shook her head slightly, said, "Carry on. I''m going to cultivate."


    She replied and walked away, then turned back after a few steps, said, "I plan to be in seclusion to cultivate for a while. Can I go to look for you when I am ready to attempt the Renhuang Plane?"


    "Of course." Ye Futian answered pleasantly. He already guessed that was why Xia Qingyuan wanted to talk to him.


    "Qingyuan, you obtained a divine item from the God''s relic. You can merge it with the Life Spirit to transform your Life Spirit and create the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. With my help, you will definitely develop a perfect Divine Wheel. Don''t worry and concentrate on cultivation," Ye Futian said.


    "Yes, I understand." Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly and left.


    Was she about to try out the Renhuang Plane?


    She didn''t seem to be excited.


    She always wanted to advance to Renhuang, return to the Emperor Xia''s Realm, and take over her father''s position. Emperor Xia was eager to come out to cultivate, but he couldn''t leave without someone in the realm to inherit his throne.


    She would be able to free her father from the burden when she became the Renhuang.


    She had a sense of loss whenever she thought about it.


    She wasn''t so thrilled about the Renhuang Plane. It was a complicated feeling.


    "Let''s cultivate in seclusion for a while as well after taking care of the matters in hand," Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was stepping onto the right track. He hoped to focus on cultivation in seclusion for a few years after everything calmed down.


    Nowadays, the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan didn''t dare to bother him. The conflicts between him and other forces were not as serious and heated. They wouldn''t risk stirring up trouble.


    Thus, the Nine Realms should be relatively quiet in the next few years, at least to him.


    Nonetheless, the calmness was only temporary. He would only be confident enough to face the next storm if he kept improving himself by constant cultivation.


    He was not where he wanted to be yet. He discovered that it was never enough, no matter how high he reached or how studiously he cultivated.


    Perhaps, he could only enjoy the absolute freedom when he hit the peak!


    ...

 1723 Divine Prefecture Calendar Year 10,040

    Divine Prefecture Calendar, Year 10,040. It had been four years since the Heavenly Mandate Academy was founded.


    In the past four years, the Heavenly Mandate Realm was more peaceful than any previous era. After the battle with the Shen clan, no one dared to provoke the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Within the Heavenly Mandate Realm, with the Heavenly Mandate Academy as the center, the forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm themselves were almost in themselves, a great alliance. The human realm of cultivation and the demonic realm were no longer at odds but cultivated together. Although there were countless disputes occurring daily in the realm of cultivation, the competitions between top forces were gone.


    To the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm, it was considered a peaceful era.


    Some people had divided the history of the Heavenly Mandate Realm into different eras. If the era before was considered a time when warlords reigned, then the Heavenly Mandate Realm today could be said to have officially entered an era led by the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The entire Heavenly Mandate Realm was centered around the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    In the past few years, the number of cultivators of Heavenly Mandate City had expanded rapidly, showing explosive growth, so that for those whose cultivation was not strong enough, they almost could not gain a foothold here. People whose cultivation was below the Saint Plane, unless relying on familial influence, was almost scraping the bottom of the cultivation world in Heavenly Mandate City.


    Today was the day for the selection of core disciples at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Every year at this time, some spaces were allotted so that some disciples may enter the core of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Of course, the cultivators inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy sort of knew that in the interior of the academy, there was a place called The Cottage. It was the absolute core of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, directly under the command of Ye Futian. Those who had possessed the perfect Divine Wheels in the battle with the Shen clan were all disciples of The Cottage.


    At this time, there was a huge sect gymnasium inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy. There were several Law Battle Platforms, and many people were fighting there.


    Out front, on the high platform, several people were sitting there, presiding over the selection process of core disciples.


    There were nine of them in total. Besides the seven elders, there were also two younger people.


    Many disciples from the Heavenly Mandate Academy gathered in the surrounding area, even if they were not on the selection list, they still looked forward to the selection process of core disciples.


    "This is the first time that Senior Brother Chu Yu appeared in this capacity." In the distance, there were many disciples who were rather envious.


    However, they were the first group. When the Tianshen Academy was first established, Gai Cang, the Overlord of the Golden Divine Nation, and the cultivators of the Shen clan descended in force, so that almost no one dared to approach the academy. Chu Yu was one of the first three who entered the academy. Many people guessed that perhaps from that time on, he had already been regarded as an important person to be brought up in leadership.


    "Well, I heard that Senior Brother Chu Yu was the first to enter that place and was the only disciple of the Heavenly Mandate Academy who was not previously acquainted with Emperor Ye," someone said softly.


    Many people knew what place he was referring to. The Cottage inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy was a mysterious place that was not made public to the outside world.


    But those who cultivated in the Heavenly Mandate Academy more or less knew something about it.


    In the past few years, several people had entered the Cottage, but only Chu Yu, who had not known Ye Futian before, was the first to enter The Cottage by his own ability.


    "So, it is possible that Senior Brother Chu Yu could cast the Divine Wheel of the Great Path..." Some showed a sharpness in their eyes, and there were some speculations in their minds.


    "Brother Chu Yu was an extremely famous figure in Heavenly Mandate City even before that. The Crown Prince of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, Yi Tianyu, once tried to coax Chu Yu to accompany him in cultivation, so his talent was without doubt. However, Emperor Ye and the others truly didn''t care about his relationship with the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty." Some people couldn''t help but secretly admire him.


    The operations of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were fairly transparent. This matter also demonstrated the generosity of Ye Futian and the elders of the academy.


    They didn''t care much about the candidate''s background or past.


    It was said that the Chu clan in Heavenly Mandate City had already designated Chu Yu as the next clan leader.


    "Senior sister Feixue became an emperor at such a young age. Wasn''t the conflict with the Shen clan caused by Sister Feixue?" Someone looked at the other young person sitting above, and it was Feixue.


    "Senior Sister Feixue is actually not that young, but it was said that she used to fall into deep sleep often, almost in a state of suspended animation. Now that she''s being guided in cultivation by the peerless goddess of the Shen clan, Shen Luoxue, how could she not become an emperor?" Someone said, "And besides, there is also..."


    The people around nodded. It was rumored that Feixue still had a divine item in her body, and she was also the daughter of Ye Futian''s master. It was completely reasonable that she became an emperor.


    At this time, on the high platform, someone who had just passed the screening came over, looking at the nine people in front of him.


    "He Feng, Saint Plane of Nirvana." An old man who was sitting in the middle said, "Suppose one day in the future you are a Renhuang, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy encounters a crisis just like four years ago, with the great army descending on the academy. If you participated in the battle, you will most likely lose your life. What will you do?"


    "If the Heavenly Mandate Academy thinks that the battle can be won, then I will fight; if it thinks that it cannot be won, then I will run. If one day I have the ability to avenge, I will; if not, I will choose to continue cultivating quietly," He Feng responded.


    The elder looked at the others, lingered especially on Feixue, and then looked at He Feng and nodded, "Congratulations on passing the assessment."


    He Feng bowed slightly to everyone, then stepped aside.


    After that, someone else came forward, and the questions were still simple.


    However, the results were different. Some passed, and some didn''t.


    The people who had reached this point had, in fact, already passed the talent screening. As long as the nine people were in agreement, they could become core disciples.


    This year''s assessment format was different from years past. It was really the simplest yet. Just a few questions, or even just one question.


    At this time, another person came forward. This person exuded a dazzling divine light and a supernatural temperament; he was a Renhuang.


    Most people who entered the Heavenly Mandate Academy were in the Saint Realm, but there were also a few Renhuang.


    Or rather, those who broke through and became Renhuang in the training process at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Not just any Renhuang could enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The rule of the Heavenly Mandate Academy dictated that they would still need to go through a selection process.


    "Yan Huang of the Solar Realm, Divine Wheel first-order, cast the Divine Wheel of the Celestial Level." The old man looked at him and said, "Why would you not enter the Solar Divine Palace to cultivate but choose the Heavenly Mandate Academy instead?"


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is famous in all of the Nine Realms, do I need any other reason?" Yan Huang replied with a smile.


    "If your cultivation at the Heavenly Mandate Academy is not satisfactory, it will not help you much, because you are already in the realm of Renhuang, and there are no other strong elders to guide you in your cultivation. But if admitted, at some point in the future, you may be required to do something for the academy, would you be willing?" the old man asked.


    This question, stated bluntly, was to ask him if the Heavenly Mandate Academy couldn''t help in furthering his cultivation, would he still be willing to pay the price.


    Yan Huang didn''t answer immediately. His pupils contracted slightly. But then he smiled casually, "Since I have entered the academy, I am a member of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If the academy has any needs, of course, I will do my best to help."


    "What if there is danger?" the old man asked again.


    "If the danger is great, I might consider it. But if the danger is low, I will be willing to do it," Yan Huang replied.


    The old man nodded, then looked to the others, as if they were secretly transmitting messages.


    After a while, the old man said, "Yan Huang, assessment failed."


    "..."


    The pupils of the people in the distance contracted. Failed?


    How could it be?


    Yan Huang''s cultivation was inordinately advanced, and he was quite well-known among his peers. His strength was mighty, and his demeanor aloof.


    But he actually failed during the selection process for core disciples.


    What was wrong with his answer?


    Yan Huang was also in shock. A scorching glow shot out from his eyes as he stared at the old man, he asked, "Why?"


    "You''ll still have a chance in the future." The old man did not respond directly but replied with a smile.


    Although he was sitting in the middle seat for the assessment, the actual decision-maker was Feixue, who was sitting next to him. She was the sole person who determined the results in the last phase of the assessment.


    In fact, even if a few of the others didn''t quite understand Feixue''s reasons, but everyone sitting here were key members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and they would have never doubted such a high-level decision.


    As for the reason behind Yan Huang''s failure, it was actually very simple, because Feixue saw that all his answers were nothing but lies.


    Heavenly Mandate Academy would rather choose those disciples with lesser talents over those cultivators who were keen on infiltrating the core of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. These core disciples would be the mainstay of the academy in the future.


    "I want to know the reason," Yan Huang insisted.


    The old man frowned, but heard Feixue answered, "You are a cultivator of the Solar Divine Palace, correct?"


    Yan Huang''s pupils contracted, and he now looked at Feixue, who was sitting beside the old man.


    How could she know that there was a problem in his answer?


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is said to recruit disciples regardless of background, so what does it matter whether I am a disciple of the Solar Divine Palace or not?" Yan Huang did not answer but looked at Feixue instead.


    "Indeed, we don''t question your background. If you are a disciple of the Solar Divine Palace, you could very well enter the academy as such. However, if you deliberately lie to conceal your identity, it just cast more doubts on your true purpose." Feixue said, "I will report this matter to the academy. "


    The disciples who were watching from a distance were stunned. Yan Huang was actually a member of the Solar Divine Palace.


    But why would he hide it?


    "Goodbye." Yan Huang turned around to walk away. Since he failed, he was going to leave the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It seemed that the Heavenly Mandate Academy had secretly investigated him.


    "Yan Huang, don''t leave the Heavenly Mandate Academy for the next few days." Another voice was heard; it was Chu Yu.


    Yan Huang turned around and glanced at Chu Yu, "You have no right to give me orders."


    After that, he took great steps forward.


    However, Chu Yu also stood up, and in an instant, a violent power of the Great Path shrouded Yan Huang.


    Yan Huang''s face changed slightly as he turned to face Chu Yu. "I have heard your name many times while cultivating at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. I guess I can see for myself today."


    "You are not worthy," Chu Yu said. He stepped into the void, and the power of the terrifying Divine Wheel of the Great path swept out from his body and rushed into Yan Huang''s, causing his Divine Wheel to tremble, and it was suppressed.


    Bang. Chu Yu took a step forward, and Yan Huang was knocked backward, hard.


    "I suspect that you have entered the Heavenly Mandate Academy with ulterior motives and will report this to the Law Enforcement Hall for further investigation. If you leave without authorization, know that you are doing so at your own risk," Chu Yu said forcefully, and suddenly, Yan Huang looked extremely upset.


    The elder who was sitting there now looked calmer. In the past few years, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had grown extremely quickly. While it looked prosperous and peaceful on the outside, the reality was that it had already been infiltrated by many other principalities, each with their own motivation. It seemed that they really need to think the matter over carefully!


    ...

 1724 Dark Currents

    After four years, the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s internal operations were already well- developed.


    The Supreme Elder of Heavenly Mandate Academy was in charge of the Law Enforcement Hall, and it was none other than Shen Luoxue, who was once the goddess of the Shen clan.


    Those in the Shen clan possessed a special talent, and under the survey of the Divine Eyes, there was no secret that could be hidden from them.


    The incident with Yan Huang was personally investigated by Shen Luoxue, who rarely involved herself in day-to-day affairs. The final result was that Yan Huang was indeed an undercover agent, whose purpose was to infiltrate into the core of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He was to collect information and to get a hold of secrets inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Of course, no details were disclosed to the public. Shen Luoxue''s investigation revealed that Yan Huang was to find out how Ye Futian was able to create the perfect Divine Wheel, what he had gotten from inside the God''s relic, and to obtain some exclusive methods in cultivation and to bring them back to the Solar Divine Palace.


    In truth, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was a principality in preaching, not a clan. It did not necessarily require a strong sense of loyalty from its disciples. Since leaving after their cultivation had concluded wasn''t an issue for the academy, the assessment process was not actually as strict. As long as there are no great concerns, it was not insurmountable to become a core disciple.


    But to become a disciple of the Cottage, or even to enter the absolute center of the academy, would require a strong sense of loyalty to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    However, this did not mean that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would permit any actions that would endanger the Academy.


    Therefore, the punishment for Yan Huang was to abolish his cultivation and expelled him from the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    They did not announce the true identity of Yan Huang, though it was really not so much a secret. Their discretion was to save the Solar Divine Palace the humiliation. As for the abolition of Yan Huang''s cultivation, if the Solar Divine Palace was not afraid of offending the Heavenly Mandate Academy by sending in a spy, the Academy wouldn''t care too much about the consequences of the punishment. It was all done with mutual understanding.


    The incident this time was meant to set an example for the others. And it was the first time that the Heavenly Mandate Academy had sent such a warning to the people inside the Academy. The place of preaching also meant that no internal conflicts were allowed.


    In the Sword Pavilion at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a horrible sword intent flowed inside a sword matrix, with many figures sitting there quietly.


    After a long while, a mild chiding was heard as the sword intent dissipated, and the power of the sword matrix disappeared.


    "Although my Lord and Ye Wuchen have both reached the level of the sword emperor, their swordsmanship feels totally different," Wang Chuan replied.


    "Take the best from the experts but comprehend your own swordsmanship." The Swordmaster of Lihen nodded slightly.


    "It''s so depressing." The person beside Wan Chuan sighed. "We all cultivated together back then. Now even Wuchen had proven the Way, and I am not even within reach of Nirvana."


    The speaker was Xu Que, the young master of Tingxue House in the land of the Nine States. His father, Xu Shang, was next to him, saying, "Everyone''s fortune is different. You will have your shot in the future."


    "Father, let''s not talk about me. Look at yourself; you are not even at my level," Xu Que shrugged.


    "Get outta here..." Xu Shang cursed, embarrassment written all over his face. This b*stard was looking to get hurt.


    "Wuchen and I have had our own adventures, and we''ve had better luck." The Swordmaster of Lihen appeared very calm, without the slightest air of an elder.


    When they were at Emperor Xia''s Realm, Renhuang were legends. But in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, being a Renhuang was nothing worth showing off.


    "Uncle Xu and Xu Que''s cultivation path is similar to that of the Clan of the Seven Slayers. Futian meant that you could ask them for some advice," Ye Wuchen said. The Clan of the Seven Slayers had quite a few people who were currently cultivating at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The Heavenly Mandate Academy generally welcomed everyone, as long as they were not sneaky like the Solar Divine Palace.


    "Don''t be depressed. With all these years spent at Crimson Dragon Realm and the Heavenly Mandate Academy, you''ve already cultivated fast enough." Next to him, Huang Jiuge spoke with a smile, and Xu Que nodded. This was the truth; back then, they would have never been able to imagine today''s scenario.


    At that time in the Nine States, Saint Plane was already legendary, enough to stand on top of the Nine States.


    And now, they were looking forward to the realm of Renhuang.


    "Renhuang." Huang Jiuge remarked in his heart. His own ancestors were in the realm of Renhuang, and now he had the opportunity to reach the realm of his ancestors. For the past few years, Ye Futian had spent a lot of time on them. He would come and visit them whenever he came out of the retreat and provided them the best resources for cultivation.


    These young people aside, even those from the older generation in the Nine States, who had all reached bottleneck in their own cultivation, had their realms abruptly smashed through in recent years.


    Douzhan, for example, was cultivating the powerful body refining formula of the Dou tribe, constantly breaking through the limit of his own physical body, and tempering his spiritual will power by various means. In such ways, even previous limitations could be broken.


    "How is Futian''s cultivation? I wonder if he will break into the second level of the Divine Wheel," Xu Que whispered. In the past few years, Ye Futian''s cultivation had been intermittent, and most of his time, besides spending on cultivation, was spent on being with Hua Jieyu and Nianyu.


    "He just came out of the retreat and went to Uncle Hua''s, so let''s not disturb him for the time being," Huang Jiuge smiled and said, and Xu Que nodded in agreement. Clearly, they won''t deprive Ye Futian of the opportunity to enjoy some peace and quiet.


    ��


    In the residential palace where Hua Fengliu was located, Nandou Wenyin had already prepared a table of food. Although Ye Futian no longer required meal intake at this point in his cultivation, he still quite enjoyed the simplicity and warmth afforded by sharing a meal.


    "Nianyu hasn''t come back yet from cultivation?" Ye Futian smiled and asked.


    "It should be soon," Nandou Wenyin replied.


    "Brother, sister." Just as they were chatting, a clear voice came from outside, and a little girl, like a little fairy, came running toward Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Nianyu stretched out her hands to Ye Futian, indicating that she wanted to be picked up.


    "Hey, you are too old for this." Ye Futian smiled and rubbed Nianyu''s head. The girl was now nine years old, and she still wanted him to pick her up every time she saw him.


    "We''ll stop when I''m ten." Nianyu looked at Ye Futian pitifully.


    "Deal. Let''s see how heavy you are now." Ye Futian indulgently picked Hua Nianyu up, and the girl suddenly burst into a bright smile.


    "How''s your cultivation coming along?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Grandpa Xuan said that I''ve got potential and that I will definitely be better than you in the future." Nianyu looked at Ye Futian with her big eyes.


    "That''s for sure, Nianyu has to be better than me," Ye Futian smiled and nodded, and put Nianyu on the chair.


    When everyone sat down, Nandou Wenyin looked at Loulan Xue and said, "Loulan, come and sit with us."


    "No." Loulan Xue shook her head.


    "Come and sit together," Ye Futian turned his head and said to her.


    Loulan Xue glanced at him, then nodded gently, and sat down on the other side of Nianyu.


    "You''ve worked hard these years, don''t delay your own cultivation," Ye Futian said to Loulan Xue.


    "Mmm," Loulan Xue nodded slightly. Although her cultivation was weak, she couldn''t have imagined all that was before her eyes.


    "However, if you return to the Nine States now, you would be someone great and could even become a clan lord in your own right," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Loulan Xue gave him a look and said, "I''m not going back."


    "Um..." Ye Futian didn''t expect Loulan Xue to be so sensitive. Upon seeing his gaze, Loulan Xue explained, "I like Nianyu very much. I would be happy to take care of her for the foreseeable future."


    "Well, Sister Loulan is very good to me." Nianyu said, "I don''t want Sister Loulan to leave."


    "I didn''t ask Sister Loulan to leave," Ye Futian pinched Nianyu''s face and replied.


    Nandou Wenyin watched in silence. She smiled and said, "The food is getting cold. Let''s eat."


    She was a woman, so she understood what Loulan Xue was thinking. This girl was way too stubborn. She would rather stay by Ye Futian''s side as a handmaid.


    "Well, Masteress, please eat." Ye Futian started serving Nandou Wenyin some of the dishes and then did the same for Jieyu.


    "It''s enough to take good care of your own wife." Hua Fengliu glared at Ye Futian, and then took the initiative to serve Nandou Wenyin. Of course, he also did so for Tang Lan, who was next to him.


    Ye Futian had a completely innocent look on his face. "Master, you are too..."


    "Don''t mind him," Nandou Wenyin said with a smile.


    "Big brother, eat." Next to him, Hua Nianyu copied Ye Futian and started serving him the dishes.


    "Nianyu, what about me?" Hua Fengliu looked at Nianyu and said.


    "Dad, you have mom to help you," Nianyu looked at Hua Fengliu innocently with her big eyes.


    "..." Hua Fengliu looked at her, dumbfounded, and then at Nandou Wenyin, who was clearly trying not to laugh... He felt like a total failure.


    When he thought of that, he gave Ye Futian another dirty look.


    Ye Futian shrugged and stifled a smile on his face.


    The family enjoyed the meal together. Afterward, Ye Futian left with Hua Jieyu.


    "Do you want to go back and rest, or do you want to go to the academy with me?" Ye Futian asked Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu thought for a moment, then looked at Ye Futian and replied, "I''ll go with you."


    Ye Futian smiled when he heard Hua Jieyu''s answer. He looked at the beautiful face so close to him and said softly, "Can I kiss you?"


    This was his wife, but Ye Futian would never force her to do anything. He had always treated her in the gentlest manner.


    Hua Jieyu gave him a strange look when she heard Ye Futian''s request. There was no embarrassment on her indifferent face, nor did she blush, but she seemed to consider the request seriously.


    After a moment of silence, she nodded gently. "Mhmm."


    Ye Futian gently circled her waist with both hands, making Hua Jieyu a little nervous. Under the gaze of her beautiful eyes, Ye Futian approached bit by bit and kissed her forehead gently.


    Hua Jieyu felt a little strange in her heart, but couldn''t tell just what that feeling was exactly. Could it be a little nervousness?


    She didn''t quite understand it herself, but when Ye Futian asked her, she didn''t seem to mind.


    Over the years, she seemed to have become accustomed to being with Ye Futian so that the voice inside her head that urged her to devote herself to cultivation had gradually weakened its influence on her.


    He said that she was his wife, and she, too, felt that he was very familiar and kind.


    But who was she?


    Was she his wife?


    At this time, in the distant Brahma''s Pure Sky, a strong aura fluctuated in a palace, and it seemed a little cold.


    At the same time, someone had informed Lord Taixuan that recently, some things that were extremely unfavorable to the Heavenly Mandate Academy had happened in the outside world.


    Many disciples from the Heavenly Mandate Academy had been assassinated while undergoing trials outside.


    Lord Taixuan then ordered an investigation on the matter immediately. After four years of peace and quiet, were there now someone who started to attack the Heavenly Mandate Academy secretly?


    This matter soon became known in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. There were more and more people being assassinated while outside!


    ...

 1725 The Force from the Pas

    The Heavenly Mandate Academy sent out cultivators to investigate. In the meantime, they urgently recalled the disciples of the Academy traveling outside.


    Ye Futian naturally received the news as well and didn''t go back to cultivate in seclusion.


    Many people gathered in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, including Lord Taixuan. He didn''t need to worry about most of the things that happened in the Academy these days, but the assassination of the disciples of the Academy was no small matter.


    Right now, everyone in attendance was a key figure in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "How many disciples have been assassinated outside so far?" Lord Taixuan asked in a cold voice. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was not a clan. The disciples only came to study and cultivate. The assassination of the disciples was meaningless and couldn''t weaken the Academy as a whole.


    From what he could see, even the enemies of the Heavenly Mandate Academy didn''t have to play such dirty tricks. If it were him, he would never do this kind of thing as he valued his dignity and reputation as a cultivator in the Renhuang Plane.


    "We counted over 30 people so far." One person responded, "We''re calling them back as fast as possible. Besides, quite a few elders have gone out to spread the news in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and bring back the disciples cultivating outside."


    "Alright." Lord Taixuan nodded. He said, "Do we have any other clues?"


    "It''s sudden and unexpected. We don''t have any clue right now. We can only wait until the people who went out to investigate come back."


    "What do you guys think?" Lord Taixuan asked. They were all central figures of the Academy and should speak their minds freely.


    Someone took a guess and said, "Nowadays, an enemy who dares to attack our Heavenly Mandate Academy must be a supreme force rather than an ordinary one. Moreover, it is very likely to be a powerful lord." A powerful lord would be someone esteemed, like Lord Taixuan.


    No one else would dare to provoke the Heavenly Mandate Academy as they couldn''t bear the consequences once they were exposed.


    "What do other people think?" Lord Taixuan continued to ask.


    "The Shen clan feuds with our Academy the longest. Beside them, the Golden Divine Nation also has a deep enmity toward Futian. Other forces were our rivalries in the God''s relic. It seems like the Shen clan should be our major suspect. But I don''t believe the Shen clan is behind this."


    "Why?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    People nodded in agreement. The person had a point. The Shen clan had no reason to commit such an act.


    "If that''s the case, the Golden Divine Nation is more likely to act behind our back and stir up trouble. Of course, it may also be other forces that want to start a war," other people suggested.


    "Futian, what do you think?" Lord Taixuan looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "I also agree that it''s less likely to be the Shen clan. I can''t say for sure if it''s the Golden Divine Nation. We should wait for the investigators to come back and see if there are more concrete clues," said Ye Futian.


    Lord Taixuan nodded. Even though everyone was eager to know the answer, they had no other choice but to wait for more news for now.


    "How is your cultivation going?" Lord Taixuan asked Ye Futian. Ye Futian had been cultivating most of the time in the past few years and only came out very occasionally.


    "I advanced to the Divine Wheel Second-Order not too long ago," replied Ye Futian.


    People fixed their eyes on Ye Futian. The speed of his cultivation process was indeed amazing.


    Cultivators in the Renhuang Plane normally spent hundreds of years to move up a level. It would be quite impressive if someone could advance in several decades. Achieving the Divine Wheel Second Order in on a few years was astonishing and unheard of.


    A senior from the Xiao clan said, "You displayed tremendous power in front of the Xiao clan when Muyu was conferring the crown on the Goddess. Now that you have reached the Divine Wheel Second Order, even cultivators in the Divine Wheel Fifth Order may not be able to defeat you if you exert all of your strength."


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy nowadays was an alliance of various forces. The top three forces each assigned numerous cultivators to the Academy after the battle with the Shen clan. The Xiao clan certainly had their representatives in the Academy as well.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly, said, "I can still protect myself in the middle-level Renhuang Plane. Things will get tricky if I have to fight against cultivators in the high-level Renhuang Plane."


    Apart from his ability to fight, he also possessed many valuable tools. Although he gave out a lot of the ritual implements he gained from the God''s relic back in the days, he still kept some of the best implements and had picked several handy ones for himself in the past few years.


    Therefore, he was confident to say that he could defend himself against cultivators in the middle-level Renhuang Plane, as long as they didn''t have the perfect Divine Wheel.


    People nodded in silent wonderment. No one else in the Divine Wheel Second Order in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had such confidence.


    Nevertheless, they knew how powerful Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel was. Otherwise, how could he convince the top forces to attack the Shen clan in joint action and establish the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    In fact, many people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy were waiting for Ye Futian''s time to come.


    He was destined to become the best cultivator in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, as long as he had enough time to grow.


    "Someone is back." Lord Taixuan stood up and walked outside at once, followed by other people. A Peng bird dived to the ground, landed in front of the great hall, then transformed into a man. He bowed and said, "My Lord."


    "Do you have any news?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    "Yes," the man nodded and answered, "the killers excel at assassination, and they disappeared without a trace immediately after the attack. They may cultivate the Way of Shadow."


    "The Way of Shadow?" Lord Taixuan''s face changed. People who cultivated the Way of Shadow were extremely rare and were better at covering their tracks than attacking the enemies. Still, they were exceptionally dangerous for being expert assassins.


    Ye Futian had a strange look. He vaguely remembered that Xu Que seemed to cultivate like this.


    "Which force in the Nine Realms is skillful at the Way of Shadow?" people murmured. An odd look flashed in Lord Taixuan''s eyes.


    "The Hidden Land Realm," Lord Taixuan said. "The Hidden Land Realm has more cultivators who specialize in the Way of Shadow. However, our Heavenly Mandate Academy doesn''t have any dispute with the Hidden Land Realm."


    Several other people darted across the sky. They were all high-level cultivators who were especially swift.


    They landed in front of the great hall and saluted Lord Taixuan. Someone said, "It could be a force in the Hidden Land Realm."


    "Hidden Land Realm." Ye Futian recalled that the Clan of the God of Ghost, Prison Fort Clan, and the Fate World in the Hidden Land Realm held some grudges against him in the past. But there was nothing serious enough to trigger a war between the top forces.


    These groups didn''t seem to have a legitimate reason to do so.


    The newly arrived cultivators spoke one by one. They had a similar conclusion based on their investigation.


    They all suspected the cultivators from the Hidden Land Realm.


    "My Lord," said Hua Qingshan of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. Gu Dongliu was now the clan lord of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven with Jiang Chengzi, the legendary cultivator in the Divine Wheel Ninth Order, as his aide. Hua Qingshan, on the other hand, spent most of his time in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven had a closer relationship with the Heavenly Mandate Academy than other groups. After all, Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu were brothers who shared a long friendship. The Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven weathered many storms along with Ye Futian.


    "What do you think?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    "Do you still remember that group?" Hua Qingshan asked, "There was a group that caused turmoil hundreds of years ago then disappeared completely from the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path."


    Lord Taixuan''s face turned stern. He looked at Hua Qingshan and recalled a powerful force hundreds of years ago.


    "The Hell!" Lord Taixuan said with a grim expression.


    He had lived through many eras and had much more experience than the youngsters. He witnessed the age of the Twin Great Emperors.


    How could he not remember the formidable force in the Hidden Land Realm?


    Nonetheless, the "Hell" was destroyed at that time and disappeared from the scene. Rumor had it that the rise of the Fate World and Prison Fort Clan later in the days was closely related to the Hell''s demise.


    "Yes." Hua Qingshan nodded. Many people put on a solemn look.


    Ye Futian didn''t understand. He didn''t know anything about the history of that time and had never heard of the "Hell" as a group.


    "It was a super force many years ago that was wiped out before the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefecture. The Hell was the overlord in the Hidden Land Realm and operated inside of the Gate of the Hell," Lord Taixuan explained to Ye Futian. "They were extremely dangerous."


    "Why would a group that vanished many years ago suddenly attack the Heavenly Mandate Academy?" Ye Futian asked.


    "We don''t know for sure yet. But this does seem like something the Hell would do. It could be the remaining evildoers of the Hell, or someone is using the Hell to attack us," Lord Taixuan said. "We didn''t capture even one of them?"


    People shook their heads.


    "If the Hell is really behind this, it won''t be easy for us to defeat them," said Hua Qingshan. The Hell mastered the art of concealment. A person probably wouldn''t even know that he was targeted before being killed.


    "Then, what do you suggest we should do?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    People frowned grimly. Everything was speculation at this point. There was nothing they could do as they didn''t capture anyone.


    "Should we lure them out?" Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan and asked.


    "It would be risky. It could backfire on us if they were really the ''Hell'' from the old days." Lord Taixuan''s face was somber.


    "I will go," said Ye Futian.


    Lord Taixuan stared at Ye Futian, who said, "Let''s go straight to the Hidden Land Realm. I will be responsible for luring them out. If they want to take on the Heavenly Mandate Academy for real, I will definitely be their biggest target!"


    ...

 1726 Gate of the Hell

    Just when Ye Futian and the others were planning on visiting the Hidden Land Realm, the cultivators from the Xiao clan and the Yuanyang Clan brought more news to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Other forces in the Central Emperor Realm encountered the same things as the Academy did.


    It took people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy by surprise. It seemed like they were wrong the whole time. Could it be that the hidden enemy was not solely targeting the Academy?


    For that reason, Ye Futian and the others waited for a while instead of setting out right away.


    Word trickled in that many cultivators of powerful forces in the Central Nine Realms either died or disappeared mysteriously.


    It put the Nine Realms in a state of fear and tumult.


    Losing disciples was not a trivial matter for any top force. No powerful group would tolerate such assault. It was even more outrageous since several forces were attacked at the same time.


    The mysterious group that vanished before the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefecture. Was it coming back?


    The leaders of the top forces in the Nine Realms knew more about the Hell than ordinary disciples. They even brought in people from outside of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path to help.


    On the day, a team of cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy hit the road. Different from their original plan, they sent a large number of powerful cultivators directly to the Hidden Land Realm.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was not the only one. It was said that many forces in the Nine Realms were heading to the Hidden Land Realm.


    The "Hell" once existed in the Hidden Land Realm and now reappeared in the Nine Realms. Cultivators of all sides were eager to go to the Hidden Land Realm to investigate.


    ...


    Ye Futian and the others immediately felt upon their arrival that the vast field of the Hidden Land Realm was bleak and gloomy. The mountains were barren, and the plains were desolate. Everything was enveloped in darkness.


    Each of the Nine Realms was different. For instance, the Solar Realm was extremely hot, while the Shadow Realm was bitterly cold.


    Ghost Capital City was one of the main cities in the Hidden Land Realm. Magnificent and imposing, many ancient, dark-colored buildings towered up inside of the city. It was distinctly different from any other place Ye Futian had been.


    The Clan of the God of Ghost was headquartered in the Ghost Capital City and controlled the large area around the capital.


    A succession of cultivators from other realms arrived at the Ghost Capital City in recent days. Cultivators in the Ghost Capital City naturally learned about the reason as the news spreading around.


    The Clan of the God of Ghost was the most influential group in the Hidden Land Realm. The Ghost Capital City, as its capital, might have more information circulating around.


    Therefore, it was the most desirable destination for many forces.


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy also came to Ghost Capital City and found a place to settle down temporarily. Their arrival soon attracted people''s attention. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was prominent in the Nine Realms. Even though they didn''t have the same level of influence in the Hidden Land Realm as they did in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the cultivators in the Hidden Land Realm still knew about their attack on the Shen clan four years ago.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was even more renowned than the top forces from the Central Emperor Realm, such as the Shen clan.


    Ye Futian was also a legendary name well known in the Nine Realms. Cultivators in the Hidden Land Realm heard about him as well.


    Many people were guessing if Ye Futian was truly as strong and unrivaled as the rumors claimed so.


    The night was pitch black. Ye Futian was cultivating in the room when he sensed something. He opened his eyes and saw an indistinct figure in the distance.


    "Which friend is it?" Ye Futian asked and immediately saw a pale shadow gracefully landed on the roof in front of him.


    The shadow was faint and indistinct as though it was not a real person but a ghost in the moonlight. Wearing a thin, white dress, she had long, black hair, an elegant figure, and a gorgeous face.


    She looked like a ghost in the darkness.


    "Is this not her real body?" Ye Futian was intrigued. He stepped forward and unleashed invisible energy on her.


    "I have long heard about your name and how you defeated Shen Hao from the Shen clan and built the perfect Divine Wheel. I came here particularly to catch a glimpse of your regal bearing," the woman said with a smile, "You are indeed a man of elegance and talent. This is quite surprising as I thought you would be a brawny and domineering guy."


    "Did you come from the Clan of the God of Ghost?" Ye Futian asked.


    She couldn''t move so quietly if it were her real body. She probably used a technique unique to the Clan of the God of Ghost to project a blurry shadow of her.


    "I''m Lian Qingyi from the Clan of the God of Ghost," said the woman.


    "Lian Qingyi," Ye Futian murmured. There was an outstanding cultivator from the Clan of the God of Ghost in the God''s relic whose name was Lian Jiuyou. Maybe she was related to him.


    "You already knew the intention of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, didn''t you?" Ye Futian asked her.


    "Yes, I do." Lian Qingyi nodded.


    "Can you tell me?" said Ye Futian.


    "I will tell you everything I know when you come to the Clan of the God of Ghost tomorrow," said Lian Qingyi. Then, her shadow glided away and disappeared silently.


    Hua Jiangshan came to Ye Futian after Lian Qingyi was gone, said, "Lian Qingyi is the Goddess of the Clan of the God of Ghost. She is an extraordinary cultivator in the middle-level Renhuang Plane, one of the best in the younger generation of the Clan of the God of Ghost."


    Ye Futian nodded. He was curious why Lian Qingyi came to him. Was it really possible that she simply wanted to meet him?


    "I will go to the Clan of the God of Ghost tomorrow to see if I can gather any useful information," said Ye Futian.


    "OK." Hua Jiangshan nodded.


    The next day, Ye Futian led a group of people to the God of Ghost Palace where the Clan of the God of Ghost was located.


    Standing outside of the God of Ghost Palace, Ye Futian gazed into the distance. The magnificent castle far away with black and forbidding walls could almost reach the sky.


    Some other people moved closer to them at the moment. Ye Futian sensed something and turned around. A strange look flashed across his face when he saw the people coming.


    Those people''s penetrating eyes darted toward Ye Futian like sharp blades with a golden gleam.


    They were cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation.


    They also came to Ghost Capital City.


    The Golden Divine Nation also lost some disciples who were traveling or cultivating outside.


    It was obvious that the Heavenly Mandate Academy was not the only group the Clan of the God of Ghost invited.


    The tension in the room was incredibly palpable due to the enmity between the Academy and the Golden Divine Nation.


    One of the leaders of the delegation of the Golden Divine Nation was especially forceful and frightening. He was a divine general in the Golden Divine Nation and had met Ye Futian in the battle of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty.


    A dashing young man in his 30s stood next to the divine general. He seemed shrewd and assertive.


    Gai Qixing, the seventh son of the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation, stared at Ye Futian with a menacing look. Ye Futian could sense that Gai Qixing was in the middle-level Renhuang Plane with a fourth-order Divine Wheel. He was not threatened by Gai Qixing at all.


    Gai Cang, the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation, personally visited the Heavenly Mandate Academy when it was established. But they later realized that there was nothing they could do to Ye Futian and had been keeping a low profile ever since the battle with the Shen clan.


    Nowadays, neither side would launch an attack recklessly despite mutual hostility.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian glanced at them, turned back, and walked toward the guide sent by the Clan of the God of Ghost. The cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation also stepped forward.


    The Clan of the God of Ghost already prepared a banquet in front of a palace. Ye Futian found out that the cultivators from the Sky Reaching School, Shangxiao Divine Palace, Celestial Worthy Temple, Heavenly Sword Hall, and other groups were all present.


    Some people showed an interesting look when the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Golden Divine Nation walked in. Many people here knew about their grudges.


    Ye Futian looked at the seat of the host. It was someone he met the night before��Lian Qingyi. Several cultivators from the Clan of the God of Ghost sat behind her.


    Nevertheless, it was the real Lian Qingyi today instead of her shadow.


    "Please." A cultivator from the Clan of the God of Ghost showed Ye Futian and the others to their seats. Lian Qingyi shot a glance at Ye Futian yet didn''t say anything. A person asked, "Is everyone here?"


    The cultivators of the top forces in the Nine Realms who came to Ghost Capital City were all here.


    "Yes," Lian Qingyi nodded and said, "I invited you here because I know why you came to the Hidden Land Realm. Based on the information gathered by the Clan of the God of Ghost, the rumors about the once-powerful group in the Hidden Land Realm are very likely to be true. Your speculations are correct."


    People''s eyes narrowed in concentration. Was it really the mysterious force from years ago?


    "A group that had disappeared for hundreds of years suddenly resurged? If so, what do they want to achieve by assassinating the cultivators of all forces in the Nine Realms?" a person from the Sky Reaching School asked Lian Qingyi. It was a question that puzzled everyone.


    "They want to make you come to the Hidden Land Realm," said Lian Qingyi. Her answer astounded the crowd. The "Hell" intentionally lured them to the Hidden Land Realm?


    "Why?" Several people asked simultaneously.


    If the "Hell" truly resurrected, shouldn''t they develop and expand in secret? Why would they provoke the cultivators in the Nine Realms and cause quite a stir?


    "In fact, there has been a deep undercurrent in the Hidden Land Realm. A rumor has been spreading for the past few years." Lian Qingyi looked at the crowd and said, "The Gate of the Hell might have emerged."


    "Gate of the Hell!"


    The cultivators'' faces grew stern. People of the older generation had heard about the Gate of the Hell many years ago.


    "If that''s true, the Hell might make a comeback and fall upon the Nine Realms again?" Someone asked. Lian Qingyi nodded and replied, "To be honest, they''re already back."


    ...

 1727 Yellow Spring in Jiuyou City

    Based on folk tales, the Gate of the Hell was the holy land of the "Hell" and guarded the path to the real hell.


    The Hell might reappear in the Nine Realms when the Gate of the Hell opened.


    "Lian Qingyi, did you mean that the Gate of the Hell has appeared but not opened yet? And the Hell caused all the troubles in the Nine Realms in order to attract the cultivators here to open the Gate of the Hell for them?" asked the cultivator from the Sky Reaching School. Other people also looked at Lian Qingyi. They all interpreted her words the same way.


    "Yes." Lian Qingyi nodded and continued, "There was news about the Gate of the Hell circulating in the Hidden Land Realm many years ago. The remaining force of the Hell suddenly launched a series of attacks in recent days and caused a commotion in the Nine Realms. Without a doubt, they wanted to attract the attention of the Nine Realms and lure you to the Hidden Land Realm. Their goal, as you would expect, is to make the cultivators from the Nine Realms to open the Gate of the Hell for them."


    "Why do people from the Hell assume that we would open the Gate of the Hell for them?" someone from the Golden Divine Nation with a hoarse voice asked. Many people glanced at him and remained expressionless.


    They thought it was a legit question. Why would they open the Gate of the Hell for the Hell?


    However, the answer soon became clear to them.


    Under everyone''s watch, the cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation paused for a moment. He ruminated with his head slightly lowered and realized the reason in no time.


    The fabled Gate of the Hell might have relics left by the Great Emperor. How could the cultivators from the Nine Realms restrain themselves from exploring if they really found the location of the Gate of the Hell?


    Even if they could control themselves, how could they stop the others from doing it?


    Although they knew the Hell intended to take advantage of them, there must be some people in the Nine Realms who would be used willingly and happily.


    "Where did the Gate of the Hell emerge?" someone looked at Lian Qingyi and asked.


    "Yellow Spring in Jiuyou City," Lian Qingyi answered with a smile. Everyone''s face grew solemn.


    Jiuyou City was an uninviting place in the Hidden Land Realm.


    A notorious city, it had the River of Yellow Spring in the center where anyone who hadn''t reached the Renhuang Plane would certainly die without exception if stepped in. Even a cultivator in the Renhuang Plane would certainly encounter grave dangers inside.


    Many extraordinary people in the Hidden Land Realm went to the Yellow Spring to cultivate. Countless cultivators had been devoured by the Yellow Spring in the past.


    Yet now the Gate of the Hell popped up in the Yellow Spring in Jiuyou City.


    Jiuyou City didn''t belong to any group in the Hidden Land Realm. It was an infamously chaotic place where no good man would step foot in.


    Nevertheless, Jiuyou City had raised a number of superb cultivators.


    Many forces in the Hidden Land Realm would send young, promising disciples to Jiuyou City for a while.


    The cultivation practice in the Hidden Land Realm was cruel and ruthless. They selected talents through brutal trial and elimination; death was common and insignificant.


    "Why didn''t we hear about this before?" someone stared at Lian Qingyi and asked. They couldn''t tell if what Lian Qingyi said was completely true.


    "The top forces in the Hidden Land Realm all wanted to explore the Gate of the Hell ever since it emerged again. Why would they leak the news and let you know? The rumors were circulating in a small circle in the Hidden Land Realm as only a small group of people are powerful enough to learn about it. How could it reach you?"


    Lian Qingyi cracked a smile.


    "According to you, we would never know about this if the Hell didn''t lure us to the Hidden Land Realm," someone said. Lian Qingyi gave a tacit admission.


    "It probably can''t stay hidden now after the tumult broke out. In recent days, many powerful cultivators are already heading to Jiuyou City as information flying out of there. Before long, Jiuyou City will draw the attention of the entire Hidden Land Realm," said Lian Qingyi.


    The crowd was silent upon hearing Lian Qingyi''s words. Based on what she said, the news about the Gate of the Hell would soon spread around. They should leave for Jiuyou City right away.


    "You don''t need to worry. As far as I know, even though the people in Jiuyou City knew about the Gate of the Hell, they haven''t found the exact location yet. Things won''t move at such a rapid pace. It''s a rare opportunity for you to gather here, and the Clan of the God of Ghost would like to perform the duties of a host." Lian Qingyi seemed to see through people''s minds. She raised her glass and spoke to the crowd with a smile.


    People nodded. Although many guests were more senior than Lian Qingyi, they came to the Clan of the God of Ghost and were welcomed by its Goddess. They were glad to respect the host''s wishes.


    "Renhuang Ye, can I go to study and cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Academy if the chance arises in the future?" Lian Qingyi raised her glass again.


    "How modest you are. People in the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be lucky to learn from you if you are willing to visit us," Ye Futian replied politely. Lian Qingyi was in the middle-level Renhuang Plane. Cultivators in this level were already big fish in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path even though they might not be prominent in supreme forces.


    Only a small group of people reached this level. They were at the very top considering the vast population of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    This small group of people had the strongest voice and the ultimate say in the entire world. After all, only a few could stand at the top of the pyramid.


    Lian Qingyi smiled and exchanged polite remarks with the leaders of other groups. The banquet was not exactly exciting, but at least Lian Qingyi was courteous enough.


    Some people excused themselves after a few rounds of toast.


    Lian Qingyi didn''t stop them from leaving. She nodded slightly and said, "Jiuyou City is quite famous in the Hidden Land Realm. I won''t need to guide the way as I''m sure you can find it without trouble. Besides, I suppose you will meet other groups from the Nine Realms in Jiuyou City."


    One by one, people stood up and asked to leave. Ye Futian and the others from the Heavenly Mandate Academy also left the banquet without bothering the host any longer.


    They had to go to Jiuyou City no matter what the "Hell" planned to do. The disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were killed by people from the Hell. It was not something that could be easily let go.


    However, the remaining members of the Hell most likely went into hiding after its demise. It would be very difficult to uncover them if they didn''t expose themselves first.


    People left the banquet one after the other. Soon, Lian Qingyi was the only one that remained in her seat.


    A blurry figure became visible behind her and slowly took shape. The man was tall and mysterious in a black robe.


    "How did it go?" the man asked. His voice was deep and hoarse.


    "Ye Futian was the one who solved the mystery of God''s relic years ago. Lian Jiuyou was one of the witnesses there. It''s not a secret that Ye Futian attained the God''s inheritance. He is undoubtedly powerful yet surprisingly humble and easygoing."


    She gazed into the distance and murmured, "It depends on luck whether he could open the Gate of the Hell or not."


    So far, she couldn''t accurately gauge Ye Futian''s ability from simple conversations and brief observation.


    "You should lead a group and set off as well," said the black-robed man. He then became blurry again and vanished into thin air.


    ...


    Jiuyou City in the Hidden Land Realm was also called a city of chaos, city of barbarity, and city of death.


    It was famous enough to be the best-known city in the entire Hidden Land Realm. After all, the other capitals were controlled by the supreme forces in the Hidden Land Realm, yet Jiuyou City was not in the hands of any particular overlord. It was a labyrinth of forces and groups.


    These forces rose and fell at a fast pace.


    Resting on a high mountain, the castles in Jiuyou City almost seemed to be built in midair. The Yellow Spring split the City into two halves.


    Jiuyou City had been exceedingly busy these days. As the rumor spreading around the Hidden Land Realm, countless cultivators headed to Jiuyou City.


    Even people from supreme forces in other realms arrived at Jiuyou City.


    For instance, it was alleged that cultivators of the Nantian Divine Kingdom and the Shen clan in the Central Emperor Realm were already here.


    In addition, the ravishing princess of the Nantian Divine Kingdom was also in Jiuyou City.


    Right now, a woman with breathtaking beauty was sitting in the Linquan Tavern high up in Jiuyou City. She could enjoy the magnificent view of the bottomless chasm from her seat on the cliff.


    Buildings were perched on several terraces of the cliff. Cultivators strolled around with ease while the Yellow Spring roared below.


    People in other taverns on the cliff all looked up to catch a glimpse of the woman sitting on the edge of the Linquan Tavern.


    Her gorgeous face made many people''s eyes blaze.


    Sinful thoughts flashed through some people''s minds as they saw the only daughter of Emperor Nan and Empress Luo of the Nantian Divine Kingdom appeared in this chaotic place. After all, there were many evil cultivators in Jiuyou City.


    "Princess, would you like me to..." An old man behind Nan Luoshen said in a low voice with a menacing look in his eyes. Even though he was standing still, nothing happened around could evade his detection.


    "It''s not necessary," Nan Luoshen replied. She didn''t come here to cause trouble, and it was impossible to escape from people''s stares.


    "Princess Luoshen." At the moment, a man with a trim figure strode toward them from outside of the tavern. He hovered in the air and looked at Nan Luoshen, asked, "Is Princess Luoshen curious about the emergence of the Gate of the Hell as well?"


    The man speaking was Shen Hao from the Shen clan.


    The cultivators of the Shen clan arrived too.


    "I''m here to have a look." Nan Luoshen shot a casual glance at Shen Hao.


    Shen Hao nodded slightly and said, "As far as I know, the forces around the Hidden Land Realm and the Nine Realms are all here now. Jiuyou City is a complicated place where good people and bad people mix up together. Princess Luoshen, please be careful."


    "Thank you," Nan Luoshen responded monotonously. Shen Hao ended the conversation and walked toward the tavern as he sensed that Nan Luoshen had no intention of inviting him to join her. A man in his position couldn''t possibly pester her shamelessly.


    ...

 1728 Asking for Pointers

    The cultivators of Nantian Divine Kingdom and the Shen clan appeared in the same inn. This caused a huge uproar in the surrounding districts in Jiuyou City. Many cultivators of Jiuyou City came over to catch a glimpse of these top figures from other Realms.


    After seeing Nan Luoshen, many people were astonished by her peerless beauty that could cause nations and cities to fall. At least, they had not seen anyone with a face more beautiful than hers. Nan Luoshen''s temperament was also extraordinary.


    However, not long after, in another place, another stunning beauty appeared. Word of her identity was very quickly spread around. She was the Goddess of the Shadow Realm''s Youyue Divine Palace, Chang Xi.


    Above the Yellow Spring, at the top of a peak, similarly, in a large inn, a group of silhouettes arrived. They sat off to one side and enjoyed the scenery.


    Ye Futian stood at the edge of the inn. He gazed down at the Yellow Spring below as well as the layered districts aligning the 10,000 Zhang-tall cliff. This scenery gave off a different type of beauty. It was very majestic and felt grand.


    "In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, there are countless distinguished figures. In this current generation, among the women, Nan Luoshen is without equal. Goddess Chang Xi might be the only person that can be compared with her," said someone not far from Ye Futian. Their gazes were staring off in the opposite direction. From where they were, they could faintly make out an absolutely stunning silhouette.


    Ye Futian noticed the discussion of the people around him. He turned to look in the opposite direction and also saw that across the Yellow Spring, in the inn opposite of the one he was in, a woman who was like a goddess was sitting there quietly. It was as though she was not of this world.


    It was somewhat of a coincidence, Ye Futian thought to himself. However, this area was the central district of the Nine State City. The view here was also the best, so encountering her here was not out of the ordinary.


    "I have heard that after Goddess Xiao Muyu of the Xiao clan in the Central Emperor Realm was proclaimed a Goddess after reaching the Renhuang Plane, she is now already not inferior to Nan Luoshen and Chang Xi," someone said.


    "I would want to have a look at her. She should be coming, right?" someone said with a laugh.


    Ye Futian listened quietly. He never imagined that after being proclaimed a Goddess, Muyu''s fame had even reached the Hidden Land Realm.


    "Speaking of Xiao Muyu, there is another person who needs to be mentioned. Rumor has it that her achievements are all due to one person," another person said. The crowd paused for a moment. They had all heard about this. Currently, among the younger generation of the Nine Realms, aside from Ye Futian, no one else had greater levels of fame.


    After all, this was the Hidden Land Realm. News of him had all come from other Realms. Hence, they felt somewhat distant towards this news, as though they were listening to tales of legends.


    "Rumor has it that this person has a head of silver hair. When he appears, he is followed by divine signs. Even his appearance is handsome and will make women fall for him at first sight," another voice continued.


    Among Ye Futian''s group, many people were looking at Ye Futian as they revealed faint smiles.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly, gazing into the distance. He thought to himself that most people in the world still had discerning eyes.


    At that moment, a group of silhouettes headed in this direction. The leader had a stunning appearance that made others want to succumb to her at first glance. She had an intelligent smile, and she looked ahead with her beautiful eyes. She seemed to have walked out of a painting.


    Many people were astonished. However, the people in this inn discovered that this woman was actually heading towards them. They could not help but reveal strange looks.


    She was the Goddess of Youyue Divine Palace, Chang Xi.


    She walked over through the air. She wore a faint smile on her face that made their spirits leave their bodies.


    Who is she looking at? Many people were wondering. The gazes of the people around here all shifted towards the inn.


    Who was she looking for in there?


    The people in the inn also made sideways glances. They watched as Chang Xi walked step by step towards the edge of the inn. She stood in mid-air and looked at the white-haired silhouette that stood there. She smiled and said, "I never imagined that I would encounter Renhuang Ye here."


    All gazes landed on Ye Futian. With his white clothes and white hair, he looked handsome and cool. Chang Xi from Youyue Divine Palace had personally come here to greet him, and she called him Renhuang Ye.


    Who this person was did not need to be elaborated upon.


    Ye Futian!


    He had also come here, and he was actually right here. He must have overheard the conversations that the people here were having.


    "Goddess Chang Xi, I assume you have been well?" Ye Futian greeted with a faint smile.


    "Renhuang Ye, aren''t you going to invite me for a drink?" Chang Xi said with a grin on her face. Each smile and grin of hers bore extraordinary charm. She was the Goddess of Youyue Divine Palace. Her temperament was that of an ice queen. However, before Ye Futian, she gave off the feeling of a spring breeze. It was as though her icy temperament had been melted away.


    "Would Goddess honor me with a drink?" Ye Futian asked.


    "It is my honor to be invited by Renhuang Ye," Chang Xi replied.


    "Please," Ye Futian said as he extended his hand in an inviting gesture. Chang Xi stepped forward and entered the inn, sitting down at Ye Futian''s table.


    The two of them laughed and chatted, causing many people to have the same thought. These two people were sitting together like peerless lovers. Were they together?


    If so, this would make for a good fairytale.


    In the opposite direction, Nan Luoshen, as well as Shen Hao, naturally also saw Ye Futian. The two of them were not sitting together, but their gazes were directed towards Ye Futian. Nan Luoshen was somewhat curious about Ye Futian. Back then, when she was in Tianshen Academy, she had met Ye Futian before. At that time, no one knew what Ye Futian was doing in Tianshen Academy. However, later on, everyone realized that Ye Futian had cultivated many flawless Divine Wheel Renhuangs when he was there.


    Some examples were Dou Zhao from Dou tribe and Xiao Muyu from the Xiao clan.


    As for when Ye Futian later headed to the Shen clan, even her father and mother were quite shocked when they heard about it. Her father even claimed that Ye Futian was the most monstrous person to appear in the Divine Prefectures after they had been unified. Ye Futian would be able to change an era. From this, one could imagine how high a praise he was giving to Ye Futian.


    As for Shen Hao, one could imagine how he felt about Ye Futian. His gaze was extremely chilly.


    Although he had many thoughts in his mind, he sat there quietly and did not go up to meet Ye Futian.


    Right then, above the Yellow Spring, a silhouette suddenly appeared. This person was garbed in a black robe and had extraordinary temperament. However, he gave off an extremely dangerous vibe.


    He was cruel and overbearing. Might of Renhuang emanated from his body.


    When they saw this person appear, the cultivators in Jiuyou City recognized who he was.


    "He is Du Yuan, disciple of Evil Emperor."


    Evil Emperor was a mighty figure at the top of Jiuyou City. He was an existence at the upper-level Renhuang Plane. This Du Yuan was one of the most outstanding of Evil Emperor''s disciples. He was an existence that would most likely surpass Evil Emperor himself. He had proven his Way and reached the Renhuang Plane in less than a hundred years. Currently, he already had a second-tier Divine Wheel.


    What was Evil Emperor''s disciple, Du Yuan, doing here?


    He seemed to be facing the direction of the inn in which Ye Futian and Chang Xi were at.


    Ye Futian and Chang Xi were still casually chatting. They ignored the existence of the other party. In reality, with their identities, there weren''t many people that they needed to worry about.


    Although Du Yuan was a Renhuang, he was not worthy of their attention.


    "I, Du Yuan from Jiuyou City, have intentionally come to ask a few pointers from Renhuang Ye," Du Yuan said. Many people revealed strange looks when they heard his words.


    What was Du Yuan''s intention?


    Was this a challenge?


    However, Du Yuan''s tone was very polite. It seemed that he truly was asking for pointers.


    Ye Futian''s fame was the genuine article. Moreover, Ye Futian had led an army into the Shen clan and had defeated Shen Hao. Even if the members of the Hidden Land Realm had not witnessed it themselves, they were not so foolish as to doubt Ye Futian''s credibility. Even Goddess Xiao Muyu from Xiao clan was willing to be his disciple.


    Although Du Yuan was a cultivator with a second-tier Divine Wheel, it was impossible for him to be a match for Ye Futian. Everyone was aware of this point. Du Yuan certainly also knew about this.


    Hence, if it was a challenge, even though Du Yuan was a Renhuang, he was unqualified to challenge Ye Futian.


    It was more likely that he had truly come to ask for pointers.


    As a disciple of the Evil Emperor, it was praiseworthy for Du Yuan to set aside his pride and ask for pointers from a Renhuang that was the same generation as he was.


    After all, in Jiuyou City, Du Yuan was also famous.


    Only now did Ye Futian and Chang Xi turn to look at Du Yuan. A powerful aura flowed out of Du Yuan''s body. They could clearly sense that the other party had a second-tier Divine Wheel.


    "What do you wish to know?" Ye Futian asked calmly. Before this, he had looked up to people at the Renhuang Plane. However, after he had proven his Way and reached the Renhuang Plane himself, his mentality naturally also changed accordingly. Now, even if he was against an upper-level Renhuang, he would still be very calm.


    People at the Renhuang Plane, like Du Yuan, already could not stir up his emotions.


    "I have long heard of Renhuang Ye''s name. I wish to ask Renhuang Ye for a few pointers through actual combat to see the difference between us," Du Yuan explained. Ye Futian was the possessor of a flawless Divine Wheel and was considered the most outstanding figure of their generation. To be able to battle against Ye Futian was an opportunity that was extremely hard to come across.


    Of course, Du Yuan would certainly lose, but that was not important.


    Ye Futian''s gaze landed on the white-robed swordsman. He smiled and said, "Wuchen, after having proven your Way, you have yet to have the chance to experience actual combat. How about you give it a try?"


    It had not been long since Ye Wuchen had broken through to the next Plane. He had always been in the academy and had yet to have the opportunity to experience his own abilities as a Renhuang. He did not have actual combat experience.


    "Alright." Ye Wuchen nodded his head and stood up.


    Ye Futian glanced sideways at Du Yuan and said, "My friend has just broken through the next Plane. Why don''t you spar with him?"


    "Alright." Du Yuan nodded his head. He did not underestimate his opponent at all just because Ye Futian had mentioned that his friend had just broken through to the next Plane. Du Yuan knew about the battle with the Shen clan. Ye Futian''s group of first-tier Divine Wheel cultivators had swept away the lower-level Renhuangs of the Shen clan. They had utterly dominated their opponents.


    Since Ye Wuchen was a good friend of Ye Futian, he would certainly also be very powerful.


    ...

 1729 Exposed

    Ye Wuchen stepped forward and flew up into the air above the Yellow Spring. He stood across from Du Yuan.


    The Yellow Spring was very wide. However, if two Renhuang were to begin battling here, they would still affect the people on both shores of the Yellow Spring. Hence, a cultivator from the Heavenly Mandate Academy beside Ye Futian walked out, and an extremely powerful might of Way emanated from him. In an instant, an independent spatial battlefield was forged above the Yellow Spring. It directly sealed off the two shores of the Yellow Spring.


    "You all do not need to hold back," the elder said. The might of Way on Ye Wuchen and Du Yuan''s bodies were also released at this moment.


    A dark storm swept up in the sky above the Yellow Spring. Endless black winds blew in and instantly flooded the sky above the Yellow Spring. It was as though the sky had become a one-dimensional dark world.


    Rumble. An area of fire appeared in the dark space. The black flames were like the Fires of Death from Hell.


    The Flames of the Way immediately consumed Ye Wuchen. An illusory dark silhouette seemed to appear in the Flames of the Way. It was like an evil deity that was trying to consume Ye Wuchen.


    However, at the same time, dazzling blades of light suddenly lit up around Ye Wuchen''s body. Blades of extremely devastating divine swords appeared around his figure. With his figure as the center, they radiated outwards and resonated with the world around them.


    In an instant, countless divine swords shot across the sky. The Flames of the Way closest to Ye Wuchen''s body were immediately extinguished.


    Buzz!


    The dazzling divine sword halos shot straight towards Du Yuan and his evil deity illusion. It was instantly shattered into nothingness.


    Great Path of Destruction.


    Du Yuan looked at Ye Wuchen. He naturally sensed that his opponent''s swordsmanship was laced with the Great Path of Destruction. Under the influence of this will of the Great Path, Du Yuan''s Fires of Death were constantly extinguished and disappeared without a trace.


    At that moment, divine swords were everywhere in the heavens above. Aura of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path swept out of Ye Wuchen''s body. Divine signs appeared, and countless divine swords resonated with the Divine Wheel in his body. His Divine Wheel radiated brilliant light and destructive power.


    Du Yuan sensed an extremely powerful pressure. In such a situation, he naturally did not dare to hold back. He instantly unleashed his power. A dark illusory figure of an evil deity appeared. It seemed to be formed from coalesced Fire of Death. The space was flooded by dark flames and became a sea of dark flames. Illusions of evil deities roared as they charged towards Ye Wuchen.


    However, Du Yuan felt that his opponent''s swordsmanship and Great Path of Destruction was suppressing his own might of Way. His terrifying Fire of Death could not invade Ye Wuchen''s body. It could not even get close to him.


    Was this the suppression of the Great Path and the Divine Wheel? Du Yuan thought to himself.


    He had come to seek pointers from Ye Futian because he wanted to experience a flawless Divine Wheel.


    Right now, he was experiencing it firsthand. This friend of Ye Futian was also a possessor of a flawless Divine Wheel. Against such suppression of the Great Path, Du Yuan did not stand a chance at all.


    Right now, the divine swords floating in mid-air radiated blinding divine light. The light kept pushing back Du Yuan''s Way. The divine swords hummed and emitted frightening destructive winds that ripped towards Du Yuan''s body.


    "With the suppression of the Great Path, you cannot harm me," Ye Wuchen concluded as he looked toward Du Yuan. He did not attack.


    Swordsmanship was extremely dangerous. If a sword was sent slashing out, it could not be drawn back. They were only sparring; he did not want to kill his opponent.


    "Thank you very much." The Fire of Death in the space receded like a tide and disappeared very quickly. Everything returned to normal. In the end, Du Yuan chose not to attack. It was as Ye Wuchen said: Ye Wuchen''s Divine Wheel caused his Great Path to be suppressed.


    Under the suppression of the Great Path, Du Yuan did not stand a chance at all.


    However, he had managed to experience the power of a flawless Divine Wheel this time.


    The Sword Will on Ye Wuchen''s body also dissipated. The two of them had not even truly exchanged blows; everything had ended before that happened.


    "Thank you for the instruction," Du Yuan said as he bowed slightly at Ye Wuchen. His Plane was actually higher than Ye Wuchen''s Plane. Du Yuan was a Renhuang with a second-tier Divine Wheel. However, in terms of ability, he could not put up a fight against Ye Wuchen. This round of sparring was indeed him receiving instruction from Ye Wuchen.


    Ye Wuchen nodded his head slightly and then walked back to the inn. Ye Futian smiled bitterly when he saw this scene.


    Ye Futian had wanted Ye Wuchen to experience a battle at the Renhuang Plane. However, he had overlooked the might of a flawless Divine Wheel. Although Ye Wuchen''s opponent was famous in Jiuyou City, he could not be considered a member of a top force. For his second-tier Divine Wheel to go against Wuchen''s flawless Divine Wheel, they were indeed not on the same level.


    This battle was not very meaningful for Ye Wuchen. He still had not experienced an actual battle.


    "I apologize again for disturbing Renhuang Ye." Du Yuan saluted Ye Futian with his fists. His manners were impeccable. Before this, he had initially wanted to ask Ye Futian to give him some pointers. However, from the looks of it now, it was meaningless for him to do so. Even against Ye Wuchen, Du Yuan had been suppressed. If Ye Futian had been the one to enter the battlefield, what would the outcome of the match be like?


    "You are too kind." Ye Futian nodded at Du Yuan. He did not mind that Du Yuan had come. After all, Du Yuan had carried himself with absolute respect. He was a Renhuang that had come with sincerity.


    Du Yuan turned to leave. However, this caused an uproar on the two shores of the Yellow Spring.


    He was a disciple of the Evil Emperor. He actually was not even qualified for Ye Futian to lift a finger against him.


    Just a mere friend of Ye Futian''s could immediately suppress Du Yuan.


    However, the Sword Will just now was indeed frighteningly powerful.


    It was another flawless Divine Wheel. When the cultivators of some top forces saw this scene, they had different thoughts about it. They were not so concerned about the actual battle. Ye Wuchen''s flawless Divine Wheel was far more astonishing than this battle.


    How many flawless Divine Wheel possessors did the Heavenly Mandate Academy have now?


    Before this, they did not even know about Ye Wuchen. It was as though any person that Ye Futian simply brought out had a flawless level Divine Wheel.


    This hurt the members of the top forces a lot.


    By looking at Heavenly Mandate Academy, one would have the misconception that obtaining a flawless Divine Wheel was very easy, and its value was not very high.


    However, in the battle just now, it was made very clear. Even if their Plane was low, a flawless Divine Wheel possessor could still crush their opponent.


    When the cultivators of the Shen clan saw this scene, one could imagine how they felt.


    Even Nan Luoshen''s heart wavered.


    Nan Luoshen was a proud person.


    In the past, even a talented figure like her had to put in an enormous amount of effort in order to forge a flawless Divine Wheel.


    However, right now, wielders of flawless Divine Wheels appeared one after another around Ye Futian. This made her feel slightly uneasy.


    Up until now, Ye Futian had been witnessing everything quietly. In the inn, Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen were chatting casually. The way the people, who were on both sides of the Yellow Spring, looked at Ye Futian changed subtly.


    Before this, they had only heard of his name.


    Now, they had seen him personally. Du Yuan, the disciple of Evil Emperor, was not even qualified to receive guidance from Ye Futian. A follower of Ye Futian was more than capable of putting up a fight.


    They felt as though Ye Futian was not of the same generation as them. His current status had long surpassed his level of cultivation.


    "Rumor has it that in the Nine Realms, many crowned Renhuang Ye as the top figure of the generation. You are standing head and shoulders above the rest of your generation. What does Renhuang Ye think of this title?"


    Someone located in an inn at the opposite side of the Yellow Spring suddenly spoke up. The speaker was also a cultivator at the Renhuang Plane.


    As soon as he spoke, many people stared at him. He was a middle-level Renhuang from Jiuyou City.


    Ye Futian paused momentarily while holding his glass in his hand. His gaze shifted and glanced in the direction where the speaker was. They were very far apart from each other. However, for high-level cultivators like Ye Futian, this distance amounted to nothing.


    "In front of me sits Goddess Chang Xi. Across the river, there is Princess Luoshen. Who was the one who said that I am the top figure of this generation?" Ye Futian replied calmly, "There are countless legendary figures in the Nine Realms. I am but one out of the many of them. I am quite fortunate to have a few seniors willing to aid me in some matters; hence, I have accumulated a little bit of fame. That''s all."


    "Renhuang Ye leads the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and your academy dominates the battles wherever you go. Your achievements cannot be summarized with the phrase ''a little bit of fame''." The speaker continued to praise Ye Futian, "I do not deny that others are exceptional as well, but I reckon there is hardly anyone who is on par with Renhuang Ye."


    When Ye Futian heard the speaker complimenting him, his expression turned indifferent. He put down his glass and looked at Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon Emperor. Ye Futian transmitted his voice to the latter, saying, "Senior, can you please help me to capture him?"


    "Alright," the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon Emperor nodded his head. He took a step forward and immediately headed out of the inn.


    The crowd was stunned. No one managed to react.


    The Renhuang had extended his praise to Ye Futian, but Ye Futian was subduing the other party instead. What was the meaning of this?


    Buzz!


    Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon Emperor directly disappeared from his spot. In another inn, the Demon Emperor who praised Ye Futian put down his glass. The next moment, his silhouette vanished too. He merged into the shadows, as though he had never appeared before.


    This caused many people to reveal strange expressions. One by one, silhouettes of Renhuangs stood up. Many of them were Renhuangs from the top forces of the Nine Realms.


    Was the speaker a Renhuang from Hell?


    Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon Emperor appeared in the inn where the speaker was just now. He swept the surroundings with his will, but he couldn''t locate the opponent. It was as though he had really vanished into thin air.


    Buzz.


    Golden divine light dazzled, and Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird traversed the space, moving into the distance. There, a slight aura fluctuation could be detected. However, similarly, it disappeared without a trace in an instant.


    Ye Futian remained sitting with an indifferent expression.


    "How did you know?" Chang Xi asked while looking at Ye Futian. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity.


    "I didn''t," Ye Futian responded. Chang Xi revealed a puzzled look.


    "But, didn''t we figure him out after we launched an attack?" Ye Futian continued with a smile. He stood up and gazed into the distance, explaining, "Hell lured us to come to the Hidden Land Realm. Hence, surely there would be someone watching us from the shadows. Not only would they spy on us furtively, but they would also observe us openly. Just now, the speaker was a middle-level Renhuang. A strong cultivator at this level wouldn''t possibly gossip in public. Moreover, saying that kind of praise in public towards me would only offend more people. It would cause me to become an eyesore among the forces. His words sounded like praise, but actually, they were ill-intended. So, I tried him out. I did not expect that my guess would be correct."


    Ye Futian''s tone was calm. A cultivator from Hell had been exposed. If the cultivator only had a normal ability, it was impossible for him to escape unscathed. He could only escape from the hands of Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon Emperor if he was proficient in concealment techniques.


    It would be significant if they could capture a middle-level Renhuang from Hell. At the very least, they could obtain some information about Hell from him.


    Chang Xi smiled as she looked at Ye Futian. His method was brilliant!


    ...

 1730 Di Wu

    Chang Xi clearly knew that, currently, Ye Futian indeed could be considered the top figure in this generation.


    It was just that knowing it was one thing. Proclaiming it out in public would undoubtedly draw the crowd''s ire towards Ye Futian.


    In the Nine Supreme Realms, there were many top forces and countless prominent figures. If someone claimed themselves to be the first, they would instantly be targeted by everyone else. Currently, there were already enough gazes on Ye Futian. Many forces were certainly hoping to get rid of Ye Futian and be done with him. If Ye Futian actually claimed the title of first, the emotions of some parties would also be magnified.


    Hence, Ye Futian naturally would not claim to be the first. Currently, he also had the Heavenly Mandate Academy behind him. He would do all within his power to establish the Heavenly Mandate Academy as the top academy in the Nine Realms and forge the future batch of prominent figures. For now, that would be his priority.


    In the distance, a terrifying wave spread over here. Many people looked towards the direction of the wave. After a long while, Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon Emperor returned to the inn.


    "I could not catch him alive, so I killed him," he said to Ye Futian. His opponent was a middle-level Renhuang that was skilled in concealment techniques and would have escaped from him if he was ever so slightly careless. Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon Emperor could only forcefully use the might of his Way to destroy the other party''s Way and kill him in the process.


    "Thanks for your troubles." Ye Futian nodded. It seemed that this Hell force was more powerful than he had expected. They had infiltrated everywhere. A middle-level Renhuang from Jiuyou City was a member of Hell.


    As for Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon Emperor killing the Renhuang off, Ye Futian was not sympathetic at all. Many people in the Nine Realms had died to the members of Hell. This debt of blood would certainly need to be paid.


    Ye Futian and the others were still chatting in the inn. In the surrounding regions, people were descending one after another.


    The aura of the previous battle had radiated far and wide. In the regions along the shores of Jiuyou City''s Yellow Spring, many people knew that Ye Futian''s group had arrived. Hence, many people had rushed over here.


    Many people from various top forces of the Nine Realms also came over consecutively.


    Soon, a group of extremely dazzling silhouettes appeared above an inn. The leader of the group was bathed in the divine light of the sun and seemed very arrogant. His gaze was extremely frightening. It was as though anyone who looked him in the eye would be scorched by the sun. The people beside him were all existences at the Renhuang Plane. Their auras were frightening.


    "They should be members of Solar Divine Palace," someone said.


    The Solar Divine Palace was the top force in the Solar Realm. They were an overlord level force. Other supreme forces in the Nine Realms were all much weaker than the Solar Divine Palace.


    Since the Solar Divine Palace had arrived, the youth bathed in divine light was naturally the God of the Solar Divine Palace, Di Wu.


    Rumor has it that the God of the Solar Divine Palace, Di Wu was the descendant of the Sun God. He was the top figure of this generation and the future successor of the Solar Divine Palace. He mastered the power of the Divine Fire of the Sun. Be it in terms of talent or ability, he was outstanding.


    Now that they had seen him in person with their own eyes, he was as glorious as expected.


    Currently, Di Wu was looking directly at where Ye Futian and Chang Xi were. He showed no signs of avoiding them.


    This caused the temperature in the inn where Ye Futian was to rise. It became extremely hot. Many people in the inn began to sweat. It was as though there was a sun beside them. This feeling was extremely uncomfortable. However, knowing the identity of Di Wu, the people did not dare to raise their objections.


    This person was too frightening. With one look, he could cause the temperature in the space to rise.


    Chang Xi released a chilly will over her body, which caused the small area where she was to remain cool. She smiled and said to Ye Futian, "He seems to have a bone to pick with you."


    "It might be the effects of the words spoken by the Renhuang from Hell just now," Ye Futian replied half-jokingly. However, he clearly understood that there was another possible reason for this.


    He had heard from Feixue and Chu Yu that during the Heavenly Mandate Academy assessment to choose their core disciples, a cultivator called Yan Huang, who was at the Renhuang Plane, was discovered to be a cultivator from the Solar Divine Palace by Shen Luoxue. Yan Huang''s cultivation was crippled, and he was exiled from the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Clearly, the Solar Divine Palace knew of this incident. However, Ye Futian was not worried about this incident. Since the Solar Divine Palace dared to send spies to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, there was no issue for the Law Enforcement Hall of the academy to cripple the other party''s cultivation.


    The current Heavenly Mandate Academy did not need to give any face to any force in the Nine Realms when doing things. They would act according to their own rules.


    However, from the perspective of the surrounding crowd, this scene was somewhat intriguing.


    Surely the God of the Solar Divine Palace, Di Wu, would not consider himself lesser than Ye Futian?


    Far away in mid-air, other cultivators were heading over here. This group of people traversed through the air and appeared overbearing and authoritative. They were from the Central Emperor Realm''s Celestial Worthy Temple. They swept a glance in Ye Futian''s direction and then found an inn along the shore of the Yellow Spring to land.


    Various forces arrived one after another. The forces from the Central Emperor Realm such as Celestial Worthy Temple, Martial God clan, and Sky Reaching School descended upon the region one by one.


    Other forces from the Nine Realms such as Illusion Island, Fate World, School of the Emperor Star, and Golden Divine Nation also appeared consecutively.


    This region was very big. They all chose their own corner to land in. The distances between all of them were rather far. However, before figures with their levels of cultivation, this could not be considered far.


    "They are all arriving one after another." The people in Jiuyou City were somewhat excited. The cultivators of the top forces of the Nine Realms had all gathered here. Things were getting interesting.


    The Gate of the Hell had yet to appear, and the various forces were already on the move. Many factions most likely intended to be diametrically opposed to each other.


    The members of the various factions naturally also noticed Di Wu''s unfriendly gaze. Today, there might be a good show from them to enjoy.


    Ye Futian initially ignored Di Wu. However, being constantly stared at by someone would still be somewhat unnerving.


    Ye Futian shifted his gaze and looked towards Di Wu''s direction. The light of the divine fire in his opponent''s eyes was aimed right at Ye Futian''s eyes. Di Wu had not intentionally released any of his power. However, his eyes seemed to contain the fire of the sun within them. This made Ye Futian feel very uncomfortable.


    "Do you have any business with me?" Ye Futian asked as he frowned. Di Wu''s attitude displeased him.


    When they were in Tianshen Academy, Di Wu already disapproved of him.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is recruiting disciples of the Nine Realms and teaching the Way in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The existence of the academy is to teach the Way," Di Wu announced loudly. These were not his words; they were the words of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Yes," Ye Futian replied nonchalantly.


    "In that case, when a cultivator of my Solar Divine Palace went to the academy to seek the Way, why did you cripple his cultivation and expel him from the academy?" Di Wu questioned.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy teaches the Way to those in the Nine Realms. Anyone who wants to train can come to participate in the assessment organized by the academy," Ye Futian explained. "However, this does not mean that the academy is a place to accumulate filth. The academy will personally purge those who enter the academy with ill-intentions."


    "The conclusion was announced one-sidedly by the Heavenly Mandate Academy. As for what the truth was, only the higher-ups of the Heavenly Mandate Academy know," Di Wu retorted coldly. He meant to say that the Heavenly Mandate Academy was eradicating dissidents.


    It was easy to find a stick to beat a dog. Di Wu only needed to find an excuse in order to slander Ye Futian.


    He was not familiar with Yan Huang. However, Yan Huang''s clan had been members of the Solar Divine Palace for generations. Yan Huang had a cousin sister who was serving under Di Wu. Di Wu considered Yan Huang to be one of his own.


    Even if they were not familiar with each other, the family of Yan Huang had still been members of the Solar Divine Palace for generations. With just an order, Yan Huang had been crippled by the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and his life was now a living hell.


    Ye Futian did not know whether Di Wu knew about the role that Yan Huang had played in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Di Wu might have known, but he might also have not known, and only other members had participated in the matter. However, that was not important.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy would naturally play by their own rules.


    "I do not need to report to you." Ye Futian swept a glance at Di Wu in response to his strong stance.


    Ye Futian had just finished speaking when a powerful aura was released from Di Wu''s body. This caused the inn that Ye Futian was in to become even hotter. The aura from Di Wu''s body was frightening. He actually also had a second-tier Divine Wheel. Clearly, he had broken through to the next Plane after emerging from the God''s relic.


    Di Wu''s entire being had gone through a metamorphosis in terms of temperament. After returning to the Solar Divine Palace from Tianshen Academy, he had experienced another baptism in the Solar Divine Palace. His ability was much more powerful than when he was training in Tianshen Academy.


    Ye Futian frowned. However, behind Ye Futian, another silhouette had already walked forward. The silhouette''s burly figure gave off an overbearing feeling. He stood there like a demon.


    Yu Sheng''s gaze swept towards Di Wu standing on the other side. An overbearing demonic might roared out. The Yellow Spring ran between the two parties. Above the Yellow Spring, their auras of the Great Path collided. Dark golden demonic winds crashed with golden winds of divine fire. The two powers eroded each other and were extremely frightening.


    Buzz. Golden light of the divine fire consumed the demonic winds and continued to charge towards Yu Sheng. Ye Futian did not even lift a finger; Yu Sheng, who had a first-tier Divine Wheel, actually dared to block in front of Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng took a step forward. When the golden divine fire descended, it was actually consumed by him immediately. At that moment, it was as though Yu Sheng, who was enveloped in demonic light, was bathing in the divine fire.


    Di Wu frowned. His Way of Divine Fire was extremely powerful. Ordinarily, people of the same Plane as him would perish at a mere touch of his divine fire. Yu Sheng had actually consumed the divine fire and had refined it.


    Yu Sheng''s gaze swept towards Di Wu. His ink-black eyes revealed an extremely overbearing intent to do battle.


    "You are still unqualified to be my opponent," Di Wu said indifferently. He naturally felt the intent of battle from Yu Sheng''s eyes. Yu Sheng was just a follower of Ye Futian. Even though his ability was powerful, Di Wu would not lower his status to exchange blows with him.


    If Di Wu did so, wouldn''t he be solidifying Ye Futian''s status as the top figure of their generation?


    It would be saying that he, Di Wu, was only qualified to fight a follower beside Ye Futian.


    "Such an arrogant tone." In the inn, Dou Zhao revealed a bizarre expression when he heard Di Wu''s words. Was Di Wu actually looking down on Yu Sheng?


    "If you want to fight, then fight. If not, then just shut up and sit there quietly," Dou Zhao said mockingly. Who was Di Wu showing off for?


    Wasn''t he the God of the Solar Divine Palace?


    So what if he was? Even Dou Zhao himself, a dignified descendant of Fighting God, had yielded to Yu Sheng. Which member of their group in Tianshen Academy was not an outstanding figure? Why was Di Wu acting so arrogant?


    Even the Shen clan was beaten to the ground, and their lower-level Renhuangs were wiped out.


    Di Wu swept a glance at Dou Zhao and said, "Descendant of the Ziwei Realm''s Dou tribe, have you already stooped so low as to flatter and follow behind in someone else''s shadow?"


    "..." Dou Zhao actually had no comeback to what Di Wu had said.


    Dou Zhao stood up, and his gaze swept towards Di Wu as he said, "The Solar Divine Palace is so pretentious as to sneakily send spies to steal teachings from Heavenly Mandate Academy? Are you not ashamed of yourself?"


    ...

 1731 Girl of Misfortune

    When they were in the God''s relic, Di Wu was one of the most monstrous figures among them. In the God''s relic, he forged a flawless Divine Wheel. He had walked below the Heavenly Palace and bathed in the emperor''s might.


    He was the God of Solar Divine Palace, the successor of the Emperor''s Family, and descendant of Sun God. The bloodline of God flowed within his veins.


    Among the Nine Supreme Realms, the Central Emperor Realm was the most powerful. Hence, many people believed that Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, and Nan Luoshen were the three most powerful figures of their generation. However, Di Wu never considered himself to be weaker than the three of them. The Solar Divine Palace was the absolute overlord of the Solar Realm. Their influence far surpassed that of the other top forces of the Solar Realm.


    As the successor of the Emperor Family, Di Wu could be considered to be the most prominent figure of this generation in the Solar Realm. No one else could claim that title. If he inherited the Solar Divine Palace in the future, he would become one of the giants at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Di Wu was a proud person. Even though Ye Futian had defeated Shen Hao before, Di Wu would never consider himself weaker than Ye Futian.


    The one that Ye Futian had defeated was merely Shen Hao.


    Di Wu did not refute Dou Zhao anymore. Divine light of the sun shot out from his body. The blinding light caused many people to be unable to open their eyes. On Dou Zhao''s body, Fighting God aura swept out. His battle intent filled the sky and was overbearing. On his body, he wore Fighting God Armor.


    Sunlight shone down on Dou Zhao''s figure. He could not possibly block it. A terrifying high temperature smelted everything around. The armor on Dou Zhao''s body also began to melt into flaming smoke and liquid fire.


    Dou Zhao''s entire body was bathed in divine light. He activated the will of Fighting God. An even more awe-inspiring armor coalesced on his body, blocking the incoming light of Sun God.


    Dou Zhao realized that Di Wu, the God of Solar Divine Palace, was indeed very powerful. Despite Di Wu''s arrogance, he was crowned as the descendant of Sun God, the possessor of the Emperor Family''s bloodline. Moreover, after he had returned to the Solar Divine Palace, he had broken through to the second-tier of the Divine Wheel. His ability was most likely above that of Dou Zhao.


    Since both of them were wielders of flawless Divine Wheels, then their combat abilities were directly dependent on the difference between their Planes. Dou Zhao was at a disadvantage when faced with Di Wu since the former had a lower Plane.


    Even in such a case, Dou Zhao was not someone who retreated easily.


    Bam. The will of Sevenfold Fighting God was activated. Dou Zhao entered into a frenzied state as he transformed into a terrifying Fighting God.


    After all, many of them had missed the battle between Ye Futian and Shen Hao; it was a pity that they couldn''t witness it first-hand.


    If the crowd could witness a fight between Ye Futian and Di Wu, it would definitely make up for their loss.


    Di Wu and Ye Futian were both monstrous figures of the Nine Realms, but Ye Futian had a glamorous fighting record of defeating Shen Hao from the Shen clan. Hence, if the two of them were to fight, Ye Futian had a much higher chance of winning.


    On the other hand, the difference between them might not be as big as what the crowd had imagined. Ye Futian''s fame did not come entirely out of his ability. He was renowned because the scene where he led a group of cultivators to challenge the Shen clan was too shocking. It was unprecedented. Ye Futian''s name reached its zenith because of it.


    Under such circumstances, the crowd was undoubtedly excited about this fight.


    "If you attack us, then the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy will also test out the abilities of those who trained under the Solar Divine Palace. If anyone is injured or killed in the process, hopefully, the Solar Divine Palace can afford the loss," said Ye Futian, who had been sitting quietly at the side all this while. "If you are not prepared for such a fight, then let''s not waste each other''s time. Restrain your aura."


    Solar Divine Palace was a force that stood at the peak of the Solar Realm. In reality, both parties did not dare to touch each other. Ye Futian was not interested in personal disputes. Even if Ye Futian defeated Di Wu, God of the Solar Divine Palace, what would that prove?


    Ye Futian did not have to prove himself anymore.


    Hence, Ye Futian merely sat there quietly and spoke casually. Opposite him, Goddess Chang Xi of Youyue Divine Palace smiled at him and then looked at Di Wu in the distance.


    Although the two of them had not exchanged blows, the victor had been determined.


    Di Wu was still proud, but his pride was displayed for all to see.


    Compared to him, Ye Futian, who appeared humble, was the one who was truly prideful. He did not even want to contend or defeat Di Wu to prove anything.


    Maybe this white-haired youth was not concerned at all about the contest with Di Wu.


    Di Wu frowned. He naturally also felt this. It was as though he really yearned for a match with Ye Futian.


    The brilliant light of Sun God dissipated. Dou Zhao immediately felt relieved from the pressure which had been exerted on him.


    Di Wu waved his sleeves, strode back to the tavern, and sat down. The commotion seemingly ended due to a line from Ye Futian.


    Yu Sheng cast a domineering glance at Di Wu. Then, he returned to Ye Futian''s side quietly.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said as he got up. His gaze swept across to Chang Xi, who was sitting across from him. He said, "Goddess Chang Xi, we will take our leave first."


    "Renhuang Ye, where do you plan to go?" Chang Xi asked.


    "We will first find a place to settle in and rest," Ye Futian replied. Although news of the Gate of the Hell had begun to circulate within Jiuyou City, the Gate of the Hell had yet to truly emerge. If it did appear, news of its appearance would cause an uproar. Ye Futian was not anxious about this.


    "Alright, we will meet again if we have the chance," Chang Xi replied as she nodded her head. She also got up and prepared to leave.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian and his group left the inn and strolled into the ancient Jiuyou City. As a land of oppression, Jiuyou City appeared very chaotic. With a sweep of his will, Ye Futian discovered that small fights due to friction between parties were erupting in many places. Most of these battles were also very heavy-handed.


    At this moment, in the sky in front of them, a large-scale battle had erupted. There was a group of people being surrounded by another party. Blades then immediately slashed down, killing them off. It was very tragic.


    Ye Futian was not too affected when he saw this scene. The world of cultivation was like that. Such incidents occurred every day all around, not to mention that they were in the Hidden Land Realm''s most notorious city known for oppression.


    There was nothing he could do about this situation.


    Right at the moment, Ye Futian frowned.


    In a dark alley of Jiuyou City, dazzling silhouettes appeared one by one. They surrounded the dark alley and unleashed domineering auras, sealing off the entire space.


    Whoever that was in the alley would not be able to escape even if they had wings.


    The bypassers avoided the area. They seemed to know the identity of the silhouettes.


    A middle-aged man, who was the leader of the group, descended slowly from the sky. His level of cultivation was high; he was a Renhuang.


    However, he stared at the alley with a cautious gaze.


    "Let''s go in," the middle-aged man ordered.


    The group moved into the alley. The cultivators entered from various directions while the middle-aged man flew into the alley.


    Inside the alley, a little girl covered in dirt was curled up in a corner. She was hugging her knees with her arms while her emaciated body was shivering in fear. She did not even dare to look up.


    Yet when faced with a little girl like this, the group of cultivators was on high alert, and they were determined to capture her.


    Streaks of the might of the Way pressured the girl, causing her to tremble even more violently. She hid her head in between her legs.


    She was extremely scared.


    "Take her away," the Renhuang, who was in mid-air, commanded. A cultivator immediately moved forward and extended his arms, ready to catch the girl.


    However, right at this moment, suddenly a streak of very powerful might of the Way appeared in the alley. The might froze everything in the space.


    A group of cultivators emerged at the entrance of the alley. The leader of the group was a youth with white hair and white robes. He said, "Isn''t it a little too much for so many people to gang up on a girl?"


    The middle-aged man who was standing above the alley looked at Ye Futian and said, "Sir, please keep out of this."


    However, a silhouette beside Ye Futian had moved towards the girl; it was Yaya.


    Step by step, Yaya came up to the girl and gently asked, "Why are they trying to capture you?"


    The girl shook her head. She didn''t know.


    The little girl lifted her head slowly. Yaya revealed a strange look when she saw the girl''s eyes. This little girl, who was in her early teens, had a pair of unfathomable eyes. Her eyes were like bottomless pits; those who looked at her were engrossed by her eyes uncontrollably.


    "Elder sister," the girl whispered, "they said I am one who brings misfortune. But I have never voluntarily hurt anyone before."


    Gazing into the girl''s eyes, Yaya extended her hand. She could sense something familiar about the girl.


    The girl also looked into Yaya''s eyes. Then, she took her hand.


    "Come with me." Yaya held on to the girl''s hand and pulled her up. Then, she turned around and walked towards Ye Futian.


    "Sir." Suddenly, the man in mid-air released a very strong might of the Renhuang. He said, "This little girl is a deviant. May all of you show us some face and don''t put us in a predicament."


    The middle-aged man could naturally sense that Ye Futian and his party were not simple. Otherwise, he would not be so polite to them.


    "I will take her with me," Ye Futian insisted. Yaya wanted the little girl to follow them; he would not stop her.


    Perhaps Yaya saw the shadow of herself in the little girl and took pity on her.


    The cultivators who surrounded the alley had ugly expressions. However, they merely stared at Ye Futian and his group as they left. Nobody dared to stop them.


    Many people behind Ye Futian had auras that were frighteningly powerful.


    "Let''s go. We will return and make a report," the leading Renhuang instantly turned and left. He was afraid that he had invited trouble.


    Ye Futian''s group had already left with the girl. After they emerged from the alley, the girl lifted her head and looked at Ye Futian. She softly said, "Thank you, elder brother."


    Ye Futian lowered his head and looked at the girl''s eyes. At that moment, his heart had actually trembled inadvertently inside. What were those eyes of hers? A mere glance from them had actually caused the Life Spirit in his body to stir!

 1732 Ye Qingyao

    The girl quickly retracted her gaze. She lowered her head and looked at her feet.


    "What is your name?" Ye Futian asked.


    The girl shook her head and softly answered, "I have no name."


    "No name?" Ye Futian was stunned. He asked, "Then, what about your family?"


    The girl still shook her head. She fell silent and did not say anything. She also did not have a family.


    She did not know how she had come to this world and also did not know how she had managed to survive until now. She only knew that she was a girl of misfortune; as long as anyone came in contact with her, things would not end well for them.


    "Let us bring you back," Yaya said softly.


    The girl instead shook her head in refusal. She pulled back her tiny little hand.


    "What''s wrong?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Elder Brother and Sister are good people. I do not wish to get you two involved," the little girl said with a timid voice. "Even though I do not wish to harm others, I know for a fact that I bring misfortune. Whoever stays close to me will be in trouble."


    "Oh, what a coincidence. It is the same for me," Ye Futian said as he laughed. When the girl heard him laugh, she lifted her head and looked into his eyes. She thought to herself that he had the brightest eyes that she had ever seen.


    He was handsome and exceptionally warm.


    "Really?" the girl asked nervously.


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded his head in affirmation and said, "If we live together, we are basically fighting fire with fire."


    The little girl didn''t quite understand what Ye Futian meant by that, but she could sense the friendliness from Ye Futian''s smile. A glimpse of an innocent smile appeared on her dirty face. Even though she was plain-looking, her smile was exceptionally warm. It was a genuine smile.


    Ye Futian and Yaya extended their hands. The girl smiled and grabbed hold of both of their hands.


    "Why don''t we let Elder Brother come up with a name for you?" Yaya asked softly as she looked at the girl.


    "Can you?" the girl asked as she turned to Ye Futian. She looked somewhat timid, but she also had a look of anticipation.


    "Of course," Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. He pondered for a while and then asked, "What do you like?"


    "I don''t know." The girl shook her head, somewhat crestfallen.


    "Then, is there anything that you want to do?" Ye Futian asked.


    The girl raised her head and looked at Ye Futian. She timidly said, "I wish to become nicer to look at. That way, I do not need to hide every day and can be like normal girls."


    Ye Futian was stunned. He felt a pang of melancholy inside. It was such a simple wish. However, for the girl, it was a lofty dream.


    She would probably be alone again very soon.


    As she thought about this, her expression became depressed and sad.


    "You will be named Qingyao. How about it?" Ye Futian said gently.


    The girl looked at Ye Futian and giggled. "Qingyao�� I like it. Thank you, Elder Brother."


    "Is it alright if her family name is Ye?" Beside her, Yaya looked at Ye Futian in anticipation.


    Ye Futian was stunned. He then smiled bitterly. Yaya must have felt compassion towards this girl. Back then, she had also experienced a gloomy time in her life.


    During those tough times, Ye Futian was Yaya''s pillar of support. Therefore, Yaya could most likely empathize well with the girl. Yaya was also at Qingyao''s age at that time.


    "Of course it is," Ye Futian replied as he nodded. He naturally would not deny Yaya''s wish.


    The girl was not sure what the two of them were talking about. She lifted her head and looked at them curiously. She saw that many people around her were looking at her. There was kindness in their eyes that made her feel warm inside.


    "The family name of Elder Brother is Ye," Yaya explained to the girl.


    The girl was clearly stupefied. Looking at the kind smiles around her, she lowered her head slightly and shed a tear. However, she quickly regained control of her emotions. She was used to being alone and was much tougher than girls of the same age. Even though she was only slightly over ten years old, she would not cry no matter what she faced.


    Ye Qingyao.


    She carved the name into her heart. She did not say thank you, but today was the happiest day in her life so far. It was because she finally had a name.


    Moreover, the name was so beautiful. It was an even better name than all the names of the playmates she had met.


    The name was similar to those of the princesses and young mistresses. It had a good ring to it.


    Ye Futian and the group found an inn to stay overnight. Yaya took Qingyao out for a shower. After she had been changed into some clean clothes, Yaya put her to bed.


    In the courtyard, Ye Futian was sitting quietly.


    Yaya sat beside him and whispered, "She kept holding on to my hand and refused to sleep. She was afraid that we would be gone when she woke up. Even after she was asleep, she was still talking in her sleep. She kept saying the name ''Ye Qingyao'' with a smile on her face. She most likely has been repeating the name internally."


    Ye Futian sighed. He had just met with the girl and did not have any attachment to her. Their encounter was purely a coincidence. It was just that Ye Futian could not ignore it when he saw a group of cultivators bullying a little girl.


    However, he was well aware that the world of cultivation was too huge. Scenarios like this were happening daily. He could not do anything about it at all.


    But if it was just Qingyao, he could still afford to provide her a simple living environment without much hassle.


    "You will bring her back, right?" Yaya asked Ye Futian.


    "Yaya, you have never cared so much for anyone else before," Ye Futian said with a smile. Of course, he was an exception for her. Yaya had risked her life multiple times for him.


    Normally, Yaya had a very low sense of presence; she was always quiet. However, whenever Ye Futian was in danger, she would definitely be one of those who were willing to give up their lives for him. Ye Futian was very aware of this fact.


    Yaya said nothing and just stared at him. Ye Futian nodded with a smile. "Since you like that girl, you should keep her with you."


    "Hmm." Yaya nodded her head in agreement.


    "However, there is more to Qingyao than meets the eye," Ye Futian said.


    "I also feel the same way. She said that she would bring misfortune. Can you make out anything?" Yaya asked.


    "I always thought that cultivating was like footprints. One can only take it one step at a time and that it is impossible to skip past any step," Ye Futian said softly. "I thought that people had to cultivate stable foundations. However, after meeting Qingyao, I feel that what I understood was wrong."


    "Are you saying that Qingyao''s cultivation is very high?" Yaya asked.


    "No." Ye Futian shook his head. "She does not have any cultivation, but she has insights into the Laws."


    Yaya was befuddled.


    "Qingyao might be the legendary innate Divine Fetus of the Great Path," Ye Futian explained while staring at Yaya. Anything that could cause Ye Futian''s Life Spirit to stir was a divine item. Qingyao''s eyes actually managed to stir his Life Spirit.


    This was slightly terrifying.


    The pitiful little girl whom they had saved might be the most terrifying monstrous figure that Ye Futian had ever met before.


    Feixue had a divine item in her body. Hence, when she cultivated, her progress was speedy. It could even be regarded as God-speed.


    However, Qingyao might not even need to train at all.


    He had never encountered such a condition before; Qingyao was the first. She subverted all that he understood. She was like what the legends said: a divine fetus, an innate instrument for the Way.


    Even Zhan Yuan''s and Yi Tianyu''s bodies paled into insignificance when compared to hers.


    However, Ye Futian did not dwell upon his thoughts of Qingyao. For him, Qingyao was first and foremost a pitiful little girl.


    As for the rest, he would go with the flow of fate.


    Besides that, the force that appeared in the alley before this was most likely not simple. They should have noticed something about her too. Otherwise, they wouldn''t have wanted to capture her. They were also cautious of her when they met her.


    It was hard to imagine that a few Renhuangs would actually be cautious of a little girl who had no cultivation.


    If the force were a top force in Jiuyou City, they would most likely not give up on her so easily.


    As Ye Futian had expected, the next day, a large group of people arrived at the inn. The visitors did not purposely emanate any might, but they still gave off a solemn vibe.


    Everyone in the inn avoided them. The entire inn was empty except for Ye Futian and his group. In the distance, another group of silhouettes appeared in the air.


    A middle-aged man walked out from the troop of visitors. He was wearing a long black robe and had a terrifying aura.


    The crowd observed all this from afar. They were shocked. Who was staying in the inn? The magnate of Jiuyou City, Hierophant Jiuyou, had actually come over personally.


    Jiuyou Sect had been long rooted in Jiuyou City. The sect had experienced many generations rise and fall. They had been eradicated a few times, yet they rebuilt themselves very quickly after. However, through their rise and fall, the name "Jiuyou Sect" had remained constant and had always been used.


    Hierophant Jiuyou was extremely frightening. Normally, he rarely made an appearance. Unless some shocking event had occurred in Jiuyou City, he would not appear.


    However, today, he was here.


    "I heard that Renhuang Ye from Heavenly Mandate Academy had arrived in Jiuyou City. Jiuyou Sect has come over to greet you," a voice cried out. The members of Jiuyou Sect were all outside the inn and had not barged in. With Heavenly Mandate Academy''s current standing, no force dared to act presumptuously before them.


    Although Jiuyou Sect was the local gang of Jiuyou City, they still did not have the background of a supreme force.


    Rumor has it that Hierophant Jiuyou''s current ability was at the eighth tier of the Divine Wheel. He was already an extremely powerful existence.


    Ye Qingyao seemed to know that these people had come for her. She kept hiding behind Yaya and grabbed hold of Yaya''s clothes. She was very afraid.


    "Hierophant Jiuyou, what business do you have with me for you to have come here?" Ye Futian said from a distance. He did not invite the other party in.


    "Renhuang Ye has come a long way. I have especially ordered people to send over some gifts," Hierophant Jiuyou said. Immediately, a number of maids holding gift baskets came forward. Each maid was extremely sexy and beautiful, and they were all rare beauties. They were also very thinly dressed, which accentuated their graceful figures even more vividly.


    Ye Qingyao pulled even harder on Yaya''s sleeve.


    "There is no gain without pain. Hierophant Jiuyou, I appreciate the gesture, but I cannot accept these gifts," Ye Futian said, rejecting the offer. Although the other party was very respectful, if they had come for Ye Qingyao, it was impossible for him to just hand her over like that.


    Hierophant Jiuyou was an understanding person. He waved his hand, and the women immediately stepped down. He did not force the gifts on Ye Futian. If figures like Ye Futian said that they would not accept the gifts, they would not accept them.


    "I have long heard of Renhuang Ye. Initially, I would not have come forward to disturb you. Renhuang Ye, I am sure that you have noticed that there is more to the girl than meets the eye," Hierophant Jiuyou said. "I have cultivated for so many years and have finally come across a good candidate to inherit my teachings. I hope Renhuang Ye can allow the girl to do so." He naturally had seen through that Ye Qingyao had grown attached to Yaya.


    Hence, he had not said that he wanted to capture her, but that he wanted to take her as a disciple.


    "Qingyao, do you want to inherit his teachings?" Ye Futian did not reject his offer. Instead, he turned and asked Ye Qingyao.


    Ye Qingyao shook her head and said, "I want to follow Elder Brother and Sister."


    "Alright," Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. He revealed an apologetic expression to Hierophant Jiuyou!

 1733 Violent Measures

    Hierophant Jiuyou left very tactfully. This was a grand occasion, and he had shown his sincerity. Ye Futian had no intention of handing anyone over, so he left directly.


    For a time, everyone who learned that Ye Futian of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was staying in that inn flocked to visit him. They wanted to see this legendary figure.


    Everyone discussed this matter. It was said that the powerful dragon could not crush a snake in its old haunts, but when the powerful dragon brought its full strength to bear, the snake could only lie upon its belly and grovel. Ye Futian was not going to hand anyone over, and so there was nothing that Hierophant Jiuyou could do.


    Jiuyou City was a violent place. Hierophant Jiuyou was not usually as friendly as he was that day; he usually dealt with things in a bloody manner, standing upon an increasingly large pile of corpses. There were no rules in this city, only power.


    So, it was only natural that Hierophant Jiuyou would bow his head. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was stronger than him.


    However, after he left, Ye Futian said, "We should all be a little bit more careful. Don''t go out alone."


    "Do you think Hierophant Jiuyou would dare attack us?" said Dou Zhao.


    "Not necessarily, but in a violent city like this, the most powerful people are surely fierce and ambitious. Since he left so quietly, he has probably accepted us. But maybe..." Ye Futian said no more. Everyone knew what he meant.


    Jiuyou City was Hierophant Jiuyou''s realm, after all. In such a lawless place, it was a good idea to be careful.


    "Sister, have I brought trouble to your brother?" Qingyao did not understand the world of cultivation, nor did she understand who Ye Futian and Hierophant Jiuyou were. She only knew that someone wanted to take her away. But Ye Futian had still asked her opinion.


    This was a feeling that she had never had before.


    "It''s not a problem. Don''t worry too much, Qingyao. Your brother will take you somewhere safe," said Yaya, patting Qingyao''s head. This action might have been learned from Ye Futian. After all, her own head was often patted.


    "Alright." Although Qingyao had an ordinary appearance, she gave people a simple and refreshing feeling.


    Afterward, more people came to the inn to visit, all of them from Jiuyou City. Ye Futian left them all for others to deal with. He naturally had no time to meet with them; otherwise, he''d have no time for himself at all.


    Ye Futian didn''t know whether to laugh or cry when he was told that some people had come simply to pay a visit, some had come asking to be his disciple, and some had come to offer their precious daughters up to him as concubines.


    That was right, concubines. They did not even dare to imagine that he would take them as proper wives. As long as he accepted them, that was good enough.


    Of course, these women were all beautiful and talented. Otherwise, they would not have been brought. After all, Ye Futian was said to be the most brilliant figure in the Nine Realms at the moment.


    But the others from the Heavenly Mandate Academy understood these methods. According to them, one could lose one''s life at any time in a city as chaotic as Jiuyou City. There was no sense of safety. Many of the people with descendants did not want them to stay here in such a dangerous place. Now that Ye Futian was here, even being able to stand behind him was far better than staying in Jiuyou City.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was incomparably talented and very handsome, with his head full of silver hair and strong features.


    It was said that Chang Xi, the Goddess of Youyue Divine Palace, desired him, so how much more would ordinary women?


    Of course, no one knew what Chang Xi would think if she heard this news.


    On that day, Ye Futian was cultivating quietly. He had sent people to observe the happenings in the outside world, particularly watching for news from Hell.


    There was now no trace of Hell in the Nine Realms. They were difficult to find, but their target was the Gate of Hell. Once the gate appeared, the people of Hell would appear as well.


    "Hm?"


    At that moment, Ye Futian frowned while he was cultivating. He seemed to feel that something was not right.


    A figure flashed over and descended beside him. It was Hua Jiangshan. "There is danger," he said.


    Ye Futian''s expression froze, and he said, "Remind everyone to stay safe."


    As he said this, Hua Jiangshan''s aura had already surged out. Suddenly, a group of figures appeared.


    At that moment, it seemed like many divine consciousnesses were sweeping towards them, each one incredibly terrifying.


    The sky suddenly dimmed and became shrouded in darkness. Incomparably terrifying will covered the sky, blocking all the light. Black light covered the land. In just a second, it seemed like the end of days had come.


    Countless figures rose into the sky as they tried to fly away. Although they didn''t know what was happening, the people of Jiuyou City felt a powerful sense of alarm. Death was all too common in this violent land. The first thing they would do in a situation like this was try to leave and not get caught in the storm.


    Whoosh!


    At that moment, endless hellfire descended from the sky, crashing down upon an area hundreds of miles wide. Everywhere this fire rained, everything died. Many plaintive cries rose up as people were engulfed in flames and burned away into nothingness.


    "Flee!" cried out many voices. This had become a place of death. The flames from Hell covered the entire area, trying to bury it.


    A figure appeared in the fire, wearing a dark robe. He was powerful and overbearing. It was Hierophant Jiuyou.


    He unleashed his terrifying power, that of an eighth-tier Divine Wheel. The destructive hellfire transformed into streams of the Great Path of destruction that swept out across the land.


    Renhuang-level figures appeared all around him.


    Ye Futian looked up into the sky. He had known that Hierophant Jiuyou would not give up easily but would resort to trickery. Thus, he had warned everyone to be careful.


    But he had not thought that Hierophant Jiuyou would resort to such overpowering and direct means. He was cutting off his own road of retreat. After today, he would become a bitter enemy of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. As a great figure with an eighth-tier Divine Wheel, he naturally knew what he was doing. He knew what it meant.


    But he was still getting directly involved.


    The power of Jiuyou City was truly just as intense as the legends said.


    Beams of brilliant celestial light bloomed, shooting towards the hellfire. At the same time, Hua Jiangshan stepped forward, the beams of light opening up a road of the Great Path for him. He suddenly rose up into the air and thrust a hand out towards Hierophant Jiuyou.


    But Hierophant Jiuyou was not the least bit afraid. He thrust his dark hands down. They were filled with endless destructive, deadly energy.


    Bang!


    Their hands collided, and devastating light swept out, transforming into a fearsome wave that shot out in all directions.


    At the same time, other cultivators were stepping out in other places. Their auras were terrible. Only a few of them were upper-level Renhuangs, but they had seventh or eighth-tier Divine Wheels. However, even such a formation was not that frightening, especially because they were only in Jiuyou City.


    "Hierophant Jiuyou is not the only one getting involved." The people who had fled far away still felt their hearts tremble.


    Many of them were top figures of Jiuyou City. Now, they were all targeting the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Did the old snake want to swallow up the dragon of the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    "The Blood Demon Emperor!" someone cried after seeing a terrifying figure emerge. Blood-colored light shone all around him, sweeping out towards Ye Futian below him. It was a horrifying sight.


    "That''s the Sky Sword Emperor!" More figures from Jiuyou City appeared, shocking all the onlookers. Were they crazy?


    So many of Jiuyou City''s greatest figures were coming out to attack the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Below them, many of the great figures of the Heavenly Mandate Academy acted, blocking off the area all around them.


    When war had broken out between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Shen Clan, they had flocked to the Hidden Land Realm, and several top figures had been dispatched to ensure their safety. Although the Shen Clan and the Golden Divine Nation would not necessarily attack them openly, who knew if they would attack them in secret?


    As Ye Futian watched this apocalyptic battlefield, his expression suddenly turned cold.


    Such a huge force had planned against him?


    They were openly declaring war. They no longer cared about the consequences.


    A young girl had been enough to make Hierophant Jiuyou and several other great figures act without regard for the consequences, even though the Heavenly Mandate Academy protected her. How much importance did they place upon her?


    Ye Futian did not think that Hierophant Jiuyou was attacking because he had refused him earlier. Would he really go so far as to risk his life just to save face?


    Obviously not.


    There was only one reason.


    Ye Qingyao had the same name as him.


    Because he had some special power, he was able to see that Ye Qingyao was extraordinarily talented in both mind and body, but others always overlooked her. Yet his opponent clearly knew her secret as well.


    However, even though he knew, why would he risk his life to get her?


    What kind of secret could it be?


    Ye Futian looked at Ye Qingyao, who just so happened to be looking back at him. She seemed very scared as she stood behind Yaya. When she saw the look in Ye Futian''s eyes, her face went white. She was thinking that she was imposing on her brother and sister too much.


    She really was an unlucky person. Everywhere she went, disaster followed.


    Someone like her did not deserve to have such wonderful friends.


    But although she was scared, she let go of Yaya''s hand and strode forward. She looked up at the figure in the sky and called out, "I will go with you!"


    She seemed so alone as she yelled this; it was as if she was no longer part of a group.


    But she had been so happy these past few days. She was happy to have had such wonderful friends.


    But even though she wanted to keep them, she did not want to keep using them.


    "Emperor Ye, I will take her away, and we will end the matter here, yes?" said Hierophant Jiuyou up in the sky when he heard Ye Qingyao''s offer. If he was not forced to, he would not gamble the lives of his family on this. He knew that no matter what happened that day, there would no longer be a place for him in Jiuyou City after this.


    But if he could take her away peacefully, the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s anger would not be as fierce. Thus, although it was only a narrow avenue of retreat, he was willing to take it.


    Of course, if Ye Futian would not accept, he would use his most violent measures.


    He had to have her!''


    ...

 1734 A Domain Suppressed

    Ye Futian looked up at Hierophant Jiuyou, his heart full of doubt. He could not help but ask, "Why would you bring such a force for a single girl?"


    Hierophant Jiuyou, the Blood Demon Emperor, the Sky Sword Emperor, and more had all gotten involved. There must be something more to this.


    "Do not worry, Emperor Ye, we will not hurt her," said Hierophant Jiuyou.


    "What does this have to do with the Gate of Hell?" asked Ye Futian.


    There was no change in Hierophant Jiuyou''s expression. The death current flowed out all around him.


    Woosh!


    At that moment, a shocking aura bloomed. The Sky Sword Emperor slashed with his sword, cutting the Great Path apart. Lines of destructive death light shone through the sky, cutting through the air as they shot towards the people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He had acted without mercy.


    They had decided to act. They had not a road of retreat, and they would not leave any road of retreat.


    A violent storm whipped up as a Kunpeng Demon Emperor flapped his wings, covering the sky for a vast distance. He lashed out with his wings, enveloping the oncoming light.


    Ye Futian stood there without moving, still staring at Hierophant Jiuyou.


    The news about the Gate of Hell had come out of Jiuyou City. Perhaps it was at the Yellow Spring.


    So did the power of Jiuyou City have to do with the Gate of Hell?


    Previously, a middle-ranking Renhuang had appeared in the city.


    The terrible storm swept out as the Kunpeng Demon Emperor flew up into the sky to battle with the Sky Sword Emperor.


    A cultivator of the Dou tribe strode through the air, descending like a god of war. His body grew hundreds of feet, covering the inn below him. He lashed out with a fist, splitting the ground, causing dark cracks to spread out. Endless dark flames shot out in all directions.


    Bang!


    There was a loud noise as he transformed into a beam of golden light. He lashed out with his fist yet again, this time towards the Blood Demon Emperor.


    Blood qi rose up from the Blood Demon Emperor as he grew into a huge, blood-red form. He was terrifying in the extreme. When he saw his opponent coming, he lifted an arm. This made everyone for many miles feel the blood roiling in their veins until it felt like they would burst.


    When the two of them collided, blood-red light appeared upon the great figure from the Dou tribe. But the fist cut through everyone like a knife through bamboo. Along the way, it transformed into brilliant divine light, smashing his opponent up into the sky.


    This battlefield was too small for people at their level. They needed to expand their fighting area so they wouldn''t drag in people weaker than them.


    Ye Qingyao looked at Ye Futian. She had not thought that they would really fight for her.


    "Yaya, you take care of Qingyao," said Ye Futian. Up in the air, people were constantly trying to break through the defensive spells to get to them.


    "Alright," said Yaya with a nod.


    A beam of brilliant light shot out from Ye Futian''s forehead, which then transformed into many divine halls that covered Yaya and Ye Qingyao.


    Yaya was stunned. This was Ye Futian''s defensive treasure, and he was giving it to them. Was he planning on going to fight himself?


    Everyone who had come to the Hidden Land Realm was at the Renhuang level or above. There were no weaklings here.


    This truly was a trial for the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "I''m going to help." As Ye Futian said this, he suddenly shot up into the sky. Many figures flew through the air around him, charging towards Hierophant Jiuyou and the other cultivators.


    Woosh! The storm of death raged. A Renhuang with huge black wings charged towards Ye Futian. His Divine Wheel surged, and huge, dark vermilion birds appeared, filled with a destructive will.


    The images of vermilion birds shot towards Ye Futian, filling the air around him.


    This was a mid-level Renhuang. He was truly terrifying.


    A spear appeared in Ye Futian''s hands. It was the one he had gotten in the God''s Relic, and it was filled with fighting will.


    At that moment, his aura raged, and his figure flashed through the air. His Divine Wheel released its energy, which cut through space itself. Many of the dark vermilion birds were shattered. A beam of light appeared before his opponent.


    Crack!


    At the moment that his fighting will surged, his spear pierced through his opponent. Ye Futian went right through him, and the huge dark vermilion bird shattered into pieces.


    The people watching from far away trembled as they saw this.


    Although they lived in the Hidden Land Realm, they had always heard of Ye Futian''s strength. But those were just legends.


    The kind, silver-haired youth stood there in the air, bathed in divine light like a god of war. His spiritual will was so powerful that with a single spear thrust, he had slain a mid-level Renhuang.


    Moreover, he had broken through to the next level and already had a second-tier Divine Wheel, even though it had only been four or five years since he had created it in the God''s Relic. The cultivation of geniuses like him could not be compared to ordinary people.


    And it was not just Ye Futian. They also realized that the other cultivators were terrifying as well. When the first-tier Heavenly Mandate Academy Renhuangs unleashed their Divine Wheels, their talent had been obvious and dazzling. They were all world-class heroes. All of them had crossed through many realms to fight here.


    When they had heard that Ye Futian had led a force of first-tier, lower level Renhuangs to sweep away the Shen clan, and that their opponents had not had any power to resist, they had thought it was exaggerated. After all, that was the Shen clan they were talking about.


    But now, seeing this battle with their own eyes, they could clearly see how strong these people were.


    In the distance, more cultivators were arriving on the battlefield, including some top powers from other realms. A battle of this level had made great waves. Everyone in Jiuyou City could feel it.


    Even far away, people looked up and could see what was happening.


    At that moment, Princess Nan Luoyue of the Nantian Divine Nation pierced through the air, watching the battlefield. Her gaze fell upon the white-haired figure.


    She had only heard about the battle at the Shen clan. She was very curious to see just how capable a combatant Ye Futian was.


    Ye Futian was truly just as many people in the outside world thought he was. Was he already the greatest figure of his generation in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path?


    Even her father had such high praise for him. He was an icon of their age.


    At that moment, she saw the sky around Ye Futian dim, as if it is was being swallowed by darkness.


    Ye Futian completely disappeared.


    "Huh?" Nan Luoshen froze. This...


    "Hell," said Nan Luoshen. After she said this, she strode forward, calling out, "Take them!"


    Another force seemed to have appeared.


    Moreover, Hierophant Jiuyou, who had lived in Jiuyou City for many years, and some of the other great figures, seemed to have something to do with this.


    Had the vanished power known as Hell insinuated itself so deeply into the Hidden Land Realm these past few years?


    The other cultivators realized that Hierophant Jiuyou had something to do with Hell. Suddenly, a group of figures strode forward towards the battlefield.


    Ye Futian had been plunged into shadow.


    The area he was in was completely covered in darkness. There was no sound, no air, no light, just absolute darkness. Cultivators had incredible eyesight, and the dark of night did not affect their vision. And moreover, they had their divine consciousness.


    But where he was was not the darkness of night; it was the Great Path Domain. Even his divine consciousness was cut off by the darkness. He had no way of sensing the outside world.


    Ye Futian unleashed his Divine Wheel, but the divine light could only light up a small area. The rest of the space was still filled by absolute darkness. This meant that his will was being suppressed. The one who was attacking him was a cultivator with a sixth tier Divine Wheel: a mid-level Emperor.


    They had come to take away Ye Qingyao, but Ye Futian had used his ritual implement to cut her off from them in the Spatial Sacred Hall. Since they could not take her, they could only capture Ye Futian to make them trade him for her. This was their last chance.


    Suddenly, a powerful sense of threat descended. Ye Futian suddenly turned around. A spear of a god of death appeared in the darkness behind him, overpowering and fierce. A frightening figure was thrusting it towards him. A terrible spatial vortex appeared in the air, destroying everything within it.


    The spear coming from the darkness was extremely deadly and very fast.


    Roar! The Divine Elephants trumpeted, and the spear slammed into the body of a massive Divine Elephant, shattering it into pieces. The ferocious spatial vortex entered into Ye Futian, making lines of dark light appear all over him as his body cracked.


    Ye Futian was sent flying, letting out a groan of intense pain.


    His opponent stepped forward, trying to go further into the darkness. But he found that he could not.


    "What is going on?" He looked into the air. High above, stars whirled around, and powerful will spread out, covering his body. And he himself could not access the Great Path. It was as if he had been cut off from it.


    Had he been cut off from the Great Path Domain?


    Ye Futian had pulled him into his own Great Path Domain.


    But ye Futian was far weaker than him, how could he do this? Only if his Great Path Domain had cut off his opponents could this be possible.


    Was it because he had a perfect Divine Wheel?


    However, even with his perfect Divine Wheel, Ye Futian was still only at the second tier. His opponent was at the sixth tier. Could even a perfect Divine Wheel make up such a huge difference and let him suppress his Great Path Domain?


    ...

 1735 The Mysterious Girl

    This Great Path domain was a separate vast space that had the sun, the moon, and the stars. It looked just like a real world.


    The only thing unusual was that the cultivator in the Divine Wheel Sixth Order couldn''t make contact with the outside world anymore. As one of the best cultivators in the middle-level Renhuang Plane, he was extremely powerful with the Body of the Great Path. Yet now, he seemed to have lost his power to communicate.


    "What kind of a Divine Wheel is this?" he glared at Ye Futian and asked in a cold voice.


    Bang... He sensed a terrifying burst of energy of the Great Path and a massive wave. Great Path Rules flowed in the air while countless stars fell from the sky and shot at his body.


    This cultivator in the middle-level Renhuang Plane felt like his whole world was collapsing at the moment.


    Buzz.


    His body became a shadow and rushed in the darkness.


    He was extremely fast. The incredible speed made it seem like his shadow was surrounding Ye Futian from all directions. However, he could not blend into the darkness like before to evade Ye Futian''s detection.


    Right now, Ye Futian could sense his existence no matter how fast he managed to be.


    A frightening black storm took shape around Ye Futian''s body. The dark whirlwind swallowed everything nearby as the man exerting strength from his Divine Wheel.


    Buzz.


    Ye Futian thrust a spear forward. The terrifying whirlwind of destruction pounced on Ye Futian''s body. Even stars in the sky were devoured and annihilated by the whirlwind.


    Ye Futian jumped nimbly and appeared in the air high above. The spear in his hand vanished, and a long stick appeared.


    Bang... The stick extended dramatically to an astonishing length. Ye Futian was like a war god who drew all the power of this world great path to his body.


    Bang! Bang! A Starry Storm was developing in the void accompanied by spine-chilling noises. The stars hanging in this space spun frantically as though the void was about to crash into entropy.


    The Great Path domain was going on the rampage.


    Bang... An exceptionally violent storm of the Great Path emerged and blocked the cultivator in the Divine Wheel Sixth Order just when he was about to change location. His shadow flashed, yet the storm was everywhere.


    Ye Futian bathed in the brilliant divine light. His silver, long hair was blowing in the wind.


    He raised the stick in his hand. The entire world was collapsing in horrifying thunder.


    The Renhuang in the Divine Wheel Sixth Order had an illusion at the moment that Ye Futian and this Great Path domain formed an integral whole. Ye Futian''s every move was magnified by the Great Path domain.


    As a master cultivator in the middle-level Renhuang Plane, he was surprisingly threatened by Ye Futian.


    He stood high in the air. The Divine Wheel behind him seemed even scarier. The dark whirlwind of destruction slowly swallowed the Great Path of Space and turned it to Hell.


    The destructive energy wrapped around his body. He suddenly transformed into a bolt of black lightning and struck forward with great momentum.


    Bang bang... His spear crushed every star it touched. It was as if the sky was crumbling.


    The entire Great Path of Space was about to perish as millions of stars exploding.


    Staring at the approaching spear, Ye Futian brandished the long stick in his hand. The Great Path of Space quaked as though all the energy in the world was connected with him.


    Every movement of the long stick was like a roar of the stars in the Great Path domain.


    The shadow of the stick blotted out the sun. Ye Futian stepped forward and made a sweeping motion.


    The stick contained the energy of the entire world and bathed in the brilliant light of the stars surrounding the space. The man looked at the stick as if he saw millions of stars falling upon his head.


    Bang...


    After a thunderous sound, the Great Path of Space collapsed and everything inside shattered into pieces.


    Ye Futian was the only one standing on the battlefield when the shadow disappeared. Hierophant Jiuyou and the others realized that the other person was gone.


    Apparently, he was killed.


    Just now, the two of them entered a separate space to fight. It ended with one person dead.


    Much to their surprise, Ye Futian won!


    Hierophant Jiuyou was still tangling with Hua Jiangshan high up in the air. An embarrassed look swept across his face. How did Ye Futian kill a cultivator at peak middle-level Renhuang Plane with a sixth-order Divine Wheel?


    There were four levels between them. Although Hierophant Jiuyou heard that Ye Futian was exceedingly powerful, he never expected such results.


    Did they need someone in the high-level Renhuang Plane to defeat a cultivator with a second-order Divine Wheel?


    "Retreat," said Hierophant Jiuyou. The clash between Ye Futian and the man didn''t last long in reality. Everything happened in a short time. Cultivators from various other groups were marching toward them and might join the fight.


    They wouldn''t be able to pull back if they didn''t leave now.


    "Where do you think you''re going?" There was no way the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy would let them go easily. Some people also rushed here from afar. They wanted to keep the enemy in place.


    Nevertheless, darkness suddenly engulfed the field. The entire world quieted down.


    Many people stopped moving at once as an overwhelming sense of crisis settled over them.


    "Be careful," Hua Jiangshan reminded everyone. Several cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy surrounded Ye Futian and sealed off the area with domineering force of the Great Path. They were worried that someone would catch them off guard.


    However, darkness slowly disappeared, and nothing happened. Hierophant Jiuyou and his people already vanished when everything went back normal.


    "What happened?" Many people were astonished. What was it just now?


    Ye Futian''s eyebrows knitted tightly. Was it a magic tool, or did a powerful cultivator hiding in the dark help them?


    Cultivators from various supreme forces arrived one after the other. A look of concern and confusion furrowed their brows when they saw the enemies had left.


    They also sensed something peculiar a moment ago.


    Nan Luoshen stood in the void, as gorgeous as usual. A frightening old man behind her said to her in a low voice, "A mysterious force is here. People from the Hell probably infiltrated Jiuyou City already. Our trip might be more complicated than we expected."


    Nan Luoshen nodded slightly. She realized it as well.


    The Hell lured them here to look for the Gate of the Hell. They still didn''t know what secrets they were hiding and what their objectives were.


    Nan Luoshen didn''t think for too long. She lowered her head and glanced at Ye Futian. A strange look crossed her beautiful face.


    The man who fought with him seemed to be in the Divine Wheel Sixth Order.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian came out while his opponent was gone. The man had undoubtedly been killed by Ye Futian.


    She also had a perfect Divine Wheel and certainly understood that a Renhuang with a perfect Divine Wheel controlled the finest power of the Great Path. Even so, his ability was not limitless, and his opponent was also a Renhuang after all.


    However, Ye Futian killed someone four levels higher. How staggering and terrifying it was!


    Would he be able to defeat cultivators in the high-level Renhuang Plane if he advanced to the Divine Wheel Third Order?


    High-level Renhuangs were master cultivators.


    How did Ye Futian achieve this?


    "Divine item."


    An idea suddenly popped in Nan Luoshen''s head. She obtained a divine item under the Heavenly Palace in God''s relic. The same thing probably happened to Ye Futian as well. Perhaps he got more divine items in addition to the one he gave to Yaya.


    The divine item must be the reason why he had a chance to kill a middle-level Renhuang.


    Nan Luoshen was not the only person looking at Ye Futian. All the cultivators who just arrived stared at him as well. Although they didn''t witness the fight with their own eyes, the ending was stirring enough.


    "Renhuang Ye, what is the goal of the Jiuyou Sect?" Nan Luoshen asked.


    Jiuyou Sect was very likely to be connected to the Hell.


    Ye Futian looked at Nan Luoshen and shook his head, replied, "I don''t know either."


    While speaking, he looked down at the figure of the girl covered by the Spatial Sacred Hall.


    From what he could tell, Qingyao was not only wanted by the Jiuyou Sect. The Hell was probably after her as well.


    If that was the case, he had more reasons to protect Qingyao better.


    At first, he was only feeling compassionate and got involved simply because he couldn''t watch a group of Renhuang bullying a kid. The situation became more complicated just now.


    Ye Futian landed on the ground and put back the Spatial Sacred Hall. Ye Qingyao stared at Ye Futian silently, then slightly lowered her head as if she did something wrong.


    "I bring bad luck," she said in a quiet voice.


    Ye Futian heard her and walked forward. He put his hands on Ye Qingyao''s shoulders and said, "Qingyao, don''t belittle yourself. Why would they go through such trouble if you bring bad luck? They are the top forces in Jiuyou City."


    Ye Qingyao raised her head and looked at Ye Futian. She didn''t know why they were after her, either.


    Nonetheless, this was the first time she felt protected by someone.


    "Even though the world seems to be full of sadness and misfortunes, there are also many people and many things that are not as terrible as you imagined, right?" Ye Futian spoke softly, "Qingyao, you''re not ordinary. So don''t ever underestimate yourself."


    "OK." Ye Qingyao nodded.


    "You need to remember to take care of yourself if the day comes when I can''t protect you anymore," Ye Futian said.


    Ye Qingyao was dazed. She looked at Ye Futian, eyes filled with sorrow. Then she lowered her head and didn''t have the courage to meet Ye Futian''s eyes.


    "Don''t worry too much. I will do my best to protect you. I was only saying if. Do you understand?" Ye Futian knew she was an extremely sensitive girl the moment he saw her eyes. Although she didn''t want to get other people into trouble, she cherished this warm feeling a great deal. Maybe it was because she never experienced it in the past.


    Looking into Ye Futian''s eyes, she nodded solemnly and tried to remember his words.


    "Give me a smile." Ye Futian rubbed her head and laughed. Ye Qingyao gazed at him, blinked a few times, yet couldn''t crack a smile.


    "Aren''t you silly," Ye Futian said with a grin. Ye Qingyao suddenly curled up her lips and beamed innocently.


    Ye Futian looked at her smile and sighed silently. He had a vague feeling that Ye Qingyao might be involved in an incredibly big secret, and he might not be able to protect her!


    ...

 1736 Divine Fetus of the Great Path

    More cultivators came to Jiuyou City. Right now, a line of people was standing above the Yellow Spring in Jiuyou City and looking down at the roaring water.


    Wearing monastic robes and radiating the Light of Buddha from their bodies, they were all Buddhist cultivators who looked quite stately and solemn.


    They came from the Mountain Realm of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms.


    In addition, people from the Mountain Realm were usually strong cultivators. Master Gui Zang, one of the Renhuangs who built a perfect Divine Wheel in the God''s relic, was also among them.


    "Uncle-Master, it seems like you''re not the only one who came. Several temples sent their masters here," Gui Zang said to a Master standing next to him. The Master was gaunt without a shred of strength in his limbs. His bony hands were holding a string of Buddhist prayer beads in front of his chest. He was intoning some Buddhist scripture that was too obscure for ordinary people to understand. Even Gui Zang didn''t fully comprehend the meaning of the scripture.


    "As the Hell resurrected, it''s only normal for them to come here," the feeble monk said. Many Buddhist monks from the Mountain Realm seemed to have noticed the Master and walked toward him. They put their palms together in front of the chests and bowed to greet him, "Good to see you, Master Pudu."


    Master Pudu of Tianxian Temple was an eminent and erudite monk. He had comprehensive knowledge about the unfathomable Buddhist doctrine and was a prominent figure respected by countless people in the Mountain Realm.


    Comparing with top forces in other supreme realms, people in the Mountain Realm rarely get involved in outside matters. They had been immersed themselves in Buddhist cultivation for over three hundred years.


    However, some people of the older generation knew that the monks in the Mountain Realm once came out of their temples in concert 300 years ago.


    That was indeed a chaotic era.


    "Nice to see you, Master Pudu." People greeted him one after the other. It was evident that Master Pudu enjoyed a particularly high status in the Mountain Realm. He still held the prayer beads and acknowledged everyone to show respect.


    "Master Pudu, did you come down the mountain because you were worried?" a distinguished monk asked. The Mountain Realm surely assembled a strong lineup this time.


    "What does Master Pudu think will happen after the Gate of the Hell opened?" someone else asked. They all wanted to know Master Pudu''s thoughts on the situation.


    Master Pudu slightly lowered his head. With a faint smile in his beady eyes, he put his palms together and said, "Whatever that is supposed to happen will happen. We only need to wait quietly."


    His response was meaningless, yet people still nodded approvingly, as if they were completely convinced by him.


    "People in the Mountain Realm hardly ever go outside. However, they sent a group of high-powered cultivators here this time. Even Master Pudu of Tianxian Temple came to Jiuyou City," someone said. Tianxian Temple was the greatest temple in the Mountain Realm while Master Pudu was the supreme monk in Tianxian Temple. Plenty of people were familiar with his monastic name, even in Jiuyou City.


    "The man standing next to Master Pudu is Gui Zang. He has a perfect Divine Wheel and achieved his breakthrough in God''s relic along with Shen Hao, Jian Qingzhu, Nan Luoshen, Di Wu, and others. Gui Zang is a low-key person, typical for a Buddist monk. I suspect that he might even be stronger than Shen Hao."


    It seemed like people tended to use Shen Hao for comparison whenever they talked about top cultivators these days.


    Shen Hao lost his luster due to the debacle of the Shen clan. Therefore, many people liked to use him as a yardstick when they gauged a cultivator''s ability. Shen Hao''s reputation declined markedly. It was the price he had to pay for losing the battle. Shen Hao used to be considered as one of the top three cultivators of his generation. Nevertheless, the public now suspected that anyone who stood in front of the Heavenly Palace in God''s relic back at that time might be a better cultivator than him.


    The cultivators from the Mountain Realm were not the only ones who came. Several other people also arrived at where Ye Futian was standing.


    Ye Futian was surprised to see that the leader of these people was Shen Luoxue.


    "Granny," Ye Futian called, "why do you come here yourself?"


    Based on seniority, he was supposed to refer to her as Grandma-Master, which was too much of a mouthful. In addition, since Feixue called her "grandma," he wouldn''t sound like a complete stranger by calling her "granny."


    Shen Luoxue didn''t come across as an old woman despite how Ye Futian and Feixue addressed her. But she did have silver hair, same as Ye Futian.


    "Grandma was worried about you," Feixue, standing alongside, told Ye Futian with a smile. Ye Futian, of course, understood that Shen Luoxue truly cared about him even though she might appear standoffish and indifferent. She also treated Nianyu very well.


    "Did someone attack you here in Jiuyou City?" Shen Luoxue asked.


    "It''s not a big deal. I already took care of it. Those people wouldn''t dare to show their faces again," Ye Futian said, "Granny, you didn''t need to come specifically for this."


    "I didn''t come just for this," Shen Luoxue said. "All the forces in the Nine Realms have sent reinforcement after hearing what happened here in the Hidden Land Realm. This thing with the Hell is not as simple as you expected."


    Ye Futian looked at Shen Luoxue and asked, "What kind of group is the Hell?"


    Shen Luoxue a cultivator of the older generation and was born many years ago. She lived through the turbulent times and surely knew more about the Hell.


    "The Hell." Shen Luoxue gazed into the distance and cast her mind back to the past. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path at that time were crowded with powerful cultivators who were much more aggressive and forceful than the current ones. Countless people perished in turmoil. And the chaos might never end if not for Donghuang the Great Emperor and Emperor Ye Qing.


    Donghuang the Great Emperor and Emperor Ye Qing were indeed the most remarkable leaders.


    "This is something that goes beyond the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path," Shen Luoxue muttered. Eyes narrowed, Ye Futian concentrated to listen.


    "Anyway, the Hell had a horrific influence in the Hidden Land Realm back in the days. Even though they disappeared many years ago, I''m afraid that the remaining evildoers of the Hell have always been hiding in the Hidden Land Realm, and they are exposed now only because of the mayhem they caused. This thing is not that simple anymore."


    Shen Luoxue spoke to Ye Futian, "Cultivators from other forces should arrive soon."


    "Granny, I met a girl in Jiuyou City." Ye Futian turned around and shouted, "Qingyao, come here."


    Ye Qingyao walked to them and stared at Shen Luoxue curiously, said, "Nice to meet you, granny."


    Shen Luoxue looked at Ye Qingyao, and the divine eye in her brow chakra stared directly at her. Scared, Ye Qingyao felt a little sick and backed to hide behind Ye Futian.


    "Granny, wait a second." Ye Futian crouched down. He gazed at Ye Qingyao and said in a soft voice, "Qingyao, granny wants to take a closer look at you in order to better help you. But I will ask granny to stop if you don''t want it."


    Ye Qingyao looked into Ye Futian''s eyes. She certainly could feel the kindness Ye Futian had been showing her since the beginning. She nodded and said, "I will you whatever you say."


    Ye Futian smiled and pinched her cheek gently, said, "Good girl."


    He then turned to signal Shen Luoxue. Ye Qingyao didn''t hide this time. She clenched her teeth and endured the uncomfortable process while clutching Ye Futian tightly with her hand. Ye Futian could feel the sweat in her palm.


    For a girl who grew up in darkness, she displayed absolute trust by opening herself up.


    Because of Qingyao''s life experience, she naturally kept her guard up when confronting most people. She would be particularly hostile this time, if not for Ye Futian.


    Shen Luoxue glanced through many things. Before long, the divine light disappeared, and she stared solemnly at Ye Qingyao.


    She was apparently in shock.


    "You, follow me," Shen Luoxue turned her eyes to Ye Futian and said.


    She looked quite serious.


    Although Ye Futian already knew Ye Qingyao was not an ordinary girl, he didn''t expect Granny to be so astonished.


    He looked at Qingyao and realized the girl was also looking at him with her chin up. She grasped his hand firmly.


    "It''s alright." Ye Futian smiled. Qingyao nodded and let his hand go.


    Shen Luoxue and Ye Futian stepped aside. Ye Futian asked, "Granny, what''s wrong?"


    "Take a look for yourself." A beam of light shot from Shen Luoxue''s brow chakra to Ye Futian''s.


    Ye Futian didn''t resist. Soon, he saw an extremely appalling scene.


    A group of cultivators with menacing energy surrounded a small house in Jiuyou City. The floor was littered with several dead bodies. A girl stood alone next to the corpses with blood on her clothes. Even her face was smeared with blood.


    The cultivators walked straight to her and wanted to take her away. However, the girl''s eyes suddenly became completely black. The sky grew dim, and the terrifying darkness engulfed the area and swallowed the cultivators who were coming for her. Their eyes, faces, and every inch of their bodies withered and died as the life being sucked out of them.


    The girl''s body hovered in the air. She only descended and lay on the ground in silence after the darkness devoured every person there.


    The scene left Ye Futian aghast. He finally understood why Qingyao said she brought bad luck to people and why a team of cultivators in the Renhuang Plane would be so afraid to go to capture a little girl.


    Despite knowing that Qingyao was a natural-born Divine Fetus of the Great Path, Ye Futian was still surprised that Qingyao could unleash such frightening energy involuntarily and effortlessly.


    "She might have an astounding background," Shen Luoxue said to Ye Futian. "She could have something to do with the core of the Hell."


    Ye Futian looked at her with a somber expression. He already had similar speculations prior to this.


    "Does she know this herself?" Ye Futian asked.


    Shen Luoxue shook her head and said, "She knows nothing about her situation."


    Ye Futian sighed silently. He was saddened by Qingyao''s fate.


    She was only a little girl, and this was too heavy a burden for a young girl to shoulder.


    "The thing that happened last time will keep happening if you plan on keeping her around. Perhaps, the entire Heavenly Mandate Academy will never experience peace from now on." Shen Luoxue''s face was grave. Several master cultivators in Jiuyou City already fought over Qingyao. Based on what Shen Luoxue saw with her divine eye, Qingyao would definitely cause a violent storm in the future!


    ...

 1737 Yellow Spring Flows Backwards

    Ye Futian didn''t know how to respond to Shen Luoxue''s words. He noticed before that Qingyao was an unusual girl. What Granny just saw further confirmed his speculation.


    No one knew where Ye Qingyao came from; she didn''t even remember.


    Even so, her background was, beyond a doubt, extraordinary.


    Ye Futian had met countless exceptional cultivators in his years. But Ye Qingyao was the only person whose power was so tremendous that it blew Ye Futian''s mind.


    To be exact, it shouldn''t be called power. It was more like her innate ability. Because of that, a girl who had never cultivated for a day in her life somehow killed cultivators in the Renhuang Plane.


    What did it mean?


    Ye Futian himself didn''t even know what it meant. It contradicted common sense in the world of cultivators and was at odds with his own understanding of cultivation. He always had a high opinion of himself and once asserted that he was born to be a king. Even though it might only be a boastful claim, he was confident that his Divine Body of the Great Path and Life Spirit could complete the Great Path. Despite all that, he still couldn''t do what Qingyao did.


    Master cultivators such as Hierophant Jiuyou were willing to put their lives in jeopardy to snatch Ye Qingyao, who was under the protection of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They chose to do it in spite of the extremely high risk.


    So, who on earth was behind them?


    "The extent of influence and infiltration the Hell achieved in the Hidden Land Realm might be far beyond everyone''s imagination," Shen Luoxue continued to say. The forces in the Nine Realms sent reinforcement to the Hidden Land Realm because they started to realize that. It was also the reason Shen Luoxue came to Jiuyou City in person.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. He looked at Shen Luoxue and said with a smile, "Let''s take one step at a time. But I don''t have the heart to abandon the girl like this."


    "I knew you would choose this way. Let''s go back," said Shen Luoxue. She then turned around and walked back.


    It was why Shen Luoxue was fond of Ye Futian. As a newcomer to the Renhuang Plane, Ye Futian dared to risk his life and led an army to attack the Shen clan for the sake of his Master. He was a young man with tremendous courage and determination.


    She would be disappointed if he was willing to give the young girl up easily.


    Ye Qingyao was standing in place and waiting for Ye Futian and Shen Luoxue to come back. She raised her head slightly when she saw Ye Futian walking toward her. She stared at him intently and silently the whole time.


    Her eyes made Ye Futian''s heart ache. He was probably the only hope the girl had left. However, she was destined to have an unusual life and might have to face many challenges and dangers in the future.


    Just as he expected, he might be able to protect her forever.


    Ye Qingyao raised her chin and gazed at Ye Futian, then said in a soft voice, "Brother, you can let me go if I will bring misfortune to you."


    "Who told you that?" Ye Futian said while smiling, "Qingyao, your last name is Ye now. Of course, I will protect you. Besides, you won''t bring bad luck to anyone. The bad things in the past only happened because you are bound to have an extraordinary life. That''s why you have to stay strong and optimistic, no matter what happens to you in the future. Do you understand?"


    Ye Qingyao didn''t fully grasp what Ye Futian said, but she still nodded earnestly and remembered his words.


    "Don''t think too much of it. Perhaps you''re the Child of Destiny," Ye Futian grinned and said.


    Yaya also came forward and held Qingyao''s hand, said, "Don''t worry about it."


    "Okay." Qingyao nodded and beamed with joy and innocence.


    ...


    Several days later. Near the Yellow Spring in Jiuyou City.


    The banks were crowded with people at the moment. A succession of cultivators arrived and stared at the Yellow Spring below.


    The Yellow Spring was gushing and roaring. The most shocking thing was that the water was flowing from the lower to the higher place.


    The River of Yellow Spring surged and rolled up high. Several terraces on the wall of the cliff were flooded and obliterated by water.


    The Yellow Spring in Jiuyou City was known as the River of Death and was extremely destructive. It could destroy all the lives it touched.


    It was even more terrifying that the water in the Yellow Spring seemed to have formed a gate. No matter how hard the dark and thunderous current dashed against it, the gate of the Yellow Spring remained standing steady.


    "Could the Gate of the Hell be in the Yellow Spring?" some people muttered. It was indeed plausible that the Yellow Spring was the entrance to the Hell.


    Nevertheless, no one dared to act recklessly.


    Yellow Spring, also known as the Jiuyou River, was the River of Death in Jiuyou City. Even a cultivator in the Renhuang Plane would be swallowed by Yellow Spring immediately if he fell into the water. One might well imagine how scary the river was.


    Flowing through Jiuyou City, Yellow Spring nurtured countless cultivators and filled Jiuyou City with the Will of Death. Therefore, many cultivators in the city comprehended the Great Path of Death.


    In addition, the banks of the Yellow Spring were usually the most lively and vibrant places in Jiuyou City because of its effect on cultivation.


    A lot of talented cultivators sat on the banks of the Yellow Spring to comprehend the Great Path.


    Cultivators from various supreme forces arrived one after the other. The Gate of Yellow Spring hanging in the air was hundreds of meters high, like a divine gate from the ancient times.


    However, there was still no one brave enough to step in.


    Anyone who went inside would be putting his life at risk.


    "What does Master Pudu think?" Someone turned to an old monk and asked at the moment. The old monk was Master Pudu from the Mountain Realm. He was a remarkable cultivator who had a deep understanding of the Buddhist doctrine. Moreover, he led the Buddhist cultivators from the Mountain Realm and found the Gate of Yellow Spring in Jiuyou City. It was also him who activated the gate and made it appear.


    Therefore, Master Pudu''s opinion mattered a great deal.


    Buddhist cultivators from the Mountain Realm emitted brilliant Light of Buddha from their bodies. Master Pudu held the prayer beads in his hand and said, "This is the entrance to the Gate of the Hell."


    Many people narrowed their eyes upon hearing his words. They didn''t expect him to be this straightforward.


    On top of that, Master Pudu seemed to be very confident that it was the right place.


    "Why are you so sure?" someone asked.


    "My gut feeling," Master Pudu replied. People instantly felt a little discouraged and disappointed. Could they really rely on his instinct?


    But some people had complete trust in Master Pudu. The Gate of the Hell might truly be in the Yellow Spring if he said so.


    "Master Pudu is one of the best cultivators and an expert on Buddhist doctrine. It''s probably the case if he thinks the entrance to the Gate of the Hell is in the Yellow Spring," said Gai Qixing, a Prince of the Golden Divine Nation.


    "Can Master Pudu bring us in and show us what Hell looks like?" someone else in another direction asked.


    It was Di Wu from the Solar Divine Palace who was asking the monks from the Tianxian Temple of the Mountain Realm to lead the way.


    They were at the Yellow Spring, after all. Even cultivators from supreme forces didn''t dare to underestimate the situation.


    No one knew what was inside of the gate formed by the Yellow Spring.


    "Can''t you walk on your own?" a voice answered Di Wu''s request. It sounded very calm without a shred of sarcasm as if the person was simply asking a plain question.


    The man who spoke was Gui Zang from Tianxian Temple.


    All the supreme forces in the Nine Realms had sent cultivators to Jiuyou City. The several geniuses who developed perfect Divine Wheels in God''s relic were also here.


    After all, they represented the future of the world of cultivators and should seize every opportunity to improve themselves.


    Moreover, they were strong enough to shoulder responsibilities alone now.


    They were definitely capable enough to take control of their own territories if they left the supreme forces.


    "It was Master Pudu who found this gate. Besides, what''s wrong with us following someone as extraordinary as Master Pudu?" Di Wu replied calmly. He didn''t think there was anything wrong with his request.


    "I guess you have a point," Gui Zang said expressionlessly. He didn''t know how to counter such an argument.


    Another group of people walked toward the Gate from far away. Many people turned to gaze at them. The Divine Beams of Flame gleamed in Di Wu''s eyes after he recognized the people coming.


    The silver-haired lady next to Ye Futian was probably that distinguished woman from the Shen clan.


    What a pity.


    Shen Luoxue was such a prominent figure back in the days. She might even be the successor to Shen Ji if she stayed in the Shen clan instead of getting mixed up with the Sky River Great Elder.


    Yet now she was in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. What a steal for the Academy.


    Ye Futian walked closer and stared at the Gate of Yellow Spring. He was astounded by how the water flowed backward and transformed into a gate hundreds of meters high. It seemed like something mysterious was going on inside of the Yellow Spring.


    They heard that people from Tianxian Temple found the Gate.


    "It''s been a long time since I last saw you, Master Gui Zang," Ye Futian turned his head and said to Gui Zang with a smile.


    "Nice to see you too, Benefactor Ye," Gui Zang put his palms together in front of the chest and said, "I had a deep admiration for you in the God''s relic. It took me by surprise that even people in the Mountain Realm have long heard about your great name."


    "It''s undeserved fame," Ye Futian smiled and replied.


    "You''re such a humble person," Gui Zang laughed.


    "Brother Ye enjoys a stellar reputation in the Nine Realms nowadays. You surely don''t need to be too modest," someone in another direction said. Ye Futian saw the cultivators from the Tianshen Academy and recognized that the man who spoke was Jian Qingzhu.


    "Nice to meet the seniors from Tianshen Academy," Ye Futian greeted the men standing beside Jian Qingzhu. He felt grateful to them even though it was merely a deal back then.


    People from Tianshen Academy nodded slightly. The celebrities who shone in God''s relic were having a reunion this day in Jiuyou City.


    Nan Luoshen, Qingni, and YunShang were here as well.


    On the other hand, Shen Hao was much more restrained now, contrary to his high profile in God''s relic.


    Ye Futian rose to fame by standing on Shen Hao''s shoulders.


    "How is the situation, Granny?" Ye Futian said to Shen Luoxue at his side.


    "A lot of people," Shen Luoxue replied, "even some cultivators in the high-level Renhuang Plane, showed up."


    Her divine consciousness spread out and covered a large area. They were not the only ones who were attracted by the Gate of Yellow Spring.


    ...

 1738 Ancient Battlefield

    The presence of Shen Luoxue attracted the attention of many cultivators, especially those from the Shen clan.


    The person who headed the Shen clan was a middle-aged man. Just standing there, he exuded an air of authority, as if he had been accustomed to being in charge for a long time. He was wearing a purple robe, and there was a hint of majesty between his brows. Upon close scrutiny, he and Shen Luoxue bore some resemblance to one another.


    Shen clan, Shen Luochuan.


    Shen Luoxue''s elder brother, and Shen Hao''s grandfather.


    Shen Hao was the same generation as Feixue.


    Shen Luochuan''s gaze focused on Shen Luoxue, and he asked, "How have you been at the Heavenly Mandate Academy?"


    Shen Luoxue glanced at him casually, her expression indifferent. She did not respond.


    No one was on her side for what happened back in the days. Everyone had followed the will of the Shen clan, acting based on the interests of the Shen clan, including her own brother, who had even participated in the battle.


    Therefore, for Shen Luoxue, this familial relationship had long been terminated as far as she was concerned. At the moment when her own daughter died, that cruel and cold-blooded family was already erased from her heart.


    Therefore, she paid absolutely no attention to Shen Luochuan. At her level of cultivation, she was extremely grounded in every way. Once she had determined her view on certain things, nothing could change her mind at all.


    People from other principalities watched the two with great interest. These two characters from the Shen clan were once peerless, commanding figures of their times, and they both figured prominently in the Shen clan. If none of those things happened in the past, and the Shen clan had not interfered with Shen Luoxue and the Sky River Great Elder, perhaps the Shen clan would be extremely prosperous now.


    However, there was no "if."


    The aggression of the Shen clan determined what happened in the past as well as the situation today.


    "Master Pudu." Shen Luoxue looked at the eminent monk from Tianxian Temple, who returned her look by clasping his hands together in greeting. "Benefactor Luoxue."


    "The eminent monks of the Mountain Realm should be one of the forces that know Hell the best. What does the Master make of Hell''s intention of bringing all of us here?" Shen Luoxue asked. Master Pudu smiled and understood what Shen Luoxue meant.


    There must be a purpose for Hell to draw the forces of the Nine Realms to the Hidden Land Realm.


    Now, finding the entrance to the Gate of Hell may just be what the other side wanted and could be used by the remnants of Hell.


    However, if the Abbot of Tianxian Temple also held this opinion, then it looked like that some things were indeed impossible to stop.


    Perhaps, the peaceful Nine Realms may experience a period of turmoil.


    "I understand what you meant. But if you don''t intervene, and I don''t intervene, it doesn''t mean that we can persuade the others in the world of cultivation to do the same." Master Pudu continued, "Instead, it is much better to face it head-on."


    There were many top forces in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. Even if they did not participate, could they stop the others?


    "The Master is right." Shen Luoxue didn''t say much more. There was only one force that could prevent all this from happening, and that was the Empty Imperial Palace.


    The Empty Imperial Palace was under the command of the Great Emperor. Although he did not make a habit of inquiring about the external affairs of day-to-day, he still had the responsibility of monitoring everything.


    Now, even the Empty Imperial Palace hadn''t made its appearance, did this mean that Empty Imperial Palace had quietly acquiesced everything that was happening?


    "Let''s go in."


    Master Pudu said nothing more but simply clasped his hands together as he stepped forward. Suddenly, the radiant Light of Buddha flowed all over his body. At this moment, his frail body turned into an ancient Buddha, walking steadily toward the Gate of Yellow Spring.


    Wherever the Light of Buddha touched the Gate of Yellow Spring, the great destructive power of the Spring was unable to corrode it. With its golden body dharma and a sublime and solemn appearance, Master Pudu stepped inside and gradually disappeared from sight.


    Although, previously, there were those who had incited Master Pudu to enter first, thus caused the displeasure of the people from Tianxian Temple. But in the end, Master Pudu was the first one to enter the Yellow Spring anyhow.


    Sonorous Sounds of Buddha rang out. They turned into an all-encompassing Light of Buddha. All the masters from Tianxian Temple moved forward, watching their own steps. Even Gui Zang


    had no one to escort him, but must walk alone by himself, shuttled inside the Gate of Yellow Spring.


    Soon, all the cultivators from Tianxian Temple disappeared from sight.


    "Let''s go." Since someone took the lead, everyone else suddenly became bolder. Everything behind the Gate of Yellow Spring was unknown, but with the eminent monk of Mountain Realm in the lead, they felt it was safe enough to follow behind.


    Therefore, there were many people rushed forward this time.


    Ye Futian was in no hurry when he saw the action taken by the others. All the cultivators from the Tianshen Academy waited quietly.


    "Ah..." At this moment, there was a scream, and the blazing flame of a cultivator from the Solar Realm dimmed, and then turned into a black fire, consuming him little by little. Soon, his body was swallowed by the Yellow Spring.


    "Careful." Everyone became much more alert when they saw this; they had been too careless.


    Some had begun to release the might of the Way to protect those around them.


    "Yaya, take care of Qingyao," Ye Futian said to Yaya, who was beside him, and she nodded.


    Yaya of Renhuang cultivation had also cast a perfect Divine Wheel of swordsmanship. She would have no trouble passing through the Gate of Yellow Spring, but Qingyao needed to be protected at all times.


    "Let''s go."


    Ye Futian spoke, and suddenly, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy started to move.


    Ye Futian did not release the might of the Way to shield himself but walked into the Yellow Spring directly. In an instant, the terrifying Yellow Spring swallowed up his body; its destructive power corroded it, even trying to enter his body to corrupt and destroy his vitality.


    However, the cultivators of Renhuang Realm possessed the bodies of the Great Path, and every part of their bodies had been baptized by the Great Path. Ye Futian''s body seemed to be filled with natural defense so that the Yellow Spring was unable to corrode his physical body. He moved steadily forward and walked inside.


    Yaya wrapped both Qingyao and her with a halo of swordsmanship and entered inside the Yellow Spring.


    "What a boss." Numerous people on both sides of the Yellow Spring and in the void had witnessed this incredible scene. The way that Ye Futian entered the Yellow Spring was truly unprecedented. No one else in the same realm of him had dared to do so before.


    Only those with great power would dare to be so audacious.


    "This was the person who had slain the Middle Renhuang of the Divine Wheel sixth-order," someone said. The battle at Jiuyou Sect had already spread all throughout Jiuyou City.


    No matter how Ye Futian was able to achieve that, it was a good indication that he must have already reached the peak level of Middle Renhuang.


    Indeed, he had the right to be arrogant.


    However, his actual realm served to deceive those who took him at face value. Anyone who treated him as a Divine Wheel of the second-order would face a nasty surprise.


    Chang Xi smiled when she saw what Ye Futian did. She stepped forward and walked straight ahead.


    "Goddess." Those around her were a little worried when they saw her action.


    Chang Xi ignored them. She, who possessed the perfect Divine Wheel, was also the goddess of Youyue Divine Palace. If Ye Futian could do it, why couldn''t she?


    Under everyone''s gaze, Chang Xi also walked inside.


    After that, many people followed Ye Futian''s example and walked inside the Gate of Yellow Spring.


    Soon, forces from all parts of the realms had entered inside.


    But there were still many cultivators remaining from Jiuyou City, and they were now moving forward one after another. Every one of them was Renhuang-level existence.


    Anyone less than Renhuang level was not qualified to enter because they would require protection. Therefore, it made no sense for them to come along.


    Qingyao had to be inside because Ye Futian couldn''t leave her alone outside because of the danger.


    When they saw that all these people had stepped inside, the onlookers in the distance were surprised. When did Jiuyou City have so many cultivators?


    Moreover, many of them exuded a very strong aura.


    This time, it would certainly be extremely lively inside, and they wanted to go in and watch, too. However, most people didn''t qualify, so they could only wait on the outside.


    ��


    After Ye Futian and the others entered the Gate of Yellow Spring, they came upon another space, an independent space.


    "What is this place?" Everyone was more cautious now. After all, it was an unknown area.


    Within Yellow Spring, there was another hidden space.


    This space was vast and boundless; the light inside was dim, as if flowing with endless gloom of the Underworld, with wisps of death permeating the air.


    Underneath their feet, there was a black flame of destruction, and there were already some Renhuang who had been burned accidentally.


    "Are we in the real hell?" next to Ye Futian, Dou Zhao mumbled. This space was way too creepy.


    "There are mountains ahead." Ye Futian looked into the distance. Many also looked up there. There were indeed mountain ranges, but black fire of death was spewing forth from them.


    Many people felt extremely ill at ease because this place was not suitable for most people to cultivate. But there were a few cultivators from the Hidden Land realm who felt extremely at home. To them, this place was simply the most ideal place for cultivation.


    At this moment, a group of people had been moving toward the distance, and they were already somewhat further ahead than the people who came in later.


    Everyone looked over there and saw the eminent monks of the Mountain Realm marched forward. Master Pudu, who was in the lead, looked solemn and grave.


    "Go." The others hurried to catch up to them.


    "Did the master detect what place this is?" a cultivator asked the master of Tianxian Temple.


    "Battlefield," Master Pudu responded without hesitation, which startled the person who asked the question. All the surrounding cultivators wore a grim look on their faces and asked, "What battlefield?"


    "The battlefield where the Hell was destroyed," Master Pudu continued. Finally, his footsteps stopped momentarily as his gaze aimed in one direction. Following his sight, everyone looked at one place and saw that there was a corpse. It had long lost its life, and no one knew how long ago it had fallen.


    At this moment, the air became a little heavy. The space within Yellow Spring turned out to have been a battlefield once.


    Many older folks from the previous generations remembered the battle of the years past, but they did not participate in the battle of the Hell''s destruction. Rumor had it that some principalities within the Mountain Realm had gotten involved in that battle, so the Mountain Realm probably had the most understanding about Hell.


    The Gate of Hell could very well appear here!


    ...

 1739 The Giant Buddha

    All the cultivators looked grim. Exactly what kind of battle broke out on this battlefield of the past?


    And how many people fell among them?


    Now, this dusty space had reappeared, and a piece of history was buried within it.


    Ahead, the Buddhist cultivators from Tianxian Temple of the Mountain Realm stopped. Rays of Light of Buddha burst out from them, illuminating the space. This terrible Light of Buddha lit up the front, and an infinitely boundless figure of an evil demon was seen. Behind that great demon, countless other demons gnashed their teeth and flung their claws. It was as if those who had fallen into hell had now come back to life once again.


    Beneath the Light of Buddha, those elusive shadows continued to be destroyed and shattered madly. Obviously, these were not real physical bodies, but the remnant will of the fallen that still remained behind in this world, which were now being purified into nothingness under the Light of Buddha.


    Seeing this, many people seemed to realize something at the same time, and the cultivators from all sides began accelerating their movement forward and rushed toward the direction of the monks from Tianxian Temple, who were leading the way.


    Witnessing this, Ye Futian became contemplative. Before, everyone was counting on the masters of Tianxian Temple to lead the way. Now, it seemed that they had other ideas.


    "Let''s go, too."


    Ye Futian spoke up as he, too, was speeding forward. After a while, they were not far behind the cultivators from Tianxian Temple. All the major forces had caught up to them now and were spread out in different directions.


    Under the Light of Buddha, the evil demon retreated. However, straight ahead, there was a skeleton sitting cross-legged. This skeleton had not decayed for hundreds of years, just sitting there quietly, but there was no longer any breath of life that could be detected from it, only the air of death. The will of death surrounded this withered skeleton, someone who had fallen long ago.


    However, what was really terrifying was that those dried bones radiated an unusually bright light, the light of darkness.


    This dark light was extremely horrific, like a dark ancient tome that had melted into his body. This ancient tome seemed to have many pages, and between the pages, one could faintly detect terrifying loneliness permeating from them.


    "The Immortal Divine Wheel."


    Some people marched toward it. This Divine Wheel of the Great Path, even with the destruction of its owner, still had not decayed. More terrifying than the flesh, it had now turned into a strange treasure.


    A hint of greed flashed across the eyes of many, especially those latecomers who were from Jiuyou City. Every one of them walking forward, getting very close. Clearly, even if they had no ability to compete with the supreme powers, it did not mean that they would easily give it up.


    Not only him, but all the supreme forces from the Hidden Land Realm were clearly extremely enticed. The fallen figure that was sitting here was definitely someone of great power.


    Everyone was very quiet when they heard his words, and no one made a response.


    In the face of treasure, who would easily hand over to the others?


    What''s more, there were so many principalities in attendance today, almost all the forces of the Nine Realms were present.


    Even if one force would be willing to acquiesce, what about the others?


    "Let''s say we will let the Hidden Land Realm have it. Later, when we encounter other treasures, can the forces from the Hidden Land Realm guarantee not to fight us for them?" At this time, someone spoke up, and it was the cultivator from the Solar Divine Palace.


    Just like that, these words silenced several major forces from the Hidden Land Realm.


    Could they guarantee that?


    No one would dare to make such a guarantee. They had just entered this hellish battlefield. Who knew what would happen next?


    If they encountered a better, more powerful treasure, could they promise not to fight for it?


    Obviously not.


    "If none of you can make such a promise, then let''s forget about bounds and realms. It belongs to whoever that can take it," the cultivator of the Solar Divine Palace said indifferently.


    If the Hidden Land Realm wanted to claim this area, could they really allow everything that appeared here to be possessed by the Hidden Land Realm alone?


    Buzz. A figure flickered rapidly and slaughtered directly toward the seated skeleton, like a black faded shadow, fast to the limit.


    The person who made a move was a cultivator of the Clan of the God of Ghost. If it had to be taken by force, he would be the first one to make a move.


    Rumble.


    A terrifying suppression of the Great Path descended, and the speed of the cultivator from the Clan of the God of Ghost came to an abrupt halt. The cultivator of Prison Fort Clan stepped forward, whose every step was incredibly heavy, suppressing the void.


    The forces from the Hidden Land Realm, as expected, took the lead in fighting for the treasure.


    Master Pudu glanced at them, then folded his hands together, chanting the Sound of Buddha, and stepping forward. He continued walking from above the sky, ignoring the situation below.


    One after another, cultivators took action. In an instant, with the desiccated skeleton as the center, many with great power began to compete, and all the supreme-level principalities in the Hidden Land Realm had entered the arena.


    They had a very good idea who this fallen figure was.


    A terrifying existence with great power had once come from the Hidden Land Realm. Their strength was so powerful that it struck fear in the hearts of many. His Divine Wheel was extremely dominant and was once famous throughout the Hidden Land Realm.


    If so, how could they miss this chance?


    Shen Luoxue glanced at Ye Futian, who was beside her.


    "Grandma, let''s continue on our journey." Ye Futian''s demeanor was very calm as he took a look at the cultivators from Tianxian Temple, who kept marching forward. Shen Luoxue nodded, and everyone followed their lead and bypassed the battlefield.


    Gradually, there were some forces that decided to get involved in this battle, but there were also others that decided to give up. Clearly, in their opinion, it was not worth fighting here.


    Perhaps, there would be something else they wanted more as they continued onward.


    Ye Futian and the others continued forward. A horrible breath came from behind them; it was a storm of the Great Path. But the group continued on as if nothing was happening behind them.


    But there were still many ghostly evil shadows present in this space, all of which were annihilated under the Light of Buddha, which seemed to have been released by the Buddha.


    The crowd stepped into a mountainous area, and in a gorge, a bloody demon sword appeared, it horrific bloody light filled the sky, staining the sky crimson as blood.


    This sword was buried in the ground; it seemed to be broken. But there was still an astonishing aura that permeated from it. Within hundreds of meters around the magic sword, a terrifying area of ??destruction had formed. Anyone who approached would be wiped out by its sword will.


    There were more cultivators now plunging forward. This time, no one even bothered saying anything before lunging into the raid.


    Ye Futian looked at them without much interest. In the God''s relic, he had gotten himself an entire treasure trove of ritual implements. After that, ordinary ritual implements did not interest him at all. Even if he had them, they would not mean much to him.


    That was unless it was a very special ritual implement or an implement above the Renhuang Realm. Technically, it then could no longer be considered a ritual implement, but a divine item, and its power would go far beyond something like "ritual implement."


    Ye Futian''s group continued onward. Except for some who chose to fight over the implements that appeared, people from most other forces chose to avoid the conflict and kept moving.


    This ancient battlefield, it seemed, could bring them some surprises.


    And not just the Gate of Hell.


    This space, long since been sealed, was amazingly boundless, and even their divine spirits could only reach a limited distance and were extremely affected.


    At this moment, the speed of the cultivators at the Mountain Realm suddenly increased.


    This realization alarmed many, but they followed along on the journey. In the front, there was a very solemn breath, and even though they were still very far away, they could vaguely perceive the tyranny of this breath.


    What is that? Ye Futian secretly remarked to himself. Not only did he feel it, but Shen Luoxue and the other cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy had also sensed it.


    There were other principalities.


    Shen Luochuan of the Shen clan showed a curious look in his eyes. It seemed as if he could see through the endless void. Unconsciously, their speed was still accelerating, almost turning them into light streamers that shuttled in this space.


    The majestic and solemn aura became even stronger, and gigantic buildings could be made out vaguely in the front. That terrifying aura originated from there.


    These majestic giant buildings obscured the sky. The closer they got, the more they realized just how gigantic these buildings really were, which was tens of thousand feet high.


    As they were approaching, a horrible aura made it difficult for everyone to move forward. Finally, they were able to see clearly what those objects were.


    "This��"


    Ye Futian looked shocked. His eyes were fixed on the sight in front of him. Those giant objects were not buildings but statues. They were statues that were once cultivators.


    Two majestic statues stood opposite to one another; one was a Buddha, and the other a demon.


    One statue shone with the endless Light of Buddha. Its entirety was composed of a golden body. The other statue was of an evil demon. Its whole body was pitch black.


    These two boundless and majestic figures seemed to have died in a seated posture.


    And around them, there were giant statues, all of which released an extremely tyrannical aura. But there was no aura of life, as they had fallen many years ago.


    The cultivators of Tianxian Temple walked up to the Buddha statue. All of them sat cross-legged, reciting the Sound of Buddha in extreme piety.


    As if they were paying respect to their ancestor.


    Here, the fallen cultivator was indeed their ancestor, the ancient Buddha!


    ...

 1740 The Ancients

    Ye Futian looked at the cultivators from the Mountain Realm, the Sound of Buddha lingering in the air. Seeing their pious demeanor, Ye Futian knew that this ancient Buddha must have had some connection with the Mountain Realm.


    "Vajra Buddha," Shen Luoxue said in a low voice. She then clasped her hands and bowed to the Buddha statue.


    Clearly, this ancient Buddha was an ancestor whom she respected.


    "It''s the senior brother of the current Abbot of Tianxian Temple, the grand uncle of Master Pudu." Next to him, Hua Jiangshan from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven made the presentation to Ye Futian. "I heard that it was he should have been the Abbot of Tianxian Temple, but the Vajra Buddha gave that position to his Junior brother, while he chose to cast out and to slay the demons.


    "It was said that the Vajra Buddha was known as the premier ancient fighting Buddha of the Mountain Realm, whose fighting skill was incomparable amongst his peers."


    Discussion arose among the people who had gathered around, especially those from the older generations, who knew much more about the people and things back then.


    Once, the Vajra Buddha was a powerful figure. As he did not desire to be an abbot, he chose to wander through the land alone. It was said that he liked to go around bare feet and wore a tattered robe, subsisted on alms. He made peace in the world and cast out the demons and ghosts.


    He was a maverick, and unlike many Buddhist cultivators, he hated evil.


    There was a Buddhist saying that the Buddha was made at the moment when the sword was put down. But he was different. When he encountered a demon, there was only one thing that he did, and it was to release the demon to the afterworld.


    Here must have been his final stand.


    However, he stayed here forever as well.


    Many people looked toward the statue opposite the Vajra Buddha. Although this one had fallen for many years, there was still a terrifying breath hanging about him, which prohibited others from approaching. Those eyes seemed to hold a terrible demonic light even now.


    Once upon a time, the King of Hell in the Hidden Land Realm was hailed as the strongest existence in Hell. When he was alive, many from the older generations who were present now would tremble when they saw him. For several major forces in the Hidden Land Realm, this King of Hell was also a most legendary figure.


    At the peak of his power, he was the king of the entire Hidden Land Realm, and other supreme forces dared not disobey his will outright. He had wanted to launch a war of conquest that would turn the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path into a world of hell.


    And now, his body was also found sealed here.


    Many prominent figures from the Hidden Land Realm had a burning looking in their eyes; this was the King of Hell.


    What was revealed before them caused many cultivators to be concerned. The previous rumors were that the Gate of Hell had appeared, but now, they had seen two legends.


    So, where was the Gate of Hell?


    Unless it was sealed here by all these statues?


    What was behind the statues?


    Was here the end of this hellish battlefield?


    Furthermore, endless Buddhist writings appeared on the statue of the Vajra Buddha. Under the chanting of the Sound of Buddha by the cultivators from Tianxian Temple, the Light of Buddha on his body became extremely fervent, illuminating this dark space. It seemed that a magical and overbearing strength was beginning to awaken.


    Many looked surprised. Could they really have woken up the Vajra Buddha?


    Underneath the Sound of Buddha, they could vaguely make out an elusive shadow of an ancient Buddha, appeared upon the statue of the Vajra Buddha. It was not real, but it was getting bigger. It was as if it had been separated out from the statue. A mighty breath enveloped the sky, and everyone seemed to be able to feel an unbearable pressure of might.


    That ancient Buddha had anger in his eyes, and an incredibly brazen Light of Buddha fell from the statue. All the Buddhist cultivators from the Mountain Realm looked there. Afterward, many of them clasped their hands together and closed their eyes to comprehend.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he had a look of curiosity. It wasn''t just the Vajra Buddha, but all the statues of the ancient Buddha behind him were also blooming with a blazing Light of Buddha. It was as if it were being awakened.


    In this instant, the Light of Buddha suppressed the darkness, and the endless brilliance spread toward the battlefield of Hell. The power of destruction seemed to be expelled and purified, and many remaining wills were supremely purified. The world on this side seemed to be brightened, and endless Buddha now appeared. It was All Buddha Returning to the Source.


    Many people turned their heads to behold this the awesome, earth-shaking sight.


    However, at this time, many turned their attention to the dark statue, the King of Hell.


    Cultivators from the Hidden Land Realm had rushed from behind, including the people of the supreme forces and the cultivators of Jiuyou City. They looked at the gigantic and boundless dark shadow, that of the King of Hell, as if they felt a terrifying power from it.


    As all this was playing out, the dark figure of the King of Hell, likewise, released a terrifying light of darkness and destruction.


    Darkness enveloped the land, and shadows covered the Light of Buddha. For a moment, this dark light and the flaming Light of Buddha met and collided in the air, entangled.


    "Don''t aid the evildoers." The Sound of Buddha rang throughout the void, loud and clear. It was as if spoken by the ancient Buddha in the void. However, the speaker, in fact, was Master Pudu.


    His figure appeared beneath the statue of the ancient Buddha, hands clasped, standing there quietly with his head bowed. His countenance was dignified and solemn. Bathing in the Light of Buddha, he seemed to be incarnated as a Buddha.


    However, no one from the other party paid any attention to him. From the two statues, everyone was able to feel their power. These Buddhist cultivators from Tianxian Temple were able to perceive the Buddhist doctrine from their ancestor, the Vajra Buddha. The others cultivated differently. They could perceive great power from the statue of the King of Hell.


    When darkness enveloped the earth, the destructive power of the entire hellish battlefield converged toward them. This power was horrific and gave them a taste of the power from the King of Hell.


    If they were allowed to continue, they could get strength from it.


    Under such circumstances, there was no way they could give up and allow these Buddhist cultivators to inherit the power of the ancient Buddha.


    Seeing the altercation between the two sides, many had an uncertain look on their faces, but most of the principalities decided to maintain their neutral stance. They stood aside and looked on quietly.


    "This is very possibly the key to the Gate of Hell," Ye Futian said in a low voice. The forces of Hell had lured the cultivators from the Nine Realms to here. Its purpose could very well be to reopen the Gate of Hell.


    Judging from the sight before him, the Gate of Hell may very well be related to these two statues.


    However, the question at hand was, should they let the Buddha suppress the evil, or just let them do whatever they wanted?


    Ye Futian looked in the front. The battle between this ancient Vajra Buddha and the King of Hell, even many years after their fall, seemed to be continuing.


    In such a case, perhaps most people would choose to stay out of it.


    Just as he thought, all the principalities just watched on the side quietly, let the two sides confronting each other, curious to see what change would happen here.


    Rumble...


    The vast and endless space trembled. Many raised their heads to look up at the sky above. There seemed to be a gigantic Buddha standing in the middle of the Light of Buddha. This sight ignited much interest among the people.


    It was Master Pudu.


    Ye Futian also revealed a look of surprise. He lowered his head and looked down. Master Pudu''s physical body was still sitting under the ancient Buddha, quietly chanting. His eyes were closed tightly, as the Light of Buddha dazzled around him as if he was a Buddha suspended in time. However, his spirit was still traveling beyond the sky, having inherited the will of the Vajra Buddha.


    The power of the infinite Way of the Buddha gathered upon him. In the void, Master Pudu was getting stronger, as if he was incarnated as the Vajra Buddha of yore.


    "Peace is only possible if Hell is suppressed here forever," a voice uttered from the ancient Buddha in the void. They had arrived to awaken the Vajra Buddha, to call upon him to suppress the evil spirits once again, sealing this battlefield or purify it with Buddhist doctrine.


    But at this moment, the destructive power of the entire hellish battlefield roared toward this side. In the void, there were several figures that condensed and appeared. Several top figures had awakened the power of the King of Hell, but there were really three major cultivators.


    Each one of them seemed to represent a kind of power.


    "Hell has been sealed already, and only its power was left. The so-called legend is nothing more than an elusive idea. Even so, each may cultivate without interference with one other." A voice was heard, and the speaker was a cultivator from the Fate World. He seemed to have turned into a god of destruction, standing in the void, the power of endless destruction gathered upon his body, extremely terrifying.


    Was this a competition of the Great Path?


    Many people stared at the magnificent sight in front of them. The entire hellish battlefield was in turmoil. In this battlefield, the power of destruction and other powers of the Great Path was already stronger than they were elsewhere. When they were awakened, they actually suppressed the blazing Light of Buddha that had previously shrouded the sky above.


    Master Pudu puts his hands together, and a dazzling Light of Buddha bloomed upon that giant and boundless ancient Buddha. The light of purification could purify all the powers of evil in the world. Wherever the Light of Buddha passed through, the Way of destruction was purified into nothingness, as the light rushed toward the three phantasmal figures that had appeared.


    However, at this time, the space suddenly turned into absolute darkness. The light of purification descended, but the darkness was not dispersed. At the same time, the Light of Buddha seemed to be corroded bit by bit, decaying as it was being penetrated.


    At this moment, the Light of Buddha on a figure that stood under the statue of the ancient Buddha became ever more radiant; it was Gui Zang. The countless Light of Buddha enveloped his body. He seemed to be wandering beyond the sky as if he had been called upon by the ancestors. When the power of the Buddhist clan resonated together, he appeared high above the sky, as if he had turned into a Buddha himself.


    "These two are truly frightful. They have long been sealed here, but their power could still be felt by us today," someone whispered.


    Many people were looking that way, and every cultivator had more or less perceived a strong resonance.


    Ye Futian had a peculiar look in his eyes; he could perceive a majestic might of Way from both statues!


    ...

 1741 Mysterious Person

    Rumble.


    Frightening rumbles could be heard across the entire Hell battlefield. The vast space trembled. The countless statues trembled even more intensely.


    In the blazing Light of Buddha, a sphere of light appeared. The light sphere was extremely frightening. It appeared to be a lamp.


    What was that? The cultivators revealed strange looks. They could sense that it contained frightening power. The light of the Buddhist lamp did not seem too bright as it shone out. In an instant, the endless evil and destructive power was immediately dissipated by the light of the lamp.


    Everywhere the light of the lamp shone upon, the darkness was banished.


    The expressions of the surrounding cultivators all changed. They felt an intense will. This will was one of the Great Paths of Buddha. Releasing souls from purgatory was one of the strongest powers of Vajra Buddha back in the day.


    The Buddhist lamp was probably a Buddhist treasure. Vajra Buddha used his unparalleled power to refine a Buddhist lamp. He even merged the power of his own soul into it.


    After many years, the Buddhist lamp was once again lit. It still had the unparalleled power to release souls from purgatory. It was especially effective at countering the dark and destructive powers of the Great Path.


    A treasure.


    Strange looks flashed past in the eyes of many people. This same idea emerged within their minds, especially for the cultivators of the Mountain Realm.


    The strongest forces in the Mountain Realm were all Buddhist cultivators. Upon encountering a Buddhist treasure, how could they not want it?


    For instance, the members of Shenxing clan, who were known as False Buddhas, had greedy looks flashing in their eyes right now.


    It was actually a Buddhist treasure.


    At that moment, someone looked at the Light of Buddha that grew brighter and brighter. It was activated by the power of Buddha. The slumbering power was also awakened. The crowd also saw a Buddhist pagoda. The pagoda was carved with many patterns. Each illustration was that of an ancient Buddha. When these patterns all lit up at the same time, the various Buddhas awakened. In the heavens above, countless illusions of Buddhas gradually appeared.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked into the sky. The activated power grew stronger. It was as though they were returning to the ancient battlefield, to that frightening war.


    An even more frightening explosion occurred. The seals on the statues kept shattering. The ends of this region of space seemed to have been shattered.


    Aside from the appearance of a Buddhist treasure, a ritual implement of the King of Hell also appeared and released frightening power.


    A God of Ghost Banner appeared in the sky above. On it, there were silhouettes of endless ghosts and demons. It was as though Yaksa and Ashura had awakened to withstand the Buddhas in the sky.


    After that, they saw another ritual implement. It was a huge trident that was similarly a frightening weapon many years ago.


    "Something is going to happen," Hua Jiangshan said in a low voice when he saw this scene.


    It was not just him. All the cultivators were staring straight ahead. Behind the shattered stone wall, the sealed-off space was gradually revealed. It was a towering dark palace. However, right now, it was in ruins.


    Inside, it was Hell that had disappeared. An unparalleled frightening aura emanated from within.


    If one looked further in, there was a space that resembled the depths of Hell. It was a deep chasm with no bottom, seemingly forming a frightening Hell swirl. It was like a door that led straight to Hell.


    However, right in front of the door, there was a sword that stood stabbed into the ground. It was an emerald sword. Around it, there were Sarira beads circling it.


    When Nan Luoshen saw this divine sword, a strange looked flashed past in her eyes. The expressions of the cultivators of Nantian Divine Kingdom also changed. There were even quite a number of mighty figures that turned around and looked towards the direction where the members of Nantian Divine Kingdom stood.


    "What is it?" Nan Luoshen looked at the elder beside her. She had seen this divine sword in the records of the clan''s ancient manuscripts.


    "Qinghe."


    The cultivators beside the elder said, "It is the sword of His Highness."


    The appearance of this sword meant that Emperor Nan had participated in the battle to eradicate Hell back then.


    The Gate of Hell. Everyone''s gazes were staring straight ahead. That door should be the Gate of Hell.


    What was beyond the Gate of Hell?


    Rumor has it that the sealing and unsealing of the Gate of Hell would involve emperor-level forces.


    Rumble...


    At that moment, another silhouette appeared from within the ten-thousand-Zhang tall Light of Buddha. The eyes of this silhouette contained an evil aura. Although his body was permeated with the Light of Buddha, he walked directly towards the Buddhist lamp.


    "Vermin," a cold voice cried out.


    In the direction of Tianxian Temple, a monk walked towards him. The Light of Buddha burned even brighter. The monk actually became a towering Vajra Buddha.


    Many people revealed bizarre looks when they witnessed this scene.


    There was an inheritor of Vajra Buddha?


    The eyes of this monk were like an angry Vajra. An ancient Buddha appeared behind him. He raised his hand and charged in the direction where the cultivators from the Shenxing clan of the Mountain Realm were. This Giant Palm of Vajra was indestructible. It shattered the space and descended downwards.


    The silhouette that invaded the Light of Buddha was a cultivator of the Shenxing clan. They wanted to seize the opportunity to steal the Buddhist treasure.


    Bang...


    A loud bang could be heard. A huge Giant Palm of Vajra immediately appeared on the ground. A handprint was clearly marked there. The members of the Shenxing clan retreated far away. Beneath their feet, a divine light shone. Their speed was unbelievably fast.


    Among the members of the Shenxing clan, one cultivator was still resting with his eyes closed and communicating with an ancient Buddha. On top of a Buddha statue, a huge foot stomped down. It actually descended upon Master Pudu.


    Right now, Master Pudu was still countering the awakened power of the King of Hell.


    A huge Buddha immediately appeared beside Master Pudu. The cultivators of Tianxian Temple immediately attacked, their figures stepping onto the Buddha statues.


    "Let''s go," the cultivators of the Shenxing clan said. Cultivators of the Shenxing clan immediately stepped into mid-air. They instantly disappeared from their positions and charged towards the Buddha statues.


    Elsewhere, the various forces of the Hidden Land Realm also attacked. Aside from activating the power of the King of Hell, they also began to pillage the treasures of the King of Hell.


    They also had their eyes set on Hell Palace.


    Hell was previously the most prosperous force in the Hidden Land Realm. How could they possibly let this chance slip past them?


    "What are your thoughts, everyone?" Shen Luochuan from the Shen clan asked the various cultivators.


    Right now, various cultivators were scattered across different regions. However, their gazes were all staring at the Buddha statues before them.


    "Everyone has not forgotten the Age of Turmoil back then, right?" a cultivator of the Mountain Realm said.


    This was clearly a reminder for everyone.


    However, the expression in the eyes of the cultivators did not change at all.


    The Age of Turmoil?


    Many cultivators had fallen during the Age of Turmoil; however, it also gave birth to many heroes. A good number of top figures displayed their talents in battles during that era. Some of them had even left the confinement of this sky.


    In comparison, the current age had fewer changes; it was as though everything had been set.


    Donghuang the Great hoped for the world of cultivation to be strong and stable, but wasn''t it in itself a form of imprisonment?


    In the end, this place was still not the real world.


    Besides, nobody knew what they would activate. Donghuang the Great did not order anyone to stop today''s occurrence too. Did it mean that everything that was happening now was fated too?


    Buzz.


    With a flash, a group of top figures dashed across the space and pounced on the Buddha statues in front of them. They were none other than cultivators of the Solar Divine Palace. They emanated unparalleled divine light of the sun, and, step by step, they walked towards the Buddhist lamp.


    Clearly, greed had gotten hold of them, and they also wanted to snatch this Buddhist treasure.


    As Hua Jiangshan had expected, this was spiraling into something terribly grave, Ye Futian thought to himself when he saw the scene.


    "Who should we help?" Ye Futian muttered.


    Under such circumstances, who should the Heavenly Mandate Academy help? Which side should they be on?


    Moreover, there were more than two standpoints now. Each force had its own point of view.


    Just when Ye Futian was still considering who he should help, a group of cultivators closed in on his party. Many of the cultivators who were observing the battle in the distance besieged them. Among these cultivators, Ye Futian saw a few familiar faces. It was Hierophant Jiuyou and his party.


    Obviously, they were here for Yaya, so they targeted Ye Futian''s group.


    However, the leader this time was not Hierophant Jiuyou; instead, it was a very young-looking man. His pupils emanated terrifying dark light; he seemed cold and demonic. He looked like he was at a similar age with Ye Futian, but his actual age could not be determined. Ye Futian could clearly sense that this youth was extremely dangerous.


    "Be careful," Shen Luoxue warned Ye Futian through a secret sound transmission. She also felt threatened by this demonic and handsome youth.


    This youth was strong, very strong.


    However, no one from the crowd actually recognized this youth. It was as though he had never appeared before.


    In fact, this was also his first time appearing in public. Up until now, he had always been in the shadows.


    "Hand her over to me, and you can live," the youth demanded while sweeping a glance at Qingyao, who was standing beside Yaya. His voice was sinister; a domineering aura permeated through his indifferent tone.


    His gaze was emotionless, but it contained absolute confidence.


    By handing Qingyao over to him, they could live.


    What if they didn''t want to hand her over?


    "Who are you?" Ye Futian asked. Why was this mysterious person so determined to seize Qingyao?


    Which force did this demonic youth come from?


    If he was from one of the forces in the Hidden Land Realm, his tone would at least be a little less presumptuous.


    Currently, none of the forces in the Hidden Land Realm would dare to threaten the Heavenly Mandate Academy like this.


    The demonic youth glanced at Ye Futian. His gaze was indifferent. He extended both his hands, and suddenly, myriads of dark light surged into his body from all corners of the Hell battlefield.


    The youth raised his head, and streaks of dark lines appeared on his face. His body transformed into a terrifying swirl and was frenziedly engulfing all the energy around him.


    ...

 1742 Activation

    Around the youth, a terrifying swirl formed. The Great Path of Destruction seeped into his body.


    When Shen Luoxue, as well as Hua Jiangshan, saw this scene, they both stepped out in front of Ye Futian and the others. Shen Luoxue''s body released a frightening divine spatial halo.


    "Be careful. He is most likely an ancient monster," Hua Jiangshan said in a low voice.


    Although this demonic youth did not appear old, it was highly likely that he was an ancient monster that had cultivated for eons. From the other party''s figure, they could all sense a very powerful threat.


    Rumble. Countless destructive flows of darkness rampaged around them. Each flow of darkness contained frightening will. This will swept across the space like a destructive river.


    The entire world seemed to have been covered by this power.


    The demonic youth pointed a finger in the direction of Ye Futian''s group. Endless destructive flows of darkness immediately bellowed and charged in their direction. The cultivators of the other forces around Ye Futian''s group retreated from them and did not dare to get close. This destructive power was too terrifying. It was as though they would instantly die if they touched it.


    At the same time, Shen Luoxue stepped forward, her white hair dancing in the wind. With her figure as the center, the peerless divine spatial halo radiated outwards. This divine spatial halo stretched up into the sky. It could eliminate all Great Paths. Simultaneously, again with her as the center, the spatial storm in this region seemed to close in and became a divine wall. It sealed off the space with the absolute Great Path of Space.


    A cold gaze flashed past in the eyes of the demonic youth. His body floated high in the sky, as though he was an evil God here to end the world. He waved both of his hands, and the endless will of the Great Path became bolts of dark lightning that descended from the heavens.


    His figure stepped forward, and his entire being was bathed in the dark lightning. This dark lightning seemed to come from the abyss of Hell. It was like an endless chain that directly linked heaven and earth.


    Bang. Bang. Bang�� In the distance, some Renhuangs from Jiuyou City were hit by the dark lightning. The lightning penetrated straight through their bodies, and they were immediately turned into puddles of black blood and water. Nothing was left behind; they had died extremely tragically.


    This scene caused the people in the distance to continue frenziedly escaping. When they looked over at this battlefield, the entire space was dark. The power of the Great Path of Destruction in the entire Hell battlefield seemed to have been consumed and used by the youth. The power of the Great Path in the area seemed to be his auxiliary power source.


    This scene was too frightening. It was as though it was a scene from the actual end of Hell.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had extremely serious expressions.


    Even Hua Jiangshan felt an intensely terrifying threat from the demonic youth.


    So powerful. The Great Path of Destruction was truly terrifying.


    "Protect the juniors. I will lead him away," Shen Luoxue said. There was a somewhat stern gaze in her eyes. It was obvious that the demonic youth that had appeared had caused her to feel threatened.


    "Alright." The rest nodded in reply. They all had serious expressions. If this demonic youth was not led away, it would indeed be very dangerous.


    Shen Luoxue flew up into the sky alone. The spatial storm enveloped the vast and endless space and covered the land. When the divine spatial halo was released, the storm enveloped the entire sky.


    Rumble...


    The will of the demonic youth shifted, and the destructive river of the Great Path swept down from the sky. The dark lightning seemed to have the power of judgment and wanted to destroy everything in the world.


    In the instance that the power erupted, the divine spatial halo was completely unleashed. Beams of spatial light traversed the space. The divine spatial halo that burst forth from Shen Luoxue''s figure held up this part of the sky. The dark lightning and the golden divine light collided in mid-air. The next moment, endless strands of spatial light were woven into a spatial road.


    Under the destructive power, the silhouettes of the demonic youth and Shen Luoxue immediately disappeared from their spots.


    Many people raised their heads and looked up into the air. In the instant that the two of them disappeared, the dark, destructive power and the golden strands of spatial light frenziedly collided in mid-air. Even though the two of them had disappeared, frightening bolts of dark lightning were still rampaging.


    After both of them disappeared, Hierophant Jiuyou and the others once again charged towards Ye Futian''s group.


    Last time, the cultivators from various forces came and were prepared to stand against them. Hence, Hierophant Jiuyou and the others could only retreat.


    However, in this Hell battlefield, no one would help Ye Futian''s group.


    As expected, even if the other forces knew that Hierophant Jiuyou and the others might be related to Hell, this time, the cultivators of various forces did not interfere. They merely observed from the sidelines or focused on pillaging treasures.


    The Vajra Buddha statue, the King of Hell statue, the Hell Palace, and the Gate of Hell.


    In such a chaotic situation, who would bother to help Ye Futian''s group?


    Ye Futian''s figure turned, and his gaze shifted towards the two statues. His gaze became extremely scary.


    These two statues were once two giant figures, peerless frightening existences. Even though they had fallen in battle here, their wills still lingered until now. Even being able to activate a portion of their power was already extremely terrifying.


    An illusory silhouette suddenly appeared on the Buddha statue. The illusory silhouette that formed was Ye Futian''s silhouette. This scene caused the people beside him to be stunned. Some of them looked at Ye Futian''s illusory silhouette with strange looks.


    Ye Futian was not a cultivator of Buddha. Could he also actually communicate with the will of the ancient Buddha?


    Ye Futian''s silhouette quietly stood there, sensing its surroundings. Right now, on Ye Futian''s actual body, the glorious Light of Buddha actually also radiated. It was as though he was watching an ancient scene. It was the scene of the two pinnacle figures battling.


    Suddenly, a Buddha statue seemed to light up. It appeared in the sky above, followed by a second Buddha statue.


    Above the Vajra Buddha, illusions of Buddhas appeared and resonated with the Buddha statue on the pagoda.


    On top of the pagoda, the Light of Buddha shone in all directions. The Buddha statues all lit up. It was as though the various Buddhas had awakened. Terrifying will of Buddha burst forth. It actually caused the people who wanted to pillage the pagoda to be sent flying backward from the shockwave.


    What was happening?


    Many people revealed strange looks. They could not help but look at Ye Futian''s silhouette.


    The person who was activating the will of Vajra Buddha was actually him?


    "Master Gui Zang, please bless me," Ye Futian cried out. Master Gui Zang also activated the will of Buddha. The Buddhist lamp seemed to light up and grow brighter.


    After hearing Ye Futian''s request, Master Gui Zang placed his hands together. The Light of Buddha shone brightly on Ye Futian''s illusory silhouette. With the support of Master Gui Zang, Ye Futian''s will became powerful once again.


    Rumble. An intense rumbling sound could be heard. More and more Buddha statues appeared in mid-air. It was All Buddhas Returning to the Source.


    Astonished, Master Pudu glanced at Ye Futian.


    The light of the pagoda shone at its brightest. In the sky, all Buddhas appeared.


    Ye Futian shut his eyes tightly. This was not his own power; it was the will of Vajra Buddha. Even though Vajra Buddha had long passed away, his will did not dissipate. His will lingered in every corner of this space.


    Not only was the will of Vajra Buddha lingering here, but the will of the King of Hell also remained in this space.


    Hence, the cultivators could borrow the will of these two mighty figures to fight.


    Everyone could sense the will of Vajra Buddha and the will of the King of Hell. They were two distinct powers. The more similar the cultivation of a cultivator with one of the wills, the easier it was for the cultivator to sense and activate the will.


    Ye Futian could sense the wills left behind by both mighty figures; both wills were extremely terrifying. Through the will of Vajra Buddha, Ye Futian could see various deities and all Buddhas in the heavens.


    They were in the battlefield of Hell, but the appearance of various Buddhas gradually suppressed the destructive power. All Buddhas had emerged; it was no doubt the technique All Buddhas Returning to the Source.


    Rumble...


    A vigorous rumbling sound reverberated. The enormous Buddha statue started moving, accompanied by thunderous sounds. The 10,000-Zhang-tall Buddha statue lifted up his arm slowly. The dust accumulated on his arm was shaken off. The arm turned golden in color; the entire body of the Buddha statue was shining brilliantly.


    This arm was raised up to the sky. The Light of Buddha radiated, and its power merged into the arm. The power even circled around it. The pagoda also released endless divine light that complemented it.


    This...


    All the cultivators, regardless of which force they were from, were shocked when they witnessed this scene.


    This was All Buddhas Vajra Mudra, the greatest attack of Vajra Buddha. This attack shook the world in the past.


    Once All Buddhas Vajra Mudra was activated, it would kill all the evils in the world.


    Right now, this technique was actually re-enacted in this space.


    Moreover, the cultivator that activated it was actually Ye Futian instead of the cultivators of Tianxian Temple.


    At this moment, many cultivators recalled what Ye Futian said when they were at the God''s relic: he received the teachings of Donghuang the Great and was blessed by all the deities.


    "Hell initiated the chaos of the Nine Realms. Everyone, are you going to perpetuate this evil deed?" Ye Futian said loudly, "All of you, please back off."


    As soon as he finished speaking, a powerful rumble sounded. All Buddhas Vajra Mudra slashed forward at the statue of the King of Hell. All the deities stood high in the sky, unleashing their finishing moves all at once. The heavens and earth resonated with their attacks.


    Many of the evil illusory figures activated by cultivators were directly crushed by the Light of Buddha mudra. Some illusory figures turned into ashes and disappeared without a trace even before they were hit.


    Countless cultivators frantically retreated. Under the attack of All Buddhas Vajra Mudra, the statue of the King of Hell shook violently. Then, the statue was pierced by streaks of golden lightning. One by one, a lot of the statues behind the King of Hell were blasted into pieces.


    Rumble.


    A loud thud sounded. The war seemed to have ended. The will remaining in the statue of the King of Hell scattered. Cracks appeared on the towering statue. The formidable ritual implement hung loosely at the side, as though it was about to drop to the ground at any minute.


    Vajra Buddha and the King of Hell fought each other when they were still alive, and their fight continued even after their death. However, their last battle just now was completed by the younger generations.


    Rumble.


    The Buddha statue was also disintegrating. It shattered bit by bit, and its will was also dissipating.


    However, Ye Futian did not stop there. The arm of Vajra Buddha rose up once again. It seemed to be an illusory arm.


    "Make way," Ye Futian cried out. A terrifying resonating sound followed. All Buddhas Vajra Mudra crashed down towards another battlefield.


    The members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy naturally understood Ye Futian''s intentions. Their figures instantly retreated. Hua Jiangshan''s speed was extremely fast. He immediately withdrew from the battle with Hierophant Jiuyou.


    The next moment, All Buddhas Mudra descended. Hierophant Jiuyou turned around and became a beam of black light that wanted to escape.


    The Light of Buddha enveloped the endless space. Under the Light of Buddha, nothing could escape.


    The flowing light that Hierophant Jiuyou turned into instantly disappeared far into the distance. However, the Sound of Buddha still struck him from a distance. An astonishingly loud rumble followed. Hierophant Jiuyou was struck by All Buddhas Mudra!


    ...

 1743 Upheaval

    Qinghe Divine Sword, as well as the Sarira beads, guarded the Gate of Hell, forming a large matrix around it.


    Qinghe Divine Sword and the Sarira beads seemed to serve as the cores of the matrix, sealing the terrifying Gate of Hell.


    At the moment, there were still countless cultivators gushing towards this area. All of them intended to snatch Qinghe Divine Sword and the Sarira beads. However, as soon as they approached the treasures, they were crushed into pieces by streaks of light. A few Renhuangs had lost their lives.


    The Gate of Hell was unapproachable.


    Right now, there was a group of powerful cultivators of Buddha descending towards them. One of them had a terrifying aura. He was the deputy clan leader of the Shenxing clan. His ability was monstrous. His figure became that of a huge Buddha. Then, with a stomp of his foot, a huge footprint stomped towards Qinghe Divine Sword and the Sarira beads.


    The Sarira beads circled around Qinghe Divine Sword. Qinghe Divine Sword released beams of divine emerald blades of light. The huge footprint disintegrated under the emerald blades of light. It was turned into countless fragments and then disappeared without a trace.


    The cultivators of the major forces of the Hidden Land Realm were also all here. However, they could not approach at all. The power was too strong.


    As expected of Emperor Nan, who was one of the top existences in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He was already so powerful so many years ago. After settling down in recent years, he had focused his attention on to his daughter, Nan Luoshen. This caused many people to forget how terrifying he had once been.


    However, at that moment, the Hell battlefield suddenly lit up with endless brilliant divine light. The Light of Buddha lit up the sky. It was not the Light of Buddha released by the ancient Buddha statues.


    Rumbling sounds could be heard. A gigantic Buddha figure walked towards them. Every step that he took caused the ground to tremble.


    Many people stopped in their tracks and looked towards the direction of the incoming Buddha. A tall, slender, ancient Buddha with bare feet approached the cultivators. He was a hundred Zhang tall. As he strode forwards, he left behind enormous footprints on the ground.


    He was the clan leader of the Shenxing clan. The facial expressions of many cultivators of the Mountain Realm changed.


    Even this old freak was drawn towards here.


    The happenings at this Hell battlefield were getting more and more alarming. Huge figures started to make their entrances.


    Ye Futian''s illusion borrowed the power of Vajra Buddha to immediately kill off Hierophant Jiuyou. Right now, Ye Futian was also looking in that direction. Rumbling sounds followed. The slim Buddha appeared before him. The Buddha was smiling until his eyes were but slits.


    He was a giant-level existence.


    "Little friend, this treasure is an item of Buddha. I will now take it away," the silhouette said with a smile. Then, he stretched out a huge palm and held the Buddhist lamp and pagoda in his palm. He took a look at the people around. He narrowed his eyes when he saw Master Pudu and Master Gui Zang. He lamented, "The monks of Tianxian Temple are indeed stronger than monks of my Shenxing clan."


    As he was speaking, he continued to move forward in the direction of the Gate of Hell.


    "Shenxing."


    At the same time, a sonorous voice of Buddha sounded. The Shenxing clan leader looked up. In the sky, a golden Buddha appeared.


    Upon seeing the golden Buddha, monks from Tianxian Temple of the Mountain Realm put their palms together, bowed slightly, and chanted the Sound of Buddha.


    The golden Buddha was their abbot.


    "You should know the consequences of your actions," the Buddha said to the leader of the Shenxing clan.


    "I know. But the Great Emperor is not interfering with our actions either, isn''t he?" The leader of the Shenxing clan challenged, "In this case, what we are doing now is acceptable. Old monk, don''t you want to have a look at the outside world?"


    "When the time comes, I will naturally go," the abbot replied.


    "That''s right. You are the proper heir of Buddha. You are different from me. I still want to have a look at the real world," the leader of the Shenxing clan said.


    "What you see now is the truth," the abbot of Tianxian Temple said.


    "Why must you lie to yourself?" The leader of the Shenxing clan narrowed his eyes slightly while smiling. "For many people, this is indeed the truth. However, when they reach the level you and I are at now, they will know that this is not real."


    "This place is a sanctuary," the abbot of Tianxian Temple added.


    "This is your sanctuary." The leader of the Shenxing clan smiled, his eyes narrowed. Then, he didn''t look at the abbot anymore. He continued moving forward towards the dark Hell Palace. He went up against Qinghe Divine Sword and the Sarira beads.


    When he moved close to the treasures, both the Light of Buddha emanated by the Sarira beads and the sword light of Qinghe Divine Sword landed on him. Sizzling sounds could be heard. His golden body of Buddha was actually shredding off bit by bit. It seemed to be hard for him to endure through it.


    The leader of the Shenxing clan glanced at himself. He muttered, "This is indeed the swordsmanship of spatial destruction. Emperor Nan is more powerful than me."


    His indestructible body was chipping off slowly. However, he continued pressing forward. He shouted, "Come out to help me now."


    As soon as he finished speaking, a few terrifying auras descended, and darkness loomed over the Hell battlefield. More huge figures were coming. Cultivators of some forces of the Hidden Land Realm had solemn expressions; some of them bowed to salute the huge figures.


    Rumble. In the air, the loud sound of collisions could be heard. Shen Luoxue landed on the ground; she was forced to retreat due to the collision. In the sky, the demonic youth stood, and he glanced in the direction of Ye Futian. His gaze was full of disdain.


    He gazed at Ye Futian as though the latter was already dead in his eyes.


    The demonic youth shifted his gaze and looked at the Gate of Hell. A glint of joy flashed past in his dark eyes.


    It had been a few hundred years since the Gate of Hell had appeared. He believed that many would be tempted to challenge their fate.


    He really missed the old times.


    One by one, the mighty figures arrived. Ye Futian returned to being himself. His heart quivered.


    The current situation was no longer something his party could meddle in.


    Initially, he thought someone was after the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He had not expected that the opponents'' intention was grimmer and was at a level that far surpassed his own. The opponents had their eyes fixed on the mighty figures of the Nine Supreme Realms.


    Ye Futian heard the conversation between the two Buddhas. Prior to this, he had heard similar words before. What did they mean exactly?


    The Heavenly Path collapsed, and the Great Path was flawed. What kind of world were they in now?


    Why did some say this was not the real world?


    Buzz. Another formidable aura descended. A silhouette landed beside Ye Futian.


    "Lord Taixuan," Ye Futian greeted when he saw the person. Lord Taixuan had personally come over.


    Other than Lord Taixuan, almost all the giant figures of the Nine Supreme Realms came here one by one.


    Lord Taixuan stared straight ahead. He felt uneasy. He naturally could sense that something was about to take place.


    300 years ago, his Plane was still far away from where he was currently. After all, he had only broken the shackles not long ago. He broke through while Ye Futian was training on Taixuan Mountain. Back in the day, he could not even be considered as one of the top figures.


    Hence, he only knew a tiny fraction of what happened in the past. Many old freaks knew much more than he did.


    Those cultivators, who had been standing at the peak of the top forces of the Nine Supreme Realms since many years ago, would naturally know more than Lord Taixuan. Their knowledge would cover the battle of Hell that happened in the past.


    However, 300 years ago, the powers that existed in the Nine Realms were at an entirely higher level than that of the current age. During that era, many terrifying figures existed. Moreover, there were many different factions.


    For example, there was Hell. Rumor had it that it was supported by an extremely formidable force.


    The Mountain Realm was also involved with many strong forces.


    Despite that, in the end, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing conquered and united the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. They put an end to the chaotic era.


    For the next 300 years, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were peaceful.


    Now, this Gate of Hell appeared again. Lord Taixuan had no idea what kind of troubles would result because of it.


    Bang!


    Right at the moment, a Sarira bead was under attack. The leader of the Shenxing clan held on to it forcefully. A shocking power destroyed his palm, causing his palm to dry up and transform into bones gradually. Despite that, he was still hanging on to the Sarira bead tightly.


    Other cultivators seized the opportunity and launched their attacks at the same time. Some targeted the Sarira beads while some tried to grab Qinghe Divine Sword.


    Green divine light covered the sky. Lord Taixuan took a big step forward, and suddenly, a terrifying light shroud surrounded the cultivators. A destructive storm swept out and blew past everyone.


    The top figures who stood at the center of the storm were injured. However, the matrix was dismantled too. The Sarira beads were blasted everywhere while Qinghe Divine Sword was shaking.


    Buzz!


    Green divine light shot up to the sky. The next moment, Qinghe Divine Sword traversed through space and went straight in the direction of the cultivators of Nantian Divine Kingdom. It plunged into the ground and transformed into a sword shroud, which enveloped the cultivators in it. Nan Luoshen was right in front of the sword.


    The sword knew its master.


    "Luoshen, hold on to it," a voice was transmitted from the sword.


    "Father." Nan Luoshen extended her hand and held Qinghe Divine Sword. Green light surged into her body. The sword will refined her body and caused her already beautiful figure to appear even more divine.


    Rumble!


    Everyone''s heart skipped a beat. Without Qinghe Divine Sword and the Sarira beads as the seal, the terrifying storm stirred up by the Gate of Hell directly broke through the matrix. In an instant, the storm was about to engulf the entire space; it was charging towards the Hell battlefield.


    "Here it comes..."


    A glint of joy flashed past in the eyes of the demonic youth. He then laughed presumptuously.


    After a few hundred years, it was finally here.


    "Retreat!" someone shouted.


    The darkness consumed the sky. Many cultivators began to evacuate.


    "Let''s get out of here," Lord Taixuan ordered. A powerful aura enveloped everyone in it. In the blink of an eye, everyone disappeared from their original spots.


    At Jiuyou City, in the sky above Yellow Spring, groups of silhouettes appeared gradually.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy also appeared in the sky. The water of the Yellow Spring churned as though it was boiling. The water was splashed everywhere.


    Countless people stood in the sky above the two shores of the Yellow Spring. When they saw this scene, they were greatly shocked.


    "Don''t watch. Let''s go," Lord Taixuan cried out loudly. His voice was transmitted throughout the sky. Many people still had not made sense of what was happening. Then, they saw the water of the Yellow Spring flowing upstream and gushing out from the river to the sky.


    Right away, some people were flooded by the Yellow Spring. They let out a miserable cry before disappearing completely. Cultivators with strong cultivation tried to escape frenziedly.


    Amidst the water of the Yellow Spring, which was flowing upwards into the sky, countless dark currents were flushed upwards and shot up into the clouds.


    Many people focused their attention in that direction. There, a horrifying swirl of Hell seemed to have appeared. It looked like a door.


    Dark light permeated the surrounding sky. The sky above Jiuyou City darkened gradually. It was as though doomsday had arrived. Death Will enveloped the entire city.


    "Something bad is going to happen!"


    Staring at the gradually darkening sky, many people had an ominous premonition about it!


    ...

 1744 The Void Realm

    Everyone in Jiuyou City raised their heads and looked at the sky.


    Darkness enveloped the city. The Gate of the Hell became visible in the sky. It cast a shadow over all of Jiuyou City and completely blotted out the sky.


    The sky changed.


    Everybody in Jiuyou city understood that something big was about to happen.


    Ye Futian also looked above. He heard in the past that the Gate of the Hell was related to the Hell and showed the way to the real Hell. But it was only a rumor. The real Gate of the Hell couldn''t possibly be leading to the so-called Hell in the folk tales. It didn''t look like a grand matrix of space either.


    Then, what was the Gate of the Hell?


    "Does Lord Taixuan know what this is?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Coordinates," Lord Taixuan replied. Ye Futian''s eyes narrowed in concentration.


    Coordinates?


    Lord Taixuan said the Gate of the Hell was a set of coordinates.


    "The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path in the present day were different before the Twin Great Emperors unified the world. So were the forces that occupied the realms. The current 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, especially the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms, were formed after the unification. Some forces that were active in the past were destroyed just like the Hell, many more simply disappeared," Lord Taixuan spoke slowly.


    Ye Futian felt unsettled. What did Lord Tianxuan''s words mean?


    It meant that the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were not the only world. There were other realms as well.


    If that was the case, where were the other realms?


    If the Gate of the Hell was a set of coordinates, was it guiding the way for cultivators in other realms to come to the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path?


    What did the real world look like?


    "Luoxue should know more than I do," Lord Taixuan looked at Shen Luoxue and said.


    Shen Luoxue was from the Shen clan, one of the most powerful forces in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. She usually had much better information than ordinary folks. As a daughter of the clan lord of the Shen Clan, she must have knowledge of some secrets.


    "There are many different theories about what happened. But I indeed know a little bit more than other people." Shen Luoxue gazed at the stretch of the sky and replied.


    She was feeling quite emotional too. She never thought that she would witness this.


    To come back to the Nine Realms was the true plan the Hell had been plotting.


    At this time, no one was fussing about the dead and missing cultivators in the Nine Realms anymore as if they were already forgotten.


    It seemed to be such a trivial matter, comparing with what was happening in front of their eyes right now.


    "Do you want to know?" Shen Luoxue looked at Ye Futian.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded and said.


    Shen Luoxue looked at Ye Futian and said.


    Ye Futian nodded silently. He was increasingly intrigued by this world.


    Step by step, he grew up and became stronger. He thought he was getting on the center of the stage, yet only discovered that he still didn''t know the truth about this world.


    It was like he only saw a small fraction of the world.


    Even the entire 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were not a full picture.


    The Heavenly Path crumbled, and the Great Path was incomplete.


    Countless people standing elsewhere also raised their heads and exchanged their views about what was happening. Many of them were powerful cultivators from various forces in the Nine Realms.


    Ye Futian spotted Shen Ji, for instance, who came here in person from the Shen clan.


    Master cultivators from around the world all arrived at this city of barbarity.


    The devilish young man who served as a guide for Hierophant Jiuyou before stood high up in the air. His chin lifted, and his eyes sparkled over a wicked smile. He stared at the dark sky as though he was expecting something.


    He had waited here for hundreds of years.


    He hid in the dark for centuries and did all the work in secret. He bore patiently for several hundred years for this day to arrive.


    The day was finally here.


    A number of big wheels in the Hidden Land Realm were present as well. They raised their heads and looked at the space with an exceptionally solemn expression.


    Was what happened right now a blessing or a curse?


    No one really knew.


    Nonetheless, they had to face the situation first.


    Bang...


    A scary storm turned up in the sky above with a terrifying dark whirlwind. The waves of the Space Will of the Way rolled and surged as layers of space twisted and distorted.


    A line of people suddenly came into view before the storm started. With a surprised look, they scanned the field below them. However, they soon started to smile.


    "The Void Realm." A cultivator grinned and said, "The Void Realm is open again after hundreds of years. How exciting."


    "The Void Realm?"


    Numerous people in Jiuyou City were bewildered by his words. What did it mean?


    The Void Realm?


    They were in Jiuyou City. How was it the Void Realm?


    Ye Futian obviously heard what the man said as well. These people who came out of nowhere carried intimidating energy with them.


    Certainly, he was more unsettled by the name "Void Realm." It brought another place to his mind.


    The Empty Imperial Palace!


    The Sacred Hall in the Central Emperor Realm, left by Donghuang the Great Emperor, was called the Empty Imperial Palace.


    Why was it called the Empty Imperial Palace rather than the Imperial Palace?


    He never fully understood the reason and reckoned that it was because the Empty Imperial Palace was not the real Imperial Palace, but only a temporary lodging for the Great Emperor.


    Yet now, he suddenly realized something as he heard the name "Void Realm."


    Did the Empty Imperial Palace correspond to the Void Realm?


    The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path constituted a vast world that contained innumerable living things and countless cultivators. It was a complete world, yet they named it the Void Realm.


    "Are they waiting there to greet us?" Someone glanced at the field below and the crowd in Jiuyou City. An arrogant look flashed across his face.


    "Welcome to the Void Realm."


    The devilish young man took in a deep breath. His eyes were filled with eagerness and desire.


    He made it. Were they finally coming?


    They''re coming so fast, some people thought to themselves.


    Ye Futian''s eyes firmly fixed on the people appeared in the air. Much to his surprise, these people used the coordinates to get here right after the Gate of the Hell emerged.


    Based on their words, these people came from someplace outside of the Void Realm, also known as the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    He always understood that the universe was boundless, and the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path weren''t necessarily the end.


    However, he had no idea what kind of place it was outside of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    These newcomers didn''t do anything. They stepped forward and downward, descending straight to Jiuyou City right after their arrival. The crowd in the city hadn''t figured out the situation yet.


    "Let''s go back," Lord Taixuan said at the moment. Jiuyou City was about to become the center of all the troubles. They needed to go back and prepare for the possible turbulence in the future.


    "Yes, let''s go." Ye Futian nodded and glanced at Ye Qingyao, who was standing next to him.


    Qingyao seemed to have sensed something. She raised her face slightly to look at him and called in a low voice, "Brother."


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian held her hand and said. They left at once.


    The cultivators from the Shen clan watched Ye Futian and the others from a distance. Shen Luochuan gazed at Shen Luoxue and Ye Futian while Shen Hao was standing farther away with an indifferent look.


    Several other formidable cultivators came through the sky. The leader of the group was especially intimidating. Jiuyou City flinched at his presence.


    More cultivators arrived at Jiuyou City in succession.


    However, Ye Futian and the others already left. So did the cultivators from other forces. They all planned to go back to make preparations for the upcoming changes.


    Of course, Jiuyou City would be most severely impacted by the changes. Even the social order might be reshuffled altogether.


    ...


    Ye Futian and the others returned to the Heavenly Mandate Realm straight away.


    Inside of a palace in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian felt somewhat disheartened. They went on the trip with the initial intention to find out who attacked the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. And now they knew the assailants were the remaining evildoers of the Hell, a group that disappeared a long time ago.


    However, it didn''t seem like they were able to do anything even after they discovered the truth through an investigation.


    They didn''t accomplish anything on this trip.


    Shen Luoxue, Lord Taixuan, Ye Futian, and Feixue were all here.


    Ye Futian looked at Shen Luoxue. He waited quietly and restrained from asking her anything on their way back until they returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Shen Luoxuesaid to him that she would tell him everything she knew.


    "What do you want to know the most?" Shen Luoxue looked at Ye Futian and asked.


    "Granny, is this real?" Ye Futian asked. Those people who appeared in the sky called it the Void Realm.


    Could the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path be a fake and empty world?


    "Of course, it''s real. It can''t be more tangible than this. Countless creatures are living in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. How can it be fake and empty?" Shen Luoxue replied.


    "Then, why do they make up names like the Void Realm and the Empty Imperial Palace?" Ye Futian asked, "When the Lord was breaking through, he said that the Heavenly Path was incomplete. What is missing?


    "Also, granny, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path are vast and boundless. Even Lord Tianxuan couldn''t reach the end of the world. Maybe there is no end at all. So how did those get here? Where do they come from? Why did they arrive so quickly?"


    Ye Futian fired a series of questions. There were so many things he didn''t understand.


    "It is because of the relativity. From the perspective of another space and time, their world is real, while ours may be the Void Realm. But the contrary is true for us, people who live in this place," Shen Luoxue looked intently at Ye Futian and said. "I read some historical documents of the Shen clan in the past. The story goes that the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path are in a separate Space World and may be overlapping with another Space World. They didn''t travel through space to get here since there is no distance between us."


    ...

 1745 The Original Realm

    A separate space that was overlapping with the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian was astounded. No wonder the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path only had the Empty Imperial Palace, and that Donghuang the Great Emperor was not present.


    The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were also called the Void Realm by the other world.


    "The Heavenly Path is not complete because the Heavenly Path fell apart.


    According to the legend, the world of cultivators was extremely prosperous in the era of the Ancient Emperor. The ancient books called it the Age of Gods. At that time, the gods transformed into the Great Path, yet they later had a huge fight because they were all too powerful to subdue each other. The Heavenly Path was broken during the war," Shen Luoxue continued to say.


    "It was broken?" Ye Futian could feel his heart pounding in the chest. The Age of the Gods and the War of the Heavenly Path sounded very much like a fable.


    "That is how the legend goes, but we don''t know what really happened. Allegedly, that is how time was divided into the Age of the Gods and the End of the Gods. The world changed dramatically after the Heavenly Path fell apart. The world of cultivators never managed to revive to what it used to be. I don''t know what the world really looks like nowadays. I have never out there."


    Shen Luoxue continued, "But at least I can say for sure that the real world is much more powerful than the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Countless cultivators fought in the war over 300 years ago. Many of them didn''t come from the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. The current forces in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path might only represent a small fraction of the true cultivators.


    "For example, the Shen clan is rumored to be the descendants of the gods. The Great Emperor truly existed in history, and he truly was the ancestor of the Shen clan. The Shen clan in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path is only a branch of the real one. I met them hundreds of years ago."


    Shen Luoxue kept talking, "The Shen clan is not the only one. So are many other supreme forces in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, such as the Celestial Worthy Temple and the Solar Divine Palace. I heard that the current Mountain Realm is also a branch of the Buddhist Great Path. There are many more potent Buddhist cultivators in the outside world. The same thing goes for the Hidden Land Realm where you just came back from and Hell, which disappeared years ago.


    "Maybe the Hell was not the only one. Many powerful forces in the Hidden Land Realm could be from the outside world.


    Shen Luoxue''s words came as a bombshell to Ye Futian. It seemed like the Empty Imperial Palace was set up by the Great Emperor as a place to monitor this world and nothing else.


    In reality, nothing happened in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was out of the Great Emperor''s control.


    "If that''s the case, there are people in the outside world who are in the Imperial Realm, the same level as Donghuang the Great Emperor. The Twin Great Emperors prevailed in the war over 300 years go and subsequently ruled the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path," said Ye Futian. He was surprised by what he learned about Hell and the bloody warfare in the past.


    It meant that cultivators in the Imperial Realm once fought over the control of this world. Donghuang the Great Emperor defeated the opposition and therefore reigned over the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    "Yes." Shen Luoxue nodded.


    She had no way of knowing the details of what happened.


    "Nevertheless, the passage between the two worlds seemed to be reactivated since the Gate of the Hell is open now. Cultivators from the outside world already arrived at the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. I suppose many changes will happen in the near future. The Great Emperor may also open the entrance to the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path altogether," Shen Luoxue guessed.


    "Like what it was 300 years ago?" Ye Futian muttered.


    "Perhaps. But time is different now after all," Lord Taixuan commented on the side. "That being said, we still need to prepare ourselves. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path probably will go through some turbulence."


    Ye Futian nodded. He cultivated in seclusion most of the time in the past four peaceful years. He never expected that the trouble didn''t come from the Shen clan or the Golden Divine Nation. It was a prologue to a new era.


    No one could predict what kind of consequences this would bring. He didn''t know what would happen in the future, either.


    "About that girl Ye Qingyao..." Shen Luoxue looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s expression was grave. Everything the devilish young man and the Hierophant Jiuyou did was an indication.


    Qingyao probably would be the cause of some trouble.


    Ye Futian left the conversation and went to the room he lived in. Two girls, Nianyu and Qingyao, were chatting over there.


    The two were about the same age. Nianyu, almost ten years ago, was a little bit younger than Qingyao.


    "Brother." Nianyu noticed Ye Futian and ran to him. She giggled while holding his legs.


    Qingyao, on the contrary, stood there quietly. She looked less lively than Nianyu.


    "Have you been listening to Sister Loulan recently?" Ye Futian rubbed Nianyu''s head and asked with affection.


    "Yes, I have been a good girl," Nianyu nodded and said, "But I miss you all the time."


    Ye Futian smiled. The young girl surely knew what to say.


    "Qingyao, do you like your sister?" Ye Futian walked forward and asked Ye Qingyao.


    "I do." Qingyao nodded slightly. She raised her head and smiled at Ye Futian, said, "Sister Nianyu is so pretty."


    In Qingyao''s eyes, Nianyu was beautiful, outgoing, and adored by everyone, just like the princesses she used to envy.


    She couldn''t help but feel inferior to Qingyao.


    "Qingyao is also pretty," Ye Futian said in a soft voice.


    "Brother, I was just asking sister Qingyao is she will stay here with me all the time. She said I need to ask you. You will let her stay, right?" Nianyu raised her head and looked at Ye Futian with her puppy eyes, said, "I finally have a sister to play with me."


    Qingyao heard Nianyu and also looked at Ye Futian. Her eyes were filled with both nervousness and eagerness.


    "Of course," Ye Futian saw Qingyao''s expression and replied with a smile.


    "Brother, you''re the best." Nianyu giggled.


    "You''re more familiar with our home. Shouldn''t you look after your sister?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I will." Nianyu nodded. She stepped forward and picked up Qingyao''s hand. "I will take care of sister Qingyao. Sister, let''s go to pull Grandpa Xuan''s beard. Grandpa Xuan is so funny."


    "..." Ye Futian was at a loss for words. Lord Taixuan was a legendary cultivator. To pull his beard?


    She thought that was funny?


    Only this little rascal dared to do it!


    Qingyao grinned and raised her head to look at Ye Futian. She was older and maturer than Nianyu. Besides, unlike Nianyu, she was not at home and couldn''t behave with no scruples. She was worried that she might spoil the kindness that didn''t come easily for her.


    "Go ahead. Ask sister Loulan if you want anything. She will take care of Nianyu and you," Ye Futian smiled and reassured her.


    "Okay." Qingyao finally nodded. The two girls left, holding hands.


    Ye Futian went to see Hua Jieyu after the girls left.


    Hua Jieyu caught sight of Ye Futian and stopped cultivating. She looked at him and said, "You''re back."


    "Yes." Ye Futian walked closer to her and gently caressed her cheeks with both hands. The intimate move made Hua Jieyu''s eyebrows twitch involuntarily. However, she enjoyed the intimacy. She was never repelled by Ye Futian. On the contrary, she felt close to him.


    In fact, Ye Futian had been slowly developing their relationship for the past few years. This was the real Jieyu in his eyes.


    "Have you made any progress recently?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes." She nodded slightly. Ye Futian held her hand and sat down with her. They leaned on each other like passionate lovers.


    "I heard that something big happened outside?" Hua Jieyu said softly.


    "Some things will happen. But we don''t know how it will turn out yet," Ye Futian replied in a quiet voice.


    Hua Jieyu nodded in understanding and looked at him, said, "You should be careful out there."


    "Em?" Ye Futian was surprised. He looked into Hua Jieyu''s eyes and saw that she was gazing at him as well. She asked gently, "What''s wrong?"


    "Nothing." Ye Futian beamed with joy. Maybe she hadn''t realized how she changed slowly and unobtrusively.


    "I will be careful just for your sake," Ye Futian said to her with tender. Then he gently put his arms around Hua Jieyu''s waist. Hua Jieyu''s body was stiff for a moment while an odd look flashed across her face. She stared at Ye Futian with her gorgeous eyes.


    Ye Futian looked at her as well.


    "You said I am your wife?" Hua Jieyu asked Ye Futian.


    "Yes," Ye Futian nodded. "Many people know about this."


    "Do husbands and wives act like this?" Hua Jieyu asked innocently. Ye Futian felt that she was wide-eyed like a blank piece of paper ever since she came back from the Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    She didn''t understand anything besides cultivation.


    Ye Futian looked awkward, but he still nodded earnestly, said, "Not only this. Husbands and wives do something that''s even more intimate."


    "More intimate?" Hua Jieyu gazed at him and asked, "Do they sleep together?"


    "Eh..."


    "Why are you blushing?" Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian and said.


    "It''s very hot here." Ye Futian was embarrassed. He never expected that a powerful Renhuang like him would get stuck in such a cringe-worthy conversation...


    "Oh." Hua Jieyu nodded even though she didn''t fully understand.


    Ye Futian took a good look at her face and smiled affectionately.


    Hua Jieyu also looked at him and wondered why his eyes were sparkling so strangely.


    Besides, he hadn''t answered her yet.


    ...


    Plenty of things happened outside when Ye Futian was enjoying the affection and closeness. More and more cultivators popped up in Jiuyou City, all with intimidating power. Jiuyou City was a completely different place now.


    The arriving cultivators were even heading to the Hidden Land Realm.


    Beyond that, mysterious cultivators also showed up in other realms one by one.


    Right now, a horrifying whirlwind took shape in the Central Emperor Realm. Some people appeared out of thin air as if they arrived at this world through a direct space pathway.


    These people took a deep breath upon their arrival. One person said, "The Void Realm. The Great Path here is even more fragmented; it''s just as we expected. What a shame."


    "The Void Realm has been exploited for hundreds of years." Another person laughed. "Regardless, it''s still a worthy trip. After all, this is the Original Realm!"


    ...

 1746 Coming Back One by One

    The Shen clan in the Central Emperor Realm.


    The Divine Light of Space shone brilliantly above the Shen clan. Countless people of the Shen clan raised their heads and looked at the sky.


    Then, they saw a Door of Space open, and a line of people walked out.


    They were all cultivators in the Renhuang Plane with calm, majestic bearing. The several ones leading ahead seemed to be emitting divine light from their bodies.


    Another group of people walked upward toward them. The head of the group was the clan lord of the Shen clan and the Chief Elder Shen Ji. The two most important figures in the Shen clan welcomed the guests in person.


    "It''s Shen Gao." Many elders were excited, watching the leaders of the Shen Clan leap into the air.


    "Who is that?" The younger generation didn''t recognize him.


    "Shen Gao. He was once the most talented cultivator in the entire Shen clan. He cultivates outside of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Now he''s back," one of the elders explained. The cultivators of the Shen clan were electrified. Even though the younger generation never had a chance to meet Shen Gao, they all heard plenty of his stories from the senior people in the clan.


    He was one of the top three cultivators in the Shen clan.


    How powerful could he be these days?


    "You''re back." The clan lord looked at Shen Gao and cracked a smile. Shen Gao hadn''t come back for many years.


    It was extremely difficult for him to come back and visit. He needed to have the Great Emperor''s special permission.


    The Great Emperor probably closed the passage to protect the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    After all, the Great Emperor was the one who ended the chaotic period several hundred years ago.


    The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was in a much worse turmoil at that time.


    They suspected that Donghuang the Great Emperor might clear the passage once they saw that the Gate of Hell manifested itself in the Hidden Land Realm. It turned out that the Great Emperor indeed opened the gateway to the outside world. Now Shen Gao was back.


    "They are from our clan in the Upper Worlds," Shen Gao pointed at the people next to him and introduced them to the leaders of the Shen clan. The master cultivators from the Shen clan certainly guessed it already.


    In fact, their relationship with the Shen Clan in the outside world was almost nonexistent because of the closed gateway. With little to none contact and separate establishments, they could be seen as two independent groups.


    However, they still shared the same bloodline of the Shen clan.


    Moreover, the ancestors of the Shen clan really were at the same level as the Great Emperor. But it was so long ago. Many emperors perished, and only some of them had descendants survived until today.


    The Shen clan was a branch of those descendants.


    Of course, it was hard to say how strong the bloodline remained to be generations after generations.


    "Please," the clan lord spoke. People walked downward at once toward the Sacred Hall.


    Shen clan had always been a top force in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Their heritage and background were beyond doubt.


    Now that they reconnected with the Shen clan from the outside world, they would maintain their status in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path even if there were major upheavals in the future.


    ...


    Gai Cang, the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation, had been waiting for something in the past few days.


    Numerous majestic and imposing golden halls lined up in the vast Palace of the Golden Divine Nation. The Golden Divine Nation had enjoyed its prosperity for many years. It was the most powerful group in the Higher Heavens Realm except for the Divine Palace.


    Finally, the golden divine light shone brightly above the Nation on this day.


    Everyone in the Palace raised their heads to look at the sky. The dazzling golden divine light almost blinded them.


    Then, countless people in the Palace saw several figures appeared. Wearing golden robes, they looked like a group of gods and stood in midair above the Palace of the Golden Divine Nation.


    The scene put many cultivators in the Palace on high alert.


    The guards of the Palace leaped into the air and unleashed tremendous energy to deter the intruders.


    "Back off!" a thunderous voice ordered from inside of the great hall. The guards and the bystanders stepped aside immediately. In the meantime, many commanders and divine generals of the Golden Divine Nation jumped into the air and bowed at the incoming figures.


    "Welcome the Celestial Emperor back." Sounds of greetings reverberated in the sky and made the hearts of the guards on the ground tremble.


    The Celestial Emperor.


    He was the brother of the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation and a legendary cultivator with terrifying power.


    He would be the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation if he didn''t leave.


    And now, he was back.


    Gai Cang stepped forward to Gai Qiong and spoke loudly, "I was just thinking that it was about time for you to come back."


    "The Great Emperor ordered to open the gate. That''s why I asked for his permission to come back," said Gai Qiong. "How is our nation these days?"


    Gai Cang''s eyes were steely after hearing Gai Qiong''s question. He said, "You never met your two nephews. They were very talented. I was hoping that they could follow you to the Upper Worlds. But now they''re gone."


    "They''re gone?" Gai Qiong frowned.


    "They were killed," said Gai Cang.


    Bang... A horrifying golden storm surged. Beams of intimidating golden light shot out from Gai Qiong''s eyes.


    They were killed?


    "Who dared to kill them?" Gai Qiong''s tone was icy-cold and menacing.


    "Let''s talk after we get down," Gai Cang replied.


    "What kind of a sovereign are you?" Gai Qiong said coldly, "Take me to catch the murderer."


    His voice was incredibly assertive and made everyone in the Palace shake with fright. He was the only person in the entire Golden Divine Nation who dared to speak to the sovereign in such tone.


    After all, he was the older brother of the sovereign. Rumor had it that he handed over the throne to his younger brother back in the days.


    He was the divine general under the Great Emperor and was powerful enough to command any situation. One might well imagine his feeling now that he heard his nephews were murdered.


    "I am inadequate for sure for not being able to take revenge for them," said Gai Cang. "However, the enemies are not weaker than the Golden Divine Nation. Let''s talk later."


    Gai Qiong glared at Gai Cang, then walked downward. He was still stern and grim.


    He and Gai Cang fought hard to make the Golden Divine Nation a strong and prosperous country. He followed Donghuang the Great Emperor, and he had achieved miraculous feats in battles several hundred years ago. Even though the youngsters nowadays might not know who he was, no one from the older generation wasn''t familiar with his name.


    The Golden Divine Nation became the most powerful force in the Higher Heavens Realm because of his and Gai Cang''s overwhelming dominance.


    Nevertheless, the first thing he heard after coming back was that the princes of the Golden Divine Nation, the nephews he never met, were killed by people.


    ...


    The Nantian Divine Kingdom in the Central Emperor Realm.


    Emperor Nan stood in a pavilion and gazed into the distance.


    A woman with a graceful figure and gorgeous face walked toward him from behind. She was Empress Luo.


    "What are you thinking about?" Empress Luo came to Emperor Nan and whispered.


    Emperor Nan smiled tenderly at her and answered in a soft voice, "We have enjoyed peace and quiet for several hundred years. A storm is ahead of us again."


    "The Great Emperor already unified the Divine Prefecture. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path are stable and secure. I don''t think we would be affected even if there was some disturbance."


    "Who knows what will happen in the future? Qinghe came back, and the Gate of Hell reopened. Some forces might not be resigned to the current arrangement. And the Great Emperor would never step in personally," said Emperor Nan. "Besides, maybe the Great Emperor didn''t intervene before because he has some ideas in mind."


    "Don''t think too much about it. Few people in the Outer Realms can threaten us, let alone here," Empress Luo said with a smile. She had absolute confidence in Emperor Nan''s ability.


    "Alright." Emperor Nan nodded.


    "Maybe you would be even stronger if you followed the Great Emperor to the Outer Realms back then," said Empress Luo.


    "It''s not that simple. I''m already approaching the end of the Great Path." Emperor Nan laughed. "Besides, I''m contented with what I chose. These peaceful years after Luoshen was born are the happiest time in my life."


    He held Empress Luo in his arms and let her lean on his shoulder affectionately.


    "You''re probably tired of those things," Empress Luo said in a gentle voice. Back in the old days, Emperor Nan was a formidable fighter who killed countless people with the Qinghe Divine Sword.


    People who only knew him in these quiet years could hardly imagine how he was like in the past.


    "I only want to take care of Luoshen," said Emperor Nan.


    "Luoshen is a grownup now in the Renhuang Plane. You still treat her like a child," Empress Luo said gently, even though she did the same herself.


    Luoshen would always be a child in their eyes, no matter what plane she reached.


    "Moreover, Luoshen will find someone who can protect her in the future, just like I did." Empress Luo suddenly thought of something. She continued as a look of concern made her furrow her eyebrows. "But I''m a little worried."


    "What are you worried about?" Emperor Nan asked.


    "I want Luoshen to find the best man, even better than us. However, to find someone who can surpass you..." Empress Luo looked at Emperor Nan while speaking.


    "Are you praising me?" Emperor Nan gazed at her lovingly.


    "It''s the truth." Empress Luo sighed. Emperor Nan nodded and said, "Luoshen certainly deserves to have the best. Only one person in this generation is good enough for Luoshen."


    "The one in the Heavenly Mandate Academy?" Empress Luo asked.


    "Yes," Emperor Nan nodded.


    "You like him so much?" Empress Luo said, "Isn''t Jian Qingzhu from the Tianshen Academy also an extraordinary young man?"


    "They''re not the same. Jian Qingzhu is exceptionally talented. But he is too disciplined and conventional and will never be a trendsetter. Ye Futian, on the contrary, will either fade out halfway or become a gamechanger who symbolizes a new era," Emperor Nan added. "If that''s the case, he is still not the right person for Luoshen."


    Ye Futian was destined to experience the carnage of war. It was not what he had in mind for his daughter.


    "We''re getting too far ahead of ourselves," Empress Luo laughed.


    Emperor Nan nodded. They were indeed planning for something too further down the road.


    But a storm was around the corner. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path would surely meet a time of turbulence again.

 1747 External Forces

    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian was training in a matrix.


    In the independent space, it was like a world of its own. In this space, countless sharp swords appeared around his body. Right now, the various sharp swords were resonating. Sword Will immediately swept out in the space and formed a wild storm of swordsmanship. The murderous intent it emanated was astonishing.


    Ye Futian''s figure floated up into the sky. When the various sharp swords resonated, a divine sword was formed and appeared before him. At the same time, the Divine Sound of the Great Path resonated, strengthening the Sword Will. The entire space was on the brink of being shredded into pieces.


    Everything was about to be crushed into dust under such a terrifying Sword Will.


    Finally, Ye Futian opened his eyes. An alarmingly sharp light flashed in his eyes.


    In that instant, everything came to a halt. However, the very next moment, myriads of unparalleled Sword Will erupted in every inch of the space.


    A divine sword was drawn. Its sword flashes pierced through the space at an unbelievably fast speed. It was as bright as a beam of light, causing those who looked at it to narrow their eyes.


    Thunk.


    With a thud, the sword struck a spot. All the accumulated Sword Will seemed to explode from that spot.


    A scary storm that could tear everything apart erupted with that spot as its center. Everything was about to turn into dust.


    The Sword Will dissipated. Ye Futian revealed a satisfied smile. He applied the halberd techniques that he had comprehended in the past in his swordsmanship. On top of that, he merged the offense techniques of the Great Path with his sword. The might of his sword now was not any weaker than that of Fleeting Divine Sword.


    Ye Futian turned around while smiling. He stared at the beautiful figure who was standing behind him. He approached her with a smile, saying, "How was it?"


    Hua Jieyu''s eyes were crystal clear. She looked at him while replying, "If I was to take this sword head-on, it could turn me into dust."


    "Silly, why would my sword be pointed at you?" Ye Futian said gently, "Don''t say such things again."


    "Hmm." Hua Jieyu nodded slightly. "What is this technique called?"


    Ye Futian pondered for a moment, then he replied, "Let''s name it ''Dust''."


    "It has a nice ring to it," Hua Jieyu said.


    "Alright. It''s time for you to train. I will observe you," Ye Futian suggested with a smile.


    Hua Jieyu nodded in agreement; she had no qualms with his suggestion. Besides, she was not at all concerned about training in front of Ye Futian. She had gotten used to it these past few years.


    Before this, cultivators from Brahma''s Pure Sky had approached her a few times to invite her to train with them. However, she still preferred to train with Ye Futian.


    But since they were a married couple, this was considered normal, right?


    Other people noticed the interaction between the two of them too. Regardless of Zhuge Mingyue or Liu Chenyu, they were all very happy for Ye Futian. Jieyu didn''t know what had happened in the past, but perhaps even if the other Jieyu was back, she would still fall in love with Ye Futian.


    Maybe their love was fated. They were destined to be together anyway.


    After Ye Futian concluded his training, Loulan Xue came to find him.


    "Where are Nianyu and Qingyao?" Ye Futian asked Loulan Xue.


    "They are with Lord Taixuan. People from the Xiao clan and Yuanyang clan are here. They want to see you. But since you were training, we didn''t disturb you," Loulan Xue reported.


    "Next time when they are here, you can call me right away if I am not engaged in an important training," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright." Loulan Xue nodded.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian walked towards the conference hall of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Many people had come from the Xiao clan and Yuanyang clan. They had been waiting for him there.


    Lord Taixuan and Nianyu were there too.


    When Nianyu and Qingyao saw Ye Futian, they walked up to him. Ye Futian put his arms around their shoulders and smiled. Then, he looked at everyone else in the hall, saying, "Are seniors here because of the recent happenings?"


    "Yes." A cultivator of Xiao clan nodded and said, "The incident at Jiuyou City has stirred up quite a commotion. Right now, many things have happened in the Hidden Land Realm. The entire Hidden Land Realm is affected. Moreover, we received news saying that Donghuang the Great has activated the passageway. Many cultivators from the Outer Realms are making their way here."


    It had been 300 years since a large batch of cultivators had entered the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    They had enjoyed peace for more than 300 years. Ye Futian''s battle with the Shen clan last time could be considered the greatest war they had for the past 300 years.


    "We also have not so good news," a cultivator of Yuanyang Clan said. "Shen Gao of Shen clan is back. He has also brought along quite a few strong cultivators with him. We are worried that Shen clan might come to harm you again."


    "Who is Shen Gao?" Ye Futian asked.


    "He is one of the top three giant figures of the Shen clan. In the past, he was the most monstrous figure in the Shen clan; he was stronger than Shen Ji. Nobody knows which Plane he is at now," the cultivator of Yuanyang Clan explained. "Shen Gao is not the only one who is back. I heard Gai Qiong of Golden Divine Nation is back too. Gai Qiong is the elder brother of Golden Divine Nation''s Dynastic Overlord, Gai Cang. Back then, Gai Qiong could have claimed the spot of Dynastic Overlord, but he gave it to Gai Cang. His ability is stronger than that of Gai Cang."


    "These two are also people who murder decisively. The way they do things is exceptionally overbearing. If they knew of what had happened before, they could appear in the Heavenly Mandate Realm at any moment."


    This change was something that the various major forces had not imagined. The opening of the Gate of Hell in Jiuyou City resulted in the passageway being opened up once again.


    The pressure that the Heavenly Mandate Academy faced was huge.


    Ye Futian''s expression turned serious as he said, "It seems that after this, we need to be alert. However, even if two giant figures were to return, without being certain that they can eliminate us, they will not dare to carelessly attack us."


    The destructive power of these giant figures was absolutely frightening. Back then, Ye Futian had led a huge army against the Shen clan. They had a huge advantage and yet did not dare to truly attack the Shen clan. Why was that?


    It was because the giant figure in the Shen clan was around. They could not kill him. If they had attacked, everyone beneath the level of the giant figures would have perished on both sides.


    Similarly, although their opponent had two returning giant figures, they also had such considerations. They would not easily make a move against the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Hmm, we also need to be ever cautious. The teleportation matrix needs to be well guarded," a cultivator from the Yuanyang Clan said. "Futian, you need to be exceptionally careful yourself."


    "Junior knows." Ye Futian nodded his head. He was the core figure of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If anything happened to him, problems would occur even among the alliances of the various major forces, let alone in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "However, this storm and the opening of the passageway might also be an opportunity," a cultivator from the Xiao clan said. "There has not been an incident like this for hundreds of years. Now, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path can once again come in contact with the Outer Realms. This is an opportunity."


    "Are you saying that Futian should venture out to train?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    "Among the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, there are many cultivators with flawless Divine Wheels. If the passageway can be opened for long periods of time in the future, venturing out to train will definitely be beneficial for them."


    "We do not know what will happen in the future. For now, we''ll take it one step at a time," Lord Taixuan said.


    ...


    Just as they were discussing this matter in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, above Heavenly Mandate City, divine light shone down from the heavens. Then, a group of silhouettes descended from the sky.


    The citizens of Heavenly Mandate City were alarmed. Even the aura emanated subconsciously by this group of people shocked them.


    This group of visitors was none other than cultivators from the Shen clan. The leader of the group was Shen Gao.


    Aside from Shen Gao, the cultivators that had followed him from the Outer Realms were also here.


    Shen Hao and a few members of the Shen clan were also here.


    Their figures landed in an inn. Many people immediately made way for them. Some people had already recognized the cultivators of the Shen clan.


    From afar, gazes were also looking over here.


    The cultivators of the Shen clan had come to Heavenly Mandate City. Was something big about to happen again?


    "Back in the day, this place belonged to the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, right?" Shen Gao asked. When he was still around, the old Dynastic Overlord of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was still the ruler of this place.


    "Yes. Heavenly Mandate Dynasty was eradicated by the alliance of forces in the Heavenly Mandate Realm," someone from Shen clan replied. "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is built on the spot where the palace of the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty used to be."


    "Ye Futian had just broken through to the Renhuang Plane, but he had the ability and courage to unite and lead the forces to eradicate Heavenly Mandate Dynasty. Besides that, he also challenged and defeated the Shen clan," Shen Gao commented. "He is indeed an exceptional talent. I am somewhat impressed by him." Shen Gao''s standards were very high. He had seen countless talented figures in the Outer Realms.


    However, it was still uncommon for someone to be able to accomplish so many things at Ye Futian''s level.


    Hence, if Shen Gao looked past the fact that they were on opposite sides, this Ye Futian was indeed a rare talent.


    Shen Hao felt slightly embarrassed as he sat at the side.


    "Moreover, he entered the God''s relic and acquired the relic of Donghuang the Great," someone from Outer Realms added on with a smile. "I am rather interested in meeting him."


    "Someone, please make a trip to the Heavenly Mandate Academy and ask Luoxue to come and meet me," Shen Gao ordered.


    "I will go," a cultivator of the Shen clan offered while standing up. Shen Gao nodded in agreement, and the cultivator flew into the sky, moving in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    At the same time, far from where the group from the Shen clan was, another group was sitting in a tavern. This group was also from the Outer Realms. One of them spoke up, "There, someone is here for the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    "Based on their conversation, it seems like they have a grudge with the Heavenly Mandate Academy," another person added.


    "Are you interested in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, too?"


    Suddenly, a voice was transmitted to the group from afar. It was Shen Gao''s voice. An overbearing might followed his words, pressing down on the group.


    An elder in the group frowned. He emanated an equally astonishing aura. His aura was also domineering; it was not any weaker than that of Shen Gao.


    "We heard some rumors about the Heavenly Mandate Academy, so we are here to have a look," another figure who sat in the tavern said with a smile. Shen Gao revealed a strange expression. Let alone the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, even in the Outer Realms, his Plane of cultivation was at the level of mighty cultivators. After all, after one reached his level, there was no higher Plane to break through to.


    However, the aura of this elder was on par with his. It meant that he was also someone from a top force.


    It looked like the first batch of people who arrived here after the passageway had been activated were all cultivators from super forces.


    ...

 1748 Let Bygones Be Bygones?

    Above the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a silhouette walked over from the sky. This person was bathed in radiant divine light. He was a cultivator of the Shen clan.


    Other figures rose up into the sky and blocked his path. Their auras were powerful.


    The gaze of the cultivator from the Shen clan swept across the crowd. His gaze then turned towards the inside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. With a loud voice, he said, "Shen Luoxue, Uncle wants you to go see him."


    The person who had come was from the same generation as Shen Luoxue. As for Shen Gao, he was a cultivator that was the same generation as the Shen clan''s lord. The current Shen clan''s lord was the clan brother of Shen Gao.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Shen Luoxue was instructing Feixue in her training. When she heard this voice, she raised her head. Her gaze shifted towards the outside. Her will immediately swept out.


    "I have already left Shen clan and am no longer a member of the clan. Who is this Uncle that you speak of?" Shen Luoxue replied indifferently. Her voice did not seem loud, but it was directly transmitted outside from a distance and reached the other party''s ears.


    Many cultivators appeared in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The various cultivators that were in discussion with Lord Taixuan walked out. Ye Futian looked towards the outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Had Shen clan come knocking on their door again?


    This time, they had directly asked granny to go meet with a member of the Shen clan. The ''Uncle'' that the other party was referring to must be Shen Gao, one of the three pinnacle figures of the Shen clan that Ye Futian had heard of prior to this.


    Had Shen Gao already arrived in the Heavenly Mandate City?


    Lord Taixuan stood there, his clothes fluttering in the wind. His will immediately swept out. In an instant, it enveloped the endless space and the vast and grand Heavenly Mandate City. Silhouettes directly appeared in his mind.


    Very quickly, his will locked on to a spot. It focused on an inn. There, a group of cultivators was sitting there and quietly drinking wine.


    One of them seemed to have sensed his will and lifted his head slightly. His gaze directly pierced through the space. He actually locked gazes with Lord Taixuan across such a long distance. It was as though they could see each other directly.


    Shen Gao lowered his cup, and his will similarly descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy. From afar, he said, "I remember that when I left, you were still young. As expected, you have grown now. You won''t come even though I want to see you?"


    Shen Luoxue got up. Her figure gradually floated up into the air. Her eyes looked far off into the distance. She naturally also saw Shen Gao and the other cultivators.


    She naturally understood clearly that with Shen Gao''s Plane, whether or not she agreed to see him made no difference. With a sweep of his will, Shen Gao could directly descend upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy regardless of how far away he was.


    A figure of such a high level could not be stopped if he truly wanted to do something.


    Hence, Shen Luoxue decided to head over there herself.


    "I''ll go take a look," Ye Futian said. After saying this, he also stepped out and followed behind in the direction that Shen Luoxue went.


    Silhouettes followed along with him. Lord Taixuan stood where he was, silently, and watched them calmly. He did not stop Ye Futian and the others from heading over. He had the same idea as Shen Luoxue. He could not stop Shen Gao at all. Lord Taixuan did not need to head over. If Shen Gao truly made a move, none of them could stop him.


    Of course, Lord Taixuan could similarly descend upon where Shen Gao was in an instant.


    .


    Right now, Lord Taixuan''s powerful will was observing the situation in the inn from afar.


    At their level, if they truly wanted to fight, it would only take an instant.


    In the inn, Shen Luoxue''s clothes and silver hair fluttered and danced in the wind. She stood proudly in mid-air. Her gaze landed upon the group in the inn.


    Ye Futian and the others were behind Shen Luoxue. Their gazes also turned towards Shen Gao and his group.


    Elsewhere, in the distance, countless gazes were locked on them.


    The grudge between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Shen clan was currently known all throughout the Nine Supreme Realms. After all, an army besieging a city was a grand sight. Ye Futian became renowned throughout the Nine Realms after he defeated the Shen clan in that battle.


    Now, the cultivators of the Shen clan had once again descended on Heavenly Mandate City. It was naturally an extremely sensitive issue.


    Shen Gao lifted his head and looked at Shen Luoxue. He said, "What''s the matter? I haven''t seen you for so many years. After growing up and seeing your Uncle, you won''t even address me as such?"


    Although Shen Luoxue was also a mighty figure at the top, in Shen Gao''s memories, Shen Luoxue was still young. He never imagined that in the blink of an eye, even her hair had turned white. Time truly flew past for him.


    Shen Gao was of the opinion that his own clan brother had not handled matters appropriately.


    With such a daughter and son-in-law, it would not have been an issue to leave the divine item with them. Now, bonds of hatred had been formed instead. Not only had the Shen clan not managed to gain their assistance, but they had instead become the enemies of the Shen clan.


    How ironic.


    However, even though Shen Gao felt that the matter had been handled inappropriately, he still could understand why the clan had done so. Shen clan was still the Shen clan. With the pride of the clan, it was natural to be unable to tolerate their clansmen from acting recklessly and sullying the honor of the clan.


    Hence, the actions of his clan brother could not be considered wrong.


    "I have severed my relationship with Shen clan. I am no longer a member of the clan. Hence, I cannot call you'' Uncle,''" Shen Luoxue said. "You have not sought me out just so that I would call you'' Uncle,'' right?"


    Shen Gao smiled as he shook his head and said, "You are still so stubborn. I remember when you were young, you once said that you would achieve great things in the future. Back then, I had also treated you quite well. Now that I have purposely come here to see you, you don''t need to treat me as your enemy."


    "Everything from back then is already in the past. I do not wish to bring it up again." Shen clan was long dead to Shen Luoxue. Her heart was like still water. She appeared exceptionally peaceful.


    "Although I was born in Shen clan, you must have already known about everything that the clan did to me. Now that you have already chosen a side, then save the reminiscing," Shen Luoxue continued saying. "Just tell me straight. What do you want?"


    "If I wanted to invite you to return, would you still be willing to return to the clan?" Shen Gao said. "In the issue back then, both you and your father were in the wrong. However, in the end, you are both linked by blood. You cannot escape your birth parents no matter how hard you try. Why don''t you let go of all that has happened?"


    "Let go?"


    Shen Luoxue gave Shen Gao a cold stare and said, "My daughter was murdered by the clan. Back then, did anyone tell Shen clan to let the matter go?"


    "It is all in the past. The blood of the Shen clan still flows in your veins. You cannot escape from it just because you want to," Shen Gao replied calmly.


    Shen Luoxue could naturally tell that within Shen Gao''s calm voice, and unparalleled might was contained.


    She laughed mockingly. Each person had their own point of view. Shen Gao had advised her to let the matter go. Naturally, he did so for the clan. However, he had not considered her point of view.


    "I have already escaped," Shen Luoxue replied indifferently.


    Shen Gao glanced at her and then shifted his gaze towards Ye Futian. He said, "Was it you that led the alliance of cultivators that slaughtered their way into Shen clan?"


    Ye Futian looked towards Shen Gao and replied, "That''s not quite how it happened. It was Shen Ji from Shen clan who slaughtered his way into the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    "It is all the same," Shen Gao responded as he looked at Ye Futian. "Your ties with Shen clan runs deep. You also have extraordinary talent. Since we have such ties, why don''t we bury the past in the past? I can decide on behalf of the Shen clan. We can let bygones be bygones. You can also advise Luoxue to let this all go. We can each make a compromise."


    "Luoxue can return to the clan," Shen Gao continued to persuade Ye Futian. "I have heard that your teacher is Luoxue''s son-in-law. Then, his daughter Feixue is also a member of the Shen clan. Why don''t we seal the deal while we are at it? Shen clan can bear witness to your marriage with Feixue. We can let bygones be bygones. In the future, the Shen clan will be your clan. This way, we can make it up for many things."


    Shen Gao''s words caused the expression of Shen Hao, who was standing behind him, to change slightly.


    Shen Gao was actually willing to forsake this grudge. Even though many members of the Shen clan had fallen due to this vendetta between them, he was willing to let it all go. He even invited Ye Futian to join the Shen clan.


    Without a doubt, this was Shen Gao''s acknowledgment of Ye Futian.


    If this was in the past, with the pride of the Shen clan, it would have been impossible for them to have done so.


    However, Shen Gao was doing it now.


    The members of Heavenly Mandate City were also somewhat astonished. This Shen Gao was truly charismatic.


    However, such matters were not so easily settled.


    Ye Futian and Shen Luoxue would not agree to this.


    "I repeat. There is no longer any relationship between Shen clan and me," Shen Luoxue said very calmly.


    Ye Futian naturally understood. Shen Gao could write off the debt from back then and pretend that nothing had happened. However, how could granny and grandmaster let this go?


    The wife of his master, Qi Xuangang, had been killed. Feixue''s mother had fallen. Could Shen Luoxue and Feixue pretend that none of this had happened and return once again to the Shen clan?


    If Shen Gao''s own beloved had fallen, would he have said such things?


    Ye Futian did not give an answer. Shen Luoxue''s stance was also his stance. Shen Gao was overthinking things.


    Ye Futian and Feixue had never thought of being together.


    Shen Gao looked at Ye Futian and Shen Luoxue. He understood what their answers were.


    He put down his wine cup. His gaze once again returned to Shen Luoxue.


    Beside him, there was another figure with frightening cultivation. The person''s gaze was extremely sharp as it swept towards Shen Luoxue. The person said, "The blood of your ancestors still flows in you. It is not something that you can let go of with just a word. Since you do not acknowledge yourself as a member of the Shen clan, then strip yourself of your bloodline. That way, we can consider it severed."


    Ye Futian and the others glanced over at the other party. Strip her bloodline?


    How could one do that?


    "Granny, let''s go back," Ye Futian said.


    "Hmm." Shen Luoxue nodded her head and turned to leave.


    However, at that moment, a powerful aura emanated from Shen Gao and descended on Shen Luoxue.


    In that instant, far away in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a powerful aura also descended upon this spot like the authority of heaven, enveloping this space. It was the aura of Lord Taixuan.


    Instantly, there seemed to be a pressure acting on the vast space.


    Everyone could sense the might of these two auras.


    Ye Futian had turned to leave. However, he saw that above the inn, a young, handsome silhouette beside Shen Gao walked out. The aura on his body was extremely powerful. With one step, he traversed the space and walked over towards Ye Futian. He asked, "I have heard that among the current generation in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, you are considered number one?"


    Ye Futian turned his head and swept a glance at the other party. This youth''s figure shone with divine light. His temperament was no weaker than that of Shen Hao. A blinding divine light also radiated from inside his body and suppressed the power of the Great Path in many people.


    This was the aura of a flawless Divine Wheel.


    Clearly, this person was not a member of the Shen clan of the Nine Supreme Realms. If the Shen clan had such a member, Ye Futian should have encountered him during the previous battle with the Shen clan.


    The person was a cultivator of the Shen clan from the Outer Realms.


    In an instant, light shone all around. The will of the Great Path swept across this part of the sky. Countless gazes in Heavenly Mandate City turned towards this dazzling silhouette.


    This cultivator that had come from afar wanted to challenge the legendary figure of this generation, Ye Futian, upon his arrival here!


    ...

 1749 One Sword

    The person who attacked was called Shen Xuan. He was a lower-level Renhuang who had a second-tier Divine Wheel. It was a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    When he stepped out, the power of his Divine Wheel burst forth. In an instant, endless golden lightning appeared in the sky above Ye Futian''s group. The lightning descended from the heavens above. It covered the sky and blocked out the sun. Each bolt of golden lightning contained the frightening power of the Great Path that sliced apart the space. It was as though anyone who was struck by the lightning would be blown apart into countless pieces.


    Ye Futian frowned. His gaze swept over to Shen Gao, who was still sitting there quietly. The latter was still drinking wine in the inn. His aura was calm, as though he had no intention of attacking. However, he also did not stop Shen Xuan from attacking them.


    The other cultivators from the Shen clan in the Outer Realms also lifted their heads and calmly observed.


    They were not worried about the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy with powerful cultivation attacking Shen Xuan; who would dare to do so?


    They were also somewhat curious. This youth that had led other cultivators and fought the Shen clan was a possessor of a flawless Divine Wheel. He was renowned as a peerless figure of this generation in the Void Realm. How capable was he?


    Could he stand against Shen Xuan?


    However, before Ye Futian even moved, a silhouette had already stepped out. It was Dou Zhao.


    His entire body was shining brightly, and he became a golden body Fighting God. His also flawless Divine Wheel battle form burst forth. In an instant, his intent for battle burned.


    Boom. Dou Zhao''s entire body was burning with golden divine light. He sent out a punch, and his burly, domineering figure traversed the space like a shooting star. He directly attacked Shen Xuan''s body. It seemed as though space itself had been punched through.


    Shen Xuan did not retreat at all. He also had no intention of evading. Was Dou Zhao trying to engage in close-quarter combat with his powerful melee force?


    Shen Xuan would grant Dou Zhao his wish.


    Shen Xuan clenched his fist, and it formed a divine fist. In an instant, an endless storm of golden lightning radiated from his fist. Blinding divine light burst forth from it.


    The cultivators of the Shen clan from the Outer Realms had sinister smiles on their faces. Even if the battle intent of Dou Zhao, who had a first-tier Divine Wheel, filled the skies, for him to rely on this to surpass the difference in Planes and engage in close-quarter combat with Shen Xuan was foolish.


    Dou Zhao did not know his own strength.


    He must not know how powerful Shen Xuan''s attack power was.


    Bang!


    A dull explosion could be heard. The two figures were separated.


    The clothes on Shen Xuan''s body fluttered in the wind. His long hair flew up. Even though he was knocked back a few steps, he was not injured at the slightest. However, the power of the other party''s punch was indeed very powerful. It was enough to surprise Shen Xuan.


    Dou Zhao''s figure was sent flying from the shockwave. His arm was trembling slightly. From the attack just now, he felt endless lightning that tore apart everything surge directly into his arm and his body. It tried to tear his body and spirit into countless pieces.


    This attack was very overbearing. If Dou Zhao did not have an unparalleled body and was just a normal Renhuang, he would have immediately been torn apart by that attack and perished on the spot.


    However, the battle intent in Dou Zhao''s eyes still burned. He had no intention of backing down. He even wanted to continue activating the Will of the Fighting God.


    After forging a flawless Divine Wheel, Dou Zhao did not have many worthy opponents of the same level in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Now that Shen Xuan had appeared, it instead ignited Dou Zhao''s fighting spirit.


    Ye Futian watched as the two of them collided. He understood that Dou Zhao would most likely be unable to defeat this opponent. As both of them were possessors of flawless Divine Wheels, the difference between their Planes would naturally be visible from their combat power.


    "You are no match for me. Step aside."


    Shen Xuan was not interested in Dou Zhao. His gaze was still staring at Ye Futian, who was behind Dou Zhao.


    Shen Xuan wanted to see what the ability of the rumored top figure of the generation in the Void Realm was like.


    The Void Realm was the Original Realm. Even though it was in a state of decline, there were still rumors about many hidden figures in the Void Realm. This place was the origin of the Great Path.


    However, that was still all in the past. Now, the so-called Original Realm had long been in decline and was not worth mentioning. People preferred to refer to it as the Void Realm, a self-indulgent, sealed-off, illusory prison that was under the protection of Donghuang the Great.


    In Shen Xuan''s eyes, how could astonishing figures appear in the Void Realm that had been in decline for years?


    This top figure might have some ability.


    "Dou Zhao, step back," Ye Futian said.


    Dou Zhao looked back at Ye Futian. Although he wanted to continue fighting, since Ye Futian had spoken, Dou Zhao retracted his aura and stood back in his original spot.


    Ye Futian turned to look at the other party. He took a step forward and looked at Shen Xuan.


    Shen Xuan extended his hand and gestured for Ye Futian to begin.


    In the inn, the cultivators of the Shen clan were still quietly watching.


    Shen Hao''s expression was cold and indifferent. Although Ye Futian was their enemy, Shen Hao still hoped that Shen Xuan would lose this battle. He was certain that Shen Xuan would lose.


    These members of the clan from the Outer Realms were overconfident in themselves. Although they were all descended from the same bloodline and the same blood coursed in their veins, Shen Hao could clearly sense that these members had an air of superiority to them.


    It was not wise for Shen Hao to say anything, but Ye Futian might be able to teach these members a lesson that they would never forget.


    Hence, it could be said that Shen Hao''s emotions now were somewhat conflicted.


    The other members watched calmly.


    Ye Futian extended his hand. In that instant, the sound of guqin of the Great Path could be heard all around. With the Great Path as its strings, it was as though countless guqins of the Great Path appeared in the vast space, their melodies harmonizing with one another. Frightening Sword Will also appeared and resonated with the sounds of the guqin.


    When Shen Xuan saw this scene, he similarly extended his hand. Instantly, a golden spatial storm rampaged around them. Bolts of golden lightning seemed to appear everywhere, penetrating the space.


    Very soon, Sword Will and golden lightning ran rampant around them. The howling caused many people to tremble in fear.


    The two of them did not move at all. From afar, Ye Futian gently pushed his palm forward. Countless divine swords immediately resonated in the heavens above, seemingly forming a rhythm. The strength of the Sword Will instantly exploded. Blades of light slashed across the space towards Shen Xuan''s figure.


    Shen Xuan''s figure remained standing still. Bolts of golden lightning collided with the sharp swords that slashed towards him.


    Bang. Bang. Bang�� Sounds of collisions kept sounding in the space. The scene was astonishing.


    The swords resonated in front of Ye Futian. The rhythmic Sword Will merged into one, becoming an extremely dazzling divine sword.


    This divine sword emanated unparalleled divine light that directly pierced through the space. The released Sword Will alone was extremely threatening.


    The crowd raised their heads and looked up into the sky. Above, with Ye Futian''s figure as the center, countless divine swords and Sword Will surrounded him. The sound of guqins and the hum of swords resonated. It was as though a world of the sword was formed.


    Shen Xuan frowned when he sensed this Sword Will. He felt an intense threat emanating from Ye Futian.


    The Sword Will aura that was coalescing was extremely terrifying.


    Ye Futian remained standing there. The divine sword that formed before him resonated and gathered the will of the Great Path from all around him, forming a single sword.


    Ye Futian pointed his finger forward, and the sword instantly flew forwards.


    The birth of this sword astonished the heavens and the earth. The cold light of the sword reached even the highest heavens.


    Shen Xuan immediately lifted his hand and struck out. Endless golden lightning formed a golden divine spear that pierced forwards. His movements were extremely swift. All of this was done in an instant.


    Swoosh. Swoosh...


    Destructive golden divine light radiated outwards, causing it to be difficult for many people to keep their eyes open. The divine spear shattered and was followed by a loud sound. Shen Xuan''s figure was sent flying from the shockwave.


    Rumble.


    A frightening voice could be heard. Shen Xuan''s figure crashed into the inn that he was previously drinking wine in. It caused the inn to be blown apart and collapse. The figures of Shen Gao and the other members that were still sitting in the inn were left floating in mid-air. Shen Gao had to extend his palm to stop Shen Xuan from flying further.


    Shen Xuan''s arm was trembling. The palm in which he wielded the spear was already bloody and bruised now. It was nearly crippled.


    Shen Xuan''s expression was extremely ugly. He withstood the pain and looked towards Ye Futian. He saw Ye Futian sweeping an indifferent glance at him. It was as though Ye Futian had not even broken a sweat to activate the might of his sword.


    Ye Futian did not say anything. He immediately turned and left. The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy left together with him.


    "You do not know your own strength," Dou Zhao said to Shen Xuan. So what if Shen Xuan had come from the Outer Realms?


    Shen Xuan was arrogant and wanted to challenge Ye Futian directly. He had thought too highly of himself.


    If it wasn''t for the difference between their Planes, Dou Zhao believed that he could also put up a fight against Shen Xuan.


    Shen Xuan frowned. Behind him, Shen Hao calmly observed all of this. He was not surprised at all with the result of this battle.


    These members from the Outer Realms were overconfident.


    "Ye Futian is indeed a monstrous figure. Such a pity," Shen Gao lamented. Although Shen Xuan had been injured, Shen Gao did not seem to have an intense reaction to it.


    On the contrary, if the person who led an army against the Shen clan was so simple, Shen Gao would instead be very disappointed with the Shen clan.


    Reality had proven that Ye Futian was indeed an extraordinary genius.


    It was unfortunate. Such a person originally could be used by the Shen clan. However, when Shen Gao was not around, it seems that the Shen clan had made some poor moves. It might have been due to the pride that they had held on to all these years.


    However, since it was already like this, they could only continue to make their next move.


    It was regrettable that such a genius had to die here.


    Right at that moment, in another area, the other group of figures that came from afar watched as the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy left. The leading elder looked at the few youths in front of him and asked, "What do you think about that sword?"


    "The power of the Divine Wheel resonated and formed a sword, merging with the Great Path," a person said. "This sword combined the power of many Great Paths. With the sword as a vessel, the might of the sword was unleashed at the end. Its destructive power is astonishing". Although the group was far away, they could clearly sense the might within the sword.


    "That is right. This person''s future lies beyond the Void Realm," the elder said with a smile!

 1750 Soon-to-be Chaos

    In the Hidden Land Realm, following the opening of the Gate of Hell in Jiuyou City, powerful figures came to this side of the world through Jiuyou City, one after another.


    Gradually, more powerful forces came over, until one day, a super force descended. They sent out a summons and made the various forces of the Hidden Land Realm pledge allegiance to them. The Hidden Land Realm was about to be unified.


    In the Hidden Land Realm, this caused an uproar. Everyone knew that this world had opened up. There were cultivators from the outside. Just as people thought that the local forces of the Hidden Land Realm would resist, they discovered that the forces that stood at the peak of the Realm were unusually peaceful.


    It was as though they had long known who the other party was and where they came from.


    Many forces of the Hidden Land Realm continued to pledge their allegiance to this super force. Hell had reappeared in Jiuyou City and wanted to unify the Hidden Land Realm.


    The top forces of the Hidden Land Realm in Jiuyou City headed over to pledge their allegiances to this power.


    The influence of this incident had an unimaginable effect in the Hidden Land Realm. Only then did everyone realize what was happening.


    The opening of the Gate of Hell seemed to have pulled back the curtain of a new era.


    Many of the older generation now recalled that the rise of top forces of the Hidden Land Realm back in the day was due to the fall of Hell. Some people claimed that the top forces themselves were originally part of Hell.


    Now, the previous ruler of the Hidden Land Realm had returned.


    News of this incident spread very quickly to the other Realms. However, all the top forces were surprisingly silent on the matter. In reality, they were already aware of what had transpired. Ordinary people might not have known about powerful cultivators entering the Realms one by one during this time, but how could the top forces possibly not be aware of this?


    They had all experienced the Age of Turmoil hundreds of years ago.


    Now, the peace seemed to have been broken. The Age of Turmoil had once again descended.


    After encountering the cultivators of the Shen clan, Ye Futian returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He soon heard about the news from the Hidden Land Realm. He was somewhat concerned about it. He seemed to have an unsettling premonition about the matter, and he appeared exceptionally serious.


    Ye Futian was not concerned about himself, but rather about Qing Yao.


    Back in the Hidden Land Realm, Ye Futian had witnessed the incidents that Qing Yao had experienced. Now, a force from outside of the Realm wanted to unify the Hidden Land Realm. This force was very likely related to Hierophant Jiuyou as well as that demonic youth. If that was the case, that force had most certainly come for Qing Yao.


    Just as Ye Futian was contemplating on these matters, some people came over to visit the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian''s will swept out, and he noticed that one of them was very powerful. It was very likely that this person was also from a force from the Outer Realms.


    In the area where the Heavenly Mandate Academy held banquets to receive their guests, Ye Futian and many cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had gathered to receive this guest of theirs.


    When the group arrived, Ye Futian rose and smiled, saying, "Seniors, you have traveled far to arrive here. I, Ye Futian, have prepared a special banquet for all of you. Please, enjoy."


    "Little Friend Ye doesn''t need to be so polite. Please, join us," the leading elder replied with a smile. From the look of it, Ye Futian already knew that they were from the Outer Realms.


    All of them took their seats. Ye Futian sat in the main seat, and Hua Jieyu sat beside him. The elder, who sat across from them, looked at Hua Jieyu. Ye Futian introduced her, saying, "This is my wife, Hua Jieyu."


    Hua Jieyu sat there quietly. She seemed to accept Ye Futian''s form of address for her calmly. She even nodded slightly at the elder sitting across from them.


    "Such a peerless pair of spiritual partners. You invite the envy of others," the elder said with a smile. "I am sure Little Friend Ye knows about things that are happening in the Void Realm now."


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded. "However, for me, this place is not the Void Realm. This is an actual world."


    "Naturally. The Void Realm is but a title we give to this place. It is not that important," the elder replied with a smile. "In reality, after the Great Emperor conquered and united the Divine Prefecture, he also gained control of the Void Realm. Hence, the Void Realm can also be considered as a part of the Divine Prefecture. My group and I come from the Divine Prefecture."


    Ye Futian felt slightly emotional. As expected, when Donghuang the Great united the Divine Prefecture 300 years ago, the war happened not only in the Void Realm, it involved the Outer Realms too. In the end, the Great Emperor seized control of the Void Realm.


    "Where exactly are the Void Realm and the Divine Prefecture?" Ye Futian asked curiously. According to Granny, the two were overlapping spaces. These top figures from the Outer Realms would surely have a better understanding of this.


    "In the Outer Realms, we named this space the Void Realm because it symbolizes that this is an illusory world. It is not a real world. In short, the Void Realm has never existed, yet its existence is everywhere." The elder continued with a smile, "For cultivators in the Void Realm, this is a huge secret that is known to few people. However, I don''t mind telling Little Friend Ye about it now: the Void Realm and the Outer Realms are overlapped. The existence of the Void Realm can be ignored entirely. For example, our current location is a totally different place in the Outer Realms. The two locations share the same coordinates. However, you can''t see it nor sense it."


    "So it means that we are in two parallel universes. However, under specific circumstances, we can interact with each other, right?" Ye Futian asked while looking at the elder.


    "You can consider it so." The elder nodded in agreement with a smile.


    Ye Futian''s gaze turned serious. No wonder this space was called the Void Realm. The cultivators in the Outer Realms could totally treat the Void Realm as a space that did not exist. It was as though here was a sealed-off space.


    "Why would such a situation occur?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Little Friend Ye, have you heard of the collapse of the Heavenly Path?" the elder replied with another question.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded.


    "The Void Realm has another name. It is also called the Original Realm. It is the birthplace of the Heavenly Path. The collapse of the Heavenly Path caused the Great Paths of the World to expand, crumble, and be destroyed. This unique phenomenon of overlapping spaces was born out of it. Eons ago, the Void Realm was the source world; hence, it is also called the Original Realm." The elder continued to explain, "Because of this, for the past centuries, even though the Void Realm has been drained of all its fate and luck, those forces at the top of the world are still fighting to seize control of the Void Realm."


    "The top of the world?" Ye Futian mumbled. "What about Donghuang the Great?"


    The elder nodded slightly. With a smile, he said, "I will not speak of these things. Little Friend Ye, you will know about these things in the future. With your talent, you will sooner or later venture out into the Outer Realms. Now is also a good opportunity to do so."


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly. He indeed wanted to venture out to the Outer Realms. However, he did not believe that now was the time.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was still not powerful enough. He himself was also not powerful enough.


    "Little Friend Ye, have you considered using this opportunity to venture out?" the elder asked Ye Futian with a smile.


    When Ye Futian heard what the elder said, he understood that the other party intended to win him over. With a smile, he replied, "Junior indeed wants to venture out. However, now is not the time for me. I have too many things that I need to settle on this side."


    "Hmm," the elder said as he nodded his head. "In the near future, the Void Realm might fall into chaos. Little friend, you should be prepared."


    "Alright," Ye Futian replied. "Thank you, Senior, for the reminder."


    "If you need any help, you can come find me. I will be in the Void Realm during this time, so it should be easy to locate me," the elder said again.


    "Surely." Ye Futian nodded.


    However, if that day really came, it would most likely be the time when Ye Futian needed to seek refuge from the elder. Naturally, Ye Futian would want to avoid that.


    At their levels, Ye Futian was not so naive to believe that the elder would help him just because he asked for his aid. The so-called help would come with an equivalent price.


    Clearly, this elder thought of Ye Futian as someone valuable.


    "Since our conversation has come to an end, I will not disturb you any further." The elder rose to his feet with a smile. Ye Futian did not keep him around any longer, either. He personally guided the elder out of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    After the elder had left, Ye Futian stood at his spot and pondered for a moment.


    Was this world going to fall into chaos soon?


    After the elder and his group had gone far, a youth beside the elder asked, "Master, is that all that we are going to do?"


    "He is intelligent. We don''t have to say much," the elder responded with a profound smile. "Do you find it odd? We didn''t even introduce ourselves, and he didn''t ask either."


    The youth fell silent for a moment, then he conjectured, "Master was waiting for him to ask, right?"


    The elder smiled and answered, "This genius of the Void Realm appears docile and friendly. However, he is extremely arrogant. He didn''t consider my suggestion at all, so he didn''t even bother asking for my name. Since he has no intention of asking help from us, I don''t have to intentionally tell him."


    "Perhaps he has no idea what kind of forces we are," the youth said. Even though there were also giant figures in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they paled into insignificance when compared to ancient clans from the Divine Prefecture. The teachings of the ancient clans from the Divine Prefecture were far more superior than that of the forces from the Void Realm.


    ...


    One day, a few supreme level forces descended at Jiuyou City in the Hidden Land Realm. Some top figures had personally come to visit Jiuyou City.


    In Jiuyou City, the atmosphere in the Hell Palace was solemn, and many domineering auras appeared without warning.


    Many cultivators had gathered in this Hell Palace.


    On the throne in the palace sat a majestic black-robed figure. The aura faintly emanated by him caused the entire palace to be suppressed by a might.


    However, at this moment, a strong aura fluctuation was suddenly detected in the sky above Jiuyou City. Then, a silhouette appeared in the sky. The next moment, the spatial swirl disappeared.


    Huh? In the Hell Palace, the black-robed figure raised his head and swept a glance in the direction where the visitor was. His gaze locked onto the visitor from miles apart.


    The visitor wore a simple black robe, and his black hair covered his shoulder. He appeared callous, and his gaze was cold. He gave off the might of a ruler.


    "Who has come? Quickly come here to receive your orders!" Beside the throne of the Hell Palace, a domineering silhouette cried out loudly across the endless space. The silhouette''s voice reached the ears of the figure who had arrived.


    However, the figure that appeared merely swept a calm glance at them. His gaze also seemed to penetrate the space. He merely glanced at them, and then he turned to leave.


    "Presumptuous."


    Seeing that the other party ignored him, the person next to the throne unleashed his might. A majestic might gushed forth and surrounded the entire space. In the sky, a dark mudra of death appeared and directly slammed down on the visitor.


    The visitor turned around, and a huge palm print crashed down on him. However, the palm print was shattered into dust. The visitor stood quietly there as he gazed at the other party. In that instant, the figure beside the throne, who was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane, felt as though a demon had appeared before him. It was like the demon was standing before him and looking down on him.


    "Get lost..." the other party ordered.


    The existence at the peak of the Renhuang Plane actually took several steps backward. He felt as though he had received a heavy blow. He had a look of surprise. The expressions of the surrounding cultivators also changed as they looked in astonishment at the silhouette in the distance.


    The black-robed figure who sat on the throne was also staring at the other party. The two of them exchanged a glance.


    "Do not meddle in this affair." The black-robed visitor cast an indifferent glance at the cultivator who sat on the throne. Then, he turned to leave.


    The gaze of the cultivator who sat on the throne changed slightly. He revealed a strange expression as he exclaimed, "A representative from the Devil World is here too!"


    ...

 1751 Who Was He?

    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, a black-robed figure had arrived at a demonic city, which was in the territory of the Demon Realm.


    The aura emanated by the black-robed figure was terrifying. Many demonic beasts around him stared at him cautiously. Then, all of them subconsciously avoided him. Even though this black-robed figure did not emanate a strong aura, demonic beasts had a sharp sense of smell, and they could sense that he was a threat.


    This human before them was very powerful.


    However, currently, almost the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm had been united. The relationship between the human cultivation world and the Demon Realm was not as tense as it was before this. With the Heavenly Mandate Academy as the center, the humans and the cultivators of the Demon Realm formed a strong alliance.


    Hence, the various demonic beasts were not too concerned about this person. They merely avoided the person quietly.


    The black-robed figure walked until he came to a huge mountain range. He swept a glance at the mountain range before he advanced forward into the mountains with one step.


    "This is the land of Dragon Gods. You are forbidden to enter," a powerful voice cried out. A dragon figure took to the skies and circled above, his gaze locked on the black-robed figure.


    "I am looking for someone," the black-robed figure said indifferently. As he said this, his will swept out and directly enveloped the land of Dragon Gods. At that moment, many cultivators of Dragon Gods were shocked. The cries of dragons could be heard.


    The black-robed figure immediately walked into the mountain range of Dragon Gods as he spoke. The dragons roared as they charged at him. However, there was a demonic might circling the black-robed figure. In an instant, extremely overbearing pressure enveloped the entire mountain range. Under this immense pressure, the dragons actually felt themselves being pushed down. Even though they were existences at the level of Demon Emperors, their huge figures were all trembling, and they were roaring restlessly.


    "Which power has descended upon Dragon Gods?" a hoarse voice called out that filled the sky. In the distance, a silhouette dressed in long purple robes appeared. It was Dragon Master.


    Dragon Master watched the black-robed figure closely. He actually sensed a strong might from the latter.


    Naturally, Dragon Master knew that this world had not been peaceful recently. Many powerful figures had arrived. Could the person before him be one of the outsiders?


    "Where is the Demonic Dragon?" the black-robed figure asked. His will had scanned through the entire territory of Dragon Gods, but he actually had not found the Demonic Dragon.


    Dragon Master''s eyes narrowed slightly. He stared at the black-robed figure intently, asking, "Who are you?"


    The black-robed figure turned around and left immediately. He took a step forward, and his figure directly disappeared from his original spot.


    Dragon Master watched his movements, but he did not stop the black-robed figure. Or more precisely, he was not confident that he could stop the black-robed figure.


    Dragon Master looked in the direction of the Abyss of the Dragon. His facial expression turned extremely serious in an instant. He had considered a possibility.


    "Your Highness." All the dragons looked at Dragon Master for instructions.


    Dragon Master waved his hand and said, "Do not act rashly."


    After he said that, he strode in the direction where the Abyss of the Dragon was.


    Right now, the passageway had been activated. Did the people from that place come here too?


    In the Abyss of the Dragon, numerous chains locked an enormous demonic dragon in place. He lay on the ground on his belly. His aura was much weaker than before. He had been recovering his vigor all these years.


    A few years ago, he extracted his dragon''s soul out of his body, and his vigor was greatly impacted.


    Suddenly, a black-robed figure appeared in front of him. His dark eyes stared at the Demonic Dragon intently.


    The Demonic Dragon let out a roar in a low voice. He stood up, and he held his head up high. Arrogantly, he stared at the black-robed figure before him. The black-robed figure appeared exceptionally tiny in front of the Demonic Dragon, but his aura was powerful even though he was standing there casually.


    "Where is your master?" the black-robed figure asked the Demonic Dragon.


    The eyes of the Demonic Dragon suddenly released frightening demonic light. However, the black-robed figure merely stared back at him with a cold gaze. In an instant, the Demonic Dragon seemed to not only see a simple silhouette but instead a stalwart and overbearing demon. The huge figure of the Demonic Dragon shifted uneasily. The huge eyes of the Demonic Dragon were locked onto the other party.


    "Who are you?" The eyes of the Demonic Dragon were staring at the demon.


    "You should be able to guess where I am from," the black-robed figure calmly replied.


    The figure of the Demonic Dragon was still shifting around. Had they arrived?


    "After the incident back then, there was no news about him. He might be long gone," the Demonic Dragon replied as he stared at the other party with cautious eyes.


    The black-robed figure looked him back in the eye.


    Long gone?


    The black-robed figure had not heard any news of him dying and had also not seen a corpse.


    Some claimed that it was possible that he was still alive and might even have returned. However, they knew that he had never returned.


    "You seem to know something," the black-robed figure said as he stared into the Demonic Dragon''s cautious-looking gaze.


    "I have always been imprisoned here. What could I possibly know?" the Demonic Dragon retorted.


    "Is that so?" The black-robed figure took a step forward. His demonic might bellowed and enveloped the body of the Demonic Dragon.


    The huge figure of the Demonic Dragon shook. The black-robed figure''s eyes seemed to pierce his own. The black-robed figure raised his palm and struck the Demonic Dragon on his head.


    Roar. The Demonic Dragon cried out. Demonic might churned, and a powerful aura swept out.


    However, the palm of the black-robed figure seemed to contain endless dominant power. His palm pressed down immediately, as though he had suppressed and restrained the huge figure of the Demonic Dragon. He placed his hand on the head of the Demonic Dragon.


    Rumble!


    He pressed down on his palm, and the body of the Demonic Dragon was immediately pressed down. The Demonic Dragon was originally heavily injured. He did not have the strength to resist at all. Even if he was in his prime, he was no match for this black-robed figure.


    The huge figure of the Demonic Dragon was sprawled out on the ground. The palm print of the black-robed figure was engorged in his head. The black-robed figure stood before the Demonic Dragon''s head. His pair of demonic eyes stared into the eyes of the Demonic Dragon and immediately pierced through them, invading his consciousness.


    "If you do not wish to suffer, then keep quiet," the black-robed figure said indifferently. Outside, Dragon Master and many cultivators of Dragon Gods were around. However, the vast demonic might that churned below was extremely terrifying. This caused the Dragon Master''s facial expression to turn somewhat ugly.


    The Demonic Dragon knew that the black-robed figure''s cultivation was more powerful than his own; he was no match for the black-robed figure.


    In the deep abyss, after a short while, the black-robed figure obtained what he wanted to know. A silhouette appeared in his mind.


    The black-robed figure lifted his palm from his opponent''s head. His gaze was also gentler and not as cold as before.


    "Does anyone know that you have taught him before?" the black-robed figure asked the Demonic Dragon.


    "There are some of my clansmen who know," the Demonic Dragon replied. "He does not know. This matter most likely has not spread outside. What do you plan to do with him?"


    The black-robed figure remained silent. He could not make the decision for this matter.


    "Have you ever considered that if I did not appear and did not take him away, you would have been a potential danger? You should not have taught him," the black-robed figure said as he stared at the Demonic Dragon. He did not speak these words out loud; his voice was directly transmitted into the other party''s mind.


    The Demonic Dragon was stunned as he raised his head and looked at the black-robed figure.


    "I have been trapped here for so many years. Please end this for me," the Demonic Dragon asked of the black-robed figure.


    The black-robed figure looked him in the eye and remained silent for a short while. He then transmitted, saying, "Give me your dragon''s soul then."


    The Demonic Dragon was stupefied for a moment. His body trembled slightly. He was hesitating. Giving the black-robed figure his dragon''s soul was harder than death.


    "I have no use of your dragon''s soul," the black-robed figure continued. The Demonic Dragon seemed to have understood something. He lowered his head, saying, "Take it."


    The black-robed figure stared at the Demonic Dragon. He was a rather loyal dragon.


    "This is your honor," the black-robed figure assured.


    "My honor." The Demonic Dragon lowered his head, and the black-robed figure once again put his palm on the dragon''s head.


    In the deep abyss, an alarming roar of a dragon could be heard. It was as though the dragon was experiencing excruciating pain.


    A moment later, the black-robed figure appeared in the sky above the abyss. Dragon Master and many cultivators had their gazes fixed on him.


    Dragon Master and the rest did not hear the conversation between the black-robed figure and the Demonic Dragon. They knew nothing about what had happened, but they knew that the Demonic Dragon had died.


    "Why did you do that?" Dragon Master asked.


    The black-robed figure cast a glance at him indifferently. Then, he turned around and left, not offering any response to Dragon Master. He did not need to explain himself to the latter.


    Dragon Master stood in the sky above the Abyss of the Dragon. His demonic aura churned ferociously as he stared at the black-robed figure leaving.


    He was Dragon Master of Dragon Gods. However, he felt helpless at this moment.


    With the ability of this black-robed figure, let alone Dragon Master, most likely nobody in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was a match for him.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Yu Sheng was training quietly. Suddenly, he felt an unusual movement in the dragon''s soul within his body. The demonic might churned uncontrollably in his body. He opened his eyes and stopped cultivating.


    Yu Sheng took a step forward. Currently, he was already a Demon Emperor. His existence gave off an extremely strong pressure on the people around him. His might was domineering, and his aura was powerful.


    He frowned slightly as he stared into the distance. He felt uneasy inside.


    What had happened?


    Had something occurred in the territory of the Dragon Gods?


    If something really happened, Dragon Master would come here right away using the teleportation grand matrix, right?


    ...


    A day later, in a tavern in Heavenly Mandate City, a black-robed figure was sitting alone drinking wine as he listened to the conversations of the people around him.


    Most of them were talking about the cultivators that had recently arrived here and that there were other worlds outside of theirs.


    Of course, occasionally, somebody would talk about a youth called Ye Futian.


    Yesterday, the black-robed figure had already arrived here from the Demon Realm and learned of some matters. Now, he had an even deeper understanding of the matters here.


    He lowered his wine cup as he gazed into the distance in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the most famous person was not Yu Sheng. Not many people actually knew of Yu Sheng. Clearly, his fame was not too great. However, Ye Futian was like the sun in the sky. He was renowned in the Nine Realms. Although he had just reached the Renhuang Plane, he had already caused such an uproar.


    Yu Sheng had always been following Ye Futian and trained with him. They seemed to have been together for a very long time. They came together from the Lower Worlds and should have known each other for many years.


    The black-robed figure naturally knew who Yu Sheng was and whose blood coursed through his veins. However, a person like Yu Sheng had actually been following another youth. This youth had unparalleled talent and was known as the top figure of this generation.


    It didn''t amount to anything if the black-robed figure did not know who Yu Sheng was. However, knowing the identity of Yu Sheng, it was easy for the black-robed figure to try and speculate.


    Had he intentionally arranged for this to happen?


    If so, then what was the true identity of the youth called Ye Futian?


    Who was he?


    ...

 1752 Came for Someone

    The man in dark robes was eating and drinking at the restaurant, everyone around him watching him. He gave off an aloof air.


    Everyone could tell that this man was strong. Extremely strong.


    Some people could just sit there, not even giving off an aura, and they would still give off a feeling like that. This was what happened when you trained for many years. No matter where you were, everyone could sense a sort of invisible force field around you.


    But the man in black did not care what anyone else thought. He was thinking about Ye Futian''s identity.


    If he had not guessed wrong, Yu Sheng was his son.


    So did Ye Futian, with his surname Ye, have anything to do with Emperor Ye Qing?


    At that moment, the man in black seemed to realize something. Suddenly, a powerful burst of pressure went out from him. In a flash, everyone in the restaurant could feel a suffocating force. They looked shocked, and they could not help but tremble.


    Although they had already guessed that this man was very strong, this pressure that it was hard to tell if it even existed was still frightening.


    Everyone else rose up and left with great difficulty. The weakest among them felt their legs tremble as they were under so much pressure.


    In the blink of an eye, the restaurant was empty. The man in black was left sitting there alone.


    At that moment, a terrifying aura swept over from a distance. The man in black looked up, seeming to see across a great distance. His gaze met that of another.


    An incomparably terrifying force filled a vast area. Even people at the Renhuang level had difficulty breathing under it.


    However, there was nothing in the place the power was emanating out of, just two invisible airflows.


    This gave everyone a strange feeling. What was happening here?


    The two of them looked at each other from across the distance. The black-robed figure seemed to see an old man within a great hall in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. This man was also incredibly powerful. He said telepathically, "You have been watching the Heavenly Mandate Academy for so long. Would you like me to teach you a lesson?"


    "Whenever you want," said the black-robed man. His voice was still cold. Here in the Void Realm, he knew there was no one who could threaten him.


    No matter if it were the Dragon Gods or the Heavenly Mandate Academy, he would not hide from them. He would go there openly.


    The man at the Heavenly Mandate Academy facing him was naturally Lord Taixuan.


    "It is a bit rude of you to spy on us like this. I hope that in the future, you will be a bit more proper," said Lord Taixuan. He naturally could feel how powerful the man in black was. Facing someone like this, who had probably come from another realm, he could not act too forcefully.


    Otherwise, he would cause problems for the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The black-robed man did not say anything. His aura dissipated, and he no longer looked over at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Lord Taixuan saw the man''s divine consciousness disperse, and his aura retract. In a moment, the two mighty auras that had clashed in mid-air were completely gone, making the people who had felt them think they had only imagined it.


    Within the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Lord Taixuan had retracted his aura as well, but there was still a slight frown on his face.


    These days, the world was getting more and more violent.


    This unknown cultivator who was focusing on the Heavenly Mandate Academy and was very strong made him feel threatened.


    There were few people at that high a level.


    It seemed that the power of the Outer Realms was much stronger than that of the mortal world.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was walking over. He looked at Lord Taixuan and asked, "Who is it?"


    Lord Taixuan shook his head and said, "It seems to be a cultivator from the Outer Realms who is extremely strong. His aura is no less than my own. But when I said something to him, he immediately retracted his aura. I don''t know what he wants. It seems he has no ill intent. I don''t know what he is here for."


    Ye Futian was silent for a few moments. He had felt someone watching him, and thus he had come here to Lord Taixuan. Then Lord Taixuan had directly found out who was doing it.


    "I hope it is just like the old man from before," said Ye Futian. "But, many people at this level have appeared lately. This part of the world is certainly about to become chaotic."


    That was his prediction.


    Some things were going to happen.


    "Yes," said Lord Taixuan, nodding. "The news has already come out from the Hidden Land Realm. Hell has reappeared and conquered Jiuyou City. Then they summoned all the cultivators of the Hidden Land Realm to give them orders. In this way, they conquered the entire realm. Moreover, if they are really this bold, they might actually have the strength to succeed."


    Ye Futian narrowed his eyes. If the Hidden Land Realm had really been conquered by Hell, what was going to happen?


    He did not know, but it definitely would not be a good thing.


    "My Lord, Futian," said someone else. "There is news from the Mountain Realm. Tianxian Temple has attacked the Shenxing clan. This time their attack was extremely fierce. They wanted to eliminate the Shenxing clan from the Mountain Realm completely. The clan lord was forced to flee as the Abbot of Tianxian Temple was there himself, pursuing him all the way."


    "The Mountain Realm?" A look of surprise came over Lord Taixuan''s face. "I never thought that would be the first realm to change. Tianxian Temple is very bold. It seems like they made their decision after the battle in the Hidden Land Realm."


    Ye Futian nodded. At that time, everything that the clan lord of the of the Shenxing clan had done had infuriated Tianxian Temple. The clan lord had even stolen the treasures of the Vajra Buddha.


    How could Tianxian Temple forgive them?


    However, the clan lord of the Shenxing clan was a false monk and had no mercy in his heart. Perhaps he did not care if the people of the Shenxing clan lived or died.


    "There is also news from the Hidden Land Realm. All of the forces, great and small, have gone to Jiuyou City to see the refounding of hell," said the man who had come.


    A solemn look came into Lord Taixuan''s eyes. "Understood," he said.


    The other man left, and Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian looked at each other. Lord Taixuan said, "Go and cultivate, there is no point in thinking too much about this. We will see how the situation develops."


    Ye Futian nodded and left. He returned to his place of cultivation, a heavy feeling in his heart.


    But when he saw Hua Jieyu, a warm smile appeared his face.


    "Is something wrong?" she asked him.


    "Can you always see when something is wrong with me?" asked Ye Futian, walking up to her.


    Hua Jieyu did not say anything. She reached out a graceful hand and took him by the hand. She looked at him, and Ye Futian thought his heart would melt.


    At that moment, he had a strange feeling. It was as if Jieyu had really come back.


    He looked into her beautiful eyes and embraced her, giving her a tender is. Hua Jieyu''s eyes were still open wide, but Ye Futian blinked as he looked into her beautiful face. There was a hint of shyness there.


    This feeling seemed so strange.


    It seemed so sweet.


    His heart beat even faster. Why was he having this feeling?


    Ye Futian let her go, then pulled her forward by the hand. He was much happier now.


    He had managed to survive in the Holy Zhi Palace in the Nine States all those years ago. No matter how chaotic things were now, were they really more chaotic than they had been then?


    The Holy Zhi Palace had come under siege.


    Now, the chaos of the Nine Realms had begun. It had started with the Mountain Realm and the Hidden Land Realm.


    ...


    On the second day, another group of cultivators descended on the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    They had come from the Hidden Land Realm.


    The person at their head was Lian Qingyi, the Goddess of the Clan of the God Ghost in the Hidden Land Realm.


    When Ye Futian had first gone to the Hidden Land Realm, he had gone to visit her.


    Now, she and many other cultivators had come to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to visit him.


    When he saw her once again, her manner seemed to have changed. She seemed a little dispirited, not as confident as before.


    "How is that you have time to come and see me?" asked Ye Futian with a smile when he saw her.


    "This time, I came here for someone," she said to him.


    Ye Futian frowned slightly and said directly, "In that case, you should leave."


    Lian Qingyi obviously had not thought that Ye Futian would refuse her even before she had made her request. He obviously knew who she wanted.


    "The Hidden Land Realm has been conquered by Hell," she suddenly said, making Ye Futian look up at her in surprise.


    So quickly?


    Was Hell really that strong?


    "Listen to my plea. Give this person to me. The Heavenly Mandate Academy cannot resist Hell''s power. Even with your alliances, it will not be enough," Lian Qingyi pleaded.


    Ye Futian stared at her.


    Was hell really so powerful?


    "But Hell was destroyed in the past," said Ye Futian.


    "I have heard my clan lord speak of that, but it is not as simple as people imagine. There is a great amount of power behind Hell, truly frightening power. It was said that in that year, it was the forces behind Hell that lost to the Emperor," said Lian Qingyi. "They lost to the Emperor. Do you understand?"


    How could the Heavenly Mandate Academy hope to get involved in a conflict at this level?


    Ye Futian looked at her. Did this mean that the power behind Hell was a top force of the Outer Realms?


    Although they had lost to the Emperor, this meant that they were powerful enough to fight him. They were without question on the same level as him, at the very peak of what was possible.


    "Can you at least tell me why you want her?" asked Ye Futian. "Do the powers behind Hell want her?"


    Qingyao, who had been born with a Law Body, had broken all the norms of cultivation. She had never cultivated, but she could still kill a Renhuang. She could be called a fate-defying figure. She was the most frightening person he had ever seen, bar none.


    It seemed that in this current situation, all the great powers wanted her.


    What had she dragged them into?


    "You are too hard on me, Emperor Ye. How should I know a secret like this?" said Lian Qingyi. "Just trust me. You know how terrible she is. She is no relation to you, so just give her to me."


    Ye Futian stared at Lian Qingyi. From what she said, it sounded like the powers behind Hell really did want Qingyao!

 1753 Killing Inten

    Heartless and faithless?


    Ye Futian looked at Lian Qingyi and smiled. "Qingyao has the same surname as me; thus, she calls me brother. Don''t you think, in that case, that it would not be fitting for me to hand her over to you? Moreover, since the Hell wants her, why do they not come and get her themselves if they are so strong that they conquered the Hidden Land Realm? You are not being honest with me, are you, Goddess?"


    Lian Qingyi''s expression changed slightly when she heard him say this. This was indeed a matter that had been tasked to her by her superiors. If she could complete it successfully, she would have the chance to come to the attention of the forces behind Hell.


    This was incredibly important to her. As far as she was concerned, the Hidden Land Realm and the Void Realm were only holding her back now. She wanted to find a new, more powerful master.


    "You are putting too much thought into this," she said. "None of the great powers of the Hidden Land Realm had the power to resist the power of Hell. Can you imagine, then, how powerful the forces behind Hell must be, Emperor Ye? I know it is hard for you to accept this, but after all, she is only a girl that you have not known for long. The many people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy are all your friends. Is it worth putting all of their lives at risk just for this one girl?"


    "Do you think that this is the way I see the matter?" said Ye Futian with a sarcastic smile. "I can remember the opening of the Gate of Hell. The things that happened before that attracted the attention of all the Nine Realms. Were there any figures from the Hidden Land Realm among them?"


    Lian Qingyi stared at him, then smiled and stood, saying, "I can tell your mind is made up, so there seems to be no more need to discuss this. Since you doubt me so much, I will say farewell. I hope you will take care of yourself."


    Ye Futian smiled as well, saying, "In the past, Hell was destroyed and wiped away by the Nine Realms. You should think long and hard about your choice. I don''t need to see you out. You can find your own way out."


    A cold look came into Lian Qingyi''s eyes. She turned and left.


    The whole group left with her, soon disappearing from the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    After they left, Ye Futian turned and said, "Still eavesdropping, I see." Ye Qingyao came out, pulling Nianyu behind her, with her head lowered. Although she did not understand these forces, she was becoming mature enough to begin to have some idea of what they wanted.


    "Qingyao, you shouldn''t worry about any of this," said Ye Futian, stepping forward and placing a hand on her shoulder.


    "Mmm," she said with a nod. Then she pulled Nianyu''s hand and said, "Let''s go play, Nianyu."


    "Okay," said Nianyu. She looked at Ye Futian, then left with Qingyao.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly, then said, "My Lord, Hell was wiped out many years ago. They have laid low ever since then and are only now coming back. This must mean that they have some misgivings."


    "Of course. The world has been conquered by Donghuang the Great, but the powers behind Hell are no less than him. But they were defeated once," said Lord Taixuan. "Thus, they must want to take Qingyao away directly. That is why they sent people here to threaten us."


    Ye Futian nodded. Lian Qingyao had acted like she was concerned for him, but how could he not have heard the threat behind her words? She wanted him to give Qingyao to her directly.


    As the two of them were talking, Lord Taixuan looked up into the distance and said, "They are here. I did not think they would come so quickly."


    As he said this, Ye Futian felt another aura, an incredibly powerful one that made everyone who felt it feel uncomfortable. Soon, golden divine light fell from high up in the sky, covering the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The cultivators of the academy looked up into the sky and saw the endless divine light. A group of Buddha-like figures stood there as if they had come from heaven.


    The cultivators of the Mountain Realm had come.


    On the battlefield of Hell, Ye Futian had learned that the Mountain Realm had been involved in the decisive battle with Hell all those years ago.


    Gui Zang was among them as well.


    Ye Futian had seen the man at their head before. It was Master Pudu.


    Up in the sky, all the Buddhas folded their hands together, and they suddenly began chanting. Master Pudu said, "All of the monks of Tianxian Temple are here to visit the Heavenly Mandate Academy if that is convenient for you."


    "Please come in," said Lord Taixuan, looking up into the sky. Suddenly, the people from Tianxian Temple strode forward, entering the academy. Soon, they had reached Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian.


    The monks all bowed slightly to him, saying, "Forgive us for disturbing you, Lord."


    "It is no problem. We are honored to have you," said Lord Taixuan with a smile. "Why have you come?"


    "Have you heard the news from the Hidden Land Realm?" asked Master Pudu.


    "I have," said Lord Taixuan with a nod. "Hell has reappeared and conquered the realm. I do not know if this is what effects this will have, good or bad."


    "I must tell you, Hell''s next target will likely be the Heavenly Mandate Academy," continued Pudu. This made a slight look of surprise come over Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian''s faces. Tianxian Temple was well informed.


    Pudu looked at Ye Futian and said, "Benefactor Ye, I saw the girl Ye Qingyao once before in Jiuyou City. Might I see her more closely?"


    "Why do you seek Qingyao, Master?" asked Ye Futian.


    "The girl is very important. Hell will come here for her. I hope you will let us see why she is so important to them," continued Pudu. Ye Futian could not very well refuse him. Moreover, he already knew about Qingyao, so he had probably already figured out a good deal of the matter.


    They would not be able to hide her.


    His spiritual consciousness spread out until he found where she was. He said, "Loulan, bring Qingyao here."


    On saying this, he and the others waited there calmly. Not long after, Ye Qingyao arrived. When she saw everyone there, she could not help but lower her head a little.


    "Come here, Qingyao," said Ye Futian with a smile. Ye Qingyao stepped lightly over to his side.


    He placed his left hand on her shoulder and said to Pudu, "Here she is."


    Pudu looked at her. In a flash, Buddha light glowed. Chanting filled the air. Pudu placed his hands on his chest and fingered his Buddhist beams. He closed his eyes but seemed to open his spiritual ones. It was as if the light had become his eyes. They pierced through all illusions, revealing the truth.


    Soon, Pudu''s expression slightly changed. The Buddha light seemed to have been infected by a great power.


    The Buddha beads in his hand changed faster and faster.


    Crack! A clear sound rang out as the Buddha beads broke and fell to the ground.


    Pudu opened his eyes. He, he was normally as peaceful as a Buddha, seemed as furious as Vajra. His eyes were frightening to behold, and Qingyao was so scared that she would have fallen backward if Ye Futian had not held her up.


    Ye Futian looked at Pudu and saw killing intent in his eyes. He frowned and stood in front of Qingyao.


    Qingyao seemed terrified. She hugged him tightly.


    "Master," called out Lord Taixuan. Only then did Master Pudu retract his aura. "Master," said Lord Taixuan, his tone a bit dangerous, "Are Buddhists not supposed to be compassionate? What is the meaning of this?"


    "Benefactor Ye, she cannot stay," said Master Pudu.


    "You are overstepping yourself, Master," said Ye Futian coldly.


    "Listen to me, Benefactor Ye. She will bring disaster," said Master Pudu.


    "You can tell the future?" said Ye Futian.


    "I cannot," said Pudu with a shake of the head.


    "So you are just guessing?" said Ye Futian. "Do Buddhist monks also kill indiscriminately?"


    "This is fate," said Master Pudu.


    "I don''t care about fate. She is just a girl, a girl who has never hurt anyone. Do you not think that you are overreacting?" said Ye Futian.


    Pudu looked dispirited. He lowered his head slightly and said, "If it is a sin, I am willing to bear it."


    "How can you bear it?" asked Ye Futian coldly. "Is there anything in Buddhism about trading a life for a life?


    Pudu said nothing.


    "If that is the way it is, then you must look after yourself. You are no longer welcome at the Heavenly Mandate Academy," said Ye Futian. When Pudu heard Ye Futian''s words, he sighed inwardly. He looked at the girl, who poked her head out with tears in her eyes. At that moment, her eyes were clear and bright, making Pudu feel guilty and ashamed. But he could not forget what he had seen.


    "It''s alright, Qingyao," said Ye Futian softly. Ye Qingyao looked up at him and smiled slightly. "Thank you, brother."


    Seeing this, Pudu clasped his hands together, and the chanting began again. "Since you are firm in this," he said, "I will desist. I hope that you can prevent anything bad from happening."


    Ye Futian ignored him, so he continued, "I apologize for disturbing you. We will station ourselves in Heavenly Mandate City. This girl cannot fall into Hell''s hands.


    On saying this, he took his people and left.


    Ye Futian was speechless. He was the first person to realize that Qingyao was special, but Pudu had obviously seen something as well, and what he had seen was different than what Ye Futian had seen.


    The powers behind Hell were probably thinking of her as well.


    He had no way to predict what would happen next.


    "Qingyao, no matter what happens, don''t grow to hate the world. Can you promise me that?" said Ye Futian, looking into her eyes.


    "Yes," she said, nodding seriously. Then she smiled and said, "I will always listen to you, brother, no matter where you are."


    "Good girl," he said, patting her head. "Let''s go and find Yaya."


    ...


    Over the next few days, many people arrived at Heavenly Mandate City. The people of Heavenly Mandate Academy could sense them clearly.


    Many of the people from the forces that were coming were very strong. They came from other realms, and some came from the Outer Realms.


    The news had come from somewhere that Hell was looking for someone, a girl. And this girl was at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    As more and more cultivators arrived, the people of Heavenly Mandate City could sense that a storm would descend upon the academy once again!

 1754 Mei Ting

    The Heavenly Mandate Academy''s allies naturally knew of all this, and they sent people to him one after the other to speak with him about it.


    At that time, Xiao Muyu came to see Ye Futian.


    "Teacher, do you wish to ask me about the family?" she said to him.


    Ye Futian nodded. He said, "I did not know that so much would happen when I first met Qingyao in the Hidden Land Realm. Otherwise, I don''t think I could have been so righteous. But since I already brought her here, I can''t just give her away. That would be too cruel. But I realize that I am not the only person here at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. I have spoken to Lord Taixuan about this. Anyone, master or student, can choose not to join us, and I will not hold it against you. I will do this myself if I must. If the Xiao clan and other forces are willing to help, I will do all I can to protect Qingyao. In short, I will do my best. I have spoken of this with others as well. You can report this back to your family."


    Xiao Muyu looked at Ye Futian, then smiled and said, "I do not know what my family will say, but I will support whatever choice you make."


    She had been born into one of the greatest power of the land, and she had become accustomed to people''s indifference. She did not know if what Ye Futian was doing was right or wrong. Different people would evaluate his actions differently, but to have someone standing alone amongst the cold world of cultivators made her feel warm.


    This astounding teacher made her feel very safe, though she was not sure why.


    Perhaps it was just faith.


    "You are a goddess, there is no need to act like a young student," said Ye Futian with a smile.


    Xiao Muyu smiled back at him and said, "Then I will go and report to my family."


    "Alright," said Ye Futian with a nod. Xiao Muyu left.


    When she was gone, Ye Futian frowned. His words had been light, but there was a weight in his heart.


    He was not a perfect person. If he had known that saving Qingyao would have caused such a stir, he probably would not have done so. After all, there were many pitiful girls like her in the world; he could not save them all.


    But there were some things that once you had decided to do, you had to live with the consequences. This was not so much a sort of kindness as it was a sort of righteousness. It could also be called a code of conduct.


    If his master had not given up his life to go to the Nandou clan, if Yi Xiang had not gambled his life, if the Cottage had abandoned him when he was in danger, if Qi Xuangang and Yan Yuan had handed him over to Emperor Li, then he would not exist.


    Had they even known him that well?


    His master had only taught him a few songs.


    He had gone to the Cottage to study art.


    And as for the Imperial Adviser and Yan Yuan, they were his natural enemies. All of them had plenty of reasons to abandon him.


    Several days later, contrary to Ye Futian''s expectations, the teleportation matrix at the Heavenly Mandate Academy lit up incredibly brightly, making all the disciples look towards it.


    A group of figures walked out. Ye Futian watched them too, his divine consciousness sweeping out towards them. He smiled and walked out to meet them.


    Cultivators from various top forces had all arrived, but now the three powerful figures who had met once before were all here at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Now they were truly strong.


    A feast was prepared, and Lord Taixuan, Ye Futian, and many others attended. No one brought up the matter of Qingyao, for no one needed to.


    After the feast, all of the great figures were given rooms in the academy.


    The whole academy was boiling over with discussions.


    After the others left, Ye Futian, Lord Taixuan, and a few others stayed behind at the feast.


    "Are you surprised?" Lord Taixuan asked Ye Futian, smiling.


    "A little," said Ye Futian with a nod. He had expected to encounter some resistance, not for things to go so smoothly. His three great allies had sent their strongest formations to support him and the decision he had made.


    "It shouldn''t be hard to understand," said Lord Taixuan, still smiling, a flash of wisdom in his eyes. He seemed to have already guessed what would happen.


    Ye Futian looked into his eyes, then nodded slightly. He realized that he should have known, too.


    "In such a chaotic situation, if the Heavenly Mandate Academy can stand firm in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, then in the future, you and the academy will represent the next era," said Lord Taixuan.


    What was happening now would possibly become an iconic event in the future.


    "You are also one of the creators of this era," said Ye Futian. Although there was a lot of pressure right now, he still believed that if he could persevere, they would make history.


    "I am honored," said Lord Taixuan with a smile.


    ...


    Within the guest palace that the Xiao clan was staying in, Old Man Xiao, Xiao Qianshan, and Xiao Muyu were all together. They watched the elder of the family, Xiao Dingtian, enter the palace.


    "Let''s go," said Xiao Qianshan as he set off. Behind him, Xiao Han Jiang and Xiao Muyu followed.


    "Grandfather." Xiao Muyu seemed like she wanted to ask something.


    "Are you surprised that we came here ourselves?" Xiao Qianshan asked her.


    "Yes," said Xiao Muyu, nodding. She was confused.


    "You may be a Renhuang, but you are still young, and your sense of humanity is not well developed," said Xiao Qianshan. "Right now, all the great forces are forming an alliance because we see Ye Futian''s power and potential and because he helped you. But what is the most important thing in our alliance?"


    "Is it not your power?" asked Muyu.


    "You could say that, but more precisely speaking, it is Ye Futian," said Xiao Qianshan. "It is not just his talent, but it is also his way of doing things. That is, his character and his perseverance are key to this alliance. But if he gets other ideas, this alliance will be very fragile. So, the absolute trust of all parties involved is required."


    Xiao Muyu did not quite understand.


    "Right now, he can put forth all his power to defend that young girl. In the future, if Qingyao runs into any difficulties, or if we do, will he not put forth all his power to help her or us as well? If he abandons her now, then what about when he runs into a similar situation in the future?" said Xiao Qianshan. "Ye Futian''s decision has vast implications. Thus, all the great forces have come here. We are expressing our position by being here ourselves. When the power of our alliance truly comes together, only then will it mean anything."


    Xiao Muyu nodded slightly. She finally understood why she had felt so safe after speaking to Ye Futian.


    "But danger is still coming, no?" she asked. After all, their enemies were incredibly powerful.


    "Of course," said Xiao Qianshan with a smile. "But don''t forget, the forces that are here are the most powerful ones in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Troubled times are approaching. In an era like this, compromise and retreat are neither wise nor safe. Only by moving forward through the storm and putting forth greater amounts of power can one stand firm. Heroes in chaotic times never compromise. They grow stronger through iron and blood."


    ...


    The vast Heavenly Mandate City seemed to be on a knife''s edge. Any activity there would attract the attention of many cultivators.


    More and more legends about Ye Qingyao were spreading. Some people said she was the daughter of Hell, the dark inheritor.


    Hell was coming to take her back.


    Other legends said she was extremely talented. Ye Futian had noticed this and thus taken her as a disciple.


    These legends spread throughout Heavenly Mandate City.


    The cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation arrived at a restaurant. They had heard of these things too.


    There were two powerful figures among them, the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation, Gai Cang, and his brother Gai Qiong.


    Gai Qiong knew all about the enmity between Ye Futian and the Golden Divine Nation. Right now, they had let the matter rest, but Ye Futian had killed two of his nephews, so it was not hard to know how he felt about him.


    However, he was a vassal of Donghuang the Great. There was a good reason that they had been called together.


    And his own goals were related to Hell. That was to say that his goal would harm Ye Futian.


    That made him think. When should he make his move?


    At that moment, another group of people entered the restaurant. Everyone around looked up at them, and suddenly their hearts trembled.


    Even people off in the distance were shocked. After the cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation had arrived, the Shen clan had come as well. Moreover, they had brought several of their top figures.


    This group of people was too powerful by far.


    "Gai Cang, Gai Qiong!" came a voice from someone of the Shen clan.


    "Shen Gao!" The sovereign and his brother said, looking at the man who had spoken. This man was a legendary figure whose name had shaken the Nine Realms many years ago. Naturally, all three of them knew each other.


    "The sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation has come here personally. What are you doing here?" asked Shen Gao with a smile, sitting at a table not far away from them.


    "We''re here to see all the chaos," said Gai Cang indifferently. "What about you?"


    "For exactly the same reason as you," answered Shen Gao. "What about when you''ve had your fill of watching all this chaos?"


    "We''ll see what happens then," said Gai Cang.


    "I heard that the cultivators of the Mountain Realm are here as well. The abbot himself came," said Shen Gao. The abbot had had the chance to leave, but he had not. He had chosen to stay in this world.


    "Yes, I heard about that. People from the Demon Realm have come here as well," said Gai Qiong.


    "The Demon Realm?" A look of surprise came over Shen Gao''s face. "They are interested in the Original Realm too?"


    "Who knows? But I heard that they looked right into the master of Hell''s eyes and told him not to make any more trouble. Truly formidable. Who do you think the people who just arrived are?"


    "Probably one of the Eight Great Demon Generals and his retinue, no?"


    "If so, there will truly be some chaos to watch."


    As they were talking, a black-robed figure was still sitting all alone in another restaurant, eating and drinking calmly and quietly.


    He was named Mei Ting, Mei meaning "Plum."


    He was one of the Eight Great Demon Generals of the Demon Realm, sworn to the service of the Demon Emperor!

 1755 The Tavern in the Darkness

    Heavenly Mandate City was recently packed with mixed company, with the arrival of cultivators from everywhere and all sides.


    And among them, there were probably many cultivators from the Hidden Land Realm who had already gotten inside the Heavenly Mandate City.


    Aside from the cultivators from the Devil World, the Shen clan, and the Golden Divine Nation, who had arrived, most of the supreme powers in the land of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms, in truth, had all dispatched their people to the Heavenly Mandate City.


    Recently, a story about the girl had spread around. The fact that the Abbot of Tianxian Temple had come in person to deal with this matter showed its importance. As the girl was also someone the Hell wanted, many cultivators from the outside had also gathered here. Everyone had a premonition that a storm was imminent in Heavenly Mandate City.


    This time, it seemed, that drama was still centered around the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ever since the establishment of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, it seemed to always be the center of attention.


    But could the Heavenly Mandate Academy survive this catastrophe?


    Presently, many forces from all sides had converged in one place. For example, where the cultivators from Shen clan and the Golden Divine Nation had settled was also the place where the cultivators from Celestial Worthy Hall and Sky Reaching School had gathered.


    Moreover, the Celestial Worthy Temple in the Upper Worlds was equally powerful to the somewhat similar Shen clan. The difference was that the Shen clan was a family-based principality while the power possessed by Celestial Worthy Temple in the Upper Worlds was considered a sect.


    In the Upper Worlds, this principality was called Celestial Worthy Mountain, and it was created by a Skylord. Many of the unique methods that were cultivated today at the Celestial Worthy Temple all came from Celestial Worthy Mountain.


    Sky Reaching School was considered a local principality.


    "This time, the Gate of Hell has opened. Who do you think will be sent to the Lower Worlds from the Court?" a cultivator from Celestial Worthy Mountain asked. They were also from the outside and knew who was the principality behind Hell.


    In fact, the origin of the top forces in the Hidden Land Realm today all once stemmed from that principality, but they competed in the Original Realm in the name of Hell.


    The Dark World ruled by the Dark Court was a force at the same level as the Divine Prefectures of the East. In the endless Dark World, there were many who cultivated the Dark Arts. These cultivators were once ordered to cultivate in this world, thus created those other supreme forces such as the Hidden Land Realm and the others.


    Therefore, judging from its source, the various principalities in the Hidden Land Realm all operated within the influence of the Dark World.


    "Don''t know, but if the girl is so important to the Dark Court, then whoever that comes this time will be someone mighty. They may possibly one of the prominent figures on the Dark Thrones. Anyone less would not do," Shen Gao replied.


    "If this is the case, then who can stop the Hell?" The cultivator from Celestial Worthy Mountain looked at Gai Qiong. "Brother Gai, what instructions from the Great Emperor? Will someone be sent to the Lower Worlds?"


    Gai Qiong was a divine general under Donghuang the Great, who was also known as a super powerful existence in the outside world. He held a high position in the army and was commanded by Donghuang the Great. If the Emperor had an order, perhaps he would know.


    "The Emperor has his own plan, and it''s not my place to ask," Gai Qiong said. His response showed great reverence to Donghuang the Great, who was the ruler of the Eastern Divine Prefecture. He had ended an era and now stood at the peak of Divine Prefecture.


    "Didn''t someone come from the Mountain Realm? Even if the Great Emperor didn''t send someone, I don''t believe these Buddhists would just stand by and watch."


    "Well, the Great Emperor and Western Heaven have always enjoyed a great relationship." Gai Cang nodded. This was yet another rumor from many years ago, claiming that the Great Emperor rose from nothing and that in order to gain his experience in the world, he had once traveled to the Western Heaven to seek Buddhist doctrines.


    Donghuang the Great was supremely ??talented, and no methods in the world could not be mastered by him. Even the Way of the Buddha, he could also master it just as well. The Buddha Lord of Western Heaven had wanted to take Donghuang the Great as an heir, but he did not agree.


    Later, Donghuang the Great created his own era, but his relationship with Western Heaven had always been close, and the Buddhists had reciprocated with their full support as well. In the unification process of the Divine Prefecture, the Buddhists had also made a great contribution.


    Put aside the incident with Emperor Ye Qing, Donghuang the Great could be considered quite perfect, a true legend, and no one in the land of Divine Prefecture would not worship him.


    With the coming of the cultivators from the Mountain Realm, the question remained whether someone would be coming to the Lower Worlds from Western Heaven.


    "Just wait quietly," everyone whispered.


    Not only them but all those in Heavenly Mandate City, where many cultivators had gathered. Many top figures were from the outside.


    This was truly a grand occasion.


    Ye Futian had been cultivating in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and he had heard intermittent reports of the recent developments in Heavenly Mandate City.


    But the more he heard, the more pressure Ye Futian felt.


    No one knew what would happen in this situation.


    But a storm was definitely inevitable.


    Right at this moment, in the sky above the Heavenly Mandate City, the white clouds above the firmament gradually dissipated, and wisps of black light seemed to appear. The black clouds drove away the white clouds as the sky gradually darkened. It seemed night was about to descend.


    But it was only noon, so there should not have been any darkness.


    "They are here." Countless people inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked up toward the void. Currently, those who were still at the Heavenly Mandate Academy were all cultivators in the Renhuang Realm. Anyone below Renhuang had been sent away by Ye Futian through the teleportation grand matrix.


    In this impending storm, there was no sense for them to remain here, as they would only become a burden. By sending them away, their safety could be ensured.


    Ye Futian had promised his master Hua Fengliu that if there was to be a crisis, he and Nianyu would be sent to a safe place right away.


    And Ye Futian believed that those top forces would not be interested in those below Rehuang Realm anyways.


    Even in the worst-case scenario, he would still be able to guarantee their safety.


    "Here they come." In Heavenly Mandate City, countless people stopped in their tracks to look at the sky. The world seemed to be darkening. The dusky clouds floated in the sky, and the whole city was shrouded by a faint oppressive power.


    This pressure gradually became stronger, and it didn''t take long for many to feel great pressure or even a sense of suffocation.


    Boom... Above the dusky sky, there seemed to be dark lightning crashing down somewhere, lighting up that side of the world.


    In that terrible area of ??destruction and lightning, a terrifying storm appeared, from which an extremely powerful spatial might of Way permeated.


    The dark lightning became more and more frightening, covering the sky and obscuring the sun. Terrible dark vortices appeared in many different places.


    Boom! Bang!


    Another loud crashing sound was heard, and the lightning storm fell down. Suddenly, illuminated by that lightning, a group of men appeared in the sky above Heavenly Mandate City, and every one of them exuded a terrifying aura.


    Then, accompanying the strengthening storm of destruction, great armies appeared successively, descended in different directions, but all in the same general area.


    When all the cultivators made their appearances one after another, a throne seemed to appear above the darkening sky, and an elusive figure appeared on the throne. He was wearing a long dark robe, but he did not seem real.


    What they saw caused many cultivators from the outside world to sharpen their focus. Could it be that this time the Dark Court had really dispatched such a terror-stricken existence as this?


    Was it to show their determination to get the girl?


    No one inside the Heavenly Mandate City dared to stand high in the sky, and all of them landed back on the ground. There was excitement in their hearts but also a touch of fear. If this war was to break out, would it affect the entire Heavenly Mandate City?


    They were too powerful. All the supreme forces in the Hidden Land Realm seemed to have arrived, but they were not the main players, just followers.


    Presumably, the phantasmal figure upon the throne was their leader.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked grim. One after another, they rose into the air, looking into the distance. Even Lord Taixuan had felt extremely heavy pressure.


    The opponent''s formation was truly powerful this time.


    All the top forces from the Hidden Land Realm were involved.


    Above the darkened void, the group moved forward, as the dark lightning of destruction continued to crash down, its might shocked the entire Heavenly Mandate City, and many buildings were smashed.


    Crack...


    A clear sound came from the top of a tavern. Here, only one person was still sitting there at the moment.


    Mei Ting.


    He looked down at the broken wine glass, which was shattered by the lightning. His indifferent eyes lifted slightly, looking at the mighty group of cultivators that was coming his way.


    "You have disturbed my drinking."


    An indifferent voice came out of him, not very loud. However, in an environment with the sound of lightning and storm, this voice was still exceptionally clear.


    Everyone could hear him clearly.


    Disturbed his drinking?


    At the tavern where Mei Ting was located, many eyes around him were looking at him, sitting there, as if they had seen a ghost.


    Was this guy crazy?


    Under such circumstances, was he seriously complaining about his drinking being interrupted?


    The people in the void glanced at Mei Ting, ignored him, and continued moving forward.


    "Didn''t you hear me?" Mei Ting insisted. But as his voice fell, terrible dark lightning directly descending from the sky. This incredibly thick dark lightning contained an unbelievably terrifying destructive power, with a horrific light of destruction, crashing down directly on the top of Mei Ting''s head.


    Boom!


    There was a loud bang as lightning struck Mei Ting''s head. The light of darkness was gleaming and flowed toward the tavern.


    However, neither Mei Ting nor the tavern suffered any damage. Unscathed, there was not one bit of reaction from him.


    Beneath such powerful destructive lightning, Mei Ting didn''t even flinch.


    Mei Ting raised his head and glanced at the Renhuang who attacked him. The man came from the Fate World, a supreme power in the Hidden Land Realm. He sat there and raised his hand. In an instant, a giant hand of the demonic Way appeared in the sky. The hand smashed down at that Renhuang.


    This hand of the demonic Way was like the hand of God, wrapping the heaven and the earth. In an instant, the opponent''s body was held in the palm of that hand.


    At this moment, the face of that Renhuang changed. In the camp of the Fate World, many were looking at Mei Ting, who was below.


    Boom��


    As he began squeezing tightly, fresh blood flowed down the giant palm. A Renhuang was squeezed to death before he even had a chance to scream.


    "You guys had interrupted my drinking!" Mei Ting said again. This time, no one dared to ignore his voice!

 1756 Arrogance

    The advancing dark army suddenly halted. Above the darkened firmament, even as a terrifying storm was still raging, those cultivators were looking down below.


    The tavern under the darkened sky looked extraordinarily lonesome, and the man drinking inside the tavern seemed even more forsaken, as if he was the only one in the world.


    But those eyes had penetrated the void, overbearing and aggressive, gave everyone a feeling that even though he was sitting there alone, he could still vanquish an entire Renhuang army singlehandedly.


    Above the darkened void, several men with a terrifying aura were coming toward him, as all eyes were fixed on Mei Ting.


    Not only them, but many of the prominent figures who had arrived at Heavenly Mandate City at this time had directed their divine spirits in Mei Ting''s direction.


    No one expected that right before a great battle was about to erupt, someone who was drinking in a tavern would have killed a Renhuang in the great army because of a broken wine glass, and stopped this dark legion abruptly in its track.


    "Who is he?"


    Over where Shen Gao of the Shen clan, Gai Qiong, and other cultivators were located, they looked at the figure in black and wondered if there was really some Devil General who had already arrived amongst them?


    The Devil World was in a remote corner of the world and did not have much interaction with Divine Prefecture. It was known for its aggressive and objective ways, which made the whole world its enemy. The Devil World had no allies, and everyone was an enemy, but they didn''t much care.


    Everyone knew that the goal of the Devil Emperor was to dispatch the Great Army of the Devil World to every part of the world and conquer it.


    And they had almost done it too. Before the unification of Divine Prefecture, the Devil Emperor had the idea of ??conquering the world.


    However, according to the rumors, before the Great Army of the Devil World was dispatched, Donghuang the Great and the Devil Emperor had a meeting. No one knew what happened during that meeting. Some said that the two fought an unprecedented battle without a winner. Finally, in the end, the Devil Emperor gave up the idea of ??conquering the world.


    It was also said that after that battle between the two of them, out of mutual respect, they had agreed that they would never set foot on each other''s territory.


    In short, after that historic meeting, the cultivators of the Devil World had stayed in the Devil World without making any expedition. Among the famous Eight Great Devil Generals, some were promoted later, replacing the previous generals. Therefore, very few people, if any, had ever seen the Eight Great Devil Generals that were currently under the command of the Devil Emperor.


    So that even as Mei Ting was sitting there, Shen Gao and the others could only guess, but had no clue as to who he really was.


    No ordinary person would have the audacity to sit there alone and stop an entire army of darkness, let alone the ability to do so.


    If it were someone from the outside, they would have known that the Dark Court was behind this dark army.


    Even if it was a cultivator from in the Devil World, for someone to be able to intercept the Dark Court alone, there could only be one possibility, and that was this person must have possessed powerful cultivation for him to be so confident.


    "Who are you?" Above the darkened sky, a figure spoke. The might of Way that surrounded him descended and shrouded the tavern. However, at this moment, an apprehensive aura appeared around the tavern, making it impossible for the might of Way to invade, and it seemed to have no effect on the person sitting inside the tavern.


    This man in black was indeed powerful.


    Mei Ting did not respond to the question. He glanced at the broken wine glass on the table and asked, "What are you going to do about it?"


    "About what?"


    The cultivator in the void looked cold and indifferent. He had killed a Renhuang over a broken wine glass, and he was asking them what do they want to do about it?


    Someone dared to be this arrogant and aggressive in the face of the dark army.


    "What do you want to do?" someone said indifferently. The one who spoke was a top figure in the Fate World. The Renhuang that died moments ago was his peer.


    Even though this man was extremely strong, he didn''t think there was anyone who could be strong enough to counter an entire army. Never mind the many top figures that had come from the Hidden Land Realm, just that supreme existence from the Dark Court alone should give everyone pause.


    "You are asking me?" Mei Ting looked at the other and asked instead, slowly getting up.


    Suddenly, a tremendous powerful demonic might swept across the sky.


    With Mei Ting as the center, a terrifying storm was forming. Countless demonic currents raged across the sky, and pitch-black demonic currents moved through the space with wrath.


    Bang.


    Mei Ting stepped into the void. At this moment, the sky seemed to be quite still, and countless cultivators felt that it was difficult to move. Everyone was oppressed by a suffocating force of the Great Path.


    When the Region Lord of the Fate World felt this aura of the Great Path, his expression altered somewhat. He took a step as a horrific destructive Image of Life and Death appeared in the sky. Infinite death rays sprinkled down, turning into pitch-black lightning of death. The space seemed to be on the verge of collapse and destruction. Under the lightning of death, it seemed that no life could exist, a true doomsday scenario.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    There was a terrible sound of destruction, but it did not seem to affect Mei Ting much. With him as the center, an independent field of the Great Path was forming, so that even as that terrible destructive lightning slammed down, it could not breach the defense of the Great Path.


    Buzz!


    Mei Ting took a step forward, but his body disappeared in the next moment, turning into a black afterimage.


    "Watch it!" Everyone''s expression suddenly changed. Where the army of the Fate World was located was penetrated directly by a dark light, and no one could make out that shadow clearly.


    Not only was it fast, but all the cultivators were being oppressed by the Great Path. It was as if they didn''t even have the ability to dodge.


    The dark light traveled in a straight line as it traversed directly through the army of the Fate World.


    Time seemed to stand still. Mei Ting appeared behind the great army, with his back facing the army of the Fate World. The next moment, in that straight line, the bodies of all the cultivators exploded and shattered, turning into dust.


    The rest of those who were still alive trembled, turning their heads cautiously to look at the man in shock, with great fear in their eyes.


    The Region Lord of the Fate World was pale. His eyes fixed on the back of that man, who was still standing there quietly.


    One strike had smashed through an area, killing anyone who was in its path.


    It seemed that his fist was no longer human.


    The light streamers of the Demonic Way still wreaked havoc between heaven and earth, and the dark legion was shaken by it. The people in Heavenly Mandate City felt this even more so.


    Way too powerful.


    No one imagined that a demonic cultivator who casually sat and drank in a tavern could be so powerful to this terrifying degree.


    How many other awesome existences were currently inside Heavenly Mandate City at this moment?


    Even at the Heavenly Mandate Academy at this time, as Lord Taixuan and many other cultivators stood above the academy, covering the endless area with their divine spirit, they were shocked into speechlessness.


    With the coming of the great army, they had made the preparation for war.


    However, as the army was passing by a tavern, a wine glass was broken, and someone''s drinking was interrupted.


    Therefore, in a most dramatic fashion, the army was forced to stop.


    Among the cultivators at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the Dragon Master of the Dragon Gods was also present, and he was shocked even more as he saw what was played out before him.


    He had seen that man before, and it was at the Dragon Gods.


    Unless the other had done this to help the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    This turn of event perplexed him greatly. At the Dragon Gods, the other had killed the Demonic Dragon, so why would he help them now?


    "Lord Taixuan, Futian, ??this man had been to the Dragon Gods just a few days ago." The Dragon Master transmitted his voice to Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian.


    Both Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian looked curious. Ye Futian asked in return, "What was he doing there?"


    "To see the Demonic Dragon. Soon after his visit, the Demonic Dragon of Longyuan perished." The Dragon Master continued to speak through voice transmission, as he didn''t want to relay the information in public. After all, the current situation was way too complicated. It was better not to disclose the matter.


    "You mean the Dragon Elder who taught Yu Sheng?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Well, I was going to tell you about this later," The Dragon Master continued.


    Ye Futian was extremely disturbed. He knew that the Demonic Dragon had instructed Yu Sheng. It was said that the Demonic Dragon was imprisoned in Longyuan because of his involvement with Emperor Ye Qing.


    Was there any connection to all this?


    His foster father was a demonic cultivator, and the skills taught to Yu Sheng was also demonic methods, and the sword that was given to the great senior brother was a demonic sword.


    He suddenly had a bold idea.


    When the Demonic Dragon instructed Yu Sheng back then, could it be because he knew who Yu Sheng was?


    Could this powerful demonic cultivator be coming for none other than Yu Sheng?


    What exactly was the true identity of this foster father?


    However, guessing was all that could be done at the moment. If this was really the case, that this person was here for Yu Sheng, then the matter was more involved than previously imagined.


    He had a vague feeling that the mystery of both Yu Sheng and his birth was getting closer to being unraveled.


    Perhaps after they got out, they would have the chance to find the answer.


    "Mei Ting!"


    At this moment, a terrible sound was heard from above the firmament. It resounded throughout the entire Heavenly Mandate City.


    Above the darkened sky, an infinitely domineering dark figure appeared.


    With the appearance of this figure, infinite darkness descended on the throne, and the phantom in front of the throne gradually solidified.


    Accompanying the infinite darkness, the figure upon the throne turned into an entity, a cultivator dressed in a dark robe. The moment he appeared, the sky seemed to grow even more horrific.


    However, all the cultivators from the outside world were shocked by the two words he spat out.


    Mei Ting.


    Mei Ting was one of the Eight Great Devil Generals under the command of the Devil Emperor.


    It turned out that a Devil General from the Devil World had truly arrived.


    Although they had never seen him before, the names of the Eight Great Devil Generals were well-known to all.


    As for the figure that just appeared, cultivators from the outside world stared at the man upon the throne.


    Another super cultivator had arrived.


    One of the kings of the Dark Court, only that no one knew who the king that had arrived here was!

 1757 Assistance from All Sides

    The Dark Court had seven great thrones that were occupied by the Dark Kings.


    The seven Dark Kings ruled the Dark World for the Dark Emperor. In the Dark World, every cultivator on the throne had unparalleled authority and awesome strength.


    For such characters, in the Void Realm, as well as the outside world, they would always be the topmost existence.


    Two great men at the peak of their existence from the outside world, including Mei Ting, who was one of the Eight Great Devil Generals, had now made their appearances in Heavenly Mandate City of the Void Realm.


    Such a grand occasion was rare, even in the outside world.


    "Youming," Mei Ting said as he raised his head and glanced at the figure on the throne. Suddenly, everyone from the outside knew that the Dark King who had arrived was the master of the Youming Throne.


    Youming had come here in person. Just how important was that girl?


    "Since they interrupted your drinking, allow me to have a drink with you."


    Youming sat on the throne. With him as the center, a suffocating pressure enveloped the space where he and Mei Ting were, as a death storm was raging. He stretched out his hand, and two wine glasses appeared in front of his palm, suspended in the air.


    Then, he took out a jug of wine and poured it into the glasses, filling them to the brim.


    "Please," Youming said, and suddenly, one of the glasses of wine, like lightning, flew in Mei Ting''s direction.


    Mei Ting reached out into the air, and the wine glass abruptly stopped, steadily, in front of his hand. The wine in the glass had not moved in the slightest.


    Youming raised his glass to Mei Ting from the distance and drank up. Mei Ting did the same. Afterward, he waved his hand and sent the glass back.


    Everyone from the outside world was quite frightened. Not many could command the master of the Dark Throne to pour the wine in person. The Eight Great Devil Generals of the Devil World must have been at the same level as the other so that even the master of the Youming Throne had to treat him with respect.


    "Mei Ting, the Devil Emperor hasn''t ventured outside for hundreds of years. You wouldn''t be here at the Original Realm just to stop me, would you? After all, the Devil World had never been interested in the Original Realm," Youming poured the wine again and remarked. His position was superior enough, but he wouldn''t be so conceited as to think that the Devil World would be here because of them.


    Those from the Devil World were known to be willful and arrogant. There were also many things that they would not deign to do.


    Rather than believing that Mei Ting had come to stop them, he would rather believe that it was because they did interrupt Mei Ting''s drinking because the latter was more consistent with their temperament.


    "That was many years ago." On the throne, Youming smiled. But even his smile was chilling to those who beheld it.


    "As you were. Continue with what you are supposed to do," Youming looked at the army and commanded. He then turned his attention to Mei Ting and continued, "Since they disturbed your drinking, how about I stay here and drink with you?"


    He didn''t insist on knowing Mei Ting''s purpose; he would just play along with the drinking pretext.


    Nor would he pursue the matter that Mei Ting had killed one of his men. Every master on the Dark Throne was ruthless. In their eyes, the end justified the means. If he really wanted to settle the matter, he would have to fight Mei Ting. But the battle would affect the others, and he couldn''t really say for sure that he could suppress Mei Ting.


    "That works," Mei Ting responded coolly. A smile appeared at the corner of Youming''s mouth. Suddenly, in front of him, the army moved forward once again, marching oppressively toward the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The army, hindered by Mei Ting alone, finally moved on.


    The Region Lord of the Fate World looked gloomy. But if the master of the Youming Throne did not pursue the matter, how could he?


    After all, these powerful men from the outside world were much too strong than even their own top figures in the Original Realm.


    The army marched forward, dark and heavy, and the sky dimmed without light.


    An extremely tyrannical mass descended on the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy. A devastating death storm raged above the sky, and a horrific vortex appeared above the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It seemed intent on swallowing everything in its path.


    Someone stepped out. Their body was surrounded by a flowing dark light with a terrifying aura. He looked down at the Heavenly Mandate Academy below and said, "Turn her over to us, and no one will lose their lives today."


    Lord Taixuan looked at him and replied, "That is not something that the Heavenly Mandate Academy is accustomed to doing. Never have, and never will," everyone in the Heavenly Mandate City exclaimed silently.


    This was the courage of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Anyone inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy had no reason to be handed over to someone else.


    They would rather go to war than hand over the girl.


    What appeared to be sacrificing a single person to avoid war was not as it appeared. Once, Shen Ji from the Shen clan had come and demanded the Heavenly Mandate Academy to surrender Ye Futian to him, but it did not acquiesce.


    After that, the Heavenly Mandate Academy joined their allies to go to the Shen clan and made their demands. That time, Ye Futian gambled with his life, but even so, the Shen clan did not easily turn over those that he wanted, not until the intervention from an already crazed Sky River Great Elder.


    In that exchange, the reputation of the Shen clan was completely destroyed. Instead, Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy claimed their fame on the back of the Shen clan.


    That was probably an eternal shame that the Shen clan could never live down.


    And now, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would not compromise.


    "Is it worth it?" the clan leader of Clan of the God of Ghost pronounced loudly, looking down at Lord Taixuan below.


    "Today''s battle, even if just one person from the Heavenly Mandate Academy perishes, the Academy will forever be at war with the Hidden Land Realm for today''s participation. Maybe I won''t be able to stop you, but unless you all disappear from the Hidden Land Realm forever, you will rue this day until the end of time," Lord Taixuan said. If they were to unleash their utmost against any Renhuang, any low-level Renhuang would not stand a chance.


    Lord Taixuan''s indifferent voice caused great internal conflicts for those forces from the Hidden Land Realm; it was true that they had considered the possibility of an eternal grudge.


    If they insisted, they would probably always be facing the threats of death in the future.


    However, it seemed that they had no choice but to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    However, the appearance of Mei Ting, who was capable of stopping their leader, suddenly put a damper on things. They were not so sure now that they could destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Above the sky, the dark storm was getting stronger still. In the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy, an immense storm of destruction appeared, covering the firmament. Countless devastating lightning seemed to be raging in the storm. This storm seemed to be moving, gradually eating away the boundless space.


    Boom, boom, boom...


    Beneath the sky, everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Academy felt a force of destruction.


    But at this moment, infinite Light of the Buddha descended and enveloped the heavens.


    A group of dazzling figures traveled from the far-off void and came upon the space above the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The breath of these Buddhist cultivators was astounding. They clasped their hands together and chanted the Sound of the Buddha. Suddenly, as the sound lingered, thousands of Buddha appeared in the sky, filled the sky.


    Figures of the Buddha condensed and manifested, responding to the dark power. The Buddha''s handprint reached out toward the sky, and suddenly, the sky was blocked by the Light of the Buddha so that the destructive power was unable to descend.


    "Buddhist cultivators from the Mountain Realm," many remarked with shock, for the man heading the group was the Abbot of Tianxian Temple, who was also an eminent monk.


    "Was it not enough that the King of Hell perished in the Void Realm? Now you are here to repeat the same mistakes?" the Abbot of Tianxian Temple said loudly. The King of Hell, who had perished in the past, was also one of the cultivators who occupied the Dark Throne of the Dark Court, the master of the Hell Throne.


    However, the master of the Hell Throne was suppressed by the Vajra Buddha with Buddhist Doctrine, and the two died together. In that battle, Vajra Buddha, the strongest Buddha in the Mountain Realm, fell as well.


    "Heaven loves all living things. The war of the past did not affect the forces in the Hidden Land Realm, but now you want to help the evildoers and set off the storm again. If the Vajra Buddha is here, I am sure he would not be as merciful back then." The Abbot continued his admonishment, which did not speak kindly of the forces from the Hidden Land Realm.


    The forces from the Hidden Land Realm were also aware of their connection with the Dark World. However, Donghuang the Great did not involve them and allowed them to continue their cultivation in the Void Realm.


    In the distance, Youming, who was drinking with Mei Ting, saw what transpired there as well. Just as he had suspected, the attempt at a comeback this time was not so easy.


    This Void Realm was more difficult to chew than they had imagined.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy, the first opponent they encountered, already gave them huge troubles by pledging their lives to save an inconsequential girl.


    At the moment, the composition of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was already considerable. In addition to the allied forces gathered at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, there were now reinforcements from the Mountain Realm.


    Secretly, there were still many cultivators who might still be joining in.


    More importantly, the cultivator on the throne, the strongest of them all in the Hell army, was still there, drinking.


    The two mighty armies were in a face-off, while Lord Taixuan and several other major figures walked to the front. The aura that swept across the sky was extremely terrifying.


    At this moment, not far from Heavenly Mandate Academy, another group appeared with a terrifying aura, as if they might also join the battlefield.


    "Shangxiao Divine Palace is intervening?" The clan leader of Clan of the God of Ghost looked at the group of cultivators, who were from Shangxiao Divine Palace of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    "Whether this world is the Void Realm or the Original Realm, it is not allowed to be trampled. If the Hidden Land Realm wants to take action, then, the name of the Hidden Land Realm will be struck out." The voice of their leader was indifferent but still determined.


    If there were to be a war, Shangxiao Divine Palace would not sit idly by; it would intervene.


    The Divine Palace did not normally inquire about outside affairs, but this matter was different!


    This sight in front of him moved Ye Futian tremendously. He remembered the stone tablets he saw in the ancestral land when he was seeking the truth in the Divine Palace. The inscriptions on the stone tablets were: the heart for heaven and earth, the life for the people, to pass on the sacred learning, to seek peace for generations.


    The Divine Palace was a true preaching holy land. Although it wasn''t swayed by outside disturbances, its heart was always in the world.


    Presently, with the invasions of outside forces, a large army descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the cultivators from Divine Palace had come to back them up.


    As a result, the makeup of their groups had become even more powerful. Even the entire forces of the Hidden Land Realm were to join together, it would be difficult to shake up their opponent.


    Ye Futian pondered that although the world of cultivation was a cruel one, there were still many who cared about the world. They didn''t want to see the chaos of centuries ago sweeping through the world once again!

 1758 Chapter 1758 – The Beauty in Humanity

    The cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Buddhist monks from the Mountain Realm, the Yuanyang Clan and Xiao Clan from the Central Emperor Realm, and the Dou Tribe from the Ziwei Realm were already here. Now, Shangxiao Divine Palace came to lend a hand as well.


    They made an incredibly formidable alliance. Even the menacing army coming all the way from the Hidden Land Realm became hesitant about launching their attack.


    The army from the Hidden Land Realm was comprised of not only cultivators from the native forces in the Hidden Land Realm, but also people from the Outer Realms. They even had cultivators from the Dark Court, led by the Lord of the Underworld. However, as domineering as they were, they couldn''t gain the upper hand in the current situation.


    If the Lord of the Underworld didn''t fight in the battle himself, they might even be at a disadvantage.


    It was extremely difficult for them to snatch the girl from the Heavenly Mandate Academy under such circumstances.


    No one could estimate how many people would lose their lives here if a battle broke out.


    People from various places who had come to watch the battle were shocked and amazed that the Heavenly Mandate Academy was able to assemble such a strong defense lineup that even included the Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    The Shangxiao Divine Palace was the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm. Many people in the Nine Realms believed that three holy places were the best at imparting knowledge and training cultivators: the Tianshen Academy in the Central Emperor Realm, the Shangxiao Divine Palace in the Higher Heavens Realm, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Although the Heavenly Mandate Academy was rising to prominence and had almost surpassed the Shangxiao Divine Palace, no one could deny the great power the Shangxiao Divine Palace held.


    Such a grand occasion for the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Shangxiao Divine Palace to join hands and fight against the enemy side by side was unprecedented.


    The cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate City right were witnessing history now.


    Some people even envisioned how the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Shangxiao Divine Palace could merge and become the predominant holy land in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. They would outstrip the Tianshen Academy altogether.


    Of course, it was only a fanciful notion that would never happen in reality. The Shangxiao Divine Palace only sent reinforcement here to support the Heavenly Mandate Academy for this particular time.


    The two sides reached a stalemate. While the Dark Army marched here all the way from the Hidden Land Realm, they didn''t want to die in vain. They couldn''t achieve their goal if they blindly jumped into the fight without having some confidence in victory.


    Qingyao stood quietly inside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Yaya was next to her, holding her hand.


    Except for Qingyao, Ye Futian sent away everyone who had not reached the Renhuang Plane.


    He wouldn''t give her up to the enemy, and he was willing to fight for her. But he could never compromise the people he sent away by hiding Qingyao among them, on the off chance that he lost the battle. He would do everything in his power to keep his promise to Qingyao. But Qingyao had to face her destiny if he was defeated in the end.


    Although Qingyao was still a young girl, she understood the risk Ye Futian was taking. She was deeply moved but remained composed and tearless.


    Her brother Ye and so many people hovering in the air were willing to fight for her.


    She brought bad lucks to everyone and was despised and shunned everywhere until she met her brother and sister, who protected her fiercely. Nianyu played with her and regarded her as the best friend. Grandpa Xuan also took care of her.


    Everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm treated her exceptionally well. She never experienced such kindness in her life.


    Even today, she saw all of those good people from other forces who came here willingly and were ready to risk their lives for a girl like her who had a cursed fate.


    Then, what about her? What should she do?


    Did she really want to implicate her brother, sister, and everyone else?


    Could she really stand by idly and selfishly at the expense of other people''s lives?


    She lived through a lifetime of darkness and never felt as warm and loved as today.


    It was because tens of thousands of extraordinary and kind people stood up for her, a cursed girl.


    All of a sudden, she grinned in silence.


    She didn''t cry. Instead, she cracked a blissful smile.


    "Sister," said Qingyao. She raised her head and looked at Yaya.


    Yaya heard her voice and looked back. She grasped Qingyao''s hand firmly and reassured her, "Don''t be nervous. This will be over soon."


    Qingyao shook her head and said with a smile, "Sister, I''m not nervous. Let me go with them."


    Surprised, Yaya gripped Qingyao''s hand even harder and said, "Qingyao, your brother Ye and other people will protect you. No one can take you away against your will. Look, even more people are coming to help our side. They will win this fight."


    Yet Qingyao was still shaking her head. "Sister, I believe that we will win. But I have made my decision. I will go with those people from the Hidden Land Realm."


    "Why?" Yaya asked, staring at the girl.


    "Because you''re all so kind to me." Qingyao smiled radiantly. She continued, "No one has ever been nice to me before. Now that I get to know all of you, I will certainly feel terrible if bad things happen to you because of me. I don''t want to see any of you being hurt. Not today, not ever."


    Yaya was astounded. Looking at the smile on Qingyao''s face, she was overwhelmed by mixed feelings.


    She felt touched and sorrowful at the same time.


    She surely understood that this matter had put tremendous pressure on both Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. However, Ye Futian obviously wouldn''t hand Qingyao over without a fight. This was about holding one''s ground and keeping one''s words. It was meaningless and unnecessary to argue about right and wrong or to put a price on the level of sacrifice.


    None of them would give in to the enemy and put people they cared about in danger.


    To fight to the death was different from utter abandonment.


    Nevertheless, Qingyao wanted to leave even when Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy had already summoned enough people to turn the tables.


    "Qingyao, take a look, those people don''t dare to provoke us now..." Yaya was going to speak more, yet was interrupted by Qingyao, who said, "Sister, they came here and committed such acts because of me. They won''t simply give up in the future. People here in the Academy will definitely be harmed if I stay here."


    Yaya looked at the girl and was at a loss for words.


    She couldn''t refute because she knew Qingyao was right.


    These people in the Hidden Land Realm sent a large army at high costs all the way to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Even if they failed or retreated this time, who could tell what they would do in the future to achieve their objective?


    Would they give up?


    Absolutely not. The threat would always lurk in the shadows as long as Qingyao stayed in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Sister, brother Ye told me that everyone has the right to determine their own fates. Isn''t that right?" Qingyao smiled broadly, said, "Right now, I have made my decision."


    Qingyao learned this from Ye Futian, and she was telling it to Yaya now.


    "If you don''t want me to go, I will leave on my own. Would you grab me against my will? You would make yourself a bad person if you did that," Qingyao chuckled. As a 12-year-old girl, she seemed to be exceptionally mature and rational.


    Yaya''s eyes sparkled as she looked at Qingyao''s innocent face. Despite Qingyao''s average appearance, she seemed truly beautiful to Yaya. It was the beauty of a gentle and kind spirit.


    Yaya smiled back at Qingyao.


    She knew that Qingyao had grown up now.


    "Qingyao, have you really decided?" Yaya asked. "Brother Ye will definitely help you as long as you want to stay."


    "Sister, this is the only choice I have ever made. I will never regret it," Qingyao replied.


    Yaya looked at her earnest face, said, "I support you."


    "Thank you, sister." Qingyao beamed with joy. All of her fear and anxiety evaporated. She felt incredibly relaxed at the moment.


    The two armies were still engaged in a standoff in the air. No one dared to act recklessly. The Dark Army seemed to be waiting for order while the Lord of the Underworld was drinking wine.


    At the time, Yaya held Qingyao''s hand and slowly rose into the air. They moved toward Ye Futian, who was standing on the battlefield.


    No one noticed Qingyao and Yaya''s conversation in front of the Academy since the atmosphere was so intense.


    "Yaya, why do you bring Qingyao here?" Ye Futian saw them and asked.


    "Brother, I''m leaving," Qingyao said to Ye Futian with a smile. Her eyes were filled with deep affection. The past few days in the Academy were the happiest time she had in her entire life.


    "You''re leaving?" Ye Futian looked at Qingyao, surprised.


    "Qingyao decided to leave," Yaya said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian stared at them in confusion.


    "I agree with Qingyao about her decision," Yaya saw Ye Futian''s expression and added.


    "Yaya, she is still a little girl. What does she know?" Lord Taixuan walked toward them and said to Yaya and Qingyao.


    "Grandpa Xuan, if only you were my real grandpa," Qingyao smiled and replied. Lord Taixuan was puzzled and said to her, "But I am your real grandpa."


    "Haha..." Qingyao chuckled again when she heard Lord Taixuan''s reply. The laughter then turned into a muffled sob, not because she was sad, but because she was moved by their care for her.


    "Grandpa Xuan, just like Nianyu, I want to play with you affectionately too. But I was not brave enough. Now that I''m leaving, can I give you a hug?" Qingyao asked, smiling and crying at the same time.


    "Of course you can. But who said you have to leave?" Lord Taixuan stepped forward and held the girl in his arms.


    Qingyao hugged Lord Taixuan tightly, then she mimicked Nianyu and pulled Lord Taixuan''s beard. Lord Taixuan looked at Qingyao''s smile and could feel that she was a different girl now.


    "Have you really made up your mind?" Lord Taixuan suddenly asked.


    "Yes," Qingyao nodded. "Maybe I won''t see Grandpa Xuan again in the future, but I surely will miss you a lot."


    After that, she turned around and opened her arms at Ye Futian, who was standing to the side.


    Ye Futian picked up the girl and looked at her. Qingyao used her hand to cover Ye Futian''s mouth, said, "Brother, can you let me choose my own life, please? I made this choice on my own. I won''t regret this, ever."


    Ye Futian took a look at the girl, then glanced at Yaya and Lord Taixuan. Same as Lord Taixuan, he sensed how she had changed.


    As if she grew up overnight.


    "Brother, let Qingyao go," said Yaya. Her voice was strangled even though her face was lit up with a smile.


    "Qingyao, we won''t lose today," Lord Taixuan told Qingyao.


    "I believe in you, Grandpa Xuan. But I really thought this through. Grandpa Xuan, brother, sister, Nianyu, and sister Loulan, I want you all to take care of yourselves," Qingyao said gently. She shifted her eyes to Ye Futian again, held his shoulders, leaned forward, and kissed him on his forehead.


    "Thank you, brother!" Qingyao finally expressed her gratitude in a soft, angelic voice.

 1759 The Declaration of War

    Lord of the Underworld was still chatting with Mei Ting in the distance.


    Right now, he also gazed at the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and said, "This is the right choice. You were destined to belong to the darkness. This is not the right place for you. Come with me, and I will take you home."


    "Who is she?" Mei Ting asked Lord of the Underworld.


    Lord of the Underworld was one of the Lords in the Dark Court. He led a large army himself and marched here to grab a little girl. Even though Mei Ting wasn''t in the loop before, he now understood that this girl was nothing but ordinary.


    "The Devil General from the Devil World is also interested?" Lord of the Underworld laughed and said to Mei Ting.


    Mei Ting didn''t reply. He certainly wouldn''t be intrigued if it was only an average girl. Nonetheless, it was Ye Futian''s identity that really piqued his curiosity.


    This girl just happened to be under Ye Futian''s protection right now.


    Mei Ting made a connection between the girl and Yu Sheng. He wondered if this could all be the arrangement of fate.


    He surely didn''t believe in fate. But perhaps even Lord of the Underworld, one of the Lords in the Dark Court, didn''t know the identity of the man who was protecting the girl. Nor would he know who Yu Sheng was. If he did, he would certainly attach more importance to his encounter with this girl.


    This was a remarkable meeting.


    Nevertheless, it was apparent that no one had realized that yet.


    Ye Futian looked intently at the girl standing in front of him and asked in a gentle voice, "Have you really made up your mind?"


    "Yes." Qingyao nodded.


    "Alright/" Ye Futian smiled with relief. Just like what he told Qingyao before, everyone deserved to determine their destiny. No one else had the right to intrude.


    He took care of Qingyao because he pitied her for being hunted by cultivators in the Renhuang Plane.


    However, Qingyao had metamorphosed into a mature person. She gained a deeper understanding of everything and was well aware of the consequences of her choice.


    Such being the case, he respected her will.


    He also knew that the enemy didn''t come to capture Qingyao to hurt her. He saw what happened to Qingyao in the past through Shen Luoxue''s divine consciousness and realized that Qingyao probably was born with extraordinary gifts. The enemy didn''t need to dispatch so many people if they only wanted to harm her or kill her.


    He also understood that Qingyao already chose to confront and accept what might happen to her in the future. Therefore, it was not his place to stop her in the name of protection only to satisfy his ego. She had already found herself.


    Thus, he agreed with her choice.


    "She can''t."


    All of a sudden, someone opposed to the idea spoke out. It was Master Pudu��a Buddhist cultivator from the Mountain Realm and one of the leaders on the side of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    He stared at the girl with a particularly grim face. He heard what the Lord of the Underworld just said and had more confidence in his own judgment.


    He would rather start a war over this girl than letting her go. Since Ye Futian didn''t allow him to kill the girl, the only choice left was to keep her in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. There was no way he would let the Lord of the Underworld take her away.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Master Pudu, who continued, "We can never send her to the hands of the Lord of the Underworld."


    To everyone''s surprise, the brilliant Light of Buddha became menacing. A murderous thought entered the monk''s mind.


    "Master, you lost your mind." Lord Taixuan said, "I believe you have good intentions, but the Buddhist doctrine emphasizes mercy and benevolence. How can it be compatible with the Buddhist doctrine if you harm people for a crime they haven''t committed?"


    "My Lord, this is different." Master Pudu spoke loudly. "I am willing to fight. But I can''t sit idly and watch her being taken away."


    "If she made mistakes in the future, I would willingly give up everything I have to correct them," Lord Taixuan said. He looked at the Buddhist cultivators standing next to Master Pudu and asked, "What does the abbot think?"


    The abbot of Tianxian Temple put his palms together in front of the chest. He chanted the name of Buddha and said, "Everyone has the potential for good. I would like to believe that her goodwill can beat her doomed fate, and I have faith in Lord Taixuan and Benefactor Ye."


    "Master," Master Pudu turned to the abbot and said.


    "Pudu, everything in the world is predestined. Let''s wait and see how it goes in the future," said the abbot. Pudu heard him and finally stopped arguing. He put his palms together and chanted the Buddhist scriptures with his eyes closed. He looked solemn and dignified as the Light of Buddha radiating from his body.


    Even though Ye Futian was a little upset about Pudu''s malicious intent, he didn''t hold any grudge against him because he knew that Master Pudu was worrying about the future of the world and the sufferings of the people.


    "Let me send you off." Ye Futian picked up Qingyao''s hand and stepped forward. Lord Taixuan walked next to them.


    Ye Futian held Qingyao''s hand and walked out of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. A master cultivator from the opposing side also strode toward them to come and take Qingyao.


    They soon met each other. Rather than handing over Qingyao right away, he made a demand, "I want someone."


    "Who do you want?" The guy from the opposing side asked.


    "Lian Qingyi from the Clan of the God of Ghost," said Ye Futian.


    Lian Qingyi was standing in the matrix of the Clan of the God of Ghost far away. She was stunned.


    What did Ye Futian mean? What did he want her for?


    The master cultivator who met with Ye Futian hesitated and glanced back, unsure of how to proceed. Lian Qingyi was the Goddess of the Clan of the God of Ghost, not a mere commoner.


    "Give her to him," the Lord of the Underworld instructed in a calm voice. They came here with only one goal in mind��to take Qingyao away.


    He certainly wouldn''t give Ye Futian chances to negotiate if he had an absolute advantage over him. However, they were in an unfavorable position and only got the girl because she wanted to leave with them herself.


    Therefore, how could he refuse to trade Lian Qingyi with Ye Futian?


    He would agree to Ye Futian''s terms straight off even if Ye Futian added a few more people to his list of requests.


    The leader of the Clan of the God of Ghost narrowed his eyes and turned back to look at the Lord of the Underworld. Lord of the Underworld glanced at him and said, "Didn''t you hear me?"


    "Yes." The leader of the Clan of the God of Ghost nodded. He looked at Lian Qingyi in silence.


    His expression took Lian Qingyi aback.


    She was abandoned.


    The Dark Court finally arrived at the Hidden Land Realm again and provided them an excellent opportunity to break free from the Hidden Land Realm and advance to the Dark Court. Comparing with the Hidden Land Realm, where they were constantly hampered and restrained, the Dark Court seemed like a true paradise for them.


    That was why she volunteered to come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy last time. She intended to get Qingyao back in order to earn a merit badge.


    However, Ye Futian didn''t hand over Qingyao to her.


    Why on earth did Ye Futian ask for her now?


    Chills went down Lian Qingyi''s spine as she saw the obliging faces of the master cultivators on her side. She felt as though she was abandoned by the world.


    This was distinctly different from what happened with Ye Qingyao.


    Ye Qingyao came out of her own volition. Before that, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would rather start a war than giving up Ye Qingyao.


    Yet Lian Qingyi, on the other hand, was discarded without a doubt, even when she was the Goddess of the Clan of the God of Ghost.


    It offered a sharp contrast.


    Lian Qingyi had no choice under such circumstances. She understood the cruelty and viciousness of the dark world, and she knew that they would kill her immediately if she refused.


    Lian Qingyi stared at Ye Futian and stepped forward. She soon stood in front of Ye Futian and said to him, "This is against my will. But I will serve you if it''s Renhuang Ye''s wish."


    Ye Futian took a brief look at her. The master cultivator then walked closer and said, "Give the girl to me now."


    "Brother, I''m leaving." Qingyao gazed at Ye Futian.


    "Take care of yourself." Ye Futian nodded. He let go of her without saying much. Qingyao''s body drifted toward the master cultivator. She and the master cultivator went away soon after and left Lian Qingyi with Ye Futian.


    Lord of the Underworld stood up from his throne. Joy flashed in his dark eyes.


    "Mei Ting, let''s call it a day. We should have another drink in the future if the opportunity arises." The Lord of the Underworld had accomplished his objective and naturally lost interest in staying. He was about to leave with his people.


    The dark storm dissipated, and the nerve-racking situation seemed to be over.


    A bloody battle was averted.


    Ye Futian stared at Lian Qingyi. The Goddess of the Clan of the God of Ghost probably never said anything truthful to him ever since they met the first time.


    Ye Futian''s fingers generated tremendous Sword Will of the Great Path and formed a terrifying whirlwind.


    Lian Qingyi lowered her head and noticed Ye Futian''s hand. Panic-stricken, she yelled, "Renhuang Ye, I didn''t ask for this."


    "You made a choice. Everyone needs to pay the price for their choices," Ye Futian said to her. A storm of Sword Will surged as he pointed his fingers at her.


    Lian Qingyi''s face turned deathly pale. She drew back hastily yet was still struck by Ye Futian''s finger.


    The force from his finger tore through the air.


    Buzz. Ye Futian''s finger penetrated the Storm of the Great Path. It gathered around Lian Qingyi''s body and pierced her brow chakra. Her spiritual soul was shattered.


    Devastated, she stared at Ye Futian with her vacant eyes as though she still didn''t understand why she had to die.


    Lian Qingyi''s body fell from the sky. The cultivators of the Clan of the God of Ghost were furious. The Dark Army also turned their heads to Ye Futian. The situation became volatile again at once.


    Even Lord of the Underworld fixed his eyes on Ye Futian. What did this silver-haired young man intend to do?


    Did he want to establish his authority?


    The cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate City looked at Ye Futian with curious eyes as well. None of them expected Ye Futian to kill the Goddess of the Clan of the God of Ghost. His attack showed no hesitation or pity for such a pretty woman.


    No one, including Lian Qingyi, would foresee that Ye Futian asked for her just to kill her.


    "Various groups from the Hidden Land Realm trespassed on the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and thereby, the Heavenly Mandate Academy declares war on the forces that came here today," said Ye Futian. His icy voice reverberated in the air and made a lot of people shudder in silence.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy gave up Qingyao not because they were afraid of the enemy and bent under pressure; they did it out of due regard for her choice. Qingyao would suffer tremendously, much more so than losing her life, if many people who cared for her and rekindled her spirit died to protect her.


    They made Qingyao realize that she was real flesh and blood. She was human.


    Ye Futian respected her wish yet still declared war on the forces from the Hidden Land Realm by killing the Goddess of the Clan of the God of Ghost, Lian Qingyi.

 1760 Two Holy Lands Joined Hands

    Qingyao turned her head and looked at Ye Futian briefly. Her clear eyes were filled with surprise at first. They crinkled in a smile.


    She understood what brother Ye meant.


    Many people from the Hidden Land Realm were stunned by Ye Futian''s announcement. By killing the Goddess of the Clan of the God of Ghost to declare war on the Hidden Land Realm, Ye Futian made them aware that he would never let anyone who besieged the Heavenly Mandate Academy on this day off the hook even though the battle didn''t really happen.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy didn''t declare war on everyone who participated in the confrontation because of Ye Qingyao; they wanted to eradicate the Hell.


    It was just like how the Buddhist cultivators collaborated with Emperor Nan and took out the Hell in the past.


    The forces in the Hidden Land Realm got themselves involved in trouble this time. No one could escape the disaster that befell the group.


    The cultivators of the Clan of the God of Ghost looked particularly stern. Lian Qingyi was their Goddess, yet she was killed by Ye Futian in front of everyone to make a statement.


    They devoted a lot of resources to train Lian Qingyi, who also had extraordinary talents. But Ye Futian didn''t even give her a chance to fight back.


    At the same time, the turn of events also demonstrated the difference between the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the dark forces. Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Realm did their utmost to protect Ye Qingyao up until the point that the girl herself didn''t want them to sacrifice their lives for her. On the contrary, the Hell cast Lian Qingyi aside straight out.


    "Let''s go."


    The Lord of the Underworld glanced at Ye Futian. He already obtained Ye Futian and had no intention to cause more complications. He couldn''t care less about Ye Futian''s statement. An ant had no quarrel with a boot; why should he pay any attention to some war in the Void Realm?


    Even if Ye Futian destroyed the entire Hidden Land Realm, so what?


    The Dark World controlled by the Dark Court could easily wipe the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms in the Void Realm off the map if not for the consideration of Donghuang the Great Emperor.


    The Dark Army and the Hell pulled back and left.


    No one expected that the large enemy force that bore down upon the border withdrew in such manner. Both people in Heavenly Mandate City and cultivators came from other places were taken by surprise. The incident would most likely mark a watershed in the history of the Nine Realms.


    Ye Futian and the others didn''t block the Dark Army to force them to fire right now. A battle at this level better took place outside of their territory. Ye Futian still had qualms and would rather attack the Hidden Land Realm.


    "The Hell made a comeback. The Buddhist cultivators naturally can''t stand by and watch," said the abbot of Tianxian Temple. He put his palms together and continued to speak to Ye Futian. "I heard them mention your name in the past. The girl probably will need you again in the future."


    "Qingyao would rather sacrifice herself than implicate any of us. No matter who she is and where she comes from, I believe that she will stay true to herself," said Ye Futian.


    "I hope so." The abbot nodded.


    "The Hell officially came out of hiding from the Hidden Land Realm and announced itself today although the battle didn''t break out. There is going to be a turbulent time soon," someone from the Divine Palace commented. Other than the Hell, many groups from the Outer Realms came to the Heavenly Mandate City earlier as well. Notwithstanding, the majority of them simply looked on.


    These groups and other top forces that would come from the Outer Realms later in the future would cause considerable trouble in the Void Realm.


    "I used to cultivate in the Divine Palace and can be counted as a disciple. It''s extremely fortunate for me to have your help and support today. Since there has been a drastic change in the situation, I would like to invite the seniors from the Divine Palace to come into the Academy to have a discussion," Ye Futian said.


    The Divine Palace was a group worth associating with. Ye Futian hoped to unite more forces to weather the changes that would happen in the near future.


    "Alright," the cultivators from the Divine Palace nodded in agreement.


    Ye Futian gazed into the distance and spoke loudly, "Not long ago, the Hell assassinated cultivators from various forces and caused turmoil in the Nine Realms to lure us to the Hidden Land Realm. Now that the Hell has returned, will you really be able to remain intact if you stand by indifferently?


    "Since you came to the Heavenly Mandate City today, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will set up a banquet and invite all of you to have a drink with us."


    His voice boomed through the air. Even people far away could hear him clearly.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had declared war on the Hidden Land Realm only a short time ago. It went without saying that Ye Futian invited people to go to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to bring the forces in the Nine Realms together and contend with the Hell.


    Did he want to attack the Hell proactively?


    Inside the tavern where cultivators of the Divine Palace, Golden Divine Nation, and Celestial Worthy Temple were staying.


    Shen Gao heard Ye Futian''s voice and said, "This man is not only remarkably talented but also has amazing courage and resolution. He would be a great leader with an unfathomable future if he reached a higher plane. The Shen clan could become even stronger if he were one of us."


    A cultivator from the Celestial Worthy Mountain said, "He wants to team up the forces in the Nine Realms to confront the Hell. It''s not as easy as he thinks.


    "Many groups are related to the Outer Realms and certainly won''t participate in the effort." The Celestial Worthy Temple originated in the Outer Realms and would never join a force led by the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Other than the Celestial Worthy Temple, quite a few top forces also had deep connections with the Outer Realms, such as the Solar Divine Palace in the Solar Realm and the Youyue Divine Palace in the Shadow Realm.


    Moreover, did Ye Futian believe the Hell was the only enemy?


    That would be wishful thinking.


    The cultivators from the Celestial Worthy Mountain certainly understood the argument and concerns of other top forces that were rooted in the Outer Realms.


    A different group of people was sitting in another direction.


    There were plenty of famous cultivators among them, including Jian Qingzhu.


    They came from Tianshen Academy in the Central Emperor Realm.


    Tianshen Academy was a group with immense power in the entire Void Realm.


    "How about we take a trip to the Heavenly Mandate Academy?" Jian Qingzhu looked at a senior cultivator with inquiring eyes and asked.


    However, the senior cultivator hesitated a moment and replied, "Let''s go back."


    Jian Qingzhu was surprised. Why would they go back?


    "Let''s go." The senior cultivator stood up and walked out while contemplating some ideas in his mind.


    The current leader of Tianshen Academy was the Jian family, to which Jian Qingzhu belonged. The Jian family had a solid background and immense power. They went to Tianshen Academy years ago under Donghuang the Great Emperor''s direction, and built Tianshen Academy, crafting it as the best Academy in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    A lot of people thought it was because they had the support of the Great Emperor.


    Only people of the Jian family knew that they were banished to the Void Realm for their crimes.


    The Jian family was an ancient aristocratic family that came from the Divine Prefecture in the Outer Realms. They were exiled to Tianshen Academy by Donghuang the Great Emperor.


    Despite having even more power than people imagined, they kept a low profile and nurtured the younger generations quietly. They raised many excellent cultivators who were already celebrated in the Central Emperor Realm.


    These cultivators would all become part of their resources.


    They trained Jian Qingzhu to be the leader of Tianshen Academy in the future or even the leader of the whole Void Realm.


    It was their goal.


    However, Ye Futian outshone Jian Qingzhu nowadays.


    ...


    A lot of people showed up in the Heavenly Mandate Academy in Heavenly Mandate City.


    They were all discussing what happened during the day. Besides Ye Futian of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, another person made a strong and lasting impression on the people in Heavenly Mandate City.


    It was Mei Ting, who stopped the Dark Army by himself.


    And it seemed like he only intervened because they spoiled his mood for drinking.


    Right now, he was sitting in the tavern and drinking alone again. Many cultivators gathered around the tavern, yet no one dared to come forward and drink with him. They could only stare at him from afar.


    This man dressed in black was a formidable fighter.


    He punched through the Fate World with one strike and slaughtered many Renhuangs.


    No one from the Dark Army dared to pick a fight with him. His absolute power was self-evident.


    After everything was over, he resumed drinking as if no one else was around.


    The banquet was quickly set up in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It was a grant feast with countless seats.


    The cultivators from the Divine Palace certainly were present while the Buddhist cultivators left before the banquet started.


    Besides that, most of the cultivators from the Youyue Divine Palace attended the banquet, including Chang Xi the Goddess.


    People from the Clan of the Seven Slayers in the Ziwei Realm were also there. They always had a fine relationship with Ye Futian and believed the Heavenly Mandate Academy could be a valuable partner in the face of the incoming storm.


    The Clan of the Seven Slayers was willing to join forces with the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    As Ye Futian said, it was difficult for a group to stay out of trouble and protect itself under the current circumstances. Everyone would be embroiled in the upcoming war.


    Ye Futian met the Lord of the Divine Palace for the first time. The Lord was a middle-aged man in his 40s with an elegant bearing. He led a secluded life and was not well known by people, especially the younger generation.


    He rarely showed his face, even in the Divine Palace.


    Huang Zhong followed him around quietly. Although Huang Zhong was a legendary cultivator with a perfect Divine Wheel, he still acted like a reserved student in front of the Lord of the Divine Palace.


    "I used to cultivate in the Ancestral Lands. It''s an honor to meet My Lord today. Let me propose three toasts to you," Ye Futian stood up and said to the Lord of the Divine Palace. He observed the etiquette for juniors and drank three glasses of wine.


    "Although you never met me before, I noticed you when you entered the Ancestral Lands. However, it seemed like the Ancestral Lands were not that significant to you," the Lord of the Divine Palace said with a smile. The Ancestral Lands could help cultivators develop perfect Divine Wheels. Ye Futian obviously didn''t need that.


    "I benefited a lot from my time in the Ancestral Lands. I''m almost a disciple of the Divine Palace," Ye Futian replied deferentially and humbly.


    "You were not so modest when you were in the Divine Palace." The Lord of the Divine Palace laughed. People around him all recalled Ye Futian''s arrogant conduct in the Divine Palace and started to laugh.


    He was so high and mighty back then.


    "My Lord is laughing at me now," said Ye Futian.


    Lord Taixuan, who was on the side, also joined the conversation. "Futian is practically a disciple of the Divine Palace and the founder and leader of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Looking at it this way, the Heavenly Mandate Academy is more or less a form of extension of the Divine Palace in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. We both impart knowledge to disciples and are derived from the same origin. I suggest we connect the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Shangxiao Divine Palace with a teleportation grand matrix so the disciples on both sides can move around and share their experience easily. What does My Lord think?"


    "I think if disciples in the Divine Palace will be exhilarated if they learn about this. I''m only afraid that my disciples will all come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy." The Lord of the Divine Palace laughed. He apparently agreed to the proposal.


    He was joking because the Heavenly Mandate Academy focused on helping people to develop perfect wheels, so they had been a strong attraction for top cultivators.

 1761 Chaos and Opportunities

    When Lord Taixuan saw that the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace gave his promise, he smiled and said, "The Palace Lord is most benevolent. Do you know if the Clan of the Seven Slayers and Youyue Divine Palace have any thoughts on the matter? Now that the Void Realm is facing such a major change, those of us in the Void Realm should be making preparations."


    The clan leader of Clan of the Seven Slayers did not come in person, but he was a powerful figure with great ability himself. The first disciple of the clan leader, the First Kill, was a man who looked to be 35, and his temperament was very cold.


    "I will discuss this matter with my master after I return," the First Kill said.


    "Mmm," Lord Taixuan nodded.


    "As to Youyue Divine Palace, I am afraid there will be people coming from the Divine Prefectures of the Upper Worlds in the future, so I cannot make a decision in this case," Goddess Chang Xi said apologetically. Lord Taixuan completely understood.


    "This time, the chaos in the Void Realm will not be limited to just the Hidden Land Realm. Now that the passage to the Void Realm has been opened, and without any definitive orders issued by the Great Emperor, I am afraid that another round of changes is inevitable," The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace commented. In this era of great changes, the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms may see a shuffling of powers.


    Lord Taixuan nodded in agreement. Unless Donghuang the Great issued an order, the power structure of the Nine Realms would change drastically. In the next few years, they would no doubt undergo a baptism of war. Some forces would die out, while others would rise against all odds.


    If the top forces from the outside world had any intentions about the Void Realm, they would not easily squander an opportunity such as this.


    For example, because Youyue Divine Palace also had connections to the outside world, they would not be involved with the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    At this time, someone came to inform Lord Taixuan, "My lord, Nantian Divine Kingdom has come to pay us a visit."


    "Please show them in," Lord Taixuan replied. Nantian Divine Kingdom was a transcendental power, and Emperor Nan''s cultivation was extremely powerful. If Nantian Divine Kingdom could form an alliance with them, it would be of great significance.


    Soon, the cultivators from the Nantian Divine Kingdom arrived, and the person in the lead was peerlessly graceful, stunningly beautiful, and seemed to be out of this world.


    It was the princess of Nantian Divine Kingdom, Nan Luoshen.


    Therefore, Nan Luoshen would not exhibit too much arrogance on an occasion like this.


    "The princess is truly stunning. Everyone, please take a seat," Lord Taixuan said. Soon, the cultivators from Nantian Divine Kingdom settled in.


    Ye Futian looked at Nan Luoshen and was a little surprised. He didn''t expect that Nantian Divine Kingdom would attend the banquet.


    "Princess Luoshen, what is your father''s view on what is happening now?" Lord Taixuan asked, referring to Emperor Nan''s Qinghe Divine Sword as the sword that had sealed the Gate of Hell.


    "Back then, on the order of the Great Emperor, my father had fought with Hell on the battlefield, in the hopes that the world would be peaceful and there would be no more chaos. Now that Hell is up to its old tricks again, my father is worried that troublesome times will once again descend upon us. Therefore, on this trip, my father wished that a teleportation grand matrix can be built between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Nantian Divine Kingdom. If there are emergencies at the Academy, we can take care of each other," said Nan Luoshen.


    Her words were surprising to Lord Taixuan, but he was delighted because it was exactly as he had hoped. He didn''t expect Emperor Nan to have the same idea that coincided with his own.


    "I had the same idea, too. We are so pleased that Emperor Nan would be willing to lend a helping hand. Please thank the Emperor on my behalf. We will immediately prepare to set up the spatial grand matrix," Lord Taixuan said with a smile.


    "My lord needn''t be so formal. My father had said that if chaos were to break out, it is not so much as lending aid to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but it might be that the Nantian Divine Kingdom would also require help from the Heavenly Mandate Academy one day," Nan Luoshen replied.


    When she spoke, she remembered her father''s comment that great changes were about to occur and that no one could predict what would happen in the future. Her parents didn''t have too many concerns except for her wellbeing.


    Therefore, this alliance was not so much to help the Heavenly Mandate Academy but to give her a backup if she ever needed it.


    Her father had commanded Nantian Divine Kingdom, and if there were no changes, he would continue on with his rule as before. In all of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, no one would dare to attack Nantian Divine Kingdom.


    But the outside world was a different story.


    The future was full of unknowns.


    When Nan Luoshen heard her father''s words, she understood that he had long grown tired of the fighting, and now that he was involved in this turmoil, he was worried about her. If anything were really to happen in the future, he didn''t want her to be entirely helpless.


    In truth, Nantian Divine Kingdom still had many other options. With the strength of Emperor Nan, he could choose Tianshen Academy or even the Shen clan.


    But he reckoned that he could still protect Nan Luoshen for some years to come. In the future, his bet was on Ye Futian. If he did not die before his time, Ye Futian would have a chance to surpass the emperor himself. Otherwise, if the alternative was someone not as good as he, what was the point in that?


    In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, there were indeed few who could contend with Emperor Nan.


    After the banquet was over, all the cultivators began to leave. Although this battle did not break out with the coming of the great army of Hell, it signaled the coming changes for the Nine Realms in the future, which would surely set off a storm.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy began setting up the teleportation grand matrix. This super spatial matrix would directly connect Shangxiao Divine Palace, Nantian Divine Kingdom, and the Clan of the Seven Slayers.


    Clan of the Seven Slayers also agreed to join the alliance.


    The reason why these major principalities were willing to form an alliance with the Heavenly Mandate Academy had a lot to do with the previous turmoil. The resolve shown by the Heavenly Mandate Academy was recognized by the entire Nine Realms, and such an ally was absolutely worthy of their trust.


    On the day the spatial teleportation grand matrix fell in place inside the city, Ye Futian stood in the teleportation area and saw the extremely radiant divine light lit up. The space formed a terrifying spatial storm as the currents of the Great Path flowed. Golden spatial divine light rose upward as if forging a channel.


    Many figures suddenly appeared on the teleportation matrix, and Ye Futian smiled when he beheld them.


    Success. Many cultivators from Shangxiao Divine Palace had arrived.


    Lord Taixuan and many other important figures from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were there, and they were all looking at the arriving visitors.


    "Greetings, Lord Taixuan." The visitor saluted Lord Taixuan by bowing slightly, and many people were also looking at Ye Futian, who was standing next to Lord Taixuan.


    Ye Futian saw many familiar faces among these visitors. Li Daozi and Li Xun of the Divine Sword Li Family were there, and they had come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate.


    Afterward, the light lit up again, and the cultivators from Nantian Divine Kingdom and Clan of the Seven Slayers appeared successively. Nan Luoshen and the Seventh Kill also appeared within their field of vision.


    The setup of the spatial teleportation grand matrix was a complete success.


    So, with the Heavenly Mandate Academy as the center, in addition to being able to reach the forces directly within the Heavenly Mandate Realm, it would also directly open up passageways to Yuanyang clan, Xiao clan, Dou tribes, Nantian Divine Kingdom, Shangxiao Divine Palace, and the Clan of the Seven Slayers.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy would be the strongest gathering place within the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. From this standpoint, no other principalities could compare with it, not even Tianshen Academy.


    Except for the fact that the Heavenly Mandate Academy itself still had room for improvement, it could almost be considered as the core of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Even Lord Taixuan and Shen Luoxue were delightfully surprised to see such a sight. The Heavenly Mandate Academy took an extremely important step forward.


    Changes and opportunities had always coexisted. Nonetheless, this was also because the recognition bestowed upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy by various forces.


    ��


    In a blink of an eye, several months had passed. Over the past few months, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path could be said to have been peaceful, but it could also be said that it had continued to transform.


    The Hell that unified the Hidden Land Realm was beginning to prepare all the forces in the realm. It seemed to want to control all the lands in its grasp and started to build a great army of Hell. As for Qingyao, who had already been sent away, that was their number one target.


    The next target of the Dark Court was the entire Original Realm.


    In addition, many principalities, such as the Solar Divine Palace and Youyue Divine Palace, had shared interests with some of the outside forces. Gradually they began to want to control the voice of the principalities within the Void Realm. Struggles were being played out all the time, openly and in secret. At the same time, they were also preparing for the great changes that were to come.


    Precisely because of this, the past few months appeared to be particularly calm, but in fact, undercurrents had already been surging for quite a while.


    There didn''t seem to be many changes happening at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but its relationship with various forces had become even closer. Of course, they were the forces with whom they had formed an alliance. Even Nan Luoshen was now cultivating at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which showed just how important Emperor Nan view this alliance, and it was by no means a whim.


    On this day, while at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian received an invitation.


    Someone from a principality inside of Divine Prefecture had invited him to go to the Heavenly Mandate City for a chat.


    Ye Futian happily departed to the banquet and came to a palace inside Heavenly Mandate City, with many cultivators in tow.


    Inside the palace, music of guqin could be heard playing, and it was extremely pleasing to the ears. A maid guided Ye Futian into the palace, and he saw a stunning woman playing the guqin quietly. She was wearing a white dress, with ethereal temperament, as if she was a goddess who had come down from heaven.


    Ye Futian and the others stood there quietly and listened. At this moment, a group of people came from the other direction. The person in the lead was an elder with a supreme temperament. He said, "We came from afar and are temporarily lodging here. It''s not as elaborate as we would have liked, please bear with us."


    Ye Futian stood there still, bowing slightly and said, "Elder invited me to here. How can I be of service?"


    "Sit down and talk," the elder said with a smile while he himself took the main seat. The woman next to him still played quietly, as if there was no one around.


    Everyone around the old man possessed extraordinary temperament. Ye Futian could feel that all of them were of the realm of Upper Renhuang.


    These men were very powerful.


    Nowadays, in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, his status was unquestionable. Ordinary folks may not be received by him even if they visited, but someone had sent out an invitation for him to come to their door, which demonstrated the highhanded attitude of the other.


    But here he was anyway.


    Now that the situation was unknown, and chaos was imminent. At this time, an invitation from the forces of Divine Prefecture should be treated with caution, hence his visit to parse out the intention of the other party.


    "Presumably, little friend, you have already guessed that we are from the Divine Prefecture." The old man said, "Allow me to introduce ourselves. We are from the Song Imperial Palace in Divine Prefecture."


    Imperial Palace?


    Ye Futian''s eyes sharpened slightly. To be able to take the name of the imperial palace, even if it was no longer ruled by an emperor now, there must have been a figure of the same level as the Great Emperor, another ancient and terrifying principality!

 1762 Battle over the Heavenly Mandate Academy

    Ye Futian was not clear on exactly how many forces from the Nine Realms had come. However, he knew that even in Heavenly Mandate City, there were already many top forces that were active all the time.


    Aside from the forces that had previously visited the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Song Imperial City was the first force to send him an invitation to come over to their place.


    Ye Futian sat there quietly and did not say anything, waiting for the other party to continue speaking.


    The elder of Song Imperial City continued saying, "When coming over from the Divine Prefecture, I came to understand a little about the events that occurred in the Void Realm. I have heard that, currently, the Heavenly Mandate Academy is facing a bit of trouble?"


    "We are doing well," Ye Futian replied. "Thank you, Senior, for your concern."


    "Hell is a power that belongs to the Dark Court," the elder continued. "Even the master of the Throne of the Underworld has come in person. Although he was held off by Mei Ting, Mei Ting was merely passing by last time. Next time, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will most likely face trouble. Even if you cooperate with the local forces, it will be difficult to stand against them. To my knowledge, the Heavenly Mandate Academy also has many enemies in the Void Realm. In the Upper Worlds, Shen clan is also a super force."


    "Senior, you seem to be well-informed," Ye Futian said with a smile. The other party clearly had already investigated the matter very thoroughly.


    "Since I came over, it is only natural that I should understand things clearly. Not only do I know about the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but I also roughly know about the various top forces in the Void Realm. For example, do you know the background of Tianshen Academy?" the elder asked.


    "There is a story about Tianshen Academy?" Ye Futian asked.


    The elder explained, "For Tianshen Academy to be able to become the top academy in the Void Realm was actually all the work of the Great Emperor behind the scenes. The Jian family of Tianshen Academy was previously an ancient clan renowned in the Divine Prefecture. They had many resources and were an extremely powerful force. However, because they had committed crimes in the Divine Prefecture, they were sentenced to exile in the Void Realm by the Great Emperor. He made them redeem themselves through their service. This gave birth to the splendor of the top academy of the Void Realm."


    The elder continued, "The Jian family has very powerful abilities. However, most likely, the members of the Void Realm are not aware of this."


    Ye Futian remained silent and did not say anything. Jian Qingzhu should be a member of the Jian family. Ye Futian never imagined that they had such a backstory.


    When Ye Futian heard the elder''s words, he raised his head. He knew that the elder had begun to get to his point.


    Did Song Imperial City have their eyes on the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is a place of teaching. However, being powerful is also the foundation of teaching," Ye Futian replied.


    "Hmm." The elder nodded and said, "Currently, the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s ability is already not weak. It is also allied with many forces. However, they are not the Heavenly Mandate Academy itself. Little Friend Ye, have you considered taking other forces into the Heavenly Mandate Academy? If the Heavenly Mandate Academy can have a top force of the Divine Prefecture backing it, not only will it be able to withstand against Hell, but it can also stand firmly at the peak of the Void Realm and become the top cultivating holy land in the Void Realm."


    The elder had already said it so directly; how could Ye Futian not understand what he meant?


    Song Imperial Palace wanted to take over the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    These top forces from the Divine Prefecture also wanted to hold power in the Void Realm.


    "Senior, what do you want?" Ye Futian asked directly, not beating around the bush.


    The elder looked at Ye Futian with a smile and said, "Song Imperial Palace can aid the Heavenly Mandate Academy to become powerful. However, we wish to be like what the Jian family is to the Tianshen Academy and become the clan behind the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Of course, on the surface, the College Chief of the academy is still Lord Taixuan. In the future, it can also be passed on to you."


    Song Imperial Palace wanted to stand behind the Heavenly Mandate Academy and become the force that controlled it behind the scenes. It wanted to take over the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Such ambition. It seemed that Song Imperial Palace was far more powerful than Ye Futian had imagined. Otherwise, their appetite would not be so big.


    Previously, when Ye Futian was chatting with the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace, they had talked about other forces from the Outer Realms coming to take over the top forces of the Nine Realms. Now, Ye Futian encountered such a case.


    However, it was naturally impossible for Ye Futian to agree to this. His ideals were the same as Lord Taixuan''s. Only by being independent could they control the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They had never treated the Heavenly Mandate Academy as a force that they controlled. However, once they let Song Imperial Palace take over, everything would change. Would the Heavenly Mandate Academy still be the same? There would no longer be any meaning in it existing.


    "Junior thanks Senior for your good intentions. However, I am just a member of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. I am not qualified at all to determine who the Heavenly Mandate Academy belongs to," Ye Futian explained. "Of course, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will also not be controlled by any one person or force. As the College Chief, Lord Taixuan is only working to pass down teachings. Hence, I can only politely decline Senior''s offer."


    "Ye Futian, sooner or later, you are going to leave the Void Realm. You don''t belong here. Song Imperial Palace will be a very good place for you. You can directly get in contact with central powers in the Divine Prefecture," the elder continued to persuade Ye Futian and painted a bright future for him.


    "It seems like Senior has yet to comprehend my words just now," Ye Futian said. "All that I said is true. I have not told any lies. So whatever Senior says now is meaningless to me."


    Upon listening to Ye Futian''s words, the elder fell silent and just stared at Ye Futian quietly. Ye Futian looked the elder in the eyes and did not retract his gaze.


    The elder obviously did not believe Ye Futian''s words. Based on the information the elder gathered, Ye Futian was the decision-maker in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. His influence in the Heavenly Mandate Academy might even surpass that of Lord Taixuan, who was the College Chief. Therefore, the elder approached Ye Futian.


    "Are you not going to consider my offer at all?" the elder asked.


    Ye Futian stood up. Bowing slightly, he said, "Junior will take my leave now."


    Even though he was somewhat irritated, he did not want to make more enemies now. Hence, Ye Futian still kept his manners even though he had lost interest in continuing the conversation with the elder.


    Suddenly, the music turned intense and rang in Ye Futian''s ears. He turned around and saw that the lady had stopped playing the instrument. Her gaze was fixed on him. Her eyes were extremely enchanting, but they revealed hints of aloofness. One could clearly sense that she was distancing herself from the rest.


    Ye Futian swept a glance at her and left. The members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy left along with him.


    After they left, the elder was still sitting at his spot.


    "They are ignorant of their current state," a stern-looking, middle-aged man who stood behind the elder commented. His aura was overbearing. Before Ye Futian and the rest left, he was pressuring everyone from the Heavenly Mandate Academy with his might. If the elder had given his order, he would have attacked them right away.


    "We are outsiders, after all. They are the owners of this side of the world. Naturally, they will not hand over the right of control so easily," the elder responded. "Moreover, this Ye Futian is talented and famous. I am sure he is very arrogant. Judging from his attitude, it is impossible for him to willingly allow us to have shares in the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    The group from Song Imperial Palace came here with a mission this time. They had to seize control of a force in the Void Realm.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was undoubtedly their first choice. This force had huge influence and potential. If they could win Ye Futian over to join their Song Imperial Palace, it would be even more perfect.


    Unfortunately, their plan had failed.


    However, they still had plenty of time, and they were not in a rush. Now that the passageway had been connected, the chaos in the Void Realm would last for a while. Other forces from Divine Prefecture would most likely make a move too.


    After Ye Futian returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, he informed Lord Taixuan and the others about this matter. Lord Taixuan and the others all realized that there were forces from the Outer Realms that already wanted to claim the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Prior to this, other forces had tried to do so, but they had failed.


    Song Imperial Palace would also definitely not be the last force to try to do so.


    As expected, the next day, in the sky outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a large group of cultivators descended. Their auras were frightening and had spread across the entire Heavenly Mandate Academy. Everyone could clearly sense it.


    Lord Taixuan, Ye Futian, and the others stepped forward and came up into the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They gazed into the distant sky.


    "May I know what business you have with us for all of you to come over to the Heavenly Mandate Academy?" Lord Taixuan asked from afar.


    "We are from the Divine Prefecture''s training holy land, the Holy Land of Taichu. Rumor has it that the Heavenly Mandate Academy is passing on teachings in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Holy Land of Taichu wishes to establish a cultivation temple here in the Void Realm. Why don''t we join forces and establish it together? We can set the Heavenly Mandate Academy as a branch of the Holy Land of Taichu. When that happens, the Holy Land of Taichu will be connected to the Heavenly Mandate Academy and will send cultivators from the Divine Prefecture to the academy to pass on teachings."


    A voice called out; it could be heard all across the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They were even more direct and overbearing than the previous Song Imperial Palace. They wanted the Heavenly Mandate Academy to become a branch of the Holy Land of Taichu. This act was so arrogant.


    The various cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were somewhat dumbfounded. The Holy Land of Taichu was actually behaving so high and mighty. They came from the Outer Realms, yet they wanted the Heavenly Mandate Academy to submit to them.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is the Heavenly Mandate Academy. We do not need other forces to come and pass on their teachings here." When Lord Taixuan heard the words of the other party, his aura immediately turned cold. This was practically too presumptuous. The Holy Land of Taichu was looking down on them completely.


    "Since you are a force that passes on teachings, the name of the force is not important. It is alright as long as you can pass on teachings and improve the conditions of cultivators," the other party continued. "Taichu Saint Emperor has peerless cultivation and has many mighty existences serving beneath him. He has trained countless outstanding figures. If the Heavenly Mandate Academy becomes a branch of the Holy Land of Taichu, it will only stand to benefit. There will not be any losses. I believe the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy will also not mind."


    "Please see yourself out. I will not send you off." Lord Taixuan immediately chased them away. It was impossible to have an exchange with them when they had such a haughty attitude.


    "If that is the case, we will return in seven days. When we return, we wish to experience the abilities of the Heavenly Mandate Academy in passing on teachings. If your abilities are not up to par, then the academy should step aside and let the Holy Land of Taichu pass on teachings here," the other party said. Then, he immediately left.


    When the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy heard this, everyone understood that the other party came over here merely to inform them of this. They were not planning to use methods of persuasion like Song Imperial Palace had at all. Instead, they wanted to take down the Heavenly Mandate Academy directly.


    This "takedown" was also somewhat different. They were trying to suppress the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy through their ability to pass on teachings.


    That way, the Holy Land of Taichu could replace the Heavenly Mandate Academy directly. By passing on their teachings here, just as they had said, it was no concern for the local cultivators. If the ability of the Holy Land of Taichu to pass on teachings was stronger, they would naturally be more suitable for cultivators.


    The Holy Land of Taichu merely wanted to claim all the hard work of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and directly replace them!

 1763 A Summer Insect Cannot Discuss Ice

    The people of the Holy Land of Taichu walked out, but the people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy seemed rather restless.


    This legendary force from the Divine Prefecture was too arrogant. They wanted to replace them.


    And their plans did not stop there. They were the wildest force from the Outer Realms that Ye Futian had ever encountered.


    "Let''s go back." Lord Taixuan''s expression was a little cold. He moved down, and his group turned back towards the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Hell is leading the army of the Hidden Land here to attack. We are all facing them head-on. Where does the Holy Land of Taichu''s confidence come from? They are far too arrogant," said a cultivator. His tone showed how displeased he was.


    Since the Holy Land of Taichu had come here, they surely heard of the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s situation.


    "What do you think, Futian?" said Lord Taixuan.


    "The fact that they dare to do this must be because they are one of the supreme forces of the Divine Prefecture. Their power goes without saying. Secondly, although they are acting arrogantly, they are still very smart. They want to establish their power by teaching in the Lower Realms, and doing that step by step by themselves would be difficult. If they can come right to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they will be able to spread throughout the world more quickly," said Ye Futian. "Moreover, they don''t want to attack us. They just want to replace us. This is very different. If the academy is completely conquered and they propose coming here to teach, there would be nothing wrong with that. Even if we don''t agree, they can found their own place to each in the Holy Land of Taichu."


    "Yes," said Lord Taixuan with a nod. "They just want to replace us. If they can''t, they can still use our name to establish themselves."


    The techniques that the Holy Land of Taichu was using were very different from what the Song Imperial Palace had done. But they were equally effective. The Song Imperial Palace was not a place for teaching, so they could not do things that way, but the Holy Land of Taichu could.


    In that way, the Lower Realms would regard it as a struggle between the teaching holy lands of the Divine Prefecture and the Void Realm. If they lost, it would only be a matter of course that the Holy Land of Taichu would start teaching in the Void Realm.


    Honestly speaking, many people in the Divine Prefecture wanted to establish their power in the Void Realm, reshuffling the cards in the Void Realm and making things just like they were before.


    However, from this, one could see that the forces of the Divine Prefecture attached great importance on the Void Realm. Perhaps it was because this was the Original Realm, the source of the Great Path, and the Heavenly Great Path. After the collapse, it could form a new world.


    And it was not only Heavenly Mandate City. The news spread quickly throughout the Nine Supreme Realms, including the Heavenly Mandate Realm itself. The chaos caused by the armies of the Hidden Land Realm had not yet subsided, and this caused new disturbances. Things were truly unsettled now.


    Many people sighed at this. The Heavenly Mandate Academy had truly become the center of the Nine Realms. It was extremely busy there now.


    At that moment, in the guest palace where the people from the Song Imperial Palace were staying, the old man who had invited Ye Futian was there. He and the others were discussing these matters.


    "The Holy Land of Taichu is very direct. They have never been in contact with the Heavenly Mandate Academy before, and yet they want to replace them in the most simple and overbearing manner," said a middle-aged man.


    The old man smiled and said, "The Holy Land of Taichu is very smart. They know that there is no use in negotiating. They must have heard about our conversation with Ye Futian and his conversations with the other powers."


    "So, can the Holy Land of Taichu succeed?" asked a woman, looking at the old man.


    "Their power goes without saying, as you all know. Their strength in the Divine Prefecture is vast, and their influence is truly terrifying. Many powerful figures have come from there. It is said that many of them have come here now. It must be very important to them to teach their ways in the Original Realm."


    The old man said, "The Heavenly Mandate Academy has made many alliances, and the Holy Land of Taichu will not go to war with them. But in terms of forums, even the academy and all their allies will be no match for them."


    "At that time, we will go watch the excitement. Maybe we will get something out of it," said the old man with a smile.


    "I''m going out for a walk," said the woman, then she rose and left. Many people followed her. Obviously, this woman was very important.


    Now, all the cultivators in Heavenly Mandate City seemed to be talking about this.


    When the woman came to a restaurant, everyone there was talking to it.


    The woman and her followers sat down. Another group of people was sitting in another part of the restaurant. One of them looked up at the woman. These people looked rather young, but they had powerful auras.


    They were from the Holy Land of Taichu. It seemed that the woman had come here on purpose.


    But the others did not know that. The people in the restaurant were all engaged in their own discussions.


    "Where even is this Holy Land of Taichu? They are too much! Are they really one of the top places for teaching in the Upper Reams?" someone said.


    "If they dared to do what they did, they must be special," someone else said. "But even if they are a top force from the Divine Prefecture, if I had some talent and was asked to choose, I would still choose the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The academy does things in a manner that I like. They act righteously. And not to mention that girl, Chu Yu of our very own Chu family. She has achieved great things there and forged a perfect Divine Wheel. Her potential is limitless. They do not look down on anyone there. And as for the Holy Land of Taichu, who knows how powerful they are? Moreover, they are a force from the Divine Prefecture. No matter how wonderful their teaching, the Heavenly Mandate Academy has Ye Futian. He is more well suited to teach powerful and talented people."


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s status within the academy was extremely high. Many of the younger people there worshipped him.


    "You are right, especially when we have many heroic figures like Dou Zhao of the Dou tribe and the Goddess of the Xiao clan. Are they any worse than the people of the Divine Prefecture? They are willing to follow Ye Futian and cultivate with him. I heard that now even Nan Luoshen is cultivating at the academy. She is the princess of the Nantian Divine Kingdom, Emperor Nan''s precious pearl, the light of his eyes, right?"


    Emperor Nan was a legendary figure.


    At that moment, a scoff rang out, piercing everyone''s ears in the quiet restaurant.


    Everyone turned and looked in the direction that the scoffing sound had come from. They saw that it was the great figure from the Holy Land of Taichu. Seeing how powerful he and his companions were, the rest of the people in the restaurant were silent. The person who had spoken before asked, "Do you think that what I said was false?"


    The people from the Holy Land of Taichu did not answer. They still sat there. The woman from Song Imperial Palace watched them.


    The cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu were so arrogant that they would certainly not deign to get into a fight here. Moreover, the ones who had come were all Renhuangs.


    "How many levels of swordsmanship has Brother Qing Ke mastered?" someone asked.


    "Seven," someone answered.


    "That''s incredible. I wonder if I''ll get a chance to test his swordsmanship while I''m here in the Void Realm."


    "I heard that the Heavenly Mandate Academy is training many people who have perfect Divine Wheels. They are probably quite capable. Perhaps there will be a time for crossing swords," said someone else. Suddenly, the restaurant became very calm. It seemed that they all knew who these people were.


    They were the icons that they had just been discussing, the people from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    It was just like when they had appeared at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Their words were empty and arrogant, as there would be none of the crossing of swords that they spoke of.


    This made it so that some people could not stand to listen to them. A Renhuang level cultivator who had his back to them said, "Although they come from the Divine Prefecture, they are blind to their actual strength. The people at the Heavenly Mandate Academy stand at the top of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path."


    The people of the Holy Land of Tianchu just smiled. But in the next instant, a suffocating sword will filled the restaurant. Everyone could clearly feel it enter them. It seemed that the place had suddenly been sealed off by sword will.


    And the Renhuang who had just spoken felt it the fiercest. It was like there were swords everywhere, and they were all as sharp as possible.


    Soon, sweat began to bead on the Renhuang''s face. He was under a great amount of pressure.


    But then the sword will disappeared. One of the people from the Holy Land of Taichu said, "A summer insect cannot discuss ice. You have never left here, so your perspective is limited to here. When your vision is so limited, there is no need for your opinion. Let''s go."


    On saying this, they rose and prepared to leave. But the woman said, "Is Mu Qingke of the Taichu Sparring Grounds here?"


    The people from the Holy Land of Taichu turned and looked at the woman, a look of surprise on their faces.


    One of them quickly guessed her identity. He smiled and said, "I would never have thought that the princess of Song Imperial Palace would personally come to the Lower Realms. Pleased to meet you."


    The woman just sat there. She said indifferently, "I wonder if the Tai''e Sword of Tianchu Sparring Ground is as fat as people say."


    On saying this, she rose and left.


    The Holy Land of Taichu was legendary within the Divine Prefecture. They had countless disciples, and they cultivated many different arts. Swordsmanship was naturally one of them. Taichu Sparring Ground was incredibly prestigious.


    It was said that Mu Qingke was the most masterful swordsman of his generation there.


    The people from the Holy Land of Taichu watched her leave with smiles on their faces. The princess of Song Imperial City had come personally. It seemed she was just like them. She wanted to establish a foothold in the Original Realm.


    Now all was clear.


    They turned and left as well. After they did, the restaurant became lively again. But the Renhuang who had been targeted before looked a little solemn.


    A summer insect could not discuss ice?


    Was the Holy Land of Taichu really that strong?

 1764 The Divine Prefecture

    Seven days passed in the blink of an eye. Heavenly Mandate City was bustling as countless cultivators gathered there. They were heading for the center of the city, where the Heavenly Mandate Academy was.


    Seven days before, the force from the Divine Prefecture known as the Holy Land of Taichu had come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy with their arrogant words to see if they had the right to be teaching the Way. They wanted to take their place, becoming the ones who would teach the Way in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    It was said that several days ago, they had shown their vast strength in a restaurant. Now, even people as highly regarded as Ye Futian were beginning to worry.


    The Holy Land of Taichu was too strong. They had come from the Divine Prefecture like a dragon crossing a river.


    If the two forces got into a fight, given the strength of the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s current alliance, even the Holy Land of Taichu would not have a chance. But they did not want to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy; they just wanted to enter it and become its masters or replace it.


    In this situation, it was impossible for the Heavenly Mandate Academy to unite with all their allies to surround and repress them. This was a struggle between the teaching Holy Lands of the Divine Prefecture and the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Once the Heavenly Mandate Academy came under pressure, then even if they could keep teaching, it would still be a great shock to them.


    After all, the Holy Land of Taichu wanted to teach here as well. And this was not short term; they would be here for a long time. Gradually, they would naturally replace the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Thus, the people Heavenly Mandate City paid close attention to this struggle. At dawn, cultivators from all over would gather together outside the academy like a sea of people.


    Everyone was looking at the character inscribed at the top of the academy. The light off of the Great Path covered an endless area, and everyone could feel a marvelous will. They all remembered the character that Lord Taixuan had once inscribed when the academy had been founded.


    Ever since the founding of the academy, it had withstood many storms.


    But they didn''t know if it would make it through this one.


    At that moment, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were with Hua Fengliu within the academy. Nianyu was there as well, enjoying the peaceful quiet. After the crisis ended, Ye Futian had taken them back from the Dou tribe.


    "Will there be any trouble today?" Although they were in the center of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, cultivators had excellent hearing, and Hua Fengliu could faintly hear the voices outside in the distance. People would occasionally go flying by through the air outside, coming towards the academy. But they did not dare fly directly above the academy but instead descended outside.


    "Mmm," said Hua Fengliu with a nod. He was used to Ye Futian''s boasting ability. After all, he was his apprentice, and thus the ability came from him.


    "I know that Donghuang the Great was very far away from Qingzhou City, but I did not know he was quite this far. Now that you have finally come into contact with the Divine Prefecture, these top forces that come from there will put some pressure on you," said Hua Fengliu. He was not totally sure about Ye Futian''s identity, but he knew that he was related to Emperor Ye Qing.


    Thus, in his view, even those forces that came from the Divine Prefecture could not block his path.


    Ye Futian shrugged and said, "You don''t need to worry about any of these things. I will take care of them."


    "Alright." Hua Fengliu aid no more on the subject. He waved his hand and said, "You and Jieyu can go. Nianyu, stay here."


    "Okay," said Ye Futian with a nod. He took Hua Jieyu''s hand and left. Nianyu wanted to follow them, but she looked at Hua Fengliu''s expression and just sat there pouting.


    Hua Fengliu watched them leave and sighed quietly. Although he looked carefree and unconcerned, how could he not be worried?


    After coming here, he had experienced a life and death crisis. The last time that Ye Futian had asked them to leave, he had been worried the whole time. He hoped that what had happened at the Holy Zhi Palace in the past would not happen here at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Someone of his age could not withstand a shock like that.


    ...


    At that time, there were many people gathered together at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. When Ye Futian arrived, all eyes fell upon him. They were all speechless. The man was actually unperturbed.


    "Ah, you''re all here," said Ye Futian with a smile, looking at everyone. All the people of his generation from each force was there. Dou Zhao, Xiao Muyu, even Nan Luoshen, and others were all present. Nan Luoshen looked at Ye Futian in surprise. Ye Futian was still enjoying the tranquility at a time like this? Was he really so confident?


    "Brother, I can''t wait anymore. Why haven''t the people from the Holy Land of Taichu shown up yet?" Dou Zhao seemed eager, wishing to fight as soon as possible.


    He was itching for a fight. There were few worthy opponents at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian smiled at him and said, "Don''t worry about it. Have you forgotten about the battle with Di Wu of the Solar Divine Palace? The Holy Land of Taichu is from the Divine Prefecture, and their core members will likely be no weaker than him. Even when fighting people of your generation, your victory will not be assured. Moreover, we don''t know for sure what tricks they will try."


    "No matter what, don''t try to hold me back this time, brother." Dou Zhao seemed to hold a grudge about the fact that there had been no battle last time.


    "If there is someone suitable for you to fight, you will have the chance," said Ye Futian. He looked off into the distance. It all depended on what the Holy Land of Taichu did.


    However, he knew that they had the advantage in a struggle between powers.


    The group around him all had perfect Divine Wheels. They were the preeminent figures from many major realms.


    If they could not suppress their opponents, then any other realm would not have a chance.


    "Do you remember the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace?" came a voice. Someone was speaking to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked and saw that the speaker was someone he was familiar with. It was Huang Zhong of the Shangxiao Divine Palace. He had come as well.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Shangxiao Divine Palace were allies now. It was only natural that their cultivators would be here.


    "Of course I remember," said Ye Futian with a nod. It had left a deep impression on him.


    "The Palace Lord said, there are many wonderful mysteries and divine objects in the world of cultivation. Some of the top forces of the Higher Heavens have rare cultivation resources, making them stronger than the Divine Palace," said Huang Zhong to Ye Futian. "Thus, we should never take our enemies lightly."


    Huang Zhong was normally very proud, but now, facing the Holy Land of Taichu he seemed to be a bit more calculating. Although he was proud, he knew not to underestimate his opponent.


    Back then, at the Shangxiao Divine Palace, he had been the only one to enter the Ancestral Land at that time. Thus, he had the right to be proud.


    But this situation was different. There were many people at the Holy Land of Taichu who were his equal. Thus, he had no right to be arrogant in these circumstances.


    Ye Futian understood what he meant. There were incredible treasures in the Ancestral Land of the Divine Palace, which could let the cultivator who got them to forge a perfect Divine Wheel.


    Would the top forces of the Divine Prefecture not have something similar?


    They knew that the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were now called the Void Realm by the Divine Prefecture. Before the path had been opened, they had been shut off from each other. Over countless years, most of the land''s cultivation resources had been used up.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. A Holy Land of the Divine Prefecture could also train cultivators with perfect Divine Wheels.


    At that moment, the winds and clouds changed up in the sky. Brilliant sword light descended from the sky, and the clouds opened up as they were cut by a sword. Then, a group of mighty figures descended, standing in the air above the Heavenly Mandate Academy like a group of gods. They looked down upon the academy.


    "They''re here." The people outside the academy looked up at the cultivators in the sky. At that moment, a group of figures walked out of the academy.


    "Let''s go," said Ye Futian as he and the others stepped up into the air. Soon, they had reached the edge of the academy and were standing atop an ancient temple, looking at the figures in the air before them.


    On the other side, the cultivators of Song Imperial Palace had arrived as well and were standing there calmly.


    In addition, there were the cultivators of several powerful forces within the crowd. All of them were from the Divine Prefecture. The one who had told Ye Futian that if he needed help, he could seek out his elder was there as well.


    In the middle of the crowd of people from Song Imperial Palace, an old man looked up at the cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu, his gaze falling upon a youth with his hair tied back with a headband. He was suffused with sharp will. As he stood there, he gave off the sense that he was both mighty and overbearing.


    "That must be Mu Qingke of the Taichu Sparring Grounds, known as the most powerful contender in the next generation of swordsmen. He has great potential," said the elder.


    The foremost skill that the Taichu Sparring Ground''s taught was swordsmanship. Thus, this Mu Qingke was the leader of his generation.


    Beside the elder, the Princess of Song Imperial Palace nodded slightly. They wondered if Mu QIngke would have a chance to show off now.


    The great figures of the Divine Palace stood within the Heavenly Mandate Academy, looking at the cultivators in the distance. One of them said, "People are gathering like clouds here in Heavenly Mandate City. There are many forces from the Divine Prefecture here."


    "How large is the gap between the Divine Prefecture and us?" asked Lord Taixuan.


    "My Lord, our world has the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. But in all three thousand realms, how much space does the place of human cultivation occupy?" asked the great figure from the Divine Palace.


    "In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, every realm is independent of one another, separated by an endless distance. This distance far exceeds the realms themselves, as there is boundless space added to it. The place where humans are active is just a drop in the ocean," said Lord Taixuan.


    "Mmm," said the great figure from the Divine Palace with a nod. "It is said that many years ago, the Heavenly Path collapsed, creating this situation. But the Palace Lord said that the Divine Prefecture is like an endless continent, not like one of our three thousand realms. The one realm is like a whole world connected together. It is so vast and has countless cultivators. Can you imagine it?"


    Lord Taixuan was shocked when he heard this. Although he had reached such a high level, 300 years ago, he had lacked some formative experiences, and thus had never left his realm.


    Moreover, for countless years amazing cultivators have taught in the Divine Prefecture from generation to generation. Where we are now is the original land, but in the eyes of the Divine Prefecture, it is just a forbidden land. There is no comparison," continued the man.


    The people of the top forces of the Void Realm could perhaps compete with the great figures of the Outer Realms individually, but all together, the difference in power was far too great. There was no way to make up for their lack. This was just the Void Realm.


    Because of this, many ancient, powerful forces had risen in the land of the Divine Prefecture, and all of them had terrifying histories!


    ...

 1765 Almost Perfec

    Both within and without the Heavenly Mandate Academy, cultivators from all over had gathered like clouds. At a single glance, one could tell that their vast numbers were divided into different camps.


    Among them, the two major teaching forces lay in opposite directions: the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Holy Land of Taichu from the Divine Prefecture. Both sides were looking across at their opponent''s area. There was a tense atmosphere, making it feel like the whole area was under a great amount of pressure that made everyone below the Renhuang level''s hearts beat without stopping.


    So many great figures that just their invisible auras were enough to make people below the Renhuang level feel nervous.


    The vast space gradually turned from noisy into quiet, as if everyone was stopping their discussions. As the aura grew stronger and stronger, it was not long before everything was silent. This strange silence made the area feel even more gloomy.


    The cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu were still standing up in the air. The one at their head wore a white robe and had a magnificent aura. He swept his gaze over the Heavenly Mandate Academy, then said in a loud, clear voice, "The Holy Land of Taichu is the foremost holy land for teaching on the continent of the Divine Prefecture. We have trained countless disciples, with many top-level Renhuangs among them. Now that a path has been opened between the Void Realm and the Divine Prefecture, we wish to begin teaching here in the Void Realm. We will follow the order of Donghuang the Great and let the martial arts of the Void Realm flourish."


    His voice carried through the air, righteous and awe-inspiring. It made many people believe that what he was saying was true.


    But Lord Taixuan, Ye Futian, and others sneered inwardly. If they really wanted to make the Void Realm''s martial arts flourish, why come here and directly build another holy land? Doing this was for no other reason than to gain a foothold in the Void Realm, giving them the right to speak and establishing their power there.


    Of course, the continent of the Divine Prefecture and the Void Realm were all controlled by Donghuang the Great. Thus, the man''s words seemed to be both correct and powerful. In fact, the Holy Land of Taichu was famous for its teachers. They had come here to teach the Way, following the will of Donghuang the Great. In that case, there should be no objections.


    "I have heard that the Heavenly Mandate Academy is teaching in the Lower Realms, acting as a holy land for the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Thus, we are willing to enter the academy and take it over, in order to help them teach the Void Realm better," came that clear voice once again. "Is the academy willing to fulfill the will of Donghuang the Great along with us and join hands?"


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy has won the trust of the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. All the forces of the realm teach the Way here, enriching everyone''s martial arts. So there is no need for you to go to any trouble on our part. Moreover, you are not of this world, and you are not our people. Thus, to be completely open and aboveboard, you should find somewhere else in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path to gain your foothold," Lord Taixuan directly retorted, his voice cold.


    "I heard that you were once the master of Taixuan Mountain in the Higher Heavens Realm and that you are not from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. And yet you came here to take up the post of headmaster? Why is then are we the only ones that you doubt?" said the man from the Holy Land of Taichu. "We came to your realm with open hearts and minds. We teach the Way in the Divine Prefecture, so if we enter the academy, won''t that be extremely prestigious for you? The people of the Void Realm will be the ones to gain the greatest advantage from this. Why refuse?"


    "Because your way of teaching the Way is not worthy of the Heavenly Mandate Realm." Lord Taixuan did not say too much. He spoke directly and mockingly.


    Suddenly, the area grew quiet again. Then, the white-robed man smiled and said, "We are not worthy of teaching in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?"


    "You are not," said Lord Taixuan coldly. Their way of teaching was to let all the people of the world cultivate, whereas the Holy Land of Taichu was different. They had come here with a purpose, to force their way in. This deceitful move was clearly not worthy of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    "in that case, there is no need to speak further." The white-robed cultivator waved his hand, and a terrifying wave of Qi swept out. He continued, "Since we are teachers of the Way, we should test each other''s strength, level, cultivation methods, and combat ability. Now, we will let the people of the Void Realm see who has the right to teach here."


    As he said this, he looked at someone beside him. The man stepped forward. As he did, his might swept through the sky. The clouds changed color, and terrible sword will flowed out, covering the sun. It seemed like there were countless swords above the crowd''s heads.


    His body was suffused with brilliant light, and it looked like his body had become a sword. He gave off dazzling sword light. He seemed invincible.


    Woosh!


    As the sword will flowed, countless people in Heavenly Mandate City looked up. They all felt their hearts tremble. The flowing sword will was incomparably sharp. It seemed like as soon as it fell, the whole city would be buried within it.


    At that moment, everyone felt a suffocating pressure.


    "An upper-level Renhuang!" Many of the Renhuang level people there could feel the man''s aura. He was simply too strong. The power of an upper-level Renhuang was absolutely terrifying.


    Lord Taixuan stared at the man as well. He could feel the majesty of his Wheel of the Great Path.


    As he watched, the sword will all around the man seemed to become solid, and now endless swords were swirling around him. The will of a Great Path of Swordsmanship Divine Wheel filled him. There were seven layers of wheels, making it a seventh tier Divine Wheel.


    The Swordsmanship Divine Wheels were incredibly brilliant and almost perfect.


    This man was very strong.


    To the side, the powerful figures of the Divine Palace and other forces all looked very solemn.


    "It''s almost perfect. Only the seventh wheel is flawed," thought the great figure from the Divine Palace. This meant that all the Divine Wheels the man had forged when he was a lower level and mid-level Renhuang were perfect. It was only when he reached the upper Renhuang plane that he had forged an imperfect, flawed wheel.


    There were three major levels for Renhuangs: lower level, mid-level, and upper level. But, this was further divided into nine tiers. On each tier, one could add a layer to one''s Divine Wheel.


    Each of the major levels of the Renhuang plane was a test.


    When one became a Renhuang, if you were able to forge a perfect Divine Wheel, that implied that all of the wheels you forged at the lower level could be perfect. But when you broke through to the mid-level, you were tested again.


    Thus, in all the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, of all the cultivators of the great forces of the Nine Supreme Realms, the only ones with perfect Divine Wheels were Ye Futian and those few others. It was not that there had never been any; it was just that later flaws had appeared in their wheels. If one wanted to maintain a perfect Divine Wheel, one had to keep moving forward and getting stronger and stronger.


    This meant that becoming a Renhuang was but a single step, though it was a difficult enough starting point. Creating a perfect Divine Wheel at that point gave you a great opportunity, for if you started at a lower level, you would never have a chance to get up that high. At least in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, such a thing had never happened. To go from an imperfect wheel to a perfect one required going against the laws of cultivation.


    Dou Zhao, Xiao Muyu, and others had cultivated with Ye Futian and thus had a high starting point. Thus, they had gambled the fates of their families by continuing to cultivate with Ye Futian.


    Anyone with a perfect Divine Wheel would hope at the very least to become a pillar of their force. If they stayed with Ye Futian, they would be creating a future. Thus, the Xiao clan and the others had stuck by him.


    At that moment, a cultivator with a nearly perfect Divine Wheel had come. There were few people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy or their allies who were at his level, who had maintained perfect Divine Wheels while they were lower and mid-level Renhuangs.


    Moreover, this man had been chosen to be the first one to step forth to fight. He must be a great warrior. It would probably be difficult to find someone to resist him.


    It had to be said that this was typical of the gap between the Void Realm and the Divine Prefecture. In terms of individual combat ability, they were no match for the Holy Land of Taichu. After all, they had come from a holy land in the Divine Prefecture.


    Lord Taixuan did not care how weak or strong cultivators were. But since this was a competition of teaching ability, and all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was watching, he would naturally respond to his opponents by the most advantageous means possible.


    "As you have said, the Holy Land of Taichu is a force from the Divine Prefecture, so obviously you have a much more illustrious background than us. We teach here in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and our names shake the Nine Realms. One reason for that is due to our philosophies. This is why we have refused to let you enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The second reason is because of some of the aspiring members of the younger generation. They are the future of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Since you have provoked us today, why don''t you spar with these younger members? We don''t need to compare members of every level," said Lord Taixuan in a loud, clear voice.


    All the people in the vast area agreed. What Lord Taixuan had said was true. The Heavenly Mandate Academy''s fame was indeed due to these two reasons. They had been pressed by the Shen clan and yet had defeated them. They had not hesitated to fight for Ye Qingyao. They had done everything they could to train talented people, helping them forge perfect Divine Wheels. These things were all very attractive to cultivators.


    As for the second point, it would have been more precise to say that it was due to Ye Futian. The people had been able to obtain perfect Divine Wheels due to him.


    The swordsman swept his gaze over Lord Taixuan and the other cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Then the sword will in the sky dispersed. He stepped back and returned to the crowd, his mighty sword will disappearing into nothing.


    The white-robed cultivator smiled and said, "You are very forthright. You know that your teachers have no way to resist the Holy Land of Taichu, and thus you try to avoid a fight. I have heard that there is a group of people at the academy with perfect Divine Wheels. That is where your potential lies. In that case, let them come forth."


    Obviously, the Holy Land of Taichu had been prepared for this. They wanted to teach here and take over the Heavenly Mandate Academy, so how could they have failed to find this out!


    ...

 1766 Overpowerd

    Lord Taixuan stared at his opponent, intently. It seemed like the conflict today couldn''t be avoided.


    The Heavenly Mandate City, as well as the entire Nine Realms, was keeping a close eye on the situation. If the Holy Land of Taichu wanted to pick a fight, the Heavenly Mandate Academy couldn''t chicken out.


    Lord Taixuan turned around and looked at Ye Futian, who was standing close to him.


    Ye Futian had to make the decisions.


    Ye Futian and the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Cottage represented the future of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They were the cornerstone of the Academy.


    The disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Cottage all developed perfect Divine Wheels. They were the only group of cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Academy that stood a chance against the Holy Land of Taichu.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy would certainly lose if they sent out junior cultivators in lower planes to clash with the challengers from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Ye Futian had been standing quietly for a while. At this point, he glanced around and realized that people were all waiting to see his response. Several cultivators were eager to have a try already. With a determined face, Dou Zhao was on the edge of his seat.


    He had been asking to be sent to the front before his arrival.


    And Ye Futian gave him the nod. As might be expected, Dou Zhao couldn''t wait to step up to the plate.


    "I will go."


    Another person spoke at this moment. It was Xiang Mang. Xiang Mang proved his path later than everyone else, and he hadn''t had a real fight ever since that. This was a great opportunity for him to see how much the perfect Divine Wheel improved his capability.


    Ye Futian looked at the rest of the group and said, "Let Xiang Mang go."


    "Good," Xiang Mang nodded, then stepped out in a couple of strides. He became a Demon Emperor with a stately bearing and a domineering attitude after he proved his path.


    Dou Zhao was slightly irritated. He stared at Ye Futian, his eyes wide.


    "Have some patience," said Ye Futian. Xiang Mang proved his path much later and was less powerful than Dou Zhao. Although they both developed perfect Divine Wheels, there was still a gap between them. Xiang Mang was the successor to the Divine Elephants, while Dou Zhao was the most talented cultivator in the Dou tribe.


    The battle between Yu Sheng and Dou Zhao back in the days already demonstrated how strong Dou Zhao was.


    Ye Futian picked Xiang Mang for the opening exchange as a means to temper and strengthen him. This would be Xiang Mang''s first fight since he proved his path. Such pressure could help bring out his latent potentials. Even if he lost, it could arouse his fighting spirit. Besides, Ye Futian could have a chance to catch a glimpse of the ability of the cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Bang.


    With a deafening roar, the trumpets of an elephant were reverberating through the Great Path. Xiang Mang walked forward while glaring at the cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu standing in the distance.


    Xiang Mang was bathed in divine golden light. The perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path in his body burst and radiated brilliantly. The shadow of the gigantic divine elephant was faintly visible.


    The old man in white robe from the Holy Land of Taichu turned around and looked at the people standing behind him. His eyes fixed on one cultivator, who then stepped out.


    This man seemed quite young and was at the same cultivation level as Xiang Mang. The Holy Land of Taichu was supposed to be the best place for imparting knowledge in the entire Divine Prefecture. Unlike the Shen clan, they couldn''t send out cultivators in significantly higher planes than their opponents from the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If they wanted to outshine the Heavenly Mandate Academy, or even supersede it all together, they had to win an overwhelming victory in the battle against the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Only that could smooth the way for the Holy Land of Taichu and help them establish their presence in the Void Realm without too many twists and turns in the future.


    Therefore, they sent out an exceptionally powerful and talented cultivator for the first fight. He was one of the best in the Taichu Sparring Grounds of the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Although most people in the Renhuang Plane in the Divine Prefecture couldn''t develop perfect Divine Wheels, some gifted cultivators from forces with a long history and rich heritage still had a decent chance of forging perfect Divine Wheels when they were proving their paths.


    The reason was simple. The Divine Prefecture had a vast territory and a sizable population. The cultivators selected by each force undoubtedly had tremendous talent. In addition, the top forces in the Divine Prefecture had more and better resources than the supreme forces in the Void Realm.


    Thus, there were several Renhuangs who had perfect Divine Wheels in each generation.


    Of course, to maintain a perfect Divine Wheel and advance to the higher-level Renhuang Plane was still extremely difficult even in the Divine Prefecture. Cultivators with such achievements truly were eminent masters.


    The swordsman from the Holy Land of Taichu walked out. He held a sword firmly in his hand. A terrifying Storm of the Great Path surged around him while he was standing still. The storm cast a shadow over All Heavens and swallowed the shadow of the divine elephant.


    His body became more and more indistinct. His shadows popped up in different directions then disappeared in the blink of an eye as if he was everywhere.


    Bang. Xiang Mang stamped his foot in midair. The Divine Wheel in his body surged and formed a towering golden statue of the divine elephant in the sky behind him. The massive elephant trod on and crushed All Heavens. The Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky, coupled with the Divine Elephant Massive Power and Xiang Mang''s Divine Wheel, almost made the sky fall.


    The storm of the Sword Qi rampaged around them frantically as if it could reach anywhere.


    Buzz.


    At the moment, the shadow of the swordsman in the Renhuang Plane from the Holy Land of Taichu appeared in different directions simultaneously. The Sword Will and the wind blended together and moved freely; it was as if they had become a whole.


    Blades of light shone brightly. Xiang Mang had an illusion that the Space of Great Path he suppressed was cut into millions of pieces, yet he couldn''t even detect the location of his opponent.


    Ye Futian watched the battlefield and thought Xiang Mang was about to lose. It seemed like that the Holy Land of Taichu specifically selected this Renhuang to hit back at Xiang Mang.


    Ye Futian had a devilish look in his eyes. Everything that happened on the battlefield was engraved in his head. He clearly saw that the attacks of the sword were real. The swordsman was moving so fast that he and the wind had become one.


    He could launch countless attacks in a second.


    Moreover, every attack was forceful enough to tear the space and sever Xiang Mang''s connection with the Great Path. The link between Xiang Mang and the Wordly Great Path was completely cut off by the Sword Will.


    Ye Futian had never seen such kind of technique before. The swordsman used his speed to detach Xiang Mang from the Great Path and fully surround him.


    Bang... Surges of the dreadful storm of the Sword Qi blew up around Xiang Mang''s body and engulfed him.


    The Renhuang cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu emerged from the storm. He twisted his hand and turned every wisp of wind in the storm into a sword right away.


    Countless swords charged at Xiang Mang and buried him in the endless storm of the swords in a flash.


    Xiang Mang roared in anger. The mighty shadow of the divine elephant stamped the sky, trying to charge out of the storm. The millions of sword jabbed on the giant body of the divine elephant and left innumerable marks.


    Xiang Mang''s perfect Divine Wheel brought him remarkable defense capabilities. However, his Divine Wheel couldn''t help him gain the upper hand in this fight since his opponent also had the perfect Divine Wheel.


    Therefore, the swords left marks on the shadow of the divine elephant.


    Each sword created a mark. Cracks started to become visible on the divine elephant when the damage was extensive enough.


    Xiang Mang let out a long and loud cry. Using the Divine Elephant Void-Splitting Fist, he shattered the space around him with one punch. The giant divine elephant charged forward into the storm. Everyone in the Heavenly Mandate City looked up and saw the divine elephant was trapped in the horrifying storm, struggling.


    The darkening wall of clouds completely obliterated the sky.


    Right at this moment, a man appeared in the sky. It was the swordsman from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    He unleashed the Divine Wheel of Swordsmanship. Millions of swords surrounded his body and rapidly rotated downward, eventually formed a deadly Hurricane of Divine Sword.


    "How frightening!" Many people shook with fear. All of a sudden, the swordsman vanished. The crowd in the Heavenly Mandate City saw the Hurricane of Divine Sword immediately moved onto the divine elephant.


    It was impossible to describe the power of the Hurricane of Divine Sword.


    The force of a million swords concentrated on one point��the tip of the Hurricane of Divine Sword. It was the ultimate attack.


    Then, the cracks on the divine elephant spread like a spider''s web.


    With a loud and clear trumpet of the elephant, Xiang Mang transformed into his original form. The golden divine elephant merged with the Divine Wheel and dashed against the Hurricane of Divine Sword.


    The violent storm swept the space, and the divine elephant fell from the sky. The crowd of onlookers in the Heavenly Mandate City all hurried to get out of the way.


    The divine elephant smashed on the ground with a loud bang.


    Covered in blood, the divine elephant apparently suffered severe injuries.


    Meanwhile, the Renhuang from the Holy Land of Taichu was still hovering in the sky high above. Wisps of wind, as sharp as blades, surrounded his body. He floated in the air and looked out on the people in the Heavenly Mandate City, said, "Even though the cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Academy developed the perfect Divine Wheels, their combat skills lack variety, and their capabilities are limited. This kind of education is bound to set people back and waste their talents and time."


    People in the Heavenly Mandate Academy didn''t know how to respond. Xiang Mang, in the form of the divine elephant, raised his head and made every effort to stand up and return to the sky. He felt aggrieved and couldn''t resign himself to failure.


    "Come back," Ye Futian said to him. The swordsman from the Holy Land of Taichu was right. The two sides were not on the same level. The swordsman applied a superior technique and completely overpowered Xiang Mang. Xiang Mang had been at a disadvantage since the beginning.


    Besides, the swordsman''s attack was powerful enough to breach the most vigorous defense and eventually wounded Xiang Mang.


    Ye Futian had to admit that there was a significant gap between Xiang Mang and the swordsman from the Holy Land of Taichu. Xiang Mang would only be injured more if the fight went on.


    Xiang Mang was not ready to pull back when he heard Ye Futian''s words, yet he still followed the instruction. People in the Heavenly Mandate City all sighed quietly.


    Even the cultivator who had the perfect Divine Wheel couldn''t defeat the challenger from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    It seemed like the Holy Land of Taichu was going to overshadow the Heavenly Mandate Academy after all!


    ...

 1767 A Powerful Opponen

    Xiang Mang came back, wounded and downhearted. Ye Futian said to him with a smile, "Your opponent is from the holy land of the Divine Prefecture. He is carefully selected to come to challenge us. It''s only normal for you to lose. The disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Cottage in the Heavenly Mandate Academy have to go through hardships and tribulations in order to take steps forward."


    Xiang Mang heard Ye Futian and raised his head, replied, "I understand. I''m just upset at myself for embarrassing the Academy."


    "It''s not that big of a deal. Don''t think too much of it," Ye Futian patted Xiang Mang on his shoulder and said.


    Xiang Mang returned to the team. The cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu was still standing in the void. His clothes flapped in the wind swirling around his body.


    Ye Futian looked at him. This man excelled at controlling both the wind and the sword. The two skills were fused together and transformed into the Great Path with terrifying strength that was extremely fast and pervasive. The final blow��the Hurricane of Divine Sword��converged all the power on one point.


    It was the ultimate attack that completely destroyed Xiang Mang''s defense shield. Cracks spread from the point of the attack, and the storm eventually tore everything apart.


    The swordsman chose a tactic that totally brought Xiang Mang to his knees. Xiang Mang was overpowered without any chance to fight back.


    Lord Taixuan and the others also glared at the swordsman. The speed of his movement and his sword attack was impeccable. Anyone who wanted to defeat him had to be either faster than him or able to lock onto him and launch an attack.


    Otherwise, even a cultivator stronger than the swordsman still couldn''t win against him easily.


    "Do you want to send more cultivators at this level or change it up?" The cultivator in a white robe from the Holy Land of Taichu said in an arrogant and domineering tone.


    Invaders from the Holy Land of Taichu were still standing high up and looking out on the people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy below.


    They aimed to win a landslide victory over the Heavenly Mandate Academy and leave them no chance to turn the situation around.


    People in the Void Realm would only remember the Holy Land of Taichu after this battle. The Heavenly Mandate Academy would be slowly forgotten and completely replaced in no time.


    "Yaya, do you want to have a try?" Ye Futian asked Yaya, who was standing beside him.


    Yaya and Sword of Lihen were both swordsmen in training. Ye Futian figured that Yaya could gain some experience from this match since this cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu also used swords. They could learn more about the skills and techniques of the swordsman with a perfect Divine Wheel from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    "Pull out," the man in the white robe said. The swordsman who defeated Xiang Mang before stepped back and left the battlefield.


    "He already had one fight and needs to rest," the white-robed cultivator said loudly. People in the Heavenly Mandate Academy could hardly refuse such a request. Sparring sessions obviously needed to be fair. The Holy Land of Taichu had every right to change their delegate. The Heavenly Mandate Academy couldn''t insist on fighting the swordsman by turns to wear him down.


    Ye Futian didn''t care if Yaya had to fight against someone else. He sent Yaya out because he wanted to see how much Yaya improved after inheriting the Divine Martial. After all, Yaya came from the Lower Worlds of the Nine States and had lesser innate ability.


    Nevertheless, Yaya had cultivated for two lifetimes and once transformed into a sword spirit. She was a natural swordsman with decent talent.


    Another person stepped out of the team of the Holy Land of Taichu. He carried tremendous momentum as if an invisible wave of energy was emanating from his body. He was quiet and steady, yet appeared as dangerous as a fierce beast.


    Ye Futian gazed at the man and sensed the indistinct energy around him. It seemed that waves of the Great Path ripped through his body and formed an invisible force.


    "The girl is going to have some trouble," Lord Taixuan said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded. He also realized that this person was even stronger than the swordsman in training before.


    The Holy Land of Taichu obviously was well prepared for this battle. They particularly dispatched plenty of strong cultivators in the Lower Renhuang Plane. After all, they knew that the Heavenly Mandate Academy heavily relied on Ye Futian. Therefore, they could vanquish the Heavenly Mandate Academy if they triumphed over Ye Futian and his associates.


    Yaya and the man from the Holy Land Taichu met in the sky. The weather changed instantaneously. Sword whistled in the vast space as the intangible Sword Will flowed in the void menacingly.


    Although the Holy Land of Taichu had been getting the upper hand over the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they were still astounded by Yaya, another cultivator with a perfect Divine Wheel, and her strength. The Heavenly Mandate Academy might not be a match for the top force in the Divine Prefecture, such as the Holy Land of Taichu, but it was surely a formidable place that was unparalleled in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Their cultivators would definitely become powerful figures down the road.


    However, their luck could have been better. The world changed, and the passage leading to the Outer Realms was opened again. Cultivators from various parties came to the Void Realm one after the other.


    The flowing Sword Will became stronger and began to dart across the void. The invisible force of the sword charged at the man from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    The invisible force of the sword instantly swamped the place the man was standing at as though he had nowhere to retreat to.


    It was an extremely dangerous attack. People started to wonder if the first fight would be more exciting if Yaya fought against the swordsman.


    The terrifying Sword Will materialized. A destructive rhythm charged across the void at Yaya''s opponent. Just when it was about to penetrate the man, an exceptionally forceful golden wave rolled forward and dashed against the Sword Will, accompanied by a loud and clear sound and beams of divine golden light. The Sword Will blew up into pieces.


    After that, the cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu lunged forward. A golden ripple transfigured into terrifying waves and frantically ripped apart all of the Sword Will in the void.


    "True Will of Waves of the War God." The cultivators of the Song Imperial Palace watching from the distance were stunned by the scene. They didn''t expect the Holy Land of Taichu would be so prepared that even this man came.


    "Who is that?" the princess of the Song Imperial Palace asked.


    "Who can it be? It''s his official heir," the old man replied. The princess of the Song Imperial Palace immediately thought of someone who was a war god and one of the three most powerful cultivators in the Holy Land of Taichu.


    "He acquired such power by integrating the Gengjin with the Great Path of Water. It''s deadly and invincible. Besides, this disciple of his also excels at the Great Path of Space and developed an extraordinary Divine Wheel with three Life Spirits. This man is so powerful that he may be able to contend with Mu Qingke in the future."


    The senior cultivator from the Song Imperial Palace explained. As he was speaking, the man continued to move forward. A giant golden wave surged with each step he took. The waves crushed everything they touched with devastating force. The Sword Will couldn''t approach the man at all.


    Divine swords took shape and spun around Yaya''s body. They formed a sword diagram, which was a high-powered sword matrix. Countless streams of Sword Will converged and were condensed into the sword might. A sense of foreboding permeated in the cold air. The Sword Will charged at Yaya''s opponent from all directions.


    The man stopped moving forward. He twisted his hands together and summoned his Divine Wheel. Much to everyone''s surprise, it was a golden Divine Wheel that looked like a golden divine eye with millions of patterns and shapes overlapped together layer after layer. It spun rapidly and expanded.


    Unprecedented waves of the Great Path rolled and surged in the vast sky.


    Everyone raised their heads to looked at the flowing Sword Will and the roaring waves.


    "What kind of a method is this?" People were astonished by its tremendous power. It looked like the Art of Supreme Attack of the Holy Land of Taichu.


    "Let''s settle the match with one last strike," said the Renhuang from the Holy Land of Taichu. His body vanished into thin air as he stepped ahead. His fist, on the other hand, blasted forward as straight as an arrow.


    The True Will of Waves of the War God transformed into countless Waves of the War God in an instant. The shock wave shattered everything. Yaya could feel her space was vibrating violently.


    She activated the Sword Matrix. Countless divine swords fused into one and pierced through the void.


    The crowd could only see two beams of extremely brilliant light dashed against each other.


    The flash dazzled people''s eyes. The rolling waves of the Great Path crashed and formed ripples in the void. The Renhuang from the Holy Land of Taichu staggered back a few steps, while Yaya, on the other side, was blasted back to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. She threw up a mouthful of blood due to the damage the impact did to her internal organs.


    Ye Futian moved swiftly and caught Yaya. They balanced themselves on the ground. Yaya''s clothes were already stained by her blood.


    "Go to treat your wounds," Ye Futian said to her.


    But Yaya shook her head. She said, "I''m alright. I want to stay here."


    It was a crucial day for the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Despite losing the match, Yaya didn''t care much about herself. She couldn''t accept the current situation the Heavenly Mandate Academy was in, and she wanted to stay to see how they turned the tables on the Holy Land of Taichu.


    They couldn''t lose this battle even though the opponent was the mighty Holy Land of Taichu. If they were discredited and humiliated today, how could they later compete with the Holy Land of Taichu, which intended to preach in the Nine Realms?


    They would be mortified in front of the Holy Land of Taichu all the time, even if they stopped them from barging into the Heavenly Mandate Academy today.


    Ye Futian looked at Yaya''s determined eyes and nodded slightly.


    ...

 1768 Yu Sheng Stepped Up

    The Renhuang who defeated Yaya didn''t return to his team. Just like the swordsman before, he remained in the air and looked out on the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Nonetheless, it was also possible for him to leave the battlefield after the Heavenly Mandate Academy sent another cultivator since that was what happened in the last round.


    There was no written rule for this contest. The initiative was in the hands of whoever came out on top.


    "Futian, there might be few people who could beat him," Qi Xuangang transmitted his voice to Ye Futian. As a Lower Renhuang, he was at the same level as the opponent from the Holy Land of Taichu. Therefore, he could easily detect and assess the opponent''s intimidating strength.


    Only a handful of people would be confident of defeating the man from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Even Dou Zhao could lose to him.


    Ye Futian nodded. He already noticed that the man from the Holy Land of Taichu was proficient at several different kinds of power of the Great Path. Not only he comprehended the Gengjin and the Great Path of Water, but he had also mastered the Space Will of the Way. It was even more impressive that he understood these powers so thoroughly that he was able to combine them and develop the extremely potent Art of Supreme Attack.


    "Let me go." Dou Zhao stood next to Ye Futian and asked to be sent out again. He watched the Heavenly Mandate Academy lost two matches and couldn''t wait any longer.


    Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao. The man from the Holy Land of Taichu was exceptionally strong. Even Dou Zhao could be defeated by him.


    However, sparring with a cultivator at this level was a valuable opportunity for Dou Zhao to gain some experience.


    "Go ahead." Ye Futian agreed to let Dou Zhao compete in the next match.


    Dou Zhao grinned from ear to ear immediately upon hearing Ye Futian''s instruction. He stepped toward the man from the Holy Land of Taichu in long strides. A frightening burst of energy charged forward and made the void tremble when he was still walking.


    "Why did you let Dou Zhao join the battle after all?" Qi Xuangang asked Ye Futian in a low voice. Ye Futian probably foresaw that Xiang Mang and Yaya would lose to their opponents in the first two matches, yet he still chose to send them up.


    "We can''t win every single flight. The Holy Land of Taichu marched here with might, providing us a great chance to put our disciples to the test. It will also have a significant psychological impact on the cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They will witness how strong and domineering the holy land of the Divine Prefecture is. But they will also see that the top forces in the Divine Prefecture are not invincible."


    Ye Futian looked ahead and transmitted his voice to Qi Xuangang.


    They didn''t need to win every battle and didn''t mind letting everyone know how strong the Holy Land of Taichu was. They had no way of hiding their opponent''s ability anyway. Ye Futian never intended to conceal the truth.


    On the contrary, he wanted to use the powerful rival to inspire and motivate people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    It looked like Qi Xuangang didn''t need to worry about his disciple anymore. Ye Futian was already looking at the full picture from a higher level.


    Qi Xuangang reminisced about the time when he took Ye Futian in as his disciple and let him leave in defiance of Emperor Li. He remembered why he liked Ye Futian so much.


    The great path knows no boundaries. Ye Futian was a real cultivator.


    He would undoubtedly become a legend if he stayed on this track.


    The battle already started on the other side. Dou Zhao and the man from the Holy Land of Taichu met head-on.


    The man didn''t step back this time. He remained on the battlefield and continued to fight with Dou Zhao.


    Dou Zhao activated the Will of the Fighting God and turned it up from fivefold to sevenfold. Nonetheless, he was still at a disadvantage.


    Dou Zhao was like a war god when he achieved the eightfold Will of the Fighting God.


    His opponent became stronger and fiercer. The True Will of Waves of the War God exploded and created an illusion that the sky had become a sea of the Great Path. Dou Zhao was powerful enough to punch through the void, yet he seemed inadequate when dashing against the man from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is going to lose again," the old man from the Song Imperial Palace watched the battle and said, "That disciple from the Holy Land of Taichu indeed acquired the essence. He has a profound understanding of the True Will of Waves of the War God. The Renhuang representing the Heavenly Mandate Academy probably comes from the Dou tribe. He possesses great power, but his attack is weakened by the waves of the Great Path. It''s not threatening anymore by the time it reaches the guy from the Holy Land of Taichu."


    The woman sitting next to the old man knew he was guiding her and watched the fight intently. As the princess of the Song Imperial Palace, she was also an excellent cultivator. But she could still learn a great deal from a face-off at this level.


    There were multiple ways to apply each type of power of the Great Path. The Great Path of Water was ideal for fending off attacks. How menacing could a punch be after dashing against the giant waves in the sea?


    The man from the Holy Land of Taichu brought such apprehension of the Great Path to the real fight. The True Will of Waves of the War God not only mitigated the attack from the enemy but also contained tremendous force.


    Dou Zhao, on the contrary, bore the real damage of his opponent''s violent strike.


    Right now, the man rained blows on Dou Zhao. The True Will of Waves of the War God put Dou Zhao on the defensive.


    "These people from the Holy Land of Taichu are so hard to beat."


    The cultivators from the Dou tribe were watching the battle as well. They sighed to themselves that the successor of the Dou tribe was probably going to lose the match.


    It more or less discouraged them.


    The holy land of the Divine Prefecture was surely intimidating.


    A loud bang echoed in the air. Facing the constant brutal attack, Dou Zhao reached his peak condition and held out for as long as he could. Eventually, however, he was still blasted away. His war-god-like body was almost shattered, and his internal organs were damaged by the impact. He was caught by cultivators from the Dou tribe and spewed a lot of blood.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy lost all three matches with little suspense.


    Dou Zhao refused help from the people who were holding him by his arms. He turned to Ye Futian with an embarrassed look on his face. He was so eager to fight, yet only suffered a humiliating loss in the end.


    He felt like he brought shame to Ye Futian and the Academy.


    Ye Futian moved forward and patted Dou Zhao on his shoulder, said, "Don''t worry too much. There is always someone better out there. It''s not a big deal to lose a fight when our entire world is called the Void Realm."


    "Yes," Dou Zhao pulled himself together and nodded somberly, but his face was still glum. It was impossible for him to feel relieved right away.


    Ye Futian didn''t speak further. Dou Zhao had to get over it himself.


    Because of Dou Zhao''s upbeat personality, Ye Futian believed that the loss would only motivate him rather than crushing his spirit. Dou Zhao wasn''t dispirited when he lost to Yu Sheng back in the days. Instead, it made him more committed to becoming better.


    "Do you want to continue?" A voice rang out.


    Ye Futian raised his head and gazed into the distance. It was the white-robed leader of the Holy Land of Taichu. He stared at the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and continued to speak, "We already had three matches. These two are among the best cultivators in the Holy Land of Taichu. But they are certainly not the only ones. There are plenty of powerful cultivators just like them, or even better than them, living in the holy land of the Divine Prefecture. The Void Realm has been sealed off and separated from the Divine Prefecture for many years. You have no idea how powerful the outside world can be.


    "Perhaps some people think our Holy Land of Taichu has ulterior motives. Indeed, we have our objects. The Void Realm is home to many excellent cultivators with great potentials. As the best school in the Divine Prefecture, the Holy Land of Taichu naturally wants to raise more influential cultivators and have disciples spread around the world. In the future, the Holy Land of Taichu promises to bring any gifted cultivator we encountered here in the Heavenly Mandate Realm to the Divine Prefecture. We will never hold back anyone who has real talents."


    The white-robed man spoke loudly and eloquently, "Lord Taixuan, if the Heavenly Mandate Academy also seeks to impart knowledge, why would you refuse to let the Holy Land of Taichu in?"


    To be honest, his argument was quite cogent and persuasive. Even the cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate City were influenced by his words and shifted their eyes to Lord Taixuan.


    Winner takes it all; loser stands small. It had always been the case. The Holy Land of Taichu and its disciples displayed awe-inspiring strength and gained the upper hand. At the end of the day, cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm cared more about becoming stronger. Even though they liked the Heavenly Mandate Academy better for now, their allegiance would change if the Heavenly Mandate Academy really lost its status. People in the Heavenly Mandate Realm would eventually accept the preaching of the Holy Land of Taichu. It was not a bad deal for them, after all.


    Therefore, even the Song Imperial Palace had to acknowledge that the strategy of the Holy Land of Taichu was exceptionally effective, albeit overbearing and disrespectful. The Song Imperial Palace had trouble copying this exact approach since they were not an educational institution and couldn''t launch an attack without justifiable reasons.


    Ye Futian raised his chin and looked at the man. He admitted that the man from the Holy Land of Taichu had a point. Nonetheless, he still believed that they didn''t have to attack the Heavenly Mandate Academy if they simply wished to spread their ideas and recruit disciples.


    They only wanted to establish their presence in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path by conquering the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "The Holy Land of Taichu surely deserves its reputation. It''s not strange for a top force in the Divine Prefecture to have such extraordinary cultivators," Ye Futian replied, "Having said that, things are not as simple as you make it sound."


    He turned around and fixed his eyes on a man standing quietly by his side, then said in a low voice, "Yu Sheng, go ahead."


    Right now, he needed to back up his words with real strength.


    ...

 1769 Traitor Of The Devil World

    Yu Sheng''s face and name were not that familiar to people in the Nine Realms. He was much less well-known than Gu Dongliu. Most people in the Nine Realms only knew Yu Sheng as one of the many first-class cultivators following Ye Futian around, similar to Swordmaster of Lihen or Yaya.


    Even though Yu Sheng once displayed remarkable ability in God''s relic, he had been outshone by Ye Futian and was less prominent among the several cultivators with perfect Divine Wheels trained by Ye Futian. Therefore, he made little impression on people outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    That was why the crowd didn''t seem excited when Yu Sheng came onto the stage.


    Perhaps, he was just another man who was about to be trounced by the challengers from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Many people cast their eyes on Ye Futian and wondered why he still hadn''t joined the fight yet.


    In their opinion, the cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu who excelled at the True Will of Waves of the War God was so forceful that even Dou Zhao with the eightfold Will of the Fighting God was not a match. It was beyond doubt that the Heaven Mandate Academy would only stand a chance if Ye Futian stepped up himself.


    Yu Sheng might not be able to turn the tide of battle.


    However, cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Academy saw the arrangement in a different light. Everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Academy knew that Yu Sheng had the most special relationship with Ye Futian and was almost like Ye Futian''s shadow. Although he always kept things to himself and cultivated quietly, he was the only person in the Heavenly Mandate Cottage that Dou Zhao didn''t dare to bother.


    Dou Zhao liked to pick fights with other disciples in the Cottage to practice and exchange ideas, but he never messed with Yu Sheng.


    Thus, many people were intrigued by what Yu Sheng could do.


    Ye Futian must send Yu Sheng with a specific intention in mind. Did he believe that Yu Sheng was capable of defeating the opponent?


    They could only wait and see.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward and went into the battlefield high in the sky. The man from the Holy Land of Taichu was still there, waiting to fight with Yu Sheng. Despite being the most renowned academy in the Divine Prefecture, the Holy Land of Taichu had a limited number of prodigies. In addition, this man was already the second-best among all the Lower Renhuangs who came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy this time. They were not in their home ground, after all.


    The man aimed to wipe the floor with the Heavenly Mandate Academy by crushing their cultivators with perfect Divine Wheels and leaving them no chance to redeem themselves.


    Everyone focuses their attention on Yu Sheng and the man from the Holy Land of Taichu. The Heavenly Mandate Academy would truly spoil their reputation if they lost again.


    They were beaten by the Holy Land of Taichu three times in a row. People surely expected that the Heavenly Mandate Academy selected the best cultivator at this level for the next match to end the losing streak.


    "Your disciples can still stay here as they wish after the Holy Land of Taichu installed a program in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Moreover, we will give priority to them and even send them to cultivate in the Divine Prefecture. Why do you have to be so stubborn?" the white-robed man from the Holy Land of Taichu said in a deadpan tone.


    It would be ideal for the Holy Land of Taichu to conquer and replace the Heavenly Mandate Academy smoothly. They would be very happy to coerce the talented cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Academy into obedience and bring them under control.


    Ye Futian heard him but didn''t respond. It was pointless to argue with him. Ye Futian had no other choice but to fight for their survival.


    A man was sitting in an empty tavern in Heavenly Mandate City and drinking alone.


    Since everyone went to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to watch the battle, the rest of Heavenly Mandate City was especially quiet right now. The neighborhood this tavern located in was almost deserted.


    However, the waiter in the tavern was still deferential and attentive to the sole customer. He stood in the corner and stared at the battlefield far away while occasionally glanced at the man who was dressed in black and drinking alone.


    He was the Devil General who singlehandedly halted the entire Dark Army of Hell left an everlasting impression on everyone in Heavenly Mandate City. He destroyed the cultivators from the Fate World and slaughtered many Renhuangs. Not only the Dark Army couldn''t contend with him, the King of Hell had to invite him for drinks.


    What a formidable person he was. Nevertheless, he was sitting in the tavern and drinking quietly at the moment. No one could tell how powerful and frightening he was if not for his stately bearing.


    While drinking, Mei Ting was also watching everything happening on the battlefield in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. His divine consciousness already covered the entire area.


    He slowed down and sipped the wine unhurriedly when he saw Yu Sheng walking forward.


    In a sense, Yu Sheng was the descendant of the legend of the Devil World. Mei Ting didn''t know about Yu Sheng''s existence in the past. Thus, he stayed in Heavenly Mandate City for days specifically to wait and see how high Yu Sheng had achieved.


    Obviously, Mei Ting had heard a lot of stories about the legend. That man was cold-blooded while capable of feeling pity for the human sufferings at the same time. He betrayed the Devil World yet was worshipped by countless people all the same, including Mei Ting.


    Besides, he truly lived up to his reputation as the traitor of the Devil World. He didn''t send his son back to the Devil World even when he knew that his offsprings would always be revered in the Devil World no matter what he did.


    His son remained in the Void Realm, one of the territories of the Divine Prefecture.


    Mei Ting wouldn''t know about Yu Sheng if he didn''t accidentally find his personal mount who happened to meet Yu Sheng in the past.


    Perhaps, no one else knew about Yu Sheng anyway.


    Mei Ting brought his thoughts back to the present and continued to watch the battlefield.


    Two people stood high up in the air above the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Burly and rugged, Yu Sheng was a head taller than his opponent. The Great Path transformed into a vast ocean, roaring and rolling, as the man from the Holy Land of Taichu unleashed the True Will of Waves of the War God. In spite of the tremendous force he generated, he saw that Yu Sheng, who was on the other side, remained standing and staring at him coldly.


    As if he was the only target in Yu Sheng''s eyes.


    Sima Xiao came from a distinguished family and was the direct disciple of a war god in the Holy Land of Taichu. He comprehended the essence of the True Will of Waves of the War God and was entrusted with the mission to promote the Holy Land of Taichu in the Lower Worlds.


    He was confident that no one in the Void Realm could contend with him. How would he stay competitive if he couldn''t remain unmatched in the isolated Void Realm?


    Nevertheless, Sima Xiao was unnerved when he met Yu Sheng''s unwavering stare. He immediately felt a sense of pressure in the face of Yu Sheng.


    This kind of pressure brought by Yu Sheng did not exist when he was confronting Dou Zhao before.


    He figured that Yu Sheng was an even better cultivator than Dou Zhao.


    However, it also meant that the Heavenly Mandate Academy indeed deployed the strongest fighter they had at this level, just like what Sima Xiao expected.


    The True Will of Waves of the War God became more and more powerful like a fierce storm. The golden waves surged and roared toward Yu Sheng.


    At the moment, Yu Sheng was wrapped in demonic might. A terrifying rush of energy burst out of his body before a frightening whirlpool appeared in front of him. The whirlpool was extremely dark and looked very similar to a black hole or a giant demonic eye. It appeared that it could almost swallow the worldly great path.


    The True Will of Waves of the War God storming toward Yu Sheng was entirely gobbled up by the swirling black hole and vanished from sight.


    Of course, Yu Sheng also had the perfect Divine Wheel. It was the Divine Wheel of the Demonic Eyes.


    Streams of dark, demonic air current became visible in the sky. Yu Sheng devoured all of the light and turned the entire battlefield into a scary dark whirlpool. The sky changed color and blended in the demonic world.


    A bolt of exceptionally domineering demonic Qi burst from Yu Sheng''s body. All the cultivators watching the fight were taken by surprise.


    Yu Sheng seemed to be very powerful.


    Sima Xiao raised his eyebrows. The Divine Wheel of the Great Path in his body swelled and released the golden Divine Wheel. The True Will of Waves of the War God, more and more intense, hurtled toward Yu Sheng like raging waves crashing onto rocks.


    Bang... A gigantic demonic shadow took shape like a statue of a devil. Yu Sheng seemed even heftier. Many demonic eyes with the power to consume everything started to emerge on the demonic shadow. In addition to that, the demonic eyes also appeared on Yu Sheng''s body.


    Before long, the demonic eyes formed a wall in front of Yu Sheng and absorbed all the power of the Great Path generated by Sima Xiao.


    Sima Xiao couldn''t use his Divine Wheel to subdue his opponent this time. It was apparent that he was not capable of overpowering Yu Sheng''s Divine Wheel.


    Sima Xiao''s arm rotated slightly, and the True Will of Waves of the War God converged on it. He stepped forward and launched the Storm of the Great Path. Like a bolt of golden lightning, he streaked across the sky toward Yu Sheng''s body and punched him with tremendous momentum. Waves of the Great Path rose and pounded against Yu Sheng, seeking to smash his defense.


    Bang!


    Yu Sheng moved forward as well. His forceful step made the sky tremble. He struck with his fist, just like Sima Xiao. The demonic eyes discharged monstrous demonic might. The dark-colored Fist Will charged forward with great penetrating power and dashed against the incoming waves.


    Bang...


    With a dull thudding sound, the storm rushed off in all directions. The cultivators in the Renhuang Plane standing around had to exert their strength to protect themselves from the storm. Still, many people watching the flight were blasted away. It was not difficult to imagine how high-powered the storm was.


    Countless people stared at the sky and noticed the giant demonic shadow was still towering over everything else. Sima Xiao was flung away this time and couldn''t balance himself until miles away.


    "This..."


    Many people felt their hearts pounding in the chests. How could Yu Sheng from the Heavenly Mandate Academy be so powerful?


    ...

 1770 The Famous Strike

    Sima Xiao defeated both Yaya and Dou Zhao earlier this day and showed off the magnificent Art of Supreme Attack to people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    His True Will of Waves of the War God was excellent at both offense and defense. The terrifying destructive power of the waves of the war god could damage the opponent''s internal organs and wipe out the spiritual soul from afar.


    It also had the uncanny defensive ability that could weaken the attack from his opponent until it was no longer a threat.


    Dou Zhao from the Dou tribe had reached his limit when he activated the eightfold Will of the Fighting God. But he was still crushed by Sima Xiao during their match.


    At that time, the Holy Land of Taichu had won all three fights and made everyone in the field watching the battle believe that the Heavenly Mandate Academy had lost all hope to turn the tide and redeem themselves. Since Ye Futian already advanced to the Divine Wheel Second Order, no one in the Divine Wheel First Order from the Heavenly Mandate Academy could be a match for Sima Xiao.


    Sima Xiao stood upright with an unconquerable pride after he clobbered Dou Zhao.


    However, Yu Sheng came out of nowhere and blasted Sima Xiao away with one punch just when he was glowing. One could well imagine what an incredible shock it was to the people watching the fight.


    It turned out that cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu could still be defeated.


    How could Yu Sheng, someone who was virtually unknown to people outside of the Heaven Mandate Academy, be so powerful?


    It appeared that his direct attack power was even more striking than Dou Zhao, the heir of the Dou tribe.


    On top of that, Yu Sheng''s domineering Divine Wheel of the Demonic Eyes did not simply swallow the Great Path. It absorbed and incorporated the energy from Sima Xiao''s attack before firing back at him altogether. The demonic waves it created at that moment were no different from Sima Xiao''s waves of the war god.


    What staggered the crowd the most was that the demonic waves of the war god generated by Yu Sheng seemed even more potent that Sima Xiao''s True Will of Waves of the War God. Otherwise, how would it be possible for Yu Sheng to knock Sima Xiao over? This kind of power was beyond words...


    Disciples in the Heavenly Mandate Academy clenched their fists tightly and were overwhelmed by both nervousness and excitement. Even cultivators in the Renhuang Plane were staring intently at the battlefield with their stomachs in knots. Dou Zhao had been beaten by Yu Sheng before and certainly had first-hand knowledge of Yu Sheng''s ability. He was thrilled to see Yu Sheng finally joined the battle.


    Sima Xiao was stupefied by Yu Sheng as well. He struggled to maintain balance and could feel the energy tumbling in his body. He was astounded that Yu Sheng could turn his own strength against him.


    In the meantime, Sima Xiao''s desire to fight also intensified. Strong-willed and unyielding, he stepped forward once again as if he was not disheartened by the blow moments ago. How could a person like him weaken his determination for a temporary setback? He was not truly defeated yet.


    It seemed like the True Will of Waves in the sky suddenly came to a standstill. The True Will of Waves of the War God didn''t strike at Yu Sheng against for fear of being absorbed once more.


    Sima Xiao waved his arms and triggered the Divine Wheel. A massive golden pattern became visible around him. Like a golden pool of water, it rippled in all directions with Sima Xiao''s body at the center and spread to the entire sky. The air vibrated violently as the True Will of Waves of the War God that came to rest just now suddenly became stronger.


    Sima Xiao lifted his foot and took a step forward. The invisible, terrifying power of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path swept toward Yu Sheng''s body.


    The sky was almost blown into pieces following a loud booming sound. Sima Xiao wanted to use the power of his golden Divine Wheel to crush Yu Sheng''s Divine Wheel.


    Nevertheless, Yu Sheng clenched his fists swiftly and conjured up countless demonic eyes on the demon''s body. But that was not all. Millions of demonic eyes also became visible everywhere, both in the sky and on the ground.


    As if the vast battlefield was transformed into a demonic world just now.


    Forming the Divine Wheel was the symbol of advancing to the Renhuang Plane. The cultivator had to integrate his soul with the wordly great path and infuse his comprehension of the Great Path into his Life Spirit to develop his Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Different cultivators could generate completely different Divine Wheels due to distinctions in their Life Spirits, souls, and their comprehension of the Great Path. Even Divine Wheels in the same order didn''t possess the same amount of power.


    Sima Xiao''s Divine Wheel combined the Great Path of Water and Gengjin and was even integrated with the True Will of Waves of the War God. With such a perfect and extremely potent Divine Wheel, no wonder Sima Xiao wanted to bring Yu Sheng to his knees straight away.


    Unfortunately, he only realized now that he didn''t have any advantage over Yu Sheng in terms of the Divine Wheel. Moreover, his Divine Wheel was subdued by Yu Sheng''s.


    The countless demonic eyes that appeared in the sky constructed a massive demonic net that surrounded the entire battlefield and consumed everything within, including the Law Power.


    This kind of Divine Wheel was truly masterful and dominating.


    Sima Xiao had always been an arrogant person who was extremely proud of his Divine Wheel. He was certain that his Divine Wheel of the Great Path was a cut above all of his peers''. It would become even better when he advanced to higher levels and gained a deeper understanding of the Great Path.


    Nonetheless, the Divine Wheel that brought him great pride was humbled by a cultivator from the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Bang. Yu Sheng also walked a few steps forward. It was like he stamped on Sima Xiao''s heart with absolute supremacy and mastery.


    Sima Xiao looked into Yu Sheng''s eyes and felt that Yu Sheng was more like a demonic god than a flesh and blood human. That pair of eyes trapped Sima Xiao in an illusion of thousands of demons worshipping their god.


    As if Yu Sheng was born to rule the devils.


    The vast space transformed into a frightening whirlpool where innumerable Demonic Eyes of the Great Path were spinning around in a frenzy and devouring the power within.


    Even cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu were unsettled by the scene.


    They were perceptive, astute cultivators at an exceptionally high level and certainly understood the situation.


    This was different from the previous matches. Sima Xiao got the upper hand over Yaya and Dou Zhao, but his Divine Wheel was overpowered this time.


    At this moment, Sima Xiao had less vigor as well as an inferior Divine Wheel.


    The Holy Land of Taichu might lose this match.


    A strange expression briefly crossed the face of the cultivator dressed in a white robe as he frowned slightly. Unlike people in the Void Realm, he thoroughly understood how powerful Sima Xiao was. Sima Xiao was a remarkable cultivator even in the Holy Land of Taichu and was entrusted with the mission to promote the Holy Land of Taichu in the Void Realm.


    He was pretty confident that not only would Sima Xiao not lose, he could also demolish the cultivators with so-called perfect Divine Wheels in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Nevertheless, his confidence had been fraying at the edges ever since Yu Sheng stepped out. He was especially demoralized now since Yu Sheng had turned the tide.


    Yu Sheng made a move under the white-robed man''s watch. He leaped across the battlefield in one step and landed right in front of Sima Xiao. He threw a punch straight ahead just like what Sima Xiao did; it was plain and simple with dominating power.


    The Divine Wheel was set in motion, and the storm surged from the demonic eyes along with the Fist Will. A scary, black whirlpool appeared in front of Yu Sheng''s fist. Facing the direct attack from Yu Sheng, Sima Xiao knew he couldn''t back off.


    Therefore, he responded with a punch as well. With the maximum True Will of Waves of the War God, the golden waves charged ahead and shattered the space.


    It was another head-on clash that seemed to be overly basic. But the fist was the most effective weapon that contained the greatest strength.


    Bang...


    There was not any light screen expanding in all directions like the last time. Everything was annihilated when the two fists came into collision. Nonetheless, Yu Sheng was still moving forward. His fist drilled through the horrifying waves of the Great Path and cleared a path with absolute authority.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    The True Will of Waves of the War God that could weaken the incoming attack disintegrated into pieces and hit on Sima Xiao''s body. It was proven that nothing was invincible in the face of absolute power. One punch could destroy the most superb defense.


    The light rune of the Great Path of Space came into view. Sima Xiao''s body sunk into the void and was about to fade away.


    However, Yu Sheng''s Fist Will penetrated the void and thrust into the passageway directly.


    Sima Xiao''s body reappeared in someplace far away. But the Fist Will caught up with Sima Xiao and crushed his defense. Once again, Sima Xiao was blasted away. Blood spurted out of his mouth as his internal organs were badly damaged.


    It seemed quite similar to what happened to Dou Zhao before.


    As though Yu Sheng intentionally chose to beat Sima Xiao with the same move Sima Xiao used on Dou Zhao. It even achieved the same results.


    Yu Sheng pulled back his fist after Sima Xiao was sent flying. The demonic might was still rolling in the sky. Everyone raised their heads and looked at the strapping man standing in the void. How wild, fierce, and overbearing he was.


    His image burned in everybody''s memory. Years later, people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm still regarded this fight as the one that made Yu Sheng''s name.


    Yu Sheng rose to fame with one strike.


    He blasted away the genius from the Holy Land of Taichu and accomplished something thought to be impossible by people in the Heavenly Mandate Realm!


    ...

 1771 Dominance

    Inside that tavern at Heavenly Mandate City, Mei Ting was still sitting there quietly, drinking.


    But what had just taken place also appeared in his divine consciousness.


    No wonder he was the one who possessed the noblest bloodline in the Devil World. A natural-born demon Lord, who could conquer everything in this world. If he grew up in the Devil World, perhaps he would have been stronger still.


    Yu Sheng stood in the battlefield high above the sky; his dark demonic eyes swept toward the cultivators from Holy Land of Taichu. He declared with the most domineering attitude that even those from the holy land of Divine Prefecture were not invincible. They could still be crushed by the strongest of them all.


    "Next."


    Yu Sheng spoke. His voice was incredibly domineering and full of contempt. It was as if, in his eyes, he had never taken the cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu into consideration. To him, they were just the "next ones."


    This was completely contradictory to the situation that had occurred just now. It seemed to be a total reversal.


    All around the Heavenly Mandate Academy, there was an exceptional quietude. Countless cultivators watched what was playing out in front of them silently, and many felt a surging excitement, especially the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Losing the previous three battles had been a tremendous blow to them, and now they could felt blood boiling in their veins.


    Next.


    The Holy Land of Taichu was known as the holy land of preaching in Divine Prefecture. It had come to provoke the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy to show its contempt, intending to crush the academy beneath its feet.


    Now that Sima Xiao had been defeated, who else could defeat Yu Sheng in this realm?


    Countless many were staring in the direction of the Holy Land of Taichu. They were also curious to see if stronger men than Sima Xiao would step up from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    But at this time, the reality was clear as day to those from the Holy Land of Taichu. They knew for a fact that for the likes of Sima Xiao to be so forcibly crushed, that there would be no one in this realm who could possibly hope to suppress Yu Sheng.


    "You go." The old man in white looked at the swordsman, who was the first to make a move. He was the one who had defeated Xiang Mang.


    This cultivator was unparalleled in speed. His expertise lay in the Great Path of wind, and he had blended that into the Great Path of tearing swords. Not only was he invincible, but his speed was extremely fast, just like his sword.


    Everyone understood that they intend to win with speed.


    Yu Sheng''s strength was second to none, but his speed was bound to be much slower.


    Yu Sheng glanced at the opponent with cold indifference, and the Divine Wheel of the Demonic Eyes once again appeared in this space. Countless vortices of the Demonic Eyes instantly swallowed up the Way of heaven and earth, covering the sky.


    He raised his arms and stretched his hands forward. In the next moment, a terrifying hurricane seemed to appear in his palms. And it was not only in his palms, but that huge shadow of the demon god and the demonic eyes between the heaven and the earth had both turned into one terrible vortex, swallowing the power of the Great Path within this space.


    Everyone saw that the afterimages of that Renhuang seemed to be distorted, giving the impression that the power of the Great Path was affected, and that it had lost the smooth flow that it previously had when it was integrated into the space.


    "Suppression of the Great Path."


    Everyone''s hearts were beating fast. This overbearing Divine Wheel and this dominant will of the Great Path had directly smashed the opponent without any fancy tricks.


    No matter how fast the speed, once suppressed by the Great Path, the truth was revealed.


    The same perfect Divine Wheel had been suppressed equally.


    The impression was that Yu Sheng had forged an absolute demonic space with his power of the Great Path. It was a world in which he ruled, and anyone who confronted him within this world would most certainly be suppressed by him.


    The Sword Will flashed in different directions, and the other seemed to know that he couldn''t afford to wait any longer, or his Great Path would be suppressed even more, and then there would be no chance for him at all.


    In an instant, infinite sword light appeared around Yu Sheng, tearing the void where he stood.


    Bang!


    He stepped forward the moment the sword light exploded. His retracted arms slammed forward as if he had no specific target but to slam them into the void.


    When he blasted with his punch, the space in front of him seemed to freeze suddenly. The Great Path was suppressed, as all the afterimages stopped moving, and those swords seemed unable to advance.


    Boom... The fist will pierced through the void. Dark fist aurora swept out. Immediately after, everyone saw a figure flew out upside down. The body was tilted, arched, and it was blown out. There was a cracking sound that came from inside the body. It was as if all his internal organs were shattered, and cracks also appeared in his Divine Wheel.


    When they saw what had happened, a cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu came forward to catch him in the fall. After the opponent stopped falling, his body trembled as he spat out a mouthful of blood. All his clothes were reddened, and his breath was weakened instantaneously to the extreme. A Renhuang was debilitated so suddenly, no longer the audacious individual he was before.


    "Suppressing the Great Path, the power of the Great Path!"


    The cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu stared in Yu Sheng''s direction. The two blended into his fist will, and it was another simple strike. There was no technique to speak of, only absolute power. It was as if the simplest way for Yu Sheng was also the strongest.


    No matter what they did, he was still invincible.


    Before, even Sima Xiao''s True Will of Waves was pierced by Yu Sheng, and he was seriously injured. It was only conceivable that this swordsman, without the weakening and blocking of the Great Path, to be blasted like this by Yu Sheng''s fist, he was probably only half alive now.


    Across a long distance, many felt the misery experienced by that Renhuang.


    This strike was seriously horrific. No one could imagine the outcome of being on the receiving end of such a strike.


    "Next," Yu Sheng continued. His indifferent voice still gave everyone who heard it a feeling of extreme aggression.


    There was silence again; very quiet.


    This man, with his own power, had completely kept the Holy Land of Taichu in check. Two genius talents from the Holy Land of Taichu were blasted out with a single strike in succession.


    The Holy Land of Taichu had come to trample on the Heavenly Mandate Academy to prove their superiority, but now they were trampled mercilessly by Yu Sheng.


    Seeing the silence coming from the Holy Land of Taichu, an old man in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy spoke, "Aren''t you the holy land for preaching from Divine Prefecture of the Upper Worlds? With such a lofty title, you have invaded the Heavenly Mandate Academy as if it was the Academy who should be honored. Now, you won''t just have one or two people who could come out and battle, do you?"


    "So, it seems that the Holy Land of Taichu came here prepared, and sent the strongest among you right away to the field? You don''t have anyone else that is good?" someone else spoke again. All these voices sounded extremely exhilarating at this moment.


    The feeling of unjust persecution was being released.


    The truth was that it wasn''t because there was no one from the Holy Land of Taichu. They were fully prepared this time and brought a lot of cultivators with them. However, Sima Xiao was indeed the topmost cultivator from of the Lower Worlds, at least in this realm, no one could surpass him. However, since he was defeated by Yu Sheng, there was indeed no one else they had who could come out and battle.


    At this time, the cultivator in white said, "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is worthy of being the most prestigious preaching place in the Void Realm today, with impressive talents. Just as I thought, if it can be unified with the Holy Land of Taichu, there are bound to be more dazzling figures that will emerge..."


    "Are you still fighting?" Ye Futian interrupted, speaking loud and clear, which shocked the cultivator in white as his eyes swept toward the direction where Ye Futian was.


    "Everyone knows the purpose of your coming, so you don''t need to bother making it pretty. The Holy Land of Taichu from the Divine Prefecture cannot even suppress the cultivator of the Heavenly Mandate Academy of the Lower Worlds; what are you good for?"


    Ye Futian continued, "No matter how strong you are in Divine Prefecture, if you would have minded your business in Divine Prefecture, and let our Academy preach in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, we would not have had to interfere with one another. However, if you came here to trample on our academy simply because you are from Divine Prefecture, your current performance is a big disappointment.


    "Previously, you won three times. If my guess is right, it''s because you had a cultivator who was the First Order of the Divine Wheel. I just wanted the disciples of the Academy to feel that even your strongest was only so-so. I think you should know by now that in the following battles, as long as you continue to face Yu Sheng, you will lose every single battle in this realm.


    "I will give the Holy Land of Taichu another chance. Yu Sheng will not participate in the next battle, so you can pick another person. We will have someone other than Yu Sheng respond," Ye Futian said.


    As if to give the Holy Land of Taichu a chance to redeem itself.


    After all, as long as Yu Sheng was around, they had no chance but to be fully suppressed in this realm.


    The cultivators in white from the Holy Land looked intently at Ye Futian. Previously, they had the absolute advantage, but now they were in a passive position.


    Moreover, their previous aggressive attitude was in sharp contrast to their current state.


    Because they had lost.


    Therefore, they couldn''t afford to lose anymore.


    He turned his head, and his gaze fell on someone whose cultivation was also very powerful. Although this man was not quite up to the level of Sima Xiao, he was definitely a top figure.


    That Renhuang understood what he meant and stepped out. In this battle, he had to win.


    As this man stepped forward, he exuded a shocking aura. Yu Sheng took a look at him and returned to the location occupied by the Heavenly Mandate Academy and settled behind Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s attention was focused on a man in white, who was handsome and extraordinary.


    "Third senior brother, may we trouble you to respond in this battle?" Ye Futian asked. Now, Gu Dongliu was already well-established in the Renhuang Realm and was even hitting the second-order of Renhuang Realm. There was no doubt about his combat effectiveness.


    The inheritance from the Demon Emperor, along with the inheritance from Gu Tianxing, he had gathered all the resources of the origin from the Demon Realm.


    "No problem."


    Obviously, Gu Dongliu would not refuse. He also had a mind to ??step into the battle, but Ye Futian seemed to want to test some other people first. In other words, it was precisely for this moment that he had allowed the Holy Land of Taichu to showcase their strength first. After all, the preaching holy land from Divine Prefecture was indeed powerful.


    But after this, he wanted everyone in the Nine Realms to know that the principalities from Divine Prefecture were not unbeatable!


    ...

 1772 Unleash the Sword

    The two figures stood opposite each other, and this was their sixth battle.


    Before this, the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Holy Land of Taichu had each lost two battles. Therefore, this battle was the key to victory.


    Whoever lost the battle would be completely at a disadvantage in terms of future momentum.


    The celestial light lingered upon Gu Dongliu''s body. His white robe fluttered as he stood there like a rebellious deity, unrestrained and willful.


    Above Gu Dongliu, an uncommon sight was forming. The Great Path above the firmament roared, and a boundless giant pattern appeared, sheltering the sky and the sun. As the pattern swallowed up the power of the Great Path, it became ever clearer, like a divine matrix.


    The Nine Seals of Spiritual Power revolved above this divine matrix, and each Seal of the ancient world seemed to contain the horrific power of the Great Path, from which the most brilliant divine light exploded.


    Afterward, there were some roars from some ancient giant beasts. Above the divine matrix, thousands of fierce beasts appeared; their roars were enough to shatter the heavens.


    In a turn of the mind, the sky changed color, and a might oppressed the heavens.


    Gu Dongliu understood Ye Futian''s intention. The previous three battles were just an opportunity for a trial. At the same time, he hoped to use this fight to stimulate the Heavenly Mandate Academy and even the cultivators from the Nine Realms, to jump-start their fighting spirit by showing them the power of the Holy Land of Taichu. However, the real message was that even though the Holy Land of Taichu was strong, it could be defeated.


    The same was true for those principalities from the Divine Prefecture. No matter where they came from, as long as they themselves were strong enough, they could resist these foreign invaders and even triumph over them.


    People in the Void Realm need not cave in to any outside force.


    Therefore, Gu Dongliu immediately exploded with his most horrific ability, totally suppressing this space. The strong aura of the Great Path from that cultivator of the Holy Land of Taichu roared but was suppressed right away. The roaring beasts above the divine matrix suppressed the heavens; their roars were enough to shatter everyone''s divine spirits. The Nine Seals of Spiritual powers descended and resonated with the Great Path, as well as the heaven and the earth. All powers were converged upon the divine matrix, and in an instant, that power erupted to its fullest.


    Buzz.


    Gu Dongliu took a step forward, carrying endless divine light with him. He unleashed one strike to the Renhuang from the Holy Land of Taichu with his pal; its power was great enough to suppress the heavens. Nine Seals of Spiritual Power surrounded Gu Dongliu, who, at this moment, burst out with infinite celestial light behind him, and countless demonic beasts roared in a symphony.


    The Renhuang from the Holy Land of Taichu looked in front of him, and the man who was coming at him looked like a real deity, one with bad intentions. Both of his hands were forming a seal, and both hands struck hard as if they were pushing against mountains and oceans, to block those giant palm prints blasting toward him.


    In an instant, the celestial light descended, and a violent rumbling sound came out. The powerful palm strike continued to shatter everything underneath that celestial light. Gu Dongliu continued his downward momentum, destroying everything in his path. The momentum that continued as he moved forward did not weaken but was getting stronger and stronger until it blasted right in front of the opponent.


    Bang... Accompanied by a loud boom, the Renhuang of the Holy Land of Taichu felt as if his body had been subjected to countless shock waves. It seemed that many ancient behemoths had run through him, and it was like all the forces of heaven had smashed down at the same time.


    His body was slammed down from the void. With a loud bang, his body was shocked into the ground. The ground had sunken as cracks started to appear, and there was a human-shaped pit when the palm strike had sent him into the ground.


    Gu Dongliu retracted his hands, and the celestial shadow returned to its place. Once again, that free-spirited man with white hair stood there with his long hair flying in the wind, extremely at ease.


    Although he didn''t know much about the cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu, the opponent had no chance to make his move. There was no doubt that Gu Dongliu''s strike was powerful beyond doubt.


    That one palm strike was simply stunning.


    That incredible figure was too brilliant to behold.


    Many couldn''t help but exclaimed to themselves that no wonder this was the heir of Gu Tianxing, and now the sole inheritor of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven.


    "The third senior brother''s combat effectiveness is getting stronger again," Ye Futian said. Presumably, the third senior brother''s power to comprehend the inheritance was getting deeper, and his potential was gradually released. Back then, in the Origin Mountains in the Demon Realm, the power that Gu Dongliu inherited was much too frightening to contemplate.


    Furthermore, his own realm was already at the peak of Divine Wheel First Order, not too far behind the Second Order.


    Therefore, he was successful with a single strike.


    The celestial light dissipated, but Gu Dongliu''s temperament still felt elusive. In fact, he had actually employed extreme force, and without reservation, all to achieve the one-strike-one-kill effect that Ye Futian wanted. This was so that everyone could see for themselves that those who came from the Holy Land of Divine Prefecture could be trampled just like the others.


    No one could say that Yu Sheng''s first battle was an isolated instance, and Yu Sheng''s personal strength was an anomaly. Because just now, Gu Dongliu had done the same at this moment. It was enough to make everyone realize that the power now gathered at the current regime of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was not any less than those top invading powers, even compared with the preaching power from the Divine Prefecture.


    They were using actions to declare that this generation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy would represent the future of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and even very possibly the future of the entire 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    In due course, they would be the equal of any other top forces from the Outer Realms.


    The impact of this battle, if no other major events were intervening in the future, would have a long-lasting effect.


    The reputation of the Heavenly Mandate Academy would also reach a more frightening height.


    Gu Dongliu looked at the people from the Holy Land of Taichu and said, "The Heavenly Mandate Academy is now more than just the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but also represents the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm. We have also formed alliances with many top forces in other realms, hoping to produce more outstanding cultivators in this land. The Heavenly Mandate Academy will never hold back better conditions for cultivation to the world, so if the Holy Land of Taichu is intending on preaching to the world, you are welcome to establish a place elsewhere in the Heavenly Mandate Realm instead of using these despicable means to rob the others of the resources for your use��it isn''t something a true preaching principality should be doing."


    After having said all that, Gu Dongliu walked back.


    The people from the Holy Land of Taichu fell silent, and many of them had a terrible look on their faces.


    Sima Xiao, the strongest in this realm, had already lost to Yu Sheng. Now that Gu Dongliu had defeated them again, which rendered the previous three victories completely meaningless. This meant that the Heavenly Mandate Academy had not exerted all their strength before, but the Holy Land of Taichu had given their all.


    Therefore, no one would care about the previous three victories at all.


    This kind of contrast made it even easier for people to remember that when the Holy Land of Taichu had won all three battles before, their stance was so high, and their words were so haughty. In the following battle, their menacing attitude was slammed from the high of highs into the abyss.


    Now the consensus was that the Holy Land of Taichu was completely defeated.


    Under such circumstances, how could the Holy Land of Taichu continue with their proposal to preach within the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Everything that happened before was like a joke now.


    However, it was clear that the Holy Land of Taichu would not give up easily this time. Even if they didn''t end up preaching, they would never allow their name to be trampled by anyone, especially not by the preaching force that they had openly despised. If this news were to get back to the Divine Prefecture, their reputation would be severely damaged by this shameful stain.


    Below, the people from Song Imperial City watched everything with an interested look.


    They could have never imagined that the true strength of the Heavenly Mandate Academy would surpass their expectations so much. They thought it would be a hardcore crushing duel in which the Holy Land of Taichu would trample the Heavenly Mandate Academy to death.


    Who could have thought that Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu, who answered the battle calls, were so powerful that they crushed the Renhuang of the Holy Land of Taichu with such brilliant aggression?


    Therefore, the Holy Land of Taichu was now in an extremely passive position.


    "It seems that his sword is going to be unsheathed, after all," the old man from Song Imperial City secretly remarked to himself. The woman next to him also looked at the cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu. They were all top principalities in the Divine Prefecture and knew how strong the Holy Land of Taichu was. The people from the Holy Land of Taichu did not exaggerate, and they were even stronger than they had presented themselves. Their disciples spread all over the Divine Prefecture, and they had produced a lot of people with great abilities.


    Several leaders in the Holy Land of Taichu were also powerful existence themselves.


    In Divine Prefecture, those ancient forces that had been around for countless years had long histories. The strongest among them was not any less than those top figures directly under the Great Emperor, such as the Lord of the Underworld and the devil general Mei Ting. They were definitely right up there in terms of their strength, while some might even be stronger.


    However, these people generally would not have come to the Void Realm in person.


    Under such circumstances, Mu Qingke, the heir of Taichu Sparring Grounds, had no choice but to show his sword.


    Otherwise, the Holy Land of Taichu could only leave with their tail between their legs.


    Psst... At this moment, a sharp and piercing sound was heard, and in the next moment, an infinite Sword Will roiled and moved; it was as if a sword had been unsheathed.


    At this moment, many people felt a tightness in their bodies. Between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Holy Land of Taichu, a sword suddenly appeared above the void. This sword was suspended there, clamoring loudly, its Sword Will was sharp to the extreme.


    Above the sky, the Sword Will tossed and roared, and another sword gathered and emerged. It appeared next to the sword that had just appeared, so the two swords were suspended in the air together, ringing loudly.


    Afterward, the third sword, the fourth sword appeared until all nine swords were standing side by side.


    That Sword Will was everywhere. It seemed as if the battlefield was completely controlled by it. Any cultivators who enter into this Sword Will would most certainly be crushed by it.


    At this time, in the direction of the Holy Land of Taichu, someone stepped out. This man was dressed in a long blue robe, and he cut a handsome figure as he was tall and slender.


    He stepped directly onto the nine swords and stood there quietly with the swords underneath his feet.


    "Mu Qingke," some people from the Divine Prefecture remarked to themselves when they saw him. As expected, Mu Qingke was making his move now.


    Previously, many had speculated whether Mu Qingke would wield his sword this time.


    If the performance of the Holy Land of Taichu was strong enough, there was obviously no need for Mu Qingke to use his sword. But the Holy Land of Taichu was suppressed so completely in the battles that took place. Even though they still had many more cultivators in all three realms of the Lower Renhuang who could battle, but at this moment, it no longer made any sense for them to do so.


    A win or two was totally meaningless now.


    What they needed was an absolutely powerful existence.


    "It''s true that the Holy Land of Taichu underestimated the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but the Holy Land of Taichu that you see is not the real Holy Land of Taichu either. My name is Mu Qingke, one of the cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu, Divine Wheel Second Order, an expert in swords. I am honored to be here today, and would like the opportunity to exchange with all the Lower Renhuang from the Heavenly Mandate Academy!"


    ...

 1773 Mu Qingke

    One man had challenged all the lower level Renhuangs of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    All throughout the Heavenly Mandate Academy, countless people looked at the mighty figure standing above the swords. His sword will was so powerful that everyone could feel it clearly.


    His words had been calm and humble, but he had all-encompassing self-confidence. He had challenged all of the lower level Renhuangs of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    He had a second-tier Divine Wheel, but any of the lower level Renhuangs of the academy could fight him.


    Was it possible that this was the strongest of the people from the Holy Land of Taichu who had come here?


    Otherwise, he would not have stepped forward and said the things he had said.


    "Or, you can all come out together," said Mu Qingke, his arrogant voice filling the air. All throughout the Heavenly Mandate Academy, everyone''s hearts beat faster.


    He stood there alone; it was as if there was no one else in the academy.


    He rode his sword through the air like he was the only person in the world.


    Moreover, Mu Qingke was a cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    The other cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu watched him step forth. Their faces that had previously worn dark looks gradually changed. Now that Mu Qingke was getting involved, they would recover from their earlier loss of face.


    They knew why Mu Qingke had used such forceful words. There was but one reason. He wanted to wash away the shame of the previous battle.


    The cultivators of Song Imperial City watched this scene with relish. Now that Mu Qingke had drawn his sword, who could withstand it?


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had relied on the strength of Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu to turn the tide, but in the end, they would be completely crushed by the Holy Land of Taichu. But they would not be as embarrassed if they lost now, as they had already accomplished some impressive feats.


    This was one of the strongest members of the Holy Land of Taichu, the master swordsman of the younger generation of the Taichu Sparring Grounds. The people of Song Imperial City had a good reason to have faith in him. With a reputation as mighty as his, he was not merely arrogant.


    They had also heard that Mu Qingke had cultivated up to the seventh level of the Tai''e Sword. That meant that when he reached the upper level of the Renhuang plane, he would certainly achieve great things with that technique. He might even reach the legendary tenth level.


    When someone like this came to the Void Realm to crush the Heavenly Mandate Academy, there was no suspense about the outcome.


    "How wanton!" said the people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy as they looked up at the figure in the sky. Mu Qingke was far too arrogant. They had already lost several times, beaten by Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu, and yet they were still so forceful?


    The sound of people whispering to each other filled the air. Some of them even wanted to go out and fight him themselves.


    "What are they saying?" someone snorted. "They were crushed in the last battle with us, and now they come out with just one person? Where does this arrogance come from?"


    "It comes from the fact that they come from the Divine Prefecture," someone said sarcastically.


    Mu Qingke ignored the whispered conversations taking place in the crowd in the distance. He was looking at Ye Futian. He had already noticed that the person leading this battle was not Lord Taixuan, but was Ye Futian. It seemed that he was able to directly take charge of many things here at the academy.


    Since they had studied the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they naturally knew that Ye Futian was the spirit of the academy.


    Moreover, all those who had perfect Divine Wheels were gathered together beside Ye Futian. They were the absolute core of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the ones that the academy relied on. They were the hope for the future.


    Now, they were facing a powerful force that had come from outside. For the time being, they had to rely on the power of their alliances.


    Thus, as far as the people from the Holy Land of Taichu were concerned, as long as they could crush them, it would be enough.


    Dou Zhao took a slight step forward. Fighting will wrapped around his body. He longed to fight, but in the end, he could bear it. He had lost to Sima Xiao, and this Mu Qingke was clearly stronger than Sima Xiao had been. If he went out, he would be no match.


    At that moment, a terrible sword pattern appeared behind Mu Qingke, and the Sword Way of All Heavens wrapped around him, looking indescribably terrifying. Divine sword will swirled all around, making him look like a king of swords.


    Woosh!


    A sword was unsheathed within the pattern and floated up. It started moving towards where Ye Futian and the others were.


    "Careful," said Mu Qingke. As he said this, the people around Ye Futian paid close attention. Several of them took a few steps forward, their Wheels of the Great Path flaring to life and their auras becoming fierce.


    Mu Qingke waved his hand and uttered a single word, "Fall."


    Lightning flashed through the sky. A sword flew through the air, leaving a slash behind it. It moved so quickly it seemed to ignore all distance between it and its target, as well as the time it would take to get there.


    But at the moment that the sword came out, someone slashed out with their own sword. A beam of green, incomparably brilliant sword light bloomed, destroying everything in its path.


    Bang! There was a loud noise as a burst of Sword Qi came forth, blooming in front of Ye Futian and the others. A terrible storm of swords appeared above them. They all put forth their powerful will to block the sword will, but there was still a sharp cracking sound, and many of the cultivators'' robes were torn to shreds.


    A figure was knocked backward thousands of meters. Ye Futian and the others looked back to see who it was. It was the Princess of the Nantian Divine Kingdom: Nan Luoshen.


    Nan Luoshen had a second-tier Divine Wheel. But in the face of that sword, she was still forced to retreat. This showed how powerful the sword was.


    It ignored the space between them and seemed to move in no time at all. Its speed was truly astonishing.


    And it was not only fast, but it was overpowering as well.


    Nan Luoshen was one of the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. She was one of the few cultivators who had proved herself worthy of creating a perfect Divine Wheel back in the God''s Relic. However, even someone as strong as her had been knocked back by that sword. Mu Qingke was frighteningly powerful.


    Moreover, this seemed to just be an ordinary sword of his.


    No wonder he dared to challenge all the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy together. With such exquisite swordsmanship, he could ignore their advantage in numbers. Who could compete with a sword like that?


    Who could block it?


    Mu Qingke took a step forward and looked at everyone from the Heavenly Mandate Academy, saying, "If no one comes forth, I will keep unleashing my sword."


    When he said this, his sword will surged terribly. It flowed through the sky, pressing down on Ye Futian and the others.


    Who could fight him?


    All throughout the Heavenly Mandate Academy, everyone''s eyes fell upon a single figure, the white-haired young man. He would probably have to go out and fight.


    He was the core of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, its soul. He had already proved his combat ability. Xiao Muyu had been willing to become his disciple, and Dou Zhao and others had followed her. Even Emperor Nan had sent his daughter, Nan Luoshen, to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate.


    Who besides him would dare to go out and fight?


    When Ye Futian sensed that sword, he understood. He was the only one who could fight Mu Qingke. There was no one else.


    Thinking of this, he did not hesitate. He directly stepped forward towards Mu Qingke.


    Seeing him come, Mu Qingke fittingly did not send out his sword again, but stood there calmly, watching the figure before him. The slender, white-haired figure with a white, unstained robe was handsome and heroic-looking.


    He was called the strongest cultivator of his generation in the Void Realm.


    "Ye Futian," said Mu Qingke to the figure now standing before him. When he had come to the Void Realm, he had heard that name many times. He was the representative of his generation. He had built the Heavenly Mandate Academy himself, making it one of the top forces in the Void Realm. Even the Holy Land of Taichu wanted to replace it.


    "Yes, I am Ye Futian," answered Ye Futian. The two of them seemed very friendly with each other. There was not a hint of enmity between them.


    Mu Qingke smiled and nodded, saying, "I am Mu Qingke of the Holy Land of Taichu."


    As he said this, the sword pattern behind him expanded in a flash, spreading throughout the sky. In the next instant, brilliant light bloomed up in the air. Golden rays shone forth, covering a vast area. Each ray seemed to be made of sword will. At that moment, Ye Futian was bathed in golden light. He felt like he was standing amidst an endless sea of swords.


    Ye Futian looked up into the sky. He could feel many different kinds of powers of the Great Path there: the Gengjin Great Path, the Great Path of Space, and more were integrated into that sword will.


    Mu Qingke flew up into the sky until he stood under the huge sword pattern. He looked down, staring at Ye Futian, and said, "I am going to draw my sword."


    Ye Futian nodded. The sound of elephants trumpeting filled the air. A golden Divine Elephant appeared over his body. At the same time, countless guqin strings appeared in the air, intertwining until they seemed to form a guqin. Music played out along with the sounds of swords.


    Mu Qingke reached out. The endless golden light gathered together, forming a golden divine sword in the sky. He grabbed the sword, then slashed it down through the air. At that moment, the golden light cut through the void, falling downwards.


    Suddenly, the sky was cut into countless different sections by the golden light as it slashed towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian reached out and plucked his fingers in the air. Suddenly, the endless strings shook, whipping up a terrible storm of Sword Qi. Endless swords cut through the air in time with the music. It seemed to be the same sort of power as his opponent''s.


    The two forces slammed together in mid-air, forming a terrible, destructive airflow. The golden sword will seemed to become even more powerful as it broke through layers and layers of defenses around Ye Futian''s body. The Tai''e Sword that Mu Qingke had launched was coming straight towards him as well. It would reach him in an instant.


    Ye Futian stepped through the air. The elephant trumpeted, making the earth and the heavens shake. He pointed, and the music seemed to swell. The Great Path flowed backward around his body, forming a storm of Sword Qi that coalesced into a divine sword that shattered his opponent''s power.


    It was the Fleeting Divine Sword. Once it was formed, the Great Path would flow backward.


    The two beams of sword light crashed together. Rays of destructive light swept out in all directions like a curtain. All the powerful figures put out their hands, forming powerful defensive spells to block the destructive sword will leaking out.


    The man from the Holy Land of Taichu looked down at Ye Futian. His fist sword had been blocked. This glorious hero from the Void Lands was truly a good fighter.


    Of course, that had only been his first sword.


    "Not bad!" Mu Qingke praised him as he stood there up in the air, bathed in golden light. He seemed to admire Ye Futian''s swordsmanship. The Fleeting Divine Sword had turned aside his stroke. This was very rare.


    But the sword will around him grew stronger, and the light from the Tai''e Sword in his hand lit up the sky!


    ...

 1774 The Limit?

    Not bad?


    Everyone was shocked when they heard Mu Qingke''s words, especially the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Was this how he praised Ye Futian, by saying that he was "not bad"?


    Was he not bad because he had been able to block Mu Qingke''s sword?


    The way he said it had sounded like a teacher talking to a student.


    Apparently, even when facing an opponent like Ye Futian, Mu Qingke did not think that his enemy was a match for him. But this was not out of the ordinary. He was the strongest cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu, a force from the Divine Prefecture in the Outer Realms. He was the absolute soul of their force. If he were defeated here, that would mean that they had truly lost.


    Thus, he had not truly unleashed his power.


    But even so, he was still ferociously strong.


    He gripped his sword and raised it with both hands. Suddenly, the endless sword will in the sword pattern in the sky flowed into his sword like infinite golden flames. Terrible golden light shone from the sword, piercing up into the sword pattern above it.


    Mu Qingke''s body seemed to be armored in sword will. He released his grip, and suddenly his sword clanked loudly. Terrible images appeared all around him.


    He turned his sword, pointing it at Ye Futian.


    Mu Qingke formed seals with his hands, then pointed downwards.


    Woosh!


    Flowing, golden firelight pierced the sky, leaving brilliant sword marks in the air that colored the entire area gold.


    The divine Tai''e Sword was even more powerful than the previous one.


    Terrible sword will flowed around Ye Futian as well. When he saw what his opponent was doing, he made the same motions himself. He pointed into the sky, and a sword shot through the air, carrying with it terrible, destructive power. It seemed like everything was destroyed wherever it passed.


    This was the Dust Swordsmanship that he had learned.


    The two swords slammed together in the air, whipping up a destructive storm. Golden beams of light and rhythmic sword will destroyed each other. A sharp and piercing roar rang out from where the two swords struck each other. The divine swords screamed, seemingly unable to destroy each other.


    "How about this one?" said Ye Futian, looking up at the brilliant figure in the air. His white hair flew in the wind.


    His first sword had been "not bad." How about this sword?


    Mu Qingke smiled. Incomparable terrifying sword will spilled out of the sword pattern in the sky. Then, more swords materialized, nine of them in sequence. They floated around him, swirling around his body. The sound of shrieking swords became even more terrible.


    "Let''s do another one," said Mu Qingke. As he said this, the nine swords pierced through the air, shooting towards Ye Futian. The air itself seemed to be split apart, leaving behind nine sword marks.


    Mu Qingke was different from Ye Futian. He was the heir of the Taichu Sparring Ground and was called the master of his generation. He was a pure swordsman. Under the light of the Tai''e Sword, no one of the same generation could compete with him.


    Ye Futian''s golden Divine Elephant Divine Wheel surged to life, along with his second-tier divine wheel. As they did so, an overwhelming force bloomed, making all go quiet. Images of countless Divine Elephants appeared all around, but they could not block the oncoming sword attack.


    Once the swords reached their target, they would pierce through his body.


    Ye Futian lashed out with the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist, and suddenly an endless amount of Divine Elephant fist will appeared with a terrible roar. The air itself seemed like it would shatter as the fist will rushed towards the nine oncoming swords.


    The unmatchable divine swords pierced through the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist without shattering. They continued onwards, but they had been greatly weakened.


    Crack! As they pierced through the giant Divine Elephants, sword marks appeared upon them, but they were not enough to cut the elephants open.


    Ye Futian strode boldly through the air as sword after sword shattered on his defenses. The two swords in the air above him broke as well.


    Three swords. Mu Qingke had brought forth three swords, each one more powerful than the last.


    The first one had been comparable to the Fleeting Divine Sword, and the second had been comparable to his Dust Swordsmanship. The third had cut right through his Divine Elephant fist will but had been stopped by his Divine Elephant body.


    Of all the people at the same level as him that Mu Qingke had faced, Ye Futian was, without a doubt, the strongest; he was able to compete with him.


    He was the sword master of the Holy Land of Taichu and a great future figure of the Divine Prefecture. His power and talent were beyond all doubt.


    Standing up in the sky, he watched Ye Futian block his three swords. He thought to himself that he was truly worthy of being called the most powerful cultivator of his generation in the Void Realm. He was indeed very talented.


    But he had already cultivated seven levels of the Tai''e Sword. Three swords were just the beginning.


    His next swords would be even stronger.


    Boom! Terrible sword will descended. As he stood there bathing in the might of the swords, Mu Qingke had already transformed. His aura was getting stronger and stronger. The baptism of swordsmanship seemed to have clad him in an armor of swords. He was now so powerful that he seemed to be at an even higher level than before.


    Boom!


    A terrifying storm fell upon them, and the falling sword will grew even fiercer. Everyone looked up into the sky. This had become a world of swordsmanship, and Mu Qingke seemed like its master: a king of swords.


    "What level of swordsmanship is this?" asked the princess from within the crowd of people from Song Imperial City. She could feel how incredibly powerful the sword will was, but she was not clear on what actual level it was at.


    "The first three swords were probably level five or less. This one now might be up to the sixth level," said the elder. He knew of the Tai''e Sword, but every realm had their own version of it.


    He had heard that Mu Qingke had cultivated up to the seventh level of the Tai''e Sword. In his opinion, the power that Mu Qingke was displaying now must be at least the sixth level.


    With this kind of power, the elder had no doubt the Mu Qingke was indeed unparalleled in the Void Realm. No one on the same level as him could withstand him. Now, the main thing to do was watch and see if Ye Futian could.


    Mu Qingke had indeed raised the Tai''e sword will up to the sixth level. Under this much power, countless swords were piercing through the sword pattern in the sky and floating there. Each one of the swords was just as mighty and terrifying as the previous swords.


    The sky seemed like it would break due to all the swords. Everyone below was looking up. They could feel how powerful the sword will was, and it made them tremble.


    If the sword fell upon him, would Ye Futian be able to bear it?


    Ye Futian naturally felt how terrifying Mu Qingke''s aura of swordsmanship was right now. If an attack of this level struck him directly, he would probably be put in a difficult situation.


    "I will try the next sword," said Mu Qingke. His sword will was still coalescing.


    Ye Futian looked at him. The guqin strings of the Great Path were still vibrating. A song of swordsmanship resonated throughout the world. Swords materialized all around him, producing a powerful resonance as they followed the rhythm of the song.


    At the same time, an image of a celestial god appeared in the air above his head. This was the ultimate technique of the Golden Divine Nation, the Sigh of the Divine God. Suddenly, his power became far more fearsome.


    He reached up into the sky, and suddenly, the strings of the Great Path formed into many swords. They merged into one in time with the rhythm of the song, becoming a single sword that fell into Ye Futian''s hand.


    "I have withstood three of your swords, its time for you to take one of mine," said Ye Futian. He gripped his sword and rushed forward. Swords clattered all around them without end as everything was destroyed and turned to dust.


    Everywhere he passed, the Great Path seemed to flow backward. The falling sword will was destroyed.


    Mu Qingke watched this happen, then slashed out downwards. The endless swords that were forming destroyed the very air itself as they rushed towards Ye Futian, trying to bury him.


    The whole area seemed like it would be shattered by the sword will, but Ye Futian charged right into the storm of swordsmanship with his sword in hand. He thrust it forward.


    Brilliant, flowing light bloomed as the sword swept through the air, destroying Mu Qingke''s swordsmanship and shattering his swords into dust. At that moment, Ye Futian was able to cut through them like a knife through bamboo. He continued forward.


    When he saw this, Mu Qingke gripped his sword tighter. He transformed into a beam of light and disappeared from where he had been. Then he shot downward, slashing out with his sword.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Swords slammed into Ye Futian''s body, but they were destroyed and could not halt his forward momentum. He pierced through everything until he appeared in front of Mu Qingke.


    When he arrived, the endless sword will in the sword pattern up in the sky covered Mu Qingke''s body. At that moment, Mu Qingke seemed to meld with it, like he was possessed by a divine sword. He was a master of swords. He himself was a sword.


    He pointed downward towards Ye Futian''s oncoming sword. His fingertip collided with the sword, causing a shocking scene. Ye Futian''s sword began to crack, inch by inch, as the terrifying sword will pierced through it.


    Bang! Ye Futian was sent flying backward as destructive sword will raged through his body, trying to shatter him.


    "So powerful!" Everyone''s hearts were trembling. Ye Futian''s sword itself was frightening enough. But even that sword had been stopped by a single figure.


    "The seventh level," said the elder of Song Imperial City. This must have been the seventh level of the Tai''e Sword.


    At that moment, Mu Qingke seemed like a sword god. Every part of his body was made of swords, and each sword seemed to be the sharpest in the world.


    Woosh!


    Mu Qingke disappeared, and Ye Futian suddenly felt a grave threat. He turned into a bolt of lightning and disappeared as well.


    There was a sharp cracking sound as a beam of sword will swept through the space where he had just been. It had fallen from the sky, leaving a straight sword mark. It left a terrifyingly deep hole in the ground underneath that was filled with Sword Qi.


    Although he had missed, Mu QIngke disappeared again. He was moving as quickly as possible.


    Ye Futian retreated continuously. The two of them seemed like a pair of bolts of lightning. Many of the people watching could not follow them with their eyes. They were both skilled in the power of the Great Path of Space.


    Bang!


    Finally, the sound of a collision rang out. There was the sound of ten thousand elephants trumpeting, and then the sound of violent destruction as the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist was pierced. Ye Futian was sent flying backward yet again.


    Mu Qingke appeared, filled with sword will. It looked like all the world behind him had turned into a world of swordsmanship. This terrifying vision made everyone tremble uncontrollably.


    "Is there any point in continuing to retreat?" Mu Qingke asked Ye Futian. "You have already made me bring out the seventh level of the Tai''e Sword. You have proved how strong you are."


    Ye Futian looked at his opponent and said, "I wanted to see if you were at your limit. It seems like that was your strongest sword, no?"


    Mu Qingke frowned, then looked at Ye Futian and asked, "What of it?"


    "You are quite good," answered Ye Futian. "But we are still far from my limit!"

 1775 Whos Descendant?

    Mu Qingke was stunned when he heard what Ye Futian had said. He frowned slightly. Ye Futian had said that he was nowhere near his limits.


    Did that mean that he had not unleashed his full combat ability yet?


    When he used the seventh level of the Tai''e Sword, his sword will was so strong that even in the Holy Land of Taichu, there were scant few people at his level who could withstand it.


    Ye Futian had been sorely pressed by his swords. He had just been doing his best to avoid their edges, but now he said that he had not put forth his strongest fighting abilities yet.


    So what level was the limit of Ye Futian''s fighting ability at?


    All throughout the Heavenly Mandate Academy below them, everything was extremely quiet as everyone watched the battle. This was the final battle between the two great teaching forces: the Holy Land of Taichu and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The most talented cultivator from the force from the Divine Prefecture, Mu QIngke, had up till now still not forced Ye Futian to his limits.


    Did that mean that Ye Futian had a chance to defeat Mu Qingke?


    The cultivators within the Heavenly Mandate Academy felt their blood surge. They gazed fixedly at the battle in the sky.


    They had all been waiting for this battle, for Ye Futian, the soul of the academy, to drive off the people from the Divine Prefecture.


    Did they want to replace them?


    If the Renhuangs who had come were not even good enough to suppress them, how could they talk about replacing them?


    Everyone was holding their breath in anticipation. After saying what he had said, Ye Futian was probably going to unleash his strongest ability.


    Endless beams of golden sword will descended from the pattern behind Mu Qingke onto his body. He transformed into a divine sword. Every one of the threads of sword will surrounding him could threaten someone at his level.


    "Then let me see your limit," said Mu Qingke. As he said this, space will bloomed. He transformed into a sword and moved forward, disappearing from view. But at that moment, he saw a pair of infinitely deep eyes.


    He was still moving forward and seemed like he would be able to pierce across a great distance instantly, but he found that the distance that he originally would have been able to move across in the space of a single thought was getting further away. Even things that had only been an inch away were now impossible to touch.


    He seemed to fall into those terrifying eyes. They became a space of their own and pulled him into them.


    These were eyes that Ye Futian had created: the Almighty Eyes.


    His third Divine Wheel, thought Mu Qingke. This was a Divine Wheel of Eye Sorcery. It covered the whole area with a single glance and forged a world of eyes.


    In the instant that he was drawn into the Almighty Eyes, he realized what was going on. He had been pulled into a world of eyes, where the Great Path of Space and Eye Sorcery were melded together. When this was added to Ye Futian''s masterful understanding, he had forged it into a Divine Wheel.


    "An Eye Sorcery space!" snorted Mu Qingke. He suddenly stopped. He was just like Ye Futian, skilled with the Great Path of space. There was only one way to deal with a powerful Divine Wheel like this. He had to break through it.


    He would shatter the Eye Sorcery space with an equally strong use of the Great Path of Space.


    Boom!


    Sword will surged in the air above him. Endless divine swords appeared in the sword pattern in the air above him. Sword will seeped out from it, transforming into thousand meter long divine swords that stretched through the sky.


    His sword will surged and resonated with his body.


    The sword will within him surged as well and shot up into the clouds as if it was trying to pierce the air itself.


    "Slash!" said Mu Qingke, his voice extremely sharp. As he said this, the divine swords that were stretching out through the sky slashed out through the air, trying to destroy the Eye Sorcery space.


    Golden sword marks appeared in the sky as the air was cut through. Mu Qingke moved through the sky, transforming into a straight line. The Eye Sorcery space seemed like it was about to split open as it was torn by the terrifying sword will.


    Mu Qingke caught a glimpse of Ye Futian''s figure once again. This time, Ye Futian was standing above him, radiating brilliant light, his white hair flying in the wind. He was bathed in golden radiance, like the sun and the moon standing in the sky surrounded by stars.


    It seemed that there was yet another layer to this space.


    The Great Path of Space was overlapping.


    As he stood there in the sky, Ye Futian was filled with the incomparably terrifying power of the Divine Elephants. They possessed him with their mighty strength. His hands were as strong as those of a god of war, and he griped a golden staff that was suffused with radiance.


    While his sword force was still bursting out from him, Ye Futian moved, striding through the sky. His form was as mighty as that of a god of war, and he thrust out with his staff, making the very air tremble. As he did so, it seemed like all the stars were falling. It was like the end of the world.


    He had cultivated the Nine Heavenly Attacks for many years, and now his staff arts had transformed. They were no longer just the ones from the Ape Emperor. Now he had integrated them with the Great Path, forming an all new staff art. It was no longer like an ape''s attack; it was something of his own.


    His staff seemed like it would break the sky itself. Up until then, Mu Qingke had been unavoidable, and his sword still had its momentum. He could only move forward without stopping through the air, slashing towards the oncoming staff.


    There was a sharp cracking sound as the sword shattered many stars. The fact that Mu Qingke was able to shatter stars with his sword showed just how terrifying the sword was.


    Boom!


    The staff fell onto the divine sword that Mu Qingke had transformed into. Its sword will was shattered wildly. At that moment, destructive power erupted.


    Bang!


    The sword''s momentum was finally firmly stopped, and the brilliant, incomparable figure was forced backward even more quickly than he had come forward.


    But Ye Futian did not stop his attack. He continued moving through the air, ignoring the distance between them. When Mu Qingke was no longer able to form more sword will, he struck out with his staff again.


    Bang!


    This time the staff was even more forceful. Mu Qingke''s sword had been stopped, and so he had no way to block this attack. He was sent flying backward yet again, and cracks appeared in the sword armor that covered his body, then it shattered. Blood ran from the corner of his mouth, and his face was pale.


    In reality, no one on the outside had any way of knowing what had just happened. The area was closed off by the Great Path of Space.


    As Mu Qingke was struck by continuous attacks, his Wheel of the Great Path disappeared, and everything returned to normal. The people on the outside saw Ye Futian standing there calmly while Mu Qingke was bent over, blood staining his clothes.


    "This..."


    Everyone''s heart was pounding. They looked at Ye Futian again, seeming like they wanted to see if he was wounded. But they only saw the handsome young man standing there with his hair blowing in the wind. His black eyes were still as deep and mysterious as always.


    Obviously, he had not been hurt.


    Had Ye Futian won this battle?


    "There are no realms when it comes to the Great Path. The Great Emperor''s Divine Prefecture controls both the Outer Realms and the Void Realm. The Great Emperor wants the world of cultivation to become stronger. Thus, although the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty is a force from the Void Realm, we will not refuse anyone from the Outer Realms who wishes to cultivate here," said Ye Futian. "Thus, if anyone from the Holy Land of Taichu wants is willing to join us in our quest to seek the Way, we will be happy to welcome them."


    His words rang through the air and were imprinted on everyone''s minds. At that moment, many of the younger people there looked at him with eyes full of worship. This was a true hero.


    The Holy Land of Taichu had come at them with force, trying to replace them. Their might had seemed unassailable.


    But now, Ye Futian had used his power to tell them that they could come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to study. The academy would welcome them.


    No matter how powerful the forces of the Divine Prefecture were, no matter what their teaching holy lands were like, the Heavenly Mandate Academy could defeat them, could crush them underfoot. Did they want to replace them? The teaching holy lands of the Divine Prefecture were only worthy of studying under them.


    This feeling gave rise to a fierce sense of pride within the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. When they heard Ye Futian''s voice, they could feel their blood rising.


    He had told a teaching holy land of the Divine Prefecture to come to the academy to study.


    In a true battle between top forces, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had achieved a complete victory. Ye Futian had defeated Mu Qingke, and Yu Sheng had defeated Sima Xiao.


    "Amazing!" called Dou Zhao from within the academy, a look of worship in his eyes. If it had been him, he would have definitely said something embarrassing. But Ye Futian''s words were more dignified.


    The Holy Land of Taichu could come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to study.


    Incredible!


    Xiao Muyu was becoming even more appreciative of her maser. A strange light lit up her beautiful eyes. Now, the Void Realm was in turmoil, and the Nine Realms were in chaos, meaning that this conflict between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Holy Land of Taichu was very important. Ye Futian had fought perfectly, defeating an enemy from the Divine Prefecture. This was a huge inspiration for the people of the Nine Realms.


    Nan Luoshen looked at Ye Futian, understanding why her father had praised him so highly. Now that she had experienced this battle, she really felt it. When he came to full maturity, he could truly become the leader of an era. Many people could be called proud sons of heaven, but they could not be representatives of an entire era.


    But Ye Futian could do it.


    The people of the Holy Land of Taichu were speechless when they heard Ye Futian''s words. What could they say?


    Mu Qingke had been beaten. How could he have lost?


    Had someone so astonishing actually appeared in the Void Realm?


    And it was not just him. Previously, Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu had revealed incredible power.


    These people, gathered together at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, had dealt the Holy Land of Taichu a stinging defeat.


    In that case, what right did they have to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy and control it?


    "Let''s go," said the white-robed cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu. Suddenly, he and the others flashed away, bringing Mu Qingke with them. Their plan had completely failed. It seemed like it would be a little more troublesome to gain a foothold in the Void Realm now.


    This confrontation would have an extremely negative influence on the Holy Land of Taichu.


    After all, they had originally come to invade. If they had won, then it all would have been worth it. But since they had lost, then this move had been extremely costly.


    Everyone watched them go, and many people began to whisper. In this battle, the power that those three members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had shown had once again shocked the world.


    Back in the restaurant, Mei Ting put down his glass and frowned.


    So, he was that strong?


    Then who''s descendant was he?

 1776 Mei Ting Pays a Visi

    After cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu left, the huge crowd outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy also dispersed reluctantly.


    Ye Futian''s group returned to the academy. Lord Taixuan glanced around at the crowd and said, "Now that a storm has been stirred up in the Nine Realms, I hope that the cultivators of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path can stand united and overcome this chaotic situation together. I also hope that friends from the Outer Realms will not stir up trouble. It is as Ye Futian has said: regardless of whether we are from the Outer Realms, the Void Realm, or the Original Realm, these are all lands of the Divine Prefecture. Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture in the hopes of making martial arts prosper. This is also the goal of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. We hope to spread our teachings across the world and cause martial arts to prosper, cultivating even more outstanding teachers of martial arts in the future."


    Lord Taixuan continued, "Of course, if our friends from the Outer Realms have their own opinions, they can come and sit down with the Heavenly Mandate Academy to discuss things. We can learn from each other and improve our relations. That is all I have to say for today. Farewell."


    After hearing Lord Taixuan''s words, the various cultivators left one after another. The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were somewhat reluctant. Many youths were asking, "When will the Heavenly Mandate Academy take in new disciples again?"


    "I don''t know. However, wanting to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy now will most likely be even more difficult," someone lamented. The people around him all nodded their heads in agreement.


    Recent events caused the Heavenly Mandate Academy to become even more famous. In today''s battle, Ye Futian and his group fully displayed the grandeur of the cultivators of the Void Realm and crushed the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture''s training holy land who came to challenge them. Such a glorious battle would certainly be one for the history books. In the future, if Ye Futian and Yu Sheng stood at the top of the world, this would be a crowning moment on their road to glory, a moment in the past of legendary figures.


    The next time the Heavenly Mandate Academy accepted disciples, many people would want to join them. Most likely, even figures who had already made a name for themselves would want to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate.


    "I wonder how Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and the others train. The difference between them and us is truly enormous," someone lamented. The difference in their talent was too huge.


    The members of the Holy Land of Taichu from the Divine Prefecture could not be considered weak. Sima Xiao''s War God''s True Will of Waves had peerless attack and defense. However, it was forcefully suppressed by Yu Sheng and shattered with a punch.


    It was actually apparent from a simple exchange.


    Currently, can Ye Futian be considered the top figure of the generation? someone wondered.


    "Of course. In the generation, among those of the same Plane, it is impossible for anyone in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path to be able to defeat him. If there are such people, it is only possible if they are also in the Heavenly Mandate Academy," someone to the side said with a laugh.


    "Yu Sheng?"


    "Maybe," the person who had spoken before replied with a laugh. "Yet, alone in this generation, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng will most likely be two of the most outstanding figures in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path ever since Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture. They might even be the two most outstanding figures."


    The person to the side was stunned when he heard these words. He stopped in his tracks and revealed a pondering look.


    However, after pondering for a bit, he also realized this and agreed with it somewhat. After Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture, there indeed had never been a figure that could cause uproars time and time again at the lower-level Renhuang Plane like this. Ye Futian had also already formed a team of flawless Divine Wheel possessors. This was too frightening.


    It was not inappropriate to call him the most outstanding figure.


    Now, they could only wait and see whether Ye Futian could one day rule over the Nine Realms.


    ...


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Ye Futian and the others arrived back one after another.


    Although they had pushed back the cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu, Ye Futian did not feel happy. The Holy Land of Taichu had directly come knocking on their door to challenge them and wanted to replace them. This could only mean that the current situation in the Nine Realms was getting more and more chaotic. The forces of the Divine Prefecture already could not wait to take over the Nine Realms and replace the original forces.


    From this battle, Ye Futian had also gotten a faint grasp on the strength of these top forces of the Divine Prefecture. Although his side had won, Ye Futian had witnessed the abilities of Mu Qingke, Sima Xiao, and even that swordsman. If Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, as well as his third older brother hadn''t been the ones fighting, they would have lost this battle.


    Moreover, this group was just a fraction of the power of the Holy Land of Taichu. It was difficult to imagine how frightening the background of the Holy Land of Taichu in the Divine Prefecture was. The difference between them and the Heavenly Mandate Academy was too huge.


    However, this was also understandable. The forces of the Divine Prefecture in the Outer Realms had countless competitors for eons. Ye Futian''s group could not possibly imagine what huge figures had been born from such conditions.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy could be compared with such giants. Even if they were an alliance of many forces, they were still no match for the forces of the Divine Prefecture.


    From the attitude that Song Imperial City and the Holy Land of Taichu bore against the Heavenly Mandate Academy, one could sense such a sentiment. These top forces did not only contain arrogant people. Song Imperial City had wanted to directly guide them; the Holy Land of Taichu had wanted to directly replace them. This proved one thing: the overall ability of the other party was far superior to their own each time.


    "Older brother, what is that fourth Divine Wheel of yours? What happened in the Divine Wheel dimension?" Dou Zhao asked as he looked curiously at Ye Futian. Many people immediately also looked at him. They all wanted to know what had happened. Prior to this, during the battle with the Shen clan, Ye Futian had also defeated Shen Hao in such a manner.


    "It is a Boundary Wheel," Ye Futian replied.


    "A Boundary Wheel?" Dou Zhao was somewhat confused. He did not really understand.


    "It can forge a self-contained space of the Great Path. It can even imprison the Way of others," Ye Futian explained without hiding anything.


    "Imprison?" In a low voice, Xiao Muyu asked, "Master, how does it imprison the Way of others?"


    "Within my Divine Wheel dimension, others will not be able to communicate with the powers of heaven and earth. They will be severed from the Great Path," Ye Futian explained. "Say, for example, the other party is proficient in the Great Path of Space. If they are unable to escape my Boundary Wheel''s dimension and attempt to use the Great Path of Space to whisk themselves away, the passageway of the Great Path that they create will be imprisoned and severed."


    "It sounds like an even more advanced Divine Wheel," Xiao Muyu mumbled. "In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, Divine Wheels are categorized into levels such as flawless level, Celestial level, and so on. However, in supreme forces like ours, there is only the distinction of flawless or flawed Divine Wheels. If so, then in the Divine Prefecture of the Outer Realms, are flawless Divine Wheels also classified according to ranks? Or should it be said that there are levels higher than flawless?"


    "I do not know," Ye Futian replied. "However, there might exist such levels."


    In reality, Ye Futian''s fourth Divine Wheel was forged with the World Tree''s Life Spirit as its foundation, and it was unique. He knew that his Way was a flawless one. It might actually be different from others.


    "Master, you seem unhappy," Xiao Muyu commented.


    "So many forces have their eyes on the Heavenly Mandate Academy. What is there to be happy about?" Ye Futian responded with a smile. "The Nine Realms are in chaos. Our Heavenly Mandate Academy is among the first few to be swept into this chaos. I do not know whether or not we should be proud of our Heavenly Mandate Academy''s influence."


    The crowd was also speechless. It seemed that it was indeed the case. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was the first to be swept into this chaos.


    First, it was the Dark Army who had descended. Now, the Holy Land of Taichu had also come.


    I hope that we have more time, Ye Futian thought to himself. Currently, he felt that his training was progressing too slowly. However, at his current level of cultivation, further improvement was indeed too difficult. This speed of cultivation was already extremely fast. If it were ordinary Renhuangs like Emperor Xia, wanting to break through to the next Plane was almost impossible.


    This chaotic situation in the Nine Realms would certainly last for a very long time.


    "The forces from the Outer Realms are strong. However, right now, since the Heavenly Mandate Academy has formed alliances with various forces, it is not a place that the Outer Realms forces can easily lay their hands on," Nan Luoshen voiced out softly. "If the Heavenly Mandate Academy is faced with trouble, the other forces will not sit still."


    Ye Futian nodded in acknowledgment. "With Emperor Nan as my support, I can indeed be at ease."


    The teleportation grand matrix of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was now connected to various major forces. If war really erupted, strong aid would step in. With Divine Palace Palace Lord, Emperor Nan, and other top figures around, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was capable of taking on all sorts of big battles.


    "Everyone, go back to your own training," Ye Futian said. All the cultivators left one by one and went back to their own training.


    This battle continued to be the topic of conversation in Heavenly Mandate City. Gradually, the news of this battle spread throughout the Nine Realms.


    Other than Ye Futian, Yu Sheng''s name was now renowned throughout the Nine Realms.


    The next day, everything returned to its normal peaceful condition.


    Ye Futian was cultivating quietly. However, at that moment, a silhouette suddenly appeared outside the palace. It was Lord Taixuan. He was staring straight ahead into the distance. Dark streaks of wind flowed over without a sound or presence. Then, they formed a black-robed silhouette that silently appeared in the inner quarters of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    All this actually happened without a sound.


    "Mei Ting!"


    Lord Taixuan''s facial expression turned ugly. It was too dangerous for a figure like Mei Ting to suddenly arrive and directly enter into the inner quarters of the Heavenly Mandate Academy without a trace.


    "What business do you have with us?" Lord Taixuan''s body was tense; he seemed anxious.


    Mei Ting cast a glance at Lord Taixuan, saying, "I am here for some matters. Do not alarm the rest."


    Lord Taixuan revealed a strange look. He did not understand. Did Mei Ting not want to alert the others?


    He still stood there motionless, contemplating countermeasures. He was not sure exactly how powerful Mei Ting''s cultivation was. It was certainly more powerful than his own. He only needed to delay the other party for a while. When the others came over through the teleportation grand matrix, they could surround Mei Ting.


    However, if they attacked, it would bring calamity to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Before you can possibly pose a threat to me, what do you think will happen to the Heavenly Mandate Academy? You better consider it carefully." Mei Ting''s eyes were jet black. His voice was extremely calm. What he said was exactly what Lord Taixuan was worried about.


    Mei Ting walked straight in. Ye Futian said, "Lord Taixuan, please let Senior Mei in."


    When the Dark Army descended, and Mei Ting had appeared, Dragon Master had mentioned to Ye Futian that Mei Ting had paid a visit to Dragon Gods. He had also killed the Demonic Dragon.


    However, Ye Futian could vaguely sense that this matter was not as simple as it appeared.


    It might be related to Yu Sheng.


    Otherwise, Ye Futian could not think of other reasons why such a terrifying existence would kill the Demonic Dragon. Now that Mei Ting was here, Ye Futian was even more certain that his arrival was linked to Yu Sheng.


    The only connection between the Demonic Dragon and the Heavenly Mandate Academy was Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian had always wondered about the true identity of his godfather. This Mei Ting might be related to his godfather!

 1777 Provocation?

    Mei Ting walked over to Ye Futian''s side. Lord Taixuan still stood in his spot, alert.


    Mei Ting was too strong. With him here and in such close proximity with Ye Futian, it would only take Mei Ting a split second if he decided to kill Ye Futian. A figure at Mei Ting''s level was not someone Ye Futian could defend against.


    "Everyone else, please go about your own business. It is better if you keep quiet about my visit," Mei Ting said to Lord Taixuan, his back to him. Right now, Mei Ting was also hesitating. Should he act on it now, or should he go back to the Devil World first? At first, he was only here to look for news about that person; however, he had found the person''s descendent now.


    This matter involved the noblest bloodline of the Devil World. Even as a Devil General who could make decisions regarding most matters, Mei Ting did not dare to act recklessly.


    Hence, he still opted to have a meeting with Ye Futian first.


    However, before Mei Ting came to his final decision, he did not want to expose Yu Sheng''s identity to the rest.


    Therefore, he warned Lord Taixuan not to spread news about his visit.


    "Lord Taixuan, I am fine here. Senior Mei and I are just having a casual chat. Please seal this space," Ye Futian said. Lord Taixuan glanced at Ye Futian and saw the latter giving him a nod of reassurance. Since Ye Futian knew what he was doing, Lord Taixuan would not say anymore. He turned around and left, sealing off the space with his Will. Others could not invade the space even with their divine consciousness.


    Judging from the fact that Mei Ting had personally come to meet Ye Futian, Lord Taixuan had a feeling that the matter that they were about to discuss was huge. It might be related to some secrets.


    Since Lord Taixuan first met Ye Futian on Taixuan Mountain, he had always acknowledged Ye Futian as a talented figure with an outstanding temperament. Ye Futian''s performance since then had been impressive as well. Now, Lord Taixuan would not be surprised even if one revealed that Ye Futian might have other identities. After all, Ye Futian''s talent was extraordinary.


    Moreover, there was still Yu Sheng.


    After Lord Taixuan left, Ye Futian bowed slightly towards Mei Ting and said, "Junior Ye Futian welcomes Senior Mei."


    Mei Ting stepped forward and stood not far from Ye Futian. He was dressed in black clothes and had eyes as deep as the abyss. By just standing there, he already made Ye Futian feel pressured. His aura was too powerful. This person before him was a top figure who could fend off the Dark Army with just a single sentence.


    "Who are you?" Mei Ting asked as he looked at Ye Futian. This was what he was curious about.


    "I am Ye Futian," Ye Futian said.


    Mei Ting frowned and said, "You know that that is not what I am asking."


    It was obvious that he was hinting that he had learned of Yu Sheng''s existence from the Demonic Dragon and hence had come looking for him here.


    "Since Senior has come looking for me and not Yu Sheng, that means that you also know that Yu Sheng himself does not know about his identity. It is the same for me. I am afraid that I do not have the answers that Senior is seeking," Ye Futian replied honestly. "On the contrary, I also wish to ask Senior the same question: Who is Yu Sheng?"


    Mei Ting revealed a strange look when he heard Ye Futian asking him the question back. Indeed, he had heard from the Demonic Dragon that Yu Sheng himself also did not know his own identity.


    Hence, Mei Ting had chosen to find Ye Futian. He had heard that ever since they came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Yu Sheng followed behind Ye Futian, as though he was Ye Futian''s shadow.


    Therefore, Mei Ting had ultimately chosen to find Ye Futian first to see whether he could learn anything from Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian actually asked him who Yu Sheng was.


    Judging from Ye Futian''s extremely calm manner, he most likely had some rough guesses, but might not have known the truth. He did not appear to be lying. Could it be possible that even these two juniors did not know their own origins?


    However, this also seemed to be that person''s way of doing things.


    For Ye Futian to ask who Yu Sheng was, was naturally the same as asking who Mei Ting was. He was referring to their backgrounds.


    Mei Ting clearly would not answer Ye Futian. Today, he had come to ask questions, not answer them.


    "What is your relationship with Emperor Ye Qing?" Mei Ting asked as he stared at Ye Futian. His eyes gradually became even more frightening. Demonic might pressed down on Ye Futian. Even if Mei Ting believed that Ye Futian was not lying, it was impossible for him to let the matter go just like that.


    Emperor Ye Qing had the surname Ye.


    What was Ye Futian''s relationship with him?


    Could it be that Ye Futian was the descendant of Emperor Ye Qing?


    From Mei Ting''s perspective, the possibility was extremely high.


    Upon hearing Mei Ting''s words, Ye Futian knew that Mei Ting might know more than he had imagined. Although he did not answer Ye Futian, Mei Ting certainly knew about Yu Sheng''s background.


    "Where is Yu Sheng''s father?" Mei Ting continued interrogating Ye Futian. He walked forward, and his pressure pressed down on Ye Futian. Immediately, a terrifying demonic might surged into Ye Futian''s mind. This caused a frightening demonic shadow to appear deep within Ye Futian''s pupils.


    Ye Futian''s gaze slowly changed. It turned somewhat cold.


    "I invited Senior in and asked Lord Taixuan to leave as a sign of my sincerity. However, if Senior wishes to act in such a manner, even if I have to fight to the death, I will not yield," Ye Futian said in a cold tone. "Also, even if Senior truly can make it out of here in one piece by injuring me, I can assure you that Yu Sheng will spend the rest of his life trying to kill you with all his might."


    Mei Ting was a Demonic Cultivator. Ye Futian conjectured the relationship between Mei Ting and Yu Sheng. Hence, he had said so as a probe.


    As expected, after listening to Ye Futian''s threat, Mei Ting paused for a moment. The pressure that he exerted on Ye Futian lessened significantly. He seemed to be hesitating.


    Mei Ting''s response verified Ye Futian''s prediction. Yu Sheng''s background was most likely very noble. Even Mei Ting had his concerns when he was up against Yu Sheng.


    He might not dare to offend Yu Sheng.


    If Mei Ting was here to capture Yu Sheng, or if he didn''t care about Yu Sheng''s identity, then he could have just ignored Ye Futian''s threat.


    However, after wavering for a moment, Mei Ting continued to pressure Ye Futian with his might. An alarming demonic will invaded Ye Futian''s mind. Mei Ting''s pupils were as dark as night. Ye Futian carried some secrets with him. These secrets might be related to Emperor Ye Qing and that person.


    If he could investigate the whole matter thoroughly, he believed that the Devil Emperor would not blame him for acting rashly.


    He would accept it even if Yu Sheng was going to hate him in the future.


    Therefore, after considering for a moment, Mei Ting still decided to invade Ye Futian''s mind.


    He would not hurt Ye Futian, but he needed to know his background, and from there, he might be able to locate that person.


    "Stop it." A chilly voice sounded. Mei Ting paused momentarily and turned around. A burly youth was standing behind him while staring at him with an extremely cold gaze. He was none other than Yu Sheng.


    Mei Ting stared at Yu Sheng. At this very moment, the former had no idea how he should face the latter.


    Yu Sheng was the descendent of a legendary figure of the Devil World. However, the legendary figure was a traitor of the Devil World.


    Yu Sheng was the son of the traitor of the Devil World.


    Although Yu Sheng was the son of the traitor, the noblest bloodline of the Devil World still coursed through his veins. This was an undeniable fact. He might also be the only one among the younger generations who possessed this bloodline.


    Based on this, Mei Ting would definitely not dare to hurt Yu Sheng.


    Only the Devil Emperor had the power to decide Yu Sheng''s fate.


    The demonic might lingered, but the pressure it exerted on Ye Futian weakened gradually. In the end, Mei Ting ceased attacking and retracted his demonic might. His gaze was still fixed on the figure who initially stood behind him.


    This burly youth seemed to be full of power. His indifferent gaze was domineering and cold, showing no emotions. Judging from the youth''s temperament, he was an innate Demonic Cultivator. He was the heir of the noblest bloodline of the Devil World; naturally, he stood head and shoulders above the rest of the demons. He was the future Demon God.


    Mei Ting and Yu Sheng stared at each other. The former was a Devil General who was all-powerful, one of the Eight Great Devil Generals under the command of the Devil Emperor. The latter was a junior who had just broken through to the Renhuang Plane. However, he stared into Mei Ting''s eyes boldly, showing no sign of fear.


    "Do you know who you are?" Mei Ting asked Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng stared at him and did not reply. He didn''t know the answer.


    "Remember, you do not need to bow to anyone. You do not need to follow anyone either. Not everything the person told you was true. Perhaps everything he said was a lie," Mei Ting said.


    Yu Sheng''s gaze wavered slightly, then it turned colder. Mei Ting''s words seemed to be provoking his relationship with Ye Futian.


    Was the person that Mei Ting had mentioned his father?


    However, Father''s words were different from Mei Ting''s. In fact, Father had advised him that his existence was for the use of Ye Futian.


    Seeing that Yu Sheng was still staring at him motionlessly, Mei Ting raised his head and glanced outside. Then, he swept a glance at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng again.


    Mei Ting moved back a few steps and saluted Yu Sheng with his head lowered. He seemed to be paying his respects to Yu Sheng.


    After that, strands of demonic will surrounded Mei Ting''s body, and he transformed into a beam of dark demonic light. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the disappearing silhouette, then he looked at Yu Sheng. He felt uneasy. Yu Sheng''s identity appeared to be even more extraordinary than what he had imagined. An existence like Mei Ting had actually bowed and saluted Yu Sheng before he left. However, he seemed to disrespect Ye Futian''s godfather by addressing him as ''that person.''


    What exactly happened in the past?


    As for Mei Ting''s provocation, Ye Futian did not mind it. He walked towards Yu Sheng and whispered, "No matter what decisions you make in the future, I will support you."


    Yu Sheng looked at him and nodded. He knew that Ye Futian would support him regardless of what he decided to do.


    Their relationship had long transcended the point where they needed to explain themselves to each other. It was not something Mei Ting could waver with just a line or two.


    Everyone else thought that he was following Ye Futian. However, he did so because he put his faith in Ye Futian. As for Ye Futian himself, he had never thought of Yu Sheng as a follower. Yu Sheng would not bat an eyelid if he needed to sacrifice himself for Ye Futian. Besides that, he was well-aware that Ye Futian would do the same for him too.


    They had absolute trust in each other.


    Two silhouettes approached them. Other than Lord Taixuan, another person was here. It was Emperor Nan.


    Clearly, Lord Taixuan was worried about them. Mei Ting was too powerful, so Lord Taixuan made a trip to the Nantian Divine Kingdom and invited Emperor Nan over.


    However, it seemed like he had worried too much; nothing happened, and Mei Ting had left.


    "Ye Futian greets Emperor Nan." When Ye Futian saw Emperor Nan, he bowed to welcome him. He was very polite towards Emperor Nan as he was one of the figures who stood at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Moreover, Emperor Nan had obviously come here to help him.


    Emperor Nan nodded slightly and asked, "Why was Mei Ting here?"


    Ye Futian smiled while shaking his head. Seeing his expression, Emperor Nan understood Ye Futian''s concern and did not probe any further. Everyone had their own secrets.


    Regardless of what intention Mei Ting had for coming over, it was of no consequence since nothing had happened.


    "It looks like the Heavenly Mandate Academy still needs to strengthen its defenses. Cultivators at the level of Mei Ting are too dangerous," Emperor Nan commented. Lord Taixuan nodded in strong agreement!

 1778 The Curtain Unveiled

    While the storm was brewing in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the other Realms were also constantly in turmoil.


    During the uproar in the Heavenly Mandate City, there were people from other Realms that had come to observe this storm.


    After the uproar in the Heavenly Mandate Academy ended, the news rapidly swept throughout the Nine Realms.


    The Solar Realm was like a huge fireball. The temperature was high. The scorching sun shone down on the land, causing it to be extremely hot.


    The Solar Realm was not suitable for ordinary people to dwell in. However, this place was heaven for cultivators who were proficient in the power of flames. The entire Solar Realm contained the scorching power of the sun.


    This power was naturally the strongest at the center of the Solar Realm, where Solar Divine Palace stood high above.


    Solar Divine Palace was truly erected in the sky above. Sun God Mountain stood tall and majestic, lifting this heavenly palace. This was where the sun rose and set.


    Right now, among the golden mist and clouds, inside the heavenly palace bathed in the flames of the Sun God, many powerful cultivators appeared in one place.


    The place seemed to be a divine court. At the very top, a silhouette stood there with the sun behind him. Below, on his left and right, cultivators from various forces stood. Further away from where he stood were the cultivators of Solar Divine Palace.


    Right now, the figure that stood at the very top turned around and looked behind him. There, a throne appeared, together with a silhouette wielding a scepter in his hand. The silhouette with the scepter sat down on the throne. It was as though he was a deity.


    Immediately, everyone''s gazes turned towards the silhouette on the throne.


    "Welcome, Envoy of the Sun," the cultivators said as they bowed in respect. They all knew the identity of this person. He was a top figure from the Divine Prefecture.


    Even the Palace Lord of Solar Divine Palace, who was the silhouette standing in front of the throne, could only stand there. Even facing the Envoy of the Sun, the Palace Lord could only succumb to him.


    Similar to other forces, Solar Divine Palace also had a force in the Outer Realms. Their force was extremely powerful. In ancient times, deity level existences had appeared among their force.


    This was the origin of the Solar Divine Palace. They were merely a branch forces.


    Among the legends of Solar Divine Palace, in the olden days, there was a deity known as the Sun God that ruled supreme. The light of the sun shone down on all living things. If the Sun God got angry, he could burn the entire world.


    As for the place that this supreme Sun God previously resided in, it was known as Solar Divine Palace.


    Up until today, the Solar Court still existed and was powerful beyond comparison. Although there were no deities born from this force, they could still be considered a force at the top of the world.


    Back in the day, in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, there was also a force that bore their inheritance that was named Solar Divine Palace. They hoped that in the Original Realm, Solar Divine Palace could rise up again one day. It was just that that day had yet to come.


    This was the origin of the Solar Divine Palace.


    Hence, after the cultivators of the Solar Court descended upon the Realm, they easily took control of the Solar Divine Palace. After all, Solar Divine Palace was originally an affiliated force.


    The older generation was clearly aware of this.


    However, some youths still felt that this was all somewhat bizarre. They even began to have their own ideas regarding how things should be.


    Di Wu had extraordinary talent and believed that he would inherit Solar Divine Palace in the future. Now that the cultivators of the Solar Court from the Divine Prefecture had arrived, they threw his plans into disarray. Yet, he could not resist.


    After all, his Plane was still too weak. Currently, he could only slowly grow stronger and keep a low profile.


    The Envoy of the Sun sat up straight on the throne as he swept his gaze across the crowd. He appeared extremely authoritative. He said, "Have you all heard about the incident in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?"


    The crowd nodded their heads. They already knew about the storm that occurred in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Di Wu had a slightly sinister look in his eyes. He never imagined that Ye Futian was actually that powerful. Moreover, there was also Yu Sheng. They defeated even the cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu in the Upper Realms.


    The current Heavenly Mandate Academy, as well as Ye Futian, could be considered to be the sun in the sky.


    "The Void Realm is also the Original Realm. Before this, the appearance of the Dark Maiden caused the Dark Court to utilize Hell to retrieve her. Now, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng have also appeared. As expected of the Original Realm. I wonder whether there will be other surprises in the future," the Envoy of the Sun said. "If that is the case, we need to take action immediately."


    Many cultivators narrowed their eyes. Take action?


    What were they going to do?


    The gaze of the Envoy of the Sun turned towards the Palace Lord of Solar Divine Palace as he asked, "Have the members been gathered?"


    "They have," the Palace Lord of Solar Divine Palace replied as he nodded his head. Before this, the Envoy of the Sun had ordered him to gather all the cultivators of the Solar Divine Palace. From this, he knew that something was about to happen, and it would be a huge war.


    "Then, let''s set out." the Envoy of the Sun got up and walked forward. The crowd of cultivators had yet to wrap their heads around what was happening.


    Set out?


    He seemed to have not said where they were setting out to.


    "Hundreds of years ago, the Solar Realm only belonged to the Solar Court. Even now that hundreds of years have passed, of course, it is still the same," the Envoy of the Sun said. "In the future, only one king is allowed in the Solar Realm. Solar Divine Palace will keep the various large forces in check. There can exist other various forces in the Solar Realm. However, they all need to declare the Solar Court as their king." His words caused the heart rates of the cultivators to increase.


    The Envoy of the Sun meant that they were preparing to clean out the various forces of the Solar Realm.


    There was going to be a huge cleansing.


    In the future, there could only be one ruling class force in the Solar Realm. There only needed to be one voice, and that voice would be that of the Solar Divine Palace.


    Divine light shone down, and the group of cultivators set off.


    Chixiao Divine Mountain was as usual. Many people were still training when suddenly, divine light shone down from the heavens above onto the Divine Mountain. The expressions of the cultivators of Chixiao Divine Mountain immediately changed drastically. They all felt very overbearing auras.


    The next moment, it was as though various deities descended from the heavens. In the sky above, flames of the Sun God rained down, seemingly wanting to destroy everything.


    "Solar Divine Palace, what is the meaning of this?" a huge voice cried out. Many top cultivators appeared at the peak of Chixiao Divine Mountain. They were all looking up at the sky and questioning Solar Divine Palace.


    "From this day forward, Chixiao Divine Mountain is not allowed to rule over the Solar Realm. You must pledge allegiance to us and become a branch of Solar Divine Palace," another voice traveled across the space, causing the hearts of countless cultivators on the entire Divine Mountain to beat faster.


    Solar Divine Palace wished to conquer the Solar Realm.


    It would not allow another force, which was at the same level, to contend with it.


    Chixiao Divine Mountain knew that the world was going through a massive change, and the powers in the Nine Realms would surely be reshuffled. However, they had not expected the change to occur so quickly and so intensely.


    The first force to stir up trouble was the Solar Divine Palace, and the first place they targeted was their Chixiao Divine Mountain.


    On this day, countless people witnessed from a distance a destructive scene occurring at Chixiao Divine Mountain of the Solar Realm. Rumor has it that a gigantic battle had erupted. In the end, Chixiao Divine Mountain pledged their allegiance to Solar Divine Palace.


    After that, one by one, other forces in the Solar Realm pledged their allegiance to Solar Divine Palace.


    When others heard about the news, the entire Solar Realm went into an uproar.


    Gradually, the entire Solar Realm fell under the control of the Solar Divine Palace.


    A few days later, the leaders of the various large forces in the Solar Realm all gathered at Solar Divine Palace at the same time and held a grand event. However, they had not invited anyone from the other Realms.


    From that moment forth, the Solar Realm was unified.


    Before this occurred in the Solar Realm, the Hidden Land Realm was also in the same boat. Hell now ruled the Hidden Land Realm. Another Realm similar to these two was the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Heavenly Mandate Academy led the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    This model would completely sweep over the Nine Realms very soon.


    The topmost forces from the Outer Realms unified individual Realms.


    Such astonishing news very quickly spread throughout the Nine Realms, stirring up a huge uproar. This storm was even worse than the one faced by the Heavenly Mandate Academy. This was a dramatic turn of events that truly swept the Solar Realm.


    ...


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, by the time Ye Futian received news of this, it was already quite late.


    This was all within his predictions. It was just that he had not imagined that it would happen so quickly. It seemed that the force behind Solar Divine Palace was also sufficiently powerful enough to take down the entire Solar Realm in a short amount of time.


    In the Colloquy Palace, the atmosphere was somewhat solemn.


    "Have you all heard the news?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    Hmm. The crowd nodded. How could they not have heard such huge news?


    "While we just received news of this incident, the Shadow Realm is now facing a similar situation. It is the same for all the other Realms. Before Hell has yet to make a move, the forces of the Divine Prefecture are already preparing to divide up the Nine Realms first," Lord Taixuan continued.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Realm was originally one unit. This matter is barely related to us." Lord Taixuan continued, "However, if our alliance members, Shangxiao Divine Palace, Nantian Divine Kingdom, Emperor Star Realm''s Dou tribe, Yuanyang Clan and other forces encounter such a situation, we will certainly rush to aid all of them. Each force has its representative here. I believe there are no objections?" They had formed an alliance precisely to face the changes in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Now that the change had come, some things naturally needed to be agreed upon beforehand.


    "Since we are allies, that is naturally what we should do," someone said.


    "Nantian Divine Kingdom has no objections," Nan Luoshen replied.


    "Dou tribe agrees to this." Other voices continued to cry out. Everyone agreed with what Lord Taixuan had said. Currently, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was already not the only force to have problems. In such a chaotic situation, they could only form groups and alliances to face the future changes ahead.


    "Each force also needs to raise your vigilance. Send cultivators to learn more about what is happening. That way, if there are changes, we can respond immediately," Lord Taixuan remarked. Everyone was listening attentively with a somewhat solemn mood.


    Ye Futian had been in the crowd quietly all this while. The curtain of a chaotic situation that was fated to sweep over the Nine Realms was officially being unveiled!

 1779 The Movements of the Golden Divine Nation

    At the Cottage of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Currently, quite a number of people had gathered here. Many cultivators, including Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Gu Dongliu, and Dou Zhao were present. Nan Luoshen and Xiao Muyu were around too. Each and every one of them was a legendary figure of this generation who had forged flawless Divine Wheels.


    However, all of them were sitting upright now and were listening to the lecture delivered by the person in front.


    The lecturer was handsome and had a scholarly bearing. His temperament was ethereal. He was none other than Emperor Nan, the legendary figure who had long made his name renowned throughout the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    This Dynastic Overlord of Nantian Divine Kingdom was at the Cottage today to lecture about the Way.


    Of course, everyone would give their full attention to his teachings.


    "There are strong Great Paths and weak Great Paths, but in the end, it depends on the users. Other than the direct suppression of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path, the might of the Great Path is ultimately unleashed through the Arts of Supreme Attack. Hence, cultivators in the world will try to comprehend the Arts of Supreme Attack that are suitable for themselves. When you reach the Renhuang Plane and have forged a Divine Wheel, you have comprehended the might of the Great Path and are free to create your own Art of Supreme Attack."


    Emperor Nan continued, "Nevertheless, even though Arts of Supreme Attack created by our ancestors do not fit you perfectly, they are still fruits of the experience accumulated by the seniors. The might of these techniques, especially those passed down by top figures, are powerful. I am sure all of you have experienced these techniques in the previous battle. The True Will of Waves unleashed by the Battle God of the Holy Land of Taichu was impressive. If any one of you in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were to attempt to unleash such an attack, you would not be able to unleash such a powerful attack even though you had comprehended the same power of the Great Path. In the end, it depends on the most suitable application of the might of the Great Path and the merging between Ways."


    Emperor Nan explained, "Hence, the cultivators who can comprehend many types of Great Paths will have advantages. They can merge the Great Path into the Art of Supreme Attack and create an even more powerful technique. They can also blend and transform the Ways to create an entirely new and stronger Way."


    Everyone listened attentively. They had just broken through to the Renhuang Plane. In reality, most of them were still understanding the power of the Great Path. In terms of applying the power of the Great Path, they paled into insignificance when compared to cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu. This disparity was shown when they were engaged in battles.


    "Ye Futian, the Fleeting sword technique created by Lord Taixuan is very powerful. However, as the battle proceeded, you made the swords resonate with each other. That was your original technique, right?" Emperor Nan asked as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and said, "I named it Dust."


    "Well done. Dust bears resemblance with Fleeting, yet it transcends the original. It also fits your Way better," Emperor Nan analyzed. "This sword technique cannot be said to be better than Fleeting, but when you perform it, it is stronger than Fleeting." Ye Futian nodded in strong agreement.


    This sword was a better fit for himself.


    Aside from that, the staff technique that he used to defeat his opponent, in the end, was also his original. The Nine Heavenly Attacks had undergone countless metamorphoses; it had been thoroughly refined. Ye Futian could not say that the technique was more powerful than the original, yet it was a perfect fit for his use.


    "I also practiced swordsmanship and have comprehended a sword that is suitable for myself. Today, I will show you," Emperor Nan said. He looked at Nan Luoshen and said, "Luoshen, lend me Qinghe."


    Nan Luoshen nodded in agreement and passed the Qinghe Divine Sword to Emperor Nan. The Qinghe Divine Sword was originally Emperor Nan''s sword, so it resonated with him. When it was held in Emperor Nan''s hand, it vibrated and created a drumming in the ears of the audience. It was as though the sword was excited.


    With the sword in his hand, Emperor Nan flew into the sky. Ye Futian and the rest leaped up and followed him.


    "Keep a distance away from me," Emperor Nan ordered. Everyone stopped in their tracks. The clouds churned in the sky. Emperor Nan wielded the Qinghe Divine Sword in his hand. He casually grasped hold of it. He became one with the sword, as though he had merged with the Great Path.


    In an instant, a terrifying aura of sword enveloped the surroundings with Emperor Nan as its center. The space seemed to be fragmenting. Ye Futian and the rest had a vague feeling that if they entered the range of the sword, they would be instantly crushed into dust by the Sword Will.


    "The Great Path strikes for simplicity. When you reach a higher cultivation Plane, you will no longer need those flashy techniques," Emperor Nan lectured. "The simplest way would be concentrating all your energy on one point, not wasting even a bit of the might of the Way. It is the strongest technique." As he spoke, his aura became even more terrifying.


    Everyone could sense that the vast sky seemed to be enveloped by a formless Sword Will. It was pressuring, but it was not threatening. It was as though they could sense that this sword would not land on them.


    The Qinghe Divine Sword rang and floated in front of Emperor Nan. Emperor Nan extended a finger and pointed at the Qinghe Divine Sword. Right away, the sword sprang forward and traversed the sky.


    Swoosh. A dazzling sword light crossed the sky. Everywhere it passed, the space shattered. Ye Futian and the rest were shocked by the sword. In the sky, a dark crack appeared. It was as though the space had been fissured by the sword.


    All the Great Path around the slit was crushed into dust.


    The aura in other places dissipated. The crowd no longer felt pressured. In their eyes, only the sword remained. Emperor Nan had merged all his Way into the sword; not a bit of it was wasted. His Great Path was simple and true to the fundamentals.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, everyone raised their heads and looked at the sky. The hideous slit was shocking to all who saw it.


    Many disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were envious. Emperor Nan was personally delivering his teachings. Now, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had a good reputation, and they could even invite Emperor Nan over as a lecturer. Unfortunately, the masses would not be able to receive his teachings. They had to first become core disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Then they had to be qualified to enter the Cottage before receiving Emperor Nan''s guidance.


    The Qinghe Divine Sword flew back into Emperor Nan''s hand. However, Ye Futian and the rest were still in a daze as they stared at the sword. The sword technique appeared plain, yet it contained unparalleled power.


    The crowd returned to the Academy. Emperor Nan returned the Qinghe Divine Sword to Nan Luoshen, then he concluded, "Alright. All of you train diligently. The future of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path is yours."


    "Thank you, Emperor Nan," Ye Futian said while bowing. The rest also bowed one after another. Emperor Nan then left the Academy.


    Yaya, Ye Wuchen, the Swordmaster of Lihen, and many others were swordsmen. This simple sword attack moved them greatly. Some principles were easy to understand, yet they were very difficult to be executed in life.


    If they could use their power like how Emperor Nan did, their attacks would surely skyrocket in terms of strength.


    "Emperor Nan is indeed worthy of his fame," Dou Zhao exclaimed. "Rumor has it that in the past, countless cultivators died in his hands. However, he is such a scholarly gentleman now."


    "He is gentle because he is guiding us. If he is faced with an enemy, he will most likely traumatize the other party and kill them with a single attack," Ye Futian commented. Dou Zhao nodded in agreement.


    A sword like his was indeed frightening. Even a space slit had appeared because of it.


    Everyone went on with their own business. Ye Futian also went to train alone. He continued to comprehend the Great Path. In these chaotic times, he had a strong urge to improve his ability.


    ...


    In the Higher Heavens Realm, the ancient Golden Divine Nation was dazzling as though the building was built with pure gold. It was erected on the ground and was more than ten thousand meters tall. To reach the building, one would need to first set foot on the staircase of Golden Divine Nation. Commoners would not be qualified to enter the place.


    However, on this day, cultivators from all around the Realm had gathered in this ancient place.


    The Dynastic Overlord of Golden Divine Nation had invited all the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm to come over for a gathering. One by one, the guests arrived.


    Everyone was startled when they heard the news about the Solar Realm. Even the top forces were not at ease. If the super forces from the Outer Realms wanted to take over the forces in the Void Realm, most of them could not stand against the former. Two perfect examples would be the Hidden Land Realm and the Solar Realm. There was no suspense in the development of the situation.


    The reason why the Heavenly Mandate Academy could escape from this fate was that the Academy had formed alliances with various forces. This caused the Holy Land of Taichu to not be able to shake their establishment. Even so, the battle between the Holy Land of Taichu and the Heavenly Mandate Academy still rendered the latter to be in a crisis. Thankfully, the crisis was resolved in the end.


    In reality, many forces in the Nine Realms did not have existences above the Renhuang Plane to hold the fort. They also did not have upper-level Renhuang in their forces. Hence, even though their forces appeared powerful, they were actually very fragile. In the past, all the forces had to be wary of each other to maintain the balance of the Realm. However, during these chaotic times, they were all at the risk of being eradicated.


    In the Higher Heavens Realm, only Shangxiao Divine Palace, Golden Divine Nation, and the former Taixuan Mountain had giant figures. Other forces had no one who could defend them. Even Lord Taixuan was considered relatively new in terms of breaking through to the higher Planes.


    After Gai Qiong returned, Golden Divine Nation had two giant figures. On the other hand, Lord Taixuan went to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Hence, in the current Higher Heavens Realm, aside from Shangxiao Divine Palace, which could still contend with Golden Divine Nation, the other forces were no match for them.


    Therefore, all the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm came when Golden Divine Nation invited them. On this day, various forces, including the Divine Capital of Xiling, Divine Sword Li Family, Sky Burying God Clan, and Chang Feng Clan, set foot in this dazzling golden palace.


    Outside of Golden Divine Nation palace hall, the cultivators met Gai Cang and Gai Qiong. Gai Cang was the Dynastic Overlord, while Gai Qiong was a divine general under the command of Donghuang the Great. Gai Qiong''s ability was not any weaker than that of Gai Cang.


    The two brothers sat together and emanated a majestic aura.


    When the cultivators from various forces arrived, they saluted the two brothers since they were weaker.


    After most of the cultivators had arrived, Gai Cang scanned the crowd and asked, "Is the representative of Shangxiao Divine Palace here?"


    "Shangxiao Divine Palace has joined the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, so now many of them are sent to train in the academy," Old Demon Luo from Divine Capital of Xiling replied. Instantly, the atmosphere in the hall turned awkward. In the Higher Heavens Realm, almost all the forces sent a few of their disciples to cultivate in Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    However, right now, Golden Divine Nation had the intention of ruling over all the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm. In that case, the holy land of cultivating and the strongest force in the Higher Heavens Realm might stand on opposite sides.


    Besides that, many people had heard rumors about the existence of another force manipulating Golden Divine Nation in the shadows.


    After their battle with the Holy Land of Taichu, the influence of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had reached a new height. Moreover, they formed alliances with many forces. Hence, it was difficult for outsiders to seize control of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Consequently, some forces from the Outer Realms had moved their targets to the Higher Heavens Realm.


    After all, the goal of the top forces from the Outer Realms was to establish their influences in the Nine Realms. It didn''t matter much to them which Realm they took over.


    The forces in the Central Emperor Realm were the strongest and hence the hardest to take over. The Hidden Land Realm was now under the control of dark forces. Therefore, the choices left were limited!

 1780 Crisis of the Divine Palace

    Gai Cang glanced at the various cultivators who arrived. He smiled and said, "Today, the Golden Divine Nation has invited you all here to discuss the fate of the Higher Heavens Realm. Currently, the Nine Realms are turbulent, with chaos being stirred up everywhere. The Age of Turmoil that occurred hundreds of years ago seems to be gradually resurfacing. The status quo in the Nine Realms is about to shift. Hence, we have invited you all here to discuss the future of the various forces in the Higher Heavens Realm together."


    After listening to what Gai Cang said, everyone remained silent. No one spoke up. Their so-called discussion was just a conspiracy.


    However, there was one point that Gai Cang indeed spoke true of. In the current situation, the forces in the Nine Realms would be reshuffled. In the days to come, no one knew who would remain and who would end up in the annals of history.


    Under such conditions, they could not reject the invitation of Golden Divine Nation.


    During this Age of Turmoil, the forces would not dare to offend Golden Divine Nation lightly.


    Moreover, Gai Qiong was a cultivator working directly under Donghuang the Great.


    "According to my elder brother, his purpose for coming here is because Donghuang the Great does not wish to see the Void Realm being infiltrated by the dark forces. Hence, all of us need to work together and strengthen the Higher Heavens Realm. If the Great Emperor has any orders in the future, we can also contribute our skills for his use," Gai Cang said. He highlighted the relationship between Gai Qiong and the Great Emperor. It was both a reminder and a threat to the audience.


    "What suggestion does the Dynastic Overlord have?" Old Demon Luo asked right then. Divine Capital of Xiling had launched a surprise attack on Taixuan Mountain back in the day. This Old Demon Luo had attacked before Lord Taixuan had broken through to the next Plane. He was cruel and ruthless. He also did not bear any goodwill towards the Divine Palace.


    Divine Capital of Xiling and the Divine Palace had very little involvement with each other.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy has gone through a few huge crises, yet the academy still managed to stand undefeated. Why is that so?" Gai Cang said. "It is because the Heavenly Mandate Academy knows how to take advantage of other forces. The academy relies on the cultivators of other forces; it forms alliances with them. Otherwise, with that tiny bit of ability of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, it is impossible for them to survive up until this day."


    Forming an alliance!


    Everyone narrowed their eyes. The Golden Divine Nation finally revealed its intention. The motive behind their call for an alliance was most likely to control all the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    After all, once all of them formed an alliance, Golden Divine Nation would be the strongest force among them. Who could contend with them for the power of control?


    Many forces were worried about being annexed.


    Hence, all of them remained silent and did not reply. Everyone had their own axes to grind. No force would easily agree to Gai Cang''s suggestion.


    "Everyone can put your worries to rest. I sincerely hope for the alliance among all the forces of the Higher Heavens Realm. I am not trying to dominate the Realm and become its ruler," Gai Cang assured the crowd. "I truly hope that the Higher Heavens Realm can prosper and not fall behind the other Realms during this Age of Turmoil. Of course, I do not wish to see any force being eradicated as well."


    Gai Cang continued, "Prior to this, I was hoping that the Divine Palace would help us. However, it seems like the Divine Palace doesn''t really care about our Higher Heavens Realm and has moved on to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. I have always heard rumors about a secret zone in the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace. The place is said to be helpful for cultivators to improve the level of their Divine Wheels when they are breaking through to the Renhuang Plane. However, after all these years, how many people in the Higher Heavens Realm have been there? I only know of Huang Zhong having entered Ancestral Lands before, and Ye Futian, too.


    "The Divine Palace really values Ye Futian, who is from the Heavenly Mandate Realm," Gai Cang exclaimed sarcastically.


    Gai Cang sneered internally as he was speaking. Everyone was greedy. Even these top forces from the Higher Heavens Realm were no exception.


    "The Divine Palace crowns itself as the holy land for training and delivers its teachings in the Higher Heavens Realm, yet it keeps its best resources from us," Old Demon Luo said. "After so many years, there is rarely a person who manages to enter the Ancestral Lands, so I think the place is actually not worthy of its fame. Rumor has it that there is a treasure in the Ancestral Lands, which can help cultivators to forge a flawless Divine Wheel. Could it be that the rumor is really true?" As Old Demon Luo spoke, a glint of greed flashed past his dark eyes.


    Most likely, only forces at the level of the Divine Place could possess this kind of divine item. A few of the large forces in the Central Emperor Realm had this kind of divine item too. The forces in the Divine Prefecture were domineering, and their teachings were powerful. They were most likely as powerful as they were due to having rich resources as well.


    The crowd gathered here had only heard of divine items. They didn''t even know whether or not Shangxiao Divine Palace truly possessed such a divine item.


    "Of course it is true," said Gai Qiong, who was beside Gai Cang. He looked at Old Demon Luo and said, "This rumor has been around since many years ago. No one else is more aware of this than me. Shangxiao Divine Palace owns a Tablet of the Great Path. It is a remnant from the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Not only can it help cultivators to forge flawless Divine Wheels, but it is also beneficial for the training of Renhuangs."


    "However, this divine item will most likely be moved to the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future," Gai Cang added. The two brothers echoed each other''s words. The audience was well-aware that the two brothers were sowing discord between them and the Divine Palace.


    Even though the audience was conscious of the brothers'' intention, they couldn''t help but have some thoughts about the issue when they knew that the brothers were speaking the truth.


    A divine item. It was a divine item, left behind during the collapse of the Heavenly Path, which could assist cultivators in forging flawless Divine Wheels. For some unknown reasons, the Divine Palace had been keeping such a divine item a secret from them.


    "If this matter is true, then the Divine Palace is unworthy to be called the training holy land. They are also unfit to teach the Way in our Higher Heavens Realm," Old Demon Luo said harshly. He agreed with the brothers'' point of view naturally, pointing the finger at the Divine Palace.


    "Divine Sword Li Family, Sky Burying God Clan and the rest of you, you have cultivators who are training in the Divine Palace now, right?" Gai Cang asked as he looked at Divine Sword Li Family and the other few large forces.


    "Hmm." They nodded in response. Li Daozi, the Proud Son of Heaven of Divine Sword Li Family, used to train in the Divine Palace, too.


    "Do the juniors who train in the Divine Palace have access to the Ancestral Lands?" Gai Cang continued prompting.


    The few of them shook their heads. One would need to venture into the Ancestral Lands by themselves in order to train there. However, aside from Huang Zhong, nobody was able to do so in the past hundreds of years.


    Before this, the cultivators only blamed their failures on themselves. However, they had some different thoughts now.


    "Alright. Let''s put this issue aside for now. Why did the conversation spiral to talking about the Divine Palace? As I have mentioned before, what''s everyone''s decision regarding forming an alliance?" Gai Cang continued to persuade the crowd, "Our Higher Heavens Realm must unite and form a single large power. As for forces which can teach the Way, don''t you worry. Even without the Divine Palace, there will be another force, which will come to our Higher Heavens Realm to teach the Way. Moreover, this other force is better than the Divine Palace."


    The audience revealed strange expressions when they heard Gai Cang''s words; they instantly thought of a force.


    It was none other than the Holy Land of Taichu, which was a top training holy land of the Upper Worlds. Not long ago, in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they had lost in the hands of the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ever since the Holy Land of Taichu had been defeated, no one had heard news of them for a while. Now, combining Gai Cang''s words and past events, the audience had a rough idea of what was happening.


    Was the Holy Land of Taichu planning to establish their dominance here in the Higher Heavens Realm after they had lost in the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Their previous target was the Heavenly Mandate Academy. After they had been defeated, were they switching their target to the Shangxiao Divine Palace?


    However, it seemed like the Holy Land of Taichu was taking the soft approach this time. They weren''t as direct as when they were in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Considering all these factors, the motive of Golden Divine Nation was clear now. They were plotting on seizing control of the Higher Heavens Realm by joining forces with an Outer Realms force.


    "Divine Capital of Xiling supports the idea of Dynastic Overlord," Old Demon Luo voiced. "During this Age of Turmoil, everyone in the Higher Heavens Realm should work together. Golden Divine Nation is the strongest force in the Realm. With Divine Nation as our leader, I am sure we will be able to protect our Higher Heavens Realm amidst the chaos."


    This bast*rd�� Everyone else from other forces cursed Old Demon Luo in their hearts. Usually, Old Demon Luo was extremely arrogant, but now he had actually agreed to this idea so readily. Was he adapting his actions to the present situation?


    However, this Old Demon Luo was not an honorable man, to begin with. One could tell his character based on his sneak attack in the past. He played dirty tricks. He was willing to do anything as long as it benefited him.


    Now, he wanted to be the first one to pledge allegiance to the Golden Divine Nation. In the future, he would have some control over the alliance.


    "Brother Luo is sensible," Gai Cang praised. "It looks like the rest of you will still need some time to consider this matter, but there is no rush. Golden Divine Nation has prepared a feast to welcome everyone. Since you are here in the palace of Divine Nation, you must drink and feast to your heart''s content. You can take your time to consider the alliance."


    Hmm. Everyone nodded in agreement. That was their only option now.


    However, they had already realized that under the current circumstances, they had to fall in line. Golden Divine Nation would most likely not agree if they did not do so.


    After the various large forces returned home, in the Divine Palace, their disciples left one after another, bidding farewell to the senior figures of the Divine Palace.


    In the Divine Palace, various rumors began spreading. The rumors painted the Divine Palace in a bad light.


    The matters that occurred in Golden Divine Nation, naturally, could not be kept secret and reached the Divine Palace.


    Shangxiao Divine Palace realized that the Golden Divine Nation wanting to form an alliance this time was not merely as simple as forming an alliance of the Higher Heavens Realm; it was possible that they wanted to use them.


    Ye Futian did not receive the news from the seniors of the Divine Palace. Instead, he heard it from Huang Zhong. They also had an information network in the Higher Heavens Realm, so they knew a thing or two about what had transpired.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Huang Zhong and Ye Futian were together. Huang Zhong said to Ye Futian, "Before Li Daozi left, he had met with his master. Now that the situation is dire, he can only leave for now. Under the current circumstances, Divine Sword Li Family does not dare to make a powerful enemy. Hence, they had decided to temporarily leave the Higher Heavens Realm."


    The Divine Palace was a place for training. They naturally did not have many strict constraints. Each person could make their own choice. Li Daozi still had Divine Sword Li Family behind his back. He had to consider the standpoint of the Li Family before he made any decision. It was kind enough for him to warn Huang Zhong and Ye Futian.


    "From the looks of it, the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm will make a move on the Divine Palace. Is that true?" Ye Futian asked Huang Zhong.


    Huang Zhong nodded and said, "The possibility is extremely high."


    Ye Futian fell silent. If the Heavenly Mandate Academy meddled in this affair, most likely, the Outer Realms forces would not sit out of it too. However, since they had formed an alliance with Shangxiao Divine Palace, it was impossible for Ye Futian to let the Divine Palace be invaded!

 1781 Attitude

    Ye Futian heard about the news and told Lord Taixuan. The Heavenly Mandate Academy sent disciples to various forces to invite their cultivators to come and stay at the academy for the time being. They wanted to prepare against all possibilities.


    The Higher Heavens Realm, on the other hand, had been put on edge. Rumors spread over the past few days that the Golden Divine Nation might attack the Divine Palace, the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    The Shangxiao Divine Palace had trained a great number of excellent cultivators. Even some Renhuangs from other realms once studied there. Nevertheless, ordinary Renhuangs didn''t have the ability to intervene if the Golden Divine Nation truly set their sights on the Divine Palace. Even high-level Renhuangs could hardly pull strings.


    Nowadays, many of the disciples who came from top forces and cultivated in the Divine Palace had already left the palace. It was easy to imagine how delicate the situation was.


    However, Ye Futian and the others in the Heavenly Mandate Academy didn''t hear the news of the Golden Divine Nation attacking the Shangxiao Divine Palace. They were hit with another bombshell.


    The Golden Divine Nation did launch an attack. But it was not against the Shangxiao Divine Palace.


    Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian in the Heavenly Mandate Academy were astounded by the report.


    "The Divine Sword Li Family was exterminated?" Lord Taixuan stared at the messenger and repeated his words. He used to cultivate in the Taixuan Mountain in the Higher Heavens Realm and was very familiar with the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Although the Divine Sword Li Family didn''t have any living legend, it was a family with great power and rich heritage. They had been the holy land of swordsmanship in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian heard about some news regarding the Divine Sword Li Family not so long ago. It was shocking for them to learn that the entire Divine Sword Li Family was killed so abruptly.


    This...


    "Yes, the Golden Divine Nation and the Divine Capital of Xiling both claimed that the Divine Sword Li Family feigned compliance but deliberately undermined the alliance in the Higher Heavens Realm behind the scenes, hindered the progress of forming a unity among forces, and damaged the future of the realm. That was why they took aggressive actions. Although they didn''t wipe out the entire Divine Sword Li Family, they killed their top cultivators. In addition, the assailants were not those two masters from the Golden Divine Nation. It was people from other forces," the messenger replied.


    "Forces from the Outer Realms?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    "Yes." The messenger nodded.


    "Is it the Holy Land of Taichu?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    Lord Taixuan''s expression was grave. He didn''t expect the Golden Divine Nation to strike the Divine Sword Li Family first.


    They had some connection with the Divine Sword Li Family, yet it was never a close relationship.


    "It seems that the Golden Divine Nation is fully prepared this time," said Lord Taixuan.


    "The Golden Divine Nation always wants to target at the Heavenly Mandate Academy and, of course, has extensive knowledge of our relationship with the Divine Palace. They knew we had formed an alliance with the Divine Palace a long time ago, and they understand the level of our ability. Under such circumstances, they must have evaluated the situation if they decided to attack. They have another objective besides the Divine Palace," Ye Futian said in a cold voice.


    "Based on what you said, the forces from the Outer Realms came because of us." Lord Taixuan certainly understood what Ye Futian meant. The Heavenly Mandate Academy would antagonize the forces from the Outer Realms if they helped the Divine Palace. They would make even more enemies if that happened.


    "The Golden Divine Nation has ulterior motives. They attacked the Divine Sword Li Family, but the Divine Sword Li Family was not their true target," said Ye Futian. The Golden Divine Nation clearly fired at the Divine Sword Li Family to deter other forces in the Higher Heavens Realm. In this way, the other forces couldn''t even stand by and look on anymore, let alone help the Divine Palace. They had to pick a side. Chances were that they had no choice but to join the Golden Divine Nation''s camp and eventually be reduced to its dependent territories.


    If they dared to defy the Golden Divine Nation, they probably had to think it through whether they were prepared to meet the same destiny of the Divine Sword Li Family.


    "I will go to the Divine Palace," said Ye Futian.


    "You will go?" Lord Taixuan asked as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "Yes, I will go," Ye Futian replied, nodding. By paying a visit to the Divine Palace, he could express the attitude of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and their willingness to act in unison with the Divine Palace. His visit would boost the confidence of the cultivators in the Divine Palace. Meanwhile, it could serve as a deterrent to other forces in the Higher Heavens Realm and warn them not to strike the Divine Palace when they were down.


    No one else was more suitable than Ye Futian to take this trip.


    The Divine Palace stood behind the Heavenly Mandate Academy and sent in reinforcements without hesitation when the Dark Army was bearing down upon the border. Even if they were not allies, the Heavenly Mandate Academy couldn''t stay out this time for the sake of reciprocity.


    Therefore, they had no choice but to declare war against the Golden Divine Nation if the latter really wanted to fire at the Divine Palace.


    After a moment of silence, Lord Taixuan nodded and said, "All right. Go ahead."


    Of course, Lord Taixuan supported Ye Futian''s proposal. Despite the high risk, the Heavenly Mandate Academy couldn''t stand by idly when the Divine Palace was in danger since the Divine Palace fought for Ye Qingyao in the past. Who would come to help the Heavenly Mandate Academy again if they turned their back on the Divine Palace?


    "I will ask Little Condor to keep everyone on our side in the loop. We will activate the teleportation grand matrix to go to the Divine Palace immediately if anything happened," said Ye Futian. Lord Taixuan nodded and watched as Ye Futian leave.


    ******


    The tension in the Shangxiao Divine Palace was palpable in recent days.


    The disciples cultivating in the Divine Palace had been unable to relax ever since the news arrived.


    Several disciples gathered in the Divine Palace on this day.


    Several Palace Lords stood at the front of the crowd when a senior cultivator of the Divine Palace walked toward them. He looked around the room and spoke loudly, "Rumors have been floating around the Divine Palace these days as several incidents happened recently. I know many of you are very worried."


    No one broke the silence. Indeed, the cultivators had all been thinking about their futures of late.


    "I know you all have different plans for yourselves. The Divine Palace is not a clan but a place for people to seek knowledge of the Great Path together. We have done nothing more than propagating our ideas and imparting information to our disciples. Therefore, the Divine Palace will not ask all of you to undergo such calamity with us. We summoned you here to let you know that anyone who wishes to leave is free to go. Cultivators who are below the Renhuang Plane must leave for safety concerns and may return to the Divine Palace to cultivate after the crisis is over," said the senior cultivator.


    The crowd was dumbstruck by his announcement.


    The Divine Palace asked them to leave.


    They encouraged the disciples who were cultivating in the Divine Palace to leave in the face of a crisis. Moreover, they ordered everyone below the Renhuang Plane to evacuate.


    There were some rumors about the Divine Palace''s self-serving agenda circulating around in recent days. Some cultivators also began to harbor suspicions because of the close relationship between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Divine Palace and the fact that the Ancestral Lands was not open to disciples of the Divine Palace.


    Nevertheless, all doubts were put to rest now.


    The Divine Palace only propagated ideas and imparted knowledge. The seniors in the Divine Palace freely let the disciples leave when facing an adversarial situation.


    How magnanimous they were.


    The Divine Palace truly was a place established solely to help people cultivate.


    "Senior, the palaces in the Divine Palace all have considerable strength. Even though the Golden Divine Nation has a long history, could they really be a threat to our Divine Palace?" a junior disciple asked. He hadn''t reached the Renhuang Plane yet, but he was worried about the Divine Palace and didn''t want to abandon them.


    "Our Divine Palace wouldn''t care so much if it''s just the Golden Divine Nation," the senior cultivator said with great confidence as he cracked a smile. "But the situation is much more serious than you imagined. Thus, anyone below the Renhuang Plane has to leave. There is no room for negotiation. Don''t be a burden for the Divine Palace."


    Cultivators below the Renhuang Plane were nothing but cannon fodder once the war broke out. It was meaningless for them to stay since they could hardly withstand any attack. Calling them a burden was accurate, albeit not nice. Furthermore, the senior cultivator intentionally used harsh words to push them out.


    "Senior, we have been studying here for so long. How can you kick us out so easily? It would be quite embarrassing for us if we cut and run," a Renhuang said with a smile. "Therefore, it''s better for me to stay. I''m going to cultivate if you have nothing else."


    The man turned around and left as his voice faded. Many people stared at his receding figure and were astonished at his integrity.


    At the moment, a brilliant light suddenly blazed from behind the great hall. Beams of the dazzling light of Space shot into the sky and seemed to have paved an Ancient Road of the Great Path.


    Many cultivators immediately turned their eyes to that direction and covered the area with their divine consciousness.


    "It''s the teleportation grand matrix of space." The senior cultivator of the Divine Palace also looked over that way and realized who was coming.


    Nowadays, only the Heavenly Mandate Academy could directly teleport to the Divine Palace.


    Someone from the Heavenly Mandate Academy was here.


    The light grew faint in a short time. A line of people became visible in the divine consciousness, none of them intimidating. Ye Futian was the head of the group, accompanied by his friends.


    Upon his arrival, Ye Futian moved directly to the area where the cultivators of the Divine Palace had gathered. A strange look flashed across his face when he saw the crowd. He descended from the sky and saluted the cultivators standing on the platform. "Greetings from Ye Futian to the seniors of the Divine Palace."


    "Why do you come?" the senior cultivator of the Divine Palace asked. It seemed pointless for Ye Futian and his friends to come.


    "Senior, I''m practically a disciple of the Divine Palace even though I currently cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. I even entered the Ancestral Lands before. Is it all right for me to come to the Divine Palace to cultivate for a while?" Ye Futian asked, smiling.


    People in the Divine Palace understood Ye Futian''s intention the moment he said he wanted to cultivate here for some time.


    Ye Futian planned to go through the disturbance in the company of the Divine Palace.


    Considering Ye Futian''s current position, his decision to come to the Divine Palace indicated that the Heavenly Mandate Academy behind him would also be backing up the Divine Palace.


    His arrival signaled the attitude of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The disciples of the Divine Palace also laughed. Ye Futian was extremely arrogant and puffed with pride when he came to the Divine Palace the first time. He challenged and defeated the most talented cultivators in the Divine Palace and displeased a lot of people at that time. However, as time passed and Ye Futian''s reputation grew, most of his peers back in the days were not a match for him anymore. After all, he could easily beat an ordinary middle-level Renhuang nowadays.


    For all that, no one was disgruntled by Ye Futian''s visit this time. Everybody greeted him with a warm, welcoming smile.


    "The cultivators in the Divine Palace are glad to have a chance to learn from Renhuang Ye," a cultivator in the Renhuang Plane said with a broad smile. Many people grinned from ear to ear. No one brought up leaving the Divine Palace.

 1782 Reciprocity

    Ye Futian settled down in the Divine Palace and planned to cultivate there for a while until the crisis passed.


    Ye Futian was housed in one of the palaces. Two familiar faces came to visit him at the moment. They were Li Daozi and Li Xun, a pair of brothers who had conflicts with Ye Futian in the past.


    Both Li Daozi and Li Xun were descendants of the Divine Sword Li Family. The clan lord of the Divine Sword Li Family fought desperately to help a few promising youngsters to escape and save their lives. These young people came to the Divine Palace, where the enemies couldn''t hunt them anymore.


    Furthermore, the enemies'' goal was never to wipe out the entire Divine Sword Li Family. Perhaps they felt it beneath them to exterminate the whole family. After all, they still cared about their reputation, and it was not beneficial for the Golden Divine Nation to rule the Higher Heavens Realm later if they pushed too far.


    Ye Futian was at a loss for words when he saw Li Daozi and Li Xun walking toward him. He didn''t know how to console them. Despite their dispute in the past, Ye Futian and the Li brothers also developed a friendship with each other. The brothers were pretty good cultivators back in the days. Ye Futian certainly didn''t hold grudges against them.


    "How are you doing?" Ye Futian asked.


    "What can we do even if we''re not doing well? We probably can''t avenge the murder of our families in the future, let alone now." Li Daozi sighed to himself. Deep down, he knew that the Golden Divine Nation was not the only enemy. The top forces from the Divine Prefecture were also involved.


    Under such circumstances, how strong did they have to become in order to get even with their families'' murderers?


    They felt crushed and disheartened at the thought of the slim chance of taking vengeance.


    "You don''t sound like a swordsman in training. Swordsmanship values indomitable spirit and unquenchable hope. How can you abandon yourselves to despair just because the future is uncertain?" Ye Futian continued, "Moreover, nothing is impossible in this world."


    Li Daozi and Li Xun nodded, yet their expressions were still gloomy. The tragedy that happened to their family was a huge blow for both of them. They were filled with anger and pain while felt completely powerless.


    "Thank you very much," Li Daozi expressed his appreciation. By staying in the Divine Palace, Ye Futian showed to them that he was willing to support the Divine Palace wholeheartedly. Otherwise, it was hard to say if the Divine Palace could survive this calamity.


    "It''s quite unnecessary if you meant to thank me for coming to the Divine Palace. I once cultivated in the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace after all," Ye Futian replied with a smile. Li Daozi was stunned for a moment then nodded slightly. Ye Futian was right. Even Li Daozi had never entered the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace.


    "Let''s talk about something else. Did the Divine Capital of Xiling intervene when your family was in trouble?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes, they did." Li Daozi''s eyes were ice cold. He nodded and said, "Old Demon Luo was there himself. According to seniors in our family, the Divine Capital of Xiling was particularly keen and eager when Gai Cang invited all the forces to go to the Golden Divine Nation to discuss the strategy. The Divine Capital of Xiling probably set its heart on destroying the Divine Palace a long time ago."


    "You''re right," Ye Futian nodded and said. "Old Demon Luo wants to benefit from the chaos. He has to show his enthusiasm as he already picked a side. But it seems like Old Demon Luo forgot something."


    "What?" Li Xun asked.


    "His Divine Capital of Xiling doesn''t have any legendary cultivator as well." Ye Futian spoke slowly. "Besides, Old Demon Xiling may be cunning and despicable, but I''m not some kind-hearted person either."


    "Do you mean..." A strange look flashed across Li Xun''s face. It looked as though he understood something from Ye Futian''s words.


    "Old Demon Luo is so full of himself. The Divine Capital of Xiling won''t be able to see their future no matter how the situation changes in the coming times." A hint of hatred gleamed in Ye Futian''s eyes. He continued, "The Divine Capital of Xiling attacked the Divine Sword Li Family for some made-up excuse while they offended me for real back in the days. Not only that, they tried to kill me."


    Li Daozi and Li Xun exchanged a look and clenched their fists firmly. How could they not fully understand Ye Futian''s meaning by now?


    Ye Futian wanted to attack the Divine Capital of Xiling in advance.


    He said he was not some kind-hearted person either.


    "Lord Taixuan was generous enough to let it go in the past. But it seems like Old Demon Luo himself is becoming forgetful too," Ye Futian said in a low voice. "Let''s go talk to the Palace Lord."


    "Good." Li Daozi nodded in agreement. Ye Futian would practically take revenge for the Divine Sword Li Family if he decided to strike the Divine Capital of Xiling first.


    Beyond that, it could also serve as a deterrent.


    Didn''t the Golden Divine Nation slaughter the Divine Sword Li Family as a means to deter the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm? Now, Ye Futian planned to return the favor.


    The Divine Capital of Xiling couldn''t possibly know everything that happened in the Divine Palace. Cultivators who stayed in the Divine Palace at the moment were all willing to go through the trials and tribulations together with the Divine Palace.


    At this time, Old Demon Luo, back in the Divine Capital of Xiling, was still indulging himself in a daydream about carving up the Higher Heavens Realm after their victory.


    Although Old Demon Luo knew that the Golden Divine Nation always looked down upon the Divine Capital of Xiling because of the great disparity of power between them, he didn''t mind at all as long as he could get a slice of the pie. All he needed to do was to follow the prevailing trend.


    Right now, the prevailing trend was to destroy the Divine Palace.


    He had no problem conforming to it.


    At the moment, many powerful cultivators were gathering in the Old Demon Xiling''s palace in the Divine Capital of Xiling. All of them were key figures of the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    "Father, wouldn''t we live under their thumb if we leave for the Golden Divine Nation like this?" Luo Youming, Old Demon Luo''s son, asked. He didn''t quite understand Old Demon Luo''s decision.


    "Do you think we wouldn''t live under their thumb if we don''t go?" Old Demon Luo glanced at his son and answered in a cold voice, "We don''t have a place in the current Higher Heavens Realm anymore. All we can do right now is to fight for our survival. So what if we live under the roof of the Golden Divine Nation? We can''t complain too much when we side with them. They don''t like the whining and grumbling. Nevertheless, you should still remember to cultivate studiously. The future of the Divine Capital is still on your shoulders."


    "If that''s the case, why should we go?" Luo Youming continued to ask.


    "The situation nowadays hasn''t sharply deteriorated yet. Can you guarantee the Divine Palace won''t charge at us as soon as the war between them and the Golden Divine Nation breaks out?" Old Demon Luo said, "It''s a delicate situation right now. The Golden Divine Nation hasn''t made it clear that they''re after the Divine Palace. But everyone understands what they have in mind. Apparently, the Divine Palace knows it too since they are evacuating their disciples already. The Divine Capital of Xiling will not be safe anymore once the Golden Divine Nation brings its intention into the open. Who can make sure that the Divine Palace won''t launch a desperate counterattack and take us out first?"


    Old Demon Luo obviously had been making long-term plans. Nonetheless, he was only taking preventive measures. In his mind, the Divine Palace was so magnanimous that they probably wouldn''t attack the Divine Capital of Xiling even after the Golden Divine Nation declared war against them, let alone beforehand.


    Having said that, he still decided to leave for their safety in case anything should happen.


    Just now, Old Demon Luo raised his head and looked at the sky. A brilliant golden light shone from the sky where a man came into sight like a god. He was from the Golden Divine Nation.


    Old Demon Luo stared into the void and wondered. Why did someone from the Golden Divine Nation come to the Divine Capital of Xiling right now?


    "Ye Futian went to the Shangxiao Divine Palace and is going to cultivate in the Divine Palace," the incoming person said loudly, "There was a major Power of the Great Path of Space fluctuating in the Shangxiao Divine Palace before I came here. I''m afraid that the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy just arrived at the Shangxiao Divine Palace. You should be careful."


    Old Demon Luo frowned slightly upon hearing the news. Ye Futian already went to the Divine Palace?


    It looked like Ye Futian was going to intervene in the conflict directly.


    In addition, Ye Futian and other cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy indeed posed a serious threat to the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    Apparently, he made the right decision. They had to evacuate for now.


    "Let''s go," Old Demon Luo ordered forcefully. Before his voice faded away, however, they heard someone from far away speaking: "Old Demon Luo, where are you going?"


    Old Demon Luo''s face stiffened. He sensed that a lot of powerful cultivators were coming to the Divine Capital of Xiling one after the other.


    The overwhelming might of the Great Path pressed down upon them from the sky. In an instant, a large group of people appeared and stood in different directions in midair. The person who spoke was Lord Taixuan.


    Old Demon Luo''s expression grew somber immediately. He looked at Lord Taixuan and asked coldly, "We''re honored by your presence. What can we do for you?"


    "You led the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling and made a sneak attack on me in the Taixuan Mountain on the day when I achieved the breakthrough. Do you remember it?" Lord Taixuan asked in a resounding voice. Old Demon Luo remembered it, of course. He thought Lord Taixuan let it out of account since it had been so long ago, and Lord Taixuan never brought it up.


    Lord Taixuan indeed had no intention of fussing about it before. But he came to the Divine Capital of Xiling and raked up the past again.


    Both Lord Taixuan and Old Demon Luo understood it was only an excuse. Yet it was a lethal one.


    Lord Taixuan was not the only one who came to the Divine Capital of Xiling on this day. Many extraordinary cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm were here, including several Demon Lords of the Demon God Clan and people from the Xiao clan and the Dou tribe. They obviously assembled such a lineup to demolish the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    Countless people on the ground raised their heads to look at the sky, hearts pounding in their chests.


    Did Lord Taixuan come here to collect the debt?


    "What about the others? I have never met the rest of you, right?" Old Demon Luo glanced at them and asked.


    "You probably remember me." Ye Futian sat on a Giant Peng Bird in the sky, looked at Old Demon Luo, and said, "The Divine Capital of Xiling tried multiple times to take my life. All of these people are here to demand an explanation on my behalf."


    "Lord Taixuan, the Divine Capital of Xiling is currently an ally of the Golden Divine Nation. Furthermore, the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm have formed an alliance to deal with the trouble from the Outer Realms. I hope Lord Taixuan not to intervene in the affairs of the Higher Heavens Realm," said the cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation.


    "Is the Golden Divine Nation telling me that I''m not allowed to hold Old Demon Luo accountable for attempting to kill me in the past?" Lord Taixuan cast a quick look at the cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation and said, "This matter doesn''t concern you. Of course, it''s your decision if you want to help the Divine Capital of Xiling because you consider them your ally. You and I will be enemies going forward."


    The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation looked exceptionally grim.


    "I haven''t mentioned how the Golden Divine Nation attempted to assassinate me. I advise you not to involve yourself in our grudge against the Divine Capital of Xiling," said Ye Futian. They had enough reasons to attack the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    If the Divine Capital of Xiling could slaughter the Divine Sword Li Family, why couldn''t Ye Futian and Lord Taixuan exterminate the Divine Capital of Xiling as a deterrence?


    Besides, Ye Futian had been upset at the Divine Capital of Xiling for a long time. This was an excellent opportunity to wipe them off the map and preclude the possibility of any future trouble.


    "The battle of the Taixuan Mountain is not over yet. Old Demon Luo, let me see if you have made any progress since then." Lord Taixuan stepped forward as his terrifying energy permeated the air.

 1783 The Game

    The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation was here alone and couldn''t change the dynamic at all. On top of that, he vaguely sensed that someone else as powerful as Lord Taixuan was nearby as well. He was not capable enough to locate the mysterious person exactly.


    It meant that the Golden Divine Nation probably couldn''t control the situation or affect the results even if they sent more cultivators to the Divine Capital of Xiling on this day.


    Ye Futian led a large group of people and rushed here out of the blue with the intention to wipe out the entire Divine Capital of Xiling and leave no one to cause trouble later on. It was no different from what the Golden Divine Nation did to the Divine Sword Li Family.


    Besides, Ye Futian and Lord Taixuan had legitimate excuses to attack the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    Bang...


    Old Demon Luo suddenly sprang up and made a run for it. Plumes of Demon Qi billowed and enshrouded his body.


    No one expected that Old Demon Luo would run away straight away without concern for his offspring and people living in the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    It was obvious that Old Demon Luo also realized that the adversary came to the Divine Capital of Xiling fully prepared. The enemy was composed of some of the best cultivators and was far superior to the Divine Capital of Xiling. Old Demon Luo couldn''t withstand a single blow and had no choice but to run off.


    He had to harden his heart and make a painful decision since he would only have a chance to avenge if he made it out alive.


    He only blamed himself for being one step behind. He didn''t expect that the Divine Palace would stand back and let people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm attack the Divine Capital of Xiling first.


    "Old Demon Luo, where are you going?" Lord Taixuan said. His voice reverberated around the boundless void. All of a sudden, millions of string materialized in a crisscross pattern and blotted out the sun.


    At the moment, everyone felt that the Space World transformed into an Absolute Space. All the cultivators in the Divine Capital of Xiling raised their heads and saw the inescapable strings of the Great Path. Each string was as sharp as a sword.


    "Absolute Control." Ye Futian glanced at their surroundings, which seemed to have become Lord Taixuan''s Space of the Great Path. Ye Futian activated the Absolute Control. The millions of string vibrated, and the Sword Will roared, like a terrifying storm pouncing on the plumes of Demon Qi. Ye Futian''s body also vanished from sight. He chased after the dark Demon Qi, desperately trying to flee.


    Ye Futian didn''t want to make a fuss in the past. Nevertheless, he had no choice but to kill Old Demon Luo, who stirred up troubles again and again.


    "Go ahead," said Ye Futian. The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy stepped down, immediately following Ye Futian''s order. The formidable energy of the Great Path of Destruction engulfed the Divine Capital.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had given the Divine Capital of Xiling so many chances in the past. They might not keep account of the wrongdoings in former times if the Divine Capital of Xiling behaved themselves. Nonetheless, the Divine Capital of Xiling was eager to pick a side and made a vain attempt to reap the benefits of the chaos. They sought connections with the Golden Divine Nation and forces from the Outer Realms to gang up on the Divine Palace.


    Since that was the case, the Heavenly Mandate Academy might as well obliterate the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    "Retreat!" one of the cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling shouted. What could they possibly do in such a situation?


    They couldn''t win this fight. Even Old Demon Luo took flight himself. To beat a hasty retreat was the only choice they had left.


    There would always be hope as long as they could survive.


    "Retreat?" The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm sneered. Where did these people think they could go?


    Buzz! A frightening and scorching Storm of Fire blazed down. Countless Sun God swords fell straight from the sky. Divine Fire burned in the void and incinerated anyone who was pierced by the swords.


    The Divine Elephant Emperor transformed into a gigantic divine elephant and stomped toward the ancient and magnificent palaces in the Divine Capital of Xiling. With the might of the Great Path enveloped the city as thundering noise filled the air. Everyone felt like their power had been subdued, and their movement had been slowed down.


    The people on the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s side were all extraordinary cultivators and authority figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Although they might not be a match for Old Demon Luo, they were more than capable of dealing with other people in the Divine Capital of Xiling. Lord Taixuan could handle Old Demon Luo.


    Their goal was to kill Old Demon Luo and top Renhuangs in the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    This was a battle without suspense. The ancient buildings in the Divine Capital collapsed into gentle ruin one by one. Countless people were running through the wreckage, shrieking, and crying in fear. Nonetheless, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy didn''t chase after anyone who hadn''t reached the Renhuang Plane.


    Other people watched the battle from a distance and thought to themselves, This is the end of the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    The messenger from the Golden Divine Nation also knew that the Divine Capital of Xiling was finished. He was incapable of saving the overall situation. This day was the doomsday of the Divine Capital of Xiling. Following the Divine Sword Li Family, another top force was exterminated.


    The only difference was that the Golden Divine Nation slaughtered the Divine Sword Li Family while Ye Futian destroyed the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    He darted a glance at Ye Futian. A look of fear flashed in his golden eyes. Yes, it was fear.


    After Ye Futian reached the Renhuang Plane, he established the Heavenly Mandate Academy and formed a strong alliance. Then he charged at the Shen clan and forced them to hand over the people he wanted. As a Lower Renhuang, he demonstrated tremendous talents and courage. Based on his attack on the Divine Capital of Xiling this time, it was obvious that he was different from the old fogeys in the Divine Palace. He was anything but tenderhearted, even though he was willing to go to war for a young girl. On the contrary, he was so ruthless that he had no scruples about wiping out the Divine Capital of Xiling before the Golden Divine Nation made a move on the Divine Palace.


    Ye Futian could overturn the entire Nine Realms if not for being limited by his strength at this time. The Golden Divine Nation would definitely become a target of Ye Futian''s.


    This kind of person would become an incredible threat to the Golden Divine Nation in the future. No wonder Gai Qiong said they should take Ye Futian out as soon as possible since they didn''t turn out to be friends.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian didn''t look at the cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation. His eyes fixed on the battlefield when the cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation turned around and left.


    The Divine Capital of Xiling offended Ye Futian many times in the past, yet he let those misdeeds slide. Still and all, he came to completely destroy the Divine Capital of Xiling the moment he got a chance.


    The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation couldn''t help but think if Ye Futian would do the same to the Golden Divine Nation when he had the opportunity one day.


    Bang. The Dragon Master punched a master cultivator of the Divine Capital of Xiling with a loud thump. Bearing the frightening power of the Dragon God, the master cultivator''s body cracked and blew up abruptly.


    A similar scene happened across the battlefield.


    Meanwhile, two people came into sight in the sky. As high up as they were, their figures were still vaguely visible from the ground. Many people raised their heads to look at them.


    Covered in blood, Old Demon Luo was in a sorry state. The musical note of the Reaper made Old Demon Luo despair. His clothes were stained with blood, and his once-domineering body was tied up with the strings of the Great Path.


    "He who perpetrates unjust acts is doomed to destruction. I will send you to your grave today," said Lord Taixuan. He stretched out his hand and pointed at Old Demon Luo''s direction.


    People watched everything in the sky vanish like smoke following Lord Taixuan''s motion. The Great Path was disrupted and destroyed everything. Even space was twisted by the energy. Old Demon Luo roared with rage, unwilling to give up. But his body contorted, and he slowly dissolved into thin air.


    Lots of people who were watching this were left aghast. Old Demon Luo was quite influential in the Higher Heavens Realm for many years. Was he killed just now?


    Old Demon Luo''s body soon crumbled little by little under their watch. It seemed like the entire space was disintegrating. Before long, Old Demon Luo disappeared completely, buried under the void.


    The cultivators of the Divine Capital of Xiling grew more and more despondent and sorrowful. They never thought such tragedy would befall them. The Divine Capital of Xiling was a top force thriving in the Higher Heavens Realm for so long. How could it end like this?


    It only took one battle.


    From now on, the Divine Capital of Xiling became history.


    The battle continued, but not for too long. After a while, people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm took a brief look at the ruins on the ground, then turned around and left.


    Onlookers in the distance flew to the Divine Capital of Xiling after the army of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was gone. They stood on the remains and felt desolate and bereft.


    Even a top force could be obliterated in next to no time.


    What was the purpose of cultivation after all?


    What was the point of their existence?


    Many people were pessimistic and skeptical about the future upon seeing the ultimate defeat of a top force.


    The Divine Capital of Xiling was one of the best forces. When could the ordinary cultivators reach their level? Perhaps, they would never get that far.


    Yet they might still be annihilated just the same even if they became as strong as the Divine Capital of Xiling someday.


    Unless they could advance to the highest level.


    Of course, there were also some people who began to look for treasures in the ruins rather than being sentimental. All they could see were opportunities.


    An age of unrest brought forth great heroes. Another group of influential figures would emerge in the newly-changed world.


    Some people rose, some people fell.


    The news about the massacre in the Divine Capital of Xiling spread throughout the Higher Heavens Realm and shocked every force in no time.


    The Golden Divine Nation was certainly the first one to receive the news. Raving mad, they understood that the Heavenly Mandate Academy destroyed the Divine Capital of Xiling for the sake of the Golden Divine Nation, same as how the Golden Divine Nation slaughtered the Divine Sword Li Family with the Divine Palace in mind.


    The destruction of the Divine Capital of Xiling indicated that the Heavenly Mandate Academy officially entered the game in the Higher Heavens Realm. Moreover, they joined hands with the Divine Palace.


    It was difficult to predict who could last till the end.


    The groups stuck in the middle were put in an even stickier situation. The Sky Burying God Clan and the Chang Feng Clan were in a constant state of anxiety. They could be wiped out no matter which side they chose.


    Despite being the top forces in the Higher Heavens Realm, they sadly discovered that they were nothing more than cannon fodder in the game between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Golden Divine Nation. They were on the horns of a dilemma with no ability to control their own fate.


    It was undoubtedly a cruel situation for them to be in. Even so, they had to make a decision. The Golden Divine Nation was pushing them, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy was warning them as well!

 1784 Di Wus Confidence

    Before long, the Golden Divine Nation released an announcement that said the Heavenly Mandate Academy was cruel and evil in spite of being a place that was supposed to impart knowledge. They meddled in the internal affairs of the Higher Heavens Realm, sabotaged the alliance within the Higher Heavens Realm in troubled times, exterminated the Divine Capital of Xiling, and even slaughtered many innocent people.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy didn''t deserve to instruct and guide cultivators.


    In the meantime, as the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm, the Divine Palace was trusted by countless people. However, not only did the Divine Palace silently condone the crime of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but they also allowed Ye Futian of the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate in the Divine Palace, aiding and abetting the evil-doer.


    The announcement of the Golden Divine Nation spread through the Higher Heavens Realm. In a word, they accused the Heavenly Mandate Academy of taking advantage of their power to bully and encroach on the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Shangxiao Divine Palace, on the other hand, already betrayed the Higher Heavens Realm and acted in collusion with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They intended to overturn the entire Higher Heavens Realm and preside over all the forces. Neither place was worthy of the reputation as the holy land of knowledge.


    Such an argument was untenable after the minimum amount of deliberation. After all, the Golden Divine Nation wiped out the Divine Sword Li Family only days ago. It might be reasonable for other people to criticize the Heavenly Mandate Academy. For the Golden Divine Nation, however, it was the pot calling the kettle black.


    At the end of the day, this was a contest between the Golden Divine Nation and the Divine Palace. The Golden Divine Nation only made this statement so they would have an excuse to attack the Divine Palace in the future.


    As for the destruction of the Divine Capital of Xiling, the Golden Divine Nation probably didn''t care at all.


    The situation in the Higher Heavens Realm became more volatile after this incident. The obliteration of two top forces completely changed the structure and landscape of the Higher Heavens Realm. Right now, the Divine Palace and the Golden Divine Nation were scrambling for domination of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Furthermore, both of them were supported by other power groups.


    The Divine Palace was backed by the Heavenly Mandate Academy and its allies. And the Golden Divine Nation aligned themselves with the forces from the Outer Realms.


    At the moment, a group of people was having a discussion in an ancient palace in the Golden Divine Nation. Gai Cang, the Sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation, and his elder brother Gai Qiong were among them. Apparently, it was a high-level meeting.


    "You have heard about what happened in the Divine Capital of Xiling. The Heavenly Mandate Academy already stretched their hands from the Heavenly Mandate Realm all the way to us. The Golden Divine Nation alone can''t possibly beat the Divine Palace. Therefore, we need to ask for your help," Gai Qiong looked around the room and said.


    The cultivators inside the palace were all convincingly strong, even though they weren''t releasing any energy.


    They came from forces in the Divine Prefecture.


    Although other top forces from outside of the Divine Prefecture also entered the Void Realm, Gai Qiong was a subordinate of the Great Emperor and couldn''t collaborate with them. He had to show due respect to the Great Emperor.


    The representatives from the Holy Land of Taichu were also among the group. The white-robed old man from the Holy Land of Taichu sat in the room quietly and was immersed in thought after hearing Gai Qiong''s request.


    No stranger to the power of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, people from the Holy Land of Taichu met too many excellent cultivators when they were at the Academy. Therefore, the white-robed old man already knew that the Golden Divine Nation couldn''t conquer the Divine Palace by themselves. The Heavenly Mandate Academy and its allies were too strong to be threatened by the Golden Divine Nation.


    Thus, it sounded like the Golden Divine Nation was asking the Holy Land of Taichu to send in reinforcement.


    As a top force in the Divine Prefecture, the Holy Land of Taichu only deployed a small team to the Void Realm. Their main force was still in the Divine Prefecture.


    Obviously, Gai Qiong was inciting them to dispatch more troops.


    "How much power do the Heavenly Mandate Academy and their alliance have nowadays?" someone asked.


    "They have quite some people in the Fake Imperial Realm," said Gai Cang.


    "Fake Imperial Realm?" The white-robed old man from the Holy Land of Taichu sneered, "There is no such thing as the Fake Imperial Realm. Those who have flawed Great Paths could never achieve supremacy. Their so-called breakthrough to the Renhuang Plane is nothing but a pretense of going astray. They don''t have the chance to set it right, and they are not qualified to be named emperors. Even calling them fake emperors is an overstatement."


    "It''s only a form of address. How many cultivators in the world could remain a perfect Divine Wheel? Most people will reach their limits there," Gai Cang continued to say.


    "Let''s move on and talk more about the capability of the Heavenly Mandate Academy," Gai Qiong rubbed his lips and said from the side.


    "The Heavenly Mandate Academy has Lord Taixuan. The Divine Palace has one master cultivator out front. But as far as I know, they have another one at the same level behind the scenes. Additionally, among their allies, the Dou tribe, the Yuanyang Clan, the Xiao clan, and the Nantian Divine Kingdom each have master cultivators like Lord Taixuan. Emperor Nan is especially powerful. I''m not sure if he will get himself involved in the conflict, but we need to take precautions either way." Gai Qiong counted the groups one by one.


    These were the best cultivators who possessed tremendous power of destruction.


    Lord Taixuan singlehandedly killed Old Demon Luo of the Divine Capital of Xiling days before.


    "They have so many formidable cultivators. Yet the Golden Divine Nation only has my brother and me. Therefore, we have to rely on you." Gai Cang suddenly became modest and humble. He knew how to use different tones on different occasions.


    It was not easy for these top forces to establish themselves in the Lower Worlds.


    The cultivators in the room were silent for a while. The Holy Land of Taichu was not happy with the situation. As the holy land of the Divine Prefecture, they had trained so many extraordinary cultivators. Countless people begged to study at the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Nevertheless, they struggled to gain a foothold in the Lower Worlds and had suffered a great loss not too long ago.


    From their perspective, people should express gratitude to the Holy Land of Taichu for creating an academy in the Lower Worlds.


    They had to leave the Heavenly Mandate Realm after the last attempt failed. It was frustrating that the evil Heavenly Mandate Academy was still disrupting their plan since they moved to the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Somehow they couldn''t get around the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    However, they would have a hard time reporting back if they couldn''t secure a place in the Lower Worlds.


    "Of course, this thing is over for you if you decide to give up. I will have to think of some other way," said Gai Qiong.


    Should they give up?


    They picked the Higher Heavens Realm for a reason. Were they going to leave the Higher Heavens Realm now?


    The Holy Land of Taichu, in particular, was in an awkward situation. They came to the Higher Heavens Realm from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. How could they leave again?


    "Let us think about this carefully," the white-robed man said. Gai Qiong and Gai Cang nodded, said, "Feel free to make your own decision. Anyhow, Ye Futian is such an arrogant and disruptive person. He has poked his nose into our business. It seems that he wants to dominate the Higher Heavens Realm after controlling the Heavenly Mandate Realm. What an ambitious man."


    The group in the room dispersed shortly afterward. Gai Qiong and Gai Cang didn''t look pleased.


    Although they were allies in name, they all had different agendas in mind.


    "If these people decide to pursue this earnestly, it doesn''t matter how much help the Heavenly Mandate Academy receives," Gai Qiong said in a calm voice. He came back from the Divine Prefecture and had a good understanding of the forces there.


    His goal was to stir up a conflict between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the groups from the Divine Prefecture.


    After all, Ye Futian had to be nipped in the bud, considering his intimidating talents and influence. The Golden Divine Nation needed to learn from the mistake of the Divine Capital of Xiling.


    ...


    The Divine Palace was also making preparations. The entire Higher Heavens Realm was a tinderbox right now.


    Cultivators from other realms also came to the Higher Heavens Realm at this time.


    For instance, the Solar Divine Palace in the Solar Realm and the Shen Clan both sent cultivators to the Divine Palace.


    The Solar Divine Palace reigned over the Solar Realm while other forces obeyed them dutifully. Since the situation in the Solar Realm was stabilized already, they started to cast their eyes on other realms.


    The Higher Heavens Realm seemed to be quite lively and eventful.


    At the moment, a team of cultivators was riding the Divine Sun Birds. Among them, a handsome young man of regal bearing stood by himself while holding his hands behind his back. He was showered in divine flames and gave a brilliant light.


    This young man was Di Wu.


    However, Di Wu had become stronger than before. He went through the baptism of the Divine Light of the Sun and reached the peak of his strength.


    For that reason, Di Wu remained a look of haughty disdain as he rode through the Higher Heavens Realm.


    "Are there divine items in the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace for real?" Di Wu asked.


    "Of course," the senior cultivator of the Solar Divine Palace replied. "Just like the secret zones of our Solar Divine Palace. The Golden Divine Nation wants to attack the Divine Palace exactly because of that.


    "Nonetheless, Ye Futian is cultivating in the Divine Palace right now. He scared off many people in the Higher Heavens Realm."


    "Ye Futian!" Di Wu muttered under his breath. He had heard the name of this legendary peer too many times in recent days.


    "Di Wu, the baptism dramatically enhanced your ability. The Divine Light of the Sun is also brighter. You should be able to defeat Ye Futian now," said the cultivator from the Solar Divine Palace.


    "Obtain the divine item in the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace if you have a chance. It might be beneficial to cultivation."


    A beam of Divine Light of the Sun shot from Di Wu''s piercing eyes. He was not the same he was before. He had to admit in the past that he was not quite a match for Ye Futian. But now he was confident that he could win a victory over Ye Futian. He had transformed indeed.


    He planned to go to the Upper Worlds and cultivate in the Sun God Mountain in the Divine Prefecture when the turmoil in the Void Realm was over.


    He didn''t belong here, and he wondered if Ye Futian would be able to transcend the Void Realm as well.

 1785 The Message

    The Higher Heavens Realm appeared to be relatively calm in the following days. No major conflict had erupted.


    However, the rumor about the fight between the Golden Divine Nation and the Divine Palace over the dominance of the Higher Heavens Realm kept spreading around as if every single person in the Higher Heavens Realm knew that the two top forces would have a fierce battle soon.


    The Golden Divine Nation was an ancient country with a long history and rich heritage. They even had someone cultivating under Donghuang the Great Emperor.


    The Shangxiao Divine Palace, on the other hand, was the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm for imparting knowledge to cultivators. To some extent, many people were leaning toward the Shangxiao Divine Palace. After all, the Shangxiao Divine Palace had maintained a pristine reputation for many years and had raised many excellent cultivators.


    They even provided chances every few years for cultivators to prove their paths.


    Some disciples who cultivated in the Divine Palace in the past were also ready to go back and fight for the Divine Palace.


    Although they might not be consequential in a high-level battle like this, they could at least do their utmost and prove their Mindfulness of the Path without feeling regretful in the future. Many of them owed a debt of gratitude to the Divine Palace for their guidance on cultivation and would love to lend a hand when the Divine Palace was in trouble.


    The tension between the Golden Divine Nation and the Divine Palace not only piqued the interest of people in the Higher Heavens Realm but also attracted cultivators to come from other realms. This was another event that drew the attention of the entire Nine Realms ever since the battle between the Holy Land of Taichu and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It bore upon the future landscape and control of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Several realms among the Nine Realms were already settled. The rest of the realms would go through rounds of reshuffle one after the other. Two top forces��the Divine Sword Li Family and the Divine Capital of Xiling��were destroyed during this reorganization of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Although the Shangxiao Divine Palace had a better reputation in the Higher Heavens Realm, more forces in the Nine Realms hoped that the Golden Divine Nation could win this fight.


    The reason was simple. The Heavenly Mandate Realm was once the least significant in the Nine Realms. However, ever since Ye Futian established the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the Heavenly Mandate Realm started to form an alliance with other top forces. The rise of the Hell''s Army only bound them together more tightly. Even the Nantian Divine Kingdom now joined hands with them. Other realms had lost their dominance over the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Under such circumstances, some groups in the Nine Realms didn''t want the Heavenly Mandate Academy to keep growing.


    The control of the Higher Heavens Realm would fall in their hands.


    By that time, two realms of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms, both the Higher Heavens Realm and the Heavenly Mandate Realm, would be dominated by the alliance. Would they continue to expand their influence to other realms following that?


    People shouldn''t forget that two groups in the Ziwei Realm��the Dou tribe and the Clan of the Seven Slayers��also sided with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If these two groups fought for the control of the Ziwei Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Divine Palace certainly would support them.


    Wouldn''t the Ziwei Realm fall in their hands again?


    The Central Emperor Realm also had three groups that aligned themselves with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They comprised one-third of the forces in the Central Emperor Realm. If this went on, the alliance led by the Heavenly Mandate Academy would quickly snowball and grow stronger and stronger.


    Who in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms could serve as a counterbalance to their influence when that happened?


    No single group could keep them in check. If the power balance were lost, the entire Nine Realms would have to obey the orders of the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the future.


    It was obvious that many people didn''t want to see this happen, especially the forces that were already antagonistic to Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    For example, the Shen clan would be the first to jump out and protest. Therefore, the Shen clan also sent a quite impressive team of cultivators to the Higher Heavens Realm. They didn''t mind getting their hands dirty at such a crucial moment.


    The Higher Heavens Realm seemed calm to all appearances, yet a deep undercurrent was surging underneath the surface.


    Right now, the cultivators from the Shen clan in the Central Emperor Realm were meeting with the Golden Divine Nation in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    The cultivators from the Shen clan left the Golden Divine Nation after the meeting.


    A team of powerful people was flying in the air. Shen Gao, the master cultivator who came back from the Divine Prefecture, was holding his hands behind his back. Shen Ji, the Chief Elder of the Shen clan, and other cultivators were right next to him.


    "We should have killed Ye Futian at all costs back in the days if we had known that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would expand so rapidly," the Chief Elder Shen Ji said in a cold and menacing voice.


    "You only realize that now?"


    Shen Gao shot a scathing glance at Shen Ji and said, "Ye Futian turned the Shen clan upside down and put us under siege when he newly entered the Renhuang Plane. Nowadays, even the Golden Divine Nation is not capable enough to kill him anymore. They have to rely on the help from the Divine Prefecture. If we wait for a couple of years until he becomes full-fledged, even the Shen clan might not be able to take him out with ease."


    "So, should we intervene this time?" Shen Ji asked.


    "Of course. How much longer do you want to wait if not now?" A cold look flashed in Shen Gao''s eyes. He continued, "We wouldn''t go through this kind of trouble if you recruited him for our use in the past. It''s a pity that we didn''t take such a talented man in our employ. Nevertheless, since the matter has developed to this stage, we have to kill him as soon as possible."


    Shen Gao was a highly-capable man with extraordinary boldness and swift decisiveness. He remembered that the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ye Futian got away unscathed when the Dark Army struck them. A major conflict was resolved easily.


    The Holy Land of Taichu didn''t conquer the Heavenly Mandate Academy either.


    This type of opportunity probably would be rarer in the future. The Shen Clan had to take action soon.


    It would only be more and more difficult if they didn''t kill Ye Futian now.


    "However, if the war breaks out this time, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will have to face the Golden Divine Nation and some other forces from the Divine Prefecture first. As a result, we don''t need to get ourselves involved if not necessary. Although Ye Futian is a young cultivator who is still in a lower plane, he is the soul of this alliance. They would launch a ferocious counterattack if he was killed. We shouldn''t submit ourselves to that. Nevertheless, the alliance would disintegrate shortly after that. It was born because of Ye Futian, and it''s only natural for it to die with him," said Shen Gao.


    He certainly realized that many groups joined the alliance only because Ye Futian was the key figure. They would attack in response fiercely if Ye Futian were killed, but the alliance would definitely crumble not long after that.


    Because no one as influential as Ye Futian would emerge again to unify these groups.


    Yu Sheng might be very strong, but he was not the same kind of person as Ye Futian. He was more like a lonely, devilish soldier who was destined to become the sharpest spear. God knows who trained him.


    Their different personalities determined their different positions and niches in life.


    Yu Sheng would most surely become an unconquerable war god in the future. Even so, he might not be a charismatic leader, at least not the leader of an army of insurgents.


    "Yes," Shen Ji nodded. The cultivators from the Shen clan standing behind him were all somber and solemn. It seemed like they were serious about killing Ye Futian this time.


    The Shen clan was going to get involved in this storm.


    Shen Gao came back from the Divine Prefecture. It was apparent that he held Ye Futian in high esteem. Nevertheless, his praises and appreciation for Ye Futian didn''t discourage him from killing Ye Futian.


    The more admiration Shen Gao expressed for Ye Futian, the more he wished for Ye Futian''s death.


    It was only because they stood on different sides.


    Shen Gao had to eliminate Ye Futian now if he wanted to secure the future of the Shen clan.


    Ye Futian was already extremely influential in the Void Realm at present. Shen Gao was afraid that Ye Futian would become a dire threat to the survival of the Shen clan in a few years before he even reached the peak Renhuang Plane.


    ...


    The Shangxiao Divine Palace towered in the Sea of the Path. Ordinary cultivators might not be able to find its location, but it was a challenge for the master cultivators.


    A man was rowing a small boat in the boundless Sea of the Path at the moment. He was bathed in divine golden light, and the small boat looked like a bolt of golden lightning. While he was drifting unhurriedly in the Sea of the Path, an imposing city gradually came into his sight in the distance.


    The man stepped out of the boat and walked to the Divine Palace. Several people hurried toward him and blocked his way. They were all extraordinary cultivators.


    "Who are you?" one of the men who stopped him shouted.


    "I''m an envoy of the Golden Divine Nation, here to visit the Divine Palace," the man answered. His sonorous voice reverberated throughout the void. Many cultivators in the Divine Palace in the distance could hear him.


    The guards who stopped him were a little hesitant. Then they heard an order coming from the Palace.


    "Come in."


    The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation immediately stepped ahead and came to the central area of the Divine Palace. A lot of people appeared in front of an ancient hall and stared at the incoming man.


    The envoy was a high-level Renhuang and enjoyed a special status back in the Golden Divine Nation. In a stately manner, he spoke, "I come to visit the Divine Palace as my Sovereign ordered. May I meet with the Palace Lord?"


    "The Palace Lord is not available at the moment. You may speak freely with us," a master cultivator in the Divine Palace answered. Did the Golden Divine Nation believe a random envoy could have a meeting with the Palace Lord so easily?


    The Divine Palace certainly didn''t have much consideration for the Golden Divine Nation since they were on the opposite sides now.


    "Alright." The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation nodded and said, "The Nine Realms are in turmoil right now. Our Higher Heavens Realm should unite as one. The Divine Palace is the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm and should shoulder more responsibilities. People from the Heavenly Mandate Realm destroyed a top force in our realm. No matter what excuse they used, we hope the Divine Palace could draw a clear line of demarcation. Besides, there are divine items in the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace that can help people develop perfect Divine Wheels and become remarkable cultivators. We would like to encourage the Divine Palace to step forward in times of crisis and generously allow the talented cultivators in the Higher Heavens Realm to enter the Ancestral Lands. It can better prepare the Higher Heavens Realm for any changes that may happen in the future."


    People in the Divine Palace gave the envoy a stern look after hearing what he had to say. They probably would punch him right away if not for diplomatic decorum.


    The Golden Divine Nation was truly audacious.


    They didn''t mention how they wiped out the Divine Sword Li Family, yet they dared to ask the Divine Palace to separate themselves from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Wouldn''t the Divine Palace be trampled upon by the Golden Divine Nation at will if they did what they asked?


    Furthermore, they wished to use the Divine Palace''s resources to rope people in. They asked the Divine Palace to open the Ancestral Lands so everyone could cultivate inside since every cultivator wanted the best opportunities they could get.


    However, people in the Divine Palace knew that it was useless for ordinary cultivators to enter the Ancestral Lands. They might develop the Divine Wheels only if they could pass the test in the Ancestral Lands.


    But the public wasn''t aware of that. Some people would surely have fanciful notions if they learned they could get in the Ancestral Lands.


    The Golden Divine Nation was so despicable to exploit such mentality.


    "F*ck off," the head of the Divine Palace uttered two words without any pretense at politeness. He was already being polite, as he hadn''t smacked him in the face.


    The Golden Divine Nation didn''t need to look for excuses to start a war!

 1786 The Enemy Is Bearing Down

    The envoy of the Golden Divine Nation left. He only came to deliver a message.


    As the Divine Palace expected, the Golden Divine Palace was only looking for an excuse. They had to find a reason attack the preaching holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm, as ridiculous as the reason might be.


    The cold and disdainful look remained on the faces of cultivators in the Divine Palace even after the envoy of the Golden Divine Nation left.


    "Looks like they are ready to make a move," one of the Renhuangs said. Other people nodded in agreement.


    "Let''s all be prepared," the senior cultivator in the Divine Palace said.


    Ye Futian also came to the crowd. He gazed into the distance.


    "Allegedly, many forces in the Nine Realms have sent people here. I wonder which groups the Golden Divine Nation roped in," Ye Futian muttered in a low voice, "And the forces in the Divine Prefecture. Who else did they win over beside the Holy Land of Taichu?"


    The Divine Palace didn''t have much knowledge about the forces in the Divine Prefecture. Even so, Ye Futian could sense that other groups in the Divine Prefecture also participated in the plan of the Golden Divine Palace. They wanted to carve the Higher Heavens Realm up like a pie.


    Additionally, Ye Futian presumed that the Golden Divine Nation would never give up the opportunity to court the cultivators who were sent here by other forces in the Nine Realms, especially those who opposed Ye Futian, such as the Shen Clan.


    The Shen Clan had deep animosity toward Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If Ye Futian could think of this connection, the Golden Divine Nation certainly could as well.


    For that reason, Ye Futian was not absolutely confident, although the alliance was very strong. He still couldn''t figure out who his opponents were or how powerful they were.


    However, he had to take up the gauntlet no matter what happened. He had no choice but to launch an all-out effort since the Divine Palace was his ally. Otherwise, there was no point in having an alliance.


    The crowd slowly gathered in the coastal city by the Sea of the Path. Many cultivators flocked together, just like when Ye Futian was here to open the secret zones of the Divine Palace. There might even be more people this time.


    The last time was about the secret zones, a contest of talents among the younger generation. It was also an entrance exam for being admitted to the Divine Palace and an occasion of great festivity. This time, however, was a serious matter in the Nine Realms. This battle would have a profound and lasting influence and might even determine the future landscape of the Nine Realms.


    The beach by the Sea of the Path had been bustling and lively these days. Any random person could be a formidable cultivator in the Renhuang Plane. One might well imagine the considerable amount of powerful people who gathered here.


    Many people gaze into the Sea of the Path and the distant horizon. They wondered about the destiny of the Divine Palace and what the likely future of the Higher Heavens Realm was.


    The Golden Divine Nation had released more statements by now. They claimed that the Divine Palace not only didn''t fulfill their duties as the preaching holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm in times of crisis, but they also betrayed the Higher Heavens Realm and allowed people from the Heavenly Mandate Realm to exterminate the Divine Capital of Xiling by aiding, abetting, and harboring the culprit. On top of that, they refused to open the Ancestral Lands and intended to move it to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    In a word, the Golden Divine Nation made up a list of charges as if the Shangxiao Divine Palace was no longer the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm, but a hypocritical group that angeled for fame and a traitor that disregarded the interest of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    It was easy to assume that the next step of the Golden Divine Nation was to replace the Shangxiao Divine Palace as the holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm.


    People living in the Higher Heavens Realm certainly saw through this plan. Thus, they all waited for the events to unfold by the Sea of the Path.


    As time went by, cultivators from other forces in the Nine Realms arrived at the coastal city by the Sea of the Path at a continually increasing rate; However, it was hard to identify them one by one since they blended into the crowd.


    On this day, a group of people was strolling on the beach by the Sea of the Path. One person gazed into the sea and said, "There are more and more people here. I''m afraid that the Golden Divine Nation will be here sometime soon."


    "They''re waiting. It''s impossible for the Golden Divine Nation to singlehandedly defeat the alliance formed by the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Consequently, they have to seek help from others. The groups in the Nine Realms each have their own plans and wants a slice of pie for themselves. Not many forces can join hands with the Golden Divine Nation for real. Besides, they might not be capable enough to beat the Divine Palace, to begin with. That being so, the Golden Divine Nation probably has been waiting all this time."


    "Waiting?" a young man surrounded by the Divine Beams of Flame asked.


    "Yes," the senior cultivator nodded and said to him. "They''re waiting for the forces in the Divine Prefecture to muster the troops. Gai Qiong served under the Great Emperor. How could he not know how to utilize the power of the Divine Prefecture in the Upper Worlds? You also said that the Golden Divine Nation harbors deep enmity toward Ye Futian. It''s only normal for them to kill Ye Futian with the aid of the top forces in the Divine Prefecture."


    "I understand now," Di Wu nodded and said. "I want to fight with Ye Futian before he dies."


    "We''ll wait and see. Maybe we would have a chance if Ye Futian was really pushed that far," the senior cultivator answered. He was a master cultivator from the Sun God Mountain and was impressed by Di Wu''s great potential when he was at the Solar Divine Palace. He planned to put a priority on Di Wu and bring him to the Divine Prefecture in the future.


    At the moment, the senior cultivator suddenly raised his head and stared at a group of people walking from the opposite side.


    Those people stared back. They watched each other closely and could both feel the enormous energy emitting from their bodies.


    In the end, they brushed against each other tacitly as if nothing happened.


    "It looks like Ye Futian''s doom is sealed," the cultivator from the Sun God Mountain commented. Di Wu turned his head and looked back at the people who walked by him just now. It was such a small world. They just met the cultivators from the Shen clan, the dominant force in the Central Emperor Realm, on the beach by the Sea of the Path.


    Moreover, the Shen Clan assembled such an intimidating lineup this time. Even Shen Ji, the Chief Elder of the Shen clan, was among them. However, Shen Ji didn''t seem to be the leader of the group. He was standing next to a man who appeared to enjoy a more prominent position. One could only imagine how powerful that person must be.


    Everybody knew the feud between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Shen clan. It was well understood why the Shen clan sent such a team of outstanding cultivators here.


    Apparently, there were a lot of forces that wanted to deal with the Heavenly Mandate Academy and stop them from rising in the Nine Realms.


    On this day, the Sea of the Path was calm and tranquil under boundless blue skies. Countless cultivators gathered by the Sea of the Path as usual.


    At the moment, some people noticed that a group of cultivators suddenly started to move toward the Sea of the Path. These cultivators walked into the sea one after the other. Beams of brilliant golden divine light shone on the Sea of the Path as they rowed the boats farther away.


    "They''re coming." It immediately caused a commotion on the beach by the Sea of the Path. The crowd was surprised that the Golden Divine Nation came in such a discreet manner.


    In the meantime, a succession of cultivators walked into the Sea of the Path from different directions. Rowing the boats, they formed a formidable force and marched to the Divine Palace at the center of the Sea of the Path.


    "Let''s go." Countless people, especially cultivators in the Renhuang Plane, jostled forward into the Sea of the Path. They came specifically to watch this battle.


    How could they miss the opportunity?


    In addition to Renhuangs, some fearless cultivators in the Saint Plane also got in the boats, eager to witness the clash that hadn''t happened in the Higher Heavens Realm for centuries.


    Despite the high risk, they were afraid that they might regret all of their life if they didn''t go.


    More and more cultivators joined the mass. From the coast of the Sea of the Path, it looked almost like an army of terror was setting sail.


    Everyone understood, of course, that the majority of the crowd was only heading there to get a better view of the fun.


    Apparently, the Golden Divine Nation made a deliberate decision to march to the Divine Palace from the coast rather than heading there directly. They wanted everyone to follow and witness the epic battle.


    The cultivators from other forces in the Nine Realms blended into the crowd as well and sailed on the Sea of the Path.


    "I wonder if the Divine Palace��the preaching holy land��can survive this war." Some people gazed into the distance and sighed inwardly. This would be a war on the largest scale since Donghuang the Great Emperor unified the world.


    The situation was rapidly reaching the boiling point.


    ...


    Many people stood solemnly on top of the ancient mountains in the Divine Palace. They already heard the news that the cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation were rushing to the Divine Palace.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace was waiting at the main peak of the Divine Palace, along with other cultivators. His expression was particularly grim, and his divine consciousness spread over a vast area. Even the boundless Sea of the Path was covered in his divine consciousness.


    Though his divine consciousness, he saw the enemies sailing toward the Divine Palace on the Sea of the Path.


    A beam of Divine Light of Space shone brightly behind him. The smell of the Great Path of Space permeated the air while several people descended from the sky through the Ancient Road of Space.


    A couple of people darted swiftly toward Ye Futian.


    "Something is wrong." Jiang Chengzi from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven arrived first. He walked to Ye Futian and said in a low voice, "Something happened in the Ziwei Realm."


    "What happened?" Ye Futian asked. A look of concern furrowed his eyebrows.


    "Other groups in the Ziwei Realm are taking actions. It looks like they waited till today on purpose," Jiang Chengzi said. Ye Futian''s face was stony. The forces in the Ziwei Realm started moving as well, which could influence the situation in the Divine Palace despite the great distance in between.


    Rather than starting a full-scale battle, the forces in the Ziwei Realm could indirectly affect the battlefield over here simply by intimidating the two groups that were in the alliance.


    The Golden Divine Nation was obviously well prepared this time!

 1787 Danger at the Divine Palace

    Outside the Divine Palace, above the Sea of the Path, there were many small boats descended outside the Divine Palace, where they stopped. The mighty great army did not enter the Divine Palace; instead, they seemed to be waiting for something.


    Gai Qiong and Gai Cang were front and center of the formation; the two giants of the Golden Divine Nation were both gathered here.


    However, they stood quietly on the boat, suspended in the Sea of the Path, with their hands folded behind their backs, looking at the preaching holy land of the Higher Heavens Realm that was ahead of them.


    After today, Shangxiao Divine Palace, the Holy Land of the Upper Heavens Realm, would be history.


    At this point, someone came behind them and said something. Suddenly a smile appeared in their eyes.


    Everything was now ready, and the time was here to destroy Shangxiao Divine Palace for good.


    He knew very well the strength of the alliance formed by the Heavenly Mandate Realm, which had involved too many powerful forces. But he didn''t believe that the advantage would lie with the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Their increasing strength had already caused alarm to many. Among the Nine Realms, many top principalities did not want to see the rise of another superpower. It was enough for the Heavenly Mandate Academy to dominate the Heavenly Mandate Realm so that no one dared to move against it as they did before. However, if they now wanted to make a move on Upper Heavens Realms during this turbulent time, then it would threaten many people.


    Therefore, in the current dispute, they had the advantage.


    With a little push, this momentum would create a terrifying factor that would sway different areas in the Nine Realms, that could directly affect the battlefield here.


    "Golden Divine Nation, along with all principalities from the Upper Heavens Realm, come to visit the Divine Palace, to inquire what constituted preaching holy land." Gai Cang''s voice was heard throughout the void, as a golden staircase appeared above the sky. He stepped out and started walked upward and appeared directly high in the sky, sitting on the golden divine throne, majestic and authoritative.


    This voice swept across the vast area of ??the Divine Palace and rang in the ears of everyone. At this moment, in front of ??the Divine Palace, Ye Futian and those with him had a terrible look on their faces.


    Just now, they had received some very bad news.


    Xiao Dingtian couldn''t come. The clan lord of the Shen clan had personally gone to the Xiao clan, in the name of a visit, to have a friendly chat with Xiao Dingtian. Under such pretense, how could Xiao Dingtian leave?


    He couldn''t come here to this battlefield.


    Not only that, in the Central Emperor Realm, the Martial God clan had also visited the Yuanyang clan.


    Moreover, they didn''t openly declare their participation in the war, merely in the name of visitation, so that it was enough to prevent anyone from acting rashly.


    During these times of turmoil, carelessness meant annihilation, and many top forces had been wiped out already. Thus, in the land of the Nine Realms, no one dared to take things lightly.


    "Master, regarding the Xiao clan..." Xiao Muyu nodded. After all, they were part of an alliance. Now with was so much pressure exerted here, Xiao Dingtian''s absence would no doubt put them in even greater danger.


    "Muyu, you don''t need to say anything," Ye Futian looked at Xiao Muyu and said. She was the goddess of the Xiao clan, and she was already here, so nothing more needed to be said; he completely understood.


    Xiao Dingtian of Xiao Clan had once descended outside of the Shen clan. Now that the clan lord of the Shen clan was visiting him in person, how could he afford to be careless?


    Under these circumstances, he couldn''t possibly lay blame on anyone.


    It was only when they were in the open, while the others were in the dark, and a dreadful undercurrent was forming against them.


    The cultivators of the Divine Palace wore a solemn expression, and a sense of danger grew in their hearts. However, they managed to keep their composure.


    At this time, the divine consciousness of the Palace Lord shrouded the boundless space. He looked at Gai Cang, the Overlord of the Golden Divine Nation, across the air and said, "How the Divine Palace preaches, the world knows, and there is no need for the Overlord to advise."


    His voice was still indifferent, but even with the far distance, it landed clearly in the ears of many cultivators. Many people who were watching also faintly realized something. The presence of the Golden Divine Nation was more dominant, which indicated that the invasion from the Golden Divine Nation had a great advantage.


    The two major forces had begun their struggle in secret a long time ago, and the Golden Divine Nation had been preparing for it. Now, after such a long preparation, it seemed that they were absolutely sure of themselves.


    "The world knows?" Gai Qiong said loudly, "Shangxiao Divine Palace, as a holy land in the Upper Heavens Realm, attracted countless cultivators to come and seek the truth. However, the Divine Palace aided the evildoers to destroy the top powers in the Upper Heavens Realm, and disallowed cultivators to enter the ancestral land of the Divine Palace, not even the disciples at the Divine Palace could enter within. Is this something that a Holy Land should be doing?"


    The Palace Lord of Divine Palace looked at Gai Cang and said, "Gai Cang, you don''t need to hide your true intentions. As for whether the Divine Palace is worthy of the name of the Holy Land, history will decide. Powers rise and fall throughout the ages. Centuries before the Great Emperor unified the world, he had also witnessed the births and destructions of countless principalities. No matter how the Divine Palace is today, we have done our jobs preaching in the Upper Heavens Realm, and my conscience is clear."


    Golden Divine Nation shot out from Gai Cang''s eyes. This Palace Lord was cool and collected and his unusually superior composure, by contrast, accentuated the irrationality of their opponents.


    However, none of these mattered. As the other stated, principalities rose and fell, and history would only remember the victors.


    He hoped that the Golden Divine Nation could stand for generations to come and become ever more prosperous and powerful.


    "If you insist, then there is not much I can say," Gai Cang replied. He looked around at the many cultivators at the Divine Palace. Currently, there were only cultivators of Renhuang Realm who were left in the Divine Palace. Anyone below Renhuang Realm had all been driven away by the Divine Palace.


    Even if they didn''t want to leave, they must, as there was no need for them to stay and experience the coming calamity.


    Their target was not the cultivators of the Divine Palace, but the Divine Palace itself and the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Their purpose was to control the Upper Heavens Realm and to kill their sworn enemy, Ye Futian. Presumably, the existence of Ye Futian greatly threatened the Golden Divine Nation.


    "The person in charge of the Divine Palace is incompetent. I came with the forces of the Upper Heavens Realm to change all that and regain control of the Divine Palace. Moreover, the forces from the Divine Prefecture will work together with us to rebuild this preaching holy land. Once it is rebuilt, we will open all the sacred places inside the Divine Palace for cultivation, and all disciples would be allowed to enter the ancestral land to cultivate." Gai Cang said loudly, "We did not come today for the disciples of the Divine Palace. All cultivators at the Divine Palace are welcome to join us and rebuild the palace, or you may choose to leave, and Golden Divine Nation would never pursue you. Everything we are doing today is only for the Upper Heavens Realm."


    Even as Gai Cang and the others descended with their great army, they didn''t dare to claim that they would destroy it completely.


    The Divine Palace had a natural advantage. They were a preaching holy land created by the Will of Donghuang the Great, so its destruction would be a direct contradiction to the Will of the Great Emperor. Therefore, they had found a pretext, and promise to rebuild a better Holy Land, and even opening up the ancestral land, and allowing the cultivators of the Divine Palace to leave.


    Thus, even if the Great Emperor were to send someone to investigate in the future, they could rationalize the whole affairs.


    Inside the Divine Palace, all eyes were looked into the distance, as all of their divine consciousness bloomed. Looking at all the boats above the Sea of the Path, they had already received the news that the Golden Divine Nation had mobilized all forces this time. For the Divine Palace, it was indeed a disaster.


    Furthermore, the Golden Divine Nation knew the Divine Palace very well, and it was precisely because of this understanding that they dared to launch their attack, and showed mercy to the disciples of the Divine Palace. Even if the Palace Lord were gone, they would not indiscriminately kill those who were left in the palace.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace looked at the crowd below, and said, "No matter what choice you make, I will support it, but I also hope that you will leave."


    "Palace Lord." Many looked up at the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace, silent.


    "History is filled with tales of the rises and falls of the world. Centuries ago, before the Great Emperor had unified the world, through the ebb and flow of time, how many people and things have disappeared in an instant, and who else can live forever? Over the years, the Divine Palace has done what it can to contribute to the world of cultivation. Regardless of the outcome, I can face it with a clear conscience, and I have lived for many years without much regret. On the contrary, if any of you still have concerns in the world, leave now." The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace said with a peaceful voice, but somehow it was said with a trace of sadness.


    "This Divine Palace carries my dream of cultivation, and it also embodies our vision of the future of cultivation. As the Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace, I will stand with the Divine Palace. Disciples of the Divine Palace, if you can leave, then leave. Everything that is about to happen today cannot be controlled by ordinary Renhuang," said the Palace Lord of Divine Music Palace.


    The Palace Lord of the Sword Palace levitated in the air, and a greatly powerful Sword Will surrounded him. He did not say anything, but it was obvious that he would guard this place with his sword.


    To serve in positions that required great capabilities such as the Palace Lords in the Divine Palace, these men all had the same aspirations and expectations; that was why they all came together. Just like Lord Taixuan, who chose to serve as a Dean in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Therefore, they would not be leaving.


    "Since I have cultivated and grown in the Divine Palace, I pledge my life to the Divine Palace." A young Renhuang said, as he slowly levitated into the air, releasing his aura, ready to face the battle that was to come.


    "We pledge our lives to the Divine Palace." Many more now also rose into the air at the same time, creating an extremely powerful aura. This display of unity moved many observers on the Sea of the Path while feeling somber at the same time.


    This was the Divine Palace, the Holy Land of Preaching in the Upper Heavens Realm, disinterested in the disputes of the outside world.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace was right. Right or wrong, only time would tell. Even if the Golden Divine Nation won today, and as winner, some things may be erased, but there would still some other things that would remain with the world.


    Especially those who had cultivated in the Divine Palace and now scattered throughout the Upper Heavens Realm, they would remember everything. In fact, many of them were now also in the Sea of the Path. It was only that they had no ability to participate in the war.


    "The Divine Palace does not need you to pledge your lives." The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace merely remarked coldly, "It is hard enough to cultivate to your level today. No matter what happened today, the Divine Palace would be wherever you are. Anyone who does not value their lives would be disobeying the Divine Palace, and not worthy of being a disciple of the Divine Palace."

 1788 Flashpoin

    After the Palace Lord finished speaking, he turned his attention to Ye Futian again and said, "Futian, go to the ancestral land, take the thing away, and take your people back to the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    Ye Futian was stunned when he heard the words of the Palace Lord. Was he entrusting him with his last will and testament?


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace was already a top giant in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. It is very difficult for anyone to touch him at his level of cultivation. But now he was acting so pessimistic because, clearly, he realized just how difficult the situation was in front of them.


    What alarmed Ye Futian even more was that the Palace Lord wanted him to go to the ancestral land and take the thing away.


    Obviously, he understood just what he was asked to take away: the divine item placed in the ancestral land by the Shen clan. Back when he was cultivating in the ancestral land, he had talked about it with the mysterious cultivator in the ancestral land. This divine item was something that could attract others'' greed, and it could become a source of atrocity. Today''s situation could very well be because people had come for it.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace knew very well that Ye Futian was his best chance. Except for the Heavenly Mandate Academy, no one else could hold on to the divine item in the ancestral land. Therefore, he placed his hope on the Heavenly Mandate Academy and wished that it would carry the fire of the Divine Palace while also allowing Ye Futian to get away with his people.


    Here was a dispute between the Divine Palace and the Golden Divine Nation. Now it seemed that even if Ye Futian were to be involved, it would not change the situation much.


    He could already felt that the other side had dispatched several giant figures, and among them, there was probably some existence of great capability from the Divine Prefecture. Under such circumstances, they really had no chance of winning.


    Ye Futian did not leave as he had asked, but looked at him instead and said softly, "Does the Palace Lord really think that this is just a matter involving the Divine Palace?"


    Some things could not be avoided, no matter what.


    The Golden Divine Nation wanted to deal a blow to the Divine Palace. Today, all the forces were here, and other realms within the Nine Realms had also launched a siege remotely so that it was impossible for their reinforcements to arrive. What appeared to be moves that only targeted the Divine Palace was, in fact, also going against the alliance made with the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Palace Lord, all the allied force with the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be with you whether in victory or in defeat," Ye Futian said; none of them had any way out.


    It was very simple to find a reason for war, just like the attacks launched today at the Divine Palace, which was nothing more than a made-up accusation. It was ridiculous to claim that the Divine Palace was enabling Ye Futian and refused to open up the ancestral land for cultivation.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Divine Palace were already bound together, and in this alliance, none of them could survive on their own.


    "Palace Lord, the current situation is no longer something that can be avoided. The fate of the entire alliance is in our hands. Even if the situation is pessimistic, there is no other way but forward," Ye Futian continued.


    After hearing what he had to say, the Palace Lord nodded slightly. Of course, he understood all this, but the Divine Palace was a preaching holy land, and those who cultivated in the palace were compassionate and gentle to the world. All that the Palace Lord could think of was to defend the Divine Palace himself and let the others leave to save themselves.


    However, people are different. He was using his own train of thoughts to judge the situation but had ignored the opponents.


    Neither the Shen clan nor the Golden Divine Nation were gentle or harmless.


    "Palace Lord, this battle is inevitable," Lord Taixuan also spoke. Although the situation they faced had just become clearer to him, there was no way they could avoid deaths and injuries now. Only by fighting with all they''ve got could there be a chance for survival.


    The Palace Lord looked into the distance as he levitated into the air; his divine consciousness shrouded the land. Above the Sea of the Path, those boats floated on the surface of the sea, and his voice was heard loud and clear, "Gai Qiong, as a cultivator under the Great Emperor, you have provoked this storm in the Upper Heavens Realm, destroyed the Divine Sword Li family, brought in foreign forces into the Upper Heavens Realm and coerce all the principalities to follow. Now you are leading the army to Shangxiao Divine Palace to stir things up. If one day the Great Emperor were to question you, what will you say?"


    Gai Qiong had been staying beneath Gai Cang. In this battle, Gai Cang would take the lead. As a cultivator under the Great Emperor, it was awkward for him to be at the forefront. It was also because of this that they found a pretext to invade the Divine Palace. With the right excuse, they would be able to guard against any future interventions by the Great Emperor.


    Of course, he also understood that the Great Emperor had rarely interfered in the matters inside the Void Realm. Even the matters of the Divine Prefecture could no longer interest the Great Emperor much.


    "Nonsense. The Divine Palace has soiled the name of the preaching holy land, and it should be replaced by a better preaching holy land to preach in the Upper Heavens Realm; this in itself is executing the Will of the Great Emperor. The future of the Upper Heavens Realm will only be more prosperous, and the future preaching holy land in the Upper Heavens Realm will only be more selfless, nothing so self-centered like the Divine Palace had been," Gai Qiong said loudly. He spoke with a booming voice that swept through the endless void.


    "For many years, the Shangxiao Divine Palace has not interfered with the disputes of the outside world, nor had we participated in external struggles. Only when the army of darkness descended, did we go to the aid of the Heavenly Mandate Academy in order to maintain the order of the Nine Realms; this was witnessed by everyone." The Palace Lord continued, "However, today, I''m afraid the Divine Palace would have to make an exception.


    "The rules that we have abided by for many years will be broken today. Since everyone who remains is willing to fight together, the Divine Palace is no longer a preaching holy land, but just a simple school now. I will do everything in my power to protect the Divine Palace to ensure its safety. Therefore, from this moment on, anyone who steps inside the Divine Palace will be killed without mercy."


    The voice of the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace was loud and clear. It spread throughout the void. At this time, his clothing fluttered behind him despite the lack of wind; his person was full of murderous aura.


    Today, he would no longer care for the common people, nor worried about preaching and protecting the world. Today, his only concern was to guard the Divine Palace. Anyone who wanted to destroy the Divine Palace was his enemies that would be killed without exception.


    No matter what would happen in the future, no matter whether this battle would take the Upper Heaven Realm backward, on this day, he had chosen the Divine Palace.


    "All those within a thousand miles of the Divine Palace, leave immediately. Otherwise, you will be regarded as a threat. If you take action, no mercy will be shown to you." The Palace Lord continued, "Now, go."


    Above the Sea of the Path, as all the boats floated on the surface of the water, those who heard the words of the Palace Lord couldn''t help but tremble in their hearts.


    At this moment, the Palace Lord became aggressive and indifferent.


    No one is allowed to step within a thousand miles of the Divine Palace, or they would be killed when the war began.


    "Leave. If a war starts, it will inevitably affect the innocents. Those who are staying will be considered as participants of the war." The Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace also spoke up, and suddenly a group of people turned around and left with incredible speed. Even though they had wanted to witness the battle that would determine the fate of the Upper Heavens Realm up close, they had no choice but to leave upon the harsh words of the Divine Palace.


    This battle was about the survival of the Divine Palace. All the cultivators in the Divine Palace had made the determination that they would spare no one this day.


    Therefore, those who were irrelevant should leave and avoid the battlefield for thousands of miles.


    In this battle, countless cultivators would perish for sure.


    Above the Sea of the Path, countless small boats sailed away speedily; it was quite spectacular. After all, only a few people who came today would actually join in the battle.


    "Will the Sky Burying God Clan also participate in the war?" The divine consciousness from the Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace swept in one of the directions. His tone was quite cool.


    The top principality in the Upper Heaven Realms, the Sky Burying God Clan, had once competed with the Divine Sword Li Family.


    And now that the Divine Sword Li family was obliterated, the Sky Burying God Clan had come here to lay siege on the Divine Palace.


    "Once, there were many from the Sky Burying God Clan who cultivated and seek the truth in the Divine Palace, so our presence today was not justified. However, the general situation is such that we could do nothing but follow along. If the Divine Palace loses today, the Sky Burying God Clan will help with the new preaching holy land and preach in the Upper Heavens Realm," the clan lord of the Sky Burying God Clan said loudly, fully aware that they were on the wrong side, but could do nothing else.


    They didn''t want to be involved in this storm either, but they had no choice. The Golden Divine Nation had approached them and discussed the situation with him. But more importantly, everything that the Golden Divine Nation had said was becoming a reality.


    The clan lord promised them in return that as long as everything the Golden Divine Nation said was true, they would join them in battle.


    Under this great tide, he could only go along with it; there was no way he could stay out of the fray.


    In reality, many forces from the Upper Heavens Realm had wanted to observe from the sidelines, but the other side would not allow them such an opportunity.


    "Understood." The Palace Lord of Divine Music Palace nodded and did not say anything more. He understood the difficulties faced by the other. However, now that he had made his choice to be on the wrong side, then he would understand that whatever happened was nothing personal.


    Right now, there were no longer right or wrong. Their positions were different; it was life or death.


    "The Divine Palace is unjust, so the forces of the Upper Heavens Realm are united to rebuild the Holy Land." Gai Cang said loudly, "Before, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had decimated our forces in the Upper Heavens Realm, and came across the realms to set off a bloody storm. Now, are you planning to control the Upper Heaven Realm? If you can give an explanation and withdraw from the battlefield, there may still be a chance for you to get out of this."


    "Can you shut up now?" Ye Futian looked into the distance, at the golden throne in the void, and that overbearing Gai Cang, who was beyond haughty.


    When Gai Cang heard what Ye Futian said, his golden divine eyes focused in on him through the distance. It was as if the sharpness in his eyes could pierce through Ye Futian.


    He stood up from the golden throne. Above the sky, golden divine light poured down, covering the entire Divine Palace, as if the land above the divine palace was full of divine light. The Golden Divine Nation, like extreme sharp spears, fell down to the land below.


    Gai Cang stretched out his hands, and a terrible rumbling sound came out. The endless golden light gathered in his hand, and a peerless divine spear appeared, piercing the void with its unparalleled brilliance.


    He stretched his arms forward, pointing his spear in the direction of the Divine Palace, and pronounced, "Today''s battle is all for the future of the Upper Heavens Realm!"

 1789 Arrival of the Divine Sword

    Gai Cang, who stood up from the golden throne, stepped above the firmament, its divine spear pointed at the Divine Palace, like a spear of the gods. An endless golden divine light appeared in the void and sailed across the sky as a terrible rumbling sound was heard. At this moment, the Shangxiao Divine Palace seemed to face the end of days, and this spear was like the judgment from the gods.


    When the Palace Lord saw this, he took a step, and a terrifying aura also formed around him. When he stepped out, the sky shook violently, and many golden spears collapsed directly in the void. With him as the center, along with the positions occupied by the cultivators of Shangxiao Divine Palace, they seemed to form an independent space of the Great Path.


    Rumble...


    The boundless and splendid divine mountain suddenly appeared between the heaven and the earth, directly covering this area. This divine mountain, transformed by the power of the Great Path, was radiant and released the most dazzling light of the Great Path; its defense was unparalleled. All the attacking golden spears were blocked by the divine mountain, unable to break through.


    Even the golden divine light that fell from the sky burst out with an astonishing shattering sound when it pierced upon the divine mountain, causing the divine mountain to tremble, but still, it stayed intact.


    Ye Futian looked at the space that surrounded them, and it was as if they were in a space within the domain that belonged to the divine mountain. This space was an absolute domain in itself, and the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace was its ruler.


    Above the Sea of the Path, on one of the boats, a middle-aged man in purple garment stood there. His clothes fluttered even in the stillness, and his long black hair dancing with the wind.


    As all eyes looking into the distance, they saw that the Divine Palace was protected by the divine mountain. He took one step, and suddenly the world trembled with each movement. A terrifying Will of the Way roared, and inside the Divine Palace, incomparable air waves were tossing and turning. They morphed into a series of overwhelming light screens that swept toward the divine mountain. Like violent waves, each collision caused a fierce booming roar to be let out from the divine mountain''s Domain of Way.


    As all eyes were focused on the figure that appeared, their hearts trembled. In the Sea of the Path, many boats were shaking as huge waves surged in the surrounding area. They tried to stabilize their bodies while looking up at the person who had made the move.


    "I didn''t expect him to show up in person." Shen Gao of the Shen clan said in a low voice. Shen Ji looked at him and asked, "Who is that?"


    "A War Emperor from the Holy Land of Taichu, known as the War Emperor in purple. He invented the True Will of Waves for the God of War, and is one of the giants in the Holy Land of Taichu. His combat power is extremely strong," Shen Gao replied. "Previously, when Holy Land of Taichu went to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Sima Xiao, who was defeated by Yu Sheng, was this man''s disciple."


    When the War Emperor in purple stepped out, accompanying him as he moved forward were the golden waves. With every step he took, those golden waves impacted the divine mountain again and again, until the entire divine mountain seemed to be shaking.


    Buzz.


    Purple afterimages appeared, and the body of the War Emperor in purple turned into an afterimage as he unleashed a punch. A god of war''s phantom image appeared above the firmament, and the purple aura was all-encompassing. A golden halo swept across the heaven and the earth, and an incomparably gigantic fist struck above the divine mountain''s Domain of Way.


    Boom!


    The void was trembling violently. Below the Divine Palace, buildings shattered and collapsed, as deep and terrifying cracks of the Great Path appeared. These cracks even appeared in the void, hideous, and terrifying; it was as if they could swallow people into those cracks.


    Cracking and shattering sounds were heard, and fissures began to appear on the extremely splendid mountain, like spider webs, spreading into every direction, as if it might collapse at any time.


    The cultivators from the Divine Palace looked at the War Emperor in purple who had made such an aggressive attack. In this battle, the opponent''s top figures may have an absolute advantage, as they had dispatched people from the Upper Worlds. It was precisely because of that the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace had asked the others to leave.


    He was very pessimistic about the outcome of this battle.


    A huge wave was also setting off in the Sea of the Path, but those who were standing on these small boats ignored the stormy waves, as they remained extremely stable, without any sense of being disturbed. Their divine consciousness covered the endless space, looking at the battlefield in the Divine Palace.


    In today''s battle, this preaching holy land of the Divine Palace would be destroyed and sunk into the Sea of the Path. It was impossible for it to withstand this level of attack.


    The cultivators of the Shen clan watched all this quietly. After Gai Qiong returned to the Golden Divine Nation, his way of handling things was indeed different, much more decisive than that of Gai Cang. Whether it was the Divine Prefecture from the outer realm or other realms within the Nine Realms, they had leveraged the situation to launch a simultaneous attack and created such bleak outlook for the Divine Palace.


    Even besides them, the Golden Divine Nation itself had two major figures here today, in addition to a few others from the Divine Prefecture by invitation, so they still had the upper hand. If counted in forces like theirs and the likes of the Solar Divine Nation, the situation would now be entirely one-sided.


    "Mmm?"


    At this moment, Shen Gao frowned and looked up above the void; he had suddenly felt a sense of threat.


    Shen Gao was not the only one who realized it. Soon, Shen Ji, who was beside him, as well as other powerful figures such as Gai Qiong, all raised their heads to look at the sky above. It was as if a very suppressive aura was blooming on top of them.


    Psst��


    Above the firmament, the sky seemed to be shattered. They saw a trail of blue divine light that tore through the void and traversed the sky. A divine sword imprinted in their minds.


    "Watch out."


    Shen Gao and the others realized something, and all of them began to take action. An absolute spatial light screen now appeared around Shen Gao, sheltering all the cultivators from the Shen clan within it. Cultivators from other forces also took action, releasing extremely powerful Will of the Way in resistance.


    Psst!


    The Sea of the Path rushed backward as the endless blue divine light sailed across the void and descended. Everything around it was pulverized.


    Shrilling screams came out from those who were touched by the blue divine light, as they turned into dust and disappeared into nothingness. People with strong cultivation managed to avoid it or protected themselves with the Great Path.


    But even so, the blue divine light flooded the void. When the divine sword descended on the Sea of the Path, the blue divine light turned into rounds of light screens, sweeping all around, and pulverized many who had guarded themselves with the powers of the Great Path. The Sea of the Path was completely evaporated by the Sword Will, and a terrifying vortex appeared on the seabed, turning it into a vacuum.


    When the terrifying aura gradually dissipated, everyone looked in the front. Above the Sea of the Path, the blue divine sword was hanging there upside down, and an absolute destructive Domain of Way that surrounded them. Just now, there were many Renhuang-level cultivators who had perished.


    Many people looked a little flustered as they stared at the sword. They knew who was here.


    Even Gai Qiong, who came from the Divine Prefecture, knew to whom the sword belonged.


    More than three centuries ago, this sword was hailed as the strongest weapon in the Three Thousand Realm of the Great Path, and it had been stained with a great amount of blood.


    Divine Sword Qinghe.


    Emperor Nan had arrived.


    The Divine Sword Qinghe, which had once suppressed the Gate of Hell, had now appeared here.


    The blue divine light sprinkled down, and a figure descended with it, landing on the divine sword. Emperor Nan was dressed in a blue robe, elegant and free-spirited. Though he stood there quietly, he had suddenly become the center of attention. Above the Sea of the Path, all eyes were on him, and the expressions on many had changed.


    Just now, many people had died under the Sword Will of Emperor Nan.


    "Emperor Nan." Gai Qiong looked at Emperor Nan; his eyes were a little cold. "Are you going to intervene in the affairs of the Shangxiao Divine Palace today?"


    "Shangxiao Divine Palace is the preaching holy land of the Upper Heavens Realm as one of the principalities of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and should be protected from outside forces as such. What''s more, the Shangxiao Divine Palace has been carrying out the Will of the Great Emperor for many years, never involved itself in external disputes. Gai Qiong, as a cultivator under the Great Emperor, everything you did was all for your own benefit.


    "Secondly, in the face of the changes happening in the Original Realm, Nantian Divine Kingdom is in alliance with the Shangxiao Divine Palace, and we will face all calamities together. If there is anyone who wants to destroy the Divine Palace, the Divine Sword Qinghe won''t be picky. Whoever participated will die."


    Emperor Nan spoke, and his voice was calm and indifferent. It made the hearts of many who were around him tremble. Especially those forces without influential leaders, their hearts could not help but beat fast.


    If Emperor Nan were to destroy them, they would have no ability to resist.


    After today, if Emperor Nan did not perish, how many principalities could stop his sword?


    The expression on Gai Qiong and the others were not a good one. Emperor Nan was one of the few who stood at the pinnacle in the Three Thousand Realm of the Great Path. He was extremely powerful, and it would be difficult to keep him and kill him.


    Furthermore, Emperor Nan was not the palace lord of the Divine Palace. Although he has been calmly playing the role of a benevolent father all these years, no one would forget that the Qinghe Divine Sword was the strongest Divine Sword in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    In the distance, inside the Divine Palace, the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace seemed to understand something when he heard Emperor Nan''s words. He smiled. He didn''t think that as the one who was involved, he had actually far less resolve than Emperor Nan. Perhaps this was what''s considered no turning back.


    Under the current disadvantage, it was impossible to defeat the opponent. The only way to protect and preserve the Divine Palace was to go all out without any reserve.


    "The Void Realm also belonged to the land of Divine Prefecture, so why should it be exempt? The forces from Divine Prefecture that regained control of the holy land would surely make the Void Realm even stronger." Gai Qiong responded indifferently as a pressure of might bloomed from him, resisting the Sword Will of the Qinghe Divine Sword.


    The appearance of Emperor Nan would be a little troublesome, but they had anticipated that already. They just did not expect that Emperor Nan had such ruthless determination; it was as if he was the true master of the Divine Palace.


    "What''s more, doesn''t Emperor Nan care about the Nantian Divine Kingdom?" Gai Qiong continued, threatening Emperor Nan with the Nantian Divine Kingdom!

 1790 Di Wus Transformation

    However, Gai Qiong was also a top-level existence. His eyes were electrified, shooting out golden divine glory. When the two sets of eyes collided, a terrible storm of destruction surged in around them. A frightening airwave was forming in the Sea of the Path, that set all the boats adrift.


    Emperor Nan stretched out his hand with the sword. Instantly, the destructive blue light in the surrounding became even more horrific. The divine light lingered around the Sea of the Path as the waves tossed and turned, then evaporated by the Sword Will. The sight was terrifying.


    He swept a look toward Gai Qiong and the other cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation. After many years, the Qinghe Divine Sword once again bloomed with divine light.


    "Get back!" Gai Qiong yelled, but it was too late.


    That blue divine light was omnipresent, and the Sword Will enveloped this area. As the divine light bloomed, the Sword Will was there to meet several of the Renhuang cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation. Even the strongest of them perished underneath the blue divine light; it was as if they had also turned into the blue light themselves and dissipated.


    "If I can''t stay here today, how many of you do you think can survive under the Qinghe Divine Sword?" Emperor Nan said. Those who heard his words couldn''t help but feel a chill.


    Emperor Nan hadn''t made his presence known for many years. But just now, when he unleashed his sword, everyone could feel a scary aura, even those top giants.


    They knew the power of Emperor Nan, but not many really know how strong he was currently. But that sword strike made them realized that if Emperor Nan really wanted to turn this into a massacre, it would be impossible to stop him.


    Even if someone of the same level tried to intercede, it would be difficult to restrain him.


    "How do you all want to fight today? Who wants to fight?" Emperor Nan asked, the Qinghe Divine Sword in hand.


    Some principalities from the Upper Heavens Realm quivered with fear. Even strong forces in the Upper Heaven Realm, such as the Sky Burying God Clan, felt a wave of fear. In truth, they had been very reluctant to participate in this war, but the Golden Divine Nation had forced them to pick a side. All to prove that the Golden Divine Nation was on the side of righteousness and that all the forces in the Upper Heavens World were united together to set the Divine Palace straight.


    Now that Emperor Nan was so menacing, how could they not be afraid?


    To come here at a time like this was definitely trying to take advantage of the situation.


    However, if the Solar Divine Palace were to participate in the battle, it would add tremendous pressure to the Divine Palace. Without them, it would weaken the strength of their opponent considerably.


    However, despite the Solar Divine Palace''s contrivance for the divine items of the ancestral land, the Divine Palace would clearly not oblige.


    "It''s not that magical; it''s just a thing that assists in cultivation. There are many such treasures in the 3,000 Realm of the Great path. Since you are from the Solar Divine Mountain, you must have seen many such divine items better than these," the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace responded coldly.


    "How about this: Di Wu, heir of the Solar Divine Palace, had always wanted to have an exchange with Ye Futian, so let''s give them a chance. If Di Wu wins, the divine item from Shangxiao Divine Palace''s ancestral land will be ceded to us. If Di Wu loses, we will leave," said the cultivator from the Solar Divine Mount.


    Their foremost target was the divine items.


    Many people frowned, and the cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation and the Holy Land of Taichu were a little displeased. But the Solar Divine Mountain was also a superpower in the land of the Divine Prefecture. No one understood that better than the Holy Land of Taichu and Gai Qiong from the Divine Prefecture.


    Therefore, the Solar Divine Mountain could not really care less because they didn''t want to join forces with the Golden Divine Nation in the first place. Their premier target here was the divine items.


    They were here to take advantage of the situation.


    Of course, to Di Wu, if he could defeat and kill Ye Futian, he would certainly not mind at all.


    The cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu swept a look toward the other and saw the War Emperor in purple looked indifferent. His disciple was defeated, and Mu Qingke also was defeated by Ye Futian. What confidence could the Solar Divine Mountain possibly have, to think that anyone from the Solar Divine Palace could defeat Ye Futian?


    When their thought turned to this, they didn''t say anything more, and neither did the cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation. They stood quietly and didn''t continue to fight. The atmosphere above the Divine Palace seemed a little suppressed.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace hesitated; the cultivators from the Solar Divine Mountain was indeed a threat, and this game of chess was very unfair to them. If they lost, they had to hand over the divine items, but if they win, it would only be in exchange for the opponent to withdraw.


    But now, the other party has the advantage. If they wanted to relieve some of the pressure, it seemed they had no choice but to agree.


    "I have no objection." Ye Futian made a quick decision. He walked out very calmly as he levitated into the sky. His eyes were looking at a very faraway place, where vision could not traverse, only divine consciousness could. He was able to see all the cultivators of the Solar Divine Palace above the Sea of the Path, as well as Di Wu.


    Di Wu was also standing on a boat, but Ye Futian could feel that his temperament seemed to have changed a little. Bathed in the sacred divine flames, he seemed more natural, shining brilliantly, as if he was shielded in a flaming glossy armor. Presumably, he must also have had experienced some miraculous changes.


    Otherwise, Ye Futian had every reason to believe that with his own brilliant battle records, how could Di Wu have the confidence in dealing with him?


    It was rumored that the Solar Divine Palace had influences in the Divine Prefecture of the Upper Worlds. It must be that which had transformed Di Wu.


    "Where are we fighting?" Ye Futian asked loudly.


    "Above the Heavenly Mandate Academy," the cultivator from the Solar Divine Mountain responded.


    "We need to guard around the battlefield," said the Palace Lord; he was worried about the others.


    Ye Futian was of great significance to them, and nothing could happen to him. If Ye Futian perished, the alliance would fall apart in an instant. The Heavenly Mandate Realm would be the first one to sink into complete chaos. At which time, everything would no longer exist but would be replaced.


    "Sure, I trust the Divine Palace and Emperor Nan." The cultivator from the Solar Divine Palace said with a smile, appearing extremely benevolent.


    When his voice faded, a fiery red boat headed forward on the Sea of the Path. Di Wu, who was bathed in the divine light of flame, flashed and then leaped up and turned into a golden lightning bolt, heading straight toward Ye Futian.


    With the Solar Divine Mountain at his back, Di Wu seemed to be even more confident and fearless.


    He leaped up from the Sea of the Path and walked directly toward the Divine Palace. The cultivators from the Solar Divine Mountain followed along, guarding him.


    High above the sky, the War God in purple looked at all this with nonchalance, and he didn''t bother to stop the others.


    Likewise, Ye Futian also moved forward, with Taixuan Palace and the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace guarding on each side, separated by a certain distance. Although this duel was only with Di Wu, the War Emperor in purple and the Holy Land of Taichu were there, watching with cultivators from all sides; they couldn''t afford to be careless.


    Now that Emperor Nan has entered deep into the other side, although no one dared to act rashly, he still couldn''t let his guard down. In any case, Ye Futian could not fail.


    Soon, the two figures stood across each other in the air.


    Di Wu stood opposite Ye Futian, and two dominant auras were released at the same time, moving toward each other with oppressive force.


    Traces of the sun''s divine brilliance sprinkled down and aimed at Ye Futian. Each ray of the sun''s divine brilliance contained extremely terrifying power to scorch as if about to ignite the void.


    Ye Futian waved with his hand, and in an instant, the heaven and the earth gave birth to an infinite Sword Will. Its bleakness shrouded the boundless void, enveloping the battlefield where the two were at.


    Buzz. A bleak Sword Will rolled toward Di Wu, revealing an extremely strong murderous intent. It was desperate and cold, just like Ye Futian''s mood currently.


    However, at the same time, a terrifying solar divine light bloomed from Di Wu. This divine light was able to burn up the attack by the Great Path so that the sharp swords made by the Swordsmanship were incinerated into nothingness and disappeared.


    It seemed that the attack of his swordsmanship could never get close to the opponent.


    Di Wu looked at Ye Futian. Above him, the Flame of the Way turned into an armor of divine fire, shining brightly. The space around him seemed to be on fire with it, and the sky seemed to be steamed dry by the flames from his body.


    He cast a glance at Ye Futian. He, who had experienced transformation, was no longer the same as who he was before. He used to be extremely confident in his own ability, but as Ye Futian became stronger and stronger, and his name rang throughout the Nine Realms, Di Wu realized that he was no match to Ye Futian.


    However, this time, he was extremely confident. He wanted to fight Ye Futian because he had been transformed by the Great Path.


    Now his Way had been transformed into something divine.


    Stepping forward, Di Wu walked toward Ye Futian. Above him, the solar divine light turned into the Way, directly shot out. Wherever the light passed, everything turned into nothingness. It dissipated under the solar divine light. Even the swords were consumed by it. His Way had already surpassed the ordinary Way and transformed into an extraordinary power of the Great Path.


    The solar divine light released from him was enough to obliterate all existence. Ordinary Renhuang would be incinerated right away.


    The cultivators around the could feel what they saw. Today, all those present, whether inside or outside of the Divine Palace, were extremely powerful, and they all had a keen perception of the power of the Great Path.


    Di Wu was very strong. This was no longer the Great Path of Flames. No wonder the cultivators from the Solar Divine Palace asked Di Wu to fight Ye Futian in order to seize the divine items from the ancestral land.


    Solar divine light shot directly at Ye Futian, and the crowd saw that Ye Futian was covered entirely by the divine light!

 1791 Divine Body of the Sun

    Frightening Divine Fire of the Sun shot down on the divine elephant. It could not immediately melt the divine elephant. However, it still caused the figure of the divine elephant to turn liquid gold and faintly show signs of melting. One could imagine how terrifying the Divine Light of the Sun was.


    Di Wu''s eyes were extremely frightening. They were like the Divine Eyes of the Sun. Roars sounded from behind him. A scorching sun appeared. Golden divine fire burned around the sun, melting the air into nothingness and forming streaks of flames.


    Both inside and outside of the Divine Palace, all of the cultivators felt the frightening scorching winds. Under the divine light, many buildings of the Divine Palace below immediately began to burst into flames.


    Beneath the light of the flawless Divine Wheel of the Sun, the Divine Light of the Sun that shot out continued to melt the figure of the divine elephant, wanting to bury Ye Futian inside and directly burn him to ashes.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Di Wu. From within the golden sun, illusions of golden ravens appeared. They soared around in the sun. The Divine Fire of the Sun that enveloped Ye Futian''s body also became a Divine Sun Bird��the Three-legged Golden Raven.


    The gigantic Three-legged Golden Raven spread its wings. Its talons clawed at the divine elephant and actually ripped it apart bit by bit. Its talons were aiming to pierce through the divine elephant to crush Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian raised his hand and extended his arm forward, sending out a punch. The trumpeting of the elephant resounded in the sky; it was the Great Path of Destruction.


    The trumpeting of the divine elephant lingered while its power shattered the sky and directly hit the Three-legged Golden Raven. The golden raven was crushed into pieces.


    However, at the same time, golden ravens flew out from the Divine Wheel of the Sun that was behind Di Wu. The golden ravens covered the sky and attacked Ye Futian all at once. Ye Futian shifted his will. Endless Sword Will reverberated in the space. The Sword Will seemed to be resonating with the sky.


    Ye Futian pointed out a finger. The unceasing Sword Will all gathered at his fingertip. Billions of divine swords came together as a single divine sword coalesced at Ye Futian''s fingertip. The terrifying, flowing Sword Will ground all the incoming Divine Light of the Sun into dust.


    Buzz.


    A gigantic golden raven leaped toward Ye Futian. However, the raven was pierced by the divine sword. Moreover, there was also the terrifying Great Path of Destruction by the divine elephant protecting Ye Futian.


    A sharp shriek was heard. The crowd witnessed the Divine Sun Birds being torn apart one by one. They transformed into Flames of the Way and plummeted from the sky. However, as Ye Futian approached Di Wu, he could clearly sense the heightening temperature of the flames.


    Di Wu''s eyes were frightening. He stared at Ye Futian, who was approaching him. His gaze, which was permeated with murderous intent, did not waver even for a bit.


    Ye Futian had been crowned the strongest cultivator of this generation in the Nine Realms. His ability was without question; Di Wu was well aware of this fact. If Ye Futian could be defeated easily, Di Wu would not have such a strong urge to fight him now.


    Di Wu extended both his arms sideways. The Divine Light of the Sun shone more brilliantly. His eyes were even scarier than before. Suddenly, an unparalleled Divine Light of the Sun shot through the Great Path, aiming straight ahead at Ye Futian while ignoring all his defenses.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. The majestic illusion of the divine elephant was punctured. Di Wu''s attack was a bona fide Great Path of Destruction, causing the golden divine elephant to burn under the intense flame of the Way.


    The cultivators, who were observing the battle, felt slightly emotional. The cultivators of Sun God Mountain were the descendants of the Sun God; the bloodline of Sun God coursed in their veins. Even though countless years had passed and Sun God had become nothing but a legend now, the divine power inherited by the descendants of Sun God Mountain was still very formidable. If other ordinary Renhuangs were exposed to this Divine Light of the Sun, they would be killed instantly by it without any means of defending themselves.


    Moreover, Di Wu''s attack was a mass-killing technique with frightening power. No matter how many opponents there were, they would be burned to dust under the Divine Light of the Sun. One could only imagine how scary this power was. Even flawless Divine Wheel possessors would die horribly if their defenses were weak.


    Both of them were extremely quick. As Ye Futian advanced, he had already appeared in the spatial world enveloped by the Divine Wheel of the Sun. It was as though there was a sun in front of him, and everything he did was futile.


    However, the divine swords covered the sky. Ye Futian''s finger still pointed forward at the sun before him.


    A sword slash mark appeared. The divine swords charged forward like moths dashing toward a fire. Even the Divine Light of the Sun could not melt or destroy them. The swords kept advancing and could not be stopped.


    Rumble!


    The golden raven seemed to walk out from the sun and cover Di Wu''s figure. Currently, Di Wu was directly inside the Divine Sun Bird. Under the light of the Divine Wheel of the Sun, it was as though they were within a sun.


    Di Wu raised his hand forward, and the talons of the golden raven ripped the space apart, clawing straight toward the divine swords.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. The swords directly pierced through the talons of the Golden Raven. However, at the same time, the divine swords were branded red and melted little by little. Their offensive power immediately became far weaker than before.


    In the end, the divine swords pierced through the figure of the golden raven but appeared as though they had pierced into the Divine Fire of the Sun. All the divine swords were turned into a molten state.


    Di Wu''s eyes were staring straight at Ye Futian. Ye Futian actually dared to get so close to him?


    Currently, the Divine Light of the Sun protected his body. No one could approach Di Wu.


    Ye Futian was rushing to his death.


    At the moment, the bloodline of Sun God seemed to be awakening in Di Wu''s body. It was burning. The golden divine flame was refining everything it touched. Under the Divine Light of the Sun, Ye Futian''s divine elephant Divine Wheel was melting bit by bit.


    "It seems like this Di Wu has awakened his bloodline. Cultivators from the direct line of Sun God Mountain can gradually strengthen their Way after they have awakened and refined their bloodline many times," Shen Gao from Shen clan explained. "Sun God Mountain calls the final form ''Divine Body of the Sun.'' Sun God Mountain has trained many outstanding juniors, but many years have passed, and there has yet to be a junior with a Divine Body of the Sun. Di Wu is currently only on his journey of awakening, yet he is already so powerful and can suppress another flawless Divine Wheel possessor who is at the same level as him."


    Shen Gao had trained in the Divine Prefecture. Naturally, he knew more than the rest. In the Divine Prefecture, there were also quite a few ancient clans who crowned themselves as the descendants of the Gods. However, after the End of the Gods, there were not many Gods left. Those who could really be classified as Gods were scarce.


    Having a Divine Body implied that Di Wu was qualified to become an existence of that level. It was easier said than done.


    Those ancient forces were all cultivating juniors who had the potential to reach that level. Di Wu seemed to have also been chosen.


    Could he defeat Ye Futian?


    "Hmm?"


    Just as he was speaking, Shen Gao revealed a strange look. Where did both of them go?


    Di Wu''s silhouette had actually disappeared. So had Ye Futian''s. There seemed to be lingering will surging in the space. However, their two figures had completely disappeared.


    "Ye Futian''s fourth Divine Wheel is also his strongest Divine Wheel. It can create an independent space, which can suppress the Great Path of other people," said a person who stood beside Shen Gao. During the battle with the Shen clan, when Ye Futian was fighting Shen Hao, he defeated Shen Hao even though the latter used a divine item. Ye Futian''s victory was due to this fourth Divine Wheel.


    According to Shen Hao, this Divine Wheel was a Boundary Wheel, which could create an independent space.


    Shen Gao''s gaze flickered when he heard the explanation. There were two possibilities for this Divine Wheel of Ye Futian. The first possibility was this Divine Wheel was indeed unique and could form a space of its own; it was related to Life Spirit. After all, a Divine Wheel was born out of the combination of a cultivator''s Life Spirit and the power of the Great Path comprehended by the cultivator.


    However, the second possibility was slightly alarming. If it was the latter, then it seemed like they had still underestimated Ye Futian.


    At the moment, in the independent space, Di Wu was slightly stupefied. He couldn''t adapt to this change right away. However, the next moment, he regained his senses, and his blood churned. Under the Divine Fire of the Sun, he was determined to melt Ye Futian''s body until there was nothing left.


    Ye Futian stared at Di Wu. He too could sense that Di Wu''s Divine Wheel had been baptized and became stronger. It meant that under special circumstances, one could still continue to refine their Divine Wheel''s Life Spirit even after they had proved their Way and become a Renhuang. Before this, Di Wu''s Divine Wheel was already flawless since it was forged in the God''s relic.


    Now, it had metamorphosed and showed hints of suppressing Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel of the divine elephant.


    This observation made Ye Futian realize that there was also a difference in strength between two flawless Divine Wheels.


    However, Ye Futian did not believe that there was a Divine Wheel that could suppress his fourth Divine Wheel since this Divine Wheel was born out of his Natal Spirit.


    Di Wu attacked Ye Futian with his sharp talons. Under the Divine Light of the Sun, he intended to bury Ye Futian''s body in the sun.


    Ye Futian''s body flashed, and he suddenly disappeared in thin air. He reappeared in another spot. Ye Futian looked down on Di Wu with his indifferent gaze.


    Ye Futian extended his hand. In an instant, the Great Path resonated, and the divine swords howled. Billions of divine swords flew about, generating a rhythm.


    Rumble. Divine Light of the Sun shot out from Di Wu''s body. However, Di Wu realized that his power of the Great Path was being suppressed. It was not as powerful as it was outside. It was as though the power of the Great Path in this place was no longer his.


    In the sky above, stars circled around Ye Futian''s figure, forming a frightening barrier before him that blocked off the Divine Light of the Sun.


    "Did you think that you are very powerful?" Ye Futian lowered his head and looked at Di Wu. "The cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu were all more powerful than you."


    After saying this, Ye Futian pointed a finger at Di Wu. In an instant, billions of divine swords resonated as one and became one sword. From the heavens above, the halo of the divine sword pierced the world and slaughtered its way toward Di Wu, like a beam of light. Everywhere it passed, everything was turned to dust. His attack actually somewhat resembled that of Emperor Nan''s.


    The sword fell, and Di Wu''s body was merged with the sun. The golden raven protected its master and wanted to block the sword in the same manner as it did before. However, this time, Ye Futian''s sword seemed to be stronger. In comparison, Di Wu''s might of the Way weakened. Under such changes, the halo of the divine sword directly penetrated downwards. Di Wu''s figure was sent flying backward from the shockwaves. The figure of the golden raven before was blasted into smithereens and gradually disappeared.


    Ptui.


    The Sword Flash dissipated, and the Boundary Wheel disappeared. The crowd saw a silhouette being sent flying backward as he coughed out a mouthful of blood. On his body was the remaining Sword Will, which was still shimmering!

 1792 The Ancestral Lands Table

    Di Wu was also in agony internally. His Divine Wheel had undergone a metamorphosis, and his Path had grown more powerful. The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture''s Sun God Mountain had told him that he had a chance to refine his bloodline until he could unleash his maximum potential. He might even have a chance to cultivate the Divine Body of the Sun.


    The improvement of his ability made him extremely self-confident and made him want to battle it out with Ye Futian.


    However, the battle had ended so pathetically.


    With his Divine Wheel of the Great Path being suppressed, Di Wu could not block the sword. This was a huge blow to Di Wu. Back in the God''s relic, Di Wu was one of the most monstrous figures in the Nine Realms. He had forged a flawless Divine Wheel in the God''s relic. At that time, Ye Futian was the same level as he was.


    Back then, as the God of Solar Divine Palace, Di Wu did not even consider Ye Futian to be a threat. However, afterward, Ye Futian became more and more famous. Hence, today, Di Wu found it very difficult to accept this humiliating defeat.


    Sun God Mountain also placed their wager on him. Since they had announced it in public, they could not go back on their word.


    Although the cultivators of Sun God Mountain had come over to pillage and take advantage of other people''s misfortune, they were still people of status and had to admit their defeat.


    The cultivators of Sun God Mountain glanced at Di Wu and then looked towards Ye Futian. He was truly extraordinary. They had already tested Di Wu''s ability. However, they had not imagined that he would still lose to Ye Futian.


    It looked like Solar Divine Palace was fated to not be able to obtain the divine item in the Ancestral Lands of the Divine Palace.


    After this, they could only be observers and witness what happened after.


    "You may see yourselves out," the Palace Lord said while sweeping a glance at the cultivators of Sun God Mountain. The leading cultivator smiled and said, "Since we have been defeated, Solar Divine Palace will not participate in today''s battle. We will take our leave now."


    After he spoke, he turned around and left, keeping his promise.


    The cultivators of Solar Divine Palace also left one after another, but they bore grudges in their hearts.


    However, they didn''t leave entirely. Instead, they lingered at the Sea of the Path, which was quite a distance away from the Divine Palace. They stood at the Sea of the Path and unleashed their wills in the direction of the Divine Palace. They could still observe the battle in such a manner.


    Could Shangxiao Divine Palace escape their plight?


    If Shangxiao Divine Palace were defeated, the Divine Martial Road in their Ancestral Lands would be plundered clean. When that happened, cultivators of Sun God Mountain would no longer be bound to an agreement. There was still hope of getting some spoils.


    After the cultivators of Sun God Mountain left, the atmosphere of the Divine Palace still remained tense.


    "I have a condition. Would you be willing to hear me out?" Shen Gao, a cultivator from the Shen clan, spoke at this moment. Everyone''s gazes immediately turned towards him. Ye Futian similarly looked towards Shen Gao.


    Shen Gao''s figure walked out from the Sea of the Path, and he ascended into the air. Across the distance, his gaze was directed at Ye Futian as he said, "Ye Futian has previously attacked my Shen clan. Now, he has stirred up trouble in the Higher Heavens Realm. As long as the Divine Palace hands him over to me, I will not be involved in matters here. I will bring him back to be dealt with. How about it?"


    The Divine Palace wanted Ye Futian.


    Their conflict was also due to Ye Futian. Shen Gao was actually also thinking that if they could capture Ye Futian, they could still have an opportunity to bring him to their side.


    Even if he had to make enemies of both parties, Shen Gao still looked highly on Ye Futian. If Shen Gao truly had to kill Ye Futian, he would feel that it was a waste.


    "It looks like Shen clan has not learned your lesson from the besiegement of the Heavenly Mandate Academy last time, "Lord Taixuan warned loudly, as he stared at Shen Gao from a distance. "If that''s the case, Shen clan better pray that you can capture all of us in one go. Otherwise, we might not let Shen clan off the hook so easily this time."


    It was clearly impossible for the Divine Palace to hand Ye Futian over to the Shen clan. Currently, among the forces of Nine Realms, everyone knew Ye Futian was the strongest.


    Shen Gao was also well-aware of it. Hence, he only smiled when he heard Lord Taixuan''s reply. He didn''t take Lord Taixuan''s response to heart; clearly, he had predicted it.


    "Times have changed," Shen Gao said with a smile. Now, the passageway that connected the Divine Prefecture and the Void Realm had been opened. Not only had Shen Gao returned, but the Shen clan in the Void Realm could also get in contact with the Shen clan of the Divine Prefecture.


    Besieging the Shen clan?


    Even though the Heavenly Mandate Academy had an alliance of forces, they would have to think twice in order to take it down.


    "Have you all made your choice?" the Palace Lord''s gaze swept across to Gai Cang, who was standing next to the throne. Under such circumstances, how did he plan to fight?


    If they began to fight, could he bear the cost?


    "Since we are rebuilding from scratch, why do we need to hesitate so much?" At that moment, a voice called out from the sky. Once the voice cried out, a terrifying wave of the Great Path swept out. It slammed towards the Divine Palace. Huge rumbles could be heard.


    Everyone''s gazes swept towards the cultivator who had sent out the attack.


    It was Purple Robe War Emperor of the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Some local forces of the Nine Realms still had some reservations about starting a fight. However, the Purple Robe War Emperor of the Holy Land of Taichu had purposely come from the Divine Prefecture to settle this affair. His first group of people had failed the task previously. Now that he had personally come over, it was impossible for him to tolerate failure.


    As for what would happen in this battle or what consequences it would bring about, Purple Robe War Emperor did not care.


    It was sufficient as long as Golden Divine Nation kept their promise: the Holy Land of Taichu would replace Shangxiao Divine Palace to teach the Way in the training holy land of the Higher Heavens Realms.


    This time, the might of his attack was more terrifying than before. An unparalleled aura gushed into the Divine Palace. Instantly, cracks actually appeared all over this ancient palace, which was erected on the island in the middle of the Sea of the Path. The cracks were propagating quickly.


    Rumble. Intense and terrifying sounds could still be heard. The entire island of the Divine Palace sank even further. Many defense matrices were activated. However, they were immediately destroyed. An existence of this level was already beyond what the matrices of the Divine Palace could withstand against. Besides the Divine Palace, no one in the entire 3,000 Realms of the Great Path could establish a super matrix that could withstand a figure of such level.


    The Divine Palace was about to fall.


    As they witnessed this scene, some cultivators were stunned and drew in deep breaths. They then realized what was about to happen.


    This outcome was only natural. It was impossible for a building like the Divine Palace to be able to withstand the shock from today''s intense battle.


    The cultivators who invaded the Divine Palace today, especially this top figure from the Holy Land of Taichu, ignored the authority of Golden Divine Nation and attacked the Divine Palace right away. Would they still care about the collapse of the Divine Palace?


    In this distance, at the Sea of the Path, numerous cultivators were following the updates of what was happening here through their wills. Many of them had trained in the Divine Palace before. The scenes that played out in their minds caused them to be speechless. They felt dejected.


    Who would have thought that the holy land, which once stood high in the Higher Heavens Realm, would sink in such a manner?


    The cultivators of the Divine Palace stared at the scene silently, yet their aura was intensifying. The Divine Palace was collapsing; the grand matrix which served as the foundation of the palace had been destroyed. The entire palace was sinking into the sea.


    The Palace Lord glanced at what was happening beneath him with a complicated look. He raised his head and stared at the Purple Robe War Emperor. An unparalleled might of the Way suddenly enveloped the entire Divine Palace. The ruins of the palace were surrounded by a dazzling divine light, joining together as one. The ruins floated in space and did not continue to sink.


    "Is it worth it?"


    The Purple Robe War Emperor traversed across the sky. Golden ripples spread throughout the sky and spiraled downwards. With a huge rumble, the Divine Palace continued to sink.


    Every step that he took was like a terrifying wave, causing the Divine Palace to continue fragmenting while sinking. The Palace Lord could not stop the palace from being destroyed.


    In the end, the Palace Lord decided to let go. With a shift of his will, the Divine Palace sank into the Sea of the Path.


    Purple Robe War Emperor raised his arm and glanced at the Palace Lord and the other cultivators. He sent out a punch.


    This punch penetrated the space. The True Will of Waves of a War God unleashed by him was absolutely terrifying. A choking might enveloped the cultivators of the Divine Palace. It was impossible for the Palace Lord to protect everyone.


    At that moment, there suddenly appeared a peerless divine light that flew over in their direction. It directly flew out and blocked the punch coming their way.


    Rumble.


    The peerless punch collided with the object, sweeping up gales and huge waves. The punch that could directly shatter the Divine Palace could not destroy the object that had appeared.


    It was a tablet. No one was in control of it. It was as though the tablet was flying on its own. On the tablet, endless divine runes of the Great Path were carved on it. Even the war god''s True Will of Waves could not shatter this tablet.


    Even more frightening was that, after this tablet descended, it kept expanding and became a huge heavenly tablet.


    Had another giant figure of the Divine Palace attacked? The various cultivators thought to themselves. Outside of the ruins, all the gazes of the people on the Sea of the Path were directed towards the battlefield.


    Many of them had heard that the Divine Palace most likely had more than one mighty existence at the peak of the Realm aside from the Palace Lord.


    The giant figures especially seemed to know something about it.


    However, no silhouette had appeared. Instead, the tablet that was floating in the sky released an even more brilliant and eye-catching light. It seemed to be an object without a master.


    The top figures were staring at the tablet. They revealed fearful looks.


    This was no mere tablet. They sensed a unique aura from it.


    At that moment, a sigh came from the tablet. It was the tablet sighing.


    Ye Futian revealed a strange expression. Could it be that the mysterious cultivator back then in the Ancestral Lands was...

 1793 A Lone Boa

    Was this tablet activated by him?


    "Is that the old Palace Lord?" Gai Cang was frowning as he also stared in that direction.


    It didn''t seem right. It was not the old Palace Lord of the Divine Palace.


    "Emperor Cang?" Gai Cang exclaimed as he suddenly thought of someone when he sensed the aura. It was a figure who shared his name.


    The person was a peak figure back during the Age of Turmoil. However, Emperor Cang of the Divine Palace was not his name. He was called this due to his powerful technique.


    Back in the day, Emperor Cang''s cultivation was peerless. He was the most talented figure in the Divine Palace. He was even more powerful than the Divine Palace Palace Lord of the day. He had forged a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path, and an upper level flawless Divine Wheel at that. An existence of such a level would be a peerless figure even in the entire Divine Prefecture.


    However, by right, he should have fallen before having cultivated to the peak. Why was it that they all felt that their assumptions were wrong?


    "Back then, the person who lived was Emperor Cang and not the old Palace Lord?" Gai Qiong said as he also revealed a strange look. These were all matters from long ago. The old Palace Lord and Emperor Cang had both suffered severe injuries. It was said that Emperor Cang had died while the old Palace Lord had been seriously wounded.


    Yet, right now, their assumptions seemed to have been wrong.


    "I never imagined that there would be people who still remembered me," a voice said from the tablet. Then, the gigantic, endless tablet flew up into the sky and expanded rapidly. It blocked out the sky and the sun, enveloping this entire region of the Sea of the Path.


    The various cultivators raised their heads and saw an unparalleled divine tablet. On it, endless inscriptions were carved. It radiated with brilliant light, and they could faintly see a silhouette appear in the tablet. It was the silhouette of a middle-aged man. He wore a long white robe. His figure seemed to have merged with the tablet.


    From the tablet, endless light shone down. Huge rumbles could be heard. Everyone sensed a heavenly might. The heavens seemed to have changed hue and were enveloped by the tablet.


    Rumble. A huge rumbling sound could be heard. It was as though the sky was falling, and the earth was about to split apart. A God Hand appeared and immediately covered the sky, suppressing this region of the Sea of the Path. Everything was beneath the God Hand.


    "Be careful," someone said.


    Boom. Boom. Boom. The palm print had yet to come down when its divine might of the Great Path descended. Some people who did not have strong enough cultivation were directly sent crashing into the Sea of the Path. They revealed looks of extreme pain. On the Sea of the Path, waves churned. Everyone was pressured to the point that they found it hard to breathe.


    Ye Futian and the others stood there, watching. The power was naturally not aimed at them. However, they still could sense the astonishing suppressive force. It was as though that palm had suppressed the entire world.


    Right then, a silhouette rose up to receive the palm print of the Great Path. Similarly, a loud resonating sound that filled the heavens could be heard. An unparalleled War God''s True Will of Waves shot up into the sky and collided with the God Hand pressing down on them. The dull sound caused the hearts of everyone around to tremble.


    Purple Robe War Emperor alone rose into the air. He arrived beneath the God Hand. As he stood there, he seemed exceptionally miniscule compared to the hand. Yet, he directly raised his arm and punched out towards the God Hand.


    The God Hand collided with his punch. A dull thud could be heard. Wave after wave of his War God''s True Will of Waves swept towards the God Hand with his fist as the center. In an instant, tens of thousands of vibrations erupted.


    Rumble.


    There was a huge sound, and the God Hand collapsed. The terrifying punch was also shattered. Purple Robe War Emperor''s figure plummeted downwards. At the same time, there were explosions in the Sea of the Path below, and sea water splashed up. The scene was very frightening.


    From the tablet, endless divine light shone down. Countless large handprints actually flew out from it. Each handprint had frightening power. They directly slaughtered their way in the direction where the army was in the Sea of the Path.


    Gai Qiong''s figure also moved. He took a step forward, and the heavenly might of the Great Path burst forth from him. The endless space seemed to be completely enveloped within his will. A golden divine spear appeared in his hand and pierced into the space. The giant handprints in the space were immediately shattered into dust.


    Purple Robe War Emperor''s forceful attack had already ruined everything. Now, they had no choice but to battle it out.


    The tablet spun in the heavens above. Endless divine light shot out from it. Each beam of divine light contained a large handprint. Their destructive power was astonishing.


    "Everyone, attack," Gai Cang said in a loud voice.


    In the current situation, Gai Cang''s side still held the advantage. They could only do their best to prevent these people from escaping.


    Gai Cang wielded his divine spear and charged forwards after he spoke. However, Lord Taixuan appeared before him, wielding a divine sword. The heavens were filled with the endless sound of guqins of the Great Path.


    "All of you, retreat," the Divine Palace Palace Lord ordered the various cultivators beside him. Cultivators of the lower Planes could not participate in a battle of such a high level. On the contrary, they would likely be killed if the opportunity arose. Since they had reached this point, there was no turning back.


    The dazzling Divine Mountain enveloped all the cultivators inside of it. Then, the Divine Palace Palace Lord sent out a palm strike, and the entire Divine Mountain immediately flew off into the distance. It traveled a huge distance in an instant.


    "Shen Ji, go and cut them off," Shen Gao said. Shen Ji then stepped forward, the light of the Great Path of Space shining off him.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. Green divine light was everywhere, turning everything to dust. The formless will of the Great Path of Space was also turned to dust. Being enveloped by the green divine light, Shen Ji discovered that he actually could not teleport away from where he was.


    Shen Gao swept a glance towards Emperor Nan when he saw this scene. He then said, "Today, I will experience the ability of Emperor Nan myself."


    After he said this, he unleashed the Tianshen Divine Halo, which could suppress all the power of the Great Path. Tianshen Divine Halo collided with the green divine light; the two lights countered each other. A terrifying storm of Tianshen Cleave enveloped this part of the sky. Shen Gao stood in front of Emperor Nan while the gold and green lights continued to clash. Scary looking cracks appeared in their surroundings. One could imagine how frightening their auras were.


    Buzz!


    A green gale swept across the space. The gale was everywhere, trapping both Shen Gao and Shen Ji in the region of the gale.


    At that moment, another top figure unleashed his attack. This person had been exceptionally quiet all this while. However, as soon as he made a move, countless weapons appeared in the sky and flew in the direction of the Divine Palace Palace Lord.


    This person was a top figure from Mo clan, one of the ancient clans in the Divine Prefecture. Mo clan wanted to establish its influence in the Original Realm. The clan had decided to collaborate with Golden Divine Nation and the Holy Land of Taichu. This was because it was hard for the clan to dominate a Realm since there were too many forces entering the Original Realm after the passageway had been opened. After all, Mo clan had no foundations here. Under such circumstances, it was more suitable for them to form an alliance with a local force and then slowly exert their influence in the Original Realm.


    Since everyone had decided to go all out in this battle, it would be the wisest to destroy the Divine Palace completely to avoid any future trouble. At least a few top figures would have to join the battle in order to kill everyone from the Divine Palace.


    In an instant, the person from Mo clan clashed with the Divine Palace Palace Lord. Even after the cultivators of Solar Divine Palace had left, their side still had more cultivators as compared to the Divine Palace. Clearly, they still held the advantage.


    Unbeknownst of whether or not it was intentional, nobody targeted the cultivators who retreated before the battle erupted. The cultivators avoided the battles of the top figures and headed in the direction where Ye Futian and his group left.


    They were not qualified to join the battles of the top figures. After all, there was a stark difference in their abilities. Their targets were the other cultivators.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had to be hunted down.


    The army formed by various forces moved enthusiastically and rushed towards the Sea of the Path. They were pursuing the cultivators who were ordered to retreat by the Divine Palace Palace Lord.


    Ye Futian''s group was actually quite strong too. Even though some top figures could not make their way over here, they had sent many cultivators over to aid Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s group moved at high speeds. They shifted in space and traversed across the sky without pausing. The cultivators who were hunting them followed behind them; the distance between the two groups was shortening.


    Ye Futian looked into the distance. There was a lone boat floating on the vast Sea of the Path. A figure wearing a straw hat was standing on the boat. Beside him was a demonic beast��a demonic rat.


    A glint of cold light flashed in the eyes of Ye Futian when he saw the boat. This was his last hope. If any top figures came over from the Divine Palace battlefield to hunt them and Ye Futian could not defend against them, all his efforts prior to this would be in vain.


    "One group should leave first. Senior Kunpeng, may I trouble you to lead these people away from here?" Ye Futian asked Demon Emperor Kunpeng. His speed was very fast, and he could lead those with weak cultivation away from here. There was no real meaning for them to participate in this battle. After all, even Ye Futian himself could not predict what would happen later on. After the Xiao clan and Dou tribe were held back, the cultivators that they had on their side was clearly at a disadvantage.


    "Alright," Kunpeng replied as he nodded his head. He did not reject Ye Futian''s request and led some people away. Ye Futian and the others continued to advance. They only stopped when they were near the lone boat.


    Very soon, the people behind them also caught up with them. They were the members of the various allied forces.


    They looked towards Ye Futian''s group, who had stopped. They then looked towards the lone boat floating on the Sea of the Path below. Some people frowned. They actually could not sense the person''s aura. It was possible that the other party had very weak cultivation, or he could also be very powerful.


    However, this was deep within the Sea of the Path. How could someone who was very weak end up here?


    This caused some people to feel uneasy. Could it be that Ye Futian still had a trump card?


    Right at this moment, the figure with a straw hat, who stood at the fore, raised his head, and looked at the crowd. He had a pair of terrifying eyes. The pair of dark, demonic eyes were emotionless and cold. His gaze was like the gaze of a grim reaper.


    Retreat! The cultivators from Shen Clan came to their senses. It was him.


    He had disappeared since the battle a few years ago. Nobody had expected that he would actually appear in the Sea of the Path today during this crucial battle.


    It turned out that the figure on the lone boat was none other than Sky River Great Elder!

 1794 The Massacre by Sky River Great Elder

    Sky River Great Elder had not appeared since the battle when the Heavenly Mandate Academy led their army to confront Shen clan.


    Some said that Sky River Great Elder had fallen into the demonic Way and had most likely destroyed himself. Some said that he had gone crazy and was missing.


    However, at this very moment, he silently appeared in the Sea of the Path. He calmly sat on the lone boat in the middle of the sea. If their current location was not the Sea of the Path, strangers would really treat Sky River Great Elder as an ordinary man.


    Sky River Great Elder had broken through the Plane in the past. When cultivators of Shen clan saw him, their first instinct was to run away from him. At the moment, the giant figures had yet to come over here. When facing a cultivator at the level of Sky River Great Elder, there was no point in having a large number of people. They could not possibly defeat him. If they were to engage in a battle with him, they would suffer great losses.


    "It''s Sky River Great Elder." the cultivators of Golden Divine Nation and the other forces also managed to react to all this. They frantically retreated and prepared to escape from this place.


    A terrifying crimson light shot out from Sky River Great Elder''s eyes. Even though he was merely standing there quietly, the vast space was instantly enveloped by a horrifying aura. Endless crimson demonic light filled the heavens and earth, as though there were streaks of crimson lightning flashing in the sky.


    Boom. Sky River Great Elder took a step forward and directly walked into the crowd of cultivators. The will of the crowd burst forth, and their figures retreated hastily. However, streaks of crimson lightning shot out like blood-red swords. The bodies of many cultivators with weaker cultivation were directly penetrated by the crimson lightning, and they were locked in place in mid-air.


    Among these people, most of them were cultivators of Shen clan. They faced the most tragic fate.


    Obviously, even though Sky River Great Elder had slaughtered his way into Shen clan before, he had not forgotten his vengeance in the past up until now. He had never forgotten about the death of his daughter, his 3,000 disciples, and other members of Sky River Temple.


    This vengeance could only be abated by the fresh blood of Shen clan members.


    After the battle at Shen clan, he left and gradually gained control over the demonic item. However, he still did not go to meet his wife, Shen Luoxue. It was not because he didn''t miss her, but rather because he was remorseful. He felt guilty towards Shen Luoxue; he was ashamed to meet her both in the past and now.


    On this day, he intended to kill members of Shen clan and commit a massacre within the clan. As long as he was still alive, his biggest goal would be eradicating Shen clan until not one of them was left. He could not let go of this hatred. However, he was well-aware that his wife, Shen Luoxue, originated from Shen clan. Even though she had cut ties with the clan and did not have any feelings for the clan now, it was something that could not be changed. The bloodline of Shen clan members also coursed in Shen Luoxue''s veins. They shared the same origins.


    Under such circumstances, if he asked Shen Luoxue to kill the members of the Shen clan, could she really do so?


    He had decided to eradicate Shen clan and eliminate the clansmen of his wife. There was no way he could face his wife, not now nor in the past.


    In the current Age of Turmoil, when Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ye Futian faced a huge crisis, only then had he appeared and found Ye Futian. Not many people knew about this. Shen Luoxue also did not know about his appearance. Ye Futian merely left a demonic rat by his side to serve as a means of communication.


    The demonic rat was naturally from the Purple Gold Rat Clan and was under his control. It was trembling at this moment.


    Rumble!


    The endless crimson lightning drawn from the heavens above actually became a frightening crimson divine furnace. Miserable screams could be heard. The cultivators that had been pierced through by the crimson lightning were all smelted. It was extremely wretched.


    "Sky River Great Elder," a cultivator of Shen clan roared. A frightening golden divine halo was unleashed from his body. Extremely brilliant golden lightning directly cleaved the space. It was the Tianshen Cleave technique.


    Yet, a terrifying crimson glow directly attacked the golden halo that cleaved the space and caused it to explode into fragments.


    Sky River Great Elder stepped forward and extended his palm across the space. He recognized many of the senior members of Shen clan. After all, he was previously a son-in-law of Shen clan and had spent some time living and training in Shen clan. He was familiar with many of the seniors.


    Nevertheless, now, they were mortal enemies. He would not stop until they were all dead.


    Sky River Great Elder extended his palm towards the cultivator of Shen clan and suddenly clenched it. A loud scream could be heard. The face of the cultivator was contorted, and he was in extreme pain. The crimson demonic light pierced to his figure, then his figure immediately exploded into pieces, and his soul dissipated.


    The members of the other forces instantly escaped in all directions. When faced with a cultivator whose Plane surpassed their own, even if they might be able to put up a fight if they joined forces, the first person who attacked would surely die first. Under such circumstances, everyone wanted to preserve their own life first and ensure their own survival.


    Buzz. Sky River Great Elder''s silhouette became a frightening bolt of crimson lightning. Above the Sea of the Path, fresh blood constantly rained down on the world below. Many people perished in the sky above the Sea of the Path. They would be forever buried here.


    Ye Futian and the others were also slightly astonished when they saw the scene. Aside from Ye Futian, the people here seemed to have not known that Sky River Great Elder was here. From the looks of it, Ye Futian had intentionally arranged for this. This way, even if they had been chased by figures at the peak, they still had cultivators who could keep one or two of them in check.


    Of course, if the disparity was too great, even if Sky River Great Elder killed off a few powerful existences, the situation would still not change. They could only submit to their fates then.


    Aside from that, Sky River Great Elder''s methods were too dominant. They could even be considered cruel. He did not seem like a famous sage who once taught the Way in the Tianhe Realm. Instead, he seemed like a bonafide demonic figure.


    However, when the crowd thought of everything that Sky River Great Elder had been through, they could empathize with him. He had practiced forbearance for many years. Sky River Great Elder had demonstrated very high endurance by not going insane after suffering for so long. Otherwise, he would not have lasted until this day.


    Now, him descending into the demonic Way was also due to what Shen clan did back then.


    Shen clan had previously acted too harshly. They had initiated a war to destroy a Realm and had killed countless cultivators of the Tianhe Realm.


    No one could have done better if they were in Sky River Great Elder''s position.


    Everything that Shen clan was facing now was a matter of cause and effect.


    If they had not been so cruel, they would not have forced Sky River Great Elder to become what he was today.


    Ye Futian was also looking at the battle. Grandmaster had indeed joined the demonic Way. He acquired a demonic divine item. It was not easy for him to gain control of the Demonic Power contained within the item.


    Ye Futian had no idea about the whereabouts of his Grandmaster for these past few years. He had never visited the Heavenly Mandate Academy before. Ye Futian speculated that his Grandmaster had been living in agony.


    After all, Grandmaster refrained himself from visiting the Heavenly Mandate Academy even after his wife had joined the academy for training.


    Grandmaster had shunned them up until now. He finally appeared when Ye Futian was facing a crisis.


    Although Grandmaster was a demon when he was facing Shen clan and all the other enemies, Ye Futian could not find fault with the way Grandmaster treated him. Ye Futian felt so even though he felt like he had never understood Grandmaster before. He hadn''t even gotten to know Grandmaster properly.


    When Ye Futian was training in the Tianhe Realm, most likely, Grandmaster was also living in hatred during that period of time.


    Right at this moment, a terrifying aura drew near. Frowning, Ye Futian and his group looked up in the direction where the aura came from. A figure dressed in white robes rushed towards here. It was none other than the cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu, who led his group to challenge the Heavenly Mandate Academy before this.


    This cultivator was also a giant figure. Even though he was not as powerful as the Purple Robe War Emperor, who came from the Lower Worlds, he was also a top figure in the Holy Land of Taichu.


    This cultivator had been waiting for his chance. After he had escaped from the battlefield on the other side, he rushed here.


    Without hesitation, he dashed and pounced at Sky River Great Elder, who was in the middle of the battle. Sky River Great Elder swept a glance at him and similarly walked towards him. This part of the sky was tainted by crimson demonic light, as though doomsday had arrived.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said as he turned and retreated. Today, the Holy Land of Taichu had initiated the battle to provoke this dispute. It was already too late for them to cease. Since they had already reached this stage and their top figures were at a disadvantage, they could only try their hardest to escape unscathed.


    Although the Divine Palace had been sunk into the Sea of the Path, as long as the cultivators of the Divine Palace were still alive, the Divine Palace still existed.


    Currently, Ye Futian was most worried about the other battlefield. He did not know whether Emperor Nan could withstand his opponent.


    Sky River Great Elder and the white-robed cultivator of the Holy Land of Taichu instantly collided into one another. Astonishing destructive light swept out. Beyond the terrifying battle, Ye Futian and the others continued hastily escaping.


    "Don''t let Ye Futian escape," a sinister voice sounded.


    In an instant, the cultivators, who were originally dispersing in different directions, moved forwards one by one. They showed signs of gathering as they continued to hunt Ye Futian and his group.


    "Spread out," Ye Futian ordered.


    "Don''t spread out. Their target is you," a cultivator objected decisively. If their group escaped in different directions, the cultivator was certain that all the opponents would chase after Ye Futian.


    After all, for those forces, killing Ye Futian was far more important than killing anyone else in their group.


    "Palace Lord and Emperor Cang are holding the fort in the Divine Palace. Emperor Nan is there too," Jiang Chengzi of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven analyzed. "Even though they don''t have an advantage in terms of numbers, they might not lose. It is enough to send away the first group of people from this battlefield. The rest of the cultivators should gather together. As long as none of the top figures come over here, we are capable of putting up a fight." The rest of them nodded in agreement; they were prepared to have a good fight anyway.


    "Alright," Ye Futian felt a warmth inside. He did not reject the good intentions of the others. He only hoped that the Divine Palace would not lose in its most important battle!

 1795 Under the Divine Sword

    Even though Sky River Great Elder slaughtered many of their members, their lineup was still more powerful than that of Ye Futian''s group. After all, they had gathered an extremely powerful army before they came over. They even included many forces of the Higher Heavens Realm, such as Sky Burying God Clan.


    They were in the same predicament as the cultivators of the Divine Palace. They all clearly knew that since they had reached this stage now, they had to act decisively. They could not depend on any element of luck. Only by eradicating the other party could they absolutely guarantee their own safety.


    They could not do anything about the battle between the top figures. However, this battlefield belonged to them.


    At the very least, they had to kill one person: Ye Futian from the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    As long as Ye Futian was killed, the opponent''s alliance would most likely face collapse. If that occurred, their opponent would pose less of a threat to them.


    The cultivators who were proficient in the Great Path of Space were the fastest in terms of speed. Many members of the forces like Shen clan and Golden Divine Nation were proficient in this. Some of the figures at the peak of the Renhuang Plane were the first to catch up to Ye Futian''s group. A top figure of Shen clan cleaved down with his palm. In the distance, golden lightning appeared in the sky. It slashed the space apart and cleaved towards the crowd of cultivators.


    Another cultivator stepped forward, and his Divine Wheel of the Great Path appeared. Beams of divine light shot out and slaughtered their way to the crowd in the distance.


    Buzz. Gales swept past. A cultivator from Divine Palace''s Sword Palace turned around and slashed up into the sky. Divine swords swept across the heavens, slashing towards the other party. It seemed as though it could tear apart the heavens and the earth.


    From all directions, other cultivators attacked, restricting Ye Futian''s group from leaving. There were cultivators from Ye Futian''s group that turned around, one after another, and joined the fight.


    Instantly, the Arts of Supreme Attack of the Great Path constantly collided in the sky above the Sea of the Path. Ritual implements flew out in all directions. Divine lightning descended from the heavens. Golden divine light split the air, and Swords of the Great Path cleaved the heavens.


    Countless attacks exploded, and waves churned on the Sea of the Path. The sea was wild and violent and seemed as though it was roaring.


    The person who led Ye Futian in his escape was the wife of Sky River Great Elder, the cultivator of Shen clan, Shen Luoxue. She said to Ye Futian, "Although he has killed many cultivators, the number of our cultivators is still less than theirs. I will go and hold off some of them. All of you, continue escaping. Their target is you. Escape as far away from the battlefield of upper-level Renhuangs as you can."


    "Alright," Ye Futian said as he nodded his head. He did not say anymore. Shen Luoxue turned around. Her Tianshen Divine Halo radiated and enveloped the endless space, cutting off the path of many cultivators pursuing them.


    Long story short, all of this occurred in a blink of an eye. Within this short amount of time, a huge battle exploded along the Sea of the Path. Currently, the number of cultivators that were advancing with Ye Futian had reduced by quite a bit.


    Ye Futian looked into the distance. The shore could be vaguely seen. They were close to reaching the land and fort. As talented figures, they moved at an incredible speed.


    There were fewer and fewer cultivators who were still hunting them, and those with a high Plane of cultivation were few. Many of the opponents were engaged in battles with Ye Futian''s alliance members. Cultivators from Shen clan, the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and various forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm participated in this battle. Many of them were giant figures in their respective territories.


    This battle could definitely be considered the largest battle in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path since Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture. Many top forces and giant figures were involved in it.


    Let alone in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, the scale of this battle was most likely rare even in the Outer Realms of the Divine Prefecture. This large-scale war erupted due to the current Age of Turmoil.


    Buzz. A gale swept past, and golden divine light dazzled. Three upper-level Renhuangs continued to pursue Ye Futian.


    Jiang Chengzi was the only one left beside Ye Futian. On the contrary, on the opponent''s team, not only were there three upper-level Renhuangs approaching them from three different directions, but there were also quite a few middle-level Renhuangs trailing them from a distance.


    A brilliant golden divine light sliced towards them. Jiang Chengzi guided Ye Futian to dodge the attack. The terrifying divine light darted past his body; it was only inches away from hitting him.


    "You should go," Ye Futian said to Jiang Chengzi.


    Jiang Chengzi looked at him.


    "I am capable of defending myself," Ye Futian said.


    Jiang Chengzi nodded. A domineering aura was unleashed. He swiftly turned around and pounced at a cultivator who had an eighth tier Divine Wheel. That was the most he could do for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at him and took a step forward in the air. He continued to move towards the shore.


    The other two seventh tier Divine Wheel upper-level Renhuangs and the middle-level Renhuangs, who were still a distance away, rushed towards Ye Futian. Their speed was astonishing. A glint of malice flashed past in their eyes. They reckoned Ye Futian could not possibly escape from their hunt this time.


    One of the two seventh tier Divine Wheel cultivators was from Shen clan, while the other one was from Golden Divine Nation.


    Both of them had their eyes dead set on Ye Futian. After all, these two forces had the strongest vendetta with Ye Futian. When they saw Ye Futian escaping, they were the ones who were the most enthusiastic about pursuing him.


    Before this, the appearance of Sky River Great Elder caused these two forces to suffer great losses. However, they held the greatest advantage in this battle, so the outcome of this battle would not be changed. Even if the Divine Palace could really dodge the fate of being eradicated today, as long as Ye Futian was killed, the alliances he formed would fall apart as well. When that happened, the Divine Palace would never be able to rise again.


    At that moment, Ye Futian''s figure came to a halt. He had already arrived at the edge of the Sea of the Path. He turned around and looked at the people who were pursuing him.


    Far off in the distance, along the shore of the sea, silhouettes looked up into the distant sky of the Sea of the Path. Their hearts trembled intensely when they sensed the terrifying aura from there. The people approaching were the members of the top forces.


    The confrontation between Golden Divine Nation and the Divine Palace was known by all in the Higher Heavens Realm. The huge battle over there was also the attention of the Realm. How was this battle going to end?


    "Who is that?" someone asked as they looked at Ye Futian. Why were so many cultivators pursuing him?


    The aura on his body was only that of the second tier Divine Wheel. He actually drew the attention of so many powerful figures. This was too crazy.


    Wasn''t it enough to have a middle-level Renhuang to kill a second-tier Divine Wheel cultivator?


    There were so many cultivators, yet all of them dashed towards him instead of going to help out on other battlefields. It looked like they really prioritized this youth in white robes.


    "He has white hair and white robes. Who else can he be?" someone answered. "He is Ye Futian from the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He is a legend in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He is known as the most powerful person of his generation. No one can compare to him."


    That was him. The crowd nodded their heads when they heard this. Then, what was happening came as no surprise.


    Such a powerful lineup of cultivators had even forsaken aiding the other battlefields in order to pursue this person.


    This must be because of how important Ye Futian was.


    Capturing Ye Futian would be halfway to ending the war.


    After Ye Futian came to a stop, the other party also did not rush to attack. Two upper-level Renhuangs appeared before him. The middle-level Renhuangs behind them also gradually caught up. They surrounded him. Very soon, the space was packed.


    Right now, they were wondering whether to capture Ye Futian alive or dead.


    In such a situation, it would be hard for Ye Futian to escape.


    Ye Futian stood in mid-air as he glanced at the surrounding crowd of people. He naturally could sense his opponents'' auras. The two upper-level Renhuangs in front of him stood there staring at him. Many middle-level Renhuangs circled around and surrounded him. Their wills pressured down on his body. At this moment, he was like a fish caught in a net.


    "Slay him," one of them ordered. The upper-level Renhuang from Golden Divine Nation wielded a golden divine spear, and his killing intent was alarming. All the middle-level Renhuangs lunged at Ye Futian. Their Ways transformed into different weapons.


    Buzz.


    A dazzling golden light shot out from Ye Futian''s glabella. This beam of light expanded quickly and transformed into a Spatial Sacred Hall. Everyone frowned in confusion. A sacred item?


    Those middle-level Renhuangs who were approaching Ye Futian dashed into the Spatial Sacred Hall, preventing him from hiding inside the hall.


    In an instant, the expanding Spatial Sacred Hall engulfed both Ye Futian and those middle-level Renhuangs.


    The two seventh tier Divine Wheel upper-level Renhuangs did not enter the hall. They were standing guard outside.


    Even though Ye Futian used a spatial treasure, those middle-level Renhuangs would most likely be sufficient to kill him since their cultivation was higher than his.


    A divine sword appeared in Ye Futian''s hand. It was glittering with brilliant sparkles. It was yet another powerful sacred item. He was also garbed in armor. Naturally, Ye Futian would utilize all the treasures that he obtained from the God''s relic.


    As soon as the divine sword appeared, it emitted a ring which resonated with the air. Its Sword Will was intense, and it flowed towards the surroundings, forming an encirclement. Divine light could even be seen glowing faintly in Ye Futian''s body.


    Hmm?


    The cultivators who were surrounding Ye Futian frowned. What was happening?


    Streaks of divine light on Ye Futian''s body shone brighter as time passed. A terrifying Art of Supreme Attack blasted towards him and was actually crushed into dust by the Sword Will around his body.


    Bang. The divine light intensified. At this moment, it was as though Ye Futian was draped with a divine golden light shield around him. He was majestic.


    He unleashed the Guqin Divine Wheel. Countless strings of guqin appeared in the space. Each string of guqin emanated an unparalleled golden divine light. Sword Will coursed through the strings.


    Twang. A ringing sound could be heard. Golden Strings of guqin, flowing with Sword Will, crisscrossed in the space.


    A cultivator stood on his spot. He could sense that there were strings of guqin continually penetrating his surroundings. The strings slowly enclosed the space. It was as though they were forming an independent space of the Great Path.


    Rumble. Extremely brilliant light of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path rained down on all of the cultivators.


    An extremely powerful aura burst forth from the bodies of the various cultivators. Their Divine Wheels radiated. However, at this moment, they actually felt that their own Divine Wheels were no match for Ye Futian''s.


    A divine halo shot out from Ye Futian''s body. It spread upward and caused the various cultivators to shut their eyes in pain.


    The expressions of the surrounding cultivators all changed.


    Was this the Emperor''s Light?


    He truly received the teachings of the Great Emperor in the God''s relic. The cultivators of Shen clan and Golden Divine Nation had extremely interesting facial expressions. Was this his true ability? He had been hiding it all along.


    He had previously said in the God''s relic that he had received the teachings of the Great Emperor.


    Right now, the scene that they were witnessing seemed to validate the arrogant things that he had previously said. He had received the teachings of the Great Emperor, and the deities had witnessed this.


    Ye Futian lifted his sword, and divine light pierced the heavens. In this space, the will of the swords resonated and formed a world of the sword.


    "Die!" Ye Futian uttered this in a cold tone.


    Once he said this, the divine sword in his hand flew out. The Great Path resonated, and divine sounds could be heard all around. A middle-level Renhuang unleashed a powerful attack to block the divine sword. However, under the light of the divine sword, his figure actually turned to dust immediately, returning to nothingness!

 1796 Fighting Upper Level Renhuangs

    But the sword light pierced right through his golden armor in an instant. His body was then shattered into nothingness.


    Slice! Slice! Slice!


    Sounds rang out as most of the cultivators who had entered the Spatial Sacred Hall were suddenly slain. Those who were left alive fled, their auras surging, and their eyes filled with fear. They stared at the divine radiance that was upon Ye Futian.


    "What is this?"


    They looked all about themselves. The golden radiance was everywhere. Lines of invisible sword will had completely filled the world around them, becoming one with it. It seemed that this area of the world was now a realm of swordsmanship that would not permit any other kind of will to enter it.


    And Ye Futian seemed to be the master of this new world.


    As he cultivated to higher levels, the more he came to understand the will of the Emperor, and the better he was able to sense it. Now, he could even faintly sense what kind of thing the will of the Emperor was, and he could urge it on to an even stronger level.


    Ye Futian gripped his divine sword. He twirled his wrist, and the sword will all around them hummed. Suddenly, there was the sound of clattering swords as all the guqin strings that were formed out of sword will resonated with this, filling the area with terrifying Sword Qi.


    Slice! Slice! The incredibly sharp sword shot out towards the few still living cultivators with sixth tier Divine Wheels. The Great Path auras around them were shattered by the sword will. They looked at Ye Futian with terror in their eyes.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was extremely dangerous. He was using the power of the Great Path to crush them.


    Ye Futian stepped towards one of them. He moved very slowly, but with every step, sword will slashed through the air towards the few cultivators with sixth-tier Divine Wheels.


    At that moment, the man he was walking towards gripped his ritual implement, which was a magic cloak. He threw it out in front of him, where it turned into a terrifying black hole that sucked in all the sword will around it. The huge vortex grew more and more fearsome until it blocked out the sun, stretching out towards where Ye Futian was. It tried to suck him into it.


    A battle of life or death like this was completely different from a sparring match. Many of the cultivators had ritual implements and were highly ranked in their various forces, meaning their ritual implements were extremely powerful. After all, powerful forces would not lack for powerful ritual implements.


    Of course, he still had the advantage in terms of level.


    Woosh! Ye Futian was sucked up into the cloak. He transformed into a beam of light that swept into the black hole.


    But in the next moment, brilliant divine light bloomed, and a gap appeared in the black hole. The light of the divine sword burst forth, and a figure burst out of the ritual implement, turning into a bolt of lightning that shot towards the bearer of the cloak.


    The sword fell extremely quickly, and Ye Futian appeared right behind the cultivator with the sixth tier Divine Wheel. In the next instant, the man burst into pieces and disappeared.


    Ye Futian''s sword art had turned him to dust.


    Fear shone in the eyes of the other few cultivators. They could sense that Ye Futian''s current power was greater than their own. He himself had only a second-tier Divine Wheel, but under the power of the will of the Emperor, his aura had climbed to a whole new level.


    This was in addition to his perfect Divine Wheel. And not only that, his wheel was fused with the will of the Emperor as well as the power of the divine sword. When the pressure of the Great Path skyrocketed again, there was a change in his nature. The people who had come to kill him did not even have perfect Divine Wheels. Thus, even though they were of the sixth tier, they were still crushed.


    Many mid-level Renhuangs had been cut into pieces. The remaining sixth tiers did not have a chance.


    The cultivators watching all of this from the cliffs were shocked. Even the higher level battles far away were ignored as they started at Ye Futian''s fight.


    The battle was simply astonishing. Golden, divine radiance had transformed Ye Futian. He stood there, bathed in divine light with his white hair and clothing. There was an air of incomparable nobility about him. It was as if the Great Emperor had descended to earth.


    They knew that this aura about him was due to the divine radiance which itself had come from the inheritance of someone at the Emperor''s level.


    It must have been the inheritance that he had gained in the God''s Relic.


    Previously, they had only known Ye Futian as the so-called greatest genius of his generation in the Nine Realms, but they would never have thought that he was this terrifying. He had slain a whole crowd of mid-level Renhuangs. Sixth tier Renhuangs trembled before him and did not dare attack him. They tried to flee but were trapped.


    Not long before, they had pursued Ye Futian, regarding him as little more than an insect. Now it seemed like they were the insects.


    Outside the Spatial Sacred Hall, the two cultivators with seventh tier Divine Wheels had ugly looks on their faces. They had no way to support their fellows.


    The cultivator from the Shen clan waved his hand, and a huge ritual implement cauldron appeared in the air above the sea, right above the Spatial Sacred Hall. The cauldron rotated, and divine light flashed off it, covering the area.


    He clenched his fist, and suddenly the cauldron fell. Endless destructive golden lightning appeared from within it, striking the Spatial Sacred Hall and making it tremble. It fell downward and seemed like it would drop into the sea, but it could not be destroyed. It was a top-level ritual implement and was thus stronger than the other cultivators. Thus, it could not be broken by them.


    At that moment, Ye Futian waved his sword again, and another person fell. Several cultivators had been hunted down and slain by him already. It was truly a preposterous situation.


    How could a single cultivator with only a second-tier Divine Wheel take on such a powerful formation? Such a thing would have meant death even for a top-level Renhuang with a seventh tier Divine Wheel. They had come with enough force to deal with even a great figure.


    But now, facing Ye Futian with his second-tier Divine Wheel, they were put at a disadvantage.


    The ritual implement cauldron continued to fall, thousands of bolts of lightning splitting the air around it, trying to break the Spatial Sacred Hall. But all this did was make ear-piercing sounds ring out from it.


    "No..." The cultivator from the Shen clan let out a low moan. Someone else had been slain by Ye Futian. It was his younger brother.


    Before long, Ye Futian was the only one left living in the Spatial Sacred Hall.


    The others had all been slain. Not a single one had been left alive.


    When they had chased him, none of them would have thought that he would be so powerful.


    At that moment, Ye Futian looked up from within the Spatial Sacred Hall. Then the hall disappeared, returning to Ye Futian''s body.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian appeared in the air above the sea. He was floating there, shining with a terrible golden radiance that dyed the sky.


    The two seventh tier Divine Wheel cultivators finally felt the true power of that radiance. They faintly felt like they should fall down and worship him.


    "Is he really such a strong heir?" They looked at Ye Futian and could clearly feel the power of the will of the Emperor. This seemed to really be a power that Ye Futian had been born with. It was the inheritance of the Great Emperor.


    They had only heard of the things that had happened in the God''s Relic. What inheritance had Ye Futian gained on that day?


    Probably only he knew.


    At that moment, beams of terrible consciousness stretched out towards them, covering a vast area. All of the cultivators fighting in the air above the sea shifted their gaze towards Ye Futian. It seemed that they could all sense his vast power.


    Divine light shone from the eyes of the cultivator of the Shen clan with the seventh tier Divine Wheel and streaked towards Ye Futian, suppressing his will. But all he saw was a pair of terrifying eyes. Within Ye Futian''s gaze, an ultimate divine figure stood there like a mighty emperor, guarding his will.


    At the same time, the clouds up above changed. The flowing power of the Great Path made the two cultivators with seventh-tier Divine Wheels feel as if mystical illusions had appeared all around them, and they were losing contact with the world around them.


    They were both of very high level and had great command of the Great Path, but at this moment, a strange thing occurred. It felt like they were being suppressed by the very source of the Great Path.


    This meant that even though Ye Futian was of a lower level than them, his cultivation of the Great Path was higher than theirs. This was a contradiction, but it had really happened.


    "The Way of the Emperor," they thought. They could not wait any longer.


    At that moment, the two upper-level Renhuangs with seventh tier Divine Wheels felt threatened by someone with only a second-tier Divine Wheel. If this had been said out loud, no one would have believed it. But at that moment, it was really happening. This absolutely went against the rules of cultivation. Even someone with a perfect Divine Wheel facing someone with an imperfect one could not ignore such a difference in level.


    The distance between a lower level Renhuang and an upper-level one was like the distance between the earth and the sky.


    The cultivator from the Shen clan pointed at Ye Futian, and suddenly, thousands of rays of divine radiance shone from the cauldron in the sky. The golden light transformed into an unmatchable space ripping power. It tore through the air, destroying everything in its path.


    The divine sword in Ye Futian''s hand cried violently. He flew up into the air where endless sword will was flowing. The sword will collided with the oncoming radiance and was just barely able to block the attack.


    The sword continued crying without end. Waves of power swept out through the air above the sea. The cultivator of the Shen clan stepped forward, and suddenly the cauldron pressed downward yet again. The radiance grew even more terrible.


    "You''re still not doing anything?" the cultivator of the Shen clan asked the upper-level Renhuang of the Golden Divine Nation beside him. There was no point in trying to save face now. They could not make that mistake again. It was crucial that they slay Ye Futian.


    The cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation nodded and stepped forward. The image of a celestial god appeared in the sky, giving off the Sigh of the Divine God. A golden spear appeared in his hands, which was in itself a powerful ritual implement. Destructive golden radiance shone from it.


    Two upper-level Renhuangs were facing a single lower-level Renhuang with a second-tier Divine Wheel. This scene left everyone watching from the seaside cliffs speechless as they stared at the battlefield!

 1797 Absolute Control

    The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation with the seventh-tier Divine Wheel stepped forward, and the Sigh of the Divine God rang out in the sky. He thrust his golden spear through the air. Golden light shot towards Ye Futian at an incredible speed. It seemed like it would pierce through him in an instant.


    There was a sharp sound as the golden light struck his body. The figure disappeared as if it had never even existed. But there was spatial will left behind in the place where it had been.


    It was an afterimage.


    The cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation looked up. Ye Futian had appeared in the sky above him. The cultivator realized he was in grave danger. Given his level, he had no way to lock down Ye Futian in a space like this.


    A high-level cultivator could lock down someone of a lower level''s divine consciousness. This was a common understanding in the world of cultivators. As long as one''s divine consciousness was locked, they could not escape control while they were within a certain range. However, at this moment, he found that he could not lock down Ye Futian.


    This probably had to do with the Great Path of Space in this area. The imperial radiance was shining down on them, and now Ye Futian''s sword will seemed to have turned this place into his own private sword realm.


    The cultivator of the Shen clan realized this as well. He looked up at Ye Futian. Within him, his powerful aura raged, and his Divine Wheel burst to life. His sevenfold cauldron shone with the incomparably brilliant light of the Great Path as it flew back to him, reentering his Divine Wheel. The two objects merged, and suddenly even brighter light shone forth.


    The Wheel of the Great Path flew out, and lines of terrible, destructive golden light shot out in all directions. There was nowhere to go to avoid it.


    He slammed his hands forward, and suddenly the combined cauldron and Divine Wheel flew up into the sky. Golden light streamed down from it in all directions. Ye Futian''s figures disappeared one after another as he fled away from it. To him, the power of the Great Path that was put forth from a seventh-tier Divine Wheel was dangerous indeed.


    Brilliant golden light shone from the cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation as well. He seemed to have transformed into a god, so celestial was his figure. He raised his hand and violently thrust his spear forward.


    Boom! A dull roar rang through the air. Ye Futian''s field of sword will was shaken, and his figure flickered. A bolt of golden lightning swept across the sky, striking right in front of him. The Shen clan cultivator struck as well.


    Bang!


    The palm print was destroyed, but Ye Futian was sent flying backwards, his field of sword will shaken.


    He stared at his opponent. An upper-level Renhuang was indeed many levels above him. Even using the will of the Emperor, it was difficult to make up the gap in their power. Moreover, his opponents were unleashing the power of their Divine Wheels without stopping. They were seizing control of the Great Path in the area around them.


    In the space of single thought, Ye Futian unleashed even more holy Divine Path light. The radiance of the Great Path swept out, stretching out through the air in all directions. In an instant, it had filled a vast area. The countless streams of flowing Great Path radiance made the two cultivators with seventh tier Divine Wheels frown.


    What was this now?


    The earth and sky changed. The whole world seemed to be changing. They could feel that they were in another Great Path domain, one that was completely independent.


    The divine Imperial light spread through the Great Path domain like roots and leaves, filling an endless area. The sun and moon appeared, along with stars and ancient trees. It seemed that they were no longer in the world that they had just been in.


    Even the will here seemed different than before. It had become much stronger.


    They had known that Ye Futian had a fourth Divine Wheel, a Boundary Wheel. Moreover, everyone knew that this was a very powerful kind of wheel. But there were few people who truly understood it. Only Shen Hao did, and Di Wu.


    At that moment, they were now within the boundaries of this new world. The two of them realized that when they unleashed the power of their own Divine Wheels, they had no control over this world. They could not master its will.


    It made them feel like they were all alone in the world.


    Ye Futian now had the will of the Emperor as well as his own world. He stood there bathed in divine light with his snow-white hair, making the two others feel that he truly was the descendant of some ultimate figure and that he had inherited his willpower.


    Otherwise, how could he be so powerful?


    Ye Futian released the power of his Divine Wheels and that of the will of the Emperor. All of the Divine Wheels transformed, including the fourth one. This gave off a mystical feeling; it was as if he was the absolute master of this world.


    To those watching from outside, Ye Futian and the two others had disappeared. Motes of radiances floated like leaves, covering the whole area. The Great Path from the outside world was flowing in violently, sucked in by the independent world.


    "What kind of realm is this?" asked the Shen clan cultivator, staring at Ye Futian. He was an upper-level Renhuang with a seventh tier Divine Wheel. This was the first time he had been surprised by someone with a second-tier Divine Wheel.


    Ye Futian gazed at the two of them. Ever since he had become a Renhuang, he had never lost once he had used the Wheel of the Great Path that he had forged with the help of the World Tree. He had not even ever had to use his full power once he had entered this area. His opponents could never withstand him. Even Shen Hao and Di Wu had been nowhere near powerful enough.


    But this time, he was facing two upper-level Renhuangs with seventh tier Divine Wheels. Although their Divine Wheels were not perfect, their levels were so high that even when he let loose the will of the Emperor to use his ritual implements, he was still coming under a lot of pressure.


    But up until now, he had not retreated.


    "This is the world of the gods," answered Ye Futian, looking at his opponents. A look of confusion flashed in their eyes. The world of the gods?


    "This is shameless boasting," said the cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation coldly. He took a step forward.


    "Try me and find out. I am a god in this place," Ye Futian replied coolly. In the instant that he spoke, the cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation disappeared, transforming into a bolt of golden lightning.


    Bang! The great spear thrust through the air, but it did not strike Ye Futian. He reappeared off in the distance. He was still looking at his opponents with a cold light in his eyes.


    The cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation continued forward, staring fixedly at Ye Futian. Could he not slay him?


    A terrible booming sound rang out as the figure of a deity appeared. Endless rays of golden slaughtering light swept out, covering the area as they shot towards Ye Futian. The cultivator''s golden spear grew bigger continuously, reaching a size of a thousand meters long. The deity gripped the spear, looking mighty and unconquerable.


    However, at that moment, everything around them turned to a world of ice, stretching out for a thousand miles. There was snow and ice everywhere. Terrible freezing will entered the cultivator''s body, and frost threatened to cover him. But the cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation still continued forward, striding through the frost.


    "You know many spells, but you are too weak," said the cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation coldly.


    "There are freezing ice spirits here, and flames that can burn the sky," said Ye Futian slowly. Everything around them transformed into a world of flame. Fire and ice both assailed the cultivator, but they could not stop the celestial figure from continuing forward.


    "There are also death knells..." continued Ye Futian, his voice faint. He stepped forward, and death will entered his opponent''s body. The world turned dark as the death will raged through his body.


    "Time can stop..."


    His seemingly faint voice rang through the air, seeming like it was everywhere as if by magic. Both of them walked towards each other. Ye Futian''s pace was steady, but the cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation actually felt a bit threatened. Space was frozen, and it seemed as if time had stopped flowing, blocking his movements.


    Bang!


    He stepped forward forcefully with great speed, and divine light bloomed from him. He controlled himself, breaking free of Ye Futian''s influence.


    At that moment, Ye Futian stopped walking. Sword will resonated across the vast area, and countless beams of divine sword light gathered together violently. He raised his divine sword as he stared at his opponent, saying, "There is also the Sword of Innocence."


    In the instant that he said this, countless divine swords cut through the air. The Great Path flowed backward, and sword will roared as it sped towards his opponent.


    At the same time, Ye Futian disappeared. A sword was born, and everything else was destroyed.


    The sword was able to destroy the air itself.


    Seeing Ye Futian''s attack coming, the cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation raised his spear without any hesitation. He thrust it straight towards Ye Futian. Given his level, he would no believe that he was weaker than Ye Futian. Although he had been surprised here, he still had absolute confidence in himself. The sound of the God''s Sigh rang out, and the spear moved forward forcefully.


    The two attacks slammed into each other, their incomparably terrifying might giving off a frightening radiance.


    Poof!


    The cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation''s spear struck an afterimage, piercing right through it. Ye Futian''s divine sword cut into the throat of the mighty celestial figure, but his body turned golden. His defensive power was truly shocking. It was like he was armored in gold.


    Boom!


    The figure that was as mighty as a god fell backward as the sword cut into his golden throat. Golden blood flowed from the wound. But in what seemed like an instant, another attack struck. The Tianshen Cleave slashed towards Ye Futian.


    Another afterimage was struck as Ye Futian disappeared. His opponent''s divine consciousness could not lock him down, and so his attacks could not follow him. This was his world.


    "There are things both real and illusory here." Up in the air, Ye Futian looked down on his two opponents. In this world, as long as they gave him time, he would kill them sooner or later.


    At that moment, the cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation stood firm. He placed his hand over the wound in his throat. Terrible golden light shot out of his eyes towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had wounded him with a single attack. In this area of Great Path Space, the two of them were extremely limited, but Ye Futian was not. This was his Great Path Domain world, where he had absolute control. The two of them were of high level, but they still could not use their Divine Wheels to seize control over an entire world!

 1798 Bombard

    Only one person left in the restaurant, a black-robed figure sitting there eating and drinking just like always. Mei Ting still seemed all alone. He was the only one there, and it seemed like the affairs of the outside world had nothing to do with him.


    But in reality, nothing that was happening on the Sea of the Path could escape his notice.


    Since going to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, he had returned to the Demon Realm to report to the Demon Emperor about what had happened there.


    After all, this had been an incredibly influential event. Even as one of the eight great Demon Generals, he did not have the right to make decisions about it.


    After he had returned, he had received his orders, and thus had come back to the Void Realm.


    He had naturally seen the battle that Ye Futian had started, and the brilliant Imperial Radiance that he had shown was nothing short of astonishing. Everyone here was talking about it. Ye Futian had received the Great Emperor''s inheritance in the God''s Relic.


    However, was that really the case?


    This matter was probably not so simple.


    Did the will of the Emperor really come from the God''s Relic?


    Since Mei Ting knew Yu Sheng''s identity, he did not think so. Perhaps it was nothing more than a symbol.


    It was lucky that Ye Futian, who had received the Great Emperor''s inheritance in the God''s Relic, could use it to hide things. Moreover, no one would think too much about it. After all, everyone in the Nine Realms knew what had taken place in the God''s Relic. Also, Ye Futian had been very blatant in all that he had said. He had claimed that all the gods had witnessed the Great Emperor''s inheritance. Even if it was just to investigate Ye Futian''s past, the God''s Relic was a crucial piece of the puzzle.


    Ye Futian had truly shaken the Nine Realms when he had come out of the God''s Relic. He had begun to walk the path of becoming a legend. It was an indispensable part of his process of growing up. Many people would certainly think that Ye Futian had received an inheritance there. He had forged a perfect Divine Wheel, so he much have inherited the power of the Great Emperor.


    Thus, he had transformed.


    Because of this, no one would know the truth hidden behind all this.


    Perhaps he had always had the will of the Emperor within him?


    Perhaps he had already been extraordinary before he had ever gone to the God''s Relic but had never really shown off his might. He had used the stage of the God''s Relic to reveal his brilliance and start to make a name for himself.


    It was unlikely, then, that the people that he had made Yu Sheng follow only changed due to the God''s Relic.


    In his divine consciousness, the battlefield where Ye Futian was was closed off. The endless might of the Great Path swept through the area. Ye Futian had created his own world there.


    At that moment, the two seventh-tier cultivators who were inside his world both looked rather downcast as they stared at Ye Futian.


    He had just wounded the seventh tier, upper-level Renhuang of the Golden Divine Nation. The Shen clan cultivator had attacked but had been unable to hit Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian gripped his sword, and sword will surged into the heavens. He looked at the two of them. The two seventh-tier cultivators were standing together, back to back, each one responsible for guarding against a different direction.


    Woosh! Ye Futian moved, and incredible, destructive sword will exploded, making space itself become distorted.


    A figure suddenly appeared in front of the Shen clan cultivator. It was Ye Futian. His divine sword swept through the air, piercing downward. Thousands of rays of light shot out from the Precious Cauldron in front of the Shen clan cultivator, each one containing great cutting power. They sliced through the air, destroying everything before them without exception.


    But even so, Ye Futian''s figure was still able to disappear. He reappeared above the cultivator and thrust his sword downward.


    The cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation thrust out his golden spears straight up.


    This time, Ye Futian did not try to dodge. His divine sword descended, slamming into the golden spear. He was bathed in the light of the Emperor as his attack power grew even stronger. But when colliding with a seventh tier cultivator, he still felt his internal organs shake at the blow. He disappeared again, but at the same time, a beam of destructive power swept downwards. The sword will left a mark on his opponent''s body.


    Ye Futian reappeared in the distance. The two others stared at him with ugly looks on their faces.


    The two seventh tier cultivators could not lock him down, letting him hold the initiative. Moreover, whenever they tried, they could not cut through the space between them. They were not powerful enough. Perhaps if they were a little bit stronger, they could activate the spatial Divine Wheel. The will of the Emperor within the wheel made this realm too stable.


    Ye Futian stared down at the two of them. Upper-level Renhuangs were upper-level Renhuangs after all. Even though he had the initiative, it would be difficult to kill them. They were ferociously powerful in terms of both attack and defense. Ordinary spells could affect them, but they could not do too much damage to them.


    Even powerful sword arts could not phase them.


    Even with his high level, his perfect Divine Wheel, the will of the Emperor, and his divine weapon, he could still only hinder upper-level Renhuangs. If they were at the eighth tier, he would not be able to handle them. They would even be able to attack his Divine Wheel.


    Of course, what he was doing now was already far beyond the norm of what people thought possible. No one would dare imagine that a lower level Renhuang could fight two upper-level Renhuangs.


    There was the whole vast realm of mid-level Renhuangs in between them.


    If his sword could not affect them, he would have to change his techniques.


    Woosh!


    The sword will disappeared from the world suddenly, and the whole world became gloomy and oppressive. Up in the sky, the stars of the Great Path whirled around, making everything feel very heavy.


    Many stars fell, slamming into those two figures. Divine radiance still shone from the Shen clan cultivator''s cauldron. It swept out towards the oncoming stars and cut through them. The cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation raised his spear, and lines of golden light shot out of it, destroying even more of the falling stars.


    The cultivator of the Golden Divine Nation grew in size, becoming as massive as a god. He reached out, and his hand covered the sky, blocking all the stars and smashing them to pieces, proving his strength.


    If Ye Futian waned to crush the two Renhuangs based on pure might, he would have difficulty doing so.


    He stood there up in the sky and reached out his hand. Suddenly, endless starlight fell. A long staff appeared in his hands, giving off brilliant divine light. The will of the Emperor seeped into it. A dull booming sound rang out, resonating with the heavens and the earth. It was as if the power of the Great Path of Space was all gathered together in that staff.


    He was possessed by a divine elephant. Ancient characters wrapped around him as his body turned into a divine furnace that grew larger and larger until it covered the entire world. Everything in that world became one. He had turned into an earth-shaking god of war. The might of a divine elephant filled him, giving him the feeling of endless power.


    Could his most powerful attack, launched in his own world, hurt the upper-level Renhuangs?


    The world of the Great Path resonated as it became one with him. When Ye Futian waved his staff, all the power of the world gathered into it. At that moment, the upper-level Renhuangs felt a dull pressure descend upon them.


    Ye Futian stepped forward, and divine elephants charged through the sky. His body transformed into a whirlwind, and he waved his staff in the air, whipping up windstorms that shot towards the two men below him. There was a loud "boom," and the whole world trembled. All the power in the area had gathered together and fallen upon them.


    Before he even reached them, the ferocious power had formed into a wild, destructive hurricane that swept down. The two Renhuangs watched Ye Futian charging them and acted at the same time. The cauldron Divine Wheel''s power swept out as the golden spear lashed out. They did not dare take this too lightly.


    Brilliant spatial arcs appeared in the sky and Ye Futian in a different area. But his staff''s momentum had not been lessened at all. It flowed along like water.


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Successive violent collisions rang out, making the air tremble. The two Renhuangs hurriedly changed the direction of their attacks to block. This ferocious assault had finally shaken them, sweeping them backward.


    Before they had even stopped, the Great Path roared. Endless stars fell around them, and they felt a powerful sense of threat. Ye Futian appeared behind them, cleaving at them with his staff yet again.


    Since their divine consciousnesses could not lock down Ye Futian, that meant they could not predict his movements. So, they once again suffered a powerful blow.


    The two of them felt very dejected. They were upper-level Renhuangs, making them much higher level than their opponent, but they were on the defensive here. They had no way to control the Great Path in this private world. Therefore, they were restrained in all ways and had to take defensive measures.


    They had no way of predicting which way Ye Futian would attack from. Thus, they were subject to the violent assault of the storms.


    The staff cleaved downwards, and Ye Futian''s technique was becoming more and more violent. When the fifth strike came, they were a little overwhelmed. At the sixth strike, they let out groans of pain.


    Staffs fell from the sky, transforming into stars. All the power of the world was in those staves. They fell down from up high. The two people below did not dare use all of their power to block them, for they had already been humiliated too often.


    But this time, Ye Futian''s staff did not change directions. It swept straight down.


    Crack! Cracks appeared in the cauldron. The Shen clan cultivator let out a groan, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. The Divine Golden Nation cultivator was sent flying back as well. Both of them had been hit.


    But Ye Futian did not let up at all. He continued with his momentum. Staff after staff crashed into the cauldron, flowing as continuously as a stream of water.


    Smash! The cauldron shattered. The Shen clan cultivator spat up blood. His Divine Wheel was destroyed, which caused him a terrible injury. But in the next moment, many stars slammed into him, giving off a loud booming noise. His body was shattered as he was smashed to death.


    The Renhuang of the Golden Divine Nation trembled when he saw this. He began to wish to retreat.


    But Ye Futian''s attacks not only did not lessen, they, in fact, but also became stronger. He swept his gaze over his opponent. He gathered all his momentum into a single strike, pulling the power of the Great Path from the sky into it. The heavens and the earth resounded as he launched his most powerful attack.


    When the Golden Divine Nation cultivator''s spear struck the staff, it was sent flying away, and the staff struck the Golden Divine Nation cultivator''s body directly.


    In that instant, endless cracks appeared in his mighty form. In the next moment, golden radiance shone through the cracks.


    Two upper-level Renhuangs with seventh tier Divine Wheels had been slain!

 1799 The Mysterious Men

    Countless onlookers who were watching the fight on the beach of the Sea of the Path were dumbfounded by the results. How did a Renhuang with a Second-Order Divine Wheel kill two high-level Renhuangs with Seventh-Order Divine Wheels?


    Although Ye Futian had made a name for himself in the Nine Realms a long time ago, this kind of battle was still utterly astonishing. Ye Futian overpowered his opponents when they were not at the same level at all. What would happen when Ye Futian advanced to the high-level Renhuang Plane?


    Would he completely vanquish all the other Renhuangs?


    It looked like no one could question that Ye Futian was the most talented cultivator in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. The result of this fight would come as a bombshell in the Nine Realms again.


    Many people turned their attention to other parts of the battlefield. It would be a shame if Ye Futian met his death later in this conflict. He had the potential to become the fabled figure who could represent the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He already proved that he could crush the extraordinary cultivators from the top forces in the Divine Prefecture during the last battle in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He wouldn''t be afraid of the Divine Prefecture at all by the time he fully matured.


    That being so, many people secretly wished that Ye Futian could survive this calamity and defeat the forces from the Outer Realms.


    Bang... The situation suddenly changed just now. Another burst of intimidating energy rushed toward Ye Futian. Even people who stood on the beach by the Sea of the Path could feel the terrifying might.


    What just happened?


    The crowd raised their heads to look in that direction. Numerous sharp, golden blades slashed through the void and directly flew toward Ye Futian. The blades left deep and frightening gashes in the sky.


    This unstoppable attack was launched by Shen Gao and thrust through a great distance.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had been at a disadvantage on the battlefield. Although they were doing their utmost to hold the line against their enemies, they couldn''t fully withstand the attack. Shen Gao took advantage of the opportunity and fired at Ye Futian from afar.


    Ye Futian was a remarkably talented cultivator and a successor of the Great Emperor. Considering the deep and lasting enmity between the Shen clan and Ye Futian, there was no reason for Shen Gao to show him any mercy. He had to kill Ye Futian here and now above the Sea of the Path.


    Bang...


    The frightening blow dashed upon the Spatial Sacred Hall. Even that seemingly indestructible ritual implement cracked and was blasted away. More and more cracks became visible on the Spatial Sacred Hall as if it could break into pieces any moment now.


    Ye Futian uttered a low rumbling sound as he tumbled and slammed on the inner walls of the ritual implement. He couldn''t bear up against the attack from a master cultivator like Shen Gao. His life was hanging in the balance, even with the help of the ritual implement.


    Bang!


    The Spatial Sacred Hall was shattered by the sharp blades that slashed through the void and blown to smithereens. Following that, the devastating attack shifted toward Ye Futian. It was powerful enough to annihilate him easily.


    Everyone watching from far away trembled with fear, eyes widened.


    Would Ye Futian bite the dust here after all?


    It would be a terrible pity if such a legendary genius were killed eventually.


    Every bystander felt a twinge of regret in their hearts.


    Bang!


    The wild and fierce attack didn''t land on Ye Futian after all, despite the thundering noise. The crowd was staggered. They focused their eyes on the battlefield and saw another man appear by Ye Futian''s side. With a domineering and solemn look, the man had jet black hair. He was also dressed in black.


    The dak demonic light flowed around his body and formed a Demonic Wall, which absorbed the crushing blow and didn''t flinch at all.


    Ye Futian was also stunned. He turned to look at the man next to him and recognized that he was Mei Ting, the Devil General from the Devil World, who questioned Ye Futian previously in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian hadn''t met Mei Ting since last time. He assumed that this Demonic Cultivator might know his godfather and Yu Sheng''s background. He never expected that Mei Ting would show up again here.


    However, before Ye Futian could think it through, Mei Ting already grasped his hand and took hold of his body using demonic methods. As the dark demonic light flashing, Mei Ting turned around and made a quick exit while bringing Ye Futian along with him by force.


    A blast of light streaked across the sky and left the Sea of the Path. People watching from the seaside saw the light above their heads but hadn''t realized what happened just yet.


    "Em?"


    A group of people emerged in midair above the coast shortly after Mei Ting and Ye Futian''s disappearance. Surprisingly, they were cultivators from the Solar Divine Palace who withdrew from the battlefield before. It turned out that they never left for real. Instead, they had been waiting to see if they could reap the benefits in the end.


    Much to their surprise, Mei Ting took Ye Futian away.


    These cultivators from the Sun God Mountain knitted their eyebrows tightly. What did Mei Ting want?


    Why did he take Ye Futian with him?


    Could it be that he appreciated Ye Futian''s talents and intended to bring him to cultivate in the Devil World?


    "Who did that energy belong to?"


    One person said in a low voice. He sensed another type of energy besides Mei Ting''s. It seemed that someone else might step in even if Mei Ting didn''t intervene.


    Did that mean that some other top forces from the Outer Realms might be watching Ye Futian and the battle in secret?


    The situation became increasingly complicated and interesting at the same time.


    More and more people were getting involved in this chaos.


    The bolt of dark demonic light traveled a great distance in a short moment while the Demonic Will was surging in the sky. Ye Futian discovered that they left the Sea of the Path and the surrounding land and reached a much higher altitude. They were in the boundless outer space high above the Higher Heavens Realm.


    Looking down, he could vaguely see a vast plate where the Higher Heavens Realm was.


    What did Mei Ting want to do?


    Where did he want to take Ye Futian to?


    Mei Ting stopped abruptly when Ye Futian was puzzling over these questions. The Demonic Will was still swirling around Mei Ting''s body while he stood in midair and surveyed the area ahead with his inky eyes. He remained still, silently, as his divine consciousness covered the infinite space. Ye Futian was perplexed by Mei Ting and said, "Thank you for saving my life. May I ask where you intend to take me to?"


    Mei Ting didn''t respond to Ye Futian. He still stood there quietly.


    He seemed to be gazing into the void and spoke, "Why don''t you reveal yourself since you''re ready to take action already?"


    Apparently, just like the cultivators from the Sun God Mountain, Mei Ting also realized that someone else was going to do something if he didn''t get involved.


    Nevertheless, Mei Ting forestalled his rival because he wanted to obtain some information. Besides, he was certain that the contenders would show their faces if he snatched Ye Futian first.


    Who were the people hiding in the dark?


    Could they be on his side?


    A surprised look flashed across Ye Futian''s face. Someone else was here?


    He couldn''t detect anything with his divine consciousness, nor could he sense any fluctuation in the surrounding energy. In addition, the invisible man must be so incredibly threatening that even a powerful cultivator like Mei Ting had to treat him seriously.


    So many people had their eyes on Ye Futian!


    At this point, a whirlpool emerged in front of Mei Ting and Ye Futian. A man wearing a mask walked out of the whirlpool. Wisps of energy wrapped around his mask and blocked Mei Ting''s divine consciousness. A pair of deep and penetrating eyes stared at Mei Ting and Ye Futian from behind the mask.


    "I don''t think you''re the only one," Mei Ting said to the man. In an instant, two men came into sight from two different directions. They also wore the mysterious masks that concealed their faces.


    All three cultivators emanated a powerful and brooding air.


    No one spoke for a short moment, but everyone could feel the trepidation that hung thickly in the air.


    "Who are you?" Mei Ting stared at them and asked. Any one of these three people was a master cultivator at the same level as Mei Ting. This was not a lineup some random ordinary group could assemble; only top forces from the Outer Realms could send these people.


    In addition, Mei Ting suspected that these people were not from the Divine Prefecture. Instead, they should be related to that person one way or another.


    That was why Mei Ting snatched Ye Futian.


    And he took Ye Futian to the outer space rather than staying in the Higher Heavens Realm.


    They could avoid detection and surveillance more easily here.


    "Mei Ting from the Devil World."


    The leader of the three men spoke while looking at Mei Ting. He obviously knew who Mei Ting was.


    Mei Ting was not surprised. He continued to stare at them in silence. The energy swirled around his body was extremely domineering and intimidating. Despite being surrounded by three powerful cultivators, Mei Ting still maintained his authoritative bearing without showing a shred of fear.


    Mei Ting was one of the eight Devil Generals in the Devil World.


    Under the Great Emperor''s command, he couldn''t give the impression of weakness no matter who he was facing.


    "Someone told you not to intervene," the man continued to say. Mei Ting''s eyes squinted slightly. The man''s words seemed to have proved Mei Ting''s conjecture.


    "Someone? Who is it?" Mei Ting asked, even though he already took a guess.


    "You knew who he is," the man answered straightforwardly. Mei Ting took in a deep breath. Did he just give a confirmation?


    He really existed.


    Moreover, he had been watching the situation closely. If that was the case, Ye Futian would be alright even if Mei Ting didn''t step in just now. Someone would save Ye Futian.


    "Where is he?" Mei Ting asked.


    Ye Futian''s heart was pounding rapidly as he heard their conversation.


    Could Mei Ting and the mysterious man be talking about his godfather?


    What was his godfather''s true identity? Who were these people?


    What kind of relationship did Mei Ting have with his godfather?


    And ultimately, who was Ye Futian himself?


    Ye Futian felt like his godfather did everything to hide his identity. It would make sense if these three men worked for his godfather. After all, it was consistent with his style since they also wore masks to conceal their identities. No one even knew his godfather''s existence.


    However, Mei Ting became distantly aware of something from Yu Sheng. Besides, the Nine Realms was in chaos nowadays. The invasion of the cultivators from the top forces in the Divine Prefecture made the Nine Realms a big melting pot.


    Did Ye Futian''s godfather get involved as well?


    These three mysterious men, were they here to protect Ye Futian?


    "He said he will show up when it''s time," the man said. Mei Ting frowned and made a menacing gesture. Nevertheless, the three men also unleashed formidable energy and made the air thick with dread.


    Ye Futian felt the worst at the center of the storm. He was in a lower plane and could barely endure the pressure.

 1800 The Conversation

    That was why he seized Ye Futian.


    But it was obvious that Ye Futian wouldn''t give up the information easily.


    It was probably very difficult to locate that person.


    "What if I insist on taking him with me?" Mei Ting said to the man in front of him.


    "You can''t," the man responded.


    "Is that true?"


    Another voice came from another direction. The demonic whirlpool spun menacingly as beams of demonic light shot from a source far away and converged somewhere close to them.


    Slowly, a demonic shadow took shape. This man was tall and burly, covered in bulging muscles. He carried a blood-red ax on his back, which was also emitting the eerie demonic might.


    The man wearing the mask looked at the person who appeared just now and recognized him. Yet he was not too shocked.


    Even so, it was a surprise that Mei Ting brought help with him this time.


    Based on his appearance, it was not difficult to guess the identity of the man who just emerged. He was Red Devil, another Devil General of the eight Devil Generals of the Devil World.


    The Red Devil had a mountain of blood debts. His blood-red ax once killed countless cultivators during the war in the Devil World. He slaughtered his way to the top and became one of the eight Devil Generals.


    Now he was also here.


    It was apparent how much the Devil Emperor valued the information about that person since he dispatched two of his Devil Generals here.


    Ye Futian had a million thoughts racing through his head. He never expected to cause such a massive storm that attracted so many high-level cultivators, including two Devil Generals.


    On the other hand, the three men wearing masks didn''t seem to be daunted by the Devil Generals. Steady and unflinching, they still stood on the opposite side with absolute confidence.


    Ye Futian''s godfather left years ago and disappeared without a trace. What was he doing?


    Did these three cultivators work for him?


    Of course, Ye Futian was well aware that his godfather had never exposed himself ever since Ye Futian was a child. He disguised himself as a servant in the Ye family, an unsuspicious old man in his twilight years. Later, he pretended to be a sweeper working in the String Pavilion, where Ye Futian lived in the Donghai City. The last time Ye Futian heard about his godfather was when his older brother inherited the demonic blade.


    It almost felt as if Ye Futian''s godfather only existed in imagination. He was unreal; it was like a shadow that didn''t have any tangible impact on the world. He was a real recluse.


    Perhaps he was also silently watching Ye Futian and everything going on from some dark corner right this moment.


    "Red Devil," the man wearing the mask said in a low voice. He sounded calm and emotionless. His eyes behind the mask scanned the Red Devil.


    "Can we take him with us now?" the Red Devil asked.


    "Not yet," the man wearing the mask answered. "There are eight Devil Generals under the Devil Emperor''s command. Neither Mei Ting nor the Red Devil is among the top three. Maybe we would allow you to take Ye Futian away if one of the top three Devil Generals came here today. But you two are not enough."


    "Is that right?" the Red Devil asked rhetorically. He stretched out his hand and held the handle of the ax. The gleam of the blood-red ax dazzled their eyes in the void. The Red Devil''s eyes were bloodshot as he grasped the Blood Devil Ax.


    The tension in the space became palpable straight away.


    Indeed, Neither Mei Ting nor the Red Devil was among the top three Devil Generals under the Devil Emperor''s command. Nonetheless, any one of the eight Devil Generals was undoubtedly a supreme cultivator who stood at the top of the pyramid and could master any situation.


    Few people were capable enough to be their rivals. What kind of ability did these three masked men have to make them so insolent and arrogant?


    "You can have a try if you want," the man wearing the mask looked at the Red Devil and said.


    The Red Devil stared back. The forceful demonic might surged and roared as he raised the Blood Devil Ax in his hand. The glint of the blade shone brightly.


    Chop.


    The Blood Devil Ax chopped down directly without any ostentatious move. The ax split the sky into halves and created blood cracks right away.


    This ax could gash the sky open.


    At the same time, however, a ray of golden divine light abruptly and brilliantly shone in the vast void. The man wearing the mask pushed his hand forward. Numerous dazzling golden circles with gorgeous markings and ancient characters inside came into sight and surrounded the entire field in an instant. A giant and splendid golden round pattern also appeared in front of the man. The golden light circles kept bursting out of the round pattern and dashed against the blood-red demonic light.


    The blood-red demonic light charged forward forcefully and shattered the light circles. Eventually, it crashed into the gigantic round pattern.


    Bang...


    The void shook violently. Surprisingly, the bloody light was gnawed away little by little. It stained the limitless round pattern with blood and blotted out the sun, yet still couldn''t penetrate the shield of the masked man.


    "It''s you!"


    Mei Ting and the Red Devil shouted at the same time. A person who used to be an all-powerful legend in the Divine Prefecture came to their minds. Many people thought that man was dead already.


    Yet he showed up here unexpectedly, with a mask on.


    How did that person find this man?


    Moreover, if Mei Ting and the Red Devil''s guess was correct, who were the other two masked men?


    Could they be as strong as he was?


    Both stunned, Mei Ting and the Red Devil glanced at the other two men wearing masks. They were still standing there quietly and watching the scene without a word while emanating the same powerful, brooding air.


    Mei Ting and the Red Devil probably couldn''t accomplish their mission if these three men were equally capable. And it would be virtually impossible for them to locate that person if they couldn''t even defeat these three men.


    Right now, it was difficult for them to take Ye Futian away.


    "We are in the Void Realm, a territory of the Divine Prefecture nowadays. I suppose you came to the outer space because you don''t want to attract too much attention," the masked man said, "Since that''s the case, I think it''s best if we don''t have a fight here. The impact may catch people''s eyes even from here. It''s not ideal for either of us.


    "As for Ye Futian, the three of us definitely will be at an advantage against you two if we really fight over him. Why don''t you leave him here since you can''t take him away anyway?"


    Mei Ting and the Red Devil knew he was telling the truth since they had recognized him.


    They certainly couldn''t bring Ye Futian along if the three masked men were equally powerful.


    "When will he return to the Devil World?" Mei Ting asked.


    That person was the biggest traitor to the Devil World. The Devil Emperor would want him back dead or alive.


    "You can report back to the Devil Emperor that he will go back after he finished what he wants to finish," the masked man responded.


    "What if he can''t finish?" Mei Ting asked.


    "He won''t go back," the man answered. That person wouldn''t go back to the Devil World if he couldn''t achieve his goals. It meant that he would be buried in a foreign land.


    "What is your plan for him?" Mei Ting was silent for a moment. Then he turned his eyes to Ye Futian and asked the masked man. Obviously, he was ready to accept their proposal. Mei Ting and the Red Devil probably wouldn''t let go so easily if they were facing anyone else. After all, they were the Devil Generals and subordinates to the Devil Emperor.


    Yet now, their opponents were following that person''s order. Mei Ting and the Red Devil understood what they were up against and hence became less determined.


    This was an internal affair of the Devil World.


    Besides, Mei Ting also wavered from his conviction because of that person''s perseverance and persistence.


    Why on earth did that person become the biggest traitor to the Devil World?


    Why did he do all of these things?


    Mei Ting heard some rumors in the past, but he couldn''t tell if they were true.


    "We never showed up here. Of course, he will go back on his own," the masked man replied.


    Mei Ting shot a glance at him. Since he knew the man''s identity now, he surely understood that the man could never be seen in the Divine Prefecture. They had to hide in the dark.


    "The battle over the Sea of the Path may not be finished yet. Would you reveal yourselves if Ye Futian runs into danger again?" Mei Ting asked out of curiosity.


    "The two sides are evenly matched. I don''t think the Golden Divine Nation can conquer the Divine Palace this time. The timing will not be so favorable the next time," the masked man answered calmly. Moreover, Ye Futian was supposed to deal with these events by himself, after all.


    They would never expose themselves unless Ye Futian was about to die.


    Besides, they had a pretty good cover if they had to intervene. Cultivators from the Outer Realms flooded in the Void Realm nowadays and made them less conspicuous. They would be spotted easily if they arrived at the Void Realm before the passageway was opened.


    "Alright. I will send him back to the Higher Heavens Realm," said Mei Ting.


    The masked men nodded, then stepped back at the same time and vanished into thin air. They left right away without doubting if Mei Ting would honor his words.


    Mei Ting was one of the eight Devil Generals of the Devil Emperor. They trusted him to keep his promise out of basic respect between cultivators at the same level. They knew what kind of a person Mei Ting was.


    The Red Devil''s body was still glimmering with the bloody light. He looked at Mei Ting and asked, "Do you know what he wants to do?"


    By "he," the Red Devil was referring to that person, of course.


    "Maybe he has the real faith," Mei Ting muttered as he turned his eyes to Ye Futian. That person asked Yu Sheng to assist Ye Futian.


    Was Ye Futian the person he chose?


    Was Ye Futian a descendant of Emperor Ye Qing?


    Mei Ting couldn''t know for sure, but it was highly likely. Ye Futian''s age seemed to match as well.


    Ye Futian, on the other hand, had no idea what Mei Ting and the Red Devil were talking about. He was astonished and confounded by everything he saw and heard today.


    If his godfather was the subject of their discussion, what did he want to do?


    He remembered that his godfather reminded him frequently even when he was a child that he was born to be an emperor.


    Was his godfather laying the foundation for that?


    Why did his godfather say he was destined to be an emperor? Who was his godfather?


    What kind of a relationship did his godfather have with the Devil Emperor in the Devil World? What did the Devil World think of him?


    Ye Futian didn''t have a clue about any of these questions. Despite his strong urge to ask, he knew that Mei Ting and the Red Devil would never tell him anything.


    The chance of meeting his godfather again was even slimmer. He hadn''t seen him for so many years.


    Where was he now?

 1801 The Lower Worlds

    However, neither side was interested in dragging out the battle after Ye Futian was taken away. Many cultivators left to chase him and Mei Ting. After all, the main goal of the Shen clan and the Golden Divine Nation was to kill Ye Futian.


    To everyone''s surprise, Ye Futian was snatched by Mei Ting.


    Did the Devil World intend to rope in Ye Futian?


    The cultivators on the side of the Heavenly Mandate Academy also wanted to pull back for now. They didn''t find Ye Futian and decided to retreat to the Heavenly Mandate Realm for the time being.


    Both sides lost plenty of cultivators in the Renhuang Plane before tranquility was restored on the Sea of the Path.


    Shangxiao Divine Palace, the preaching holy land that once stood in the middle of the Sea of the Path, was razed to the ground and sunk into the water. Even though some of the cultivators in the Divine Palace survived the battle, the Divine Palace would no longer tower over the Higher Heavens Realm.


    A mass of cultivators pulled back to the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, including Emperor Nan and the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace. The air was tense in the Academy.


    The teleportation grand matrix in the Heavenly Mandate Academy played a key role in the battle and was still connecting with other top forces. Therefore, everyone withdrew back to the Heavenly Mandate Academy first.


    They flashed and landed in a corner in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Surprisingly, they saw a man with silver hair hovering in midair and waiting for them. No one expected that Ye Futian would be back before they did.


    "Did Mei Ting send you back?" Lord Taixuan landed in front of Ye Futian and asked. A strange look flashed across his face. Only a few people knew that Mei Ting came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy once before. And it seemed like Mei Ting and Yu Sheng had a history.


    Did Mei Ting get involved this time to help Ye Futian?


    But Mei Ting appeared to be quite rude and disrespectful to Ye Futian last time until Yu Sheng stopped him.


    Lord Taixuan was worried about Ye Futian on his way back as he thought that Mei Ting intended to cause big trouble by taking Ye Futian away. It was surprising to learn that Mei Ting sent Ye Futian back to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian swept the room and felt a little relieved after realizing they didn''t lose any master cultivator. Even so, their side still suffered a great loss. The battle at the Sea of the Path was so ruthless that almost a third of their people didn''t make it back.


    Ye Futian looked at the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace and asked, "Palace Lord, what about the Divine Palace...."


    They certainly couldn''t go back anymore as the Divine Palace had been destroyed. It was unfortunate that they couldn''t save the Divine Palace despite their efforts. Their opponents mobilized considerable resources and assembled an exceptionally strong army, to say nothing of their collaboration with forces from other realms. Although Ye Futian managed to kill two high-level Renhuangs, he was lucky to come back in one piece.


    "It doesn''t matter where we teach and preach. We can stay in the Heavenly Mandate Academy since the Divine Palace is demolished," the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace said with good grace. Of course, he was heartbroken that the Divine Palace was destroyed. But he couldn''t change what happened in the past, and he still needed to remain optimistic and keep his eyes on the future.


    He surely recognized how the Heavenly Mandate Academy ardently supported the Divine Palace. He also believed that the Heavenly Mandate Academy was a real preaching force that could tide them over the difficulties.


    After all, the storm was not over yet.


    The cultivators around were moved by what the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace just said. They never expected that the two preaching holy lands would really merge into one. It would be a grand occasion that could cause a great stir if it happened in the past. But no one was in the mood for celebration right now. After all, they hadn''t fully pulled through the crisis yet.


    "The Palace Lord is indeed wise and clear-sighted. I''m willing to give up my place as the College Chief and let the Palace Lord take over," said Lord Taixuan. He also cultivated on the Taixuan Mountain in the Higher Heavens Realm in the past and perceived the Shangxiao Divine Palace as a preaching holy land.


    He met and chatted with the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace during his trip to the Sea of the Path.


    He certainly wouldn''t cling to his position after the Divine Palace merged with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace was more suitable than him to be the College Chief.


    The Palace Lord of the Divine Palace heard Lord Taixuan and shook his head, said, "We''re both preaching holy lands. The position means little to us. Lord Taixuan doesn''t need to step aside out of modesty."


    Lord Taixuan was about to say more when he heard Emperor Nannspeak, "We can discuss the arrangement for the future after this is over. Although the Divine Palace was leveled to the ground, we still successfully retreated to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and Futian came back unscathed. Our enemies will not give up so easily."


    Everyone nodded in agreement with Emperor Nan. It was too early to talk about assigning seats and changing leadership.


    "For the time being, let''s send away everyone in the Academy who are below the Renhuang Plane," said Lord Taixuan. Ye Futian nodded. He shared the same idea that cultivators below the Renhuang Plane shouldn''t remain in the Heavenly Mandate Academy when a big battle was around the corner.


    "The grandmaster didn''t come back?" Ye Futian asked.


    The grandmaster didn''t stay with them for his reclusive personality.


    "He''s alright. He left alone," Shen Luoxue answered. Ye Futian nodded without speaking further.


    "I still have some ritual implements. Let''s distribute them among the high-level Renhuangs," said Ye Futian. In the past, only several master cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm owned ritual implements. But Ye Futian still had several ones in his possession. He didn''t expect the battle to be so fierce and forgot to give out the ritual implements beforehand.


    He certainly didn''t plan to stash them away now. He was ready to hand around all of the ritual implements he had. It should be able to enhance their abilities to a degree even though each force could only have one or two pieces.


    People nodded and accepted without many words of courtesy. The master cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Realm probably would be clobbered if they didn''t have ritual implements. After all, the Heavenly Mandate Realm was weaker than the forces came from the Divine Prefecture. Most of their cultivators were also less powerful than their opponents at the same level from the Golden Divine Nation.


    The potent ritual implements made a big difference in this battle.


    As people started to make preparations, the Heavenly Mandate Academy became busy and bustling.


    The cultivators gathered in the coastal city by the Sea of the Path in the Higher Heavens Realm. They only made a small achievement by demolishing the Divine Palace. However, they couldn''t let down their guard now since they didn''t kill the master cultivators from the Divine Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    They also suffered considerable casualties this time. Each force lost some powerful cultivators.


    They gathered at the top of a tavern.


    "We don''t know if Mei Ting took Ye Futian to the Devil World. I guess even Mei Ting is impressed by the inheritance from the Great Emperor displayed in Ye Futian," said Gai Cang. From what he could see, they all appreciated Ye Futian''s talents. Ye Futian was such an extraordinary genius. If only he weren''t on the opposite side...


    "We might have some troubles in the future if he was taken to the Devil World for real," Shen Gao from the Shen clan said. They couldn''t go to the Devil World. No one who wished to live could.


    Even Donghuang the Great Emperor didn''t take the risk to attack the Devil World.


    The Golden Divine Nation and the Shen Clan would be in hot water if Ye Futian received training from the Devil World and came back to take revenge.


    The thought crossed Shen Gao''s mind because he knew that he wouldn''t be able to resist the temptation to seize Ye Futian if he worked for the Devil World.


    "There is another problem," said Gai Qiong.


    People turned their eyes to Gai Qiong and heard him say, "The Great Emperor might treasure Ye Futian''s talent if he learned that Ye Futian obtained God''s inheritance at God''s relic."


    Gai Qiong cultivated under Donghuang the Great Emperor. Many people frowned in concern after he raised the possibility.


    The Great Emperor might appreciate Ye Futian''s talent if he learned about him. The Shen Clan and the Golden Divine Nation might not be able to kill Ye Futian if that happened.


    "Will the Great Emperor know?" someone asked.


    "Don''t forget about the Empty Imperial Palace," Gai Qiong said. "Besides, nothing can escape the Great Emperor''s notice if he really wants to learn about things in the Void Realm."


    That being said, the Great Emperor wouldn''t focus his attention on the Void Realm for no reason.


    There were millions of cultivators in the Void Realm. How could the Great Emperor have the time to learn about every single incident that happened here? He probably would only pay attention when something unusual occurred.


    Buzz. A beam of divine light shone brightly in the distance. A master cultivator came over and reported, "Ye Futian returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    The crowd was stunned.


    Ye Futian returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    Mei Ting didn''t take him to the Devil World or kill him?


    It came as a big surprise.


    A cold look flashed in Gai Qiong''s eyes. He said, "Ye Futian of the Heavenly Mandate Academy colluded with Mei Ting, the Devil General from the Devil World. We absolutely cannot tolerate him in the Divine Prefecture."


    Other people were puzzled for a moment upon hearing Gai Qiong''s statement. Then they understood Gai Qiong''s intention. He wanted to trump up a charge against Ye Futian.


    Colluding with the Devil World.


    ...


    Inside of the Empty Imperial Palace in the Central Emperor Realm.


    The Divine Priests gathered in the Empty Imperial Palace and gazed at the blue. Rays of dazzling divine light shone from above as if they pierced through the sky.


    A group of people slowly came into sight and descended along with the brilliant divine light.


    The divine generals with stately bearing formed a circle. They looked arrogant and vigorous with their penetrating eyes and shining armors.


    However, it was a young woman around 20 years old who stood in the center. She looked elegant and dazzling. Her breathtaking beauty was out of this world and made everything around her lose color.


    Everyone''s eyes ere glued on her.


    The Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace took a look at the young woman and realized that she was already in the Renhuang Plane.


    This young girl probably was the envy of all the women in the world.


    Few people could match her family background. She was the daughter of God; she was born to be extraordinary.


    There wasn''t a single woman in the Divine Prefecture who didn''t wish they were her. Countless talented cultivators had their hearts set on her. But they could only think to themselves secretly as they didn''t dare to violate the taboo by talking about it out loud.


    It was hard to say if anyone in the world was good enough for this young woman.


    "Greetings to the Princess." The Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace bowed deferentially.


    "Greetings to the princess." People in the Empty Imperial Palace lowered their heads to show respect as well. Anything more than a glimpse of her would be considered a sacrilegious act. She was the distinguished Princess Donghuang, the sole heir of Donghuang the Great Emperor.

 1802 Summon

    It looked like Donghuang the Great Emperor valued the Original Realm more than people assumed.


    Princess Donghuang looked around and scanned the crowd. Her breathtakingly beautiful eyes only intensified her inherent majestic bearing. She was born to be a star who was lionized by everyone. As the apple of the Great Emperor''s eye, her thoughts and reactions could directly affect the Great Emperor''s decisions.


    Rumor had it that the Great Emperor would satisfy any request Princess Donghuang made. Everyone in the Divine Prefecture knew that the Great Emperor doted on Princess Donghuang.


    Some people said that the Great Emperor''s overindulgence of Princess Donghuang''s whims didn''t fit his personality. But it all made perfect sense since she was his only daughter. Of course, he spoiled her with great consideration.


    Streams of light circled around Princess Donghuang''s body, dazzling and brilliant. She looked like a divine goddess from heaven; she was the daughter of a God indeed.


    "Dispatch my order. Summon all the forces in the Nine Realms and the Lower Worlds of the Divine Prefecture to the Empty Imperial Palace in seven days. No conflict shall break out during this time," said Princess Donghuang. Her voice was calm yet carried a strong sense of authority.


    "Yes, Princess." The Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace bowed to take the order without any question.


    "Immediately set out to the Nine Realms to relay my order. If any force from the Divine Prefecture didn''t come to the Empty Imperial Palace, they''d better not set foot in the Void Realm again," Princess Donghuang continued.


    The Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace nodded and replied, "Princess, please rest in the Empty Imperial Palace. I will assign people and set off right away."


    Princess Donghuang nodded and landed in the Empty Imperial Palace. In the meantime, the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace started to assign the task to messengers. Before long, a succession of cultivators left the Empty Imperial Palace and headed to various forces in the Nine Realms.


    The Divine Prefecture enjoyed a time of peace after Donghuang the Great Emperor unified the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path and slowly established law and order. The Great Emperor must be displeased that the world descended into chaos again. That was why he sent Princess Donghuang to clean house.


    Still and all, the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace had no intention of poking around for details. He only needed to follow the Princess''s order.


    Right now, Ye Futian and others were running around in the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They were preparing for another battle and sent many less experienced cultivators to the Lower Worlds.


    Ye Futian and many powerful cultivators of the Divine Palace survived the last battle unscathed, even though the Divine Palace was demolished. Under such circumstances, the Shen Clan and the Golden Divine Nation certainly wouldn''t let them off the hook so easily.


    "They''re here." A horrific sense of pressure built up swiftly. Lord Taixuan and others raised their heads and looked into the distance where a storm was brewing.


    In a little while, beams of divine light shone from the sky. A team of people came into sight.


    Instead of a whole army, only several cultivators came this time, but they were extremely powerful just the same.


    The two sides already had a bloody battle when the joint force closed in on the Divine Palace. These people only came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy again to execute their targets who escaped last time.


    They could kill as they wished now.


    Shen Gao and Shen Ji from the Shen clan, as well as Gai Qiong and Gai Cang from the Golden Divine Nation, walked to the Heavenly Mandate City. Their overwhelming might enshrouded the entire Heavenly Mandate City as they stood in the sky. Every cultivator in the Heavenly Mandate City could feel their hearts pounding in the chests when they looked up at the master cultivators standing above.


    Did they come from the Higher Heavens Realm to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to start another massacre?


    These people were even more frightening than the Dark Army from Hell last time.


    Although it was a small team, every one of them was a living legend.


    At this point, a group of cultivators stood in the teleportation grand matrix area in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Lord Taixuan said in a cold voice, "If you dare to commit a massacre, we will activate the teleportation grand matrix right away and directly go the Nantian Divine Kingdom or the Xiao clan in the Central Emperor Realm, destroy the matrix, and then attack the Shen clan."


    Shen Ji, Shen Gao, and other cultivators furrowed their brows. It was an effective deterrent.


    The two sides would die together.


    At this moment, the teleportation grand matrix suddenly lit up. Several people, including the cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, were taken by surprise. The teleportation grand matrix shone brightly as a man emerged. It was Xiao Dingtian, the clan lord of the Xiao clan in the Central Emperor Realm.


    "Em?" Shen Ji and Shen Gao of the Shen clan frowned. The clan lord of the Shen clan specifically went to the Xiao clan to intimidate Xiao Dingtian and other people in the Xiao clan so they wouldn''t send reinforcement to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Why did Xiao Dingtian show up here now?


    They certainly didn''t believe that Xiao Dingtian could overcome the clan lord of the Shen clan unless something else happened.


    Ye Futian also stared at Xiao Dingtian with a puzzled look. Xiao Dingtian raised his head and glanced at the cultivators hovering in midair and said, "The Divine Priest of the Empty Imperial Palace ordered that the groups in the Nine Realms and the forces from the Divine Prefecture outside of the Original Realm shall not engage in any battle and must go to the Empty Imperial Palace in seven days."


    The Empty Imperial Palace?


    A strange look flashed across everyone''s face. Donghuang the Great Emperor established the Empty Imperial Palace to inspect the Nine Realms. But the forces from the Lower Worlds of the Divine Prefecture didn''t need to listen to the Empty Imperial Palace.


    The Empty Imperial Palace seemed to be overstepping by ordering them around, unless��


    "The Empty Imperial Palace inspects the Nine Realms. But I don''t think they''re qualified to meddle in our affairs," said Gai Qiong. He knew the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace personally.


    "Princess Donghuang arrived at the Empty Imperial Palace. This order came from the Princess. The Empty Imperial Palace already sent messengers to the Nine Realms. The Shen clan probably already received the news. You will hear about it soon. Of course, suit yourself if you still want to proceed," Xiao Dingtian answered indifferently.


    Princess Donghuang''s appearance represented the will of the Great Emperor.


    Who dared to disobey her order?


    "Princess Donghuang went to the Empty Imperial Palace." Cultivators from the Shen clan and the Golden Divine Nation were stunned. It was certainly probable for her to give such an order if she really was there.


    Did the incident in the Nine Realms already catch the Great Emperor''s attention?


    They looked out at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It seemed like they couldn''t attack the Heavenly Mandate Academy at this time. On top of that, they might be in trouble if the Great Emperor decided to intervene.


    "Ye Futian colluded with the Devil General of the Devil World. We need to arrest him and hand him over to the Princess," Gai Qiong spoke loudly. He needed to pin the blame on Ye Futian first, even though he couldn''t kill him right now.


    Ye Futian''s brows knitted tightly. Colluding with the Devil General of the Devil World?


    Mei Ting saved him and took him away and then sent him back safe and sound. It did sound suspicious.


    Besides, he couldn''t explain the detail to other people.


    "Talk to the Princess yourself. I''m only here because the Divine Priest asked me to convey the news. Now you have heard the order, you should be responsible for the consequences for whatever you want to do," Xiao Dingtian replied in an impassive voice. Gai Qiong and other people were not pleased that Xiao Dingtian used the Princess to pressure them.


    However, they couldn''t act recklessly when the situation was not clear yet.


    After moments of confrontation, they talked with each other using the divine consciousness, glanced at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, then pulled back, and left unwillingly.


    Soon, they disappeared from the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    People in the Heavenly Mandate Academy sighed with relief as the overwhelming might dissipated.


    Ye Futian looked at Xiao Dingtian and asked, "Princess Donghuang went to the Empty Imperial Palace?"


    "Yes," Xiao Dingtian nodded.


    A gorgeous face recured to Ye Futian''s mind, the face he had met twice before.


    The first time was when he was sixteen years old. The young Princess Donghuang and the divine generals went to the statue of Emperor Ye Qing on the Beast Mountain in the city of Qingzhou.


    The second time was when she took Mr. Du away.


    Would Princess Donghuang recognize him from those two encounters?

 1803 The Third Encounter

    As the only daughter of Donghuang the Great Emperor and the most distinguished woman in the Divine Prefecture, Princess Donghuang probably wouldn''t pay much attention to a random person she met years ago.


    But he could never forget her. Both encounters with Princess Donghuang made an indelible impression on Ye Futian.


    She killed the Snow Ape Emperor the first time they met and took away his Master during their second encounter.


    How could he ever forget that?


    Ye Futian had a special emotional bond with both the Snow Ape Emperor and Mr. Du.


    Therefore, Ye Futian hardly had a good opinion of Princess Donghuang.


    Dazzling and haughty, she could dictate other people''s fates with ease. Even now, Princess Donghuang was able to simply decide if Ye Futian should live or die.


    In addition, Ye Futian believed that he should be on the opposite side of Donghuang the Great Emperor because of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Nevertheless, he only heard stories about the legendary Great Emperor from time to time and had never met him in person. Since he didn''t know what exactly happened between Donghuang the Great Emperor and Emperor Ye Qing in the past, he couldn''t convince himself to detest the Great Emperor wholeheartedly.


    Ye Futian only hoped that Princess Donghuang didn''t remember who he was now that they were about to meet again.


    "Did Princess Donghuang come because of the disputes in the Nine Realms?" Lord Taixuan asked Xiao Dingtian.


    "Probably," Xiao Dingtian nodded and said, "The Divine Priest said she ordered that we can''t have any more conflicts in the next seven days. I think she is trying to stabilize the situation in the Nine Realms. This is likely to be the reason why Princess Donghuang went to the Empty Imperial Palace in person and summoned the cultivators in the Nine Realms and from the Divine Prefecture. But we don''t know how she will deal with this situation."


    Lord Taixuan nodded slightly. A million thoughts ran through his head. Everyone else was disconcerted as well. They hadn''t fully recovered from the recent battle and didn''t expect this turn of events.


    They were ready to fight to the death just moments ago. It was not a bluff when they said they would attack the Shen clan if the enemies dared to make a move.


    "You should come to the Xiao clan so we can go to the Empty Imperial Palace together when the time comes," Xiao Dingtian said to Ye Futian and others. The teleportation grand matrix in the Heavenly Mandate Academy conveniently led to the Central Emperor Realm by a direct route.


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded in agreement.


    The news soon spread around. The groups in the Nine Realms all received the message from the Divine Priests. The intense situation in the Nine Realms quickly abated while people enjoyed the temporary peace.


    No one dared to disobey Princess Donghuang''s order, even the groups from the Divine Prefecture, which were not under the direct command of Donghuang the Great Emperor.


    ...


    Seven days passed in a twinkling.


    When the day arrived, the top forces in the Nine Realms all sent cultivators to the Central Emperor Realm. Some people even set off ahead of the time and already arrived at the Central Emperor Realm.


    Ye Futian and the others first went to the Xiao clan in the Central Emperor Realm through the teleportation grand matrix. After resting in the Xiao clan for a while, they left for the Empty Imperial Palace, along with Xiao Dingtian and other cultivators of the Xiao clan.


    Ye Futian and the Xiao clan were not the only ones. Countless cultivators in the Central Emperor Realm who were not even affiliated with top forces were also heading to the Empty Imperial Palace.


    Princess Donghuang came to the Empty Imperial Palace. They would never miss the chance to catch a glimpse of the stunning Princess of the Divine Prefecture, daughter of Donghuang the Great Emperor.


    Who didn''t want to sneak a peek at her?


    Ye Futian led a mass of people marching toward the Empty Imperial Palace in the Central Emperor Realm. They met more and more powerful cultivators as they approached the Empty Imperial Palace. Carrying their weapons, all of them were racing toward the same destination from all directions.


    Occasionally, Ye Futian and his group drew the attention of the passerby. It was as clear as day that they were extraordinary cultivators even if they were not recognized right away. Some smart ones soon came to understand who they were and would shoot them an odd look.


    Nowadays, the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was absolutely one of the most influential groups in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    "It appears that these people are going for the Princess," Xiao Muyu said with a smile. Wearing a long, black dress, she was among the crowd and looked graceful yet standoffish.


    "She is the most beautiful woman in the Divine Prefecture and the only one who is truly a princess. Naturally, everyone wants to have a chance to see her," Ye Futian replied.


    "I heard that Princess Donghuang has unparalleled beauty and talent. I wonder if it''s true. We can finally meet her today," Xiao Muyu said softly.


    "I don''t know about her talent. But her beauty is indeed impressive," said Ye Futian.


    "Have you met her before?" Xiao Muyu looked at Ye Futian, surprised.


    Ye Futian curled up his lips but didn''t explain. Xiao Muyu saw the smile in his eyes and turned to speak with the woman who was holding hands with Ye Futian, "Masteress, are you going to ask the Master?"


    Hua Jieyu blinked her eyes when she heard Xiao Muyu. She was used to being called the masteress by now. Everyone considered her as Ye Futian''s wife. She had gradually accepted it and was not repelled by the feeling.


    Xiao Muyu was not surprised by her silence. The masteress had always been reticent and only chatted with the Master from time to time. The disciples were all used to it.


    "Everyone says the Princess is exceptionally beautiful. Masteress, you need to keep an eye on the Master." Xiao Muyu laughed.


    "Don''t talk nonsense," Xiao Dingtian turned back and said to Xiao Muyu. It was fine for her to joke around here, but they would be in trouble if anyone else heard it. After all, she had to pay extra attention even if she was joking about Princess Donghuang. What if the Princess didn''t take it well?


    "I know," Xiao Muyu replied with a smile. Ye Futian remained silent.


    More and more cultivators showed up as they approached the Empty Imperial Palace. People from various forces stopped outside of the Palace.


    More powerful cultivators from top forces were still coming one after the other.


    Ye Futian saw a team of people forging through the crowd not so far away when they arrived at the periphery of the Empty Imperial Palace. He had met many of them.


    Ye Futian exchanged a look with them and slightly lowered his chin to send his greetings. A young man among them smiled and nodded back. Then they walked directly toward the Empty Imperial Palace.


    They were cultivators from the Tianshen Academy in the Central Emperor Realm. The young man who nodded back was Jian Qingzhu.


    Ye Futian stared at their receding figures with a pensive look. The Tianshen Academy seemed to be faintly aloof to him. Even so, he didn''t take it personally. Who would be willing to get involved with him under the current circumstances?


    At the moment, another line of people brushed past them. Ye Futian sensed that someone was watching him, so he turned around and saw Di Wu among the cultivators from the Solar Divine Palace. Di Wu''s eyes were burning with Divine Fire and fixing on Ye Futian.


    Di Wu was severely injured by Ye Futian during the battle of the Divine Palace on the Sea of the Path. It was surprising that he recovered so quickly. The Solar Divine Palace was truly capable, based on the strength of their connection with the Upper Worlds.


    Nevertheless, Di Wu turned his eyes away in a short moment and moved toward the Empty Imperial Palace along with the rest of his group.


    A succession of cultivators descended from the sky in all directions. Ye Futian also saw people he was not very familiar with. It looked like the representatives from top forces in the Divine Prefecture arrived as well.


    Who wouldn''t comply with Princess Donghuang''s request?


    Ye Futian and the others also made it to the Empty Imperial Palace. Someone was waiting outside of the Palace to greet them and guided them into the Empty Imperial Palace.


    The Empty Imperial Palace once was Donghuang the Great Emperor''s temporary imperial abode in the Void Realm. It was a massive and imposing palace.


    The cultivators were guided to walk ahead and reached an impressive, ancient golden palace. Countless people stopped and gathered in a large plaza. Ye Futian saw many familiar faces among them, who were all from the most powerful forces in the Nine Realms and the Divine Prefecture.


    The forces were divided into different camps. Some camps seemed close-knit while some were in a strained state.


    Numerous people from both the Nine Realms and the Divine Prefecture cast their eyes on Ye Futian the moment he arrived at the plaza.


    The battle that happened seven days ago was already well-known. Everyone had heard how Ye Futian killed two high-level Renhuangs and several middle-level Renhuangs. On top of that, he proved that he obtained God''s inheritance in God''s relic and was the most talented cultivator in the Void Realm.


    He also defeated master cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu in the past. How could people not fix their eyes on such an outstanding man?


    "Is that Ye Futian?" Someone asked people around.


    "Yes."


    "White robe with silver hair. How dashing." Quite a few people expressed their admiration, while some young men smiled arrogantly with a funny look.


    At the moment, several people appeared on top of the stairs in front of the plaza. The Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace was among them.


    The Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace looked at the crowd and said, "Let''s wait for a little longer. Everyone should be here soon."


    More people arrived after that. At high noon, a person slowly walked out of the ancient golden palace. They immediately drew the attention of the crowd.


    A young woman wearing a red robe walked out at a leisurely pace. Setting aside her prestigious status, her face alone was breathtakingly beautiful.


    Everyone''s eyes were glued on the young woman. She stepped forward and stopped at the position next to the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace. Her striking eyes looked out on the mass below.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Princess Donghuang. She seemed even more gorgeous now. The Princess Donghuang he met in the past was still young and childish, albeit her apparent beauty. Now she was truly a stunning and irresistible woman as glimmers of divine light radiating from her body.


    Princess Donghuang glanced at the cultivators who were gaping at her. Ye Futian sensed that her eyes stopped for a second on him and Hua Jieyu by his side. He couldn''t tell if it was his illusion or if everyone else felt the same way.

 1804 Reestablishing the Order

    Ye Futian was stunned when he heard what she said; did he hear her right?


    Just now, had Princess Donghuang really noticed the two of them?


    So, was it possible be that Princess Donghuang remembered him after their two previous meetings?


    However, that was decades ago. If it weren''t because Princess Donghuang was so dazzling herself, he would never remember someone from decades ago. Therefore, he did not think that he would leave any impression on this princess from the Divine Prefecture.


    "Gai Qiong greets Her Royal Highness." Gai Qiong, from Golden Divine Nation, was the first to bow and salute in the direction of Princess Donghuang. Although he served under Donghuang the Great, he hadn''t actually seen the princess too many times before.


    He only knew that in the Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture, the status of Princess Donghuang was quite elevated. Anything that she wanted to do would be unconditionally approved by Donghuang the Great.


    "Greetings to Her Royal Highness." The rest of the people followed suit and saluted. Whether it was the Divine Nation or the top power of clans, they had to respect her as the Princess, because what they were seeing in front of them was the only princess in the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian''s reaction seemed to be a bit slower than the others. When he saw that majestic woman with dazzling divine light all around her, perhaps, subconsciously, he didn''t want to bow down to her. Or, perhaps because of Emperor Ye Qing, the Snow Ape Emperor, and his teacher, Mr. Du, that he even had the brief thought to compete with Princess Donghuang.


    His foster father claimed that he was born to be an emperor, but all along the way, there was nothing but hardships. However, the woman in front of him was born into nobility. Were they fated to be mortal enemies?


    If there were someone whom he considered fated as a mortal enemy, then perhaps Princess Donghuang would be that person.


    It was just that he still couldn''t figure out the relationship between the two of them: who he was, what was his relationship with Emperor Ye Qing, and what kind of grudges existed with Donghuang the Great.


    He didn''t move, and next to him, Hua Jieyu followed his lead.


    But then Ye Futian lowered his head slightly and followed others'' examples. In this brief moment, many things went through his mind. Even though his mood was contentious, he thought of his foster father, who had kept a low profile, unwilling to reveal everything for many years. He didn''t want to be discovered because of his pride; that would not do justice to those who cared about him the most.


    In any case, now that he had come to the point where Princess Donghuang was within his reach, the truth shouldn''t be hidden much longer.


    "As far as we know, except for the Hidden Land Realm, which is controlled by Hell, everyone else should have arrived," answered the Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace, who was next to her.


    "More than 300 years ago, there was turmoil in the Divine Prefecture. It was said that the Original Realm was in chaos, which many of you here must have experienced personally. Later, when the world was settled, and order was re-established, all principalities preached, and the Original Realm was united. Now that the passage to the Original Realm had opened, and the forces of the Dark Court is interfering once again, reigniting the disputes in the Nine Realms. I heard that everyone is busy launching wars to fight for the control of the Nine Realms," Princess Donghuang said, standing in the sky above and looking at the crowd.


    Her voice carried some coldness, but it gave her audience an indescribable sense of arrogance. A few words from her, who was surrounded by divine light, actually brought a slight pressure to those cultivators from the top forces.


    "Furthermore, I heard that several forces have already been destroyed and erased from the Original Realm," Princess Donghuang continued. She looked in the direction of the Golden Divine Nation among the crowd and said, "Gai Qiong, isn''t that right?"


    Gai Qiong was taken aback for a moment as he looked up at Princess Donghuang. He stood up straight and saluted Princess Donghuang, "Your Royal Highness, there are indeed struggles in the Nine Realms now. Although there has been quite a bit of damage, there are many forces here that acted out of consideration for the future of the Original Realm. Now that the passage is opened, the Dark Court has invaded, and the order of the Nine Realms will need to be re-established. Many forces from the Divine Prefecture are far stronger than the forces from the Original Realm. If they gain control of the Original Realm, they will consolidate and reshape its overall strength."


    Princess Donghuang nodded as she took a step forward. Looking down at Gai Qiong below, she said, "There is some logic in what you are saying. You have been summoned here today. All the top forces from the Original Realm and the Divine Prefecture are now gathered here. Why not re-establish the order of things right here and let the battle decide? Those who survived will have the control of the Original Realm, while the fallen are counted out. This way, the order will be restored without further quarrels. What say you?"


    Gai Qiong dodged her inquiring look, his head slightly lowered, and he did not answer. Obviously, the Princess seemed a little dissatisfied with this arrangement, and her will may directly affect the decision of the Great Emperor. It could even be said that since Princess Donghuang had come down here herself, she could certainly represent the will of Donghuang the Great.


    People from the other forces didn''t say much; were they going to fight a battle right here, right now?


    Who could leave here with their lives when this day was said and done was still an unknown.


    Many of these forces had brought with them their best from the younger generation, so it was possible that they had some ideas of their own. Although they understood that there was almost no chance, they were hoping to leave an impression, so that there may be opportunities in the future to interact with Princess Donghuang again.


    After all, no matter how outstanding the Princess was, she was a woman, after all, and she may meet someone she liked. However, there was no one in the land of the Divine Prefecture who could match the status of Princess Donghuang, so there was no harm in having high hopes.


    However, when they saw the magnificence of Princess Donghuang, they had a feeling it would be very difficult.


    Princess Donghuang, as surrounded by divine light, was a powerful and majestic being, with the demeanor of a future Empress.


    Perhaps, she might become the Empress in the future.


    "Your Royal Highness, the Solar Divine Palace was originally a branch of our Solar Divine Mountain. Now that we have come here just to bring the Solar Divine Palace back to the fold of the Divine Mountain. Presently, the Solar Realm is weak in cultivation, so I summoned all the forces in the Solar Realm as they are willing to follow me to cultivate with the Solar Divine Mountain as a united front. From now on, the Solar Divine Mountain will preach the Divine Flames of the Great Path in the Solar Realm, adhering to the Will of the Great Emperor, to make the cultivators of the Solar Realm even stronger. We will not interfere with other realms," said the cultivator from Solar Divine Mountain, attempting to justify himself.


    But, clearly, since the Solar Realm had already gotten what they wanted, they would not easily let it go. His statement was a hint that now the Solar Realm was under the control of the Solar Divine Mountain. As long as the Princess didn''t object, there would not be many changes in the future.


    Moreover, in this case, the Princess wouldn''t be able to say much.


    Princess Donghuang glanced at the other and did not say much. She knew that the Solar Realm meant a great deal to the Solar Divine Mountain, and that was something they wouldn''t reveal.


    "What about the others?" Princess Donghuang asked again. "I called you here today to let you choose for yourselves how to restore the order to the Original Realm."

 1805 Setting the Rules

    Now that discords reigned once again in the Original Realm, it was enough to compel Princess Donghuang to come to the Lower Worlds personally to restore the order. Everyone knew that it was because those in charge didn''t want the Original Realm to fall into endless chaos again.


    However, the matter of restoring order was not an easy one. Donghuang the Great could directly appoint a ruler in each realm, but this would be an unpopular move that was sure to displease many people and principalities.


    Moreover, doing so could be regarded as breaking some of the rules long abide by in the world of cultivation.


    After all, in the ruthless world of cultivation, even if the Great Emperor were to appoint someone to manage it, if that person''s power was not enough to convince the others, it would be a great cause for concern.


    "The Princess came to the Lower Worlds in person, it must be because the Princess didn''t want to see the Original Realm destroyed. The world of cultivation operates by its own rules; now that the passage to the Divine Prefecture is opened, the future of the Void Realm will be forever changed. Even if all the same forces were allowed to remain in control of the Nine Realms, if their strengths were not enough, the Dark Court still has a chance to overtake them."


    At this time, someone stood up and spoke, and the speaker was from one of the forces from Divine Prefecture, which had spearheaded the war against the Divine Palace. It was the Mo clan from the Divine Prefecture, which was extremely powerful.


    "Therefore, if the Princess wants to reestablish the order, I suggest following the natural rules of the world of cultivation, and let those who possess the ability to preach in the Original Realm. This way, the Original Realm can be more stable and will grow to be even stronger in the future."


    "I agree, too," the cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu said.


    "We agree too," some other forces from Divine Prefecture also expressed their opinions.


    In terms of overall strength, the top forces of the Divine Prefecture would undoubtedly overpower the top forces of the Void Realm. Those who had come to the Lower Worlds were only part of the whole.


    Therefore, as far as these forces from Divine Prefecture were concerned, they certainly hope to use their strength to determine to whom the Nine Realms should belong.


    Princess Donghuang listened quietly. She looked at the cultivators who had spoken and understood clearly.


    With the passage to the Original Realm now open, these forces would not easily pass up this opportunity.


    Even though the Original Realm had long been in decline, but here was the origin of the world, after all. It was a primal realm��the beginning of the Heavenly Path.


    "Where about the others?" Princess Donghuang looked at the forces from the Original Realm and asked.


    The weak were eaten by the strong, and strength was what had always been prized in the world of cultivation. Even if she did not interfere, everything in the Void Realm would eventually evolve in the same direction. Whoever was the strongest would control the dialogue of the Nine Realms. This was the rule of all things, and she would not be the one to break it first.


    "You are summoned here today to establish order; any opinion is welcome," Princess Donghuang continued.


    "I don''t agree with the others," Ye Futian said. Princess Donghuang lowered her head as her sight fell upon Ye Futian and asked, "What is your reason?"


    "The top powers of Divine Prefecture in the Upper Worlds have been developing for a lot longer, so of course they are stronger than the powers in the Original Realm. If the decision is simply based on strength, then there is no reason why everything should happen the way it did. The Great Emperor rules the whole world, so the Imperial Palace is naturally the strongest of all in Divine Prefecture. According to the logic of the opponent, the Empty Imperial Palace has already been assigned the Great Emperor to watch over the Original Realm, so all the forces in the Original Realm just need to follow the orders of the Empty Imperial Palace," Ye Futian said to Princess Donghuang.


    "The Great Emperor is busy enough, ruling the Divine Prefecture. How can he have the time to oversee everything that happens in the Original Realm?" Gai Qiong answered coldly.


    "You are right. The top powers of Divine Prefecture have already been established outside of the Original Realm for countless years. How many will really spend their time in the Original Realm to preach?" Ye Futian responded nonchalantly. "If this is the case, why bother to launch a war? All you needed to do was to come down to the Lower Worlds with your entire force and preach in the Original Realm. I''m sure it would attract the interest of countless cultivators. If any force in the Divine Prefecture did this, even the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be willing to submit under its control."


    "That''s right. The forces that came from Divine Prefecture are not native to the realm and have no stake in the Original Realm. To say that their purpose is to make the Original Realm stronger is just an excuse for their invasion. In reality, their goal is really to gain control of the Original Realm for their own purpose. In this way, they can obtain the greatest benefit with the least cost. Once they have the control of the Original Realm, those top figures who have come to the Lower Worlds will probably leave right away."


    Lord Taixuan also added, "The Holy Land of Taichu, for instance, wanted to lay hands on the Heavenly Mandate Academy once. It is clear that these foreign principalities do not really have the best interest of the cultivators from the Original Realm in mind, much less whether they lived or died."


    "I agree that if there are forces from Divine Prefecture that are willing to relocate here to preach and cultivate, there is no need for a battle. The Divine Palace is willing to assist in their efforts in preaching," said the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace.


    "So, you mean that the forces from the Divine Prefecture should not interfere in the Original Realm?" Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian and asked him.


    "They can." Ye Futian said, "However, since they truly want to base themselves in the Original Realm to preach and cultivate, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture are willing to come and help the Original Realm to resist the invasion of the Dark Army. I would propose that, within a certain period, they should stay and guard the Original Realm as their own, just as the cultivators based in Original Realm. It won''t do if they just take control and then leave."


    Princess Donghuang nodded when she heard what Ye Futian had to say and responded, "This is a good suggestion. Do any of you have any other suggestions?"


    "When His Majesty unified the land, his hope was that the world could cultivate in peace. Tianshen Academy has been preaching in the Original Realm in accordance with the will of His Majesty; we did not expect to face these changes again today. However, no matter how the Original Realm evolves, it will only get stronger in the end. We only hope that when the forces launch its battle for control of the Original Realm, everyone can restrain themselves somewhat so that no more clans would be obliterated completely. It is cruel and meaningless, and contradicts His Majesty''s will," said an elder in the direction of Tianshen Academy.


    That person was the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy, also the clan lord of the Jian family. Once, he was instructed by Donghuang the Great to lead his clan to migrate from the Divine Prefecture to the Original Realm.


    Over the years, he had been diligent and conscientious in his duties. It wasn''t until he had seen the arrival of Princess Donghuang that some other ideas began to emerge in his mind.


    "The Jian family has been preaching in the Original Realm for many years. We are much indebted," said Princess Donghuang while looked at the College Chief of Tianshen Academy.


    "It is an honor to serve Your Royal Highness," said the College Chief of Tianshen Academy.


    Princess Donghuang nodded. "Any other suggestions?"


    People whispered among themselves. What these people said before, in fact, had already included most of their thoughts.


    "In this case, according to all of your suggestions, the future order of the Original Realm will be as follows..." Princess Donghuang continued, "Going forward, I will not forbid any forces from Divine Prefecture that wants to fight for control here. However, such an endeavor must be reported to the Empty Imperial Palace. Afterward, each side will need to reach an agreement on when to dispatch cultivators to battle; fighters automatically forfeit their lives. The Winner will control the territory they fought for, but they shall not kill others who did not participate in the battle. In addition, all those from Divine Prefecture who participated in the war must guard the Void Realm for a period of ten years; they are not allowed to leave within these ten years."


    Everyone was a little surprised at the speed with which Princess Donghuang made those decisions. She took everyone''s opinions into consideration so fast and reestablished the order so quickly that it was somewhat astounding.


    However, it was indeed quite perfect. As such, the fighting would be done with the regulations of rules so that it would not lead to complete chaos.


    For example, in the previous battle, if forces such as the Golden Divine Nation wanted to launch a war against the Divine Palace, they must first report to the Empty Imperial Palace, then notify the Divine Palace. Each side would then designate cultivators to participate in the fight, regardless of life or death, but those who did not participate would not be affected.


    Forces from Divine Prefecture were not barred from participating because it would be impossible to prevent them from fighting for a chance to win.


    But the premise was that for those from the Divine Prefecture, participation in the war meant that they were willing to guard the Original Realm. Within ten years, they were not allowed to leave its boundary.


    In this way, the forces from the Divine Prefecture would be greatly restricted. Otherwise, the top forces from the Divine Prefecture could send even stronger reinforcement to the Original Realm, to the point that those in the Original Realm would not be able to defend themselves. In that scenario, it wouldn''t take long for them to become the vessels of the top principalities in Divine Prefecture, just like the Solar Realm.


    One could say that the order established by Princess Donghuang was ??relatively advantageous to those in the Original Realm.


    "Do you have any opinions on this?" Princess Donghuang asked all the cultivators who were present.


    The crowd was silent. Such rules were hard to refute because it was very reasonable.


    And it was impossible for the forces in the Original Realm to refuse to accept the arrangement on the basis that they were weaker. If so, they would not be worthy of retaining their command of the realm under the current circumstances.


    "Princess is judicious, indeed," the College Chief of Tianshen Academy said loudly. Many people had a surprised look on their face. The College Chief of Tianshen Academy was an extraordinary character himself, but today, it seemed like he was full of flattery.


    However, the heads of many top principalities knew a bit about the origins of the Jian family, so they weren''t really surprised.


    They were a force that was dispatched directly from the Divine Prefecture!

 1806 Thoughtful Efforts

    Even though the princess was young in age, but as the only heir of Donghuang the Great, none of the principalities from Divine Prefecture dared to disagree with her.


    More importantly, the rules specified by Princess Donghuang were well-balanced, so there was really nothing to object to.


    Such rules did not only contradict the rules of the cultivation world but were still able to maintain the order of the Nine Realms. No unnecessary killings could ensue, leading to the collapse of order and the completely and utterly annihilation of many more forces and cultivators.


    "Since you do not object, then it is decided. In the future, anyone who disobeys and violates the order of the Nine Realms will do so at his own risk." Princess Donghuang''s voice was clear but cold, and her words were full of authority.


    All the cultivators were now immersed in their own thoughts. As such, it would be impossible for them to do whatever they pleased as before.


    Ye Futian and the others did not say anything. The Divine Palace was destroyed not long ago, and they came out of that the losers with a great disadvantage. Ganged up by their opponents, they had no advantage to speak of and not in a position to question these rules. They would not have their revenge now even if they were given a chance.


    So, it seemed that they could only fight against the others within the bounds of these rules.


    Furthermore, they knew that it was to their advantage that the forces of Divine Prefecture were restricted in this way. After all, the power of Divine Prefecture was strong beyond question. If the army that came was from the Holy Land of Taichu, then the outcome of that battle might have been very different.


    "In addition, the Empty Imperial Palace will distribute the rules. In the future, anyone from the Divine Prefecture who come down to the Original Realm neglected these rules, please do your part to remind them." Princess Donghuang continued, "Now that the passage is opened, the Original Realm is in turmoil with all forces eagerly watching for their chances, as principalities of Divine Prefecture, you should do your utmost to protect and maintain the order of the Original Realm."


    "The Jian family guarded Tianshen Academy these years, did as we were ordered, and we cultivated some good people for the Original Realm. Now that the Original Realm is unsettled, Tianshen Academy will take the lead in restoring the order. In addition to preaching, we will call up the cultivators from all sides to protect the Original Realm together," continued the College Chief of Tianshen Academy.


    Some principalities wanted to come to the Original Realm, but they wanted to return to Divine Prefecture.


    Of course, those principalities that wanted to come to the Original Realm just want to stay momentarily, not settling there for the long run.


    "Everything that the Jian family did, the Imperial Palace is well aware of," Princess Donghuang said.


    "Princess, I have one more matter to report." At this moment, Gai Qiong walked out, bowing with both of his hands together.


    "Proceed."


    "Previously, in the battle at the Sea of the Path, Ye Futian was rescued by Mei Ting, the devil general from the Devil World. Later, he was returned to the Heavenly Mandate Realm unharmed. I felt that Ye Futian might have some relationship with the Devil World; a lot of people were there at the time and saw it for themselves," Gai Qiong said.


    "That''s right, Mei Ting took Ye Futian from the Sea of the Path," the cultivators from the Shen clan also added.


    Now, under the rules established by Princess Donghuang, it was even more difficult to kill Ye Futian. So, it was worth trying to see if they could get rid of this thorn at their side some other way.


    Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian as her long black hair flying in the wind, exuding noble beauty.


    She did not speak, as if she was waiting for Ye Futian to explain.


    Ye Futian looked up at her and didn''t say anything. The cold and aloof look in her eyes caused some disturbance in his heart. Deep down inside, he sensed some desire to compete with her.


    "Are you not going to explain?" Princess Donghuang asked.


    "Mei Ting did take me away from the Sea of the Path; I can''t explain that." Ye Futian replied, "As for the rest, I believe the princess will be the judge of that. Since they said that many people were there, and everyone had seen it, why would I come back if I did collude with the Devil World?"


    What Ye Futian said seemed logical enough.


    "Then, why did Mei Ting save you and send back someone who has unlimited potential to the Divine Prefecture?" Gai Qiong continued his query.


    "Perhaps Mei Ting from the Devil World is more confidant and cherishes talents more than the likes of Gai Qiong." Ye Futian responded, "I, too, think it''s ludicrous. Your kind came to disturb the Void Realm and wanted to kill me, but a devil general of the Devil World came to my rescue. It is somewhat ironic."


    "Princess, it is prudent to check it out; maybe he is hiding something." Shen Gao of the Shen clan said at this time; his calm voice was sinister. If there was to be an investigation, Ye Futian had to be arrested first.


    But doing so would cause a rift between the two sides. To probe the privacy of a Renhuang in such a manner was not a great way to ensure the loyalty of the others. If Princess Donghuang did that, it meant that Ye Futian''s future was effectively over.


    That was why they accused Ye Futian of colluding with the Devil World.


    Sometimes, doubts were enough to ruin a person.


    It all depended on how the Princess would handle the situation.


    "In God''s relic, did you receive the inheritance of the Great Emperor?" Princess Donghuang asked Ye Futian, but it was about an entirely different matter, which surprised many cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan.


    As expected, the Princess already knew about it, and if she cared enough to watch over Ye Futian, it would be difficult for them to have another chance to get rid of him.


    "Yes, I had an opportunity in God''s relic. The ancestors passed the Will of our Great Emperor down on to me." Ye Futian continued, "Even in God''s relic, I seemed to have seen the tombs of the gods."


    Princess Donghuang nodded slightly. Her beautiful eyes surveyed the crowd and said, "If the Devil World wants to fight me for him, what the Devil World can do, the Divine Prefecture would certainly do better; I believe him."


    "Princess..." Gai Qiong was taken aback. It seemed that the Princess had the heart to cherish this talent, which was a blow to them.


    "Enough." Princess Donghuang interrupted Gai Qiong and said, "In the past few years, there have been a group of talented cultivators in the Original Realm. Now the time is changing, everyone from all forces ought to cultivate harder so that all of you will have the opportunity to travel to the Divine Prefecture."


    "Certainly." The people nodded, as the College Chief of Tianshen Academy spoke again, "Princess, my descendant, Jian Qingzhu, from the Tianshen Academy, had also reaped fruitfully from God''s relic. He and Ye Futian were the two people who opened the last door of the relic together, and he had seen the relic of the Great Emperor. His talent is also satisfactory. Now he has proven as Renhuang with perfect Divine Wheel and had studied and read all the classics that were housed inside Tianshen Academy; there is not much to teach him at the Academy. I don''t want him to get stagnant here, so may I ask the princess for a favor to arrange a position for him, either as a guard or as a valet, so that he can witness the glory of the top cultivators in Divine Prefecture and expand his horizons."


    Everyone was stunned when they heard this. Only then did they understand why the College Chief of Tianshen Academy, as one of the strongest figures in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, doled out flattery so often today.


    It turned out that he did it for his descendant.


    This realization made the others felt sympathy for him.


    The Jian clan, who was once a prominent force in Divine Prefecture, was exiled to Tianshen Academy. Now the family must have pinned their hopes on Jian Qingzhu to send him out and follow Princess Donghuang to cultivate. Even just as a valet, there would be great opportunities waiting for him if he performed with excellence.


    Jian Qingzhu was also among the crowd at the Tianshen Academy, and many people looked at him. This was someone who was known as the most outstanding figure of the Tianshen Academy. However, at this moment, he did not display his full glory, only because there was one Ye Futian from Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    But in reality, Jian Qingzhu was rumored to be extremely talented, definitely an extraordinary genius in his own right.


    Otherwise, the College Chief of Tianshen Academy would never have the audacity to recommend him to Princess Donghuang.


    "I don''t need another person," Princess Donghuang glanced at the other and bluntly refused.


    The College Chief of Tianshen Academy was not deterred as he bowed his head instead, saying, "I know that the princess is guarded by divine generals, but Jian Qingzhu must have some opportunity to serve the princess in the future; any random duties will suit him fine right now."


    Princess Donghuang was silent for a moment, but right then, many people raised their heads and looked into the distance. Those who stood behind Princess Donghuang frowned, and their eyes suddenly became extremely cold as they looked at the place far away.


    The sky suddenly changed colors, and the world darkened and dimmed. It was as if darkness had descended and shrouded the space.


    "Dark Court." All the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture focused their attention there. Today, Princess Donghuang had personally summoned all the cultivators of the Nine Realms to the Empty Imperial Palace. If anyone dared to make trouble, there could only be forces that were at their same level.


    The Devil World shouldn''t dare.


    Now in the Original Realm, it seemed the only possibility could only be the Dark Court that was now in control of the Hidden Land Realm.


    "I didn''t expect Princess Donghuang to come to the Void Realm, so I have not had time to make my welcome," a voice came from the darkness. In the dimmed sky, the light was gradually suppressed. But at this moment, a group of figures suddenly levitated into the air. Suspended in the sky, an extremely blazing divine light bloomed from them. The darkness seemed to be expelled little by little in an instant, and light above the Empty Imperial Palace appeared once again.


    So, a spectacular sight was before them. The sky was divided into two; one side bright and the other dark, with clear distinction.


    In that dark world, dark figures appeared like a great army emerged from the darkness. Suddenly there was a very depressive atmosphere that enveloped the Empty Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian and many others looked at the great army of darkness, slightly surprised. There were much larger troops this time than the one that marched into the Heavenly Mandate Realm last time.


    Last time, when the great army of darkness had gone to the Academy, it was not long after they had taken control of the Hidden Land realm, and there were not many of them that came to the Lower Worlds.


    The army in front of them at this moment was much stronger. Presumably, as all realms had been embroiled in chaos during this period of time, the Hidden Land Realm had not been idle either!

 1807 A Proud Son of the Underworld

    Around him were various top figures. However, the person who stood closest to him was a young man. The eyes of this young man were glistening with dark light; his gaze was fixed on Princess Donghuang. He had always been wanting to meet this daughter of Donghuang the Great in person.


    She seemed even more charming in person compared to portraits of her. Her peerless temperament was something that a portrait could not capture.


    "Qi Ye meets Princess Donghuang," this youth greeted Princess Donghuang while bowing slightly. "I have long heard of Princess'' fame. I have admired Princess for a long time. Finally, my wish to meet Princess is granted today. Princess is even more graceful than I have imagined. I have fallen in love with Princess at first sight."


    Qi Ye!


    The people around Princess Donghuang instantly knew who this youth was when they heard his name.


    There were Seven Kings of Darkness in the Dark Court. Each King groomed a successor to take over their throne in the future. These seven successors were crowned Proud Sons of Darkness; they were the heirs of the Seven Kings. If they fell, their positions would be replaced by another cultivator.


    Each and every Proud Son of Darkness was chosen after rounds of extremely cruel selections. Their abilities were very powerful and were recognized by the Seven Kings. Their status in the Dark Court was also very high.


    This Qi Ye was the heir of the Lord of the Underworld; he was the Proud Son of the Underworld.


    Even so, his status still paled into insignificance as compared to that of the daughter of Donghuang the Great. Hence, he showed some manners in front of her. However, people around Princess Donghuang still frowned when they heard him say that he admired the Princess. Clearly, the audience disdained him.


    Fell in love with the Princess at first sight?


    Even if he was the Proud Son of the Underworld, he was still unworthy of her.


    Princess Donghuang cast an indifferent glance at Qi Ye. She didn''t respond to his greeting. A divine general, who stood behind her, wore divine armor and was surrounded by a brilliant divine light, which cast away the darkness. He looked at the Lord of the Underworld and said, "In the past, the Dark Court had been defeated. The Void Realm is currently under the rule of the Divine Prefecture. Now, the Dark Court has gone against our agreement. Are you trying to stir up a war?"


    As far as the Lord of the Underworld knew, a few forces from the Upper Worlds had sent their representatives here. Not long ago, he had encountered Mei Ting from Devil World in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Since that''s the case, we will banish you for the second time," the divine general said with a harsh tone.


    "Let''s put this matter aside for now. Qi Ye is the Proud Son of the Underworld, and he has always admired Princess Donghuang. Today, I brought him here to meet Princess. Princess, what do you think of him?" the Lord of the Underworld said with a smile. His playful tone revealed hints of disrespect.


    Many people frowned in disagreement. The Lord of the Underworld, one of the Seven Kings of Darkness, was bold.


    "Presumptuous," a cold voice barked. A figure moved forward. He was not a follower of Princess Donghuang; instead, he was the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy. His clothes fluttered while his long hair danced in the wind. He seemed to be extremely angry. The might unleashed by him was powerful.


    The Lord of the Underworld glanced at him. His dark eyes revealed the glint of a mocking smile as he said, "I was wondering who was speaking. It turns out to be the person who has been banished to the Lower Worlds."


    "The person who was defeated and was cast away from here is not qualified to give comments here," the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy retorted. "When the Dark Court left here last time, you left behind piles of dead bodies. Are you planning to repeat the same mistake this time?"


    "You speak so arrogantly," the Lord of the Underworld replied coldly. The might of dark light suppressed the space. Many top figures, who were in the parties beside him, unleashed their might too. In an instant, the space became suffocating.


    "Alright, let''s get back to business." The Lord of the Underworld looked at the youth beside him and called, "Qi Ye."


    Qi Ye nodded in response and took a few steps forward. He looked at Princess Donghuang and said, "I have long heard of Princess'' fame. When I knew that Princess was coming to the Original Realm today, I rushed here immediately, hoping to get some pointers from Princess. Donghuang the Great is the leader of the Divine Prefecture, and his might is renowned far and wide, but Princess is his only descendent. I wonder whether or not Princess is capable of inheriting the Emperor''s throne."


    Everyone was curious about Princess Donghuang.


    On top of her beauty, naturally, people paid attention to her ability.


    She was the sole descendent of Donghuang the Great and the only heir to his throne. In the future, she might become the female emperor. Everyone praised her as someone with extraordinary talent and said she lived up to the expectations of Donghuang the Great. However, few people had actually seen her in action.


    Since the Proud Son of the Underworld of the Dark Court encountered such an opportunity, he would certainly not want to miss it. He wanted to see how monstrous this Princess Donghuang was.


    Gazes swept towards his opponent. The members of the Dark Court wanted to witness Princess Donghuang''s ability. However, for the members that had come from the Donghuang Imperial Palace, they couldn''t allow the Princess to exchange blows with Qi Ye. It would lower her status.


    "You are not qualified," commented the divine general, who was beside Princess Donghuang.


    "We will only know after we try," Qi Ye replied with a smile. His aura of a Renhuang emanated. Dark light surrounded his body as he stood looking down at everything else.


    "Princess, are you afraid to accept his challenge?" the Lord of the Underworld mocked. His words were clearly goading the Princess into action; he was confident that his words would work. A Proud Son of the Dark Court had challenged Princess Donghuang. The Princess would need to respond to their request, one way or another.


    "Qi Ye is only a Proud Son of the Underworld. He is unworthy of the Princess personally taking action. Qingzhu, you go and exchange a few blows with him." Someone took the lead to recommend a replacement. The speaker was still the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy. He asked Jian Qingzhu to accept Qi Ye''s challenge.


    Aside from Jian Qingzhu, a few other cultivators walked out too. They were all cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. They were all young cultivators who were sent by their respective forces to fight Qi Ye on behalf of the Princess. Naturally, all of them had the same goal in mind.


    Hence, in the blink of an eye, there were actually a few cultivators of the same generation who took a step forward. All of them wanted to fight on behalf of Princess Donghuang.


    No one would give up such a good opportunity to showcase themselves.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian stood quietly to one side. Not only was the situation unclear now, even if all these people were defeated, but Ye Futian also would still not fight for Princess Donghuang.


    He also wanted to see how powerful Princess Donghuang was. It didn''t bother him at all that someone had challenged the Princess.


    He also intended to witness in person how talented the only daughter of Donghuang the Great was.


    The Lord of the Underworld revealed a scornful look when he saw many people volunteering to fight for the Princess. He had expected this. With Princess Donghuang''s status, naturally, many people wanted to promote themselves before her.


    The Lord of the Underworld did not say anything. From various directions, many people stepped out. They were cultivators from the alliances of the Dark Court. Streaks of terrifying aura permeated the space. The Lord of the Underworld said arrogantly, "Since everyone wants to give it a try, then we will not hold back too."


    As for Qi Ye, the Proud Son of the Underworld, his gaze was still dead set on Princess Donghuang.


    Extremely sharp dark divine light shot out from Qi Ye''s eyes in the direction of Princess Donghuang. He took a step forward. However, another silhouette blocked him. It was the Tianshen Academy''s peerless Proud Son of Heaven, Jian Qingzhu.


    Jian Qingzhu was not trying to win Princess Donghuang''s good graces. He was already shouldering some responsibilities. This was his mission. Now that the clan had placed all their hopes on him, he naturally had to work hard to bear these responsibilities.


    Everything was going well for the clan when passing on teachings in the Void Realm. As for the clan''s goal of wanting to return to the Divine Prefecture, he would be the one to achieve it. He would bring his clan and their mission to the Divine Prefecture.


    Qi Ye swept an indifferent glance at him. Another silhouette also appeared in front of Jian Qingzhu. This silhouette was jet-black from head to toe with a burly, domineering figure. It seemed to be clad in dark armor and was imposing. Destructive dark light flowed on the divine armor. Just looking at it gave people an extremely pressured feeling.


    This was a member of a very powerful dark force of the Dark World. They had special talents and were very powerful.


    This silhouette charged directly at Jian Qingzhu. Jet-black light swept across the space like a bolt of divine light. He punched out, and endless jet-black light descended from the sky. It covered the space and pierced through everything, crashing towards Jian Qingzhu''s figure.


    Jian Qingzhu was expressionless. An extremely dazzling Scroll of the Great Path suddenly flew out from his body, shining brightly. Divine light circled around him. The Scroll of the Great Path resonated with the heavens and the earth. Its light shone for tens of thousands of Zhang. The golden divine light instantly blocked out the sky and the sun.


    This Scroll of the Great Path was the Divine Wheel that Jian Qingzhu had forged. Its divine light was flawless and lit up countless patterns.


    Immediately, this part of the sky was enveloped in the halo emanated by the Scroll of the Great Path.


    Jian Qingzhu was surrounded by the halo too. He extended his palm, and a gigantic golden palm print was unleashed. In the Scroll of the Great Path, countless huge golden palm prints covered the space and stuck forward. They were domineering and similar to the Giant Palm of Buddha.


    Rumble�� Two forces collided. The huge golden palm print crushed the dark light. Jian Qingzhu managed to fully block the opponent''s menacing attack in an instant. This scene caused many people to reveal surprised expressions.


    Everyone in the Nine Realms knew that Ye Futian was very powerful. On the contrary, even though Jian Qingzhu had great fame too, he had never participated in any battles after proving his Way. He had been training devotedly.


    Now, he impressed the crowd with only one attack. The power of his attack was definitely very overbearing. Since the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy intended to send him to train under Princess Donghuang, naturally, his ability would not be weak.


    When Ye Futian saw the enchanting scene, he thought of his two older brothers��fourth older brother, Luo Fan from the Cottage, and second older brother, Nan Zhai from Dali.


    However, Jian Qingzhu was clearly much more powerful than both his older brothers.


    With this attack, Ye Futian sensed that Jian Qingzhu''s ability was not weaker than that of Di Wu.


    Of course, Ye Futian always had a good impression of Jian Qingzhu. This person had a nice personality. However, the two of them had seldom encountered each other and could not be considered friends!

 1808 Proactively Invite

    "This Buddhist technique is somewhat useful in countering the dark power," said Lord Taixuan, who stood beside the Palace Lord.


    "Jian Qingzhu opened a Door of the Relic when he was the God''s relic, so he reaped huge benefits too. According to what I know, he obtained a library," Ye Futian said. "I''m sure there are countless manuscripts stored in the library. Moreover, they were all left by the Great Emperor."


    The crowd slightly nodded their heads, showing their comprehension. Back then, Ye Futian obtained a palace hall full of divine arms. All of the divine arms stored in the hall were extremely powerful.


    From the looks of it, the book collection received by Jian Qingzhu was surely very powerful too.


    Right now, Jian Qingzhu had most likely merged all his learnings into his techniques.


    At the moment, on the battlefield, the dark aura emanated by the strong cultivator from the Dark Court became even more menacing. His jet-black armor expanded as his body transformed into a War God of darkness. When he sent out a punch, a terrifying will of destruction erupted. Everywhere the punch passed, things returned to the void.


    Jian Qingzhu was bathed in the divine light of the Scroll of the Great Path. Countless patterns and words intertwined and shone. Circles of halos moved forward and transformed into runes of Swastika. The Swastika runes circulated in the space and advanced, intertwining with each other to form an illusory figure of a Buddha. Golden light shone brightly for miles, casting away all the darkness.


    The Buddha materialized. Under the halo of Swastika, it became extremely majestic. The runes clashed with the dark light. The Buddha chanted in Sanskrit and sent out a palm strike to its opponent. The space seemed to be ripped apart. The War God of darkness transformed by the other party pounced at the Buddha. Dressed in jet-black armor, his eyes were full of dominance and brutality.


    When their attacks collided, gold and dark lights swept out to the surrounding space as though they were forming patterns of light. The Renhuang from the Dark Court was knocked back from the shockwave. However, his gaze was still very overbearing. He took a step forward and used the domineering power to actually advance. He withstood the attack from the various Swastika runes as he charged towards Jian Qingzhu. It was as though he wanted to tear Jian Qingzhu apart.


    Circles of light wheels appeared in the Scroll of the Great Path. These light wheels interweaved and resonated with each other, emitting streaks of light beams. The light beams were similar to lightning, but they were much thicker in size.


    Streaks of terrifying lightning flashed in the sky even though it was broad daylight. A dooming will of destruction permeated the space. Everything along the path where the white light passed was blasted into dust.


    Each and every light wheel shot out a beam of white light at the same time; the beams were focused in one direction. When Jian Qingzhu gestured out a mudra with both his hands, the beam of light intensified.


    The audience who were observing the battle from below sensed the strength of the power. A dazzling divine light flooded the battlefield, making it hard for the rest to see Jian Qingzhu clearly. They could only figure out what was happening on the battlefield through their will.


    At this moment, even the Proud Son of the Underworld looked at Jian Qingzhu. The former revealed a surprised expression. This cultivator was strong.


    It seemed like the Original Realm still managed to give birth to a few monstrous figures.


    Jian Qingzhu floated in midair. His finger pointed downwards. Immediately, the beams of divine light focused on the same spot. They transformed into a white beam that could pierce through the heavens and earth and slashed down without hesitation.


    Rumble.


    A thud sounded. The white beam hit the opponent''s jet-black divine armor. In an instant, the body hidden under the armor was wrapped in white light as the cultivator looked like he had been struck by a horrifying attack. At the same time, cracking sounds could be heard. The jet-black armor cracked and turned into dust.


    Bang!


    The domineering cultivator of the Dark Court was sent flying backward. A hideous, bloody hole could be seen on his body. He retreated to his clan immediately. He surrounded his body with dark light to control the bleeding.


    The Way was hidden in the scroll. Impressed, everyone looked at Jian Qingzhu. He was yet another monstrous figure.


    However, because he was Jian Qingzhu, the cultivators of the Nine Realms were somewhat mentally prepared and could accept it. After all, before he had proven his Way, Jian Qingzhu was already more or less considered the most monstrous figure of this generation in the Central Emperor Realm. It was just that back then, he had yet to cross paths with others, so he could only be considered one of the most monstrous.


    However, in the God''s relic, in reality, only he and Ye Futian had managed to open the Door of the Relic.


    It was just that no one imagined that he was actually so incredible.


    The cultivators of the Tianshen Academy stood there, watching all of this happen. Their expressions appeared very calm, but they were wavering inside, especially the members of the Jian clan. The reason why they had let Jian Qingzhu attack was to allow him to display his ability before Princess Donghuang.


    Currently, the members of the Nine Realms only knew of Ye Futian. It would certainly be the same for Princess Donghuang. Under such circumstances, it was inevitable for her to overlook others.


    However, with such a fateful encounter, they had to seize an opportunity for Jian Qingzhu.


    If they could send him over to train with Donghuang the Great and follow Princess Donghuang, then Jian Qingzhu would naturally be even more outstanding in the future.


    As expected, Jian Qingzhu was the first person to defeat an opponent. The battlefield where he was had also drawn the attention of Princess Donghuang, who was now looking over in his direction.


    However, those eyes of absolute beauty did not seem to have been stirred.


    With Princess Donghuang''s status, she must have encountered many extraordinary figures. She would naturally not be impressed by this display.


    After Jian Qingzhu defeated his opponent, he stepped forward and once again walked up to the Proud Son of the Underworld, Qi Ye. The battle between Jian Qingzhu and the other cultivator of the Dark Court had only taken a short while. It was over in an instant, and Qi Ye had yet to attack.


    "Your attack is not bad. It has included many techniques. Its explosive power was as fast as lightning, and its penetration was as sharp as a sword. No wonder your senior intends to send you to be a slave under Princess Donghuang," Qi Ye spoke with an indifferent tone as he stepped forward. His words were demeaning. He actually used the word ''slave'' to describe Jian Qingzhu.


    Qi Ye then continued, "However, you can come to my Dark Court and serve under me. How about that? You were banished to the Lower Worlds anyway. You might as well betray your Academy and come to the Dark Court. It is saddening to see a top figure like you lowering your status to beg for help."


    "Silence," the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy scolded loudly. He naturally saw through that Qi Ye was trying to provoke Jiang Qingzhu and was taking pleasure in doing so.


    When he heard the other party saying this, Qi Ye smiled and walked slowly over to Jian Qingzhu. He said, "If you want to fight on behalf of Princess Donghuang, I will grant you your wish."


    Once he said this, darkness enveloped the space. The entire space immediately turned extremely cold.


    In this dark space, round patterns of light similarly appeared. However, they shone with a jet black hue and enveloped this space. The round light patterns flowed around in the space and were all around. Will of destruction spread out within the space and emanated a heavy pressure.


    It was as though this space had become the Dark World.


    Behind Qi Ye, in the darkness, an illusion of the Underworld faintly appeared. It was as though it was the true Underworld. It made many people feel despair.


    Within the Dark World, there were countless black holes. From these round black holes, spears of the Underworld appeared. Each spear emanated frightening destructive pressure.


    Jian Qingzhu''s expression was serious. He took a stance, and his Scroll of the Great Path shone even more brilliantly. White divine light emanated from it, seemingly countering his opponent''s black holes of the Underworld.


    A frenzied destructive storm swept up. It rampaged over the battlefield where the two of them stood. It was absolutely terrifying.


    "Go forth," Qi Ye uttered.


    As soon as he spoke, all the spears sprang out of the black holes of the Underworld; they were as fast as lightning. Their speed was unbelievable as they went straight for Jian Qingzhu''s body.


    Beams of dazzling white lightning shot out from Jian Qingzhu''s Scroll of the Great Path. The white beams and the spears collided. Instantly, black and white intertwined, and an even more menacing destructive storm erupted. The white beams were everywhere, while the dark spears attacked with great momentum.


    Moreover, the black holes were still spitting out spears of the Underworld continuously.


    The glint of a malicious smile flashed past in Qi Ye''s eyes while his attacks continued to descend on his opponent. He seemed to be mocking Jian Qingzhu.


    Huh? Ye Futian frowned. Something didn''t feel right.


    "Be careful," the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy cried. Jian Qingzhu seemed to have noticed something too. The Scroll of the Great Path unleashed a divine light. A brilliant light shroud protected his body. He ceased countering Qi Ye''s attack; instead, he aimed to defend himself now.


    In that instant, among the storm that was surging around his body, a formless flow of air was suddenly released. It had neither form nor shadow and seemed to merge completely into the darkness. Others could not catch sight of it with their vision nor with their wills.


    It was an invisible attack.


    Rumble. Jian Qingzhu''s body seemed to have been hit. However, the attack seemed to have been blocked by his defenses.


    Yet, after that, rumbling sounds could be heard continuously. Jian Qingzhu''s figure was knocked backward. Ye Futian revealed a very frightening gaze. His eyes seemed to be able to pierce through the void. In his mind, he saw that Jian Qingzhu was already buried by the spears of the Underworld. The attack that was hidden within the darkness seemed to be formless and could not be guarded against.


    At that moment, the black holes in the Dark World also frenziedly shot out spears of the Underworld that shot towards Jian Qingzhu. In the blink of an eye, his entire person was buried within the spears.


    "Despicable," a friend of Jian Qingzhu in the Tianshen Academy said. The elders all had ugly expressions. However, they did not say anything. This was the original ability of Qi Ye. Since it was his ability, it naturally could not be considered despicable for him to have used it.


    Qi Ye walked forward one step at a time and came up to above Jian Qingzhu. He lifted his hand and waved outwards. An even more frightening storm of darkness appeared in the sky above. The black holes spat out endless destructive divine light that rained down in the direction where Jian Qingzhu''s figure was buried.


    A terrifying, destructive light of the Underworld erupted. It was more menacing than the dark divine light. It directly slashed downwards at Jian Qingzhu.


    Rumble.


    An intense explosion was heard. Jian Qingzhu was knocked down to the ground from the sky. A golden Buddhist light shone, and the darkness dissipated. However, Jian Qingzhu''s body was tainted with many destructive auras. His clothes were tattered, and he looked somewhat miserable.


    Qi Ye cast a glance at him and continued striding forward. He walked towards Princess Donghuang and said, "I think it''s still better to have Princess give me some pointers."


    Princess Donghuang glanced at Qi Ye, then she turned and looked at Ye Futian, who was standing below. She asked, "Don''t you plan to attack?"

 1809 On Purpose

    However, Ye Futian didn''t expect that the cold and haughty Princess Donghuang would call him out in front of everyone.


    Ye Futian was curious to see how powerful Princess Donghuang was. Besides, he didn''t want to show off his ability in front of these people from the Donghuang Imperial Palace, as he was worried that they could figure him out quickly. Princess Donghuang knew too much about him already.


    Qi Ye defeated Jian Qingzhu with ease, as formidable as Jian Qingzhu was. Ye Futian would face a strenuous fight if he sparred with Qi Ye. It would be impossible for him to hold back and conceal his strength, which wasn''t what he wanted at all.


    But Princess Donghuang asked him herself. It would be rude and impudent if he declined her request. Ye Futian was caught between a rock and a hard place.


    Princess Donghuang''s eyes fixed on Ye Futian. It was hard to speculate her thoughts based on her standoffish manner. She seemed to be waiting for his answer.


    "Yes, Princess," Ye Futian nodded and replied. He would appear insensible and ignorant if he didn''t follow her order.


    Ye Futian stepped up and emitted brilliant golden light from his body. Tremendous Sword Will was condensed and released as the trumpets of the divine elephant reverberated in the void. Millions of strings of the sword came into sight in the sky and made a terrifying screeching sound.


    Hundreds of thousands of swords uttered harsh and ear-piercing shrieks together.


    Ye Futian hovered in midair. Numerous divine elephants stampeded toward his opponent.


    Qi Ye shot a glance at Ye Futian. Although this was the first time he met Ye Futian, he had heard about him back in the Hidden Land Realm. Rumor had it that Ye Futian was the most talented cultivator in the Original Realm and was known as the pride of the Original Realm. On top of that, he obtained God''s inheritance in the God''s relic.


    Qi Ye''s eyes aimed beams of light of destruction at Ye Futian as soon as Ye Futian made a move. The sky was pitch-black as a scary, swirling black hole emerged from the darkness. The black hole shot out Spears of the Underworld, each of which contained incredible destructive power.


    Qi Ye moved his hand downward. The swirling storm in the dark void instantly spewed out Spears of the Underworld toward Ye Futian''s body.


    A dazzling divine sword became visible in front of Ye Futian. He pushed his hand forward and transformed into a flash of lightning. The divine sword slashed through the sky and made an onslaught on Qi Ye.


    Qi Ye looked directly at Ye Futian. His eyes were like two fathomless abysses that could bring people into the endless darkness. Ye Futian''s dazzling divine sword thrust forward and shattered everything around it. However, a terrifying black hole appeared in front of Qi Ye''s body.


    The black hole devoured the sword of the Great Path of Destruction and even attempted to wolf down Ye Futian along with the sword.


    Ye Futian stepped back. A dark and strong air current was roaring and surging around him.


    He charged forward while being covered by the golden divine elephants. With booming noise, the invisible Spears of the Underworld rained on the divine elephants. Ye Futian was pushed back by the unstoppable force.


    Under ceaseless bombardment, the golden divine elephant that was shielding Ye Futian started to crack. Ye Futian jostled forward and smashed everything to smithereens with the Sword Will and his fists.


    In the meantime, however, a ray of Light of the Underworld shone directly on Ye Futian from above and covered his body completely.


    As Qi Ye moved his hand downward in the next moment, a dark bolt of lightning from Hell struck down and destroyed everything it touched. The area Ye Futian was standing in was buried in darkness and was about to blow out.


    Bang... The golden divine elephant covering Ye Futian''s body kept cracking and disintegrating. With a deafening sound, Ye Futian fell to the ground. As he was groaning, the divine light of the Great Path of Destruction blasted on him again.


    Bang! The divine elephant exploded. The terrifying divine light faded, but the Light of the Underworld was still cast upon Ye Futian''s body as if it would strike him again at any time.


    "Nothing special," Qi Ye glanced at Ye Futian and said. Then he raised his head to look at Princess Donghuang and asked, "May I ask Your Highness to try it out with me?"


    Princess Donghuang darted a meaningful look at Ye Futian. Then she turned her beautiful eyes to Qi Ye standing in front of her. Ye Futian felt a little uneasy.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian remained composed. Judging from the way Princess Donghuang looked at him, she might have figured something out.


    But it was not a big deal even if she saw through his trick. After all, Ye Futian fought with Qi Ye just as she requested. She couldn''t demand him to win.


    Qi Ye was the Proud Son of the Underworld, one of the most powerful cultivators of the next generation of the Dark Court.


    Ye Futian had to spare no effort and put most of his skills and techniques on display if he wanted to defeat Qi Ye. Needless to say, he preferred to prevent that from happening.


    He didn''t really care much about the result of the contest.


    At this moment, beams of extremely brilliant divine light shone from the sky and penetrated the darkness.


    The crowd immediately looked at Princess Donghuang and couldn''t help but exclaim to themselves about how ravishing she looked.


    Ye Futian also shifted his eyes to that direction. Princess Donghuang was wearing a pair of divine wings of the Phoenix, splendid and large enough to blot out the sun. Every feather on the divine wings seemed to be burning with a dazzling golden light, as though it could incinerate any person it touched.


    The wings cut through the Light of the Underworld as she spread them open. A giant shadow of the divine Phoenix emerged in the sky and covered the entire area.


    The shadow of the divine Phoenix even appeared in her eyes. Qi Ye felt excruciating pain as if his body was set on fire when she looked at him.


    "You''re not a match for me. How are you supposed to teach me a thing or two?" Princess Donghuang''s voice was cold and unfriendly. She already reached the peak of the Lower Renhuang Plane, higher than Qi Ye.


    A shrill caw of the Phoenix pierced through the sky and reverberated in the space. Qi Ye was dismayed by the sound. He felt dizzy and wobbly, as though he was about to sink into Princess Donghuang''s eyes.


    The dark and destructive energy surged frantically around his body, trying to summon the darkness again.


    Princess Donghuang took a step forward. Glorious and breathtaking, she seemed like the only person worth attention in the entire world.


    All the people fighting around them stopped and cast their eyes on Princess Donghuang. The divine wings on her back flapped and shot out scintillating divine light. The dark energy swirling around Qi Ye''s body was subdued and eventually dispersed.


    In the sky, the enormous divine Phoenix uttered a caw at Qi Ye as the divine fire engulfed the space. The shadow of the Underworld behind Qi Ye wanted to resist, yet the flames slowly consumed it.


    Facing the raging inferno, Qi Ye transformed into a black shadow and beat a hasty retreat back to the camp of the Dark Court. He looked quite embarrassed.


    Although Princess Donghuang was at a higher plane, as the Proud Son of the Underworld, he shouldn''t sustain a crushing defeat like this. He was puny and fragile when facing Princess Donghuang''s attack.


    While he didn''t exert all his strength, he also understood that Princess Donghuang didn''t either.


    It was a casual sparring session for both of them. Yet he was overwhelmed by her and couldn''t withstand a single blow.


    Princess Donghuang stepped back as if nothing happened. She quietly returned to her seat as the divine light around her body faded. She cast a disdainful look at Qi Ye and said, "Does the Dark Court plan to start the war right here?"


    Lord of the Underworld heard her and cracked a smile, "Well played. Princess Donghuang is magnificent, indeed. You are a true heir to Donghuang the Great Emperor. Qi Ye is not a match for you. We will learn from Your Highness again if the chance arises in the future. Take care."


    Cultivators from the Dark Court all moved back into the dark space where the dark energy was churning and swirling. Their bodies disappeared into the darkness in no time.


    People from the Divine Prefecture were not too excited. It was matter-of-course for them to win this battle. In fact, they were quite embarrassed since no one could beat the Proud Son of the Underworld and Princess Donghuang had to join the fight herself.


    Nevertheless, it might be a good thing to show the enemy how powerful the Princess was.


    Princess Donghuang was expected to reign over the world someday. She couldn''t conceal her strength all the time.


    "We''re incompetent and couldn''t relieve Your Highness of your worries," said the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy. Princess Donghuang shook her head. Even with Jian Qingzhu''s extraordinary talent, it was only normal for him to lose to the Proud Son of the Underworld, one of the seven Proud Sons of the Dark Court.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian... Princess Donghuang darted another look at the silver-haired man standing below and saw that he was staring at her with his clear and seemingly innocent eyes as well. She couldn''t tell if he lost to Qi Ye on purpose.


    Even so, it was highly suspicious for someone who had slaughtered high-level Renhuangs to be trounced by Qi Ye.


    Many top cultivators could tell that Ye Futian didn''t put forth his best efforts during the fight before.


    Why didn''t Ye Futian want to show off in front of Princess Donghuang?

 1810 Emperors Attendan

    As long as Ye Futian displayed his ability, he could make Princess Donghuang think highly of him even if he didn''t defeat the Proud Son of the Underworld.


    But he didn''t do that. On the contrary, he deliberately held back and lost the fight. Wouldn''t it seem impudent and perfunctory in Princess Donghuang''s eyes?


    Gai Qiong narrowed his eyes and stared at Ye Futian. Did Ye Futian not understand who Princess Donghuang was?


    Ye Futian would never rise to the high society in the Divine Prefecture if the Great Emperor learned about how he gave Princess Donghuang the runaround.


    How rude and disrespectful! Gai Qiong said, "Ye Futian, you obtained God''s inheritance and used to show off your impressive Divine Wheels in the past. Why did you lose this fight?"


    Instead of bluntly accusing Ye Futian of not making an effort, Gai Qiong only insinuated that Ye Futian didn''t do his best. But other people certainly understood that Gai Qiong was trying to ruin Ye Futian''s future by pointing it out.


    Princess Donghuang was generous enough not to make a big thing out of Ye Futian''s connection with the Devil World. Yet he was still behaving in such a brazen and irreverent manner. Gai Qiong couldn''t figure out what Ye Futian was thinking.


    Princess Donghuang obviously heard Gai Qiong''s question as well, but she didn''t pay him any attention. Standing on top of the stairs, she kept gazing at Ye Futian with her calm and captivating eyes.


    "Your Highness, Qi Ye is a very powerful cultivator. He subdued me after a moment of carelessness. Although I was still capable of fighting back, I saw that Your Highness spread the amazing divine wings. I didn''t dare to make a fumbling attempt in front of your magnificent presence. Please forgive me," Ye Futian admitted with ease. He couldn''t deny what everyone witnessed with their own eyes.


    The battle was over now. Princess Donghuang couldn''t ask him to perform in front of the crowd again.


    Princess Donghuang still stared at him distantly. She said, "You follow me."


    Then, she turned around and walked toward the palace.


    "The rest of you, please do as you wish." The divine general next to Princess Donghuang took a good look at Ye Futian, then spoke to the others.


    A strange look flashed across Gai Qiong''s face. Princess Donghuang asked Ye Futian to follow her?


    What did she mean?


    Princess Donghuang summoned Ye Futian alone.


    Was she displeased with what happened just now or was she impressed by Ye Futian for real?


    "I will be right back," Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu nodded slightly. Following a guide, Ye Futian climbed the stairs under everyone''s watch.


    The crowd made a racket after Princess Donghuang and Ye Futian left. Cultivators from different forces couldn''t stop talking and speculating.


    People from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were a little worried. No one could put their finger on Princess Donghuang''s personality. They didn''t know if she would be offended by what Ye Futian did before.


    The College Chief of the Tianshen Academy stood in place and stared at Princess Donghuang''s receding figure. He sighed to himself. Princess Donghuang didn''t mention his request, which meant that she didn''t grant it either.


    "Don''t be downhearted. Jian Qingzhu is an excellent cultivator and only lost the fight by accident. As the Proud Son of the Underworld, Qi Ye is a formidable opponent. Jian Qingzhu already proved himself to be one of the bests. He will certainly assume your mantle and make a name for himself in the Divine Prefecture in the future no matter where he cultivates," Shen Gao of the Shen clan said to the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy.


    "I hope so," the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy nodded and said, "Jian Qingzhu does have great talents. But he still needs to work harder. He can only be in awe at Princess Donghuang''s unparalleled ability."


    Shen Gao almost rolled his eyes at the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy. This old man laid his reputation on the line to beg for a brighter future for Jian Qingzhu, and he was still praising Princess Donghuang after she was gone.


    Besides, Princess Donghuang summoned Ye Futian rather than Jian Qingzhu. Did the College Chief really have no resentment?


    "Princess Donghuang is going to take over from the Great Emperor. Of course, she is incomparable," Shen Gao echoed.


    Cultivators chatted with each other casually. Some left, but the majority of the crowd stayed to see what would happen to Ye Futian. They wanted to know if Princess Donghuang had a positive or negative impression of him. Her attitude was crucial to many forces.


    At this point, Ye Futian followed Princess Donghuang into the great hall of the Empty Imperial Palace. Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian and waved her hands to order the servants to clear out. Some guards stood outside of the hall.


    Only one attendant remained by the side of Princess Donghuang.


    Ye Futian stood quietly in the great hall. He was still perplexed when he saw that Princess Donghuang turned around and stared at him.


    However, Ye Futian maintained an upright posture in front of her elegant figure as if he didn''t want to bend his head to her.


    "Can I help Your Highness?" Ye Futian asked. His voice was calm, neither supercilious nor obsequious.


    "Are you upset at me?" Princess Donghuang looked at him and asked. Her haughty bearing and her blunt question annoyed Ye Futian, yet he still kept a tight rein on his feelings and replied in a low voice, "Your Highness must be joking. I''m only a cultivator from the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Divine Prefecture. How can I be upset at Your Highness?"


    "Because of your master," Princess Donghuang continued.


    Ye Futian was surprised. He raised his head and studied her face.


    So Princess Donghuang knew that Ye Futian was among the disciples of the Cottage in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    Ye Futian didn''t expect her to remember that incident.


    He didn''t know if she had any recollection of their first meeting. They were much younger back then. He was only 16 years old. Princess Donghuang was around the same age, judging by her appearance.


    "I didn''t realize you remembered," Ye Futian admitted after a short moment of silence. There was no point for him to hide or deny since she already recognized him. He said, "How is my Master doing?"


    "Not well, of course," Princess Donghuang replied coldly. Ye Futian glared at her. His face stiffened.


    "May I ask Your Highness what crimes my Master committed?" Ye Futian asked. He was still unaware of the identity of his Master in the Cottage, nor did he know why Donghuang the Great Emperor sent people to capture him.


    "Of course, he committed crimes. You don''t need to know the details," Princess Donghuang said.


    "So, Your Highness summoned me here only to tell me that you recognized me?" Ye Futian asked her.


    Princess Donghuang still stared at him steadily. Their eyes met after minutes of silence. She still looked composed and arrogant. Unlike Ye Futian, Princess Donghuang was born with blue blood.


    Ye Futian worked his way up from the bottom even though his godfather said he was destined to be an emperor. Princess Donghuang, on the other hand, was high above others from the beginning.


    "You don''t need to be so suspicious. He was my father''s study attendant," said Princess Donghuang. Ye Futian''s eyes narrowed.


    Mr. Du from the Cottage used to follow Donghuang the Great Emperor.


    On top of that, he probably served the Twin Great Emperors at that time.


    Besides, he was the Great Emperor''s study attendant.


    It seemed like he was familiar with the Twin Great Emperors and had a close relationship with the Great Emperor. If that was true, he must have first-hand knowledge of the situation on Sky Mountain back in the days.


    Why did he stay in the Eastern Barren Territory and never display his ability?


    He probably made some mistakes as the Great Emperor''s study attendant since Princess Donghuang said he was guilty of crimes.


    "I''m meeting you because your Master pleaded with my father and wanted to know how you are doing. I got my answer now. You''d better reach Gai Qiong''s level first if you want to see your Master again. You''re not in a position to hold a bias against me yet," Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian and said disdainfully.


    Ye Futian looked back at her and smiled in silence.


    He was not good enough, indeed. She was the daughter of the sovereign of the Divine Prefecture.


    Who dared to hold a bias against her?


    Even the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy begged her to let Jian Qingzhu follow her and cultivate in the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian didn''t expect that Mr. Du still kept his disciples in mind after being captured.


    It sounded like that his Master was probably imprisoned by Donghuang the Great Emperor and still alive.


    "You can go back now. I hope you can become stronger the next time I see you. You don''t have to hide your strength from me," Princess Donghuang said in an arrogant tone.


    Ye Futian looked at her and smiled, said, "I will do as Your Highness wish. Goodbye."


    Then, he turned around and left the great hall.


    After Ye Futian was gone, the divine general next to Princess Donghuang asked, "It seems that Your Highness look on him with favor. I heard this man''s talent is unmatched in the Original Realm. Should we consider taking him back to the Divine Prefecture to cultivate?"


    "The truly talented people can cultivate anywhere," Princess Donghuang replied.


    "You''re right," the divine general nodded in agreement. Princess Donghuang gazed at Ye Futian''s retreating figure and cast her mind back to the first time she met him. She figured it was quite difficult for him to achieve his current position.


    She was only 16 years old when she saw a distressed young man on Mount Tianyao.


    The crowd stared at Ye Futian when he returned from the great hall. No one dared to sneak a peek at what happened inside, nor did they know what Princess Donghuang said to Ye Futian. Everyone was burning with curiosity.


    Especially people from the Shen clan and the Golden Divine Nation. They had a crucial battle only days ago. Needless to say, they were eager to know Princess Donghuang''s attitude toward Ye Futian.


    However, it appeared that nothing big happened inside. Otherwise, Ye Futian wouldn''t come out in such a short time.


    Ye Futian certainly knew what they were thinking about. He shot them a glance and had no intention of disclosing anything. They should play the guessing game with themselves.


    To be honest, he and Princess Donghuang didn''t discuss much. She summoned him only because of his Master.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said to Lord Taixuan and the others. Lord Taixuan nodded and understood that there was no problem between Ye Futian and Princess Donghuang. He felt much relieved.


    Soon, they left the Empty Imperial Palace and prepared to return to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The cultivators from other forces dispersed after Ye Futian was gone. Princess Donghuang came to the Empty Imperial Palace and made some rules. But it didn''t mean the Nine Realms would remain peaceful in the future. The path ahead would still be bloody, albeit organized.

 1811 Undercurren

    Many people were curious about what Princess Donghuang said to Ye Futian when they were alone. Nevertheless, no one asked such an impertinent question.


    Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian walked ahead, holding hands. She slightly turned sideways and looked at Ye Futian with her clear, beautiful eyes. Then she asked in a soft voice, "What did she want you for?"


    Hua Jieyu had been innocent and ingenuous ever since she came out of the Brahma''s Pure Sky. Little by little, she started to understand certain things now that she had been around Ye Futian for a while.


    For example, she became aware of the concept of jealousy.


    Princess Donghuang was so stunning. If Hua Jieyu were a man, she probably would be attracted to a woman as beautiful as Princess Donghuang. On top of that, as the daughter of Donghuang the Great Emperor, Princess Donghuang was the most prestigious woman in the entire Divine Prefecture.


    Taken by surprise, Ye Futian blinked his eyes. He didn''t expect Jieyu to ask him about his conversation with Princess Donghuang. Besides, Ye Futian could sense her honest and genuine emotion when he looked into her bright eyes.


    "You really want to know?" Ye Futian asked her with a smile.


    "Yes." Hua Jieyu nodded slightly.


    "Why?" Ye Futian asked mischievously. He was poking fun at her on purpose. From what he could see, Jieyu seemed more and more lively and spirited nowadays, even though he knew she might never be the same person anymore. He started to feel like she could completely forget about the past and fall in love with him one more time.


    "Am I not your wife?" Hua Jieyu said as a matter of course.


    Ye Futian was at a loss for words. She was absolutely right!


    The wind whipped through Hua Jieyu''s long, black hair. Ye Futian smoothed out her hair on her forehead and gazed at her familiar face. He said gently, "There was a Master who treated me very well when I was in the Eastern Barren Territory many years ago. You were in the Eastern Barren Territory too at that time. And you used to visit the Cottage. I told you about this."


    "The Master of you and second sister?" Hua Jieyu asked.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded and continued, "He was taken away later by Princess Donghuang. She said he committed some crimes. That''s why she wanted to talk to me."


    Hua Jieyu nodded and asked, "Then how is your Master doing now?"


    "She said he is not well. But he asked her to check on us and see if we are okay," Ye Futian answered in a low voice. Hua Jieyu was silent for a while. She tried hard to cast her mind back to that time, yet couldn''t remember anything. It sounded vaguely familiar to her, but she still felt like her memory was sealed off somewhere.


    "Futian, who is your Master?" Lord Taixuan asked.


    "I just heard from Princess Donghuang that my Master was the Great Emperor''s study attendant," said Ye Futian.


    "Oh, I see." Lord Taixuan nodded. No wonder Princess Donghuang summoned Ye Futian alone. Regardless, Lord Taixuan never contacted Donghuang the Great Emperor and didn''t know much about the people around the Great Emperor.


    It appeared that Ye Futian''s Master was responsible for some crimes. Such a pity. Otherwise, Ye Futian could have had a connection with the Great Emperor. Being the Great Emperor''s study attendant might sound insignificant. Still, the person would have a close relationship with the Great Emperor and might be able to bring Ye Futian directly to the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    "So Gu Dongliu is also his disciple?" Jiang Chengzi from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven asked.


    "Yes," Ye Futian smiled and nodded. "Third brother Gu was the one who taught me most of the time. Our Master didn''t like to run the show."


    "He must be a fascinating person," Jiang Chengzi commented in a low voice. Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu were both his disciples and built such a deep friendship with each other. He truly deserved to be the Great Emperor''s study attendant.


    "Yes, a fascinating person who doesn''t know much about cultivation," Ye Futian laughed. Now that he thought about it, his Master only demonstrated his skills once in the end.


    He didn''t even give his disciples many lessons.


    ...


    Without any conflict or dispute, cultivators from different forces each returned home. It was almost as if the grudges and animosity between them evaporated all of a sudden.


    Nonetheless, everyone in the Nine Realms understood that the world''s division was already determined, and at least one group would be eliminated sooner or later.


    For instance, the Heavenly Mandate Academy alliance and the partnership between the Golden Divine Nation and the Shen clan were irreconcilable. After the battle of the Divine Palace, they would not quit unless the opponent was annihilated. Although Princess Donghuang set up certain rules, they would try their best to find a way to eliminate each other within the rules.


    Also, the four top forces in the Ziwei Realm picked different sides. The future clashes were unavoidable.


    The same thing went for the Central Emperor Realm. Unless they could maintain the balance forever, one side would conquer or destroy the other side at some point in the future. The only thing uncertain was the timing.


    However, both sides had been holding still since Ye Futian, and the others returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They both knew that the problem had extended far beyond the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Golden Divine Nation. Even if one group in the Ziwei Realm went to the Empty Imperial Palace and requested to start a war on another group, everyone would be dragged into the mess immediately.


    Would the Heavenly Mandate Academy sit idly by if the Dou tribe wanted to launch an attack?


    Subsequently, would the Golden Divine Nation watch the Dou tribe destroying the School of the Emperor Star?


    After the Divine Palace''s battle, the Golden Divine Nation had no choice but to ally their won. Otherwise, they could be overpowered by the Heavenly Mandate Academy and their allies.


    Therefore, neither side acted recklessly for now.


    The Nine Realms entered another period of peace. In the meantime, the forces from the Divine Prefecture were also weighing their options.


    Princess Donghuang dictated a set of rules for them. Any of them involved in the war in the Original Realm would not be allowed to leave the Original Realm for ten years.


    While it wasn''t too long of a time, nobody knew what would happen in ten years.


    The master cultivators especially needed to think it over. Their group couldn''t afford to have multiple of them staying in the Original Realm at the same time for ten years. What if something happened in the Divine Prefecture?


    The peace didn''t last long. A deep undercurrent was surging underneath the surface in the Nine Realms.


    On this day, Gai Qiong and Gai Cang were sitting on the thrones in the Golden Divine Nation. Their faces both turned gloomy after hearing a piece of news.


    "You can''t figure it out?" With a grim expression, Gai Cang asked the person who reported the news.


    "Your Majesty, we couldn''t find anything," the person replied.


    "How many people so far?" Gai Cang''s voice was ice cold.


    "Eight." The messenger lowered his head.


    In recent days, several cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation disappeared and later found dead one after the other. Their investigation yielded zero results, and they had no clue who was targeting them.


    Moreover, the victims were all key figures in the Golden Divine Nation. To successfully assassinate them without leaving a trace or drawing any attention, the enemy must be exceptionally powerful and well-prepared.


    "Useless!" Gai Cang scolded him, "Keep investigating!"


    "Yes, Your Majesty." The man bowed and left. Gai Qiong and Gai Cang exchanged a look. Gai Cang asked, "They have been quiet these days. Could it be them attacking us in secret?"


    "Princess Donghuang set the rules herself. I don''t think they dare to defy her." Gai Qiong''s eyebrows knitted tightly. He served under Donghuang the Great Emperor and believed in Princess Donghuang''s authority.


    "Ye Futian always does as he pleases with no respect for the rules. We don''t know what he and Princess Donghuang talked about when she summoned him alone that day. Perhaps Princess Donghuang was really impressed by him and dropped a hint. Thus, he ignored her rules and assassinated our people secretly?" Gai Cang said suspiciously.


    Gai Qiong frowned. No one knew what Princess Donghuang and Ye Futian discussed that day. Everyone waiting outside was speculating.


    Did Princess Donghuang look on Ye Futian with favor?


    Ye Futian might be bold enough to conduct such operations if Princess Donghuang gave him a hint for real.


    "Besides, I asked around. Only people from our Golden Divine Nation were killed." Gai Cang''s voice was low and hoarse. He continues, "I think it''s necessary to inform the Empty Imperial Palace about these assassinations. We can only put more pressure on our enemies this way."


    Actually, the Golden Divine Nation was not the only group that was targeted. Several forces in the Nine Realms had lost a handful of cultivators each in the past few days. Their investigations didn''t go anywhere either.


    However, it didn''t cause an uproar since most of the forces only had one or two people killed. Although those groups didn''t publicize the issue, there was plenty of internal speculation and discussion.


    For example, the same thing happened in the Ziwei Realm. Many people were wary of each other.


    If they made it public and communicated with each other, they might realize that it was somewhat similar to when Hell resurged.


    ...


    Right now, in the domain of Hell -- the top force that unified the Hidden Land Realm.


    Lord of the Underworld sat high in the Throne of the Underworld. His eyes scanned the people around him. There weren''t many of them, but they were all extremely powerful, like a circle of black shadows.


    "What''s going on out there now?" Lord of the Underworld asked.


    "They are suspecting each other," one person replied. The Nine Realms were already in a muddle. These assassinations would make them distrust each other even more.


    Lord of the Underworld gazed into the distance. The current situation in the Nine Realms provided them an excellent chance.


    They went to the Central Emperor Realm last time in the name of meeting Princess Donghuang. While in fact, that was only one of their objects. They also wanted to see how powerful the cultivators who gathered in the Empty Imperial Palace truly were.


    They could use that information to plan for their actions.


    "What about the Empty Imperial Palace?" Lord of the Underworld asked.


    "About the same. Princess Donghuang doesn''t seem to be leaving any time soon," the man replied again.


    "Let''s ignore her. She commands nine realms, yet our Dark Court only controls one. That''s not enough," Lord of the Underworld said coldly, "Gather our people. Let''s do it!"

 1812 Apocalypse of Shadow

    Solar Realm.


    The whole Shadow Realm was filled with dark and cold air. The cultivators of this land were skilled at shadow magic.


    It was said that in the Nine Realms, the Solar Realm and the Shadow Realm had been forged and nurtured from divine items.


    Youyue Divine Palace was called the master of the current Shadow Realm, and it was the strongest force there.


    They had their own force from the Upper Realms, which was an incredibly powerful force. Now they had come down to the Lower Realms and were slowly taking over Youyue Divine Palace. Moreover, they seemed to want to take over the entire Shadow Realm.


    On this day, Youyue Divine Palace seemed to hang high in the sky like a moon palace. Clear and cold halls surrounded the divine mountain. There were many women there.


    Due to their feminine physiques, women were skilled at shadow magic. Thus, many of the cultivators of Youyue Divine Palace were women. This was exactly opposite from the Solar Palace. Most of the cultivators, some men, cultivated sun magic.


    At that moment, a supremely beautiful woman was sitting upon a practice stage in the palace. Her aura was cold and clear. She sat there cultivating alone, seeming very solitary.


    A figure approached her from the front. Suddenly, the woman opened her eyes and said, "Master."


    This woman was the Goddess Chang Xi of Youyue Divine Palace.


    Her master looked off into the distance, making Chang Xi ask, "What is wrong, master?"


    "My heart is troubled. I feel like something is about to happen," said her master.


    "Right now, the Nine Realms are relatively calm. Princess Donghuang has personally commanded the fighting to stop. There won''t be any trouble for the time being," said Chang Xi. Youyue Divine Palace had been gathering its strength and cultivating in secret. They were not displaying their power.


    If there were any sudden disasters, they would not happen to them.


    Chang Xi''s master frowned and said, "Given the current disorder, anything could happen. Moreover, there are more powers in the Nine Realms than those under the control of the Divine Prefecture."


    Chang Xi knew what her master was talking about. Previously, the cultivators of Hell had descended upon the Empty Imperial Palace. The Dark Court had been behind that. Now they had taken over the Hidden Land Realm, which meant that they had designs for the Nine Realms.


    Woosh! A grey figure flashed towards them off in the distance, moving as swiftly as a bolt of lightning. A voice resonated throughout Youyue Divine Palace, "The Hidden Land Realm has attacked the Shadow Realm!"


    In but an instant, many Renhuangs appeared and stood up in the sky.


    The Hidden Land Realm had invaded.


    They all knew very clearly what this meant. The Hidden Land Realm was under the control of the Dark Court. If the Dark Army had attacked, this meant that the Dark Court had launched a realm war. They meant to swallow up the Shadow Realm.


    The Shadow Realm bordered the Hidden Land Realm and had similar atmospheres. Thus, the Dark Court had sent their army there first. Did they mean to take the whole realm?


    A figure appeared up in the sky. Moonlight fell, covering the entire area.


    "Guang Han, go to the Empty Imperial Palace right now and ask for help," ordered the figure up in the sky.


    "Yuechan, lead the people below the Renhuang level away from here. And send a few groups to other forces to ask them to join together and help us."


    "Yes, Palace Lord," came the answer. Suddenly, a group of figures flew through the sky as the palace became a scene of chaos. Everyone at low level was beginning to leave.


    They knew that given Youyue Divine Palace''s power, they would have no way to resist when the Dark Court invaded. They had to go to the Empty Imperial Palace to ask for help. However, they also knew it probably wouldn''t come in time.


    Also, if the Dark Court wanted to occupy the Shadow Realm, they probably would not only attack them. They would attack all the forces in the Shadow Realm and conquer them.


    Just as the Palace Lord of the Youyue Divine Palace gave those orders, darkness began to spread towards them from a distance, like night was falling. It was moving extremely quickly.


    In a short time, the divine beings within Youyue Divine Palace no longer shone with such brilliant moonlight. It was as if they had been infected by a darkness that was suppressing them.


    A vast army appeared in the dark sky under the moonlight, outside of the palace.


    The Lord of the Underworld, one of the seven kings of the Dark Court, was among them. He had brought many cultivators with him. And not only that but some of the other forces of the Dark World had also rushed to the Shadow Realm.


    Suddenly, many terrifying black holes appeared in the dark sky, like vortexes of the underworld. Destructive underworld spears appeared and shot downward towards Youyue Divine Palace. In a flash, many cracking sounds rang out, followed by cries of pain. Many of the people of Youyue Divine Palace had been slain by the spears that now pinned them to the ground.


    "Go!" yelled someone. Terrible, massive dark beasts were charging towards them. They looked like monsters from Hell. They had ferocious fangs with which they bit the cultivators on the ground to death. They rampaged through Youyue Divine Palace, killing everywhere they went.


    Everywhere they passed was left in dead silence. Not even the grass was left alive.


    They were cruel and violent, and they brought endless death and despair to them.


    This was the Dark Court.


    There had been a death knell when the Dark World went to war. They brought darkness everywhere they went and left no light.


    The cultivators of Youyue Divine Palace were furious when they saw all this, but the powerful standing up in the air remained calm. Although there was fury in their hearts, they would not let it influence the situation.


    This was what the world of cultivators was like. It was just that such fierce fighting had not happened in the Nine Realms in too long.


    But several centuries ago, a slaughter like this would not have been out of the ordinary. People everywhere would have been plunged into an abyss of misery.


    In the previous internal disputes of the Divine Prefecture, there had been rules. The realms under Princess Donghuang could be constrained, but the Dark World would not be so compliant with their invasion. This was not at all like a battle between two armies. It was a slaughter.


    Words paled before a slaughter like this. They would have no meaning. Thus, no one asked for mercy, and none was given.


    "Everyone attack! But do not be overzealous in your fighting!" ordered the Palace Lord of Youyue Divine Palace. The opposing army had come to destroy them. In this situation, it would be suicide to fight them with all their might. None of them would survive it.


    Today, they would all try to escape.


    Thus, she had ordered them to fight their way out.


    "Protect the Goddess." Her eyes fell upon Chang Xi, and a mighty aura burst forth from her. Suddenly, the vast area around her turned extremely cold and filled with dark, icy power.


    A full moon appeared behind her. Moonlight fell upon the army of the Dark Court. Suddenly, many of them were covered in frost. They had been frozen by Great Path ice seals.


    At the same time, destructive attacks burst forth under the moonlight, smashing into the icy area. Many of the frozen figures were shattered and killed.


    More and more people were dying every moment. It was a horrifying scene.


    The Lord of the Underworld cast his gaze over his opponent. An underworld spear appeared in one of the terrible black vortexes. He stepped forward, and endless airflows of destruction and death swept out from the spear, shooting towards the full moon. Everywhere it went, death swept through the crowds of people. Many people were covered by the death will and died instantly.


    Several great figures stepped out beside him, walking towards the great figures of Youyue Divine Palace.


    Behind Youyue Divine Palace, several cultivators were taking Chang Xi away, but they were being pursued.


    "Get her! I want her alive," said the Lord of the Underworld, looking at Chang Xi. She was a remarkable woman, beautiful and talented, and she was the goddess of Youyue Divine Palace. He could leave her alive.


    Chang Xi went pale. Under the dark sky, all of Youyue Divine Palace was covered by death will. It was like the god of death had descended upon them. All the ancient halls and palaces crumbled and were destroyed. They had no way to stop the invasion of the Dark Army.


    Now, all they could hope to do was survive.


    ...


    While Youyue Divine Palace was being attacked, the other forces of the Shadow Ream were under attack as well.


    At this time, the Snow Divine Kingdom, which stood within the Shadow Realm, was facing destruction.


    Although they were strong, they had no incredibly powerful figures garrisoned there. Thus, even though there was only one great figure in the army from the Dark World that was attacking them, the Snow Divine Kingdom had absolutely no power to withstand them. They would be destroyed in an instant.


    A group of figures stood before the palace in the Snow Divine Kingdom, watching the battle happening in the air off in the distance. There were hopeless looks on their faces.


    Ye Man was there as well, watching the battlefield with her beautiful eyes. Her father, the ruler of the Snow Divine Kingdom, had a dark spear pierce through his heart at that moment. Countless hopeless cries rose from below.


    Ye Man''s face went extremely pale. She had no more strength.


    Why was this happening?


    In the past, when the one she loved had been killed, she had not had any power to fight. Now, the Snow Divine Kingdom was being destroyed, and she could once again only watch. Since she had not yet reached the Renhuang level, she could not participate in the battle. She did not even have the right to die here.


    A group of figures descended before her. The people of the Dark World had sinister eyes, and they looked at them as if they were prey. One of them looked at her and said, "Leave this woman alive."


    One of the others nodded. Ye Man trembled. It was hopeless. She was powerless!

 1813 The Divine Item of the Shadow Realm

    This news spread quickly throughout the Nine Realms, shocking all the forces there. Everyone was at risk.


    The Dark Court had officially embarked upon the path of aggression.


    This meant that they were truly making a comeback. The chaotic war that had ended more than 300 years ago had started once again.


    With that background, how could the forces of the Nine Realms not worry? Who knew whether or not the Dark Court''s next target would be them?


    Once the Dark Army descended, there was no way that a single force could withstand them. Youyue Divine Palace had been mighty, and some of their top cultivators were even from the Divine Prefecture. But they had been destroyed all the same. Their palace lord had fought fiercely and yet had still been slain. Such an extremely powerful figure had not even been able to escape.


    Ye Futian and his people received this news relatively early because Chang Xi, the Goddess of Youyue Divine Palace, fled to the Heavenly Mandate Realm with a few others. The reason she had been able to survive was that her master had stood before her and drawn the enemies'' attention, giving her a chance to flee.


    A few other cultivators fled with her at that time. They all went to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Ye Futian and the others were all awaiting news in the Heavenly Mandate Palace. When the news came, Ye Futian told Chang Xi and the others from Youyue Divine Palace. The palace had been destroyed, and the palace lord was dead.


    When they heard this, the cultivators of Youyue Divine Palace were incredibly downcast. They were so silent that it was a little frightening.


    "I''m sorry for your loss, Goddess." Ye Futian saw that Chang Xi had not said anything and seemed slightly depressed. He said this to comfort her, but it was of no use.


    No matter who was facing this kind of situation, they would feel heartsick. It was not something that could be comforted by a few simple words.


    Chang Xi looked up at Ye Futian, her face downcast. At that moment, she was not as exquisitely beautiful as in the past, but instead had a look that made people pity her. Her beautiful eyes were lifeless.


    "The Nine Realms are shaken. I knew that chaos was coming, but I would never have thought it would be this sudden. Moreover, I never thought it would fall on us first," Chang Xi whispered. "It''s like a nightmare."


    Even if she were a Renhuang, she still would have had this unreal feeling.


    Youyue Divine Palace had always stood at the pinnacle of the Shadow Realm. Who would have thought that they would suddenly be destroyed in a single night? Few others could understand what she was feeling.


    And Chang Xi was the Goddess of Youyue Divine Palace. No one had suffered more from this than her.


    Was what happened to the Divine Palace not the same? Nowadays, he was starting to get used to it. In the past, many top forces had been reduced to no more than history in both the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Higher Heavens Realm. Now looking back, forces such as the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty and the Divine Sword Li Family had all been celebrated and stood at the very peak of their realms. But they had both been reduced to no more than ash.


    Nothing in this world was permanent.


    Now he was at the Heavenly Mandate Academy and had a powerful sense of danger. The academy itself was the same. They had experienced many trials. Perhaps one day, it would no longer exist. If that happened, would he feel like it was strange?


    "The army of Hell has invaded the Shadow Realm and will possibly continue to other realms. We should be careful here in the Heavenly Mandate Academy," Chang Xi reminded Ye Futian, seeming to just think of this. "Moreover. the people who fled from the Youyue Divine Palace have probably already reached all of the other realms."


    "I understand," said Ye Futian with a nod. "It is said that Princess Donghuang is still in the Empty Imperial Palace. This news will reach her very soon. The Dark Army has made its move, so Princess Donghuang will not just sit by and watch. I think she will move very soon."


    "Mmm," said Chang Xi, nodding. "The Nine Realms lack cohesion, and each has its own motives. Only Princess Donghuang can control them."


    Ye Futian realized this as well. These days, there were dark undercurrents running through the Nine Realms, making many of the forces very nervous. He had heard Dou Zhao speak of the Ziwei Realm. The atmosphere there was apparently very tense.


    Now looking back at it, could it be that the Dark Court was behind all of that?


    After all, the more troubled the forces of the Nine Realms became, the more beneficial it would be to the Dark Court. The Nine Realms would not be able to coalesce into a strong power.


    He had not thought that as conflicts continuously erupted while the Nine Realms were in such a disordered state, the Dark Army of the Dark Court would invade.


    Now, given this background and the power of the Dark Army, no realm had the power to resist them. Perhaps only the Central Imperial Realm could hold them back a little bit.


    After a period of time, a great figure descended from the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The man was armored and bathed in divine light as if he was a god of war.


    Everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm looked up at him, including Ye Futian. He recognized the person who was coming. It was one of the cultivators he had seen beside Princess Donghuang.


    "Orders from the Princess!" said the man in a clear voice. "The Dark Army is invading and now occupies the Shadow Realm and can launch an invasion into other realms at any time. Thus, all the Nine Realms must forge a teleportation great matrix with the Empty Imperial Palace at the center. All the forces of the Nine Realms can use it to teleport to the palace. In this way, all the forces can gather together at short notice and travel to any one of the Nine Realms. Do you have any objections?"


    Lord Taixuan answered from within the Heavenly Mandate Realm. "We will obey."


    "Good. We will send people to help set up the matrix. The Heavenly Mandate Realm will center their matrix on the Heavenly Mandate Academy," said the divine general up in the air in a clear voice. All of the realms would be connected through the Empty Imperial Palace.


    In this way, the same thing that had happened in the Shadow Realm would not happen to other realms. They would not be directly attacked and destroyed.


    "Very well," said Lord Taixuan. Facing the Dark Court was no longer a single realm''s affair.


    If the Dark Court descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they would not be able to handle it on their own.


    Princess Donghuang sent people to the other realms as well. They prepared a series of extremely powerful matrices that all connected to the Empty Imperial Palace.


    At the same time, the Youyue Divine Palace in the Shadow Realm was occupied by the Dark Court.


    However, the Dark Court seemed to be busy with something. They were setting something up in the recently destroyed Youyue Divine Palace. Stone pillars that led down to Hell were implanted in the ground. Endless death lightning wrapped around the pillars, connecting across the whole city.


    And not only that. Mysterious connections were formed between the stone pillars, forming a terrible force field filled with destructive power.


    What was even more frightening was that most of the Dark Army that had come from the Hidden Land Realm were busy with this. They seemed never to rest. They kept adding more stone pillars, and the forcefield grew stronger and stronger until they were so strong it was astonishing.


    "What are they doing?" asked someone bold enough to watch this happening from a distance.


    What was the Dark Army doing?


    As the number of stone pillars increased, they gradually formed a terrifying magnetic field. There were constant, terrible rumbling sounds that probably came from shaking deep beneath the earth.


    Off in another direction, the leader of the Dark Army, the Lord of the Underworld, was watching everything.


    The Proud Son of Darkness Qi Ye stood behind him. He looked at the Lord of the Underworld and said, "Are there really divine items hidden underground in the Shadow Realm?"


    "Of course," answered the Lord of the Underworld. Why else would the Nine Supreme Realms be at the center of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path?"


    "This task seems a bit too arduous," said Qi Ye, staring forward. It would probably not be easy to uncover a divine item. They had already commenced arranging things.


    At that moment, brilliant divine light flashed in the sky, piercing all the darkness.


    Everyone looked up and saw a divine general bathed in holy radiance.


    The great divine general who was always with Princess Donghuang had arrived.


    He was all alone, and yet he had come to Youyue Divine Palace, which was occupied by his enemies.


    He and the Lord of the Underworld stared at each other, forming a terrible force field. Everyone around them looked on in fear.


    Woosh!


    The divine general acted. Suddenly, countless brilliant, golden divine spears fell from the sky, turning into a divine golden rain. The rain covered a vast area.


    At that moment, the Dark Army was thrown into disarray. Was this man really so confident in his own power?


    One person had come here alone. He must have been crazy.


    The Lord of the Underworld naturally saw this as well. He reached out, and suddenly endless black holes of the Underworld appeared, spitting out terrifying vortex storms to block his opponent''s attack.


    This was clearly one of Princess Donghuang''s bodyguards, and so his power went without saying. Even the Lord of the Underworld did not dare take this lightly.


    Boom! The golden spears transformed into golden light, swifter and fiercer than lighting. They pierced into the vast hellish vortexes.


    Cracking sounds rang out as the light broke out through the other side of the vortexes, shattering them to pieces.


    Moreover, the golden light spread out, covering a vast area. It was like a golden river of stars was falling like rain. People of lower levels could not withstand it. This divine general had no intention of showing any mercy. He had come with the desire to slaughter in his heart!

 1814 Summoned Again

    Suddenly, this dark space became extremely oppressive. Even the giant stone pillars on the ground lit up with brilliant red light at this moment. The blood-colored light permeated the space, shining in this destructive dark world, a frightful sight to behold.


    "How have you been?" Clearly, the Lord of the Underworld recognized the divine general who appeared. Divine Prefecture and the Dark Court had warred once upon a time, and as both of them were top figures in their respective camps, naturally, they knew one another.


    The Divine general glanced at the other and asked, "So, the Dark Court would completely violate the promise made in the past?"


    "As we have already said when we were at the Empty Imperial Palace, times are different now. The Gate of Hell has been opened, which means that everything is bound to start over again. The Dark Court has only occupied two supreme realms, but you, even with the exception of the Mountain Realm, you still have control over six other realms, don''t you?" the Lord of the Underworld said.


    Mountain Realm was mostly a principality of Buddhism. Because of the close relationship between Donghuang the Great and the Buddhist sect, they had also participated in the previous war. Therefore, the Mountain Realm in the Void Realm was ruled by Divine Prefecture in name only. It had always been the Buddhist sect that preached in the Mountain Realm; the Divine Prefecture would never interfere with that.


    "Start over again?" The divine general gazed at the opponent, focusing on the stone pillars. "The Dark Court never had the intention of controlling the Original Realm except to continue to plunder its resources. Now, the Original Realm only has the Nine Realms; do you plan to destroy that too?"


    The people in the Original Realm didn''t really know many things in the past, but as the divine general of the Divine Prefecture, he would be privy to some of the secrets of the Original Realm.


    In time immemorial, the Original Realm was once the main realm. It had experienced the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the expansion, and the explosion of the world, and after countless decades, it became the Original Realm that everyone knew today. But the reality was, every realm within the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had some hidden secrets.


    For example, the Empty Realm that Ye Futian fought for many years ago between Emperor Xia''s Realm and Dali was, in fact, a place of resource for cultivation.


    Like the Solar Realm and the Shadow Realm, many places could only be places for people to cultivate.


    But now, the Dark Court was making its comeback and wanted to disrupt everything again. They had their eyes first set on the Shadow Realm, preparing to plunder the main realm of the 3,000 Realm of the Great Path.


    If the Dark Court were to be successful, then the entire Shadow Realm would be finished.


    All beings in the Shadow Realm would suffer greatly, and in the future, it would no longer be one of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. It would be reduced to the likes of some ancient ruined realms, as in the history of the Original Realm.


    Before the unification of the Divine Prefecture, this kind of fighting was commonplace. At that time, not only the Nine Supreme Regions but many other realms were plundered. Therefore, those who had personally experienced that era had a great appreciation for both Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. They both had always held on to their own ideals and pursued their own goals.


    "If the Dark Court intends to do so, then we have no choice but to go to war again." The divine general spoke coldly, with a terrifying look in his eyes as he surveyed the cultivators around him.


    Once the war started, it would implicate the long-standing dispute between Divine Prefecture and the Dark Court, and it would be another bloody showdown.


    Not only that but if they go to war, would other forces from the Upper Worlds also participate?


    "We don''t ask much. This time, we only want the Hidden Land Realm and the Shadow Realm." The Lord of the Underworld said to the divine general, "You can tell Princess Donghuang, if our demand was refused, then, whether we go to war or not is completely up to you."


    The attribute power of the Shadow Realm was closer to that of the Dark Court, which was infinitely beneficial to their cultivation. Therefore, in the Nine Realms, after they had taken down the Hidden Land Realm, their second goal was the Shadow Realm.


    The divine general glanced at the opponent coldly, then turned to leave. After all, he was by himself, so that he couldn''t contend against the top existences on the opponent''s side.


    "Continue," commanded the Lord of the Underworld. Suddenly, all the cultivators dispersed to continue arranging the stone pillars, as if they were forging a supreme great matrix.


    Over the years, although they were not in the Original Realm, the Dark Court had been keeping a lookout for something.


    Cultivation at this level had the ability to crush sky and earth with a simple wave of the hand, even an entire world could be shattered. For instance, in many realms of the 3,000 Realm of the Great Path, someone like the Lord of the Underworld could smash anything he wished.


    However, it was a different story in the Great Nine Supreme Imperial Realms.


    He had tried but was unable to reach the depths of this realm. He could only draw the power from it with the help of a matrix.


    Otherwise, if it could be accessed directly, the cultivators from the Shadow Realm would have already tapped into it years ago.


    Of course, even if they couldn''t access it, as long as they were in the Shadow Realm, their natural ability to comprehend the shadow power was stronger, just like those in the Solar Realm would be more sensitive comprehend the power of flames.


    Above the Shadow Realm, there were more stone pillars, radiating into the endless distance, and they were still increasing. It was as if it intended to cover the entire realm. However, this was not realistic. The Shadow Realm spread across a vast area, so it was impossible to be completed covered.


    But as the great army from the Dark Court working at it tirelessly, an area the size of a city was already covered, and the work hadn''t finished. The area covered by the stone pillars exuded a horrific aura.


    Many cultivators in the Shadow Realm had begun to leave. They dared not stay, fearing facing great disasters in the future.


    Now, everyone in the entire Shadow Realm was sorely afraid.


    At the Central Emperor Realm, in the Empty Imperial Palace, Princess Donghuang once again summoned the cultivators of the Nine Realms, preparing to gather all the power of the Nine Realms in anticipation of dealing with the Dark Court.


    After the divine general brought back the message, she did not even consider the possibility to compromise and give up the Shadow Realm. Although a war may result in more deaths, the struggle between the two could only end in one way. The Dark Court would not stop at the victory of taking over the Shadow Realm. When their strength increased, they might continue to encroach on other realms, just as they had made their comeback despite their previous defeat and subsequent retreat from the Original Realm many years back.


    Such a situation could only be resolved by war. If they could eliminate the opponent, they would wipe them out without reservation.


    Oftentimes, war was a necessary means in the pursuit of peace. If there were no victory for the Divine Prefecture, the peace that had been enjoyed for more than three hundred years would not have been possible. The Three Thousand Realm of the Great Path would still be in chaos without order.


    Therefore, Princess Donghuang immediately summoned all the cultivators and prepared to send troops to the Shadow Realm. It was a matter that could not be delayed. With each moment, the great army of darkness that occupied the Shadow Realm would only become stronger and more dangerous.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian and the others gathered when they received news from the Empty Imperial Palace. They had been called to depart immediately to Empty Imperial Palace, in preparation for going to the Shadow Realm.


    Currently, they were discussing which of their cultivators should be dispatched.


    "Princess Donghuang had summoned us to convene, and that the top figures must attend; what has happened in the Shadow Realm?" asked Ye Futian.


    "The Dark Court is preparing to refine the Shadow Realm," replied the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace.


    "Refining the Shadow Realm?" Ye Futian was taken by surprise.


    "Do you remember the stone tablet at the ancestral land in the Divine Palace?" asked the Palace Lord.


    "Mmm." Ye Futian nodded. The tablet was now at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "That was the divine item leftover from the time when Heavenly Path collapsed. In fact, the Three Thousand Realm of the Great Path itself is a leftover from the ancient times when the Heavenly Path collapsed. Some realms had its cultivation resources plundered and consumed, but others didn''t. The Shadow Realm was probably one of them," explained the Palace Lord.


    Ye Futian was astounded. He didn''t expect that there were such secrets. Could this be the essence of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path?


    "Judging from that, the entire Shadow Realm is a great treasure trove of divine items?" Ye Futian asked.


    "One can say that the closure of the passage to the Original Realm by Donghuang the Great was to protect the Original Realm. Its land can no longer withstand plundering, and its resources for cultivation are few. Many years ago, it had been plundered and cleaned out for generations." The Palace Lord continued.


    Ye Futian had heard about this before. The Original Realm was once the origin of the world. The reason for its weakened state was precisely because of countless years of plunder.


    All of its top figures had all gone to the Outer Realms to seek their fortunes.


    "Once the Dark Court draws on the power of the Shadow Realm, it will make them stronger. That is why Princess Donghuang ordered the leaders from all the principalities to meet there." The Palace Master continued, "But, I am a little worried."


    "Worried about what?" Ye Futian asked.


    "All the principalities from the Nine Realms are now plotting against one another. How much effort will they really exert? Don''t forget, many of them are mortal enemies of one another, just like the Golden Divine Nation and us. If this battle were to erupt, once a top figure falls, the elimination of the Dark Court might mean that eventually, these forces from the Nine Realms would wipe each other out."


    The Palace Lord continued, "Therefore, I am worried that many of these principalities will reserve their strength and not give their all in the battle. Furthermore, the battlefield can change rapidly. With everyone looking out for themselves, who knows what will happen during the battle? Even if we participate in it, we can''t be too careful, and we have to rely on ourselves."


    "This time, Futian shouldn''t go," Lord Taixuan said, not wanting Ye Futian to participate. The Dark Court aside, he was worried about possibly being ambush by those from the Nine Realms.


    "Let''s go to the Empty Imperial Palace first as ordered, see what the Princess has in mind. Donghuang Princess should have some specific strategies," said Ye Futian; it was unlikely that anyone could stay outside of this great battle, after all.

 1815 The Descen

    Donghuang the Great, who had unified the Divine Prefecture, was the master of the Original Realm. No matter how the other forces secretly view Donghuang the Great, they still had to obey his orders, at least outwardly.


    Of course, in peaceful times, the Great Emperor would never order the various forces in Divine Prefecture to do anything.


    After the two emperors unified the land, everything they had done was always in the hope that the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture would be stronger. Their attitude toward the Original Realm was also a protective one, demonstrated by closing off the passageway to the Original Realm.


    Now that the Dark Court had invaded the Shadow Realm, this had threatened the safety of the Nine Realms. After all, if they could invade the Shadow Realm, they could invade other realms as well.


    At this time, it was a reasonable request that the Princess Donghuang had summoned all the cultivators of the Nine Realms.


    After all, to the forces of the Original Realm, they were fighting for themselves too.


    The forces of the Central Emperor Realm were the first to arrive, and after them, the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They had directly gone to the Xiao clan through the teleportation grand matrix and came together, so they traveled with incredible speed.


    Inside the Empty Imperial Palace were Ye Futian and the others. Many other top forces were standing not too far away, such as the Shen clan, the Martial God Clan, and the Celestial Worthy Temple. However, they just glanced at one another as if they did not know each other; neither did they try to provoke anyone.


    Now was not the time to rekindle old grudges.


    Other forces arrived successively. During the wait, the cultivators of the Empty Imperial Palace were also there, chatting casually with everyone while continuing waiting for the others.


    At this time, the Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace came to the side of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He bowed slightly, saying, "Thank you all for your hard work."


    "As we should. Just as Futian said before, no one from any of the forces in the Original Realm could escape this catastrophe," Lord Taixuan said, and the palace lord of the Empty Imperial Palace smiled and nodded. He glanced at Ye Futian and thought that he wasn''t too sure what the princess had talked about last time with Ye Futian.


    But Ye Futian, as the premier genius talent in the Original Realm, who was summoned by the princess and who had inherited the Will of the Great Emperor in God''s relic, anyone would take note of him. His future was limitless, and the princess should remember his existence.


    The Palace Lord of Empty Imperial Palace said what he said out of kindness. This battle involved Divine Prefecture and the Dark Court. If the two sides were to go to war, one could only imagine just how strong the participants would be.


    It was not that he doubted Ye Futian''s talent and combat effectiveness, but his realm was still slightly lower. No one can guarantee his safety in this kind of major battle.


    "Let me take a look first. If the princess needs us to join the battle, we will naturally oblige," Ye Futian replied. If all the participants in the battle were the topmost characters, then there would be no point for him to go anyway.


    But if the army of all realms were to depart for the battle, he would also follow along. Chang Xi was among the crowd from the Heaven Mandate Academy and wanted to join the battle in person.


    In the destruction of Youyue Divine Palace, Chang Xi, as its goddess, had lost many of her elders and friends. It was a pity that she had no ability to avenge them on her own.


    "That''ll work. In that case, let''s see what the princess has in mind," said the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace. Although he was the master of the Empty Imperial Palace, it was Princess Donghuang, who had come to the Lower Worlds in person, whose order ought to be followed by everyone.


    Same with any decision made for this battle; the Princess would determine what to do, and his role was to execute.


    With the arrival of many cultivators, Princess Donghuang appeared once again. She was bathed in dazzling divine light as her eyes looked at the people below, asking, "Is everyone here?"


    "Your Royal Highness, everyone who was here last time has arrived," answered the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace.


    At this time, in the distance, the Light of Buddha blazed with a lingering Sound of Buddha. There was a peaceful harmony that filled the air.


    Instantly, many people raised their heads to look into the distance and saw that the great army of Buddhists had materialized. All of them sat on golden praying mats, like Buddhas that had descended from the heavens.


    People of the Mountain Realm had arrived.


    When Princess Donghuang summoned all the cultivators, she did not include the Buddhist monks from the Mountain Realm. Princess Donghuang acknowledged that the Mountain Realm had absolute autonomy and was not subject to the rule of the Divine Prefecture. This was a consensus reached centuries ago.


    Every cultivator in the Divine Prefecture knew that Donghuang the Great held Buddhism in the highest regard. Even after becoming the Great Emperor, he would still go to the West occasionally to seek advice on Buddhist doctrines. In the Divine Prefecture, there were reports on and off of when Donghuang the Great had gone to the West and listened to Buddhist preaching, as well as listened to the Buddha Lord reciting and discussing the sutras.


    Whenever these reports were heard, they were talked about in favorable lights. That even as the Great Emperor ruled the Divine Prefecture, he did not forget favors bestowed in the old days, which impressed everyone.


    Therefore, the emergence of Buddhist monks from the Mountain Realm at this time was unexpected, but also completely as it should be.


    Ye Futian had seen the cultivator in the lead; he was the abbot of Tianxian Temple, and behind him was Master Pudu.


    In addition, there were several young monks next to them. Gui Zang, who had been to the God''s relic with Ye Futian, was among them.


    There was also a Buddhist monk in a white robe, pure and spotless. His eyes were particularly beautiful, and he seemed to be out of this world. Many couldn''t help but exclaimed how handsome of a monk that was before them.


    Such a handsome monk was a rarity.


    The monk was smiling, with his left palm at his chest. Those unusually beautiful eyes looked ahead; they seemed to fall on Princess Donghuang.


    Princess Donghuang cast a glance his way as well. Among the group of monks, this one was the most unusual. He easily stood out in the crowd.


    "Abbot of Tianxian Temple from the Mountain Realm, here to greet Her Royal Highness." The old monk put his hands together and bowed to Princess Donghuang in the usual Buddhist salute.


    "The abbot need not be so formal." Princess Donghuang nodded slightly and said, "Is the abbot here as our reinforcement?"


    "Mmm." The abbot nodded and said, "Back then, my senior brother, the Vajra Buddha, had suppressed the King of Hell and expelled the force of darkness. Now that the force of darkness threatens to make its comeback once again, us Buddhist monks ought to take a stand against it."


    "The abbot is most thoughtful." Princess Donghuang nodded slightly. "I was about to discuss this matter with everyone, just as you arrived. This time the invasion by the Dark Court caused great atrocities in the Shadow Realm, along with the obliteration of several major forces inside the realm. As far as I know, the Dark Court is currently extracting the power from the core of the Shadow Realm, intending on refining its power for their use. If the Dark Court succeeds in doing so, I''m afraid they will only intensify their aggression in the future and continue to invade other realms, and they will be much harder to control by then.


    "Therefore, I asked the Empty Imperial Palace to gather all of you here in preparation to go to the Shadow Realm together and confront the army of darkness." Princess Donghuang said, "If this matter is not settled, peace will be impossible for the Original Realm. Of course, if you don''t want to go, I could cease this operation, but you must accept whatever happens in the future."


    "Your Royal Highness, in the land of the Nine Realms, when the Dark Court invaded and slaughtered the Shadow Realm, all cultivators share the same destiny, for no one can be spared." Gai Qiong said, "We will wait on the Princess'' order."


    "We also support the Princess taking action."


    "We will follow the Princess'' order."


    All the principalities responded. Now that Princess Donghuang had spoken, if there were really some who said they wouldn''t go, it would sound idiotic.


    They had to be involved in this battle no matter what, or else there would not be much of an Original Realm for them in the future.


    They were not so foolish to think that the young princess was someone who was easily deceived. As the most beloved princess by Donghuang the Great, she herself was also a Renhuang, and so she was not someone who they dared to trifle with.


    "Very well. If so, let''s set off together." Princess Donghuang said, "Let''s expel the force of darkness once again from the Original Realm."


    "Aye!" Everyone nodded at the same time, spoke in booming unison.


    "Depart," Princess Donghuang commanded. As soon as her voice fell, she was the first one to step out. She did not ask which realm would go and which wouldn''t; however, since the princess was leading them herself, Ye Futian understood and also followed behind.


    In the Empty Imperial Palace, the mighty army moved together, which was extremely spectacular.


    ��


    At this time, the Shadow Realm became gloomier, especially the vast area that radiated from where Youyue Divine Palace used to be. Looking down from the firmament, it resembled an apocalyptic world, with an expanse spanning thousands of miles. The area was enveloped by a curious atmosphere, while numerous stone pillars were erected on this land, as currents of destruction raged.


    The cultivators from the Dark Court were busy working and had no time to pay attention to the happening in other realms. Their focus was on building this grand super-matrix that required the coordination of many cultivators. Though it looked simple enough, the overall structure was much too complicated, and the task was overwhelming.


    They had to seize whatever time they had left so that when it was time for war, they would have more of a chance.


    At this time, a dazzling light suddenly lit up above this destructive space, piercing through the darkness, so that the light appeared once again, and even the blazing glory of Buddhism could be seen.


    At this moment, the cultivators from all sides in the Dark Court looked up. High above the sky, Princess Donghuang seemed to lead a heavenly army coming at them. The cultivators of the Lower Worlds were greatly impacted by what they were seeing.


    "They got here fast." Sitting on the throne, Lord of the Underworld looked up into the sky above; he didn''t think that they would be here so quickly.


    Now it seemed that the Princess, whom Donghuang the Great doted upon, was decisive and moved like lightning, more effective than he had imagined.


    Furthermore, the Buddhists had also joined in the war. These bald donkeys had always favored Donghuang the Great and went along with him, no questions asked. These hypocrites probably regarded the achievements of Donghuang the Great as their own pride and joy!

 1816 Spear Emperor Du You

    From the ground, layers of cold and sinister dark, destructive air flows rose and flooded the space.


    Princess Donghuang stood high in the sky and said, "Top figures, attack."


    "Yes."


    Silhouettes stepped forward, and frightening auras of the Great Path pressed down on the space. The scorching light from the halo of Buddha radiated outwards. In the sky above, the sound of Buddhist chants sounded, forming a powerful resonance. This made it as though various Buddhas were descending from the sky above the Shadow Realm. Tens of thousands of Buddhas chanted their mantras in unison. Peerless halos of Buddha rained down from the heavens, attempting to suppress the dark air flows.


    However, the dark air flows immediately corroded the light of Buddha and tainted the divine golden halos of Buddha. They continued advancing and were everywhere.


    The Abbot of Tianxian Temple and the other cultivators sensed a peculiar aura. It was as though their Way was being suppressed.


    It was not just them; all the other cultivators also sensed it.


    Down below, it was as though the dark air flows surged throughout the entire Shadow Realm. They reached upwards to envelop the sky itself. The Lord of the Underworld closed his eyes. It was as though he wanted to merge into this darkness.


    In the end, darkness enveloped the entire world. Everyone seemed to be buried within another dark space. Endless dark air flows gathered and formed a tall, majestic figure. It was the figure of the Lord of the Underworld. However, he was ten thousand Zhangs tall. It was as though the real Lord of the Underworld had appeared.


    "A Body of Way."


    The various cultivators looked at the figure that had appeared. At this moment, the Lord of the Underworld seemed to be extremely powerful.


    The huge Body of Way of the Lord of the Underworld stared at the figures in the space. He raised his arm and reached out to grab them. The frightening power of the Underworld emanated from his arm. Dark red and black lights were mixed together. It was as though destructive dark Flames of the Way were attacking the crowd.


    If this palm strike were to hit them, the cultivators would most likely be immediately destroyed, turning into nothingness.


    Rumble. Beneath the huge dark handprint, the Symbols of Wan that shone with the light of Buddha were decimated. However, the huge handprint of Buddha crashed down towards the dark palm.


    An intense rumbling could be heard all around. The huge handprint of Buddha seemed to be forged from pure gold and appeared indestructible. It also emanated a divine aura that could eradicate all powers of evil.


    It was the Demon Conquering Giant Palm of Vajra. Many cultivators were astonished when they saw this handprint. Back then, the ability of the Vajra Buddha was powerful. Many cultivators from the dark forces had perished to the Demon Conquering Giant Palm of Vajra. Now, the Buddhas of Tianxian Temple had sent out this huge handprint at the same time. Its might was astonishing.


    In the heavens above, two huge endless handprints stirred up a terrifying storm and then collided with each other. The world trembled violently. The two huge handprints shattered at the same time. Destructive air flows and golden light of Buddha rampaged all around them.


    However, the gigantic Body of Way continued upwards. Destructive Divine Fire of the Underworld suddenly appeared everywhere in the Dark World. The crowd looked around them, and it was as though they were actually in the real Underworld.


    Top figures stepped forward one by one. Green divine light descended from the heavens. Everywhere it passed, everything was destroyed. Everywhere Divine Sword Qinghe passed by, its green light turned everything into nothingness. Everything turned to dust and smoke. It was a divine sword of destruction that could pierce the heavens and the earth.


    In an instant, the green light slaughtered its way to the gigantic Body of Way of the Lord of the Underworld. The light immediately pierced through it. At that moment, the huge Body of Way was penetrated by endless green divine light. Green light covered the ten-thousand-Zhang-tall Body of Way. The huge figure dissipated into nothingness bit by bit.


    Many people stared in that direction. Was it destroyed?


    Naturally, it wasn''t.


    In the Dark World, illusory faces appeared. They were all the faces of the Lord of the Underworld.


    It was as though he was everywhere in this spatial world.


    The various cultivators were not surprised at this. Those who had come were all not weak; they were at least at the Renhuang Plane. They were also almost all above the middle-level Renhuang Plane. There were even quite a number of top figures. They were well experienced in cultivation.


    The ability of the Lord of the Underworld had already broken the shackles of the Renhuang Plane. He had reached the level of a fake emperor. This independent world was formed from his Way. He was everywhere and could easily coalesce a Body of Way. He was the king of this world.


    Of course, he was still just a fake emperor. The level of a fake emperor could only be reached when one had no hopes of becoming an emperor. If he was a true great emperor, he could destroy everyone within this world with just a thought. They would not have any hopes of surviving.


    The two existences were not on the same level at all.


    However, true great emperors were considered deities. Among the countless worlds of the vast universe, few people could reach this Plane.


    After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, also known as the Age of Godfall, wanting to become a deity was as difficult as wanting to scale the heavens.


    Currently, across the extremes of the cosmos, there were only a mere seven great emperors that the world knew of.


    These seven figures were existences that stood at the top of the universe. Among them were Donghuang the Great, the master of the Dark Court, and the Buddha Lord of Western Heaven.


    They were beings who had already transcended the world. They seldom made a move first. If they were to attack, the consequences would be unimaginable. The world order would be rewritten.


    Hence, it was difficult for people nowadays to imagine how the previous age was. Before the collapse of the Heavenly Path, when the deities had yet to fall, the ancient age was prosperous. Unfortunately, they could no longer see it now; it only existed in the realm of legends.


    However, the various large forces at the peak of the Realms still had a few fake emperors.


    Even in the Original Realm, there were a number of them.


    At that moment, the illusory faces of the Lord of the Underworld were staring at the crowd. In the Dark World, destructive will spread out. Endless Divine Fire of the Underworld appeared in this independent space. It burned and caused this dark space to become a realm of death. With the Divine Fire of the Underworld burning, no one here could escape. Flames completely surrounded them.


    This independent space was burning and was buried within the Divine Fire of the Underworld.


    The top figures frowned when they saw this scene. They then released a frightening will from their bodies. Princess Donghuang still stood in the heavens above. Ye Futian and the Renhuangs of the other forces stood behind her and did not take part in the battle. They could not participate in a battle of the highest level. With the Divine Fire of the Underworld burning, them joining in would only be suicide.


    The divine general beside Princess Donghuang released a brilliant golden divine light, forming a light shroud. It formed another independent space that protected Princess Donghuang and the rest of the cultivators in it.


    Rumble.


    An extremely violent dark storm charged towards Princess Donghuang. The destructive dark storm churned and roared. It destroyed all within its path.


    Emperor Nan took a step forward, and Divine Sword Qinghe released green light that shot out tens of thousands of Zhang. He formed a seal with his hands, and light immediately exploded out of Divine Sword Qinghe. Endless green light destroyed everything and shot straight towards the dark storm.


    Divine Sword Qinghe pierced directly into the storm. A huge illusory face appeared in the dark storm. A spear of the Underworld stabbed out and collided with Divine Sword Qinghe. Destructive power swept out to the surroundings. The momentum of Divine Sword Qinghe dwindled. Terrifying winds consumed it, seemingly wanting to swallow it up.


    Emperor Nan waved his palm, and Divine Sword Qinghe returned to his side. The terrifying storm flooded towards Emperor Nan. He was unmoved. The green light around him formed a world of the sword. The terrifying storm directly swept past him as it continued to advance.


    The hearts of the surrounding cultivators were all trembling. This aura was really menacing.


    The roaring dark storm charged straight towards Princess Donghuang. The divine general stood in front of her. The golden light shroud enveloped this part of the world. With his figure as the center, a dazzling three-dimensional pattern appeared.


    This golden pattern contained many runes within it. Instantly, endless divine light shot out. From within the pattern, a terrifying aura surged out. Golden spears shot out from within it like bolts of destructive golden lightning. They pierced the heavens and the earth and bolted across the sky towards the dark air flow that was roaring and churning its way over.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. The long spears pierced out and actually seemed to burst into golden divine flames. It caused the masses of dark air flow to shatter into dust. When the countless spears descended at the same time, the might of the roaring dark storm kept dwindling.


    The divine general extended his hand. Within the three-dimensional pattern, unparalleled dazzling divine light coalesced into a divine spear that stabbed out towards the roaring storm.


    In that instant, frightening fissures seemed to appear in the space. Golden cracks propagated outwards. It tore apart the space and also shredded the frightening dark storm to pieces. A majestic scene appeared in the heavens above. The long spear formed golden cracks that shattered and penetrated the space. It continued to shoot out into the surrounding space. It pierced straight through the Dark World towards the outside.


    Rumble!


    The Dark World was crumbling. An illusory figure coalesced; it was none other than the Lord of the Underworld.


    He stood in the air while staring at the divine general who stood guard in front of Princess Donghuang. The Lord of the Underworld revealed a glint of approval.


    "You are undoubtedly the heir of Donghuang the Great," the Lord of the Underworld exclaimed while staring straight ahead. The brilliant three-dimensional pattern was a Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Haloes of light radiated from the Divine Wheel. The area covered by the light expanded as the might of the light intensified. The golden divine light was flawless.


    Each and every halo of the divine light was permeated with unparalleled power.


    The divine general, who served under Donghuang the Great, was crowned the number one spear in the Divine Prefecture. He was Spear Emperor Du You; he was also a disciple of Donghuang the Great.


    His Divine Wheel had nine tiers, and each and every tier was flawless. He was qualified to seek the Way of the Emperor. He was the inheritor of Donghuang the Great''s teachings. If Princess Donghuang did not exist, he had a high possibility of becoming the heir of Donghuang the Great. However, due to the existence of Princess Donghuang, Spear Emperor Du You could only be her right-hand man.


    Even though he was an assistant, it did not affect Du You''s position in the Divine Prefecture. In the Divine Prefecture, this Spear Emperor was highly regarded. Countless talented maidens from various top forces were willing to marry him.


    However, the Spear Emperor had no intention of getting married. He was focused on studying the Way of the spear!

 1817 Disturbance

    In an instant, it flooded the sky.


    Silhouettes rose into the sky. They were all top figures of the Dark World. They seemed to be consuming the power that flowed out from the stone pillars. The masses of crimson light enveloped the top figures within them. Right now, tens of thousands of miles of land was flooded and buried beneath frightening dark red light.


    Even in the heavens above, the army of the Divine Prefecture felt the extremely sinister aura. This frightening power seemed to want to smelt them within it.


    Divine Fire of the Underworld enveloped this part of the world. In the heavens above, countless dark lotuses appeared like flames of Hell.


    These countless dark lotuses flew out. Their petals of death opened and closed as they surrounded the cultivators in the heavens above.


    "Hell Flowers, blossom," the Lord of the Underworld uttered these words. One by one, the Hell Flowers of the Underworld blossomed and enveloped the crowd.


    "Be careful," Du You reminded everyone when he felt the alarming will. The top figures of the Divine Prefecture headed down and charged towards the various cultivators in the matrix. Relying on the power of the matrix, the destructive power of the divine fire within the Hell Flowers grew even more powerful. It seemed as though one would perish with just a single touch.


    Powerful will burst forth from their bodies and became the defensive power that enveloped them.


    The various cultivators of the Mountain Realm advanced. The light of Buddha shone brightly, and the various Buddhas appeared. The scorching light of Buddha cleansed the world. However, when the Hell Flowers reached it, the light of Buddha was similarly consumed. It was corroded by the Hell Flowers. The petals of the Hell Flowers blossomed, and they became huge beyond comparison. The flowers kept advancing towards the cultivators of the Mountain Realm. The destructive divine flames of Hell were like fires of the end times, extinguishing the light of Buddha.


    The power of Buddha originally could subdue the power of evil. However, right now, it was instead being suppressed by the other party. This proved how terrifying the other party''s Way was now.


    Relying on the divine item in the core of the Shadow Realm and using a matrix to harness its power, the Hell Flowers evolved and became even more powerful. The entire sky was covered in Hell Flowers.


    The other cultivators also displayed various miraculous powers. Emperor Nan''s body flashed with green divine light. His sword hummed in front of him. Under the destructive green divine light, the Hell Flowers could not approach him. However, he was frowning slightly. He never imagined that these people could utilize the divine power of the Shadow Realm so quickly.


    Of course, he knew of the divine item in the core of the Shadow Realm. However, after so many years, even Youyue Divine Palace could merely utilize a fraction of its power in their cultivation. Now, with the arrival of the dark forces, they immediately could refine and use this power. This was very dangerous. They had clearly made preparations all these years. Invading the Shadow Realm was not a spur-of-the-moment plan.


    The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture that were charging towards the opponent were caught within the Hell Flowers. Many of them could not attack the other party.


    In the heavens above, when Du You saw this scene, he wielded his golden divine spear and took a step forward.


    "Protect the princess," Du You said to the group of people next to him. Aside from him, the Empty Imperial Palace Palace Lord was also standing guard beside Princess Donghuang. She was Donghuang the Great''s only daughter. Her safety was of the utmost importance. Even though the Dark Court did not dare to attack her, they could not lower their guard.


    "Alright," Empty Imperial Palace Palace Lord replied as he nodded his head. Du You stepped forward. The brilliant three-dimensional pattern on his body grew brighter and brighter. In an instant, it blocked out the sky and the sun. Across the vast sky, with his body as the center, a huge pattern appeared. It seemed to be a matrix. From within it, the unparalleled power of the Great Path surged forth.


    He pointed the spear in his hand forwards. Immediately, from within the pattern, countless golden spears swept across the sky and massacred their way down. Spears rained down from the heavens above. Each divine spear contained invincible destructive power that showered down on the cultivators below.


    The top figures of the Dark Court raised their heads and looked into the sky. The disciple of Donghuang the Great, Spear Emperor Du You, had a flawless ninth tier Divine Wheel. How powerful was he?


    In the previous clash, even the Lord of the Underworld, who had become a fake emperor, found it hard to best Du You.


    "Be careful. All of you, retreat," some top figures of the Dark Court shouted loudly to their juniors. A divine spear carved with the brilliant light of runes descended from the sky. With a loud rumble, it immediately pierced through a stone spear and turned it to dust.


    Rumble. Rumble. Rumble. Stone pillars kept shattering and turning to dust. Not only that, but countless divine spears also stabbed into the matrix on the ground, destroying the foundations of the matrix. The divine spears that were stabbed into the ground actually generated some sort of resonance and lit up with brilliant light. The ground split apart, and cracks appeared. The matrix was destroyed.


    Du You himself took a step forward. The next moment, his silhouette immediately disappeared from his spot. The crowd only saw a dazzling golden divine light penetrate the space and shoot down to the sky below. Blooming Hell Flowers were disintegrated and returned to nothingness.


    The divine spear descended. Under the golden divine spear, divine light ripped the space apart. Scary-looking cracks appeared. The tip of the spear was laced with unparalleled destructive power.


    Buzz.


    A dark air flow surged out. The Lord of the Underworld did not receive the spear. He actually avoided it. The dark air flow receded. The divine spear stabbed into mid-air.


    Bang!


    There was a huge explosion. The instant the divine spear touched the ground, destructive spatial cracks propagated outwards. The Lord of the Underworld raised his palm and sent it crashing out, blocking the terrifying power that tore the space apart.


    The land frenziedly split apart. The cracks propagated far and wide. It seemed as though the world was falling apart.


    Du You''s actions had not stopped. His arm swept out, and the divine spear instantly cleaved down. Its speed was extremely fast. The afterimage of the spear immediately consumed the space. It was as though it was opening its big, bloody mouth to swallow the figure of the Lord of the Underworld. Terrifying spatial fissures appeared, seemingly sealing off the escape route of his opponent.


    The attack of the Spear Emperor was invincible. His long spear was like a dragon, slaughtering its way forward. It destroyed all within its path with astonishing momentum. No matter how powerful the existence was, they absolutely did not want to face Du You''s divine spear.


    The gaze of the Lord of the Underworld was frightening as he stared at Du You''s movements. With a single thought, the Dark World of the Underworld appeared. The figure of the Lord of the Underworld directly became an independent space. His figure became a Body of Way. He became a menacing illusion of the God of the Underworld. A terrifying head tried to swallow Du You directly.


    Du You swept his long spear out horizontally. Golden divine light swept out, and the head exploded. However, many faces appeared in the space. They were all the faces of the Lord of the Underworld.


    "Du You, even though you have a flawless Divine Wheel, I have transcended the Renhuang Plane for many years. You are no match for me," voices filled the heavens and the earth. They seemed to be everywhere. He was the master of this spatial world. He had a Body of Way and was omnipresent in this space.


    Du You frowned. If it was purely a contest of attack power, he believed that the Lord of the Underworld absolutely could not withstand his divine spear. However, the Lord of the Underworld had dwelled at the fake emperor Plane for many years. He had a Body of Way, and it was indeed hard to handle. Wanting to kill him would be extremely difficult.


    Slowly, Du You''s body floated in the sky. Even more brilliant divine light burst forth from the patterns on his body. The divine spear in his hand floated in the sky. Du You formed a seal with both his hands. His Divine Wheel pattern immediately exploded with endless light.


    "Go..."


    He cried out. In an instant, innumerable golden divine spears shot forth and tore apart huge cracks. They attacked in all directions. Even if the Lord of the Underworld had a Body of Way, Du You would still shatter it.


    Outside, frightening battles had also erupted in other battlefields. It seemed as though the endless space was falling apart. The cracks in the ground grew more and more shocking. The divine light that exploded out of the stone pillars became more and more powerful.


    The land seemed to be unable to withstand the tremors from these clashes. The power of these clashes was also growing more powerful. Huge rumbles could be heard. Within tens of thousands of miles, all cultivators could sense this frightening earthquake.


    The cultivators of the Dark Court stood frowning on the ground. What was going on?


    In the heavens above, Princess Donghuang gazed down at the ground below. She also sensed the intense vibrations which seemed to originate from deep underground. At that moment, the crimson divine light from the stone pillars intensified. It was a shocking sight. Extreme power of the Shadow Realm flowed out and spread throughout the sky.


    The divine item had been disturbed? Princess Donghuang frowned. If that were the case, earthquakes would erupt over the entire Shadow Realm!

 1818 Dispute Over the Original Realm

    Now, all of them had come out of their homes.


    In a city far from the battlefield, many people were frantically flying up into the sky. The earth shook, and various buildings kept trembling. An extremely negative power emanated from the ground. Everyone could sense this aura.


    What was going on? The crowd was shocked and felt that it was inexplicable. The Dark Court had invaded the Shadow Realm. However, the Shadow Realm was too large. The Dark Court couldn''t control all of it. They only took control of the regions of a few top forces and had now gathered over at Youyue Divine Palace.


    Rumor has it that there might be a war occurring over there.


    However, how was it that such changes had also appeared over here?


    The aura intensified. Many people felt cold sweat down their backs. Some people with weaker cultivation were already trembling. Many children were wailing. They seemed to have been startled.


    Even more cultivators flew up into the sky. There were existences at the Renhuang Plane standing high above the city. When they felt the aura coming from below, their hearts shuddered violently.


    Everywhere the will enveloped, a similar scene could be seen in the cities. Some people took in this power when they sensed it.


    A cultivator in the air extended his hand. A mass of flame immediately appeared in his palm. The surrounding air was drawn to the flame. In an instant, it became the flames of the Underworld. The expression of the cultivator changed drastically.


    As a cultivator of the Shadow Realm, who had reached the Renhuang Plane, he naturally heard some rumors.


    Currently, there seemed to be changes occurring all over the Shadow Realm. Was this caused by the core of the Shadow Realm?


    Rumor has it that some people had wanted to investigate the mystery of the core of the Shadow Realm. Unfortunately, some people had fallen before they even reached it. Many gave up. No matter how powerful their cultivations were, no one had managed to do so.


    However, today, the aura from the core was spreading out and growing stronger. It gradually enveloped the Shadow Realm.


    Some cultivators were calmly absorbing this power. They wanted to use this power to aid in their cultivation. There were also people frantically making their way across the sky, preparing to escape from this place. They had a bad premonition. This would most likely escalate into a catastrophe.


    Such scenes were playing out all over the Shadow Realm right now.


    The ocean of the Shadow Realm began to boil. Tsunamis burst forth, sealing everywhere they passed in ice. Many people did not manage to escape before they were permanently sealed in ice.


    The entire world was undergoing a huge transformation.


    Such a change was naturally the most intense at the center of the battlefield.


    Now, at Youyue Divine Palace, the armies of the Dark Court and the Divine Prefecture were in the midst of waging war. The power of the Shadow Realm had already flooded this place. Everyone could sense that this frightening power was affecting this Realm.


    Even the Lord of the Underworld was shocked at these changes. Before this, he had also never imagined that such a scene would play out. He merely wanted to use the power of the matrix to refine the power of the Shadow Realm bit by bit. When the matrix covered the entire Shadow Realm, he would refine the entire Realm and consume it.


    However, now, everything seemed to have occurred earlier than he had anticipated. The Shadow Realm began to revolt. Deep and frightening chasms appeared in the ground. The power of the Shadow Realm that emanated from these chasms caused everyone to take in deep breaths. Was this the aura of the Source of the Great Path? It was too rich and thick.


    What kind of era was the time before the collapse of the Heavenly Path?


    "Princess, please let me lead you away from here," the Empty Imperial Palace Palace Lord beseeched Princess Donghuang. He naturally also sensed this power. In such a chaotic situation, he did not know whether those who stayed behind would be in danger.


    Currently, everything was gradually going out of control.


    "There is no need," Princess Donghuang said, refusing his proposal. She gazed down below. Darkness enveloped the entire space, and it became even colder. The fires of the Underworld burned more violently. Hell Flowers flourished even more than before, blocking out the sky and the sun. The Hell Flowers consumed everything as they made their way up into the sky.


    Silhouettes dashed out to avoid these calamities. Many cultivators of the Divine Prefecture took shelter from all this. This power was beneficial for the cultivators of the Dark Court. Otherwise, they would not have come to the Shadow Realm to cause trouble. If this was the Solar Realm, they had no way of reaping any benefits.


    Frightening destructive winds appeared around the figure of the Lord of the Underworld. Each air flow of destruction became dark spears that frenziedly rampaged around the area. They swept up into the sky with astonishing destructive power. It was as though they were everywhere and were charging towards everyone at the same time.


    "Du You, I advise you all to leave. The divine item has appeared. This is its own choice. Don''t forcibly interfere," the Lord of the Underworld said. Endless destructive divine light became dark spears that shot out, flooding towards Du You''s body.


    The Divine Wheel pattern behind Du You shone to its brightest. His body spiraled upwards, and illusions of spears swept out throughout the sky. Then, he stabbed forward with his spear, and instantly a brilliant light shot out from it. This scene was astonishing. The spear ripped apart a golden crack that pierced straight towards the figure of the Lord of the Underworld. Everywhere it passed, cracks appeared.


    Huge rumbling sounds could be heard. The figure of the Lord of the Underworld consumed the power of the Shadow Realm and refined it within his body. It merged with his Great Path of Destruction. The God of the Underworld appeared, wielding the spear of the Underworld. It pierced out, accompanied by dark, destructive light. The space split apart, and dark cracks appeared.


    The two cracks met in mid-air. Terrifying light marks exploded outwards. At the same time, dark cracks ran amok. With their bodies as the center, the surrounding space collapsed. It was as though the space was going to be shattered.


    Du You''s movements had not stopped. He stabbed his spear again and again. It pierced out in all directions. These golden spears ripped apart the space. The cracks became more and more menacing. It seemed that this space was about to collapse and be destroyed.


    "Hmm?" the Lord of the Underworld frowned, seemingly sensing that something was off. The space where he and Du You were in had already collapsed and shattered. However, powerful light was still bursting forth from Du You. It penetrated the darkness and completely shattered the space. It seemed like Du You had another goal in mind.


    These spears also did not disappear. They were positioned in different locations and formed a pattern of spear light.


    "What are you planning to do?" the Lord of the Underworld asked as he seemed to realize something. He raised his palm and sent it crashing out. He charged out of the encirclement and attempted to escape from this space.


    "Your Highness, I will lead him away. Please be careful," Du You said loudly.


    "Alright," Princess Donghuang responded as she nodded her head in mid-air.


    The next moment, dazzling divine light burst forth from the spears positioned in various places at the same time. They instantly shattered the space. A gaping hole appeared. Du You''s figure flashed, and the golden divine spears pierced the heavens, slaughtering their way over to the Lord of the Underworld. The space was sealed off by a pressure. The Lord of the Underworld shielded himself with a roar.


    The golden divine spears led his body towards the cracks. They were accompanied by powerful light shooting out from the pattern. Both of their figures immediately disappeared without a trace.


    After they vanished, the divine light of the spears dimmed. The cracks also sealed themselves shut. However, the figures of the Lord of the Underworld and Du You were no longer here.


    Ye Futian was astonished as he saw this scene. What was happening?


    Where had Du You brought the Lord of the Underworld?


    Du You had actually pushed him through the crack. He also seemed to have broken through the spatial barrier and entered an independent space.


    "Your Highness, where have they disappeared to?" Ye Futian asked Princess Donghuang.


    "They have gone to the real world," Princess Donghuang replied. "The Original Realm is currently the Void Realm that exists as an illusion within the world. Here, the threat of the Lord of the Underworld is great. With the power of the Shadow Realm, he would be even more powerful, so Du You has led him away from this place."


    By shattering the spatial barrier, one could reach the real world.


    Ye Futian was somewhat shocked. This was the origin of the Void Realm. Everything in this world was fake; hence it was known as the Void Realm.


    The Great Path here was a remnant of the collapse of the Heavenly Path.


    However, the collapse of the Heavenly Path also left behind some things in this Original Realm. For instance, everything that was occurring before his eyes was due to the Shadow Realm. Hence, various forces from the outside wanted to establish their footholds in the Void Realm.


    This vast world was both the Void Realm as well as the Original Realm. The people from the outside looked down at this place. Yet, they also wanted to seize control of it because it still had some value.


    "Hmm?"


    At that moment, Empty Imperial Palace Palace Lord seemed to have sensed something. He frowned slightly and looked into the distance and said, "Princess, another army is coming."


    Princess Donghuang shifted her gaze towards the direction he was looking in. The clouds in the sky above churned. A terrifying aura spread out, causing others to feel palpitations.


    Beams of divine light descended from the sky. The next moment, a group of silhouettes descended. The group of silhouettes was bathed in divine light. Their auras were alarming. Each person that arrived possessed extremely powerful auras.


    When Princess Donghuang saw these people appear, a sharp gaze flashed past in her beautiful eyes. As expected, now, everyone wanted to claim the Void Realm. The Dark Court was not the only one to return; they had also come.


    "Princess Donghuang," the leading youth among the people who arrived cried out as they landed before Princess Donghuang. An evil aura emanated from the body of this youth. His handsome face also emanated a sense of evil.


    His eyes were exceptionally bright. However, they similarly contained an evil look.


    "The Evil Emperor Realm also wishes to be involved in the matters of the Original Realm?" Princess Donghuang questioned in a cold tone as her gaze swept towards the army.


    For the past three hundred years, the Original Realm had always been at peace. Now that the Dark Court had returned, the Evil Emperor Realm had actually also arrived here as well. They seemed to intend to interfere in the dispute over the Original Realm.


    "The Divine Prefectures of the East have ruled the Original Realm for more than three hundred years," the youth said. "Now, they should cede control over the Original Realm. In the future, the Original Realm should not belong to the Divine Prefecture anymore. It should instead be an independent region that is not ruled by any force."


    The resources of the Original Realm had been pillaged for countless years. It already did not have many precious resources left. However, the top figures still wanted this Source of the Heavenly Path. There had even been great prophets who prophesied that the changes of the universe would begin from the Original Realm.


    The current world order was formed due to the collapse of the Original Realm. Future changes would probably also begin here.


    Hence, the various forces were unwilling to let the Divine Prefecture continue to rule this land.


    After the arrival of the Dark Court, the Evil Emperor Realm always had their eyes on this place. It was just that they had only meaningfully appeared at this moment.


    In the future, the Original Realm had to be opened up to all forces!

 1819 Divine Body of the Great Path

    The cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm had arrived. A youth was giving commands. His cultivation was not too high. From his appearance and temperament, Princess Donghuang knew who this person was.


    He was a legendary figure who was extremely prestigious in the current Evil Emperor Realm. He was the direct disciple of the Evil Emperor, Shi Xie.


    Rumor has it that Shi Xie had a Divine Body of the Great Path. When he was born, divine phenomena appeared. Later, he displayed extremely powerful talent in the Great Path of Space and was accepted as the direct disciple of the Evil Emperor. In the Empty Divine Realm, his standing was extremely high. Many top figures would pay him due respect when they encountered him.


    Rumor also had it that Shi Xie''s character was extremely wicked and that he had inherited the antics of the Evil Emperor.


    Many people believed that Shi Xie would have the opportunity to inherit the position of the Evil Emperor in the future.


    "Whenever the Empty Divine Realm decides to open its boundaries, the Original Realm shall also do the same," Princess Donghuang responded indifferently. The Empty Divine Realm referred to the Evil Emperor Realm. The Evil Emperor ruled it, so some people called it the Evil Emperor Realm. Others also preferred to call it the Empty Divine Realm.


    Princess Donghuang claiming that the Empty Divine Realm would open its boundaries was clearly impossible. That was the territory of the Evil Emperor.


    This also meant that, from Princess Donghuang''s perspective, the Original Realm couldn''t be opened to the outside. The Divine Prefecture had to control it within its grasp.


    In the surroundings, the power of Yin flooded the vast heaven and earth. Everyone was enveloped in this icy and sinister power of Yin. Many cultivators felt slightly uncomfortable. This sensation made them feel extremely unwell.


    Even Princess Donghuang''s entourage was similarly enveloped within this power. Each of their silhouettes appeared to become somewhat blurry.


    Shi Xie''s eyes were staring at Princess Donghuang. An evil aura emanated from them. His thin lips curled into a smile, which was even more evil-looking.


    "I have heard that Donghuang the Great dotes on you, Princess. If I can capture you, I am certain that the Great Emperor would not mind opening a mere Divine Prefecture to the outside," Shi Xie said as he stared at Princess Donghuang. His courage was quite something. Before this, the Lord of the Underworld had never even thought about touching Princess Donghuang.


    After all, actually angering Donghuang the Great was no small matter. If that happened, no one would be able to control the situation.


    However, this Shi Xie seemed to be unafraid. From this, one could gauge his courage and insight.


    Spear Emperor Du You was initially the strongest person beside Princess Donghuang. However, he had led the Lord of the Underworld away. He was naturally unable to take care of this side of the battlefield.


    Now, the Evil Emperor Realm cultivators had arrived, and they actually wanted to make a move on Princess Donghuang. If Spear Emperor Du You knew that this would happen, he would not have left.


    However, there were still top figures who came in this direction. They had even given up on the battlefield below. When Princess Donghuang encountered danger, protecting her was naturally their top priority.


    First, it was to showcase themselves. Secondly, it was because if anything actually happened to Princess Donghuang, no one knew whether the Great Emperor would get involved or not. If he was angry, anything could happen. What if he came to settle the score with them?


    If the princess was alright, there was no harm in them making a few mistakes. However, if anything happened to her, no one could escape the blame.


    "The princess is prestigious, do not harm her," Shi Xie ordered. Under the power of Yin, figures stepped out and headed over towards Princess Donghuang. For a moment, this caused the members of the Divine Prefecture to be under a lot of pressure.


    They were facing the armies of two forces on two fronts.


    A silhouette moved forward. In front of this person, a golden divine sword was floating. From within his sword, unparalleled golden spatial divine light was emitted.


    Swoosh. The divine sword flew out. Countless divine swords suddenly appeared all around and generated resonance. The cultivator then pointed his finger forward, and countless spatial divine swords immediately ripped apart the space as they advanced and slaughtered their way forward.


    In an instant, it was as though the sky was being divided into infinite pieces by spatial divine swords.


    Divide the space!


    The swords would divide up this world.


    A brilliant divine light radiated outwards. A golden cauldron of unparalleled divinity enveloped the various cultivators. It contained everyone within it. The divine swords slaughtered their way over, tore apart the space of the Great Path and crashed into the precious cauldron. Loud clanging could be heard. Cracks appeared on the cauldron, and it then shattered into dust.


    "Princess, please leave first," a voice cried out. A cultivator of Celestial Worthy Mountain had said this. As he uttered the last word, he extended his palm forward. Immediately, there was a loud clang. A gigantic divine cauldron appeared in the sky above. Dazzling destructive light was released from within it. Everywhere the light touched, everything in the world seemed to be suppressed and destroyed by it. The light intended to envelop the entire space where the opponents were.


    A figure stepped forward in the sky. He was yet another top figure. He grabbed the air, and instantly, fissures appeared in the space. A terrifying storm of the Great Path of Space was formed from the fissures. The cracks opened wide and savagely pounced on the precious cauldron, intending to engulf it.


    However, the precious cauldron spun, and myriads of divine halos sprinkled down, destroying everything. A vacuum space was temporarily formed around the cauldron.


    Princess Donghuang glanced down at the ground. When they were exchanging blows, quite a number of cultivators of the Dark Court rushed into the crack underground. It seemed like they wanted to enter the core region of the Shadow Realm and locate the divine item.


    Right now, the divine item went berserk and showed signs of appearing. If the divine item really appeared, who wouldn''t want it?


    This divine item alone had shaped a supreme realm - the Shadow Realm. Its might was undoubtedly terrifying.


    At the same time, an aura that caused the hearts of the crowd to tremble permeated the air from underground. One by one, cultivators dashed underground, causing the entire Shadow Realm to shake even more violently. The entire world was quaking.


    If the divine item fell into the hands of the cultivators of the Dark Court, a catastrophe would surely follow.


    From the ground, a mysterious, cold light gushed forth. Everywhere the light covered, the power of Yin was activated to its utmost limit. Everyone was freezing when they were exposed to the light. Frost slowly covered their bodies as they trembled in the cold.


    Some cultivators who had weak cultivation turned into ice sculptures right away. They were frozen on their spots. They couldn''t resist the cold at all.


    This scene caused everyone on the battlefield to reveal strange expressions. Was the divine item still shaking? The abnormality was getting more intense and had reached a point where it could threaten the cultivators at the Renhuang Plane.


    "Be careful," Emperor Nan warned. Even he felt slightly threatened by this aura.


    The battle which happened on the ground had barely started, and it was brought to a halt due to the abnormality. All the cultivators moved higher up into the sky and spread out. All of them released their will to defend against the aura.


    In the blink of an eye, everyone was enveloped by the light.


    Buzz. Yet another terrifying aura descended. There were still cultivators fighting each other at this moment. Even under such circumstances, they still would not give up.


    Ye Futian appeared. He seemed to have turned into a tree, with his body as the tree trunk. When the cold light shone in his direction, he absorbed the energy into his body bit by bit, merging the energy into his. Ye Futian could sense that the power of his Great Path was strengthening.


    The World Tree was indeed omnipotent, Ye Futian thought to himself. It could even absorb and refine the power of Yin for its own use.


    From the looks of it, the Way, which was born from his World Tree, was indeed what he had expected; it was a flawless Great Path.


    Hence, his combat ability was stronger than that of cultivators who were at the same level. He could even kill middle-level Renhuangs. With the help of divine arms and the will of the emperor, he had killed a seventh tier upper-level Renhuang.


    Under the corrosion of the power of Yin, everyone was soaked in this power. However, the battle still persisted despite the crowd getting further apart from each other.


    Ye Futian looked in the direction where Princess Donghuang was. Some cultivators launched a sneak attack at her. The enemy attacked all the cultivators who were protecting Princess Donghuang. They were locked in their respective places.


    Behind the Princess, there were many upper-level Renhuangs and middle-level Renhuangs. Even though they were dispersed, they still made their way towards the Princess when they saw her in danger.


    Right at this moment, a sinister figure moved towards Princess Donghuang. It was none other than Shi Xie.


    As Shi Xie approached Princess Donghuang, a few cultivators blocked in front of her and stared at Shi Xie with cold gazes filled with murderous intent.


    Shi Xie shifted his will, and instantly, an abnormal phenomenon occurred. A dazzling pattern appeared above his body. Divine halos poured down endlessly. The light shot directly at the cultivators who stood in front of the Princess.


    In an instant, the space twisted. Those cultivators were seemingly thrown into a distorted space.


    When Shi Xie stepped forward, the space warped and shifted as the divine light showered down. The ground was covered by the light of the Great Path of Space. The space twisted and overlapped. Screams could be heard everywhere. Many cultivators revealed painful expressions as their bodies contorted uncontrollably. It was as though their body parts were in different spaces.


    "Die," Shi Xie uttered a word, and the divine light slashed downwards. Swooshing sounds could be heard, accompanied by the sound of blood splashing outwards. Many cultivators were torn apart by the Great Path of Space. The scene was gruesome.


    He was so powerful. Ye Futian, who had witnessed everything from afar, exclaimed internally. He didn''t know Shi Xie, but he could sense that the Great Path of Space, which Shi Xie was proficient in, was similarly a flawless Great Path. His Great Path was at a much higher level than other ordinary Great Paths. Shi Xie merely shifted his will and the space contorted. Many Renhuangs were helpless against him.


    This person''s understanding of the usage of the Great Path of Space was practically terrifying. It had already merged into his every movement.


    Ye Futian did not know that this Shi Xie was known as an existence with a Divine Body of the Great Path. He was a natural born possessor of the spatial divine power. He had been accepted as a direct disciple by the master of the Empty Divine Realm, the Evil Emperor!

 1820 Divine Fists

    In the cold, dark world, faint and cold moonlight shone down on the land. Beneath the light of the moon, Shi Xie walked in mid-air. Many cultivators followed behind him and dashed over to where Princess Donghuang was.


    Streaks of Divine Light of Space emanated from Shi Xie. Everywhere he passed, the space was ripped apart. The battlefield soon turned even more chaotic.


    An upper-level Renhuang stepped forward and advanced in the direction of Shi Xie. Sword Will burst forth from the Renhuang, transforming into a terrifying storm of Sword Qi. Blazing solar divine light rained down and cast away the cold aura. The Sword Will emanated by the Renhuang was hot; one could faintly make out a sun appearing in the sky. The sun-like divine sword sprang straight ahead and dashed towards Shi Xie. The sword traversed the sky and left behind streaks of Flame of the Great Path.


    Shi Xie cast a glance at his opponent. A sword similarly appeared in front of him. It was a golden spatial divine sword.


    A glint of malice flickered in his eyes. He raised a finger and pointed outwards. The sword darted forward.


    Buzz!


    A dazzling Divine Light of Space penetrated the sky. Everywhere it passed, the Flame of the Great Path left behind by the opponent''s sword disappeared without a trace. The facial expression of the upper-level Renhuang changed slightly. He activated his Divine Wheel of the Great Path up to its utmost limit. The solar divine sword radiated divine light. It burned everything around him as it guarded the Renhuang.


    Shi Xie''s spatial divine sword appeared from thin air and flew past the upper-level Renhuang. In a split second, the spatial divine sword had penetrated through the space countless times. The upper-level Renhuang felt that the surrounding space had contorted his attacks. The space of the Great Path, which he was currently in, was a mess.


    Shi Xie''s divine sword approached the Renhuang. The Renhuang wielded his sword to block the attack. His solar divine sword came face-to-face with Shi Xie''s divine sword, yet the two swords did not collide; it was as though the two swords were in different dimensions of space.


    A beam of solar divine light was shot into the distance, causing a brilliant solar flame to explode in mid-air. However, the cultivator with a seventh-tier Divine Wheel revealed a fearful expression. The next moment, the spatial divine sword flashed past and sliced through the throat of the cultivator. Blood splashed out and sparkled under the Divine Light of Space. The head of the cultivator disappeared right away as his soul was shattered into pieces.


    He was so powerful. This thought flashed past in the minds of all the Renhuangs from the Divine Prefecture when they saw what Shi Xie had done.


    "Be careful!" someone shouted. Swooshing sounds could be heard continuously as many Renhuangs from the Divine Prefecture were stabbed by the swords. They were killed instantly. Even Princess Donghuang was slightly shocked when she looked at the silhouette, who stood proudly in the sky.


    Shi Xie, the Divine Body of Space, was worthy of his title as the direct disciple of Evil Emperor, the Lord of the Empty Divine Realm. His ability was monstrous. Right now, he was surrounded by the Divine Light of Space. The light enveloped the heavens and earth. Everywhere his will covered, he could take on everyone and everything with his Great Path of Space.


    Many Renhuangs from the Divine Prefecture headed over to Shi Xie at the same time. All of them had powerful cultivation. The two armies began to approach each other and clash. There were even instances of close-quarter combat.


    The goal of the other party was to capture Princess Donghuang.


    Ye Futian was also on the battlefield. The forces who had participated in today''s battle were all forces at the peak of the Realms. Though they were powerful Renhuangs, now they seemed so humble and low. This scene gave Ye Futian mixed feelings.


    Anyone on this battlefield could be a huge figure in the outside world.


    However, on this battlefield, they were nothing special.


    Sword Will flowed over Ye Futian''s body as he advanced. A divine sword appeared in his hand. It was a powerful ritual implement. On this battlefield, there were originally no rules. He would naturally give it his all.


    His body still consumed the power of Yin, causing this power to circulate around him. It surged into his body and was directly absorbed into it. His Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst forth, and his figure became a furnace of the Great Path, refining the Great Path around him. This caused the power of Yin to be refined into his body even faster.


    A silhouette walked over towards him. It was a middle-level Renhuang. When he sensed the aura on Ye Futian''s body, a bizarre expression flashed past in the eyes of the other party. Ye Futian seemed unique to him. Ye Futian''s Plane was not very high, only having a second tier Divine Wheel. On this battlefield, Ye Futian was definitely a lowly existence. Yet, the aura flowing within him gave off an extraordinary impression.


    That was why this middle-level Renhuang felt Ye Futian was strange. However, he merely thought about it for a moment before attacking. His speed was breakneck, and he directly traversed the space. The Great Path of Space descended and imprisoned Ye Futian''s figure. At that moment, the space where Ye Futian was seemed to have frozen over. The Great Path seemed to flow slower. His figure instead appeared directly in front of Ye Futian. He struck out with one finger, and an attack of the Great Path instantly burst forth.


    A golden roulette sliced through the space towards Ye Futian. As it spun, it produced a frightening sonic boom that tore apart all existence.


    Ye Futian swept a glance at his opponent as he took a step forward. The frozen Great Path of Space seemed to shatter instantly. Sword Will swept out and filled the air. The power of his Divine Wheel burst forth. Divine light shone everywhere and pressed down on the space. This caused his opponent to be stunned. He actually felt his Way being suppressed by this lower-level Renhuang.


    The sword in Ye Futian''s hand stabbed forward. The spinning roulette that was rapidly ripping apart space immediately exploded into pieces. The divine sword flew out and swept across the sky. Ye Futian''s opponent sent out a palm strike, forging a spatial wall. A menacing spatial swirl appeared before him, attempting to consume the divine sword.


    The divine sword directly penetrated into the swirl. The next moment, it flew out of the swirl and pierced through the opponent''s body.


    The middle-level Renhuang stared at Ye Futian. He had a somewhat confused look in his eyes. Was this how a cultivator of the Original Realm was like?


    With a second-tier Divine Wheel, Ye Futian had instantly killed him with one sword.


    Rumble. His silhouette instantly exploded into pieces and dissipated.


    Ye Futian continued to advance. He saw a few silhouettes approaching him, secretly surrounding him. They were all staring at the divine sword in Ye Futian''s hand.


    There was more to this sword than met the eye.


    Their auras radiated from their bodies. They were all proficient in the power of the Great Path of Space. This made Ye Futian feel strange. Could it be that all the members of the army that had arrived were proficient in the Great Path of Space?


    These people were from the Empty Divine Realm.


    The divine sword flew up high into the sky. Guqin strings of the Great Path appeared around Ye Futian, seemingly forming an ancient guqin. Ye Futian''s fingers plucked the strings from afar. Sword Will immediately rained down.


    A flawless Divine Wheel. Ye Futian''s opponents glanced over at him. Although they were cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm, those who could forge flawless Divine Wheels were still a minority. There were even fewer people who could maintain a flawless Divine Wheel at the middle-level Renhuang Plane. Among upper-level Renhuangs, it was even rarer. Anyone with a flawless Divine Wheel at the upper-level Renhuang Plane could become a top figure.


    Buzz.


    The divine sword flew up high into the sky, and the Great Path resonated. Endless Sword Will flowed, seemingly pouring into the divine sword. In the heavens above, countless sword illusions appeared. They flowed down the guqin strings of the Great Path.


    "Go."


    Once Ye Futian uttered this word, the divine swords flew out and slaughtered their way towards one of the cultivators. A Door of Space appeared behind that cultivator, and he immediately stepped through it.


    A cold look flashed past in Ye Futian''s eyes. Cold murderous Sword Will exploded. His will enveloped the space of the Great Path, forming a terrifying turbulence. The silhouette of the cultivator who had disappeared reappeared amidst the turbulence. He was frowning slightly. He had actually been unable to traverse the space.


    Swoosh. Swoosh.


    Extremely sharp aura descended. His expression changed drastically. The divine swords turned everything in their path to dust, returning them to nothingness.


    The cultivator continued to retreat, attempting to pass through space to escape. However, the divine swords arrived first. They immediately penetrated the space and shattered the Great Path. The light of the divine swords pierced through everything. The cultivator had yet to escape when he was killed by the swords on the spot.


    Ye Futian continued to wave his finger. The divine swords changed directions and slaughtered their way towards another two Renhuangs. They were all middle-level Renhuangs. The one with the highest cultivation had a fifth tier Divine Wheel. They must have assumed that Ye Futian would be easy to deal with. After all, for them, those with second-tier Divine Wheels were too weak.


    Very quickly, the bodies of the two cultivators were pierced by the divine swords. They died on the spot, their souls dispersing as they fell.


    At that moment, another cultivator stood in the sky above Ye Futian. His entire body released rings of golden halos. His entire body was resplendent and extremely overbearing. What was even more terrifying was that this person had a flawless Divine Wheel. He was a middle-level Renhuang with a sixth tier flawless Divine Wheel.


    That person is dangerous, Ye Futian thought to himself. He was an existence at the sixth tier Renhuang Plane. He also had a flawless Divine Wheel. His cultivation was truly four Planes higher than that of Ye Futian.


    Clang!


    The other party stepped forward. Golden light patterns from his Divine Wheel of the Great Path pressed down on Ye Futian. Divine light flooded the space and directly bashed against Ye Futian''s body. It caused Ye Futian to feel extremely terrifying shocks.


    In an instant, Ye Futian sensed that this person''s combat ability was far stronger than that of the two existences with seventh tier Divine Wheels that he had just killed.


    This meant that even if he released the emperor''s will, he would still not necessarily be able to defeat this person.


    Buzz!


    The other party immediately walked over, raising his fists and sending them punching towards Ye Futian. Golden divine light instantly pierced the heavens. Resplendent light from his fists appeared in the sky above. Before his person arrived, the will of his fists had already come crashing over. Ye Futian''s divine sword flew out, and everything was turned to dust. It crashed towards the will of the fists.


    A loud clang could be heard. The will of the fists was torn apart by the sword. However, the divine sword was vibrating and was being pushed down.


    The beam of light in mid-air descended. The Divine Fists came crashing down with frightening divine light. They actually collided directly with the divine sword with a body of flesh and blood.


    Clang!


    The divine sword seemed to have collided with an indestructible divine item. It was sent flying backward. The opponent''s speed suddenly sped up as he directly traversed the sky. The two Divine Fists came crashing down again. A terrifying storm of the Great Path swept out, causing Ye Futian to feel like his body was being crushed.


    The spear of the war god appeared in Ye Futian''s hand again. He took a step forward and thrust out his spear, splitting the space apart as it met the golden Divine Fists crashing down on him.


    Bang! There was a huge sound, and Ye Futian felt as though a mountain was pressing down on him. The will of the fists was channeled through his spear and crashed into his body. An intense rumbling sound came from within his body. He felt his organs tremble intensely. He used this power to retreat backward as bloodstains appeared in the corner of his mouth.


    Both of them had flawless Divine Wheels. However, the opponent was a middle-level Renhuang with a flawless Divine Wheel. The difference between their Planes was too great!

 1821 The Core

    Rumble.


    The will of the fists burst forth. Endless auroras from the fists covered the sky. The entire sky was dazzling as punches from the spatial Divine Fists traversed the space and struck towards Ye Futian''s body. Even before the attacks arrived, Ye Futian could sense an overwhelming pressure suppressing him.


    Buzz. A golden gale swept past, and a pair of bright wings appeared above Ye Futian. The wings covered the sky and separated the space, blocking the punches from reaching Ye Futian. Rumbling sounds exploded as the fists that densely covered the sky were all impeded by the wings.


    A dazzling Peng Bird appeared in the sky above Ye Futian. His cultivation was frightening. He was an upper-level Demon Emperor with an eighth tier Divine Wheel.


    He spread his wings, and immediately an astonishing spatial storm swept up into the heavens.


    The silhouette in mid-air was not afraid in the slightest. The gigantic illusory figure was like a deity. It enveloped the silhouette within it. His figure dashed out and became a beam of light. He immediately disappeared from his original position. The next moment, he was charging in front of his opponent.


    The Peng Bird''s sharp talons ripped apart the space and met the divine light. His wings blocked out the sky and covered this space of the Great Path.


    Rumble! There was a huge sound, and the opponent''s silhouette disappeared. The next moment, he had appeared in another location and sent out another golden Divine Fist of flowing light that pierced the heavens and the earth.


    In the heavens above, Divine Fists continuously came from all directions. It was as though countless silhouettes and illusions of the Divine Fists had appeared.


    The figure of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird shook. More and more golden divine feathers fell to the ground.


    Bang!


    Finally, a golden Divine Fist punched a hole through its opponent''s gigantic body. The fist punched through the Peng Bird''s body from the top and came out from the bottom.


    Countless tears appeared on the Peng Bird. An explosion then followed it. The bird let out a wail. An eighth-tier Demon Emperor was killed on the spot.


    The opponent looked like a deity as his golden eyes pierced through the sky.


    One could make out how terrifying a flawless sixth tier Divine Wheel cultivator was. At the very least, in the Void Realm, Ye Futian could not find someone at the same level who could contend with this figure. Not a single cultivator was on par with him.


    Empty Mountain was the training ground of the Evil Emperor. Only the most talented figures in the Empty Divine Realm were qualified to train on Empty Mountain. The figure who attacked just now was a disciple of Empty Mountain. Even though he was not a direct disciple of the Evil Emperor, he was more experienced, and Shi Xie would need to address him as ''older brother.''


    This cultivator looked down from where he was high in the sky and locked his gaze on Ye Futian. A look of indifference flashed past his golden eyes, as though Ye Futian was already dead to him.


    Perhaps from his point of view, Ye Futian would surely die.


    He targeted Ye Futian because he noticed that Ye Futian was a possessor of a flawless Divine Wheel. Besides that, Ye Futian had killed quite a few cultivators just now. Naturally, he stood out as compared to the rest.


    The cultivator from Empty Mountain strode downwards and was ready to attack again. Buzz�� a golden light flashed across the sky. This time, he intended to punch a hole through Ye Futian up close. The light traveled at an astonishing speed. However, right at this moment, a celestial light shimmered, and a palm strike went up against the light with overwhelming momentum. The palm strike collided with the fist.


    A scorching light radiated. This time, the opponent''s silhouette was pushed back.


    "Head over to where the princess is," the person who appeared was Hua Jiangshan from the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven. His cultivation was also at the eighth tier.


    However, just a while ago, Ye Futian''s opponent had killed an existence at the eighth tier right before his eyes. This caused Ye Futian some concern. He reminded Hua Jiangshan and said, "Senior, please be careful."


    "I know," Hua Jiangshan replied as he nodded his head. As one of the previous leaders of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, his combat ability was naturally more powerful than that of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced around. The power of Yin had already flooded this part of the world. Everywhere his will swept across was covered in the power of Yin.


    A heart-wrenching aura came from down below. Before this, many cultivators from the Dark Court had already delved deep underground. They could faintly sense that the divine item was about to emerge.


    After hesitating for a short while, Ye Futian headed down below instead of where Princess Donghuang was.


    Very few people could remain unscathed in the power of Yin. The deeper he went, the harder it would be. Ye Futian could do it. He would naturally not want to miss such an opportunity.


    "Kill him."


    At that moment, the cultivator who was battling fiercely with Hua Jiangshan in the sky above said this as he swept a glance at Ye Futian. It seemed that he did not want to let Ye Futian live.


    After he said this, a few cultivators immediately dashed towards Ye Futian. As a cultivator of Empty Mountain, the cultivator had a high rank in this army from the Empty Divine Realm.


    Ye Futian frowned and felt somewhat dispirited. He sped up and dashed downwards at high speed.


    The cultivators who came after him became beams of flowing light and chased after Ye Futian. One of them raised his hand and grabbed out into thin air. A powerful force of the Great Path of Space immediately attempted to imprison Ye Futian''s body.


    Ye Futian''s divine sword tore apart the power of the Great Path of Space, trying to imprison him as he continued downwards. He was as fast as lightning.


    "Stop," a silhouette cried out. Divine swords that tore apart space rained down, forming a spatial storm of divine swords.


    Ye Futian avoided the onslaught of divine swords, his speed decreasing. In that short interval, the other party caught up with him. Three cultivators appeared around Ye Futian. Two of them were middle-level Renhuangs. The last one was an upper-level Renhuang with a seventh tier Divine Wheel. He had a menacing aura. They were also all cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm. Their abilities would certainly be more powerful than the cultivators Ye Futian encountered in the Sea of the Path.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. Frightening golden lightning flashed and unleashed a high-pitched sound. The lightning was everywhere, flooding the space and surrounding Ye Futian''s figure within it. As Ye Futian glanced around, his figure was flooded by the golden lightning.


    Ye Futian''s opponent pointed a finger at him. Golden light of the Great Path that tore apart the space came cleaving down. The divine elephant Divine Wheel appeared. The golden divine elephant enveloped ye Futian''s figure. However, the terrifying lightning struck the figure of the divine elephant and tore apart its body.


    An illusory figure sparkled. The cultivator immediately appeared within the endless lightning storm. A divine halberd appeared in his hand. Menacing spatial halos flowed over the halberd. Golden lightning circled it, filling it with devastating destructive power.


    The cultivator lifted the divine halberd. The next moment, his silhouette disappeared without a trace. It was as though he had merged into the endless lightning and was moving with it. The cultivator who was attacking had a sixth tier Divine Wheel. When he attacked, he made Ye Futian feel an enormous pressure.


    The divine swords around Ye Futian resonated and rang. 10,000 elephants stormed, and the divine sword in his hand sprang out. When the lightning landed, Ye Futian''s divine sword hit the opponent''s halberd accurately.


    The Sword Will and the lightning flowed past each other and slashed towards their respective targets. The divine elephants which were protecting Ye Futian were constantly being torn apart.


    Bang! His body was sent flying backward as he was pushed downwards. The other two cultivators followed behind the upper-level Renhuang. They were guarding at the sides to prevent Ye Futian from escaping. Before this, the cultivators from the Dark Court were fighting with the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. After the Empty Divine Realm joined the battle, the Divine Prefecture was naturally at a disadvantage.


    Ye Futian was surrounded by golden lightning. His facial expression was ugly.


    Not far away from them, a group of cultivators passed by. The leader of the group was the College Chief of Tianshen Academy. His group was pursuing a cultivator from the Dark Court. Beside the College Chief were a few Renhuangs who were at their peak. All of them noticed Ye Futian, and they glanced at the College Chief.


    The College Chief of Tianshen Academy did not turn around. His gaze didn''t even flicker as he strode downwards to pursue his target. He completely ignored Ye Futian.


    The cultivators beside him naturally understood what the College Chief meant by that. They left together with him.


    Ye Futian did not look in their direction, but he knew that they passed by. However, he did not dwell on their intentions. They were from different forces, to begin with. Even though he had trained in Tianshen Academy for a period of time, his stay last time was more of a collaboration between two parties. He was not a disciple of Tianshen Academy.


    Hence, regardless of whether Tianshen Academy helped him or not, it was their choice. Ye Futian had nothing to say about it.


    However, judging from their actions, it seemed like the College Chief of Tianshen Academy did not really like him.


    In the sky, another attack landed. Ye Futian utilized the momentum from the other party''s attack to move further downwards. He slipped into the crack and entered the underground.


    The three cultivators followed closely after him. One of them said, "Kill him."


    As soon as he spoke, the other two cultivators did not waste time standing around. Other than the terrifying lightning halberd, another brilliant divine sword joined in the attack. The Sword Will flooded the space as all the attacks were aimed directly at Ye Futian.


    Buzz. A Spatial Sacred Hall appeared, enveloping Ye Futian in it. The precious item warded off most of the attacks. An intense rumbling sound rang. The sacred hall hit the ground frenziedly, moving underground.


    This scene caused the three cultivators to frown. A powerful will surrounded them. They were slightly hesitant.


    The terrifying power of Yin could be clearly sensed from the spot where they were now. Even though they had a high Plane of cultivation, they were still greatly affected by the power of Yin.


    Their eyes emitted beams of golden divine light as they scanned the core. They could see that Ye Futian had emerged from the sacred hall precious item and was advancing further underground. He even turned around and glanced at them. His gaze was provocative.


    When the three cultivators saw his gaze, their facial expressions turned ugly. Their gazes were sharp.


    Ye Futian''s gaze�� Was he challenging them?


    However, Ye Futian seemed to have an extremely powerful defense treasure item with him. They could not crush the item with their attacks, but they could capture Ye Futian along with the treasure.


    Should they pursue him?


    They were hesitating. The other two looked at the upper-level Renhuang. The upper-level Renhuang stared at the ground, then he strode downwards, saying, "Go and have a look."


    The three of them were also interested in checking out what was happening underground. Since it had come to this, they would make a trip underground and capture Ye Futian along the way.


    This space underground had been destroyed. Many powerful Renhuangs had come here. As Ye Futian moved deeper underground, his body was absorbing the terrifying power of Yin. Some cultivators were frozen solid. When the power of Yin caressed Ye Futian''s body, he also felt an extreme chill eating away at his body.


    However, he continued to move further down and advanced in the direction of the core!

 1822 Silhouette

    In this underground region, magma flowed and merged with the power of Yin, forming flames of Yin. It caused people to sense a terror that stemmed from deep within their soul. Flames of Yang were domineering and tyrannical; flames of Yin were exactly the opposite. If the flames of Yin corroded one''s body, they could not be extinguished. They would corrode bone and seep into the spirit, consuming both body and soul.


    Hence, all the cultivators avoided the flames carefully. Aside from that, the power of Yin itself gave off a bone-chilling cold that could corrode the Way of cultivators and was very dangerous.


    Even Ye Futian''s will was restricted. It was very difficult for him to release his will across a long distance. He was not the only one; it was the same for the other cultivators who came here.


    The people who dared to come here either had powerful cultivation, were proficient in similar types of powers, or had special methods to cope with the power of Yin.


    Aura radiated from Ye Futian''s body. His aura was like leaves and branches that extended out into the surrounding space. At that moment, Ye Futian''s meridians, skeleton and even his blood became an ancient tree and branches. His Deed of Thorough Comprehension was unleashed. With the ancient World Tree as his foundation, he refined the Great Path.


    The leaves and branches that flowed out were like countless tentacles. They absorbed and consumed the power of Yin little by little, merging it into his body. This made him feel a bone-chilling sensation all over his body. However, with the presence of his Life Spirit, he could still consume it.


    Three cultivators followed behind him. They were also exceptionally careful as they released auras of the Great Path. Their bodies were bathed in halos of the Great Path that resisted the corrosion of the power of Yin.


    They looked over at where Ye Futian was and they frowned slightly. This fellow was heading deeper and deeper underground. With his Plane of cultivation, by right, he should have stopped a long time ago. They clearly realized that Ye Futian had special methods to resist the corrosion of the power of Yin in order for him to have continued descending so deep underground.


    Ye Futian was truly cunning. He had actually used their surroundings to evade their onslaught. In this place, it was indeed inconvenient for them to make a move. If they caused too much of a ruckus, they might trigger a disaster in the core.


    Hence, they had also been very wary. The Divine Light of Space flowed around their bodies. The light seemed to form a spatial passageway that kept the power of Yin at bay.


    At the same time, they still felt an extremely cold chill. They were somewhat perplexed. How could Ye Futian, who only had a second tier Divine Wheel, reach such a depth?


    Could it be that he had some sort of ritual implement on him?


    After considering this, golden lightning shot downwards from the body of one the cultivators. A murderous look flashed past in his eyes. They could not wait any longer.


    "We cannot head down any further," he said to the other two cultivators. They already felt a very intense sense of danger here. If they continued downwards, they would most likely be unable to withstand the environment.


    "Kill him," the cultivator with a seventh tier Divine Wheel said. Since they could not head down any further, then they would eliminate Ye Futian here.


    "Alright," the other person replied as he nodded his head in agreement. As he said this, terrifying lightning pierced through the underground and cleaved towards Ye Futian. There was a huge disturbance.


    Lightning rained down from above. The power of Yin around them seemed to merge directly with the lightning. It caused the lightning to be even more terrifying. In an instant, it blotted out the space above them and covered this underground space.


    The cultivator was also slightly surprised. This space was filled with the power of Yin. It seemed that attacks of all attributes would be corroded by the power of Yin. Even if he did not actively absorb the power of Yin, the attack he released would still be laced with its power.


    No wonder the cultivators of the Dark Court wanted to refine the Shadow Realm. If the cultivation methods of the Dark Court incorporated the power of Yin, their powers of the Underworld, death and destruction would become much more frightening.


    Ye Futian''s figure flashed as he dodged the attacks. However, the lightning that descended was everywhere. It cleaved down on his defences. Then, the other party''s halberd stabbed out. A frightening divine light immediately shot downwards.


    Sword Will rampaged around them, generating resonance. Ye Futian''s sword stabbed forward. The surrounding space seemed to turn into a vacuum. Both of their attacks collided. Ye Futian''s figure was knocked backwards. It appeared as though he was about to be knocked down into the frightening magma.


    At that exact moment, a spatial handprint came crashing down and continued to pressure him. They wanted to destroy and kill him.


    Around Ye Futian''s figure, the ancient runes of Qian, Kun, Li and Kan circled. A pattern of the Great Path appeared. The power of Yin around him merged into his body. The furnace of the Great Path that his body had become was even more frightening now.


    His divine sword floated in mid-air. Then, Ye Futian pointed his finger to the sky. With the pattern of the Great Path circling it, the divine sword slashed out, accompanied by terrifying lightning.


    Rumble! A dull sound could be heard. Aside from its Sword Will, lightning also flowed along the divine sword. It actually shattered the spatial handprint. The frightening lightning continued upwards and slaughtered its way towards the silhouette in mid-air. This caused the other party to frown and reveal a strange look.


    The Divine Light of Space on his body flashed. The lightning struck his body but was unable to break through his defence.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he understood that by just absorbing and refining such a small amount of the power of Yin, the increase in his attack power was limited. It was still far from being able to eradicate the other party.


    It seemed like he could only use that technique. Since he started cultivating, he had never used it before, not even once.


    After all, the risk was too great. Once he unleashed the technique, he had a high chance of crippling himself. It was very dangerous.


    The seventh tier Divine Wheel cultivator who was in mid-air attacked. He made a grab in the air in the direction where Ye Futian was. Immediately, a terrifying Divine Light of Space flowed. Ye Futian could sense the surrounding space contorting.


    A glint of cold light flashed in Ye Futian''s eyes. He shifted his will and suddenly, the ancient characters of the Great Path moved in a reverse direction. On his body, the Great Path reversed and moved towards the sky. With his body as the center, a menacing aura spiraled upwards in the opposite direction.


    Ye Futian''s body seemingly transformed into a real tree. This tree was inflating at a high speed, producing countless branches and leaves. All the aura of the Great Path in his body was refined into the heavens and earth. It was as though he had lost control of his own body.


    His silver-colored hair danced in the wind. His body turned extremely weak. At this moment, it was as though he was not himself; instead, he was one with the space. His body gradually turned more and more illusory. However, illusions of Ye Futian''s face appeared in the space, as though he was omnipresent.


    Even though it was not his first time experiencing this sensation, Ye Futian could still feel his heart tremble. It was a feeling of losing control of oneself. However, in return, he felt like this part of the space was completely within his control.


    This was the reverse cultivation of the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    This technique was useless during normal times. It could only be activated under some special circumstances. The Grandmaster fell into the demonic Way as he consumed the power of the world when he used this technique.


    Right now, Ye Futian wanted to borrow the power of Yin, so he could use this technique too.


    This power of Yin was originally not his power. However, right now, he refined his will and his Way into the power of Yin. The heavens and earth turned into the furnace as he became the fire to catalyze the process.


    "What''s happening?"


    The facial expressions of the three cultivators changed. They had not expected Ye Futian to have this kind of ability.


    The power of Yin covered the sky and diffused in the surroundings, enveloping the three cultivators in it. The sun and the moon appeared at the same time in this part of the space. The moon shone exceptionally bright. When the moonlight covered the space, the air around them froze.


    The power of Yin was being absorbed by the moon. Moonlight kept beaming down. A powerful halo of the Great Path of Space appeared around them, sealing them off in an independent space.


    Ye Futian''s illusory figure appeared in mid-air. He stared at the three of them. It was as though he was the master of the power of Yin in this part of the space.


    He shifted his will and rumbling sounds thundered. A Yin-charged lightning slashed downwards, completely enveloping the space where the three cultivators were.


    Kacha. The spatial shroud was shattered by the lightning. Ritual implements appeared in the hands of the cultivators. In an instant, Doors of Space appeared around them as they sealed themselves within the doors.


    Rustling sounds could be heard. Amidst the menacing Yin-charged lightning, tree branches extended and curled around the space where they were in. Then, the branches swung out and swept the enclosed space into the magma ocean.


    The facial expressions of the three cultivators changed drastically as they revealed fearful gazes. They saw how they were being thrown into the magma ocean. The horrifying magma flooded the Doors of Space right away and melted them. Ye Futian saw a beam of Divine Light of Space shooting out from the ocean. The seventh tier Divine Wheel cultivator struggled and attempted to escape. However, as soon as he got out of the enclosed space, his body was melted into liquids and was washed away by the magma currents.


    Such an overbearing attack.


    Ye Futian''s gaze was indifferent. He continued advancing further down. Right now, he had an illusion that he was the master of this Shadow Realm. However, he knew that it was but a delusion. If it wasn''t for the fact that he possessed the World Tree Life Spirit, he wouldn''t have been able to do anything. He might even face the backlash of his technique right away.


    Hence, even though the Grandmaster knew that the Deed of Thorough Comprehension could be unleashed in a reverse manner, he didn''t tell Ye Futian until the moment when he fell into the demonic Way. The risk of this technique was too great. It could only be used under special circumstances.


    For example, now would be a suitable time. This space was enveloped in the power of Yin. The power of Yin was everywhere. When he refined his Way into the heavens and earth now, he could utilize the ultra strong power around him.


    However, at this moment, Ye Futian himself was also experiencing a huge pressure. His willpower was not strong enough for him to withstand it for too long. When he realized this, he quickly moved forwards and headed towards the core with increased speed. At that moment, the power of Yin was no longer a resisting force. It could even be considered an assisting force.


    As he kept delving deeper towards the core, the power of Yin became even more terrifying. Ye Futian faintly sensed that he was at his limit. Very few people could make it this far. Those who could were all figures with peak cultivation. There were a few members of the Dark Court here.


    Ye Futian''s figure became an afterimage as he traversed the sinister winds that blew. Finally, he sensed an extremely terrifying aura coming from the core ahead of him. He could faintly make out a storm that was like a black hole. Endless Yin Qi circled and flowed around the core, forming a menacing swirl. The aura that emanated from it caused the hearts of those who saw it to tremble.


    Right at this moment, Ye Futian''s gaze was suddenly glued to something. He revealed an astonished look.


    He stared straight ahead. A silhouette actually emerged from the depths of the terrifying, swirling black hole!

 1823 Heir of the Heaven Realm

    Shadow currents were flowing and surrounding that area and could freeze to death any divine consciousness that tried to enter it. Just by looking from afar, one could feel the bone-chilling cold air that seemed to freeze time and space, blood, breathing, even the soul.


    Ye Futian felt that even with his possession of the ancient tree as Life Spirit, it would be difficult for him to get close to that area.


    Over the years, there must have been other top figures who tried, such as the Palace Lord of Youyue Divine Palace, but clearly, no one was really able to take away the divine item.


    However, at this moment, someone was cultivating inside the Shadow Vortex.


    Who could this be?


    The man seemingly turned his gaze toward Ye Futian. It was the darkest pair of eyes that he had ever seen, enough to make his soul tremble with just one glance. It was as if it was about to be frozen by those pitch-black eyes.


    This man wore all black and looked to be about only 30 years in age. His hair was black as ink, and an immense chill exuded from him, like the power of the Shadow. His eyes were devoid of any emotions, and ignored everything else.


    After he saw Ye Futian, he made a grabbing motion toward him. In an instant, the power of the Shadow eclipsed heaven and earth in an extremely violent manner. It turned into a terrifying whirlpool with wisps of Shadow currents grabbing at Ye Futian so that the area he was in now moved involuntarily toward the man in black.


    "What?" Ye Futian didn''t expect the man would suddenly attack him. At the moment, everything around him seemed to be slowing down, as if he wasn''t able to resist that power, his body couldn''t help but moved toward the man.


    Boom! Ye Futian realized that something was amiss. With the Deed of Thorough Comprehension now deployed to counter the attack, he surrounded himself with ancient characters, and the meaning of the Great Path merged into the heaven and the earth. All the power of the Shadow in the surrounding space seemed to be at his disposal.


    Buzz...


    A storm rose and tossed his body far away as he retreated out of this area; that mysterious man was hazardous.


    When the man saw that Ye Futian had escaped his control, there was a slight uncertainty in his eyes. Then, his body floated up, and a terrible Shadow Vortex churning frantically. At this moment, the power of the Shadow at the center of the earth was running wildly, flowing with madness, raging through every area it passed.


    At the same time, there was a man of great ability, armed with the level of Divine Wheel Ninth Order, who was from the Dark Court. He frowned at what he saw at this moment while looking around him.


    What was happening?


    Seeing that the Shadow storm would simply overwhelm him, he felt that everything had stopped, and his spiritual soul was frozen as his Will had ceased. The blood inside his body, as well as the power of the Great Path, had all stopped flowing and became absolutely still.


    A cold and shadowy glory sprinkled on him. The body of this great existence of the Nine Order actually started to disappear little by little, as if his whole person had become extremely fragile, like some rotten deadwood that could turn to dust under a blow of the wind, quickly dissipating in the air.


    Once his spiritual soul was annihilated, it slowly dissipated as his consciousness was gradually lost to him. A vague visage seemed to appear in the void, distorted, and fearful. Then it, too, went with the dissipating Shadow storm. Such was the ending of a greatly capable existence, who perished right on the spot.


    At this moment, there were still other great and capable figures from the top level of the Dark Court. Those above Renhuang had felt the storm, as they all quickly retreated, moving directly outer bounds of the center.


    What just happened here?


    Suddenly, the Shadow power began to mobilize.


    When the Shadow power moved violently, many Renhuang who had entered the core of the earth couldn''t escape it fast enough and were wiped out instantaneously. Under the Shadow power, they had all turned into dust. Those who were higher in their realm were closer to it, thus died even faster.


    Ye Futian was also on the run, but he was too late. The Shadow storm turned into a horrific vortex, drowning everything in its path. His face changed as he deployed the spatial implement to cover his body, but the power of the Shadow was overwhelming. That implement from the Spatial Temple seemed extremely fragile by contrast, slowly decaying under the Shadow currents, turning into dust like everything else, and was simply blown away.


    According to legend, under extreme Yang and extreme Yin energies, no object was strong enough to withstand either one. Even the most powerful implement could be easily melted or corrupted. Those mighty treasures have no resistance to these energies at all.


    Ye Futian could see that this power was not only magnificent but also terrifying.


    It was hard to imagine that someone could cultivate inside; was he naturally compatible with the power of the Shadow?


    Ye Futian didn''t think much about it because he didn''t have the time to contemplate the matter. The space that he was in was also directly submerged by the power of the Shadow.


    At this time, in the center of the earth, the man in black slowly levitated, moving all the way up. An extremely fearsome Shadow storm was flowing about, surrounded him, as the area around him turned into a vacuum so that all must make way for him.


    The space of the Outer Realms was beginning to be volatile, as the power of the Shadow moving about uncontrollably, effecting the entire Shadow Realm. The world was undergoing major changes, and where Youyue Divine Palace was, shadows burst out from the ground underneath and rose above toward the sky.


    Those who were fighting now stopped as well. They felt that those confusing currents had begun to spread out, as the Will of the Way flowed around, surrounding them. All their attention was fixed on the violent Shadow power below.


    Was there a change in the divine item?


    At this moment, they felt a horrific breath coming toward the surface, invading the Outer Realms little by little.


    The power of the Shadow became more terrifying, and as the figure in black re-appeared, the Shadow storm surrounded him like a gigantic pattern.


    When they saw this man, Shi Xie and the others revealed a surprised look, especially Shi Xie. His eyes sharpened slightly. HE stared at this mysterious cultivator, blurted out, "It''s you?"


    He recognized the man.


    He was an individual who rarely showed himself to the outside world but was extremely famous. Not many would recognize him, but there were definitely very few who had never heard of him.


    In the greater world of the universe, the seven Great Emperors were the most powerful existence in it, and they control the seven most powerful forces in this world. Now, among them, a force was gradually declining and became the weakest existence among the seven.


    This force was known as the Heaven Realm.


    The Lord of the Heaven Realm was called Heavenly Emperor.


    If Donghuang the Great could be considered the most brilliant figure of his time, then with "Heaven" in his title, one could venture just how majestic this man was.


    It was reasonable to assume, then, that before Donghuang the Great, Heavenly Emperor must have been the most dazzling existence in the world.


    However, the Heavenly Emperor fell.


    His fall led to the collapse of Heaven Realm and its subsequent decline.


    Now, the current Lord of the Heaven Realm, even as an emperor, did not use the title of Heavenly Emperor.


    The cultivator who appeared in front of them was precisely the current heir of Heaven Realm. It was said that his talent was extraordinary. In the future, he might embark on the path of the previous Heaven Emperor and become an unparalleled existence in history.


    Princess Donghuang focused her attention on him, for she also became aware of who he was.


    She did not expect that he would be here.


    Much less beneath the Shadow Realm.


    This meant that after the passageway was opened, he had come to the Empty Realm, and descended directly into the Shadow Realm, went straight to its underground to cultivate.


    The change in the Shadow Realm was not a complete coincidence, then, but was because he was cultivating inside. When the Dark Court came to set up the matrix, they probably disturbed his cultivation.


    However, Princess Donghuang was a little surprised at the strength he displayed. Could the current heir of the Heaven Realm really possess the ability to cultivate in the heart of the Shadow Realm directly?


    There was not much known about him, just that he was mighty and very dangerous. Her father had said once that he would be one of the top figures in the future.


    After Shi Xie saw him, he stepped out with the divine sword high in the air and smashed it down without hesitation. Suddenly, the space around the man was distorted as the sword fell on it, intending to shatter it.


    Boom... The power of the Shadow that surrounded his opponent swept out, and everything slowed down. Even the space seemed to stand still. The distorted Great Path of Space was unable to affect the other.


    The man raised his head and glanced up as the light of the divine sword fell down. Wisps of Shadow currents rolled toward the sky and collided with the divine sword, shattering it.


    Shi Xie stared at the man, slightly frowning at the sight. But the man didn''t seem to have any intention of fighting. He glanced at Shi Xie, then turned to walk away, the mighty power of the Shadow still surrounded him. The storm was terrifying, which made Shi Xie hesitated for a moment.


    "Let him go." Next to Shi Xie, someone spoke. Upon hearing those words, Shi Xie did not pursue the other any longer but allowed the other to step away.


    The Shadow storm had gone away with the man who was walking away, gradually disappearing. It was as if he had come just to cultivate with the power of the Shadow, and now that the cultivation was done, he didn''t bother to stay any longer than he had to.


    "Many who went below couldn''t come up. The Dark Court will probably suffer considerable loss," someone said to Shi Xie. The Dark Court had the most cultivators who went down below. It was bound to suffer the greatest loss.


    "Futian." The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy became alarmed. They had noticed that Ye Futian had gone down as well but did not come back out.


    Princess Donghuang frowned, and her beautiful eyes looked downward as well; was he still down there?


    Heir of the Heaven Realm, the disciples of the Evil Emperor, and even the cultivators of the Dark Court had all made their appearances one after another. It seemed that starting from the Original Realm, some turbulent times were ahead!

 1824 Origin Stone

    Everything had gone quiet. The core had frozen under the divine radiance of the great shadow. Time had stoped flowing, and things stopped moving through space. Other than the stream of shadow qi that was still flowing, everything else had turned to dust and disappeared.


    However, there was still a place with a bit of life left in this absolutely destroyed realm. Lines of qi appeared there, like leaves floating through the void. Faint light flashed as the qi flickered, filling the area.


    This seemed to be the only place in the silent core where there was motion.


    The power of the shadow had flowed into this place, but it had not immediately destroyed it like the other places. Instead, it had flowed along with the area''s own currents, as if they were working in tandem.


    Ye Futian stood there in the center of the area, unmoving. His eyes had been open all along, but he had not moved.


    He had seen everything turn to dust. It seemed that nothing could exist under the power of shadow, including extremely powerful ritual implements. Invincible ritual implements were as weak as paper here, and could be easily destroyed.


    He felt that he was the same. He had felt his body, his divine spirit, and even his spiritual will all stop as the shadow infected him. They had all become incredibly weak and easy to destroy.


    But he was still alive. He had not fallen. He even discovered that the power of the shadow was flowing along with the World Tree''s currents. It seemed that the World Tree had saved his life.


    There was a rustling sound as the soul of the World Tree was unleased. He even activated the will of the Emperor, just to be safe. Sacred radiance flowed over him and lines of dazzling light stretched out. A huge, holy tree appeared with him at its base. Endless leaves and branches appeared around him and stretched out for a vast distance.


    Ye Futian thought of the treasure he had obtained in Emperor Kua''s ruins in the Crimson Dragon Realm. It was a fire spirit orb that could destroy anything. It seemed to be an item of the sun, something from the world of flames, but it had still been refined by the World Tree.


    Now, the power of shadow was the same. With the World Tree protecting him, it could not destroy him.


    It seemed that the World Had the power to protect the whole world. Time and time again it forged miracles and turned the impossible into the possible.


    All was silent for a moment, then Ye Futian suddenly moved. He seemed to have transformed into a tree himself, and he began hovering. The power of the sun flowed towards him, warming up the area. It merged with the pwer of the World Tree, and was not as destructive as it would have been elsewhere.


    The youth he had seen earlier had walked out of this place. He had cultivated in the heart of a shadow storm, and Ye Futian could sense that although he was very powerful, he was not a top level figure. In fact, he was far from it. He was only so strong because he had drawn upon the power of shadow.


    Thus, this man obviously had some special tricks that allowed him to come here.


    The core of the Shadow Realm was a place that even the greatest figures could not come to.


    The Dark Court wanted to use this power for themselves. When Donghuang the Great had unified the Divine Prefecture and conquered the Original Realm, he had not tried to use this power, but had left it there and closed up the roads to the Original Realm in order to let the people of that realm have their own cultivation resources.


    Otherwise, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing would have taken the power away.


    Great figures could not seize that power, but true great emperors could. They were the ones who stood above all others.


    Ye Futian looked at the shadow vortex before him. He hesitated a bit. Should he go into it?


    The secrets of the Shadow Realm might be within it. If he went in, could he withstand it?


    His mind raced, then there was a flash of resolution in his dark eyes. If someone else was able to go in there to cultivate, and he had such a fate-altering life spirit, why couldn''t he go in there too?


    The will of the Emperor burned within him and flowed through his veins. The World Tree shone with divine radiance.


    He flashed towards the center of the shadow storm. In a flash, he was swallowed up by a stream of endless shadow. Anyone watching from outside would no longer have been able to see him.


    He stepped into the storm. The shadow energy was extremely thick here. It flowed over him endlessly and entered the space where his World Tree was, spreading over his body and giving him a feeling of utter cold. Even with the will of the Emperor, he divine spirit still seemed to freeze.


    Everything was silent within the shadow storm. Nothing could exist in here besides the stream of shadow qi. Only he and his life spirit were in here.


    He slowed down, seeming to respond to the power he was facing. He continued on, step by step.


    Soon he realized that the world surrounded by the shadow storm was actually a cavernous sky. The storm had filled a vast area, and flowed around the center of the Shadow Realm. It formed strands of shadow power that flowed towards the surface.


    It was as if this was the reason the Shadow Realm had been created. Youyue Divine Palace was the place in the Shadow Realm that bloomed with the most shadow energy, and thus occupied the highest position within the realm. This place was directly under the palace.


    He did not dare to move any faster. He seemed to have forgotten about time. He just continued forward through the storm. He could feel his thoughts becoming slow and simple. He may not have been killed by the power of shadow, but he had still been greatly affected. His blood flowed slowly and the will within his body was obstructed. Everything seemed almost still. If it hadn''t been for his World Tree, his life would have stopped as well.


    After he did not know how long, the storm outside gradually subsided. It seemed as if the violence of the previous storm had been because of that youth. After he had left, the storm calmed down. More people once again entered the Shadow Realm. More people used this power to cultivate. More people tried to find the divine item.


    Others tried to find Ye Futian. These were people from the Heavenly Mandate Palace.


    Lord Taixuan, Emperor Nan and other top figures went underground personally. They went in complete silence, troubled looks on their faces.


    They could not find him.


    Ye Futian seemed to have truly disappeared.


    If he had fallen, it would without a doubt be a disaster for the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Not only would they have lost an absolute genius, it would cause a series of chain reactions.


    But Lord Taixuan was not willing to believe that Ye Futian could have fallen like this, without a sound.


    "I didn''t find him," Lord Taixuan said to Emperor Nan. As they went deeper into the storm, he was growing more worried and his face grew paler.


    "Let''s look some more," said Emperor Nan. Other than them, there many others entering the storm, but as they continued on, they saw no one ahead of them. Everything seemed to have turned to dust. There was no sign of life.


    "That is..."


    Lord Taixuan''s eyes flashed. He moved forward, reaching out with his hand. He grabbed something. Once he saw what it was, his face went pale.


    "What is it?" Jiang Chengzi asked him.


    "A piece of a ritual implement." Lord Taixuan rubbed it gently, and the shard crumbled into dust. It seemed impossibly fragile. It had been infected.


    If when something as strong as a ritual implement was infected by shadow it was destroyed, how could one''s body withstand it?


    They all had a bad feeling. Had the foremost talent in all the Nine Realms perished like this, with no one to see or here?


    They were stricken with fear.


    It was hard for them to bear, but whether they could accept it or not, it was reality.


    They continued onward, going deeper and deeper. After a time, they could finally see the shadow storm. They could feel how dangerous it was and did not dare get any closer to it.


    They looked at each other, looks of despair on their faces. Their was even pain in their eyes.


    If they had not found him by know, there was almost no hope that they ever would.


    "Is he dead?" came a voice. The voice was that of Gai Cang of the Golden Divine Nation. He seemed pleased by this, although he was also a little bit regretful that he had not killed Ye Futian himself.


    Everyone looked at him coldly, but Gai Cang did not care about them at all. He said indifferently, "Now that Ye Futian is dead, how long can the alliance between all the powers last?"


    He really wanted to see what the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be like after that, and what would happen to it.


    "The Princess is here," came a telepathic voice. Princess Donghuang had come herself as well. Divine light flashed all around her. She had not brought anyone to protect her, but had come all alone.


    She looked at Lord Taixuan and the others, then looked at the storm of shadow. No one could see the slightest hint of disturbance in her beautiful eyes and no one knew what she was thinking.


    "Princess, it is dangerous here. We should all leave this place at once?" said the headmaster of Tianshen Academy.


    The princess looked at him and stopped, saying, "That is no obstacle to me."


    The headmaster of the Tianshen Academy did not say anything more, he just stepped beside her to protect her.


    At that moment, Ye Futian had reached the core within the storm.


    He looked all around him. He did not know how vast the storm that wrapped around the whole area was, but he seemed to have travelled very far before he reached this place. At that moment, he looked forward and saw a terrifying airflow that was revolving wildly around something. The storm seemed to have formed around it.


    Terrifying dark lightning flashed within the airflow. The lightning was filled with the same kind of power that was creating the shadow storm. Terrible shadow radiance spread out in all directions, illuminating the entire space.


    Ye Futian watched the light. It seemed like an ancient, divine stone was sitting calmly there in the center of it all, giving birth to the shadow storm.


    The Original Realm was the origin of the entire world. After the Heavenly Path had collapsed, the original had inflated then collapsed as well. Was this an origin stone left behind when the Heavenly Path collapsed?

 1825 Dissipate

    He felt the intense shockwaves even though he was standing in the outer region. Even the World Tree trembled and kept rustling as it swayed.


    The Emperor''s light was no longer blinding. It was merely a speck of light in this world of shadows. It appeared insignificant and exceptionally miniscule.


    However, it was also this speck of light that was supporting him. In this storm, it still remained unextinguished.


    Otherwise, even the figures at the peak of the Realm would not have been able to withstand this storm. Their Great Paths would be sealed, their spiritual soul frozen and their flesh destroyed.


    If his guess was correct, this Origin Stone was most likely the Source of the Shadow Realm before the collapse of the Heavenly Path. After the collapse, it formed a shadow Origin Stone and fell here. Gradually, it gave birth to the cultivation environment of the Shadow Realm.


    The Solar Realm was exactly the opposite. The difference between the two Realms was like night and day. The Solar Divine Palace was located there. Sun God Mountain from the Divine Prefecture were believed to be the descendants of the Sun God. Currently, they had occupied the Solar Realm and they also claimed to only want the Solar Realm.


    Ye Futian recalled the previous metamorphosis of Di Wu of the Solar Divine Palace. His Divine Wheel evolved and became even more powerful. That had occurred after the cultivators of Sun God Mountain arrived. This occurrence was most likely related to the Solar Realm. Di Wu had probably gone through a baptism.


    However, Sun God Mountain was a force from the Divine Prefecture. They would not dare to destroy the Source of the Solar Realm. They also did not have the ability to do so. Only a top force like the Dark Court that stood at the peak of the Realms had such ambitions.


    Ye Futian was once again hesitant. The divine item that caused the shadow storm was right in front of him. It could be the Origin Stone of the Great Path forged by the Source of the Shadow Realm. It was a divine item. Did he dare to retrieve it?


    The World Tree could absorb the power of Yin and merge with it. This made Ye Futian feel that the power of Yin and the power of Yang might be able to make the World Tree even more complete.


    Was he willing to bet on this?


    If he truly gave it a try, there was the possibility of him being consumed instead. If he was the slightest bit careless, he would not survive the ordeal. Hence, Ye Futian was hesitant.


    The youth who went before him had been able to borrow the power of the shadow storm to cultivate. He had even been able to control the power within it. However, he still had not been able to retrieve the Origin Stone of the Shadow Realm.


    Was Ye Futian going to give it a try?


    Thinking about the correct isolation of the Nine Realms and the changes of the Original Realm, a ruthless look flashed past in his deep gaze. He needed to develop faster. This was a very good opportunity to do so. If he missed it, he might not have another chance like this next time.


    He had already come all this way. Was he going to try again next time?


    After he considered this, Ye Futian advanced towards the astonishing storm. Rustling could be heard. A towering giant tree of unparalleled divinity frenziedly extended outwards. The divine tree kept growing bigger and bigger. It seemed to grow endlessly and became an ancient World Tree that could encompass the entire world.


    The aura that flowed in the World Tree merged with the power of Yin in the surroundings. Ye Futian''s body appeared to be on fire. His blood churned and bellowed, seemingly attempting to get rid of the corrosion of the power of Yin. Leaves from the ancient World Tree were swept into the storm.


    The shadow storm swept out and rattled the leaves of the ancient World Tree. Endless rustling sounds could be heard. The leaves of the ancient World Tree kept changing. They seemed to freeze, wither and die. However, the life force of the ancient World Tree was unbelievably resilient. Its vigorous life force seemed endless. Every time it seemed to be at its end, it would reinvigorate itself and revive. The ancient World Tree even merged the power of Yin into itself.


    Ye Futian''s body instantly turned white. The power of Yin flowed along the World Tree and invaded his body. It flowed into his blood, meridians, organs and even his spiritual soul.


    Although he had not faced the storm head on, the power of Yin still flowed into his body in the end.


    Everything then seemed to stop flowing. His meridians were frozen and his blood stopped circulating. His organs also ceased functioning. He also stopped breathing. His spiritual soul was trembling and he seemed to have stopped thinking.


    His body appeared as though it had been completely frozen in ice and he had become a lifeless object.


    However, the ancient World Tree was connected to him. A faint glow was still circulating within his body, stubbornly supporting his life and causing Ye Futian to not completely lose consciousness.


    He felt himself descend into absolute quiet. Even time and space had halted. He could sense every fiber of his being as well as everything in the outside world.


    This sensation was miraculous. Everything had stopped in their tracks.


    This was the power of the Source of the Shadow Realm. If it wasn''t for the protection of the World Tree right now, Ye Futian would have dissipated into nothingness with just a whiff of wind.


    Ye Futian seemed to have entered a frozen cocoon as he quietly lay there. However, the World Tree gradually enveloped the shadow storm. It penetrated the shadow storm and merged together with it.


    Time and space inside the cocoon seemed to have grinded to a halt. Ye Futian''s life had also similarly come to a paused state. It was as though he had fallen into an eternal slumber. All signs of life gradually disappeared. If there were other people around, they would truly believe that he had already died.


    The flowing divine halo of the ancient World Tree seemed to be the only proof that Ye Futian was still alive.


    Outside, many people wanted to get closer and also enter into the storm. However, with the menacing shadow storm circulating, no one could enter. No one dared to do so either. Some of the top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Academy continued to search for Ye Futian''s whereabouts in various locations underground, but they still did not find him.


    It was not just Ye Futian. Aside from those who had come after, all of the previous cultivators could not be found. It was as though they had been eradicated by the power of Yin.


    Even Lord Taixuan was slowly accepting the fact that Ye Futian had perished.


    Though it was difficult for that to happen.


    However, Ye Futian was truly no longer here as the shadow storm disappeared. No one could withstand the shadow storm. It was the same for even Ye Futian. Even though he was a peerless genius, in the end, he was still only a lower-level Renhuang with a second tier Divine Wheel.


    It might have been that because he had created so many miracles, many people believed that Ye Futian could make the impossible possible time and time again.


    "The underground world is too large. Let us look elsewhere," Emperor Nan said to Lord Taixuan and the others at that moment. His voice still remained calm. However, in reality, even he was slowly beginning to lose hope.


    Emperor Nan had very high hopes for Ye Futian. He believed that Ye Futian was a figure that could launch a new era. The world was in utter chaos and the Divine Prefecture as well as the forces from the outside world had continued to descend upon the Nine Realms. From his point of view, the Original Realm needed someone to become the symbol of the Original Realm.


    He believed that Ye Futian could be such a person.


    Unfortunately, Ye Futian had disappeared in the storm of the Shadow Realm.


    "Even Emperor Nan cannot accept the reality of the situation?" the clan leader of Shen clan spoke up at that moment. "He is dead, why do you still seek him? Emperor Nan rules Nantian Divine Kingdom and is one of the most powerful figures in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Why do you need to do all this?"


    He could not understand why Emperor Nan wanted to get involved with helping Ye Futian. With Emperor Nan''s status and ability, there was no need for him to do so. Even if the world was in utter chaos, if Emperor Nan wanted some stability, he could just leave the chaos behind.


    This was unless Emperor Nan had his eye on Ye Futian and was looking for his son-in-law.


    After all, everyone knew that Emperor Nan doted on Nan Luoshen. However, very few people were worthy of Nan Luoshen in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    "You wouldn''t understand."


    Emperor Nan replied without explaining.


    "It doesn''t matter whether I understand or not. Regardless, Ye Futian has already perished here. In the future, Emperor Nan will no longer be involved in the matters of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, right?" the clan leader of Shen clan continued. He still hoped that Emperor Nan would not interfere with the matters of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. After all, Emperor Nan''s existence itself was an extremely huge threat to Shen clan.


    With Emperor Nan''s abilities, if he did not interfere, no one would dare touch him now.


    Emperor Nan did not answer this time. He looked silently into the distance. Suddenly, he seemed to have sensed something. In a low voice, he said, "The power of Yin is weakening."


    Hmm?


    When they heard what Emperor Nan said, the cultivators were stunned as they sensed their surroundings quietly. Very quickly, their expressions all changed.


    Indeed, the power of Yin was weakening. They had also sensed it.


    In front of them, the swirling shadow storm also gradually weakened. As the storm slowly returned to a peaceful calm, the power of Yin dissipated without any pattern. It was as though it would not rampage again.


    What has happened?


    Many people were astonished as they stared straight ahead. As time passed slowly, they discovered that the power of Yin was weakening. The shadow air flows dissipated and kept thinning out. It was as though no more new shadow air flows were being created.


    As the shadow storm before them weakened, someone stepped forward and said, "Let''s go in and take a look."


    One by one, the top figures headed forward and walked into the encircling shadow storm. As expected, they did not face the previous corrosion. It was already very difficult for the shadow storm to affect these top figures.


    When the people behind saw this, they also followed suit and all stepped forward.


    There seemed to be changes occurring where the core was.


    Princess Donghuang also stepped forward. A strange look flashed past in her beautiful eyes.


    Buzz. Buzz.


    The silhouettes were all extremely fast. Not long after, they arrived at the core underground. Here, the storm was also subsiding. Although there were still powerful shadow winds flowing about, they were already dissipating in various directions and were no longer as lethal as they were before.


    Everyone''s gazes were staring inside. They all believed that there was certainly a divine item in the Shadow Realm. It might have been a divine item that was formed from the power of the Source of the Shadow Realm during the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Now that the power of Yin had dissipated, it seemed that the divine item no longer existed.


    "That is..." someone said as he looked into the distance. His heart was slightly trembling.


    Buzz. The speed of the figures were exceedingly fast. They dashed over in an instant. There, a silhouette dressed in white robes was lying, floating within the core. It was as though he no longer had any life aura and had fallen into an absolute deep slumber.


    This person was Ye Futian who had vanished.


    "Futian." Lord Taixuan, Emperor Nan and the others exclaimed as they stepped forward. Their expressions all changed. Although they had found him, they actually could not sense him breathing. They could not even sense the existence of his life aura.


    Could it be that he had still perished in the end?


    "Why is he the only one here?" The other cultivators revealed bizarre expressions. The divine item was not here and the storm had also vanished.


    What exactly had occurred here?

 1826 Metamorphosis of the Moon

    "Huh?"


    At this moment, Lord Taixuan noticed that the Shadow currents seemed to flow into Ye Futian''s body. It seemed as if that was a natural occurrence. Emperor Nan obviously noticed it too and said, "Take him back."


    They all realized that something might have happened here. In this area, no one else was alive except Ye Futian. The Shadow storm had disappeared, so something must have happened.


    Although Ye Futian had ceased all signs of movement, it didn''t necessarily mean that he had perished; there might still be a possibility of him being alive. At the very least, this Shadow current...


    "Mmm." Lord Taixuan nodded and left with Ye Futian in a flash.


    In the distance, quite a few of the cultivators looked in their direction, and many of them could feel that there were no vital signs coming from Ye Futian. Were they taking his corpse away?


    Or rather, was it possible that Ye Futian could still be alive?


    And could everything that had happened here had anything to do with Ye Futian?


    However, even though Ye Futian was known as the most enchanting genius of his generation in the Original Realm, the possibility of this kind of extreme situation was almost impossible to have anything to do with him.


    They knew very well that this was a place where even top character found it hard to set foot into, so how could Ye Futian possibly have any influence on anything here?


    The fact that he was still in one piece was probably just pure luck.


    Lord Taixuan was fast. They passed by Princess Donghuang as she glanced at them. Lord Taixuan said, "Your Royal Highness, I will take him back to see if there is still a chance to revive him."


    Princess Donghuang looked at the Ye Futian, who was motionless, and nodded gently. "Go, you don''t need to be here."


    "Thank you, Princess," said Lord Taixuan. He then levitated directly into the sky, continued hurrying along to take Ye Futian away from this place of contention as soon as possible. From a rational perspective, he also thought that everything that had happened here had nothing to do with Ye Futian.


    However, he was the only one who remained. Even if he had no vital signs, but the Shadow currents were able to enter his body. Was it a coincidence?


    Maybe, just maybe, it really had something to do with him?


    Therefore, he definitely wanted to take Ye Futian away from here to see if there was any chance for a turnaround.


    Furthermore, they thought that Ye Futian was dead. It was impossible for anyone to survive in this core area of ??the Shadow World.


    The Dark Court had suffered heavy losses, with many who possessed great power died in the Shadow storm. Ye Futian came to this core area without adequate power. He was asking for it.


    Shi Xie and the other cultivators from the Evil Emperor Realm had also come to this site and did not bother with the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture for the time being. Instead, they looked ahead at the Shadow storm that was dissipating.


    He was curious; what had happened here?


    Was it related to that man?


    All this seemed to be caused by the departure of that man.


    He was hailed as the heir of the Heaven Realm, someone who was extremely talented. But was he really that terrifying?


    "Your Royal Highness, it seems that this Shadow Realm is about to have its name changed." Shi Xie looked at Princess Donghuang and continued, "The Shadow Realm is one of the Nine Realms of the Original Realm. Now that it''s been pillaged by others, does the Princess not planning on pursuing them?"


    He obviously didn''t think that this matter had anything to do with Ye Futian. He didn''t know Ye Futian at all. If the dissipation of the Shadow storm was caused by someone, then it could only be that person.


    Princess Donghuang didn''t respond but seemed to be contemplating something else. As for what she was thinking, no one knew.


    However, the Shadow Realm, as it stood now, would definitely be different than before.


    The power of the Shadow would eventually dissipate completely, and the Shadow Realm would become an ordinary realm, with those living inside this realm no longer affected by the force of the Shadow. This, however, would be detrimental to cultivation.


    "The land of the Original Realm is ruled by my Divine Prefecture, and I don''t want to see contentions in the Original Realm. If the Evil Emperor Realm wants to touch the Original Realm, then we will meet on the battlefield," Princess Donghuang said coldly as she looked at Shi Xie.


    "On the battlefield?" Shi Xie''s handsome eyes glowed with evil as he stared at Princess Donghuang. This woman, known as the noblest woman of the next generation, was astonishingly beautiful, who was like none other in the world. If he could capture her, he would be the envy of everyone.


    "Aren''t we already in the battlefield now?" Shi Xie stepped forward, and the space around Princess Donghuang was distorted immediately. Shadows flickered, appearing next to Princess Donghuang. The forces of the Dark Court were greatly impacted by the Shadow storm, thus reducing the pressure exerted on the Divine Prefecture''s army, allowing them to spare some of their strength to deal with the Evil Emperor World.


    In this dispute, the Dark Court was undoubtedly the biggest loser. They invaded the Shadow Realm but gained nothing in the end. The crisis had passed, but they suffered heavy casualties with many of their cultivators wiped out by the Shadow Storm. If the Lord of the Underworld knew everything that happened here, what would he think?


    The army from the Divine Prefecture converged one after another, and so did the cultivators from the Dark Court. The three parties seemed to be in an impasse, with the Dark Court being the weakest.


    "Take her down and the Divine Prefecture will withdraw from the Original Realm, what say you?" said Shi Xie as he looked at the cultivators from the Dark Court, proposing to join hands with the Dark Court. Divine Prefecture was the master of this world, so if they want to gain entry to the Original Realm, they must first deal with the Divine Prefecture.


    The cultivators of the Dark Court hesitated, and their eyes fell on one person. The Lord of the Underworld was taken away by the Spear Emperor, so now there was no leader in the Dark Court. Although the Proud Son of the Underworld was the rightful heir, compared to the likes of Shi Xie and Princess Donghuang, he was still falling short.


    But at this time, he spoke up, looking at the two camps, and said, "Retreat."


    The cultivators from the Dark Court nodded. They had suffered major losses, and it would be unwise to fight again. They ought to retreat back to the Hidden Land Realm.


    Moreover, what kind of man was the Evil Emperor? His disciple, Shi Xie, was said to be quite similar to the Evil Emperor in their temperament. Joining hands with him was undoubtedly a risky proposition at best. In the circumstances where their strength was at a disadvantage, any little carelessness could be used to cause their own demise.


    It was better to proceed with caution at a time such as this.


    The cultivators from the Dark Court gradually withdrew. Seeing this, an evilness touched Shi Xie''s eyes, and he sneered, "You captured the Shadow Realm, but now you retreat with your tail between your legs?"


    The Dark Court didn''t pay much attention to him. The Shadow Realm had lost its previous value, but most importantly, their own strength was not enough to guard this place. For the sake of safety, it was best to retreat to the Hidden Land realm first, and wait for the Lord of the Underworld to arrive, and judge whether the Dark Court could spare anyone to be dispatched to the Original Realm.


    Once the Dark Court withdrew, the Evil Emperor Realm would have no advantage. The two armies faced each other while Shi Xie seemed to be weighing the situation. Then he smiled and said, "I will exchange with the princess some other time, then."


    Having said that, he also turned to leave.


    If he started a war here, he would definitely lose, and both sides had already suffered heavy losses. After all, the Original Realm was the territory of the Divine Prefecture, and there were still those monks to think about. Therefore, it was much better to conserve his strength for now.


    They did not leave this area at the center of the earth right away but were searching for any other secrets here. However, their search yielded nothing.


    The cultivators from Divine Prefecture had also searched but without results. The Shadow Storm had the ability to destroy everything, so no treasures could remain here. Although the land of the Shadow Realm would still retain some power of the Shadow, it would no longer be the same as it was before.


    In the end, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture departed as well.


    A crisis like this had been neutralized into nothing, and the Dark Court''s intention to refine the Shadow Realm had ultimately failed.


    It had even directly led to the changes that occurred in the entire Shadow Realm.


    In the endless territory of the Shadow Realm, the cold currents dissipated, and the landscape of a frozen world no longer existed. The terrible Shadow Fire had lost its previous power, and everything returned to how it was before. Many mysterious places began to dry up and wither, losing the appeal they once had.


    The Shadow Realm was changing all the time, as felt by some Renhuang with superior cultivation, and they were quite shaken by it.


    ��


    In Heavenly Mandate Realm, at Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian was still deeply asleep. There were many people outside the palace where he was, but they were those who were at the core of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Go back now, all of you; tend to your own cultivation." At this time, Lord Taixuan spoke to everyone who was there, but they were reluctant to leave. Dou Zhao, Xiao Muyu, and the others wanted to stay here.


    "I will inform you as soon as I have anything new. Now, there are somethings we need to discuss," Lord Taixuan continued. Zhuge Mingyue caught his drift and urged the others, "Let''s go."


    The others nodded and left successively. Only a handful of the top figures remained. Hua Jieyu stayed.


    Xia Qingyuan stood not far away looking at Ye Futian, but when she saw Hua Jieyu by his side, she left as well.


    The place quieted down. Shen Luoxue looked at Lord Taixuan and said, "There are no vital signs, but the body is full of the power of Shadow, which integrated everywhere into his meridians and his blood, and froze his life force."


    "Mmm." Lord Taixuan nodded. "This power had destroyed many top figures, but not him; there must be some reason for that. Moreover, the power of Shadow was still flowing in his body; I believe this, in itself, is also a sign of life."


    "We can only wait," said Shen Luoxue. In this situation, they had no other choice but to wait.


    "I''ll stay and watch him," Hua Jieyu said to Shen Luoxue and Lord Taixuan.


    "Very well." Shen Luoxue nodded and left with Lord Taixuan and the others. Now, only Hua Jieyu remained by Ye Futian''s side.


    Hua Jieyu clutched Ye Futian''s hand and looked at the man who was lying there quietly. She leaned down and gently lay her head on Ye Futian. Before she knew it, tears were streaming down her face. She was supposed to be unfeeling. Why was she crying?


    At this time, inside Ye Futian''s body, in the world of the life palace, the world''s ancient tree was swaying madly. In this world, the full moon that hung in the void released a terrible Shadow radiance. The full moon seemed to be morphed from the divine stone as its brilliance turned into Shadow currents, flowing everywhere.

 1827 Integration

    The Dark Court did not stir up any issues, for the battle had consumed much of its strength, and the Lord of the Underworld was preoccupied with restructuring the Hidden Land Realm after his return. He was injured in the fight with the Spear Emperor, Du You, who went crazy and pursued him to fight him, even when he had wanted to stop.


    The cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm were nowhere to be found, as no one had heard from them at all. As for the land of the Nine Realms, they began to set up large teleportation matrixes to connect all major forces to the Empty Imperial Palace.


    This way, whenever there was an alarming movement, the Empty Imperial Palace could be the center where cultivators from all sides would converge to deal with the challenge together. If there was to be an external force invading, they could deal with it as a group. After all, no one knew who would be attacking whom.


    The collapse of Youyue Divine Palace served as a stark reminder to all the principalities.


    The cultivators of the Nine Realms finally realized the significance of what had happened. Many people had perished in the changes in the battle in the Shadow Realm, and many encountered adversity and were distressed. As if overnight, they were thrown back to the turbulent era more than three centuries ago.


    These days, the Heavenly Mandate Academy rallied around Ye Futian. The people inside Heavenly Mandate City had now heard of the news and were extremely concerned about the situation taking place at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    As members of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, no one wanted to see such a legendary figure in the realm to perish like this.


    Many who worshipped Ye Futian were praying for him, hoping that he would soon wake up.


    After all, Ye Futian, who was in the realm of Renhuang, was the hope of many, especially those of the younger generation. They all wanted to see this legend reach the top of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    They didn''t expect the invasion of outside forces before they could bear witness to that glorious day,


    These days, people came to visit Ye Futian every day in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. But Ye Futian was still in a state of deep sleep, with no sign of improvement in his vitality. Lord Taixuan believed that Ye Futian had been completely eroded by the power of the Shadow, and to keep his physical body intact was already an incredible feat.


    Now, they could only hope for a miracle.


    Perhaps, as Ye Futian said before, it was because she was his wife.


    "You have been here for quite a few days. Do you want to take a rest? I can keep an eye on him here." A soft voice spoke. It was Xia Qingyuan. She had wanted to stay here before, but with Hua Jieyu around, she had no reason to be here.


    But it had been many days now, and Ye Futian hadn''t woken up yet, so she decided to persuade Hua Jieyu to rest.


    When she said this, Xia Qingyuan kept her eyes on Hua Jieyu, and seemed a little nervous about her possible reaction.


    Hua Jieyu raised her head slightly. Her beautiful eyes were extremely clear, pure, and flawless. She smiled gently at Xia Qingyuan and said, "No need, I''m not tired."


    "My Life Spirit is the Lotus of Life, which contains the Way of life. I want to try and see if it can bring him back to life," said Xia Qingyuan. She had asked Lord Taixuan before, but he said it wouldn''t work. However, she wanted to give it a try anyway, just for a slight chance that a miracle might happen.


    "Then come and try it." Hua Jieyu got up and took a few steps back, giving room to Xia Qingyuan. However, she still stood there and didn''t act like she was going to leave.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at her eyes and saw that Hua Jieyu''s eyes were still clear and beautiful, and realized that she really didn''t understand...


    Stepping forward, the radiance of life was shining upon Xia Qingyuan, enveloping Ye Futian''s body. The breath of life penetrated Ye Futian''s body continuously, but Xia Qingyuan discovered that her life force could not be truly transmitted to Ye Futian. The traces of breath that existed inside of him effectively blocked everything else.


    Soon Xia Qingyuan gave up. She turned her head back to Hua Jieyu and shook it slightly. She whispered, "It''s useless."


    "It doesn''t matter. He will wake up sooner or later," Hua Jieyu said without much care.


    "Mmm." Xia Qingyuan gave a serious nod, for she also believed that Ye Futian would definitely regain consciousness.


    After Xia Qingyuan left, Hua Jieyu remained by Ye Futian''s side.


    Thus, for a few more days, everything went on as usual.


    Ye Futian was still lying there quietly. In his Life Palace, that full moon hung high above, releasing its divine brilliance. It was no longer the original stone but a real moon that had completely merged with the lunar life spirit in Ye Futian''s Life Place. In other words, it had now transformed into a moon.


    The Shadow currents were no longer so distinct but were now everywhere, flowing inside the world of his life palace.


    The ancient tree of the world was the same as it always was, constantly swaying, making a crisp rustling sound, as if playing a beautiful rhythm.


    Inside Ye Futian''s body, the power of the Shadow flowed into his Life Palace little by little, while wisps of breath also flowed out from the Life Palace, passing through Ye Futian''s body. It was like an ordinary current that had completely blended with his body, and became part of the whole.


    As the blood began to flow, the breath of life also started to spread. Gradually, Ye Futian''s breathing resumed, as if everything had returned to normal. He was no longer lifeless, and soon his vital signs became more robust.


    His eyelashes fluttered, then a pair of bright and brilliants eyes opened; he was now completely awake.


    He felt a little dazed, a strange look in his eyes. He remembered that while he was in the center of the earth at the Shadow Realm, the ancient tree of the world in his Life Spirit world wanted to swallow up the storm of the Shadow but was invaded by a strong backlash instead. Although his Life Spirit defended him, in the end, he was struck back, and everything in his body had stopped. As his blood stopped flowing, his consciousness gradually blurred after that.


    He vaguely remembered that right before he lost consciousness, he did his best to let the Life Spirit swallow it up completely. He didn''t know anything after that.


    Only at this moment did he wake up.


    He clearly felt the magnificence of his body at this time; the power of the Shadow had actually blended perfectly with his body, and even the sacred stone of the Shadow that he swallowed seemed to melt into the moon and merged with the lunar Life Spirit. The power of the Shadow was like a life force that now existed in his body.


    Without the horrible vision before, everything had become extraordinarily gentle, and it was simply unimaginable. This was the divine stone that had affected the entire Shadow Realm. Even its topmost characters would be wiped out by the storm it bred.


    Now, it had turned into a moon, gentle yet quiet.


    What kind of strange curiosity was his main Life Spirit, this ancient tree of the world?


    Could it even suppress divine items?


    He saw Hua Jieyu next to him and saw that she had fallen asleep quietly on his chest. Her hair was a little messy, but the sight made Ye Futian feel really warm. It was as if Jieyu had completely returned to him.


    His arm moved slightly, nudging her body ever so gently so that she would rest next to him. But at this moment, Hua Jieyu opened her eyes by the slight disturbance.


    Her long lashes were particularly enchanting as those beautiful eyes looked at him. Their eyes stared into each other, and they could feel the breath from the other person.


    Hua Jieyu blinked as if she wasn''t fully aware of what had happened.


    Ye Futian smiled tenderly, then moved his head forward and touched her lips.


    Stunned, Hua Jieyu widened her beautiful eyes, staring at Ye Futian blankly.


    "How long has it been?" Ye Futian asked in a low voice.


    Hua Jieyu hurriedly got up, feeling her heartbeat hastened. Ye Futian watched her and smiled even more tenderly.


    "You are awake," Hua Jieyu said softly.


    "It feels like I just took a nap. Weren''t you worried that I will never wake up?" Ye Futian looked at her and smiled. Hua Jieyu looked like he had just woken up from a nap, without the excitement befitting such a major event of life and death.


    Ye Futian felt very lucky to have survived this time.


    The ancient tree of the world seemed to be able to constrain divine items of any kind, or else he would have undoubtedly died under such power.


    Hua Jieyu shook her head. She had never considered the possibility that Ye Futian would never wake up.


    Looking at her, Ye Futian thought that she was quite adorable. He said with a smile, "You are pretty cold. I can''t believe you were not worried at all. How about everyone else? They must be pretty anxious."


    "Mmm," Hua Jieyu nodded. "Should I tell the others?"


    Ye Futian smiled. While he was speaking, his divine consciousness had covered the entire Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    At this time, countless eyes in the Heavenly Mandate Academy were focusing in this direction. Many moved instantaneously, with many more that had already descended outside.


    "He''s awake." The people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy felt a little excited by that deliberately revealed divine consciousness.


    Ye Futian was now awake. He had persevered, after all.


    "Futian."


    "Futian..."


    Voices came from everywhere as many people walked in. Seeing that Ye Futian was safe and sound, they could finally let go of their worries.


    Finally, he woke up.


    "Futian, what happened to you?" Lord Taixuan asked, "You gave us quite a scare."


    "Don''t you know? I took a nap," Ye Futian shrugged and said with a smile. Lord Taixuan smiled and shook his head. He knew it was not so simple as that, and it might be related to Ye Futian''s experience in the center of the earth. However, he didn''t probe further.


    Everyone stepped forward to check on Ye Futian''s condition. Shen Luoxue even put her hands on him directly. Ye Futian smiled helplessly and said, "Grandmother, I''m fine."


    Shen Luoxue was not so easily dispatched but continued her investigation, and everyone else also focused their attention on him. Since Ye Futian woke up, there shouldn''t be anything untoward, but they still did not feel completely at ease.


    The group of people looked very lively with their noisy chatter. Hua Jieyu stood by and watched them quietly, with a gentle smile on her face. She felt warm, just like the time when Ye Futian took her to the Nine States to visit Hua Fengliu in Qingzhou City. Strange as they may be, she felt warmth from them.


    Especially now that everyone was acquainted with one another, she really liked this atmosphere.


    Xia Qingyuan was also in the crowd. Seeing that Ye Futian was safe and sound, she could finally let out a sigh of relief. After a final glance, she quietly left.


    Ye Futian seemed to have noticed something. He glanced at Xia Qingyuan, who was leaving, and sighed. Perhaps, she had also been very worried about him.

 1828 Negotiation

    When the alliance forces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy heard the news, they were naturally very happy. As expected, that fellow would not die so easily.


    On the other hand, the forces that had a grudge against Ye Futian were somewhat dumbstruck. They had seen Ye Futian lying in the core of the Shadow Realm with their own eyes. After being corroded by the shadow storm, Ye Futian did not have any life aura anymore. How could he have actually survived?


    Although the situation in the Void Realm was currently complicated and they were all in the camp of the Divine Prefecture, they had still hoped that Ye Futian would remain dead. For them, he would be a hidden danger in the future.


    Many people were speculating how Ye Futian had managed to survive.


    The shadow storm destroyed so many of the peak mighty existences of the Dark Court. How could Ye Futian have survived unscathed? He had cheated death.


    Could it be that it was because of the teachings of the Great Emperor again?


    Right then, no one had imagined that Ye Futian had consumed the divine item at the core of the Shadow Realm. After all, it was too astonishing to imagine. No one would have considered it from that angle. They were more willing to believe that it was because he was the inheritor of the Heaven Realm.


    After all, they had seen the other party stir up the shadow storm. After that person left, the shadow storm also gradually dissipated. Even the cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm did not give chase and Princess Donghuang also watched as the other party left.


    It could only be said that Ye Futian was very lucky. After experiencing the corrosion of the shadow storm, he had managed to stubbornly survive.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian, who his enemies considered to be lucky, was cultivating in the academy''s training grounds. This was an independent training ground. It was sealed off from the surrounding regions. After all, the implications of the news that he had obtained the Shadow Divine Stone were too great. That was the divine item of the Shadow Realm. If other people knew about this, who knows what sort of storm it would stir up.


    Even in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they had to be careful to prevent news about this from leaking out.


    Ye Futian''s figure sat cross-legged. His consciousness had submerged into his Life Palace. He sensed the moon that the Shadow Divine Stone had become. The moon that contained a mysterious aura shone down its light from above. Its light bore a sinister aura. However, it was not as terrifying as before. It seemed to have merged with the Life Spirit of the World Tree and had its power suppressed.


    For him to have awakened meant that the power had been merged into the world of the ancient World Tree. Now that the power had been suppressed, he could control the flow of the extremely pure power of Yin.


    My body has also undergone a change, Ye Futian thought to himself. The aura in his body seemed to have become more Yin. In reality, his face now seemed more handsome and effeminate. His temperament was also affected. The aura and the various powers in his body were all affected by the power of Yin.


    Human life contained the balance of Yin and Yang. This balance was part of the world and all things. However, some people were more inclined to Yang whereas others are more Yin prone. Even cultivation methods were categorized according to Yin and Yang. Yet, people with truly pure Yin or pure Yang bodies were exceedingly rare. In theory, they were almost non-existent.


    The Shadow Realm and the Solar Realm were two polar opposites. The cultivators of these two Realms had bodies that favoured Yin and Yang respectively. However, up until now, Ye Futian had yet to encounter a cultivator with a body of pure Yin or Yang.


    Now that he had consumed the Shadow Divine Stone, his body was beginning to seriously deviate. It seemed to be changing into a body of pure Yin.


    At that moment, Ye Futian extended his hand and generated Flames of the Way. Even the flames that circled around his fingers emanated destructive Yin aura. It was very terrifying and its might was even more frightening.


    Sword Will appeared around him. The Sword Will had neither sound nor presence. However, it bore a cold, murderous aura. Compared to before, his Sword Will was also even more bizarre and sinister.


    Behind him, a full moon suddenly rose. The world turned dark and the moon rose high into the sky. In the dark night sky, the light of the moon shone down and caused the land to be covered in a layer of frost. Everything was frozen solid. The space became extremely cold. If there were cultivators around, they would feel their own spiritual souls be frozen solid.


    Ye Futian sense that all of his attacks were laced in the power of Yin, regardless of their initial attributes. The firepower of his attacks was clearly more powerful and had gone up a level. This was also before he had truly meaningfully merged the power of Yin into his attacks. Otherwise, they would be even more powerful.


    After a short while, Ye Futian stopped experimenting. An idea popped up in his mind.


    The Shadow Realm contained the Shadow Divine Stone. That meant it was naturally the same for the Solar Realm. It should have a source divine item left behind after the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the Source of the Solar Realm.


    Now that he had consumed the divine item of the Shadow Realm and survived, should he try out the Solar Realm?


    That way, he could control both the power of Yin and Yang at the same time. He did not know what changes would occur to him.


    However, Ye Futian soon shot down this idea. The situation was different between the Shadow Realm and the Solar Realm. The Shadow Realm was invaded by the Dark Court and changes had occurred for him to have coincidentally obtained the divine item. Even if the Empty Imperial Palace knew of this, could they blame Ye Futian?


    However, if he went over to the Solar Realm to obtain its divine item and caused the Solar Realm to be crippled and become a normal Realm, Donghuang the Great''s side would most likely not let him go and he would draw attention to himself.


    It was better for him to find other ways in the future.


    His current priority was to continue training with the power of Yin to improve his abilities. He had already had a plan in mind. He was prepared to extract another Divine Wheel from the Boundary Wheel that he forged from the World Tree, a Moon Wheel.


    That way, even if he did not use the World Tree''s Life Spirit, he could still have extremely powerful firepower.


    The moon was originally one of his Life Spirits. Now that the divine item of the Shadow Realm had become a moon, forging a Divine Wheel from it should not be difficult. It would also certainly catch up with his other Divine Wheels and become a second tier Divine Wheel very quickly.


    After thinking about this, Ye Futian immediately went into seclusion to train while the current uproar in the Nine Realms had temporarily ceased. He would work hard to increase his ability. This was the only way he could guarantee a higher chance of survival in the future.


    Ye Futian began a period of secluded training. These few days, there were constant changes occurring from time to time over in the Empty Imperial Palace and the Hidden Land Realm. Rumor has it that over in the Hidden Land Realm, cultivators were constantly arriving through the Gate of Hell. The Dark Court seemed somewhat unsatisfied with their defeat and wanted to make a comeback. They wanted to clash with the Divine Prefecture again.


    However, the changes of the outside world did not concern Ye Futian. He still remained absorbed in his cultivation.


    After one month, Ye Futian ended his seclusion and emerged from his training.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy Cottage, many people came to see Ye Futian after he emerged. Among all of those who came to see him, one of them was exceptionally eye-catching due to her astonishing appearance. It was Chang Xi from Youyue Divine Palace.


    "You have emerged from seclusion?" Chang Xi asked.


    "Hmm." Ye Futian nodded. "Has Goddess gotten used to the academy?"


    Chang Xi nodded her head slightly. She had also gone over to the battlefield last time and had personally witnessed the changes that occurred. Previously, as the Goddess of Youyue Divine Palace, she was extremely proud. However, the current events of the world had made her realize that she was too miniscule in this vast world.


    "Could you not refer to me as Goddess in the future, please?" Chang Xi asked Ye Futian with a soft voice as she smiled. "You can call me by my name."


    Ye Futian looked at her and then nodded his head gently.


    "I joined the academy," Chang Xi continued.


    Ye Futian was stunned.


    "I passed the assessment. Lord Taixuan and Feixue carried out the assessment together and allowed me to join the Cottage. They initially wanted you to be there as well, but you were training in seclusion," Chang Xi said softly.


    "Since they have decided, it is alright," Ye Futian replied. "What about the Lunar Divine Palace though?"


    "Although Youyue Divine Palace is considered a branch and I should have headed over to Lunar Divine Palace in the Upper Worlds to train, I still can''t get used to it. After all, I am not that old. I am not someone from three hundred years ago. I cannot accept it at all," Chang Xi answered softly. Previously, she had her own opinions about the members of the Divine Prefecture coming over to seize control of Youyue Divine Palace. A disagreement had also appeared between the members of the inner circle of Youyue Divine Palace. The other party''s attitude was very overbearing.


    Hence, she had decided to remain in the Original Realm and cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "Alright, welcome to the Cottage," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "You won''t just leave me alone, will you?" Chang Xi suddenly said. She had a resentful gaze that was charming.


    The firepower of such an expression was deadly. It stunned Ye Futian. When he saw the faint smile in Chang Xi''s eyes, he replied, "If there is an opportunity in the future, you can come train with me."


    Currently, he mastered the power of Yin which would be beneficial to Chang Xi''s cultivation.


    "Alright." Chang Xi nodded her head seriously. She looked at the others around and then said, "I''ll make a move first."


    After she left, the others walked up to him. Dou Zhao asked, "How much stronger have you gotten after training in seclusion this time?"


    "Want to give it a try?" Ye Futian challenged as he looked at him.


    Dou Zhao looked somewhat suspiciously at Ye Futian. In the end, he still shook his head.


    "How is the outside world?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Empty Imperial Palace has invited the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm forces to negotiate. The date should be today," Dou Zhao replied. When Ye Futian heard him say this, he raised his head and looked into the distance. The Divine Prefecture must also be hoping to prevent the chaos of that era from reoccurring. If this continued, the catastrophe of the Shadow Realm would very likely sweep over the Nine Realms and even spill over to the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian did not know how the negotiations would go.


    ...


    At that moment, in the heavens above the Empty Imperial Palace, brilliant divine light shone down and a passageway seemed to open. Endless light enveloped the heavens and the earth, followed by a large army descending from the sky. They were dressed in armor and had frightening cultivation. All of them were existences at the Renhuang Plane.


    They were the army from the Divine Prefecture. Negotiations would naturally not be conducted merely with words. If they did not show off some of their strength as a deterrent, they would not even be qualified to negotiate.

 1829 Terms of War

    This person was dressed in long golden robes. He appeared to be in his forties and a formless majesty emanated from his body. He seemed to have held a high position for a long time. This person was a super powerful existence under Donghuang the Great. His ability was above that of Spear Emperor Du You. He was an existence that ranked among the top three of the Nine Divine Generals.


    "Princess," the divine general who arrived bowed slightly when he saw Princess Donghuang. Even though he was a peak existence and ranked among the top of the divine generals, before the only daughter of Donghuang the Great, he still needed to bow. His attitude was also full of reverence. It seemed that he was not bowing merely for the sake of the Great Emperor.


    Princess Donghuang herself was also worthy of acknowledgement. In the future, it was possible that she would inherit the demeanor of the Great Emperor.


    "Cao Jun, you have worked hard," Princess Donghuang nodded her head slightly. "Since Father has allowed Cao Jun to personally come over, he must have already made arrangements."


    "His Highness has given me instructions on the outline of the arrangements. Princess can make the decisions and His Highness will support all of them. I myself will also be supporting Princess," Cao Jun said. He then transmitted his thoughts to Princess Donghuang. They were the instructions from Donghuang the Great, the decree of the Great Emperor that was only meant for the Princess. He naturally would not let other people hear them.


    "I understand," Princess Donghuang nodded. She continued saying, "Let us wait for their arrival and see what their behavior is like."


    "We will follow your arrangements, Princess," Cao Jun nodded. The group of people immediately stood at attention along the great hall and quietly waited.


    A gentle breeze blew past. It was dead quiet in the Empty Imperial Palace. Princess Donghuang stood there with peerless elegance. No one spoke if she did not speak. This solemn aura caused even the members of Empty Imperial Palace to be somewhat astonished. They had not imagined that Princess Donghuang would actually already have such an imposing manner at such a tender age.


    She was also born so beautiful.


    From afar, an overbearing pressure enveloped the space. Soon, a Dark Army descended; they were none other than cultivators from the Dark Court. This time, other than the Lord of the Underworld, there was another figure at the same level as him co-leading the team together. He was one of the Seven Kings of Darkness. The lineup of the Dark Court was formidable.


    "Cao Jun," the Lord of the Underworld and the other cultivators noticed the majestic figure beside Princess Donghuang. His eyes narrowed. He never imagined that the person who came down from the Divine Prefecture this time was Cao Jun. From the looks of it, Donghuang the Great truly attached great importance to this Original Realm.


    Not long after, another powerful pressure enveloped the space. Spatial divine light descended from the sky. Dazzling golden divine halos shone down. Another large army came forth. They were the cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm. The leader of the army was still the inheritor of the Evil Emperor, Shi Xie.


    Shi Xie also saw Cao Jun. Together with Spear Emperor Du You, the lineup of the Divine Prefecture was truly unbeatable.


    "Princess, I hope you have been well," Shi Xie said as his eyes shifted towards Princess Donghuang. This time, being in the Empty Imperial Palace, he was actually more polite than before.


    Cao Jun''s gaze swept across Shi Xie. His expression was domineering and his gaze was extremely authoritative. Even if the other party was the disciple of the Evil Emperor, he still was not concerned.


    However, a few people beside Shi Xie also stepped forward. Faint yet powerful aura emanated from their bodies. They stood around Shi Xie. These cultivators were all from the Empty Mountain.


    "All of you must certainly have guessed why we have gathered everyone here today," Princess Donghuang said. "Three hundred years ago, in the dispute over the Original Realm, the Divine Prefecture had already claimed control over the Original Realm. This was known to all. Now, more than three hundred years later, the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm have arrived in the Original Realm once again and have stirred up another dispute. Today, I wish to ask all of you here: are we setting up to go to war?"


    Princess Donghuang''s voice was cold and proud. She was extremely overbearing. It was as though she would unhesitatingly go to war if the other party gave the affirmative.


    "Princess, you yourself have already mentioned that this matter was from more than three hundred years ago," Shi Xie replied. "Now that the passageway has been reopened, control of the Original Realm should be up for grabs again. If the Dark Court came over to stake a claim, it is only natural for the Evil Emperor Realm to be able to do so as well."


    "Does that mean that the Evil Emperor Realm wants control of the Original Realm? Is there no other option?" Princess Donghuang asked. She only needed an answer.


    If she did not hear the answer that she wanted to hear, then, there was only one option.


    "Princess, since you have made a request, I can make a compromise. There are Nine Supreme Realms in the Original Realm. Since our three large forces are fighting over the Original Realm, then, why don''t we each take three Supreme Realms? The Divine Prefecture can choose first. How about it?" Shi Xie said with a smile. There was a hint of evil in his gaze.


    The three forces would divide the Nine Realms equally among them. Obviously, the Divine Prefecture would not agree to this.


    Just as he anticipated, Princess Donghuang merely swept a cold stare at him. The Original Realm was originally territory controlled by the Divine Prefecture. Why would they divide the Nine Realms into three equal parts?


    They did not know what would happen if they did so.


    "My side is fine with this suggestion," said the Lord of the Underworld. If they could divide the Nine Realms among the three forces, naturally the Dark Court would not have any objections to it.


    "Alright. We will meet on the battlefield." Princess Donghuang was ready to turn around and leave, ending the negotiations.


    The Divine Prefecture controlled the Original Realm. The other parties wanted to get three Realms each. It meant cession for the Divine Prefecture.


    This was, of course, unacceptable.


    "Wait." Shi Xie looked at Princess Donghuang and said, "I can further compromise. I only want two Realms."


    With her body turning sideways, Princess Donghuang insisted, "We will meet on the battlefield."


    "Princess, why are you in such a rush to leave?" Shi Xie smiled and negotiated, "The Divine Prefecture most likely suffered great losses too in the war which happened 300 years ago. If we insist on going to war now, it will certainly cause a huge commotion. All three sides will send their armies here to aid the battle. When that time comes, there will be no winner. All three sides will lose. Instead of that, I have a suggestion for Princess to consider."


    "Speak your mind," Princess Donghuang said.


    "In the past, the battle between Realms usually would not escalate into a life-or-death battle unless it was necessary. We just need to determine the winner within the rules set. We don''t have to go all out in a war. In that case, we can minimize our losses," Shi Xie explained. "Why don''t we each send out an army and let them spar in a designated battlefield? The last standing team will be the winner."


    "If you win, what do you want? How about if you lose?" Princess Donghuang asked.


    "If my side wins, I want two Realms out of the Nine Realms. The Evil Emperor Realm will have direct control over these two Realms. The Divine Prefecture cannot meddle in our ruling," Shi Xie stated. "If my side loses, the Evil Emperor Realm will not meddle in affairs in the Original Realm. However, since the passageway has been opened, there is no reason for my force to completely retreat from the Original Realm. The cultivators from the Evil Emperor Realm will still stay in the Original Realm, but we will not stir up any trouble unless it is necessary."


    "I agree," the Lord of the Underworld joined in the conversation. "If my side wins, the Dark Court will take another Realm on top of the Hidden Realm. If the Dark Court loses, we will retreat and stay in the Hidden Realm. We will not meddle in affairs of the other Realms."


    Asking them to leave and abandon the Original Realm entirely was impossible.


    Even though the Original Realm was not indispensable, they still needed to keep an eye on things happening here.


    Shi Xie continued saying, "If Princess disagrees with my proposal, then we can only do what Princess has suggested. Our three sides will go into war."


    Princess Donghuang stared at Shi Xie; she seemed to be contemplating his proposal.


    "What are the rules of the battle?" asked Princess Donghuang.


    Shi Xie said, "If three parties engage in an all-out battle, we will suffer huge losses. The goal of my suggestion is to reduce our losses. It is meaningless to send cultivators whose cultivation is lower than the Renhuang Plane into battle. It doesn''t demonstrate the true ability of the three parties either. Therefore, we should compete based on our core forces - the lower-level Renhuangs."


    Shi Xie continued, "Each of us will send an army consisting of lower-level Renhuangs. There is no limit to the number of participants each side can send out. We will send them into an independent battlefield. Killing is allowed. The last side standing in the end will be declared the winner. Of course, each side can also choose to surrender."


    Going to war directly would make the battle a contest among the top most figures. It might stir up a ruckus that could not be contained in the Shadow Realm. It might even cause a butterfly effect.


    Following Shi Xie''s suggestion could indeed avoid a lot of trouble.


    As long as all three sides could accept the price of victory or defeat in the end, this was feasible.


    The Dark Court happily agreed to these terms and had no objections. This was also suggested by the Evil Emperor Realm. The crux now lay with the Divine Prefecture.


    "If Princess still chooses to go to war, then, we will be forced to do the same. Our Evil Emperor Realm has few members. We are fine with either method," Shi Xie said with a smile.


    Princess Donghuang looked at the other party. She also knew that now that the passageway had reopened, it was impossible for them to force the other party to completely evacuate the Original Realm. Back in the day, many forces had already left behind pieces for this day.


    Then, what was presented before her now was similarly a choice.


    In the Original Realm, they held the advantage in terms of territory and numbers. However, the other two top forces would certainly join forces to go against them. That meant that if the Divine Prefecture wanted to win, they had to produce an even more powerful lineup.


    "When and where?" Princess Donghuang asked.


    When she said this, Shi Xie revealed a smile. Princess Donghuang had clearly agreed to his proposal.


    He was very interested in this battle.


    The negotiations between the three sides managed to reach a consensus. There would be a battle to determine how the Original Realm was divided up.


    News of this soon reached the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The cultivators of the Empty Imperial Palace personally came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy using the teleportation grand matrix. They summoned Lord Taixuan, the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, to receive the decree. The Princess had issued a decree. They would engage in a battle with the Evil Emperor Realm and the Dark Court after a month. Moreover, it was a battle that involved only the lower-level Renhuangs.


    "Lord Taixuan, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will need to elect the strongest lower-level Renhuangs. The representatives will go to the Empty Imperial Palace after a month to join the battle," the Divine Priest ordered. Lord Taixuan nodded, saying, "Lord, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will do our best."


    The Divine Priest nodded in acknowledgement, then he left. On the other hand, the Heavenly Mandate Academy dove into a heated discussion.


    Ye Futian was around too. He pondered to himself. Since Princess Donghuang had taken a step back, it seemed like she was under a lot of stress too. Otherwise, the Original Realm was originally under the control of the Divine Prefecture. There was no need for a negotiation. However, Princess Donghuang did not have to pay the price for her decision. The cultivators of the Nine Realms would be the ones paying the price!

 1830 Expedition

    "A pinnacle-level world war would involve too many parties," the Divine Palace Palace Lord said. "According to what I know, in the past, aside from the Original Realm, a war that involved emperor-level forces similarly erupted in the Outer Realms. The great war determined the world order. The Divine Prefecture was united, and the Original Realm also became a part of it. The battle which occurred in the Original Realm was only a local war."


    Lord Taixuan did not experience the great war which happened outside of the Original Realm. However, he knew that 300 years ago, when the Original Realm was in turmoil, the Buddhist forces joined the battle too. In the Hidden Land Realm, the Dark Court assigned Hell, their force in the Lower Worlds, to participate in the battle.


    From the looks of it, the Dark Court did not send a large army over. They did not place great importance on the Original Realm. Instead, the Original Realm was just a part of the larger war and a small part at that.


    "That''s true. In the war more than 300 years ago, the two Emperors unified the Divine Prefecture," Lord Taixuan nodded his head. He could imagine that this war would most likely involve figures at the level of deities. Otherwise, how could the two Emperors have seized the right to rule the Divine Prefecture?


    It was just that they did not know whether the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm returning to dispute over the Original Realm today was due to the fall of Emperor Ye Qing. Of the two Emperors that unified the Divine Prefecture back then, only one remained. Their deterrence was naturally much weaker.


    "This time, how many people should our Heavenly Mandate Academy send to join the battle?" Lord Taixuan asked the crowd.


    "This battle is certainly perilous. I think it is sufficient for the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Cottage to join it," Ye Futian replied. The contest among the three emperor-level forces��the Dark Court, the Evil Emperor Realm, and the Divine Prefecture��would greatly impact everyone. All the forces in the Nine Realms would be involved in it too. Their opponents would surely gather many cultivators to join the battle.


    Flawless Divine Wheels were not rare among the cultivators of these emperor-level forces. Many cultivators of various forces were possessors of flawless Divine Wheels too. Existences at this level would most likely be the key factor in determining the final victor. Possessors of flawed Divine Wheels might die in vain if they went into this battle.


    "Is it alright with Empty Imperial Palace if our numbers are too few?" Lord Taixuan asked. "There are also a few large forces who do not look kindly upon us. They will certainly seize the opportunity to put us down."


    "Lord Taixuan, if the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Cottage are sent, who among the lower-level Renhuangs of the Nine Realms can stand against us?" Ye Futian asked confidently. Lord Taixuan was stunned. Then, he nodded his head. That was also true.


    Ye Futian sounded arrogant, but he spoke the truth. Once the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Cottage were sent into battle, among those at the same Plane in the Nine Realms, they were invincible. They could dominate the lower-level Renhuangs of any force. This had already been proven back during the battle with the Shen clan.


    "We will send out the strongest lineup among the various forces of the Nine Realms. That way, will anyone be qualified to point fingers and attack us?" Ye Futian continued.


    "I believe that it won''t be a problem," the Divine Palace Palace Lord said as he nodded in agreement." The princess is intelligent. Everything is within her predictions. For the Heavenly Mandate Academy to send out all of its possessors of flawless Divine Wheels to participate in the battle, it means that we have sent out all of our strongest elites. How could such a gesture not be sincere enough?"


    "That is true." Lord Taixuan did not say anymore after hearing what the Divine Palace Palace Lord said. In this perilous battle, they had presented their finest elites. Indeed, no one was qualified to say anything.


    The opponents this time were no ordinary forces. They were the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm. When the time came, they would very likely face the super monstrous existence of the other parties. Even possessors of flawless Divine Wheels would face grave danger.


    "Then, it is decided," Lord Taixuan declared. The possessors of flawless Divine Wheels of Heavenly Mandate Cottage would join the battle.


    "It is just that this battle will be extremely dangerous." Although he had made the decision, Lord Taixuan was still somewhat worried. After all, they were not facing the forces of the Original Realm. If their opponents this time were forces from the Original Realm, Ye Futian would surely dominate his peers.


    However, their opponents this time would be very powerful.


    "Princess Donghuang''s side will naturally make sufficient preparations too. Their lineup will not be weak," Ye Futian analyzed. In this battle among the three sides, their Heavenly Mandate Academy was but a force under the Divine Prefecture. Moreover, they were just a tiny force.


    Donghuang the Great prioritized the Original Realm and did not want the Nine Realms to be divided up. Therefore, he would naturally send out a dependable team.


    The battle this time was also a psychological war.


    Who was more willing to take the risk?


    The cultivators of the Nine Realms were shocked by this news. The Divine Prefecture would go to war with the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm?


    It was only a battle among the lower-level Renhuangs, but since the three God-level forces were involved, one could already imagine the scale of this battle.


    Any one of the God-level forces could order countless cultivators in this world to action. For example, everyone in this 3,000 Realms of the Great Path would need to obey the order of Donghuang the Great, not to mention that they were only a tiny fraction of the entire Divine Prefecture.


    The amount of manpower the God-level forces could mobilize was definitely shocking. However, right now, nobody was certain about how much effort the three forces would spend to gather that manpower.


    Where would this battle take place?


    The various Realms began to gradually gather their members. Across the next few days, cultivators from the Divine Prefecture continued to descend upon the Empty Imperial Palace. They were all existences at the Renhuang Plane. It was naturally the same in the Hidden Land Realm.


    The Evil Emperor Realm was also secretly making preparations.


    The days passed. For cultivators, a month was not a long period of time. It felt as though the day arrived in the blink of an eye.


    On this day, the Empty Imperial Palace was bustling with activity. Countless cultivators had been gathered. There were the cultivators of the Nine Realms and the various forces that had descended from the Divine Prefecture. However, most of them had come on their own accord. They were also a few cultivators who were under the direct command of Donghuang the Great.


    On this day, in the Empty Imperial Palace, there were Renhuangs wherever one glanced. They covered the sky and the ground. Such a grand occasion was almost impossible to come across in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Only when a great battle had erupted between the various top forces could such an astonishing scene possibly occur.


    Lord Taixuan also brought over the Heavenly Mandate Academy members who were to participate in the battle. There weren''t many of them, and they did not stand out amongst the crowd, only occupying a tiny camp. Around them were the camps of the forces of the Nine Realms. The other forces outnumbered them by a few magnitudes. Ye Futian''s group could not compete with them at all.


    This caused them to attract quite a lot of attention, especially from the cultivators of the Nine Realms. What was the meaning of this, Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    Everyone was well-aware of the perils of this battle. From the looks of it, the Heavenly Mandate Academy did not wish to send too many of their disciples into battle. They wanted to ensure that the standing of their academy would not change.


    However, those who came made up the strongest team, which was led by Ye Futian. When others saw this lineup, they could not find fault with the academy. It was meaningless for the others to attack the Heavenly Mandate Academy just because the latter sent a small number of cultivators to join the battle.


    Besides that, many of them cast curious glances at Ye Futian. As expected, he was doing fine. A man who had lost signs of life survived miraculously. Judging from Ye Futian''s current condition, no one would have guessed that he had ''died'' in the Shadow Realm once.


    Moreover, the cultivators noticed that something about Ye Futian''s temperament had changed. He was more effeminate now. His handsome looks used to be purely masculine, but now he revealed a hint of statuesque.


    "Lord Taixuan is indeed stingy. You are overprotecting the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy," Gai Cang of Golden Divine Nation said sarcastically. "Among the various forces of the Nine Realms, the Heavenly Mandate Academy is now made up of the combination of two training holylands. Are these all the members you send?"


    "Are these all?" Lord Taixuan repeated after Gai Cang. Then he said, "Does Dynastic Overlord want to test out the ability of my disciples first? Our two parties can have a spar which does not involve killing."


    Gai Cang could not say anything to retort Lord Taixuan. He coldly snorted and said nothing more. In reality, everyone understood that even though the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were few, their lineup was grand. If Golden Divine Nation really got into a spar with them, the former would be wiped out easily.


    The members of the other forces only glanced at them. In the end, they did not say anymore. Otherwise, if Lord Taixuan retorted, they would not be able to respond.


    The members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were few in numbers, yet they were invincible in the Nine Realms.


    Ye Futian alone could defeat any of the lower-level Renhuangs in the Nine Realms whom others could name. Shen Hao from the Shen clan and Di Wu from the Solar Divine Palace were no match for him too. Ye Futian had killed upper-level Renhuangs before as well.


    Even among this huge troop, Ye Futian could be considered the cream of the crop.


    Princess Donghuang appeared, and her gaze swept past all the cultivators. In an instant, everyone turned silent.


    Two divine generals stood to her left and right. They were divine general Cao Jun from the Lower Worlds and Spear Emperor Du You. Divine halos surrounded both of them. Their might enveloped the Empty Imperial Palace.


    "I am sure everyone is aware of the need for this battle. The Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm want to invade the Original Realm. This time, the two other forces might ally to attack us," the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace appeared in front and addressed the crowd. "As soon as we lose, the Original Realm will be divided up, and the Nine Realms will be separated under different rulings. Some of you will be affected by this outcome, while some of you won''t.


    Since everyone here has decided to participate in this battle, it is a life-or-death battle regardless of whether the outcome of this battle will affect you. I believe everyone will do your best."


    The Palace Lord continued, "The location of this battle is a desolate world. In a moment, all the cultivators from the three forces will be sent to the world. After you have been teleported there, the world will be sealed off and become the battlefield. Everything that happens on the battlefield will be projected and shown to us through a matrix. No one from the three forces is allowed to go near the world, but everyone will observe the battle.


    Hence, all of us here will be able to witness your performance. Those who do well and come out alive will be heavily awarded regardless of our final standing. The Princess will personally reward those who influence the outcome of the battle with fateful encounters. There are no rules in this battle. Go all out. The only restriction is you are not allowed to borrow the strength of other cultivators from other Realms. You may bring your ritual implements along."


    After the Palace Lord had finished speaking, he looked at Princess Donghuang and asked, "Princess, do you have anything to add?"


    Princess Donghuang scanned the crowd and said, "I await your victory, everyone."


    "We will do our best," replied some of the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture while bowing.


    "Go forth," ordered the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace. All the cultivators flew up into the sky at the same time. The momentum of the troop was unstoppable!

 1831 Battlefield

    At that moment, the whole of some unnamed realm was covered in a faint radiance. If one were looking down from the sky, they would be able to see that there was a matrix carved into this realm that was surrounded by a light curtain.


    The nameless realm was not large. In terms of scale, it could not compare with the Supreme Path Realms, nor even the Crimson Dragon Realm. It was about the same size as Emperor Xia''s Realm. For Renhuang level cultivators, it was quite small.


    Beyond the light curtain, the palace lord of the Empty Imperial Palace had arrived with the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. On the other two sides, the cultivators of the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm had arrived as well. All of them had powerful formations of Renhuangs. They looked at each other over the great distance.


    Someone at the palace lord of the Empty Imperial Palace''s level could cover a vast area with his divine consciousness. Even if something was very far away, they could still perceive it like it was right next to them.


    "Can we begin?" the palace lord of the Empty Imperial Palace asked.


    "Yes," said one of his opponents.


    "This is a good place for it," said the other.


    "Go ahead," said the palace lord to the people behind him. Suddenly, the great army moved forward, sweeping down from the sky towards the nameless realm.


    The cultivators of the other two forces did the same thing. The three great armies charged forward.


    As they descended, the light curtain shone with incomparably brilliant divine light. It was like an ultimate divine matrix, sealing the entire realm within.


    The outer bounds of the nameless realm were covered by the light curtain.


    The divine consciousness of the palace lord of the Empty Imperial Palace swept out towards the other two cultivators. "Is this acceptable?" he asked.


    "It is," they replied, nodding.


    "Then let us retreat," he said. Then he turned and left. All three cultivators turned back. According to their agreement, none of them could come near the nameless realm and interfere with the battle.


    No matter who joined the battle, all they could do was watch.


    Therefore, this battle would actually test the courage of all three parties.


    Would they send out their top figures to fight? If they did, there was a chance that they would die in battle.


    But if they did not send them, they would have far less chance of victory.


    The three cultivators all went off into the distance and stopped there, watching from above.


    In those images, countless cultivators were fighting in a barren realm. Was it a battlefield?


    "That is correct. This is indeed the battlefield between three great forces, reflected up in the sky for us to see," said many voices, one after another. Everyone was trembling on the inside. They saw that the cultivators of the three sides had all landed on the ground. They could see even down to small details. It seemed like they would be able to see what everybody was doing.


    The images were extremely clear and realistic. Thus, they were able to watch the battle from across an unimaginable distance.


    And it was not only them. The same thing happened at the other top forces as well. The three great powers all watched the three great armies descend upon the ancient realm at the same time.


    ...


    The army of the Divine Prefecture descended into the nameless realm, appearing in the air above a mountain range.


    Once they had descended, they had split up from the other two forces. They needed to be in different positions in this realm. Their divine consciousnesses could not radiate too far out.


    Now, how should they begin the battle?


    Everyone in this battle was at the Renhuang level and had great confidence and willpower. It would not be easy to control them. Thus, Princess Donghuang had not given them any specific instructions. As long as they accomplished their goals it would be alright. They could use any tricks they wanted, and she would not try to limit them.


    "What thoughts do you all have about this battle?" someone asked. The person who asked had a third tier Divine Wheel who wore golden armor. He was from one of the divisions under Donghuang the Great''s control.


    Emperor Donghuang had conquered the Divine Prefecture, but he naturally needed people to help him manage it. He was in command of many divisions, and each one had a powerful figure at their head.


    This man was from the Dark Phoenix Division. Every one of them had a murderous air about them.


    The Dark Phoenix Division was a powerful army of conquest which had the personal trust of Donghuang the Great. They had once followed Donghuang the Great, fighting wars throughout the realms. They had made great achievements in smashing the enemies of the Divine Prefecture.


    The person who was speaking was at the peak of the lower level of the Renhuang plane and was the leader of the Dark Phoenix Division that had come to the battlefield.


    "What does everyone think?" he asked. His army was rather disorganized. Some of them were direct vassals of Donghuang the Great and the Divine Prefecture, like the Dark Phoenix Division itself, and some were forces from the Divine Prefecture itself. Others were cultivators from the forces of the Nine Realms.


    Those, no one could give orders to each other. No one had the power to make decisions.


    "The other two forces will probably join together against us. If we face them head-on, we will likely be humiliated. Why don''t we ambush one of them first?" someone said.


    "There are many people here in this rather small realm. It will not be easy to set up an ambush. We can only go out and fight them head on before they have had time to join up." At that moment, the thing they were most worried about was the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm joining forces against them. That would cause a lot of trouble.


    "They will certainly ally each other," someone said affirmatively. Everyone nodded. They had all realized this. The other two forces wanted to take over the Original Realm, so they had the same goal. All they had to do was destroy the forces of the Divine Prefecture and claim victory on this battlefield, and they would achieve their aim. Given this, there was no reason no to ally each other.


    "Then should we move together or split up?" someone asked. This was an important question.


    These Renhuangs had come from many different forces to form an army, all for the same goal. But how should they go about it?


    "Hm?"


    At that moment, some of the cultivators frowned and looked up into the sky. There they could faintly see a figure, his form suffused with powerful spatial will. He was a cultivator with a third-tier Divine Wheel. Someone had found them first.


    It was a cultivator from the Evil Emperor Realm.


    It seemed like they didn''t need to discuss it anymore. Their enemies were on the move.


    They all looked up at the cultivator in the sky. He must have a ritual implement, and he was using the Great Path of Space. That was how he had found them so quickly. Moreover, he seemed very confident. He did not want to be left behind.


    Zap!


    A beam of golden lightning flashed, and in the next moment a figure shot into the sky. He was also skilled with the Great Path of Space, and he wished to attack the cultivator who had just appeared.


    However, his opponent waved his hands, and suddenly a space river appeared in the air, separating the two of them. The river cut space itself apart. The figure continued moving higher in the sky until he was very far away. He had no intention of fighting. He had just come to observe their movement.


    Woosh!


    Spatial radiance shot up into the sky. He was obviously transmitting information about them, letting his forces know he had found them here.


    Then, more figures appeared in the sky, one after another. They were all cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm. Strands of dark qi appeared in the sky, letting them know that cultivators of the Dark Court had arrived as well.


    It was just as they had expected. Their opponents had joined together from the start. They must have discussed it before the battle even began.


    They had double the manpower of their enemies now. It would be enough to defeat the Divine Prefecture.


    More and more powerful auras descended, and darkness gradually covered the sky, making everything dim and indistinct. More cultivators of the Dark Court were arriving.


    The forces of the Divine Prefecture still waited. It seemed like even now, they would not act yet.


    The atmosphere grew tenser. Everything was at a knife''s edge.


    "Attack!" called the head of the Dark Phoenix Division. As he said this, he shot up into the sky. It seemed that he had not acted before to let more people arrive. In this way, his enemies would not be able to escape easily.


    Moreover, their opponent''s main armies had not arrived yet. Attacking now would give them a chance to kill some of them.


    The leader of the Dark Phoenix Division moved incredibly quickly. A ritual implement appeared in his hands. It was a black pagoda.


    There was a booming sound as he unleashed his Divine Wheel. It melded with the pagoda, which appeared up in the sky, growing bigger and bigger. In a flash, there was a huge black pagoda in the sky, thousands of meters long. Bolts of terrible destructive lightning swept out from it, covering a vast area.


    Then, destructive light shot out from it, and an intense pressure filled the area. Fierce will surged through the sky, and the Renhuangs who were arriving scattered in all directions. This ritual implement was incredibly strong.


    "Go." The cultivator pointed in a direction and the black pagoda flew over there extremely quickly. Divine light filled the sky. There was a cultivator trying to escape over there, but he was struck by countless bolts of destructive lightning, and with a fierce cracking sound he was stunned and then slain.


    The other powerful cultivators acted as well, forcing the enemies who had arrived early to scatter and retreat with all haste.


    Ye Futian was involved in this as well. Since he was part of this battle, he would naturally give it his all.


    His divine sword sang before him. Sword will whirled through the sky, transforming into a terrifying storm of swords. The sword will shook in harmony as if it was all following the same rhythm.


    Woosh!


    In the next moment, the divine sword slashed through the sky, accompanied by a divine light that pierced the darkness. The sword sped on towards a dark area. The enmity between him and the Dark Court ran deep.


    Everywhere the sword passed, the darkness was shattered and cut. Lines of black, divine light shot flowed out into the distance and suddenly disappeared.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes. The divine sword continued forward, speeding across thousands of miles, pursuing the dark light.


    Rip!


    A strand of shadow will erupted within the sword, condensing the space in front of it and making it extremely cold. The dark airflow stagnated.


    Crack!


    The sword pierced through it. Everywhere it went, space was shattered into pieces. The sword seemed to pierce right through the void, destroying the space around it. An illusory figure appeared, faint as a shadow, then disappeared from the world.

 1832 At War

    Cracking sounds rang out, one after another as several Renhuangs died by this sword, making many people look at Ye Futian.


    A brilliant light shone as the sword returned to Ye Futian''s side and hovered there. He opened his eyes and looked off into the distance. Over there, he could see two terrifying auras.


    Someone on the other side had notified the other cultivators. The rest of the army was now on its way.


    The area was filled with intense pressure, and killing will burned fiercely. The two great armies appeared within the range of his divine consciousness. They were moving extremely quickly. They were not coming alone like the small force that had arrived first but was coming with their full force.


    The two armies were as different as could be. Golden light fell from the sky above the Evil Emperor Realm''s army. They formed a divine spatial net in the air, from which terrifying spatial storms were born, which covered the sky.


    The Proud Son of the Underworld Qi Ye was leading the army of the Dark Court himself. Endless dark power gathered together, making a huge face appear in the sky, looking like a god of the underworld. The area was filled with death and destruction auras that could infect people at any moment.


    The two armies'' goals were extremely clear. They had come to destroy the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. It was just as they expected. The Divine Prefecture controlled the Original Realm, and they wanted to seize it from them. They wanted to break their power and divide up the Original Realm.


    The two forces had already talked this over.


    The army of the Divine Prefecture was vast as well, however. They were all at the Renhuang level. An army full of Renhuangs could give rise to an incredible amount of power. A clash between three forces of this much power whipped up terrifying storms in the sky.


    All the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture felt an enormous amount of pressure.


    This was not just a normal battle. No matter how powerful one was, there was still a possibility that they might die on this battlefield.


    Woosh! A spatial sword flew out, slashing through the air. It flew into the midst of those spatial storms. Everyone saw the sword whirling around the storms. It looked like millions of bolts of lightning were falling. It was simply terrifying.


    Crack! An ear-piercing sound rang out. The bolts of lightning swept out, covering a vast area, forming a region full of destructive swords.


    Otherwise, the battle would spiral out of control as everyone would come to do battle with the ritual implement that contained the power of the Emperor.


    Although the will of the Emperor was not within it, the sword that he had once used was still extremely terrifying. It was once the weapon of the Evil Emperor''s disciple Shi Xie. At the moment, it had been loaned to a cultivator of Empty Mountain, a peer of Shi Xie who had cultivated to the third tier of the Divine Wheel. Now he pointed up into the sky with his sword. Terrible divine radiance swirled around it.


    On the other side of the battlefield, the Proud Son of the Underworld Qi Ye strode forward, appearing beneath the coalescing god of the underworld and seeming to meld into it. He also had a very powerful item that his master had given him. It was a cloak-like piece of clothing that he was wearing.


    Within the cloak, there was a black hole that seemed incredibly deep, so deep that it could swallow up all the dark, destructive power around it. When he melded with the god of the Underworld, the cloak swept out behind the god. Dark storm energy flowed out of the black hole in its chest. It seemed that it had been fermenting destructive power.


    He had a devastating underworld spear in his hands. This was a powerful ritual implement, as well.


    The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture watched the terrifying scene of the two great armies approaching them, and they trembled within. Their will roared inside them as they stood arrayed for battle. The leader of the Dark Phoenix Division stood in front, his black pagoda hanging in the sky. Overpowering, destructive force bloomed from him as he said, "You all come from different places, but you should hold nothing back in this battle. If you do, you might as well leave now."


    Everyone looked very solemn. What he had said was true. How could they dare hold anything back?


    Crack!


    Piercing divine light fell from the sky. Everyone looked up and saw millions of rays of light transform into lightning bolts that shot down towards them. The light coming from the divine sword distorted space around it, and it tore through the air. Everyone was within range of that attack.


    The cultivator at the head of the Dark Phoenix Division lashed out with his black pagoda. Suddenly, terrible lightning shot out of the ritual implement, smashing into the oncoming divine light. The giant pagoda flew towards the divine sword. The two powers clashed, and bright light flashed, blinding everyone.


    But even so, it could not completely stop the assault of the divine sword. Space was distorted among the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. One of them with an imperfect Divine Wheel saw beams of divine light coming towards him, and the radiance within the sky blocked his escape route. A twisting, destructive storm bore down on him. He may have been a Renhuang, but at that moment, he did not know how he could avoid that attack.


    Or perhaps it was better to say that there was no way to escape. He could only take the hit.


    However, given his level, he would not be able to bear it. Divine light fell, tearing right through his body. His divine spirit could not escape either, and was destroyed on the spot as well.


    Many of the weaker Renhuangs suffered the same fate as him. They could not withstand an attack of that level.


    On the other side, Qi Ye had launched his attack as well. Lines of dark, destructive light seeped out of the black hole in his chest, as well as terrifying death flames. It looked light the apocalypse itself was descending upon them.


    The sky was covered by a dark airflow. For those looking up at it, it truly looked like it was the end of days. There was no light, only death and destruction.


    But at that moment, a group of figures strode forward right into the middle of that destructive storm. They were not destroyed or swallowed up. Divine light formed their golden bodies, and a Buddha appeared in the air.


    A monk in a white robe stood at their head, dancing with the wind. He had no hair, but he was looked young and handsome. There was divinity in his eyes, and he looked like he had transcended the world. He clasped his hands together, looking noble and solemn. The rosary about his neck danced in the wind, and Buddhist characters flew out from it, making endless ancient Buddhist characters appear in the sky. It was like scrolls of Buddhist scriptures had been opened up in this devastating space. The characters turned into purifying divine light that destroyed the darkness.


    "The Buddhist scriptures!" cried everyone in shock. They could hear Buddhist hymns lingering in the sky as if there had been a Buddha chanting there and teaching the Way. The scrolls grew bigger and bigger until they covered the sky. An ancient Buddha walked out from the scrolls, looking solemn and divine. Endless ancient characters wrapped around him, and his divine light purified the darkness, making the destructive will disappear.


    This scene made many people understand. It looked like the Buddhists of Western Heaven were not holding back. The one who had stepped forward was extremely powerful. The handsome, white-robed monk was obviously a great cultivator.


    Fierce light flashed in the eyes of the god of the Underworld up in the sky. The underworld spear he was holding grew longer, and he thrust it downwards. Lines of dark lightning shot from it, destroying everything they touched. The spear pierced towards the Buddha, who had strode out of the scrolls.


    The Buddha raised his hands, and the air itself trembled fiercely. Endless Buddhist characters formed a halo around him, and a huge palm print slammed right into the spear, making the sky tremble yet again. The force of this whipped up a terrifying storm.


    It seemed like someone could deal with this Proud Son of the Underworld.


    The cultivators behind him rushed forward as well. In a flash, the whole area was covered by a destructive storm.


    The sight of Renhuangs from three different armies clashing was terrible to behold. It seemed like the heavens would fall and the earth would crack open. In an instant, the mountains around them were leveled.


    The battle had been joined in an instant. Renhuang level people could attack from a very long range. Their armies were limited to a tiny space, so they had to restrain themselves and not exert their full strength.


    Many Renhuangs had fallen in the first clash, which made many people sigh in sorrow. Renhuangs would be considered great figures anywhere they went, but it was easy for them to die in a battle like this.


    That was because this was a struggle between the three greatest forces in the world.


    If one counted the Buddha, there were four god-level forces there.


    Of course, this was not an all-out battle, they were only trying to seize the Original Realm, and thus they constrained their fight to this realm. Otherwise, who could imagine what would happen?


    Ye Futian floated u into the air. The disciples of the Cottage stepped out as well and began to join the battle. A field of swords appeared around him. The divine roared in front of him. It could strike him at any moment. But he did not move but instead covered the battlefield with his divine consciousness.


    No matter whether or not he had any complaints about Donghuang the Great, he still recognized his protection of the Original Realm. He naturally hoped to win this battle, but his most important goal was to protect the disciples of the Cottage and not let them come to any harm on the battlefield.


    There were many people on the battlefield who were stronger than them, so he had to be cautious.


    For example, right at that moment, an incredibly powerful figure was right before him. Everywhere he went, people shattered to dust. The man was bathed in divine radiance. A huge battle form rose behind him,thre and fist shadow after fist shadow flowed out from his Divine Wheel.


    Woosh! He flew through the air, lashing out with his fist. The fist punched straight through a Renhuang''s body, killing him on the spot.


    This was a cultivator of Empty Mountain, probably of the same school as the peak mid-level Renhuang he had once pursued Ye Futian through the Solar Realm. They might even have studied under the same master.


    At that moment, the man swept his gaze in another direction and charged over there. That was where the cultivators of the Xiao clan were, including Xiao Muyu. There was a flash of contempt in the cultivator''s eyes.


    The cultivator from Empty Mountain would certainly be the hero of this battle!

 1833 Battle Matrix

    Facing the terrible light of slaughter, the opponent did not slow down at all, and fist shadows flowed around him. The radiant body blasted with the divine light, and the fist aurora was able to break it apart and tore through the middle in one swooping motion.


    The cultivators next to Xiao Muyu rushed forward, trying to block the path of the other only to see a domineering and extremely powerful battle form appear above the swooping figure. The shadows of its fist buried the entire void.


    That figure slammed down another punch, which turned into a light that shattered the void, blasting toward the Image of Life and Death that was upon Xiao Muyu.


    Those cultivators who blocked in front of her were all repelled, and the divine light that was transformed by the fist shadow blasted right on the Image of Life and Death, causing it to vibrate violently. Xiao Muyu retreated with urgency, but that destructive divine light did not stop; it increased its speed instead.


    Xiao Muyu''s expression changed slightly; her realm was a bit too low, after all. The other was also the owner of the perfect divine wheel of the Third Order. There were quite a few cultivators from the Xiao clan, who were of this realm, but none possessed the perfect divine wheel. Thus, they were unable to block the opponent''s fist, somewhat similar to how Ye Futian and his people overcame those of the same realm from the Shen clan before. It was basically an overwhelming slaughter.


    The shadow of the fist penetrated the void like a light beam, knocked back every single cultivator who was around. It seemed that the opponent was aware that Xiao Muyu was the central figure in this group, the owner of the perfect divine wheel, so he deliberately targeted her without the slightest bit of hesitation.


    But at this instant, another figure appeared in front of Xiao Muyu. A terrifying storm gathered under the fists and beat on the figure that appeared, causing his long hair to fly wildly in the wind. His white robe fluttered, and the divine sword hung in mid-air, lunging forward, shattering the void.


    Clang��


    There was a violent sound of a collision. The fist aurora collided with the divine sword without stopping, making a crystalline sound. Ye Futian took a step back as the opponent''s body was repelled backward, then he slowly floated above the void.


    He looked down at the white-haired man who appeared below and stepped out. Light streamers fell down, and each one turned into a shadow, dominant and harsh, targeting Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was surrounded by sword intent, and the chiming of the sword was sharp and piercing, tearing the space so that the fist intent could not get close to him.


    "Master," Xiao Muyu called out in a low voice. Ye Futian said, "Leave it to me. You go somewhere else."


    "Mmm." Xiao Muyu nodded and led the Xiao clan cultivators toward other battlefields.


    In this battlefield filled with divine-level forces, those who possessed the perfect divine wheel could only be regarded as elite, but not qualified as the ultimate invincible existence. Not to mention that her realm was lower, so she would have no advantage when she encountered other Renhuang who possessed the same perfect divine wheel as herself.


    After Xiao Muyu left, Ye Futian turned his attention to the opponent before him. The divine sword in front of him chimed loudly. Above the sky, the infinite currents of swordsmanship flowed about, turning this area into a world of swordsmanship, competing with the endless fist shadows flowing around his opponent.


    Last time in the Shadow Realm, that cultivator of Divine Wheel Sixth Order had made a fool out of him, and quite a few cultivators had perished at his hands, including a Peng Bird of the Sky Demon Court with the cultivation of Divine Wheel Eighth Order that had been bisected by the other.


    Today, no matter what happened, there must be some retribution.


    "What master?"


    The other sized Ye Futian up. The handsome young man before him was also the owner of a perfect divine wheel, but he was only in the realm of Second-Order. He was not much better than that woman, so why was he worthy of being her master?


    If this were the case, he would oblige them and send this "master" on his way first.


    Both of his arms trembled, and suddenly, an awesome Divine Might exploded. A beam of light penetrated through the void centered from his body. Millions of fists intents appeared all around him, and every one of them contained horrific attacking power.


    He lowered his head and looked down at Ye Futian with an extremely dominant look.


    Many top genius talents from Empty Divine Realm had gathered at Empty Divine Mountain. Anyone who could enter the Empty Divine Mountain to cultivate was a genius among geniuses, and he was no exception.


    Empty Divine Mountain was a place where even the Evil Emperor would show up from time to time. It was a cultivation temple reserved for the top cultivators in the Empty Divine Realm. Although he was not considered at a high enough level in the Empty Divine Mountain, in this battlefield of the same level, he believed that there were not many who could defeat him, much less someone who was only in the Divine Wheel Second Order.


    Boom! The brilliant divine light descended, and a towering figure like a god of war appeared. His body traversed the void and merged with the light. Above the sky, the divine light of the Great Path turned into a shadow of the fist, smashing everything in its path into nothingness.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly, surrounded by sword intent. The sword intent around that light would tear apart anything close to it; it was simply unstoppable.


    However, at this moment, his eyes seemed to transform. A full moon seemed to materialize in his eyes, which were openly devious. When his eyes landed on the other, that cultivator who was honing in on him felt that everything had changed in his divine consciousness. It was as if he was in a bleak world, with the brilliance of the moon falling down, dropping the temperature to absolute zero. Everything was coming to a stop, and the space was solidifying; even his spiritual soul felt the chill.


    "Is this Eye Sorcery?"


    He suddenly realized that something was very wrong. If it was just a matter of sword technique, he believed he could restrain the opponent with his superior and far stronger attacks. However, at this moment, the opponent was also an expert at Eye Sorcery, and he could clearly feel this Eye Sorcery contained an ability created by a variety of Will. So, the man appearing before him may be more dangerous than he thought...


    In his own perception, his speed seemed to slow down, and the space seemed to solidify to the point that everything had come to a standstill.


    While he was at a standstill, Ye Futian was not. The divine sword was in the sky, with its infinite sword intent now turned into infinite numbers of sword currents, as they moved upstream as if in a sword river. Many sword intents resonated when the divine sword struck out, and that bright divine light of swordsmanship was as dazzling as the sun.


    The cultivator, who was rushing toward him, could clearly feel that Ye Futian was attacking him, but his movements became somewhat sluggish. With a loud roar, his wildly flinging fists tried to shatter the Might of Space that bound him, for he himself was also an expert of spatial power. As the aurora of his fists broke through the air, and he continued his dive downward, he was able to clear a path out of pure will.


    But at this instant, the divine sword had already arrived, piercing on that beam of light. The divine brilliant of the endless swordsmanship continued upstream, and countless sword currents passed on top of him, as a terrible golden spatial divine light burst all around him, attempting to block the currents of swordsmanship. However, it was quickly penetrated by the sword intent.


    The infinite sword intent penetrated through the opponent''s body, and that cultivator let out a blood-curdling scream. Then his body gradually dissipated and became more and more blurry.


    Buzz! As the divine sword passed through, that cultivator''s soul was shattered and disappeared between heaven and earth, leaving an implement that Ye Futian immediately caught up in his sleeves.


    The Divine Sword returned to its place, still floating in front of Ye Futian, as his divine consciousness shrouded the surrounding battlefield.


    Observing from a distance, one could see that cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy and its allied forces were fighting within the proximity to Ye Futian so that, if necessary, they could render support at any time to minimize casualties.


    Ye Futian looked around as if he had perceived something. He looked in one direction, and there was a terrible light screen with six invincible cultivators. Wherever they passed, no one was left alive.


    More importantly, at this time, these six men glanced in his direction. They seemed to catch on to him.


    Ye Futian frowned. These six men were all experts in abilities similar to those he slewed before. They were located in six directions, vaguely forming a fearsome Renhunag battle matrix with unimaginable power.


    At this time, in the middle of the battle matrix formed by these six great cultivators, there were several Renhuang who were trapped inside. A terrible spatial divine light flowed upon each of the six men, turning into Will of the Fist, and fell down, resonating and connecting together like a set of sealed light beams.


    What was more terrifying was that a giant sacred battle form appeared behind them, oppressing the vast space sealed by them, which made the Renhuang who were trapped inside paled as they felt that unparalleled pressure. They sensed that they might meet their end right here, right now.


    The next moment, the six great cultivators blasted their aurora of the fists simultaneously, countless fist shadows punched through the sealed space, as those trapped Renhuang frantically resisting. However, despite their efforts, they still perished with none left alive.


    The attack from a divine-level principality would not be weak in its strength or determination. There were many cultivators of this level on the battlefield. What he saw in front of him also convinced Ye Futian that he had made the right decision. Although this battlefield could be a place of trial, the danger was far too great. Those who entered the battlefield without already possessing the perfect divine wheel were basically cannon fodder. The point was that he couldn''t protect so many people.


    At this moment, these six great cultivators walked in the direction where Ye Futian was, and they moved into six different directions. Their bodies were like rays of light, traversing the void, looking at Ye Futian with a most malicious murderous intent!

 1834 Attention

    In the reflection, there were violent great battles everywhere.


    At this time, cultivators from all parts of the Central Emperor Realm outside the Empty Imperial Palace. They stood in different directions, but all were looking up in the sky at this battlefield. Their hearts were filled with shock.


    They saw a lot of well-known figures from the Central Emperor Realm. However, on that battlefield, they did not appear so brilliant anymore. The battle between divine-level forces was simply too horrific. Even those who possessed the perfect divine wheel were among many who had fallen.


    The people from the Central Emperor Realm obviously paid more attention to the top forces fighting in this area, such as Tianshen Academy, the Shen clan, the Martial God Clan, and the Sky Reaching School. However, they found that these forces were merely struggling to survive on the battlefield, fighting with all they had. It was hard enough for them to even survive on the battlefield, much less claim a sweeping victory.


    The strongest among them were naturally those who possessed the perfect Divine Wheel Third Order. Only those at this level were at the peak level on the battlefield.


    At the moment, they noticed that a terrible offensive matrix composed of six men had killed their way through somewhere on the battlefield, claiming the lives of many Renhuang in their wake. They had now rushed into the army, tearing the great army of the Divine Prefecture apart.


    These men were experts in similar abilities, so they probably came from the same sect. At this time, they were focused on just one man��the white-haired young man clothed in white, whom many recognized.


    "It''s Ye Futian. He just killed a comrade of theirs." someone said, having witnessed the previous battle. Ye Futian, known as the number one genius talent in the Nine Realms, was the center of much attention, and many made special efforts to watch his fight. After the battle broke out in the truest sense, he had only made a single move so far, and it had killed a man.


    "Well, of all the genius talents in the Nine Realms, he is probably the only one who could defend alone," someone said. The man who was killed by Ye Futian was very powerful. He had punched through the defense from the Xiao clan and knocked out many Renhuang. If it weren''t for Ye Futian''s timely action, Xiao Muyu would have been in grave danger.


    At this time, those six top cultivators had already descended in front of Ye Futian, and terrifying beams of light fell down to cover the sky over that area. It was as if a smaller battlefield was forcibly carved out within the greater battlefield. They planned to trap Ye Futian inside and kill him.


    Would this number one genius talent of the Nine Realms perish on this battlefield?


    Even those from the Central Emperor Realm didn''t want to see Ye Futian''s downfall. People had the tendency to cheer for those legendary figures, hoping to witness the continuation of such legends, something that they could tell their children about.


    In the Empty Imperial Palace, Princess Donghuang''s attention was focused on the battlefield where Ye Futian was at, and those around him had also noticed it. After all, for such a powerful battle matrix to deal with just one person was treatment reserved only for the very top few in the Divine Prefecture.


    Now, this handsome, white-haired man with a balanced beauty between femininity and masculinity was somehow besieged by the enemy.


    Not just the people of Divine Prefecture, but some from the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm had also noticed that battlefield. However, as they were not familiar with Ye Futian, they didn''t care much about it, for they feared that soon, they would fall victim to those divine fists themselves.


    In this battle, these two major forces were considered outsiders, but the situation had been advantageous to their joint forces. At present, they were able to control the principalities of Divine Prefecture.


    On the battlefield at this time, the light screen of the battle matrix cast by the six cultivators came down and trapped Ye Futian, beams of light surrounding him. His body floated in the void as he looked up in all six major directions. Six tyrannical battle forms appeared, and each of them was over thousands of feet tall, giving out an unspeakable shock to those who were watching. Within this space, Ye Futian was under tremendous pressure.


    This battle matrix was incredibly strong. Composed of six top characters, it could only be described as terrifying. He dared not let down his guard. The Will of the Way flowed about his body, and the divine sword chimed with enthusiasm. The sword intent circulated to sweep the falling shadows of the fist.


    At this moment, the streams of light dropped on the bodies of the six powerful men. Its golden divine light was extremely brilliant. They raised their arms at the same time, and without any fancy moves, they directly blasted their attacks toward Ye Futian through the air. A dull crackling sound emitted from the void as the divine light fell down, and shadows of the fist filled the sky.


    In the midst of all this, there were six incomparable spatial beams that penetrated the sky. Each beam of light was extremely robust, as they were transformed by the shadows of the fist. As they hit, it was like setting off a terrible wave of currents that flooded toward Ye Futian instantaneously.


    Many people outside the Empty Imperial Palace couldn''t bear to watch what was about to happen. Could Ye Futian, who was suspended in the void, withstand such aggressive attack?


    Although they were not on the battlefield themselves, the power of this punch could be felt by simply looking at the mirror screen.


    But at the moment, Ye Futian was motionless. With him as the center, the flow of the surrounding space seemed to have slowed down, as an extreme chilling air filled this space; even the sword intent that was around him was accompanied by this shadowy, cold breath.


    When the domineering streamers of fist descended, their motion seemed to slow down as well but did not stop completely. Instead, a sharp tearing sound erupted. The terrifying streamers of light continued their attacks on Ye Futian. Such domineering fist shadows had the power to shatter the space.


    However, it was still being affected somewhat. The streamers of fist shadows seemed to be covered with a light frost.


    Ye Futian stretched out his hands, and the Sword Qi soared to cut through all things, including all the shadows in this void. At the same time, the divine sword was trembling violently, forming a terrible storm. The Great Path now moved as the space became confused; there were even sounds of melodies that could be heard faintly.


    With a finger pointing toward the sky, the sword, cold and brilliant, worked with the countercurrent of the Great Path. As it rotated, it ripped the space apart. This feminine yet extremely sharp sword pierced the six fist shadows.


    Dull bursts of explosions were heard, and the place where the collision occurred set off a spatial storm of destruction. The light of the divine sword went up against all momentum, and as the shadows of these fists were pierced, they then disintegrated into a cloud of dust. However, the divine sword was also knocked back and flew back to Ye Futian.


    "He blocked it." Many spectators were shocked to their cores. Ye Futian had blocked the overwhelming attack of the battle matrix with a single sword strike. Previously, this fist aurora had slaughtered many Renhuang. And nobody had been able to stop it until this moment when it was finally blocked and destroyed by Ye Futian.


    Many spectators from the Divine Prefecture were secretly hoping that even in such a battlefield, the number one genius talent in Divine Prefecture could face the foe alone to show that he was not any lesser than those top forces from Divine Prefecture.


    However, at this moment, they saw the six cultivators in the battle matrix piercing the air at the same time with both of their fists. In an instant, horrific fist shadows rained down.


    Horrendous thunders were born between heaven and earth.


    What was even more frightening being that they did not stop their movements but continued to blast out domineering blows. In an instant, a series of blows smashed down, and every one of them was extremely overpowering. Under this attack, it felt that this limited space was about to be completely buried and destroyed.


    Ye Futian, who was suspended there, looked particularly insignificant. Under the fist shadows that shrouded the sky, he seemed a little fragile.


    "This attack..." Many were left speechless. It was too aggressive; the power of each punch exuded a fearful sense to those who were watching.


    What Lower Renhuang could stop such attacks?


    Ye Futian saw it too, but he had the golden body of the Divine Elephant to protect him. He stretched out both hands and placed them on the hilt of the divine sword. Suddenly the divine sword screamed and resonated with the infinite sword intent. An extremely cold and dark breath rose between heaven and earth. The power of Shadow was upon the divine sword, condensing the surrounding space into sheer frost.


    Buzz!


    With the sword in the air, Ye Futian did not evade as the sword shot straight toward the sky, and Ye Futian followed with it.


    The overbearing shadow of the fist attacked but was split through by the frosty divine sword that opened a path of swordsmanship from the middle, slaughtering straight toward the sky. Ye Futian seemed to have integrated with the divine sword and turned into a light, going against the momentum and continuing to break through the void.


    "How powerful." The cultivators who were watching the battle was a little shaken. He was able to break through with an attack. The divine sword was in the air, slicing above the void. Such strength was rare even among the genius talents from Divine Prefecture.


    There was a look of surprise in the eyes of the two great cultivators in the battle matrix; they were slightly disturbed.


    "Together!" Someone commanded among the six, and suddenly, they closed their hands together, and a mighty force penetrated from the beam of light.


    The battle form of the Great Path behind them vibrated. In the sky above, an overbearing phantom of the divine god appeared directly above Ye Futian''s head, towering and awesome, as if cast in a golden body.


    The giant body of this phantom was full of boundless dominance. All the fist shadows were now unified into one, as loud rumbling sounds were heard. He punched directly toward the sky below, and in an instant, a beam of light directly penetrated this space. Blasting from the void to the ground, everyone could hardly react before they saw a fist shadow penetrated heaven and earth.


    Under that light beam, Ye Futian''s body became stagnant, his speed altered. Then the fist of god pressed down above his head, blasting down without any time for reaction.


    Boom!


    There was a loud bang, and beneath the frost, the divine fist was still going strong on its way down. The crowd saw Ye Futian being blasted down again from above the void, and the sword intent around the divine sword was overpowered and darkened.


    There was a loud boom as Ye Futian stepped on the ground. A deep crevice appeared, and he fell into it and disappeared from sight.


    But the beam of light above the sky fell down and split the ground, shattering it into nothingness so that Ye Futian''s figure appeared once again in the field of vision, surrounded by the beams of light.


    The Divine Sword stopped releasing its divine light, and the golden body of Ye Futian started showing cracks. He lowered his head slightly as if he was suffering unparalleled pressure under the blast of this punch.


    Those who were watching the battle outside the Empty Imperial Palace held their breaths. There was dead silence as all eyes were glued to the battlefield.


    Such an attack was terrifying, indeed!

 1835 Six Killed in One Slash

    Instead, it was Cao Jun beside her who said, "This person''s ability is not bad. The might of the battle matrix passed down by Empty Mountain is overbearing and peerless. A cultivator with a second-tier Divine Wheel has actually been able to withstand it until now. Even among the members of the Imperial Palace, few people could pull off such a feat. If he manages to survive, we can bring him back with us."


    "Cao Jun, do you believe that he will perish in battle?" Princess Donghuang asked.


    "The situation is not favorable. The light pillars of the battle matrix can affect the power of Ye Futian''s Divine Wheel from a distance. This gives the battle matrix the initiative as it is not covered by the might of his Divine Wheel. Combined with the overbearing attack, let alone a cultivator with a second-tier Divine Wheel, even one with a flawless fourth-tier Divine Wheel would not be able to withstand its attack," Cao Jun said. "This is still not the most powerful attack of the battle matrix."


    When he said all this, Cao Jun appeared very calm. A person of his level had experienced too much. The fall of a genius was not enough to cause him to be too emotional. Even if they lost this war, he would not be affected.


    Princess Donghuang watched quietly and did not respond. No one knew if she and Cao Jun were of the same mind.


    The observers outside of the Empty Imperial Palace did not look kindly on Ye Futian. With this attack, Ye Futian had already displayed extremely powerful ability. His sword split apart the space as he advanced, his divine sword opening up an ancient path of swordsmanship. However, even so, he was still suppressed with a punch. His opponent was too powerful, so powerful that Ye Futian could only be suppressed.


    This battle did not allow for optimism.


    While they were observing the battle, the battle had continued without ceasing. After the silhouette that was like a deity appeared, the arms of the six cultivators trembled. This caused the Divine Fists of the Great Path around them to resonate. Once again, the Divine Fists crashed down toward Ye Futian, who had his head lowered. At the same time, the fists of the silhouette of the deity crashed down. In the sky above, two shattering divine lights penetrated the space and pierced through this part of the world.


    At that moment, around Ye Futian''s figure, aura flowed. From thin air, countless leaves of an ancient tree seemed to extend outward. With his figure as the center, this region seemed to become an independent space. Endless Sword Will circled and danced around him, emanating a cold, sinister, and eerie aura.


    The two beams of light that pierced through the heavens descended. Two gigantic Divine Fists crashed down. However, the flowing beams of light decelerated. They were also covered in layers of snow and frost. The space seemed to be completely frozen. This region became Ye Futian''s absolute domain. Ye Futian''s figure became a frightening storm of the Great Path. With the storm circulating, his divine sword released endless cold light.


    Ye Futian lifted his head and glanced up. The light of the two huge frost-covered fists that were still advancing carried with them overbearing pressure. They shattered the space and came crashing down on his head.


    The storm of the Great Path flowed in reverse as it ascended and flooded the huge fists. The divine sword shot straight up. It carried an extremely sinister aura and was also razor-sharp.


    Swoosh. Swoosh.


    The two Divine Fists were covered in frost. They immediately disintegrated into dust after being penetrated by the divine sword as it continued shooting straight up.


    Ye Futian''s body once again floated in the air. He was staring at the six cultivators. The will on his body still flowed outward. A Divine Wheel halo shone on his body. However, it was sealed within his body by the pillar of light. The pillar of light that circled around his body was a spatial wall that isolated the power within him.


    "He actually managed to break through the attack."


    Many people revealed strange expressions. Some of them were astonished. Ye Futian had actually broken through an attack of that level, and he seemed to still be at ease. What level was his ability at exactly?


    They had thought that Ye Futian might have released the will of the emperor that he was previously rumored to have released before. However, he had not done so and had broken through his opponent''s attacks with brute force.


    This meant that he had also not reached his strongest point.


    The currents of the Great Path on Ye Futian''s body continued to flow, spreading out and extending even further. It invaded the opponent''s domain. At the same time, Ye Futian''s eyes also changed, becoming aloof and cold.


    His gaze seemed to glance over at the six cultivators. The six of them looked into Ye Futian''s pupils and saw a desolate moon. At that moment, they actually descended into a world of Eye Sorcery. With just a glance, a chill flowed over them, and they even felt a shiver from their spiritual souls.


    Frightening and domineering divine halos shot out from their pupils as they attempted to break through the illusion. This was Eye Sorcery that could bring them into a world of Eye Sorcery.


    An Eye Sorcery Divine Wheel.


    They seemed to have entered the world of the moon. A constant chill kept seeping into their bodies.


    Rumble!


    A rampaging aura rose up from below. Light burst forth from the spatial Divine Wheel and swept up an astonishing spatial storm. The wills of the six cultivators linked together, and the illusory silhouette of the deity became more and more real and solid. It was as though a true deity had descended upon the earth.


    Frightening Divine Light of Space shot out from the deity''s pupils and enveloped Ye Futian. At the same time, loud rumbling sounds could be heard. The ten-thousand Zhang figure moved. The figures of the six cultivators trembled, and the gigantic golden figure dove downward.


    With a loud cry, the movements of the six cultivators were neatly in sync. From their bodies, divine halos pierced the space. Each divine halo had an overbearing will of the fist that could penetrate space.


    At the same time, the figure of the deity dove straight down. Its domineering and peerless silhouette crushed this part of the space. Its two fists came crashing directly toward Ye Futian. The space seemed to be completely penetrated.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was also under huge pressure. The aura of the Great Path around his body flowed and caused this space to become his domain. The will of the fists that came piercing down was covered in frost and was then shattered by the light of the divine sword.


    The Deed of Thorough Comprehension burst forth, and the storm of the Great Path on his figure flowed upward in reverse. When the silhouette of the deity came crashing down, his divine sword also stabbed out. A huge rumble sounded. When both of them collided with each other, the golden divine elephant that enveloped Ye Futian''s body kept shattering. However, the ten-thousand Zhang figure was also gradually corroded by the power of Yin. It was no longer that solid.


    Rumble.


    Countless bolts of frightening Yin lightning crashed down on the overbearing ten-thousand Zhang figure like a world-ending catastrophe. Ye Futian''s body was pressed down, yet the halo on the divine sword did not dim at all.


    Kacha! Cracks appeared on the ten-thousand Zhang figure. Ye Futian''s palm slammed onto the divine sword. The light of the divine sword immediately exploded and appeared as though it had become the divine halo of a god of destruction. It directly pierced through the ten-thousand Zhang figure. The towering figure of the deity was penetrated by countless lights that shot toward different parts of its body.


    The next moment, with a huge rumble, the figure of the deity immediately shattered.


    As it shattered, the six cultivators let out dull groans. The surrounding pillars of light also dimmed, and many cracks appeared on them.


    Ye Futian''s figure stopped falling downward. He immediately charged up high into the sky. Currents flowed over his body and instantly enveloped the endless space. As the light pillars dimmed, they were all covered by Ye Futian''s aura of the Great Path and became part of his domain.


    He looked around at the six cultivators. This made the six of them feel as though their bodies had frozen stiff. An absolutely bone-chilling cold froze them down to their spiritual souls. They roared loudly, and their battle forms gathered the power of the Great Path. They were still extremely overbearing.


    However, at this moment, their bodies seemed to be covered in an extremely cold aura that was affecting their movements.


    The divine sword in front of Ye Futian hummed as it vibrated. He pointed his finger downward, and the divine sword shot forward. It became a resplendent divine light that pierced through the space.


    Swoosh.


    The divine sword that was as fast as lightning instantly slashed toward one of the cultivators. The cultivator did not manage to respond when his body was instantly pierced through.


    The divine sword did not stop at all and continued to slash ahead.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. Swoosh. There were six consecutive cries. The divine sword returned to its original position. However, the figures of the six cultivators were trembling violently. They revealed looks of despair and terror.


    The first cultivator had yet to perish at this moment. That was how fast the divine sword was.


    "Break."


    Ye Futian uttered a single word. The figures of the six cultivators immediately exploded and shattered at the same time. Their souls dissipated, and they became dust that scattered in the wind.


    With one sword, Ye Futian had killed six cultivators. The moment the battle matrix had been shattered, the fates of the six cultivators were basically determined.


    Many people around the battlefield shifted their gaze in his direction. They revealed astonished looks. That was a battle matrix set up by six cultivators. Ye Futian actually killed all of them.


    The cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm were especially astonished when they witnessed this scene. The six cultivators were all from Empty Mountain.


    Now, outside of the Empty Imperial Palace, the audience felt their hearts beating heavily.


    So powerful. Was this the number genius of the Original Realm?


    He had actually killed off his opponents instead.


    Such ability was practically unbelievable.


    Even among the people in the Empty Imperial Palace, many from the Divine Prefecture were astounded by this battle.


    Cao Jun revealed a strange look. He then said, "I never imagined that I would actually misjudge him. Six cultivators from Empty Mountain were killed with one sword. On the battlefield, this person can definitely rank among those at the very peak."


    On the other hand, Princess Donghuang was thinking about something else. The power just now��


    At the same time, in another place, the cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm were also watching the battle. Quite a lot of them witnessed how Ye Futian killed the six cultivators.


    The domineering possessor of a sixth-tier Divine Wheel, who pursued Ye Futian the other day, stared at the screen with an intense murderous intent. Obviously, he recognized Ye Futian.


    Even the inheritor of the Evil Emperor, Shi Xie, had noticed him. He asked, "Who is that person?"


    "He is Ye Futian," someone replied. "He has been crowned the number one genius in the Original Realm. Previously, in the Shadow Realm, many people believed that he had died. However, he was resurrected later on. This stirred up quite a storm within the Original Realm." They clearly knew some things about him.


    "That means that the power he used might be the power of Yin." Shi Xie stared at Ye Futian''s silhouette. A cold light flashed past in Shi Xie''s gaze!

 1836 Lending Aid

    Of course, in the process, many people had already fallen.


    Now, the battlefield was being split apart. Huge battles were erupting amongst the various cultivators. There were even some who were beginning to retreat and escape because they could not defeat their opponent. Although this war was related to the dispute over the Original Realm, they did not need to battle it out to the death. If they were truly in danger of losing their lives and they had an opportunity to survive, surviving was, naturally, their number one priority.


    It was not easy to cultivate up to the Renhuang Plane. For many people, their lives would forever be their number one priority. There was nothing wrong with this. Everyone only had one chance to live. If they died, there was no revival.


    Hence, there appeared many situations where people were being chased and killed. The battlefield also kept expanding because of such commotion.


    As for the overall situation, with the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm having joined forces, they still held the advantage, and it was very clear. This time, to divide up the Original Realm, they were resolved to take huge losses. They had sent out many top figures to participate in the battle. Many of the cultivators of Empty Mountain had joined the fight.


    Ye Futian had killed six cultivators with one sword. Although he had displayed extremely powerful ability, it was still only one corner of the battlefield in the end. He still did not have the power to turn the tide.


    In reality, when killing the six cultivators, Ye Futian was also under a lot of pressure. He had even released the power of Yin during the battle. If he hadn''t, wanting to break through the battle matrix might have required him to activate the will of the emperor.


    They were six existences with flawless third-tier Divine Wheels. Adding on the increase of their power due to the battle matrix, one could imagine how powerful their combat ability was.


    They were the cultivators of Empty Mountain, the peak genius figures that came from the Empty Divine Realm.


    At that moment, Ye Futian, who was standing in mid-air, surveyed his surroundings. His will enveloped the nearby regions. The members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the allied forces tacitly understood not to leave this battle area. Although each of them was facing powerful attacks, according to their agreement, they still maintained a certain distance away from each other, remaining fighting within this region and lending aid to one another.


    For instance, before this, when Ye Wuchen was in danger while fighting, Yu Sheng had gone up and helped him block his opponent''s attack and killed his opponent.


    With a swoosh, Yu Sheng''s opponent''s body was cleaved in two, and he died a horrible death on the spot.


    Yu Sheng had two powerful ritual implements on him. He had obtained both of them in the God''s relic. One of them was a divine item that he had inherited in the Heavenly Palace that he had refined a bit. The divine item he had obtained was a black rock. It was heavy beyond comparison. By simply placing it in one place, he could suppress the space around it. After Yu Sheng refined it and incorporated it within his Way, when its power burst forth, it could suppress the surrounding space.


    On the other hand, the battle-ax was something he obtained from the treasure trove in the Spatial Sacred Hall.


    With two ritual implements, combined with his originally powerful combat ability, one could imagine how terrifying his might was. Dou Zhao also fought beside him. Although he was also very powerful, because of Yu Sheng''s existence, he did not stand out as much. It gave off a false impression that he took advantage of Yu Sheng''s might to throw his weight around.


    Gu Dongliu''s abilities were naturally also very powerful. His Divine Wheel formed a pattern of the Great Path and suppressed all the evils in this part of the sky. His Way could crumble the mountains and the rivers. He was surrounded by the ancient characters as his celestial body and demonic body became one. He slaughtered everyone who came his way.


    Other than that, the sound of bells unleashed by Huang Zhong from the Divine Palace resonated in the sky. The might of the bell was unparalleled. Nan Luoshen, the princess of the Nantian Divine Kingdom, was equally outstanding as she wielded Emperor Nan''s Qinghe divine sword in her hand. Unless they encountered someone very mighty; otherwise, with so many possessors of flawless Divine Wheels in this area, they could take on any challenge.


    The strongest cultivators among those who came to this area had been slaughtered by Ye Futian.


    Hence, the pressure on this battlefield was the smallest overall.


    Ye Futian''s figure floated high in the sky. His will radiated out and encompassed a vast area. From his body, currents flowed out and extended out into the vast space. The currents enveloped all of his companions and the cultivators of all the allied forces within them.


    "Do not leave this area. That way, I can lend my aid at any time," Ye Futian said. The rest of them understood. They could sense the aura that Ye Futian released.


    At that moment, some cultivators were slaughtering their way towards the members of the Nantian Divine Kingdom. Frightening flames of the Underworld rained down. Nan Luoshen slashed out with Qinghe. However, the other cultivators did not fare as well and were drowned in the destructive storm.


    At that moment, a divine sword shot over to them from afar. It traversed the space and shot up into the sky.


    The cultivators who were unleashing attacks from high in the sky retreated when they saw the divine sword. Yet, the divine sword hummed as it vibrated, ripping apart the space as it advanced. It was an unstoppable force.


    Swoosh.


    The divine sword became a beam of light that pierced through numerous Renhuangs. This allowed the few Renhuangs from the Nantian Divine Kingdom to catch their breath. They peered out into the distance in the direction where Ye Futian was and said, "Many thanks, Renhuang Ye."


    They secretly felt lucky. With Ye Futian around, they would be much safer on the battlefield.


    On the other side, the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy were not so lucky.


    The lineup of the Tianshen Academy was actually very powerful. At the very least, this lineup could be considered as one of the best in the Nine Realms. Aside from the lineup of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which was clearly more domineering than theirs, the lineups sent out by the other forces were all weaker than that of the Tianshen Academy.


    However, that advantage was only applicable when they were in the Nine Realms. Among all the lower-level Renhuangs from the Tianshen Academy, Jian Qingzhu was the only possessor of a flawless Divine Wheel.


    At the moment, quite a few strong figures were targeting the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy. Among them were a few possessors of flawless third-tier Divine Wheels.


    On that side of the battlefield, a few cultivators were standing around Jian Qingzhu and besieging him from different directions. Jian Qingzhu unleashed his Scroll Divine Wheel to counter their attacks. Even though his might was unparalleled, he was still stuck in the encirclement, unable to break out of it.


    As for the other cultivators of the Tianshen Academy, they were similarly surrounded. One of the attackers was particularly powerful. He extended his palm and a terrifying light, which could tear apart space, appeared on it. A ritual implement spun at high speed and pierced through space. The implement looked like a roulette, but with sharp tips all around it. It was like a gear wheel. As it was spinning vigorously, a sonic boom exploded, accompanied by a bolt of golden lightning.


    His gaze was fixed on the space beneath where he was standing. An intense murderous intent flashed in his eyes as he looked down on the figures below.


    He lifted his palm slightly with it facing upwards. Immediately, the roulette, which was spinning in the sky, grew larger. A vigorous spatial storm appeared in the surroundings. One could faintly make out the silhouettes of many roulettes appearing at different corners. The roulettes emitted a rasping sound.


    The attacker extended both his arms, and a divine halo poured down. Countless destructive roulettes appeared in this part of the sky. The roulettes resonated with his ritual implement, sealing off the vast space.


    "Cleave," uttered the attacker.


    As soon as he finished speaking, endless roulettes spun and cleaved the space, slashing their way downwards.


    The cultivators of the Tianshen Academy roared in anger. Their Divine Wheels burst forth; they activated their might of the Way until their utmost limits to defend against the space-cutting power. In mid-air, the ritual implement smashed downwards. It moved at such a terrifying speed until the cultivators could not even see its shadow clearly. They could only detect a beam of light plummeting downwards at them.


    Ptui...


    Fresh blood spattered everywhere. Some powerful Renhuangs were slashed and killed on the spot. Their Divine Wheels were also sliced into pieces, unable to withstand this overbearing attack.


    Soon, many people perished one by one. In the blink of an eye, quite a number of Renhuangs were killed. The battle was savage.


    Ye Futian had also seen what happened at this side of the battlefield. This onslaught happened in the area where his will could barely cover.


    He hesitated for a bit. Before this, when they were in the Shadow Realm, and he was being pursued, the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy passed by and ignored him. Among those who passed by, there were the College Chief of the Tianshen Academy and some mighty cultivators. They turned a blind eye to his predicament at that time.


    However, Ye Futian didn''t say anything. They were not obliged to save him. The two parties did not have any connection, anyway. He couldn''t force them to lend him a helping hand.


    Hence, he also hesitated for a moment now.


    However, he only dithered for a split second before he attacked.


    It was not easy for one to accumulate their cultivation. Moreover, they were on the same side in this battle. Since aiding the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy was not a difficult task, Ye Futian did not want to hold a grudge against them because of what happened last time. He still hoped that the Divine Prefecture could win this battle.


    Ye Futian''s divine sword traversed the space and left behind a brilliant mark in the sky. It was like a beam of divine light, slashing its way to its opponent.


    The other party sensed something. His roulette flew back and spun frenziedly. Then, it flew in the direction where the divine sword was coming.


    Bang!


    A loud crash sounded. The attacks from both sides contained powers, which could tear apart space. This caused the surrounding space to be shattered. Streaks of destructive Divine Light of Space rampaged. The opponent glanced into the distance and saw a figure with white hair. The white-hair figure was controlling the divine sword from afar.


    Ye Futian did not move; he was still standing at his original spot. Even though he aided the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy, he still placed the safety of his alliance members as his priority. The safety of the rest could only come after that. Ye Futian was well-aware of this point.


    Outside the battlefield, at the Empty Imperial Palace, the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy were observing their disciples who were in battle. Before this, all their expressions turned sullen when they saw many of their disciples being killed. Their facial expressions were exceptionally ugly when they saw that Jian Qingzhu was in danger too.


    When Ye Futian attacked, they were first stunned by his aid. Then, they breathed a sigh of relief. However, soon, some of them revealed unpleasant looks.


    "He is still standing at his spot. He purposely does not go all out to help them," someone complained. They were displeased.


    The College Chief of the Tianshen Academy naturally saw what had happened too. He didn''t say anything. Before this, when he chose not to help Ye Futian, the latter had most likely noticed him. Hence, the College Chief actually knew the reason why Ye Futian held back!

 1837 The Hearts of Men

    "Hmm. Back then, after Ye Futian emerged from the God''s relic, he landed in a tight spot, and his life was on the line. Our Tianshen Academy stepped out and allowed him to enter the academy to train, helping him to escape his predicament," a member of the Tianshen Academy said. His tone was filled with dissatisfaction.


    Ye Futian only cared for his alliance members. If he had acted sooner, the disciples of the Tianshen Academy would not have encountered their current crisis. Fewer of their members would have fallen in the first place.


    Jian Ao nodded his head slightly and said, "Before the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm invaded the Original Realm, the situation in the Original Realm was already extremely chaotic. The Heavenly Mandate Academy formed an alliance with many forces. Ye Futian had previously trained in Tianshen Academy for a period of time, but he cannot be considered a disciple of the academy. Now, on this battlefield, although we are on the same side, having different priorities is also normal. There isn''t much that we can comment on. We can only lament that the disciples of the Tianshen Academy have weaker cultivation than others. If they can make it out alive, you all will need to push them harder in the future."


    "College Chief Jian is truly righteous." Shen Gao from Shen clan said, "This is a battle to determine who the Original Realm belongs to. It is extremely important for our Divine Prefecture. Ye Futian''s alliance members are all safe. He would rather remain on guard over there than lend aid to other parts of the battlefield. From the looks of it, he places the interests of his alliance members over the outcome of the war. However, this is also normal. The more severe the losses to our forces, the more beneficial it is for the allied forces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    These words were somewhat condemning.


    This war was personally led by Princess Donghuang. In order to claim the rights for control over the Original Realm, she had gathered cultivators from various forces to participate in the battle. If Ye Futian had prioritized his own interests, had intentionally held back from giving his all, and ignored the outcome of the battle, what would the Princess think?


    How would the major figures who had arrived from the Divine Prefecture think?


    At least from the looks of it, Ye Futian indeed had the reserves to join other battles and provide a greater opportunity for the Divine Prefecture.


    This caused Shen Gao and the others to sigh inside. Even though Princess Donghuang was young, her emotions were not visible. She had superb control over her feelings. No one could make out a hint of emotion from her face. The only daughter of the Great Emperor must have known how to control her expressions.


    At the very least, she could not let the ones below tell what she was thinking and then manipulate her thoughts.


    On the battlefield, Ye Futian''s divine sword clashed with his opponents'' roulette ritual implement across a vast distance. Extremely powerful Sword Will circulated around Ye Futian''s body. He controlled the divine sword from afar with his will.


    His figure stood tall in mid-air, his clothes fluttering in the wind. His eyes were closed, and his facial expression was solemn. He gestured a sword seal with his finger and pointed it out in mid-air.


    In an instant, across the distance, the divine sword emitted astonishing sword light. Sword Will filled the sky around the divine sword. The Cleave of All Things ripped apart the space as it charged towards the opponent.


    The cultivator''s Divine Wheel of the Great Path appeared behind him. Countless roulettes spun around in the sky. They sliced apart the space and collided with the Cleave of All Things technique. An extremely high-pitched sound instantly exploded through the space.


    An astonishing storm of the Great Path flowed in reverse. The rampaging spatial storm swept towards the opponent''s body. The power that slashed through the space seemed to also charge towards the opponent.


    Myriads of sword light wrapped around the space and became a river of swords. The vast might of the sword astonished the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy. Was this Ye Futian''s ability? The opponent that they could not handle, the Renhuang who was massacring amongst them, was now being suppressed by Ye Futian from a distance with swords.


    Buzz. The Sword Will on Ye Futian''s body flourished. His silver hair danced around like sharp swords, hiding his face. From a distance, the murderous Sword Will became a river of swords in space that was majestic beyond comparison.


    The Sword Will that filled the sky flowed in reverse as it slaughtered its way towards the opponent. The roulette in front of the cultivator expanded as he took a defensive stance, and his figure retreated backwards.


    Swoosh. Sword Will cleaved off one of his opponent''s arms. The person let out a dull groan. Ignoring the intense pain coming from his arm, his opponent''s body was bathed in the Divine Light of Space. He took a step back and immediately left the battlefield, flying off into the distance.


    The divine swords hummed as they vibrated. They did not pursue the opponent, instead returning to the battlefield where Jian Qingzhu was.


    Jian Qingzhu was surrounded by a few possessors of flawless Divine Wheels. He was under immense pressure.


    The dazzling divine swords swept across the space, breaking through the opponents'' encirclement. They immediately eliminated one of the cultivators with a second-tier Divine Wheel. The Scroll of the Great Path on Jian Qingzhu''s body released a brilliant might of Way. It pressured his opponents to step back, causing them to spread out across the battlefield.


    Their expressions changed as they looked at the divine swords floating in the air as well as Ye Futian in the distance.


    "Retreat," the leader said decisively as he then retreated backward. Those beside him followed behind and moved towards other parts of the battlefield.


    Since they could not deal with him, they would naturally not risk their lives doing so. Ye Futian controlled the divine swords from a distance. This made them feel severely threatened.


    After his opponents left, the divine swords flew back and returned to Ye Futian''s side.


    Jian Qingzhu''s gaze followed the track of the divine swords returning and saw Ye Futian. He nodded slightly in appreciation of Ye Futian''s help.


    Ye Futian nodded in response too. Then, he retracted his gaze. In reality, Ye Futian helped Jian Qingzhu, not because of the Tianshen Academy; it was purely because they were on the same side now, and he was capable of lending aid. Since that was the case, Ye Futian did not mind saving the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy. He didn''t expect them to return the favor too.


    Similarly, Ye Futian did not expect the elders of the Tianshen Academy to have a change of attitude in terms of how they treated him. From their behavior last time, Ye Futian had clearly understood that they would, at most, be strangers. Hence, he had never thought of establishing a good relationship with them. He wouldn''t expect them to show appreciation for his aid too.


    He attacked simply because he wanted to. That was all to it.


    "Why did he let the enemy go?" exclaimed a Renhuang from the Tianshen Academy, who was injured and drenched in blood. He witnessed how his companions were slaughtered in front of his eyes; he himself was almost killed too. His emotions were unstable now. He had an intense murderous intent in his eyes.


    With the might of that divine sword, if Ye Futian was willing, he could possibly kill the opponents instead of letting them escape.


    However, Ye Futian did not go all out; he merely sent out a sword.


    Nobody had answers to this question; they weren''t qualified to question Ye Futian either. After all, they were all saved by Ye Futian. What right did they have to question Ye Futian of his intention of letting the other party escape?


    However, a few of them still held grudges in their hearts. They glanced in the direction where Ye Futian was.


    They were on the same side on this battlefield, but Ye Futian had held back when helping them.


    Just now, if Ye Futian had attacked the enemy earlier, or if Ye Futian had personally come over instead of controlling a sword from afar, the outcome of the battle would be completely different.


    However, Ye Futian did not do so.


    Actually, Ye Futian noticed the dissatisfaction of the cultivators of the Tianshen Academy, but he was well-aware that the hearts of men were complicated. Of course, he didn''t care about their thoughts at all. Their attitude was insignificant to him.


    Due to the presence of Ye Futian in this region, the Divine Prefecture side held the advantage. However, the situation was not the same in other places. In the distance, the cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu were experiencing a severe challenge. Their opponents were similarly the cultivators from the Evil Emperor Realm. The abilities of these opponents were terrifying. Mu Qingke, who had fought with Ye Futian last time at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, was here too. However, right now, he was actually being suppressed by an opponent. His opponent was an extremely powerful figure who had trained at Empty Mountain. He originated from one of the top forces from the Empty Divine Realm. Hence, he had joined this battle this time with his clan members.


    Aside from the battlefield where the cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu were, the same situation was also happening at other parts of the battlefield. The cultivators from the top forces of the Divine Prefecture side were all being attacked by enemies who were on par with them.


    Ye Futian''s party formed a small-scale troop. After they defeated their opponents, they advanced in the direction where the main battles were happening.


    At the moment, a group of cultivators passed by in the sky. When they saw Ye Futian''s party, they revealed bizarre expressions. There were actually cultivators from the Divine Prefecture who were so free and were not being attacked?


    The leader of the group who crossed paths with Ye Futian was a woman. Her bearing was valiant, and she demonstrated the temperament of a royal. She emanated the might of a female Renhuang; her Divine Wheel of the Great Path was flawless.


    She glanced at Ye Futian. This Renhuang is rather handsome, she thought to herself. However, the next moment, her gaze was tainted with murderous intent. She uttered, "Kill them."


    As soon as she had spoken, a dazzling pair of divine wings of the void stretched out from her back. After her wings were spread out, countless golden spatial lines enveloped the space. The other cultivators in her group also appeared in different directions and pounced downwards. Divine halos showered down from the sky, enveloping Ye Futian and his party in them. The spatial lines formed a hunting web. The spatial lines were as sharp as blades as they cut the space into fragments.


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, he thought that the cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm seemed to have a greater understanding regarding spatial techniques compared to other cultivators. It was their natural talent.


    "Be careful," Ye Futian said. Once he said this, cold air flowed around him and converged into the spatial hunting web. This caused a cold, frosty aura to permeate the hunting web. Its movements and the speed that it descended slowed down.


    Buzz. Ye Futian''s body became a bolt of lightning. He wielded the divine sword as he charged forward. The frightening pillar of sword light immediately broke through the golden hunting web. Ye Futian''s figure shot straight up as he charged towards the leading woman.


    The woman narrowed her eyes slightly as she looked at the light of the divine sword. Her divine wings immediately slashed downwards. Each feather became the sharpest blade that slashed down on the space.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. A chilling will approached her, and her wings were covered in frost. The divine sword cut through space and blasted on the wings. However, the divine wings were surprisingly tough. The divine sword was not able to slice through them. The wings were most likely fortified with a treasured item.


    An extremely cold Yin frost current immediately covered the divine wings. It then invaded the opponent''s body. The woman felt an icy chill over her spiritual soul. It was as though she was being frozen alive.


    Splat. The divine wings were outstretched as they sliced towards Ye Futian''s body. If she were frozen, she would not survive.


    Unfortunately, as she thought of retreating, she saw the light of a cold moon. Time and space seemed to have stopped.


    The divine sword radiated an unparalleled divine light. It pierced directly through her body. She was killed in an instant!

 1838 The Grand Scheme of Things

    None of them survived.


    The battlefield was such a cruel place. The cultivators led by the woman were also juniors from a top force. They were also all monstrous figures. They had participated in this war to undergo a life-and-death trial.


    In the end, they had indeed perished on the battlefield and would forever remain here.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian ordered as he continued to charge towards other parts of the battlefield. The team of allied cultivators of their Heavenly Mandate Academy, with Ye Futian as the center, began to hunt. People came charging towards them one after another. With no exceptions, they were all killed. Among them were quite a few incredible and monstrous figures.


    The dominance of their battle array also drew the attention of the outside world. More and more people were paying attention to them, especially among and outside the Empty Imperial Palace. Many gazes were focused on Ye Futian''s group.


    They were too powerful. This group of people led by Ye Futian seemed like an invincible existence. As they slaughtered their way across the battlefield, their kill count was most likely the highest.


    As the battles erupted, the advantage of the war situation became more and more obvious. The alliance between the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm began to gradually occupy an absolute advantage. They suppressed the forces of the Divine Prefecture in various parts of the battlefield.


    This war situation also set off a chain reaction. For example, after settling their opponents with an advantage in one part of the battlefield, the enemy''s allied forces could support other groups. This caused their advantage to snowball. The forces of the Divine Prefecture held advantages in a few battles. Ye Futian''s group was definitely the most eye-catching. However, they could not change the grand scheme of things.


    Yet, it was precisely because of this that Ye Futian''s side seemed even more outstanding and stood out from the rest.


    Cao Jun revealed a look of appreciation as he looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian was truly incredible as he slaughtered his way across the battlefield.


    If only a few cultivators at Ye Futian''s level could turn the tide and widen the Divine Prefecture''s advantage, they could then seize the initiative of this war. However, that couldn''t happen. The most powerful figures, aside from Ye Futian''s group, had all been targeted by the enemy. They were either battling with figures at the same level or were surrounded.


    Ye Futian was also being surrounded. Before this, the six cultivators had formed a powerful battle matrix to kill Ye Futian. However, they had been killed by Ye Futian instead.


    Yet, they had never imagined that in the Divine Prefecture, on the battlefield with three god-level forces, he was still so outstanding, to the point that he was approaching being invincible.


    This made them all feel a faint sense of pride and honor.


    However, at the same time, they were also worried when they saw the overall situation of the war. The situation was very unfavorable for the forces of the Divine Prefecture. If this continued, the Divine Prefecture might lose. If that happened, many cultivators would most likely point their fingers at Ye Futian.


    If they lost this war, the Original Realm would also be divided up. When the time came, who knew what would happen. At the very least, in the short term, the cultivators of the Original Realm would have it hard. There would be a period of turmoil, and cultivators would certainly have a hard time.


    "That b*st*rd..."


    At this moment, someone cursed furiously in the Empty Imperial Palace. Many people immediately looked towards the person who had cursed out loud. It was a cultivator from the Shen clan. His expression was ugly. It was not just him. Shen Gao, the Shen clan leader, Shen Ji, and other top figures all had somewhat cold looks in their eyes as they stared at the battlefield.


    "He is deliberately neglecting others and leaving them to die," another voice cried out. They saw that the cultivators of the Shen clan on the battlefield were being pursued. The lineup of the Shen clan this time around was very powerful. Aside from the members of the Shen clan from the Central Emperor Realm, the Shen clan from the Upper Worlds had also sent people to participate in the battle. They had quite a few incredible figures.


    Yet, they had also encountered very strong opponents. Right now, they were at a disadvantage and were retreating while being pursued.


    What made them furious was when Ye Futian passed by the part of the battlefield they were in; it was as though he had not seen them and completely ignored them to deal with cultivators in another direction. This was blatant revenge against the Shen clan. He had directly ignored the life-and-death of the cultivators of the Shen clan.


    With Ye Futian''s ability as well as his group''s current full team, once they joined the fight, they could disrupt the opponent instantly and even kill the opponent together with the cultivators of the Shen clan.


    However, Ye Futian did not even bat an eye at them at all. He just passed by them. Because he ignored them, the cultivators of the Shen clan continued to be chased. A number of their cultivators were killed. The others were also at a disadvantage and were retreating in defeat. They were on the brink of a crisis.


    The cultivators of the other forces also saw this scene. In reality, it was not just the Shen clan. On the battlefield, the battles of the other forces were also ignored by Ye Futian. He did not participate in them. Instead, he hunted down the enemy on his own. This was how his group was giving their all for the battle. From this aspect, no one could find fault with them.


    "Your Highness, Ye Futian does not care for justice and is seeking revenge publicly over a personal vendetta. He does not care about the outcome of the war at all," a cultivator from the Shen clan said. They did not disguise their dissatisfaction and directly complained about Ye Futian. They hoped that Princess Donghuang would also be dissatisfied with Ye Futian.


    "What is the matter? Your Shen clan has tried many times to kill Ye Futian. Now, on the battlefield, you expect Ye Futian to rescue the members of Shen clan?" a mocking voice cried out. A cultivator from Xiao cIan said, "If the members of your Shen clan had such class, you would not have attempted so many times to kill Ye Futian and destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    "You yourselves are vicious, and your methods are cruel, yet you hope that others will return your grievances with virtue and save you all. Isn''t that too laughable?" another person said. They were all retorts to the cultivators of the Shen clan. This caused the expressions of the cultivators of the Shen clan to turn ugly.


    This was all real.


    "We are not asking them to repay grievances with virtue, but to consider the grand scheme of things," the cultivators of Shen clan justified. "On the battlefield, we are both forces on the side of the Divine Prefecture. By retaliating in such a manner, Ye Futian''s group puts us in danger of a crisis. If he had given his all from the very beginning, the situation might not be as it is now. He could have lent aid to many more groups."


    Regardless of whether it made sense or not, they had to at least shackle Ye Futian with the charges. The reality was that he had not given his all. They only need to constantly remind the princess of this point.


    "This is truly laughable. The disadvantageous position we have in this war is due to the encumbrance of the person who has performed the most outstandingly on the battlefield?" cultivators from Dou tribe also retorted. "Those who have not contributed anything are pointing fingers and questioning the people who have contributed by killing the enemy multiple times." They could not stand the cultivators of the Shen clan anymore.


    In reality, both sides understood that no one was qualified to say anything about Ye Futian not rescuing the cultivators of the Shen clan. They were originally mortal enemies. Why should Ye Futian save them?


    However, the Shen clan still stood out to scold and question Ye Futian. Actually, they just wanted the princess to think that Ye Futian was not giving it his all and did not take this war of the Divine Prefecture seriously, prioritizing his own personal benefit over the outcome of the war. As long as the princess thought so, it was enough.


    "Enough," Cao Jun said.


    Cao Jun swept a glance at the crowd. There was a look of condescension in his authoritative gaze. A formless pressure enveloped the surrounding space. The crowd immediately fell silent as they looked at Cao Jun standing next to the Princess.


    "Everything will be determined after this war ends. Everyone, please do not disturb the princess while she observes the battle," Cao Jun said indifferently. The crowd nodded their heads in agreement. Since Cao Jun had requested them to do so, they would naturally oblige.


    Moreover, Cao Jun had brought up the princess in his chastising.


    Princess Donghuang still stood quietly there as usual. She raised her head, looked at the screen in the sky and watched the scenes playing on it.


    Cao Jun also raised his head and looked up into the sky. He then said, "From the looks of the situation, we might lose."


    His status was extraordinary. Hence, he dared to say such things. The princess also did not mind. The others were alI silent. No one dared to speak and merely stared at the screen.


    From the looks of the situation, they were indeed beginning to be completely suppressed by their opponent. The two large forces began to surround them from the outer regions of the battlefield. They then began to close in on the forces of the Divine Prefecture. More and more cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were being killed off.


    If this continued, they would soon lose this war.


    On the battlefield, the fighting was the most intense between the cultivators of Empty Mountain and the Dark Phoenix Division. Both sides had extremely outstanding figures, and their lineups were powerful to the point of being terrifying. This battle had always been the most violent one on the battlefield. Aside from them, the next was the battle between the cultivators led by the Proud Son of the Underworld and the cultivators of Buddha.


    At that moment, on the screen, the cultivators of the Dark Phoenix Division began to retreat. They seemed to be preparing to temporarily avoid the heat of the battle and retreat for a while first.


    Clearly, they realized that if they continued to fight, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture would be massacred, and this war would end with their loss.


    This scene caused the expressions of the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to turn very ugly.


    On the other hand, many cultivators from the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm revealed victorious smiles.


    From the looks of it, they were not far from victory in this battle.


    At that moment, on the battlefield, a voice could be heard up to the highest heavens.


    This voice only uttered one word: retreat.


    It was the voice of the leading figure of the Dark Phoenix Division. When the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture, who were originally at a disadvantage, heard the word retreat, they instantly retreated in different directions. They attempted to disengage with the enemy and retreat temporarily. However, the opponent pursued them even more desperately. How could the enemy forces let such an opportunity slip past them? This was a prime moment to slaughter the cultivators on the side of the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian''s group was currently still dominating. They had killed off many enemies. However, the grand scheme of things seemed to be irredeemable. When the order to retreat sounded, the various forces began to do so.


    His will swept far across into the distance. He glanced around at the battlefield and then said, "Let''s retreat for now."


    In such a situation, he would naturally not fight the war single-handedly. If they were surrounded, the outcome would be tragic.


    However, at that moment, many cultivators already had their eyes on Ye Futian''s group. Before this, Ye Futian''s group had been too domineering. Gradually, they caught the attention of many people who had then kept their eyes on them. However, due to the dominance of Ye Futian''s group, although many people saw them, no one dared to attack them on their own.


    Now, Ye Futian''s group was considered one of the most powerful forces on the Divine Prefecture''s side. If they wanted to retreat, the enemy naturally had to cut them off.


    Hence, from various directions, silhouettes descended and tried to cut off and kill Ye Futian''s group!

 1839 No Way Ou

    Like everyone else, they were also planning to retreat. However, they were being pursued from all directions.


    Among those pursuing them, the few with astonishing speed became frightening storms that ripped apart the space as they charged towards Ye Futian''s group.


    Ye Futian''s figure suddenly turned around as fast as lightning. With a glance, his Eye Sorcery enveloped the Renhuangs pursuing them. A cold moon invaded the other party''s consciousness, causing them to enter into the world of Eye Sorcery.


    Almost at the same time, his divine sword shot out with a flash and pierced through the opponent''s body, killing them instantly.


    This scene caused the other pursuers in the distance to reveal cautious looks. No wonder Ye Futian''s group had been able to consecutively kill off people on their side. As expected, their abilities were very powerful. The combat ability of this white-haired youth was especially terrifying. The divine sword killed people without being seen.


    "Be careful. He is proficient in Eye Sorcery," a deep and powerful voice called out. To the left and right of Ye Futian''s group, people stepped out one after another, preparing to block them off from the sides. Some people passed over them from above. Their speed was extremely fast. After all, many of their Renhuangs were proficient in powers of the Great Path of Space. With one step, they could traverse the space.


    Ye Futian and the others were a group. Ye Futian was not alone. Hence, they were a big target. Wanting to escape the enemy''s pursuit was not an easy task.


    "Yu Sheng, Third Elder Brother, attack." A cold look flashed past in Ye Futian''s eyes. He also realized that the opponent did not dare to attack them easily. They were only trying to hold them off temporarily and then surround them. After all, as the forces of the Divine Prefecture were escaping, the opponent held a huge advantage. If they could surround the Ye Futian''s group, the group would be forced into a very passive situation.


    Those who heard Ye Futian''s words understood this. The retreating group instantly came to a halt.


    Ye Futian turned and walked up into mid-air. His speed was extremely fast. He immediately brought up the rear. At the same time, Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu similarly stepped out and charged towards the people at the side. Aside from them, Nan Luoshen and the others also did not remain idle. They all attacked together.


    Instantly, this area became a battlefield, and a violent fight erupted.


    In various other directions, the forces of the Divine Prefecture were still escaping. Some cultivators from the Dark Phoenix Division passed by and called out loudly to Ye Futian, saying, "Don''t engage the enemy for too long. Retreat."


    In this exchange, the forces of the Divine Prefecture were at a disadvantage. If they continued fighting, they would be gradually eliminated. Ye Futian''s ability was incredible. As long as they temporarily retreated from the battlefield, they would still have a chance later on. Hence, keeping their elites alive was the right thing to do.


    "I know. I will deal with these people first," Ye Futian replied plainly. He wanted everyone to escape. However, it was difficult for them to escape at the moment.


    "There is no time. Tell those who can to retreat," the other party said loudly. He wanted Ye Futian to give up on the thought of wanting everyone to escape. This was not realistic. The larger force had retreated. Many people would certainly be left behind.


    Right now, the ones that they needed to preserve were the elites.


    "You all may leave first," Ye Futian replied indifferently. As he said this, his divine sword killed another one of his opponents. His group had followed him to this battlefield, especially the disciples of Heavenly Mandate Cottage. He was definitely going to lead all of them away safely. No one would be left behind.


    "You have no sense of priorities," the other party chastised him, somewhat dissatisfied. Ye Futian''s ability was powerful, yet he did not know how to read the situation. Under such circumstances, he was actually still fighting. Once he was held back, he would not be able to escape even if he wanted to.


    "All of you shall not leave," a voice cried out from afar. Then, far off in the sky, two silhouettes appeared. They were cultivators of Empty Mountain from the Evil Emperor Realm and members of the Dark Court.


    Among these people, the leading figure from the Evil Emperor Realm from before was also here, and he wielded a divine sword in his hand. The Proud Son of the Underworld, Qi Ye, was also here. They stared at where Ye Futian''s group was. In front of them, people kept stepping forward in droves. They swept towards where Ye Futian was. Their speed was extremely fast.


    In the heavens above, Divine Light of Space rained down from above. It was as though there was a powerful ritual implement at work. Some people lifted their heads and looked up into the sky. Beams of frightening golden divine light blinded them and sealed off the space. Some divine light even became frightening pillars of light that enveloped the cultivators of the Dark Phoenix Division and the Ye Futian''s group within them.


    The gaze of the leading figure of the Dark Phoenix Division was cold as he glanced at Ye Futian. They were dragged into this predicament by Ye Futian.


    A vast and mighty pressure enveloped them. The top figures of the other side walked towards this battlefield one by one. The terrifying army of Renhuangs was also sweeping in their direction. The Dark Phoenix Division was the main force for the Divine Prefecture. Ye Futian''s group had also killed many people. The enemy naturally could not let them escape.


    Killing them off would bring this war to its end. Even if a few of them escaped, it would be of no consequence as it could not affect the grand scheme of things.


    In the distance, the leading figure of the Evil Emperor Realm, as well as Qi Ye, stared at Ye Futian. Before this, many of their members had already perished in his hands. Now, they would honor them by killing Ye Futian.


    Outside, the cultivators of both the Evil Emperor Realm as well as the Dark Court revealed smiles on their faces. From the looks of it, the war was already reaching its end. It would probably not be long before they could wrap things up.


    The peerless princess of the Divine Prefecture was still too young in the end. Although the lineup that they sent out was not weak, it was still not enough. With their two forces allying, did the Divine Prefecture think that they could prevent the Original Realm from being divided up?


    The era of Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing spanned more than three hundred years. They had also ruled the Original Realm for the same duration. Now that there were claims that the changes of the world would begin from the Original Realm, the other forces had to claim some territory in the Original Realm and meet the Divine Prefecture as equals in the Original Realm.


    Unfortunately, the princess of the Divine Prefecture did not participate in this battle herself. If she had done so, they might have been able to win, some cultivators from the Dark Court thought to themselves.


    At the same time, in the Empty Imperial Palace, the expressions of the various cultivators changed. Their juniors were on the battlefield. The current situation would likely turn into a catastrophe.


    Some people looked towards Princess Donghuang. The grand scheme of things could not be changed. Would the princess admit defeat and actively divide the Original Realm up?


    If she did so, she could save the lives of many.


    Yet, she was Princess Donghuang, the daughter of the Great Emperor. It was likely difficult for her to admit defeat first. No one dared to advise her to do so either.


    At that moment, Princess Donghuang was still watching the fight quietly. Up until now, she still had not revealed any emotions. This caused the members of many forces to feel anxious. What was the princess thinking exactly?


    "The main force was originally retreating. Again, it was Ye Futian who caused them to miss the opportunity," Shen clan said, pointing the finger at Ye Futian. Prior to this, they had already wanted to set up charges for Ye Futian. Now, on the battlefield, Ye Futian had committed another mistake; they would naturally not let this opportunity slip past them.


    "He is not concerned with the outcome of this war. He only cares for his own people," a cultivator from Golden Divine Nation also cried out.


    This time, Cao Jun also did not say anything. Ye Futian had indeed been penny-wise but a pound-foolish. He had acted on impulse. By doing so, he would fight alongside his companions. However, everyone else was also trapped. The casualties would be even more severe.


    Now, they had missed their opportunity. Wanting to escape again would most likely be difficult.


    On the battlefield, Ye Futian''s group was surrounded by a large army. Up, down, left and right, there were many powerful Renhuangs. Powerful ritual implements floated in the air. In front of them, a vast army was gathered and charging over to eradicate them.


    Far behind them, the monk dressed in a white cassock looked back to look in the direction where Ye Futian was. His footsteps came to a stop. Ye Futian and the others seemed to be in danger.


    Ye Futian frowned. In the sky above, many ritual implements appeared above his head. Among them was a large golden umbrella, spinning in the air at a frightening speed. This umbrella released destructive spatial lightning that struck down.


    There was also a gigantic ancient bell that flew in the air. The ancient bell unleashed menacing divine light. Each beam of divine light contained overbearing power beyond comparison that could suppress and kill his opponents.


    Aside from these two ritual implements, divine might erupted from many more ritual implements at the same time. In an instant, the vast space was filled with endless destructive power.


    "Kill them."


    A cold voice cried out. Once these words were uttered, a few huge war drum ritual implements sounded at the same time in the heavens above. A frightening drumming sound immediately swept across the sky. The formless and terrifying rhythm caused the eardrums of many people to tear from the vibrations. It was as though their spiritual souls were about to split apart.


    Ptui. Ptui. Ptui. People started to cough up fresh blood one after another. After all, among Ye Futian''s group, they had members from the Xiao clan, Dou tribe and the Nantian Divine Kingdom. Many among their allied forces were still not possessors of flawless Divine Wheels. It was hard for them to withstand an attack of such power.


    Yet alone possessors of flawed Divine Wheels, even for possessors of flawless Divine Wheels, if their cultivation Planes were too low, it would also be difficult for them as well to withstand such an attack.


    Buzz. Ye Futian''s figure became a bolt of lightning. His speed was extremely fast as he charged towards the war drums like a beam of light.


    However, at that moment in the heavens above, a huge black robe ritual implement consumed the Way around them and became a menacing illusion of the God of the Underworld. The illusion wielded the spear of the Underworld and stabbed down on Ye Futian. It was controlled by the Proud Son of the Underworld, Qi Ye. He was in charge of dealing with Ye Futian. On the other hand, the leading figure of the Evil Emperor Realm controlled his divine sword to handle the cultivators from the Dark Phoenix Division.


    Ye Futian''s divine sword immediately stabbed out at the long spear. A frightening chill invaded the long spear. However, besides the illusion of the God of the Underworld, another two gigantic Bodies of Way appeared. They were a thousand Zhangs tall. One of them wielded a spatial war ax while the other held a celestial mace. Both weapons crashed down on Ye Futian at the same time. A huge rumble sounded; it was as though the sky was falling and the earth was splitting apart.


    Rumble. There was a huge sound, and Ye Futian''s figure was pushed downwards from high in the sky. His arm trembled violently. The divine sword also hummed as it kept vibrating.


    At that moment, a terrible scream came from the side. Other various ritual implements attacked at the same time. In the chaotic space of the battlefield, many Renhuangs were destroyed by the attack of the opponent. Yu Sheng and the others also faced a very powerful attack.


    "Ptui!"


    With a huge sound, Yaya, who was the furthest in front, killed an opponent with her powerful Sword Will. However, she was also hit. She spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, and her body was knocked backward.


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, the look in his eyes turned extremely cold. They were filled with murderous intent.


    From the looks of it, they would not be able to escape even if they wanted to.


    He shifted his gaze towards the leading figures of the Evil Emperor Realm as well as the Dark Court in the distance. Right now, there seemed to only be one way out: by killing their opponents!

 1840 Kill

    Those from the Evil Emperor Realm and the Dark Court smiled as they watched the battle. This battle of the Original Realm was quickly coming to an end.


    However, the people of the Divine Prefecture looked solemn and thoughtful.


    Even the cultivators outside the Empty Imperial Palace felt nervous for Ye Futian as they looked at the battlefield.


    Ye Futian''s performance during this battle could not be considered unexceptional. The battlefield he was on was one of the mightiest battlefields. He killed many enemies, and no one was able to block his path.


    They were not naturally prejudiced like the cultivators from the Shen Clan, thinking that Ye Futian had not given his all. Even if he did not give his all, Ye Futian''s performance in the battle was already quite exceptional. What more could they want from him?


    Moreover, even if those from the Upper Worlds came to suppress and kill them, the fact that the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had produced such an amazing person was, in itself, something to be proud of. After all, apart from Ye Futian, no other person was this strong.


    Even though Jian Qingzhu was exceptionally talented, he still would not have achieved Ye Futian''s feats. The gap between them was still quite sizable.


    However, at that moment, Ye Futian was facing a life or death situation. He might be killed. So, it was natural that everyone seemed a little nervous.


    A person of Ye Futian''s caliber falling in a battle would be too unfortunate. If he had more time, he could grow to become a peak existence in their 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He could become the symbol of an era.


    However, at that moment, no one could predict if he would live or die.


    They looked at the bright Divine Lights emanating from the ritual implements wreaking havoc upon Ye Futian and the others. Several Renhuang on the team fell on the spot. At that moment, on that battlefield, even beings as strong as a Renhuang seemed incredibly weak and fragile.


    Could Ye Futian escape death?


    That thought had crossed everyone''s mind.


    At that moment, inside the mirror screen in the sky... Amidst the battlefield, Ye Futian''s body began to release a formless yet somehow visible stream of air. At the same time, the cultivators around him began to inch closer to him. They were shrinking their formation.


    A look of bewilderment filled the faces of a large number of people as the scene unfolded.


    What were they trying to do?


    Was Ye Futian trying to protect the others?


    What was Ye Futian thinking? He should be trying to find a way to get himself out of this situation. After all, the path of becoming a legend was ultimately going to be accompanied by blood and sacrifice. Sometimes, one had to give up when it was time to do so.


    The leaders of the Empty Imperial Palace also did not understand Ye Futian''s intention.


    "Has he gone mad?" someone asked. Using a method like that at a time like that would achieve nothing but self-destruction. Not only that, but it would also facilitate the entire process.


    Did he want everyone to die together?


    Cao Jun also looked with concern. With Ye Futian''s talent strength, he should not be making an error like that.


    Unless... Did he have something that would get them out of their predicament?


    Perhaps only Lord Taixuan and a few others from the Heavenly Mandate Academy could vaguely guess what Ye Futian was going to do. They knew Ye Futian''s strength best. If he were not forced into a situation like that, he would always keep something up his sleeve and not reveal his true strength.


    However, in the current situation, being surrounded, on the verge of being taken out all in one go, and with Yaya and the others hurt...


    Ye Futian would no longer tolerate it.


    In that sense, one could not tell if it was a blessing or a curse.


    Naturally, the truth was that Lord Taixuan also wanted to know what sort of destruction would ensue on the battlefield if Ye Futian were to release his full strength.


    At that time, bright Divine Light emerged from Ye Futian''s body and began spreading into the sky. Under the Divine Light, his white shirt seemed to turn gold while his handsome face suddenly had a look of limitless dignity. It was the Emperor''s Light.


    "Will of the emperor!"


    Every cultivator''s heart trembled. Outside the Empty Imperial Palace, countless practitioners held both their fists tightly. There had always been a rumor that Ye Futian had inherited the will of the emperor in God''s relic and used it to kill a high order Renhuang. While not the owner of a perfect Divine Wheel, a high order Renhuang was still incredibly strong. Nonetheless, the high order Renhuang still died by Ye Futian''s hands.


    At that moment, Ye Futian had again activated the will of the emperor. Just how powerful was he going to be?


    Everyone was a little expectant, wondering if he could turn the tide.


    "So, this is the will of the emperor?" They were captivated by Ye Futian''s temperament and qualities. Already exceptionally handsome, Ye Futian had become peerless in elegance at that moment. As he stood upon the battlefield, it looked as if he was the only one there.


    At that moment, amidst the battlefield, bathed in Divine Light, Ye Futian''s blood boiled. It was as if everything in the world was within his control. His divine consciousness became stronger, and every power from heaven and earth seemed to be at his beckon. His will was even stronger.


    Beams of bright Divine Light stretched into multiple directions in the sky. It looked extremely divine. The Divine Light seemed to envelop that entire space and transform it into an Absolute Territory. Moreover, the light continued to spread even further.


    The Power of the Great Path of Attack from the Void was blocked by the Divine Light released by Ye Futian. Silvery long hair danced in the air. His body floated into the sky as he looked up high at the powerful practitioners high in the sky. A murderous look filled his eyes.


    The Proud Son of the Underworld glanced at Ye Futian. Back in the day when he went to the Empty Imperial Palace, he had sparred with Ye Futian before. That practitioner could not last a single hit in front of him. However, at that moment, he could feel a sense of power emanating from Ye Futian''s body.


    He had a tingling feeling that, on that day, Ye Futian intentionally hid his true strength and did not give his all in that fight.


    Was the power he displayed at that moment his true strength?


    "Kill him!" Qi Ye ordered from far away. As soon as he finished giving the order, the ritual implements in the sky released divine might all.


    This time, all of them focused only on Ye Futian. Gold lightning that tore through space, an overbearing black and yellow ancient bell, a battle drum that destroyed spiritual souls... In an instant, the sky above Ye Futian was filled with powers that could wreak havoc and kill countless people, and all of them were charging towards Ye Futian.


    Just how scary was a hit like this?


    Many people watching the battle from the Outer Realms felt nervous for Ye Futian. It was too frightening. The entire space was devoured by lights of destruction that would crush and destroy Ye Futian and everyone he was trying to protect.


    Rumble...


    In an instant, the unparalleled attacks rained towards Ye Futian, who was bathed in Divine Light. Everything happened in an instant. Attacks of this level had close to no time gap. Every single attack dropped at the same moment.


    Multiple eyes stared at Ye Futian. Would Ye Futian, who was enveloped in the Great Emperor''s divine light, be able to survive these attacks?


    Then, it felt like time and space had frozen in place.


    It was a bizarre feeling; however, it also felt incredibly real.


    With Ye Futian''s body at the center, all the attacks seemed to have stopped. The killer lightning, destructive ancient bell, and all the other Power of Great Paths seemed to have turned into objects with solid forms as they froze under the bright Great Emperor''s Divine Light.


    The attacks that were still overbearing and powerful an instant before had now become extremely quiet. It was as if they had all solidified under the bright golden light, accompanied by a bone-chilling coldness.


    "What is this?" Everyone''s heart trembled. Was this the Power of the Great Path of Freezing?


    It was like ice freezing, but it also seemed like space had frozen.


    The cultivators inside the Void felt a slight chilly sensation. They realized that it should have been covered in ice, but the existence of the will of the emperor dyed everything with a golden light.


    Sizzle... Bright Divine Light shot out from the divine sword. In an instant, all the attacks vanished and became nothing.


    At the same time, a holy Divine Light continued to spread out toward multiple directions in the sky. It looked as if the entire battlefield was going to be buried by that light.


    "What is this power?" Thought some of the cultivators in the Void.


    Cold. At that moment, they could only feel utter, bone-chilling cold. Their bodies felt as if they were about to be sealed in ice, and their spiritual souls were frozen. Their senses seemed to have slowed down as if they had just been born. Time and space seemed to have stopped.


    At that moment, everyone seemed to have forgotten that, in another location, Yu Sheng was also releasing a vast amount of demonic might. It seemed as if a peerless demon was waking up. Frightening demonic energy swirled inside the Void, his might overwhelming the heavens.


    Gu Dongliu and the others also separately released their energies and powers.


    The scene made the cultivators from the Dark Phoenix Division to glance in that direction. The same went for the cultivators who were preparing for a retreat.


    For example, the Buddhist sect practitioners from the Mountain Realm - The monk wearing a white robe turned around to glance at Ye Futian. Feeling that aura, a look of clarity flashed across his handsome eyes.


    "Power of Yin," he mumbled quietly in his mind. After that, he did not continue retreating. Instead, he turned around and continued looking at Ye Futian.


    Perhaps it was possible to turn the situation around.


    At that moment, a Great Path domain appeared around Ye Futian''s body. Under the frightening flow of air, a cold moon appeared in the sky.


    Moonlight descended from above and transformed into a Yin Divine Light that enveloped a large area. Inside this space, everyone was covered in ice, formless air flowed inside this Great Path domain. Space itself had frozen.


    "Kill!"


    A murderous look flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes. As his intent formed, a Divine Sword split the skies and directly cut through the Void.


    Bzzzt...


    The body of a one-path, three-realm divine wheel owner was directly punctured by the Divine Sword and turned into dust before vanishing into nothingness after he was slowed down by the Power of Yin.


    A figure that had been overwhelmingly strong throughout the battle was killed in an instant just like that.


    The Divine Sword flashed across the Void. Plopping sounds continued to fill the air. Bodies, one after another, turned into dust before vanishing into thin air. Some people managed to react and retreat by forcefully using the Great Path of Strength to break free of the Power of Freezing Space. As they retreated, fear could be seen in their eyes.


    How did this white-haired youth suddenly become so frightening?


    Far away, the leaders of the Evil Emperor Realm and the Dark Court lost their confidence after witnessing the scene before them. They were stunned for a moment. Right in front of their eyes, the Divine Sword fired multiple bright and deadly light. Plopping sounds were non-stop. Everywhere the sword passed, geniuses who once dominated worlds either vanished within the Void or turned into dust.


    Death!

 1841 Invincible

    Inside the Empty Imperial Palace, countless gazes were fixed onto the bright and dazzling scene unfolding within the mirror screen in the sky.


    One sword. Executing the enemy.


    The Divine Sword returned to its place in front of Ye Futian. It floated there and released beams of swordsmanship Divine Light.


    Apart from that, the bright moon still hung in the sky. Beams of moonlight shone upon the space, bathing Ye Futian within. Hair as white as snow, the will of the emperor as holy as ever... At that moment, he looked simply astounding.


    The hearts of leaders and big shots of the Shen Clan, the Golden Divine Nation, and other factions that were enemies of Ye Futian, trembled. Their gaze changed gradually. They became colder; their killing intent had increased even further.


    Just a while ago, they were still arguing that Ye Futian had dragged their feet in this battle. They wanted to convict him, to declare him guilty, and make him take responsibility for this battle. If he survived the battle, once he returned, they still hoped to lay all the blame on and punish him.


    However, the next moment, Ye Futian released more energy, and his might overwhelmed everything. The Divine Sword swung into the sky.


    This was the Power of Yin!


    That day, Ye Futian was on the verge of death inside the core area of the Shadow Realm. Ultimately, he survived. However, he did not only survive. He also gained a blessing in his misfortune. He had mastered the Power of Yin.


    Before this, the others had already been suspicious. However, now that they saw the Moon Wheel, it was no longer in doubt. Even if they did not feel the aura on the battlefield first hand, they knew that it was the Power of Yin from the Shadow Realm. It had been assimilated into his law power attacks and sword. That was the reason for the surge in might and strength.


    "Yin," mumbled Cao Jun gently as he stared at the Void mirror screen. He would never have imagined that such an exceptional person would be in the Original Realm. Even though Ye Futian''s previous display showed that he was unusually talented, maybe even a genius, what kind of person was Cao Jun? He had met all types of great individuals, geniuses coming from all places before, and each of them had begged to train under his banner. As a result, even though Ye Futian''s earlier display was astounding, he was not truly moved.


    That was until this moment. Cao Jun was stunned.


    The will of the emperor and Power of Yin. The talent that he displayed had already surpassed many geniuses in the Divine Prefecture.


    He glanced at Princess Donghuang beside him and saw that the princess was still gazing calmly into the Void. Cao Jun wondered... Did the Princess already know that this would be the outcome?


    He would not ask what should not be asked. If the princess wanted to speak, she would, naturally, speak.


    In areas where cultivators had gathered in the Evil Emperor Realm and the Dark Court, countless people were also stunned by the scene before them.


    Shi Xie had already suspected this earlier. Now, it was proven. Ye Futian had already mastered the Power of Yin and had assimilated it into his abilities. When he was in the Shadow Realm back then, he did not pay much attention to Ye Futian''s existence; instead, he put more focus on the heir of the Heaven Realm.


    However, unexpected to him, the person who was on the verge of death in the Shadow Realm had not only survived but also managed to master the Power of Yin.


    What was the reason for this development?


    The number one genius in the Original Realm was the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s Ye Futian.


    This was the first time Shi Xie truly recognized Ye Futian. While Ye Futian''s previous displays were exceptional, Shi Xie had never truly remembered Ye Futian. After all, the number of people worthy of being remembered by him was quite low.


    However, at that moment, Ye Futian''s name was carved into his memory.


    It seemed like he had underestimated the people from the Original Realm. It was surprising to him that the Original Realm had someone as exceptional as this.


    He continued to observe the battlefield. While Ye Futian was incredibly powerful, the general tide of the battle had already been set. Could Ye Futian change the tide of battle?


    Amidst the battlefield, the Buddhist practitioners from the Mountain Realm looked over at Ye Futian. Then, the leading monk wearing the white robe suddenly turned around and walked towards him. Following that, the rest of the Buddhist sect practitioners also followed him as they walked back to return to the battlefield.


    The monk walked to a spot not far behind Ye Futian and asked, "Dear benefactor, do you need this humble monk''s help?"


    Ye Futian did not turn around. Using his divine consciousness, he could see everything clearly. As such, it was natural that he was able to see his surroundings.


    He continued to gaze at a location far away. There, the Proud Son of the Underworld''s gaze was dead cold as he stared straight back at Ye Futian.


    "Master, would you be so kind as to defend my left side and follow me as we kill the enemy''s leader?" Ye Futian asked. Earlier on the battlefield, this group of monks was capable of battling against the Proud Son of the Underworld. This handsome monk, in particular, was even capable of fighting evenly against Qi Ye.


    "Leave it to this humble monk," answered the monk with a gentle smile as he clasped his hands together. He looked very handsome when he smiled. A different kind of handsome.


    "Older brothers, Yu Sheng, you guys are on the right," said Ye Futian as he looked at Yu Sheng.


    "Alright." Yu Sheng, Gu Dongliu, and the others nodded. They went to Ye Futian''s right and released their energies. Their might were frightening, particularly Yu Sheng and Gu Dongliu. One had a vast amount of demon might as demons and shadows began to form around him while the other summoned a Juexian matrix, resulting in him being surrounded by celestials and demons. It was a frightening scene.


    Three major factions. Apart from their group, the Dark Phoenix Division was battling against the cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm. As for the remaining cultivators, they were initially prepared to retreat; however, at that moment, many also started to turn around to look toward the battlefield.


    Ye Futian''s battle had attracted the gaze of everyone. He had become the absolute core area of the battle.


    In front of Ye Futian was a vast army. Countless cultivators, multiple Renhuangs stood in the area in front of him. When their might descended, it was incredibly frightening.


    However, at that moment, the large army did not move rashly. In the earlier battle, Ye Futian was too strong. The top fighters who went out to fight him had already been killed.


    Then, Ye Futian waved his fist, making the divine move around Ye Futian to behind his body. This move surprised many people as shock filled their faces. What did this mean?


    However, in the next moment, they saw Ye Futian bring out another ritual implement. It was a pole that was releasing a strong and daunting aura. The divine sword gave off a sense of sharpness, while the pole exuded a sense of power and weight. Both ritual implements were exuding a frightening aura.


    With the Power of Divine Elephant in his grasp, Ye Futian was bathed in the Emperor''s Light. Shadows and illusions of Divine Elephants appeared around him while Starry Halos spun around his body. At that moment, he looked like a hero of an era. The moment he took a step, the hearts of the Renhuangs in front of him trembled. They felt an extremely powerful force press against them.


    The moment Ye Futian stepped forward, on his left and right side, the Buddhist practitioners from the Mountain Realm, as well as with Yu Sheng''s group, had already taken a step forward. This way, they could share and alleviate the pressure coming from the left and right side of Ye Futian.


    The white-robed monk held Buddha beads in both his hands. Then, flying and spinning at an amazing speed, ancient characters above the Buddha emerged and transformed into sutras. After that, a heavenly Buddha appeared. A gigantic holy Buddha statue appeared. The giant Buddha continued to grow larger as Buddha sounds whirled around it. It kept growing until it was thousands of meters tall, reaching high into the sky. Watching from above, everyone down below looked like ants.


    Many raised their head to look up and felt as if the Buddha in the heavens was looking at them.


    "Do it."


    The Renhuangs began to concentrate their powers. Ritual implements danced in the sky. Powerful law power emerged and shot at the giant Buddha.


    Only frightening rumbles could be heard as a giant Buddha palm slammed down from the sky. It covered a large area and slammed right into many talismans and weapons, blowing them away. The palm continued to push down as it crushed that entire piece of land.


    On the other side, within the Juexian Matrix behind Gu Dongliu, celestials and demons roared. Holy beasts surged forward one by one while multiple Celestial Shadows raged forward. On the other hand, Yu Sheng leaped forward by himself. Using Gu Dongliu''s attacks as cover, he charged straight into the enemy. His divine item''s light shone, overwhelming the enemies in that space to the point where they could not move. His fists flew forward. Fierce and intense sounds of crashing could be heard as several Renhuang cultivators were directly punctured by the aurora of his fist.


    Of course, most of the cultivators charged towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s speed was breakneck. He charged straight into the massive army in front of him. The Moon Wheel behind him released an even brighter and dazzling Great Path radiance. In an instant, the bodies of the Renhuangs in front of him froze one by one. They could feel their blood stop flowing while their spiritual souls trembled.


    The moonlight continued to shine below. Hidden within areas shrouded in the moonlight were frightening lightning. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that the moonlight itself was transformed from the Yin Divine Thunder.


    Rumble, rumble, rumble...


    Within the void, figures exploded into pieces one after another. Under the radiance of the moonlight, their bodies were destroyed, and their spiritual souls were crushed.


    In an instant, many of those who were in possession of imperfect Divine Wheels had perished. Their souls dispersed as they did not even have the ability to mount an ounce of resistance.


    Ye Futian''s level was at the Divine Wheel''s second order. His Divine Wheel was perfect, and with the will of the emperor activated and with his powers, he was definitely at the level of Divine Wheel third order. Moreover, it was at a perfect level. In addition, he also had the Power of Yin. Hence, how could a Lower Renhuang with an imperfect Divine Wheel resist him? They were absolutely powerless and could not fight back, resulting in them being killed instantaneously.


    The moonlight was still a law power attack. The Power of Yin assimilated into the Perilous Thunder to transform into the Yin Divine Thunder. Hidden within it was the destructive power of thunder, and the power of Great Path that could tear through space. As such, under the radiance of the Yin Divine Light, multiple figures turned into dust. They were powerless and fell instantly.


    Plop, plop, plop...


    The Divine Light remained, and combatants continued to fall on the battlefield. At that moment, many people felt that the Renhuang were like ants. In front of absolute strength, their numbers were meaningless.


    An incredible number of law powers were thrown at Ye Futian. However, as these powers entered the domain of the Yin Divine Light, they froze before being annihilated by the Yin Divine Thunder. Others were trampled into pieces by the Divine Elephants or swept away by the Starry Halos around him. These Renhuangs could not even get close to Ye Futian.


    Then, suddenly, a giant divine tower appeared and broke through the power of the Yin Divine Light and flew at Ye Futian. Many people stared at this scene, hoping to see a ray of hope.


    Ye Futian raised his arm, the long pole in his palm. His body moved as he swept the pole outward. At that moment, the pole''s shadow covered the sky, the Great Path roared, and the ritual implement was sent flying. The next moment, the Yin Divine Light was shining upon the cultivator who released the divine tower. The Divine Sword behind Ye Futian had also flown out. Before the divine tower returned to the opponent, the Power of Yin and the Divine Sword had descended upon him. Plop. A corpse was left behind.


    "Invincible!"


    The Ye Futian at that moment gave off a sense of invincibility. He continued to stride forward. The moon''s radiance fell upon the land, and beams of Yin Divine Light swept across the battlefield. Renhuang continued to fall one by one. It was despair!


    He was going to annihilate the Renhuang army by himself!

 1842 Killing Inten

    As Ye Futian continued to bathe in the Emperor''s Light, no one could block his path.


    Watching their companions blown to bits and crushed one after the other, the other Renhuangs began to falter as an extreme fear started to grow inside their minds. Some of them were already thinking about retreat; they wanted to get off this battlefield.


    On this battlefield, owners of imperfect Divine Wheels were fodders in front of Ye Futian. They were killed instantly. In a situation like that, who would want to go and die?


    Another round of Divine Light rained from above. All the people close to Ye Futian were punctured, while those exposed to the Moon Light died as well.


    Ye Futian''s overwhelming power made the people watching the battle forget the other two crazy battles on the left and right.


    The battlefield created an illusion - Lower Renhuangs were like ants.


    They were at the same level; however, the gap between their strength was actually so great.


    One after another, the Renhuangs began to retreat. They avoided confronting Ye Futian directly. In the sky above, several genius-level perfect Divine Wheel owners frowned. Faced with the battle in front of them, they were actually feeling a little out of depth and out of ideas.


    Their law power attacks could not even get close to Ye Futian.


    "I will stop his movements. You guys attack." A voice suddenly appeared. A dark shadow was within the void. The figure was extremely imposing. His body emanated an aura of wildness. Strands of dark aura flowed over his body, raging between heaven and earth. In his hand was a completely black instrument that let out crisp clinking sounds. It was a black chain.


    "Go."


    His arm trembled. Then, he suddenly threw the chain down to the ground. In that instant, loud clinking noises filled the air as a huge number of dark chains rained flew down from the sky, blocking the sun. Every single chain let out a deafening and explosive sound.


    Hundreds of millions of chains shrouded the boundless void and locked down the land surrounding Ye Futian. An explosion of dark light emerged as the place turned into a dark prison. In addition to those, some of the chains were flying towards Ye Futian.


    It was an indestructible ritual implement. Its attack was on the weaker side. However, it was capable of sealing people away. At the moment, ye Futian was too dangerous. They had to seal and limit his movement.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced over his surrounding. The Yin Divine Light bloomed and made the chains closer to him gradually covered in ice. His gaze was terrifying as it pierced through the gaps between the chain-formed dark prison and reached the figures within the void.


    The Moon released an even stronger divine light that directly enveloped the dark prison. All the chains became frozen, and as the Power of Yin seeped in, the dark prison began to slow down and stop as if it was solidifying before finally turning into a static prison.


    Ye Futian''s body flashed as he charged at a location. The Divine Sword flashed and disappeared with him. He directly charged through the gaps between the chains. His body moved straight as he moved quickly towards the figure high in the sky.


    The cultivator''s expression changed slightly. He moved his arm fiercely as he tried to retract the chains to wrap around Ye Futian. However, he seemed to have lost control of his divine item, which had been ice sealed by the Power of Yin. At the same time, a round and full moon appeared in front of him. Then, in the next moment, a huge amount of Yin current landed on his body.


    Boom! The imposing dark aura around his body exploded as he tried to destroy and counter the effects of the Power of Yin. His body was covered in a layer of dark armor. The Yin Divine Thunder struck his body but failed to kill him in an instant.


    It was as if the dark armor was also a powerful item.


    Vuong! A beam of Divine Light shot towards the cultivators around him. With a simple flick of Ye Futian''s consciousness, the Divine Sword cut through the skies and flew at them, forcing the cultivators to scatter and retreat. Two of them were too weak and were directly killed by the Yin Divine Thunder.


    Ye Futian himself leaped and landed in front of the imposing Renhuang. He threw the long pole directly, causing a loud rumbling sound that seemed to tear through space, to fill the air, causing the cultivators around the area to tremble. Then, the pole came crashing down.


    "Blurgh!" He coughed up fresh blood. Although that cultivator was protected by a ritual implement, his eyes widened as he spat out fresh blood. His spiritual soul was crushed, and he was killed by the enormously powerful force even with a ritual implement in between. Then, his body fell from the sky.


    Many from the Dark Court knew which faction that person was from. They felt a chill right through their hearts. He could not be stopped.


    Anyone who tried would die.


    Ye Futian''s gaze turned forward. He continued to walk forward. The Moon Wheel hung high in the sky as it continued to rain Divine Light down. Air current flowed down from above as if they were lightning, but in truth, those were the Yin Divine Thunder.


    On Ye Futian''s left were the cultivators from the Buddhist sect, while Yu Sheng and the others were on his right. They all moved forward together.


    At that moment, it was obvious that the cultivators directly in front of Ye Futian had started to consciously and intentionally move away. No one was actually blocking Ye Futian.


    They did not dare block his path.


    Many had already sacrificed their lives for this. Apart from the Dark Court''s own strength, the Dark Court''s army also had cultivators from some of the major factions of the Dark World mixed within. The reason they came to the Original Realm was so that they could benefit from it. They wanted to gain a foothold in the Original Realm in the future. To have these people sacrifice their lives to help achieve victory for the Dark Court in the fight for the Original Realm? It was natural that they would be unwilling to do.


    Even if they were cultivators from the Dark Court itself, they would still be reluctant to get themselves killed. The retreat from the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture from earlier was similar.


    The Divine Light floated high in the air behind Ye Futian. The long pole in his palm; and the Moon Light shining around him. There was no longer anyone left within a certain range from Ye Futian.


    His gaze shifted to a location far away. The leaders of the Dark Court''s army was there. Among them was the Proud Son of the Underworld - Qi Ye.


    Qi Ye''s gaze was also fixed on Ye Futian. Was he going to charge towards him?


    Ye Futian said that he wanted to kill all the enemy leaders. After all, one had to capture the ringleader first to capture all the followers, right?


    Charging towards him directly... What arrogance.


    If the words uttered by Ye Futian were considered somewhat insane, then no one would have suspected that Ye Futian was currently carrying out his earlier promise. He charged forward, and by then, no one dared to block his path. At the moment, he was charging towards the Proud Son of the Underworld.


    Qi Ye did not retreat. Who was he? He was the heir to the Underworld, the Son of the Underworld, the commander of the army on the battlefield. If his army had lost the advantage and were facing defeat, a retreat would have been a practical, tactical maneuver. However, at that moment, the army had not yet been defeated. Instead, it was just one opponent defeating his army, charging into enemies, and then, straight towards him.


    How could he retreat?


    A retreat would mean that the Dark Court''s army could not even deal with a single Ye Futian. Then what opportunities would be left for them in the future? His army fought head-on and was annihilated by Ye Futian. If he were to retreat, how would they turn things around?


    As long as Ye Futian remained on the battlefield, they would be better off surrendering directly.


    As such, Qi Ye''s retreat would signify a defeat.


    Moreover, his position did not allow him to retreat as well.


    Cultivators of the Outer Realms, Dark Court, Empty Divine Realm, and the Divine Prefecture were watching this battle. Everything that happened on the battlefield would be seen and remembered by the cultivators from the Outer Realms. Running away without even fighting? The Proud Son of the Underworld being frightened and horrified by a single person - Ye Futian?


    If he were to do this and return to the Dark Court, things would not end well for him.


    Proud Sons of worlds are created amid cruel competitions. The Dark Court did not need weak and average individuals surged; it was an incredibly scary sight to behold.


    Ye Futian landed at a location not far from the Proud Son of the Underworld. He was surrounded by several figures that were the elite cultivators from the Dark Court. Apart from that, on the other side, the cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm were also running toward this location. The Divine Light of Space surged. It was a scary sight to behold.


    However, the Dark Phoenix Division was also charging forward. After Ye Futian released his true strength, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had also started a counterattack.


    On Ye Futian''s side, a tripartite confrontation seemed to have formed; however, two of the sides were targeting Ye Futian.


    As the Moon Light shot down, a black robe floated in front of the cultivators from the Dark Court. A frightening dark storm converged together to create a scary whirlpool of a black hole that actually devoured the Moon Light.


    At another location, lead by the cultivators from the Evil Emperor Realm, the cultivators released a divine sword. The divine sword used by the Great Emperor before released an unparalleled Divine Light of Space that tore through everything. Even the Yin Divine Light was crushed in front of it. Both energies were extremely powerful.


    "Who are you dealing with first?" On the side, the handsome monk asked Ye Futian. Letting Ye Futian choose his opponent to help delay or distract the other one for a while.


    While Ye Futian was incredibly powerful, facing the top dogs from the two enemies was still difficult.


    The Buddhist sect and Yu Sheng''s group could help by sharing the burden by facing one of the sides first.


    "Them," answered Ye Futian while looking at the cultivators from the Dark Court.


    The reason he chose the Dark Court was simple. There was still unfinished business between him and the Dark Court.


    Back then, using the power of Hell, the Dark Court staged their comeback and killed quite a sizable number of people from the Nine Realms, including cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy. In addition, he also had to pay them back for when the Dark Court used them to open the Gate of the Hell when they were in the Hidden Land Realm.


    Apart from that, there was the poor girl Ye Qingyao. She was forcibly snatched away by the Dark Court''s army when they descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy. While Ye Qingyao left voluntarily, it was a decision forced by the Dark Court because she did not want to implicate or involve anyone else.


    At that moment, it was time to pay them back for all these.


    "Alright." The handsome monk looked at Yu Sheng and the others before saying, "Let us deal with the people from the Empty Divine Realm first."


    Yu Sheng nodded in silence. A daunting aura of divine items came from his body while his might filled the space, resulting in a frightening aura forming around his body.


    Ye Futian took a step forward. He walked alone towards the most elite group of cultivators from the Dark Court. The others would face the cultivators from the Evil Emperor Realm.


    "Such arrogance." This thought flashed across the minds of many who saw the scene unfold, on and off the battlefield. For one person to deal with the strongest force of the Dark Court... However, Ye Futian has been overwhelming in the battle. If it were only the Proud Son of the Underworld, Qi Ye, it might not have been enough.


    Qi Ye was at the same level as Ye Futian, which was the Divine Wheel second order. Ye Futian released the will of the emperor, so in terms of planes, Ye Futian had sufficiently overwhelmed him. Moreover, he had mastered the Power of Yin. Even the Proud Son of the Underworld would not have been able to win against Ye Futian.


    Then, a cold killing intent flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes as he glanced at Qi Ye. That made Qi Ye''s gaze harden as he activated the Eyes of the Underworld. It was incredibly scary. The thought of killing him directly on that battlefield had actually crossed Ye Futian''s mind.


    Remembering the battle at the Empty Imperial Palace last time, Qi Ye could not help but feel that he had been ridiculed. The Ye Futian, who was easily crushed by him, was now trying to kill him directly.


    A practitioner from the Original Realm was actually thinking about killing him, the Proud Son of the Underworld.


    He extended his hands, and frightening dark storms converged. It became even more frightening by the second as a Hell-like black hole began to appear in the sky right above Ye Futian!

 1843 Killing Move

    Ye Futian looked at the black hole storm. The light of the Moon Wheel grew even brighter. It not only did not stop; it gave off even more powerful radiance, which it then sent into the vortex.


    A layer of frost gradually covered the black hole vortex. Looking up at it, it seemed to be freezing and solidifying. The storm gradually grew weaker and weaker as well. This caused a look of utter shock to come over the faces of the cultivators of the Dark Court. This power of Yin was too strong. It could destroy anything that they threw at it.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Divine shadow thunder struck inside the storm, making the vortex in the sky tremble. It seemed to be so unstable that it could be destroyed at any moment.


    "Attack!" someone cried. The other cultivators of the Dark Court were no longer merely watching. They had already released the power within their bodies, and now they were launching their attack. They seemed to have a tacit understanding with each other, and they sent out destructive dark flames at the same time.


    In but a moment, the entire sky was covered in dark flames. The space where Ye Futian was standing was transformed into a world of destructive fire. Within the deep, dark flames, the world seemed like hell.


    Ye Futian was engulfed in flames. Lines of radiance bloomed from him and dispersed in all directions. Bright moonlight fell violently from the sky, freezing the dark flames.


    A mystical stream of Qi flowed by. Ye Futian could feel the space around him transform and become silent; it was as if there was no one else there. The lines of destructive Qi seemed to enter into a dark illusory space.


    Many Underworld illusions appeared in this hellish space, appearing insubstantial and vague.


    Terrifying Qi flowed through the air, rushing towards Ye Futian. His expression turned fierce, and it seemed like he could see through everything.


    Boom! There was a loud noise as a huge black spear pierced down towards him. But as it drew near to Ye Futian, it slowed down, as if it had entered a defensive field around him.


    More attacks came in from all different directions, but not one of them could get close to him. Nevertheless, Ye Futian was buried under these countless attacks.


    At that moment, lines of destructive flames of the Way appeared, flowing through the air. They were everywhere, surging around Ye Futian. He looked all around him with his fierce gaze. He saw that he seemed to be within the flames of an oven formed by a ritual implement.


    He had indeed been swallowed up by a giant oven.


    As so much power was released, they seemed to form a giant matrix. Dark light covered the sky, rushing wildly between them. There was a giant black oven there that had swallowed up an entire section of the sky. Ye Futian was within it.


    This oven was the powerful ritual implement of one of the genius cultivation masters of the Dark Court, who was one of their greatest figures. At that moment, all of the cultivators were working together. First they had used a diversion to trap Ye Futian in a dark illusion, then they had covered the sky with their oven. The only way out of the oven was through the gap at the top.


    Now, they were going to burn him to death.


    Given the power of the cultivators of the Dark Court, there was no way they could fail to do so.


    Woosh!


    Qi Ye stood atop the oven, wearing a long dark robe that flapped in the wind. Another black hole vortex appeared before him, from which endless underworld spears appeared, each of which then pierced down into the oven. And he was not the only one who did this; the other cultivators attacked continuously as well, adding even more destructive power to the furnace and trying to bury Ye Futian within it.


    The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture kept looking over at that part of the battlefield, feeling greatly anxious. Although Ye Futian had displayed incomparable power, these were the true geniuses of the Dark Court after all. When they worked together, their power was frightening. Right now, they had trapped within Ye Futian within a ritual implement. They did not know if Ye Futian could handle such a devastating assault.


    Within the oven, Ye Futian was indeed facing powerful destructive attacks. His body had been swallowed up by the destructive flames of the Way. In addition, lines of poisonous air were mixed with the flames, and violent, dark spears were striking him constantly. At that moment, he truly felt like he was in a dark hell. If his defenses had not been so powerful, he already would have been destroyed by this devastating power.


    Shadow radiance shot out, and the World Tree swayed within him, sending out airflows in all directions that pierced through the dark oven. The power of shadow was integrated into these airflows, and they spread throughout the air, infusing it with shadow.


    Outside, many of the cultivators could not see what was happening inside. Only the controller of the ritual implement knew what was going on there.


    "How is it going?" someone asked the cultivator who controlled the dark oven.


    The cultivator frowned. The dark oven was filled with many kinds of destructive flames that would burn the flesh and destroy the Divine Wheels of anyone inside. These flames were shockingly powerful, but so far, they had not managed to touch Ye Futian. And at that moment, the inside of the oven seemed to be filled with invisible power. He could not even tell what was happening with Ye Futian''s body.


    Just then, everyone saw the dark furnace begin to shake violently and give off a terrible noise.


    "What is happening?" Everyone stared at it. Was Ye Futian attacking from within?


    This furnace had been forged by an incredibly powerful figure, who had then asked other top figures to refine it until it was absolutely indestructible. If Ye Futian wanted to destroy it, it would be utterly impossible. He could only come out through the gap in it.


    "Should I go cover it up?" someone asked. The cultivator was hesitating, unsure of what to do.


    However, in the next instant dazzling light bloomed with a loud boom. Divine radiance shone as Ye Futian came shooting out of the gap. Terrible, dark Underworld spears were still flying out of the black hole vortex towards him.


    But they saw a beam of light shoot out. A divine sword pierced towards the black hole vortex, blazing with shadow radiance. It ripped the black hole apart and then went through it, appearing in the sky above it.


    Moonlight fell, illuminating everyone and making them feel a chilling presence. The world seemed to freeze. Even the Great Path of Space went still.


    Up in the sky, Ye Futian gripped his staff, and dazzling divine light burst forth from it. He flew forward, raising his staff with both hands.


    At that moment, he swept out the staff, causing thousands of staff images to appear. They covered the sky as they swept out, flattening everything in their path.


    Fierce booming sounds rang out as the sky itself seemed like it would collapse. All of the cultivators fled backward, but since the Great Path of Space was frozen, many of them were swept away and instantly destroyed. Some of them managed to protect themselves with ritual implements and did not die, but they still spat up blood when they were struck.


    After he had done this, Ye Futian pointed up into the sky. In the next moment, divine radiance bloomed from his sword and shot up into the sky. There were continuous puffing sounds as cultivator after cultivator was pierced by the light and killed on the spot, dissipating into ashes that floated away on the wind.


    In the distance, more cultivators watched this scene in shock. Ye Futian was too powerful. With a single staff and a single sword, he had brought chaos and killed more than half the people surrounding him.


    It was a tragedy. Many of those killed by Ye Futian were the greatest talents of the Dark Court. None of them could hope to withstand his continuous attacks.


    The surviving cultivators retreated some distance, their hearts beating wildly. They gazed at the imposing figure bathed in a kingly radiance.


    They had been crushed by a genius of the Original Realm. It seemed like there was absolutely no one in the world who could stand up to this man.


    Ye Futian stared at Qi Ye and took a step forward. A terrible dark vortex appeared around Qi Ye''s black-robed form. A vast area went dark as this force surged unto its fullest power.


    Endless Qi flowed into Qi Ye, and his body grew larger. There was a booming sound as he reached the height of a thousand meters. Endless destructive airflows swirled around him, transforming him into a true god of the Underworld.


    His expression was exceedingly cold. In the face of Ye Futian''s power, he had absolutely no option but to use every last drop of strength that he had in him.


    His dark spear had grown larger as well and gave off endless destructive power. He reached out, grabbing at Ye Futian from across a great distance. Suddenly, a terrible vortex storm appeared around Ye Futian, swallowing him up.


    Ye Futian floated there, seeming incredibly small compared to his opponent. The bright moon was in the sky, its radiance falling upon the land. Shadow radiance covered the area and moved towards the vortex. The divine sword clanged as it swept through the air towards the terrible vortex that his opponent had made.


    The divine sword was followed by countless air currents filled with swordsmanship, forming a river of destructive swords. It pierced through the vortex storm with a loud bang and struck his opponent''s left hand, piercing through it. It continued onward towards his opponent''s chest, freezing Qi Ye''s massive body bit by bit with the power of shadow that it contained. But he managed to grab the sword.


    Woosh! Ye Futian shot forward, waving his staff. It swept down from the sky, destroying everything in its path.


    His opponent raised his dark spear, thrusting it towards the staff. There was a loud bang as they collided. The spear shook, and the staff continued downward, slamming into the massive Underworld figure and shattering it.


    A terrifying dark air current burst out and flooded the area, surging all around. Ye Futian seemed to notice something. A figure appeared behind him. It was Qi Ye, the dark spear in his hands giving off incomparably destructive light. It struck out towards Ye Futian, who''s attack momentum had not diminished. This was his true killing move.


    "Die!" Cold murderous intent flashed across Qi Ye''s eyes. The power of the shadow was shattered under the dark, destructive light. The blow pierced towards Ye Futian''s head!

 1844 Triumphant Return

    He was completely swallowed up in an instant. It was like a flower of hell had bloomed and transformed into a killing blow.


    In reality, this attack was dangerous to Qi Ye as well, but he knew that as the possessor of a second-tier Divine Wheel, he might not have another chance in direct combat. The Yin power was integrated into Ye Futian''s attacks, along with the will of the Emperor, making them absolutely frightening. He had used dark escape techniques to avoid harm, and now that he had found this life or death chance, how could he miss it?


    Countless people watched this attack. It would probably be the end of this fight.


    Everything around Ye Futian froze, and frost covered it all. Lines of Qi became solid, like countless sharp leaves and branches that covered everything around him.


    Under the dark spear of destruction, the terrifying dark beams of light pierced downward bit by bit, trying to break through his defenses. With a loud bang, the spear reached his Divine Elephant battle form, making cracks appear on it. And it continued forward, piercing within.


    But at the same time, brilliant golden divine radiance covered Qi Ye''s body little by little, and soon he was completely engulfed. The Yin power went into him, blocking his dark magic. His blood began to flow more slowly, and his divine spirit grew cold. The power in his hands grew weaker and weaker.


    Everyone gazed fixedly at this scene. Ye Futian''s arm moved, and he stretched out his hand. The divine sword came flying back to him, and he caught it then swept it behind him.


    It swept out, giving off a terrible radiance that pierced through the frozen space. It continued forward, then pierced into Qi Ye.


    Qi Ye''s eyes narrowed, and he felt a stab of fear. There in the still space, all seemed hopeless.


    He was the Proud Son of the Underworld. Was he really going to fall here?


    Ye Futian raised his hand and slapped it down directly on the hilt of the divine sword. A beam of even more brilliant radiance bloomed. At that moment, Qi Ye''s body shattered bit by bit until he became a little more than an illusory figure. Then he disappeared completely.


    The heir of the Lord of the Underworld, the controller of the Throne of the Underworld, had fallen.


    "He killed him!" The battle all around stopped at that moment. Many of the cultivators of the Dark Court looked over there. Had he really not been able to stop Ye Futian?


    After his divine radiance burst forth, Ye Futian moved into the great army, killing people all along the way. In the end, he had slain the leader of the Dark Army, Qi Ye.


    It was just like he had said. He had cut off his enemies'' head.


    At that moment, who within the Dark Army would dare continue fighting?


    At it was not only those on the battlefield. Those cultivators outside the battlefield also trembled within their hearts. He was dead.


    Within the Empty Palace, the cultivators who were watching were speechless. The cultivators of the Divine Palace and the Golden Divine Nation had once again witnessed Ye Futian''s absolute talent. But they were covered in a cold sweat. Showing so much magnificence on a battlefield would make Ye Futian far more threatening in the future.


    A cold light flashed in their eyes. It seemed as if they were hiding their murderous intent.


    There were shaken looks in the Princess and Cao Jun''s eyes as well when they saw this. He had really cut him down.


    "It looks like he has turned the tide of battle," said Cao Jun. A single man had turned the tables in favor of the Divine Prefecture.


    In the Dark Court''s camp, the Lord of the Underworld let forth his terrible aura. Qi Ye was his heir, and he had been slain. Given his personality, he did not care that much about his death. The people of the Dark Court did not feel too many emotions.


    But the loss of his disciple made the light go out of his face. The others of the Seven Kings of Darkness would probably mock him for this.


    Moreover, because of this, he would have no way to fulfill his duty. That was the most important thing. Thus, a foul mood had come over him.


    This was all because of Ye Futian.


    If he had known this would happen, then when he had attacked the Heavenly Mandate Academy, he would have killed everyone there and not just taken Ye Qingyao away.


    No one spoke. There was a sense of tension in the air as everyone watched the battlefield.


    Back on the battlefield, Ye Futian did not turn around. His divine sword flew back in front of him, giving off terrifying sword will.


    This sword was payback for those who had been slain by the Dark Court and for Qingyao, who had been taken by them.


    Looking up, Ye Futian swept his gaze over the other cultivators of the Dark Court. These mighty figures of the Dark Court broke out in a cold sweat at a single glance from Ye Futian, then they turned and fled. It was as if they feared his sudden attack.


    Given the power he had shown today, none of them could withstand him.


    At that moment, another part of the battlefield opened up. The cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm stared at Ye Futian. They knew that because of him, they had lost their advantage.


    There was now no more hope for this battle.


    If they continued fighting, Ye Futian could slaughter them.


    A man who even the geniuses of God level powers could not defeat had arisen in the Original Realm.


    At that moment, outside the battlefield, the huge matrix was surging. This made many people look up into the sky, where they saw brilliant light falling. The huge matrix was opening, and a dazzling light curtain spread out in two directions, then gradually disappeared.


    Soon, the matrix covering the nameless realm was gone. The cultivators of the three sides appeared up in the sky.


    The cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm, the Dark Court, and the Divine Prefecture were all there.


    The Divine Prefecture was represented by the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace. His gaze fell upon Ye Futian. A look of admiration was in his eyes.


    Because of this battle, Ye Futian''s name would be like the sun in the sky throughout the Nine Realms. No one would be able to compare to him.


    This was not just a battle of the Original Realm. It had drawn in three God level forces. And yet he had still performed brilliantly on the battlefield, crushing all his opponents. This news would spread through the Nine Realms before long.


    "Thank you for your help," said the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace with a smile. When they heard this, everyone listening knew that victory had been decided.


    Their opponents must be giving up.


    When the cultivators of the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm heard this, their faces darkened. They had lost.


    These two great forces had allied and yet had still been defeated by the Divine Prefecture. Or rather, they had been defeated by one man.


    Ye Futian retracted his aura. He was a little tired. Although, as he grew stronger, unleashing the will of the Emperor would no longer cripple him as it had before, he would still become quite tired. It used a lot of energy.


    He did not know if this battle had been a blessing or a curse.


    It was just that in the previous situation, he had not had a choice. He had originally planned to first withdraw and then lowly hunt his opponent. But his opponent had not let them go. If he had not acted, many of the people beside him would have fallen. He had to launch his own attack.


    "Let us return," said the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace. Suddenly the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture gathered to him. They did not say anything as they left. They were worried about what would result from all of this.


    Ye Futian left with them as well. Behind him, everyone was watching him.


    Because of this battle, he would no longer only be known in the Divine Prefecture. The cultivators of the Evil Emperor Realm and the Dark Court would all remember him.


    Up in the air, the group of cultivators went on their way. The Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace came up to Ye Futian and said, "Thank you for your help today."


    "I only did my duty," said Ye Futian.


    "If it weren''t for you, we likely would have lost this battle," said the Palace Lord. "Previously, our opponents had the advantage. But in the moment that Qi Ye was slain, they knew that they had lost and did not continue fighting, admitting defeat instead. They probably did not want to see any more of their people killed or injured. After all, no one could withstand you."


    Ye Futian nodded. It seemed like these top forces were wise as well. Although the struggle for the Original Realm was extremely important, once they realized they could not succeed, they had immediately given up.


    At that moment, a figure walked towards Ye Futian. It was the leader of the Dark Phoenix Division. He smiled and nodded at Ye Futian, saying, "It seems we had a misunderstanding before. Please forgive me."


    His power had won respect. If Ye Futian had not shown such strength, this man would not have personally come to make things right between them.


    This man was someone who the Divine Prefecture had focused on training well. But Ye Futian had won the glory in this battle. He had turned the tide all by himself.


    Previously, he had blamed Ye Futian for not fleeing the battlefield to prevent further losses.


    "It is no matter," answered Ye Futian with a nod. Looking at it from the man''s perspective, he could naturally understand where he was coming from. But he was not here to make friends, so he kept a neutral expression on his face.


    After all, this was Donghuang the Great''s man. And as for Ye Futian, perhaps they would be enemies one day.


    The other man realized this as well, and so he said no more. He walked over to the other side.


    The other people of the Nine Realms who were there, like Shen Hao and Di Wu, felt conflicted within their hearts.


    They had been in danger of dying in this battle. And they had not been good enough to influence the overall situation of the battle. And they had even fallen short in their small scale battles.


    Shen Hao thought back to when they were in the God''s Relic, and he had disparaged Ye Futian. He would never have thought that now Ye Futian was on a much higher level than him. He had to look up just to see him. How ironic was that?


    They no longer were even worthy of being called Ye Futian''s opponents. If they fought him, they would probably be killed in an instant.


    ...


    At the Empty Imperial Palace, the mirror within the sky disappeared, but the cultivators did not leave. They stood there, waiting quietly.


    Princess Donghuang did not leave either. She waited for the warriors'' triumphant return.


    Countless cultivators were gathered together outside the palace. This battle had deeply shocked them as well.


    Finally, powerful auras appeared off in the distance. A group of figures gradually came into view. After a while, they could see a mighty formation of troops coming towards the Empty Imperial Palace.


    They stopped outside the palace, and everyone looked at them. Or rather, they all looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had once again shocked the world in this battle. Everyone knew of him now.


    He was the foremost talent in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, and no one would ever again doubt that. Now they only wondered how high he would climb in the future!

 1845 How Should He Be Punished?

    The Empty Imperial Palace''s Palace Lord walked forward and bowed slightly. "Your Highness, the mighty figures who fought in the Divine Prefecture fought bravely in a bloodbath and were lucky to have come out alive."


    Princess Donghuang looked at the crowd and spoke, "Thank you all of you for giving your all in the War of the Original Realm. We will record down the names of everyone who has participated in the war and the course of the war. We will reward you based on your contributions."


    The mighty figures all nodded. Although they had defeated their opponents, the atmosphere in the Empty Imperial Palace was slightly weird at the moment, and there was not much joy. After all, the one who had performed most outstandingly in this battle was Ye Futian, and the mighty figures from all factions had all suffered losses.


    "Ye Futian did his best to turn the tide this time. He should be given the most credit," the Empty Imperial Palace Lord said while smiling. He had previously thought that they would definitely lose this battle. However, Ye Futian unexpectedly turned the tide of battle singlehandedly and led the mighty figures of the Divine Prefecture to victory.


    The mighty figures from the Heavenly Mandate Academy all smiled. Ye Futian''s performance in this battle was amazing.


    However, there were also allies who looked thoughtful. Emperor Nan of the Nantian Divine Kingdom then spoke up, "Although Ye Futian''s efforts in this battle started to turn the tide, we won the war because everyone fought courageously. Everyone who participated in the battle was the same, and those who died also made their own contributions. Let''s divide the credit equally."


    Many people looked towards Emperor Nan, and many of them looked shocked. He was an ally of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and regarded Ye Futian highly. Although they had an ordinary relationship, he let his daughter go to the Academy to cultivate. Some people even claimed that he was preparing to entrust Ye Futian with taking care of Nan Luoshen. Hence, they could all tell how highly he regarded Ye Futian.


    However, his words at this point seemed to be spoken to erase Ye Futian''s credit.


    Lord Taixuan, the Divine Palace Palace Lord, and others quickly reacted and understood what Emperor Nan meant. Lord Taixuan also spoke, "Your Highness, as a member of the Divine Prefecture''s Heavenly Mandate Academy, everything that he did in this battle is what was expected of him. There''s no need to reward him. What Emperor Nan said is extremely true. Those who died and sacrificed themselves in this battle should be honored even more."


    They locked their gaze on Ye Futian like hunters staring at their prey.


    Of course, Ye Futian understood as well. He bowed and said, "Your Highness, I am originally from the Divine Prefecture. It is my duty to serve the Divine Prefecture. I do not need any reward."


    Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian. She naturally sensed the weirdness of the atmosphere as well.


    "Your Highness, I feel that Ye Futian is guilty." At that moment, a voice sounded. This voice was thunderous, and everyone in and outside of the Empty Imperial Palace could hear it clearly as it even echoed. In an instant, everyone focused their attention on the person who spoke.


    The top figure of the Shen clan, Shen Gao.


    He stepped forward and stopped below the steps. He looked at Princess Donghuang and said, "I feel that Ye Futian should be executed for his crime."


    The moment he mentioned execution, everyone within and outside the Empty Imperial Palace was shocked.


    The cultivators from the Original Realm outside, who had waited for the mighty figures to return in victory, were all a little confused.


    Ye Futian is guilty and should be executed?


    Ye Futian singlehandedly turned the tide of the war of the three factions, but now he should be executed?


    Everyone was a little confused, but they soon realized what it meant. No wonder Emperor Nan and the others tried to erase Ye Futian''s contributions, and Ye Futian himself dared not ask for a reward.


    If they looked at it thoroughly, Ye Futian''s "crimes" and "contributions" were seemingly a little complicated.


    "He should be executed?" Princess Donghuang spoke while looking towards Shen Gao. Beside her, Cao Jun and Du You also looked towards Shen Gao. They naturally knew this top figure of the Shen clan.


    "Yes," Shen Gao spoke up. "The battle of the Original Realm is a battle between the Divine Prefecture, Dark Court, and Empty Divine Realm. But Ye Futian deliberately hid his strength and did not do his best, making the war extremely passive initially, and we even almost lost the Original Realm. Ye Futian was powerful but deliberately hid his strength. He must have sinister intentions.


    "Besides, if it wasn''t for the threat to the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s own allies as well as Ye Futian himself, he might have continued to hold back and chose to retreat, and he did do so on the battlefield. He deceived the princess as well as everyone in the Divine Prefecture by deliberately not fighting. I think that if our opponents didn''t gang up on Ye Futian and his companions, Ye Futian would have just let the battle of the Original Realm be lost without displaying his strength. He does not care about the Divine Prefecture and Original Realm.


    "Also, and most importantly, the various forces of the Divine Prefecture participated in the battle and bathed in blood. Many of their strongest fighters died on the battlefield. Even though they were not strong enough, they still defended the Original Realm with their blood. Ye Futian is a member of the Divine Prefecture. If he didn''t have the strength, no one would say anything. But he was able to defend the Divine Prefecture, yet he let it all happen, watching many of the people of the Divine Prefecture who participated in the war die on the battlefield. This includes many members of the Shen Clan.


    "He should be put to death for his crimes!"


    Shen Gao''s voice was powerful, and the sound rang out continuously, causing this space to tremble. His voice reverberated in the mighty figures'' eardrums.


    What he said was all true. Ye Futian could not deny it, and all the mighty figures saw it with their own eyes.


    He had indeed not unleashed his full strength before.


    "The Golden Divine Nation was ordered by the princess to participate in this war and lost many cultivators because of this war as well. Among the casualties, there were those of the royal bloodline who died fighting. Yet there are people who have the ability to turn the tide of battle but deliberately hide it, resulting in the unjust death of all the strong fighters. They should be executed for their crimes."


    The Golden Divine Nation''s Gai Cang stepped out and spoke aloud, "Princess, please convict Ye Futian to pay tribute to those who died unjustly in this battle."


    The mighty figures of two top powers stepped out and declared Ye Futian guilty. It was as if Ye Futian''s strength to take this victory had instead become the reason to convict him. That was because he had hidden his strength previously.


    Outstanding trees will always get destroyed by the wind first.


    What''s more, Ye Futian was so magnificent today. How could those factions that already had grudges against him let him go like that?


    Therefore, Emperor Nan wanted to diminish Ye Futian''s credit at the first opportunity.


    However, it seemed that those factions were not going to let go.


    This time, if they did not make trouble, the princess might value Ye Futian even more highly. If she did so, it would spell disaster for them.


    Hence, they struck preemptively.


    "Princess, please convict Ye Futian." Another person stepped out and spoke. This time, it was a mighty figure from the Martial God Clan. He said, "There are also many people from my clan who died in battle."


    It was as if those who died in this battle were blaming Ye Futian just because he did not do his best and hid his power.


    "Princess, please convict Ye Futian."


    "Princess, please convict Ye Futian."


    Multiple voices rang out as more and more factions walked out. The various factions that had allied with Ye Futian in the war all came out, including the faction holding back the Dou tribe, as well as the Clan of the Seven Slayers in the Emperor Star Realm, the School of the Emperor Star.


    "Princess, the Holy Land of Taichu and many other Divine Prefecture factions came to the Original Realm to participate in the war and gave their all. Yet, some people pretended to care about the Divine Prefecture but really only cared about their own interests, causing many innocent people to die in battle. They also deceived you and everyone in the Divine Prefecture. Even though they have contributed to our victory, their crimes are still unpardonable."


    The powerful fighters of the Holy Land of Taichu also walked out. This time, so many forces walked out at the same time that it created a great movement. Now, they wanted to use the movement to get rid of Ye Futian.


    Many people did not expect; even the strong fighters behind Princess Donghuang were a little surprised.


    They did not expect that so many people wanted Ye Futian dead. So it seemed that being too outstanding was also dangerous. It would make people feel threatened, especially those factions that had a grudge against you.


    They, in turn, would be afraid.


    "Princess," At this time, Emperor Nan spoke up, "although Ye Futian hid his strength before this war, he had been fighting as best as he could and killed many strong opponents. It was only after the major factions retreated that he prepared to retreat with the people of the Divine Prefecture. He was only forced to fight a battle of life and death later on, and he did not have absolute confidence that he would win. If not for the cooperation of the cultivators of the Mountain Realm and strong fighters of the Divine Prefecture, he would also be in extreme danger. On the battlefield, one should always improvise. Ye Futian must have hidden his strength to take the opponents by surprise and kill them, and he did do so. I think that even if he is guilty, his merits are enough to offset his crimes."


    Lord Taixuan also stepped out to speak, "I also agree with what Emperor Nan said. Even though Ye Futian has made mistakes, he could be considered to have given his all by using his strength to turn the tide and win this War of the Original Realm. I hope that Your Highness will make a clear decision."


    Several people spoke up for Ye Futian one after another, and this time, they were all allied forces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian and said, "Don''t you have anything you want to say for yourself?"


    "Your Highness, after I fell into a coma in the Shadow Realm, I was able to control some power of Yin, but I do not know exactly how strong the power of Yin is. I did my best to kill the enemy on the battlefield. After the major forces retreated, I planned to temporarily evacuate with the Divine Prefecture army and then hunt them down one by one with more certainty. I hid my strength to retain the element of surprise. When I was surrounded, all I could do was fight back desperately. How could I have predicted the outcome?" Ye Futian responded, "As to why they are like this, Your Highness must know, they have been at war before, so, naturally, they want me dead."


    Princess Donghuang nodded, "You do have a grudge with one another. The Tianshen Academy has never cared about these matters and has no grudge with either side. Does the Tianshen Academy think that Ye Futian is meritorious or guilty?"


    The College Chief of the Tianshen Academy, Jian Ao, raised his head. He stepped forward and said, "Princess, the Tianshen Academy cultivators have had direct contact with Ye Futian on the battlefield before. At that time, many people were discussing that Ye Futian had saved many Tianshen Academy disciples. Although I thank him for that, if we look at everything that happened today, Ye Futian does have the suspicion of deceiving Your Highness and the powerful fighters from all factions of the Divine Prefecture." Jian Ao opened his mouth and said, "As for the specific merits, I believe Your Highness already has her judgment."

 1846 Pressure

    Earlier, Jian Ao did not lift a finger even when Ye Futian was in mortal danger; however, Ye Futian still saved many people from the Tianshen Academy on the battlefield. Although he did not expect that Jian Ao would thank him or anything of that sort, he thought that Jian Ao would have at least been neutral. Unexpected to him, Jian Ao actually said something like that.


    While he did credit Ye Futian''s achievements, saying that Ye Futian had lied to the princess and the people of the Divine Prefecture was the same as agreeing that he was guilty and should be punished for it!


    A typical example of biting the hand that feeds him.


    However, Ye Futian was somewhat confused. What was the reason for Jian Ao to target him?


    Between the two of them, there was no conflict of interest. In addition, a person on Jian Ao''s level would not do something without his own logic. Could it be that he was doing it for Jian Qingzhu?


    Was he, Ye Futian, an obstacle to Jian Qingzhu''s path to success?


    After all, before he appeared, Jian Qingzhu was undoubtedly the most exceptional person in that era. From the abilities and strength of Shen Hao, Di Wu, and the rest, it was obvious that they could not beat Jian Qingzhu. If Ye Futian''s group did not appear, Jian Qingzhu might have really become an unparalleled existence in the Nine Realms in this era. In addition, Jian Hao had always wished to send Jian Qingzhu to the Divine Prefecture to train beside the Princess.


    So, did it mean that this was the reason why Jian Ao was targeting him? To help pave Jian Qingzhu''s way?


    Even Jian Qingzhu was looking at Jian Ao with an odd expression. He was a little bit confused. The Tianshen Academy preached and trained in the Central Emperor Realm. The elders in the Jian clan had always had high hopes for him, constantly wishing that he, Jian Qingzhu, would become a symbol of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, and in the future, to cultivate in the Divine Prefecture.


    Moreover, he had been striving for this all his life.


    While Ye Futian''s appearance out of the blue and peerless grace and talent had completely overshadowed him, he would still walk his own path. At that moment, his elders'' move in attempting to undermine Ye Futian confused him. With their temperament, why would they do that?


    To help pave his way?


    If that were the case, he did not need it.


    Moreover, regardless of the reason why Ye Futian decided to hide his real strength, his contribution during the battle was something that everyone had witnessed. Furthermore, Ye Futian also saved him and a lot of the others from the Tianshen Academy. While Ye Futian did not start acting earlier, it was still ultimately his choice. They were not qualified to force him to do it.


    "While putting the safety of the people from the Tianshen Academy, as well as others, as a pre-condition, Ye Futian was always giving his all while on the battlefield. His displays have always been the most exceptional in every major battle. He has killed many enemy Renhuangs. The reason we were close to being defeated was due to the other factions from the Divine Prefecture showing weakness. After that, it was only because Ye Futian released his true strength that we managed to turn the tide. If it weren''t for Ye Futian, many of the people from the factions here would still be on the battlefield. I do not think that those who have been saved are qualified to indict and convict the person who turned the tide around."


    Jian Qingzhu''s words made many people focus their gaze on him. Even Princess Donghuang seriously took a look at him.


    To say that at that time required a certain degree of courage. After all, many factions targeted Ye Futian. Apart from the top factions within the Nine Realms, there were also factions from the Divine Prefecture. At that moment, they had allied. It was an alliance to target and deal with Ye Futian.


    For Jian Qingzhu to defend Ye Futian under the circumstances, it naturally required a great deal of courage.


    Moreover, he implied that the people from the factions were not qualified to say that Ye Futian was guilty.


    "Stand down. This place has no room for you to speak," Jian Ao scolded Jian Qingzhu. Jian Qingzhu glanced at Jian Ao''s eyes. Jian Ao''s gaze was incredibly serious, seemingly unhappy with him. However, Jian Qingzhu did not avert his gaze.


    Practitioners should always be frank and honest, after all. It was something that Jian Ao thought him, so why would he go against his own belief and original intention now?


    If it were for him, Jian Qingzhu felt that it was unnecessary.


    Ye Futian was a little surprised. He did not expect that Jian Qingzhu would stand up and have an opinion that opposed his family. It impressed Ye Futian. However, it also meant that it became harder for him to understand the Tianshen Academy.


    Jian Ao... What exactly was he thinking?


    Princess Donghuang''s gaze returned to Ye Futian. Then, she asked, "Power of Yin, aren''t you going to explain a bit?"


    Hearing her words, gazes began to focus on Ye Futian again. The Power of Yin was something they had suspected; however, no one dared to bring it up. Everyone had their own guess.


    "Answering the princess," said Ye Futian. Then, he continued and said, "That day in the Shadow Realm, I was pursued by cultivators from the Evil Emperor Realm and was forced to go straight towards the core of the Shadow Realm to avoid the cultivators of the enemy. I went all the way to the Yin Storm Zone, and by then, my plane level could not support me anymore. So, I activated the emperor''s will, which I inherited in God''s relic to protect my body. I also used the power I cultivated in an attempt to refine the Power of Yin to preserve myself.


    "However, the Power of Yin was too strong. It infiltrated my body and spiritual soul. It was impossible to block it, and because of that, I was infiltrated and fainted. It seemed as if everything had stopped. Only my survival instinct and will to live kept me refining the Power of Yin even as I became unconscious. As for what happened after that, I am sure your highness princess already knows. After I woke up, I learned that I had refined a decent amount of the Power of Yin that could be used by myself. As such, I synthesized them into my attacks. However, I did not know just how strong this power was. It was my first time unleashing it."


    What Ye Futian meant was that he himself did not know his real strength. As such, he was then able to explain why he had not utilized his full strength earlier. It was because he did not know that he could be that strong.


    Naturally, he dared not talk about getting possession of a divine item. That was too much. Fear was the reason why those factions wanted to get rid of him. If he added the divine item into the mix, the number of people wanting to kill him would only increase.


    Moreover, most knew just the dangers of the core area of the Shadow Realm. No one would believe that Ye Futian''s plane level was high enough for him to obtain a divine item there. At most, they would guess whether the will of the emperor had kept him alive and helped him master the Power of Yin.


    However, even as it was, Ye Futian was still considered extremely dangerous.


    "Right now, you can quibble however you want," said Shen Gao of the Divine Palace coldly. After that, he looked at Princess Donghuang and said, "Your royal highness, our Shen Clan lost at least ten Renhuangs in this battle. They were the core of our Shen Clan. They were also incredibly talented. If it were really because we were weaker than the enemy overall, then there is nothing more I can say. However, our Shen Clan fought in a bloody battle while someone hid his strength, ultimately causing a lot of unnecessary casualties. My Shen Clan is not worthy of asking for anything; however, whether the princess rules an award or a punishment, from this day forward, our Shen Clan will officially declare war against the Heavenly Mandate Academy."


    On this day, a great opportunity had presented itself. Cultivators from each side had come out and ended the Battle of the Original Realm.


    So, there was finally time to take a look at their affairs.


    Last time, the Princess set a rule for the Battle of the Original Realm. To fight, they needed to request a battle assignment at the Empty Imperial Palace and not hurt the innocent.


    This time, they would use this as an opportunity to request a battle assignment.


    With this commotion that they had made, even if the Princess did not convict Ye Futian, she would no longer intervene in their grudge anymore, right?


    They said that Ye Futian was guilty and should be beheaded. However, they also understood that it was almost impossible to convict Ye Futian.


    They had to strike first. They had to control the situation better. At the very least, they could not let the princess lean towards Ye Futian. If that were to happen, everything would be for naught and they would not be able to do anything.


    "Our Golden Divine Nation would also like to request a battle assignment," said Gai Cang.


    After that, each of them consecutively requested battle assignments. The people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy, as well as Ye Futian, did not seem too thrilled.


    They saw Ye Futian''s strength and did not want to give him the opportunity to turn things around.


    The oppressive mood was subtle. These factions were some of the strongest factions in the Divine Prefecture and Original Realm. Their strength could not be underestimated. Even Princess Donghuang could not ignore their existence. These top factions were powers that the Divine Prefecture needed to rely on.


    Cao Jun stood behind Princess Donghuang. His gaze swept across the room. Mixed in his dignified gaze was a sense of coldness. It was an incredibly sharp gaze.


    On this day, on the outside, they said that they wanted to indict Ye Futian; however, in truth, they were also putting pressure on the Princess.


    He could naturally see that the people feared Ye Futian''s potential. They did not want a person like this to get the opportunity to reach the skies in one go. That was the reason why they struck first. Striking before the Princess could decide if Ye Futian was guilty or not. This was their method for stopping the princess from awarding Ye Futian and thinking highly of him.


    After all, if and once the Princess awarded Ye Futian and decided to cultivate and develop him, everything would have already been set in stone. By then, if they wanted to change, it would already be too late.


    They were all old foxes, cunning and calculative.


    They were not only planning against Ye Futian but also the Princess.


    Then, the next moment, a powerful aura from afar reached their location. Many people raised their heads to look towards the source of the aura. There, they saw surges of a golden Divine Light of Space, a group of cultivators descended from the sky. Darkness followed as the Empty Imperial Palace was completely enveloped.


    The Evil Emperor Realm and the Dark Court''s cultivators had arrived.


    The people raised their heads to look at the two. The Evil Emperor Realm was led by Shi Xie. The Dark Court was led by the Lord of the Underworld, who stared coldly at Ye Futian with a gaze full of killing intent.


    "The Empty Divine Realm and the Dark Court have lost. You are all here at the Empty Imperial Palace because you want to breach the agreement and start a war?" Cao Jun''s gaze swept across the enemy cultivators as he spoke coldly. The reason the war began in the first place was due to a mutual understanding between the three factions.


    Even though the factions wanted the Original Realm, each of the three sides did not want to lose too many troops. That was why an arranged fight was introduced. Lower Renhuangs would fight to lower their losses to the minimum. Each side had its own concerns. Otherwise, none of the three sides dared to imagine what would be the result of the battle.


    At that moment, since the Divine Prefecture had won the battle, there was a lower likelihood of them going back on their words.


    Otherwise, they would only have no choice but to wage a real war.


    "Since we''ve lost, we will admit defeat," Shi Xie answered. "However, us coming here to visit you is not considered going back on our agreement, isn''t that right? Our Evil Emperor Realm will promise not to get involved in all Original Realms affairs. Please continue whatever it is you are doing. It is even better if you can ignore us."


    Many people frowned. The two other major factions were definitely unhappy about the defeat.


    Moreover, Ye Futian killed a lot of their people!

 1847 Award and Punishmen

    One can only imagine that whether it was the Dark Court or the Underworld, they wanted Ye Futian''s head. They promised that they would not interfere with the affairs of the Original Realm, but it did not mean that they would not go for Ye Futian.


    That was the reason why Ye Futian hid his strength during the battle. Branches exposed in the woods will eventually be destroyed by the winds. After he went on the rampage and destroyed his enemies, he had wondered if it was a curse or a blessing.


    At this time, whether it was the factions of the Divine Prefecture, the Dark Court, or the Empty Divine Realm, everyone wanted to get at him.


    That was unless Princess Donghuang decides to protect him. Otherwise, he would be put in a very precarious position, and many top figures would focus on him.


    The cultivators outside the Empty Imperial Palace were silent. They would never have imagined that the situation would turn like this. The person who led the Divine Prefecture to turn the tides of the battle, the practitioner who brought them victory in the Battle of the Original Realm... That person was actually in such a terrible situation. Should he not be rewarded for his feats and achievements?


    The gazes were now focused on Princess Donghuang. The arrival of the Dark Court and the Evil Emperor Realm was also a different sort of pressure. While they said they were only there for a visit, it was a given that they had plans of their own.


    At this time, only Princess Donghuang''s approach could decide everything, or perhaps, it was more accurate to say that she would decide Ye Futian''s fate.


    Princess Donghuang shifted her gaze away from the cultivators from the Dark Court and Evil Emperor Realm to Ye Futian again. She stood there quietly; however, it was as if she was bathed in Divine Light. She was born a divine being; hence she had always been dazzling. All the women in the world would be envious of her.


    "Ye Futian. You killed quite a lot of enemies in this battle. You took down the Proud Son of the Underworld by yourself. In terms of contribution to the victory of this battle, you ranked first." Princess Donghuang spoke. In that instant, everyone looked at her. Princess Donghuang''s approach was too important. It would decide everything.


    When she spoke, a sense of seriousness filled the eyes of those from the Shen clan, as well as the cultivators from other sides. If the princess made up her mind to protect Ye Futian, no matter how much they wanted to kill Ye Futian, even if they were to use the rules of the Princess to start a battle, the Princess could still easily overrule that and prohibit them from doing so. If that were to happen, no one would be able to kill Ye Futian.


    The reason why they kept repeating Ye Futian''s errors and offense, highlighting the fact that Ye Futian disregarded the benefits of the Divine Prefecture and claiming that Ye Futian did not care about winning was so that the princess'' perception of Ye Futian would deteriorate.


    Right now, it was time to see the results.


    "However, you intentionally hid your strength, restraining yourself, and ultimately hindered the entire operations. You prioritized the benefits of the Heavenly Mandate Academy on the battlefield. Even though you had your reasons, this had led to many of the practitioners from the Divine Prefecture meeting their demise. On these, do you have any objections?" Princess Donghuang asked as she faced Ye Futian.


    This time, it was time for the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy to look solemn. What was the Princess''s intention?


    No one could understand what she wanted. No emotion could be seen from her eyes, which could be regarded as absolute beauty.


    "What the Princess has said is true. I have no objections," admitted Ye Futian honestly. He could not deny it. Everyone clearly saw what happened on the battlefield. Princess Donghuang was also not stupid. Of course, she understood what she saw.


    The key was how to balance it.


    As such, it still depended on the Princess''s judgment.


    Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian. She waved her hands as bright and dazzling divine lights appeared, floating in front of her. It was a bright square box suffused with a frightening Space Will of the Way, which made the area around it surrounded by bright and beautiful divine light.


    She waved her hands, and the box flew towards Ye Futian. Then, Princess Donghuang said, "This is an important treasure. Now, I hand it over to you. I''ve said it before. We would grant rewards based on one''s achievement during the battle. You contributed the most, and this is your reward."


    The box flew in front of Ye Futian. It floated in front of him, the bright divine light shining upon Ye Futian''s handsome face.


    Multiple gazes fell on the box in front of Ye Futian. The box was unique, and the treasure inside the box was surely incredibly valuable. However, since it was granted by the princess, they did not dare to have any ideas. This was particularly true for the Divine Prefecture factions. Even if they were to snatch it away, they would still have to return it to the princess. Who would dare keep it as their own?


    Moreover, at that moment, they were very curious as to what the treasure was.


    "Thank you, princess." Ye Futian took the gift. He accepted directly and did not act overly courteous. With regard to what the item was, he would check it out later.


    "This is what you deserve. You do not need to thank me. Apart from that, hiding your strength and hindering the overall battle operations, which resulted in the demise of many from all sides, was your personal choice. Since we achieved victory in the end and since I only look at the result, I have no reason to punish you for your crimes." Princess Donghuang''s word made the expression on the faces of the cultivators from many factions change.


    In particular, Shen Gao and the cultivators from the Shen Clan. Did this mean that Princess Donghuang had decided to protect Ye Futian?


    "However..." Princess Donghuang was not finished. With that word, everyone stood straight and listened carefully to the words that were yet to come.


    "Just as I have no reason to punish you for your crimes, the other factions of the Divine Prefecture also participated in this battle. They have made a lot of contributions and sacrifices in this battle. Similarly, I have no reason to stop them from hating you or from exacting their vengeance upon you. As such, in terms of the grudge between the Divine Prefecture factions and yourself, I will not side with anyone. If you want to fight and wage war, you can do so based on my preset rules. On this, do you have any objections?" Princess Donghuang answered while looking at Ye Futian.


    The cultivators from the Shen Clan breathed a sigh of relief after hearing the words of the princess. It seemed like the Princess was very thoughtful and considerate in whatever she did. The lines between punishment and rewards were clear, and she treated both sides fairly, and this was enough.


    They never really expected the Princess to sentence Ye Futian to death. They knew well enough that this was impossible. The true objective of their previous efforts was to ensure that the Princess did not interfere with them dealing with Ye Futian.


    Otherwise, if the Princess were to favor Ye Futian, it would be too late for them to deal with Ye Futian.


    Who would dare kill a person under the Princess?


    "The Princess is clear in rewards and punishment. I naturally do not have any objections," answered Ye Futian while nodding. Ye Futian could not find any fault in Princess Donghuang''s approach. They were all representatives of the Divine Prefecture in the battle. He made the most contribution and was thus rewarded by the princess personally. However, the others also took part in the battle, so she would not interfere with their personal grudges or affairs.


    One could only say that this was an amazingly fair way to deal with the situation. However, the overall situation was still very disadvantageous for Ye Futian.


    At the moment, the number of people and factions wanting him dead had increased.


    Princess Donghuang nodded. She shifted her gaze toward the cultivators from the Shen clan and asked, "What about you? Do you have any objections?"


    "We naturally do not object to the Princess''s will," answered Shen Gao as he nodded. This result was sufficient.


    This time, as long as Princess Donghuang did not protect Ye Futian, he would be powerless, he would not be as lucky as the last time.


    "Good." Princess Donghuang nodded.


    "Princess, our Shen Clan has had a grudge with Ye Futian for a long time. In addition to the incidents during the battle, we are prepared to conclude things. Ye Futian is from the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If the Heavenly Mandate Academy or the other factions help him, our Shen Clan, and the other factions will also intervene," said Shen Gao.


    "What other factions want to take part in this battle?" Asked Princess Donghuang as she looked toward the crowd.


    "Our Golden Divine Nation will take part," Gai Cang answered.


    "Our Holy Land of Taichu has also lost a considerable amount of people. We will take part," answered the cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    "The Martial God Clan will also partake in the battle."


    "The School of the Emperor Star will take part as well."


    One after another, factions began to voice their opinions. It seemed as if they had a tacit understanding, or perhaps they had already communicated with each other through divine consciousness. The factions of the Nine Realms and Divine Prefecture expressed their opinions one after another. All of them wanted to put Ye Futian to his death.


    Many from the 3,000 Realms of the Great Pathwanted to see Ye Futian rise. For example, many cultivators outside the Empty Imperial Palace wanted to see the birth of a legend.


    However, at the same time, many people did not want to see a legendary person like him to reach his peak. In particular, the factions that had grudges against Ye Futian. They would not allow this.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy and their allies were too strong. Once Ye Futian reached the top, this alliance would dominate the entire Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. By then, the other factions would be affected directly.


    This time, the number of factions involved was higher than the earlier battle of the divine palace.


    This time, the Solar Divine Palace of the Solar Realm also announced that they would participate in the battle.


    They wielded the Power of the Sun and did not want the appearance of a peak existence who wielded the Power of Yin.


    "The Nantian Divine Kingdom will take part in the battle as a representative of the Heavenly Mandate Academy," said Emperor Nan, supporting the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s side. However, allies of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was obviously weaker, and they would be completely overwhelmed.


    In particular, since they would be fighting under the rules set by Princess Donghuang, they would not need to worry.


    "The Shen Clan will join as well." Allies of the Heavenly Mandate Academy also showed their support one after another. However, in comparison to the other side, there was a huge gap.


    Regardless, as allies, if they did not stand up to protect Ye Futian right now, they would be targeted and pulverized in the future.


    Cultivators continued to speak up. Finally, Princess Donghuang asked, "Are there any more?"


    "The Nine Realms is in turmoil. I am surprised by how hated Little Ye is among the people. Perhaps the Tianshen Academy should not have joined the battle outside God''s relic. That way, we would not be faced with the storm right now," said the Tianshen Academy college chief, Jian Ao. He then continued and said, "Princess, since Ye Futian started this battle, it should end with him as well. If Ye Futian dies in battle, I hope it will also end this debacle."


    Princess Donghuang glanced at Jian Ao and then the rest of the others. Then, she said, "What do you think?"


    "Replying to the princess. We have no objections," Shen Gao said. Ye Futian was too much of a threat; killing him would be enough. The others were far less of a threat than he was; moreover, they had many opportunities in the future.


    Clearly, this was going to be a hunt, with the prey being Ye Futian. Everyone wanted him to die.


    Ye Futian''s death would end everything.


    "Since that is the case, our Tianshen Academy will also take part. We hope that order will be restored to the Original Realm as soon as possible," said Jian Ao with a strong sense of righteousness. He looked at the Heavenly Mandate Academy and said, "I can only apologize first to Little Ye now."


    "Father..." Jian Qingzhu shouted. He did not understand why they had to do that.


    They held no grudges against Ye Futian. Why did it have to come to this?


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at Jian Ao. He was curious. So, he asked, "Last time in the Shadow Realm, Elder, you did not lend a hand even as I was on the verge of death. On that, I hold no grudges. After all, you and I were mere acquaintances. We do not know each other that well. However, on the battlefield, I have at least shown kindness to your Tianshen Academy. Why are you, elder, repaying my kindness with cruelty? Moreover, you are doing it with such dignity and righteousness. I am very much confused. Could you please clarify and enlighten me?"

 1848 Returning to the Academy

    This meant that Tianshen Academy ignored the plea of those in mortal danger first. Ye Futian hesitated and did not give his all; however, he ultimately still extended his help. On this, Ye Futian could already be considered incredibly kind.


    If one were to argue that they were allies on the battlefield, were they not while they were in the Shadow Realm?


    Why did Tianshen Academy not help him then?


    Many shifted their gaze to where the people from Tianshen Academy gathered, particularly towards Jian Ao. The Tianshen Academy preached in the Central Emperor Realm. They were regarded as the number one holy land throughout the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. They had cultivated numerous disciples, had countless cultivators, and were admired by many.


    After all, who in the land of the Nine Realms had not heard of the Tianshen Academy name before?


    However, in a holy land like this, the college chief of the Tianshen Academy was actually a hypocrite?


    If what Ye Futian said was true, then in comparison, the actions of Tianshen Academy was indeed quite despicable. Ye Futian repaid cruelty with kindness, whereas the Tianshen Academy repaid kindness with cruelty. Moreover, the Tianshen Academy college chief actually announced their participation in the battle in the name of justice so that he could join the others in getting rid of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ye Futian, claiming that he would restore the Original World to its order.


    However, the thing no one could understand was... Why would Jian Ao do this?


    With his position and status, there was no need for him to lower himself to deal with Ye Futian using a method like this. After all, the Tianshen Academy held no grudges against Ye Futian. Even if Ye Futian were to rise, a holy land like the Tianshen Academy would not be affected in the slightest.


    That was unless they were afraid that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would replace the Tianshen Academy as the number one holy land?


    That should not be the case.


    Some people shifted their gaze to Jian Qingzhu. They could gander a guess. After all, one of the things, or perhaps more accurately, people, that Jian Ao prized most was his son. The son was regarded as Tianshen Academy''s most outstanding person among the new generation. If it were for him, it was certainly possible.


    Without Ye Futian, Jian Qingzhu would become the number one proud son of the Original Realm. Perhaps, the attention he would gain would be on a whole other level. At the moment, all the attention in the Original Realm was focused on Ye Futian.


    Jian Qingzhu also noticed the gaze of the people. He looked at his father. He did not understand.


    This made him feel quite embarrassed.


    "On that day, the Shadow Realm was filled with powerful cultivators. The scene was extremely chaotic. Indeed, I did see you back then, but I did not have the time to provide assistance. With regard to you helping the people from our Tianshen Academy during the battle, I am indeed very grateful." Jian Ao was actually quite calm. He then continued and said, "However, the disturbances in the Original Realm needs to be concluded. If the disturbances dispersed and vanished, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will remain the Heavenly Mandate Academy. No one will move. It is fine, even if you hate me. I understand."


    Jian Ao''s answer was the equivalent of admitting to it. It was disappointing to many.


    While his words remained pretty, many people were already feeling that the college chief of the Tianshen Academy was posing as a person with high morals.


    Moreover, he was scheming. To make his move on Ye Futian at a time like this, to stand and oppose the Heavenly Mandate Academy... For the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ye Futian, this was undoubtedly a disaster that could very well end them. After all, a situation like this would have already been extremely disadvantageous for Ye Futian and his allies.


    "It looks like I will not get an explanation," Ye Futian said after hearing Jian Ao''s answer. It was clear that Jian Ao would not tell him the reason. Was it because of the Heavenly Mandate Academy? Or was it because of Jian Qingzhu? Maybe it was something else entirely? He would not find out.


    Princess Donghuang also glanced at Jian Ao. After that, she returned her gaze at the others and said, "Since all of you have no objections, we will decide the two sides taking part in this battle. After one month, the battle will take place in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Both sides will select their own combatants. They are not allowed to raise even a hand against non-participants. The battle will end with one side''s defeat. No one is allowed to exact revenge on anyone outside the battle. Do you have any objections?"


    "The words of the princess will be remembered. We will only kill Ye Futian. We won''t touch the people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy or their allies," said Shen Gao. As long as Ye Futian died, the enemy''s side would crumble. Many people would die; however, the dissolution of the enemy alliance would naturally reduce their strength. It was a matter of time before they were annihilated. He was not going to be impatient.


    The remainder of the cultivators also nodded to agree with it.


    Ye Futian saw that Princess Donghuang was looking at him. So, he nodded and said, "Ye Futian has received his orders. If I die, this debacle will end. I do not hope to involve the innocent. As such, I would like the princess to help take care of them."


    He was also preparing for the worst.


    "I will promise you that." Princess Donghuang nodded.


    "Thank you, Princess." Ye Futian bowed slightly. He then said, "This issue has concluded. We will have to start our journey back. Could I borrow the space teleportation grand matrix within the Empty Imperial Palace?"


    Due to the latest incident, teleportation grand matrixes that could access the factions of the Nine Realms were built in the Empty Imperial Palace so that backup and support could be provided to the cultivators of all sides in the least amount of time. Among them was, naturally, a way to reach the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The reason Ye Futian did not use the typical way and, instead, asked to borrow the teleportation grand matrix was that he was wary of the Dark Court and Evil Emperor Realm. He was worried that those two factions would make a move against him. As such, he decided to leave directly.


    Before Princess Donghuang could answer, the Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace standing not far in front of the princess announced, "You''ve worked hard in the battle today. All the factions can return by using the teleportation grand matrix directly." Ye Futian nodded and replied, "Thank you very much."


    As he finished speaking, he led the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy towards the matrix. Factions that were his allies also headed toward the matrixes that led to their homes, their expressions solemn.


    However, they still had a month to prepare.


    Based on the rules of the princess, and since both sides had made an agreement, no one would make any moves beforehand. One month was sufficient, but in front of absolute strength, one month was, in reality, not enough to be meaningful. It would not make much difference.


    After all, cultivation is not something that could be achieved overnight. They could not realistically increase their strength by a lot in one month''s time.


    The teleportation matrix lit up with bright lights. The Heavenly Mandate Academy, along with the other cultivator factions, left one after another. The Shen Clan, Golden Divine Nation, and many other cultivators did not leave immediately. They still had issues to discuss, like how they would destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy and kill Ye Futian.


    The boy was growing too fast. His battle prowess and potential too high. They would always be worried if he were left alive.


    If he were to be regarded highly by Donghuang the Great, entered the Imperial Palace, and reached the top quickly in the future, not to mention getting the opportunity to kill Ye Futian, but they would find it difficult to get rid of him. What awaited them in a situation like that would be to await Ye Futian in getting his revenge.


    That was the reason why they were so decisive and resolute, to the point where they even put pressure on the princess so that another battle would ensue. All this to get rid of future troubles.


    This time, more than half of the top factions in the Nine Realms wanted Ye Futian''s life.


    Whoever helped Ye Futian would die.


    The conclusion was set. No one could change it.


    "How interesting..." Shi Xie from the Evil Emperor Realm laughed. He looked at Princess Donghuang and said, "I sure opened my eyes today. We will meet again in the future."


    After finishing his sentence, he led the cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm and left. This time, Ye Futian killed a lot of his people, among them several heirs to top factions. This determined that there was no longer a possibility of recruiting him. Otherwise, he would lose the hearts of the people and, at the same time, displease many others.


    Since he could not obtain and use him, the only other option was to remove him. However, at that moment, it seemed like the Original Realm was in a state of internal turmoil, which might also end with Ye Futian losing his life. With that, they only needed to stay on the sidelines as observers. If needed, they certainly did not mind doing other things.


    The cultivators from the Dark Court also left. Only then did the darkness subside. The practitioners of the Empty Imperial Palace were in a complicated mood.


    The people who watched the battle outside the Empty Imperial Palace were also the same. It was not what they had in mind, and it was certainly not the conclusion that they wanted to see.


    ...


    Ye Futian and the others returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Everyone was in a bad mood.


    They had just achieved a great victory and defended the Original Realm, preventing it from being divided. However, apart from getting the halo, the one who made the biggest contribution, Ye Futian, was faced with a life or death situation.


    The people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were in a very bad mood. Their faces were cold and hard, a tinge of anger mixed within.


    "She should know just how bad this situation is for you, but she did not try and stop it," Yaya, who was sitting beside Ye Futian, said. Naturally, the person she was referring to was Princess Donghuang.


    Princes Donghuang rewarded Ye Futian and did not give him a sentence. However, not protecting Ye Futian after he showed his true strength meant that Ye Futian was now in an extremely precarious situation.


    Even though it seemed like she was helping Ye Futian, the reality was that she did not do so.


    "Perhaps she was indeed dissatisfied with Futian hiding his strength," said Lord Taixuan.


    "Perhaps," said Ye Futian quietly. "However, this princess is hard to comprehend."


    "Indeed." Lord Taixuan nodded. "The Princess never shows her emotions. It is impossible to know what she is thinking. This time, it is very dangerous. Futian, why don''t you..."


    Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan. From Lord Taixuan''s gaze, he knew his intention: to ask Ye Futian to leave and head to the Divine Prefecture to train and cultivate his powers.


    Staying there would impede him.


    He shook his head. "The timeline is set by the Princess. She was also a witness when the battle was agreed upon and set. How can we go back on our words in that? If we were to break our promises, it would be hard to find our feet ever again, even in the Divine Prefecture."


    Lord Taixuan nodded. Going away was also difficult. By then, the academy was most likely already surrounded by spies from the enemy.


    "Then, head to the other realms." Yu Sheng was extremely dissatisfied. At worst, he could go train in the Devil World, away from the Divine Prefecture.


    "There''s still some time. Let''s put this aside for now. Didn''t the Princess reward me with a treasure? Now is a good time to take a look at it. Let''s see just how generous the Princess is," said Ye Futian with a laugh. He seemed to be intentionally trying to soothe the tense and somber atmosphere.


    However, he was indeed quite curious as to what treasure did Princess Donghuang give him!

 1849 Emotion

    In a courtyard within the academy, two figures sat quietly on a bench. They leaned back on the bench and looked particularly relaxed.


    "I heard something big happened outside. How come you still have time to sit here?" Hua Fengliu looked at Ye Futian and asked. He was spending his remaining days at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. His everyday life was very relaxed. He was also not all that aware of the things happening outside. No one told him about the things this time as well.


    "Master, you are already quite old. Naturally, I should spend more time with you," answered Ye Futian with a chuckle.


    "Are you cursing me right now?" Hua Fengliu asked.


    "No, I would never dare to do so. With your current condition, Master, you will most certainly outlive this disciple of yours," Ye Futian replied with a laugh.


    "Now, I do not have such a wild wish. You should be the one living longer." Hua Fengliu sighed. Ye Futian single-handedly founded the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Ever since he came here, several major incidents had occurred. Things had been going back and forth, and things never calmed down. He knew that Ye Futian was facing a lot of issues and was burdened with many responsibilities.


    Being able to see Jieyu and how close and intimate Jieyu and Ye Futian had grown, Hua Fengliu had no regrets in his life. Nianyu had also been growing gradually. Nandou Wenyin, Tang Lan, and himself were all retired. If it were really possible, he did not mind living a few years less, as long as Ye Futian and the others could live in peace.


    "Are there elders like you who talk about their disciples like you?" Ye Futian smiled wryly.


    "Can''t help it. You''re too much of a trouble maker," said Hua Fengliul. While he said it casually, his words were immensely profound and meaningful. The one who understood Ye Futian most was most probably Hua Feng Liu.


    Of course, it was just a reminder. He would not try to convince Ye Futian. It could not be helped as he was born extraordinary, so he had to face his fate one way or another.


    "Sure, then if I, your disciple, am not around, you should remember to take good care of yourself," said Ye Futian as he shook his head and chuckled. Hua Fengliu glanced at Ye Futian after hearing his words and asked, "What are you going to do now?"


    "Nothing much, I might just leave and will be gone for a while," answered Ye Futian.


    "Making arrangements after ?" Hua Fengliu stared at Ye Futian. "Again?"


    "..." Ye Futian was speechless. It seemed as if Hua Fengliu had developed some psychological trauma.


    "I am not young anymore, so it is alright. You have only just found Jieyu not that long ago." Hua Fengliu looked at Ye Futian.


    "Really, it is nothing to worry about," Ye Futian interrupted. Hearing the conversation between the two, Hua Jieyu and Nianyu walked over hand in hand. Hua Jieyu''s beautiful eyes and gaze landed on Ye Futian. She did not speak, only gazing at him quietly.


    Ye Futian extended his hands and pulled Jieyu closer to his side.


    Hua Jieyu gently and docilely let herself be pulled to Ye Futian''s side. She knelt and rested her head on Ye Futian''s lap. The two of them had become incredibly intimate. After spending so many days and nights together, even if Hua Jieyu did not remember much, she still regarded Ye Futian and Hua Fengliu as closest to her, and to be more accurate, her only family.


    It was just that she had no memories.


    "Jieyu, if I am not here, you should still not go back to Brahma''s Pure Sky to cultivate. Just stay in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. You can find granny if there are any issues. You can also reach out to the lord," Ye Futian said gently as he gently caressed Hua Jieyu''s hair.


    Hua Jieyue raised her head, and with her beautiful eyes, stared into Ye Futian''s eyes. However, all she could see were Ye Futian''s gentle smile and an extending her that reached and gently pinched at her delicate face that seemed as if it could break by the slightest of touches. Ye Futian thoroughly enjoyed heartwarming and loving moments like these.


    However, it seemed as if Hua Jieyu did not feel it. She stared at him and said, "No. Where you go, I go."


    Ye Futian felt a gentle and tender sensation in his heart as he heard Hua Jieyu''s words. He kept a straight face and said, "Be good."


    Hua Jieyu shook her head.


    "Brother-in-law, you won''t abandon Nianyu, right?" The young woman on the side stared with her eyes wide open. She was beautiful. The young woman was already a budding beauty. Her delicate and charming eyes stared at Ye Futian. She also understood what the conversation meant.


    "So young but already so sophisticated." Ye Futian pulled the child over and said, "When I''m not here, you have to take good care of your sister and masteress, got it?"


    "No." Nianyu shook her head. "I am still a child."


    "..." Ye Futian stared at her upset eyes. He had no way to deal with her. The child was always the smartest, and the lord also liked her very much.


    "It''s fine too if you don''t want to. You''ll have to grow up eventually," said Ye Futian. Nianyu looked at Ye Futian with a slightly upset gaze and asked, "Brother-in-law, are you really going to abandon Nianyu and sister?"


    "No way. I''ll come back to find you guys once I''ve completed my task," replied Ye Futian gently, the ever-present gentle smile still hanging on his face. It was as if he was intentionally trying to not put any pressure on them.


    "I will go and visit the other masters," Ye Futian said as he stood up. Hua Jieyu followed and got up though she did not let go of his hands. Nianyu imitated her and held onto Ye Futian''s other hand.


    Ye Futian smiled wryly; it was like having his wife on one side and a lover on the other.


    "Alright, then. Both of you will come with me." Ye Futian brought the two of them with him and left the place. They arrived at Qi Xuangang and his group''s residence.


    Qi Xuangang and a few seniors were there. Feixue had also just returned after cultivating at Shen Luoxue''s place. She was sitting beside Qi Xuangang.


    Upon seeing Ye Futian''s arrival, Yan Yuan and Nan Zhai, who were both cultivating on the side, also walked over. They smiled and shouted, "Younger brother!"


    "Big brother, second brother." Ye Futian walked forward and then shouted at Qi Xuangang, "Master."


    Qi Xuangang addressed Ye Futian and said, "Have a seat."


    "I will." Ye Futian sat down. Jieyu sat quietly beside him. Nianyu, on the other hand, had gone to find Feixue, constantly calling "Sister Feixue" passionately.


    "Master, do you remember our previous discussion about how the great path is boundless? However, right now, it is incredibly difficult to spread this teaching in the Nine Realms," said Ye Futian. Many people and factions did not want to see the Heavenly Mandate Academy rise to power.


    Some were even pushing to have the Heavenly Mandate Academy dissolve and crumble.


    "That is natural. Humans will naturally prioritize themselves and place their benefits first. Everything else comes after that. If you want to preach and spread our teachings all over the realms, it will most certainly affect the benefits of many. Even when Donghuang the Great conquered and united the world, he could not truly make the Divine Prefecture one. The Nine Realms has separate factions, and the Divine Prefecture is also most definitely the same. As such, what we want is most probably just an idealized concept that suits one region," said Qi Xuangang.


    Ye Futian nodded. The world was too big. There were many practitioners, and every single one was different from another. As such, uniting everyone into one was not possible.


    "Master, what kind of person do you think Donghuang the Great is?" Ye Futian asked.


    "A man with talent and a bold vision. A one of a kind genius and the symbol of an era. A character like that is not someone whom I can easily judge," said Qi Xuangang. "And in terms of the person himself, I had never met him before, so, naturally, I do not know. However, from the records, he could be said to be a legend of an era."


    "However, Emperor Ye Qing..." Ye Futian opened his mouth to speak.


    "That is unclear. That period in the history of decades past is a secret of the Divine Prefecture. The people of the Original Realm knows even less about it. Perhaps it was a clash in their ideology, or perhaps it was some other reason," Qi Xuangang answered with a sigh. Both these emperors were symbols of an era and the start of another era.


    However, Emperor Ye Qing fell while Donghuang the Great conquered the Divine Prefecture. It was a forbidden topic. They could not even get close to the truth.


    Some had guessed that they were capable of suffering and going through difficulties together but did not share their wealth. The Divine Prefecture only needed one master; after all, such stories are unbelievably common and have taken place multiple times in history. However, Qi Xuangang felt that it might be due to other reasons. After all, the two emperors were never normal, to begin with.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly. It was impossible to uncover this secret while he stayed in the Original Realm. He needed to get to the Divine Prefecture; moreover, he also needed to get into contact with someone at a higher level.


    "Master, brothers, no matter what happens to the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the future, you have to cultivate calmly. If the Heavenly Mandate Academy is faced with a crisis in the future, please leave. The reason I founded the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the first place was to spread our ideology so that the Heavenly Mandate Realm can stand proud within the Nine Realms. However, it looks like the Nine Realms is getting more chaotic by the day. No one knows the future of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If there is a time where it can no longer be maintained, just let it be," Ye Futian said.


    Qi Xuangang looked at him. Yan Yuan and Nan Zhai also looked at him. A formless air flowed around Feixue.


    "Feixue, stop trying to peek at me," Ye Futian smiled and said to Feixue while looking into her eyes. She could peek into him and see his real inner emotion.


    "I have already felt it," said Feixue.


    "..." Ye Futian forced a smile as he shook his head. This talent was seriously unbelievable.


    "So, how am I feeling?" Ye Futian asked.


    "In summary, no sadness and despair," answered Feixue with a gentle smile. Naturally, she knew what had happened, and for Ye Futian to show this emotion... Did this mean that he had a plan to deal with it?


    "You are amazing," Ye Futian said with a chuckle.


    "Do you plan to leave?" Yan Yuan asked Ye Futian.


    "Perhaps," replied Ye Futian. "I will have to trouble older brothers to help take care of the master in the future... even though I did not really take care of him even when I am here."


    "You don''t have to worry about me," Qi Xuangang said to Ye Futian. "Do what you want to do. Just remember what I told you last time."


    "Yes, I remember." Ye Futian nodded.


    "Relax. We will take good care of ourselves," Qi Xuangang said again. Ye Futian nodded. He was not really all that worried about Qi Xuangang, to be honest. By now, everything was already on track. The only thing left was to destroy the Shen Clan to avenge his master.


    "Then, younger brother will take my leave first," Ye Futian got up and excused himself. After that, he left the place.


    After he left, Feixue gazed at his back and mumbled gently, "But there''s a slight sense of reluctance to leave, worry and a tinge of sadness..."


    Qi Xuangang gazed at Ye Futian''s back. Perhaps Ye Futian was hiding something from them. However, he believed that Ye Futian would deal with it appropriately. By now, he was already a big shot who could influence the entire Original Realm. He had grown too much over these years!

 1850 No Escape

    After that, Ye Futian returned to the cottage in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He went to a place for cultivation first. Xia Qingyuan was cultivating there.


    Seeing Ye Futian come over, the pretty Xia Qingyuan Light of Life dispersed and vanished. The holy lotus shut, and her beautiful eyes shifted to look at Ye Futian.


    "It has been a while since I spoke to you, Princess," Ye Futian smiled and said to Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan felt odd. She looked at Ye Futian and said, "The Divine Prefecture has only one princess."


    Ye Futian understood what she meant. He smiled and said, "In the past, I often bickered with you, Princess. Nowadays, I address you by your name more often, which is actually harder to get used to. Perhaps in my subconscious, I still regarded you as a princess."


    Xia Qingyuan''s brows raised slightly. She seemed displeased. She said coldly, "If you don''t have any business here, please stop interfering with my cultivation."


    "Yes, that''s the feeling I''m talking about," said Ye Futian as he chuckled. Xia Qingyuan often spoke to him like this in the past. Cold and arrogant. He seemed to have got used to the dynamic between the two of them. Later, as things changed, he always felt that there was something wrong.


    Of course, he knew what the reason was.


    Xia Qingyuan glared at him. This guy did not just come to find her just so he could quarrel with her, right?


    "Who would have thought that, even after so many years, having experienced with the vicissitudes of life and so many major changes, and with the princess having already proven her path and has become a Queen, I can still feel that you are that cold and beautiful princess," said Ye Futian with a laugh. When she was in God''s Relic, Xia Qingyuan''s spiritual soul assimilated into the lotus that had the karma of the great path and was where the Great Lotus Emperor sat on when he reached enlightenment. As a result, Xia Qingyuan transformed thoroughly, and her cultivation speed also increased later.


    Now, she may even be stronger than Emperor Xia.


    "Are you complimenting me?" asked Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian walked beside her and said, "I guess so. Now that the Princess has proven her path, may I ask if you have already decided on a date to return to Emperor Xia''s Realm?"


    Xia Qingyuan was stunned. Her body trembled gently for a bit, and the light in her eyes seemed to have dimmed. She appeared to be intentionally avoiding Ye Futian''s gaze as she looked at a loss.


    When would she return to Emperor Xia''s Realm?


    That''s right. Why was she still here?


    So then, why had she not yet left?


    "Emperor Xia''s loves and dotes on you. Many years have passed by since he last saw you. I am certain he misses Your Royal Highness very much. The Heavenly Mandate Academy has a teleportation matrix that connects to the Crimson Dragon Realm. You can return to Emperor Xia''s Realm after getting to the Crimson Dragon Realm. That would quicken your journey a lot. If your royal princess wants to return one day, do remember to give me a holler. I will personally send you off," said Ye Futian with a gentle smile.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him, immobile as if wanting to see through him.


    This time, Ye Futian was the one who intentionally avoided her gaze. It was as if he could not endure looking at that pair of sad-looking yet immensely beautiful eyes.


    At the moment, Xia Qingyuan''s eyes were without light. It looked as if she had lost all the brilliance of becoming a Queen. It even seemed a little bit empty.


    Yes. She should have left a long time ago. Why did she have to wait until he came to hurry her?


    However, did he want to send her away at that time?


    He would definitely not let Hua Jieyu go.


    "I will leave in a few days," said Xia Qingyuan. "I will cultivate in Emperor Xia''s Realm in the future."


    As a Queen in Emperor Xia''s Realm, her father would be able to rest. She could go sightseeing outside too. It seemed kind of nice.


    "That sounds good too. Princess, you choose the time. Remember to let me know," said Ye Futian. He then continued, "If there''s an opportunity in the future, I will go and visit yous in Emperor Xia''s Realm."


    "That is unnecessary. After I return to Emperor Xia''s Realm, I don''t ever want to see you again," said Xia Qingyuan coldly. It was unclear if she meant it or not.


    "Now, now, Princess, you should not be so narrow-minded," Ye Futian said, laughing. Then, he said, "Alright then, I will not disturb your cultivation anymore."


    As he finished speaking, he got up and turned around to leave. The moment he turned around, the smile on his face vanished. After that, he sighed in his mind.


    Some things were naturally known without it being said. However, he could not tell what was going to happen in the future. Sending Xia Qingyuan back to cultivate in Emperor Xia''s Realm was already considered a relatively perfect ending. He hoped that she would return as soon as possible.


    He knew that his words today were hurtful. They were intentional. He hoped that Xia Qingyuan wouldn''t take it too personally.


    Ye Futian left the place and headed to another. In this cottage, several disciples were present, including Older Brother Sword Saint, Second Sister Zhuge Mingyue, Third Brother Gu Dongliu. There were also Yu Sheng, Ye Wuchen, and a few others. They were gathered together, seemingly in the midst of discussing something.


    Upon seeing Ye Futian arrive, Zhuge Mingyue glanced at him with a smile before asking, "Made a round?"


    "Yeah." Ye Futian nodded. "I just came back from Qingyuan''s place."


    "What did you say?" Zhuge Mingyue stared curiously at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at his Second Sister''s faint smile and forced a smile before replying, "I asked her when she will return to Emperor Xia''s Realm to cultivate."


    "Why?" Zhuge Mingyue understood his intentions after hearing his reply. She knew that Ye Futian always wanted to plan and do things properly; however, everyone would choose, and it was not something that was up to him to plan.


    "Yu Sheng!" Ye Futian suddenly shouted. Yu Sheng raised his head to look at him.


    "If Mei Ting wants to bring you to cultivate, you should just go with him," said Ye Futian, addressing Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng did not immediately answer after hearing his words. Instead, he looked thoughtful, as if he had not yet decided on it.


    What would happen if he were to leave with Mei Ting?


    He did not know.


    At that moment, he did not have an answer. Even though he had a habit of listening to Ye Futian, he did not immediately agree to it this time.


    At that time, Gu Dongliu, who was on the side, suddenly shouted, "Little brother!" Ye Futian looked at him. Then, Gu Dongliu continued, "Are you really able to ensure that there will be no loss?"


    "It is probably not going to be a problem," Ye Futian answered.


    "What do you mean probably?" Gu Doingliu was clearly dissatisfied with Ye Futian''s answer. His brows furrowed together tightly. Ye Futian''s answer seemed to imply that he himself was not absolutely confident. This was not an answer that Gu Dongliu wanted. Otherwise, he did not want Ye Futian to risk himself; moreover, for a major event like this.


    "There is no problem," Ye Futian replied after noticing his Third Brother''s gaze. He thought in his mind, ''It does not really matter when it is. Third Brother is still so ever-imposing. It is just like back then when we cultivated at the cottage. One glare from Third Brother and no one else would even dare to move.''


    It looked like, even now, Third Brother still had a rather high status.


    However, everything or everyone has its vanquisher, and Second Sister was the vanquisher of Third Brother.


    "Right." Finally, Gu Dongliu nodded satisfactorily. Since Ye Futian was so sure, he would also believe it.


    Next, all that was left was to watch.


    ...


    Days went by, and apart from setting aside time to settle some issues, Ye Futian had been cultivating.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was extremely calm and quiet. However, something big was happening in the Outer Realms.


    Multiple cultivators had gathered in the Heavenly Mandate City. No one knew just how many famous and great characters were present.


    News of the battle between the three hyper strong factions had already been spread all across the Nine Realms. Ye Futian''s name was common knowledge. No soul under the heavens did not recognize his name.


    However, an unbelievable genius, an unparalleled character of an era, who turned the tide of the Battle of the Original Realm all by himself, did not receive the treatment he deserved. On the contrary, he was faced with a major crisis. Half the top factions of the Original Realm sought trouble with him all at the same time.


    It was condemned by countless people. The top factions of the Original Realm were most definitely doing this because they were afraid of Ye Futian''s talent after his earlier overwhelming display of strength.


    All of them wished for the death of Ye Futian.


    Now, inside this Heavenly Mandate City, the cultivators of each faction had arrived. They stared and glared at every move the Heavenly Mandate Academy made every day.


    Ye Futian had no chance of escaping. The moment he showed any signs of intending to escape, those people would no longer maintain in hiding.


    The entire Heavenly Mandate City was surrounded by an invisible storm. The storm and the rain was coming.


    Once it was time, the top factions would suddenly appear, surrounding the Heavenly Mandate Academy before killing Ye Futian.


    However, even as they were shrouded in a storm like this, the holy land of their ideals remained firmly standing as if it would never fall.


    In addition to that, the holy land of their ideals remained peaceful and quiet within. There were no signs of anxiety or restlessness. No one attempted to leave or escape. Of course, there was no need to do so as well. The rules set by the princess demanded that the innocent would be protected.


    Many people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were still discussing the battle targeting the Divine Palace, about how many cultivators were involved and how Ye Futian survived by killing the high order Renhuang after releasing the will of the emperor. Moreover, it was with the help of Mei Ting.


    However, what about this time?


    The enemy''s camp was a lot scarier. Moreover, they were determined to kill Ye Futian so that they could prevent any future problems.


    The other factions involved in this were also forced to join hands.


    Could Ye Futian survive this time?


    The day had finally come.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was as quiet as ever. Outside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a huge number of cultivators stood high in the air while many others were stationed on the ground. They all looked toward the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The holy land of the ideals for the Heavenly Mandate Realm was as quiet as ever. It was as if it was just another day.


    However, today was the day the two sides would meet and fight.


    With the Heavenly Mandate Academy at the center, rays of might were released before they were pushed inside the academy. These arrays of might came from all sides and permeated every location.


    They kept staring at the academy. The moment Ye Futian stepped out of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the cultivators of every faction would know immediately.


    That was why, this time, Ye Futian had no escape!

 1851 The Cavalry Has Arrived

    All the inns and taverns were bursting at their seams. It could be said that this place was currently the center of attention in the Nine Realms.


    Now, Ye Futian''s fame was like the sun during high noon. Everyone paid attention to everything about him. Moreover, the various forces of the Nine Realms wanted to kill him. It was possible that this legendary figure of the Nine Realms would soon die.


    Last time, he had already faced a life-threatening crisis. This time, he might truly be unable to escape unscathed. Too many people wanted to kill him. They almost covered all of the top forces of Nine Realms.


    Those after Ye Futian included Shen clan, Golden Divine Nation, Solar Divine Palace, Martial God Clan, Sky Reaching School, and many others. There were also the forces of the Divine Prefecture. Even the number one training holy land of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, Tianshen Academy, also participated this time around. One could imagine what sort of catastrophe Ye Futian was faced with this time around.


    This was a truly deadly predicament. They were certain to kill him.


    Ye Futian had made a huge contribution by winning the war over the Original Realm. Afterward, the other party had actually suggested killing Ye Futian. By doing so, they might even draw the ire of the princess. The strength of their conviction was plain to see.


    Mei Ting had also come this time. He still drank wine at the tavern he did last time. The situation this time around seemed to be similar to back then. However, it was also completely different. This time, it was even more dangerous.


    Mei Ting had always been speculating about Ye Futian''s identity. Was he related to Emperor Ye Qing? Then, if Emperor Ye Qing was behind all this, would the three top cultivators who they encountered last time appear?


    If they appeared and were discovered by the members of Donghuang Imperial Palace, they would most likely die. Donghuang the Great would surely send people to pursue them. Hence, Mei Ting wanted to know whether they would choose to emerge from the darkness.


    This time, the members of Donghuang Imperial Palace might come in person. Even if they did appear, they wouldn''t be able to help the situation.


    If Ye Futian was killed, could Yu Sheng be brought back to the Devil Emperor in the Devil World?


    Mei Ting drank wine quietly alone. No one disturbed him. After all, currently, many people recognized him. The last time he appeared had been too astonishing. Additionally, it was also in this tavern. It was naturally effortless for people to recognize him in the same setting. Hence, many people looked at him from a distance. He was a demonic general figure from the Devil World, a super cultivator.


    The Divine Prefecture, the Dark Court, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Devil World. Four god-level forces were gathered here. Aside from that, various forces from the Lower Worlds of the Divine Prefecture, as well as almost all the top forces of 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, might also be here this time. One could imagine what an event this was.


    Many people were wondering whether such a grand event had ever occurred in the Original Realm before.


    Such grandeur might be unprecedented.


    At that moment, a group of silhouettes descended on the tavern. The leading figure had a somewhat sinister temperament. His appearance was extraordinarily handsome. He looked very young, and his gaze was deep and lively.


    "Sir Mei," the person who arrived cried out loudly. However, his tone was not too respectful; it was just a formality.


    Mei Ting raised his head. The pair of deep, jet-black eyes looked at him. Then, Mei Ting raised his glass again and continued drinking quietly.


    The person was not someone Mei Ting was familiar with.


    Mei Ting knew who the person was. He was a cultivator of the Empty Divine Realm. This youth was most likely the monstrous youth that was extremely famous in the Empty Divine Realm. He was Shi Xie. He was an existence with the Divine Body of the Great Path.


    However, regardless of how talented the other party was or how high their status was, as a demonic general of the Devil World, Mei Ting did not need to be polite with the other party. Mei Ting was not associated with him in any way. He did not need to put up an act and grovel. He had always disliked talking with strangers.


    Most of the cultivators of the Devil World had arrogant personalities.


    Shi Xie also did not care. He smiled and sat down at the table next to Mei Ting''s. He poured himself a cup of wine. He then raised his glass at Mei Ting and said, "I have long heard of you, Sir Mei of the Devil World, but I have never had the honor of meeting you. Allow me to give you a toast today, Sir Mei."


    Without waiting for Mei Ting to respond, he bottomed up his cup of wine on his own.


    Mei Ting still minded his own business and drank his wine as though there was no one around. This caused the cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm to be somewhat displeased. The people beside Shi Xie frowned. A formless pressure emanated from their bodies. Among them, there were also extraordinary top figures. They were all existences who were famous in the Empty Divine Realm. They were naturally similarly arrogant and proud. Seeing that Mei Ting was ignoring them, they felt dissatisfied.


    However, Shi Xie did not mind. Mei Ting ignored him, but he still said to Mei Ting, "I have heard that Sir Mei had arrived in the Original Realm long ago. However, Sir Mei has been the only person from the Devil World here all this while. Since you are not here on behalf of the Devil World to contend for the Original Realm, why are you here?"


    Upon hearing Shi Xie''s words, Mei Ting was somewhat astonished at how sharp he was. Shi Xie actually suspected his reasons for coming to the Original Realm.


    "Back then, the Devil World had never tried to contend for the Original Realm. The Devil Emperor''s goal has always been to rule the entire universe. With the Devil Emperor''s ambitions, the Original Realm would certainly not be within his sights now," Shi Xie seemed to say to himself. He continued, "As one of the demonic generals, it would naturally be impossible for Sir Mei to be here just for sightseeing. What in the Original Realm has drawn Sir Mei''s attention?"


    "Is it Ye Futian?" Shi Xie asked softly.


    Shi Xie''s gaze flickered. However, such a slight movement could not be detected at all.


    "I have heard that last time, Sir Mei attacked the Dark Court in this tavern for disturbing you while you were drinking. Later on, in the Sea of the Path, you have also attacked them once more and taken Ye Futian away," Shi Xie continued. He seemed to be well-versed in the events of the Original Realm. He had clearly carried out detailed investigations beforehand.


    This was especially so regarding Ye Futian. Ever since the war one month ago, Ye Futian was not only known by the members of the Divine Prefecture. The cultivators of the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm had all remembered him. After that time, Shi Xie had made it a point to pay more attention to Ye Futian. Shi Xie discovered that his growth was a legend in the Original Realm. He had risen up the ranks and became the number one Proud Son of Heaven in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Shi Xie had also discovered that Mei Ting''s appearances seemed to be related to Ye Futian every time. This time, Mei Ting appeared here again. Shi Xie could not help but suspect that Mei Ting coming to the Original Realm was because of Ye Futian.


    Upon mentioning Ye Futian, many people behind Shi Xie revealed murderous looks in their eyes.


    In that war, Ye Futian had killed many of their juniors. Even among the cultivators of Empty Mountain, many of their juniors had perished to him.


    This time, they had come to see that Ye Futian died.


    Mei Ting ignored them. The other party knew quite a bit. However, he had come to the Original Realm, not for Ye Futian. Nevertheless, he had also formed a deep connection with Ye Futian. Now that he had been marked by other parties, Mei Ting did not appreciate this happening.


    "Today, the members of the Divine Prefecture want to kill Ye Futian. He will undoubtedly die. We hope that Sir Mei will not intervene," Shi Xie said with a smile. If Mei Ting interfered, they would not hesitate to attack him as well. There should not be a problem if they attacked a person from the Devil World without participating in the affairs of the Divine Prefecture.


    Shi Xie''s gaze turned towards the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the distance. He lamented, "No wonder Sir Mei enjoys drinking wine here. The view here is quite impressive. Seeing the number one genius of the Original Realm perishing before you is also entertaining. If I were Princess Donghuang, I would be reluctant to kill Ye Futian."


    Although Ye Futian had defied orders and even kept his ability hidden, that was how all of the members of the Evil Emperor Realm acted. Their personal benefit was their top priority. Everyone for himself, and the devil takes the hindmost. The members of the Divine Prefecture were forced to kill Ye Futian. If it were in Shi Xie''s Empty Divine Realm, he would have directly intervened.


    However, since Ye Futian was an enemy, Shi Xie could only watch as Ye Futian died.


    The cultivators of the Dark Court also arrived. However, they headed over to another place. They were also here to observe the battle and watch Ye Futian die.


    The last time they invaded the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they had not killed Ye Futian. The Lord of the Underworld somewhat regretted this. This time, although they could not attack, they could still watch. Ye Futian would certainly be killed.


    The sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy suddenly became exceptionally downcast. From afar, auras descended. It was as though a heavenly might was descending from the sky and enveloping the entire academy.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked up into the sky. As they were enveloped by the oppressive aura, they all felt a suffocating sensation. It was as though the God of Death was about to descend upon them.


    Many disciples in the academy had ugly expressions. Their gazes were extremely dissatisfied. These past few days, Ye Futian had always been calm, going about everywhere. Every time they saw him, he was smiling and friendly with them. However, the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy felt that he had already accepted reality and was facing it calmly.


    There was also news that spread within the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Rumor has it that Ye Futian had already settled his affairs. It was as though he knew that he would be facing such a predicament.


    "Renhuang Ye led the Divine Prefecture to victory and prevented the Original Realm from being divided up. Now, the various forces of the Divine Prefecture want to deal with Renhuang Ye instead. It is truly a mockery," some disciples in the academy were very dissatisfied.


    "Even Princess Donghuang has also silently acknowledged this act. It is truly laughable. If we had known, Renhuang Ye should not have participated in the war."


    "He fought for the Original Realm and emerged victorious. However, he brought about such an end for himself. It is truly laughable."


    Mocking voices sounded in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The disciples of the academy were extremely dissatisfied with this. Although nothing would happen to them, the person involved was Ye Futian. Among the junior cultivators of the academy, who didn''t idolize Ye Futian?


    Yet, no matter how much they complained, they could not change the outcome.


    In the heavens above, silhouettes appeared. It was as though a large army was approaching. Their pressure could be felt across the sky.


    These silhouettes were divided into different groups. There weren''t many of them, yet their auras were all very frightening. The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy noticed that they were almost all upper-level Renhuangs. Clearly, for this battle, they were not planning to use people with weak cultivation. Only upper-level Renhuangs had the qualifications to join the fight.


    All those below the rank of upper-level Renhuang did not need to participate.


    After sensing this powerful pressure, the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy turned pale. This lineup was too powerful. It could only truly be felt when faced head-on. This time, the top three figures of the Shen clan had all arrived. There were also the top two cultivators of Golden Divine Nation, as well as the other various major forces. With such a lineup, let alone the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they could even raze the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    In the Nine Realms, who could stand against this lineup?


    There was also a cultivator from the Tianshen Academy, just one. The College Chief of the Tianshen Academy, Jian Ao had come in person. No one else had come.


    The Divine Palace Palace Lord looked at Jian Ao. He had also not imagined that the College Chief of the number one training holy land of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path would choose to kill Ye Futian, someone whom the Original Realm owed a debt of gratitude.


    In the last war, if it weren''t for Ye Futian, the Original Realm would have been divided up. Who knew how many people would have lost their lives then.


    However, in the current Original Realm, who would fight for Ye Futian? On the contrary, they were all here to kill him!

 1852 Send Off

    This time, the various forces of the Nine Realms truly showed him due respect. So many cultivators had gathered to take his life.


    There were the huge figures of Shen clan, the sovereign of Golden Divine Nation, the hierophant of Sky Reaching School, and so on. On any normal day, it was hard to catch a glimpse of them. Now, they had all gathered for his sake. Ye Futian did not know whether he should feel honored or sorrowful.


    Since the situation was such, there was no stopping it.


    He was ''certain to die.''


    With such a lineup, no one in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path could save him.


    Moreover, the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm also had their eyes on him. Of this, Ye Futian knew clearly.


    He was currently known as the number one Proud Son of Heaven in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Yet, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path no longer welcomed him.


    He had used the last month to arrange various matters. He also established a large cultivation matrix in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. After he left, the core figures of the Heavenly Mandate Academy could use it to train. This way, they could make up the shortcomings of his absence.


    Next to Ye Futian stood many silhouettes. Each one of them was similarly a major figure of the Nine Realms. The weakest among them were ninth tier Renhuangs. They were the leaders of the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Eight tier Renhuangs were not allowed to participate in the battle. Their presence would be meaningless.


    On such a battlefield, eighth-tier Renhuangs were already of no use in determining how the battle swayed.


    Moreover, this was a battle that they were certain to lose.


    They clearly knew the disparity in strength between the two sides. They did not have any notion of luck.


    Beside Ye Futian were Lord Taixuan, Divine Palace Palace Lord, Emperor Nan, Xiao Dingtian, the Dou tribe clan lord, Dragon Master Demon Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, as well as other top cultivators. They were all looking up at the sky. They had decided to join this perilous fight.


    They also did not know what the future would look like. The worst-case scenario was that this might be the last time they joined forces.


    They were in this fight for a junior who only had a second-tier Divine Wheel. However, Ye Futian was recognized by them as a figure who would affect the future of the Original Realm. Unfortunately, the cultivators of the Original Realm did not wish to see such a figure reach the top of the Realms. Before he had fully developed, they wanted to eliminate him.


    Since Lord Taixuan and the rest had decided to participate, they would certainly do so and would not hold back at the slightest.


    In this battle, Ye Futian would surely die.


    Under such a murderous atmosphere, the disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were extremely dissatisfied with the situation. Yet, they could not do anything.


    Right then, Ye Futian''s figure rose up into the sky. The cultivators beside him followed suit. Ye Futian swept a glance towards the various cultivators in the sky. He suddenly laughed out loud. He originally looked somewhat effeminate and handsome. Now, he revealed a smile that appeared somewhat sinister. This caused the top figures to frown.


    What was Ye Futian laughing about?


    "You all truly think highly of me, Ye Futian. You have arranged such a lineup to kill me. You must really be afraid of me being alive," Ye Futian said. His tone was very calm and did not contain a hint of terror or despair. It was as though he was talking about a very common occurrence.


    "You will not get out alive," Gai Cang said. Many of his juniors had perished at the hands of Ye Futian. He initially thought that Ye Futian was very easy to kill. He had never imagined that, to this day, they would actually require such a powerful force to kill him.


    However, it was clear that Ye Futian had run out of chances now.


    "A mere lower-level Renhuang like myself has drawn such a lineup over to kill me. My life has not been in vain," Ye Futian said as he smiled. "I hope that you all may have your wish and slay me here today. Otherwise, if, by chance, I do not die, I am afraid that you all will not be able to eat and sleep in peace."


    The crowd laughed coldly.


    By chance?


    Where would such a chance emerge from?


    Ye Futian had to die. No other possibility was allowed.


    "Today, we have come here to settle the dispute of the Original Realm. To not involve the Heavenly Mandate Realm cultivators, Ye Futian shall choose the location of the battlefield," said Jian Ao, the College Chief of Tianshen Academy. He made it seem as though they were killing Ye Futian to enact justice and quell the conflict between the various forces of the Original Realm.


    The dispute in the Original Realm stemmed from Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced over at Jian Ao. This College Chief of Tianshen Academy was truly hypocritical.


    To this day, Ye Futian still did not understand why Jian Ao wanted him dead.


    If Jian Ao had merely wanted to leave him to die last time, Ye Futian could still understand everything that occurred afterward. Yet, Jian Ao had not merely done so and had instead wanted to kill him.


    Jian Ao had never revealed this desire so openly as others had. He had always done it so obscurely. They also did not have any grudges or clashes between them. Hence, many people easily overlooked this point: Jian Ao had no reason to desire Ye Futian''s death.


    "Let us fight in the sky," Ye Futian suggested.


    In this battle, only those who participated in it would fight each other. Those who did not take part would not be involved in it. No one else could meddle in this battle without authorization. To maintain order in the Original Realm, Princess Donghuang had laid down such rules. No one dared to defy these rules easily.


    The various forces all did not mind. Today, they had come primarily to kill Ye Futian. As for the others who took part, if they could kill them, they would. If they couldn''t, it did not matter.


    Of course, in battle, they did not hesitate to be ruthless. By killing more people, they could also eliminate future troubles.


    At that moment, another resplendent divine light shone down from the heavens above. The space seemed to split apart, and beams of brilliant light rained down. Many people looked up at the light and saw a group of silhouettes appearing high in the sky.


    In the spot where the light was most dazzling, a stunning silhouette appeared there. She did not seem like a person from the mortal plane but instead appeared as though she was an unattainable goddess from Heaven itself. It was the first time many of the Heavenly Mandate Realm members saw her, yet they instantly knew who she was.


    Only Princess Donghuang had such elegance and talent. Many people felt their hearts waver. This was their first time seeing the daughter of Donghuang the Great, ruler of the Divine Prefecture.


    For this battle, Princess Donghuang had come in person.


    "Your Highness," the various cultivators in mid-air bowed slightly in respect towards the silhouette, who had appeared. Ye Futian similarly looked over there. To this day, he still could not grasp the intentions of the daughter of the Great Emperor. He did not know what she was thinking of.


    "Ye Futian welcomes Your Highness," Ye Futian bowed and said, "After the battle today, Ye Futian has a request for Your Highness."


    "What sort of request?" Princess Donghuang asked.


    "During the war for the Original Realm, regardless of whether or not I had kept anything hidden, I still helped the Original Realm win the battle," Ye Futian said. "I dare not take credit for this alone. However, now the various forces want to kill me because I apparently did not give it my all and resulted in their members dying. Since the forces of the Original Realm are so united and righteous, after I die, I hope the dispute in the Original Realm can truly be quelled. I hope the various forces will not try to use this opportunity to retaliate and eradicate the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the forces allied to it. I hope that the conflict of the Heavenly Mandate Realm does not continue."


    Just because he had not given his all, the other forces had used this excuse to press charges against him and wanted to kill him. If so, what reason would they find to eradicate the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the forces allied to it?


    "I have said that your death will be the end of this war," Princess Donghuang assured him.


    "Thank you, Your Highness." Ye Futian bowed slightly. He then looked at the others and said, "You all have come to kill me in the name of justice. I hope that in the future, you will not betray that principle. If you all go against the Heavenly Mandate Academy, then everything that you are doing now will be considered for personal gain, and you all will have deceived the Princess into convicting and killing me."


    The members of the other forces frowned. This Ye Futian was relentless. Before he died, he actually wanted to restrict them. Was he trying to settle his affairs?


    Was he trying to do one last thing for the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the forces allied to it?


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the various cultivators all looked at Ye Futian. Up until this moment, he was still looking out for them?


    They felt saddened. Many of them looked at Ye Futian with more respect in their eyes than when they looked at Princess Donghuang.


    They seemed to harbor some resentment towards her.


    As the daughter of the Great Emperor, Princess Donghuang absolutely had the ability to prevent this battle. However, she had not done so. Although she had rewarded Ye Futian, what meaning did it have? It seemed more like a vain formality. For her to not stop this battle was the same as silently acknowledging all of this.


    A hero who had turned the tide during the war for the Original Realm had been abandoned. Hence, many people harbored resentment toward her.


    In the distant tavern, Mei Ting looked up into the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He looked at the princess. She was the most beloved person in the Divine Prefectures of the East. Donghuang the Great doted on her excessively.


    If she knew that the youth below was related to Emperor Ye Qing, would she kill him herself?


    Or should it be said that she already knew of this and was making use of others to kill him?


    However, this was unimportant. Mei Ting continued to drink and watch the proceedings quietly.


    Today, he was merely an observer.


    Right then, Ye Futian''s group continued forward, heading up high into the sky. The surrounding cultivators also joined them merrily, especially the members of Heavenly Mandate Academy. Their silhouettes rose high into the sky.


    "Do not approach," Lord Taixuan ordered as he lowered his head and looked at them below. His tone was stern as he warned the Heavenly Mandate Academy''s cultivators not to approach the battlefield.


    Those who were below the upper-level Renhuang Plane could not survive this battle at all. They would perish if they were caught in the aftermath. Hence, Lord Taixuan did not allow them to get near.


    Only then did the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy stop their advance. Yu Sheng clenched his fists as demonic will circled around him. He looked at the silhouettes in the sky with a cold and furious look. He would remember the people who participated in today''s battle. In the future, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would eventually pay this debt back.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at the white-haired silhouette. There was a look of pain in her eyes. Although Ye Futian had driven her away, she still did not leave. She wanted both of them to make it through this crisis together. Yet, it seemed impossible. Even Ye Futian and the others believed that there was no hope.


    Hua Fengliu, Dou Zhao, Qi Xuangang, and many others looked up into the sky. They clearly remembered the conversations that they had with Ye Futian these past few days. It was just that they had a lot of questions regarding what Ye Futian had said to them. They did not understand his words fully.


    The silhouettes rose higher and higher into the sky and gradually became blurry. High up in the sky, Ye Futian and the others ascended. Very soon, they had left the ground far behind until they reached the edge of the sky. Only then did they stop.


    Ye Futian looked around at the crowd, at the familiar figures around him. He felt a warmth inside as he said, "Thank you, everyone."


    "Let me send you off," Lord Taixuan said.


    Ye Futian nodded his head solemnly!

 1853 War of Destruction

    A chaotic storm rampaged. Right now, the top figures of the Realms stood in various parts of the space.


    Ye Futian stood in the center. Lord Taixuan, Emperor Nan, Divine Palace Palace Lord, and the others circled him. Right now, they appeared very calm as they looked at the cultivators in various directions. They were all top figures.


    Most of the people who participated in this battle were still the local top cultivators of the Original Realm. After all, there were restrictions on the members of the Divine Prefecture. As long as they participated in this battle, they remained in the Original Realm for ten years without leaving.


    Ten years was not a long time, but they still did not want to stay here for ten years. Moreover, the lineup to kill Ye Futian today was more than enough. There was no chance of them failing. There was no suspense at all.


    Otherwise, Martial God Clan and Sky Reaching School would not have joined in.


    Although they had some conflicts with Ye Futian, the hatred between them did not run deep in reality. The reason why they wanted to eliminate Ye Futian was primarily to prevent future troubles. The Heavenly Mandate Academy and their allied forces were too powerful. Once Ye Futian developed, the Heavenly Mandate Academy allied forces and the possessors of flawless Divine Wheels beside him would directly rule the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    When that time came, who could contend with them?


    Setting aside whether or not Ye Futian would seek revenge on them, even if he didn''t, other forces like Yuanyang Clan, Xiao clan, and many more forces were close to Ye Futian, whereas they had had friction with Ye Futian. If so, who would rise and fall did not need to be mentioned as it was understood in a glance.


    Hence, Ye Futian had to die.


    If Ye Futian perished, at least they could still maintain their current status quo.


    When Shen clan and Golden Divine Nation approached them, they had agreed to act without hesitating for too long. Even Ye Futian could not escape from such a lineup. The plan was flawless.


    As for the alliance of Divine Palace and Golden Divine Nation, they were not too worried. It was an alliance originally established to deal with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. As long as Ye Futian died, everything would end. They did not have so many scruples over it. They were not concerned about how the Heavenly Mandate Academy developed afterward; the cultivators of the academy would not be able to threaten these top forces.


    They might be able to suppress the cultivators of the academy from time to time to keep them in check.


    Of course, Princess Donghuang, Spear Emperor Du You, and the other cultivators were also here. They had personally come to observe the battle.


    "Since the end result is determined, why do we need to fight this battle?" Jiao Ao, the College Chief of Tianshen Academy asked the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    "What does the College Chief want?" Emperor Nan responded to Jian Ao.


    In reality, Emperor Nan also did not understand. Jian Ao was the person with the least reason to take action on Ye Futian. Regardless of how powerful the Heavenly Mandate Academy or Ye Futian were, the Tianshen Academy would still be the training holy land of the Central Emperor Realm. There was no harm even if the Heavenly Mandate Academy surpassed them. After all, they were not sects. Only the fame of Tianshen Academy would be affected.


    If Jian Ao had come to kill Ye Futian for this reason, his reasons were insufficient.


    "Emperor Nan, what are your intentions for joining this battle?" Jian Ao asked Emperor Nan back. Both of them could be considered the top cultivators of the Original Realm.


    Emperor Nan looked at Jian Ao. He did not respond, and he did not get the answer he wanted to hear from Jian Ao.


    Perhaps only Jian Ao himself knew.


    Divine sword Qinghe flew out from Emperor Nan''s hand and floated high in the sky. Instantly, endless green divine light enveloped the endless space. The light contained frightening and destructive Sword Will that seemed capable of destroying everything.


    Divine Palace Palace Lord also took a step forward, and a towering Divine Mountain immediately appeared around them. It enveloped Ye Futian''s figure within it. Divine Palace Palace Lord stood on top of the Divine Mountain. A stone tablet frenziedly expanded while emanating astonishing might.


    Lord Taixuan also stood atop the Divine Mountain. Guqin strings of the Great Path appeared around them. He extended his hands and used the Great Path in the surroundings as his guqin strings to play a song. It was the Song of the Lost Divine.


    From the sounds of the guqin, many people could sense sorrow as well as rage.


    This seemed to reflect Lord Taixuan''s current mood.


    The Dou tribe clan lord and the leader of the Clan of the Seven Slayers, stood to the left and right. One of them emanated an overbearing spirit from his body while the other had a murderous intent on him that covered the endless space.


    Xiao Dingtian and the clan lord of Yuanyang Clan also released their respective powerful auras. Dragon Master, Golden Raven Demonic Lord, Divine Elephant Emperor, and the other top figures of the Heavenly Mandate Realm surrounded Ye Futian, forming layers of defenses around him. In the sky, a frightening storm of the Great Path was swept up.


    The cultivators on the other side stood at different locations, allowing the storm to bash against them. They similarly had astonishing auras around their bodies.


    The three top cultivators of the Shen clan stood together. Divine halos emanated from their bodies. The brilliant halos destroyed all powers of the Great Path. An unparalleled spatial storm rampaged, cleaving the space apart.


    The three top cultivators of the Shen clan all had Divine Eyes. They looked ahead at the sky above. Sharp blades that cleaved the space apart appeared from different locations and slashed towards where the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were.


    It was the Tianshen Cleave that could slash through all existences.


    Under the frightening storm of the Tianshen Cleave, spatial cracks seemed to appear. Upon reaching the levels of the three top cultivators of the Shen clan, they could already rip apart the space of the Original Realm. Before, during the battle in the Shadow Realm, when Spear Emperor Du You and the Lord of the Underworld had fought, Spear Emperor Du You had forcefully penetrated the space of the Original Realm and led the Lord of the Underworld away.


    Swoosh. A green divine light that was frightening beyond comparison radiated. Divine sword Qinghe flew out again from Emperor Nan''s hand and directly pierced through the space. It stabbed up into the sky above. Endless green divine light swept out. When the menacing storm of the Tianshen Cleave reached the area of the green divine light, it actually gradually shattered into dust under the light. It was as though no attack could approach the domain of the green divine light.


    The various cultivators stared at Emperor Nan. As expected of one of the peak existences of the Divine Prefecture. He used his domain to cover Ye Futian. If they did not have a powerful enough force today, it would have been truly difficult to kill Ye Futian. After all, the lineup of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was also terrifyingly powerful.


    However, this time, it was also impossible for Emperor Nan to protect Ye Futian.


    The winds and the clouds around them shifted. The destroyed Tianshen Cleave technique sealed this region within itself. They naturally could tell that Ye Futian''s side was using an attack as a defensive measure. It was to protect Ye Futian within.


    The two strongest cultivators of Golden Divine Nation stood in the sky above. It was as though they had become deities. Their figures became majestic and authoritative. They wielded golden divine spears in their hands. The Sigh of the Divine God sounded, and the Great Path resonated with it, blocking the sounds of the guqin. At the same time, formless destructive storms swept downwards.


    Rumble!


    Bolts of frightening golden lightning struck down from the sky. The two deities sent their two divine spears stabbing out at the same time. From the heavens above, a beam of light shone down. The heaven-slaying light immediately penetrated through the domain of the green divine light and pierced towards Ye Futian at its center.


    Another huge rumble could be heard. The gigantic stone tablet appeared. It seemed to become a huge handprint that could block out the sky. It charged up towards the divine spears. Terrifying storms of the Great Path rampaged around them. The rumbling sounds persisted. The stone tablet released unparalleled divine light that attacked the two brothers of Golden Divine Nation, Gai Cang, and Gai Qiong.


    The cultivators of Solar Divine Palace, Celestial Worthy Temple, Holy Land of Taichu, and other forces released heavenly might that filled the skies one after another. In reality, these forces had more than one top figure. Solar Divine Palace and Celestial Worthy Temple were branch powers of the Divine Prefecture. Top figures from both forces had come. However, these top figures had yet to act. They did not need so many people. The current lineup was more than enough to kill Ye Futian. Before they came, they had already discussed who would join the battle.


    Solar Divine Palace Palace Lord stood high in the sky. The vast and endless land seemed to be covered by a sun. A frightening solar storm swept up. It was blazing hot. Even the power of the Great Path was burnt to ash and destroyed in the heat of these scorching solar winds.


    He walked forward step by step until he was in the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy cultivators. The destructive solar storm continued to rampage. He extended his hand, and the endless power of the solar storm gathered within his palm. A Sun God sword immediately appeared.


    This Sun God sword was forged from the Divine Fire of the Sun. The solar winds that circulated around the divine sword could incinerate all powers. He lowered his head and looked down below. With a palm strike, the Sun God sword immediately pierced through the power of the Great Path and continued shooting downwards.


    Divine sword Qinghe shot up straight into the sky. Green divine light became a destructive storm that shot towards the Sun God sword. It caused the Sun God sword to stop descending. Two different powers gathered at one point, forming a destructive spiral of power of the Great Path. From the ground, this spiral appeared as though two devastating storms were swirling together. The scene was astonishing.


    The lord of Celestial Worthy Temple pressed downwards with his palm. A huge rumbling sound could be heard, and a gigantic mountain-like handprint pressed down from above.


    The Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star forged an unparalleled Ziwei grand matrix. Countless stars circled the grand matrix. The Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star wore a long purple robe. His long hair fluttered in the wind. Purple divine light shot out from his pupils as he looked down.


    Instantly, the grand matrix of stars pressed towards the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. In the middle of the grand matrix, there were pillars of destructive light that eradicate all existences.


    The various top cultivators continued to attack. Each of their attacks contained might that could destroy the world. Individually, they were all giant figures who dominated their opponents. Behind them, there were still many mighty figures who currently had yet to attack. They were merely observing for now.


    Princess Donghuang and the cultivators from the Dark Court could see this epic battle. From the tavern, Mei Ting''s will was powerful enough to cover such a distance, so he also could observe the battlefield.


    However, down on the ground, in all regions of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, countless people were looking up into the sky. They had no means of watching the battle. High in the sky, the destructive swirling storm of the Great Path covered the sky and blocked out the sun. Frightening divine light radiated. Even though they were very far away, the people on the ground could sense the heavenly might emanating from the heavens above.


    Ordinary Renhuangs were not qualified to witness this battle. If they observed up close, they would be swept away and destroyed immediately!

 1854 The Hour of Doom

    Powerful Renhuangs secretly thought to themselves as they observed the battle. Although the people around Ye Futian were extremely powerful and they were all mighty figures at the peak of the realms, the lineup of their opponents that surrounded them was very menacing. With the opponent attacking and Ye Futian''s side being on the defensive, they were already forced into a passive position. They could not hold off the attacks of the enemy at all.


    The spears of Golden Divine Nation, the Tianshen Cleave technique of Shen clan, the Sun God sword of Solar Divine Palace, the large suppressing handprint of Celestial Worthy Temple, and the grand matrix of School of the Emperor Star��when all attacks of all these cultivators landed at the same time, the space where Ye Futian was seemed to be flooded with destructive divine light. The defensive powers that Ye Futian''s group put up were also constantly being sliced apart.


    The leader of Sky Reaching School stepped forward. A tower that reached the sky appeared. He pointed his palm toward Ye Futian, and immediately, the 81-story Sky Reaching Tower radiated unparalleled divine light. The tower came crashing down from above. Everywhere it passed, the Great Path in the space turned to dust.


    The towering, ancient mountain that Divine Palace Palace Lord had set up was flattened and crushed little by little. Loud rumbling sounds could be heard, and more and more cracks appeared in the Great Path. The 81-story Sky Reaching Tower continued crashing down, attempting to flatten the space below.


    An unparalleled battle intent burst forth from the body of the Dou tribe clan lord. His Will of the Fighting God activated layer by layer. He activated eight layers consecutively. The terrifying battle intent alone could kill Renhuangs. Beams of divine light swept out and formed astonishing waves that crashed toward the Sky Reaching Tower, descending upon them from the sky above.


    His body became that of a war god. He became towering and gigantic, as though a deity had descended. His head reached the sky, and his feet touched the ground. He raised a hand, and his golden palm that contained intense battle intent attacked the Sky Reaching Tower. A clang sounded as though two ritual implements collided. Waves of destructive light swept out into their surroundings.


    The various cultivators were battling while surrounding Ye Futian, protecting him in their midst.


    As for Ye Futian himself, right now, he was quietly floating in midair. The power of Yin flowed over his body. An extremely brilliant will of the emperor radiated from him. Such a dazzling light would surely catch the eye of many if it were any ordinary time.


    However, right now, no one appreciated it, and no one had noticed it. The battlefield around him was too frightening. Battles between peak figures were erupting all around him.


    With the combined might of the three top figures of the Shen clan, the domain of the green divine light released by Emperor Nan was gradually invaded. The rampaging spatial storm enveloped his domain within itself, separating this space of the Great Path and forming an independent space.


    "I will lead Emperor Nan away. I will leave this area to the rest of you," Shen Gao spoke up. He and the Shen clan lord moved forward at the same time while Shen Ji stepped back instead. Shen Gao was the top figure in the Shen clan back in the day. He went to the Divine Prefecture to train and returned. His ability was extremely powerful. There was also the clan lord of Shen clan, who was also a giant figure in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He was truly renowned.


    The two of them together were enough to deal with Emperor Nan. Both of them leading Emperor Nan away was also to be on the safe side. This was to prevent a figure of Emperor Nan''s level from complicating the situation here.


    As for Shen Ji, he could remain here and continue fighting to kill Ye Futian.


    "Emperor Nan, you cannot stop this," the Shen clan lord said to Emperor Nan. He had barely uttered these words when a formless spatial storm circled the region where both of them, as well as Emperor Nan, were. The Divine Light of Space radiated endless halos of the Great Path of Space.


    The next moment, it was as though the space shifted. The three top cultivators disappeared at the same time.


    Shen Gao and the clan lord of Shen clan used their powerful understanding of the workings of the Great Path of Space to forcefully pry Emperor Nan away from the battlefield. The two of them would deal with Emperor Nan while the others continued to kill Ye Futian.


    Without the protection of Emperor Nan, the attacks of many other cultivators immediately descended, no longer affected by the domain of the green divine light.


    "Why do we need to continue this meaningless struggle?" Jian Ao, the College Chief of Tianshen Academy, said with a sigh. He took a step forward and looked at the battlefield below. His palm extended forwards in front of his body. Instantly, a storm of the Great Path swept up with his body as its center.


    Within this storm, a divine light shone brightly, and a divine picture actually appeared. Jian Ao waved his hand, and it seemed as though a spring rain poured down, drenching everything without a sound.


    The divine picture nourished all things as well as the Great Path around them. It constantly expanded, becoming bigger and bigger. It then rolled down below. The attacks were all swept into the divine picture by the power of its Great Path. It was as though the attacks were consumed by it.


    Many people narrowed their eyes. Their expressions became solemn. The College Chief of Tianshen Academy, the top academy in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, had made his move.


    Divine Palace Palace Lord swept a glance at the dazzling divine picture. He waved his hand, and the heavens immediately roared. Endless aura of swordsmanship emerged and was indestructible. He raised his hand and pointed upward. Countless divine swords pointed at the divine picture.


    The divine picture kept expanding and covered the sky. It kept all that was swept into it within itself for later use.


    Rumble.


    A huge rumble sounded. The heavens and the earth split apart. The divine picture seemed to be formed from Jiutian Divine Thunder. In an instant, it became world-ending lightning. Billions of bolts of lightning descended and struck everything. The ancient mountain set up by Divine Palace Palace Lord was immediately shattered and returned to nothingness.


    It seemed that this divine picture only contained one attack.


    Jian Ao waved his hand. Another divine picture flew out. It seemed to be a Scroll of Tianshen. It also seemed like a piece of paper. However, in the eyes of cultivators of this level, even a piece of paper would be extraordinary.


    This piece of paper flew out and immediately exploded into millions and millions of Sword Will currents. They descended upon the various cultivators on Ye Futian''s side, causing them to defend themselves frantically.


    What was even more frightening was that Jian Ao continued to wave his hand. He actually waved it more than ten times in an instant. Each piece of paper that flew out was a devastating attack.


    Very soon, there was not a calm place left in the sky. There were only chaotic currents of devastation.


    He was too powerful; many people thought to themselves as their hearts trembled.


    High in the sky, Princess Donghuang was slightly stirred when she saw this scene. As a clan lord of the Jian clan, Jian Ao had already been a renowned mighty presence for many years. Later on, he was sent to the Original Realm.


    As the leader of one of the Divine Prefecture''s top clans, one could imagine how powerful his ability was. He was an existence, who stood at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Although he had never made any moves before, no one would suspect his true ability.


    If this continued, the defenses of Ye Futian''s group would be torn apart very quickly. Princess Donghuang was somewhat surprised. She had never imagined that these people would be so efficient. From the looks of it, they did not want to give Ye Futian even a shred of opportunity.


    Down below, many Renhuangs who were observing the battle also saw this scene play out. They clenched their fists as they secretly sighed inside.


    Ye Futian would not be able to avoid the inevitable outcome. For Ye Futian, it was difficult for him to escape from this battle. It was unavoidable. His only way out of this was to die.


    Rumble!


    Another shockingly loud thud sounded. Everyone saw that the domain was finally breached, and their defenses were torn apart. All the cultivators gathered and pressed towards Ye Futian.


    This time, in the sky, the Sun God sword absorbed the halo of the sun. It slashed towards Ye Futian while emanating the flames of the sun.


    However, the sword was blocked by Lord Taixuan. His Great Path had transformed into strings, and his power of the Great Path could directly attack the enemy through the strings.


    Ye Futian himself stood there and observed the destructive storm rampaging. His gaze remained calm. He had mentally prepared himself for this battle. This was a battle that they were sure to lose. There was no suspense to it.


    Many cultivators were willing to fight for him, but before the battle began, he had advised them to place their own safety as the top priority.


    He hoped that no one would encounter anything bad because of him.


    The destructive current and terrifying storm swept towards his side. The storm covered every single corner of the sky. No one was spared.


    Those top figures were starting to engage in close-quarter combat. They had actually given up attacking from a distance. Instead, they had advanced to the area where Ye Futian was. Since all their long-distance attacks were blocked, they had no choice but to kill Ye Futian in close-quarter combat.


    One by one, the cultivators standing guard around Ye Futian stepped out and went in different directions, battling the enemies head-on.


    The rampaging storm of the Great Path was approaching, and it ran amok around Ye Futian. Around him, the mighty cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were still protecting him. When the aftermath of some attacks approached Ye Futian, the cultivators would destroy the attacks.


    At the same time, in their surroundings, the tears caused by the fragmentation of the space were increasing. The tears grew deeper and deeper as they became more and more menacing.


    "Get ready to charge into their midst," shouted Jian Ao, the College Chief of Tianshen Academy. As soon as he finished speaking, pages flew out from his body and floated in the sky.


    The next moment, these floating pages of paper spun in the air and transformed into scrolls of pictures. Each picture was a unique type of attack of the Great Path.


    "Go." As Jian Ao''s order spoke, countless attacks descended instantaneously. At the same time, silhouettes traversed the space and slashed their way downwards.


    Tears ripped apart the sky. All the cultivators charged downwards. The cultivators around Ye Futian unleashed their most terrifying attacks to defend against the enemy. However, they were being separated as the crowd flushed downwards. Their formation disintegrated. Their defense was not as sturdy as it was before.


    Moreover, a few cultivators from the opposing side had charged into their formation. Above their heads were countless top figures. These top figures stared at Ye Futian as though he was already dead to them.


    "Your hour of doom is here," uttered Gai Cang from Golden Divine Nation. Today was the day when he would avenge Gai Shi Shi and the rest!

 1855 Giving Up

    Ye Futian was being protected amidst the various cultivators. However, after Emperor Nan was led away from the battle, Jian Ao from Tianshen Academy made his move. The opening in their defenses was finally broken through. One by one, the enemy cultivators charged into the inner circle that was being protected.


    Of course, this region was huge in reality. Everyone who participated in this war today were mighty figures. Although they were protecting Ye Futian, the shockwaves from the exchanges were terrifying. Their attacks frequently swept out for hundreds of thousands of miles. Hence, they were not just beside Ye Futian. In reality, they were spread out across a very big space.


    Even though they had made their way into the inner circle, the place was still big enough to accommodate the raging war.


    In the outer regions of the sky above, menacing crimson lightning suddenly flashed. In the darkness, a crimson storm descended. Many people turned their heads and looked in the direction of the storm. Over there, a silhouette appeared.


    It was Sky River Great Elder. Many people were slightly astonished. Terrifying crimson currents swept across the sky. He swept a glance down below, and then his body disappeared, becoming a beam of crimson light.


    In the sky, the beam of crimson light spanned across a few hundred miles. Princess Donghuang also saw this scene. Spear Emperor Du You, standing beside her, frowned and said, "Your Highness."


    It seemed like Du You was asking her something.


    However, Princess Donghuang did not say anything. Du You understood her intention: the Princess did not plan to interfere in this matter.


    Since Sky River Great Elder joined the battle, then he would be considered as one of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    On the battlefield, Shen Ji launched an attack at Ye Futian. The other two Shen clan cultivators had drawn Emperor Nan away from here, leaving Shen Ji behind. However, Lord Taixuan was playing the guqin of the Great Path in the space above Ye Futian. Countless guqin strings flew towards Shen Ji. Each one of the guqin strings contained a menacing Sword Will.


    Moreover, the Sword Will gathered and coalesced into a divine sword, which could reverse the Great Path.


    Rumble. The attacks from both sides collided. The destructive Sword Will enveloped Shen Ji''s body. He frowned as he sensed a sudden danger. He emanated the aura of the Great Path of Space. His figure morphed into nothingness right away as he prepared to disappear from this region.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. Sharp shrieks sounded as the space turned into a crimson grand matrix. Shen Ji was located at the center of the matrix. The menacing crimson grand matrix was corroding his Way, and it was even gushing into his body.


    Shen Ji''s gaze revealed a chilly look. Spatial divine halos radiated from him as he unleashed the Tianshen Cleave. He attempted to rip apart the crimson grand matrix with his astonishing cleaving force. However, at the same time, two beams of destructive light appeared above and beneath him.


    The sound of guqin could be heard as the Great Path flowed in reverse. Lord Taixuan sent out an attack with the Fleeting Divine Sword. When the sword sprang forward, it was as though time was flowing in reverse, and everything was being wiped out.


    On the other side was Sky River Great Elder''s crimson divine sword. A terrifying storm, which could destroy the heavens and earth, was stirred up by the crimson divine sword. It was like a swirl, crushing everything within its path.


    Shen Ji had seen this sword technique before. In the day, Sky River Great Elder''s eldest disciple was known as the number one swordsman in the Tianhe Realm. This disciple had been killed by Shen Ji. The disciple had used this sword technique. Yet, due to the difference in their cultivation Planes, he was no match for Shen Ji. However, when Sky River Great Elder unleashed the might of this sword technique, it was not on the same level as the one that Shen Ji had seen before.


    Shen Ji''s expression became extremely ugly. Two astonishing divine swords slashed towards him at the same time. He unleashed the Tianshen Divine Halo on his body to its utmost limits. Storms that sliced apart the space erupted from his body. He waved his hands both up and down at the same time, and spatial blades sliced the space apart.


    Yet, he still could not block the two-prong attack from above and below. The divine swords slashed straight towards him. He could only block one of the attacks.


    He stood in the middle and faced the two-prong attack. Light that destroyed the space shot out from his eyes. With a loud cry, he extended both of his palms to his sides. The space was trembling violently. A divine sword flew out from his body and cleaved towards the Fleeting Divine Sword. His hands then suddenly grabbed out into the air, accompanied by his loud shout. Even space was distorted. There was a faint look of terror in his eyes.


    He felt that he could not annihilate these two attacks.


    Yet, at that moment, no one actually came to help him. The other two cultivators from the Shen clan were not here. The other cultivators did not seem concerned at all that he was being surrounded. Their only goal was to kill Ye Futian. This was their common goal.


    As for Shen Ji, if he were to perish here today, would there be any detriments to the others?


    None at all.


    If Shen Ji died, the power of the Shen clan would even be weakened. For the forces of the Central Emperor Realm and other forces, this was beneficial to them. That way, of the three top figures in the Shen clan, only two would remain.


    The current Shen clan was somewhat powerful. If Shen Ji died, it would instead balance out the powers.


    Hence, at that moment, many people had very tacitly decided to do nothing. On the contrary, they used this opportunity when two cultivators attacked Shen Ji to charge towards Ye Futian. They wanted to eliminate Ye Futian as quickly as possible before things became complicated.


    In the battlefield, the divine swords from above and below left behind beams of sword light. A roar of fury and terror could be heard. Then, everything in that space was reduced to dust and dissipated. Even a powerful figure like Shen Ji had his body reduced to nothingness.


    Under the light of the sword, his soul scattered and dissipated.


    Menacing, deep, jet-black cracks appeared. They were terrifying. Many people shuddered inside when they saw this scene.


    In today''s battle, a giant figure at the peak had perished.


    Shen Ji from the Shen clan had died.


    From today onwards, the Shen clan was only left with two peak figures. Moreover, Shen Gao had always been training in the Divine Prefecture.


    Who knew what Shen Gao and the clan lord of Shen clan would feel when they discovered what happened here. Most likely, they would regret drawing Emperor Nan away from here.


    If they were around, Shen Ji would not have been killed. However, to kill Ye Futian, they had drawn Emperor Nan away. No one could aid Shen Ji in his battle, and this resulted in his death.


    No one knew how they would feel when they returned.


    After Sky River Great Elder killed Shen Ji, a glint of sorrow flashed past in his eyes. In the past, Shen Ji was the sinner who led the Shen clan''s cultivators to invade the Tianhe Realm. His actions had resulted in the death of countless people.


    Now, Shen Ji had finally perished at the hands of Sky River Great Elder. However, this was still not enough. Shen clan needed to be eradicated.


    His daughter, his disciples, and many other innocent lives were killed. Shen Ji''s life alone was insufficient to settle the score.


    However, there was no time to ponder upon that now. Crimson demonic might churned as he strode forward and advanced to another battlefield. A silhouette blocked in front of him. He was a top figure from the Mo clan of the Divine Prefecture.


    The Mo clan cultivator had merely swept a glance at Sky River Great Elder, and he knew that the latter was carrying a demonic item with him.


    In another battlefield where Ye Futian was, a menacing Sky Reaching Tower appeared in the space above Ye Futian. The 81-story tower spun as divine halos rained down. The tower caused Dragon Master and other cultivators to retreat. Renhuangs from various forces charged into this region and engaged in battles with Dragon Master and the rest.


    Rumbles. Divine halos pressed down. The might of the Great Path penetrated through layers of space and blasted Ye Futian. Brilliant divine light shimmered on Ye Futian''s body as he was unleashing the will of the emperor. He was also covered with divine armor. Despite all that, the divine halo attack by the Sky Reaching Tower was still unbearable for him. The aftershock wrecked his body. His internal organs were on the brink of crumbling due to the shock.


    The clan lord of Dou tribe raised his arm and sent out an attack. His strike once again hit the Sky Reaching Tower. Sky Reaching Master coldly snorted. He took a step forward and directly stood on top of the tower. As he put his weight on the tower, the tower plummeted from the sky. He intended to crush the figures beneath with the tower.


    Divine Palace Palace Lord desired to lend aid to this side of the battlefield. However, the College Chief of Tianshen Academy, Jian Ao, extended both his arms. Rolled-up scrolls flew out, and as they unraveled, they encircled the space. Endless attacks were unleashed from the scrolls, suppressing Divine Palace Palace Lord.


    "Why are you still struggling?" Jian Ao said. His gaze pierced through the sky. Numerous seals flew out from the pages of scrolls and wrecked the cultivators. One of the terrifying seals landed directly beside Ye Futian. Even though someone blocked and weakened its might, it still sent Ye Futian flying from the shockwave and made him cough up blood.


    They could not hold off the enemy. One could imagine how difficult it was to protect one person from the powerful attacks of so many top figures. It was almost impossible.


    Ye Futian understood this as well.


    No one here could deal with the ability of Jian Ao, the College Chief of Tianshen Academy. He was one of the people who stood at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    As Ye Futian saw the people beside him getting hurt one after another, he lifted his head and looked up at the various cultivators around them who were charging towards him. He then said, "Seniors, please give up."


    When Divine Palace Palace Lord and the others heard these words from Ye Futian, they fell silent. Before the battle today even began, they already understood that the outcome had already been determined.


    A terrifying storm of the Great Path swept across the sky. Once again, the sound of collisions could be heard. Several cultivators were injured.


    With Ye Futian''s figure as the center, everyone else drew closer to him, circling the area around his body.


    Beside Ye Futian, the gazes of Lord Taixuan, Divine Palace Palace Lord, and the other cultivators were as cold as ice as they glanced around at the people in mid-air.


    However, the other party did not mind. The looks they gave Ye Futian were burning with murderous intent.


    They also understood that from the very beginning, there was no way for Ye Futian to make it out alive. It was because of this that some forces joined in this fight.


    "Since Renhuang Ye himself understands, then we do not need to fight anymore. We don''t need to increase our casualties and affect the ability of the Nine Realms," Jian Ao proclaimed in a loud voice. The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked at Jian Ao. He truly desired Ye Futian''s death.


    Was he truly doing this for peace in the Nine Realms?


    No one believed that was so.


    "Futian, we can still fight," Lord Taixuan said.


    Ye Futian shook his head and said, "Lord Taixuan, Seniors, for all of you to have done all this for me, it is already enough. Legitimacy belongs to the victors. Since so many people in the Nine Realms want me dead, let''s grant their wish."


    Lord Taixuan and the others took a step forward. Their powerful auras enveloped Ye Futian''s body, forming layers of dazzling light shrouds. It seemed that they were still dissatisfied.


    Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan and shook his head. Ye Futian then suddenly smiled and looked at the crowd. He said, "College Chief Jian, I will remember you."


    Today, with Jian Ao present, no one could manipulate the situation. It was firmly in the control of the other party.


    "You can blame me all you want," Jian Ao replied. "In the Nine Realms, you showed the greatest talent. I also did not wish to witness such a scene. Nevertheless, the wishes of the people cannot be defied. After your death and this turmoil, the future of the Nine Realms will be even more prosperous."


    "You are still so hypocritical," Ye Futian said mockingly. "Who will be the one to kill me?"

 1856 Destruction

    Did Ye Futian finally give up?


    All eyes were fastened on him. This number one genius in the Original Realm, now asking for his own death.


    But everyone understood that as the battle reached this point, the outcome was all but determined. He couldn''t stay alive when more than half of the top figures in the Nine Realms wanted him dead.


    Besides, the cultivators from the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm also desired his demise, so how could he stay alive?


    If he continued to fight, it would only drag down the people who were around him.


    Therefore, Ye Futian finally decided to give up.


    Beneath the sky, inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, those with weak cultivation had no idea what had happened above, but those who were Renhuang knew. Some of them looked on with coldness, some were angry, and some clenched their fists tightly, a murderous intent permeated from them.


    However, none of them could help because no one could change any of it.


    "What''s going on?" Hua Fengliu couldn''t see anything, so he could only ask those around him, but no one answered him. It was not because they were unwilling, but because they didn''t want to be cruel.


    "Did he lie to me?" Hua Jieyu murmured. She felt so terrible, and her heart ached.


    And, this feeling seemed so familiar; it was so painful, yet so familiar.


    It was as if she had experienced it before.


    All these felt unbearable to her, but there was nothing she could do. Didn''t he explain all this with a smile? Didn''t he say that he would be fine?


    Was he lying to her?


    At this moment, a group of people walked out of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and headed toward the sky above. They wanted to see the battlefield for themselves and behold Ye Futian again.


    Xia Qingyuan was there too, her long black hair flying in the air. She was traveling fast, and there were tears in the corners of her eyes.


    Was this the reason why Ye Futian drove her away?


    So that she would return to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    A drop of a shining tear slid down her cheek as she sped up in the air.


    They were all extremely fast, rushing toward the battlefield above the sky.


    Hua Jieyu didn''t move; she was still standing there in a daze. At this moment, her mind was full of confusion, and it hurt her head. It was as if, suddenly, there were countless pictures appearing in her mind.


    A thought crossed her mind. Who was she? Where did she come from? And why was she born?


    She was Ye Futian''s wife, but why did she have no recollection of that at all?


    Scene after scene appeared in her mind, taunting her, making her head hurt, but her eyes were still fixed on the man in the void with some affection. She only knew that she was his wife and that Ye Futian was the person who was the kindest to her.


    Now, was he leaving her?


    Those who knew were silent and simply felt a sense of sadness. They were hoping for a miracle, but they had to face reality in the end. No matter how genius he was, no matter how many legends he had created, he couldn''t face a melee involving all the top forces from the entire Original Realm and still survive.


    Mei Ting was still drinking inside the tavern, but he had seen everything that happened on the battlefield.


    Shi Xie saw it too. He looked up at the sky, with a vicious smile in his eyes, and said, "It''s a pity. If he hadn''t killed so many cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm, perhaps I could have taken him away."


    "Could you have?" Mei Ting said with a casual glance at the other.


    This was the Original Realm. With the representatives of Donghuang the Great here, it was highly unlikely that the Princess would allow the Empty Divine Realm to take him away.


    Shi Xie looked at Mei Ting with a smile and said, "Perhaps this man is a super genius in the Outer Realm, but now, he perishes in the internal conflicts in the Original Realm."


    Mei Ting didn''t say anything. Internal conflict?


    Perhaps, in the eyes of Shi Xie, it seemed like internal conflicts. After all, they were all cultivators from Original Realm. But the Original Realm was vast, and they were all different forces fighting for their own interests, so it was far from being an internal conflict.


    Above the firmament, on the battlefield, those who laid siege to Ye Futian were not so anxious by contrast.


    The overall situation had been determined, as Ye Futian himself had asked for this, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy had given up its last resistance. Now, they were just one last step away.


    A group of men came over, standing in front of Ye Futian. They were top cultivators such as Jian Ao of the Tianshen Academy, Gai Cang of the Golden Divine Nation, the Hierophant of the Sky Reaching School, and the Palace Lord of the Solar Divine Palace, all standing above Ye Futian, enveloping the void with their divine might.


    It would be impossible for Ye Futian to escape now.


    Once they get started, Ye Futian would never leave here alive.


    But who would start them off?


    In the killing of this first genius in the Original Realm.


    But at this stage, some of them felt that they almost could not go through with it. It was not that they didn''t want to kill him, but that it was a rarity for such an enchanting genius to come out of the Original Realm, and now they had to destroy him themselves.


    There was no way around it. If they had been friends with Ye Futian before, they might have been willing to guarantee his safety.


    But since there were conflicts before, then it was better for Ye Futian to be dead so that they would not need to worry about him becoming a stepping stone for the rise of a Heavenly Mandate Academy Alliance in the future.


    "Golden Divine Nation should take the lead," someone said. The hatred between Ye Futian and Golden Divine Nation was the deepest and one that could not be resolved. There was also the Shen clan, but their cultivators were not present.


    In addition, many forces had participated in the last incident at the Divine Palace, so they were extremely worried and wanted to get rid of Ye Futian.


    Gai Cang glanced at the people surrounding Ye Futian, and they were all notable figures. To task him with killing Ye Futian was no doubt a way to lay all the hatred upon his head; how could he possibly allow that?


    Although the alliance formed by the Heavenly Mandate Academy might collapse in the future, and even if they dared to form the alliance again, they would repeat what they did this time. It was really nothing they need to concern themselves with.


    However, Gai Cang was not entirely comfortable with the idea for the Golden Divine Nation to shoulder such a task alone. What if they ended up like Shen Ji, used up and abandoned?


    Therefore, it was far better to do it together.


    "Since we are already at this point, let''s do it together, as a way to pay respect to the end of this number one genius of the Original Realm," Gai Cang said. He even went so far as to admit that Ye Futian was the number one genius in the Original Realm, but it was not something they could deny any longer.


    In the land of the Original Realm, not only was there no one who could stand side by side with Ye Futian; it was as if he was in a level all his own.


    "Good, let''s do it together then," someone responded.


    Ye Futian looked at the figures in the sky above, with the sacred and brilliant imperial radiance enveloping his body. Although he had given up, it seemed that he was still unwilling.


    Lord Taixuan and other cultivators also deployed the Might of Way around him. It turned into traces of light screen, and those cultivators let out a groan.


    The Sigh of the Divine God was heard, and the two great cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation were holding the golden divine spears. Divine lights fell from the sky, radiant and beautiful.


    In front of the Hierophant of the Sky Reaching School, the Sky Reaching Tower released an unparalleled brilliance, which erased everything in its path.


    The cultivators of the Solar Divine Palace summoned the Solar Divine Sword, as the Solar Divine Light appeared from the sky, to create a destructive force.


    Cultivators from all sides released their own power. At this moment, the area where Ye Futian was located was under horrific suffocation, as if it was difficult to withstand the oppressive force of this suffocation that was inside it.


    Ye Futian''s silvery hair was dancing frantically in the wind. He was without fear; there was only indifference. His cold eyes swept toward those men as if to carve them into his mind.


    "If I had several more decades, I could kill you all, " Ye Futian spat out with a cold voice.


    "Unfortunately, you won''t even have one more day." The golden spear in Gai Cang''s hand trembled. He said, "Kill."


    As soon as his voice fell, the golden divine spear pierced the sky, and a loud rumbling sound followed. The dazzling golden brilliance blinded those who were standing to witness this. Golden traces were left between the sky and the earth. Then, horrible cracks of Great Path appeared to have torn through the space, aiming at Ye Futian with a kill shot.


    At the moment when he took action, other cultivators did too. The Solar Divine Sword wiped out everything, slashed across the sky. The Sky Reaching Tower suppressed the sky and gave rise to a storm of destruction. A series of apocalyptic attacks came down at the same time. The firmament was about to collapse in total destruction, never mind someone of the Divine Wheel Second Order, cultivators of any realm when facing an attack of this level would surely die.


    "No��"


    In the distance, among those who rushed in from the sky below, Xia Qingyuan made a frightened and desperate sound. Her face was pale, her long black hair was a mess, dancing wildly in the air. Her heart was twitching, was bleeding.


    In her mind, she seemed to recall all the memories of how she got acquainted with Ye Futian. In the past, they often quarreled, and one would not yield to the other. She was always annoyed by Ye Futian but gradually became accustomed to him.


    And without her realizing when, she found that he had firmly implanted himself in her heart, an indelible existence. So, she had been silently accompanying him, from Emperor Xia''s Realm to Crimson Dragon Realm, and now to the Nine Realms, experiencing many challenges with him, some between life and death.


    But now, she saw a series of devastating attacks, as well as that terrifying crack. Those top figures unleashed one fatal blow after another, and none of them held back. They had released their most powerful attack right away without giving Ye Futian a chance to fight back, clearly wanting him to die once and for all.


    The attacks of all the cultivators who had descended converged together and destroyed the space, causing dark spatial cracks to appear, hideous and terrifying.


    Traces of devastating storms radiated toward the surrounding spaces, and the bodies of those around it, such as Lord Taixuan, were shaking uncontrollably. Their robes fluttered violently as the halo of destruction swept across the sky and continued into the distance.


    "Puh..." As the residual might swept over them, Xia Qingyuan and the others groaned. She spat out a mouthful of blood, her face pale.


    She was so far away, and it was only the residual might from the attack that had already been partially blocked by Lord Taixuan and the others. Still, when it fell on them, it had injured them considerably. Ye Futian, who was in the center of the storm, was facing an unimaginable slaughter.


    The storm of destruction was still raging in that space, and those deep cracks seemed to have torn open a dark passage.


    But Ye Futian was no longer there.


    It seemed that the soul had scattered, disappeared completely, and was completely destroyed.


    In the sky below, inside the Heavenly Mandate City, at an endless distance, even they could see the light beams of destruction falling from the sky and piercing through that space. At this moment, they seemed to sense something foreboding.


    "Don''t." Hua Jieyu held her head with both hands. She seemed to be in even more pain.


    Seeing her reaction, Hua Fengliu let out a sigh. He was still looking up at the sky as he slowly turned to walk away. At this moment, he seemed hunched over a bit more and appeared even older.


    How senseless.


    "Why did I accept this unruly disciple back then?" Hua Fengliu mumbled under his breath. His eyes seemed a little moist.


    Not a day had gone by in peace. Didn''t he say that everything was going to be fine?


    Could all this be true?

 1857 Leaving and Returning

    In the sky above, the cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation looked at those dark cracks and heaved a sigh of relief. This time they had finally achieved their goal. After Ye Futian''s death, Heavenly Mandate Academy would no longer be a threat.


    The aura on their bodies gradually retracted, as they had promised previously to Princess Donghuang that when Ye Futian died, it would be the end of everything.


    Gai Cang''s eyes were cold and indifferent. Too bad they couldn''t kill them all. They should have taken this opportunity to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy once and for all, but the pretext they used for their attack against Ye Futian was that Ye Futian didn''t do his best in that battle, thus negatively affected the others in the Alliance of the Original Realm. Now, if they proceed to slaughter the Heavenly Mandate Academy, it would be a blatant breach of the agreement they had made with Princess Donghuang.


    Moreover, the Princess had promised not to interfere in this battle, in the hopes that the Original Realm would restore its order, choosing to sacrifice Ye Futian so that the Original Realm may return to the way it was before without more killings. If they continue to push their limit at this time, nothing good will come out of it.


    Not only now, but in the future, all the principalities from the Divine Prefecture may need to tone down a bit more when they come here.


    At this moment, two figures moved toward the place where Ye Futian was last seen, surprised many who were present. They saw a very beautiful woman, and the deep, dark cracks were still on the battlefield of destruction. It was as if a passageway had now been opened.


    "Get back!" Lord Taixuan shouted at the figure that was rushing over there; it was Xia Qingyuan. He knew that she liked Ye Futian, but now, was she seeking her own death?


    In addition to Xia Qingyuan, there was also the demonic beast, the Black Wind Condor. Its eyes were extremely sharp as it rushed in the same direction, saying, "Come on, Princess."


    Xia Qingyuan landed on its back in a flash as woman and beast seemed to have reconciled their previous quarrel, now rushing toward that terrifying space passageway together.


    The Black Wind Condor was extremely fast, and it dived into the crack in just an instant, which caused a look of confusion on many people''s faces.


    "Suicide pact?" The cultivators from the Gold Divine Nation and the others showed a look of interest. And that demonic beast, could it be so loyal as this?


    "A rare display of true feelings... What a pity," Jian Ao said in a low voice. The cultivators'' united attacks had abruptly opened up a space passage. But before that, Ye Futian was already dead. The attack converged upon him first and then tore through the space.


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked at that disappearing figure and sighed in their hearts. They didn''t expect that this taciturn woman had such deep feelings of affection inside her.


    Lord Taixuan was going to stop her, but Black Wind Condor was too fast, and it was too late when he realized what they were about to do. The Black Wind Condor had dashed in with a flash, too late for him to stop it. Lord Taixuan''s face was somewhat uncertain as he watched the dark cracks gradually closing. They were too careless. Didn''t Ye Futian tell her?


    Lord Taixuan didn''t know that Ye Futian had intended to drive Xia Qingyuan away so that she would return to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Before long, the cracks disappeared, and the sky returned to normal. This most powerful battle of the Nine Realms had come to an end.


    "Ye Futian is dead, so everyone, please go back. In the future, don''t stir up any discord in the Nine Realms," said Jian Ao. Everyone looked at him and thought that this Jian Ao was not only an expert in flattery, but now he seemed to be in the business of being a peacemaker.


    This old fox, as if everything he did was for the Original Realm. It was more likely that he did it all for Jian Qingzhu.


    "Princess." Jian Ao raised his head to look at Princess Donghuang and bowed slightly. Everyone followed his lead.


    Princess Donghuang stood high above in the sky as she surveyed those below. "Everything stops now."


    "Yes, Princess." Everyone nodded. Princess Donghuang''s voice was slightly more aggressive this time, with a certain incontrovertible intention. Presumably, the Princess was not well pleased with their killing of Ye Futian.


    Presently, no one dared to contradict her.


    Princess Donghuang looked at the crowd one last time, it was a look without any emotion, but it gave many quite the chill. Then Princess Donghuang turned to walk away. The cultivators next to her followed suit.


    The cultivators in the Dark Court also left upon her departure.


    In the tavern, Shi Xie smiled vaguely as he put down the wine glass that was in his hand, and glanced at Mei Ting who was across from him and said, "I will drink with Mr. Mei again if opportunity allows in the future. I bid you goodbye."


    Then, he took his men and left.


    What an irony that the number one genius of the Original Realm died in the hands of the Original Realm.


    Mei Ting raised his head and glanced above the sky. Indeed, they did not appear. However, he understood that the representatives of Donghuang the Great were here, so they wouldn''t dare to appear. Even if they did and didn''t die today, they would be spotted; it would be impossible for them to escape.


    But, was Ye Futian really dead?


    He had a feeling that things were not as simple as they seemed.


    In the void, Emperor Nan, Shen Gao, and the clan lord of the Shen clan were returning.


    The expressions on the two from the Shen clan were extremely sullen and especially gloomy, as their eyes swept toward the others.


    Shen Ji was dead.


    His death was not only caused by the allied forces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy but also by those who came with them. The only possibility for Shen Ji to die when they had the absolute advantage, which was when they were abandoned by their own allies.


    These b*stards.


    They only thought was to kill Ye Futian, so they spent all their energy holding Emperor Nan back and didn''t expect a setup by those on their own side.


    A top cultivator was hard to come by because any top figure was powerful enough to create a top principality that could stand at the peak of the Original Realm. However, in this battle, only the Shen clan had incurred a loss on this level when no one else did.


    So, did the Shen clan win?


    Killing Ye Futian was certainly a win, but they lost to the other forces.


    However, they had to swallow this offense because who could they fight to get their revenge?


    The Alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Academy? Now that only two of them were left, how could they possibly deal with the allied forces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    Their own allied forces? Who among so many of them?


    Those cultivators left one by one, as if nothing had happened, ignoring them, pretending to know nothing.


    Shen Ji died in vain.


    "B*stards." The others had already left; they were all part of this conspiracy. At times like this, who would want to engage them proactively?


    "Blame yourselves," Lord Taixuan said coldly.


    The two men glanced at him with indifferent eyes. "We have all the time in the world, but Ye Futian is dead. I want to see just how much further Heavenly Mandate Academy could go in the future."


    "Just wait and see, then," responded Lord Taixuan. The two men from the Shen clan huffed coldly and left angrily.


    They couldn''t get their revenge.


    The cultivators all left one after another. Emperor Nan glanced at the place where Ye Futian disappeared, hoping that what he had said before was true.


    Ye Futian had said that he would volunteer to die in this battle.


    But, he would be back.


    Therefore, although they tried their best, no one was all in, as they tried their best to protect themselves first.


    Since the beginning of the battle, they knew how this would end.


    Everything they did was to cooperate with Ye Futian''s plan.


    Many forces in the Nine Realms could not tolerate Ye Futian, not to mention that the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm also had their eyes on him. He was too outstanding as the one controlling the power of Shadow. In reality, they understood that the land of the Original Realm itself could no longer allow Ye Futian to exist.


    They glanced at each other, then headed down below the sky, and the group returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Everyone at the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked up with reluctance, anger, and sadness in their eyes. Did he die just like that?


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had produced a peerless genius talent, who was hailed as the number one genius in the Original Realm, and he was besieged and slaughtered by the cultivators of the Nine Realms.


    They felt persecuted.


    Qi Xuangang and Yan Yuan were together, and Qi Xuangang didn''t believe it in his heart. He still remembered the conversation he had with Ye Futian that day. Ye Futian would not ask for death like this; he still had too many things that he wanted to do. He had dreams; he couldn''t die.


    People from the Nine States looked toward the void as well. Even though everything was so real, they were holding a glimmer of hope in their hearts.


    Gu Dongliu was one of the insiders. Ye Futian didn''t tell everyone so clearly about his plan, probably because he had his concerns. If everyone knew about it, it would be difficult to keep the plan undercover.


    However, he did not expect the Little Condor and Xia Qingyuan to rush out like they did.


    The Little Condor and Ye Futian were connected in their minds. Perhaps, it had discovered something, hence the rash action. Could it be that something unexpected happened?


    He certainly hoped not.


    "Jieyu."


    Zhuge Mingyue was next to Hua Jieyu and saw that Hua Jieyu was still in a great amount of pain. There were tears from her eyes, and she looked extremely unwell.


    There were more and more images in her mind. It was as if countless thoughts were now started to awake, all imprinted in her mind. At this moment, she had no idea who she was. It was as if every thought was her own.


    At this moment, many people inside the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path suddenly appeared listless and raised their heads to look into the boundless sky. A ray of consciousness came out of these women and turned into an elusive figure that flew into the distance, as if toward another self.


    In the midst of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Xuantian Goddess was there. Her mind was trembling violently. It was as if something had also awakened inside of her. She looked in the direction where Hua Jieyu was, and an illusory figure came out of her body, flying toward Hua Jieyu.


    "So, I am too," Xuantian Goddess murmured.


    Maybe, everyone who had cultivated that particular method was one of the incarnations.


    "Hmm?"


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked at Hua Jieyu and saw that many illusory figures floating from everywhere, blending themselves into Hua Jieyu''s mind, which cause a surprised look on these cultivators'' faces.


    What cultivation method could be so terrifying?


    The Mountain Master of the 10,000 Divine Mountain and others like Jiang Chengzi of the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven knew that Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky cultivated an extremely special method. They had urged Ye Futian to be careful around Hua Jieyu, knowing that she may have been a manifestation of Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky, who was using his power to cultivate.


    But they didn''t expect it to be so domineering.


    They had a strange feeling at this moment. It was as if Hua Jieyu was the real manifestation and not the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    At this time, a powerful aura permeated everywhere, and all eyes were looking that way. They saw an illusory figure of peerless elegance appeared, shining with divine light, and it was the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    She stared at Hua Jieyu. How could she wake up so quickly? This interrupted her plan.


    However, it would not affect the overall situation, but the timing was less than ideal.


    She had cultivated many years but constrained by the Great Path. Even if she had obtained a powerful method, she still could not break the shackles of the Great Path. There was a lack in the way of heaven, and she was limited by this. Therefore, she needed to recast another body.


    She chose Hua Jieyu not because of how talented Hua Jieyu was, but that she had detected an opportunity for enlightenment on her. Hua Jieyu had a strong life force that could be used for her own enlightenment.


    However, Hua Jieyu was somewhat out of her control and had always retained a strong sense of self.


    Under everyone''s gaze, the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky''s elusive figure entered into Hua Jieyu''s body. In a flash, an extremely tyrannical aura bloomed, and Hua Jieyu''s face was changing. It seemed to have turned into the peerless beauty that was the Lady of Brahma''s Pure Sky.


    "No..." In Hua Jieyu''s mind, there was another consciousness waking up. This consciousness was extremely strong and obstinate. At this moment, she finally realized who she was and where she came from.


    A smile appeared in her tearful eyes, and her name was Hua Jieyu, his wife.


    That face turned into Hua Jieyu''s face again, and the two beautiful faces kept changing as if competing for control.


    Her body was trembling slightly. She seemed to be experiencing a painful struggle.


    Jieyu remembered that she once said that whoever won would have control of the body.


    Under the gaze of all these cultivators, this scene lasted for quite some time. Finally, a beautiful face appeared, no longer changing, and a brilliant smile bloomed on that face. However, the tears continued to slide down that beautiful face.


    She looked at the vast void, at that disappearing figure. In her mind, countless memories washed over her, and all of them were occupied by the memories of the same person.


    Now that she came back, why did he leave her again!

 1858 Divine Prefecture

    Among all the realms, the Divine Prefecture produced the most superstars in history.


    The Divine Prefectures of the East was united for real only when Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing entered the stage more than 300 years ago.


    At that time, the eighteen domains in the Divine Prefecture all submitted to Donghuang the Great Emperor and Emperor Ye Qing, which smoothed the way for the time of prosperity three centuries ago.


    Donghua Domain was one of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture.


    Right now, a body was lying quietly in the middle of a vast field. The person wore white clothes and had silver hair. Covered in blood, he lay on the ground without moving a muscle. His eyes were open, yet he couldn''t muster a tiny bit of strength. The only thing he could do was stare at the endless sky where the clouds were floating around. The air was exceptionally fresh here, and the Worldly Spiritual Qi was intoxicating.


    However, he couldn''t even absorb the Worldly Spiritual Qi right now. The meridians inside of his body were all shattered, and his internal organs suffered a great deal of damage. His life was hanging by a thread.


    Was he in the Divine Prefecture?


    He survived, Ye Futian thought to himself.


    Princess Donghuang awarded him a precious gift that day, which took his breath away when he sneaked a peek at it after he went back. It was a divine item that could make Ye Futian look through and depart from the Original Realm without cracking open the space.


    It also meant that he could have left earlier.


    Nevertheless, he didn''t choose to do it. More than half of the top forces in the Nine Realms wanted him dead. The Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm also set their sights on killing him. What would happen to the Heavenly Mandate Academy if he left by himself?


    What would happen to his friends and the alliance he built?


    At that moment, Ye Futian understood Princess Donghuang''s intention. She presented a gift to him while also allowed other groups to kill him. Princess Donghuang wanted him to disappear from the Original Realm.


    That was how the battle earlier happened. It was actually for show only. To making it convincing, everyone on Ye Futian''s side was fighting for real. But they didn''t exert their full strength. They did everything they could to make it look like Ye Futian was driven into a corner.


    In order to make it appear more real, Ye Futian left the moment when the strike landed on his body. Therefore, everyone would think that he was obliterated by the attack instead of leaving on his own.


    "Is the Original Realm, the Void Realm, something that doesn''t exist for real?" Thinking back to how he left the Original Realm with the help of the divine item, Ye Futian couldn''t help but suspect the truth about the Void Realm. Who was capable enough to make such a formidable divine item that could bring him out of the Void Realm altogether?


    Could it be that Donghuang the Great prepared this divine item for Princess Donghuang?


    It was possible. No one else would be aware of the existence of such a divine item.


    Princess Donghuang certainly spent a lot of effort to keep him alive. Nonetheless, Ye Futian and Princess Donghuang were more likely to be enemies rather than friends in the future.


    A strident sound reached Ye Futian''s ears from the sky far away. Severely injured, Ye Futian closed his eyes. He needed to rest for a long time to recover from his current state. It was naturally the best choice for him to pretend he was dead. His body could heal and amend on its own.


    After all, he didn''t know what kind of people he would encounter.


    The strident sound was getting closer and closer. Ye Futian also heard a voice ordering people to go to exam him.


    Ye Futian soon felt that someone was approaching him. He remained perfectly still and had his eyes tightly shut, hoping he wouldn''t be disturbed by the incoming person. After all, he had to be extra cautious since he just arrived here.


    He felt a hand touching his body. The person seemed to be observing him.


    "Is he dead or alive?" A calm yet authoritative voice was asking about Ye Futian''s state.


    The person promptly left Ye Futian and returned to midair. She bowed to a cultivator who appeared to be in his 30s and said, "Young master, he will be dead any second even though he is still breathing now. We don''t have to pay attention to him."


    The Renhuang cultivator glanced at the woman speaking and cracked a smile. He asked, "Which level is he at?"


    "I''m not sure," the woman answered.


    "Go to take a look," he said to a middle-aged man next to him. The man quickly examed Ye Futian and returned to his place, said, "He already built the Body of Way and reached the Renhuang Plane. If I guessed it correctly, he should have a Second-Order Divine Wheel."


    "Second-Order Divine Wheel," the Renhuang cultivator muttered. He ordered the woman, "Take him back."


    "Yes, young master." The woman was only in the Saint Plane and didn''t hesitate after receiving the order. She approached Ye Futian again, lifted his body from the ground, and brought him with her.


    They strode across the field. After a while, a range of mountains came into sight. Ancient castles were perched on crags in the mountains, imposing and forbidding.


    Senluo Manor was one of the main forces in this area and was ruled mountains.


    They entered the Senluo Manor and kept walking forward until they arrived at a cultivation temple in the mountains. The head of the group lowered his eyes and darted a glance at Ye Futian. He said in a cold voice, "Take him to the You Pavilion."


    The woman remained composed and expressionless even though her heart trembled for a second. She had been in Senluo Manor for quite a long time and knew the place like the palm of her hand. She understood when to speak and when to shut up.


    She took a brief look at Ye Futian and sighed to herself. This man was so unfortunate.


    You Pavilion was a place in Senluo Manor that specialized in refining corpses. The young master of Senluo Manor wanted to turn Ye Futian into a chief corpse directly controlled by him.


    The woman brought Ye Futian to the You Pavilion, where many people were busy working. She met the master of the You Pavilion and said, "Young master ordered me to bring this man to the Pavilion."


    The master of the You Pavilion was a Dark Renhuang who emanated a dangerous brooding air. He shot a glance at Ye Futian. Ye Futian seemed to be a young man with great talents.


    It certainly made things more interesting.


    "Okay." The master of the You Pavilion nodded slightly and replied, "You''re in charge of it. Send him to the matrix."


    "Yes." The woman bowed and received the order. It appeared like she was in a low standing in Senluo Manor. After all, Senluo Manor was a famous and powerful group that held sway in the region, and its chief was a high-level Renhuang. A cultivator in the Saint Plane couldn''t possibly enjoy a high status in the manor.


    She brought Ye Futian to a cavern residence that was guarded by soldiers and pushed the door to step inside. The mountain was hollow inside. A terrifying smell of death permeated the empty space. There was a chasm further into the mountain, under which an extremely scary Grand Matrix of Death. The dark currents were flowing around and filled the place with the Will of Death. Countless chains of death locked numerous people inside. Those people didn''t seem to be alive, yet they were able to move; they were all corpses that were being refined.


    The woman lowered her head to looked at Ye Futian, said, "How much longer are you going to pretend?"


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and surveyed the woman in front of him. She had a masculine manner and black, piercing eyes. Her face was pretty, but not in a breathtaking way.


    She looked emotionless and indifferent while staring at Ye Futian, who just opened his eyes.


    Ye Futian didn''t expect himself to be so unlucky. He pretended to be unconscious yet was still taken away. On top of that, the people who captured him were bad guys, indeed; they wanted to refine him with the Grand Matrix of Death.


    He gazed into her eyes. The woman flinched and turned her distant eyes away.


    She had known Ye Futian was only pretending since the beginning, yet didn''t expose him. Ye Futian figured that she didn''t really want to do this to him.


    "What are you doing?" Ye Futian asked her.


    "This is the place to refine corpses in Senluo Manor. The matrix below will kill and transform you into a puppet. Do you have any last words before that?" the woman asked him.


    "Can you let me live?"


    The woman shook her head, said, "I don''t have a choice."


    She didn''t dare to defy the order. Otherwise, she would be the one being killed.


    She brought Ye Futian to the chasm. At this moment, Ye Futian didn''t have any ability to fight back. He could only be manipulated by her.


    "I''m sorry," the woman said to Ye Futian. Before her voice faded away, she pushed Ye Futian''s body into the chasm.


    Ye Futian started falling immediately and eventually landed on the ground.


    The Grand Matrix of Death at the bottom of the chasm activated right away and engulfed his body. Millions of tentacles stretched out of the Grand Matrix of Death and grabbed Ye Futian''s hands and feet. Wisps of the frightening Will of Death invaded his body through his limbs.


    Ye Futian never thought that the first thing that happened to him after arriving at the Divine Prefecture was to be refined into a corpse puppet.


    He closed his eyes and let the Death Will took over his body and flowed around inside. The Death Will entered the Life Palace and became part of it. Ye Futian lay there quietly as if he stopped breathing for good.


    The woman looked at Ye Futian from the top of the chasm and sighed to herself. She knew what she did was sinful, yet she couldn''t defy or escape from Senluo Manor. Thus, she had no choice but to obey the orders submissively.


    The Renhuang in front of her was quite handsome and dashing. He probably was an extraordinary young man when he was alive. But he still couldn''t avoid such misfortune.

 1859 Sister

    Ye Futian was abandoned in the matrix alone. The energy that poured into his body contained not only the Power of Death but also a toxin that corroded and paralyzed every part of his body and made him completely incapacitated. Wisps of air flowed out of Ye Futian''s Life Palace to resist the invasion of this forceful foreign energy. However, they barely stopped the corrosion and couldn''t destroy the invader at all.


    Ye Futian could hardly gather enough strength at this moment.


    "This is getting troublesome." Ye Futian closed his eyes and stopped struggling. He didn''t want to waste any more energy. He didn''t expect that he would escape from a hopeless situation only to fall into another right away.


    Everything in Senluo Manor remained the same. Nothing was changed because of Ye Futian''s presence. He was only a near-death guy who was brought back by the people of Senluo Manor in order to be transformed into a corpse puppet. This was nothing but usual business for Senluo Manor.


    Seven days passed in the blink of an eye. Ye Futian had stayed in the matrix for seven days.


    During this time, some people came to take away the corpse puppets that were ready to go. No one touched Ye Futian, though. Each corpse puppet belonged to the person who brought it there.


    On this day, Ying Qing finally came to the cavern residence again. She looked at Ye Futian.


    An astonishing look flashed across her face when she saw the color of Ye Futian''s skin. Her consciousness swooped into Ye Futian''s body, and she said to him in surprise, "Are you awake?"


    Ye Futian opened his eyes. At that moment, Ying Qing saw a pair of inscrutable eyes that contained a frightening magical power that devoured her Spiritual Will and forced her into an illusional world.


    "Don''t speak." Ying Qing''s expression changed the moment she heard a voice in her head. The illusional world created by the Eye Sorcery disappeared in an instant, and everything went back to normal. Ying Qing could feel the cold sweat on her back.


    Cultivators in the Renhuang Plane were powerful for sure. This man was extremely dangerous.


    She inhaled a deep breath and stared at Ye Futian''s body below. He didn''t change at all after seven days?


    "How can you withstand the corrosion of the corpse venom?" Ying Qing transmitted her voice to Ye Futian. She was well aware of how scary this corpse venom could be. Even a perfectly healthy Lower Renhuang would certainly be refined if dumped inside, let alone someone who was on the verge of death like Ye Futian.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian didn''t seem to be affected by it.


    A strange look appeared in Ying Qing''s eyes. She stared at Ye Futian and replied, "You don''t need to work on me. You can''t leave Senluo Manor once you''re here."


    She didn''t want to die with Ye Futian even though she felt a little sympathetic to him.


    She was not so selfless.


    "You already witnessed my Eye Sorcery. I''m not an ordinary Renhuang. Senluo Manor can''t keep me here as long as I recover from my injury. I can promise you something in return if you''re willing to help me," Ye Futian continued to say.


    Ying Qing experienced a moment of hesitancy. Sensing her reluctance, Ye Futian said, "I can take you out of here, so you don''t need to be trapped in this place."


    "I will ask the young master." Ying Qing turned around and was about to leave. She was wavered by Ye Futian''s offer, but she also didn''t want to be thrown into the matrix, like him.


    "Wait for a second," Ye Futian said to her. Indecisive and doubtful, Ying Qing stopped.


    "Give me some more time. A fellow of mine is about to come here. You can make a decision after seeing what kind of a person she is," Ye Futian said.


    "Who is she? Which level is she at?" Ying Qing asked, "How does she know you''re in Senluo Manor?"


    "She has her ways of tracking me down. We have the same master, but she is junior to me. Her cultivation level is not particularly high; it''s about the same as mine. But trust me, you will change your mind after meeting her. Give us both a chance," Ye Futian continued to say. Ying Qing heard him and left the cave.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes again after Ying Qing left. It was a horrible feeling to be unable to control one''s own fate.


    He knew Ying Qing didn''t do anything wrong. She had to do things against her will in order to survive.


    Majestic old trees, many of which black, stood in the courtyard of a palace in Senluo Manor. There were also a creek and a waterfall at the front where one could enjoy a distant view of the architectures and mountains.


    Han Lin, vice chief of Senluo Manor, was sitting on top of the waterfall and cultivating with his eyes closed. Wisps of the energy of death flowed around his body. He heard Ying Qing''s footsteps approaching. But she stood quietly behind him and didn''t interrupt.


    "How is it going?" Han Lin asked her.


    "That man has protective energy in his body. He is not totally transformed yet. We may need to wait for a little longer," Ying Qing bowed to Han Lin and answered.


    Han Lin opened his eyes. Wrapped in the Will of Death, he turned around and looked at Ying Qing. His inky eyes made Ying Qing lower her head even more.


    "You have been in Senluo Manor for a few years now. Are you still feeling resistant?" Han Lin asked Ying Qing.


    With her stomach in knots, Ying Qing shook her head and replied, "Ying Qing doesn''t dare."


    "That means you do feel reluctant, but you''re afraid of expressing it," Han Lin said in an icy voice. However, he didn''t mind her answer. He smiled and said, "Senluo Manor only refines our enemies or people who are about to die anyway. We''re offering them a new life, a chance to live again. What kind of objection do you have?"


    "Young master, I don''t have any objection," Ying Qing bowed again and answered. She didn''t dare to raise her head.


    "Okay," Han Lin nodded slightly and said, "You should cultivate diligently so you can reach the Renhuang Plane sooner. Go away now."


    "Yes." Ying Qing nodded and left. Her strides were long and steady, yet her heart was filled with dread. She could feel a chill down her spine. Despite Han Lin''s mild eyes and calm tone, she had an ominous feeling. What would her life be if she advanced to the Renhuang Plane...


    She heard some rumors in the years she spent in Senluo Manor. Several Renhuangs allegedly violated the rules of Senluo Manor and were transformed into corpse puppets.


    Ying Qing paid frequent visits to the You Pavilion in the following days to remind Ye Futian to improve his disguise. Ye Futian understood that she agreed to help him despite not saying it explicitly. She couldn''t do anything but wait inside of the You Pavilion.


    One day, a giant demonic beast spread its wings and flew to Senluo Manor. It was a Demon Emperor, whose cold and piercing eyes were jet black with a metallic sheen. Its wings gleamed like dark, sharp blades.


    A pretty woman dressed in men''s attire stood on the demonic beast. She looked extraordinarily energetic and spirited.


    They were Xia Qingyuan and the Black Wind Condor.


    Ye Futian knew the Black Wind Condor would come for him since their hearts were linked. The Black Wind Condor sensed Ye Futian''s condition when he left the Original Realm and brought Xia Qingyuan to follow his course. However, they encountered some trouble when going through the space crack and would have died in the chaos if not for the Black Wind Condor''s ability to track Ye Futian''s location.


    They also suffered serious injuries during the trip, albeit not as severe as Ye Futian''s. After resting for a while, they learned about Ye Futian''s situation and came to Senluo Manor after asking around about it in the Outer Realms.


    A guard with a stony face appeared and asked, "Who are you?"


    The Black Wind Condor''s eyes were filled with disdain. The invisible Demonic Qi enfolded the guard and alarmed him.


    "I heard people in the Senluo Manor cultivate the power of the Great Path of Death. I''m here to learn a lesson or two," said Xia Qingyuan. The Black Wind Condor barged directly into Senluo Manor. The guard had no choice but to let them through.


    "Who dares to intrude into Senluo Manor?" Many cultivators came out of the palaces in Senluo Manor. Several of them were in the Renhuang Plane.


    Xia Qingyuan took a brief look at them before the terrifying Swords of Death shot out of her body. Those Renhuangs hurried to protect themselves from the Swords of Death.


    At that moment, Xia Qingyuan''s Divine Wheel bloomed behind her. It was a frightful, dual-colored lotus that symbolized life and death.


    The dual-colored lotus emitted dangerous Light of Death and illuminated the vast space. Those Renhuangs who came out to stop her stared at the brilliant Divine Wheel of the Great Path open-mouthed.


    It was... a perfect Divine Wheel.


    "Welcome to Senluo Manor, my friend." Hearing a voice that came from the distance, the crowd drew back immediately. The Black Wind Condor stretched its wings and sprinted to a great hall in Senluo Manor, where a large number of cultivators were gathering.


    Han Lin sized Xia Qingyuan up and down. She had a perfect Divine Wheel and was obviously a stunning woman, despite the way she dressed.


    "I wonder which Goddess the Senluo Manor is honored to host?" Han Lin asked the woman respectfully. In light of her beauty and her perfect Divine Wheel, she probably wasn''t anyone ordinary. On top of that, she was confident enough to barge into Senluo Manor.


    "How dare you ask my lady''s name?" the Black Wind Condor said arrogantly. Its strident voice was cold and piercing.


    Han Lin glanced at the Black Wind Condor. How came that even her demonic beast was so impudent?


    "My last name is Xia," Xia Qingyuan said to Han Lin. "I have been studying from my master, who sent me into the real world after I proved my path. I heard that the cultivators in the Senluo Manor are good at the Great Path of Death. So I come here to learn from you."


    Xia Qingyuan had a stately bearing and had achieved the first-order Divine Wheel. The young girl must be extraordinarily talented in order to develop the perfect Divine Wheel and prove her path at her age. She did seem like someone who immersed herself in cultivation.


    If that was the case, this young woman was probably inexperienced and unworldly.


    Her master must be a recluse with tremendous power.


    A series of ideas popped into Han Lin''s head. Such a beautiful and wide-eyed woman was no doubt naive.


    He felt a rush of excitement at that thought.


    "Your master must be an esteemed man. May I ask his name?" Han Lin said.


    "My master is a countryman who doesn''t know much about cultivation. You won''t know his name," Xia Qingyuan replied. Han Lin''s grin turned even broader. Just as he expected, her master was definitely a powerful man.


    Ying Qing stood behind Han Lin and stared at Xia Qingyuan. She began to believe what Ye Futian had told her.


    This must be his sister under the same master!

 1860 Plo

    Innumerable powerful cultivators resided in the boundless Divine Prefecture. Naturally, people in the Divine Prefecture were well aware of the existence of formidable master cultivators whose names were virtually unheard of. They had developed a way to survive in this situation. After witnessing Xia Qingyuan demonstrated her ability, Han Lin had no doubts that her master was an accomplished cultivator.


    Han Lin certainly needed to serve such a distinguished guest well.


    "Okay." Xia Qingyuan nodded. Although she had learned about Ye Futian''s current condition from the Black Wind Condor, she wasn''t going to save him without a thoughtful plan. An influential group like Senluo Manor must be brutal and merciless. Considering her deep background, what would they do if they knew that she knew her best friend was being transformed into a corpse puppet? Would they bet on her forgiveness even if she promised so?


    They might release Ye Futian, but they could also kill them both.


    Furthermore, how could she let Senluo Manor off the hook for killing and refining Ye Futian?


    "Please," Han Lin said with a smile. He looked at the people around him and ordered, "Summon the Lower Renhuangs who are currently in Senluo Manor to Senluo Cultivation Temple."


    "Yes, young master." People received his order and left. Han Lin led the way for Xia Qingyuan. As respectful as he was, he didn''t seem too obsequious. After all, he was a Renhuang who only tried to be polite.


    Senluo Cultivation Temple in Senluo Manor stretched a vast expanse of the land on top of the mountains, surrounded by matrices for protection.


    A great number of cultivators gathered in Senluo Cultivation Temple at the moment. People in Senluo Manor all rushed to the temple after hearing the news. They couldn''t help but exclaim how gorgeous and extraordinary Xia Qingyuan was. Standing next to the Black Wind Condor on the side of the temple, she emitted brilliant divine light like a Goddess. Even the men''s clothes she was wearing couldn''t conceal her striking beauty.


    People tended to glorify a person in their minds after learning about the person''s special identity. They might not think the same way if Xia Qingyuan was only an ordinary girl.


    No one else in the younger generation, including other children of the chief of Senluo Manor, had had such accomplishments. For that reason, Han Lin was referred to as "young master." He had the most talent and probably would surpass the chief in a few decades.


    "Who wants to try with the Goddess?" Han Lin looked around the crowd and asked.


    A man named Han Yan walked onto the Senluo platform in a couple of strides and stared at Xia Qingyuan. He was an outstanding cultivator in Senluo Manor and had already proved his path as a Renhuang despite his young age.


    "I hope to learn from the Goddess." Han Yan released his energy and revealed his first-order Divine Wheel.


    "You''re not worthy enough to fight with my lady." A tinge of disdain flashed across the Black Wind Condor''s face. Han Yan shot a menacing look at the Black Wind Condor, his eyebrows knit tightly together.


    This demonic beast was only Xia Qingyuan''s mount. How dare it show such insolence?


    Han Lin also glanced at the Black Wind Condor. Despite his fake smile, deep down he was cursing. What an annoying beast.


    "Of course you can join the fight as well if you want," Han Lin said, smiling.


    The Black Wind Condor''s eyes gleamed with a metallic sheen. Its body hovered in midair and caused a violent storm around.


    Buzz...


    It dove down at full speed like a shadow.


    The Law Battle Platform was only a place for internal sparring sessions in Senluo Manor. Even with its considerable size, it was still too small for a fight at this level.


    Han Yan''s eyes glinted coldly when he saw the Black Wind Condor charging at him. He unleashed the Divine Wheel of the Great Path inside of his body and started a terrifying storm of death that blotted out the sun. He raised his hand and made a gripping gesture. A giant shadow of the hand of the death came into sight.


    Black Wind Condor launched an attack with its golden and extremely sharp claws and shot out a burst of energy that could tear up the space.


    Bang! Something streaked across the sky and the giant shadow of the hand of the death shattered instantly. The crowd could barely figure out the Black Wind Condor''s movement before they saw its claws lodged in the Law Battle Platform with a loud noise. Han Yan retreated to the edge of the platform. His clothes were torn to pieces, and a deep and frightening laceration appeared on his body.


    The look on people''s faces changed. Han Yan glared at the Black Wind Condor in front of him.


    "You are too weak. How dare a low-level person like you ask to spar with my lady?" The Black Wind Condor threw a tart comment and turned around to return to Xia Qingyuan''s side without attacking further.


    After all, the Black Wind Condor had been Ye Futian''s mount for so many years and could connect with Ye Futian''s mind. It shared whatever comprehension and enlightenment Ye Futian attained and developed a superb offensive ability for itself.


    Although the Black Wind Condor was a little too harsh, its arrogance and force made Xia Qingyuan shine even brighter. How unfathomable this woman must be if even her mount was so domineering.


    "Little Condor, you''re being rude," Xia Qingyuan said. "We only came here to exchange ideas and learn from each other. The cultivation level of our opponent doesn''t matter."


    Then she stepped forward and walked onto the platform. Surrounded by the dazzling divine light, she looked at the crowd with her captivating eyes and said, "Anyone willing to offer me guidance can come and give it a try."


    "I would like to have a glimpse of the Goddess''s grace." An elder man walked forward, his robes flapping in the wind. He looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "Be careful, my lady."


    His hands formed a seal before his voice faded away. In an instant, numerous seals of death emerged in all directions and darted straight to Xia Qingyuan the moment he raised his hand and pointed at her.


    Xia Qingyuan activated her Divine Wheel. A dazzling dual-colored lotus wrapped her body and its petals floated toward the incoming seals.


    Xia Qingyuan stood inside of the lotus, where the seals couldn''t enter without being destroyed right away.


    The dual-colored divine light formed a ring around Xia Qingyuan and made her appear even holier. The cultivators of Senluo Manor couldn''t help but secretly admire the beauty of the perfect Divine Wheel.


    One, two, three... More and more lotuses bloomed and consumed the countless seals of death. Then they transformed into the Death Ray and charged at the elder man.


    The lotus obtained from God''s relic fused with Xia Qingyuan''s Life Spirit and transfigured her. She had been cultivating alongside Ye Futian and had considerable strength even though she wasn''t capable enough to get a chance to join the battle back in the Original Realm.


    Three supreme forces were involved in the battle in the Original Realm. Many of the people there were much more powerful than the cultivators of Senluo Manor.


    The lotuses emitted the light of the Divine Catastrophe. The elder man couldn''t hold out against the attack with his second-order Divine Wheel and soon backed away.


    Another Renhuang stepped onto the platform. With a rumbling noise, the mighty force of death overcast the sky. A shadow of the Reaper appeared above and a ray of divine light directly shone on Xia Qingyuan''s body. The next moment, the divine light of death fell from the sky and struck Xia Qingyuan.


    This man was very intimidating with his third-order Divine Wheel.


    Xia Qingyuan''s lotus Divine Wheel flared up. Millions of lotuses swirled and created a pair of dual-colored swords of life and death. The storm circled around her body and dashed against the force generated by her opponent.


    Upon their collision, the lotus spawned a huge number of flowers and engulfed the divine light of death. The man was defeated before long.


    None of the other Lower Renhuangs went onto the platform could even draw nearer Xia Qingyuan. They were all overpowered by her.


    The battle stopped in a short while. Xia Qingyuan hovered above the platform alone and was surrounded by divine light, her white dress blowing in the wind.


    Xia Qingyuan utilized the advantage provided by her perfect Divine Wheel to win against cultivators who were above her level. She wanted to create an illusion for the people of Senluo Manor that she had a distinguished background.


    "Excellent," Han Lin looked at Xia Qingyuan and said. "You''re truly a Goddess with unparalleled beauty and a perfect Divine Wheel. No one in the Lower Renhuang Plane from Senluo Manor is a match for you."


    Han Lin wasn''t very interested in women in the past. At most, he trifled with them and used them for cultivation.


    Yet now, an idea came to his mind. It would be nice if he could make this woman his spiritual partner in cultivation.


    Xia Qingyuan pulled back and returned to her original place while still radiating divine light from her body.


    "Thank you very much," Xia Qingyuan said to Han Lin.


    "You''re welcome," said Han Lin.


    "Sorry that I disrupted your day. I''m leaving now," Xia Qingyuan said to Han Lin.


    "Where do you plan to go?" Han Lin asked.


    "I come out to learn about the cultivation methods of various schools and groups. I don''t have a specific goal in mind," said Xia Qingyuan.


    "Since that''s the case, you might as well stay for a few more days here in Senluo Manor. We have plenty of cultivation methods. Besides, I will go on a trip in the near future. I can travel alongside you and guide you. What do you think?" Han Lin asked.


    Xia Qingyuan thought about it for a moment and nodded slightly, said, "I won''t refuse your kindness."


    "You''re more than welcome." Han Lin turned around and ordered, "Arrange a palace for the Goddess immediately."


    Xia Qingyuan remained indifferent the whole time. As a princess in the Emperor Xia''s Realm, she had always been cold and arrogant before she met Ye Futian and was only playing herself right now.


    Ying Qing watched everything quietly on the side. Although she had been helping Ye Futian, she never truly made up her mind. Witnessing Xia Qingyuan''s power certainly moved her.


    Ying Qing left the temple discreetly and went to the You Pavilion. She walked into the cavern residence and looked at Ye Futian, who was lying in the matrix.


    Although Ye Futian still had his eyes tightly closed, he was aware of everything that happened outside. Moreover, he could communicate with the Black Wind Condor and asked it to carry out the plan.


    "Your sister''s last name is ''Xia''?" Ying Qing asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and said to her, "Yes. Do you believe me now?"


    Ying Qing looked into his eyes and felt the struggle inside of her heart. Then, she nodded her head solemnly!

 1861 Deliver Himself to Her

    Right now, Xia Qingyuan was cultivating there with her eyes closed. No one came to disrupt her.


    While in fact, Xia Qingyuan was not feeling serene at all. She knew that Ye Futian was inside of Senluo Manor and was in grave danger. But she and the Little Condor only arrived at the Divine Prefecture days ago and had no help at all. She had to remain calm, as any reckless move could put their lives at risk.


    A person was walking through the clouds not far away from where Xia Qingyuan was. Dashing and refined, it was Han Lin, the vice chief of Senluo Manor. He gazed forward at the divine light glowing from Xia Qingyuan. The Will of Life and Death wrapped around her body while she was sitting on a blooming holy lotus. She looked like a Goddess out of this world.


    Han Lin was quite experienced with women, yet he had never seen one as elegant as Xia Qingyuan. She must be even more ravishing if she wore women''s attire. Maybe it was more convenient for her to dress as a young man. After all, she was a disciple who newly entered the real world.


    Han Lin stopped before coming too close to Xia Qingyuan. Although Senluo Manor was his home, he didn''t want to interrupt her in a bad-mannered way. Such politeness was vastly different from before when he ordered Ying Qing to transform Ye Futian into a corpse puppet.


    "How can I help you, vice chief?" Xia Qingyuan opened her eyes and asked Han Lin.


    "Miss Xia, you said you came out to learn about cultivation methods from different groups. Even though Senluo Manor is not a top force, we still have plenty of books and scriptures in the collection. Would you be interested?" Han Lin asked with a smile.


    "If that''s the case, please feel free to come closer. No need to be so polite," Xia Qingyuan replied.


    "I was worried that I might interrupt your cultivation." Han Lin walked toward Xia Qingyuan in a couple of long and graceful strides. He maintained a short distance from her and waved his arm. In an instant, numerous jade slips and ancient books flew toward Xia Qingyuan and floated in front of her.


    "These are some of the decent ancient books about the Great Path collected by Senluo Manor. Please feel free to take a look," Han Lin said.


    "Thank you, vice chief." Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly and read the books in silence. Han Lin quietly sat by her side for a long time. A cultivator at his level naturally had great patience.


    Xia Qingyuan noticed that these were top-notch cultivation methods indeed. Han Lin was being intentionally generous to rope her in with these books.


    Han Lin was a little dishearted by Xia Qingyuan''s comments, but he soon got over it. Xia Qingyuan''s master must be a marvelous cultivator who knew far more superior cultivation methods. As good as his collection was, it was probably not special enough to catch Xia Qingyuan''s eyes.


    "Sorry to disappoint you," said Han Lin.


    Xia Qingyuan shook her head. "My master has already taught me our way of cultivation. I came out this time only to visit different groups and draw on their experience. It''s not appropriate for me to study your method from scratch. I truly appreciate that you''re willing to share the collection of Senluo Manor with me.


    "I came to Senluo Manor because I heard that your cultivators are experts in the Great Path of Death. Therefore, I want to see if there are any special cultivation methods about that."


    Han Lin nodded and replied, "Senluo Manor does have a unique method, but only a few people have succeeded. They are all direct offspring, none of whom could spar with you. We have another peculiar cultivation method. But it is a deviated approach that has a bad reputation."


    He observed Xia Qingyuan carefully, intending to fathom her attitude toward it. If Xia Qingyuan were a straight and conventional person who considered it to be an evil method, he would have to drop the idea of cultivating with her.


    "What kind of method?" Xia Qingyuan asked casually. She gazed into the distance as if she wasn''t paying much attention.


    "Cultivating through puppets. It''s unavoidable for people like us to have enemies. There are also people in the manor who are about to die. With their consent, we can make them puppets who can continue to serve Senluo Manor after their death," said Han Lin. Of course, he couldn''t tell her the whole truth.


    A chill crept over Xia Qingyuan. Was Ye Futian a part of Senluo Manor or their enemy?


    Why was he being transformed?


    Nonetheless, Xia Qingyuan had incredible self-control. She remained composed even as the anger grew in her heart.


    "What''s the purpose of cultivation if we can''t take revenge on our enemies?" Xia Qingyuan looked at Han Lin and said, "As for the cultivators in the manor, what''s wrong with them utilizing their values in another way as long as they agree to it?"


    Han Lin was surprised. He grinned at Xia Qingyuan and realized that he admired Xia Qingyuan even more.


    "My master once told me that the road of cultivation is meant to be cruel and merciless. How would we survive if we''re too lenient? We need to take advantage of everything we have to cultivate and persevere in the world. Otherwise, why would I bother to come to Senluo Manor?" Xia Qingyuan continued while gazing forward. Ye Futian already asked Ying Qing what kind of a person Han Lin was and told the Little Condor.


    Xia Qingyuan said everything Han Lin wanted to hear.


    "Your master must be a remarkable cultivator. I will certainly visit him and listen to his guidance if the chance arises in the future." Han Lin was more than delighted. Xia Qingyuan not only had a marvelous master and striking beauty, but she also shared the same views as him. Maybe this was destiny.


    He was immersed in cultivation for the first half of his life and had never had any real feelings for any woman. In his eyes, they were only objects he could exploit. Yet, now he felt aroused.


    It was not easy to find a perfect woman. He certainly would make every effort now that he met one.


    "My master doesn''t like strangers," Xia Qingyuan replied casually. Han Lin was thrown into an awkward silence. Xia Qingyuan seemed to realize that she misspoke, so she added, "Please don''t mind me."


    "It''s alright." Han Lin laughed and stood up. Xia Qingyuan was surely an unworldly girl. It was surprising how forthright she was.


    Even so, he liked her.


    "Sorry I interrupted your cultivation today. I will visit you again tomorrow," said Han Lin, "Please keep these books for now. You can feel free to read them just for fun even if they''re not particularly useful for you."


    "Good." Xia Qingyuan nodded. Han Lin said goodbye and left with a smile.


    Xia Qingyuan continued to cultivate quietly without doing anything out of the norm. To raise no suspicion, she didn''t even walk around inside Senluo Manor. Ye Futian''s life was not in danger right this moment. Although Xia Qingyuan could barely wait one more second to save him, she had to be patient and play safe.


    Han Lin was not a gullible man. Xia Qingyuan couldn''t let him figure out that she came to Senluo Manor with a goal in mind. Otherwise, he might become suspicious easily.


    Han Lin paid a short visit to Xia Qingyuan each day in the following days. They mostly talked about cultivation. Han Lin discovered that Xia Qingyuan was obsessed with cultivation and nothing else. Naturally, he catered to her tastes.


    As time went by, Han Lin felt like he became more and more familiar with Xia Qingyuan. He even learned her name, albeit not the real one.


    One day, Han Lin brought a person to Xia Qingyuan. It was a corpse puppet that was surrounded by the Death Will. Despite the human body, it looked ghastly and frightening.


    "How fascinating. It has such a strong Will of Death." Xia Qingyuan seemed to be captivated by the corpse puppet and even stood up.


    An exciting look flashed across Han Lin''s face. Xia Qingyuan was indeed someone who was fixated on cultivation and attracted by everything about it. The corpse puppet was produced through a unique cultivation method of Senluo Manor and was quite special. No wonder Xia Qingyuan was so interested.


    "What is this?" A strident voice sounded. The Black Wind Condor stepped forward and stared at the puppet. "My lady, this thing is filthy."


    "The Will of Death inside of this puppet is so pure," Xia Qingyuan said. Han Lin sneered at the Black Wind Condor. Xia Qingyuan was everything he wanted.


    It would definitely be extremely beneficial for both of them if they could cultivate together.


    Wisps of the Will of Death flowed out of the puppet and filled the room with the smell of death.


    Xia Qingyuan emitted brilliant divine light as several Lotuses of Life flew out. Surging and rolling, the Will of Death refused to be expelled even when the light shone directly on the puppet''s body.


    The divine light around Xia Qingyuan became even more blinding. The lotuses enclosed the puppet and melted it little by little. The puppet''s body shook violently and eventually disappeared after a while.


    "This puppet can resist it for so long!" Xia Qingyuan exclaimed.


    "The puppet is controlled by me and doesn''t have a life. It can survive deadly attacks and continue to fight," Han Lin said.


    Xia Qingyuan nodded gently and looked at Han Lin. "This method..."


    But then she stopped talking. Han Lin saw her expression and understood her unspoken words. He cracked a smile. He brought the corpse puppet here specifically to gauge Xia Qingyuan''s attitude. He would certainly consider teaching her if she wanted to learn.


    However, only the core figures of Senluo Manor could learn this method. He wouldn''t pass it on to Xia Qingyuan easily.


    "This is a secret method of Senluo Manor. Only the core figures can cultivate in this way," Han Lin said.


    Xia Qingyuan didn''t respond. She understood what Han Lin meant.


    "Han Lin, can you please lend me a few puppets for research?" Xia Qingyuan called him Han Lin instead of "vice chief," which made their relationship seem closer. Han Lin was exhilarated that his efforts in the past few days hadn''t been wasted.


    "Of course." Han Lin nodded without hesitation. He ordered, "Go to the You Pavilion to prepare for this."


    "Yes." Several people exited the room. Ying Qing left with them.


    Was Xia Qingyuan finally ready to make a move?


    Ying Qing didn''t expect Ye Futian''s sister to have such a level of patience. She never revealed any intention to save Ye Futian. Instead, she took the time to get familiar with Han Lin to the point where Han Lin delivered himself to her.


    Han Lin probably never thought that Xia Qingyuan had been waiting for him to show off the corpse puppets all these times.


    But Ying Qing certainly wouldn''t say anything. She agreed to be a part of it, but she still didn''t know much. It wouldn''t have anything to do with her if Ye Futian''s attempt failed. After all, she had no idea where Ye Futian''s confidence came from!

 1862 Xia Qingyuan Cultivating in Seclusion

    Ye Futian''s body had a dark color and was wrapped in the Will of Death. His eyes were tightly closed as if he was about to die any second.


    "Ying Qing, this one is not fully transformed yet. The vice chief doesn''t have control over him either. Why are you bringing him?" a person looked at Ying Qing and asked. They picked up Ye Futian together days ago and recognized him easily.


    "More or less, I suppose you can figure out what the young master is thinking about," said Ying Qing.


    "Sure thing, Goddess Xia is a gorgeous woman and a good match for the vice chief. Maybe she will be our mistress in the future," someone playfully said. Of course, they would only gossip about the young master in private.


    "The vice chief purposefully brought a corpse puppet to visit the Goddess. He probably wants her to learn how to refine corpse puppets. This one may be useful specifically because he is not fully transformed yet. Otherwise, all the corpse puppets are the same. What''s the purpose of doing this?" Ying Qing said.


    Other people thought for a moment before nodding in agreement. Ying Qing had a point. That being so, they should bring Ye Futian along.


    Right now, Ye Futian was faking his death. He sealed off all the energy inside of his body and let the Death Will surround him.


    The servants brought the corpse puppets out of the cavern residence and arrived at Xia Qingyuan''s palace shortly after.


    Because some of the corpse puppets belonged to other people, their owners also went to Xia Qingyuan''s palace to order the puppets to line up in front of Xia Qingyuan. Ye Futian was the only one who wasn''t controlled yet.


    Xia Qingyuan''s heart was pounding violently the moment she saw Ye Futian. People in Senluo Manor didn''t know who Ye Futian was, but she certainly understood how marvelous Ye Futian was back in the Original Realm. The best cultivator in the Original Realm was treated so horribly here.


    Xia Qingyuan could feel her heart aching. He must be suffering.


    However, Xia Qingyuan still did her best to conceal her emotions.


    "Isn''t he not refined yet?" Han Lin also noticed Ye Futian. He didn''t pay much attention to this random, dying man they picked up on the road that day. Since he had been devoted to Xia Qingyuan in recent days, he almost forgot about Ye Futian completely.


    It only occurred to him now that he saw Ye Futian again.


    "The Goddess wants to research the puppets. That''s why I brought him here too," Ying Qing bowed and answered.


    "Okay," Han Lin nodded. Ying Qing''s idea was pretty good. Han Lin looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "These are finished corpse puppets. This one is not fully refined yet and isn''t controlled by anyone for now."


    She stared at the corpse puppets and occupied them with her divine consciousness as though she was studying them carefully.


    "The Death Will seems so natural. This method of refining puppets is truly exquisite. I never heard about it even from my master," Xia Qingyuan expressed her admiration. She surely knew that Han Lin intended to attract her with the method of refining puppets. By faking interest and singing praises, she let his guard slip.


    As Xia Qingyuan expected, Han Lin grinned upon hearing her comment. "This is a secret method of Senluo Manor and is indeed remarkable. But your master is an extraordinary cultivator. Senluo Manor couldn''t possibly compare to him when it comes to cultivation method."


    Xia Qingyuan didn''t respond. She focused on studying the corpses puppets. Seeing how she ignored him, Han Lin said sensibly, "Why don''t you research on them for now? Please feel free to do whatever you want on these puppets."


    "Thank you." Xia Qingyuan nodded at Han Lin despite her deep hatred toward him. She couldn''t wait for Han Lin to leave, but she restrained herself and didn''t act too eager. It took her great efforts not to kick him out immediately.


    This was not the time to be careless.


    Xia Qingyuan didn''t jump into action even after Han Lin was gone. She kept pretending to study these puppets studiously outside of the palace.


    It was impossible to know how many people were watching her here in Senluo Manor. She had to extra careful.


    Darkness settled in. Senluo Manor was especially gloomy due to the Death Will permeated the air.


    Xia Qingyuan finally started to move. She sent the puppets into the palace and asked the Little Condor to bring Ye Futian into the inner courtyard, where she applied the sealing technique. She did the same thing every night for the following days. It was quite common for cultivators traveling outside to block the divine consciousness. No one became suspicious because of that.


    Since the other puppets were controlled by the people of Senluo Manor, she wasn''t ready to act until now and still couldn''t make any move in front of them.


    Ye Futian sensed Xia Qingyuan''s sealing technique and finally opened his eyes and took a deep breath. He felt much comfortable now that he got out of the matrix. He could recover from his injuries without spending all of his energy to resist the power of Death in the matrix.


    Nevertheless, he still needed time. He was still extremely weak after his escape.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and saw Xia Qingyuan''s beautiful face.


    Xia Qingyuan''s heart was aching while staring at Ye Futian. She felt powerless and useless as she couldn''t save him.


    "I told you to go back to Emperor Xia''s Realm. Why would you risk your life to come here?" Ye Futian sighed softly. It was unbelievably dangerous for Xia Qingyuan and the Little Condor to go through the space crack and come to the Divine Prefecture. They might have gotten lost if not for the Little Condor''s ability to track him.


    Even so, he was grateful that they came for him. Otherwise, he didn''t really know how to get out of here.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian with a scowl on her face. He still behaved in this way, even under the current circumstances.


    She squatted down and picked Ye Futian up. Ye Futian was surprised to see that Xia Qingyuan''s Life Spirit bloomed into a brilliant Lotus of Life. One by one, the petals sprouted and grew larger, and eventually enveloped the entire space. The remarkable energy of life was circling each petal.


    Beyond that, Xia Qingyuan seemed to have an unlimited current of life, which flowed to Ye Futian in countless thin streams that connected them. Complemented by the dazzling divine light, she looked like a sacred Jiutian Goddess.


    As their bodies intertwining perfectly, the Power of Life poured into Ye Futian from Xia Qingyuan and gradually neutralized the Power of Death in Ye Futian. At this moment, Ye Futian had nothing to hide from Xia Qingyuan as the Power of Life rushed into his limbs and organs.


    The petals slowly closed and encased Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan inside. It looked like a bright lamp in the darkness.


    The Black Wind Condor watching nearby felt a little melancholy. They were doing it right in front of the condor in broad daylight... No, in the darkness. They really had no respect for the condor.


    How could they?!


    The Black Wind Condor turned around and walked out. It was not appropriate for him to watch.


    He sighed with wonder at what was happening between Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    Although he had been biased against Xia Qingyuan, he couldn''t help but exclaim.


    The princess was a real woman!


    The Black Wind Condor was on the lookout for them for several hours that night. Mixed feelings rushed through his mind.


    Finally, the divine light faded, and the unblemished petals slowly retracted back into the lotus, which revealed Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan inside.


    Bashful and blushing, Xia Qingyuan seemed exceptionally lovely.


    "Thank you," Ye Futian said to Xia Qingyuan. He was a little lost upon seeing Xia Qingyuan''s flushed cheeks. Her long hair was loose, and her eyes were bewitching. She didn''t look like the princess she usually was.


    Xia Qingyuan threw a glare at Ye Futian as if she was displeased by his response.


    "How are you feeling?" Xia Qingyuan asked quietly. She didn''t notice that her voice was extra soft.


    "I can circulate the energy inside of my body. Now I need some time to recover from my injuries," said Ye Futian. He was completely free from the threat of the Will of the Death. With Xia Qingyuan''s help, he was in a much better state than when he first arrived at the Divine Prefecture.


    All he needed to do now was to recuperate by himself.


    "Okay." Xia Qingyuan nodded and said, "Have a good rest."


    She shot a glance at Ye Futian and carried him into the room. When she walked out with a faint blush on her face, she noticed a pair of bright eyes peeking at her. Xia Qingyuan was startled, yet the Black Wind Condor had already turned his head away.


    The condor didn''t see anything.


    Xia Qingyuan walked toward the Black Wind Condor from behind. The condor could feel the hair standing on end on his neck. Women were truly fickle. How did they switch emotions so quickly?


    He only sneaked a few peeks. It really wasn''t a big deal.


    "Bring a puppet to me," Xia Qingyuan ordered. She planned to destroy each puppet in the name of research. As a result, Ye Futian could disappear reasonably.


    These puppets were not human anymore and were only used by the Senluo Manor to kill more people. Thus, Xia Qingyuan didn''t feel any moral burden at all. One by one, the Black Wind Condor brought in the puppets for Xia Qingyuan to clean up.


    After everything was done, Xia Qingyuan returned to the room to rest. Ye Futian was still there, of course.


    They had to share the room.


    Ye Futian had no other choices.


    Ye Futian felt much better the next morning. He was regaining his health at lightspeed and should be able to get back to normal in no time.


    The important thing was to avoid detection.


    Han Lin came to visit Xia Qingyuan again as usual. However, he didn''t get to see her for the first time since she came to Senluo Manor.


    The Black Wind Condor met with Han Lin and told him that Xia Qingyuan gained some enlightenment from the day before and was cultivating in seclusion.


    Han Lin was convinced by the scintillating divine light and the holy lotuses blooming and surrounding the palace Xia Qingyuan resided. He left a message and decided to drop by another day.


    At this moment, Han Lin didn''t realize why Xia Qingyuan was cultivating in seclusion.


    He already received the report that Xia Qingyuan destroyed all the puppets for research. Despite the hefty cost, he believed it was a worthy investment as long as he could win over Xia Qingyuan. What pleased him more was that Xia Qingyuan seemed to be gaining something from his efforts.


    Everything appeared to be normal and reasonable.


    Han Lin left with no hard feelings. Xia Qingyuan, on the other hand, started to cultivate in seclusion in Senluo Manor.

 1863 Discovery

    As for the destruction of a few puppets, Han Lin had mentioned before that Xia Qingyuan could use them however she liked. There was nothing wrong with Xia Qingyuan destroying them. She had finished studying them so that no one would investigate.


    Perhaps it was because she studied the puppets that Xia Qingyuan had some revelations!


    Han Lin thought so, so he did not disturb Xia Qingyuan and instead occupied himself with his own business.


    Time passed as Xia Qingyuan stayed in seclusion in Senluo Manor. She called it cultivating in seclusion, but she was actually waiting for the World Tree to heal Ye Futian''s damaged body. Originally, he could have fully recovered from the heavy injuries he suffered previously by himself. But he was captured by Senluo Manor and put into the Death Matrix. This made matters worse and made it so that the strength he could use was enough to resist the death force.


    Now, after coming out of the matrix, he had Xia Qingyuan baptize his body, accelerating his recovery. So, during these days, when Xia Qingyuan was in seclusion, Ye Futian recovered quickly and was able to move his body within a few days.


    However, Xia Qingyuan still had not come out of seclusion. Before coming here, Xia Qingyuan and Little Condor had scouted the Senluo Manor. They had the high order Renhuang protecting it, and Senluo Mansion''s chief was powerful. Although Ye Futian had killed the high order Renhuang before, for the sake of caution, he needed to return to his full strength.


    After all, there were only three of them, and the only one who could truly stand up to Senluo Manor was probably Ye Futian.


    In the blink of an eye, a few more days passed.


    That day, when Ying Qing brought Ye Futian to Xia Qingyuan''s place, she was always very nervous and worried that she would be exposed. After all, if she was not careful, she could be implicated and end up in a terrible situation. She was the one who brought him there, and if she was found out, she did not know if she would be suspected.


    Although there was no flaw in this plan, and she did not have a reason to help a puppet, she was still afraid that Ye Futian would betray her.


    Despite her fears, she still chose to help Ye Futian that day. People of the Saint Plane were very tough-minded. She had been trapped in Senluo Manor for several years and wanted to leave very long ago. This went against her heart, but if Ye Futian could really give her a chance to escape, she was willing to make this gamble.


    On this day, she followed Han Lin to the You Pavilion.


    Even if he recovered, how could they deal with Senluo Manor?


    A figure dressed in black robes, with a terrifying aura, walked towards them. It was Senluo Manor''s You Pavilion Master.


    "Pavilion Master." Han Lin nodded at the other party.


    "Vice chief, come with me." The You Pavilion Master led Han Lin and the others to a hidden palace, where there was an extremely strong corpse puppet. As a sense of death shrouded the palace, Ying Qing and the others retreated outside the palace, not daring to go in.


    "What do you think?" the Pavilion Master of the You Pavilion asked Han Lin.


    Han Lin stared at the tall puppet. It was refined by a powerful person at the seventh order of the Divine Wheel. They had paid a huge price and spent a long time dealing with this person, and now he was finally refined. He looked at the puppet with a sharp gaze, only to see the puppet''s eyes were also open. A terrifying cold green light shot out from it like a ghost.


    "Thank you, Pavilion Master," Han Lin thanked him. He was willing to give Xia Qingyuan some puppets to use for training because he felt that the consequences of doing so were insignificant. A puppet of this level was the kind of strong power Senluo Manor truly possessed.


    Naturally, there was no need to talk about his father''s puppet, and now that he had this puppet, he would be able to increase his strength greatly.


    "You''re too kind, Vice Chief." The You Pavilion Master spoke up, "It''s a pity that there are too few puppets of this level in Senluo Manor. There are only two, otherwise ..."


    Han Lin nodded. If there were more of these kinds of puppets, they would have already annexed another opposing force. But there was no rush. When they took down the other side one day, they would all be refined into puppets.


    "Good puppets are hard to find," Han Lin said.


    "The puppet that you ordered people to bring in that day was actually very good, but it''s a pity that it went to waste," the You Pavilion Master said.


    Han Lin thought of the person he had picked up earlier, but he did not feel too strongly about it. "He was only at the Divine Wheel Second Order; it''s not really a pity that he went to waste."


    "No, I spied on his internal breath. His Divine Wheel is probably perfect grade, and he''s good at controlling the power of life and death. Hence, the matrix''s death force was unable to invade and refine him." The You Pavilion Master said, "You often sent people to check on him from time to time. I thought that you regarded that corpse puppet highly, but I was mistaken."


    "Perfect grade and good at controlling the Will of Life and Death?" Han Lin furrowed his eyebrows. He had a feeling that something was wrong.


    Wasn''t this Xia Qingyuan?


    Her Divine Wheel was perfect, she was good at controlling the Will of Life and Death, and she was gifted beyond compare.


    What a coincidence?


    Ying Qing''s heart started thumping when she heard the words of the Pavilion Master outside the palace, and her face changed uncontrollably. She slightly bowed her head to cover up her panic at that moment. She calmed herself down and returned to her normal appearance, but she was still very nervous.


    The You Pavilion Master had checked on Ye Futian these past few days?


    This was the You Pavilion, and someone would go to that matrix every day, but no one would touch the puppet that the Vice Chief was refining. However, it was normal for the You Pavilion Master to view the puppet to see how the Vice Chief''s puppet was doing.


    But saying it right now, how could Han Lin not have thought of it?


    "Yes, I heard that you gave a woman permission to cultivate?" the You Pavilion Master asked. He did not really take notice of Xia Qingyuan. The You Pavilion was located in the depths of Senluo Manor, and from the entire mountain range, it was rather secluded. The You Pavilion Master was also busy with puppet refining, so ordinary things would not disturb him. Hence, it was not until Ying Qing took the puppet away that he asked a question and learned about Xia Qingyuan.


    But even then, he did not ask much in detail.


    Those words were unintentional, but when they fell on Han Lin''s ears, they felt like a hammer strike to his head.


    "Pavilion Master, who comes here often?" Han Lin asked. He had not paid much attention to Ye Futian''s presence before and had only asked about him once or twice, let alone sent people here to check on him frequently.


    "Your subordinate outside." The You Pavilion Master pointed towards Ying Qing.


    Ying Qing came forward, controlled the fear within her heart, and bowed. "Ying Qing doesn''t dare to ignore the Vice Chief''s instructions. That puppet was difficult to refine, so I came here from time to time to take a look."


    "How many times did you come?" Han Lin asked.


    "More than ten times," Ying Qing replied. She came more frequently later on.


    "Did you bring him over there, too?" Han Lin asked again.


    "Vice Chief, if I knew that this puppet was extraordinary, I would definitely not have brought it there; I would have replaced it with another puppet." Ying Qing could adapt to situations quite well. She did not mention Xia Qingyuan, only that she did not know this puppet was extraordinary.


    Han Lin did not mention that Xia Qingyuan was suspicious. If Ying Qing took the initiative to mention it, it would be the same as admitting it herself. Under this sudden pressure, many people would easily get confused and accidentally spill the beans.


    Han Lin stared at Ying Qing, who knelt on one knee, her head lowered as she trembled with fear.


    Now, all these were not loopholes and could be explained.


    Seeing Ying Qing''s attitude, although Han Lin had his doubts, he did not really think that Ying Qing and the other party were in cahoots. After all, she had absolutely no reason to do so. Why would she help someone who was going to die soon?


    And how could she get in touch with Xia Qingyuan?


    There were some loopholes in this.


    But if it happened to be that they sent Ye Futian to Xia Qingyuan, it would be a bit too coincidental. Xia Qingyuan disguised herself so much that she did not move even when she saw the puppet. Then, if she was suspicious, she must have known in advance that they had refined Ye Futian into a puppet.


    However, how did she know that?


    There were several rings in this that could not be aligned.


    However, as long as he went to ask Xia Qingyuan, everything would be clear.


    "What''s wrong?" the Pavilion Master asked, seemingly realizing that there was something wrong with this.


    "That woman is suspicious," Han Lin replied. Then, he stepped out first and said, "Bring her with you."


    He naturally was referring to Ying Qing.


    Ying Qing''s face was a bit pale. She did not think that the conversation between the You Pavilion Master and Han Lin made her a suspect.


    Moreover, she knew that Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan were problematic, and Han Lin would be able to find out the truth once he went there.


    Thinking of this, she felt her whole body turn cold, but then she felt at ease. Since she had gambled, would she not have considered that she would lose her life if she failed?


    The You Pavilion Master frowned. Vice Chief Han Lin had been cheated?


    Thinking of this, he also followed Han Lin and was ready to see what was going on.


    Han Lin had been so attentive to Xia Qingyuan these few days. Before she went into seclusion, he would come here every day to chat with her, and he even used the resources of Senluo Manor for her cultivation. He thought that this was fate, and since it had fallen upon him, he naturally had to grasp it.


    But now, looking at it, was this fate, or was everything deliberately arranged?


    Is the Goddess, who seems to be otherworldly, really so sinister? he wondered.


    Han Lin went to Xia Qingyuan. His body hovered above the cliff as he looked toward the palace in front of him. The people behind him stayed back and did not catch up to him. He needed to confirm his suspicions first. What if everything was really just a coincidence?


    Wouldn''t that offend the beauty? Though the likelihood of that was low, he still held a hint of such a thought and was unwilling to admit that he had been played.


    "Is the Goddess still cultivating?" Han Lin spoke aloud toward the palace. His divine consciousness enveloped the palace and soon encountered a sealing force!

 1864 God of Carnage

    He wouldn''t be so rude otherwise.


    Xia Qingyuan turned around and stared at the silver-haired man who was sitting with his legs crossed. Surrounded by a bright light while cultivating, Ye Futian had returned to full health by now. Complemented by his white clothes and silver hair, his handsome and exquisite face seemed more mature and more charming.


    He opened his eyes and shot a glance at Xia Qingyuan. "Open the seal."


    According to the information that Xia Qingyuan and the Black Wind Condor had gathered outside of Senluo Manor, the chief of the Senluo Manor had achieved the Divine Wheel Seventh Order yet didn''t have a perfect Divine Wheel. Although he sounded like a capable man, Ye Futian should be able to deal with him with no trouble.


    Han Lin hovered by the side of the cliff where the palace was located. His divine consciousness inspected the palace once the seal was lifted. He instantly noticed the other man in addition to Xia Qingyuan and the Black Wind Condor.


    He paid no heed to Ye Futian before as he was nothing but a dying man they picked up on the road. Nevertheless, Ye Futian seemed like such a dreamy and extraordinary man now. Everything looked perfect when he was next to Xia Qingyuan. It was as though it was only right for them to stand side by side.


    At this moment, Han Lin''s eyes were icy and piercing.


    He realized that he had been played.


    Everything he dreamed about before was his own wishful thinking.


    He had cultivated for so many years. The last thing he would expect was to be played by a young woman. He thought Xia Qingyuan was unworldly and naive, yet he only discovered now that she had him eating out of her hand. He even sent her their cultivation methods and the corpse puppets.


    Han Lin was afraid that plenty of subordinates in the Senluo Manor would laugh at him in secret because of this.


    Other cultivators also stepped forward and stood behind Han Lin. They obviously saw Ye Futian as well and became aware of what happened. Everyone''s face was grim at the thought that the Senluo Manor had fallen into the enemy''s trap.


    One of the Renhuangs shot a glance at the ashen-faced Ying Qing. Considering what the master of the You Pavilion just said and what they were witnessing now, Ying Qing was probably involved in this scheme. Even if she were not, the vice chief he knew would never let her off the hook easily.


    Ye Futian was quite calm and looked at Han Lin indifferently as if Han Lin was a dead man walking.


    "I''m very curious about your plan. What can you possibly do even if you managed to save him?" Han Lin said to Xia Qingyuan. He didn''t ask about her real identity; it was pointless.


    He already determined that both Xia Qingyuan and Ye Futian had to die the moment he saw Ye Futian. There was no other way.


    He was going to turn Ye Futian into a corpse puppet before. How could he let him leave Senluo Manor alive now?


    That being said, he was still mildly shocked that Ye Futian could get back on his feet. Maybe it had something to do with how Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan cultivated together.


    Xia Qingyuan didn''t respond to Han Lin''s question. Ye Futian took a step forward, his white robe flapping even though there was no wind. Wisps of the energy of the Great Path were flowing freely.


    Han Lin glanced at them and said, "Leave the woman for me. Bring the man and that damn beast to the You Pavilion and refine them into corpse puppets."


    He didn''t call Xia Qingyuan "Goddess" or by her name. The name she told him must be fake since everything else was a lie.


    He didn''t plan on killing Xia Qingyuan just yet. He wanted to make sure that she would pay the price. Just like how he treated the other women, he would play with and torture her to his heart''s content before transforming her into the most beautiful corpse puppet he had ever owned.


    Han Lin''s subordinates rushed forward one after the other. An old man among them was a middle-level Renhuang with frightening strength. He was charged with the Death Will and created numerous shadows of death at once. The shadows hovered above Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan and quickly surrounded the entire palace with a grand matrix of ghosts.


    The matrix was filled with ghosts and the terrifying energy of the Death, which could attack people''s spiritual souls.


    The old man''s hand made a gripping gesture toward Ye Futian. Hundreds of ghosts immediately pounced on Ye Futian ferociously.


    Ye Futian''s body radiated brilliantly and emitted the Sword Will that effectively frightened and warded off the ghosts.


    Buzz!


    A blinding blade of light flashed, and the Sword Will pierced the sky straight away. The shadows, ghosts, and the matrix that enveloped the palace shattered into a million pieces in an instant.


    The old man was alarmed. Endless gray death current wrapped around his body, and a gigantic ghostly shadow emerged.


    Ye Futian took a brief look at him and stepped forward. His sword penetrated the space.


    A shocking storm of the Sword Qi took shape as the glaring Sword Will tore up the space of the Great Path. The man felt like his body was about to split the moment it happened. The superpowerful Sword Will locked on him and made his soul tremble.


    Bang! Jets of Death Will gushed out. The old man leaped high into the air, wishing to escape.


    But the attack happened so fast. The sword already reached him almost at the same time it glowed.


    With a deafening exploding sound, people saw the old man shake violently with a through-and-through wound in his body. He was bound by the Sword Will and gradually faded away.


    "No..."


    Panic-stricken, the old man let out a bellow before his body blew up. Even the top of the mountains behind him was flattened by the shocking blade of light.


    All the cultivators in Senluo Manor fixed their eyes at the source of the commotion with concern.


    A succession of powerful Renhuangs hurried in that direction. Their divine consciousnesses already covered the area and helped them grasp the situation.


    Before long, several cultivators showed up in the nearby field around the palace where Ye Futian was. Although there was no high-level Renhuang, plenty of lower Renhuangs and middle-level Renhuangs arrived at the scene.


    Only the chief of Senluo Manor was a high-level Renhuang.


    Even so, some of the middle-level Renhuangs, especially the ones at the Divine Wheel Sixth Order, were intimidating enough. The Will of Death enshrouded the palace Ye Futian was in and turned into a giant death trap.


    "Divine Wheel Second Order and a perfect Divine Wheel." The crowd stared at Ye Futian, astounded. No wonder the middle-level Renhuang was slaughtered instantly. A cultivator in the Divine Wheel Second Order who also possessed a perfect Divine Wheel was easily comparable to a middle-level Renhuang without a perfect Divine Wheel. A talented one might even be able to kill a middle-level Renhuang in the Divine Wheel Fourth Order.


    Several puppets were ordered to move forward in an attempt to ascertain Ye Futian''s strength. These ghastly puppets lunged at Ye Futian right away.


    Ye Futian stood there in silence and darted a disdainful glance at the puppets. A stream of the frosty will of the Great Path flowed out and froze the entire space. Those corpse puppets quickly iced up soon and couldn''t move. Then their bodies were destroyed by the Sword Will.


    Quite some cultivators of Senluo Manor frowned with concern. How could this man be so formidable?


    Ye Futian directed his eyes at one of the men surrounding him and said, "Cultivating in such an evil way. You deserve to die."


    He floated in midair. The Yin Divine Light shone from the full moon hanging in the sky and illuminated the vast field. Everyone trembled as the bitter and piercing coldness spread through their limbs and crept down their spines.


    Many middle-level Renhuangs'' faces turned grim. The energy permeated all of the space and suppressed all the other cultivators by slowing down the flow speed of their Will of the Great Path.


    The divine light of the full moon froze the bodies of the cultivators who were in the Lower Renhuang Plane.


    "Be careful," the master of the You Pavilion reminded others in a low voice. Many people wanted to back off. But the bright divine light shone upon them immediately, carrying tremendous power of the Yin Divine Thunder.


    Bang... A frightened look flashed across the face of a Lower Renhuang. His body was smashed to smithereens the next moment. Then, the same thing happened to other Renhuangs all over the place.


    Along with a series of loud and deadened thumps, a number of cultivators exploded and died a gruesome death.


    The Lower Renhuangs were not the only ones who were affected. Even some weaker middle-level Renhuangs were also destroyed by the Yin Divine Light.


    "Form the matrix." The powerful middle-level Renhuangs were scared. They were affected by the Yin Divine Light as well and were exerting their strength to resist it. As the Power of Death surging inside of their bodies, they formed the Yin Matrix and created countless terrifying shadows of the Reaper. The Divine Light of Death launched a series of onslaughts on Ye Futian with horrifying Ripples of Death and was going to turn the mountain he was on into an enormous tomb.


    Buzz!


    A glaring divine sword materialized in front of Ye Futian with a clanking sound.


    The divine sword shot out streaks of penetrating Sword Will, which blended with the Yin Divine Light.


    The divine sword flew upward after Ye Futian pointed his finger at the sky. With a string of harsh and grating sounds, the divine sword ripped apart the Ripples of Death and slashed through the sky. The tomb exploded, and the sword floated in front of the full moon.


    The Sword Will of Yin reached its peak after the Yin Divine Light released by the moon poured into the divine sword. No one could withstand its power.


    "Kill," Ye Futian uttered. The divine sword dashed out like a bolt of lightning.


    Fizz... Fizz... Fizz...


    The blade of light penetrated the bodies of many Renhuangs before the divine sword returned to Ye Futian.


    The cultivators in the sky were filled with terror. Then they blew up one by one.


    Han Lin''s heart sunk a little deeper as each of his people died. A great number of cultivators were hit, and none of them survived.


    The master of the You Pavilion was also scared witless. He couldn''t understand why Ye Futian was so powerful.


    Did Han Lin bring the God of Carnage back to Senluo Manor?


    Ying Qing''s heart was also pounding wildly. Speechless and dumbfounded, she stared at Ye Futian with her black eyes!

 1865 Wipe out Senluo Manor

    How could a man in the Divine Wheel second order prevail over the mighty Senluo Manor?


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian became the God of Carnage now and slaughtered more than of the Renhuangs in Senluo Manor with one strike.


    He stood high up in the air, his white robe flapping and billowing in the wind. The Sword Will spread through the field, accompanied by a frightful and strident wail. It soon overcast the sky and blanketed the entire Senluo Manor.


    Buzz!


    As the Sword Will raining down from the sky, the mountains fell, and the palaces collapsed with a series of loud and rumbling sounds. Senluo Manor was razed to the ground there and then.


    Even though a cultivation method was never absolutely right or wrong, Senluo Manor shouldn''t exist in the world for the evil deeds they committed against humanity.


    If not for Ye Futian''s extraordinary abilities and help from Xia Qingyuan, he would be murdered and transformed into a corpse puppet by Senluo Manor. In addition, he was not the first victim of Senluo Manor. They were apparently accustomed to such crimes.


    A bolt of terrifying energy suddenly shot out of a palace far away at the highest point in Senluo Manor. The chief of Senluo Manor, who was cultivating there in seclusion, was disturbed by the noise. An enormous amount of Death Will surged into the sky and formed the Clouds of Death, which looked like the face of the Reaper.


    Buzz!


    A massive hand of the Reaper that could easily cover an entire mountain was aiming at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at it briefly. The clanking sound of the divine sword resonated with the endless Sword Will. Bathing in the Yin Divine Light, the Sword Will brought the Cleave of All Things into play and hurtled toward the giant hand of the Reaper.


    However, each sword turned black and lusterless immediately after coming into contact with the Reaper''s hand and soon evaporated without a trace. A cultivator in the high-level Renhuang Plane carried unimaginable strength. The dark hand of the Reaper blotted out the sun and deprived this field of every glimmer of hope.


    Xia Qingyuan activated her Divine Wheel to wrap the Black Wind Condor and herself in the light screen of the lotuses to retain their energy and remain unaffected by the attack. Ye Futian pushed his hand forward. The divine sword thrust toward the giant hand of Death. The energy of the Great Path flowed against the stream and almost shattered the space.


    Bang...


    Ye Futian''s body shook slightly as well. After all, even with his perfect Divine Wheel, there was a considerable gap between him and a high-level Renhuang in the Divine Wheel seventh order.


    A burly man wearing a loose-fit black robe appeared in the sky above the ancient palace located at the peak of the highest mountain in Senluo Manor. His jet black eyes were staring menacingly at Ye Futian from afar.


    A person in the Divine Wheel second order slaughtered so many cultivators of the Senluo Manor and even wanted to destroy the whole manor.


    "Chief." Many people mumbled and greeted the man. They were more stunned that Ye Futian, a Lower Renhuang, stood firm against the attack from the chief of Senluo Manor.


    It was an astonishing display of strength.


    Another burst of domineering Death Will came from a different direction and turned Senluo Manor into an expanse of death. Under everyone''s watch, a corpse puppet flew directly from the You Pavilion and stopped in front of Han Lin. It was the dreadful puppet he visited before.


    Han Lin glared at Ye Futian. Despite Ye Futian''s remarkable talent, Han Lin was still determined to kill him here and now. How could a cultivator in the Divine Wheel second order beat a high-level Renhuang of Senluo Manor?


    Han Lin once had a perfect Divine Wheel, too, and was aware that cultivators with perfect Divine Wheels had the strength that exceeded their current ranks. It was common for them to be comparable with opponents who were at two levels higher. Some outstanding ones could skip three orders. But there were five steps between the Divine Wheel second order and a high-level Renhuang in the Divine Wheel seventh order. It was by no means a small gap.


    Yet, somehow, Ye Futian caused a significant loss to Senluo Manor.


    "Father, he''s mine," Han Lin said to the chief of Senluo Manor in the distance. Ye Futian would become his corpse puppet, and Xia Qingyuan would meet the same fate in the end. But he wanted to "reward" her well and make her pay the price before that.


    Han Lin formed a seal with both hands. In an instant, the corpse puppet''s eyes were lit up with an eerie green glow. The decaying smell of the Will of Death emanated from its body. With a rustling sound, countless vines of death grew out of the corpse puppet''s body, which looked like a rotten ancient tree. Like a million tentacles, the vines blotted out the sky and launched an attack on Ye Futian.


    The divine sword rushed forward and hacked at the vines. However, the vines kept growing and were approaching Ye Futian at full tilt. The entire field was filled with the stench of death and desperation.


    The scintillating divine sword carved out an opening and charged at the corpse puppet. With a crackling sound, the divine sword penetrated the corpse puppet and wanted to destroy it with its terrifying Sword Will. Nevertheless, the corpse puppet stretched out millions of tentacles that twisted and tangled around the divine sword, aiming to dissolve it.


    The corpse puppet didn''t have a life and wasn''t afraid of pain. Its tentacles attacked the divine sword frantically, even as the Sword Will slashed through its body.


    On the other side, countless vines of death continued to extend toward Ye Futian.


    On top of that, each vine had a hideous mouth growing on top that was trying to gnaw at Ye Futian.


    The light screen of lotuses around Xia Qingyuan was also attacked and slowly eaten away. The vines were already pressing on her.


    Ye Futian saw it and his eyes glinted with rage. A beam of even holier light shone from his body as his superior power spreading out.


    The area around his body turned into his absolute territory. The invading vines were immediately cleared out. The holy light also shone upon Xia Qingyuan and drove off the rotten energy for her.


    Ashen-faced, the cultivators of Senluo Manor were staggered by Ye Futian''s ability. How could this man become even stronger than before?


    Besides, this kind of power...


    Even Han Lin''s expression became grim. The chief of Senluo Manor stared at Ye Futian and asked gravely, "Who are you?"


    To his surprise, he sensed a source of imperial power and the will of the emepror from Ye Futian.


    What was this man''s identity?


    Why would Senluo Manor offend such a supreme cultivator?


    People in the Divine Prefecture were usually very cautious and intentionally avoided becoming enemies with extraordinary cultivators. After all, so many people in the Divine Prefecture had an unfathomable background. Although Senluo Manor had a high-level Renhuang in command and was an influential group in the region, they were nowhere near the top forces in the Divine Prefecture. There were plenty of people Senluo Manor didn''t have the nerve to affront.


    "I''m a man who was brought to your manor to be transformed into a corpse puppet," Ye Futian responded in a casual tone. The divine sword inside the corpse puppet''s body emitted even more dazzling light as he was speaking.


    "Break," Ye Futian spat in a cold voice. Countless vines shattered into dust. The corpse puppet burst apart and disappeared in a flash as the incandescent divine sword destroyed everything.


    The divine sword hovered in the sky and burned with indescribable radiance.


    The moon cast the Yin Divine Light over the entire area. One by one, cultivators of Senluo Manor were frozen into ice sculptures and crackled and fizzed. Some middle-level Renhuangs exploded into tiny pieces straight away.


    Ye Futian darted a glance at the people around Ying Qing. The divine light of the moon fell upon them and took their lives before they could utter a sound.


    "Senluo Manor deserves to be exterminated."


    The blade of light illuminated the field and produced the mighty Sword Will everywhere. More cultivators in the middle-level Renhuang Plane were killed by the Sword Will, a horrified look left on their faces.


    They would never expect that a cultivator in the Divine Wheel second order could destroy Senluo Manor.


    Finally, Han Lin started to taste the fear as well. He stared at Ye Futian, his eyes wide open. How could this happen?


    Ye Futian was only a random dying man Han Lin picked up on the road. Why did he happen to be such a monstrous cultivator with unspeakable strength?


    Buzz! At this moment, Ye Futian suddenly sensed danger when a faint silhouette appeared in front of him. He knew he was seriously threatened since the faint shadow could attack his spiritual soul directly.


    Ye Futian felt like his spiritual soul was confined when the chief of Senluo Manor made a gripping gesture at him from afar. He had trouble controlling his body to react to the attack at this moment.


    Wisps of energy floated out of Ye Futian''s body and turned the field into an absolute Great Path domain. Ye Futian fixed his eyes on the chief of Senluo Manor, who immediately sunk into the illusion world created by the Eye Sorcery. Notwithstanding, he still lunged toward Ye Futian fiercely.


    "Get the f*ck back." Ye Futian focused his eyes on the faint shadow and sent waves of the Yin Divine Light surging and rolling toward it. The shadow hastily retreated and hid behind the chief of Senluo Manor, where a massive statue of the Reaper had manifested.


    The Reaper glanced around. The moon and the sun were appearing in the sky at the same time and shone the terrifying divine light directly on him. He was trapped in the Great Path domain, created by the divine wheel of a Lower Renhuang.


    Ye Futian stretched out his hand, which was holding a spear. Infused with the will of the emperor, the spear spewed out unparalleled energy. Ye Futian became a war god at that moment.


    The chief of Senluo Manor seemed alarmed. Innumerable shadows of the Reaper pounced on Ye Futian simultaneously and troubled him with an awful feeling.


    But Ye Futian was still charged with the ultimate intent of battle. A ray of light penetrated the space as Ye Futian stepped forward. The chief of Senluo Manor wanted to back off, yet the spear already reached him. The pure Energy of Yin froze the air and slowed down his movement.


    "F*ck off!" Panic-stricken, he raised his hands and flailed desperately. But the man holding the spear had transfigured into a beam of light and streaked across the sky. With a fizz, the chief of Senluo Manor exploded.


    "No..." The scene struck terror into Han Lin, whose face was deathly pale. Ye Futian turned around and looked at him.


    Ye Futian held the spear and walked toward Han Lin. Han Lin was already in the mid-level Renhuang Plane, but all he wanted to do at this moment was running away.


    However, he was trapped in Ye Futian''s Great Path domain. Where could he run off to?


    Another bolt of lightning struck. Ye Futian vanished from sight and reappeared behind Han Lin. A spasm of pain contorted Han Lin''s face until the moment when his body blew up.


    The few people still alive trembled with fear. Everything seemed like a bad dream to them.


    A cultivator in the Divine Wheel second order wiped out Senluo Manor!

 1866 Ying Qings Reques

    All the other people were killed by Ye Futian, including the rest of the Renhuangs standing behind Han Lin.


    Ye Futian reined in the will of the emperor, but his body was still radiating brilliantly.


    The rest of the people in Senluo Manor looked at Ye Futian with great fear and trepidation.


    Since the chief of the manor and all of the top cultivators were dead, Senluo Manor was virtually wiped out by Ye Futian. The cultivators who were still alive were not a threat to Ye Futian at all.


    The Sword Will was flowing in the sky and covered the mountains in which Senluo Manor was located. The entire area was sealed off by the Sword Will. People who wanted to escape were killed immediately.


    "Is there any innocent Renhuang in Senluo Manor?" Ye Futian asked Ying Qing. Her answer would determine the fate of the few Renhuangs who were still alive.


    "Everyone in Senluo Manor is either an offspring of the Han family or an outsider who decided to join. The offsprings of the Han family are all engaged in refining corpse puppets. Needless to say, the outsiders are accomplices as well. No one is innocent," Ying Qing replied.


    Ye Futian nodded. His divine consciousness covered everyone. The Sword Will burst out of his body and dashed to different directions. One person leaped into the air, attempting to escape. Yet the Sword Will streaked through space and beheaded him straight away.


    The same thing happened everywhere else. Following a series of buzzing sound, all the Renhuangs in Senluo Manor were slaughtered in the twinkle of an eye.


    The cultivators who were below the Renhuang Plane were filled with terror. The silver-haired young man seemed like a monster and the real Reaper in their eyes.


    Han Lin brought the God of Carnage back to Senluo Manor.


    "Take my demonic beast with you and deal with the people below the Renhuang Plane," Ye Futian said to Ying Qing.


    Ying Qing understood that Ye Futian had given her the authority to decide if other people could live or die.


    Ying Qing had been cultivating in Senluo Manor, but she seemed to be brought here against her will. She was very familiar with people in Senluo Manor and knew who should be killed and who was in a similar situation. In addition, although Ying Qing had been hesitating if she should help Ye Futian, her behaviors in the past led Ye Futian to believe that she was more or less sympathetic toward him. She didn''t want him to be brought to Senluo Manor the first time she met him. Ye Futian supposed that she was a good person by nature.


    Therefore, she should be the best person to make decisions.


    She witnessed many of the crimes in Senluo Manor and had been suppressing her anger all these years. This kind of group shouldn''t exist in the world; they needed to be destroyed a long time ago.


    She just didn''t expect that everything would happen so suddenly. A dying man who was picked up on the road and was about to be transformed into a corpse puppet somehow exterminated Senluo Manor.


    Ying Qing felt like she was in a dream even now.


    "Little Condor, follow her and take care of this," said Ye Futian. The Black Wind Condor nodded. He spread its wings and leaned forward with a menacing look. He had been burning with indignation for the past few days. His master was almost turned into a corpse puppet. He would kill off every single person in Senluo Manor if this were up to him.


    But he would follow Ye Futian''s instructions.


    Ye Futian landed on the ground after Ying Qing and the Black Wind Condor left. He looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "Thank you very much."


    Xia Qingyuan nodded slightly. Ye Futian spent days regaining his strength and didn''t even have a chance to talk to her. The crisis was finally resolved, and she was relieved from distress now that Senluo Manor was destroyed.


    "Emperor Xia doesn''t know what happened. He is probably going to stay worried for a while," Ye Futian said with a bitter smile. He owed Emperor Xia a debt of gratitude for his recognition and appreciation of his talents. Emperor Xia adored Xia Qingyuan, and Ye Futian didn''t want her to waste her time on him. Therefore, he lied to Xia Qingyuan before to make her return to Emperor Xia''s Realm.


    Xia Qingyuan also felt a little sorrowful at the thought of her father.


    Ever since she arrived at the Divine Prefecture, she had no idea when she could go back or if she could make it home alive at all.


    She already learned that she was in the Donghua Domain of the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian turned around and walked to the cliff. He gazed into the distance and said, "I heard that the Outer Realms are boundless. In the Original Realm, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path is the land of cultivation. But it seems tiny and trivial when compared with the endless empty space outside. The Divine Prefecture, on the other hand, might be a complete world without those empty space."


    He couldn''t gauge the size of the Divine Prefecture in the short time he had been here. But it was probably impossible for him to return to the Original Realm in the near future.


    The divine item Princess Donghuang gave to him could pierce through the Void Realm and bring him out. But it couldn''t take him back into the Void Realm from the Divine Prefecture.


    Thus, it was irreversible.


    Princess Donghuang sent him here since she didn''t want him to die, yet he couldn''t stay in the Original Realm either.


    Xia Qingyuan walked to him and said in a low voice, "Emperor Xia''s Realm was the Upper Worlds when you were in the Nine States. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were far away from us."


    Ye Futian understood Xia Qingyuan. He smiled and said, "Your Highness never said these things to me before."


    He addressed Xia Qingyuan by her title since they talked about Emperor Xia''s Realm and the Nine States.


    "Back in the day, I would just order you to take me with you," said Xia Qingyuan.


    Taking a trip down memory lane, Ye Futian laughed. He looked at Xia Qingyuan''s beautiful face and suddenly felt aroused. He remembered the divine Goddess in the lotus that night.


    "I already said that Your Highness must be breathtaking in women''s attire. Unfortunately, I haven''t had a chance to see that yet," Ye Futian curled his lips and said.


    Xia Qingyuan raised her face and saw the smile in Ye Futian''s eyes. She turned around and went into the palace to change.


    She walked out after a short while. The entire world seemed to have lost its color in the face of her beauty. Ye Futian was stunned for a moment, and then he grinned from ear to ear. She was even more gorgeous than he had imagined.


    Xia Qingyuan walked to Ye Futian. Her eyelashes flickered when she realized that he had been staring at her. Her bright eyes sparkled as she asked him quietly, "Am I beautiful?"


    "No." Ye Futian chuckled and turned his eyes away. Surprised, Xia Qingyuan rolled her eyes at him flirtatiously.


    "Liar," she grumbled in a soft voice. Ye Futian didn''t deny.


    Ying Qing and the Little Condor dealt with the remaining cultivators in Senluo Manor and came back to Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    "Is it over?" Ye Futian asked Ying Qing.


    "Yes." Ying Qing nodded.


    "Good." Ye Futian covered Senluo Manor with his divine consciousness. "Senluo Manor doesn''t exist from this day forward. You''re dismissed."


    Many people bowed at Ye Futian''s direction before they left. They weren''t killed because they were not part of the Han family. They were grateful that Ye Futian let them go. He didn''t have to go out of his way to sift them out. It was not unusual for a person as powerful as him to kill them altogether.


    But Ye Futian showed them mercy.


    "Senior, can I follow you to cultivate?" one man was brave enough to ask Ye Futian. Many people turned around upon hearing the question.


    If they could learn from someone like Ye Futian...


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian shook his head. The man who asked the question left in disappointment. Other people also gave up that wishful idea. They were already lucky that Ye Futian was willing to let them go.


    The mountain range soon became quiet after everyone else was gone.


    Ye Futian looked at Ying Qing and asked, "Did I lie to you?"


    Ying Qing sighed to herself. She asked Ye Futian, "You don''t blame me?"


    She was not entirely free from worry when Ye Futian was killing Han Lin and others. He might bide his time to clear the score with her after extricating himself from the difficult situation. If Ye Futian was a petty man, it was not impossible for him to eat his words since she didn''t help him wholeheartedly anyway.


    "You didn''t have a choice at that time. Besides, you risked your own life to help me. Why would I blame you?" Ye Futian looked at Ying Qing. Although Ying Qing didn''t do a lot, she was a crucial part of his plan. It was critical that she brought him out of the You Pavilion to Xia Qingyuan. Otherwise, he couldn''t be certain that he would get out safely.


    On top of that, Ye Futian would be finished if Ying Qing sold him out to Han Lin in exchange for his appreciation.


    That being the case, Ying Qing basically saved Ye Futain''s life.


    Ye Futian wasn''t a narrow-minded, spiteful man.


    "I told you that we could make a deal once I''m out of danger. There must be plenty of treasures in Senluo Manor. Do you want to pick some since they''re all dead now?" Ye Futian asked Ying Qing.


    Ying Qing raised her hand and looked at Ye Futian. "Since you acknowledge my contribution, can I give up the treasures and ask you for one thing?"


    Ye Futian promised her that he would give her something once he got out.


    "What do you want?" Ye Futian asked. The treasures in the Senluo Manor must be in the Renhuang-grade. Why didn''t Ying Qing want them?


    He even allowed Ying Qing to pick several rather than just one.


    "Kill someone for me," Ying Qing said. Her eyes suddenly turned cold and vicious.


    "Who?"


    Ye Futian asked. Ying Qing didn''t choose the treasures. Instead, she wanted him to kill a person.


    "The current master of the Dongyuan Pavilion," said Ying Qing.


    "Who is he?" Ye Futian asked again.


    Surprised, Ying Qing stared at Ye Futian. A strange look flashed across her face.


    Ye Futian acted completely normal and looked back at her calmly. Ying Qing realized that Ye Futian really didn''t know...


    How could he not know about Dongyuan Pavilion?


    Did it mean that Ye Futian was a foreigner who came from another world?


    Ye Futian noticed Ying Qing''s expression and figured out that the person she named was probably very famous. However, he didn''t know anything about the Divine Prefecture except for the few pieces of information gathered through the Little Condor.

 1867 Dongyuan Pavilion

    "Continent?" Ye Futian looked at Ying Qing in confusion.


    Ying Qing looked more and more perplexed. Ye Futian had a perfect Divine Wheel and extraordinary power. But it seemed that he didn''t know anything.


    Then where did he come from?


    "I came from a secret zone in the Divine Prefecture that was cut off from the outer world. That''s why I don''t have much knowledge about the Divine Prefecture," Ye Futian said to Ying Qing.


    Ying was a little surprised. She didn''t know that Ye Futian was referring to the Original Realm. The Original Realm was a distant concept to the majority of people in the Divine Prefecture. Except for the top forces at the highest level, many people didn''t even know about the existence of the Original Realm.


    Ying Qing obviously wasn''t a top-level insider. Even so, she did doubt him since the Divine Prefecture was boundless and did have many secret zones that were sealed off from the outside. No wonder Ye Futian had such terrifying strength. She was curious about how he was injured and ended up in this area.


    "You do know that the Divine Prefecture is made up of many plates, right?" Ying Qing asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head and responded, "Isn''t the Divine Prefecture whole?"


    "You can say it is whole, but you could also say it''s separated." Ying Qing realized that Ye Futian truly had zero knowledge about the Divine Prefecture once she heard his answer.


    "Countless continents are floating in the Divine Prefecture. They are located in different places or may even be at different altitudes. Therefore, it''s not technically a single piece of land, but a powerful cultivator can go to any place he wants. Some of the continents are only a few steps away from each other. So it doesn''t really matter to cultivators."


    Ye Futian nodded slightly in understanding. The countless continents Ying Qing mentioned were similar to the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. They were all considered as parts of the Divine Prefecture. People didn''t assign names to each plate, probably because there were too many of them.


    The difference was that the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were surrounded by empty space, while the Divine Prefecture was likely to be full.


    "After the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefecture years ago, he divided it into 18 domains. Our continent is one of the plates in the Donghua Domain. A Domain Chief''s Manor was set up in each domain. Although Senluo Manor is also called a ''manor,'' it was a totally different concept. The Domain Chiefs of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture are lords who help the Great Emperor govern the boundless Divine Prefecture. I heard that every Domain Chief is super frightening." Ying Qing was aware that Ye Futian didn''t know anything about the Divine Prefecture. Thus, she explained to him the partition of the Divine Prefecture in detail.


    Ying Qing shook her head. "The Divine Prefecture is vast and contains infinite numbers of continents. How can they govern all of them? The Domain Chief''s Manors usually sit out. They only get involved in balancing power when something serious happened."


    Ye Futian nodded. That sounded a little like the Empty Imperial Palace in the Void Realm; they were inspectors and reported to Donghuang the Great Emperor.


    "After the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefecture and set up the Domain Chief''s Manors over three centuries ago, he ordered people to collect ancient literature on cultivation and summoned many cultivators to make copies by hand. Then he asked the Domain Chief''s Manors to build a place for cultivation in the largest capital in each continent and share and distribute the copies there."


    Ye Futian was visibly surprised. How much manpower and time would such an ambitious project require?


    "They picked Dongyuan City in this continent and built the Dongyuan Pavilion to store all the books and literature," said Ying Qing. Back in the Nine States in the Void Realm, Ye Futian already heard that the Twin Great Emperors established academies around the world after they unified the Divine Prefecture.


    It turned out that the Original Realm wasn''t the only one. They even distributed the manuscripts all around the Divine Prefecture.


    "The master of the Dongyuan Pavilion." Ye Futian remembered the man Ying Qing wanted him to kill. Dongyuan Pavilion was the holy land of this continent. No wonder Ying Qing was surprised that Ye Futian never heard of it.


    "Yes." Ying Qing nodded and said, "The most powerful groups in the continent manage the Dongyuan Pavilion together after it was established. They also select the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion in concert. Senluo Manor always wants to join this inner circle and participate in the decision-making process. However, Senluo Manor was excluded due to their unusual cultivation method, even though they are influential enough. Therefore, the chief of Senluo Manor has been cultivating in seclusion, hoping that he could achieve some breakthrough and overpower everyone else. By that time, no one could stop him from controlling the Dongyuan Pavilion."


    "Won''t these groups become greedy?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Of course they will." Ying Qing nodded and continued, "The Great Emperor distributed the copies of the literature around the world with the intention of sharing the knowledge with everyone. But there are too many cultivators in the Divine Prefecture, and the books can''t be available to everybody. Otherwise, the Great Emperor probably would be kept occupied for this matter alone. Therefore, the top forces and powerful cultivators became the first beneficiaries of the books since it was easy for them to visit the Dongyuan Pavilion. The groups are obviously greedy and want to share their knowledge with their members, which is allowed. However, since the books are not permitted to be brought out of the Dongyuan Pavilion��no one ever dared to try it anyway��other groups still want to become co-managers of the Dongyuan Pavilion in order to bring members in and out more conveniently."


    Ye Futian nodded. The books and manuscripts given to them by the Great Emperor contained thorough and encyclopedic knowledge. They were the best resources on cultivation methods most of the cultivators could ever get.


    The top forces in each continent passed the knowledge to their members and then spread it to outsiders through different means. As time went by, all the decent cultivators in the Divine Prefecture would be able to get some exposure.


    Of course, the less powerful cultivators only had the chance to get their hands on the second-class books on cultivation methods.


    Ye Futian admired the intention and effort of Donghuang the Great Emperor and Emperor Ye Qing. They genuinely cared about the cultivators around the world even after they were crowned. Ye Futian wondered what kind of thing made them fall out with each other and eventually led to Emperor Ye Qing''s death.


    "How long did it take for the Great Emperor to accomplish such a large-scale project?" Ye Futian asked.


    "A hundred years," Ying Qing answered.


    Ye Futian was deeply moved. He had been cultivating for less than a hundred years in total, yet the Great Emperor spent an entire century on this thing alone.


    "The Divine Prefecture is too big. Besides taking the time to make copies by hand, people also needed to build places like the Dongyuan Pavilion as depositaries and set up matrices for protection. Many cultivators other than the Great Emperor also devoted a lot of time to this. It was said that everyone who worked with the Great Emperor was awarded in the end. "Ying Qing said, "The Great Emperor did plenty of other things besides this."


    "Do you admire the Great Emperor a lot?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Apart from the 18 domains established by the Great Emperor himself, there were many other top forces in the Divine Prefecture. Who else would keep ordinary people in mind at that time of division? Everybody was cultivating solely for themselves," Ying Qing said. "Most people in the Divine Prefecture admire the Great Emperor."


    Ye Futian nodded in agreement. People were selfish by nature. The Twin Great Emperors were indeed remarkable and special in that regard. He didn''t realize how popular Donghuang the Great Emperor was in the Divine Prefecture.


    "So, why do you want to kill the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion?" Ye Futian asked. He finally came to the point.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s question, a look of hatred flared in Ying Qing''s eyes.


    "I was a cultivator in Dongyuan City. My master was an eminent man there and had a close relationship with the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion. They were good friends and often played chess together. The son of the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion was fond of my master''s daughter. Although she didn''t like him because of his arrogance and smugness, they were still friends due to the relationship between their fathers. Who would have thought that the father and son duo were actually worse than beasts? The master of the Dongyuan Pavilion suspected that my master was becoming stronger than him and was worried that his position as the head of the Dongyuan Pavilion would be threatened. Therefore, he directed his son to work on my master''s daughter. The son attempted to rape her and eventually killed her during the struggle when she was cultivating in the Dongyuan Pavilion. Then, the father invited my master over and killed him in a sneak attack. After that, he ordered people to slaughter all of my master''s disciples to keep it a secret. I survived by luck and hid in Senluo Manor. Senluo Manor was never on good terms with him since the chief of Senluo Manor had been pining for his position as the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion. That''s how I got to hide here all these years."


    Ying Qing''s voice was filled with loathing. She had been keeping this secret for so long, yet she couldn''t take revenge on her enemies.


    Besides, she vaguely felt that Han Lin of Senluo Manor might kill her as soon as she proved her path and became a Renhuang. After all, she heard that it happened to other people in the past.


    Ye Futian remained calm and composed. Endless conflicts and bloodshed concealed beneath the surface of prosperity in the world of cultivators.


    "Does the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion care about his position a lot?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Yes," Ying Qing nodded. "The man is a hypocrite who is obsessed with the exercise of power. Being the head of the Dongyuan Pavilion symbolizes his status in this continent and gives him control over the access to the Dongyuan Pavilion. Anyone who goes into the Dongyuan Pavilion would be counted as his disciple. Maybe some exceptionally talented cultivators will rise in the future. But my master had no intention of competing with him at all."


    "What''s his cultivation level?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Since the chief of Senluo Manor had been hankering for his position, I suppose they are on the same level. He is probably slightly better than the chief of Senluo Manor," said Ying Qing. It occurred to her that she could ask Ye Futian to avenge on her behalf only after witnessing how he exterminated Senluo Manor all by himself.


    "Moreover, you should go to Dongyuan City regardless if you want to know more about the Divine Prefecture," Ying Qing added.


    "I promise to do it if everything you said is true," Ye Futian said. "But I need to cultivate alone for a while before that. It may take a long time, and I can''t say exactly how long."


    "That''s alright." Ying Qing nodded. She didn''t mind waiting for a couple more years as long as she could get her revenge.


    "Clean up Senluo Manor first," Ye Futian said and left. There should be belongings left in Senluo Manor since he had killed most of the people. They searched the manor thoroughly yet didn''t find many valuable items. Although Ye Futian only arrived at the Divine Prefecture not so long ago, he had fine taste and didn''t care for ordinary things.


    After that, Ye Futian had been cultivating by himself in Senluo Manor. He covered Senluo Manor with the formidable Sword Will to deter anyone who wished to enter.


    He would like to advance to a higher level after this narrow escape from death.


    It was difficult for someone in the Divine Wheel second order to kill a high-level Renhuang in the Divine Wheel seventh order. He had to rely on the Will of the Emperor, which he didn''t want to use too often.


    Therefore, he needed to make some progress before venturing out into the Divine Prefecture!

 1868 Year 10045 In The Divine Prefecture Calendar

    The news about the annihilation of Senluo Manor had spread out. Many people came to survey the area. However, with the Sword Will flowing around Senluo Manor and the Black Wind Condor patrolling the mountains, no one had the nerve to barge in.


    After all, the cultivator who wiped out all of Senluo Manor couldn''t possibly be a friendly and amicable man. Nevertheless, plenty of people living in the greater area were eager to meet the man who destroyed Senluo Manor and pay their respect.


    They all knew what Senluo Manor had been doing, and they were gratified to hear that someone had put an end to it.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was at the peak of the highest mountain in Senluo Manor. Wisps of intense energy emanated from his body, and currents of the Great Path flowed around. His Divine Wheel shone brilliantly, and he was radiating with beams of the domineering divine light of the Great Path.


    Xia Qingyuan and the Black Wind Condor waiting outside both turned their heads around to look at Ye Futian''s direction. A ray of the terrifying light of the Great Path directly shot at the sky. Waves of the Great Path rolled over Senluo Manor and neutralized the Sword Will swirling around in the manor.


    "So powerful."


    A puff of the Great Path hit Ying Qing and made her dress flap loudly. Back in the day, even her master and older brothers never gave her such feelings. Although Ye Futian''s level was far below her master''s, his Will of the Great Path was extremely pure, and the power it carried was just as forceful.


    Ying Qing couldn''t help but exclaim. She wondered which secret zone Ye Futian came from. He had such extraordinary talent.


    He killed the chief of Senluo Manor when he was in the Divine Wheel second order. His ability was further enhanced now that he advanced to a higher level. Although he might not be able to make away with master cultivators in the eighth order, he could easily take out a seventh-order cultivator who didn''t have a perfect Divine Wheel.


    That being so, Ye Futian was more confident about defeating the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Ying Qing didn''t care that she had been waiting for several years now. It was not a high price to pay as long as she could exact vengeance. She probably had no chance at all if she had to do it herself.


    The energy of the Great Path dissipated after a long time. A silver-haired man stood at the edge of the cliff and gazed into the distance. Ying Qing stared at him and wondered how a young man like him reached such a high level.


    Moreover, it was surprisingly easy for him to achieve a breakthrough in the Renhuang Plane.


    Ying Qing saw that both Xia Qingyuan and the Black Wind Condor were walking toward Ye Futian. So she went closer to him as well.


    Xia Qingyuan thought his face was even more attractive than when she met him in the Nine States years ago. He seemed maturer and more charismatic now.


    "Thank you for waiting for so long," said Ye Futian. He finally advanced to a higher level after cultivating for quite some time.


    But he also knew that he couldn''t return to the Original Realm from the Divine Prefecture after only a few years. He had to be strong enough if he didn''t want to be killed the moment he went back.


    He also needed to have sufficient strength to travel around in the Divine Prefecture.


    It had been years since he arrived at the Divine Prefecture. He was curious about the situation in the Original Realm.


    Since Princess Donghuang issued an order herself, the Original Realm should be able to remain peaceful for a long time after he "died."


    "Where are we going now?" Xia Qingyuan asked.


    Ying Qing looked at Ye Futian with expectant eyes.


    Ye Futian noticed her expression and said to her, "We''re going to Dongyuan City."


    Besides the thing he promised Ying Qing, he also decided to go to Dongyuan City because it was the largest city on this continent and could help him gather more information about the Divine Prefecture.


    Ying Qing was only in the Saint Plane and never traveled outside this continent herself. Everything she knew about the Divine Prefecture was hearsay. To some extent, she wasn''t well informed of the forces in the Divine Prefecture either.


    The Divine Prefecture was too big for someone in the Saint Plane.


    Even a Renhuang could hardly visit all of the continents.


    "Little Condor," Ye Futian called. The Black Wind Condor suddenly spread its wings. As its body growing rapidly, it became a Giant Peng Bird in seconds.


    Ye Futian, Xia Qingyuan, and Ying Qing rode on the Black Wind Condor. It flapped the wings and dashed into the clouds, where it disappeared right away.


    ...


    Dongyuan City was the largest city in this continent, in which countless powerful cultivators resided.


    The South Mountain was a famous site in Dongyuan City because of a distinguished man practicing there. Some people named him Priest of South Mountain, and some called him Mr. South Mountain to show respect. He was an old man who had cultivated for many years and took in a great number of disciples. As his disciples grew older and stronger, they became an influential group in Dongyuan City.


    Back in the days, the South Mountain was acclaimed as the next Dongyuan Pavilion. The Priest of South Mountain and the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion were also good friends. However, the South Mountain was destroyed overnight.


    Many years ago, the Priest of South Mountain envied the position of the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion, so he led his disciples to lay siege to the Dongyuan Pavilion and tried to coerce his friend to let him be the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion. Nevertheless, his attempt failed, and the cultivators of the South Mountain were cleansed as well.


    The incident had a major impact and caused quite a stir. At that time, Mr. South Mountain was indeed qualified to compete with the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    People could only guess if something else happened behind the scenes. The master of the Dongyuan Pavilion controlled the Dongyuan Pavilion and had tremendous power. No one was willing to offend him by probing the matter.


    After all, everybody dreamed of cultivating in the Dongyuan Pavilion, and the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion was exactly the man who was in charge of granting access.


    Right now, a group of people was standing at the foot of South Mountain. It was Ye Futian and the others.


    Ying Qing wore a black mask to hide her face. Even though she was not a prominent figure years ago, she didn''t want to risk being recognized by people.


    Returning home, Ying Qing''s eyes underneath the mask grew red with tears. She stared at the South Mountain and cast her mind back.


    She studied in the South Mountain along with other disciples.


    Their Master was knowledgeable and treated everyone fairly. All the disciples admired him a great deal and were willing to follow him for always.


    Now, the South Mountain was still here, yet the people were long gone.


    A bolt of intimidating energy rumbled down the South Mountain and was directed at Ye Futian and the others. Ye Futian raised his face and saw a middle-aged man walking toward them. His cold eyes surveyed Ye Futian and his companies.


    "Who are you?" the cultivator walking down the South Mountain asked them.


    "Who are you?" Ying Qing threw the question back. This was her Master''s place.


    The man shot a glance at Ying Qing and didn''t reply. He kept staring at Ye Futian; it was obvious to him that Ye Futian was the leader of the group. Besides, he could vaguely sense that Ye Futian was strong enough to pose a serious threat to him.


    "We are old friends of the South Mountain," Ye Futian said. "This is Mr. South Mountain''s territory. Why are you here?"


    "He died a long time ago. This place doesn''t belong to anyone. What''s your relationship with him?" the man kept asking.


    "Why did he die?" Ye Futian replied with a question.


    "I''m the one questioning you." The man sounded cold and domineering.


    Ye Futian took a brief look at him. Then he turned around and was ready to leave.


    Even though he made a promise to Ying Qing, he wouldn''t go to the Dongyuan Pavilion and kill the master of the Pavilion straight away. First of all, he needed to find out if Ying Qing told him the truth. Besides, he couldn''t deal with the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion the same way as he did with Senluo Manor. Senluo Manor practiced that evil cultivation method, and it was justifiable for him to wipe them off the map. But he could face huge backlash or even bring trouble to himself if he killed the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion for no good reason.


    After all, the master of the Dongyuan Pavilion was helping the Great Emperor guard the pavilion and disseminate knowledge, at least in theory.


    "Stay, please," the cultivator said when he realized that Ye Futian was leaving. He used the might of the Great Path to add pressure on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian released an invisible form of energy and ignored the man completely. He continued walking away.


    Bang!


    With a loud and deadened thump, many cultivators at the foot of South Mountain felt a great weight on their bodies and were forced to stop moving. Ye Futian was under much more pressure. A shadow of a giant Black Turtle beast appeared in the sky and pressed down on Ye Futian''s body.


    Ye Futian was still walking. The potent Sword Will burst out of him and pierced through the giant Black Turtle beast. The cultivator from the South Mountain uttered a low moan and stepped back. The might of the Great Path was also dispelled.


    "Don''t blame me for being rude if you keep pushing." Ye Futian''s voice reverberated in the air. People around were all startled by his assertiveness.


    The cultivator from the South Mountain was a disciple of the Dongyuan Pavilion. The Dongyuan Pavilion assumed control of the South Mountain ever since they exterminated the South Mountain force. Nowadays, their disciples often came to cultivate here.


    The man heard that Ye Futian addressed the Priest of South Mountain respectfully and called himself an old friend. He wanted to know the true nature of their relationship.


    However, he wasn''t a match for him at all.


    His opponent was at the Divine Wheel third order.


    His level wasn''t lower than Ye Futian''s.


    Soon, Ye Futian and the others disappeared. The crowd drew closer to gossip.


    "This man seems quite powerful. Was he a disciple of the Priest of South Mountain?" someone asked.


    "I don''t know, but they probably knew each other. So many mast cultivators came to Dongyuan City. It looks like something big is about to happen."


    "I heard that Senluo Manor was destroyed, and everyone in the Renhuang Plane was killed. The killer then stayed in the Senluo Manor to cultivate." Someone else said, "People in Dongyuan City are saying that that man already left Senluo Manor and is coming at us. I wonder if he is aiming at the Dongyuan Pavilion. This man is probably a threat to the Dongyuan Pavilion since he is capable enough to wipe out Senluo Manor!"


    Ye Futian heard the people''s conversation. He planned to pay a visit to the Dongyuan Pavilion!

 1869 Forceful Entry

    Aside from a few special regions, almost all continents of the Divine Prefecture seemed to have locations similar to Dongyuan Pavilion. A few hundred years ago, the Great Emperor personally sent his people over to establish Dongyuan Pavilion. The cultivation methods within were all copied over from the Imperial Palace and were extremely precious. They were far more powerful than most of the cultivation methods in the outside world.


    For many cultivators, entering Dongyuan Pavilion was a milestone on their cultivation journey.


    Outside of Dongyuan Pavilion, many people were passing in front of it. However, only occasionally would someone be seen entering it.


    Now, Ye Futian was standing outside of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    The terrain was very high here. In front of Ye Futian, there was a flight of stairs. Looking up the stairs, one could see a towering structure at a glance. Divine halos of the Great Path circled around the building. Dongyuan Pavilion was the tallest structure in Dongyuan City.


    Around Dongyuan Pavilion, there were also many grandiose palace complexes. There were also many cultivators there.


    Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master trained on top of the Pavilion and accepted disciples. In reality, they were similar to a powerful sect clan. They also controlled the best resources for cultivating. Hence, who didn''t want to become a disciple of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master and train under him?


    Under such circumstances, cultivators who could enter Dongyuan Pavilion were among those with the greatest talents.


    The position of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master was also extremely high. He stood at the top of Dongyuan City.


    To the left and right of the stairs, there were two men on guard. When they saw that Ye Futian intended to head up the stairs, they came forward to block his way.


    Ye Futian frowned. He looked at the guards before him and said, "I have come to take the Dongyuan Pavilion statue assessment."


    "State your name, place of origin, and cultivation Plane," the person in front of him said.


    "Ye Liunian, unaffiliated cultivator, Renhuang Plane, third-tier Divine Wheel," Ye Futian answered. Ye Liunian was naturally his alias.


    After hearing his reply, the other party nodded their heads. Aside from being granted permission, there was another way to enter Dongyuan Pavilion to train, and that was by taking the Dongyuan Pavilion statue assessment. In every location similar to the Dongyuan Pavilion, the founders back then left behind a statue to assess the talents of cultivators. As long as the person being assessed passed, they were qualified to train in Dongyuan Pavilion.


    The guards were just about to let him pass when a voice cried out and said, "Dongyuan Pavilion does not accept your assessment."


    Ye Futian was stunned. He lifted his head and swept a glance up the stairs at the person who had spoken. He naturally did not recognize the person.


    "Understood." The guards nodded and continued to block Ye Futian''s way, not allowing him to advance further.


    "Why?" Ye Futian asked as he raised his head and looked at the person. His tone was very calm.


    "Very few people have passed the Dongyuan Pavilion statue assessment. Too many people come every day. Most of them are just a waste of time. Hence, we carry out selections. The two of you have not passed."


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look on his face. Had not passed?


    How did the other party carry out their selection?


    Ye Futian was at the Renhuang Plane, and this was his first time here. He just wanted a chance to be assessed. He had actually not passed?


    Clearly, the other party was doing this deliberately. The other party was indeed doing this intentionally. They looked at Ye Futian without any concern in their eyes. They even had looks of condescension in their eyes. They needed to agree for Ye Futian to want to enter Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Ye Futian did not say anything. Before this, someone''s will had swept out from Dongyuan Pavilion. Was it for this reason? After all, he had come to Dongyuan Pavilion. For someone to check on him with their will was very common. He did not think much of it.


    At that moment, his will swept out towards Dongyuan Pavilion. In an instant, the entire region of the vast Dongyuan Pavilion was enveloped within his will.


    In the training grounds above, there was a group of people who were drinking tea and discussing cultivation. This group of people had extraordinary temperaments. Among them, sitting next to a youth with outstanding temperament, was a silhouette whom Ye Futian had encountered not long ago on South Mountain.


    Clearly, the other party had rushed over here before he did.


    At that moment, Ye Futian understood what was going on.


    The people having their banquet seemed to have noticed that someone''s will was observing them. They could not help but raise their eyebrows. The looks in their eyes were somewhat cold. A woman wearing a long dress coldly scolded, "Presumptuous."


    The moment she uttered this word, she looked in the direction where the will had come from. From a distance, she saw Ye Futian, and their eyes met.


    The wills of the others also swept out and landed on Ye Futian.


    They noticed that the temperaments of Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan beside him were rather outstanding. However, for them to have snooped on them with their wills was somewhat presumptuous and rude.


    "Who handles affairs in Dongyuan Pavilion?" Ye Futian cried out loudly. The cultivator, whom Ye Futian encountered previously on South Mountain, had a cold look on his face. The youth beside him slowly got up and said, "Let''s go have a look."


    The few of them nodded in agreement. They then walked out from Dongyuan Pavilion. In an instant, they were at the top of the stairs. They looked down at Ye Futian standing below.


    "He is the son of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master, Liu Dongge [1]," Ying Qing transmitted her thoughts over to Ye Futian. Upon hearing this name, Ye Futian realized that the Pavilion Master wanted his descendent to rule over the Pavilion for generations to come. Hence, even his name was related to the place.


    The group of people beside Liu Dongge had extraordinary temperaments. Their identities were certainly special. The woman who scolded Ye Futian was dressed like a noblewoman. She bore the proud air of an empress, and she could be considered a beauty. The look she gave Ye Futian was somewhat unwelcoming. She was clearly dissatisfied with Ye Futian''s offense.


    "You wanted to see me?" Liu Dongge asked in a low voice as he looked at Ye Futian. He gazed down at Ye Futian, and his tone was indifferent.


    He had heard that this person had claimed to know the Priest of South Mountain.


    Ye Futian was also sizing up the other party. What he had heard in Dongyuan City was not the same as what he had heard from Ying Qing. It could even be said to be the complete opposite. Hence, he needed verification. Although Ying Qing had helped him out, he could not kill the Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master solely based on what Ying Qing had said.


    He had promised Ying Qing. If what she said was true, he would kill Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master.


    However, from the looks of it, this Liu Dongge was indeed an extremely arrogant person.


    "I wish to enter the Dongyuan Pavilion to train. I wish to take the assessment of Dongyuan Pavilion," Ye Futian stated calmly.


    "Denied," Liu Dongge replied as he stood there.


    "Why?" Ye Futian continued asking. He did not get angry.


    "A denial is a denial. I do not need to give a reason," Liu Dongge said. In Dongyuan Pavilion, their word was law.


    Although Dongyuan Pavilion was established by people sent by the Great Emperor, merely constructing these pavilions on the continents of the Divine Prefecture took hundreds of years. They did not have the time to manage these places. Hence, these places were controlled by the strongest cultivators and forces of the respective continents.


    This continent could not be considered a top continent of the Divine Prefecture. It did not even have a name and was far from being ranked at all. The Great Emperor would not bother coming down here at all. Hence, in a sense, Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master held absolute authority here.


    Down below, many people were looking over here. They had all noticed the commotion. They all looked at Ye Futian. Someone wanted to enter Dongyuan Pavilion to take the statue assessment and was being denied entry.


    Usually, once someone reached the Renhuang Plane, Dongyuan Pavilion would not reject them and give them a chance to take the assessment.


    Otherwise, if even Renhuangs were unqualified to take the assessment, how many people would Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master offend?


    However, this time, the son of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master, Liu Dongge, had personally come out to stop this person.


    What was so special about this man?


    "Who built Dongyuan Pavilion? Who set the rules here?" Ye Futian continued asking. Even more people gathered around upon hearing him say this. Renhuangs were certainly very proud people. Moreover, this person appeared rather young. He would certainly feel dissatisfied when stopped by Liu Dongge.


    Everyone knew who had built Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Ye Futian was questioning Liu Dongge by mentioning the Great Emperor.


    That being said, what would that do?


    "Are you done?" Liu Dongge asked. "If you are done talking, please leave. You are not allowed to step into Dongyuan Pavilion."


    "The Great Emperor built Dongyuan Pavilion, and it is looked after by someone for the Great Emperor. Currently, do even the servants around the Great Emperor take themselves to be the master of the Pavilion?" Ye Futian said. "If you can stand at the top of the stairs, why can''t I?"


    Having said that, Ye Futian stepped forward and walked up the stairs.


    The surrounding crowd revealed strange expressions. Was he planning to enter by force?


    Liu Dongge and the others looked down at Ye Futian. Strange looks flashed past in their eyes. Was he forcing his way into Dongyuan Pavilion?


    The people beside Liu Dongge all revealed bizarre expressions. These people were all cultivators from the top forces of the continent. They happened to be in Dongyuan Pavilion. They never imagined that they would encounter someone trying to force his way into Dongyuan Pavilion.


    "If we say you cannot, then you naturally cannot." The aura of the female Renhuang swept out from her body. It was extremely domineering.


    "There is no point in getting worked up over this," Liu Dongge said softly to her. "Let''s go."


    As Liu Dongge said this, he turned and headed into the Dongyuan Pavilion. He said, "Those who try to cause trouble and enter the Pavilion by force will bear the consequences of their actions."


    He did not look back, but his voice contained a faint hint of murderous intent. No one doubted what he said.


    If Ye Futian were truly related to the Priest of South Mountain, Liu Dongge would have problems finding an excuse to deal with him. Since Ye Futian wanted to force his way in, he could use this opportunity to kill him on the spot.


    So what if Ye Futian was a Renhuang?


    How could a mere lower-level Renhuang stand against the forces of the Dongyuan Pavilion?


    Beneath her mask, a murderous intent flared up in Ying Qing''s eyes. She glanced at Ye Futian. If this continued, Ye Futian would see what sort of person Liu Dongge was.


    Ye Futian lifted his head and looked up the stairs. Several cultivators stepped forward at the same time. Among them was the Renhuang that he had driven off on South Mountain. He looked at Ye Futian with a cold gaze and said, "Dongyuan Pavilion was built by the Great Emperor long ago. You will not defile this place. If you want to make that mistake, step forward. We will then consider that an attempt at forceful entry into Dongyuan Pavilion."


    [1]: The characters for ''Dongge'' is a shorthand for Dongyuan Pavilion, both names sharing the same Chinese characters.

 1870 Dominance

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 1871 Manifestation

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 1872 Person-in-Charge?

    Over there, an illusory silhouette appeared. It seemed alive, as though it was actually existing. At that moment, the eyes of the illusory silhouette suddenly opened. In that instant, the hearts of countless people around the Dongyuan Pavilion trembled. Their hearts wavered.


    This�� Had he awakened a hidden will within the statue?


    A divine halo enveloped the statue. The illusory silhouette looked at Ye Futian. At that moment, Ye Futian''s eyes seemed to traverse the endless space. He saw the silhouette of a mighty figure in another world. It had not been difficult for him to activate the will of the statue. The person who forged this statue back in the day had left behind a will of the Great Path to test the people. Ye Futian had also immediately activated the will of the statue, awakening the master of the statue.


    Hence, an astonishing scene appeared before his eyes.


    3,000 miles of space was enveloped in resplendent light. Everyone in Dongyuan City raised their heads and looked at the divine silhouette in their sights.


    "It is the statue in front of the Dongyuan Pavilion. This..."


    "What is going on?"


    The people in the city burst into an exciting discussion. For the statue to have manifested, something big must have happened. Countless people frenziedly rushed over in the direction of the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    It was not just the people of Dongyuan City. Right now, even the major figures around the Dongyuan Pavilion were trembling in awe. This included the top figures of the continent, such as Emperor Helian. This fellow had actually achieved something that they had never been able to pull off.


    It was laughable that the cultivators of Dongyuan Pavilion had actually prevented Ye Futian from entering. Even Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master had intentionally made things hard for Ye Futian and had wanted him to activate the will of the statue. Yet, they most likely never imagined that Ye Futian would reach this step.


    This time, Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master had slapped himself in the face.


    When Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master saw this scene, the look in his eyes was complicated. Although he was filled with awe, he similarly had cold murderous intentions. He felt threatened.


    As Pavilion Master, someone had achieved something that he had never been able to do. The will of the statue had manifested before the crowd. How was he feeling right now? If this person had caught his eye, matters would still be alright. However, they just so happened to have prevented the other party from entering the Dongyuan Pavilion. This was an extreme mockery for them.


    Pavilion Master did not know about this matter.


    However, now that the situation was already like this, he could not change it anymore.


    "Welcome, senior."


    At that moment, a few major figures beside Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master bowed slightly at the silhouette that had manifested. They would naturally show respect to the founder of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    The silhouette that had manifested did not look at them. Instead, he looked at Ye Futian and said, "There will be no restrictions for you in Dongyuan Pavilion. You can even become the person in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion."


    "Many thanks, senior," Ye Futian replied as he bowed in respect. Immediately, the resplendent light dissipated. The illusory silhouette also gradually disappeared. The light of the Great Path surged into the statue. When everything returned to normal, it was as though nothing had happened. Internally, the hearts of the crowd could not calm down. They were astonished.


    The members of Dongyuan Pavilion had forbidden Ye Futian from entering. However, now that the founder of Dongyuan Pavilion had personally manifested and appeared, there were no longer any restrictions on him in Dongyuan Pavilion.


    What was even more astonishing was the sentence that came last. Ye Futian could become the person in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    What did this mean?


    The founder had handpicked Ye Futian to control Dongyuan Pavilion.


    When Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master, who was initially bowing, heard this, he raised his head. His heart was as cold as ice. A murderous intent flashed past in his eyes as he looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian could take charge of the Dongyuan Pavilion? Then, who was Pavilion Master?


    This time, Pavilion Master, as well as his subordinates, had made fools of themselves. Their image was ruined. The cultivators below the Dongyuan Pavilion thought to themselves. This was truly a slap to the face.


    After the statue returned to its original state, the Dongyuan Pavilion actually became exceptionally quiet. No one said anything, and the atmosphere was somewhat bizarre.


    It was as though no one knew where to begin.


    Liu Dongge''s expression was as ugly as it could be. He was the instigator of all this.


    Before this, he had denied Ye Futian from entering the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    When Ye Futian inquired about his reason for doing so, Liu Dongge had said that Ye Futian was not allowed to do so because he had not allowed it. He had no reason, and he could decide everything.


    What about now?


    Was he going to cast Ye Futian out of the Dongyuan Pavilion?


    Today, the various cultivators had witnessed everything that had occurred. Very soon, this matter would be known throughout Dongyuan City. Liu Dongge couldn''t kill Ye Futian and pretend nothing happened. Would their forces still be qualified to be in control of the Dongyuan Pavilion then?


    Most likely, no one would accept the outcome if they tried to do so.


    "Spectacular!" Emperor Helian cried out in astonishment. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "This statue has stood here for 300 years. and no one has ever managed to manifest the will of the statue like you have done, little friend. You awakened the founder of Dongyuan Pavilion. Today has truly been eye-opening. It is laughable that the cultivators of the Pavilion actually tried to stop you. I wonder what their intentions were."


    "Pavilion Master Liu, are you still going to stop him?" Emperor Helian asked Pavilion Master. He wanted to make the other party look bad in front of the crowd. Clearly, they were not close. It could even be said that there was bad blood between them. If not, Emperor Helian would not put Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master on the spot like this.


    "Since Ye Futian has managed to do so and the founder of Dongyuan Pavilion has personally spoken, we will let bygones be bygones," Pavilion Master Liu said as he looked at Ye Futian. "From today onwards, you can enter the Pavilion as you please. You have absolute freedom."


    Under such circumstances, what could he do? Would he defy the wish of the founder?


    He could only let things be and acknowledge Ye Futian. Ye Futian would be able to enter the Pavilion freely. As for the death of the Renhuang, Pavilion Master Liu could only keep quiet and not mention it.


    The Renhuang was fated to have died in vain.


    Ye Futian swept an indifferent glance at the other party. This was beyond what he had expected. Before this, if the Pavilion Master continued to act outrageously, Ye Futian would have immediately retaliated. With Ye Futian''s current cultivation, even if he did not activate the will of the emperor, he should be able to put up a fight.


    Of course, he was not sure about Pavilion Master Liu''s actual combat prowess. Nevertheless, Ye Futian''s opponent couldn''t take his life.


    If Ye Futian came again after breaking through to the next Plane, that would cover all his bases. He would not release the will of the emperor in public. It was his trump card.


    "Is that all?" Emperor Helian said as he narrowed his eyes at Pavilion Master Liu. With a smile, he continued saying, "Did Pavilion Master not listen clearly to what the founding senior said before?"


    The master of the statue had manifested and proclaimed that Ye Futian would be in charge of the Dongyuan Pavilion in his place. This meant that Ye Futian could become the new Pavilion Master.


    "Helian, even though the founding senior said so, his cultivation is currently only that of a lower-level Renhuang. How will he have authority over the powerful ones and control the Dongyuan Pavilion?" the middle-aged man beside Pavilion Master Liu said before Pavilion Master managed to respond.


    "My Helian Royal Family is willing to aid him," Emperor Helian said with a smile.


    "Such wild ambition," the middle-aged man coldly snorted.


    "Do you want to look after the Pavilion?" Pavilion Master Liu asked Ye Futian, causing the two of them who were bickering to shut up. They both gave Pavilion Master Liu strange glances. Could it be that he had changed his attitude towards Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian looked at the other party and revealed an expression of amusement. He asked, "What if I want to?"


    "Since the founding senior has spoken, if you want, I will hand over the position of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master to you," Pavilion Master Liu explained. "However, since your current cultivation Plane is not high enough, we will temporarily aid you in maintaining order in the Dongyuan Pavilion. When you no longer need us, I can hand over the responsibilities completely to you."


    Ye Futian smiled as he looked at the other party.


    This was a good suggestion. That way, both he and the other party could manage Dongyuan Pavilion together. As a puppet, no one would even know how Ye Futian died.


    With so much time, wouldn''t it be easy to kill a lower-level Renhuang?


    The other party might be thinking so.


    "Many thanks, but that will not be necessary," Ye Futian said. He then walked towards the Dongyuan Pavilion. When he saw Liu Dongge standing to the side, he said, "You denied me entry to the Dongyuan Pavilion, yet I still made it up here."


    Liu Dongge''s expression froze on his face. He had no words to respond to Ye Futian; he could only watch as Ye Futian continued walking forwards.


    Xia Qingyuan, Ying Qing, as well as Black Wind Condor, followed Ye Futian. Black Wind Condor swept a sharp glance at Liu Dongge and said, "Idiot..."


    A will emanated from Liu Dongge. The look that Black Wind Condor gave him was somewhat provocative.


    "Brood may not enter," Liu Dongge said.


    "Dongge," Pavilion Master Liu interrupted him. Liu Dongge endured it as he watched Black Wind Condor walk into the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    "Interesting," Emperor Helian exclaimed with a smile. He then placed his hands behind his back and casually waltzed into the Dongyuan Pavilion. This scene caused the expression of Pavilion Master Liu to turn ugly. This old fellow was originally plotting to take his place. Now, was he planning to use Ye Futian to seize control over the Dongyuan Pavilion?


    Ye Futian stepped into the Dongyuan Pavilion and was astonished by the building.


    An aura of the Great Path enveloped the entire Dongyuan Pavilion. The interior was all-inclusive. The ancient manuscripts of the Great Path that were carved on the walls could not be taken away from this place. They were carved onto jade scrolls using specialized methods. One could only inspect them using their will.


    At the center of the Dongyuan Pavilion was a spiraling staircase that extended upwards until the 81st floor.


    Ye Futian glanced around. The lowest floor did not contain anything that he needed. They were all cultivation methods for people of low cultivation Planes. He then made his way up the stairs.


    Although Ye Futian did not lack cultivation methods, since this place contained the teachings that Donghuang the Great had ordered people to copy down for the masses back then, they must be suitable for all cultivators. There might be some incredible cultivation techniques among them.


    Ying Qing quietly followed behind Ye Futian. Everything that occurred today had a huge impact on her. How monstrous was this cultivator who was picked up by Han Lin from Senluo Manor?


    Now, she was not worried at all about her revenge. Since Ye Futian had promised her, he would certainly help her settle it!

 1873 Agreeing to Replace

No content

 1874 Making Amends?

    The Dongyuan Pavilion and the Donglin Clan were allies, and here, the Helian Royal Family and the Yang Clan had joined forces. Both sides had two factions. In addition to that, the other two forces had a neutral attitude, but Ye Futian guessed that they must have a good idea of what they were doing.


    Moreover,   this time,  if they wanted to dethrone the Dongyuan Pavilion faction,  it would be,  by no means,  a simple replacement. Since the Pavilion master was greedy for power and wanted to keep controlling Dongyuan Pavilion, then he naturally would not let go. It was obviously impossible to replace him peacefully, and they definitely would have to fight.


    Ye Futian knew this clearly,  so he asked about Mr. South Mountain and did not hesitate to directly agree to it. Based on the performance of the other party who came to the Dongyuan Pavilion that day, there was no need to prove anything more; he just needed to have inner conviction.


    It just so happened that he also wanted to get rid of the other party. If he managed to become the Pavilion Master, he could cultivate for a period of time as well.


    As for the reason behind dealing with the Dongyuan Pavilion,       he did not care. Back in the Original Realm,      he had many relatives and friends,     had many concerns,    and needed to weigh and consider many things. But now that he was here,   there was only him,  Xia Qingyuan, and the Black Wind Condor. They could do things without restraint and did not have to consider too much.


    In addition to cultivation,   it was enough to just pay attention to protecting himself. So when he walked through the Divine Prefecture in the future,  he would have to keep a few tricks up his sleeve and not expose all of his strength to his opponents. That way,  when he encountered a real crisis, he would have a chance to turn the tables.


    After all, his cultivation level was a good cover.


    Rejecting the request to be with the other party,  Ye Futian left alone to find a place to settle down for cultivation. This made Emperor Helian and the others feel that Ye Futian seemed a bit mysterious. This young Renhuang could make the statue reveal itself,  so he must have an extraordinary talent for cultivation. Although he agreed to be the master of Dongyuan Pavilion, he did not seem to have a strong attitude regarding this matter.


    It was as if, to him, it was just an insignificant matter.


    On this day, when Ye Futian was cultivating in his residence palace, wisps of aura of the great Way enveloped his body. An extremely oppressive and terrifying atmosphere permeated the palace, and infinite amounts of Sword Will seemed to appear in the surrounding heaven and earth. These Sword Wills turned into wisps of rune lightning surrounding a sword. The sword was one created from Sword Wills but seemed even more real than a real sword. The auras of swordsmanship emanating from it caused a net of swords to appear in the palace.


    Outside the palace, a curvaceous and graceful figure appeared. It was the eldest princess of the Helian Royal Family, Helian You. She sensed something wrong with the Sword Wills in the palace.


    She was a remarkable cultivator at the Fifth Order of the Divine Wheel, yet she actually felt an oppressive air.


    Strands of Will flowed on Helian You''s body as she stepped into the sword net. Shrill whooshes were heard, and Helian You retreated right after walking in. Her body seemed like it had been electrocuted as a whoosh sound was emitted from her arms, and her sleeves were torn, revealing her snowy white arms.


    Astonishment flashed in her eyes, and as she looked inside, she seemed to see a sword.


    The sword turned into a ray of light and directly disappeared into Ye Futian''s body. In the next moment, the oppressive sword will dissipated, and a voice came out from the palace, "Eldest Princess, please enter."


    "Renhuang Ye need not be so polite." Hearing that Ye Futian had called her the eldest princess, she could not help but reply. Helian You stepped into the palace and soon appeared in front of Ye Futian and said, "Renhuang Ye cultivates such a strong sword intent, is it the previous Dictionary of the way?"


    "After reading many books about ancient techniques in Dongyuan Pavilion, I had some insights and attempted to refine sword will with the way." Ye Futian replied. Helian You''s beautiful eyes revealed a flash of shock, and she was somewhat surprised by Ye Futian''s talent.


    "It didn''t hurt the eldest princess, right?" Ye Futian asked after seeing Helian You''s arm.


    "No harm." Helian You said, "But that sword will actually broke through my Will defence. Renhuang Ye''s strength is unfathomable."


    Ye Futian smiled and did not say much. Helian You continued, "The Young Master of Dongyuan Pavilion, Liu Dongge, invited us to a gathering, and deliberately also invited Renhuang Ye."


    "Okay." Ye Futian nodded. He did not ask much as he got up and followed Helian You to leave. Xia Qingyuan and Ying Qing naturally followed. In their current situation, he naturally did not feel comfortable letting Xia Qingyuan and the others travel alone.


    The group arrived at an open-air restaurant in Dongyuan City. There were already quite a few people waiting for them, the Young Master of the Dongyuan Pavilion, Liu Dongge, was also there, as well as the arrogant woman from last time.


    Other than that, he had met the others before. They were with Liu Dongge at Dongyuan Pavilion the last time.


    Below the restaurant, many people looked up towards this side. They let out sounds of wonder as their gazes landed on Ye Futian.


    "Ye Liunian. He is the one who made the statue reveal itself." Someone spoke up and said that Ye Liunian was Ye Futian''s pseudonym.


    "That day, he killed the middle-level Renhuang below the Dongyuan Pavilion. Liu Dongge and the others did not allow him to go up, but Ye Liunian forced his way up, urging the statue to reveal itself, and the will swept 3,000 miles." Many people worshipped Ye Futian after seeing his elegance that day. Such magnificence was hard to find in Dongyuan City.


    On that day, he left Dongyuan Pavilion Master and others speechless.


    "I didn''t expect Sword Emperor Ye Liunian to be so handsome. He''s as handsome as me." A young and handsome man remarked. The people beside him sneered. Here, you really could not find anyone who was more handsome than Ye Futian.


    The open-air restaurant in the sky was extremely spacious and divided into six directions. Ye Futian and Helian You were sitting together. These six directions probably represented the six top factions that could influence Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Senluo Manor wanted to join previously, but the six top factions unanimously decided to exclude them.


    Liu Dongge ordered someone to pour wine for Ye Futian, then raised his glass in the direction where Ye Futian was and said, "I didn''t recognize Renhuang Ye that day and offended you in Dongyuan Pavilion. I want to find an opportunity to make amends, but Renhuang Ye has been cultivating in Dongyuan Pavilion, so there was no suitable time for me to do so. This time I deliberately asked the Eldest Princess to invite Renhuang Ye to come so I could make amends to Renhuang Ye. I offended you greatly that day, but I really hope you won''t take it to heart."


    Saying that, he drank all the wine in his glass and then raised his cup towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at him quietly and kept his hands to himself instead of reaching out to take his glass. Immediately, gazes fell on him, causing a strange silence to appear in the restaurant.


    It seemed that everyone was waiting for Ye Futian to drink that glass of wine.


    A cold glint flashed between Liu Dongge''s eyes, but he concealed it very well. Ye Futian was not giving him face.


    The woman beside him similarly frowned, her eyes carrying a faintly cold and arrogant intent. She remarked, "What does Renhuang Ye mean by this?"


    Ye Futian swept a glance at the woman and then looked away again.


    He looked at Helian You beside him and said softly, "If there is nothing else, I will go back to my cultivation."


    Helian You''s beautiful eyes blinked as she looked at Ye Futian with a slightly amused gaze. He really did not want to give him any face.


    Many people in the distance looked this way, and many people whispered when they heard Ye Futian''s words.


    What madness.


    Directly ignoring the other party''s compensation.


    "It seems that Renhuang Ye doesn''t accept my apology." Liu Dongge spoke, still wearing a faint smile on his face, but it seemed a bit hypocritical.


    "Yes." Ye Futian nodded without hesitation and looked at Liu Dongge, "You didn''t do anything wrong, so why do you need to make amends."


    Liu Dongge looked at Ye Futian, feeling somewhat confused.


    "It''s just that you''re not worthy of stopping me yet." Ye Futian continued. Liu Dongge''s smile disappeared from his face. If just now he did not give him face, he gave him a direct hit to the face at this moment.


    Indeed, if he could really stop him, why would he come here to make amends?


    It was because he could not stop him and caused the drama that happened later on that things played out this way today.


    As for whether he was right or wrong, it did not matter.


    Liu Dongge bowed his head and poured himself a cup of wine, then drank it all alone. It seemed that there was no room to turn the situation around.


    That day, Helian You had invited Ye Futian away from Dongyuan Pavilion. How could they not know that it was not a secret matter? They knew exactly what the other party was planning. That was why they had deliberately come to test Ye Futian''s attitude.


    "Regardless of whether Renhuang Ye accepts the apology or not, I still have great admiration for Renhuang Ye''s strength, and I still remember the elegance of that day''s battle." Liu Dongge spoke up, "Having been invited here today, don''t you all want to see the path that Ye Huang cultivates?"


    As his words fell, the atmosphere of this restaurant instantly became a little different, seemingly with a faint feeling of depression.


    Helian You frowned, then her beautiful eyes carried a light smile. It was as if everything was expected. Since she brought Ye Futian here, how could she be unprepared?


    Around the restaurant, in the far direction, some people mixed into the crowd at different locations. At this moment, those people raised their heads towards the direction of the restaurant, and with just one glance, the atmosphere in the restaurant became oppressive, with the oppressive atmosphere being invisible.


    Ye Futian naturally also sensed that Dongyuan Pavilion must have already made arrangements. If he really planned to join hands with Emperor Helian to seize the throne, then no matter what Dongyuan Pavilion faction did, it would come as no surprise to him.


    Of course, he did not care and still sat there quietly, as if those wisps of aura had no effect on him.


    Many of these people were at the level of middle-level Renhuangs, and there were even several powerful people at the sixth order of the Divine Wheel. The faintly oppressive air was suffocating, but in Ye Futian''s eyes, the sixth order of the Divine Wheel, and non-perfect Divine Wheels, were nothing to write home about.


    "Liu Dongge, what do you mean by this?" Helian You looked towards Liu Dongge and asked.

 1875 Sword Will

    At this moment, the surrounding aura became even more suppressive and powerful, as people around the tavern began to retreat from the area.


    Soon, a large area was cleared. With the tavern as the center, apart from Ye Futian and the others, there were only those who were cultivating at Dongyuan Pavilion. About a dozen Renhuang appeared, guarding in different positions, emitting a fearsome aura.


    The expressions of those who were in the distance changed. Many had felt the undercurrents that ran beneath Dongyuan City in recent days. Now, was something about to explode?


    Could it be that the cultivators at Dongyuan Pavilion really intend on making a move at Ye Futian?


    If so, there would probably be a lot of unfavorable chatters about this.


    After all, Ye Futian was the person appointed by the creator of Dongyuan Pavilion and was given the authority to take charge of Dongyuan Pavilion if necessary.


    "It''s nothing really. The display of Emperor Ye''s grace on that day was still fresh in our memory, and the Renhuang from Dongyuan Pavilion are all martial arts lovers who would like to learn from Emperor Ye," said Liu Dongge casually.


    "I''m not interested," Ye Futian responded.


    "That day at Dongyuan Pavilion,   Emperor Ye was extremely intimidating, " the woman from Donglin Clan said, her voice cold and proud.


    Today,  they would not kill Ye Futian, but they would gain control of him.


    The Helian Royal Family and the Yang clan both wanted to use Ye Futian to gain control of Dongyuan Pavilion. This much they were aware of and would never allow such a plot to succeed.


    Ye Futian must be controlled by their hands.


    "Since Emperor Ye is not interested, we''ll leave it at that. But what was the intention of the Young Pavilion Master in doing so?" Helian You asked coldly.


    "That has nothing to do with the Princess," Liu Dongge glanced at Helian You and continued.


    "Of course,    it concerns me. It has been ten years since your father took control of Dongyuan Pavilion. My father and Senior Yang have set off for Dongyuan Pavilion not long ago to decide together whether your father will continue to be in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion for the next ten years,  " Helian You said,  pointing directly to the heart of the matter, without any pretense.


    Before she came here, she had already made preparations.


    Liu Dongge stared at Helian You with a faint sneer in his eyes. If the others had made preparations, so did they.


    Since the other party had gone to Dongyuan Pavilion, then they would each get on with their own business here.


    He would handle the matters here while leaving Dongyuan Pavilion to handle his father and the others.


    The people around the tavern got a little excited; they didn''t expect to have a chance to witness a great battle today.


    Was the battle for the control of Dongyuan Pavilion about to erupt?


    The undercurrents of these days were all centered on this matter.


    What would happen next?


    Dongyuan Pavilion!


    Many people''s thoughts turned to this. They looked up into the distance. This was the tavern chosen by the young master of Dongyuan Pavilion,  not far from the Pavilion itself, so the great power of the divine consciousness that came from these Renhuang could reach here. In other words, those cultivators at Dongyuan Pavilion with strong cultivation could cover this place with their divine consciousness and see everything that was happening here.


    "I am not worried. But, since Emperor Ye is not interested, there is no need to bother him," said Helian You. In the crowd further away in the distance, there were also traces of shocking aura permeating as a group of men emerged, and they were all-powerful Renhuang.


    Clearly, the Helian Royal Family had also prepared themselves.


    In addition, they sensed that there were many Renhuang who had not shown themselves, who used the crowd as a cover.


    Six major forces could influence the control of Dongyuan Pavilion. This was a struggle between all six major forces and could not possibly start with just two major forces presented here; cultivators from all sides were hidden in the shadows.


    Liu Dongge smiled and looked at Ye Futian. "Clearly, everyone was prepared. That day when the spirit was revealed on the statue, my father had already said that as long as Brother Ye is willing, my father would give the position of pavilion master to Brother Ye; there was no need for Brother Ye to join forces with Helian Clan to fight against us."


    Ye Futian frowned; he didn''t like how Liu Dongge was addressing him.


    "You are not worthy to address my lord like this!" The Black Wind Condor scolded on the side. His voice was somewhat sharp. His eyes swept over Liu Dongge, who was just a clown, far from worthy.


    "There is no place for mere beasts to speak here just yet." Liu Dongge glanced at the Black Wind Condor and continued, "Since Brother Ye wants to be the Master of Dongyuan Pavilion, my father has commanded before that as long as Brother Ye is willing to go to Dongyuan Pavilion, he will abdicate the position to his better."


    "Sounds good."


    Ye Futian nodded softly in response; his voice was extremely calm. It was as if to him, this was a trivial matter not worth mentioning.


    Now that everything was out in the open, he also understood the character of the Master of Pavilion Dongyuan.


    Then, whatever he promised Yingqing, he would handle it.


    He put down the wine cup and looked directly at Liu Dongge for the first time. Upon seeing those indifferent eyes, Liu Dongge had a feeling. It was as if the owner of those eyes had never really seen him with his eyes, nor took his words to heart.


    Ye Futian, who looked quite young, had a pair of extremely deep eyes; it was as if he had experienced a lot in life.


    From the Lower Worlds of Nine States all the way to the land of the Divine Prefecture, few could compete with Ye Futian in terms of experience. He had spanned too many regions and had experienced too many life and death situations as well as the turbulences that came with them.


    "Then, Master of Dongyuan Pavilion, abdicate," Ye Futian said, and his statement shook the hearts of those in the distance.


    Master of Dongyuan Pavilion, time to abdicate.


    Ye Futian would force the Master of Dongyuan Pavilion to abdicate.


    This meant that this man, who was appointed by the founder of Dongyuan Pavilion, was ready to take charge of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    "That works." Liu Dongge smiled and looked at Ye Futian, his eyes narrowed slightly. "Since Emperor Ye requested, then my father will step aside; please follow me to Dongyuan Pavilion then."


    As long as they were in Dongyuan Pavilion, what if Ye Futian was to become the master of Dongyuan Pavilion?


    He was just a puppet. Sometimes in the future, they could easily cause him to meet his demise suddenly.


    "I will go there myself." Ye Futian got up and raised his feet. Just a single step and he was out of the tavern. Everyone who was watching him could not quite adapt to the rhythm of his movements.


    They had always felt that Ye Futian treated this whole affair like a child''s play, without taking the matter seriously. Now he just got up and left as he pleased, completely ignoring Liu Dongge and the other powerful Renhuang around them.


    Even Helian You was a little stunned but soon got up to follow Ye Futian heading outside the tavern.


    However, just as they walked out, among the crowd, traces of Might of the Way descended instantly, covering this space and suppressing Ye Futian''s body.


    Liu Dongge got up. He raised his head and looked at Ye Futian, a shadow cast over his eyes.


    Ye Futian was too arrogant and impertinent.


    As Ye Futian moving forward in the void, a middle Renhuang appeared in front of him, blocking his way. The Might of the Great Path bloomed on this Middle Renhuang with a terrifying aura.


    Liu Dongge looked over there through the air. His expression was extremely cold.


    "This land is turbulent. To avoid those who plot against Emperor Ye, using Emperor Ye for other means, we are asking Emperor Ye to come with us," said Liu Dongge. To be safe, they must keep tight control of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised an eyebrow and glanced at the other. With just one look, the other instantly felt a deep chill. In the depth of those eyes, he saw a moon that was dark and cold.


    Moonlight invaded into his spiritual soul, making him a little obtuse.


    At the same time, a formidable Sword Will exploded from Ye Futian, and the sky was instantly full of Sword Qi as it bloomed. The boundless space now turned into a territory ruled by the sword.


    Psst��Psst��


    In this vast sword domain, where countless Sword Will encircled one place, a sword was created. This sword was the sword of the Great Path, and it bloomed endless radiance in the void. Its terrifying and sharp intent felt suffocating to many.


    Those who were watching the battle from a distance retreated immediately. Under the extremely repressed atmosphere, they felt that they couldn''t breathe.


    The face of the middle Renhuang who intercepted Ye Futian changed. The sword light imprinted on his body, and in the next moment, Ye Futian pointed his finger forward.


    The Sword Will of the Great Path traversed the void, faster than lightning, leaving an infinite radiant sword mark between heaven and earth.


    Poof...


    A sound was heard as the body of that middle Renhuang was penetrated by the Sword Will. In the next moment, his soul and spirit separated and dissipated, and his body was shattered into nothingness.


    As if he had never even existed.


    Liu Dongge watched this scene with an intense gaze. A middle Renhuang was cut down with a single strike.


    Not only did he not restrain himself, but he was even more aggressive than the other day.


    "I dislike threats," Ye Futian said, continuing to move forward.


    Liu Dongge''s face was gloomy, as many Renhuang levitated into the air, and some were even armed with powerful divine items. The aura of the Great Path exploded instantly from them as they unleashed their attacks on Ye Futian.


    "Kill!"


    Ye Futian waved his hands, and the sword transformed by the Sword Will turned into golden lightning that shuttled between heaven and earth. The Sword Will passed directly through the power of the Great Path and passed through the bodies of those Renhuang.


    Poof, poof... sounds continuously came out, but only in time to bear witness to these middle Renhaung shattered into nothingness, one after another, under the Sword Will.


    No one could bear the power of that sword strike.


    Such a powerful display stole the attention of the surrounding cultivators. Ye Futian was able to make the spirits appear on the statue, but there were no longer any doubts about the greatness of his natural talent. Still, they didn''t expect it to be so strong and to such an extent.


    Was this really a lower Renhuang of the Divine Wheel Third Order?


    Slaying all the Renhuang with a single sword strike, such powerful swordplay completely subverted their views on the realm of cultivation!

 1876 The Fight for the Pavilion

    The cultivation of those interceptors was not any inferior to him, yet they were annihilated with a single sword strike. That Sword Will was conceived from the Great Path, suspended above Ye Futian''s head. It was as if anyone else who dared to stop him again would certainly be killed.


    This display deterred any rash act from those Renhuang who were hiding in the distant crowd. They retracted their aura, staring at Ye Futian in total shock.


    With no survivor under the sword, who dared to stop him now?


    Behind him, the people above the tavern also watched with a stunned look. Liu Dongge looked at Ye Futian, and his heart was greatly disturbed. He had wanted to control Ye Futian, but how could that be possible under such a condition?


    Who could make Ye Futian do anything?


    At this moment, Ye Futian looked back at Liu Dongge and said, "Aren''t we going? Why are you still sitting there?"


    Liu Dongge''s eyes sharped slightly, and the currents of swordsmanship flowed between the heaven and the earth, as some Sword Will fell on him. At this moment, Liu Dongge didn''t look too good; just who was controlling whom?


    "Very well." Liu Dongge stood up with a gloomy face, then followed Ye Futian and went in the direction of Dongyuan Pavilion. He wanted to see just what was up Ye Futian and Emperor Helian''s sleeves.


    The other cultivators stood up and followed Ye Futian moving forward.


    There was a lot of discussion in the city, and following their footsteps, a large and frantic crowd rushed toward Dongyuan Pavilion as well.


    This tavern was not far from Dongyuan Pavilion, so the cultivators arrived very quickly.


    In the sky above Dongyuan Pavilion, cultivators from all sides had appeared there, discussing in the void in front of Dongyuan Pavilion. They were the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion, Helian Emperor, and the others; all the cultivators from all six top forces were present.


    They turned their attention to Ye Futian, who was coming at them. The Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion was standing straight in the void. His gaze swept toward Ye Futian and Liu Dongge. He wasn''t under their control yet?


    "Our little friend is here," the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion said, seemed to be quite familiar with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at him nonchalantly, saying, "I came to ask the Pavilion Master to vacate."


    The pupils of the Pavilion Master contracted slightly, but Ye Futian continued, "I don''t assume that Pavilion Master Liu will refuse the request?"


    "Mmm," Emperor Helian nodded and said, "Pavilion Master Liu has been in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion for some years. Now that its real master has been found, Pavilion Master Liu ought to vacate the position to facilitate the transition. The Helian Clan supports Ye Futian as the new Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion."


    "Pavilion Master Liu has been in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion for many years, and he has worked hard to cultivate countless excellent figures and made great contributions. Although Dongyuan Pavilion had been founded centuries ago, it has established its own rules over the years, and the changing of guards shouldn''t be done with just a few words. Furthermore, our friend''s cultivation is still a bit weaker and may not be able to take on such an important task. Why not just wait a few more years?" Before the Pavilion Master Liu had a chance to speak, the leader of Donglin Clan piped up. He and Pavilion Master Liu were allies and would clearly be on his side.


    "Brother Donglin," said the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion, "I am not a greedy person who can''t let go of the position of the pavilion master. Since it was appointed by the founder of the pavilion, and our friend desires the position at Dongyuan Pavilion, I am willing to vacate and let our little friend Ye Futian to be the new Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion."


    "Pavilion Master Liu is much too indulgent," the leader of Donglin Clan complimented him.


    Below, all the mighty cultivators were looking over that way with a curious expression. Could it be that the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion was really willing to give up his position this time?


    "Pavilion Master Liu''s attitude is admirable." Emperor Helian said with a smile. "If this is the case, then Ye Futian will be in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion in the future. Please withdraw the forces from Dongyuan Pavilion."


    Upon hearing the words of Emperor Helian, the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion raised his brows and said, "Helian, although I am willing to vacate, I have been in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion for many years, and no one knows more about Dongyuan Pavilion better than me. The forces at Dongyuan Pavilion has always centered on the Pavilion itself and regarding it as a holy land; they are all part of this place. What do you mean by withdrawing?"


    "Don''t you think the forces should withdraw?" Emperor Helian asked.


    "Our friend''s cultivation is not yet enough and would require assistance. The rest of the cultivators in Dongyuan Pavilion and I have been here much longer, and we know how everything operates here and could assist the transition for some years until Ye Futian can completely take over Dongyuan Pavilion," said Pavilion Master Liu.


    There was no reason for him to continue to resist the demand for him to vacate, so he would acquiesce strategically and allow Ye Futian to prevail for the moment.


    However, even if Ye Futian assumed the control as Pavilion Master, the real control of Dongyuan Pavilion would still be firmly in his hands.


    As such, what excuse did these people have to expel them?


    "What do you think?" Emperor Helian looked at Ye Futian and asked, all the while sneering inside secretly. No way could this guy let this go so easily.


    "Dongyuan Pavilion is a library and a place for preaching; what need do you have for forces?" Ye Futian said, "Creating forces and principalities is the beginning of selfishness. I don''t need it."


    Outside of Dongyuan Pavilion, many looked at those voices that could be heard from the void. Everyone was expectant when they heard Ye Futian''s words.


    Indeed, as soon as one established one''s own principality, inevitably, there would be selfishness, such was the case with the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion. Anyone who wanted to cultivate in Dongyuan Pavilion would need to pass his assessment, and those with outstanding talents would need to become his disciples first.


    "That''s right." Emperor Helian said with a smile. "Dongyuan Pavilion is a holy land and shouldn''t attract too much trouble. If protection is required, I will do whatever I can."


    "So, Pavilion Master Liu no longer need to worry about Dongyuan Pavilion," Emperor Helian said with a smile.


    The Pavilion Master of the Dongyuan Pavilion looked at Emperor Helian, and then at Ye Futian. His expression gradually grew grim. Next to him, the leader of Donglin Clan snorted and said sarcastically, "Is this Emperor Helian and Master Yang''s attempt to seize Pavilion Master Liu''s position by someone else''s hand?"


    "All this is no more than an excuse."


    "Donglin." The master of Dongyuan Pavilion called out and continued, "Over the years, I have done all that I can to protect Dongyuan Pavilion. All the cultivators at Dongyuan Pavilion and myself have a special feeling toward Dongyuan Pavilion, and it is a place of great significance to me. Now, I am willing to vacate the position as the Pavilion Master, but isn''t it kind of inappropriate for you to team up with Helian and the others to chase me off Dongyuan Pavilion?"


    "Perhaps you have been deceived or tempted?" The leader of Donglin clan said sarcastically, "I heard that the eldest princess is quite close to him these days. The eldest princess is outstanding in appearance with an outstanding spiritual talent to boot. I''m afraid few men could have resisted her."


    "The eldest princess has beauty and wisdom. She is much better than anyone coming out of your Donglin Clan." Ye Futian looked at the other and said, "Previously, below Dongyuan Pavilion, there was some woman who barked about not allowing me to set foot on Dongyuan Pavilion. She was from your Donglin Clan, right?"


    Behind Ye Futian, that woman was standing not far from Liu Dongge. Seeing that Ye Futian had mentioned her, her expression suddenly turned to one of embarrassment.


    She was Donglin Qiuyi, a daughter from Donglin Clan.


    The leader of Donglin clan stared at Ye Futian and said coldly, "Although you have peerless talent, you are way too arrogant and have no respect for anyone. You dared to kill the cultivators in Dongyuan Pavilion, and though you made the spirit to appear upon the statue, the elders saw only your talent and not your characters. If you are in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion with such conduct, it will be a true disaster. I don''t think it is necessary for Pavilion Master Liu to vacate his position."


    This time, the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion was silent and did not say anything, as if quietly acknowledged those words.


    "According to you, he should just stand there and let the cultivators of Dongyuan Pavilion assault him? If he were not strong enough, with the young Pavilion Master there, he would never be able to cultivate in the Dongyuan Pavilion." Emperor Helian continued, "In the past few years, there were probably many such geniuses who have been missed because of this and cannot enter Dongyuan Pavilion."


    "What do both of you think?" At this moment, Emperor Helian looked at the leaders of the two forces, who had not yet spoken.


    They were the cultivators from Hanging Sword Peak and the Beigong Family.


    They had previously persuaded one of the two major forces to stand on their side.


    The summit lord of Hanging Sword Peak was carrying a sword on his back, clad in a long flowy robe, appeared rather otherworldly, with an ethereal temperament. He looked to be about 50, with a long beard and an extraordinary aura.


    "The position of Pavilion Master at Dongyuan Pavilion is no trifling matter. If Pavilion Master Liu is willing to vacate, I feel that the transition will still take some time," The summit lord of Hanging Sword Peak said, standing on the side of the Dongyuan Pavilion. Emperor Helian narrowed his eyes as he watched what had transpired.


    Previously, the Hanging Sword Peak had maintained its neutral stance and determined not to intervene. Now, it seemed that he had been persuaded by the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion. Perhaps he had been promised a great reward.


    So now it seemed that the forces on the two sides were evenly matched.


    "Where is Master of Beigong?" Emperor Helian asked. the Master of Beigong had promised them.


    The Master of Beigong was a middle-aged man. He was unusually handsome and extraordinary with a somewhat refined temperament, which was soothing to look at. He looked at Emperor Helian and said with a smile, "I can''t make heads and tails about anything regarding this matter, so I am not going to interfere; I will support whoever serves as the Pavilion Master."


    When Emperor Helian heard his words, his eyes sharped slightly, and stared at the other. The Master of Beigong did not look at Emperor Helian. It was as if he were intentionally avoiding his gaze.


    Neutral.


    This was different from what they had said to him before.


    As such, the other party had three major forces, and they only had two; it would be frightfully difficult to shake the other party in any meaningful ways.


    The Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion was sure of himself and looked on all that happened casually as if he had already known. The leader of the Donglin clan looked at Emperor Helian with a sneer, along with some contempt in his eyes. Did they think that only they know how to set things up?


    This time, in order to win over the two major forces, they had paid a considerable price.


    He wanted to see just how, with Helian Emperor and Yang Dongqing alone, could they support Ye Futian''s claim to become the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Ye Futian watched all this quietly and looking at the crowd. He said, "Why do I need to transition as the Pavilion Master?"

 1877 Great Momentum

    Even Ye Futian understood that Chang Dongqing would have this idea.


    Right now, the various forces controlled Dongyuan Pavilion, and so the power of his words was limited. This would particularly be true if the forces of the pavilion allied with the Donglin Clan. In that case, they would have even more influence.


    If Ye Futian became Pavilion Master, any of the various forces would have an easy time controlling him.


    At least, that''s what they thought.


    Ye Futian did not know whether or not Emperor Heilian and Chang Dongqing would think like this, but it didn''t matter.


    The summit lord of Hanging Sword Peak looked at Ye Futian. He was the one who had just said that there would need to be a transition period.


    "Although you are outstandingly talented, your cultivation base is still a little bit lacking. If you immediately take control of Dongyuan Pavilion, without any other forces aiding you in the transition, anyone could come and attack us. How will you stop them?" said the summit lord of Hanging Sword Peak. His words were sharp. As he spoke, his long beard danced back and forth and his robes rustled in the wind.


    "You do not need to worry about that. As long as you all do not cause trouble, I will be able to control Dongyuan Pavilion," said Ye Futian.


    "Those are bold words," said the summit lord of Hanging Sword Peak coldly. Sword will flowed out from him, filling the area with murderous intent.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over him, saying, "There is no point in discussing this further. I will only ask one more thing. Dongyuan Pavilion was created by the master of the statue. Does the master of the statue then control the pavilion, or do you all have the final say?"


    Ye Futian''s words made the cultivators of the six forces stare at him.


    They were silent for a while. The atmosphere was incredibly tense.


    The Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion looked at Ye Futian. Sword will was wrapping around the summit lord of Hanging Sword Mountain. The Helmsman of the Donglin Clan had a cold expression on his face. Ye Futian was truly arrogant.


    However, his words had hit the nail on the head.


    "I said that since you were willing to be the Pavilion Master, I would abdicate to you, but..." said Liu Han of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    He said this loud and clear, his deep voice sweeping out for a vast distance. Outside the pavilion, all the watchers could hear what he said. They trembled in their hearts.


    Was this his momentous declaration?


    From now on, he would be the new Pavilion Master.


    He did not need anyone else to agree to it, nor for them to even nod their heads. The founder of Dongyuan Pavilion had appointed him, so who could object?


    Moreover, Dongyuan Pavilion had been founded on the order of Donghuang the Great Who among them could gainsay him?


    Even Liu Han would admit that the control of Dongyuan Pavilion depended on the founder''s words and not them.


    No one could deny this.


    Although this was only a small part of the mainland of the Divine Prefecture, it was still part of the Divine Prefecture. Thus, they would not dare be too wanton. Who could dare say that Dongyuan Pavilion was theirs?


    It had been created by the Great Emperor.


    The cultivators of the six great forces all looked at Ye Futian. He had directly announced that he would take the position as Pavilion Lord. There would be no ceremony, no handover. He had been hand-picked.


    He stepped forward into the area where the six great figures were.


    This made them all narrow their eyes. This man was really that bold? Was he really not worried that they would all gang up and kill him?


    Helian You watched Ye Futian. She obviously knew that he was powerful, and now she had witnessed that for herself. Liu Dongge wanted to control Ye Futian. They all thought that the game was between the six top cultivators and Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian had directly shoved them away and taken his place.


    Liu Han and the others all stared at Ye Futian. Now that he had so forcefully announced that he would take up the position of Pavilion Lord of Dongyuan Pavilion, they could not kill him for the time being.


    "Now that I am the new Pavilion Lord of Dongyuan Pavilion, we have no more need of Pavilion Lord Liu. Please take all the cultivators you have here and leave the pavilion," said Ye Futian to Liu Han.


    Liu Han stared at him, his eyes sharp.


    He was laying all his cards out on the table.


    "Very decisive," said the Helmsman of the Donglin Clan, looking at Ye Futian. Power bloomed from him, and he said, "Pavilion Lord Liu has controlled the Dongyuan Pavilion for many years and put all of his heart into it. Now, although you were hand-picked for the role, you only just took it. And yet you still got rid of Pavilion Lord Liu. Very decisive. If you take this post, I''m afraid it won''t be long before Dongyuan Pavilion comes to great trouble. Because of this, the Donglin clan, as one of the powerful forces here on the mainland, and one of the managing forces of Dongyuan Pavilion, refuses to allow you to take over the pavilion. I believe that in the hasty light from the statue, the elder only saw your appearance and not who you truly were. If he meets you again in the future, he will know who you really are."


    He did not do anything to Ye Futian directly but overwhelmed him with his righteousness, refusing to allow him to take over Dongyuan Pavilion.


    The Donglin Clan controlled the pavilion, along with Liu Han and Hanging Sword Peak.


    Even though Ye Futian had been hand-picked, what did it matter? If they refused him, how could he control them?


    Just with his words?


    Now they would see how Ye Futian intended to take control of the pavilion.


    Ye Futian looked at the other man as he spoke, then turned his gaze to Liu Han and said, "What do you think, Elder Liu Han?"


    He did not reveal Ying Qing''s identity and did not bring up anything about Mr. South Mountain. Those were in the past.


    Now, this would be the best way to get rid of Liu Han.


    "This again. I can let you take over as Pavilion Lord, but I must stay in Dongyuan Pavilion to assist you in taking control in order to prevent it from going astray. Everyone else must think this as well," said Liu Han indifferently.


    There were some things that it was not appropriate for him to say, so the Donglin Clan had said it for him. But he would do what he must.


    If he wanted to force him out, it would take several decades. Maybe he couldn''t fight Ye Futian, but right now, Ye Futian did not have any authority.


    "I understand," said Ye Futian with a nod. He looked at the Helmsman of the Donglin Clan and said, "Your force is one of the top forces on the mainland; it is one of the controllers of Dongyuan Pavilion. But you are only doing it for your own benefit, going against the purpose for which Dongyuan Pavilion was founded. In this case, as Pavilion Lord, from here on out, I revoke your right to speak on behalf of the Pavilion. From now on, the people of the Donglin Clan are not permitted to set foot within the Pavilion. Leave."


    "Madness!" shouted the cultivators of the Donglin Clan at Ye Futian''s words. Down below, Donglin Qiuyi cried out in fury as well.


    The people of the Donglin Clan were not permitted to set foot within Dongyuan Pavilion?


    He had even told the Helmsman of the Donglin Clan to leave!


    Such arrogance! Such madness!


    The Helmsman of the Donglin Clan stared at Ye Futian in shock. He had never seen such an arrogant youth.


    And yet Ye Futian really was that arrogant.


    A Renhuang with a third-tier Divine Wheel had told him to get out of Dongyuan Pavilion and forbidden the cultivators of his clan from ever returning.


    How arrogant was that?


    He stared at Ye Futian for a while, then suddenly smiled in a mocking and disdainful way. "I am already sitting here. What are you going to do about it?"


    "Dongyuan Pavilion was founded by the Great Emperor as a holy land for teaching the Way. Now there are people perverting the Great Emperor''s will. This is obviously very disrespectful. Elder Helian, you are one of the guardians of Dongyuan Pavilion. Please act now and kill them," said Ye Futian to Emperor Helian.


    "I will do as the Palace Lord commands," said Emperor Helian with a nod. His feelings were very much in line with Ye Futian''s. As he said this, his will surged into the sky. In an instant, the whole area was filled with his invisible will. The image of a face appeared up in the sky.


    Many people could see the face, even off in the distance. When they looked into its strange eyes, they felt dizzy and fatigued, like they wanted to go to sleep.


    A thought came into everyone''s minds. "The Great Path of Dreams!" This was the technique that the Helian Clan cultivated. Emperor Helian had taken this cultivation style to a very powerful level. He could plunge people into a world of dreams and slay them there.


    The other great cultivators in front of Dongyuan Pavilion were affected by this, including Liu Han and the Summit Lord of Hanging Sword Peak, and the Helmsman of the Donglin Clan even more so. He felt sleepy as invisible will seeped into him. Burning will surged out of him.


    Emperor Helian''s eyes became incredibly magical-looking as he stared at his opponent. It was like he wanted to bore his way inside of him. He looked at the Helmsman of the Donglin Clan and said, "Sleep now."


    As he said this, Emperor Helian''s eyes closed. In a flash, the Helmsman of Donglin seemed to have fallen into the dream space as well.


    Liu Han and the Summit Lord of Hanging Sword Peak felt like they were about to fall asleep as well. Their hearts went cold. Emperor Heilian had sent his will against them as well. But for the time being, they did not intervene. The Helmsman of Donglin could handle it.


    "Be careful!"


    "Madness!"


    At that moment, cries of surprise rang out, and powerful sword will exploded into the sky, filling a vast area and forming a field of swordsmanship. The terrible sword field gave birth to even more sword will with the power of Yin merged into it.


    The sword will swept through the air towards the Helmsman of Donglin.


    That was why the cultivators of the Donglin Clan were crying out. The sword will was absolutely terrifying.


    Liu Han and the Summit Lord of Hanging Sword Peak seemed to sense this as well. They looked at the sword will streaking through the air faster than lightning. They could not react in time to stop it.


    Although the Helmsman of Donglin was trapped in the land of dreams, he could still feel the danger. He thrust out his hand, forming a palm print, aiming it at the oncoming sword will.


    Within the sword field, endless currents of sword qi flowed above the sword will, resonating with it.


    In a flash, the Helmsman of Donglin''s body seemed to freeze. His soul stilled as he was attacked fiercely within the dream.


    Crack! The sword will cut through his palm print and pierced into his head. Lines of blood flowed out.


    The Helmsman of Donglin shattered into pieces, and his soul was destroyed as well. There was an illusory image of him left behind that had still not dispersed, a look of shock on his face as if he could not believe that this was really happening.


    In the next moment, his body and soul shattered, leaving nothing behind!

 1878 Decision

    In an instant, multiple gazes shifted towards Ye Futian; their hearts were still trembling intensely.


    The cultivators of the Donglin clan were astonished, as was Donglin Qiuyi after she witnessed her father��the head of the Donglin Clan��killed by a sword.


    In one instance, the entire place became eerily quiet. Everyone stared blankly at the scene that had just unfolded before them. The hair of the figure still standing within the Void was still as white as ever. His silvery hair drifting in the winds.


    That was one of the six peak figures of this land. He was someone who could affect command of Dongyuan Pavilion. Just a moment ago, they were still fighting over command over Dongyuan Pavilion, scolding Ye Futian and not recognizing him as the pavilion''s new patron.


    However, no one would have been able to guess that in one instant, the head of the Donglin Clan would be killed.


    Even though he was fighting against Emperor Helian and had fallen into the Will of the Great Dreams, but his plane level should be sufficiently high enough not to be affected. This only proved just how strong Ye Futian really was. At the very least, he was a lot stronger than his plane level indicated.


    In that earlier instant, Liu Han and the summit lord of Mountain Sword Peak could not react in time as well. By the time they wanted to move, the sword had already hit its target, and they were powerless.


    As such, the earlier situation where three powerful cultivators fought against two powerful cultivators had turned into a fight between the team of Liu Han and the summit lord of Mountain Sword Peak, and Emperor Helian and Yang Dongqing. They no longer held any advantages. Moreover, there was still Ye Futian.


    The complacency on Liu Han''s face from earlier had disappeared while the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord no longer seemed confident like before. The both of them stared at Ye Futian. They had lost their earlier control of the situation. Meanwhile, the Beigong Family clan leader who had been maintaining a neutral position all the while also began to look at this scene with great interest, some ideas starting to form on his mind.


    In the quiet space, Ye Futian looked indifferent. He had just taken a life in an instant. Now, there was a lot less pressure, so there was no need for him to expose too much of his strength.


    This time, he killed the Dongyuan Pavilion head. He had no intention of showing all his cards. Humans were unpredictable, and he could not fully trust Emperor Helian and Yang Dongqing.


    "Kill him." Donglin Qiuyi''s eyes were filled with rage and a murderous aura. Donglin Clan''s cultivators started to move as they released extremely powerful might from their bodies.


    "Careful." A middle-level Renhuang stood in front of Donglin Qiuyi. However, the Sword Will punctured him directly, and with a plopping sound, blood gushed out of his head before his body fell onto the ground.


    Donglin Qiuye''s expression changed drastically. She wanted to retreat, but it was already too late. Her Divine Wheel was only at the fourth-order. How was she supposed to withstand Ye Futian''s Sword Will?


    The Sword Will flashed across space, and Donglin Qiuyi''s body trembled intensely. Fear and panic filled her eyes as she gazed toward Ye Futian, seemingly remembering the time when she blocked Ye Futian from going there back at Dongyuan Pavilion. Was this Ye Futian''s way of seeking revenge?


    The Donglin Qiuyi from back then would have never imagined that this day would come.


    Fresh blood splattered into the air as Donglin Qiuyi''s body fell to the grown, her spiritual soul shattered. Seeing that beautiful figure fall, the people from Dongyuan Pavilion looked toward Ye Futian''s proud figure standing within the Void, a sense of self-confidence emanating from the white-haired figure.


    The Renhuang who released their will might earlier stopped in their tracks. No one moved forward. None dared to raise a hand against Ye Futian.


    Whenever and wherever the Sword Will flew past, a person would die. Who would dare move against that?


    It was but an instant, but the head of the Donglin Clan, as well as the princess of the Donglin Clan, were both cut down and killed by the Sword Will.


    "People of the Donglin Clan, you will leave Dongyuan Pavilion immediately. As long as I command the Dongyuan Pavilion, you will not step one foot in the Pavilion. Violators will be killed instantly." Ye Futian spoke with an indifferent and calm tone. Hidden within the calm tone was an undeniable murderous aura.


    The faces of the Donglin Clan cultivators were as gray as ash. Their strongest Donglin Clan head was killed while the remainder were not a match against Ye Futian. In this situation, the Donglin Clan would be removed as one of the factions having control over Dongyuan Pavilion. They no longer had any influence on the Pavilion, and they were no longer qualified to take part in it. They could not even step into Dongyuan Pavilion to cultivate.


    In just a day, the Donglin Clan''s status fell straight down, to a devastating effect.


    The source of it all was that they had obstructed Ye Futian.


    "Powerful."


    "That''s insane."


    Everyone''s heart trembled. They would never have imagined that the genius Renhuang who made statues manifest would be so overwhelmingly powerful and decisive in killing.


    It was as if he was also a high order character who was extremely comfortable and used to giving commands.


    Yingqing, who was standing not far behind Ye Futian, was already used to it. However, her curiosity over Ye Futian only grew stronger and stronger. Just who was this person?


    Why would a person like this suffer such serious injuries and be picked up by Senluo Manor''s Han Lin?


    And even more ridiculous, he was almost turned into a corpse puppet.


    The other cultivators from the Donglin Clans struggled internally. They wanted to cut Ye Futian down to avenge their head and his daughter. However, did they still have a chance to do so?


    Liu Han and the summit lord of the Mountain Sword Peak were still there. If they were to work together, would they have an opportunity to kill Ye Futian?


    Then, an elder spoke. "People of the Donglin Clan. Retreat." His position within the Donglin Clan was quite high. As he finished speaking, he led the way by leaving first. The remaining cultivators looked ashen and were reluctant. However, they still followed him and left.


    "Hold on!" Liu Han shouted to stop them. He then asked, "You''re going to leave? Just like that?"


    "Master Liu, please forgive our uselessness and powerlessness." The elder turned around to salute Liu Han. He saw that some were still struggling, so he glanced across at them and, with a certain degree of forcefulness, transmitted his voice to them. After that, the cultivators of the Donglin Clan left.


    The elder was well aware that the Donglin Clan was no longer what it was before. They had lost their clan leader. They were no longer qualified to play the game. Even if they stayed behind to take part in the battle, to ally themselves with Liu Han, they would gain nothing, regardless if they win or lose. If they won, they would become the vassal of Liu Han and slowly be devoured by him. And if they lost, they would die even faster.


    Since they were no longer qualified to play the game, what was the point of staying?


    A lot of people lamented as they gazed at the backs of the leaving Donglin Clan cultivators. Who would have imagined that this was possible just moments ago?


    One sword by Ye Futian ruined a top-tier clan. From now on, the Donglin Clan would fall into ruin.


    Liu Han''s eyes were cold. It seemed as if he no longer intended to hide his killing intent. He stared at Ye Futian and said, "Even though you are handpicked by the elders who founded the Pavilion, you are extremely cruel. To kill in front of Dongyuan Pavilion, removing people who disagree with you... How can I leave Dongyuan Pavilion to someone like you? This is blasphemy to Dongyuan Pavilion."


    The death of the Donglin Clan''s head seemed to have given Liu Han an excuse to make a move. He went back on his earlier words and no longer wanted to step down.


    Ye Futian looked at him. He was waiting for Liu Han to say exactly this. Otherwise, how could he kill him with justification?


    "So?" Ye Futian asked calmly.


    "You are addicted to killing. Even if I will be blamed and reprimanded by the elders who founded the Pavilion, for the future of the Pavilion, I have no choice but to kill you." Liu Han''s voice was utterly cold. His murderous intent was at its peak, shrouding Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was very calm after hearing Liu Han''s statement. He then said, "Unfortunately, I do not think that you ever intended to hand over Dongyuan Pavilion. You only intended to step down and leave the position to me so that I could become your puppet while you guys remain at the helm of the Pavilion. Liu Han, I have seen just how prideful and arrogant the factions commanding the Pavilion were the day when I went. Since that is the case, today can just be considered a clean-up day."


    Forceful and overwhelmingly powerful will burst forth from their bodies. Liu Han''s hands suddenly moved. His palm grabbed at the air. The Void trembled intensely. Then, a gigantic palm flew and grabbed directly at Ye Futian.


    The Divine Wheel released a radiant and bright Divine Light of the Great Path. The Sword Will released an even brighter and beautiful light that broke through the sky in an instant.


    A loud bang. The Sword Will did not pierce through the large palm this time. However, it did cause cracks to appear on it. Regardless, that Sword Will was crushed and destroyed. Nonetheless, at that moment, Emperor Helian appeared in front of Ye Futian and threw a punch that shattered the giant palm.


    "Liu Han, no matter what, you are an elder. Show some decency," said Emperor Helian coldly.


    Then, at that moment, in the sky above the Pavilion, cultivator Renhuangs started to emerge one after another. Liu Han had been at the helm of the Dongyuan Pavilion for many years, and he had trained and developed many cultivators. The Donyuan Pavilion was rather strong, and this could be considered Liu Han''s home arena.


    "Perfect grade Divine Wheel. No wonder..." An overwhelming aura emanated from Ye Futian''s body. Bright lights shone from his Divine Will as his Sword Will radiated all across the Void.


    A genius Renhuang.


    "The Mountain Sword Peak and the Beigong Family are both top factions of this land who can collectively make decisions over affairs concerning Dongyuan Pavilion. Now, I have been designated as the new leader of Dongyuan Pavilion. Will the Mountain Sword Peak continue to help the enemy and attempt to kill me, the rightful leader of Dongyuan Pavilion, or correct your actions right now and help me clean up the factions of Dongyuan Pavilion?" asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian continued in a loud voice, "The same goes for the Beigong Family; I will not pursue and fuss over past issues. I will still need to rely on all of you when I lead the Dongyuan Pavilion in the future. However, if you do not do anything today, I will recognize it as you surrendering your influence over Dongyuan Pavilion. In the future, you will not be involved with anything associated with Dongyuan Pavilion."


    The Sword Peak Mountain summit lord initially sided with Liu Han. The Beigong Family was also bribed to remain neutral. However, at the moment, with the situation developing and shifting so quickly, everything seemed to have changed. They could not help but reevaluate the pros and cons.


    While Ye Futian was young and his cultivation level was not all that high, he had exceptional potential, and he was also incredibly strong, even when fighting against top-class opponents like themselves.


    For example, the head of the Donglin Clan was killed by a single sword hit.


    Even if they maintained their earlier attitudes, Liu Han''s chances of victory were still very slim.


    Vuong!


    A burst of sword might came from the summit lord of the Mountain Sword Peak. He released a monstrous amount of sword might. Then, like a river, his sword will descended straight from the sky and converged to become a giant divine sword that could seemingly cut the entire land in half.


    The sword moved. The void under the gigantic sword seemed to be split in half. The sword was slashing towards Ye Futian. It seemed like the summit lord had made his decision. The conditions given by Liu Han were some things that were impossible for Ye Futian. Moreover, he would be behind Emperor Helian and Yang Dongqing in the pecking order.


    As such, he did not hesitate and swung his sword against Ye Futian.


    Yang Dongqing suddenly appeared in front of the sword. Anyone who saw the scene would know that an internal conflict had begun in the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    The clan leader of the Beigong Family looked toward the battlefield. Emperor Helian and Liuhan had already engaged in battle. Ye Futian''s sword was already swung. The Renhuangs belonging to the factions that originally controlled Dongyuan Pavilion were consecutively cut down within the Void. No one could shake Ye Futian.


    At that moment, he made a decision!

 1879 New Pavilion Head

    In addition to that, his body was also covered in the bright and beautiful purple thunder. Meanwhile, a towering illusion of the Thunder God also appeared behind his back. It was a Divine Wheel of the Great Path cast by Life Spirits.


    Rumble...


    Disasters came from above as a rumbling thunderstorm filled the skies and shrouded the boundless space. The rumbling thunder in the sky transformed into multiple lightning strikes as if they were chains. Every cultivator had focused their attention on him.


    Who would the Beigong Family clan leader, Beigong Ao, choose to target?


    Before this, Beigong Ao wanted to remain neutral. Now, he needed to make a move. Emperor Helian and Yang Dongqing were naturally very vigilant. After all, Beigong Ao was a person who had previously come to an agreement of some sort with Liu Han.


    Of course, Liu Han and the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord did not dare to be careless. After all, Beigong Ao made his move after Ye Futian made the threat.


    Ye Futian remained calm and looked at the enemy. In the next moment, divine thunder struck from above directly at the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord. At the same time, Beigong Ao''s body disappeared instantly. His body turned into a ray of lightning, and in the next moment, reappeared right in front of the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord.


    Clearly, he had made his decision. He decided to help Ye Futian''s side.


    The Mountain Sword Peak summit lord reacted quickly. He raised his hand, and the giant sword sliced through the Void. However, the terrifying giant purple palm containing an extremely violent aura directly blocked the sword in its path. As the sharp sword pierced into the thunderstorm, it began to chip away into pieces. The terrifying palm directly slammed into the opponent''s sword.


    A loud bang ensued, and the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord was sent flying. At the same time, he roared in anger, "Beigong Ao!"


    The bastard was really adept at sailing with the wind. Earlier, when they invited him, they had said that their three sides had made an alliance and that he only needed to remain neutral.


    Now, with the Donglin Clan head killed, the situation changed. Beigong Ao actually betrayed them in an instant. He went back on his promise to them and attacked him.


    From what was happening, it was probably clear that Beigong Ao was siding with them. In addition, Ye Futian had a Perfect Divine Wheel, which was handpicked by the statue master. As such, it was justifiable that Beigong Ao would choose them.


    Now, it was three versus two. Perhaps he did not even need to do anything.


    Yang Dongqing would naturally not let a great chance like this slip by. The instant after Beigong Ao''s attack on the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord was released, he stepped into the Void and arrived instantly to also initiate a melee attack. A major battle ensued as arrays of frightening power raged all around Dongyuan Pavilion. Buildings crumbled one by one. Only Dongyuan Pavilion, which towered high into the sky, emanating a formless Divine Light of the Great Path, remained standing. It was immovable.


    Apart from the battles between the few top figures, with Dongyuan Pavilion as the center, the cultivators from each of the factions appeared. Among them were several Renhuangs from the Mountain Sword Peak. Their eyes shifted to glance at Ye Futian. Their cultivation levels were quite frightening. They were all middle-level Renhuangs.


    The Mountain Sword Peak summit lord was being surrounded and attacked by two top fighters. The only for him to get out of that predicament was to kill Ye Futian.


    Powerful Sword Wills burst forth in an instant, and over ten giant swords appeared in the sky, easily enveloping the Void. Those figures strode within the Void and appeared at different locations in the sky above Ye Futian. Their Sword Will locked onto Ye Futian''s body. Then, in the next moment, all the swords in their hands were released. Kill.


    Frightening blades of light tore through the Void. At the same time, all the giant swords arrived and attacked Ye Futian at the same time. Within the Space of swordsmanship, Ye Futian''s body was buried and was about to be destroyed by the swords.


    However, at that moment, a bone-chilling aura appeared all around Ye Futian''s body. The cold was extreme, and even if one was located far away, the cold that seemingly permeated into and chilled one''s soul could still be felt clearly. The entire space seemed to have frozen in place.


    With Ye Futian''s body at the center, the Great Path of Freezing stopped the arrival of the frightening divine swords which were about to attack him. The swords seemed to have stopped, and the light emanating from the cold moon covered the Void. Beams of frightening Divine Light of the Moon burst forth, and the sharp divine swords suddenly became unbelievably fragile. Under the Moonlight, these swords directly shattered into nothingness. They could not last even a hit.


    Above Ye Futian''s body, accompanied by the frightening powers of the Divine Light of the Moon, a ray of Sword Will shot straight into the sky and then towards a location. The cultivator felt very cold and swung his sword in an attempt to block Ye Futian''s Sword Will.


    However, the Sword Will was unaffected and struck him. His sword shattered, his Divine Wheel crumbled, and his body directly punctured.


    Before he was completely killed, the Sword Will disappeared again, leaving a beautiful curve in the Void. Under the chilly moonlight, crisp and clear sounds rang in the air, and in just a few moments, the Sword Will had returned to floating above Ye Futian.


    When the people returned to look at the swordsman in training of the Mountain Sword Peak within the Void, they could and hear see their bodies explode into pieces one after another. Dead.


    Ye Futian only used one sword again. Seeing his figure standing there calmly, many people could no longer understand Ye Futian.


    It was as if he only needed one sword��no matter how strong his opponent was.


    Those who had just attacked him earlier were all powerful swordsmen in training at Sword Peak Mountain. They also trained in the arts of swordsmanship, yet they could not withstand the attack of one sword. The utterly chilling power that permeated into and froze one''s soul, just what kind of power was it?


    It seemed as if it was the most extreme cold. Was it the power of Yin?


    "Are possessors of a perfect Divine Wheel actually so scary?" someone said in a low voice.


    He was unbelievably confident from beginning till end. It was as if, to him, this battle of the Dongyuan Pavilion had no suspense, thought Helian You as she looked at Ye Futian''s back from behind. She had been in contact with Ye Futian over the past few days.


    He seemed too quiet. Whether it was before or today, whether he was facing Liu Dongge or Liu Han, his heart was still.


    In his eyes, did he really care about this battle of Dongyuan Pavilion?


    Perhaps he did not.


    Helian You looked at the people standing beside Ye Futian. They were just as quiet. Ye Futian was confident, but why were Xia Qingyuan and Ying Qing so confident as well?


    Even the demonic beast that kept its head high proudly all the time, insufferably arrogant, seemingly in disdain of everything that ever existed, why was the demonic beast like that?


    "Liu Dongge did not allow Ye Futian to step into the Dongyuan Pavilion because Ye Futian went to South Mountain and has a history with Mr. South Mountain," Helian You guessed in her mind. She looked toward the mask-wearing Ying Qing. Perhaps Ye Futian really did know Mr. South Mountain, or his parents or elders knew each other. As for Ying Qing''s mask, it may be because some from Dongyuan Pavilion would recognize her.


    "He is here for revenge." Helian You remembered that Ye Futian had asked about Mr. South Mountain''s death before.


    After her father gave Ye Futian an answer, Ye Futian agreed to become the new head of the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    He came looking for Liu Han to avenge Mr. South Mountain''s death.


    This meant that, from the very beginning, Ye Futian''s objective was to kill Liu Han.


    That meant that... what was Ye Futian''s real strength?


    Helian You''s heart trembled. Could it be that he was able to defeat Liu Han by himself? Otherwise, why would he go to the South Mountain, to head to Dongyuan Pavilion alone? After all, before all that, Ye Futian did not know if her father would ally with him.


    That was unless he did not care about Liu Han.


    Looking at the person dressed in white, He Lianyou thought, Even if Ye Futian is already releasing this crazy scary light, he might still be hiding his strength.


    The Ye Futian that everyone saw at the moment was not the strongest Ye Futian.


    Just as Helianyou was in the midst of thinking, a voice interrupted her thought process: "I will give up this battle." She raised her head and saw the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord falling into a major crisis as two powerful cultivators engaged him in a pincer attack.


    Beigong Ao and Yang Dongqing were both adept at killing. They attacked him at close range, completely overwhelming him and not affording him space to even breathe. Just how powerful were close-range attacks of people who had reached the high order Renhuang level?


    With a loud and terrifying plop, the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord roared. They had already reached this point. There was no way that they would just let him go like that.


    Boom!


    Another loud bang. The thunder palm containing extremely violent and destructive force slammed into his body, puncturing his body directly. A gaping hole was left in his torso as the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord''s face turned pale.


    "Plop!" Yang Dongqing''s spear descended and pierced straight into his skull.


    Mountain Sword Peak summit lord was dead.


    Among the six top figures of the land, tow had died. The Donglin Clan head and the Mountain Sword Peak summit lord.


    Liu Han was obstructed by Emperor Helian. When he saw the Sword Peak summit lord fall, his body retreated quickly as he shouted, "Retreat!"


    Dongyuan Pavilion factions began to retreat. They knew that they had lost the battle.


    "Take them all down," commanded Beigong Ao coldly. He exchanged glances with Yang Dongqing. Then, both of them went in Liu Han''s direction. By this time, it was natural that they would not let Liu Han go.


    Three powerful cultivators surrounded him, and in an instant, Liu Han was forced into despair.


    "Father!" Liu Dongge''s face was ashen. He moved back to retreat. He would never have imagined that the situation would escalate and become this terrible. Not that long ago, they were still controlling Dongyuan Pavilion.


    "Did I say you could leave?" A cold and indifferent voice came. Liu Dongge looked at the person who uttered those words and found out that it was Ye Futian. Moreover, Ye Futian spoke with his back facing Liu Dongge.


    Liu Dongge''s face was ashen and dark. Everything that happened was because of Ye Futian.


    "Who are you really?" Liu Dongge asked.


    "The person who will kill you." As Ye Futian finished his sentence, the Sword Will flew across the Void, and a chilling light flashed. It was never in doubt. Liu Dongge was pierced by the flash. Despair filled his eyes. At that moment, he actually remembered the day when he prohibited Ye Futian from getting into the Dongyuan Pavilion just because he said so.


    Now, the person was facing him with his back and had cut him down with one single sword strike. How surreal.


    "No..." A loud roar rang in the air. Despair. Liu Dongge could recognize that it was his father''s voice. Everything seemed to have ended.


    Under the Dongyuan Pavilion, the cultivators watched the scene unfold quietly. They looked on as Liu Dongge turned into dust, as Liu Han received deadly attacks from the other three powerful cultivators one after another, before being killed by them together. Not that long ago, they were still drinking tea and chatting away within Dongyuan Pavilion. How cruel it was.


    Everything had ended.


    After Emperor Helian and the other two killed Liu Han, they turned around to look at Ye Futian. Then, they said, "Pavilion head, please enter Dongyuan Pavilion."


    Ye Futian, who was standing there, strode forward. The people who were gazing at his back understood one thing...


    Dongyuan Pavilion had entered a new era!

 1880 Deduction

    The huge crowd gathered all around Dongyuan Pavilion area looked toward Ye Futian. The new Dongyuan Pavilion head had assumed his post. They did not know if it would be easier or harder to cultivate and train inside the Pavilion.


    Ye Futian scanned the crowd and said, "In the past, the great emperor ordered our predecessors to create Dongyuan Pavilion so that the laws of the Great Path may be spread here. Now, I have been chosen by the elder to lead the Dongyuan Pavilion. Naturally, I will inherit the will of the great emperor and our predecessors to use Dongyuan Pavilion to help our fellow practitioners cultivate better.


    "Liu Han has led the Dongyuan Pavilion for many years, and he forgot that he was placed in charge by others. He had imposed stringent access control over those allowed to enter the Pavilion. Dongyuan Pavilion incident involving me... I am sure you all know it very well. Since I have received orders from our predecessors, I will not forget what should be done. In the future, Dongyuan Pavilion will set up examinations for practitioners at different plane levels. Every day, practitioners will be allowed to take this exam in front of Dongyuan Pavilion. All those who pass the exam will be allowed to cultivate in Dongyuan Pavilion. There will be no other limitations."


    Ye Futian''s words made the crowd a little bit excited. Different planes, huh?


    Moreover, it was a daily exam.


    It was completely different from before. In the past, apart from those recognized by the statue being granted unlimited access to cultivate in Dongyuan Pavilion, the remainder needed to undergo a specialized examination set up by the Dongyuan Pavilion head Liu Han. The effectiveness of the examination was low, and the gap between each exam was very long.


    That way, Liu Han''s control over Dongyuan Pavilion grew stronger. He could easily choose the people who were allowed to enter the Dongyuan Pavilion. Dongyuan Pavilion faction had the final say on who was allowed to enter or not. Naturally, this was accompanied by all kinds of negative side effects. For example, conditional exchanges or becoming a practitioner of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Now, Ye Futian said that he would perfect the examination system so that practitioners could take part in it daily. This meant that, as long as the system worked, it would be able to run itself. Ye Futian would not even need to manage it personally.


    For the practitioners, this was undoubtedly good news.


    However, for the major factions with the ability to provide conditions to gain favor, it was not as good. In the past, they were able to gain access to Dongyuan Pavilion through their networks and relationships. However, at that moment, it seemed like everything was about to change.


    Absolute justice was, in and of itself, a type of injustice.


    "Apart from that, you have all witnessed the event that transpired today. The Helian Royal Family, Yang Clan, and Beigong Family. These three factions are the top factions of this land, and they worked together with me to clean up the corrupted factions within Dongyuan Pavilion. The future management and examination matters of Dongyuan Pavilion will also require their assistance. As such, the people from the three factions will be able to access Dongyuan Pavilion freely," said Ye Futian. Then, he continued, "Of course, the thing that Liu Dongge did to me will not happen ever again. Members of the three factions have no authority to decide who gets to enter Dongyuan Pavilion. That decision is left to the examination. I, as Dongyuan Pavilion head, will also not interfere in this."


    Everyone nodded. The gazes focusing on Ye Futian were tinged with a certain degree of respect. They were surprised that this exceptionally talented person whose combat skills were just as remarkable would actually do this. It looked like he really only treated himself as a head who had inherited the will of the great emperor and was representing them in order to spread the word of the great path.


    This made many wonder if his overwhelming strength came from his generosity and magnanimity.


    Some of the women from the clans of Dongyuan city gazed at Ye Futian, a white-haired Renhuang with unparalleled elegance and style, with admiration.


    "Thank you, Sword Emperor Liunian," said someone while bowing to Ye Futian. It was admirable for the new head to do something like this.


    Ye Futian''s alias was Ye Liunian. He displayed extraordinary swordsmanship skills before, and no matter who he killed, he only used one sword. As such, it was not a problem for this person to call Ye Futian Sword Emperor Liunian.


    Many people bowed slightly to Ye Futian and, with a smile, said, "Our Dongyuan City is lucky to have Sword Emperor Liunian lead Dongyuan Pavilion."


    They were sincerely impressed.


    Whether it was his strength, style, or his decisiveness in killing his enemy during battles, he had impressed the people.


    "Sword Emperor Liunian," Ye Futian mumbled. Then, he smiled and said, "That''s the first time anyone ever addressed me like this, but it doesn''t sound so bad."


    Everyone else suddenly started laughing after hearing Ye Futian joking about it. Then, a person said, "Based on this old man''s observations, Sword Emperor Liunian''s brilliance is unparalleled. White hair and white robe. Transcending worldly affairs. Perhaps the White-haired Sword Emperor is a more imposing and fitting name."


    "White-haired Sword Emperor..." Many people mumbled amongst themselves and said, "Indeed, it is quite imposing. One look at him, and you''ll know that he fits this name."


    "Why not we combine the two names?" The atmosphere around the Pavilion began to relax as more people started to chat and joke amongst themselves.


    Ye Futian did not have any opinions on it. While the Divine Prefecture was large, many of the most powerful factions that arrived in the Divine Prefecture earlier were very influential. If he were to do something extraordinary or shocking using his name, and news attaching his name was to spread, those top factions would likely hear about it. In that case, the battle from a few years ago would be rendered completely useless.


    Now, he needed some time to raise his plane level to a level where he could fight against those top factions. By then, he would no longer have anything to fear.


    As such, the nicknames such as Sword Emperor Liunian and the White-haired Sword Emperor attached to his alias Ye Liunian did not really bother him that much.


    Xia Qingyuan was behind Ye Futian. She sat quietly behind him as she watched Ye Futian''s back. In the past, within the Original Realm, the people that Ye Futian interacted with were typically a lot stronger than he was. After all, he had exceptional talent and was able to directly reach the people at the very top, which sort of overshadowed some of his elegance and talent.


    Now that he was in the Divine Prefecture, the current situation was exactly what his talents deserved!


    Ying Qing was also very grateful. While it was not Ye Futian who dealt the blow, it did not really matter. She only really wanted revenge��Liu Han''s death.


    Now, everything was over. Ye Futian had kept his promise to her.


    Moreover, he also bloomed and showed his talents and elegance.


    She was glad that she did not report to Han Lin and made him do anything to the severely injured Ye Futian back then. Otherwise, she would not have been able to witness the presence of a person as elegant and talented as Ye Futian.


    Emperor Helian, Yang Dongqing, and Beigong Ao also watched this scene quietly. Each of them had their own ideas. Beigong Ao carried a smile on his face with grace. Ye Futian really did not go after him. After experiencing Ye Futian''s way of dealing with things, he believed that Ye Futian would not pursue the matter even in the future.


    Yang Dongqing, on the other hand, raised his brow slightly. This was not the ending that he wanted to see. After spending so much effort, even to the point where he risked his life to kill Liu Han and his allies, what was he after?


    Power.


    He wanted to become like Liu Han and firmly control Dongyuan Pavilion. However, Ye Futian''s current plan was completely the opposite of what he wanted.


    Moreover, Ye Futian granted the Beigong Family the same status as his and the Helian Royal Family, only allowing them free access to cultivate at Dongyuan Pavilion. It was inconsistent with his expectation.


    Ye Futian did not seem like an easy person to manipulate. At least not as easy as he had initially thought. Moreover, he was very strong.


    Of course, if he were easy to manipulate and were not that strong, they would not have won so easily in that battle. They might even lose.


    Ye Futian turned around to look at Emperor Helian and the others. "Among the factions of Dongyuan Pavilion, many of them are just people who want to cultivate. We can just let them out of the Pavilion."


    "Alright." Emperor Helian nodded and did not pursue or investigate these people.


    "Pavilion leader Ye." Yang Dongqing looked at Ye Futian and transmitted his voice to Ye Futian and the rest, "I am afraid many of these people are directly related to Liu Han. If we let them go, they may cause problems in the future. Even though we are not afraid of them, the people from our families may be targeted as an act of revenge. Since we are already at this stage, why do we not cut out the root and ensure that we get rid of the problem?"


    Ye Futian glanced at Yang Dongqing and said, "Elder, you can investigate them first. If they are close acquaintances of Liu Han, we can deal with them on a case by case basis. However, if they are only people who entered Dongyuan Pavilion to cultivate, then we don''t have to make their lives hard."


    He also understood Yang Dongqing''s position.


    With regard to those potentially connected to the Mountain Sword Peak or Donglin Clan, Ye Futian did not give any specific instructions. He would let them deal with it themselves.


    The world of the cultivators was never a merciful or kind world, particularly when it came to life or death battles like this. The winner would become the kings while the losers perished. He understood this clearly.


    The three nodded slightly. Ye Futian then continued and said, "With regard to the examination, I will have to trouble the three elders."


    "No problem. This should not be too difficult." Emperor Helian nodded. Beigong Ao also said, "I can get some people from my family over."


    Yang Dongqing did not express his opinion. On this, he held a different opinion. However, the issue was already settled, and it was not yet time to make his case.


    He needed to find some time to, perhaps, have a chat about it with Emperor Helian. They were the first two factions that came together to form the alliance.


    Ye Futian was only selected after he was handpicked by the manifestation of the statue.


    The issue had been settled. So, Ye Futian left the place and headed to Dongyuan Pavilion. The crowd outside Dongyuan Pavilion also began to disperse. However, everyone knew that the debacle was not yet over and that some residual events or incidents were to follow. Many would still, unfortunately, lose their lives.


    Emperor Helian and the first princess Helian You were still in front of Dongyuan Pavilion. Emperor Helian transmitted his voice to Helian You and said, "You have been in contact with him for some time. What do you think of this boy?"


    "An exceptional talent of an era. No one in this land can even compare to him. We also have no idea where he came from. Nor do we know what his objectives are," answered Helian You.


    "That''s all?" Emperor Helian asked.


    "Father, I have a feeling that his true strength may have been severely underestimated," answered Helian You as she looked at Emperor Helian.


    Emperor Helian followed up to ask, "Why do you say this?"


    "He is an acquaintance of Mr. South Mountain. He might have targeted Liu Han when he came. He tried to force his way into the Dongyuan Pavilion before us. Back then, he had no idea that this would happen. So, where did his confidence come from?" Helian You asked. She continued, "I suspect that he was never afraid of Liu Han. From the beginning until the end, he was always calm and indifferent. I can feel a ridiculously strong sense of self-confidence from him; it was as if everything was within his control."


    "Right." Emperor Helian nodded profoundly. "As the lord of our royal family, I have seen many talents and amazing presence in my time, and his aura was not weak. Whenever a normal lower Renhuang faces me, their aura would naturally be a few degrees lower. However, when this boy faced me, even though he did call me elder, the feeling that I got was that he was very calm and relaxed. In his eyes, I��the lord of our royal family��was not regarded as much. Even when the statue manifested back then, I specifically observed him and saw that he was as calm and relaxed as ever. This person is definitely a genius-level character who has been through something remarkable. The debacle over the Dongyuan Pavilion is probably not all that important to him."


    Helian You nodded slightly and said, "I agree with you on this."


    She and her father had the same feeling. Her plane level was most certainly higher than Ye Futian. However, the aura emanating from Ye Futian when he stood in front of her made her feel like he was the actual elder. It was the aura and confidence brought about by true strength.


    "Senluo Manor was destroyed a while ago. Sword Will wreathed all over the mountain where Senluo Manor was located," Emperor Helian continued to say by transmitting his voice over. Helian You was stunned. Her heart trembled as she looked at her father!

 1881 Looking for Trouble

    The last time he was at Dongyuan Pavilion, he was able to converge and generate an incredibly powerful Sword Will of the Great Path after achieving realization. The Sword Will was extremely powerful, and he wanted to continue tempering it and making it even more powerful.


    The outside of the Pavilion was bustling with activity. The examination of Dongyuan Pavilion had just begun in recent days, and it had caused a huge commotion throughout the entire Dongyuan City. Many cultivators came to watch it, which caused the outside of Dongyuan Pavilion to be packed with people every day. All of them came to take part in the examination as they wanted to enter Dongyuan Pavilion so that they may have a chance to read classic tomes and scriptures.


    To most people of the world, Dongyuan Pavilion was the true holy land of cultivation. Not to mention other practitioners, but even people as powerful as Ye Futian would benefit a lot from Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Several days had passed. Ye Futian did not really know the changes outside in the world.


    Within Dongyuan Pavilion. At that moment, Helian You arrived at the side of Ye Futian. It seemed like she had something to tell him.


    "What''s wrong?" Ye Futian asked after seeing Helian You. She seemed uncomfortable. It was as if she had something to say but did not know how to say it.


    Over the past few days, Ye Futian''s communication with Emperor Helian had been through Helian You. They had since already been familiar with each other. As such, if it were a normal matter, Helian You would have said it directly. She would not be as hesitant as she was now.


    "Something happened," said Helian You.


    "Aren''t Emperor Helian and the other elders around? They can deal with it directly," answered Ye Futian. Although he was the head of the Dongyuan Pavilion, he was still used to being the hands-off type of leader, just like he was when he was at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    He did not need to personally handle most matters. He only needed to set the rules.


    After seeing that Helian You was still somewhat uncomfortable and hesitant, Ye Futian knew that it was not a minor issue since even Emperor Helian could not settle it.


    If that were the case, there may only be one possibility, and it was that differences had emerged between the three factions that supported him in managing Dongyuan Pavilion.


    "What happened?" Ye Futian asked.


    Ye Futian looked at Helian You and asked, "If that is the case, we can issue a stern warning internally and make sure that it does not happen again. Publicly, we will state that we will give them one chance to make a mistake."


    Such things were impossible to prevent. That was unless he did everything personally and went to the frontlines to handle things. If he left the management of the exam to the three factions, how could he ensure that those handling the issue would never have any selfish thoughts?


    As such, he decided to have Helian You issue a stern warning but, at the same time, give the offender a chance. Otherwise, if he were to handle things very sternly the very first time, cracks would probably start to appear within their ranks.


    He also knew that while he was the head of Dongyuan Pavilion, his relationship with the three major factions was not all that close. One could even say that they did not know each other at all. In such situations, cracks could easily appear. It was impossible for him to cause a huge scene immediately whenever an incident occurred. If he did that, he would be the only one left behind to handle things.


    "Things got big," Helian You said.


    Ye Futian looked at her. Then, Helian You transmitted her voice and said, "The person who messed with the exam to grant access is from the Beigong Family. He received bribes. However, it should not have been detected so easily but regardless of that, he was still exposed. It seemed rather peculiar. My father is guessing that it is intentional."


    "Intentional?" Ye Futian''s brows raised slightly.


    "Yes." Helian You nodded. "Somone intentionally made a person from the Beigong Family commit a crime so that they could use it as an excuse to cause trouble."


    "Did you find out who''s the one doing this?" Ye Futian asked. If that were the case, the situation might be worse than he thought.


    Helian You shook her head. However, Ye Futian saw that her expression was a little unusual. He asked, "Do you have a guess?"


    Helian You remained silent for a while before nodding and answering, "My father asked me earlier, and now I am still hesitating whether to tell you or not."


    Ye Futian looked at her. Since Helian You had come, she must have already made a decision.


    "Based on my father''s initial investigation and deduction, this issue may be related to the Yang Clan." Helian You did not say this through normal means; instead, she transmitted her voice to inform Ye Futian. "We have not told the Beigong Family yet. Initially, we did not want to tell you about the incident, either. However, right now, we have found that someone is trying to cause trouble, casting doubts over Dongyuan Pavilion. If this is not handled soon, I am afraid it might not calm down any time soon."


    Ye Futian understood after hearing Helian You''s words. The incident involved the Beigong Family and the Yang Clan. Moreover, it seemed like there were other hidden facts and issues that needed to be considered. From the Helian Family''s standpoint, it was indeed a difficult task to handle. No wonder they were hesitant to inform him about it.


    Moreover, since the Helian Family was the side who brought it up, they were also at risk of being suspected of being instigators themselves.


    However, from Ye Futian''s interaction with Helian You over the past few days, he could see that Helian You was very sincere. At the very least, Ye Futian did not feel that she was a cunning or scheming person.


    "Let me handle it," said Ye Futian. After that, he took a step forward to head outside Dongyuan Pavilion. Helian You followed him from behind.


    The two of them exited Dongyuan Pavilion. Using his divine consciousness, Ye Futian scanned the area and found that, as expected, someone was causing a disturbance in the exam venue under Dongyuan Pavilion. Many people gathered around the area, and someone was intentionally instigating the issue.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian''s body vanished in a flash and appeared instantly at another location. This place was filled with many people, among them included the cultivators of the three Dongyuan Pavilion factions. Some of the clan leaders were also present.


    A bowing person stood underneath. It was the person accused of playing favorites.


    "Pavilion leader." Emperor Helian nodded at Ye Futian after he saw him arrive. Ye Futian walked straight forward and stopped beside Emperor Helian and Yang Dongqing. Then, he said, "The first princess has briefed me about what has transpired earlier. Any objections with regard to this person breaking the rules and playing favorites?"


    "He has also admitted it," said Yang Dongqing on the side.


    Ye Futian nodded. "How are you prepared to deal with him?"


    "This isn''t a major issue. Moreover, the person whom he allowed to pass the exam possesses exceptional talent. He isn''t that far behind the other person. The problem is the outsider making a debacle out of this. He has exterior motives. Pavilion leader, why don''t we send someone to get rid of the person causing a commotion, and as for him..." Yang Dongqing looked at the person who committed the crime and said, "This incident should be enough to serve as a warning to him. He will probably not dare to do it again in the future."


    "Elder Beigong, what do you think?" Ye Futian looked at Beigong Ao and asked.


    "I will leave it to the Pavilion leader." Beigong Ao looked at Ye Futian.


    "The rules have only been recently established, and yet, here, as you all have witnessed, they have been broken in mere days. While the Beigong Family is not under Dongyuan Pavilion and I have no authority to intervene in their affairs, this happened at Dongyuan Pavilion. The examination is also a Dongyuan Pavilion matter. Playing favorites and breaking the examination rules, that is most certainly related to me." Ye Futian continued, "Let''s go with a heavy punishment. To use Dongyuan Pavilion for your personal gain. Destroy his power core and exile him from Dongyuan Pavilion. What does elder Beigong think?"


    "Pavilion master!" The person''s expression changed drastically after hearing Ye Futian''s words. He raised his head to look at Ye Futian. His eyes were filled with shock. While his cultivation level was not exactly high, he had still reached the Renhuang level, and he was definitely not a nobody. Ye Futian actually said that he was going to destroy his power core?


    Because of this minor issue?


    "Alright. I will personally see to it," Beigong Ao nodded. With a flash, he moved towards that person.


    "Clan leader!" That Renhuang looked at Beigong Ao. Beigong Ao directly raised his hands to grab at him. He tried to struggle but was only met by a frightening thunder chain that wrapped around his body, bringing him down. After that, a palm made its mark on his body.


    In an instant, the destructive Thunder God''s Might destroyed everything with the person''s body. The person''s face was ashen.


    Some of the practitioners of the Beigong Family could not bear to watch that scene. Most of them felt a sense of resentment in their hearts.


    Was there a need to do something so severe for such a minor infraction?


    Beigong Ao brought the person away directly. They headed towards the exit of Dongyuan Pavilion. Ye Futian stood there quietly, waiting. Not long after, Beigong Ao returned. The disturbance outside calmed down. Nobody continued to cause a scene. Everyone was stunned by the hard-handed measure imposed.


    The punishment was actually so severe?


    "Find out the one who bribed the offender and deal with it strictly. I will leave this to Elder Beigong," Ye Futian said to Beigong Ao.


    "Alright," Beigong Ao nodded. Yang Dongqing''s brows twitched slightly but returned to normal in an instant.


    "The matter is settled. You may all leave. This incident should serve as a lesson. I hope that no one repeats this mistake," said Ye Futian. Then, everyone promptly left the area.


    Beigong Ao and Yang Dongqing also left. Then, Yang Dongqing walked to the side of Beigong Ao and said, "Beigong, the Pavilion head''s punishment is too severe, isn''t it? But I guess it can''t be helped for the newly appointed head to apply hard-handed measures. So that he may shock and instill a sense of authority."


    "There is no problem for the Pavilion had to do this. The rules have just been established and, naturally, should be followed strictly. It is my fault for not being strict enough in disciplining them." Beigong Ao replied. Yang Dongqing nodded slightly and said, "That''s also true."


    After that, they each went their separate ways. After they were separated, Yang Dongqing''s eyes became cold.


    In the end, nothing came from this incident. Helian You''s guess could not be proven.


    Ye Futian did not enter the Dongyuan Pavilion. Instead, he went to a cultivation court above Dongyuan Pavilion to cultivate.


    On this day, the entire cultivation court was shrouded in a super terrifying Sword Will aura. Ye Futian sat cross-legged inside the court, and in front of him, three Sword Will manifestations converged. The sky and the land changed colors. Even though there were only three Sword Wills, it was as if all the land and the power of the Great Path were concentrated within them.


    "Swoosh, swoosh..." The Sword Wills flew all over, turning the entire area into a harsh and deadly environment. Ye Futian finally suppressed his aura after some time, and the Sword Wills also dissipated.


    Outside the cultivation court, a figure stood quietly watching. It was Helian You.


    "If one Sword Will is already so frightening, just how terrifying are three?" Helian You mumbled quietly.


    "What brings you here?" Ye Futian asked, smiling.


    "Someone is looking for you, Pavilion head," Helian You answered Ye Futian with a smile.


    "Who is it?" Ye Futian asked curiously. Someone was looking for him?


    "The number one beauty of the Beigong Family. Beigong Shuang. Moreover, she is very talented. She reached the Renhuang plane not that long ago," replied Helian You to Ye Futian, smiling.


    Surprise filled Ye Futian''s face as he asked, "Why is she looking for me?"


    "She''s here to learn from you," Helian You answered with a chuckle. Ye Futian was rather surprised. While the incident from last time had concluded, the three major factions should still remember it. So, what was the intention of the Beigong Family for sending their family''s number one beauty to him?


    Could it be that the Beigong Family no longer held a grudge against him over the last incident?


    This time, Beigong Ao''s actions really confused him!

 1882 Sword Forging

    Upon seeing Ye Futian, Beigong Shuang bowed lightly and greeted, "Beigong Shuang pays her respects to the Pavilion Master."


    As she finished speaking, she raised her head and gazed at Ye Futian with her gorgeous eyes. She was intrigued by this distinguished figure before her, who had recently risen to fame and had become the center of attention of the continent in an instant. Now that she had seen him, her first impression was, rather surprisingly, that he was dashing. Ye Futian had an air of refined masculinity, and with a head of long silver hair, the first impression that he gave Beigong Shuang was that he was a handsome man.


    Furthermore, he seemed to have an exceptionally unique temperament.


    "What has brought Ms. Beigong here today?" asked Ye Futian.


    "After father returned, he would often mention Pavilion Master Ye, and he would have nothing but praises for you. Moreover, Beigong Shuang has always admired Pavilion Master Ye, and so I wanted to see you. Getting to see Pavilion Master today has made this trip worthwhile. Previously father also hoped for me to come to Dongyuan Pavilion to cultivate and ask for guidance from Pavilion Master. Hence, I have come to pay a visit to Pavilion Master with the hope that I can follow Pavilion Master in the path of cultivation." Beigong Shuang''s voice was crisp, her tone calm and warm, soothing for anyone who listened.


    Of course, this could be because she had an exceptionally beautiful face that made it difficult for anyone to be uncomfortable with her.


    The people around them let out an expression of slight intrigue while Black Wind Condor blankly glanced at her. What''s the use of having a pretty face? How narrow did she think his master''s horizons were? The royal princess is still queuing, and Princess Donghuang is still waiting for Master to conquer her in the future! it thought.


    The rich daughters of renowned families may be unusually attractive, but they will not catch the eye of Condor.


    After all, my present self has a more exquisite taste than most.


    Xia Qingyuan also looked at Beigong Shuang. A woman with such beauty says she wants to follow Ye Futian in cultivation. What does she mean? she wondered.


    Ye Futian also felt a little perplexed. From what he heard from Helian You, Beigong Shuang was Beigong Ao''s daughter��the belle of the Beigong Family��and had exceptional talent. Hypothetically, even if the Beigong Family bore grudges against him and wanted to sacrifice someone to win him over, they wouldn''t have sent her.


    By doing this, it seems like they approve of him greatly.


    In fact, because of the distance that had formed between them the last time, even though neither party side anything, but certainly both of them know that if the Beigong Family initiates diplomacy, by right, Ye Futian should accept the Beigong Family''s goodwill, and with that, let that event be history.


    However, Ye Futian was not interested in doing so. "Since you have come, you can cultivate in Dongyuan Pavilion," Ye Futian spoke as he regarded Beigong Shuang. "If you have any questions, we can discuss them together. Coincidentally, the elder princess is also present. Both of you can learn from each other. As for guidance, I''m afraid that I won''t be of much help since my cultivation level is nowhere near as high as yours."


    Helian You glanced at Ye Futian with astonishment. What a beautiful princess, yet he rejected her so decisively. Then again, it seems like Ye Futian already has a top beauty by his side. I wonder what their relationship is. Perhaps they are cultivation partners.


    Xia Qingyuan had been extremely lowkey all along, staying behind Ye Futian silently without showing anything. Hence, it was difficult to determine her relationship with Ye Futian.


    As for Ying Qing, she has already taken off her mask. Indeed, she used to cultivate under the guidance of Mr. South Mountain. Of course, no one had publicly discussed this matter, but the Helian Royal Family knew it in their hearts, which further confirmed what they discussed the last time.


    Ying Qing had also been cultivating quietly in Dongyuan Pavilion all along.


    "Father says that the Pavilion Master''s future achievements will be far beyond his. He also said that currently, you are already more enlightened than him in certain aspects of cultivation," Beigong Shuang said. "Please forgive me if I should ever disturb you while I am cultivating in Dongyuan Pavilion."


    Ye Futian nodded. Beigong Shuang had already been courteous to such a great extent, and she had already behaved in the most diplomatic manner possible. She had only hinted at the possibility that she would ask for his guidance sometime in the future, so there was no reason for him to reject her.


    "Alright, if there is anything you need help with, you can look for me," Ye Futian said.


    "Thank you, Pavilion Master." Beigong Shuang bowed slightly and said, "Then I''ll go take a look around Dongyuan Pavilion."


    "Please," Ye Futian replied. With that, Beigong Shuang left for the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    After she left, Helian You looked at Ye Futian and said, "Seems like I overthought things. Senior Beigong''s horizons are far wider than mine."


    Ye Futian understood the underlying meaning of her words. Previously, they thought that the Beigong Family might have borne grudges against them because of what happened. Evidently, the Beigong Family wishes to have Beigong Shuang to resolve the bitterness between them.


    Of course, Helian You was thinking a bit more than Ye Futian. She was thinking, some of what she and her father guessed might have been the conclusions that Beigong Ao also arrived at, which was why he thought extremely highly of Ye Futian.


    In addition, Ye Futian''s exceptional talent was indeed tempting.


    Even though they might not have any pursuits in this Dongyuan Pavilion, but having put in so much effort into cultivation, who wouldn''t want to continue making progress?


    In the next year, there would be an opportunity.


    With Ye Futian leading them towards it as the Dongyuan Pavilion Master, they could certainly be stronger than Liu Han. Even though Liu Han''s cultivation level might be higher, he had far less potential than Ye Futian. Furthermore, Ye Futian''s abilities were unfathomable, and until the present day, they could not see through him. If their hypothesis that Fu Mie from Senluo Manor was somehow related to Ye Futian, then his strength would be even more terrifying than what they imagined.


    Ye Futian didn''t think too much about it and continued to cultivate in isolation. He didn''t want to waste even a moment; to him, raising his strength was more important than anything.


    A few days ago, Yang Dongqing from the Yang Family heard about this and was extremely unhappy.


    "Helian, that brat keeps avoiding me. Even Beigong Ao is also so spineless. Have these years of cultivation ground his temper?" Yang Dongqing had a sharp glint to his eyes, yet he was afraid of a third-tier Divine Wheel practitioner.


    "Beigong Ao showed such courtesy to Ye Liunian. Is this because he fears him?" asked someone around him.


    Even if he is exceptionally talented and can slay many middle-level Renhuangs, there is still a huge difference between a middle-level Renhuang and a high-level Renhuang. If you are talking about fearing him, that will at most be a thing of the far future. Without our support, he could not possibly have ascended to the position of Dongyuan Pavilion Master. Yet, after he has gotten what he wanted, he threw all the tedious work to us to do and just sat back and enjoyed the fruits of our labor. Worse still, he set all those new rules. From where I am standing, it looks exactly like he thinks he owns Dongyuan Pavilion, Yang Dongqing thought. He had always had strong opinions about this matter.


    He planned to support a puppet to the throne, but in the end, things were spiraling out of his control.


    Frustratingly, Emperor Helian seemed to really take pains to aid him, even let the elder princess Helian You follow him around and help him, and dispatched manpower to help him manage Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Helian Emperor had taken Ye Futian under his wing, so Yang Dongqing wanted to provoke the Beigong Family into confronting Fe Futian. Beigong Ao was unexpectedly spineless. He swallowed his pride and let go of his grudges. He even sent Beigong Shuang to Dongyuan Pavilion.


    In this state of things, it would be extremely difficult to undermine Ye Futian''s position as the Pavilion Master.


    Even though he could enter Dongyuan Pavilion to cultivate, there was no way for him to obtain any form of authority there.


    "It''s not that he is afraid, but rather, it is likely that he is the same as Helian and is being drawn by Ye Liunian''s potential." Yang Dongqing continued, "Don''t forget that we still have to go pay a visit next year."


    Upon hearing Yang Dongqing''s words, the people around him instantly understood. Time flew by really quickly.


    In the next year, the Gathering of Prominent Figures would be happening again.


    Ye Futian, on the other hand, wasn''t thinking too much about it. The investigations into what happened the last time bore no fruit at all, and so, he couldn''t care less. It didn''t matter whether or not it was Yang Dongqing''s doing or what motives the Yang Family had. If he were forced to fight, he wouldn''t think much about it either.


    After that battle, he could roughly gauge the strength of a few people to be at about the level of Senluo Manor Chief.


    The Dongyuan Pavilion Cultivation Temple is at the highest point of Dongyuan Pavilion. After successfully laying out the Great Way Matrix, Ye Futian levitated among the clouds. The Will of the Great Way shrouded him, turning the atmosphere around him quite terrifying.


    Ye Futian''s clothes fluttered about him, his long hair dancing behind him. The entire sky seemed to turn into a Great Way Forge. As he cultivated his path on the Great Way, Ye Futian forged all fragments of his Will in his body. A massive storm appeared in the sky, and in the eye of this storm, one could vaguely see a wisp of a silhouette. It was the same silhouette as Ye Futian, yet it looked like a Celestial Shadow.


    Boom!


    A terrifying aura hammered down from the heavens that got stronger by the second. With the deity-induced seal formation, a limitless amount of the Will of the Great Way instantly condensed into a single body. It was as though the infinite wisps of Will were intertwined at one point.


    Three swords hovered at that point, or rather, three rays of Sword Will.


    Nourished by Ye Futian''s Great Way, the three rays of Sword Will became more terrifying by the second. The surrounding Great Way suddenly evolved into a violent vortex, and the Celestial Shadow shot up to a hundred feet and fusing into the surrounding heavens and earth.


    Within the three rays of Sword Will, violent vortices appeared that swallowed everything. Accompanying the blades of light that emanated, a massive Sword Aura appeared in the region, and intense ripples appeared even across the Great Way Matrix.


    Cheep cheep... a sharp screech sounded throughout the entire region as billions of currents of Sword Will cascaded from the heavens. It was as though each strand of Sword Will contained a strong intent to assault. However, that only lasted for an instant; everything merged into Ye Futian''s body, and countless strands of Sword Will wound around his body.


    The storm around gradually died down. Ye Futian opened his eyes. His body that levitated in the sky was as straight as a sword. Although it was a human body, it gave off the impression that it was sharper than any sword.


    The Way of the Sword nourishes the Sword Will. I wonder how strong my attack power is now, Ye Futian thought silently. Previously during the Battle of Dongyuan Pavilion, just one streak of Sword Will that wasn''t even this strong could slay multiple middle-level Renhuangs. Now that he was emanating Sword Will, he was surely a lot stronger and could kill a common middle-level Renhuang with a single strike.


    Below beside the Dongyuan Pavilion, Helian You raised her head and looked up at the sky. Ripples were coursing through the Great Way Matrix. She knew that Ye Futian was cultivating above.


    Having followed Ye Futian for quite some time already, Helian You even knew the cultivation method he was using.


    Can he successfully cultivate using the method recorded in that scripture?


    A figure in white gradually descended from above Dongyuan Pavilion. Helian You looked at the silhouette and could sense Ye Futian''s aura. Beneath his handsome features was a radiance that was akin to a polished sword.


    At that moment, He Lianyou understood that after those few days of cultivation, Ye Futian''s swordsmanship has gotten stronger!

 1883 Fun

    "How strong are you now, really?" Helian You couldn''t help but ask Ye Futian as she looked at him. She had been curious for too long.


    Of course, it was only because they were already familiar with each other that she would ask this question in such a straightforward manner.


    "Level three Divine Wheel, but only my Divine Wheel of the Great Path has been cultivated to perfection. Didn''t you already see it all?" Ye Futian grinned as he asked.


    "I am asking about your fighting strength." Helian You looked at Ye Futian. "I''ve always had a hypothesis. Last year, among the top factions on this continent, there was an evil faction��Senluo Manor��that was annihilated overnight. After that, a swordsman started cultivating in Senluo Manor."


    As she finished speaking, she stared at Ye Futian. Even though she had made some conjectures a long time ago, she still wanted to hear Ye Futian acknowledge it himself.


    Ye Futian saw the curiosity in Helian You''s eyes. Likely, Emperor Helian''s attitude toward him might have something to do with this.


    However, the fact that Helian You could ask him this question was a sign of mutual trust.


    "I am going to cultivate at Dongyuan Pavilion now." Ye Futian did not answer her directly. He smirked as he strolled to the entrance of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Helian You gazed at the silhouette of Ye Futian''s back. Even though Ye Futian did not answer her directly, she already knew the answer.


    Helian You sighed deeply, slightly shaken. While she had guessed it initially, she was still shocked when she really obtained acknowledgment from Ye Futian.


    After all, he was only at Level Three Divine Wheel. How was he able to slay a high-level Renhuang?


    The Senluo Manor Chief''s level of cultivation was definitely on the same level as those of her father and Liu Han. He had always wanted to become one of the powers in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion. Still, because a few major factions joined together to prevent Senluo Manor from entering, Senluo Manor had always been excluded from Dongyuan Pavilion.


    No one would have expected him to be slain by Ye Futian alone.


    In that case, if Yang Dongqing really wished Ye Futian any harm, he would find it difficult to execute whatever plan he had in mind.


    However, she would also not remind Yang Dongqing or the Yang Family about it. Using her father''s words, even though they were allies once, they had joined forces because they shared the same goal then. However, since their stance and viewpoints were different, there was no need to be concerned with them.


    Previously, Yang Dongqing was unscrupulous when he targeted the Beigong Family.


    Compared to Yang Dongqing, Beigong Ao was quite astute. He changed his stand at the crucial moment to support them in the past and stood on the side of the winners. Furthermore, he sent Beigong Shuang to Dongyuan Pavilion to cultivate. This head of the Beigong Family was indeed an astute person.


    As Ye Futian walked into Dongyuan Pavilion, many people bowed as they saw him.


    "Pavilion Master."


    "Liunian Sword Emperor."


    The numerous people who bowed were all practitioners who passed the trial and entered Dongyuan Pavilion. They revered Ye Futian, and there were even some who called him the "White-haired Sword Emperor" endearingly.


    Ye Futian would always nod his head as a form of reply.


    "The Pavilion Master is really handsome and is without parallel. He is the most extraordinary and exceptional being that I have ever seen. No one can compare to him," someone said in a low whisper.


    "Mmm, even when it comes to talent, he is also unrivaled."


    "If only I could become the Pavilion Master''s cultivation partner," a young woman said with a dreamy smile on her face. A few people shot her contemptuous looks. This boy-crazy woman...


    "The belle of the Beigong Family is currently cultivating in Dongyuan Pavilion, and then there is still the elder princess of the Helian Royal Family. How can you even compare?" someone jokingly said. His unrestrained comment roused some laughter among the crowd.


    "Ahem!" A cold voice sounded out. Everyone turned to the source of the voice and saw an elder flipping through an ancient scripture. The fact that he was a Renhuang practitioner instantly silenced everyone, especially when they knew that they were disturbing his cultivation. However, he had already attained the Renhuang grade, so why was he still on the lowest floor of Dongyuan Pavilion?


    Ye Futian walked toward the stairway leading to the upper floors of Dongyuan Pavilion. Given his current cultivation level, the cultivation methods in the lower levels no longer had any value to him.


    Recently numerous people have joined Dongyuan Pavilion to cultivate, so Dongyuan Pavilion was quite crowded. Even though there was a limit to the number of people allowed in Dongyuan Pavilion, each floor still had quite a few people. With each floor that Ye Futian climbed, there would always be practitioners who would greet him as "Pavilion Master."


    When Ye Futian arrived at one of the higher floors, someone shouted, "Pavilion Master." Somewhere in the distance, Ye Futian saw a feminine silhouette lowering her arms while in the midst of performing some action, turned her head toward him, and called out, "Pavilion Master Ye."


    "Ah, Ms. Shuang, you are here too," Ye Futian replied.


    "Mmm." Beigong Shuang nodded. "I have just entered the Renhuang stage and still have many questions regarding cultivation, so I have been staying in Dongyuan Pavilion, referring to ancient scriptures. Dongyuan Pavilion was indeed constructed by the Great Emperor. It''s really all-encompassing."


    "Indeed, one can learn a lot within Dongyuan Pavilion." Ye Futian nodded his head. "Please continue reading then."


    With that, he continued to proceed to the higher floors.


    Unexpectedly, Ye Futian saw Beigong Shuang also stepping forward, following behind him.


    "Is there anything else I can help you with, Ms. Shuang?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I would like to see what the Pavilion Master is reading in Dongyuan Pavilion and learn from you," Beigong Shuang said softly. "However, if doing so would disturb Pavilion Master, then I shall not."


    Her voice was soft, gentle, and warm and made people feel really comfortable.


    Ye Futian thought to himself, ''The Beigong Family really knows how to choose their people.''


    "Do as you please," Ye Futian said as he smiled and walked up the stairs. Even though Ye Futian said to do as she pleased, Beigong Shuang did not hesitate but rather closely followed Ye Futian up the stairs.


    Ye Futian felt a little perplexed. At any rate, Beigong Shuang was a practitioner who had already attained the Renhuang level��


    Nonetheless, he did not concern himself with her. He started reading the cultivation techniques that could be found in records in Dongyuan Pavilion. Beigong Shuang also quietly followed without troubling him. When Ye Futian finished reading a scripture, she would read it after.


    Whatever Ye Futian read, she would also read.


    This state of things continued for a few days. Even though Ye Futian wasn''t too bothered by it, as time passed, he still felt baffled by her behavior.


    One day, he paused his cultivation for a while, looked toward Beigong Shuang, and said, "Ms. Shuang, the cultivation techniques that I am learning are suited for my own Great Path, but they may not necessarily be compatible with you."


    "Mmm." Beigong Shuang nodded. "I know."


    "��" Ye Futian looked at her. While he was a bit annoyed, the beautiful face of hers made it impossible for him to really get angry at her.


    Was she really that dumb or was she playing dumb?


    "It is just that fundamentally, cultivation should never be limited to our own Great Paths since all Great Paths are alike. In the few days that I have been following Pavilion Master Ye in reading these ancient scriptures, I have learned a lot, and my own cultivation has benefitted greatly. Given this case, what is the issue?" Beigong Shuang stated as she looked at Ye Futian.


    "While that may be the case, would you not benefit more if you selected some volumes that were more appropriate for you?" Ye Futian asked.


    "I have ascended to the Renhuang stage not too long ago, so I really don''t know what would suit me more or what I should read. Furthermore, Dongyuan Pavilion is so huge." Beigong Shuang looked at Ye Futian and said, "Since Father gives Pavilion Master Ye high praise, I too naturally believe that Pavilion Master Ye''s insights can be trusted, so I decided to follow you to cultivate together. If Pavilion Master Ye minds me, then I can stay a little further. I will only go ahead when you have finished reading the scriptures."


    As she finished her sentence, she really started moving toward the side without any sign of displeasure, maintaining a rather nonchalant expression.


    "��" Ye Futian could not find the words to reply to this nor rebut her.


    He smiled and shook his head and then left her side. He let Beigong Shuang be and did not concern himself with her again.


    Indeed, Beigong Shuang kept a distance from Ye Futian, but like what she did previously, she looked through the volumes of scriptures that he read.


    After cultivating for a few more days, Ye Futian left.


    Afterward, when he returned to Dongyuan Pavilion to cultivate again, he brought Xia Qingyuan along and had her accompany him around.


    Yet, completely out of his expectations, Beigong Shuang did not leave him and still followed him around. Ye Futian really wanted to know exactly what she was thinking in that mind of hers.


    Beigong Shuang''s behavior even attracted attention from other people in Dongyuan Pavilion, and this even spread outside of the pavilion and became an exciting topic of conversation for many people in Dongyuan City. Stories of the beauty and the prodigy naturally spread the fastest. Furthermore, these rumors weren''t constrained by the level of cultivation at all; the higher the level of cultivation of the practitioners involved, the greater the curiosity they sparked.


    In this case, it was especially so because the relationships were rather complex; the main characters seemed to be involved in a love triangle.


    This did provide some fuel for post-meal and post-tea conversation for the common folk.


    Although Ye Futian was a little bothered by it, it did enrich his boring days of cultivation to a certain extent. After all, cultivation was extremely dry.


    Time flew by quickly, and unconsciously a year had passed without Ye Futian ever leaving Dongyuan Pavilion.


    When the year 10046 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar arrived, Emperor Helian, Yang Dongqing, and Beigong Ao visited Dongyuan Pavilion again.


    Ye Futian walked toward them in Dongyuan Pavilion, and the three people greeted him, "Pavilion Master Ye."


    "There is no need for formalities, my seniors," Ye Futian said, laughing. "It''s the first day of the year. What matters have drawn busy men such as yourselves to Dongyuan Pavilion?"


    "We actually made this trip for a specific reason. I''m sure Pavilion Master will know of it soon enough." Emperor Helian grinned.


    Ye Futian let out an expression of bafflement and surprise. The three major factions arrived at the same time for some reason. It seemed that this cause was something extraordinary, or else they would not have placed such importance on it!

 1884 Eastern Deity Island

    Emperor Helian smirked and said, "Alright then. Say, has Pavilion Master heard of the Eastern Deity Island?"


    Ye Futian shook his head. Naturally, he had not heard of such a place before.


    "Among the numerous continents in the Donghua Domain, there are some continents that are the pinnacle of power, and there are others that are filled with wonders. The Eastern Deity Island is located on the Penglai Continent, which is a rather unique continent in the region that we are in," Emperor Helian explained to Ye Futian.


    They all discovered that this ye Futian seemed to know extremely little about the outside world; he was unaware of even the existence of the Eastern Deity Island.


    Where in the heavens did this freak of nature come from?


    "Penglai Continent," Ye Futian muttered softly to himself. The continent on which Dongyuan Pavilion is located had no name. Since there were too many continents to count in the Divine Prefectures of the East, typically, continents would be unnamed.


    To the entire Divine Prefectures of the East, a place like a continent would be a tiny region; hence there was no reason to give it a name.


    "Mmm," Emperor Helian nodded and said. "Penglai Continent is at the geographical center of the surrounding thousands of continents and is hence extremely prosperous. Many exceedingly strong factions reside on that continent, and I don''t mean factions like the Helian Royal Family, but rather massive factions that really have Level Nine Renhuangs leading them.


    "However, the most important reason why Penglai Continent is so famous isn''t the existence of these top-tier factions, but rather the existence of the Eastern Deity Island. The owner of this island used to be an exceedingly powerful figure. It has been said that his cultivation level had reached the Emperor Plane, so many people referred to him as Donglai Supreme Deity. He was also an Apothecary Grandmaster. Apothecary Grandmasters are extremely rare in the world of cultivation; they are even much less common than Blacksmith Grandmasters. This has something to do with the elemental attributes of practitioners. Thus, this Donglai Supreme Deity was an extremely renowned figure in the past, with countless virtuosos often commissioning him to concoct elixirs for them. Alas, it was also because of this. He made some powerful enemies and was eventually killed."


    Ye Futian nodded. So that was what it was. The Divine Prefecture was vast and endless, with countless varieties of life. Certainly, there would be numerous peculiar practitioners as well. Further considering the innumerable years of history of the Divine Prefecture and the multitude of influential figures, the fact that such a place existed should be highly possible and not at all unexpected.


    "So what opportunities are there on the Eastern Deity Island?" Ye Futian asked. Since they could invite people from thousands of continents over, there should be opportunities for cultivating the Great Path.


    "There are many opportunities. The Eastern Deity Island has had years of inheritance. There was also Supreme Deity Penglai the apothecary, so, of course, there are countless treasures and various opportunities for one to be enlightened about cultivating one''s Great Path on the island. Hence, when the Eastern Deity Island is opened every ten years, the Penglai Continent would host a massive pageant for practitioners of the Great Way, and there would also be a grand trading convention," Emperor Helian continued.


    Ye Futian nodded his head in agreement. Although the strength of this continent did not seem great to him, at the very least, there were a few factions led by high-level Renhuangs and thus was certainly stronger than many realms among the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path in the Original Realm. It was just that he had already caused such a large upheaval in the Nine Realms, had set his sight on greater things, and had a high level of cultivation himself, so he didn''t notice the existence of such an event.


    Nonetheless, he wondered how grand an event must be if people from thousands of continents attended at the same time.


    The Divine Prefecture was way vaster and more prosperous than the Original Realm. They could not even be compared.


    Furthermore, he had not even made contact with any faction at the pinnacle of power. The Eastern Deity Island should belong to that level. Still, he wondered about the strength of the most powerful figure on the Eastern Deity Island after the death of Supreme Deity Donglai.


    "Will anyone from the Eastern Deity Island come today?" Ye Futian queried.


    "Mmm, they should have arrived earlier. The people from the Eastern Deity Island have always been very punctual all these years," Emperor Helian replied.


    "Well then, it seems like the Eastern Deity Island of today is still very rich in resources, eh?" Ye Futian spoke softly. How much manpower did the island need to simultaneously send representatives to thousands of continents?


    Even considering that they made use of teleportation matrices, one could still tell that the Eastern Deity Island had numerous virtuosos.


    "In the past century, the Eastern Deity Island had absorbed several practitioners with unusually high potential to cultivate on the island. In over three hundred years, the Eastern Deity Island had opened its shores thirty times and attracted several influential people, so, of course, they would have an abundance of resources. Furthermore, the Eastern Deity Island now very rarely communicates outside of its territory, so very few people know how strong they really are now. Some people guess that apart from the Supreme Deity Donglai, the Eastern Deity Island may already have fully recovered its full vitality," Emperor Helian said.


    Ye Futian nodded. He had become a little bit more excited.


    In the past few years, apart from settling matters in Dongyuan Pavilion, the only thing he did was cultivate. It was time for him to experience the world outside. Anyway, it was also a form of raising his cultivation level.


    At this point, Beigong Ao turned his head and looked outwards from Dongyuan Pavilion. Right after him, Emperor Helian and Yang Dongqing also turned their heads.


    "They''ve come," Beigong Ao announced.


    Ye Futian also stared outwards into the distance. He sensed a strong aura moving towards him. Indeed, like what Emperor Helian said, they were very punctual.


    A column of women draped in white robes were walking on air, mist surrounding them. They had an aura that bore some semblance to those of deities. They were certainly extraordinary. The people around Dongyuan Pavilion all raised their heads and looked up towards them. Different from Ye Futian, they all guessed who had arrived. The goddesses of Eastern Deity Island arrived.


    "The Eastern Deity Island has come to pay a visit." Ye Futian looked towards the source of the voice and spoke loudly, "Welcome, goddesses."


    As he finished speaking, he saw the row of goddesses float straight into the airspace above Dongyuan Pavilion and swiftly landed beside Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian regarded the people from the Eastern Deity Island. They were all gorgeous women, in particular the leader of the group. It was as though she were an angel with other-worldly qualities who had descended from the Nine Heavens into the moral realm. Apart from having a distinctive disposition, she also had exceedingly stunning features that could rival the top beauty of the Beigong Family��Beigong Shuang. However, the two had completely different auras.


    It seems like the Eastern Deity Island did not only have opportunities for cultivating one''s Great Path; it also had bewitching women.


    Ye Futian could sense the ethereal aura of the lead goddess that seemed to both exist and not at the same time. This woman had a similar level of cultivation to his, but her Divine Wheel might be unique.


    The lead goddess, similarly, was regarding Ye Futian. Ye Futian was at the front of the group gathered here, so of course, he would attract her attention.


    "Could I ask, which among you is the Dongyuan Pavilion Master?" the goddess asked.


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian replied, "That would be me."


    The host of goddesses looked at Ye Futian and let out an astonished expression. The eyes of the lead goddess also flickered. The Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion was only at the level of a lower Renhuang?


    "The Eastern Deity Island will be opened after 15 days. We came today to invite the Dongyuan Pavilion Master to come. This is the entrance pass; one of this allows you to bring ten people along to the island," the lead goddess spoke to Ye Futian. Right after, an ancient pass flew towards Ye Futian and levitated beside him.


    Ye Futian accepted the pass and said to the lead goddess, "Alright, I will definitely go."


    "Mmm," The lead goddess nodded. "Apologies for the disturbance. We will be leaving now."


    "Goodbye, goddesses." Ye Futian nodded. The goddesses then turned and left, leaving no trace of their presence behind.


    After they left, many practitioners standing around Dongyuan Pavilion were riled up in anticipation. Even if they could not step onto the island, they still hoped that they could at least go to Penglai Continent to widen their horizons and witness the grand gathering of highly talented practitioners from various continents.


    Ye Futian watched as the goddesses left. With the entrance pass in his hand, he muttered softly, "Only ten people?"


    In this case, he had no choice but to only pick two or three people from the three main factions to accompany him.


    "Mmm, this is the rule set by the Eastern Deity Island. Otherwise, there would be too many people swarming towards the island at once," Beigong Ao said. "In addition, once you have arrived at the Penglai Deity Island, you really have to keep that entrance pass safely, and you should not easily let other people know that you possess such a pass."


    Ye Futian looked at Beigong Ao and said, "Robbery?"


    "Mmm." Beigong Ao nodded his head. "The Eastern Deity Island allows admission only to those who possess the pass. Those who do not aren''t allowed entry, regardless of who they are. Hence it is not uncommon to see fights break out over the possession of the entry pass. Every time this event occurs on Penglai Deity Island, there will always be a lot of contention happening. Setting aside the fact that you can bring people along and gain admission to the island with this pass, the pass also has a pretty high trading value."


    Ye Futian understood. That was to say, even if one did not need to use it, they could also seize it to trade for other items.


    The Eastern Deity Island, naturally, would not interfere with these scuffles because it was also a form of elimination. Although the passes are equally distributed among the various continents, ultimately, only the most qualified people will gain admission to the island.


    "Am I considered among the ten places?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Nope. You can bring up to ten people," Beigong Ao replied.


    Ye Futian nodded, "In this case, I only need two slots. As for the other eight slots, Senior Helian and Senior Beigong can each bring two people. I''m sorry, Senior Yang, but you can only bring one person. I will surely compensate you for this unfairness next time. Of course, my seniors, you can bring more people if they aren''t entering the Eastern Deity Island but want to look around the Penglai Continent."


    "Alright." Naturally, Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao did not have any issues with this distribution. While they had some thoughts, they kept them to themselves and did not express them at all.


    When Yang Dongqing heard Ye Futian''s words, he was stunned for a moment but instantly recovered. Nonetheless, he felt unhappy. Only his Yang Family had to bring one less person?


    Were they even lesser than the Beigong Family?


    Very well...


    "Pavilion Master, please allocate spots as you wish." Yang Dongqing also nodded, his voice revealing none of the anger he was feeling.


    "Since everyone is agreeable, please start making preparations. We will head there directly," Ye Futian announced. His sight briefly landed on Yang Dongqing for a moment before moving on. Ye Futian did this on purpose to test him. If Yang Dongqing had any ill designs on him, then this trip to the Penglai Continent will be Yang Dongqing''s opportunity to act!

 1885 Penglai Continen

    For this trip, the three major factions each brought along people numbering in the teens. These practitioners had all achieved the Renhuang stage. Although technically practitioners in the Saint stage could also seek opportunities in Penglai Continent, there weren''t enough people to spare from Dongyuan Pavilion. Furthermore, opportunities for furthering one''s cultivation was not even guaranteed for Renhuang Level practitioners, let alone their juniors in the Saint and Sage Levels.


    Under these conditions, naturally, only those with the highest chance of success would be departing, and so these people were all Renhuang Level practitioners.


    In the empty space, the party of practitioners traveled majestically. They stood on a gigantic Speed Implement, whizzing through the air at an incredible speed.


    Ye Futian stood in the middle of the crowd with Xia Qingyuan at his side and Little Condor behind him. On the left and right were Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao, respectively. Meanwhile, Yang Dongqing stood with the Yang Family members at the side.


    "Pavilion Master Ye, this lass has caused you some trouble during this period, eh?" Beigong Ao spoke to the Ye Futian who was beside him. The woman standing next to Beigong Ao was Beigong Shuang.


    Ye Futian glanced at Beigong Shuang and saw that she, too, was looking straight at him. He wondered if Beigong Ao was truly unaware or if he was just pretending.


    "How can it be? Ms. Shuang is very dedicated to cultivation, and her efforts in cultivating have taught me a few things, too," Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    "Indeed, she has been captivated by cultivating since she was a kid," Beigong Ao smiled and nodded. "Since that is the case, then I shall have her contact Pavilion Master more often in the future. Surely this will also benefit her cultivation."


    "��"


    Ye Futian looked at Beigong Ao. He could not find the words to reply.


    Emperor Helian slightly narrowed his eyes. Beigong Ao, you old fox, he thought to himself. Beigong Ao had always been very shrewd. Beigong Shuang was not only extremely beautiful, but she was also not underhanded at all. Furthermore, he had that she was also a cultivation prodigy and had been nurtured very carefully by Beigong Ao.


    "Oh yes, I have never asked Pavilion Master Ye before, but with your exceptional talent, you must have a pretty solid background. How and why are you now in Dongyuan City?" Beigong Ao asked curiously.


    At this moment, Emperor Helian, as well as Yang Dongqing, listened very intently. They were also baffled by this.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian did not even know about the existence of the Eastern Deity Island.


    Perhaps this was the key to unlocking the enigma that is Ye Futian.


    The party casually talked about other topics, and Ye Futian took the opportunity to further understand the Penglai Continent as well as Eastern Deity Island. Unwittingly, they have traveled outside the continent''s territory.


    Ye Futian turned his sight forwards. Clouds and mist swirled around him, and the Spiritual Qi was as dense as Deity Mist, wafting about their feet. In his line of sight, he could spot another continent in the distance. Indeed, like what Yingqing said previously, continents were near each other.


    Furthermore, they were nothing like the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, where there was spatial turbulence between continents. In the Divine Prefecture, all the continents were like an entire body, hovering about in the endless universe as though they were in the Realm of Deities.


    Ye Futian and the rest of the party did not land on that other continent but rather proceeded on in the space above. As they traveled, they would often see continents that appeared as tiles floating about in space. Some levitated above them while others hovered below; it was quite the extraordinary sight.


    In the region around Penglai Continent, there were already thousands of continents, and Penglai Continent was only one continent in the Donghua Domain. How many of these continents were there in the entire Donghua Domain?


    Then, how many continents were there in the Divine Prefectures of the East?


    This number was way too big to be imagined, and the number of practitioners was also extremely huge. Among these many practitioners, he wondered how many influential and powerful figures would emerge.


    However, in the entire Divine Prefecture, there was only one Great Emperor.


    How powerful exactly was this Great Emperor?


    In a couple of days, while Ye Futian and the rest were still traveling in space, the number of virtuosos around them increased. Occasionally they would see a cluster of practitioners traveling through space like them towards the same direction. Seeing these, everyone understood that they were about to arrive at their destination.


    The Penglai Continent had garnered the attention of thousands of continents. There was no way to count the number of virtuosos who had rushed to the continent. Apart from the invited factions, many practitioners from the Outer Realms would also come on their own accord to seek their own cultivation opportunity. This grand event only occurred every decade and is thus a chance not to be missed.


    Ahead, Deity Mist swirled around a large landmass.


    "That would be the Penglai Continent," Emperor Helian said to Ye Futian as he looked ahead.


    Ye Futian nodded. As the center of over a thousand continents, Penglai Continent was naturally extremely huge, its vast territory extending into the distance.


    "Where is the Eastern Deity Island located on this continent?" Ye Futian asked.


    "There is an independent region on the Penglai Continent that is known as the Penglai Deity Region. There lies the entrance to the Eastern Deity Island. It is also the gathering location for this decennial grand event. In the Penglai Deity Region, there is no top-tier faction governing the area. This is not because they are unable to do so, but rather because they intentionally created this power vacuum to make this area completely independent from the other regions in the Penglai Continent. Every decade there will be a grand trading fair," Emperor Helian explained.


    Ye Futian nodded. The party gradually closed in on the continent. Finally, after spending seven days traversing through empty space on their Speed Implement, they have arrived at Penglai Continent.


    It was not the first time that Emperor Helian or the other two heads of the family had come to this continent, so they were familiar with the area and thus continued to make their way to the gathering point. Around them, there were quite a few people, who, like them, were heading towards the Penglai Deity Region.


    The people below would occasionally raise their heads and look upwards. As they looked upon the virtuosos flying by above them, ripples coursed through their hearts.


    Regardless of the continent, the world of cultivation will forever be a shaped like a pyramid; the higher the level of cultivation, the fewer the number of people. There were many Renhuang level practitioners in the Divine Prefecture because the base number of practitioners is enormous, and numerous people have cultivated for many years. Relative to the Renhuangs, there are even more people in the lower cultivation levels.


    Naturally, Penglai Continent is no exception to this rule. Due to the occurrence of this grand event, many virtuosos from various places have come to gather on this continent. Seeing the gathering of so many virtuosos motivated the hearts of many lower-level practitioners, who all silently swore in their hearts that they would put in even more effort into cultivation so that they might one day also be eligible to participate in this grand event.


    In the empty space above, a traveler heading in the same direction looked at Ye Futian''s party and asked, "Are you all heading to the Penglai Deity Region convention?"


    Ye Futian and the rest looked over and saw an elderly practitioner seated on a gourd, letting off an aura like that of a deity.


    "Mmm," Beigong Ao nodded his head and replied.


    "Did you all come at the invitation of the Eastern Deity Island? Where do you come from? Coincidentally I am also heading there. Why don''t we travel together?" the elder said with a smile.


    "We come from an unnamed continent and are here to train. How could we have been invited?" Beigong Ao replied with a faint smile.


    "Pavilion Master, I''m sure you still remember what we talked about the last time. The Eastern Deity entrance pass is extremely valuable. Many practitioners are not sent an invitation even though they are strong, and will look for opportunities to seize a pass from other people. This elder should be a casual cultivator, but his level of cultivation should be really high," Emperor Helian spoke telepathically to Ye Futian on the other side of the Speed Implement.


    Ye Futian naturally understood. He was the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion, and only factions like the one that he was leading would be sent an invitation and given an Eastern Deity pass.


    When Beigong Ao intentionally hid the truth, he was guarding against the elder.


    The elder squinted his eyes, with a small gourd in his hands. He tilted his head backward and took a sip of rice wine from his gourd, sighed deeply, and continued, "No, no, it doesn''t seem like that. I am not that old that my eyes are blurred. Three high-level Renhuangs, tens of Renhuang level virtuosos... You must be from some powerful cultivating faction from some continent. You did not tell this old man the truth."


    "Oh no, we wouldn''t dare deceive our elders," Beigong Ao said, his smile still plastered to his face. However, it was obvious that the smiles from these two people were very fake.


    The elder turned his sight to Ye Futian and asked, "Well then, what identity do you hold? This is strange, very strange indeed."


    Given his experience, the elder naturally could, with just one look, tell that Ye Futian is the core figure in this group of people. He stood right in the middle of the group, and the three most powerful practitioners in the group stood around him. Furthermore, the few most beautiful women were also standing next to him. His status in the group was unquestionable.


    "I am Ye Liunian, a practitioner from an unnamed continent. I don''t have any status," Ye Futian laughed. "Since old senior is also going to Penglai Deity Island and that we were brought together by fate. Let''s travel together. Just as well, I''m feeling a little peckish now. Perhaps I might have a cup of wine from you."


    When the elder heard Ye Futian''s very casual and unguarded reply, some curiosity sparked in his eyes. As he regarded Ye Futian, he muttered softly, "Interesting."


    Ye Futian actually agreed to travel with him, invited him to travel together, and even wanted to ask for wine? Very interesting indeed.


    "Be wary of this man," a voice sounded out from afar. A group of people rushed over from behind. The leader of the group is a middle-aged woman who was giving off a bone-chilling intent to kill. She glared at the elder and said, "Return my Eastern Deity pass."


    The elder glanced at that woman behind him and said, "Since when did I take your Eastern Deity pass?"


    "You��" Everyone stared at the elder. This old man obviously stole the Eastern Deity pass, yet he refused to admit it.


    "What about me? At the very least, I am a lot older than you. Do you not know how to address me with a little more respect? Indeed, once a woman becomes older, her temper grows with her age," the elder spoke flatly. The middle-aged woman''s face was as white as frost, and she let out a wisp of a cold aura. Looking at Ye Futian and his group, she said, "everyone, this old geezer stole my Eastern Deity pass, and that is his motive for getting close to you. How about let''s join hands and take him down?"


    "It is not wise to interfere in the business of others," Emperor Helian telepathically spoke, worried that Ye Futian may try to be a good Samaritan and help the woman.


    Of course, Ye Futian understood this. It wasn''t that he was afraid of trouble. It was just that the elder didn''t seem to have harmed anyone. If these were the hidden rules of the Eastern Deity Island, then they should settle it with their own strength, and there was thus no need for him to interfere.


    "We are still hurrying, goodbye," Ye Futian replied indifferently. He continued moving forward.

 1886 Mother-Son Yuanyang Mirrors

    Legends had it that the Penglai Deity Region contained a natural matrix that drew in Spiritual Qi from the heavens and earth, a matrix laid out by the Donglai Supreme Deity In the past. This was originally the outer regions around the Eastern Deity Island, and it was part of the Eastern Deity Island territory.


    In present times, the Penglai Deity Region was unbelievably flourishing. With people from over a thousand continents gathered here, the number of practitioners was unimaginably large.


    In the empty space, Ye Futian and his party were traversing the airspace above the Penglai Deity Region. In their surroundings, people were bustling about like a crowd of deities walking about in the air, making this Penglai Deity Region really seem like the realms of Deities.


    Ye Futian surveyed the entire region and observed the practitioners that came and went. Some were elders who gave off Deity-like auras, and some were beautiful women that could bewitch anyone with a look. There were also powerful figures whose auras intimidated everyone, and cheeky youngsters who paid no attention to rules of courtesy. There were even monks and nuns.


    "Every time the Eastern Deity Island opens, there will always be many people in the Penglai Deity Region. You can find all types of people here; practitioners from the good faction, those from the evil faction. Basically, there will be a large number of practitioners of all types," Emperor Helian said softly. He instructed his people behind him, "While you are here, be careful and avoid getting yourself into trouble."


    "Mmm." Emperor Helian''s subordinates nodded their heads. Among those from the Helian Royal family who came, apart from Elder Princess Helian You, there were other royal descendants and virtuosos from the royal family. There were still a few days before the Eastern Deity Island opened, so Emperor Helian decided to remind them.


    This was not their home continent. On that continent, they were the most powerful people. On the other hand, on this continent, they would not even know the background of any person should they get into a fight with them. Furthermore, they might not even know who to take revenge on if anything happened.


    The Divine Prefecture was so vast. If their opponent left, where would they even start searching?


    The reason for this was simple: any weak practitioner would not dare take out any treasure to sell or trade. If they did and were targeted, they would have no means to protect themselves or their property.


    "Is this how trading is done here?" Ye Futian asked aloud.


    "Nope. This is just one of the forms. There are many other very famous trading areas in the Penglai Deity Region," Emperor Helian explained. "If anyone had a very valuable item to sell or trade, they would trade in those areas. However, they would release the information beforehand to give interested buyers and traders enough time to travel to the trading location. The most renowned trading location in the Penglai Deity Region is the Penglai Deity Lake, and it appears only every ten years when the Eastern Deity Island opens up to the rest of the world. Common treasures are not even eligible to be traded in that location. Anyone who wanted to trade there had to first have their treasures appraised, then assessed if their treasure was of a high enough grade before being allowed to trade it in the area."


    Ye Futian nodded his head. Upon hearing this, he was indeed intrigued and wanted to take a look around. After all, he did possess quite a few treasures himself.


    "Well, let''s go down then," Ye Futian said. While people were hurrying about in the skies above the Penglai Deity Region, it was even more bustling on the ground.


    The party landed on the ground and walked on this Deity Realm-like land. There were no guesthouses around, although there were a few inns that could only accommodate a few people. The fragrance of alcohol wafted from the sides of the pavement and pervaded the street.


    Apart from this, in this Deity Realm, the typical person had aesthetic features. When one cultivated to a high enough level, their bodies and auras would undergo a profound change. A woman would develop striking features, especially women who were born beautiful; they could be said to be very pleasing to the eyes.


    However, once they have cultivated to such a high level, the temptation of physical attractiveness would no longer be that great.


    "Are you selling Spirit Herbs?" Ye Futian looked towards the pavilion at the side. There was an old man in ragged clothes standing behind his stall. There was only one stalk of Spirit Herb. It was completely crimson, and it caused the air around it to be quite hot. Ye Futian could vaguely sense the Will of Fire contained within the herb.


    "Mmm, it was formed after being nourished by the Will of a Great Path," Beigong Ao nodded and said. "This Spirit Herb isn''t of a high grade, so it should not be very valuable. However, to a practitioner at the Saint Plane, it would be extremely useful."


    Ye Futian nodded his head. In the past, when he was still in the Original Realm, he once traveled to the Ocean Path in the secret zone in the Shangxiao Divine Palace to cultivate further, and so he understood.


    The party continued moving forward. While they did see quite a number of valuable items, none of them interested Ye Futian. After all, he had seen much greater things, and thus, was not easily impressed.


    "Why don''t we go take a look at the Penglai Deity Lake?" Ye Futian said. The party continued on their way and came upon an ethereal mountain. Around the mountain, there were matrices laid out and even highly skilled practitioners standing guard.


    "Do you all want to go in with me or��?" Ye Futian asked as he looked at Emperor Helian and the rest.


    "I will also go in and take a look," Emperor Helian smiled and said. After giving out instructions to his people behind him, he just brought along two people. Beigong Ao and Yang Dongqing did the same. 11 people continued proceeding forward, and these eleven people were the same people who were going to enter the Eastern Deity Island, while the others waited outside.


    At the stairway to Deity Lake, someone lightly bowed to them, smiled, and said, "Distinguished guests."


    Ye Futian and the rest naturally understood what the person meant. Everyone who came here understood the rules.


    Ye Futian took out an entrance pass and asked, "Will this be fine?"


    "Yes, of course." The person smiled. "Please proceed."


    The entrance pass that Ye Futian retrieved was the Eastern Deity entrance pass, this item could be used to trade for things, and it could fetch quite a high price too. The pass also proved that Ye Futian and his party had been extended the invitation and were thus allowed to enter.


    As they walked upwards, they could feel that the region gathered the essence of the heavens and earth, and Spiritual Qi was concentrated to an unbelievable extent. In a luxurious pavilion, there was a Deity Lake, in which the aura of deities pervaded. Around Deity Lake, there were many extraordinary figures trading items.


    While there weren''t many people here, those who were here had cultivation levels and auras that far surpassed those who were outside this area.


    The Penglai Deity Lake was five kilometers long. This pavilion inside was unbelievably extravagant. It was a hundred meters tall and was like a completely different world.


    On the two sides of Deity Lake were a couple of stalls. There were quite a few people who were seated cross-legged on the ground, and arranged in front of them were some treasures, most of which were pretty valuable.


    "What is this?" Ye Futian stopped at a certain stall. Laid out on the ground were two mirrors, from which Ye Futian unexpectedly sensed a slight ripple in the Great Path, and even a few wisps of Spatial Will of the Great Path.


    "These are the Mother-Son Yuanyang Mirrors, mirrors that are bound to each other. When two people simultaneously refine the mirrors, they will be able to see each other and communicate through the mirrors even if they are separated by billions of continents." The stall owner exuded a deity-like aura and had an unusual air about him. He looked at Xia Qingyuan, who was standing beside Ye Futian, and said, "If my friend here and your missus lack these, they will be very useful to you."


    Ye Futian''s expression shifted slightly. He did not know that such treasures existed. After all, he had never heard about them in the Original Realm.


    In the Divine Prefecture, Blacksmith Grandmasters cannot be matched by anyone in the Original Realm. In fact, they might not even be found in the Original Realm, and so many forging techniques have ceased to be passed on.


    If they had this item, it would make things very convenient for them.


    However, what caught Xia Qingyuan''s attention was how the stall owner addressed her. She turned her beautiful eyes to the Ye Futian beside her and noticed that he actually did not deny it.


    "What is the price?" Ye Futian asked.


    "A ninth-grade Renhuang Implement," the stall owner stated his price. Practitioners in the Divine Prefecture aligned the grades of implements to cultivation levels, so there were nine grades of implements.


    Thus, any ninth-grade Renhuang implement was a top-tier implement.


    "It''s just a communication device. Surely it''s not worth that much?" Ye Futian said.


    "Although this pair of Mother-Son Yuanyang Mirrors is just a communication device, it is very difficult to forge them, and only Blacksmith Super Grandmasters are able to do so. Even then, they need to be well versed in various elements of Great Paths and have to use very rare materials in order to forge them. Thus, the item is extremely valuable, and only powerful figures in top-tier factions could afford to use this, making it a symbol of status. My friend, with just a look, I can tell that you are standing on the pinnacle of authority and that you have an extraordinary aura. Your missus here is also no commoner; she looks absolutely stunning. Only people like yourselves are compatible with the item. Furthermore, it would be difficult to avoid being apart from your missus in the future. Should you encounter any trouble, this item would make it very easy for you to communicate with each other."


    The old stall owner had a very glib tongue. Ye Futian just felt that it was a pity; if he had obtained an item like this earlier, he could have left one for Jieyu.


    "Indeed, as he said, while the item isn''t particularly useful, it is very difficult to forge. Treasures like this are quite rare. Since it isn''t very useful, there aren''t that many that are made, and only the core disciples in top-tier factions will need to use them," Emperor Helian telepathically spoke to Ye Futian. Ye Futian also understood the logic.


    "Nonetheless, you can try bargaining," Emperor Helian said.


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan. He saw that she, too, was staring at him, and it looked like she wanted the item.


    "We''ve been together all along, so we don''t actually need this," Ye Futian said aloud. Upon hearing this, Emperor Helian, Beigong Ao, and the rest thought hard about his words. While the two of them had been together all along, Ye Futian had never explicitly explained their relationship.


    This was the first time he had done so. In that case, were they really cultivation partners?


    A slightly surprised look flashed across Xia Qingyuan''s eyes. She lowered her head, slightly nodded, and let out a very delicate and soft sound.


    "Let''s go." Ye Futian walked off. The old stall owner casually smiled and said, "Please do as you like, but there are a lot of people who came to Penglai Deity Lake this time, and they are all figures with very high status. There is only one pair of Mother-Son Yuanyang Mirrors. If other people bought it, there would not be a second set left."


    Trading, fundamentally, was a psychological game. While Ye Futian expressed that he did not need it, he was really doing it to lower the price. Having been in the cultivation world for so many years, how could the stall owner not see through Ye Futian''s mind tricks?


    While the lady had some intent to buy, she was a lot more concerned with what the man said. With one word from Ye Futian, she gave up on the thought. It was then up to her position in ye Futian''s heart.


    What a sly fox, Ye Futian thought to himself after hearing the old man speak. Indeed, the people here were all very shrewd.


    "How about I trade cultivation techniques for this?" Ye Futian asked.


    The old man shook his head. With his cultivation level, he could easily access places like the Dongyuan Pavilion, so he did not need cultivation techniques.


    As for the really powerful and secret techniques, the Mother-Son Yuanyang Mirrors were not valuable enough, and he knew that.


    "What about an eight-grade implement?" Ye Futian asked again. The old man still shook his head, shut his eyes, and said, "Since my friend here is insincere about buying, please leave."


    "Old man, you win," Ye Futian turned around and walked to the old man. The old man revealed a smile and said, "This old man can still read people very accurately. My young friend here looks like a very extraordinary person. I was certain that you could afford to trade in a ninth-grade implement. Furthermore, it''s for the sake of your lady."


    Without saying anything, Ye Futian tossed him a storage ring. The old man used his divine consciousness to appraise the stored item, smiled, and said, "No problem. It''s a deal."


    Ye Futian received the Mother-Son Yuanyang Mirrors, and gave one of them to Xia Qingyuan. Apart from Little Condor, only he and Xia Qingyuan came to the Divine Prefecture!

 1887 Gift?

    Emperor Helian and the others looked at the two of them with a long and meaningful look. That definitely confirmed the relationship between the two.


    Apart from that, in their eyes, Ye Futian had become an unpredictable presence.


    A ninth order Renhuang ritual implement��something that would typically be regarded as their family treasures��was actually used by Ye Futian to exchange for the Zimu Yuanyang mirror.


    With that, could they make the deduction that, to Ye Futian, the ninth order Renhuang ritual implement was worth less than the Zimu Yuanyang mirror? Then, he was definitely carrying other ritual implements of the same level as him.


    Ye Futian had become even more mysterious in their eyes.


    Yang Dongqing glanced thoughtfully at Ye Futian. He was surprised that Ye Futian was actually that rich.


    Many around them also looked at Ye Futian. They had seen the trade that had just taken place earlier. Many people wondered about Ye Futian''s identity. After all, a person who could so easily bring out a ninth order ritual implement could not be a simple person.


    "Young one, do you want to come over here and take a look?" Before Ye Futian left the stall to continue his journey, someone called to him.


    "No need," Ye Futian replied with a gentle smile. Then, he continued moving toward Deity Lake.


    Beams of light exuded from multiple locations in front of them. These were the Divine Light of the Great Path that came from treasures themselves, and they made the pavilion even more magnificent. It was like a dreamland. Ye Futian scanned the area and could see that the place was filled with dazzling treasures, and it was impossible to take in everything all at once.


    Then, at that moment, Ye Futian saw a familiar face. "Hmm?" An old man sat there, drinking alcohol from a gourd. A surprised and somewhat curious expression appeared on Ye Futian''s face.


    The old man he encountered when entering the Penglai Continent earlier had actually arrived faster than him. Moreover, he had already set up a stall within this Penglai Deity Lake.


    However, what was made Ye Futian speechless was one of the items set up for trade in front of his stall. It was the Eastern Deity Token.


    "Young friend, we meet again," said the old man with a chuckle as he looked at Ye Futian.


    "How do you do, dear elder?" Ye Futian replied with a gentle smile.


    "There is no need. While this young one is interested, I am unable to provide you with an item that is of an equivalent value," Ye Futian declined his offer with a smile. The two of them went back and forth courteously but without sincerity. All who saw their exchange on the side could easily tell that it was very fake.


    "That is alright." The old man did not mind. Then, he said, "You are also an interesting and powerful character; we might have an opportunity to meet again in the future."


    "I look forward to it," replied Ye Futian. After that, he walked away from the old man. Shortly after Ye Futian walked away, a group of people stopped in front of the old man''s stall. The one who led the group was a handsome young man with an exceptional aura. He directly purchased the Eastern Deity Token from the old man.


    As the young man prepared to leave, the old man laughed and said, "It is easy to tell that you are a rich person. You have an exceptional aura. I am sure you also have a not-so-normal family background, am I right?"


    "I am but a practitioner. What is the point of talking about one''s family background?" The young man replied with a gentle smile.


    "True." The old man nodded. "But I have another Eastern Deity Token with me. Do you want to buy it as well?"


    "..."


    The young man who was just about to leave suddenly stopped in his tracks. He turned around to look at the old man, sizing him up seriously. The old man only smiled, squinting his eyes in the process. It made it feel like he was very cunning.


    This old man looked harmless; however, he was actually a hunter.


    A hunter hunts. Clearly, the old man definitely had more than two Eastern Deity Tokens with him. The implications of this... Who would not understand?


    Even Ye Futian, who had already left the stall, stopped his footsteps and turned around. He looked at the old man and suddenly remembered that the old man asked if he had the Eastern Deity Token when he was entering the Penglai Continent back then. It seemed like his objectives were not that simple. This old man was definitely a ruthless character...


    "Elder Thousand Phantasms?" The young man shouted with a laugh after staring at the old man for some time. In that instant, everyone around the area seemed to have been stunned for a bit. Their gazes shifted towards them.


    So, it was him.


    Old Man Thousand Phantasms. Also known as Holy Hand Thousand Phantasms.


    This man could change in tens of thousands of ways and was thus nicknamed Thousand Phantasms. It was not his real name. As for "Holy Hands," it was also a title given by the people in the cultivation world. Since this old man was an infamous thief, he was coined the title "Holy Hands." As for his methods of stealing, they were considered perfect or, better yet, miraculous.


    However, his reputation was not as bad as one would imagine. The reason was that even though Holy Hand Thousand Phantasms was a thief, he never hurt anyone. He thieved but with principles that he adhered to strictly. He was an oddball who mingled in the "cultivation world" for many years, to the point where many top figures in many continents had experienced his specialty before... As such, his reputation was not minor; in fact, one could even say he was extremely well-known.


    "Young Master Jun most certainly has a good eye," said the old man with a laugh. His words directly exposed the identity of the young man. In that instant, many of the people around the area were momentarily stunned again. Most of the practitioners who entered the Penglai Deity Region came from different continents and thus were not only not well-acquainted with each other, so they could be said to not know each other at all.


    However, with regard to the top factions on Penglai Deity Island, they knew it well. Since they came to the island, they naturally came prepared.


    There was a particular clan that one needed to know if one were to arrive at Penglai Deity Island, and it was "Jun." It was a very powerful clan name. The cultivators of the Jun clan had long established themselves as one of the top factions of this continent. They completely dominated the Penglai Continent and were capable of influencing the other top clans within the Penglai Continent.


    The young man''s family name was Jun. Looking at his followers, it was not that hard to guess his identity. After all, among the top factions on the Penglai Continent, there was only one that had the family name Jun. It was easy to associate them together.


    So, looking at the young man''s identity and age, it was highly likely that he was the young master of the Jun clan, Jun Qiuyan.


    Many people looked over at them with excitement. The Jun Clan was extremely influential in this Penglai Deity Lake area as well. They were one of the factions that controlled the area behind the scenes. Jun Qiuyand and Holy Hand Thousand Phantasms appearing in this location at the same time... The Penglai Deity Lake definitely lived up to its name of being a place with crouching tigers and hidden dragons.


    "How many Eastern Deity Tokens do Mr. Thousand Phantasms have? Why don''t you just bring them all out and give me a price? I have some resources with me, and I''d like to help Mr. Thousand Phantasms get rid of a few of them," Jun Qiuyan understood clearly that there was no way that his counterpart would only have one Eastern Deity Tokens on him after learning of his identity.


    Who was Holy Hand Thousand Phantasms? He''d be ruining his reputation if he did not have at least ten Eastern Deity Tokens on him.


    The old man smiled after hearing Jun Qiuyan''s offer. He put his hands into his pocket and brought out a bunch of Eastern Deity Tokens. It was not a lot, but it was definitely not a few either��just ten tokens.


    The cultivators in the surrounding area stared with their eyes wide open. This old bastard was certainly very ruthless.


    "Since Young Master Jun said so, I will be straight and give you my price," Holy Hand Thousand Phantasms said to Jun Qiuyan. Then, he mentioned the offer to Jun Qiuyan through voice transmission. After hearing his price, Jun Qiuyan''s expression changed. Even though he was mentally prepared, he was still shocked by the conditions of the opposing side.


    "Dear elder, it is not easy to purchase so many Eastern Deity Tokens in bulk. Elder, your conditions have actually become more demanding when you are selling them in a bulk of ten. This is rather confusing for this young one," Jun Qiuyan said.


    "That is fine. A trade requires consent from both sides, after all. If the young master is not okay with it, it is natural that someone else will take it. This old man can wait a while. I heard that recently, the other top factions on the Penglai Continent are also looking for the Eastern Deity Token. I will ask them later." The old man''s eyes squinted into a slit.


    His words made Jun Qiuyan''s pupils dilate. His gaze fixed on the old man. This old man... Did he hear something? he thought.


    Naturally, what Jun Qiuyan said earlier was not true. The reason he was collecting those Eastern Deity Tokens was not to help the old man get rid of them. He had his personal uses for them. If the old man actually sold them to the other factions on the Penglai Continent, it would be quite troublesome.


    "Fine. I will take them all." Jun Qiuyan nodded and decisively agreed to the old man''s demands. After that, he actually made that ridiculously huge payment.


    That scene made many around the area think. What did it mean for the future?


    Ye Futian watched for a while before returning to search for the item he needed. He still had not found an item that he wanted. However, he saw a flower. It was a flower that was sealed in darkness. The flower kept opening and closing its petals, and the petals looked as if it was a face, and when it opened, it seemed as if it was going to devour people.


    "What is this?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Hell''s Lotus," the owner of the stall replied. "It has a powerful death aura and is extremely dangerous. It is a high-class Hell''s Lotus. Even high order Renhuang can use it to help their cultivation."


    "Price?" Ye Futian asked.


    "One Eighth Order ritual implement." The owner replied as he looked at Ye Futian. He was very direct.


    Ye Futian looked at Xia Qingyuan and said, "You cultivate the way of Life and Death. This can be used to help your cultivation. Refine it."


    "Okay," Xia Qingyuan nodded. She did not decline. She felt a warmth in her heart. The two items that Ye Futian traded were for her.


    Then, at that time, a voice appeared. Jun Qiuyan looked at the stall owner with a gentle smile and asked, "Could you leave this treasure to me?"


    Ye Futian squinted slightly after hearing his question. He turned around to look at Jun Qiuyan. However, Jun Qiuyan did not look at him; instead, he was still looking at the stall owner with a smile on his face.


    "Since young master Jun asked, there is naturally no problem." The stall owner was also a practitioner from the Penglai Continent.


    "Alright," Jun Qiuyan paid with a ritual implement directly and went to get his item. Ye Futian said indifferently, "Could I ask what your intention is?"


    Jun Qiuyan received the treasure and turned around. He faced Ye Futian and took his question with a smile. Then, he passed the treasure to Ye Futian and said, "Consider this my gift to you. Let''s be friends."


    "Friends?" Ye Futian was slightly stunned. He was surprised. However, the guy bought an item and gifted it to him. Unfortunately, this likely meant that his true objective was not simple.


    "Yes." Jun Qiuyan nodded. "There are only a few days left before the Eastern Deity Island opens. By then, who knows how many genius and monsters will step onto the island. I saw that you have an exceptional aura, and I believe that you are not some common folk. So, I would like to ask if you would accompany me after we get onto the Eastern Deity Island?"


    Ye Futian finally understood after hearing Jun Qiuyan''s proposal. So, he bought and gifted this treasure to him to buy him out.


    So that he, after entering the Eastern Deity Island, would follow him. This also meant that, after they got on the Eastern Deity Island, he would have to follow Jun Qiuyan!

 1888 Jun Qiuyan

    This Jun Qiuyan was, naturally, one of the young masters of the Jun Clan.


    Ye Futian sized him up using his eyes. This Jun Qiuyan looked to be about his age, so their cultivation level should be quite similar. Naturally, his presence and aura were outstanding; otherwise, he would not have purchased so many Eastern Deity Tokens over here and tried to buy Ye Futian out and have him become his follower.


    It was not difficult to guess his intentions. Jun Qiuyan wanted to use the Eastern Deity Tokens to gather a group of people to enter the Eastern Deity Island with him. One Eastern Deity Token would allow him to bring ten people. If he gathered a huge number of Eastern Deity Tokens, it was natural that he would be able to bring a lot of cultivators with him. By buying off some other followers, he would become one of the most powerful groups that entered the Eastern Deity Island.


    It seemed like these top Penglai Continent factions were already preparing for their entry on the Eastern Deity Island.


    "No need. I saw this Hell''s Lotus first. Could you leave it for me?" Ye Futian smiled and answered Jun Qiuyan. He did not get angry but asked politely.


    "Not even considering it?" Jun Qiuyan asked. He looked toward some of the other cultivators beside him and said, "Over these past few days, people from many continents have come to gather here in Penglai. I am sure you are the same. Some of these people with me are practitioners from all continents. We can help take care of each other if we stay together."


    "Thank you," replied Ye Futian. Then, he followed up and said, "But, I am used to working alongside my friends. However, your kindness is very much appreciated."


    Jun Qiuyan looked thoughtfully at Ye Futian. His body stopped moving for a brief moment, and the atmosphere seemed a little tense. However, it did not last long as in the next moment. Jun Qiuyan smiled and returned this Hell''s Lotus to the stall owner and said, "I will leave it to him."


    However, the stall owner did not dare to offend Jun Qiuyan. After the stall owner exchanged the item with Jun Qiuyan, Ye Futian looked at the owner. However, the stall owner smiled and said, "I apologize, but the Hell''s Lotus is no longer for sale."


    A sharp light flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes. He glanced at the stall owner.


    After the stall owner finished speaking, a raging aura emanated from Little Condor''s body. Its eyes were filled with an intense and sharp aura. Even he could see why the owner refused to sell. His master was actually "humiliated" in this Penglai Deity Lake.


    Now, Jun Qiuyan gave up, but the stall owner was still worried about offending him. As such, he did not dare to trade with them. She naturally knew that Ye Futian was a proud person and the stall owner''s action was most definitely trampling on Ye Futian''s dignity and reputation.


    As such, she was infuriated. Even if the stall owner were willing to trade, she would no longer want it.


    Ye Futian looked at the stall owner and smiled. Then, he said, "You sure have no principles when it comes to business."


    After that, he turned around and left the place. He did not waste time chit-chatting there. This was the Penglai Deity Lake, which the major factions of the Penglai Continent controlled. If they did not want to trade, there was nothing he could do.


    Everyone glanced coldly at the stall owner before leaving. Only Black Wind Condor continued to glare fiercely at him.


    The stall owner did not mind and looked calmly at Little Condor. There were only a few days left before they could enter the Eastern Deity Island. Who knew what would happen on the Eastern Deity Island if he were to offend Jun Qiuyan here? He understood this quite clearly.


    While Jun Qiuyan did not say it clearly, for something like that, he just needed to realize it himself.


    Ye Futian circled the Penglai Deity Lake one more time and did not find the item that he wanted. After that, he left the place.


    "It looks like not many treasures can catch the pavilion head''s eyes," said Emperor Helian to Ye Futian with a laugh.


    Ye Futian did not deny it. It was true; not many treasures caught his eye.


    "However, once they get out of Eastern Deity Island, more good things will probably be available." Emperor Helian then continued and said, "Of course, most people will not be willing to put them up for sale, but there are bound to be exceptions."


    Ye Futian''s group left the Penglai Deity Lake and met up with the others outside. They prepared to leave the place when suddenly, several ladies covered in white robes appeared. The ladies were elegant and looked otherworldly, and they attracted a lot of people''s attention.


    "Deities of the Eastern Deity Island," someone mumbled quietly. Ye Futian also recognized them. These girls were also among the deities of the Eastern Deity Island who went to issue their invite at the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    They seemed to be headed straight towards Ye Futian. They stopped in front of Ye Futian and clasped their hands together to greet him, "Greeting the head of the Dongyuan Pavilion."


    "Is there something the matter, dear deities?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Deity Bai invites you for a gathering," one of the girls said. Ye Futian changed his expression. This meant that they were there for him. As to how they were able to find him, it was not that surprising. The Eastern Deity Tokens emitted an aura wave, and the people from Eastern Deity Island could use these waves to locate the Eastern Deity Tokens.


    When they enter the Eastern Deity Island, they had to return these Eastern Deity Tokens.


    "Where?" Ye Futian asked.


    "The Rain Deity Terrace. However, we might have to trouble you to head there by yourself as we need to find and invite the others," replied the deity. Ye Futian looked at Emperor Helian and the others. Emperor Helian nodded and said, "The base of the Eastern Deity Island within the Penglai Deity Region."


    "That is fine." Ye Futian nodded. The Deity Bai that the girl mentioned was most probably the woman who led the group that visited the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    "Thank you, pavilion head. Then, I shall take my leave first." After that, the deities walked past Ye Futian and headed toward the Penglai Deity Lake. It looked like one of those they were inviting was at the Penglai Deity Lake.


    "Let''s head over there," said Ye Futian. Emperor Helian nodded and led the way. The Rain Deity Terrace was a famous location, so it was natural that they knew where it was.


    They leaped into the air, and within the Void inside the Penglai Deity Region, cultivators continuously came in and out. Looking down from above, bustling with activities, people moved all around, and the place looked incredibly prosperous.


    They headed toward another location. After an hour, a Celestial Pavilion appeared in front of them, and the words "Rain Deity Terrace" were carved on it.


    In the lower portion of the Rain Deity Terrace, many people have gathered. They raised their heads to look up. Some of the people walked upward along the stairs. They were all invited guests.


    Ye Futian and his group looked toward the upper part of the terrace. A decent amount of people had gathered there. As a sign of respect, Ye Futian''s group landed on the ground first before moving upward along the stairs. Someone came to greet them and brought them up to the top of the Rain Deity Terrace.


    By then, many cultivators had gathered around the Rain Deity Terrace. They sat in an arc at different locations. There were a lot of seats, and it was very spacious. The number of practitioners and cultivators in each direction was not too high, and the woman who helped to guide them brought them to a location to be seated.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look forward. As he had expected, the woman who went to Dongyuan Pavilion to invite them in the past was leading the event. She looked as stunning and extraordinary as a deity.


    This woman was called Bai Mu, a practitioner of the Eastern Deity Island.


    The Eastern Deity Island would send envoy deities once every decade to all the continents to invite practitioners to enter their island. The people who arrived today were all invited by Bai Mu. She knew the locations of all the Eastern Deity Tokens that she handed out.


    As Ye Futian headed for his seat, many gazes were cast in his direction. The leaders of most of the attendees were on the older side. People as young as Ye Futian were incredibly rare. Many assumed that he was the heir of some top faction.


    "Eastern Deity Island, Bai Mu. I have not yet asked for your name, pavilion head," Bai Mu said as she looked at Ye Futian.


    "Ye Liunian," replied Ye Futian.


    A middle-aged person on the side asked, "Which pavilion''s head?"


    "Dongyuan Pavilion," answered Ye Futian.


    "Dongyuan Pavilion." Many in the surrounding showed a surprised expression. While they came from continents from all over, some of the continents knew that the Dongyuan Pavilion was, similar to them, one of the holy lands that were built after the Great Emperor instructed that they needed to spread their ideals.


    However, why was the pavilion head of the Dongyuan Pavilion so young?


    "The Eastern Deity Island will be open soon. As such, I went to the holy lands of every continent to invite you over to gather here. It is my honor to meet each of you. Pavilion head Ye is the youngest Pavilion head among all the heads over here. I can imagine that you are outstanding," Bai Mu said gently.


    "Miss Deity, you are flattering me. I am very lucky," Ye Liunian replied. The other people were sizing up Emperor Helian and the others standing beside Ye Futian. They were wondering if Ye Futian was just a puppet used by these people.


    After all, when the factions of a continent fail to reach some agreement, they would usually elect a puppet to manage the holy land; however, in truth, the factions of the continent would control things behind the scenes.


    "The previous Dongyuan Pavilion head should be Liu Han, isn''t that right? How is he?" asked a middle-aged person. Emperor Helian had seen him before. He was the master of a neighboring continent.


    "Liu Han went against the will of the Great Emperor and treated the holy land as part of his faction. He has been killed," Emperor Helian answered.


    "So, that''s what happened." The middle-aged man smiled and did not speak. It was as if he had just realized something. He thought, "It was an internal conflict after all. It caused the Dongyuan Pavilion''s head to fall, and thus, they are now supporting a puppet."


    The people around them also had an expression of realization on their faces, thinking that they had understood the situation.


    "So, does that mean that the continent where the Dongyuan Pavilion is situated did not have any suitable person to become the new head?" A voice emerged from afar. Everyone shifted their gaze to look back. Then, a figure appeared from the sky. The person did not arrive on the ground. Instead, he simply landed atop the Rain Deity Terrace. Many got off their seats and clasped their hands together before shouting, "Young Master Jun has arrived."


    The person who came was the person whom Ye Futian had met not that long ago��Jun Qiuyan.


    Jun Qiuyan was actually also invited here.


    When he spoke, he did not look in the direction of Ye Futian''s group; instead, he looked at Bai Mu. He landed on the ground directly opposite Bai Mu at the banquet. Then, he clasped his hands together and said, "Jun Qiuyan is meeting Deity Bai."


    "Young Master Jun, you don''t have to be so courteous." Bai Mu continued to speak in a relaxed manner. "Please take a seat."


    "Thank you." Jun Qiuyan sat down. He scanned the crowd. After that, his gaze stopped when he saw Ye Futian. He smiled and said, "Who would have thought that we''d see each other again so soon."


    Ye Futian looked at him before saying, "Indeed. It is quite a coincidence."


    "Have the two of you already met?" Bai Mu asked.


    "We met each other not that long ago at Penglai Deity Lake. I admired Pavilion Head Ye a lot. However, I was not enough for Pavilion Head Ye," Jun Qiuyan laughed and said. Then suddenly, everyone''s expression changed.

 1889 Hidden Dangers

    Many people revealed suspicious looks. They did not believe it. There were a few people who controlled the holy lands of the continents next to Jun Qiuyan. Before this, they were trying to speculate Ye Futian''s identity. They never imagined that he was just a Pavilion Master. His cultivation was also not very high.


    "Insolent!" a voice cried out. The crowd shifted their gazes towards the direction of the speaker. They saw a very beautiful woman. It was Beigong Shuang, who was standing next to Ye Futian.


    "You call that admiration?" Beigong Shuang said as she looked at Jun Qiuyan. Why was it that she felt uncomfortable just looking at this person? Although Jun Qiuyan was handsome, he was a hypocrite.


    It was as though everyone had to obey his orders. He took offense at those who did not obey him, claiming that they were looking down on him.


    "Shuang''er," Beigong Ao said softly. He wanted to keep her in check. They were outsiders. The Jun clan was not just powerful; they were the hosts of the Penglai Continent. Stirring up conflict with the other party here was definitely not wise.


    Beigong Shuang looked at him coldly and did not say any more. Yet, at that moment, Jun Qiuyan looked towards her. He was not angered and still casually asked, "Could it be that it isn''t so?"


    Beigong Shuang wanted to respond, but Beigong Ao kept her in check with a glance.


    The atmosphere became somewhat awkward for a moment. Right then, Bai Mu said, "Everyone is here for Eastern Deity Island. Since we are all friends of Eastern Deity Island, let us put these unhappy thoughts behind us."


    She was trying to lighten up the atmosphere. With a smile, Jun Qiuyan said, "Goddess, you worry too much. There are no hard feelings here. I was only asking, out of curiosity, why she said this was not admiration."


    Ye Futian frowned. Bai Mu had already tried to mediate so intentionally, yet Jun Qiuyan still was not willing to let it go.


    Although his tone was calm and he seemed indifferent, his status was still up there. Such a line of questioning was him wanting them to yield and actively explain themselves.


    How should Beigong Shuang respond now?


    The crowd could also tell that Beigong Ao was keeping Beigong Shuang in check. At that moment, many people were looking towards Beigong Shuang. They seemed to be waiting for this proud and beautiful woman to actively back down.


    Jun Qiuyan wanted to make her yield.


    "A few days later, we will be heading over to Eastern Deity Island to train. When the time comes, why don''t you join me and train on the island?" Ye Futian suggested as he looked at Jun Qiuyan.


    Once he said this, the space immediately fell into an eerie silence.


    Ye Futian wanted Jun Qiuyan to accompany him to the island to train?


    At that moment, many people had a bizarre look in their eyes. They seemed to be unable to comprehend what was going on. Once one cultivated to the level of Renhuang, no one was a fool. To train in the Divine Prefecture, one needed to have the wisdom to survive.


    Ye Futian''s words would undoubtedly offend Jun Qiuyan deeply.


    Was he giving Jun Qiuyan a slap to the face in public?


    Even Jun Qiuyan was stunned. He seemed very surprised that these were the words he ended up hearing. He looked at Ye Futian and felt somewhat strange. He never imagined that someone would say such things to him.


    "Alright. When the time comes, I will accompany Pavilion Master Ye to Eastern Deity Island," Jun Qiuyan replied, not getting angry. In fact, he still revealed a plain smile as he answered Ye Futian. It was as though he was conversing with an old friend.


    "It seems that my admiration has been reciprocated. From the looks of it, I was indeed discourteous before this. You are so open-minded. I truly cannot match you in manners," Ye Futian said with a smile. He was similarly indifferent, as though he had no ego.


    Even after hearing his words, the crowd still did not understand what was going on.


    Jun Qiuyan probably invited Ye Futian to accompany him to Eastern Deity Island before this and was rejected, causing Jun Qiuyan to be somewhat displeased.


    Hence, such a scene had occurred.


    Of course, the crowd would not find fault in what Jun Qiuyan did. With his status on the Penglai Continent, he was naturally qualified to invite the Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master to join him. Conversely, was Ye Futian worthy of inviting the young master of Jun clan to accompany him to the Eastern Deity Island?


    Their statuses were originally unequal.


    Without any verbal conflict, this secret rivalry seemed to have been resolved by the fa?ade put up by these two individuals. However, the crowd understood that from the moment Jun Qiuyan followed up on what Ye Futian said, Ye Futian had already offended Jun Qiuyan.


    There would most likely be a follow-up to this matter.


    Beigong Ao looked at Ye Futian, seemingly wanting to say something to him but ultimately hesitated from doing so. Beigong Shuang did not seem to mind. Although this woman had cultivated up to the Renhuang Plane, she gave Ye Futian the feeling as though she had never experienced the brutality of the cultivation world.


    "Pavilion Master, Jun Qiuyan did not want to let things go before. It is apparent that this person is extremely proud and wants us to lower our heads to him. Pavilion Master''s words are undoubtedly a public retaliation. Although he did not flip out on the spot, he most likely will remember this, " Emperor Helian warned. "After entering Eastern Deity Island, please be careful of this person."


    Emperor Helian was clearly also somewhat concerned and was intentionally reminding Ye Futian.


    "Hmm," Ye Futian replied by transmitting his thoughts. Prior to this, he did not want to make a fuss and had endured it. He had no need to come into conflict with the other party. Yet, he had not imagined that Beigong Shuang would speak up.


    Since Beigong Shuang had stood out, he could only stand out in front of her. He could not just leave Beigong Shuang to bear the consequences.


    Beigong Ao seemed to be somewhat worried. Even though he was a clan leader, there were too many powerful forces in the Divine Prefecture. Most of the time, they had to endure hardships.


    On the other hand, cultivators like Ye Futian, who had no family nor affiliation, could act freely and were unrestricted.


    In the top seat, Bai Mu looked at Ye Futian with a profound look. She felt that it was strange for Ye Futian to have countered Jun Qiuyan so directly. By doing so, it would be extremely disadvantageous for Ye Futian on his journey to Eastern Deity Island.


    However, she had no relations with the two parties. Their Eastern Deity Island would not participate in such matters.


    "There will be a few fateful encounters of the Great Path on this journey to Eastern Deity Island. You are all powerful cultivators from various continents. After you enter Eastern Deity Island, I hope you all can reap benefits while you are there. If there are cultivators from any force who wish to train on the island afterward, you can come find me," Bai Mu said as she shifted the topic of the conversation to prevent them from continuing to dwell on the dispute before.


    "I have always yearned to visit Eastern Deity Island. I have heard about it for many years," Jun Qiuyan said. "Ten years ago, I wanted to go there. It was just that, at that time, my cultivation was limited, and my father did not allow me to do so. This time, I will be sure to take a good look around the island. I might truly be able to train with Goddess in the future." As he said this, he looked at Bai Mu with a gentle smile. It was as though he had already forgotten what had happened just now.


    "If Sir Jun says so, I will await your arrival," Bai Mu replied.


    This time, Bai Mu had invited the crowd over with no real agenda in mind. It was just a simple banquet to familiarize the cultivators with each other. They might come in contact in the future. However, because of the incident between Jun Qiuyan and Ye Futian''s group, the atmosphere of the banquet was somewhat awkward.


    Even though no one mentioned the incident afterward, it still affected the mood.


    Ye Futian and his group were naturally ostracized. Friction had occurred between a group of cultivators from the Dongyuan Pavilion and Jun clan, both of which were the local top forces of the Penglai Continent. How would the other forces take it? Without a doubt, from their point of view, the actions of Ye Futian''s group were impulsive and foolish. Ye Futian''s group would very likely pay a high price for this impulse.


    The cultivation world had always been cruel and merciless.


    After staying for a while, Ye Futian took the initiative to bid farewell and left. He was somewhat bored from staying here. He would rather stroll around the Penglai Deity Region.


    Bai Mu also did not keep him here, allowing Ye Futian''s group to leave. After they left the Rain Deity Terrace, Ye Futian asked Beigong Shuang, "Why did you speak up?"


    "I could not stand him, so I said something. Do I need any other reason?" Beigong Shuang answered as she looked at Ye Futian.


    "That is true," Ye Futian replied as he had no counter to her reasoning.


    "Before this, when I was training with you in the Dongyuan Pavilion, were you also thinking of a reason? Why do you make it so complicated when you consider things? Don''t we do what we want to when cultivating?" Beigong Shuang continued as she looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. "Back then, I just wanted to watch you train, so I followed you."


    Ye Futian looked deeply at Beigong Shuang. Was he overthinking things then?


    Beigong Shuang always had the heart of a child and was not tainted by the outside world. He looked somewhat bizarrely at Beigong Ao. He naturally could tell that this family head of Beigong Family was a sly old fox. How was it that he protected his daughter so strictly?


    Beigong Ao, who was standing behind, was smiling bitterly now. He had indeed been tainted by the ways of the world and was no longer pure of heart. It would be very difficult for him to redeem himself. After his little daughter, Beigong Shuang, was born with outstanding talent, he had made sure that she would not be sullied by the ways of the world. Hence, Beigong Shuang''s cultivation progressed at an astonishing rate. Her talent was exceptional.


    When Ye Futian appeared, Beigong Ao deduced that Ye Futian was certainly an extraordinary person. Hence, he had sent Beigong Shuang to train in the Dongyuan Pavilion. In reality, he had done this out of self-interest.


    However, Jun Qiuyan might have Beigong Shuang on his radar now. This made Beigong Ao somewhat worried. This family head of Beigong Family, who usually showed no emotion, now had a faint look of worry and concern on his face.


    "Pavilion Master, I wish to send Shuang''er back, so she won''t be entering Eastern Deity Island," Beigong Ao requested. "Of course, I will accompany Pavilion Master into Eastern Deity Island."


    When Ye Futian heard Beigong Ao''s words, he understood the other party''s concern. He felt somewhat strange. Prior to this, he actually looked down on Beigong Ao, this sly old fox who shifted course with the wind. However, unbeknownst why, although Beigong Ao still remained the same, Ye Futian had some admiration for him now. In the cultivation world, everyone had their own methods for survival, regardless of whether they had strong or weak cultivation!

 1890 Kill Without Mercy

    "Shuang''er," Beigong Ao said as he looked at her. He had a stern look on his face.


    Beigong Shuang, on the other hand, had an exceptionally stubborn look on her face. She shook her head, not heeding her father''s suggestion at all.


    "Senior, why don''t you go back with her?" Ye Futian suggested.


    "The opening of Eastern Deity Island is considered a fateful encounter. Besides, would Pavilion Master also head back?" Beigong Ao asked Ye Futian.


    "I wouldn''t," Ye Futian replied as he shook his head. He looked at Beigong Ao and said, "However, Miss Shuang has already proven her Way. Senior should let her make her own decisions."


    Beigong Ao was stunned as he looked at Ye Futian. Aside from his daughter''s cultivation, he had indeed placed more restrictions on her regarding other matters. What Ye Futian said was not without reason.


    However, this time, he still hoped that Beigong Shuang would leave. He could foresee hidden dangers ahead.


    As the family head of Beigong Family, Beigong Ao felt that he was a very accurate judge of character. Jun Qiuyan was not a good man, and he was extremely proud of himself. Prior to this, due to the fact that Jun Qiuyan had been rejected by Ye Futian, he had tried to make Ye Futian and Beigong Shuang yield to him. Moreover, he had been contradicted, and Ye Futian had even asked Jun Qiuyan to accompany him to train on Eastern Deity Island. With Jun Qiuyan''s prideful nature, how would he take all this?


    Yet, Jun Qiuyan only smiled and let it go. Nothing had happened. Beigong Ao did not believe that this matter would end just like that. The more the matter appeared to be over, the more likely Jun Qiuyan would take action against them later on.


    Although Ye Futian''s group were top figures of their own continent, the young master of Jun clan, the top clan of the Penglai Continent, would not necessarily see them as equals.


    "When we enter Eastern Deity Island, try to stay close to me," Ye Futian said to Beigong Shuang.


    Beigong Ao was stunned. He gave Ye Futian a strange look. Beigong Shuang also looked at him. She gently nodded her head and answered, "Hmm."


    Since Ye Futian said so, Beigong Ao did not say anymore. From Ye Futian''s words, Beigong Ao faintly felt the powerful self-confidence that Ye Futian had.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said as they left the area and found a place to stay.


    There were more and more members of the Penglai Deity Region around them. The place was lively. Countless cultivators had come to prepare to enter Eastern Deity Island. Be it in the air above or on the streets below, their surroundings were filled with people. It was a grand scene.


    Right now, at an open-air wine bar on the rooftop of a pavilion, Ye Futian, Emperor Helian, and the others were quietly drinking there. They looked down at the crowd below as well as the cultivators traversing the sky above their heads. Ye Futian was also slightly moved by this scene.


    After cultivating for many years, even though Ye Futian had already encountered many top figures, even having encountered Princess Donghuang as well as the divine generals beside her, he still had yet to see an occasion where there were so many powerful cultivators. Even during the war between a few god-level forces back then, their numbers paled into insignificance when compared to the number of Renhuangs in the Penglai Deity Region.


    After all, this was a gathering of cultivators from thousands of continents. One could imagine how many cultivators were here.


    Even Emperor Helian was moved when he saw this scene. He said, "Having cultivated until now, we always have a misconception. Sometimes, we believe that we have cultivated to the peak. After all, we are already upper-level Renhuangs. Yet, after we see such a grand scene, we will feel that we still have a long way to go."


    "There is no end to cultivation. Even the Great Emperor does not dare to claim that he has cultivated to the peak," Beigong Ao said in a low voice. He knew his place. On their own continent, they could act more presumptuously as they indeed stood at the top. However, when they came out, they needed to be more reserved and keep a low profile.


    There were too many powerful figures in the cultivation world. Setting aside other people, even the previous Dongguan Pavilion Pavilion Master, Liu Han, had been killed.


    Even Ye Futian with a third-tier Divine Wheel could kill off Liu Han. Although he had not directly taken action to kill Liu Han, everything was indeed set in motion due to Ye Futian, and this resulted in the fall of Liu Han.


    If Ye Futian''s ability was only that of an ordinary lower-level Renhuang, who would bother with him? He would not have been able to touch Liu Han at all.


    Up until now, Ye Futian''s identity was still unknown. He gave off a mysterious vibe.


    "In the Donghua Domain, who is the strongest?" Ye Futian suddenly asked. He seemed to jump topics in conversation, causing Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao to both be stunned. They were still on Penglai Deity Island. Why had Ye Futian jumped to talking about the Donghua Domain?


    "The Donghua Domain is too large," Emperor Helian lamented as he looked into the distance. The 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture were all domains with more than 10,000 continents. There were countless cultivators on these continents. There were also innumerable top figures.


    "That''s true. In the Donghua Domain, beside us, even the clans of Penglai Deity Island cannot be considered among those at the top," Beigong Ao added. "There are too many powerful cultivators in the world. Each of them are astonishing figures. As for who is the strongest, how would we know? It might be the Domain Chief."


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly as he vaguely understood. Although Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao were upper-level Renhuangs, the circles that they came in contact with were still limited. They were not that familiar with the figures at the top.


    Ye Futian did not know how powerful the Domain Chiefs of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture were. They might be on par with Spear Emperor Du You, who appeared in the Original Realm.


    The Divine Prefecture was so big. It must be the same for the worlds ruled by the Dark Court, the Devil World, and other forces.


    From the looks of it, Ye Futian still had to increase his cultivation as fast as possible. With a third-tier Divine Wheel, he could still survive in these ordinary continents. However, in the core domains of the Divine Prefecture, his cultivation would be insufficient.


    While they were talking, in a nearby pavilion, Helian You and Beigong Shuang were strolling leisurely. They wanted to check out to see whether there was anything they needed.


    There was a very large trading house with many counters. Many people were carrying out transactions here. Their cultivations were all very powerful. Beigong Shuang stopped by a counter and looked at a Thunder Spirit Orb. It emanated terrifying lightning to its surroundings. It seemed suppressed, and if it could explode at any moment.


    "You can refine this item into your spiritual soul. It can increase your control over the Way of Thunder. Would you like to consider it?" the owner of the orb recommended as he looked at Beigong Shuang with a smile.


    "How much does it cost?" Beigong Shuang asked.


    "This Thunder Spirit Orb is equivalent to a fifth tier treasure. I will need to trade it for a ritual implement of the same level with spatial attributes," the other party replied. A transaction at this level usually involved the exchange of treasures. Each person would have their own requirements.


    "Can I test it out?" Beigong Shuang asked.


    "Sure," the other party nodded his head. Beigong Shuang extended her palm and grabbed hold of the orb. Immediately, the terrifying power of lightning coursed up her arm. She instantly retracted her arm, trembling slightly.


    "This orb should be fine," said Helian You, who was beside Beigong Shuang. Helian You was a middle-level Renhuang, and she had also sensed the power of the orb. Beigong Shuang nodded in agreement. She then took out a storage ring and placed a treasure within it. She then handed it over to the seller.


    After the seller took it, his will reached into it. Beigong Shuang''s gaze was still fixed on the Thunder Spirit Orb.


    "Miss, why did you hand me an empty storage ring?" At that moment, the other party asked this question. Beigong Shuang was stunned. She took the storage ring from the other person, and her will entered into the ring. As expected, there was nothing within it.


    Her expression changed slightly, turning somewhat cold as she stared at the seller. The moment the seller placed the storage ring into his sleeve, he must have used some trick to extract her item. The item was already removed from the ring.


    Helian You looked at her, and Beigong Shuang said, "I gave him the item."


    Helian You''s expression also turned cold. She immediately waved her sleeve and took the Thunder Spirit Orb. She coldly stated, "I will pretend that you were just joking."


    "Presumptuous," the other party immediately cried out when he saw what Helian You did. A rampaging aura swept out. The long robe on his body expanded outwards. The storm of the Great Path bashed against Helian You and Beigong Shuang. They were both knocked back from the shockwave.


    "What''s the matter?" At that moment, cultivators happened to descend from mid-air. Their auras were terrifying. Their pressure immediately enveloped the space. The leading dignified middle-aged cultivator had an especially frightening aura. He was actually an upper-level Renhuang.


    When Helian You raised her head and saw this scene, her expression changed. She knew that they had fallen for a trap.


    The other party had set this up and had been waiting for them.


    Otherwise, things would not be so coincidental.


    Without any hesitation, Helian You unleashed her will. They were not far from where Ye Futian and the others were. Her will could reach them. After all, they had offended other parties a few days ago, so they were not so careless and would look out for one another.


    Unfortunately, at that moment, a ritual implement appeared in mid-air and immediately sealed off the vast space, cutting off her will.


    "Someone tried to take a ritual implement by force and broke the rules of the trade. I will temporarily seal off the space. Everyone, please excuse this inconvenience," the majestic middle-aged cultivator said loudly in mid-air. His tone was cold and indifferent. He shot a glance towards Helian You. His cold pupils contained a murderous intent.


    This woman had an extraordinary temperament and was beautiful. However, she still needed to die.


    This wasn''t good. Helian You looked at the other party. She could sense the murderous intent in the other party''s eyes. She dragged Beigong Shuang and immediately retreated, wanting to leave this space. However, cultivators with frightening aura descended all around them, not allowing them to escape at all.


    In mid-air, the eyes of the majestic middle-aged cultivator revealed a murderous intent. He then coldly said, "For coming to the Penglai Deity Region and stealing, you shall be killed without mercy."


    He had barely said this when murderous intent enveloped the space. Murderous auras instantly burst forth from the surrounding cultivators in mid-air at the same time. In an instant, Helian You and Beigong Shuang were in grave danger!

 1891 Aggressive Killing

    Furthermore, among these people, there were quite a number of middle-level Renhuang. Their simultaneous attacks had enough destructive power to annihilate everything in that space and slay Helian You and Beigong Shuang.


    Helian You and Beigong Shuang let out a panicked expression. They emanated Will of the Great Path to the maximum and used that will to shield themselves from the relentless attacks. At that moment, the thought of counterattacking did not even occur to them. Even if it did, there was no way they could pull it off anyway.


    The practitioners traveling in the space up above the skies stopped and looked downward, while the people in the surrounding area on the ground tilted their heads and looked upward. Under their observant gazes, the devastating attacks rained upon the two beautiful Renhuang women. The two of them were likely to be slain right there and then. Nobody knew one could be so ruthless as to be willing to unleash such violence on these two beautiful women.


    Furthermore, everything happened way too quickly. It was so fast that many people did not know how to react. They could not even process what had happened.


    Just as the ruinous attacks were about to hit the two, a terrifying Sword Will befell the entire area in an instant. A few rays of light broke through the sealed space. A soft "sploosh" echoed out, and the rays of light pierced through the heads of some of the attackers, leaving behind a trail of blood. Then, three swords flew in, their trajectory drawing out gorgeous arcs, eventually coming to a stop beside Helian You and Beigong Shuang.


    Zoom, zoom. The three swords orbited around the two people at incredible speeds, forming a scary screen of swords. The ones who attempted to get close to the two women to harm them were instantly pulverized into nothingness. All ranged attacks that were infused with spiritual power were instantly shattered by the swords, and no attack was even able to make a dent in the sword screen. This left the two women standing there unharmed.


    This scene that unfolded before the onlookers shocked them so much that even the virtuosos let their surprise show on their faces. It was indeed a terrifying Sword Will.


    In the skies above, many virtuosos who had surrounded Helian You and Beigong Shuang and intended to attack them tumbled down, their fresh blood spraying about in the skies after being slain by the Sword Will.


    "This��"


    This plot twist that occurred in an instant left many people in shock. It was way too fast. Everything happened in the blink of an eye.


    The other party actually just attempted to murder them. From the start of the trade, they were already after their lives.


    Of course, a typical trade would never be as violent as this. Of course, she could guess who was behind this. Ever since they arrived at the Penglai Deity Region, they had offended only one person.


    Floating in the skies above, the dignified middle-aged leader saw the bodies falling through the air, and his eyes turned cold. Turning his gaze around, he saw a column of figures approaching him from afar in the skies. In an instant, they passed the crowd of onlookers and stopped in front of Helian You and Beigong Shuang.


    After offending someone, there was no way Ye Futian and the rest would leave Beigong Shuang behind. Although he was away for a while, they were still within the effective area of the Divine Consciousness Shroud. They could see each other, and with just a thought, they could instantly come to each other''s aid. At the moment the conflict broke out, to guard against any possible mishaps, Ye Futian''s Sword Will was already unleashed, and that was how he was able to block all of the attacks at the last second.


    Ye Futian walked to Helian You and Beigong Shuang''s sides and looked at them as he asked, "You aren''t hurt, are you?"


    "I''m fine." Helian You shook her head. However, her eyes let out a slightly cold expression.


    Beigong Shuang also shook her head. She was, in fact, a little more composed than Helian You. However, she raised her head and looked at the people who were hunting her and softly spoke, "We gave them the implement."


    "I know." Ye Futian nodded his head. He turned around and looked toward the dignified middle-aged man. Emanating a powerful and intimidating aura, he spoke, "Are you going to defend them?"


    Ye Futian coldly regarded him and kept silent.


    With a sweep of his palm, the three streaks of Sword Will instantly emerged and flew towards a certain location at a terrifying speed. In the direction of the flight of the swords, the practitioner who was trading with Beigong Shuang retreated hastily.


    However, the streaks of Sword Will traveled far more quickly and arrived in an instant. The spatial powers of the practitioner formed multiple Doors of Space, sealing his body in an isolated space.


    Zoom!


    The streaks of Sword Will pierced straight through, and the destructive storm of Sword Aura tore the Doors of Space apart. The Space Will of the Way surrounding the practitioner was instantly destroyed. Sensing this, he could not help but panic. The three swords sliced across. Two of the swords pierced through each of his arms, while the last sword floated right in front of his head.


    He let out a cry of pain as fresh blood flowed down his arms. Feeling that both his arms had become crippled, he turned his infuriated gaze toward Ye Futian, but the sword levitating in front of his eyes continuously emanated a frightening intent to kill, and he could not help but fear death at that point.


    "You only have three breaths'' time. Return the implement that she gave you, and I can spare your life. Or else, I''ll kill you," Ye Futian spoke. As he finished, his Sword Will let out a frightening intent to kill.


    At the same time, Ye Futian shouted, "One!"


    That Renhuang''s face instantly turned as pale as a sheet. His heart froze in fear.


    The virtuosos around them were still in a state of confusion. This had all happened too quickly. First, there were some issues with the trade, and the other party decided to aggressively kill the two women.


    Yet, at that point, the tables turned instantly. Ye Futian acted, utterly dominating the trader, and took him down in a breath.


    He was going to kill the trader in three breaths'' time.


    "Two!" Ye Futian continued. As he spoke, the Renhuang trader could not help but lightly tremble. He could clearly sense the intent to kill in the Sword Will increase.


    At this point, the dignified Renhuang leader turned his gaze to the Renhuang trader. A powerful aura seemed to press on that person. He still had one breath''s time, no matter what he might have to face afterward, and if he did not make a decision within this breath, he could die.


    "Three��"


    The moment Ye Futian said the word "three," a treasure floated out from the trader. It was a Qiankun bag from which an implement levitated outward. It was indeed the implement that Beigong Shuang gave him.


    "This is the implement that she traded," he spoke. His features were twisted in pain. If he had known earlier that this was going to happen, he would not have gotten himself involved in this messy business.


    This caused an uproar among the crowd of onlookers who whispered among themselves. It was actually the stall owner who hid the implement, and yet he slandered the other party.


    If this were only his plan, it would be very difficult to explain the strange behavior of the people who intended to kill the two women. Why would they decide to murder Helian You and Beigong Shuang straight away without even investigating?


    The truth behind all these seemed to be quite intriguing.


    Sploosh! The sword sliced across, and a blood-curdling shriek echoed out. Wisps of Sword Will were running amok in the body of the trader. A short while later, the man lifelessly flopped down to the ground, his hair turning white in an instant and his features aging decades in a matter of seconds. He had become a cripple after his cultivation has utterly been destroyed.


    Seeing this scene unfold before their very eyes, several people felt a jolt in their hearts. Such decisiveness, such callousness, he did not kill the trader but ruined his cultivation.


    Just now, Ye Futian''s Sword Will had swiftly descended on the trader, giving him only three breaths'' time to consider his choices. Under those circumstances, there was no time for the trader to consider any other choices, and thus his fate was already determined then.


    However, from this, anyone could tell Ye Futian''s intense anger. While this white-haired youth might appear to be very calm, his methods were ruthless, and he could kill without hesitation.


    That trader was also quite unlucky. He tried to set up a trap to frame the two women, yet in the end, he got his cultivation completely ruined.


    Ye Futian did not ask the trader who had given him instructions. After all, he knew the answer even without asking, and so it was pointless to pose the question.


    The person in question was already present. What need was there to ask?


    His eyes swept across the scene, looking at the Renhuang practitioners who had attempted to take the lives of the two women. His Sword Will shrouded the boundless space. At the same time, a violent, murderous aura emanated from Beigong Ao. If it weren''t for Ye Futian''s timely response, his daughter might have already been killed. The opponent was too fast and too cruel.


    In a split second, the atmosphere in the area became extremely heavy.


    "It seems like it is a misunderstanding," the dignified Renhuang said as he looked at Ye Futian. He turned his sight to the crippled trader below him and, with an icy gaze, continued, "How dare you act like that in the Penglai Divine Region? You deserve death."


    As he finished speaking, a devastating strike descended upon the trader. He was already a crippled Renhuang. How could he even defend himself? He could only look at the attack as it descended on him. Just as he was about to make a sound, he was swallowed up by the destructive attack. Not even his corpse was left behind.


    Seeing this, everyone shuddered internally. This was way too cruel and callous.


    A middle-level Renhuang first got his cultivation fully ruined and was then killed. It was too tragic.


    "This person is already killed and punished for his crimes. It seems like it was just a misunderstanding," the other party said as he looked at Ye Futian again. He spoke calmly, as though he intended to resolve the entire conflict with a sentence.


    These people were the law enforcers on the Penglai Divine Region. This law enforcement group was formed by the virtuosos from the select few top-tier factions in the Penglai Divine Continent, and they were in charge of the order of the Penglai Divine Region.


    "Just this?" Ye Futian asked.


    Upon hearing Ye Futian''s words, the other party creased his eyebrows, frowned, and asked, "Then what else do you expect?"


    "If I came just a step later, would the two of them have been slain by you instead?" Ye Futian asked as he pointed at Helian You and Beigong Shuang.


    The other party gazed at him coldly and said, "You have also killed some of my men. Since it was my misunderstanding at first, I will not hold you accountable for this. This matter ends here."


    "This matter ends here?" Ye Futian spoke coldly. As he finished, a particularly strong Sword Will shrouded the boundless space above. It was as though the vast space above had evolved into a Sword Realm.


    An incomparably frightening Sword Will shrouded the three swords, and this caused the swords to become increasingly strong and emanate an unimaginably terrifying destructive aura.


    "What are you doing?" the dignified middle-aged man called out coldly. Ye Futian swung his arms forward and icily said, "Go! Kill them!"


    Just as he finished speaking, the swords flew out.


    "Back off," the middle-aged man said loudly. A sword pierced through a Renhuang''s body, and the Renhuang was sent flying backward while still stuck to the sword. After a short while, his body was pulverized to nothingness by the Sword Will.


    However, the sword did not stop but continued forward.


    The sound of sword piercing bodies did not cease. In this destructive Sword Realm, Renhuangs were slaughtered one after another. No matter what they did to try to retaliate, their endings were all the same��instant death.


    The dignified Renhuang let out a rather frightening aura. However, in front of him, a thunderous storm gathered. The space in front of him has evolved into a cataclysmic Thunder Realm. Beigong Ao''s eyes shot out frightening powers of thunder. These powers swept toward the dignified Renhuang, forcing him to defend himself and thus rendering him unable to do anything to Ye Futian.


    After the swords had swept through the group, there were only a few opponents left standing in the space. The others had already disappeared. This scene caused turbulence in many people, passersby, and onlooking virtuosos alike. What a domineering practitioner!

 1892 Mockery

    Furthermore, he had almost killed them all. Silhouettes dropped from the skies above. The number of onlooking practitioners also kept increasing; they were all curious about what was happening.


    Was this done in a moment of fury?


    However, the people in the surrounding area were thinking to themselves that they would also be extremely infuriated if such a thing happened to them, but they won''t act the same as Ye Futian and recklessly kill so many people. Most of them would endure this injustice without doing anything.


    Well, there was nothing they could do. They were not as strong as the law enforcers; after all, the true power behind the enforcers were the few top-tier factions in the Penglai Continent. These factions were not something practitioners from other continents could fight against.


    If these enforcers really intended to kill Helian You and Beigong Shuang, then surely that must also be the intention of the powers backing the enforcers. Without a doubt, Ye Futian had offended someone. Under these circumstances, the wisest and safest thing to do would be for them to swallow their anger and leave the Penglai Continent.


    If anyone acted as recklessly as Ye Futian, there was an extremely high chance that they would not be able to leave the Penglai Continent alive.


    "How dare you be impudent!" shouted the dignified middle-aged man as he glared at the Beigong Ao in front of him. His voice was very cold, and it seemed to contain an extreme intent to kill. They actually dared to kill the enforcers in front of his very eyes! How insolent could they be!


    "Today, we are going to be rather audacious." Beigong Ao seemed to morph into a terrifying Thunder God. His eyes turned violet, and the lightning and thunder that shot out from his eyes flew towards his opponent''s body. In the vast clear skies above, a violent storm suddenly appeared from nowhere. It seemed like the cataclysmic end of the world had arrived.


    Witnessing how his daughter was almost killed, Beigong Ao was obviously infuriated.


    What made him even more afraid was that the other party did not even hesitate a second and set out to kill the moment they arrived. The excuse they made was also extremely flimsy. It was an excuse made for the sake of finding an excuse; it was easily understood that they wanted her dead.


    If Ye Futian had been slower by just a fraction of a second, Beigong Shuang would likely have been killed by now.


    "Do you know that the people you have killed are the enforcers of the Penglai Divine Region?" The dignified middle-aged man exuded a terrifying aura. He was like a monstrous beast, whose aura pressurized the vast space, intimidating everyone in the surrounding area.


    "I''m on it," said Beigong Ao as he nodded. Thick chains of thunder and lightning appeared in the skies above, whipping towards their opponent. Above their opponent, however, an extremely fierce monster appeared. It was a flame dragon with a fearsome, crimson body. Its dragon scales were as red as fresh blood; it looked like it had just walked out of magma. With the emergence of the dragon, the skies instantly became extremely hot.


    Boom!


    Tens of thousands of streaks of lightning flashed about them, sealing the entire area. The streaks of lightning morphed into rings of lightning and flew towards the opponent. The flame dragon roared once, summoning shadow clones of itself that tried to attack Beigong Ao. However, the space was perfectly sealed by the Way of Thunder, and the might of the thunder locked the entire area.


    At the same time, Emperor Helian also acted. Beigong Shuang was not the only one who nearly met her demise. His daughter, too, nearly lost his life. The eldeest princess of the Helian Royal Family.


    He levitated to the front of his opponent and faced it. He looked at the dragon and saw that it seemed to be trapped, and it was very confused. It was as though it were about to enter a dream world.


    With the two extremely powerful practitioners joining hands, the dignified middle-aged man instantly felt immense pressure. His eyes turned a crimson red, forcing himself to be immune to the disruptive effects of the Great Path of Dreams. Yet, he saw an extremely fearsome palm traveling towards him at high speed, aiming to do nothing less than kill him.


    That was Beigong Ao''s Thunder Palm. His palm was covered in the Way of Thunder, and it exuded a petrifying, destructive aura. Sensing the destructive power in the palm halo, the dignified middle-aged man reached his arms out, and in the air in front of him, he materialized a giant dragon talon. With the same level of aggression and speed, he sent it flying towards Beigong Ao.


    The two men collided with each other in close quarters. In that instant, the devastating forces from both attacks morphed into a terrifying Great Path storm that emerged from the collision, blowing many people away. The storm also completely flattened all the structures on the ground, reducing them to nothing more than dust particles. Even practitioners of the Renhuang stage had to bear immense pressure.


    At that moment, the opponent saw another pair of eyes. Those eerie orbs attempted to forcefully bring him into a dream world. In that psychic space, a powerful strike attacked him directly, causing the middle-aged man to feel severely uncomfortable.


    He roared loudly and launched himself towards the sky. The flame dragon swirled around his body, burning up the heavens. The entire space turned into a world filled with Hellfire. Along with the apocalyptic dragons flying about, it was a scene that could strike fear even in the bravest of hearts.


    Despite the fear-inducing scene ahead, Beigong Ao continued to make his way to the middle-aged man. With each step he took, a devastating storm of lightning and thunder swirled around him.


    The two virtuosos, Beigong Ao and Emperor Helian, once again launched their attacks simultaneously, with the middle-aged man trapped between them. This time, three streaks of Sword Will were orbiting about in the heavens above, each exuding an incomparably terrifying killing aura of the Way of the Sword. Streams of swords appeared in the skies, merging into the Sword Will.


    "The three streaks of Sword Will are so powerful." Many people paid attention to the two parties and thus completely overlooked the presence of the three streaks of Sword Will floating about in the skies. The three swords have begun to accumulate an increasingly terrifying aura. When the two parties collided again, the Sword Will simultaneously exploded. It morphed into a stream of the Path of the Sword, piercing downwards into the space from above the heavens.


    Boom! The intense storm that emerged from the collision permeated the vast space. The Penglai Divine Region even seemed to tremble for a moment. At that moment, many people in the Penglai Divine Region raised their heads to look at the skies in the distance. In the heavens, three terrifying swords descended from the heavens. They could vaguely see three sword streams, each stream containing an incomparable sword might.


    Some distance away, Jun Qiuyan was drinking and laughing with his friend in a tavern when he saw the sword streams. It appeared spectacular and gorgeous; despite being far from them, he could still sense the elegance from the swords.


    However, Jun Qiuyan creased his eyebrows, got up, and swiftly flew towards a certain location.


    How could that be? How could even this fail?


    Killing a few small fries from other continents was no big deal to him. All he needed to do was find an excuse, then everything would be resolved.


    Many strong practitioners followed behind Jun Qiuyan. They moved extremely quickly, cutting through the empty space above.


    Numerous people pointed their sights at the battleground. The terrifying storm of the Great Path gradually dissipated. Everyone was staring at the dignified middle-aged man. He was an enforcer that had already reached the Seventh Level of the Divine Wheel. Sword Will surrounded his body; after being pierced by Sword Will, his body was slowly dematerializing. His eyes let out expressions of fear, resistance, as well as anger and despondence.


    He did not expect to die there. He was about to lose his life just for the sake of executing a plan.


    Zoom�� Sword Will bloomed, the man''s body faded away and disappeared into the heavens and earth. He had fallen.


    As he died, the surrounding space became silent. Even the virtuosos felt a tremble in their hearts. He really killed him. Even the leader of the enforcers was also slain. This was a high-level Renhuang virtuoso.


    A few strong auras approached from a distance, and there were even more people coming over just to watch the excitement. The people of the Penglai Divine Region sensed that a fight broke out and scurried over, and so there were more people gathered.


    Jun Qiuyan also arrived along with his friend and followers. Upon seeing the silhouettes fading away, his face turned rather gloomy. His friend was also the same, their cold gazes sweeping towards Ye Futian and his party.


    "You did this?" said a youth Renhuang standing beside Jun Qiuyan spoke aloud, his tone icy cold.


    "Yes, we did this," Ye Futian replied as he looked at the youth.


    "Take them down." Seeing that Ye Futian still showed that cold and arrogant attitude towards him like that time on the Rain Deity Terrace, Jun Qiuyan instantly felt a strong intent to kill him.


    Beigong Ao and Emperor Helian let out a fearsome aura. Looking at the strong practitioners gathered around them, they stepped out at the same time, letting out an extremely cold air.


    Even though they had already guessed that Jun Qiuyan was the mastermind behind this, but they did not expect Jun Qiuyan to completely reveal his true intentions and order his men to take them down. Perhaps his arrogance has caused him to not care one bit.


    He was too arrogant, too full of himself.


    "Aren''t you going to investigate what happened first?" Beigong Ao asked as he looked at Jun Qiuyan.


    "They killed law enforcers, so take them down and bring them back for investigation. If anyone resists, kill them without exception." The reply that Beigong Ao received was an icy voice filled with murderous intent. If they resisted, they would be killed without exception.


    There was no need for Jun Qiuyan to question what happened. He knew clearer than anyone the exact details of what had happened. He only wanted the results. It was just that things progressed a little differently from what he had planned out. No matter, the result would not change.


    Zoom! Just as he had finished speaking, three streaks of Sword Will arced across the space and flew towards him in an instant.


    "Careful." Someone acted to block the strike. His palm halo stopped right in front of the Sword Will. With a loud explosion, the attack meant to parry the sword strike was easily shattered by the Sword Will. The breath-stopping pressure caused Jun Qiuyan''s face to turn ashen. He retreated in a flicker, moving at an incredible speed. At the same time, a few silhouettes stood in front of him. Naturally, they could not allow anything to happen to Jun Qiuyan.


    However, the Sword Will did not continue traveling forward. Instead, it traced an elegant arc, turned around, and straight away, returned to above Ye Futian''s head.


    Seeing this, Jun Qiuyan''s face turned especially gloomy. He walked in front of the people who were in front of him, his eyes glaring daggers at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was making a fool out of him.


    However, he certainly felt the threat of death from the Sword Will.


    "You want me to follow you onto the Eastern Deity Island. What makes you think you are worth that much?" Ye Futian sarcastically said. The People who heard him let out a perplexed expression. It seemed that these two knew each other.


    Then, based on the implicit message behind Ye Futian''s words, the cause of whatever that happened before was this.


    Jun Qiuyan wanted Ye Futian to be his subordinate and follow him onto the Eastern Deity Island!

 1893 Living for a Few More Days

    Furthermore, the sword that Ye Futian unleashed just now was strong enough to shock his opponent, and Jun Qiuyan panicked so much that he retreated in a hurry. This was solid proof that Ye Futian''s cultivation level was only a small part of his true strength. It could perhaps even be said that his strength far surpassed his cultivation level.


    Otherwise, there was no way he could have managed to do all of this.


    "This man is so domineering," many people thought silently to themselves. Ye Futian was way too headstrong. Although many people had already guessed the reason for his behavior, they still thought Ye Futian went a little overboard. After all, Jun Qiuyan was a man of high status; he was the young master of the Jun family, one of the most powerful factions on the entire Penglai Continent.


    Jun Qiuyan may have used some underhand methods to deal with Ye Futian, but given how strongly Ye Futian retaliated, there was a high chance he might end up hurting himself.


    That sword strike that Ye Futian unleashed just now humiliated Jun Qiuyan.


    Indeed, Jun Qiuyan''s face had turned very somber. His deep-set eyes exuded malicious and murderous intent. He only had one thought now, and that was for Ye Futian to die.


    In fact, he displayed no trace of the indifference he showed just moments ago.


    On the Rain Deity Terrace, he was extremely polite and diplomatic; no matter what Ye Futian and his group said, he still only had a smile on his face. All he did was bear the grudges in his heart. It could be seen that he was very shrewd and did not easily reveal his emotions.


    Now, however, his strong intent to slay Ye Futian was barely contained within his cold eyes.


    He was not worthy enough to have Ye Futian follow him?


    Since Ye Futian didn''t think he was worthy enough, then he might as well have Ye Futian killed.


    No matter how talented or strong Ye Futian or his group was, he would have them all killed. Jun Qiuyan was determined to let Ye Futian know just how "unworthy" he was.


    "You killed numerous law enforcers and engaged in mindless slaughter in the Penglai Deity Region. How dare you be audacious and arrogant; no matter which continent you have come from, don''t even think about leaving here," Jun Qiuyan spoke in an icy tone, each of his words steeped in murderous intent.


    "Take all of them down. You may kill them on the spot," Jun Qiuyan ordered coldly.


    The moment he gave his orders, Silhouettes sped forward, and even the people from other continents also shot forwards and surrounded Ye Futian and his group.


    In a moment, the atmosphere in the area became extremely heavy. Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao had an extremely gloomy look about them. In the end, they were still met with trouble. Before this happened, Beigong Ao had originally wanted to let his daughter leave.


    Back then, he already had a vague premonition.


    Yang Dongqing, on the other hand, just stood at the side without acting at all, as though he were an outsider and had nothing to do with Ye Futian and his group. He stayed silently on the side-line and completely did not partake in this mess. If Ye Futian was seeking death, he was not going to accompany him. Yang Dongqing was not foolish enough to offend the people from top-tier factions in the Penglai Continent.


    In the end, Ye Futian had to pay for his own actions.


    Seeing the scene unfold in front of them, the onlookers also felt that Ye Futian was going to suffer. In a moment of rage, he acted too impulsively. Without sufficient strength, only death awaited him.


    Three swords levitated just above Ye Futian''s head. His vision focused on Jun Qiuyan''s silhouette that was right in front of him. He was certain that before the fight broke out, he could slay Jun Qiuyan. However, if he did that, he would not enter the Eastern Deity Island and would be forced to leave. Furthermore, doing so may endanger Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Hypothetically, he could leave just like that, but Emperor Helian, the Beigong Family, and the rest might be implicated.


    Thus, until necessary, Ye Futian would not take the risk to kill Jun Qiuyan publicly.


    "I promise you that before they can even act, you will die first," Ye Futian stated as he looked at Jun Qiuyan. His tone made Jun Qiuyan feel an intense level of confidence. It was as though Ye Futian was certain he could make good on his word.


    Such an arrogant tone caused Jun Qiuyan to frown even deeper. That one sword strike earlier had already caused him to lose face, yet Ye Futian had once again publicly humiliated him. Jun Qiuyan was also an exceptionally powerful Renhuang.


    Nonetheless, he still received such humiliating treatment.


    With so many virtuosos around, Ye Futian still boasted that as long as his people acted, the person who will die first will be him, Jun Qiuyan.


    Ye Futian obviously did not think highly of his abilities. It seemed that to Ye Futian, Jun Qiuyan was someone he could easily stamp out like an ant. In fact, it seemed like it was below him to get into a fight with Jun Qiuyan.


    "Such arrogance." At the side of Jun Qiuyan, two high-level Renhuang virtuosos locked their gaze on Ye Futian and scowled coldly. How dare Ye Futian ignore them. Did he treat them like they were just air?


    Ye Futian could kill Jun Qiuyan before they acted?


    "Why don''t you try?" Jun Qiuyan replied in a similarly sarcastic tone. He did not believe that was possible.


    "Go, kill them," Jun Qiuyan icily ordered.


    In an instant, a terrifying storm of the Great Path exploded out and swallowed the entire space. At the same time, the three streaks of Sword Will floating above Ye Futian''s head emanated a sword aurora that pierced the clouds.


    "Everyone, please stop." At this moment, a voice echoed throughout the space. The voice had an ethereal character. It sounded out within the storm of the Great Path, and even so, everyone could hear it clearly. Many people were a little shocked that even at this point of the conflict, someone was trying to convince them to stop.


    Everyone shifted their gaze and saw a column of silhouettes cloaked in white approaching on air. Their white clothes fluttered in the wind. It was as though they were not of this world. They were all extraordinarily beautiful like deities. Indeed, they were the virtuosos of the Eastern Deity Island.


    The leader of the group of women was Bai Mu from the Eastern Deity Island.


    On the battlefield, the fearsome storm of the Great Path halted for a moment as Ye Futian, and the rest turned to look at Bai Mu.


    "Is anything the matter, goddess?" asked Jun Qiuyan as he lifted his head to look at Bai Mu.


    "Could both of you, master Jun and master Ye, perhaps on account of the authority of the Eastern Deity Island, end things right here? Let us stop pursuing who is in the right or wrong, or this matter anymore?" Bai Mu said as she looked at Jun Qiuyan and Ye Futian. "Both of you are guests invited by the Eastern Deity Island. Furthermore, I was the one who personally delivered the invitation to both of you. Thus, Bai Mu does not wish to see both of you like this. The Eastern Deity Island has already opened. If any of you incur any losses, I will be at fault."


    Jun Qiuyan looked at Bai Mu. He thought that there was no need for Ye Futian to agree. From his point of view, Ye Futian was already a dead person. He believed that what Bai Mu wanted was for him to end things as they were and spare Ye Futian his life.


    "The Jun family has been maintaining law and order in the Penglai Deity Region for many years. I am sure you do not want to create so much unhappiness in this place. Tomorrow will be the opening of the Eastern Deity Island. Bai Mu wishes to see all her invitees enter the island," Bai Mu continued when she saw Jun Qiuyan hesitating. Naturally, she could tell the difference in abilities between the two parties. However, Ye Futian displayed a shocking amount of potential in this fight.


    She also did not wish for Ye Futian to die before even stepping into the Eastern Deity Island, and so she came. She hoped that Ye Futian could have a chance to enter the Eastern Deity Island.


    Seeing the determination in Bai Mu''s eyes, Jun Qiuyan let his gaze sweep towards Ye Futian, and coldly said, "Whatever happened today, I will definitely settle with you later. I''ll let you live a few more days."

 1894 The Eastern Deity Island

    As he finished, he continued walking off. The friend beside Jun Qiuyan also paused when he passed Bai Mu, smiled at her, and said, "What''s the point in pleading mercy for him? It''s not really worth it, is it?"


    Bai Mu remained silent. In the past, she also thought that Ye Futian was merely a puppet pavilion master. After all, as a low-level Renhuang, his cultivation level was quite low. Yet around him, several practitioners had a higher cultivation level than him, and some were even high-level Renhuangs. Under such circumstances, anyone would naturally think that Ye Futian had any real authority in Dongyuan Pavilion.


    However, what happened previously had changed her mind. She felt an aura emanating from him that was akin to hers. That was the Perfect Grade Divine Wheel. Furthermore, he was immensely powerful in an actual fight too. Disregarding the status differences, she believed that Ye Futian was significantly stronger than Jun Qiuyan.


    Ye Futian might be able to gain a lot if he entered the Eastern Deity Island. If possible, the Eastern Deity Island could also accept him into their ranks.


    As this thought crossed her mind, Bai Mu glanced at Ye Futian and telepathically spoke to him. "Master Ye, the Jun Family is one of the top-tier factions on this Penglai Continent and commands an immense amount of power. As you can see, he already intends to kill you; it''s not safe for you here. However, tomorrow is the opening of the Eastern Deity Island. If master Ye manages to reap some benefits on the Eastern Deity Island, I''ll see if I can speak on your behalf on the Eastern Deity Island and have them ensure your safety."


    Her tone was very calm, and she didn''t speak as though she wanted Ye Futian''s gratitude. It seemed like she really wanted to help Ye Futian.


    Everyone witnessed Jun Qiuyan''s murderous intent, and the Penglai Continent was his territory too. Under such circumstances, Ye Futian needed help from others to protect his life. If the Eastern Deity Island were willing to help him, it would undoubtedly increase his chance of survival.


    "Thank you, goddess. I will consider it," Ye Futian replied. He had many methods of ensuring his own survival. What he was worried about was the Helian Family and Beigong Family. After all, they had also gotten themselves involved this time.


    He was completely indifferent to Jun Qiuyan''s threats. Like what he proclaimed, he was certain that he could kill Jun Qiuyan before Jun Qiuyan even attempted to kill him. He at least had this much confidence.


    Perhaps Ye Futian would bring some surprises to the Eastern Deity Island.


    She could only wait and see for herself.


    "Goodbye." Bai Mu nodded slightly to Ye Futian, turned around, and floated into the sky. Looking at all the people gathered around, she announced, "Tomorrow is the opening day of Eastern Deity Island. Everyone, please do not forget that."


    As she finished, the column of goddesses flew away into the empty space.


    After they left, the pandemonium finally died down with the deaths of some Renhuangs.


    Many people sighed. All of this seemed rather surreal to them. Those attackers wanted to kill Ye Futian and his group, yet they were killed in the counterattack, and now, Ye Futian and his group were still unharmed.


    However, they could also understand. Once Bai Mu spoke, even if Jun Quiyan didn''t want to let Ye Futian off, he still had to give her some face. After all, he was also going to enter the Eastern Deity Island tomorrow.


    The Eastern Deity Island was the territory of Bai Mu and the goddesses. Thus, even if Jun Qiuyan weren''t too happy about the outcome, he would temporarily let it go. Once he left the Eastern Deity Island, he would continue to try to kill Ye Futian.


    All the virtuosos who had gathered did not leave. Instead, they looked at Ye Futian and his group. With practitioners from over a thousand continents gathered at the Penglai Deity Region, it was expected that many things could happen. However, it was still rare for a practitioner to be so headstrong that he dared to kill members of one of the elite factions on the Penglai Continent like Ye Futian did. Many people were quite curious about how Ye Futian would end up.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. Ye Futian and his group left from the crowd of people. It was only after they left that the virtuosos gradually dissipated. Quite a few people had an excited expression on their faces.


    It seemed like this trip to the Eastern Deity Island was going to be interesting.


    When Ye Futian and his group left the crowd behind them, Beigong Shuang lowered her head slightly, looked at Ye Futian, and whispered softly, "I''m sorry."


    Ye Futian was a little taken aback. He looked at her and asked, "Why are you apologizing?


    "I implicated you," Beigong Shuang replied quietly. She didn''t believe that she committed any mistake. Back on the Rain Deity Terrace, it was Jun Qiuyan who was brash. She only rebutted once and didn''t expect that her one rebuttal became a fuse for all the things that happened later, causing such a conflict to occur.


    "Everything''s fine. You didn''t do anything wrong," Ye Futian replied softly. Seeing the two of them in front of him, Beigong Ao sighed silently in his mind. No one understood his daughter more than he. Beigong Shuang put her heart and soul into cultivating and had little experience with things outside the cultivation world. Even though her cultivation level may have reached the Renhuang stage, she was still too innocent.


    This conflict that happened would probably teach her a lesson that she won''t forget and let her truly comprehend the rules of survival in the world of cultivation.


    However, whether they could all harmlessly get out of this conflict was still difficult to tell.


    Hearing Ye Futian''s reply, Beigong Shuang remained silent. While she didn''t do anything wrong, it was still true that they had been endangered. She wasn''t that concerned about herself, but just now, even Helian You was about to be killed. There was also Ye Futian and the rest. They were all embroiled in this conflict, and Jun Qiuyan didn''t even bother trying to conceal his intention to have them all killed.


    "Don''t worry. With me around, nothing will happen," Ye Futian spoke. His tone still reflected utter confidence. Even if Jun Qiuyan really decided to use his family''s influence and power, he would at most have to capture Jun Qiuyan as a hostage. However, if things were to proceed to that stage, he would cause a great inconvenience to both the Helian Family and Beigong Family because they would have no choice but to move their families to a different location.


    Ye Futian looked ahead as he spoke. Beigong Shuang looked at the side of his face, and she sensed an extraordinary power from his calm voice. This type of power was not born of strength, but she wasn''t sure what its source was either.


    No wonder her father told her that Ye Futian was the most outstanding individual he had seen in his life and that she should learn as much as she could from him.


    Similarly, Beigong Ao sensed an impressive confidence from Ye Futian''s tone. Perhaps Ye Futian could really create miracles. After all, he was the prodigy Renhuang who could cause the statue to reveal its divine presence.


    On this trip to the Eastern Deity Island, he might be able to do things that others couldn''t.


    Furthermore, Bai Mu from the Eastern Deity Island had held out an olive branch to him.


    "Someone is watching us," Emperor Helian spoke. His brows were tightly furrowed, and he had a slightly worried look. Their stalker wasn''t even trying to hide that he was observing them. Furthermore, his cultivation level was very high. His divine consciousness was constantly sweeping over them as he began monitoring their every move.


    A flicker of understanding flashed across Ye Futian''s eyes. Jun Qiuyan did not want them to leave the Penglai Continent alive, so of course, he would dispatch someone to monitor them. There was no way he would give them a chance to escape.


    He closed his eyes, and wisps of terrifyingly strong Sword Qi trailed around his body. Up in the skies, the Will of the Great Path became unimaginably fearsome, and in an instant, morphed into a streak of Sword Will. This streak of Sword Will sounded out like a bell and emanated a deity-like halo.


    The surrounding people let out a shocked expression and looked in his direction.


    In the next instant, they saw the streak of Sword Will fly out at an incredible speed across space. With slaying as its only objective, it flew towards the source of the unwelcome divine consciousness, disregarding the distance to its target.


    Initially, that strand of divine consciousness was fearlessly sweeping across Ye Futian and his group. In the next instant, however, it sensed the terrifyingly sharp Sword Will. The wisp of divine consciousness morphed into a roaring beast and pounced on the Sword Will but shattered with a "splash" under the might of the Sword Will.


    A great distance away, an elderly man furrowed his eyebrows, his face ashen. Wisps of divine consciousness emanated from him, yet that streak of Sword Will just pierced through all of them like it was merely passing through empty space, utterly shattering all of them in the process. It was as though the Sword Will was the bane of the divine consciousness.


    Boom! An extremely strong Will of the Great Path erupted from his body, morphed into a terrifying Great Path aura, and unfurled outwards. Only then was that streak of Sword Will stopped. In his mind''s eye, it was as though he could see the sword, shrouded in an intense, threatening aura, pointing at him from afar.


    Then, the Sword Will flew back to where it came from.


    The old man opened his eyes, his face somber. He was actually threatened by a low-level Renhuang junior. That low-level Renhuang erased his divine consciousness, forbidding his divine consciousness from peeping at them.


    Ye Futian did not care about what the old man thought. After unleashing that streak of Sword Will, the wisps of divine consciousness became a lot more well-behaved and were far less fearless. They would only occasionally peek at their location to make sure that they didn''t escape.


    A night passed by peacefully.


    The next morning was clear. The Eastern Deity Gate of the Penglai Deity Region was the entrance to the Eastern Deity Island. At this place, the aura of deities swirled around. Above the Eastern Deity Gate, an abundant amount of Deity Mist shrouded a large space. Many goddesses from the Eastern Deity Island were standing in front. The entire scene was like a beautiful painting.


    It was a lot more bustling in front of the Eastern Deity Gate. Numerous virtuosos were gathered there. With a glance, one could see practitioners everywhere, from the heavens to the ground and the vast, endless land.


    The virtuosos from over a thousand continents were gathered, and most were practitioners at the Renhuang stage. One could imagine how grand the scene was.


    Ye Futian and the rest also arrived at the crowd. They completely did not stand out in the sea of humans and were, in fact, swallowed up. Even Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao''s hearts fluttered when they saw the impressive scene in front of them. It was still as spectacular as it was ten years ago.


    There were way too many practitioners in the world, and the Divine Prefecture was way too vast. It was so big that even high-level Renhuangs like them were like a grain of millet in an endless ocean.


    "Every ten years when the Eastern Deity Island opens, exceptionally outstanding people will always emerge. This time, pavilion master might be one of them," Beigong Ao spoke. Among the practitioners from the various continents, many prodigies were filled with confidence. However, on the Eastern Deity Island, there were only a few who managed to emerge victorious and rise above the rest.

 1895 The Flowering Tree

    The leader of the group was a middle-aged beauty. She had an elegant air about her, a graceful figure, and carried with her the charisma of maturity. She gave off a chilly arrogant vibe, as though it would be nearly impossible to become friendly with her. Her features set her apart from the crowd. She was at least on par with Bai Mu. Evidently, she was extremely beautiful.


    She looked at the crowd around her and announced, "It has been ten years already. The Eastern Deity Island welcomes everyone on the island. On the island, there are many great opportunities to further the cultivation of your Great Paths. If you manage to capitalize on such opportunities, you can keep what you have gained when you leave the island. Those with the Eastern Deity Token may now enter the island."


    As she finished speaking, strong spatial ripples appeared in the Eastern Deity Gate. Many virtuosos stepped forward one after another. The goddesses of the Eastern Deity Island were stationed at various positions around the gate and waited for them. So long as they could produce the Eastern Deity Token, they could bring their people onto the island.


    "Let''s go." In an instant, practitioners moved mightily forward, passed to their Eastern Deity Tokens to the goddesses standing guard, and then stepped right through into the Eastern Deity Gate and disappeared.


    Everyone moved very quickly due to the immense size of the Eastern Deity Gate and the presence of numerous goddesses who were standing guard. Thus, at any point in time, a large number of people could enter the gate at the same time. The mighty stream of practitioners decreased drastically in a short span of time as it flowed incessantly into the gate.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said. Hearing his words, Ye Futian and his party left their spot and traveled forward. They walked to where Bai Mu was, took out the Eastern Deity Token, and handed it to her.


    Bai Mu looked at Ye Futian and his group. "Be careful."


    "Thank you, goddess," Ye Futian replied. He brought the ten people into the Eastern Deity Island.


    After they went in, they spotted Jun Qiuyan and several people standing nearby. Jun Qiuyan''s camp seemed to be extremely strong, with the mighty group of virtuosos seeming like a small army.


    He swept his gaze to where Bai Mu was standing, and then also walked in that direction. He and the several people beside him simultaneously retrieved their Eastern Island Token. Instantly, a strong group of over a hundred people could cross into the territory of the Eastern Deity Island.


    "Goddess, we shall meet again on the Eastern Deity Island," Jun Qiuyan said to Bai Mu in a low voice.


    "We definitely will," Jun Qiuyan stated. He then brought his entourage toward the Eastern Deity Gate and stepped in together. The sight of such a large group entering the gate was quite majestic.


    After he entered, Bai Mu glanced at the silhouette of his back. She understood that during that conflict between Jun Qiuyan and Ye Futian, she had already subtly offended Jun Qiuyan. She requested Jun Qiuyan to let Ye Futian go, and Jun Qiuyan did do that on account of her. However, he was extremely unwilling. Thus, he bore a grudge.


    Now, he was very displeased with her.


    However, she was not really that concerned about it. After all, she had the Eastern Deity Island backing her. Even though Jun Qiuyan may be a disciple of one of the top-tier factions on the Penglai Continent, he could not do anything untoward to her.


    There were still a lot of virtuosos streaming into the island behind Jun Qiuyan. The number of people outside was decreasing continuously. Before long, the people who should enter the island had already stepped into the gate, and the ones who were waiting outside were mostly those who did not possess the Eastern Deity Island and could only stand guard outside.


    The goddesses of the Eastern Deity Island also gradually relaxed. Someone softly spoke. "I wonder who will make the Flowering Tree bloom."


    Someone looked at the beautiful middle-aged woman and asked, "Master, can we do in to take a look?" The beautiful woman glanced at the situation outside, lightly nodded. "Everyone, leave a few people outside to wait."


    "Yes, madam." Everyone smiled and nodded and then also stepped into the Eastern Deity Gate.


    After Ye Futian and his group stepped into the Eastern Deity Gate, they immediately felt like they had arrived at a realm of deities in the land of mortals. The aura of deities swirled around, the sky was an azure blue, and the Sea of the Great Path was clear and flawless. On the surface of the sea, one could see many islands.


    There was an island right in front of the crowd. However, there was no one on the island; rather, there was only one tree.


    One island, one tree. The entirety of the island was this tree, a true Towering Ancient Tree. Just one twig was as wide as a street; a couple of people could fit comfortably under one leaf. One could imagine just how humongous this tree was.


    On the Towering Ancient tree, numerous flowers were blooming. The sight was incomparably glamorous.


    The Flowering Tree was also called the Flowers of the Great Path by the practitioners on the Eastern Deity Island.


    The flowers fought for nourishment from the Great Path, and they bloomed for the Great Path.


    At this moment, many people proceeded forward and stepped up to the tree. A few people were even emanating impressive auras of the Great Path in front of the Flowering Tree.


    The Flowering Tree lived for the Great Path and thus could sense auras of the Great Path from practitioners.


    "So this is the legendary Flowering Tree," Helian You muttered beside Ye Futian. She did not come the last time, so this was her first time entering the Eastern Deity Island, and it was also her first time seeing the Flowering Tree.


    "Mmm." Emperor Helian nodded his head.


    "In the legend, it is said that the Flowering Tree blooms for the Great Path. On this Flowering Tree, there are 10,8000 flowers, and these flowers can accurately detect a practitioner''s potential on the Great Path. Different people will receive different reactions from the flowers," Helian You muttered softly. She wanted to give it a try.


    "It is that miraculous?" Ye Futian was quite curious. He looked ahead. There were already flowers blooming in the direction of the practitioners who were walking towards the Flowering Tree. While the number of flowers that bloomed was not large, the flowers nonetheless blossomed beautifully.


    "Mmm." Beigong Ao nodded and said, "The Flowering Tree was planted a thousand years ago by the former master of the island, the Supreme Deity Donglai. It started blooming only after a couple of centuries. It is nurtured by the Great Path and sits at the entrance to the Eastern Deity Island. In the legends, the Supreme Deity Donglai used the Flowering Tree to seek disciples. It is said that there was once someone who was an unrivaled genius in terms of cultivating the Great Path. He made all the flowers bloom, and tens of thousands of flowers blossomed. His potential on the Great Path was terrifyingly high, and thereafter, he became an extraordinarily strong figure."


    "Then, after the death of the Supreme Deity Donglai, this Flowering Tree still stood at the entrance to the Eastern Deity Island. Anyone who entered the island could measure his potential on the Great Path using the Flowering Tree," Beigong Ao explained to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked ahead; he did not expect the Flowering Tree to have such a history. It was no wonder that those practitioners were fighting to get to the front of the Flowering Tree. They were hoping to make the flowers bloom.


    However, most of the people failed. The Flowering Tree seemed to be listless and bored. It was casually swaying its branches and had not truly blossomed.


    If anyone wanted to cause some reaction in the Flowering Tree and make the Flowers of the Great Path blossom, he had to be an extraordinary person. Some people, on the other hand, was uninterested in all of these. Rather, they would stay focused on cultivating and would not think that they needed the recognition of a tree.


    "Do you want to give it a try?" Helian You spoke to the Ye Futian beside her. He was the person who could cause the statue in front of the Dongyuan Pavilion to reveal its divinity. She wondered how many flowers would bloom for him if he went up to the Flowering Tree.


    However, Ye Futian''s expression seemed to be very calm. He seemed to have little interest in this!

 1896 Moving of the Flowering Tree

    Above the Flowering Tree, there was a figure standing on top of the ancient tree. Suddenly the Flowering Tree bloomed with countless flowers, as the currents of the Great Path flowed madly above the sky, and fell upon that man there, rendering the man with extreme brilliance, as if he was a descendant of the gods.


    "The Flowering Tree is still in full bloom; who is this?" Someone exclaimed because it was just too spectacular. All the many branches and leaves on the towering ancient tree stretched toward the man, as thousands of flowers blooming. It was as if the whole world had turned into a world of flowers.


    Countless many looked up at the man, and many exclaimed and inquired as to whom he might be. However, no one seemed to know of him.


    "Who are these people?" Jun Qiuyan looked at the man and the group of people that were following behind him; he didn''t know any of them.


    Everyone around him shook their heads and said, "Supreme Deity Donglai was someone who enjoyed great fame in Donghua Domain back in the days. Every time Eastern Deity Island opened up, some cultivators from far away would come; some kept quite a low profile, and this man might be of the same likeness."


    Jun Qiuyan nodded slightly; he had heard about that before. Judging from the blooming of this Flowering Tree, it might yield thousands of flowers, which would be quite a sight.


    The Goddesses of Eastern Deity Island who came in through Eastern Deity Gate were asking each other about the identity of the man, but still, no one knew.


    The Flowering Tree blossomed with thousands of flowers. Its luscious beauty had stained the sky with color. The man who was standing on top of the Flowering Tree was unparalleled. It was as if he was surveying all the mountains, standing there on the ancient tree.


    The young man turned his back to the others. He deeply felt the aura of the Flowering Tre; it was as if it was in tune with the Way of the world, befitting its reputation as a miraculous ancient tree.


    He lifted his feet and walked forward as those who followed behind him left with him in the direction of Eastern Deity Island.


    After he left, some other people flickered toward the Flowering Tree. However, no one could achieve such a grand gesture again as he did, as if he had been the most successful of those who tried.


    "The cultivators from Qitian Pavilion are going that way." At this moment, someone looked yonder and saw a group of cultivators, clad in luxurious clothing, walking toward the Flowering Tree. Many had recognized them as those from Qitian Pavilion, the preaching holy land that belonged to Penglai Deity Island.


    This force overpowered the entire Penglai Continent so that even the Jun family where Jun Qiuyan came from was lesser by comparison.


    Qitian Dynasty took charge of Qitian Pavilion and selected a group of top competitors to cultivate there, and they were known as Qitian Pavilion cultivators. Those who set foot onto the ancient Flowering Tree at this moment were these cultivators.


    "The prince of Qitian Dynasty, Renhuang sixth Realm." Beigong Ao whispered as Ye Futian nodded. It seemed that Beigong Ao had some understanding of the forces inside Penglai Continent.


    The figure that was standing at the highest point of the Flowering Tree was the prince of Qitian Dynasty. He was dressed in a gorgeous robe, majestic and noble, at the peak of middle Renhuang. The release of his aura of the Great Path had made the Flowering Tree bloomed brilliantly in divine glory, but still, they were not as gorgeous as they had been before.


    The lore spoke of 108 thousand flowers in bloom. But that previous cultivator had only yielded more than ten thousand flowers, and at the moment, the Prince of Qitian Dynasty had only achieved a bloom of a few thousand flowers. As for the other cultivators from Qitian Pavilion, there were even fewer, as not many flowers were flocking toward them.


    On and off, there were people who stepped forward to try, but no one could surpass the young man before.


    "I''ll give it a try." Beside Ye Futian and the others, someone now walked forward. It was Beigong Shuang. She was curious about her own potential of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian was about to leave, but when he saw Beigong Shuang went over there, he stopped again and looked over yonder.


    "Come on," said Ye Futian as he trailed behind Beigong Shuang.


    "It''s them." Many people recognized him because of the previous conflict between Ye Futian and Jun Qiuyan. Beigong Shuang seemed to be the woman who was almost killed on the spot by Jun Qiuyan''s people.


    "Let''s go." Jun Qiuyan had an indifferent expression on his face when he saw Ye Futian and the others. Many expressed a look of interest when they saw Jun Qiuyan and his people.


    Could it be that they would continue also?


    "Let''s join in the fun together." Many people from Penglai Continent moved forward with them to the towering ancient tree with high spirits.


    Beigong Shuang was the first to step into the area where the ancient tree was located. She released the aura of the Great Path, and suddenly, the ancient tree swayed as many flowers bloomed toward her, covering her like a nymph. The blooming flowers of the Great Path she evoked were not much less than the likes, such as the prince of the Qitian Dynasty. This meant that she had great potential of the Great Path and that her perception and comprehension of the Great Path were far beyond ordinary Renhuang.


    Ye Futian was also a little surprised by it. It seemed that Beigong Shuang''s talent in the Great Path was relatively stronger among all the Renhuang. Beigong Ao favored this daughter of his very much and had always allowed her to concentrate on cultivation, and this was probably the reason why.


    Jun Qiuyan frowned and huffed silently. They walked straight forward and came to the Flowering Tree. Ye Futian had been on guard for their presence, and seeing Jun Qiuyan moving forward, they also followed him, as wisps of aura of the Great Path permeated the atmosphere.


    Jun Qiuyan stepped onto the Flowering Tree, releasing the aura of the Great Path from his body, perceiving the rich Great Path between the heaven and earth that existed here. In this instance, a clattering sound was heard, as an extremely brilliant radiance also bloomed at the same time and flooded the sky with it. Countless flowers blossomed at the same time, enveloping this space as if to swallow everyone within it.


    "What''s going on?" Jun Qiuyan was stunned by this sudden turn of events. He felt the flowers that were blooming madly, and at first, he was surprised, then a strong sense of expectation and excitement loomed in his heart. This strange occurrence happened when he stepped onto the tree. What did it all mean?


    Boom, boom, boom��


    At this moment, the crowd was shocked to find that the entire Flowering Tree was shaking, and even the great island itself was trembling as the sea was roaring also. The atmosphere of the Great Path above the firmament rushed toward the Flowering Tree madly so that even the towering ancient tree seemed to be greatly excited, wanting to lift up from the ground.


    Even the Goddesses of Eastern Deity Island were stunned by this sudden sight. They had never beheld anything remotely like it ever, not even in the history of the past thousand years.


    They only knew that the Flowering Tree was supernatural, but at the moment, just what had happened to make the Flowering Tree so jubilant?


    "Is it all because of Jun Qiuyan?" They looked at each other and then at Jun Qiuyan, who had just walked up onto the Flowering Tree. If so, Eastern Deity Island must carefully consider its relationship with the Jun family, and it would be in their interest to allow Jun Qiuyan to cultivate at Eastern Deity Island!

 1897 Hidden

    Everyone was completely shaken by the magnificent sight in front of them. The whole Deity Island was moving, and the Flowering Tree of the Great Path seemed to have sensed something and wanted to break out from the sea, as countless branches and leaves now reached upward to the sky, overshadowing all those figures within its boundary.


    Everyone who stepped onto the ancient tree was shrouded in branches and leaves, and so was Jun Qiuyan. There was a clattering sound as countless branches and leaves rushed toward him, and many flowers opened up at him as if they had blossomed for him.


    At this moment, Jun Qiuyan could feel his heart bursting. Even though he was a cultivator in the realm of Renhuang, he could hardly contain the excitement in his heart.


    As a member of the Jun family, one of the top principalities of Penglai Deity Island, he was quite familiar with the lore of the Flowering Tree. The Flowering Tree was an ancient tree of the Great Path, and as such, its perception of the Great Path was quite sensitive. Generally speaking, the stronger the comprehension and affinity of the Great Path exhibited by a cultivator, the more welcoming the Flowering Trees would be, so that it would also imply the achievement of the cultivator in the Great Path was higher.


    Now, when the Flowering Tree reacted so strangely when he got here, how could he not take it as a sign and be excited? As the young master of the Jun family from Penglai Deity Island, he had his ambition. Divine Prefecture was too vast, and Penglai Deity Island was only one of the continents in the Donghua Domain and not even a top-level continent at that.


    If he could be recognized by the Flowering Tree and have the flowers blossoming for him, then the forces of Eastern Deity Island might be helpful to him, and with his talent in the Great Path, he may yet go further in the future, such as to the main city of Donghua Domain, and then on to the vast world beyond after that.


    Jun Qiuyan''s heart was throbbing as he faced the blossoming flowers, expecting them to come toward him.


    But at this moment, as the clattering sounds were heard, the branches and leaves of the Flowering Tree passed beside him, just as those blossoming flowers also sailed past by him, bypassing him without welcoming him, nor did they bloom upon him.


    It seemed that the movement of the Flower Tree was not because of him.


    This sight caused Jun Qiuyan''s fiery heart to cool down instantly as if he had overjoyed over nothing.


    Extreme disappointment was akin to falling from cloud nine in an instant.


    However, he was still holding on to a glimmer of hope. But as more and more branches and flowers bypassing him, he became hopeless and gradually regained his senses as he realized that the flowers were not blooming because of him.


    When he cooled down, many things became clear to him.


    However, if it was not because of him, then for whom was the Flowering Tree moving?


    Quite a few cultivators were traveling with him, including some powerful cultivators from Penglai Continent. But as far as he knew, none of them possessed such talent.


    So, who could it be?


    He turned his head, but he was inside the space of the ancient tree, and his vision was blocked. He was already wrapped within and couldn''t see anybody else. Even his divine consciousness could not break through the covering of the ancient tree.


    "It couldn''t be him, could it?" A thought flashed through Jun Qiuyan''s mind, but this thought was like a thorn that made him feel extremely uncomfortable, so he instantly cast it aside.


    How could it be possible? If he was so outstanding, he wouldn''t be here on an unnamed land.


    He didn''t want to think about the possibility of it.


    Jun Qiuyan didn''t want to speculate, but Beigong Ao immediately thought of Ye Futian. Emperor Helian had always thought of him as an old fox, and indeed, he was good at assessing any situation, and he was extremely accurate in his calculations. For example, he was certain that Emperor Helian and his cohort could not get a hold of Liu Han, so he decided to stay neutral. That way, he could reap all the benefits from Liu Han without having to get involved. In the end, when Emperor Helian would not succeed in his scheme, and Liu Han remained as the Pavilion Master, there would only be gains and no loss for him.


    But when Ye Futian appeared, he made a swift decision and re-positioned himself.


    Later, there were those who wanted to alienate his relationship with Ye Futian. Not only did he not hold a grudge against Ye Futian, on the contrary, but he also sent his favorite daughter Beigong Shuang to get close to Ye Futian.


    He had already reached a conclusion as Emperor Helian, but he did even more than Emperor Helian by sending his people to Senluo Manor.


    Therefore, at this moment, when there was a terrific change in the Flowering Tree, he thought of Ye Futian immediately. It was precisely when Ye Futian set foot here that the Flowering Tree began to move.


    Moreover, those endless branches and leaves and the blooming flowers swept in their direction and submerged them all in an instant. Of course, they were not blooming for him.


    Then, he believed that all these happenings were because of Ye Futian.


    The reason why he was so certain was that Ye Futian had also achieved something that was unprecedented, which was the holy manifestation of spirit on the statue in front of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Before Ye Futian, no one had done anything like it, so the master of the statue had appointed Ye Futian to be in charge of Dongyuan Pavilion. Beigong Ao speculated that Ye Futian was probably able to do it because he had resonated with the statue, which urged its hidden Will.


    "Manifestation of the holy spirit on the statue, the Flowering Tree bloomed for him." Beigong Ao thought, Just what level is Ye Futian''s talent?


    Why would someone like this appear in Dongyuan Pavilion?


    Could it be that he was a disciple of some supreme principality coming to the Lower Worlds for trials?


    Of course, Ye Futian himself was also aware of it. At the moment when he released the breath of the Great Path, he clearly felt the towering sacred tree on Eastern Deity Island seemed to be summoned, rushing toward him, and Ye Futian faintly felt the extreme excitement of the Flowering Tree.


    In a blink, the flowers bloomed in front of him, rushing toward him, seemed to be fighting for his favor.


    Not only that, but he felt that this gigantic Flowering Tree wanting to rush out and become one with his body.


    Could it be that the ancient tree of the world was a deity of trees? The Flowering Tree had sensed it, and thus its reaction?


    When the branches, the leaves, and the flowers interacted with him, his perception became extremely clear, and his divine consciousness was unhindered. He was able to perceive everything in this space through the Flowering Tree. He saw the location of Helian You and Beigong Shuang, and he also saw Emperor Helian and the others.


    "No, this Flowering Tree is the sacred tree of Eastern Deity Island. If I take it away as soon as I come here, not to mention the reaction of people on the Eastern Deity Island, I will make myself a target for all these cultivators who had come here," Ye Futian thought. The last thing he wanted was to attract everyone''s attention as soon as he entered Eastern Deity Island.


    These thousand or so cultivators and the presence of so many mighty Renhuang would be troublesome for him.


    The aura of the Great Path surged in front of him, and at this moment, Ye Futian felt that the power of the Great Path was moving extremely smoothly as if he could borrow from it.


    In an instant, the magnificent power of the spatial Great Path enveloped his body, and then the light of space went toward Emperor Helian and the others.


    Outside, everyone was still immersed in this shocking occurrence, watching the Flowering Tree trembling madly.


    But just then, the crowd saw that the Flowering Tree suddenly fell silent again, no longer excited. Then, the branches and leaves rolled back as the blooming flowers seemed to wither and closed up, and everything returned to its original state.


    In a few short moments, the Flowering Tree remained the same, without anything being unusual.


    Ye Futian and the others stood together. There was no aura released from Ye Futian''s body, and the aura of the Great Path inside his body was imprisoned by him, preventing the Flowering Tree from perceiving it.


    The Flowering Tree was activated by the Way, and if it could not feel the aura of the Great Path, it would naturally quiet down.


    "What''s going on?" many people questioned.


    Exact what had happened? Could it be that everything that had happened before was just an illusion?

 1898 Holy Land on the Island

    Even though those cultivators were still there, the Flowering Tree seemed to ignore them.


    This situation was unheard of. Even those who had cultivated at Eastern Deity Island had never heard of such a thing happening.


    "Someone is deliberately hiding," came a voice. One of the Goddesses was speaking. A strange look came over everyone''s faces. They had guessed this as well.


    They looked up at the figures above the Flowering Tree. However, they were all covered in the radiance of the Great Path, including Ye Futian. A halo revolved around him, flashing brilliantly.


    He stood upon the Black Wind Condor''s back, looking left and right. With a single thought, the Black Wind Condor flapped its wings and flew forward, taking Beigong Shuang and the others away from the flowering tree.


    Everyone else looked all around them, but they could not find the reason why. They did not know who it was.


    But among them was hidden an immensely powerful figure.


    Each of the cultivators strode away from that place. It seemed that they would not be able to find who it was.


    Jun Qiuyan watched Ye Futian and the others as they disappeared off into the distance. A cold light flashed in his eyes, full of murderous intent.


    He did not want to guess whether or not it had been Ye Futian. But Ye Futian had left Eastern Deity Island alive.


    "Let''s go." He walked away as well. Behind, some people were walking onto the impossibly massive Flowering Tree. But no brilliance appeared like it had before. The tree had become still again, as if it was too lazy to move.


    It was as if no one could get the Flowering Tree to bloom for them.


    This made looks of fury come over the faces of the cultivators who had been behind. They were extremely unhappy with this turn of events. They felt like they were being looked down upon by a tree. But there was nothing they could do. It was not like they could attack a tree.


    They could do nothing but leave in a huff.


    This made it so that the people who were even further behind were not even willing to go up to the tree. They just walked on by, not willing to let the tree despise them.


    Soon, the vast group of cultivators had all left.


    The cultivators of Eastern Deity Island watched everything in a daze. They felt like they were in a dream. This was completely different than the way it had always happened before.


    They were all wondering who the person hidden in the crowd who had made the tree act strangely had been.


    And why had he hidden?


    No matter what the people who had come behind them were like, there were those among the cultivators who had come to Eastern Deity Island who were crouching tigers and hidden dragons.


    "Could it be him?" A thoughtful look came over Bai Mu''s face. She looked off into the distance, thinking of one person only: Ye Futian.


    That man was incredibly talented. When he had clashed with Jun Qiuyan previously, she had discovered that his Divine Wheel was perfect. And he was extremely cruel and decisive, showing no mercy to his enemies. He had even slain Jun Qiuyan''s people.


    Ye Futian''s talent was beyond any doubt. So, could he have been the one who was hiding himself?


    Ye Futian had been there in front of the Flowering Tree, alone with Jun Qiuyan and the others. Moreover, judging from Ye Futian and Jun Qiuyan''s power, Ye Futian was a little bit more outstanding. So, it was more likely to be Ye Futian.


    Thinking of this, another thought came into her head. It seemed like when she had asked Jun Qiuyan to let Ye Futian go and have a chance to come to Eastern Deity Island, she had done the right thing. Now, Ye Futian was here, and he was possibly the one who had been hiding. If it really was him, she would implore the people of the island to protect him. In fact, she might not need to say anything. The island would not let him come to harm.


    "Let''s go." Her figure flashed as she left, moving forward. The others followed her.


    Ye Futian did not think too much about it. He had just not wanted to become the target of public criticism, so he didn''t bother to expose himself. As for whether or not Eastern Deity Island thought highly of him, he basically didn''t care.


    Now, he just wanted to see if he would have a chance to increase his power on Eastern Deity Island.


    There was not just a single island in the area of Eastern Deity Island. Rather, it was an archipelago.


    The ocean here in this wonderland was vast, and mist filled the air. It was like a magical sea.


    Upon this mystical sea stood mystical isles. Each one was different, and they each gave off powerful auras.


    In the past, the Supreme Deity Donglai had been the greatest figure and was skilled at alchemy. He had created a world here that was considered by many to be a true holy land for cultivation. There were many methods used in Eastern Deity Island and powerful alchemy. When the Supreme Deity Donglai was at the height of his power, many people had come here to study medicine. Many of them wanted to study under Supreme Deity Donglai.


    At that time, Eastern Deity Island was the absolute king of the mainland. There were not other top powers, like Penglai Deity Island was today.


    "What is that?" At that moment, Ye Futian looked off into the distance. He saw that one of the islands was covered by terrible lightning and suffused with lightning will. Even from a distance, he would still clearly feel the power hidden there.


    At that moment, many cultivators were already heading towards the island and standing outside it.


    "It looks like a person," said Ye Futian, shuddering as he looked at the island .The endless lightning will flowed, forming what looked like a human figure. It looked like a god of lightning, standing there above the island with waves of lightning will sweeping out from it off into the distance. All the people standing near could clearly feel the hidden killing power in that lightning will. It seemed like they would be directly wiped out by the wave of lightning will.


    The whole island seemed to be covered by the god of lightning. The figure thrust its arms forward and slammed them down into the island, forming a destructive curtain of lightning that covered the island.


    "There is a tablet there," said Helian You. She looked at the lightning covered island. One side of the island was a thousand foot tall cliff, smooth as if it had been cut off by lightning. It had formed a huge tablet into which characters had been carved.


    "Those were left by a powerful figure. In the past, many people came here to learn about medicine from Supreme Deity Donglai, but he would not give them the knowledge for free. Thus, those who came had to pay a price. Thus, many ruins of holy lands appeared upon Eastern Deity Island, left behind by those top figures who had come here to learn about medicine," said Emperor Helian.


    Ye Futian and the others continued forward. They saw that there were many people standing before the cliffside tablet, floating in the air and looking at the characters. A history was carved there, recording the story of a powerful figure who had come to learn about medicine and had left behind the will of a lightning god.


    "Now wonder Eastern Deity Island is so enticing," said Ye Futian."When Supreme Deity Donglai was here, the island must have been even more magnificent."


    "Mm," said Emperor Helian, nodding. "It was a true holy land. Countless cultivators strove to be the first to come here, but it was very difficult to get in. There was a very high bar to entry. Those who were not geniuses could not enter. Unfortunately, Eastern Deity Island has declined since the fall of Supreme Deity Donglai. It has been hidden on this island for many years, and only opens once every ten years."


    "Who is the master of Eastern Deity Island now?" asked Ye Futian.


    Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao both shook their heads. "We do not know. But Eastern Deity Island has been gathering its strength for many years. Now we don''t even know how powerful they are!"

 1899 Cloud Wood

    At that moment, someone was looking towards the center of the island. There was a straight and tall tree within the endless lightning right beneath the Lightning God, flashing with purple thunder light. When the lightning will fell upon it, it was completely engulfed.


    "That is a thunder cloud tree," someone whispered, his eyes fixed sharply upon the tree.


    "It is indeed, but it has changed. It has transformed into cloud wood."


    "Cloud wood?" Ye Futian heard the discussion going on beside him and looked towards Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao questioningly.


    "A thunder-elemental divine item," said Beigong Ao. "Ten years ago, the thunder cloud tree had not completely matured into cloud wood, but now that ten years have passed, it has. Now that there is cloud wood there, I wonder who will be able to get it."


    There was a look of excitement in his eyes. Obviously, he wanted to be the one to get it.


    A thunder cloud tree was a divine tree of lightning, and they were extremely difficult to grow. They could only grow under the power of the Great Path of Thunder, and it took hundreds of years to become cloud wood. They had to be tempered in the natural power of the Great Path of Thunder for centuries in order to produce this thunder-elemental divine item.


    Once the cloud wood was produced, it was extremely valuable, especially to cultivators who cultivated thunder-elemental power. It was a divine item to help them understand the power of the Great Path of Thunder more deeply. It was even comparable to top-level ritual implements when used in combat. It gave you the power to control thunder and increased the power of the Great Path of Thunder.


    So much cloud wood could only have been formed by an entire thunder cloud tree that had been growing for many years. It was probably more than 100,000 years old.


    Supreme Deity Donglai had fallen many years ago, but there were traces of him left in many places here. This meant that this tree may have been formed of the thunder will of someone who had come here to learn about medicine while Supreme Deity Donglai was still here so that he could produce a powerful thunder artifact.


    But he himself had not made it to this day.


    However, as the cultivators all stared at the cloud wood, their eyes burned with desire. They couldn''t wait to get their hands on it right away. Its value in their eyes was greater than ninth-tier ritual implements.


    At that moment, many of them had already stepped forward towards the area filled with lightning. But the lightning will there was terrifying, and some of them were knocked back as soon as they stepped within with lightning swirling around their bodies. Some of them were even burned black by the lightning.


    Boom!


    Many powerful cultivators had appeared before the island, and many of them cultivated the power of the Great Path of Thunder. That was why they had rushed over here. Many of those who did not cultivate the Great Path of Thunder had directly left. They did not want to waste any more time here. They would rather go elsewhere to find better opportunities.


    Amid Ye Futian''s group, Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang both cultivated the power of the Great Path of Thunder. Thus, they were not willing to leave. They stared at the cloud wood, but there were so many cultivators here. If they wanted it, it would not be easy to get.


    Although some people had been knocked back, those who had already cultivated to high levels could enter. They were trying to get through the field of lightning to reach the center and obtain the cloud wood.


    "These people did not come here ten years ago," said Beigong Ao, looking at them.


    "Why do you say this?" asked Ye Futian.


    "No one can go right inside," said Beigong Ao. "The whole island is covered by the Great Path of Thunder. It contains the powerful will of the powerful person who came here to learn medicine from Supreme Deity Donglai. Who of the cultivators here could withstand the mighty will of someone of that level?"


    Ye Futian naturally understood this. He looked forward. This mystical place within Eastern Deity Island was extremely suitable for cultivating. Forcing one''s way in would be meaningless. Those cultivators probably saw the cloud wood, and their hearts were filled with greed, so they wanted to go right in and take it.


    But it would probably require one to resonate with the will of the Great Path that had been left behind by the great figure to get the cloud wood.


    Beigong Ao looked at Ye Futian, his eyes burning.


    "Why are you looking at me like that?" asked Ye Futian. He didn''t mind Beigong Ao looking at him; he was used to people looking at him. But the way he was looking at him made him feel a little strange.


    "Why don''t you try?" said Beigong Ao. Ye Futian was the one who had made the statue display its holiness. And not long ago, he had thought that the Flowering Trees movements were because of Ye Futian as well. Given that, the will of the Great Path of Thunder down below them should be nothing.


    "Alright," said Ye Futian with a nod. He had thought this as well. Since the cloud wood was that precious, he would do all he could to help Beigong Ao get it; it would help Beigong Ao''s cultivation. Perhaps he would have the chance to advance to the next level.


    Not far away from them, other cultivators were starting to try as well. Among them, many were just like Ye Futian and the others. They had come from teaching forces on the mainland.


    Ye Futian looked forward, his eyes becoming extremely bright. It was as if they could see the flowing traces of the Great Path. Everything became very clear and natural.


    At that moment, that which Ye Futian sensed and that which he saw seemed to become two different worlds.


    He felt the might of an extremely powerful thunder god''s punishment, mighty as a stormy sea. He groaned and could not help but take a step back. The power of thunder swirled around him, and his face had gone pale.


    "So strong," Ye Futian said to himself. The will of the Great Path that the great figure had left behind was terrifying. When he could fully perceive it, he would have to withstand the full brunt of it when it fell upon his senses.


    "My lord!" Beside him, Beigong Ao was shocked and stepped forward in a panic. He was worried that Ye Futian had come to some trouble. This seemed like something that had never happened before.


    "I''m alright," said Ye Futian, motioning for Beigong Ao to step back. This was completely normal. The reason he had not experienced this before was that the Flowering Tree had not attacked him. He had just perceived the Great Path and absorbed its power.


    He continued forward, coming to the stone wall once again. Everyone beside him was looking at him, their eyes full of scorn. He had not even been able to withstand a single instant?


    "A Pavilion Lord?" someone whispered. Such a young Pavilion Lord was a rare sight. The person who had spoken said to Ye Futian, "You will not be able to pry out the ancestor''s will so easily. If you are not high enough level, you shouldn''t even try. Be careful, or you will get hurt."


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over him, then turned and smiled, saying, "Don''t trouble yourself on my account."


    On saying this, he once again entered his previous state. In a flash, he could see the picture before him had changed in his perception. He could see the image of an incomparably terrifying thunder god standing in the air, reaching out its hand and drawing in all the true thunder power in the area and sending it downward.


    In an instant, terrible thunder waves swept out, shattering everything. The thunder waves followed the rhythm of the Great Path. They overlapped in an extremely profound and complicated manner.


    Ye Futian suddenly realized that what had been left behind here was a kind of thunder law power. Perhaps this was part of the trade. The person had come here to learn from Supreme Deity Donglai and thus had needed to leave something behind.


    Once Ye Futian realized this, his divine consciousness shot out, trying to mold itself to the will. This produced a certain resonance. Gradually, he began to be able to feel the thunder attack more clearly.


    "Elder," said Ye Futian to Beigong Ao. Lines of the light of his divine consciousness shout out from his mind, resonated with Beigong Ao''s.


    Beigong Ao knew Ye Futian was helping him. Although he knew this, when Ye Futian transmitted his understanding to him, he felt greatly shaken. He groaned, and blood flowed from his mouth. But he did not give up. He took a step forward. He seemed to have fallen into a trancelike state.


    He was a cultivator of the Great Path of Thunder and had a deep understanding of thunder methods. When Ye Futian did this, it was as if he had suddenly seen the sun in the sky. Everything became very clear to him.


    Beigong Ao continued forward, entering right into that area of thunder. This scene made Beigong Shuang rather nervous and worried that an accident would happen.


    "Hmm?"


    Everyone looked surprised. Beigong Ao had actually managed to make it in, making them all feel a little bit threatened. After all, Beigong Ao''s level was much higher than Ye Futian''s. He was an upper-level Renhuang with a seventh tier Divine Wheel.


    Emperor Helian watched this scene unfold, then looked at Ye Futian beside him. He sensed that Ye Futian was doing something that allowed Beigong Ao to move forward, step by step.


    Would he really be able to get the cloud wood this time?


    Thinking of this, Emperor Helian was rather moved. When he had asked Ye Futian to take the position of Pavilion Lord of Dongyuan Pavilion, he had never thought that anything like this would happen.

 1900 Plane Breakthrough

    The more he perceived, the more he realized just how powerful the Thunder method was. People who had reached the peak of their cultivation had synthesized their Power of the Great Path and Art of Attack perfectly together and transformed it into the supernatural Art of Supreme Attack. Its power was frightening.


    Since this person who had reached the peak could actually reach the Eastern Deity Island seeking a divine pill with just a strand of his will, the law power that he left behind was most certainly abnormal. As such, it was incredibly powerful.


    Within his mind, Ye Futian felt as if he saw the mighty person release an attack. The attack was a concentration of incredibly strong Power of the Great Path. The energy concentrated on his arm and created a resonance with the space around it. After that, the bundle of energy was released, instantly creating a devastating wave of thunder as if some Thunder Punishment Power was created. It was an attack skill that could hit a wide area as well as a single target.


    Moreover, the attack was in the form of a wave. It looked a little like the True Will of Waves of the war gods Ye Futian experienced before. When the Thunder Punishment Power struck its target, the point of impact would be instantly destroyed. However, the next moment, a thunderous wave would engulf everything and spread, converging at another point. The speed of the Thunder Power was immensely frightening. As such, at the moment of impact, a frighteningly powerful resonance would form around the surrounding area, engulfing and destroying everything within.


    The records on the stone wall noted that the Art of Attack hidden within this strand of will was named Thousand Punishment.


    Ye Futian quietly perceived the will. His mental will bore a mighty pressure. When he was perceiving and interpreting the will, it felt as if the Power of Thunder was wreaking havoc inside his mind. Apart from that, an endless stream of the Great Path of Thunder energy flowed all over his body.


    Beigong Ao walked further inside, step by step. He was also feeling a strong pressure upon him. The Thunder might of his body radiated, creating a subtle and interesting connection with the Thunder zone within this space.


    "Such amazing perception and understanding," said Beigong Ao. This was not the first time that he had come here. However, combining his first time here, his perception and understanding of the War God of Thunder''s will had not even reached this level before. Ye Futian had only just got here, but his understanding of the will was still gradually getting stronger.


    It was no wonder that he was considered a genius Renhuang who made the statue manifest and the Flowering Tree go crazy.


    It was actually kind of similar to when he mastered the Sword Will. Of course, it was not as strong.


    Beams of the Great Path of Thunder, which had condensed into the Light of Thunder Punishment; it gradually became clearer. It was as if the frightening Power of Great Path had condensed into the Power of Thousand Punishment before he released the attack, and then, the energies exploded in an instant later. That was how such an incredible amount of energy was generated.


    Thousand Punishment, Ye Futian thought. He vaguely understood. Around his body, rumbling sounds could be heard. Great Path of Thunder energies began to converge before transforming into a ray of Thunder Will. Like the Light of Thunder Punishment, it descended straight from above the sky.


    This left a curious expression on Ye Futian''s face. To release the Art of Thousand Punishment in an instant, just how much Great Path of Thunder did one have to master to do that?


    Moreover, even mastering the Light of Thousand Punishment itself a challenging feat.


    However, the moment he sensed that a more frightening Thunder might descended upon the island. A stroke of lightning appeared in the sky as if a doomsday Thunder tribulation had arrived.


    From afar, many people looked over towards them. Their hearts trembled as they saw the devastating scene in the sky.


    Someone has created resonance with the Will of Thunder on Thousand Punishment Island, thought the deities of the Eastern Deity Island when they saw the scene. Naturally, they were well aware of the reason why the phenomena occurred. In an instant, multiple figures flashed towards the location.


    Among those who stepped onto Eastern Deity Island, was there someone so powerful?


    To create a resonance with the will of Thousand Punishment Island in such a short time. Moreover, they remembered there was another divine item sealed away within the Thunder domain on Thousand Punishment Island.


    Now, would the item also see the light of day?


    It looked like they really had some hidden dragons and crouching tigers within their midst this time.


    One after another, figures headed towards them. While Ye Futian''s perception and interpretation grew clearer and clearer, he did not move and remained standing outside. Instead, he left Beigong Ao by himself. To let him truly feel the will of the Thunder.


    Moreover, since Ye Futian helped him, Beigong Ao also created a little bit of resonance with the Thunder''s will. Slowly, he had moved deep into the island, and he continued walking towards the Cloud Wood.


    Some of the others also walking inside looked toward Beigong Ao. Their brows furrowed together slightly. Based on current developments, it looked like Beigong Ao would emerge from the crowd and obtain the Cloud Wood.


    Rumble! Beams of Thunder God''s Might descended from above. Walking inside the Thunder Domain, Beigong Ao moved forward toward the center of the island while bathed within the Light of Thunder. He was not far away from the Cloud Wood.


    Some of the deities of the Eastern Deity Island had arrived. They looked at Beigong Ao and asked, "Who is this person?"


    Many people shook their heads lightly. They did not know him. However, it seemed like he had created resonance with the will of the Great Path of Thunder and was about to obtain the Cloud Wood.


    As expected, Beigong Ao reached the center and placed his palm on the Cloud Wood. In an instant, his body radiated with arrays of the Divine Light of Thunder. They engulfed the area, and strokes of lightning shot out of his palm and flew all over the place, leaving bright and beautiful bolts of lightning in the sky above the Eastern Deity Island, which attracted the gaze of many from afar.


    "He got it." Even Emperor Helian was a little excited. Beigong Ao actually managed to get the Cloud Wood.


    He looked at Ye Futian and saw that Ye Futian was still surrounded by thunder and lightning. Even his eyes were filled with flashes of purple lightning, which made him look monster-like but also divinely handsome. Emperor Helian knew full well the real strength of Beigong Ao. The reason he could reach this stage was naturally due to Ye Futian''s help.


    After obtaining the Cloud Wood, Beigong Ao did not immediately leave. Instead, he sat there and began to cultivate, allowing the Light of the Great Path of Thunder to shower over him. However, many people had already fixed their eyes on him and were waiting for him outside.


    The Cloud Wood was a pinnacle thunder treasure. Even high order Renhuangs would find something like that extremely attractive, particularly those who were adept at and cultivated in the Power of Thunder.


    As for these people who had come from many different continents, many of them were mid or high order Renhuangs. So, it was easy to know just how much they desired the Cloud Wood.


    "I am afraid we might have some trouble," Emperor Helian said quietly to Ye Futian after seeing all the powerful cultivators around them. There were many opportunities once they stepped foot onto the Eastern Deity Island; however, the people of Eastern Deity Island would not intervene in any affairs or matters that happened on the island. They would observe but were not allowed to intervene.


    Now, having so many powerful cultivators coveting the Cloud Wood was definitely not a good thing. Once Beigong Ao left, he would become the target of many powerful cultivators.


    Unfortunately, they might ask him to hand over the Cloud Wood.


    By then, whether or not they could defend and hold on to the item was a problem in itself.


    The rumbling of thunder continued. Then, Beigong Ao actually began to refine the Cloud Wood. The Cloud Wood began to assimilate with him. Then, suddenly a frightening thunderstorm appeared in the sky above, and with Beigong Ao''s body as its center, the Great Path of Thunder began to grow stronger. Lightning filled the heavens and covered the entire sky.


    "This..." Emperor Helian had a strange expression on his face. Could it be that Beigong Ao was going to break through his shackles right then and there?


    The Cloud Wood gradually assimilated into Beigong Ao''s body, merging into his flesh and bones. This made Beigong Ao''s body respond to the great path even more, which triggered an extremely frightening Great Path Phenomenon. Was this... a Great Path Opportunity?


    Ye Futian was also a little surprised. While still busy focused on perceiving and understanding the will, he glanced at Beigong Ao. It looked like he no longer needed Ye Futian''s help.


    Beigong Ao''s resonance with the will also grew stronger and stronger. Mastering the Great Path of Thunder, Thunder''s might rumbled, and divine thunder descended from the heavens.


    From afar, many cultivators looked toward them. How long had it been since they stepped foot onto the Eastern Deity Island?


    Someone had actually broken through the Great Path Opportunity and was going to experience a breakthrough?


    Moreover, from the intensity, it did not look like the breakthrough of a Lower Renhuang. It was highly likely that it was a high order Renhuang.


    Upon reaching this plane, breaking through was incredibly difficult. Some people would fail to break through this plane throughout their lives. It was definitely a Great Path opportunity for them to encounter something like this shortly after entering the Eastern Deity Island.


    This made many people envious. The Eastern Deity Island was truly a land for cultivation.


    "He''s going to breakthrough," Emperor Helian said after seeing the Great Path of Thunder aura still converging and growing stronger. He looked at the figure within the Thunder Domain admirably, tinged with a bit of jealousy. Why couldn''t it have been him?


    They both came with Ye Futian, but Beigong Ao was the one who encountered an opportunity. His heart was unbalanced.


    Nonetheless, this was a good thing for them. The Eastern Deity Island was already filled with hidden dangers, now that Beigong Ao had broken through, he would become stronger, and thus, their self-preservation ability had also increased by a few notches.


    However, behind him, Yang Dongqing''s expression wasn''t so good.


    Previously, he tried to instigate the relationship between Ye Futian and the Beigong Family. Now, to see Beigong Ao breakthrough his plane level, how could he be feeling good?


    Moreover, Beigong Ao breaking through meant that he had surpassed them by a mile. In their continent, Beigong Ao would become the strongest person. By the time they returned, the balance would be broken, and his influence would also plummet.


    Even if Ye Futian were out of the picture, the Dongyuan Pavilion would never be his. It would most certainly fall in the hands of Beigong Ao.


    How lucky, thought many of those who also coveted the Cloud Wood. Now, the difficulty of snatching the Cloud Wood away had undoubtedly grown. Unless they were a cultivator who possessed a Divine Wheel of the Eighth order, they''d have no chance.


    Ye Futian smiled and continued with his perception and interpretation. Beigong Ao breaking through was naturally a good thing. They had become stronger, and he no longer needed to do many things personally.


    The Great Path of Thunder descended from the heavens. The sky above the entire Eastern Deity Island was covered in flashes of lightning. The frightening powers of the Great Path of Thunder shot towards Beigong Ao''s body, baptizing his body and tempering his spiritual soul.


    Beigong Ao got out after some time, and the lightning and thunder in the sky above also dissipated. Beigong Ao strode out of the Thunder Domain. He looked at Ye Futian. A smile could be seen from his expression.


    He was naturally well aware that everything that happened was thanks to Ye Futian. Otherwise, he would never have had the chance to encounter this opportunity.


    In truth, he never would have imagined that he would break through his plane level. The perception and understanding of the Great Path of Thunder''s will helped him achieve this, but more importantly, it was the Cloud Wood.


    "Congratulations, elder," Ye Futian said with a smile.


    "Apart from luck, it is all thanks to you," replied Beigong Ao, laughing. "I was even thinking about leaving the Cloud Wood to Shuang''er, who''d have thought I would use them all up! I am ashamed!"


    Ye Futian laughed after hearing his words. Naturally, Beigong Shuang would never think much of it. She would only be happy if she saw her father experience a breakthrough.

 1901 Death Island

    Now, Beigong Ao was going to become the strongest person on their continent. How could he not feel conflicted about it?


    "Haha, a bit contrary to your belief, isn''t it?" Beigong Ao said to Emperor Helian with a laugh. Emperor Helian shook his head and smiled bitterly. Seeing his expression, Beigong Ao said, "Relax, we''re old friends. Whether I break through my plane or not, I will continue to follow the pavilion head in the future."


    This old fox... Emperor Helian thought in his mind.


    Just like he had guessed earlier, Beigong Ao had also detected a lot of things in advance, so he kept cozying up to Ye Futian. Even after breaking through and reaching the eighth plane level, he was not arrogant at all. He remained sufficiently humble and continued to butter up to Ye Futian. His old skin was truly very thick.


    He was going all out to ride Ye Futian''s coattails.


    Even though Ye Futian''s cultivation level was far lower than him...


    Eighth plane. It was not considered the pinnacle in the Divine Prefecture; after all, there were too many powerful cultivators around. However, in terms of gradation, there were a lot of weaker people. It really depended on one''s point of view. Looking at it through the lenses of the Divine Prefecture, the eighth plane was already regarded as a person with high stature; and if it were a continent, the person would typically be the strongest.


    "Senior, please do not say that. The role of the pavilion head is not something I might not retain for a long time," Ye Futian said. The seat of the Dongyuan Pavilion head was something that he had to let go of sooner or later. Now that Beigong Ao had broken through to the next plane, he was suited to take his place.


    "Naturally, the Dongyuan Pavilion cannot keep Pavilion Head Ye for a long time. However, even if you were to go all around the Divine Prefecture, you could still concurrently hold the Dongyuan Pavilion head position. There is no conflict there. Moreover, we can also follow you around to explore different places," said Beigong Ao.


    His success in breaking through this time made him believe in Ye Futian even more. Only by following Ye Futian would he be able to encounter opportunities that could make him stronger. Otherwise, if he were to rely on his own strength, he never would have been able to perceive and understand the Will of the Thunder, enter the core domain, and obtain the Cloud Wood and refine it, breaking through his plane level as a result.


    How could he let Ye Futian run away?


    "Let''s put it aside for now and discuss it at another time," said Ye Futian. He looked around him and saw that many people were heading towards them. Many released their Aura of the Great Path and fixed their gaze on Beigong Ao.


    If it weren''t for the fact that Beigong Ao had broken through his plane, they might have already made their move. However, at that moment, most people did not dare to act hastily. After all, high order Renhuangs over the seventh plane were incredibly rare, and among those, not many entered the Eastern Deity Island.


    "My friend, the Cloud Wood is a divine thunder item. We all train in the Power of The Great Path of Thunder. Could you also let us have a taste of it?" At that time, an elder came forward and spoke. The elder seemed very dominant and serious. His long hair fluttered in the air, and he looked very lively. His aura was incredibly powerful. When he spoke, his voice was as loud as a great bell, and it made the space around him tremble.


    Upon hearing him, many people stared at Beigong Ao. Now that someone had spoken out, the rest were happy to follow along. The legendary Cloud Wood... Who among those who trained in the law power of thunder would not want to experience it?


    "The Cloud Wood has already been refined by this one. I would have to apologize for not being able to do as you suggested," Beigong Ao said.


    "Even if it has been refined, you can still get it out, right?" The elder continued to speak. His voice rumbled, and it made the ears of many tremble and their blood boil.


    "It has been completely refined and has assimilated into my flesh and bones," Beigong Ao continued. "If the elder wants to see it, it is fine. Please observe."


    After that, Beigong Ao took one step forward, and in an instant, thunder flowed and surrounded the area around his body.


    Rumble rumble rumble... His body transformed into a body of the Great Path of Thunder. Bright and blinding thunder light coursed through his body. The sky started to move again and the boundless space, in that instant, transformed into a Thunder Domain as if everything had become the power of the Great Path of Thunder.


    Boom!


    Lightning struck from the sky above, covering and engulfing the sky. Numerous beams of thunder and lightning landed directly on Beigong Ao''s body. However, they did not strike him; instead, they made contact and were absorbed into his body. At that moment, his body had become a Great Path of Thunder Body. The divine Cloud Wood had synthesized with his body, and his body had now become like a divine item itself.


    "Such a strong aura." The expression on many faces changed. Even the elder also frowned. He felt the power emanating from Beigong Ao''s body. The majestic power arising from the Great Path of Thunder was unparalleled. Not only did Beigong Ao break through his plane level, but he had also refined and absorbed the Cloud Wood into his body, making himself stronger as a result. Now that he had mastered the power of the Great Path of Thunder, he was no longer someone who could be compared to a cultivator who had just broken through to reach the eighth plane.


    Crackle, crackle...


    A sharp and deafening sound emerged. Strokes of Thunder Punishment Light descended from above. Beigong Ao extended his hand and, as if his arm had turned into the had of the Thunder God, he controlled the Thunder Domain. An endless stream of thunder flowed and surrounded his palm. He looked at the elder and said, "The Cloud Wood has been refined into the great path. Does the elder wish to experience it?"


    The elder squinted his eyes. Then, he laughed and said, "It is no wonder it is regarded as the Thunder Divine Wood. My eyes have been opened."


    After that, he gave up directly. He turned around and continued to perceive and understand the will of the Great Path of Thunder. He no longer harbored any thought of getting the Cloud Wood.


    Beigong Ao''s strength increased significantly after he refined the Cloud Wood. From the Thunder Will Might he displayed, if they had tried to snatch it away, it would have been difficult for them to make a profit. Their losses would definitely overshadow any profit made. After all, there were still many Great Path Opportunities available on the Eastern Deity Island.


    The others also left one after another. None retained any intention of stealing or robbing Beigong Ao. Ye Futian looked around and said, "Let''s go somewhere else."


    The others nodded and began to leave the area.


    "The Eastern Deity Island has many islands. Do you guys know of any good place?" Ye Futian asked. He wanted to get to a useful location directly.


    "The Eastern Deity Island has a group of islands. Many places have Great Path Opportunities. If we are talking about good places... Apart from Great Path Opportunities left behind by practitioners who came in search of medicinal pills and the Eastern Deity Island itself, when Supreme Deity Donglai refined pills back in the day, he planted many unique plants on many islands. There are deity plants and poisonous plants. Moreover, they exist not only on a single island... many islands were Supreme Deity Donglai''s medicine gardens," Emperor Helian said.


    Ye Futian nodded. An alchemy master who was as strong and powerful as Supreme Deity Donglai was incredibly rare, even in the Divine Prefecture. Naturally, his actions could not be easily deduced using normal reasoning skills. Back then, Saint Jiang planted many medicinal herbs in the lower worlds. Hence, Supreme Deity Donglai''s act of using islands to plant medicinal herbs was also considered normal.


    "I remember Pavilion Head Ye wanted to trade for a Hell''s Lotus last time. From what I know, there is a place within the Eastern Deity Island where Hell''s Lotuses grow. There is even the legend of a Hell''s King Flower. Inside this king flower are many plants that contain the Great Path of Death," said Beigong Ao. When he spoke, he also glanced at Xia Qingyuan.


    Ye Futian suffered a loss in the previous incident. It could be said that he was "ridiculed" by Jun Qiuyan. The conflict between them also stemmed from there.


    Moreover, the owner of the Hell''s Lotus from last time refused to trade with Ye Futian because he was afraid of offending Jun Qiuyan. This incident was really disrespectful towards Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan.


    This incident remained engraved on Beigong Ao''s mind. Furthermore, considering Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan''s relationship, Beigong Ao mentioning this was, naturally, because he wanted to let Ye Futian win the heart of the beautiful lady.


    Wily old b*stard, Emperor Helian cursed in his mind. Why didn''t he think of that?


    As expected, Ye Futian nodded immediately after hearing his. Then, he said, "Let''s go check it out."


    It was something that could help Xia Qingyuan''s cultivation. Naturally, they had to check it out. Moreover, since it was a medicinal herb that Supreme Deity Penglai planted, it was most likely something noteworthy.


    "Okay." Beigong Ao nodded and led the way. They flashed across the sky at a ridiculous speed. Around them were many cultivators also flashing across the sky in search of their own opportunities.


    Within the Eastern Deity Island, there was an island filled with an incredibly powerful aura of death. One could say that an aura of the Great Path of Death engulfed the entire island. It was dark, gloomy, and extremely scary. Not many people went there.


    The island gave off a cold and eerie feeling.


    Moreover, the island was protected by very powerful demonic beasts.


    At that moment, many cultivators were already present on the Eastern Deity Island. People from different continents had arrived; many practitioners of the Great Path of Death were also present. For these people, this island, in particular, was a must-visit place.


    For example, the practitioner who refused to trade with Ye Futian because of Jun Qiuyan was also there.


    At that time, he was already on the island. His gaze was fixed on a plant that grew on the island. Many practitioners like him were also present around him. However, none of them acted rashly or hastily. In front of the plant stood a frighteningly large beast that seemed to be protecting the area. A pair of cold and ghastly eyes scanned the sky. It was horrifying.


    The beast was a giant snake, a humongous giant snake over a hundred meters long. It was pitch black. Only its tongue, when extended, was red. A black mist emitted from its mouth, a black mist that was surrounded by a frightening death aura that made one feel as if they would die and corrode away the moment they touched it. The plants around the giant snake were plants that contained the Great Path of Death. No other plants were able to grow in that area.


    As a Demon Emperor level existence, the giant snake''s intelligence was no different from a human practitioner. It had been guarding the area for many years. It relied on the island to survive, and it grew stronger and stronger. Everything on the island belonged to it. If these human beings wanted its things, it would devour and kill them.


    "How about we team up and kill this giant snake? What say you?" someone asked. The others immediately agreed. Each of them had the same intention.


    The giant snake was at the Demon Emperor level. Many people had already been killed by it.


    By the time Ye Futian arrived close to the island, he had already seen the frightening giant snake from afar, as well as a plant that it was protecting.

 1902 Snake Taming

    Ye Futian felt a heinous death aura and a powerful Corrosive Will immediately after he reached the place. It was a frightening place. Standing there meant that one was faced with the threat of being killed at any time.


    Underneath was an "ocean" of death. An ocean of death made up of Hell''s Lotuses. Numerous Hell''s Lotus filled the island, devouring all life on this land and engulfing that area with death. There were no other signs of life.


    Beside the demon snake was a gigantic black lotus. It had nine petals. The pitch-black petals refracted a dark and gloomy light of death. The petals kept opening and closing, and each petal seemed large enough to hold a hundred people. The lotus seemed like it was a man-eating flower.


    The giant demon snake slithered around the plant, protecting it and absorbing its power at the same time.


    "King Hell Flower. Hell''s Demonic Lotus," Emperor Helian mumbled. "This creature can create a frightening death pill. If a normal person were to eat it, he or she would die instantly. The person''s life would be corroded. However, if a practitioner of the Great Path of Death eats it, it is an incredible supplementary item instead. Of course, even if it is not mixed and made into a pill, the Hell''s Demonic Lotus itself is also an immensely powerful death plant."


    Ye Futian raised his head slightly. Naturally, he also saw the practitioner who refused to trade with him earlier at the Penglai Deity Lake. At that time, that person had a high-grade Hell''s Lotus in his possession. However, at the moment, there was an ocean of Hell''s Lotus there. It was incredibly frightening.


    Moreover, within this ocean of hell flowers, many of those close to the Hell''s Demonic Lotus were high-grade lotuses. They were similar to a level seven ritual implement or higher.


    One could only imagine just how much value was contained within this ocean of hell flowers. For a practitioner at the high order Renhuang level, it would be considered an immense wealth.


    Yan Daoren was the practitioner who refused to trade with Ye Futian earlier. He also noticed Ye Futian''s presence. He glanced in Ye Futian''s direction, and his eyes lit up. Back then, he disrespected Ye Futian by refusing to trade with him in that situation because he did not dare offend Jun Qiuyan. It was considered a type of ridicule. He was aware that Ye Futian might remember and not forgive him.


    It looks like I have to be careful, he thought.


    "If you still intend to stay, I will have no choice to start a massacre!" The demon snake spoke in a human''s voice. When it spoke, turbid gas exited its mouth when it breathed. The turbid gas filled the entire area and made the environment very uncomfortable. The weaker practitioners had to use the power of the Great Path to cover their bodies in order to defend against that gas.


    It had been stuck on that island for thousands of years. It had long grown bored of the place. The guy who caught it and placed it there had already died, but even then, the guy did not let it go.


    It used to harbor thoughts of escape; however, whenever it did escape, it would have to go through a thorough beating after being caught and returned. It was pitiful. Later, it ceased all thoughts of escape. Instead, it focused its energy on cultivating. It would try to leave again after it reached the ninth plane. After all, the guy who caught it had already died, the Eastern Deity Island should no longer have any existence that exceeded the ninth plane. So, it would have an opportunity, as long as it could reach the ninth plane.


    However, the Eastern Deity Island would open once every decade, and a bunch of foolhardy people would come to seek their death. These people were just nice as they could be used as these Hell''s Lotuses fertilizers. They provided them with a lot of Great Path nutrition.


    Now, these people had also come to their death.


    Ye Futian stared at the Hell''s Demonic Lotus... This plant was definitely of a higher grade than the Hell''s Lotus in possession of the earlier trader. It should be very beneficial to Xia Qingyuan''s cultivation.


    "Pavilion Head, I will go and bring it to Miss Xia," said Beigong Ao. He had just broken through to reach the eighth plane. It was a good time to test his strength. Moreover, his opportunity was given by Ye Futian. It was natural for him to do something good for Ye Futian and try to win some favors with the head''s partner.


    The demon snake glanced at Beigong Ao. A deathly aura emanated from its eyes. It was very scary.


    With one step, Beigong Ao moved forward. He stood in an empty space above the demon snake and, in an instant, lightning bolts rained from above and engulfed the entire island. Lightning bolts struck one after another, destroying and dispersing the miasma around.


    The power from the Great Path of Thunder was the natural enemy of the miasma.


    Beigong Ao extended his arm and slammed his hand downward. In an instant, a gigantic thunderous palm that contained a frightening and destructive force converged and shot towards the demon snake.


    The demon snake let out a low growl and spat out a frightening death aura that covered the sky. However, Beigong Ao''s body was covered by a light screen of thunder, which evil powers could not easily penetrate.


    The pitch-black scary demon snake was covered in a layer of black scales. It swung its gigantic tail into the thunderous palm. When they collided, an explosive bang shook the area, and the destructive thunder coursed through the gigantic tail, crushing the scales in the process. Blood appeared.


    Beigong Ao took another step, and numerous thunderbolts pierced through the sky and assimilated into his body. At that moment, Beigong Ao''s body had a powerful pull as he devoured thunder. Above him, a humongous illusion of the God of Thunder appeared.


    Rumble! Beams of Light of Thunder Punishment emerged one after another. They hovered around Beigong Ao''s body, making him seem like the War God of Thunder.


    After witnessing the scene in front of him, Ye Futian knew that, after breaking through, Beigong Ao''s grasp and understanding of the will of the great path was also quite profound. He was already able to use the art of Thousand Punishment. While he had not yet achieved the true Power of Thousand Punishment, he was able to unleash a good portion of its power.


    Sharp and crisp crackling sounds could be heard as the Power of Thunder Punishment shot downwards, tearing and crushing everything into pieces. Beigong Ao''s body also suddenly vanished in thin air as he transformed into a bolt of lightning. The next moment, the others present saw Beigong Ao appear in front of the demon snake. He raised his hand to deal a blow downward.


    In an instant, the demon snake was engulfed within the Light of Thunder Punishment. The others could only see bolts of lightning striking the body of the giant snake one after another, tearing through its scales and slicing through its flesh. Blood spilled, and the demonic beast let out a roar of anguish. Its large body writhed around, and at that moment, the entire space shook violently. Death aura swept through the area.


    "Do it." The other people began to move at the same time. They released their will might and began initiating attacks targeting the demon snake. However, their eyes were fixated on the Hell''s Demonic Lotus that the demon snake was protecting. That was their true objective.


    The demon snake was pushed back by many great path attacks. Then, multiple figures, at a ridiculous speed, shot straight towards the Hell''s Demonic Lotus. They were all as fast as lightning.


    Ye Futian remained standing in midair. When he saw many cultivators charge downward at the same time, he raised his brow slightly. He glanced at the demon snake and saw that its eyes were filled with a chilling aura. It was as if it was mocking these greedy humans.


    "Careful," Ye Futian reminded Beigong Ao through voice transmission. Beigong Ao''s movement stopped for a split second, and in the next moment, the others had gone past him. Each of them extended their hands in an attempt to grab the Hell''s Demonic Lotus.


    The moment their palms reached the Hell''s Demonic Lotus, the "Ocean of flowers" in the area began to move at the same time. Like the Jiuyou hell, all the Hell''s Lotus blossomed in a frenzy, devouring the entire area. Heck, there were even Hell''s Lotuses in the sky.


    In the area of the "flower ocean," giant petals began to grow one after another. After that, they shot straight towards the sky. Nine petals opened up at the same time before snapping shut, trapping everyone within it.


    "Illusion."


    Ye Futian looked at the demon snake underneath him. No wonder he felt odd earlier. It was an illusion. This Demon Emperor was actually very cunning and deceitful. In addition, it was also adept in the illusory arts. It used an illusion to deceive everyone''s eyes, and the plant that had trapped them all within this space was the true Hell''s Demonic Lotus.


    The practitioners, who had rushed to grab the fake Hell''s Demonic Lotus, were bitten by the illusory demonic lotus. After that, a large quantity of Power of the Great Path inside their bodies was devoured while death auras flowed into their bodies. Many people instantly turned black as their life-force went out.


    "This is the true Hell''s Lotus. Enjoy this banquet of death," said the demon snake as it looked at the crowd of practitioners. Its eyes were filled with a murderous aura. The expressions on many of their faces changed. This bastard had deliberately shown weakness. It was extremely cunning.


    Rustle, rustle, rustle... Amidst the flower ocean, the Hell''s Lotus blossomed and charged towards people in an attempt to devour them. The entire space was engulfed in the Great Path of Death''s aura. Endless waves of Death Aura flowed around and in all directions as they targeted the humans. Many wailing sounds could be heard as practitioners got hit one after another before being devoured by the Hell''s Lotus.


    Beigong Ao returned to Ye Futian''s side and used the Thunder light screen to protect Ye Futian and their group. He stared at the demonic snake underneath them and said, "This beast is very cunning."


    Seeing the people around them die one by one, Ye Futian also realized that the Demon Emperor was actually very strong. It faked being weak when it fought Beigong Ao earlier.


    "Are you lending power from the Hell''s Demonic Lotus?" Ye Futian asked the demon snake.


    The demon snake glanced at him. Its eyes were full of contempt. A young and puny human actually dared to look at him that way?


    "You can follow me. Become my mount, and I will let you live," Ye Futian said to the demon snake.


    The demon snake was stunned after hearing Ye Futian''s proposal. Its giant eyes stared at him. It was caught by surprise.


    Follow him?


    A young Renhuang actually proposed that it followed him?


    Another heir of some family. Proud and arrogant. The demon snake''s eyes were filled with contempt and ridicule. It seemed like it was not impressed by Ye Futian''s words at all.


    It swung its tail. Then, in an instant, multiple Hell''s Lotus flew towards Ye Futian''s direction and tried to devour him. At the same time, the demon snake said, "You are the most arrogant person I''ve ever met."


    It was a Demon Emperor at the eighth plane, and a youngster actually asked it to follow him?


    "It is your honor." The Black Wind Condor glanced at the demon snake.


    Ye Futian did not say anything. Seeing the Hell''s Lotuses flying at him, he took a step forward. Not only did he not try to resist or dodge, but he walked towards the Hell''s Lotus. Beigong Ao also did not try to stop him!

 1903 Killing the Demon Snake

    "This..."


    The eerie scene caused many to fixate their gaze on him. They stared blankly at Ye Futian. The aura emanating from his body made the Hell''s Lotuses rapacious?


    Beigong Ao and Emperor Helian also seemed surprised. Then, they remembered the peculiar movements of the Flowering Tree from before, and they understood it. After all, Beigong Ao firmly believed that the Flowering Tree changed because of Ye Futian. He was a person who could make the divine tree bloom. Hence, it was normal for the Hell''s Lotuses to have an affinity with him.


    However, Beigong Ao still wondered in his mind if Ye Futian was the Son of the Great Path.


    He wondered if Ye Futian was related to Supreme Deity Donglai. He was even able to manipulate the plants here?


    The aura of the great path emanating from Ye Futian''s body engulfed the island and turned the area into a great path domain. Suddenly, all the Hell''s Lotuses in the area turned towards him and opened up. They swayed about as if they were pleasantly surprised. The odd and eerie scene made the demon snake''s vicious pupils shrink as it stared at Ye Futian.


    "What is going on?"


    "You have borrowed the power of death of this domain. Otherwise, your strength would decrease even more. If you bow down to me right now, you may yet live," said Ye Futian to the demon snake. His voice was cold. The demon snake stared at him. What Ye Futian said was true. It did borrow the power of death of the domain.


    If Ye Futian controlled it, the demon snake''s strength would decrease further.


    The demon snake''s eyes were ice cold. Frightening miasma started to spread, filling the sky.


    "There are no illusions here," said Ye Futian to the demon snake. Strands of divine light appeared, and the great path domain covered the island. The demon snake''s eyes became even colder. A lower Rehuang was actually able to use the great path domain to counter its illusion?


    The more frightening thing was that when the Hell''s Demonic Lotus sensed the aura from Ye Futian''s body, it seemed to have tried to wrestle itself out of the demon snake''s control. The lotus petals opened and shut in Ye Futian''s direction, absorbing the aura of the great path emanating from Ye Futian''s body.


    "Senior Beigong," Ye Futian shouted. Ye Futian stood in the air. Then, the Demon Emperor said in a cold tone, "You want me to bow down to you?"


    How could that be possible?


    It would rather fight and die here than to experience such ridicule.


    Boom! A monstrous Thunder Will Might was released from Beigong Ao''s body. Bathed in the Divine Light of Thunder, his body transformed into the Thunder Body of the Great Path. He extended his palm. Suddenly, an endless surge of thunder energy converged in front of him, and a purple thunder blade appeared in between both his palms.


    Beigong Ao held the thunder blade and fixated on a point beneath him. The Thunder Will in his body poured into the blade while bolts of horrifying lightning rained from above.


    "Swing..." A crisp and deafening sound appeared. The blade cut, and the light of thunder pierced the space in half. Beigong Ao''s body moved with the blade. The blade style was an extremely powerful Art of Supreme Thunder Attack recorded in the Dongyuan Pavilion. It was extremely potent.


    A daunting rumbling sound emerged. Then, the demon snake''s body became immeasurably larger. It was huge, even larger than the size of a giant dragon. It looked menacing and formidable. Its body was covered in scales, which made it look like multiple ritual implements were protecting its body. It looked impenetrable.


    The giant body twirled upwards. Its humongous tail swung towards the thunder blade, creating crisp and loud clanking sounds. The thunder blade slashed downward and crushed its scales, slicing into its flesh directly. The fearsome power of the Great Path of Thunder gushed into its body, destroying the demon snake''s internal powers.


    At the same time, the demon snake''s giant body twirled around Beigong Ao. Beigong Ao''s expression changed slightly. This Demon Emperor was going berserk.


    Bang! He pulled the sword out and rushed away. The moment he pulled the blade out, the demon snake''s giant head was constantly releasing a gas that instantly filled the area around them and later spread outwards. The power of the Great Path was corroded and destroyed.


    The scary miasma filled the space. The remaining cultivators did not sit idly by. They also released attacks of their own at the demon snake at the same time. Formidable attacks came one after another. The demon snake screeched and roared in anguish while blood splattered all over the place.


    The fresh blood mixed with the gas in the air, turning the entire area red. More frightening was that the blood seemed to have synthesized with the power within the gas, which increased the potency of the corrosive powers, making it even scarier.


    The Hell''s Demonic Lotus continued to open and close. Numerous Hell''s Lotuses continued to bloom. Fresh blood spilled on them and, as if the blood had become the fertilizer of the Hell''s Lotuses, the Hell''s Lotuses, including the Hell''s Demonic Lotus, on the island suddenly grew crazily before they started targeting and eating the people on the island.


    "Careful. The beast uses its blood to grow these Hell''s Lotuses." A voice called out. A look of realization appeared briefly on Ye Futian''s face. He now understood why the demon snake was able to control all the Hell''s Lotuses. In all these years, the demon snake lived alone on the island. It used its blood as fertilizer to grow these Hell''s Lotuses, and some sort of relationship was established, and it grew over time.


    Now, the demon snake''s blood was spilled on the Hell''s Lotuses, and it made the lotuses turn crazy.


    A giant Hell''s Lotus directly devoured a Renhuang. It slowly devoured the Renhuang''s body. The Will of Death infiltrated the person, and before long, the body of the Renhuang had disappeared. He had become fertilizer for the Hell''s Lotus.


    These Hell''s Lotuses also possessed some of the evilness of the demon snake.


    Strands of divine light continued to emanate from Ye Futian''s body. A chilly aura also accompanied it as the divine light of Yin was unleashed. The Hell''s Lotuses froze, but they continued to lean closer to Ye Futian. This created an independent safe space around Ye Futian''s body.


    "Can we hide here for the moment?" a Renhuang practitioner asked Ye Futian''s group.


    "Yes, you may enter," Ye Futian nodded. He did not refuse them.


    "Thank you very much." The Renhuang entered this area, and as expected, he instantly became a lot safer. Many others also came towards Ye Futian''s location subsequently. The demon snake was busy as it was engaged in a heated battle with Beigong Ao. However, many of these practitioners were unable to stop the attack of the Hell''s Demonic Lotus.


    Not long after, many cultivators had run to Ye Futian''s side in search of shelter. While many had previously tried to snatch away the Hell''s Demonic Lotus, Ye Futian did not fuss over it. His aura of the great path surrounded this place and protected them from being attacked by the Hell''s Lotuses.


    Then, a figure rushed over. It was Yan Daoren, the practitioner they met at the Penglai Deity Lake. He quietly moved forward but was still noticed by Emperor Helian. Seeing him approach, Emperor Helian waved his arm and said, "Get lost. There''s no place for you here."


    He went back against his words just because he was afraid of offending Jun Qiuyan, refusing to trade with Ye Futian in public, and now, he wanted to seek protection?


    While they were generous, it did not mean that they would treat such insult with kindness.


    Practitioners were very clear with their grievances. They bore grudges.


    Yan Daoren''s expression turned ugly. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "My offense earlier to you was because I had no choice. I hope you can forgive me."


    When he spoke, a Hell''s Lotus was moving towards his direction.


    Ye Futian glanced at and then ignored him. He was not so generous.


    Vuong! Yan Daoren wanted to rush forward. Ye Futian frowned, and Sword Will suddenly flew towards him. Yan Daoren''s expression changed as he quickly retreated. The Sword Will flew across the sky and returned to Ye Futian''s side. It was extremely daunting.


    "You have no place here." Ye Futian replied and stopped looking at him. He shifted his focus back to the battlefield. Yan Daoren turned around in an attempt to escape. However, the Hell''s Demonic Lotus had already sealed this space. There was no way out. Seeing the Hell''s Lotus large enough to cover the sky come at him, Yan Daoren became desperate and tried to charge outside regardless. However, before long, he was devoured by the blood-red Hell''s Lotuses, and his body slowly disintegrated as the flowers devoured him.


    He shrieked in despair. He did not want to die in such a miserable way; however, he was powerless to change anything.


    Ye Futian did not look at him. He continued to look at the battlefield. Beigong Ao, who had broken through to another plane and assimilated the divine thunder item, the Cloud Wood, was clearly stronger than the demon snake. Under the illumination of his thunder blade, one could see that the number of wounds on the demon snake''s body was only increasing.


    Moreover, the thunder blade style became even more potent as the battle progressed. Formidable thunder streaks continued to wreak havoc on the demon snake''s giant body, causing the demon snake''s body to tear and break. The large body was already covered in fresh blood. Who knew how many wounds were on its body.


    "I am willing to bow down to you," the demon snake roared. It finally gave in. It seemed like it had understood that there was no way it could turn things around. As its life gradually slipped away, its attachment to life finally trumped its dignity.


    "Kill," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright." Beigong Ao nodded. Another thunder slash flew out. It actually cut through and left a frightening rip in the demon snake''s giant body. Beigong Ao roared, and the Thunder Punishment swept towards the demon snake, entering its body. Then, in an instant, the giant demon snake body was consumed by the light of thunder. Its body spasmed and shook uncontrollably.


    Beigong Ao was naturally not going to let the opportunity slip. He extended his left hand, and the light of Thunder Punishment surged into the demon snake''s body. Under the destructive force of the Great Path of Thunder, the demon snake''s giant body was thoroughly destroyed. Before long, it was dead and fell on the ground with a loud thud.


    A Demon Emperor of the eighth plane. Killed.


    The people around Ye Futian glanced at him. In their minds, many wondered, "Who was this guy? To be this ruthless. To have refused an eighth plane Demon Emperor becoming his follower instantly before killing it..."


    "The demon snake''s body is a treasure in itself. Senior Beigong, take it," said Ye Futian.


    "That''s true." Beigong Ao nodded. A demon snake of the eighth plane was covered in treasure. Its scales were comparable to ritual implements. Attacks could hardly penetrate them.


    As for the fact that Ye Futian refused to forgive the demon snake, he was already used to it. In his mind, perhaps an eighth plane Demon Emperor was nothing much in Ye Futian''s eyes.


    This meant that while Beigong Ao had broken through to reach the eighth plane, Ye Futian would not and probably did not give it much thought. After all, his vision far exceeded Beigong Ao''s imaginations.


    However, this also made Beigong Ao look forward to following Ye Futian. He wanted to continue following him and see how far this youngster could go.


    "I assume none of you will fight me for the Hell''s Demonic Lotus?" Ye Futian asked the people around him. They nodded, clasped their hands together, retreated, and then left!

 1904 Condor Samas Overconfidence

    The deities of Eastern Deity Island invited outsiders to cultivate on the island to provide practitioners to encounter great path opportunities. As such, as the years went by, Eastern Deity Island had been able to gain and maintain a good reputation. Every time Eastern Deity Island sent out invitations, practitioners, and cultivators from thousands of different continents would gather on the island. Even if some would lose their lives in the midst of training, they were not without their reasons. The opportunities were there, and whether or not the practitioners could grasp them was up to the practitioners, as the deities of Eastern Deity Island could not simply hand them the prizes on a silver platter.


    The Hell''s Demonic Lotus and the other Hell''s Lotuses were all given to Xia Qingyuan. By refining all of these, Xia Qingyuan''s Power of the Great Path would reach a new height.


    "How many islands are there within Eastern Deity Island?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Many," Beigong Ao replied. He then continued, "Back then, Supreme Deity Donglai was a top cultivator. He was the uncrowned king of the Penglai Continent. One could even say the continents around this island treated him with respect. Many people came to visit him every year. Many years ago, the position of Supreme Deity Donglai could truly be regarded as one of a kind. His alchemy ability also increased the influence of Eastern Deity Island. One could say that this place is filled with opportunities. Based on what I know, the wealth of Eastern Deity Island back then was something that most could not fathom."


    Ye Futian nodded. A top-notch, extraordinary alchemist''s influence was something that did not need further explanation.


    Alchemy grandmasters were already rare; many people wanted them. So, it was easy to understand Supreme Deity Donglai''s position and status.


    "Let''s go find other opportunities," Ye Futian said. It was a rare opportunity to cultivate.


    "It was not brought away?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Difficult." Beigong Ao shook his head. "Wutong island has a divine beast that guards the island. It is the offspring of the phoenix, and it is mighty. I heard that it was already a Divine Wheel Fourth Plane many years ago. When I came to Eastern Deity Island last time, it was already a big demon beast at the Fifth Plane."


    "Divine Wheel Fifth Plane? Big demon beast?" Ye Futian said.


    "The Divine Fire of Wutong is regarded as a divine fire. It is a perfect grade divine flame of the great path," Beigong Ao said to Ye Futian while looking at him.


    Ye Futian suddenly understood. The divine beast phoenix guarding Wutong Island was the equivalent of a person with a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel at the Fifth Plane.


    Just how powerful was a person who was a Perfect Grade Fifth Plane?


    Earlier, Ye Futian fought against a practitioner from the Empty Mountain with a similar level in the Original Realm. The practitioner''s fists were unparalleled and unshakeable. Ye Futian did not even have the strength to fight back. However, the person''s cultivation level was higher. He was a Perfect Grade Sixth Plane.


    Based on what he sensed back then, the practitioner could probably defeat an Eight Plane existence who had an Imperfect Divine Wheel.


    This meant that the divine beast phoenix was probably at a similar level. At the very least, cultivators at the seventh plane would not be able to do much to it.


    "Also, it can borrow the power of the divine fire from the Wutong Tree," Beigong Ao added.


    "..."


    Ye Futian became speechless after hearing that. He still had some thoughts earlier, but now, all his ideas were crushed mercilessly. Even a Divine Wheel Eighth Plane facing the phoenix would be dangerous.


    "Yes." Emperor Helian nodded and said, "Based on my knowledge, a normal Ninth Plane existence may be able to suppress the phoenix, but it would still be very difficult to take away the Divine Fire of Wutong. Some top-class apex cultivators who came to the Penglai Continent tried it before. Later, the practitioners fell into despair, and very few even harbor the thought nowadays. Most who come to Wutong Island are here to experience it, in addition to trying to persuade the phoenix. However, they are just dreaming. There is absolutely no practitioner able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the phoenix."


    Ye Futian had mastered the Power of Yin. Naturally, he knew just how frightening the Power of Yin was. Then, the True Fire of the Sun was most just as potent, possessing a destructive force that could burn everything to ashes. The Divine Fire of Wutong was not that much weaker than the True Fire of the Sun. This meant that it was definitely an amazingly powerful Divine Fire of the Great Path.


    "Let''s go check it out," said Ye Futian. Beigong Ao nodded. The group then headed toward another location. On their way, they could see many practitioners searching for their own Great Path Opportunities all around Eastern Deity Island.


    Wutong Island was easy to find. From afar, one could easily see an entire island covered in an illusory gold divine flame. The entire island was filled with wutong trees. Golden rays of light that looked like flames illuminated the island, making it absolutely marvelous. Moreover, a powerful Great Path of Fire aura flowed around the island. It felt unreal yet, at the same time, very vivid.


    Ye Futian''s group accelerated and moved forward. They headed towards the inside of Wutong Island. A heatwave engulfed the entire island, the ethereal Great Path of Fire aura filled the air, making things slightly uncomfortable for some. However, to practitioners who cultivated in the Great Path of Fire, this could be considered a holy land.


    They looked forward and could vaguely see a crowd forming. They continued and accelerated even further. The flame aura grew stronger and stronger. Even when they were high up above in the air, they could still feel that scorching air.


    In the middle of Wutong Island was an independent space. In that space, there was a flame pavilion. On its side was an immeasurably large Wutong Tree. Every single leaf of the tree was golden and amber, much like igneous rocks, and the area was flowing with scorching hot air.


    From afar, Ye Futian could sense a frightening aura coming from the Wutong Tree. His divine consciousness wanted to infiltrate it, but he was not yet close, so it was directly destroyed. His divine consciousness could not even get close.


    On the side of the Wutong Tree, a fiery gold-feathered phoenix rested there. It seemed a little lazy. Even though many practitioners were in the sky above it, it was so lazy that it did not even glance at them. It looked like it simply did not care.


    Every ten years, humans would come. It had already got used to it. Of course, if someone wanted to die, it would not mind as well.


    Ye Futian looked at the practitioners above the Wutong Tree. There were a lot of practitioners. Moreover, compared to the practitioners on Death Island, the people here were much stronger. Among them, several people domineering auras, and they might have been of the Eight Plane.


    If they did not have a little bit of strength, they probably would not have dared to come to this place.


    When Ye Futian and his group arrived, many glanced at them. However, it was only briefly as they quickly shifted their gaze and ignored the lot.


    "Phoenix, I come from Canghai Continent, and I am a practitioner from a top faction on our continent. My Divine Wheel is also the Perfect Grade. While not necessarily comparable to Eastern Deity Island, why don''t you come with us together outside to train and explore for a while? You must have become bored after cultivating here for so long. Let''s go to the outer realms and enjoy the view." At that time, a rather young practitioner said to the phoenix.


    Named continents were considered decent. At least they were a lot stronger than the continent where the Dongyuan Pavilion was situated. This person possessed a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel. He was probably an heir of the strongest faction in Canghai Continent, which would explain his confidence and intent to extend an invitation to the phoenix to leave the island.


    The phoenix glanced at him with a bit of contempt. What kind of cultivation environment could be used to compare with the Eastern Deity Island?


    Divine Wheel Third Plane. Even if it was a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel, when he broke through the next stage to become a mid-level Renhuang, there was no guarantee that it would stay the same. In fact, there was a high percentage for the Divine Wheel''s grade to drop. Was a person like this worthy enough to invite it to leave the island?


    "Miss Phoenix has exceptional talent. Naturally, you won''t be interested in a practitioner who came to train on the island. We do not seek the divine fire; we are simply looking for fate. If Miss Phoenix has anything that she wants, I will definitely do my best to fulfill it," said a practitioner of the Eighth Plane who stood beside the youngster just now. While he was at the Eighth Plane, he spoke courteously, hoping to help his junior find his opportunity.


    While there was little hope, it would become a huge opportunity for his junior if they were successful.


    "Female?"


    Then, a voice emerged. It stunned every cultivator in the sky. Everyone looked toward the source of the voice. Then, they saw that the one who spoke was a demonic beast: Ye Futian''s mount, a Black Wind Condor.


    Many people seemed dumbfounded. They looked at the Black Wind Condor with a perplexed expression. The phoenix was incredibly prideful. Its parent was the cultivation partner of Supreme Deity Donglai back in the day. It was ridiculously powerful, and it had been sensing and cultivating the divine fire on Wutong Island over the years. It was very famous.


    Now, a Black Wind Condor actually called it... A female...


    When Ye Futian heard what his Black Wind Condor said, three black lines appeared on the side of his face. It was a headache. It seemed like this b*stard had been treated too nicely recently; it had become overconfident!


    The feathers on the resting phoenix stood up. It raised its head to glance at the Black Wind Condor. Divine flames could be seen coming out of its pupils, and it also slowly got up. A very fierce look on its face.


    Little Condor became extremely uncomfortable under the phoenix''s stare. Its body retreated until it was behind Ye Futian and shrank. "This female phoenix sure is fierce. Condor Sama admits he is a loser."


    As such, Ye Futian appeared within the sights of the phoenix.


    Ye Futian suddenly had the impulse to smack that bastard dead. A mount caused trouble, and he was the one who would clear things up?


    "This beast is terrible and naughty. It''s lacking a little bit of discipline lately. I will most certainly teach it a lesson later. Miss Phoenix, please do not take it to mind," Ye Futian clasped his hands together and bowed slightly to the phoenix. Little Condor caused the issue, so he had no choice but to apologize. After all, that remark was quite disrespectful towards the phoenix.


    "Let it come over," said the phoenix in a human''s voice. The sound was crisp but somewhat cold. Scorching air flowed around and engulfed the area, to the point where even the temperature increased.


    Condor Sama trembled behind Ye Futian. "This female phoenix is strong. Condor Sama has no way of beating her. That aura is too vicious. We are in different leagues."


    Ye Futian felt dismal. He had not yet done anything since getting here, but they had already offended the phoenix. It was a disaster. He initially planned to chat casually with the phoenix and talk about its life, but now, that seemed like a pipedream.


    "Hand over that vile beast so that we can kill it," said a person on the side. It was the practitioner from the Canghai Continent. There was a chance for them to become friendly with the phoenix. They took it and hoped that it would help leave a good impression for the phoenix.


    "Disrespectful words, it certainly deserves death," said another person. This made Ye Futian frown!

 1905 Caught in His Own Trap

    However, what does this have to do with anyone else?


    The Phoenix actually called for Little Condor''s death.


    "It''s wrong to speak disrespectfully, but must he pay for his mistake with his life?" Ye Futian swept his gaze at the person who spoke and spoke. His tone was icy, but his eyes still looked forward.


    "Of course," the former Practitioner of the Canghai Continent replied.


    "He should be killed," others commented. The Wutong Island was different from other places. They all came here with a request, and the phoenix was already indifferent to them. Now that Ye Futian and the others came, this evil beast actually directly offended the phoenix and badmouthed them. Of course, it should die.


    "In that case, you all deserve to die for disrespecting my mount, don''t you?" Ye Futian looked at them and said coldly. All the practitioners were stunned. Little Condor was disrespectful to the phoenix and deserved to die, but they were also disrespectful to Little Condor, so should they also deserve to die?


    There seemed to be no issue with the logic. However, his Black Wind Condor, was on a par with the Phoenix?


    "Even an evil animal is worthy?" Canghai Continent''s Renhuang sneered. The white-haired teenager had an extraordinary aura. However, he actually compared his mount with the phoenix and did not know his place. It seemed like he was a descendant of a top faction from some continent, arrogant and supercilious.


    As his voice fell, his body actually released a violent will might, covering the direction where Ye Futian and the others were. Although he saw that Ye Futian and the others were from the top faction of a certain continent, he still made his move. Opportunities were scarce nowadays, and he could make use of this to display himself. Maybe they could still have a sliver of opportunity to at least cultivate for a while in front of the Divine Wutong tree.


    His palm grabbed towards the direction of Little Condor. Instantly, a terrifying flame deity-like silhouette appeared on the firmament. Divine fire gathered in the vast Great Path of Space and was extremely violent. They became a War god of flame created by the Flame of the Great Path. The silhouette came over, and a giant palm of flame appeared, burying the void. Rumbles sounded as it smacked down. It was extremely oppressive.


    He actually attacked directly?


    The surrounding powerful cultivators were a little surprised. They all thought that this person was very decisive and attacked without hesitation because he wanted to use this opportunity to display himself. Even if he could not kill the Black Wind Condor, he would have displayed himself already. The ending was not that important.


    Of course, if he could kill it, they naturally would not mind and definitely would kill it.


    The top powerhouse from the Canghai Continent was an existence of eight realms. The giant palm of flame grabbed down directly from the firmament and was extremely domineering. But at that moment, a silhouette blocked him; it was Beigong Ao. Lightning filled the sky and spread towards all directions. Rays of Thunder Punishment swept out as Beigong Ao raised his palm and slashed out. The palm mark that was slashed out split the space and became a divine thunder blade. With a loud rumble, it split the giant palm of flame from the middle and caused the power of thunder and fire to go rampant in the air.


    Seeing the two sides fight, the Phoenix quietened down. Her crimson eyes swept into the void, looking at the two sides fighting as if it had nothing to do with her.


    "Hand that demon over, and we won''t pursue the matter." The powerhouse of eight realms from the Canghai Continent floated in mid-air, and his flame war god-like body was extremely high and mighty as he looked down at Ye Futian and the rest.


    Ye Futian raised his eyes to sweep towards the other side. They were using him to make the Phoenix laugh?


    Since that was the case, he would play along with them.


    "Senior Beigong, if they attack again, kill them," Ye Futian spoke coldly as he retaliated powerfully.


    "Yes, Pavilion Master," Beigong Ao replied. Hearing him address Ye Futian in that way, their opponents'' expression turned weird. Pavilion Master?


    Did he inherit a top faction from some continent?


    However, that was irrelevant.


    Kill?


    The powerful cultivator''s divine consciousness engulfed the sky. Instantly, even more violent flame auras of the great way exploded forth. The vast space turned into a flaming Great Path domain, and like a terrifying great flame matrix, it refined everything in its path.


    Within that Great Path domain, countless runes of flames appeared. They were the words, "Fire, Flare, Blaze." Every rune contained an extremely horrifying destructive power. At that moment, Ye Futian and the rest were all engulfed in the great flame matrix. The runes fell towards them as if they were going to burn the space they were in.


    "Insolent."


    Beigong Ao also released a terrifying aura of the great way. A towering War God of Thunder-like figure appeared and fused with his body, which also had Cloud Wood fused into it. In a flash, countless rays of lightning appeared in the vast firmament, casting a light screen of lightning. It held up the great flame matrix and made it so that the Flames of the Way could not reach Ye Futian and the others.


    Boom! Divine Thunder descended and shot towards the opposing practitioners. Both sides had an equal number of people enter the Eastern Deity Island. An Eastern Deity Token could only bring ten people in.


    The surrounding powerful cultivators all moved aside. At the same time, they released strong auras of the great way to resist the aftershocks of the battle. If the strong cultivators from the Canghai Continent were just trying to show off just now, the two sides'' strength and words made them all get fired up, and a war broke out.


    Buzz! Beigong Ao''s body directly transformed into a ray of lightning and rushed towards the other side. He was so fast that it was hard to see him with the naked eye. With a loud bang, the ray of lightning soared into the sky. Both of their bodies flew directly into the sky, and even the horrifying Great Path domain flew up into the sky as well.


    In an instant, the destructive might disappeared, and the two figures appeared in the sky. The other party did not care. When fighting Beigong Ao, their lineup was slightly stronger than their opponent''s.


    However, Beigong Ao also thought so, with Ye Futian here, it would bring a surprise to the other side.


    The rest of the cultivators stepped out at the same time, coming directly towards Ye Futian. There were two cultivators at the Seventh Order of the Divine Wheel, and Emperor Helian stepped on the void and went up. Ye Futian swept a glance at Yang Dongqing, who was indifferent at the back, and said, "Senior Yang, thank you."


    When Yang Dongqing heard Ye Futian''s words, he could only grit his teeth and take action. He had been following Ye Futian all this time, and he was now a bit guilty.


    He found that Ye Futian was very frightening and increasingly mysterious. Although he had never really fought head-on with his full strength, according to Yang Dongqing''s estimations, he might be able to hold his own against a strong cultivator at the Seventh Order of the Divine Wheel.


    The others also attacked, and a war erupted at that moment. The young man who wanted to invite the phoenix to cultivate with him previously swept his eyes towards Ye Futian and the others. He had an ethereal aura on his body, and arrogant yet indifferent eyes. It was as if he did not care about the people below.


    A terrifying flame breath swept out, and a terrifying Great Path Furnace seemed to appear behind him, from which a steady stream of Divine Flames of the Great Path spilled down, covering the space.


    The Great Path Furnace was his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. It was incorporated into the ritual implement and could be refined into Flames of the Way, causing it to get stronger continuously.


    The golden flames of the way had a terrifying melting power, and wherever it passed by, the great way was melted into nothingness. In an instant, with his body as the center, the vast area was filled with divine flames, and a terrifying stream of flames of the way directly surged towards Ye Futian''s body, instantly engulfing Ye Futian and the Black Wind Condor behind him. A touch of coldness flashed in his proud eyes.


    However, the Black Wind Condor behind Ye Futian was looking up at him as though he was looking at a pitiful person.


    This guy, he dared to attack his master. He was only at the level of a Lower Renhuang. He probably thought he was peerless because he had a perfect Divine Wheel. How miserable, I''m afraid he would not even know how he died.


    Ye Futian swept a glance at him and felt a flame current enter his body. However, it did not affect him in the slightest.


    Whoosh... Suddenly, an incomparably sharp sword will blossomed from his body and slashed directly across the void straight towards the other party. The teenage Renhuang instantly felt a strong sense of threat.


    The sword will slashed through the firmament and headed straight for him. His body was blasted backward as monstrous divine flames spread in front of him. His divine wheel also smashed towards the front to block the sword will.


    But as the sword will sliced through, a brilliant sword river seemed to appear, freezing and shattering everything in its path.


    Bang...


    The Divine Wheel of the Great Path immediately shattered into pieces. The wisp of sword will pierced through the Divine Wheel as the practitioner''s face instantly turned pale. He grunted as blood seeped out from the corner of his mouth. A thought appeared in his mind. How was this possible?


    His perfect Divine Wheel could only take one sword will?


    However, he could only have that thought. In the next moment, the sword will pierced through his body. As his body trembled violently, wisps of sword qi went rampant in his body, and he could feel his body being ripped apart.


    "No..."


    A roar was heard, and in the next moment, his body was shattered by the sword qi and disintegrated.


    The surrounding people were stunned. Everything happened so fast that many people could not react, and when they looked back, they found that the heir to the top faction of the Canghai Continent was directly obliterated by a sword will.


    Was he dead?


    Everyone had a strange look on their face and were a little startled. He was killed just like that?


    As someone who owned a perfect grade divine wheel, he could be considered a top talent. He thought he could easily suppress Ye Futian, but in a momentary clash, he was killed.


    The cultivators of the Canghai Continent were all fighting. They looked in the direction of the young man, and their faces all turned pale. All this happened so fast that they had no time to react.


    The people who were thinking of killing the Black Wind Condor were now also looking that way, and some thoughts were arising in their minds. It was true that when outside, it was better to keep a low profile. After all, you never know who you would meet.


    No matter how you look at it, someone with a perfect grade divine wheel could always be considered a top demon. Even if they could not be killed, it did not have to come to this point. But reality was that dreamy.


    The practitioners of the Canghai Continent must feel regretful now.


    Of course, they would also feel anger.


    Above the firmament, a terrifying collision sounded. Two top figures were still fighting, and the man of eight realms also knew that his heir had been killed. When the collision occurred, his body''s blood force rolled, and he spat out a mouthful of blood!

 1906 Pleasing to the Ear

    Although Ye Futian''s mount had spoken disrespectfully, ever since Ye Futian arrived here, he had presented himself with due respect. He had apologized on behalf of his mount and yet was unapologetic to the people who raved on about killing his mount.


    Ye Futian had stood there quietly, not revealing his hand. Yet, when he did, he was as swift as lightning, instantly killing off the other party. He had attacked decisively and mercilessly without any hesitation.


    There was more to this white-haired youth than met the eye. At the very least, he was the most interesting cultivator she had seen so far. He might also be the most outstanding, even though his cultivation was not the highest.


    After the youth died, a few members from the Canghai Continent charged towards Ye Futian. However, a Sword Realm that filled the sky appeared, with Ye Futian''s figure as its center. The Sword Will in the sky resonated, and a river of swords swept towards the other party. Within the river of swords, three beams of sky-piercing sword light coalesced, seemingly forming three swords. They were three Sword Wills.


    Swooshing sounds could be heard continuously. All the members who were charging towards him were killed on the spot, perishing instantly.


    The river of swords surged forward. Very quickly, only three members from the party from the Canghai Continent remained alive. They were the three cultivators battling against Beigong Ao, Emperor Helian, and Yang Dongqing, respectively. One of them was an eighth-tier, whereas the other two were seventh-tier.


    The cultivators from the Canghai Continent might be wiped out. Many cultivators thought to themselves as they watched the battle. They initially thought that even if the cultivators from the Canghai Continent could not kill Black Wind Condor, they would at least be able to suppress their opponents. However, they never imagined that the battle would be so one-sided and that the cultivators from the Canghai Continent would instead be suppressed by their opponents. Ye Futian had immediately killed off all the members below the upper-level Renhuang Plane.


    They were in such a miserable state!


    Many people were thinking to themselves: if the members from the Canghai Continent had known that they would end up in such a state, they would never have stepped out.


    The cultivators who had previously claimed that they would kill Little Condor were also secretly cautious. However, they had not made a move, and hence, Ye Futian would not attack them just because of what they said.


    In the blink of an eye, aside from the prideful eighth-tier figure, the other two cultivators were all killed off.


    The eighth-tier cultivator was also being suppressed by Beigong Ao.


    "His body contains a divine item," someone said.


    "It is a lightning attribute divine item. Based on what I know, it can be found on one of the islands of Eastern Deity Island," another person said. For many of them, this was not their first time entering Eastern Deity Island. Hence, they had some knowledge regarding this.


    "Cloud Wood!" As expected, someone else immediately responded.


    "Yes, it is Cloud Wood," the person replied as he nodded his head. "Cloud Wood contains powerful lightning attributes and can absorb the power of lightning of the Great Path, causing it to be even more powerful. Now that it has been merged with his body, this person can be considered to have a body of lightning of the Great Path. He is more powerful than ordinary eighth-tier figures."


    The situation on the battlefield became clearer. Beigong Ao was firmly suppressing his opponent. This made Ye Futian, who originally wanted to lend him a hand, watch quietly from the sidelines. In the battlefield high in the sky, the enraged eighth-tier cultivator from the Canghai Continent had previously wanted to surround and kill Ye Futian. However, right now, he was already at the end of his rope. Not long after, a palm, filled with raging lightning, immediately pierced through his body of flames. It then frenziedly exploded and destroyed him bit by bit.


    "He has been slain."


    The crowd felt their hearts tremble as they watched the battlefield in the sky. After Beigong Ao slaughtered his opponent, he also took away his opponent''s storage ring. This caused the eyes of many people to twitch. Did this fellow not have any dignity as an eighth-tier cultivator?


    Beigong Ao did not mind them at all. Be it seventh or eighth tier, they could still make do in their own territories, but in the Divine Prefecture, they also had to scrape by. One could only be arrogant if they were a deity and were invincible. Since they had to scrape by, why did they need to keep up appearances?


    Of course, benefits would be their number one priority.


    Beigong Ao''s will swept over the treasures in the storage ring. He revealed a knowing smile. He was satisfied with his spoils.


    The surrounding cultivators were speechless when they saw his smile. However, they felt their hearts shiver. The cultivators of the Canghai Continent had been wiped out. Not a single one of them remained.


    This was the result of trying to stand out. The crowd secretly reminded themselves that on Eastern Deity Island, even if the opponents appeared easy to deal with, one still needed to be cautious; otherwise, they would be caught off-guard.


    This group had been an example.


    Ye Futian seemed composed, as though his emotions were unaffected by the events happening around him. At the very least, his gaze remained as calm as still water, just like when he arrived. His temperament was gentle too. However, when the crowd thought of how he attacked just now, they were wary of him. People like Ye Futian were the scariest.


    Moreover, Ye Futian only had a third-tier Divine Wheel now. By the time he advanced to be an upper-level Renhuang, who could stand against him?


    Could it be that Ye Futian was a descendent of one of the super mighty figures?


    Ye Futian saluted the phoenix with his fists, saying, "My name is Ye Liunian. It is said that this place contains the Divine Fire of the Great Path, so I have come here to check it out. I did not expect that this beast would make such impertinent remarks and cause this commotion. I apologize for disturbing Miss Phoenix."


    He was very polite, causing people to feel comfortable being around him. It was as though he was a completely different person from the white-haired youth who sent out an attack just now.


    "Quickly, come over here and apologize," Ye Futian ordered while turning around and sweeping a glance at Black Wind Condor.


    Black Wind Condor quivered and obediently moved forward. He said to the phoenix, "Condor sama apologizes for being ignorant."


    The crowd was confused.


    "Condor sama?" Was the brain of this fellow not fully developed?


    That shouldn''t be. He was already a Demon Emperor.


    Smack!


    A crisp slap sounded. Ye Futian smacked Black Wind Condor with his palm until the latter fell down. A few of his feathers came off. Ye Futian''s mind was linked with Black Wind Condor''s; hence Ye Futian knew what he was thinking. This brute had purposely said so because he was reluctant to apologize to the phoenix.


    Asking me, Condor sama, to apologize to this phoenix? Sooner or later, I will mount her and make her my ride. Humph.


    If I show any inferiority now, what would happen when this female phoenix is tamed by Master in the future? Who will be the senior between the two of us?


    Condor sama was in a dilemma.


    Feeling wronged, Little Condor raised his head and looked at Ye Futian. Even with foresight, a condor would still have immediate worries. What he considered was a legitimate concern.


    This female phoenix was so ferocious. Most likely, he would not be able to win a fight against her.


    "I am too lenient in disciplining him. I will surely discipline him well after this," Ye Futian said, smiling apologetically at the phoenix.


    "Cease your acting." The phoenix cast an indifferent glance at Ye Futian and Black Wind Condor. She revealed a look of disdain. These two were hypocrites.


    "What''s your intention for coming here? Are you here for the Divine Fire of Wutong as well?" asked the phoenix. She did not mention what happened just now. Obviously, she had decided to put the matter behind and let Black Wind Condor get away with his disrespectful speech. The rest of the cultivators all revealed strange expressions.


    Before this, when they arrived, the phoenix had laid dormant below the wutong, and she didn''t even spare them a glance. Now, her attitude had changed. When the cultivators of Canghai Continent risked their lives to fight with Ye Futian, they did so with the intention of demonstrating their best to attract the attention of the phoenix. However, judging from her response, it seemed like they had instead helped Ye Futian to win her favor. This was a tragedy!


    "The Divine Fire of Wutong is crowned the Divine Fire; naturally, cultivators will covet it. I am sure everyone is here for it. However, personally speaking, it is not that precious to me," Ye Futian responded.


    "You''re boasting shamelessly." The phoenix glanced at Ye Futian. The Divine Fire of Wutong was not that precious?


    This Divine Fire was bred on this wutong by her father. It contained two major wills of the Great Path��life and death. It reigned supreme over all the other flames of the Way and was crowned the real Divine Fire. Let alone a cultivator with a third-tier Divine Wheel, even a cultivator at the ninth tier would covet the Divine Fire as well.


    Her Great Path was flawless, and her cultivation was already at the middle-level Renhuang Plane. However, she still needed to rely on the Divine Fire to cultivate. That way, in the future, when she proved her Way and became an upper-level Demon Emperor, she could maintain her flawless Great Path.


    "If Miss Phoenix does not believe me, you can give it a try," Ye Futian stepped forward and descended before the phoenix. He extended his hand, and currents emanated from his palm. The phoenix swept a glance at him. This person was truly daring. Wasn''t he afraid of her incinerating him?


    Understanding Ye Futian''s intention, the phoenix transformed into her human form. She was clad in feathers and appeared extremely beautiful. Her appearance was also very outstanding. She bore an enchanting air and had a voluptuous figure. Her beauty was captivating.


    She similarly extended her hand. Her hand met Ye Futian''s. Flames of the Way spread out from her palm and entered into Ye Futian''s arm.


    Buzz!


    In an instant, their arms were enveloped in an aura that alternated between hot and cold temperatures. There was the light of cold ice as well as the light of flames.


    The expression of the phoenix changed slightly. She looked into Ye Futian''s eyes. This was the extreme chill of the power of Yin.


    Ye Futian retracted his hand. The phoenix similarly lowered her arm. The look that she gave Ye Futian contained a hint of astonishment.


    The surrounding cultivators all looked towards the two of them. Their eyebrows all lifted slightly. They sensed the extremely cold and hot aura. It was like cold ice and flames.


    "What do you think?" Ye Futian asked.


    "Even so, this does not mean that you do not covet the Divine Fire of Wutong," the phoenix coldly snorted.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, "I have told Miss Phoenix just now. I have heard that this place possesses the Divine Fire, and therefore, I have come to experience it myself. I have no other intentions. However, seeing the scenery here, it perfectly fits a song. Would Miss Phoenix be interested in hearing me play a tune?"


    The phoenix looked at Ye Futian. What was this fellow up to?


    A song?


    She was not interested. She did not like men who acted all artsy.


    "Suit yourself," the phoenix proudly said. She wanted to see what Ye Futian planned to do.


    The people in mid-air knew that Ye Futian had succeeded in drawing her attention when they heard her say this. He had piqued her curiosity.


    This fellow...


    Could it be that it was because he was handsome?


    Could it be that the phoenix also judged people based on appearance?


    Ye Futian walked up to the wutong and sat down cross-legged. His movements were elegant and natural. His white hair and white robes gave off an otherworldly air.


    His approach was brilliant.


    Condor sama exclaimed internally while looking at Ye Futian. Master was indeed worthy of his title. He was smart.


    Black Wind Condor stared at the beautiful phoenix and thought, Phoenix, Master is not after your flame. Instead, he wants both you and your Divine Fire...


    A guqin appeared. Ye Futian placed all ten of his slender fingers on the strings and plucked them. Instantly, the notes came alive and transformed into a beautiful melody.


    Ye Futian was playing The Flight of the Phoenix Pair.


    Beneath the wutong, its leaves fluttered and seemed to be drawn towards the sound of the guqin. They fluttered towards Ye Futian, constantly swaying in the wind.


    An illusion of a phoenix appeared and circled around Ye Futian, beginning to dance. Hearing the wonderful melody, the phoenix stood at her spot, stunned. She felt completely absorbed into the realm of the sounds of the guqin.


    It was so pleasing to the ear!

 1907 Call of the Phoenix

    The youth with white hair dressed in white robes was absorbed in playing his tune. This all seemed like a scene from a flawless painting. It was mesmerizing. Even powerful Renhuangs were still amazed at the beauty of this scene. It was a sight to behold.


    Ye Futian''s temperament was originally handsome and refined. His young self had now matured, adding on some charm. He seemed like a sage playing the guqin.


    What was even more astonishing was that the ancient wutong seemed to comprehend the sounds of the guqin. It let out a rustling sound as its leaves kept swaying and approaching Ye Futian. It seemed as though the wutong wanted to get close to Ye Futian. It gave off the feeling as though it understood the sounds of the guqin. It resonated with it and wanted to dance.


    From the ancient wutong, currents of the Great Path flowed towards Ye Futian''s figure. Gradually, Ye Futian''s figure was enveloped by the brilliant light of a divine flame. The light of this flame was very faint and ethereal. It was not real fire. Yet, it seemed as though Ye Futian was draped in a robe of flame. He appeared even more extraordinary. Right now, Ye Futian was like a Proud Son of Flame.


    "Huh?" The phoenix, who had been quietly listening to the tune all this while, was stunned when she saw this bizarre scene. Only then did she realize that the Divine Fire of Wutong actually had an affinity with Ye Futian. The wutong itself was also approaching him.


    This made her reveal a strange expression. She had initially been relaxed, but now she was wary again. It was said that many of the human cultivators were cunning. Could it be that this person was purposely using a song to make her let her guard down so that he could use a special technique to snatch her Divine Fire?


    A terrifying light of the Divine Fire of the Way shone in her eyes. She shot a beam towards Ye Futian. She had strong cultivation. Even though there were many cultivators around now, she doubted anyone here could defeat her. As for Ye Futian, his aura of the Great Path was perfect, but she was still confident that if she attacked first, she could seize the initiative and even kill Ye Futian.


    She would attack as soon as Ye Futian dared to make any strange moves.


    However, she discovered that Ye Futian kept playing his tune on the guqin quietly. As he played, he seemed completely immersed in it, entering a state of ecstasy. He even closed his eyes. The wutong swayed, and the Divine Fire of the Great Path danced. All this seemed to be their natural response. Something about this youth attracted them. The youth himself was an extraordinary figure.


    The Flight of the Phoenix Pair was originally a song about phoenixes. It could resonate with phoenixes. As she listened to the song, she naturally reacted to it. Yet, due to her powerful cultivation, she could still restrain herself. The effects of the song were not very strong on her. She merely felt that the sounds of the guqin were very beautiful.


    The sounds of the guqin gradually lowered to a bass tone. The illusion of the phoenixes still danced, but their movements became slower. All good things came to an end. In this scene from a painting, the phoenixes returned to their nest and rested below the wutong. All was peaceful and good.


    When the sounds of the guqin stopped, this scene did not disappear. This scene seemed to be imprinted in the minds of the various cultivators here. It was unforgettable.


    The look that the phoenix gave Ye Futian revealed a remorseful look of self-blame. She had actually believed that Ye Futian was planning to steal her Divine Fire. From the looks of it, she had misjudged him.


    "I hope Miss Phoenix was entertained," Ye Futian said as he smiled gently. The phoenix nodded her head slightly as she asked, "The artistic conception is beautiful. What song is this?"


    "The Flight of the Phoenix Pair," Ye Futian replied.


    "The Flight of the Phoenix Pair," the phoenix mumbled to herself. As expected, it was a song about phoenixes. No wonder her emotions resonated with the tune.


    "How did you make the ancient wutong and the Divine Fire also respond?" the phoenix asked.


    "It could be related to my special cultivation," Ye Futian answered with a smile. "I have cultivated the Way of Flame. I have also cultivated the wood attribute as well as the power of life and death."


    When the phoenix heard him say this, she revealed a strange look. The cultivators in the sky similarly had strange expressions. It naturally did not need to be mentioned that this person had extraordinary talent. He had forged a flawless Divine Wheel and had extremely powerful combat ability. It was apparent when he instantly killed a possessor of a flawless Divine Wheel at the same plane as he was, as well as when he aided in killing the seventh-tier cultivator.


    Yet, from what he had said, this was only the tip of the iceberg of his abilities. He was proficient in multiple powers. His accomplishments in playing the guqin were also profound.


    What was even more frightening was that, unbeknownst when, he had actually caused the proud phoenix, who had ignored the others, to view him as an equal. They were casually chatting with each other. This meant that he had already succeeded in making the phoenix lower her guard. The phoenix was willing to communicate with him. This was what the others had been trying to do before this. Yet, no one knew how to do so, and the phoenix was completely ignoring them.


    When the phoenix heard what Ye Futian said, she gently nodded her head. No wonder the wutong and the Divine Fire were attracted to him. That meant that Ye Futian''s cultivation attributes were similar to that of the wutong and the Divine Fire. However, she knew that it might not be as simple as Ye Futian had made it sound. Aside from her father, no one could understand the wutong and the Divine Fire as well as she could. For them to have reacted to Ye Futian, they must have encountered an extremely high power.


    This meant that aside from the power of Yin, Ye Futian still mastered other powers that could cause the Divine Fire of Wutong to merge within and resonate with.


    This person''s cultivation talent might be far more terrifying than what he had displayed.


    The phoenix also had extraordinary talent. Although she had always remained on Eastern Deity Island and relied on her talents and the Divine Fire to cultivate to this day, she was not a fool. She understood many things and could make some speculations.


    "I came to Eastern Deity Island to gain experience. I still wish to seek out other fateful encounters, so I will not continue disturbing Miss Phoenix," Ye Futian said. He actually bid farewell immediately. This bewildered the surrounding cultivators. They looked at Ye Futian with looks of surprise.


    They initially believed that Ye Futian would use this opportunity to continue getting familiar with the phoenix and then invite her to leave the island.


    After all, the phoenix guarded Wutong Island, but she would not stay here forever. They all still had a chance to invite her to leave the island with them.


    The phoenix was also stunned as she looked at Ye Futian. She then nodded her head slightly and replied, "Alright."


    "Farewell," Ye Futian greeted as he saluted with his fists. He then flew up into the air in a flash and landed on the back of Black Wind Condor. He glanced down at the phoenix. He saw that she was looking at him. He smiled and nodded his head. Then, Black Wind Condor spread his wings and flew out, leaving this place. Beigong Ao gave Ye Futian a deep gaze and then followed behind him and also left.


    Very quickly, Ye Futian''s group left Wutong Island, their figures disappearing into the distance.


    After the phoenix saw him leave, she suddenly felt down. She stared off into the distant sky.


    "Miss Phoenix," someone cried out. Only then did the phoenix regain her senses. She glanced over at the crowd. Her gaze became stern once again. However, she seemed to have lost interest once more. She returned to the wutong and transformed back into her original form. She rested there and planned to ignore the crowd.


    Her eyes closed slightly. She seemed to dwell into deep thought.


    All these years, she had remained guarding here. In reality, she was very lonely. She had no friends and no one to keep her company. Although there were people from Eastern Deity Island who would come to visit her, they either came for her father''s sake or because they had their own intentions.


    Every ten years, Eastern Deity Island would become livelier. She was proud, cold, unapproachable, and ignored the masses, but she felt empty inside.


    Ye Futian''s appearance made her feel a sense of warmth. This interaction was like the interaction between friends and companions.


    His talents were also extraordinary, and he had no ulterior motives against her. This moved her.


    For so many years, she had guarded this place with another goal in mind. She was seeking a cultivator who could keep her company and become her human companion. The Island Lord told her that if the day came when she found such a person, she could leave the island to cultivate. However, that person had to be sufficiently outstanding.


    Ye Futian seemed qualified.


    Hence, she was contemplating leaving the island with him.


    "Miss Phoenix, although my place is no match for Eastern Deity Island, it is still in the outside world. Miss Phoenix has always been cultivating here. Surely you must have gotten weary of this place? If Miss Phoenix is willing to leave the island, my forces are willing to serve Miss Phoenix," an upper-level Renhuang proclaimed. He already claimed to want to serve the phoenix. It was apparent how much he wanted to obtain her and make her leave the island.


    A flawless fifth-tier demon was already very frightening. If she broke through another two Planes, she would definitely become a peak existence. Adding on the Divine Fire of Wutong, she would be absolutely terrifying.


    Who didn''t want her to follow them and leave the island?


    Even if they had to serve her as though she was an ancestor of theirs, they would allow her to do what she wanted without hindrance.


    The phoenix opened her eyes and swept a glance at them. She then slowly got up and said, "You are right."


    As she said this, the phoenix lifted her head and called out into the sky. In an instant, an extremely loud call of the phoenix swept over Eastern Deity Island.


    For a moment, countless wutongs on Wutong Island swayed and shook. Rustling sounds could be heard constantly, coming from all directions. People rose into the air consecutively, heading towards Wutong Island.


    The hearts of many goddesses on Eastern Deity Island shuddered when they heard this sound. Their beautiful gazes turned towards the direction of Wutong Island.


    This was the call of the phoenix!


    The phoenix was about to leave the island.


    After so many years, had she finally made her decision?


    Who was it?


    What sort of monstrous existence made the phoenix decide to leave the island?


    The cultivators of Eastern Deity Island were most familiar with the abilities of the phoenix. One had to make her submit in order for her to want to leave the island!


    In the distance, Ye Futian''s group, who were traversing the sky, also heard the call of the phoenix. They turned around and looked in the direction of the call.


    "Why is the phoenix calling out?" Emperor Helian mumbled to himself. "Should we go back and take a look?"


    "There is no need," Ye Futian replied. Beigong Ao looked at the white-haired silhouette in front of him and asked, "Pavilion Master, you did not say anything and chose to leave. Was it so that you can apprehend her later?"


    Ye Futian shook his head. It seemed that he and Beigong Ao were on the same page.


    However, what was there to apprehend? If the phoenix did not want to leave the island, she would not do so no matter how hard he tried. His abilities were insufficient to coerce her.


    On the other hand, if she herself intended to leave the island, it did not need to be mentioned at all. Many things were better left unsaid.


    The Flight of the Phoenix Pair could express so many things in just one song!

 1908 Illusory Sky Domain

    On Dengxian Tower, a peerless woman with a crown of phoenix feathers and a rainbow-colored gown sat on a throne. She bore an authoritative aura and appeared to be a noble empress. She seemed too high to be approached.


    This woman was the current Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island. She rarely appeared in public. Very few people knew that the current Eastern Deity Island Island Lord was an absolute beauty with a stunning appearance. As she sat there, it was as though all the beauty in the world was focused on her. Even though many goddesses were standing below her, and all of them had outstanding appearances, no one could overshadow her radiance.


    Her beautiful eyes were piercing as she gazed into the distance. Everything on Eastern Deity Island appeared in her mind like a mirror. Nothing could escape her sight.


    A divine light flashed from her glabella and became an illusory silhouette. Surprisingly, it was the silhouette of Ye Futian. The surrounding women looked towards the illusory figure. Eastern Deity Island Island Lord said, "This person''s name is Ye Liunian. Where did he come from, and who invited him onto the island?"


    To her side, many cultivators began to check their records. In an instant, countless images were presented. With the Eastern Deity Token, everything was recorded and archived. Very quickly, they found what they were looking for. Someone bowed and answered, "Ye Liunian is from Dongyuan Pavilion on a nameless continent. As he is the Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master, Bai Mu extended him an invitation."


    The woman nodded her head slightly. She then said, "Inform Bai Mu that she no longer needs to be responsible for others under her. She only needs to keep tabs on this person and must make him stay on Eastern Deity Island. Besides that, immediately send people to Dongyuan Pavilion to investigate everything about Ye Liunian."


    "Understood," someone bowed and received the order.


    The woman then shifted her gaze in another direction. In a low voice, she said, "Zi Feng has come."


    She had barely said this when a brilliant light rained down. The appearance of a beautiful woman followed it. The surrounding people were already used to such a scene. Not many people on Eastern Deity Island dared to appear before the Island Lord in such a manner. Zi Feng was definitely one of the few who dared to do so. Back then, her father was the companion of Supreme Deity Donglai. The members of Eastern Deity Island naturally gave her preferential treatment.


    Many people did not understand the intentions of the Island Lord. Zi Feng had such outstanding talent. If an outsider were to take her away, wouldn''t that be a huge loss for Eastern Deity Island?


    "Zi Feng, come and sit here," the Island Lord said to the phoenix with a smile. The air of authority around her immediately disappeared, and she seemed like a noble and gentle senior.


    "Elder sister, I have found my companion," the phoenix said. She referred to the Island Lord as "elder sister."


    "Hmm, I saw." The Island Lord acknowledged as she nodded her head and smiled. "Have you made your decision?"


    "Across so many years, there has not been anyone more suitable than he is," the phoenix continued.


    Island Lord nodded her head gently. She then said, "Since you have already decided, I will support your decision. However, I will still need to see how this person''s character is like. I have already sent people to investigate him. If there are no problems, you can bring along the Divine Fire of Wutong as you follow him and cultivate together."


    "He should also be able to absorb the Divine Fire of Wutong," the phoenix mumbled.


    "That won''t do. The Divine Fire of Wutong needs to be in your charge," the Island Lord said in a serious tone, becoming sterner as she said this. The phoenix nodded her head as she acknowledged this like an obedient young maiden. She did not appear as proud and majestic as she did when she was under the wutong.


    When the Island Lord saw the phoenix''s attitude, she revealed a warm and gentle smile again. She said, "Alright, Zi Feng. Normally, I have been too busy cultivating and have had little time to keep you company. Now that you have already determined your own path, you no longer need to remain on this island in the future. Come, let''s have a nice, long chat."


    The phoenix nodded her head, walked up to the Island Lord''s side, and sat down. Towards this elder sister of hers, she showed due respect.


    ...


    Above the Sea of the Path of Eastern Deity Island, Bai Mu was with a group of Eastern Deity Island cultivators. At that moment, she received the orders from the Island Lord. She was slightly alarmed and somewhat astonished for an instant.


    Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master Ye Liunian had already drawn the attention of the Island Lord?


    That meant that Bai Mu''s previous decision was correct as expected. When Jun Qiuyan and Ye Futian were at odds with each other, she had asked Jun Qiuyan to let the matter go and had kept Ye Futian from being harassed by the former. Before this, she believed that with Ye Futian''s talent, it might be an opportunity for him if he entered Eastern Deity Island. If he could draw the attention of Eastern Deity Island, he would be protected in the future and would not need to worry about Jun Qiuyan.


    However, Bai Mu never imagined that it had happened so soon, and he had immediately caught the eye of the Island Lord.


    How many people had been handpicked by the Island Lord? Would Ye Futian be the next?


    What had he done now?


    Regardless, Ye Futian had not disappointed her. He had even surprised her. The intention of the Island Lord was also that Bai Mu only needed to keep an eye out solely for Ye Futian in the future. She did not need to look out for other potential candidates.


    Bai Mu stepped forward and flew across the sky, heading out to find Ye Futian.


    After some time, she saw Ye Futian''s silhouette. It was not just Ye Futian. In front of them, there were many people. It was rather lively. Many cultivators who had entered Eastern Deity Island had gathered together.


    Ye Futian''s group had also stopped here, not advancing further. Before them was a white mist that blocked off their wills. Based on what Emperor Helian shared with them, the outskirts of the Core Island of Eastern Deity Island was in front of them. There would be more fateful encounters of the Great Path, and they would all be concentrated in one domain. By passing through this domain, they could reach the Core Island of Eastern Deity Island.


    This domain had another name. It was called the Illusory Sky Domain.


    Everything was surreal. The various cultivators who entered Eastern Deity Island were gathered here. There were usually outbreaks of fighting between the various forces due to disputes over treasure, and there would always be severe casualties. People with ordinary levels of cultivation would not dare to enter this domain. Even though they would not be able to enter Core Island, they were fine with it. Discovering fateful encounters of the Great Path in the outskirts was not a bad alternative.


    After all, Eastern Deity Island invited the cultivators from thousands of continents. Although they were all top figures of their respective continents, there was still a disparity between the strong and the weak. Not everyone had such huge ambition as to step onto the Core Island of Eastern Deity Island.


    For many Renhuangs, the fateful encounters in the outskirts were enough. Before this, Ye Futian had already reaped many benefits in the outskirts. Of course, many people could not achieve what he did outside.


    "The Illusory Sky Domain is the true trial left by Eastern Deity Island for the cultivators. There are many fateful encounters of the Great Path within. I entered it before and barely made it out alive," Beigong Ao warned Ye Futian. His expression was stern. Even though his cultivation had undergone a metamorphosis, had proven his Way up to the eighth tier, and had the Cloud Wood, he was still serious and stern about this.


    After entering into the Illusory Sky Domain, it would no longer be like the outskirts where the various cultivators were dispersed. Instead, the top cultivators of various islands would appear in the same domain to compete.


    "Do you want to go in?" Beigong Ao asked Ye Futian. They had already been to many islands. From Beigong Ao''s point of view, the benefits that they had reaped were definitely not insignificant. They could still visit other islands. However, Ye Futian seemed to not be interested in them.


    Ye Futian wanted to go to Core Island.


    Hence, Beigong Ao had brought him here. Past the Illusory Sky Domain was Core Island. However, the cultivators of Eastern Deity Island had special means to directly pass through this domain. This Illusory Sky Domain was intentionally set up for outsiders like them.


    "Hmm," Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. He also wanted to see how many fateful encounters he would come across in there.


    "Pavilion Master Ye," a voice called out to him right then. Ye Futian turned towards the person who had arrived. He smiled and asked, "Goddess, why have you come?"


    The beautiful figure who had arrived was Bai Mu.


    "We were originally unoccupied. We primarily came to see the performance of the people who entered the island. We just happened to meet Pavilion Master Ye here, so we came over," Bai Mu answered softly. "Pavilion Master Ye, are you preparing to enter the Illusory Sky Domain?"


    "Hmm," Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. "Since I have come here, I will naturally want to venture into it."


    "Based on what I know, among the cultivators who came to Eastern Deity Island, almost one-fourth of them have already entered the Illusory Sky Domain. This is especially so for the members of the major forces who came here before. Their immediate goal was the Illusory Sky Domain. It can be said that all the powerful cultivators are in there," Bai Mu told Ye Futian. "The top forces of the Penglai Continent are naturally also there. Pavilion Master Ye, after you enter the domain, you must be careful."


    Ye Futian naturally understood who the other party was referring to.


    Jun Qiuyan had also entered the Illusory Sky Domain.


    "I will be cautious," Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. "Thank you, Goddess, for the reminder."


    "No worries. With Pavilion Master Ye''s talents and abilities, you will certainly be able to stand out on Eastern Deity Island and draw the attention of those on the island. If Pavilion Master Ye is willing, we might have the opportunity to cultivate together in the future," Bai Mu hinted.


    Ye Futian understood what she meant. Bai Mu said that if he was willing, he might be able to stay and cultivate on Eastern Deity Island.


    Every ten years, Eastern Deity Island would invite prominent figures to enter the island to cultivate. This was not out of the ordinary. They would naturally also invite him.


    However, Ye Futian did not answer. After all, he had no plans to do so. Yet, immediately rejecting their offer would be somewhat rude. After all, he was still on Eastern Deity Island.


    "If Goddess has no other instructions, I will head in first," Ye Futian said.


    "Alright," Bai Mu answered as she nodded her head. "Pavilion Master Ye, please feel free to do so."


    Ye Futian saluted with his fists. His group then advanced into the mist.


    Outside, many people were still hesitating. They seemed to be considering whether they wanted to risk going in. Some of them had decided to go in, but many people had yet to take this step.

 1909 Comprehension

    This place was a piece of land. By expanding their wills, they could sense many cultivators present in this space.


    "It''s so packed?"


    Ye Futian''s will swept across the Illusory Sky Domain. He discovered that this space was completely different from the outside world. This was a dense region filled with cultivators. It was as though all of them were gathered on one island. Everywhere their wills swept over, the place was filled with people.


    Before this, Bai Mu had said that one-fourth of the people who came to Eastern Deity Island had entered the domain. One could imagine how many cultivators that was. Tens of thousands of powerful cultivators had gathered together. Many among them were incredible figures.


    In the sky far in the distance, the sound of a terrifying collision could be heard. Ye Futian''s group raised their heads and looked in the direction of the sound. They saw that a huge battle had broken out in the sky above the region of land. It was a group battle between many Renhuangs. When they battled, it was as though the heavens and earth were being torn apart. The apocalyptic scene was extremely frightening.


    However, the people in the Illusory Sky Domain seemed unfazed by the commotion. They seemed used to such battles. In this domain, battles were never happening in one place. Due to disputes over fateful encounters of the Great Path, there was friction between multiple parties in many places. Many battles had erupted even before Ye Futian had arrived in this place. Many people had fallen here.


    Many people did not go seeking fateful encounters from island to island, instead coming straight here. This was not their first time on Eastern Deity Island for many cultivators. By understanding the situation on top of having powerful abilities, they immediately rushed over to the Illusory Sky Domain for the Great Path''s fateful encounters within the domain.


    For example, Jun Qiuyan had also done so. Ye Futian''s will noticed him. There were many cultivators around Jiu Qiuyan, forming an army of Renhuangs.


    Ye Futian recalled that before this, Jun Qiuyan was collecting Eastern Deity Tokens. He must have collected them so he could bring more cultivators into this domain. That way, when it came to seizing the fateful encounters of the Great Path, they would have the absolute advantage when it came to numbers.


    Around Ye Futian, the other cultivators also expanded their own wills. In a low voice, Emperor Helian said, "There are many fateful encounters of the Great Path in this place. There are sure to be many cultivators no matter where we go."


    Their group headed in one direction. Not long after, they arrived at an ancient peak.


    This was a mountain that towered into the sky. The mountain was actually in the shape of a sword. Standing on the mountain, one could sense an extremely suppressive swordsmanship aura. It was as though this region was a sword domain and was being enveloped by invisible Sword Will.


    It was a Sword Peak.


    "This Sword Peak feels suppressive. It must have been left behind by a top figure," Beigong Ao said. Even with his cultivation Plane, it wasn''t easy to truly sense how the Sword Will on the Sword Peak was present and how powerful the Sword Will.


    Before the Sword Peak were nine cultivation stone platforms. These stone platforms were connected to the Sword Peak. It seemed as though they, too, emanated the same Sword Will and were one with the Sword Peak. Some cultivators were sitting on top of these stone platforms, comprehending the Sword Will.


    "Nine stone platforms," Ye Futian stated as he swept a glance over them. Each stone platform had a person seated on them. There were nine cultivators on them in total. They sat there, their minds elsewhere. The remaining cultivators were either standing guard beside them or looking upon them.


    The figures of these nine cultivators released auras of the Great Path. Ye Futian could clearly sense it. All nine of them were different. The difference between them was even quite large. The strongest among them was an eighth-tier upper-level Renhuang. On the other hand, the weakest was a third-tier, but his temperament was extraordinary. He was guarded by cultivators following him. He must be from some extraordinary background to receive such treatment.


    "Each stone cultivation platform contains a Sword Will," Ye Futian exclaimed. Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao looked at him. They were astonished that he could actually tell with just a glance.


    "Rumor has it that this Sword Peak is a matrix that contains nine different Sword Wills. Each stone platform is engraved with one Sword Will and is connected to the Sword Peak. By sitting on them, one can sense the existence of the Sword Will and comprehend it. It is beneficial for the swordsmanship of cultivators," Beigong Ao explained to Ye Futian. Ye Futian was known as Sword Emperor Liunian. His swordsmanship was exceptional; Beigong Ao had witnessed it firsthand.


    When Ye Futian attacked with his three Sword Wills, it was already a very frightening technique.


    Ye Futian stepped forward. However, the nine stone platforms were already occupied by other people. There was no spot for him to cultivate. Even if he wanted to get onto one, he had to wait.


    However, there were too many cultivators waiting here. They were all waiting for the opportunity to get on the stone platforms and cultivate. Ye Futian''s group couldn''t wait until their turn.


    Ye Futian stood below the stone platforms. He gazed at the Sword Peak. His gaze suddenly became sinister and frightening, as though he could see through the Great Path. Immediately, a miraculous aura enveloped the endless space. It extended towards the Sword Peak. Very quickly, Ye Futian sensed a peculiar ley line. On top of the Sword Peak, there seemed to be nine ley lines.


    These nine ley lines were perfectly merged, forming a sword. Right now, in Ye Futian''s eyes, this mountain was no longer a mountain, but instead a sword.


    "Nine forms," Ye Futian mumbled to himself. His gaze turned towards the nine stone platforms again. He said in a low voice, "This is a sword technique that consists of nine forms that combine to become one sword. Their combined form is that Sword Peak."


    "You have good eyes to be able to tell straight away," a swordsman exclaimed with his arms crossed in front of his chest. His arms were wrapped around his sword. He was clearly a swordsman. He smiled and looked at Ye Futian. However, his smile seemed somewhat bizarre.


    "The nine stone platforms contain nine Sword Wills. These nine Sword Wills form the Sword Will of the Sword Peak. Everyone knows that," someone else said. The person''s gaze was still looking at the Sword Peak. He had calmly spoken, not looking at Ye Futian.


    "Hmm," Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head gently. So that was it. He asked, "What is the name of this sword technique?"


    "I am not sure," the person to the side replied. "In short, it is swordsmanship left behind by a mighty figure. It is just that for many years, it has been difficult to completely comprehend the nine Sword Wills on the stone platform. As for the Sword Peak, no one has managed to fully understand it to this day. That means to say no one has completely mastered this sword technique."


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly. He had also noticed that this sword technique was extraordinary. The sword contained within the Sword Peak was no ordinary sword.


    Yet, the nine Sword Wills contained within the stone platforms were not that difficult to comprehend. Ye Futian could clearly sense the Sword Wills.


    "Are these nine Sword Wills that difficult to comprehend?" Ye Futian pondered out loud in a low voice.


    "Of course," another female Renhuang to the side answered. "The nine Sword Wills are all different. They are nine completely different swords. It is like learning nine different sword techniques. If one could sit on the stone platform and sense the Sword Will, it might be somewhat easier. However, it is too difficult to even comprehend a single Sword Will from down here."


    She had just said this when her body suddenly released a brilliant light of swordsmanship that pierced the sky. When her Sword Will burst forth, the crowd could clearly sense a mighty current of swordsmanship flowing over her.


    She had comprehended one of the Sword Wills. Many people around her looked towards the woman. They revealed looks of appraisal and astonishment.


    "To be able to feel and comprehend a Sword Will from below a stone platform, her comprehension must be exceptional," someone praised. The swordsmanship aura on the woman flowed over her. It was brilliant beyond comparison. After some time, only did her Sword Will gradually recede. She glanced over at Ye Futian and asked, "First time here?"


    Ye Futian nodded. He smiled and replied, "I arrived not long ago."


    She looked at the people around Ye Futian. She immediately understood. He should be from a major force from some continent, but not one of the top forces like those on Eastern Deity Island. However, Ye Futian''s temperament was extraordinary. He was most likely from a prestigious family.


    "From the looks of it, wanting to cultivate on the stone platforms will be impossible. You can focus on comprehending one Sword Will after getting on a stone platform to see whether you have a chance of succeeding. If you sense that it will be difficult, you may as well give up and try your luck elsewhere," the female Renhuang added when she saw that Ye Futian''s temperament was special. She then walked towards the back of another stone platform, preparing to comprehend another Sword Will.


    "Many thanks," Ye Futian thanked the woman. The woman casually waved her hand. She did not mind and had simply reminded him. It was not worthy of Ye Futian''s thanks.


    "Why don''t you snatch a stone platform to cultivate on? Then, the chances of you comprehending a Sword Will might be higher," another Renhuang said to the side with a smile. He seemed to have a mocking tone.


    "There is no need," Ye Futian replied. "The Sword Wills of these nine stone platforms are clear as day and are not difficult to comprehend. I do not need to sit on the stone platforms to do so."


    His words caused many Renhuangs to look over at him. The Renhuang to the side smiled and said, "Is that so? Why don''t you give it a try? I can''t wait to see it."


    The female Renhuang, who had been speaking to Ye Futian, turned around and glanced at him. She warned, "Don''t be overconfident. There is more to the Sword Wills than meets the eye."


    As she said this, she continued training.


    "Haha, he might have extraordinary talent and superb comprehension and will be able to master the Sword Wills in an instant," a Renhuang mocked. However, this was just some teasing while they were not cultivating. There was no ill will to it.


    It was just that they had all been cultivating here and hence knew the difficulty of comprehending the Sword Wills.


    Some of the Sword Wills of the Sword Peak were comparatively easier to comprehend. Many people had managed to do so. Yet, there were also a few that were very difficult.


    Ye Futian smiled and did not say anymore. He stepped forward, came to a spot facing the Sword Peak, and sat down. The spot was coincidentally at the center of the nine stone platforms.


    He looked towards a stone platform. Aura of the Great Path emanated from him and enveloped the stone platform. In an instant, Sword Will circled and gathered around his body. Suddenly, currents of swordsmanship aura appeared around Ye Futian''s figure.


    This attracted the gazes of many towards him. He was rather serious. Could it be that he actually believed that he could comprehend the Sword Wills from below the stone platforms in a short amount of time?


    It was difficult for even the cultivators sitting on the stone platforms to do so.


    Emperor Helian and the others also looked at Ye Futian. They were looking on in anticipation. For them, who knew about Ye Futian''s talent, they also wanted to see how terrifying his comprehension was now. How long would he need to acquire the Sword Wills that many cultivators could not?


    The Sword Will on Ye Futian''s figure grew more and more powerful. Beams of sword light flowed over his entire body. They seemed to emit a humming sound of swords. Many people looked towards him. He was causing quite a commotion!

 1910 Refuse

    This scene caused the crowd to reveal strange expressions. Many people were joking just now. Yet, in the blink of an eye, the Sword Will seemed about to burst forth from the stone platform. Had the cultivator on the stone platform comprehended the Sword Will, or had Ye Futian done so?


    If it was Ye Futian, hadn''t he just done it in an instant?


    The cultivator on the stone platform was also stunned. He was originally comprehending and cultivating when suddenly Sword Will flowed out from the stone platform. It became more and more powerful until his body was drowned in it. Yet, it had not appeared because of him. Currents of swordsmanship aura flowed past his figure. The entire stone platform he was sitting on was also shining.


    What was going on?


    His expression was strange. The currents of swordsmanship aura on the stone platform flowed towards Ye Futian. Very quickly, Ye Futian seemed to establish a connection with the stone platform and resonate with it.


    "This��" The gazes of those who had spoken just now were all frozen on him. Regardless of whether their cultivations were powerful or weak, they were all staring wide-eyed at Ye Futian. Some more senior middle-level Renhuangs were red-faced.


    This was too outrageous��


    Then, why were they cultivating here?


    Was this truly his first time here?


    Many people felt as though they had received a huge blow. At that moment, frightening sword illusions burst forth from Ye Futian. Tens of thousands of sword illusions overlapped, becoming a Sword Will that pierced through the sky.


    Buzz!


    A sword appeared above Ye Futian''s body. It was not a real sword, but a shadow of it. The stone platform resonated with the sword shadow, causing another sword shadow to appear on the Sword Peak.


    Ye Futian''s will shifted, and the Sword Will, which had been lingering above his head, transformed into countless sword illusions. Then, all the illusions became one. At this moment, those cultivators, who had been convincing themselves that they were hallucinating, felt somewhat dejected.


    This was too great a blow.


    "That''s all it takes to comprehend the Sword Will?" questioned an elder with a long beard. This elder had been cultivating here for a period of time, yet he had comprehended nothing so far. Ye Futian had just arrived, and he had already comprehended a Sword Will?


    "How did you do it?" a Renhuang asked Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked at him and said with a smile, "This Sword Will is readily available. I need to face it and comprehend it. Isn''t it simple?"


    Hmm�� Ye Futian said it was straightforward. How else could he retort Ye Futian? If he said it was very difficult, wouldn''t he be embarrassing himself in front of everyone?


    Perhaps this youth was lucky. Or perhaps he cultivated similar Sword Will, to begin with. Someone thought to himself. Then, the cultivator challenged Ye Futian by saying, "Since you said it is simple, I am sure you can comprehend the rest of the Sword Wills too, right?"


    "Exactly. It would help if you tried comprehending other Sword Wills," the crowd echoed their agreement. They seemed to be comforted by the suggestion. Hopefully, Ye Futian''s achievement just now was all because of luck. Otherwise, it would be too great of a blow to them. They would be too ashamed to continue comprehending the Sword Wills here.


    Unbeknownst to the crowd, the cultivator sitting on the stone platform right now was the most ashamed one. He occupied the best spot, yet he could not comprehend the Sword Will. Ye Futian had achieved it even though he was sitting at the bottom. This was�� too humiliating.


    The cultivator could only pretend that he did not know what had happened and continued his cultivation.


    "Alright."


    Ye Futian nodded in agreement. He still sat cross-legged at the same spot. His gaze shifted towards another stone platform. Like what had happened just now, streaks of aura of the Great Path permeated and enveloped the stone platform. Ye Futian sensed the Sword Will that was hidden in it. A flash of sword light seemed to glint in his eyes. It was as though he could capture the flow of the sword.


    Ye Futian quietly sensed the Sword Will while streaks of it flowed all around his body. A flash of sword light shone on his body. All the cultivators who were cultivating nearby focused their attention on him. This fellow was too bizarre. He had actually successfully comprehended a Sword Will upon his arrival. It was difficult for others not to notice him.


    Everyone was anticipating Ye Futian''s failure. There was no special reason for it. They were simply jealous of his talent...


    Under the gazes of many cultivators, the Sword Will on Ye Futian''s body intensified. Soon, the stone platform which Ye Futian targeted responded too. The Sword Will flowed towards the stone platform and lit it up. At the same time, the cultivator who was sitting on the stone platform opened his eyes and revealed a strange expression. Then, he turned around and looked in the direction of Ye Futian.


    Next, a beam of light shot up to the sky, brightening up the area where Ye Futian was. The flash of sword light was clear and brilliant. It was blinding and mysterious.


    A second Sword Will appeared behind Ye Futian. It materialized into a real sword and floated behind his back. The sword hummed. This sword was different from the first sword. The first sword was akin to shadow, while this second sword was akin to light.


    "..."


    All the cultivators stared at Ye Futian and the two Sword Wills behind him. The faces of many cultivators were red. They felt so ashamed of themselves.


    "Let''s go." An elder turned around and walked away from the area.


    "Master, are we not comprehending these anymore?"


    "What''s there to be comprehended? Such simple Sword Wills. One can tell from a glance that they are not powerful," the elder bawled at his disciple. The disciple lowered his head and mumbled internally: since they were such simple Sword Wills, why didn''t Master manage to comprehend them? Moreover, didn''t Master tell him just now that these nine swords were extraordinary and they could increase their swordsmanship greatly if they were able to comprehend just one sword?


    This change of manner was too quick.


    The disciple turned around and glanced at Ye Futian. Most likely, Master was too embarrassed to stay around.


    Ye Futian could comprehend the Sword Wills in an instant. The other cultivators had been around for a while, yet they were nowhere near comprehending the Sword Wills. This fateful encounter did not belong to them, so they might as well leave right away.


    When the other cultivators saw what had happened, they were speechless as well. Was the difference in their level of comprehension that huge?


    People who could come here were all top figures in their respective continents. This mysterious white-haired Renhuang, who popped out of nowhere, had shattered their confidence. The difference between this Renhuang and them was too big.


    Thankfully, only one such monstrous figure existed around here. The level of those cultivators sitting on the stone platforms was similar to that of the crowd. None of them were as powerful as Ye Futian.


    The female Renhuang, who had moved on to the next stone platform before this, also stopped cultivating. She turned around and looked at Ye Futian. Just a while ago, she reminded Ye Futian not to be overconfident since these Sword Wills were not simple. She even advised him to stop wasting time and move on to other places if he could not comprehend it.


    So now, who should be the ones to move on to other places?


    She felt as though she was the one who was wasting her time here.


    However, Ye Futian did not take her words to heart. He didn''t even look at her. He was immersed in his own training and had started comprehending the third Sword Will.


    Similar to before, not long after, yet another stone platform glowed. The stone platform was brilliant while the Sword Will lingered. A third sword appeared behind Ye Futian.


    This sword seemed to contain a terrifying grandeur. Even though it was a Sword Will, one could feel the weight of it. The crowd could feel the pressure emanated by the sword.


    There were nine forms to this swordsmanship, and each form was unique. After one mastered and assimilated all nine forms, then only could one acquire the complete sword technique.


    After Ye Futian had comprehended the third sword, he moved on to the fourth sword, the fifth sword, the sixth sword��


    At the foot of the Sword Peak, all the cultivators had ceased cultivating. They were all watching Ye Futian comprehending the Sword Wills.


    Standing behind Ye Futian, Emperor Helian, Beigong Ao, and the rest of Ye Futian''s group was also staring at him. They were dumbfounded. As they stood there, they could sense that the crowd was scrutinizing them too.


    This was embarrassing...


    Could he be more subtle about it?


    With Ye Futian showing off, how could the rest cultivate?


    Beigong Shuang''s eyes blinked as she stared at Ye Futian. This fellow was so powerful, yet he was reluctant to guide her in her cultivation.


    On the stone platforms, the cultivators sitting on top of them had also stopped at this moment, not continuing to cultivate. They turned to look at Ye Futian instead, just sitting there watching him quietly.


    Was this a slap to their faces?


    How could they still sit on the stone platforms and cultivate?


    The figures cultivating on the stone platforms were not ordinary figures. They were either cultivators with high cultivation or members from powerful forces. Yet, once Ye Futian appeared, the rest of them were thoroughly disgraced.


    "This b*st*rd really wrecked our image," an eighth-tier cultivator grunted as he looked at Ye Futian. He had a sudden urge to beat Ye Futian up. However, he wanted to see whether this brat could comprehend all nine Sword Wills.


    "Indeed," a person sitting on another stone platform replied. Where could they put their old faces?


    There was a youth who had an ugly expression. However, his gaze was very sharp as he revealed a cold smile. He said, "His talent is exceptional. Why would he be bothered about how he made us look?"


    The elder to the side glanced over at him. He smiled and did not say anything. This youth seemed dissatisfied. However, that was normal. The Sword Will of the stone platform he sat on was not generated because of him. This would certainly be very embarrassing.


    If it was wrong to have such astounding comprehension, then Ye Futian was definitely wrong.


    Seven swords had already been formed. Ye Futian was comprehending the eighth Sword Will. Ye Futian was taking a long time to comprehend this Sword Will. Many people were quietly watching him. Although they were displeased with Ye Futian''s comprehension, the crowd was watching him very attentively.


    At last, currents of swordsmanship aura coalesced and appeared from the stone platform. This Sword Will was very slow and cumbersome. It did not seem to have the swiftness of swordsmanship. Instead, it was very slow.


    Behind Ye Futian, the eighth sword also appeared.


    Of the nine swords of the Sword Peak, Ye Futian was only left with the last one now.


    Ye Futian''s gaze shifted towards the final stone platform. On it, there was a black-robed youth staring at him. The youth asked, "Your aura of the Great Path is extraordinary. What powers of the Great Path have you cultivated?"


    "Swordsmanship, the five elements, etc. I have dabbled in all of them," Ye Futian replied.


    "Based on your description, you have comprehended many Great Paths," the black-robed youth concluded. The black-robed youth was a middle-level Renhuang. His temperament was sharp, and he emanated a pressuring vibe. He continued to inquire, "The aura of the Great Path that you unleashed contains a unique will. Can you unleash it again and let me sense it?"


    The energy unleashed by Ye Futian was inclusive, and it seemed to be able to draw out the currents of swordsmanship aura in the stone platforms. According to the black-robed youth''s speculation, Ye Futian''s quick comprehension was most likely related to his cultivation. It wasn''t entirely because he was good at comprehending.


    Ye Futian glanced at the other party. He had replied the other party''s question, yet this black-robed youth pried into his cultivation method. His behavior was rude.


    The few people who were behind Ye Futian frowned too. Before this, Ye Futian''s training here had been rather smooth. Even though the other cultivators were envious of him, they didn''t really do anything to him. However, the attitude of this black-robed youth made them feel uneasy.


    "I refuse," Ye Futian rejected with a smile. After that, his aura of the Great Path permeated as he continued to comprehend the last Sword Will.


    When the black-robed youth heard Ye Futian''s answer, his extremely sharp gaze shot out a beam of cold light of swordsmanship. Ye Futian refused to show him his aura!

 1911 The Killing Blow

    Leaping blades of light appeared in his perception as though they were omnipresent.


    Buzz!


    Instantly, countless blades of lights also surrounded Ye Futian''s body, leaping and dancing. Many people looked toward Ye Futian and the blades of light behind him.


    Sword chimes sounded as the swords flew around. Brilliant sword glints also shone atop the stone platform and resonated with Ye Futian.


    The ninth sword was about to be created.


    Everyone was in awe. The various mighty cultivators'' expressions changed from ones of curiosity, envy, and jealousy to those of seriousness as they watched Ye Futian.


    Did he really find it effortless to wield nine swords?


    What was the gap between them and Ye Futian, and why did he have such extraordinary powers of comprehension?


    Who was this white-haired sword emperor?


    At that moment, a powerful swordsmanship airflow flowed from top to bottom atop the stone platform and engulfed it instantly. The swordsmanship airflow suppressed the sword will within the stone platform and resonated with Ye Futian. In fact, it used a sword realm to seal the sword will within the stone platform.


    Many people were stunned. Following the stone platform upward, they saw the youth in black robes standing straight as a sword there. Wisps of sword will flowed from his body toward the stone platform.


    It was he who was disrupting the resonance between the sword will within the stone platform and Ye Futian, causing an interruption in Ye Futian''s comprehension of the ninth sword. Hence, the ninth sword did not appear.


    "You can''t do it!"


    The man in black stood there quietly, looking at Ye Futian indifferently.


    He was the cultivator on the stone platform. He ignored him and directly sensed the sword will on the stone platform and refused to answer his question.


    This scene made the people each have their own ideas. Sure enough, this man in black was unhappy with Ye Futian and hindered him from continuing his cultivation.


    Among the nine people, although the other eight people were a little upset, they did not stop Ye Futian and clash with him. After all, everyone was cultivating and did not interfere with one another. Ye Futian''s power of comprehension was stronger, and he still resonated with the stone platform despite not sitting on it. They could only tolerate their displeasure and embarrassment. After all, they were not the only ones who were embarrassed.


    Besides Ye Futian, who here was not embarrassed?


    Ye Futian''s eyes looked up at the stone platform. The pair of brilliant star-like eyes gazed at his opponent and were also sharp as swords.


    Their gazes clashed in the air, and many people even faintly sensed a powerful and extremely oppressive swordsmanship airflow flowing and spreading toward the surrounding space.


    They both remained silent, just staring at each other. It was as though everything could be conveyed through their actions.


    Ye Futian''s expression did not change as his sword-like eyes shot out rays of sword glint. With a shift of his divine consciousness, boundless amounts of sword qi flowed, and the surrounding space became a Great Path Sword Domain. Countless wisps of swordsmanship airflow flowed toward the stone platform, trying to remove the sealing power. Meanwhile, the blades of light surrounding his body were still incandescent, and he did not stop cultivating.


    The man in black swept a faint glance at Ye Futian. A terrifying sword slash sounded from the sky. Then a dark lightning sword glint descended from the sky.


    Boom, boom, boom... Numerous swords descended directly from the firmament, stabbed the area around the stone platform, completely sealed that space, made it an absolute swordsmanship realm, and stripped away all of Ye Futian''s power of swordsmanship.


    The two of them seemed to have gotten fired up and were already clashing.


    Many people had strange expressions. The man in black robes was a middle-level Renhuang but had an astonishing aura and an extremely powerful sword will. He was not like ordinary middle-level Renhuangs.


    A row of mighty practitioners stood on the left and right of the stone platform. Obviously, they were practitioners who followed the man in black robes here. Among them, there were two people at the eighth order of the Divine Wheel. Hence, the man in black definitely had an extraordinary identity. He was probably someone from a top faction of some continent. If not, he would not have had such a lineup.


    No wonder he was that arrogant. When Ye Futian refused to answer his question, he attacked directly and stopped Ye Futian from comprehending the ninth sword any further.


    However, Ye Futian also had a group of mighty cultivators behind him. They stood there and looked straight ahead. Their gazes were hostile and cold as they stared at the man in black.


    They all wanted to comprehend the Sword Peak, and everything here was the Great Path Opportunity of the Eastern Deity Island. It did not belong to anyone. Since they gained control of the stone platform, they also gained control of it. Others knew that they were incapable of fighting for it and naturally did not do so. Ye Futian also did not fight for it.


    Ye Futian was comprehending and cultivating under the stone platform. If that also angered them, that would already be somewhat unreasonable. Could it be that only those who were sitting on the stone platform were allowed to comprehend and cultivate?


    Although the remaining eight mighty figures still joked around. They did not have any malice toward Ye Futian. Only the man in black acted domineeringly.


    At this moment, a horrifying sword realm appeared around Ye Futian. A vast sword might went rampant in the void, causing the surrounding people''s hearts to shudder. What a strong swordsmanship aura...


    Although Ye Futian also showed his aura before, that was in cultivation. But at this moment, the true offensive power of the swordsmanship erupted. All the Lower Renhuangs felt that they could not be mentioned in the same breath as him. Even the many middle-level Renhuangs felt a powerful oppressive force.


    "He has forged a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel," an elderly high-order Renhuang said while gazing at Ye Futian. Indeed, how could a person who could comprehend nine swords consecutively not be extremely talented? Considering how he had a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel of the Great Path, he must be a demon from some continent.


    Above Ye Futian, three extraordinary sword wills formed. The sword wills released horrifying sword chimes that pierced eardrums, and everyone could feel an extremely strong sharp airflow.


    However, the man in black did not care at all, and huge black swords coalesced. Each huge sword contained a superb destructive power. With the stone platform as the center, they also created a terrifying sword realm.


    "That probably happened because a lower Renhuang could not maintain his Perfect Grade Divine Wheel of the Great Path after he broke through." An elder secretly thought after sensing this powerful aura. If it were always an ordinary Divine Wheel of the Great Path, the man in black''s swordsmanship would have been suppressed by Ye Futian''s sword might.


    But he did not, which meant that he had a perfect-grade Divine Wheel of the Great Path previously. Although he did not maintain it after breaking through, he was still far better than ordinary middle-level Renhuangs. His aura was no weaker than Ye Futian''s sword will and even a little bit stronger. After all, he once had a Divine Wheel of the Great Path at the same level as that of Ye Futian, and he was at a higher cultivation level.


    Buzz!


    The three sword wills behind Ye Futian were released and descended in an instant, directly blasting on top of that forbidden power.


    With a terrifying sound, cracks appeared in the sealing sword veil. The stone platform trembled continuously, and with a poof, the sealing power shattered, and Ye Futian resonated with the sword intent within the stone platform again. Blades of light emerged from the stone platform, mirroring the blades of light on his body.


    Boom...


    The moment Ye Futian broke open the seal, a horrifying rumble sounded.


    "Be careful," Emperor Helian reminded him. The countless black swords floating in the sky descended toward Ye Futian with a horrifying might. The seal the man in black set up was broken, and Ye Futian forcefully comprehended the ninth sword, causing him to start unleashing his killing blow.


    The giant black swords were extremely fast, descending in an instant. The swords seemed to have terrifying patterns on them, and each sword contained a terrifying dark light of destruction, wanting to directly kill Ye Futian.


    Countless blades of light flew around Ye Futian, creating a sword veil and obstructing the space, preventing his opponent''s swords from going through.


    But horrifying rumbles sounded, and the sword veil trembled violently. Cracks appeared under the attacks of the giant black swords, and it shattered and disintegrated. The giant black swords continued to move toward Ye Futian. A destructive sword river appeared, and under the swords, everything was destroyed.


    In this instant, another gorgeous blade of light appeared behind Ye Futian. At this moment, the ninth sword actually coalesced and came into being, exuding an incomparably terrifying swordsmanship glow.


    "The nine sword wills have all been comprehended." The people looked at Ye Futian and were extremely unsettled. Moreover, he did it while being obstructed by the man in black.


    By now, many people had already guessed the origins of the man in black. He was from the Black Iron Sword Clan, the top swordsmanship faction of the Magic Stone Continent.


    No wonder he was so domineering. The Black Iron Sword Clan was very strong. On the Magic Stone Continent, it was the top faction.


    Ye Futian''s gaze was icy as he swept his gaze toward his opponent. Instantly, three sword wills shot up toward the man in black. But a giant black divine sword appeared behind him. It was his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Giant black swords circled around him, and when the three sword wills crashed onto it, they did not break the defense, only emitting a sharp and piercing sound.


    The man in black stood in the center of the sword like he was standing on a throne, with a haughty coldness in his gaze.


    A terrifying golden divine statue appeared around Ye Futian''s body, rumbling loudly. The giant black sword blasted on top of the divine statue, causing it to shake violently, but it was not broken.


    The black-clothed young man raised his hand and stretched out toward the void in front of him, and in an instant, a huge black iron sword appeared above Ye Futian''s head. It was all black, flashing with dark divine light. Countless swordsmanship air currents flowed above the sword. Each ray of swordsmanship air current turned into a sword falling down, blasting around Ye Futian''s body, sealing the space where Ye Futian was.


    The giant sword was still gathering even more power. When the sword descended, it was as though doomsday had arrived.


    "So strong." The hearts of the people shook as they looked at the black-clothed young man. Was he really going to kill?


    Would the people behind Ye Futian attack?


    If they intervened, the other mighty figures of the Black Iron Sword Clan might attack as well. If that happened, the giant sword will would still fall, and they would not be able to stop him from killing Ye Futian.Many people had strange expressions. Although Ye Futian made all the practitioners here embarrassed, they did not have any intention to kill him. After all, they had no grudges against him and did not need to kill him.The black-clothed youth man ignored the thoughts of the people, he pointed his finger down, and at once, the giant sword fell toward Ye Futian!

 1912 Why Seeking Death?

    The giant black swords blasted above the Divine Elephants, and suddenly cracks appeared on the massive bodies of the Divine Elephants as they were torn to pieces. Those giant swords dropped down continuously to destroy those galloping Divine Elephants, and the terrible sound of collision shook this space without ceasing. With the collapse of many Divine Elephants, the black iron divine sword above Ye Futian''s head dropped immediately to attack Ye Futian.


    Boom... An extremely terrifying and violent sound came out, and the black iron divine general blasted on the massive bodies of the Divine Elephants, causing them to tremble. However, a mighty golden brilliance was released from the Divine Elephants. Their golden bodies held steady and proved indestructible.


    Ye Futian got up and stood inside the shadow of the Divine Elephants. He looked at the youth in black on the stone platform in front of him, and a cold murdering intent flashed across his eyes.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian took a step forward, and as his foot landed, in addition to the surging power of the Divine Elephants, there was also an unparalleled aura so sharp that it was enough to tear all things apart.


    All three Sword Will flew back to Ye Futian''s side, and above the sky, rivers of swords now appeared, converging upon the Sword Will.


    Buzz! Infinite Swordsmanship flowed into the Sword Will as if blended into it. In an instant, every one of those three Sword Will seemed to contain the terrifying power of Swordsmanship from Ye Futian. The attack that just took place was not in its complete form.


    "Get out of here." Looking up, there was a loud rumbling sound that could be heard. Divine Elephants that were transformed by the Divine Wheel of the Great Path soared into the sky, compelled the black iron divine sword toward the void, which soon pulverized and shattered. Afterward, above the sky, endless rays of golden divine glory bloomed, which actually augmented the Divine Elephants as they rushed forward. The trumpeting from of elephants was enough to shatter the eardrums of those who heard it, as countless phantoms of these Divine Elephants rolling forward at the same time.


    Ye Futian looked at the youth in black who was in front and continued to move forward. The massive Divine Elephants stumped down just as the other''s black giant sword, which was also made from the Divine Wheel of the Great Path, let out a terrible sharp screech and moving toward the Divine Elephants.


    Buzz!


    At this moment, those three most brilliant Sword Will bloomed once again, blending into Ye Futian''s power of the Great Path.


    The eyes of the youth in black also seemed slightly unsettled. Ye Futian''s strength was a bit beyond his expectation, and he was not able to take him down right away. In his mind, his realm should be enough to obliterate his opponent without a doubt.


    Giant pitch-black swords surrounded his body, majestic and cold. He was still standing in the center, just like someone who was sitting on the throne of Swordsmanship.


    At this moment, rivers of swords flooded the void. He felt a peculiar breath, which instantly covered the area where he was, causing him to shudder. It was icy, and this coldness was able to impact even his spiritual soul.


    The defense power of his Swordsmanship, likewise, was also covered with a layer of frost. It was as if it had been frozen solid by ice.


    "Huh?" The two men behind him who were of the eighth realm frowned; they seemed to feel a force capable of destroying the youth in black. One of them made a decisive move and raised his sword.


    Almost at the same instant, the Sword Will fell, accompanied by a crystalline sound as the dark iron sword defense protecting the youth in black was directly torn to pieces, turning into fragments. The Sword Will''s attack arrived instantly, and the youth in black suddenly felt a strong sense of fear when he saw the imminent arrival of the Sword Will as that Sword Will continued to enlarge in his eyes.


    Boom... With a loud bang, an even more terrifying, dark divine sword blocked in front of the youth in black, and the three Sword Will blasted directly on it. Blocked, they were not able to do the damage they intended.


    Next to the youth in black, a majestic but overbearing cultivator in the eighth realm now appeared; he was staring at Ye Futian coldly.


    Buzz! The Sword Will flew back in front of Ye Futian in an instant, chiming loudly, and let out a roar.


    At this moment, the crowd finally understood what had happened; everything was happening so fast that in a mere spark of the exchange, everything was already over.


    And their hearts trembled violently. Just now, was the young man in black almost killed?


    It turned out that it was the cultivator in the eighth realm who made a move to save him.


    This��


    They had thought that it might be Ye Futian who would have been killed, and the person who intervened would be the cultivator behind Ye Futian, but what had happened was completely the opposite. The youth in black, who was in the realm of Middle Renhuang, would have been killed by Ye Futian if it wasn''t because of the cultivator behind him, who had blocked that murderous Sword Will.


    This space suddenly quieted down, and its silence was almost terrifying. From beginning to end, the youth in black and Ye Futian didn''t say much. They were both ruthless men who attacked directly, and more importantly, they aimed to kill.


    "Is this why you are so brave?" Ye Futian remarked as he looked at the middle-aged man standing in front of the man in black. His tone was plain enough, but his words were full of mockery.


    The man in black attacked Ye Futian most aggressively, but he was almost killed. If it were not for the person behind him, he probably would have been a dead man already.


    In this confrontation, the youth in black had lost face completely. If he had killed Ye Futian directly, everyone would have just thought of him as an indifferent and cruel killer, who would commit murder for a small matter, and Ye Futian would only appear a pitiful loser.


    However, the young man in black had almost gotten killed himself, so the whole affair was now somewhat ironic.


    Another man of the eighth realm cultivation stepped forward and announced loudly, "Those who are not involved, please get back for now."


    Everyone trembled in their hearts. It seemed that the cultivators of the Black Iron Sword Clan were keen to kill Ye Futian. Now that they had already made an exchange, they did not want to let Ye Futian live.


    The youth in black had extraordinary status; he was the young master of the Black Iron Sword Clan and the son of the current Black Iron Sword Emperor.


    As for the two cultivators in the eighth realm next to him, one was the eldest disciple of the Black Iron Sword Emperor, and the other one who took action to protect the youth in black was the younger brother of the Black Iron Sword Emperor and the youth''s uncle.


    "It was just a small misunderstanding. Why resort to violence? It is not like it''s some life or death grievance, to begin with. Since no one was hurt, let''s just stop here," said the empress who had exhorted Ye Futian before, intending to persuade both sides to stop. Ye Futian''s talent was superb. If they went to war, the possibility of him being killed was great. After all, the power of the Black Iron Sword Clan was quite a bit stronger.


    This whole incident was caused by the Black Iron Sword Clan, whose rudeness was the cause of the conflict. However, she also understood that there was no absolute right or wrong in the world of cultivation.


    "No." The eyes of the youth in black was cold, and his murderous intent was stronger than before. If previously, he wanted to kill Ye Futian on a whim, now he really wanted to kill him.


    "Thank you for your kindness." Ye Futian looked at the empress and nodded slightly. "However, some people just want to die, so I have to oblige them."


    "..." The woman stared blankly at both of them. The youth in black and Ye Futian had both rejected her proposal. It seemed that they both thought they could kill the other.


    "You want to die?" The youth in black cast a glance at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at the other. He said to Beigong Ao, who was next to him, "You hold them back for a while."


    "No problem." Beigong Ao nodded. He had become more confident in his own strength.


    When his voice fell, a monstrous thunder field appeared, and with it, a terrifying phantom of the thunder god, covering this space. Above the sky, the endless thunder wandered, hanging down from the sky and descended on him. He transformed into a body of thunder, which attracted the divine thunder of the Great Path. All the divine thunder light surrounded him, shaped like countless chains of thunder.


    The disciple of the Black Iron Sword Emperor took a step forward, and a mighty Sword Might appeared above the sky. A terrifying sharpness spread, repelling the surrounding cultivators, forcing them to step back, pulling away. A great battle was about to erupt here.


    But many people were accustomed to it. In Eastern Deity Island, battles of this kind had erupted more often than not. However, this was the first time that battle at this level had occurred here.


    The Eighth Realm Renhuang stretched his hand toward the divine sword in the sky, and it was a terrifying black iron divine sword that was branded with terrible sword patterns, which now turned into terrifying black lightning that struck down.


    Bang bang, bang! The light of divine sword fell from the sky, blasting around the area where Ye Futian and the others were, turning it into a black iron prison, sealing this space with its swordsmanship, so that Ye Futian and the others had no way to escape.


    Afterward, he pointed his finger downward, accompanied by a terrible loud booming sound as the black iron divine sword smashed down.


    The thunder god of war that was transformed by Beigong Ao now hovered in the air, as endless thunder and lightning wandered, turning into a thunder chain that landed on the black iron divine sword and entangling it. However, it did not block the horrific momentum of the falling divine sword. Dark divine light huffed and puffed, slaying everything in its path.


    But there was a net of thunder that appeared in the sky beneath, which was destroying all the divine light. Traces of the power of Thunder Punishment wandered as the Method of Thousand Punishment reached toward the divine sword.


    Boom... A terrifying loud noise was heard as the divine sword was locked in place in the void, and baptized by the light of a thousand tribulations, breaking it apart little by little.


    Seeing this, the cultivators of the eighth realm next to the youth in black also walked forward. More terrifying aura now bloomed and oppressed this space with its might.


    Ye Futian did not look at the battlefield, but his power from the Great Path spread out as all nine stone platforms lit up at the same time, bursting with brilliant rays of Swordsmanship. At the same time, the sword peak also lit up, puffing out massive Sword Will.


    "What''s going on?" Those Renhuang who had left the battlefield now trembled when they saw the changes taking place at the sword peak. They looked at Ye Futian just as the cultivators from the Black Iron Sword Clan also turned to look at the sword peak and suddenly flooded with an ominous premonition.


    "There are great opportunities of the Great Path in Eastern Deity Island. Why seek death when you can live and cultivate?" said Ye Futian coldly. His voice became particularly grating as it fell in the ears of the youth in black, whose face changed as he turned his head to look at the sword peak.


    Buzz!


    From the sword peak, a sword light that pierced through the sky was blooming, rushing straight into the firmament, as its Sword Will swept out. In an instant, several people from the Black Iron Sword Clan who were closest to the sword peak were pulverized directly under the Sword Will and vanished into nothingness!

 1913 Attention

    The cultivators who were watching were in great shock. The terrifying Might of the Swordsmanship from faraway now descended on them. They continued to retreat steadily, only to see that the sword peak seemed to have truly turned into a punishing sword, and the Sword Will in the sword peak seemed to be urged, erupting in this instant.


    The crowd saw the Nine Sword Will surrounding the sword peak, causing the sword peak to release an unparalleled sacred brilliance of Swordsmanship. When it spread toward its surroundings, a light screen of Swordsmanship was generated. It was this brilliant sword screen that had pulverized the cultivators from the Black Iron Sword Clan.


    The two cultivators of the eighth realm also turned their heads to look at what was happening, and their expressions changed into one of shock. The voice was still lingering in the space, echoing in their ears.


    Eastern Deity Island contained opportunities of the Great Path. Wouldn''t it be much better to stay alive and cultivate there?


    Why seek death?


    Ye Futian had said that they were seeking their own deaths.


    "Get back." The two made a quick decision. The Divine Wheel of Swordsmanship erupted, and there was a massive black iron divine sword swung at them. A loud rumbling sound came out as if the sky and earth were about to break apart. The sight was most terrifying, and their hands grabbed at the young man in black, wanting to take him away. Their bodies turned into a stream of Swordsmanship, evacuating toward the sky above.


    Buzz. The sword screen swept across, blocked momentarily by the divine sword that had suppressed the Great Path. When it descended on the stone platform, the men had already withdrawn.


    On the other side, Ye Futian was suspended in the air with nine swords surrounding him, and the sword light was most brilliant. Suddenly, the sword peak, likewise, was surrounded by nine swords, and the Sword Will from the center of the sword peak shot straight into the sky.


    "Up!" Ye Futian spat. As soon as his voice fell, the sword screen enveloped the boundless space instantly. At this moment, everyone seemed to be inside the sword domain. Even the cultivators from the Black Iron Sword Clan who had fled into the air were no exception. They felt the sword domain came over them, and their expressions changed into one of shock.


    "Since you are seeking death, why bother leaving?" Ye Futian''s voice dropped as he pointed his finger toward the sky. Suddenly, above the sword peak, a glow of Swordsmanship flooded the space and swept toward the three of them. It was almost instant, with no elapse of time.


    Buzz��


    The moment the sword light fell, the three cultivators from the Black Iron Sword Clan were suspended in the void motionlessly. They watched their own bodies slowly vanishing into nothingness, being pulverized.


    How could he die here, at the hands of a Lower Renhuang?


    He didn''t even know who had killed him because he didn''t ask who Ye Futian was or where he came from before he attacked. He never thought that it would cost him his life.


    The cultivators from the Black Iron Sword Clan perished because of a Lower Renhuang.


    The final gaze of the two eighth realm cultivators was directed at the youth in black, with despair and anger. Their lives were ruined by his arrogance; why did he have to provoke Ye Futian?


    They were full of remorse, with immense hatred in their hearts. Ye Futian''s voice echoed in their heads: Why did they seek death?


    The sword light sprinkled down, and the bodies of that three powerful Renhunag immediately dissipated, as if blown away by the wind, turning into dust. They had completely disappeared as if they had never existed.


    The cultivators from Black Iron Sword Clan were annihilated.


    They didn''t know that there was another principality that had a similar experience; the annihilation of the cultivators from the Canghai Continent. If they had known, perhaps they would not have been attacking Ye Futian so heedlessly.


    The Sword Will returned to its place, back to the sword peak. The cultivators in the distance stared at the sword peak, and everything that had just happened seemed like a dream.


    It was too surreal.


    Not only did a Lower Renhuang of Divine Wheel Third Realm had accomplished what they could not, which was the complete comprehension of the Nine Sword Will under his own power, but now, he had killed all the cultivators from the Black Iron Sword Clan, sparing none of them.


    If their previous feeling toward Ye Futian was one of envy, surprise, and doubt, then at this moment, there was only one thought in their minds, and that was where did this person come from and who he was.


    No one had any doubts or even envy. There was only shock and awe. Many of them were Upper Renhuang of the Divine Wheel Eighth Realm, but they no longer treated Ye Futian as some lower-ranking person. Instead, they now looked at Ye Futian with extreme seriousness.


    After all, Ye Futian had just cut down two cultivators of the eighth realm.


    This man was far too outstanding.


    Previously, many of them had thought of Ye Futian as a young cultivator from some continental major force. However, at this moment, they felt that Ye Futian''s origin might just be a little deeper than what they could fathom.


    The empress, who had been exhorting Ye Futian before, suddenly felt hot in her face, aside from shock and surprise. She was embarrassed that after she had comprehended just a single Sword Will, and after failing to convince Ye Futian to give up, she absconded her effort and pronounced that Sword Will was far too difficult to comprehend.


    Was it really that hard?


    He had comprehended all Nine Swords and urged the power of the sword peak to sweep over these cultivators; it made her feel quite ashamed. How embarrassing. And what right did she have to lecture Ye Futian?


    Those elders who were laughing and chatting before were speechless now. They could only lament in their hearts that the younger generation would always replace the older ones. In this era of genius talents, there were always some amazing characters who would appear out of nowhere. They had no idea which continent had produced such an extraordinary character.


    In the future, the continent he came from would probably become famous because of him.


    At the moment, many already believed that Ye Futian would be famous someday, and the continent he was from would be proud of him.


    Ye Futian surveyed the crowd and said with a smile, "I have disturbed your cultivation, and I apologize. The conflict is over, so please continue as you were."


    The pointed indifference he had before had disappeared, and that extreme arrogance he displayed before was gone as well. At the moment, there was only a touch of gentle elegance from him, and his demeanor was quite pleasant. Many looked at Ye Futian and found him even more dashing...


    Perhaps this was the additional effect brought on by the display of his power.


    Seeing that Ye Futian behaved so casually, everyone nodded and prepared to return. However, someone also remarked, "Seeing our friend so easily comprehended the Nine Swords, how dare I continue to stay here to cultivate? I better go to other places and try my luck elsewhere for other opportunities. I wish my friend to gain full control of the Sword Will within the sword peak."


    "Thank you." Ye Futian nodded with a smile. He was very polite and pleasant. Many felt that Ye Futian, when not in battle, was a completely different person.


    "I don''t know your name, and where you come from?" an old man asked with curiosity.


    "My name is Ye Liunian. I am from a continent with no name," Ye Futian responded.


    "Ye Liunian." Everyone secretly took note of the name. The man who asked the question nodded and said, "This continent with no name would perhaps be famous one day because of you."


    This was a very high praise.


    If a continent was to be named after someone, then one could only imagine how great of an achievement that must be. Obviously, he favored Ye Futian in particular. This battle had proven Ye Futian''s extraordinary talent.


    Ye Futian smiled without saying anything. It was yet unknown how long he would cultivate in that continent. If nothing happened, it is possible that he would not return there. After all, the goal for this trip to the Divine Prefecture was purely for cultivation only, so that he could step onto the peak of Renhuang Realm as soon as possible.


    "Let''s not disturb our friend''s cultivation." Everyone started to bid their goodbyes and left, and they were all quite courteous. Previous to Ye Futian''s exhibition of extraordinary talents, their attitude was one of ridicule, and some were displeased. After all, a Lower Renhuang had made a fool of every one of them.


    But at this moment, such thoughts had vanished as there were only admiration and willing submission. How could they compete with him? They were not at the same level at all.


    Other Renhuang were coming from afar, rushing over here, attracted by the sword that was unleashed. After all, that sword light was so radiant that many inside Illusory Sky Domain had felt it.


    After arriving, they had not caught on to the situation, but from the chatters of those around them, they could guess a thing or two, and their attention now focused on Ye Futian.


    Many extraordinary figures had appeared in other locations, and it seemed that some would also appear here.


    No one knew who would be the most outstanding figure in this trip to Eastern Deity Island. Would be some cultivator from the older generation? Or would some Rehuang from the younger generation prevail?


    Presently, somewhere else in the Illusory Sky Domain, many were standing on top of the statues, looking into the distance. Above the tallest statue in the middle, a majestic empress was standing there. Her divine consciousness enshrouded the endless space, including the area where Ye Futian was. She saw everything that happened.


    "This man is very powerful," the empress said.


    "Although powerful, but the most outstanding person on this trip to the Eastern Deity Island has to be you, Princess," the person next to her remarked. The woman didn''t say anything more except, "Don''t forget the Flowering Tree incident before; there were two of them, and both were unfathomable."


    Those next to her were silent; they remembered, of course.


    In another direction, also in front of an opportunity of the Great Path, a young man stood with his hand folded behind his back. His eyes were looking forward, while the person behind him turned his head, looking into the distance, saying, "Over there at the sword peak, a mighty swordsman had appeared. His comprehension is extraordinary, and he slayed the cultivators from Black Iron Sword Clan."


    "How lethal was he?" asked the young man standing in front.


    "In the realm of Lower Renhuang, he had comprehended the Nine Swords one after the other, thus drew on the Sword Will of the sword peak, and cut down cultivators in the eighth realm," the man responded. The young man nodded slightly, "It seems that this trip to Eastern Deity Island will not be uneventful."


    Aside from them, many had now noticed the existence of Ye Futian. That battle not only shocked the people around sword peak, but it also attracted the attention of many cultivators in Illusory Sky Domain, and now they were made aware of the presence of a genius swordsman.


    But Ye Futian did not care much about any of this. He still concentrated on cultivating with peace in his mind to comprehend the Sword Will on that sword peak!

 1914 Musical Notes on a Mountain Side

    With Ye Futian present, no one was qualified to step onto the stone platforms to cultivate. Everything that had occurred caused the other cultivators to know their limits. Getting on a stone platform to cultivate would just be embarrassing themselves.


    Many people had left before this. Yet, many stayed behind and watched Ye Futian cultivate.


    As time passed by slowly, they saw the Sword Peak light up once again with brilliant light. The nine swords circled Ye Futian, and an illusory figure could faintly be seen practicing his swordplay on the Sword Peak. However, this all appeared somewhat ethereal and did not seem real.


    Right now, Ye Futian''s eyes were tightly shut. He was resonating with the Sword Peak. The Sword Will flowed over his body. It seemed as though the Sword Will on his body was the Sword Will flowing over the Sword Peak.


    An image appeared in his mind. In the vast space, he stood there alone. He swung the sword in his hand again and again. Each sword form was different. After countless swings, the nine forms seemed to merge into one, becoming one sword.


    Once this sword was swung, tens of thousands of sword shadows appeared. In the sky, many sword-shaped paths appeared. Some were fast, and some were slow. Each path was different. Yet, the frightening sword shadows pierced the space. When the sword shadows became one, the tens of thousands of sword shadows formed one sword. This sword seemed capable of decimating all things.


    Right then, terrifying sword light that pierced the heavens appeared on the Sword Peak. The cultivator felt their hearts suddenly tremble. They then looked at Ye Futian. They also saw a beam of sword light on Ye Futian''s figure. It headed straight towards the Sword Peak. In between Ye Futian and the Sword Peak, many silhouettes of himself appeared. Each silhouette seemed to stab out with a sword.


    Rumble.


    A terrifying thunderclap exploded, seemingly tearing the heavens and earth apart. The next moment, the cultivators astonishingly discovered that the Sword Peak had already been shattered. Only a beam of sky-piercing Sword Will was being radiated.


    Ye Futian, who was initially sitting there, had disappeared from his original spot. When the crowd caught sight of him again, he was on top of the shattered Sword Peak, standing among the Sword Will that pierced the sky. It was as though the moment the sword appeared, his person had become a sword and followed the sword as it moved. Even some upper-level Renhuangs had not managed to see this clearly.


    It was so powerful. Was this the ultimate sword form left on the Sword Peak? The crowd was astonished. Ye Futian was undergoing a baptism by the Sword Will as he was bathed in sword light. The Sword Will seemed to want to merge with him completely.


    "The Sword Peak actually shattered. No one has managed to do so in so many years. This Sword Peak has always been here. Now, it has been shattered," someone mumbled while lamenting the fact.


    "I have come here four times before. Across 30 years, this Sword Peak has always been here. Every time I come to Eastern Deity Island, I will come here to comprehend the Sword Will. After many years, I have eventually comprehended seven of the nine Sword Wills. I initially thought that in another 20 years, I might have a chance to comprehend all the Sword Wills on the Sword Peak. I never imagined that one person would make my decades of effort seem like a joke in one attempt," an elder muttered. He continued, "I am ashamed."


    "We are all the same. We met ten years ago," another elder spoke up. He sighed. His heart was heavy with emotions.


    They never imagined that one day the fateful encounters of the Great Path passed down in this place would collapse. Future generations would no longer be able to comprehend them.


    This lower-level Renhuang had mastered and inherited the Sword Wills in less than a day.


    "I really want to know what kind of sword it is. A prominent swordsman left it behind. If one can successfully comprehend it, their combat ability will certainly increase. This person has inherited the Sword Will. His swordsmanship will most likely be several times more powerful than before."


    The crowd frantically discussed this. They were excited to see a monstrous swordsman appear on Eastern Deity Island, yet they had also lost a fateful encounter of swordsmanship. It had been destroyed forever. This fellow had extraordinary talent, but he also destroyed a relic of the Great Path and reaped the benefits alone. He was truly a b*stard.


    Yet, they also wanted to be him. Unfortunately, they were unable to replicate his success.


    Ye Futian''s body radiated with brilliant sword light. It did so for a long while before gradually dimming. He opened his eyes. Sharp swords seemed to shoot out from his eyes. The humming of swords sounded.


    One sword had nine forms, and nine swords merged into one. No one knew what sword style this technique was from.


    This sword style could ignore spatial distance and kill in an instant. With the essence of his sword forms, Ye Futian could slay his opponents with just a thought. He would name the sword style Avici then.


    Ye Futian thought to himself, coming up with a name for the sword style.


    Unending Void, Fleeting, and Avici. These three sword styles had extraordinary power, and Ye Futian''s accomplishments in swordsmanship were constantly improving.


    If Fleeting Divine Sword was combined with Avici, its power might be even more devastating. By combining long-distance and close-quarter attacks, they would certainly become terrifying swords that would massacre their opponents.


    Ye Futian looked at the Sword Peak that had disappeared. He then turned towards the crowd. Seeing that the crowd had their gazes focused on him, he could not help but laugh wryly. He said, "Apologies, the Sword Peak shattered on its own!"


    Shattered on its own...


    The crowd looked at Ye Futian. When they saw that this fellow was apologizing with an innocent face, they really wanted to beat him up.


    Would the Sword Peak shatter on its own?


    It was naturally because of Ye Futian''s cultivation. Yet, what could they say when Ye Futian was the one who comprehended the Sword Will in the Sword Peak and obtained the fateful encounter of the Great Path?


    They could only sigh.


    Ye Futian returned to Xia Qingyuan and the rest of the group. Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao also smiled as they looked at Ye Futian. This fellow could have just cultivated on his own. Now, he had even robbed others of the opportunity to cultivate.


    "You are too cruel," Beigong Ao stated.


    "I was just cultivating on my own," Ye Futian said as he shrugged.


    "Hmm. You cultivated on your own but caused others to no longer have a place to cultivate. Fortunately, you only destroyed this Sword Peak, and there are many more fateful encounters of the Great Path in the Illusory Sky Domain. The rest can try their luck elsewhere," Beigong Ao continued.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, "We should also try our luck elsewhere."


    "Hmm." The rest of the group nodded in agreement and left. Ye Futian expanded his will, enveloping the vast space. He wanted to find places suitable for them to cultivate in, and that had fateful encounters of the Great Path that they required.


    Ye Futian''s group very quickly arrived at another location. Similarly, there were a lot of people standing around the space. Their gazes were fixed on something ahead.


    Before the crowd was a huge mountainside. On a cliff, golden characters were carved into the rock. They were obscure and seemed to be written in a special language. Yet, by standing there, one could sense Sanskrit chanting of the Great Path coming from it. It gave off intense pressure.


    "These are teachings of Buddhist techniques?" Ye Futian said when he sensed the will behind these characters. This power appeared to be the handiwork of Buddhists.


    From the looks of it, Buddhist cultivators had also previously come to Eastern Deity Island to seek pills. This proved how terrifying the influence of Supreme Deity Donglai was back in the day.


    "There is some text to the side," Xia Qingyuan exclaimed as she looked at the lower right corner of the cliff face. There was a line of characters carved into the rockface. Ye Futian turned his gaze towards the text. As expected, these golden characters were left behind by a Buddhist monk. He had suffered a severe injury of the Great Path and hence, had come to seek medication. Supreme Deity Donglai had cured his injuries of the Great Path. So, the Buddhist monk had left behind a set of teachings of Buddhist techniques here as a form of thanks.


    There were many people quietly comprehending the characters. Ye Futian saw a woman with extraordinary temperament sitting cross-legged among them. Many Buddhist runes were circling her body, causing her figure to be surrounded by the Light of Buddha. She seemed divine and undefilable.


    Ye Futian looked towards the obscure characters. He faintly felt as though the characters were not text.


    Aura of the Great Path emanated from his body. He could feel the golden characters on the cliff face more vividly. His gaze became deep beyond comparison. He could see through all falsehoods.


    Immediately, the characters seemed to leap up and present themselves before him.


    Musical notes.


    Ye Futian exclaimed internally. As expected, these characters were not characters but instead were musical notes.


    The teachings left on the cliff face were for a musical technique. People who did not cultivate the Way of Rhythm would most likely find it difficult to comprehend anything. They would not be able to make any head or tail out of it.


    "Why is it that I cannot make out anything from this?" Beigong Shuang mumbled. Before this, she could still somewhat understand the Sword Will of the Sword Peak. However, she could not make out what was on this cliff face at all.


    "It is normal for you not to be able to understand," someone to the side said with a smile. How many people could understand what they were seeing?


    "It is the same for me," Beigong Ao confessed. Beigong Shuang nodded her head slightly. So even her father could not understand. Then, this technique must certainly be exceptional. She wondered whether Ye Futian could understand it.


    She looked ahead and saw Ye Futian standing there. He said, "This is the Way of Rhythm. It is normal if you do not understand."


    "The Way of Rhythm?" Beigong Shuang asked as she revealed a strange look. "Do these characters talk about a musical technique?"


    "These are not characters. They are musical notes. If you are not a cultivator of this sort of Way, it will be difficult for you to comprehend anything. You all do not need to comprehend it," Ye Futian said. Beigong Shuang nodded her head. She looked at Ye Futian, somewhat speechless. Before this, Ye Futian had played a song on a guqin on Wutong Island. From the looks of it, he was well-versed in the Way of Rhythm as expected.


    A few silhouettes behind the female Renhuang turned their gazes towards Ye Futian and said, "It is you."


    "Do you all recognize me?" Ye Futian asked.


    "We met in the Penglai Deity Region," the person said with a smile. Before this, when a dispute erupted between Ye Futian and Jun Qiuyan in the Penglai Deity Region, they were all present.


    Ye Futian did not say anything.


    "I was just thinking of him, and he has come," the person spoke again. Ye Futian frowned. Within the range of his will, a vast group of silhouettes was approaching them. At the same time, a cold will immediately descended upon him, containing a murderous intent.


    Ye Futian did not turn around, but he naturally knew who had come. It was Jun Qiuyan.


    Jun Qiuyan had brought along many people. Before this, he had exchanged many Eastern Deity Tokens. Hence, there were countless cultivators on his side. When they arrived, the large group of cultivators caused the other cultivators here to feel pressured!

 1915 Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm

    After they arrived, they merely cast a sideways glance at Ye Futian. They did not pay him much heed. Their gazes fell on the female Renhuang, who was comprehending the Buddhist musical notes on the cliff face. When they saw the divine light coming from her, Jun Qiuyan and another youth revealed strange looks. It seemed that she might be able to comprehend the characters on the cliff face.


    "Shangguan, how''s your comprehension coming?" the youth asked at that moment. His tone was calm and indifferent. This person was similar to Jun Qiuyan. He was born into a top force of the Penglai Continent. The alchemy cIan, Yun clan, was an extremely terrifying force in the Penglai Continent. They were no weaker than the Jun clan.


    Aside from Jun clan and Yun clan, the female Renhuang who was cultivating was similarly a cultivator from a top force of the Penglai Continent, Shangguan clan. In front of the cliff face, cultivators from three major forces of the Penglai Continent had gathered.


    In reality, Jun Qiuyan and Yun Zhe from Yun clan had not come for Ye Futian. They had merely coincidentally bumped into him here. Jun Qiuyan was not too concerned about Ye Futian, even though Ye Futian''s cultivation talent was exceptional.


    "Yun Zhe, you are presumptuous," a Shangguan clan elder said as he frowned behind Shangguan Qiuye. His expression was cold. Yun Zhe was intentionally disturbing Shangguan Qiuye''s cultivation.


    "I came to ask how Shangguan Qiuye''s cultivation was going. Why does Senior say I''m presumptuous for doing so?" Yun Zhe asked the elder as he looked at him. The elder did not respond. His body released a faint, cold aura. The relationship between the few major clans of the Penglai Continent was complicated. Yun clan, Jun clan, and their Shangguan clan had always been at odds with each other.


    Right then, the light on Shangguan Qiuye''s figure gradually dimmed. She slowly turned around. Her beautiful gaze was breathtaking as it swept towards Yun Zhe and Jun Qiuyan.


    "I have comprehended some things. Do you want to join me?" Shangguan Qiuye replied Yun Zhe in a calm tone.


    Yun Zhe looked up at the huge cliff face before him. The obscure golden characters were like a riddle. He could not see through them at all. However, they knew from the people around them and their clan records that the characters on the cliff face were musical notes.


    Yet, only cultivators who were proficient in the Way of Rhythm could have a chance of comprehending it. Jun Qiuyan and Yun Zhe were slightly knowledgeable about the Way of Rhythm but were not proficient in this power of the Great Path. They might be able to sense it slightly. However, it was impossible for them to comprehend and cultivate the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm.


    After looking Shangguan Qiuye in the eye, Yun Zhe asked Jun Qiuyan, who was beside him, "What do you think?"


    "Although we are not proficient in the Way of Rhythm, there is no harm in trying to comprehend it. All the Great Paths are interconnected. We might be able to reap benefits that we never imagined," Jun Qiuyan answered as he looked at Shangguan Qiuye. As he said this, he also glanced at Ye Futian, who was to the side.


    "Alright," Yun Zhe agreed. "Then, let''s comprehend it for a while. Let us see whether we can comprehend this Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm."


    Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm. When the crowd heard Yun Zhe say this, their hearts trembled. Was this teaching known as the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm?


    They were cultivators from the major forces of the Penglai Continent. They were the forces most familiar with Eastern Deity Island. What they said shouldn''t be wrong.


    Ye Futian repeated the name in his mind. A demon-slaying technique?


    Jun Qiuyan took a few steps forward. A number of cultivators followed him. Behind them, silhouettes lined up one after another. Their auras were astonishing. They made the cultivators in the space sense a faint pressure.


    If one looked carefully, they would notice that Ye Futian''s group coincidentally had all their escape routes from this place sealed off.


    Before this, a huge battle had erupted between Ye Futian and Jun clan. He had killed many cultivators from the Jun clan.


    After stepping into the Illusory Sky Domain, Jun Qiuyan had planned not to let Ye Futian leave alive.


    Now that there were no goddesses from Eastern Deity Island around, no one would get in Jun Qiuyan''s way.


    He swept a glance at Ye Futian and said, "Don''t you have extraordinary talent? Let''s comprehend and cultivate together then."


    Jun Qiuyan allowed Ye Futian to comprehend the characters on the cliff face together with him. Although Jun Qiuyan did not want to admit that Ye Futian was related to the incident of the Flowering Tree, he knew deep down that it was related to Ye Futian.


    Yet, this was not important. Regardless of whether or not it was Ye Futian, Jun Qiuyan would still kill him.


    Before taking Ye Futian''s life, he would allow Ye Futian to follow him around to comprehend teachings to see how talented Ye Futian actually was.


    Ye Futian glanced sideways at Jun Qiuyan and ignored him. He then turned his gaze to the cliff face. He was originally planning to comprehend and cultivate here. What did this have to do with Jun Qiuyan? Did he need Jun Qiuyan''s permission to comprehend the characters of the Great Path here?


    Seeing that Ye Futian was ignoring him, Jun Qiuyan paid him no need and also turned towards the cliff face.


    Everything returned to normal. The cultivators present also turned back to the cliff face to attempt to comprehend the characters.


    Ye Futian also did the same. Will of the Great Path emanated from his body and sensed the will on the cliff face. At the same time, Ye Futian''s eyes became extremely bright. They had an enchanting air around them. For an instant, the golden characters seemed to leap out in his eyes.


    Musical notes.


    Ye Futian entered a state of deep focus. His attention was fully focused on the cliff face. Right now, it was as though he had entered a domain of absolute silence. Before him, golden musical notes were leaping around.


    Will. Ye Futian sensed the existence of a will. It was very clear and distinct. There was will contained within the characters of the Great Path, and the two were well merged with each other. Ye Futian tried hard to sense them. He could sense the musical notes leaping around, but he could not hear their sounds.


    The most beautiful song is one without sound. The will might have already surpassed the existence of sound.


    Ye Futian''s senses were terrifying. As he sensed them, the characters seemed to come alive. They became golden characters that danced in the air, seemingly playing a melodious tune.


    However, there was no sound at all. At least, Ye Futian could not hear anything.


    There were musical notes, but there was no sound.


    Even so, on Ye Futian''s body, golden light shone. It seemed as though he was forging a golden body. His entire body began to sparkle.


    This scene caused Beigong Ao and others to reveal strange expressions. No matter how exceptional a talent Ye Futian displayed now, they would no longer be surprised. However, what made them truly speechless was that he was not just displaying outstanding talent.


    It was the fact that he seemed to be able to master and cultivate all sorts of powers of the Great Path that surprised them.


    Now, he was actually also proficient in the Way of Rhythm.


    Then, was there a power of the Great Path that he could not cultivate?


    This time, Ye Futian was comprehending something much more difficult to comprehend than swordsmanship. He sensed the musical notes and only managed to faintly grasp something after a long while.


    The most beautiful song is one without sound. The Way of Rhythm did not necessarily require sounds to be heard.


    The Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm controlled the rhythm of sounds. When the sounds of the Great Path reached another level, Ye Futian might not even be qualified to hear those sounds.


    His Plane was too low. That was why he couldn''t hear the sounds.


    Ye Futian thought to himself.


    Although he could not hear them, his sensory ability was powerful, and he could sense the rhythm of the musical notes. Through this rhythm, he could still cultivate.


    At that moment, Ye Futian became even more absorbed into his cultivation. He became completely focused as he sensed the rhythm of the first set of musical notes.


    Everyone in this space was comprehending the musical notes. However, most of them failed to grasp the main points. A middle-level Renhuang lamented, "I have cultivated the Way of Rhythm for many years. I sense that this rhythm is extraordinary. It is definitely a powerful musical technique. Alas, I cannot grasp its main points. I am destined to miss this opportunity."


    As he said this, he let out a long sigh. He finally decided to give up. He turned to leave.


    "Are you leaving?" someone asked.


    "I am," the elder replied without turning back. "I wonder whether anyone can manage to comprehend this musical technique within a century."


    It was difficult, too difficult.


    He had delved into the Way of Rhythm for many years and was considered a master level figure. Yet, he could only grasp the surface of this technique. From his perspective, with the difficulty of this technique of the Way of Rhythm, even if Eastern Deity Island were to be opened up to the outside world ten times, it might be that no one would successfully cultivate it.


    However, at that moment, a formless rhythm swept out, causing the elder to stop in his tracks. He then turned around and looked at the cliff face. He saw the first set of golden characters seemingly leap off the cliff face. The characters radiated brilliant golden light. The characters emitted sound waves of the Great Path, which instantly swept through the space. Everyone could clearly sense the power of the sound.


    "Who did it?"


    The elder''s beard fluttered in the wind. His gaze suddenly became extremely sharp. He glanced around at the crowd as his heart wavered. Someone had managed to comprehend the musical notes. Although it was only the first step, it was a start.


    With such a place to start from, comprehending this riddle would be a possibility.


    His gaze turned towards Shangguan Qiuye. Prior to this, only she had managed to resonate with the cliff face. If anyone had managed to succeed, she had the highest likelihood of doing so.


    However, right now, Shangguan Qiuye similarly felt her heart tremble. Her beautiful eyes opened, and she stared at the cliff face. The wave of the Great Path made her feel an intense sense of awe. This was the result that she had tried to achieve by comprehending so hard.


    Yet, before she had reached this step, someone else had beaten her to it.


    Who managed to do it?


    She also looked around at the crowd. Seeing her reaction, the elder immediately understood that it was not Shangguan Qiuye who had done so. Who exactly did it?


    Many people opened their eyes and surveyed their surroundings. There were even some people who started whispering to each other. They had all sensed what had happened just now.


    Shangguan Qiuye glanced at Jun Qiuyan and Yun Zhe. It couldn''t be those two, could it?


    The two of them were looking at Shangguan Qiuye. Yun Zhe looked at her in suspicion. He then smiled and asked, "It wasn''t you?"


    Shangguan Qiuye did not need to ask anymore to know that it wasn''t them.


    Then, who could it be?


    Who was still cultivating?


    Her gaze swept across the crowd and eventually landed on a silhouette. The figure had white hair and was dressed in white robes. His gaze was still fixed on the cliff face, seemingly absorbed to the point that he couldn''t pull himself away from looking at it.


    This person was Ye Futian. He was also one of the few cultivators who were unperturbed and were still comprehending the musical notes.


    Shangguan Qiuye naturally was suspicious of him!

 1916 Carried out Once Decreed

    Before this, in the Penglai Deity Region, Ye Futian had killed the cultivators of the Jun clan with his Sword Will. His ability was extraordinary. In her opinion, Jun Qiuyan was far inferior to Ye Futian. Now, Ye Futian was comprehending here. He must also be proficient in the Way of Rhythm.


    Therefore, the possibility of Ye Futian activating the golden runes was very high. It was because Ye Futian and Jun Qiuyan were the only few new visitors here. The rest of the cultivators had long been here. Before Ye Futian arrived, she was the one who had the deepest understanding of the cliff face.


    Shangguan Qiuye turned around and cast a glance at Jun Qiuyan. Her indifferent gaze communicated a slight hint of disdain; she seemed to be mocking him. Jun Qiuyan had been despising Ye Futian, but in reality, if Jun Qiuyan weren''t the descendant of the Jun clan of the Penglai Continent, he would pale into insignificance when compared with Ye Futian.


    Jun Qiuyan frowned and narrowed his eyes. His gaze was dead set on Ye Futian. The doubt in his mind surfaced once again: whom did the Flowering Tree blossom for?


    His gaze turned icy sharp in an instant. An aura of the Great Path touched Ye Futian. Ye Futian, who had been comprehending the golden runes, was disturbed by this aura of the Great Path. His meditation was brought to a halt. A cold look flashed past in his eyes.


    The musical notes in this Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm were ethereal and hard to comprehend. Ye Futian needed to devote all his attention to his meditation and could not be distracted. Its level of difficulty was much higher than that of when he was comprehending the Sword Wills. Therefore, when Jun Qiuyan interfered with an aura of the Great Path, Ye Futian was alarmed and withdrew from his meditation right away.


    Ye Futian''s gaze shifted. He looked at Jun Qiuyan. The latter was similarly staring at him. When Yun Zhe, who was standing beside Jun Qiuyan, noticed the abnormality between them, he revealed a strange expression. He pondered out loud while staring at Ye Futian, "Did he cause this to happen?"


    He scrutinized Ye Futian. The glow of the golden runes on the cliff face dimmed, as though they had lost their color. The aura of the golden runes also ceased fluctuating. When Yun Zhe saw this, his expression turned even more uneasy.


    So it was really this fellow?


    "Jun Qiuyan, it seems like you have keen eyes. You wanted to recruit him into your team and cultivate in Eastern Deity Island. Unfortunately, he didn''t appreciate your offer," Yun Zhe commented with a smile. "However, his rejection was no surprise. With his talent to comprehend the fateful encounters of the Great Path, there''s no reason for him to be the cat''s paw."


    Right now, Jun Qiuyan would not attack Ye Futian. He would let him continue his meditation.


    Ye Futian glared at Jun Qiuyan. Right now, another voice was transmitted into Ye Futian''s mind, saying, "I am Shangguan Qiuye, from Shangguan clan of the Penglai Continent. May I know how I should address you?"


    "Ye Liunian." Ye Futian glanced at Shangguan Qiuye, who was to the side. She was the one who was talking to him via sound transmission.


    "Renhuang Ye." Shangguan Qiuye said, "The musical technique that is carved on this cliff face is the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm. Each and every golden rune is a musical note. Just now, Renhuang Ye managed to activate a musical note. Are you able to comprehend all the musical notes here?"


    "I am not sure," Ye Futian replied. What was the intention of this Shangguan Qiuye?


    "Jun Qiuyan allowed you to continue comprehending the technique. If you actually manage to comprehend it, he will certainly capture you and force you to reveal the method to do so. Why don''t you work with me? If you can comprehend the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm, my Shangguan clan is willing to ensure your safety," Shangguan Qiuye offered. As for the conditions, she did not need to explain. She naturally was after the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm that he managed to comprehend.


    This technique was priceless. For Shangguan clan to protect Ye Futian, he had to first comprehend the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm on the cliff face.


    "It still depends on whether I can comprehend it in the first place," Ye Futian replied. He neither agreed to nor refused her offer.


    Since both Jun Qiuyan and Shangguan Qiuye wanted to see him comprehend it, he naturally would not disappoint them.


    Ye Futian ignored them and continued facing the cliff face to comprehend and cultivate. However, Beigong Ao, Emperor Helian, and the others were cautiously guarding beside Ye Futian. They naturally could tell that Ye Futian needed to delve into his task. They could not comprehend this Way of Rhythm themselves. Hence, they might as well not try and instead protect Ye Futian, preventing the other parties from attacking him.


    After all, on Eastern Deity Island, anything could happen.


    Ye Futian started again, comprehending the first set of golden runes. When he looked at the cliff face, he entered a miraculous realm. It was as though there were only him and the musical notes. The rhythm of musical notes swept out, and the golden musical notes leaped up. From them, Ye Futian could sense the aura of the Great Path.


    Sensing this rhythm, Ye Futian seemed to hear a very faint sound.


    This sound could not be heard with his ears. Instead, he used his mind and will to sense it. Through the rhythm of the musical notes, he could sense the sound of the musical rhythm. If his attainments in musical rhythm were high enough, he might be able to hear it clearly. Alas, the current him could yet do so.


    A formless wind swept over the area. The cultivators who stood before the cliff face were quietly sensing it. They could also sense the will of the rhythm. It had an indescribable sensation to it. It seemed like the rhythm of sound, but they could not hear it.


    How bizarre. Many people thought to themselves. Some more senior figures revealed strange looks. The upper-level Renhuang from Shangguan clan stared at the cliff face and said, "Rumor has it that some top tier musical techniques can kill without any form or trace. This Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm is one such top tier musical technique. Its formless rhythm sweeps out and shatters the spiritual souls of its opponents."


    "That means to say, we have already felt the rhythm of the music, but we just can''t hear it," someone said to the side.


    The crowd nodded their heads slightly as they continued to quietly sense this rhythm. As time passed, another set of runes lit up with golden divine halos. From them, another intense rhythm emanated, causing many people to reveal surprised looks.


    Jun Qiuyan had a very cold look in his eyes. He swept a glance at Ye Futian. His eyes were filled with murderous intent.


    However, he did not stop Ye Futian from cultivating. Instead, he allowed Ye Futian to proceed. When Ye Futian finished cultivating, if he could comprehend the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm, it would not be too late to capture him then. That way, Ye Futian could at least be of use to them. They would reap the benefits of his hard work.


    Right now, Jun Qiuyan was feeling conflicted. He hoped Ye Futian would be able to comprehend the technique and hoped that he would not be able to.


    Deep within, he did not want to see Ye Futian''s talent actually be so outstanding. He would appear very ordinary next to Ye Futian.


    Nevertheless, regardless of what he was thinking, on the cliff face, more and more golden characters appeared. They shone brightly, and gradually, the space before the cliff face seemed to be lit with frightening divine light. From this divine light, many golden characters appeared. Formless waves radiated outwards like waves on the sea, sweeping out into the space in front of the cliff face.


    Ye Futian was completely absorbed in his task. He was in his own world. It was as though he was in an independent space. Countless musical notes floated around his figure. Miraculous Buddhist chanting circled him. He did not fully understand what was happening. The frightening rhythm spread out in all directions. The countless characters seemed to weave into a pattern. The image of a golden Buddha statue could faintly be seen.


    The Buddhist chanting of the Great Path seemed to be coming from the Buddha statue.


    The cliff face slowly lit up with brilliant divine halos. It lit up the entire space. The cultivators standing before the cliff face were filled with awe and wonder. Ye Futian had actually managed to activate the runes on the cliff face.


    They looked around them and felt a sensation. It was as though they were all enveloped by a formless rhythm. The golden halos were everywhere, like silky threads. The threads enveloped the vast space like a domain of the Great Path.


    Beigong Shuang looked around her. She then looked towards Ye Futian. As expected, there was nothing that he could not do.


    Shangguan Qiuye was also absorbed in cultivating. Such an opportunity was even more suitable for comprehending the technique. She could rely on Ye Futian''s comprehension to sense the cliff face even more clearly. She also managed to comprehend a few sets of runes. A formless rhythm circled her figure.


    Jun Qiuyan sensed everything that was occurring before him. He revealed a sullen look. Nearby, Yun Zhe looked at him and said, "Such comprehension is most likely rare even in the Penglai Continent. Such a shame."


    Jun Qiuyan became even more sullen when he heard Yun Zhe''s words. He naturally could tell that Ye Futian managed to do something that even Shangguan Qiuye had not been able to.


    A powerful aura radiated outwards. It emanated from where Ye Futian was. However, at that moment, Beigong Ao, who had always been on guard, took a step forward and came to Ye Futian''s side. His aura of the Great Path emanated outwards and enveloped the space, not allowing others to disturb Ye Futian.


    "That should be enough," Jun Qiuyan roared. His voice was like thunder. The space trembled violently. It seemed to scatter the formless rhythm. Ye Futian was absorbed in cultivating the Way of Rhythm. Suddenly, a loud roar swept over him and caused his focus to waver slightly.


    Ye Futian was indifferent to Jun Qiuyan''s disturbance. A formless rhythm swept out and pushed back the loud roar. Ye Futian''s lips moved slightly as he said in a cold tone, "Get lost."


    When he said this, it was like a divine voice of the Great Path. Everything he said had to be carried out. A terrifying rhythm swept out and instantly flooded Jun Qiuyan''s body. His expression changed drastically. The terrifying rhythm immediately attacked his spiritual soul. Buddhist chanting circled him, attempting to directly shatter his spiritual soul.


    Rumble.


    There was a loud rumble, and Jun Qiuyan''s figure was immediately sent flying backward from the shockwave. He coughed out a mouthful of fresh blood. The expressions of the surrounding people changed drastically. Their figures dashed forward, but Jun Qiuyan still fell to the ground. His face was pale.


    Jiu Qiuyan''s gaze turned extremely sullen. He swept a glance at Ye Futian. He was still cultivating there. He had injured Jiu Qiuyan without even moving at all.


    This scene could only be appropriately described as Jiu Qiuyan humiliating himself.


    He was pathetic. Many people thought to themselves as they looked pitifully at Jun Qiuyan. The heir of the Jun clan of the Penglai Continent was humiliated in such a fashion. This incident would surely be known throughout the Penglai Continent!

 1917 Making a Move

    However, right now, Ye Futian seemed to ignore Jun Qiuyan''s existence completely. He faced the cliff face, giving off the feeling as though Jun Qiuyan was a jester. Jun Qiuyan had kept provoking him but was injured with just a word from Ye Futian.


    Jun Qiuyan felt his face turn red hot. His murderous intent was menacing. Around him, many cultivators looked towards Ye Futian. They had cold and indifferent gazes. They stepped forward, and instantly, a furious pressure of the Great Path enveloped the endless space. It covered the entire area in front of the cliff face.


    This caused the cultivators in front of the cliff face to frown. They felt slightly dissatisfied.


    Ye Futian was unperturbed. However, Shangguan Qiuye, who had been cultivating, was awakened, being pulled out from her cultivation state. Her gaze shifted as she turned and coldly swept a glance at Jun Qiuyan and his men. In a cold and indifferent tone, she said, "If you want to cultivate, do it quietly. If not, get lost."


    She had just said this when a similarly furious aura swept out from her. It became a rhythm of the Great Path that struck against Jun Qiuyan''s body.


    Jun Qiuyan took a step backward. Aura emanated from his body and circled his figure. The clothes on his body fluttered and danced frenziedly. He stared at Shangguan Qiuye, who had turned around. His gaze was as cold as ice.


    Another person was asking him to get lost.


    Before this, Ye Futian had humiliated him with these words. Now, he had heard Shangguan Qiuye uttering these very same words. Since when had Jun Qiuyan ever suffered such humiliation?


    "If you are not cultivating, then don''t disturb others," an eighth-tier cultivator said lazily. He did so without looking at Jun Qiuyan, yet his voice was heard by everyone present. His intentions were the same as Shangguan Qiuye. He did not want to see Jun Qiuyan and his group rampaging around here.


    Or it should be said that he did not want them to disturb Ye Futian from cultivating.


    Right now, Ye Futian was comprehending the characters on the cliff face and activating them. This caused the others to be able to sense the characters even more clearly than before. Many people could then comprehend the rhythm of the musical notes. This was some help to their cultivation. As long as they could begin comprehending, they could slowly make progress and would at least have a chance at comprehending the technique.


    However, Jun Qiuyan was wreaking havoc here. They were naturally dissatisfied with him.


    Among the cultivators here, many of them were from powerful forces of various continents. They were all proud people, so they naturally could not stand someone acting high and mighty.


    "With just one word, you were forced back and coughed up fresh blood. Jun Qiuyan, if I were you, I would run away as far as I can. How could I possibly show my face here?" Shangguan Qiuye continued to chastise him mercilessly. She was also a member of a top force from the Penglai Continent. Although there was friction between them, she believed that the members of the Jun clan did not dare to lift a finger against her. Moreover, there were several cultivators from the Shangguan clan on Eastern Deity Island.


    "Shangguan, you are going overboard," Yun Zhe said as he looked at Shangguan Qiuye. "You are also a cultivator from the Penglai Continent, yet you are siding so much with the other party. Are you trying to flatter the other party because you received an epiphany in your cultivation? Could it be that you hope that he will instruct you in your cultivation?"


    "You too. If you want to cultivate, then keep quiet. If you don''t want to cultivate, get lost from this region," Shangguan Qiuye similarly scolded Yun Zhe in a cold and indifferent tone as she glared at him.


    Her words caused Yun Zhe to fall silent. He stared at her, the corners of his mouth revealing a hint of a cold smile.


    "Elder brother Jun, what shall we do?" he asked as he looked at Jun Qiuyan.


    Jun Qiuyan swept a glance across the crowd. Although many cultivators had released their auras of the Great Path, he could clearly tell that few truly dared to stand against him. The cultivators still valued their lives.


    Jun Qiuyan did not believe that these people were not afraid to die.


    Ye Futian was also continuing to comprehend and was relying on the Way of Rhythm of the cliff face. Jun Qiuyan could not wait any longer.


    An overbearing and sharp look flashed past Jun Qiuyan''s eyes. He looked around at the crowd and loudly proclaimed, "Those who are not involved with the affairs of Jun clan of the Penglai Continent, please vacate this area temporarily. Once we settle our affairs, you may return to cultivating. I apologize for disturbing you all."


    As Jun Qiuyan said this, he waved his hand, and immediately, figures stepped out and dispersed to different directions. The hundred over cultivators that he had brought to Eastern Deity Island with many Eastern Deity Tokens dispersed. For a moment, vast pressure enveloped the space before the cliff face, bearing down on the crowd.


    "Jun clan of the Penglai Continent wishes to settle some matters. I hope that you may show us some face. Please move," an eighth-tier cultivator loudly proclaimed beside Jun Qiuyan. His voice was loud and could be heard far and wide. His words caused the eardrums of the crowd to tremble.


    A suffocating pressure enveloped the space. Many people felt the urge to retreat. Some weaker Renhuangs were already leaving. This matter was originally unrelated to them. They naturally had no reason to get caught up in this mess.


    They swept a glance at Jun Qiuyan. They never imagined that while the crowd was against him, Jun Qiuyan could still act so domineering. His way of doing things was extremely decisive, sharp, and overbearing.


    As expected, cultivators dashed away one by one. Although the cultivators here were top figures of their respective continents, they were all from different forces and had not coalesced into a single force. They would naturally have their own opinions and would not act united.


    After all, there were no major benefits involved.


    Hence, most people chose to retreat.


    "Yun Zhe, when the fight begins, can the cultivators of Yun clan help us hold the line?" Jun Qiuyan asked Yun Zhe, who was standing beside him. In reality, he was hinting to Yun Zhe to block off those who tried to escape after the battle started and kill them all off together. This would continue to exert tremendous pressure on those who did not leave.


    "No problem. Leave it to me," Yun Zhe answered immediately, making a prompt decision without any hesitation. Why would he mind when he did not need to get involved while the two forces were fighting?


    There was also the Shangguan clan. Yun Zhe wanted to see a huge fight erupt between the Jun clan and the Shangguan clan. That way, both sides would weaken each other.


    Yun Zhe waved his hands, and the cultivators of the Yun clan flew up high into the sky. They stood in different positions. Their auras of the Great Path emanated from their bodies and enveloped this space. The two top forces of the Penglai Continent had joined forces.


    From the looks of it, Jun Qiuyan was adamant about capturing Ye Futian.


    "Please move quickly, everyone. If you have not left when the fight begins, then you do not need to leave at all," Jun Qiuyan cried out again in a cold tone, causing people to constantly leave the place.


    Before the cliff face, there were very few people left. There were just a few cultivators, but most importantly, there were three major factions.


    They were the cultivators of Dongyuan Pavilion, led by Ye Futian, the Shangguan clan led by Shangguan Qiuye, and Jun Qiuyan''s cultivators.


    He was still cultivating? Many people looked towards Ye Futian. A fight was about to ensue, and yet, Ye Futian seemed to be completely unaware. He was actually still comprehending the technique on the cliff face without any distractions. He continued to cultivate peacefully. This scene caused many people to lament. This person''s cultivation talent was already so miraculously high that his state of mind was also supernatural.


    It was just that no one knew how he was going to survive this predicament.


    Shangguan Qiuye had a cold and indifferent gaze. She similarly waved her hands, and immediately, cultivators stood before the cliff face, facing off against the cultivators of Jun clan. However, their formation was much weaker than the Jun clan''s. Jun Qiuyan had come prepared this time. He had brought many cultivators to Eastern Deity Island. There were the Renhuangs of Jun clan and the cultivators who had no Eastern Deity Tokens and had either relied on them or collaborated with them to enter Eastern Deity Island.


    The Shangguan clan''s cultivators could not hold off so many opponents. They could only choose to stand before Jun Qiuyan and the group of cultivators beside him. Two terrifying pressures collided in the space between these two forces.


    Jun Qiuyan swept a glance at Shangguan Qiuye and said, "Shangguan, do you truly believe that I wouldn''t dare lay a finger on you?"


    "You can try," Shangguan Qiuye responded. Her gaze was cold and proud.


    Jun Qiuyan waved his hand. A few powerful Renhuangs immediately faced off with the Shangguan clan cultivators. In a cold tone, Jun Qiuyan ordered, "If anyone interferes with the affairs of Jun clan, kill them without mercy."


    "Understood," the Renhuangs replied as they nodded their heads. Their imposing manners were terrifying.


    Both sides were domineering and were unwilling to back down.


    On the other side, Yun Zhe led his cultivators and surrounded the region. He looked down at the conflict below with a sinister look in his eyes. From the looks of it, today''s incident would be interesting to observe. He could not wait to see how it played out.


    Jun Qiuyan did not care about what Shangguan Qiuye thought. If the cultivators of the Shangguan clan got in his way, he would then not need to show mercy.


    Jun Qiuyan swept a glance at Ye Futian, who was still cultivating. Jun Qiuyan''s gaze was filled with murderous intent. However, he would not kill Ye Futian for now.


    "Capture him. I want him alive. You can cripple him," Jun Qiuyan commanded. His voice was as cold as ice. After he finished saying this, a vast pressure of the Great Path immediately swept out towards Ye Futian.


    Around Ye Futian, the expressions of Beigong Ao, Emperor Helian, and the others all changed. Although they had released their own power of the Great Path to block the incoming pressure, their opponents had extraordinary abilities. Beigong Ao, Emperor Helian, and the others could not withstand them at all.


    "Attack."


    In mid-air, attacks of the Great Path immediately came crashing down. There was terrifying lightning, brilliant sword light as well as palm strikes that ripped apart the space. The extremely violent attacks rained down like a frenzied torrent, immediately crashing down towards the space where Ye Futian and his group were.


    Rumble. Beigong Ao stood high in the sky. Lightning surrounded him, and he became a war god of thunder. Endless lightning burst forth, and he used the might of lightning to fend off all the attacks.


    At the same time, on the cliff face, extremely dazzling light suddenly burst forth. All of the characters of the Great Path lit up with brilliant divine halos of the Great Path simultaneously. Formless storms of musical rhythm swept out.


    At that moment, everyone faintly felt a formless rhythm in the space. Buddhist chanting circled them and entered their ears. This rhythm was formless, yet it was everywhere. This was the power of sound.


    Blinding light radiated from the cliff face. At that moment, on the cliff face, a towering Buddha statue could faintly be seen. It was as though an ancient Buddha had appeared. His golden body sparkled, and countless characters of the Great Path circled him. This Buddha was chanting Sanskrit, and his voice swept out across the space.


    Ptui. In the space before the cliff face, a Renhuang attacking Ye Futian immediately coughed up fresh blood. His spiritual soul was shattered, and his body fell lifelessly to the ground. He had perished instantly.


    Ptui! Ptui! Ptui!


    Next, one by one, figures fell to the ground. When the rhythm swept past the minds of the lower-level Renhuangs, their spiritual souls immediately shattered, and they died. They could not put up any resistance at all, immediately perishing!

 1918 Counterattack

    In an instant, all the lower-level Renhuangs who attacked Ye Futian were dead. They had all been killed.


    The rhythm of the Great Path circled around them. They could not hear the musical rhythm, but they could sense its presence. It was as though Buddhist chanting surfaced in their minds without any warning. All around them, the golden light of Buddha shone. When they saw the cliff face again, they could all see the Buddha statue. It made them want to bow down and worship it.


    The Buddha statue had a very overbearing air to it. It even gave off a fierce vibe. This was a demon-slaying Buddha. The technique it was using was the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm. The golden Buddha had an angry look and imposing manner that caused others to shiver and cower in its presence.


    The Renhuangs looked at the Buddha. Many weaker Renhuangs felt the urge to escape. It was very dangerous here. A slight moment of carelessness could cause them to be killed off by the Way of Rhythm.


    Shangguan Qiuye looked back at Ye Futian, revealing an astonished look. He was too powerful. Not only did he manage to comprehend the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm, he immediately activated the golden musical notes on the cliff face. He turned them into Way and unleashed its powerful might. He directly relied on the will of the Great Path in the cliff face to unleash his attack.


    Such talent was simply extraordinary.


    Although Beigong Shuang and the others were also astonished, they were already used to such events. This was not the first time they had witnessed such a scene. This fellow wasn''t human. It was as though there was nothing that he could not do. It all began with him making the Dongyuan Pavilion statue manifest.


    Only then did they realize that for Ye Futian, making the Dongyuan Pavilion statue manifest was nothing. On Eastern Deity Island, he was utilizing his talents to the fullest.


    The rhythm of the Great Path circled around them and was everywhere. It was as though Ye Futian was ready to launch another attack at any moment. Jun Qiuyan''s expression turned extremely sullen. He looked in the direction where Ye Futian was and noticed that the latter still had his back facing the rest of them. Ye Futian faced the cliff face; he seemed to be still immersed in comprehending the Great Path on the cliff face.


    Jun Qiuyan felt like his existence was but a joke; he served as a foil to Ye Futian''s extraordinary talent.


    No one else heard Jun Qiuyan''s voice, and no one knew what he was thinking. Jun Qiuyan used the sound transmission of the Great Path; therefore, only the person that he had targeted received his order. However, the recipient was also puzzled as to why Jun Qiuyan was so confident. At this very moment, Jun Qiuyan was actually still plotting to kill Ye Futian.


    The Light of Buddha surrounded Ye Futian while countless musical notes danced around his body. Ye Futian ignored everything happening around him and focused solely on his meditation.


    An exceptional cultivator stood not far away from where Ye Futian was. The cultivator was a seventh-tier upper-level Renhuang. He wielded a spear and had domineering, chiseled features. His spear was sharp and was pointed at the people who were rushing towards Ye Futian.


    The spear emanated a terrifying destructive power.


    The wielder of the spear was none other than Yang Dongqing.


    Buzz.


    Right at this moment, Yang Dongqing''s body shifted. He turned into an alarming bolt of silver lightning. However, he was not dashing towards the enemy. Instead, he headed for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had his back facing them. Moreover, he was activating the Way on the cliff face. He was unaware of the action of those around him.


    Black Wind Condor let out a shriek while the facial expressions of Helian You and Beigong Shuang changed drastically. The cultivators around them were still in a daze. What was happening exactly?


    Wasn''t Yang Dongqing a member of Ye Futian''s group?


    The crowd was somewhat lost at this turn of events.


    A shocking destructive power burst forth from the silver spear. It traversed the space within a split second and left behind a dazzling silver trail.


    Everything happened too quickly. Yang Dongqing attacked at such a close range in an instant. Nobody was quick enough to react to his attack.


    When Jun Qiuyan saw this scene, a glint of ruthless killing intent flashed past in his eyes. Perhaps even Ye Futian was unaware of this. In reality, everything had always been within Jun Qiuyan''s control.


    Although Jun Qiuyan had promised Bai Mu to let Ye Futian go prior to this, now that they had entered Eastern Deity Island, Jun Qiuyan was determined to kill Ye Futian. Even if he did not manage to kill Ye Futian on Eastern Deity Island, he would not let Ye Futian leave the Penglai Continent alive.


    After entering Eastern Deity Island, he did not send people to follow Ye Futian. Everything was already within his control. Yang Dongqing had already turned traitor and was willing to follow the Jun clan. He also seemed not to be asking for much.


    "Yang Dongqing," a cold voice cried out. It was the sound of Emperor Helian. He had not imagined that Yang Dongqing would betray them now and suddenly attack them. This attack would definitely be fatal. Ye Futian was basically defenseless. He had his back towards the others and was relying on the power of the cliff face to deal with the other cultivators. How could he know that Yang Dongqing was trying to backstab him?


    If Ye Futian died, everything would be over.


    How could he possibly block this killing blow?


    As Emperor Helian cried out, a swooshing sound could be heard. The long spear stabbed directly into Ye Futian''s back. It was too fast. Ye Futian had no time to react at all.


    Right then, Yang Dongqing had a cold look in his eyes. He had been merciless and swift. This attack was executed decisively without a trace of hesitation.


    This spear would determine the fate of him and Yang clan.


    Back at the Penglai Deity Lake, conflict had erupted between Ye Futian and Jun Qiuyan, a member of one of the top forces of the Penglai Continent. Yang Dongqing believed that Ye Futian was highly unreasonable. Although Ye Futian had great talent, he was too proud and looked down on everyone else. If this continued, those around him would eventually be dragged into his mess. If the conflict intensified, the cultivators of Jun clan of the Penglai Continent would descend upon their continent. His Yang clan would face terrible consequences then.


    Hence, back then, Yang Dongqing had communicated with Jun Qiuyan through thought transmission.


    Compared to Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao, Yang Dongqing was the person that Ye Futian trusted the least. Yang Dongqin naturally could tell. After they entered Eastern Deity Island, Beigong Ao had received benefit after benefit, and he had even broken through to the next Plane.


    All of this served to solidify Yang Dongqing''s resolve. If Ye Futian did not die, he might get them involved in his mess. If Ye Futian died and Yang Dongqing stood on Jun clan''s side, Beigong Ao and Emperor Helian would all be buried here.


    When that happened, not only would Yang Dongqing control the Dongyuan Pavilion, he could also immediately become the most powerful person on the continent. He could directly control the entire continent, controlling Helian Royal Family as well as Beigong Family.


    Aside from that, Yang Dongqing would also become friends with Jun Qiuyan and form an alliance with the Jun Clan of the Penglai Continent. His position would be extremely stable, and no one could usurp him.


    No matter how he considered the issue, killing Ye Futian was the way to go.


    Hence, he had acted so decisively. His eyes showed no hint of hesitation.


    After this attack, the battle was decided.


    He had not even considered that he would fail. At such a close distance, with his seventh-tier all-out attack, how could he possibly fail?


    There was no chance of him failing. Ye Futian was sure to die.


    As Yang Dongqing''s spear landed, he looked up, preparing to witness the death of Ye Futian personally.


    However, the spear had yet to pierce through Ye Futian''s figure when it seemed to have hit an indestructible wall. This caused Yang Dongqing to frown. It was a ritual implement.


    Ye Futian actually had a ritual implement on him that was protecting his body.


    Even so, a ritual implement could only weaken his attack power. It was impossible for it to ignore his attack completely. This attack could still kill Ye Futian.


    Bang!


    As expected, Ye Futian''s figure was sent flying forwards from the impact. Yang Dongqing''s spear also moved forwards with Ye Futian''s body. It continued forwards, frenziedly unleashing a furious, destructive aura that attempted to destroy Ye Futian completely.


    Yet, at that moment, a layer of frost instantly covered the spear and even spread out towards Yang Dongqing''s figure. It immediately seeped into his body and even his spiritual soul.


    Ye Futian still had the strength to resist?


    Yang Dongqing''s expression changed slightly. At that moment, countless golden musical notes from all around him flashed with blinding light. The musical notes of the Great Path swept straight out towards him.


    "Kill."


    When this word was uttered, the terrifying musical notes of the Great Path immediately invaded Yang Dongqing''s mind. His expression changed drastically as his spiritual soul tried to withstand this power. Almost at the exact same instant, countless leaves circled around his body. The power of Yin seeped into his body and froze him stiff. His entire body was shivering, and even his thoughts seemed to gradually slow down.


    How could this happen?


    How did Ye Futian not die even after all this?


    Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao initially wanted to make a move. However, when they saw this scene, they were also stunned, stopping in their tracks.


    Above Ye Futian''s figure, endless Sword Will infused with the Yin Divine Light shot forwards and directly penetrated Yang Dongqing''s body without any resistance.


    Yang Dongqing''s mind seemed to stop. He felt that all this was somewhat preposterous. Even with such a sneak attack, he had actually been unable to kill a lower-level Renhuang. Instead, he had been killed off by a counterattack. How inconceivable was this?


    Had Ye Futian been hiding his true ability all this while?


    This was his final thought. The next moment, Yang Dongqing''s figure immediately turned to dust. It was as though he had never existed.


    Yang Dongqing died.


    From the very beginning, Ye Futian had been observing Yang Dongqing ever since he allowed him to bring one person into Eastern Deity Island. Ye Futian wanted to see whether or not he would make a move on Eastern Deity Island. How could Ye Futian have possibly been unprepared? He had always been wary of Yang Dongqing.


    The person who Yang Dongqing brought to Eastern Deity Island was also his disciple and not his heir. Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao had both brought their heirs.


    At this crucial moment, as expected, Yang Dongqing had tried to kill Ye Futian. It was a prime opportunity to eliminate Yang Dongqing to prevent future danger.


    The expression of Yang Dongqing''s disciple changed drastically. He looked at Ye Futian and said, "This matter has nothing to do with me."


    The musical notes of the Great Path swept out, and Ye Futian immediately killed him.


    When Emperor Helian saw this scene, his heart shuddered. Fortunately, they had decided to become friends with Ye Futian back then and not to become his enemies.


    This mysterious fellow with extraordinary talent caused others to be in awe of his talent as well as make others cautious of him.


    "The image of Jun clan from Penglai Deity Island has been completely ruined by you," Ye Futian said nonchalantly then. His tone was full of mockery!

 1919 Again

    Jun Qiuyan''s expression was one of gloom. As Divine Wheel Seventh Realm, he had released a fatal blow from such a close distance, yet he failed?


    Ye Futian was just a Lower Renhuang. Even if his Divine Wheel of the Great Path was perfect, it was still only in the Third Realm. Yang Dongqing was Upper Renhuang of the Seventh Realm. He had unleashed a blow with all his might, so how could it be that he was not dead yet?


    Like Yang Dongqing, Jun Qiuyan thought that this blow would, at the very least, severely injure Ye Futian if not destroy him.


    But the result was that Yang Dongqing was killed by Ye Futian instead.


    Even though he may have used a divine item to protect himself, he shouldn''t be able to defend against this blow.


    But no matter what, everything was now an incontrovertible reality.


    All the cultivators had participated, followed by more assassins, but all were unsuccessful. Previously, he himself was humiliated by Ye Futian, and everything that had happened really brought tremendous shame to the Jun family.


    At this moment, the light of the golden runes shone brightly on the cliff, as the Sound of Buddha lingered. The image of Buddha remained elusive as endless divine brilliance showered upon Ye Futian, bathing him within it so that he became sacred and majestic.


    Buzz.


    A horrible wave of sound rolled out. In an instant, many people in the vicinity lost hearing, and it was difficult for them to hear anything for a while. Simultaneously, their spiritual souls were greatly shaken, and all the cultivators guarded their minds to protect their spiritual souls. All of them had released the Will of the Way to the extreme to resist this sonic attack.


    "Kill!" Ye Futian spat, and the aura of horrific slaughter exploded in the sky, accompanied by the rhythm of the Great Path, and his word was the law.


    The rhythm fluctuated toward in the distance, attempting to slaughter the cultivators brought here by Jun Qiuyan.


    "Back." A cultivator of Upper Renhuang Eighth Realm shouted, and the sound exploded like thunder, shaking in the ears of all the cultivators, awakening them. At the same time, cultivators were guarding in front of Jun Qiuyan, as the light screen of the Great Path shrouded this space, protecting Jun Qiuyan.


    An invisible storm of rhythm swept out, and those cultivators who guarded in front of Jun Qiuyan groaned as they felt their spiritual souls trembling. Even some Upper-level Renhuang were bleeding from the corners of their mouths, their faces pale, as the force knocked them backward.


    At the same time, the light screen of the Great Path was shattered by the sound waves. Its force blasted upon Jun Qiuyan. Even as Jun Qiuyan released a divine item for protection, the force was enough to knock him into flying out, and he spat out several mouthfuls of blood.


    When the light screen dissipated, again, many cultivators fell. Their bodies fell from the sky, and among them, many were Renhuang killed on the spot. There were even some Middle Renhuang among the dead.


    The Will of the rhythm from the cliff was horrific beyond their imagination.


    The remaining cultivators had all stepped back to somewhere far away, lengthening their distance from the cliff. Many of them were also injured; their faces were pale, and their spiritual souls were still shaking.


    When they looked in front, they saw rolls of light screens sweeping out on top of the cliff, so they continued to retreat, leaving the area that was covered by the power of the Great Path from the cliff.


    Traces of divine light of the Great Path poured directly into Ye Futian''s body and did not continue to chase them.


    The space in front of the cliff was shrouded by the golden Buddha light, which appeared extremely sacred.


    "How powerful." Everyone present was greatly impacted; this rhythm had a terrifying effect.


    What shocked them the most was that Ye Futian had already had control over the Will of the cliff''s rhythm, which could be used by him to launch an offensive attack of the Great Path. Judging from the range of attack that he was able to lock in with his control of the rhythm, they knew that Ye Futian was able to resonate with the cliff.


    This meant that he was probably already at the point of complete comprehension.


    Jun Qiuyan couldn''t help but felt that his life was spared. His face was cold and gloomy as he looked into the distance. He was out of the range of the sonic wave attack at the moment. However, today, Jun Qiuyan had suffered total humiliation. In front of Ye Futian, he was totally vulnerable, with no ability to fight back.


    From the beginning, his opponent had never taken him seriously.


    Next to him, Upper Renhuang cultivators looked at Jun Qiuyan, and they did not look good. One person crushed such a powerful group while they had suffered many casualties; how humiliating...


    Furthermore, now they couldn''t do anything to Ye Futian at all; they didn''t even dare to approach him.


    "Wait until he leaves the cliff," Jun Qiuyan uttered a short sentence. His voice was flat, without joy or sorrow, and no change in emotions could be detected. However, from his eyes, the cultivators around him could see a terrifying determination to kill Ye Futian no matter what.


    He did not tell them to leave but ordered everyone to continue waiting here until Ye Futian left the cliff, and then they will kill him for good.


    Outside the cliff, Ye Futian would not expect to survive; he would be watching closely here.


    "Aye." Those around him nodded. Their eyes were equally indifferent. They turned to cast a glance at where Ye Futian was, standing quietly in the void, waiting.


    In front of the cliff, everyone who saw it looked a little weird, but then they immediately understood Jun Qiuyan''s intention.


    They were lying in wait for Ye Futian there until he finished cultivating.


    Unless Ye Futian never left the cliff.


    As soon as he left, he would no longer be able to take advantage of its power. How would he face the cultivators that came with Jun Qiuyan?


    It seemed that Jun Qiuyan''s disgrace, coupled with heavy casualties, had contributed to his determination that Ye Futian must die before he could feel vindicated. Even if he were not seeking the Great Path''s opportunities, he would cut Ye Futian down.


    Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao both frowned. If so, it was indeed somewhat concerning.


    Ye Futian didn''t seem to mind. He glanced at the crowd, and his gaze paused momentarily on Yun Zhe, causing Yun Zhe to heighten his awareness. He had come with Jun Qiuyan originally, but he did not attack Ye Futian.


    Everything that happened afterward had also shocked him to the core. Ye Futian had comprehended the rhythm of the cliff and slaughtered many cultivators. Then he cut down Yang Dongqing, which forced other cultivators, such as Jun Qiuyan, to evacuate. They could ill afford Ye Futian''s attack now.


    However, Ye Futian merely glanced at him, then turned his head back to look at the cliff, continuing to cultivate.


    As if everything that had just happened was a dream.


    Everyone watched with a sense of disbelief; Ye Futian was surprisingly casual about all this.


    Beigong Ao wore a puzzled look. He had sensed that Ye Futian had never considered the other person a serious opponent, just as when he was at Dongyuan Pavilion, he had not really worried about Liu Han and Yang Dongqing.


    Could it be that he was equally unconcerned with the top forces from Penglai Continent?


    His instinct was that he was correct in his estimation, but no matter how talented Ye Futian was, where did he get his confidence from?


    Next to Ye Futian, Shangguan Qiuye glanced at Yun Zhe and said, "Are you going to continue to cultivate here or go by yourself?"


    Yun Zhe looked at her and said with a smile, "Shangguan, what''s it to you?"


    "I don''t think you would dare to cause any trouble now," Shangguan Qiuye sneered. She then looked at Ye Futian and transmitted her voice, "If there is any trouble from the Jun family, I can help. Even if you leave the cliff, it isn''t impossible to fight."


    "Thank you, but no need," Ye Futian replied, causing a curious look on Shangguan Qiuye''s face.


    "Those men around Jun Qiuyan are mighty. Once you leave the cliff, it will not be easy to deal with them, and he meant to kill you. Moreover, Yun Zhe is another person to watch out for; can you handle it by yourself?" Shangguan Qiuye continued. She wasn''t questioning him but just wanted to remind him, and at the same time, maybe get on his good side.


    This would be more or less beneficial for her cultivation and in comprehending the cliff.


    "Thank you for the reminder." Still, Ye Futian replied rather flatly, then continued to look at the cliff to comprehend and cultivate, making Shangguan Qiuye feel a little speechless. No one had ever ignored her like this, ever.


    She realized that Ye Futian was rather unwilling to respond to her.


    She was a little depressed by this realization, but in this instant, the cliff lit up with a brilliant divine light. The sight of it melted away Shangguan Qiuye''s dissatisfaction again. This guy had such unparalleled comprehension. It would be to her interest if she followed along with him in cultivation.


    This confrontation seemed to have calmed down for the moment, as Jun Qiuyan and the others were waiting in the distance, dared not to come any closer.


    Ye Futian was cultivating quietly, without being distracted, and cared not for any outside matters, as if everything had nothing to do with him.


    The notes of the Great Path on the cliff were getting stronger. As divine glory bloomed, and the Sound of Buddha lingered. Over time, the notes on the cliff seemed to have become one, and the Vajra Buddha that appeared on the cliff was becoming clearer.


    What was more striking was that the golden notes of the Great Path were also surrounding Ye Futian, resonating with the notes on the cliff. It was as if they had integrated into one.


    There was even the shadow of a golden Buddha that seemed to appear, rather elusively, above Ye Futian''s body. The elusive image of the Buddha superimposed on his body. It was as if Ye Futian was transformed into a holy and solemn Buddha.


    Buzz!


    Endless brilliant glory bloomed from the top of the mountain cliff, extremely radiant. Everyone looked up in the direction of the cliff and saw a dazzling golden Buddha light, as the sound of Buddha lingered between the heaven and the earth. In the void, it seemed that a giant Buddha appeared.


    At the same time, there was a rumbling sound as the cliff trembled violently.


    "What''s going on?" Everyone was confused. Golden runes on the cliff continue to fly toward Ye Futian and even fly directly into his body.


    Rays of golden glory were shining. All those characters of the Great Path flew out of the cliff. All of them merged inside of Ye Futian.


    "This..." Everyone had a questioning look on their faces. The cliff was trembling more and more violently, and when all the characters had flown into Ye Futian''s body, a loud cracking sound was heard, as cracks now appeared on the cliff, which continued to shatter and eventually collapsed.


    The cliff was destroyed.


    This opportunity of the Great Path disappeared.


    Many watched this sight, dumbfounded. Some cultivators who had been here several times were stunned, watching all this happening without a word.


    "Again?"


    Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao watched with some puzzlement. Previously at Sword Mountain, Ye Futian had already done something like this before. Was he about to repeat it?


    He was cultivating while leaving no room for the others to do the same?

 1920 Beigong Ao, Full of Ambition

    This opportunity of the Great Path disappeared just like that, and now, no one else would have the chance to receive it.


    This also meant that Ye Futian had already inherited this opportunity of the Great Path and was in complete control of it. It was precisely because of the existence of such a genius talent that the opportunity of the Great Path now belonged to just one person, and no one else would benefit from it.


    How heartless!


    Those cultivators would have nowhere to cultivate now. The opportunity of the Great Path disappeared, and there was no more chance to comprehend this Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm.


    Shangguan Qiuye looked at the disappearing cliff and felt somewhat lost because it was gone... She had already gotten herself to a good place where she was able to comprehend this cliff''s Great Path gradually. But this was also when Ye Futian had comprehended the opportunity of the Great Path and absorbed all the notes so that none was left.


    In the future, there would be no such opportunity.


    Even if they come again, the opportunity would be no more.


    "Monopolizing the opportunity of the Great Path all by yourself; amazing." A voice was heard, and the speaker was Yun Zhe, who had not left. He stood in the void and watched all this taking place quietly. He only spoke when he saw that Ye Futian had made the cliff disappear.


    Behind Ye Futian, Beigong Ao and the others turned and saw Yun Zhe, with his arms folded before him, watching all this with great interest.


    The cliff was gone. Ye Futian had comprehended the opportunity of the Great Path, but it also meant that he no longer had the cliff as a buffer, and he could no longer use its power, so...


    When his thought turned to this, he turned his head to glance at a direction in the distance. Sure enough, Jun Qiuyan and the others who had retreated to the distance were now moving forward. They were waiting for a time like this to kill Ye Futian. How could they miss a chance like this?


    Without the cliff as a shelter, Ye Futian would undoubtedly die.


    A mighty coercion covered them. Its oppressive power was extremely terrifying. Those around Ye Futian frowned, sensing that something was not quite right.


    Previously when Ye Futian made the two attempts to kill the enemy, once was with the Sword Will of the sword mountain. Once with the help of the cliff, he had leveraged external forces both times, the opportunity of the Great Path from Eastern Deity Island itself. Now, there were no more external forces to be had, and the enemy had quite a powerful makeup, far surpassing theirs. There could be trouble afoot.


    This time, everyone else would probably not interfere.


    Soon, Jun Qiuyan came to the side and surveyed the crowd. He saw that Ye Futian still had his back turned to him as if he continued to absorb the notes of the Great Path that he had swallowed before.


    Jun Qiuyan''s eyes were icy and indifferent. He said coldly, "You impeded me because you wanted to use his comprehension to cultivate. How did that work out for you now?"


    Everyone was speechless, and they had mixed feelings. They did want to use Ye Futian''s power for their own comprehension, and they did benefit from it. But now, everything had turned to dust, and their hopes were dashed.


    But could this matter be blamed solely on Ye Futian?


    He had extraordinary and unparalleled comprehension that surpassed everyone else, which allowed him to thoroughly comprehended the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm of the Great Path that was left on the cliff, absorbing its power and seizing the opportunity. What more could they say about this?


    Even if there were discontent in their hearts, everything was a foregone conclusion now that could not be changed, and Ye Futian would not be restoring the cliff for them.


    Jun Qiuyan saw that every one of them was silent as his eyes passed over them. Finally, they landed on Ye Futian and his people, including Beigong Ao and the others; his eyes showed a cold murderous intent.


    Now, who else could protect Ye Futian?


    He looked at Shangguan Qiuye, who was not far away, and saw that Shangguan Qiuye was also looking at Ye Futian, and asked through voice transmission, "Do you need help?"


    She was still willing to help Ye Futian, who had always been extremely passive in their interactions. Even at a time like this, as long as he was willing to bow.


    This arrogant and proud man who had categorically rejected her before; what about now?


    Ye Futian was silent. He seemed to be still cultivating, and streaming light of the Great Path flowed round him.


    Silence?


    Shangguan Qiuye thought, It seems this proud man doesn''t want to ask for help, even at a time like this.


    But when she thought of his refusal before, Shangguan Qiuye said again, through voice transmission, "If you need help, you can nod, and I will help you."


    She didn''t want to believe that Ye Futian would not relent.


    Ye Futian still did not respond. Clearly, he had heard her, but Shangguan Qiuye''s tone was akin to solicitation. She seemed to ask him to beg for her help. This was probably because she was rejected before and now wanted a chance to win back some dignity.


    It seemed that this empress of the Shangguan clan was still willful.


    The streaming light of the Great Path flowed about him and submerged inside his body. Ye Futian slowly turned around and cast a glance at Shangguan Qiuye, and transmitted his sound to her in response, "No need."


    "..."


    Shangguan Qiuye was taken aback for a moment. Her beautiful eyes blinked once as she was looking at Ye Futian. There was a slight change in her eyes; this jerk.


    "Without the power of the cliff, how would you deal with the cultivators of the Jun family? Your people were not at the same level as theirs, not to mention Yun Zhe was still watching on the side. Do you really think you can get away?" Shangguan Qiuye said coldly.


    Ye Futian gave her an odd look and a sideways glance.


    What''s the matter with this woman?


    She wanted so much for him to ask her for help?


    "Don''t bother." Ye Futian responded flatly and rendered Shangguan Qiuye completely speechless. Anger even flashed across her beautiful eyes. She saw that Ye Futian''s talent was extraordinary and couldn''t bear to see him perish here, so she decided to lend a helping hand while recruiting a friend with an outstanding talent for the Shangguan clan.


    But she never expected that Ye Futian would completely ignore her kind intentions, not even paying any attention to her.


    "I guess I am overly concerned," Shangguan Qiuye replied coldly. She didn''t bother speaking again; she planned to watch as a bystander.


    She wanted to see how Ye Futian would resolve this situation.


    Facing Jun Qiuyan''s murderous intent, how could he contend with it?


    Ye Futian walked a few steps forward, raised his head to look into the void ahead, and saw that the Renhuang cultivators brought over by Jun Qiuyan were standing in a mighty line. The Great Path''s oppressive power enveloped the boundless void so that this space is suffocated with its pressure of Might.


    The cultivators from before had all withdrawn from this space. Soon, only Ye Futian and a few others were left facing such a powerful enemy.


    Not far behind Ye Futian and the others, an angry Shangguan Qiuye also took her people to some distance away. She was going to watch and see how this proud fellow planned to deal with Jun Qiuyan.


    Ye Futian raised his head to looked at Jun Qiuyan, only to be met by his icy stare full of strong intent to kill. He was looking down at him and said coldly, "You finished cultivating?"


    "Mmm," Ye Futian nodded. After his arrival, Jun Qiuyan did not rush to make a move but waited for him to finish his cultivation.


    "Now that the cliff is destroyed and there are no more external forces for you to borrow, what do you think about that?" Jun Qiuyan asked again.


    "Do I need to use external forces to kill the likes of you?" Ye Futian replied.


    Jun Qiuyan''s eyes focused on Ye Futian. He did not have anyone protecting him at the moment so that Ye Futian could kill him, even without any external forces.


    His eyes were icy cold as he ignored Ye Futian''s words and continued, "Since you made your move that day, you are destined never to leave the Penglai Continent alive. Before, you were lucky. Now, what''s your plan to survive?"


    Ye Futian didn''t speak, and the aura of Great Path flowed through his body. Between the heaven and the earth, Sounds of Buddha were heard, which turned into invisible fluctuations of rhythm. On his body, a Vajra Buddha seemed to have appeared, with angry eyes, suppressive and overpowering.


    The body slowly levitated into the air, and a mighty aura bloomed from it. Underneath the Light of Buddha, there was also a terrifying and sharp aura, which was an indestructible Swordsmanship.


    "It seems that you don''t plan to survive at all." Jun Qiuyan said coldly, "Kill."


    When the voice fell, the cultivators who had lined up around him unleashed a mighty pressure of the Great Path at the same time, which flooded toward Ye Futian. In an instant, the Great Path filled the space with an undeniable presence.


    However, at the same time, the Sound of Buddha continued to linger and resound between heavens and earth, causing the cultivators to frown. Some Middle Renhuang felt that they were under very strong pressure, which oppressed their spiritual souls. Jun Qiuyan backed up when he felt that pressure, while a cultivator of the eighth realm guarded in front of him against any sudden attack from Ye Futian.


    "Senior Beigong, much obliged," said Ye Futian, and Beigong Ao nodded in acknowledgment. From where he stood in the air, the mighty power of thunder erupted. Standing there in front of Ye Futian, the body of the thunder god shrouded him, and he was unstoppable.


    Emperor Helian was guarding Xia Qingyuan and the others. Ye Futian turned to look at Shangguan Qiuye, who was not far away, and said, "If you want to help, take care of them for me."


    Although Emperor Helian was guarding them, Ye Futian still worried that the opponents would attack Xia Qingyuan and the others no matter the cost, hence his request to Shangguan Qiuye.


    Shangguan Qiuye was taken aback. Ye Futian meant to deal with all these Renhuang just by himself and Beigong Ao?


    Was this guy crazy?


    And, was this the attitude of asking someone for help?


    Shangguan Qiuye looked at Ye Futian coldly and saw that he had already turned around, so she replied, "Fine..."


    As soon as she replied, she was immediately upset with herself; why did she agree so easily to do his bidding?


    Perhaps, she wanted to see how Ye Futian would deal with Jun Qiuyan and the other Renhuang with just two people.


    Boom... The power of a thousand punishments converged and turned into a thunderous calamity. Thousands of thunderous lightning came down from the sky and swept out. Beigong Ao of the Eight Realm now stood proudly in the air, arrogantly and forceful. He had never been in a battle quite like this.


    Ye Futian asked him to participate, for the two of them to fight against multiple Renhuang, and he agreed, seemingly to trust Ye Futian blindly. At the same time, he had always been cautious while conducting business outside and never had a moment like this.


    Today, he would completely throw cautions to the wind.


    When his thought turned to this, he gave out a shout with great pride and passion. But at this moment, the Sound of Buddha lingered, and a terrifying sound wave swept out. An ancient Vajra Buddha appeared above the sky, and the anger from the Buddha emitted an invisible rhythm that rendered the space completely quiet. Ye Futian took the initiative and made his move first, which stunned Beigong Ao, who was fully prepared to launch his own attack.


    In the next moment, many Renhuang were slaughtered while they vomited blood and fell from the sky as if they couldn''t bear even one strike.


    "This��"


    Beigong Ao looked at this sight speechlessly, a little confused. Shouldn''t this be his time to act?

 1921 Boundless Sword Technique

    A deafening roar came from the group of Jun Family virtuosos. The roar contained the might of the Great Path, and it seemed to be an attempt to break apart the Music Rhythm Attack. The formless sound waves could shatter spiritual souls. They caused the entire space to morph into lethal ripples of Rhythmic Sorcery, which were a huge threat to any practitioner below the high-level Renhuang stage. In fact, the ripples were so powerful that they could instantly kill anyone who was below the high-level Renhuang stage.


    "Oin!"


    A level-eight practitioner strode towards Ye Futian with a hum. The practitioner exuded a terrifying pressure, and ripples of sound waves crashed towards Ye Futian and impacted his spiritual soul. He stared at Ye Futian and noticed that runes wound around Ye Futian''s body as though he were a buddha. A huge halo of a buddha also appeared in the skies above him.


    A few moments ago, Ye Futian absorbed the power from the cliff face and inherited the wisp of Will of the Great Path that was left on the cliff face. Specifically, the cliff face contained the tyrannical Will of the Great Path of the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm.


    This Will of the Great Path integrated straight into the attacks that he comprehended, so his attacks could now directly threaten any level-seven practitioner and even affect level-eight virtuosos.


    The practitioner lifted his palm out in front of him and grasped the empty space in front of him. In the skies appeared a huge hand that covered the sky and the sun. It grasped at Ye Futian across the space. A loud sound echoed out, making the attack seem indomitable.


    However, right at this moment, Beigong Ao, who was dispirited for a moment just now, strode out. He unleashed a deadly blade of thunder in front of him. With a loud crack, the Broadsword Will of the Thunder slashed across the sky, and the large palm was cut in half.


    "I''ll hold him back," the virtuoso who attacked coldly announced. Stepping in empty space, the sound of unleashing the Great Path echoed out. He lifted both palms in front of him, and instantly the space became a Great Path domain with himself at the center of the domain. Beigong Ao was trapped in this space.


    The Great Path domain was comprised of bright, ancient mountains. They circled Beigong Ao''s body and sealed the space around. It was as though they were not on the Eastern Deity Island but were in an isolated mountain range.


    The practitioner did not seal Ye Futian with Beigong Ao because he was afraid that he could not deal with the two of them alone.


    On Ye Futian''s side, there was only one level-eight virtuoso, and that was Beigong Ao. On their opponent''s side, however, there were three virtuosos at the same level. As long as they could keep Beigong Ao engaged, the other virtuosos could easily kill Ye Futian.


    Anyone who was below the sixth level did not dare get close to Ye Futian. This was because the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm posed a threat to any level-six Renhuang and could even kill them.


    The level-eight virtuoso walked out and came to the space above Ye Futian''s head. He emitted a monstrous aura while his body glittered golden. In the skies above, a golden glow filled the heavens, as though he were going to create an incomparably exquisite golden painting.


    A loud sound permeated the space. Giant, endlessly long golden stone pillars appeared in the skies. Horrifying drawings were carved into each golden stone pillar. The pillars covered the entire sky.


    Boom!


    The air shook violently for a moment, and the huge, golden pillars hammered down from the skies and planted themselves into the eight cardinal points. With a deafening sound, the golden stone pillars around Ye Futian sealed the area around him. The golden light emitted by the stone pillars fused into one body and created a barrier that isolated the region. Under Ye Futian''s feet, the golden light morphed into a golden drawing.


    The level-eight virtuoso formed hand seals in the air, and the drawing continuously changed its form. Eventually, it morphed into a giant golden dragon. The dragon twisted its way up. In front of the massive size of the dragon, Ye Futian seemed to be especially miniscule.


    "Kill him," the level-eight virtuoso coldly ordered. The giant dragon flew towards Ye Futian with the full intent to kill him. It dived towards Ye Futian, extending its sharp golden claws that seemed to be able to tear apart even the space of the Great Path. Its dominating might was indeed terrifying.


    "Hmm, a Master of Matrix methods." Ye Futian raised his head upwards to look at the virtuoso in the air. This was a golden Matrix of the Great Path, and the giant dragon was born from within this Matrix.


    In the distance, Shangguan Qiuye naturally knew the identity of the virtuoso who attacked. This practitioner had a very high status in the Jun Family. He was an extremely powerful alchemist who could carve grand Metal-elemental Matrices. He had immense strength and was held in high regard by the Jun Family. He was also respectfully known as Master Yan.


    How could Ye Futian even hope to defend himself against the attacks from such a powerful figure?


    Furthermore, in the face of such a high level of alchemy, even Ye Futian''s Rhythmic Sorcery attacks were useless. It was because of this reason that his opponent sent Master Yan to deal with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian''s body emitted a bone-chilling whistling of sword blades. The Will of the Sword surrounded his body, and his entire body seemed to morph into an infinitely sharp sword.


    "Oin!" The glare of sword blades suddenly shone with a hum, and Ye Futian''s body shot like an arrow through the space. When the dragon''s sharp claws were about to clamp down on him, his body ducked to the side and continued speeding away, disappearing in an instant.


    "You can''t escape," Master Yan coldly shouted. The golden stone pillars that stood between the heavens and the earth emitted a light that morphed into a light barrier, sealing all possible paths to the air above. It seemed like Ye Futian was going to be trapped behind this barrier; after all, not even the Great Path''s spatial powers could break through the barrier.


    A divine sword appeared in Ye Futian''s hands and shot out towards the light barrier. When the sword tip impacted the light barrier, a terrifying ripple rolled outwards. The light barrier seemed to solidify, and on its surface, lines of runes appeared. They sealed the entire space, seemingly wishing to trap and kill Ye Futian within this golden domain.


    Simultaneously, on Ye Futian''s body appeared a streak of incomparably powerful Will of the Sword. This Will of the Sword flowed into the divine sword. A column of divine light appeared, and it pierced into the skies, scattering the clouds.


    Crack��


    The crisp sound echoed out. Long cracks appeared on the light barrier, and then like a spiderweb, it broke up into pieces bit by bit.


    Master Yan narrowed his eyes at the scene that unfolded before him. At the moment the light barrier shattered, accompanying the loud sound that echoes out, a deadly beam of light shot through the clouds, and came flying straight towards him.


    Dong�� A sound akin to the voice of the buddha reverberated out and attacked his divine soul. Master Yan felt his divine soul trembling violently for a moment. A metallic golden buddha appeared in his mind, and in front of him, Ye Futian also seemed to morph into a buddha.


    Of course, he knew that this was not reality. Rather, when the Will of the Great Path was strong enough, an illusion could be formed. What he saw was indeed formed from the Great Path.


    He felt a tinge of fear. His palms slammed downwards simultaneously. In that instant, the exquisite golden drawing shone and pressed down towards Ye Futian.


    In the air space below, a thousand sword silhouettes appeared. The moment that they reached him, they merged into one sword.


    Boom��


    A loud sound echoed out; the divine sword actually shattered the drawing. A terrifying sword glow instantly swallowed up the sky and expanded outwards. Even though a golden light barrier shrouded master Yan''s body, cracks appeared in the light barrier under Ye Futian''s Will of the Sword''s persistent attacks. Master Yan exploited the force of the impact to retreat up into the skies swiftly.


    "How strong is he?" The people around were shocked. The attack that he unleashed was so devastating that it could force a level-eight virtuoso to retreat in fear.


    "He possesses the Sword Will from the Sword Peak, and he also infused the Will of the Great Path inherited from the cliff face into his attacks." Seeing Ye Futian''s attacks, Helian You instantly understood the source of his strength. It seemed like Ye Futian had gained a lot from the two opportunities of the Great Path that he encountered, and his gains were very clearly shown in this fight.


    In the instant that his sword strike landed, Ye Futian''s body disappeared. In the skies, an elegant trail appeared, and behind that emerged streaks of sword silhouettes.


    Some distance away, several Renhuangs'' expressions turned to shock. They all felt a terrifying ripple of Rhythmic Sorcery coursing towards them, attacking their divine souls directly. Right after that, they saw a glaring sword glow.


    "Be careful," Master Yan shouted in an attempt to shake them awake from their shock paralysis. Alas, the swords sliced across, and the sound of blades cutting into flesh echoed out. It seemed like several Renhuangs were simultaneously slain even though they were separated physically. There did not even seem to be a time delay between their deaths.


    The explosion of the fusion of two types of attacks was utterly devastating. Anyone who was not a high-level Renhuang would not be able to withstand even a single strike.


    Master Yan stepped outwards in an attempt to track and kill Ye Futian.


    However, he saw Ye Futian''s body turn into an afterimage. His body appeared in front of a level-seven Divine Wheel high-level Renhuang.


    The high-level Renhuang glanced at Ye Futian, and he, too, saw a metallic golden buddha. A terrifying rhythmic attack struck him, and it was as though a ceaseless stream of Buddhist symbols entered his mind. The low, reverberating voice of Buddha echoed around in his mind, causing his divine soul to tremble.


    "Don''t be affected by the sound," Master Yan shouted again. The expression on the level-eight virtuoso standing beside Jun Qiuyan also changed slightly. He did not expect Ye Futian''s Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm to be so strong that it could directly affect a high-level Renhuang.


    "He inherited the Will of the Great Path from the cliff face, which is the reason behind the unnaturally terrifying power behind his Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm," the level-eight virtuoso told Jun Qiuyan, who was standing behind him. Just as he finished speaking, he saw another sword strike.


    The Divine Wheel of the level-seven virtuoso surged in power; it was a humongous, ancient bell. With an angry roar, he charged forward. The giant ancient bell emitted a shocking pressure that permeated the space around it.


    Ye Futian''s flight left an elegant endless arc. He was moving so fast that it was difficult to spot his true, physical body. The sword silhouettes seemed to be elongated, the Divine Wheel of the Great Path seemed to be frozen in mid-air. The crowd saw a ray of sword glare cut through the Great Path''s power and shot straight for Ye Futian''s opponent.


    Sploosh��


    The Way of the Sword is boundless. As though he disregarded all physical distances, Ye Futian''s silhouette appeared behind his opponent with his back facing the level-seven virtuoso. In the next instant, the level-seven virtuoso was reduced to nothing more than powder and faded away under Sword Qi''s strength.


    The level-seven high-level Renhuang was slain with a single strike.


    In the vast space, all the Renhuangs could not help but feel an intense tremble deep in their hearts. Their fear of a low-level Renhuang actually paralyzed them. While it might seem like a horrible joke, it was, in fact, happening right at that moment.


    A low-level Renhuang was committing an unbridled massacre of middle-level Renhuang and high-level Renhuang.


    Shangguan Qiuye looked at Ye Futian''s silhouette and did not know what to think. It was no wonder that the bastard thumbed his nose at her. Not even in her wildest dreams would she have expected him to have inherited the Will of the Great Path after the cliff face shattered. His true combat strength was also far more terrifying than anything she had expected.

 1922 Shangguan Qiuyes Scheme

    Thereafter, they saw Ye Futian facing an entire group of Renhuangs alone.


    "Who is this white-haired Renhuang?" some people contemplated silently. They were surprised by how strong he was.


    The person Ye Futian was facing appeared to be virtuosos from the Jun Family of the Penglai Continent. They all seemed to be shaken by this one person?


    At this point, Yun Zhe''s face also let out a puzzled expression. This fight seemed to be very similar to the one that happened in the Penglai Deity Region, where not only did Ye Futian stay alive, but he even managed to counterattack and kill several virtuosos.


    It was happening once again at this moment at this place.


    Even a level-eight virtuoso could not beat him.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian''s strength caused the level-eight virtuoso guarding Jun Qiuyan to be extremely wary. He was worried that Jun Qiuyan would be killed with a piercing strike from Ye Futian. After all, considering the ability that Ye Futian had shown, this possibility was very real. Thus, the guard did not dare to be careless.


    The other level-eight virtuoso was still engaged in a tough fight with Beigong Ao. Furthermore, it seemed that Beigong Ao was dominating the fight. This practitioner from an insignificant, unknown continent, could actually pressurize an elder from the Jun Family.


    However, they also sensed that a thunder treasure had merged into Beigong Ao''s body. This caused him to be more familiar with the Great Way of Thunder and thus more terrifying.


    The Great Path''s chaotic flow ran amok between heaven and earth, but no one tried to interfere with the fight. They were all rather wary of Ye Futian. It was just moments ago that several Renhuangs, including a level-seven high-level Renhuang, died at Ye Futian''s hands. This caused them to be very wary of Ye Futian.


    While no one from the onlookers did anything, Ye Futian did not stop. He turned around in the air, emitting a seemingly holy light of the buddha. With the deep hum of the buddha''s voice resonating outwards, Ye Futian seemed like a real-life golden buddha in the eyes of the onlookers.


    At the same time, Ye Futian swung the divine sword in his hand. The strand of Sword Will inherited from the Sword Mountain, which was infused into the sword, was fully unleashed. At that moment, the blade of light pierced through the clouds.


    "If you are still alive after this strike, you can leave." As Ye Futian finished speaking, a Buddhist Voice of the Great Path resonated between heaven and earth, as though it were the roar of a golden buddha. The formless rhythmic ripples cascaded throughout the boundless space, causing everyone to feel an aggressive attack on their divine souls.


    These silhouettes flew in different directions. At first, they moved slowly, but in a short period of time, the number of silhouettes increased, and the Will of the Sword became stronger, too. There seemed to be tens of thousands of sword clones scattered all through the heavens and earth in the blink of an eye, covering every possible position.


    "Defend!" roared the level-eight Renhuang beside Jun Qiuyan. His comrades seemed to be put into a trance by the Buddhist Voice of the Great Path, and he wanted to shock them awake. They were still under the attack of Rhythmic Sorcery; with the addition of the lethal sword technique, how could any normal Renhuang hope to stand against the simultaneous attacks?


    Ye Futian''s shadow clones gradually moved faster, giving off a very mysterious feeling. In a short while, each silhouette morphed into a beam of light, and it was as though they had merged into the blade of light. Many people saw an elegant blade of light cutting an arc through the air in front of them, and streaks of blood-red light emitted right after.


    All the virtuosos were scrambling to gather the Great Path''s powers to counter the incoming attack. However, when the blade of light sliced across, it cut directly through space. The blade of light sliced without resistance through the Space of the Great Path, and the sound of blades cutting through flesh continuously echoed out.


    Thereafter, the tens of thousands of sword shadows merged into one, and Ye Futian''s silhouette once again appeared where he last stood, as though he had never moved away from that spot.


    The vast space turned calm once again. A Renhuang was standing among the crowd. His pupils were dilated. He was glaring at Ye Futian. Between his brows appeared a line of blood.


    "No!" he roared once, and in the next instant, his body was pulverized by the Will of the Sword.


    At the same time, the sound of popping and puffing continued to echo. The silhouettes of numerous Renhuangs seemed to be crushed into powder. They were all killed.


    At that moment, there were not many Renhuangs who remained standing in mid-air. One of them stood in his original position. He was shrouded by a golden bell, which was some implement. Fissures appeared along the surface of the ancient bell. Then, it exploded into dust. The Renhuang stood in mid-air, his arms slightly shaking. His eyes were filled with terror as he looked at Ye Futian.


    Was this really a low-level Renhuang?


    He killed nearly all the Renhuangs with merely a thought.


    Ye Futian stretched out his palm and raised the sword in his hand, pointing with the tip of the divine sword. The Renhuangs who were still alive remembered Ye Futian''s words. If they could survive his strike, they were allowed to leave. Ye Futian gave them a chance to live.


    A level-six middle-level Renhuang retreated so quickly his body became a smudge. He turned around and left without looking at Ye Futian. Neither did he glance at Jun Qiuyan. He was not a member of the Jun Family. He was merely hired to follow Jun Qiuyan onto the Eastern Deity Island to obtain any relics of the Great Path.


    Unexpectedly, such a strong formation had been decimated to such a sorry state by Ye Futian. He was very fortunate to have managed to survive. Anyone who was below a high-level Renhuang stage could not survive under Ye Futian''s attacks. If he didn''t leave now, he would only be waiting for his death.


    "Forgive this old man for his incompetence," a level-seven high-level Renhuang spoke in the direction of Jun Qiuyan, and then retreated, no longer wanting to be part of this. The death of the high-level Renhuang previously had taught him a lesson.


    He also saw that Beigong Ao had managed to dominate his opponent completely. Even these three level-eight practitioners may not be able to deal with Beigong Ao and Ye Futian.


    Cultivating was not easy. If he could not obtain any opportunities to further his cultivation on the Great Path, there was no need to die here either.


    Very soon, most of the virtuosos left. In this space, there were only a small number of people remaining.


    They were Jun Qiuyan, the three level-eight virtuosos, two level-seven virtuosos, and Ye Futian, and Beigong Ao.


    The two level-seven virtuosos were the direct descendants of the Jun Family, so naturally, they couldn''t leave.


    Among the three level-eight virtuosos, two were members of the Jun Family, while Master Yan was a guest of the Jun Family who had been invited to accompany Jun Qiuyan.


    Ye Futian''s glance swept towards Master Yan''s direction, and said, "You are a level-eight Matrix Master, and yet you still take orders from Jun Qiuyan?"


    Master Yan looked at him and heard Shangguan Qiuye say from afar, "His name is Master Yan. He isn''t actually a member of the Jun Family. Rather, he is their guest. He is a master of alchemy matrices."


    As she finished speaking, she said to Master Yan, "Master Yan, Jun Qiuyan is an extremely stubborn and arrogant man. He doesn''t care about his own cultivation, yet he keeps trying to kill Renhuang Ye. Everything that happened here is because of his personal vengeance against Ye Futian. It is not worth it for you to follow or defend him. How about you join our Shangguan Family as a guest?"


    Ye Futian glanced at Shangguan Qiuye. This woman was shrewd enough to exploit this chance to poach people.


    "We don''t have any grudges between us, so if you are willing to let go right now, I can pretend that nothing had happened. Otherwise, even if you are at the eighth level, you might still not be able to leave the Eastern Deity Island alive," Ye Futian said. His tone was extremely arrogant. He asserted that Master Yan, who was at the eighth level of cultivation, may not leave the Eastern Deity Island alive.


    This was incomparably haughty. Of course, he definitely had the right to be this conceited. In the short exchange between them just moments ago, Master Yan knew that Ye Futian could use the Will of the Great Path that was left on the cliff face. With this inherited Will of the Great Path, Ye Futian could already stand against a level-eight virtuoso.


    Furthermore, apart from the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythmic Will of the Great Path, he also inherited a terrifying wisp of Will of the Sword.


    As long as he failed to kill Ye Futian, Ye Futian could join hands with Beigong Ao to slay them in return.


    Master Yan furrowed his brows, glanced at Ye Futian, and said, "Even if your talent is unrivaled, to be this arrogant, don''t you think you''re taking this old man a little too lightly?"


    "Master Yan, this entire incident is caused by Jun Qiuyan. He already wanted to kill Ye Futian, and still wants him to be polite?" Shangguan Qiuye said, "Under such a contrast, shouldn''t it be easy for you to see what kind of a person Jun Qiuyan is?"


    "Shut up," Jun Qiuyan rebuked from afar. His expression was quite gloomy. Indeed, he had utterly failed this time.


    "Jun Qiuyan, you implicated so many virtuosos and caused the deaths of so many Renhuangs. If you aren''t a coward, then stop hiding behind others, step out and fight Ye Futian yourself, and take some responsibility," Shangguan Qiuye sarcastically said. How could Jun Qiuyan possibly come out?


    Ye Futian could slay him with a single stroke of his sword.


    Master Yan quietly watched everything. Normally, Jun Qiuyan was very respectful to him. He also put in the effort to cultivate, and he didn''t lack talent either. However, it was impossible to clearly see a person for who he is without any contrast. Master Yan was more or less aware of the conflict between Jun Qiuyan and Ye Futian. He knew that it started with the trade at the Penglai Deity Lake.


    About this incident, Jun Qiuyan was way too incapable compared to Ye Futian. In fact, it could be said that Jun Qiuyan couldn''t even be compared to Ye Futian.


    "I was entrusted this job, so naturally, I can''t betray their trust," Master Yan said to Ye Futian. "If you can defeat this old man, I will back off."


    "What a job you have taken," Ye Futian sarcastically replied. His divine sword was in the air, glowing with divinity brightly. "Being entrusted this job, if you defeat me, you will take my life, but if I defeat you, you still want to live?"


    Master Yan''s expression became heavy.


    "You are a level-eight virtuoso, and you want to challenge a level-three Renhuang?" Ye Futian continued. How dare Master Yan even seriously expect him to accept such a deal.


    Ye Futian looked at the battlefield that Beigong Ao was on, his divine sword emitting an infinitely bright divine glow. Even though he had inherited a Will of the Great Path, it was still tough to deal with a level-eight practitioner. However, it would also be difficult for his opponent to kill him. In that case, he could only cooperate with Beigong Ao and kill them all one by one.


    "Master Yan, Renhuang Ye did not speak wrongly. You accepted Jun Qiuyan''s request to kill Ye Futian. If you aren''t willing to let it go, one of you must die. How can you even hope to settle this peacefully?" Shangguan Qiuye continued, "If Master Yan refuses to let this go, then the Shangguan Family can only interfere with this fight."


    Master Yan narrowed his eyes and glanced at Shangguan Qiuye. Shangguan Qiuye raised her head and met his gaze with a cold expression. She did not even try to conceal her threat in her words.


    If he did not agree to let go of this, the Shangguan Family would join in the fight against his side. At that rate, they would have no chance of victory.


    If he lost, he would lose his life as well.


    "Shangguan Qiuye, are you trying to stir up conflict between our two families?" Jun Qiuyan spoke in an icy tone. This Shangguan Qiuye was too scheming.


    Under such circumstances, Master Yan was trapped in a Catch-22. However, he was more likely to retreat. If he did so, he would be severing all ties with the Jun Family, weakening the Jun Family''s power. In addition to that, Ye Futian was still at odds with Jun Qiuyan and his followers. She wanted the Jun Family to be completely wiped off the face of the Eastern Deity Island!

 1923 Irony

    Previously, Jun Qiuyan also did not hold back when he was attacking them.


    In that case, since such a wonderful opportunity presented itself, she was surely going to use it.


    She would not kill anyone from the Jun Family herself, let alone even touch Jun Qiuyan. However, even if she didn''t act, Ye Futian would act in her steed.


    At this point, all she needed to do was to separate Master Yan from the Jun Family. As long as he could comprehend how challenging it would be to continue fighting against Ye Futian and thus retreat, Ye Futian and Beigong Ao could deal with the remaining virtuosos.


    Yun Zhe, who wasn''t standing too far away from Shangguan Qiuye, also stared at her and blandly said, "Shangguan, it isn''t too appropriate for you to interfere, don''t you think so?"


    "So what you are saying is you also want to interfere in this and target Renhuang Ye?" Shangguan Qiuye rebuked. Yun Zhe narrowed his eyes slightly. He could also see how powerful Ye Futian was. If the Yun Family also acted, perhaps they could stop Ye Futian.


    However, Shangguan Qiuye was also a variable. If she also decided to participate in the fight, the battle might be difficult to predict.


    His silhouette stood in the space, observing the virtuosos in front of him. His eyes showed that he was contemplating what he should do. Given the circumstances in front of him, he hesitated. Should he act?


    The Jun Family now could be said to be utterly defeated. If he acted against Ye Futian, the lives of the Yun Family would be all at stake.


    For now, he would observe the choice that Master Yan made.


    Even though he had a pretty decent relationship with Jun Qiuyan, it was ultimately a relationship based on individual profits and gains. When it came to his own interests, especially his life, it was natural to distance himself from this conflict and not help Jun Qiuyan.


    Previously he had completely underestimated Ye Futian, causing the virtuosos from the Jun Family to pay an excruciating price.


    Jun Qiuyan''s eyes revealed an icy expression. He glanced at Shangguan Qiuye and then looked at Master Yan and said, "Master Yan, I am sure you know how well the Jun Family has treated you all along. The Shangguan Family and Jun Family are both cultivating on the Penglai Continent. If the Shangguan Family interfered in today''s conflict, the Jun Family will definitely declare war on the Shangguan Family at all costs."


    "Do you think you are still eligible to represent the Jun Family?" Shangguan Qiuye sarcastically asked. "Even if you can safely walk out of the Eastern Deity Island, just based on your performance this time, I doubt you''ll have much say left in the Jun Family."


    This trip that he made to the Eastern Deity Island had cost the Jun Family too many virtuosos. The entire family had spent a decent amount of resources on this trip and made him the leader of this trip and had even dispatched three level-eight practitioners to aid him. This time, apart from a chance for him to further his cultivation, was also the family''s way of testing him.


    For this purpose, the family had high hopes for him.


    However, it was obvious that even the word "disappointment" couldn''t begin to describe his performance this time. He had allowed the annihilation of nearly all the virtuosos who were from the Jun Family or otherwise hired. He failed to obtain an opportunity of the Great Path, and now, even his life was at stake.


    Under these circumstances, even if he managed to slay Ye Futian and walk out alive, his status in the family would drastically fall. He would be laughed at by his peers and would no longer have the same level of authority as he did before.


    Perhaps, among the many virtuosos of the Jun Family who had stepped onto the Eastern Deity Island in the past, he had by far the worst performance.


    "So have you made your decision?" Ye Futian, who was floating in the air and bathed in a divine halo, asked Master Yan. Jun Qiuyan definitely had to be taken down. However, Master Yan was not a member of the Jun Family, so there was no absolute need to deal with him. If he was willing to give up the fight, then Ye Futian could pretend that nothing had happened before. With one less level-eight virtuoso as his opponent, Ye Futian could focus more on his other opponents.


    "All right."


    Master Yan sighed deeply, looked at Ye Futian, and said, "With your talent, if you don''t die, you will certainly become a powerful figure in the future. I doubt even the Jun Family will be your match, let alone myself. This time, I have agreed to follow the Jun Family onto this Eastern Deity Island. Since a conflict has broken out between both sides, I have to stand on the side of the Jun Family. I will now unleash an attack at my full power. If you are unable to take it, I will still kill you. If you manage to survive the attack, I will leave immediately, and I won''t complain if you wish to seek revenge on me in the future."


    Ye Futian glanced at his opponent and understood Master Yan''s intentions. He had no issues with this arrangement.


    When Master Yan finished speaking, a golden skyglow appeared above, stretching into the horizon and shrouding the entire space. A golden pattern glimmered into existence above Master Yan''s head. That was his Divine Wheel of the Great Path, and it looked like a matrix blueprint. As the skyglow stretched into the horizon, the golden pattern covered the space. Around Ye Futian, the golden stone pillars appeared once again, sealing the entire area.


    Master Yan''s body flashed once. He appeared near the golden pattern in the skies above. Standing in the air, he glanced down at the Ye Futian floating below him.


    Boom! A terrifying light radiated outward. The endless golden skyglow enveloped the entire area. Each ray of golden light seemed to morph into a golden spear. From the skies above, an uncountable number of spears rained down, the entire cascade emitting a sharp, bone-chilling, all-destroying will.


    Master Yan glanced downward. With a press of his finger, the countless golden rays of light flew toward Ye Futian, burying the entire space. Where Ye Futian was, the golden light emitted by the matrix was also attacking him in a frenzy. Master Yan achieved resonance between his finger and the Great Path of heaven and earth. The spears whistled madly, and the golden matrix roared in an uncontrollable rage.


    Ye Futian emerged from the eye of the destructive storm. He emitted a terrifying, cold aura, and it was as though a full moon had emerged. The will of the Great Path radiated outward from his body, completely covering the entire area. When the terrifying murderous attack that could bury even space itself flew toward him, it became weaker as it closed in on his body. Not only did the spears become slower, but also they seemed to be coated in snow and ice.


    Everyone saw the glaring golden light rays targeting Ye Futian, and he was about to be swallowed up by the devastating attack when a flurry of snow and ice swept outward, overpowering the layer of golden light. Many people let out a shocked expression. What power was this?


    Master Ye continued to point his finger downward. On the tip of his finger, wisps of terrifyingly strong Divine Light swirled around, resonating with the Great Path of the heavens. He inched his fingertip downward, but his lethal attack still could not even touch Ye Futian. Even though he had fully activated his Divine Matrix, he could feel that an absolute domain had formed around Ye Futian. Within that domain, no matter what power infiltrated, it would always be sealed by ice and destroyed by the Will of the Sword.


    The onlookers looked at the center of the Divine Matrix. An apocalyptic, destructive stream of power swept downward and completely buried Ye Futian.


    "Is he dead?" Many people had this thought at the same time. Jun Qiuyan too stared intently at the spot.


    Such an attack had buried Ye Futian. Surely the powers of the Great Path of a level-eight virtuoso were sufficient to wipe out Ye Futian.


    "Oin!" Right then, Master Yan retracted his finger. Instantly, the terrifying golden divine glow cloaking his body faded away. Many people were perplexed by this. What did he mean by this?


    Master Yan turned around to leave. "This old man isn''t capable enough."


    As he finished speaking, the Divine Matrix vanished, leaving behind a white-haired silhouette. A terrifying Will of the Sword surrounded the silhouette. An icy-cold aura also emanated from the same silhouette. Impressively, Ye Futian was still there. He lifted his head slightly; his eyes were, as always, sharp and bright.


    Seeing this, Jun Qiuyan''s heart fell. A strand of despair emanated from his dark eyes. Ye Futian could still survive even with an attack like this?


    How could an all-out attack from a level-eight virtuoso fail to slay a low-level Renhuang?


    Boom! At this moment, a terrifying, deafening rumble echoed in the skies. Victory was decided on the other battlefield. Beigong Ao unleashed a murderous streak of lightning that pierced his opponent, causing him to tremble uncontrollably. He vomited blood unceasingly, his face a ghostly white.


    He lost. In this battle between level-eight virtuosos, not only did he fail to trap Beigong Ao, but also he was injured by Beigong Ao''s counterattack. His Domain of the Great Path collapsed into dust.


    Among the three level-eight virtuosos, one remained, while the other was defeated and sustained severe injuries.


    Only the level-eight virtuoso who was standing guard in front of Jun Qiuyan remained unscathed.


    However, the tables have been turned completely. The other two level-seven virtuosos had absolutely no chance of winning against either Ye Futian or Beigong Ao. In fact, it could even be said that they would die for sure. Even if they joined the fight, they couldn''t even stop either Beigong Ao or Ye Futian.


    The robe on Ye Futian fluttered, and the snow covering his body instantly disappeared. He strode forward in Jun Qiuyan''s direction. The level-eight virtuoso was standing guard in front, while the other two level-seven high-level Renhuangs took the flanks.


    Despite having achieved an extremely high level of cultivation, the three people felt that a powerful enemy was right in front of them when they face Ye Futian. The two level-seven virtuosos, in particular, had an intense wariness in their eyes. While it might be difficult for Ye Futian to deal with a level-eight virtuoso, it would be straightforward for him to kill any level-seven Renhuang.


    In Jun Qiuyan''s eyes, apart from a malicious glint, there was also a tinge of fear when he looked at Ye Futian.


    Even in his wildest dreams, he would not have expected that a practitioner from the outer continents whom he met in the Penglai Deity Region and thought to be insignificant could now threaten his life and possibly cause them all to die in the Eastern Deity Island.


    Ye Futian stopped midair and looked at Jun Qiuyan and said, "Apart from that time in the Penglai Deity Region, from the start till now, you have never faced me by yourself. How pathetic."


    Hearing Ye Futian''s words, Jun Qiuyan felt a strong wave of humiliation. Even then, he still hid behind the level-eight virtuoso and did not dare come out, causing him to look even more pathetic.


    This entire scene was extremely ironic.


    An entourage of over a hundred Renhuangs had been reduced to such a sorry state.


    "Do you want to come out yourself, or do I need to do it myself?" Ye Futian continued. He did not intend to kill Jun Qiuyan. There was still some use in keeping him alive!

 1924 Humiliation

    Ye Futian looked at his opponent. His eyes carried a wisp of irony in them.


    Only now did they suggest to stop fighting and leave each other alone?


    How was that possible?


    In this fight, he had already killed so many of their Renhuangs. The grudge between them had already become too deep to let go just like that.


    Even if they could let him go, he was not willing to let Jun Qiuyan off.


    Like what they said, originally, it was no big deal, but since they wanted to kill him and his friends, then, naturally, he had to return the favor.


    "Don''t worry. I still have some say in matters in the Jun Family. You can ask the practitioners in the Penglai Continent, and you will know. Since I have promised you, I definitely will make good on my word and not interfere with you in the future," the level-eight practitioner continued. He was worried that Ye Futian would still be worried that the Jun Family would seek revenge when they left the Eastern Deity Island.


    Ye Futian, still calm, looked at this opponent and said, "If I were worried about vengeance, I could take Jun Qiuyan hostage. Why would there be a need for me to go through all this trouble? You are right. This isn''t such a big deal anyway. Now, I am giving you the same chance. You can leave; I just want Jun Qiuyan."


    The level-eight virtuoso furrowed his eyebrows and said, "That is not possible. Even if you capture him, do you think you can walk out of Penglai Continent?"


    "You need not worry." As Ye Futian finished speaking, his body emanated the Will of the Great Path, and a terrifying aura shrouded the boundless space. The Voice of the Buddha resounded out, the golden light of Buddha wrapped around his body. A terrifying rhythm rippled outwards and cascaded towards his opponent''s divine soul.


    The level-eight virtuoso did not expect Ye Futian to lash out like this. He sealed his six senses, and the light of the Great Path shielded both him and Jun Qiuyan. He turned his gaze to Ye Futian but saw him disappear in a flash. However, Ye Futian did not attack them but rather flew in another direction.


    "Be careful," he warned his comrade loudly. However, in the next moment, he heard a fearsome ripple rolling outwards in the skies. Beigong Ao and his opponent had already collided. The lightning of the Great Path instantly swallowed up the silhouette of Beigong Ao''s opponent, and the endless lightning and thunder coiled around the region.


    The level-eight virtuoso resisted the attack with all his might, and, at that moment, a terrifying Voice of Buddha reverberated, its sound waves entering his ears and attacking his divine soul. His face turned pale, and his mouth opened in a silent scream.


    Zoom zoom�� A sharp sound was emitted. A divine sword appeared in the air, and behind him, the thousands of sword silhouettes created by Ye Futian descended and merged into one sword that shot straight at him.


    He turned around and raised his hand to counter-attack. The sword struck with the Boundless Path of the Sword technique, and cracks appeared in his giant palm halo. The Will of the Sword dashed straight into his body.


    "Execute." Beigong Ao once again attacked. His blade of thunder cut through the air towards his opponent''s body, emitting a blinding glare. His opponent, who was already heavily injured, could not possibly defend himself against the combined attacks of the two people. His body shuddered violently, and his eyes carried an expression of despair.


    He looked in the direction of Jun Qiuyan and saw that right then, the level-eight virtuoso who was protecting Jun Qiuyan actually turned and retreated. That man stepped straight into the space above, not caring about whether his comrade lived or died, and left straightaway.


    A level-eight virtuoso gave up fighting and decided to flee.


    "-Oin."


    Back on the battlefield, the level-eight virtuoso, who was still fighting, was being torn apart by the unceasing cascade of lightning and thunder. The divine sword appeared again and pierced straight through his body, killing him. A level-eight high-level Renhuang virtuoso was executed right where he stood and lost his life on the spot.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said quickly, right after killing his opponent. His divine sword returned to him. He morphed into a flying sword and flew towards the horizon in pursuit of his last opponent.


    How could he let him go just like that?


    Boom�� Thunder rolled like a drum, and lightning flashed all around. Beigong Ao''s body morphed into a streak of lightning, and in an instant, he overtook Ye Futian with his superior speed. After all, he was a true Level-eight Divine Wheel high-level Renhuang. Furthermore, he was well-versed in the Great Path of Thunder.


    Cultivating the Great Path of Thunder not only increased the destructiveness of one''s attacks, but it could also greatly enhance one''s speed. The speed of lightning was terrifyingly high. After mastering this Great Path, one could morph into lightning and cross great distances in an instant.


    Ye Futian''s body didn''t move. Rather, he sent his Will of the Sword ahead, whistling towards the distance. It was as fast as lightning, following closely behind the streak of lightning in front.


    "Let''s go take a look." Many people wanted to follow them to witness the end of this conflict. However, anyone who was below the level of a high-level Renhuang could not possibly catch up to them.


    After they left, there were still two level-seven high-level Renhuang from the Jun Family remaining. Despite their high levels of cultivation as high-level Renhuangs, at that moment, they were completely ignored by everyone and only stood there awkwardly.


    They turned around and took a glance, sighing in their hearts. He had already run away. What else could they do?


    They could only leave.


    In a flash, they were gone. The two of them also retreated but in the opposite direction, worried that Ye Futian would seek revenge on them.


    Shangguan Qiuye noticed the retreating silhouettes but did not move. Ye Futian had asked her to take care of his friends before leaving, so naturally, she would not act rashly. Shangguan Qiuye was certainly willing to be friends, or at least acquaintances, with a practitioner of such great potential.


    Although she had subtly made use of Ye Futian to deal with the Jun Family, she was also pushing the tide of events along. Ye Futian already had intentions to deal with Jun Qiuyan, and she believed that he didn''t mind either.


    This time, Jun Qiuyan was finished.


    Beigong Ao was indeed very strong, and he did not in any way pale in comparison to his opponent. The Thunder of the Great Path, if anything, bestowed great speed to its user. If his opponent had been alone, he might have been able to escape. However, with the burden that he was tugging along, it was a completely different matter. After all, he had to constantly be wary of anything that could threaten Jun Qiuyan''s life.


    Furthermore, there was still Ye Futian.


    Just like what he had guessed, Beigong Ao was inhumanly fast. Before his body even arrived, lighting and thunder had already descended on the area. The skies were covered in dark, ominous clouds, and lightning and thunder unceasingly struck in the direction of the level-eight virtuoso. Even though the power of the attacks could not threaten him, he had to take care of Jun Qiuyan.


    "This is an Illusory Sky Domain. Where do you think you can go?" Beigong Ao spoke loudly as lightning blinded the skies. In the surroundings, many onlookers stared at them. Then again, they were all quite used to scenes like this. On the Eastern Deity Island, this was pretty common, and there was nothing unusual about it.


    The level-eight virtuoso carried Jun Qiuyan along and shot straight through the storm-filled region. He said to Jun Qiuyan, "Qiuyan, what''s happened today started with you, and so only you can bear the responsibility."


    "Uncle." Jun Qiuyan''s face froze. He looked up at the level-eight virtuoso guarding him, and his heart chilled.


    "Their strength is not below mine. If I bring you along, none of us can make it out of the Illusory Sky Domain." The level-eight virtuoso continued, "After I leave, I will inform the Jun Family virtuosos standing guard outside the Eastern Deity Island. Don''t worry; they wouldn''t dare touch you."


    At that moment, Jun Qiuyan knew that he was about to be abandoned.


    The edges of his eyes twitched, and his heart felt like it had been stabbed.


    How could some low-level Renhuang from an outer continent force him into such a pathetic state where he was abandoned and handed over just like that.


    "If anything happened to you, the family will certainly kill them and annihilate their entire clan. The family will seek vengeance for you," the level-eight virtuoso continued. Jun Qiuyan knew that since he had already said it like this, it meant that there was no possibility of turning the tables this time. Nothing could be changed.


    "Alright," Jun Qiuyan nodded. He did not struggle because he already knew that was no point doing that.


    "Just endure it and live on," the man continued. Jun Qiuyan nodded silently. Right after that, his uncle morphed into a streak of light and continued forward, while he was not brought along and was left behind.


    "Hmm?"


    With a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder, Beigong Ao caught up and saw his opponent leaving a dazed Jun Qiuyan behind. Soon he understood that Jun Qiuyan was abandoned.


    His opponent knew that he would not be able to escape if he brought Jun Qiuyan along, so he eventually decided to desert Jun Qiuyan and retreat alone.


    Beigong Ao did not continue pursuing his opponent. After all, he was also a level-eight practitioner, so Beigong Ao was not certain that he could trap his opponent. Anyway, only Jun Qiuyan was Ye Futian''s target; it should be sufficient to capture just him.


    He stopped in mid-air and glanced at Jun Qiuyan. Back when he was at the Penglai Deity Lake, he might have had some respect and even reverence for the Jun Family of the Penglai Continent. When he once again looked at his opponent now, he only felt indifference and irony.


    This change in attitude seemed to correspond to a change in the difference in their strength. Without him knowing, Beigong Ao had also changed. He no longer saw Jun Qiuyan as a threat but merely found him to be rather pathetic.


    Ye Futian arrived quickly and saw Jun Qiuyan quietly standing there.


    He let out an expression of puzzlement, but his confusion lasted for only a moment. When he looked at Jun Qiuyan, his eyes carried a tinge of sympathy.


    "Pathetic," Ye Futian said. As he finished, his Will of the Sword started whirling again, twirling around his body, pointing forward.


    "When you leave the Eastern Deity Island, the virtuosos of the Jun Family will be waiting there," Jun Qiuyan said. Before he even finished speaking, the Will of the Sword had already descended upon him, and a streak of Sword Qi pierced through his body. Jun Qiuyan let out a muffled groan. He lifted his head toward Ye Futian with a mixture of rage and hopelessness.


    How could Ye Futian dare to harm him without hesitation?


    Swords whistled through the air, piercing through Jun Qiuyan''s body continuously, wreaking havoc inside him. With a "sploosh," Jun Qiuyan vomited blood, his aura becoming gradually weaker. He glared at Ye Futian with hatred; he could barely stand without wobbling.


    "The Jun Family will vanquish your entire family," Jun Qiuyan spat viciously at Ye Futian as he glared at him. How dare Ye Futian destroy his cultivation.


    Ye Futian raised his hand, and instantly a powerful pulling force descended. Jun Qiuyan''s body flew straight toward Ye Futian. Branches and leaves tangled around his body, binding him. Ye Futian then turned around and left with Jun Qiuyan in tow.


    The onlookers looked toward that direction. Seeing Ye Futian, they let out a puzzled expression. Someone exclaimed in shock, "That is the young master of the Jun Family of the Penglai Continent, Jun Qiuyan, one of the candidates for the heir of the Jun Family."


    "This��"


    Many people felt a deep tremble in their hearts. The young master of the Penglai Continent was crippled by someone?


    Furthermore, he was treated in such a manner.


    This caused many people to wonder who was that youth in white.


    It seemed like Jun Qiuyan had offended a rather hard character and was thus cruelly crippled. In this Eastern Deity Island, there were indeed powerful practitioners even among the ones whom few had heard of before.


    Countless people looked at Jun Qiuyan, and many voices incessantly entered his ears. His face was ashen. This pain that he was suffering was worse than death.


    Perhaps Jun Qiuyan was the most humiliated direct descendent of a top-tier faction in the history of the Penglai Continent!

 1925 Toward Core Island

    Jun Qiuyan had been crippled, and his cultivation was completely destroyed.


    In the crowd, several people knew the origin of their grudge, and there were even some who witnessed the beginning of their dispute at the Penglai Deity Lake.


    It could be said that the conflict between the two of them was due to Jun Qiuyan''s arrogance.


    However, at that time, everyone felt that it was nothing, as though Jun Qiuyan''s arrogance was the norm and should be accepted. After that, news of Bai Mu stepping in to stop the fight between them spread, and they all thought that in the Eastern Deity Island, Ye Futian would die for sure.


    Many of the virtuosos did not pay close attention to something that was bound to happen and thus nearly forgot about the entire event. No one expected that on the Eastern Deity Island, it would be Ye Futian who completely dominated Jun Qiuyan.


    At this point, Jun Qiuyan was like a dog who had lost its home. He looked extremely pathetic, his aura was fragile, and it looked like there was no life in him, and he could die at any moment; it was as though he were a zombie. Setting aside the question of whether he was humiliated, Jun Qiuyan''s life had practically ended prematurely.


    To a practitioner of his status, tortured with his cultivation stripped, there was not much meaning in living. There was no more value to his life. Perhaps apart from his closest family, no one would care if he lived or died.


    Jun Qiuyan was utterly finished.


    Even though Shangguan Qiuye had vaguely guessed the outcome, upon seeing just how pathetic Jun Qiuyan had become, she could not help but feel a ripple in her heart. Jun Qiuyan was someone who was equal in status to her. Among the next generation in the Penglai Continent, he was also a powerful figure. Not only was he a disciple of a renowned family, but he also had exceptional talent, and everyone had heard of his name.


    No one would have expected that his fate would be this tragic.


    She then turned her gaze to the white-haired youth who was dragging Jun Qiuyan. Apart from admiring Ye Futian''s talent, Shangguan Qiuye was also a little wary of him. This guy was a little too callous. In fact, one could even say he was a little insane.


    Just how many virtuosos did he kill today?


    It seemed like the Jun Family of the Penglai Continent would forever be at odds with him and certainly have him killed.


    As one of the top-tier factions in the Penglai Continent, there was no way the Jun Family would tolerate the massacre and humiliation of their members.


    The moment Ye Futian left the Eastern Deity Island, there would likely be a devastating battle.


    Ye Futian did not attempt to stop him. His grudge was mainly with Jun Qiuyan, and since he had already offended the Jun Family of the Penglai Continent, he did not want to make more enemies.


    He took a step forward toward Shangguan Qiuye and looked at Xia Qingyuan and the rest standing behind Shangguan Qiuye. Ye Futian spoke to Shangguan Qiuye, "Thank you very much."


    "No need for thanks. I didn''t do much," Shangguan Qiuye replied. No one tried to attack her, so, of course, she did not do anything.


    As she finished speaking, she telepathically told Ye Futian, "Having abused Jun Qiuyan like that, you''ll probably encounter much trouble when you leave the Eastern Deity Island."


    "That''s why I''m keeping him alive for now," Ye Futian replied.


    Shangguan Qiuye took a glance at the crippled Jun Qiuyan, and spoke again, "A crippled Jun Qiuyan will have little value to the Jun Family. Apart from his parents, likely no one else in the Jun Family will be concerned about his life. It is more likely that they will care if you are dead..."


    Ye Futian understood what she meant. The Jun Family would likely have him killed.


    "I understand," Ye Futian replied. He only left Jun Qiuyan alive to avoid Dongyuan Pavilion from being implicated. Of course, this was not a perfect plan, and so he needed to prepare in case the Jun Family was determined to kill him at all costs.


    "Miss Shangguan can also be considered to have stood against the Jun Family and threatened their people. Likely, the Jun Family will not forget. Furthermore, the Yun Zhe, who left earlier, was staring at you in a predatory manner. Shall we join hands when we leave Eastern Deity Island?" Ye Futian conveyed his thoughts.


    Shangguan Qiuye let out a puzzled expression. Previously she had intended to make use of Ye Futian, and he seemed to have not minded.


    Now that it had come to this, it seemed like the two of them were alike after all. Ye Futian similarly wanted to make use of her to deal with the Jun Family. The two of them were making the same calculations.


    Even back then, Ye Futian was already considering what to do after leaving Eastern Deity Island.


    Her gorgeous eyes turned to look intently at Ye Futian for a moment. This white-haired youth before her made her feel a tinge of fear. He had an unparalleled talent, and while his cultivation level was not high, his strength was extraordinary. Moreover, he was extremely callous and was quite scheming too.


    It would be extremely troublesome if such a person became her enemy. Jun Qiuyan was a perfect example. Previously in the Penglai Deity Region, Jun Qiuyan probably did not expect Ye Futian to have such great strength. It was because he underestimated Ye Futian that his men were cruelly massacred, and his cultivation stripped, thereby becoming crippled.


    "I didn''t actually lay a finger on Jun Qiuyan or any of the Jun Family members, so it doesn''t count, right?" Shangguan Qiuye replied. Her tone had a touch of displeasure. She did not want to be exploited by Ye Futian.


    "Regardless of whether or not you really participated, your stance is already clear. Moreover, Miss Shangguan also said that you would help me deal with the level-eight practitioner. The Jun Family will certainly know about it. Even if you don''t act, do you think the Jun Family will let the Shangguan Family off?" Ye Futian continued, "Since there will be a battle sooner or later, why don''t you act first. Furthermore, I am not that weak either, so certainly I can help you in some way."


    Shangguan Qiuye should be clear on the relationship between the two families. With Jun Qiuyan crippled, a new conflict was bound to be born between the two families.


    Indeed, a war among the renowned families of the Penglai Continent was looming on the horizon already, and it was certainly inevitable. Even if the Shangguan Family wanted to avoid it, they could not.


    Moreover, Ye Futian has already explained the situation clearly. If they allied with him, their strength would increase to a certain extent. Otherwise, the Jun Family could eradicate Ye Futian and his group and then come back to deal with the Shangguan Family. If she thought along these lines, her choice was quite simple and straightforward.


    "I am not in a position to make this choice," Shangguan Qiuye replied a little unhappily.


    "No worries. Miss Shangguan can take your time to consider carefully," Ye Futian replied. He then left with Jun Qiuyan.


    The relic on the cliff face had already been destroyed, and this place has thus ceased to be a cultivation spot. There was no point in staying any longer.


    He radiated his divine consciousness outwards, and it covered the vast region. He noticed that many people were directing their divine consciousness toward him. It seemed that what happened before had captured the attention of several people.


    However, Ye Futian was not bothered by it. The level-eight virtuoso from the Jun Family managed to escape, so, naturally, news of what happened here could not be kept under wraps. Many practitioners had witnessed him breed enmity with the Jun Family. What he should be considering, then, would be how he could further raise his strength on this Eastern Deity Island.


    First, Jun Qiuyan was already his hostage. However, Jun Qiuyan was not as valuable as he was, and if the Jun Family virtuosos were a little more cold-blooded, they could completely neglect his life.


    The next point of consideration was his alliance with the Shangguan Family. However, it was still a question whether the Shangguan Family was willing to side with him. Even if they became allies, how much effort were they willing to put in?


    Thus, he could not place too much hope on the Shangguan Family.


    This was the Eastern Deity Island; if he wanted to deal with the Penglai Continent''s top-tier faction, the Jun Family, then the best method was to borrow the strength of the factions on the Eastern Deity Island.


    The only problem was that it might be a little difficult to do that. As of now, he had yet to truly step onto the Core Island of the Eastern Deity Island.


    "Is the entrance to the Core Island in that direction?" Ye Futian sent his divine consciousness toward a certain direction. He noticed that the virtuosos in the Illusory Sky Domain were flocking towards a certain direction. In that area, many had extraordinary auras.


    "Mmm," Beigong Ao followed Ye Futian''s gaze. "There is a rather strange land over there. It is the path that anyone must take if he wishes to reach the Core Island of the Eastern Deity Island. It is only through traversing that route that one can arrive at the Core Island of the Eastern Deity Island. However, from what I know, only an exceedingly small number of practitioners can enter the Core Island historically, and it is the case for every generation. It is said that anyone who enters the Core Island will be gifted pills of the Great Path. These are not common elixirs but rather rare, precious ones. Furthermore, the Eastern Deity Island will actively try to have you join their ranks. Naturally, it is the same this time."


    Ye Futian lightly nodded his head. The Eastern Deity Island''s setup to gift cultivation opportunities might appear to be a selfless act, but Ye Futian did not believe so. The Eastern Deity Island was not a scared land of cultivation, so there was no need for them to spend large amounts of manpower to invite practitioners from various continents to seek cultivation on the island, nor was there any need for them to gift cultivation opportunities like that.


    Moreover, they even gave pills of the Great Path, which was obviously impossible.


    Thus, there must naturally be a motive behind Eastern Deity Island''s actions.


    According to what Beigong Ao said, the Eastern Deity Island would try to win over those who performed exceedingly well. Did this mean that the Eastern Deity Island was plotting something?


    For countless years, the Eastern Deity Island had been isolating itself from the rest of the world, focused only on cultivation, avoiding all conflict in the rest of the world. They didn''t even interfere in any matters in the Penglai Continent. Was it really because they were weak?


    Ye Futian thought that the Eastern Deity Island was merely hiding its true strength. However, its true motive was still a mystery.


    "Let''s go," Ye Futian said aloud. There were quite a few Great Path opportunities on the Eastern Deity Island, but he had already obtained two of them. If he continued to spoil the other areas, he would become a public enemy. Anyway, any more would be icing on the cake and not much meaning to him.


    Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm and the Boundless Sword were two extraordinarily powerful assault techniques, and these were sufficient for him.


    Thus, he headed in that direction towards the Core Island of the Eastern Deity Island.


    Shangguan Qiuye''s eyes flashed when she noticed Ye Futian''s silhouette. It seemed like this guy intended to take on the challenge of entering the Core Island.


    It wasn''t easy to enter the Core Island, but it was certainly possible for Ye Futian to enter the realm of the core of the Eastern Deity Island.


    She suddenly had a thought: if Ye Futian succeeded, then the people of the Eastern Deity Island would probably not allow the Jun Family virtuosos to deal with Ye Futian.


    If conflict also broke out between the Eastern Deity Island and the Jun Family, then it would certainly be a great opportunity!

 1926 Chess Game

    At that moment, multiple powerful cultivators had gathered in front of Eastern Deity Gate.


    The Eastern Deity Gate was a gate for deities. It extended high into the sky. Clouds hung around it, creating an ethereal atmosphere.


    In front of the Eastern Deity Gate was a magnificent building that stood upright like a wall. Many people stood on the wall. They were looking at a giant matrix in front of the Eastern Deity Gate. The matrix was a large chessboard, and there were 36 spots on the chessboard. At that moment, 36 practitioners stood on the board, and all around each of them were many Great Path chess pieces hovering around.


    Among the 36 cultivators on the board, there were elderly, middle-aged, as well as some young ones. There were men and women alike. Even though the cultivators were at different plane levels, they all stood upon the same chessboard.


    When Ye Futian and his group arrived, they saw many cultivators from all sides standing on the wall-like building. Everyone gazed at the chessboard in front of them. At that moment, an intense battle had just begun on the chessboard; however, the battle was not between humans; it was a clash between chess pieces.


    Apart from that, on the left and right of the chessboard were nine platforms. Several people were already seated on these platforms. Each of them had an unusual sense of class and elegance. They were all remarkable and extraordinary characters.


    "So, this is the Great Path Chess?" Ye Futian mumbled. He already knew what it was by the time he had arrived. A Great Path Chessboard was in front of the Eastern Deity Gate. Every game required 36 participants. Every participant would get 36 Great Path chess pieces. The participants could pour their great path energies into every chess piece.


    The 36 cultivators would then battle it out in a battle royale on the Great Path Chessboard. The winner would move on to the platform. There were nine platforms. So, when nine victors emerged, another battle royale would ensue. The winner of this nine-way battle would obtain the right to step through the Eastern Deity Gate.


    The Eastern Deity Island also promised that every person who passed through the gate would receive a pill of the Great Path as a reward.


    As such, many strong personalities would come and test their strength. As long as they could win, they would be able to get their hands on an extremely valuable pill of the great path. It was, without a doubt, not a common item. This was the reputation of the Eastern Deity Island. Moreover, the winner could also reap other benefits.


    After all, while a pill was valuable, the benefits of those Great Path Opportunities were also incredibly helpful in increasing a practitioner''s strength. So, it was natural that they would not miss it.


    Jun Qiuyan being brought along as a captive by Ye Futian also attracted the gazes of several practitioners from the Penglai Continent. The faces of people who recognized Jun Qiuyan distorted after they saw the scene. They glanced at Ye Futian. Then, at the person standing beside him, and noticed that it was actually the lady of the Shangguan clan, Shangguan Qiuye.


    Could it be that the Shangguan clan had joined hands with outsiders to fight against the Jun Family?


    It looked like the peace on the Penglai Continent was coming to an end.


    Did their conflict begin while they were within the territory of the Eastern Deity Island?


    Shangguan Qiuye caught up to Ye Futian from behind. She also wanted to see what Ye Futian would do here. She thought, With his talent, unless he encounters an extremely powerful opponent, he should be able to get through the Eastern Deity Gate easily.


    "The chessboard is also a matrix. The moment the 36 participants step on it, 36 Great Path chess pieces will appear. You can inject your Power of the Great Path into the pieces and battle against the others. Here, the gap between one''s plane level is ignored. The strength and durability of every chess piece are the same. The key is the strength of the path. Of course, a person whose plane level is higher would have a more profound understanding of the Great Path. Thus, even if the chess piece would reduce the gap between plane levels, a person of a higher plane level still has some advantages," Shangguan Qiuye explained to Ye Futian.


    Then, she continued, "After defeating everyone else on the chessboard and if the victor still has remaining chess pieces, he or she will be able to move to one of the nine platforms on the sides and watch the remaining battles. Once the nine platforms are filled, the next battle will take place and decide who among the nine would go through the East Deity Gate.


    "To you, this shouldn''t be too hard. At least the first round will be no problem."


    Clearly, Shanggaun Qiuye was very confident with Ye Futian''s strength. She had seen his strength before, and naturally, Ye Futian''s path was very powerful. His battle strength was the manifestation of his Power of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian scanned and looked at the nine platforms. Only two were not yet filled. This meant that after two more rounds of battle, one person would obtain the right to enter the Eastern Deity Gate.


    At that moment, an extremely intense battle began on the chessboard. It was a chaotic battle between multiple sides. Everyone joined, and after a moment, a cultivator achieved victory and walked onto the platform. However, he did not seem all that happy. On the contrary, he seemed very solemn. His gaze moved towards a particular location, and in his eyes was fear.


    On the platform, a young man sat with his legs crossed. His eyes were closed as he cultivated. He seemed a class different from others, and Ye Futian also discovered that many others were also looking at him. Ye Futian looked at the man and noticed that he had seen the young man before. When he entered Eastern Deity Island, this was the young man who made the Flowering Tree react. Based on the guesses of many, this person most probably had an extraordinary background.


    "Next round," said a deity standing in front of the wall-like building. She was a deity of Eastern Deity Island, and she was the host of the battles of the Great Path over there.


    However, after she spoke, no one seemed willing to enter the chessboard.


    "Since there''s no hope anyway, might as well give it a try," said a practitioner lightheartedly with a smile. Then, he went straight onto the chessboard. After that, many others followed suit with a similar mindset and entered the round.


    After hearing the discussions of the people around him, Ye Futian understood why no strong or powerful character took part in this round.


    "They are wary of someone." Shangguan Qiuye also realized it. After winning this battle, the winner would still have to battle the other nine on the platform. So, if an overwhelming character were already on the platform, the others would start to hesitate.


    "That''s right. I am afraid that everyone who joined this time is just here to take part. There are no strong characters," said an old man who was beside them.


    "Could the elder help explain?" Shangguan Qiuye asked the old man.


    "Look at him." The old man pointed at the young man who made the Flowering Tree behave peculiarly and said, "This person entered the chessboard and completely dominated the other cultivators with nine chess pieces. In the 36-way battle, he used nine pieces, and yet no one could defeat him. In the end, he managed to get on the platform with a perfect battle record of losing only one piece. How could someone compete with that?"


    "Using only nine chess pieces?" Shangguan Qiuye mumbled lightly.


    The old man nodded. "36 chess pieces and he only used nine pieces. He did not even touch the remaining pieces. He only lost one piece, which means that he will have 35 pieces remaining in the subsequent battle. And up until now, all the remaining chess pieces of the other seven on the platforms totals to 41 pieces. This means that even if they include the last guy, the eighth guy, they would still not have that many chess pieces. Do you understand now?"


    Shangguan Qiuye raised her head slightly and said, "Thank you very much."


    Naturally, she understood. The winner preserved his chess pieces for the subsequent nine-way battle. In the first round, the frightening thing was that he was able to sweep his opponents away with just nine chess pieces. Moreover, he only lost one piece.


    The result was extremely daunting. Who would dare go up?


    No wonder many people were talking about it earlier. Taking part in the battles meant that they joined to participate. They did not bear any hopes of entering the Eastern Deity Gate.


    Avoiding strong cultivators was a technique. After all, many wanted to pass the Eastern Deity Gate. Naturally, no one would want to encounter such a strong opponent who would affect one''s ability to get through that Eastern Deity Gate.


    One out of 36. After that, one out of nine. This meant that only one out of 324 people would enter through the Eastern Deity Gate. This was also with the least number of battles. If a person achieved victory but lost all his or her chess pieces, another group of 36 would have to hash it out again.


    From this, one could only imagine just how difficult it was. This time, practitioners from continents from everywhere had come to the Eastern Deity Island. No one knew the real strength of others. So, it was natural to observe and learn.


    Ye Futian looked toward the battle on the chessboard. It was as expected. The battle was not very exciting. It was even inferior to the previous battle. After some time, the winner was finally decided. The winner stepped onto the platform. And now, nine people stood on the platform.


    The Eastern Deity Island host deity looked at them and said, "Please enter the chessboard."


    The nine of them walked down and landed on the chessboard. The young man who was the prime focus of many cultivators also opened his eyes. He got up slowly and began walking toward. Then, he landed on the chessboard.


    Nine people. All stood in nine different locations.


    Great Path Chess pieces appeared subsequently and hovered around their bodies.


    The number of chess pieces surrounding most participants was in the single digit. Only that young man had 35 Great Path chess pieces hovering around him, radiating bright and pretty lights. Moreover, each of his chess pieces illuminated brighter than others.


    The other eight cultivators fixed their gaze on him. They seemed to have reached an agreement as they became in sync and wanted to deal with the young man first. Otherwise, they would have no chance.


    "Do it," said a person. The moment he finished speaking, the eight of them initiated their attacks. Chess pieces after pieces flew around looking for blood. Every single chess piece contained a strong and forceful Great Path of attack.


    The young man watched everything calmly. He moved his palms lightly, and suddenly, bright divine light flashed n front of them. The 27 chess pieces shone simultaneously and flew all around him, creating a light screen. The blinding and beautiful divine light shot out of the light screen like a Matrix of the Great Path.


    Crack, crack, crack...


    One after another, the Great Path chess pieces were crushed and fell on the ground. The cultivators'' expressions changed. They learned that the young person had actually preserved his strength and did not go all out. After all, one is disqualified if they run out of chess pieces. So, it was natural for anyone to feel a little greed.


    "Cheeky bastard!" roared an elder. To actually preserve one''s strength, even in a situation like this?!


    Vuong! The light screen made from chess pieces surrounding the young man became larger. A vague yet frightening illusory shadow then began to loom in.

 1927 Joining In

    Bang, bang... The other chess pieces used to attack the young man were crushed into nothingness. The young man waved his finger, and the 27 chess pieces flew and dashed all over the place in a frenzy. Sounds of chess pieces cracking and breaking filled the air. All the Great Path chess pieces of the other eight cultivators had been turned into dust.


    The unparalleled illusion towered over everyone with a tinge of condescension. This competition of the Great Paths ended without a hint of suspense. The young man achieved an overwhelming victory and crushed his opponents. Furthermore, of the 27 chess pieces he used for the attack, none were destroyed.


    Among the 36 chess pieces, 35 remained.


    "Congratulations!" After the battle, the Eastern Deity Island host deity congratulated the young man. She then continued, "You can wait on the side, and we will enter the Eastern Deity Gate later together."


    "Okay." The young man nodded. With a flash, his body disappeared. He moved swiftly to the side of the Eastern Deity Gate. There was an empty penthouse over there. So, the young man went there. After that, he crossed his legs and sat down before continuing with his cultivation.


    Invincible, thought many practitioners standing in front of the chessboard. No one could even threaten the young man. The result was splendid. He only lost one chess piece. They wondered if someone else had been able to do this before.


    At that time, the Eastern Deity Island''s deity host spoke again. "Who else?" As soon as she finished asking, someone immediately strode forward towards the chessboard. He landed one of the six locations on the chessboard. The next moment, 36 Great Path chess pieces appeared and hovered around his body.


    "It is the young city lord of Wushang City," said someone with a surprised expression. Wushang City was one of the main cities on the Penglai Continent. Wushang City''s city lord was powerful. This young city lord''s cultivation level was already at a frightening level. He was at least on the sixth plane, his combat ability was remarkable, and his talent was extraordinary.


    He chose to be the first to enter the stage, probably because he wanted to silence and stun the others, to make other powerful cultivators avoid him. To not compete with him.


    "That means that you would also lose if you went up there?" Asked Ye Futian.


    "That''s the most likely case," replied Shangguan Qiuye. "If you''re not in a hurry, avoiding him is a good option. While you are probably stronger than him, I am afraid that there may be other powerful characters in the later round. Once you expose your strength, you may become the target of the larger group and be surrounded. There might be some pressure."


    From Shangguan Qiuye''s point of view, the overwhelming power that Ye Futian displayed was sufficient to defeat even Liu Qing. However, Liu Qing was still a strong opponent who might be able to pressure Ye Futian.


    "It looks like the young city lord of Wushang City has sealed the victory of this first round of battle," said someone. For a time, no one actually got on the board.


    "The young city lord of Wushang City, eh?" An elegant looking young man flashed and appeared on the large chessboard. The man had a very handsome face and pure white skin. He was refined and elegant like a woman, a rare pretty boy.


    "Beiyuan Continent. Bai Gu," said the young man gently with a feminine yet dreary voice, sending chills down several peoples'' spines.


    Named continents were never weak. Beiyuan Continent was a continent of similar strength compared to Penglai Continent. However, most people had never been to a place so far away before, so, in comparison, the name of Beiyuan Continent was unfamiliar to most.


    However, some of those in major and powerful factions knew what the Bai family name of Beiyuan Continent meant.


    The Bai family name of Beiyuan Continent conquered the entire Beiyuan Continent. Unlike the Penglai Continent, they were the absolute conqueror.


    Even Liu Qing stopped to look at Bai Gu. He looked at Bai Gu with a rather solemn expression; however, he did not seem too bothered by it. If he did not encounter him here, he would still have to face him in a later battle. It did not matter that much to him.


    "I knew that practitioners who came to cultivate and train in Eastern Deity Island this time would be strong. Wushang City dominates part of the Penglai Continent while the royal Bai family conquers the Beiyuan Continent. This old man is nameless, but I would like to join in the fun." Another man stepped up. He was elderly, but his aura was domineering. He was a high order Renhuang.


    "This elder defeated many people who competed against him elsewhere when encountering a Great Path Opportunity. He is mighty." The expressions on some were solemn, and most were at least a little shocked. From the conversations and comments, they began to understand Bai Gu''s weight.


    It was only the first battle. Were all the powerful cultivators rushing into the chess battle?


    "Since that is the case, I will also join in the fun," said another voice. This time, it was a woman Renhuang. She wore a long red robe and had an air of elegance and glamour as if she were a queen whom one should never offend.


    "Blood Empress," Shangguan Qiuye said softly. Every practitioner from Penglai Continent seemed to tremble after seeing her. What was going on?


    One after another, powerful characters had entered the stage. Were they rushing in to prove themselves in the chess battle?


    Could they not wait until the next round?


    Each of these practitioners who joined in was a powerful cultivator. They were proud. The mysterious young man from before was too powerful and caused many to avoid him intentionally. That in and of itself had already violated their principles.


    Now, the mysterious young man had already won. He would no longer take part in the battle. Would they avoid the battle again?


    Moreover, in this battle to pass through the gate, thousands of practitioners from various continents remained. It was truly a situation where powerful cultivators were as common as clouds in the sky. Who knew what kinds of opponents would appear in the next round?


    Every battle would have someone powerful.


    Particularly after the battle where the nine victors had to battle again. So, it was inevitable.


    They did not want to keep waiting to continue avoiding others. As such, the current situation was created.


    Since many powerful characters were already like that, there was nothing for the others to avoid. One after another, people began to step onto the chessboard.


    Not many could step into the core area of Eastern Deity Island in the first place. Most people knew their limits, they were only there for the experience. Since that was the case, why be picky? There was nothing to be afraid of.


    Moreover, if they were there to train, the higher the number of powerful characters, the better.


    Seeing the scene before them, many knew that this round of battle belonged to the few strong people. The rest were just there to participate.


    "A few of them are very strong. Let''s avoid this?" Shangguan Qiuye said. However, just as she ended her sentence, Ye Futian strode forward and said, "Help me keep an eye on him.


    Leaving Jun Qiuyan behind, Ye Futian walked forward and moved onto the chessboard, leaving Shangguan Qiuye with a wide-eyed stare.


    "This guy..."


    However, she knew just how powerful Ye Futian was. In a one versus one situation, whether it was Liu Qing or Bai Gu, none of those on the board would defeat Ye Futian.


    However, she worried that if Ye Futian showed his true strength, he would be targeted, and in that situation, who knew what could happen.


    "This guy also went up there." Many Penglai Continent''s Renhuang also noticed Ye Futian. He was wringing Jun Qiuyan all over the place, so it was natural that people paid attention to him. In addition to that, practitioners at the Cliff Face Relic earlier had amused expressions on their faces.


    So, he is moving, they thought.


    Earlier, several extraordinary characters entered the stage, and most people thought that the winner would be one of them. However, when Ye Futian emerged, they knew that the ultimate victor would be Ye Futian.


    Among them, one person said with confidence, "It looks like the victor of this battle is decided."


    "The victor is decided? Liu Qing, the Blood Empress, Bai Qu, these are all powerful people. I would assume it is still very much up in the air, no?" someone replied.


    "They will not win," answered the guy who spoke earlier. He glanced at the other person with a profound smile.


    "Huh?" The person seemed perplexed and asked, "Then, who do you think will be the victor?"


    "Him." The guy pointed at Ye Futian, which led to a lot of people looking at him.


    Ye Futian, with his white hair, wore a white outfit. His aura and demeanor were definitely extraordinary. Devilishly handsome, Ye Futian''s face could be regarded as handsome as Bai Gu, if not even more so. For a short time, he definitely attracted the gazes of many people.


    However, to claim that he could defeat all the strong characters on the board? It was still a questionable remark, to say the least.


    Of course, since someone did make that claim, it meant that he was definitely quite exceptional in some areas. So, who was this person?


    On the chessboard, Ye Futian landed in a location. Instantly, 36 chess pieces appeared and hovered around his body. It was as if they were created from a spell of the matrix, it was quite incredible.


    Ye Futian injected his divine consciousness and Power of the Great Path into the chess pieces. Then, the next moment, the chess pieces began buzzing and emitting whooshing noises. The will of the Great Path began to emanate from the chess pieces; it seemed very natural.


    Then, Ye Futian frowned. He felt as if someone had fixed their eyes on him.


    He raised his head. On the chessboard, someone on his side decided to start his attack. Nine chess pieces rushed over towards. The chess pieces contained an extreme Power of the Thunder. They transformed into the nine beams of the Light of Thunder and flew straight toward Ye Futian.


    The nine beams of Light of the Great Path of Thunder shot at Ye Futian. Ye Futian raised and waved his arms. Immediately after, a chess piece flew out and drew a perfect and beautiful curve that transformed into a Sword Will.


    The Sword Will directly pierced through the opponent''s nine chess pieces, destroying every single one in an instant.


    The nine chess pieces fell. The practitioner looked at Ye Futian. In front of Ye Futian, the only thing left was the frightening aura flowing from that chess piece.


    He only used one piece to defeat his nine pieces.


    On the chessboard, several others turned their eyes toward Ye Futian. This guy also seemed very strong!

 Chapter 1928 - All of You Together

    The person lost nine chess pieces to Ye Futian''s chess with the Great Path of the Sword. Clearly, his Power of the Great Path of Thunder was far inferior to Ye Futian''s Power of the Great Path of Attack.


    The expression on the face of the person who attacked Ye Futian changed slightly. Then, Ye Futian pointed his finger toward the sky. The next moment, nine chess pieces appeared at the same time. Each of the nine chess pieces contained an incredibly powerful Sword Will. Moreover, every Sword Will seemed to be slightly different. Amidst the chess battle, they shook intensely while making crisp, whooshing sounds.


    "Go." Ye Futian waved his palm. In an instant, the nine chess pieces flew toward the Renhuang who attacked him before.


    Feeling the Sword aura hidden with the chess pieces, the practitioner''s expression changed. His remaining 27 chess pieces flew over and transformed into a giant roaring thunder beast. Surrounded by the chess pieces, the illusion of a daunting thunder beast emerged. It devoured the sky and charged straight towards Ye Futian''s chess pieces.


    Bzzt, bzzt... Sharp deafening sounds filled the air. The nine Great Path of the Sword chess pieces were devoured directly, and they vanished before everyone''s eyes.


    However, in just an instant, the Sword Will pierced through the giant thunder beast and headed straight toward the practitioner. Seeing the incoming Sword Will whistle over, the practitioner quickly raised his arms in an attempt to block.


    Vuong... The chess pieces drew another beautiful curve and turned around. The Power of Thunder on the chessboard disappeared, and the aura from the 27 chess pieces disappeared as well. Apart from that, the practitioner also used his own powers. The destruction of one''s chess pieces or the utilization of one''s own power in the match meant one''s elimination.


    Then, looking at Ye Futian''s side, his nine chess pieces were still buzzing and hovering in front of him. They were still in perfect condition.


    "Complete victory."


    All the cultivators present were slightly shocked when they saw the scene unfold before them. While a victory was common, Ye Futian eliminated his opponent in the first battle of this round without losing anything. That strength was definitely uncommon, and it made even more people pay attention to him.


    Earlier, someone made the bold claim that there would be no suspense to this battle. Ye Futian would be the winner. Many thought that it was simply due to boasting. Now, it looked like this white-haired Renhuang''s strength was indeed quite overwhelming.


    Perhaps he really was worthy of being considered a winner of this battle.


    The chess pieces of Liu Qing, the young city lord of Wushang City, danced in front of him. It was not one by one or perhaps in a group of nine. Instead, all 36 of his chess pieces flew out at the same time. They converged and created a giant ax. It was also filled with a violent Power of the Great Path of Thunder. It was also accompanied by a frightening dark gold airflow, which caused crackling sounds that filled the sky.


    36 chess pieces flew into the sky before slashing down at a person in front of him. The person''s expression changed after sensing the power of the attack. 36 chess pieces danced and converged into an unbreakable spear before clashing against the descending chess pieces coming from the sky.


    Clang...


    The thunder battle ax slashed downward, splitting the opponent''s spear into two and the accompanying chess pieces into smithereens.


    "Such a potent attack." The hearts of many cultivators trembled. Moreover, Liu Qing used all 36 of his chess pieces in his attack. He did not leave any space for himself at all. If his attack had failed to defeat his opponent and his chess pieces were restrained, it would be game over for him. Or if someone else had used the opportunity to sneak an attack on him and forced him to use his own strength to block it, he would also be eliminated.


    It was incredible confidence.


    Very few use all 36 of their chess pieces to initiate an attack.


    Bai Gu, the Blood Empress, and the powerful cultivators also started making their moves one after another. The chess pieces in front of Bai Gu danced, twisted, and turned while a chilly and frightening aura sealed the sky around him, creating a Great Path of Ice Seal domain. Everything came from those chess pieces. Even when other chess pieces tried to attack him, it was difficult to get through this Ice-sealed Great Path domain.


    At the same time, the twisting and turning chess pieces also converged and created a formidable giant ice dragon. Baring its claws and teeth, it breathed at a person in front of it. Its breath turned the air cold. The opponent wanted to initiate an attack. He poured his Power of the Great Path into his chess pieces, but the chess pieces were sealed with ice in front of the dragon''s breath, turning into ice. The chess pieces no longer seemed to have any strength.


    "What incredible Frost Will," Someone watching the battle outside the chessboard exclaimed after seeing the power of the Ice Seal. He then said, "Everyone battling on the chessboard is on the same level. It is easier to determine the strength of one''s Great Path. This chessboard matrix is truly an idea from a genius. Anyone who emerges as the victor must be the one with the strongest potential."


    In another location, the Blood Empress'' attack turned into a crimson red light. Crimson roses seemed to appear everywhere her chess pieces passed through. Under the beautiful outer appearances laid frightening crimson lightning that destroyed everything.


    Apart from them, several others also displayed formidable strength.


    However, Ye Futian, the young city lord of Wushang City Liu Qing, Bai Gu, and the Blood Empress were able to defeat their opponents without losing any of their chess pieces. It was as if the competition between them had already begun. None wanted to fall behind, and one was stronger than another.


    "Let''s work together."


    The other participants transmitted their voices to each other. Liu Qing, Bai Gu, and the Blood Empress were all very powerful. There was no way they could win. Moreover, the white-haired Renhuang''s Great Path chess pieces were also incredible and were a great threat. If they fought alone, they would have no chance.


    Close to Ye Futian, several Renhuang initiated their attacks at the same time. Chess pieces flew towards Ye Futian from three directions.


    From the front, beams of golden light of the Great Path flashed. The chess pieces each converged into a tiny golden cauldron. 36 tiny cauldrons formed surrounded an area and charged towards him.


    From another direction, strands of sharp sword auras flew towards Ye Futian.


    From the last direction, Great Path chess pieces turned into a golden light that flew across the sky and shot straight at Ye Futian. The intention was to bypass Ye Futian''s chess pieces and directly attack his person, to force him into making a move.


    Vuong!


    The chess pieces around Ye Futian''s body started dancing at the same time. They hovered and circled his body. Multiple powerful Sword Wills flowed around the area and created a Great Path of the Sword domain that spread outward.


    All 36 tiny cauldrons descended at the same time. When they entered the sword domain, crisp cracking sounds could be heard. In a single moment, the cauldrons transformed from chess pieces were crushed into pieces.


    At the same time, the other attacks also arrived. However, the conclusion was the same. The moment their chess pieces entered the sword domain created by Ye Futian''s chess pieces, they would be directly destroyed. Their attacks looked like suicide attacks.


    "This..."


    Many became speechless after witnessing this. Was the gap between their Great Paths so great? Moreover, even if they were using the same Great Path of the Sword, their strengths were on completely different levels.


    The other battles were similar. Liu Qing and Bai Gu were also clearly on another level. However, at that time, Liu Qing encountered a very powerful opponent. It was the elderly man who had entered the chessboard just a little bit after him. In that battle, the old man got rid of nine of Liu Qing''s chess pieces. So, he was left with only 27 pieces.


    The Blood Empress lost three chest pieces in her battles.


    Only Bai Gu was like Ye Futian and did not lose a single chess piece. They were undamaged.


    However, this could be due to the opponents they faced.


    As the battle raged on, the number of people left decreased substantially. As predicted by the crowd, only four people remained on top of the chessboard.


    Ye Futian, Liu Qing, Bai Gu, and the Blood Empress.


    Coincidentally, they stood in four different locations. Ye Futian stood near Bai Gu while the Blood Empress was closer to Liu Qing.


    The four of them fell silent for a moment as they examined each other. Liu Qing had the least amount of chess pieces left. It was still 27 pieces. The elder from earlier took down nine chess pieces in his violent attack formed by 36 chess pieces. It was incredibly difficult. However, in subsequent battles, he did not lose even one.


    So, among the four, who would go next?


    "You go down." At that time, a voice emerged. It was Bai Gu''s voice. He was rather similar to Ye Futian in a way. They were both very handsome. Their handsomeness was more feminine due to their cultivation styles.


    Ye Futian was affected by the Power of Yin, which caused him to carry a more feminine and somber air around him. Bai Gu also similarly cultivated in the Power of Ice. Perhaps it was due to their similarity, Bai Gu noticed Ye Futian first and decided to eliminate him.


    Ye Futian''s eyes lit up. He glanced at Bai Gu. Bai Gu''s eyes were cold. A gaze would have been enough to make one feel cold.


    "The three of you should fight first and decide a victor," replied Ye Futian. he did not continue looking at Bai Gu. Hidden within his plain and calm tone was a sense of arrogance. This made the pupils of the others shrink as their faces distorted.


    Did he mean that he wanted the three of them to fight first and decide a victor before fighting him?


    It was as if the three of them were not worth his attention.


    Bai Gu also looked perplexed. He and Ye Futian had all of their chess pieces. That was why he chose to eliminate Ye Futian first. However, unexpectedly, the guy was even more outrageous than him. An air of blood-like beauty and charm surrounded her, dissuading people from touching her.


    The young city lord of Wushang City also looked at Ye Futian. He had the least chest pieces left, so the situation was disadvantageous for him. There was also no way he would let another person reap the benefits of a battle he was involved in. At that moment, Ye Futian seemed to have angered everyone.


    After seeing that all three of them had shifted their gaze to look at him, Ye Futian remained calm and casually said, "Well, if that''''s the case, all of you, together!"

 Chapter 1929 - Not Too Shabby Yourself

    Three people, together?


    Everyone gazed at Ye Futian in silence. Even though someone had earlier predicted that Ye Futian would be the ultimate winner and had rated him highly, which among the other three was not a genius with monster-like strength?


    Wushang City��s young city lord Liu Qing, Bai Gu from Beiyuan Continent��s Bai clan, and the Blood Empress.


    Three extremely powerful cultivators. Even though Liu Qing lost nine chess pieces, that was because his opponent was too strong. As for Bai Gu, he was like Ye Futian and, up until that point, had kept all 36 of his chess pieces.


    The three of them did not seem any weaker than Ye Futian. However, at that moment, Ye Futian actually asked the three of them to team up and face him together. Just what kind of arrogance was that?


    The three of them were also stunned briefly after hearing Ye Futian��s statement. They looked perplexed. Earlier, Ye Futian said something crazy, which was to decide a victor among themselves first. That was understandable. However, later, Ye Futian asked the three of them to team up and fight him. It was no longer just crazy. It was extreme hubris and arrogance.


    ��You know you��re going to be eliminated. That��s why you want it to seem more heroic, is that right?�� Bai Gu asked gently. The three of them had come to some agreement, which was to eliminate Ye Futian first. So, they wondered if it was because Ye Futian knew that he would lose that he intentionally said this.


    It looked like this was certainly a possibility.


    After all, they had already decided that they would get rid of Ye Futian first. Moreover, on the chessboard matrix, the worst outcome was to be eliminated. Even if one were excessively arrogant, there were no other more severe consequences.


    Ye Futian glanced at Bai Gu. He raised his hand. Then, in an instant, chess pieces began hovering in front of him. There were a total of nine chess pieces. Every chess piece contained a buzzing Sword Will. Apart from the Sword Will, a frightening Yin aura also oozed out of the chess pieces, seemingly freezing the air around them.


    ��If you say that is the case, then so be it.�� Just as Ye Futian finished speaking, the nine chess pieces flew away and transformed into nine Sword Wills that shot toward Bai Gu��s location at the same time.


    Looks of surprise hung on the faces of many onlookers. Ye Futian only released nine chess pieces against Bai Gu?


    Bai Gu looked at Ye Futian. All 36 chess pieces around him started to move. The Frost Will engulfed the area around him. The nine Sword Wills arrived in an instant. As if a frightening bolt of lightning infiltrating, the Sword Wills pierced through his Frost domain. After entering his domain, the Sword Wills charged straight towards Bai Gu��s body.


    The Frost Will strengthened, and the chess pieces in front of Bai Gu spun and danced while a divine giant frost dragon released an icy breath filled with an enormous amount of Frost Will that targeted Ye Futian��s chess pieces.


    As that occurred, the Sword Will of the nine chess pieces turned into a straight blade of light that emitted an even colder aura. The aura caused the surrounding Frost Will to freeze. The breath of the giant frost dragon was also frozen in place. Even the giant frozen dragon��s movement began to slow.


    Many people looked surprised. However, before they could regain their bearings, the blade of light shot through and caused the body of the giant frost dragon to disintegrate bit by bit as it turned into nothingness. The 36 chess pieces were also destroyed.


    Vuong�� The chess pieces which had transformed into a sharp sword hovered in front of Bai Gu. It had stopped attacking.


    Bai Gu��s gaze remained fixed. A powerful Frost Will emanated from his body as he stared at the floating chess pieces.


    At that moment, all his previously displayed confidence had vanished.


    Nine chess pieces had transformed into a sword that instantly destroyed all 36 of his chess pieces. It was a complete and instantaneous defeat.


    His earlier words still rang in his ears. Now, it seemed a little painful to hear them.


    Ye Futian was feigning arrogance so that he could lose more heroically?


    No. The truth was that he, Bai Gu, could not even take one hit.


    All the other practitioners also focused their attention on him. Bai Gu, the Bai clan genius from the Beiyuan Continent, had utterly lost in this battle. The proud and insufferably arrogant attitude Bai Gu had been defeated in an instant when faced against the white-haired Renhuang who was just as handsome as he was.


    The white-haired Renhuang did not lose a single chess piece.


    No wonder he dared to make a statement as bold as asking the three of them to attack together.


    With the strength that he had displayed, he certainly had the right to do so. He was able to take care of Bai Gu with just nine chess pieces. So, what about the young city lord of Wushang City, Liu Qing, as well as the Blood Empress?


    Was it going to be the same? Were nine chess pieces sufficient?


    Weird expressions hung on the faces of many when that thought crossed their mind. They looked toward Liu Qing and the Blood Empress. They could see the two of them staring straight at Ye Futian. It was clear that they were also stunned by Ye Futian��s earlier attack.


    From what they felt, Bai Gu was not weaker than either of them. However, he suffered an instantaneous defeat when facing Ye Futian. Would they be able to withstand Ye Futian��s next attacks?


    They would soon find out. Ye Futian waved his hand, and this time, 18 chess pieces rose into the air. Separated into two sides, nine pieces on each side.


    The scene prompted many outside the chessboard to look surprised. Was he going to fight the other two at the same time?


    As he said earlier, he was going to fight the other three powerful cultivators all by himself.


    18 chess pieces spun and flew out. They transformed into Sword Wills just like the Sword Will attack used against Bai Gu earlier. There was not an inch of difference. As long as it was strong enough, one skill was enough to break through tens of thousands of spells. There was no need for Ye Futian to make any changes.


    Rumble�� A frightening thunder roared across the sky. Liu Qing roared. His finger pointed forward toward the sky, and a thunder battle ax slashed downward to clash against the sword silhouette that had just converged.


    In another direction, the Blood Empress�� beautiful and alluring body moved as she danced. Crimson roses emerged and created an ocean of blood that devoured everything, including the sword flying towards her.


    The swords pierced through the two attacks almost at the same time. The crowd could only see the blades of light pass through the battle-ax and the crimson roses before turning back into a straight ray of light that left an incredibly bright and beautiful divine light in its track.


    The blade of light passed, and the chess pieces turned into dust one by one. Only the 18 chess pieces which had transformed into the blades remained. Liu Qing and the Blood Empress�� face distorted. The reason was not that they felt wronged or ridiculed, but that they had suffered a crushing defeat.


    They were all incredibly arrogant people. Earlier, the appearance of a mysteriously powerful cultivator made them skip several battles to avoid him. This had already created some thoughts on their minds. Now, they stepped up and entered this battle, but they still faced such a crushing defeat.


    It affected their self-confidence significantly. Were the paths that they cultivated so weak?


    As they thought of this, the light in Liu Qing and the Blood Empress�� eyes dimmed.


    As for those watching the battle, some gasped while others were in shock.


    Too strong. Earlier, some cultivators actually thought that the winner of this battle would be one of the three �C Bai Gu, Liu Qing, or the Blood Empress. They would never have expected someone so strong would appear and completely crush the three of them.


    It was just like what one person predicted earlier. The victor of the battle was already decided. It was not one of the three participants that they favored. Rather, it was the white-haired Renhuang.


    Shangguan Qiuye was also speechless. It looked like she still underestimated Ye Futian��s strength. His Great Path was not on the same level as others. Perhaps the mysterious cultivator was the only one who was on a similar level.


    Ye Futian saw that the Blood Empress and Liu Qing were still staring at him. It was as if they had not yet recovered from that unexpected defeat. So, he said, ��Don��t take it to heart. If it were anyone else, the result would have been the same.��


    Hearing Ye Futian��s words, the expressions on the face of many onlookers changed. This was��


    However, none could say anything in response. He did, after all, instantly defeat three amazingly talented and powerful cultivators. No matter what he said, he was in the right, and no one could rebut him.


    Ye Futian had the right to be proud and arrogant.


    If someone were to say something like this to the Blood Empress or Liu Qing on a normal day, the two would probably have gone berserk. However, at that moment, they felt nothing. They only glanced at Ye Futian in silence.


    They hoped that what he said was the case.


    It was that the white-haired Renhuang was too strong and not their Great Path being too weak.


    ��I am humbled. I look forward to your future performance,�� said Liu Qing. After that, he exited the chessboard. The Blood Empress stared at Ye Futian with a profound look with her charming eyes. Then, she also left.


    She would see whether Ye Futian would also be just as powerful in the subsequent battle.


    The battle ended, and Ye Futian obtained a complete victory. There was not even a tinge of suspense.


    The scarier thing was that he did not lose a single chess piece. He walked towards the stone platform on the side. If he could maintain his 36 chess pieces in the upcoming nine-way battle, he would be even stronger than the mysterious cultivator from earlier.


    Now, that was something one would look forward to seeing.


    ��How do you guys know he would win?�� Someone asked the guy who predicted that Ye Futian had already secured victory.


    ��In the battle at the cliff face earlier, he defeated all the cultivators from Penglai Continent��s Jun clan. Did you not see that he has already incapacitated the young master of the Jun clan, Jun Qiuyan? He took that Great Path Opportunity, and the cliff face collapsed. How could someone like this not win?�� The person spoke with slanted eyes. He spoke as if everything was in his grasp, as if the one who won was him.


    Regardless, the people around him were stunned after hearing his words. Was he that strong?


    He took the Great Path Opportunity, and the cliff face collapsed because of him.


    Many people looked at Ye Futian, who sat on the platform. Ye Futian sat there quietly cultivating. He did not look at the people underneath him. The reason why he showed such overwhelming strength was because he wanted to garner the attention of the Eastern Deity Island. This was to respond to unforeseen events about to take place in the Eastern Deity Island.


    In front of the Eastern Deity Gate, the mysterious cultivator opened his eyes. He glanced at Ye Futian and said, ��You��re not too shabby.��


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked over after hearing that. He calmly locked eyes with the young man. This young man was the most talented person with the strongest potential that he had seen since coming to Eastern Deity Island. Of course, there was still some gap between the two of them.


    ��You��re not too shabby yourself.�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. The young man��s pupils shrunk slightly. Then, he smiled and nodded in response!

 Chapter 1930 - The End

    Later, the other battles continued. However, just like the previous round, where many people avoided the mysterious and powerful cultivator, many who truly wanted to enter the Eastern Deity Island chose to avoid Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was too strong. Among the 36 chess pieces, the mysterious and powerful cultivator from the previous round lost one piece in his battles.


    However, Ye Futian kept all 36 of his chess pieces. If they had encountered him, they would clearly fail to win. As such, they had no choice but to continue waiting. That way, their chances would be higher.


    Of course, there were still some strong individuals who chose not to wait and stepped on the chessboard to battle.


    Ye Futian did not pay attention to the battlefield. The appearance of the mysterious and powerful cultivator in the Penglai Continent was already a rare event; it was highly unlikely for another person who could threaten him to appear.


    After some time, all nine victors had been decided.


    All nine cultivators above the chessboard traded glances with one another. Then, the other eight focused their gazes on Ye Futian.


    It was as if it was undeniable that Ye Futian would become the protagonist of the upcoming battle.


    ��Let��s have the fighters enter the chessboard then,�� announced the Eastern Deity Island��s deity. Then, in an instant, the silhouettes of the nine cultivators drifted down toward the chessboard. After they landed on the chessboard, chess pieces instantly surrounded them. Eight pairs of eyes remained glued to a single location.


    In that location, a white outfit fluttered in the air as the white-haired Renhuang��s body slowly descended. As he landed, 36 chess pieces appeared and emitted bright and beautiful lights.


    Vuong�� The moment Ye Futian landed on the chessboard, the other eight cultivators actually initiated their attacks at the same time. There was no hesitation. It was as if they had already come to some agreement, and it was to target Ye Futian.


    This made many onlookers show a surprised expression. It looked like the other cultivators had already communicated via voice transmission earlier. All eight cultivators attacking one person at the same time and as soon as the opponent landed was shameful behavior. After all, they were all Renhuangs.


    However, it was understandable. Faced against Ye Futian��s overwhelming strength, if they did not employ extreme and unusual measures, they would have no chance of winning.


    Attacks of the Great Path transformed from chess pieces came at Ye Futian from eight directions. High-pitched and frightening sounds came from multiple directions around Ye Futian. However, at the same time, Ye Futian��s 36 chess pieces began to spin and hovered around Ye Futian��s body before transforming into multiple blades of the intimidating Sword Wills.


    The 36 chess pieces turned into 36 Sword Wills. The 36 Sword Wills generated an endless amount of sword silhouettes. As they circled and flew around Ye Futian��s body, a sword screen was created. With Ye Futian��s body as the center, the sword screen surrounded him and emitted a frightening tearing noise.


    Intense sounds of crashing and clashing ensued. When the attacks of the Great Path transformed from chess pieces arrived and hit the sword screen, they were instantly torn apart and disintegrated into nothingness.


    The attacking chess pieces were crushed into bits and pieces instead.


    The scene made many feel despair. The huge gap in their powers of the Great Path made the might of their path contained in the chess pieces far weaker than Ye Futian��s, which meant that it was impossible for them to defeat Ye Futian. Their chess pieces would initiate the attack. However, they were still obliterated by their opponent��s defense. How were they supposed to fight?


    The difference in quality was something that could never be fixed by an increase in quantity. It was just like having many low-plane Renhuangs fight against a high-plane Renhuang. The conclusion of the battle would never be in doubt.


    As such, this battle also had no suspense. Seeing their chess pieces crushed to dust, the cultivators recalled their chess pieces. Ye Futian waved his hand, and his 36 chess pieces drew multiple beautiful curves, creating multiple blades of light that flew across the sky and crushed all the remaining Great Path chess pieces of the other cultivators.


    When Ye Futian destroyed all the chess pieces of the other participants, the chess pieces around him remained the same, all 36 pieces of them. He did not lose a single one.


    Not a single loss. Even stronger than the mysterious cultivator from before.


    Earlier, everyone had thought that the mysterious cultivator��s result of losing only one chess piece would be a record for this session of Eastern Deity Island��s opening. No one would have thought it possible that that record would be broken so quickly. Ye Futian easily surpassed him and defeated all of his opponents with a perfect performance.


    For two amazingly exceptional people to pop up at the same time, it truly expanded the horizons of many people. The people of Eastern Deity Island would probably rejoice at this.


    Shangguan Qiuye watched as Ye Futian walked toward the high platform beside the Eastern Deity Gate. She wondered if Ye Futian would be the brightest individual for Eastern Deity Island��s opening this time. In that case, the Eastern Deity Island would most certainly try to court him.


    If Ye Futian could borrow Eastern Deity Island��s strength, he would no longer have to be afraid of the Jun clan.


    While Eastern Deity Island had avoided secular world affairs and cultivation in recent years, they had actually continued to accumulate and build their strength. Now, their actual strength was a mystery. No one knew just how strong they were. However, based on Shangguan Qiuye��s guess, it was definitely not weaker than some of those major factions on the Penglai Continent.


    Even though the Eastern Deity Island suffered a major disaster in the past, its background was something that should not be ignored. Even after many years had passed, inherited Great Path Opportunities and medicinal pills within the Eastern Deity Island��s territory were things that countless practitioners coveted, as evidenced by every opening of the Eastern Deity Island once every decade.


    With such a strong background, Shangguan Qiuye inferred that Eastern Deity Island��s actual strength at the moment might actually surpass some of the more common major factions in the Penglai Continent. However, just how strong? That was harder to predict. Even the titans of the Penglai Continent could not determine it.


    As such, if the Eastern Deity Island was willing to help Ye Futian, the threat of the Jun clan would no longer be that huge.


    With that thought, Shangguan Qiuye raised her eyebrows and looked at Ye Futian high up above. Did he display such overwhelming strength because this was his objective in the first place?


    After all, everyone knew that once they left Eastern Deity Island, the cultivators of the Jun clan would most definitely target Ye Futian.


    First, he pulled her into the fray and locked her Shangguan clan in. After that, he set up the Eastern Deity Island. It looked like Ye Futian had already planned for everything since a long time ago.


    After glancing at Jun Qiuyan behind her. Shangguan Qiuye decided in her mind that, no matter what, regardless of whether she could befriend Ye Futian, at the very least, she would not become Ye Futian��s enemy. Otherwise, even if they could suppress Ye Futian for a while, if an opportunity was found by Ye Futian, they could be eradicated like Jun Qiuyan and the other cultivators from the Jun clan.


    Also, she wanted to get a chance to step across the Eastern Deity Gate. After seeing Ye Futian and witnessing his strength, Shangguan Qiuye felt as if all her previous assets and strengths that she was proud of were not even worth mentioning. She needed to become a lot stronger.


    The Divine Prefecture was too big. There were many hidden dragons and crouching tigers. While Penglai Continent was still a relatively large continent, at the very least, it was situated in a central area among thousands of continents, compared to the entire Divine Prefecture, it was still too small. She wanted to see things that were even further away.


    Ye Futian reached the high platform beside the Eastern Deity Gate. He sat down silently. On his side was the mysterious cultivator.


    ��Jiang Jiuming,�� said the youngster to Ye Futian. It seemed like that was his name. Ever since stepping on Eastern Deity Island, he had never revealed his name once. This was the first time.


    Perhaps it was because he recognized Ye Futian��s strength. He did not expect someone to do better than him, to arrive with all 36 chess pieces still intact��a perfect performance.


    Of course, he did not pay too much attention to the difference of one chess piece. After all, he was not all that serious back then. Otherwise, he would have been able to replicate Ye Futian��s result and not lose a single chess piece.


    ��Ye Liunian,�� replied Ye Futian. Before he gained the strength to face the most powerful people, he did not plan on using his real name. As such, he kept using the name of Ye Liunian.


    While the Divine Prefecture was large, the factions standing at the peak could still be in touch, and as a result, hear about events occurring in the Original Realm. So, he still needed to be careful.


    Jiang Jiuming did not say anything else after saying his name. He kept his eyes closed as he continued to cultivate. It was as if he did not care about what would happen outside in the world.


    Ye Futian also sat there in silence. He cultivated quietly.


    Time ticked away slowly. Battles on the chessboard continued. However, no one as powerful as Ye Futian or Jiang Jiuming, who could directly crush the other opponents, appeared. Competition and schemes between participants continued to take place, and alliances and betrayals also kept occurring. Apart from raw strength, one��s luck and intelligence were also tested.


    After all, one would most definitely lose when targeted by a group and was also surrounded, unless there was an absolute strength advantage.


    Earlier, an honest-looking Renhuang displayed great intelligence and planning. He took part in the battle with a very narrow victory. He only had nine chess pieces left when he entered the second round nine-way battle. The other participants did not seem to even notice his existence; however, at the last moment, this person actually showed an incredibly powerful strength that was not any weaker than the other fighters. In the end, with just one chess piece remaining, he managed to defeat his opponent after an intense battle. This forced everyone to become even more cautious. They no longer dared to simply focus on the strong players. They also had to be wary of those who may seem weak.


    Shangguan Qiuye ultimately made it through using her strength and a little bit of luck and arrived on the high platform.


    As time passed, more and more cultivators took part in the battles. By then, the high platform had seven people.


    However, the number of people outside the chessboard did not go down. Instead, the crowd got larger. Many cultivators from the Illusory Sky Domain had gathered there. Eastern Deity Island was not going to keep waiting. When it was a certain time, they would directly shut down the chessboard. Otherwise, some people would continue to stay on the sidelines forever until the number of strong people had significantly reduced. However, in such a situation, the event itself would lose its meaning.


    Several people gazed at the people sitting on the platforms high above. These people won the right to access the island��s center and receive one of Eastern Deity Island��s divine pill of the Great Path.


    Finally, after two more won their rounds, an Eastern Deity Island deity announced that the chessboard matrix matches would end. Those who had failed to join had missed their chances.


    Up until that point, nine practitioners gained the right to access Eastern Deity Island��s central area. Every single one of them was an exceptional character.


    Of course, the two people who shone the brightest were Jiang Jiuming and Ye Futian, both of whom left a strong impression on everyone!

 Chapter 1931 - Condor Sama’s Position Is Threatened

    In front of the Eastern Deity Gate, a group of people stood. Aside from Ye Futian and the other eight candidates, all the members they brought to Eastern Deity Island were also present.


    The cultivators who were qualified to enter the Core Island of Eastern Deity Island could bring along one other person with them. Of course, the others merely accompanied them and would not receive benefits. However, Eastern Deity Island allowed them to tag along so that the candidates would feel comfortable.


    ��Everyone, please enter. There will be people to welcome you on the island,�� a goddess of Eastern Deity Island instructed the crowd. The Eastern Deity Gate before them glowed with ethereal light. The crowd nodded their heads. One by one, they stepped forward and entered the Eastern Deity Gate.


    ��Let us head in,�� Ye Futian said. Their group advanced. They naturally brought along Jun Qiuyan and immediately stepped through the gate.


    After stepping through the Eastern Deity Gate, they entered into an ethereal place. When they emerged, they felt a refreshing sensation that made them feel very comfortable. Fragrances swept over them, and beautiful scenery filled their fields of vision.


    This place was like Shangri-la. Birds sang, and flowers filled the air with their fragrances. The air of goddesses swept over them. A group of goddesses dressed in white was waiting there. When they saw the cultivators emerging, the goddesses came forward and bowed slightly.


    Ye Futian saw a beautiful woman approach him. She gently said, ��Congratulations, Pavilion Master Ye.��


    It was Bai Mu, the goddess who had invited him to Eastern Deity Island. The members of Eastern Deity Island naturally had their own means to come here. They did not need to pass through the Eastern Deity Gate.


    ��Goddess, you are too kind.�� Ye Futian smiled slightly as he bowed back at her. The other goddesses who came forward were also those who invited the other eight candidates here. However, Jiang Jiuming had not actually been invited. He had come on his own accord.


    Right then, an extremely beautiful woman with an otherworldly temperament appeared. Even among the various goddesses, she still stood out from the crowd. She was breathtaking. She walked over to Jiang Jiuming and bowed slightly as she said, ��We did not expect that Young Master Jiang would come. Forgive our lapse in hospitality. Island Lord asked me to come and welcome you.��


    Her words caused the surrounding people to reveal strange looks. Island Lord had personally sent someone to welcome Jiang Jiuming?


    That meant that Jiang Jiuming��s identity was extraordinary.


    Ye Futian also revealed a pondering look. Even though Jun Qiuyan was a member of a top force of the Penglai Continent, Eastern Deity Island was not that concerned about whether he was alive or dead. Ye Futian was controlling jun Qiuyan, and the members of Eastern Deity Island did not question it. They seemed to leave Ye Futian to his own devices.


    However, their attitude towards Jiang Jiuming was so different. From this, one could tell how huge the difference between the two of them was.


    This meant that Jiang Jiuming��s identity was not something that Jun Qiuyan, a young master of a force of the Penglai Continent, could compare with. What did this mean?


    It seemed clear that Jiang Jiuming came from a force even more powerful than a top force of the Penglai Continent. Even the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island had sent her greetings.


    ��Island Lord is too kind. I came without being invited this time, so I should be asking her forgiveness instead,�� Jiang Jiuming replied with a faint smile. He had the air of a handsome young man that made people feel comfortable around him.


    ��Eastern Deity Island has a rule that whoever has obtained an Eastern Deity Token may enter the island. Young Master Jiang does not need to be so apologetic. Eastern Deity Island is honored to have you here,�� the woman continued politely.


    When Jun Qiuyan, who was being controlled, overheard the conversation between them, he felt his heart turn cold. This was the place that he had always wanted to enter. It was just that he had never imagined that he would do so in such a fashion.


    However, what was even more humiliating was that when he arrived here, the members of Eastern Deity Island did not question the situation he was in. Yet, they were so polite to another cultivator.


    ��Goddess Bai, for the sake of Jun clan, let me leave Eastern Deity Island,�� Jun Qiuyan pleaded. His voice sounded exceptionally frail and weak. He seemed to be begging the members of Eastern Deity Island to let him go.


    Jun Qiuyan was also invited here by Bai Mu. He hated Bai Mu. If Bai Mu had not stopped him back then when they were outside Eastern Deity Island, he would have known Ye Futian��s level of ability. In the Penglai Deity Region, no matter what he did, he couldn��t end up in such a predicament. On the continent, Ye Futian would have died miserably.


    Yet, because of Bai Mu, he had given Ye Futian some leeway and had not forcefully made a move. Thus, he had ended up in his current miserable state.


    However, even though his hatred for her burned intensely inside of him, he still spoke in a pleading tone. He did not dare to reveal any of his hatred. He only wished that Eastern Deity Island would take into consideration that he was from the Jun clan. After all, this was Eastern Deity Island; they had the power to help him.


    Bai Mu looked at Jun Qiuyan. She seemed somewhat troubled. She indeed invited jun Qiuyan, and his status was indeed extraordinary. He was a member of a top force of the Penglai Continent. In a different situation, she would have certainly helped him. However, Jun Qiuyan had actively sought out Ye Futian, resulting in the outcome today.


    Now, Ye Futian was a person whom the Island Lord had personally mentioned. She could not be concerned about Jun Qiuyan��s fate then.


    She looked at the woman who had walked out just now. The other party��s beautiful eyes had landed on Jun Qiuyan.


    ��Are you Goddess Huang?�� Jun Qiuyan asked gently as he looked at the woman. This Goddess Huang was rumored to be a disciple whom the Eastern Deity Island Island Lord especially favored. Her status was above all the others. Even on Eastern Deity Island, her position was extremely high.


    Goddess Huang glanced at Jun Qiuyan and said, ��Young Master Jun should also know the rules of Eastern Deity Island. Since you entered Eastern Deity Island, you agreed that your life and death are up to fate. Our Eastern Deity Island will not get involved. I apologize for being unable to do anything.��


    Jun Qiuyan��s face was as pale as ash. He felt a sense of despair. Even here, the members of Eastern Deity Island would not interfere.


    These b*tches.


    Would they offend the Jun clan just because Ye Futian was more outstanding than he was?


    Regardless, the Jun clan was still a huge entity on the Penglai Continent.


    Ye Futian had not said anything all this while. Even if Jun Qiuyan begged, Ye Futian would let him do as he pleased. At the same time, Ye Futian was also observing the cultivators of Eastern Deity Island. When he saw the reaction of Goddess Huang, Ye Futian speculated that with Eastern Deity Island��s current ability, they might not need to be concerned about the Jun clan.


    Maybe the declining Eastern Deity Island was far more powerful than what people imagined?


    ��Everyone, please enter the island,�� Goddess Huang said as she led the crowd forward. She accompanied Jiang Jiuming and chatted casually with him. The others had their own goddesses who invited them here. Bai Mu stood beside Ye Futian and gently said, ��Pavilion Master Ye, your achievements on Eastern Deity Island have been amazing.��


    ��Goddess, you speak too highly of me,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. Everything that occurred on Eastern Deity Island probably could not escape their sight. After all, this was originally the other party��s territory.


    At that moment, a silhouette flew over to where they were from afar. This silhouette was wearing a fiery-red robe that was exceptionally eye-catching. Her temperament was also outstanding. The formless flames that emanated from her body were especially powerful.


    ��Zi Feng,�� Goddess Huang exclaimed with a smile as she saw the person who was approaching. The silhouette, who was approaching them, was actually the phoenix whom Ye Futian had encountered under the wutong.


    Zi Feng��s gaze was instead focused on Ye Futian. She stepped forward and actually stood next to Ye Futian. This caused him to reveal a strange look.


    ��Is she the progeny of Lord Phoenix?�� Jiang Jiuming asked. Goddess Huang nodded slightly and answered, ��Zi Feng is the daughter of Lord Phoenix.��


    Jiang Jiuming glanced over at Zi Feng with a serious look in his eyes. When Zi Feng noticed his gaze, she similarly swept a glance at him. Her eyes seemed to contain a frightening divine fire. It actually caused Jiang Jiuming to feel a sharp pain in his eyes. He secretly felt that it was incredible.


    Back when Lord Phoenix was cultivating the Divine Fire of Wutong, it was a flame of the Great Path of the two extremes of life and death. Its might was terrifying. This Zi Feng had continued inheriting this divine fire of the Great Path. Her cultivation was absolutely terrifying, and her potential was extremely high.


    ��The seniors of my clan have great admiration for Lord Phoenix,�� Jiang Jiuming said softly. He then looked at Zi Feng, ��If the opportunity arises in the future, Goddess Zi Feng can come visit my Jiang clan.��


    Zi Feng looked at Jiang Jiuming but did not respond. She did not know who Jiang Jiuming was.


    ��Zi Feng, Young Master Jiang is from the ancient royal family Jiang clan. If you have the chance in the future, you can visit their clan,�� Goddess Huang explained. This astonished the surrounding people. The surname Jiang was actually from that ancient royal family that had existed for countless eons.


    He was from there. Shangguan Qiuye was slightly surprised. She had previously speculated Jiang Jiuming��s identity. Now that she had confirmation, her heart wavered. The ancient royal family Jiang clan��s ability was no weaker than that of Eastern Deity Island back in the day. They had giant level existences. In the present day, the ancient royal family Jiang clan would be more powerful than Eastern Deity Island.


    Cultivators from thousands of continents had come here to train from experience. They wanted to obtain fateful encounters of the Great Path. Yet, for the ancient royal family, they did not need to do so. They lacked nothing. Even extremely precious pills and elixirs would not be so precious to the ancient royal family.


    Ye Futian naturally understood when he saw the slight changes in the look in Shangguan Qiuye��s eyes. So Jiang Jiuming was from the ancient royal family.


    The situation should be the same as that of the forces with giant figures Ye Futian had encountered previously in the Original Realm. Jiang Jiuming might be the first cultivator from such a force that he had encountered ever since he arrived in the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Island Lord has already agreed to let me follow you to train after you leave Eastern Deity Island,�� Zi Feng explained to Ye Futian softly as she stood next to him. This caused Shangguan Qiuye to stop in her tracks for a moment. Her gaze was frozen.


    Coming to Eastern Deity Island to train this time was truly exciting.


    First, Jun Qiuyan��s cultivation had been crippled. Later, Shangguan Qiuye encountered a cultivator of the ancient royal family Jiang clan. Now, the daughter of Lord Phoenix, the Sacred Phoenix of Wutong Island, wanted to follow Ye Futian out to train!


    What was going on?


    She was the divine bird of Wutong Island, an existence that even an eighth-tier cultivator could not handle. For countless years, numerous cultivators had sought her out or coveted the Divine Fire of Wutong, but no one had ever succeeded.


    Yet, now, the divine bird had proactively claimed that the Island Lord had given her agreement. Zi Feng would follow Ye Futian to train in the outside world. This was practically unbelievable.


    Shangguan Qiuye��s beautiful eyes looked at Ye Futian. No one could tell what emotion was in that gaze.


    However, at that moment, behind them, Condor Sama��s feathers were all standing straight up. Condor Sama��s position was threatened!

 Chapter 1932 - Elixir

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Little Condor naturally could tell that this phoenix was incredible, much more so than he was.


    Now, this brat actually wanted to follow Master to train in the outside world. Wasn��t she trying to fight for Master��s favor with Condor sama?


    The crucial point was that this brat was female and was beautiful.


    It was too much of a challenge for Condor sama.


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. He naturally would not reject a Sacred Phoenix from following him. This Sacred Phoenix had unlimited potential and could cultivate to become a top-tier demonic existence.


    There were many demonic beasts in the world, yet there were a rare few that could cultivate to become a top-tier demonic beast.


    By cultivating the Divine Fire of Wutong, Sacred Phoenix, who had a flawless Great Path, would have a chance.


    Eastern Deity Island Island Lord also agreed to let her pursue her own cultivation. That way, Ye Futian could establish his relationship with Eastern Deity Island. After he left Eastern Deity Island, the pressure from the Jun clan of the Penglai Continent would naturally be solved.


    ��What about the Divine Fire of Wutong?�� Ye Futian asked as he smiled at Zi Feng.


    Zi Feng revealed a strange look. The Divine Fire of Wutong was in the wutong. She could only rely on its power to cultivate. It was difficult to take it with her.


    ��Can I try and see whether we can take it with you?�� Ye Futian said to Zi Feng. Zi Feng��s beautiful eyes revealed a strange look as she looked at him. She could take the Divine Fire with her?


    Then, before this, when he played the guqin and approached her�� Why did she feel as though she had been conned?


    ��That is if you need it. If you don��t need it, then forget about it,�� Ye Futian continued with a smile. His gaze was gentle and made others feel very comfortable. Zi Feng looked him in the eye. He did not seem like a trickster.


    She had already made arrangements with Elder Sister Island Lord. She naturally could not change her mind.


    However, could he truly bring the Divine Fire of Wutong along with them?


    In front of them, Jiang Jiuming turned his head back and glanced at Zi Feng and Ye Futian. He never imagined that the offspring of Lord Phoenix would actually follow Ye Futian willingly. As expected, this person was extremely outstanding; otherwise, it would have been impossible for him to emerge victorious in the game of chess and enter through the Eastern Deity Gate.


    The group continued advancing. Bai Mu, who was beside Ye Futian, said to him, ��Island Lord has ordered us to prepare a banquet and to also allow you to select pills.��


    ��Many thanks,�� Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. The group continued forward and passed by many places. The Core Island of Eastern Deity Island was like a painting. It was a sight to behold. Walking around here made people feel comfortable, like they were encapsulated in its poetic beauty.


    Finally, they came before an ancient palace. A banquet was already laid out. Many goddesses were standing in various locations, seeming there to welcome them.


    Such a scale made Ye Futian and the others feel flattered. Eastern Deity Island��s standing was extraordinary. They bestowed cultivators with fateful encounters of the Great Path and also gifted them pills. They also treated them so well that there was nothing for them to nitpick about.


    ��Everyone, please be seated. Make yourselves comfortable,�� Goddess Huang announced with a smile. The group immediately found their seats. Goddess Huang brought Jiang Jiuming to the head seat. After all, the status of the ancient royal family Jiang clan needed to be respected.


    Ye Futian did not mind. His group simply found a spot to sit in the center of the crowd. Bai Mu was also taking care of them, occasionally chatting with them.


    There were many seats in front of the banquet, seemingly prepared for the other cultivators of Eastern Deity Island. Aside from that, at the very front, there was a master seat that was reserved for the master of this banquet.


    ��Island Lord will come in person momentarily,�� Bai Mu explained softly when she saw Ye Futian glancing over in that direction.


    Ye Futian nodded. He had never imagined that Eastern Deity Island would be so grand.


    Voices could be heard coming from nearby. The crowd turned their gazes in the direction of the voices. They saw a group of silhouettes, who were talking casually to each other, appear. These people had an outstanding temperament, and their cultivation was all at the Renhuang Plane. Some had dignified appearances, while others had elegant airs to them.


    Previously, every person the crowd had seen was a woman. This group of silhouettes that appeared was all men.


    ��It is Emperor Pingyuan,�� Shangguan Qiuye said at that moment as she narrowed her gaze slightly. She was focused on one person among them. Her beautiful eyes revealed a strange look.


    Two other Penglai Continent cultivators also made sounds. They also seemed to call out someone��s name. They had clearly recognized someone.


    Ye Futian looked at Shangguan Qiuye. As she looked over there, she explained, ��He is a renowned Renhuang on Penglai Continent. He has been famous for a long time. Ten years ago, he entered Eastern Deity Island to cultivate. After coming back, he rarely appeared in public. I never thought that he had entered Eastern Deity Island again. It seems that the rumors were actually true.��


    ��What rumors?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Many powerful Renhuangs who come to Eastern Deity Island to train will be invited to stay here to cultivate, becoming a member of the island. My clansmen once mentioned this before. I have heard of a few of these people. Today, I managed to see some of them with my own eyes. It still comes as a surprise,�� Shangguan Qiuye explained. ��There are actually so many cultivators here. There seem to be many famous figures from long ago among them.��


    Ye Futian did not feel too surprised by this. Eastern Deity Island had invited cultivators from thousands of continents to come here to train. They provided many benefits to the cultivators. They naturally had their own agenda for doing so. It was impossible for them to do so purely just to aid the people of the world in their cultivation.


    Eastern Deity Island should be planning to bolster their forces. This might be related to the fall of Eastern Deity Island��s Supreme Deity Donglai back then.


    With so many prominent figures coming to Eastern Deity Island each time, how could Eastern Deity Island miss this opportunity? They would naturally extend invitations to Ye Futian and the rest. They would receive similar treatment as well.


    On the other hand, the cultivators who came to Eastern Deity Island similarly wanted to rely on the resources of the island. Either that or Eastern Deity Island proposed enough favorable conditions to make the offer irresistible. If so, it was not strange for the cultivators to join Eastern Deity Island.


    The cultivators who arrived chatted and laughed as they looked over at the people sitting here. Many of them revealed friendly smiles. From the appearances of the cultivators, they seemed to be living very fulfilled lives.


    ��Do you know who I am?�� Emperor Pingyuan asked as he looked at Shangguan Qiuye. Prior to this, Shangguan Qiuye had not spoken through transmitted thoughts. She had been talking to them out loud. With Emperor Pingyuan��s level of cultivation, he naturally overheard her.


    ��Hmm,�� Shangguan Qiuye replied, nodding her head. ��I am Shangguan Qiuye from Shangguan clan. Pleased to meet you, Senior.��


    ��So you are the little girl from the Shangguan clan. You have reached such a high Plane to be able to come here. Not bad,�� Emperor Pingyuan commented. His cultivation was powerful. He was now an eighth-tier existence. Shangguan Qiuye was indeed a junior in his eyes.


    ��Senior, have you been cultivating on Eastern Deity Island all this while?�� Shangguan Qiuye asked.


    ��Most of the time. I will occasionally go outside,�� Emperor Pingyuan replied. ��Eastern Deity Island has many special training grounds as well as countless pills and Spirit Herbs suitable for cultivating. Little girl, you should also join Eastern Deity Island. It will certainly be greatly beneficial to your cultivation.��


    Shangguan Qiuye smiled but did not give a reply. Emperor Pingyuan had praised Eastern Deity Island so highly. From the looks of it, these people were indeed sincere. Eastern Deity Island must have aided them in their cultivation with sufficient sincerity in order for these cultivators to actively invite other Renhuangs to join.


    At that moment, there were cries of astonishment. Many goddesses bowed slightly in one direction and called out, ��Island Lord.��


    The crowd turned to look in that direction. They saw an empress-like silhouette walk over towards them. Her appearance was otherworldly; it made others feel enchanted at a glance. At the same time, those who gazed upon her felt a sense of distance between them, as though she was untouchable.


    She was the Eastern Deity Island Island Lord. Shangguan Qiuye thought to herself. This was also her first time seeing the Island Lord. Prior to this, she had heard about her. Almost no one from the Penglai Continent had seen her before.


    Island Lord��s beauty was peerless. She walked up to the master seat and looked at the crowd.


    ��Greeting, Island Lord.�� Right now, even the powerful cultivators who just arrived also bowed slightly as they greeted the Island Lord. They seem to show this female Island Lord great respect.


    ��Everyone, you are all too kind,�� Island Lord replied as she bowed back at the crowd with a smile. Her gaze shifted over to Ye Futian��s side. She said, ��This time, Eastern Deity Island is open and once again has welcomed prominent figures from all over. This is a grand occasion for the island. Hence, we have invited you all here today for a few drinks. I hope you all won��t mind the short notice.��


    ��Island Lord is too kind,�� someone said. Eastern Deity Island Island Lord had such a high status. She would definitely not be inferior when compared to the heads of the top forces of the Penglai Continent. For her to personally appear to sit with them was already a great honor.


    ��Everyone, you do not need to be so formal. Please sit,�� Island Lord said as she extended her hand when she saw many people getting up. She also sat on her master seat. She looked at the crowd and said, ��Eastern Deity Island has a rule that those who can make it here will be gifted with pills. Naturally, today will be no exception. I am sure that you all have been waiting for this moment for a long while.��


    As she said this, she looked behind her. Nine silhouettes stepped forward. In each of their hands, they held a porcelain bottle. Inside, the bottles contained extremely precious pills of the Great Path.


    ��There are nine pills here. Each pill is a superb grade pill. The nine people who have made it here today can each choose one pill. Please choose,�� the female Island Lord continued. The gazes of the crowd were all on the pills in the hands of the nine goddesses.


    However, Jiang Jiuming still had his head lowered as he sat there quietly. He did not look at the pills.


    Although these pills were precious for cultivating, for him, these were not that important.


    The reason why he had come here was not for these pills, but for the Eastern Deity Island��s elixir!

 Chapter 1933 - Invitation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The female Island Lord looked at the crowd in the banquet below and ordered the goddesses, ��Introduce these pills to our guests.��


    ��Understood,�� the nine goddesses answered as they nodded their heads. The first person looked at the pill she held in her hands and explained, ��This is the Refined Thunder Mastering Pellet. After refining it into one��s body, it can immediately improve one��s physical constitution, even if they are at the Renhuang Plane. It can improve one��s sensory control over the Great Path of Thunder. It can also refine one��s body into a body of thunder. The pellet is refined from Cloud Wood.��


    ��Cloud Wood,�� Ye Futian stated as he looked at the purple pill. It was extremely eye-catching. There was frightening energy contained within it that could be felt even though it was sealed away within the pill. Before this, Beigong Ao had broken through to the next Plane after obtaining Cloud Wood. His abilities had greatly improved, and he had defeated many eighth-tier existences.


    Now, this pill was refined from Cloud Wood. It was a superb grade lightning attribute pill.


    ��I will take it,�� Ye Futian exclaimed. This caused the crowd to be stunned. The female Island Lord looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��Have you decided so quickly? Don��t you want to take a look at the other pills first?��


    ��There is no need to do so. Since I have decided, may I make my pick first?�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. The female Island Lord nodded her head and answered, ��Of course you can. Since Renhuang Ye has laid claim to this pill first, it will go to Renhuang Ye.��


    ��Many thanks, Island Lord,�� Ye Futian thanked her as he nodded his head. The goddess immediately handed over the pill to Ye Futian.


    After receiving the pill, Ye Futian turned around and passed it to Beigong Shuang. He said, ��This pill is more suitable for your use. After we are done here, refine it and cultivate.��


    The people at the banquet were stunned when they saw this. Some looked at Ye Futian with strange looks.


    Ye Futian had given a top grade pill to someone else just like that?


    Pills were very precious. The higher the grade of a pill was, the rarer they would be. Very few people could refine them in the first place. Many cultivators were absorbed in their cultivation. Few people would spend large amounts of time on other matters. After all, the priority in the world of cultivation was one��s cultivation. The strength of one��s ability was more important than anything else.


    However, Ye Futian had given a top grade pill to someone else immediately after receiving it.


    From the looks of it, he had rushed to choose to give it to her. He didn��t even bother to listen to the introduction of the other pills.


    This could only mean that Ye Futian was not concerned about this pill at all.


    The female Island Lord also glanced at Ye Futian with a smile. Before this, she had seen Ye Futian��s performance. He was indeed perfect and extremely outstanding. It was normal for such an extraordinary person not to consider such a pill precious. This fellow was somewhat interesting.


    Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang were also stunned. Beigong Shuang looked at Ye Futian with a strange look. Before this, this fellow had not allowed her to approach him. Now, he had given her such a precious pill. She truly could not understand him.


    ��Pavilion Master, we cannot accept any more gifts from you,�� Beigong Ao said. Ye Futian had already allowed Beigong Ao a fateful encounter. Now, he had given his daughter a precious pill. His debt of gratitude towards Ye Futian was growing larger and larger.


    ��Take it. Didn��t you mention before that you initially wanted her to inherit the Cloud Wood? You broke through to the next Plane after obtaining the Cloud Wood. It was a great achievement. Now that this pill is suitable for her, why do you refuse?�� Ye Futian asked casually. He did not seem to mind at all.


    Beigong Ao had no counter to him. He then nodded his head seriously and said, ��Many thanks, Pavilion Master.��


    Beigong Ao was intelligent and good at making decisions. He prioritized benefits. However, right now, he was moved. The demeanor of some people could make one change. Now he knew what others meant when they said a man would die for his friends.


    Previously, he was just a seventh-tier upper-level Renhuang. Be it the Cloud Wood or the pill; both were beyond his level. If it weren��t for Ye Futian, these objects would be unattainable.


    On the other side, Emperor Helian revealed a faint look of disappointment. However, he quickly covered it up.


    He had known Ye Futian first. At that time, Beigong Ao was still against them. Although they would later come together, Emperor Helian was still closer to Ye Futian. Yet, after entering Eastern Deity Island, they coincidentally came across the Cloud Wood and Beigong Ao received a fateful encounter with the Great Path. He was more of a help to Ye Futian than Emperor Helian was.


    Emperor Helian knew that Ye Futian was not playing favorites and that these events had all been coincidences. If they encountered an item that could aid Emperor Helian��s cultivation, Ye Futian would also help him obtain it.


    However, Emperor Helian could not help but admire Beigong Ao as he became better.


    Ye Futian also did not say anything. He was indeed not picking favorites. Everything was just luck. They just had to bow to fate.


    If Ye Futian had the chance, he would naturally also help Emperor Helian.


    Once one reached their Plane, some things did not need to be further explained.


    After that, the goddesses continued introducing the other pills one by one. They were all very precious pills of the Great Path. Ye Futian listened attentively. Among them, a few pills made his heart itch slightly. However, it was just an urge. The pills could not result in any material changes to his cultivation.


    With the Life Spirit of the World Tree, his sensory ability of the Great Path was already extremely powerful. The effects of the pills would most likely be limited. It was just as Ye Futian had raved about before. He had a Divine Body of the Heavenly Path. Even though it was an arrogant form of speech, in reality, this could be considered his talent in cultivation.


    The other cultivators chose their pills one after another. Very quickly, the pills were chosen until only one was left. Only one person had yet to choose.


    This person was surprisingly Jiang Jiuming.


    As a descendant of the ancient royal family, these pills did not tempt him. He did not mind; hence, he did not contend with the others.


    ��Young Master Jiang,�� Goddess Huang said. ��There is only one pill left.��


    ��No problem. I will take this pill then. It is quite alright,�� Jiang Jiuming replied with a smile as he received the pill. He appeared very casual about it. The members of Eastern Deity Island could tell that Jiang Jiuming was not too concerned about it. These pills did not draw his attention.


    However, the members of Eastern Deity Island naturally knew his identity, so they would not think much of it.


    The nine goddesses stepped down. The Island Lord looked at the crowd and said, ��Please enjoy the banquet. Make yourselves comfortable.��


    ��Many thanks, Island Lord,�� the crowd thanked her as they nodded their heads. They began to enjoy the banquet. Once wine was down their throats, some people began to reveal drunken looks. They had strange expressions as they continued to enjoy their food. They discovered that the power of the Great Path in their bodies was fluctuating.


    ��This����


    They were all surprised. They looked at each other. They wanted to say something, yet no one did so first.


    ��Haha,�� an elder, who cultivated on Eastern Deity Island, laughed in another corner. He said, ��You should be feeling it now. This banquet is prepared using the ingredients harvested off Eastern Deity Island. All of the dishes are beneficial for cultivation. Although the effects are not as strong as the pills, if taken over long periods of time, they are still very beneficial. Do you want to enjoy such delicacies every day in the future?��


    The crowd looked at each other. They were all moved. No wonder so many powerful cultivators were willing to stay on Eastern Deity Island to cultivate. The temptation was indeed strong.


    ��If you do not have a Spiritual Partner, you will also have the chance to train with the goddesses of Eastern Deity Island. It all depends on your level,�� another cultivator jokingly said. He pointed towards a couple across from him and said, ��Look at these two. They are a model couple.��


    The crowd looked over at the couple. They were sitting together. The man was handsome and looked extraordinary, while the woman had beauty beyond comparison. They both had an otherworldly air to them. They were both Renhuangs who had become Spiritual Partners, training together.


    ��The goddesses of Eastern Deity Island are not so easy to curry favor from. Whether or not these cultivators have the ability to do so has yet to be determined,�� another person said with a laugh.


    The Island Lord had yet to speak, and these fellows had praised Eastern Deity Island so highly.


    However, the draw of Eastern Deity Island for cultivators was indeed powerful.


    ��Young Master Ye, do you have a Spiritual Partner?�� Bai Mu asked softly beside Ye Futian. She looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. Her voice was gentle.


    ��I have,�� Ye Futian replied as he smiled and nodded his head. Bai Mu glanced at Xia Qingyuan, who was beside him. She seemed to be sitting the closest to Ye Futian. There was more to their relationship than met the eye. She might be his Spiritual Partner.


    ��For someone to be Young Master Ye��s Spiritual Partner, the person must certainly be extremely outstanding,�� Bai Mu said as she looked at Xia Qingyuan and smiled. However, Xia Qingyuan sat quietly there and did not respond. She did not even look at Bai Mu.


    ��Has Goddess always trained on Eastern Deity Island?�� Ye Futian asked, not continuing to discuss the topic of Spiritual Partners.


    ��Yes,�� Bai Mu answered, nodding her head. ��Many years ago, I was found by my master and brought to Eastern Deity Island to train. If it weren��t for my master, I would probably have a different life now.��


    Training on Eastern Deity Island could transform one��s cultivation physique and talents, forming them into a powerful cultivator. In reality, most of the goddesses of Eastern Deity Island came from non-prominent families. Otherwise, they would not have been brought to Eastern Deity Island.


    After coming here, their cultivation could be said to have skyrocketed.


    Hence, they were all grateful towards Eastern Deity Island.


    Eastern Deity Island also did not force them to do anything. Even on the matter of their Spiritual Partners, they could choose of their own free will.


    Ye Futian nodded his head. Eastern Deity Island had innate conditions, which indeed were very attractive to cultivators. From the looks of it now, the ability that Eastern Deity Island accumulated over these past few years was far more powerful than what the outside world imagined it to be.


    ��Are you all interested in joining Eastern Deity Island to cultivate? If you are willing to join us, you can freely comprehend any of the Great Path��s fateful encounters on the island in the future. We will also provide sufficient pills to aid you all in cultivating higher Planes.�� At that moment, the master of the banquet��the Island Lord finally��spoke. She extended her invitation to the cultivators here.


    The crowd was somewhat quiet. Such a matter was not easily decided in a short amount of time.


    If they were to receive these benefits and train on Eastern Deity Island, they would be considered members of the island.


    Eastern Deity Island must be planning for something in the future for them to do so.


    ��I will not be joining Eastern Deity Island to train,�� Jiang Jiuming said with a smile. ��That is not the reason why I came here.��


    ��Young Master Jiang, why have you come to Eastern Deity Island?�� the Island Lord inquired.


    Jiang Jiuming looked at the Island Lord. He smiled and replied, ��I am here for the item that Senior Supreme Deity Donglai was seeking back in the day!��

 Chapter 1934 - Tree God

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Jiang Jiuming said this, many gazes immediately looked towards him.


    The item that Senior Supreme Deity Donglai was seeking for back in the day?


    What item was that?


    Ye Futian revealed a curious look. He looked at Beigong Ao and the others beside him. He saw that Beigong Ao was also shaking his head. Clearly, Beigong Ao also did not know about it.


    Did the legendary elixir actually exist? A thought surfaced in Shangguan Qiuye��s mind. There had indeed been such a rumor circulating within the Penglai Continent. It was rumored that Eastern Deity Island had an elixir and that Supreme Deity Donglai had not truly perished back then. Instead, he had kept sustaining his life with the nourishment of the elixir.


    However, most people did not believe such rumors. Countless years had passed. It was impossible for Supreme Deity Donglai to still be alive.


    Island Lord had her gaze similarly locked on Jiang Jiuming. Those beautiful eyes suddenly contained a formless pressure that landed on Jiang Jiuming.


    These past few years, many people with agendas had made their way to Eastern Deity Island.


    Jiang clan was an ancient royal family; it was not strange for Jiang Jiuming to know about this.


    It was just that ever since so many people had failed back then, it had been a long time since anyone had made such a request. She never imagined that Jiang Jiuming would come here for this. Could it be that he thought that he was special?


    ��Your level of attainment is still too low. If Renhuang Jiang had come, it might be possible,�� the female Island Lord said with a smile. Her tone was somewhat unfriendly. Jiang Jiuming had actually come here, seeking the elixir.


    ��How will I know if I don��t try?�� Jiang Jiuming asked, not heeding the attitude of the Island Lord. He continued saying, ��Even if there is no chance for me, I can at least broaden my horizons. I will have at least seen it before.��


    ��Are you sure you want to see it?�� the Island Lord continued asking.


    Jiang Jiuming nodded his head and replied, ��Before coming here, I heard of how miraculous the elixir was. Hence, I wanted to see it. I used this opportunity to come to Eastern Deity Island for this reason. I hope Island Lord may grant my wish.��


    Island Lord lifted a wine glass and sipped it with her red lips. She then put it down and looked towards Jiang Jiuming. She immediately got up and came forward. Her long dress trailed behind her. She appeared graceful and dignified, as though she was a peerless empress.


    ��Alright, since the ancient royal family, Jiang clan wants to see it, I will grant you your wish,�� the Island Lord proclaimed loudly. ��Follow me to the restricted area of Eastern Deity Island.��


    ��Yes,�� many goddesses replied as they stood up and followed Island Lord. Many cultivators looked at each other. Most people also knew about this matter. However, no one had mentioned it before. This was the first time they had heard someone mention it upfront.


    Would the Island Lord also allow them to see it?


    What was the elixir actually like?


    On Ye Futian��s side, their group was whispering amongst themselves. They were all discussing the elixir. Clearly, for many of them, the elixir of Eastern Deity Island was just the stuff of rumors. It was not real.


    However, it seemed that it truly existed.


    Island Lord was also leading them to take a look at it now.


    Most of the crowd followed the Island Lord. Very quickly, a group of people was traversing through the sky above Eastern Deity Island. After a short while, they arrived at a vast expanse of herb forest.


    Many cultivators were guarding this place. All sorts of precious and rare medicinal herbs and plants were grown here.


    They passed over this place. Ye Futian glanced down at the ground below. He actually saw many precious plants that they had seen before on the island.


    This region was filled with extremely rich signs of life.


    As they advanced, they came before an ancient towering mountain. A crack was opened on the side of this mountain. A frightening aura emanated from within. It was a rich life aura that made everyone feel very comfortable.


    ��The elixir is inside. If you want it, you can enter to retrieve it,�� the Island Lord declared. This caused the crowd to reveal strange expressions.


    Would Eastern Deity Island allow people to take the elixir so easily?


    Of course, this was impossible.


    That meant that the elixir was not so easily retrieved.


    However, why was it that a mere pill could not be taken away?


    Many people were filled with curiosity. Ye Futian looked at Jiang Jiuming. He saw that the other party had a very serious expression. Since he had come for the elixir, he clearly knew more about it than others. He should be clear about everything regarding the elixir.


    From his expression, Ye Futian understood that the elixir would not be easy to obtain.


    Island Lord did not say anything. She merely stood quietly to the side and watched them. Then, Jiang Jiuming led the Jiang clan cultivators forward. The rest of the crowd wanted to follow them, yet they were somewhat hesitant to do so. They were worried that the Island Lord would be dissatisfied, so they waited outside.


    The group of cultivators from the Jiang clan very quickly disappeared into the crack of the ancient mountain, stepping into it. There, the frightening aura of the Great Path immediately cut off their wills. They were unable to sense what was inside. They could only see with their eyes, but they could not see clearly at all.


    Rumble. The sound of intense collisions came from inside. It was as though intense currents of the Great Path were present within there.


    Various sounds kept coming out from within. The rumbling continued without end. Beside Ye Futian, Zi Feng glanced ahead with a cold gaze. She had entered this place before.


    Even a cultivator of the ancient royal family would not be able to take away the elixir.


    As expected, not long after, the crowd saw silhouettes emerge from the crack. It was Jiang Jiuming and his group. They all appeared rather disheveled. Many of their clothes were tattered, and some were even injured. It was as though they had been through a huge battle.


    This caused Ye Futian to reveal a strange expression. Wasn��t the elixir hidden within?


    Why had they emerged in such a state? Could it be that the elixir could fight back?


    That was impossible. Or could it be that the elixir had a guardian beast protecting it?


    Jiang Jiuming revealed a look of disappointment. He saluted with his fists at the Island Lord and said, ��Thank you very much for your generosity, Island Lord.��


    ��You are welcome,�� Island Lord replied casually. ��If anyone here is interested, you can continue to give it a try. As long as you can retrieve the elixir, it is yours.��


    These words were like a slap to the face. It was obvious that they would not be able to take the elixir away.


    This scene caused Ye Futian to reveal a bizarre expression. From their conversation, it was clear that the elixir was indeed inside. Otherwise, the cultivators of the ancient royal family Jiang clan would not have spoken so politely.


    Although the elixir was in there, no one could take it away.


    It was not just Ye Futian. Everyone else was also filled with curiosity. They wanted to know what exactly had happened inside.


    Island Lord obviously noticed the crowd��s interest. She looked towards the crack and said, ��If you want to know, you can go inside and take a look. However, be careful.��


    ��Is the divine item, which was refined by the Supreme Deity Donglai back in the day, truly in there?�� someone asked.


    ��You will know if you go in and see for yourself. Since I allowed you to enter, I will not mind. If you want to, you may enter to take a look. If you can retrieve the elixir, that is fine as well,�� Island Lord continued. She seemed extremely confident that no one could take away the elixir from the Eastern Deity Island��s restricted area.


    ��If that is the case, there is no harm in letting an old man like me go in and have a look around,�� an elder said as he walked into the crack. Very soon, the sound of an intense collision could be heard. Not long after, the elder also returned. He was similarly disheveled. His face revealed a bitter smile. Many people looked at him. He merely shook his head and commented, ��The Creator is truly miraculous. You will understand when you see it yourself.��


    Upon hearing his words, even more cultivators were curious. Silhouettes entered into the crack one by one, only to return disappointed. Of course, aside from being disappointed, they were also astonished. It was just that none of them revealed what they saw inside, letting the others venture inside to see for themselves.


    Seeing the returning figures, Shangguan Qiuye, who was beside Ye Futian, asked him, ��Are you going in to take a look?��


    Ye Futian��s talent was extraordinary. Before this, he had inherited the fateful encounter of the Great Path on the cliff face. If he entered the crack in the mountain, would the result be the same?


    ��Do you want to go in?�� Ye Futian asked her back.


    ��Hmm,�� Shangguan Qiuye replied, nodding her head.


    ��You can go first. I��ll wait and see,�� Ye Futian answered. Shangguan Qiuye did not hold back and actually walked right in.


    However, not long after, Shangguan Qiuye also emerged like everyone else. Her beautiful eyes contained a look of astonishment.


    ��What is in there?�� Ye Futian inquired.


    ��Go take a look for yourself,�� Shangguan Qiuye replied, not telling Ye Futian what she saw. He also did not pursue the matter, waiting there quietly. As figures entered and emerged, no one managed to succeed. However, they had all been awed by something.


    When those who entered before saw the others emerge just like they had, they breathed sighs of relief.


    Most likely, no one would be able to retrieve this elixir. It was just as the Island Lord had said. If the Jiang clan��s powerful existence were to come, only he may have a chance of retrieving the elixir.


    Finally, no one else entered into the crack. Island Lord asked out loud, ��Does anyone else want to go in to take a look?��


    No one responded. Just then, Ye Futian stepped out and said, ��I also wish to broaden my horizons.��


    ��Suit yourself,�� Island Lord replied. Her expression remained the same. She did not think much about it. Ye Futian then stepped forward and entered into the crack in the ancient mountain. He directly passed through the mountain and entered a gigantic space.


    When Ye Futian arrived on this side, he instantly sensed an extremely intimate aura. When he saw the scene before him, his eyes revealed a look of astonishment.


    Before him, there was a tree. It was a gigantic divine tree with countless branches and leaves.


    This tree seemed to nurture all forms of Paths, emanating many different types of auras of the Great Path. It was as though the tree could accommodate all things within it. Inside the ancient tree, the most powerful aura of the Great Path was the aura of the Great Path of Life. This was the ancient tree��s original aura.


    What astonished Ye Futian was that this gigantic ancient tree actually had a human shape. It was as though it was a humongous Tree God.


    This human-shaped divine tree had a head, eyes, arms, body, as well as two legs. It completely resembled a human. Right then, a brilliant life aura was shining from the head of this human-shaped tree. There seemed to be an elixir there!

 Chapter 1935 - Merging

    Ye Futian revealed a bizarre expression. The elixir was nurturing life?


    This ancient tree was born from the elixir?


    Although it was just a tree, Ye Futian felt as though he was being watched. The ancient tree before him was even richer in spirit than the Flowering Tree he encountered before entering Eastern Deity Island. It was as though he was facing a person.


    The life aura contained within the ancient tree astonished him. Endless emerald green divine halos shone all around, sealing off this space. The swaying branches kept growing, blocking out the sun and the sky. It seemed to truly be a divine tree.


    It had a perfect Way of Life. Was this the power of the origin of the Way of Life? Ye Futian thought to himself. The sense of familiarity grew stronger. The Life Spirit of the World Tree within him swayed and began to stir.


    This was another object that caused his Life Spirit to stir. It was certainly an extremely precious item.


    Ye Futian approached the tree. Yet, in an instant, the branches and leaves that blocked out the sun and the sky descended upon him. They became countless vines and tendrils that instantly flooded around him.


    Yin Divine Light surged over Ye Futian��s figure. He tried to freeze the vines of the ancient tree, but he saw the emerald green divine halos above the ancient tree shine. Its vitality was overwhelming, immediately breaking through the power of the Yin Divine Light as it continued towards Ye Futian.


    Sword Will, lightning, and other powers of the Great Path burst forth from Ye Futian, attempting to block off the vines. However, they were all useless. The branches and leaves seemed to be unable to decay. Their vitality was overwhelming to the point of making them immortal. Be it destruction or death, they could not corrupt the branches and leaves.


    With a swooshing sound, Ye Futian��s figure was completely tied up in an instant. He could not resist at all. When this power bound him, he did not have the ability to struggle at all. He frenziedly unleashed his aura of the Great Path, but he could not break free.


    At that moment, Ye Futian understood what the others had been through. Like him, they must have been unable to offer up any resistance. They had all been bullied by a tree.


    The branches of the ancient tree wrapped him within them. Ye Futian felt his body spinning. He then appeared before the divine tree. The head of the tree seemed to be staring at him. An object shone with brilliant divine light in its head. The power within the divine light was bestowing life to the divine tree.


    Swoosh. Ye Futian heard high-pitched squeaks. The branches of the divine tree seemed to become razor-sharp. They were aimed at Ye Futian, seemingly wanting to pierce through his body.


    Ye Futian knew that the situation was bad. The Way of Life in his body also burst forth at that instant. The divine halo of the World Tree emanated from him. Currents of the Great Path enveloped the vast space. His figure suddenly became a frightening spiral that consumed the Way of Life of the tree.


    In just a split second, the surrounding Way of Life surged into his body.


    Inside his body, there was also a divine tree shining with a strange divine halo. It seemed ethereal, like a king among divine trees. It was staring back at the ancient tree outside.


    The ancient tree outside also sensed its presence. The two actually developed some form of resonance with each other. Swooshing sounds kept ringing in Ye Futian��s ear as the branches frenziedly swept towards Ye Futian. The branches actually dove into Ye Futian��s body, being drawn towards his aura, allowing themselves to be consumed by the aura.


    The elixir on the ancient tree released blinding divine light. From within the elixir that was merged with the divine tree, an illusory figure seemed to faintly appear. The figure��s temperament was ethereal, as though he was a celestial being.


    Supreme Deity Donglai! Ye Futian revealed a strange look. Could it be that the absurd things that Shangguan Qiuye previously told him were true?


    Ye Futian saw the light released by the elixir grow brighter and brighter. Frightening divine halos completely lit up the space within this domain of the Great Path. The emerald green divine light was like the light of life. He could hear a crisp sound, as though the elixir was shattering. It merged directly into the divine tree and then continued to surge into Ye Futian��s body, merging once again with the divine tree within him.


    Ye Futian greedily absorbed this power of the Great Path of Life. He felt his life aura swell. It was still continuing to rise. His organs, meridians, and life force seemed to also grow stronger. He was full of life force. He could clearly sense that as his life force grew stronger, his blood, Qi, and will were also strengthened. Life force was the source of human existence.


    As time passed slowly, both the divine tree as well the elixir contained within it disappeared, consumed by Ye Futian. The exuberant life aura within him made him feel as though he was filled with endless power. His temperament also went through some changes. Yet, he could not describe what had changed exactly.


    Just them, a will suddenly surfaced within his mind. This caused him to be momentarily stunned.


    The illusory figure had directly appeared in his mind in the form of will. He was still ethereal, as though he was a celestial being.


    ��Are you Senior Supreme Deity Donglai?�� Ye Futian asked as his will wavered.


    ��Hmm,�� the other party replied, nodding his head. He continued, ��Let down your will. I will let you know everything that you wish to know.��


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian answered. He was not on guard. The other party��s will was weak and feeble. It was impossible for him to take anything from Ye Futian. Hence, Ye Futian was at ease to allow the other party��s will to merge into his own. In an instant, countless images surfaced in his mind. They seemed to be images of Supreme Deity Donglai��s legendary life.


    Of course, what was more precious was that Supreme Deity Donglai imparted everything he had learned into Ye Futian��s will, including his vast knowledge in alchemy techniques. This made Ye Futian feel strange. He had just come in here to try his luck. He never imagined that he would not only consume the elixir but also receive the lifelong teachings of Supreme Deity Donglai.


    This��


    From the looks of it, he was truly fortunate to stumble upon this.


    He did not know how the successor of Supreme Deity Donglai, the female Island Lord, would think of this.


    The elixir nurtured the life of the divine tree and nourished the remaining will of Supreme Deity Donglai. Supreme Deity Donglai had wanted to utilize the elixir and the divine tree to remain immortal. Yet, his plans had all been wrecked by Ye Futian.


    ��It is your good fortune to be able to come here. You can now be considered half a disciple of mine. I hope that you can take care of Eastern Deity Island,�� Supreme Deity Donglai directly imprinted this thought in Ye Futian��s mind. Ye Futian nodded his head and answered solemnly, ��Senior, rest assured. I will do whatever is within my power.��


    ��Hmm,�� the illusory figure nodded his head slightly. He then gradually turned blurrier until he completely disappeared, vanishing into thin air.


    At that moment, Supreme Deity Donglai was truly considered to have disappeared from the world.


    Ye Futian took a deep breath. He looked at the empty ancient mountain. All the power of the Way of Life here was no longer present.


    Right now, he still had another predicament to face. He did not know what the Island Lord would do to him.


    Ye Futian turned around and headed outside. The people outside were all idly chatting to one another. They appeared exceptionally casual, as though they did not take this event to be a big issue anymore. When they saw Ye Futian equally as disheveled as the rest, they only smiled, revealing understanding looks.


    Island Lord glanced over at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. She then looked at the crowd and said, ��Let��s go.��


    As she said this, she turned around and walked away. The rest followed her and left the place.


    After the crowd returned to the island, they were invited to rest on Eastern Deity Island. They could move around freely and also contemplate on whether or not they wanted to stay to cultivate on Eastern Deity Island.


    A palace was arranged for Ye Futian��s group to cultivate in. The place was elegant.


    Xia Qingyuan��s beautiful eyes looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked back at her and asked, ��What are you looking at?��


    ��You seem somewhat different,�� Xia Qingyuan replied.


    Ye Futian was stunned. She could tell?


    ��What seems different about me?�� Ye Futian inquired.


    Xia Qingyuan shook her head gently and said, ��It��s just a feeling.��


    ��Your senses are really sharp,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him. Ye Futian then said, ��The members of Eastern Deity Island should be coming to find me soon.��


    When Xia Qingyuan heard Ye Futian say this, she immediately understood. He must have had a different experience compared to other people when he was in the ancient mountain.


    Just as they were chatting, a group of silhouettes traversed across the sky. They quickly arrived outside their palace. One of the silhouettes said, ��Bai Mu wishes to see Pavilion Master Ye.��


    ��Goddess, please come in,�� Ye Futian turned his head and said out loud. Xia Qingyuan also looked over in that direction. The members of Eastern Deity Island actually came.


    Bai Mu and her group immediately came up to Ye Futian. She bowed slightly and said, ��Island Lord invites Pavilion Master Ye to meet with her.��


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian replied, nodding his head. He could not just leave Eastern Deity Island like that. He wouldn��t be able to either.


    ��Many thanks, Pavilion Master Ye,�� Bai Mu thanked him as she nodded. She then turned and headed off. Ye Futian told Xia Qingyuan and the others, ��Wait for me here.��


    As he said this, he followed Bai Mu alone and came to the residence of the Island Lord.


    When Ye Futian arrived, there were only a few people present. Aside from the Island Lord, there were a few figures with very powerful auras. This alarmed Bai Mu and the other goddesses. What was going to happen?


    ��Greetings, Island Lord,�� Ye Futian said as he bowed slightly. Island Lord acknowledged his greeting by nodding her head. She then said to Bai Mu and the other goddesses, ��You may all step down.��


    ��Understood.�� Although Bai Mu and the rest were curious, they still stepped down and left the place.


    There were only a few members, and the Island Lord left in this place together with Ye Futian.


    A formless pressure landed on Ye Futian. This peerless Island Lord released a terrifying pressure of the Great Path that enveloped Ye Futian.


    ��What happened to the divine tree as well as the elixir?�� she interrogated in a cold tone.


    ��I happened to obtain them by chance. They have already merged into my body,�� Ye Futian responded.


    The female Island Lord had waited until now to meet with him privately. She must not want other people to know about this.


    From the looks of it, he should be quite safe. The other party would not do anything to him!

 Chapter 1936 - The Second Island Lord

    The female Island Lord stared at Ye Futian. The coercion of the Great Path was still strong; had it been integrated by him?


    ��What did you get?�� she asked.


    ��Elixir, the life force of the Great Path.�� As soon as Ye Futian��s voice fell, a most sacred emerald green divine brilliance gleamed. His body seemed to have been transformed into a divine tree with countless branches and leaves spread out, swaying in this space. The Great Path of Life was extremely majestic and vibrant.


    Ye Futian��s body was also filled with radiant green divine brilliance, with a most powerful vitality.


    ��What else?�� the other continued to ask him, her gaze fixed on him.


    Ye Futian looked into those deep eyes and responded, ��And I have inherited everything from the Supreme Deity Donglai.��


    As soon as his voice fell, an invisible pressure of the Great Path enveloped this area. Not just the female Island Lord, but the few cultivators next to her also emitted an extremely powerful aura. Supreme Deity Donglai was the belief of Eastern Deity Island. Even though he had fallen for many years, the people on Eastern Deity Island knew that he hadn��t completely disappeared. They had always hoped that he would continue to exist forever so that one day he might wake up one way or another.


    But now, it was inherited by Ye Futian.


    ��He��s gone?�� A terrible power of the Great Path surged over the woman, and it seemed rather cold.


    ��He��s gone,�� Ye Futian responded frankly. �� Supreme Deity Donglai proclaimed that I could be counted as half a disciple of his and asked me to look after Eastern Deity Island in the future.��


    ��You, look after Eastern Deity Island?�� said the other while looking at Ye Futian.


    ��I can��t now,�� Ye Futian responded, ��but does the Island Lord think it will not be possible even in the future?��


    The woman fell silent when she heard Ye Futian��s words. She had been watching Ye Futian��s performance. Even with Jiang Jiuming present, Ye Futian was still the one with the most outstanding performance in Eastern Deity Island.


    ��So, the movement of the Flowering Tree was also because of you.�� She continued, and Ye Futian nodded, did not deny it.


    ��Who are you? There is no major clan with the last name Ye in the surrounding continents,�� the female Island Lord stared at Ye Futian. She was a little suspicious of Ye Futian��s identity and wondered whether he was coming for the elixir just like Jiang Jiuming.


    ��Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��Dongyuan Pavilion can��t tolerate the likes of you,�� the other responded bluntly.


    Ye Futian gave a look at the people next to her, which caught her attention. Did he mean to have her dismiss her people before he would say more?


    ��You may go now,�� the Island Lord commanded. Several people glanced at Ye Futian coldly, then turned to leave. The Island Lord looked at Ye Futian and said, ��You can spill it now.��


    Sure enough, just as she had thought, this man wasn��t so simple. His past was extraordinary, or else, he wouldn��t request a private audience with her.


    An invisible power of the Great Path enveloped this area and sealed it. Ye Futian looked at the Island Lord, ��Since I have inherited everything from the Supreme Deity Donglai, naturally I am aware of its past. As he said, I am indeed half of a disciple to him. I can��t cut off my relationship with the Eastern Deity Island. Therefore, I can tell the Island Lord my secrets to demonstrate my sincerity, but I also hope that the Island Lord will keep my secrets for me.��


    ��Of course.�� The other nodded.


    ��I come from the Original Realm,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Impossible.�� The Island Lord was surprised. ��How could you possibly come from Original Realm with this kind of cultivation?��


    Obviously, she had heard of the Original Realm. After all, Eastern Deity Island was once prosperous. Her father was a top figure. They had talked about it.


    ��Whether the Island Lord believes it or not, I did come from the Original Realm; it is a fact,�� Ye Futian continued, while the beautiful eyes of the woman in front of him fixed on him. Although she knew of the Original Realm, to the vast majority of the forces in Divine Prefecture, the Original Realm only existed as a myth.


    And the young man in front of her came from the Original Realm.


    ��Even if I believe you, is this any secret?�� The Island Lord said to Ye Futian.


    ��Back then, I was hunted by the top powers of the Divine Prefecture in the Original Realm, including powers such as the Holy Land of Taichu,�� Ye Futian continued, and the other revealed a look of surprise. She had heard of Holy Land of Taichu, even if it never had any exchanges with Eastern Deity Island, but as one of the top forces in Divine Prefecture, she knew of its existence.


    Would such forces hunt Ye Futian down?


    ��My real name is Ye Futian; Ye Liunian is just a pseudonym. In the Original Realm, due to some circumstances, I was targeted by the forces in the Original Realm and those of the Lower Worlds in the Divine Prefecture, so I fled to Divine Prefecture,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��How did you manage to escape with your realm?�� the other asked.


    ��Princess Donghuang didn��t want to see me die,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��Princess Donghuang?�� The female Island Lord was already starting to believe in Ye Futian��s story, but the more she listened, the more she felt it was implausible. She felt it��s almost like a dream. A man of Lower Renhuang realm came to Eastern Deity Island for trial and obtained the opportunity of the Great Path. However, the characters and forces that he mentioned were inaccessible to those on Eastern Deity Island; how could this not make her feel a little surreal?


    ��Look at it yourself.�� Ye Futian shot a thought from his brow chakra toward the center of her brow chakra. She did not refuse and saw scenes appearing before her eyes. The battle in the Original Realm was also displayed.


    After watching, the female Island Lord��s aura fluctuated slightly, staring at the man in front of her.


    This was a veritable genius. In the Original Realm, he had come into contact with the top powers and was valued by Princess Donghuang. No wonder such an extremely talented person traversed and dominated all of Eastern Deity Island, inherited the opportunity of the Great Path, and seized the elixir.


    ��Am I sincere enough?�� Ye Futian asked while the other still looked at him.


    ��Why tell me so much?�� the other asked him.


    These were Ye Futian��s secrets; there was no need to tell her all of them.


    ��I inherited the elixir and the inheritance of the Supreme Deity Donglai; I could be considered as half of his heir. If I don��t convince the Island Lord of my talent, it may put me at a disadvantage. On the contrary, if the Island Lord sees all this, the conclusion may very well be the opposite,�� Ye Futian responded frankly. He learned everything that Eastern Deity Island had experienced through Supreme Deity Donglai.


    Eastern Deity Island was now in desperate need of power, the reason why it was using the opportunity of the Great Path to attract talented men from outside.


    However, no matter how they recruit, even if Eastern Deity Island��s strength increased, there would still be an upper limit. As long as Eastern Deity Island failed to produce a major figure, the limitation would always be there.


    Therefore, this could be the man who will give hope to Eastern Deity Island.


    Having inherited everything from Supreme Deity Donglai, with the promise to look after Eastern Deity Island, he would not mind help coming from Eastern Deity Island.


    ��You go back first,�� the Island Lord thought for a moment and said to Ye Futian. Her thoughts were mixed up, and she hadn��t sorted them out yet.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian nodded slightly and left.


    Long after he left, the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island still stared at his faded figure in a daze.


    Ye Futian from the Original Realm.


    Ye Liunian, the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion.


    She had been recruiting genius talents for Eastern Deity Island. Finally, on this day, a genius had come, one that even the daughter of the Great Emperor had appreciated. Ye Futian��s talent was undoubted.


    This was someone who could make the Flowering Tree run wild, allowing the divine tree to blend into the divine body, someone that Zi Feng was willing to follow in cultivation.


    No matter how she looked at it, Ye Futian was the best candidate for Eastern Deity Island.


    But, was he reliable?


    Previously at the banquet, Ye Futian casually gave out the Refine Thunder Mastering Pellets to those around him. He had performed well on Eastern Deity Island before. His character was gentle and erudite but ruthless toward the enemy.


    Perhaps this was destined.


    To send Ye Futian to Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Island Lord.�� At this moment, a group of people landed next to Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island. Their eyes were full of doubts and questions.


    What did the white-haired man talk about with the Island Lord?


    ��From today onwards, Ye Liunian is the second Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island, and you will do all you can to provide full assistance to him. However, this matter is only known to you and cannot be publicized. His status is the same as mine,�� said the woman. Everyone around was a little surprised, their eyes on her.


    Was this to confirmed the white-haired Renhuang as the heir of Eastern Deity Island?


    Even if he had gotten the inheritance of Supreme Deity Donglai, should a decision be made so quickly?


    ��Island Lord, do we need to discuss this matter further?�� someone asked.


    ��No, I have made up my mind, so it is decided.�� The Island Lord��s tone was determined, and everyone was a little concerned, unaware of what the two had talked about. But they knew the Island Lord, an extremely outstanding leader, whose action was always swift. Since she had already made the decision, they would not question her. They all nodded in response and left.


    Second Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island?


    Ye Futian didn��t know any of this. After he returned, Zi Feng asked him, ��What did sister Island Lord say to you?��


    ��Nothing, just concerned for me,�� Ye Futian smiled.


    ��Concerned for you?�� Zi Feng��s beautiful eyes glanced at him with a look of contempt. This Island Lord did care for anyone, much less a man.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Although you plan to follow me to cultivate, you may still be on Eastern Deity Island often.��


    Zi Feng didn��t quite understand it, and Ye Futian didn��t bother to explain further. In his opinion, such a choice was actually straightforward. As smart as the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island, she would make the best judgment.


    When faced with a win-win option, no one would choose to lose.


    ��When are we leaving?�� Beigong Shuang came over and asked Ye Futian.


    ��Leave?�� Ye Futian looked at Beigong Shuang and said, ��Eastern Deity Island��s fine wines and delicacies are all great. Why leave?��


    Wasn��t it nice to stay a few more days and enjoy the feast?


    ��You are not leaving?�� Beigong Shuang looked confused, didn��t quite understand.


    Ye Futian smiled and didn��t say anything more. Of course, he wouldn��t leave; from now on, this would be like his own backyard!

 Chapter 1937 - Conferred

    Eastern Deity Island. Those who planned to enter the Core Island gradually left. Several others chose to join Eastern Deity Island, preparing to stay there to cultivate.


    Ye Futian did not leave, staying on Eastern Deity Island to continue his cultivation.


    At Eastern Deity Island, delicacies were provided every day, with Goddess Baimu from Eastern Deity Island personally waiting on him daily. Many cultivators were a little unhappy with the situation, saying that Baimu was almost like Ye Futian��s servant girl.


    They thought that Ye Futian must have agreed to join Eastern Deity Island to cultivate. But even if he had outstanding talents, there was no need to degrade Baimu like this.


    On Eastern Deity Island, Baimu��s talent was one of the most outstanding. An empress who was so out of this world, now serving Ye Futian every day, made many felt quite odd. If the two were Path Companions, they would understand it.


    But Baimu didn��t say anything, nor felt that she was being wronged. The order of the Island Lord must have its own reasons.


    As for the matter regarding the ��Second Island Lord,�� it was not publicized by Eastern Deity Island, and only a few key people knew about it. Even the goddesses of Eastern Deity Island did not know anything. Of course, Ye Futian himself didn��t know it either, but judging from the attitude of everyone, many things were becoming clear to him.


    On this day, in a hall on Eastern Deity Island, Baimu and a Goddess Huang stood there, respectfully facing the peerless Empress in front of him, the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Baimu, how are you getting along with Pavilion Master Ye these past few days?�� the Island Lord asked.


    ��Very well.�� Baimu nodded slightly. ��Pavilion Master Ye is easy-going and easy to get along with.��


    The Island Lord nodded slightly and glanced at that Goddess Huang. Her name was Huang Yan, a direct disciple of the Island Lord herself. She was extremely talented and was regarded very highly. Seeing that her master now looked at her, Huang Yan said, ��Master, there has been some gossip on the island these past few days. It��s true that Pavilion Master Ye is extremely talented; although he has entered the Eastern Deity Island to cultivate, is it necessary to give him such grand treatments?��


    The Island Lord glanced at her and said, ��Huang Yan, you can leave for the moment now.��


    Huang Yan was stunned by this reply. With some puzzlements in her eyes, she nodded and replied, ��Yes, Master.��


    After that, she left, not knowing what she said that had displeased her Master.


    Neither did Baimu. She was the only one left.


    ��Baimu, what do you think of Pavilion Master Ye?�� the Island Lord asked.


    ��His talent is unparalleled.�� Baimu responded, ��Even Jiang Jiuming from the ancient royal family is not necessarily more outstanding than him. Whether inside or outside of Eastern Deity Island, he had demonstrated unparalleled talent.��


    ��Mmm.�� The Island Lord nodded. ��Do you want to cultivate with him?��


    Baimu was stunned. A strange look appeared in her beautiful eyes as she lowered her head slightly. �� Master, Pavilion Master Ye already has a Path Companion.��


    ��Not as Path Companion, just to follow him in cultivation.�� The Island Lord knew that Baimu had misunderstood her meaning, and continued. Baimu looked up at her master in surprise.


    Did her master really want her to follow Ye Futian and serve him?


    Just how important was Ye Futian?


    ��Baimu will obey master��s order,�� Baimu replied softly.


    ��It��s not an order. I��m simply asking if you are willing. If you are not, I won��t force you. What I need is someone who truly wanted to follow him in cultivation, and not just because I ordered it. He is here because you recommended him, so you know him the best, that��s why I am asking for your opinion,�� the Island Lord continued.


    Baimu looked pensive when she heard her master��s words. Judging from what her master said, she held Ye Futian in higher regard than she had previously thought.


    Baimu thought of how she had gotten to know Ye Futian. First, it was the battle between him and Jun Qiuyan. Later, in Eastern Deity Island, when he disabled Jun Qiuyan. At the time, she felt that Ye Futian was a little too impulsive and should not made such a move against Jun Qiuyan. Things could be very dangerous to him in the future when he��s in the outside world.


    However, now she realized that she might have overthought the matter. In Eastern Deity Island, Ye Futian was able to have an effect on her Master to the point of assigning her to follow him. If the Jun family ever wanted to harm Ye Futian, it would be impossible for Eastern Deity Island not to get involved.


    ��I am willing.�� Baimu nodded and bowed. Perhaps following Ye Futian in cultivation was also a fated encounter; let��s see what it might bring.


    ��Mmm.�� The Island Lord nodded slightly and said, ��In that case, I will tell you the truth. I have made Ye Futian the second Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island. The future of Eastern Deity Island may be tied to him; do you understand?��


    Baimu��s beautiful eyes showed some surprise as she raised her head to look at her master.


    ��Elixir was obtained by him, and he had also gotten the inheritance of my father,�� the Island Lord continued. Her every word made Baimu��s heart tremble.


    Indeed, she had underestimated him��


    No wonder the Master wanted her to follow him around.


    At this time, the Island Lord took out a sacred ancient decree, which was filled with a powerful aura of the Great Path. The ancient decree flew toward Baimu and hovered in front of her. When Baimu laid eyes on the decree, her eyes betrayed her emotions, clearly recognizing it.


    ��Seeing it is like seeing me. Take it. Whenever you need it, you may use it. In addition, I will confer you as the Goddess of Eastern Deity Island.�� The voice of the Island Lord caused an uneasiness inside Baimu. The bestowing of the ancient decree, and conferring her as the Goddess of Eastern Deity Island, all these just so that she would follow Ye Futian in cultivation.


    ��Most people on Eastern Deity Island don��t know what happened today. It is only for your own knowledge, so do not disclose it to the others.��


    ��Yes, Master.�� Baimu nodded. It seemed that Master chose her this time and entrusted her with an important task.


    ��Go,�� said the Island Lord. Baimu bowed slightly, then turned to leave. There was a great disturbance in her heart that was difficult to calm down for a long while.


    The Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island watched the other leave and sat there quietly. Ye Futian had inherited everything from her father and obtained the elixir. Apart from not being the actual descendant of her father by blood, he was more of an heir in every way, so she bestowed him the title as the Second Island Lord.


    She was not hungry for power. Only strength could bring power. Otherwise, it was as fleeting as the clouds. If one day Ye Futian could reach a certain height, she wouldn��t mind Ye Futian inheriting Eastern Deity Island.


    Although Zi Feng was following him, she didn��t think it was enough. Ye Futian was not from Eastern Deity Island and would not have a sense of belonging regarding Eastern Deity Island; she needed to strengthen that feeling for him consistently. Since she had already approved of Ye Futian, she needed to do everything to bind him.


    Therefore, she decided to send Baimu to take care of him. She thought of choosing Huang Yan, but Huang Yan was a proud one. She probably would never serve Ye Futian willingly, so she decided to give this task to Baimu.


    As for this business about the Goddess, Huang Yan had to stand down. If there was no Ye Futian, the official position for the Goddess should have gone to Huang Yan.


    Her eyes focused outside and said clearly, ��Today, disciple Baimu is officially designated as the Goddess of Eastern Deity Island, ranking first among all the disciples, and her orders are to be obeyed by all.��


    This voice came out and spread throughout Eastern Deity Island. In an instant, it resounded above the entire island.


    Baimu, who had just left, stopped in her tracks, but she did not look back. At this moment, she felt no joy or excitement. On the contrary, all this meant more responsibilities, and she still had a long way to go. She was not quite deserving of the position of Goddess at present, and now the Master had bestowed such position to her, she had to work on making herself worthy.


    Huang Yan was in another place. She looked back at the ancient temple from which she had just came out, her beautiful eyes fixated there, with confusion and doubts in her eyes.


    Conferring the title to Baimu, as the Goddess of Eastern Deity Island.


    But why?


    Was it because of what happened in the ancient temple before?


    Because of what she said?


    She was a little puzzled and couldn��t understand. She was not jealous, only that she could not understand why Master had made such a decision.


    In all aspects, she was more outstanding than Baimu.


    It was not just her, but everyone on Eastern Deity Island was looking in the direction of the voice, and their hearts were slightly disturbed. Baimu had been conferred as the Goddess.


    Then what about Huang Yan?


    Why did the Island Lord choose to confer the title to Baimu at this time?


    ��By order of the Island Lord, congratulations to the Goddess.�� At this moment, another voice resounded throughout Eastern Deity Island. It was a powerful figure in Eastern Deity Island.


    ��By order of the Island Lord, congratulations to the Goddess����


    After that, there were other voices that were heard in response to the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island. Soon, these voices flooded the island, resonating with the world, as if it was the Will of the Great Path that must be accepted by those who heard it.


    In the palace where Ye Futian was, he raised his head slightly as the voices fell, and their sounds still lingered. Did this matter have anything to do with him?


    ��Emperor Ye.�� At this time, Shangguan Qiuye walked over this way and said to him, ��Baimu has been conferred as the Goddess. Wasn��t Baimu the one who invited you to Eastern Deity?��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��I didn��t expect Goddess Baimu to have such luck,�� Shangguan Qiuye marveled.


    Just as she was speaking, a figure in the distance came in this direction. Shangguan Qiuye was taken aback when she saw who it was; just as she was speaking of Baimu, here she came.


    Baimu��s appearance surprised her. Baimu had just been conferred as the Goddess. Even though there was no official ceremony, shouldn��t she be with the Island Lord at a time like this?


    No matter what, this was the last place she should be at this time.


    ��Pavilion Master Ye.�� Baimu landed and nodded at Ye Futian with a smile.


    ��Congratulations to the Goddess.�� Ye Futian smiled.


    ��Congratulations to the Goddess.�� Shangguan Qiuye did the same.


    ��Thank you,�� Baimu responded with a smile.


    ��Goddess has just been conferred. How is it that you are already here?�� Shangguan Qiuye asked with some doubt, but Ye Futian didn��t. Instinctively, he felt that this matter might have something to do with him.


    ��On this trip to Eastern Deity Island, Pavilion Master Ye demonstrated unparalleled talent. Master conferred the title of Goddess on me so I could follow Pavilion Master Ye in cultivation. For many years, I have been cultivating in Eastern Deity Island, and it��s time that I cultivate outside of the island; I wonder if I will have the opportunity to cultivate with Pavilion Master Ye in the outside world?�� Baimu spoke with a very soft voice, and her tone was very polite. Hearing her words, Ye Futian was assured of his speculation.


    It seemed that the Island Lord had made her decision so that a Goddess would follow him in cultivation.


    Indeed, Baimu was conferred as the Goddess of Eastern Deity Island because of him.


    On the side, Shangguan Qiuye looked shocked. In such a circumstance, how could she fail to understand that for Baimu, who had just been named as the Goddess of Eastern Deity Island, to follow Ye Futian out in the world to cultivate, implied that a Goddess was to be Ye Futian��s Path Companion?


    Obviously, her understanding was a little off!

 Chapter 1938 - Attainment of the Divine Flame

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s understanding was different from that of Shangguan Qiuye. For the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island to conferred the title of Goddess just to let that Goddess follow him in cultivation was all but acknowledged his status.


    However, for a Goddess to follow him might also be a way to keep tabs on him?


    However, he had a good impression of Baimu. They had picked the right person, so he had no reason to refuse her. He nodded and said, ��If the Goddess doesn��t object, I would have no reason to decline.��


    ��Then it��s settled. From now on, I will cultivate in this palace. If Pavilion Master Ye has any instructions, just let me know,�� Baimu said. Ye Futian nodded and began to understand the intention of the Island Lord.


    She wanted to use Baimu to connect him to Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Thank you, Goddess.�� Ye Futian smiled and nodded once he understood the intention, while Shangguan Qiuye beside him blinked and wondered if that was all?


    He was not humble at all�� shameless to the extreme.


    Shangguan Qiuye still thought that Eastern Deity Island was using Baimu to win Ye Futian over. She didn��t know that Ye Futian had already inherited from the Supreme Deity Donglai, swallowed the elixir of Eastern Deity Island, and was now the Second Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Pavilion Master Ye need not address me as Goddess anymore, just call me by my name,�� Baimu said.


    ��Very well,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Baimu, Eastern Deity Island should have a place for alchemy, right?��


    ��Mmm,�� Baimu nodded. Eastern Deity Island was created by Supreme Deity Donglai, who was a master-level alchemist. Eastern Deity Island was steeped in alchemy, and many of its people were experts in the art of alchemy.


    ��Are you good at it?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Baimu shook her head. ��I am not gifted in alchemy. Alchemy requires a strong comprehension of the Great Path. Any good alchemist could induce movements from the Flowering Tree.��


    ��So, a powerful alchemist must have a strong talent for cultivation?�� Ye Futian asked, and Baimu nodded. This was also the reason why a powerful alchemist was extremely rare. For a person with outstanding talent, it was enough to improve his strength through cultivation; there was no need to be distracted by alchemy.


    ��If so, I should have great potential for it. When you have time, you can take me to observe the alchemy in action here. Maybe I have a hidden talent in alchemy,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. Baimu knew the inside story and understood the reason behind Ye Futian��s request to observe.


    Having inherited everything from Supreme Deity Donglai, Ye Futian now had a real chance to become a top master alchemist, provided that he was willing to spend time and energy on it.


    ��When will Eastern Deity Island be closed?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��It will be closed in three days. By then, all the cultivators will leave Eastern Deity Island,�� Baimu said, as Ye Futian nodded in acknowledgment. Once Eastern Deity Island closed, the news would be spread to the outside, and all of the Penglai Continent would know what happened to Jun Qiuyan.


    Of course, this did not rule out the possibility that the other party already knew of it, and this possibility was very high. After all, there were indeed such magical treasures in the world of cultivation. He and Xia Qingyuan owned a Zimu Yuanyang Mirror, and it was highly probable that the news had already leaked out.


    But Jun Qiuyan was in his hands, so the cultivators from the Jun family should not dare to provoke him.


    However, now was the time to consider the next step.


    Before that, they must first collect the Divine Fire of Wutong.


    ��Zi Feng, shall we go to Wutong Island now?�� Ye Futian said to the phoenix that was not far away.


    Obviously, the two had reached an agreement to let Ye Futian take ownership of the Divine Fire of Wutong.


    ��Yes,�� Zi Feng nodded, and the two walked away together. Shangguan Qiuye, Baimu, and the others looked at them in amazement; what were they going to do on Wutong Island?


    ��Wait for the Little Condor����


    A voice came from behind, ��Condor sama�� spread his wings to catch up; if he didn��t, he would be left behind.


    Before long, they appeared on Wutong Island together. Although Zi Feng was not there, the Wutong Divine Tree was still on the island. No one had been able to take away the Wutong divine flame. This was a divine fire, and it was a divine fire of the Great Path conceived by the phoenix. It was possible to leverage its power to cultivate, but impossible to refine it for one��s own possession, at least there was no one strong enough yet in Eastern Deity Island to do so.


    However, Ye Futian claimed he had a way.


    ��Leave Wutong Island immediately.�� Zi Feng swooped down, her red dress was brilliant, and a sudden burst of overwhelming pressure bloomed from her. An illusion of the divine phoenix appeared on her body, sheltering the sky and the sun. The divine flame enveloped the entire Wutong Island so that all the Wutong trees on the island swayed, as traces of divine flames diffused into the atmosphere.


    In just an instant, the temperature of Wutong Island suddenly rose. With the Wutong Divine Tree as the center, wisps of elusive flames lingered. The cultivators on the island glanced at Zi Feng and knew that this was probably the master of Wutong Island, and they retreated toward the void.


    Ye Futian and the Little Condor swooped down and landed next to the Wutong Divine Tree. Ye Futian walked under the Wutong tree and sat down in a cross-legged pose.


    Zi Feng was suspended above the Wutong Divine Tree, quietly watching Ye Futian, wondering how he could take away the Divine Fire of Wutong from the tree?


    At this moment, she faintly perceived traces of invisible air currents that came from Ye Futian, covering the Wutong Divine Tree. At this moment, the power of the flaming Great Path above the divine tree was constantly flowing toward him. Caution flashed across Zi Feng��s beautiful eyes, and she became a little more serious.


    At this moment, she was faintly aware that an independent area of the Great Path had appeared in this space, and the divine tree was shrouded within. In this area, there seemed to be invisible, ancient tree branches and leaves spreading, turning into the currents of the Great Path, infiltrated into the Wutong Divine Tree so that Ye Futian��s body and the Wutong Divine Tree became one, continuing to swallow and absorb the light of the divine flame.


    Buzz!


    The terrible divine brilliance was shining, and an indescribably blazing aura permeated the atmosphere. Divine Wutong Tree turned into the color of the flame as if a golden divine fire was burning had rendered Ye Futian��s entire body extremely radiant.


    ��Divine flame!�� Little Condor retreated into the void. He couldn��t possibly withstand the power of this divine fire.


    But even the power of the divine fire was still being absorbed by Ye Futian little by little, which caused the surprised look on Zi Feng��s face. Unless he could resonate with divine flame, anyone else who came in contact with the divine flame, such as herself, would be incinerated, body and soul.


    This was also why the Wutong divine flame was still here though there was no one guarding it�Cbecause no one was able to take it away.


    But why was Ye Futian not hurt by it?


    Ye Futian��s body was lit up with the divine brilliance of the flame, sparkled without ceasing; his entire body was radiant. The divine fire flowed about his body, also under great coercion.


    But even so, he didn��t stop what he was doing. The strength of the Shadow power that he encountered in the Shadow Realm center was far more terrifying than this Wutong divine flame, yet it was absorbed and swallowed by him. Today, it would be the same with this Wutong divine flame.


    It was precisely because of the experience he had in the Shadow Realm that he could be this confident.


    After a long while, the divine glory on the Divine Wutong Tree tree gradually dimmed, and the divine light inside Ye Futian��s body became even brighter. It was as if his entire body was bathed in the divine fire. He sat there cross-legged in cultivation, nor did he move.


    At the same time, the flame aura on the entire Wutong Island became weakened, and the power of the Great Path gradually dissipated on this island.


    ��It had been swallowed,�� Zi Feng stared at Ye Futian below. Although she had been watching, she still did not understand how Ye Futian had done it. She could only feel that Ye Futian was an expert at a mysterious power and that this power was strong enough to tolerate the divine fire of Wutong.


    After some time had passed, the brilliance of the divine flame flowed over Ye Futian��s body. He stood up and exhaled a long breath, which actually turned into a frightful hot current.


    Lifting his head, Ye Futian looked at Zi Feng and said with a smile, ��It��s done.��


    ��Where is the divine flame?�� Zi Feng looked at Ye Futian, her eyes wide.


    Didn��t he say that he would help her to take it?


    Where was the divine flame?


    Could it be pocketed by this guy?


    ��Don��t worry.�� Ye Futian saw Zi Feng��s expression and said with a smile, ��Let��s go back.��


    As he finished speaking, he left in a flash, leaving behind an empty Wutong Island.


    After they left, many came to this side, and someone asked, ��Who was that man?��


    ��Ye Liunian. He had already destroyed many opportunities of the Great Path, and they were all monopolized by him. Later, he breached the chessboard matrix and entered the Core Island. Now it seems that he may have been invited to cultivate on Eastern Deity Island and once again monopolize the opportunity on Wutong Island; how heartless,�� someone said. It seemed that Ye Futian was already quite famous on Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Ye Liunian, the Pavilion Master of Dongyuan Pavilion, I have heard about him. He disabled Jun Qiuyan of his cultivation, slaughtered hundreds of cultivators from the Jun family of Penglai Continent; even cultivators of the Eighth Realm couldn��t escape fast enough. He is a ruthless man; who knows what will happen if he goes into the outside world,�� someone next to him added.


    It seemed that everyone knew all that had happened on Eastern Deity Island in the past few days.


    After Ye Futian returned to Core Island, he continued to enjoy life, served daily with fine wine and delicacies, with more than one beauty by his side.


    Not only him but even those who came with him, such as Emperor Helian and Beigong Ao, were all enjoying the most ��luxurious�� lifestyle. He even asked Baimu to get him some magical pellets on account of cultivation and shared them with those who were the closest to him.


    Sometimes, he would even go and cultivate in alchemy.


    Shangguan Qiuye watched all this, and her thoughts were tangled.


    Even though Ye Futian��s talent was outstanding, and now he had entered Eastern Deity Island to cultivate, was there really a need for Eastern Deity Island to treat him so well?


    Moreover, the life that this guy led in Eastern Deity Island was practically like that of a king, perfect beyond words.


    Time seemed to go by very quickly. Finally, on this day, the journey to Eastern Deity Island was over. Eastern Deity Island invited several other geniuses who were on the island to stay and continue to cultivate there. At the same time, Eastern Deity Island opened up, and those cultivators who came for trials left successively. Some were happy, and some were sad.


    But when the gates of Eastern Deity Island were opened, the whole of Penglai Continent was shaken. A battle occurred on Eastern Deity Island, which affected several top forces in Penglai Continent. Among them, many cultivators of the Jun family were slaughtered, and the great loss they suffered included their young master, Jun Qiuyan, who lost his cultivation.


    This news caused a great sensation in an instant, so much so that even a mighty army descended on Penglai Deity Region!

 Chapter 1939 - What a Good Person

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Eastern Deity Island, Alchemy Area.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged in front of an alchemy cauldron. His full head of long silver hair glimmered under the glow of the flames. With a bright sheen on his hair, he was like a fallen deity.


    The alchemy cauldron in front of him floated in mid-air. Flames of the Way enveloped the cauldron and entered it, setting the inside on fire as well. From within the cauldron came waves of fragrance from elixirs.


    Threads of Flames of the Way seeped into the alchemy cauldron, causing continuous transformations inside the cauldron. Both his hands were busy forming seals; in the cauldron, an ethereal silhouette seemed to appear and control everything that was happening inside.


    To refine elixirs, one had to send his Spiritual Energy into the cauldron to carefully control every step in the refining process. Thus, anyone with a low level of cultivation would not be able to refine powerful elixirs.


    After some time, the alchemy cauldron emanated a bright divine light of the Great Path. An exquisite pill was forming within, and a loud rumble resonated out from the alchemy cauldron.


    ��Mmm, it��s more or less ready.�� Ye Futian��s white hair suddenly fluttered. He slapped his palm on the cauldron, and a beam of light shot out. The cauldron lid opened, and an elixir in the form of a pill flew out.


    When Ye Futian saw the pill, he hesitated a moment, and his face revealed a grim expression. Although the pill levitating in the air emanated radiance of the Great Path and exuded an extremely strong aura of the Great Path, its physical appearance was weird and ugly. It looked just like an irregular and deformed stone and not at all like an elixir.


    ��Blunder���� Ye Futian heard several people nearby whisper as they turned their gaze towards him. What an embarrassment. While this was his first time officially practicing alchemy, he had tried quite a few times before, and yet the elixir that he refined was still this ugly.


    Seeing him, the Alchemy Masters of the Eastern Deity Island were rendered speechless. How could this be the prodigy alchemist that the Island Lord found for them?


    Perhaps the Island Lord wanted them to guide Ye Futian with the hopes that he would one day become a powerful alchemy master.


    ��My young friend, don��t lose heart. You have already done well to be able to refine an elixir successfully on your first try. It isn��t important what color it is,�� a Renhuang said with a smile.


    ��Yes, its color is not crucial, and neither is its shape,�� another person said.


    Ye Futian nearly couldn��t stay there any longer. What else was important then?


    ��Ahem�� I��ve suddenly remembered that I still have something on. I��ll leave first,�� Ye Futian said aloud, and then scurried away, with Bai Mu following behind him. After they left, the others started giggling.


    ��It seems like the one chosen by the Island Lord still has a long way to go.��


    ��Alchemy will not be that simple,�� an old man said as he stroked his beard. It seemed that they were all in good spirits after seeing Ye Futian in such a state; this was to be expected. The Island Lord had Bai Mu bring Ye Futian over and allowed him to try his hand at refining elixirs with any materials he wanted to use. Such special treatment had them speechless with shock.


    It was his first time refining elixirs, and he also used the best ingredients. What was the outcome?


    Everything was wasted.


    ��Look at the elixir he refined; with this color, can it even be consumed?�� Everyone walked forward, and instantly, they all laughed. ��Who dares to try it? How about you?��


    ��Oh, no, thank you. You can have it instead,�� the people at the sides refused.


    They walked up to the front and drew the elixir pill out from the cauldron. Instantly, an intense wave of elixir fragrance washed over them. Although the elixir looked strange, its aura was certainly not weak. This contrast puzzled them greatly.


    After carefully examining the aura of the Great Path contained within the pill, a few people��s expressions changed.


    ��It seems alright. I��ll give it a try,�� someone said aloud.


    ��It��s such an ugly elixir. Let me take one for the team instead,�� another person from the side also said.


    The people behind let out a puzzled expression. What was going on?


    Didn��t they say they didn��t dare take the elixir just moments ago?


    ��Let me try,�� another person said. However, while they were talking, the person holding on to the elixir swallowed it in one gulp.


    ������ Everyone else was stunned when they saw this. How shameless.


    After swallowing the pill, a majestic aura of life seeped out from the person��s body. Since he was not well-versed in the Great Path of Life, so whatever that was happening must be due to the effect of the elixir. A glorious lifeforce shrouded his body, boosting his vitality unceasingly. It was as though a change was occurring throughout his entire body, and his aura became stronger.


    At this moment, his white hair turned black, and the wrinkles on his face faded a little. His skin became smoother, and it was as though he was becoming younger.


    ��This���� Everyone had a shocked expression on their faces, especially those who saw the miraculous changes occurring in the person. They were all astonished.


    A short while later, the middle-level Renhuang seemed to have been reborn. He looked like he became younger by a few decades, and his aura seemed to emanate strongly.


    ��Hahaha!�� The old man laughed aloud, seeming to be full of energy. His voice also seemed full of strength, and said aloud, ��The Island Lord has great foresight indeed. Our young friend Ye is an alchemy prodigy.��


    ������ Everyone was staring with their mouth agape. Just who was it who asked if anyone dared to consume the elixir just moments ago.


    ��What a cunning old man!�� They were greatly frustrated with themselves, bitter that they acted too slowly.


    ��What grade is it?�� someone asked.


    ��It is a perfect grade elixir, level-five pill of the Great Path,�� the old man replied aloud. The people who heard him nearly wanted to vomit blood. A perfect grade level-five pill of the Great Path had the efficacy of a normal level-seven elixir. No wonder it could restore him to youth.


    This cunning old man��.


    ��The hue is unimportant, and neither is the shape. In alchemy, the most important thing is the level of elixir produced.�� The old man chuckled. ��Our young friend Ye is indeed a prodigy. He isn��t bounded by rigid rules and takes the road not taken by others, forming his own style. He spent all his effort on maximizing the level of the elixir and disregarded the opinions of others. It is so rare to see someone of such strong will. This old man admires him indeed.��


    ��???�� Hearing the old man bragging, every one of them stared with their mouths agape. This was way too��


    ��What are you all looking at? As alchemists, you all have the title but don��t have the ability to back it up. You only focus on the elixir��s physical appearance and pay little attention to the fundamentals of the elixir itself. You even looked down on the elixir refined by Renhuang Ye; only this old man appreciated his work and thus consumed it. However, seeing this discrepancy in ability, I must also reflect properly. In terms of his competence in the Way of Alchemy, he is eligible to be this old man��s mentor. I shall go visit him now.��


    As he finished, he strode with large steps, and like a meteor, he sped out of the area and went to look for Ye Futian.


    The crowd who remained behind looked at his shrinking silhouette with mouths agape.


    ��How shameless can this old man be?�� someone pointed at his shrinking back and scolded angrily.


    ��How can such a shameless person exist in the world?�� The rest of the people were also infuriated. This was ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous. He was too shameless.


    After cursing their hearts out, someone asked, ��So, are we going?��


    ��I have something else on, so I��ll take my leave first,�� someone said.


    ��I also have something else, so I��ll leave you all on your own,�� another person said. The person who was cursing the most aggressively became the one to run the fastest.


    The person who posed the question just now was a little stunned. In the blink of an eye, everyone had fled.


    ��Shameless!�� He shouted angrily and then followed behind everyone else as he strode away. Everyone who claimed to have something else to do headed in the same direction.


    Thus, on this day, the pavilion in which Ye Futian was living was especially bustling, causing many people to stare with their mouths agape. The alchemy masters who were normally arrogant were all looking for Renhuang Ye, and their attitudes could even be said to be one of reverence.


    The Bai Mu, who was in the pavilion, saw the arrival of the alchemy masters and was also speechless. What in the world happened?


    ��We are all here to pay a visit to our young friend Ye,�� someone said. ��Does he have some spare time now?��


    ��Pavilion Master Ye was just about to go out for a walk,�� Bai Mu replied. ��Is there anything you need from Pavilion Master Ye?��


    She was still confused. What was this scenario?


    ��Nothing of great importance, actually. It��s just about refining elixirs; we would like to discuss things with him a little more,�� someone said. Bai Mu let out a puzzled expression. Did they want to discuss things about alchemy with Ye Futian?


    Little did they know that Ye Futian was just a low-level Renhuang when he managed to refine a perfect grade mid-level pill of the Great Path. He had already surpassed the vast majority of them, which was an impressive feat.


    Ye Futian had just started learning alchemy. In the future, wouldn��t it be easy for him to refine high-level elixirs? It would be effortless for him.


    Even though they were alchemy masters, they were also practitioners. Therefore, elixirs were extremely important to them as well. Just now, the old man gained a lot of benefits after taking the pill of the Great Path made by Ye Futian.


    ��Preparing for your visit had me quite nervous,�� a voice called out from somewhere. Ye Futian stepped through the air and arrived next to them.


    ��My young friend, Ye, please. You managed to refine such a miraculous elixir so casually, and it had us all humbled. Thus, we have come to invite you to discuss more about the Way of Alchemy. We also have some questions that we hope you can provide some guidance on.��


    Guidance?


    Bai Mu, who was listening in, was so surprised that her eyes widened, and she was rendered speechless.


    These stuck-up alchemy masters were going to seek guidance from Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian had just begun to learn alchemy.


    She was under the impression that alchemy was very difficult.


    Could it be that Ye Futian refined an extremely powerful elixir just now?


    ��I would like to exchange more ideas with you seniors; however, I��m afraid I won��t have many more chances in the future.�� Ye Futian sighed. ��Now that the Eastern Deity Island has opened, I might have to leave. While I was training on the Eastern Deity Island, I was continuously pursued by people who wanted me dead and had no choice but to offend the Jun Family virtuosos. The Jun Family of the Penglai Continent probably hates my guys now, but for some personal reasons, I have no choice but to face them. Once I leave, I don��t think I can return.��


    ��Pffft, a Penglai Continent is no big deal. My young friend Ye, wait a little while, and I��ll get some people to help and accompany you.��


    ��Exactly, my young friend Ye, don��t worry. We will accompany you. I��ll go find the Island Lord now.��


    ��Leave these matters to us.��


    Voices offering help sounded out, and Ye Futian was almost moved to tears. Such a bunch of wonderful people. Having understood that he suffered injustice, they were willing to help him out.


    Bai Mu stood there, feeling quite perplexed indeed!

 Chapter 1940 - Departure from the Island

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many virtuosos hailing from various continents gathered after the Eastern Deity Island trial ended in the Penglai Deity Region. Many virtuosos did not leave straight away.


    All the practitioners gained something from this journey, and several people obtained huge benefits. Of course, none of them could compare to Ye Futian; after all, Ye Futian obtained the source of a relic of the Great Path.


    Furthermore, this was only one of the few relics of the Great Path that Ye Futian had taken for himself. He did not even touch the vast majority of relics.


    Nonetheless, everyone had their own chance meetings and benefits gained.


    After they departed from the Eastern Deity Island, the Penglai Deity Region became even busier, and trades became even more common. Apart from this, many people were exchanging stories and discussing the Eastern Deity Island��s gossip and what happened there.


    For example, some rumors said that among the people who entered the Eastern Deity Island, one of them was a mysterious virtuoso from the ancient royal family, the Jiang Clan.


    To most of the practitioners who went to the Eastern Deity Island, the ancient royal family was an unrelatable entity. Thus, many people were quite surprised that the Eastern Deity Island had actually managed to attract the ancient royal family��s virtuosos.


    However, the person that attracted the most attention this time was not the virtuosos from the ancient Royal family, the Jiang Clan. Rather, that person was a Renhuang who was apparently the pavilion master of the Dongyuan Pavilion, Ye Liunian.


    This person performed outstandingly well in the Eastern Deity Island; he managed to obtain relics of the Great Path consecutively and killed many Renhuangs, and his methods were callous and cold. What really made people afraid of him was that he had slain nearly all the virtuosos from the Jun Family, one of the top-tier factions in the Penglai Continent.


    Moreover, he completely crippled Jun Qiuyan��s cultivation.


    This event had already made its way around the Penglai Deity Region, and the practitioners of the Penglai Continent had also dispatched virtuosos to this place. In this Penglai Deity Region, virtuosos of the Jun Family could be found everywhere. As long as the Dongyuan Pavilion Master came out, the only fate that awaited him was death.


    However, it was said that the Dongyuan Pavilion Master had been regarded as an important figure by the Eastern Deity Island and had entered the island to cultivate.


    At the same time, there was another rumor that was spreading through the Penglai Deity Region. The rumor said that when the Eastern Deity Island initially opened, a mysterious virtuoso caused the Flowering Tree to blossom to its full glory. However, no one knew who this person was. Some people thought it was a phenomenon caused by the tree itself, while others believed that someone was intentionally hiding his identity.


    Many people guessed that the practitioner who caused such an extraordinary reaction in the tree was none other than the Dongyuan Pavilion Master Ye Liunian.


    This person��s performance in the Eastern Deity Island was far too outstanding. He managed to obtain opportunities of the Great Path, and he entered the Eastern Deity Island with a record low loss of zero helpers. No one could compare to him. It was also said that after that, he returned to Wutong Island and took away the Divine Fire of Wutong. However, this was merely a rumor, and many people did not know how true it was.


    No matter the factual accuracies of these rumors, it was undisputed that the person who caught the most attention during this journey in the Eastern Deity Island was the Dongyuan Pavilion Master, the one who could escape the incessant murderous pursuit of Jun Qiuyan only due to Bai Mu��s assistance.


    In the Penglai Deity Region, many silhouettes flashed by. Some were walking on the ground, while in the skies above, others were walking in midair.


    At that moment, another overpowering aura washed over from the space above. All the virtuosos raised their heads and saw a group of darkly clothed virtuosos traversing in the air above them. This caused quite a flurry among the crowd; that group was an entire army of Renhuangs.


    ��Are they Jun Family virtuosos?�� someone asked.


    ��Nope.�� In the crowd, someone had a quizzical expression in their eyes. He continued in a low voice, ��They are Yun Family virtuosos.��


    ��The Yun Family of the Penglai Continent?�� The people surrounding were silently shocked. In the Penglai Continent, the Yun Clan and the Jun Family were factions of the same level. What were they going to do, bringing in such a large army?


    Before everyone recovered from their shock, another strong aura descended upon them. Raising their heads, they saw, once again, a large army rush past them. This caused many people to be stunned. What was going on?


    ��Are they also Yun Clan virtuosos?��


    ��I��ve seen one of them in the Eastern Deity Island. At that time, that person was with Shangguan Clan��s Shangguan Qiuye, guarding her,�� someone said. This caused another shock among the crowd. The virtuosos of the Shangguan Clan had also arrived.


    In the Eastern Deity Island, even though the Jun Family and the Shangguan Clan did not clash face to face, there were certainly conflicts between them, and in particular, that happened when Jun Qiuyan��s cultivation was crippled.


    Everyone could vaguely feel that a huge storm was brewing.


    It seemed that three of the top-tier factions in the Penglai Continent had already gathered in the Penglai Deity Region.


    ��


    At the entrance to the Eastern Deity Island, a column of silhouettes walked out. The person taking the lead was a lady who had an extraordinary air about her and stunning features.


    When she stepped out, she looked at the crowd surrounding her and sent out her divine consciousness. Right after that, a row of virtuosos appeared and flashed toward her. Very quickly, they stopped next to Shangguan Qiuye. One of them said, ��My lady.��


    ��Mmm.�� Shangguan Qiuye nodded her head slightly and said, ��Have you all arrived?��


    ��Yes, all of us have arrived,�� the other person replied. Shangguan Qiuye took a step out and said, ��Let��s go.��


    As she finished, the row of people strode away from where they were. Before she came out of the island, she had already notified her clan and had her clan��s virtuosos come over as reinforcements.


    Due to what happened on the Eastern Deity Island, she was worried that something might happen, so she had already started making arrangements some time ago.


    A short while later, they arrived at a tavern in the Penglai Deity Region. It was rather quiet around here, and the atmosphere had a refined feel to it. There were no unwanted noises around; the entire tavern had been rented by someone. A middle-aged man sat there quietly, drinking alcohol. It was when Shangguan Qiuye arrived that he put down his cup of wine and shouted, ��Qiuye.��


    ��Father,�� Shangguan Qiuye replied. The middle-aged man turned out to be Shangguan Qiuye��s father. This meant that he was the Shangguan Clan��s current leader, Shangguan Hong.


    ��How did your cultivation at the Eastern Deity Island go?�� Shangguan Hong asked Shangguan Qiuye as he looked at her. He felt that his daughter��s aura had a slight change and thought she probably achieved significant progress.


    ��Mmm, I obtained quite several opportunities.�� Shangguan Qiuye nodded. ��Of course, in this journey, the most important thing was that I made an acquaintance with someone.��


    ��The Dongyuan Pavilion Master?�� Shangguan Hong asked.


    ��Yes, the Dongyuan Pavilion Master Ye Liunian.�� Shangguan Qiuye nodded. ��Previously, I��ve sent Father some news. This Ye Liunian has astounding potential. We might even not be able to find someone who can rival him in the entire Penglai Continent.��


    Shangguan Hong nodded his head slightly. ��I have also heard quite a few rumors about him. On the Eastern Deity Island, did you observe their attitude?��


    ��Mmm,�� Shangguan Qiuye replied, ��the Eastern Deity Island will definitely support him.��


    ��Are you certain?�� Shangguan Hong asked. ��To what extent are they willing to do it?��


    ��I��m certain,�� Shangguan Qiuye replied very seriously. ��If I guessed correctly, the Eastern Deity Island will definitely guarantee his safety even at the cost of declaring war.��


    Before she exited the island, Ye Futian had spoken a little to her. Even if they didn��t talk, in the Eastern Deity Island, she could observe the situation and clearly tell how the people of the Eastern Deity Island treated Ye Futian.


    This Ye Futian was enjoying an emperor��s treatment on the Eastern Deity Island.


    The feeling that it gave people was that Ye Futian was the Eastern Deity Island��s young lord.


    ��I understand now.�� Shangguan Hong nodded his head, his eyes glinting sharply. He had already more or less decided in his heart. This was a huge opportunity for him.


    At that moment, an overpowering aura washed over the tavern from the outside. The Shangguan Clan virtuosos immediately went out to stop the hostile guests. From afar, a row of silhouettes descended majestically. They levitated in midair, staring at the tavern.


    ��Shangguan Hong,�� a cold voice sounded. Shangguan Hong stood up and took a few steps forward. He looked up at the silhouette in the sky.


    ��Jun Xiaoyao.�� Shangguan Hong looked toward the person who arrived. The leader of the Jun Family had also arrived. Jun Qiuyan was this Jun Xiaoyao��s son. Behind him, the Renhuangs were exuding a terrifying aura.


    Jun Xiaoyao��s sights settled on Shangguan Qiuye. His eyes carried a murderous intent. He said, ��I heard that on the Eastern Deity Island, Shangguan Qiuye was going to lead the people of the Shangguan Clan to deal with my Jun Family, causing the countless deaths and severe injuries suffered by Jun Family��s virtuosos. Shangguan Hong, is the Shangguan Clan going to give me an explanation?��


    ��Brother Xiaoyao, I��m afraid you are mistaken,�� Shangguan Hong calmly replied. ��I��ve just asked my lass Qiuye just now. She said that she had not even acted once since the beginning, and the people of my Shangguan Clan also did not partake in it. I believe they would not lie to me.��


    ��Shangguan Hong, I do not wish to debate with you over this matter any longer,�� Jun Xiaoyao coldly replied. ��Answer my question directly. How are you going to settle this?��


    ��I don��t understand what you mean,�� Shangguan Hong replied blandly, as though he was completely indifferent to Jun Xiaoyao.


    Just as he finished speaking, Jun Xiaoyao��s body exuded an incomparably intimidating might of the Great Path. In their surroundings, it seemed like storms of the Great Path were brewing. Many people felt it pierce into their bones, and in the distance, many felt waves of coldness wash over them.


    As they were speaking, practitioners were continuously walking out of Eastern Deity Island.


    Finally, at the entrance to the Eastern Deity Island, a white-haired silhouette walked out. The moment he appeared, countless people set their sights on him, as though everyone was staring at him.


    The silhouette that walked out of the Eastern Deity Island was Ye Futian.


    He stood there quietly and felt countless gazes. He was a little surprised. He did not expect himself to be this popular.


    There were also many divine consciousnesses sweeping toward him from afar.


    Ye Futian turned his head behind and looked at the crippled Jun Qiuyan and said, ��Your family has come to welcome you back.��


    Jun Qiuyan��s aura had already deteriorated to an extremely weak state. He was almost half-dead. His eyes carried a poisonous hatred, but there was also a glint of hope in them.


    Now that Ye Futian had finally left the Eastern Deity Island, he was going to witness, for himself, how Ye Futian died.


    From a great distance away came strong auras. Ye Futian looked in that direction, and in a moment, he saw that Renhuangs appeared everywhere. They were standing in different places. The area had already completely been sealed by them.


    It was obvious that they had waited for a long time.


    Ye Futian naturally knew who they were. He could sense the level of cultivation from the divine consciousness that swept over him. Among them were several high-level Renhuang virtuosos.


    Furthermore, there were still virtuosos coming over swiftly from a great distance away. While they were physically still a long way from here, their divine consciousness had already descended. Their strong auras of the Great Path shrouded the entire sky, pressurizing the area around the Eastern Deity Island entrance to the maximum.


    Ye Futian looked into a great distance into the skies and saw silhouettes walking over. Only he was standing there alone. He too felt a faint pressure, but he was not bothered by it. He still stood there quietly, his white robes fluttering in the air.


    If the top-tier faction of the Penglai Continent��the Jun Family��was willing to let it go, he too could let things be. After all, it was only Jun Qiuyan who enraged him. However, this was not likely to happen!

 Chapter 1941 - Surrounded

    ��Save me!�� Jun Qiuyan screamed as he saw the silhouettes who arrived. However, his voice was rather hoarse, so there was no way his plea for help could have traveled such a great difference. However, they certainly heard him. Their divine consciousness shrouded the entire area, so, of course, they would be able to hear his voice.


    The silhouettes emitted a fearsome aura of the Great Path. Many among them had a murderous intent in their eyes. The Jun Family members were outraged when they heard the news of Jun Qiuyan being crippled. Furthermore, the practitioners from the Jun Family who entered the Eastern Deity Island were nearly annihilated.


    Now, the very fact that Ye Futian was walking out of the Eastern Deity Island with the crippled Jun Qiuyan in tow was a form of humiliation to the Jun Family.


    However, Ye Futian turned his gaze towards the majestic army of silhouettes and said, ��While I was in the Eastern Deity Island, Jun Qiuyan led many virtuosos in an attempt to kill me. I have thus crippled his cultivation as punishment. I am willing to spare his life if you all are willing to let this matter end right here.��


    As he finished speaking, he pushed Jun Qiuyan��s body away from him. A Renhuang stepped out and caught Jun Qiuyan, who was being pushed outwards by an invisible force. Then, with the Renhuang supporting him, they returned to the crowd of Jun Family virtuosos.


    The people from a distance who were onlooking had some thoughts in their minds. It seemed like the Dongyuan Pavilion Master wanted to make peace, but how could the other party agree?


    Since he had released Jun Qiuyan, the Jun Family no longer had anything to be worried about and could deal with him straight on.


    However, he probably did not have any other choice but to do what he did.


    A top-tier faction of the Penglai Continent had led an army over here, ready to fight him. There were thus countless virtuosos in the Penglai Deity Region. Apart from the raw strength of the family, they were also greatly influential; they had influence and power even in the Penglai Deity Region.


    ��Destroy his cultivation, but don��t let him die yet.�� When Jun Qiuyan returned to his family, his eyes suddenly had a terrifying look, and they carried an incomparably strong hatred. Ye Futian had utterly ruined his life.


    To have one��s cultivation stripped was worse than death. He also wanted Ye Futian to experience this personally. Thus, he wanted Ye Futian to live while being crippled and take his time to torture him.


    Ye Futian glanced at Jun Qiuyan with a bland expression. It seemed that Jun Qiuyan did not even have a tinge of gratitude in him.


    ��Are you going to follow us? Do you want us to force you?�� an elderly man asked aloud as he walked out from the crowd. He was an elder of the Jun Family and was at the pinnacle of the eighth level of cultivation. The level-eight virtuoso who abandoned Jun Qiuyan behind on the Eastern Deity Island and fled alone stood beside him.


    Hearing the other party speak, Ye Futian smiled a little. It was exactly like how he predicted. This matter could not be resolved peacefully. The Jun Family would not give up and would deal with him at all costs.


    ��Since that��s the case, do what you want then,�� Ye Futian said aloud. He was willing to let it go, not because he was afraid of the Jun Family Virtuosos but because he did not want to waste time on this matter. However, since they weren��t willing to let it go, then he could only fight.


    Renhuangs stepped out one after another, their bodies emitting fearsome auras of the Great Path. The level-eight virtuoso who was on the Eastern Deity Island cautioned them, ��Be careful. This person is powerful. He has the combat power of a high-level Renhuang.��


    The Jun Family virtuosos had heard of this before. This ridiculously powerful low-level Renhuang, in fact, had the combat power of a high-level Renhuang. He single-handedly dove straight into an enemy of over a hundred Jun Family Renhuangs. He nearly annihilated the Jun Family virtuosos who had entered the Eastern Deity Island; only a few remained alive.


    With a battle record like that, of course, no one would dare be careless. They were rather wary and did not get too close to Ye Futian. A storm of the Great Path gathered, and then from afar, they unleashed it toward Ye Futian. The terrifying attack spell descended from the heavens.


    Wisps of Will of the Sword appeared around Ye Futian��s body, and they morphed into a sword screen, sealing the entire area. The attacks that descended on him were shattered directly. Once they even got close to this sword realm, they were instantly pulverized.


    His eyes were as sharp as swords, and sweeping his glance across the majestic looking group of virtuosos, he spoke aloud, ��So the Jun Family is set on going up against me?��


    ��Yes.��


    From a distance away, a strong and sure voice echoed out. In the skies above, a silhouette traveled over. He emitted a powerful aura brimming with power that exerted immense pressure on the Great Path��s space that ye Futian was in. That was Jun Qiuyan��s father��Jun Xiaoyao. He came from where Shangguan Qiuye and the rest were at.


    The virtuosos of the Shangguan Family followed closely behind. Shangguan Hong and Shangguan Qiuye were both there. They stood at another place and said, ��According to what I know, the dispute between both parties had always been started by Jun Qiuyan, beginning from the Penglai Deity Lake in the Penglai Deity Region. Many people could bear witness to it. Now, he is only getting his just desserts. Brother Xiaoyao need not pursue this matter anymore.��


    Many people let out a shocked expression. That was the leader of the Shangguan Clan Shangguan Hong. His words directly represented the will of the Shangguan Clan. Did this mean that they wanted to participate in this too?


    Jun Xiaoyao��s eyes were as cold as ice, and he turned them to look at Shangguan Hong. Last time he had not even sought revenge on the Shangguan Family. How dare they interfere with this too?


    ��Brother Shangguan, you really want chaos to descend on this world, eh?�� Another voice echoed out. From another direction came another grand army of virtuosos. This time, they were virtuosos from the Yun Clan.


    Many people felt a tremor in their hearts. Before this, many people had noticed that armies from the three top-tier factions of the Penglai Continent had arrived at the Penglai Deity Region. Now that Ye Futian had walked out of the Eastern Deity Island, as expected, the virtuosos from each faction appeared simultaneously.


    The Shangguan Clan had always been subtly at odds with the Jun Family. On the other hand, the Yun Clan seemed to have allied with the Jun Family. Looking at the vast number of people that each faction had brought along, each of them must have considered things very carefully beforehand.


    ��Then does this matter also involve the Yun Clan?�� Shangguan Hong asked. If he guessed correctly, everyone wanted to make use of the opportunity of this dispute to further their own agenda. Apart from slaying Ye Futian, it seemed that the Jun Family also wanted to join hands with the Yun Clan to deal with the Shangguan Clan.


    Then again, he also had a very similar plan. He wanted to make use of the possibility that the Eastern Deity Island would be involved and deal with the Jun Family.


    The situation at that moment was like an arrow that had already been strung; there was no going back. All that was left unknown was whether Shangguan Qiuye��s information was accurate and how much Ye Futian was worth to the Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Ye Liunian was extremely wanton in the Eastern Deity Island. He massacred without a second thought. He has the blood of countless practitioners on his hands. As a faction of the Penglai Continent, the Jun Family also suffered the loss of many Renhuangs, and even our nephew Jun Qiuyan had his cultivation crippled. Given this circumstance, you dare say this matter has nothing to do with the Yun Clan?�� said Yun Mu, the leader of the Yun Clan. Beside him, Yun Zhe glanced at Ye Futian. He did not dare to provoke him on the Eastern Deity Island.


    However, now that he had exited the Eastern Deity Island, no matter how talented he was, he was bound to die this time.


    There were rumors about how Ye Futian had joined the Eastern Deity Island and was in their favor. However, it was just that. The two top-tier factions had dispatched large armies to slay Ye Futian; even if Ye Futian is in the Eastern Deity Island��s favor, how much were they willing to give up for him?


    The Eastern Deity Island had hidden for countless years. It was not possible that they would declare war on the two top-tier factions of the Penglai Continent for the sake of one Ye Futian.


    Using this opportunity, the Jun Family and Yun Clan would kill Ye Futian first, and then annihilate the Shangguan Clan.


    On the Eastern Deity Island, Shangguan Qiuye was very brazen.


    ��Do you mean that the Yun Clan also wants to kill me?�� Ye Futian asked Yun Mu after hearing what he had said.


    Yun Mu glanced at Ye Futian and replied, ��That will depend on Brother Xiaoyao��s decision.��


    ��I understand now.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��No matter if I was at the Penglai Deity Region or on the Eastern Deity Island, I never once provoked anyone. Jun Qiuyan thought too highly of himself and wanted me to follow him. When I rejected his offer, he was displeased with me, being the arrogant man that he is. On the Eastern Deity Island, I had also encountered a few people who provoked me, for example, the Jun Family virtuosos.��


    ��After that, they all died.��


    Ye Futian��s words made all the virtuosos hesitate a moment.


    After that, they all died?


    What did that mean?


    With the Jun Family and Yun Clan instigating this conflict, Ye Futian was hinting��


    Hearing Ye Futian��s words, Shangguan Hong could not help but let out a short laugh. This man was interesting, and it sounded like he was very serious.


    Jun Xiaoyao still stared at Ye Futian��s side without ordering anyone to take action. It seemed like he was waiting to see the Eastern Deity Island��s attitude on this matter.


    The Eastern Deity Island was located on the Penglai Continent. While they had been isolated from the rest of the world for countless years, but they had never completely severed their connection. Every ten years, they would open themselves up, and from within, he could sense an extreme power emanating from the Eastern Deity Island.


    It was just that he was unsure if they would stand up against the top-tier factions of the Penglai Continent for the sake of just one man, albeit a prodigy.


    Jun Xiaoyao stepped forward and announced, ��Today, whoever tries to stop the Jun Family from killing Ye Liunian would be declaring war on us. Kill him.��


    As he ordered, an incomparably dominating might of the Great Path exploded out from the Renhuangs.


    An elderly man stepped forward in midair and stopped above Ye Futian. He raised his palm and pressed it down. Instantly, the glow of a divine blade pierced through the heaven and earth. From the skies above, it shot down straight towards Ye Futian.


    Another divine sword appeared in the air. A fearsome Will of the Sword was infused into the divine sword. Countless wisps of Will of the Sword swirled around the divine sword, and it shot towards the air. The two blades of light collided together, causing a destructive sword glow to explode out into the horizon from the heavens above.


    When the battle broke out, silhouettes shot out from the entrance to the Eastern Deity Island. The Goddesses had an ethereal air about them, and the aura of the Great Path from them permeated the entire space.


    A part of majestic Renhuangs appeared simultaneously, causing the surrounding virtuosos to hesitate a moment in a short while.


    At this moment, Bai Mu walked out of the group. She looked at the Jun Family and Yun Clan. Beside her, there were a few people who were exuding an extremely fearsome aura, but she was nonetheless the leader. After all, Bai Mu already had the status of a goddess and could thus represent the will of the Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Does the Eastern Deity Island wish to interfere with the matters of the Penglai Continent?�� Jun Xiaoyao looked in Bai Mu��s direction and said coldly. Standing high in the skies, his divine halo permeated the space. The might of a level-nine Renhuang exploded outwards, and the heavens and earth appeared to tremble in fear.


    Under this immense pressure, everyone felt Jun Xiaoyao��s strength and determination. Even if the virtuosos of the Eastern Deity Island appeared, he still emitted his might of the Great Path. His adamant attitude was obvious.


    This time, it was not just about the grudge between Ye Futian and Jun Qiuyan. It also determined if the Jun Family would become prosper or wither; it was a battle for the future of his clan, and it was the same for the Shangguan Clan.


    ��Pavilion Master Ye is a valuable guest of the Eastern Deity Island. Anyone who dares to touch him dies,�� Bai Mu coldly said. The virtuosos behind her spread out. At the same time, from a distance away in the surrounding regions, came virtuosos from all directions one after another. Stepping through the air, they descended in this area. They emanated a terrifying aura and surrounded everyone!

 Chapter 1942 - The Beginning of War

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��It��s coming����


    Seeing the scene unfold before him, Shangguan Hong was more certain. It seemed like Qiuye did not read the situation wrongly. The Eastern Deity Island was willing to declare war for Ye Futian.


    ��Flame Emperor.�� Some people turned to look at an elderly man who was wearing robes with flame motifs. He had long hair and beard, an extraordinary aura and an ethereal air about him. Around him a terrifyingly hot air flowed. He was one of the very powerful level-eight figures in the Penglai Continent, and was well-versed in the Path of the Flame, and so his Flame of the Path was extremely fearsome.


    He had come from a great distance away, and appeared in the group high in the skies surrounding everyone else. He had come to aid the Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Emperor of Darkness.��


    Again, a couple of people looked towards another direction. Among the Renhuangs who came to render aid, a number were renowned figures in the Penglai Continent, and some were even familiar with the various factions. They all actually had ties with the Eastern Deity Island?


    ��For so many years the Eastern Island had never been concerned about what was happening in the outside world, and neither had it participated in any conflict in the Penglai Continent. With so many years that have passed by, the Penglai Continent had already forgotten about the existence of the Eastern Deity Island.�� At this moment, behind Bai Mu, an elderly man with a high level of cultivation spoke aloud. He was an alchemy master in the Eastern Deity Island. Beside him were several practitioners.


    For so many years, while they had not concerned themselves with the events of the outer world, it did not mean that they had completely isolated themselves. Many people from the Penglai Continent had come to the Eastern Deity Island to seek elixirs. Having received favors from the Eastern Deity Island, with a single call for aid, these people would naturally come over to help.


    The Eastern Deity Island of the past were the absolute rulers of the Penglai Continent, and its influence even extended far beyond the Penglai Continent.


    However, even though the various factions of the Penglai Continent knew that Ye Futian had already joined the Eastern Deity Island, they still dared to try to capture him, and even requested that the Eastern Deity Island stay out of this matter. Obviously, they had almost forgotten just how high the status of the Eastern Deity Island was on the Penglai Continent in the past.


    Hearing his words, Jun Xiaoyao��s and Yun Mu��s expressions changed slightly. Of course they knew just how powerful the Eastern Deity Island was in the past. However, humans had the tendency to forget, and with the passage of countless years, the fact that the Eastern Deity Island was still the ultimate ruler of the Penglai Continent was gradually being forgotten. They did understand that the Eastern Deity Island was certainly not weak, and could even likely be stronger than any of them. However, the two powerful factions were joining hands to capture only one person, so the Eastern Deity Island should not even have bothered to interfere to such an extent.


    Perhaps in the past, they might not have.


    This time, however, they had obviously guessed wrongly.


    The entire strength of the Eastern Deity Island had emerged, and not only that, they had already gathered virtuosos from all places beforehand. Now, in this vast region, the pressure that they exuded was so terrifying that practitioners who had a low level of cultivation did not even dare get close to them, and retreated quickly to a safe distance from this battlefield.


    This time, the Eastern Deity Island had re-emerged in the Penglai Continent.


    ��Every ten years the Eastern Deity Island will gift opportunities of the Great Path, and naturally every practitioner on the Penglai Continent is respectable. We do not mean to provoke anyone, but this person has slayed many Renhuangs from my Jun Family, and there are quite a few people who were invited, and the Jun Family must give them a satisfactory explanation and conclusion. We do not have any intention of targeting the Eastern Deity Island. This time our only target is him. There is no reason for you to involve the Eastern Deity Island,�� Jun Xiaoyao��s tone seemed to be less overbearing than before. It was obvious that he did not want to clash with the Eastern Deity island head-on. Furthermore, there was still the Shangguan Clan at the side looking out for chances to strike. If things really progressed to an all-out war, even if they could emerge victorious, it would only be a pyrrhic victory; there would be no winners.


    ��Just now the goddess had already explained very clearly that the Eastern Deity Island has its own rules. They entered the Eastern Deity Island to kill Pavilion Master Ye; do you expect him to let himself be killed without retaliating at all?�� the elderly man said coldly. ��If the Eastern Deity Island were the Eastern Deity Island of the past, would you have the guts to come and ask for Ye Futian��s life?��


    In other words, they did not treat the current Eastern Deity Island seriously. They thought that no matter what, the Eastern Deity Island would not dare to declare war.


    Of course, anyone should follow the Eastern Deity Island��s rules on the island. However, we have waited till he has left the Eastern Deity Island before acting. I��m sure we did not affect the Eastern Deity Island, right?�� Jun Xiaoyao replied. ��Why would the Eastern Deity Island interfere with the grudge between the Jun Family and Ye Futian?��


    ��Let��s not waste more time talking uselessly. Act now,�� the elderly man said. As he finished speaking, a breath-stopping pressure permeated the vast space. Jun Xiaoyao��s eyes turned cold as he looked at the practitioners of the Eastern Deity Island. He did not expect the Eastern Deity Island to act without hesitation at all.


    In fact, the scene before his eyes suggested that they had been preparing for this battle for quite some time already.


    All for the sake of Ye Futian.


    However, the situation now was irreversible. Even if they were willing to let it go now, the other party might not be willing anymore.


    Outside this region remained the virtuosos from the various continents. They all wanted to witness the battle before them. They did not expect that they could spectate such a massive battle even after leaving the Eastern Deity Island.


    This battle would completely determine the future hierarchy of the Penglai Continent.


    No one would have initially thought that because of one Ye Futian, or rather the one small incident of conflict that occurred in the Penglai Deity Lake caused by Jun Qiuyan��s provocation of Ye Futian, could eventually lead to the change in the social structure of the Penglai Continent.


    Even Jun Qiuyan himself did not foresee this day. Even though his cultivation had been crippled, he could still sense the terrifying might of the Great Path circulating heaven and earth. He felt a tremble in his heart on sight of the majestic Renhuang armies. This time, the Jun Family were not the only ones with a Renhuang army; their opponent also had a huge army of Renhuangs.


    Due to his personal matters, not only was his cultivation crippled, but he was also forced to wage war with the Eastern Deity Island.


    Jun Xiaoyao stepped out in mid-air, and an incomparably strong might of the Great Path descended upon the space. In the heavens above, a golden divine light radiated out into the vast space. A humongous magnificent ancient palace formed from the divine light. The ancient palace had nine floors, and it seemed to be built from pure gold. Its sheer might pressurized heaven and earth. It was his Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Jun Xiaoyao waved his palm, and an aurora appeared through the vast heavens. The nine-floored ancient palace pressed down menacingly, and a terrifying rumble resounded throughout. Many Great Paths were shattered straight away. Several halos of the ancient palace also formed from the divine light, and hammered straight down, attacking in the direction of Ye Futian.


    Wherever it passed, destruction followed.


    From the Eastern Deity Island��s side, an elderly man stepped out and with one step he crossed the vast empty space, coming to a stop below the ancient palace. He faced Jun Xiaoyao, and between heaven and earth a divine matrix appeared, radiating outwards into the boundless space and creating a barrier. The ancient palace plummeted downwards with a thunderous rumble, and collided onto the matrix, but it was unable to destroy the barrier.


    In another direction, Yun Mu of the Yun Clan also stepped out. He emanated the overpowering aura of a level-nine practitioner, pressurizing the entire area. Seeing him act, Shangguan Hong crossed the distance with a step and faced Yun Mu straight on.


    The two of them each controlled a top-tier faction and disputes had existed between them since a long time ago. Now that things had progressed to this stage, they both had no choice but to wage war.


    It was a fight for their fates. The one who lost would be fated to stay defeated forever.


    The other virtuosos also started unleashing their attacks. Looking towards the battlefield, Ye Futian also walked into it.


    Since the war had already begun, then he could only annihilate the Jun Family and the Yun Clan!

 Chapter 1943 - The Divine Tree Appears

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s body levitated mid-air. With his white hair and dressed in white, his eyes were as bright as stars as they swept through the battlefield.


    ��Boom���� A loud sound resounded, and Ye Futian saw an implement shooting towards him in an attack. It was a golden wheel that cut straight through the space. It emitted a sharp, piercing sound, and even the fabric of space itself seemed to be torn apart under its immense speed.


    However, Ye Futian��s silhouette was like a beam of light, and from where he stood, he vanished. The implement cut straight through his afterimage, and tore the mirage into pieces.


    In the skies above Ye Futian looked at the person who attacked him. His opponent was a high-level Renhuang virtuoso.


    The Jun Family knew that his combat abilities were extremely high. Unless they were high-level Renhuangs, they dare not fight him face to face.


    The person who attacked was at the pinnacle of the seventh level of cultivation. It was only because of his cultivation level and the fact that he also had the support of an implement that he dared to attack Ye Futian. He wanted to see for himself just how strong Ye Futian was. He heard that Ye Futian killed many Renhuangs from his Jun Family. He was very curious to find out how true the rumors were, that Ye Futian was so powerful that a level-seven virtuoso could not even retaliate.


    Raising his head, he saw Ye Futian floating in the skies above. In front of him, a sacred divine sword glowed brightly and whistled while it floated in the air. Above him, there was vaguely an ethereal form of a buddha. This buddha halo emanated an endless glow of the Great Path of the Buddha. The voice of the buddha permeated the space, and morphed into endless ancient scripts, radiating out in an instant. The Voice of the Great Path resounded throughout the heavens, and echoed in the eardrums of many people who then suffered attacks on their spiritual soul.


    The level-seven Renhuang who tried to attack Ye Futian felt a buddha enter his mind. The Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm sounded out through his mind, overwhelming him. His spiritual soul trembled violently, as though it was about to leave his body. Even his vision became a little blurry.


    At that moment, he felt an extremely fearsome and murderous Sword Will. His heart could not help but beat violently. With a roar, his implement flew back to his body and revolved around him, guarding him by tearing apart the space in front of him.


    When the divine sword descended in its attack, it was like a stream of swords descending from the nine heavens; destruction followed wherever it passed.


    ��Boom����


    With a thunderous sound, Ye Futian��s opponent��s implement cracked, and the power of the Great Path was split in half. The level-seven virtuoso retreated hastily, but the divine sword was faster. With a flash of the sword glow like lightning, the person was pierced straight down from his head. In his eyes was an intense fear.


    He wanted to experience Ye Futian��s strength, and he had.


    In an instant, he was killed.


    Several people were paying attention to the battle over here; even the practitioners from various continents watching from afar were focused on this duel. Apart from the fights between the most powerful figures, everyone was most interested in Ye Futian��s strength. After all, all the conflicts leading to this battle stemmed from him, so naturally they were curious to find out just how strong this person in the rumors was.


    They had witnessed his strength; a level-seven virtuoso was killed by him with just a thought. He did not even have a chance to retaliate.


    ��Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm,�� many older practitioners of the Penglai Continent whispered under their breaths when they saw the power of the Buddha that Ye Futian used. Among them, some had heard about the powers of the Buddha, and had also previously entered the Eastern Deity Island to cultivate in front of the Buddha cliff face. However, no one had truly managed to fully learn the techniques; they had all only managed to comprehend snippets of the technique. Even then, it was enough to strengthen their Way of Sonic Wave.


    No one expected that one day a low-level Renhuang practitioner would inherit and fully comprehend this particular technique. Even more surprisingly, he had managed to incorporate it into his combat techniques in such a short time. Its power was extremely strong; the Rhythm of the Buddha caused his opponent to lose focus for a moment, and that resulted in him being slayed in one strike.


    However, at that moment, an even more terrifying pressure shrouded Ye Futian. In the air above him, several high-level Renhuangs appeared in different locations. They were all level-seven high-level Renhuangs. They seemed to have discussed this strategy before the battle even started. The moment the battle started, they headed straight for Ye Futian with other virtuosos clearing the way for them.


    Behind Ye Futian, Beigong Ao and the virtuosos from the Eastern Deity Island swiftly flew over, but the huge Renhuang army appeared before them, preventing from going to Ye Futian��s aid. Although just from the size of their armies, the Jun Family was not as strong as the Eastern Deity Island, but their armies were far more concentrated; their strength was focused around Ye Futian.


    Killing Ye Futian was their goal, but waging war against the Eastern Deity Island was not their intention. However, given the current circumstance, they could only get rid of Ye Futian first. Perhaps once Ye Futian died, the Eastern Deity Island would give up and no longer be stubborn about waging war against them.


    Terrifying Palaces of the Great Path floated above Ye Futian��s head. They were similar to the Divine Wheel of Jun Xiaoyao, leader of the Jun Family. It was obvious that they were all members of the Jun Family. Since they had the same spirit, the Divine Wheel that they forged would also be very alike.


    A breath-stopping pressure pressed down from the heavens, causing the air in the entire area to become impossibly heavy. It was as though one could not even stand steadily. Ye Futian felt a limitless power pressing against him.


    ��Boom!��


    The Divine Palaces hammered down. Aurorae of the Great Path stretched across the skies. These aurorae contained enough power to dominate and shatter any Great Path, and it was like they could flatten any and everything.


    Ye Futian��s divine sword swept across the air; his Will of the Sword raged, whipping up a violent storm around him. However, the terrifying blades of light were continuously pulverized. A fearsome rumble reverberated throughout the skies, and the divine palaces descended, as though they were going to seal the heavens. In the face of this power, the Ye Futian below seemed to be especially miniscule and powerless.


    ��Is the Eastern Deity Island actually not going to help him?�� the virtuosos onlooking from afar spoke aloud. Even though the Jun Family had a lot of virtuosos blocking the people from the Eastern Deity Island in their attempt to hunt Ye Futian down, the Eastern Deity Island certainly had the ability to render aid. However, they did not do this. Rather, they stayed outside the encirclement, holding their opponents back. Was this because they had confidence in Ye Futian?


    The people attacking Ye Futian were all core members of the Jun Family, and were all level-seven high-level Renhuangs. When they unleashed their well-honed skills simultaneously, their powers resonated with each other, and the entire space would completely fall under their control. The region would morph into a Great Path Domain, and everything within it would be utterly dominated and shattered.


    The endless divine palaces were about to hammer down on Ye Futian and smash him into smithereens, when all of a sudden Ye Futian��s body radiated an incomparably glorious green divine glow. In that instant, a divine tree appeared with his body at its center. Countless trees and branches sprouted and spread outwards, continuously winding towards the divine palaces that were closing in on him.


    ��An ancient tree?��


    Many people let out a strange expression. Was this also his spirit?


    The ancient tree was growing at a rate that was too terrifying, and it expanded out at a fearsome speed, eventually morphing into a divine tree that was tens of thousands of feet tall. Its incomparably thick trunk was even larger than a divine palace. The vines and branches that twirled towards the divine palaces were similarly extremely sturdy, emanating an unrivalled, green divine glow.


    However, this was not what made the divine tree amazing. Normally, ancient trees were very weak and could be easily destroyed. This divine tree, however, seemed to have an unrivalled life force. The divine attacks of the Great Path that rained down on the divine tree actually failed to destroy it. Even if some of the branches were damaged, they grew out again in an instant.


    Thus, a majestic view was formed in the region. A heaven-reaching ancient tree that was continuously growing, and its vines, branches and leaves that tangled around the divine palaces. It seemed like that divine tree had carved out a space for itself.


    The powers of the divine palaces were subtly being weakened. The destructive powers of the Great Path seemed to have been completely restrained in that moment.


    ��This is���� The virtuosos who were observing the battle were all shocked. Was this Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path?


    Was the sword not what he was well-versed in?


    Many people know him as the white-haired Sword Emperor, since he had a sword-type Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    The practitioners who had been to the Core Island of the Eastern Deity Island let out a strange expression. That feeling that they had was very familiar; it was like they had experienced it before.


    In the forbidden grounds of the Core Island of the Eastern Deity Island, they had also seen a divine tree. That tree had tortured them very horribly.


    Now then, what did this divine tree mean?


    They did not know that Ye Futian intentionally let them see this divine tree.


    His Natal Spirit was the World Tree, which was also an ancient tree. Moreover, the World Tree very likely was closely related to very huge secrets. Previously, his foster father did not allow him to reveal it in front of others; now that he was in the Divine Prefectures, he had to be even more careful about it. Fortunately, he had gained a relic of the Great Path on the Eastern Deity Island that could work as his cover very nicely.


    ��He obtained the divine tree from the forbidden grounds. Could it be that���� The people who had entered the forbidden grounds had a sudden epiphany.


    They recalled that there was a divine elixir. Did Ye Futian manage to obtain the elixir?


    After coming out that day, Ye Futian was also similarly quite beaten. However, upon more careful recall, he seemed to be a little different from the rest at that time. His aura had changed a little. However, they all did not put it to heart. After all, they had all been quite unsuccessful and was utterly beaten up, so of course they believed that there was no way Ye Futian succeeded.


    However, seeing the scene unfold before their eyes, as well as the Eastern Deity Island��s persistence in protecting Ye Futian, they vaguely started to feel that they might have been mistaken after all.


    Ye Futian might have already obtained the divine elixir, so his value to the Eastern Deity Island would be extraordinary.


    The leaves and branches of the ancient tree wrapped around the Divine Palaces of the Great Path, and even reached up into the heavens. The Renhuangs wanted to flee, but felt a chilly intent wash over them from the divine tree. The entire Space of the Great Path seemed to be frozen. Many people subtly felt that their blood circulations had become a lot slower, and they could not emanate their powers of the Great Path as smoothly.


    More terrifyingly, at that moment, the voice of the buddha resounded straight into their minds, violently shaking their spiritual souls.


    Layer upon layer of attacks of the Great Path hammered on them, leaving the high-level Renhuang virtuosos no chance to fend for themselves.


    ��-Oin���� The vines of the divine tree wrapped around their body, and channeled powers of Yin that infiltrated their bodies. They felt their strength leaving them drastically. Their aura of the Great Path exploded to its maximum in their attempt to escape.


    However, at that moment, Divine Fire of the Great Path suddenly came alive. The interplay of Yin and Yang between the extremely cold will and horrifyingly burning hot air that flowed into their bodies simultaneously caused some groan.


    In an instant, the level-seven Renhuangs in the air let out blood-curdling screams of pain. Their bodies were infiltrated by the flames of the Great Path, and they gradually faded away!

 Chapter 1944 - Killing with Abandon

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the distance, many strong practitioners looked at the scene in front of them with shock. Although the cultivators of all continents had not come into contact with top figures, having reached the Renhuang cultivation realm, they had seen many geniuses before.


    However, they had never seen such a domineering Lower Renhuang.


    The people who attacked him were all level seven high-level Renhuangs, and they were also the core members of the Jun family, the top faction of the Penglai Continent. Several strong people surrounded them, and they attacked at the same time with the resonance of their great ways, but they were directly countered and killed. None of them escaped.


    When was a Lower Renhuang ever able to have such extraordinary combat strength?


    They only felt that they had not seen enough of the world.


    ��What is that ability of his?�� There were cultivators from all continents discussing, shocked by the combat strength Ye Futian had displayed.


    ��In an instantaneous attack, he exhibited at least three Dao abilities.�� Some people were speechless. Moreover, each of the Dao��s abilities was terrifying.


    ��There��s more than���� the person next to him whispered, and the people agreed.


    Swordsmanship, Way of Sonic Wave, Path of the Flame, power of Yin�� and that Divine Tree.


    Each ability was terrifying. Moreover, his Divine Wheel of the Great Path must have been perfect. No one doubted that. Otherwise, it would be impossible to have this kind of combat strength.


    Ignoring them for now, even those who had seen Ye Futian attack before on Eastern Deity Island were deeply awed as well. Although Ye Futian could already kill level-seven mighty figures when he was at Eastern Deity Island, he could do it much more easily now. Or rather, he could do it more directly and domineeringly, crushing and killing them with his most domineering stance.


    This gave people a feeling that level sevens were like ants and could be destroyed with a snap of the fingers.


    However, in reality, level sevens were already high-level Renhuangs and stood in the upper echelons of Renhuangs. If the whole Divine Prefecture is the base, they would definitely be considered to be at the upper echelons of the Divine Prefecture. But at this moment, they were so fragile.


    But who was considered strong would also depend on who they were compared with.


    Seeing the fall of those strong people, the Renhuangs of the Jun family also had gloomy faces. Was he that strong? How great would the potential of this power that made waves of chill run down their spines be?


    No wonder the Eastern Deity Island would try to protect him, not hesitating to go to war.


    Jun Qiuyan was brought to the farthest direction at the back. Those who were killed were his clan members, blood relatives. But because of this incident, they all died in Ye Futian��s hands. He felt extremely complicated emotions. There was hate, endless hatred, and everything was because of Ye Futian.


    But also, there was a sense of strong regret. If he was not so self-righteous at first in the Penglai Deity Lake and did not provoke Ye Futian, or no longer pursued that matter afterward, then all this would not have happened��


    Seeing the situation in front of him, he was clear that he brought his whole family into a storm, a storm that could have destroyed his whole family.


    Moreover, they were already destined to be unable to escape from the situation. They could only continue moving forward.


    In the cultivation world, when one was vulnerable, no one will forgive them for their mistakes and show mercy; they would only cut the weeds and dig up the roots to eliminate future problems.


    ��Kill him!�� Jun Xiaoyao, who was in battle, roared. Although he was being held back, he could still see Ye Futian��s side of the battle. It was enough to just split out on a wisp of consciousness. Seeing Ye Futian��s strength, not only did he not want to retreat, he developed a greater determination. Ye Futian must be killed to allow the Eastern Deity Island to exit this battle. If not, the Eastern Deity Island would go to war at any cost for this genius.


    Even as a level-nine, after witnessing Ye Futian��s battle with his own eyes, Jun Xiaoyao had to admit that this was probably the most outstanding Lower Renhuang he had ever seen, bar none.


    ��Must you block me?�� He looked at the old man in front of him. The matrix covered the sky and held him in this space. There was no way for him to kill Ye Futian, so he could only order other strong people to do so.


    ��Jun Xiaoyao, this time, you went the wrong way,�� the old man responded. It was true that the Jun family was the top faction of the Penglai Continent, but they still should not choose to start a war outside the Eastern Deity Island. Although he could understand the attitude of the Jun family, after all, in the Eastern Deity Island, many strong cultivators of the Jun family were killed. Jun QiuYan, the son of Jun Xiaoyao, was crippled, so the other side felt that it was imperative to kill Ye Futian.


    But the timing was not right. Jun Xiaoyao should not have come so directly. Unless he expected that the Eastern Deity Island would not fight, his presence would be forcing the Eastern Deity Island��s hand. That way, he would make it so that they themselves had no path of retreat.


    Now, the Eastern Deity Island had chosen to go to war. The Jun family could not retreat even if they wanted to.


    ��What is right or wrong?�� Jun Xiaoyao said in a loud voice. His voice shook the void, and his Power of the Great Path of Attack descended. Countless sacred halls descended from the firmament, trying to suppress and shatter the space.


    Strong cultivators of the Jun family were killed in the Eastern Deity Island. Could the Jun family choose to avoid and not fight because of the Eastern Deity Island?


    Even if the two sides clashed, within the rules of the Eastern Deity Island, slaughter was slaughter. They naturally wanted revenge. The cultivation world was built like this. There was no right or wrong, only a difference in perspectives.


    ��Because of one��s thought, the situation in the Penglai Continent is going to change. Why suffer?�� the old man responded. The huge boundless spell matrix erupted with a beam of light that shot towards the heavens, colliding with the descending palace.


    On the other side, the battle between Shangguan Hong and Yun Mu was also extremely intense. Both of them were level nines. The sky and the earth broke apart when they fought. Meanwhile, cultivators from the Shangguan Clan and Yun Clan clashed and fought violently.


    The boundless heaven and earth on the periphery of the Eastern Deity Island turned into a terrifying battlefield.


    After the order of Jun Xiaoyao, more strong cultivators went in the direction of Ye Futian, swarming to kill Ye Futian. Some of them attacked with their Dao abilities through the air, but there were many strong cultivators around to help Ye Futian intercept. There was no lack of mighty cultivators from the Eastern Deity Island. After all, this was their home turf.


    Bai Mu looked at the battlefield, thinking of her master��s order. A cold light flashed in her eyes, and she opened her mouth, ��Today, the Jun family and the Yun Clan want to kill the esteemed guest of our Eastern Deity Island, breaking the rules of the Eastern Deity Island. Now that the war has started, you all don��t need to care about sentiment anymore. Kill all who resist.��


    Out of all the invited Renhuangs, many were not putting in all their effort and hiding their strength; they all held back somewhat. After all, they did not know how this matter would end up, and without the protection of the Eastern Deity Island, if the Jun family wanted to deal with them in the future, it would be a huge hidden danger.


    However, Bai Mu��s words seemed to have made it very clear.


    Kill all who resist.


    In the future, the Jun family would probably cease to exist.


    When they thought of this, they also made a decision, and the great will might on their bodies became even more terrifying. They no longer held back and began to kill with abandon.


    In one direction, several Renhuangs were heading towards Ye Futian��s direction to kill him, but they were blocked by a line of people who released Flames of the Way at the same time. In an instant, the void of heaven and earth turned into a field of flame, burning mountains and cooking the sea. The horrifying divine beams of flame shot towards the heavens as their opponents seemed to have been directly buried in the sea of flame.


    Those strong cultivators also released strong power of the great way, but different flames of the way were distributed in different directions, turning into multiple flames of the way. Those strong cultivators made their seals at the same time, and then a furnace tripod of the great way appeared in that space filled with flames of the way, and the flames of the way refined all existence.


    In another direction, the same group of strong people who went towards Ye Futian was stopped. A group of Goddesses of the Eastern Deity Island faced them. They released similar auras, and strong and extreme life force was released from their bodies. Several queens released Ancient trees of the great way; those were their divine wheels. They rolled towards the crowd, instantly flooding the space.


    ��I��m afraid the Jun family won��t be able to kill him.�� The bystanders would always be the most clear-minded. The strong cultivators of various continents were all watching the battle in the distance and could see the entire battle situation clearly. The Eastern Deity Island��s side was at ease as this was their home turf after all. From an onlooker��s point of view, the Eastern Deity Island had the absolute initiative. They could almost be considered to have been firmly in control of the battle. If they did not allow a group of people to go towards Ye Futian previously, those strong cultivators might not have been able to reach him anyway.


    From the current situation, one could see that after Ye Futian killed that group of strong cultivators, he stood alone in the center of the battlefield. Except for some ripples of wind from Dao abilities that rolled towards him, no Renhuangs or attack could come to his side; they were all cut off.


    This created a rather strange situation. Ye Futian stood there, and no one could fight. Standing in the center of the battlefield, he seemed to have nothing to do��


    Ye Futian himself was also depressed. The Eastern Deity Island arranged properly and defended his side so well it was impenetrable. But this made him idle in the middle of the storm. He had nothing to do as he watched the battle play out around him.


    Behind him, Beigong Ao and Emperor Helian were here as well. They were protecting him to his left and right. But in reality, they knew that with Ye Futian��s abilities, he no longer needed their protection. Beigong Ao could possibly still be stronger than him, but Emperor Helian was definitely no match for Ye Futian. The previous battle could already show this clearly.


    Ye Futian��s gaze swept to one of the battlefields, then his body moved. Although the Eastern Deity Island was protecting him, he could not stand here to watch the battle. With his strength today, not many people from the opposing side could directly threaten his life. As long as the strongest people were held back, there was no threat to him.


    His body turned into a ray of light. In one direction, the mighty cultivators of both sides were clashing when they suddenly felt a powerful sword will descend. The expressions of the strong fighters of the Jun family all changed. When they turned their heads, they saw a blade of light flash past. After that, blood spurted out as multiple people were killed consecutively.


    However, Ye Futian��s body did not stop. That gorgeous blade of light shot through the void. It appeared on another battlefield in an instant. Another splendid divine blade of light descended. Sounds of slashing could be heart continuously as blood splattered in the void. Several more Renhuangs were directly killed as the blade of light was too fast.


    In the distance, those who watched the battle only saw a divine blade of light weaving through the battlefield, and wherever that light passed, blood would appear, accompanied by the fall of Renhuang realm powerhouses.


    This made their hearts quite unsettled. The Renhuangs were like ants and were being slaughtered with impunity. In just a few moments, they did not know how many were killed by Ye Futian.


    If this continued, the Renhuangs of the Jun family would be decimated!

 Chapter 1945 - Doomsday for Jun clan

    It was similarly difficult for the cultivators of the Yun clan. They were already facing the Shangguan clan, who were at a similar level. The cultivators of Eastern Deity Island would also occasionally ambush them. On top of that, Ye Futian��s ability had suddenly skyrocketed. He kept killing Renhuangs from the Jun clan, making their decline apparent.


    Yun Mu, who was battling Shangguan Hong, had a somewhat sullen expression. Aura of the Great Path pressed down on them from the sky. He had a cold and indifferent look as he glanced at Shangguan Hong across from him. He said, ��Shangguan clan is also a force from the Penglai Continent. Is your clan planning to watch as Eastern Deity Island rises once again in the Penglai Continent? Eastern Deity Island has remained secluded for many years. Their ambitions are most likely grand. Shangguan Hong, are you willing to act as a pawn for them?��


    Shangguan Hong remained unmoved. His expression was indifferent. Yun Mu was trying to incite him.


    Both sides already had grudges with each other. Before knowing about Eastern Deity Island��s stance, the Yun clan probably already had the idea of joining forces with the Jun clan and finding an opportunity to eradicate the Shangguan clan. Now, Yun Mu��s words made it seem as though Eastern Deity Island was their common enemy.


    Shangguan Hong clearly knew that they were not the enemy of Eastern Deity Island. He also knew the reason why Eastern Deity Island had been so reclusive.


    Moreover, if Eastern Deity Island truly had the ability to suppress the Penglai Continent, who could stand in their way? Even large forces could not do so. Now, Shangguan Hong was merely going with the flow.


    ��Yun Mu, why didn��t you say this before?�� Shangguan Hong asked. Another furious attack crashed towards the other party, knocking Yun Mu��s body back. This caused Yun Mu��s gaze to turn extremely sullen. His will swept across the entire battlefield. Ye Futian was still continuing his massacre. An eighth-tier cultivator had fallen. If this continued, the Renhuangs of the Jun clan would gradually be killed off, and the Jun clan would be utterly defeated.


    At that moment, a heavenly might suddenly descended from the sky above. Golden divine light rained down. Divine palaces appeared in the sky above. Among the divine palaces, an elder stood. He looked down below. His aura was powerful beyond comparison.


    It was the great elder. The eyes of the cultivators of the Jun clan lit up when they saw who had arrived. Their ancestor had come. Jun Xiaoyao led the Jun clan. He was their current leader. However, the strongest person in the Jun clan was this great elder. After handing the Jun clan��s management to Jun Xiaoyao, he no longer concerned himself with the matters of the Jun clan, leaving everything to Jun Xiaoyao. The great elder then went in seclusion to cultivate and train in his Way. He was trying to break through to the next Plane.


    Although he had not succeeded for many years, his cultivation was already at the pinnacle of the Renhuang Plane. His abilities were terrifying. He was the behind-the-scenes figure of the Jun clan, the most powerful existence among them.


    During this moment of crisis, they never imagined that the great elder would appear.


    The cultivators of Eastern Deity Island and the Shangguan clan frowned when they sensed the terrifying aura. The ancestor of the Jun clan had arrived as well? His aura was terrifying. In an instant, the vast space was enveloped in a majestic power of the Great Path. The great elder of the Jun clan roared angrily. A heavenly might of the Great Path seemed to descend upon them, crashing towards the minds of the crowd. Many cultivators felt their blood and Qi churn. Their own Great Paths were being suppressed. All battles on the battlefield came to a halt because of his cry.


    Shangguan Hong��s expression also changed slightly. He had not imagined that this old fellow would come out from his seclusion and that he had not died. On the contrary, his aura was so powerful. This would be somewhat troublesome.


    ��Supreme Deity Donglai perished many years ago. The current Penglai Continent is already not as it was before. Since Eastern Deity Island is not concerned with outside matters, why have you all come out of your seclusion?�� the great elder of Jun clan interrogated with a voice that contained the suppressive power of the Great Path. A heavenly might of the Great Path descended from the sky. The cultivators of Eastern Deity Island all frowned when they sensed the aura. They realized that no one here could stand against this great elder.


    As the great elder said this, he lifted his palm and pressed down on the space below. Instantly, it was as though the sky had collapsed. A gigantic divine palace plunged downwards. Everyone was covered by it. A few powerful cultivators released their own heavenly might of the Great Path to block the attack. However, their efforts were all suppressed and destroyed. They could not hold back the enemy��s attack at all.


    ��The Penglai Continent indeed is not what it once was before. Even though Supreme Deity Donglai has perished for many years, on the Penglai Continent, it is not your turn, old fellow, to act presumptuous,�� a cold, proud voice cried out. The words were barely uttered when an elegant figure emerged from the forces of Eastern Deity Island, appearing like a peerless empress.


    She took a step forward and immediately traversed the space, appearing before the other party. A Sacred Phoenix let out a long, loud screech. Illusions of phoenixes appeared all around them. At the same time, an extremely proud phoenix appeared. It spat out divine fire of the Great Path that melted everything in its path as it charged towards the great elder.


    Divine palaces circled the great elder, preventing the divine fire of the Great Path from touching him. However, the enormous Sacred Phoenix spat fire, and its flames flooded the space, enveloping the divine palace. The divine palace was immediately melted and destroyed.


    It was the Divine Fire of Wutong. The crowd looked at the divine fire. It was the divine fire that Supreme Deity Donglai had cultivated. It was very frightening and was a destructive fire that would never extinguish. However, it was also an endless divine fire that nurtured all living things.


    ��What you say is not wrong. Since you have gone into seclusion to cultivate, stay there. You have managed to live for so long. Why come seek death now?�� the woman said as her hair fluttered in the wind. She appeared elegant and domineering. Her voice was authoritative. Under the ever-burning fire, the divine palaces were melted and destroyed little by little, causing the great elder of Jun clan to frown.


    This fire was approaching perfection.


    She was so powerful. The crowd was surprised when they saw this scene. The elder of the Jun clan might not be able to withstand the might of this fire. This great elder had an astonishing ability, but in the blink of an eye, he had been suppressed by someone else.


    Was she a flawless level Renhuang? Some people thought to themselves.


    That wasn��t right. If she were a flawless level ninth-tier Renhuang, she would be too powerful. The great elder of the Jun clan would not be able to put up a fight and would be immediately killed off. She must have refined the divine fire of the Great Path for her might to be so terrifying.


    Rumble.


    The great elder of the Jun clan had a cold look in his eyes. He was actually being suppressed by a little girl. He had lived for so long that even Supreme Deity Donglai was the same generation as him. Of course, even though they were members of the same generation, their statuses were different.


    Yet, now, the successor of Supreme Deity Donglai was pushing him around.


    Countless divine palaces circled them. A brilliant and majestic scene appeared in the sky above. He cried out loudly and raised his hand forward. The divine palaces that surrounded them immediately charged with unparalleled might in the direction of the Eastern Deity Island Island Lord.


    Yet, at that moment, the Island Lord coldly snorted. A divine tree suddenly sprouted. It was a Divine Wutong. It covered the sky and blocked out the sun. Each leaf contained the power of the divine fire. The entire Divine Wutong was covered in flames that frenziedly spread. It blotted out the sky and immediately wrapped around the divine palaces charging down.


    The divine palaces suppressed everything as they attacked. Yet, they were wrapped up in the branches and leaves of the ancient tree. The might of the divine palaces kept weakening. On top of that, the flames consumed the divine palaces, causing them to melt into nothingness before they managed to descend upon the Island Lord.


    Buzz. The Island Lord��s fiery-red phoenix robe danced in the wind as her hair fluttered in the breeze. The Divine Wutong kept expanding outwards. Countless leaves flew out from the expanding divine tree. They swept towards the opponent��s figure, becoming a frightening storm.


    In an instant, the leaves actually became the fiery-red flame feathers of a phoenix. A divine phoenix appeared and immediately enveloped the figure of the great elder of Jun clan. It spurted out flames that invaded the area where the great elder stood.


    The silhouette of the great elder flashed, and the divine palaces enveloped his figure. He wanted to charge out of this domain of the Great Path. However, as the phoenix spat out flames, the Divine Wutong that covered the sky and blotted out the sun descended upon him. It swept over this space and completely sealed it off, forming an absolute domain of the divine fire of the Great Path.


    It wasn��t going to end well for the great elder of the Jun clan. The cultivators watching this scene thought to themselves. This female Island Lord had powerful abilities. Her domain of the divine fire of the Great Path encapsulated her opponent. It was enough to kill him off.


    When the cultivators of the Jun clan saw this scene, they were extremely nervous. Many of them had pale expressions. If the great elder was burnt to death by the flames, what would happen then?


    Jun clan would be faced with a catastrophe.


    No one had imagined that Eastern Deity Island would be so dominant. This female Island Lord, the successor of Supreme Deity Donglai who had never revealed herself in public, was actually so powerful.


    The domain of the divine fire of the Great Path seemed to become ethereal. Within the domain, the great elder of the Jun clan was struggling. He wanted to charge his way out, but the Divine Wheel of the Great Path transformed from the Divine Wutong covered the sky and formed an absolute domain. If he could not withstand the might of the fire, there was only one possible outcome: death.


    ��It seems I have indeed grown old. My Jun clan will surrender and leave. If we encounter the cultivators of Eastern Deity Island in the future, we will let you have the right of way,�� a voice called out from within the domain. The once domineering great elder of the Jun clan had begun to show signs of weakness in the blink of an eye.


    This voice caused the members of the Jun clan to feel their hearts turn cold. They seemed to understand what was happening.


    ��Are you dreaming?�� the Eastern Deity Island Island Lord replied indifferently. Her flames became even hotter.


    ��What does Island Lord want?�� the other party cried out, his voice changing slightly.


    ��Since you have come here, just stay here,�� the female Renhuang said in a voice that was still domineering. Not long after, there were miserable cries of agony. The other party��s voice became even more anxious as he said, ��In the future, Jun clan is willing to follow the lead of Eastern Deity Island.��


    ��There is no need.��


    The reply he heard was still delivered with an icy tone. Very quickly, even more cries of agony filled the air. The cultivators of the Jun clan felt their hearts thumping non-stop. They seemed to have already seen their own end.


    If even the great elder was killed, how would they turn the tables?


    Among the crowd, Ye Futian also looked towards Eastern Deity Island Island Lord. What he had witnessed today might still only be a fraction of Eastern Deity Island��s ability. In reality, this large-scale battle did not give Eastern Deity Island much trouble.


    The fate of the Jun clan was already decided!

 Chapter 1946 - Curtain Close

    Jun Qiuyan felt as though his recent experiences had been somewhat surreal. He was previously the young master of the Jun clan, a top force of the Penglai Continent. His status was astounding, and his talents were exceptional. He was also a powerful figure at the Renhuang Plane. In the entire Penglai Continent, he could have his say.


    He had also made ample preparations for this journey to Eastern Deity Island. He had hoped to take this opportunity to come across fateful encounters of the Great Path on Eastern Deity Island to fortify and increase his own abilities.


    However, he had ended up in such a state.


    He himself was crippled, and his clan was almost about to face a catastrophe that would eradicate them. The great elder was being consumed by flames right now. The great elder��s miserable screams of agony could be heard. This made his face turn as pale as ash. Was Jun clan��s eradication all because he got them involved?


    Why was this happening?


    How could a lower-level Renhuang, whose cultivation was below Jun Qiuyan��s own, affect Jun clan��s survival, a top force in the Penglai Continent?


    Rumble. In the sky above, divine fire consumed everything. Countless leaves of the wutong danced in the sky. When the leaves fluttered down to the ground, there was nothing left inside. The great elder of the Jun clan had completely disappeared. Only the beautiful Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island remained standing in the sky. Behind her, there was a gigantic illusion of the Sacred Phoenix that was one with the sky.


    Everything had ended.


    The appearance of the great elder of Jun clan had not only been unable to turn the tide of the battle, and he instead had drawn out the true ability of the female Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island. He was killed on the spot. There was no suspense left in this war.


    Gales blew, and countless leaves of the wutong danced in the air. Each leaf contained the power of the divine fire of the Great Path as they swept through vast space. In an instant, with her figure as the center, the entire world seemed to become scorching hot, seemingly consumed by the formless power of the divine fire of the Great Path.


    ��Retreat,�� Jun Xiaoyao ordered. He sensed that the divine fire of the Great Path was everywhere and had already covered this part of the sky. There was nowhere to escape to unless they could restrict their opponent.


    Buzz.


    This part of the world seemed to be burning in flames. A gigantic shadow of the Sacred Phoenix appeared and descended from the sky. It consumed this part of the sky. The expressions of many Renhuangs of the Jun clan changed drastically. They discovered that the power of the flames surrounded them.


    The Renhuangs of the Jun clan rose into the sky at the same time as they attempted to retreat. However, right now, it was already too late. In the sky above, Eastern Deity Island Island Lord was like a peerless goddess. Endless light of the divine fire emanated from her figure. This part of the sky was completely on fire.


    Endless screams of agony could be heard. Here, Eastern Deity Island Island Lord was an uncontended existence. Even the great elder of Jun clan was immediately burnt to death by the divine fire of the Great Path. Who else could withstand the power of her Great Path?


    Many Renhuangs were covered in divine flames. They appeared extremely miserable.


    ��Island Lord, have mercy���� someone cried out, begging for mercy. Even though they were powerful, when truly faced with death, they would still feel terror.


    ��Since you dared to bully my Eastern Deity Island, there is no meaning in begging now,�� a cold and indifferent voice stated in the sky. She initially did not want to fight and let the members of the Penglai Continent know her abilities clearly. She had merely been watching from the shadows. However, the Jun clan had charged over to kill them. Even the great elder of Jun clan had attacked. She had been forced to emerge from the forces of Eastern Deity Island.


    Jun clan and Yun clan dared to start the fight today. They must truly believe that her Eastern Deity Island was a pushover. Since that was the case, she had no qualms about killing them.


    On the battlefield, Renhuangs let out cries of agony. Their bodies were burnt to dust in the divine fire of the Great Path, scattering to the winds. In a battle between cultivators at the peak, if the difference between abilities was sufficiently large, there was no possibility of escape. The weaker of the two could only await death.


    ��Island Lord, this matter is unrelated to our Yun clan. Since we were friends with the Jun clan, they invited us here. We had no intention of going against Eastern Deity Island. We hope Island Lord can forgive this trespass,�� Yun Mu also began to waver when he saw the Renhuangs perishing one after another. It was not just the Renhuangs of the Jun clan being slaughtered; their Yun clan Renhuangs were being killed off as well.


    If this continued, they would be completely wiped up and would all perish here.


    ��Since you have come here, stay,�� Eastern Deity Island Island Lord said indifferently. The divine fire of the Great Path continued to burn. Renhuangs continued to perish. At the same time, the cultivators of Eastern Deity Island also attacked. Thus, a one-sided massacre began. Eastern Deity Island Island Lord controlled the entire field. The situation was completely lopsided.


    ��She��s gone mad����


    In the distance, many members of the continent felt their hearts tremble as they witnessed this scene. Not long ago, they had sought after fateful encounters of the Great Path on Eastern Deity Island. However, this time, Eastern Deity Island had become cruel and merciless as they began their massacre. There were Renhuangs perishing at every moment.


    For the cultivators who came from various continents, this was the first time most of them were witnessing such a horrifying scene. Renhuangs were being slaughtered in large droves like ants. Such a scene could only be encountered on the battlefield between Renhuangs.


    Today, they had witnessed such a scene.


    On the battlefield, the number of Renhuangs was diminishing. The cultivators of the Jun clan as well as the Yun clan were being killed off. As for Eastern Deity Island and Shangguan clan, they had almost no losses. Under such circumstances, it was a complete landslide massacre.


    Jun clan and Yun clan were finished. Many local cultivators of the Penglai Continent lamented. Fate was a cruel mistress. The two overlord clans, who dominated the Penglai Continent, had fallen just like that. They seemed to have forgotten who was the previous overlord of the Penglai Continent.


    Shangguan clan had chosen the right side this time. They would probably have the chance to rise and become even stronger. They would also form ties with Eastern Deity Island.


    From the looks of it now, anyone could tell that Eastern Deity Island, which had not involved themselves with outside affairs for many years, was still the most powerful force in the Penglai Continent.


    The young city lord of Wushang City of the Penglai Continent was also among the crowd. There were also cultivators from Wushang City with him. They watched this scene emotionally. Two giant figures had perished just like that and became history. Who knew how the situation in the Penglai Continent would be like in the future? Would Eastern Deity Island directly interfere with the matters of the Penglai Continent and re-enter the sights of the world?


    As the battle continued, the number of cultivators of the two top forces grew fewer and fewer. Jun Xiaoyao and Yun Mu had been surrounded. Eastern Deity Island Island Lord also attacked from the sky above when she saw the two of them struggling. Very quickly, the two of them were injured and backed into a corner.


    ��Must it end like this?�� Jun Xiaoyao asked as he looked at the female Renhuang in the sky. Cultivating was not easy. It was even more difficult to cultivate to his current level of cultivation. Yet, everything was about to be for naught.


    ��Kill them,�� Eastern Deity Island Island Lord uttered these two words. She did not respond to Jun Xiaoyao. They had already reached this point; she naturally was not going to show mercy.


    A Sacred Phoenix descended upon them, attacking together with the elder. Very soon, Jun Xiaoyao could not withstand the attack anymore and was burnt by the divine fire.


    ��


    Only Jun Qiuyan remained alive among the two top forces of the Penglai Continent when the battle ended. The cultivators who came to join the battle had all been killed. Eastern Deity Island had not shown any mercy.


    When Jun Qiuyan saw the scene before him, he closed his eyes in pain. He then said, ��Kill me, then.��


    Right now, he was dead inside. He no longer had any desire to live. What meaning was there in living?


    Now, even his clan had been eradicated.


    Ye Futian walked up to Jun Qiuyan. Ye Futian did not take much pleasure in this ordeal. Before this, he had released Jun Qiuyan. Ye Futian had not been hypocritical. He truly did not want to be involved with the Jun clan anymore and wanted to resolve the matter. Both sides could have just let go of the issue and not pursue it anymore.


    However, Ye Futian did not know what had happened on Eastern Deity Island for the Jun clan to clearly not agree to this. Hence, they had ended up where they were now.


    As Jun Qiuyan looked at the silhouette in front of him, he asked, ��I want to ask you something. Why did Eastern Deity Island fight for you?��


    Was it just because Ye Futian had extraordinary talent?


    Jun Qiuyan still could not understand. Why did Eastern Deity Island, which had not been involved in outside affairs for many years, fight for Ye Futian and re-enter the sights of the world?


    Ye Futian pointed a finger at Jun Qiuyan. Sword Will immediately pierced forwards. With a dull groan, blood spurted out from Jun Qiuyan��s glabella. His eyes grew dim, and he died.


    Jun Qiuyan��s eyes were wide open. He did not die in peace. Yet, he was unworthy of the answer he wanted to hear.


    It was over.


    Such a storm had ended in such a cruel fashion. The cleanup was up next.


    ��Many thanks, Island Lord,�� Ye Futian thanked the Island Lord as he lifted his head to look at her. No matter how he put it, he had relied on the other party this time. Otherwise, how could Ye Futian possibly deal with a ninth-tier existence? Him taking advantage of her forces this time was considered perfect. Of course, the other party had willingly cooperated. He was naturally aware of this point.


    Eastern Deity Island Island Lord was also secretly hinting this to him.


    ��It is not over yet. Shangguan Hong, I will bring a few members to the Yun clan. Meanwhile, you bring some of your people to pay Jun clan a visit,�� the Island Lord instructed as she looked at Shangguan Hong. Next, they still had to tie up loose ends and eradicate any unknown risks.


    ��Understood,�� Shangguan Hong replied as he nodded his head. ��Are we leaving immediately?��


    ��Hmm, let��s go now,�� Eastern Deity Island Island Lord answered. She swept a glance below and ordered, ��Let��s go.��


    As she said this, a group of people traversed across the sky with her, heading to settle things with the Yun clan.


    ��Let us also go,�� Shangguan Hong ordered. He led his group and left, heading towards the Jun clan.


    Those who saw this scene understood that these two major forces would completely be eradicated.


    Very soon, many cultivators left the place. Ye Futian quietly watched as everything happened. It was as though he was keeping out of things. It seemed as though all that had happened were unrelated to him. Even the attacks before this had not involved him. Eastern Deity Island had arranged everything. Or rather, the Island Lord had arranged all this.


    Some alchemy masters approached Ye Futian. They had long known about some of the abilities of Eastern Deity Island. They naturally looked down on the Jun clan and Yun clan. The two clans were just a mob, and they actually thought highly of themselves and dared to challenge Eastern Deity Island. It was suicidal for them to have done so. Now, everything had turned out just nice. Their dreams had burst like a bubble, and they had lost their lives.


    ��These matters are really uninteresting. Little Friend Ye, let us head back and research how to refine pills,�� someone said. Ye Futian turned his head. He was speechless.

 Chapter 1947 - Handover

    The issue had come to a close. The storm that started because of an exchange finally ended with the elimination of two top forces of the Penglai Continent. Many people lamented the end of these two clans. As expected, they had to remember this lesson and not be too full of themselves. Even until his death, Jun Qiuyan most likely had never imagined that him acting condescending towards a lower-level Renhuang would actually result in such an end for himself. It was so embarrassing.


    The cultivators from various continents still did not leave. A senior figure from the Shangguan clan came to Ye Futian with Shangguan Qiuye following behind him. He smiled and said, ��I am Shangguan Yun, Qiuye��s uncle. I have heard that Little Friend Ye��s talents are peerless and that you are handsome and charming. Now that I have met you today, you are even more outstanding than I imagined.��


    This Shangguan Yun had a cultivation at the eighth-tier. He was indeed impressed with Ye Futian��s performance. The new generation replaced the old one. In the battle, Ye Futian had yet to display his full abilities. Eastern Deity Island had helped him settle the issue. No one knew what level of combat ability this lower-level Renhuang truly had.


    ��Senior, you speak too highly of me,�� Ye Futian responded with a smile. ��Miss Shangguan also stands head and shoulders above others.��


    ��Far from it,�� the middle-aged man answered with a smile. ��When we were talking about you before, this little girl Qiuye admired you very much. She kept praising you in front of my elder brother, non-stop. My elder brother also wishes for her to learn more from Little Friend Ye in the future.��


    ��My cultivation is still low. What could she possibly learn from me?�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��With such combat prowess, your level of cultivation does not matter. When you become an upper-level Renhuang, who could contend with you at the Renhuang Plane?�� Shangguan Yun exclaimed. ��Qiuye��s father has headed over to Jun clan. When this whole incident is over, Little Friend Ye must come over to Shangguan clan and be our guest.��


    ��If the opportunity arises, I certainly will,�� Ye Futian replied with a nod. Shangguan Qiuye pouted her mouth as she heard the two of them exchange pleasantries. She had come to understand what sort of fellow this Ye Futian was while she was on Eastern Deity Island. One should never be fooled by his looks. This person was decisive. When he acted cruelly, he struck fear in people��s hearts. Had Ye Futian not arranged the end of Jun clan every step of the way?


    This fellow might have already planned everything when he entered Eastern Deity Island. He might have planned to rely on Eastern Deity Island to eliminate the Jun clan. Of course, ordinary people couldn��t persuade Eastern Deity Island to aid them. He had such qualifications, and Eastern Deity Island was willing to attack the Jun clan for him.


    ��Renhuang Ye��s abilities are indeed unmatched,�� another person said as they walked over. It was the young city lord of Wushang City, Liu Qing. Before this, on the chessboard, they were brutally pushed around. Now that he had witnessed Ye Futian��s true combat ability, he was convinced. This fellow was truly terrifying.


    Ye Futian nodded at Liu Qing and replied, ��You are no slouch yourself.��


    ��Far from it. Previously, I believed that the chess match held me back. Now I understand that if it weren��t for the chessboard, I would have lost even more miserably. I would not even be qualified to have an exchange with you,�� Liu Qing said with a bitter smile. Before this, a group of Jun clan seventh-tier cultivators had joined forces. They had all been instantly killed by Ye Futian. Liu Qing still knew his own strength.


    Ye Futian smiled but did not respond. When the difference between abilities was slight, one might feel dissatisfied. However, when the difference was insurmountable, people of the same generation as Ye Futian could only admire and be impressed by him. It was because they would not be able to surpass Ye Futian.


    ��If the opportunity arises, I hope I can ask Renhuang Ye for a few pointers,�� said the young city lord of Wushang City, Liu Qing. Ye Futian nodded his head slightly and said, ��Sure.��


    Liu Qing saluted with his fists and said, ��May we meet again.��


    ��May we meet again,�� Ye Futian replied with a nod. Liu Qing then turned to leave. The cultivators of Wushang City also left in a flash. They also needed to return.


    After this event, the situation in the Penglai Continent would change. It was just that no one knew Eastern Deity Island��s stance. If Eastern Deity Island wanted to dominate the Penglai Continent, no other force would be able to stand against it.


    Not long after, news arrived from the Jun clan and Yun clan.


    ��Let��s head back,�� Ye Futian said as he turned to leave. He actually headed back in the direction of Eastern Deity Island. With the close of this incident, the hidden dangers of the outside world had been resolved and would no longer threaten the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    Beigong Ao and Emperor Helian followed Ye Futian. Many alchemy masters also joined him. Their eyes were exceptionally bright when they looked at Ye Futian. This fellow was a treasure. They needed to properly develop him and teach him to concoct pills, though many of them would not necessarily be able to refine pills of a higher grade than Ye Futian.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian still had enormous potential that could be extracted. He needed to be properly guided. When his cultivation increased, his attainments in refining pills would also increase. He would be a walking treasure trove in the future.


    When they saw Ye Futian��s group leave, the cultivators from various continents and the Penglai Continent in the distance also dispersed and left. Although this incident had affected the future situation in the Penglai Continent, for the other cultivators, it did not affect them much. They would do what they needed to. Ye Futian��s ability also moved them greatly. They were inspired to properly cultivate and improve themselves.


    Ye Futian alone had cultivated so many powers of the Great Path. He had also achieved mastery in all of them. His might was terrifying. The cultivators felt that their own cultivation, which they were proud of, could not hold a candle to Ye Futian��s cultivation.


    The Penglai Continent still had many trading places. The other cultivators would see whether they could find a treasure suitable for their cultivation to bring back and train hard for a period of time.


    As for Ye Futian, he returned once again to Eastern Deity Island. Bai Mu and the others were all beside him. Ye Futian said to Beigong Ao and Emperor Helian, ��Seniors, the matters here have been settled. I might not be returning to the Dongyuan Pavilion. Why don��t I hand over the Dongyuan Pavilion to the two of you?��


    ��You are not returning?�� Beigong Ao exclaimed, stunned. He was still hoping for Ye Futian to act as Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master. After all, Ye Futian might become a legendary figure in the future.


    However, after considering Ye Futian��s potential, Beigong Ao clearly understood. The Dongyuan Pavilion most likely could not make Ye Futian stay. He did not belong to that continent. How could a nameless continent hold a true dragon like him?


    ��Hmm,�� Ye Futian replied with a nod. He naturally came to the Divine Prefecture to train in order to steadily increase his abilities and constantly aim for even higher levels of attainment. The Dongyuan Pavilion was just a stepping stone. Now, the Eastern Deity Island was more suitable for his next stage of cultivating.


    ��Beigong��s cultivation is higher than mine,�� Emperor Helian said. ��If Pavilion Master is not planning to return, Dongyuan Pavilion should be handed over to Beigong. There is no one more powerful than he is on the continent now.��


    Ye Futian nodded and said, ��Senior Beigong is indeed more suitable to be Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master. Senior Helian can stay for a while on Eastern Deity Island and cultivate here.��


    ��Alright,�� Emperor Helian answered. He understood that Ye Futian wanted to help him. Eastern Deity Island contained many fateful encounters as well as materials and treasures. Asking him to stay and cultivate for a period of time naturally was Ye Futian hoping to provide benefits for his cultivation.


    Beigong Ao revealed a look of deep thought. He seemed to have an idea. After a moment of silence, he said, ��Pavilion Master.��


    ��Hmm?�� Ye Futian asked as he looked at Beigong Ao.


    ��Previously, I had always wished to control the Dongyuan Pavilion. Yet, now, I seem to have lost interest in the position of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master. This time, after returning to the continent and the Dongyuan Pavilion, I plan to follow Pavilion Master to cultivate once I have settled matters back home. What do you think?�� Beigong Ao said. He believed that following Ye Futian was even more precious than the position of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master.


    Emperor Helian was stunned. His footsteps slowed down. Beigong Ao was already at the eighth-tier now. He was the continent��s top cultivator. It was natural for him to control the Dongyuan Pavilion. He was the top figure of the continent. What an honor that was.


    Emperor Helian was envious of Beigong Ao. Yet, the other party had changed his mind and gave up all this. Beigong Ao was willing to follow Ye Futian and cultivate by his side. He was aware that by following Ye Futian, he was destined to be unknown. Many cultivators would certainly gather around Ye Futian. Ye Futian��s own splendor was enough to outshine everyone around him.


    Forsaking the status of the top figure of the continent and following Ye Futian to cultivate was a bold move.


    Emperor Helian knew that Beigong Ao was a shrewd fellow. From the looks of it, he gave up being the top figure of the continent and the position of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master in order to have the chance of witnessing the view from even higher places.


    Beigong Ao��s ambitions were very grand. Emperor Helian felt that he himself was inferior to Beigong Ao.


    Ye Futian was also somewhat surprised at this. He looked at Beigong Ao. Although Ye Futian could faintly understand the stance of Eastern Deity Island now, Beigong Ao had followed him from the Dongyuan Pavilion and was more trustworthy. Having an eighth-tier cultivator beside him would make life much easier for him. In addition to Zi Feng, Ye Futian would not need to attend to ordinary situations.


    ��Are you serious?�� Ye Futian asked. An eighth-tier cultivator was already a figure at the peak. Beigong Ao would be the top cultivator on the continent when he returned.


    ��I am serious. I have considered this before,�� Beigong Ao replied. He smiled, seemingly very calm.


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian answered, nodding his head. ��It is just that there will be inconveniences for you, Senior.��


    ��There won��t be any inconveniences. I will return to settle matters in the Dongyuan Pavilion as well as the matters of Yang clan,�� Beigong Ao said. Yang Dongqing had betrayed Ye Futian on Eastern Deity Island, conspiring with Jun Qiuyan, and was killed. The issue with the Yang clan naturally needed to be settled to prevent hidden dangers in the future.


    ��Hmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��You should head back to make arrangements first. Senior Helian will cultivate here for a period of time. When the time comes for the handover, Senior Helian shall inherit the position of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master until you return.��


    ��That won��t be a problem,�� Beigong Ao said as he nodded his head. He looked at Beigong Shuang and instructed, ��You stay here and cultivate with Pavilion Master Ye.��


    ��Hmm,�� Beigong Shuang agreed, nodding her head. Emperor Helian, who was to the side, glanced at him. This old fox had not forgotten to arrange for his daughter to stay by Ye Futian��s side. This scheming fellow. If Ye Futian did not have a partner already, this fellow would most likely want his daughter to pounce on Ye Futian directly.

 Chapter 1948 - Seclusion

    The situation in the Penglai Continent had changed. Two top clans had been destroyed.


    The top figures of Jun clan and Yun clan, two giant clans, had been wiped out. After that, the clans were cleaned off by various major and minor forces. Some forces had grudges with them, and others were taking advantage of the situation. There was never a lack of people who would add insult to injury in the world of cultivation. This was especially so for top clans with bountiful resources. There would naturally be people who would not let this chance to loot slip past.


    Overnight, the two top forces fell apart and joined the annals of history. This had all begun due to a simple conflict. Many people lamented over this incident.


    If the Jun clan was involved due to their junior, Jun Qiuyan, it was worse for the Yun clan. They merely lacked foresight and got swept into a storm that they shouldn��t have entered. From there, they faced annihilation. Who would have thought that it would end like this before?


    Yet, this was the way of the world. Regardless of how big a storm was, it always began from a tiny incident.


    Just as many people were anticipating whether Eastern Deity Island would return to the Penglai Continent, the Island Lord led her cultivators back and was no longer heard of. It was as though she had never appeared at all and remained uninterested in the Penglai Continent. If the two forces had not angered them, Eastern Deity Island might not have emerged.


    Or rather, it should be said that everything happened because the two forces wanted to kill Ye Futian.


    Eastern Deity Island Island Lord had come out for the sake of that junior figure. Yet, the superior talent that Ye Futian displayed indeed astonished many and was unforgettable. The name of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master, Ye Liunian, spread throughout the Penglai Continent. Many people visited the continent where the Dongyuan Pavilion was situated. They wanted to see what was so special about this person.


    However, when they reached the Dongyuan Pavilion and asked around, they discovered that Ye Futian was still a mystery. It was as though he had appeared from nowhere and became famous overnight. By chance, he obtained the position of Dongyuan Pavilion Pavilion Master. This time, he had not returned and had instead relinquished his position. Beigong Ao had returned to arrange the affairs of the Dongyuan Pavilion.


    After a period of time, everything began to gradually calm down. The cultivators from thousands of continents began to leave the Penglai Continent one by one. The number of people on Penglai Deity Island gradually dwindled, and it returned to normal.


    The next time things would become so lively was most likely ten years later. However, would a figure like Ye Liunian appear ten years later?


    It would be difficult, if not impossible.


    Many people speculated that Eastern Deity Island would bestow Goddess Bai Mu to Ye Futian to become his Path Companion to make him stay and cultivate on Eastern Deity Island.


    They were all wondering: what was Ye Futian doing on Eastern Deity Island now?


    He should be enjoying various pills and working hard to improve his own cultivation. He might also be enjoying his time with the ladies. With such talents, Eastern Deity Island would certainly go all out to persuade him to stay.


    Right now, on Eastern Deity Island, in an alchemy area, Ye Futian��s face was covered in dirt and grim. His face was black as though he had been burnt. His white robes had been stained black, and he was covered in weird smells. Where was his usual charm and temperament? He looked completely different from what the people outside imagined him to be. If they saw what Ye Futian looked like now, what would they think?


    ��Senior Helian, although this pill came out a bit ugly, please don��t mind and don��t waste it,�� Ye Futian said as he held up the pill he had just refined. Although the aura of the Way emanated from the pill, it was hideous and had no sense of form or shape. It appeared very unappetizing.


    Emperor Helian grimaced as he weakly replied, ��Pavilion Master, I have already consumed many pills. I need time to digest them properly. We can save this pill for Beigong Ao. He has yet to savor Pavilion Master��s pills.��


    These past few days, Ye Futian had asked Emperor Helian to stay on Eastern Deity Island to cultivate. Emperor Helian had thought that he would be consuming elixirs and miraculous medicines all day long. Yet, in reality, Ye Futian fed Emperor Helian his own refined ��elixirs�� every day. The color, smells, and tastes of these elixirs did not need to be mentioned. The pills Ye Futian refined were also varied. There were many grades, and some were even failures. Saying that they should not put the pills to waste, Ye Futian had fed them all to Emperor Helian.


    The dignified head of the Helian Royal Family had pitifully become a lab rat for Ye Futian to test his pills on!!


    It was too miserable.


    ��Then, Helian You, come and try it,�� Ye Futian ordered.


    ��I think these elixirs are best to be used on Father. My cultivation is not high. These elixirs are way too nutritious for me,�� Helian You rejected softly. Ye Futian looked at Beigong Shuang, who was at the side. The latter looked back at him with an ��innocent�� gaze as she gently shook her head.


    ��It seems like everyone upholds the virtue of sharing,�� Ye Futian lamented. He glanced at Black Wind Condor, who was standing near him. When Little Condor sensed Ye Futian��s thought, he turned around and left. He knew nothing.


    ��Senior Helian, you have reached the bottleneck in terms of your cultivation.�� Ye Futian convinced Emperor Helian, saying, ��Perhaps some meridians in your body are clogged. You need pills to help you with it. You don��t have to be modest and decline it.�� In the end, Emperor Helian swallowed the pill reluctantly while putting on a long face.


    It was unhealthy to consume an excessive amount of pills. Moreover, Ye Futian had been feeding Emperor Helian with all sorts of pills non-stop.


    ��Masters,�� Ye Futian called out. The alchemy masters nearby, who had been pretending that they did not witness anything, shifted their gazes towards Ye Futian and asked, ��Liunian, do you have other orders?��


    Ye Futian replied, ��Fetch me more prescriptions and medicinal herbs. The more complicated the prescription, the better it is. It would be best if the recipe is for a bizarre pill.�� The corners of the alchemy masters�� mouths twitched as they heard his reply. They then nodded their heads and said, ��Alright.��


    Some of them left the place, thinking to themselves that this fellow was indeed a lunatic. Initially, they planned to slowly regulate Ye Futian��s body through pills. However, he refused to be nursed and wanted to refine his own pills. Moreover, he only concocted high-level and complicated pills. It was no surprise that his success rate was very low.


    A fellow who had not even learned the fundamental skills for refining pills wanted to refine the finest pill. He expended alchemy materials here every day. They hated his lavishness and even wondered whether or not asking him to stay was the right decision. Should they ask him to leave as soon as possible?


    If not, their precious materials would be picked clean by him.


    What made them even more speechless was that when they sought out Bai Mu, she did not look into the matter. When they asked Island Lord to talk to Ye Futian to ask him to be thriftier, Island Lord told them to let him do as he pleased. What sort of situation was this? Had anyone learned to refine pills in such a manner?


    If this continued, the Alchemy Pavilion would be emptied.


    That was not all. The demonic beast raised by the fellow was also extremely excessive. The Black Wind Condor, who called himself ��Condor sama,�� used the excuse that he helped his master collect spiritual herbs to ransack the herb garden daily. He had sneakily consumed countless precious herbs. The alchemy masters wanted to capture him and beat him up. However, the b*st*rd actually found someone to support him. The descendant of Lord Phoenix could not be offended.


    A few months passed just like that. One day, a frightening aura spread across Eastern Deity Island. A storm of the Great Path pierced the heavens, and the weather of the world shifted. Many people lifted their heads and looked over in the direction of the source. Their wills swept out, seeking the source of the storm of the Great Path. They were somewhat moved.


    Someone was about to break through to the next Plane. The person who was about to do so was the cultivator who had been testing pills for Ye Futian every day, Emperor Helian.


    Ye Futian, who was concocting pills, was stunned too. He walked out of the alchemy area and raised his head, gazing into the distance. His eyes revealed a glint of joy. Emperor Helian was no longer young, and his cultivation had been stuck on the same Plane for a long time. Actually, even though most of the pills that Ye Futian fed Emperor Helian were low-level pills, many pills were prescriptive and compatible with Emperor Helian��s life attributes. These pills would not directly affect the consumer, but they could strengthen the consumer��s vigor. Vitality was the root of a person��s cultivation.


    When a cultivator had exuberant vitality and a strong spirit, they would better comprehend the things around them. Ye Futian did not directly refine elixirs that Emperor Helian needed for his training. Instead, he approached it from another angle and strengthened Emperor Helian��s foundation. This method was something Ye Futian learned from the memory of Supreme Deity Donglai.


    For the past few months, Emperor Helian had been reaping the pills�� benefits while consuming them in pain. Now, he had finally broken through to the next Plane.


    This storm of the Great Path lasted for a long while. When Emperor Helian was done with his training, he came to meet Ye Futian. A satisfied smile could be seen on Emperor Helian��s face.


    ��Congratulations,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Many thanks.�� Emperor Helian bowed slightly at Ye Futian. He was over the moon to experience a breakthrough. However, as an eighth-tier existence, he was also well-aware that his achievement was credited to Ye Futian��s hard work. Emperor Helian had not expected that the ��torture�� he had suffered for the past few months would result in his breakthrough.


    ��Senior broke through the next Plane with your own effort. You don��t have to thank me. Senior has endured a lot of hardships for the past few months.�� Ye Futian continued with a smile, ��Since Senior has advanced to the next Plane, you may return to the Continent without any worries.��


    Emperor Helian felt somewhat emotional too. At this moment, he could vaguely understand the thoughts of Beigong Ao. The idea of letting go of his past and following Ye Futian to train also surfaced in Emperor Helian��s mind.


    ��Why don��t I also stay���� Emperor Helian suggested.


    ��Senior Beigong has already said that the Dongyuan Pavilion also needs people. He is still waiting for Senior to return to take over things,�� Ye Futian interrupted. ��The future is unpredictable if you follow me. There might even be danger. Senior is in charge of the royal family. It would be best for you to return.�� Emperor Helian nodded his head slightly.


    ��Go then. Now that you have broken through to the next Plane, I have no regrets,�� Ye Futian continued. Only then did Emperor Helian understand that Ye Futian had actually wanted him to break through to the next Plane before letting him leave.


    Emperor Helian saluted Ye Futian with his fists again and said, ��May we meet again.��


    ��May we meet again,�� Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head.


    ��Let��s go,�� Emperor Helian said to Helian You beside him. Helian You looked at Ye Futian, smiled, and said, ��I will be in the Dongyuan Pavilion, awaiting the day that your name reaches us.��


    Ye Futian smiled. Helian You looked very highly upon his future.


    Emperor Helian left Eastern Deity Island. After some time, Beigong Ao returned. He had handed his responsibilities to his clansmen and had arranged all his matters. He then came to Eastern Deity Island and began a period of cultivation.


    It was also the same for Ye Futian. He went into seclusion on Eastern Deity Island. Aside from concocting pills, he trained and cultivated.


    Time flew by in the blink of an eye!

 Chapter 1949 - Breaking Through to the Next Plane

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the year 10050 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, the Penglai Continent had returned to its original calm.


    It had been several years since the storm of events back then. Now, the Penglai Continent��s Shangguan clan had risen rapidly. Since the battle back then, the rivals of the Shangguan clan, Jun clan, and Yun clan, had been eliminated. On the other hand, the Shangguan clan became more powerful and had even closer ties with Eastern Deity Island.


    Rumor had it that the Shangguan clan regularly paid a visit to Eastern Deity Island, and they had mutual exchanges. Rumor also has it that Eastern Deity Island supplied the Shangguan clan with many elixirs of the Great Path.


    After that battle, the Shangguan clan seemed to have won the lottery. Many of their Renhuangs broke through to the next Plane one after another. They had many more eighth-tier cultivators and were constantly growing even stronger. They had no equals in the Penglai Continent.


    However, some rumors claimed that the Shangguan clan had already allied with Eastern Deity Island and represented Penglai Continent. No one knew the exact details, and they had no proof. No one knew what was the exact relationship between Eastern Deity Island and the Shangguan clan either. They only knew that Eastern Deity Island kept an extremely low profile. It was as though they had cut off ties with the outside world.


    Many people did not understand why Eastern Deity Island was acting this way. They had already proven their might a few years ago. Why did they still need to keep such a low profile and act reserved?


    Right now, on the calm and peaceful Eastern Deity Island, the father-daughter combo of the Shangguan clan, Shangguan Hong and Shangguan Qiuye, brought many people to visit. They were waiting quietly in the courtyard of a palace. People were keeping them company as their group quietly waited while sipping tea.


    ��How long does Little Friend Ye still want to cultivate?�� Shangguan Hong asked. There were rumors in the outside world that he had close ties with Eastern Deity Island. In reality, it was not so. Although he had visited Eastern Deity Island regularly, he had come to find Ye Futian every time. With Ye Futian��s acquaintance with Shangguan Qiuye back then and having cooperated before, the Shangguan clan grew closer with Ye Futian. Naturally, it was easier for them to approach each other.


    Shangguan Hong was also aware that Ye Futian might have an extraordinary position on Eastern Deity Island.


    As long as Shangguan Hong maintained a good relationship with Ye Futian, that would be enough.


    Moreover, these past few years, Shangguan Hong discovered that Ye Futian was actually proficient in concocting pills. His ability to refine pills also improved suddenly by leaps and bounds, becoming more powerful each time he visited. Every time Shangguan Hong visited Eastern Deity Island, he would discover Ye Futian��s astonishing improvement in his attainments in refining pills. The last time Shangguan Hong visited, the pills Ye Futian concocted were already very close to perfection. They could even affect upper-level Renhuangs.


    Such frightening talent left Shangguan Hong in awe. He had also obtained many pills from Ye Futian to bring back to his clan.


    ��I am not sure,�� answered Beigong Ao, the person in charge of welcoming Shangguan Hong. He shook his head and said, ��He has been in seclusion for a period of time and has not emerged since. You might have come at the wrong time. Why don��t you return first and come again some other time?��


    When Shangguan Hong heard Beigong Ao say this, he secretly thought to himself. It seemed as though this trip had been for naught. However, he was not here for important matters. He had just come to visit Ye Futian and to strengthen their relationship. Shangguan Hong felt that one day, Ye Futian would certainly become the top figure of the Penglai Continent.


    Of course, Shangguan Hong��s prediction was based on the premise that Ye Futian had stayed in the Penglai Continent. This continent was merely one of the many continents of the Divine Prefecture. It might not be able to keep Ye Futian here.


    ��Alright. I will come to visit him some other time.�� Shangguan Hong nodded slightly in agreement with Beigong Ao��s proposal. He said to Shangguan Qiuye, ��Let��s head home.��


    Shangguan Qiuye cast a glance in the direction of the palace. In the past, sometimes Beigong Ao would go to inform Ye Futian about their arrival. However, he didn��t do so this time. It seemed like Ye Futian was very serious about his seclusion this time. He had most likely ordered Beigong Ao beforehand not to let anything disturb him. Hence, Shangguan Qiuye��s father had decided to stop waiting and leave.


    ��Be careful on your way back.�� Beigong Ao personally showed them the way out. After all, Shangguan Hong��s position, as the leader of the Shangguan clan, was very high. For Shangguan Hong to have come to visit Ye Futian personally, the former must have regarded Ye Futian highly as well. Shangguan Hong would most likely not even notice Beigong Ao if it wasn��t for Ye Futian. From this, one could tell that Ye Futian was really full of potential. Even a powerful ninth-tier Renhuang was willing to come over to meet him.


    Shangguan Hong and Shangguan Qiuye were on their way out when suddenly, they seemed to have sensed something. They stopped in their tracks.


    Shangguan Hong was the first to react. His gaze instantly shifted and looked in the direction of the palace. Shangguan Qiuye and the rest followed suit.


    A brilliant rainbow pierced through the heavens. An overbearing power of the Great Path enveloped the sky. Various types of auras of the Great Path coalesced. This aura of the Great Path appeared to be at the flawless level.


    ��This is���� Shangguan Hong said with a twinkle in his eyes. It was a flawless level aura of the Great Path. Someone was breaking through to the next Plane on Eastern Deity Island in the palace. Who else could it be?


    ��Flawless level,�� Shangguan Hong mumbled. Before this, Ye Futian��s cultivation was already at the peak of the lower-level Renhuang Plane when he was a third-tier Renhuang. If he broke through to the next Plane now, his cultivation would be at the middle-level Renhuang Plane.


    The divide between the lower-level Renhuang Plane and the middle-level Renhuang Plane was a pit. Many people had flawless Divine Wheels of the Great Path when they were at the lower-level Renhuang Plane. However, they were unable to continue maintaining their flawless Divine Wheels at the middle-level Renhuang Plane. Would Ye Futian be able to do so then?


    If Ye Futian still had a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path, his combat ability would be able to threaten a seventh-tier cultivator. In addition to his various other trump cards, his ability would be terrifying.


    Shangguan Qiuye similarly felt her heart tremble. The difference between her Plane and Ye Futian��s was not very large. Hence, the impact was greater on her. The aura of the Great Path generated as Ye Futian was breaking through to the next Plane made her feel ashamed of herself.


    Her beautiful eyes stared in that direction. Colorful lights rained down from the sky. The colorful rainbow lights were like heavenly signs. The humming of swords, the sound of guqins, the thundering of divine elephants stampeding, celestial bodies appearing in the sky, and the illusory image of an ancient tree filled the vast space.


    These were heavenly signs. Many people gazed in awe. This scene was a wonder to behold. It was beautiful and seemed to make people forget that someone was breaking through to the next Plane.


    The resonating sound of the Great Path could be heard. In the distance, people kept heading over in this direction. Many cultivators on Eastern Deity Island were drawn over. They stepped into the air and gathered outside the palace. They stopped and looked toward the direction of the strange scene.


    It was a flawless level aura. Many people were astonished. A middle-level Renhuang managed to maintain a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Such talent was rare.


    Bai Mu also appeared. She stood in the air, and her heart was moved. She felt that calling her a goddess seemed like a bit of a misnomer. Compared to Ye Futian, she was far inferior.


    ��Incredible,�� many alchemy masters cried out in astonishment as they walked out.


    ��This fellow puts us to shame when it comes to concocting pills. Now, even his cultivation is so flawless. How can old fellows like us go on?�� someone said.


    ��Don��t flaunt your seniority. Years ago, that fellow killed seventh-tier cultivators like ants. Now, with his breakthrough, even an eighth-tier like yourself might be no match for him,�� someone said beside the person who had spoken. The old fellow was so angry that his nostrils flared, and he glared at the other person. However, he could not say anything. He clearly knew that what the other person had said was true. He had no words to counter him.


    After breaking through to the middle-level Renhuang Plane while maintaining a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path, how powerful would Ye Futian��s combat ability be now?


    Seventh-tier cultivators were no longer worth Ye Futian��s consideration unless they were also monstrous figures who forged flawless Divine Wheels of the Great Path. Otherwise, seventh-tier cultivators without flawless Divine Wheels would only be killed instantly by him.


    The brilliant light remained as the Great Path resonated. Strange phenomenon shone, and Ye Futian sat cross-legged among them. He was comprehending the Great Path and absorbing the power of the Great Path. He had entered a state of ecstasy. His soul wandered out from his body and sensed everything around him.


    Rumbling sounds could be heard constantly, coming from his body. It was a baptism of the Great Path that continued to temper his Renhuang figure.


    At that moment, an overbearing aura descended from the sky. Many people saluted with their fists as they looked over in the direction of the aura. They wanted to call out to the person who had arrived, but the other party extended her hand, signaling them to remain silent. The figure then waved her hand and said, ��Don��t let this matter be known. Stand down and let him continue cultivating.��


    This voice rang in everyone��s eardrums, causing the crowd to be stunned. However, they still nodded their heads and did as they were told. They left the place one by one. No one dared to disturb Ye Futian��s cultivation.


    Eastern Deity Island Island Lord glanced at Ye Futian. Her figure gradually disappeared, but her will still lingered, watching over everything.


    The rumbling of the Great Path continued without end, persisting for a few days. The entire Eastern Deity Island was stirred up by this incident, but no one disturbed Ye Futian as he broke through to the next Plane. They merely observed everything that occurred quietly, watching over him. It was as though Ye Futian��s breakthrough was the most anticipated and most important day for Eastern Deity Island.


    That day, a majestic aura of the Great Path frenziedly erupted. It surged into Ye Futian��s body. Ye Futian sat there. It was as though he was experiencing a mighty baptism of the Great Path. The rumbling from inside his body made it seem as though the sky was about to explode.


    Buzz. An extremely brilliant colorful light radiated from his figure and swept out across the space. It spread out far into the distance. At that moment, cultivators across the entire Eastern Deity Island saw a resplendent light of the Great Path. They knew that Ye Futian had broken through to the next Plane.


    When they lifted their heads and looked over in that direction, they saw Ye Futian��s body floating in the sky above. His temperament was even more outstanding. His dazzling, handsome gaze was full of vigor. After breaking through to the next Plane, Ye Futian seemed as divine as a deity!

 Chapter 1950 - The Yin Yang Diagram

    After the power of the Great Path entered Ye Futian��s body, the strange signs disappeared. His white-robed fluttered in the wind. His long, silver hair was extremely elegant.


    Down below, many people looked towards him. Xia Qingyuan, Little Condor, Zi Feng, Beigong Ao, and the others smiled as they looked at the brilliant divine halo. Ye Futian had proven his Way and become a middle-level Renhuang. His Divine Wheel of the Great Path became even more dazzling. It was still flawless. Ye Futian��s ability had gone up a level.


    If others did not know and only looked at his cultivation Plane, they would most likely be deceived. Who would have thought that a fourth-tier middle-level Renhuang would actually already possess the combat ability of an ordinary eighth-tier Renhuang?


    Ye Futian��s figure descended. When Beigong Ao saw Ye Futian descend, he walked up to welcome Ye Futian. Beigong Ao smiled and said, ��After breaking through to the next Plane, even I might no longer be a match for you, right?��


    ��You are too modest,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. ��These past few years, Uncle Beigong hasn��t been sitting idly either. The Cloud Wood has completely merged into your body. Your body has become a Body of Thunder. Your combat ability is powerful.��


    Now, the relationship between the two of them was even closer. Beigong Ao had decided to follow Ye Futian to cultivate. Ye Futian also did not call him Senior anymore. Ye Futian directly referred to him as an Uncle. Beigong Ao also enjoyed being called so very much.


    When Beigong Ao heard Ye Futian��s modest speech, he smiled. After knowing Ye Futian for so long, Beigong Ao knew what Ye Futian was. How could Ye Futian��s words be believed?


    This was especially so in terms of Ye Futian��s cultivation. He claimed that his talent in concocting pills was average, and his cultivation ability was normal.


    As for what level Ye Futian��s combat ability was at, only Ye Futian himself knew. Whoever believed his words would be fooled.


    Of course, Beigong Ao naturally hoped that Ye Futian would become stronger. After all, Ye Futian was the person who Beigong Ao had decided to follow. Ye Futian��s glory was his own glory.


    Wasn��t it because of Ye Futian that he and Emperor Helian managed to break through to the eighth-tier?


    At that moment, the sound of people traversing across the sky could be heard. From afar, they could hear people call out, ��Congratulations for breaking through to the next Plane, little brother.��


    ��Little Friend Ye, congratulations,�� silhouettes greeted as they dashed over. They were cultivators from the Eastern Deity Island��s Alchemy Pavilion chased off by the Island Lord. Many of them were more elderly fellows. After all, many people, who had outstanding talent and potential in cultivation, were unwilling to waste their time on concocting pills.


    Ye Futian stepped forward to welcome them. He said, ��Many thanks, elder brothers. I merely broke through one Plane. It is but a small matter.��


    ��It is a small matter if other people break through to the next Plane. However, if it is you, that is different. Haha,�� an elder said as he laughed out loud. He looked at Ye Futian with a gaze as though he was staring at a treasure. Before this, Ye Futian��s ability in concocting pills was already very powerful and was gradually reaching perfection. Now, with his cultivation breakthrough and the fact that his Divine Wheel of the Great Path was still flawless, that meant that Ye Futian might be able to concoct pills of the Great Path of an even higher grade.


    ��Indeed. Now that you have broken through to the next Plane, even among the peak giant forces of the Donghua Domain, you could still stand out,�� yet another person chipped in. A middle-level Renhuang who proved his Way with a flawless Divine Wheel had the potential to continue doing so when he reached the upper-level Renhuang Plane. If he became an upper-level Renhuang with a flawless Divine Wheel, the significance was extraordinary. That meant that he had the potential to reach the top of the cultivation world.


    Everyone understood the meaning that the speaker implied. Even when Supreme Deity Donglai was alive back then, if a figure like Ye Futian had appeared, he would be the cream of the crop and would be brought up as a successor.


    ��If such a prominent figure appeared in Shangguan clan, I can rest easy,�� said Shangguan Hong as he also walked out. He had initially been preparing to leave. Upon seeing that Ye Futian was breaking through to the next Plane, he remained here, waiting until Ye Futian succeeded.


    ��Senior Shangguan,�� Ye Futian greeted Shangguan Hong with a smile as he nodded his head. At that moment, a voice instructed, ��For now, do not let the news that he has broken through to the next Plane get out.��


    The voice was authoritative. It was the voice of Eastern Deity Island Island Lord. Before this, she had already given them a warning once before. This time, she must have said it for Shangguan Hong to hear, reminding him not to reveal this to the outside world.


    When Ye Futian heard the words of the other party, he thought to himself that the female Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island must be truly treating him as one of her own. She intentionally helped him keep his cultivation breakthrough a secret. She probably did not want to reveal too much news about him and draw the attention of the outside world.


    ��Understood,�� many people replied as they nodded their heads. Shangguan Hong also intentionally replied, ��After I leave, my lips are sealed on all matters regarding Eastern Deity Island.��


    Shangguan Hong knew his place. He knew that to maintain a good relationship with Eastern Deity Island, he had to first be able to keep secrets. Just a few years ago, the Jun clan and Yun clan were eradicated. Shangguan Hong would not do something to displease Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Hmm, after your cultivation breakthrough, you can use pills to aid your cultivation and fortify your Plane,�� the female Island Lord continued. She was naturally speaking to Ye Futian.


    ��There are still many quality pills in Alchemy Pavilion. Now, your level of attainment in pills is higher than mine. You may choose whatever pill you please,�� the other party continued. Ye Futian said, ��Many thanks, Island Lord.��


    Ye Futian was moved!


    Ye Futian grinned as he looked at the alchemy masters of Alchemy Pavilion. As expected, he saw the other party��s faces darken. The Island Lord was excessively picking favorites. Was she giving Alchemy Pavilion away to Ye Futian?


    ��Masters, I have not concocted pills for a while. Let me see whether I have made any progress,�� Ye Futian said with a grin. The alchemy masters of Alchemy Pavilion shuddered when they saw his grin. They could only nod their heads begrudgingly, ��Alright, let��s go.��


    Ye Futian headed over to Alchemy Pavilion with the masters happily. After his cultivation breakthrough, he concocted pills for a period of time.


    A few days later, the fragrance of pills could be picked up coming from Alchemy Pavilion. There were also bursts of colorful lights. Many alchemy masters had gathered over there. Every time a pill was successfully concocted, they were astonished.


    As expected, after Ye Futian��s cultivation breakthrough, his skill level in concocting pills improved once again. The pills he managed to refine were of an even higher grade.


    Today, the alchemy cauldron was vibrating violently again. A burst of rainbow light shot up into the sky. The sky above the Alchemy Area was covered in colorful light. It was as though the shadow of a divine tree had appeared. Endless aura of the Great Path of Life circled the area. Green divine halos rained down, enveloping the vast space. On the divine tree, a glittering and transparent pill appeared.


    ��It is a fruit of the Way of Life. It is a flawless level middle-grade elixir,�� the alchemy masters exclaimed as they narrowed their eyes. They stared at the fruit of the Way. Ye Futian could already concoct a pill of this level.


    This fruit of the Way immediately consumed the divine halo of the Great Path around it. It was full of unparalleled life force. Ye Futian opened his eyes and extended his hand to grab it. The pill took the form of a fruit, and its shape was perfect. His level of concocting pills had already far surpassed what he could manage just a few years ago.


    Many cultivators stared at the pill. Ye Futian simply passed the fruit over to Xia Qingyuan, who was beside him. He said, ��This pill should be useful for your cultivation.��


    Xia Qingyuan gently nodded her head and kept the fruit away as she received it. She indeed also needed to work hard and cultivate to improve her own abilities. Ye Futian��s growth was too rapid. Soon, she would not be able to keep up with his pace of advancement.


    Many alchemy masters rolled their eyes at Ye Futian. They could only watch as Xia Qingyuan kept the pill away. This b*st*rd Ye Futian had once again pocketed the goods, leaving all the benefits to those beside him. Yet, the alchemy masters could not do anything. The Island Lord had acquiesced it. They could only watch and hope that Ye Futian would concoct pills for them.


    ��It appears that one��s cultivation is indeed beneficial for concocting pills. I have tried my hand at it these past few days. I will concoct more pills in the future if I have the chance. I will now continue cultivating in seclusion for a period of time,�� Ye Futian said. The crowd stared wide-eyed at him. That was it?


    What about their pills?


    Wasn��t he going to continue concocting?


    Before this, he had selected many of their precious pills for his own use. Wasn��t he planning to compensate them with a few concoctions?


    ��I am somewhat tired. Masters, I will come again when I have the time,�� Ye Futian said as he ignored their gazes and made himself scarce. These old fellows were all thieves; he had to first grow their appetite. He indeed had to improve his cultivation first.


    As everyone else was staring wide-eyed at him, Ye Futian left just like that. After he returned to his palace, he began another period of cultivating in seclusion. However, this time, he did not seek to have a breakthrough in terms of Planes. Instead, he cultivated law power. Within the memories that he inherited from Supreme Deity Donglai, there were many incredible law powers.


    Back in the day, Supreme Deity Donglai was an alchemy grandmaster at the pinnacle of the profession. His knowledge on the subject was vast, and he knew many law powers. Some of them he had cultivated himself while others were stored within his memories.


    After Ye Futian left Alchemy Pavilion, he was no longer seen by Eastern Deity Island members. This fellow actually continued to cultivate in seclusion. It was as though the only thing on his mind was cultivating.


    In the blink of an eye, another few months passed. On a training platform in Ye Futian��s palace, Ye Futian sat cross-legged. Aura of the Great Path emanated from his body. Two different powers of the Great Path circled his figure. One was Yang, and one was Yin; one was hot, one was cold. The two different powers of the Great Path crisscrossed as they circled him, forming a miraculous spiral of the Great Path.


    At that moment, an extremely dazzling scene appeared in Ye Futian��s Life Palace.


    In the world of the Life Palace, a gigantic pattern of a divine artifact appeared in the sky. It seemed to be a pair of Yin Yang Fish. One was Yin, and the other was Yang. The two extremes of Yin and Yang seemed to become the sun and the moon. The power of Yang and the power of Yin appeared to emanate from them. Ye Futian possessed the power of Yin as well as the Divine Fire of Wutong. Although the Divine Fire of Wutong was not the True Fire of the Sun, it was also of the Yang attribute and was extremely overbearing.


    Ye Futian could faintly make out the shadow of the ancient tree from within the pattern. The branches and leaves of the ancient tree spread out and merged with the two powers of the Great Path, causing it to become a complete pattern.


    What was even more frightening was that at the edges of the pattern, Sword Will emerged from the power of Yin and Yang that had been raining down constantly. It was as though the power of Yin and Yang became Shadow Swords as well as Sun Swords. They circled the Yin Yang Diagram. This scene was astonishing. Its might was terrifying.


    This art was derived from an extremely powerful Way of the Great Path. Now, it was being comprehended by Ye Futian. He wanted to forge it into a new Divine Wheel of the Great Path, merging this power of the Great Path with his technique. If he succeeded, its power would be extremely terrifying!

 Chapter 1951 - Farewell

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Days passed. Ye Futian seemed completely absorbed in cultivating to the point of obsession.


    Today, on a training platform, the extremely dazzling power of Yin and Yang appeared above Ye Futian��s figure, circling him. His entire body was shining, as though a Yin Yang Diagram had appeared on his body. His figure resonated intensely with the surrounding power of the Great Path. Rumbling sounds of the Great Path kept coming from inside his body, causing the Great Path around him to resonate with him.


    A brilliant sun and moon appeared at the same time. Intense currents of the Great Path spiraled around him and gradually became a frightening pattern. The pattern��s structure was extremely stable and resonated with Ye Futian��s figure. After a long time, they formed a dazzling picture. The sun and moon were in the sky, and the Yin Yang Fish circled them, completing the entire arrangement.


    Vibration sounds could be heard from the palace. The gazes of many people turned towards the direction of the training platform where Ye Futian was. What commotion was this fellow causing while cultivating?


    However, the crowd knew better than to disturb Ye Futian, allowing him to continue cultivating.


    Beigong Ao was already used to it. No matter what earth-shattering actions Ye Futian did now, Beigong Ao would not be surprised. He had already accepted that the fellow was a monstrous existence. Let alone back in the continent where the Dongyuan Pavilion was, even in the current Penglai Continent, there was no one who could be compared to Ye Futian. No one was even qualified to be compared with him. Otherwise, with Beigong Ao��s eighth-tier cultivation, he would not willingly follow Ye Futian.


    The cultivation world always prioritized one��s ability above all else.


    Right then, on the training platform, Ye Futian opened his eyes. His jet-black eyes seemed to contain the light of the sun and the moon. He lifted his head and glanced at the Yin Yang Diagram in the sky. He had forged another Divine Wheel of the Great Path. However, he still needed to increase the level of this Divine Wheel.


    The power of Yin and Yang complemented each other. If he supported this power with his swordsmanship, how powerful would it be? Ye Futian thought to himself. The light of divine swords emerged from the edges of the Yin Yang Diagram. The next moment, his will shifted, and the power of the Great Path in the sky above, as well as the dazzling divine light disappeared, immediately surging into Ye Futian��s body.


    However, he did not leave, instead continuing to cultivate. His cultivation Plane was already that of a fourth-tier middle-level Renhuang. This meant that he already had flawless fourth-tier Divine Wheels of the Great Path. In reality, his Divine Wheels had all been proven. Now, even if he comprehended a new Divine Wheel, with the foundation of his Plane, it would still be improved very quickly.


    He extended his hand and opened his palm. He had a handful of pills. Ye Futian threw the pills directly into his mouth and then swallowed them. Instantly, rumbling sounds came from inside his body. The aura of the Great Path was extremely rich. His life force was growing stronger, and his vitality also became more powerful.


    The pills were too nourishing��


    However, these were all the pills that he concocted himself. It would be a waste for him not to consume them. The pills that he concocted did not forcefully increase his abilities and did not have any side effects. They only fortified his foundation. Very quickly, his aura became very powerful. He continued cultivating for a period of time.


    A few days later, the rumbling sounds of the Great Path in Ye Futian��s body sounded around the training platform. When the dazzling pattern of the Great Path circled him, the heavens changed color. Only then was Ye Futian satisfied with the result of his training. As he lifted his head and glanced at this new Divine Wheel of the Great Path, he smiled.


    The next moment, the light of the Great Path surged into his body and disappeared without a trace. Everything returned to normal. As he stood up, he finally ended his period of seclusion.


    When Ye Futian emerged, he encountered the phoenix. Zi Feng looked at him and asked, ��Have you ended your seclusion?��


    ��Hmm,�� Ye Futian replied with a nod, ��I will probably not be cultivating for a very long time in the future.��


    After his cultivation breakthrough, Ye Futian spent a lot of time fortifying his Plane. He also forged a new Divine Wheel of the Great Path. For now, he had reached a certain level where it would not be beneficial to continue cultivating. Hence, he had no reason to continue his seclusion.


    ��What about my divine fire? Didn��t you say that you would bring it along to aid me in my cultivation?�� Zi Feng asked as she looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes.


    ��Ehem, ehem���� Ye Futian looked at the phoenix and said, ��Zi Feng, the divine fire is already inside of me and has merged with me. If you wish to sense it, you can do so by cultivating by my side.��


    Zi Feng stared at Ye Futian quietly and did not say anything.


    These past few days, aside from concocting pills, Ye Futian had only been in seclusion. Since when did he give her the chance to cultivate by his side?


    Had this fellow been scheming all along ever since he played The Flight of the Phoenix Pair on Wutong Island?


    As expected, the words of men could not be trusted.


    ��I��ll drop by Alchemy Pavilion to pay a visit,�� Ye Futian said as he prepared to skedaddle. Women were not to be offended. Although she was a phoenix, she was also female.


    Buzz. Suddenly, wings appeared on Zi Feng��s back, spreading out wide. Terrifying, flaming aura of the Great Path emanated from the dazzling divine feathers. Each feather seemed to contain frightening amounts of power. A formless might immediately enveloped Ye Futian��s body. Zi Feng said, ��You have now proven your Way and reached the middle-level Renhuang Plane. You should have improved greatly after cultivating in seclusion for such a long time. Why don��t we try out your abilities now?��


    Zi Feng did not allow Ye Futian any time to disagree. The divine fire of the Great Path immediately flared onto Ye Futian��s body.


    Ye Futian sensed the oncoming current of the Great Path. He speculated that this phoenix had a huge grudge against him.


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian answered. His figure flashed, and he dashed into the sky, appearing high above the clouds in an instant. The phoenix similarly became a flaming red divine light that shot straight through the clouds. Her speed was incredible as she rocketed straight up.


    In the palace below, many people stepped outside. What was going on?


    Condor sama stared wide-eyed at the intense waves of the Great Path in the sky. As expected of this overbearing phoenix. It was incredible for her to dare to provoke Master into battle. Condor sama was trembling.


    High above the clouds, the two of them only stopped when they reached an extremely high point in the sky. They needed to maintain a high enough altitude for the shockwaves of their battle not to reach Eastern Deity Island. Even so, wills still swept up towards them one after another. The people below seemed very concerned about the situation up here. Yet, no one came to stop them.


    Buzz. Scorching gales howled. A gigantic shadow of a phoenix appeared around Zi Feng��s figure. The giant phoenix spread its wings and flapped them downwards, causing an extremely hot gale of flames to sweep up in the sky above. It seemed capable of burning everything in its path.


    The light of the Great Path circled Ye Futian. He quietly stood there, facing Zi Feng. As expected of the aura of the flawless level divine fire of the Great Path. Even with Ye Futian��s current cultivation, he still felt a threatening aura coming from the flames.


    Countless flaming feathers of the phoenix danced and coalesced into one in the sky. Gradually, a true gigantic phoenix appeared. It covered the sky and blocked out the sun. It immediately covered this part of the sky. It was a majestic sight to behold.


    Ye Futian could naturally tell that Zi Feng was serious this time. She wanted to see the level his ability was at now. She was different from other cultivators. Her Great Path was also flawless. She was naturally much more powerful than ordinary cultivators. Ye Futian and her were birds of a feather.


    Aside from wanting to vent her dissatisfaction with Ye Futian for cultivating in seclusion, she also wanted to know the level of Ye Futian��s current true ability.


    Ye Futian understood what Zi Feng was thinking. It appeared that to convince this proud phoenix, he would actually need to show some of his skills.


    His will shifted. In an instant, the sun and moon circled around him, and heavenly signs appeared. Above him, an extremely resplendent divine pattern of the Great Path appeared. The power of Yin and Yang flowed around him, and the sun and moon appeared in the pattern. They frenziedly consumed the aura of the Great Path in the vast space.


    This pattern expanded rapidly. It became a gigantic pattern that covered the sky in a short amount of time, directly shadowing the huge phoenix.


    The power of Yin and Yang descended and immediately enveloped the gigantic shadow of the phoenix. The phoenix let out a deafening screech. Her sharp claws immediately reached out to rip apart the huge Yin Yang Diagram in the sky. She was extremely overbearing.


    Buzz. The halo of Yin and the halo of divine fire descended on the phoenix at the same time. The figure of the phoenix turned somewhat illusory as she was faced with extremely terrifying pressure. Countless divine swords flowed in the sacred Yin Yang Diagram. The next moment, the Sword Qi of Sun Sword and Shadow Sword slaughtered their way over.


    The phoenix once again let out a long screech. She lifted her claws to swipe the attacks away and block them. She wanted to use her fire to directly melt the sharp swords, but it was difficult for her flames to do so.


    In an instant, the gigantic phoenix seemed to be drowned in Sword Qi.


    Very soon, the humongous shadow of the phoenix disappeared. This caused the hearts of many Renhuangs on Eastern Deity Island who were observing the fight to tremble. Had Ye Futian��s cultivation reached such a frightening stage?


    Zi Feng stared at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. She had a look of dissatisfaction on her face.


    ��If you want a good spar, I will have all the time in the world to keep you company,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. ��Come. Follow me. I am going to meet the Island Lord.��


    ��Why are you going to meet the Island Lord?�� Zi Feng asked.


    ��To bid him farewell,�� Ye Futian replied. He had been cultivating on Eastern Deity Island for a couple of years. Now that he had broken through to the next Plane, he should bid farewell and leave.


    2


    Were they leaving? Zi Feng thought to herself. A couple of years ago, she had prepared herself to follow Ye Futian and leave Eastern Deity Island. However, they had cultivated on the island for a few years after that. This day had finally come. Ye Futian was prepared to venture out into the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 1952 - Kidnapped

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian took Zi Feng to the place where the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island resided. Upon seeing the two, the female Island Lord said calmly, ��Are you ready to leave?��


    Clearly, she had already guessed that Ye Futian was leaving. After the turmoil regarding the Jun family had been resolved, Ye Futian was basically in a state of retreat. Besides cultivation, he was concentrating on alchemy. Now that his cultivation had greatly improved, his temperament had also been transformed. The only reason he was here to see her. It could only be that he was preparing to leave.


    ��Yes, and we have come to say goodbye,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Very good.�� The Island Lord nodded readily, not asking him to stay. She continued, ��How about having Baimu take some people and escort you?��


    Ye Futian was not sure of the other��s true intention. He had enjoyed many benefits on Eastern Deity Island. It would not be realistic for him to cut off all contact with Eastern Deity Island after leaving. It would be too ungrateful, and the Island Lord would probably hunt him down.


    He swallowed the elixir, the divine tree was integrated into his body, and the divine flame was absorbed by him as well. He had inherited the alchemy art of the Supreme Deity Donglai, and enjoyed an unknown number of treasures in heaven and earth. Now he was about to kidnap a true phoenix from Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Don��t overthink it; it��s just to ensure your safety. It would be a small group because it doesn��t make sense to have more. I will pick the most outstanding ones,�� said the Island Lord.


    ��With my current strength, the protection of the people from Eastern Deity Island won��t be necessary.�� Ye Futian said, ��Even if there are elders who are more powerful than me, it would not be by much. Moreover, I will not be staying put. If something comes up that cannot be solved, with the elders of Eastern Deity Island along, it will only complicate things.��


    The Island Lord looked at Ye Futian and said, ��You mean, you want to leave by yourself?��


    Ye Futian looked at the other in the eyes. Clearly, she was still worried about him, but it was not unexpected��who wouldn��t?


    ��There are no outsiders here. I have already appointed you internally as the second Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island. If you surpass me in the future, you could inherit the position as the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island. Everything here that is mine can be considered to be yours as well,�� said the female Island Lord.


    ��Mine?�� Ye Futian blinked. Was he now the second Island Lord?


    This woman was no joke; she was willing to give him the entire Eastern Deity Island.


    Did this mean that all the goddesses of Eastern Deity Island were also his�� As his thoughts turned to this, he immediately stopped himself. He viewed himself as a righteous gentleman.


    ��Mmm,�� the female Island Lord nodded, ��It��s all yours. If you can get to that day, even I have to obey your orders.��


    Ye Futian looked at the stunningly beautiful and noble face in front of him, and his thoughts drifted to the unspeakable.


    ��Ahem���� Ye Futian looked at the Island Lord and said, ��I hardly deserve such honor.��


    ��You have swallowed the elixir and the divine tree. You inherited everything from my ancestors. You are now the heir of Eastern Deity Island, and there is nothing wrong with passing the island to you one day,�� the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island continued.


    Ye Futian��s eyes flickered. Since the other had said so, then there was no need for him to remain coy.


    He looked at the female Island Lord and said, ��However, this has nothing to do with whether the people of Eastern Deity Island would follow me. Their following means little, unless����


    ��Unless what?�� the female Island Lord asked.


    Ye Futian looked at her, seemed to want to say something more but stopped himself.


    If accompanied by someone who was a top Renhuang, it would be much safer. Unless they get tangled up with some mighty figures, there would be little trouble.


    ��If you have anything to say, say it,�� the female Island Lord said coldly. What was this guy thinking? Those roving eyes were making her very displeased.


    ��How about the Island Lord also go with me for a bit of air?�� Ye Futian said weakly. Although he was already of the Middle Renhuang realm, his tone seemed to suggest a little lack of confidence. After all, this was a powerful existence that had slain cultivators in the Ninth Realm, such as Jun Xiaoyao.


    Although she was gorgeous, he was not deceived by her appearance. In the battle a few years ago, she had the most number of Renhuang kills.


    As Ye Futian��s voice fell, an invisible pressure of the Great Path suddenly fell on him, making him shaking like a leave. Next to him, Zi Feng watched dumbfounded at Ye Futian; was he really asking the Island Lord to follow him?


    This b*stard was too bold��


    Ye Futian looked at the beautiful Island Lord weakly. Since she had already said that Eastern Deity Island would be his sooner or later, he was only exercising his power in advance.


    He could feel the coercion; the pressure was great.


    The female Island Lord had been staring at Ye Futian. She stepped forward, her long skirt moved upon the ground, noble and cold, with unparalleled grace. She now walked next to Ye Futian.


    ��If the Island Lord disagrees, then ignore what I just said,�� Ye Futian��s attitude weakened considerably.


    The Island Lord stared at him and said, ��Very well!��


    ��Uh���� Ye Futian blinked and looked up at the stunning face in front of him. She agreed?


    He didn��t ask forcibly, and the other party actually agreed?


    The Island Lord��s strength was extraordinary, and with her by his side, Renhuang Realm opponents wouldn��t be a concern anymore.


    ��I��m with you.�� The beauty that was the Island Lord said while she stared at Ye Futian. Suddenly, a small smile appeared��one that could turn all living creature upside down. However, Ye Futian had no time to appreciate such beauty. On the contrary, he felt a tightness all over; would there be any conspiracy?


    ��When do we leave?�� the Island Lord asked.


    ��I��m going to refine some medicine, so how about after seven days?�� Ye Futian raised his head and said in a low voice. His voice had lost much of its forcefulness.


    ��Good, I will work out the route of the trial so that you can do your own thing with peace of mind,�� said the Island Lord.


    Looking at her, Ye Futian felt that he was being led into a trap.


    The sense of conspiracy was getting stronger. Did he get this wrong?


    ��You came from the Original Realm, unfamiliar with Divine Prefecture, and I know Donghua Domaine better than you. Don��t worry. I��m just leading the way. After all, this time, I��m just your follower, Island Lord Ye!�� she continued, emphasizing the last three words.


    ��The Island Lord is too courteous. It is settled, then.�� Ye Futian left quickly, still trembling. He fled without caring much for Zi Feng, who was left behind.


    Watching Ye Futian��s departure, Zi Feng was a little speechless. She looked at the Island Lord and said, ��Sister, are you really going?��


    ��Why not?�� The Island Lord looked at Ye Futian��s departing figure with an intriguing smile. This little guy was truly daring, asking her to follow him. She gave him just a little taste, and he wanted to swallow the entire Eastern Deity Island up right this moment. Now, he even had some strange ideas about her.


    In this instance, on account that she hadn��t been out for quite a long time, she would go with this little guy for a walk in the outside world.


    For the next seven days, Ye Futian had been spending all his time in the alchemy laboratory, completely immersed in it.


    And this time, there was no one observing. Everyone was waiting outside, and Ye Futian didn��t let anyone disturb his work.


    In the direction of the alchemy laboratory, wisps of terrifying aura permeated. A greenish divine splendor soared, turning into a divine tree, faintly covering this entire space. Inside, a medicinal fragrance flowed continuously from it.


    Buzz!


    At this time, a terrifying Flame of the Way rushed into the sky, with a faint sound of the phoenix. When all the armorer looked over there, they saw a phantom of the phoenix appearing, circling outside.


    A loud cry of the phoenix was heard, and a beating sound came from inside the alchemy laboratory. The divine phoenix swayed upward and cried nine times, piercing into the sky, like an unusual vision of heaven and earth, with incredible radiance.


    Rays of divine light soared into the sky, and a vibrant fragrance permeated the air. The Great Path��s divine brilliance illuminated the laboratory, and everyone fixated on the vision in front of them.


    Alchemy, and an unusual phenomenon.


    ��This is���� someone murmured.


    ��He should be,�� someone next to him responded, and they were all shocked. They finally realized why Ye Futian��s attainments in alchemy were so strong, and his progress was so rapid. No wonder the Island Lord favored him and allowed him to do whatever he wanted.


    So, he was the heir of Supreme Deity Donglai.


    This was the alchemy of the Supreme Being Donglai, and Ye Futian had inherited his art of alchemy.


    ��All the medicines were left in the cauldron; all you elders may distribute them amongst yourselves. I��m going to have to take my leave now.�� A voice was heard, and all the crowd saw was a figure in white on its way out, already gone.


    Only then did everyone came to their senses and rushed into the alchemy laboratory. A medicinal smell greeted them, strong and fragrant. Inside the alchemy cauldron, the divine light of the Great Path was flowing about.


    Buzz. A shadow rushed in.


    In the next moment, several shadows came out at the same time, all rushing toward the alchemy cauldron.


    Soon, there were bursts of booming sounds that came out of the alchemy laboratory.


    Ye Futian moved in the void, as many voices kept coming from behind him.


    ��Nasty thief����


    ��How dare you!��


    ������


    Voices were heard, followed by a loud bang; it was the sound of the alchemy laboratory exploding. Ye Futian sighed. It was not that he didn��t want to help them, but rather that he couldn��t bear for them to turn on one another.


    On this day, many alchemists fought each other violently. Friends fighting friends. They had no regard for their own dignity, while some had even gone to war directly. There was a panic on Eastern Deity Island as it was turned upside down. When someone reported to the Island Lord, they discovered that the Island Lord had already left Eastern Deity Island with Ye Futian and the others.


    Outside of Eastern Deity Island, a group of people walked in the void and mist. Beigong Ao stole a glance at the woman next to him from time to time, still in disbelief. His eyes, when they looked at Ye Futian, were full of worship and admiration; this guy was a real genius to have actually kidnapped the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Did you do that deliberately?�� the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island questioned Ye Futian.


    ��Huh?�� Ye Futian pretended to be confused.


    ��Alchemy Laboratory,�� the Island Lord prompted.


    ��A complete misunderstanding. I just wanted to keep some medicine,�� Ye Futian replied, much aggrieved. The Island Lord glanced at him but said nothing further. The group continued moving forward, preparing to leave the Penglai Continent!

 Chapter 1953 - Promise

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the vast sea of ??clouds, the Black Wind Condor shuttled through the clouds and mist at an extremely fast speed.


    On the back of Black Wind Condor��s massive body, there was a group of people, some were sitting, and some were standing.


    The Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island was dressed in all red, standing in front, emanating a majestic elegance. Baimu stood quietly behind her. This time the fact that her master agreed to come along with him had shocked Baimu. Not only that, but her master even claimed that Eastern Deity Island might be handed over to Ye Futian in the future; this was holding Ye Futian in the highest esteem.


    Ye Futian sat quietly behind them, with Xia Qingyuan sitting on his left side, while Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang were on his right. Zi Feng sat alone in front near the head of the Little Condor. Occasionally, the Little Condor would tease her, but Zi Feng had no interest in engaging him.


    Such a group of people may seem like a strange combination, but they were interacting harmoniously.


    At the moment, Ye Futian was drinking with Beigong Ao. Of course, the wine was brought from Eastern Deity Island, precious delicacies with the Way hidden in the wine, one would be losing out to pass it over.


    ��Baimu, come and have a few drinks with us,�� Ye Futian said to Baimu, who was standing there.


    Baimu looked at Ye Futian, then at her master in front of her. Since the master was here, she still had to pay attention to her manners. If she was no longer the only one to accompany Ye Futian, she might be able to be a little more casual.


    ��Island Lord, the journey is long. Why not come over and have a few drinks?�� Ye Futian called out. The Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island turned her head and looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian smiled and said, ��The wine is from Eastern Deity Island; if you don��t drink it, then there will be more for me.��


    Baimu was somewhat speechless. This guy really didn��t hesitate to speak his mind. On Eastern Deity Island, no one dared to speak to her master like that.


    Her master seldom revealed herself, and she was not fond of words. However, she was authoritative and uncompromising, nonetheless, extremely decisive in her action. There were no simple folks who could cultivate to the pinnacle of Renhuang; their mind, means, and courage could not be affected by ordinary folks.


    The Island Lord walked over to Ye Futian and sat down in front of him. Ye Futian smiled and took out a wine glass to pour for her. He then raised his glass and said, ��Now we are all one family, and addressing you as Island Lord sounds way too formal. The Island Lord is older than me and a descendent of the Supreme Deity. As half of a disciple of the Supreme Deity, how about addressing you as Senior Sister in the future?��


    ������ Next to her, Baimu was dumbfounded. If Ye Futian was to call her master Senior Sister, then, did this mean she would have to call him Uncle-Master?


    This��


    Island Lord now became Senior Sister. This guy was so truly audacious!!!


    Beigong Ao lowered his head and smiled slyly. This kid was indeed quite a character, resorting to all these relations, such as this Senior Sister business.


    This relationship suddenly got a lot closer, and because the other party held Ye Futian in high regard, most likely they would not refuse him.


    Sure enough, the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island nodded and said, ��It��s up to you.��


    ��Then it��s settled.�� Ye Futian smiled and said, ��I, as the Junior Brother, should drink first.��


    As he spoke, he picked up the wine glass and drank the wine in one gulp. Seeing his action, the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island also raised the glass and followed suit.


    ��We are no longer in Eastern Deity Island, so we won��t address you as ��Island Lord�� anymore. How about Goddess Donglai? Please,�� Beigong Ao said, raising the glass with both hands. The Island Lord was a descendent of Supreme Deity Donglai, with the last name Donglai. Therefore, Goddess Donglai was a fitting title for her.


    Goddess Donglai had another glass and asked Beigong Ao, ��Why do you choose to follow him?��


    Beigong Ao was now in the Eighth Realm and had great opportunities at Eastern Deity Island. She wanted to know why Beigong Ao did not choose to return to his own continent to be number one, but choose to follow someone of a younger generation.


    ��Even Goddess Donglai is willing to accompany him to come out for trials. What reason do I have not to?�� Beigong Ao said with a smile. It was as if he didn��t say anything, yet everything was said. The reason was simple. Why would Goddess Donglai be willing to accompany him? Then Beigong Ao would have no reason not to do the same.


    The two were only one level apart, but there was, in fact, a huge gap between them. They were not at the same level, whether in status or strength.


    Goddess Donglai nodded; she understood that very well now.


    ��Sister, the memory I got from the Supreme Deity was a little fragmented; what happened back then? The other side went against Supreme Deity, but why leave Eastern Deity Island untouched?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��My father had some friends back then. The other party had done some unjustifiable deeds, and couldn��t go to the extreme and was subjected to some restraints,�� Said Goddess Donglai. Supreme Deity Donglai was a master-level top alchemist, with many friends and people who owed him favors, and some of them were powerful individuals.


    Ye Futian nodded. ��But such danger has always existed. This hidden danger was the reason why Eastern Deity Island had endured this for many years silently, avoiding any outings, just to accumulate strength?��


    ��Endure? Accumulate strength?�� Goddess Donglai glanced at him, and there seemed to be a self-deprecating smile on that stunningly beautiful face. ��I guess you are half-right. Not enduring in silence, but we dared not leave, dared not be visible. As for enduring in silence and accumulating our strength, it is probably just some wishful thinking on our part. Even if we accumulated enough power to sweep all of Penglai, it is meaningless. If we cannot produce a top figure, no one would pay any attention to us. Today��s Eastern Deity Island is unworthy.��


    As she spoke, she raised the glass and drank up by herself. Her tone seemed to be tinged with some sadness.


    Eastern Deity Island was unworthy.


    What others perceived as silent endurance was actually Eastern Deity Island��s wishful thinking. They did want to save their strength and improve themselves, but that made very little sense in reality. Unless there could be a peak existence one day��


    ��So���� Ye Futian listened to what the other said and started to understand a little better.


    ��So, there you have it,�� Goddess Donglai said. Ye Futian had given a glimmer of hope for Eastern Deity Island. On Ye Futian, she saw the potential for him to become a giant. Therefore, she was even willing to give him the entire Eastern Deity Island and accompany him for trials and cultivation.


    There was only one goal, and that was to help Ye Futian reach the top.


    At Eastern Deity Island, she had observed Ye Futian��s behavior and found that he was good to those around him. If she could assist him and turn over all of Eastern Deity Island to him, he would at least have a sense of belonging toward Eastern Deity Island. Whether he would be willing to take revenge on behalf of Eastern Deity Island was something else. Still, if he climbed to the top, Eastern Deity Island would be freed and would no longer be living in fear of moving around at will or being too visible and causing trouble.


    She had named Ye Futian as the second Island Lord, and she was willing to go so far as to abdicate and make way for Ye Futian in the future. Of course, it was all for a purpose. Handing Eastern Deity Island to him for preservation. This was the foundation left by her father, and she didn��t want to see it disintegrate one day and became the dust of history.


    ��If you reach the top one day, I will give you Eastern Deity Island. I hope you can accept it.�� Goddess Donglai��s beautiful eyes were looking directly at Ye Futian.


    Only at this moment did Ye Futian finally understood her intention. Eastern Deity Island was not enduring in silence, but it was the fear of being too visible. To teach the world of opportunity of the Great Path was only for recruitment purposes. Even if the Eastern Deity Island had recruited someone, not much could be changed. At the very least, someone like Jiang Jiuming would never agree to join Eastern Deity Island.


    Ye Futian was an exception. Perhaps it was fortuitous for Eastern Deity Island that such a person was sent to them.


    Everything was a destined coincidence.


    ��Very well, I accept.�� Ye Futian nodded and made a toast to Goddess Donglai. His feeling toward Eastern Deity Island was very good, as they had gotten rid of the Jun family for him. Even as he partook the elixir and swallowed the divine tree, they had never threatened him, including those alchemy masters who were really quite lovely to him. Eastern Deity Island had always treated him with honesty, so it was not like he was influenced by those beautiful goddesses and the Island Lord��


    After having received so many favors, it was so that he would take over Eastern Deity Island in the future. He had no reason to refuse such a request.


    ��Mmm.�� Goddess Donglai nodded. Ye Futian��s promise was much relief to her, so she replied softly, ��Thank you.��


    ��I should be the one to thank you,�� Ye Futian said. ��Senior sister, where are you planning on taking me this time?��


    The Divine Prefecture was vast. With Goddess Donglai as his guide on this trip, he need not worry about anything; Goddess Donglai was more familiar with the Divine Prefecture than him.


    ��It��s to pave the way for you,�� Goddess Donglai looked into the distance and whispered. She agreed to accept Ye Futian��s invitation this time because she had already given the matter a lot of consideration. Ye Futian��s appearance may attract the attention of their enemies, and if his performance was too dazzling, he might be in danger.


    Therefore, she immediately agreed to go along with Ye Futian.


    On this trip, she was going to take Ye Futian to the main continent in Donghua Domain, where there were old friends of her father. She intended to pave the way for Ye Futian so that if he were ever in real trouble in the future, there would be people who could protect him.


    Ye Futian didn��t ask much, just nodded casually, while several of them continued to drink. Below the clouds and fog, they could see parts of the continents from time to time. They were passing through continents, one after another, and met many other cultivators on the way. Basically, these cultivators were all existences of the Renhuang realm so that they could travel over continents!

 Chapter 1954 - Alchemy Emperor

    Before they knew it, they had been on the road for many days. Although it was a little monotonous at times, they had a few drinks here and there and chatted. Overall, it was a pleasant and easy time.


    ��One more cluster of continents, and we will arrive at our destination,�� Goddess Donglai said while standing in front, looking into the distance.


    ��Continental cluster?�� Ye Futian whispered.


    ��Mmm.�� Goddess Donglai responded, still looked forward. ��This vast area has a cluster of continents, all on the same massive plate, interconnected with one another, surrounding the main continent of the Divine Prefecture��the Donghua Domain, Dongxiao continent.��


    ��In actuality, this entire cluster of continents lies within the area of Dongxiao Continent, and almost all of them can be considered as a subsidiary of the Dongxiao Continent. This plate is self-contained but separated from each other.��


    Goddess Donglai continued, memories in her eyes. It was as if she was recalling a time long ago when she had come here with her father. She had stayed in Dongxiao Continent for some years, so she seemed to have a lot of knowledge about this vast and endless plate of land.


    The Black Wind Condor spread its wings and traveled fast over the tumbling clouds. They could see many cultivators because there was a continent right beneath them, and many cultivators were also traveling in the sky.


    After coming to the plate belonging to Dongxiao Continent, they could perceive that there were now many more cultivators, and from time to time they encountered others who were traveling in the void.


    As they continued moving forward again, they came to the sky above the mainland��s central area. Goddess Donglai��s divine consciousness diffused toward the sky below. Those brilliant eyes seemed to be able to penetrate the void and looked into the sky below and said, ��Down.��


    A flash went through Black Wind Condor��s eyes, and Ye Futian transmitted a thought to him. Suddenly, his body went into a dive and swooped down, headed toward this continent.


    ��Senior sister, didn��t we just reached the outer plate of Dongxiao Continent?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��To visit a friend. Strictly speaking, he can be considered as half of a senior brother to you,�� said Goddess Donglai. Ye Futian, a little taken aback, said, ��In the memory of the Supreme Deity, this disciple does not seem to have existed; could it have been just a fragment?��


    ��Not exactly a disciple, but someone he had instructed, so it counts as half of a disciple. His situation was different from yours,�� said Goddess Donglai.


    ��Understood.�� Ye Futian nodded and didn��t inquire further. He could guess a thing or two. It must have been a cultivator who was instructed by the Supreme Deity Donglai, so that even though it was not a real master-disciple relationship, he was considered a half disciple.


    It seemed that Supreme Deity Donglai had spent a lot of time in this area. The reason for Goddess Donglai��s journey here seemed to have something to do with this; they might have quite a few acquaintances at this place.


    The Black Wind Condor quickly broke through the clouds and mist and flew at a lower altitude, with a very clear vision of the buildings below.


    ��That tallest tower in front,�� Goddess Donglai said, and the Black Wind Condor flapped his wings fiercely, his body turned into a dark stream of light, moving in that direction. Soon, they came to the periphery of this building complex. Except for that tallest Sky Reaching Tower, many ancient temples were towering in the surroundings, like the complex of a royal palace, with a solemn atmosphere.


    ��Tower of the Alchemy Emperor.��


    Ye Futian glanced at the tallest Sky Reaching Tower, with three elegant characters engraved on it. They seemed to contain the power of the Great Path and were extremely eye-catching. The Tower of the Alchemy Emperor seemed to be the holy land for alchemy.


    Below the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor, it seemed that many people had gathered here, as if holding a banquet. A middle-aged man was sitting on the main seat on the stairs in front of Tower, wearing a robe of purple and gold. From him, a strong aura of mighty and great authority could be detected as he conversed animatedly with everyone around him.


    But at this moment, he seemed to have perceived something as he raised his head and looked toward the void. Those eyes penetrated the void directly and locked onto the position of the Black Wind Condor. At that instant, the Black Wind Condor suddenly seemed to be subjected to the Great Path��s terrifying coercion. His body swooped down as if out of his own control.


    However, the pressure disappeared instantly as the middle-aged man saw the person on the back of the Black Wind Condor. He stood up, and his eyes fell on the foremost figure on the back of the Black Wind Condor, Goddess Donglai.


    The pressure on the Black Wind Condor decreased sharply, but his body continued to dive downward nonetheless and came to the place of the banquet. In an instant, the eyes of many cultivators fell on the newcomers, a little surprised. They had swooped down from the sky and crashed their party. How rude was that?


    However, none of them spoke. Judging from their host��s movements and eyes, they seemed to be acquainted with one another.


    In the next moment, a smile appeared on the middle-aged man��s face. He smiled and said, ��After such a long time, I didn��t expect Junior Sister to be able to join us.��


    ��Junior sister?�� Many people looked interested. Everyone present knew that Alchemy Emperor was not taught by any master. If there was anyone close to it, it could only be the master alchemist himself��Supreme Being Donglai��who had instructed him many years ago. The Alchemy Emperor had always held him in the highest regard and referred to him as ��teacher�� and paid him the respect of a disciple.


    So, this junior sister��


    Could it be her?


    ��It��s been a long time,�� Goddess Donglai said.


    Ye Futian watched quietly. It seemed that this half a disciple of Supreme Deity Donglai was the top figure in this continent and had created the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor. Many of the guests at this banquet had strong cultivation skills, with quite a few of them being Upper Renhuang, and the aura of that middle-aged man was especially tyrannical. Judging by his perception, he should be a cultivator of the Ninth Realm at the peak of Renhuang.


    ��I didn��t expect Junior Sister to be here, come and take a seat,�� Alchemy Emperor said as he stood up and walked down from his seat to greet her personally. Goddess Donglai and her party landed and moved forward under everyone��s gaze.


    At the banquet, many people��s attention was focused over there, and someone said, ��Alchemy Emperor, aren��t you going to make an introduction?��


    ��Very well.�� Alchemy Emperor smiled and nodded. He led Goddess Donglai to his side and faced everyone, saying, ��This is my junior sister. When my master Supreme Deity Donglai was on his journey, I was fortunate enough to have met him, all of which made today possible. No doubt that all of you have heard what happened afterward.��


    ��Indeed.�� Everyone trembled in their hearts, knowing that the descendant of Supreme Being Donglai had actually left Eastern Deity Island and came here.


    Whatever happened at the time had caused a great disturbance. Although Eastern Deity Island and Penglai Continent were far away, they had all heard about the incident, and at the time, this continental plate was also involved.


    However, it was still unclear why the descendant of Supreme Being Donglai had come out from their lair this time.


    ��Greetings to Goddess Donglai.�� Many people stood up and bowing with their hands together, acting quite politely. As the progeny of a known clan, Goddess Donglai was a top figure of the Renhuang Realm, even if the fortune of the clan had waned considerably.


    Goddess Donglai nodded in return, as her gaze drifted to Ye Futian, who was next to her. ��Senior brother, allow me to introduce someone to you, Ye Liunian.��


    Alchemy Emperor looked at Ye Futian curiously and saw that his temperament was quite extraordinary. He concluded that he must be a genius talent. He nodded slightly at Ye Futian, ��One look, and one knows that our little brother is no ordinary folks.��


    ��Ye Liunian greets senior brother.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly for the Alchemy Emperor, which stunned the Alchemy Emperor so that he looked at Ye Futian and then at Goddess Donglai.


    ��He is considered to be an heir of my father��s,�� Goddess Donglai said.


    ��Master has an heir?�� Alchemy Emperor sounded surprised. Ye Futian looked so very young, and Supreme Being Donglai had fallen for many years. Even then, before his fall, no one had ever heard of him accepting a last disciple.


    ��Father left some inheritance, and was inherited by Liunian, so indeed he is father��s successor,�� Goddess Donglai said. Alchemy Emperor was a little surprised, but still, he nodded. ��I didn��t expect that I would have a junior brother. With Junior Sister and Junior Brother here, I will have someone to talk to, and I can have a good exchange of alchemy techniques with Junior Brother.��


    The people below were very surprised that the Supreme Being Donglai had actually left an inheritance. Now, the inheritance had been inherited by this man. Was it the art of alchemy?


    ��How dare I exchange with senior brother? I��m afraid it is I who need to learn from my brother.�� Ye Futian��s demeanor was humble and polite. Goddess Donglai glanced at him and didn��t speak��


    ��Brother Ye is young, but if you could inherit from the Supreme Being, you must have outstanding qualities. Your alchemy techniques must also be extraordinary, perhaps not much less than the Alchemy Emperor,�� a young man below smiled and commented.


    ��Supreme Being Donglai now has an heir. It is indeed a happy event.�� The old man next to him smiled and added, ��I wonder how many grades of alchemy are you capable of now?��


    The old man smiled gently, but his eyes were filled with brilliance. Ye Futian smiled and looked at the other. He replied, ��I am just beginning to dabble in the arts of alchemy, I dared not speak of alchemy, and I need to learn more from senior brother.��


    The old man nodded slightly, ��You are too humble. Even if you are just at the beginning, you have started higher than most. With the Alchemy Emperor��s guidance, your accomplishments are to be expected.��


    ��Let��s be seated.�� Alchemy Emperor seemed to be quite pleased, as he was full of smiles. He had seats prepared for Ye Futian and his party, which were arranged directly next to his. This demonstrated that the Alchemy Emperor��s closeness with Goddess Donglai and the others.

 Chapter 1955 - Traveling Together

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and his people sat down, following which the many virtuosos of the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor also took their seats.


    ��Actually, today��s banquet was meant for the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor; I did not expect you would be here too. It��s such a coincidence. A few days later, I will be bringing some of the practitioners here along with me to the Dongxiao Continent. Why don��t you join us?�� the Alchemy Emperor smiled and said as he sat down. ��On our journey this time, we definitely will be paying that person a visit.��


    The Donglai Goddess nodded her head slightly. Naturally, she knew who that person was; this was her goal for traveling to the Dongxiao Continent. Ye Futian represented the future of the Eastern Deity Island, and it was unfortunate that the Eastern Deity Island had a powerful enemy seeking revenge. She had to do something.


    ��It is really a fortunate coincidence this time; you came at the right time. If the senior knew that our teacher had an heir, he would definitely be joyous,�� the Alchemy Emperor smiled and said. That figure was friends with his teacher in the past, and they had a very close relationship. When his teacher passed away, the person felt deeply regretful. If he could see their teacher��s heir, he would probably be pleased.


    ��I came to find senior for this matter indeed,�� the Donglai Goddess said. ��I did not want to bring junior Liunian there myself.��


    The Alchemy Emperor let out a quizzical expression and looked at the Donglai Goddess with some curiosity.


    The Donglai Goddess continued, ��Senior, you also know what his personality is like. When has he ever cared about the superficial rules of the world? Of course, with Father��s position, I won��t have any trouble getting to meet him. However, I do not wish for that to be the reason that they could meet. Since we have met coincidentally here, then I can only ask to borrow a slot from senior.�� The Alchemy Emperor immediately understood her meaning.


    It seemed that she had great confidence in Ye Futian.


    As for the personality of that senior, he, of course, understood a little too. If Ye Futian was not exceptional enough and only relied on his status as the heir when he met the senior, even if he were willing to provide guidance, he would probably not believe that Ye Futian was deserving of the inheritance of the Supreme Deity Donglai.


    Since the Donglai Goddess said this, she meant for Ye Futian to first prove himself worthy before meeting the senior. However, that would only succeed provided Ye Futian was outstanding. Otherwise, he would just be eclipsed by all the other prodigies and appear all too common.


    The rest of the people at the banquet tensed a little upon hearing the Donglai Goddess��s words. Even though they had considered that this might be a possibility since the Donglai Goddess had said it herself that she wanted Ye Futian to also travel to the Dongxiao Continent.


    This meant that Ye Futian was going to take up a slot and become part of them.


    With the Dongxiao Continent as the center continent tile, it was natural that the surrounding continents would look up to the Dongxiao Continent. Furthermore, the good friend of the Supreme Deity Donglai was a truly exceptional figure from the Dongxiao Continent. He stood at the pinnacle even among the extremely powerful, and on this continent, he had an incomparably high status.


    Every year, each continent would send their prodigies to the Dongxiao Continent in the hopes that they would be able to cultivate at the Cultivation Court that he was at.


    ��Okay. Leave this matter to me.�� The Alchemy Emperor nodded his head in agreement. He could still decide on this matter; however, whether Ye Futian could get to meet him without using his status as the disciple of a Goddess of the Supreme Deity Donglai was another matter.


    Since it had already been decided, everything else would depend on Ye Futian himself.


    ��Since our little friend Ye is the disciple of the Supreme Deity Donglai, why is there a need to go through all this trouble? With such an important status, you could meet with the senior directly,�� an elderly man seated below suggested.


    ��Well, there��s no harm. He can treat it as an experience,�� the Alchemy Emperor replied. Hearing the reply, the elderly man kept silent.


    ��Since Emperor Ye obtained the inheritance from the Supreme Deity, surely he must have exceptional talent in alchemy. Even though Emperor Ye humbly claims to only be a beginner, but if he were truly common, how could he have obtained the Supreme Deity��s inheritance?�� a middle-level Renhuang smiled and asked. ��Today, among us all, there are quite a few people who are alchemists, seeking guidance from the Alchemy Emperor all along. Since we have been fated to meet, could we ask Emperor Ye for advice on the path of alchemy?��


    Ye Futian looked toward the person who spoke. It seemed like he was inquisitive about his alchemy skills.


    Who would not be curious about the heir of the Supreme Deity Donglai?


    Even the Donglai Goddess did not inherit her father��s position; rather, it was an outsider who did it.


    ��I have mentioned before that I have only just started down the path of alchemy. It was only recently that I even began trying my hand at refining elixirs. I don��t have much talent in this aspect. Regarding how I obtained the inheritance, it was probably sheer luck,�� Ye Futian replied, smiling. There was no need for him to show his true ability in alchemy; it would only cause him more trouble.


    ��Emperor Ye, there is no need to be overly humble,�� someone said with a smile. Since the Donglai Goddess brought Ye Futian from such a remote place to join the Dongxiao Continent, there was no way Ye Futian lacked in talent or strength.


    ��I am speaking only the truth; it��s not that I��m humble. Furthermore, seated before me today are so many virtuosos. How could I possibly be more skilled than you? I would only be embarrassing myself,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. He truly believed that his potential in alchemy was quite common and that there was nothing exceptional about it.


    As for showing off his alchemy skills here, he never practiced alchemy casually. In the past, when he refined elixirs, he did so because he had a practical need for the elixirs. Showing off his alchemy skills was meaningless to him.


    Hearing Ye Futian��s words, everyone understood that it was probably impossible to have him practice alchemy in front of them. This man hid his ability very well. They wondered just how skilled he was.


    ��Alright. Even though I originally arranged this gathering for you all, since my junior sister has coincidentally arrived, I shall not hold you back any further. In a few days, let��s head towards the Dongxiao Continent together,�� the Alchemy Emperor said. In fact, he was already hinting that he would like to end the gathering and for them to leave.


    Everyone certainly understood and respected his wishes, and one person after another got up to leave. Before taking their leave, several people still glanced at Ye Futian once more. They were full of curiosity about this heir to the Supreme Deity Donglai.


    After the crowd left, the Alchemy Emperor also rose and said, ��I��ll show you the way to the pavilion. You can rest there today.��


    The Donglai Goddesses also rose and followed behind the Alchemy Emperor. Apart from them, there were a couple of the Alchemy Emperor��s disciples. They were also staring at the Donglai Goddess and Ye Futian. However, they all knew their place and kept their mouths shut, not saying anything. They only followed silently.


    ��Since the outsiders are no longer around, can you tell me the truth? This time you decided against using Teacher��s status to get Ye Futian to meet with the old senior. How confident are you that by taking this route, Ye Futian would succeed?�� the Alchemy Emperor asked.


    ��100 percent,�� the Donglai Goddess replied, causing the Alchemy Emperor to halt for a moment. 100 percent? he thought.


    This meant that even if Ye Futian solely relied on himself, he could definitely still make it to the side of the old senior and cultivate with his guidance. With that accomplished, if he revealed his identity in the end, it would be a nice surprise for the senior.


    The Alchemy Emperor nodded his head seriously. ��Since you trust Ye Futian so much, I am suddenly a little excited. Junior Ye, since you have obtained Teacher��s inheritance, I hope you can inherit his position as well.��


    ��I��ll try my best,�� Ye Futian replied. The Alchemy Emperor did not say anything else and continued casually chatting with the Donglai Goddess.


    A couple of days later, an entire legion of practitioners departed majestically. This time, their numbers increased quite a bit. They were all headed towards the same destination: the Divine Prefecture, Dongxiao Continent. This was one of the main continents!

 Chapter 1956 - Wangdu

    The Dongxiao Continent was one of the strongest and most prosperous main continents in the entire Donghua Domain, and it was a member of the Seven Continents.


    There were countless powerful factions in the Dongxiao Continent. A place like the Penglai Continent was nothing extraordinary in the entire Dongxiao Continent. Here, there were countless families and clans with deep historical roots.


    Among the numerous factions, the one that stood above all was undoubtedly the Wangshen Watchtower.


    The name ��Wangshen Watchtower�� originated from a watchtower. In the past, there were two people who drank wine at the top of the watchtower while trying to diagnose each other��s vitalities, and thus the name ��Wangshen Watchtower�� arose. In the present day, the Wangshen Watchtower no longer referred to just that one watchtower. Rather, it was the name of the most powerful faction on the Dongxiao Continent. Located within it was the Millet Emperor Cultivation Court, the sacred ground of cultivation that countless practitioners were hoping to get into.


    At that moment, in the air above the Dongxiao Continent, a row of people was traveling majestically. They were Ye Futian��s group of people. Apart from them, the Alchemy Emperor and his followers were also there. Traveling together, their combined numbers were huge.


    From beyond the veil-like clouds, Ye Futian cast his glance downwards and saw tower after tower standing straight up. They were countless ancient palaces and divine pavilions. They were, however, not even in the main city of the Dongxiao Continent. This was just a city in a remote region in the continent, but even then, it boasted a strong force. Renhuangs were extremely common and could be found everywhere.


    The Divine Prefectures was immeasurably vast; even the Penglai Continent alone had above a thousand continents surrounding it. One could expect that the Dongxiao Continent��one of the main continents in the Donghua Domain��would have gathered numerous virtuosos from the entire Donghua Domain. Practitioners who had great strength would naturally flock towards places that were even stronger still. Naturally, this positive reinforcement strengthened the forces of the Dongxiao Continent.


    After they passed many cities, a mountain range appeared below them. It appeared strange and dangerous at the same time, and from within the range exuded a terrifying aura. Along the thousands of kilometers of mountain range, one could vaguely spot a cluster of pavilions. Obviously, there were people living there.


    ��Should we take a detour?�� someone asked the Alchemy Emperor. They all knew where they were. Within the Dongxiao Continent, the extremely powerful were located in various places. Right where they were was the Dragon Submission Mountain Range. In this mountain range, there was a villa located within it. The reason behind the name of this Dragon Submission Mountain Range was that even a real dragon had to crouch low in submission if it were to pass through this area.


    ��There is no need,�� the Alchemy Emperor replied. He was acquaintances with a few masters of the Dragon Submission Mountain Range. Nothing should go awry if they just passed through the area.


    As they were traversing the space above the mountain range, an overbearing aura shot straight into the heavens, and the roar of beasts reverberated through the entire space accompanied by the howl of a dragon. Unexpectedly, a divine dragon at the Demon Emperor stage rose into the air, accompanied by various vicious beasts. Someone stood on the Demon Emperor, and his gaze swept across the group as he asked, ��Who are you?��


    ��An old friend from the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor. We would like to pass through this area and hope you can be agreeable to our request.�� The Alchemy Emperor had an ethereal air about him. His voice permeated the entire mountain range and reached below him. In response, wisps of divine consciousness swept upwards from below. Ye Futian could distinctly feel a number of tendrils of divine consciousness descending upon and sweeping across him.


    ��Ah, so it��s my old friend who has come. Why don��t you come down and take a seat?�� a strong voice echoed out. A solemn-looking middle-aged man floated into the air. He had a stocky build and gave off a very dominant aura.


    ��Alchemy Emperor, where��s your sense of brotherhood? How can you not stay here for a few days when you are already here?�� A couple of silhouettes rose into the air again. They all exuded a terrifying aura. Ye Futian sensed that this mountain range actually had three level-nine virtuosos. It seemed that there were many terrifyingly strong virtuosos hidden in this Dragon Submission Mountain Range.


    The Dongxiao Continent was indeed a main continent; even just casually passing by, one could encounter such a strong force.


    From this, though, one could also tell just how high the status of a powerful alchemist was. The practitioners of the Dragon Submission Mountain Range were all rather friendly towards the Alchemy Emperor.


    ��There is a Dragon Submission Villa in the Dragon Submission Mountain Range, and in it lived three lords of the villa. They are all well-versed in the art of beast taming,�� the Donglai Goddess telepathically introduced the people they encountered to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded his head lightly. It seemed that even though the Donglai Goddesses had always isolated themselves on the Eastern Deity Island, they had never cut off communication with the outside world. In fact, it was also possible that she headed out frequently.


    He glanced at the beasts again. They were all Demon Emperor levels. The specialty of the Dragon Submission Villa was in beast taming, but in this aspect, there might not be many people who were more skilled than he was.


    ��This time, we are rushing for time to head towards Wangd. So, we won��t be stopping here. Next time when the chance arises, I will pay you a visit again,�� the Alchemy Emperor said.


    The land of Wangdu, also known as Wang City, was the largest city in the Dongxiao Continent. Its name was derived from the Wangshen Watchtower located inside. In the past, Wangdu was not even among the top ten cities in the Dongxiao Continent. However, due to the influence of the Wangshen Watchtower, Wangdu was able to develop rapidly, and gradually it rose to become the top city in the entire Dongxiao Continent.


    ��Mmm, that��s right too,�� the villa lords nodded. ��Since that��s the case, then we shan��t hold you back anymore. Just as nice, there are quite a few juniors in the villa who want to take a look at the outside world. Alchemy Emperor, how would you like to bring along a few of them and show them the world?��


    As he spoke, he turned his head to look at the row of people behind him and said, ��Didn��t you all want to go to Wangdu? You can learn a little from your senior the Alchemy Emperor on the way there.��


    A few people walked up. They all had an extraordinary aura about them and were all Renhuang level practitioners. Bowing slightly to the Alchemy Emperor, they said, ��Greetings to senior Alchemy Emperor.��


    Ye Futian looked towards them. These people were really shrewd; they were all Renhuang practitioners already, surely there was no need for someone to babysit them? They were using it as an excuse. Their main purpose was to build a relationship with the Alchemy Emperor. After all, making an acquaintance with an alchemy grandmaster can only be beneficial.


    ��Alright,�� the Alchemy Emperor nodded.


    ��Thanks for the trouble then.�� The villa lords expressed their gratitude.


    ��Nah, we are just traveling together; it won��t be troublesome in the least bit,�� the Alchemy Emperor replied casually. The Villa lords of the Dragon Submission Vila were all at the ninth-level. In the entire Dongxiao Continent, this could already be considered one of the top-tier factions. He certainly understood that there was no need for him to take care of them.


    ��We will leave now.��


    ��Alright.�� The other party nodded. ��Please.��


    As he finished speaking, he looked at the few practitioners from the villa and said, ��Remember to learn as much as you can from your senior.��


    ��Understood.�� The practitioners nodded their heads quickly. The Alchemy Emperor and his entourage once again departed. This time, not only were they joined by a few more people from the Dragon Submission Villa and their mounts, which were also all Demon Emperors.


    Among them, a youth cloaked in black was riding a black dragon, exuding a terrifying aura. The black dragons�� huge eyes turned towards the Black Wind Condor below Ye Futian. Although it was completely uninterested in the condor, when the dragon looked up at Zi Feng, curiosity seemed to vaguely form in its eyes. Apparently, it had discovered that Zi Feng was also a demon.


    While they were traveling, the practitioners from the villa introduced themselves. As they chatted casually, they got more familiar with each other. Among them, the key persons were the three practitioners who were the descendants of the three villa lords, namely Lin Qiu, Han Tie, and Leng Ye.


    Lin Qiu��s aura had a tinge of the splendor of demons. He had exceptional features and was the son of the eldest villa lord. He was a middle-level Renhuang. Wearing a robe, he appeared to have an extraordinary air about him.


    ��And these few seniors here are��?�� Lin Qiu asked as he looked at the Penglai Goddess and Beigong Ao behind the Alchemy Emperor. He was a little curious about them. In particular, the Penglai Goddess gave them an extraordinary feeling. She looked gorgeous and noble, and she had a fearsome aura about her.


    ��She��s my junior,�� the Alchemy Emperor answered without further elaboration.


    ��Greetings to my senior.�� Hearing the Alchemy Emperor��s words, Lin Qiu bowed towards the Penglai Goddess, who nodded her head lightly in response.


    He then turned his glance towards Ye Futian and saw that this white-haired youth was very relaxed and casual. Ye Futian was drinking his wine quietly at the side and appeared to be extremely carefree. The fragrance of wine wafted past Lin Qiu, causing a pleasant feeling to well up within him. He guessed that this white-haired Renhuang was a disciple of the Alchemy Emperor��s junior.


    However, it was also rude to ask about everyone��s identity, so he smiled and said, ��That is some good wine. If you don��t mind, can I try a cup?��


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He retrieved a flask of wine, and encasing it in the power of the Great Path, sent it floating towards Lin Qiu. The flask came to a stop in front of him.


    ��Please,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. Since a Renhuang had actively asked for a cup of wine, he would naturally not be stingy.


    It seemed that this Lin Qiu had a pretty straightforward personality.


    ��Thank you.�� Lin Qiu smiled in return. Popping open the wine flask, he raised it toward Ye Futian and said, ��Dragon Submission Villa, Lin Qiu.��


    ��Ye Liunian.�� Ye Futian raised his cup in response. As for what his identity was at that moment, even he was also unclear, and so he only introduced himself by his name. Even though Lin Qiu could not get any information of Ye Futian��s origins from his self-introduction, he did not mind it either. He swallowed the wine in one gulp. He and felt that his body felt extremely comfortable as the powers of the Great Path coursed through his body.


    ��This is some great wine,�� he commended. Indeed, Ye Futian was related to the Alchemy Emperor. He could taste that the wine came from a faction that refined elixirs. Lin Qiu thus thought that Ye Futian should be the disciple of the Alchemy Emperor��s junior.


    ��Let��s all have a few drinks together.�� Ye Futian passed the wine to Han Tie and Leng Ye as well. He appeared very generous. The Donglai Goddess at the side took a look at him.


    Just how much quality wine did this rascal take from the Eastern Deity Island? she thought to herself. ��He has been drinking it like water all this time on our trip, and yet there��s still more. Now, he has even invited others to drink it with him as well.��


    However, she did not really mind it. After all, the Dragon Submission Villa was not a miniscule faction. There was no harm in Ye Futian making more friends.


    The Dongxiao Continent was vast, so it took them several days to traverse an endless distance and finally reach the main city of the Dongxiao Continent��Wangdu.


    When they arrived above Wangdu, they slowly descended from the air and traveled at a much lower distance above the city. Ye Futian glanced at the city below him as he sat on the back of Black Wind Condor. He saw numerous pavilions built on the ground. Among the people walking on the pavements and streets, Saint-level practitioners were all too common. In fact, many of them were at the Renhuang level.


    They have finally arrived at Wangdu of the Dongxiao Continent, one of the main continents in the Donghua Domain.


    The arrival of an entire group of virtuosos drew the gaze of many people. These new arrivers had an extraordinary air about them. They seemed to be really strong. Even in Wangdu, they could still be considered to be very strong. However, their attention was short-lived; the people of Wangdu were not particularly curious. After all, there were numerous virtuosos in Wangdu, and from time to time, extraordinary people would come. The local practitioners were used to it.


    Ye Futian felt a little excited. He had already been in the Divine Prefecture for a couple of years. However, he had mostly been cultivating these few years. Now that he had come to the Dongxiao Continent, he could finally be considered to be making contact with the core region of the Divine Prefecture.


    Next, he might be able to contact the major top-tier factions, and this contact might prove to be extremely relevant to everything that happened in the Original Realm!

 Chapter 1957 - He Knows a Little

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and his group settled down in a tavern upon entering Wangdu. The taverns of Wangdu were as luxurious as palaces, and they were extremely comfortable. Although practitioners could technically live without eating, drinking, or sleeping, they couldn��t travel non-stop without limit. Furthermore, many needed to cultivate, so a place to stay was necessary.


    The palace was located right at the top of a beautiful mountain peak. Around the mountaintop, various other palaces were scattered around. There was order within the disordered arrangement, and the scenery was stunning, and it was tranquil, so certainly, it was a very suitable place to cultivate.


    Of course, this mountain located right at the center of Wangdu was not a natural structure; rather, it was manmade.


    Ye Futian walked to the edge of the palace. He was on the face of the mountain, and the entirety of the prosperous ancient city was in his view. This was likely the most prosperous city that he had ever visited; even the Original Realm��s largest city could not begin to compare to this.


    ��Shall we take a walk outside?�� Lin Qiu asked as he stopped beside Ye Futian. They had become more familiar with each other on their journey, especially after having bonded over wine.


    ��Sure,�� Ye Futian replied. Lin Qiu looked towards the people behind him and asked, ��Since everyone has followed the Alchemy Emperor all the way here from the Taiyuan Continent, why don��t we go out for a stroll and take in the view of Wangdu?��


    They had been cultivating in the Dragon Submission Mountain Range of the Dongxiao Continent all this while, so they had certainly visited Wangdu more than once before. They would more or less be familiar with this place.


    The Alchemy Emperor had also visited Wangdu a couple of times before, and it was because of his journey here that he got to know the villa lords of the Dragon Submission Villa. Actually, most of those at the pinnacle of Renhuang-level cultivation in this continent tile knew each other. After all, there weren��t that many people who had attained such an advanced level of cultivation.


    ��Sure,�� everyone nodded. Even though the Alchemy Emperor had been to Wangdu several times, it was the first time that the youths from the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor visited this place. They all wanted to explore this city with countless of years of history, this ancient city that slowly became the top city in the entire Dongxiao Continent.


    ��Let��s go,�� Lin Qiu walked to the black dragon and climbed on its back. The dragon instantly let out a mighty roar and flew straight forward. The others also followed closely behind, traversing on air. However, they all kept their altitude to a minimum to more clearly take in the sights of Wangdu.


    Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan stood on Little Condor��s back. The wind blew straight at them, and their long robes fluttered behind them. They were casually taking a tour of the place, so they weren��t flying very quickly.


    ��Where do you all want to go? I know this place a little. I can show you around,�� Lin Qiu said as he looked at the people traveling in the air beside him.


    ��Nah, we don��t have anywhere particular in mind. Let��s take a stroll,�� replied a follower of the Alchemy Emperor.


    ��Alright, then let��s do that,�� Lin Qiu nodded and began to lead the group at the front. A short while later, they saw an extensive infrastructure in front of them. In it, many virtuosos were gathered, and it was very crowded. There were viewing platforms at the top of the infrastructure, and there were quite a few people seated there, watching what seemed to be an ongoing battle.


    ��What��s that place over there?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��That is the Heavenly Battle Palace,�� Lin Qiu replied. ��It��s a place where people pit their skills of the Path against each other. Every day, countless practitioners will head here to battle others, and with time, this place has become a pretty renowned place in Wangdu. Mostly, Saint-level practitioners would spar with each other. Once in a while, there will be Renhuangs too.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head. Practitioners all loved to battle. Back in Emperor Xia��s Realm, there was also a Jiutian Temple, which was also a sacred sparring ground. Having encountered a very similar place here was thus no surprise. Furthermore, the people sparring were all a lot stronger. Any random person he picked out in the grounds was likely to have attained the Saint-level, and there were even Renhuang virtuosos partaking in sparring.


    ��Do you want to take a look?�� Lin Qiu asked.


    ��Ah, there��s no need,�� Ye Futian replied. Having been through countless fights himself, he was not very interested in this.


    ��Okay.�� Lin Qiu continued forward. They passed by several different places. One of them had stairs that rose tens of thousands of feet into the heavens. At the top, there was an ethereal aura of deities. Lin Qiu looked in that direction and explained, ��This is the Goddess Peak. The goddesses in the goddesses residing there all have extremely high cultivation levels. This faction was founded by a very powerful person. In Wangdu, many practitioners fantasize about the goddesses from this Goddess Peak.��


    ��How many top-tier factions with a similar level of power are there in Wangdu?�� Ye Futian asked curiously. The Penglai Continent had several such powerful factions, and needless to say, the Dongxiao Continent certainly had numerous. However, he was curious how many such factions are there in this one main city Wangdu.


    ��I have not actually explicitly tried to count before, but according to what I know, the number stands between twenty to thirty,�� Lin Qiu said nonchalantly. Ye Futian felt a ripple course through his heart.


    ��That��s nothing to be surprised of, actually. Considering the prestige of Wangdu in the entire Donghua Domain, virtuosos from countless continents would gather here, and naturally, many powerful factions will be formed. Furthermore, this is the strength of this city even after the collapse of the Heavenly Path. It is said that before the catastrophe, there were numerous Tianshen-level figures. I can��t imagine just how that period was like,�� Lin Qiu said.


    Ye Futian nodded his head. Cultivating was difficult, but the number of humans in the world was massive and limitless. Even if the rate of success was extremely small, powerful figures could still emerge. As time passed, practitioners also grew stronger, and top-tier Renhuangs would also become more numerous.


    Furthermore, once anyone got to this level, as long as they were a little careful, they would also not die easily.


    The group continued forward. In the air, people were traveling in mid-air continuously, and they were all virtuosos at various levels of cultivation. They noticed that at that moment, several people were all headed in a certain direction. It seemed like something had happened.


    ��Let��s go take a look,�� Lin Qiu said, and then instantly moved in that direction. They noticed that below them, many virtuosos were heading in the same direction, gathering in a certain spot. They saw that structure after structure had been built into the ancient mountain in that area, looking very majestic.


    At that moment, many practitioners were gathered in front of the ancient mountain. Some were floating in mid-air, while others were standing on the ground, looking at the sight in front of them.


    ��This�� is this alchemy?�� Ye Futian let out an expression of surprise. A strong fragrance of elixir wafted out from there. At the front of the ancient mountain, many people were refining elixirs. A hot aura permeated the air around them, shrouding the vast space.


    ��This is the Alchemy Divine Palace, the sacred ground of alchemy in Wangdu,�� Lin Qiu said as he looked at the people beside him, who were all alchemists too. It was sheer coincidence that they had arrived here. He did not intentionally bring them here but rather was merely following the flow of people.


    A number of them glanced at Lin Qiu. It was obvious that they doubted that it was sheer coincidence. However, Ye Futian did not think too much about it. They moved closer to the outer circle to observe and saw many practitioners refining elixirs. Furthermore, all of the alchemists were Renhuang-level figures.


    ��What are they doing?�� Ye Futian asked. ��Shouldn��t alchemists be practicing their craft quietly in alchemy towers? These were Renhuang alchemists they were talking about; why would they be refining elixirs in public?�� Ye Futian thought quizzically.


    Naturally, they were not doing this to show off their abilities.


    ��This should be the alchemy convention organized by the Alchemy Divine Palace. These people are most likely alchemy grandmasters from various places. Alchemy grandmasters are rare in the world of cultivation. The Alchemy Divine Palace could be considered the top sacred ground of alchemy in the Dongxiao Continent. Back when the Supreme Deity Donglai was still alive, no one could compare to the Penglai Eastern Deity Island. However, ever since he passed away, the Alchemy Divine Palace had been pushing for itself to be recognized as the authority of alchemy. They have ambitions to become the most powerful alchemy faction in the Donghua Domain,�� a follower of the Alchemy Emperor explained to Ye Futian. He was a disciple of the Alchemy Emperor, and so he knew a little about the world of alchemy.


    The Alchemy Divine Palace had become extremely renowned. As an alchemist himself, he naturally knew about it, and in fact, knew quite a bit about this faction.


    Ye Futian nodded his head. No wonder there were so many practitioners and virtuosos gathered here. All practitioners wanted to make acquaintances with alchemy grandmasters. Since there was an alchemy convention being held here, naturally many people did not want to miss the opportunity and had all come here.


    ��How are their alchemy abilities?�� Lin Qiu looked at Ye Futian and asked with a little curiosity. He guessed that Ye Futian was a disciple of the Alchemy Emperor��s junior, and if he was right, then Ye Futian should also be an alchemist.


    The people beside him also glanced at Ye Futian. Lin Qiu did not know that Ye Futian was the heir of the Supreme Deity Penglai that he just mentioned. They were also very curious about Ye Futian��s alchemy abilities. He claimed to be only a beginner and was not really well-versed in alchemy. They didn��t know just how much of it was true.


    Ye Futian looked in that direction and said, ��Not too bad. They can all refine elixirs of the same level as their own cultivation level, so they are eligible alchemists.��


    An alchemist could be considered average if he could refine elixirs of the same level as their own cultivation. As their cultivation increased, their alchemy abilities would also increase. Alchemists who could refine elixirs that had a higher level than their own were considered genius alchemists.


    As for those who could refine elixirs that had levels that were way above their own cultivation, they would be considered inhumanely prodigious.


    Prodigies like Ye Futian were not common at all. Furthermore, his combat abilities far surpassed his cultivation level as well.


    ��That��s a cocky tone,�� someone nearby commented as he glanced at Ye Futian. The alchemists who could participate in the alchemy convention were all very skilled. Yet, Ye Futian��s judgment was that they were only ��not bad�� and could pass as alchemists.


    Just barely eligible alchemists? the person thought.


    ��Do you also know how to refine elixirs?�� someone else asked.


    ��A little.�� Ye Futian was not too bothered by them. He nodded as he smiled lightly!

 Chapter 1958 - Arrogant Words

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Do you know a little, or do you know nothing at all?�� the other party continued after hearing Ye Futian��s conversation. ��Everyone who is participating in today��s Alchemy Conference is an alchemy grandmaster. If you only know a little about alchemy, then it��s best if you don��t lightly pass judgment.��


    ��Mmm, old mister, you are right/�� Ye Futian smiled and nodded his head. He did not say much else but just watched quietly.


    Furthermore, more people were gathering over here. At the front, the ethereal aura of deities permeated the mountain range. The fragrance of elixirs got stronger by the second as more alchemists managed to refine elixirs successfully. The radiance of the Great Path emanated from the elixir pills, causing the onlooking crowd to cheer with joy.


    ��Are there rewards to be gained from this Alchemy Conference? Why would so many alchemists come here?�� Ye Futian asked. Alchemists who were skilled in their craft were all very arrogant, and most hated refining elixirs in front of others. Moreover, there was no need for an audience if they just wanted to practice alchemy.


    It thus follows that there was something for them to be gained by participating in this Alchemy Conference.


    ��Of course,�� Lin Qiu nodded. ��According to what I know, the Alchemy Divine Palace would always give out rewards every time they host a conference like this. It could be alchemy techniques, or Flames of the Path, or priceless elixir recipes. Of course, there��s also the possibility of getting valuable alchemy materials and ingredients.��


    ��They are all treasures that alchemists love.�� Ye Futian nodded his head lightly.


    ��For many years, the Alchemy Divine Palace had used the Alchemy Conference to absorb many virtuosos into their ranks. Some were alchemists who wanted to join them, while others were practitioners who wished to obtain elixirs. In any case, the Alchemy Divine Palace grew in strength continuously. Now, even in this main city Wangdu, they could be considered one of the top-tier factions. It��s been said that the old man in the Alchemy Divine Palace had been completely focused on cultivating for a long time without caring about anything else and that he could be trying to shoot for the next cultivation level. Others say that he was refining elixirs to help himself break through to the next cultivation level,�� Lin Qiu said telepathically. After all, these rumors should not be mentioned publicly.


    ��Ahh, I see.�� Ye Futian nodded. He continued to look in the same direction.


    As time passed, more elixirs were being refined, but even so, the crowd was still focused on only two of the alchemists among the participants. Ye Futian noticed that the two alchemists�� names were the most commonly mentioned in conversations; they were definitely in the spotlight.


    One of them was a middle-aged man in long, violet robes. He looked to be in his forties. He was very stable and calm when refining elixirs. He had the air of a grandmaster. His Flame of the Way was an extremely domineering violet lightning flame. He was a rather powerful alchemist in Wangdu and was honorably known as Grandmaster Zi He.


    The other person was significantly younger than him; he looked to be only in his thirties. With a pale, clear face, he looked like a scholar. His Flame of the Way had a golden hue. The area surrounding him burnt hotly; the golden Flame of the Way morphed into golden dragons that circled his alchemy cauldron.


    From the snippets of conversation among the crowd around, one could tell that this man was an alchemist from the Alchemy Divine Palace. As members of the organizing faction, they were also eligible to participate in the Alchemy Conference.


    ��Zhong Fan is indeed the direct disciple of the Palace Lord. He had already grasped the essence of the Nine Dragons Elixir Breath technique. The elixirs that he refines are probably going to be of an extremely high level. I can��t wait to see it,�� someone said. He obviously had high expectations for this Renhuang named Zhong Fan.


    ��The Nine Dragons Elixir Breath technique is an alchemy technique from the Alchemy Divine Palace. The Alchemy Divine Palace had proclaimed that technique to be the best in the entire Dongxiao Continent,�� Lin Qiu telepathically explained. ��It��s a pity that after the Supreme Deity Donglai passed away, the Eastern Deity Island closed itself off from the rest of the world. As such, the alchemy techniques developed by the Supreme Deity Donglai were all but lost; no one from the outside world had ever witnessed them. Even though the Alchemy Emperor was also a disciple of the Supreme Deity Donglai, he had not successfully managed to inherit the Supreme Deity��s techniques.��


    As he communicated telepathically, Lin Qiu had a sudden epiphany. Indeed, the Alchemy Emperor had been the Supreme Deity Donglai��s disciple at some point in time. In that case, does that mean his junior would also be��


    As this thought formed in his mind, there was a sudden change in how Lin Qiu looked at Ye Futian. Continuing along this line of reasoning, if the Alchemy Emperor��s junior was the Supreme Deity��s daughter, then does that mean that Ye Futian was the heir of the descendants of the Supreme Deity?


    ��Wait. You wouldn��t happen to be the grand-disciple of the Supreme Deity Donglai, would you?�� Lin Qiu suddenly asked.


    Ye Futian looked at him, smiled, and shook his head. ��Nope.��


    Did I guess wrong? Lin Qiu thought to himself. In that case, what is his identity?


    He obviously would not guess that Ye Futian was a disciple of the Supreme Deity Donglai since Ye Futian was so young. After all, the Supreme Deity had already passed away for many years, so there was no way they would have met each other. Lin Qiu also had not heard of any news that the Eastern Deity Island had an heir.


    Boom�� At this moment, the powers of the Thunder of the Great Path gathered in the skies above the alchemy grounds ahead. Countless lightning strikes blinded the area, and they all struck Grandmaster Zi He��s cauldron. With the blinding radiance of lightning as a witness, a bead of concentrated lightning emerged, levitating softly in the air. This bead of lightning was baptized with limitless Thunder of the Great Path, and it exuded an incomparably gorgeous divine radiance.


    ��That elixir looks so strong. It��s almost like a divine bead.�� Many people gasped in wonder. Even though grandmaster Zi He did not join any alchemy faction, many people believed that he could stand at the pinnacle of the alchemy world.


    Oin�� Streaks of light radiated outwards, and that elixir swallowed the radiance of the Thunder of the Great Path. Above the elixir, the glow of the Great Path appeared, and violet lightning cascaded around the entire space.


    ��Level seven.��


    Many people gasped in wonder. Grandmaster Zi He was a level six Renhuang, yet he had managed to refine a level seven elixir. Furthermore, he had managed to overcome the step between the middle-level to the high-level. His alchemy skills could be considered to be terrifyingly good already.


    ��You are the Grandmaster Zi He, indeed,�� praised an extremely powerful virtuoso on the ancient mountain. ��A level seven elixir, and such a high grade too. One day, Grandmaster Zi He will definitely be able to refine top-tier elixirs.��


    ��Senior, you flatter me.�� Zi He performed a fist-salute in the direction of the virtuoso.


    At this moment, a terrifying phenomenon occurred in another place. Nine golden dragons appeared outside a certain cauldron. A beam of violet-gold light shot straight up into the clouds. The golden dragons breathed fire at the cauldron, and light of the Great Path radiated. A rumble reverberated outwards from the cauldron, and a golden elixir floated out slowly from the cauldron.


    The Flames of the Great Path breathed out by the nine dragons were continuously being absorbed into the elixir. In the end, even the nine dragons flew into the elixir, causing it to let out an ethereal dragon��s roar. The elixir appeared to have a particularly overbearing power.


    Accompanying the radiance of golden light, when the elixir completely formed, a radiance glowed and stretched into the distance. The roar of a dragon could be heard, and one could almost see true dragons circling about the inside of the elixir.


    ��Level six, top-grade,�� a few people whispered among themselves. He was so close to a level-seven elixir. However, Zhong Fan was only a level-five Renhuang. It was already very rare for an alchemist of his level to refine a level six, top-grade elixir.


    ��Even though I had put in my all, it seems that I am still unable to compare to Grandmaster Zi He.�� Zhong Fan looked at Zi He and smiled lightly. He was generous in admitting his inferiority.


    ��Haha, you are too humble. As a level-five Renhuang, you have managed to refine a level-six top-grade elixir. Your alchemy abilities are certainly not below mine. I only have the advantage of a higher cultivation level. This does not prove that I am more skilled than you,�� Zi He politely replied.


    ��You two don��t have to praise each other anymore,�� an alchemist at the side laughed. ��In this Alchemy Conference, the top two alchemists can be no one else but the two of you.��


    ��Grandmaster Zi He should be the first,�� Zhong Fan smiled and said. His generosity made him very likable.


    ��Having seen the Nine Dragons Elixir Breath today, my horizons have really expanded. In the Donghua Domain, it is tough to find a technique of a similar level,�� Grandmaster Zi He replied. The two of them continued to commend each other.


    ��Since grandmaster is the victor in this conference, would you like to practice this technique together? I would be able to seek your guidance in the future as well,�� Zhong Fan asked, extending an invitation to him. Since Zi He was the victor of this Alchemy Conference, as long as he was willing to join the Alchemy Divine Palace, he would have the opportunity to learn this technique.


    ��Grandmaster Zi He, the Alchemy Divine Palace needs you,�� an elderly person on the ancient mountain invited. Grandmaster Zi He looked up into the ancient mountain and then lightly bowed in respect. ��It is my honor to join the Alchemy Divine Palace.��


    ��Welcome, Grandmaster.�� Many people on the ancient mountain smiled. They had managed to persuade another alchemy grandmaster to join their ranks. Furthermore, this newcomer was one with significant potential.


    ��Welcome, Grandmaster Zi He,�� a youth walked over and said with a smile. Seeing this man appear, everyone��s eyes turned to him. He was the current top genius of the Alchemy Divine Palace, rumored to be the heir to the palace lord of the Alchemy Divine Palace, the future palace lord, Qi Mu.


    Zi He looked at Qi Mu. He understood that this time the Alchemy Divine Palace had given him enough face. Qi Mu did not participate in the Alchemy Conference was because a chance had been given to him; they had wanted to invite him to join the Alchemy Divine Palace. With such courteous treatment from them, it would be a bit rude to still reject them. So, he chose to join the Alchemy Divine Palace.


    ��With Grandmaster Zi He joining our ranks, the Alchemy Divine Palace would certainly pull ahead of all other factions in the world of alchemy. All the powerful alchemists in the entire Donghua Domain are now in among our ranks. What a joyous occasion!�� Qi Mu announced with a smile.


    The people around were all rather excited. The Alchemy Divine Palace definitely had huge ambitions. However, the Alchemy Divine Palace today certainly is not a faction that any other alchemy faction could even hope to compare to.


    ��How arrogant.�� A soft voice echoed out. Even though it was rather quiet, many people heard it, and those who did were looking around for the source of the voice. Qi Mu��s gaze also turned toward the crowd. Many people voluntarily moved out of his line of sight. Ye Futian and his group appeared.


    The person who voiced out his disapproval was none other than a practitioner from the Alchemy Emperor Tower, a disciple of the Alchemy Emperor.


    With such an arrogant announcement, the Alchemy Divine Palace had completely ignored all other alchemy factions, including the Alchemy Emperor Tower. Furthermore, there was still the Eastern Deity Island. Even if the Supreme Deity Donglai had passed away, it would be too much to say that all the exceptional alchemists in the Donghua Domain now belonged to the Alchemy Divine Palace.


    ��You are?�� Qi Mu looked at him and asked.


    ��Who I am is unimportant. It is just that what you said just now was a little too cocky.�� The disciple��s name was Liu Chuan. He looked at Qi Mu and said, ��Even when the Supreme Deity Donglai was still alive, he had never made such an outrageous proclamation before.��


    Ye Futian looked at Qi Mu. What he said might just have been a slip of the tongue, given the celebratory atmosphere just now. However, it was nonetheless overly arrogant and contemptuous towards all the other alchemists in the world!

 Chapter 1959 - Level Too Low

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Liu Chuan��s words made everyone in the area around them temporarily go silent. The Alchemy Divine Palace was holding an Alchemy Conference on that day and had enlisted the help of Grandmaster Zi He, so the area was quite busy. Everything was relaxed and pleasant, and thus some flattery would only be natural.


    No one could have possibly imagined that someone would stand out from the ground and make things so awkward.


    After all, even the people of the Alchemy Divine Palace would not seriously say their alchemical creations were more powerful than those of Supreme Deity Donglai. That would only be deceiving themselves as well as others.


    ��Even all those years ago, Supreme Deity Donglai had already ascended. His alchemical skill was unparalleled. He certainly would have the advantage in terms of the plane he was on. But in terms of level, even when Supreme Deity Donglai was there, Eastern Deity Island would not necessarily have been stronger than the Alchemy Divine Palace.��


    At that moment, a group of people was standing in the sky above the mountain. Among them was a middle-aged man with his arms crossed over his chest. He looked down on everyone, then looked towards Liu Chuan and the others and said, ��Moreover, Eastern Deity Island is no longer here. They are in the past. Nowadays, if one wishes to find alchemy in the Donghua Domain, one only has to look to the Alchemy Divine Palace. All the outstanding alchemy masters of the Dongxiao Continent are there. It would not even be a stretch to say that all the best alchemists in the world are there.��


    This figure��s aura was exceedingly strong. Although his manner was calm, he carried a sense of solemnity about him. All those around him had fierce auras as well. They were guests who had been invited by the Alchemy Divine Palace. They were cultivators from Qin He Palace, another force on the Dongxiao Continent.


    Qin He Palace was one of the forces that Lin Qiu had spoken of. They had received invitations and come as guests since they had always maintained good relations with the Alchemy Divine Palace. It was only normal for them to say a few words in praise of the Alchemy Divine Palace at a time like this. Even top forces were willing to ally themselves to a powerful holy land for alchemy.


    ��Of course, it would be a stretch to say that,�� said Liu Chuan, looking him, his gaze clashing with that of the middle-aged man��s in mid-air. The force of their gazes was as powerful as a storm. ��The Alchemy Divine Palace is a holy land for alchemy, and I will not deny their alchemy skill. However, the Dongxiao Domain is vast, and there are many capable people there. Supreme Deity Donglai is gone, but Eastern Deity Island is still here. How do you know that there are no powerful alchemy masters there? There are many alchemical masters in the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor on the Taiyuan Continent, and they are not necessarily inferior to those of the Alchemy Divine Palace.��


    Many of the cultivators of the Alchemy Divine Palace were looking at Liu Chuan. Although the names of Supreme Deity Donglai and Eastern Deity Island were still prestigious, they did not carry very much threat with them. Moreover, they were in Wangdu.


    One of the elders looked at Liu Chuan and said, ��So, are you from the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor?��


    Upon hearing the old man��s words, everyone gasped, and there was a slight commotion.


    The Tower of the Alchemy Emperor was one of the top alchemy forces of the Taiyuan Continent. Its master was said to have extraordinary attainments in alchemy and was thus called the Alchemy Emperor. Now he had opened up a top alchemy force on the Taiyuan Continent. It was said that the Alchemy Emperor was Supreme Deity Donglai��s heir.


    Many people knew that the Alchemy Emperor often came to the Dongxiao Continent.


    Was this person who was the speaking one of the Alchemy Emperor��s people?


    This was very interesting. What would happen if the people of the Alchemy Emperor and the Alchemy Palace met in the same place?


    Now it seemed that they would find out.


    ��Yes,�� said Liu Chuan to the other man.


    The elder up in the sky smiled and said, ��I have heard that the Alchemy Emperor was taught by Supreme Deity Donglai. The Alchemy Emperor is indeed powerful, but no one in the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor can take up his mantle. Other than him, the power of the other alchemists there is in doubt. As for Eastern Deity Island, I don��t know much about them. Since you are a student of the Alchemy Emperor and have come here to this alchemy conference, why don��t we test you? You and Zhong Fan create alchemy together, and we will see just how high level the alchemists of the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor are.�� He would not use his own alchemical power to bully Liu Chuan. After all, they were all people of status, and it would not be proper to use his power to bully someone weaker than him.


    Although Zhong Fan had previously lost to Zi He, he was still of a very high level of alchemy. Within the Alchemy Palace, there was no one other than Qi Mu who could overcome him.


    ��I��ll do it,�� said Zi He. ��Since I entered the Alchemy Palace, that makes me a member of the palace. I have long heard the name of the Alchemy Emperor and have always wanted to have a chance to find out how powerful he is. Now that I have come across one of his disciples, why don��t we find out who��s alchemy is stronger?��


    ��If Grandmaster Zi He is willing, then I have no objections,�� said the elder from the Alchemy Palace with a smile. Zi He was the foremost person at the Alchemy Conference, even stronger than Zhong Fan.


    Liu Chuan was silent. He knew his own alchemy level very well, and he was probably quite a bit weaker than Zi He. It would likely not be possible for him to defeat him.


    But now, his opponent was taking the initiative, so he would have to go and test his alchemy. If he refused to rise to the challenge, what would that make him?


    Moreover, a confrontation between alchemists would naturally be settled with alchemy.


    ��I have cultivated under the Alchemy Emperor, but I am unskilled in alchemy. However, if you would like to test me, then, by all means, let us continue.�� Liu Chuan was trapped between a rock and a hard place. If he refused, it would not only be his own face that he was losing.


    His figure flashed as he stepped forward quickly. Zi He looked at him and said, ��Please sit.��


    ��Thank you,�� responded Liu Chuan. He sat cross-legged in mid-air. An alchemy cauldron appeared before him, and flames of the Way filled it in a flash. At the same time, alchemical herbs flew into the cauldron.


    Grandmaster Zi He did the same, unveiling his alchemy cauldron and controlling the sacred flames of the Great Path until they burned brightly with perfection.


    Under the might of the Thunder God, no one could see what Liu Chuan was doing. What was even more amazing was that as Zi He performed alchemy, the light of the Great Path of Thunder covered the area, even the area where Liu Chuan��s alchemy cauldron was. He seemed to be getting slower, and every action was slower than the one before it.


    Boom! The power of the Great Path of Thunder fell from the sky, directly into his alchemy cauldron. Soon, a bright pill appeared, floating in the air and emanating the power of the earthly Great Path. It was similar to the previous pills, but it showed Grandmaster Zi He��s skill and care.


    However, on the other side, Liu Chuan was looking very worried. His alchemy cauldron was shaking incessantly.


    Bang! A sharp noise rang out. Then a burning smell permeated the area. Liu Chuan��s face was ashen, and he felt extremely embarrassed. He had lost this contest of alchemy. His opponent may have disrupted him, but a loss was a loss. He could not even control his alchemy.


    ��You could not even refine and complete your pill. I respect the Alchemy Emperor greatly, but are all those who study under him as weak as you?�� Zi He��s voice had grown cold, and he spoke with great sarcasm. He seemed to have instantly become stern and overbearing as he lashed out at Liu Chuan.


    Liu Chuan did not know whether to retreat or move forward, and he felt very embarrassed. He sat stiffly in mid-air.


    ��When you return, make sure you spend a few more years studying under the Alchemy Emperor before you come back here and be so arrogant again,�� said Zi He coldly in his powerful voice. He seemed completely different than before.


    Liu Chuan had not produced an alchemical pill and thus had no response for his opponent. His heart was filled with sorrow and a hint of bitterness. Grand Master Zi He has used him as a stepping stone to trample upon the Alchemy Divine Palace.


    ��Go away.�� Zi He flicked his sleeves. Liu Chuan returned to his people, his head lowered slightly. He did not look at anyone.


    Everyone around them began discussing what had just happened. Their words were a little harsh.


    ��It looks like all the heroic alchemy masters of the Donghua Domain are here in the Alchemy Divine Palace. There is no question of that,�� someone said. The fact that a cultivator, who had studied under the Alchemy Emperor, had given such a poor showing disappointed many people.


    But Lin Qiu was looking at Ye Futian. His expression had remained casual this whole time. If this man was truly an alchemy master, was he thinking about getting involved right now?


    ��Are the alchemy masters of the Donghua Domain really this weak?�� came another soft voice. The voice was very quiet, but everyone still heard it. Looks of astonishment came over their faces, and they looked at the woman who was speaking. It was Beigong Shuang, who was seated beside Ye Futian.


    With a single sentence, she had insulted all the alchemists of the Donghua Domain!

 Chapter 1960 - Show His Skills

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was stunned as well. He knew Beigong Shuang well enough to know that she was not really mocking anyone by saying this; she was just speaking to him. But cultivators had excellent hearing, and they could perceive everything she was saying.


    Thus, all the people watching from the mountain range around the Alchemy Divine Palace turned their gazes towards her.


    A look of surprise came into Beigong Shuang��s eyes. She still wanted to question Ye Futian. After all, she had seen him perform alchemy, and these people here were far inferior to him. Even as a lower level Renhuang, he was able to create pills that upper-level Renhuangs would desire. But from what they had heard, this place was the foremost alchemy holy land, and it was said that all the skilled alchemists in the Donghua Domain were here. Thus, it must be that all the alchemists in the Donghua Domain were weak.


    ��Where are you from that you would dare speak so arrogantly?�� The cultivator from Qin He Palace unleashed the power of the Great Path, which fell directly upon Beigong Shuang. It was like an invisible hand was pressing down from the sky and grabbling the Great Path of Space. This put Beigong Shuang under a great amount of pressure.


    Beigong Ao took a step forward, standing in front of Beigong Shuang. The Great Path of Thunder swept out from him, and lightning flashed from his eyes, piercing towards his opponent. Their gazes locked. They were both of the eighth tier. An invisible aura swept out.


    ��Do you have doubts about the arts of the Alchemy Divine Palace themselves, or do you think the alchemists are simply too weak?�� Zi He had crushed Liu Chuan in terms of his alchemy, but he still turned his gaze to Beigong Shuang when he heard her voice. The power of the Great Path seeped out from him.


    ��What are you all doing?�� said Lin Qiu, stepping forward and looking at all of them. ��You all have said that the greatest alchemists of the Donghua Domain are gathered here at the Alchemy Divine Palace. Since you are allowed to boast so, can she not also voice her opinion?��


    ��Who are you?�� Zi He��s gaze fell upon Lin Qiu.


    ��That is Lin Qiu of the Dragon Submission Mountain Range,�� said Zhong Fan from beside Zi He. He naturally recognized the other. The Dragon Submission Mountain Range was one of the top forces of the Dongxiao Continent. He had seen Lin Qiu in Wangdu before.


    Lin Qiu��s people and the Alchemy Emperor��s people were mingling together, obviously trying to make friends with each other. After all, who would not want to make friends with a powerful alchemy force. It was just like Qin He Palace and the Alchemy Divine Palace.


    Zi He looked at Lin Qiu. No wonder he had dared to walk out here; he was a member of the Lin family of Dragon Submission Mountain Range. The three lords of Dragon Submission Villa were all ninth tier Renhuangs, so powerful that ordinary forces would not dare offend them. Of course, the Alchemy Divine Palace was not an ordinary force.


    ��People from the Dragon Submission Mountain Range and Tower of the Alchemy Emperor on the Taiyuan Continent have come here today to cause trouble, it seems,�� said the old cultivator from the Alchemy Divine Palace who was standing up in the air. ��Or perhaps the alchemy masters of the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor want to continue testing themselves?��


    ��We just happened to be passing through,�� answered Lin Qiu with a smile.


    ��Just passing through?�� answered the man, turning his gaze to Beigong Shuang. ��Then what did what you just said mean?��


    Beigong Shuang did not know what to say. She looked to Ye Futian, who said, ��If you want to say something, just say it.��


    ��I had observed that your alchemy powers were rather commonplace and was asking why this was called the foremost holy land for alchemy in the Donghua Domain. Are all the alchemists in the Donghua Domain so unskilled?�� asked Beigong Shuang, but she was a little doubtful. Was it possible that she was mistaken, for she had only seen Ye Futian perform alchemy before? Perhaps he was just extraordinarily skilled?


    However, hadn��t Ye Futian just barely learned alchemy? Although he was very talented, for him to already be better than them would be impossibly quick. And these people were known as the best alchemy holy land in the Donghua Domain. Why did she feel there was such a large gap between their alchemy and Ye Futian��s?


    Previously, on Eastern Deity Island, Ye Futian had casually made alchemical pills that were far beyond his level. Although the ones he had created when he had first started were not the finest quality, they were still quite good.


    ��The ignorant speak their minds without fear. This is truly shameless talk,�� came an elder��s cold voice. He looked at Beigong Shuang and said, ��Since you think our alchemy is weak, let us see how good yours is.��


    ��No, I will not,�� responded Beigong Shuang.


    Her words stunned everyone. Many of them smiled. She said no? Yet she mocked the alchemical ability of the Alchemy Divine Palace?


    ��You say you won��t show us your alchemy, and yet you dare mock us?�� Zi He��s gaze pierced through Beigong Shuang.


    ��But he will.�� Beigong Shuang turned to Ye Futian, shocking him. Was she selling him out?


    Suddenly, everyone��s gaze turned upon Ye Futian, including Liu Chuan and the other cultivators who followed the Alchemy Emperor. Ye Futian had previously said that he did not understand alchemy, that he was only a beginner at it, but now, Beigong Shuang said he would show them his alchemy. Did this mean that Ye Futian was actually skilled at alchemy? Otherwise, Beigong Shuang would not have said anything.


    ��Are you a disciple of the Alchemy Emperor as well?�� Zi He asked him.


    ��No, I��m not,�� said Ye Futian with a shake of the head.


    ��Since your friend has seen fit to mock us, why don��t you go ahead and show us how good your alchemy is,�� said Grandmaster Zi He.


    ��I have not been studying alchemy for long, so I do not have a great understanding of it. Perhaps now is not a good time,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Why don��t you speak plainly? You wish to leave, don��t you?�� said the cultivator from Qin He Palace coldly. His power filled the area where Ye Futian and the others were standing.


    Lin Qiu and the others took a step forward. Lin Qiu swept his gaze over everyone, saying, ��Why are you doing this? If she wants to leave, are you really going to keep her here?��


    The Alchemy Divine Palace was powerful, and they had invited many forces here to make allies, but the people of Dragon Submission Villa were no pushovers.


    Moreover, since they had already allied with the Alchemy Emperor, it would be impossible for them to make friends with the Alchemy Divine Palace; otherwise, they would be fair weather friends.


    ��Yes,�� said the cultivator from Qin He Palace. ��If she does not explain herself, she will not be allowed to leave.��


    ��When has Qin He Palace ever been this overbearing? Moreover, have you become a vassal of the Alchemy Divine Palace?�� mocked Lin Qiu. But the other man ignored him. He was staring at Beigong Shuang.


    She had said something so presumptuous and thought she would be able to leave here easily?


    Ye Futian looked over at him and said, ��Although I do not have a great understanding of alchemy, the level of the alchemy that I just observed here did seem to be a little low. Would you like me to give an account of myself?��


    Everyone was shocked when they heard him say this so casually. The level of the alchemy at the alchemy conference was a bit low?


    Everyone else was speechless. This alchemy conference had been held mainly for Grandmaster Zi He. He was thought to be the alchemist with the most potential in all of Wang City. And Zhong Fan of the Alchemy Divine Palace was here as well. Their levels were, in Ye Futian��s opinion, a little low?


    Moreover, judging from his tone of voice, he seemed to have some plan in mind. He seemed to be dismissing the strength of the other alchemists here.


    ��Sheer arrogance!�� All the alchemy masters attending the conference stared at Ye Futian, looking livid. He had offended all of them by these words.


    ��That is truly arrogant. If that is the case, then let us see how good your alchemy is,�� said a mid-level Renhuang coldly to Ye Futian, staring at him. This alchemist was proud of his own ability and had often been flattered by others.


    ��I will wait and said,�� said the cultivator from Qin He Palace to Ye Futian. And he was not the only one. Everyone on the mountain was looking at Ye Futian. Could this man who had come here casually really be a powerful alchemist?


    Ye Futian took a few steps forward. Zi He stepped backward, and Zhong Fan and the others made way as well. They all watched Ye Futian. They wanted to see just how strong this man��s alchemy was.


    Ye Futian waved his hand, and suddenly, an alchemy cauldron floated in the air in front of him. Next, a current of the Great Path spread out from him. The Flames of the Great Path filled the cauldron in an instant.


    The brilliant flames were suffused with a divine aura. It was as if they were immortal fire. Ye Futian took some herbs and put them in the alchemy furnace, using the flames to dissolve them. He sat there, cross-legged, his eyes closed. He seemed calm and self-possessed and very casual.


    ��His flames are very strong���� Everyone��s expressions changed as they watched. From what he was doing, they could tell just how strong his flames were.


    The image of a phoenix seemed to appear within the flames along with a divine tree. It seemed to be growing inside the cauldron.


    Zi He��s gaze suddenly froze. As an alchemy master, he was very sensitive to the flames of the Way. When Ye Futian started, he could feel just how extraordinary his flames were.


    This man was not as simple as he seemed.


    Ye Futian performed his alchemy very casually, constantly adding more herbs to be burned in the cauldron. He was light and carefree. It was as if he truly were a student first learning alchemy, but the herbs he was using were no ordinary herbs.


    Everyone in the vast space before the mountain watched him do his alchemy, but he seemed not to care. He seemed completely casual, or maybe this was how he always did alchemy.


    ��Is he really going to do it like this?�� asked someone attending the Alchemy Conference. ��He is not using any special techniques?��


    ��It��s just like I said, I don��t really understand alchemy,�� answered Ye Futian with a smile. But in reality, he was controlling the power of each and every flame within his cauldron.


    The flames grew hotter, and lines of the power of the Great Path flowed into the cauldron. The tree grew older and larger and a cyclone gradually formed within the cauldron alongside it, making screaming noises emit from it constantly. This was the roar of the Great Path.


    The tree continued to grow, spreading out from the cauldron. It was suffused with a life aura. Everyone saw that wherever its branches enveloped, there seemed to be brilliant light blooming. As the divine light grew fiercer and fiercer, they could see that a pill was growing within it and transforming into a piece of fruit.


    In a flash, the light of the Great Path covered a vast area, making everything seem mystical and magical. The pill fruit was shining brilliantly like a divine fruit of the Great Path.


    ��This���� Everyone��s expression changed to one of shock. The fruit was absolutely flawless.


    Ye Futian waved his hand and took the fruit within it. Suddenly, the rays of the light of the Great Path disappeared. Ye Futian looked at everyone and said, ��I don��t understand alchemy very well, but I hurriedly created this pill. Naturally, it cannot be compared with those of the alchemists of the Alchemy Divine Palace. After all, all of the alchemical talent in the Donghua Domain is gathered there. However, the alchemy level being performed here at the Alchemy Conference was rather low up ��till now. Thus, you all must not have been performing up to your usual standards.��


    Everyone was plunged into silence when they heard Ye Futian��s words. His mocking tone left them all speechless.


    They had asked Ye Futian to show his skills to them. Now that he had done so, would the Alchemy Divine Palace be satisfied?

 Chapter 1961 - Take Care of One’s Pride

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the vast region, countless gazes landed on Ye Futian. He did not know how to concoct pills?


    Also, Ye Futian claimed that he had only been concocting pills for a short while. Was he toying with Alchemy Divine Palace?


    Zi He stood there speechless. As an alchemy master, he naturally could tell the grade of a pill. He could sense what grade the pill that Ye Futian concocted was at. The pill that Ye Futian concocted was most likely on par with the one that Zi He came up with. However, Ye Futian was only a fourth-tier Renhuang.


    Could it be that this fellow had a flawless Divine Wheel, and his Way was without any blemish?


    On top of Zi He, there were many other cultivators who were mavens present. From a glance, they could tell that Ye Futian��s skill of refining pills was extraordinary. Now that Ye Futian had demonstrated his skill, it was indeed proven that none of the alchemy masters present at the Alchemy Conference were comparable to him. Even Grandmaster Zi He would most likely pale into insignificance when compared to Ye Futian.


    Since when did such a young alchemy grandmaster arise?


    Concocting pills was a time-consuming process. It was rare to encounter a young and skillful alchemy grandmaster. Qi Mu of Alchemy Divine Palace was an exception. His talent was one in a million. However, yet another exceptional alchemy master had appeared now.


    All the cultivators, who were proficient in concocting pills, from Donghua Domain were gathered in Alchemy Divine Palace?


    If that was the case, how about this youth?


    Let alone the cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace, even the cultivators from Taiyuan Continent, who accompanied Alchemy Emperor on his trip, were stunned. Before this, they had asked Ye Futian before whether or not he was proficient in concocting pills. Ye Futian told them that he had a rudimentary understanding of the matter and wasn��t really good at it. Was this what he meant by being ��not very good at it��?


    Ye Futian merely concocted a pill casually, and the result was a pill of this grade. Was this what he called ��a rudimentary understanding?�� How would those elderly cultivators, who had devoted their lives to concocting pills, think of this?


    Ye Futian was the heir of Supreme Deity Donglai, a cultivator who had trained on Eastern Deity Island!


    The cultivators from Taiyuan Continent thought of Ye Futian��s identity. The descendent of Supreme Deity Donglai had personally led him here. From the looks of it, their judgment of Ye Futian had been clouded due to their prejudice towards him. If Ye Futian was really an ordinary cultivator, would Goddess Donglai have brought him here? Moreover, Goddess Donglai was prepared to introduce him to the Millet Emperor.


    Based on the current situation, it seemed like they had come prepared.


    Of course, the cultivators from Taiyuan Continent would not tell the rest Ye Futian��s identity. The cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace were pompous, and they looked down on other alchemy factions in the Donghua Domain. They disdained even the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor. Ye Futian��s action this time was considered delivering a lesson to them.


    The cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace ought to know that their place was not the only place where powerful alchemy grandmasters could be found.


    ��Who are you?�� asked Qi Mu from Alchemy Divine Palace while looking at Ye Futian. Qi Mu��s temperament was good, and he was well-mannered. He didn��t reveal any hint of malice; he was purely curious about Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian visited the place along with the disciples of Alchemy Emperor. It would be common if Ye Futian said that he was the heir of Alchemy Emperor. However, Ye Futian had denied that. If so, what was his identity?


    With Ye Futian��s skill in concocting pills, most likely very few people could contend with him even in Alchemy Divine Palace.


    ��I��m Ye Liunian, a fledgling alchemy master,�� Ye Futian responded with a smile.


    ��Ye Liunian,�� Qi Mu mumbled. ��You must be joking. With such superb skills in refining pills, I am sure you must have devoted yourself in this area for many years. Alchemy Emperor is a top alchemy grandmaster whom I have always admired. It is normal for the Emperor to have an heir like you.��


    Qi Mu��s words were aimed to feel Ye Futian out. Qi Mu held on to his speculation that Ye Futian was a disciple of Alchemy Emperor. It was just that Ye Futian did not admit it before this. Hence, when Qi Mu talked to Ye Futian this time, his eyes were locked onto Ye Futian��s. Qi Mu wanted to see how Ye Futian would reply to him.


    ��Regardless of whether you believe or not, I have indeed only started concocting pills for a short period of time. I came in contact with the art just a few years ago. I am also not a disciple of Alchemy Emperor,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. He knew that the other party was curious, but he did not reveal anything, leaving them to their own speculation.


    ��Are you interested in joining Alchemy Divine Palace to cultivate?�� Qi Mu asked. ��Now, in the Donghua Domain, Alchemy Divine Palace is considered the top holy land for concocting pills. In Alchemy Divine Palace, your pill-concocting ability will be fully developed.��


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. Was this Qi Mu inviting impressive alchemy masters to join Alchemy Divine Palace whenever he came across them?


    Before this, Zi He had extended him an invitation. Now, Qi Mu was also doing the same.


    Ye Futian felt that the way Qi Mu phrased his invitation sounded weird. Alchemy Divine Palace would fully develop his talent?


    ��Qi Mu, from your tone, you make it seem as though that Alchemy Divine Palace has cultivated many more alchemy masters with superior abilities compared to him,�� said Lin Qiu with a smile beside them. ��Fully develop his talent? How many people in Alchemy Divine Palace have pill-concocting ability that can compare to him? Why does he need to join Alchemy Divine Palace?��


    Lin Qiu already knew Ye Futian��s identity. His previous speculation had not been off the mark.


    Ye Futian was not from the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor on the Taiyuan Continent. He was from Eastern Deity Island in the Penglai Continent.


    That maiden was the descendent of Supreme Deity Donglai.


    Ye Futian might be her disciple and might have received the teachings passed down from Supreme Deity Donglai. Supreme Deity Donglai was the top alchemy grandmaster in the Donghua Domain back when he was alive. Would his heir need to be enrolled in Alchemy Divine Palace to learn the art of concocting pills?


    This Qi Mu actually claimed that Ye Futian should join Alchemy Divine Palace not to waste his talents. Only God knew where Qi Mu gained his confidence from.


    Even up until this moment, Qi Mu seemed to bear an air of superiority. He believed that the Alchemy Divine Palace was the best holy land for concocting pills in the Donghua Domain. Hence, all the powerful alchemy grandmasters had to join the Palace.


    ��Aside from Alchemy Divine Palace, it is very difficult for other forces to help him improve his pill-concocting ability to the next level,�� Qi Mu calmly replied, ignoring the mocking tone in Lin Qiu��s voice. He looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Although not many people in Alchemy Divine Palace have greater attainments in concocting pills compared to you, we still have many incredible alchemy grandmasters. You can exchange ideas with them. In the future, we can also regularly have discussions on the methods of concocting pills.��


    On the ancient mountain, an elder who had come here said, ��Ye Liunian, if you are willing to join Alchemy Divine Palace, we can provide you with the best resources for cultivation. We can even ask the Palace Lord to personally instruct you in concocting pills. How about it?��


    Ye Futian looked at the other party. These people were courteous. Ye Futian originally had concocted the pill to challenge Alchemy Divine Palace. Yet, after seeing the level of his pill-concocting ability, they had actually offered him invitations one after another. They wanted him to join Alchemy Divine Palace to cultivate and had not viewed him with animosity.


    Most of the time, their animosity towards each other was due to their different stances. If Ye Futian joined Alchemy Divine Palace, he would naturally be on the same side as the other party.


    ��Although the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor has Alchemy Emperor to hold the fort, it is still not considered the true holy land for concocting pills. It lacks the resources. Alchemy Divine Palace is the most suitable place for you. With your level of pill-concocting ability, you should not miss this opportunity,�� another person said. This caused the people in the space to reveal strange expressions.


    Their academic discussion had descended into poaching Ye Futian.


    They wanted to undermine the members of Alchemy Emperor and get Ye Futian to join their Alchemy Divine Palace to cultivate.


    ��Everyone, your suggestions are quite moving. However, I am not that interested,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. He rejected the other party��s invitation directly. Why would he join Alchemy Divine Palace to cultivate? Setting aside his relationship with Alchemy Emperor, Ye Futian was originally from Eastern Deity Island. He was the Eastern Deity Island second Island Lord and the heir of Supreme Deity Donglai. How could he join Alchemy Divine Palace?


    The members of Alchemy Divine Palace were also somewhat full of themselves and looked too highly upon themselves. They believed that Alchemy Divine Palace was the most powerful holy land for concocting pills. It was as though missing this opportunity to join them would be a huge loss. He might learn many things if he joined Alchemy Divine Palace, but Ye Futian did not believe that he had the energy to focus on this. The inheritance that Supreme Deity Donglai gave him was already sufficient.


    Ye Futian rejected Qi Mu��s offer!


    It seemed like Alchemy Divine Palace had failed to recruit him.


    Qi Mu saw that Ye Futian had rejected them. He looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��Since that is the case, please concoct your best pill, sir. Why don��t we compare our work?��


    Since Ye Futian was unwilling to join Alchemy Divine Palace, he was here to stir up trouble and to prevent their Alchemy Conference from wrapping up. If so, Qi Mu would make his move and compare his work with Ye Futian.


    Countless gazes looked over in their direction. Many people revealed excited looks. The top alchemy genius figure of Alchemy Divine Palace was personally stepping out. What grade would the pill he concocted be at? If Ye Futian went all in, how would the pills that the two of them concocted compare?


    However, Ye Futian merely cast an indifferent glance at the other party and answered, ��I��m not interested.�� As he said this, he immediately turned and left.


    Before this, he was forced to concoct pills by the other party. To appease them, he had to do it.


    Now, Qi Mu wanted to compare works with him? When would this end?


    Qi Mu frowned. Numerous cultivators from Alchemy Divine Palace unleashed their auras. Lin Qiu and his group took a step forward. As he scanned the crowd, he said, ��What��s happening now? Could it be that the cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace are bad at alchemy and are now prepared to forcefully make others stay?��


    ��Let them leave,�� ordered the elder of Alchemy Divine Palace, who stood on the ancient mountain. Immediately, many cultivators retracted their auras and allowed Ye Futian��s group to leave. They had no reason to keep Ye Futian and his group around today. Countless people were watching the cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace. If they forcefully made Ye Futian stay, they would only bring shame onto Alchemy Divine Palace.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said to his companions. His group turned around and walked towards the exit.


    ��Is your ability in concocting pills really strong? Aren��t they weak?�� asked Beigong Shuang ��innocently�� as they were leaving. When the crowd heard her comment, countless cultivators had their eyes dead set on her. Those alchemy grandmasters itched to seize Beigong Shuang and give her a good beating. Didn��t this girl understand the etiquette of taking care of the pride of others?


    Why would she humiliate them before she left?


    Ye Futian glanced at Beigong Shuang, speechless.


    ��In the future, I shall visit you. We can learn the Way of Alchemy from each other.�� Qi Mu��s voice sounded from afar and was transmitted into Ye Futian��s ears. Clearly, the other party did not plan to leave this be!

 Chapter 1962 - Invitation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and his group continued walking around Wangdu. They then returned to their inn. However, according to Lin Qiu, they had only covered a small part of Wangdu.


    As the main city of the Dongxiao Continent, Wangdu was expansive and had countless cultivators.


    Even so, news of Ye Futian��s group had spread very quickly. It was for no other reason than the Alchemy Conference of Alchemy Divine Palace receiving a lot of attention. Everything that occurred during the conference would naturally be known far and wide very quickly. Soon, it was being discussed in taverns big and small.


    Many people now knew that Alchemy Emperor had also come to Wangdu. Alchemy Emperor��s descendants had also come into conflict with an alchemy grandmaster of Alchemy Divine Palace and even managed to suppress him. Some people said that Alchemy Emperor had done this on purpose, sending people to disturb the Alchemy Conference to prove his pill-concocting ability.


    However, some people also believed that Alchemy Emperor was above doing so and that the members of Alchemy Divine Palace had spoken out arrogantly in the first place. They had boasted that most of the talented alchemy masters in the Donghua Domain were from Alchemy Divine Palace. They ignored the existence of Alchemy Emperor and the other alchemy forces. That was why the disciple of Alchemy Emperor could not take it.


    However, Alchemy Emperor did not know about this. While Ye Futian was out strolling, Alchemy Emperor and Goddess Donglai went to Wangshen Watchtower to visit the master there, Millet Emperor.


    Ordinary people would naturally not be able to meet the Millet Emperor easily, but Goddess Donglai could. She was the heir of Supreme Deity Donglai. Supreme Deity Donglai and Millet Emperor were good friends. Many years ago, when Goddess Donglai was still young, she had been close with Millet Emperor and called him Uncle. Millet Emperor would always embrace her. Their relationship was naturally intimate. It was just that after things occurred to Supreme Deity Donglai, Goddess Donglai had always remained in seclusion on Eastern Deity Island. Many years had passed, and their relationship had grown distant.


    After Alchemy Emperor and Goddess Donglai returned, many people came to see them in the palace. The number of people who came grew. Many of them were renowned figures of Wangdu. Alchemy Emperor could only receive them. After that, only did he know that Ye Futian��s group had stirred up trouble in Wangdu and that they had directly offended Alchemy Divine Palace. This made him speechless.


    Right now, in the banquet area in the palace, an elder smiled at Alchemy Emperor and said, ��Now, Alchemy Divine Palace is the largest alchemy force in Wangdu. Alchemy grandmasters are being drawn to it. It is difficult for the cultivators from the outside to obtain even a pill from them. This has caused Alchemy Divine Palace to grow more and more arrogant. Now that Alchemy Emperor has come, it is good for someone to knock them down a few notches. They should understand that Alchemy Divine Palace is not the only alchemy force.��


    This cultivator was clearly dissatisfied with Alchemy Divine Palace. After hearing this, Alchemy Emperor was somewhat speechless. It seemed that he had been dragged into this mess.


    Many people believed that Ye Futian was intentionally sent by the Alchemy Emperor to stir up trouble in Alchemy Divine Palace and sully their image.


    ��That is right. That person proclaimed himself the top alchemy master after Supreme Deity Donglai and is even more arrogant. Alchemy Emperor is the heir of Supreme Deity Donglai. Your ability will certainly not be weaker than his,�� said another person. This was all just fancy words to appease Alchemy Emperor.


    However, in reality, the Alchemy Emperor knew his own strength. Rumor has it that the person in Alchemy Divine Palace was already aiming to break through to the next Plane. That person��s pill-concocting ability was extremely proficient. In terms of level, it should be above that of Alchemy Emperor��s. After all, many years ago, the other party had been an incredible alchemy grandmaster.


    Alchemy Emperor naturally did not take such praise to heart.


    ��Everyone, there seems to be a misunderstanding. Liunian is neither my disciple nor an alchemy master of the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor. I did not send him to the Alchemy Conference of Alchemy Divine Palace. This matter should just be a coincidence,�� Alchemy Emperor explained. Such an explanation was meaningless as those who had misunderstood would still misunderstand. Nevertheless, Alchemy Emperor was not so free to find fault with Alchemy Divine Palace on this trip and stir up trouble.


    ��He isn��t?�� someone said as they revealed a strange expression. He looked at Alchemy Emperor and said, ��Then, who brought up such an outstanding and monstrous alchemy master?��


    Alchemy Emperor would not lie to them on this. If Ye Liunian were his disciple or cultivated in the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor, Alchemy Emperor would not deny it.


    ��Regarding that, I will not say anything on the matter. Please understand,�� Alchemy Emperor said as he saluted with his fists. This caused the crowd to be even more curious. Could Ye Liunian��s master be one of the powerful alchemy grandmasters who kept low profiles?


    They could not figure out who it could be.


    ��Could we meet Little Friend Ye?�� someone asked with a smile.


    ��I��ll ask him,�� Alchemy Emperor replied as he instructed a person beside him. The person left and, not long after, Ye Futian��s group arrived. Ye Futian glanced at the group of people before him. They were all senior figures with upper-level Renhuang cultivation.


    ��Seniors, Junior Ye Liunian bids you all well,�� Ye Futian said with a smile as he bowed politely. Although Ye Futian��s ability was not below that of many senior figures, he was still a junior figure. He should not forgo the necessary courtesies.


    ��He has a good temperament,�� someone praised when he saw Ye Futian. Ye Futian was dressed in white robes and had white hair. He appeared extraordinarily handsome. Ye Futian��s temperament alone gave off an outstanding vibe. One could tell that he was a prominent figure at a glance.


    ��He is such a prominent figure. He must be from a powerful background. I wonder which master managed to cultivate such an extraordinary talent,�� someone else praised. He was trying to dig up Ye Futian��s identity. Ye Futian indeed gave off such a vibe. With such temperament, he appeared to be a descendant of a powerful clan.


    Based on Alchemy Emperor��s tone, that should be the case.


    ��Seniors, all of you are praising me too highly,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile as he greeted them back. He similarly did not answer the other party��s question.


    ��Little Friend Ye��s alchemy techniques are outstanding. Even Grandmaster Zi He was rendered speechless,�� someone said with a smile. ��Many people claimed that when Little Friend Ye presented your pill, no one from Alchemy Divine Palace could say a word. I can imagine how their expressions were like then. What grade was the pill that Little Friend Ye concocted?��


    ��It was a middle-grade pill. After all, my cultivation is at the middle-level Renhuang Plane,�� Ye Futian answered with a smile.


    The other party smiled and nodded his head slightly. They had all heard that although the pill he had concocted was only a middle-grade pill, it was a flawless pill of the Great Path. It was just that they had not witnessed it themselves.


    At that moment, a person traversed the sky nearby and immediately landed on the cliff outside the palace. Ye Futian turned to look at him. The person who had arrived saluted with his fists and said, ��A representative of Heavenly Battle Palace greets Senior Alchemy Emperor.��


    He was from Heavenly Battle Palace. Ye Futian recalled the place with the extremely magnificent Law Battle Area that they had passed by yesterday. They were the top force in Wangdu, Heavenly Battle Palace. Ye Futian never imagined that their representative would come here.


    The position of this force in Wangdu was not below that of Alchemy Divine Palace.


    ��Please come in,�� Alchemy Emperor said as he looked outside. The person immediately crossed the sky and came over.


    ��What brings Heavenly Battle Palace here?�� Alchemy Emperor asked. With Heavenly Battle Palace��s position, they did not need to flatter him.


    ��We have come to seek Renhuang Ye and Lin Qiu,�� the person who arrived said. Ye Futian and Lin Qiu beside him felt somewhat surprised. Heavenly Battle Palace was looking for them?


    Alchemy Emperor looked at Ye Futian. With a smile, he said, ��You all should chat.��


    Ye Futian asked, ��What business do you have with me?��


    The other party answered, ��Heavenly Battle Palace has heard that recently many cultivators from the neighboring continents have come to Wangdu. Hence, we wanted to invite everyone to pay us a visit. Aside from that, we have also invited many forces from Wangdu. Coincidentally, there will be a few exciting battles taking place in Heavenly Battle Palace. Therefore, we intentionally came over to invite Renhuang Ye, Dragon Submission Villa, as well as everyone from Taiyuan Continent to come over to Heavenly Battle Palace to spectate the battles.��


    ��Heavenly Battle Palace is a place for Law Battles and regularly becomes a place to meet people. Cultivators love to battle. With such conditions, Heavenly Battle Palace is a suitable place to meet people,�� Lin Qiu explained to Ye Futian through transmitted thought. Lin Qiu then smiled and said, ��Alright, since Heavenly Battle Palace has come especially to invite us over, we will naturally oblige. Thank you for coming all this way.��


    As Lin Qiu said this, he looked over at Ye Futian, who was beside him, and asked, ��Shall we go together?��


    ��Alright, let��s go over to take a look,�� Ye Futian said. Since the other party had come all this way to invite them over, he would naturally oblige.


    ��Everyone, let��s go,�� the other party said as he gestured. Ye Futian��s group walked out. The member from Heavenly Battle Palace bowed slightly at Alchemy Emperor and said, ��Apologies for disturbing Senior Alchemy Emperor. We will be leaving.��


    Alchemy Emperor nodded his head slightly and did not say anything. Very quickly, the other group also disappeared. As they watched the silhouettes head off, someone said, ��The members of Heavenly Battle Palace love to battle. That fellow might have arranged this gathering. They must have also invited Alchemy Divine Palace aside from inviting Little Friend Ye.��


    ��It is not a possibility; it is a certainty,�� commented someone to the side. ��They would not miss such an event. Not just Alchemy Divine Palace, anyone that they invite would also not miss this event.��


    As they spoke, they glanced over at Alchemy Emperor, seemingly wanting to glean something from his expression. However, they saw that the Alchemy Emperor��s expression was calm, as though everything was as usual, and there was nothing off. He seemed to be unfazed by Ye Futian��s departure.


    Could it be that he was not worried that Ye Futian would be taken advantage of?


    Or rather, it was his confidence towards Ye Futian��s ability. Aside from his alchemy techniques, they did not know much about the actual ability of that monstrous alchemy master. However, he was most likely not weak.


    Right now, Heavenly Battle Palace was filled with people and was extremely lively.


    Wangdu was vast and endless. Yet, among the most prosperous and lively places in Wangdu, Heavenly Battle Palace was second to none.


    In Heavenly Battle Palace, a large number of cultivators of various Planes gathered every day. Each Law Battle Platform was grand and impressive. From top to bottom, it was extremely majestic.


    Ye Futian��s group were guided upstairs by the cultivator from Heavenly Battle Palace. There were already many people waiting there. Ye Futian saw some of the people he had encountered yesterday. Qi Mu and Zhong Fan from Alchemy Divine Palace had also been invited.


    From another direction, there were many cultivators also making their way over here. One group among them was exceptionally eye-catching. They were a group of goddesses from Goddess Peak!

 Chapter 1963 - Plot

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At that moment, a group of people stood up on a level nearby. They were the cultivators of the Heavenly Battle Palace.


    The leader appeared to be in his thirties, and a formless pressure emanated from his body. His figure was proportional, and his facial features were distinct.


    This person was Yang Qian, who was the eldest son of Heavenly Battle Palace Palace Lord. He was also the most talented person in Heavenly Battle Palace. He was considered by many to be the next Heavenly Battle Palace Palace Lord. He had cultivated for more than a hundred years and was now a powerful existence at the upper-level Renhuang Plane. His combat ability was extremely powerful.


    Now, Heavenly Battle Palace Palace Lord had already begun paving the way for his son to inherit the title of Palace Lord. Yang Qian could already command many of the elders of Heavenly Battle Palace.


    Right now, there were many cultivators beside Yang Qian. The cultivators sitting on the levels watching the Law Battle Platform were all incredible figures from Heavenly Battle Palace.


    ��Yang Qian from Heavenly Battle Palace welcomes all of you,�� Yang Qian said as he saluted at the crowd with his fists. The members of the forces of Wangdu naturally knew who he was. However, there were some outsiders who did not recognize him. So, Yang Qian intentionally mentioned his own name.


    ��He is the eldest son of Heavenly Battle Palace Palace Lord and the future master of Heavenly Battle Palace,�� Lin Qiu explained to Ye Futian via thought transmission. Ye Futian immediately understood. He must also be the one who invited everyone here this time. Aside from a person of such status, no one else could invite various cultivators to gather together without embarrassing themselves.


    Many people returned his salute. Yang Qian glanced around at the crowd. He then looked at Ye Futian with a smile and said, ��You must be Renhuang Ye. Before this, you have displayed your abilities during the Alchemy Conference. I have heard about this from other people. Hence, I specifically instructed for Renhuang Ye to be invited over.��


    ��You are too kind,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    ��Please be seated,�� Yang Qian said as he gestured towards a seat. Ye Futian and the others sat down immediately. Yang Qian also looked towards the cultivators from Goddess Peak and said, ��Goddess, we are all familiar with each other. Please, be seated.��


    The cultivators from Goddess Peak had extraordinary temperament. They sat down in seats near Ye Futian��s group. Many of them looked over at Ye Futian curiously. Hearing what Yang Qian said, they naturally also knew that Ye Futian was the person who caused the disturbance during the Alchemy Conference.


    The major forces of Wangdu were the first to know about this. The members of Goddess Peak naturally also heard of this.


    The arrival of Ye Futian��s group drew the attention of many people. Or rather, they were interested in Ye Futian. He had already become a prominent figure.


    Of course, the people who were most interested in Ye Futian were undoubtedly the cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace. Qi Mu, Zhong Fan, Zi He, and the rest of their group were sitting to one side. They looked over when Ye Futian arrived. They only shifted their gazes when they saw Ye Futian sit down. They appeared to be talking casually to each other. However, the people here knew that the storm during yesterday��s Alchemy Conference was not settled. There was bound to be a continuation.


    It was just that no one knew when the situation would erupt.


    After that, cultivators from all over arrived one after another. There were cultivators from the top forces of Wangdu and cultivators from various other continents like Ye Futian��s group. Nevertheless, those invited here were the top forces of the various continents. Otherwise, they would not have caught the eye of Heavenly Battle Palace.


    More and more people gathered here. It was very lively. Fortunately, this area was expansive, and there were many seats to watch the platforms from. The view was excellent. This was a place to spectate Law Battles. At a glance, all the Law Battle Platforms were in-sight.


    Ye Futian turned to look at the Law Battle Platforms below. Matrices surrounded each Law Battle Platform. They were scattered across different areas, and they were well-spaced out. Even their heights were different. The layout was similar to that of the Jiutian Temple back then. The higher the Plane of a battle, the taller the Law Battle Platform it would be held on.


    The lowest platforms were for Law Battles between those below the Saint Plane. They already formed their own area on the lower half of Heavenly Battle Palace. The people above were not too interested in the battles here. Many people were more interested in the Law Battle Platforms in the center region. They were the platforms for the battle between Saints.


    Battles between cultivators at the Saint Plane were the most frequent battles in Heavenly Battle Palace. Among the people who came to participate in these battles, some came for fame. Others came for benefits. No matter their reason for coming, Heavenly Battle Palace was the best training ground to temper one��s combat ability.


    There was a single Law Battle Platform at the region at the very top. It floated in the sky and was enveloped in the light of a matrix. It seemed ethereal, appearing transparent. If there were no battles on it, it would appear as though it did not exist, and there was no Law Battle Platform there.


    This Law Battle Platform was reserved for Renhuangs.


    Not many Renhuangs participated in Law Battles. Hence, there was only one Law Battle Platform reserved for them. This platform was sufficient to support the Renhuangs who wanted to participate in Law Battles.


    Ye Futian casually glanced at the various battlefields below. Battles between Saints and between Sages no longer caught his attention. He merely looked around. After all, his cultivation and the cultivation of those around him were already beyond the Saint Plane.


    ��Yang Qian, when you invited us over, didn��t you mention that there would be exciting Law Battles? Why haven��t you arranged for one yet?�� a crisp voice sounded at that moment. The person who had spoken was a female cultivator from Goddess Peak. Although her voice was authoritative, her appearance was stunning. She made people feel that her beauty could only be admired; no one dared to approach and sully her image.


    ��Goddess, you are still so impatient,�� Yang Qian stated with a smile. He gave some instructions to the people beside him and immediately, someone left.


    Not long after, a light of the Great Path shone. The Law Battle Platform seemed to be changing. It became real and floated in mid-air. It was like a gigantic battle platform. Light of the Great Path circled the platform. The matrix around it contained the aura of the Great Path of Space.


    At that moment, a silhouette appeared in mid-air. It descended from the sky, and his silhouette landed on the Law Battle Platform.


    This person had a powerful aura. An overbearing air emanated from his eyes. He glanced around at the surrounding cultivators. Many people sensed his aura. He was actually at the middle-level Renhuang Plane. At that moment, many people below felt somewhat excited. Were they about to witness a Renhuang Law Battle up close, that of the middle-level Renhuang Plane?


    Heavenly Battle Palace seemed to have invited many people over today. The upcoming battles would not be simple.


    Was only one person going up?


    Many people revealed bizarre expressions. If it were a Law Battle, he would naturally have an opponent. Why was he standing there alone?


    What was Yang Qian planning to do?


    ��I am Wang Ye from Qin He Palace. I have heard that cultivators from many continents have arrived, preparing to train in Wangshen Watchtower. I am somewhat curious as to what level of ability the cultivators from the various continents sent here to Wangdu are at. Hence, I wish to use this opportunity to experience it for myself,�� the cultivator on the Law Battle Platform proclaimed in a loud voice. He swept a glance over the crowd of cultivators and asked, ��Cultivators of Taiyuan Continent, would anyone be interested in a spar to test our abilities against each other?��


    Ye Futian frowned when he heard the words of the other party. Was Wang Ye targeting them?


    Had Heavenly Battle Palace invited them over a false pretense?


    Lin Qiu and the others also clearly realized this. They glanced over at Yang Qian. Yang Qian��s expression was normal, as though all this had nothing to do with him.


    Lin Qiu also noticed the cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace. Zhong Fan from Alchemy Divine Palace glanced over in their direction. His expression was indifferent and calm. It was as though this was within his expectations and was no surprise.


    Alchemy Divine Palace and Qin He Palace had always been close. Hence, for Alchemy Divine Palace to know something about this was no surprise. They might even be the masterminds behind this. From the Alchemy Conference, they had brought their conflict with Ye Futian onto the Law Battle Platform.


    Were they planning to restore their image here?


    Currently, Lin Qiu did not know what role Heavenly Battle Palace was playing in this incident. However, Heavenly Battle Palace and Alchemy Divine Palace were not so close. Heavenly Battle Palace loved battles and was a Law Battle force. They respected the cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace, but it was just respect. They would not be ordered around by Alchemy Divine Palace unless it was something they themselves wanted to do.


    Heavenly Battle Palace wanted to witness an exciting battle. Now that the cultivators from various continents had arrived, in addition to the friction caused during the Alchemy Conference, they had the opportunity they wanted to organize a Law Battle between powerful Renhuangs.


    Loud, intense roars came from below. The crowd seemed to be waiting in anticipation for this battle. Law Battles between powerful Renhuangs were rare, unlike the battles between Sages and Saints.


    It was because even if they were merely sparring, Renhuangs hated being spectated by others.


    Now, there was such an opportunity. The person who had come out to battle was a cultivator from the Qin He Palace, a top force. The person who the cultivator had incited to battle was the Taiyuan Continent cultivator who had caused a disturbance during the Alchemy Conference. His spears were aimed at the powerful alchemy grandmaster Ye Liunian.


    ��If you wish to ignore this challenge, leave immediately. Heavenly Battle Palace will not dare to do anything. They are not qualified to directly interfere in whether or not you accept the Law Battle,�� Lin Qiu explained to Ye Futian over transmitted thoughts. No matter what Heavenly Battle Palace��s motive was, if Heavenly Battle Palace had invited them all here to see their Law Battles, Heavenly Battle Palace had plotted against them. Ye Futian and Lin Qiu would naturally feel dissatisfied!

 Chapter 1964 - Might

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian naturally would not accept the Law Battle. A mere middle-level Renhuang from Qin He Palace wanted a Law Battle with him?


    How would they battle?


    They were not on the same level. A seventh-tier upper-level Renhuang was barely qualified to invite Ye Futian for a Law Battle.


    Ye Futian looked at the Law Battle Platform. His expression was calm. It was as though all this was unrelated to him.


    The other party had invited cultivators from the Taiyuan Continent to have a Law Battle with him. In reality, they were targeting Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian was not a cultivator from the Taiyuan Continent.


    Many people sitting beside him gazed at him. They wanted to see how he would respond; however, they were quickly disappointed when Ye Futian remained sitting there, showing no intention of battling.


    On the other hand, some Renhuangs next to Ye Futian frowned. Their expressions were not happy. They naturally also realized that Heavenly Battle Palace invited them over with ulterior motives.


    Now, a member of Qin He Palace had directly challenged them. Would they accept the challenge?


    It was not just the people on this side. In the vast area of Heavenly Battle Palace, countless cultivators below all lifted their heads and looked over. They wanted to witness a Law Battle between Renhuangs. It remained to be seen whether the cultivators from the Taiyuan Continent would allow them to do so.


    ��The cultivators from Qin He Palace are proficient in battle,�� Yang Qian said with a smile. ��It has been many years since Wang Ye has proven his Way and reached the middle-level Renhuang Plane. His Divine Wheel of the Great Path is powerful, and his combat ability is also extraordinary. Among the figures of the same level in Wangdu, his combat ability is considered extremely powerful. This is his first time participating in a Law Battle here in Heavenly Battle Palace. It will certainly be a spectacle.��


    Yang Qian did not coerce the cultivators from the Taiyuan Continent to participate in the battle. He seemed to keep on talking on his own. Under such circumstances, if the cultivators from the Taiyuan Continent wanted to leave, he would not say anything.


    ��Yesterday, during the Alchemy Conference, Renhuang Ye displayed extremely proficient pill-concocting ability. He concocted extraordinary pills with middle-level Renhuang Plane cultivation. I believe that his own ability must certainly be outstanding. Will I have the opportunity to experience it for myself?�� another person said at the moment. The person who spoke was Grandmaster Zi He.


    Yesterday, after Ye Futian concocted his pills, Zi He knew that in terms of pill-concocting ability, even he was no match for Ye Futian.


    He speculated that Ye Futian��s ability would definitely not be weak. Ye Futian might even be very powerful.


    Ye Futian turned his head and looked at Zi He. He smiled and asked, ��Does Grandmaster Zi He want to have a Law Battle with me?��


    Zi He was stunned. His Plane was much higher than Ye Futian��s. Zi He would naturally not participate himself. His meaning should have been obvious.


    ��Wang Ye��s Plane is the same as Renhuang Ye��s,�� said Qi Mu to the side as he looked at the Law Battle Platform.


    Ye Futian traced Qi Mu��s gaze and looked in the direction of Wang Ye. Wang Ye similarly was looking at him; his eyes were burning with battle intent. Clearly, Wang Ye desired to have a match with him.


    ��Grandmaster Zi He��s Plane of cultivation is also higher than mine. However, does it mean that the pills that he concocted will definitely be better than mine?�� Ye Futian said indifferently as he cast a glance in the direction of Wang Ye. ��If I were to join the Law Battle, he would be unworthy as my opponent.��


    Ye Futian��s tone was arrogant. Since the other party was dying to challenge him, naturally, he did not need to be polite with them. Yesterday when he was at the Alchemy Conference, the cultivators of Qin He Palace had tried all sorts of tricks on him. Now that they wanted to challenge him in a Law Battle, did they think it would be sufficient for them to send out a representative at this level?


    The crowd had naturally sensed the arrogance in Ye Futian��s tone. It seemed like he was indeed very confident of his skills. Wang Ye was considered a powerful figure in Qin He Palace, yet Ye Futian claimed that he was unworthy to be his opponent in a Law Battle.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had shamed both Zi He and Wang Ye in his speech.


    On the Law Battle Platform, Wang Ye��s gaze was fixed upon Ye Futian. A formless might of the Great Path pressed down on Ye Futian��s space from across the platform, seemingly forcing Ye Futian to retaliate.


    Ye Futian frowned and swept a glance at the other party. For a split second, Ye Futian��s eyes changed. Wang Ye felt as though he was staring at a full moon instead of a pair of eyes. He felt a chill all over his body; the cold seemed to freeze even his soul.


    The crowd revealed strange expressions. They could sense that a formless aura of the Great Path had appeared in both their eyes. This aura of the Great Path was chilly, emanating a frosty vibe.


    Were the two of them already exchanging blows?


    Sizzle. Frost appeared in the air. The crowd noticed that frost also appeared on the body of Wang Ye, who was standing on the Law Battle Platform. His hair turned white as it was covered with a layer of rime. He was shivering, as though the surrounding was very cold.


    At this moment, Wang Ye, who was already a Renhuang, actually felt extremely cold. He attempted to break free from that sensation; however, he had fallen into his opponent��s control. A glance from Ye Futian was enough to make him fall.


    Many people were astonished as they stared at Ye Futian. He had not even lifted a finger. He merely looked at Wang Ye. He was still firmly seated in his seat.


    ��You want me to have a Law Battle with you?�� Ye Futian uttered. His voice seemed to contain the might of a sonic wave; it was deep and domineering. His voice carried the might of Buddha, which could instill fear in people��s hearts.


    As soon as Ye Futian spoke, countless voices reverberated in Wang Ye��s mind. He felt as though his soul was going to explode.


    With a splat, Wang Ye had actually spat out a mouthful of blood. His body seemed to have received a shock from an invisible force. He took a few steps backward as his face turned ashen.


    At this moment, the might dissipated. Wang Ye had finally freed himself from the unpleasant sensation. He raised his head and looked at Ye Futian, who remained seated. The white-haired youth had a calm expression, as though he had never attacked Wang Ye at all.


    ��Do you still want a Law Battle with me?�� Ye Futian asked. His voice still sounded nonchalant. Wang Ye��s face was as pale as a sheet of paper. He stood up and bowed slightly at Ye Futian, saying, ��Thanks for showing me a few pointers.��


    After Wang Ye had greeted Ye Futian, he turned around and left directly. He was too ashamed to stay around.


    With just a brief exchange, Ye Futian had engraved in him a profound lesson.


    There was nothing powerful about being at the Renhuang Plane.


    The Renhuangs of Qin He Palace had extraordinary combat ability. Wang Ye considered himself outstanding. However, only now did he realize how weak and frail he was. Wang Ye could not even withstand a gaze or a shout from Ye Futian.


    A Law Battle? Wang Ye was not worthy.


    What would he bring to a Law Battle?


    Wang Ye turned and walked away. He got off the Law Battle Platform and left, leaving behind a stunned crowd.


    Just then, deafening cries of astonishment and the noise of rowdy discussion came from below the Law Battle Platform.


    Although they had not witnessed a Law Battle, it was as though they had seen a battle that was even more soul-stirring than a Law Battle. With just a gaze, Ye Futian caused a Renhuang at the same level to be knocked back and surrender?


    From Wang Ye��s response, he admitted his defeat. He no longer had the intention of battling, being defeated fair and square.


    This could only mean that the two of them were not even on the same level. The difference between them was too great.


    The people who were sitting on the spectator stand were also astonished at Ye Futian��s might. The cultivators of Qin He Palace felt disgraced. The cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace were also speechless. They had coerced Ye Futian to a Law Battle, yet Wang Ye could not withstand even a gaze from Ye Futian. Their abilities were not matched. What could Wang Ye bring to their Law Battle?


    Even though they had speculated that Ye Futian��s ability might be very powerful, they had not imagined that he would be so powerful.


    Based on Ye Futian��s attack just now, it would be difficult for even a fifth-tier Renhuang to defeat him. No wonder he had directly challenged Grandmaster Zi He.


    ��If you want to see me in a Law Battle, your core members should come out personally. For instance, if the Young Palace Lord of Heavenly Battle Palace were to stand on the Law Battle Platform, I might consider it,�� Ye Futian said indifferently. Such arrogant words startled the surrounding people.


    What sort of figure was the Young Palace Lord of Heavenly Battle Palace? He was already a seventh-tier upper-level Renhuang. His combat ability was also very powerful. No one below the upper-level Renhuang Plane was a match for him.


    However, they could hear the dissatisfaction in Ye Futian��s tone. This time, Heavenly Battle Palace had invited them over, yet they actually wanted to watch Ye Futian participate in a Law Battle. Ye Futian naturally had qualms with this. Hence, he had said such words, venting the frustration in his heart.


    The Young Palace Lord of Heavenly Battle Palace, Yang Qian, ignored Ye Futian��s discontentment. He laughed heartily and said, ��I have to confess to Renhuang Ye about the matters today. I have indeed invited you all here with other motives in mind. I wanted to witness the abilities of the members of various continents. This is how I am. I love Law Battles. If I have offended Renhuang Ye, please excuse my offense.��


    Many people revealed strange expressions. Yang Qian was actually apologizing to Ye Futian?


    This��


    It seemed that Ye Futian��s previous attack had won Yang Qian��s respect.


    ��I regret missing the grand occasion at the Alchemy Conference. I never imagined that I would witness such a scene today. I am getting even more curious about Renhuang Ye. Your pill-concocting ability and combat ability are extraordinary. If my speculation is correct, Alchemy Emperor has brought Renhuang Ye to Wangdu to meet Millet Emperor?�� Yang Qian asked with a smile.


    Many people had come this time for the Wangshen Watchtower. However, not many people dared to say that they had come to meet Millet Emperor. After all, even if they could enter the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate, they would not necessarily meet Millet Emperor.


    However, the instantaneous exchange just now made Yang Qian realize that Alchemy Emperor had brought Renhuang Ye to Wangdu for this purpose!

 Chapter 1965 - Mysterious Visitors

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian smiled casually and did not respond directly. He merely said, ��I just came out to see and experience Wangdu. I did not have anything planned.��


    This time, he was mainly following Goddess Donglai��s arrangement, following her to Wangdu.


    Ye Futian also had no plans of cultivating in the Wangshen Watchtower. Goddess Donglai meant to introduce him to Millet Emperor now that he was considered half a disciple of Supreme Deity Donglai. The master of the Wangshen Watchtower, the top figure on Dongxiao Continent, Millet Emperor, was good friends with Supreme Deity Donglai back in the day.


    ��Renhuang Ye��s ability is extraordinary, and your alchemy techniques are also so astonishing. May I ask what is the relationship between Renhuang Ye and Alchemy Emperor?�� a voice asked. Ye Futian shifted his gaze towards the person who had spoken. It was actually a disciple of Goddess Peak. She had an extremely outstanding appearance and temperament. She was a goddess of Goddess Peak.


    ��Goddess of Goddess Peak, Empress Yi,�� Lin Qiu introduced her to Ye Futian via thought transmission.


    Empress Yi��s question was also what other people wanted to know. Ye Futian had such outstanding alchemy techniques, but he claimed that he was not a disciple of Alchemy Emperor. Then, what was his identity?


    Up until now, this was still a mystery. No one knew. However, even if he wasn��t a disciple of Alchemy Emperor, he had come to Wangdu with Alchemy Emperor��s entourage. Ye Futian must have an extremely intimate relationship with him.


    ��Goddess will naturally know in the future,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile, not answering the other party��s question. Since Goddess Donglai had instructed him not to reveal his identity, for now, she naturally had her reasons for doing so. Alchemy Emperor had also instructed the members who had come with them from the Taiyuan Continent to keep it to themselves for now.


    Only they knew that Ye Futian was not the disciple of Alchemy Emperor, but his junior, an heir of Supreme Deity Donglai.


    If the people knew that Ye Futian was the heir of the once top alchemy grandmaster of the Donghua Domain, they would probably treat him differently. It would certainly whip up a storm. After all, aside from his daughter, Supreme Deity Donglai did not have an heir back then. After he perished, Eastern Deity Island went into seclusion and was gradually forgotten by the world.


    After so many years, Eastern Deity Island was gradually forgotten by the top forces of the Donghua Domain.


    ��Renhuang Ye, can��t you reveal a little?�� Empress Yi asked with a smile. It was hard to refuse her. Yang Qian, who was sitting there, also went along with her and said, ��I am also similarly curious about this. Since it will be revealed in the future, why don��t you give us a teaser? Or maybe you can hint about it a little?��


    ��Alchemy Emperor is considered my senior, and not my teacher,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. It was still an answer that did not reveal anything. However, it was considered a hint for them to speculate on.


    Supreme Deity Donglai had perished many years ago. Alchemy Emperor was just a cultivator who Supreme Deity Donglai had instructed before. It was difficult for anyone to link Ye Futian to Supreme Deity Donglai. After all, no one would even consider Supreme Deity Donglai in their speculation.


    The crowd was all pondering this issue, but no one could make any head or tail.


    ��From the looks of it, we can only wait. I cannot figure this out. Has anyone managed to do so?�� Yang Qian asked the crowd. The crowd shook their heads. They could not figure out the true identity of this cultivator with proficient pill-concocting ability, powerful combat ability, and who also claimed to be the junior of Alchemy Emperor.


    ��It seems that no one has managed to guess,�� Yang Qian said with a smile as he shook his head at the crowd��s response. ��So be it. We can only wait and see. I wonder what sort of surprise will be in store.��


    The crowd did not ponder more on Ye Futian��s identity. Since the other party was unwilling to reveal it and they could not figure it out, they could only leave it be. It was a waste of time anyway.


    ��I also wish to ask everyone a question,�� someone asked right then. The crowd looked over at the person who spoke. He was a middle-aged Renhuang who had an authoritative aura. This person was not a cultivator from Wangdu and was instead like Ye Futian and the others. He was from another continent and was mainly here for the Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Go on,�� Yang Qian said. He had invited everyone here, so he naturally knew who the other party was. This person was also an incredible Renhuang from the Taihua Continent. He was a Renhuang from the Hua clan, which was the top clan of the Taihua Continent. His name was Hua Tianlin. Based on what Yang Qian knew, Hua Tianlin was very famous on the continent. He was renowned far and wide. Since his youth, he was known as the most monstrous figure on the continent.


    Hua Tianlin came to Wangdu on the Dongxiao Continent with only one goal in mind: to meet the top figure of this continent, Millet Emperor. Back in the day, he had asked to study cultivation methods under Millet Emperor. Although he was a member of the top clan of the Taihua Continent, he had not received instruction from any major figure. He had come this time for such an opportunity.


    With his ability, he would certainly get such a chance.


    ��This time, cultivators from various continents have come to Wangdu. How many of them will have the chance to meet Millet Emperor?�� Hua Tianlin asked. He was not that curious about Ye Futian. The Divine Prefecture was huge, and there were too many incredible figures. Powerful cultivators were innumerable. He couldn��t pay attention to so many of them. He could only focus on what he wanted.


    ��I��m afraid no one can answer your question,�� Yang Qian answered. ��Even in Wangdu, few people here have seen Millet Emperor more than once. Millet Emperor is elusive. We can��t come in contact with him even if we wanted to. Be it Heavenly Battle Palace, Alchemy Divine Palace, or other forces, it is the same. If you want to ask how many people will get to meet Millet Emperor, only Millet Emperor himself knows.��


    Hua Tianlin nodded his head and did not ask more.


    ��However, since all of you are here, you can get to know one another beforehand,�� Yang Qian continued with a smile. ��Those who have come here are all prominent figures from all over. Many of you have come for the Wangshen Watchtower. If you are interested, you can get to know each other on the Law Battle Platform.��


    ��I have no interest in learning from others as well as verifying the abilities of others. Farewell,�� Hua Tianlin said. He seemed uninterested in Law Battles. As he said this, he actually got up, causing many people to reveal strange looks. Was Hua Tianlin actually planning to leave just like that?


    Those who have cultivated up to such a high cultivation Plane each had their own quirks.


    ��I also have some business to attend to, so I won��t stay. May we meet again in the future,�� Ye Futian bid farewell, preparing to leave.


    He had entertained the other party��s invitation because he had nothing to do. Hence, he had come over to check the place out. He never imagined that the other party had plotted against him and wanted him to participate in a Law Battle. Although Yang Qian had apologized, Ye Futian still did not like the atmosphere here and was not interested in participating in Law Battles. So, he prepared to leave.


    This made it somewhat awkward for Yang Qian. From the looks of it, his idea had missed the mark. These people had no intention of clashing with one another.


    However, just as Ye Futian was prepared to leave, his gaze suddenly looked far into the distance. From there, a terrifying aura could faintly be sensed.


    It was not just Ye Futian. The others in his group had also sensed it and were frantically looking in that direction.


    Very quickly, the sky in the distance changed color. A monstrous pressure of the Great Path loomed over them and enveloped the entire Heavenly Battle Palace. It was not just them. Very soon, the members of Heavenly Battle Palace sensed the terrifying pressure of the Great Path and frantically looked up into the sky in the distance.


    ��Hmm?�� Yang Qian frowned. Just then, behind him, cultivators emerged from the palaces of Heavenly Battle Palace one after another. Powerful wills swept out towards the distance. They had clearly also sensed the pressure.


    Soon, in the sky far in the distance, divine light descended from the sky. The next moment, A group of cultivators descended, accompanied by divine light. They immediately appeared above Heavenly Battle Palace.


    These people had extremely powerful auras. Each person had Renhuang Plane cultivation. Among them, there were even a few people who had terrifying auras. The aura of top-level Renhuangs faintly emanated from their bodies. There were many upper-level Renhuangs among them.


    Such a lineup was frightening. Even in Wangdu, not many forces could put together such a powerful lineup.


    These people were clearly not a force from Wangdu.


    The Law Battles in Heavenly Battle Palace below all stopped at this moment. Countless gazes looked up at the group of cultivators who had descended from the sky. Who were these people?


    ��What business do you have with Heavenly Battle Palace?�� asked Yang Qian, the Young Palace Lord of Heavenly Battle Palace, right then, as he stood up and looked up into the sky. He had yet to discern where the other party had come from.


    In the Donghua Domain, few forces had such a lineup.

 Chapter 1966 - : Ancient Royal Family of the Northern Land

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The cultivators stood high in the sky as their gazes scanned the Heavenly Battle Palace beneath them. One of them said, ��This is the location of Dongxiao Continent��s Wangdu Law Battle.��


    The others around the speaker nodded. Then, looking down, the people beneath them had odd expressions on their faces. After hearing those words, they knew that these people were not cultivators from the Dongxiao Continent but were from another continent. So they should be from a continent of a similar caliber.


    Ye Futian and his group observed closely and found out that they did not behave like they were from a single entity; they moved and acted in separate smaller groups. They also instantly realized that these cultivators were most likely not from the same faction but multiple factions.


    This meant that these people could be from one of the other six continents of the seven main continents of the Donghua Domain. Only a continent at around the Dongxiao Continent��s level would have such a domineering and powerful lineup.


    Cultivators not from the seven main continents would never have dared to arrive in such a manner.


    ��This is the Heavenly Battle Palace, the location of Wangdu Law Battle. Are you not from Wangdu?�� Yang Qian asked.


    The cultivators looked down and scanned the area. Then, one of them said, ��We come from the north.��


    ��The north.�� Many cultivators�� pupils shrank. Within the territories of the Donghua Domain, the north specifically meant the northern areas among the seven main continents, and one continent in the northern areas was one of the seven main continents.


    Among the seven main continents within the Donghua Domain, the Donghua Continent was at the center. It was where the Donghua Domain Chief��s Office was situated, and it was most certainly the core of one of the 18 Divine Prefecture domains, which would be the Donghua Domain. The other six main continents surrounded the Donghua Continent, and between the main continents were many other continental plates scattered around the six main continents. It looked like a myriad of stars surrounding the moon.


    1


    The Dongxiao Continent was in the eastern areas, and the north in the northern areas meant the Yanyun Continent.


    Since these people came from the north, they were most certainly from the Yanyun Continent.


    The cultivators of the Yanyun Continent arriving in Wangdu of the Donghua Continent were not an insignificant event. It was possible that the military leaders of the Yanyun Continent had also arrived, and it was unclear if they were hidden among the crowd.


    The north, Ye Futian thought. He was searching for a memory. Due to Supreme Deity Donglai��s memories, he knew a little bit about many things concerning the Divine Prefecture. However, the memories were scattered and in pieces. So it was still relatively blurry. Only the memory that Supreme Deity Donglai specifically left within the will during his cultivation was preserved perfectly. That was why Ye Futian could inherit Supreme Deity Donglai��s cultivation. However, when it came to things concerning the external world, he only knew a little, but the memories were always vague.


    The north�� It seemed to have left a rather strong impression.


    Supreme Deity Donglai��s main enemy was in the north.


    Lin Qiu��s expression turned solemn. He looked at Ye Futian beside him from the side. He moved as if he wanted to speak but stopped before saying anything. He had guessed Ye Futian��s identity, and there was a high likelihood that these people were connected to Ye Futian in a ridiculous number of ways.


    ��How much do you know about the north?�� Ye Futian transmitted his voice to Lin Qiu, who was beside him. He noticed that Lin Qiu had wanted to speak to him earlier, so he guessed that Lin Qiu knew some things.


    ��The northern continents centers around the Yanyun Continent. The Yanyun Continent is the equivalent of our Dongxiao Continent. The difference between us is that the Yanyun Continent��s influence is more frightening. Two superpowers had tried to conquer the continents in the past, the ancient royal families of the Yan clan and the Yun clan. The Yun clan had vanished over time, and only the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family stayed and carried on until this day. It has a long history. Its history is not something the Wangshen Watchtower can compare against.��


    Lin Qiu transmitted his voice and continued to brief Ye Futian. ��The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family has been around for many years. Their background is profound, and they are incredibly strong. They have a lot of influence across the entire Donghua Domain, and they are very forceful and overbearing when doing things. A long time ago, an argument arose between Supreme Deity Donglai and the Great Yan Ancient Royal city. Both sides were incredibly prideful and unrelenting, which led to an impasse and an ensuing conflict that led to a major war. The war resulted in Supreme Deity Donglai��s fall, the death of the legendary Alchemy Master, and the Eastern Deity Island isolating itself from the outside world.��


    Ye Futian nodded. He finally understood.


    The Yan Ancient Royal Family was the Eastern Deity Island��s main enemy and a potential threat to him. It was no wonder he felt that the northern land sounded familiar. It was actually the base of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    This meant that the cultivators of the Yan Ancient Royal Family might have also arrived in Wangdu.


    His gaze focused on the group of figures in the sky. However, he did not discover any core figures among them. It seemed as if the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family did not come personally. After all, they were of different status. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family��s cultivators were the same level as the Wangshen Watchtower. If they wanted to speak to anyone, they would directly speak to the Wangshen Watchtower. There was no need for them to show off their strength in front of the top factions of Wangdu. It did not suit the status of an ancient royal family.


    It was the same as last time when they were cultivating in the Eastern Deity Island, the cultivator from the Jiang Ancient Royal Family, Jiang Jiuming, who always acted alone and never mingled with any other factions. It was because they were not of the same level.


    So the group of cultivators in front of them were most likely cultivators from various factions of the Yanyun Continent, which followed the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    Naturally, Yang Qian and the others also realized that cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had arrived after learning that the group had come from the north. Were they here for the Wangshen Watchtower?


    The eyes of the cultivators suddenly looked a few times heavier. The cultivators underneath the Heavenly Battle Palace also stopped their battle. Everyone raised their head to look at the mighty cultivators in the sky. The vast and powerful Heavenly Battle Palace suddenly became extremely quiet.


    The forces of the north had arrived in Wangdu of the Dongxiao Continent. Of course, the people had realized just how unusual it was. Something was probably about to happen.


    Everyone knew the conflict between Wangshen Watchtower��s Millet Emperor and the ancient royal family from the north back then. Neither side was friendly with the other. So, the visitors most likely did come with good intentions.


    ��Dear cultivators from the north, may I inquire as to the purpose of this visit to my Heavenly Battle Palace?�� a voice asked. It came from within the Heavenly Battle Palace. The tone was strong and powerful. Just as the sentence ended, a group of cultivators strode out from within the Heavenly Battle Palace. The one leading the group looked full of energy, and an overbearing and powerful will might emanated from his body. He was like a war god. It was clear that this middle-aged man was the palace lord of the Heavenly Battle Palace, the war god-like existence of the Yang clan, Yang Jian.


    ��We come from the north and heard that the Heavenly Battle Palace is the place of the law battle. That is why we came here, to observe and evaluate the levels of the cultivators of Wangdu. You can all proceed,�� answered a figure in the sky. They still maintained their condescending and arrogant attitude. It was extremely discomforting.


    Under the circumstances, how could the Heavenly Battle Palace start the law battle as if nothing had happened?


    ��Since you are here, why don��t you also take part? What��s the fun in only observing?�� answered Yang Jian in a calm and cool tone. He did not like the visitors�� attitude. Even if they did come from the Yanyun Continent, this was their territory, Wangdu of the Dongxiao Continent. Even a mighty dragon would have to bow down if it had arrived.


    Moreover, these people were clearly trying to instigate things. As the palace lord of the Heavenly Battle Palace, Yang Jian, an incredibly iron-blooded and domineering character, would never allow them to act so cheeky.


    After finishing his sentence, multiple gazes landed on the Heavenly Battle Palace��s lord Yang Jian��s body. A powerful and intense might of the Great Path was released. However, Yang Jian was a peak Renhuang. He allowed the might of the Great Path to land on his body as he maintained a calm expression. A great aura of the Great Path actually also emerged from his body, instantly filling the space with an intense battle will. Everyone inside the Heavenly Battle Palace could clearly feel the strength and intensity of the battle will.


    The people of the north did not arrive with good intentions.


    ��I was just thinking the same thing,�� answered one of the elders among them calmly. He was also a peak existence at the ninth plane. When Yang Jian saw that someone like the elder was here, he understood that the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family from the Yanyun Continent had arrived. Moreover, they were already inside Wangdu, possibly watching everything that was happening at that moment.


    Without the backing of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family��s cultivators, these people never would have had the guts to provoke them. Moreover, if not for the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, a person as powerful as that elder would not have come so far.


    It seemed like this debacle was not meant to target them. Instead, they targeted the Wangshen Watchtower.


    As he thought of that, his divine consciousness shot out toward a place far away in search of something. He kept widening his search, and with the Heavenly Battle Palace as the center, everything inside Wangdu appeared in his mind. It was as if he could see everything in one go.


    Amidst a vast crowd, Yang Jian quickly discovered a tavern. A group of dignified people aura sat within this tavern. No one else was there. It was like they had cleared the place. The person leading the group seemed rather young, but he was surrounded only by high-level Renhuangs.


    ��Impudence!�� An elder quickly raised his head to look outside. The young man also seemed to frown as he looked outside. Then, as if his gaze was able to pierce through the sky, he looked toward the direction of the Heavenly Battle Palace. There was no anger in his eyes. He seemed calm. The strongest person of the Heavenly Battle Palace was quite formidable��after all, it did not take long for him to find them!

 Chapter 1967 - Bad Intentions from the Visitors

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yang Jian retracted his divine consciousness. His mind was as clear as a mirror. Just as he expected, the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had arrived. They were already in Wangdu.


    Moreover, they did not seem at all interested in what was happening at the palace. They were quietly drinking their liquor at the tavern as if they did not care about the happenings in the Heavenly Battle Palace at all. Perhaps, the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family really did not care much about the actions of the cultivators here.


    Perhaps, for the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, the only thing they really cared about was the Wangshen Watchtower.


    Who knew why the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family actually came here?


    After withdrawing his divine consciousness, Yang Jian stopped thinking about the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. It was not something he could worry about at that moment. They were not at the same level; he was not yet qualified to intervene in their affairs. At the current moment, what he needed to deal with were the cultivators from the north.


    These cultivators from the north most likely came following the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. As for why they went to the Heavenly Battle Palace, no one knew if they did it by themselves or under orders of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    After Yang Jian arrived, the other cultivators from the Heavenly Battle Palace became extremely quiet. No one spoke. After all, Yang Jian was the palace lord of the Heavenly Battle Palace. He was an elder. Since he had arrived, it was natural that he would take the lead.


    An oppressive and intense aura accompanied the solemn and silent space. The situation was tense. It was as if a huge battle could break out at any moment.


    Yang Jian looked at the cultivators in the sky and said, ��Since you also have this intention, please. My Heavenly Battle Palace happens to be the location of the law battle. The guest room of our Heavenly Battle Palace is this law battle platform. Since you have come from the far north, my Heavenly Battle Palace will help receive and welcome you on this law battle platform.��


    One might mistake Yang Jian��s words as one uttered to a dear friend who had come to visit if one did not know the context.


    Naturally, what he meant by receiving and welcoming them at Heavenly Battle Palace��s law battle platform meant that they would receive them in the form of a battle.


    In the sky, the vast and powerful might continued to occupy the sky. Among the cultivators from the north, the elder who spoke earlier was rather respected. He said to the cultivators around him, ��Since the Heavenly Battle Palace has issued such a sincere invitation, if any one of you wish to reciprocate their kindness, just head down there.��


    Just as Yang Jian and many others had expected, the cultivators from the north were powerful. They were indeed not from the same faction. Instead, they were from multiple different factions that followed the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family over here, to Wangdu.


    The reason they came here was that the Heavenly Battle Palace was the place of law battles. Here, they could clearly see the strength and capabilities of the practitioners in Wangdu. While it was not enough for them to gauge individual practitioners�� abilities, it was enough for them to peek at the general strength.


    High up in the sky, a figure strode forward. His body leaned forward as he landed on top of the Heavenly Battle Palace.


    The person��s body was muscular and sturdy-looking, his eyes were like copper bells, and his black hair draped over his shoulders. His body was cloaked in a golden robe, and he gave off a sense of domineering wildness as an intense and powerful aura emanated from his body. His cultivation level was Renhuang fifth plane, and his powerful aura was very oppressive.


    The practitioners from the north instantly relaxed after they saw the Renhuang step forward. That person was a powerful cultivator from a royal family that conquered a continent in the northern lands. When that royal family conquered the continent, they stepped over numerous corpses, and they were famous across various continents for a time. The royal family��s influence also spanned across various continents. Even in the main continent of the north��the Yanyun Continent��the royal family was very well known. This person was a core cultivator from that royal family. He excelled in battles, and his battle strength could be described as frightening. If the Heavenly Battle Palace did not send out a powerful person, they would be crushed.


    ��Which one of you is willing to go and welcome our guest from afar?�� the Heavenly Battle Palace Palace Lord Yang Jian asked.


    Just as he finished speaking, a Renhuang of the same plane stepped forward. With a step, he leaped into the air and landed on the law battle platform. He raised his head to look at the figure in the sky and said, ��Appreciate your guidance.��


    Neither one of them gave their names as if that was not important. It did not matter what the objectives of the visitors from the north were, they certainly did not have good intentions, so they did not need to be too polite or formal. Moreover, the way these visitors arrived could also be said to be incredibly cocky.


    The Renhuang who stepped forward was a practitioner of the Heavenly Battle Palace. For these visitors to arrive at the Heavenly Battle Palace in such a cocky manner, he naturally knew that there was no need to be polite with them.


    Then, bright lights appeared, and the Renhuang law battle platform floated into the air. Lights from the law matrix shot through the clouds in the sky and the Renhuang law battle platform formed a space of its own.


    Ye Futian looked at the matrix of the law battle platform. The self-formed space segregated the space, and happenings on the inside would not affect the outside. However, the inside was large and spacious enough. It was quite fascinating. It seemed like it was something that the Heavenly Battle Palace specifically prepared for law battles of the Renhuang level.


    Bang�� Then, a loud bang sounded. The law battle platform emitted an intense spacial wave. The cultivators could clearly hear the crisp sound, and the Renhuang from the royal family in the north stepped across the sky, and countless beams of lights descended straight from the sky.


    The cultivator from the Heavenly Battle Palace extended a fist. Then, the crowd could vaguely see a gigantic golden foot come from above, clashing with the opponent��s fist. As the two clashed, a frightening light burst forth.


    A cacophony of intense battle noise resounded in the air. The cultivator from the north moved down from the sky step by step. Each of his steps created a frightening giant footprint that was accompanied by a potent and oppressive Power of the Great Path as if he was going to crush the sky at any moment. The law power attack had a resemblance to the Divine Elephant Stomping the Sky skill.


    The crowd looked toward and inside the law battle platform. Every step would turn into a giant footprint. The giant golden footprints would block the sky and fill the sky; they were overwhelmingly powerful.


    The Renhuang of the Heavenly Battle Palace released continuous attacks to block them. A Divine Wheel of the Great Path appeared above his body. It was a golden eagle that blocked the sky and the sun when it spread its wings. It tore through space and cut open a route as it charged straight toward its enemy.


    The Renhuang cultivator from the north glanced at the divine eagle beneath him, and a mighty large footprint descended from above. At that moment, it was as if a golden armor had donned on him, and bright and wondrous divine lights surrounded his entire body while his eyes were filled with pride and condescension.


    The eyes of the Renhuang from the Heavenly Battle Palace were sharp. Fearsome tornadoes appeared all around him. With its wings extended. The divine eagle shot upward. Golden divine light that tore through space appeared above the law battle platform. It was inevitable. It seemed as if they were going to crush and destroy everything within its path.


    However, the Renhuang from the north seemed very calm. He looked at everything with composure. Just how strong were those from the royal family of the north? Many of them had experienced that first hand. It was far above this level, that was for sure.


    Vuong�� Incredibly bright divine light devoured the sky. The Renhuang from the north had disappeared. Then, a towering war god illusion appeared in the sky. The face of the Renhuang from the north also appeared. From high up above, a humongous rock pillar emerged. As if a pillar of divine light that pierced through the Great Path, it came crashing down.


    It was not a rock pillar. It was a leg. However, it moved as fast as lightning, to the point where a divine light that pierced the sky appeared in the air, stomping downward.


    The Great Path was directly crushed into pieces. The sharp divine eagle fought against the tide to charge upward but was crushed under the pillar of light. Divine light burst forth when it was annihilated. It was blinding.


    Boom�� The bright light directly crushed the Great Path and pierced through the sky, striking the body of the Heavenly Battle Palace Renhuang. With a loud bang, the mighty divine wheel of the Great Path of the Heavenly Battle Palace Renhuang cracked. The body of the divine eagle was about to be crushed. He grunted as a ray of light pierced through his body. Then, his body fell, and he knelt on the ground. His Great Path was damaged, and he was severely injured.


    Everyone in the vast land of the Heavenly Battle Palace witnessed this scene. The place was unbelievably quiet.


    So ruthless.


    A powerful Renhuang was completely crushed and severely injured. This hit was incredibly damaging to the Heavenly Battle Palace��s Renhuang.


    However, it also showed them the strength of their opponents. This practitioner from the north had overwhelmingly defeated and severely injured the Renhuang of the Heavenly Battle Palace.


    The law battle platform��s matrix moved. Someone went up to the platform to bring the Heavenly Battle Palace��s Renhuang down. The Heavenly Battle Palace Palace Lord Yang Jian��s expression became cold after witnessing the scene before him. He raised his head and said to the Renhuang floating in the sky above the law battle platform coldly, ��You have come so far from the north. Is there a need to be so ruthless and cruel?��


    The Renhuang did not pay much attention to Yang Jian��s words. He replied, ��I heard the law battle platform of the Heavenly Battle Palace was a cruel place. Injuries and even deaths are not uncommon. It is supposed to be a real law battle. Why is it that when it is from me, it is ruthless and cruel? Could it be that the rumors I heard were wrong?��


    The Renhuang from the north stood in the sky above and looked down calmly as if he was not surprised by this reaction.


    Ye Futian raised his head to glance at the Renhuang in the sky. He was confused. The cultivators of the north arriving in Wangdu meant that they were very powerful outsiders. Why did they have to be so ruthless and cruel?


    Were they trying to bring up the conflict between the north and the Donghua Domain?


    What was the reason behind their pressuring? Were they aiming for the Wangshen Watchtower?


    ��It looks like the visitors are not simply unkind. The northerners follow orders of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. For these cultivators to be so rude and cocky, someone must be supporting them from behind. It can only be the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. This means that the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family might have already agreed to it. In that case, their objective for coming here will not be simple,�� said Lin Qiu to Ye Futian gently.


    Ye Futian nodded. To be so ruthless, it was natural that they were not here to spar. Instead, they were here as a show of force. In terms of who they were showing it to, that was something for one to ponder. Or perhaps, they were showing it to the entire Wangdu.


    The Heavenly Battle Palace had gathered many powerful cultivators of Wangdu, and even many from the Dongxiao Continent, on this day. For them to do this, the one backing them was definitely not simple.


    This battle had triggered the emotions of many. They were miserable. At that moment, no matter what internal conflicts existed, it did not matter. The arrogant behaviors of these northern visitors were simply contempt.

 Chapter 1968 - Not Giving Face

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Renhuang from the royal family in the north remained on the law battle platform and did not leave. His gaze scanned the Renhuangs in the Heavenly Battle Palace. His body was brimming in golden while his eyes had the dignity of royalty. He was a Renhuang from a royal family that conquered an entire continent.


    ��Wangdu��the capital city of the Dongxiao Continent��is famous because of the Wangshen Watchtower and became the number one city of the Dongxiao Continent. Today, the Battle Palace is the location of the law battles of Wangdu. Hence, all the fighters are gathered here in Wangdu. Don��t tell me this is your battle strength, is it?�� The Renhuang from the north said. His voice was dignified, and contempt for the Renhuang of Wangdu permeated through his cold tone.


    While he was not a cultivator from the core Yanyun Continent, his family still conquered a continent. He was powerful, and even among the group of cultivators who came from the north, he was still one of the stronger combatants among those on the same plane level. As such, the Renhuang of the Heavenly Battle Palace suffered a crushing defeat and was even severely injured.


    As the Renhuang finished speaking, the solemn and dignified atmosphere of the Heavenly Battle Palace was suffocated by an oppressive aura. In front of the towering ancient great hall, many cultivators looked toward the powerful northern Renhuang, and for a moment, they were silent.


    For a law battle like this, it was naturally impossible for them to send a fighter who was on a higher plane; however, they were not confident anyone on the same plane level had the ability to defeat the northern Renhuang. The northern Renhuang had not even shown his true strength yet. After all, the gap between the two in the previous battle was rather large. The combatant had failed to force his opponent to give his all.


    ��Do you still want to fight?�� the Heavenly Battle Palace��s palace lord asked.


    The northern Renhuang looked at him and nodded before answering, ��Of course.��


    ��Is anyone able to let our visitors from the north reevaluate our Wangdu��s practitioners?�� Yang Jian scanned the crowd as he asked. The opponent had already shown his hand. If he continued to fight, the advantage was theirs. Since they had seen the enemy fighters, it was naturally easier for them to weigh their options.


    Of course, the precondition was that they needed a Renhuang at the same plane level who was strong enough.


    ��I��d like to recommend someone.�� At that time, someone spoke. Instantly, gazes shifted towards the speaker. Many people��s eyes lit up. It was Alchemy Divine Palace��s Qi Mu.


    The Alchemy Divine Palace was powerful in itself; they also knew practitioners from everywhere. As the heir to the Alchemy Divine Palace, Qi Mu��s vision was naturally impeccable. A cultivator recommended by him would naturally be powerful.


    ��Please speak,�� Yang Jian said.


    Then, Qi Mu��s gaze moved slowly and landed finally on Ye Futian. He smiled and said, ��Earlier, some Renhuang asked Renhuang Ye about the Great Path, but Renhuang Ye did not partake. He defeated his opponent with just a glance. His strength is unfathomable. While he is only on the fourth plane, it was said that only a young palace lord is worthy of sparring with him. So, based on what Renhuang Ye said, there is no need to doubt his combat strength. If Renhuang Ye is willing, I am certain he will be able to leave a big surprise for our guests from the north.��


    Lin Qiu and the others around Ye Futian frowned. This Qi Mu did not step forward himself but instead recommended Ye Futian. He was most certainly very calculative. Whether Ye Futian won or not, he would not lose anything from it. At the very least, he would be able to see and gauge Ye Futian��s strength.


    ��That��s right, I also think that Renhuang Ye is suitable,�� said the cultivators from Qin He Palace. They also wanted to see Ye Futian��s strength, to see whether he could fight the powerful northern Renhuang.


    In an instant, the cultivators�� attention had shifted to Ye Futian, and that included the cultivators from the Heavenly Battle Palace. They had earlier seen how strong Ye Futian was. While it had only been a glance, he was able to injure a Renhuang of the same level. If he were to step forward, they would have a chance.


    ��I apologize. I am not a practitioner of Wangdu.�� Ye Futian glanced at Qi Mu. As the heir to Supreme Deity Donglai and after receiving so much from the Eastern Deity Island, he was not very fond of Supreme Deity Donglai��s enemy �C the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. These Renhuangs followed the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family here. In addition, they came forcefully and were ruthless and cruel when they fought. He was slightly irked and annoyed by them.


    However, this did not mean that he would go along with what Qi Mu intended. Qi Mu��s words annoyed him even more.


    This Qi Mu did not step forward himself and did not ask anyone from the Alchemy Divine Palace fight but had instead pushed him forward?


    Moreover, he said it in front of a crowd. It felt like he was trying to trap him and force him to fight.


    In a situation like this, trapped under the circumstances, standing amidst factions of the Dongxiao Continent, it seemed like he had no other choice. Otherwise, he would have to offend many people.


    Unfortunately, Ye Futian was just the guy who never cared. He did not need to appease anyone, and he also did not need the cultivators from Wangdu to like him. He came here because he was invited to visit.


    Even if the Heavenly Battle Palace were to become his enemy��


    Many people had odd expressions on their faces after hearing Ye Futian��s reply. Were Ye Futian��s words not words that cut him off from the others?


    ��Renhuang Ye, what do you mean? Even if you are not from Wangdu, you came from the Taiyuan Continent, it is one with the Dongxiao Continent,�� Qi Mu smiled and answered, unperturbed. He was wondering who Ye Futian was. To speak such words, it seemed quite stupid.


    ��I came with the Alchemy Emperor, but I am not from the Taiyuan Continent,�� Ye Futian answered. It felt like he was doing his best to draw a line between them and separate himself from them. This confused many, while some other Renhuangs were slightly irked.


    ��Even if you don��t want to fight, you don��t have to do all this. If you do not identify with the Dongxiao Continent, why are you here in Wangdu, sitting here?�� a cultivator from the Qin He Palace asked coldly.


    ��Renhuang Ye followed the Alchemy Emperor here. Does that need your approval? When did the Qin He Palace��s jurisdiction expand so much? As for sitting here, Renhuang Ye and I were invited to come here. If you don��t welcome us, we can leave,�� Lin Qiu, who was on the side, answered, annoyed. Then, he continued, ��Since the Alchemy Divine Palace and Qin He Palace are so amazing and heroic. Why don��t you step forward and fight? What��s the meaning of this, constantly trying to push someone else to fight? The Alchemy Divine Palace actually touted themselves as the number one holy land of alchemy in the Donghua Domain yesterday. Why aren��t you stepping forward yourself right now? Could it be that the Alchemy Divine Palace and the Qin He Palace are not factions of Wangdu? Or is it perhaps because you don��t have a Renhuang who is capable of fighting?��


    His tone was light and calm; however, it was very insulting. It made the people of the Alchemy Divine Palace and the Qin He Palace very unhappy.


    ��Enough,�� said Heavenly Battle Palace��s Yang Jian. Only then did the people quieted down after realizing that their bickering was inappropriate.


    In the sky, the northern cultivators gazed at them. Mocking and cold smiles were on their faces. Did Wangdu have no one? To actually bicker among themselves to avoid a battle.


    Many glanced coldly at Ye Futian. It seemed like the conflict was ultimately attributed to Ye Futian. Many people were unhappy.


    ��Since no one wants to fight, what��s the point of staying here?�� someone mumbled. Ye Futian looked at the person who spoke. He smiled, not taking notice of that. Then, he stood up and looked at Yang Jian before saying, ��Sorry for the disruption.��


    After that, he left. With his white robe fluttering in the air, there was a sense of pride as he left. Many people looked surprised. Did he really leave?


    ��Boring. This young one will take his leave.�� Lin Qiu and the others also stood up to leave. He was not in a good mood after this visit. To have someone try to coerce him into a battle, he naturally understood Ye Futian��s mood.


    Moreover, he knew Ye Futian��s true identity. A person from the Eastern Deity Island, it was possible that he was the heir to Supreme Deity Donglai��s inheritance. Whether it was alchemy or combat strength, he was exceptional. How could someone like this not be prideful? How could he sit and be aggrieved like this, to constantly be coerced into battle?


    The northern cultivators came to pick a fight. If Ye Futian wanted to fight, he would do it on his own accord, not like this.


    If these people knew Ye Futian��s true identity, the heir to the Eastern Deity Island, who knew what they would be thinking?


    At that moment, the cultivators of the Heavenly Battle Palace were incredibly unhappy as they saw Ye Futian��s group leave. They really did not give them any face at all. To really leave after saying it. Were they throwing a tantrum?


    People from the Dragon Submission Mountain Range were really like those village masters, aloof in nature and very difficult to befriend.


    ��All this to avoid battle. How ridiculous,�� someone mocked quietly. However, no one else responded. Instead, they looked at the cultivators in the sky. At that moment, it was still not yet time to discuss Ye Futian. While they were unhappy, they could only suppress it for now.


    Ye Futian��s group leaped into the air and left. They headed straight toward the direction of the inn.


    ��Why are you also following me?�� Ye Futian asked Lin Qiu, who had caught up to him.


    ��Since we came together, we will naturally leave together,�� answered Lin Qiu.


    ��Aren��t you afraid of being isolated?�� asked Ye Futian, smiling.


    ��The Dragon Submission Mountain Range has always acted alone. The path of cultivation was always a lonesome journey. When was it necessary to find a mate?�� Lin Qiu answered indifferently. ��You, on the other hand, just came to Wangdu. With that, you��ve already offended most of the factions in Wangdu.��


    ��As I said, I��m not a person of Wangdu. Why should I care?�� Ye Futian answered indifferently.


    Lin Qiu laughed and asked, ��The people from the north came with clearly unkind intentions. I��m afraid the Heavenly Battle Palace is going to suffer. While you did not fight, I am still curious: if you were to fight, what would happen?��


    As he spoke, he kept staring at Ye Futian. Clearly, Lin Qiu was curious about Ye Futian��s strength.


    Ye Futian glanced at Lin Qiu on his side. Then, he shifted his gaze forward and answered casually, ��He is not worthy of fighting me.��


    ������


    Lin Qiu��s body stopped moving for a brief moment. He blinked and looked at Ye Futian. An odd expression appeared on his face.


    That person was a Renhuang of the fifth plane. Moreover, his combat strength was amazing; however, Ye Futian said he was not worthy of fighting him.


    What confidence! Moreover, with the events that happened in the past, he believed Ye Futian. Since he said so, it was clear that there would not be any issues.


    So, the reason that Ye Futian did not fight was that the opponent was not worthy?


    This��


    ��Interesting.�� Lin Qiu smiled and continued moving forward. These people were here for the Wangshen Watchtower. He knew Ye Futian��s identity, so he was sure that Ye Futian was also after the Wangshen Watchtower. This meant that they would meet again sooner or later. There were also the cultivators of Wangdu. This made him look forward to it!

 Chapter 1969 - Righteous Ye Futian

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Renhuang of the north arrived in Wangdu in force and challenged the Renhuangs of Wangdu at the law battle platform inside the Heavenly Battle Palace. Multiple Renhuang-level law battles took place. The Wangdu camp lost more than they won. One could even say that they were overwhelmingly defeated. Many Renhuangs had also suffered severe injuries.


    After news of this got out, all of Wangdu was shocked. Factions from all sides were ready to make their move. It was as if a brewing storm was about to arrive.


    The Renhuangs who gathered at the Heavenly Battle Palace this time were not only Renhuangs from their faction. Renhuangs from all sides were also invited. Apart from some of the top factions in Wangdu, many top factions around Dongxiao Continent were also there. Their lineup was most definitely very powerful. However, despite that, they were still crushed. One could only imagine just how strong the lineup of the visitors from the north was. They were definitely the elites among the elites. These powerful Renhuangs from the north were specifically handpicked before they traveled and arrived at Wangdu. That was why their battle strength was so high.


    It was certain. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was behind them. There were rumors that they had already arrived and were staying in a pavilion within Wangdu.


    This caused a considerable commotion very quickly inside Wangdu. Many people were already talking about it.


    Apart from the law battle itself, one person received a lot of attention and a lot of criticism. That person was obviously Ye Liunian��the person who gained his fame just one day ago.


    Ye Liunian earned his fame after he defeated Grandmaster Zi He in the Alchemy Conference. Many people knew him after that. According to rumors, someone challenged him a day earlier, and with just a glare, he injured the person. He was mighty. However, when a strong cultivator from the north issued a challenge during the law battle, Ye Liunian denied any connections to Wangdu, even the entire Dongxiao Continent, before leaving, avoiding battle altogether. His actions and style annoyed many people.


    Even if he were an amazing alchemy grandmaster, his actions were shameless, particularly when the fight involved the conflict of two sides. Everyone was caught up in the overall trend, but he actually drew a line to clearly separate him from Wangdu. How could people not criticize him for that?


    Who was this genius Alchemy Grandmaster that the Alchemy Emperor brought over? It seemed like his conduct was questionable.


    Moreover, one should not forget that the Alchemy Emperor and the Wangshen Watchtower were connected. According to rumors, the Alchemy Emperor was once handpicked by the good friend of the Millet Emperor, Supreme Deity Donglai, and who was not aware of the relationship between Supreme Deity Donglai and the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family? Ye Futian choosing to run away at this time would naturally invite gossip.


    However, Ye Futian did not mind. After he returned to the inn, he shut himself in his room and cultivated in peace.


    An absolute beauty suddenly appeared beside the cultivating Ye Futian.


    ��Senior sister,�� Ye Futian called out after seeing that Goddess Donglai was the one who came.


    ��Why didn��t you lend a hand?�� asked Goddess Donglai calmly. No one could tell her emotion from her tone.


    ��I did not want to, so I didn��t,�� answered Ye Futian, laughing.


    ��Didn��t want to?�� Goddess Donglai looked at him. Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the cold and prideful figure before saying,�� I inherited the path of Supreme Deity Donglai. Does senior sister think that a Renhuang of the same plane from the north is a worthy opponent?��


    Goddess Donglai��s eyes twitched slightly as she continued staring at him.


    ��Since the people from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family have not acted, would I not be devaluing myself by entering the law battle platform? How could I live up to the name of the heir of the supreme deity if that were the case?�� Answered Ye Futian with a smile. Then, he continued, ��I��m sure senior sister knows as well. If I were to act before the cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family appeared, the Eastern Deity Island would also lose face.��


    Goddess Donglai looked at him. What Ye Futian said sounded very sensible��


    As the heir of Supreme Deity Donglai, his opponent should be someone from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. Since the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had not even made an appearance, what was the reason for him to act?


    As she thought of that, Goddess Donglai no longer brought it up. Instead, she said, ��There are many rumors about you circulating outside. Many practitioners know that you live here. Many are gossiping, and I��m afraid some may try to create commotions.��


    ��To ruin my name. I��ve just come. Why would someone do this?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��To prevent you from entering the Wangshen Watchtower,�� answered Goddess Donglai. Ye Futian was stunned briefly. In that instant, he suddenly understood. With his talent and strength in alchemy, if he were to get in touch with the Millet Emperor after entering the Wangshen Watchtower, he could threaten the position of the Alchemy Divine Palace directly in the future.


    If his name were ruined, and if news of him drawing a line to segregate him from Wangdu were to reach the ears of the practitioners of the Wangshen Watchtower, it would be natural for them to form an opinion about him and impact his chances of getting into the Wangshen Watchtower.


    Unfortunately, the enemy��s efforts were in vain. First of all, Ye Futian had no intention of entering the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate. Secondly, with the relationship between the Millet Emperor and Supreme Deity Donglai, the enemy would probably not prevent anything from happening. Moreover, Ye Futian��s strength was there. Even without the relationship with Supreme Deity Donglai, he would still meet the Millet Emperor eventually.


    ��Go and cultivate. I��ll find you when you visit the Wangshen Watchtower,�� said Goddess Donglai before leaving.


    Moments after she left the place, someone else came, albeit in a sneaky manner. He glanced in the direction where Goddess Donglai left.


    Ye Futian glanced toward this person and asked, ��What are you doing, sneaking around?��


    Lin Qiu smiled, walked over, and returned to his usual demeanor. He was only suspicious before, but now it was proven. However, Goddess Donglai did not seem to do anything even after discovering him. Obviously, she did not really care.


    He walked over and sat beside Ye Futian. Then, he asked in a whisper, ��The descendant of the Supreme Deity?��


    While he arrived earlier, he did not dare to eavesdrop. After all, it was quite disrespectful. He only knew that Goddess Donglai had come to see Ye Futian.


    The powerful deity was most probably the daughter of Supreme Deity Donglai. Ye Futian followed her here, which meant that entering the Wangshen Watchtower was probably not an issue.


    Ye Futian glared at him but did not respond. However, to Lin Qiu, not responding meant that he was acquiescing. His eyes lit up. The way he looked at Ye Futian was like someone looking at their treasure.


    ��Since you are the disciple of the Supreme Deity��s descendant, you probably came from the Eastern Deity Island, right? Do you perhaps have a miraculous and divine elixir or pill that you could lend me on you?�� At that moment, Lin Qiu no longer cared about his demeanor. Who was Supreme Deity Donglai? The number one Alchemy grandmaster of the Donghua Domain. Since Ye Futian was his successor, he should not lack divine pills or elixirs, right?


    ��Of course I do,�� answered Ye Futian. Lin Qiu��s eyes lit up even more. He was restless. Happiness came too suddenly.


    ��But why should I lend them to you?�� Ye Futian looked at him condescendingly while smiling. Could someone lend a pill or an elixir? Was it even possible for it to be returned? You��d devour it right away, no? That was the first time he heard of someone borrowing pills and elixirs.


    ��We��re all brothers. We should share our blessings,�� Lin Qiu seemed to have forgotten his decency at that moment.


    ��???�� Ye Futian looked at Lin Qiu. When did they become brothers? And to share their blessings.


    Noticing Ye Futian��s expression, Lin Qiu said, ��Brother Ye, in the future, this young brother will only follow Brother Ye��s lead.��


    ������ Ye Futian looked at Lin Qiu. This person was still a mid-level Renhuang. His aura was decent, and he had a strong background. However, he was so shameless.


    Now that a rather reputable Renhuang had already displayed such shameless behavior, what else could Ye Futian do?


    He brought out a clay bottle, passed it to Lin Qiu, and said, ��There are several divine pills inside, all of which are my treasures, the deities left them for me, but now I am giving them to you. This is sharing my blessings. So, the misfortune in the future�� I��ll leave it to you.��


    As he finished speaking, he patted Lin Qiu��s shoulder. Lin Qiu was so grateful that tears almost rolled out of his eyes.


    ��I will give my everything!�� Lin Qiu��s eyes were red. He stretched out his hands to receive the clay bottle. He held the bottle with a lot of strength but did not take it. He looked at the reluctant Ye Futian and continued, ��I will not hesitate to lay down my life to go through the depths of hell for you.��


    Ye Futian finally let go. His gaze continued to linger on the clay bottle. Lin Qiu quickly packed it up. How could he afford Ye Futian the chance to feel regret?


    ��Brother Ye, I will not interrupt your cultivation anymore. I still have some matters that I need to attend to. If Brother Ye has any orders, please look for me at any time.�� As he finished speaking, Lin Qiu turned around to leave. He could not have moved any quicker.


    ��???�� Ye Futian blinked a few times as he saw Lin Qiu leave.


    Shameless!


    He had never seen such a shameless Renhuang.


    Sigh. What a pity for his treasured pills.


    He extended his hand. A clay bottle identical to the one earlier appeared in his hands. He opened the clay bottle and took out the pills within it. Then, he threw them into his mouth before devouring them in one go. In an instant, strands of powerful aura began to fluctuate around his body.


    Such valuable pills�� Was it easy for him to make them?�� He only had a few hundred bottles left on him.


    The following day, Lin Qiu had come to Ye Futian��s side again. However, it was not only Lin Qiu; he also brought along two brothers��Han Tie and Leng Ye. They were all descendants of the three lords of the Dragon Submission Villa. The Lin Qiu of that moment had completely changed. His plane level seemed to have improved. His face was bright, and he looked very energetic.


    The three of them bowed together at the same time when they found Ye Futian. In particular, Lin Qiu looked at Ye Futian with gratitude and said, ��Thank you, Brother Ye, for giving us such valuable pills.��


    The pills were high-class divine pills that could solidify one��s path fundamentals. After taking them, the fundamentals of one��s Great Path would stabilize further, while one��s life force would become vigorous and energy levels would also go up. Cultivating for a day would result in a marked improvement of one��s plane level. Where would anyone find such amazing divine pills?


    Ye Futian��s generosity was commendable. How could someone not be so grateful when shown such generosity.


    Ye Futian glanced at them and waved his hands. Then, he said, ��Since we are all brothers now, don��t be so formal. Those pills were given to me by the deity so that I could breakthrough my plane level. Since you needed them, I gave them to you. I can cultivate a few more decades for that. It is only a few decades; it��s nothing big����


    ��This!�� The three of them were endlessly thankful. They were completely subdued by Ye Futian��s generosity. He was a real brother whose righteousness and generosity had pierced the skies!

 Chapter 1970 - Opinions

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Naturally, Lin Qiu and the other two knew that Ye Futian��s ��decades�� were exaggerated. After all, they knew that he was not the most honest of people. However, they could not deny the value and worth of those pills.


    The item class of those pills was such that they were difficult to obtain even in the Dragon Submission mountain range. Moreover, they were far from something that a person with Ye Futian��s cultivation and plane level could create. As such, they were definitely gifts from the daughter of the supreme deity. With Ye Futian giving the pills to them, they were naturally grateful.


    It was a significant favor.


    ��If Brother Ye has any requests in the future, please just let us know,�� said Leng Ye, who was beside Lin Qiu. The three of them were the sons of the three villa lords of the Dragon Submission Villa. They were also temperamental people who were extremely loyal. Otherwise, the three villa lords would not have been able to stay together for so many years.


    Ye Futian smiled and said, ��With your cultivation and plane levels, the pills can last for some time. They are not so easily refined. You should continue cultivating them and maximize the effects of the pills. I have nothing at the moment.��


    ��Alright.�� Lin Qiu nodded. ��Since that is the case, Brother Ye, we will take our leave for now.��


    After that, the three of them turned around to return to their cultivation. The main reason they came this time was that they were utterly stunned by the pills�� effect and had to come personally to thank Ye Futian specifically. At that moment, it was true that they had not yet fully refined those pills and could continue cultivating and improving themselves.


    Ye Futian continued to cultivate in silence. Wangdu remained as busy as ever. The cultivators from the north did not continue causing problems. However, they also did not leave. They had settled down inside Wangdu.


    Many people understood that the cultivators of the north came specifically for the Wangshen Watchtower. Naturally, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was behind them, and the royal family had also arrived some time ago. It was just that they had not made an appearance.


    On this day, the Alchemy Emperor and Goddess Donglai visited Ye Futian together.


    ��Senior brother, is there news?�� Ye Futian smiled gently and asked the Alchemy Emperor.


    The Alchemy Emperor like Ye Futian��s address of him. While his position was respected, being the top Alchemy Grandmaster of the Taiyuan Continent, he always revered Supreme Deity Donglai. Back in the day, he was not considered Supreme Deity Donglai��s real disciple, and it had always been a great regret of his.


    Ye Futian inherited Supreme Deity Donglai��s will, so it was naturally proper for him to become the heir. For him to be willing to call him senior brother, the Alchemy Emperor was naturally quite happy.


    ��Yes.�� The Alchemy Emperor nodded. ��News has come from the Wangshen Watchtower. The Wangshen Watchtower will open in three days. At that time, everyone who came will have a chance to go. We are the same. By then, you will have to grasp the opportunity to try to meet the Millet Emperor.��


    ��Understood.�� Ye Futian nodded. They had already been there for several days. Naturally, he already knew about things surrounding the Wangshen Watchtower.


    The Wangshen Watchtower stood at the peak of the city of Wangdu. Every year, practitioners from Wangdu and all other continents who came would have a chance to enter the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate, and even meet the Millet Emperor and listen to his words. It was a tradition that had remained unchanged for many years.


    Every year, at this time, the Millet Emperor would sit within the Wangshen Watchtower and preach. It was a chance for Renhuangs to reach the Millet Emperor.


    Initially, they had thought that Ye Futian��s status as the heir to Supreme Deity Donglai would be enough for him to meet the Millet Emperor. However, Goddess Donglai did not make that happen. Instead, she wanted to let Ye Futian prove himself first before anything could happen.


    Apart from that, everyone who came had come for this.


    Even the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had led a group of powerful cultivators from the north for this. They had remained very quiet over the past few days, so it was highly likely that they were also waiting for this day.


    There was no way the Wangshen Watchtower was going to be peaceful.


    Of course, the Wangshen Watchtower had long got wind that the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had arrived. However, they did not need to worry about such things.


    ��Get ready. We��ll come and notify you again before we depart,�� said the Alchemy Emperor. Ye Futian nodded. He did not need to prepare anything, to be honest. His main competitions for this journey to the Wangshen Watchtower were the practitioners of the Dongxiao Continent. They were not really strong enough to put any pressure on him.


    The only ones who could threaten him were most likely the top factions, such as the almighty Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    As such, since the beginning, he had been taking it easy when facing the Alchemy Divine Palace and the Qin He Palace. The reason was that he did not care much and did not see them as his opponents.


    As the news of Wangshen Watchtower spread, Wangdu became a lot busier in an instant. Multiple people began talking. How many Renhuang would have the chance to enter the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate and study the Great Path? How many would have the opportunity to meet the Millet Emperor? To receive the teachings of the Millet Emperor?


    However, before all this, the Wangshen Watchtower also had a commotion. The commotion concerning the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. They were not friendly and had kept quiet over the past few days. It was highly likely that they were waiting for this day.


    Three days passed in the blink of an eye. For practitioners, it was too short.


    When the day came, the entire city of Wangdu was effervescence. At dawn, countless people were already moving in the skies. Every cultivator was headed in the same direction. From afar, one could vaguely see a towering ancient palace far away in the direction they were heading. It looked like the reflection of a divine ancient imperial city in the clouds in the mortal realm.


    In the skies of Wangdu, auras filled the sky. Some glided across the sky, others moved on their swords, and some rode on beasts.


    On this day, in a pavilion inside Wangdu, a figure exited a room. The figure raised his head and looked toward a place far away. Then, in a flash, multiple shadows had entered and landed in several locations nearby; however, no one could be seen anywhere.


    ��Make preparations,�� said the figure in the room calmly.


    ��Understood.�� Neat and uniform voices came from his surroundings. Then, multiple shadows disappeared one after another.


    On this day, the entire city of Wangdu seemed to be moving. The city was bustling like never before.


    ��


    According to legends, in the beginning, the Wangshen Watchtower was only a few walls. The Millet Emperor and Supreme Deity Donglai discussed the Great Path amidst these walls. However, as the years passed, the Wangshen Watchtower had become a holy land, the strongest force across the Dongxiao Continent. It sat at the center of Wangdu and occupied a large space.


    Looking in from the outside, it was impossible to see the border. One could only see an endless and empty space. If one tried hard enough, one could maybe vaguely see the walls of the Great Path that pierced into the sky, as well as several magnificent towering ancient buildings. And standing at the peak of everything, the ancient palace that floated in the sky, that was the place where the Millet Emperor cultivated, according to legend.


    It was said that behind the floating empty palace was the old Wangshen Watchtower, which had remained perfectly preserved even now.


    At that moment, multiple practitioners had arrived outside the Wangshen Watchtower. One could not see the end of the crowd in one look; however, most were here as observers. Normal people were not qualified to enter the Wangshen Watchtower. Otherwise, the Wangshen Watchtower would have a problem with overcrowdedness.


    Only the top factions from the different continents and the top factions of Wangdu, were qualified to recommend some Renhuangs to enter the Wangshen Watchtower to train. The recommendations by the factions were always the strongest and those with the highest potentials. As such, a competition like this would occur every year.


    At that time, a group arrived. Their robes fluttered in the wind as if they were deities. Countless gazes fell upon the group. Then, someone uttered, ��The deities from the Goddess Peak have arrived.��


    The Goddess Peak was a top faction of Wangdu. Naturally, they could make recommendations to enter the Wangshen Watchtower and meet the Millet Emperor to receive his teachings.


    Entering the Wangshen Watchtower did not mean joining the Wangshen Watchtower. It simply meant entering to cultivate, train, and receive teachings. If one were strong enough to interest the Wangshen Watchtower, one could also be selected to join the Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Good morning, dear deities.�� Another group of strong cultivators had arrived. They were the cultivators from the Alchemy Divine Palace. Many practitioners followed them as if a myriad of stars surrounding and supporting the moon. Cultivators from all sides also went up to greet them. They all seemed very formal and polite.


    After that came the Heavenly Battle Palace, the Qin He Palace, and many other factions. There were also the factions from the continents surrounding the Dongxiao Continent.


    At that time, another group of cultivators came from the sky and landed outside the Wangshen Watchtower. The one in the lead was the Alchemy Emperor. It was Ye Futian��s group.


    In an instant, many people shifted their gaze toward them. Many cultivators from the Alchemy Divine Palace gently bowed and greeted the Alchemy Emperor, ��Meeting the Alchemy Emperor.��


    Their voices instantly attracted even more gazes. The Alchemy Emperor had arrived. That meant that the white-haired youth beside him was probably Ye Liunian.


    ��Meeting the Alchemy Emperor.�� Many people bowed to the Alchemy Emperor. However, no one knew if they were sincere or not. Some looked toward Ye Futian. Then, someone said, ��Senior Alchemy Emperor, this person said that he is not a practitioner of Wangdu and has no connection to the Dongxiao Continent, refusing to take part in a battle. For someone who acts like that, why should you bring him here?��


    The one who spoke was a cultivator from the Qin He Palace. After that, he glanced at Ye Futian and said, ��Since you��ve already severed your relationship with the Dongxiao Continent, why are you still here?��


    The crowd was now focused on Ye Futian. The incident at the Heavenly Battle Palace last time clearly irked many people. Now, upon seeing that he was trying to enter the Wangshen Watchtower, many were clearly annoyed.


    Qi Mu from the Alchemy Divine Palace smiled gently as he watched. In the end, he was still affected. He was certain that the people of Wangshen Watchtower would have a bad impression of him due to the incident.


    The difficulty of Ye Futian entering the Wangshen Watchtower had clearly increased significantly. He could even face early elimination.

 Chapter 1971 - Breaking into the Formation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian glanced at the people, but before he could speak, Lin Qiu walked up and swept a glance at them. ��When did it become the turn of all of you to take charge of the affairs of Wangshen Watchtower? Today, when Renhuang Ye came to Wangshen Watchtower, did he have to ask all of you first if he could enter? Are you guys already able to represent the attitude of Wangshen Watchtower?��


    Lin Qiu��s words caused the pupils of all the people to contract slightly. He criticized them very harshly.


    ��There is also the matter of the Heavenly Battle Palace. You deceived Renhuang Ye. After he arrived, you spoke provocatively and were disrespectful to him. But now, when necessary, you encourage Renhuang Ye to participate in the war. Who do you think you are? Are you better than Renhuang Ye in alchemy, or are you stronger than him?��


    Lin Qiu continued, ��That day, you were thoroughly defeated. Knowing that your own strength is not good, are you now looking for someone to take the blame?��


    His voice was light-hearted, not happy or angry. He seemed exceptionally calm. The other party just wanted to refute, but heard Lin Qiu continue, ��Cut the crap, do you know why Renhuang Ye left? In the eyes of Renhuang Ye, you are just a group of nobodies. Renhuang Ye is not interested in alchemy, yet you wanted him to take action, and what was the result? It was the same in the Heavenly Battle Palace that day. The Renhuangs of the Qin He Palace provoked him. What happened in the end? So? I see that you��re still not repentant now. It seems that you haven��t learned your lesson yet.��


    ������ The people looked at Lin Qiu. This series of words blocked their words back. This guy did not seem to be a nosy person, but he had such a glib tongue.


    Ye Futian did not care to be with them?


    After listening to Lin Qiu��s words, the people around them vaguely felt that they might have misunderstood Ye Futian.


    The truth was that the other party kept provoking, and he was too lazy to have contact with the other party before leaving?


    ��Lin Qiu, no matter how clever you are, you can��t change the fact that he ended his relationship with us and avoided fighting,�� a strong person from the Qin He Palace coldly said. Did he want to get rid of that matter by talking his way out of it?


    ��Avoiding and not fighting?��


    Ye Futian raised his head and swept his gaze at the person who spoke. Those indifferent eyes were filled with contempt as he opened his mouth, ��Are you also worthy of fighting?��


    Saying that, he moved his gaze away without looking at the other party again and walked towards the front. ��Lin Qiu, since you also know it��s a bunch of nothing, why bother with more words and waste your energy.��


    ������ Lin Qiu knew how strong Ye Futian was, so he helped him brag a bit. Anyway, he would be exposed soon. Then, he would see how the other party would react. He did not expect Ye Futian himself to say such arrogant words. This time, it would be interesting.


    These Renhuangs were probably even more upset now. He was increasingly looking forward to it.


    Ye Futian told him previously that the arrogant Renhuang at the Northern Land was an unworthy opponent.


    The eyes of everyone from all sides were all staring at Ye Futian. This guy was simply arrogant to the extreme. There were many Renhuangs here. The major top powers of Wangdu and the top figures of all continents were present. He even said wildly that they, who stood at the top of the Dongxiao Continent, are a bunch of rabble-rousers?


    ��Since that��s the case, I��m looking forward to your next performance.�� The strong man from Qin He Palace responded indifferently, and all the cultivators from all sides also looked at Ye Futian. Once he entered Wangshen Watchtower, they would be able to know the truth. Having been so arrogant, if he did not have real strength, he would be miserable.


    This time, Ye Futian offended a lot of people.


    In one direction, the goddess Emperor Yi also took a look at Ye Futian, thinking that Ye Futian was really different. Cultivating in Wangdu, she had also seen all kinds of people and many top cultivators. No one was like Ye Futian. Facing top cultivators from all sides, it was as if he was independent of the world. That feeling was like no one could really get his attention.


    Whether it was the Heavenly Battle Palace��s Yang Qian, the Alchemy Divine Palace��s successor Qi Mu, or those powerful Renhuangs from the Northern Land, he had never regarded them properly. He was extremely arrogant.


    She was also very much looking forward to what kind of strength this level four human emperor actually had to allow him to disregard everyone from Wangdu.


    Just at that time, at the faraway Wangshen Watchtower, several extremely majestic figures appeared in the firmament. They gazed directly through the void, looking at these people coming. Although they were far apart, it was as if they were close at hand.


    ��Start the formation,�� said someone above Wangshen Watchtower. In an instant, the world changed, from the outside of the Wangshen Watchtower to the inside, that empty place filled with wisps of the aura of the great way and became indistinct. In front, one could see the stairs to the Wangshen Watchtower and palaces. They seemed to be close at hand, but the people of Wangdu knew that they only seemed to be close at hand. If they wanted to step onto the stairs and enter the Wangshen Watchtower, it would be difficult to do.


    At this moment, a great formation appeared in the Wangshen Watchtower, and only those who had broken through this great Clan-Guarding Matrix will be qualified to go up to the Wangshen Watchtower and have the opportunity to listen to the preaching of the Millet Emperor. That had been the rule for many years.


    ��Those who seek the Dao can now enter.�� A voice came from the void in the distance. At once, countless people looked ahead and did not think about things about Ye Futian anymore.


    The Wangshen Watchtower was open. It was an extremely rare opportunity. He wondered who would be able to grasp it.


    The various forces stepped forward and stepped into that spell matrix.


    Ye Futian perceived the spell matrix, which formed a space of its own. It was marvelous, and a Master level person definitely set up this spell matrix.


    ��Go in,�� the Alchemy Emperor said to Ye Futian, and he nodded. A group of people stepped forward and walked towards the front. The Alchemy Emperor, Goddess Donglai, and several of them watched from the outside. Not only they were like that, but the various factions were also like that too. If they could break through that spell matrix, they would have broken through it many years ago. Many top figures of the older generation had listened to the teachings of the Millet Emperor. This time, the people who came were the younger generations of their respective factions and those most confident of breaking through.


    Because of the limited number of places, they would only choose the most promising and powerful Renhuangs to enter each year.


    When Ye Futian stepped out of it, he felt that everything was changing; the matrix of the great way seemed to have forged an illusionary realm. This was no longer the world he saw before, but a completely imaginary world.


    This area was vast and endless, with many buildings and mountain peaks. Gazing into the distance, at the farthest place within his gaze, only vaguely could he see a Heaven��s Gate, like a door leading to the Wangshen Watchtower.


    His eyes changed abruptly with a touch of demonic color as he tried to see through the illusion. He was able to see that the buildings here and this heaven and earth were made of the power of the great way. But he could not look through completely. He could see, but he could not exit and was still stuck in the spell matrix.


    An invisible will might appeared in heaven and earth. It seemed that countless Dao air currents were flowing to and falling on their bodies, making them all bear an invisible oppressive force.


    ��Be careful. Someone will attack. It��s the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower.�� Lin Qiu instructed Ye Futian, ��In addition to that, we have to be careful of the cultivators of other powers.��


    Ye Futian nodded. He probably already knew something before coming. To enter the Wangshen Watchtower, he needed to walk through this Clan-Guarding Matrix. And in this matrix, there would be cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower attacking them. They were in the light, and the other side was in the dark.


    A group of people spread out in formation, not standing together. On Ye Futian��s side, there were Xia Qingyuan, Beigong Shuang, Bai Mu, and Zi Feng. Judging from strength, naturally, Zi Feng was the strongest.


    Buzz!


    At this moment, someone was extremely fast and turned into a bolt of lightning as he tried to break through quickly. However, a giant hand slammed down from the firmament suddenly, seemingly descending from out of nowhere. The giant golden hand covered a portion of the sky and hid the sun. There were many runes on the giant impenetrable hand that slammed down.


    The cultivator��s retreat was blocked. Bearing the extremely strong will might, his Divine Wheel of the Great Path erupted. His body shot directly through the void and crashed toward the sky above head-on.


    Clang!


    A loud sound came out as that person who rushed into the forefront of the cultivators was directly blasted into the ground by the palm of the great way. His body was dented, and he looked very miserable. The next moment, a golden hand appeared in the void, directly grabbing him and taking him away.


    Seeing this scene, the various powerful cultivators became cautious. Needless to say, the Wangshen Watchtower cultivators were powerful. Those who could enter the Wangshen Watchtower were probably more talented than a majority of them. Breaking through the formation was no simple matter.


    As they were trying to break through the matrix, outside the Wangshen Watchtower. Another vast group of figures appeared. The auras of these people were scary, and many recognized them. They were the Renhuangs of the Northern Land that descended upon the Heavenly Battle Palace that day.


    However, they had never seen the few people at the head of the group in the Heavenly Battle Palace before.


    However, with just one glance, the people knew where these people came from!

 Chapter 1972 - Interspatial Encounter

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After the Wangshen Watchtower became the top sacred place in the Dongxiao Continent, the Millet Emperor started preaching here. For many years, countless mighty figures have entered the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate.


    At this time, on top of one of the buildings in the Wangshen Watchtower, there stood many Renhuangs, each appearing in a different position, very scattered.


    Their eyes were looking at the spell matrix in front of them at this moment, which hid the heaven and earth within the spatial world in the Wangshen Watchtower. They could clearly see everything within the spatial world in the spell matrix, and many Renhuangs were releasing powerful auras of the great way, launching attacks toward the spatial world from time to time.


    ��This time, I don��t know if there are any powerful people who come to the Wangshen Watchtower to seek the way,�� a Renhuang smiled and said. As he spoke, he raised his hand and attacked. A huge pagoda came down directly into the formation and attacked a Renhuang of the same realm as him.


    This spell matrix was a test of combat power for those who sought the way. They would select people of the same realm to attack. Of course, this was not the law. If they encountered powerful people, people of higher realms would also strike as they wish. But the strongest people of the Wangshen Watchtower would see in their eyes who was strong and who was weak. They could be screened in the Law battle.


    They could even enter the spell matrix to attack. But of course, generally speaking, they would not do so unless they met someone who interested them very much.


    In the front position, at the lower space of the Wangshen Watchtower, an old man with an immortal style was sitting quietly there, with several strong people standing beside him in the left and right direction. He swept his gaze ahead and said, ��They��re here.��


    The old man looked into the distance. Beyond the spell formation, outside of the Wangshen Watchtower, a group of powerful people appeared there. They knew who those people were. They were the powerful people from the Northern Land, led by the Ancient royal family of the Yan kingdom.


    ��Don��t bother,�� the old man responded.


    ��Yes.�� The people next to him nodded. They wanted to see what the Ancient royal family of the Yan kingdom wanted to do by leading the strong people from the Northern Land.


    Now, they just needed to wait and see what happens. No matter what, what can the ancient royal family of the Yan kingdom do?


    If the Master of the ancient royal family of the Yan kingdom did not come, who could affect the Wangshen Watchtower with the Millet Emperor around?


    Therefore, even though they knew that the other party had arrived, the Wangshen Watchtower did not take any action but just let nature take its course.


    If they also wanted to break through the spell matrix, the Wangshen Watchtower did not mind. They could make use of the opportunity to see how strong the Renhuangs from the Northern Land were.


    Two completely different worlds existed within the spell matrix and outside it. At this moment, Dao attacks broke out continuously behind the spell matrix. Many strong people were attacked from outside the spell matrix as if they were suddenly bombarded from the sky. All the human emperors who came in were doing their best, not daring to be the least bit careless. Many Renhuangs had fallen to the sudden attacks and were taken away. They were probably thrown out of the spell matrix and lost the right to enter the Wangshen Watchtower to seek the Dao.


    Disregarding whether they could enter the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate, being thrown out like that was a rather humiliating thing for them.


    Ye Futian seemed to be a bit lucky. Since he stepped in the formation, he had not been attacked so far. Near him, Lin Qiu and Xia Qingyuan had been attacked to varying degrees. He found that the strength of those Dao attacks and the realm of the people inside were matched, meaning that the other party was controlling their attacks and will not attack randomly. Otherwise, if the top people of the Wangshen Watchtower attacked, how many people could withstand it?


    Just after Ye Futian strode forward in a relaxed manner, a powerful will might suddenly locked onto him. In the next moment, an extremely radiant divine blade of light descended from the sky. It pierced through the void directly and left a ray of light in the space. From top to bottom, the blade of light instantly engulfed Ye Futian.


    Just like before, this attack was a level four Renhuang Plane strength attack, and its attack strength was one of the stronger ones in the fourth level of the Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian looked up and directly eyed the blade of light descending. His pair of deep eyes as brilliant as stars were extremely calm. Even if it were a cultivator of the Wangshen Watchtower, it would probably be challenging to find an existence of the same realm that could threaten him.


    Buzz! Ye Futian stood in place without moving. A divine blade of light directly erupted from his body, shooting upward against the trend. His body became extremely sharp, like a divine sword of the great way as it split the sky.


    The blade of light swept through, and the blade of light that shot towards him was torn apart. The Dao was annihilated, the divine sword that shot towards him was directly decimated. The blade of light that remained was the blade of light that was released from Ye Futian��s body.


    He took a step and continued to move forward. It was as if this blade of light did not hinder him in the slightest.


    However, when he took a step, the firmament suddenly blossomed into a gorgeous swordsmanship haze. Lifting his head to look, he saw countless divine swords coming from beyond the sky clanging in the firmament. Many divine blades of light glowed down, making the space he was in was turned into a very strong swordsmanship space.


    Obviously, the Renhuang who struck him outside the spell matrix had intensified his attack, and the sword that shot toward Ye Futian was easily broken, so it must have been a bit humiliating for the person who cultivated in the Wangshen Watchtower.


    This time, the swordsmanship aura was obviously more powerful.


    Buzz. Blades of light spilled down, countless divine swords in the void turned into swordsmanship streams of light, dropping down from the firmament. Each sword turned into a ray of light. Many divine swords attacking at the same time seemed to turn into a terrifying sword matrix, like a meteor rain of swords. At this moment, it was as if Ye Futian��s world had only blades of light and was buried by this meteor sword veil.


    The swords were like rain, flooding Ye Futian��s body.


    Ye Futian��s white clothes fluttered, and his silver hair flew. He still stood there quietly as his body still did not move a bit. A more terrifying wisp of swordsmanship aura blossomed from his body. 10,000 swords sounded together as if infinite sword wills were born around him, creating a powerful resonance. They formed a terrifying Sword Qi storm that rotated around his body.


    The rain of swords fell and directly entered the sword qi storm around him and was directly swept into it as if it had directly become a part of this swordsmanship storm, resonating here and turning into his sword.


    The storm was getting stronger and stronger, and the terrifying storm made the surrounding space filled with suffocating destructive power. Many people glanced towards the direction where Ye Futian was, and people outside could also see the scene inside the spell matrix. They secretly said that this Ye Futian��s strength was really strong. No wonder he was so arrogant.


    The powerful swordsmen in training in the Wangshen Watchtower unleashed the destructive power of their swordsmanship, but the swordsmanship was directly assimilated and sucked into his Sword Qi storm as he suppressed his opponents�� swordsmanship.


    This meant that Ye Futian��s swordsmanship was not below his opponent��s. However, because his opponent was attacking into the spell matrix through the air, it was not possible to say that Ye Futian was necessarily stronger. But even so, the vast majority of those who entered the spell matrix were passive resisters, and there were few Renhuangs like Ye Futian who could directly suppress the opponent��s Dao attacks.


    Outside the spell matrix, a swordsmanship Renhuang��s gaze pierced through the void and looked at Ye Futian inside the spell matrix. When Ye Futian looked up, this look gave him an illusion, as if it was looking at him through the spell matrix. Those indifferent eyes shone with a touch of extremely strong self-confidence, and he never took their attacks seriously.


    The Renhuang had sword wills circling his body. As he stepped out, it seemed like he was going to turn into a sword.


    ��Wait.�� Someone interrupted said, ��You want to enter the spell matrix so soon?��


    ��This person is pretty strong. I will go and fight him.�� the Swordsmanship Renhuang said.


    ��Interesting, someone made you unable to resist and want to enter the spell matrix so quickly.�� A Renhuang smiled and remarked, ��Your sword doesn��t seem to be very good.��


    The Swordsmanship Renhuang raised his head and swept his sharp gaze at his companion. He smiled as he replied, ��Why don��t you try?��


    ��Sure.�� He gazed at Ye Futian, who was in the spell matrix. A Swordsmanship cultivator, eh?


    The light of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path shone on his body. An incomparably lofty war god illusion raised his arm and blasted out directly downward. In a flash, a huge hand went towards the spell formation, and a huge word appeared above this big hand. ��Suppress,�� it read.


    The moment the word entered the formation, the swordsmanship storm around Ye Futian stopped. The huge word slapped down, covering the sky as all the surrounding Dao was suppressed. It was as if the space he was in and all the power in it was going to be suppressed. This space became heavier than ever.


    Rumble�� The rune slammed down towards Ye Futian��s body as wisps of swordsmanship aura were suppressed and decimated.


    The sword wills around Ye Futian seemed to be suppressed by the aura of the great way. He swept his gaze towards the rune, then raised his hand and pointed towards the sky.


    In an instant, the swordsmanship storm turned into a terrifying cyclone, and ten thousand swords roared together, turning into a single sword, shooting upward against the trend. One sword was born, and 10,000 laws were destroyed.Bang! With a loud sound, the rune was destroyed directly under the sword. The radiant divine sword shot all the way up directly towards the spell matrix overhead and directly pointed at the Wangshen Watchtower��s Renhuangs outside the spell matrix. However, this spell matrix was irreversible, and his sword could not get out.��How arrogant.�� Outside, the swordsmanship Renhuang looked at Ye Futian��s eyes and the sword. He smiled, looking at the Renhuang who had struck, and said, ��How? Your attack, it doesn��t seem to be good.��That Renhuang coldly snorted and looked at Ye Futian inside the spell matrix. This guy was indeed not simple. He was able to break their Dao attack directly, and it seemed that defeating him through the spell matrix would be a little difficult. Unless they personally entered the spell matrix!

 Chapter 1973 - Barging In

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian continued to move forward after breaking through the foreign Dao attacks. His white clothes were fluttering, and he looked dashing and unrestrained.


    In the surroundings, many people were looking at Ye Futian. This person is powerful! Although he was arrogant and disregarded everyone, he did have the strength to back it up. Otherwise, he would not dare to be so reckless.


    But even so, his phrase ��the rabble�� offended many people from the different factions. It probably would not be so easy for him to enter the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate.


    Only then, several people came towards the direction where Ye Futian was, vaguely forming a closed circle around Ye Futian, causing those watching the battle outside the spell matrix to reveal a flash of puzzlement. It seemed these people were going to make a move on Ye Futian.


    They needed to break through the spell matrix to enter the Wangshen Watchtower. During this period, there were no laws, and any means could be used. The Wangshen Watchtower did not make any laws. Of course, the Wangshen Watchtower Renhuangs outside of the spell matrix was, in fact, secretly controlling all of this. Even if there were no laws, they were able to control the situation inside.


    For example, they could decide whether or not to attack the Renhuang inside, and they could also decide what level of people would launch the attack and against whom.


    That would enable them to directly influence the battlefield within the spell matrix. If inside, there was a battle between strong people with obvious realm gaps, and people of higher realms moved against Renhuangs of lower realms. Wangshen Watchtower cultivators would normally intervene and directly launch an attack against the higher realm Renhuangs, which the people of Wangdu understood.


    If some of the Renhuangs in the spell matrix broke out to fight with each other, then at that time, the Renhuangs of the Wangshen Watchtower over the spell matrix would instead stop striking and would let them fight on their own as long as the difference in realm was not too great.


    Therefore, those who were walking towards Ye Futian did not have any psychological pressure. According to their speculation, before, Ye Futian had showed extraordinary fighting power, so even if several of them were to strike against him at the same time, the people outside would not interfere.


    As they guessed, the strong people outside the spell formation stopped attacking when they saw someone walking towards Ye Futian, and they were curious about Ye Futian��s strength, so they wanted to use this opportunity to take a look.


    The Renhuangs who were walking towards Ye Futian were all the Renhuangs who were in the Heavenly Battle Palace that day. All of them were forces that had a better relationship with the Alchemy Divine Palace. Two Renhuangs of the fourth realm and two of the fifth realm approached Ye Futian from different directions. The moment their auras of the great way erupted, an oppressive to the extreme Great Path domain was formed with Ye Futian��s body as the center.


    ��They really are nobodies.�� Ye Futian continued to move forward without paying attention, but Lin Qiu and the rest had already struck. The three of them moved directly towards their opponents. Seeing this scene, more Renhuangs were surging to this side. Instead of fighting with the Renhuangs outside the Wangshen Watchtower, fighting with people here was the same.


    Ye Futian also had many strong people around him, all of them were cultivators who followed the Alchemy Emperor from the Taiyuan Continent.


    ��Let me see how strong the cultivators of the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor are.�� At this time, a voice came out, and a figure appeared in the void. It was clearly the Alchemy Divine Palace��s disciple Zhong Fan. He was the demonic figure who was refining pills with Grandmaster Zi He that day. When his aura of the great way was released, the flames of the way enveloped this void. Their power was terrifying, and they made the temperature of the whole space climb sharply.


    ��Zi Feng!�� Ye Futian shouted. He had no intention to make a move himself.


    Beside Ye Futian, the long phoenix skirt on Zi Feng��s body flew, a pair of divine wings suddenly appeared behind her. Terrifying flames of the way filled her body, and at this moment, she was incomparably gorgeous, like a phoenix goddess. In a flash, she caused many cultivators to look at her.


    ��What a strong aura.�� Those Renhuangs were trembling inside, and the next moment, they saw the gorgeous phoenix wings flickering and moving.


    Buzz�� The raging divine fire directly engulfed the void, and as Zhong Fan stood there, he saw his body wrapped in an illusory Great Path domain. An incomparably huge divine bird phoenix appeared in this Great Path domain, covering the sky and flooding this space.


    A loud and clear call of the phoenix sounded, stinging his eardrums, and Zhong Fan only felt his spiritual soul tremble as the huge divine phoenix��s wings swept out.


    Poof!


    Zhong Fan��s power of the great way was cut and shattered as blood spurted out. A bloody wound was torn out from his body as he was sent flying. If not for Zi Feng not going for the kill, he would probably be unable to resist her attacks and be dead by now.


    ��This is a phoenix, and it��s so strong?�� Many people were shocked. Zi Feng��s body floated in the air. As her wings beat behind her back, that boundless huge phoenix shadow covered the sky, enveloping the boundless space.


    Another call of the phoenix sounded, and those Renhuangs who came towards Ye Futian all saw a phoenix shadow grabbing towards them. The suffocating power of the great way made them feel unable to resist.


    The sounds of poofing continued. Just as they felt, figures were directly slapped out as they spit blood, and their faces turned pale.


    Even Lin Qiu and the others froze. Their bodies floated in the air as they stared blankly at Zi Feng.


    Had she finished doing what she wanted to do?


    Before, Zi Feng had been quietly following Ye Futian and had not shown her aura, let alone her strength. No one knew how strong she was, yet this sudden outburst made everyone freeze.


    The Phoenix Goddess who followed behind Ye Futian was so strong?


    The body of Zi Feng was still suspended in the air. She gazed around the crowd, and her pair of gorgeous divine phoenix eyes dazzled with the flames of the way, noble and cold. They were filled with contempt for everyone as if to confirm the words of Ye Futian before.


    At that time, if Zi Feng attacked, they would not necessarily lose to that Renhuang from the Northern Land. Did Ye Futian need to avoid him on purpose?


    Perhaps, he indeed had not wanted to participate in the battle.


    ��If you want to attack later, find some guys with a higher cultivation level. These guys are not worthy of my attention,�� Ye Futian remarked while sweeping a glance at the crowd and ignoring the strong people. As to who he was talking about, he would let the other side interpret it for themselves. As long as they were hostile to him, then, naturally, they were all included. He did not even seem to care about all the mighty figures in the entire Dongxiao Continent.


    Ye Futian continued to move forward as he spoke, and the strong people around him also followed him. At this time, even the Wangshen Watchtower Renhuangs outside the spell matrix were also shocked. Many Renhuangs stared down and spoke, ��Interesting. Want to go down for a walk?��


    It was impossible to truly feel how strong Zi Feng��s combat power was here. Only by entering the spell matrix and colliding head-on could they know.


    On top of that, how strong Ye Futian was was likewise a mystery. Although he had countered the two Renhuangs�� attacks before, no one knew how much strength he had used.


    ��Don��t rush. They��re going in.�� Some people looked into the distance. Outside the Wangshen Watchtower, those strong people who came from the Northern Land were already moving. The person at the head of the group gazed in the direction of the Wangshen Watchtower and said, ��We came from the Northern Land to visit Senior Millet Emperor. Use the ancient road and enter the spell matrix with the Renhuangs of the Dongxiao Continent to receive the test of the Great Way.��


    After saying that, they did not wait for the permission of the people of the Wangshen Watchtower and directly stepped forward into the spell matrix.


    The other strong people outside showed a flash of strange color. The cultivators of the Northern Land forcefully stepped into the spell matrix. Coupled with the previous battle in the Heavenly Battle Palace, they were going to show the cultivators of the Dongxiao Continent who was boss.


    The moment the Renhuangs of the Northern Land stepped into the spell matrix, they immediately and simultaneously unleashed a strong aura of the great way, heading forward.


    ��They are going���� The people outside saw many people directly release their Divine Wheels of the Great Path. Several figures were stepping in the void and sprinting extremely fast above the spell matrix. They were like heavenly gods. With each step, they shattered the sky and earth, and the spell matrix space violently shook.


    Among them, the mighty figure from the Northern Land��s Sovereign Family was first to go and battle in the Heavenly Battle Palace that day. Those sprinting in the air were cultivators of the Sovereign Family, and they all specialized in the same skill.


    Boom��


    At that moment, the crowd only saw several people stepping on the void at the same time. They stepped directly towards the Renhuangs in the spell formation. It was as though a boundless huge stone pillar had flattened this space.


    Those Renhuangs, who were attacked instantly, unleashed their powers of the great way to resist. But under the huge footprints, the great way directly collapsed and shattered. Booming violent sounds came out as several Renhuangs were directly trampled under the feet and seriously injured.


    Sure enough, this was to provoke trouble. This time, the Northern Land sent a group of their top Renhuangs to deal with the Dongxiao Continent��s Renhuangs. These people who arrived were the most powerful cultivators of the Northern Land.


    In the matrix, a Renhuang turned around to look at those who killed the Renhuangs inside. Their faces had changed. Was the last Law Battle of the Heavenly Battle Palace an early rehearsal?


    This time, they got serious and started a team fight.


    The elderly man with an immortal aura and Daoist bones swept his gaze inside the spell matrix. A sharp glint also flashed between his eyes. Beside him, someone looked towards him and asked, ��Do you want to go in?��


    Obviously, he was asking if he needed the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower to barge inside and start a war with the other side.


    ��They used seeking the way as an excuse to enter the spell matrix. Although they attacked ruthlessly, they held back a little, did not look to kill, and knew their limits. Since that��s the case, let��s wait and see,�� the elderly man remarked. Such a battle could allow them to see whether there was anyone worthy of the teachings of the Millet Emperor among the Renhuangs who entered the spell matrix this time.


    ��Yes.�� Next to him, the person nodded without saying anything more and continued to look at that spell matrix battlefield!

 Chapter 1974 - One Punch

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The roar of the Great Path��s violent resonance continued to erupt inside the matrix, and Renhuang from the Northern Land rushed into it, initiating the vicious battle.


    The cultivators of various forces in the Dongxiao Continent no longer fought against one another but were united against the outside force. Otherwise, they would all suffer miserably.


    After the cultivators from the Northern Land had initiated their attack, they discovered that the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower, who were watching outside the matrix, no longer interfered. Its significance was not lost. This was essentially handing the battlefield over to them as a kind of assessment. The matrix itself was Wangshen Watchtower��s test to them.


    To enter the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate, one must pass the matrix.


    Except that the assessment this time was a little different. Renhuang from the Northern Land had replaced the Renhuang of Wangshen Watchtower, entering the matrix��s battlefield to participate in the battle.


    The cultivators from Qin He Palace did not continue their attack on Ye Futian and his party. They now turned their attention to the Renhuang, who were attacking violently. Many people were already on the move, and each of them had found opponents of a comparable realm and started a Law Battle within the bounds of the matrix.


    For a moment, the space inside the matrix seemed about to fall apart, on the brink of a complete riot that could crush the sky and the earth.


    The cultivators outside the Wangshen Watchtower were observing the dizzying battles that erupted at the same time. They wanted to watch each battle in detail and didn��t want to miss anything, but the actions were too fast. For this great battle that exploded at the same time in different battle locations. The only choice was to pick a battlefield to observe with a glance at the other battlefields from time to time. After all, divine consciousness was unable to invade inside the matrix, so they could only watch it with their naked eyes.


    ��These Renhuang from the Northern Land are quite wild,�� someone remarked.


    ��Well, the cultivators from the ancient royal family of the Yan Kingdom have come here in person. That young man in the lead is surrounded by many cultivators, so he must be a royal member of the ancient royal family from The Yan Kingdom, leading a group of Renhuang to seek the Way. If so, they must have selected the strongest among their people. But we are different. Many of our powerful people have already entered Wangshen Watchtower before, or they are currently cultivating at Wangshen Watchtower. This time, only some of these powerful men had entered the matrix, not a carefully selected elite as the other party.�� Someone who was more rational saw the key to the battle.


    They had the opportunity to enter Wangshen Watchtower every year, and many powerful men had entered to cultivate one time or another. This year, there were just some excellent characters who attended; however, it was a different story with the other party. Led by the ancient royal family of the Yan Kingdom, they must be commanding a powerful group of Renhuang from all the top forces in Yanyun Continent to descend upon the city.


    From this standpoint, they were at a disadvantage.


    ��Under such fierce attacks, I am afraid they will be entirely wiped out.�� A cultivator frowned. They were from some of the major forces in Wangdu, and many elders from these forces did not enter the matrix, and they had a bad feeling when they saw the progression on the battlefield. The Renhuang from the Northern Land had great momentum and were extremely ferocious. In different realms, they had been able to cause considerable destruction.


    This battle was somewhat similar to the Law Battle at the Heavenly Battle Palace that day. It was as if the battle on that day was the dress rehearsal of the great battle today.


    The cultivators from the Alchemy Divine Palace gathered in one area but in a scattered formation. After all, their realm varied.


    Qi Mu, the heir of the Alchemy Divine Palace, stood in the center. He glanced at those imposing Renhuang from the Northern Land, then turned around to look behind him, where Ye Futian and the others were positioned.


    Because Ye Futian and his party were traveling the fastest so that Ye Futian was in the rearmost position when they turned around.


    In another direction, there were the cultivators from the Heavenly Battle Palace, where Yang Qian, the leader of the Heavenly Battle Palace, was standing there. He had a terrifying aura about him, an extremely tyrannical Fighting Will surrounding him. He glanced at Ye Futian and the locations of other cultivators, such as Qi Mu of the Alchemy Divine Palace. He said, ��You had differences in opinions regarding the affairs that occurred at the Heavenly Battle Palace, but that is all in the past. Now that the cultivators from the Northern Land have invaded Wangshen Watchtower and see Dongxiao Continent as nothing with no one to protect it, I��m asking everyone to put aside previous grudges temporarily and face this foe together.��


    Qi Mu and other cultivators from Alchemy Divine Palace looked at Ye Futian and the others, only to hear him say, ��I have no opinion.��


    Clearly, he had also felt the might of the other party. Any further internal conflicts would inevitably cause more damages to either party, resulting in their disqualifications.


    ��What does Emperor Ye think?�� Yang Qian asked Ye Futian.


    ��Not interested,�� Ye Futian replied, calm and nonchalant. He glanced at the cultivators of the Northern Land, who had come from afar. No one could stop him from seeing the Millet Emperor, not even those cultivators who came from the Yanyun Continent of the North.


    He did need to partner up with anyone, especially not those people who had meant to do him harm earlier.


    When the cultivators around him heard his words, their eyes sharpened slightly. They had already made concessions and gave him a way out, but still, Ye Futian was so arrogant.


    Yang Qian frowned, a little displeased, and said, ��Emperor Ye, although there were some misunderstandings previously, the important thing now is the situation at hand.��


    ��The situation at hand?�� Ye Futian looked at the other. ��I remembered I told you before that I am not from Wangdu, nor am I a cultivator of Dongxiao Continent.��


    ������ Yang Qian had nothing to say when he heard what Ye Futian had to say. Ye Futian was serious; he still saw himself as a separate entity from Dongxiao Continent, not with the other cultivators.


    When Lin Qiu heard Ye Futian��s words, he couldn��t help but smiled and said, ��Before, when there were no cultivators from the Northern Land, you had joined forces to fight against him, drawing a clear boundary. Now that the people from the Northern Land are here, you wanted to leverage his power? How quickly you change your tune.��


    ��You think you are so much better than everyone else,�� some cultivators remarked next to Lin Qiu and Ye Futian. Even at a time like this, they were still acting like this had nothing to do with them.


    Not far from the sky above, the terrifying aura of the Great Path permeated, and several Renhuang attacked in this direction. One of them was the cultivator from the Northern Land royal family. He glanced at Ye Futian and recalled that he had seen this man before, on that day when they entered the Heavenly Battle Palace. At the time, this man evaded battle and left soon after.


    ��No need to argue. We are all going out. It seems that we should go to the Millet Emperor for advice.�� The royal cultivator sounded domineering, golden light shining upon his body. An overpowering might spread out as he stepped forward. Heaven and earth boomed, and the void trembled.


    Besides him, there were many cultivators around who struck from different directions at the same time.


    Buzz. Qi Mu of the Alchemy Divine Palace drifted backward without any intention to engage in battle, and the rest of the cultivators from the Alchemy Divine Palace followed his example. Other cultivators retreated when they saw their action and gave up their positions as well, an act that caught many by surprise.


    After they backed away, Ye Futian was facing squarely at the other party. In other words, Ye Futian and his people were directly facing these cultivators from the Northern Land.


    Sensing the aura coming from Ye Futian, the cultivator who belonged to the royal family from the Northern Land swept a glance at him. A touch of dominance flashed in those eyes as he took a step that made the void tremble. It was as if he could step through the void.


    That day Ye Futian avoided the battle. Today, where would he go?


    Qi Mu and the others were looking at Ye Futian as well. This time, he could not avoid it, and he must fight no matter what. If he didn��t want to join them, then he must face it alone.


    A contemptuous sneer flashed through the eyes of that Northern Land Renhuang. His figure flickered and landed a little slanted above Ye Futian and the others. The divine glory of the Great Path exploded from his body, and a mighty pressure slammed down that created an oppressive, suffocating coercion of the Great Path in this vast space. A boundless and heavy might now enveloped Ye Futian.


    In the next moment, a towering figure like a god of war appeared. Like a Divine Wheel of the Great Path, this war god-like figure overlooked the sky below as one of his feet stomped down from above. A horrific loud rumbling sound was heard that seemed to shatter heaven and earth. A golden stone pillar appeared, pulverizing the void, flattening one corner of the sky. Shockingly, it was the foot of the other, which, like golden lightning falling from the sky, stepped directly on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at the foot that was stomping down at him. Above his body, a majestic aura of the Great Path permeated. When his eyes swept toward the sky, a most radiant aurora of the sword seemed to shot out from his eyes while his entire body filled with immense power. At this moment, it seemed that the world was resonating with his body, and an unparalleled momentum burst from him. Though he stood there casually, he gave an illusion of total invincibility.


    In the void, that royal cultivator from the Northern Land felt an invisible threat as well. Looking at those eyes filled with extreme confidence, it as if his opponent did not pay any attention to his aggressive attack.


    When the footprint of the war god landed, the radiant beam of the towering stone pillar attempted to penetrate Ye Futian��s body. But at this time, Ye Futian raised his arm and threw a punch at that footprint.


    The sound of elephant trumpeting was heard between heaven and earth. It was the Divine Elephant that rocked the sky. With this one punch, the Great Path collapsed, and the space shattered. The crowd saw that the beam of light formed by the footprints of the Great Path readily split in two, and the dazzling light of the Great Path radiated in all directions. A light beam went up against all odds, and though the stone pillar continued to collapse, the light was still traveling upward until it finally descending on the foot of the god of war.


    Boom��


    An astonishing and violent explosion was heard. The foot of the war god exploded and shattered. Then, the phantom of the war god started showing cracks and seemed to be exploding as well. The terrible power from that punch was mighty. It blasted directly on the body of the royal cultivator in the void. He made a muffled groaning sound, and then his body was thrown back as he spat out a trace of blood in the void.


    Ye Futian stood where he was. It was as if he hadn��t moved at all. He lowered his arms as every Renhuang��s attention now focused on him. He was frozen and filled with great shock.


    Could this power be so terrifying?


    Even the cultivators from Heavenly Battle Palace and Alchemy Divine Palace trembled violently in their hearts. However, Ye Futian surveyed everyone around him and said indifferently, ��Does this level worthy to battle with me?��

 Chapter 1975 - Melee

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    One punch.


    The Renhuang that has been so arrogant at the Heavenly Battle Palace, who had crushed several opponents of the same level in Dongxiao Continent, was knocked down by Ye Futian with a single punch, unable to fight back.


    That day when Ye Futian left, had that really been to avoid fighting?


    Dared not he to fight?


    With a single punch that could knock down his opponent. Would he deliberately find excuses to avoid fighting?


    He didn��t fight because he didn��t want to fight or didn��t care to fight.


    Not only were the people on the battlefield stunned, but many cultivators from Dongxiao Continent outside the battlefield also had their eyes glued to the same place, staring at the man in white in total shock. He stood there quietly, ignoring these cultivators, finding no need to partner with any of them.


    ��Could it be that what Lin Qiu said is true?�� someone whispered. ��He doesn��t fight because the cultivators of Heavenly Battle Palace and Alchemy Divine Palace moved against him and used his power in the Law Battle, so he left in protest.��


    ��It��s also possible that he thinks the others were not worthy of fighting with him at all,�� said someone else. If Ye Futian were not so strong, his case would have been weak. But now, he had proven his own strength, so whatever he did before was justified, and no one could doubt him.


    Of course, it was indeed the case. He had no reason to avoid fighting, just his disdain for Law Battles and his disdain for those from Heavenly Battle Palace and Alchemy Divine Palace.


    So, who was this person?


    Someone looked in the direction where Alchemy Emperor was and saw him standing with his hands behind his back. Goddess Donglai stood behind him quietly, her eyes looking into the matrix as well.


    No one knew Ye Futian��s true strength better than Goddess Donglai, and she wasn��t worried in the least. He would undoubtedly prove himself in this matrix with his strength and see the Millet Emperor as he deserved.


    Now, the cultivators from Yanyun Continent were here to attack. Even the cultivators of the ancient imperial family of Yan had arrived. Were they here for the matter regarding Eastern Deity Island?


    However, now that he had made it to Wangshen Watchtower, she no longer worried about Ye Futian��s safety.


    On the battlefield, Ye Futian independently occupied one side of the void, with many cultivators in the surrounding. Yang Qian, the young Palace Lord of Heavenly Battle Palace, looked at him and found no words. Was this level unworthy to fight with him?


    Qi Mu and other cultivators from Alchemy Divine Palace also looked at Ye Futian. Obviously, they had underestimated Ye Futian��s strength. Not only could Ye Futian battle the royal cultivator from the Northern Land, but he also ended the battle with just a single punch.


    Would Ye Futian��s victory mean that those at the same level from various forces were also not worthy of engaging him in Law Battles?


    Successively, other cultivators were attacking this way. There was contention between various cultivators in this space, specifically the Renhuang from the Northern Land, the Renhuang from Dongxiao Continent, and Ye Futian and his people. Ye Futian had separated himself from those who were from Dongxiao Continent, so they were not together.


    Boom�� The coercion of the Great Path was terrifying as giant footprints trampled the void. Several royal members who were more powerful cast a glance at Ye Futian. However, at this moment, the sky above the matrix felt a violent shockwave, which caused many to look up. Powerful figures of Renhuang had appeared in the void.


    These men were the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Is Wangshen Watchtower going inside the matrix to get involved in the battle?�� Those who saw this new development outside of Wangshen Watchtower were shocked. If so, then there was now one more principality to contend with, and it was Wangshen Watchtower no less. In the past, Wangshen Watchtower��s presence was usually reserved for testing some extraordinary Renhuang with extraordinary combat power and would enter the matrix to escalate the battle.


    But this time, it was a little different. This time, the cultivators from all sides had gathered in one place.


    The cultivators of the ancient royal clan of Yan had led a great army of Renhuang here, whose express purpose was to challenge Wangshen Watchtower. The target for top figures brought from the North were also the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Everyone, please continue,�� said a young Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower with a smile. After their arrival, all the Renhuang had positioned themselves in various places and did not intend to engage in battle immediately. They planned to observe those from the North and, at the very least, to prevent those in the higher realm from taking advantage of those in the lower realm.


    If those who were already the matrix had no way to compete with the Renhunag from the Northern Land, it wouldn��t be too late for them to get involved.


    ��Since we are here, let��s do it together.�� At this moment, a voice was heard, catching everyone��s attention. The speaker was a central figure from Yanyun Continent, standing in the middle of a powerful group of Renhuang, like the moon that was surrounded by the stars. He didn��t release any aura from his body, nor did he participate in the battle, but no one dared to underestimate his existence. If they were right, this person ought to be the leader of this campaign, a cultivator from the ancient royal family of Yan, from the Yanyun Continent.


    This Renhuang, who appeared to be 30 or so, was a member of the ancient imperial family of the Yan Kingdom, Yan Dongyang.


    ��If you want to come along, we have no objections; please feel free,�� said the young man who headed Wangshen Watchertower as he stared at the other. Since the other forces had already come here, how could Wangshen Watchtower show any weakness? After all, this here was their territory. No matter how their opponents wanted to move, they would have to oblige.


    ��Those who defeated cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower are qualified to seek instruction from the Millet Emperor?�� Yan Dongyang said softly. His voice was very soft, but it was heard clearly by everyone. He glanced around the battlefield and said, ��We have come from the Northern Land, traveled for hundreds of thousands of miles across many continents. Now we have a chance to learn from the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, how can we miss such a rare opportunity?��


    ��Yes.�� The eyes of the Renhuang from the North were filled with powerful Fighting Will. They were willing to come this time because they also wanted to feel the strength of the Renhuang in Wangshen Watchtower of Dongxiao Continent. This kind of opportunity was rare and would be able to prove their own combat effectiveness.


    As each Renhuang found his opponent, this battlefield became even more violent and crazy. In the entire matrix space, battles were erupting everywhere, and there were even several battles where Upper Renhuang were fighting.


    Yang Qian��s cultivation was of Upper Renhuang. At this moment, a tyrannical Renhuang appeared in front of him with a terrifying aura.


    The same was true for Qi Mu from the Alchemy Divine Palace and all the other cultivators. The Renhuang from Northern Land, who had slaughtered their way here, appeared in front of them, with fierce momentum.


    Great battles erupted in an instant, and there was a terrifying roar of the Great Path within the matrix, and the turbulence of the Great Path raged between heaven and earth. When the battles erupted, Ye Futian did not take action. He was still standing in his own position, watching all this taking place. He did not help anyone, acting as if he was a principality in his own right.


    Renhuang from various principalities sometimes glanced at him, wondering if he was waiting to jump in as they were destroying each other?


    At this moment, a Middle Renhuang with an awesome aura appeared in front of Ye Futian. This Middle Renhuang was also someone with great combative power from the Northern Land, who looked to be in his 40��s. He was authoritative and domineering, with a shocking momentum about him.


    ��I��m here to get a taste of your strength.�� The middle-aged man declared loudly. When his voice fell, the void vibrated, and the hair on everyone��s neck stood up.


    Ye Futian didn��t really care. He glanced at the man casually and saw that two other men appeared on either side of him. They were not Renhuang from the Northern Land, but Renhuang from Dongxiao Continent. Both men were of the Sixth Realm, which exceeded Ye Futian��s by two realms. Clearly, they realized that those in the same realm would never be able to beat Ye Futian.


    Since Ye Futian regarded himself as a lone principality, the rest of the people would let him struck out first.


    Ye Futian was suspended in the air. His line of sight was directed at the Northern Renhuang in the sky above. There was a brilliant golden brilliance blooming above his body. In an instant, the golden light filled the sky, like the light of Buddhism, with the endless sound of Buddha ringing in the air.


    The Renhuang from the Northern Land frowned. He felt a force similar to his own power of the Great Path. As his eyes surveyed the land beneath him, suddenly, his expression changed, and he became extremely fierce and wild.


    A giant beast that was extremely wild appeared above the sky, like a real dragon, but also like a lion, with four hoofs, standing above the firmament, as a roar came out of its bloody basin of a mouth. Countless sound waves of the Great Path swept through the space like endless sharp swords of the sound wave. It tore through the void and shattered spiritual souls.


    In just an instant, Ye Futian��s body seemed to be submerged by invisible sound waves. At the same time, the Renhuang on both sides also launched an attack of the Great Path on Ye Futian; cultivators from all three sides attacked Ye Futian simultaneously.


    ��How unforgiving.�� Many who were outside fixed their attention on the battlefield where Ye Futian was at. Because of his independent ways, he was now being attacked by both forces. Men from Dongxiao Continent and the cultivators from the Northern Land were now fighting against him.


    But at this moment, the golden divine brilliance on Ye Futian was getting even more radiant, as sounds of Buddha was heard, and a Buddhist aura lingered in the air.


    ��Get away!��


    With a loud shout accompanied by the roar of the terrifying beast, an infinite and domineering Buddha suddenly appeared above the sky. It was Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm. The infinite ancient Buddha released the endless glory of Buddhism, rocking the mountains and rivers. The Buddha��s light and rhythm pierced the beast, and then its body was pulverized. Not only that, the spiritual souls of that Northern Renhuang and the other two Renhuang who attacked Ye Futian trembled violently as if they might collapse and pulverize at any time while the Great Path was also destroyed.


    A rustling sound was heard, and with the blooming of the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm, a giant divine tree appeared above Ye Futian��s head. Numerous branches and leaves spread out, and captured the other three Renhuang in an instant. The power of the Great Path wanted to smash through, but these leaves were extremely resilient, locking their bodies in place within the void.


    The branches and vines furled, and three figures were being wrapped up and delivered in front of Ye Futian. Ye Futian glanced at them, and his indifferent eyes made them realize that even if their cultivation was stronger than Ye Futian, they were not his equal, after all.

 Chapter 1976 - : Seventh Realm?

    Ye Futian looked at the three figures that were wrapped in the leaves and branches. His eyes were cold and indifferent; it was as if he had never taken them seriously.


    The three struggled within the grasps of the branches and vines, trying to loosen their holds, but more sounds of rustling were heard as the branches and leaves that kept the three prisoners slammed straight down and smashed them directly into the ground. Their bodies seemed to be pierced through as muffled sounds of groaning were heard.


    It was rather abusive.


    It was clear by now that the two sides were not on the same level. All the Renhuang who were battling around them were greatly shocked as they watched the situation unfold, especially the cultivators from other forces such as Alchemy Divine Palace. They would have never expected Ye Futian to be this powerful.


    All three Renhuang were from major forces. One was a cultivator from the Northern Land, and the other two were of the two Sixth Realm. But none of them were unable to fight back. They were so easily manipulated by Ye Futian. Clearly, to him, they were not opponents at all. Was this something that could have been achieved by a Middle Renhuang of the Fourth Realm?


    Divine Wheel. His aura of the Great Path was so overpowering. Was it possible that his Great Path was flawless and that he possessed the perfect Divine Wheel?


    At this moment, a divine light twinkled above the sky, and an Upper Renhuang of the Seventh Realm appeared above Ye Futian. It was an Upper Renhuang cultivator from the Qin He Palace. A few of the people controlled by Ye Futian were his companions.


    Can he resist cultivator of the Seventh Realm? many wondered silently. Even on the outside, most of the people were looking at Ye Futian��s area of battle. Ye Futian had been a hot topic before he entered the matrix. Many people were especially focused on him.


    Now that Ye Futian had demonstrated such strength in the battle, it was inevitable that he was attracting all the attention, and even more eyes were trained on him.


    Not just them, but even many of the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower were looking at Ye Futian at this moment. The old man in the lead was sitting there as he was before. As his eyes focused on Ye Futian inside the matrix, he asked, ��Who knows who this man is?��


    ��This man goes by the name of ��Ye Liunian.�� It is said that he came with the Alchemy Emperor. Previously, he had caused some disturbances in the Heavenly Battle Palace. Some suspected that the Alchemy Emperor was his master, but he denies it. However, in my estimation, this man did not come from the Tower of the Alchemy Emperor of Taiyuan Continent,�� someone said as he was walking over to where the old man was sitting.


    ��Then, where do you think he was from?�� The old man did not care too much about the outside world��s affairs and didn��t know of the news regarding Ye Futian, hence his inquiry.


    ��Eastern Deity Island,�� that Renhaung replied. A flash passed through the old man��s eyes as he looked into the distance. ��I see. So, it seems that she had sent him to Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate.��


    ��It must be.�� The Renhuang next to him nodded. Their mutual understanding needed no further clarification.


    Goddess Donglai did not publicize Ye Futian��s identity. She took Ye Futian to see the Millet Emperor immediately. However, as the number one principality in Dongxiao Continent, the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower could still make out a thing or two about many events that had happened. Of course, they only guessed that Ye Futian had come from Eastern Deity Island but didn��t know that he was the heir of Supreme Being Donglai.


    ��Let��s see if the Upper Renhuang of Seventh Realm could do any better,�� said the old man, looking at the battlefield. The Upper Renhuang of the Seventh Realm had already released the coercion of the Great Path and was ready to attack.


    When that cultivator of Seventh Realm unleashed the coercion of the Way, the vast and endless void was filled with a suffocating oppressive force. Ye Futian looked up in the sky and saw that many additional phantoms now surrounded the opponent. In an instant, there were thousands of them, standing above the sky and surrounding the void. Each phantom was akin to a figure of the war god. How horrific would it be when these thousands of phantoms unleashed the coercion of the Great Path at the same time?


    It seemed that Ye Futian was in a desperate situation and was about to be buried in that space.


    ��But this���� Those cultivators watching the battle from the outside were shocked. An Upper Renhuang of Seventh Realm now took action, but without any interference from Wangshen Watchtower. It was as if they had given their permission in silence to allow Ye Futian to deal with an opponent of the Seventh Realm.


    Renhuang Fourth Realm was classified as the first realm of Middle Renhuang, and Seventh Realm was already Upper Renhuang. There was an entire level separating the two. Could Ye Futian still have a chance in such a battle?


    ��As an Upper Renhuang, it is a little unfair to fight against you. If you can withstand one strike from me, I will stop,�� said the Upper Renhuang of Seventh Realm in the void, loud and clear. His voice resounded throughout the void. It was as if his many phantoms were speaking simultaneously, which caused countless echoes between heaven and the earth. His voice lingered in the sky, reverberating in everyone��s ears for quite a while.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at the other. How could he be so hypocritical?


    One strike. This was probably going to be the most powerful strike ever.


    ��Your guys already showed that no lowly tactics are off-limit in battle, so why bother to pretend to be so generous?�� Ye Futian said sarcastically. In this Law Battle of the matrix, what could victory mean when someone in the Seventh Realm was fighting against someone in the Fourth Realm?


    The original intention of this trip had already been violated; this was now purely an attack aimed at Ye Futian. If that was the case, there was no need to dress it up.


    ��Of course, I don��t care how many times you attack me. In front of me, you are not in a position to say what you just said,�� Ye Futian remarked sarcastically. As soon as his voice fell, his body levitated into the air, and an astonishing aura of the Great Path was released. A golden divine light glittered upon his body, and a Buddha seemed to have appeared. The Sound of Buddha lingered. It was as if there were endless Buddhist characters flying out, resounding everywhere between heaven and earth. Everyone��s ears were filled with the rhythm of Buddha, and in their mind, an ancient Buddha seemed to have manifested.


    ��Since you are so shameless as to allow an Upper Renhuang to launch the attack, don��t blame me for being merciless,�� Ye Futian said softly, completely stunning everyone as they looked at him in astonishment.


    No mercy?


    Was this an appropriate thing to say to an Upper Renhuag of the Seventh Realm?


    ��How arrogant.�� Not far away, Goddess Emperor Yi of Goddess Peak regarded Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. This was the most conceited Renhuang she had ever seen. His ostentation was not expressed in his attitude but implicitly through his action and speech. But, he did have actual strength to back up his sense of superiority.


    However, at this moment, he was facing a powerful existence of the Seventh Realm. Could he also crush it with the Great Path?


    ��Be careful. This man is a powerful Renhuang at Qin He Palace. His attacks are extremely fierce. He can will thousands of phantoms attacking at the same time, so its offensive power would multiply manifold. Don��t be careless.�� Ye Futian heard a voice, and it was Goddess Emperor Yi who had transmitted the message to him.


    Ye Futian glanced at the other person from the corner of his eyes, only to see Emperor Yi appear as she was, quietly watching the battlefield where the two were located. Perhaps, this warning was a sign of her goodwill toward him.


    He did not respond. The coercion of the Great Path from the cultivator of the Seventh Realm in the void was getting stronger. Thousands of phantoms seemed to resonate with the Great Path. A domineering power of the Great Path emerged from each of the phantoms, suppressing this space. The entire void felt an immeasurable heaviness, as it was shrouded and oppressed by an invisible pressure of the Great Path. Any ordinary Renhuang standing inside this space would suffocate.


    Ye Futian stood there with his usual expression, but he had felt a trace of pressure nonetheless. The feeling was like a corner of the sky was about to collapse and crush on top of him.


    Above Ye Futian, a divine tree appeared, expanding at a terrifying speed. In a few short moments, the elusive aura of the ancient tree was everywhere in this vast world, as if a divine tree had been planted here, turning it into a domain of the Great Path.


    Bang. A muffled sound came out, as thousands of phantoms stepping at the same time above the firmament, a golden brilliance bloomed upon their bodies. They had the same movement, raising their arms as golden light screens flowed upon those arms. They were tinged with a terrifying breath of shattering the Great Path.


    Finally, under countless gazes, the other man moved with the many phantoms that moved at the same time in the same fashion. They delivered a blow downward, and in that instant, this corner of the sky seemed on the verge of collapsing. The crowd saw the phantoms of the sky lord running through the void, blasting their attacks at Ye Futian.


    Simultaneously, a horrific invisible sound wave swept out, causing those phantoms to explode and then pulverized. Many wore a shocked expression on their faces as they beheld this unbelievable scene in awe.


    The greatest sound was usually inaudible. They could not hear the sound of this sound wave, but they could feel it.


    In the space shrouded by the ancient tree, an exquisitely cold and dark aura appeared in the domain of the Great Path, which froze those elusive phantoms that had dove downward, turning them into icy frost. Before the attacks had reached Ye Futian, they had already turned to ice.


    The crowd saw Ye Futian��s body slowly levitating, and a terrifying storm of swordsmanship appeared around him. Wherever he passed, those elusive phantoms continued to shatter and explode. Thousands of phantoms dissipated at a breakneck speed. And in a short time, everything had turned into dust.


    Soon, the Renhuang of the Seventh Realm appeared in person. He looked at what was happening in front of him in utter horror, as all the external phantoms of obfuscation turned into dust and disappeared in an instant. However, he had no time to be in shock. Before he knew it, a sword with flawless swordsmanship had arrived in front of him.


    Boom�� A wildly violent power of the Great Path exploded fiercely as his body turned into an indestructible golden form, suppressing the Great Path with its power. Both of his fists blast through the air to block the sword strike.


    As the sword fell, a sharp sizzling sound was heard. This sword seemed to have integrated thousands of Sword Will between heaven and earth, converging them into a single sword. The golden form shattered, and the fists emerged bloodied. The sword continued traveling forward, slashing the arms. It slammed into the body of the Great Path above. Cracks appeared as a golden divine glory was observed by the crowd. In the next moment, the sword finally stopped, but that Renhuang of the Seventh Realm was knocked out into the faraway distance, standing motionlessly, with blood spurting from his chest.


    His body was filled with terrifying, destructive Sword Will.


    ��Is this your strike?�� Ye Futian glanced at him with contempt in his eyes. ��Is this the very powerful Seventh Realm?��


    The Upper Renhuang of the Seventh Realms was still being utterly crushed!

 Chapter 1977 - Decimated

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Was a seventh-tier cultivator very powerful?


    Even when an upper-level Renhuang attacked, he still lost to Ye Futian without any suspense. Ye Futian��s combat ability was absolutely terrifying.


    Both inside and outside of the matrix, many cultivators were speechless. Only now did they understand why Ye Futian was so proud.


    Recalling the day when Heavenly Battle Palace invited Ye Futian over, they actually wanted to challenge him to a Law Battle. Maybe in Ye Futian��s eyes, all of them were laughing stocks.


    With Ye Futian��s combat ability, their Law Battles were not worth his time.


    Looking back now, it was indeed a mockery to Ye Futian.


    Even many Renhuangs from the Northern Land looked over to where Ye Futian stood. This person��s ability was very powerful. There was a serious look in their gazes.


    However, right now, Ye Futian ignored what the crowd was thinking of him. He glanced around at the crowd. With a stomp, his figure shot up into the sky. He stood in the space high above the matrix, the Light of Buddha circling him. In the sky above, a gigantic Buddha appeared. Buddhist Voices circled the Buddha and could be heard by everyone present.


    What was he doing? Many people only saw a Buddha when they looked over. Right then, Ye Futian had become a Buddha.


    Aside from that, tens of thousands of swords hummed around Ye Futian��s figure. Endless Sword Will flowed out, enveloping the endless space. It became a powerful Sword Will of the Great Path. On this battlefield, many people could clearly sense the power of the Sword Will.


    In a corner, Qi Mu raised his head and looked at the currents of swordsmanship flowing in the sky. His clothes fluttered in the wind. If this Sword Will was aimed at him, how would he block it?


    The powerful Sword Will flowed over his head and flooded this part of the sky. It enveloped an even larger region. Not just him, but many cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace were all enveloped within.


    Many people frowned. There were even many people who stopped fighting and watched Ye Futian. This fellow had released such a powerful aura. What was he planning to do?


    When they looked towards Ye Futian, his figure was floating up into the sky. Buddhist Voices of the Great Path circled him and the surrounding space. The Buddhist Voices seemed to form countless Buddhist runes that shot out in different directions.


    ��Since all of you want a Law Battle so badly, I will grant you your wish,�� Ye Futian said. As he said this, the Buddha let out an angry shout. Terrifying sound waves of the Great Path swept out, generating formless Way of Sonic Wave. It swept across the endless space. The vast space within the matrix was completely enveloped by the sound wave attack.


    Ptui.


    A few cultivators from Qin He Palace nearest to Ye Futian were immediately sent flying backward. They let out dull groans, and their faces were pale. Their spiritual souls were shaken, and some of them immediately fell over and fainted. Some coughed up mouthfuls of fresh blood. They seemed malaised, and their figures trembled uncontrollably.


    Was Ye Futian attacking everyone? The people outside were astonished as they watched this scene. Ye Futian naturally would not attack everyone, only targeting the cultivators from the forces of Wangdu who wanted to attack him before and those who had already attacked him.


    Before this, he had ignored the other party and went on the defensive. However, the other party was persistent and challenged him again and again. Since they loved Law Battles so much, Ye Futian would grant their wish.


    Splattering sounds of cultivators coughing up blood could be heard continuously. Those below the upper-level Renhuang Plane could not withstand the power of the sound wave of the Great Path. All of them were severely injured.


    Even a monstrous Renhuang from Alchemy Divine Palace like Qi Mu remained standing on his spot, unable to move as he withstood the attack of the frightening sound wave of the Great Path. His clothes fluttered in the wind. A divine Buddha seemed to appear in his mind, angrily roaring at him. The Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm was repressing him and forcing him to submit.


    His entire person was stiff. When he looked at Ye Futian, Qi Mu had a deep sense of fear in his eyes. Only now did he understand that, besides pill-concocting ability, even in combat, he was no match for Ye Futian at all.


    At that moment, currents of swordsmanship flowed in the heavens above. They tore apart the space, attacking once again after the sound wave attack.


    ��Please, have mercy,�� someone shouted. It was a cultivator from Wangdu. He could not take it anymore. Sword Will of the Great Path descended instantly and pierced through his figure. They left behind streaks of blood. He let out a dull groan. His body was covered in blood as his figure fell to the ground. The Sword Will seriously injured him, immediately causing him to lose the ability to fight.


    The Sword Will kept flowing, frenziedly rampaging all over the battlefield. Very soon, silhouettes fell from the sky one by one. They were all heavily injured by the Sword Will.


    Divine fire of the Great Path surrounded Qi Mu, yet the dazzling currents of swordsmanship immediately penetrated the divine fire. It was as though the Sword Will could not be extinguished. Qi Mu��s body released frightening currents of the Great Path to block the swords, but as a cold Sword Will descended, he let out a dull groan as his defenses were shattered.


    Bang! With a loud bang, Qi Mu��s figure was sent flying out. Swords descended upon him again. The sound of blood gushing out filled the air. Very soon, this inheritor of Alchemy Divine Palace also could not withstand the attack anymore. He was severely injured, and his clothes were dyed red with blood. His limp body fell to the ground.


    Only seventh-tier Renhuangs could withstand the power of Ye Futian��s dual attack.


    Sword Will filled the sky and rampaged around the space. Countless currents of swordsmanship danced and howled. Buddhists Voice of the Great Path also circled Ye Futian as he stood alone high in the sky like a Buddha. When Empress Yi from Goddess Peak saw his silhouette, she was at a loss for words.


    Ye Futian was attacking all the cultivators at the same time. These people must have finally angered him.


    Ye Futian had not attacked before this, not because he did not have the ability to do so. It was not worth his time. However, the other cultivators had provoked him repeatedly, finally angering him. He immediately lashed out towards the cultivators.


    As she watched the silhouettes fall to the ground non-stop, Empress Yi felt emotional. Before this, the Renhuangs from the Dongxiao Continent forces were decimated by the forces from the Northern Land. They had suffered severe losses, yet they still did not forget to deal with Ye Futian. In the end, Ye Futian also attacked them, and they once again faced a bloodbath.


    The journey to the Wangshen Watchtower was originally a joyous occasion for the various forces of the Dongxiao Continent. However, this time, they were completely sidelined.


    ��Incredible,�� exclaimed Lin Qiu, who was behind Ye Futian. Ye Futian had hinted before that he was mighty, but Lin Qiu had never imagined that he would be this powerful. He had swept over the battlefield single-handedly. No one could stand against him.


    These people actually wanted to stop Ye Futian from entering the Wangshen Watchtower. With such a pitiful show of force from these cultivators, who could stop Ye Futian from doing so?


    Ye Futian entering the Wangshen Watchtower was set in stone.


    All the rumors and slander before this now made the members of Alchemy Divine Palace seem despicable. It would have been a waste of Ye Futian��s time to join them.


    The various cultivators observing the battle from the outside were naturally aware of this point. The cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace, Qin He Palace, and the other forces with them were watching this dazzling scene speechlessly. The monstrous Renhuangs they sent into the battlefield had been sidelined, becoming stepping stones for Ye Futian to enter the Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Who is this person?�� an elder from Alchemy Divine Palace asked. He was asking this while looking at Ye Futian��s silhouette. He himself did not believe that Alchemy Emperor managed to bring up such a monstrous cultivator. This person definitely had some special identity.


    No one answered the elder. They all knew who this person was, but it could also be said that they knew nothing about him. No one knew Ye Futian��s true origins. Maybe only the Alchemy Emperor knew.


    Many people glanced over at the Alchemy Emperor. The elder of Alchemy Divine Palace asked, ��Alchemy Emperor, this person is not a cultivator from your Tower of the Alchemy Emperor, right?��


    ��He is not,�� the Alchemy Emperor replied calmly.


    ��Then, where is he from?�� asked the other party.


    The Alchemy Emperor glanced at him. His gaze suddenly became extremely sharp. Was an elder of Alchemy Divine Palace in the position to act so presumptuous towards him?


    ��Are you questioning me?�� asked the Alchemy Emperor as a powerful pressure emanated from his body. His long robes actually fluttered even though there was no wind. This made the other party realize their place.


    ��I was merely curious. May Alchemy Emperor clear things up for us,�� the other party continued saying.


    However, Alchemy Emperor ignored the other party. He swept an indifferent glance at the other party before shifting his gaze away. He continued looking at the matrix. Even he was not clear as to the extent of Ye Futian��s abilities. Only Goddess Donglai, who was standing behind him, knew.


    Ye Futian��s power was beyond his expectations. He decimated the various cultivators single-handedly.


    ��Alchemy Emperor, you still have connections to the Dongxiao Continent. The person whom you have brought here is acting in such a manner. Don��t you think it is inappropriate?�� questioned an elder from Qin He Palace, an ugly expression on his face. They had suffered heavy losses and were almost completely wiped out.


    ��Should I instruct him to stand there and allow the members of Qin He Palace to beat him up without retaliating?�� retorted Alchemy Emperor as he swept a cold look at the other party. He replied, ��You have cultivated for so many years and are of a ripe old age. Yet, such words can be uttered from that mouth of yours?��


    The other party had a displeased look on their face, but they could not retort. After all, their members had attacked Ye Futian first but instead faced a bloodbath now.


    ��If this continues, the Renhuang of the Northern Land will act even more unscrupulously,�� commented a cultivator from Heavenly Battle Palace as he looked at the battlefield. If they did not have this conflict before and Ye Futian was on their side, he would have been a great asset.


    Such a shame.


    Now, their Dongxiao Continent forces were facing a bloodbath, making things even easier for the Renhuangs of the Northern Land.


    No matter how powerful Ye Futian was, he was still only one man. Among the cultivators from the Northern Land, there were also the forces of the royal family of the Yanyun Continent. The cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had personally arrived.


    ��Those who have been eliminated would have been useless even if they remained. Now, on the battlefield, there are still cultivators from the Wangshen Watchtower. In addition to Ye Futian, their lineup will not be weaker than that of the Renhuangs from the Northern Land. They just happened to eliminate the useless folk,�� the Alchemy Emperor commented. His monotonous voice contained a hint of mockery.


    Many cultivators from Qin He Palace, as well as Alchemy Divine Palace, looked towards Alchemy Emperor. Their expressions were hideous. They were useless folk?


    Nevertheless, legitimacy belonged to the victor. They could not retort Alchemy Emperor. The various cultivators were quelled by Ye Futian!

 Chapter 1978 - Who Could Contend?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Ye Futian decimated the cultivators, he instantly became the absolute focus of everyone inside the matrix. He was more eye-catching than even the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    Right now, even Yan Dongyang from Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was looking over where Ye Futian was. He revealed a look of interest. He never imagined that he would encounter such a figure while making his way through Wangshen Watchtower matrix. This person should be a middle-level Renhuang with a flawless Great Path who still maintained a flawless Divine Wheel after breaking through to the next Plane. Only then could he have such explosive combat ability that could instantly kill a seventh-tier existence.


    Let alone among the cultivators of the Dongxiao Continent in Wangdu, even among the cultivators led by Yan Dongyang, and there was no one of the same level as Ye Futian. None of them was a match for him unless Yan Dongyang himself personally went against Ye Futian.


    As a person who similarly had a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path, Yan Dongyang naturally knew how powerful and frightening such a figure��s combat ability could be.


    Yan Dongyang initially believed that he would only encounter such figures after entering into Wangshen Watchtower. He never imagined that he would meet one in the matrix.


    ��He should be the person,�� said Yan Dongyang as he revealed a meaningful smile. It was as though he had already figured out Ye Futian��s identity.


    It was not just him. The cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower who entered into the matrix also looked at Ye Futian. A Renhuang said, ��With a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path, why did you have to go through all this trouble to enter Wangshen Watchtower? If you had come sooner, you could still enter into the Watchtower.��


    No force would reject a figure of his level. It was the same for the Wangshen Watchtower. Ye Futian might even have the chance to meet the Millet Emperor.


    Ye Futian looked at the person who had spoken from afar. He smiled and said, ��A senior instructed me to do so. Therefore, I can only oblige. Following the standard procedures makes no difference for me.��


    ��Alright, we will not test your combat ability anymore. With your ability, no one among us of the same Plane can defeat you,�� said the Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower. With Ye Futian��s flawless Great Path, his attacks were powerful. He had immediately swept the cultivators away. With such ability, they understood that among the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower inside the matrix, none of them was a match for Ye Futian.


    If that was the case, they didn��t need to test him.


    At that moment, a few seventh-tier cultivators walked towards Ye Futian. Their auras were terrifying. They were also cultivators from the Dongxiao Continent. Ye Futian had eradicated members of their forces before this.


    ��Halt. Haven��t all of you had enough?�� said a cold and indifferent voice. Yang Qian, the Young Palace Lord of Heavenly Battle Palace, glanced at these people as he spoke. Ye Futian began attacking everyone mainly to deal with the cultivators from Qin He Palace and Alchemy Divine Palace and the cultivators from the forces, who had previously wanted to attack him. Although Yang Qian had plotted against Ye Futian before this, he had not attacked Ye Futian.


    Upon hearing Yang Qian��s chastising, the seventh-tier cultivators of Alchemy Divine Palace��Qin He Palace��and the other forces froze. A cultivator from Wangshen Watchtower also added, ��Everyone, this is not the real battlefield. All of you have already been disqualified from this test.��


    This matrix was to select the cultivators who would enter Wangshen Watchtower. However, so many high-level cultivators had gone against one person and were still unwilling to cease, even now. Hence, there was no need for them to enter Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate anymore.


    Of course, upper-level Renhuangs came here to protect their younger generation. Once at their level, they had no chance of entering the Wangshen Watchtower themselves. Those who had the chance had come in the past. Hence, there was almost no one at the eighth-tier and ninth-tier here. Those belonged to the older generation of the various major forces.


    Their upper-level Renhuangs naturally understood this when they heard the cultivator say this. This conflict had indeed been foolish. In reality, they originally also stood a chance. Qi Mu, the successor candidate of Alchemy Divine Palace, and the others were actually very powerful. However, they had encountered Ye Futian and had been crushed by him. They did not even get the chance to display their strengths.


    They could only consider themselves unlucky.


    After hesitating for a moment, they all returned to their groups, retreating with their injured members. Continuing to remain here was meaningless; they might as well give up straight away. This conflict had served to highlight Ye Futian��s splendor.


    After they retreated, the battlefield within the matrix suddenly fell silent. Ye Futian��s explosive display of his abilities caused many fights to come to a halt as they watched his battle. Now, the true confrontation resumed.


    It was between the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower and the visitors from the Northern Land.


    Without these people provoking him, Ye Futian would certainly be accepted by Wangshen Watchtower. Regardless of whether he was a cultivator from the Dongxiao Continent or Wangdu, it was not important. There was no doubt about his position. He would enter to cultivate in the Watchtower, so he would naturally stand on their side.


    The reason why the Renhuangs from the Northern Land had come was for Wangshen Watchtower.


    As the two sides confronted each other, Ye Futian alone stood behind. His figure floated in the sky, facing the Renhuangs from the Northern Land. His expression remained calm. Below him were Zi Feng, Lin Qiu, and the others.


    Over the vast battlefield, formless pressure of the Great Path emanated, causing it to be even more suppressive than before. The Renhuangs from the Northern Land spread themselves out. Each of them had an extremely frightening aura of the Great Path. Some of them even released their Divine Wheels of the Great Path directly.


    ��How do all of you wish to fight?�� the cultivator from Wangshen Watchtower said as he swept a glance at the Renhuangs from the Northern Land.


    ��We have come to Wangshen Watchtower to seek guidance in teachings. We wish to meet with the Millet Emperor. Since we have entered this matrix, the rules should naturally be set forth by Wangshen Watchtower. Please feel free to do as you please, ��said Yan Dongyang from Great Yan Ancient Royal Family as he stood in mid-air. His expression was calm, and he spoke casually.


    It was as though they were not here to challenge Wangshen Watchtower but instead were guests.


    ��If that is the case, then we will go by the book,�� someone said. ��We will find a person of similar cultivation Plane to test your combat ability. If all of you are sufficiently powerful, you may make your way through this matrix. If you pass through the doors ahead, you will enter directly into Wangshen Watchtower.�� They did not intentionally make things difficult for the other party, as though they treated them the same as any ordinary cultivator who came to take the test.


    When Yan Dongyang heard the member of the Wangshen Watchtower say this, he revealed a smile. ��As expected of the top holy land of the Dongxiao Continent. You are generous.�� He then commanded his members, ��If that��s the case, you��d better be prepared to face the ability of the Renhuangs of the strongest force of the Dongxiao Continent. Such an opportunity does not come often.��


    The cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family were already prepared as they glanced over at the other party. Both sides were ready. Regardless of which side emerged victoriously, this would be a rare opportunity to test out their abilities. It was a good chance for them to witness how incredible the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower were.


    ��Let us begin,�� the Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower said. As he finished speaking, silhouettes stepped out, each seeking their own opponent. The next moment, the expressions of the Renhuangs from the Northern Land all turned solemn as they took this seriously. They were the elite cultivators from the Northern Land. Hence, they were able to suppress the Renhuangs of the Dongxiao Continent. However, now they were facing the strongest group of Renhuangs of the Dongxiao Continent, the cream of the crop. Who would dare to be careless against such opponents?


    The sounds of intense collisions of the Great Path soon followed. The Law Battles officially began. In an instant, various powerful Law Battles erupted in different corners of the matrix all at once. It was earth-shattering.


    These Law Battles were even fiercer than the previous ones. Before this, the Renhuangs from the Northern Land possessed an overwhelming advantage. Yet, the Renhuangs from the Wangshen Watchtower were powerful. In many battles, the Renhuangs from the Watchtower were even more ferocious.


    Right then, where Yan Dongyang was, a few Renhuangs appeared above him. They were all Renhuangs of the Watchtower. These people all had extremely powerful auras. The divine light of the Great Path shone down and enveloped Yan Dongyang.


    They clearly wanted to test the abilities of this cultivator from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    Buzz! A dazzling divine halo radiated outwards. Sword light descended from the sky. There was also the divine halo of the sun. Blinding light flooded the space, but Yan Dongyang stood there, not moving. He swept a glance at the cultivators who were attacking him. A frightening golden halo swept out, seemingly covering the space all around him.


    He took a step forward and then raised his arm, sending out a punch across towards the sky.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. The cultivators in the sky above were sent flying outwards. They coughed up mouthfuls of fresh blood. Even though it was across the space, they felt the space where they stood shatter under the impact of the punch.


    ��You all won��t do,�� said Yan Dongyang indifferently as he glanced at the cultivators who had been knocked back. He then retracted his arm and stood with his hands behind his back. He seemed at ease, as though he was not on a battlefield.


    The few members of the Wangshen Watchtower looked at Yan Dongyang. With just a punch across the space, they could tell that he had extremely powerful combat ability.


    Elsewhere, Ye Futian similarly stood quietly as though he was standing alone outside of the battlefield. His figure stood in mid-air.


    However, it was clear that the other party would not allow him to be so carefree. A sharp, ear-piercing sound could be heard. In the distance, powerful sound waves swept over. Ye Futian lifted his head and saw that a gigantic bell had appeared in the sky in front of him. It was the Divine Wheel of the Great Path of a Renhuang��the Soul Calming Bell.


    The Soul Calming Bell floated forwards to the sky above Ye Futian. It spun in mid-air and let out an ear-piercing ring. Frightening sound waves swept out, directly drowning Ye Futian��s body. The ringing of the bell invaded his mind, causing his spiritual soul to tremble somewhat.


    In the distance, a Renhuang had his eyes closed tightly as he controlled the Soul Calming Bell. He wanted to see who��s Way of Sonic Wave was stronger, his or Ye Futian��s.


    Ye Futian glanced into the distance, seemingly understanding what the other party was thinking. He clapped his hands together, his expression turning solemn. The Sound of Buddha circled him, and light glowed from his figure. His body seemed to become that of a Buddha. Blinding Light of Buddha shot out, followed by the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm sweeping out. The two terrifying sound wave powers clashed. It appeared as though a Buddha was slaying a demon. With a loud clang, the Soul Calming Bell was sent flying outwards.


    What was even more frightening was that the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm utilized the Soul Calming Bell to shake the spiritual soul of the Renhuang. This caused him to let out a dull groan as he sat in the distance. He threw up a mouthful of blood. His face turned pale as his spiritual soul was violently shaken!

 Chapter 1979 - What Identity?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Soul Calming Bell flew back, faint cracks appearing on it. Blood flowed from the corner of the Renhuang��s mouth. The Renhuang, who was a vast distance away from Ye Futian, glanced into the distance as he retracted his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. He sighed inside. It seemed that this person was undefeatable. He could not handle Ye Futian.


    The Renhuang stepped back, not continuing to battle. Instead, the Renhuang did not say anything and retreated behind Yan Dongyang, the prince of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. There was also a person to Yan Dongyang��s left. The person��s aura was rich and powerful, at the peak of the middle-level Renhuang Plane. A mighty aura of the Great Path surged from his body.


    ��Your Highness, Renhuang Teng will most likely need to attack,�� said the person. Renhuang Teng was called Yan Teng. He, too, was a member of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. He was not from the main family line, but his ability was terrifying, and his combat ability was extraordinary.


    Yan Dongyang did not respond. He swept a glance at Ye Futian from afar. There had not been a truly incredible figure from Wangshen Watchtower until now, at least not one that Yan Dongyang recognized as truly incredible. Could it be that the Watchtower wanted Ye Futian to be his opponent?


    Yan Dongyang knew the ability of Yan Teng clearly. Yan Teng had a flawless Divine Wheel of the Great Path at the lower-level Renhuang Plane but could not maintain it after breaking through to the next Plane. However, this did not hinder his powerful combat ability. Together with his sixth-tier cultivation being higher than that of Ye Futian, if Yan Teng were to attack, he indeed had a chance of defeating Ye Futian.


    Right then, more people came charging over towards Yan Dongyang. This time, Yan Dongyang did not move at all. With a flash from Yan Teng��s figure, a pure-blooded dragon appeared in the sky. The gigantic dragon that stretched for miles pierced through the clouds. It let out a dragon cry that shook the sky. Yan Teng grabbed out at the air with his hand. The pure-blooded dragon roared angrily. Its roars caused the souls of those present to tremble. At the same time, an overbearing attack immediately ripped apart the Great Path as it charged towards the other party, followed by a loud rumble. It sent the attacking cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower flying from the shockwaves.


    ��Song of the Yan Dragon,�� exclaimed the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower as they glanced over where the other party was. Song of the Yan Dragon could also attack one��s spiritual soul, besides already possessing extremely frightening attack power. Rumor had it that, with this technique, the ancestor of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had emerged from Swallow Mountain and established his name, becoming a giant figure.


    Of course, this was only one of the techniques of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. As a superpower that conquered countless lands in the Yanyun Continent, Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was undoubtedly the most powerful force in the Northern Land.


    ��He has the aura of the Dragon Emperor. This fellow is also a member of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family,�� commented Lin Qiu as he glanced over at the other party. When Yan Teng attacked, a golden current of Qi appeared all around them, becoming the shadow of an enormous pure-blooded dragon. It enveloped the space, and the aura of the royal family emanated from it, as though it belonged to the royal family of Divine Dragons. This made Lin Qiu realize that the other party was also a part of the royal family.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian did not think much about it. He would be facing the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family sooner or later. This time, Goddess Donglai had sent him here to train in preparation for the future. He had never imagined that he would encounter the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family so soon.


    As for Yan Teng, the cultivator from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Ye Futian paid even less attention. A cultivator with a flawed Divine Wheel of the Great Path and with cultivation below the upper-level Renhuang Plane was no threat to him. He would ignore people with such conditions.


    Although Yan Teng��s attack was domineering and enough to deal with other Renhuangs, it would not be so easy if he was against Zi Feng.


    At the same cultivation Plane, Zi Feng had a flawless Great Path. If they were to exchange blows, she was more than capable of handling Yan Teng.


    However, these cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family were indeed very powerful. They cleared their way through the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower casually. They appeared as invincible as Ye Futian.


    At this moment, no one else attacked Ye Futian anymore. They must have known that it was almost impossible for those below the upper-level Renhuang Plane to defeat Ye Futian.


    Right then, Ye Futian saw an overbearing figure advancing towards him in the distance. The divine dragon possessed the figure as it charged forwards. Many cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower wanted to hold this person off, but they were all sent flying by this person.


    Here he comes, many people around Ye Futian thought to themselves when they witnessed this scene. This person was Yan Teng, and he was heading straight towards Ye Futian.


    From the looks of it, there was going to be an extraordinary battle, many observers outside of Wangshen Watchtower thought to themselves. They were waiting in anticipation. They did not know what the outcome would be when the domineering Yan Teng exchanged blows with Ye Futian.


    This Law Battle was sure to be extremely exciting.


    Under these gazes filled with anticipation, Yan Teng charged towards Ye Futian. No other Renhuangs were blocking his way. A gigantic divine dragon circled Yan Teng as he stood in mid-air. This golden dragon spiraled upwards. Its head was high up in the sky. A pair of large dragon eyes looked down on Ye Futian, emanating an overbearing aura.


    Roar. A dragon cry caused the space to tremble violently. Terrifying sound waves shocked the spiritual souls of those around. Shadows of divine dragons dove downwards and attacked Ye Futian. At the center of these shadows, a gigantic dragon claw appeared. The claw came crashing down from the sky, immediately covering part of the sky.


    Ye Futian��s figure did not stir. Behind him, a brilliant fiery-red silhouette immediately dashed up into the clouds, arriving above Ye Futian. Her divine wings spread out and blocked out the sun and the sky. Countless shadows of phoenixes flew out. Her spiritual soul was like a divine fire that was inextinguishable. The sky above was set ablaze by the divine fire of the Great Path. The flames consumed the sky.


    The bright call of the phoenix sounded, clashing against the sound of the dragon cry. Countless feathers seemed to shoot out from the divine wings of the phoenix. Each of these feathers was sharper than a sword. They became an indestructible attack of the Great Path, slashing towards the sharp dragon claw that came crashing down.


    A divine light appeared in the heavens above. The sharp dragon claw that botched out the sun in the sky was sliced apart and severed. A gigantic shadow of the phoenix appeared behind Zi Feng. It spread its wings and instantly shot up into the sky. In the blink of an eye, the sky above became her domain of the Great Path. The Divine Fire of Wutong enveloped this part of the sky, engulfing it in flames.


    Yan Teng was surrounded by this domain of the Great Path of the divine fire. The look in his eyes suddenly changed. These flames were��


    It was not just him who sensed the might of this divine fire of the Great Path. Many people seemed to realize something as they glanced at Zi Feng in astonishment.


    It was the Divine Fire of Wutong. From afar, Yan Dongyang looked towards Zi Feng. The brilliant shadow of the phoenix appeared, and the bright call of the phoenix shook the space.


    The Divine Fire of Wutong were the flames of the powerful demonic beast of Supreme Deity Donglai, Lord Phoenix.


    If that was the case, Zi Feng��s identity was apparent.


    ��I never imagined that the descendant of Lord Phoenix would appear here,�� Yan Dongyang commented. Once the other Renhuangs heard him say this, only then did they realize Zi Feng��s identity. She was the descendant of Lord Phoenix.


    Why had the descendant of Lord Phoenix followed Ye Futian to the Wangshen Watchtower?


    Lord Phoenix was the demonic beast companion of Supreme Deity Donglai. His descendants would naturally cultivate on Eastern Deity Island. This meant that Ye Futian had not come with Alchemy Emperor from the Taiyuan Continent. He had come from Eastern Deity Island.


    Many members of the forces of Wangdu were also stunned. The female Renhuang beside Ye Futian actually had such an astonishing origin.


    Yang Qian, who was battling to the side, also glanced over at Zi Feng. His gaze then swept over towards Ye Futian. At that moment, he finally understood why Alchemy Divine Palace had lost so miserably, be it in terms of alchemy techniques or combat ability.


    It turned out that Ye Futian was a cultivator trained by Eastern Deity Island. Now, they had sent him to train in the Wangshen Watchtower.


    However, in reality, with the relations between Eastern Deity Island and the Wangshen Watchtower, Ye Futian could enter the Wangshen Watchtower and did not need to go through such a hassle. Eastern Deity Island must have wanted him to do so to allow him to display his talents.


    It was no wonder that, back during the Alchemy Conference, when the members of Alchemy Divine Palace had bragged about themselves, Ye Futian and the others had opinions about such statements. It turned out that Ye Futian was from the previous, undisputed top alchemy holy land in the Donghua Domain.


    Ye Futian might also be an inheritor of Eastern Deity Island, inheriting their alchemy techniques.


    Thinking about this made Yang Qian feel somewhat amused. Did it matter whether Ye Futian was from Wangdu?


    Ye Futian was from Eastern Deity Island. In addition, he had such talent and ability. Did he need the status of being a cultivator from the Dongxiao Continent?


    Hence, it would have been a waste of Ye Futian��s time for him to join Alchemy Divine Palace. Before this, Yang Qian and the others had been the ones who were arrogant.


    The sound of violent collisions came from the sky above. A fierce battle had erupted between Zi Feng and Yan Teng. Although Yan Teng��s combat ability was powerful, he was facing absolute suppression. He was constantly being pushed back by Zi Feng. The elegant phoenix was suppressing the divine dragon. The frightening Divine Fire of Wutong made Yan Teng only think about escaping the battlefield as soon as possible.


    Another call of the phoenix filled the skies. The crowd saw the pure-blooded dragon being consumed by the divine fire of the phoenix. With a dull groan, Yan Teng��s figure flew outwards, retreating towards a very far place. His figure, which was protected by the Great Path, was dyed red. Blood could be faintly seen seeping out from underneath his robes. His entire person appeared extremely pathetic. Fresh blood still flowed from the corner of his mouth.


    Yan Teng��a cultivator from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family��had been defeated.


    ��Flawless divine fire of the Great Path,�� exclaimed many people in astonishment. Zi Feng��s ability was powerful. Before this battle, many people had not realized this.


    Outside of the Wangshen Watchtower��s matrix, a cultivator from Alchemy Divine Palace looked towards Alchemy Emperor and then Goddess Donglai, who was behind him. He said, ��We never imagined that the successor of Supreme Deity Donglai had come. Forgive our rudeness.��


    Clearly, they had figured out Goddess Donglai��s identity. These past years, Goddess Donglai had rarely appeared in public. Not many people had seen her before. Hence, no one had recognized her before this.


    However, the descendant of Lord Phoenix had arrived. Connecting the dots between her and Ye Futian, Goddess Donglai��s identity became apparent. She was the heir of Supreme Deity Donglai.


    Goddess Donglai glanced at the other party and did not respond. These people were still pretending to be polite and sincere.


    ��Is Ye Liunian your disciple, Goddess?�� the cultivator from Alchemy Divine Palace asked.


    ��No,�� denied Goddess Donglai immediately. This caused the other party to be stunned. He was not her disciple?


    They thought that they had already surmised Ye Futian��s identity. However, Goddess Donglai had actually denied it so decisively. With her status, she did not need to lie about this.


    Then, what identity had Ye Futian come to Wangshen Watchtower with?

 Chapter 1980 - Conflict between the Dragon and the Phoenix

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing that Goddess Donglai had no thoughts that she wished to make public, no one continued to press her. Although they were the top forces from Wangdu, the status of Goddess Donglai, as the descendant of Supreme Being Donglai, was quite a bit loftier. Even if her fortune had changed after the Supreme Being had fallen, their reputation persisted, and the lords of these forces would have to pay her respect when they were in her presence.


    What��s more, this here was outside of Wangshen Watchtower. The relationship between Supreme Being Donglai and the Millet Emperor was well known to everyone.


    Once again, everyone��s attention was fixed on the white-haired man on the battlefield inside the matrix. It seemed that Goddess Donglai deliberately brought Ye Futian to cultivate at Wangshen Watchtower. Moreover, Ye Futian would also obtain the inheritance of the Millet Emperor. After all, besides his relationship with Supreme Being Donglai, his own innate strength was quite astounding.


    So far, he had not had a single defeat, even with an opponent in the Seventh Realm.


    Perhaps Ye Futian��s ultimate opponent would be the invincible prince from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family��Yan Dongyang.


    After Yan Teng was defeated on the battlefield, many realized that few could counter the Phoenix Goddess, who was next to Ye Futian. Possessing a perfect divine flame of the Great Path and extremely domineering offensive power, Yan Teng was the powerful cultivator of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family at the peak of middle-level Renhuang. If he could be crushed, then others wouldn��t stand a chance.


    At this moment, Yan Dongyang started walking forward. Some cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower wanted to stop him, but they saw that two powerful Renhuangs were walking along on both sides of him to deter the others.


    ��Leave me.�� Yan Dongyang waved his hand, and suddenly, the men next to him retreated one by one until Yan Dongyang was left by himself. He made his way forward alone.


    An incomparably majestic momentum of the Great Path bloomed, and the mighty coercion filled the vast void. Inside the space of the matrix, the pressure could be felt by every cultivator; it was as if everyone was within the domain of his Great Path.


    ��Back off.�� An upper-level Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower also waved his hand. Suddenly, those cultivators who were about to step forward retreated and gave up their positions. They knew very well that it would be difficult to defeat Yan Dongyang. It was inappropriate for an upper-level Renhuang to get involved, but victory would be equally unlikely with a cultivator of the Seventh Realm.


    This was the direct descendant of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. This time, they led an army composed of Renhuang from the Northern Land, which was under his control. No doubt this prestigious role confirmed his status. His combat effectiveness, likewise, was without question.


    Furthermore, everyone from Wangshen Watchtower realized that this battle had nothing to do with them but had everything to do with Ye Futian.


    Zi Feng��s identity was now exposed, and everyone had guessed Ye Futian��s origin, but what was the relationship between Yan and Eastern Deity Island��s ancient royal family? Everyone knew that they were sworn enemies.


    Since Eastern Deity Island sent Ye Futian to cultivate at Wangshen Watchtower, he and Yan Dongyang were fated to be opponents. Now that they met inside the matrix at Wangshen Watchtower, it was natural that they should have a battle.


    Both of them were unbeatable and have not lost a single battle so far.


    Therefore, when they saw Yan Dongyang moving forward, cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower retreated to give Yan Dongyang and Ye Futian the battlefield. This was a battle between the two of them.


    Yan Dongyang continued forward and soon faced Ye Futian. Although they were still far apart, this little bit of distance was really negligible for cultivators in their realms.


    ��Ye Liunian,�� Yan Dongyang said to Ye Futian. Clearly, he knew of Ye Futian��s existence. Not only did he knew him, but also he was quite familiar with him.


    Ye Futian was not surprised by it. His existence was not some big secret, and it was not surprising that Yan��s ancient royal family knew of him.


    However, he did not consider Yan Dongyang as a sworn enemy. Although he was the descendant of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Ye Futian had seen many people at this level in the Original Realm. Some of them were awesome existences. Even principalities such as the Dark Court were not unfamiliar to him. From experience, he knew that even the prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would not necessarily be better.


    He didn��t know who would be his sworn enemy, but definitely not Yan Dongyang.


    To cultivate at Eastern Deity Island and become the heir of Supreme Being Donglai were all but part of the experience he sought by coming to the Divine Prefecture. In his view, it was all part of the trial on the journey of cultivation, so there was nothing as serious as seeing the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family as the enemy.


    Therefore, he regarded Yan Dongyang with total calmness, relaxed, and without hatred. He was not serious or solemn but appeared very laid-back.


    On the contrary, Zi Feng appeared more agitated. Her eyes were cold, and the divine flames of the Great Path were burning in those beautiful eyes.


    Lord Phoenix had fallen in that battle.


    Buzz! Wild wind screamed as blazing currents flew in the void. The Great Path��s divine flame was ignited between heaven and earth as Zi Feng flapped her wings and appeared in the sky above Yan Dongyang. She let out a long cry as the howl of the phoenix resounded throughout the sky. She returned to her true form��a massive divine phoenix. Her eyes were filled with fierceness, completely different from who she was in human form.


    Yan Dongyang glanced at her. Inside Yan Dongyang, an extremely violent aura erupted, and the sound of dragons came out of him and continued to rise until it shook the firmament. A sacred dragon swayed upward to support his body to rise even higher.


    At this moment, countless giant dragon figures now appeared in the sky. In the middle, Yan Dongyang stood on top of a golden giant dragon, like the lord of the divine dragon. It was something spectacular to behold.


    The blazing gust of wind roared, and the divine phoenix rushed out toward Yan Dongyang. The boundless and massive phoenix was extremely domineering. The divine flame of the Great Path burned in the void as her sharp claws tore the Great Path apart.


    Roar! The moment Zi Feng made her move, thousands of dragons roared at the same time, and the Song of the Yan Dragon was unleashed. Above the sky, thousands of dragon phantoms roared angrily at the same time, creating quite a sight. Terrifying sound waves of the Great Path swept out to collapse the other. Many groaned inside the matrix as their blood was roiling inside their body, and their spiritual souls were violently shaken. Those who were not strong enough in their cultivation spat out blood, their faces pale. They dared not watch that battlefield as the powerful and invisible sound waves continuously washed over them until they had filled this boundless space.


    If onlookers were suffering in this manner, the kind of sonic attack that Zi Feng was under was simply unimaginable. The Great Path��s divine flames seemed to be extinguished by the sound waves, and the massive body of the phoenix seemed to be blocked by an invisible storm. At this moment, Zi Feng could feel the attack through every single one of her feathers.


    She raised her head and screamed, and the sound of the phoenix was loud and clear, enough to tear a gap in the song of the dragon. It was not a harmonious chorus of the dragon and the phoenix, but a struggle. The phoenix continued to attack forward, aiming straight for Yan Dongyang.


    When he saw this, Ye Futian knew that Zi Feng would lose.


    Although both were comparable in realms, Zi Feng possessed the perfect Spiritual Soul of the Great Path. Yan Dongyang also possessed the perfect Divine Wheel. His sonic attacks could subtly restrain many types of attacks. This invisible Great Path was very powerful because even if it was not employed as the main attack, its power was usually more damaging as a secondary method to suppress subsequent attacks.


    The Song of the Yan Dragon, where 10,000 dragons roared in unison, was just the first wave of Yan Dongyang��s attacks.


    Sure enough, Ye Futian felt a powerful pressure in the next moment, and the vast void seemed to be shrouded and oppressed by an invisible force, heavy and suppressive.


    ��Spatial Great Path,�� Ye Futian thought to himself as he sensed this power of the Great Path. In the next moment, with the attack from Song of the Yan Dragon lingering, Yan Dongyang��s body swooped down. Above the sky, a most divine dragon roared as it dove down, bringing thousands of divine dragons with him. Every one of these phantom dragons blasted on Zi Feng. Although they were hallowed out, they were able to affect Zi Feng��s momentum. Then, Yan Dongyang arrived.


    Many people looked up. This confrontation was similar to the previous battle between Zi Feng and Yan Teng. It was as if Yan Dongyang deliberately did so, but this attack was even more violent.


    When the dragon and the phoenix converged, the massive divine dragon and the divine phoenix collided. At that moment, a dull sound came from the space, and many felt a suffocating pressure that made it difficult to breathe.


    In the next moment, there was another long cry from the dragon and the phoenix that shook the sky and cracked the earth. The Great Path collapsed, and the light of destruction swept across the heavens. Many Renhuang cultivators were thrown out by the momentum. Once again, muffled groans were heard. Those in the Lower Renhuang realm vomited blood, knocked back quite a distance. They did not stop until they were quite far away.


    This extraordinary storm also hit Ye Futian. His white robe danced in the wind, but his body was planted there firmly. His eyes focused on the battlefield, motionless.


    With a loud noise, he saw the divine phoenix being shocked into retreat, and many of her divine feathers fell off. Each divine feather contained divine flame, but they floated weakly in the air. Zi Feng was shaken from the void to the ground, and a deep pit formed where she had smashed into the ground. The deep pit was instantly filled with streams of flames, burning with extreme heat.


    Likewise, Yan Dongyang��s body was knocked backward as he returned to a higher altitude. His aura was tossing and tumbling about his person, but it was clear that he fared much better than Zi Feng. After he had stabilized his stance, his eyes returned to the area below. He said clearly, ��As expected, the descendant of Lord Phoenix did not disappoint.��


    The body of his dragon was a little red. It was as if it had been scorched by the Divine Flame of the Great Path, but it quickly faded away.


    Zi Feng picked herself up from the ground, and there was blood at the corner of the Phoenix��s mouth. Her body was still vibrating. Blood was roiling inside of her.


    Ye Futian waved his hand. Suddenly, a medicine pill flew toward Zi Feng. She opened her mouth and swallowed it readily. Her injured body started to recover immediately at an incredible speed. Her eyes were still fixed on Yan Dongyang, who was above in the air as if she was still clamoring to fight.


    But she knew very well that she had already lost!

 Chapter 1981 - Wangshen Watchtower

    Chapter 1981: Wangshen Watchtower


    After Yan Dongyang defeated Zi Feng, he looked at the only person that still remained, and that was Ye Futian.


    The only person who could stop him now would be this cultivator from Eastern Deity Island.


    Of course, Yan Dongyang did not think that Ye Futian could really stop him either. After all, Ye Futian��s realm was not as high as his. He was Renhuang Fifth Realm while Ye Futian was in the Fourth Realm. Even in the same realm, he was certain of his own prowess over Ye Futian��s, let alone he was one realm higher.


    Zi Feng was already a powerful entity. But in his opinion, Ye Futian��s strength, at most, was only at the same level as Zi Feng.


    Ye Futian, likewise, focused his attention on Yan Dongyang and saw a smile twinkled at the corner of his eyes. However, in this smile, Ye Futian detected a murderous intent.


    Yan Dongyang intended on taking his life.


    Boom�� The void trembled violently as Ye Futian felt a tightness all over his body. Then there was the rousing sound of the dragon screaming, as the terrifying sound waves of the Great Path shattered the Great Path, blasting toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s golden body dazzled as the Sound of Buddha lingering in the air. A Buddha appeared, and the manifold shadows of the Buddha collided with the roaring dragon. Almost at the same time, Yan Dongyang��s body transformed into a divine dragon, swooping down. It landed in front of Ye Futian instantaneously. From Ye Futian��s view, it was as if a boundless giant dragon had descended from the sky, coming to attack with its infinite and domineering power.


    The trumpeting of the elephants oscillated between heaven and earth. Ye Futian raised his hands to unleash out his attack. Phantom divine elephants appeared, suppressing the Great Path, and collided with the other��s terrifying force of the Great Path. Previously the battle was between the dragon and the phoenix. Now, it was a battle between the dragon and the elephant.


    Loud rumbling sounds were heard continuously, shattering the power of the Great Path that filled this space. An explosive sound came out, and Ye Futian was knocked back into the far distance, feeling as if his blood and breath had been greatly disrupted.


    The body of his opponent was knocked back into the sky as well. The divine dragon turned around as Yan Dongyang lowered his head so that he could look down at Ye Futian. ��No cultivators of the Eastern Deity Island have mastered such domineering power; no wonder they value you so much.��


    When Ye Futian heard Yan Dongyang��s words, he understood that the other knew quite a lot.


    The war on Eastern Deity Island had happened several years ago. What happened then was well known in Penglai Continent. Although Yanyun Continent may not always have kept tabs on the occurrences on Penglai Continent, the others might have heard a thing or two by now.


    Ye Futian sensed that Yan Dongyang was an expert at several kinds of power: sound waves, spatial, suppression�� These powers of the Great Path had manifested in his attacks, and they were extremely overpowering. Otherwise, it would have been impossible to repel him.


    Zi Feng��s defeat was well within his expectation.


    The divine dragon roared high above, sheltering the sky and the sun. Many around them had stopped fighting and turned their attention to the battlefield. But at this moment, the matrix emitted violent vibrations that caused the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower to raise their heads. They saw that the spatial matrix was under constant changes.


    ��What��s going on? The matrix is disappearing.�� Many people were confused and amazed at the same time. Those from the outside looked up at the sky above Wangshen Watchtower and saw an old man standing there, waving his hands. After a while, the self-forming spatial matrix of the Great Path disappeared. Ye Futian and the others found themselves standing in an open field, and they appeared doubtful as they looked at the Renhuang above the palace at Wangshen Watchtower.


    Did the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower close up the matrix?


    What was the meaning of this?


    After the matrix disappeared, those who were inside also looked up at the palaces in the distance and the one that rose into the sky.


    ��This year, there are no qualifying candidates from Dongxiao Continent and the surrounding continents,�� the old man on the staircase in the distance stood up and announced. Suddenly, many from other principalities looked disappointed. Did none of them obtain the qualification to cultivate at Wangshen Watchtower?


    ��Ye Liunian, go up with the Phoenix,�� the old man said to Ye Futian.


    Everyone was silent. Sure enough, only Ye Futian and Zi Feng qualified. But the rules of this assessment were set by Wangshen Watchtower, as was their right. Naturally, Wangshen Watchtower could do whatever they please without answering anyone.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Elder.�� At this moment, Yan Dongyang kept his eyes forward but said loudly, ��I have not failed in the matrix, and now, I would like to be permitted to see the Millet Emperor.��


    The old man glanced at him and said casually, ��What brings you here?��


    Yan Dongyang looked at the old man and said, ��In the previous battle, the Millet Emperor��s promise of refraining from contacting Eastern Deity Island was the reason why the ancient royal family of Yan agreed to leave Eastern Deity Island alone. All these years, Eastern Deity Island was not harmed. A few years ago, Eastern Deity Island began to be active again and raised that turmoil in the Penglai continent. Now its cultivators are here to seek the Way from Wangshen Watchtower, was this in preparation to cultivate under the Millet Emperor��s tutelage? If so, the ancient royal family of Yan may have to reconsider our existing bargain with Eastern Deity Island.��


    Ye Futian looked surprised when he heard what Yan Dongyang had to say. He didn��t know there were other things that had happened in the past. No wonder Goddess Donglai worried that the ancient royal family of Yan would turn against him and Eastern Deity Island; it was the main reason that she sent him here to Wangshen Watchtower. It seemed that after the battle in the old days, both sides had their own agreement to keep Eastern Deity Island. Still, it also placed Eastern Deity Island in an isolated position with minimal contact with the outside world.


    However, the ancient royal family of Yan had never been to Eastern Deity Island before. After all, no one on the outside knew of his status within Eastern Deity Island, nor did they know that he had inherited from Supreme Being Donglai. For the past several years, he had been cultivating in retreat on the island. It should have did not affect a powerful clan like the ancient royal family of Yan.


    Otherwise, they would have gone to Eastern Deity Island already.


    From this angle, it was a coincidence that the cultivators from the ancient royal family of Yan encountered him and made the proposal when they saw his strength was extraordinary.


    ��What other business do you have with us?�� the old man asked again. Obviously, he also thought that for so many cultivators from the ancient royal family of Yan to provoke the Heavenly Battle Palace, then participated in the trial of Wangshen Watchtower, decimating the cultivators from the Dongxiao Continent, Ye Futian could not have been their first target.


    After all, no one knew of Ye Futian��s identity prior to this, nor did they know that he was here and would participate in the assessment.


    Yan Dongyang raised his head to look at the old man in the distance. Wangshen Watchtower��s attitude had been really unfriendly, but it was not surprising. Their purpose here was to escalate the situation. In addition to the deep-seated grievances between the two sides, they had no reason to be friendly.


    ��Furthermore, I��m here with the cultivators from the Northern Land to exchange with the cultivators from the Dongxiao Continent. I must be honest: I was rather hopeful. Even for those from Wangshen Watchtower seemed only so-so in their skills. Until now, I haven��t met a true rival. ��Yan Dongyang continued loudly, ��The one who cultivated under the Millet Emperor, the one who is known as the number one genius talent of Wangshen Watchtower�� Where is he?��


    Not long ago, because the ancient royal family of Yan had received some bad news, he decided to take a team of people to figure it out.


    It was true that he did not take the cultivator of Eastern Deity Island seriously before, and the ancient royal family of Yan was even more so. Even now, Ye Futian only made him became more alert, but the one he really cared about was still the one who inquired after the Millet Emperor.


    Outside of Wangshen Watchtower, everyone looked solemn after they heard Yan Dongyang��s words. Immediately, their thoughts turned to one person.


    The number one genius of Wangshen Watchtower was undoubtedly the number one genius in all of Dongxiao Continent, someone with terrifying talent, a peerless character.


    ��You want to see him?�� the old man asked Yan Dongyang.


    ��Yes, I would like to ask for his advice,�� Yan Dongyang responded.


    ��You are not yet qualified. Tell your older brother to come. Perhaps he could qualify,�� the old man responded lightly, which displeased Yan Dongyang. However, if the rumors are true, then indeed, he would not qualify to be in the presence of the other.


    The ancient royal family of Yan had received information that he had already proclaimed the Upper Renhuang Realm, and not only that, he still possessed the perfect Divine Wheel.


    This signified that the man had become a truly flawless Renhuang, and such a person would be a great threat to the ancient royal family of Yan.


    ��Until now, no one from Wangshen Watchtower has been able to fight. Why should my brother come in person?�� Yan Dongyang asked.


    The old man smiled. He already understood the other��s intention.


    ��If it��s for this matter, then go back and have your brother come in person,�� the old man responded nonchalantly, not giving him any opening.


    Yan Dongyang stared at the other man, still standing in the void, and said coldly, ��I came all this way and crossed many continents to get to Wangshen Watchtower. If I can��t ask for Millet Emperor��s advice, I wish to battle.��


    Obviously, he didn��t intend to relent so easily.


    The old man glanced at him, then looked at Ye Futian and the others. ��You guys go up first.��


    Ye Futian nodded as he and Zi Feng stepped forward. At this time, Goddess Donglai and the Alchemy Emperor also walked forward to join Ye Futian as they stepped onto the stairs together.


    The old man turned around, leading them all the way up toward the depths of Wangshen Watchtower.


    It didn��t take them long before they came to the highest point of Wangshen Watchtower. It was similar to a heavenly palace, surrounded by clouds and mist, as if in a wonderland. Ahead, at the highest point, there was a platform with someone sitting quietly there.


    This person was dressed all in black, with inky long hair falling freely behind him. The person seemed to be one with the heavens. Before Ye Futian came here, he could not even feel this person��s presence.


    Behind the man in black was the real ��Wangshen Watchtower,�� standing there. It seemed to embody countless years of history. However, when Ye Futian laid his eyes on Wangshen Watchtower, the ancient tree of the world in his Life Palace started to move, which was a certain sign to Ye Futian.


    This Wangshen Watchtower was actually a divine item?

 Chapter 1982 - Deliver the Defeat

    Ye Futian knew that many principalities in the Original Realm owned divine items, especially those at the top of their power.


    Divine Items were used to nurture cultivators to obtain the perfect Great Path and promote their potential to develop the perfect Divine Wheel. However, this was the first time he saw a divine item that was on the outside. Wangshen Watchtower itself was a divine item.


    The Millet Emperor was cultivating in front of Wangshen Watchtower and had built the aerial cultivation temple here.


    The person in black in front of them was clearly the Millet Emperor.


    Millet Emperor looked to be about 30 years old. On the surface, he didn��t appear to be much older than Ye Futian, but in fact, he had cultivated for many years. His eyes were unfathomable. Just like his realm of cultivation, there was no detectable outward aura released. However, it was as if he was one with the Heavenly Path, in a realm that transcended all others.


    He, the number one figure in Dongxiao Continent, was also the most powerful person on the entire boundless region, with Dongxiao Continent as its center.


    The old man who was leading them, Goddess Donglai, and the others bowed and saluted. Ye Futian did the same and said, ��Greetings to the Millet Emperor.��


    The Millet Emperor nodded slightly, then looked at Goddess Donglai and asked, ��Your disciple?��


    Goddess Donglai shook her head and said, ��Uncle, originally, he came to the Eastern Deity Island for trials, but by chance, he swallowed the elixir and inherited my father��s inheritance. He is now regarded as my father��s disciple. ��


    On the side, the old man who was leading them was a little surprised. He had thought that Ye Futian must have been the heir of Goddess Donglai, but he would have never suspected that Ye Futian had inherited from the Supreme Being Donglai.


    The Millet Emperor took a more serious look at Ye Futian, then said, ��Since he��s your father��s heir, why didn��t you tell me before?��


    ��Last time we happened to pass by senior brother Alchemy Emperor��s place, and came along to give him the opportunity try out with everyone else, also to let Uncle see about his cultivation,�� Goddess Donglai replied. The Millet Emperor nodded. ��I didn��t expect that an heir was possible after your father had gone for so many years. At least, we have one less thing to worry about.��


    As he spoke, he looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Your Great Path is perfect. You must have had extraordinary experiences before you showed up in Eastern Deity Island. Where are you from?��


    Ye Futian looked at Goddess Donglai. Of everyone here, only Goddess Donglai knew of his origin; even Zi Feng didn��t quite understand the scope of it.


    ��Please allow me,�� said Goddess Donglai. However, no one heard her voice anymore. Ye Futian figured that she was communicating with the Millet Emperor through voice transmission. Although Alchemy Emperor and the others were trustworthy, this was a sensitive matter, and it was better that as little as possible was known.


    The Millet Emperor and her father were close friends, so there was no need to hide anything from him. Since she brought Ye Futian here, it was necessary to be honest with the Millet Emperor regarding Ye Futian��s situation.


    There was a strange look in Millet Emperor��s eyes. He was stoic when he heard that Ye Futian was the heir of Supreme Being Donglai, but at this moment, there was a slight emotion that passed over his face. Clearly, he had learned from Goddess Donglai that Ye Futian came from the Original Realm and only came to the divine Prefecture after being attacked by various principalities.


    He was silent for a moment and then said, ��After your father was gone, our several principalities reached a certain unspoken agreement, and Eastern Deity Island slowly faded out of the sight of Donghua Domain. Many years have passed, and though the ancient royal family of Yan was no longer concerned about Eastern Deity Island, his appearance would make the Yan Kingdom wary, which may be best for him. It is not difficult for the ancient royal family of Yan to rid themselves of any potential trouble.


    ��To avoid Yan Kingdom��s attack on Eastern Deity Island, I will not accept you as a disciple. However, since you have passed the assessment, you have the right to stay in Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate for a while,�� said the Millet Emperor. Ye Futian and the others immediately understood what he meant. Even though he was not accepted as a disciple, they would still allow Ye Futian in Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate.


    As for the length of time in cultivation, the ancient royal family of Yan had no final say. This, clearly, would not giving them any reason for excuses.


    ��Go tell them that whatever it is that they wanted to know was just as they had guessed, so they can go back now,�� the Millet Emperor said to the old man.


    ��Yes.�� The old man nodded, then turned to go about his business on informing Yan Dongyang.


    But moments later, a voice came from below, ��Yan Dongyang respectfully came to Wangshen Watchtower today to seek the Way, and have not been defeated once in the matrix. According to the rules, I should be eligible to meet with the Millet Emperor?��


    This voice could be heard from below to this side; everyone in the entire Wangshen Watchtower could hear this voice. Obviously, the Millet Emperor had heard it also, as he casually glanced into the distance.


    The old man immediately returned and bowed his head slightly, saying, ��Yan Dongyang refuses to leave.��


    ��Because he hasn��t been defeated yet,�� the Millet Emperor murmured to himself. He glanced at Ye Futian and asked, ��Can you beat him?��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded and responded directly and resolutely. The old man was stunned again. He was so confident in himself?


    Like Ye Futian, Yan Dongyang was of the Middle Emperor Realm with perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path. He was extremely talented, with fierce combat efficacy. But Ye Futian��s tone was so certain.


    He could!


    He was so confident that he could defeat Yan Dongyang.


    The Millet Emperor nodded slightly and said, ��If so, then deliver the defeat that he wanted.��


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian nodded, then turned to leave. His white hair flowing in the wind, and his demeanor revealed his absolute confidence.


    Millet Emperor stood up, and in one step, had come directly to the edge of the Hanging Island. He stared intently at the place far below, watching Ye Futian heading over there as if he was planning to observe the battle in person.


    He had learned of Ye Futian��s origin from Goddess Donglai, and he was also full of curiosity about Ye Futian. How strong would be a genius talent from Original Realm?


    At the edge of Wangshen Watchtower, Renhuang, who came from the Northern Land, were still in place. Yan Dongyang raised his head and kept his eyes on Wangshen Watchtower in the distance. At this time, they saw Ye Futian coming toward them.


    ��Millet Emperor,�� someone exclaimed. Somewhere far away, they could vaguely see a man standing at the edge of the top peak of Wangshen Watchtower, with hands behind his back, looking in this direction.


    Although it was quite a distance away, most of the people here were Renhunag, so they could clearly see.


    Was the Millet Emperor asking Ye Futian to come back to fight Yan Dongyang?


    And, was he going to observe this battle in person?!


    Millet Emperor, in the eyes of the many cultivators in the Dongxiao Continent and even the surrounding continents, was an absolute god of supreme existence. And this was the first time that many of them saw the Millet Emperor standing there to observe a battle.


    Was it because of the presence of the powerful ancient royal family of Yan?


    The figure in white floated down from the void and landed in the area above the Renhuang from the Northern Land. Ye Futian lowered his head to look at Yan Dongyang, below, just like Yan Dongyang looked at him before. Their positions now seemed to have reversed.


    Likewise, Yan Dongyang also raised his head, looking at Ye Futian, who had just returned from Wangshen Watchtower, and said, ��Back so soon?��


    Previously, the old man had said that Ye Futian passed the test and would be qualified to enter Wangshen Watchtower to listen to the Millet Emperor��s preaching.


    This meant that the Millet Emperor would be instructing Ye Futian in cultivation.


    And now that Ye Futian returned so quickly, was it because of him?


    ��Mmm.�� Ye Futian nodded and looked at Yan Dongyang, ��The Millet Emperor does not wish to receive you and has asked that you return to the Yan Kingdom.��


    ��Wangshen Watchtower is breaking its own rules. I have not been defeated. Why can��t I see the Millet Emperor?�� Yan Dongyang responded.


    When he was speaking, there was a low chanting of dragon that could be heard from his body, and the void was shaken by it. He headed toward the void, in the direction of Ye Futian.


    ��You will be defeated!�� Ye Futian said as he walked forward. The currents of the Great Path descended from heaven and fell with all its might.

 Chapter 1983 - : A Sword

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Inside and outside Wangshen Watchtower, countless people stared ahead.


    At this moment, there was no more spell matrix. Everyone could clearly perceive the two people��s aura of the great way and unparalleled God��s might. Both had Perfect Grade Divine Wheels.


    In the land above, a giant divine elephant appeared above Ye Futian��s body. Countless divine elephant figures appeared in the surrounding heaven and earth, stepping on the sky, flooding the sky, making this area into a divine elephant domain. The people understood that that was Ye Futian��s Avenue Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Countless divine elephants dropped down, suppressing the heavens, earth, and firmament, flattening the great way. No one knew just how violently powerful they were.


    However, Yan Dongyang was an extraordinary man and the prince of the great yan ancient royal family. A royal aura enveloped his body, and he was proud and noble. A golden divine dragon appeared as a vision appeared in the sky. A dragon god-like figure hovered in the sky, surrounded by thousands of divine dragons roaring at the same time. The sounds of dragon roars shattered the great way and broke the void, making many divine elephant shadows collapse and shatter.


    Suddenly, a giant buddha figure appeared in the firmament. Ye Futian seemed to turn into an ancient buddha as the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm was unleashed. The two sound waves collided in the void, causing the great way to collapse and shatter.


    The sacred dragon went upwards against the trend straight to the clouds, roaring at Ye Futian. Yan Dongyang raised his hand to punch. The complete dragon shadow rushed out at the same time, devouring Ye Futian��s body and breaking this side of the sky.


    Ye Futian looked down at the sky below him. His feet stepped on the void as his divine elephant stepped on the sky. Then he also threw a punch as the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm, and the Divine Elephant Void-splitting Fist exploded at the same time, setting off an unparalleled storm of the great path.


    Several high-level Renhuangs of the Wangshen Watchtower appeared at different coordinates, blocking the battlefield with an invisible Dao airflow, preventing the terrifying attack from affecting Wangshen Watchtower and the cultivators who came to watch the battle.


    The huge divine elephant and the divine dragon collided in the sky and earth. Countless people looked up to look over there. The firmament made a dull sound like the divine glory of the great way swept out. Ye Futian��s body was shaken to the sky, while Yan Dongyang was shaken back down. They were still not able to change the position of the two people.


    An even more violent aura of the great way burst forth from Yan Dongyang��s body. The golden divine glory swept through the sky as he stared at the figure in the void. Ye Futian stomped on the void, deliberately preventing him from going up to suppress him below Wangshen Watchtower.


    The cultivator, who walked out from the Eastern Deity Island and wanted to suppress him, came from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    But Ye Futian��s attack was indeed extremely furious and even able to suppress the Song of the Yang Dragon. If not for his realm being higher than the other party, even the Song of the Yang Dragon would have been restrained.


    Yan Dongyang stared at Ye Futian��s figure. Suspended in the void, his body suddenly released the extremely noble royal aura. This wisp of royal airflow swept through the heavens. At this moment, the gorgeous golden divine light shot out like blades of divine light from the sun at Ye Futian.


    ��Hmm?�� Ye Futian frowned as the divine light descended in an instant. When it reached him, it seemed like a golden divine dragon shadow appeared. He raised his hand and waved it, then the divine elephant blasted out and collided with the dragon shadow. After that, countless divine lights shot out, and each divine light contained a violent attack power.


    It was stronger and faster than the previous attack.


    The people looking at the battlefield were shaking inside. There seemed to be millions of attacks coming down in a flash, and Ye Futian��s divine elephant seemed to be difficult to resist. Not only that, when countless divine lights bloomed, enveloping this side of the sky, the glow covered Ye Futian��s body in it. Heaven and earth were surrounded by his great divine light as if it turned into a separate great path domain.


    The light screen made of these divine lights intertwined, and a boundless and huge divine dragon shadow appeared. Yan Dongyang��s body and the divine dragon shadow merged into one.


    Ye Futian��s body was covered by the Great Path domain and was brought by Yan Dongyang into his Great path domain, which formed its own space and turned into a dragon domain.


    It seemed that Yan Dongyang was still better. After all, he was at a higher cultivation realm.


    Yan Dongyang swept his head towards Ye Futian. His expression was cold, indifferent, and extremely domineering. As he stepped into the void, the sound of dragon roars shook the sky. Then, he raised his fist and blasted out across the sky. Ye Futian only felt bound by a domain, and the space seemed to be frozen. He knew that Yan Dongyang had brought him into his great path domain.


    Boom�� Yan Dongyang punched out through the air. The area where Ye Futian was located emitted a dull sound. It was as if the space was going to be shattered. Within this great path domain, everything was under the control of Yan Dongyang, including the great path of space in this domain.


    Many people saw the space where Ye Futian was crumbling and cracking. It was as if it was going to be shattered directly along with his body.


    Bang!


    A loud sound echoed as the power of the space-tearing Dao bombed the front of Ye Futian��s body. But in the end, it did not break Ye Futian��s body. He still stood there steadily as wisps of invisible airflow appeared around him. An ancient divine tree seemed to appear in his body, and countless branches and leaves spread out towards the surroundings. Everywhere he passed became the area of the great path he controlled. Yan Dongyang��s attack blasted onto this area but did not break.


    ��What��s going on?�� Yan Dongyang frowned. He unexpectedly felt that he was losing control of the space in the great path domain. Along with the invisible airflow spreading around Ye Futian��s body, it was as if the power of the great way of that area was instantly taken away by Ye Futian.


    He was still able to do that in his great path domain?


    Yan Dongyang seemed to be a bit unconvinced. His fists broke through the air at the same time, and a dull rumble sounded. However, he was still unable to break the space where Ye Futian was, which was not under his control.


    Yan Dongyang stared at Ye Futian. He pointed to the sky, and the sacred dragon that enveloped this great path domain directly engulfed the space where Ye Futian was located, wanting to swallow that space along with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was not moved at all. His hands formed a seal, then the surrounding branches and leaves seem to turn into wisps of sword will. Sounds of sword chants rang out. In a flash, infinite divine swords circled Ye Futian��s body, forming a resonance, creating an extremely magnificent view.


    Countless gazes looked towards the shocking scene on the battlefield. The giant divine dragon that covered the sky was enormous. Its open mouth could devour a piece of the sky, and its shadow covered Ye Futian��s body. It became darker and darker, and the divine dragon shot down and devoured the entire space.


    But at the same moment, Ye Futian pointed his finger toward the sky. The next moment, his body disappeared as the incomparably huge divine dragon swallowed him.


    Many people��s hearts shook violently. But the next moment, they saw the huge body of the divine dragon shaking violently. Every part of the body blossomed with gorgeous light that seemed like blades of light.


    Buzz! On the back of the divine dragon, a blade of light directly broke through his body. The blinding blade of light shot straight to the clouds. An explosion sounded, and the huge body of the divine dragon shattered madly under the sword will.


    Many people only felt that the void shook violently, and there was a great divine radiance sweeping out, like the shattering of the great path domain.


    There, Ye Futian��s figure reappeared. His silver hair danced with the wind, and his body was immaculate, just like an immortal.


    ��Your great path domain is too fragile.�� Ye Futian looked down at Yan Dongyang. His glance directly invaded Yan Dongyang��s consciousness and actually made Yan Dongyang feel chills run through his body.


    The next moment, an invisible Dao airflow above Ye Futian��s body enveloped this side of the sky. Above the firmament, there were billions of divine swords whistling around the space where Ye Futian was, turning into a horrific swordsmanship storm.


    An incomparably strong sword will seemed to blossom on Ye Futian��s body. A sword appeared in each of nine different coordinates. The trillions of sword wills spun around the nine swords faster and faster.


    Along with a gorgeous blade of light shining, hundreds of millions of sword will seemed to turn to one sword.


    ��Go.�� Ye Futian pointed at Yan Dongyang.


    In an instant, from the firmament downward, a blade of light appeared. The blade of light made by billions of divine swords was like a giant sword directly penetrating this side of the sky. From top to bottom, it ignored spatial distances.


    ��Infernal.��


    A strange glimmer flashed between Goddess Penglai��s beautiful eyes as she saw the sword. That swordsmanship was a sword art inherited from the Eastern Deity Island. It seemed like Ye Futian had mastered it.


    When the sword was unleashed, it could still kill an opponent thousands of miles away with a single strike, let alone that bit of distance.


    The crowd could only see that from the sky to the bottom, there seemed to be a sword penetrating the heaven and earth, and there was an astounding sound of a dragon roar from Yan Dongyang��s body. But the next moment, the sacred giant dragon was penetrated, and Yan Dongyang��s body also turned into a ray of light and was stabbed all the way down to the ground from the void.


    Boom! The terrifying sword will tore through the earth. And as the blade of light disappeared, everything around it shattered into nothingness. A sword pit appeared on the ground, and terrifying cracks surrounded it.The mighty figures of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family all stepped forward toward the sword pit. A figure stained with blood walked out of the pit. Its clothes were torn and tattered, and his long hair was messy. He had lost all of his emperor��s aura and looked disheveled.He looked up at the figure in the void. This time, he did not come for Ye Futian, but for the one in Wangshen Watchtower. He lost to Ye Futian��s sword. He lost to the cultivator of the Eastern Deity Island!

 Chapter 1984 - Domain Chief’s Manor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yan Dongyang was defeated.


    Yan Dongyang was a direct descendant of the imperial lineage of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family from the Northern Land. He was a descendant of the Great Yan Royal Family bloodline. And he was someone with a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path. He had lost to Ye Futian.


    If Ye Futian were from the Dongxiao Continent, then it was Ye Futian who protected the pride of the Dongxiao Continent with his own strength. However, he was cut off from the Dongxiao Continent. He came from the Eastern Deity Island and did not care to be with those from the Dongxiao Continent.


    Thinking about how many cultivators of Wangdu tried to scheme against Ye Futian previously, several people felt that it was quite ridiculous. Qi Mu of the Alchemy Divine Palace even wanted to stop Ye Futian from entering Wangshen Watchtower.


    However, how could they stop him?


    Ye Futian alone outweighed the light on everyone. The Millet Emperor had already met him and told him to come down from Wangshen Watchtower and defeat Yan Dongyang.


    Ye Futian also succeeded. After he saw Millet Emperor, he came down from the Watchtower and defeated Yan Dongyang with a single blade of light.


    At this moment, standing in the void, Ye Futian was like the son of a god. He was unbeatable.


    ��He has a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path and defeated Yan Dongyang, who also has a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path and was at a higher realm. Was this battle the revenge of the Eastern Deity Island against the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family?�� No one would forget the grudge between the Eastern Deity Island and the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. Eastern Deity Island was overthrown because of Great Yan.


    After many years, the cultivators who came out of the Eastern Deity Island defeated all the Renhuangs of the Northern Land. No one could compete with them.


    But Goddess Penglai, who was watching the battle overhead, knew that Eastern Deity Island could not produce such a person. She had always wanted to, but the birth of this level of character needs an opportunity. They could not be nurtured, just like that. The Eastern Deity Island��s cultivation resources were powerful. Among the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and other top factions of the Divine Prefecture, who did not have powerful cultivation resources?


    Ye Futian came from the Original Realm and stepped into Eastern Deity Island. It was probably an opportunity��not for Ye Futian, but for Eastern Deity Island.


    So she sent Ye Futian to Wangshen Watchtower and let him prove his strength.


    At this time, Ye Futian looked down at Yan Dongyang in the sky below. He looked calm and did not feel the excitement after defeating a strong enemy. Instead, he appeared extraordinarily indifferent. It was as if everything should have been just like this. Standing in the void, he spoke indifferently. ��Now, you have a defeat.��


    Earlier, Yan Dongyang said that he had not lost a single battle when he entered the Wangshen Watchtower formation and fought according to the Wangshen Watchtower��s rules. So there was no reason for the Millet Emperor not to see him.


    Now, he had been defeated.


    Ye Futian was actually telling him, ��You can go now.��


    Yan Dongyang kept standing there and staring at Ye Futian, unable to shift his gaze for a long time. This battle made him feel a strong sense of defeat. As someone from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, his talent and ability were undeniable. He was also extremely arrogant and conceited. His motive for coming here was not Ye Futian at all. The Great Yan also did not care about Eastern Deity Island. His main objective was to meet the top Proud Son of Heaven of Wangshen Watchtower. If he really achieved a breakthrough, he wanted to see just how powerful a perfect high-order Renhuang was.


    However, he was already defeated before meeting that top Proud Son of Heaven.


    He lost to a cultivator of the Eastern Deity Island, who were once eliminated by the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. When he came here, other than wanting to know the answer, it was completely different from his expectations. He came here majestically but could only leave in a wretched state now.


    Not needing Ye Futian to say anything, he himself was too embarrassed to stay.


    ��Go,�� Yan Dongyang said. He immediately left with the strong cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. In the surrounding area, the Renhuangs from the Northern Land looked at Ye Futian in the void. With a wisp of reluctance, they all left. But they all left with a completely different posture than when they came.


    ��We will meet some other day.�� As they were leaving, a voice sounded. It was Yan Dongyang��s voice.


    Obviously, he was not willing to admit his defeat.


    That sword directly limited Yan Dongyang��s strength, and he had not had time to unleash his full strength before he was defeated under this sword.


    In the future, they would meet again.


    Ye Futian indifferently swept a glance at the departing figure in the distance. Meet again?


    If they met again, Yan Dongyang still would not be able to withstand his sword.


    ��Let��s go.��


    The people who saw the disappearance of the Renhuangs of the Northern Land were extremely emotional, but they did not feel happy or proud. On this trip to Wangshen Watchtower, the people of the Northern Land lost; the Dongxiao Continent and the cultivators of Wangdu also lost.


    All of them brought out the brilliance of Ye Futian in the end.


    The things that happened previously that caused the battle today especially threw Ye Futian into the limelight.


    With his status as a cultivator of the Eastern Deity Island, the Millet Emperor probably will accept him as a disciple, right? some people thought. After all, Supreme Deity Donglai and the Millet Emperor are close friends. But thinking about Yan Dongyang��s words before and the words of the elder of the Wangshen Watchtower, maybe not, they speculated.


    But the Millet Emperor would definitely preach to Ye Futian or at least teach him a lot. No one denied that.


    He was only a level four Renhuang but already so powerful. Even ordinary level seven high-order Renhuang were no match for him. If he cultivated in Wangshen Watchtower for a while and reached a higher level, another peerless individual would walk out from it in the future.


    Will the Eastern Deity Island regain its glory in his hands?


    At this time, the elder from Wangshen Watchtower in the void took a step forward, looked at the people from all sides, and said, ��This is the end for this year. Let��s all disperse.��


    It was over!


    Many people showed a disappointed look. Wangshen Watchtower was also a bit disappointed with the cultivators this time.


    Of course, perhaps Ye Futian��s unprecedented appearance and the arrival of the Renhuangs of the Northern Land have led to the present situation. Otherwise, there would certainly be some of them who could enter Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate. However, this was the luck of the times, and there was nothing much to say.


    As the mighty figure of Wangshen Watchtower spoke, everyone dispersed and withdrew one after another.


    Qi Mu looked in the distance. As the heir to the Alchemy Divine Palace, he realized at this moment how big the gap between himself and Ye Futian was. Even if Ye Futian did not know how to make pills, they could not be mentioned in the same breath and were destined to never be at the same level.


    Ye Futian would be able to be in direct contact with the Millet Emperor.


    One of the Alchemy Divine Palace elders opened his mouth and said, ��Let��s go.�� Qi Mu and the others also left.


    However, there were still many cultivators who still looked at Wangshen Watchtower and looked at Ye Futian.


    Naturally, Xia Qingyuan did not leave, and Lin Qiu and the others were also there, quietly standing below. The elder looked down at them and then asked Ye Futian, ��Are you together?��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��They��re all my companions.��


    The old man opened his mouth and said, ��Since that��s the case, let��s enter Wangshen Watchtower together and rest.��


    ��Many thanks.�� Ye Futian smiled, and at once, figures rose into the air. Lin Qiu came to Ye Futian��s side and looked at him like he was looking at a monster.


    Although he had imagined that Ye Futian would be strong, he found that he still underestimated his power every time.


    ��I have a question to ask you,�� Lin Qiu said to Ye Futian.


    ��What?�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Those pills, did you refine them yourself?�� Lin Qiu gave Ye Futian an odd look.


    ��Ahem���� Ye Futian looked ahead and said, ��Senior Millet Emperor is still waiting for me.��


    With that, he accelerated forward. Lin Qiu looked at his back figure and paused, speechless. Did he really refine them himself?


    In the various palaces and pavilions in Wangshen Watchtower, many Renhuangs appeared and were all sizing Ye Futian up. Although they did not go out previously, each of their divine consciousness was always there, and they had seen that battle.


    In this generation, Wangshen Watchtower could not find anyone among those at the middle-level Renhuang level who could defeat Ye Futian.


    It seemed that the Eastern Deity Island was going to have a popular figure.


    Many human emperors nodded to Ye Futian across the sky, and Ye Futian nodded in response until he arrived at the Hanging Island again, where the Millet Emperor was cultivating.


    The Millet Emperor had seen that battle with his own eyes. He looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Not bad. Yan Dongyang is a level five Renhuang with a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path, yet you still managed to defeat him despite your lower level. In Donghua Domain, there shouldn��t be many people at the middle-level Renhuang Plane who could hold their own against you.��


    Ye Futian naturally understood that only a Renhuang with a perfect Divine Wheel Of The Great Path could hold their own against him. People of this level were basically the proud sons of heaven of the top factions. There would not be too many of them in Donghua Domain.


    ��However, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family did not care about the Eastern Deity Island and your existence previously. But after this battle, after Yan Dongyang returns, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family will certainly pay attention, which is not good for you or the Eastern Deity Island,�� the Millet Emperor continued.


    ��It was because they cared about the Eastern Deity Island that they brought him here,�� Goddess Donglai said at the side.


    The Millet Emperor pondered for a moment and looked at Ye Futian with a thoughtful expression.


    Ye Futian��s strength could not be hidden. The Eastern Deity Island noticed him now. But as he grew, more people would notice his existence in the future. Unless he continued to practice alone in the Divine Prefecture, what happened in the Original Realm would be exposed sooner or later. In the Original Realm, Ye Futian would also have strong enemies from the Divine Prefecture.


    ��If you can enter the Domain Chief��s Manor, then, in the Donghua Domain, no one will be able to touch you.�� The Millet Emperor seemed to have thought of something.��Domain Chief��s Manor?�� Ye Futian looked at the Millet Emperor.In the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture, every domain had a Domain Chief��s Manor. Naturally, Donghua Domain had one too.The Domain Chief��s Manor was subordinate to Donghuang the Great and was directly linked to Donghuang the Great��s family. It watched over the Divine Prefecture and was extremely powerful. If one would consider the Domain Chief��s Manor as a faction, then the Domain Chief��s Manor of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture was the faction at the very apex.Moreover, they had the Great Emperor backing them!

 Chapter 1985 - Cultivating in the Spirit Gate

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Yes, the Domain Chief��s Manor.�� The Millet Emperor nodded at Ye Futian. ��Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor oversees the entire domain. Virtuosos can be found everywhere in the manor. While the manor naturally does not nurture practitioners, it will continuously absorb virtuosos into their ranks to increase their strength. Only then will they have the ability to control all the factions.


    ��With your current abilities, you definitely are eligible to join the Domain Chief��s Manor and become their member. Any faction in the Divine Prefecture will hesitate before attempting to do you any harm.��


    Ye Futian nodded. According to what he knew, the older brother of the king of the Golden Divine Nation of the Original Realm was a subordinate of Donghuang the Great. Of course, there would be many people who worked under the chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The Millet Emperor now understood Ye Futian��s circumstance from listening to the Donglai Goddess. He had two reasons for giving this suggestion. First, it was for Ye Futian��s sake. With a powerful faction backing him, all antagonistic factions would think twice before doing him any harm. Second, it was for the Eastern Deity Island��s sake. If Ye Futian managed to gain influence in the Domain Chief��s Manor, Eastern Deity Island would also be a lot more stable, and the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would not dare to act rashly.


    Furthermore, given Ye Futian��s display of his extraordinary combat abilities, there was a high chance that he would become a member of the upper echelons in the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    While Ye Futian was inclined to take up this suggestion, he was still a little hesitant. With his origin still a mystery, he was unsure of his position. Even though Donghuang Princess had saved his life once, Donghuang the Great still bore a grudge against Emperor Ye Qing��


    The Millet Emperor continued, ��However, you need not think about this now. Your combat abilities far surpass your cultivation level. Now you are only at the fourth Renhuang level. If you can raise your cultivation to the pinnacle of the middle-level Renhuang level, no one can threaten you unless they are really at the pinnacle of the Renhuang level. If you can further raise your cultivation to a high-level Renhuang level with a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel, there won��t be many people who can even touch you in the entire Divine Prefecture.�� Even though there were several exceptional characters in the Divine Prefecture, considering the size of the Divine Prefecture, the ratio was miniscule.


    The Divine Prefecture had infinite continents. In contrast, just how many exceptional characters were there?


    Apart from this special class of practitioners, only high-level Renhuangs with a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel could pose a threat to a Ye Futian, who had attained a high-level Renhuang cultivation level. Furthermore, they had to be at least a level-eight Renhuang. These people would already be considered the cream of the crop.


    Of course, this was only with the premise that Ye Futian would break through to a high-level Renhuang while retaining the perfection of his Great Path.


    ��I understand. However, cultivation isn��t something that is completed in a single act. Thus, I can only learn through trials that I encounter as I tour the entire Divine Prefecture, and raise my cultivation as I train myself,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Mmm.�� The Millet Emperor nodded. ��Continuously shutting yourself off from the rest of the world to cultivate is indeed pointless. Moreover, the cultivation of one��s Great Path requires one to travel abroad to feel and comprehend the Great Path. Before you have attained a sufficient depth of understanding, you should not rush to raise your level. In particular, you should avoid using elixirs to attain a breakthrough. Only by doing so will your Great Path foundation be stable. The opportunity that you encountered on the Eastern Deity Island that strengthened your life force was, in fact, the origin of all life. It��s the same thing with the Path of Heaven and Earth. Only if your foundation is stable can you progress smoothly. Even though you inherited the ability to refine elixirs, don��t over-rely on the elixirs�� powers to raise your cultivation level. Especially those who forcefully raise their cultivation through ingesting elixirs�� Their foundation of their Great Path is damaged. Even if it is not noticeable from the surface, it is very different for you. You are looking to forge a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel, so you cannot even take a single misstep. Only then can you maintain your perfect Great Path.��


    Ye Futian listened on quietly. The Millet Emperor was giving him advice, afraid that he would take the wrong path.


    ��Before I became a high-level Renhuang, my Divine Wheel was perfect. However, after that, I was a little too impatient in my cultivation and was too hasty in leveling up. Even though my consciousness was calm and stable, there was still a wisp of impulsiveness in me, and I overestimated my own abilities. This caused flaws to form in my Great Path when I ascended to the high-level Renhuang level, and my cultivation thereafter was affected.��


    Even though he was very calm when recounting his past, if he were given a chance to go back into the past, he would certainly pay even more attention to the foundation of his Great Path and would rather make a breakthrough at a later time.


    ��I will remember your words earnestly.�� Ye Futian bowed lightly. The memories of the Donglai Supreme Deity believed the same thing. He inferred this because the elixirs that the Supreme Deity refined weren��t ones that directly helped him to attain breakthroughs. Rather, they were elixirs that helped stabilize his foundation further, strengthen his body, nurture his lifeforce, and raise his sensitivity to the Great Path. This was all so that he could feel the Great Path even more closely.


    In the past, when he helped Emperor Helian broke through, the elixirs that he refined were also of the same type. He helped Emperor Helian avoid destabilizing his foundation in his haste to pursue success and thus avoid the tragedy of a cultivation breakthrough at the expense of future progress.


    Of course, as for the elixirs that helped one to break through one��s bottleneck, he prescribed them to those who had reached the limit of their cultivation. They already knew that they did not have the ability to level up any further. To them, when any further progress was hopeless, any step forward was a step up. Even if they had to rely on elixirs and pills to do it, it was still better than no progress at all.


    At that moment, the Millet Emperor turned around and said to Ye Futian, ��Follow me.��


    Ye Futian nodded and followed behind the Millet Emperor toward Wangshen Watchtower. It stood straight between heaven and earth. The Donglai Goddess and the rest stood there silently and watched. It seemed that the Millet Emperor wanted Ye Futian to cultivate in the Wangshen Watchtower.


    Ye Futian had inherited everything her father had left behind and had even displayed such prowess. The Millet Emperor was naturally very impressed by him and wanted to help him in his cultivation to reach even greater heights.


    This Wangshen Watchtower was a mystical object in the world of cultivation. It had amassed the fortune of the world. In the Dongxiao Continent, there were many rumors regarding this ��Wangshen Watchtower.�� Many people believed that it was merely a watchtower that had become renowned because of the Millet Emperor. In reality, it was truly a ��Spirit Gate.�� [1]


    Ye Futian followed the Millet Emperor to the front of Wangshen Watchtower. The World Tree in his body swayed and emitted a crisp sound, as though it were trying to break out from his body. In the past few years, Ye Futian had also encountered a few similar incidences. The objects that could cause the World Tree in his body to behave in such a manner were all divine objects.


    His eyes followed the Watchtower up into the skies above and saw that this Spiritual Gate seemed to be one with the Path of the Heavens, as though it were the Great Path itself. This space that he was in seemed to be different from the space below the watchtower; this space was separate from the rest of the world.


    ��Can you feel it?�� the Millet King asked Ye Futian.


    ��It is the Great Path of Sealing,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Mmm.�� The Millet King nodded. ��I noticed that you are also well-versed in the Great Path of Suppression. The power of the divine elephant is extremely domineering and can suppress an entire space. This watchtower here has an extremely ancient history. Legends say that this divine object is a treasure from the ages before the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Some legends say that this watchtower used to be a stone gate guarding the entrance to the Heavenly Realm. By a stroke of luck, it ended up in my possession. It might be because I happen to be familiar with a very similar type of power as well. However, even after countless years, I am unable to refine it fully. Perhaps only a divine being could fully refine a divine object.


    ��Why don��t you give it a try?�� the Millet Emperor asked Ye Futian. Wangshen Watchtower stood just ahead. It seemed to be so close to them, yet, in reality, they were still some distance away. It was like an otherworldly gate; its aura was very pressurizing, and even with a glance, one could sense its solemn, ancient aura.


    Ye Futian stepped forward towards it, and an impossibly heavy pressure of the Great Path pressed onto his body. That power felt like the heavens were pressing down on him.


    The watchtower seemed to be just in front of him, yet it wasn��t easy to reach it.


    Bang. A low sound echoed out, and Ye Futian��s footsteps became heavier. At that moment, he felt that everything around him had disappeared. In his senses, there was no Millet Emperor, no cultivation court. There was only that Spirit Gate.


    ��Divine objects encompass the most original power of the Great Path, the purest form of power,�� Ye Futian chanted in his heart. The space here seemed to have morphed into a separate domain, isolated from the rest of the world. He stood at the top of the Spirit Gate that seemed to peek into the heavens. From above the Spirit Gate, the force of the Great Path pressed down on him like the weight of the heavens was compressing him. With each step he took forward, he felt the pressure on him increase.


    Furthermore, an illusion seemed to be presenting itself to Ye Futian. In his mind, the Spirit Gate seemed to be getting taller, as though it were becoming a true Heavenly Tower.


    If I cultivated the Great Path of Suppression here, I would definitely progress at an incredible rate, a thought surfaced in Ye Futian��s mind. ��This was the purest power of the Great Path. How high must my cultivation level be if I wanted to step into the Wangshen Watchtower?��


    Ye Futian continued forward, and it seemed like he had walked for a very long time. His footsteps became slower, and it seemed like he could never reach the end. After some time, he finally stopped to sit down and began cultivating.


    Not far away, the Millet Emperor and the rest observed Ye Futian quietly. The Donglai Goddess walked to the Millet Emperor and asked, ��Uncle Millet, what happened to him?��


    The Ye Futian now seemed to be acting strangely.


    ��The Spirit Gate forms its own dimension around itself. He had already reached the center of the Great Path of the Spirit Gate,�� the Millet Emperor replied. ��He might cultivate for quite some time in there, so there is no need to be concerned for him.��


    ��Mmm.�� The Donglai Goddess nodded. The Alchemy Emperor also looked ahead. Ye Futian was powerful, and he had pretty good luck, too, for the Millet Emperor to allow him to cultivate under this divine object. This divine object was the Millet Emperor��s personal cultivation grounds; only those for whom he had the highest hopes could enter.


    ��Now that he is here, what are your plans?�� the Millet Emperor looked at the Donglai Goddess.


    ��It is time for me to return,�� the Donglai Goddess said.


    ��The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family will probably target here and not pay as much attention to the Eastern Deity Island. If they wanted to act, they would not provoke me through the Eastern Deity Island because it is just not worth it. If they really acted, it would be directed towards him or you.�� The Millet Emperor looked at the Ye Futian in front and said, ��In that case, why don��t you stay here and cultivate as well. You can bring him to the Donghua Heavens next time. With your strength, there aren��t that many people from the Great Yan who can defeat you.��


    The Donglai Goddess let out a thoughtful expression. The Eastern Deity Island was of little value to the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, and they couldn��t care less about it. With Ye Futian emerging from the Eastern Deity Island, they could deal with Ye Futian directly if they wanted to deal with the Eastern Deity Island. They did not have to attack the Eastern Deity Island and provoke the Millet Emperor!


    [1]: This is a play on words by the author. In the original language: ��Wangshen Watchtower�� is pronounced as ��Wangshenque.�� The last two characters are the same as ��Shenque,�� which is translated to ��Spirit Gate,�� a pressure point in Traditional Chinese Medicine.

 Chapter 1986 - Zong Chan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A few months later, the ripples from the battle of Wangshen Watchtower gradually passed, and fewer people talked about it. However, the people of Wangdu all learned a new name: Sword Emperor Ye Liunian.


    In the various rumors spread around Wangdu, Ye Liunian had become a legendary character. When Yan Dongyang, prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, led his army of Renhuangs from the Northern Land and suppressed the virtuosos of Wangdu and various factions in the Dongxiao Continent, the Sword Emperor Ye Liunian defeated the entire army with a single strike of his sword. He managed to force the virtuosos of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family to retreat, and because of this achievement, he managed to impress the Millet Emperor.


    Now, Ye Liunian was cultivating at the Wangshen Watchtower under the personal guidance of the Millet Emperor.


    With just one battle, the name ��Ye Liunian�� had made itself known to all of Wangdu.


    The Wangshen Watchtower had one more practitioner with unrivaled strength.


    There weren��t many people who were granted access to the Wangshen Watchtower, which was the Millet Emperor��s personal cultivation court.


    However, at that moment, a practitioner, who looked to be in his thirties, walked over. He had an extraordinary air about him. He seemed rather cultured, and although he did not emit ripples of power, just him standing there alone made people feel like he was one with heaven and earth. It was a very comfortable feeling.


    This person was the top prodigy in the Wangshen Watchtower, Zong Chan.


    Zong Chan had been cultivating in the Wangshen Watchtower for many years, and he was also the top prodigy of the Wangshen Watchtower, so he certainly had the right to come here. In fact, he could enter the ��Spirit Gate�� to cultivate anytime he wanted. The last time Yan Dongyang came was because of Zong Chan. It was rumored that the top prodigy of the Wangshen Watchtower, Zong Chan, had broken through to the high-level Renhuang cultivation level. Furthermore, his Great Path was still perfect.


    In this aspect, the Millet Emperor had personally admitted his own inferiority and had gotten his subordinate to inform Yan Dongyang.


    A high-level Renhuang with seven perfect levels of the Great Path would essentially be someone who stood at the pinnacle of the cultivation world. Even in the endless Divine Prefecture, there weren��t many people who were like that. There were very few people who could even compare to Zong Chan. Any practitioner like this was a practitioner who had great potential and could one day stand above everyone else in the world of cultivation.


    The Divine Prefecture��s legendary figures were all like this, and Zong Chan had begun to join their ranks.


    Because of this, the Yanyun Continent was shocked, and it was why Yan Dongyang traversed continents to come here.


    Zong Chan walked towards the Spirit Gate and raised his head to look at it. Below, an old man walked past. He was the same older adult who led Ye Futian here the other day. Seeing Zong Chan, he let out a smile and said, ��Zong Chan, have you ended your cultivation in isolation?��


    ��Mmm,�� Zong Chan nodded. ��I heard that while I was isolated, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family came over to provoke us.��


    ��They did come, but they left pathetically,�� the elderly man said with a smile.


    ��I heard some other news.�� Zong Chan nodded lightly. Then, he looked into the Spirit Gate and said, ��To be able to impress teacher, this many must be extraordinary.��


    ��Mmm, he is especially outstanding; he might rival you one day,�� the elderly man said with a smile. Even though the Millet Emperor had never officially accepted disciples, he had taught many people before. Zong Chan had all along stayed here as the Millet Emperor��s disciple and regarded the Millet Emperor as his teacher.


    ��I��ll go and take a look,�� Zong Chan nodded his head lightly. He then walked towards the Spirit Gate. His footsteps were very light; it was like he was taking a casual stroll.


    Below the Spirit Gate, Ye Futian was quietly cultivating. He still felt that he was in the isolated space in the Spirit Gate; however, he sensed something different. He opened his eyes and was a little surprised. Someone had actually entered this space, and what��s more, his footsteps seemed to be very light; it was as though he did not feel much pressure from the Spirit Gate at all.


    However, Ye Futian had recently also gotten accustomed to the pressure of the Great Path exerted in this space. He no longer felt the heaviness that he once did when he first stepped into the Spirit Gate. He turned around to look at the person approaching him and saw Zong Chan with an extraordinary air about him.


    ��Ye Liunian,�� Zong Chan looked at Ye Futian and said.


    ��You are?�� Ye Futian asked. To be able to come into this space, he certainly was not a simple character. Only the most core figures of the Wangshen Watchtower were allowed to cultivate in the Spirit Gate. The person in front of him had to be one of them.


    ��Zong Chan,�� Zong Chan replied. After entering Wangshen Watchtower, he had immediately started cultivating in the Spirit Gate and did not really try to find out more about Wangshen Watchtower. Thus, he did not know about this person well-known by all of Wangdu.


    ��Do you belong to the Millet Emperor��s faction?�� Ye Futian smiled and asked.


    ��Well, I guess you could say that. I have always been following teacher in my cultivation,�� Zong Chan replied. ��The last time I was not around, and it was only when I came out of isolation that I found out about what happened months ago, I heard that you wielded exceptional power and forced the people from the Northern Land to retreat. It seems like this Wangshen Watchtower has one more famous person.��


    He was a little surprised that Ye Futian had never heard of his name��


    In all of Wangdu, there hasn��t been a single person who did not know the two words ��Zong Chan.�� However, he was from the Eastern Deity Island, so it should not be a surprise that he had not heard of his name before.


    ��How did you feel these few days, cultivating in the Spirit Gate?�� Zong Chan asked.


    Ye Futian looked at Zong Chan and said, ��This place contains the most primeval form of power of the Great Path of Suppression, so it��s a place that is especially suitable for people who are cultivating similarly. I think this place is especially suitable for practitioners who are cultivating a similar power. However, I wonder just how strong the pure power of the Great Path of Suppression will be. Would it be as powerful as this Spirit Gate that is like the will of the Heavens?��


    ��If you would like to feel it, I can help you,�� Zong Chan said with a smile. Ye Futian hesitated for a moment and looked at Zong Chan. He said, ��Please teach me.��


    ��Prepare yourself,�� Zong Chan said. He stood there silently, and the power of the Great Path in the surrounding space started flowing, and in the space above them, the wisps of power gathered to form a stone stele. A low rumble reverberated throughout the space.


    Ye Futian looked up at the stone stele and sensed the flow of the Great Path cascading down. In the next moment, the stone stele pressed down towards him. In his eyes, the stone stele seemed to be enlarging rapidly, becoming a heavenly stele.


    Above Ye Futian, a golden light glimmered, and a divine halo appeared above. Its arms shot upwards and crashed onto the stone stele. A loud rumble echoed out. Even though the stone stele was knocked backward, there was no sign of damage.


    ��High-level Renhuang,�� Ye Futian muttered softly.


    Zong Chan waved his palm, and instantly, in the skies above, multiple stone steles appeared simultaneously, levitating in various locations. The Great Path of Suppression that they emitted caused Ye Futian to feel breathless.


    Oin! A divine light radiated out, and the stone steles that revolved around this space immediately sealed the space, causing it to become an insolated stone stele domain. On every stone stele, there were terrifying runes. An incomparably strong ripple of the Great Path cascaded on Ye Futian, causing him to feel suffocated. He felt like he could not even move a single finger.


    ��A perfect Great Path.�� Ye Futian looked at the countless stone steles sealing the space morphing into the Great Path��s absolute domain. Furthermore, it was a domain of the Great Path that he could not hope to escape.


    He did not expect that in Wangshen Watchtower, he could get to meet such a powerful practitioner, a high-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path.


    ��How do you feel about it?�� Zong Chan ceased his attacks and asked Ye Futian with a smile.


    ��It��s really powerful,�� Ye Futian replied in awe. ��Under an attack like this, there��s nowhere for me to hide. If the attack really struck me, even if I didn��t die, I would be severely injured.��


    Zong Chan waved his hand, and the stone steles disappeared instantly. ��It��s naturally like this, given that there is a difference in cultivation level between us. However, if you and I were on the same cultivation level, how it would end would be a question.��


    Ye Futian agreed with him. Among all the opponents he had encountered in the past, none of them was a high-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. Zong Chan��s cultivation level was truly higher than his by three full levels. Moreover, this included the chasm in power between a middle-level Renhuang and a high-level Renhuang.


    With that kind of cultivation level, even if Ye Futian fought to his death and used every ounce of strength he had, there was likely still no chance of victory.


    ��Your attack techniques are quite similar to this Spirit Gate,�� Ye Futian turned around to look at the Spirit Gate.


    ��When teacher guided me in my cultivation, my cultivation attributes were another factor apart from talent. Due to my natural attributes, I naturally synergize to a certain extent with the Spirit Gate. It��s only after years of cultivation in the Spirit Gate that I have managed to arrive at where I am now,�� Zong Chan replied calmly. He was very humble. Ye Futian could not detect a tinge of arrogance from his voice.


    Perhaps when someone had cultivated to this level, his internal self would also become extremely calm.


    A perfect Great Path at all seven levels; this person before him seemed destined to become the most powerful person in the entire Divine Prefecture.


    ��You can come over to chat,�� a voice sounded out. The two of them turned to look into the distance. Zong Chan smiled and nodded. ��Yes, teacher!��

 Chapter 1987 - Tribulation of Gods

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and Zong Chan went over to the Millet Emperor. The elderly man from before was also there. His name was Li Changsheng, and he had entered Wangshen Watchtower even earlier than Zong Chan. He had begun following the Millet Emperor many years ago.


    Now he was in charge of most of the matters in the Wangshen Watchtower.


    Li Changsheng showed Ye Futian a gentle smile. He had an extraordinary aura that made people feel very comfortable.


    ��The both of you possess a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel. It��s almost too much that the two of you are cultivating in this Wangshen Watchtower. You guys still sparred! Was this out of brotherly love?�� Li Changsheng said with a smile. His tone was very gentle, like a spring breeze.


    ��I was just curious and wanted to see brother Ye��s Path,�� Zong Chan replied with a smile.


    ��Brother Zong can be considered as my senior already. A High-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path is someone that I naturally can��t compare to. Of course, I couldn��t have been sparring with him. I was merely asking for some guidance,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    ��Both of you are outstanding talents in the entire Divine Prefecture, and yet you are so formal and humble to each other. This old man can��t bear to listen any longer,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile. ��Oh yes, I have yet to introduce myself to our little friend Ye. I am Li Changsheng, and I��ve been cultivating in the Wangshen Watchtower all along.��


    ��Senior, you are too kind.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly. He could sense that Li Changsheng��s cultivation level was at the ninth Renhuang level.


    Months ago, when he first entered the Wangshen Watchtower, it was he who was looking on. All the other Renhuangs regarded him as the core of their group.


    It was just that now that they were in the presence of the Millet Emperor, he gave off a completely different feeling.


    Furthermore, from the conversations of a few people, Ye Futian could tell that the Millet Emperor had a rather casual personality. Otherwise, Li Changsheng and Zong Chan would not be speaking so casually either. Obviously, they were very used to it already.


    ��Calling me ��senior�� feels so distant. Since you are also cultivating in this Wangshen Watchtower, you are also a friend of the Path. You can call me Brother Changsheng,�� Li Changsheng said. Even though they were not formally the Millet Emperor��s disciples, they called him their teacher.


    The Millet Emperor also would not take Ye Futian as his disciple. However, since he was also cultivating in the Wangshen Watchtower, he did not mind calling him his brother in cultivation.


    ��Brother Changsheng.�� Ye Futian certainly was not bothered by these small details and bowed lightly.


    ��Mmm, I have once again managed to scam a powerful practitioner into becoming my junior,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile. ��In the future, when you step onto the pinnacle of cultivation, remember to take care of your brother here.��


    ��Brother Changsheng, stop teasing me.�� Ye Futian shook his head with a smile. Currently, he was still a good bit weaker than Li Changsheng.


    ��Brother Zong, perhaps in the future, you will have a rival, and you won��t be lonely anymore.�� Li Changsheng smiled at Zong Chan. As the top prodigy of cultivation of Wangshen Watchtower, he was always unrivaled in his generation. No one could hope to compete with him.


    ��I am actually looking forward to it.�� Zong Chan smiled.


    ��I am still too far away from Brother Zong,�� Ye Futian humbly said. However, there was quite a difference between them.


    ��People enter the world of cultivation at different times, so how strong or weak you are now means very little. At our levels of cultivation, every increment in level may require years of cultivation. After cultivating for a long time, you will realize that if you stay stagnant, people from the younger generations will overtake you,�� the Millet Emperor said.


    Li Changsheng felt that deeply. Even though Ye Futian had never experienced it himself, he understood it. It was just that he had always been the one overtaking others, and so, although he could understand, he could not empathize very well.


    ��However, there is no need to force it at the expense of your psyche. A stable foundation of the Great Path trumps everything. To prodigies like you, the most important thing is the destination of your Great Path,�� continued the Millet Emperor.


    Zong Chan and Ye Futian both nodded their heads.


    ��I am planning to go out at the end of the year. The two of you will come with me,�� said the Millet Emperor.


    ��Teacher, where are we going?�� Zong Chan asked. For the Millet Emperor to travel there himself, the destination should be a very unusual place.


    ��Changsheng, why don��t you tell him,�� the Millet Emperor looked at Li Changsheng.


    ��Yes, teacher,�� Li Changsheng nodded his head, and smiled at Zong Chan and Ye Futian, and said, ��My two juniors, you are in luck. This journey is exceptionally meaningful to you. Perhaps in the future, you might experience it as well.��


    Zong Chan let out an expression of surprise. Li Changsheng was also so serious. Just where exactly were they going?


    ��Not long ago, the Turtle Deity Island sent news that Emperor Xi was going to experience three tribulations,�� Li Changsheng said. ��This news had already spread to all the islands on the Divine Ocean. The news says that Emperor Xi does not mind people watching.��


    ��Tribulation of Gods.�� Zong Chan��s eyes showed a tinge of shock. Emperor Xi was a legendary figure in the Donghua Domain. He had a perfect Great Path, and his cultivation was at the pinnacle of the Renhuang level. He already stood at the top of the Donghua Domain.


    Now, was he going to experience the three tribulations?


    The three tribulations were the Tribulations of Gods. Since the collapse of the Heavenly Path, a perfect Great Path was no longer tolerated by the order of the current world. If anyone wanted to step onto the Heavenly Path, they had to survive three tribulations.


    In the entire Divine Prefecture, there were very few people of such caliber.


    Once Emperor Xi managed to survive the first tribulation, he would likely become the most powerful existence in the entire Donghua Domain.


    When Li Changsheng said that they might also experience it in the future, he meant that if they continued to preserve the perfection of their Great Paths when they stepped onto the pinnacle of the Renhuang level, they would have to survive three tribulations in order to step into the Heavenly Path.


    Ye Futian had understood cultivation to far great extent now, and naturally also knew of the three tribulations. In his memory, anyone who survived all three tribulations was a legendary figure of the Divine Prefecture. Anyone who survived three tribulations was a living god.


    Thus, apart from these living gods, in this world, there were only those who have survived the first and second tribulation. One could imagine just what sort of existence they were.


    1


    It was no wonder that even someone like Zong Chan was moved by this.


    ��It seems like the Turtle Deity Island was going to shock the Donghua Domain,�� Zongchan muttered softly.


    ��Definitely. An event as grand as this rarely happens even in a thousand years. I wonder how many of the top practitioners would attend this event. This might be an event that occurs once every millennium in the entire Donghua Domain. Those who stand at the pinnacle of the cultivation world will definitely go witness his tribulation,�� Li Changsheng smiled and said. Who would miss anyone overcoming three tribulations?


    Even the Domain Chief would attend this event.


    ��Who is this Emperor Xi?�� Ye Futian asked curiously. Since when did the Donghua Domain have such a powerful figure?


    ��Emperor Xi had cultivated for years and had already stepped into the pinnacle of the Renhuang level a long time ago. He had been cultivating on the Turtle Deity Island in the Divine Ocean Continent. The reason why this continent is named the Divine Ocean Continent is that apart from the land surrounding the continent tile, the space surrounding the continent tiles is almost all sea. There are countless islands in the Divine Ocean, and the Turtle Deity Island is the most ancient among them. According to what I know, even before I was born, Emperor Xi was already Emperor Xi now, the pinnacle of Renhuangs, and had already been cultivating on the Turtle Deity Island,�� Li Changsheng said. He himself had cultivated for numerous years, so one could imagine just how long Emperor Xi had been famous.


    Ye Futian nodded. It seemed like Emperor Xi was a top virtuoso who had been cultivating for a long time.


    Now, he was finally going to experience three tribulations.


    ��Is the tribulation this time going to be dangerous?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Mmm, when a practitioner steps into the Saint Plane, he will have to overcome the Tribulation of Saints; he will abandon his human body and soul and enter the Saint Plane as a superhuman being. As for the three tribulations, the practitioner will be leaving his saint body and soul in preparation for stepping into the God Level. The three tribulations are extremely dangerous; they are far more lethal than the Tribulations of Saints. He could be vanquished by the order of the Great Path if he were just a little careless,�� Li Changsheng said.


    Ye Futian was a little shocked. He did not expect that stepping into the God Level would involve great danger. No wonder there were so few people in the entire world who were at the God Level.


    The collapse of the Heavenly Path had created a barrier to all practitioners trying to enter the Path.


    ��I initially intended for you to cultivate in the Wangshen Watchtower for some time; however, witnessing Emperor Xi overcoming tribulations is also a very rare opportunity; you will get to witness this only once every millennium, so I hope you won��t miss it and come along,�� said the Millet Emperor.


    ��Understood.�� Ye Futian nodded. He would certainly not want to miss an opportunity like this.


    Like what the Millet Emperor said, opportunities like these came only once every thousand years.


    Furthermore, he would also get to see the virtuosos from various places in the Donghua Domain. This time, there might be many powerful figures gathering at the Turtle Deity Island to witness the tribulation.


    ��This time, we might also meet people from the Manor of the Domain Chief. If we encounter them, we can try to make an acquaintance with them and prepare you for joining them in the future,�� the Millet Emperor said again. He was already helping Ye Futian plan for his future.


    Ye Futian nodded lightly. Was he going to join the Manor of the Domain Chief?


    If he did join the Manor of the Donghua Domain Chief, he would face significantly less danger in the future!

 Chapter 1988 - The Divine Ocean Continent

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Divine Prefecture had countless continents. As one of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture, the Donghua Domain similarly consisted of many continents.


    The Divine Ocean Continent was one of the more unique continents. This continent was not large and was not one of the main continents. It could only be considered medium-sized. It usually did not have a strong sense of presence, so not many people from the Donghua Domain knew about it.


    On Turtle Deity Island in the Divine Ocean Continent, there lived a pinnacle existence, Emperor Xi.


    Now, news from Turtle Deity Island spread, claiming that Emperor Xi would face three tribulations. This news spread rapidly, first in the Divine Ocean Continent and then to various other continents until it reached the Donghua Domain.


    In an instant, the Divine Ocean Continent, which usually did not garner the attention of the masses, became the focus of the entire Donghua Domain.


    Right now, in the skies above the Divine Ocean Continent, people were constantly traversing. Cultivators from various continents had rushed over. It was not just top forces like the Wangshen Watchtower; cultivators from many surrounding continents also came. Who did not want to witness such a rare occasion?


    These were divine tribulations, the stuff of legends. Very few people had witnessed one before. Yet alone the continents around the area, even among the continents in the entire Divine Prefecture, it was a rare sight.


    Now, such an opportunity had appeared in the Divine Ocean Continent. To witness Emperor Xi facing a divine tribulation, even though it was just the first tribulation, was still enough to attract the attention of the world.


    Right now, a group of cultivators descended from the sky. It was as though they had appeared immediately from beyond the horizon. This caused many people around to look over in their direction. The people around wondered which continent these figures of top forces had arrived from. Such speed could not be detected by eyes or will.


    The people who had come were Millet Emperor and the other members of the Wangshen Watchtower. They brought along cultivators from the Watchtower as well as Ye Futian��s group.


    ��We have arrived,�� Millet Emperor announced as he stood there. Ye Futian looked down below. As expected, there was a vast ocean beneath them. In the Divine Ocean, there were many islands. However, the islands were covered with buildings, as though they were island cities. They appeared somewhat similar to the city of Qingzhou in Donghai, where Ye Futian grew up.


    Of course, Donghai was far from being comparable to the Divine Ocean.


    Ye Futian��s current cultivation Plane was far superior when compared to his cultivation Plane when he was a youth. Thus, the two places felt oddly similar to him. After all, his vision and will could cover a huge area. Although the distance between the island cities was vast, his vision could still span the island cities.


    He is so fast, Ye Futian thought to himself as he glanced at Millet Emperor. The speed of a top cultivator was too frightening. Ye Futian felt as though they had transcended time and space while they were traversing in the sky. From the Dongxiao Continent to the Divine Ocean Continent, they had traversed over countless continents in between these two points. However, Ye Futian felt as though they had not taken very long to get here. This was the speed of a giant figure.


    ��We still do not know when the Hour of Reckoning will be. All of you can explore the Divine Ocean Continent on your own. When the Day of Reckoning comes, head straight for Turtle Deity Island,�� Millet Emperor explained to them. The crowd nodded in acknowledgment. Millet Emperor then took a step forward, and his figure immediately disappeared without a trace. He went off on his own to find a place to cultivate.


    Although the news had come from Turtle Deity Island, the Day of Reckoning had yet to be determined. They had arrived early as they did not want to miss it. Under such circumstances, they could not go to Turtle Deity Island and disturb the people there. As of now, outside of Turtle Deity Island, many cultivators had already gathered.


    ��I plan to head over to a place near Turtle Deity Island to cultivate. What do you all plan to do?�� Li Changsheng asked with a smile.


    ��I will go to Turtle Deity Island,�� Zong Chan replied. The members of the Wangshen Watchtower each had their own plans in mind.


    ��I will go and take a look around the area,�� Ye Futian responded with a smile.


    ��Alright, then we will part ways for now. See you all again on Turtle Deity Island,�� Li Changsheng replied with a laugh. The cultivators then dispersed and went about their own business.


    However, Ye Futian��s group remained. Aside from Ye Futian, Goddess Donglai and Alchemy Emperor had also come. Xia Qingyuan, Zi Feng, and the others were also with them.


    Goddess Donglai did not leave, instead choosing to follow Ye Futian. She did not plan to go her own way.


    The incident on Turtle Deity Island caused quite a stir. Members from various forces had all come. The cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would certainly arrive and the members of other forces. The person with the highest cultivation around Ye Futian was Beigong Ao. She did not feel secure about this.


    ��Let��s go,�� said Ye Futian as his figure advanced. They traversed through the sky and passed over island cities. The sound of huge waves could be heard constantly from the Divine Ocean below. The ocean breeze swept against Ye Futian��s body, causing his white robes to flutter and his silver hair to dance in the wind.


    Ye Futian missed this sensation. Many images surfaced in his mind of the times he spent with his teacher Hua Fengliu and Jieyu when they traveled across Donghai.


    He did not know how they were now. He had been in the Divine Prefecture for some years now. Were they alright in the Original Realm?


    People kept traversing in the sky above the Divine Ocean. Many people passed by beside Ye Futian��s group. However, most cultivators would mind their own business. This time, cultivators had come from all over. No one knew each other��s backgrounds, so they would not easily go looking for trouble.


    Right then, not far above from where Ye Futian��s group was, another group of cultivators was traveling at extremely high speeds. One of their members swept a glance at Ye Futian��s group, and then a voice called out, saying, ��It is a demonic phoenix.��


    The person who had spoken had a sinister look in his eyes. He swept a glance over at Zi Feng, revealing a look of interest. He could tell at a glance that Zi Feng��s true form was the divine bird, the phoenix.


    Seemingly sensing the other party��s gaze, Zi Feng��s eyes lit up with frightening flames of the Great Path. The aura of the Great Path seemed to radiate from within her pupils. Flames of the Great Path invaded the eyes of the other party.


    However, a strange light flashed past in those sinister eyes. He allowed Zi Feng��s will to invade his own. With a sparkle in his eyes, he seemed to have sensed something. He then laughed and said, ��What an incredible phoenix. Such a pity. It would have been better if she did not already have a master.��


    As he said this, he glanced over Ye Futian and the others. This demonic beast was following this group of people. She must already have a master.


    If she was a masterless phoenix, he could tame her.


    ��Keep moving. Don��t dawdle,�� reminded someone beside him. The other party nodded his head. Their group advanced even faster, disappearing from the view of Ye Futian��s group in an instant.


    Ye Futian frowned slightly. Although the other party had not done anything that was overstepping boundaries, his tone had clearly been frivolous.


    ��They have top figures among them. They should be a top-level overlord force,�� Goddess Donglai said softly. When Ye Futian heard her say this, he was rendered speechless. He never imagined that a group of people they happened to encounter in the sky above the Divine Ocean Continent was a superpower level force.


    ��Can you tell which force they are from?�� Zi Feng asked. She was clearly unhappy. She was very dissatisfied with the look in the other party��s eyes and their attitude.


    ��Zi Feng, they have not done anything. Don��t go looking for trouble,�� said Goddess Donglai gently. Although they were under the protection of the Millet Emperor, it would still be best for them not to offend superpowers so as to not make enemies for him.


    Zi Feng nodded her head. Although she was not pleased about it, she did not pursue the matter.

 Chapter 1989 - Story

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Some people were using boats to traverse the Divine Ocean.


    Many boats were floating on the Divine Ocean. On one of the boats, Ye Futian was lying down quietly. Xia Qingyuan sat behind him, and Black Wind Condor was looking all around beside him.


    On the other boats behind them were the other cultivators. Goddess Donglai, Zi Feng as well as Bai Mu were together. Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang were on the same boat. They all rode boats as they followed behind Ye Futian.


    ��It is rare for us to have such a cozy time,�� commented Beigong Ao as he admired the scenery in the distance. The sky merged with the horizon. The shadows of ancient buildings could faintly be seen in the sky. They seemed to be mirages.


    ��Just take a rest,�� said Ye Futian in front with a smile. His hands were behind his head, and he was very relaxed. It was indeed rare for them to have such a moment.


    For many years, he had always been cultivating. He had never stopped and did not dare to slack.


    There was not much meaning for them to find a place to cultivate on this journey in the Divine Ocean Continent. They might as well take this opportunity to relax and forget about cultivating for a while. It felt very nice wandering around on the boundless Divine Ocean, going wherever the wind brought them.


    When they lifted their heads, they could occasionally see people passing over them in the sky above. For them to be able to see people passing over them on the vast ocean from time to time, one could imagine how many people had come to the Divine Ocean Continent and were heading to Turtle Deity Island.


    ��I wonder what it will look like when I break through the next Plane and face a tribulation,�� Ye Futian mumbled to himself. He believed that one day, he would face a divine tribulation.


    ��If that day comes for you, the Divine Prefecture might be shocked, and the whole world might come to celebrate it,�� a gentle voice said beside Ye Futian. Ye Futian raised his head slightly and saw a beautiful face enter his field of view. Xia Qingyuan lowered her head and looked at him. Ye Futian��s words made her look forward to such a day.


    If he were to face a divine tribulation in the future, what a sight would that be like?


    ��Or I might make the whole world my enemy, and the members of the Divine Prefecture will all come to kill me,�� Ye Futian said. He did not know what the future would be like. As his cultivation improved, he should get closer to revealing the secrets of his life. He did not know how the Divine Prefecture would react once it was revealed. Would they celebrate, or would they come to kill him?


    ��That won��t happen,�� said Xia Qingyuan seriously as she looked him in his eyes.


    ��Who knows?�� said Ye Futian with a smile. No one could predict what his future path would be like. He could only walk it one step at a time.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him. She knew that Ye Futian always kept secrets about him that he himself was not sure of.


    ��Even if all of creation were to become your enemy, I would still be by your side,�� whispered Xia Qingyuan. She did not look at Ye Futian. She was staring far off into the distance. Would such a day come?


    Ye Futian looked at her beautiful face and revealed a gentle smile. This world had treated him well.


    Although he had encountered many dangers on his journey of cultivation and had made many enemies, he also had many people close to him as well as seniors who remained standing on his side, supporting him up until now.


    The sound of waves constantly beating against the boat kept sounding. The boat floated along with the waves. A light shroud surrounded the little boat and prevented the ocean water from entering the boat. They seemed to float along the currents without any direction, not knowing where they would end up.


    Ye Futian took a nap. It had been a long while since he had slept. Cultivators absorbed the Spiritual Qi from all creation. They did not need to eat or sleep, especially once they became Saints. Hence, Ye Futian rarely slept at all.


    Only when he heard sounds did Ye Futian wake up from his nap on the boat. He opened his eyes. His gaze was somewhat lax. He looked up and saw that Xia Qingyuan was still sitting there with her head lowered as she looked at him.


    Seeing Ye Futian opening his eyes, she shifted her gaze. She had an embarrassed look on her face, as though she had been discovered peeping.


    With a smile, Ye Futian asked, ��What is that sound?��


    ��We have reached the coast. It seems to be a training ground. There are quite a number of people up ahead,�� said Xia Qingyuan softly as she lowered her head and looked at him.


    Ye Futian sat up and looked ahead. On the coast nearby, many cultivators were gathered. There seemed to be patterns carved on the cliff by the ocean. Many people were standing on the reef by the coast and looking at the cliff face.


    Ye Futian��s will swept out. He saw that the patterns were drawings of a human figure. The figure was practicing ax techniques. When his will invaded the drawings, the figure seemed to move. It contained an extremely powerful aura of the Great Path of Thunder, causing the might of the Great Path of Thunder to emanate from the cliff face.


    ��Hmm?�� uttered Ye Futian as he revealed a strange expression. He actually discovered that the drawing was extraordinary. The ax technique was very powerful. When his will invaded the drawing, he witnessed an extremely frightening scene.


    Could it be that there was a fateful encounter of the Great Path located here?


    If that was so, Ye Futian��s luck was quite good.


    ��It is not just this cliff face. Take a look around,�� said Beigong Ao with a bizarre expression. His gaze shifted across the entire cliff face along the coast. He discovered that aside from this complete drawing, the surrounding cliffs were covered in markings. The marks extended very far. It was as though the entire coast was carved with these marks.


    ��Hmm, this drawing was carved after the person completed his training. The person must have had an epiphany,�� commented Ye Futian with a nod after he glanced at the marks on the cliff. They continued riding their boats as they moved on. Occasionally, some people would pass by and land when they saw this scene.


    On a huge boulder on the reef, there was a young couple. Their cultivation was not very high. They were still at the Sage Plane.


    ��May I ask what this place is?�� Beigong Ao asked the two of them when Ye Futian��s group passed by them.


    The two of them glanced over at Beigong Ao and the others. They immediately understood that Ye Futian��s group might be powerful cultivators from abroad. The youth bowed slightly and said, ��This place was the training ground of Thunder Punishing Skylord.��


    ��Thunder Punishing Skylord?�� exclaimed Beigong Ao with a surprised look. It seemed that it was another incredible figure.


    ��Hmm,�� the youth nodded. ��Back when Thunder Punishing Skylord was at the upper-level Renhuang Plane, he headed to Turtle Deity Island to seek teachings. He found Emperor Xi. However, Emperor Xi did not teach him, instead asking him to find a place to carve his Way. Emperor Xi told him to forget everything and to stop cultivating the Great Path of All Things. Thunder Punishing Skylord came here and carved his Way into the cliff face for 30 years before he managed to reach enlightenment.��


    The youth continued, ��After Thunder Punishing Skylord broke through to the next Plane, he headed over to Turtle Deity Island to ask Emperor Xi to accept him as a pupil. Emperor Xi did not see him, claiming that it was his own fateful encounter and was unrelated to Emperor Xi. However, Thunder Punishing Skylord always considered himself a pupil of Emperor Xi. This place was his previous training ground and has not been erased. Rumor has it that within the cliff, there is a treasure that he left behind. However, it is just a rumor. I do not know whether it is actually true.��


    ��Impressive,�� exclaimed Beigong Ao with respect. Both Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord were awe-inspiring.


    Both of them were extraordinary figures. Emperor Xi gave pointers without asking for anything in return. Thunder Punishing Skylord also recognized Emperor Xi as his teacher. Even though he had already reached enlightenment, he still treated Emperor Xi as his teacher. He also did not erase everything he had carved here, leaving it behind for the generations to come. It might be that he was touched by Emperor Xi��s guidance and hoped that these markings would be beneficial for other cultivators.


    Ye Futian was also secretly impressed. This time, when Emperor Xi faced his tribulation, Thunder Punishing Skylord might also be there.


    Ye Futian never imagined that such a giant figure would have such a story to him. It was amazing!

 Chapter 1990 - Cliff Face

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Seniors, have all of you arrived from other continents?�� the youth asked as he smiled at Ye Futian��s group.


    ��Hmm,�� replied Beigong Ao as he nodded his head. ��We heard about the news from Turtle Deity Island and have come here from distant lands.��


    ��My name is Lin Yuan. This here is my Path Companion, L�� Qing,�� said the youth. ��After the news regarding Turtle Deity Island got out, cultivators from various continents have come to the Divine Ocean Continent. This place is somewhat famous in the Divine Ocean Continent. However, it is not very well-known outside since there are many ruins in the Divine Prefecture. Recently, there have been many visitors, like yourselves, who have stopped to take a look when they come across this place.��


    ��Across the years, has no one managed to comprehend the Way carved into the cliff face?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��I do not know. Each person might be able to comprehend bits and pieces,�� Lin Yuan replied. ��However, rumor has it that the drawings are scattered. Back then, Thunder Punishing Skylord carved 30 years worth of his insights here. This ax technique is rumored to have come into being when his Way was complete. Different cultivators will have their own understanding of it. As for whether or not anyone has completely comprehended the entire set, we won��t be able to know.��


    ��I see,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head.


    ��Seniors, your temperaments are extraordinary. You must be from top forces of other continents, right?�� Lin Yuan asked. Ye Futian looked at him and saw a faint look of anticipation in Lin Yuan��s eyes.


    ��I guess you could say that,�� answered Ye Futian as he nodded with a smile.


    ��May I move alongside all of you? I am willing to act as your guide,�� Lin Yuan asked as he bowed slightly.


    When Ye Futian heard him say this, he turned to look at Lin Yuan. With a smile, Ye Futian pointed out, ��You want to attend the ceremony on Turtle Deity Island, don��t you?��


    The couple did not have powerful cultivation. For top figures, the Divine Ocean Continent was not considered large. However, for Sages, it was still massive. With their cultivation Planes, they would also most likely be unqualified to step onto Turtle Deity Island.


    However, they did not want to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Now that they had encountered Ye Futian��s group and Lin Yuan saw that Ye Futian had an extraordinary temperament and was well-mannered, he took his chance. He wanted to pay a visit to Turtle Deity Island.


    Although Lin Yuan was very far from reaching the next Plane, this might be the only chance in his life for him to have the opportunity to witness a top figure face a divine tribulation. If he missed it this time, he might not get another chance in this lifetime.


    When Ye Futian saw the hopeful look in the other party��s eyes, he smiled and said, ��Let��s try our luck. If I can comprehend the Way of the Great Path from the cliff face, I will bring you along with us. If I am unable to do so, then we will not bring you with us.��


    When Lin Yuan heard Ye Futian say this, a look of disappointment flashed past in his eyes. Although Ye Futian��s group might be a top force from other continents, Thunder Punishing Skylord had been the one who carved the Way into the cliff face. Many prominent figures in the Divine Ocean Continent had come here before. Although they each had their own snippets of understanding, no one dared to claim that they had completely comprehended the Way of the Great Path on the cliff face.


    Even though Ye Futian had an extraordinary temperament, there was still little chance of him succeeding.


    His disappointment was gone in a flash. Lin Yuan smiled and said, ��Senior, you will certainly be able to do so.��


    Ye Futian smiled. Lin Yuan got up from where he was sitting on the reef and said, ��Senior, please sit.��


    As he said this, he stepped away from the reef. Ye Futian did not hesitate and walked up to Lin Yuan��s spot. Ye Futian glanced at the cliff face before him. In front of him, many people stood, comprehending the cliff face from different locations.


    ��You really want to go to Turtle Deity Island, don��t you?�� L�� Qing asked Lin Yuan over thought transmission as she looked at him.


    ��Hmm,�� Lin Yuan replied as he nodded his head. ��This is a chance that comes once every thousand years. Even if I cannot make it in, I want to watch from the outside. Facing a divine tribulation might shake the entire Turtle Deity Island and might also be visible from the outside.��


    L�� Qing said, ��Our cultivation is not bad. However, just as you said, this is an occasion that comes once every thousand years. These past few days, cultivators have been passing over us every day. All the top figures of the entire Donghua Domain will be coming. With our cultivation, we have no standing. If the disturbances during the divine tribulation are too great, or there are other accidents, our abilities will most likely be of no help.�� It seemed as though she did not want to go.


    Facing the top figures of the Donghua Domain who had gathered made her feel pressured. This was also a divine tribulation, which might cause a huge disturbance. It was a rare event in a thousand years. A slight mishap would be catastrophic. When that happened, their measly cultivation would not be sufficient to cope.


    Hence, L�� Qing was slightly conservative. She was afraid of the potential dangers. She felt that such an occasion would not end peacefully. If they were to follow Ye Futian��s group to the island, the risk would be even greater.


    Lin Yuan countered, ��Back then, Thunder Punishing Skylord carved his Way here for thirty years when he sought his Way. In the end, he succeeded in earning the title ��Skylord.�� With my current cultivation Plane, what right do I have not to pursue my Way and expand my horizons? By observing the divine tribulation, even if we can only comprehend very little of it, its significance for us will be extraordinary.��


    Lin Yuan held L�� Qing��s hands as he spoke. L�� Qing nodded her head slightly. This time, she would follow him and see this world��s strongest tribulation.


    Ye Futian looked at the cliff face. His gaze became extremely bizarre. A fascinating beauty emanated from his figure. He looked at the patterns that seemed like runes. They resembled a person training with a war ax.


    At that moment, in his mind, it was as though these people were moving, swinging the war ax around.


    ��Incredible,�� Ye Futian praised when he sensed the will of the war ax. This war ax was mighty.


    However, this did not seem difficult. He could clearly sense the might of the Great Path within these drawings and could comprehend them very easily.


    Next, Ye Futian turned towards the second drawing. It was slightly different from the previous one, yet also very similar. Both were awe-inspiring ax techniques.


    Ye Futian quietly stood there and comprehended the techniques. Beside him, Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang were also looking at the cliff face and comprehending the techniques. Just as Lin Yuan had said, each person would have a different understanding of the drawings.


    Behind them, Lin Yuan watched them silently. Although he did not have high hopes for them to succeed, he still waited there quietly. He could also cultivate while waiting for them.


    In the Divine Ocean, before the cliff face, many people were discussing frantically, debating about the Way on the cliff face.


    At that moment, more people descended from the sky and landed before the cliff face. This group of people similarly were beyond average. Each person had an extraordinary temperament.


    ��This was left behind after Thunder Punishing Skylord comprehended his Way back then. Rumor has it that there is a treasure left behind by him in the cliff face. Whoever can master the technique will be able to obtain this treasure,�� said a youth right then as he looked at a woman beside him.


    This woman had an outstanding appearance. She had an otherworldly air to her, as though she was a goddess. This caused many people to steal glances at her. However, they soon shifted their gazes away, not daring to stare too long.


    At a glance, one could tell that these two groups of people who had arrived were not from ordinary backgrounds. Everyone was aware of the current situation in the Divine Ocean Continent. Cultivators had gathered in droves. Many of them could not be offended. Hence, everyone would try to keep a low profile.


    The people who arrived were most likely cultivators from top forces from outside the Divine Ocean Continent. No one would dare act rudely towards them.


    ��The technique is very powerful,�� said the woman as she glanced at the cliff face. It was as though she could tell at a glance and could not help but give praise.


    ��I have seen Thunder Punishing Skylord before. Back then, he visited our manor as a guest. Senior Thunder Punishing Skylord is an outstanding figure. The techniques he left behind would naturally be extremely powerful,�� stated the youth as he smiled slightly. Immediately, many people cast sideways glances at him.


    His words implied many things. Thunder Punishing Skylord had previously visited his manor as a guest? What did this mean?


    That meant that the clan, which this youth was from, had an existence at the same level as Thunder Punishing Skylord. Only then would they be qualified for Thunder Punishing Skylord to visit them. Without a doubt, this youth was from a superpower.


    The woman was not surprised. She clearly knew that the youth��s clan had the means to do so. They were indeed from a superpower. They were from the Donghua Heavens!

 Chapter 1991 - Dispute

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Donghua Heavens was the main continent of the Donghua Domain. It was situated in the center of the Donghua Domain. People did not like to refer to it as the Donghua Continent, instead calling it ��Donghua Heavens.��


    The Manor of the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain was also in the Donghua Heavens. As the main continent, the overall ability of the cultivators of the Donghua Heavens was definitely the strongest in the entire Domain. They had countless cultivators.


    The occasion on Turtle Deity Island had stirred up the Donghua Domain. The cultivators of Donghua Heavens were similarly drawn to this place.


    When Ye Futian heard that the other party had actually seen Thunder Punishing Skylord before, he could not help but glance over. Yet, Ye Futian was not too surprised about this. He had seen Princess Donghuang three times and had also encountered Emperor Ye Qing before. How many people could claim having done the same?


    The youth��s words could scare some people, but Ye Futian was unfazed. He shifted his gaze back to the cliff face and continued to cultivate in peace.


    After the various cultivators sized up the other party, they also began to train on their own. Now, cultivators were gathering in the Divine Ocean Continent. In reality, this had little to do with them. They were only here to witness the spectacle.


    Ye Futian comprehended the Way on the cliff face quietly. After a long while, he even closed his eyes. In his Life Palace, an illusory figure sat cross-legged. Purple light flooded the sky, and terrifying thunder clapped. He sat alone in his Mind Palace, seemingly surrounded by countless illusory figures. Each figure was showing a different pose. Their war axes cleaved out, causing the space to look like the apocolypse. Each will of the war ax was frightening beyond comparison.


    At that moment, Ye Futian seemed to transcend space and time. He traveled back into the past and personally witnessed Thunder Punishing Skylord cultivating his ax technique.


    All these scenes appeared in this space.


    Each ax swing contained extraordinary will and seemed very natural. They became one with the Great Path. Yet, Ye Futian could not completely comprehend it, no matter how he tried.


    ��Uncle Beigong, Little Shuang. Both of you should sense this,�� Ye Futian said. When the two of them heard him say this, they treated it seriously and quickly sat down. They knew how powerful Ye Futian��s comprehension was. Before this, on Eastern Deity Island, Ye Futian had helped them comprehend.


    They also cultivated the power of the Great Path of Thunder. Ye Futian could help them out effectively.


    Light radiated from Ye Futian��s glabella. It was as though scenes were directly transmitted into Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang��s minds, allowing the two of them to comprehend together with him.


    The two of them closed their eyes as they received the images sent over by Ye Futian. As expected, his comprehension was more in-depth than their own. It was clear as day. It was as though they had returned to the time when Thunder Punishing Skylord was cultivating.


    After a long while, Ye Futian stopped cultivating. The two of them continued comprehending on their own.


    Ye Futian glanced over at the drawings on the surrounding cliff faces. He looked at the markings. There seemed to be many ax marks that were one with the cliff face, as though they were carved by the simplest ax swing. These marks did not contain any will, only leaving behind marks. Many marks contained the will of the Great Path. All this seemed very erratic. Ye Futian could not make out the true meaning of Thunder Punishing Skylord carving these marks.


    Right then, the Renhuang from the Donghua Heavens said, ��Thunder Punishing Skylord comprehended his Way here for decades, carving these ax techniques into the cliff face. As expected, the ax techniques are extraordinary. Each ax swing can be its own form of attack. These attacks can be combined into one complete set of ax techniques naturally. However, wanting to comprehend this set of techniques does not seem easy.��


    The woman beside him looked ahead. However, she did not say anything. What she felt from the cliff face was not quite the same as what the other party sensed.


    At that moment, Beigong Shuang also opened her eyes and looked at the cliff face. Her beautiful eyes looked towards Ye Futian. She asked, ��Have you comprehended it?��


    ��Each ax technique can serve as its own attack. With enough time, I can comprehend all of them. However, I have yet to comprehend them as a whole,�� Ye Futian said as he shook his head. He could not make any heads or tails of it; he did not know how to merge them perfectly.


    ��Hmm,�� commented Beigong Shuang as she nodded. ��Could it be that there is no relation between them in the first place? Maybe each form of the ax technique was simply carved by Thunder Punishing Skylord without any real thought to it? It might not even be a complete set of war ax techniques?��


    When Ye Futian heard what Beigong Shuang said, a strange look flashed past through his eyes. If they did not try to make it one complete set, it was indeed explainable. However, had Thunder Punishing Skylord been simply carving when he left these drawings here?


    ��They do seem to be independent of each other. However, if that is the case, someone should have comprehended it already. Why is it that no one has managed to solve the secret of the cliff face?�� Ye Futian asked. ��Unless the rumors of the cliff face are false and that there are no secrets here�� This place was just the training grounds of Thunder Punishing Skylord.��


    Beigong Shuang also did not understand. She mumbled, ��However, I feel that each ax technique is independent. Is it because my cultivation is too low?��


    ��You might be correct,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. Beigong Shuang was a straightforward person. Such people would not read too deeply into situations and were not easily influenced by others. If she saw it that way, that was what she believed.


    She might be wrong and be unable to comprehend it because her cultivation was too low. Even so, that was her cultivation path.


    ��How true is the rumor that Thunder Punishing Skylord left a treasure in the cliff face?�� Ye Futian asked Lin Yuan, who was behind him.


    Lin Yuan was a cultivator from the Divine Ocean Continent. He should be more familiar with this.


    ��There are many rumors regarding this in the Divine Ocean. Over time, most people were willing to believe it was true,�� Lin Yuan replied with a smile. ��However, I am not too sure on whether or not it is true. It might be that what this senior female Renhuang said is true. Thunder Punishing Skylord might have simply carved all this when he was cultivating here and comprehending his Way for decades. It is hard to say.��


    ��She is wrong,�� a voice stated. Lin Yuan looked ahead. The person who had spoken was the Renhuang who claimed to have seen Thunder Punishing Skylord before. He stood before the cliff face with his back towards Ye Futian��s group. He said, ��Thunder Punishing Skylord left behind these drawings of ax techniques. They are a complete set. It is difficult to comprehend. Since you cannot comprehend it, don��t draw conclusions so easily. Based on my knowledge, the rumor that Thunder Punishing Skylord left behind a treasure here is true.��


    When the crowd heard him say this, they acknowledged his view. This person had an extraordinary temperament and very powerful cultivation. He had also seen Thunder Punishing Skylord before. What he said should be true.


    ��Senior, what you said is also reasonable. It might be the case,�� answered Lin Yuan. With his level of cultivation, he would not dispute the other party. He was not qualified to do so.


    ��Not just might. It is the case,�� the youth continued. Just a while ago, he had told the woman beside him this. These ax techniques were one complete set. However, Beigong Shuang and the others claimed it to be otherwise.


    ��Have you comprehended it?�� Beigong Shuang asked as he looked at the other party��s silhouette.


    ��How could the teachings of the Skylord be so easily comprehended?�� the other party replied.


    ��Since you have yet to comprehend it, how are you so certain that I am wrong?�� Beigong Shuang retorted. Her tone was very calm. She was not intentionally trying to argue with him. Since the other party had yet to comprehend it, there was still a possibility for her to be correct. She just found it strange that the other party had come to this conclusion.


    If the other party actually explained his reasoning, she would naturally accept it humbly.


    The other party turned his head around for the first time. He looked at Beigong Shuang and said with a smile, ��Thunder Punishing Skylord once had a treasure. However, after he broke through to the next Plane, he never used it again. The last time when he came to my manor, a senior of my clan brought this up with Thunder Punishing Skylord. Thunder Punishing Skylord claimed that after comprehending his Way for decades, he did not need it anymore. If so, where is that treasure now?��


    Beigong Shuang nodded her head. That meant to say that there was indeed the possibility that there was a treasure hidden here.


    ��Since no one has destroyed the cliff face, that means that it cannot be destroyed. How could these drawings simply be carved by Thunder Punishing Skylord?�� the other party continued his line of reasoning.


    Beigong Shuang nodded her head and said, ��What you say is not without reason, but still does not explain everything.��


    The other party was stunned. He gave Beigong Shuang a strange look. He thought that Beigong Shuang was intentionally arguing with him.


    ��With your level of cultivation, you are not yet qualified to discuss the Way with me. If I say you are wrong, you are wrong,�� he said indifferently. His tone also seemed colder. He glanced over at Ye Futian��s group. These people were probably from a large force. However, he was not too concerned.


    In the Donghua Domain, there were few forces whom he could not afford to offend.


    Beigong Shuang was stunned. She stopped talking and did not continue to argue with him. She seemed to understand the attitude of the other party. She also did not want to stir up trouble.


    Beigong Ao gave the other party an intense gaze. However, he also did not cause a scene. He had followed Ye Futian here; he naturally would not cause trouble for Ye Futian.


    ��Seniors, it is but a different understanding of the Way and a difference in opinions. Why must we get so worked up over it?�� Lin Yuan could not help but say when he saw the atmosphere turn somewhat awkward.


    The other party swept a glance at him. With just a glance, he seemed to penetrate Lin Yuan��s eyes, causing Lin Yuan to feel as though a terrifying power had descended upon him.

 Chapter 1992 - Startled Awakening

    Ye Futian was in front of Lin Yuan, and he, too, felt an invisible force. He turned his head to glance at Lin Yuan and saw that Lin Yuan was soaking wet. There was a look of pain on his face. Obviously, someone was exerting great pressure on him.


    Lin Yuan��s realm was too far below Renhuang, and spiritual coercion released by a powerful Renhuang was enough to crush his spirit.


    Because of something he said, the other party had actually released the coercion of the Great Path on Lin Yuan.


    Ye Futian frowned and turned back to look at the other man; however, the man had already withdrawn his breath, with a small smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. He glanced at Lin Yuan, and that small smile seemed to be mocking them, or rather, expressing his deep disdain.


    Although Lin Yuan was angry when he saw the look in the other man��s eyes, he remained silent. Indeed, his realm, in the eyes of the other man, was as insignificant as that of an insect; what right did he have to dialogue with him?


    That scornful look was the response to him.


    In reality, Lin Yuan had not said anything other than asking the other party not to take different views too seriously, nothing more.


    Seeing the other man turned around, Ye Futian was a little displeased. He could see that Beigong Shuang did not mean to provoke anyone intentionally. It was just her personality. Perhaps, because the other side had expressed their own analysis first�� So, when Beigong Shuang disagreed, it was regarded as critical or bellicose?


    Anyone with the cultivation of Renhuang Realm should be a lot more tolerant than this. Perhaps there were other reasons��


    Ye Futian saw the goddess-like cultivator next to him; perhaps it was because of her.


    He could tell that this young man wanted to get close to the woman.


    ��You are both right. These patterns and marks were carved impromptu by Thunder Punishing Skylord. Each mark on the pattern was independent of each other without any connections,�� Ye Futian suddenly said to Beigong Shuang and Lin Yuan.


    ��Elder���� Lin Yuan looked at Ye Futian. At the Sage level, his cultivation was not weak, depending on with whom he was compared. He had a feeling that Ye Futian deliberately said what he said because he was displeased with the other fellow��s attitude.


    The other man��s attitude was clearly enough; he was unhappy with their opposing view, so what happened just now was a warning.


    If Beigong Shuang was not in a confrontational mood before, then Ye Futian��s comment at this moment was definitely intentional and could start a dispute.


    Although Lin Yuan was angry, he didn��t want there to be an argument that both parties were no ordinary folks. He could see that Ye Futian and the other man were unusual characters from their extraordinary temperaments and realms. It would not be worth it if they got involved in some conflicts because of him.


    In the world of cultivation, many disputes were caused by minuscule matters, and these unimportant matters were not worth the price.


    Lin Yuan didn��t want to see that happening here.


    Ye Futian��s words stunned the young man who had already turned around, and he slowly turned back around again, his eyes landed squarely on Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian did not pay any attention to him. Instead, he said to Lin Yuan, ��I will take you to go with me to Turtle Deity Island.��


    Lin Yuan wasn��t overjoyed when he heard what Ye Futian said. He was actually a little worried about him. After all, the other person was from a principality that even Thunder Punishing Skylord would have to reckon with, which only demonstrated the extent of their power.


    Ye Futian��s attitude worried him a little.


    This kind of talk could easily intensify conflicts, and this trivial matter may become a fuse.


    ��Elder���� Lin Yuan wanted to say something but didn��t know quite how to say it.


    ��Then it��s decided.�� Ye Futian smiled and cut off whatever it was that Lin Yuan wanted to say.


    ��I have already said that she was wrong.�� At this moment, the young man spoke. Looking at Ye Futian, his eyes were sharp.


    Ye Futian turned his attention on the man. Things that happened before were just a small matte. Like Lin Yuan stated, different perceptions yielded different opinions, and each was entitled to their own opinions. That was all, and they need not interfere with one another.


    However, if the other insisted that they were in the wrong when Beigong Shuang had already made a concession, did the other party mistake their courtesy as weakness?


    ��She��s right,�� Ye Futian stared into the other person��s eyes and responded without fear. If they wanted to fight, he would gladly oblige.


    If Beigong Shuang was not qualified to be in discussion with him, was he qualified himself?


    ��Based on what?�� the other questioned.


    ��I think she is right, so she is right. What other reason do you need?�� Ye Futian��s voice was indifferent; his own opinions didn��t need to have a reason.


    The man suddenly smiled a little sarcastically.


    ��So, you think you understood the secret of the cliff?�� he sneered.


    ��And you think you have?�� Ye Futian retorted.


    ��No,�� the other responded readily.


    ��Since no one understands it to prove me wrong, then I am still right in what I think. Unless you can comprehend a set of ax techniques from it, what else can you use to question the opinions of others?�� Ye Futian asked, still refuting the other��s view.


    The Will of the Great Path pervaded from the other man, as he smiled at Ye Futian and said, ��Where are you from, and from which principality?��


    ��Does this have anything to do with cultivating on the cliff?�� Ye Futian replied with a question instead.


    The man stared at Ye Futian and said, ��No, it does not.��


    ��If not, then why did you ask?�� Ye Futian replied, just like how the other man had responded to Beigong Shuang and Lin Yuan before, with an unrelenting tone that was aggressive in nature.


    The coercion of the Great Path started to permeate from the other man, but his eyes always stayed on Ye Futian.


    ��What they said isn��t unreasonable. These marks may have nothing to do with each other. Before this is confirmed, it is better not to make rash conclusions.�� At this moment, the woman in front of them, who was looking at the cliff, spoke softly, startling the young man. Then he moved his sight away from Ye Futian back to the woman who spoke and said with a smile, ��That makes sense.��


    These were the same words spoken by a different person, and his attitude seemed completely different.


    ��Any definite conclusion is unreasonable in itself unless you already understood the secret of the cliff. Rather than arguing about it, it is better to confirm it in cultivation,�� the woman continued, as she turned her head to glance at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian met her eyes. As an empress, this woman possessed a noble temperament; her calm and beautiful eyes revealed a touch of confidence and pride.


    But Ye Futian merely smiled.


    ��Is something funny?�� the woman asked.


    ��No.�� Ye Futian responded, ��It��s just that I am not wrong. At least today, I am not wrong.��


    He may not be right, but he was definitely not wrong because even he could not make these connections and comprehend it, so none of the others could do it either.


    Since they couldn��t do it, it could not be proven, so naturally, he couldn��t be wrong.


    The woman took a serious look at him, and it was unclear if she really understood the meaning of Ye Futian��s words. She turned her eyes back at the cliff and continued to comprehend in earnest.


    After she spoke, that young Renhuang also quieted down. Just like her, he was quietly comprehending, wanting to prove something and confirm that he was right, after all.


    Since the other man did not persist, clearly Ye Futian would not deliberately antagonize him. Likewise, he looked at the cliff once again.


    Although he supported Beigong Shuang before, the truth was that he couldn��t decide either. Beigong Shuang��s analysis had a certain logic with which he agreed, but the other man��s words were not entirely unfounded.


    Thunder Punishing Skylord had gone to the other man��s residence, so he knew something about this. Judging from the previous conversation from the other man, in conjunction with certain rumors about Thunder Punishing Skylord, it was highly probable that treasures were hidden inside the cliff.


    So, what kind of connection was hidden within?


    When his thought turned to this, Ye Futian quieted down to comprehend. After a while, he closed his eyes and was immersed in comprehension once more.


    Inside his Life Palace, patterns appeared again, and he seemed to be observing the former Thunder Punishing Skylord engrave the Way.


    This time, he watched for a long time. Those ax techniques were like beams of light that kept echoing in his mind, but still, they were the same as before, each independent of the other. Though they could be linked to each other, it seemed forced and unnatural.


    After a long while, the ax techniques in Ye Futian��s mind continued to appear, like pictures, jumping back and forth. Each technique was very powerful in itself, but still, he could find no connection between them.


    What was the mystery of this cliff?


    He opened his eyes and saw Beigong Shuang walking in front of the cliff, observing the cliff at close range. Sometimes she even reached out to touch it.


    ��How come you are so serious?�� Ye Futian asked her.


    ��Strange,�� Beigong Shuang murmured while turned to walk back next to Ye Futian. As if she was thinking, she raised her head to look at Ye Futian and asked, ��Why are those marks without Will of the Way hidden in them, seemed to be deeper than those ax marks that contained Will of the Way? And their artistic conception was stronger also.��


    Ye Futian suddenly raised his head to look at the cliff, and the countless marks on the cliff were imprinted into his mind in a flash. They now appeared inside his mind.


    In his mind, a flash of lightning sailed across, as if he had caught something in the depth of his memory, and there was a touch of excitement in his eyes.


    Yes, the ax marks that didn��t contain Will of the Way were deeper than those that contained Will of the Way. What did this mean?


    He thought of the rumors about Thunder Punishing Skylord, which Emperor Xi had him engrave the Way for decades. Eventually, he was enlightened and transcended.


    How did he do it?


    When Ye Futian looked up at the pattern again, his mentality was quite different. He was very certain that this engraved pattern and each mark on it existed separately, and they had no relationship with each other.


    His random guess turned out to be correct!

 Chapter 1993 - Decoded

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Return to innocence,�� Ye Futian said to himself as he looked at the cliff. This was the transcendence of the Way, and he was the representation of the Way.


    Thunder Punishing Skylord had engraved the Way for decades before he took that step and transformed.


    Ye Futian had come into contact with many impressive top figures in the past, which was why he could more or less perceive the realm of Thunder Punishing Skylord. The engravings that he carved on the cliff were not a complete set of ax techniques but was a record of the transformation of his realm, the process of his transcendence.


    ��Shuang, you were right,�� Ye Futian said. ��Back then when the Thunder Punishing Skylord enlightened the Way and beyond, everything that was engraved here denoted his process of enlightenment. Although not meant to be a complete set of ax techniques, each technique was independent of the other. Therefore, after his enlightenment, Thunder Punishing Skylord no longer needed the treasure. Even top-level divine item no longer meant anything to him.��


    Beigong Shuang regarded him with her beautiful eyes and asked, ��Did you comprehend it?��


    This dude, did he get it again? Her impression of Ye Futian was that he had a great ability to comprehend. It seemed as if there was nothing that he couldn��t understand.


    ��Not yet, but I already know the key to it. It was you who inspired me,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. His words attracted the attention of many, and while they all looked surprised, they were skeptical.


    Did he get it?


    But why was it that they didn��t quite believe it?


    In front, the young man from the previous encounter frowned, but before he could speak, the woman next to him turned around to look at Ye Futian. She asked, ��What did you comprehend?��


    Actually, this woman had similar thoughts as Ye Futian and Beigong Shuang. The more she steeped herself in it, the stronger her conviction became. Everything on the cliff was independent with no relation to one another. The young man next to her might have had it all wrong.


    However, she didn��t say anything, just allowing the possibility that someone else could find the answer.


    The reason she turned around and asked him was because Ye Futian had declared that he knew the key to it all.


    ��I comprehended the mentality of Thunder Punishing Skylord when he was cultivating here,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Is that so?�� The young man glanced at him coldly and said, ��I would like to see that with my own eyes.��


    Ye Futian smiled and said nothing. He continued to look at the cliff wall, starting from the first mark on the pattern, and comprehending from the beginning. This mark seemed to have been imprinted extremely clearly in his mind.


    ��In that case, watch closely,�� Ye Futian said. And a very bright divine light from his eyes directly shined upon the mark on the cliff. In that instant, there seemed to be an elusive figure that landed inside the mark and turned into an avatar of Ye Futian. The avatar moved as the mark also move. It was as if it was now alive.


    Buzz!


    A brilliant glow burst out, and from the cliff, a small figure seemed to appear, as if the Thunder Punishing Skylord himself had returned, waving an ax. Everyone could feel its power and speed, which forced many in front of the cliff to step back as if they were frightened.


    But after they had retreated, they found that there was no real damage. The illusion was not real, but it was real enough to trick them into believing that it was.


    ��This���� Those around all turned their heads to look at Ye Futian with quite a shock. No one had been able to do the same as he had just done, urging the mark to release itself to the outside world so that all may perceive it.


    Could it be that he had truly comprehended it?


    The woman also had a look of surprise on her face as she gave Ye Futian a serious assessing look.


    The young man next to her had a terrible look on his face. Ye Futian did show him clearly what he could accomplish.


    If Ye Futian had really done it, then it would be a slap in the face for him. Previously, he was extremely high-handed when he announced that Beigong Shuang was flat-out wrong and that she was not worthy of arguing with him.


    After that, Ye Futian intervened.


    If Ye Futian confirmed that he was wrong today, then his shame would be unimaginable.


    It was just that apart from believing in his own judgment, he didn��t think that Ye Futian could solve the secret of the cliff. Like Ye Futian, he believed that if he couldn��t solve the riddle, then no one else could either and that no one else would be able to decode this mystery.


    Because of this self-confidence, he had left himself no room for doubts.


    But it seemed that he was wrong after all. The other man was far more powerful than he initially thought.


    Ye Futian didn��t care about their looks, nor did he pay any attention to these people. He concentrated on the front, and soon, the light of the second mark lit up. This sight made Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang feel as if they were back on Eastern Deity Island.


    It was the same as before. Only he and he alone could unlock the relic left by those figures of the past.


    Was there any relic that could baffle him?


    Beigong Shuang and Beigong Ao couldn��t help but ask themselves, ��This guy is a relic terminator. It��s like there��s nothing he can��t decode.��


    As the rays of light lit up, the brilliance released by the pattern on the cliff wall became stronger. Many people saw many phantom shadows dancing, waving their battle-axes, and a terrifying conception bloomed from them. The cultivators around it had all felt the conception and didn��t want to miss such an opportunity.


    ��Looks like he was right,�� the woman murmured. The marks on the cliff lit up. Everyone could clearly feel the conception. They felt those marks as when Thunder Punishing Skylord had engraved them there in the days of yore, swinging his battle-ax at his pleasure. There was no connection between each mark, and they did not converge into a set of ax techniques.


    This meant that Ye Futian was right.


    The young man next to her became even more embarrassed when he heard her words. An elder behind him said, ��Or these chaotic ax techniques are a system themselves. They could be considered a complete set of ax techniques.��


    Although this was not completely unreasonable, it did seem a bit far-fetched, all to save face for the young man.


    The woman understood it quite well, so she only nodded gently and said, ��Perhaps it is so.��


    As they were talking, brilliant bright lights shot out from the cliff wall, and a rumbling sound accompanied with it. As the light spread from the pattern toward the cliff wall next to this one, more and more marks lit up. Gradually, the cliffs in front of the coast were trembling violently, as the light of those marks started to make cracks on the cliffs, and each crack seemed to have been split by a battle-ax.


    With the strength of the Thunder Punishing Skylord back then, these cliffs could not have born the Way he engraved here. Perhaps they were already full of fissures and cracks, sealed with the Great Path by the Thunder Punishing Skylord. Maybe these marks were the key to unlocked the mystery. This was probably why no one had been able to break it by force all these years.


    ��It��s about to break,�� many whispered as the bright light burst out, stinging their eyes. Those cracks tore open the cliff wall, and in an instant, everything in front of them disappeared and turned into dust.


    Those who beheld the sight were quite emotional inside. After so many years, someone had actually decoded it.


    This, too, confirmed what Ye Futian had said��he was right.


    On the contrary, it was the young man who was wrong. He had claimed that Thunder Punishing Skylord had once been a guest at his house. But previously, he was so insistent that Beigong Shuang was wrong.


    Thinking about it now, his display of aggression before seemed rather ironic.


    Many people glanced at the young man, and he clearly felt these gazes. As a top-notch genius Renhuang, he felt embarrassed at this moment. His face was hot, and he did not speak, nor did he look at the others. Grimly, he kept his eyes forward.


    A horrific thunder field appeared in the space that was destroyed. In that field, there was a Thunder Divine Orb floating in the air; it was like an eye that was swallowing up the terrifying thunder power between heaven and earth. One after another, the thundering lightning surrounded it and integrated with it.


    All the cultivators stood there, still, as if they dared not act rashly.


    This must be the treasure left by Thunder Punishing Skylord.


    ��The Thunder Punishing Skylord left the cliff here long ago. Not only did he not destroy it, but also he sealed a treasure here, clearly for the one who could decode the secret of the cliff. The elder did it, and the treasure should belong to him.�� At this time, a voice was heard, directing everyone��s attention to the speaker.


    It was Lin Yuan. His remarks clearly implied that the treasure should go to Ye Futian.


    No one else said anything. There were not many who could compete with Ye Futian and his people. No one knew whether the group that argued with Ye Futian would try to compete for this treasure.


    But the woman next to the young man glanced at him and said, ��Let��s go.��


    Obviously, they had no intention to fight for it. From their perspective, this treasure was not that precious. Since it was Ye Futian who decoded it, there was no need to fight. The other party must have come from a supreme principality.


    ��Very well.�� The young man nodded. It was obvious that he had lost this time. He turned his head to look at Ye Futian. He smiled and said, ��See you on Turtle Deity Island.��


    Once he finished speaking, his group of people broke through the void and left.


    Ye Futian glanced at the man who was leaving, then looked at that treasure, and said to Beigong Shuang, who was next to him, ��Last time, the Cloud Wood was taken by your father. This time, this treasure belongs to you.��


    ��Me?�� Beigong Shuang looked at Ye Futian.


    ��I have no shortage of treasures of this kind,�� said Ye Futian with a smile. Beigong Shuang looked at him and then at her father, who nodded slightly at her. He said, ��You may accept it.��


    ��Mmm.�� Beigong Shuang walked forward and did not refuse. Those who were next to them were confounded. A treasure of this level was given away just like that!

 Chapter 1994 - Turtle Deity Island

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Small boats were floating in the Divine Ocean, seemed to drift with the currents. From time to time, they would sail past one island city or another.


    The occupants of these small boats were Ye Futian and the others.


    At this moment, Lin Yuan took out a map and looked into the distance, saying, ��We are almost there. The next island city is Turtle Deity Island.��


    ��Mmm.�� On the small boat ahead, Ye Futian nodded. In the past few days, they did not rush their journey but took their time to enjoy the scenery along the way, traveling at a comfortable speed. If there were tribulations to be overcome by Emperor Xi, they would have sped up their process.


    However, in the past few days, they had seen no sign of tribulations, so they moved along in a nice and leisurely manner.


    On the other boat, there were two people. Beigong Ao was guiding the boat forward, and in front of him, Beigong Shuang was cultivating with her eyes closed. Faintly, there were terrifying thunder intent permeating from her body as the power of thunder covered her. Beigong Ao controlled the fluctuation of the aftershock so that she could cultivate in peace.


    That day, after Ye Futian had given the treasure to her, Beigong Shuang took it inside her body and began to cultivate and refine it. On the way here, she had been in the process of refining and cultivating.


    ��Before we get to Turtle Deity Island, I wonder if Shuang would finish cultivating,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Let��s wait and see. If not, I will stay with her in the Divine Ocean,�� said Beigong Ao. Although the chance of watching the three tribulations was a rare event, self-cultivation was equally important.


    This was an opportunity bestowed on Beigong Shuang, and it had the possibility to help her break through the realm. Before she finished cultivating, Beigong Ao would not interrupt her prematurely.


    As the small boats moved forward, the thunder intent on Beigong Shuang was getting stronger. Above the Divine Ocean, a thunderstorm suddenly manifested in the endless clear sky, rushing toward Beigong Shuang. Traces of lightning fell from the sky and descended on her.


    Beigong Ao looked up but did not attempt to stop the phenomenon. To Ye Futian, that treasure was nothing, so he gave it to Beigong Shuang instead. But Beigong Ao knew very well that without Ye Futian��s involvement, they would never have been unable to obtain anything close to it in their lifetimes. It was just like the last time when he got the Cloud Wood in Eastern Deity Island.


    Ahead, Ye Futian, on the small boat, glanced in Beigong Shuang��s direction. With a bright smile on his face, he asked, ��Almost breaking through?��


    ��Should be.�� Beigong Ao nodded. She saw that thunder��s power in the void became increasingly stronger, causing restlessness in this part of the Divine Ocean. Waves continued to rise, turning into a terrifying thunder field.


    ��How terrifying. For Renhuang to break through the realm, it��s almost like a catastrophe of the Great Path,�� Lin Yuan mumbled to himself. As someone in the Sage Realm, he was a powerful enough existence among ordinary folks. In the Divine Ocean Continent, his level was just above average.


    But compared to Renhuang, Sage Realm was obviously not even close, much like a child in the eyes of giants. Just the power of a Renhuang breaking through the realm was enough to instill fear in a Sage cultivator like him.


    ��One day, when you reach such a realm, you will experience it, sooner or later.�� Ye Futian smiled at Lin Yuan. It was a journey that he had been through himself from Noble to Sage, then transcended as a Saint to proving as Renhuang. Every step of the way, he, too, had looked up to those who were before him. But as time went on, he had traveled higher and higher until he far surpassed countless cultivators to whom he had once looked up.


    ��It seems too far away just now,�� Lin Yuan said with a smile, but it was the truth. For the realm of the Sage, Renhuang was far too far away.


    ��If the breakthrough of the Lower Renhuang realm is so terrifying, what would it be like when Emperor Xi experience the divine tribulation?�� Lin Yuan murmured again. This was something that exceeded the limits of his imagination.


    ��It can��t be compared at all.�� Ye Futian smiled and said, ��If Emperor Xi were to experience the tribulation, perhaps the entire Divine Ocean Continent would tremble.��


    There are really two significant tribulations in cultivation. One was the transcendence into sainthood, and the other was to go through the three tribulations and transform. All other times were breaking through the realm. Transcendence into sainthood was enough to cause natural phenomenons, such as the light of catastrophe. Therefore, the divine tribulation would be unimaginable.


    According to his understanding of breaking through the realms, Divine tribulation was not something tolerated by the rules of the Great Path as he knew of them. It was probably an earth-shaking affair. It was something that he couldn��t possibly imagine based on what he knew at the moment.


    At this moment, Beigong Shuang opened her eyes, and the light of thunder in the sky poured madly into her body until her eyes seemed to also contain the terrible light of thunder. When she looked up to the sky above, two lightning bolts actually beamed out from her eyes.


    In a flash, Beigong Shuang��s body shot up into the sky, bathing in the thunder and lightning as the Great Path integrated into her body, and her entire person turned into a vessel of the Great Path, madly swallowing and absorbing the power of the thunder.


    ��This breakthrough had induced a good amount of power from the Great Path,�� Ye Futian commented. Beigong Ao nodded in agreement, somewhat surprised. It seemed that his daughter would make great progress this time.


    ��That treasure definitely had a beneficial effect on her,�� Beigong Ao said.


    All the small boats stopped, and everyone was watching quietly. After a long while, the light of thunder in the sky dissipated, and Beigong Shuang floated back down and returned to the small boat. She regarded Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes and blinked, which got a chuckle out of Ye Futian.


    ��Continue forward,�� said Ye Futian. As his voice fell, all the boats accelerated forward.


    ��Let��s go,�� Beigong Ao echoed the command. Suddenly the group accelerated forward. Behind them, Goddess Donglai watched all this quietly. There was even more admiration in those eyes that looked toward Ye Futian. No one knew how such a person had come to appear in the Original Realm. There were bound to be other powerful characters who would inevitably aggregate around him. He seemed to possess a natural quality that would make people follow him willingly.


    Someone like him, if achieving all his potential, the result must be astounding.


    No one knew how far Ye Futian could go in the future, but she would gladly wait and see.


    ��


    There were many rumors regarding Turtle Deity Island on the Divine Ocean Continent. Some people said that Turtle Deity Island really had a Turtle Deity, while others claimed that this gigantic island was, in fact, the back of a black turtle. However, most people seemed to think that Turtle Deity Island was so named because the island itself resembled Xuanwu, the Black Turtle.


    No matter what these rumors were, Turtle Deity Island was truly famous because of one cultivator��Emperor Xi.


    Not just Turtle Deity Island, but the entire Divine Ocean Continent was known because of Emperor Xi, a top-notch existence enough to make an entire continent known to everyone.


    As they approached Turtle Deity Island, they could see those who were traveling in the void from time to time. Ye Futian and the others traveled in the sea as those in the air passed them by. Sometimes the aura in the void was extremely powerful, even a little alarming, and sometimes sounds of chatting and laughter could be heard.


    They could already see land in front of them; it was Turtle Deity Island.


    ��It��s right in front.�� Lin Yuan was a little emotional. This time, following Ye Futian, he had the opportunity to see Emperor Xi face the tribulations up close and personal. How could he not be excited?


    Around Turtle Deity Island, there were many scattered islands. As they approached, they found that there were crowds everywhere.


    ��What��s going on?�� Ye Futian looked concerned as he swept his divine consciousness over the crowd and found that countless cultivators were outside of ??Turtle Deity Island and did not set foot on the island.


    Voices came into his ears, and Ye Futian suddenly understood. He said in a low voice, ��It seems that Turtle Deity Island is getting too crowded now, and they have begun to control those who entered.��


    ��This is expected. Although Turtle Deity Island is extensive, it is only an island, and the number of people that can be accommodated is limited. However, this time, the entire Donghua Domain was alarmed. With so many cultivators arriving, if all of them were to enter the island, Turtle Deity Island will be overcrowded,�� Goddess Donglai said from behind.


    Ye Futian nodded as they continued to move forward and came to the area where the crowd was being blocked out. An incredibly astonishing aura of the Great Path was in front of them and formed a heaviness that was difficult for them to continue pushing forward.


    ��The airspace was shut out too.�� Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at the space above them. Those cultivators, who were traveling through the air, were also stopped. It seemed as if blocked by an invisible force. Afterward, they were drifted down and landed on the ground.


    Ye Futian and the others looked at the sea and saw a giant black turtle, but not just one. In this area of the ocean, there were many black turtles on the periphery of Turtle Deity Island.


    ��Sir, how can we enter the island?�� Ye Futian asked the person next to him.


    ��A few days ago, there was news from Turtle Deity Island that only those in the Upper Renhuang realm may enter the island. The others, unless led by a top figure, then they may enter together,�� the man responded.


    Ye Futian nodded and stepped forward, saying, ��Turtle elder, we came from Dongxiao Continent and hoped that we might be an exception.��


    The black turtle glanced at him with some contempt in his eyes, then dived into the water.


    Ye Futian walked forward, facing that massive resistance of the Great Path, and continued. Seeing this forced entry, that black turtle of the Upper Renhuang realm raised his head to give him a look as a terrifying wave slapped toward him.


    Ye Futian waved his hand toward the void, like the light from an ax slashing down and split the waves apart. He moved like an invasive stream of light and rushed directly toward the black turtle.


    Boom�� The giant waves soared as the black turtle rushed toward Ye Futian through the water. A hefty pressure landed on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian didn��t bother to avoid it. Both of his palms pushed forward, and a terrifying force slapped down and suppressed it, like a monument of the Great Path. A dull thud was heard in the void, and that massive black turtle was knocked back into the sea. Ye Futian��s figure flashed. He landed squarely on the turtle��s back, saying, ��Elder, please make an exception for us.��

 Chapter 1995 - Viciousness

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��B*stard!�� Black Turtle roared. The tall waves that seemed to reach into the heavens flooded the entire region. The terrifying waves surrounded Ye Futian and morphed into the form of a divine Turtle. It contained an icy aura of the Great Path. Ice sealed the entire space.


    The people from a distance looked on and saw that the battlefield in front of them was sealed by ice and that Ye Futian was buried within.


    ��This guy, he is only a middle-level Renhuang. Yet he dared to face off a level-seven Demon Emperor.�� Everyone felt a ripple course through their hearts. However, that person had great combat abilities; a casual slap from his palm could suppress an entire region, and Black Turtle was knocked back by the impact.


    However, at that moment, the towering Black Turtle halo sealed the entire area with ice; it seemed like Ye Futian would be frozen to death.


    Ye Futian was at the center of the area sealed by ice, and his entire person seemed to have turned into an ice sculpture. The extremely cold will of the Great Path seeped into his body, seemingly wanting to seal his organs and vessels with ice and freeze his life itself.


    Yet at that moment, a terrifying Divine Flame of the Great Path burned and radiated outward from Ye Futian. Seeping into the ice sculpture, the flames blazed brightly, melting the ice sculpture, and even dyed it red.


    In a short while, the huge halo of the Black Turtle turned scarlet, burning in the Divine Ocean.


    ��This���� Many, who watched this scene unfold before them, felt a tremor course through their heart. The Black Turtle let out a low roar and his entire head shrunk back into his shell as he said, ��You may enter.��


    ��I still have some friends.�� Ye Futian pointed at the row of people in front. The Black Turtle stretched his head out and glanced at them. He discovered that among them were some with shallow cultivation levels. He had to say, ��Your combat abilities are high enough, so you can be an exception to the rule. However, you can��t go overboard with it; this is the rule of the Turtle Deity Island.��


    ��Just now, I was too careless with the extent of my attacks; I hope senior will forgive me. Although this elixir is not especially valuable, it can strengthen your life force. Please accept them as my apology.�� Ye Futian retrieved an elixir, and instantly, a strong elixir fragrance washed over everyone.


    The Black Turtle��s eyes glimmered, and his neck continued stretching outwards. It twisted around to look at the elixir above him. The lives of turtles were extremely long, and their lifeforce was especially strong. These types of elixirs were significant to them.


    ��You have exceptional talent, so I��m sure you are from a top-tier faction. There are also top-tier Renhuangs here with you. Since you are all traveling together, you are all welcome. I��ll lead you onto the island,�� said the Black Turtle. The people from afar were stunned. ��What is this sudden change in attitude����


    ��Thank you, senior.�� Ye Futian opened his hands, and the Black Turtle swallowed the elixir immediately. Xia Qingyuan and the rest climbed onto his back. The Black Turtle turned around and dived into the Divine Ocean and entered the forbidden space, heading in the direction of Turtle Deity Island.


    Many practitioners were speechless as they watched the receding silhouettes. How can even demons be this materialistic? Just one elixir was enough to convince him to ignore the rules? How can this be allowed? they all thought.


    The Black Turtle carried Ye Futian and his friends forward, and very quickly, they neared Turtle Deity Island.


    ��Senior Turtle, many members of top-tier factions have already arrived on Turtle Deity Island already, right?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Mmm,�� the Black Turtle nodded. ��Quite a few have arrived already. Even if they have yet to reach, they should at least be in the Divine Ocean Continent. There are only a few days left to Emperor Xi overcoming his tribulations, and no one wants to miss it. You have exceptional strength too, so I��m guessing that you have forged a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel, right? Surely you must also hail from an extraordinary faction. Where are you from?��


    ��I come from the Dongxiao Continent,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��The Dongxiao Continent�� That should be the Millet Emperor��s territory, right? Are you a practitioner from Wangshen Watchtower?�� the Black Turtle indeed understood quite a bit. He knew a little about the various top-tier practitioners in the Donghua Domain. After all, there weren��t many practitioners of such level��


    ��I guess I count as one of them,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��I hear that there is a practitioner in the Wangshen Watchtower named Zong Chan. Do you know him?�� the Black Turtle asked.


    ��Senior, you have heard of him as well?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��I��ve heard of him from the people who entered the island these past few days. They say that Zong Chan of the Wangshen Watchtower had already become a high-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. It is said that he has unlimited potential, and it is almost certain that he will become yet another titan of the Donghua Domain in the future,�� the Black Turtle said.


    ��I understand. Thank you, Senior, for your reminder.�� Ye Futian nodded. The Black Turtle brought them to the shore of the Turtle Deity Island. The formless Pressure of the Great Path dissipated. Ye Futian no longer felt the pressure.


    ��We have arrived,�� said the Black Turtle.


    ��Thank you for your trouble,�� Ye Futian nodded and stepped out. The group of them stepped onto the Turtle Deity Island, and the Black Turtle dived into the sea, heading back from where they came from. Quickly, he vanished from their sights.


    Ye Futian walked around on the island, and, like they expected, there were many people on the island. Practitioners of various cultivation levels were all present on the island. In the past, there were no restrictions on who could enter the island. However, at some point in time, there were too many people on the island. It was then that Turtle Deity Island decided to limit the number of practitioners entering the island based on their cultivation level to prevent the island from being overcrowded.


    ��Where is Emperor Xi cultivating at?�� Ye Futian asked Lin Yuan.


    ��Turtle Peak,�� Lin Yuan replied. ��Even though I have never been here before, you could probably just ask anyone around here. They should all know where it is.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. Since they were already on Turtle Deity Island, it was easy to find where Emperor Xi was cultivating.


    They walked towards the center of Turtle Deity Island. Along the way, they asked around for the location of Turtle Peak. After some time, they arrived at a city at the foot of Turtle Peak. This city was named ��Turtle Deity City,�� and it was located at the bottom of Turtle Peak.


    Arriving in the city, Ye Futian noticed that the practitioners of Turtle Deity City had an obviously high level of cultivation. A vast majority were visitors, and just by casually looking around, he could see high-level Renhuangs.


    Any virtuoso that they met would likely hail from a powerful faction in the Donghua Domain.


    ��Let��s find a place to settle down for a while,�� the Alchemy Emperor said. ��Let��s wait for Zong Chan and the rest to meet up with us.��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. Lin Yuan already knew that Ye Futian and the rest came from Wangshen Watchtower. People like these would naturally not be a typical person, and they certainly belonged to different worlds.


    ��I did not expect that we would also have a chance to come to Turtle Deity Island to witness this grand event. Thank you, seniors, for bringing the two of us along,�� Lin Yuan and his cultivation partner L�� Qing wrapped their fists in gratitude towards Ye Futian.


    ��There is no need for thanks; it was not much work anyway,�� Ye Futian replied casually. Indeed, to him, it was nothing bringing the two of them along.


    ��Your help is, however, significant to us. However, I��m afraid we are unable to repay you and can only be thankful in our hearts.�� Lin Yuan was very realistic. After all, the difference between them was too huge. Ye Futian was such a powerful character. How could he possibly repay this favor?


    Ye Futian smiled lightly; he was not really bothered by it.


    ��Now that we are already on Turtle Deity Island, the two of us shall not intrude on you seniors. We will take our leave now.�� Lin Yuan wrapped his fist as he bade farewell. Ye Futian nodded. ��Alright. I hope you will gain something this time.��


    ��Seniors, take care.�� The two of them bowed lightly and turned around to leave. The two of them initially were not familiar with Ye Futian; they only met him on their journey here. Furthermore, they were not even from the same world. Ye Futian was already very magnanimous in bringing them to Turtle Deity Island. Lin Yuan knew not to take advantage of Ye Futian��s help too much. He knew that he should not continue staying beside Ye Futian. It would also intrude on them.


    Ye Futian, on the other hand, did not think about these at all, and he was not really bothered by it. They were indeed not close, so he did not try to get them to stay.


    After the two parties separated, Lin Yuan and L�� Qing continued walking around Turtle Deity Island. Lin Yuan sighed. ��Sometimes I think that I have put in sufficient effort into cultivating, but when compared to these people at the pinnacle, I discover that my efforts are nothing.��


    ��The Divine Prefecture is so big, so there certainly are many exceptional talents. These people are already standing at the pinnacle, so what is there to compare? We should first maintain our own psyches, persevere in cultivation, surpass mortality, and forge our Saint Plane,�� L�� Qing replied quietly.


    ��Mmm. Seeing all these exceptional practitioners has indeed affected my psyche. Let��s leave this place quickly, lest we develop overly lofty goals.�� Lin Yuan lightly nodded.


    As they were walking, Lin Yuan seemed to have sensed something; he felt that something seemed off and stopped walking. Right after, L�� Qing also sensed it. In the next moment, A powerful sealing power shrouded the entire space, and an elderly man appeared ahead of them. His eyes let out a demon-like aura; it was terrifying.


    ��Senior, how can we help you?�� Lin Yuan lightly wrapped his fist. He had an intense ominous feeling, but he tried his best to control his fear.


    Oin!


    The elderly man morphed into a black beam of light and instantly appeared in front of them. His hands stretched outwards and tightly grasped both their heads. They couldn��t even react.


    Lin Yuan and L�� Qing��s face turned ashen. He let out a frightened expression. A grey silhouette charged into their minds, and a voice broke out, ��Who was the man that you were following previously?��


    ��Senior, we were only following him on our way here; we are not close at all,�� Lin Yuan said. However, an even more terrifying power infiltrated him, and his body trembled violently. L�� Qing even let out a scream of anguish.


    Lin Yuan could not hope to fight against this power, and he, too, felt L�� Qing��s pain. He pleaded, ��I only know that they come from Wangshen Watchtower of the Dongxiao Continent, please����


    Bang! The moment he said his words, the elderly man exerted a little force in his palms, and the two of them were instantly pulverized into a grey stream, which then vanished. They were killed in a split second.


    The elderly man��s silhouette flashed, and the sealing power vanished. He also completely disappeared, as though nothing had happened before.


    However, there were numerous practitioners on the Turtle Deity Island, so there were still people who noticed what had happened. Streaks of silhouette flew over here. As they watched the vanishing silhouette, their hearts beat wildly, especially those with weak cultivation. They felt a tinge of fear.


    These two practitioners were murdered just like that. Not even their bodies remained. Who did they offend?!

 Chapter 1996 - Upheaval

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Lin Yuan and his partner were killed, a few streaks of silhouettes descended on this area. They looked at each other, their brows furrowed.


    ��Let��s go.�� In a flash, they disappeared.


    In a tavern in Turtle Deity Island, a person sat quietly on the attic floor. Ling He was sipping his wine calmly. Out of nowhere, a person appeared behind him. He was the elderly man who killed Lin Yuan. He stood behind Ling He and telepathically said, ��Dongxiao Continent, Wangshen Watchtower.��


    ��Wangshen Watchtower.�� A tinge of surprise flashed in Ling He��s eyes. A name surfaced in his mind. ��Zong Chan?��


    That could not be right. Zong Chan was rumored to have already broken through to the high-level Renhuang level. That man, however, was only a middle-level Renhuang. He should be another practitioner of Wangshen Watchtower. Indeed, it was exactly like what he had guessed��the man hailed from a very powerful faction of the Donghua Domain.


    However, even if he were from Wangshen Watchtower, he would have to pay the price for spoiling his plans.


    This time, he had put in a lot of effort to get close to the people from the Snow Capital; however, it seemed like it was highly likely to fail.


    ��Who is that?�� At that moment, a virtuoso behind Ling He glanced into the distance. There was a divine consciousness spying on them.


    A strong divine consciousness shrouded the entire space around the tavern. A pressure of the Great Path hammered down on a certain location, and at that spot, a few people walked in the air. They appeared outside the tavern and stood from afar. One of them announced, ��We are from the City Lord��s Office. Where are you from?��


    Ling He��s eyes narrowed sharply. He glanced at the elderly man behind him with a tinge of coldness in his eyes. The elderly man��s expressions changed slightly, and he lowered his head as though he had made a mistake. It was apparent that he did not fully clean up after himself, and his actions had caught some people��s attention.


    ��Donghua Heavens, Lingxiao Pavilion.�� Ling He lifted his cup of wine and drank it calmly without looking at the other party.


    Upon hearing the name ��Lingxiao Pavilion of the Donghua Heavens,�� the row of people hesitated for a moment and sighed internally. They could not afford to offend factions of such a high level.


    ��Apologies for the disturbance.�� The few of them wrapped their fists lightly and left the area in a flash, as though they had never appeared before. They did not mention why they came here; it seemed like it was only to ask where the other party was from.


    Ling He did not find it strange at all. Even if his actions were discovered, it meant nothing to him. The life of two ants was worth nothing to him; he wouldn��t even think about it. It was just that his reputation would suffer a little if news that he might be using his position to carry out his personal revenge got out. He was a man of status, and so, it would be a little embarrassing if people knew that he used his influence to deal with two juniors.


    Apart from that, the death of the two of them was nothing major.


    ��Have the people from the various huge factions arrive?�� asked Ling He. The major factions that he mentioned naturally referred to the most powerful factions in the Donghua Domain; they were factions that were on the same level as the Lingxiao Pavilion. For example, Wangshen Watchtower.


    Otherwise, the other factions were meaningless, and there was no need to pay attention to them.


    ��They should more or less have arrived,�� an elderly man replied. ��The Domain Chief��s Manor had always had someone here, but those coming should still be on their way. Now that the people from the Wangshen Watchtower had arrived, we only haven��t heard from the Nanhua Continent and Badlands Continent. All the other factions already have representatives here.��


    ��Mmm,�� the youth nodded. ��Investigate if there are any new powerful middle-level Renhuang in the Wangshen Watchtower.��


    ��Yes, sir,�� someone accepted the order. The factions in Turtle Deity Island were rather jumbled at the moment. Virtuosos from various places were all here. Scouting would not only be simple but rather, it would be made even easier. Because people from various places were all gathered in one place, information could be exchanged easily.


    Ling He looked far into the distance, his eyes carrying a tinge of coldness. Regardless of how powerful anyone was, if anyone dared to disrupt his plans, they must pay for it.


    Ye Futian had not received news of Lin Yuan��s death. Whatever happened at the Divine Ocean Cliff was mainly due to his conflict with the other party. In any case, it was not a big matter anyway, so there wasn��t a deep grudge formed. He did not expect that this encounter would cause him to be a target of assassination.


    2


    Certainly, he would not expect that to lead to the death of Lin Yuan and his partner. If he knew, he would not have let Lin Yuan leave him.


    While they were walking around Turtle Deity Island, a row of silhouettes suddenly flashed towards them and descended. Seeing who had arrived, Ye Futian smiled and said, ��Brothers, you have finally arrived.��


    ��Mmm.�� The people who arrived were the practitioners of Wangshen Watchtower. Li Changsheng and Zong Chang were all among them.


    ��Your Brother Zong and I had arrived some time ago and met up in advance. We were nearby when we saw you arrive,�� Li Changsheng smiled and said. Even though he was a powerful level-nine existence, one could not feel a tinge of threatening aura.


    Of course, this was only one of his side; he was like this only to his fellow brothers.


    ��I wonder how long more we have to wait,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��There��s no need to rush. This time, many powerful figures have arrived. It has been many years since virtuosos from various places have gathered in one place in the Donghua Domain. It is quite a fortunate coincidence this time,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile. ��Among the powerful characters who have come this time, there might be those who are not necessarily weaker than you. It��s a pity that you don��t have the chance to spar with them.��


    ��It seems that brother really wants to spectate a battle of the Path between disciples of top-tier factions,�� Zong Chan smiled.


    ��Nope, I am only interested in the battle of the Path between practitioners of Little Brother Ye��s level, or influential characters like Little Brother Zong,�� Li Changsheng smiled. ��This time, I��m afraid that among the powerful people who have come this time, a number would want to know if you live up to your reputation. I might be able to spectate some interesting events.��


    Zong Chan shook his head silently. The greater one��s fame, the more easily one is targeted by others. It was exactly because he had risen to a high-level Renhuang that he had been targeted by various top-tier factions.


    Boom��


    Just as they were talking, a low rumble reverberated continuously throughout the space. When they lifted their heads towards the heavens and saw that dark clouds shrouded the blue sky. The black clouds floated about, and the skies gradually darkened.


    ��Something big is going to happen.�� Li Changsheng��s eyes glowed in anticipation, and he stared at the skies above. The clouds that floated about gave off a tinge of pressure.


    At the same moment, in various places on Turtle Deity Island, many people raised their heads to look at the skies. They all felt the faint pressurizing aura. They could feel that something big was going to happen.


    ��The weather is changing so quickly, and these phenomena are happening. Does this mean that the tribulations are coming?�� Ye Futian muttered softly.


    ��I��ve not witnessed it before either. However, from the ancient records, the geographical phenomena caused by the Great Path Tribulations of Gods require time to happen. This scene now probably indicates that the tribulations will happen soon,�� Li Changsheng replied with his head raised towards the skies.


    At the same time, many people flew out from the city towards the same destination��Turtle Peak.


    ��We should also set off towards Turtle Peak,�� Li Changsheng continued. Instantly, they also shot into the skies.


    At that moment, they noticed that the entire population of Turtle Deity Island was making their move, and they were all headed towards Turtle Peak.


    Turtle Peak was the cultivation court of Emperor Xi. All the virtuosos would descend from the skies right before arriving at Turtle Peak and then walk up to the peak. Everyone was conscious not to enter the peak from above. Without sufficient strength, their action would be an act of provocation.


    Everyone has arrived, Ye Futian thought to himself. They also arrived at the foot of the Turtle Peak and began walking up Turtle Peak. He was not the only one; virtuosos from all over the world were rushing to ascend the peak. Wisps of aura of the Great Path exploded out one after another as everyone began using their own unique skills. At that moment, the area looked very beautiful.


    ��Who are those people?�� At that moment, many people looked in a certain direction. At that location was a row of goddess-like figures. They were dressed in white and surrounded by a cold aura. Even the temperature around them dropped a few degrees; no one dared to get close to them.


    ��Goddesses of the Northern White Snow Capital,�� someone said.


    ��The Land of Fluttering Snow?�� someone asked in surprise.


    ��Yes,�� someone replied. Instantly the people around them retreated in fear of getting too close to them. Even though the ladies were gorgeous, no one dared to go up and flirt with them.


    Ye Futian also looked in that direction. The other virtuosos all kept their distance and did not dare appear in their vicinity. It seemed that these ladies were rather intimidating.


    Ye Futian spotted a familiar silhouette among them; it was the goddess-like figure that he saw that day at the cliff.


    ��Northern White, Snow Capital?�� Ye Futian muttered. ��Are they practitioners from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow of the Northern White Continent?��


    It was one of the seven main continents of the Donghua Domain, so naturally, Ye Futian looked up information regarding the place. In the Northern White Continent, the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow was located in the Snow Capital. It was the top sacred grounds of Northern White; certainly, it was especially powerful.


    In that case, that lady must come from the Snow Capital��s Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow.


    ��Are you interested?�� Li Changsheng smiled at Ye Futian. ��While the practitioners of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow are a little fierce, they are all stunning.��


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. Of course, he knew that Li Changsheng was joking.


    However, everyone seemed to be a little wary of the Goddesses of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. Was it because of their cultivation?


    They continued walking up, and in no time at all, many practitioners had ascended Turtle Peak. The aura in the skies became even more pressurizing; it was like the pressure of the Great Path��s aura.


    With great phenomena appearing in the skies, something big was bound to happen. The tribulations were going to arrive!

 Chapter 1997 - Virtuosos From All over the World

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Turtle Peak was very spacious. It was the cultivation grounds of Emperor Xi. No one dared to disturb Emperor Xi when they ascended the peak. They only stood at the outer regions of the Turtle Peak.


    When Ye Futian and his group stepped onto Turtle Peak, they gazed into the distance. There were a few structures that were not quite majestic and seemed to be casually arranged in that direction. However, they seemed to carry an ethereal air of deities. It was as though they were in the Realm of Deities. It was exactly where Emperor Xi was at.


    Many virtuosos had scaled the Turtle Peak. In this vast group of people, many had an extremely high level of cultivation. High-level Renhuangs could be found everywhere on the peak.


    At that time, Ye Futian felt that someone was looking at him. He turned and looked around. He saw someone familiar. He met this practitioner when he was training on the Eastern Deity Island��Jiang Jiuming from the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family.


    The Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family was an extremely old clan; it was the protector of the Luotian Continent, which was one of the Seven Continents. The clan was crowded with virtuosos, and Jiang Jiuming was one of the top practitioners in his generation. Since the Luotian Continent and the Penglai Continent were both in the east of the Donghua Domain, they were quite close. When Jiang Jiuming went to train on the Eastern Deity Island the last time, he was also there to see if he could obtain elixirs from the Eastern Deity Island.


    Unfortunately, he failed; however, on Eastern Deity Island, he encountered an extremely exceptional practitioner��Ye Futian.


    At that moment, Jiang Jiuming walked towards Ye Futian. Behind him were a couple of practitioners from the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family. He stopped in front of Ye Futian and said, ��Such a coincidence. I did not expect to meet Brother Ye and the Island Lord again.��


    The ��Island Lord,�� of course, referred to the Donglai Goddess.


    ��It��s a coincidence, indeed.�� Ye Futian smiled. After learning about the Donghua Domain, he understood that the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family was the strongest clan in the Luotian Continent. They were mysterious and ancient, and they had an abundance of resources.


    ��This is also somewhat expected. With such great talent, Brother Ye naturally would emerge from the Penglai Continent. I guess it isn��t strange that you have appeared here as well,�� Jiang Jiuming smiled. Looking at the Zong Chan, Li Changsheng, and the rest who were standing beside Ye Futian, he said, ��I am Jiang Jiuming from the Jiang Clan. You are all practitioners from the Wangshen Watchtower, right?��


    Just now, he had roughly analyzed Ye Futian��s group and walked over after identifying Zong Chan and the others.


    Not long ago, he heard news that the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had headed towards the Wangshen Watchtower and that Ye Futian had already started cultivating in the Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��The Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family,�� Li Changsheng and Zong Chan and the rest instantly understood where the other party hailed from. They nodded, smiling.


    ��I did not expect Island Lord and Brother Ye to have gone to Wangshen Watchtower. Now, Brother Ye is cultivating in Wangshen Watchtower. To be able to get the Millet Emperor��s guidance, it can be said that you have found yourself a famous teacher,�� Jiang Jiuming said. At that time, he thought that it would be a waste of his talents if Ye Futian continued to stay on Eastern Deity Island.


    However, unexpectedly, the Donglai Goddess sent Ye Futian to Wangshen Watchtower. This led him to believe that something important happened when Ye Futian entered the secret zone of the Eastern Deity Island.


    ��I am only studying at Wangshen Watchtower. I have not become the Millet Emperor��s disciple,�� Ye Futian explained with a smile. Did everyone believe that the Millet Emperor had taken him in as a disciple?


    Jiang Jiuming smiled without saying anything. From his perspective, there was not much difference.


    ��Are you Zong Chan?�� asked a lady standing beside Jiang Jiuming as she looked at Zong Chan. She was Jiang Qixian and was also a Renhuang practitioner of the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family. She was dashing and carried a majestic air about her. Her gorgeous eyes were focused on Zong Chan.


    The outer world, including the seniors of the Jiang Clan Royal Ancient Family, had high praise for Zong Chan.


    ��Mmm.�� Zong Chan nodded.


    ��I hear from my seniors that you have already attained seven perfect levels of the Great Path?�� Jiang Qixian asked without any hesitation. Zong Chan nodded.


    Quite a number of the virtuosos of the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family looked at him. Seven perfect levels of the Great Path. Just how strong was his combat ability?


    It was likely that he was strong enough to compete with typical level-nine Renhuangs for the top.


    Another top-tier virtuoso was going to emerge from the Wangshen Watchtower.


    From a distance away, a virtuoso was looking at them. The virtuosos from the Lingxiao Palace were present, and Ling He was among them.


    Not long ago, he ordered his men to investigate Ye Futian, and before long, he had obtained information on Ye Futian. Coincidentally, the virtuosos from the Yanyun Continent had also arrived. He heard that a couple of months ago, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family led an army of virtuosos from the Yanyun Continent to the Dongxiao Continent to provoke the Wangshen Watchtower.


    There, they were met with resistance. Another influential character was heading towards Wangshen Watchtower at the same time. His name was Ye Liunian, and he came from Eastern Deity Island. That one battle made the Millet Emperor personally invite him to join the Wangshen Watchtower.


    He was a middle-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. Not only was he highly talented, but he was well-versed in alchemy and cultivation. He was also the heir to the Eastern Deity Island, and now, he had gained the favor of the Millet Emperor. Naturally, someone like him would be very cocky. There was no doubt of his talents. It was no wonder that Ling He would lose to him at the cliff.


    He also heard that months ago, the Yan Dongyang of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family once fought with Ye Futian and lost.


    Ling He went over to the virtuosos of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow and bowed lightly, ��Ling He pays his respects to goddesses.��


    The goddesses of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow wrapped their fists in greeting. Ling He was not any normal person; he was a disciple of the Lingxiao Palace, and they had a decent relationship with each other.


    Furthermore, it seemed like recently, Ling He was pursuing Qin Qing.


    ��Qin Qing.�� Ling He looked at Qin Qing. She was the goddess who was traveling with him that day at the cliff. Qin Qing was a disciple of the lord of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. Regardless of appearance or cultivation, she was a cut above the rest.


    Qin Qing nodded lightly, but her eyes were looking somewhere else. Following her line of sight, Ling He noticed that she was looking in Ye Futian��s and Zong Chan��s direction.


    Obviously, Ye Futian left a rather deep impression on Qin Qing.


    ��Oh, so he is a practitioner of the Wangshen Watchtower,�� Qin Qing said.


    ��Are you looking at Zong Chan?�� asked one of the women at the side. ��He has now become the most discussed person among all the factions. He had broken through to the high-level Renhuang level with a perfect Great Path. He is fated to become one of the top-tier characters in the Donghua Domain in the future.��


    Qin Qing looked at where Zong Chan stood at. Ye Futian was standing next to him.


    ��Who is the white-haired practitioner next to Zong Chan?�� Qin Qing asked.


    Only then did many people notice Ye Futian. This white-haired youth indeed had an extraordinary aura. He was also very dashing. In fact, among everyone around him, he had the most handsome features. However, the world of cultivation did not care about the looks of a man. Rather, they were more concerned with his cultivation level. Especially at the Renhuang level, they completely do not care about the features of a man.


    Thus, Zong Chan was the most eye-catching.


    In that case, why would Qin Qing notice Ye Futian?


    ��Ye Liunian.�� At that moment, a practitioner with a very sophisticated aura walked up to the crowd from behind them. While she was not as physically attractive as Qin Qing, her extraordinary aura might even be stronger than Qin Qing��s. Many people looked at her with respect.


    ��Sister, do you know him?�� Qin Qing asked.


    ��He is a practitioner of the Eastern Deity Island. A while ago, the Donglai Goddess brought him to the Wangshen Watchtower. At the entrance test to the Wangshen Watchtower, and utterly defeated all the virtuosos. The prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family��Yan Dongyang��led his army of virtuosos from the Yanyun Continent to the entrance test and absolutely crushed the practitioners of the Dongxiao Continent. However, he was stopped by Ye Futian and subsequently defeated by him,�� the lady said. ��Ye Futian is at the fourth Renhuang level. He has a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel. He is well-versed in alchemy, swordsmanship, rhythmic sorcery, and various other skills. It took him only one strike of his sword to defeat Yan Dongyang.��


    ��Swordsmanship.��


    A quizzical expression flashed through Qin Qing��s eyes as she looked at Ye Futian. No Wonder he could sense and comprehend the will of the ax at the cliff the other day. It seemed like he was an exceptionally outstanding practitioner.


    ��It looks like I lost to him for a good reason the other day.�� Ling He smiled. He seemed very casual, as though he was not bothered by that event.


    ��You all know him?�� asked the lady.


    ��I met him when I was traveling in the Divine Ocean Continent. He managed to decrypt the relics left behind as runes carved out by the Thunder Punishing Skylord,�� said Qin Qing. The woman nodded her head lightly and looked at Ye Futian. Is this the heir chosen by the Eastern Deity Island? she thought.


    No matter who he was, it was unlikely that the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was going to let him off.


    Ye Futian felt the stares and lifted his head to look towards the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. The Li Changsheng beside him asked, ��Brother Ye, they are talking about you. When did you become acquaintances with the goddesses of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow?��


    ��We have met once before,�� Ye Futian replied. ��We aren��t really acquainted.��


    Li Changsheng nodded lightly. This rascal was quite eye-catching, it seemed. They were only separated for a short while, and he had already got to know the people from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. Furthermore, they seemed to think pretty highly of him.


    ��I am Ling He from the Lingxiao Palace. I did not know who you were back at the Divine Ocean, but now let��s be acquaintances.�� Ling He nodded lightly at Ye Futian. He seemed to be rather friendly.


    Ye Futian glanced at him. That day, Ling He was especially overbearing and arrogant, but he will not be hostile towards someone who showed no malice, and so he also lightly nodded in response. However, he did not say much more either and only responded in courtesy. He did not intend to be acquaintances with him.


    Seeing Ye Futian��s attitude, Ling He��s heart turned a little cold, but he did not show it. He thought that this prodigy who joined the Wangshen Watchtower was probably feeling pretty cocky at that moment.


    ��I am Qin Qing from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow.�� Qin Qing also nodded at Ye Futian.


    ��I am Ye Liunian.�� Ye Futian nodded in response. He decided to show a little more friendliness to Qin Qing because Qin Qing did not act in such an unforgivably rude manner the other day�� It was certainly not because she was beautiful.


    In a certain place in the crowd, someone was looking at these two parties conversing. They were the people from the Turtle Deity City Lord��s Office. They heard what the two groups were talking about. After all, they did not intentionally try to avoid interfering, so they roughly understood some things that were happening.


    This Ling He was so superficial. Ye Futian probably did not know what Ling He had done!

 Chapter 1998 - Famous People

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Ye Liunian,�� a low voice echoed. The person who spoke was Ling He. ��I��ve heard that Brother Ye once displayed unrivaled power at Wangshen Watchtower. With those skills, you defeated all the virtuosos from the Yanyun Continent and even beat the Great Yan prince with one strike of your sword. If I had known of Brother Ye��s prowess, I would certainly have been far humbler back at the Divine Ocean.��


    Someone secretly looked at Ling He, with some idea of what was going on. Ye Futian��s eyes also narrowed slightly as he glanced at Ling He. He saw that Ling He��s eyes carried an easy and natural smile, as though he highly admired Ye Futian. However, this made Ye Futian feel extremely uncomfortable.


    The virtuosos from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had also all arrived. There were so many of them just a distance away; for Ling He to say it in such a way, was he praising Ye Futian, or was he humiliating the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family?


    Of course, with the grudges between him and the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Ye Futian had already offended them, and so he didn��t care if they were humiliated. He just disliked how Ling He behaved.


    If it was someone else, they might be sincerely praising him, but Ling He definitely was not. From his behavior at the cliff, Ye Futian could tell that he was highly arrogant and domineering. Even though he was humiliated, he left without saying anything. A person with such a personality would never sincerely praise Ye Futian, a person who had beat him not so long ago.


    Indeed, hearing what Ling He said, a faint aura of the Great Path reached over from afar. The virtuosos of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family looked over, and someone had even started walking over. Yan Dongyang was standing right at the front, and beside him was a practitioner who was older than him. The practitioner had an extraordinary aura about him. He was luxuriously clothed in long brocade robes. His entire body emitted an air of nobility; it was as though he was a real dragon.


    ��Yan Hanxing, the crown prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. He is a level-nine Renhuang,�� Li Changsheng told Ye Futian telepathically. Ye Futian looked towards him. This Yan Hanxing gave off an extremely intimidating pressure. He had handsomely sharp and chiseled features. He looked to be about 35 or 36 years old. He was the strongest among his generation of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family princes. His cultivation had already reached the pinnacle of the Renhuang level.


    Yan Hanxing walked over, and instantly, many people stared at him. Quite a number of them had heard the news of the battle at Wangshen Watchtower. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family led an entire army of virtuosos from the Yanyun Continent to attack them, but they returned in defeat. In particular, Yan Dongyang had been defeated by a single sword strike. It was highly humiliating.


    Everyone knew that Ling He��s words were undoubtedly a little sensitive and hit a sore spot; however, no one said it out loud. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had always been overbearing and tyrannical, so there was almost no chance that they would tolerate their loss of face.


    Everyone around kept silent. When Yan Hanxing stopped, he did not look at Ye Futian but rather turned to look at Zong Chan. To the crown prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Ye Futian was but an insignificant junior, even if he was also a Renhuang. After all, Yan Hanxing had been cultivating for many years, and he had also been at the pinnacle of the Renhuang level for a long time. Naturally, he would not lower his status to deal with Ye Futian.


    ��I heard that Zong Chan had broken through to the high Renhuang level, so I sent Dongyang to send our regards and at the same time experience the strength of the practitioners of the Dongxiao Continent. I hear that you still have a perfect Great Path even after ascending to a high-level Renhuang. Congratulations,�� Yan Hanxing said with a rather hard tone as he looked at Zong Chan. He gave off a faint pressure that caused discomfort to everyone around him. In particular, those with a low cultivation level felt a very strong pressure. It was not the might of the Great Path; rather, it was a formless aura that emanated from him.


    ��Thank you,�� Zong Chan replied with a smile, seeming quite casual about it. With his cultivation level and a perfect Great Path, even a level-nine Renhuang virtuoso would not be able to give him a strong pressure.


    ��A level-seven Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. If we are talking about combat abilities, that should be very comparable to a level-nine virtuoso,�� Yan Hanxing looked at Zong Chan. ��I am quite expectant of how strong your Gate to World Suppression will be after you have become a high-level Renhuang and just how much you have inherited from the Millet Emperor.��


    Zong Chan smiled. ��You��ll definitely have a chance to see it.��


    ��That person from the Badlands has yet to arrive. Having proven your path, I wonder if you can defeat him,�� Yan Hanxing continued. His tone made the practitioners of Wangshen Watchtower very uncomfortable. It gave off the vague feeling that he was the senior speaking to a junior.


    Even though if one considered the amount of time they have been cultivating, Zong Chan indeed was Yan Hanxing��s junior, with how much Zong Chan had achieved, he was no longer inferior to him; in fact, he had greater potential.


    ��Why don��t you ask yourself your chances of victory if you fought with that person from the Badlands?�� Li Changsheng said from the side. Yan Hanxing glanced at him.


    Zong Chan smiled silently. He was thinking of the exact same thing.


    Yan Hanxing��s attitude made him a little uncomfortable. Even though he was a level-nine Renhuang, he may not necessarily defeat that person from the Badlands.


    ��Who wants to know? Why not just try? You��ll get your answer that way,�� said a strong, deep voice from afar. Many people looked in the direction into the distance and saw someone descend onto Turtle Peak. The aura from this column of people was terrifying. Most of them were dressed in black, and they gave off a formless, intangible pressure.


    Practitioners from the Badlands Divine Palace of the Badlands Continent, Ye Futian thought to himself as he looked at the row of practitioners. They should have come from the western Badlands Continent, which was a rather remote place in the Donghua Domain. The Badlands Divine Palace was the protector and absolute ruler of the region. After numerous generations and experiencing many cycles of prosperity and decline, it was still surviving.


    ��The virtuosos from the Badlands Divine Palace have also arrived.�� The surrounding virtuosos looked towards them. The Badlands Continent was the most remote, and the Badlands Divine Palace did not have many ties with the other factions of the Donghua Domain. Many people were still wondering if they would come at all. It seemed that no one wanted to miss Emperor Xi take on the tribulations. It was even more so the case for those standing at the pinnacle of the cultivation world.


    Many people looked at the practitioner of the Badlands Divine Palace who spoke. He was dressed in a black robe, and a somber aura emanated from him. His pair of eyes induced fear in whoever looked at them. It was as though whatever he looked at would rot and wither in an instant.


    No one knew his true name; everyone only knew that he was the Badlands Divine Palace��s ��Desolation�� of this generation, the heir to the Badlands Divine Palace.


    The lord of the Badlands Divine Palace was given the title of the ��Desolate God.�� Even though they were not God-level virtuosos, the Badlands Divine Palace had a very long history. It was said that in ancient times, people with such levels of cultivation had existed before. Furthermore, they had very ancient relics that were passed through numerous generations. Thus, they named themselves the Desolate Gods.


    The heir to the Desolate God was known as ��the Desolation.��


    This was very similar to the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. They also claimed to be founded by a God-level figure.


    Most of the top-tier factions in the Divine Prefecture had very ancient roots. Wangshen Watchtower, on the other hand, had a much shorter histories; it was founded by the Millet Emperor himself.


    Desolation glanced at the Yan Hanxing who was speaking just now. A terrifying aura swirled around inside his pair of demonic, pitch-black eyes. It was like he was provoking Yan Hanxing.


    ��Do you want to give it a try?�� Desolation asked Yan Hanxing.


    Hearing his words, many people let out a slightly eager expression. The most powerful people from various continents had arrived. Only that titan, who was governing them all, was not present. However, they should have all arrived; it was just that they had yet to show themselves.


    Now, only that person from the Domain Chief��s Manor has not yet arrived, many people thought.


    Before Zong Chan, there were three people whom everyone most expected to become one of the most powerful figures in the entire Donghua Domain. Among these three people, one was from the Domain Chief��s Manor. Among the other two, one was the Desolation from the Badlands Divine Palace.


    As for the other one, was the lady beside Qin Qing who previously told Qin Qing of Ye Futian��s identity. She was Jiang Yueli, a disciple of the Lord of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, who was also known as the sword goddess.


    Zong Chan was the fourth person to achieve such heights.


    A gathering like this would definitely rouse excitement.


    Many people were staring at Yan Hanxing. How would he reply to Desolation?


    Yan Hanxing turned around, and his sight settled on Desolation. Even though he had a perfect Great Path, Yan Hanxing was, ultimately, still the crown prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. He was an especially powerful character. Even though he was facing Desolation, his eyes still carried a noble look of arrogance. He replied nonchalantly, ��You are still a junior. It would not be fair for me if we sparred. You might have a chance if you advanced to the eighth level.��


    Before breaking through to the high-level Renhuang, his Divine Wheel was also of a Perfect Grade. He was off by only one small step, so certainly, he was not a typical level-nine Renhuang either.


    ��I thought you would attack me head-on,�� Desolation replied, glancing casually at Yan Hanxing. After that, he did not even look at him. It seemed that in Desolation��s eyes, this crown prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was not worth his attention.


    Those who caught his attention must necessarily be those who were similarly outstanding. In other words, those who had a perfect Great Path.


    Desolation took a look at Zong Chan, and when their eyes met, everyone felt a tinge of rivalry.


    However, apart from the leaders of various large factions, Jiang Yueli should be the strongest in the entire Donghua Domain among all the other virtuosos. She was already at the pinnacle of the level eight Renhuang. If she broke through to the ninth level, the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow would become significantly more powerful.


    However, for people like them who have already arrived at such a high level of cultivation, breaking through to the next level was extremely difficult.


    The difference between any two levels was almost like a moat that could not be crossed.


    At that moment, the mighty pressure in the skies become even more intense. The clouds and winds shifted, and from the cultivation grounds of Emperor Xi emerged a row of people. They looked at the virtuosos gathered in front of them and said, ��The practitioners from top-tier factions of any continent are welcome inside. As for the rest, please remain in the outer circle.��


    Everyone understood what he meant. It seemed that Emperor Xi could feel that his tribulation was arriving and invited the virtuosos in. However, he only extended an invitation to the practitioners of the various top-tier factions. Nonetheless, they all understood.


    Emperor Xi was kind enough to allow everyone to stay on Turtle Peak. Even if all of them wanted to enter, there was not enough space to contain all of them.


    ��Thank you, Emperor Xi,�� many people responded. One after another, they walked towards the people who emerged. The conflict here was temporarily resolved!

 Chapter 1999 - Flattery

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the top of the Turtle Peak was a villa shrouded in an ethereal deity aura. There were quite a number of structures built here. It was the residential area of Emperor Xi and his proteges.


    The area was huge, and when Ye Futian and his friends entered, they saw that it was already filled with many people who were chatting about casually.


    ��Millet Emperor.�� Ye Futian��s sight settled on a particular individual. The Millet Emperor had already arrived along with a few other extraordinary characters. They were likely practitioners of the same level as the Millet Emperor. Everyone understood that these were the titans of the Donghua Domain.


    They arrived inconspicuously. No one noticed their presence from the outside; furthermore, no one dared to use their divine consciousness to peek into the cultivation grounds of Emperor Xi. This showed extreme disrespect to their seniors, so no one had the guts to do it.


    Ye Futian looked at where they were standing and located the person standing in the group��s center. That person was dressed in very simple robes and looked to be in his fifties. Despite his age, he seemed to be alive with energy, and he certainly had an extraordinary air about him. He chatted with a smile on his face, and the feeling he gave off made people feel very comfortable. It was as though they were bathed in a spring breeze.


    Interestingly, one could not feel any aura from him; it was like he was just an ordinary human. However, if he was standing here, there was no way he was just any ordinary human.


    Emperor Xi! Ye Futian thought to himself. He was someone who had a perfect Great Path and was about to experience the Tribulations of Gods.


    According to what Li Changsheng said earlier, there was no one in the Donghua Domain who had overcome the three tribulations. No one had even overcome the first tribulation. This was uncertain only for one person, and that was the manor chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor. Li Changsheng mentioned that no one knew what level the manor chief was at, and no one knew if he had overcome the Great Path Tribulations of Gods. However, none of the other virtuosos had ever overcome it before.


    Setting aside the matter of overcoming it, basically, no one was eligible to even experience the tribulations. After all, one would only have the chance if their Great Path was perfect, and in the Donghua Domain, a vast majority of virtuosos were ��fake�� Emperors.


    Thus, once Emperor Xi managed to overcome the tribulations successfully, he would most likely become the number one person in the Donghua Domain. If the Domain Chief Manor��s chief concealed his power, then he would at least be the number one practitioner apart from the manor chief.


    With such a level of cultivation, he would be considered a top-tier character even in the entire Divine Prefecture.


    When everyone arrived, they all looked in the direction of Emperor Xi. In return, Emperor Xi also looked at the crowd before him. With just a glance, everyone mistakenly felt that he was looking at each of them.


    Emperor Xi had a kind smile on his face as he spoke to the crowd, ��I haven��t been to the outside world in such a long time, so I have not yet met the junior practitioners of the Donghua Domain. Ever since the Age of Chaos back then, Donghuang the Great unified the entire Divine Prefecture, creating the age of peace that lasted for numerous years. Now, with every passing year, more outstanding juniors have emerged, and it has only been a little over three hundred years since the unification of the Divine Prefecture. I believe that with time, there will be a greater number of especially powerful figures who, like me, will experience the tribulations.��


    In the Age of Chaos, there were too many prodigies and top-tier factions that were destroyed. It was only in the recent three hundred or so years that the world had become far more peaceful. When all the powerful and famous figures managed to survive till now, there would be more virtuosos in the world.


    ��These juniors are still a long way from senior Emperor Xi. In this generation, there are only a few people who have managed to forge a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel when ascending to the high-level Renhuang,�� an elderly man smiled.


    ��It is the same for every generation; when the next generation attempts to break through to the high Renhuang level, more influential people will emerge,�� Emperor Xi smiled.


    ��Indeed, in the next generation, there are many with great potential distributed across various factions; they are all very exceptional. Didn��t Zong Chan from the Wangshen Watchtower succeed not too long ago?�� Someone smiled, causing many people to look toward the Millet Emperor.


    ��Mmm, Zong Chan is indeed not bad.�� The Millet Emperor smiled. Looking at Zong Chan, he said, ��Zong Chan, come over and meet Emperor Xi and your seniors.��


    ��Yes, teacher.�� Zong Chan nodded lightly and walked towards them. Stopping in front of them, he bowed and said, ��Junior Zong Chan pays his respects to Emperor Xi and seniors.��


    ��Mmm,�� Emperor Xi nodded. ��You��re still so young. Certainly, in the future, you will become more powerful. Who are the other powerful juniors in our Donghua Domain now?��


    ��There are Jiang Yueli from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, Desolation from the Badlands Continent, as well as the son of the Manor Chief. The three of them achieved a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel as high-level Renhuangs before Zong Chan,�� said the leader of the Nanhua Clan of the Nanhua Continent with a smile. He had an otherworldly air about him. He looked at the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow and the Badlands Divine Palace. Both Jiang Yueli and Desolation were there.


    ��Jiang Yueli pays her respects to senior Emperor Xi,�� Jiang Yueli bowed lightly.


    On the other hand, Desolation bowed to Emperor Xi across the air without saying anything. The practitioners of the Badlands Continent were all loners and arrogant. They were very used to being alone. Towards Emperor Xi, however, Desolation still maintained a level of respect. It was his respect towards a virtuoso. This was someone who was going to overcome the Tribulations of Gods; it was a goal that he was going to pursue in the future.


    Emperor Xi nodded at the two of them.l He asked Jiang Yueli, ��Did your master not come?��


    ��Teacher says she will come,�� Jiang Yueli responded.


    As they were talking, a powerful aura permeated the region from afar. In the next instance, a beam of sword radiance descended in front of Jiang Yueli. A sharp-looking woman appeared. She had a rather cold air about her. Standing there, she was like a sword; it was like she was one with the Heavenly Path.


    She was the lord of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow and the Sword Goddess of the Donghua Domain.


    This Sword Goddess was honorably known as the top swordsman in the entire Donghua Domain.


    ��Since Emperor Xi was going to experience the tribulations, I must attend this event,�� the Sword Goddess said.


    ��I thought the same, too. After all, you will also have such a day in the future.�� Emperor Xi smiled. The Sword Goddess was also a top Renhuang with a perfect Great Path and one of the most powerful people in the Donghua Domain.


    Previously, this Sword Goddess was among the top three in the ranked list of the most powerful figures in the Donghua Domain.


    The Sword Goddess did not respond to this comment. Emperor Xi looked at the people behind her and said, ��It seems like powerful characters will emerge from the next generation of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow.��


    ��In the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, apart from Jiang Yueli who had ascended to the high Renhuang level with a perfect Great Path, the other direct disciples of the palace lord, Chu Hanxi and Qin Qing, are both middle-level Renhuangs with a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel. They will surely have a chance, too, in the future. The next generation of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow is indeed exceptional,�� someone said with a smile. The person who spoke was the Lingxiao Palace Lord. He was dressed very lavishly and had an extraordinary air about him.


    ��There are many exceptional people in the next generation of the Donghua Domain, and even disregarding the Domain Chief��s Manor, various factions have influential characters of their own. Furthermore, the Divine Prefecture is so vast and boundless, we might not even know of many prodigies who exist,�� said Jiang Yueli, who was standing behind the Sword Goddess. She seemed to want the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow to avoid catching everyone��s attention.


    ��I��ve also heard that Ling He had met a rather powerful person on the Divine Ocean Continent. He is the descendent of the Supreme Deity Donglai, right?�� the Lingxiao Palace Lord said as he looked at the Millet Emperor.


    The Millet Emperor and the Donglai Goddess furrowed their brows slightly. The Supreme Deity Donglai used to be one of the few standing at the pinnacle of the cultivation world before he was murdered. His death was a very sensitive issue.


    After hearing his words, the eyes of the overlord of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family turned sharp, and he glanced at where Ye Futian was standing.


    ��I was only lucky to be able to enter Eastern Deity Island and obtain the favor of the Donglai Goddess who took care of me,�� Ye Futian smiled, noticing that everyone was looking at him. He glanced at the overlord of the Lingxiao Palace and saw that he was smiling back at him. However, the smile made him feel very uncomfortable.


    He did not want to be in the limelight. Today��s main character was Emperor Xi. With his low cultivation level and lack of any strong backing, what was he supposed to do standing in the limelight in the presence of all the top-tier factions in the Donghua Domain?


    ��You are too humble,�� the Lingxiao Palace overlord smiled. ��Considering your current cultivation level as a middle-level Renhuang, with what you have achieved previously, you can rank at least among the top three in the Donghua Domain.��


    As he finished speaking, the way that many people looked at Ye Futian instantly changed.


    Ye Futian furrowed his brow. Is he flattering me? he thought to himself.


    Furthermore, the other party was of an extraordinary status. He was the Lingxiao Palace overlord and one of the most influential practitioners in the world. Being given such high praise from this man, not only should Ye Futian not refute it, but he should thank him for it.


    This made Ye Futian extremely uncomfortable.


    With all the top-tier factions in the entire Donghua Domain present, what was his motive in praising him so highly?


    Ye Futian bowed lightly and said, ��Senior, you flatter me. My cultivation is still rather superficial. I certainly do not deserve such high praise. The last time when I met the prince of the Lingxiao Palace while comprehending the Way at the Divine Ocean, I noticed that my own demeanor is far behind his.��


    ��What are you talking about, Brother Ye?�� Ling He said. ��It was you, Brother Ye, who managed to comprehend the secrets of the cliff at the Divine Ocean.��


    ��I was only lucky. Before, we had some disagreements when comprehending the Way. When Brother Ling bluntly said that we were wrong, we felt shamed by that extraordinary aura and strong confidence that you exuded. We recognized that we were inferior, and Brother Ling��s aura certainly overpowered ours. Even our Mindfulness of the Path was a little damaged. It was only after giving our all in our struggle that we managed to decipher the secrets of the cliff by accident. I still have to thank Brother Ling for sparking our potential,�� Ye Futian replied with a slight smile. He treated Ling He with the same exaggerated praise.


    It was as though the person who lost then was him and not Ling He.


    Indeed, hearing Ye Futian��s reply, Ling He��s looks in his eyes became a little strange. His eyes narrowed slightly as he stared at Ye Futian.


    Was he mocking him?


    At that time, Ye Futian did not in the least bit behave in a cowardly way. In fact, he was very overbearing in his response.


    ��You two, there is no need to argue over this.�� At that moment, a silhouette walked out from behind Emperor Xi. He looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��Was it you who managed to decipher the relics left behind on the cliff?��


    Ye Futian looked at him. The person was rather large, and his long hair was untied and flowed behind him, giving off a rather wild feeling. To Ye Futian, he gave off similar vibes as Emperor Xi; he was another prominent character.


    Furthermore, this person was standing behind Emperor Xi. So, Ye Futian could almost guess his identity.


    ��I was just lucky,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Mmm, not bad,�� the man nodded. ��Back when I was comprehending the Way at the cliff, I carved those markings casually. I did not expect that anyone could really decipher and comprehend it. You have unlimited potential.��


    With this sentence, he had hinted at his identity, the Thunder Punishing Skylord.


    Ye Futian bowed lightly, ��I gained quite a bit at the cliff. Thank you, senior Thunder Punishing Skylord.��


    ��This was your opportunity, so there is no need to thank me,�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord replied casually. He seemed to be rather impressed by Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2000 - Facing Tribulations

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��The rising generation is to be reckoned with.��


    Emperor Xi looked at Ye Futian. He then smiled and said, ��Under the rule of the Great Emperor, more and more prominent figures will surely appear in the Divine Prefecture.��


    As long as the Age of Turmoil did not return, the number of cultivators would increase. Many exceptional figures would certainly appear with each passing generation.


    Compared to back in the day, the current environment of cultivation was so much better.


    ��What Emperor Xi says is true. After the Great Emperor unified the world, he ordered the powerful cultivators to spread their teachings in the Divine Prefecture, causing martial arts to prosper. Now, we have many extraordinary figures in the Donghua Domain, and Emperor Xi is also facing a tribulation. It is indeed worth rejoicing.��


    A voice called out from afar. The crowd saw a group of figures walking over. Their leader was draped in a white fur coat. He appeared immaculate. His smiling gaze was full of vigor. Behind him, there were many cultivators. Each of them was a prominent figure.


    ��The chief has arrived,�� Emperor Xi said with a smile.


    ��We were wondering whether you would grace us with your presence. We never imagined that we would see you so soon,�� Ling Xiao Palace Palace Lord stated with a smile. Many people extended their greetings. The Donghua Domain Domain Chief��s Manor consisted of the people sent to the Donghua Domain by the Great Emperor. Nominally, the Chief was the ruler of the Donghua Domain and maintained the order within the domain.


    However, in the cultivation world, Domain Chief��s Manor rarely intervened in matters of the outside world. They were even less likely to interfere with the affairs of the top forces. They merely ensured no major incidents occurred. The world was too big; they could not manage all of it even if they wanted to. The world of cultivation had its own rules.


    ��Emperor Xi is facing a divine tribulation. How could I possibly miss it?�� the Chief said with a smile. ��I also get to meet all of you here. Almost all of the top figures in the Donghua Domain have come. It is a rare occasion.��


    The arrival of the Domain Chief drew away attention away from Ye Futian. He was also sizing up the Domain Chief and the cultivators around him. After the Domain Chief arrived, many top figures greeted him. The relationship between the giant figures of the Donghua Domain was somewhat delicate.


    Although Donghuang the Great ruled the Divine Prefecture, he did not directly control the various forces. Back then in the Original Realm, from the relationship between Princess Donghuang and the other top forces, Ye Futian caught some hint of this.


    However, how powerful was the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain? Was he the most powerful person in the Domain?


    The Millet Emperor had previously planned to let Ye Futian enter the Domain Chief��s manor to cultivate. It would be much safer that way. Ye Futian was also considering whether to head to the Domain Chief��s manor.


    However, at a glance, he could not tell what sort of person the Domain Chief was.


    At that moment, Chief raised his head and looked up into the sky. The pressure of the Great Path grew stronger and stronger. The weather changed, and divine signs appeared. The sky above was enveloped in a suppressive aura. Dark clouds surged over from tens of thousands of miles around.


    ��It seems that I came at the right moment. Has the Hour of Reckoning arrived?�� Chief asked as he looked at Emperor Xi.


    ��Hmm, soon,�� Emperor Xi replied as he nodded. ��Before the tribulation arrived, I only had a faint premonition of its arrival. Now, it has come.��


    As he said this, he glanced around at the crowd and said, ��Everyone, please vacate your seats and set up your defenses. Although this tribulation is aimed at me, I am worried that some of you might accidentally be hurt. I hope all of you will keep your guard up.��


    ��Many thanks for Emperor Xi��s reminder,�� the crowd replied as they nodded their heads. Next, in their own groups, the various cultivators gradually left their seats. The top figures walked ahead of the rest of them. The aura of the Great Path surged from their bodies. They were prepared at every moment.


    ��It is coming. All of you should stand back,�� Emperor Xi instructed the crowd behind him. The crowd immediately retreated. Emperor Xi raised his head and looked up at the sky. A terrifying aura coalesced. In the sky above, Clouds of Catastrophe surged rapidly, becoming more and more frightening.


    ��It is still gaining momentum,�� Ye Futian commented as he raised his head and looked at the sky. This divine tribulation of the Great Path seemed to have a life of its own. This aura made Ye Futian feel as though he was suffocating. It was as though the sky was about to collapse. A Divine Catastrophe could not be compared to this power.


    The Millet Emperor stood before the crowd and said, ��We��d better retreat further back and give Emperor Xi some space.��


    As he said this, the group of figures continued retreating backward. They were already beyond Turtle Peak. They stood in mid-air as they looked over where Emperor Xi was at. A powerful aura came from the Millet Emperor��s body. It appeared to be an absolute domain of the Great Path that shielded the crowd.


    On Turtle Deity Island, almost all the cultivators were now looking up at the sky. They saw the terrifying Clouds of Catastrophe circulating above and gathering at Turtle Peak. The entire world seemed to turn dim. This scene was absolutely astonishing.


    This�� Many people revealed astonished expressions when they felt this aura. Someone said in a low voice, ��Will Emperor Xi be in danger?��


    The aura in the sky made them tremble. It was too frightening. If this power descended upon them, the consequences would be unthinkable.


    ��Emperor Xi��s cultivation is high. Few people in the Donghua Domain can compare to him. He will be fine,�� someone else replied. The person seemed very confident, but the look in his eyes was serious. Clearly, he was still somewhat worried.


    Emperor Xi was the legendary figure of Turtle Deity Island. No one wanted anything to happen to him. If Emperor Xi successfully faced this tribulation, he would then undergo another metamorphosis. There was a chance that he would become the strongest figure in the Donghua Domain.


    Even the cultivators of Eastern Deity Island wanted to witness such a miracle.


    Beyond Turtle Deity Island, in the Divine Ocean, the people who were not on the island were also looking up at the sky. This terrifying scene could be seen far and wide. At this moment, the Divine Ocean Continent had been stirred up.


    The cultivators of this continent could see the strange changes in the sky. Of course, the aura they felt was weaker the further away they were from Turtle Deity Island. It was not as terrifying as it was on the island. All the Clouds of Catastrophe were surging towards it.


    On Turtle Deity Island, Thunder Punishing Skylord raised his head and looked into the sky. Dark purple light of catastrophe was gradually accumulating in the heavens above, shining down upon them. It contained destructive power that was frightening beyond comparison. Cracks of the Great Path seemed to appear in the space. The cracks were frighteningly deep.


    Even Thunder Punishing Skylord felt an intense sense of caution well up in him.


    This was a divine tribulation. The Great Path would not tolerate Emperor Xi. The laws of this world did not allow for Emperor Xi to exist.


    This was also Thunder Punishing Skylord��s first time experiencing such power. As he watched the frightening destructive power that was constantly gathering, he gazed ahead and saw Emperor Xi standing alone in mid-air. His long robes fluttered around even though there was no wind. A divine aura of the Great Path emanated from his surroundings.


    Right now, Emperor Xi was battling the very heavens itself.


    The terrifying light of destruction descended from above without a sound or presence. It blinded the eyes of those around. Many people could not resist closing their eyes. The blinding light tore apart the space. It directly descended and struck Emperor Xi.


    There was no terrifying rumble that people expected, only destructive power. Endless destructive light circled Emperor Xi��s figure, seemingly tearing apart and destroying his Body of Way.


    At that moment, Emperor Xi��s long hair danced around. There seemed to be destructive silver snakes wrapping around his figure. Terrifying cracks of the Great Path appeared in the space around him non-stop.


    Down below, Turtle Peak was instantly turned to dust without any warning. It disappeared just like that, as though it had never existed.


    The surrounding cultivators felt their hearts tremble. The various top figures blocked off the excess energy.


    The divine tribulation was like heavenly punishment.


    In the sky, an even more terrifying aura gathered, growing more and more horrifying.


    Many people were looking up into the sky. There seemed to be the Swords of Catastrophe. They pierced down from the sky above and penetrated this part of the sky. There was nowhere to hide at all as they chased and stabbed at Emperor Xi��s figure.


    Rumble. Emperor Xi��s long hair danced wildly. His clothes were torn, and his figure appeared to be penetrated by the light of catastrophe. He actually threw up a mouthful of fresh red blood. However, he still had a resolved look in his eyes as he looked up. There was an unprecedented determination in his eyes.


    After cultivating for a thousand years, he finally waited for this moment. How could he allow the tribulation to destroy him? Since he had chosen to walk this path, he was destined to transcend this world and rise above the world order.


    Buzz! Emperor Xi��s figure shot up into the sky. As the crowd watched with astonished gazes, he charged up directly into the sky and entered into the storm of destruction. In an instant, he was swallowed up by the raging vortex.

 Chapter 2001 - Tribulation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Divine Ocean Continent, countless people were looking up towards the heavens. In the sky above the continent, it was as though a deity was standing up there. Emperor Xi had become a divine deity.


    The destructive storm covered the space. Under the watchful gazes of the crowd, the powerful Emperor Xi was facing the onslaught of the law of the Great Path. Light of catastrophe of various colors was charging towards him, attacking his figure again and again. However, Emperor Xi was surrounded by a terrifying light shroud of the Great Path. He withstood the blows from the light of catastrophe.


    Rumble. A dull sound could be heard. The ocean was being pushed back. Huge waves churned on the Divine Ocean. With Emperor Xi as the center, an absolute domain of the Great Path emerged. It was as though it was the domain of a deity that formed its own independent space. An extremely dazzling galaxy circled his figure endlessly. Emperor Xi stood at the center of the galaxy, appearing to be its master.


    Legends told that deity-level existences possessed their own divine domains of the Great Path. Such existences transcended this world and were not restricted by the laws of the Great Path. They existed high above the heavens and were one with the universe, immortal and indestructible.


    This was what all cultivators pursued. However, it was said that only those with flawless Great Paths were qualified to chase after this goal.


    The Heavenly Law had changed. It did not allow for the existence of transcendent-level figures. Hence, this tribulation of the Law of the Great Path had descended. Emperor Xi needed to complete all three stages to transcend. However, it was rumored that each stage was a life-or-death experience. Even for existences at his level, they could still perish to the tribulation and be destroyed.


    Emperor Xi had cultivated on Turtle Deity Island in the Divine Ocean Continent for many years to prepare for this.


    The light of law rampaged. It charged into the light of the galaxy and collided with the power of the Great Path of the galaxy. It annihilated the light of the galaxy. It was as though even the domain of the Great Path of the galaxy could not withstand the unending onslaught of the light of law.


    Emperor Xi��s figure shone brilliantly, radiating divine light. Above his Body of Way, a gigantic shadow of a divine turtle appeared. It was a gigantic Xuanwu. It was like a boulder that enveloped Emperor Xi��s figure.


    The galaxy and the Xuanwu protected his body.


    The people below felt their hearts tremble in astonishment. Emperor Xi was so powerful. Yet, such a figure had to go all-out to face such a tribulation. Many Renhuangs trembled when they felt the might of the tribulation. Countless demonic beasts in the ocean did not dare to surface. They could only bow and submit to this power. This was a heavenly might that they could not resist.


    They were also only sensing the pressure of the might. This power was aimed solely at Emperor Xi and would not attack them. At most, they would only feel the aftershocks.


    Millet Emperor retracted his defenses, allowing Ye Futian and the others to personally feel the power.


    This was Ye Futian��s first time witnessing someone facing a divine tribulation of the Great Path. He was also in awe at what was happening. This tribulation was the most powerful event that the world could accommodate.


    Would Emperor Xi be able to withstand it?


    ��What is that?�� Ye Futian asked as he saw an even more frightening power accumulating above Emperor Xi. An endless storm of Clouds of Catastrophe gathered together. They were far from where Ye Futian was, but they still made his heart falter.


    ��A law attack of the Great Path is gathering over there,�� Millet Emperor explained. ��I have heard that every time a cultivator faces a tribulation, the law attack which appears is different for each of them. There is even a difference in power. I wonder what type of power of law Emperor Xi will attract.��


    The Divine light of the Law of the Great Path coalesced. The light that radiated from there caused the people around here to cower in fear. The light was also blinding, resulting in people not daring to watch.


    The power gradually took form. It left the crowd in awe. It was actually a sword.


    ��A Sword of Law!��


    The Millet Emperor��s expression became serious.


    ��Teacher, is that law attack very powerful?�� Zong Chan asked the Millet Emperor. If he could reach Emperor Xi��s Plane, he might experience a similar scene in the future and face his own tribulation.


    The Millet Emperor explained, ��It is very powerful. A Sword of Law gathers the swordsmanship of the heavens and the earth. It is considered an existence with terrifying attack power. For Emperor Xi, this might prove to be dangerous.�� This caused the hearts of the surrounding people to quaver. Would it pose a danger for a figure as powerful as Emperor Xi?


    This Sword of Law must be the most critical blow of the tribulation.


    In the sky, the darkness dissipated. Endless streaks of light of catastrophe gathered around the sword. A beam of light descended from the sky, seemingly penetrating this part of the world. The heavens were pierced through. If this sword attack landed on the Divine Ocean Continent, it would even stab right through it.


    All of the cultivators of the Divine Ocean Continent had stern expressions as they stared at the Sword of Law in the heavens. Before this, many people were excited about the event. Yet, right now, everyone was gazing up in the sky with profound respect.


    This was a tribulation, the first of three stages.


    Legends claimed that each stage was like passing through Death��s door. Passing each stage was like being reborn into a new life. There would be three stages of tribulations, each one stronger than the last. The third one was the most critical one of all. Legends said that very few people had managed to survive the last stage. Many transcendent figures had reached this stage only to perish to the tribulation. Hence, some cultivators were willing to put off facing this last stage and cultivate in seclusion, preparing for tens of thousands of years to face it.


    The Divine Prefecture was too vast; it was practically endless. Many people believed that such reclusive figures as these old monsters who had lived for countless eons existed.


    At that moment, many people were worried about Emperor Xi. Could he withstand this law attack?


    Rumble!


    Intense rumbling could be heard. Ye Futian��s group lowered their heads and peered down. Beneath Turtle Peak, the earth shook, and huge cracks appeared on the surface, forming frightening chasms.


    From underground, seemingly buried beneath the earth, a gigantic creature appeared. It had the shell of a turtle.


    This humongous creature slowly rose into the sky. The crowd felt their hearts tremble intensely. This gigantic creature was actually a giant beast.


    A Xuanwu! A great turtle!


    The crowd revealed astonished looks. Beneath Turtle Deity Island, there was actually a hidden Xuanwu that no one knew about. It seemed to be hibernating without a sound or presence and had become one with the earth.


    A deep sound could be heard as the Xuanwu let out a cry. The Divine Ocean roared, and huge waves churned on the surface. He raised his head, and then, with a flash of his figure, he charged into the sky. In an instant, he traversed the space. Such a gigantic creature was actually so fast. Before the witnesses could react at all, he had arrived beside Emperor Xi.


    ��You are already so old. Why did you come out from your burrow?�� Emperor Xi asked.


    ��To help you,�� the Xuanwu replied.


    ��That won��t be necessary,�� Emperor Xi answered.


    The Xuanwu raised his head and looked at the Sword of Law. No one else understood Emperor Xi��s abilities better than he did. Such a sword could destroy Emperor Xi��s entire life��s cultivation.


    ��I have slumbered for a thousand years just for this day,�� the Xuanwu said. ��It is just as you said: there is no meaning in living forever.��


    As he said this, his gigantic figure advanced and came up beside Emperor Xi. He actually merged with the gigantic shadow of the Xuanwu that was enveloping Emperor Xi��s body. His eyes looked up at the divine sword, and a scorching glow burst out from them.


    The sword light splashed down. The crowd saw that in the heavens above, the Sword of Law was charging down. At that moment, the world was pierced right through.


    The Xuanwu lifted his head and bellowed. The heavens trembled, and earthquakes shook the continent. The Divine Ocean was sent into a frenzy, and huge waves swept over the various islands. The crowd felt their spiritual souls quavering. Their Qi and blood churned within them. However, their gazes were still fixed on the sword in the sky.


    The sword stabbed down, and blinding divine light followed. It caused many people to involuntarily shut their eyes, not daring to look at it. Only Renhuangs could withstand the blinding rays of light. They squinted as they watched the sky above.


    They saw the galaxy shatter and the sword stab down. The gigantic figure of the Xuanwu, the Black Turtle, was ripped apart gradually. However, the humongous beast still had an unshakeable and calm look in his eyes.


    The Great Path collapsed, and mountains and rivers shattered. However, he remained standing.


    The surface of the Divine Ocean Continent was pierced through by the sword light. The body of the Xuanwu was not destroyed yet. The might of the Great Path was released to its utmost limit from Emperor Xi��s body, merging with the Xuanwu. Emperor Xi��s long hair danced frantically in the wind. His eyes revealed a pained expression. He had already prepared to face the tribulation and had allowed people from all around to witness it. Regardless of whether he survived or died, he had prepared himself to accept it. At the same time, this was also a warning to the world of what a divine tribulation was.


    ��Old friend, I��ll be heading off first,�� said the Xuanwu with a muddy voice. His voice sounded exceptionally heavy, like a mountain. It was as though a part of the sky was pressing down on Emperor Xi. Be it man or demonic beast, those who cultivated sought the highest Way. No one truly wanted to die.


    Even if they lived for countless eons, they would still be reluctant to die. The words of the Xuanwu had merely been to comfort Emperor Xi.


    At that moment, Emperor Xi did not ask the Xuanwu why he had done so. Instead, he calmed down and said, ��You go on ahead. I will come find you in the future.��


    ��For the next stages, if you cannot manage, just don��t face them,�� said the Xuanwu. His body shattered under the sword, constantly exploding. It appeared as though the heavens and earth were falling apart.


    Endless divine light radiated from Emperor Xi��s figure. He became one with the galaxy and was bathed in the residue sword light.


    After cultivating for a lifetime, was it still that difficult to face the first of three divine tribulations?


    Blinding light radiated, and the Sword of Law became beams of light that dispersed without a trace. Many people still had their eyes shut.


    After a long while, the Clouds of Catastrophe in the heavens above seemed to dissipate gradually. Countless people raised their heads and looked up into the sky. The sword had already disappeared, and the tribulation was also over. Only one person remained standing silently in the sky. It seemed as though he had been standing there for a long time.


    This figure was Emperor Xi.


    ��Congratulations, Emperor Xi,�� cried countless people from all over the Divine Ocean Continent. Regardless of whether Emperor Xi could hear them, they were still happy for him.


    So, this was a divine tribulation. They had taken it too lightly before. Now that they had witnessed a true divine tribulation, it was as though they had died and been reborn and had actually experienced it themselves.


    Emperor Xi had gone through a life-or-death experience.


    ��Congratulations, Emperor Xi,�� cried out countless people on Turtle Deity Island as they congratulated him on successfully facing the divine tribulation of the Great Path.


    The top figures looked at the silhouette in the sky. They did not say anything as they looked up in the sky quietly. To survive this tribulation, Emperor Xi had also paid an enormous price. The super-powerful Xuanwu had perished.


    They actually had not known that such a terrifying Xuanwu had been slumbering beneath Turtle Deity Island. Emperor Xi kept too low a profile. If it weren��t for this tribulation, no one would have known.


    Unfortunately, such a gigantic Xuanwu had perished just like that. He had taken Emperor Xi��s place so that he could survive this tribulation.


    Emperor Xi stood high in the sky, quietly. He just stood there. No one knew what he was thinking. However, they knew that for Emperor Xi, there was no joy in having passed the tribulation. For Emperor Xi, this was a tragedy!

 Chapter 2002 - Demanding for People

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After a long while, Emperor Xi��s figure floated down to the ground and came to an empty spot. The once tall Turtle Peak had been reduced to a plain.


    It was not just Turtle Peak. Huge chasms had appeared on Turtle Deity Island. Even the Divine Ocean Continent had been pierced through by the sword. The surface of the ocean was constantly roaring now as the ocean surged back into the land.


    There was a huge hole down below. It was the place where the gigantic Xuanwu had slumbered. Emperor Xi stared at that spot, not saying anything for a long time. This Xuanwu had been his demonic beast companion. He had followed Emperor Xi for many years, and they had grown up together.


    Many years ago, the Xuanwu began his slumber. Upon his awakening, he had perished to aid Emperor Xi in facing the divine tribulation.


    ��Emperor Xi, do not grieve,�� said the Chief of Domain Chief��s Manor. ��Brother Xuanwu has a righteous spirit. Aiding you in facing this tribulation must have been his wish. Do not feel so sad.��


    The various top cultivators looked towards Emperor Xi. Although they were giant figures, for many of them, this was also their first time witnessing a divine tribulation.


    There were three stages for a divine tribulation of the Great Path. Each was more difficult than the previous one. This had only been the first stage, and it was already so terrifying. They thought to themselves that if they were to face the tribulation themselves, they would not have done any better than Emperor Xi. They would have most likely perished during this stage. The Sword of Law was too frightening. Such a blow was enough to destroy them.


    Now, Emperor Xi��s abilities could only be compared to the Chief of the Donghua Domain. The others did not have the confidence that they could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Emperor Xi.


    ��Teacher, please do not feel too sad,�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord also spoke. Although he was a Skylord and a giant figure, he still called Emperor Xi his teacher and was very respectful. Back then, if it hadn��t been for Emperor Xi��s guidance, Thunder Punishing Skylord might not have been able to reach his current level.


    Emperor Xi nodded his head slightly. He turned his gaze to the crowd who was comforting him and said, ��Thank you, all of you. My intention for facing the tribulation this time had originally been to allow the world to witness what a divine tribulation truly was. I had made peace with whether I lived or died to it. It is just that I never imagined that I survived while the Xuanwu had taken my place in dying. Nevertheless, if I cannot make it through the second tribulation, I��ll go give him some company.��


    Before the Xuanwu had perished, he had asked Emperor Xi not to face the second tribulation. However, Emperor Xi had clearly not taken his advice to heart.


    Having cultivated until his current level, Emperor Xi had his own beliefs. Regardless of whether he lived or died, he would give things a try. It was still the same now.


    However, after having felt the might of the first stage, Emperor Xi himself did not have high hopes of surviving the second tribulation.


    The Sword of Law appeared during the first stage. What would appear during the second?


    No one knew, but it would certainly be even more terrifying.


    Right then, Emperor Xi lowered his head and looked down below. He extended his palm forward, and immediately, the power of the Great Path began to accumulate. The hole in the ground was filled up, and then a mountain rose from the ground. Its shape was the same as Turtle Peak before it. It was as though everything from before had been preserved just as it once was.


    After reforming Turtle Peak, Emperor Xi took a step forward and landed on it. The cultivators from the various top forces also headed over to where he was. They soon landed on Turtle Peak. Many people were somewhat curious as to how much Emperor Xi��s abilities had improved after facing the tribulation.


    However, they would most likely not have the chance to know. Emperor Xi would not display it to them.


    ��Although the process was somewhat saddening, I still have to offer my congratulations. A person who has passed the first stage of a divine tribulation has appeared in our Donghua Domain. Another legendary figure has emerged in the Divine Prefecture,�� the Donghua Domain Chief said as he looked at Emperor Xi. It would have been inappropriate for others to have said this, but this person was instructed by Donghuang the Great to supervise the Donghua Domain. He was the Domain Chief. There was naturally no issue with him stating such things.


    Emperor Xi replied, ��The Divine Prefecture is vast and has countless cultivators. There are too many experts, and there are still hidden existences. The Donghua Domain is similarly full of cultivators. The crowd that came here today are all among the top figures. In the future, there will be a surge of prominent figures emerging. For me to be able to survive the tribulation this time was already pure luck. It is not worthy of praise.�� He seemed to brush it aside casually. Experiencing this tribulation was equivalent to having a life-or-death experience. His mindset was more at peace.


    ��You are too modest,�� said the Chief. ��Emperor Xi, are you willing to enter the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate? Or maybe the Imperial Domain? I am sure that His Highness also needs figures like you.��


    Emperor Xi shook his head and said, ��I��ve grown accustomed to idling about. Also, I do not wish to leave. In the future, I will continue to stay here and cultivate. Matters in the Divine Prefecture��s cultivation world still require the Chiefs to bear the burden of the Great Emperor.��


    The Chief nodded his head. He was merely offering a suggestion. Such matters could not be forced.


    ��If that is the case, I will not continue to disturb Emperor Xi��s meditation,�� said the Chief with a smile. He then glanced around at the crowd and said, ��Everyone, if you have the opportunity, come visit the Donghua Heavens next year. My visit is somewhat abrupt this time. Next year, in the Donghua Heavens, I wish to meet with the prominent figures of the various continents.��


    ��Since Chief has invited us, I will naturally not turn down the offer,�� the Ling Xiao Palace Palace Lord replied with a smile. This caused many people to give him a look. Ling Xiao Palace was originally located in the Donghua Heavens. He would certainly have no problems with this since he did not need to travel.


    ��I will consider it,�� responded Sword Goddess of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. The others also give their own responses.


    ��We will also not disturb Emperor Xi��s cultivation. Farewell,�� Sword Goddess declared. She was also someone with a flawless Great Path. Her cultivation was extremely potent, and she was known as one of the top existences in the Donghua Domain. Having witnessed Emperor Xi face the tribulation, she was inspired and planned to continue cultivating in seclusion once she returned.


    If she were to invite a divine tribulation of the Great Path one day, would she be able to receive the Sword of Law?


    ��We will also bid farewell,�� members of the crowd said one after another. The tribulation passed, and there was no need for them to remain. Although they were acquainted with each other, that was all just formality. They were not on very friendly terms. All of them had only come for the divine tribulation.


    As it had passed, they should be returning home.


    Emperor Xi nodded his head. He did not ask them to stay. Or rather, he was not in the mood to ask them to stay.


    ��May all of you have a safe trip home,�� Emperor Xi said. All the cultivators slowly left Turtle Peak with their respective groups.


    ��Let��s go,�� the Millet Emperor commanded Ye Futian and the rest. Everyone nodded in agreement and flew up to the sky. They followed the Millet Emperor and were ready to return to the Dongxiao Continent.


    They left Turtle Peak and traversed in the sky.


    ��Hang on, Millet Emperor.��


    A voice suddenly came from behind them while the Millet Emperor and his group were traversing among the clouds. The Millet Emperor stopped in his tracks. Everyone turned around and saw a group of cultivators approaching them. Very quickly, the approaching group caught up and stopped when the two groups were near. They stared at the Millet Emperor and the rest of his group.


    When the Millet Emperor saw the approaching group, he frowned. Ye Futian and the others also revealed cold looks.


    The person who had called out to them was the prince of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. He stood at a distance from them with an imposing manner. He swept a glance over their group.


    Behind the prince, the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family were also here. They were all looking at the Millet Emperor. A formless pressure enveloped this part of the sky.


    Previously, Ye Futian and the rest were already dissatisfied when Yan Dongyang from Great Yan Ancient Royal Family led the cultivators of the Yan Kingdom to the Wangshen Watchtower. Moreover, the two groups had bad blood with each other, to begin with. Emperor Yan and the Millet Emperor were not on good terms with each other. Now, most likely, nothing good would come from the prince calling out to them.


    Far off in the distance in different directions, the people who were initially about to leave noticed the situation over here. They could not help but stop in their tracks. Their wills emanated from their bodies as they observed the situation over here.


    It seemed as though the storm had yet to pass.


    ��Is there anything you need?�� the Millet Emperor asked as he swept an indifferent gaze towards Emperor Yan. The old grudges between them ran deep, but they did not resort to blows. The Millet Emperor��s tone was clearly cold. He, naturally, would not give the other party face.


    ��Yes, there is,�� Emperor Yan replied while nodding his head. He said, ��Eastern Deity Island has once again begun to be active outside after so many years. They have actually emerged from Eastern Deity Island. Hence, I wish to demand a few people from the Millet Emperor!��

 Chapter 2003 - Go Against

    The Millet Emperor was quite calm. His expressions did not change much even after hearing his counterpart��s words. Then, he asked, ��Who do you want?��


    Emperor Yan answered, ��The people from Eastern Deity Island.��


    ��How do you want them?�� asked the Millet Emperor.


    ��Millet Emperor, you only need to ask them to follow me,�� answered Emperor Yan.


    ��They are right over there. You can go ahead and ask if they want to go with you,�� answered the Millet Emperor as he pointed towards Ye Futian��s group.


    Emperor Yan glanced at Ye Futian��s group and said, ��If they are not willing, then I can only ask them to go.��


    ��Please, go ahead,�� the Millet Emperor said as he gestured with his hand, seemingly indifferent. The conversation between the two had no hostility. It was like a chat between two old friends. However, those looking at the two from afar could sense a confrontational aura around them.


    Did it mean that Emperor Yan could take them away just because the Millet Emperor said that he could go ahead?


    After hearing the Millet Emperor��s reply, Emperor Yan became even more hesitant. He stood there quietly, looking at his counterpart. The two stood in the air and looked at each other. At that moment, the atmosphere around the entire area became unusually dense and heavy. It was as if a frightening aura had shrouded them. It was as if a battle could break out at any time.


    Ye Futian and Goddess Penglai looked at the cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. They had indifferent and somewhat cold expressions along with sharp gazes. They did not show an ounce of fear.


    It was not so easy for the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family to use them.


    ��Since Senior Millet Emperor has replied, then I have no choice but to invite them to visit our Great Yan.�� At that time, a voice emerged. Behind Emperor Yan came the crown prince, Yan Hanxing. He strode forward, carrying a tremendous aura. His Divine Might of the Great Path covered the sky while an intense pressure filled the sky. Faint cries and roarings of dragons could be heard in the distance.


    ��Careful,�� Li Changsheng reminded. He walked forward by himself. Then, at that moment, a thunder-rumbling dragon��s roar completely split the skies.


    Roar��


    A giant divine dragon seemed to appear in the sky. Its cries and roars crushed mountains as well as rivers while heaven and earth crumbled. A frightening Great Path Soundwave shot out and transformed into a vast and scary Storm of the Great Path that transformed the clouds and the sky.


    Yan Hanxing was a Renhuang at the cultivation level of the ninth plane. He was already a peak existence among Renhuangs. And as to how frightening was the Song of the Yan Dragon? One roar was enough to cause one��s blood pressure to dip. Even Ye Futian could feel his internal organs tremble. His spiritual soul also shook intensely. It was excruciating. Behind him, droplets of blood dripped from the corner of Xia Qingyuan��s lip. Her face turned pale.


    Bang. Yan Hanxing leaped into the air with one step, and a low and dull sound rang in the air. As if stepping on people��s hearts, a violent and intense thumping tremor emerged. Everything seemed to have frozen. They looked at the figures striding towards them from the sky. At that moment, the crown prince of the Great Yan Royal Family was like a god of war; he was domineering and unparalleled.


    Emperor Yan did not take action personally, so the Millet Emperor would not intervene. Instead, he watched quietly.


    Li Changsheng stepped forward and released a powerful aura of the ninth plane. His Divine Wheel of the Great Path also emerged. It was a huge ancient tree. Its branches and leaves fluttered as they covered the sky. In an instant, it had spread all over the sky, enveloping Yan Hanxing��s body within.


    Many people looked toward the battlefield. Li Changsheng was an old man who had followed the Millet Emperor for many years. He was very strong. He did not usually display his true strength and kept a very low profile. However, he handled most Wangshen Watchtower affairs, and the Millet Emperor rarely made an appearance. So, in fact, Li Changshen was the equivalent of Wangshen Watchtower��s most senior disciple.


    So, it was natural that he would be the one to fight the crown prince of the Great Yan, Yan Hanxing, at this time.


    While Zong Chan was a high-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path, he had only recently broken through, and his cultivation level was only at the seventh plane. There was no guarantee that his combat strength was sufficient for him to defeat Yan Hanxing. After all, Yan Hanxing was not a common high-level Renhuang. Before becoming a high-level Renhuang, his Divine Wheel of the Great Path was also perfect and flawless.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at the battlefield in the sky. Yan Hanxing��s attack was overwhelmingly strong. However, Li Changsheng��s cultivation level was also very powerful. The divine tree seemed to have taken root in the sky. Roots spread out and sealed the area, trapping Yan Hanxing within it.


    Vuong.


    Then, at that moment, the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family began to flash as they moved towards them. The Millet Emperor stood high up in the sky as his gaze was fixed upon Emperor Yan. It was as if this battle was not related to them in the slightest.


    Last time, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family led the cultivators of the Yanyun Continent to test the Wangshen Watchtower. This time, it was a real clash between the two sides.


    Dragon roars filled the air as the Song of the Yan Dragon continued to burst forth. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family cultivators wanted to kill and defeat the practitioners of the Wangshen Watchtower.


    Goddess Penglai��s body disappeared in a flash. Like a swallow, her body soared through the air, and in an instant, she landed in front of those cultivators. Immediately after she landed, Divine Fire of the Great Path burst from her body, and a large illusion of a divine phoenix appeared. It let out a sharp, piercing shriek.


    From the body of the divine phoenix, endless crimson flame radiated from the feathers on the divine phoenix��s body. Like indestructible flaming red swords, the flaming feathers cut down the cultivators.


    Then, a blinding divine light appeared and pierced through the skies and headed straight towards Goddess Penglai. It was a dragonlance. It transformed into a beam of bright golden light that broke through space, leaving a golden arc between heaven and death. The dragonlance arrived instantly. Accompanied by a domineering dragon roar, the lance thrust forward towards its target as if wanting to crush the sky.


    Goddess Penglai��s body disappeared in a flash and transformed into a bolt of flaming red lightning. The two clashed together instantly, and their exchanges were so fast that one could not follow them with their naked eyes.


    In another location, an elder clad in a magnificent golden robe walked toward Zong Chan. His aura was stunning. He was also a being of the ninth plane, someone from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, a direct descendent of Yan royalty.


    His aura was frightening. Multiple pure-blooded dragons appeared in the sky. Each one of these dragons roared.


    He stretched his hand out and made a grabbing motion despite the gap between him and Zong Chan. However, as he did so, an immensely strong Power of the Great Path appeared. Zong Chan felt his body in the sky being bound.


    Rumble�� In the next moment, the elder��s body transformed into a bolt of lightning and charged forward at a ridiculous speed, as if a divine dragon was charging forward. The entire area seemed as if it was going to be crushed into pieces. Before the person arrived, the will of the punch had already arrived. A frightening explosion sound came from the sky, and the area Zong Chan was in looked like it was going to crumble.


    At that moment, Zong Chan released his perfect grade aura of the Great Path. Seals converged around both his hands. In an instant, countless steles that looked like doors appeared in the sky, surrounding the entire area before slowly closing in as an attempt to seal this Great Path space.


    Zong Chan raised his fist and charged forward. At that moment, a bright Divine Light of the Great Path burst forth from this body. Multiple Doors of the Great Path appeared. Then, as if all 10,000 of these Doors of the Great Path overlapped with each other, they merged into this punch. The two clashed together. Rocks were crushed, and the heavens were shocked.


    A violent bang rang in the air. Countless Doors of the Great Path were punctured and crushed. Zong Chan��s body appeared in the sky. More Doors of the Great Path appeared around him. Every door contained an immense the Great Path��s Power of Suppression that suppressed the space around him and transformed the area into a Great Path domain.


    The Great Path��s Power of Suppression enveloped his opponent��s body, the cultivator on the ninth plane. Even he was feeling immense pressure.


    Zong Chan also felt great pressure. After all, the one he was facing was a being on the ninth plane.


    Then, seals continued to converge around both his hands. In the sky, countless Divine Monuments of the Great Path appeared and surrounded them. Then, the space around them was sealed and transformed into a Great Path domain.


    Then, an ancient aura began to spread. At that moment, Zong Chan was like a divine being. He waved his hands, and instantly countless Divine Monuments of the Great Path flew down from the sky. Rumbling noises filled the air as the pure-blooded dragons clashed with the divine monuments. Then, they exploded.


    However, the divine monuments were so numerous that it seemed like they would never run out. Zong Chan��s body emitted rays of light. As if summoning an ancient gate, the light became larger, and his Power of Suppression also became stronger. The divine dragons wailed. They were subdued.


    Rumble, rumble, rumble�� Numerous divine monuments of different sizes pummeled downward, with his opponent��s body as the target. An illusion of a divine dragon appeared above the ninth plane Renhuang of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. The dragon let out a howl, and he stretched out his hands. The howl of the divine dragon shot out but was completely suppressed. It could not get out of this space. Meanwhile, Zong Chan��s attack seemed like it would never end.


    Many cultivators looked toward Zong Chan��s battlefield. It was the Gate to World Suppression!


    The ultimate skill of the Millet Emperor��s cultivation path. When the Millet Emperor released this skill, he could suppress an entire world and destroy all his enemies.


    Zong Chan��s Great Path was perfect, so as expected, he was already capable of dealing with a being on the ninth plane.


    Outside the battlefield, the cultivators of all sides had initially planned to leave. However, they stayed behind because of this battle. They watched the battle at different locations.


    At one location were the cultivators of the Ling Xiao Palace.


    The palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace watched the battlefield and said, ��The Gate to World Suppression of the Millet Emperor is, as expected, very powerful. Moreover, Zong Chan has already cultivated and learned its essence. To possess such combat strength while still on the seventh plane, he will certainly become a great person in the future.��


    His voice traveled across the sky, and all the practitioners in that area could hear him. Beside him, a powerful Renhuang said, ��Palace Lord, I have not fought against a person who possesses a perfect grade Great Path before. Now that a chance has presented itself, I would like to experience it.��


    ��Okay.�� The palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace nodded and said, ��The Great Yan and the Wangshen Watchtower hold no great grudge against each other. You do not have to be too serious. A light and friendly spar will do. Many factions have gathered here today. Just treat it as a trial.��


    Just as he finished speaking, the earlier Renhuang stepped forward and left. He was also on the ninth plane. He headed straight towards Zong Chan. Just as Zong Chan was suppressing the Renhuang of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, his body appeared in the sky above Zong Chan. He released an immensely powerful aura of the Great Path and said, ��It is a rare chance for me to come today, to ask for your guidance. Please do not be offended.��


    After he spoke, he immediately started his attack.


    This scene had many people looking confused. What did the Ling Xiao Palace want to achieve?


    Anyone who paid attention would be able to tell that this was due to a grudge between the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Wangshen Watchtower. Was the Ling Xiao Palaces�� intervention their way of going against the Wangshen Watchtower?

 Chapter 2004 - Wrath

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The practitioners of Wangshen Watchtower frowned. Since the practitioner from the Ling Xiao Palace really went for it, Zong Chan could only fight back.


    The Millet Emperor watched everything quietly in the sky. His expression remained the same as he inadvertently glanced toward the palace lord of the Ling Xiao Palace. No one could tell what he was feeling.


    At that time, Ling He of the Ling Xiao Palace also strode forward. He looked toward Ye Futian and said, ��I was really impressed by Brother Ye��s display the other day at the cliff, which is why I would like to consult and learn from Brother Ye. I hope you won��t hesitate to enlighten me.��


    Many people looked toward Ling He. What was going on with the practitioners of Ling Xiao Palace?


    Why were they so intent on fighting the people from Wangshen Watchtower? Moreover, they chose to do so at this time. Clearly, something was wrong.


    The eyes of the practitioners from Turtle Deity City watching from afar flashed as they saw this scene. They investigated and found out some things that Ye Futian was not aware of.


    However, it was not related to them. They initially had no plans to bring it up, as it would cause conflict.


    However, looking at the situation now, it was clear that Ling Xiao Palace wanted to go against Wangshen Watchtower. As for Lin He, he was trying to force Ye Futian into a fight. If Ye Futian did not know his opponent��s true attitude and thinking, they were afraid he would suffer a huge loss.


    At that time, a person looked to a location not far away from where Thunder Punishing Skylord stood and transmitted his voice, ��Skylord.��


    ��Hmm?�� Thunder Punishing Skylord looked at the person who transmitted his voice. It was the city lord of Turtle Deity City. Since they were both students of Emperor Xi, they naturally knew each other. Moreover, their relationship was decent.


    ��Skylord left behind a relic at the cliff in the past. I heard that a battle took place there recently. This practitioner of the Wangshen Watchtower defeated Ling He and obtained the relic that you left behind,�� said the city lord of Turtle Deity City. Thunder Punishing Skylord answered, ��I am aware of this.��


    ��At that time, this practitioner of Wangshen Watchtower brought two other people unto the Turtle Deity Island. After they separated, the two were killed by people from Ling Xiao Palace. If my guess is correct, Ling He was the one who gave the order. The murderer has been following Ling He ever since he committed the act.�� The city lord continued to transmit his voice. Thunder Punishing Skylord��s eyes squinted slightly as a sparkle of electricity crackled in his eyes.


    He looked toward Ling He. The young palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace continued to utter the words ��Brother Ye�� continuously and seemed very friendly. Earlier, he was also very generous when complimenting Ye Futian. It looked like he was a gracious loser who had genuinely accepted his defeat. Even though most could still feel a sense of oddity, none paid too much attention to it.


    However, to commit an act like this behind another��s back; it was somewhat disgusting.


    At the very least, he could not accept such despicable behavior.


    He understood the meaning of Turtle Deity City city lord��s meaning. Ye Futian obtained his relic and could be considered related to him. The incident also started because of the relic. The city lord was hesitant on whether he should reveal this fact, so as a solution, he passed the message to him instead.


    ��He does not know of this?�� asked Thunder Punishing Skylord by transmitting his voice.


    ��He should not be aware of it,�� answered the city lord.


    At that time, Ling He stepped through the air and landed in the space in front of Ye Futian. Then, Ye Futian glanced at him and replied, ��Not interested.��


    He did not really like Ling He. The fact that the Ling Xiao Palace had chosen to make a move at this time disgusted him even more. Naturally, he was not interested in sparring with Ling He. If he had to fight, should he fight seriously?


    Even though he did not want to go all out, Wangshen Watchtower was already facing pressure from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, and now, the Ling Xiao Palace had also decided to make a move. However, he also did not want Wangshen Watchtower to face the threats of two powerful forces at the same time.


    Then, Ye Futian heard a voice transmitted to him, ��Ye Liunian.�� He looked surprised as his gaze shifted toward the person who spoke to him.


    ��I have something I need to tell you. The people from Turtle Deity Island discovered that the two practitioners who followed you into Turtle Deity Island were killed after you guys separated. They found that it was Ling He who gave the order. However, they did not dare reveal this piece of intel lightly. Someone notified me of this just now, and I decided to let you know as well. You should just be prepared,�� the voice transmitted into Ye Futian��s ears. He already knew whose voice it was.


    It was Thunder Punishing Skylord.


    The Skylord personally transmitted his voice to inform him. Naturally, Ye Futian did not doubt the authenticity of the message. The incident had definitely happened.


    Lin Yuan and L�� Qing, the two practicing spiritual partners, were killed by someone under the orders of Ling He.


    While the two of them were not very strong, they had still reached the Sage Plane��s cultivation level. They were very young, and they still had the best years of their lives ahead of them. After they learned that Emperor Xi would go through a divine tribulation, they tried to get to Turtle Deity Island. They met Ye Futian at the cliff and asked him to bring the two of them to Turtle Deity Island.


    However, they never would have imagined that they would be killed in such an aggrieved manner.


    At that moment, an intense rage emerged in Ye Futian��s heart. The fire burning in his heart was so strong that his entire body trembled slightly. However, he still managed to keep it under control.


    It had been a while since he last felt so enraged. Even the ruthless incidents he encountered when he first came to the Divine Prefecture did not enrage him as much as the current moment.


    Lin Yuan and L�� Qing were not really close to him. They were only acquaintances he met on the road. He brought the two along and arrived together with them on Turtle Deity Island. No relationship had even been established, which was why, after they arrived at Turtle Deity Island, they separated and went their own way. He did not try to make them stay. After all, they were from different worlds.


    However, due to a trivial incident at the cliff, Ling He had chosen to secretly send someone to kill the two juniors instead of targeting him directly. In front of Ling He, practitioners at the plane levels of Lin Yuan and L�� Qing were only like ants. They could be crushed easily and possessed no power to resist.


    He could imagine the despair of Lin Yuan and L�� Qing. Two energetic youngsters who had arrived enthusiastically to observe Emperor Xi��s divine tribulation. However, just as they arrived, they were obliterated mercilessly.


    While their plane levels were low, getting to the Sage Plane would have also been tough! Like himself back then, every step he took was filled with difficulties, but he kept going.


    However, death was just absurd.


    Moreover, this murderer of Lin Yuan and L�� Qing was still acting gracefully in front of everyone, calling Ye Futian Brother Ye, and showering him with generous compliments. Ye Futian raised his head to look at that face. He felt intense hate, to the point where he was nauseated.


    Ling He looked at Ye Futian from a certain distance. He still looked graceful, with an air of exuberance around him. He held an amazing status. He was the young palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace and possessed great strength and exceptional potential. One could even say that not many in the Donghua Domain could compare to him. So, it was natural that he was in high spirits.


    In his eyes, two Sage Plane level practitioners were probably not even worth his attention.


    A gentle smile was inside Ling He��s eyes. However, he saw Ye Futian raise his head and glare at him. A cold and piercing gaze shot at him for a brief moment. That glare made him uncomfortable. It was cold and emotionless. He could even detect a hint of killing intent.


    Ling He��s heart was also icy. It was just as well. After all, he also had the same idea. He never imagined that Ye Liunian would think the same thing.


    ��Brother Ye received enlightenment of the path at the cliff. Your talents are remarkable. Don��t be stingy in guiding others,�� Ling He continued. Clearly, he would not let Ye Futian reject his request. Ling Xiao Palace had already initiated the attack; even if their counterparts did not want to, they would be forced to fight.


    Ye Futian looked at him. He had changed his mind. However, he did not reveal the truth he had learned. Ling Xiao Palace was one of the strongest factions. The reason why the people from Turtle Deity Island hid the information was most likely due to this as well. If he were to reveal it after the Thunder Punishing Skylord notified him about it, it would be like selling them out. It was immoral.


    From what Ling He did to Lin Yuan and L�� Qing, who knew what else would he do in the future?


    This was a person who ignored other people��s lives. He did not care at all.


    Ye Futian looked at Ling He and said, ��It looks like you will fight, regardless of whether I agree to it or not.��


    Ling He smiled and looked at Ye Futian. He moved his foot forward. The aura of the Great Path began to exude from his body, and might filled the sky. He did not reply. Obviously, he was responding with his actions. Earlier, when the Ling Xiao Palace cultivator tried to initiate a fight with Zong Chan, did he not also just started fighting? He did not even consider the fact that Zong Chan was still in the midst of battle.


    ��I lost to Brother Ye when it came to enlightenment at the cliff. That is why I want to receive your guidance in the form of a battle,�� Ling He said casually. He looked down at Ye Futian with an arrogant expression on his face. While Ye Futian was quite famous, having defeated Yan Dongyang before, Ling He was not a common character. Ye Futian was still not on his radar. When he lost in receiving enlightenment of the path, he contributed his loss to luck. On the surface, he complimented and praised Ye Futian, but in truth, he was still incredibly proud. Otherwise, he would not have so easily gave the order to kill Lin Yuan and L�� Qing.


    He did not care.


    ��Do you want me to take this?�� From behind Ye Futian, Beigong Ao walked forward and transmitted his voice to Ye Futian. The opponent��s plane level was higher than Ye Futian��s. His aura of the Great Path was also powerful. He was worried that Ye Futian would be at a disadvantage.


    Ling He was also someone whose Great Path was at the perfect grade. He was a titan-like force, the great heir to Ling Xiao Palace, and not some common folk.


    Ye Futian stretched out his hand and gestured for Beigong Ao to step down. Seeing his gesture, Beigong Ao understood and retreated behind. Meanwhile, Ye Futian walked forward and looked up at Ling He, who was standing in midair.


    ��My plane level is higher than Brother Ye. Brother Ye, please go ahead and initiate the first strike,�� said Ling He, continuing to act gracefully and politely. He had come to force Ye Futian into fighting him; however, he still maintained a battle etiquette to allow Ye Futian to strike first.


    However, with the plane level advantage, what was the meaning of being able to strike first? A person��s plane level was always the main factor deciding the outcome of a battle.


    Ling He might seem like he was gracious, but the truth was that he was shameless. It was never a fair battle in the first place.


    ��Okay then.�� Nonetheless, Ye Futian accepted the answer directly. He looked at Ling He and said, ��Since there��s a difference in our plane level, I will do my best and go all out.��


    ��Relax, I naturally understand. Please go ahead, Brother Ye.�� Ling He laughed in his mind. Ye Futian��s answer was exactly what he wanted!

 Chapter 2005 - Fight

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at Ling He. Formless Sword Wills began to form around his body. The Sword Wills became stronger and stronger. With his body as the center, they created a vast sword domain.


    Numerous Sword Wills poured into the sky as if they were unlimited. Then, they converged and transformed into a sword river. Multiple immaterial swords appeared around Ye Futian and circled his body, creating sharp whistling noises as they zipped around. These created an illusion for all those watching. It was as if the vast land and sky had been filled with swords.


    Path of the Sword current flowed between Ye Futian and Ling He.


    ��As expected of someone possessing a perfect grade Great Path who defeated Yan Dongyang with just one sword strike. Amazing.�� Ling He complimented. However, he also possessed perfect grade Great Path. Who knew who he was actually complimenting?


    A powerful aura burst from his body. While Ling He had always looked down on Ye Futian��s existence, he would never underestimate his opponent in a real fight. With such powerful Sword Wills, an attack would only last a single moment. Even though he had promised to let Ye Futian strike first, he would not simply sit idly by. He was going to at least make preparations to respond accordingly.


    Around his body, an extremely beautiful golden pagoda appeared. Strands of golden aura flowed out from within the pagoda. At that moment, Ling He was donned in golden armor. The auras flowing from the golden fantasy-like pagoda were sharp and domineering, then they converged and transformed into an extremely sharp golden spear.


    ��Ling Xiao Pagoda.�� Everyone looked toward Ling He. It was a Divine Wheel of the Great Path crafted by the souls of the powerful cultivators of the Ling Xiao Palace. Moreover, it was not just one Divine Wheel of the Great Path. The Ling Xiao Pagoda was one of the Divine Wheels of the Great Path. Inside the Ling Xiao Pagoda was a spear. It was another of his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. They had melded together, and the might exuding from it was frightening.


    Many people had shifted their gaze toward the battlefield of Ling He and Ye Futian. With regard to these two names�� There was naturally no need to mention Ling He, the young palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace. He had made his name from a long time ago. He was strong and exceptionally talented. Meanwhile, Ye Futian became famous in Wangshen Watchtower. He defeated the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family prince��Yan Dongyang��with just one sword strike.


    Among the mid-level Renhuangs in the Donghua Domain, these two were most likely considered best of the best. They possessed extraordinary strength.


    Vuong! Ye Futian��s body seemed to have transformed into a Great Path Furnace. Refining the sword of heaven and earth, an indomitable will surged from his body. It was as if his body had turned into a divine sword. Multiple swords surrounded him. Around nine swords seemed to have resonated and were circling him.


    At that moment, countless Sword Wills in the sky resonated, and the surrounding area transformed into a sword domain. Countless Path of the Sword aura currents resonated with each other and flew towards Ling He at the same time. Meanwhile, a sword river appeared between Ye Futian and Ling He.


    Within the sword river was a sword silhouette. It reached an area in front of Ling He from Ye Futian instantaneously. It was as if there was no distance between them. With one thought, the Ling Xiao Pagoda suddenly released a large number of golden currents. The endless spear shot into the air and zoomed into the sword river. At the same time, the area between him and Ye Futian seemed to have been shrouded by the will of the Ling Xiao Pagoda. Multiple pagoda illusions dropped consecutively, blocking Ye Futian��s deadly attacks.


    ��Go!�� The Ling Xiao Pagoda in front of Ling Xiao flew forward. A gigantic pagoda loomed over the sword river. A frightening sword will charged into the pagoda and vanished completely. Only ringing sounds of the pagoda remained.


    Then, a light could be seen. A blade of light of a sword directly charged into the pagoda.


    Ring�� An intense sound filled the air. The pagoda seemed to have suffered a heavy hit and was blown backward. Ling He stretched out his hands to catch it and was forced to retreat. Golden divine light burst from his eyes. He was careless. To have actually been thrown back by Ye Futian��s strike.


    His palms slammed outward violently. In an instant, the Ling Xiao Pagoda spun forward violently, growing bigger at the same time. It transformed into a humongous golden divine pagoda. From this divine pagoda, numerous pagoda silhouettes appeared and flew towards Ye Futian.


    At the same time, a golden spear flew out of the Ling Xiao Pagoda. The spear arrived in Ling He��s hands instantly. He grabbed the spear. Donning his golden armor, with a golden spear in his hand and the Ling Xiao Pagoda floating above his head, he looked like a war god at that moment. Peerless and elegant.


    Thunder Punishing Skylord looked at this battlefield. His words led to Ye Futian��s decision to fight, so it was natural that he would pay more attention to this battle.


    Ling He misbehaved and treated others terribly. However, he was genuinely strong. Among the next generation leaders of the top factions of the Donghua Domain, none were weak. Ling He was the heir to the Ling Xiao Palace. If one only looked at his strength, he was indeed one of the greats.


    However, from his past actions, it was easy to tell that Ling He was prideful and self-absorbed. He did not care about the lives of others and did not care about the consequences of his actions. He only did what he wanted to do.


    Apart from Thunder Punishing Skylord, the heiress of the Ice Temple��Qin Qing��was also interested and was paying attention to this battle.


    She was a mid-level Renhuang who had cultivated for many years. So naturally, she did not only look at the surface when it came to most issues. She knew that while Ling He was showering Ye Futian with praises and compliments, the truth was that he wanted to kill him. If he did not compliment his would-be opponent, how would he get him to fight?


    In her experience dealing with Lin He, she knew that he was self-absorbed and egoistic. While he had always been polite with her, he had always found it hard to hide his arrogance. However, she could understand this and did not think too much of it. After all, for a person as talented as Ling He, who also held an esteemed position and had cultivated to his plane level, how could he not be proud?


    She was also proud. Anyone at this level would be the same.


    As such, when the incident at the cliff occurred, even though it seemed like Ling He did not mind, he was most likely still brooding about it. That was why he provoked Ye Futian at this time, to start this battle with Ye Futian so that he could crush him in front of an audience.


    Moreover, Ling He��s plane was higher than Ye Futian. He was a very well-known character in the Donghua Heavens. He should be a lot stronger than Yan Dongyang. If he were to make a move, his chances of winning were actually quite high. Ye Futian would be at a disadvantage.


    With his white hair and white outfit, Ye Futian stood amidst the battlefield. Above him, the giant Ling Xiao Pagoda released a frightening golden current that transformed into countless pagodas that flew towards him, creating Ling He��s Great Path Domain, sealing him within.


    At another location, Ling He held the golden divine spear. He could release it at any time. It was a great threat to Ye Futian. It was, unfortunately, very difficult for his swords to deal with Ling He.


    Under the overwhelmingly powerful Ling Xiao Pagoda, Ye Futian seemed rather small. However, stands of formless current exuded from his body. The current seemed to freeze everything around it. With his body as the center, the temperature within the Great Path Domain began to drop.


    Strands of current surged forward like the branches and leaves of an immaterial tree. With his body as the center, the current quickly covered the entire Great Path Domain. Rustling sounds could be heard. When the Great Path current solidified, a huge towering divine tree appeared in front of everyone��s eyes.


    Ye Futian served as the divine tree��s roots. Its numerous branches spread all around. Strands of dark and cold aura radiated from the divine tree.


    ��So cold.�� Many people looked toward Ye Futian. Even a few top cultivators looked toward him. Was that the Great Path of Frost?


    The Sword Goddess and many practitioners from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow also shifted their gaze on Ye Futian. Apart from mastering the longsword, they were also adept at the Great Path of Frost. However, the aura seemed to be a little different. The aura radiating from Ye Futian��s body seemed even colder.


    However, every practitioner possessed different levels of strength. Flames of the path of flame also had different strengths; it was the same for the power of frost.


    The lord of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, however, felt something odd. Something was not right. It was not the power of the Great Path of Frost.


    In the battle, the two each released their Great Path domain. It was as if the battle had turned into a battle between Great Path domains. The Ling Xiao Pagoda released a frightening golden current while shooting several pagodas to pummel Ye Futian.


    However, within the chilly Great Path domain, all attacks seemed to be obstructed and limited. Their speed reduced, and the branches in the sky quickly extended toward and wrapped around those pagodas, absorbing them within before sealing them in ice, ultimately turning them into dust.


    Ling He frowned as he witnessed this scene. He stretched out his palm, and the Ling Xiao Pagoda instantly floated into the sky. His Great Path domain sealed the sky, and a frightening current burst from within, annihilating all things in its range. The branches and leaves were crushed under the golden Great Path current. However, branches and leaves kept spreading from Ye Futian��s body. There was no end to them. This ancient and divine tree was an eternal being, and it had an incredibly exuberant lifeforce.


    ��The divine tree of the Eastern Deity Island.��


    A cultivator from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family stared at the tree growing from Ye Futian��s body and said, ��Who��d have thought that the Eastern Deity Island��s divine tree was passed onto him. It looks like they plan on making him the heir of the Eastern Deity Island.��


    Many seemed shocked after hearing this. To make Ye Futian the heir to the Eastern Deity Island?


    Did this mean that the Eastern Deity Island chose ye Futian before he was sent to Wangshen Watchtower? If that were the case, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would want to kill him even more.


    Ling He suddenly directed his palm towards Ye Futian. In that instant, the giant Ling Xiao Pagoda floating in the air slammed downward. Blades of divine light annihilated anything they touched. Instead of releasing the Great Path current to attack, the Divine Wheel of the Great Path attacked directly. Ling He had clearly realized that the Great Path current could not do anything to Ye Futian. It was just a waste of time.


    As the divine and holy Ling Xiao Pagoda descended from the sky, destructive currents that accompanied its descent completely destroyed the leaves and branches from the ancient tree that got close. None of the branches could get close to the pagoda, and the Great Path completely suppressed the entire area. The Ling Xiao Palace continued its descent towards Ye Futian��s body. At the same time, Ling He clenched the divine spear in his hands tightly. He took a step forward, and his body under the magnificent golden armor released an indomitable aura. Step by step, he walked toward Ye Futian. His aura strengthened after every step, and strands of surreal currents appeared from his body. They looked like they were the condensation of his fighting spirit!

 Chapter 2006 - Ensnared

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Above Ye Futian, the celestial splendor of Ling Xiao Pagoda swept down, and the void roared, oppressing the space where Ye Futian was. Phantoms of the divine pagoda slammed down continuously, covered Ye Futian within it. Those branches, leaves, and vines that were twirling toward Ling Xiao Pagoda were pulverized immediately.


    As divine splendor spread out, Ling Xiao Pagoda was getting closer, falling from above Ye Futian like a towering temple. Ye Futian morphed into a divine tree, its branches and leaves twirling madly. A supreme Sword Will was gathering at the same time. Infinite divine swords converged until a massive divine sword appeared in front of him.


    The infinite Sword Will was still integrating into the divine sword; its sword light was radiant, bright, and flawless.


    Ye Futian pointed his finger toward the sky. Suddenly, the divine sword pierced upward, colliding with Ling Xiao Pagoda. A sword river appeared between Ye Futian and the pagoda. There was an infinite Sword Will In this sword river that blended into the divine sword. A splendid sword screen was created where the collision occurred, radiating toward the surrounding areas.


    Ling He, who was walking in the void, cast a glance. With a turning of his mind, he took control of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path as Ling Xiao Pagoda continued to spin, and the pagoda��s divine brilliance sprinkled from above. A dull sound was heard, and even the void gave a violent tremble. Phantoms of the pagoda appeared all around them as they suppressed down at the same time. The vast world was now seemed to be in the realm of the divine pagoda.


    Ye Futian��s body seemed to tremble as well. The divine sword shuddered, and the sword screen rippled but did not tear. The crowd found that Ling Xiao Pagoda was vibrating and spinning on its own, causing a wondrous rhythm between heaven and earth, suppressing and shattering this side of the void. For those whose cultivation was not strong enough, this atmosphere alone could kill them immediately; the Divine Wheel would have shattered their organs.


    The branches and leaves of the divine tree surged with insane speed. Those extremely thick branches and leaves were like vines of 10,000 years, winding around the sword screen. The area it invaded was getting larger, covering all the space in the surrounding area. At the same time, they constantly swept toward the pagodas that were between heaven and earth.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was like the tree god of hundred centuries, who had nurtured lives into being.


    ��Whose Great Path is the stronger?�� More and more people noticed the battlefield of the two of them. Both of them were very strong and far surpassed those of the same realm. Ye Futian, especially, surprised many people.


    After all, Ling He��the young palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace��had achieved his fame for a long time. Although he had battled brilliantly, no one had actually witnessed his fight with Yan Dongyang. Therefore, most of the observers were there to see for themselves. Now, it seemed that he had not earned his name in vain, and he was powerful.


    However, if Ye Futian��s divine tree and Divine Wheel of Swordsmanship were used to resist the suppression of Ling Xiao Pagoda, how was he going to deal with the attack from Ling He himself?


    Perhaps Ye Futian would still be at a disadvantage, and he would still be in danger.


    The fighting spirit on Ling He, who walked steadily toward Ye Futian, became stronger as he got closer, and an astonishing turbulence of the Great path had formed around him. He stared at Ye Futian with those golden eyes, and at this moment, there was an iciness in the depth of his eyes.


    Ye Futian was an expert at swords. If the sword was used to block the pagoda, how would he deal with the spear?


    The golden divine spear held in Ling He��s hand let out a horrific spear aurora. As he approached Ye Futian, his arm cocked back. Suddenly, his body was the center, from which numerous spear shadows appeared everywhere.


    An astonishing Spear Will erupted before the spear was released, turning into a golden beam and shooting straight at Ye Futian. Clearly, Ling He understood that it was impossible to hurt Ye Futian with Spear Will alone, but It would not be so easy to block his shot either.


    ��Brother Ye, be careful.�� Ling He stopped at this point. Though he had stopped, his momentum had climbed to the limit as golden divine brilliance diffused from him. At this moment, he, who was wearing the golden armor, was like a god of war.


    ��That��s Ling Xiao Palace��s Lingxi Spear! Watch out!�� a voice reminded Ye Futian. The voice belonged to Thunder Punishing Skylord. Ye Futian was in a somewhat unfavorable situation, and Lingxi Spear Techniques was well-known throughout the Donghua Domain. The Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace, with Ling Xiao Pagoda and Lingxi Spear at his disposal, had few rivals within the Donghua Domain. He had tremendous strength, and if Ye Futian was careless, a strike could be the end of him.


    ��Thank you for reminding me, elder.�� Ye Futian��s response baffled Thunder Punishing Skylord. He looked at Ye Futian, who was trapped in the distance. Yet, he still had the time to respond to him. It seemed that he still had strength and mind to spare?


    Maybe everyone had underestimated him?


    They could only wait and see.


    Everyone stared at Ling He. The Lingxi Spear was swift and invincible, and battles usually ended in an instant. The Ling Xiao Pagoda would suppress while the Lingxi Spear Techniques finished the job. The dual powers complemented each other, making them victorious wherever they went.


    This time, dealing with this well-known heir of Eastern Deity Island, there shouldn��t be any doubts.


    At this moment, countless phantoms appeared between heaven and earth, as well as infinite shadows of spears. Ling He made his move.


    The crowd only saw a spear aurora, as a golden spear shadow appeared between Ling He and Ye Futian. There was only an afterimage left where he was.


    A single strike from Lingxi Spear was enough to conquer gods and demons.


    Bang!


    A loud noise came out as the Lingxi Spear encountered something tough. The terrifying golden divine glory bloomed in front of Ye Futian, who, at this moment, was wrapped by a boundless gigantic divine elephant. Violent elephant trumpeting sounded, and two hands reached out to hold the spear coming for him.


    ��Divine Wheel!��


    Everyone was slightly surprised when they saw the sight in front of them. Another one of Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path��a towering, majestic divine elephant.


    Ling He glanced at Ye Futian indifferently as shrill sounds could be heard. Overwhelming golden divine glory erupted from him as the spear continued to move forward, piercing into the body of the divine elephant. The sound was particularly harsh, as it was aimed to break open Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of Great Path.


    However, at the same time, Ling He saw a pair of extremely horrifying eyes. An extreme chill rushed into his pupils, wanting to freeze his spiritual soul. At the same time, his body also felt the chill��so very cold��seeping deep into his bones.


    Everyone discovered to their shock that the domain of the divine tree had already enveloped this entire part of the world. An extreme frosty current envelope and circulated this domain. An extreme coldness threatened to freeze everything, turning the temperature into absolute zero.


    Ling He felt that his spear, his body, and even blood were about to be frozen. Everything seemed to become slower, even his heartbeat; how could it be?


    What kind of ability was this?


    Had Ye Futian been waiting for him here all this time?


    Using the Divine Sword to block Ling Xiao Pagoda with everything he��s got just to wait for him to get close?


    At this moment, Ye Futian��s eyes were icy. There was a hint of icy murderous intent within. He stared at Ling He and let out a roar, accompanied by the Buddha Sound of the Great Path. This space was covered by a soundwave of Buddhism, the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm, in such a short distance, attacking his spiritual soul.


    Ling He felt his spiritual soul trembled as he was enduring the invasion of the power of Yin and the attack of the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm. His spiritual soul was about to collapse and shatter. He felt that unconsciousness was imminent.


    These layers of attacks were set up like traps, waiting for him to break in and ensnare himself.


    Everyone outside was bewildered by this sudden sight as well. The continuous burst of multiple abilities in a short time caught everyone by surprise. Everyone had thought that it would be Ling He suppressing Ye Futian, but they did not expect that the situation would be turned on its head in a split second. After an astonishing reversal, it seemed that Ye Futian had been lying in wait for Ling He.


    ��His ability is so strong, so many Great Path���� Some were amazed and quite shaken inside. It was rumored that Ye Futian had defeated Yan Dongyang with the sword. The world thought that Ye Futian was an expert at swordsmanship, but they never expected that he was good at so many other abilities.


    Ye Futian stared at Ling He and did not bother to disguise the murderous intent in his eyes.


    At this moment, Ye Futian raised his palm and slammed forward, the sounds of elephants rocked the sky. As the gigantic palm slapped down, Ling He sensed a strong sense of danger. Massive golden glory burst from his body, and countless phantoms appeared around him.


    Buzz�� An astonishing brilliance burst from the long spear in his hands. It was as if countless phantoms struck at the same time, continuing to fight.


    With a violent crashing sound, Ling He moved. The overwhelming intent of battle helped him break free of the chill. It seemed that endless phantoms of spears erupted from him just as the Ling Xiao Pagoda also released its strongest pressure of Might.


    When the phantoms of the spears passed through, he moved, wanting to retreat from this space. But the chill affected his speed. Countless branches and leaves twirled toward him as the Great Path sealed off the space. Ye Futian pointed his finger forward, and the Sword Will of the Great Path unleashed to annihilate the space.


    ��Open!�� Ling He let out a great shout. The Lingxi Spear was fast as lightning, breaking through this domain of the Great Path as it rushed out. In the next moment, his body flew backward, covered in blood. There seemed to be several sword marks on his body as blood came out from the corners of his mouth.


    Buzz!


    Ye Futian came for him in attack. Ling He saw him moving like lightning as a terrifying light appeared in the sky. The Lingxi Spear was as fast as lightning, colliding with the sword that Ye Futian had unleashed. Once again, his body was knocked back. As he stretched out his hand, the spear flew back into his hand.


    ��Enough.�� Ye Futian still wanted to move forward, but suddenly, a few people appeared in front of him. As their voice fell, they raised their hands and attacked. A horrific phantom of the pagoda appeared, suppressing a corner of the sky.


    With a loud bang, Ye Futian��s body was knocked backward. Those who struck him were two Upper Renhuang cultivators.


    Ye Futian stopped himself and didn��t continue forward. Although Ling He was a despicable person, his strength was undeniably strong. Furthermore, there were people from Ling Xiao Palace in attendance to kill Ling He. But it was was wishful thinking. However, the anger in his heart was still burning, unable to be extinguished.


    ��You guys are awesome,�� Ye Futian glanced at the cultivators from Ling Xiao Palace as he spoke with a touch of cold sarcasm. The people from Ling Xiao Palace felt terribly embarrassed, and Ling He was even gloomier.


    In this battle, he was unexpectedly defeated. For all the fancy moves, that astonishing blow, everything was so perfect. Without a doubt, he had thought that it would be a one-sided fight, but the ending seemed quite the contrary. That white-haired Renhuang counterstruck with absolutely dominant power, catching him by surprise.


    He��Ling He��was defeated by a cultivator whose realm was lower than him. This was a huge blow to him!

 Chapter 2007 - Memory Loss

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Didn��t Ling He of Ling Xiao Palace want to ask for advice? What��s the meaning of your involvement?�� At this time, some cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower asked those who stepped in to stop Ye Futian.


    ��Enough is enough,�� responded the cultivators from Ling Xiao Palace.


    ��Does Ling He concede then?�� Cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower asked again. The cultivators from Ling Xiao Palace frowned and cast a look at the Renhuang who spoke.


    ��If Ling He can still fight, why did you interfere?�� The cultivator from Wangshen Watchtower sneered. ��You were the ones who started the war, and you were the ones who forced its end. Does Ling Xiao Palace really want to ask Wangshen Watchtower for advice or are you just taking the opportunity to kick us? If it��s the latter, you can just get on with it without pretense.��


    ��Furthermore, the heir of Ling Xiao Palace, while his realm is higher than that of Ye Liunian, required interference from the people of Ling Xiao Palace; Aren��t you guys ashamed?�� The cultivator from Wangshen Watchtower unleashed his sarcasm without reservation. ��If I am a cultivator from Ling Xiao Palace, I would have no face to continue staying here.��


    Ling He��s eyes were extremely cold. Defeat, in itself, was something extremely shameful, and now he had been ridiculed so openly and without mercy. When his realm was higher than Ye Futian, he still needed the others from Ling Xiao Palace to intervene and help him avoid Ye Futian��s continued attack.


    This battle was indeed disgraceful.


    ��Elders need to say no more; there are many such as this, and we are used to it.�� Ye Futian turned to the cultivator who had spoken, and the other nodded in acknowledgment but continued, ��Bravado is easily exposed in the end. If one is a sore loser, one should not challenge and start things. That arrogant and condescending attitude was a bit ironic when you think about it now.��


    Every sound was like a thorn that burnt Ling He��s cheeks. It appeared that the others would not easily let him off the hook.


    Ling Xiao Palace was good at exploiting those who were weaker; the insults from the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower were intentional, deliberately making fun of him to reveal his hypocrisy, and aimed to shame him.


    ��It seems that today we would have a chance to see for ourselves if all the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower were this outstanding,�� An old man spoke as the aura of the Great Path released from the cultivators of Ling Xiao Palace, suppressing this corner of the sky with extreme terror.


    At this moment, the Millet Emperor��s eyes swept over the crowd, and the power of the Great Path permeated from him. Everyone from Ling Xiao Palace felt an overpowering force that made them difficult to move.


    They looked at Millet Emperor, and the Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace took a step forward toward him and said, ��What does the Emperor mean by this?��


    ��Ling Xiao Palace wanted to exchange with Wangshen Watchtower, and we welcomed the opportunity. However, now, whether it was an exchange or something else, I am sure it is clear to everyone who��s here. If you want to overpower anyone with numbers, I will have no choice but to handle this personally, ��said the Millet Emperor.


    The Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace looked at Millet Emperor. If Renhuang on both sides were to interact at the same time, it would put the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower in great danger, so the Millet Emperor had no choice but to intervene.


    The Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace smiled as a violent and wild aura released from his body, and the same pressure of the Great Path snaked out. Both of them were supreme existence beyond their ranks, with great power. When the pressure from both of them bloomed, the sky seemed heavier, as if everything was about to stand still. The battle between the Renhuang below gradually subsided, as many cultivators stepped back to looked up at the two men who faced each other in the void.


    The Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace and the Millet Emperor, two powerful men in their own rights, both of them were filled with the invisible currents of the Great Path, which contained extremely terrible pressure. They did not take action yet, but the cultivators around them already felt the invisible collision.


    Would they actually collide?


    The people of those top forces from different regions in the distance were all looking at this side. On this day, Emperor Xi was to cross the divine tribulation, and cultivators from all sides were here. Could they actually see other major figures exchange with one another?


    Above the sky, there was a dull sound as a suffocating aura appeared in this corner of the sky. Those Renhuang retreated far from this area. Some of them felt their breaths quickened, their internal organs were churning.


    ��Back up,�� Li Changsheng said. Immediately, the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower retreated, and the cultivators from the ancient royal family of Yan as well as those from Ling Xiao Palace did the same. Only Emperor Yan was still standing there, his majestic golden robe moved with the wind, standing with his hands behind his back, watching the two in silence.


    At this moment, people in the distance felt that the sky was about to collapse, and there seemed to be infinite elusive shadows between heaven and earth. They raised their heads and stared at the sky. In the vast world, there were many illusory phantoms of the towers, and countless divine monuments flowed down from the sky, suppressing this space.


    Both of them were experts at the Great Path suppressions.


    Moreover, their realms had far transcended the ordinary. It was as if they were in control of the power from the source of heaven and earth itself. When they released the coercion of might, those Renhuang retreated, as if they were not fit to be in the same battlefield.


    Boom!


    There was a violent bursting sound. Both men made no move, but there was a terrible sonic boom that resounded between the two. The dull rumbling sounds made everyone��s heart beat wildly as astonishing currents continued to collide between them, causing a terrifying storm in that space.


    At this moment, the crowd saw the phantom figure of the two of them that seemed to have moved, and yet they were still where they were. Everyone saw two vague figures touched briefly in the middle then separated. In the next moment, a shocking storm swept out again.


    Boom��


    ��Watch out.�� Many Renhuang were knocked out by the sweep of that storm, and Ye Futian was the same. The power of the Great Path surged upon his body, but he was still repelled by the storm. He steadied his body in the savage storm, his steps were incredibly heavy. He moved his arms that were covering his eyes and looked forward.


    In the center of the storm, the two men were still right where they were, as if they had never moved. The terrifying storm did not seem to be caused by them. Emperor Yan was also standing there, his robe flapped wildly in the wind as he quietly looked upon the two men in front of him.


    He could see clearly that the two had made an exchange in that instant just now.


    At their level of cultivation, there were not many opportunities to fight against each other. After all, there were very few of them that were at the same level, and they all had various concerns that the impact would be too great to bear.


    Therefore, the Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace and the Millet Emperor just collided for a brief instant which was more than enough.


    ��You were here today to observe the ceremony; what exactly are you two doing?�� At this moment, a voice came from a distance. In the distant void, the chief of Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor stood there and asked.


    ��I couldn��t help myself wanting to experience Millet Emperor��s Gate to World Suppression; I ask your forgiveness, chief,�� said the Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace.


    Millet Emperor said nothing, merely looking at the other quietly.


    ��This is Turtle Deity Island, and everyone here is our guest; let��s not disturb Emperor Xi. If everyone still desire a time to interact, find another time. If you re free next year, everyone is invited for a visit at Donghua Heavens.�� The chief continued, ��Cease the competing today; Emperor Yan too, will let it go.��


    Emperor Yan nodded slightly and said, ��Since the chief has spoken, let��s stop there. However, regarding Eastern Deity Island, it was because the chief had mediated in the past that I didn��t touch Eastern Deity Island all these years when Millet Emperor made his promises. But now, something seemed to have changed; Millet Emperor will have to answer for it in the future.��


    This was just an excuse. If it weren��t for Ye Futian��s extraordinary display of talent, no one from the ancient royal family of Yan would bother to look at Ye Futian at all, much less remembering anything about Eastern Deity Island.


    Millet Emperor looked at them, still silent. The chief continued, ��Well, let us be gone now, and not disturb Emperor Xi��s cultivation.��


    ��Very good.�� The Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace nodded, then turned around to command, ��Time to go.��


    After that, the group left. Ling He glanced at Ye Futian as he left, with murderous intent in his eyes.


    Ye Futian detected the other��s gaze, but his eyes were equally cold; this debt of Lin Yuan��s was impossible to collect at the moment.


    However, he would remember Ling He.


    ��Millet Emperor, we will meet again,�� said Emperor Yan as he left with his people also. Seeing that there was no more excitement to be had, the cultivators from all sides left one after another.


    ��We should go too,�� said Millet Emperor, and immediately levitated into the air and was gone.


    After everyone left, above the Turtle Peak, Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord looked at those who had scattered in the distance. Emperor Xi sighed in a low voice, ��The Divine Prefecture, after being peaceful for so many years, will face imminent disturbance again.��


    ��With Donghuang the Great ruling the world, the Divine Prefecture won��t be in chaos,�� said Thunder Punishing Skylord.


    ��What if someone from outside of Divine Prefecture were here?�� Emperor Xi said. Thunder Punishing Skylord was silent for a moment, and said, ��Having travelled outside these years, I have heard a few things. There were some events that had occurred in the Original Realm, and some principalities have come to pass, but It had not affected Divine Prefecture for the time being.��


    ��The Original Realm.�� Emperor Xi stretched out his hand, as if wanting to catch something, but didn��t.


    After Ye Futian and the others had departed, in the void, the Millet Emperor stood next to Ye Futian and heard Ye Futian asked him, ��Is there also a grudge between Ling Xiao Palace and Wangshen Watchtower?��


    Millet Emperor shook his head, ��We didn��t have too much contact, there is no grudge to speak of.��


    Ye Futian looked pensive. Then, was it because of the incident on the cliff that incensed Ling Xiao Palace against Wangshen Watchtower?


    But, it seemed a bit too extreme.


    ��Have you inherited Donglai��s memory?�� Millet Emperor asked suddenly.


    Ye Futian nodded, ��But not all of it, and they were quite disorganized.��


    ��Do you any memory of his last battle?�� Millet Emperor asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head, looked up at Millet Emperor, and seemed to sense something; how come he was missing such memory!

 Chapter 2008 - Hidden Truth

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Wangshen Watchtower, the cultivation training grounds of Millet Emperor, a group of silhouettes descended. It was Millet Emperor��s group returning.


    With Millet Emperor��s towering cultivation, even traversing over many continents would not need much time.


    As their group landed, Millet Emperor revealed a pensive look. He seemed to be thinking about something.


    ��Teacher,�� Li Changsheng asked softly. ��Is there anything that you need me to do?��


    Millet Emperor shook his head as he looked into the distance. Back then, during the battle when Supreme Deity Donglai perished, what had happened exactly?


    Even the memories that Ye Futian inherited did not reveal anything about it. Had Supreme Deity Donglai intentionally erased them?


    If so, had Supreme Deity Donglai intentionally kept it hidden and did he not want them to know about it?


    ��All of you, leave us. Both of you remain,�� Millet Emperor instructed. He meant for Goddess Donglai and Ye Futian to remain. The other people bowed slightly and then stepped down one by one. Zong Chan had a strange look on his face. He could tell that Millet Emperor had matters to discuss. Yet, even he could not know about this matter?


    ��Uncle Millet,�� Goddess Donglai called out as she looked at Millet Emperor. ��Is there something urgent?��


    ��It is nothing,�� Millet Emperor said, not revealing his thoughts. He instead looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��In the previous battle, I saw that you had a murderous intent towards Ling He. What happened between the two of you?��


    The two of them had fought fiercely against each other. Observers of their battle could tell that they weren��t pulling their punches. Their attacks were ferocious and Ye Futian had calculated his moves against Ling He. He pretended that his sword had been suppressed by Ling Xiao Pagoda, drawing Ling He to attack him close up. Ye Futian had wanted to kill him in a single blow.


    Millet Emperor had heard of the grudge between the two of them at the cliff face. If Ling He bore hatred against Ye Futian, Ye Futian would not have needed to respond in such a fashion. Attacking the Young Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace so fiercely in such a situation was not worth the risk for such a talented person like Ye Futian.


    Unless there were intricacies that Millet Emperor was not aware of.


    When Ye Futian heard Millet Emperor��s question, a cold look flashed past in his eyes. He replied, ��Before this, when we were travelling across the Divine Ocean Continent, we encountered two juniors. We got acquainted with them before the cliff face where Thunder Punishing Skylord left his teachings. They wanted to enter Turtle Deity Island to witness Emperor Xi facing his tribulation. I agreed to help them and brought them to Turtle Deity Island. However, Thunder Punishing Skylord told me across transmitted thoughts that, not long after we separated upon arriving on Turtle Deity Island, these two juniors were killed by people sent by Ling He.��


    When Millet Emperor heard Ye Futian��s explanation, he revealed a strange look and said, ��The Young Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace cannot even tolerate two juniors?��


    For him to have committed such an atrocity was somewhat demeaning to his station.


    ��It is not that he could not tolerate them. He originally gave no regard for the lives of these two juniors. He did not care at all,�� Ye Futian stated. ��A person with such character deserves death.��


    Millet Emperor nodded his head and said, ��For you to say such things, he will sooner or later want to kill you.��


    ��I understand,�� answered Ye Futian as he nodded his head. That was why he also wanted to eliminate the other party. However, in the Donghua Domain, it was difficult to do so owing to the other party��s identity.


    Millet Emperor gave Ye Futian a serious look. For him to be angered by the deaths of two insignificant people to the point that he wanted to kill the Young Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace, the way this fellow did things was extraordinary. He wore his heart on his sleeve.


    ��You have cultivated the power of the divine elephant and are proficient in suppressing the Great Path, right?�� Millet Emperor asked.


    ��Hmm,�� answered Ye Futian while nodding his head.


    ��You have comprehended your cultivation in the Wangshen Watchtower before. What are your thoughts?�� Millet Emperor continued asking.


    ��It is as though the Wangshen Watchtower itself is formed from the Great Path. The aura inside feels as though it is the Great Path itself. The domain inside has absolute power of suppression,�� Ye Futian said.


    Millet Emperor nodded his head and said, ��It looks like your comprehension is deep. By comprehending my cultivation in the Wangshen Watchtower, I created a magnum opus called Gate to World Suppression. However, that was because it was compatible with my abilities and combined all the techniques that I comprehended. You are proficient in even more techniques, hence you can develop it more broadly. I will teach you Gate to World Suppression. You can then merge it with your own comprehension and further cultivate it.��


    Goddess Donglai revealed an astonished look as she stood there. She had brought Ye Futian over due to his connection with her father. She wanted to find Ye Futian some backing. She was worried about anything happening to him in the future. She was taking precautions just in case.


    She never imagined that Millet Emperor would pass on his magnum opus to Ye Futian.


    Gate to World Suppression was a magnum opus that Millet Emperor comprehended himself. Millet Emperor became renowned in the Divine Prefecture due to this technique. He had a few extremely glorious battles before. Even in the Wangshen Watchtower, few people cultivated this technique. Zong Chan was probably the only other person who truly mastered it. He was a prominent figure who had cultivating abilities very close to that of Millet Emperor. Zong Chan was probably personally chosen by Millet Emperor to inherit his teachings.


    However, now, Millet Emperor actually wanted to teach Ye Futian Gate to World Suppression. They had only gone on a trip to the Divine Ocean Continent together and Millet Emperor already thought so highly of Ye Futian?


    However, during this trip, Ye Futian had indeed displayed extreme levels of talent. When he was comprehending the teachings on the cliff face, Thunder Punishing Skylord had also acknowledged him and had transmitted his thoughts over to him. At that time, aside from Ling He, there was another famous figure present, Qin Qing of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. She was one of three main disciples who were personally trained by Sword Goddess. However, only Ye Futian managed to comprehend the true meaning of the teachings on the cliff face.


    Ye Futian had also managed to defeat Ling He, who similarly had a flawless Great Path and who had higher cultivation than him. With such ability, even Great Yan Ancient Royal Family thought highly of him.


    ��Senior, this seems inappropriate,�� Ye Futian said. After all, he was not a disciple of Millet Emperor. Only Millet Emperor��s personal disciples were qualified to cultivate his magnum opus.


    ��There��s nothing wrong with it. Cultivators do not like to be bound by rules anyway. Since I am the one teaching the Way, naturally I will teach it to whoever that I want to teach,�� Millet Emperor assured Ye Futian. ��Zong Chan has mastered Gate to World Suppression. I am sure the skill will be fully utilized in your hands too. Besides that, I can tell that some skills that you cultivate might not be any weaker than Gate to World Suppression. You did not unleash your full potential when you were fighting with Ling He, right?�� asked Millet Emperor. With his vision, he could tell quite a lot of things from the battle.


    Millet Emperor believed that aside from him, other top figures had also comprehended many things from the battle between Ling He and Ye Futian.


    Ling He didn��t just lose to Ye Futian. In reality, the combat ability between the two of them might not even be on the same level. Ling He paled in insignificance when compared to Ye Futian.


    ��Hmm,�� Ye Futian nodded, admitting it openly. Goddess Donglai, who was beside him, cast a glance at him. She had chosen Ye Futian because he was acknowledged by the divine tree and had received her father��s teachings. However, this top monstrous figure from the Original Realm was indeed stronger than what she expected.


    She was curious to find out what Ye Futian��s future held.


    ��I will impart my knowledge of Gate to World Suppression to you. Receive it without any worries. You can merge it with your other abilities based on your own cultivation,�� Millet Emperor said. A formless aura permeated from Millet Emperor��s body and enveloped Ye Futian. Divine haloes directly surged into Ye Futian��s mind. They transformed into drawings and were engraved in his mind.


    After a moment, Ye Futian opened his eyes and bowed slightly at Millet Emperor, saying, ��Thank you, Teacher.��


    Millet Emperor had imparted his magnum opus to Ye Futian, so he was worthy to be called Teacher by Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian calling Millet Emperor Teacher did not mean that he would become his disciple.


    Millet Emperor nodded with a smile when he heard Ye Futian greeting him as Teacher. He replied, ��Do not call me Teacher when others are around. In the past, I have made a promise, so our relationship now is not that of an actual master and disciple.��


    ��I understand,�� Ye Futian answered as he nodded.


    ��Go and practice,�� Millet Emperor commanded. Ye Futian turned around and strode towards the skyscraping watchtower. The watchtower was certainly the best place for him to comprehend and cultivate Gate to World Suppression.


    After Ye Futian left, Millet Emperor looked at Goddess Donglai. Prior to this, Millet Emperor had not said anything suspicious; however, Goddess Donglai could tell that he was hiding something.


    ��Uncle Millet, if you have any thoughts, please do not hide them from me,�� Goddess Donglai said.


    ��Regarding your father��s death, I have long suspected that Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was not the only party involved.�� Millet Emperor explained to Goddess Donglai, ��Back then, the conflict between Eastern Deity Island and Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was known by all. However, nobody witnessed the final battle. I suspect that other forces might have secretly been involved.��


    Goddess Donglai had a serious expression as she asked Millet Emperor, ��Who else does Uncle Millet think was involved in it?��


    Millet Emperor analyzed, ��During our trip to Turtle Deity Island this time, what Ling Xiao Palace did was abnormal. They had no grudges with us, so there was no need for them to kick us when we were down. As for the incident at the cliff face, it only involved Ling He and Ye Futian. It was unnecessary for Ling Xiao Palace to magnify the issue. Unless they were targeting us for another reason.��


    ��Ling Xiao Palace was involved in my father��s death?�� Goddess Donglai felt a heavy burden in her heart. She had not dreamt of avenging her father. However, she still felt miserable when she knew that other forces might be involved in the battle which caused her father��s death. She reproached herself for not being strong enough to do something about the matter.


    ��I can only say that there is such a possibility. But the truth will eventually be revealed,�� Millet Emperor murmured.


    ��Uncle Millet���� Goddess Donglai lowered her head.


    ��What��s wrong?�� Millet Emperor asked.


    ��If there are other forces involved, looking into it further will���� Goddess Donglai didn��t finish her sentence, but Millet Emperor understood her words. What would happen if they found out the truth?


    Knowing the truth would not bring any benefits to Millet Emperor.


    Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was already very domineering, with rich teachings and resources. The overall ability of the Wangshen Watchtower was weaker when compared to that of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. If yet another superpower was involved in this case, knowing the truth would definitely bring harm to Millet Emperor. He might as well pretend that he knew nothing and cease his investigation before anything bad happened.


    ��I want to know the truth,�� Millet Emperor declared while raising his head. The scene where he used to sit with Supreme Deity Donglai and discuss the Way surfaced in his mind. His old friend had died in vain. Not only could he not avenge his friend, but he also didn��t know who his enemy was. This matter had always been a burden in his heart.


    When cultivators reached Millet Emperor��s current cultivation level, it was hard for them to advance further. It was even harder for them to improve themselves if their minds were encumbered with something. Hence, Millet Emperor was determined to find out the truth. Otherwise, he could not live with himself.


    Goddess Donglai sighed. In reality, she had lost hope in avenging her father.


    ��His appearance might be an opportunity. If you have a chance, make a trip to the Donghua Heavens,�� Millet Emperor whispered while looking into the distance!

 Chapter 2009 - The Chief’s Invitation

    It was year 10,051 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. The Wangshen Watchtower was very quiet.


    In the watchtower, Ye Futian was cultivating. In the conceptual space of the watchtower, there was another watchtower erected high, akin to an immutable gate. It suppressed the surrounding space, as though it was an eternal existence.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged. A dazzling scene appeared around him.


    It was a brilliant galaxy. Stars were all around the space as they circled around him. Besides that, there were gigantic divine elephants. These divine elephants were like demonic beasts that were traversing the universe. They emanated terrifying pressure of the Great Path, causing this part of the space to weigh down heavily on Ye Futian. Stone tablets appeared in this starry space. Runes of the Great Path seemed to be craved on these stone tablets. The runes emitted the light of the Buddha while the soul-slaying Buddhist chant could faintly be heard. The stone tablets shone brightly with marvelous divine light. Be it soul or body, everything would perish here.


    This space was a brand new domain of the Great Path. Ye Futian merged Gate to World Suppression, which was created by Millet Emperor, into his own comprehension to create this unique technique. The origin of this new technique was Gate to World Suppression, yet these two techniques were slightly different. As for which technique was stronger, it still depended on the cultivator who unleashed the technique. Gate to World Suppression unleashed by Millet Emperor, who had a powerful cultivation, was naturally much stronger than the new technique unleashed by Ye Futian.


    Of course, Ye Futian also cultivated the Great Path of Suppression. Hence, the technique created by him was also very powerful.


    Outside the Wangshen Watchtower, a few silhouettes approached the area. They looked in the direction where the watchtower was. Their gazes saw through the conceptual space, seemingly able to witness Ye Futian cultivating inside.


    ��Younger Brother Ye is impressive. It has only been a few months and he has already merged Gate to World Suppression into his own comprehension, creating such a domineering Great Path domain.�� Li Changsheng said, ��Young Brother Zong, it seems that what I said is true. In the future, Young Brother Ye��s ability might be on par with yours.��


    Zong Chan, who was beside Li Changsheng, smiled nonchalantly. He said, ��Before his arrival, I was the only one among the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower who has inherited Master��s Gate to World Suppression. It is better now that Young Brother Ye has such achievements. I hope that he can also forge a flawless upper-level Renhuang Divine Wheel. His achievements are my motivation. I am more motivated to improve myself since I can��t stand being surpassed by Younger Brother Ye.��


    Zong Chan lamented, ��My path of training is one that has been travelled by Master before. On the other hand, Younger Brother Ye merges Master��s skill into his own technique. Considering this, he is indeed stronger than me.��


    Li Changsheng comforted him by saying, ��Don��t put it like that. You walk the path that Master has treaded on before exactly because you are the chosen one. You are born with a talent that is similar to Master��s. Therefore, you have had a smooth training journey following Master��s footsteps. Because of that, you were also able to maintain a flawless Divine Wheel when you broke through to the upper-level Renhuang Pane. If you continue to cultivate and refine your skills, you might be able to surpass Master.��


    ��What Changsheng says is not wrong. Everyone has different fateful encounters. It is impossible for any two people to walk the exact cultivation journey. Zong Chan, you will surely surpass me in the future. Do not doubt yourself. If Younger Brother Ye can do the same as you, then it is convenient for both of you to compare yourself against each other. With comparison will you gain motivation. Since you have reached this stage in your cultivation, you must also have a sense of respect and not be proud. Similarly, you must also have strong beliefs to reach the peak,�� Millet Emperor advised as he looked at Li Changsheng and Zong Chan. He had appeared high above them.


    ��Master,�� both of them greeted as they bowed when they saw Millet Emperor appear. ��We will remember your advice.��


    Their master meant to say that once they had reached their current stage, they were already at the top level of cultivation, standing above all of creation. There did not seem to be much room for improvement for them, yet they still had a long way to go. They could not be blindly arrogant, but also needed intense self-confidence. It appeared to be paradoxical, yet it was complementary.


    If cultivation was like climbing a mountain, they were at the top of the mountain; the only place left to go was the peak.


    ��What news do all of you bring with you?�� Millet Emperor asked.


    ��Hmm,�� replied Li Changsheng as he nodded his head. ��Today, it is the year 10,051 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. Another 50 years have passed. News has come from the Donghua Heavens. They have invited the cultivators from the various continents of the Donghua Domain to gather.��


    Millet Emperor nodded his head and said, ��On Turtle Deity Island, Chief has already reminded us of this event. It is no surprise that he will send messengers over soon.��


    Li Changsheng and Zong Chan nodded their heads in agreement. They believed Millet Emperor��s deduction. As expected, just as Millet Emperor finished saying this, an intense wave of power of the Great Path of Space came from the sky above. A brilliant divine spatial light descended from the sky. A group of people then appeared high above the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��They had arrived,�� Li Changsheng muttered as he looked over in their direction. The group of figures approached the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower and looked over here from a distance. One of their members said in a loud voice, ��By order of the Chief, we have come to invite Senior Millet Emperor as well as the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower to the Donghua Heavens for a gathering.��


    ��Please inform Chief that I will be bringing the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower to the Donghua Heavens,�� Millet Emperor replied as he gazed into the distance.


    ��Many thanks, Millet Emperor,�� replied the people who had come. ��We will return with your response. Farewell.��


    As they said this, golden lightning radiated from their bodies. Their figures immediately disappeared from their positions. It was as though they had never been here in the first place.


    At that moment, the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower were all looking over in that direction with their heads raised. They naturally understood that the Chief the messengers referred to was the Donghua Domain��s Domain Chief. Aside from him, who else dared to refer to themselves as Chief before Millet Emperor?


    The cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower were somewhat surprised. However, for Millet Emperor and the others, this was within their expectations. Hence, they appeared very calm. Domain Chief��s Manor invited the cultivators of the Donghua Domain. They would personally send messengers to superpowers to invite them over. This was to show them due respect. As for the other cultivators of the Donghua Domain as well as the cultivators from other continents, it was up to them. Domain Chief��s Manor would not personally invite them. This was more of a logistical constraint.


    However, one could imagine that, after the grand occasion on Turtle Deity Island last year, the Donghua Heavens would organize an event that surpassed that of Turtle Deity Island in terms of scale. Domain Chief��s Manor had waited 50 years before gathering the top forces of various continents as well as the cultivators of the Donghua Domain again.


    Right at this moment, Ye Futian��s aura fluctuation could be sensed from the watchtower. The Great Path domain dissipated as the galaxy disappeared. Ye Futian came out from the watchtower.


    Millet Emperor and the rest detected Ye Futian��s movement and shifted their gazes towards him. His silver hair was dancing in the wind while his gaze was as profound as the galaxy. His temperament was otherworldly.


    If it wasn��t because Millet Emperor knew that Ye Futian was from the Original Realm, he would most likely assume that Ye Futian was from one of the super powerful families.


    ��Teacher,�� Ye Futian greeted Millet Emperor. He stopped not far away from the group and bowed slightly at Millet Emperor. Then, he looked at Li Changsheng and Zong Chan and greeted, ��Elder Brothers.��


    ��Did you succeed in your cultivation?�� Li Changsheng asked with a smile.


    Ye Futian answered, ��Gate to World Suppression is marvelous. With my current level of cultivation, I still can��t comprehend all of it. I can only incorporate what I have managed to comprehend into my skill. I still have a long way to go.��


    ��Younger Brother always speaks so humbly,�� Li Changsheng said jokingly. Ye Futian smiled as he shrugged his shoulders.


    ��Just now I overheard that the Domain Chief is gathering all the cultivators in the Donghua Domain?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Hmm,�� Millet Emperor nodded in affirmation. ��Previously, when we were at Turtle Deity Island, we didn��t manage to forge connections with the cultivators from Domain Chief��s Manor. This is a good opportunity if you want to enter Domain Chief��s Manor. With your ability, there shouldn��t be any problems.��


    Ye Futian nodded, inquiring, ��Will Teacher and Elder Brothers attend the gathering this time?��


    ��Chief has personally invited us. Moreover, this is an event that occurs once every 50 years. Everyone in the Donghua Domain will show him face. The cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower are no exception,�� Millet Emperor replied. After all, Domain Chief��s Manor was the ruling force of the Donghua Domain in name. The Domain Chief was appointed by Donghuang the Great. Since Chief had personally sent a representative to invite them to the gathering, all the cultivators who trained in the Donghua Domain would give Chief face and attend the event.


    ��Understood.�� Ye Futian nodded slightly. Domain Chief��s Manor was the core area of the Donghua Domain. It was located in the Donghua Heavens. After he entered Domain Chief��s Manor, it meant that he would have the chance to come in contact with the top forces in the Divine Prefecture. Once he was on the radar of the top forces of the Divine Prefecture, he might encounter some old friends again.


    Even though the Divine Prefecture was huge, it only had 18 domains. Every Domain Chief��s Manor in each domain was a core area in the Divine Prefecture. Domain Chief��s Manor in the Donghua Domain was no exception to that.


    What would Ye Futian do if he encountered his ��old friends?��


    It seemed like Millet Emperor��s suggestion was right on point. Ye Futian indeed needed to enter Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate. Once he became a member of Domain Chief��s Manor, his former enemies would not dare to attack him lightly even if they met in the future.


    Once he entered Domain Chief��s Manor, it was equivalent to him entering the core forces of the Divine Prefecture. He was also one step closer to Donghuang the Great. He should also be closer to revealing the truth about his origins and the secret of his godfather. By the time he broke through to the upper-level Renhuang Plane, he should be able to slowly unveil these skeletons in the closet, right?


    He also had no idea what was going on in the Original Realm now. Did Jieyu manage to find herself again? Did Yu Sheng go to cultivate in the Devil World?


    Back when Ye Futian was still in the Original Realm, Devil General Mei Ting had also remained there. Mei Ting certainly had a deep connection with Yu Sheng. Would he bring Yu Sheng along when he left?


    Ye Futian had no answers to any of these questions. Right now, the main thing that he needed to focus on was to break through to the upper-level Renhuang Plane as soon as possible.


    Since he came to the Divine Prefecture, his level of cultivation had been improving at the speed of lightning. However, once he reached his current level of cultivation, it was extremely difficult to break through to the next Plane!

 Chapter 2010 - Donghua Heavens

    Donghua Heavens��the absolute core of the Donghua Domain��was also the strongest among all the continents of the domain. Its terrain was high above the others; hence, the name ��Donghua Heavens.��


    After the news came out of the Domain Chief��s Manor, it quickly spread toward every other continent within Donghua Domain. As a result, cultivators from the surrounding continents had come to Donghua Heavens, with many others still on their way.


    The entire Donghua Heavens seemed extremely festive. It was as if they were holding a feast of Donghua Domain.


    Donghua Heavens was the location of Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor, as well as the most powerful continent in the region. There were many powerful forces with countless top-level cultivators, but mega-force principality was still a rarity.


    The vast and endless Donghua Heavens did not have many cities. After countless years of development, the entire continent had been built into one cohesive whole with perfect connections. Even the mountains and the ocean regions had been occupied by powerful cultivators, connected to one another without any issues.


    Its name may have derived from this design. Donghua Heavens was one entirety, like a massive city without bounds. If it was another continent, it could be divided into hundreds of cities.


    But since the Domain Chief��s Manor was here, there was no need for so many distinctive divisions.


    The Leng family was a powerful family in Donghua Heavens. Although it was not the strongest, its influence was considerable. With members of the family that were Ninth Realm Renhunag, the family would have been considered top-level on any continent.


    But in Donghua Heavens, although it was considered a family of power, it was not at the top level. There were many families or sects in Donghua Heavens that were more powerful than the Leng family.


    At this time, the cultivators of the Leng family were busy with their own affairs. Somewhere in a courtyard, several children and a young man were playing, a scene of tranquil beauty.


    However, a brilliant light appeared at the Leng family��s compound, shot into the sky. Suddenly there was a very strong fluctuation of the spatial Great Path in the compound grounds. A group of people in the courtyard looked up and exclaimed, ��My goodness, what is that?��


    Among the family members, a group of cultivators levitated into the sky, looking at that golden beam of light rushing into the sky. Some elders who knew what was going on looked sharply with their eyes and whispered, ��They are here.��


    ��Who?�� someone asked.


    ��Cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower from the Dongxiao Continent,�� said the man, as that golden light beam fell from the sky. A group of men emerged from it. It was as if it had materialized out of thin air, descending into Leng��s territory.


    ��Clan lord.��


    ��Clan lord����


    Below, many called out and saw an elderly man leap into the sky to greet those that came from the void. He laughed loudly. ��Everyone, welcome!��


    The group that arrived were Ye Futian, Zong Chan, and the others; they had come to Donghua Heavens earlier than expected.


    However, this time they did not travel by road but took advantage of the grand matrix of space.


    Donghua Heavens was the main continent, and at Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor, there was a supreme grand matrix of space that led to other main continents, which was much more convenient.


    In addition, all the top forces would try their best to create a Great Path of Space so they could come here at any time. Wangshen Watchtower was no exception. There was a portal in Donghua Heavens, and it was located at the Leng family. They had established a super-powerful matrix here, which could descend directly to Donghua Heavens from Wangshen Watchtower.


    The clan lord of the Leng family was an elder. A middle-aged man stood beside him with a smile. This man was the next in line of the Leng family, Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng, an extremely well-known character. He had cultivated at Wangshen Watchtower and associated with the Millet Emperor. Because of this relationship, Wangshen Watchtower��s teleportation matrix to Donghua Heavens was built inside the Leng family compound.


    Above the grand matrix, Ye Futian and his party stood there with Li Changsheng in front, who looked at the old clan lord and smiled. ��Clan lord Leng is much too kind. We came without notice. Please pardon our disturbance.��


    ��You are too humble.�� Clan lord Leng said with a smile, ��You are all Kuangsheng��s brothers. There��s no disturbance to speak of. I was just thinking that after the news, the Domain Chief��s Manor should personally dispatch a messenger to inform Wangshen Watchtower and that you may be here. I was prepared to see you all and was very much looking forward to it.��


    ��Good to see Senior Brother Li again.�� Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng stood there with a smile. He had thick eyebrows and deep-set eyes with a square jaw. He looked mighty and authoritative, and he inspired respect from those who laid eyes on him. Just him standing there was enough to give people a sense of awe. The name Sky Sword was by no means a vain moniker.


    ��Junior Brother Leng,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile, ��Long time no see. You are almost catching up to my realm. No wonder I have not seen you cultivating at Wangshen Watchtower all these years.��


    ��How can you say that, brother!? I have been traveling across the continents of Divine Prefecture all these years to cultivate and comprehend. It hasn��t been long since I came back here. I didn��t expect to get together with my brothers and everyone else so soon, what a happy happenstance.�� Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng laughed and said, ��This time, I am going to drink to my heart��s content.��


    ��Okay, Kuangsheng, let��s not chitchat while hanging out here.�� The old clan lord laughed. Leng Kuangsheng caught himself with an embarrassed smile. ��Brothers, please come with me. The banquet is being prepared. We will drink a bit first.��


    ��All right then.�� Everyone smiled and nodded as the group followed Leng Kuangsheng to the banquet hall of the Leng family. Chief lord Leng waved his hand, ��Everyone, please take a seat.��


    Everyone found a place to sit down, and someone next to them was serving wine. They saw that Sky Sword was looked at Zong Chan with a smile, who was sitting across from Li Changsheng and said, ��Brother Zong, when I left years ago, you were still in the realm of Middle Renhuang. Now you are already in the Upper level, and your Great Path is still perfect. Even in Donghua Heavens, I hear people mention you from time to time, saying that Zong Chan of Wangshen Watchtower is no less than the Desolation of Badlands Divine Palace and Sword Goddess��s eldest disciple, Jiang Yueli.��


    ��They have already achieved their fame for a long time, while I still have some ways to go,�� Zong Chan responded.


    ��Well, at this level, it��s just a matter of waiting. Now, I am afraid I am no longer a suitable opponent for you either,�� Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng said, laughing.


    Zong Chan shook his head and smiled without responding. What the other said was the truth. His strength, by now, should be well above that of Senior Brother Sky Sword.


    ��I heard that there were some disturbances on that side of Divine Ocean Continent, but I didn��t get any specifics. What��s going on?�� Leng Kuangsheng asked again. A few months ago, Emperor Xi crossing the divine tribulation had caused a sensation in the entire Donghua Domain. Everyone knew about it, so the news of trouble also spread, even to Donghua Heavens.


    ��The grievances between the ancient royal family of Yan and Wangshen Watchtower have been for a long time, but this time, Lingxiao Palace also got involved for some reason,�� Li Changsheng responded.


    ��Lingxiao Palace and Wangshen Watchtower have never had any ill will towards each other, and they actually got involved,�� said Clan Lord Leng with a frown. Lingxiao Palace was a major force of power in Donghua Heavens. If the conflict intensified, it was definitely not good news for Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��I don��t know the reason at this time. We came to Donghua Heavens to see if they will do anything,�� Li Changsheng continued.


    Clan Lord Leng nodded without saying much. ��Which one of you is Ye Liunian?��


    As he was speaking, he surveyed the crowd and stopped when he saw Ye Futian.


    ��I am.�� Ye Futian smiled.


    Clan Lord Leng look at Ye Futian seriously, with a hint of admiration in his eyes. ��One sword strike to defeat Yan Dongyang��the prince of the ancient royal family of Yan��and crossed the realm in the battle to defeat Linghe��the young master of the Lingxiao Palace. Wangsheng Watchtower will produce yet another outstanding figure. I have a feeling that there may be three awesome figures in the future of Wangshen Watchtower.��


    ��Elder is much too generous,�� Ye Futian said modestly. ��And, I��m not considered a disciple of Wangshen Watchtower. However, senior brother Li and senior brother Zong will be able to inherit cultivation from the Millet Emperor.��


    Clan Lord Leng showed a look of surprise. So, he wasn��t a disciple of the Millet Emperor.


    Perhaps it was because of Eastern Deity Island.


    ��How is Donghua Heavens? This once every 50-year event will be extremely festive,�� said Li Changsheng.


    ��Of course. All of Donghua Heavens is in a jubilant mood. Many cultivators are looking forward to it. This time around, the Domain Chief��s Manor will also be open to recruiting cultivators. Many people are aching to become a member of the Domain Chief��s Manor.�� Clan Lord Leng continued, ��In addition, all the top figures from all continents will gather in Donghua Heavens. By then, we will be able to see many excellent battles and see how the Chief will choose.��


    ��We have to ask for the Lord��s opinion. Liunian wanted to cultivate at Domain Chief��s Manor,�� Li Changsheng said, which surprised the clan lord a great deal. Ye Futian did not enter Wangshen Watchtower but planned to enter the Domain Chief��s Manor for cultivation?


    He couldn��t really understand this. Was it also because of Eastern Deity Island?


    ��Sure.�� Without thinking much about it, he nodded and promised, ��I will see what I can do. But you should know that no matter what, any slight movement will be known to everyone.��


    ��That��s true enough.�� Li Changsheng nodded. ��Then, we will just have to wait quietly!��

 Chapter 2011 - Instruction

    Ye Futian and his party settled down at the Leng family��s compound. After many nearby family members got wind of the news, visitors started trailing in. However, most of them were there, hoping to catch a glimpse of Zong Chan, this upcoming figure in Donghua Domain.


    Thus, Zong Chan was quite preoccupied. People from Donghua Heavens came specifically to visit him. Many of them were elders, which made it difficult to refuse their visits, especially when many of them were familial forces that had enjoyed good relationships with the Leng family over the years.


    Ye Futian and Li Changsheng were together in a courtyard. As Li Changsheng looked into the distance, he smiled and said, ��Brother Zong is very busy now. These people who came to visit were all heads of some of the most influential families.��


    ��Brother Zong will become one of the future pillars of Donghua Domain. Aside from being valued by these principalities, it doesn��t hurt to forge friendships with some of these families,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. This was simple enough to understand. If someone was acquainted with powerful figures such as the Millet Emperor or Emperor Xi, it was an excellent thing.


    And now, who wouldn��t be happy to make some connections with Zong Chan before becoming a powerful man of the region?


    ��That��s true enough. Some of them even brought along their most accomplished young ladies of the clan, every one of them superior in both looks and talent. What kind of suggestion was that, and what does it look like to others? Kind of undignified.�� Li Changsheng seemed to find the whole affair rather amusing as he continued with a smile, ��But some of them were true beauties. Brother Zong does not have a Path Companion yet; perhaps there is an opportunity here.��


    Ye Futian knew that Li Changsheng was joking. With Zong Chan��s strength and status today, the Path Companion worthy of him must also be extremely extraordinary. However, it was also obvious that he had no such thoughts, or he wouldn��t have wait until now unless he had met his perfect match.


    However, as they were already in the realm of Renhuang, this kind of pedaling was indeed inappropriate. Though, it did indicate the importance that these great families placed on Zong Chan. They did not hesitate to lower themselves for a chance to recruit him into their own family. If they succeeded, this upcoming star would become part of their family, and the benefits that were associated with this relationship were quite obvious to all.


    Of course, from Ye Futian��s perspective, this idea was bound to fail.


    At this point, two people were walking this way. They were youngsters from the Leng family. Both of them looked to be no more than 20, with a fairly low level of cultivation. They were a boy and a girl, both good-looking, and they appeared to be well-mannered.


    ��Leng Yan, Leng Xi, greet the elders.�� The two came in front of Li Changsheng and Ye Futian, bowing slightly.


    ��Mmm.�� Li Changsheng nodded slightly. ��What is it?��


    ��We are here to seek advice on cultivation,�� Leng Xi said.


    Li Changsheng had an amused look on his face. It was normal for the Leng family��s descendants to ask the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower for advice. After all, it was an opportunity. Even if there was no gain, there was no loss either, and if some comprehension could be gained from it, all the better.


    ��Didn��t all the brothers and sisters of your family go to Zong Chan for advice these days? He is very talented, you know. You should go ask him,�� Li Changsheng smiled.


    ��The elders told us that the elders that came from Wangshen Watchtower are a worthy source of instruction for us. In addition to Elder Zong, Elder Li and Elder Ye are extraordinary figures whose comprehensions in cultivations are comparable to that of Elder Zong. ��Leng Xi bowed. He appeared very polite and courteous.


    ��Little girl knows how to talk,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile. Although Leng Xi looked young, she wasn��t actually quite as young as she looked. After all, she had a sage-level cultivation. However, in front of an old guy like Li Changsheng, she was just a little girl. He had been cultivating for many years, and he was a supreme existence in the Ninth Realm of Renhuang.


    ��Very well. Since you said it so nicely, ask away,�� Li Changsheng replied with a smile.


    ��Elder, what about me?�� Leng Yan asked.


    ��Over there���� Li Changsheng pointed to Ye Futian as Leng Yan��s eyes fell on him, a little unsure. He heard from the elders that Ye Futian was mighty and talented. He did not doubt that. But Ye Futian, after all, was much younger. Whether it was Li Changsheng of the Ninth Realm or the Zong Chan of Upper Renhuang with perfect Great Path, they were both more suitable for teaching others than Ye Futian. This was not about talent, but comprehension in cultivation; he thought that Li Changsheng and Zong Chan were both stronger because of their realms.


    ��Why, don��t you believe it?�� Li Changsheng smiled when he saw the look in Leng Yan��s eyes.


    ��I dare not.�� Leng Yan shook his head and bowed to Ye Futian. ��If elder is willing to advise me, I��d be honored.��


    ��Senior brother was too lazy himself, so he sicced you on me.�� Ye Futian smiled at Li Changsheng, then nodded to Leng Yan. ��What do you want to ask?��


    ��Thank you, Elder.�� When Leng Yan heard Ye Futian��s words, he knew that the other had acquiesced to instruct him, so he said, ��I would like to ask for some pointers on blade techniques.��


    People of the Leng family were known for their skills at swords; Leng Kuangsheng himself had the moniker of Sky Sword.


    ��I am good at swordsmanship, but no knowledge of blade techniques at all,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��The elders said that cultivation is unbounded, especially when it reaches a certain realm. Uncle is good at blade techniques, but he, too, went to Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate. I believe that even if the elder didn��t cultivate in blade techniques, you would still be able to give me some pointers,�� replied Leng Yan.


    Ye Futian smiled. Leng Yan knew how to seize the opportunity. Next to them, Li Changsheng was already instructing Leng Xi, so he said, ��Alright, what questions do you have?��


    ��Among my peers in the family, my talent was so-so, and my combat effectiveness is about mid-range as well. Some brothers of my generation cultivated the same blade techniques, but they are much better than me. Therefore, I would like you, sir, to see where the problems are in my techniques,�� Leng Yan said to Ye Futian. He didn��t diagnose his own problem but asked Ye Futian to take a look at it instead.


    Ye Futian nodded; this Leng Yan was a smart guy. He said, ��Let me see your blade techniques.��


    ��Very well.�� Leng Yan nodded. As his figure flashed, he stepped into the void and suddenly was bursting with an incredibly strong rule power of swordsmanship. Invisible swords condensed and manifested as Leng Yan was gathering momentum. His palms faced up toward the sky as swords suddenly appeared in thin air. The aura from his body continued to rise, as well as getting stronger.


    The strong Sword Will made a sharp sound in the void, and an extremely sharp aura enveloped the sky above. When his aura climbed to the highest point, Leng Yan stretched out both hands. Holding a sword, he slashed into the void. In an instant, many blade lights bloomed at the same time, turning into a brilliant blade aurora. They rushed straight into the firmament, intent on splitting the void. And it didn��t dissipate until it was well into the distance.


    Ye Futian looked up and watching quietly. This blade technique was very good, and the rule power it exhibited was strong as well, definitely on par with him when he himself was in the Sage Realm back then: fierce, domineering, and indomitable, completely embodied the essence of the blade technique.


    Leng Yan landed on the ground after unleashing the sword. As he returned in front of Ye Futian, he said, ��Sir.��


    ��Not bad.�� Ye Futian nodded slightly in acknowledgment. ��The rule power was unleashed to its fullest; it was fierce and domineering, in line with the Way of the Blade. However, too much force was exerted as well as the effort on pursuing the form.��


    Leng Yan was thoughtful. It was as if trying to understand the meaning behind Ye Futian��s words. Finally, he said, ��Please expound, sir.��


    ��A few months ago, I went to the Divine Ocean Continent and encountered the relic left by Thunder Punishing Skylord there. I found that there were carvings of many ax techniques, and some of them were formed naturally and had not been carved with the power of the Great Path. However, their spirits were far stronger than those carved by the power of the Great Path. After many marks were made, Thunder Punishing Skylord was able to break the constraints of the Great Path.


    ��Although I haven��t reached that state, I did have some insights. Your blade techniques were more insistent on form rather than spirit; it isn��t ideal,�� said Ye Futian.


    But Leng Yan was still puzzled. There was a huge gap between his and Ye Futian��s realm, and same with perception. Some things far surpassed his ability of understanding.


    ��Strike me with the sword,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Very well.��


    Leng Yan nodded, once again gathering the momentum of the sword. Ye Futian��s body was covered by a Sword Will, like a storm tearing through the void. In the next moment, Leng Yan unleashed the sword. The sword slashed directly at Ye Futian without reservation because he knew that his sword did not pose any threat to Ye Futian.


    When Ye Futian saw the sword coming, he raised his finger and pointed at the sword.


    Even Leng Yan felt a little shocked at this moment. From Ye Futian��s finger, he didn��t notice any aura of the Great Path.


    Clang!


    The sword broke. And as the finger fell, a light appeared on the ground where the sword had struck. An invisible Sword Will, without form, was able to split his sword in two.


    Leng Yan��s arms hung by his sides as he stared in shock. How did this happen?


    He seemed stunned, just standing there, with continuous flickering in his eyes. Sometimes his brows were knitted, and sometimes they were unfurled. After a while, he simply closed his eyes, overcome by extreme tranquility. He momentarily forgot his surroundings.


    Ye Futian didn��t interrupt him. On the other side, Li Changsheng and Leng Xi were looking at this side. Previously, he was instructing Leng Xi in cultivation. When he saw Leng Yan in a daze, Li Changsheng looked interested. What was going on?


    Leng Xi didn��t even know what had happened; he just stared at Leng Yan, puzzled.


    After a while, there were invisible fluctuations from Leng Yan��s body, and some changes seemed to have taken place in his entire person. This change was invisible, and he seemed to be sharper than before. His eyes opened, and he looked at Ye Futian. Slightly bowing, he said, ��Thank you, Master.��


    Suddenly, the confusions and questions he had about his own cultivations for such a long time cleared up at this moment. It was as if he had found a path to cultivation. He had hoped that Li Changsheng would be the one to instruct him, but by chance, Ye Futian took him on. He had gained more than he had expected, and he was grateful.


    ��This is���� Li Changsheng revealed a smile. ��Are you going to be his apprentice?��


    Ye Futian shook his head and looked at Leng Yan. ��I don��t have any intention of accepting disciples.��


    ��I understand,�� Leng Yan said. ��But, receiving instruction from elder today is a memorable event. I shall always remember it in all my days.��


    Leng Xi was a little surprised. It seemed that Leng Yan had gained a lot.


    Ye Futian didn��t say anything more. ��I��m only pointing some things out as I see them. How much you can realize on your own is completely dependent on your own talent. Go back to cultivate and comprehend thoroughly.��


    ��Yes, sir.�� Leng Yan bowed and said, ��I will bid my farewell.��


    He left immediately after that!

 Chapter 2012 - The Premier Holy Land

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Leng Yan received instruction from Ye Futian, he went back to cultivate. After sitting in meditation for a day, when he emerged from cultivation the next day, his temperament had changed greatly. He had a breakthrough in his cultivation, and his blade techniques were more refined. He had clearly made considerable progress. Even Leng Xi was a little regretful that she didn��t ask Ye Futian for help.


    She was there next to them yesterday, but she had concentrated on Li Changsheng��s instructions and ignored Ye Futian��s instructions to Leng Yan. Although she later asked Leng Yan for details, she couldn��t quite understand the ideas that Leng Yan tried to express for some reason.


    On this day, many members of the Leng family gathered, seemingly waiting for someone��s arrival.


    Outside the family compound, in the void, a group of cultivators arrived by air. Everyone in the group had an extraordinary temperament and an elegant demeanor. Each one of them was a notable figure in their own right.


    Seeing their appearance, the genius talent who was the lead��Leng Kuangsheng��revealed a smile. As the group descended, he smiled and said, ��Welcome, everyone, to the Leng family.��


    ��The elder is too kind. We come this time to trouble you with some business of ours. Please forgive us in advance.�� Everyone in the group bowed slightly to pay their respect. They were humble and polite. The visitors were all in Renhuang Realm as far as their cultivation was concerned. The empress who stood in the middle of the group was eye-catching both in looks and temperament. She was like a goddess out of this world, and yet, she had a sense of sharpness about her.


    ��We are friends here, no need for formality. I think you all know my brother.�� The woman pointed to Leng Kuangsheng and introduced him to everyone. She was a lady of the Leng family, the sister of Sky Sword, Leng Qinghan.


    ��They were my fellow cultivators,�� Leng Qinghan said to Leng Kuangsheng.


    Leng Kuangsheng knew that, of course, and turned around to gesture. ��Please, everyone.��


    The group walked inside the family compound. The Leng family had already prepared a banquet like the one they had prepared last time when they hosted the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower, which was a grand feast. The Chief of the Leng family was also in attendance. After the two parties greeted each other, they took their seats.


    Some young members of the family also arrived, including Leng Xi and Leng Yan. However, they could only sit in the back and watch those visitors. They knew exactly where these people came from.


    However, although everyone was seated, no one moved, and there were still a lot of empty seats left, which seemed to have been prepared for others.


    ��Go and ask them to come now.�� The Leng family chief commanded. Someone immediately bowed and left to follow the order. The people who needed to be invited were naturally referring to the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. This banquet was, in fact, an opportunity for today��s visitors to meet with the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower. Previously, they had already mentioned this to Li Changsheng and Zong Chan.


    Before long, the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower came to the banquet site, with Ye Futian. Many had visited before, but never with such a grand reception, so he never did come. After all, many had been here to visit Zong Chan.


    But this time, it was different. The people who came this time were not some ordinary folks, so he wanted to come and see for himself.


    After Ye Futian and the others arrived, the visitors looked up at them but sat quietly without moving. Leng Qinghan stood up and greeted them, ��Leng Qinghan greets all of you.��


    ��No need to be so formal; Kuangsheng is our peer, and the Leng family has been friendly with Wangshen Watchtower. So, Miss, you do not need to be so formal,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile.


    ��Mmm.�� Leng Qinghan nodded slightly before sitting down.


    Li Changsheng and the others sat and glanced at the group of people around Leng Qinghan. They nodded to Li Changsheng and the others. ��We heard that friends from Wangshen Watchtower were here with the Leng family, so we came with Qinghan to visit, and also to meet you. We have long heard of the fame of Wangshen Watchtower but rarely had an opportunity to chat. It is a great honor to see everyone today.��


    ��You are much too kind.�� Li Changsheng smiled and said, ��Donghua Academy is famous as the premier Holy Land in Donghua Domain. It is our honor to meet the cultivators from Donghua Academy today.��


    The exchanges of both parties were quite polite, especially those from Li Changsheng. When he spoke, his tone was gentle and even, which had a calming effect. It was as if he was an expert in complimenting the other. Obviously, he was quite experienced in these sorts of things.


    Those who had arrived were the disciples cultivating at the premier academy of Donghua Domain.


    Donghua Academy bore the name Donghua, so its background needed no further explanation. It had the best cultivation resources of Donghua Domain, backed by Domain Chief��s Manor. It came into being by order of Donghuang the Great to preach to the world and grew rapidly. The honorary College Chief of Donghua Academy was also the chief of Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Even the son of Domain Chief��s Manor��that peerless talent��was also cultivating at Donghua Academy.


    Among the three major principalities of Donghua Heavens, the Domain Chief��s Manor needed no further introduction. The other two were Donghua Academy and Ling Xiao Palace. Except for Ling Xiao Palace, the other two were somewhat different in nature. One was a political ruling power of the Donghua Domain, while the other was a force in preaching.


    Furthermore, these two principalities themselves were inextricably linked, as their existences were dependent on the will of the Great Emperor.


    The Leng family had produced two genius talents back in the days, and they were brother and sister. After Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng traveled throughout the world, he settled down at Wangshen Watchtower and cultivated for several years. Years. On the other hand, his sister, Leng Qinghan, chose a relatively simple and effective path by cultivating at Donghua Academy.


    Both Donghua Academy and Wangshen Watchtower were considered major principalities in Donghua Domain, but if one were to speak of history, Donghua Academy was clearly a step higher.


    However, the difference was that the visitors from Donghua Academy did not represent the top figures of Donghua Academy. Those from Wangshen Watchtower were the most elite group of people under the Millet Emperor. Therefore, at best, it was Donghua Academy that came to pay the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower a visit.


    At this time, the group from Donghua Academy had their eyes on Zong Chan, as if to scrutinize him.


    After Zong Chan��s breakthrough, there were now four awesome figures in Donghua Domain under the major figureheads. The one from Donghua Academy needed no other introduction. With a reputation of being the first genius talent of Donghua Domain, he was destined to be a true peerless cultivator in talent and background.


    Aside from that person, Jiang Yueli, the chief disciple of the Sword Goddess, was the most well-known among them, with a level cultivation in the Eighth Realm; he was only a step away from giant figures. Some even claimed that Jiang Yueli��s strength was no less than those reigning top figures.


    After that, Desolation and Zong Chan.


    Now, some people ranked these four. The one from Donghua Academy was the first, Jiang Yueli second, Desolation third, and Zong Chan fourth.


    These four people would continue in the footsteps of the previous generation and reach the top. Unless they perish before then, such a day would almost be a certainty.


    Subconsciously, they were comparing Zong Chan with that man in their minds. Zong Chan��s temperament was extraordinary, almost as that of a true Master. However, compared to the sense that the other man exuded, it was still quite a ways off.


    ��Cultivating in the academy, Zong Chan��s name was mentioned a lot recently, and now I finally saw him in person,�� a Renhuang said with a smile.


    ��I haven��t done anything and don��t deserve this fame. And from Donghua Academy, no less. I��m embarrassed,�� Zong Chan responded.


    ��If it weren��t for Qinghan, we wouldn��t be able to come here to see you all. Truth be told, there are many cultivators in Donghua Academy who would really like to see you all too.�� The cultivator from Donghua Academy said with a smile, ��If you are free, would everyone from Wangshen Watchtower be willing to pay our academy a visit?��


    Li Changsheng looked at Zong Chan because those words were directed at him.


    Ye Futian sat there quietly without speaking, watching everything in silence. With Zong Chan here, nothing had to do with him.


    ��I have also looked up to Donghua Academy for a long time, and if the opportunity allows, I must visit,�� Zong Chan responded with a smile.


    ��After the chief��s order, all cultivators are now on their way to Donghua Heavens. ??Donghua Academy will also be the center of this gathering of unprecedented talents. It is also an important place that you definitely need to visit now that you are here in Donghua Heavens.��


    Zong Chan nodded; he did want to go. At this time, Ye Futian heard a voice, ��What does Brother Ye think?��


    Ye Futian glanced at Li Changsheng, and thought that Li Changsheng was a curious character. He said, ��Is senior brother referring to these cultivators or the matter of going to Donghua Academy?��


    ��Whichever one you think it is,�� Li Changsheng responded with a smile.


    ��These cultivators don��t understand, and there is nothing more to be said. As for Donghua Academy, I would like to see it,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Junior Brother Ye should go and experience it. Donghua Academy is extraordinary and has a considerable number of treasures. One of the treasures is a magic mirror that can attest to the rank of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. You have several Divine Wheels. Don��t you want to take a closer look?�� Li Changsheng said temptingly.


    ��Is it really as incredible as it sounds?�� Ye Futian showed a look of amazement.


    ��Mmm.�� Li Changsheng nodded. ��In the Divine Prefecture, there are the distinction of perfection and imperfection in Divine Wheels, with no distinction in rank. However, in reality, even the most perfect Divine Wheels still have ranks. Every cultivator is different, and that mirror can assess the strength of the Divine Wheel. Countless cultivators have already gone to be examined. Now in Donghua Heavens, and even the entire Donghua Domain, the strongest Divine Wheel ever tested belonged to the son of the current Domain Chief. He is also known as the strongest man of his generation. Donghua Domain has placed high expectations on him. I was talking to brother Zong about if we should go and visit when people from Donghua Academy have arrived by themselves.��


    To this, Ye Futian nodded!

 Chapter 2013 - Chance Encounter

    At the banquet, the cultivators from Donghua Academy formally invited Zong Chan and the others for a visit. Li Changsheng and Zong Chan both agreed to go.


    In Ye Futian��s estimation, they probably didn��t just invite the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. This time, all forces were about to gather in Donghua Heavens. As the premier holy land of the Donghua Domain, Donghua Academy would want to meet the top personalities from every corner.


    After the banquet, all the cultivators from Donghua Academy and the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower left, except for Leng Qinghan. She was going to accompany the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower to visit Donghua Academy.


    After all, this was her familial home, and those from Wangshen Watchtower were their guests.


    ��Qinghan, this time, Donghua Academy did not just invite the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower, did they?�� Chief Leng asked.


    ��Mmm.�� Leng Qinghan nodded and said, ��When they learned that the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower were here, they decided to come with me for a visit, and that was the consensus of many cultivators at the academy. They wanted to invite cultivator from all sides to the academy, so they made the proposal.��


    The head of the Leng family nodded. ��This time, it is really a meeting of the minds. Donghua Academy is the premier holy land, and everyone will accept the invitation. I think they are very interested in Zong Chan, and Zong Chan must be very interested in ��him.����


    Leng Qinghan thought about that person for a moment. Although Zong Chan was extremely talented and had cast the perfect Divine Wheel of Upper Renhuang, there was still quite a big gap between the two. She did not think that there was anyone who could compare with the person they are referring to. In the Donghua Domain, he was the one and only, and this was the consensus of all the cultivators in Donghua Heavens.


    It was the same even for the chief disciple of the Sword Goddess from the Fluttering Snow Palace.


    The cultivators of Donghua Academy knew how much glory he had brought them. In their view, of the four top figures in Donghua Domain, he was at one level while the other three were at another.


    ��In addition to Zong Chan, Li Changshen of Wangshen Watchtower is also very powerful. Since we are talking about talent, have you noticed that white-haired young man?�� Chief Leng asked.


    ��Naturally.�� Leng Qinghan nodded, ��The news of him defeating Ling He has already spread to Donghua Academy.��


    Ling He was a member of Lingxiao Palace and also cultivated at Donghua Academy. He was considered a disciple of the academy.


    Lingxiao Palace was considered a familial principality, while Donghua Academy was considered a holy place for preaching. There was no conflict of interest; even the son of the chief went there for cultivation.


    ��Mmm.�� Chief Leng nodded. ��He is also very powerful. In Donghua Academy, his battle record is difficult for anyone to match.��


    Leng Qinghan, who disagreed with this statement, retorted, ��Ling He is outstanding. If he can defeat Ling He, he must be a top-notch character, but there are still a few people who are superior to Ling He in the academy; he isn��t as powerful as all that.��


    It was extremely high praise for Clan Lord Leng to say that no one could compare to Ye Futian. It suggested that besides that man, almost no one could match Ye Futian��s talent. She, who was cultivating at Donghua Academy, thought this was an exaggeration of sorts.


    ��After this time, we should be able to see,�� Chief Leng said with a smile.


    ��Emperor Ye is indeed extremely powerful,�� a voice said. Leng Qinghan looked at the speaker. When she saw who it was, she smiled and said, ��Leng Yan, your cultivation has improved?��


    ��Auntie,�� Leng Yan nodded, ��under the guidance of Emperor Ye, I had an epiphany and made some progress in cultivation.��


    ��No wonder.�� Leng Qinghan smiled. ��Of course, I believed in the strength of Emperor Ye, too. after all, Ling He is also a powerful man in the Donghua Heavens.��


    Leng Yan didn��t argue with her. He could see that even though his aunt recognized Ye Futian��s strength, she didn��t think he could be raised to another level, such as at the same level as Zong Chan. Of course, this was not surprising. After all, Zong Chan was now Upper Renhuang with perfect Great Path, on his way to becoming a pillar in the Domain. This fact was evident from the attitude exhibited by the cultivators who had visited these days, including the cultivators of Donghua Academy.


    Today, the four great individuals were well-known to everyone in the entire Donghua Domain.


    Not only their talent but their strength had also reached the topmost level. They were now able to fight against the existence of Renhuang Ninth Realm.


    ��


    A few days later, at the time they agreed upon, the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower and Donghua Academy arrived. They came in the cold early morning hours at the place where Li Changsheng and the others had been cultivating.


    ��Miss Leng.�� Li Changsheng and Zong Chan walked out together, with Ye Futian and his party following behind.


    Leng Qinghan nodded slightly at them and said, ��Are we ready to go?��


    ��Yes, please.�� Li Changsheng nodded.


    ��I will lead the way for everyone.�� With a flash of her figure, Leng Qinghan stepped into the void in one step. Li Changsheng and others followed behind her. Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng was also accompanying them because he was considered a member of Wangshen Watchtower.


    There were cultivators in the sky above Donghua Heavens, and many of them were very powerful Renhuang. Countless cultivators had descended on this continent these days to usher in the most prosperous period the region had seen in fifty years.


    ��Miss Leng, what level of cultivation is the vice chief now?�� Li Changsheng walked to Leng Qinghan and asked.


    There was not much news about the son of the Domain Chief of Donghua Domain. And no one knew whether he had broken through the realm or not.


    ��We don��t know for sure. He should be at the pinnacle of the Seventh Realm. After all, it hasn��t been long since the vice chief��s breakthrough in the Seventh Realm,�� Leng Qinghan replied. Among the four figures, Jiang Yueli��the chief disciple of the Sword Goddess��had the highest cultivation and achieved fame the earliest. Jiang Yueli was also hailed as the person most likely to inherit the position of Lord of Fluttering Snow Palace, although there were two other peerless goddesses right after her��Qin Qing and Chu Hanxi.


    ��Has he been cultivating at Donghua Academy?�� Li Changsheng continued to ask.


    ��As far as I know, he should be cultivating in a secret location inside the academy; no one knows his progress. However, he should show up for the feast of Donghua Domain this time,�� Leng Qinghan said. As the man��s cultivation level elevated, there were not many opportunities for Donghua Academy��s disciples to see him; he was quite mysterious.


    Some elders had mentioned that he was cultivating in a secret location inside the academy.


    Li Changsheng nodded. Donghua Academy was the premier academy in Donghua Domain. It was not some ordinary place; there were many treasures inside, many secret locations for cultivation, as well as a library.


    ��I look forward to meeting this legendary figure,�� Li Changsheng smiled and said. He didn��t have the opportunity to cast the perfect divine wheel himself, but he was rather envious of people like Zong Chan, who would be qualified to pursue the supreme realm in the future.


    ��This time coming to Donghua Heavens, we should be able to meet him,�� Leng Qinghan said as Li Changsheng nodded. With so many extraordinary figures of the entire Donghua Domain converged in one place, he was bound to show up sooner or later, and the Chief would not be tucking him away either.


    The group continued on their way. Even though they were both within the bounds of Donghua Heavens, Donghua Academy was still quite a distance away from the Leng family. The Donghua Heavens was just too vast of an area.


    After a while, the group from far away saw a mountain gate. It was like a heavenly palace, towering and magnificent. In front of it was a massive open space with no other buildings. This area was unique and belonged solely to this celestial gate.


    ��We are here,�� Leng Qinghan said. The group descended and landed on the stairs. At Donghua Academy, the gates alone were hundreds of meters high, giving its visitors a sense of solemnity. Ordinary folks had to climb thousands of steps before they could reach it. However, as Leng Qinghan was a cultivator of Donghua Academy, and Wangshen Watchtower was the guest, they could reach the gate straight away.


    At this moment, someone groaned and retreated; it was a Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower. He looked a little embarrassed, and Leng Qinghan guessed what happened immediately. She said, ��Aside from the disciples, there are many elders who are cultivating inside the academy, and they don��t like anyone to snoop. Please don��t release your divine consciousness inside the academy. Your understanding is appreciated.��


    ��Mmm.�� The man nodded and said apologetically, ��I was careless.��


    ��Let��s go,�� said Leng Qinghan. At this moment, there was a cracking sound in the air from behind. They turned and saw another group approaching them, and it was a group of goddesses. They were all outstanding in looks, especially the three in the lead; they were more stunning than the rest.


    Ye Futian had seen them before. They were the cultivators from Fluttering Snow Palace. The three in the front were the three disciples of the Sword Goddess��Jiang Yueli, Qin Qing, and Chu Hanxi.


    They also saw the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower and slightly bowed with their hands together. Li Changsheng and the others responded in kind as they exchanged greetings.


    ��Friends from Wangshen Watchtower are here, too.�� Jiang Yueli said as Li Changsheng nodded. ��Donghua Academy is well-known throughout the world. How could we pass it up? But we didn��t expect to meet the goddesses here. What a happy coincidence.��


    ��Indeed, it��s meant to be.�� Jiang Yueli nodded. ��Previously, at the Divine Ocean Continent, my junior sister had met Emperor Ye in front of the cliff, and now we meet again here.��


    Qin Qing smiled at Ye Futian and nodded when she heard those words, completely different from the icy arrogance that Ye Futian had experienced when he first met her.


    Ye Futian returned a smile and nodded in acknowledgment.


    ��Hahahaha, it is. Let��s go in together,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile.


    ��Very well, please.�� Jiang Yueli gestured with her hand.


    ��Goddesses, please.�� Li Changsheng took a polite step back. Seeing this, Jiang Yueli didn��t demur any longer. She walked next to Li Changsheng and the others and said, ��Let��s go in together.��


    With that said, both sides entered Donghua Academy!

 Chapter 2014 - Estrangement

    Donghua Academy was the best educational institution in the Donghua Domain. No other academies could compare. Likewise, those that cultivated there were the most excellent cultivators, not some beginners or intermediate cultivators.


    Unless some unusually enchanting characters were chosen by the academy��s great figures to be taught by their sides and personally overseeing their cultivation, the minimum level for potential disciples in Donghua Academy was the Saint Realm. Those in the Saint Realm had already transcended the ordinary and moved into sainthood, proving that they could shed their roots from the world, thus allowing them to pass through the threshold of Donghua Academy.


    This premier academy in Donghua was not here to cultivate its future generations but to cultivate top-notch individuals who would be qualified to rule Donghua Heavens in the future.


    Those who came out of Donghua Academy were generally already at the top of Donghua Domain, whose cultivations were extraordinary.


    Ye Futian and the others stepped into Donghua Academy. This academy was different from all the other academies that Ye Futian had been to before. In other academies, their many disciples could be seen walking around everywhere on campus. But Donghua Academy was different; they didn��t see many disciples milling around. For disciples in this realm, they spent most of their time cultivating rather than wandering leisurely around the academy.


    Furthermore, this academy was like a city, boundless and massive. Inside the academy and looking into the distance, many magnificent ancient temples were built on top of an ancient peak. Immortal spirits abound with waterfalls and flowy clouds�� One could even catch a glimpse of some sacred beasts.


    Looking up, there were islands floating with buildings on them. They were the palaces in which powerful men cultivated. Among the clouds and mist, it truly resembled an earthly wonderland.


    Ye Futian was a little emotional. This was the top academy in Divine Prefecture. It was like a place for the divines to cultivate. The power of the Great Path lifted up those floating islands, and the aura of the Great Path was everywhere, permeating throughout the vast and endless Donghua Academy.


    In the distance, there was a range of vast and endless divine mountains, full of mystery. Ye Futian knew that there were many secret cultivation locations inside that ordinary people would never reach. Donghua Academy had the best cultivation resources within the Donghua Domain.


    The general background of the establishment of this academy originated from Donghuang the Great��s desire to preach. It could be said that the supporting force behind it was the Great Emperor, with the full support of the Domain Chief��s Manor. In just a few hundred years, the first academy in Donghua Domain had been established.


    Ye Futian was not the only one who had come here for the first time. In fact, most of those who entered the academy now were here for the first time. They were rather thoughtful when they saw the sight in front of them. No wonder that Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower wanted to poke around with his divine consciousness before. He must have been curious, but it had caused powerful individuals in the academy to feel averse to this.


    ��A great place. No wonder it��s the number one Holy Land of Donghua Domain,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile, unreserved in his praise.


    Wangshen Watchtower was created by his master, the Millet Emperor, once upon a time. The only place that could be considered as a secret place was that watchtower, which was still quite a distance away in its reputation from Donghua Academy, which had an extraordinary background. The foundation of Wangshen Watchtower, in comparison, was not as great.


    ��Paradise on earth! Cultivating at a place like this must be refreshing,�� Jiang Yueli expressed her sentiment.


    ��I heard that the Fluttering Snow Palace is located in an extremely harsh and cold environment, which has snowfalls all year round, but it also serves as training to one��s character; is that true?�� Li Changsheng asked. Jiang Yueli nodded, ��Yes, the cultivation environment of Fluttering Snow Palace is comparable to that of the Desolate God Palace, the worst environment in the Donghua Domain to cultivate.


    ��But it had also nurtured many goddesses. The palace lord herself is worthy of being an outstanding woman in Donghua Domain,�� praised Li Changsheng. The Sword Goddess was definitely a legend in Donghua Domain.


    ��Where are we going?�� Li Changsheng turned to look at Leng Qinghan and asked.


    ��There.�� Leng Qinghan pointing ahead, where there were many floating islands in the void, standing there like temples. Among the many floating islands, one was the most conspicuous. A palace, towering into the firmament, stood upon it as if it were a temple connecting to the heavens.


    Li Changsheng��s eyes drifted there, and his assessment was sharp as his eyes penetrated the space. He looked at the temple, and whispered, ��Is this Donghua Pavilion?��


    ��Mmm,�� Leng Qinghan nodded.


    ��When the Great Emperor unified the land of Divine Prefecture, he also established book depositories. I heard that two such book depositories were established in Donghua Heavens��one in the Domain Chief��s Manor and the other in Donghua Academy. What��s the difference between these two book depositories?�� Li Changsheng asked.


    Ye Futian showed a look of interest. After he came to Divine Prefecture, the first place he really settled in was Dongyuan Pavilion. At that time, he already knew that every continent in Divine Prefecture had such a holy land, and Donghua Heavens was no exception.


    Donghua Heavens seemed to be quite unique in that it had two book depositories, one located in Domain Chief��s Manor and one in Donghua Academy.


    ��The one at Domain Chief��s Manor is more comprehensive while the one in Donghua Academy is more suited for high-level cultivators above the Saint Realm. It was not open to outsiders, so its user base is smaller than the one at Domain Chief��s Manor,�� Leng Qinghan explained.


    Li Changsheng nodded. Only the Donghua Academy disciples had the opportunity to access the book depository at Donghua Academy, and there were not many of them.


    ��Let��s go,�� Leng Qinghan said and immediately stepped into the void, heading in that direction. The two principalities followed her and soon came to this floating island. Of course, there was more than just the depository, but this book depository was the most obvious structure on the island.


    On this floating island, there were many palatial compounds and a giant open area. At this time, many cultivators were gathered, forming a lively scene. It was quite different from the deserted area outside of Donghua Academy when they first arrived.


    When Ye Futian and the others arrived, they saw some familiar faces. The cultivators of the ancient royal family of Yan were already there. Their prince, Yan Hanxing and Yan Dongyang were both present. Aside from them, Ye Futian also saw the cultivators from Ling Xiao Palace. Ling He was there also, chatting up the cultivators of the ancient royal family of Yan. It seemed that the two were quite amicable.


    Seeing this, coldness flashed across Ye Futian��s eyes. Last time, on Turtle Deity Island, the cultivators of Lingxiao Palace plotted against them when they clashed with the ancient royal family of Yan. He found their close proximity this time intriguing.


    Moreover, he was extremely disgusted with Ling He and still wanted him dead. However, in Donghua Heavens, he couldn��t possibly do anything of the sort.


    The cultivators of Lingxiao Palace and Yan��s ancient royal family also turned to look at them, squinting slightly. Ling He��s malice toward Ye Futian had only gotten stronger since their last battle.


    As long as Ye Futian was around, he would never be able to raise his head.


    When he saw Ye Futian walking together with the cultivators from Fluttering Snow Palace, Ling He felt even more upset.


    But he quickly concealed his emotions and looked at the cultivators of Fluttering Snow Palace. ��Greetings to all the goddesses.��


    Jiang Yueli and the others nodded slightly. Ling He looked at Qin Qing and said, ��Qin Qing, I heard that you would come, so I arrived a little earlier. Finally, I am meeting you.��


    ��You��re too kind.�� Qin Qing nodded in acknowledgment. Obviously, she was grateful that Lingxiao Palace had deliberately befriended them over the years. Ling He and had always maintained a good relationship with them. However, she had felt a little uncomfortable at Turtle Deity Island previously. She understood that Ling He was proud and narcissistic, but other than that, she suddenly felt that Ling Xiao Palace had an ulterior motive for approaching them. They did not simply want to forge a good relationship with them.


    He seemed to have felt the distance in Qin Qing��s tone. Ling He��s desire to kill Ye Futian was much stronger.


    The cultivators of the ancient royal family of Yan also looked at Jiang Yueli and the others. Yan Hanxing said, ��It was a hasty meeting that day on Turtle Deity Island. Although I met the goddesses, we did not have a chance to talk at length. I have long admired Goddess Jiang, and this time, in Donghua Heavens, I must implore the goddess for some instruction.��


    ��The prince is too indulgent. We are at the same level of cultivation, so there is no instruction to speak of,�� Jiang Yueli responded.


    ��Of course there is, and the gap is considerable,�� said Yan Hanxing. His cultivation was in the Ninth Realm and was actually higher than Jiang Yueli. However, Jiang Yueli��s Great Path was perfect, which was not something he could compete with. Therefore, unless he broke through the shackles of Renhuang, it would be difficult for him to beat Jiang Yueli!

 Chapter 2015 - Holy Land Scenery

    At that moment, a group of people walked over from nearby. All of them were incredibly impressive. They were cultivators from Donghua Academy, and every one of them was a top figure.


    The man at their head seemed to be about 40 or 50 years old and had the air of a grandmaster. He looked at those around him, then smiled and said, ��I would never have thought that I would have the chance to see so many young heroes from all the continents of the Donghua Domain come here. I am Liu Qingzhu, and I welcome you.��


    ��So you are Liu Qingzhu. Greetings.�� Li Changsheng and the others bowed. Many of them had heard the name Liu Qingzhu, as he was one of the great figures of the Donghua Domain. It was said that he had cultivated to the top of the Renhuang plane and was probably only a step away from breaking free of the bonds of the Great Path. His understanding of the Great Path was profound. He was the most important figure at Donghua Academy.


    ��The Academy is a Holy Land, so there is no need for me to entertain all of you, but why don��t we take a walk around the Academy?�� said Liu Qingzhu with a smile.


    Everyone nodded, saying, ��We have great admiration for the fame of the Donghua Academy, so we came to visit. It would be perfect if we could take a walk around and see the scenery.��


    ��Very good. I will be your guide today. Please follow me,�� said Liu Qingzhu, suddenly turning and walking away. When they came in front of the ancient temple that soared into the sky, he said, ��This is Donghua Pavilion, which I��m sure you already knew. It is a library with many scrolls inside. Many of them were written under the orders of the Great Emperor many years ago and are classics. However, we do not show them to the outside world. I hope you understand.��


    Everyone nodded. They were not disciples of Donghua Academy, and thus they could not enter Donghua Pavilion.


    ��However, there are many other wonderful places here at the Academy where you may go. I will take you to see them,�� continued Liu Qingzhu, and he turned and walked in another direction. All the cultivators followed him. At some point, Ling He came up beside Qin Qing and said, ��The academy is truly all-encompassing. There are many hidden treasures here. Other than a few restricted areas, we are free to go anywhere.��


    Qin Qing nodded. ��Donghua Academy is the foremost Holy Land for cultivation in the Donghua Domain. The conditions for cultivation are perfect here, which has made many people envious. No wonder people say that most of the people of the Domain Chief��s Manor in the Donghua Domain came out of Donghua Academy.��


    The Domain Chief��s Manor had a very close relationship with Donghua Academy. Many of the cultivators who came out of the Academy joined the Domain Chief��s Manor and became members. This was equivalent to serving the Emperor himself, giving you a chance to reach a high level.


    If this had been earlier, Ling He naturally would have bragged a little, but now he had no grounds on which to do so. After all, even though he was a cultivator of Donghua Academy, he had been badly beaten by Ye Futian. If the other cultivators of Ling Xiao Palace had not intervened, things would probably have been even worse for him.


    The group soared through the sky above the Academy. There were floating islands in the vast space all around. Liu Qingzhu introduced them to the group, saying, ��These floating islands are where the elders of the Academy go to cultivate, as well as many of the disciples of the Academy. However, it is challenging for a student to claim one of these islands for their cultivation spot. They can only do so after passing a tough test. There are vast matrices on the islands that make them both good for cultivation and difficult to attack. Since these matrices cover them, one��s divine consciousness cannot invade them.��


    Everyone nodded. This was an unparalleled atmosphere for cultivation. Could one person really occupy an entire island by themselves and use it for their cultivation?


    However, this was something that only the most powerful of figures could hope to do. Ordinary disciples would never get that chance.


    They passed through that area and came to another area with ancient mountain peaks arranged in a ring. There was a vast distance between the peaks, which was filled with a vast matrix and a tall terrace. People were sparring there on the terrace.


    ��This is the Path Seeking Stage of the Academy. Students come here from time to time to spar, and sometimes we hold ceremonies here,�� continued Liu Qingzhu. Everyone began thinking about this.


    With so many heroic figures gathered together, how could they not think of sparring with each other?


    ��Look over there,�� said Liu Qingzhu, pointing. Between two relatively close peaks, there was an incomparably huge ancient mirror, clear and silent. If one did not look at it carefully, it would be easy to overlook its very existence.


    ��The Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels. It can determine how strong one��s Wheel of the Great Path is, and it looks at everyone. In the world of cultivation, there are only two types of Wheels��perfect and imperfect. One cannot divide perfect Wheels into levels, but are some still stronger than others?�� Liu Qingzhu said, seemingly speaking to himself. ��Of course some are. Everyone��s Wheels of the Great Path have different amounts of strength, and the gaps between some are actually quite large. However, since they are perfect, this is impossible to see once one can only faintly sense it as there is no concrete display. But here, the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels can distinguish the strength of Wheels of the Great Path. It is a valuable treasure. I am not sure where it came from, but if one unleashes their Wheel of the Great Path before it, the mirror will activate. A divine halo will appear within it. According to our best guesses, the mirror has nine wheels of light. However, no one has ever made it display all of them, so this is only a guess. Some people say this guess is wrong, and it is absolutely impossible to make that many rings of light appear.��


    His words made everyone feel rather excited. Many people wanted to go and try it out.


    ��What is the most amount of light rings that has ever appeared?�� someone asked. Everyone looked at Liu Qingzhu. They had obviously all been wanting to know the answer to that question, and so they looked at him curiously.


    ��Six rings,�� said Liu Qingzhu with a smile. ��Because of this, many people think that nine is impossible and that six is perhaps the maximum number of rings for a Divine Wheel, or maybe seven.��


    ��Was it the Vice Chief?�� asked Jiang Yueli.


    ��Yes,�� said Liu Qingzhu with a nod. This was not a secret. All the cultivators of the Academy had been tested.


    Jiang Yueli looked over at the mirror. And not only her. Most of them wanted to go and try. They wanted to see how many rings of light their Divine Wheel could produce.


    ��It seems you are all thinking the same thing, but you must first take some time to prepare your minds. Moreover, if your Divine Wheel is not perfect, there will be no response from the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels,�� Liu Qingzhu reminded them. Many people hesitated, but among them, there were those with perfect Divine Wheels, like Ling He, Qin Qing, Yan Dongyang, and others. But they were only mid-level Renhuangs.


    ��Let us first go visit other places. You have all come from afar, so you should enjoy the Academy��s scenery. Let us return and then decide where you want to go back to,�� said Liu Qingzhu, smiling. He was doing his best to be a good host. After all, these guests had come from far away.


    Everyone appreciated this, and so they followed him into the depths of the Academy.


    This place could not be seen from the outside. It was mysterious and unpredictable. It was a vast area that stretched for thousands of miles. It could even have been said to be a great city, but it was just a fact that Donghua Academy occupied a huge area.


    ��What is this place? It is so beautiful!�� said Qin Qing, looking down at the place. That place was like a sea of flowers as countless brilliant buds bloomed. There were pavilions and terraces surrounded by flowers, as well as rock gardens and lakes. It was like a land of celestials among the world of mortals.


    ��This is a place where the elders of the Academy cultivate,�� said Ling He. Not everyone was cultivating on the floating islands up above. There were many elders of the Academy here as well.


    Qin Qing looked down. What kind of people would be cultivating in a place as beautiful as this?


    Not all of the top figures of Donghua Academy were familiar to outsiders. Many of them reside within, quiet and unassuming, just cultivating at the Academy.


    Within the sea of flowers in front of one of the pavilions, Qin Qing could see a group of figures. They were a little different than she had imagined. There was an old woman there with white hair and a weathered face. But she stood straight. She was incredibly calm. It was as if she existed in a place outside the world.


    ��There are many elders purifying themselves in this area. We will not disturb them,�� said Liu Qingzhu. Everyone nodded and continued forward. Before long, they saw another peculiar structure. It seemed to be a celestial palace made of glass, perfect and beautiful.


    Going forward, the sky between the ancient peaks was filled with marvelous sword will. They saw a black-robed figure sitting on a cliff meditating with his eyes closed. He was on a sword peak.


    Ye Futian��s heart was filled with wonder as he went along. It seemed that any of the heroes of Donghua Academy would be considered a top figure in the world outside. This place truly completely overshadowed Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Brother, do outsiders truly not know about these people?�� he asked Li Changsheng telepathically.


    ��Of of them do, and some of them don��t. But if you think about it carefully, there is nothing strange about this. Before Donghuang the Great conquered the Divine Prefecture, during the time of chaos, there were already countless heroes. Many of those ancients are still around, but where are they? Naturally, they went all over. Donghua Academy is a holy land, so having many of this kind of people here is only natural,�� Li Changsheng said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded. If people of the Renhuang did not die in battle, they would live as long as the sun and moon. These old people had clearly lived long lives.


    After all, this place was not the Original Realm. The Divine Prefecture was vast: within its infinite reaches, who could count how many cultivators there were?


    At that point, they came to a barren. It was a dark area, with not a single sound. All was quiet. The ground itself was black, and ash filled wind swept up into the sky, carrying its silent aura with it.


    Everyone felt most uncomfortable. A terrible storm appeared before them. There was an incomparably huge, ancient black bell within the storm. As they drew near the bell, many people trembled in their hearts.


    ��It��s so terrifying!�� Everyone looked up at it. The horrible storm reached up into the clouds. The whole area seemed like a world that had faced the apocalypse.


    ��This is the God Burying Bell,�� Liu Qingzhu told them. ��Here, you can cultivate and temper your spiritual willpower while cultivating the Great Path of Death and the power of sonic waves. When the bell rings out, every living thing in a thousand-mile circle that cannot block it will be shattered and destroyed. This is a precious artifact, but it has not rung for a very long time. I hope it will never ring again.��


    Everyone knew what he meant. If a time ever came when they had to ring the bell, it would mean that Donghua Academy was facing a grave disaster. That was the only reason they would use it. At that time, it would be impossible to guess how many people would die. That was why he had said he hoped it would never ring again!

 Chapter 2016 - Seeking the Path in the Academy

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Let��s go,�� Liu Qingzhu said. He then led the crowd to another area. As they entered deeper inside, the space became even more unfathomable. They would occasionally encounter cultivators from the academy, yet the space above them was completely sealed off.


    In the distance, there was a desolate piece of land that was blocked off by mountain ranges. The other side of the mountain range was covered in mist. Ye Futian and the others could faintly hear a sound coming from beyond the mist.


    ��What is that?�� Qin Qing asked as she peered into the mountain range. Through the mist, she could faintly make out an enormous skyscraping tower. It seemed taller than a mountain. On the tower, countless runes were lit up. It was as though divine light was penetrating the mist. The crowd could see the strange phenomenon from afar. A faint but terrifying aura emanated from the direction of the tower. The faint sound was also coming from there.


    ��That tower is also a treasure,�� Liu Qingzhu said. He did not explain more as he continued heading in the direction of the tower.


    ��That is a restricted area,�� Ling He said to Qin Qing in a low voice. He also seemed to be reminding the others. The crowd immediately acted more reserved and did not look in the tower��s direction. Since it was a restricted area, investigating it was naturally not allowed. However, their curiosity grew even stronger. They wanted to know what was inside.


    Of course, some of them roughly guessed what was inside.


    ��Elder brother, there seems to be Demonic Qi coming from there,�� Ye Futian said to Li Changsheng over transmitted thoughts. He sensed the Demonic Qi emanating from there. It seemed that the sealing power of the tower could not completely seal off the Qi.


    A strange look flashed past Li Changsheng��s eyes. He had also cultivated for many years and had decades of experience. Having lived for so long, he had seen many things and knew more. Some things could only be known by experiencing them firsthand. The rumors that came after could not be easily discerned.


    ��It might be a Demon Sealing Tower,�� Li Changsheng said. ��It is used to suppress powerful demons.��


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. Why did Donghua Academy need to suppress a powerful demon?


    However, Li Changsheng did not say anymore, so Ye Futian did not ask.


    As they continued on their way, they saw another divine tree. The branches of this divine tree extended outwards, forming a huge forest. The terrifying destructive power of the Great Path was actually contained within the forest. This caused Ye Futian to reveal a bizarre look. Trees represented life and rich life force. However, the tree before him seemed to contain the power of destruction.


    ��It is a Deadwood. It already has a spirit,�� said someone. ��As we continue forward, this region still has many secret zones. Would all of you be interested in taking a look around?��


    Before the crowd managed to respond, a loud sound suddenly came from afar. They turned around and gazed into the distance. Liu Qingzhu released his will and extended it outwards. Very soon, he saw where the commotion had come from.


    The others looked towards him. After all, it was not convenient for them to release their wills. They did not know what was happening.


    ��The cultivators from Desolate God Palace have arrived. They are at the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels at the Path Seeking Stage,�� Liu Qingzhu explained. The crowd revealed strange looks. Had the cultivators from Desolate God Palace, who usually kept to themselves, also come to Donghua Academy?


    Before this, the academy members did not wait for the cultivators from the Desolate God Palace to arrive. That meant that the former did not know that the other party would come here. Now, they seem to have come uninvited.


    ��Let��s go take a look,�� someone said. They were also very interested in the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels. What did the cultivators from Desolate God Palace want over at the Path Seeking Stage?


    ��Alright.�� Liu Qingzhu nodded his head. The group immediately turned around and headed back at very high speeds.


    It wasn��t just them. Many people in the region had heard the commotion. In Donghua Academy, many cultivators were traversing through the air, walking out from the mountain range below or floating down from the floating islands above. They were all headed in the same direction.


    Not long after, the cultivators arrived at the Path Seeking Stage. Ancient peaks towering into the clouds above encircled the Path Seeking Stage. Over on one side, a group of cultivators dressed in black robes was standing there. They had frightening auras. The pressure that radiated from them was suffocating.


    On the mountain peak across from them stood the cultivators from Donghua Academy.


    In between them, above the Path Seeking Stage, two Renhuangs were currently engaged in combat. Their battle was intense.


    Liu Qingzhu immediately headed over to where the cultivators from Donghua Academy stood. The other cultivators dashed off in different directions. Ye Futian and the cultivators from the Wangshen Watchtower landed on a mountain peak. The cultivators of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow chose another, while the cultivators from Ling Xiao Palace in the Donghua Heavens chose a mountain peak beside them.


    All of them stood at different locations.


    At that moment, the sound of a violent collision could be heard. The matrix surrounding the Path Seeking Stage lit up with brilliant light, blocking off the residue shockwaves of the attacks of the two Renhuangs. The cultivator from Donghua Academy was knocked back. He appeared somewhat pathetic.


    They are actually having a Law Battle, the crowd thought as they revealed strange looks on their faces. Liu Qingzhu looked at them and said, ��Members of Desolate God Palace, why didn��t you tell us that you were coming? We could have been more hospitable.��


    ��No need to go to such troubles. It makes no difference if we just come over unannounced. Please forgive the intrusion,�� replied an elder of the Desolate God Palace.


    ��You are all guests who have come from afar. Not long ago, I brought the other guests on a tour around the place. Now that the cultivators from Desolate God Palace have arrived, how can I help you? Feel free to ask me for anything,�� Liu Qingzhu said politely.


    ��You can help me in anything?�� said a voice as a cold, indifferent and arrogant aura spread out. The crowd shifted their gazes towards the person who had spoken. It was the top monstrous figure of Desolate God Palace, the next Desolate God��Desolation. He was renowned as the successor of the current Desolate God.


    ��I cannot promise anything, but I will naturally aid you in any way I can,�� replied Liu Qingzhu, not paying heed to Desolation��s tone. Liu Qingzhu smiled casually. He was actually curious as to what request the other party would make.


    Desolation stood on the high peak. His black robes fluttered in the wind. His gaze was extremely sharp as it landed on Liu Qingzhu. Even though Liu Qingzhu was a senior figure, Desolation did not respect him. He said, ��Today, we have come to the Path Seeking Stage of Donghua Academy to challenge Ning Hua.��


    Ning Hua!


    Ning Hua was the top monstrous existence in the Donghua Domain, the most prominent figure of this generation of the Donghua Domain. He was the vice chief of Domain Chief��s Manor. He had too many titles and legends associated with him.


    Desolation had actually come to Donghua Academy to seek Ning Hua?


    However, this was somewhat understandable. Desolation from Desolate God Palace was also a powerful figure. Ordinary cultivators would most likely be unworthy of meeting Desolation.


    There were multitudes of cultivators from Donghua Academy. However, only a few of them were qualified to exchange blows with Desolation. He had come specifically for Ning Hua, the vice chief of the Donghua Domain.


    Liu Qingzhu smiled and said, ��Currently, we do not even know where Ning Hua is cultivating at. If you encounter him, you can challenge him then.��


    Liu Qingzhu immediately directed this request to Ning Hua himself.


    Of course, the precursor was that the other party had to find Ning Hua.


    Whether or not Ning Hua would oblige Desolation��s request, that was up to the former to decide. However, Desolation, who had come from afar, would most likely be left disappointed.


    Currently, no one could find Ning Hua unless he himself decided to appear.


    Many people in the academy believed that Desolation was somewhat arrogant. Although Desolation was currently also known as one of the four most prominent figures in the Donghua Domain, in their eyes, the difference between him and Ning Hua was still too great. Regardless of the list Ning Hua was ranked in, he was usually at the very top. That included the current four most prominent figures in the Donghua Domain. Ning Hua was still undisputedly the first.


    ��If that is the case, then today, having come to the holy land of Donghua Academy, I wish to experience the Way of the cultivators of the academy,�� Desolation continued. His tone was extremely arrogant and insolent.


    The cultivators from Donghua Academy felt that his attitude was extremely unsatisfying. This Desolation was practically presumptuous. Since Ning Hua was not around, he actually wanted to challenge the cultivators of the academy. His Great Path was flawless. Even in the academy, how many disciples could challenge him?


    There would most likely only be a few in the entire academy. Desolation��s personality was apparent from this.


    The cultivators of Desolate God Palace had come to Donghua Academy to challenge the other cultivators and challenge their egos.


    ��Alright.��


    ��If that is the case, we will happily oblige!��


    A few Renhuangs answered one after another. They were cultivators from Donghua Academy. They also wanted to see how powerful this monster from Desolate God Palace was.


    The atmosphere on the mountain peaks surrounding the Path Seeking Stage immediately became extremely tense!

 Chapter 2017 - Finger of Death

    In Donghua Academy, people were hurrying over, one after another. They stood on the mountaintops and looked at the virtuosos of the Desolate God Palace.


    These people were all not friendly. However, they were not too concerned about this. The purpose of inviting all of these factions to Donghua Academy this time was to understand the extent of the cultivation of the various Renhuangs in the Donghua Domain.


    It was just as well that the situation was like this.


    The space around the peak that Desolation stood upon was especially tight. A dense shadow shrouded the space around the mountain; black tendrils swirled around, creating a feeling of desolation and destruction. It was a very uncomfortable aura.


    ��Since Ning Hua is not around, is there anyone from the Donghua Academy who wants to fight me?�� Desolation asked. His voice reverberated in the entire space, and his tone was extremely overbearing.


    After all, this was Donghua Academy��the top academy in the entire Donghua Domain��and yet Desolation behaved in such an arrogant manner.


    In the space a distance away, several people were standing at the edge of the many floating islands and observing this area around the ancient peaks of path seeking. The heir to Desolate God was one of the four most talked about figures in the entire Donghua Domain. Naturally, many people wanted to see just how strong the Desolation of this generation was.


    In the outer world, among the four of them, Ning Hua was ranked first, Jiang Yueli second, Desolation third, and Zong Chan of Wangshen Watchtower, who had broken through to the high Renhuang level not long ago, was ranked last.


    Even though Desolation was cocky, everyone was still looking forward to seeing just how strong this impossibly powerful figure from the Desolate God Palace was.


    The Desolate God Palace was located on the Badlands Continent in the Donghua Domain. It was very far from the central region of the Donghua Domain. The various factions were all from different continents, and so even though they had all heard of one another before, only a few knew of their exact strength. After all, there were very few occasions where they would all gather.


    Now that the various factions were all called over to the Donghua Heavens by the manor chief, why wouldn��t they be eager?


    Jiang Yueli, Qin Qing, and the rest of the practitioners from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow had all focused their sights over there, excited about Desolation��s fight.


    At that moment, a high-level Renhuang virtuoso walked out from Donghua Academy. He was a middle-aged man at the eighth Renhuang level. Even though he was not one of the top-tier figures in the academy, Desolation was only a level-seven Renhuang. Even though he had a perfect Great Path, the academy did not wish to send out a level-nine Renhuang��a top-tier figure��straight away. Thus, it was he who walked out.


    Several practitioners of the Donghua Academy nodded lightly when they saw him walk out. This was an acceptable decision, albeit a risky one, since the person he was facing was Desolation.


    ��Please,�� the level-eight virtuoso spoke to Desolation, who was on the mountain peak.


    Desolation��s body glided forward and came to the space above the Path Seeking Stage. He did not look at his opponent but instead faced the region between the two ancient peaks. There lay a transparent mirror. Ripples seemed to course through the mirror continuously. It was the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels.


    Before the practitioners of the Donghua Academy sought their path here, if they possessed a perfect Great Path, they would all appraise the levels of their Divine Wheels using the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels to gauge how strong their Divine Wheels were.


    When Desolation walked out, he wanted to know how many layers of divine light his own Divine Wheel could cause the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels to emit.


    The practitioner from Donghua Academy who challenged him only looked at him silently without disturbing him. Nor did he walk up. After all, his Great Path was not perfect, so the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels would not respond to him. There was thus no need for him to go up to appraise his Divine Wheel. Right from the start, he was already disadvantaged.


    ��How strong do you think Desolation��s Divine Wheel is?�� Many people stared at Desolation. Wisps of powerful aura emitted from him. Above his body, a jet-black ancient tree of the Great Way appeared. Its roots seemed to be anchored everywhere, as though it were going to shroud the entire vast space.


    In an instant, the divine mirror radiated his body. In the mirror, a tree also appeared; it was a jet-black tree. Divine light shrouded Desolation��s body. The mirror and he seemed to be connected as one. Divine light appeared on the divine mirror, and one layer of divine light flowed. Many people turned to stare in that direction.


    ��It has appeared.�� Everyone stared at the divine mirror, and very quickly, a second layer of divine light flowed around the ancient tree.


    Furthermore, it had still not yet stopped. When the third layer of divine light flowed, many practitioners in the Donghua Academy let out light sounds. Some people were discussing it.


    ��Three wheels.�� From afar, many people were also watching. It was not that three wheels of divine light were strong. However, according to what they know, this was not Desolation��s most powerful Divine Wheel. He had two main Divine Wheels. In the Desolate God Palace, the Desolation of every generation must accomplish one thing��to forge the ��Desolation�� Wheel. That was Desolation��s core Divine Wheel.


    This ancient tree already caused three layers of divine light to be emitted. This meant that his ��Desolation Wheel�� would certainly surpass three layers of divine light.


    Indeed, after the third layer of divine light, the radiance on the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels stopped flowing.


    However, Desolation did not stop moving. An even stronger aura emanated from him. A seemingly ancient and sacred aura descended. One could vaguely sense a will of limitless desolation from him. A black divine palace of desolation appeared. It seemed to be a little ethereal, but the divine mirror instantly captured it. The divine mirror radiated its light on the divine palace. The light was especially blinding.


    Layers of divine light swirled around. In just a short moment, three layers of divine light appeared in the Desolation Wheel in the divine mirror. The glorious light showered the entire space and reflected off the mountaintop. Many people could not help but look on in awe.


    Furthermore, this time, everything did not stop yet. Very quickly, the fourth layer of divine light appeared. It was even more magnificent. The radiance on the divine mirror was got much brighter so that it was almost blinding.


    ��Impressive,�� commended many practitioners from Donghua Academy. The fourth layer of divine light appeared, but it doesn��t seem that it would stop. He was indeed the heir to the Desolate God Palace.


    When the fifth layer of divine light appeared, many people took on a serious look. It was the case for the members of various factions.


    In the direction of Lingxiao Palace, Ling He��s eyes also looked in that direction. His psyche was a little disturbed by what he saw. He had also tested his own Divine Wheel before. It could cause the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels to emit only three layers of divine light. According to the calculations by the seniors of the Donghua Academy, a practitioner who could seek the path to the high Renhuang level with a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel would also have a Divine Wheel of a higher level.


    On the other hand, it also meant that the higher the level of his Divine Wheel, the higher his chance of retaining a perfect Great Path when breaking through to the high Renhuang level.


    Some seniors of Donghua Academy also thought silently when they saw this unfold before them. It seemed that Jiang Yueli and Zong Chan��s Divine Wheels would not be a low level either. If this were the case, then that would prove that their hypothesis was correct. A person who could retain the perfection of their Great Path at the high Renhuang level would have a Divine Wheel of at least the third level. This corresponded to at least three layers of divine light in the divine mirror.


    This was just a conjecture that had no proof whatsoever. However, this was all very arcane. These numbers were usually contained within certain rules.


    ��There are already five layers of divine light.�� Many people were looking at the mirror. The level of this Desolation��s Divine Wheel was higher than those of all of the disciples of Donghua Academy, apart from Ning Hua.


    The light from the divine mirror was stunning and eye-catching. However, the sixth layer of divine light did not appear in the end. This meant that Desolation��s Divine Wheel was still slightly inferior to Ning Hua��s. With this, many practitioners of the Donghua Academy could vaguely accept this conclusion.


    After all, Desolation was already very famous. The four people were all figures of the Donghua Domain whose reputations were like the midday sun.


    Desolation, however, remained expressionless. No one knew if he was satisfied with five layers of divine light. He withdrew the radiance of his Divine Wheel. He levitated through the air and stopped in front of the level-eight virtuoso from Donghua Academy. The two of them faced each other in the empty space.


    Surrounded by ancient peaks, the Path Seeking Stage was extremely spacious. This gave combatants space to move as they liked.


    ��Show me what you��ve got,�� Desolation said to his opponent. In an instant, the Divine Wheel of the level-eight virtuoso appeared. It was a huge, boundless golden picture, as though it were a stone wall. It gave off a particularly sharp feeling.


    In an instant, an endless golden glow appeared in the heavens, accompanying the glow of the picture on the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. A matrix seemed to appear in the heavens. Golden motifs flowed around the matrix. Streaks of glorious golden light shot straight down toward Desolation with murderous intent.


    The aura from Desolation suddenly turned frightening. A will of desolation shrouded the entire space, as though the whole world had become grey. A black tree seemed to appear on his body. The branches and leaves of the trees reached out into all directions and appeared in the space around him as though they were countless limbs.


    Chu chu�� A sharp, piercing sound echoed into the distance. A terrifying picture appeared above Desolation, and the golden light that hammered down on him was unceasing, like the stream of the Great Path. However, a destructive black divine light shot upward from Desolation. The golden and black divine light streams collided like two streams of the Great Path flowing toward each other. A chaotic, destructive turbulence occurred at the point of collision.


    The Renhuang from the Donghua Academy floated in the air. The divine light of the Great Path bathed his body. A golden armor encased his body, and he seemed to give off an aura of invincibility. Endless divine light accompanied him as he shot downward. In the next instant, his body morphed into a beam of light. In the heavens, a straight beam of light shot down toward Desolation with killing intent. It pierced straight through the black, destructive lightning pervading the entire space.


    A fearsome storm appeared, and the entire world seemed to turn gray. Upon seeing his opponent closing in on him, desolation did not even react. He stood there without moving. The divine light was incomparably swift, but at that moment, someone noticed that Desolation had made his move. He raised his hand and pointed forward.


    The golden light stopped, and a golden afterimage was left behind in the air. However, a finger appeared in front. The moment the finger appeared, the annihilating radiance of darkness in the surrounding region seemed to be absorbed into the finger. Terrifying black lightning penetrated the skies.


    ��It��s the Finger of Death. Be careful,�� a practitioner from Donghua Academy reminded. However, it was too late. When the Finger of Death appeared, everything else died.


    Boom�� A horrifying radiance of darkness drowned out the entire space. Even the golden divine light was swallowed up. The crowd only saw a silhouette fly outward and collide with the matrix. A low sound echoed out, causing the matrix to tremble violently.


    The entire world seemed to take on a dull color. Streaks of black lightning coursed through the space. In front of Desolation, there was even the crisp crackling of lightning. That destructive flow caused everyone��s hearts to turn cold.


    The Finger of Death was one of the ultimate skills of the Desolate God Palace. It was terrifying due to its shocking power.


    With just a finger, the level-eight Renhuang��s breath became extremely weak. His Great Path was severely damaged. Everyone was shocked.

 Chapter 2018 - Desolation Wheel

    A level eight virtuoso was defeated with just a finger.


    The practitioners of Donghua Academy looked at Desolation with a rather somber look in their eyes. The aura of the Great Path flowed around the virtuosos of the Donghua Academy, who were standing at various places. Their clothes fluttered, and they all seemed to want to challenge Desolation to a fight.


    This Desolation was a top-tier figure in the Desolate God Palace; he was too arrogant.


    ��It��s best if you send a level nine practitioner.�� Desolation spoke in the direction of the Donghua Academy practitioners. Even if the person were a disciple of the Donghua Academy, a level-eight virtuoso was still unable to match up with him. He had a perfect Great Path. He also had the ability to cause the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels to emit five layers of divine light. It was more than sufficient for him to fight those who were one level higher than him.


    Moreover, even though that finger was an ultimate move, he did not display his true strength; he had only casually pointed. If he unleashed his Desolation Wheel, his opponent would not be able to withstand the might of his Divine Wheel alone. His opponent would be crushed straight away; there was no need for him even to act. It could only be said that he and his opponent were not on the same level.


    All the other practitioners understood this. The Desolation Wheel had a history nearly as far back as the God Level; a level-eight virtuoso was bound to lose. However, he was a level-seven high-level Renhuang; it was not appropriate to send out a level-nine virtuoso just like that.


    After the level-eight Renhuang left the stage, Donghua Academy would send a level-nine virtuoso.


    ��It seems like Desolation wants to challenge the top prodigy in Donghua Heavens,�� Li Changsheng whispered as he stood on a mountaintop with the practitioners from Wangshen Watchtower. Ning Hua was known as the top person among the four virtuosos. He had an extremely high reputation. On the other hand, Desolation was ranked third. As one of the most influential and powerful characters around, he certainly wanted to meet Ning Hua.


    If he could defeat everyone from the Donghua Academy, Ning Hua would be forced to show himself.


    ��He is only at the seventh level; I think it��ll be challenging. Someone from the Donghua Academy should be able to stop him,�� Ye Futian said. Desolation��s Great Path was perfect, and if they were to consider his combat abilities, he could certainly take on a level nine practitioner with an imperfect Great Path.


    However, this was Donghua Academy. Even though there weren��t many figures like Ling He, there had to be people like him. For people like them, even if flaws started appearing in their Great Paths, they were still powerful. They could not be regarded as a typical Renhuang; rather, they were somewhere in between the two. Moreover, this was the Donghua Academy, the top sacred grounds in the Donghua Domain. There were definitely some powerful figures.


    Thus, from Ye Futian��s perspective, if Desolation wanted to decimate all of Donghua Academy, he had to at least step into the eighth level for that to be possible.


    ��Mmm,�� Li Changsheng nodded. ��As the top sacred grounds of the Donghua Domain, there is no lack of powerful characters; we��ve witnessed it before. Some virtuosos have hidden themselves in the academy. There��s no need to elaborate on the strength of the practitioners held in high regard by Donghua Academy; they are certainly very strong. It��s just that the people in the older generation won��t necessarily step in to help. Thus, there might not be that many people who can defeat Desolation.��


    Ye Futian nodded and continued watching silently. Desolation was indeed very strong. The people he now contacted were the top-tier figures in the entire Divine Prefecture; they were no longer typical Renhuangs. Ning Hua, Desolation, and the rest were all the most prodigious characters in the Donghua Domain.


    At that moment, a practitioner from Donghua Academy stepped out. Everyone looked at that person, and expectedly, he was a level-nine Renhuang virtuoso.


    Oin! At that moment, a sword descended from a distance away. It levitated in the air, and a voice followed behind, ��Let me do it.��


    The voice was very calm, and it made people feel secure. It seemed to come from the sword.


    When the Donghua Academy practitioners raised their heads and saw the sword, they instantly knew whose sword it was.


    ��Alright.�� The level-nine virtuoso who walked out initially did not have a tinge of hesitation; yet, he did not insist on the battle and instead retreated and let the newcomer take his place.


    Obviously, he was very convinced by the newcomer��s strength.


    A silhouette appeared out of nowhere in the sky. He stood on the floating sword and looked down at Desolation.


    He was not young; he was a man in his fifties or sixties. He had obviously been cultivating for a very long time. His hair was tied cleanly behind him. He was cloaked in a very simple light blue robe. He looked extremely normal, but he gave off an extraordinary aura; it was like he had discarded everything material and had returned to his authentic, true self.


    ��Brother,�� several people from the Donghua Academy greeted him loudly. They looked at the silhouette in the air with respect. It was obvious that this elderly man was highly regarded.


    Ye Futian let out a rather intrigued expression. This elderly man was obviously quite old. He was a top-tier Renhuang who had cultivated for years. Yet, he was a disciple of the Donghua Academy and not a senior. That was quite interesting.


    However, this was also normal. The top sacred grounds of the Donghua Domain naturally had no age restrictions. Many practitioners who came here looking for mentors might be very old.


    ��A swordsman.�� Li Changsheng looked at the elderly man floating in mid-air and seemed to remember who he was. He whispered, ��Black Tortoise Sword Emperor.��


    Quite a few practitioners from Wangshen Watchtower had heard of the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor��s name. They did not expect to be able to witness his techniques.


    This Black Tortoise Sword Emperor was a very famous figure and was extremely powerful. He had already attained the ninth Renhuang level many years ago. He should now be at the pinnacle of Renhuang already. Many people guessed that the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor would have a chance to surpass the limitations of the Great Path and reach the next level. Of course, this was only a possibility. After all, taking that step was too difficult.


    Desolation looked up at the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor in the air, his expression unchanged. The Black Tortoise Sword Emperor said, ��Please.��


    Just as he finished speaking, countless gray streams flowed towards the air from Desolation. The vast heaven and earth seemed to be sealed by those streams. At the same time, an impressive might of the sword appeared around the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor. Swords appeared one after another and floated in space. On every sword, there seemed to be a picture printed on it. A screen of swords appeared in the heavens above. Tens of thousands of divine swords materialized everywhere.


    Boom�� In the region of the Great Path, Desolation initiated his attack. Countless streaks of black lightning shot towards Black Tortoise Sword Emperor. Every streak of black lightning contained a terrifyingly destructive power. However, the swords around the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor revolved around him. These swords were a little larger than typical swords. The sword domain shrouded Black Tortoise Sword Emperor. A mirage of a massive black tortoise appeared.


    These swords had morphed into a giant black tortoise. Even though the black lightning strikes shot straight at it, they were unable to break it.


    More swords were materializing between heaven and earth, causing the body of the black tortoise to become increasingly huge. It covered the entire sky, and it was like a mega sword matrix. A heavy, somber, murderous power permeated outwards from the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix and shrouded the entire space below it.


    Desolation raised his head. In the space above, the boundless gigantic black tortoise blocked out the horizon. If they were not at the Path Seeking Stage, this black tortoise might have become even larger.


    However, his region of the Great Path was also expanding. A limitless flow of destructive power shrouded the skies above him; even the mega Black Tortoise Sword Matrix was shrouded within. Desolation��s body floated into the air and continued to rise. He reached his arm out in front of him, and between his fingers swirled a terrifying aura.


    Boom�� With his body at its center, a terrifying destructive storm materialized. He raised his hand and pointed at the skies, unleashing his Finger of Death. At the same instant, a limitless destructive flow exploded outwards. The power of that one finger caused beams of black light to appear in the air. They pierced through the air and shot straight at his opponent.


    At the same time, blades of light showered downwards. From the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix, swords rained downwards one after another, its might pressurizing this space. The black tortoise in the heavens seemed to let out a low roar. The Black Tortoise Sword Emperor also pointed down. Instantly, the infinitely massive black tortoise dove downwards. The sword matrix descended and collided with the Finger of Death.


    A loud boom rumbled out as the two beams of light collided and shattered at the same time. Under the overwhelming power of the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix that was pressing downwards, Desolation retreated downward.


    Countless black leaves and branches twisted up to meet the sword matrix in the air, but they were all shattered.


    Crack!


    A terrifying sound echoed out. Above Desolation, a black divine palace appeared. It carried an aura of bareness. It was the Divine Wheel forged from his core soul��the Desolation Wheel.


    Rumble. In the heavens above, everything darkened. The world morphed into sheer darkness. It was as though it were the end of the world. The battlefield was filled with a desolate, destructive aura. Countless black chains seemed to shoot out from the divine palace, reaching up into the skies and twisting towards the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor.


    These chains sealed the entire space, shrouding all directions and locking in heaven and earth.


    Desolation stood below. Bathed in the aura permeating outwards from the Desolation Wheel, he seemed even more fearsome. At that moment, the infinitely giant black tortoise seemed to be particularly insignificant as it was caged in the destructive dark world.


    ��Desolate Tribulations,�� Desolation said. Instantly, tens of thousands of streaks of light burst out from the Desolation Wheel. Like beams of judgment, they shot towards the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor. The scene was utterly terrifying!

 Chapter 2019 - Divine Wheel Levels

    On the Path Seeking Peak, the virtuosos from all over the world stared intently at the battleground. The destructive scene was chilling.


    In the heavens above, the unceasing Desolate Tribulations that hammered down on the massive Black Tortoise Sword Matrix caused it to shudder. A blinding light radiated outward from the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor. A giant black tortoise appeared and merged into the sword matrix.


    At that moment, the black tortoise was still getting larger, and the number of swords was also increasing.


    The Desolate Tribulation that was cascading downwards did not fade away. Rather, they morphed into chains that twisted around the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix, as though it were going to seal the entire sword matrix. At the same time, The Desolation Wheel in the heavens summoned an endless amount of power of the Great Path, sealing the entire battlefield.


    Desolation stood below his Desolation Wheel. Bathed in the radiance of destruction, he looked like he was covered in terrifying dark armor. His body became huge, and he morphed into the Desolate God of War. He reached out his hands, and the Desolate Tribulation swirling around the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix were like chains that were wrapped around his arms, fully under his control.


    He clenched his fists tightly. Instantly, the limitless light of tribulation emitted a powerful destructive force in an attempt to annihilate the sword matrix. Yet, the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix had formed a domain of its own, and the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor sealed himself within the domain. He actually took this terrifying attack straight on.


    The rumble of the Great Path echoed out, and the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix trembled. It actually pressed on downwards. The massive sword matrix contained a fearsome murderous power and a scary might. It caused the entire space to be extremely heavy and difficult to escape.


    Enduring this immense power, Desolation, who had morphed into a God of War, reached his hands out, palms facing the sky. His eyes let out a terrifying black light. In the skies above, the Desolation Wheel emitted tens of thousands of Desolate Tribulations, shrouding the endless space. These Desolate Tribulations instantly swarmed to Desolation��s body, swirling around him. At that moment, he seemed to be able to unleash a mighty Finger of Death.


    Yet, those Desolate Tribulations swirling around him fused into one. Billions of Desolate Tribulations were concentrated on his palm, and they morphed into an utterly catastrophic storm. The terrifying storm of Desolate Tribulations shot straight into the clouds. In his hands, a black demonic blade appeared.


    Limitless light of tribulations swirled around the blade and cackled continuously like black lightning. The strength of the destructive power that seeped out was breath-stopping.


    Upon seeing the blade, all the practitioners from the Donghua Academy had a serious look in their eyes. This was the terrifying Dao technique passed down in the Desolate God Palace. When Desolation raised his blade with both hands, a terrifying destructive power shot straight into the clouds.


    With a body like a God of War��s, he cut once with his Desolate Blade. In that instant, the space seemed to be split into two by the destructive light of darkness. This slice could cut through space itself.


    At the same time, the eyes of the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor became serious. From the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix that was revolving around his body, unlimited will of the sword shot out and condensed into a sword, appearing by his side. His hands formed a sword seal, and the sword matrix fused into one black tortoise divine sword.


    He looked downwards for a moment, and an extremely bright divine light burst out. The will of the sword split the heavens apart. When he swung his black tortoise sword, a rumble reverberated throughout heaven and earth.


    Two destructive beams of light collided with each other in the heavens. The sword and blade cut towards each other, and a terrifying shockwave of the Great Path seemed to shatter the matrices. An endless stream of fearsome Desolate Tribulations shot straight into the defense of the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix. However, at that moment, a black tortoise image appeared behind the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor. It morphed into a massive beast and refused to budge.


    ��Brother.�� Many people looked at the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor. The Desolate Tribulations charged straight into the Black Tortoise Sword Matrix, and on the black tortoise picture appeared lines of destructive light of tribulation that impacted his body. However, his long robe fluttered, and a shocking aura of the Great Path exploded outward. He refused to take even half a step back. His eyes glimmered brightly with a divine-like glow as he stared at the space below him.


    An endless will of the sword pierced through the Desolate Blade and shot straight at the dark silhouette, as though silently stating that if his opponent didn��t retreat, he would not retreat either.


    Desolation lifted his head, and his jet-black eyes focused on the silhouette in the air. A rumble reverberated from his body, and fresh blood trickled down the corners of his mouth. However, his eyes were still impossibly determined. It was as though he was not bothered by it at all.


    At that moment, a glaring light radiated from the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor. The black tortoise picture lit up once again. He said a single word, ��Break.��


    As he spoke, a sound of shattering echoed out. The Desolate Blade crumbled inch by inch. At the same time, the sword also cracked and shattered. The two of them were simultaneously blown a great distance away.


    When the two of them stopped, their auras were fluctuating. The robe on the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor was torn apart, and his long hair that was tied became disheveled, flowing about in the wind. Desolation stood there without moving, his gaze fixated on the silhouette standing opposite him.


    ��Let��s call this a draw. If your level were just a little higher, I would not have been able to break this slice. If this were a few years later, I would probably lose,�� the Black Tortoise Sword Emperor said. He seemed a little low-spirited. Having cultivated for so many years, he was already one of the top Renhuangs, yet in his fight with this level-seven Renhuang junior, he did not have the supreme advantage. This was the combat ability bestowed by a perfect Great Path. His potential was indeed unlimited.


    ��A loss is a loss. That was not a draw.�� Desolation��s tone was icy, as though he had always been like that. The people with him similarly gave off an extremely cold and emotionless feeling. However, he did admit that he had lost this battle.


    Of course, he would not feel too discouraged. Even though he was an extremely proud individual and wanted to challenge Ning Hua and the Donghua Academy��s virtuosos, he did not really believe that he was undefeatable. This was, after all, Donghua Academy��the top sacred grounds of the Donghua Domain. He was arrogant, but he was not blindly overconfident of himself.


    The two of them retreated to their respective mountain peaks. Desolation sat cross-legged and started to restore his strength. He suffered decently severe injuries from the fight just now. Even though it was not visible on the surface, but for a person like him to vomit fresh blood, the damage he suffered must have been significant. Thus, he had to rest and recover for a while.


    Liu Qingzhu looked at the crowd and said, ��The Desolate God Palace is the ruler of their territory. This generation��s heir to the Desolate God is indeed powerful. Everyone who is here today is influential in their respective continents; you can take this opportunity to spar with each other. If you have a perfect Great Path, you can use the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels to test your own Divine Wheel levels.��


    Many people reflexively looked in the direction of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow and Wangshen Watchtower. More precisely, they looked at Jiang Yueli from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow and Zong Chan from the Wangshen Watchtower.


    Everyone had witnessed Desolation��s overpowering strength from before. These two people were on the same level as Desolation, so everyone was interested in their strength. Desolation had already appraised the level of his Divine Wheel. Then, how many layers of divine light would be emitted by Jiang Yueli and Zong Chan��s Divine Wheels?


    Many people were very eager to find out.


    Seeing this, Liu Qingzhu smiled and said, ��It seems like everyone wants to see Goddess Jiang and Zong Chan. Why don��t you both satisfy everyone��s curiosity?��


    Jiang Yueli stood on the ancient peak. She looked magnificent. Her bright and spirited eyes looked at the Zong Chan. She said, ��In that case, would Zong Chan like to go first?��


    Obviously, he did not refuse. To her, it was nothing that needed to be hidden. Moreover, she was also a little curious to know the level of her Divine Wheel.


    At the Wangshen Watchtower��s side, everyone looked at Zong Chan in front. Li Changsheng smiled and said, ��Brother Zong, good luck.��


    ��Alright.�� Zong Chan nodded and calmly walked out. His silhouette floated down to above the Path Seeking Stage and faced the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels between the two ancient peaks.


    In the next moment, Zong Chan unleashed his Great Path Divine Wheel. It was a massive stone stele that contained a shocking Great Path aura of suppression.


    His Divine Wheel appeared in the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels. Light shone on Zong Chan, and following that, light revolved around in the divine mirror. Layers of divine light appeared, and everyone stared at it.


    Zong Chan also looked at the mirror. He was chosen by his respected teacher. Since his cultivation was quite similar to his teacher��s, his Great Path Divine Wheel was also forged at Wangshen Watchtower.


    Thus, the level of his Divine Wheel should not be low, right?


    Under everyone��s intense gaze, the divine light shimmered. Not long later, five layers of divine light appeared. They were all especially brilliant and vivid. Everyone was secretly surprised. Zong Chan and Desolation were the same; their Great Path Divine Wheels were both at the fifth level and could cause the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels to emit five layers of divine light.


    In the distance, the practitioners of the Wangshen Watchtower silently let out a sigh of relief. They were initially a little worried that Zong Chan��s Divine Wheel would be inferior to that of Desolation, but it seemed like they were just paranoid. To cultivate to such a level, Zong Chan would not be inferior to the other people.


    Zong Chan himself was rather calm. He was neither surprised nor disappointed. He raised his head and looked at Jiang Yueli. He smiled and said, ��Goddess Jiang, please.��


    As he finished speaking, he returned to his own mountain peak. Li Changsheng patted his back. It was not easy for Wangshen Watchtower to have someone among the four most influential figures in the Donghua Domain.


    Jiang Yueli nodded, and her silhouette descended to face the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels. Her Divine Wheel was in the form of a sword. The moment her sword appeared, and the entire space became extremely cold. That was the extremely cold Chilling Moon Blade. The sword was as cold as the freezing moon. The light that it emitted caused everyone to feel a frosty aura that chilled them to their bones.


    When the sword appeared in the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels, ice and snow appeared in the divine mirror as well, and the entire mirror turned a pure white. It was as though the mirror sensed the freezing will of the sword.


    Layers of divine light revolved around, and the result was the same as Desolation��s and Zong Chan��s. It was still five layers of divine light. The three virtuosos had very comparable Divine Wheel levels. This also seemed to prove Donghua Academy��s hypothesis��that a practitioner who ascended to a high-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path would have a Divine Wheel of level four to six.


    Ning Hua��s was the sixth level, while those of the other three were similar to each other��s in the middle at the fifth level.


    A slight ripple coursed through the hearts of everyone who was watching. Indeed, no one had yet to surpass Ning Hua. They were all weaker than him. However, the three of them were close to each other. It might not be the case for their combat abilities, but it was definitely the case for the levels of their Divine Wheels.


    Similarly, Jiang Yueli did not show much emotion and calmly returned to the mountain peak where the practitioners from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow stood.


    Even though it was a pity that she was not on the same level as Ning Hua, there must be a reason why Ning Hua was known as the most influential figure. Even though they had never fought before, she had heard of his name a couple of times.


    ��Not bad,�� Liu Qingzhu praised. ��Among the four most influential characters in our Donghua Domain, three of them have level five Perfect Grade Divine Wheels. It is indeed valuable. Now, is there any Renhuang practitioners who have forged a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel and want to appraise their Divine Wheels?��


    Even though there were only a few such people among the high-level Renhuangs, many middle-level and low-level Renhuangs had Perfect Grade Divine Wheels. Perhaps there might be someone who might attain the same level as these three, or close to them at the fourth level!

 Chapter 2020 - Appraisal

    On the various mountain peaks, practitioners all looked around at others. The Donghua Academy practitioners had already tested themselves, so there was no need for them to go again.


    As for the other practitioners, it was their first time stepping into the Donghua Academy. It was a rare chance that they got to stand in front of the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels and appraise their own Divine Wheels.


    ��Of the three main goddesses of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, there are still two of you who possess a perfect Great Path. Certainly, the level of your Divine Wheels is not low. Would you be interested in trying?�� A voice echoed out; it was from a disciple of the Donghua Academy.


    The three direct disciples of the Sword Goddess of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow were all practitioners with a perfect Great Path. Apart from Jiang Yueli, who was at the high Renhuang level, there were also Qin Qing and Chu Hanxi at the middle Renhuang level. Rumor had it that they were extraordinary women favored by the gods.


    In the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, these three women were all potential heirs to the Sword Goddess.


    Even though Jiang Yueli was ahead, it did not mean that Qin Qing and Chu Hanxi were definitely inferior. Testing their divine wheels here was an excellent method.


    ��Emperor Ye from the Wangshen Watchtower has such overpowering combat abilities with a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Furthermore, he possesses multiple Divine Wheels. Surely the level of his Divine Wheels must be very high,�� Ling He said from Lingxiao Palace, looking at Ye Futian as he did so.


    His defeat from the last time was humiliating. In the future, wherever Ye Futian was, everyone would compare the two of them. He had two motives for getting Ye Futian to appraise his Divine Wheel. First, it was for him to see just how strong Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel was and what level it was at. Secondly, if Ye Futian were indeed that outstanding, someone would surely take him down.


    The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was also present. They glanced at Ye Futian. Obviously, they, too, wanted to know the level of Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    ��I am rather mediocre, so my Divine Wheel level should be rather normal too. With so many top-tier factions around, like the Desolate God Palace, Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Lingxiao Palace, and the goddesses of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, there are certainly people who possess a high-level Divine Wheel. As for me, I am not deserving of stepping onto this magnificent stage,�� Ye Futian said with a smile, appearing very humble.


    Behind his smile, however, his intent to slay Ling He did not waver.


    ��Emperor Ye, you really know how to joke. Whether it was the battle of the Wangshen Watchtower or the battle at Turtle Deity Island, Emperor Ye was outstanding,�� Ling He said, trying his best to hide his chilly attitude. Ye Futian said he was not deserving enough. Wouldn��t it be even more the case for him, as he was the one who had lost to Ye Futian?


    ��Those two battles? You couldn��t really count them. Perhaps it might be because of my opponents,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile, causing Ling He and Yan Dongyang to both reveal a cold expression. Ye Futian had insulted them without holding back.


    When he said it was because of his opponents, he meant that it wasn��t so much that he was outstanding, but rather because his opponents were too weak. Ye Futian meant that Ling He and Yan Dongyang were nothing.


    ��I��ll go try.�� At this moment, a soft and gentle voice sounded out. Qin Qing took the initiative to walk up to face the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels. It was only then that the argument was quelled.


    Qin Qing��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path was unique; it was actually a mirror. Although it was strange when another mirror appeared in the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels, the layers of divine light in the divine mirror continued to flow. Qin Qing��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path was appraised; it was at the fourth level.


    To be able to attain the fourth level was already very outstanding. Even though she was a little behind Jiang Yueli, Desolation, and Zong Chan, it was very rare for someone in Donghua Academy to attain such a level. Apart from Ning Hua, who was able to cause six layers of divine light to appear in the divine mirror, no one could cause five layers to appear like Jiang Yueli and the rest. Hence, there was a chasm in levels.


    Of course, the level of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path could be raised as one��s cultivation level was raised. Even though these cases were extremely rare, and the final quality might not rise with an increase in level, it was still possible. Many practitioners continuously tried to perfect their own Divine Wheels of the Great Path, causing them to be more powerful.


    After Qin Qing, Chu Hanxi also walked out. Like Qin Qing, four layers of divine light appeared in the divine mirror.


    ��You are indeed the three disciples of the Fluttering Snow Sword Goddess. The three goddesses indeed have astonishing talent,�� Liu Qingzhu said. Many people nodded their heads in agreement. A level-five and two-level four divine wheels. Talents of this level were indeed astonishing.


    The Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow was ranked among the top three factions in the Donghua Domain. The Sword Goddess was also honorably ranked among the top three powerful virtuosos. Now it seemed like her three disciples were going to inherit everything from her.


    ��Let me try.�� At that moment, another silhouette walked out. This time, the practitioner who walked out was the prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Yan Dongyang. He had a perfect Great Path and thus wanted to test the level of his Great Path Divine Wheel.


    Yan Dongyang walked to the front of the divine mirror, and a shocking dragon��s roar echoed out. A sacred giant golden dragon orbited him. A divine dragon appeared in the divine mirror.


    Very quickly, Yan Dongyang saw the result. Three layers of divine light glowed.


    He waited, seemingly with a tinge of refusal to accept the results. Yet, the fourth layer of divine light did not appear. This meant that his Divine Wheel was inferior to those of Qin Qing and Chu Hanxi.


    A while later, Yan Dongyang finally accepted the reality. He turned around and silently returned to the mountain peak where the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was located.


    ��Are you not planning to give it a try?�� On the mountain peak where the practitioners of Wangshen Watchtower stood, Li Changsheng asked Ye Futian in a low voice. He smiled at him.


    Ye Futian seemed to be a little hesitant. A few people had already given it a try. He felt that Desolation, Jiang Yueli, and Zong Chan had very powerful Divine Wheels of the Great Path. Among everyone, he should have the greatest number of Divine Wheels. Since he had many life spirits, he could forge many Divine Wheels of the Great Path.


    However, when it came to the level of his Divine Wheels, he didn��t think they would be that high. From his perspective, apart from the Divine Wheel forged from the World Tree, all others were forged from life spirits that only appeared later on. Desolation, Jiang Yueli, and people like them were not ordinary people. Zong Chan forged his Divine Wheel in the heavenly treasure in Wangshen Watchtower, so it was certainly powerful too.


    Thus, Ye Futian already had a rough estimate of the levels of his Divine Wheel.


    ��Does the sole heir to the Eastern Deity Island with a perfect Great Path not want to try it?�� a voice echoed. It came from a virtuoso from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. They still remembered that Ye Futian was the heir to the Eastern Deity Island.


    Ye Futian represented Eastern Deity Island.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at the other party. Behind him, the Donglai Goddess had a tinge of coldness in her eyes. It seemed like the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was reminding Ye Futian that they would not just let him off like that.


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Since everyone seems to be even more curious than I am, I will give it a try.��


    As he spoke, he stepped forward. His body descended to the Path Seeking Stage to face the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels between the two peaks.


    ��Emperor Ye, you have so many Divine Wheels. Which one are you planning to test?�� The virtuoso of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family continued to ask.


    ��Which one do you want to see?�� Ye Futian asked in reply.


    ��Why don��t you test all?�� the virtuoso said.


    Ye Futian did not reply. Qin Qing and the practitioners of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow paid a little more attention to Ye Futian. They noticed that he was not simple; he had proven himself in the two battles that made his name renowned. Yet, among these top-tier factions, he was still discriminated against.


    This test of Divine Wheels done by the Donghua Academy could further validate Ye Futian��s talent and potential and how far he could go in the future. Would he become the next Zong Chan of Wangshen Watchtower?


    A brilliant golden light glimmered on Ye Futian��s body. The ethereal form of a divine elephant seemed to materialize. The golden divine elephant was incomparably large. In an instant, a change occurred in the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels. The shadow of a divine elephant appeared in the divine mirror. At the same time, divine light locked onto Ye Futian��s body, and a rather mysterious connection was formed.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt that this Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels was extraordinary; it seemed to be able to evolve all forms of power of the Great Path.


    Very quickly, layers of divine light started to revolve. In an instant, three layers of divine light were revolving around him. Many people focused on it.


    In a little while, the fourth layer of divine light appeared. Like the virtuosos of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Ling He and the virtuosos from the Lingxiao Palace, many people had a more serious look in their eyes. It was not easy to attain the fourth level. Qin Qing and Chu Hanxi were all on this level.


    ��It��s not stopping yet,�� someone said in a low voice. The practitioners of Donghua Academy were staring intently in that direction. Another layer of divine light appeared once again, revolving around the divine elephant. With the appearance of five layers of divine light, the mountain peaks all around turned dead silent.


    Five layers. This was the same level as Desolation, Jiang Yueli, and Zong Chan. Furthermore, he was only a middle-level Renhuang. He had yet to witness the Path to a high-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. Didn��t this mean that he was another Zong Chan?


    In the future, he would certainly reach the same heights as Desolation and people like him.


    Ling He��s eyes turned a little sharp, and the murderous intent harbored by the virtuosos of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family intensified greatly. Jiang Yueli was also a little surprised. Looking closely at Ye Futian��s back, she realized that this man had great potential. Was Wangshen Watchtower going to rise?


    After the fifth layer of divine light appeared, it finally stopped. Seeing this unfold before him, Ye Futian did not feel too surprised; it was as though everything was within his expectations. This Divine Wheel was forged with his secondary life spirit, so of course, its level would not be that high. For it to attain the same level as Desolation��s, Jiang Yueli��s, and the others�� was already complicated.


    Then, the other few Divine Wheels that he had should all be of the same level. He did not know the level of the Moon Wheel he forged later on or that of the Divine Wheel forged by his natal spirit. Would they cause six layers of divine light to appear in the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels?


    Or perhaps, even more?


    No matter the limit of this Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels, he felt that this Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels was also a precious treasure, an extraordinary item indeed!

 Chapter 2021 - Unrivaled Divine Wheel

    On the Path Seeking Peak, all the practitioners turned to Ye Futian. Having witnessed the level of his Divine Wheel, they seemed to understand how he had been able to defeat Ling He and Yan Dongyang, who were levels of cultivation higher than him. With a Divine Wheel of a superior level, his power of the Great Path would certainly increase.


    ��Isn��t Emperor Ye also very skilled with swords?�� someone asked, seemingly very interested in seeing Ye Futian��s other Divine Wheels.


    Previously when Ye Futian defeated Ling He and Yan Dongyang, he used his extraordinarily powerful swordplay on both occasions.


    Ye Futian did not reply, but a wisp of his will of the sword wafted from his body. In the surrounding space, countless harp strings of the Way of the Sword appeared. In the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels was an endless stream of the will of the sword. Yet, they morphed into the form of a zither. It was as though sword and zither were fused into one, and they were two parts of a whole.


    Layers of divine light radiated, and like the divine elephant Divine Wheel, five layers of divine light flowed around in no time at all. Everyone set their eyes in that direction. As expected, it was another five layers of divine light. With every Divine Wheel having five layers of divine light, wasn��t he stronger than even Desolation?


    Desolation��s first Divine Wheel, the ancient tree Divine Wheel, could only cause three layers of divine light to be emitted. Yet, Ye Futian��s every Divine Wheel had five layers of divine light; he had already surpassed Desolation.


    This also meant that he had an advantage over even Desolation, Jiang Yueli, and Zong Chan when it came to Divine Wheels. He was only below Ning Hua.


    In that case, would Ye Futian��s future achievements be even greater than Desolation and the rest?


    This was naturally an unknown variable. Yet, no one could refute the fact that this was a very definite possibility.


    Where the practitioners of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow stood, many goddesses looked toward Jiang Yueli. The three main goddesses of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow had all been surpassed by another in terms of Divine Wheel levels. This was in no way expected, and Jiang Yueli herself stared at where Ye Futian was.


    She had witnessed the battle between Ye Futian and Ling He. Apart from these two types of powers, Ye Futian was also well versed in other forms of power of the Great Path. She felt that there were still other Divine Wheels that he had yet to appraise.


    However, at that moment, she saw that Ye Futian withdrew the aura he had emitted, seemingly with no intention to continue. Obviously, he did not want to continue testing his Divine Wheels. This made Jiang Yueli feel that Ye Futian was concealing something and that he did not want to shock the world too much.


    Could it be that the Divine Wheel that he was hiding could match up to Ning Hua��s?


    Furthermore, his two Divine Wheels were both at the fifth level, yet she saw that Ye Futian��s expression was very calm. He was neither joyous nor disappointed. It was as though he did something perfectly ordinary. It seemed like it was completely within his expectations and that nothing was extraordinary. This also made her feel that Ye Futian knew how strong his Divine Wheels were.


    ��Is Emperor Ye not going to continue?�� a virtuoso from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family said. ��Emperor Ye should still have one more Divine Wheel of the Great Path, right?��


    Ye Futian glanced at the person who spoke. He indeed had more Divine Wheels of the Great Path, but there were more than one.


    Of course, he would definitely not tell him this. There was no need for him to expose all his Divine Wheels in a situation like this.


    Thus, he did not bother answering him. Anyway, that person certainly did not have good intentions, asking him to expose his Divine Wheels like that.


    ��It seems like Emperor Ye has the most powerful Divine Wheels today. This is quite a surprise,�� Liu Qingzhu said. It was not just him, but all the practitioners of the Donghua Academy were also quite surprised. They thought it would be either Desolation, Jiang Yueli, and Zong Chan. They thought that no one would be able to surpass the three of them.


    Yet, Ye Futian managed to accomplish that.


    It seemed that now, Apart from the greatest figures in the Donghua Domain and Ning Hua, Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel was the strongest. This practitioner from the Eastern Deity Island was indeed not simple.


    ��Brother Ye is extraordinary with his unrivaled Divine Wheels of the Great Path. With so many influential figures gathered here, does no one want to experience Brother Ye��s Great Path?�� Ling He asked. Hearing his words, many people were indeed poised to act, their bodies emitting faint auras.


    Ye Futian��s Divine Wheels of the Great Path completely overshadowed all the Renhuangs present today and were unrivaled. Naturally, the people from the various factions all had some thoughts about this. Even the practitioners from the Desolate God Palace looked at Ye Futian with astonishment.


    Desolation from the Desolate God Palace also stared at Ye Futian��s silhouette intently. Of course, he would not challenge Ye Futian with his cultivation level and status, though he might challenge Jiang Yueli or Zong Chan. That was unless Ye Futian also stepped into the high Renhuang level.


    ��Our battle that day at the Turtle Deity Island was not finished. Do you want to battle again? I don��t mind.�� Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at Ling He with sharp a sharp expression that carried some menace and condescension. Those eyes made Ling He extremely uncomfortable, and he was tempted to fight again.


    However, he suffered such a pathetic the last time. In the end, the virtuosos from Lingxiao Palace had to interfere to stop Ye Futian. If they exchanged blows again today, was he going to lose again?


    In that case, how was he still going to maintain his dignity?


    After all, he was also a practitioner of the Donghua Academy.


    Ling He did not reply immediately, so Ye Futian kept staring at him, causing everyone to look at Ling He as though they were waiting for his reply. Feeling extremely awkward, he said, ��The result of the fight at the Turtle Deity Island was already decided. There is no need for another battle.��


    Ye Futian looked at him with a sarcastic expression. At that moment, a practitioner walked out from a place not far from where Ling He was standing. He looked similarly very young. His cultivation level was also similar to Ling He��s, and he had an extraordinary air about him.


    His appearance caused many practitioners from the Donghua Academy to let out a surprised expression. Leng Qinghan, who had previously brought Ye Futian over, also let out an expression of surprise.


    Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng and Li Changsheng were together, and they also recognized this person. He was an extremely famous person in the Donghua Academy whose strength was beyond Ling He��s.


    ��Be careful. This person is Kong Xiao. He is a junior of a mighty figure in the Donghua Heavens. It is said that he possesses the blood of the Peacock Demon God. He is an extremely powerful figure in Donghua Academy. His combat abilities are above Ling He��s.�� Leng Kuangsheng communicated telepathically with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked up at the person who walked out. That person floated in front of the ancient peaks and then entered the region of influence of the matrices. Standing in the space above the Path Seeking Stage, he looked at Ye Futian and said, ��I am Kong Xiao, a disciple of the Donghua Academy. I am at the fifth level. I have long since heard that Emperor Ye has extraordinary combat abilities. Today, in front of the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels, you have shown us that your Divine Wheels also has one of the highest levels. I want to experience Emperor Ye��s Path.��


    Seeing that Kong Xiao had stepped up to challenge Ye Futian, the practitioners of Donghua Academy all took on a more serious look. In terms of talent, Kong Xiao would definitely be ranked within the top five among all the disciples of Donghua Academy. He had also tested his Great Path Divine Wheel before. It was at the fourth level. Furthermore, many seniors of Donghua Academy believed that Kong Xiao��s Divine Wheel could evolve to the fifth level to become even stronger and that he had a chance to follow in Ning Hua��s footsteps to become the next prodigy, where he would step into the high-level Renhuang realm with a perfect Great Path.


    When Kong Xiao walked out to challenge Ye Futian, everyone��s attention was drawn to them.


    Hearing his words, Ye Futian looked back at where the rest of the Wangshen Watchtower people were. Li Changsheng nodded and said, ��Donghua Academy is the top sacred ground in the Donghua Domain. There are so many virtuosos and talents here, as well as very famous figures. This is a very rare learning opportunity. Liunian, since you have this chance, why don��t you learn from each other?��


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian nodded. Looking up at Kong Xiao��s silhouette in the air, he said, ��Please guide me.��


    ��Please,�� Kong Xiao replied. As the words left his lips, wisps of green divine light appeared between heaven and earth, causing the entire space to be colored. The flowing divine light gathered in Kong Xiao��s body, causing his body to glow like a divine body.


    ��Be careful. Kong Xiao possesses extreme strength and speed, and he is also well versed in illusions,�� Leng Kuangsheng reminded, seemingly worried for Ye Futian.


    The green divine light shrouded the vast area, and the space seemed to be distorted.


    Oin. Accompanying a streak of green divine light, Kong Xiao��s body vanished without a trace. Ye Futian lifted his hands and unleashed a punch. Golden divine light glowed, and the low trumpet of a divine elephant reverberated. The divine elephant cracked the space, and his Great Path seemed to destroy everything.


    Crash�� A shocking sound echoed out. The space seemed to split apart. Ye Futian was knocked back, and that swift green divine light shot towards him again like lightning. From his punch just now, Ye Futian felt an incomparably destructive power.


    Ye Futian stepped into the air hastily and steadied himself. The divine elephant revolved around him, and the surroundings echoed with the sound of the Great Path. He gathered an overpowering strength, and even his eyes turned a little demonic. He managed to capture those green tracks. With insane speed, he unleashed another punch. It was another intense collision.


    The green divine light circulated between heaven and earth, encapsulating the entire space. The space distorted under the green divine light. Kong Xiao��s body seemed to fuse into the green light. His continuous attacks made his surroundings look like his silhouette was everywhere.


    The crowd could only see that the two of them collided uncountable times in a split second. They were too fast for them to follow. Ye Futian was continuously knocked down. Accompanying a radiant green light that pierced through space, another loud sound of collision echoed out. Ye Futian��s body landed on the Path Seeking Stage with a dull thud.


    Both sides stopped their attacks. Ye Futian raised his head to look at the air above and saw that Kong Xiao levitated in the air. The space around them had morphed into a green-colored world. Divine light circulated, and Kong Xiao seemed to stand on something illusionary. However, his every attack could shatter a human. The continuous collision from before had caused Ye Futian��s arms to become a little numb. That power rushed into his arm, wanting to destroy his arm, his body, and his path.


    ��Kong Xiao��s attacks are indeed extraordinary,�� praised the practitioners from the Donghua Academy upon seeing the scene before them.


    ��If it were any other person of the same level, they wouldn��t even be able to withstand a single blow from Kong Xiao. This person��s level is not as high as Kong Xiao��s, yet he still was unharmed. He is powerful,�� someone else also praised!

 Chapter 2022 - Admiration

    It was obvious that the two of them were strong enough to be recognized by everyone. Kong Xiao was one of the top-tier figures in the Donghua Academy with terrifying combat ability. Even though he had an advantage over Ye Futian in terms of his cultivation level, Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel was superior.


    In the space above, Kong Xiao lowered his head and looked down at Ye Futian. Green light circled in the space around them, revolving around him. Wherever the green light was, the space seemed to shatter. This was his will of the Great Path.


    An even more brilliant green light revolved around Kong Xiao��s body. Seeing this, Ye Futian��s arms hammered down at the sides of his body. In an instant, a heaven-reaching will of the sword was unleashed. It seemed to pervade the entire space; ear-piercing echoes of the sword rang out over and over again. A limitless will of the sword created an intense resonance. With Ye Futian��s body at its center, a fearsome storm of will of the sword appeared, and it collided with the green divine light in the space above.


    Oin! Tens of thousands of divine swords shot murderously towards Kong Xiao. The green light surrounding Kong Xiao revolved around terrifyingly. Colliding with the sharp swords, they actually destroyed them all.


    Around Ye Futian, billions of divine swords appeared and pointed straight at the heavens. The Path of the Sword flowed upward as though it were a river of swords that rushed straight towards Kong Xiao.


    At that moment, Kong Xiao stepped downward. In just the time it took him to make that one step, a straight green divine light appeared between the two of them in an instant.


    Yet, at the moment that he moved, Ye Futian also acted. The billions of divine swords shot upward and crashed straight into the green divine light.


    The endless green flow was continuously destroyed, and the Great Path was shattered. The impossibly radiant green light was also blocked. In the next instant, it shattered into pieces, but Ye Futian��s sword also broke. A silhouette retreated into the air. It was Kong Xiao.


    ��What swordplay is that?�� Kong Xiao asked Ye Futian. He knew how strong his attack was. Yet, he was forced to retreat in a single sword strike that blocked his attack.


    ��Liunian,�� Ye Futian replied. Many people let out a surprised expression. This person was named ��Liunian,�� and this sword technique was named after him. It was very uncommon. All the practitioners could feel that when he unleashed that sword strike, the power of the Great Path was forced to reverse in direction, and everything seemed to be destroyed.


    ��It��s really not bad,�� Kong Xiao praised. He levitated in the air, his expression still unwavering, as though he still had immense confidence in defeating Ye Futian. Even if the person in front of him was an extraordinary figure, wasn��t he the same too? The two of them had a perfect Great Path. With the advantage of a higher cultivation level, he had no reason to lose.


    Oin��


    An infinitely bright divine light radiated outwards in an instant. The piercing light shot through empty space, and many people instinctively stretched their hands out to shield their eyes; it was too blinding. They only moved their arms away after a moment and looked at Kong Xiao.


    Behind him, an incomparably bright, giant silhouette appeared. That was the silhouette of a vivid and sacred peacock. When it fanned out its wings, it shaded the sun, directly covering the sky. On its wings, countless eyes seemed to appear, and they shot out a blinding divine light.


    Ye Futian also seemed to be stunned for a moment. In the next moment, he saw that the skies were filled with eyes. His vision seemed to be blurred, and it was the same even if he unleashed his Divine Consciousness. The countless eyes seemed to contain a terrifying magical power that drew him into an illusion. He saw the silhouettes of many Kong Xiao. It was like there was a Kong Xiao in front of every eye.


    ��Illusions,�� a voice echoed out in Ye Futian��s heart. In the next moment, the countless pairs of eyes emitted a terrifying divine light. They were like sharp, green swords that pierced towards him. At that moment, Ye Futian vaguely understood why Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng reminded him twice to be wary of this person.


    This Kong Xiao was indeed more dangerous than Ling He.


    The current him was already trapped in his opponent��s domain of the Great Path. The moment the peacock Divine Wheel of the Great Path appeared, Kong Xiao seemed to gain absolute control over this region.


    He is in danger, many practitioners who watched from the mountain peaks thought to themselves. This Kong Xiao was extremely dangerous. As for the practitioners of the Donghua Academy, they understood Kong Xiao��s abilities, so they were not too surprised.


    It would be challenging for Ye Futian to obtain victory from Kong Xiao.


    At that moment, when the limitless green divine light shot murderously towards Ye Futian, everyone saw that a circular moon appeared above Ye Futian. This moon appeared to be especially cold; the moon radiated moonlight, and snow seemed to flutter all around. The beams of divine moonlight shone into the area, covering the entire region, colliding directly with the streaks of green light.


    The crowd shockingly found out that under the radiation of moonlight, the green divine light that contained a dominating power of the Great Path seemed to be shattered directly. The green light and moonlight annihilated each other into nothingness.


    ��This���� Many virtuosos showed a shocked expression. This was yet another Divine Wheel.


    Previously, Ye Futian had never displayed this Divine Wheel of the Great Path��the Divine Wheel of the moon.


    Furthermore, this seemed to be even stronger than his previous Divine Wheel. Just the moonlight that was lightly showered could block the green divine light straight on. The two of them seemed to be battling with their Divine Wheels. It was still the same: Kong Xiao with the cultivation level advantage and Ye Futian with the Divine Wheel level advantage. Just by relying on the strength of his Divine Wheel, Ye Futian instantly wiped away the cultivation level advantage that his opponent possessed over him; he could block his opponent��s attack straight on.


    Previously, his two Divine Wheels had already managed to get the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels to emit five layers of divine light. However, he did not unleash this divine wheel. If unleashing this Moon Wheel can surpass the five layers of divine light, he would have reached the top level of the Donghua Academy, six layers! thought some practitioners from the Donghua Academy.


    As for Jiang Yueli and Qin Qing, they recalled the battle between Ye Futian and Ling He. That cold will was probably emanated from this Divine Wheel. Moreover, Ye Futian purposely concealed his Divine Wheel and did not test its level. Why?


    Was he worried that his Moon Wheel would beat the Academy record?


    Indeed, many practitioners present, such as the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Ling Xiao Palace, were not friendly towards him. She could understand if Ye Futian did not want to stand out too much.


    Desolation, Zong Chan and Li Changsheng each had some thoughts as they continued to stare at the battle.


    It seemed to be getting more interesting.


    In the air above, the green light that shot out collided with the moonlight that Ye Futian shot out. Each annihilated another, and a sort of balance seemed to be formed. Neither of them could break through the power of the Great Path of the other.


    However, Kong Xiao was indeed the most powerful opponent that Ye Futian had encountered thus far.


    Both Ling He and Yan Dongyang were inferior to him.


    Only Kong Xiao, right in the middle of the battlefield, knew that the cold aura emitted by the Moon Wheel was eroding the entire Great Path domain. He could already feel a freezing will. It was as though there was a formless power permeating the entire space, trying to wrestle control over this domain.


    On the feathers of the divine peacock, the countless pairs of eyes lit up simultaneously, shooting out beams of divine light. They gathered in front of Kong Xiao��s body. In that instant, Kong Xiao seemed to become a god; he looked majestic.


    The moment he moved his hands together, the endless green divine light gathered in his two fists, morphing into a green divine sword.


    The next moment, he moved.


    Ye Futian, however, saw something entirely different. He saw an infinite pair of eyes shooting beams of light at him. Countless of Kong Xiao��s silhouettes walked towards him at the same time. It was because they were all illusions that he unleashed his Moon Wheel and continuously take his opponent��s attacks.


    Despite doing that, Ye Futian suddenly felt an extremely strong sense of danger.


    His eyes became very demonic. His pair of eyes seemed to want to see through all illusions and resist his opponent��s illusionary powers of the Great Path. He could vaguely make out a streak of green light.


    At that moment, Ye Futian��s eyes also changed. They turned divine-like. Two beams of light shot out from his eyes. The Kong Xiao who was charging at him suddenly realized that he himself was sinking into an illusion. It was as though he had entered a world in the space created by eye sorcery.


    In front of him, an endlessly overlapping space trapped him.


    It was an ability similar to his.


    However, Kong Xiao did not hesitate. Absolute power could shatter everything. The divine wings of the peacock flapped, and countless divine feathers morphed into straight, sharp swords. An impossibly brilliant green divine light pierced through the space with great force. Layers upon layers of space were pierced straight through and shattered. Absolute power was sufficient to break any domain of the Great Path. At that moment, Kong Xiao understood what it meant to be so close yet so far. Nonetheless, the green light continued to flash, and wherever it passed, everything was pulverized into nothingness.


    Boom�� Kong Xiao sensed that he had finally escaped the world of eye sorcery. The impossibly radiant green divine sword pierced through everything and entered the region shrouded in the moonlight. An extremely cold aura descended, along with a power that penetrated his soul and froze the space around him.


    A sharp whistle echoed out as the divine sword pierced through the air. Kong Xiao had never found it so difficult to execute his killing technique; this was definitely the first time in history. Even when facing off against virtuosos with higher cultivation level than him, his attack was still as smooth as cutting through water. He had never encountered a situation like today.


    He thought he had already broken out of the world of eye sorcery, yet it seemed like he had entered another domain of the Great Path. In the space of this absolute domain, he saw the orbitals of planets and the moon floating in space. This seemed to be a starry dimension; countless planets orbited, and the trumpet of divine elephants echoed. Moonlight showered upon him, carrying with it an icy aura. His sword might be able to cut through the starry dimension, shattering planet after planet, but it seemed like he would forever not be able to reach the end.


    The Great Path domain he entered was Ye Futian��s most powerful Divine Wheel��the absolute Great Path domain.


    An impossibly large palm charged towards the green divine sword murderously. In the starry dimension, countless stone steles carved with relics hammered down in suppression along with the palm. The celestial bodies and divine elephant also followed. A bright Buddhist glow suppressed his body and divine soul.


    Gate to World Suppression, thought Kong Xiao. Yet, this did not look like the Gate to World Suppression.


    The green divine sword shattered the space, the celestial bodies, and the stone steles; however, it reached its limit.


    With the loud sound of an explosion, everything seemed to return to peace. Kong Xiao��s body returned to where he was, and his body trembled violently. It was as though he had never moved and had never experienced that terrifying battle.


    Nonetheless, the blood flowing from the tips of his mouth and the shuddering of his body was sufficient proof of how immensely powerful that blow was.


    Kong Xiao looked down at Ye Futian with a complicated expression. Then, he bowed slightly and said, ��In the future, when he ascends to the top, I will admire anyone from the Donghua Domain who challenges him!��


    With that, he turned around and stepped away!

 Chapter 2023 - Rise to Fame

    Kong Xiao left before other people could come to their senses. All they saw was his receding figure.


    There was no doubt that Kong Xiao lost this fight. Not only did he lose, but he was also completely won over. People could interpret his last words in many different ways.


    Who in Donghua could compete with him when he reached his ultimate height?


    By ��high,�� did he mean a super-powerful master cultivator or to become a high-level Renhuang?


    And was he referring to the Donghua Academy or the entire Donghua Domain?


    No one could know for sure. But it was safe to assume that a high-level Renhuang would be the best of the Donghua Academy and that a powerful master cultivator would dominate the Donghua Domain. Either way, it was high praise.


    Apparently, Kong Xiao had been holding Ye Futian in high regard because of the fight. He believed that hardly anyone could be a match for Ye Futian in the Donghua Academy or even the Donghua Domain.


    The crowd wouldn��t be so impressed if a random person sang Ye Futian��s praises. But Kong Xiao was a top-ranking cultivator of the Donghua Academy and a high-level Renhuang in the fifth-order with a perfect Divine Wheel who would certainly become an overlord in the future. So many people at present already admired him.


    Since such a person commented on Ye Futian after fighting against him, people had to take him seriously and took another look at Ye Futian.


    Although they watched the fight from start to finish, they definitely didn��t catch every single detail as Kong Xiao had. After all, all the attacks were targeting Kong Xiao, and he was the one who faced the Great Path domain. No one had a more vivid experience than Kong Xiao. The difficulty with the last strike, in particular, could never be understood by an outsider.


    No one could deny Kong Xiao��s strength; his last strike was especially earth-shattering. The blue divine light could attack enemies who were thousands of miles away instantly, yet it was obstructed and reduced in such a short distance. Kong Xiao bore too many kinds of power at that moment, including the elemental power of the Great Path, the Great Path domain, and the attack itself.


    After that strike, Kong Xiao realized that Ye Futian was a genius who had more than one Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Talented cultivators might cultivate multiple types of Divine Wheels of the Great Path, but not every one of them could be as strong. Besides, the Divine Wheel of the Great Path itself could be placed on different levels. Cultivators, usually, would choose to focus on the stronger one.


    Ye Futian had priorities as well, of course. Even so, Ye Futian��s weakest Divine Wheel of the Great Path was at the fifth level and made the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels emit five wheels of divine light. He displayed more and more stunning strength as if it was inexhaustible. That was what made Kong Xiao feel afraid. From what he could see, it was definitely at the sixth order level, no less than Ning Hua.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was only a Renhuang at the fourth-order. How powerful could he be in the future?


    That was why Kong Xiao dropped that line and left, entirely convinced. It was in no way an easy thing to make a man like Kong Xiao bow his head.


    The crowd stared at Ye Futian with different thoughts running in their minds. But one thing they all understood was that Ye Futian��s talents and innate abilities were much higher than the majority of the genius cultivators. He was one of the best and could compete against Desolation, Jiang Yueli, and Zong Chan.


    Kong Xiao even thought that he could be in the same league as Ning Hua.


    They never thought that such an extraordinary person would be nameless in the past. This cultivator from the Eastern Deity Island suddenly appeared out of nowhere.


    Ling He and the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family cultivators all stared at Ye Futian with a fierce look.


    They couldn��t tolerate Ye Futian any longer.


    He is courting death, Yan Hanxing of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family thought to himself. He glared at Ye Futian as if he was a dead man walking. He might give Ye Futian a chance to live if he was a less capable cultivator and didn��t show off his remarkable talents.


    And now, the more outstanding Ye Futian seemed to be, the closer he was to his demise.


    Ling He would never allow him to live.


    Even Desolation in the Desolate God Palace was looking at Ye Futian more seriously now. While they were marching to the top of the world, marvelous youngsters were following closely behind. They should wait and see who would dominate the Donghua Domain in the future.


    Ning Hua�� What level was he?


    Jiang Yueli was also turning it over in her mind. It seemed that her speculation was right. Ye Futian didn��t display his full strength during his fight with Ling He. He was obviously more powerful when fighting against Kong Xiao today.


    As though his strength could grow to meet his opponent.


    Then, where was his limit?


    She darted a glance at the Wangshen Watchtower where Li Changsheng and Zong Chan were. They were even more formidable now that Ye Futian had joined them. Nevertheless, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family probably wouldn��t let Ye Futian off so easily. After all, everyone in the Donghua Domain knew about their feud with the Eastern Deity Island.


    ��Renhuang Ye showed off another Divine Wheel of the Great Path during this battle. It might surpass five wheels of divine light if tested before the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels. Why don��t you have a try?�� a voice said. It was Ling He from the Lingxiao Palace. It seemed that he had attempted multiple times to ask Ye Futian to reveal his ability.


    People who were not in the know thought that Ling He was genuinely impressed by Ye Futian.


    Qin Qing shot a glance at Ling He. She was a little surprised. Even though she already learned that Ling He was only trying to ruin Ye Futian by lauding him to the skies when they were at Turtle Deity Island before, she didn��t believe that Ling He had to do it so conspicuously. It was beneath him. After all, he was the young master of the Lingxiao Palace rather than ordinary folk. He didn��t have to behave like this.


    So why on earth did he do it?


    Was it simply because he hated Ye Futian and wanted to heap excessive praises on him to instigate the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family to take on Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian detested Ling He and looked away after a glance. Then, he turned to Donghua Academy��s cultivators and said, ��Donghua Academy is indeed the best holy land for cultivation. I only won by chance. Brother Kong is an extraordinary man. His blue divine light is enough to smash the sky. I would have lost if I didn��t do my best. I learned a lot from this match. Thank you very much.��


    Even though Ye Futian won the fight, his humble words saved the face of the Donghua Academy. Besides, Kong Xiao was indeed a remarkable fighter, and it was not easy to defeat him. Any other person might be lost under the Divine Eyes of Peacock. The blue divine light contained destructive will might and could kill Ye Futian with one strike. Ye Futian exerted quite some strength to obstruct it and win against Kong Xiao.


    ��Renhuang Ye, you��re too modest. Kong Xiao is at an advantage in terms of cultivation level. It seems that no one at your cultivation level from the Donghua Academy could be a match for you,�� Liu Qingzhu said with a smile. Since Kong Xiao had lost, Donghua Academy had no intention to continue the path seeking.


    It would be inappropriate for them to send out Renhuangs who were beyond the sixth order.


    Ye Futian bowed slightly and returned to Wangshen Watchtower at the ancient peak.


    ��We learned a great deal from our visit to the Donghua Academy this time. Thank you very much for hosting us,�� Li Changsheng bowed in the direction of the cultivators of Donghua Academy and said, ��We won��t bother you any longer. Goodbye.��


    After all, this was the territory of the Donghua Academy. Even though it had secret zones for cultivation, Li Changsheng and his people couldn��t get there. Ye Futian was forced to reveal his ability at the Path Seeking Peak. They should take their leave sooner than later.


    ��Alright.�� Liu Qingzhu didn��t object. He nodded and said, ��We wish you a good trip in the Donghua Heavens. Qinghan, send them out.��


    ��Yes.�� Leng Qinghan nodded and led Ye Futian and the others out. She was the one who brought them to the academy. After watching everything that had happened since then, she was deeply shocked and rattled.


    She would never expect Ye Futian to be so powerful that he defeated even Kong Xiao. It looked like Leng Yan was right after all. She underestimated Ye Futian��s ability.


    On the other side of the ancient peak, the cultivators from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow also bid goodbye. The crowd dispersed after that, and people left the Donghua Academy one after another.


    While walking, Ye Futian heard a voice from behind, ��Renhuang Ye, please wait for a moment.��


    Ye Futian turned around and saw Jiang Yueli. He said, ��What can I do for you?��


    ��Nothing. I��m just curious and would like to ask you what kind of power of the Great Path the Moon Wheel contains,�� said Jiang Yueli. She was at a similar level as Ye Futian, yet she could sense that Ye Futian had a superior path. Even though she had never experienced it directly, she had a vague suspicion.


    ��The Power of Yin,�� Ye Futian replied. He assumed that many people had recognized it.


    ��Thank you.�� Jiang Yueli nodded. It was what she expected.


    ��You��re welcome,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Renhuang Ye, you mastered the Power of Yin, learned alchemy from Eastern Deity Island, and were instructed by the Millet Emperor. Adding to your cultivation effort, you must have a boundless future ahead of you. The Donghua Domain will have another master cultivator,�� said Jiang Yueli.


    Donghua Domain? Ye Futian thought to himself. He needed to get in the Domain Chief��s Manor��s first. Only then could he be counted as a cultivator of the Donghua Domain.


    They parted ways after that. Ye Futian and the others returned to the Leng Family, while more and more cultivators arrived at the Donghua Heavens.


    The incidents that happened in Donghua Academy spread quickly. The name ��Ye Liunian�� was on everyone��s lips.

 Chapter 2024 - Donghua Banquet

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Liunian, also known as the Sword Emperor Liunian, was a disciple of the Eastern Deity Island. He followed the Goddess Donglai to cultivate in Wangshen Watchtower and had singlehandedly thwarted the attack by cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and defeated Yan Dongyang, the prince of the Great Yan.


    While Emperor Xi was proving his path, Ye Liunian fought against Ling He of the Ling Xiao Palace at the Turtle Deity Island and won a resounding victory.


    And now, the Donghua Academy invited cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower over to spar. Ye Futian demonstrated his talent again. When three esteemed cultivators��Desolation, Jiang Yueli, and Zong Chan��assessed their Divine Wheels in front of the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels, the mirror emitted five wheels of divine light. Both of Ye Futian��s Divine Wheels managed to make the mirror release five wheels of divine light, which put him in the same league as the three illustrious cultivators.


    After that, he sparred with Kong Xiao, the genius cultivator of the Donghua Academy. Not only did he defeat Kong Xiao, but he also revealed a Divine Wheel of the Great Path that seemed to be even stronger than the ones he tested in front of the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels. He might be comparable to the best cultivator in the Donghua Heavens��Ning Hua, who could make the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels emit six wheels of divine light yet didn��t participate in the previous assessment session.


    Moreover, all of this news came from the Donghua Academy and were confirmed to be true. An unparalleled genius popped out of nowhere and came to the Donghua Heavens all the way from the Eastern Deity Island.


    Many people claimed that the Sword Emperor Liunian might come to enter the Domain Chief��s Manor. If that was the case, there was no doubt that he would achieve his goal in light of his talent and ability. If he successfully entered the Domain Chief��s Manor, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family wouldn��t be able to deal with him anymore. By that time, he would directly threaten the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and might even take revenge for the Supreme Deity Donglai if he took control.


    In a word, Ye Futian rose to fame after his trip to Donghua Academy. Countless people were talking about another powerful genius from the Wangshen Watchtower after Zong Chan. Even though Wangshen Watchtower didn��t have a long history or a rich heritage, they seemed to be in their heyday right now.


    At this time, Ye Futian was strolling down the street, admiring the scenery of the Donghua Heavens.


    He was enjoying a rare chance to rest and relax since he had nothing to do at the moment.


    Xia Qingyuan, Leng Yan, and Leng Xi were walking next to him. Leng Xi visited him to ask for some guidance after they returned to the Leng family that day. Ye Futian was a generous man and offered some thoughts on cultivation. Nevertheless, cultivation was a personal matter and mostly depended on one��s own comprehension.


    ��Senior, many people have been gossiping about you along our way,�� Leng Xi said in a low voice. They could hear people talking about Ye Liunian the Sword Emperor anywhere they went. It was apparent that Ye Liunian had become a legend in the Donghua Heavens.


    Ye Futian remained impassive and didn��t respond. Xia Qingyuan threw him a sideways glance.


    Leng Yan noticed Ye Futian��s inexpressive face and said to Xia Qingyuan, ��My lady, are you two completely unmoved for real?��


    Even Leng Yan was quite excited about Ye Futian��s newly gained popularity in the Donghua Heavens. Did Ye Futian remain unaffected by the circumstances because he had cultivated to the Renhuang Plane?


    ��He is used to it.�� Xia Qingyuan felt strange about the way she was addressed, yet she didn��t correct him. She looked at Ye Futian��s silhouette and answered Leng Yan.


    ��He is used to it?�� Leng Yan muttered.


    Xia Qingyuan nodded and didn��t explain further. No one in the Original Realm hadn��t heard Ye Futian��s name. Donghua Heavens was just a different place with stronger cultivators and more geniuses. Even so, Ye Futian was still the most dazzling one of all.


    Besides, Ye Futian was not who he used to be in the past. He had cultivated to the middle-level Renhuang Plane and was marching steadfastly to the top.


    Leng Yan touched Leng Xi��s arm. Leng Xi shot a glare back but quickly returned normal and asked Xia Qingyuan, ��My lady, would you like to take on some disciples? I want to cultivate under your instruction and serve you in your daily life, so you won��t have to do many things by yourself.��


    Xia Qingyuan was at a loss for words. It was obvious that they were trying to be close to Ye Futian through her since Ye Futian turned them down. As cultivators in the Sage Plane, it was not easy for them to ask with thick skin to be her disciples.


    Nonetheless, Xia Qingyuan knew that Ye Futian wouldn��t recruit any disciple here.


    He was still trying to secure a place here himself. How could he have the spare time to teach students? He would not consider it unless he could gain a foothold in the Divine Prefecture like the Millet Emperor.


    ��Your seniors are better than me. How could I teach you?�� Xia Qingyuan replied quietly.


    ��I can sense that you��re also an extraordinary cultivator who has been hiding your capacities. You are the most beautiful woman with the most elegant bearing that I have ever seen. You and Senior Ye seem like a perfect couple together. Of course, you can teach me.�� Leng Yan was ready to go ahead at any price, including his pride. He genuinely admired Ye Futian and wanted to learn from him. His families and seniors were all very supportive after they heard about his idea.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him and suddenly cracked a smile, said, ��Actually, I��m not his wife.��


    ��Ugh���� Leng Yan blinked quickly in a fluster, but he soon reacted and said, ��Then you��re the future wife.��


    Xia Qingyuan glanced at Ye Futian, who said to Leng Yan, ��Stop coming up with these ideas. I won��t take disciples at this point.��


    A look of disappointment passed over Leng Yan��s face. But he still said, ��Please consider me if you want to recruit disciples in the future.��


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian nodded with a smile.


    ��What is that place?�� Ye Futian looked ahead and saw a palace high in the clouds. Many cultivators were gathering at the foot of the palace, including plenty of people in the Renhuang Plane.


    On top of that, Ye Futian also noticed that more people were coming from far away.


    ��A celestial pavilion in the Donghua Heavens that operates as a lodge. However, not everyone can enter some of the top celestial pavilions in the Donghua Heavens,�� Leng Yan said.


    ��It looks like someone prominent is here,�� Ye Futian said while walking toward the palace. Many people huddled together under the celestial pavilion, discussing something.


    ��Taihua Mountain,�� Ye Futian muttered to himself after he heard their conversation. He cast his mind back and realized who was coming.


    The Donghua Domain had seven main continents, two islands, and one mountain. A large number of top forces resided in the seven main continents. The Donghua Heavens had the Domain Chief��s Manor, Lingxiao Palace, and Donghua Academy; the Dongxiao Continent had the Wangshen Watchtower; the Northern White Snow Capital had the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow; the Yanyun Continent had the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family; the Badlands Continent had the Desolate God Palace; the Luotian Continent had the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family, while the Nanhua Continent had the Nanhua Clan.


    All seven main continents in the Donghua Domain were occupied by top forces. Besides that, there were two islands and a mountain left.


    The two islands were the Turtle Deity Island of the Divine Ocean Continent and the Eastern Deity Island of the Penglai Continent.


    At last, there was Taihua Mountain, which was the principal mountain in the Donghua Domain.


    These were places where all the influential figures cultivated in the Donghua Domain.


    The Taihua Mountain was not controlled by any family or clan, but it was a cultivation temple for a master cultivator referred to as the Taihua Skylord. He was a hermit with unfathomable power. Instead of recruiting disciples and or growing his power outside, he had devoted himself to cultivation.


    Other than Taihua Skylord, another person in the Taihua Mountain was also well-known. Allegedly, Taihua Skylord��s daughter Goddess Taihua was extremely talented and stunning. Her unparalleled beauty took the breath away of everyone who had met her. Some people even called her the finest Goddess of the Donghua Domain.


    Nevertheless, not many people had met Goddess Taihua because the Taihua Mountain was secluded while no one dared to disturb them rashly. Even so, her reputation grew, and rumors about her spread.


    ��Taihua Skylord and Goddess Taihua are here as well?�� Leng Xi and Leng Yan were both astounded. ��It looks like the chief may have sent someone to invite them.��


    Ye Futian remembered that Taihua Skylord didn��t even show up when Emperor Xi was facing the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. So it might have been the chief who invited them this time.


    Other people in front of them were also chatting about how the chief had summoned all the best cultivators in the Donghua Domain. He was probably the only one who had such power.


    ��Is Goddess Taihua really as beautiful as the rumors claim?�� Leng Xi asked.


    ��A cultivator on a high plane can absorb the essence of the world and become more beautiful. That��s why there are many gorgeous women among the cultivators. Goddess Taihua must be phenomenal, but I doubt anyone in this world is truly unmatched,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Yes, my lady�� Goddess Xia is also incredibly beautiful,�� said Leng Xi.


    Ye Futian was stunned for a moment upon hearing Leng Xi��s words. Then he cracked a smile. Leng Xi probably misunderstood the meaning of his casual comment. After all, he had seen so many gorgeous women, including Princess Donghuang. Most women could never have her majestic bearing.


    ��But Goddess Taihua must be very attractive. Besides, she cultivates the Divine Melody. It��s impossible to say how many people are dying to meet her. It seems like they finally have a chance now,�� Leng Xi said in a quiet voice.


    At this point, a team of cultivators walked to the celestial pavilion and said, ��We are entrusted by the chief to invite the Skylord and the Goddess to rest in the manor.��


    ��That��s not necessary. We��re fine here. Please thank the chief for me. I won��t go over to bother him,�� Taihua Skylord replied. He apparently didn��t want to go to stay in the Domain Chief��s Manor. Maybe he was used to some peace and quiet.


    ��Alright, we will go back to relay the message then,�� one person said, ��There is another matter. We can host the Donghua Banquet now that the Skylord is here. We shall be delighted to have your presence at the Domain Chief��s Manor in three days.��


    ��I will go on time for sure,�� Taihua Skylord replied. The crowd was simmering with excitement. The Donghua Banquet was finally coming in three days. It was surprising how pressing it was.


    It seems that they had been waiting for Taihua Skylord before.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor must be tracking the movements of cultivators everywhere. They would host the Donghua Banquet as long as all the top cultivators had arrived. Since other forces had turned up one after another, they could set the time now that Taihua Skylord was here as well.


    Ye Futian looked in that direction. It was happening in three days. So the Domain Chief��s Manor would inform the entire Donghua Heavens within a day!

 Chapter 2025 - : The Arrival

    The Domain Chief��s Manor ordered Donghua Heavens to host the Donghua banquet. Although everyone had known that this day would be here sooner rather than later, it still caused quite a sensation in the Donghua Heavens when the news came out.


    This time, they would have the opportunity to see the top figures from every corner of the Donghua Domain. These days, any one of these men was a figure of high caliber and was difficult to catch a glimpse of. However, at the Donghua banquet, there may be a chance to see all of them at such a grand occasion.


    Last time at Turtle Deity Island in Divine Ocean Continent, many top figures were also gathered there, but not everyone could traverse across many continents to get there. This time, the Donghua banquet was to be held in the Donghua Heavens, which only magnified its importance. The last time such a grand occasion took place was 50 years ago, and people were more than just a little excited by it.


    In addition to being able to meet those major figures, they would have the opportunity to meet many famous peak-level Renhuang, as well as the four most outstanding characters. The enchanting existence of those younger genius talents who possessed the perfect Great Path. They were descendants of clans, the princes and princesses of the ancient royal families, and goddesses of the Snow Capital.


    Although they hadn��t seen those characters, many rumors about them had already circulated in the Donghua Heavens.


    Such as the rumored Ning Hua, the number one figure in Donghua Domain, and the four leading figures: Desolation, Jiang Yueli, Zong Chan, as well as the Sword Emperor Liunian, who had risen to fame recently, and Goddess Taihua, who had just entered Donghua Heavens.


    After the news came out, the people of the Donghua Heavens departed to gather around the central region, prepared to go to the Domain Chief��s Manor to observe the ceremony. This time, it was a feast for the entire Donghua Domain.


    Three days went by quickly in a blink of an eye.


    The day of the banquet had finally arrived.


    In the early morning hours, the Leng family was extremely busy. The clan chief of the Leng family got up early, preparing to take a group of people to observe the ceremony.


    In the courtyard, Ye Futian and the others were together.


    ��Didn��t the Millet Emperor come?�� Ye Futian asked Li Changsheng.


    ��The master should be going there directly,�� Li Changsheng responded with a smile. ��The master��s whereabouts are unpredictable, and he does not necessarily use the grand teleportation matrix. Perhaps he wanted to take a walk on the road, and even that won��t take him too long.��


    Ye Futian nodded. These major figures were different from them, so it wouldn��t take much to cross the continent.


    ��The Domain Chief��s Manor itself announced the Donghua banquet. It seems that they will be selecting qualified candidates at the banquet to cultivate at the Domain Chief��s Manor. However, with your reputation and strength, there should be no question about your qualifications. Just that fight at Donghua Academy alone qualifies you to join them, even if you don��t participate in the selection process,�� Li Changsheng said with a smile.


    The selection by the Domain Chief��s Manor was also a process to choose powerful cultivators. Ye Futian was so outstanding that there was no way that the Domain Chief��s Manor would refuse his entry.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. If there were a selection, he would abide by the rules and compete with other potential candidates.


    ��Is everyone ready?�� At this moment, the head of the Leng Family walked toward this side. He was also taking the cultivators from the main branch of the Leng Family to observe the ceremony.


    ��Yes, we can go now,�� Li Changsheng responded.


    ��Good, then we are leaving. Now, there are probably countless people who have already gathered at the Domain Chief��s manor.�� The head of the Leng family remarked with a smile, and everyone nodded. The group then stepped into the void and headed directly in the direction of their destination.


    At the moment, above Donghua Heavens, millions of cultivators were in the air, all heading in the same direction. The sight was magnificent, and such a grand occasion made Ye Futian realize that there were too many cultivators on the main continent of the 18 regions in the Divine Prefecture.


    At the higher level of the cultivation world, the sight to be seen was also grander.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor in Divine Prefecture was already the closest to the peak. Except for the imperial palace, it could probably be regarded as the top location in Divine Prefecture.


    ��


    The Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor was also the earliest place to be referred to as the ��Donghua Heavens.�� It wasn��t until later that the entire Donghua Continent was named ��Donghua Heavens.��


    But long before that, the Domain Chief��s Manor itself was Donghua Heavens.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor was called Donghua Heavens because, originally, it had been a heavenly palace.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor was different from a familial principality, and it was also a most excellent holy land for cultivation. It was vast and endless, its heavenly palace surrounded by a divine aura, like a mythological land.


    At this time, the land under the Domain Chief��s Manor was filled with many cultivators standing outside. Above the firmament, a bright glow fell from the Nine Heavens, and the clouds suddenly parted. The mist above the manor dissipated, and the view above the Nine Heavens could be seen vaguely.


    Yonder, everyone saw an extremely magnificent Divine Temple of the Nine Heavens, as if it was moved here, to sit on top of the Nine Heavens.


    ��Donghua Palace!�� everyone exclaimed. The Donghua Palace at the Domain Chief��s manor was the place where the chief conducted his business. Now, it appeared just like that in their view. The divine temple hidden in the clouds and mist was a divine palace, but it had revealed itself to the world at this moment.


    In Donghua Palace, stone pillars reached into the sky, carved with dragons and phoenixes, and thrones in different positions. They, obviously, were reserved for the most important figures of the Donghua Domain.


    Behind Donghua Palace, there seemed to be a divine waterfall hanging down from Nine Heavens. Such a magnificent sight could only exist in the imagination, but right now, it was a reality witnessed by all.


    Behind the Nine Heavens�� divine waterfall, the divine mountain could be seen vaguely, but the view was a little blurry. It should be the landscape that was part of the Domain Chief��s Manor, but unfortunately, they could not see it. Only those who entered the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate could see the view inside.


    At this moment, from Donghua Palace above the Nine Heavens, there was a massive staircase spreading down, which was spectacular.


    The lower part of the Donghua Palace was divided into layers of heaven, and each layer had prepared many seats. The higher up, the fewer seats. Obviously, there were not many people who could get to the top.


    At this time, from above the stairs, countless goddess-like figures walked down. Their clothes fluttered as they drifted down and stood on both sides of the stairs. Someone drifted down the layers of heaven to the sky below the Domain Chief��s Manor to welcome the cultivators who came to participate in the banquet.


    In front of Donghua Palace, several guardians appeared with apparent powerful cultivation. Their eyes penetrated the boundless void, looking directly at the space below the Domain Chief��s Manor, and said loudly, ��Today, the chief is hosting Donghua banquet, and everyone is allowed to watch the ceremony from below. The chief will invite the top figures of Donghua Domain inside the palace, while the Nine Heavens below will receive Renhuang from all over the world. The areas are divided by realms of cultivation. Although there are many seats in the Nine Heavens, there are too many cultivators here at this time, from all parts of the Donghua Domain; please forgive us in advance for any mishaps.��


    Countless cultivators below nodded their heads. They could understand the fact that there were a lot of Renhuang who came this time. At the very least, many Renhuang of Donghua Heavens would be here to observe the ceremony. For those layers of heavens to accommodate these Renhuang was not an easy task, let alone other cultivators present.


    ��People in the Renhuang realm, from this moment on, may come up the stairs on their own and go to the area where they are to observe the ceremony.�� Suddenly, many began moving forward. All were of the Renhuang realm. They followed the stairs up towards different areas.


    Renhuang in the Ninth Realm, in the area of the Nine Heavens, which was closest to Donghua Palace, could see those upcoming influential figures more clearly.


    At this moment, in the distance, a group of cultivators came by air, in a mighty formation. Their temperaments were extraordinary, and all of them clad in gorgeous robes. When they appeared, someone immediately stepped forward to greet them.


    ��The people from Lingxiao Palace are here,�� many made the observation. The top figures who arrived here first were from Lingxiao Palace��a principality of the Donghua Heavens.


    ��The cultivators from Lingxiao Palace came to attend the banquet and to observe the ceremony,�� an elder said to the man who came to meet them in the air.


    ��Everyone, please.�� The person who greeted them said politely and took them to a platform just below the Donghua Palace. This area was divided into different sections, and the banquet was set up. The palace above the Nine Heavens area was reserved for cultivators from major forces. Even the likes of them could not follow overlords and palace lords into Donghua Palace; they could only stay in the area below the hall.


    At this time, another group of cultivators was visible in the distance. It was a group of goddesses.


    ��The Goddesses from the Snow Capital of Northern White Continent are here.��


    ��The goddesses of the Fluttering Snow Palace are as rumored; their temperament is cold as snow. Perhaps it is due to their cultivation, but they were all so outstandingly beautiful.�� The crowd talked amongst themselves, and their eyes showed great appreciation.


    ��Fluttering Snow Palace is here to attend the banquet,�� said Jiang Yueli. They were welcomed and seated in the same area as the cultivators from Lingxiao Palace, who then got up and bowed to them as a polite greeting.


    After the two parties exchanged formalities, they took their seats once again.


    After that, the cultivators of Donghua Academy arrived, causing a sensation in an instant.


    Donghua Academy was the holy land of cultivation for Donghua Heavens. Many of the powerful cultivators within the academy were admired by everyone in the Donghua Heavens. Donghua Academy had given birth to many extraordinary individuals.


    ��Ning Hua did not come with Donghua Academy.�� Someone noticed that the vice chief of the Donghua Domain was not there.


    ��The vice chief should already be at the Domain Chief��s Manor. He will probably appear in Donghua Palace with the chief,�� someone whispered, and many around him nodded in agreement. With Ning Hua��s status and reputation, it was completely understandable for him to appear at Donghua Palace.


    After that, various forces from the Nanhua Clan, the ancient royal family of Yan, and the ancient royal family of Jiang arrived in succession. Their appearances were noticed by everyone there.


    Finally, Ye Futian and the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower were here too!

 Chapter 2026 - The Gathering

    After Ye Futian and the others arrived, Li Changsheng put his hands together and greeted the many cultivators who were on the stairs, ��Cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower have come to take part in the banquet and observe the ceremony.��


    ��Wangshen Watchtower.��


    Many people looked at them, and their eyes quickly fell on Zong Chan and Ye Futian, who were standing beside Li Changsheng.


    ��That��s Zong Chan,�� someone whispered.


    ��The white-haired young man on the left is probably the Sword Emperor Liunian. Just look at him�� He looks so dapper and charming,�� someone exclaimed, and some female cultivators couldn��t help but give another look at Ye Futian. The rumors were true. Not only was he unparalleled in strength and talent, but his appearance and temperament were also undeniably outstanding. They couldn��t help but wonder if he had chosen a path companion already��


    Such was the world of cultivation. If one��s cultivation was less than desirable along with low talent, then one��s appearance meant absolutely nothing. However, if one was a peerless figure with extraordinary looks, there was no way that this person would not be noticed and admired. Take Taihua Goddess, for example. Although she had rarely been seen, her reputation preceded her. This was because, in addition to her extraordinary talent and strength, they were also enhanced by her beauty.


    ��It is rumored that everything that happened in Donghua Academy was true. They said that Sword Emperor Liunian might be even greater than Jiang Yueli and the others? And that the rank of his Divine Wheel of the Great Path has a real chance to be the same as Ning Hua��s?�� someone whispered. Although this information was reported from Donghua Academy and had been proven as absolutely true with no falsehood, some people were still surprised by what they heard.


    After all, those people��s reputation was great in Donghua Domain, and Ning Hua himself was even known as its number one genius talent. In the eyes of many people in the Donghua Heavens, he would be the number one cultivator in the Donghua Domain and its future chief. None would be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with him, not even these four most influential figures. He was the first among equals, and the other three would have to line up behind him.


    Now, there were rumors that Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path was comparable to Ning Hua��s. Naturally, many were skeptical regarding this claim.


    ��Everyone, please.�� Someone from above came to receive them.


    Li Changsheng and the others followed the person as they moved upwards. Clan Lord Leng took one look at the cultivators in the Nine Heavens and immediately grasped the situation. He said, ��Go up according to your own realm. Those below the Renhuang realm, please observe the ceremony from below. ��


    ��Ah���� Leng Yan and Leng Xi both looked disappointed. Were they only allowed to watch from below? Even their Aunt Leng Qinghan had gone up to be with the cultivators of Donghua Academy.


    However, their cultivation was still weak, so this was the best they could do.


    ��Elder, may we bring a few companions with us?�� Ye Futian asked the cultivator who came to meet them.


    The other gave him a serious look, made some estimation as to Ye Futian��s identity, and nodded, ��Of course.��


    It was not unusual for cultivators from various might forces to bring some people up with them.


    ��Thank you.�� Ye Futian thanked him, then said to Leng Yan and Leng Xi, ��You two come along too.��


    ��Mmm,�� the two smiled and nodded, revealing a look of excitement. They were now right under Donghua Palace, which was higher than the place where even the clan lord would be.


    Clan Lord Leng gave them a small smile. These two were pretty lucky.


    The group continued upward, along with the two youngsters. Many wished they had also known some powerful figures themselves.


    Thus, it was useless for them to stand underneath. Although they could still see the Donghua Palace from the highest point in the sky, it was still not enough. The distance was so far that it would be considered just an observation of the ceremony, without a real sense of participation. If they could stand above, it would feel more like they were part of the Donghua banquet.


    Ye Futian and his party came to an area below the Donghua Palace. This area was very spacious and could easily accommodate a thousand people. People from all principalities had seated in different locations, and most of the principalities in the Donghua Domain had already arrived. This demonstrated the strong appeal that the chief had over the domain, and all the top figures had to respect the Donghua banquet.


    Seeing Ye Futian��s arrival, Ling He looked at him with great interest and said, ��Brother Ye is here.��


    Ye Futian was a little surprised at the audacity of Ling He. He glanced at him and saw Ling He squinting at him with a smile, shaking the wine glass in his hand. The look in his eyes made Ye Futian felt extremely uncomfortable; it was as if he was being stalked.


    He understood very well that Ling He had no good intentions.


    ��Emperor Ye.�� On the other side, Qin Qing and other goddesses of Fluttering Snow Palace nodded to Ye Futian very amicably.


    ��We meet the goddesses again,�� Ye Futian smiled and acknowledged them in return. Their exchange surprised many around them. Judging from several of the goddesses�� attitudes toward Ye Futian, they seemed to be even friendlier to him than to Zong Chan or Li Changsheng.


    ��Brother Ye.�� Someone on the other side called out, and Ye Futian looked at the man and smiled, ��Brother Jiang.��


    The person calling out to him was Jiang Jiuming from the ancient royal family of Jiang in Luotian Continent.


    ��I heard that Brother Ye had gained fame during a battle in Donghua Academy, but unfortunately, I missed it and was not fortunate to watch Brother Ye fight,�� Jiang Jiuming said with a smile. They didn��t go to Donghua Academy last time.


    ��I was lucky, that��s all,�� Ye Futian replied modestly.


    ��Victory by strength, there was no luck to speak of.�� At Donghua Academy, Kong Xiao, who was defeated by Ye Futian once, had also arrived. He said bluntly, ��There was no luck in that battle.��


    Jiang Jiuming smiled when he heard Kong Xiao��s comment and couldn��t continue to say anything otherwise. After all, he had to take the cultivators from Donghua Academy into consideration, and he didn��t really know what their attitudes were from that battle.


    ��Emperor Kong��s combat power is extraordinary. If he was an expert at some method, perhaps the person who lost would have been me,�� Ye Futian smiled.


    ��You are an expert at many kinds of Great Path, and your Divine Wheels were extraordinary; I had no hope of winning. If you were to have them examined in front of the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels, your Divine Wheels would probably surpass the fifth rank.�� Kong Xiao continued, elicited curiosity from all who attended the banquet as they directed their attention toward Ye Futian.


    Having surpassed the Fifth Order, wouldn��t that mean the Sixth Order?


    That was the rank of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path possessed by Ning Hua, the first genius talent in the Donghua Domain.


    Kong Xiao believed that Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path would not rank below Ning Hua��s.


    Further, Kong Xiao and Ning Hua both cultivated at Donghua Academy, so they should have been in close contact. Kong Xiao��s assessment was very convincing.


    Ling He lowered his head slightly when he heard what Kong Xiao said, but a coldness flashed across his eyes.


    At this moment, everyone felt a supreme pressure covering the boundless space. From within the Domain Chief��s Manor, an extraordinary aura descended and radiated out, covering endless regions. A voice said, �� Honored guests have arrived. Please enter.��


    As the voice trailed off, the crowd saw a brilliant golden light sprinkled down upon Donghua Palace as a group appeared there. It was the Domain Chief of Donghua, and his wife was in the main seats of Donghua Palace. Next to them, there was a young man with an extraordinary temperament whose eyes contained divine light. This was the number one genius talent of Donghua Domain��Ning Hua��the proud son of Donghua Heavens.


    Below, countless people were extremely excited to see the appearance of the Chief and his wife, as well as Ning Hua. In the Donghua Heavens, they would normally have no chance to see the chief. Even Ning Hua was hardly seen by anyone.


    When the chief appeared, there was divine light shining in different directions above the sky. In one direction, the dark light enveloped a corner of the sky, then landed in Donghua Palace, revealing a domineering figure who stood there; it was Desolation God from the Desolate God Palace.


    In another direction, there seemed to be drifting snow flying, accompanied by a chill. A most beautiful woman appeared before them, and all the goddesses of the Fluttering Snow Palace stood up when they saw her. Immediately, everyone knew who she was��the Sword Goddess of Fluttering Snow Palace had arrived, the premier swordswoman in the Donghua Domain.


    At the same time, rays of divine lights descended, and in different positions within Donghua Palace, voices were heard one after another. It was as if they were all coming out of thin air. These were people whose cultivation was of considerable might. They were already inside the Donghua Heavens. Though they were still far away, they could traverse great distance within a turning of their minds.


    With each top figure��s arrival, the crowd beneath the Domain Chief��s Manor was becoming more boisterous.


    ��The person wearing the golden dragon robe is Emperor Yan from the ancient royal family of Yan, and the man in blue is the clan leader of Nanhua Clan. Look, the College Chief of Donghua Academy has also arrived���� As they looked at those distinguished figures going into the banquet hall, they identified who was whom. For most people, this was the first time that they had seen these top figures.


    At this time, an old man in white had arrived. Although he was quite advanced in age, he still appeared elegant and dapper, quite pleasing to the eyes. It was a temperament few could match.


    Next to him, there was an extremely beautiful woman, like the Jiutian Goddess, whose beauty eclipsed all other earthly beauties. For a moment, she attracted everyone��s attention. Even the Renhuang of the Nine Heavens were distracted because of her.


    Taihua Skylord had arrived.


    Such a prestigious reputation was well-deserved. The visage of the Taihua Goddess was truly unparalleled.


    Even the goddesses from Fluttering Snow Palace, who were already extremely beautiful themselves, still couldn��t help but secretly praise her peerless beauty when they saw Taihua Goddess.


    ��Skylord is here too.�� Someone in Donghua Palace observed. Taihua Skylord was a cultivator who had been in semi-retreat and rarely showed himself; he didn��t even visit Turtle Deity Island last time.


    ��We are just waiting on Emperor Xi and the others,�� the chief smiled and said. When his voice trailed off, a divine light descended, and two figures appeared at the same time. It was Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord.


    Their arrival brought a smile upon the chief��s face, and he said, ��Emperor Xi and the Thunder Punishing Skylord have arrived, and the attendees of this Donghua banquet are now all here.��


    The people below thought of the same thing. There were countless people on the continent that was the Donghua Domain, but there were only a few who were truly mighty. Every one of these figures was high above the clouds, difficult to be seen by ordinary cultivators. But now they were gathered together in one place to attend Donghua banquet, appeared in the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Apart from the chief, who could command such a grand gathering?


    Therefore, their attendance at the Donghua banquet was considered a most satisfying outcome.


    Ye Futian also raised his head to look at Donghua Palace above. The figures that appeared there were those who stood at the peak of the Donghua Domain. They alone could represent the strength of the entire Donghua Domain.


    In the eighteen regions of Divine Prefecture, just Donghua Domain alone was comparable to the entire Original Realm.


    Moreover, these were only the known cultivators in the academy. On their last visit, they had seen a lot of hermits inside Donghua Academy. In the entire land of Divine Prefecture, there must be some hermits who had been cultivating for many years!

 Chapter 2027 - Let the Feast Begin

    At the Domain Chief��s Manor, it was a scene of total prosperity; it was the most prosperous the Donghua Domain had been in 50 years. All the major figures of the Donghua Domain were here, with many emperors in attendance. Those whose cultivation was lower than the Renhuang Realm could only observe the ceremony from below.


    The chief looked at the Donghua Palace cultivators and said, ��Everyone, please take a seat wherever you please.��


    Everyone nodded as they found a seat and sat down. The seats in the Donghua Palace were not distinguished by rank; otherwise, it would be difficult to arrange.


    ��Ning Hua, go down and take care of our guests,�� the Chief said to Ning Hua, who was behind him.


    ��You go as well,�� Taihua Skylord said to Taihua Goddess, who was next to him. With the vice chief mingling with all the top figures, it would be inappropriate for his daughter, the Taihua Goddess, to stay here. Even if the others said nothing, it was better to follow the protocols.


    Ning Hua nodded as he walked down next to Taihua Goddess and said, ��Goddess, please.��


    ��Thank you,�� Taihua Goddess nodded and followed Ning Hua. They walked to a platform under the stairs outside of Donghua Palace, where Ye Futian and the others were seated. At this moment, everyone��s eyes focused on Ning Hua and Taihua Goddess, looking at these two peerless figures.


    Both of them were extremely well-known in the Donghua Domain, especially Ning Hua. Although not many people had seen him before, his name was known throughout the domain. Likewise, Taihua Goddess enjoyed fame by reputation. Now that everyone saw the two standing together, they saw that they were a match made in heaven. If they could become path companions, it would be a great story for posterity.


    ��Goddess, please take a seat,�� Ning Hua said as Taihua Goddess found a seat to sit down. Unlike the attendees, she was by herself. After all, Taihua Mountain was not a principality but just a place where her father happened to conduct his cultivation. In a way, it was similar to Turtle Deity Island as a place where Emperor Xi chose to cultivate. This time, her father brought her along for the occasion.


    Ning Hua walked to the area where the cultivators of Donghua Academy were and sat down. He did not call attention to his own status by sitting in the high seat by himself. This was a detail that did not go unnoticed. Obviously, even in the Domain Chief��s Manor, Ning Hua still regarded himself as a disciple of the academy rather than the vice chief. This was something that only increased approval from those in the academy.


    ��It is a pleasure every time I see the vice chief, who might be more accomplished than his father in the future,�� the palace lord of Lingxiao Palace commented with a smile. The Chief might not be so pleased if it were any other else, but it was high praise for his son to be more accomplished than him.


    ��I do have such expectations, but it all depends on him.�� The Chief smiled and said, ��Enough about him. Today is the first time everyone in the Donghua Domain had the good fortune to meet the treasured pearl of Taihua Skylord. I myself am quite amazed. I am envious of Taihua Skylord for having such a wonderful daughter.��


    ��Chief is most generous.��


    Several people in Donghua Palace laughed. It was natural for cultivators to wish for their descendants to inherit their craft.


    ��Since the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefecture, there have been more and more outstanding cultivators over the years. In another hundred years, maybe these youngsters will be able to replace us,�� the Chief said while looking at those seated below the stairs. Many people nodded in agreement. Emperor Xi said, ��Indeed, in the hundreds of years after the unification of Divine Prefecture, there have been many changes. In the future, more cultivators will inevitably spring up, and old guys like us will have to retire. But I am looking forward to the next era of prosperity.��


    Everyone looked at the group below and saw that the eyes of Thunder Punishing Skylord fell on Ye Futian as he nodded at him with a smile.


    When Ye Futian saw Thunder Punishing Skylord nodded to him, he felt compelled to get up. He bowed slightly to him. A Skylord who was showed such friendliness deserved to be treated according to regular etiquette. Last time at Turtle Deity Island, it was also Thunder Punishing Skylord who told him what Ling He had done. At the edge of the cliff, Thunder Punishing Skylord showed him that he had a good impression of Ye Futian. Such a character would never be motivated by anything other than pure appreciation. Ye Futian understood this very well.


    Emperor Xi��s gaze also stayed on Ye Futian for a moment before moving away. Obviously, he remembered Ye Futian. In the battle of Turtle Deity Island, Ye Futian had demonstrated his powerful strength.


    Around the Nine Heavens, countless people focused their attentions on him, Emperor Xi, who had survived the first major divine tribulation. There were rumors that his current strength may be comparable to that of the chief and that he was one of the most powerful people in the Donghua Domain today. It was even possible that he might be the stronger of the two between him and the chief.


    It was rumored that when he experienced the divine tribulation, the Divine Ocean Continent was swept through by the divine tribulation, causing the waves to be swallowed back so that even the entire continent itself was shaken up and affected by it.


    However, at this moment, even though his temperament was outstanding, he appeared very easy-going and made those around him feel at ease. Unfortunately, Emperor Xi was not accepting disciples right now. Only if they could be accepted under his tutelage�� Many Renhuang had the same thought.


    Anyone who could become a disciple of Emperor Xi would probably become a powerful figure in the Donghua Domain.


    At this time, the chief looked down below at the Nine Heavens and the cultivators beneath the Domain Chief��s Manor. He smiled and said, ��Today, we host Donghua Banquet at the Domain Chief��s Manor, and we are so glad that everyone can attend and observe the ceremony. 50 years have passed since the festivities last time in the Donghua Domain. Over the years, the cultivation world of the Donghua Domain has become stronger, so I want to take this opportunity to get together with my old friends, have a drink, and catch up. Then, I want to see the state of cultivation in the Donghua Domain and see how many excellent characters have come into existence. Lastly, there is the matter concerning the Domain Chief��s Manor. Over the years, quite a few cultivators have left the Manor, so there is a need to recruit another group of people to enter the Manor for cultivation. This is a great opportunity for selecting a group of Renhuang to enter the Domain Chief��s Manor.��


    In the Nine Heavens, many cultivators in Renhuang Realm were thoughtful when they heard what the Chief had to say. They had guessed that the Domain Chief��s Manor would be accepting disciples and was the purpose for so many Renhuang cultivators being at the banquet.


    Strictly speaking, the Domain Chief��s Manor was considered a force in and of itself, and a top-notch force at that, as it was backed by the Great Emperor. Anyone who could enter the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate would experience a completely different world.


    Of course, they would also be sent on some missions.


    ��More than 300 years have passed since the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefecture. Over the past 300 years, the Great Emperor has brought a renaissance of martial arts and command the world��s cultivators to preach in Divine Prefecture, so everyone has the opportunity to cultivate. The Divine Prefecture has emerged from an era of chaos, and order has been restored. As it is getting stronger, many superior cultivators emerged, such as Emperor Xi, who had crossed the divine tribulations. Or like Thunder Punishing Skylord, who broke through the realm and proved the way. Perhaps because of the time factor, there are still very few top figures existing amongst us. 300 years is not a short period of time, but neither is it a long one to us cultivators. Therefore, I hope that in the future, the Divine Prefecture will be able to produce more powerful cultivators and give birth to extraordinary individuals with the emergence of more peak forces, such as the ancient royal families.��


    The Chief continued to speak. Although his voice was not loud, it had spread across the boundless space so that everyone in the Domain Chief��s Manor could hear him clearly.


    The chief of Domain Chief��s Manor was appointed by the Great Emperor himself, whose purpose was to execute the will of the Great Emperor. The Great Emperor had the desire to nurture martial arts to its fullest potential, and it was the duty of the chief to work hard and make it a reality.


    Of course, all these words were just formality. It was expected for the chief, as the host of the Donghua Banquet, to clarify his position at a grand gathering like this. After all, whatever happened here could easily be known by the imperial palace.


    ��Here, I would like to drink to our cultivators of Donghua Domain.�� At this moment, the Chief raised his glass and drank up. Countless cultivators cheered and shook the Nine Heavens.


    The chief waved his hand, and everyone quieted down again. He continued, ��All of you probably already know those around me, so I will forego the introduction, as they are all top cultivators from Donghua Domain. If you have the opportunity in the future, you may seek them for spiritual guidance and cultivation. Perhaps this banquet will provide such an opportunity.��


    With that said, the Chief raised his cup to the powerful figures in Donghua Palace and said, ��A toast to you all.��


    Everyone raised their cups and said in unison, ��Chief is too generous.��


    With that, they drank the wine in their cups.


    ��Although some of you are not accepting disciples, the banquet has attracted every top figure in the Donghua Domain. If someone catches your eyes, why not accept them? Perhaps not as disciples, but to cultivate under your tutelage. Domain Chief��s Manor will not be competing with you,�� the chief said with a smile.


    His words tempted many Renhuang. This time, not only did they have the opportunity to enter the Domain Chief��s Manor, but they may even have the opportunity to follow these powerful people in cultivation?


    ��Sure, if I have cultivators that I like, I will definitely invite them to cultivate in Lingxiao Palace as long as they are not vying to enter the Domain Chief��s Manor,�� the lord of Lingxiao Palace said with a smile. Lingxiao Palace and the Domain Chief��s Manor were both located in the Donghua Heavens. And judging from his demeanor and speech, the palace lord of Lingxiao Palace had a good rapport with the Domain Chief��s Manor and favored the chief.


    ��Being able to follow all of you in cultivation is much better than coming to the Domain Chief��s Manor,�� the Chief said with a smile.


    ��If there are suitable candidates, the Fluttering Snow Palace would be willing to recruit them as well,�� the Sword Goddess also joined in. However, it would require an extremely excellent candidate to meet her high standards and requirements.


    After that, many expressed their agreement to such suggestions, which pleased the Chief. He said, ��Every one of you has heard that this banquet. It is a huge opportunity. Don��t miss it.��

 Chapter 2028 - : A Law Battle

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Renhuangs underneath were slightly startled. The chief��s gaze fell upon the group below Donghua Palace��s staircase. Then he said, ��I am sure that most of you will be able to recognize them. Ning Hua, the practitioners of Donghua Academy, Goddess Taihua, the Goddess of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, and the best of the younger generation from various factions, such as Desolation, Jiang Yueli, Zong Chan. Even I have heard of them; they are very renowned.��


    Many people smiled. The Chief was clearly speaking in a joking tone. He seemed very casual, and it helped create a favorable impression of him to many.


    Indeed, Ning Hua, Jiang Yueli, everyone had heard these names before. In addition, Goddess Taihua, Sword Emperor Liunian, Qin Qing, Ling He, along with many others, were names that the Renhuangs of Donghua Heavens had heard of.


    ��I am sure that many of you are curious about their strengths and would like to spar with them. Here, today, I will call the shots. Whoever you want to challenge or spar with, choose as you please. They will accept. Let us old ones see how many genius cultivators in the Donghua Domain have yet to show their talents. The best-case scenario is to defeat them.�� Then, the Chief continued with a smile, ��As long as you defeat them, even if they do not take you in, my domain��s manor will accept you. In addition to that, there will be a prize. How does that sound?��


    Many people smiled. Most were very expectant and were raring to go.


    Just as the chief said, any Renhuang in the world of practitioners would drool at a chance to spar with any of these top geniuses. However, such opportunities were incredibly rare. Now, these geniuses were all gathered in the same place. They were seated right over there, and these practitioners could pick and choose who they wanted to challenge. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. They could even challenge Ning Hua.


    Many were feeling very excited.


    The Chief shifted his gaze towards the group seated underneath and asked, ��None of you have any objections, right?�� They nodded. Then, a person from Donghua Academy replied, ��The Donghua Banquet is such a big event. To be able to see and meet the celebrities of the Donghua Domain is amazing. Now that the Chief has spoken, we will most definitely do our best.��


    The most authoritative person of the Donghua Domain had already spoken. As juniors, no one declined. Ning Hua sat there like everyone else.


    ��By the time they��re done, if you guys want to spar amongst yourselves, that��s fine too. As long as it is not a high-plane person intentionally challenging a person of a lower plane, you will not be allowed to decline the request,�� said the Chief with a smile. As he spoke, his gaze scanned across the group of people underneath. Then, he said, ��However, I will say this in advance, these spars should be moderate; nothing life-threatening is allowed. However, these are law battles, after all. Moreover, at your plane levels, sometimes it is indeed hard to control your strength, especially when the battle gets intense. Any oversight could lead to very severe injuries. Furthermore, we have our own tempers. If the strength gap between you is too great, and you make them mad, you cannot blame anyone. You will have to bear the consequences of these law battles yourself.��


    Many of them nodded. Naturally, they already knew this.


    So many Renhuangs were gathered here today. If everyone had a turn to fight, just how long would it take? Even though it was a grand banquet that was held only once in 50 years, the Chief was prepared. While he wanted everyone to express themselves, he did not want any and everyone to actually participate. They should know their own limitations.


    If one were too weak, they should not waste everyone��s time.


    ��Well then, let��s get started.�� The Chief raised his head and glanced up. Immediately after, divine light beamed down from the sky. Following that, from the Domain Chief��s Manor, a divine item flew out. Beams of divine light spread out and descended from the sky as if it was the milky way. It covered the entire area, connecting the nine heavens.


    Rumble!


    A loud rumble was heard. Then, everyone saw the divine item. It was actually a floating law battle platform. It had formed a space of its own. There were four doors, and when one walked inside, one would have entered an independent space where one could fully express and utilize one��s full strength.


    ��Next, it is your turn to express yourselves. We will observe. I will not interfere,�� said the Chief with a smile. He looked at the others of the Donghua Palace and said, smiling, ��It is rare for us to be able to meet and gather like this. What say we old ones stay here, drink liquor, and see what these young ones can do? How about it?��


    ��Sounds good,�� Emperor Xi answered, laughing. This arrangement was laid-back, and it was good as he wanted to see the cultivation level of the Donghua Domain��s younger generation. He had been cultivating at Turtle Deity Island for a long time before he finally passed his divine tribulation. Now, his mentality had changed a little. Perhaps he would not be able to pass his second divine tribulation in the future. Perhaps he would die in his divine tribulation. So, why not be a little more laid back?


    ��Come! Drink!�� Chief Ning laughed, raised his cup, and said, ��Come, let��s guess. Who do you think will be the first to be challenged?��


    ��My guess is Ning Hua,�� said the Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace. He continued, ��Ning Hua is very well known throughout the Donghua Domain. Everyone has heard his name. Even if no one can match him, I still think that he will be the first to be challenged.��


    ��That is possible,�� commented the Sword Goddess, nodding.


    ��I actually think that the Goddess of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow has a higher probability of being first. Who wouldn��t want to witness the elegance and talent of the divine palace��s goddess?�� Said the Overlord of the Jian Clan Ancient Royal Family.


    ��Why not Goddess Taihua?�� asked the Sword Goddess. She then continued and said, ��She is the daughter of the Skylord. Her beauty is peerless, and she is a master of the divine melody. Why wouldn��t anyone want to experience that?��


    ��Perhaps,�� answered the Jiang Clan Overlord.


    ��This old one recently heard that the young man from Wangshen Watchtower called Ye Liunian has quite a reputation within the Donghua Heavens. I am randomly guessing here, but I think it will be him,�� said Emperor Xi.


    ��I did not expect Emperor Xi also to know what had happened in the Donghua Heavens,�� Chief Ning chuckled and said. ��Indeed, I also heard Sword Emperor Liunian��s name recently at the Domain Chief��s Manor. I heard that his Divine Wheel of the Great Path might not be inferior to Ning Hua��s.��


    ��Donghua Academy is the holy land of cultivation in the Donghua Heavens. Ye Liunian also made a name for himself at Donghua Academy. That is why I think that there is a chance that the first person to be challenged will be a disciple of Donghua Academy,�� said Nanhua Clan��s clan leader, laughing.


    At that moment, these top-notch figures did not seem dignified at all. They were guessing playfully in a relaxed manner. They did not seem like prominent figures who stood at the peak of the Donghua Domain at all.


    Underneath, multiple practitioners raised their heads to look at the Donghua Palace high up above. It was a rare sight to behold for them too. This was the closest they ever got to these heavyweights, and perhaps they would never have a chance like this again to witness these people talking and laughing so casually.


    At that time, the first Renhuang had already walked on top of the law battle platform. It was a mid-level Renhuang.


    ��It is a practitioner from the Yan Family of the Donghua Heavens, Yan Qingfeng.�� Someone recognized this person. It was a local practitioner from a family of the Donghua Heavens.


    ��A branch family of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. The teleportation grand matrix of Wangshen Watchtower that connects to the Donghua Heavens is with the Leng Family. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, on the other hand, uses the Yan Family,�� Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng transmitted his voice to Ye Futian, which prompted Ye Futian to look towards the person. Did the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family have a branch?


    Regardless, it would not be weird for a top ancient royal family to have a family member start a branch family outside.


    Yan Qingfeng floated above the law battle platform. He gazed above him toward the area right below the staircase outside the Donghua Palace. His gaze finally fell upon a group of Donghua Academy practitioners. He said, ��Donghua Heavens Yan Family��s Yan Qingfeng. I wish to spar with Donghua Academy��s disciple, Leng Qinghan. Pleased to make your acquaintance.��


    Someone guessed right who the first one to be challenged would be a disciple of Donghua Academy. However, no one would have ever been able to guess that Leng Qinghan would be the one. After all, Leng Qinghan��s name was not all that well-known in Donghua Academy. She was definitely not the most famous celebrity around.


    Of course, anyone who could enter Donghua Academy to cultivate had already proven themselves to be talented. Naturally, their strength could not be questioned.


    Many from the Leng Family had odd expressions on their faces. None of them would have even imagined Leng Qinghan would be challenged first. It was clear that this Yan Qingfeng was intentionally targeting her.


    Many people in the Donghua Palace also lowered their heads to glance below. Those who understood the situation shifted their gaze toward Emperor Yan.


    Could it be an extension of the grudge between the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Wangshen Watchtower?


    The grudge began with the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Eastern Deity Island. The Great Yan family and Wangshen Watchtower could never get along. Yan Dongyang even brought someone over to provoke the Watchtower in the past but was humiliated at the hands of Ye Futian. Now, a Renhuang of a branch of the Great Yan Ancient Family was challenging a practitioner from the Leng Family. It was inevitable that people would wonder if there was more than what met the eye.


    However, Leng Qinghan was a practitioner of the Donghua Academy, so it would not be easy for Yan Qingfeng to defeat her.


    Leng Qinghan got up, leaped into the air, and entered the law battle platform.


    ��Who do you think will win this battle?�� Chief Ning asked inside the Donghua Palace.


    ��Leng Qinghan is a disciple of Donghua Academy, so her chances of winning are higher,�� said the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow��s Sword Goddess. Many somewhat agreed with her, but Lingxiao Palace��s palace lord said, ��Yan Qingfeng is also quite famous around the Donghua Heavens. He is not weak. Moreover, he is from a branch of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. From what I know, his combat strength is quite high. Even though Leng Qinghan trained in the Donghua Academy, she is now very well-known. It is hard to say who will win.��


    Chief Ning smiled. This was the first battle, and the practitioners engaged in the law battle were not famous individuals. As such, the debates were also not intense.


    Underneath, Ye Futian��s gaze also shifted towards the battlefield. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family sent a member of their branch family in the first battle. Were they trying to say something?


    On the law battle platform, the two fighters stood facing each other. Then, a cold aura emanated from Leng Qinghan��s body as she said, ��Pleased to make your acquaintance.��


    ��Likewise,�� Yan Qingfeng replied. Then, a vague but domineering golden divine light radiated from his body. The Power of the Great Path oozed out of his body as a gigantic divine golden dragon appeared. His body was covered in golden dragon armor while his arms were covered in extremely sharp dragon scales as if his body had transformed into a dragon, and it looked immensely dangerous!

 Chapter 2029 - Battle of Humiliation

    Many people looked down at the Law Battle Platform where Ye Futian and the others were. They heard the sound of a dragon singing.


    Song of the Yan Dragon, Ye Futian thought to himself. It was a secret skill of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. Ye Futian assumed that Yan Qingfeng might have cultivated with the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family before since he knew how to release it. If that was the case, Yan Qingfeng might be targeting them this time.


    An icy storm formed around Leng Qinghan��s body. The knife was like the cold moon, and its silver gleam sent a chill down every audience��s spine. However, a real dragon manifested itself above Yan Qingfeng��s body and soared through the sky. Countless Dragon Blades fell with great momentum. Yan Qingfeng himself also charged forward and pressed on Leng Qinghan.


    The battle broke out in an instant and shook the entire Law Battle Area. The knives gleamed brilliantly and split up space. To everyone��s surprise, Leng Qinghan launched the counter-attack like a whirlwind.


    ��He is a disciple of Donghua Academy indeed. Although Leng Qinghan��s blade technique originally comes from the Leng Family, it has transformed into something much more powerful,�� a cultivator from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family said. Yan Hanxing looked at Zong Chan and the others and said, ��Leng Kuangsheng also cultivated at Wangshen Watchtower before. Do you think Leng Qinghan can defeat Yan Qingfeng, who is also from an aristocratic family in the Donghua Heavens?��


    ��Crown Prince Yan, you also acknowledge that the Leng family shares a past with our Wangshen Watchtower. Of course, we believe Leng Qinghan will win this time,�� Li Changsheng replied with a smile. ��Unless, of course, people from the Great Yan don��t think Yan Qingfeng can gain the upper hand?��


    Yan Hanxing smiled and said, ��Of course not. I have faith in Yan Qingfeng. Why don��t we make a bet since we disagree?��


    ��What kind of bet?�� Li Changsheng asked.


    ��If Leng Qinghan loses, Wangshen Watchtower will keep your hands off of the Eastern Deity Island and hand this man over to the Great Yan if he lost,�� Yan Hanxing looked at Ye Futian and said with a smile.


    Squinting, Li Changsheng glanced at Yan Hanxing and said in a mocking tone, ��Sorry, but the Great Yan doesn��t have anything equal to offer.��


    Yan Hanxing��s piercing gaze focused on Li Changsheng. Li Changsheng was ridiculing the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family for not having anyone comparable to Ye Futian. Yan Dongyang, a member of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, had been vanquished before, while Ye Futian astonished everyone at Donghua Academy. Which Renhuang from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family could hold a candle to Ye Futian?


    The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family didn��t have anyone in the same class as Ye Futian to make this bet.


    People watched Yan Hanxing and Li Changsheng with great interest. The battle on the Law Battle Platform was directly related to the two forces. Who would have thought that the Crown Prince of the Great Yan would be tongue-tied?


    Nowadays, it was almost impossible for the Great Yan to find someone as good as the Sword Emperor Liunian.


    ��Yan Qingfeng also cultivated with the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, right? But it seems that he is losing ground already,�� Li Changsheng glanced at the platform and said. Leng Qinghan cultivated multiple types of power of the Great Path. By combining them brilliantly and utilizing her blade technique, she had the upper hand over Yan Qingfeng.


    ��Is that so?�� Yan Hanxing replied blankly.


    At this point, the situation on the platform changed abruptly. Yan Qingfeng seemed to have used some secret arts and covered his entire body with an armor made of dragon scales, which grabbed Leng Qinghan��s knife. Then, his hand turned into a sharp claw and pierced through Leng Qinghan��s body.


    A dazzling streak of light flashed across the sky. The dragon scale armor covering Yan Qingfeng was torn apart, and a bright red weal sprang upon it. But Leng Qinghan was also severely injured. She was flung away with a deep gash on her body. The blood stained her clothes.


    The audience quieted down immediately. Everyone was surprised to see that the first battle was so fierce.


    Normally, the first sparring session at a grand gathering where all the top cultivators in the Donghua Domain came together was supposed to be courteous and friendly.


    The key figures in the Donghua Palace also glanced at the platform but didn��t say anything. Chief Ning already stated that he would not get involved.


    ��He is quite good for being able to defeat a disciple of the Academy. Let��s not argue further since he is trained by the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family,�� Chief Ning commented. Leng Qinghan covered her wound and left the platform. She kept her head down after retreating.


    The first fight embarrassed Donghua Academy a little. The cultivator from Donghua Academy was defeated by a Renhuang from the Great Yan.


    ��Are you hurt badly?�� Leng Kuangsheng asked Leng Qinghan. She shook her head. Ye Futian took out a small porcelain bottle, handed it to her, said, ��Here are some elixirs. Take them.��


    ��Thank you,�� Leng Qinghan nodded. She returned to the Academy��s side, drank the elixirs, and sat down to regulate her breath and mend her body.


    People from Donghua Academy were quite upset. They glared at the cultivators from the Great Yan.


    At this point, Yan Qingfeng also walked off the platform as if he didn��t fight to prove a point or endorse a particular group.


    Some other Renhuangs stood up and planned to head to the Law Battle Area.


    But a figure flashed past them. A person with silver hair stood quietly in front of a door outside of the Law Battle Platform. Then, he stepped forward and walked in.


    ��This���� Many people looked at him with astonishment.


    Even the top cultivators sitting in the Donghua Palace were stunned by the silver-haired man walking onto the battle platform.


    It was Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian only needed to sit tight and wait for someone to challenge him. After all, he was well-known for his ability already and had Wangshen Watchtower to back him up. Chief Ning initially thought that some interested cultivators from the top forces might spar with Ye Futian after other Law Battles were over.


    However, Ye Futian walked out on his own to join the second fight.


    What did he want to do?


    Ye Futian came to the Law Battle Platform silently, his body floating in the air. Under countless people��s watch, he gazed at the cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family who were sitting outside of the Donghua Palace and said, ��I sparred with the Crown Prince Yan Dongyang before but didn��t fully enjoy myself. Therefore, I��d like to invite Crown Prince Yan to another match to see if we have made any progress. Please.��


    ������ Everyone was staring at Ye Futian. The cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family narrowed their eyes, and Yan Dongyang��s face was frozen.


    Ye Futian already defeated him at Wangshen Watchtower, so another fight was completely meaningless and unnecessary unless he took the initiative to challenge Ye Futian.


    If that was the case, why did Ye Futian do this?


    Everyone could tell that Ye Futian wanted to crush Yan Dongyang again��


    He wanted to bring Yan Dongyang to his knees in front of everyone in the Donghua Domain. How audacious!


    Yan Dongyang��s expression was grim. The cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, who were rejoicing over Yan Qingfeng��s victory over Leng Qinghan, also stopped smiling.


    Ye Futian was deliberately provoking the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    He was retaliating for Leng Qinghan��s loss just now.


    The cultivators from the Leng family were moved by Ye Futian��s action. Leng Yan and Leng Xi watched him, their blood boiling. They were both raving mad just now, and they were eager to see the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family being humiliated.


    ��How interesting,�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord snickered. It was said that revenge was a dish best served cold. But it seemed that Ye Futian didn��t bother to wait.


    Yan Dongyang had no choice but to accept Ye Futian��s challenge. After all, Yan Dongyang had no excuse to refuse, as Ye Futian was at a lower level than him.


    Could he concede?


    The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would be humiliated. Everyone saw what happened just now.


    He had no way out.


    Yan Dongyang was forced to walk to the Law Battle Area. He glared at Ye Futian with sheer malice. Without speaking, he unleashed tremendous might from his body. Along with the sound of the dragon singing, several terrifying dragons appeared in the sky above.


    The Law Battle Area was dazzling and magnificent at that moment. Many people only realized then that Yan Dongyang, the Crown Prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, was also an extraordinary cultivator with a perfect Divine Wheel. They forgot about how powerful he was in the presence of his silver-haired opponent.


    Divine light shone brilliantly on the Law Battle Platform. Under everyone��s watch, the Law Battle Area was transformed into a starry dimension where millions of stars circling. Then, it was into a frightening Great Path domain.


    The song of the dragon was still echoing through the area. But countless Starry Steles rose from the stars, emitted bright Buddhist light, and unleashed the power of the Sonic Wave. It was the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm. The two types of the power of the Sonic Wave collided with each other and rippled across the Great Path.


    ��What a formidable Great Path domain.�� Everyone��s eyes were fixed on them. Kong Xiao from Donghua Academy had a stern face. It was how he had lost before.


    The Great Path domain expanded with significant momentum and engulfed the Law Battle Area. It repelled the golden dragons and took control of the area.


    ��It seems that the Millet Emperor has secretly recruited him as a disciple, after all,�� Emperor Yan said coldly. Ye Futian��s Great Path domain obviously evolved from the Gate to World Suppression.


    ��Of course, I��m glad to meet such an exceptional young man. I taught him what I know. But why do I have to recruit him as my disciple?�� the Millet Emperor replied.


    Emperor Yan uttered a snort. Countless Divine Monuments fell from the sky as if the starry dimension was crumbling. Ye Futian pushed a hand forward and shattered everything into pieces.


    ��So powerful.�� The audience was astounded by the scene. Ye Futian��s strike dashed against the sky. Yan Dongyang tried his best to defend himself, but his Great Path disintegrated, and he couldn��t withstand the attack at all.


    Bang! With a loud noise, the Palm of the Great Path came down from the sky and hit Yan Dongyang��s body. Yan Dongyang fell on the Law Battle Platform, throwing up blood. He was barely breathing.


    One strike!


    The crowd was staggered. A cultivator as powerful as Yan Dongyang couldn��t withstand one strike from Ye Futian. Ye Futian exerted his full strength to deliberately humiliate Yan Dongyang.


    Enraged, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family cultivators stared at Ye Futian, who was standing on the Law Battle Platform. He had pushed them too far!

 Chapter 2030 - God Seal Spell

    Ye Futian was exacting his revenge for the last fight by wiping the floor with Yan Dongyang.


    He would not hold back since the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family provoked him first. What upset him the most was that the cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family targeted him and attacked the Leng family. They severely injured Leng Qinghan and humiliated her.


    That being so, there was no need for Ye Futian to feign politeness anymore. He retaliated directly.


    A great number of cultivators raised their heads to look at Ye Futian. They were shocked by the gap between Ye Futian and Yan Dongyang.


    Ye Futian and Yan Dongyang were not at the same level at all.


    Yan Dongyang couldn��t withstand one strike from Ye Futian and was badly wounded.


    The Sword Emperor Liunian certainly deserved the reputation he enjoyed. The battle at Donghua Academy made Ye Futian rise to fame. Now it appeared that he was indeed extremely powerful. Since he was at a lower cultivation plane than Yan Dongyang, he must overwhelm Yan Dongyang with his Divine Wheel of the Great Path to utterly defeat him.


    Ye Futian intentionally put Yan Dongyang to shame and made the Crown Prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family mortified in front of everyone.


    How devastating.


    Many people were feeling sorry for Yan Dongyang. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family provoked them first and wanted to secure a leading position over the opponent from the very beginning. They never expected that Ye Futian would join the fight himself to take revenge.


    Ye Futian left the Law Battle Platform and returned to his seat. But Yan Dongyang couldn��t go back on his own. The cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had to help him up. He looked even more pathetic than Leng Qinghan moments ago.


    Although Yan Dongyang was barely breathing, he glared at Ye Futian with deep hatred. But Ye Futian acted as if he didn��t notice Yan Dongyang at all. He picked up the wine glass and took a sip without speaking.


    An awkward silence filled the air. Even though people from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family were furious, there was nothing they could do. No one from the Great Yan could handle Ye Futian. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had several princes, but none were in the same league as Ye Futian.


    It seemed that they had no choice but to accept the defeat.


    ��Is that the Gate to World Suppression?�� Emperor Xi asked the Millet Emperor inside of the Donghua Palace.


    ��Kind of,�� Millet Emperor nodded and said. ��But it��s completely different now. It��s based on the Gate to World Suppression but has become something of his own. He combined it with his own ability and pieced it together. It may look like the Gate to World Suppression, but it is a perfect blend with his own power of the Great Path.��


    ��Alright.�� Emperor Xi nodded and said with a smile, ��He is a good student. I��m surprised that he could develop the rare Art of Supreme Attack instead of simply copying it. This young man has a creative mind.��


    Any ordinary cultivator who obtained such a powerful art of sorcery would follow it strictly. Ye Futian was different. He combined it with his own power and transformed it completely, so it only looked like the Gate to World Suppression now.


    ��One strike contains several types of power of the Great Path. It��s an impressive blow. An ordinary middle-level Renhuang without a perfect Divine Wheel could hardly handle it,�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord commented. Ye Futian was strong enough to fight against a high-level Renhuang without a perfect Divine Wheel.


    Even a middle-level Renhuang who had a perfect Divine Wheel didn��t stand a chance against his attack.


    ��Indeed. Wangshen Watchtower raised two legends. Millet Emperor, you don��t need to worry about finding a successor now,�� Chief Ning said with a mirthless smile. Their casual conversation only made the cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family even more inflamed.


    At this point, another person walked into the Law Battle Platform in the Seven Heavens. Plenty of Renhuangs in the Nine Heavens were surprised to see this man. He was a high-level Renhuang in the Donghua Heavens and had reached the peak of the seventh order after years of cultivation.


    People at his level had already enjoyed a high status in society. Although cultivators had to keep studying and progressing no matter what plane they had reached, they would rarely participate in such an event or ask to become a disciple of another top cultivator.


    Who would this seventh-order Renhuang challenge?


    He hovered over the Law Battle Platform and looked above and said, ��I have been cultivating in the Donghua Heavens, and I have long heard of the reputation of the vice chief. I want to seize this opportunity to ask the vice chief for some advice.��


    Many people narrowed their eyes. But they were not too surprised. This would happen sooner or later.


    Ning Hua was a prominent man in the Donghua Domain. Millions of cultivators were dying to see how powerful the best genius of the Donghua Domain truly was.


    Since the chief had granted them the chance to challenge whomever they wanted, someone would definitely aim at Ning Hua eventually. Therefore, no one was shocked. Instead, they watched the platform with expectant eyes.


    ��How powerful is the vice chief?��


    ��We can finally watch the best genius of our Donghua Domain in action.��


    While the audience was whispering to each other, someone spoke loudly, ��I assume Ning Hua could defeat him with one strike, like how the Sword Emperor Liunian defeated Yan Dongyang just now.��


    ��Yes, the vice chief only needs one blow if he gives his all.�� Everyone was on the edge of their seats.


    Even the top cultivators sitting in Donghua Palace were staring at Ning Hua, waiting with bated breath. They all wanted to see Ning Hua display his ability.


    Under everyone��s close watch, Ning Hua stood up and walked to the Law Battle Platform from Donghua Academy.


    They faced each other in the Law Battle Area. The seventh-order Renhuang showed off his Divine Wheel and formed a terrifying energy field. He said to Ning Hua, ��Please.��


    ��Please.�� Ning Hua replied with one word as well. Stepping forward, he shot dazzling light out of his scary eyes. The Divine Light of the Great Path surrounded his body and suffused the endless sky with mystic runes.


    ��Grand Seal Great Path.��


    Everybody watched Ning Hua. The Grand Seal Great Path was the power of the Great Path that Ning Hua mainly cultivated. Other Great Paths and techniques all supported and facilitated Grand Seal Great Path. He learned it from the chief, and it was said to be a domineering force. While the Divine Light of the Seals was shining brilliantly, the seventh-order Renhuang looked into Ning Hua��s eyes and felt as if the light came from the middle of his brow. He was placed into a world of seals.


    Not only his Great Path was limited, but his Spiritual Will was also invaded. Nothing felt real to him.


    Buzz��


    The Divine Light of the Seals dazzled the world. Ning Hua stepped forward and hovered above his opponent. Formidable Spiritual Will burst out of his body while runes flying out one after another. It was the extremely powerful God Seal Spell that could seal his opponent��s will and spiritual soul, incapacitating him altogether.


    The Law Battle Area turned into a prison of the Great Path, which sealed off the power of the Great path, locked up the Divine Wheel, and even imprisoned the spiritual soul. The seventh-order Renhuang was trembling slightly. A giant seal popped up in his mind as if it was an ancient rune that he couldn��t repel.


    Am I really that far behind? he thought to himself. Even though he had prepared himself mentally, he was still frustrated and discouraged by the gap between him and Ning Hua. He couldn��t withstand the attack at all since his Great Path was sealed.


    The chief��s God Seal Spell was indeed dreadful.


    The seventh-order Renhuang��s body was flung back as Ning Hua stomped his foot. The seal disappeared, and everything returned to normal. The seventh-order Renhuang raised his head to look at Ning Hua, having trouble believing what had happened just now. He bowed slightly and said, ��The vice chief truly has unparalleled talent. I suppose no one in the Donghua Domain can surpass you.��


    ��Thanks for your nice words.�� Ning Hua didn��t stay to chat. They both left the Law Battle Area.


    The audience exclaimed excitedly, ��That is Ning Hua, unmatched in the Donghua Domain.��


    ��The finest genius in the Donghua Domain didn��t even give a seventh-order Renhuang a chance to launch an attack. How domineering.��


    ��As strong as the Sword Emperor Liunian is, he is still not a match for the vice chief.��


    Some people were comparing Ye Futian to Ning Hua. After all, rumor had it that Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path was as good as Ning Hua��s. But many people were not convinced.


    Although Ye Futian had extraordinary talent and had displayed remarkable ability while crushing Yan Dongyang just now, he was still not on a par with Ning Hua, even if their Divine Wheels of the Great Path were at a similar level.


    The Divine Wheel of the Great Path wasn��t a decisive factor.


    While the crowd was murmuring, a lot of Renhuang sitting in the Nine Heavens were speaking to each other as well. The challenger was an established high-level Renhuang in the Donghua Heavens. Yet, he was defeated right away, not even getting a chance to attack.


    After Ning Hua returned to Donghua Academy, the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace said with a smile, ��Ning Hua has inherited the Chief��s legacy. With his God Seal Spell, few opponents are a match for him.��


    ��We��re flattered. Ning Hua still has a long way to go,�� Chief Ning smiled and replied. Although he was quite satisfied with the result, he meant what he said. From what he could see, Ning Hua indeed had a long way to go. He only started just now.


    He needed to reach the peak of the Renhuang Plane and go through the three levels of the divine tribulation. As the head of the Donghua Domain, Chief Ning had a much broader horizon and extremely high hopes for Ning Hua.


    ��Ning Hua has attained the acme of perfection when it comes to the God Seal Spell. Even his eyes are enough to seal his opponent. Few people in the Donghua Domain can fight against him now. He will probably overshadow old guys like us in no time,�� the overlord of the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family from the Luotian Continent also praised with a smile.

 Chapter 2031 - Divine Melody Taihua

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The crowd had high praises for Ning Hua. Over where the members of Desolate God Palace were, Desolation lowered his head and picked up a cup of wine. He drained it in one gulp. He raised his head and glanced over at where Ning Hua was among the members of Donghua Academy.


    A faint battle intent emanated from his gaze. Seemingly sensing something, Ning Hua also turned his head around and looked towards Desolation. They locked gazes. A formless current actually formed in between them.


    The surrounding people seemed to all sense something. Their gazes shifted toward them.


    When the cultivators of Desolate God Palace entered Donghua Academy, Desolation had wanted to challenge Ning Hua. However, Ning Hua was not around.


    Now that such an opportunity had arisen, Desolation would certainly not let it slip past him.


    However, Desolation was not anxious. He would wait until everyone had battled before challenging Ning Hua. He wanted to see how powerful this monstrous figure, who was renowned as the top figure in the Donghua Domain, was.


    Within Donghua Palace, the giant figures had also detected something. They looked down below, and they revealed faint smiles. It appeared as though there would be very exciting battles at the peak. Aside from Desolation and Ning Hua, there were also many other incredible figures.


    The others would certainly use this opportunity to test each other out.


    At that moment, another silhouette stepped forward and appeared on the Law Battle Platform. This Renhuang had an otherworldly aura and appeared suave.


    ��He is a cultivator from String Palace from the Donghua Heavens,�� someone commented when they recognized this Renhuang in his thirties. String Palace was a top force of the Donghua Heavens. Almost all of the Renhuangs of leading forces in the Donghua Heavens attended the Donghua Banquet. Also, among the Nine Heavens, the Donghua Heavens had the most Renhuangs.


    Hence, up until now, all those who had walked up to the Law Battle Platform were all cultivators from the Donghua Heavens.


    The Renhuang from String Palace raised his head and looked up into the sky. His gaze landed on a person. Many people immediately turned to see who he was looking at. It was the absolute beauty with a mesmerizing appearance��Goddess Taihua.


    When they saw a cultivator from String Palace walk out, many people speculated that Goddess Taihua would be chosen for this Law Battle.


    The Renhuang said, ��I am from String Palace and am somewhat proficient in Rhythmic Sorcery. I heard that Taihua Skylord, as well as Goddess Taihua, would be coming. I have long admired the two of you. I wonder whether I will have the good fortune of hearing the Divine Melody Taihua today.�� Many people were anticipating this. Among the top ten most famous songs in the world, one of them was called ��Taihua.��


    Taihua Mountain, as well as Taihua Skylord, were named after this song. Their surnames were not Taihua, but they were called this because they cultivated the Divine Melody Taihua.


    Countless gazes landed on Goddess Taihua. She slowly got up and then stepped forward. As they gazed at her absolutely stunning appearance, many people felt their hearts stir. Some people have been blessed since their birth. Not only had she been blessed with extraordinary cultivation talent, but she was also bestowed with astonishing beauty. Some people were destined to be favored by the heavens.


    An example of such a person was Ning Hua; he was also born above the others and was a Proud Son of Heaven.


    As Goddess Taihua walked forward, a halo of light circled around her. It was mesmerizing and calming. Her steps were like the music of deities. The sounds that they made caused the hearts of many to beat in tune. This sensation was miraculous. It was not a hallucination; Goddess Taihua truly gave everyone such a feeling.


    It was just like how a swordsman would give off a sharp vibe while a person who cultivated the Great Path of Frost would cause people to feel chilly.


    Goddess Taihua made people feel as though they were listening to beautiful music. It was very relaxing. Looking at her was like enjoying a symphony.


    ��Incredible. The rhythm of the Great Path has already merged with her body completely. She can utilize it naturally. It is as though her body is a musical score of the Great Path,�� Li Changsheng praised. The people around him also felt the same. They agreed with his praise. Her cultivation was astonishing.


    Ye Futian also sensed this. He also cultivated a Divine Melody, but he had yet to reach such a level. It was apparent that the other party had greater attainment in Rhythmic Sorcery than him. After all, he had cultivated music as a means to support his cultivation. However, it was different for Goddess Taihua. She nourished her Great Path with music and had reached the stage where her body and will were one with her Rhythmic Sorcery.


    Ye Futian could not help but feel a sense of anticipation. How powerful was Goddess Taihua��s music?


    Goddess Taihua stepped onto the Law Battle Platform and stood before the cultivator from String Palace. The other party said, ��Goddess, please go easy on me.��


    ��Let��s begin,�� Goddess Taihua replied as she nodded her head. The other cultivator sat down, cross-legged. An ancient guqin appeared before his body. Instantly, his Rhythmic Sorcery became divine light of the Great Path that radiated outwards. Very quickly, musical notes enveloped this part of the sky. The rhythm of the Great Path filled the air.


    Goddess Taihua stood there quietly. On her body, formless Rhythmic Sorcery expanded outwards like ripples. A guqin of the Great Path appeared before her. The Great Path around her served as her strings. Each string was formed from the Great Path of Rhythmic Sorcery.


    That was not all. There seemed to be a miraculous resonance around them. It was as though this part of the sky was covered by the will of her Great Path, forming a domain. The entire space was within her domain of Rhythmic Sorcery. Countless guqin strings appeared around them.


    Goddess Taihua extended her delicate hands. Her palms were fair. Her fingers were slender and elegant. Her fingers curved and plucked at the strings of the guqin.


    A string of musical notes leaped out. In an instant, a sound wave actually swept out, causing the guqin strings in the domain of the Great Path to resonate. She played loudly and powerfully. It was hard to imagine that such a delicate and beautiful figure could play such powerful notes with simple plucks of the guqin strings.


    The other party��s recital was nearly cut off. The Renhuang felt his body become extremely heavy. Every pluck of his strings seemed so difficult. Under the effects of the powerful musical notes, his own playing was directly suppressed.


    Goddess Taihua did not stop. Her fingers danced on top of the guqin. Immediately, countless musical notes of the Great Path leaped out. Each note contained unparalleled power. This was a beautiful melody that was filled with power. It was weighty and powerful. The surrounding space felt unbearably heavy. It pressed down on the figure of the other cultivator. The Renhuang even felt a frightening pressure acting on his spiritual soul.


    At that moment, he seemed to see an illusion. It was as though he was standing alone on the ground, and divine mountains were descending from the heavens. Standing alone in the vast world, he appeared exceptionally miniscule. His Great Path was being suppressed. His flesh and spiritual soul were also suppressed. It did not take long for him to be unable to continue playing. His strings had snapped. He raised his head and looked up at her guqin strings of the Great Path. Although they appeared formless, he felt as though he could see them clearly. The strings were everywhere, like mountains before him.


    Right then, the sensation suddenly disappeared. The domain of the Great Path dissipated. Everything appeared to be a dream. Before him, a peerless beauty was floating in the sky. She stood there silently, stunning to behold.


    ��Many thanks, Goddess,�� said the Renhuang as he bowed slightly. She had enabled him to experience the Divine Melody Taihua. He was naturally grateful. Otherwise, with Goddess Taihua��s ability, any tune she played could similarly crush him.


    Yet, just now, he could truly feel the majestic power contained within the Divine Melody Taihua. When faced with such might and incredible power, even upper-level Renhuangs would feel small.


    Goddess Taihua nodded her head slightly. She then walked down from the Law Battle Platform and returned to her seat.


    Ye Futian glanced at her. Although he had not experienced the Divine Melody Taihua up close, he could still sense its majestic power from outside of the Law Battle Platform. It was powerful and rich. It could suppress the Great Path. He did know which was more powerful, this or Song of the Lost Divine.


    ��Marvelous,�� praised Chief Ning from Donghua Palace. ��Today, the Donghua Banquet is full of surprises. Even us old fellows will still be astonished at such a Divine Melody. It seems that she has completely inherited the Way of Taihua Skylord.��


    ��Taihua Skylord��s daughter is a peerless Proud Daughter of Heaven. Even among the men, few can compare to her. She will certainly become a prominent figure at the peak. She reminds me of the vice chief,�� Lingxiao Palace Palace Lord said with a smile. His words caused an idea to surface in the minds of many people.


    What was he implying?


    However, Ning Hua and Goddess Taihua were indeed a match. They were both top figures of their generation.


    ��You are all too generous with your praises. The juniors of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow are not inferior to her,�� said Taihua Skylord casually with a smile.


    Down below, over where the members of Donghua Academy were, Ning Hua raised his cup and said to Goddess Taihua, ��I never imagined that I would have the good fortune of hearing the Divine Melody Taihua today. It is deserving of being one of the top ten most famous songs in the world. Goddess, let me offer a toast to you.��


    Many people revealed strange expressions. Ning Hua was incredibly proud. This was the first time he had greeted another person first.


    ��Vice chief, you praise me too highly,�� Goddess Taihua replied as she raised her cup. The two of them drank together from where they stood.


    Upon seeing this scene, many members of the Donghua Palace revealed knowing smiles. They seemed somewhat intrigued.


    If Ning Hua and Goddess Taihua could become an item, they would definitely become the most perfect couple among this generation in the Donghua Domain!

 Chapter 2032 - Prominent Figures

    After Goddess Taihua stepped down, other people continued to ascend onto the Law Battle Platform, battling against the Renhuangs from the top forces.


    Very soon, the cultivators from various forces had received challenges from Renhuangs in the Nine Heavens. Even Jiang Yueli, who had an eighth-tier flawless Great Path, also accepted a challenge. A powerful Renhuang at the peak of his cultivation had challenged her. He wanted to see how powerful a Renhuang with a flawless Great Path was.


    There was little suspense in this battle. The Renhuang with peak cultivation lost to Jiang Yueli. This battle made people realize that Jiang Yueli was unbeatable unless she was going against giant level figures.


    With her eighth-tier Renhuang Plane cultivation, she was just a step away from being considered a giant-level figure herself.


    The goddesses of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow also received challenges. However, they too defeated their opponents in a spectacular fashion. There was no suspense to their battles. Even though the challengers were all very powerful, those invited were all prominent figures of the top forces. They were all monstrous figures with extraordinary abilities at the Renhuang Plane. Wanting to defeat them would naturally not be easy.


    Time passed. The Law Battles continued without end. Many people had already accepted multiple challenges. After all, there were too many challenges, but the number of Renhuangs from the top forces was limited. Hence, there were bound to be repeated challenges.


    However, today, the chief had personally given the order for the cultivators to join in the battles. The cultivators obliged to his orders very enthusiastically, cooperating in participating in the Law Battles.


    At that moment, on the Law Battle Platform, another fierce battle was taking place. A middle-level Renhuang had walked out and challenged a Renhuang from Desolate God Palace. The abilities of the challenger were actually on par with his opponent. His combat ability was astonishingly powerful.


    Down below, countless people raised their heads and watched the ferocious battle on the Law Battle Platform. Destructive black currents of the Great Path became frightening bolts of lightning. It was as though the space was experiencing doomsday. Destructive currents rampaged, attempting to destroy the opponent.


    ��Who is this person? He is so powerful,�� someone asked in astonishment as they watched the challenger. ��Even against such a Great Path of Destruction, he does not seem to be at a disadvantage. Be it in terms of defense or attack power, he is terrifyingly powerful in both aspects.��


    ��He is Renhuang Chen,�� said someone else. ��Renhuang Chen has cultivated for many years in the Donghua Heavens. He has always kept a low profile. However, every battle that he was involved in was legendary. As expected, he will suppress the Renhuang from Desolate God Palace this time as well.��


    ��With his fingers, he draws out rivers of swords, and his punches are like mountains. It is indeed frightening for him to have such cultivation,�� someone to the side commented in awe as their gazes were fixed on the battle above. Every attack of Renhuang Chen appeared simple but exploded with astonishing might.


    ��As expected, there are multitudes of cultivators from the Donghua Heavens. If Renhuang Chen wins this Law Battle, he will be the fourth to achieve victory,�� another person stated. As time passed, several battles had erupted. Although the chances of victory for the challengers were slim, three Renhuangs had managed to emerge victoriously.


    Bang!


    At that moment, a loud collision was heard. Several people felt their hearts leap. Then, they saw that the Renhuang from Desolate God Palace was sent flying outward. Fresh blood had dyed his robes red. On the other hand, Renhuang Chen remained standing there, bearing the air of a grandmaster.


    He had won. Many people below clenched their fists. Because the chances of victory were slim, many people hoped that some extraordinary figures would appear to take down these cultivators from the superpowers.


    It was precisely because it was difficult that they looked forward to it. Hence, each battle that ended with such a victory stirred the hearts of the people.


    ��Not bad.��


    From Donghua Palace, laughter could be heard. Chief Ning looked at the Renhuang on the Law Battle Platform and said, ��From the discussion below, this Renhuang Chen appears to be an extraordinary Renhuang from the Donghua Heavens. It��s incredible for him to be able to defeat such a powerful opponent.��


    ��It is indeed incredible. The abilities of the Renhuang from Desolate God Palace are impressive. His combat ability is already considered very powerful. There was no element of luck in Renhuang Chen��s victory,�� someone replied with a smile.


    ��He is the fourth. It is indeed not easy for them to have claimed four victories. What about all of you? Have any one of them caught your eye?�� Chief Ning asked with a smile.


    The palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace said, ��The Renhuang from the Donghua Heavens. If he is willing to join my Ling Xiao Palace to cultivate, I will personally instruct him.��


    ��Hmm,�� Chief Ning answered as he nodded his head. He looked to the Law Battle Platform and said, ��Did you hear that? The palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace is willing to personally pass on his teachings to you. Are you interested in joining Ling Xiao Palace to cultivate?��


    Renhuang Chen raised his head and looked at Chief Ning from where he was. He replied, ��I have come to participate in these Law Battles to join the Domain Chief��s Manor.��


    ��Oh?�� Chief Ning uttered as he glanced at the palace lord of Ling Xiao Palace who was beside him. The other party smiled indifferently and said, ��It seems that he is not fated to cross paths with Ling Xiao Palace. Since this Renhuang wants to enter Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate, then only the chief could grant him his wish.��


    Chief Ning nodded in agreement. Since the other party was willing, he had no objections. He said, ��All right, after this, you will join Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate.��


    ��Many thanks, Chief,�� Renhuang Chen answered with a slight bow. With his abilities, he could have joined a top force before this. However, he had always been comprehending the Great Path. Now, he felt as though his cultivation had reached a bottleneck. Hence, he wanted to join Domain Chief��s Manor. There, he could come in contact with the top figures of the Renhuang Plane.


    ��No need to thank me. It is just that you have missed an opportunity to join Ling Xiao Palace. You��d better not regret it in the future,�� Chief said with a smile. ��All right, all of you can stand down first.��


    ��Yes, sir,�� Renhuang Chen responded as he stepped down with a nod. The Law Battles continued. The major figures of Donghua Palace continued chatting casually. Chief Ning said, ��Members of our top forces have already lost four Law Battles. It seems that there are many incredible figures this time around. Yet they still seem to be lacking something.��


    ��The people below are the backbones of the various forces. The Renhuangs of Donghua Academy, Desolate God Palace, and the other forces are prominent figures outside. Does the chief feel that it is not enough even if the challengers manage to defeat them?�� the Sword Goddess asked.


    As Chief Ning sat in his high seat, he smiled and answered, ��It is naturally not bad if the challengers can defeat them. However, there are countless cultivators in the Donghua Domain. The Renhuangs here have come from all corners of the world. I hope that even more monstrous Renhuangs with extraordinary combat ability will appear and defeat our top forces�� prominent figures. If the challengers can put up a fight against Sword Goddess�� three personal disciples��Kong Xiao from Donghua Academy, Ling He from Ling Xiao Palace, or Ye Liunian from the Wangshen Watchtower��only then can the prosperity of martial arts in the Donghua Domain be displayed.��


    When they heard this, everyone smiled. Sword Goddess pondered this for a moment. She then replied, ��It is easier said than done.��


    Chief Ning gave no further comment as he looked down at the Nine Heavens below. In a loud voice, he declared, ��Everyone, you have also heard what I said. This Donghua Banquet is held so that everyone can witness the prominent figures of the Donghua Domain. If there are any extraordinary people out there, do not hide or shy away. If the situation that I mentioned occurs, Domain Chief��s Manor will reward the person handsomely.��


    Down below, countless people who had come to spectate the proceedings were excited. Would such a figure emerge?


    The difficulty was too high. Defeating a prominent figure of these top forces was easier said than done. These people were all peak existences of their planes.


    At that moment, in the Fifth Heaven of the Nine Heavens, a Renhuang walked out. He was clearly a fifth-tier Renhuang. The battle on the Law Battle Platform had not ended. Yet he had already walked out beforehand and was floating toward the Law Battle Platform.


    It was him. Many people narrowed their eyes. Clearly, some people recognized the Renhuang that had emerged.


    Very soon, voices came from below as many people started talking about the figure who had appeared.


    ��Who is he?�� someone asked curiously.


    ��He is a legendary figure that once turned down joining Donghua Academy,�� someone explained as they stared at the silhouette. This person had taken the Donghua Heavens by storm back in the day. He would later disappear, with rumors claiming that he had gone on a training journey. They never imagined that he would appear during the Donghua Banquet.


    ��So that person was him,�� several members of the Donghua Heavens responded when they heard the voice explain this. Decades ago, they had also heard similar stories.


    Even among Donghua Academy��s cultivators, many people glanced over at the Renhuang who had appeared below.


    ��He was actually among the crowd,�� someone said. The speaker clearly recognized this person too.


    At that moment, the battle ended on the Fifth Heaven��s Law Battle Platform. After both parties stepped down, this Renhuang immediately walked onto the Law Battle Platform. Down below, there was a commotion among Domain Chief��s Manor. The sound of discussion grew louder.


    At the same time, the Renhuang who appeared on the Law Battle Platform raised his head and looked up. His gaze landed where the members of the Wangshen Watchtower were. He proclaimed, ��I challenge Ye Liunian.��


    Ever since Ye Futian completely suppressed Yan Dongyang, no one else had challenged him. No one wanted to embarrass themselves. They all knew their own strength. It was almost impossible for them to defeat Ye Futian.


    Yet, right then, a person had emerged and directly challenged Sword Emperor Liunian��the person who had become famous after a single battle in Donghua Academy.


    For a moment, there were bursts of cries from down below. Many people seemed very excited. This made Ye Futian feel somewhat strange. With his current battle record, did the people below believe that this Renhuang could pose a threat to him?


    If not, they would not be so excited.


    Clearly, the crowd believed that this would be an intense battle!

 Chapter 2033 - Chen Yi

    Who was this person? There were still many uninformed people who were asking around. In the Nine Heavens, many Renhuangs were whispering to each other. They were discussing the person who had appeared.


    Among those from the Donghua Heavens, a Renhuang who could cause such a commotion was definitely an outstanding figure. Only figures such as Ning Hua and Goddess Taihua had such influence. If so, who was this Renhuang? He was actually not part of any of the top forces.


    ��His name is Chen Yi,�� somebody stated. This caused many people to reveal strange expressions. This name was too common. He only had a single character for one after his surname; it was extremely simple.


    ��What��s so special about him?�� asked someone else.


    ��20 years ago, this person was already renowned in the Donghua Heavens. Back in the day, he defeated many prominent figures and suffered no losses in the Law Battles he fought in. Rumor has it that Donghua Academy had personally extended him an invitation to join them. Such treatment from them is exceedingly rare. It has only occurred several times in the history of Donghua Academy. However, Chen Yi turned down their invitation.��


    Someone said as they watched the silhouette on the Law Battle Platform above, ��Hence, back then, many disciples from Donghua Academy were unsatisfied with his arrogant behavior. Several Renhuangs sought him out to teach him a lesson. In the end, he delivered them a crushing defeat single-handedly. Later on, Donghua Academy mobilized extremely powerful Renhuangs, and they still lost to him. There were even rumors that Domain Chief��s Manor also wanted to recruit him. However, Chen Yi had disappeared by then. He slowly faded from the consciousness of the members of the Donghua Heavens. That is why many people gradually forgot that such a figure once existed. Yet, now, he has appeared again in this Donghua Banquet.��


    It was Chen Yi. Over where the members of Donghua Academy were, they were all staring at the figure below. Many of them recognized this person. This person had caused Donghua Academy to suffer a humiliating defeat.


    Ning Hua lowered his head and glanced at the silhouette on the Law Battle Platform. His gaze was cold and indifferent. He had also heard of this name. Back in the day, due to his station, he had not fought Chen Yi. Back then, Chen Yi was only a third-tier Renhuang, whereas he was already a middle-level Renhuang at the peak.


    ��His cultivation is already at the fifth-tier,�� a disciple from the academy commented.


    High above, in Donghua Palace, Emperor Xi was curious as he asked, ��Is this person famous?��


    ��I recall having heard of him 20 years ago. Back then, he was indeed well known in the Donghua Heavens,�� Chief Ning said as he looked at the person below. ��As expected, the Donghua Banquet is full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons that need a little motivation for them to show themselves. It seems that an even more intense battle is about to begin.��


    ��Chief has such a high opinion about this person?�� Emperor Xi asked. ��Ling He, Yan Dongyang, as well as the prominent figures of Donghua Academy, are all of the same Plane as this person. However, without any exception, they have all suffered defeat at the hands of Ye Liunian. Could it be that this person is even more outstanding than all the previous ones?��


    The various giant figures were also curious. After all, they were not from the Donghua Heavens and would not be too concerned about a junior from there. If this person had been from their own continents, they might have known more about him.


    ��Ling He is inferior to him,�� Ling Xiao Palace Palace Lord stated. ��According to my sources, a disciple of the academy who was even more outstanding than Ling He had lost to this person back then. This person has disappeared for many years. For him to return and participate in the Donghua Banquet this time, it might be that he has reached a bottleneck in his cultivation journey and wants to challenge himself again. It might also be that he wants to join Domain Chief��s Manor.��


    ��Let us see. Many people are cheering for this person. I am looking forward to this fight,�� said Chief Ning with a smile. The others nodded in agreement.


    ��Chen Yi is such a famous prominent figure of the Donghua Heavens. However, that being said, for him, a fifth-tier Renhuang, to challenge a fourth-tier Ye Liunian, it is giving the crowd such anticipation,�� Thunder Punishing Skylord said with a smile. ��From a different perspective, this also proves where Ye Liunian currently stands in the hearts of the cultivators here today.��


    Many people who heard him say this nodded their heads slightly. Sword Goddess also said, ��It is indeed so.��


    After such a prominent figure like Chen Yi emerged, everyone hoped that he would battle against Ye Futian. From this, it could be seen that the crowd unknowingly viewed Ye Futian as an unbeatable figure. At least in a situation where Ye Futian��s cultivation was similar to that of his opponent, the crowd believed that no one could stand against him.


    Therefore, when Chen Yi walked out, this caught the attention of everyone. Countless people were waiting for their battle.


    ��It has only been a few days since he entered the Donghua Heavens, yet he has gained such fame because of a battle against the academy. It is a rare sight.��


    The crowd was busy discussing. At that moment, Ye Futian had already entered the Law Battle Platform and now stood before Chen Yi.


    Ye Futian also heard some of the discussion below. This Renhuang, who had emerged from the Fifth Heaven, appeared to be famous. The crowd was eagerly waiting for him to battle against Ye Futian. It was apparent that this person was particular. Ye Futian could not help but size up his opponent. Chen Yi��s appearance was not outstanding. However, he gave off a very comfortable vibe. He had a faint smile on his face and seemed casual and unrestrained.


    Ye Futian heard the people down below discussing that this person had turned down the invitation of Donghua Academy and had not joined them to cultivate.


    ��I am Chen Yi. Recently, I have heard of Renhuang Ye constantly in the Donghua Heavens. Hence, I have intentionally come to receive a few pointers,�� Chen Yi greeted Ye Futian with a smile as he saluted with his fists.


    ��I am Ye Liunian,�� Ye Futian replied as he did the same. They chatted casually. They both appeared very calm.


    Ye Futian felt that Chen Yi was looking at him with a strange gaze. It seemed as though Chen Yi was very interested in him. Ye Futian could not decipher the meaning behind the gaze.


    ��Let us begin,�� said Chen Yi.


    ��Let��s,�� Ye Futian replied. However, he saw Chen Yi standing there quietly. It was as though he had no intention of attacking. Ye Futian also stood there, seemingly waiting for his opponent to attack first.


    Chen Yi suddenly smiled at Ye Futian. It was a meaningful smile. Just as Ye Futian was puzzled for a split second, a blinding light suddenly radiated outwards. The powerful light instantly turned the space into a world of absolute light. Ye Futian found it difficult to keep his eyes open. There was extremely bright light before his eyes. For a moment, he was in a daze.


    Sensing an extremely intense threat, Ye Futian��s figure immediately retreated backward. The will of the Great Path of Space emanated outwards, warping space.


    Buzz��


    A high-pitched hum of a sword could be heard. Ye Futian instantly appeared far away. However, the sword seemed to penetrate the space directly and descend upon him. Its speed was actually even faster than his teleportation.


    A soft swooshing sound could be heard. Ye Futian appeared high in the sky. He lowered his head and glanced down below. A section of his white robe had been sliced off. A sword light swept across before him.


    Chen Yi did not continue his attack. He stood unmoving on his spot quietly. Yet, at that moment, dazzling divine light appeared around his body, shining out in all directions. The divine sword in his hand also radiated brilliant white light. It was blinding.


    ��A Sword of Light,�� said Ye Futian as he looked down at Chen Yi. Just now, Chen Yi could have taken advantage of Ye Futian being caught off guard and continued to press his attack. The speed of light was unbelievably fast. Yet, Chen Yi had not done so and instead merely stood there waiting. It seemed that the sword just now was merely a reminder to Ye Futian.


    ��Light Shadow Sword Emperor, Chen Yi.��


    Down below, voices cried out. Countless people gazed up at the dazzling sword. This was the prominent figure who shook the Donghua Heavens twenty years ago, the person who was known as Light Shadow Sword Emperor, Chen Yi.


    ��Incredible.��


    In Donghua Palace, Thunder Punishing Skylord praised Chen Yi and said, ��No wonder this person was so well regarded. He has actually comprehended the Way of Light. He must have had a fateful encounter.��


    ��Hmm,�� the other cultivators responded as they nodded their heads in agreement. The Way of Light was an extremely rare ability of the Great Path. It isn��t easy to comprehend. Chen Yi must be a cultivator with a flawless Great Path. It was almost impossible for him to have managed to do so without a fateful encounter.


    ��I am not too clear about this. He should have had one. Each incredible cultivator will have had their own fateful encounter, aside from their talent,�� Chief Ning said. Many people nodded in agreement.


    No wonder he previously turned down Donghua Academy, the crowd thought to themselves. However, no one said this out loud. After all, the College Chief of Donghua Academy was also present.


    Outside of the Law Battle Platform, Ning Hua and Desolation were also excited as they looked down at the platform. Chen Yi raised his head and said to Ye Futian, ��Are you ready?��


    This time, the power of the Great Path emanated around Ye Futian. A formless aura of the Great Path expanded out around him. Ye Futian was clearly taking it somewhat seriously. In their exchange just now, his opponent had not been serious. Yet, that attack made Ye Futian feel as though Chen Yi��s ability was above Kong Xiao��s. Chen Yi was mighty.


    ��Hmm,�� Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. He had a serious gaze.


    In front of Chen Yi��s figure, a Sword of Light appeared. It then split into two, then three, and so on. A wheel of divine swords appeared before him. They were all pointed at Ye Futian. Seemingly in an instant, billions of Swords of Light appeared, forming a gigantic sword pattern.


    Each sword radiated with blinding light, making it hard for the spectators to keep their eyes open.


    Chen Yi extended his palm forward and then sent out a palm strike. Instantly, the billions of divine swords shone at the same time and shot out. Blinding divine light covered this part of the sky. The swords seemed to merge into the light. Each beam of light was a murderous sword. They flooded this part of the sky.


    It seemed as though Ye Futian was about to be buried by the light.


    The crowd saw Ye Futian being consumed by the sword light in an instant. They could not see his silhouette. The blinding light consumed his figure completely almost immediately.


    Buzz!


    The will of the Great Path emanated from Ye Futian��s body. A domain of the Great Path appeared around him. Stars circled him, and countless stone tablets appeared before him. Each stone tablet released divine light. Runes appeared to be carved on them. A string of runes lined up and appeared in front of Ye Futian, sealing off the space.


    This scene caused Ye Futian��s silhouette to once again appear in the crowd��s view. The stone tablets seemed to gather together to form a gigantic divine tablet that spread across the sky. Divine light of the Great Path shot out from it and collided with the sword light charging towards him. This caused a majestic scene to be displayed before the crowd!

 Chapter 2034 - The Strongest Opponent

    The Law Battle Platform became an independent space. Two silhouettes floated in the sky, facing each other.


    The gigantic divine tablet released the brilliant divine light of the Great Path. With Ye Futian��s figure as its center, a galaxy of the Great Path appeared. The divine tablet seemed to be from the ancient past, suppressing everything in this space.


    The light that shot out from the blinding Sword of Light and the divine tablet collided. Each beam of light was like a sword. Billions of pillars of light were like billions of divine swords. In the sky above, they formed an astonishing river of swords. Seeing that the divine tablet was blocking them, Chen Yi pointed a finger ahead. A beam of light immediately slashed across the space and landed on the divine tablet. The beam of light lit up on the divine tablet from top to bottom. A mark of light appeared on the gigantic stone tablet.


    ��Split!�� Chen Yi uttered.


    As he said this, the extremely dazzling stone tablet actually split in two along the mark of light. The next moment, Chen Yi��s figure disappeared, becoming a beam of light.


    Buzz!


    The beam of light disappeared. The crowd saw Ye Futian��s figure leave behind an afterimage. As the light descended from above, the afterimage disappeared, and the two of them appeared high above in the sky elsewhere.


    ��So fast���� exclaimed the crowd.


    The crowd tried to follow their movements but soon discovered that they could not catch sight of their figures at all. Both of them were too fast. If they weren��t on the Law Battle Platform, they might have traversed a thousand miles in an instant.


    However, the difference between the two of them was that Ye Futian was teleporting while Chen Yi was moving at the speed of light. Both of them possessed extreme speed. This was what caused the other cultivators to be unable to follow their movements.


    At that moment, both of their silhouettes suddenly came to a stop. They stood across the space, staring at each other.


    ��Such a fast sword,�� Chief Ning said in Donghua Palace. In this short interval, the two of them had exchanged blows countless times. The other cultivators could not see it clearly, but the giant figures above in Donghua Palace naturally saw what had happened.


    ��It is not just his sword, but also his speed. This is the Way of Light,�� Emperor Xi said. ��Although there is no absolute strength or weakness for Ways of the Great Path and it still depends on the user, in reality, some powers of the Great Path will definitely be more powerful than others once mastered.��


    Those who cultivated up to their Plane understood. There was no such thing as a strong or weak Great Path. This fact was not always true under all circumstances. In reality, if the same person cultivated different Ways, there would be a difference in terms of strength between the Ways he mastered.


    If not, every Renhuang would have no qualm choosing between the Way of Light and the other of the five Great Paths. Everyone would choose the former.


    ��This time, this fellow has truly met his match,�� Thunder Punishing Skylord said with a laugh. Chen Yi was truly a threat to Ye Futian. His ability was super powerful, and he had been undefeated in Law Battles before this. Ye Futian, who had defeated countless prominent figures and had yet to suffer a loss, finally encountered an extremely powerful opponent.


    The people down below were very excited. Although many of them could not understand what they were seeing, they still felt that this battle seemed interesting.


    The two of them stood facing each other in the space on the Law Battle Platform. Chen Yi was like a Child of Light as he was bathed in light. Each beam of light that shot out contained frightening power. He looked at Ye Futian and said, ��I never imagined that Renhuang Ye would be so proficient in the Great Path of Space. If we continue fighting like this, who knows when we will be able to determine a victor.��


    Ye Futian lowered his head and looked at Chen Yi. He answered, ��It won��t take long.��


    Ye Futian had barely uttered this when Chen Yi suddenly frowned. Then, he sensed a strange change in the surroundings. With his figure as the center, there seemed to be a bizarre change to this part of the space. A domain of the Great Path formed, and countless currents flowed within the space. A cold moon appeared above where Ye Futian stood, and stars circled him. An extremely cold aura flowed over the land, seemingly freezing it solid.


    Chen Yi sensed the cold aura around him. He looked at Ye Futian and muttered, ��The power of Yin.��


    Just as he said this, he saw Ye Futian shoot an Eye Sorcery over. The Eye Sorcery pierced straight towards Chen Yi��s eyes, attempting to invade his mind and will. However, at that moment, intense light radiated from Chen Yi��s pupils. Ye Futian was blocked out from invading.


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. This was the first time his Eye Sorcery had failed. His opponent��s eyes could become Eyes of Light and defend against Ye Futian��s Eye Sorcery invasion.


    Moonlight shone down. It contained the power of Yin. The light of the cold moon caused the space to become extremely cold. It also contained a terrifying destructive power as it froze over the domain of the Great Path. However, Chen Yi still stood there quietly, seemingly unperturbed by the cold. Behind him, in the sky above, a sword floated in the air. It was his Sword of Light.


    Even more blinding light shot out and formed an absolute domain of the Great Path around Chen Yi. When the moonlight shone down and came in contact with the domain of Light, it could not pierce through. It was unable to break through the defense of Chen Yi��s Great Path.


    Buzz. Chen Yi��s figure disappeared once again and became a beam of light that shot towards Ye Futian. As his figure moved, with his figure as the center, countless beams of divine light that contained terrifying murderous power shot out. For other Renhuangs, it would be difficult for them to survive being near him.


    I am being affected, Chen Yi thought to himself as he felt his speed of light being affected by the power of Ye Futian��s domain of the Great Path. However, even so, he was still extremely fast. The distance between the two of them was insignificant to him. He could ignore it entirely.


    Buzz.


    A Sword of Light swept across the space and stabbed towards Ye Futian��s body. There was no technique involved. Extreme speed was absolute power. If it were any other person, when the light landed, Chen Yi��s opponent would already be dead. They would not have the ability to block his attack at all.


    When the Sword of Light charged over towards him, an astonishing current of the Great Path suddenly surged around Ye Futian��s body. Two layers were formed around him, one hot and one cold. It made everyone feel very uncomfortable.


    Ye Futian��s figure turned ethereal. Countless afterimages appeared. He used the Great Path of Space to teleport. However, the speed of his opponent��s Sword of Light seemed to surpass space. Chen Yi followed every traversal Ye Futian made through space, chasing behind him closely.


    In the battlefield, the crowd saw endless afterimages that were dragged out, as well as an ever-advancing light.


    ��What is he doing?��


    Some people in Donghua Palace discovered that something was strange. Many people below also noticed it. Two completely different types of currents had appeared around Ye Futian��s body. As he moved, the two currents crisscrossed and circled one another.


    Chen Yi also noticed this. It was not just that. Countless destructive lightning gradually descended around his body. The two terrifying powers hanging over Ye Futian��s body slowly coalesced into a pattern of the Great Path.


    Soon, an astonishing destructive power spread out above Ye Futian. In the sky above, the Great Path��s endless power coalesced, and an awe-inspiring pattern of the Great Path appeared.


    This gigantic pattern was hot and cold, both Yin and Yang. It became Yin Yang Fish.


    Fire and ice, some people thought to themselves.


    ��Yin and Yang,�� others mumbled. The scene was too terrifying. A gigantic Yin Yang Diagram appeared and consumed the Great Path��s power around them, turning the area into a true vacuum.


    ��The flames seem to be the Divine Fire of Wutong. On the other hand, the cold aura seems to be the power of Yin,�� Chief Ning muttered in Donghua Palace.


    He could sense the two powers. These two powers intertwined and formed a destructive Yin Yang Diagram.


    Two powers descended from the Yin Yang Diagram at the same time. It was like an endless catastrophe of the Great Path. They blocked out the sun and the sky. It was as though everything within this domain of the Great Path was about to be destroyed by the Yin Yang Diagram.


    Screech��


    An ear-piercing sound could be heard. The light of catastrophe descended from the Yin Yang Diagram collided with the light that radiated from Chen Yi��s body. This time, it actually suppressed the Way of Light on Chen Yi��s body and constantly compressed his domain of the Great Path.


    ��This����


    The crowd was awestruck. Ye Futian was too powerful. He had not displayed such ability during his previous battle with Kong Xiao. He was only forced to demonstrate it once Chen Yi appeared. How powerful exactly was he?


    He seemed to be limitless, becoming even more powerful when encountering powerful adversaries.


    This should be his strongest trump card, many people thought to themselves. With the combination of his sword and light, Chen Yi had forced Ye Futian to reveal his full strength.


    Ye Futian looked down below. His will shifted, and countless destructive divine light plummeted from the Yin Yang Diagram, slaughtering toward Chen Yi.


    Facing such power, Chen Yi was finally suppressed. He lifted his head and looked at Ye Futian. His eyes did not reveal disappointment. He seemed to be even more excited. He didn��t even seem surprised.


    His Divine Wheel of the Great Path resonated with his body. Endless divine light gathered on his figure. Chen Yi moved once again. With his power of Light, he directly penetrated the Yin Yang light of catastrophe descending upon him. He charged straight towards Ye Futian.


    A high-pitched swoosh sound could be heard. Light of catastrophe kept descending, landing on the beam of light. However, Ye Futian��s opponent continued advancing, showing no signs of retreating.


    Buzz.


    Ye Futian��s figure also moved. The extremely frightening Yin Yang Diagram also moved with his figure. Countless Yin Yang light of catastrophe protected him as they descended towards Chen Yi. The crowd lifted their heads and saw their two lights collide with each other. An extremely intense blinding light shot out, becoming a light shroud that swept over the surrounding region. The area in the Law Battle Platform shook violently.


    The blinding divine light dissipated, and the Law Battle Platform returned to normal. Chen Yi stood there quietly. His clothes were in tatters, yet he still stood there straight and tall as he looked up at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian also stood there quietly, just looking at his opponent. This Chen Yi was the most powerful figure that Ye Futian had met among the same generation.


    ��Incredible. Even my power of Light cannot touch you,�� Chen Yi praised. He continued, ��It seems that among those of the same generation, no one in the Donghua Domain can do so.��


    His words contained immense self-confidence. It was as though others could not do what he could not. However, this self-confidence that was borderline arrogance was acknowledged by many people.


    Even a figure as powerful as Chen Yi could not pose a threat to Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2035 - Pinnacle Showdown

    Ye Futian looked at Chen Yi and said, ��It is the same for you. Not many among our generation can defeat you. Do you still wish to fight?��


    ��That won��t be necessary,�� Chen Yi replied. The light of the catastrophe that descended from the Yin Yang Diagram was also merged with the power of swordsmanship. Each light of catastrophe contained frightening murderous power. With such power protecting Ye Futian, it would be difficult for Chen Yi even to touch him.


    Ye Futian nodded his head. The battle came to an end.


    ��Spectacular.�� In Donghua Palace, Chief Ning clapped and asked, ��What do all of you think about this battle?��


    The College Chief of Donghua Academy had an otherworldly temperament. He looked down below and asked Chen Yi, ��Back then, Donghua Academy invited you to join the academy to cultivate, but you turned us down. Now, would you be willing to join us?��


    Although Chen Yi did not win against Ye Futian, the crowd acknowledged his ability. The top figures especially knew how powerful Chen Yi was. Hence, Donghua Academy once again extended him an invitation. This time, the College Chief personally made the request.


    ��Many thanks, Senior. However, I have grown used to being left to my own devices. I hope Senior will understand,�� Chen Yi said as he raised his head and smiled. Once again, he turned down Donghua Academy.


    The cultivators of Donghua Academy looked over at him. Chen Yi truly had character. Even though the College Chief favored him, he remained unmoved and turned them down once again.


    ��With your cultivation and ability, I believe that no one here will turn you down if you choose to join them. Could it be that you have already made a choice?�� Chief Ning also spoke up. The members of the various forces did not say anything. They clearly agreed with what Chief Ning said.


    With Chen Yi��s ability, if he were willing to join any one of their forces, no one would reject such an outstanding Renhuang.


    ��Could it be that you wish to join Domain Chief��s Manor?�� Lingxiao Palace Palace Lord smiled and said, ��Chief will naturally not reject you.��


    Chen Yi could choose any force that he wanted to join.


    ��This time, I came to participate in the Donghua Banquet to witness the prominent figures of the Donghua Domain. Seeing that Renhuang Ye was here, I had the sudden urge to seek pointers from him. I have no interest in joining any force. I hope Chief will understand,�� Chen Yi continued to reject their offers. Although the members in the Donghua Palace were somewhat surprised, they were all giant level figures. They had experienced many things and would not take such a small thing to heart. They just felt that was such a shame.


    Chief Ning nodded and said, ��Since you have made up your mind, we will naturally not force you. Although you lost this time, you still displayed extremely outstanding ability. Do you have any wish that I might be able to grant?��


    Before this, Chief Ning had said that anyone who could defeat these prominent figures would be rewarded handsomely. Although Chen Yi had lost, Chief Ning still wanted to reward him. It was clear that he held Chen Yi in high esteem.


    ��There is nothing that I wish for,�� Chen Yi replied.


    ��Alright. If that is the case, both of you may step down,�� Chief Ning said as he nodded his head gently. Ye Futian and Chen Yi glanced at each other, and then stepped off the Law Battle Platform and returned to their own seats.


    Down below, countless people were busy discussing the battle. They felt that it was somewhat of a pity, and some of them lamented at the outcome. This was the personality of geniuses. Countless cultivators wanted to join the top force to cultivate but could only dream of doing so. Chen Yi could choose any force that he wanted to join, and yet, he had actually turned them all down.


    Once Chen Yi returned to his seat, the Renhuangs of the same Plane beside him also looked at him and asked, ��You could choose from all the superpowers of the Donghua Domain, and yet you rejected them all. Isn��t that such a waste?��


    ��I do have a choice, but others will not agree to it. So, I��ll leave it at that,�� Chen Yi replied.


    ��Why would they not agree? Chief Ning himself promised this, and the various forces also did not say anything against it,�� said the Renhuangs beside him.


    ��I want to join Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow to cultivate!�� Chen Yi said in a low voice as he looked at the other party.


    ������


    ������


    The surrounding Renhuangs looked at him. Oh, dear!


    They had no response to his declaration.


    ��Brother Chen, you sure have guts,�� someone commented to the side with a smile.


    Chen Yi raised his eyebrows and gave him a knowing look. His gaze turned towards the goddesses in the sky above. The Renhuangs beside him smiled but did not say anything. It was not that Renhuangs were lustful; it was just that the goddesses were too sultry.


    However, ordinary Renhuangs only dared to keep this thought to themselves. The goddesses of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow were beyond their reach, especially Jiang Yueli, Qin Qing, and the others. Those goddesses would not even look them in the eye.


    Ye Futian also returned to his seat. Many people in this area looked towards him. They were also getting more and more curious about him. The ability he displayed was getting more and more astonishing each time he fought. It was as though he was truly undefeatable.


    On top of that, when he was in Donghua Academy, he proved the tier of his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Could it be that if he were the same Plane as Ning Hua, they would be equals?


    ��Renhuang Ye��s ability surprises everyone each time,�� Jiang Yueli said. Qin Qing also nodded her head in acknowledgment beside her. Ever since she first encountered Ye Futian when he solved the mystery of the cliff face back in the Divine Ocean Continent, each time she met him again, he appeared even more outstanding.


    It was as though he had no limits.


    ��Goddesses, you praise me too highly,�� Ye Futian still replied humbly. Li Changsheng smiled at the side as he looked at Ye Futian. Over transmitted thoughts, he said to Ye Futian, ��Younger Brother Ye, this goddess of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow seems to be particularly concerned about you.��


    ������ Ye Futian looked at Li Changsheng and replied, ��Elder Brother, you are already so old, and yet you are so fond of gossip.��


    Li Changsheng smiled as he glanced at Xia Qingyuan. This fellow drew the favor of women. They were also such extraordinary women. However, this was also normal. Since time immemorial, great beauties had favored prominent figures. Ye Futian was undoubtedly such a person.


    Not only did he have exceptional talent, but he also had the looks to match.


    ��It is precisely because I am old that young, beautiful women do not fancy me. Hence, I have yet to find a Path Companion up until now. I can only admire and envy you,�� Li Changsheng lamented playfully. Ye Futian ignored him completely. The more time he spent with Li Changsheng, the more he realized that this person, who put on the airs of an expert beyond this world before others, was actually an old urchin. He loved joking around, and he was easy to get along with. He did not have the airs of someone superior at all.


    Down below, another person stepped onto the Law Battle Platform and challenged the cultivators above. The Law Battles continued. Gradually, a group of very incredible figures appeared. Unfortunately, the battles mostly failed. It wasn��t easy to achieve victory, especially when challenging such prominent figures. No one managed to defeat them. These figures at the top were all too powerful. The challengers�� attempts were futile.


    However, some exciting Law Battles stirred up the crowd, causing the spectators to be very excited.


    In the blink of an eye, the Donghua Banquet had been going on for seven consecutive days. Within these seven days, dozens of Renhuangs had been chosen to join the various top forces to cultivate. Some of them joined Domain Chief��s Manor, while others joined Donghua Academy and the rest.


    However, on this day, the number of people who came out gradually whittled down. There would sometimes be gaps in between Law Battles. The rounds of Law Battles had also worn out the Renhuangs of the top forces. Many of them had been challenged multiple times. They also developed and showed growth during their battles.


    Right then, the Law Battle Platform was empty. After a long while, no one had gone up. In Donghua Palace, Chief Ning declared, ��Since no one has the desire to battle, this round of Law Battles will end here.��


    The crowd nodded their heads. Not only did the people below have no objections to this, conversely, but they also became even more excited. Many people revealed looks of intense anticipation in their eyes.


    If this round of Law Battles ended, that meant a new round was about to begin.


    This time, there would be Law Battles between the cultivators of the top forces above them. The disciples of Donghua Academy, Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, the Wangshen Watchtower, Desolate God Palace�� the Renhuangs of these forces would compete with one another. This was a grand occasion. Each battle would be thrilling.


    Rumor has it that Desolate God Palace had gone to Donghua Academy to challenge Ning Hua before this. However, Ning Hua was not in the academy at that time. Hence, they had missed each other.


    Today, both of them were here. The showdown between these two figures would be inevitable. The crowd could not wait to see how it played out.


    There was also Jiang Yueli and Zong Chan. Would peak level battles explode between the four prominent figures?


    There were far more middle-level Renhuangs with flawless Great Paths than these four upper-level Renhuangs. The contest between them would be even more intense. Could anyone at the same Plane pose a threat to Ye Futian? It would most likely take a sixth-tier cultivator to do so.


    Before this, in many Law Battles, almost no one could pose a threat to those prominent figures with flawless Great Paths. However, what would happen if these figures were to clash with one another?


    They would soon witness the battles between the strongest figures.


    These would be the highest level battles in the Donghua Domain. This was also a test to see which cultivator among the top forces�� current generation was the most outstanding.


    Renhuangs were already the foundations of the various forces, the core of their power.


    Their strength also determined the overall strength of the various forces.


    ��All of you seated here have cultivated many powerful cultivators. They are the present and future of the Donghua Domain. Now, why don��t we let the cultivators of the Donghua Domain witness their glory?�� Chief Ning asked the giant level figures. A thunderous response immediately came from below. The sound reached the Nine Heavens and shook the Donghua Heavens.


    Everyone was waiting with great anticipation.


    The giant level figures of various forces also nodded their heads. They had no objections.


    ��If that is the case, let us begin. The stage is yours,�� Chief Ning said as he looked at the cultivators below. The atmosphere below suddenly turned solemn. From Desolate God Palace, a silhouette stood out. Desolation looked towards a figure sitting alone nearby. The figure raised his head and looked back at Desolation.


    For a moment, the world seemed to have descended into an instance of silence, followed by astonishing cries erupting.


    The first battle would already be a pinnacle showdown?


    The most monstrous figure in the Donghua Domain, Ning Hua, versus Desolate God Palace��s next leader, Desolation!

 Chapter 2036 - Invincible

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Desolation did not speak but turned around and walked toward the battle platform. Everyone knew who he was going to challenge.


    In all of the Donghua Domain, besides the truly powerful, there were only four people with a perfect Great Path. With Desolation being one of them, who else besides the other three was worthy for him to challenge?


    But Jiang Yueli was in the Eighth Realm and a woman, and Zong Chan had achieved his name much later than him. Desolation��s nature was not prone to frivolous challenges, so only Ning Hua, known as the number one genius talent in Donghua Domain, was qualified to be challenged.


    Desolation would only challenge Ning Hua��the head of the four most influential figures. Previously, when he went to Donghua Academy, he had sent out an invitation for a challenge.


    ��I never thought that we would be able to experience a duel between two excellent figures in the first battle,�� the clan leader of the Nanhua Clan said with a smile. Even these leading figures seemed to be quite interested. Both Desolation and Ning Hua would be future leading figures, destined to be on the same level as their elders in a matter of time. Therefore, such a fight was not something they could afford to ignore.


    In the future, these two people may be stronger than all those sitting here. This was not surprising at all; the older generations were there waiting to be surpassed.


    ��I thought it would take some time and didn��t expect that the next heir of the Desolate Palace would be so direct. It seems that he is eager to prove himself as the most dazzling existence in the Donghua Domain.�� The Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace smiled and said, ��Only, it��s no easy task to defeat Ning Hua. In my opinion, Desolation is about to lose.��


    Chief Ning did not speak. The person who was being challenged this time was his son, Ning Hua��the most enchanting figure in Donghua Domain. But no matter how outstanding his son was, it would be inappropriate for him to praise his own son under the circumstances.


    ��It��s fascinating. Who do you think will win?�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord asked with a smile.


    ��Ning Hua,�� the Sword Goddess of Fluttering Snow Palace said.


    ��Ning Hua,�� the College Chief of Donghua Academy said as well. ��At Donghua Academy, Desolation engaged in fights before, but he didn��t have the power to take everyone down. Although he is mighty, he is not invincible.��


    No one had a better understanding of Ning Hua��s strength than him. After all, Ning Hua was cultivating in Donghua Academy.


    Desolation once had a battle with the Xuanwu Sword Emperor, a Renhuang of the Ninth Realm in Donghua Academy. He had been defeated by the Xuanhuan Sword Emperor, proving that he was not invincible.


    But if Ning Hua were to engage Xuanwu Sword Emperor, not even Xuanwu himself would be certain that he could defeat Ning Hua.


    That was a peerless genius talent who could really make others feel that he was invincible. When Ning Hua fought, he gave everyone the same feeling each time, and that was no matter who his opponent was or how strong they were. They were all the same in front of him.


    Precisely because of this, he was named the number one genius talent in the Donghua Domain.


    His Grand Seal Great Path overpowered every opponent he had ever encountered.


    ��Ning Hua,�� Emperor Yan also said. In Donghua Palace, it seemed that everyone��s opinions were the same. They all thought that even though Desolation was outstanding and one of the four great figures, he would still be unable to shake that number one genius talent.


    After all, though many people called them the Great Four, Ning Hua was on his own level while the other three were on the same level.


    ��We will only know until after the battle.�� At this moment, a voice sounded in the ears of everyone present with cold indifference. All the cultivators turned their eyes and saw that the speaker was the master of Desolate God Palace, a terrible existence known as Desolate God.


    Everyone thought without that his heir, Desolation, would be defeated.


    Everyone looked at Desolation God and smiled, and no one refuted him. They just kept looking at the battle platform.


    In the area below, Ye Futian and the others were very concerned about this battle. For example, Jiang Yueli and Zong Chan gave great importance to this battle. These two were listed along with them, and in a sense, they were already at the top of the Donghua Domain.


    ��Who do you think will win?�� Li Changsheng looked at Ye Futian and asked in a low voice.


    ��I don��t know Ning Hua��s strength very well.�� Ye Futian responded, ��Desolation��s actions at Donghua Academy were very domineering. The ��Desolation�� Wheel was frightening; those in the same realm as him had difficulty defeating him. However, his opponent is praised as the number one genius talent in the Donghua Domain, so I can��t really say who will win.��


    ��Ning Hua will win,�� Li Changsheng said. Although he was laughing casually, he was very certain, and his tone was definite. It was as if he already knew the outcome of the battle.


    ��You are so sure of it?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Watch. There shouldn��t be any doubts about it.�� Li Changsheng smiled as he looked at the Battle platform. At the same time, Ning Hua stepped onto the battle platform.


    The terrible aura of the Great Path burst out above Desolation��s body, and the terrifying Great Path currents swept out and flooded the sky. In the space within the battle platform, a desolate palace appeared above the sky, spinning in the air. As the endless power gathered and poured into the palace of the Desolate Wheel, an incomparable light of destruction burst out from the palace and fell. The vast space of the Great Path turned into a world of doomsday.


    No matter how strong and proud Desolation was, this time, he was facing Ning Hua, who was ranked above him. He dared not underestimate him and had immediately turned into his strongest form, ready to fight.


    His eyes were pitch black, and black lightning of desolation seemed to flash out from them, capable of destroying everything.


    At this time, Ning Hua came above him and stepped forward with assurance. A dazzling divine light was released from his body as if it was a dominant divine body.


    He looked down at Desolation. His eyes were terrifying to behold. Their eyes met in mid-air, and an incomparable power of Grand Seal Great Path was released. In an instant, infinite divine light shot out and turned into characters of the Great Path. Each character contained terrifying power of the seal, sweeping toward Desolation��s body, even invading Desolation��s eyes.


    Bang. The Great Path��s power on Desolation��s body was extremely violent, and the eyes of destruction shot out to destroy the invading will of the Grand Seal Great Path. But the characters seemed inexhaustible. They continued to invade madly. Beyond that, the surrounding space was also covered by it.


    It��s the divine method of Grand Seal Great Path, The God Seal Spell.


    ��Destroy,�� Desolation spat out a command, and from the sky above, countless rays of divine light descended from the Desolation Wheel. These lights, like black lightning, blasted on the characters, madly destroying them. Some even rushed toward Ning Hua��s body like an invasion of thousands of destructive divine tribulations.


    But just at that moment, an extremely horrifying light screen appeared behind Ning Hua as an immense pattern appeared. The pattern was cast from the characters, a spinning sign of yin and yang, which bored some similarities to Ye Futian��s abilities. But inside this pattern, there was a giant character that said ��Seal.��


    Not only that, but the immense pattern itself was completely composed of this one character, and each character released an extremely brilliant divine light. With a turn of Ning Hua��s mind, the pattern began to expand, and the circular pattern enlarged with a rhythm as it continued to grow. With every expansion, the Divine Wheel��s light became ever more brilliant and bright, and more characters of the seal were being released from it.


    ��Ning Hua��s Divine Wheel.�� Many trembled in their hearts. This was the Divine Wheel of Great Path that had revealed six wheels of divine lights in the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels.


    In just a few short moments, the Divine Wheel of the Great Path had expanded to cover the sky and the sun, sheltering this corner of the sky. The divine light released by the Great Path covered this part of the world, which was full of the power that sealed the Great Path, as endless characters were floating.


    Although these characters continue to be destroyed under the Desolation Wheel, they did not appear to be exhausted as they still covered this corner of the sky. Everyone could clearly feel that the power released by the Desolation Wheel was beginning to wane as if it was affected by the Grand Seal Great Path.


    Desolation stood there and suddenly felt powerless. At this time, whether it was the sky or his divine consciousness, they were filled with endless characters of the seal and were transformed by the indestructible divine light of the Great Path. He felt that the Grand Seal Great Path was eroding the space he was in.


    It was eroding his Divine Wheel of Great Path.


    ��Your Divine Wheel is lesser than mine. How do you propose to fight me?�� Ning Hua lowered his head to look at Desolation. His tone was extremely domineering. He projected a power as if no one could compare to him in this entire world.


    Desolation had no words to refute him. His Divine Wheel of the Great Path was not as good as Ning Hua��s, which meant that he would lose the claim regarding the realm of the Great Path. His defeat would mean that the other party would have absolute control over the realm of the Great Path, and it was the power to seal the Great Path. Thus, all his methods would be unquestionably sealed and weakened. The Divine Wheel aside, how could he not be defeated in this situation?


    ��You are the heir to the Desolate God. You have extraordinary combat power. You are already someone at the peak level. In the Donghua Domain, apart from the truly powerful, not many people can defeat you. Nonetheless, it doesn��t mean you can challenge me. One day, when you are confident enough that you can counter my Divine Wheel of the Great Path, come challenge me.��


    Ning Hua put away his power of the Great Path. When everyone heard his words, they fell silent, but their hearts were greatly disturbed.


    The cultivators of the Donghua Domain had separated Ning Hua into his own level. Even though the other three were equally famous, they could not truly go toe-to-toe with him.


    Today, Ning Hua��s words seem to reinforce this point. Although not many people in Donghua Domain could defeat Desolation, it did not mean that he was able to challenge Ning Hua. Ning Hua was invincible.


    Countless eyes followed Ning Hua as he walked back. No one had thought that this battle would end this way. There were no fanciful collisions nor any great battle. Ning Hua sent out his Divine Wheel of the Great Path, and no one could compete with it, not even Desolation.


    Ning Hua was invincible!

 Chapter 2037 - The Storm Demon

    Although everyone had anticipated the outcome of this battle, the process was still shocking. Under the suppression of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path, Desolation was overpowered.


    Such was the crushing of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path, and Ning Hua��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path was different from that of the others because it also contained the power of the Grand Seal Great Path. Once the opponent��s Way was suppressed, it would seal it shut and restrict the opponent��s ability so that they would lose the power to strike back.


    Therefore, even if the fighting did not continue, both sides already knew the inevitable outcome.


    Desolation��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path was weaker, after all.


    In this generation, who else can best the vice chief? countless people below thought secretly. Ning Hua, with god-given talent, was the epitome of this generation in the Donghua Domain. No one could compare. He had an extraordinary origin and would continue moving forward as the one and only until he reached the top and inherited the position as the Chief of the Donghua Domain.


    ��Senior brother��s estimation was spot on; there was really no doubt,�� Ye Futian said to Li Changsheng, who was next to him.


    ��The Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels does not lie. What��s more, what Desolation had inherited is quite a bit less than that of the vice chief. Even if he could contend with the Great Divine Wheel of the Grand Seal, the outcome would still be the same. Therefore, under the circumstances that the rank of his Divine Wheel is not on the same level, he has no hope of winning, even though he is an outstanding figure himself. But there are some people who would always stand out no matter where they are. Ning Hua, undoubtedly, belongs in this category.�� Li Changsheng spoke to Ye Futian via voice transmission and continued, ��Of course, you also belong in this category. Those who are in this category are destined to sit up there in the future.��


    He then looked up at the Donghua Palace above.


    ��Senior brother has praised me too generously,�� Ye Futian chuckled. He understood what Li Changsheng meant. There were countless cultivators in the world, and there was no shortage of geniuses. Genius talents who could cast the perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path, as well as unparalleled characters who were able to break through the realm of Upper Renhuang while remaining flawless.


    However, above this, there was another type of people who were above these geniuses. They were not of this world, such as Ning Hua, such as himself.


    Obviously, Li Changsheng��s had high praises for him, and that itself was the highest of all praises.


    Ning Hua and Desolation returned to their respective positions. They didn��t speak. It was as if they had already forgotten about the battle. But Desolation��s expression was not so good. He looked sullen and said nothing while Ning Hua acted as if nothing had happened.


    In the Donghua Palace, Desolation God said nothing. However, the Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace said with a laugh, ��Desolation inherited the power of Desolation God and possesses extraordinary strength. The release of the Desolation Wheel was apocalyptical; it was indeed astounding. It is a pity that it was unleashed on Ning Hua and that he was unable to exert his own strength fully. However, Desolation God needn��t worry too much because Ning Hua is already the first man under us at the Donghua Heavens. In the future, he might even be more excellent than all of us, so it is completely understandable that Desolation lost.��


    ��Ning Hua has been cultivated carefully by the Chief; his excellence is expected. Desolation��s defeat would only encourage him to endeavor in the pursuit of the Great Path,�� said Desolation God. ��I heard that the young Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace has considerable strength and once underestimated Ye Liunian. Although he was later defeated, I��m sure he has learned from it so that he could have a second chance when his realm is stronger.��


    ������


    The people in Donghua Palace revealed a strange look. It seemed that even these major figures were beginning to annoy each other.


    The Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace had been on the side of the chief, and Desolation God seemed unhappy about that, so he spoke rather sarcastically regarding Ling He.


    ��Ye Liunian is also extraordinary. He was no less than anyone else in front of the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels, including Desolation and the others. It is not surprising that Ling He lost to him,�� the Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace said with a smile. Although he was deeply displeased, he did not reveal it. The conversation between the two was getting a bit sharp.


    ��Mmm, of course.�� Desolation God nodded slightly while looking down. He said, ��Who among you dares to taste the strength of the Young Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace?��


    ������


    Everyone��s attention was on Desolation God, while the cultivators in the Donghua Palace were smiling without saying anything. They were acting as if they were waiting to watch the show.


    Desolation God was still as domineering as always, aggressive and cold. Desolation was defeated, but he was defeated by Ning Hua, not by anyone from Lingxiao Palace. The commentary from the Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace was not taken kindly by Desolation God.


    Therefore, this was the first time a leading figure in the Donghua Palace had offered one of his own as a challenger.


    The performance of the cultivators above had always been seen in the eyes of the people below. There were many cultivators in the Desolation God Palace, and all of those who came this time were powerful characters, not just Desolation. But because Desolation was the heir of Desolation God, he was the one who got most of the attention. Apart from Desolation, there were other powerful cultivators in Desolation God Palace, from the Badlands Continent, and in the Western Region of the Donghua Domain.


    Desolation God himself had spoken. This battle must be won.


    Therefore, all eyes from Desolate God Palace fell on the same person. Obviously, the cultivators themselves already had a consensus on who should be the challenger.


    ��Storm Demon of Desolate God Palace.�� Li Changsheng looked at him and whispered, ��He is very strong, and his status in the Desolate God Palace is second only to Desolation.��


    ��Storm Demon.��


    Many people recognized him. The cultivators from the top forces had some understanding of these powerful players. Many people from Lingxiao Palace changed their expression when they saw the man. They hadn��t seen Storm Demon in action before, but they had heard how strong he was.


    Ling He really might not be able to beat this opponent.


    Storm Demon was a massive, domineering figure. In the black robe he wore, he appeared even more majestic up close. He looked to be about 40 years in age, and his eyes were sharp and aggressive with a strong sense of oppression.


    Standing up, his size was even taller than Desolation. He glanced at Ling He, then walked toward the battle platform and said, ��Come over here.��


    His tone was full of domineering contempt. It was as if he didn��t care to speak to him.


    Clearly, this was aimed toward Ling He.


    This slight did not go unnoticed by Ling He. Even though this Storm Demon was a well-known existence in Desolate God Palace, but Ling He himself was a man of the Donghua Heavens and was the Young Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace. How could he allow others to act so insolent toward him?


    Ling He stood up and followed Storm Demon. The two stepped into the arena of the battle platform, one after the other.


    As they enter the battle platform, Storm Demon was in front with his back facing Ling He, then he stopped. The moment when he turned around, a storm of destruction appeared around him, and this storm rushed into the sky, as a terrible dark thundercloud appeared. Countless black lightning struck down like a catastrophe of the Great Path.


    The light of darkness enveloped the firmament, and the storm of destruction was becoming more terrifying. Every gust of the wind was like a knife that cut through everything as they rolled toward Ling He. This storm that gathered together was capable of tearing the space apart.


    In the dark thunderstorm of destruction, a massive black thunder battle ax appeared. Storm Demon hovered in the air and rushed into that devastating storm, holding the battle-ax in his hand. Like a demon god of destruction, he looked down at Ling He below.


    Above Ling He��s head, Lingxiao Pagoda appeared, suspended in the sky. Endless shadows of the pagoda filled and suppressed the space, with strands of golden light permeating from them. At the same time, a golden spear appeared in his hand with a radiant divine light flowing forth.


    Infinite shadows of the pagoda appeared, trying to suppress this corner of the sky. However, the sky on that side was full of destructive thunderstorms. The Great Path withered, and all signs of vitality were wiped out. The golden streamer rushed into the storm and was shattered by the devastating storm. Terrifying dark streamer blasted on Lingxiao Pagoda, causing the Divine Wheel of the Great Path to make a violent, harsh sound like there was a sword slashing on the pagoda.


    Lingxiao Pagoda was getting larger, covering the sky and the sun, directly suppressing Storm Demon.


    But Storm Demon stood proudly in the air, with extremely violent power sweeping toward the surrounding area. His massive and dominant form was akin to an invincible war god of storm, holding a battle-ax. That terrifying storm of destruction directly swept into Lingxiao Pagoda and was affecting its repressive force. Though the pagoda was fighting the storm, it was still suppressing downward nonetheless.


    At the same time, Ling He also made his move. Lingxi Spear bloomed as the golden streamer directly penetrated the void. The radiant golden divine spear slashed through the air in a direct attack on Storm Demon.


    But just then, Storm Demon��s battle-ax had already come down, carrying with it billions of destructive streamers, slashing at the opponent��s spear as if it was the end of days.


    The two attacked and collided, but Ling He disappeared. With such a violent attack, he was able to separate himself with the slightest contact. As if the spear was able to move according to his will, appearing directly in another location, and continued its attack. It was like a golden afterimage, but its power was extremely frightening as it continued to pierce through the space.


    Buzz�� Gusty wind swept past, but the Storm Demon��s reaction was even faster. The battle-ax in his hand turned into wind and merged with the storm. As it drew an incomparably radiant arc, it slashed toward Lingxi Spear once more.


    ��The attack speed of these two is so fast���� The spectators only saw a blur in front of them. In the dark storm of destruction, countless afterimages of Ling He appeared, spreading in different directions. Every appearance was accompanied by the shadow of a golden spear. As if several spears were launched all within a very short moment.


    But every strike was countered.


    ��Lingxi Spear emphasizes the perfect blending between man, spear, and the Way, thus making possible the movement at will. Even when it was blocked, it could still break away and attack from another location instantaneously. However, Storm Demon��s ax is the same, as if he is a gust of wind, dancing and moving with its momentum. The scary thing was that, in line with the Way of this wind, the attack power of his battle-ax will become ever stronger, as if he was continuously gaining momentum.��


    Jiang Yueli of Fluttering Snow Palace spoke, partially meant to explain to her junior sisters around her so that they could better understand the battle.


    In a brief moment, the two of them had already exchanged numerous times. Just then, a figure swooped down from the void, and the Lingxi Spear was still as fast as ever, like golden lightning. At the same time, the storm seemed to pause for an instant, not quite as free-flowing as it was before.


    Just when the Lingxi Spear was about to hit, a monstrous storm blew up against it, tearing the space apart. Everyone saw the Storm Demon moved so fast that it was hard to see with the naked eye. But, in the next moment, black ax light appeared from the firmament and slamming downward, splitting this part of the sky.


    The next moment, the golden streamers were knocked out, with speed so fast that it was almost inconceivable. This time, Ling He finally stopped the attack, staring at the Storm Demon across the sky. There was a cough accompanied by a spit of blood, and his face was a little pale!

 Chapter 2038 - Invincible Fighter

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The dark, destructive storm of the Thunder of Catastrophe was still roaring in the sky, and the Lingxiao Pagoda was still engulfed in the terrifying tornado. Storm Demon stood in the Storm of Doomsday in midair and looked down upon Ling He. Bolts of black lightning struck around Ling He��s body as though they were mocking him.


    Ling He raised his head to look at Storm Demon, extremely distressed and embarrassed. Ling He was the young master of the Lingxiao Palace and a prominent cultivator in the Donghua Heavens with a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path. But he had been losing over and over again ever since he met Ye Futian at the Divine Ocean Cliff. A Renhuang from the Desolate God Palace also defeated him in a fight that was issued from discordance and feud between his father, the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace, and the Desolate God.


    Unfortunately, he lost. Not only did his loss embarrass himself, but it also brought humiliation to his father, who was sitting in the Donghua Palace.


    ��Get off the platform. You are not a match for me,�� Storm Demon said in a cold and domineering tone, which put Ling He to shame. Beams of frightening golden divine light shone from Ling He��s body. He wanted to keep going.


    Storm Demon moved swiftly in the destructive storm. The Thunder of Catastrophe fell from the sky and merged with the Way of Wind. Storm Demon bathed in the destructive storm and transported again. He held the battle-ax with both hands and hacked from above as if he didn��t want to leave Ling He any chance to turn the table.


    A ray of light of darkness became visible and almost split the sky in half. The battle-ax struck at Ling He with tremendous strength as soon as he brandished his golden spear. The destructive energy was extremely horrifying and made the earth tremble.


    Fizz! Cracks appeared on the spear. Ling He was flung away even further, spraying blood from his mouth.


    ��How tragic����


    The cultivators watching from below felt sorry for Ling He. Ling He was the young master of the Lingxiao Palace, a well-known cultivator in the Donghua Heavens, a disciple of the Donghua Academy, and a Renhuang with a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path. At this moment, however, he was brought to his knees by Storm Demon.


    The Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace sitting in the Donghua Palace was staring at Storm Demon with a grim expression. Everyone could tell the anger on his face and sense the dark energy emanated from his body, but the Desolate God couldn��t care less. He also watched the battlefield below and commented casually, ��Not bad. He can withstand Storm Demon��s battle-ax.��


    Speechless, the top cultivators all shot a strange look at the Desolate God who did not attempt to save face for the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace at all.


    The Palace Lord of the Ling Xiao Palace didn��t respond. He was at a loss for words. It was a fair fight, and he couldn��t complain about the result. Ling He was humiliated like this only because he was less capable. What else could he say?


    Awkward silence reigned at this moment. Other than the first two fights, this was the fiercest and the most hostile match so far. It was tied up with two of the magnates sitting in the Donghua Palace. Instead of fighting each other themselves, they sent their prot��g��s.


    Even so, both the Renhuangs in the Nine Heavens and the ordinary audience below were secretly excited by the fights. These were real Law Battles in which top cultivators were matched against each other and exerted their strength to the utmost. Ning Hua and Desolation, Storm Demon and Ling He. Both the Renhuangs and the ordinary audience wondered who else would step up.


    The storm dissipated on the Law Battle Platform, and the destructive energy of the Great Path also disappeared. Ling He walked off the platform, despondent and low-spirited. While walking back, he could feel that countless pairs of eyes were staring at him. It was not easy to endure even for a Renhuang like him with exceptional mental strength.


    What he experienced just now was not an ordinary sparring session but a battle of humiliation!


    Nevertheless, Storm Demon didn��t leave the Law Battle Platform. People were surprised to see him still hovering above the Platform. Did he want to have another fight?


    Sure enough, Storm Demon raised his head and looked in the direction of the seats of the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. He said, ��I would like to see what the Sword Emperor Liunian is capable of. Please grant me the honor.��


    Ye Futian!


    All the eyes were fixed on Ye Futian in an instant. It was him again. And it was Storm Demon who just vanquished Ling He challenging him this time.


    However, as powerful as Storm Demon was, he was probably a lesser cultivator than Chen Yi.


    Chen Yi was already a legend 20 years ago and excelled at the Sword of Light. His speed and power left a lasting impression on people��s minds.


    Therefore, Storm Demon would certainly lose to Ye Futian. But the fabled Sword Emperor Liunian had become a mountain that everyone was eager to conquer. That was why Storm Demon still wanted to challenge Ye Futian to further prove himself after defeating Ling He.


    He challenged Ye Futian, knowing that he would lose. It was a battle of path seeking, while the result was secondary. Storm Demon knew himself that a victory was not very likely. A cultivator at his level surely could tell how powerful Ye Futian was.


    Ye Futian stood up with a calm expression. At such an event, it was beyond question that someone would challenge him sooner or later. He was well prepared from the beginning. Although it was hard for him to meet his match, he could use the opportunity to test the abilities of the talented cultivators from various top forces.


    He stepped forward and walked into the Law Battle Area again. Looking at Storm Demon in front of him, he said, ��Please.��


    ��Please.�� Storm Demon��s face was stern. He was not as arrogant and contemptuous as he was when facing Ling He. It was obvious that he also knew how strong his current opponent was. Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path surpassed geniuses like Desolation and Jiang Yueli. No one in the Donghua Domain other than Ning Hua was in the same league as Ye Futian in terms of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    Moreover, Ye Futian cultivated several types of power of the Great Path and possessed multiple Divine Wheels, each of which reached perfection.


    Storm Demon was also at the Donghua Academy when Ye Futian showed off two fifth-order Divine Wheels. Ye Futian still had other Divine Wheels that were not revealed to the public. Those might be even stronger, possibly at the sixth order.


    Thus, Storm Demon was well aware of Ye Futian��s ability.


    ��Please,�� said Ye Futian. The destructive storm gathered in the sky above him. The entire Great Path domain turned dark and desolate as rays of light of destruction fell from above.


    The cold moon hanging in the sky kept expanding. Ye Futian moved along with the moon. All of a sudden, a strange phenomenon occurred. The moonbeams froze the area and released frightening power of destruction, which destroyed everything that attempted to attack Ye Futian.


    ��The power of Yin.�� Storm Demon looked at Ye Futian with a solemn face. The endless light of catastrophe fell on Storm Demon as the world was being transformed into a vast desert. Storm Demon��s already burly body kept growing and transfigured him into the Desolate God of War. Glowing with the light of destruction, a black battle-ax slowly descended from the destructive storm in the sky.


    Storm Demon reached out his hand and grabbed the ax. The ravaging light of catastrophe rolled out at the moment. Storm Demon bathed in it as if he was gathering the energy, poised to attack.


    Ye Futian certainly understood Storm Demon��s intention of making a decisive blow.


    It would be Storm Demon��s most powerful strike.


    Ye Futian could clearly feel the devastating energy of the attacks coming from above. The cultivators of the Desolate God Palace came from the Badlands Continent. Their specialties were somewhat similar.


    The moonbeams swept across the area and transformed into streaks of icy Sword Qi. They circled Ye Futian��s body and turned into frightening Shadow Sword. Endless Sword Will flowed around and made shrill whistles that reverberated throughout the area.


    Finally, the destructive storm fell from the sky in a frenzy. Storm Demon held the battle-ax and chopped downward. The gleam of the ax almost split the sky open.


    Even the audience could feel the frightening power contained in the ax.


    The ax moved at lightning speed at first, yet it seemed to slow down when it approached Ye Futian. Then, the crowd saw a frosty sword coming into collision with the ax in midair.


    It didn��t look so terrifying when the sword and the ax met head-on. It almost seemed like two lines converged before one of them was annihilated by the other one. Under everyone��s watch, the black line drew by the ax retreated and eventually wiped out by the other line.


    With a ray of extremely dazzling light, the sky split open, and the dark world was destroyed. Storm Demon��s body was flung upward, and the dark, destructive storm was neutralized.


    ��As expected.�� The audience was more amazed than surprised by the scene. No one, including Storm Demon, could beat Ye Futian. Ye Futian was a legendary fighter who came out of nowhere.


    The Sword Emperor Liunian remained undefeatable and invincible.


    High up in the air, Storm Demon recollected himself and looked at Ye Futian, said, ��Thank you for the lesson.��


    Then, he walked off the Law Battle Platform without much disappointment. The result was not beyond his expectation.


    Ling He watched the match with a cold face. Storm Demon, who vanquished and humiliated him just now, lost to Ye Futian. This kind of comparison made him feel bitterer.


    He was a celebrity from the Lingxiao Palace yet was not on an equal footing with Ye Futian.


    A voice rang out just when Ye Futian was about to leave the Law Battle Platform as well, ��Please wait for a moment, Renhuang Ye.��


    The voice attracted everyone��s attention. They all looked in the direction of the voice and saw a ravishing woman walking out. It was Goddess Taihua.


    Goddess Taihua gazed at Ye Futian in the Law Battle Platform and said, ��I wonder if you can give me a chance to play a song for you?��

 Chapter 2039 - Divine Melody Taihua

    Goddess Taihua came out and personally invited Ye Futian to listen to the Divine Taihua Melody!


    Countless people focused their eyes on them in surprise. No one had thought that Goddess Taihua would come out, but it was not totally beyond reason. Although Ye Futian made a name for himself not too long ago, he was in the full flush of his success and had never lost a fight. He could always gain the upper hand no matter how talented his opponent was.


    Aside from not having a celebrated background, he was better than anyone other than Ning Hua, including Goddess Taihua.


    Therefore, it made sense that Goddess Taihua wanted him to listen to the Divine Melody Taihua.


    The Sword Emperor Liunian was so powerful that all the genius cultivators from various top forces were eager to challenge him. This was a distinctive way to show their approval.


    Li Changsheng and Zong Chan darted Ye Futian a glance, both of them smiling. Li Changsheng said in a low voice, ��Brother Ye can always attract beautiful women.��


    Zong Chan shook his head with a smile. Standing in the Law Battle Area, Ye Futian replied, ��I certainly will listen if Goddess is willing to play. It��s my honor to enjoy the Divine Taihua Melody.��


    He was not acting humble out of courtesy. He mastered two Divine Melodies himself and was already interested in the Divine Melody Taihua. Of course, he was glad to know how unique and remarkable the Divine Melody Taihua was since Goddess Taihua offered to play for him.


    After getting Ye Futian��s permission, Goddess Taihua stepped forward and walked over to Ye Futian. She soon entered the Law Battle Area and stood face to face with Ye Futian.


    ��It seems like Ye Liunian is one of the most extraordinary cultivators at the Donghua Banquet this year. Everyone wants to beat him, but no one has achieved it yet,�� Chief Ning, who was sitting in the Donghua Palace commented, chuckling. The master cultivators had been paying more attention to Ye Futian now.


    The Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace and Emperor Yan both glanced at Ye Futian. Then, Emperor Yan shot a look at Millet Emperor and said, ��Millet Emperor trained him well.��


    ��He was born with remarkable talents. I let him cultivate at Wangshen Watchtower for several months and didn��t have much influence on him. What he has shown in the previous battles are his own skills and abilities. If you believe he only won because of the Gate to World Suppression, why don��t you send a cultivator of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family to challenge him? I will ask him not to use the Gate to World Suppression,�� the Millet Emperor replied blankly.


    ��Humph!�� Emperor Zhan uttered a snort and looked away. Even though he was not pleased that the Millet Emperor imparted his unique skill to Ye Futian, he had to admit that the Millet Emperor was telling the truth. No one from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family could beat Ye Futian even if he didn��t use the Gate to World Suppression.


    No one was even close. Ye Futian didn��t use the Gate to World Suppression when he fought against Storm Demon.


    ��The Millet Emperor is right. Ye Liunian is a top-level cultivator even without the Gate to World Suppression. I��m afraid he is unrivaled among his peers,�� Thunder Punishing Skylord spoke with a smile. These master cultivators all had a good eye for talents. There was no doubt that Ye Futian was much superior to everyone else.


    ��Let��s see if he can withstand the Divine Melody Taihua,�� said the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace. He darted a glance at Taihua Skylord and added, ��It��s a Divine Melody composed by you. Your niece is also nothing but extraordinary. I think she should be able to win against Ye Liunian this time.��


    ��It��s not easy,�� the Taihua Skylord gazed at the Law Battle Platform and replied calmly, ��I would be more confident if she challenged someone else. This youngster is truly amazing. I��m not certain if the Divine Taihua Melody can overpower him.��


    ��It��s about to begin. Let��s watch,�� Chief Ning smiled and said.


    Inside of the Law Battle Area, Goddess Taihua was glowing with celestial light. Her beauty was out of this world. She bowed slightly at Ye Futian and said, ��I beg your pardon, Renhuang Ye.��


    ��Please, Goddess,�� Ye Futian replied. Goddess Taihua sat down in midair with her legs crossed. Countless strings of the Great Path took shape as soon as she reached out her slender hands. The strings covered every inch of the sky and turned the Law Battle Area into her own Great Path domain.


    A guqin appeared in front of Goddess Taihua. She plucked the strings with her fingers. The forceful and stirring tone made everyone��s hearts tremble, both the Renhuangs in the Nine Heavens and cultivators sitting in the lower areas.


    Clang�� Clang�� Clang��


    Goddess Taihua bowed her head and immersed herself in playing the guqin as if no one else was nearby. She radiated the celestial light, her long black hair blowing in the wind. Her elegance dazed many people.


    The tone was rich and vigorous, and the vibrant notes formed a symphony of the Great Path.


    Standing in the Great Path domain of the strings, Ye Futian could hear the music clearly. His heart trembled at every beat, and the notes stifled his spiritual soul. He felt like a range of mountains was pressing on his soul.


    At this moment, Ye Futian had a feeling that he was no longer standing in the Law Battle Platform. Instead, he was put in a world of music where divine mountains came down from the sky one after another. Each one of them contained unparalleled force, which made him exceptionally small beneath the mountains. His heart was palpitating, and his blood was rushing in the veins.


    The Divine Melody Taihua!


    Ye Futian had been exposed to music before, including two Divine Melodies. But he had never heard something so powerful before. Nothing he experienced in the past was as energetic as the Divine Melody Taihua. He could feel the splendor and glory of the Great Path and the triviality of himself.


    Right now, the Divine Melody symbolized the Heavenly Path that was overwhelming and irresistible.


    Ye Futian also felt a tremendous amount of pressure. He emitted the divine light of the Great Path from his body. But the pressure from the music was intangible. Another note fell upon him at this moment. He felt like his body was being slammed by an invisible force. The divine mountains were collapsing on him, and the world he was in was being destroyed.


    The Great Path around him was also sagging and crumbling. Any energy he released was neutralized immediately. The stars circling him were shattered and annihilated. His spiritual soul was being pounded again and again.


    The Great Path inside Ye Futian��s body was also under attack. Everything was about to be destroyed by the Divine Taihua Melody.


    Countless pairs of eyes were glued to the Law Battle Platform. It was the first time Ye Futian was being subdued. Many people were staggered to see the Great Path gathering around Ye Futian��s body and immediately falling to pieces. No one expected Goddess Taihua to be so frightening.


    It appeared that they underestimated the top cultivators in the Donghua Domain, after all. Although Goddess Taihua had fought against other people before, she didn��t reveal the true power of the Divine Melody since her opponents were less worthy.


    ��That��s what the Divine Melody Taihua can do. It looks like Ye Liunian is about to lose,�� Chief Ning commented while watching the Law Battle Platform.


    Other master cultivators were shocked as well. Taihua Skylord was a hermit who rarely communicated with the outside world. He immersed himself in cultivation and studied the Divine Melodies assiduously. The ten Divine Melodies of the Divine Prefecture all had a long history. Cultivators could gain great power and significant benefits if they comprehended them thoroughly.


    No one knew to what extent Taihua Skylord mastered the Divine Melodies. But they could all venture a rough guess by listening to Goddess Taihua��s performance today.


    ��Indeed. I didn��t realize your niece is so phenomenal. I guess only Ning Hua is a match for her in all of the Donghua Domain,�� the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace said.


    ��Maybe Ye Liunian can come up with more surprises?�� Emperor Xi laughed. ��It��s not over yet. Let��s keep watching for now. That youngster hasn��t lost a single match so far.��


    ��Right.�� Everyone else nodded. Apart from the big shots in the Donghua Palace, cultivators from top forces sitting below were also surprised to see the invincible Ye Futian being held in check. They didn��t expect Goddess Taihua to be so powerful.

 Chapter 2040 - Clash of Divine Melodies

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Standing on the Law Battle Platform, Ye Futian sensed that the power of the Great Path around his body was still being crushed and suppressed.


    The notes were interwoven into an illusory world where Ye Futian was placed in. It was a world of Rhythmic Sorcery and a Great Path domain that belonged to the Divine Taihua Melody.


    Ye Futian��s mind was dashed by the music violently and repeatedly. If not for his strong Spiritual Will and stable spiritual soul, he would have been severely injured by now. His Spiritual Will would have been collapsed, and his spiritual soul wrecked.


    At this point, Ye Futian emitted extremely dazzling green divine light from his body. The divine light didn��t seem to contain the power of the Great Path, but it still possessed extraordinary life force. At this moment, everyone felt like Ye Futian was full of vigor and vitality. It was as if he was an immortal being that couldn��t be exterminated.


    The life force from the divine light built up Ye Futian��s physical body and strengthened his Spiritual Will. Many people sitting in the Donghua Palace were surprised by its effect. Did the Way of Life give strength to Ye Futian?


    The Way of Life was the foundation of everything. It might not seem particularly practical, but it was the ultimate source of everything. People who excelled at the Way of Life would have an easier experience cultivating other types of power of the Great Path. They had more life energy and a stronger Spiritual Will, which would help them gain an advantage over their peers.


    Ye Futian felt much better when the life force filled his body. His blood flow rate gradually returned to normal, and his Spiritual Will was not as shaken up as before. He collected himself and regained his footing.


    ��As expected, defeating him doesn��t appear to be an easy task,�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord laughed. For some unknown reason, he had remained very confident about Ye Futian. Maybe it was because of their encounter at the Divine Ocean Cliff.


    ��The Divine Tree.�� The Millet Emperor gazed at Ye Futian. Ye Futian ate the Divine Tree at the Eastern Deity Island, which filled his body with extra energy. It was much harder to kill them than other cultivators at the same level as him. Moreover, the life force he gained at that time was helping him hold out against the Divine Taihua Melody right now.


    Nevertheless, how would Ye Futian fight back?


    At this point, Ye Futian also sat down with his legs crossed at the center of the Law Battle Platform. The Great Path transformed into strings as soon as he reached out his hand. To everyone��s surprise, a guqin materialized in front of him as well. The audience was stunned. What did he want to do?


    This guy�� Has he lost his mind? the audience below all had the same thought in their minds. Their eyes were glued to him, who intended to play the guqin in front of Goddess Taihua. On top of that, Goddess Taihua was playing the Divine Melody Taihua. Did Ye Futian want to use music to fight against the Divine Melody Taihua?


    Although no one could deny Ye Futian��s incredible talents, they were still astounded by his arrogance. Even if Ye Futian was good at music, he should think twice about who he was facing right now.


    The common folks were not the only ones shocked by Ye Futian��s move. Even the cultivators from various top forces were stunned. With an odd look on their faces, they wondered what Ye Futian was attempting to do.


    ��He is going beyond his depth,�� some cultivator from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family ridiculed him in a sneering voice. Ye Futian was asking to be embarrassed by showing off his musical talent in front of Goddess Taihua.


    ��I remember that he revealed his Guqin Divine Wheel at the Donghua Academy, right?�� Jiang Yueli asked. Qin Qing nodded and replied, ��Yes, he did. It matched his swordsmanship.��


    Despite that, no one reckoned Ye Futian��s chances of success. He should take his opponent into consideration even though he possessed the Guqin Divine Wheel.


    The master cultivators sitting in the Donghua Palace were confounded by him as well. Chief Ning asked with a smile, ��What was he going to do?��


    ��Use music to combat the Divine Taihua Melody. How creative,�� the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace said in a mocking tone.


    ��Let��s have a look. Perhaps this guy can also play the guqin well,�� the Taihua Skylord said. The rest of the people nodded and continued to watch the Law Battle Platform in silence.


    Sitting with legs crossed, Ye Futian started to pluck the strings of the Great Path, and the music flowed from the guqin. The noted seemed to be a little jumbled and could hardly form a melody under the Divine Taihua Melody��s influence.


    But Ye Futian was playing the guqin with absorbed attention. The musical notes of the Divine Taihua Melody kept attacking him, yet he acted as if he wasn��t affected at all. He played his own music without speaking a word, completely engrossed in his own world.


    Endless Sword Will circled his body. The musical notes facilitated the emergence of more and more Sword Will, which was rushing wildly in the area.


    The audience even sensed a twinge of sorrow as the music continued.


    ��Hmm?�� A strange look appeared on people��s faces. They got in the mood and started to hear the melody played by Ye Futian. Moreover, Ye Futian��s melody grew stronger and stronger and took shape in defiance of the Divine Taihua Melody.


    The tunes were doleful and melancholic to their ears as though each note was drenched with profound sadness, and each melody was filled with lasting regret.


    The Great Path was flowing around wildly, and the Sword Will rampaged through the sky and turned into a frightening Path of the Sword.


    Goddess Taihua glanced at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. Her face grew solemn. The Divine Taihua Melody became even more forceful and vigorous, charging at Ye Futian. But the music Ye Futian was playing was wild and arrogant. It was as if it was going to pierce through the sky. The Great Path was roaring, and the tones were shrill, fighting against the Great Path.


    Bang�� Two radically different types of invisible Sonic Waves came into collision with each other in midair and generated disturbing currents of the Great Path. The illusory divine mountains that had been dominating the area were also crumbling.


    Buzz! The gust howled and blew up Ye Futian��s silver hair. The disturbing currents of the Great Path stormed toward the divine mountains. The two types of music were contending as though two different concepts of the Great Path were dashing against each other.


    Bang! The Law Battle Area shook violently. Goddess Taihua plucked the strings with full strength. A series of notes rushed out and trembled the world. Countless divine mountains were dropped from the sky and crushed everything, including the spiritual soul.


    Ye Futian��s figures also plucked the strings. The Great Path flowed backward and turned the tide. A sword river of the Great Path appeared and surged upward, destroying everything it touched.


    Two types of destructive power met head-on. In an instant, a terrifying scene became visible around their bodies. It looked like they were situated in an unstable space that could collapse any second. The Great Path there was all going to be annihilated.


    All the master cultivators sitting in the Donghua Palace watched the Law Battle Area with a serious expression. Taihua Skylord gazed at Ye Futian��s figure and muttered, ��The lost sound of the Great Path��Song of the Lost Divine.��


    ��Marvelous,�� said the Thunder Punishing Skylord, ��I didn��t know it would be a clash of Divine Melodies. It��s a nice surprise indeed.��


    Emperor Yan and the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace were taken aback. They obviously didn��t realize that Ye Futian could also play the Divine Melody so well that he would fight the Divine Taihua Melody with the Song of the Lost Divine.


    ��A surprise for sure. The Song of the Lost Divine has been lost to the Divine Prefecture for many years, right?�� Chief Ning said. Staring at Ye Futian, he showed a look of incredulity. This was the first time for him to be truly astonished by Ye Futian��s ability.


    The cultivators of the top forces sitting below were also amazed.


    ��This is the Song of the Lost Divine?�� They overheard the conversation in the Donghua Palace and couldn��t help but look at Ye Futian on the Law Battle Platform in silent wonder. Ye Futian was going beyond his depth?


    He used music to combat the Divine Taihua Melodyplayed by Goddess Taihua. What he played was another Divine Melody.


    The audience sitting in lower Heavens was simmering with excitement. Countless people whispered to each other while some exclaimed loudly.


    ��Song of the Lost Divine. They said it��s the Song of the Lost Divine, one of the ten Divine Melodies. Two Divine Melodies confronted each other today.�� Some people stared at the Law Battle Platform with an animated look.


    ��Sword Emperor Liunian���� Others gazed at Ye Futian, who shocked the crowd at the Donghua Banquet. They heard about his extraordinary performance at the Donghua Academy in the past. But no one had seen him fighting for real.


    Ye Futian truly displayed his unparalleled talents at the Donghua Banquet and blew people��s minds again and again.


    Apart from his previous matches, he was battling against Goddess Taihua with a Divine Melody right now.


    ��So powerful.�� People looked at Ye Futian with admiration. This man seemed to be perfect and invincible. There was nothing he couldn��t do.


    Two energetic melodies were still wrestling with each other. The clash of the music on the Law Battle Platform made the disturbing currents of the Great Path stronger and stronger, shaking the entire Law Battle Area. Nevertheless, the two melodies seemed to be played without being affected by each other. The Divine Taihua Melody suppressed the Great Path with full might, and the Song of the Lost Divine filled people with eternal regrets and deep sorrow.


    Their bodies were engulfed by the disturbing currents of the Great Path. The music sped up, and the clash became more violent.


    Bang�� The music stopped abruptly after a deafening sound. Goddess Taihua was flung high up into the sky, and Ye Futian was pushed back. Both of them stopped playing!

 Chapter 2041 - : Direct Attack

    The dashing, silver-haired Ye Futian and the stunning, heavenly Goddess Taihua were facing each other in the Law Battle Platform.


    The battle between the two Divine Melodies ended in a tie. Although Ye Futian and Goddess Taihua were competing against each other, many people believed that they would make a perfect couple.


    In the past, they felt this way about Ning Hua and Goddess Taihua. Now, however, they realized that Ye Futian seemed to be an even better match for Goddess Taihua than Ning Hua. He also excelled at the Divine Melodies. It would be perfect if they could play the guqin together.


    They played the Divine Melody Taihua and the Song of the Lost Divine just now. The audience was quite satisfied for hearing two Divine Melodies contend with each other at the Donghua Banquet today. They couldn��t help but exclaim how astonishing and eye-opening the matches between top cultivators were.


    Goddess Taihua and Ye Futian looked into each other��s eyes on the Law Battle Platform. Ye Futian spoke with a smile, ��I learned a lot from listening to you performing the Divine Melody today. It��s truly my blessing. You��re much better at music than me.��


    Many people were impressed by Ye Futian��s modesty. As a legendary cultivator, Ye Futian was exceptionally humble. He tied with Goddess Taihua despite being in a lower cultivation level, yet he still praised her for being better at music.


    The audience could clearly tell that neither of them could gain the upper hand. This battle of the Divine Melodies ended with a draw.


    ��You��re so modest, Renhuang Ye. It��s my honor to have a chance to listen to the Song of the Lost Divine,�� Goddess Taihua responded. A person who had an ear for music, naturally, wanted to learn about all the famous songs in the world. She was delighted to appreciate the Song of the Lost Divine today even though she didn��t beat her opponent. It was such a rare opportunity.


    Two people who excelled at the Divine Melodies met at the Donghua Banquet.


    Sitting in the Donghua Palace, Emperor Xi looked at Ye Futian and Goddess Taihua, who were standing on the Law Battle Platform, and said, ��It��s indeed a pleasure to listen to the Divine Taihua Melody and the Song of the Lost Divine at the same time. It��s a unique experience even for us.��


    ��The Divine Taihua Melody is vigorous and forceful and could suppress the Great Path in the world. The Song of the Lost Divine is melancholy and sorrowful, filled with lasting regrets, which could disturb and frustrate the Great Path. They truly deserve to be among the ten Divine Melodies of the Divine Prefecture,�� Thunder Punishing Skylord chimed in.


    While speaking, Thunder Punishing Skylord gazed at Ye Futian with an inscrutable look. It was more and more difficult for him to figure Ye Futian out. He had never met a youngster who had unfathomable abilities.


    Ye Futian seemed to be thoroughly accomplished in everything. There was nothing that he had not cultivated.


    It was said that Ye Futian gained fame for his swordsmanship. But none of the skills he displayed later was less proficient than his swordsmanship.


    On top of that, he could blend the Path of the Sword with other types of law power and make the best of his advantages. For instance, the swordplay happened during the Song of the Lost Divine just now.


    Was he really just a disciple from the Eastern Deity Island?


    Even if the Supreme Deity Donglai was still alive, it was unlikely for him to raise such an extraordinary cultivator, let alone his daughter who was the current head of the Eastern Deity Island. After all, hardly anyone of the same generation in the entire Donghua Domain was a match for Ye Futian.


    ��That��s right. This Donghua Banquet is certainly a success for having so many remarkable cultivators. They will all be the mainstay of the Donghua Domain in the future,�� Chief Ning said with a smile. People nodded in agreement.


    The Divine Prefecture had been united for more than three hundred years, but few master cultivators were born and raised during this time. Many of them already reached the peak before the unification of the Divine Prefecture. As time went by, the younger generation sprang up and would be in the same league sooner or later. The best of them might even surpass the current master cultivators.


    ��It goes without saying that the vice chief will inherit the chief��s legacy and lead the next generation to preside over the Donghua Domain,�� the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace said, simpering.


    Ye Futian and Goddess Taihua returned to their seats in the area below the Donghua Palace.


    Many cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower were staring at Ye Futian and felt even more curious about him.


    ��Awesome,�� a high-level Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower expressed his admiration.


    ��Where did you learn the Divine Melody? Besides, you can master several types of power of the Great Path. How many years have you been cultivating?�� someone asked out of curiosity. Ye Futian looked extremely young. Although it was hard to estimate a cultivator��s exact age, it was possible to venture a rough guess if looking closely enough. Judging by his appearance, Ye Futian couldn��t have cultivated for more than a hundred years.


    How did he achieve that? It felt like there was nothing that he couldn��t do.


    Nevertheless, Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang were used to it. They had already known how versatile Ye Futian was and wouldn��t be staggered no matter what miracle Ye Futian made happen. They understood that Ye Futian shouldn��t be considered and judged as a normal human being. He was a real genius.


    At this point, Yan Hanxing��s voice rang out in the direction of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, ��The Great Yan competed with Wangshen Watchtower back in the Turtle Deity Island. Why don��t you take advantage of the opportunity provided by the Donghua Banquet and learn from the disciples of the Millet Emperor?��


    Quite some people were surprised to hear Yan Hanxing��s words. Countless pairs of eyes focused on him in an instant.


    Chief Ning said in the past that they might have a chance to fight when they came to the Donghua Heavens. They were all here now. Besides, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family already targeted Leng Qinghan from the Leng family during the first Law Battle. Ye Futian vanquished Yan Dongyang after that and further deepened the enmity.


    The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family didn��t attempt to hide their hostility anymore. They were directly proclaiming war against Wangshen Watchtower.


    A person walked out of the crowd. Many cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower put on a solemn face when they recognized him. It was Yan Chi, another prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    Yan Chi was a third-order Renhuang with a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path. He had extraordinary strength and might be even stronger than Yan Dongyang when fighting against opponents at the same level.


    Wangshen Watchtower might not have any Lower Renhuang who could win over him.


    ��A prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family?�� People started gossiping right away.


    ��Yes.�� Someone nodded and said, ��The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family is going to attack Wangshen Watchtower at the Donghua Banquet. I��m afraid that they have planned it for a long time and waited till now. Besides, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family has issued an official challenge, yet the Wangshen Watchtower couldn��t keep asking Ye Futian to deal with them. It��s going to be a test for the Renhuangs from Wangshen Watchtower.��


    ��I��m Yan Chi from the Great Yan, third-order Renhuang. Please feel free to send out anyone you want.�� Yan Chi walked toward the Law Battle Platform while speaking. Although he told Wangshen Watchtower to dispatch a cultivator at their will, they couldn��t select anyone at a higher cultivation level since Yan Chi already announced his level.


    The vibe changed abruptly. People shifted their eyes to the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower, who seemed more somber than usual.


    The cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower apparently understood that it was almost impossible for their Lower Renhuangs to defeat Yan Chi.


    ��Yan Chi is a talented prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. He must have remarkable abilities. Wangshen Watchtower might be put in a disadvantaged position if we send someone at the same level. Qingfeng, go ahead,�� said Li Changsheng.


    Everyone immediately widened their eyes in surprise.


    But Li Changsheng smiled as though he wasn��t aware of people��s gaze.


    Liu Qingfeng was a fourth-order Renhuang and the only middle-level Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower who had a perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path. He obviously had an edge over Yan Chi for being at a higher cultivation level.


    ��Li Changsheng, what do you mean?�� Yan Hanxing glared at Li Changsheng and asked.


    Li Changsheng narrowed his eyes and looked at Yan Hanxing. With a smile on his face, he countered, ��What? The prince of the Great Yan told us to feel free to pick anyone. I selected Qingfeng. What��s wrong with that?��


    ��A middle-level Renhuang is matched against a lower Renhuang. What do you think?�� Yan Hanxing retorted in a cold voice. He knew Li Changsheng was playing dumb.


    ��Then why did you ask us to pick anyone we want if you want to limit to the same level?�� Li Changsheng said sarcastically. People from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family were a little embarrassed.


    ��The Great Yan didn��t care about cultivation level when you were fighting against brother Ye before, did you? You have sent out fifth-order, sixth-order, and even high-level Renhuangs, right? Aside from everyone else, what level was Yan Dongyang in during the battle at Wangshen Watchtower? What level was brother Ye on?�� Li Changsheng said in a sneering tone, ��If they insist on limiting to contenders at the same cultivation level, brother Ye, may I trouble you to challenge the cultivators from the Great Yan one by one?��


    ��Sure,�� Ye Futian answered and stood up. Everyone from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family looked quite awkward.


    Li Changsheng was determined to keep Wangshen Watchtower from being taken advantage of. Having said that, it was true that everyone who fought against Ye Futian on behalf of the Great Yan was at a higher cultivation level than him.


    Li Changsheng sounded reasonable from that point of view.


    Since people knew the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was deliberately attacking Wangshen Watchtower and might be brutal and merciless with their cultivators, Li Changsheng certainly wouldn��t let the Great Yan have their way.


    ��Fine, he��ll do,�� Yan Chi, who was standing on the Law Battle Platform, spoke up. He agreed to spar with Liu Qingfeng.


    Yan Hanxing glared at Li Changsheng but didn��t say anything else.

 Chapter 2042 - Joining Forces

    Yan Chi and Liu Qingfeng stepped onto the Law Battle Platform. The atmosphere seemed somewhat different.


    Now, it was more than just a simple spar. This battle involved the vendetta between the two parties. It concerned the struggle between Wangshen Watchtower and Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    Li Changsheng, Zong Chan, Ye Futian, as well as the other cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, were looking at the Law Battle Platform. Even though Li Changsheng casually dispelled the animosity directed at them by Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, he also understood that the situation was not as optimistic as it appeared. Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had come prepared. Their opponent��s lineup was stronger than theirs.


    For example, the prince of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Yan Chi, was a lower-level Renhuang with a flawless Great Path. He had no match among the lower-level Renhuangs of Wangshen Watchtower. Hence, Wangshen Watchtower could only send the fourth-tier Renhuang, Liu Qingfeng, to go against him. It was not very honorable.


    Before this, Wangshen Watchtower had treated Ye Futian in such a manner because he indeed was powerful to such an extent.


    ��Elder brother, what are our chances in winning this battle?�� Ye Futian asked Li Changsheng, who was beside him, as he looked in that direction. It was still alright if they won. If the fourth-tier Liu Qingfeng were to be defeated, it would be somewhat embarrassing. By losing with someone who had an advantage, Wangshen Watchtower��s image would be somewhat tarnished.


    ��I am not too sure about Yan Chi��s ability,�� Li Changsheng replied. ��However, rumor has it that he is considered incredible among Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. His talent is not inferior to that of Yan Dongyang. Although Yan Dongyang is far from being a match for you, he is still a prominent figure in the cultivation world. It will be difficult for members of the same Plane to defeat him. Hence, it is unclear who will win this battle. Even if Liu Qingfeng wins, it won��t be an easy victory.�� He appeared casual as he spoke, but in reality, he was somewhat worried.


    Of course, Ye Futian also understood that Yan Dongyang was not weak. It was just that he had encountered Ye Futian. After all, Ye Futian had cultivated too many techniques along the way and had many fateful encounters. A prince of an ordinary ancient royal family could not possibly compare with Ye Futian.


    ��We��ll see. If Liu Qingfeng is defeated, Younger Brother Zong will immediately go out,�� Li Changsheng said. If Zong Chan were to take the field at the same Plane, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would not be able to find anyone who could prove a match for him. Their goal of sending Zong Chan was to intimidate the opponent.


    Of course, if they won this battle, that would be even better. Zong Chan would not need to fight so soon.


    As they discussed this, the battle had already begun on the Law Battle Platform. The prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Yan Chi, attacked extremely aggressively. He was as overbearing and dominant as a divine golden dragon. A pure-blooded dragon circled him in the sky above, causing the spectators to sense a frightening pressure.


    Liu Qingfeng was proficient in swordsmanship. He was like a breeze blowing through the leaves of a willow. His seemingly gentle swordsmanship actually contained an extremely sharp aura. His grace contained great strength. His sword skills appeared ethereal. Both of their attacks contrasted each other.


    Even though this was not a pinnacle showdown between prominent figures, it was still a showdown between two top forces. Hence, the cultivators around were watching attentively.


    As they watched this ferocious battle, the people below said, ��As expected, Yan Chi truly is a member of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. The blood of the royal family of the Yan Kingdom flows in his veins. His attacks are domineering. Even though his cultivation Plane is lower than his opponent��s, his momentum is actually more powerful. He seems to be seizing the initiative.��


    ��The royal children of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family are the elites of the Yan Kingdom. They are extraordinary. Although the Renhuang from the Wangshen Watchtower also has a flawless Great Path, it won��t be easy for him to win,�� many people discussed below. The battle in the Law Battle Platform was growing more intense. Yan Chi did not plan to give Liu Qingfeng any opportunity to counterattack as he attacked again and again, like a war machine; however, Liu Qingfeng had a higher cultivation Plane than him and managed to nullify his attacks.


    At that moment, on the battlefield, both of them retreated backward. The crowd seemed to hear swooshing sounds. As they looked onto the battlefield, cracks appeared on the huge dragon armor covering Yan Chi��s body. Blood seeped out from the cracks. Yan Chi appeared to have been injured. Liu Qingfeng wielded a sword in his hand. Blood dripped from the sword.


    ��Liu Qingfeng��s attacks seemed soft and gentle, but in reality, they are indomitable. His grace contains great strength, and he is mighty. He still has an advantage being at a higher cultivation Plane. It appears that even though Yan Chi is overbearing, he is still going to lose,�� the people below discussed.


    Yan Chi glanced down at his injury. Divine light of the Great path flowed down his figure, and his wound was instantly healed.


    An astonishing dragon cry could be heard. It shook the heavens and the earth. The Great Path trembled as the Song of the Yang Dragon radiated outwards. Soundwaves of the Great Path swept out, causing Liu Qingfeng to feel like his eardrums were about to burst.


    This Song of the Yang Dragon seemed endless. It reverberated all around them. The dragon cry caused the heavens to tremble. The crowds felt their heads vibrate violently. As they watched in astonishment, Yan Chi became a divine pure-blooded dragon and charged directly at Liu Qingfeng. This gigantic divine dragon descended with the might of the Great Path. It hovered above and covered the sky. It was domineering.


    Under the effects of the ear-piercing sound wave attack, the sword in Liu Qingfeng��s hand shook uncontrollably. It was not because Liu Qingfeng��s hands were shaking. Instead, the sword itself was vibrating.


    The crowd watched as the gigantic divine dragon consumed this part of the sky and dove down towards Liu Qingfeng.


    Raging waves of the Great Path swept out. The crowd heard the sound of intense vibrations. Then, everything seemed to clear up. When they saw the two figures again, Yan Chi had already returned to his original form. His robes were stained with blood. His dragon scale armor was mostly shattered and covered in bloodstains.


    However, Liu Qingfeng was even worse off. His chest was punctured. Frightening claw marks appeared on his chest. It was as though he had been slashed by a dragon claw that directly penetrated his body. He was covered in blood as well. He stared at Yan Chi and then spat out a mouthful of jet-black blood. His face was pale, and his aura was rapidly weakening. He appeared extremely wretched.


    So vicious, the crowd thought to themselves as they witnessed this scene. Both of them had attacked too viciously.


    Although Chief Ning had prefaced this, the crowd also understood that if two major forces were to clash, they would certainly attack viciously just like they had done now.


    They were no longer merely sparring.


    However, the crowd knew this was inevitable due to the grudges between the two major forces.


    ��Who could have imagined that the victor was actually Yan Chi,�� many people exclaimed in surprise. Before this, Liu Qingfeng had been suppressing Yan Chi. However, at the last minute, Yan Chi seemed to become even more ferocious. He sent out his most vicious attack and severely injured Liu Qingfeng. Although he had also received heavy wounds, compared to Liu Qingfeng, he came out of that exchange far better off.


    The cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower had very cold gazes. Yan Chi had actually attacked so cruelly. Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was clearly aiming to kill them.


    ��Younger Brother Liu!�� shouted Li Changsheng. Liu Qingfeng limped out of the Law Battle Platform with his injuries. Clearly, he had lost this battle.


    Yan Chi also walked out after him. Before Yan Chi could return to his seat, the crowd saw another person stand up. However, surprisingly, the person who had stood up was not a cultivator from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. Instead, it was a cultivator from Lingciao Palace.


    This�� Many people revealed bizarre expressions. Had Lingciao Palace and Great Yan Ancient Royal Family agreed to join forces against Wangshen Watchtower?

 Chapter 2043 - Group Battle?

    In Donghua Palace, when the Millet Emperor saw the scene below, he looked over at Emperor Yan of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, as well as Ling Yunzi��the Lingxiao Palace Lord. He asked, ��Did the two of you plan this?��


    ��We have been sitting here in Donghua Palace all this while. What could we have discussed?�� Ling Yunzi replied. His tone carried an air of indifference.


    ��Is that so?�� the Millet Emperor said as he swept a gaze over the other party. Full of mistrust, he said, ��Back on Turtle Deity Island, the members of the Yan Kingdom came into conflict with the disciples of the Wangshen Watchtower. It seems that the disciples of Lingxiao Palace threw coal onto the fire. Could it be due to Ling He holding a grudge for losing to Ye Futian when comprehending the teachings left by Thunder Punishing Skylord on the cliff face? Or is it because Lingxiao Palace Lord is unsatisfied with me? Or might it be due to both of these reasons?��


    Before this, the Millet Emperor was suspicious of Supreme Deity Donglai��s death. Hence, he had brought his members over to participate in the Donghua Banquet and observe the attitude of Lingxiao Palace. As expected, Lingxiao Palace had secretly joined forces with the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    Right then, the Millet Emperor felt a bad premonition.


    ��You can choose to interpret it as you wish,�� Ling Yunzi replied nonchalantly. ��However, today is the Donghua Banquet. Chief has already said that during the Donghua Banquet, prominent figures will challenge each other here. Surely the Millet Emperor will not spoil the fun for everyone, right?��


    The other giant figures did not say anything. They merely sat there quietly and watched. It was inappropriate for the other forces to intervene in the grudge between Wangshen Watchtower and the Yan Kingdom, as well as Lingxiao Palace.


    ��If the Millet Emperor feels that it is inappropriate, there is nothing stopping you from walking away from the challenge,�� Chief Ning said to the Millet Emperor.


    ��Master, we came to participate in the Donghua Banquet to challenge each other and seek the Way. We have no reason to reject their challenge,�� Li Changsheng said as he raised his head and looked at the Millet Emperor. Even if they lost on the Law Battle Platform, it would be an experience. How could they let the Millet Emperor cower from his enemies?


    As cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, this was their burden to bear.


    Even if they lost, they still had to fight.


    ��That��s right. Let��s continue,�� said Zong Chan and the other Renhuangs as they looked up at the Millet Emperor in Donghua Palace. There was absolutely no reason for Millet Emperor to avoid this battle. If that happened, the Millet Emperor would be the first person to go against the rule of the Donghua Banquet. Wouldn��t that embarrass him before the various top forces?


    As cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, they did not need to withdraw.


    The Millet Emperor looked at the members below and then nodded his head and said, ��Be careful.��


    He did not say anymore. Although both forces were targeting them, for the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, this was also a trial. The other party did not dare to kill under any circumstances. This was the Donghua Banquet; no one dared to defy this rule.


    Their second match was against an extraordinary figure from Lingxiao Palace, who was a lower-level Renhuang. He challenged a cultivator from Wangshen Watchtower. The result was even more tragic than the first battle. It was a one-sided massacre. The Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower was suppressed from the beginning to end. It could even be considered a slaughter. The other party also intentionally did not rush to defeat their opponent, instead possessing a somewhat playful attitude. He tortured the Renhuang from the Watchtower before dealing a vicious blow at the end. This caused the expressions of the other cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower to turn extremely ugly.


    Before their battle had ended, Ye Futian had already stood up. However, up above, Ling Yunzi said, ��The Law Battles are carried out so that the various disciples can have the opportunity to experience each other��s abilities. There is no need for one person to keep fighting. Even if this is a battle between two forces, each round, different cultivators from both sides should come out to clash against one another. Everyone has witnessed Ye Liunian��s ability. If he battles repeatedly, doesn��t that make it seem as though the other cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower are incompetent?��


    Emperor Xi said, ��If Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace are targeting Wangshen Watchtower, the number of cultivators from these two forces will far outnumber that of Wangshen Watchtower. The two forces can choose more incredible figures from their midst. Isn��t that somewhat inappropriate?��


    He continued with a smile, ��Of course, I am just casually saying this. How do Chief and the rest of you feel about this?��


    ��What Teacher says is reasonable. Today was to be the showdown between the various forces. However, on Turtle Deity Island, these three parties came into conflict with one another. There is no issue in them utilizing the Donghua Banquet to battle it out. However, it is still impossible to make it absolutely fair,�� Thunder Punishing Skylord added with a smile. Before the other cultivators, a giant figure such as Thunder Punishing Skylord still referred to Emperor Xi as his teacher. It was clear that he still respected Emperor Xi.


    ��Both of you are right. What do you all think?�� Chief Ning asked as he looked at the rest of them.


    ��This is a dilemma. Chief, you should make the decision,�� the Overlord of Jian Clan Ancient Royal Family said with a smile. Right now, as spectators, they naturally did not want to get involved in this feud. For Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord to be willing to speak up on Ye Futian��s behalf was probably because they had a good impression of Ye Futian. They thought highly of this junior figure; hence, they would naturally lean more towards the Wangshen Watchtower��s side.


    In reality, it was indeed unfair for the two forces to target Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��If that is the case, there is no need for both sides to choose people of the same level. We can carry out a group Law Battle directly,�� Ye Futian said from below. ��That way, we do not need to have individual Law Battles one after another.��


    If he was in a group battle, he was confident in dealing with middle-level Renhuangs. After all, aside from him, he also had a few powerful members. Zi Feng��s ability was also sufficient for her to stand alone. At the very least, she would not have a problem holding off Yan Dongyang for some time.


    The crowd looked at Ye Futian. This fellow was actually planning to proceed to the group battle?


    ��Since we are having a group battle, why don��t we move onto the next stage? Lest the other forces cannot participate and can only watch these three forces fight,�� a cultivator from the Nanhua Clan said with a smile.


    The next stage naturally referred to the arrangement after the Law Battles. The crowd clearly understood this.


    Although the Domain Chief��s Manor chose some cultivators during this stage, the number of cultivators recruited was far from their target. The cultivators still needed to be tested on a large-scale. The various forces could also participate in this.


    Chief Ning looked at the other party and then laughed and asked, ��Aside from the Yan Kingdom and Wangshen Watchtower, does anyone else wish to challenge each other and seek the Path individually?��


    ��Since it has already been decided, just move on,�� a cultivator from the Desolate God Palace also said. Their interest in individual Law Battles had diminished.


    ��I have no objections,�� stated Sword Goddess of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. The others agreed one after another. When Chief Ning saw this scene, he nodded his head and said, ��If that is so, then we will end it here.��


    As he said this, he glanced around at the crowd and continued, ��When the Donghua Banquet began, I said that its purpose was to first have a drink with old friends. The second reason was to see the prominent figures of the Donghua Domain. The third reason is that Domain Chief��s Manor is recruiting new blood. Now that the Donghua Banquet has progressed to this stage, next, there will be a chance for everyone here to display their abilities. Those who perform outstandingly, if they are willing, may join Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate.��


    The Renhuangs in the Nine Heavens all lifted their heads and looked at Chief Ning. Next, there was an opportunity that everyone could have. As for whether or not they managed to seize it, it was up to the individual.

 Chapter 2044 - Fuyao Secret Zone

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In Donghua Palace, Chief Ning saw that everyone was looking at him. He glanced over the crowd. He smiled and said, ��Since everyone has no objections, we will proceed into the third stage then. The Fuyao Secret Zone of Domain Chief��s Manor will now be opened for all Renhuangs to venture into.��


    Many people had speculated that this was the next stage, so they were not surprised. However, the Renhuangs in the Nine Heavens were still somewhat excited.


    The Fuyao Secret Zone was a cultivation secret zone that belonged solely to the Domain Chief��s Manor. Normally, other cultivators would not be able to step foot in the zone. They would not even have the chance to catch a glimpse of it, let alone cultivate and train in the secret zone.


    Now, Domain Chief��s Manor organized the Donghua Banquet and opened up the Fuyao Secret Zone. For everyone, this was an extremely rare opportunity. Many Renhuangs had come here with the hopes of encountering this chance. Finally, the secret zone was going to be opened.


    The other giant figures in Donghua Palace did not say anything. They looked indifferently at the people down below. Ling Yunzi, the Lingxiao Palace Palace Lord, said, ��The Domain Chief has opened up the Fuyao Secret Zone and granted this opportunity to us cultivators of the Donghua Domain. I hope that everyone can seize this opportunity and live up to the Chief��s expectations.��


    Chief Ning smiled as he nodded his head and said, ��I hope so as well.��


    ��Are you all ready?�� asked Chief Ning as he looked at the Renhuangs in the Nine Heavens. ��If anyone does not wish to enter the secret zone, you can still opt out now.��


    No one said anything. Who would turn down the chance to enter the secret zone of the Domain Chief��s Manor?


    Although there was a certain amount of risk involved, as long as one was careful and did not go after things beyond their reach, it was still very safe. Even if they merely went in to take a look around and experience the place, it would still be a good opportunity. Having cultivated up to the Renhuang Plane, no one would mind having another fateful encounter.


    After waiting for a short while, seeing that no one had objections, Chief Ning said, ��If that��s the case, I will send you all to the entrance of the secret zone. We will wait for all of you at the exit. As long as you manage to find us, you will be qualified to cultivate in the Domain Chief��s Manor if that is what you decide, of course.��


    ��Yes, Chief,�� many people answered. Chief Ning remained sitting there as he said, ��Let us begin then.��


    As he said this, the Nine Heavens immediately began to tremble. The next moment, the people below felt the world spinning. The Nine Heavens above were actually moving. The stars shifted, and this part of the sky also moved. The people below witnessed them disappear. It seemed that they had entered the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The entire Nine Heavens seemed to have been teleported away.


    In the sky above, a misty aura enveloped Donghua Palace. The crowd saw that Donghua Palace also moving. Chief Ning looked down below at the cultivators and said, ��Everyone, please enjoy your journey to the secret zone.��


    As he said this, Donghua Palace also began to float in the sky.


    Ye Futian and the others were at the top of the Nine Heavens. They moved along with it and could see all the changes happening outside. There were many magnificent palaces. It was as though they were floating in an ancient and grand city. They were moving so fast that the stars appeared to shift in the sky.


    After a short while, they came to a region with a lake. Beyond the lake appeared to be a realm of deities. The aura of deities emanated from beyond the lake, reaching up into the sky above. There was an ethereal Celestial Gate. It was as if the gate had always been erected there, eternal and untouched.


    ��This is the gate that leads to the Fuyao Secret Zone. Once you pass through it, you will enter into the secret zone,�� an ethereal voice explained. The crowd could tell that this was Chief Ning��s voice.


    ��Ning Hua, you have entered the secret zone many times. This time, you will enter along with the others, but you will not participate. Ensure order within the secret zone,�� the voice continued saying. ��Everyone here are Renhuangs from the Donghua Domain. If a conflict arises, I hope that it will not go out of hand. In the Fuyao Secret Zone, I do not wish to see fights that result in deaths. Aside from that, there are dangers in the secret zone. Know your own strength. Even I cannot save you. I cannot see what happens in the secret zone.�� The crowd had solemn expressions. They knew what was in store.


    This time, the cultivators with weaker cultivation were being taken care of. No slaughter was to occur. That way, they would not be in too much danger. Otherwise, once conflicts arose in the secret zone, those with powerful cultivation would immediately initiate a massacre.


    ��Alright. You may enter,�� the voice continued. The crowd then saw a person heading into the zone first. A group of cultivators followed behind him. They were all cultivators from Domain Chief��s Manor. Their leader was Ning Hua.


    This time, Ning Hua also entered the Fuyao Secret Zone. However, he was not there to venture throughout the secret zone. He was mostly there to maintain order within.


    After passing through the gate, Ning Hua��s figure disappeared without a trace. The various cultivators who came walked up to the gate after witnessing this scene, passing through to enter into the Fuyao Secret Zone.


    ��Elder brother, what sort of place is the secret zone?�� Ye Futian asked Li Changsheng, who was beside him.


    ��The zone was inherited by the Domain Chief��s Manor many years ago. It is considered a cultivation holy land for the Domain Chief��s Manor. There are many fateful encounters of the Great Path inside. The cultivators who join the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate have the opportunity to enter into the zone to train. For outsiders, it is hard to come across such a chance. As for what it is like inside the secret zone, I also am not sure. After all, I have never gone inside myself. However, the Fuyao Secret Zone is an independent space. It is its own world. It will certainly be very large inside.��


    ��Just like Eastern Deity Island?�� Ye Futian asked Goddess Donglai.


    ��It is impossible for Eastern Deity Island to be compared to the secret zone of Domain Chief��s Manor,�� Goddess Donglai replied. Ye Futian nodded his head. From the looks of it, this secret zone was even better than Eastern Deity Island. However, it might also be a completely different type of secret zone.


    ��You will know once you enter,�� Zong Chan stated. The rest nodded their heads.


    ��Renhuang Ye, are you not going in?�� someone nearby asked Ye Futian. Ye Futian raised his head and looked over in that direction. The person who had spoken was Qin Qing from Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. Ye Futian smiled and replied, ��I was just about to do so.��


    ��Hmm, we will head in first,�� Qin Qing answered as she nodded her head slightly. The group from Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow floated towards the entrance.


    Behind Ye Futian��s group, the cultivators of Ling Xiao Palace and Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had yet to enter. They seemed to be keeping an eye on Ye Futian��s group. Clearly, they were prepared to continue the fight during the Donghua Banquet left unfinished in the secret zone.


    Large groups of people entered the Fuyao Secret Zone. The aura emanating from the gate was extremely frightening. Ye Futian glanced at the gate. He was also curious about the Fuyao Secret Zone. What would this secret zone of Domain Chief��s Manor be like? What would they find inside?


    ��Let��s go,�� Li Changsheng said. The group from Wangshen Watchtower immediately headed towards the entrance to the secret zone together.


    The large army entered the zone. The cultivators from various forces also gradually made their way in. There were fewer and fewer people in this area. After Ye Futian��s group passed through the gate, they felt an intense aura of the Great Path of Space. The next moment, they immediately appeared in another world!

 Chapter 2045 - Demon Mountain

    Ye Futian looked ahead. There was a large lake. Beyond the lake, there was an endless mountain range. The end of the mountain range was nowhere in sight.


    As expected, it was a world of its own, Ye Futian thought to himself. This was the Fuyao Secret Zone of Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The vast army entered the zone. They were all Renhuangs. Compared to the lineup that entered Eastern Deity Island last time, this group was far more powerful.


    The group that entered Eastern Deity Island last time did not have top-level Renhuangs. This time, many of them were eighth-tier and ninth-tier Renhuangs. They even had figures such as Jiang Yueli from Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow among them. Jiang Yueli was an eighth-tier Renhuang with a flawless Great Path. Her combat ability was almost at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. Aside from the giant level figures, it was difficult for anyone else to stand against her.


    At that moment, silhouettes traversed across the sky and advanced on the surface of the lake. Even though there were fateful encounters in the secret zone, the Renhuangs would certainly not easily come across them. Hence, they did not need to be in such a hurry.


    ��Let��s go,�� said Li Changsheng as he also Ied the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower forward. The vast army of Renhuangs scattered beyond the lake. Some of them traveled through the air while others moved on the ground. Their speeds were different, so the cultivators, naturally, got separated.


    However, Ye Futian felt that he was constantly being watched. He did not need to investigate to know who was watching him. The cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace had wanted to kill him. Now that they had entered into this zone, they would not easily let him escape them.


    These two major forces also showed signs of having joined forces to target Wangshen Watchtower. It was possible that they were not just targeting him but the entire Wangshen Watchtower.


    The lake was calm and peaceful. Everyone had just passed over it. Nothing had happened. Ye Futian��s group passed over the lake and stood in the region of the desolate mountain range.


    Ye Futian gazed far into the distance. Even when he released his will, he still could not make out the ends of the mountain range. His will could only cover a part of it.


    The mountain range gave off a desolate and ancient air. It was as though this secret zone had existed since the distant past.


    Many Renhuangs had serious expressions. They did not dare to lower their guard. Since they were in a secret zone, it would not be an ordinary place.


    As the Renhuangs entered the mountain range, they headed out in different directions like fish in the ocean. Ye Futian��s group kept heading forward. This ancient secret zone had an ominous aura that gave off a faint pressure.


    As they continued to advance, someone discovered an extremely frightening scene to the left of the mountain range. There was a desolate world over there. Endless purple lightning could faintly be seen. The terrifying might of the Great Path of Destruction emanated from there.


    Those present did not know what sort of place that was. However, many Renhuangs headed in that direction. Many cultivators from the Desolate God Palace stopped in their tracks and glanced over there. Desolation said, ��Let��s go take a look.��


    As he said this, his group headed over to the region. When they saw that the cultivators of the Desolate God Palace were heading over, many other cultivators backed down. The abilities of those from Desolate God Palace were too powerful. If there were a fateful encounter there, the other cultivators would have no means of contending with Desolate God Palace. They might as well give up and search other places.


    Ye Futian��s group also saw the region. However, they did not head over, instead continuing to press on.


    After a short while, they saw a horrifying scene to their right. The temperature there was surprisingly high. There was intense heat emanating from the area. As they glanced over from afar, they actually saw that the mountain peaks were scorched red. On the mountainsides, terrifying magma was flowing. The mountains in the region were all crimson. No one knew what sort of flame treasures were hidden there.


    However, after they passed through this region, they discovered a world of ice and snow that was extremely cold. The world of ice and snow and the world of flames were next to each other. They formed their own individual spaces. The world of ice and snow was very chilly. However, Ye Futian and the others ignored both spaces and continued advancing.


    Ahead of them, there was a jet-black mountain in their way. The ancient, jet-black mountain was shrouded in darkness. It gave off a mysterious vibe. One could sense the oppressive aura emanating from the mountain from extremely far away.


    ��What is that place?�� someone asked in a low voice.


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look and said, ��Elder brother, why is it that I sense that this space is sealed-off? I feel as though a continent was sealed off and became the secret zone of Domain Chief��s Manor.��


    Li Changsheng replied, ��The secret zone of the Domain Chief��s Manor is not limited to one area. The Fuyao Secret Zone is just one of the many secret zones. However, your guess may be correct. The Domain Chief is proficient in the Great Path of Sealing. There is also an absolute treasure in the Domain Chief��s Manor. Indeed, it might be possible that this secret zone is a sealed-off space.�� They were heading to a place up ahead that was near to the black mountain range.


    As they gradually approached the black mountain range, they could sense an even more ominous aura coming from its direction.


    Bang.


    At that moment, they heard a terrifying explosion from far away. A scream followed it. The crowd saw a Renhuang flying backward. He was sent flying out from the mountain range. Fresh blood splattered around in the sky as he fell to the ground.


    What happened? The figures headed over. Many people came up beside the injured Renhuang. They saw that his flesh had been torn off his body. It was a gruesome sight to behold.


    Demonic beasts, thought the crowd as they glanced over at the ancient black mountain.


    Ye Futian��s group looked over there from a distance. Ye Futian commented, ��Such powerful Demonic Qi.��


    ��There are many demonic beasts,�� said Zi Feng, who was beside him. She was a phoenix demon and was naturally very sensitive to Demonic Qi. She could sense that there were many demonic beasts in the mountain up ahead.


    Ye Futian revealed a pondering look. This place seemed more and more like a sealed space. It was as though a continent had been sealed away. After all, to harm the cultivators in the secret zone, it would take a Demon Emperor.


    Even if such a demon were to assume human form and leave this place, their standing would not be low.


    The vast mountain range was formed from countless connected black mountains. It stretched across the land, seemingly sealing off the way ahead. If they wanted to continue forwards, they had to pass through the black mountain range.


    At that moment, there was the sound of a violent collision. The crowd raised their heads and looked up at the sky above the mountain range. A huge, terrifying beast appeared there. Its wings blocked out the sky when fully spread. They could not make out what sort of demon it was. They only saw a gigantic pair of black wings sweep out, directly sweeping away the Renhuangs who were attempting to fly over the mountain range. A Renhuang, who was not strong enough, was immediately torn to shreds, and they perished on the spot.


    This caused the hearts of many to tremble uncontrollably. Frightening dangers were lurking in the Fuyao Secret Zone. This journey was not as easy as they imagined it to be.


    ��You cannot pass over the mountain range. It would help if you went through it,�� a silhouette said from the sky above. The person who had spoken was Ning Hua. As he said this, he traversed the sky and immediately entered the black mountain range from above.


    Once he entered, a terrifying aura emerged and enveloped the endless space. A voice said in a cold tone, ��You have come again.��


    ��Long time no see,�� Ning Hua replied. He then kept advancing, heading deep into the mountain range from the sky. Very soon, the terrifying sound of violent collisions of the Great Path could be heard. It caused the hearts of the crowd to beat even faster.


    ��As expected of Ning Hua,�� a cultivator said in a low voice. He told them that they could not pass over the mountain range from above, yet he had immediately done so, not fearing the demons within the mountain range. Ning Hua already treated this place as his training ground!

 Chapter 2046 - Throbbing

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Let��s go!��


    The various cultivators gradually entered into the black mountains. No one directly made their way in from above like Ning Hua. After all, they were not Ning Hua. They did not have his abilities and were not as familiar as he was with the Fuyao Secret Zone.


    For Ning Hua, this secret zone was merely his training ground.


    ��Let us also enter,�� Li Changsheng said. The group immediately nodded their heads and headed deep into the ancient mountains.


    Ye Futian��s group entered the mountain range. The precipitous peaks pierced straight through the clouds. Far away, the valleys were so deep that they could not see the bottom. They could faintly hear a droning sound. There was also a powerful Demonic Qi around them. They expanded their wills but soon discovered that their wills were blocked off in many places. It was as though there was a natural shroud that blocked off their wills.


    Up ahead, in all directions, there were people also moving forward along the mountainside. From time to time, the shadow of a demonic beast would pass by. Yet, so as not to disturb the more powerful demonic beasts within the mountain, the crowd left these demonic beasts alone. After all, this was unknown territory for them. No one knew what sort of dangers they would encounter.


    As time passed, the Renhuangs ventured deeper into the range. However, they still had not reached the end. They appeared to have reached the inner parts of the black mountain range. The space above them was completely blocked off. It was filled with a mysterious aura. It seemed as though they would never be able to get out.


    Of course, they were not moving very fast. This area was too mysterious. In the secret zone, they also did not dare to be careless.


    ��Hmm?�� At that moment, silhouettes flashed ahead. Many people looked over in that direction. A group of figures appeared in different positions. Each of these figures had a terrifying aura. Demonic Qi circled around them. They were all Demon Emperors.


    They quietly stood there, not saying a word. They merely watched the various cultivators.


    At that moment, another silhouette descended from the sky. It was a youth dressed in a fur coat. His skin was smooth and fair, and he appeared very handsome. He had a deep gaze that seemed to contain a bizarre light as he swept a glance across the crowd.


    There are so many Demon Emperors in the secret zone? Ye Futian wondered. This might only be a portion of their numbers. There might be even more demons hidden away in this endless black mountain range.


    Had they been sealed away in this secret zone?


    ��Leave now,�� a demonic beast ordered. He was actually chasing the crowd away. This caused many cultivators to reveal strange looks. However, although the Renhuangs were not happy about this, they still dashed forward on their own. They did not want to cause trouble.


    The secret zone was becoming more and more mysterious. It seemed to contain some secrets.


    Ye Futian glanced over at these demonic beasts. He wanted to capture one of them to interrogate them about the situation in this place. However, it was not convenient to do so. If he angered the other party, it would bring him no benefit in this mountain range.


    They continued along the path carved out of the mountainside. Their steps were light, and they progressed at a rapid pace. Not long after they left, the demonic beasts left in another direction.


    ��Did they appear just to hasten us on our way?�� a Renhuang asked in a low voice, unable to make head or tail about the situation. As they advanced, they saw the figures of demonic beast flash past again, leaving behind afterimages. They kept passing by the cultivators. Aside from Demon Emperors, there were also many Demon Saints with less powerful cultivation.


    This caused many people to reveal bizarre expressions. This seemed to be a mountain range of demonic beasts.


    As more and more demonic beasts passed by the cultivators, many people realized that something was off.


    ��What is going on?�� someone turned around and asked the person beside them.


    ��They seem to be hurrying towards the same place,�� someone replied.


    Many Renhuangs glanced over at the demonic beasts passing by. Cold looks flashed past in their eyes. They intended to attack, wanting to capture a demonic beast for interrogation.


    ��For now, these demonic beasts seem to be completely ignoring us and allowing us to pass unobstructed. It might be that they have no time to care about us. Something might have happened,�� Li Changsheng deduced softly.


    Many people nodded in agreement. Ye Futian turned around and looked behind him. He saw that Little Condor had quietly left the area where the group was and had headed into the mountain range. Not long after, he saw Little Condor��s silhouette appear in another area. He had mingled into a group of demonic beasts and was moving with them.


    His figure flashed forwards as he sought out his prey. Very soon, he saw a female demon with long horns on her head. He ordered, ��Stop right there.��


    The female demon was pretty good-looking. She was a Bai Ze and was a Demon Saint. She turned around and asked Black Wind Condor, ��Senior, how may I help you?��


    ��I have just emerged from cultivating in seclusion. Where are all of you headed?�� Black Wind Condor asked. Demonic Qi circled around his body.


    ��There is a disturbance in Demon God Temple,�� the female demon explained. ��I need to make haste. Senior, do you want to head over together?��


    She was not afraid of Black Wind Condor��s demonic might. In this zone, the Bai Ze demon clan was also very powerful. She did not mind his presence.


    ��You may go on ahead,�� Black Wind Condor said expressionlessly. However, his eyes revealed a strange light as he transmitted this information to Ye Futian.


    Where Ye Futian was, he looked at the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower after he received this information. He then said to Li Changsheng and Zong Chan over transmitted thoughts, ��Elder brothers, my demonic beast companion has just gotten information on the situation. There is actually a Demon God Temple in this mountain range of demonic beasts. The demonic beasts are on the move because there is a disturbance in Demon God Temple.��


    This caused Li Changsheng and Zong Chan to reveal strange looks. There was actually a Demon God Temple in the secret zone?


    Could it be that the Demon God Temple was the ruins of a Demon God?


    If that was so, this secret zone was indeed frightening. Within this mountain range, there was more than one clan of demonic beasts. They were all sealed within this space.


    Buzz. At that moment, a silhouette flashed and appeared among the crowd. The figure said, ��I have just caught a demonic beast. There is a Demon God Temple in the mountain range. Shall we go over and take a look?��


    As he said this, all the Renhuangs in the area looked over at the figure who had spoken.


    Ye Futian also looked over in that direction. He recognized this person. This person had challenged him on the Law Battle Platform. He was very powerful and was proficient in the Sword of Light. It was Chen Yi.


    ��Is this true?�� someone asked.


    ��Of course, why would I lie? My cultivation is not high enough to handle the situation. Otherwise, I would not have shared this information with everyone,�� Chen Yi said with a smile. The crowd immediately believed what he had said. Although Chen Yi was powerful, after seeing the Demon Emperors in the mountain range, he would have surely perished if he had gone off alone. There was no chance of him making it out alive. He could only tell the others of this news.


    ��Are we going?�� someone asked. This might be a matter of life or death. After all, the demonic beasts moved in groups, and there were many powerful demons. Once the battle began, there might be casualties.


    Dong! Suddenly, the crowd felt their hearts throb. Everyone��s gazes turned sharp as they looked far off into the distance, in the direction where the demonic beasts were headed.


    Dong! Dong! The sensation grew more and more intense. The crowd felt their hearts beating even faster. They were about to face trouble!

 Chapter 2047 - Marked

    Should they go?


    In different locations, many cultivators glanced at each other. Many of them were conversing via transmitted thoughts.


    ��You are all among the upper echelons of the Donghua Domain. What is there to hesitate about?�� asked Chen Yi as he looked at the crowd. His tone seemed to carry a different kind of aura. Many top figures nodded their heads slightly. It was not that they did not have such boldness but that they were concerned about the junior Renhuangs beside them who had weaker cultivation.


    ��Let��s go take a look,�� someone said.


    ��Alright. Everyone, let��s head over together. We can also look out for each other. If we encounter enemies that we cannot defeat, proceed with caution,�� someone responded. In different areas, the various cultivators came to a consensus. They then set off in the same direction the demonic beasts were headed.


    As they followed the demonic beasts deeper into the mountain range, the violent throbbing sound could still be heard. It caused their hearts to beat uncontrollably. Even if they did not follow the demonic beasts, they could still locate the Demon God Temple based on this beat.


    When they noticed the movements of the cultivators, the demonic beasts who passed by swept cold glances at them. They seemed to look at the cultivators with disdain.


    Were these human cultivators also heading to the Demon God Temple?


    As they advanced, the various cultivators gradually sensed a huge pressure acting on them. They could faintly sense that a terrifying demonic might was descending upon them. Their hearts throbbed non-stop. Even their blood vessels were pulsating. This caused them to slow down in their tracks. They were worried that accidents would happen.


    They could slowly see frightening currents flowing around their bodies, being drawn into the distance. It was like a dragon gulping down a river. The currents of the Great Path were being sucked up into the distance.


    ��Over there.�� As they looked in the direction where the currents flowed towards, the crowd saw an illusory black temple. This black temple was frenziedly consuming the currents of the Great Path. Demonic Qi circled around it, and it was filled with a mysterious aura.


    The throbbing beat came from inside the temple. It caused the hearts of the people to beat uncontrollably.


    At the foot of the black temple, across different areas, there were many Demon Emperors gathered. They were all looking at the huge Demon God Temple with stern expressions.


    Behind Ye Futian, some Renhuangs had come to a stop. It was difficult for them to continue. The terrifying throbbing could kill them silently. If the cultivators continued advancing even when they had reached their limits, they would most likely die from the shock.


    Among the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, Beigong Shuang��s footsteps were heavy. She said, ��I cannot go on much further.��


    It was not just her. A few Renhuangs from the Wangshen Watchtower also felt the same.


    ��The Demon Emperors are in different locations. The demonic beasts have more vigor, so they can withstand this power better than we can,�� Ye Futian said in a low voice.


    The group nodded in agreement. Demonic beasts indeed have extremely vigorous life force.


    Of course, many Renhuangs with powerful cultivation could still push on. They were not as severely affected. Li Changsheng and Zong Chan did not have any serious reactions to the power acting on them. Although their hearts throbbed and Demonic Qi also churned non-stop, their gazes were calm and unperturbed.


    Up ahead, a powerful demon swept a glance at the approaching crowd of humans. One of the Demon Emperors glanced over at other locations. In a cold tone, he said, ��These humans have come to check on the commotion. What should we do about them?��


    The other powerful demons looked in different directions. These demonic beasts seemed to be divided into different camps. There was a clear distinction between the groups. They clearly belonged to different clans.


    ��Let��s settle them off first,�� a powerful demon said. His tone was cold and indifferent and contained murderous intent.


    ��We are merely here to take a look around. Why do we need to���� a Renhuang tried to reason with the demons. As he said this, he felt Demonic Qi surging towards him. It did not allow him to finish speaking. A Demon Emperor directly descended upon him like a shadow.


    Bang!


    There was a loud collision when their two figures came in contact. Before this, the Renhuang who had spoken had extended his hand. Bloodstains could be seen; his palm had been ripped apart.


    These demonic beasts were actually attacking them straight up, many people thought to themselves. Although there were many demonic beasts in the dark mountain range, there were also a large number of Renhuangs who had entered here. Many of them were from top forces. It was not easy for the demonic beasts to deal with them.


    ��I will deal with them. Settle those people first,�� said the handsome youth in the fur coat that Ye Futian��s group encountered before this. He said this as he pointed in the direction of the members of Wangshen Watchtower.


    A powerful demon floated towards Ye Futian��s group. The strangely handsome youth swept a glance towards them. He said, ��Before this, I recall warning all of you.��


    ��This place is so big. Surely we are not disturbing anyone by coming here to take a look around?�� Li Changsheng replied as he smiled back at the other party. He could sense that this handsome youth was a threat. This Demon Emperor seemed to appear younger and more handsome the older he got. He was certainly a super-powerful demon that had cultivated for eons. He changed his form to appear youthful, but in reality, he was an old monster.


    The Demonic Qi around them was frightening. Formless currents tore apart the space. The handsome youth swept towards the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower. He stepped out, and his figure disappeared without a trace the next moment.


    Buzz. His figure left behind afterimages. Li Changsheng sensed the danger and sent a palm strike flying out immediately. His palm strike seemed soft and gentle, yet even the space was twisted and vibrated under its force.


    Their two palms collided in an instant. The currents of the Great Path around them contorted frenziedly. What was even more terrifying was that an astonishing, consuming power suddenly burst forth in the vast space. It seemed to consume everything around them.


    A terrifying shadow appeared behind the handsome youth. Darkness descended, and rumbling sounds could be heard. Li Changsheng felt the aura of the Great Path in his body flow towards his opponent��s palm uncontrollably. It was not just him. The auras of the Great Path of various cultivators behind him seemed to be sucked in by the consuming current.


    For a moment, there was an intense rumbling noise throughout the mountain range. The peaks trembled, and it seemed as though the heavens and earth were falling apart.


    ��Stand down,�� said a silhouette as he walked forward. It was Zong Chan. Divine tablets appeared around his body. They blocked in front of him, lessening the effects of the intense, consuming power on the cultivators behind him.


    Rumble! The handsome Demon Emperor stepped onto the ground. The vast space seemed to be immediately consumed by him. Ye Futian and the others retreated backward. At the same time, Demon Emperors attacked from other directions. In an instant, a large-scale battle erupted in the space.


    Ye Futian and the group retreated. They saw gales ravaging their surroundings. Terrifying, powerful demons blocked out the sun in the sky. They charged towards the cultivators, intending to consume them.


    Zong Chan��s figure shot up into the sky. Many powerful Renhuangs began to attack. They never imagined that the Demon Emperors in the mountain range would attack so decisively.


    Ye Futian��s group retreated into the mountain range.


    ��Let��s go after him.�� Far off in other directions, the cultivators of two forces began to move. They were the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Renhuangs of Lingxiao Palace. They had long marked Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2048 - Murderous Intent

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The mountain range instantly descended into chaos. The cultivators from various forces were attacked by the demonic beasts one after another. Furthermore, the Renhuangs who came from the outside world were not united.


    For instance, as the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower were retreating from the attacks of the demonic beasts, not only did Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace not help them out, but they instead targeted Ye Futian��s group. Their figures also chased after Ye Futian��s group in a flash, as though they might attack them at any time.


    ��Let��s go,�� suggested Goddess Donglai as she led the cultivators in retreating when she saw that the situation was off. They retreated toward the mountains. From another direction, another group of people passed by. They were the cultivators of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. When they saw this situation, they revealed strange expressions. What were these demonic beasts doing?


    Jiang Yueli glanced at the battlefield and then looked ahead. She continued forward, advancing further ahead.


    The cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower kept retreating backward. They unknowingly ended up in a valley region. Behind them, they were blocked off by a huge black mountain. The Demon Emperors charging towards them swept a glance at the various cultivators. They then immediately turned and left, returning to where they were before.


    This caused the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower to reveal bizarre looks. Were they leaving just like that?


    However, right then, the cultivators of two forces walked out. They were the cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, as well as Lingxiao Palace, who had been targeting Ye Futian��s group.


    When she saw this scene, Goddess Donglai��s gaze turned extremely cold. She seemed to have thought of something. Why were these two forces targeting the Wangshen Watchtower as well as Ye Futian? Even if Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had its reason, why was Lingxiao Palace also doing so? Was it just because Ye Futian won against Ling He and disgraced him?


    This reason seemed insufficient.


    Unless there was another reason behind it��


    ��What are your intentions for doing this?�� Zong Chan said as he looked at the crowd of cultivators. Li Changsheng was not here, so he was naturally in charge. He also had the strongest ability among the group. They were attacked by Demon Emperors, and these two forces were eyeing them as well. To protect the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, they had retreated again and again.


    Now, the Demon Emperors had left, but these two forces seemed to show murderous intent.


    ��Before this, I have always wanted to experience the ability of the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower myself. Unfortunately, I never got the opportunity to do so. Now that there is no one to disturb us here in the secret zone, I cannot think of a better opportunity,�� said Yan Hanxing, the prince of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. He stepped forward and walked over to Zong Chan. His ninth-tier Renhuang aura was terrifying.


    The winds and clouds in the sky above shifted. Frighteningly huge divine dragons appeared. A shadow of a huge dragon also appeared behind him. Dragon cries filled the skies. The Song of the Yang Dragon radiated outwards, tearing apart the land with its roar. Sound waves of the Great Path swept out. Zong Chan took a step forward. Divine tablets of the Great Path burst forth, suppressing everything. The power of the sound waves were mostly blocked off by the divine tablets. However, the terrifying sound vibrations still shook the people behind him. Many people groaned, and their faces turned pale. They felt as though their spiritual souls were about to be shattered.


    Some Renhuangs were immediately sent flying backward, coughing up mouthfuls of fresh blood. Beigong Shuang also felt very uncomfortable. Blood oozed from the corners of her mouth. Her face was as pale as a sheet. Xia Qingyuan also let out a dull groan.


    Rumble. Zong Chan stepped forward, and countless divine tablets appeared around them. They hung from the heavens and were everywhere. He swept a glance at his opponent and formed seals with both his hands. The divine tablets immediately descended from the heavens and suppressed this part of the sky.


    Yan Hanxing had a serious expression. The cultivators also raised their heads and looked up into the sky. This attack seemed to be everywhere, suppressing this part of the sky and attacking all the cultivators at once.


    The divine dragon protected Yan Hanxing��s body. However, many cultivators behind him were not so lucky. Their figures were instantly sent flying.


    At that moment, a figure with extraordinary temperament emerged from among the cultivators of Lingxiao Palace. The figure had ninth-tier cultivation. A gigantic Lingxiao Pagoda appeared and floated in the sky. Endless golden divine light descended upon them, sweeping towards the various cultivators.


    When she saw this scene, Goddess Donglai took a step forward. Her figure became that of a towering divine tree. Its endless branches spread outwards and covered the sky and the sun. It protected all of the cultivators beneath it.


    ��All of you, step back,�� Goddess Donglai ordered. The lineup of the two major forces was far stronger than they were. If a group battle were to erupt here, the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower would surely be at a disadvantage.


    ��Uncle Beigong, Zi Feng, help me take care of Qingyuan,�� Ye Futian said to Beigong Ao and Zi Feng via transmitted thoughts. With a flash of his silhouette, he then headed over in one direction alone. He sensed that many of their opponents were targeting him. His death was the greatest wish of Ling He, Yan Dongyang, and many other cultivators. Hence, he decided to draw their attention away from the others.


    As he said this, his silhouette flashed, and he headed to one side. There was a huge rumble, and a landslide occurred. He immediately tunneled through the ancient black mountain.


    As expected, when they saw Ye Futian leaving, many people gave pursuit. There were actually more than a dozen Renhuangs heading in Ye Futian��s direction. This made it clear how high a priority Ye Futian was for the two major forces.


    The deep black mountain was frenziedly collapsing and being destroyed. Ye Futian kept advancing at an astonishing speed. Beigong Ao had eighth-tier cultivation and had the Cloud Wood. Zi Feng had a flawless Great Path and very powerful combat ability. They should be able to fend for themselves.


    Ye Futian drew many cultivators along with him when he went off on his own. This included powerful eighth-tier Renhuangs. This way, they could even out the pressure on the battlefield.


    After a short while, Ye Futian traversed some distance through the mountain range. He came to a place surrounded by ancient black peaks. With a loud rumble, Ye Futian��s figure collided with a terrifying, gigantic black mountain. He actually did not manage to bore through it. This gigantic black mountain was like a divine mountain. A mysterious aura radiated from it. It forcefully knocked Ye Futian back.


    Dozens of Renhuangs chased after Ye Futian, rushing up to pressure him. They stood at different positions, gradually surrounding Ye Futian in this huge space.


    Yan Dongyang and Ling He were both here. Their eyes flared up with murderous intent. No matter how outstanding Ye Futian��s talent was, he needed to die. He was the inheritor of Supreme Deity Donglai��s teachings and also joined the Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate. He actually still dared to display such talents. There was no reason for him to live.


    Ling He extended his palm, and a divine tower flew out from his hand. It flew up into the sky and then grew larger and larger. It floated high in the sky and became a gigantic divine tower.


    The direct descendants of Lingxiao Palace possessed the Ling Xiao Pagoda Life Spirit. This treasure was concocted from it. As the tower floated in the sky, frightening golden currents descended from it. The might of the Great Path also pressed down and completely sealed off the space. Golden currents covered the vast space, seemingly blocking out the sky and the sun.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced around. When he sensed the might of the Great Path, his gaze turned cold and indifferent. Were they separating the space off so that it was more convenient for them to kill him?


    ��Are all of you going to ignore the words of Chief Ning?�� Ye Futian asked in a cold tone. Were these two major forces ignoring the rules established by the overseer of the Donghua Domain?


    The crowd looked at him with mocking looks. It was as though they were looking at a dead person. Ling He laughed and said, ��If you die to the demonic beasts in the mountain range, what does that have to do with us?��

 Chapter 2049 - Not Enough

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at Ling He. The other party did not shy away from admitting that they wanted him to die here.


    It was not just that. These people would certainly not hold back against the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. They truly came with murderous intent.


    Were Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace really going to act so presumptuous after joining forces?


    In the heavens above, the tower floated in the sky. The dazzling shadow of the tower loomed over this part of the sky and suppressed it. It caused this part of the space to feel exceptionally heavy. Flowing lights of the Great Path immediately charged towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s will shifted, and a brilliant divine sword instantly appeared before him. This divine sword contained terrifying sword will as it went against the flow of light. It hovered above Ye Futian��s head. The currents of swordsmanship and the light of the tower collided, letting out an ear-piercing sound.


    ��Attack,�� ordered Ling He. His gaze was filled with intense murderous intent. He immediately gave the order for his subordinates to kill Ye Futian.


    As he gave the order, an eighth-tier Renhuang from Lingxiao Palace attacked. The eighth-tier cultivator took a step forward. A long golden spear in his hand released brilliant divine light that directly pierced the sky.


    Buzz! The frightening Lingxi Spear was astonishing. The spear was extremely fast, penetrating the very fabric of space. Ye Futian��s reaction time was also rapid, as he dodged it instantly. The spear swept past his figure.


    Before Ye Futian could react again, another spear descended. The spear chased after its own shadow as the Lingxi Spear seemed to merge with the Great Path. Ye Futian felt the space in front of him being torn apart and shattered. The power of the Great Path was pierced through. A long spear similarly appeared in Ye Futian��s hand. Frightening battle intent circled it. Without any hesitation, he stabbed his spear straight out in front of him. He could not keep evading his opponent��s spear techniques. He could only counter with his own attacks.


    The two long spears clashed. Ye Futian��s figure was immediately sent flying from the shockwave. Even though he had a flawless Great Path, he was still just a fourth-tier Renhuang. He was facing an eighth-tier Renhuang, and one from Lingxiao Palace who was proficient in Lingxi Spear techniques.


    Purely in terms of spear techniques, he was already at a disadvantage.


    The eighth-tier cultivator did not continue to attack, instead looking at Ye Futian with a serious expression. This person was actually also proficient in spear techniques?


    Frightening battle intent emanated from the long spear in Ye Futian��s hand. This battle intent circled and surged into his body. It caused Ye Futian��s battle intent to burst forth. His will was mighty. It was as though a spear god had possessed him.


    The will of the Great Path surrounded the body of the eighth-tier cultivator. He stood there, becoming one with his spear. He gave off an ethereal vibe and had an extraordinary temperament. Ye Futian stared at the other party. A divine tree seemed to appear in his body. Currents of the Great Path emanated outwards. The vast space seemed to be enveloped by these currents.


    At the same time, vigorous life force radiated from Ye Futian��s body. It caused his will and energy to reach their utmost limits. His battle intent seemed to burst forth from his body. On top of that, a frightening domain of the Great Path appeared behind him. The stars circled him, and countless stone tablets seemed to appear. There were runes carved on each tablet. Divine light of the Great Path shone, and the Buddhist Voice of the Great Path could faintly be heard chanting the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm.


    The next moment, currents of the Great Path appeared above Ye Futian��s head. They consumed the power in the surroundings. A Yin Yang Diagram of the Great Path was created. This Yin Yang Diagram seemed to be connected to the divine tree, perfectly merging with it. Half of the diagram was as hot as the scorching sun, the other half as cold as the moon. The power of Yin radiated from it. Sword light of catastrophe hung above. This space became extremely frightening. It caused even the eighth-tier cultivator to feel pressured.


    Right now, Ye Futian seemed very powerful to him.


    Even more powerful aura emanated from the Renhuang��s figure. He merely stood there, but frightening currents of the Great Path emanated outwards. Countless shadows split from his figure. Each shadow contained a terrifying aura. They charged towards Ye Futian. For a moment, the will of their spears was astonishing.


    The countless shadows advanced, appearing in different locations. They appeared to be everywhere. The next moment, the figure of the eighth-tier Renhuang moved. He disappeared from his original position. Ye Futian could not see where he had disappeared to.


    Buzz! In the heavens above, the Yin Yang Diagram released terrifying lights of catastrophe. They swept out across the space. At the same time, Ye Futian stabbed out with his spear. The astonishing will of the spear radiated out, seemingly able to pierce the space.


    Bang! There was a loud sound, and a shadow appeared before Ye Futian. The two spears clashed straight into each other. The shadow revealed a strange look, appearing to be caught off guard by this. Ye Futian had actually pinpointed his position without fail. Not only that, but the Renhuang also felt that within this domain of the Great Path, his Way was being restricted. For instance, the chill caused his movements to be slowed down.


    The body of the eighth-tier Renhuang disappeared without a trace as though it was but one of his shadows. The next moment, another shadow suddenly emerged, and another frightening spear stabbed out to kill Ye Futian. Its speed was so fast that Ye Futian could not react to it.


    The stone tablets directly flew over. With loud rumbles, they frenziedly exploded and turned to dust. The light of catastrophe directly pierced the space. When Ye Futian��s spear appeared again, it landed straight on the tip of the Renhuang��s spear. It was as though Ye Futian could completely read his every movement. However, the powerful attack still caused the Great Path around Ye Futian��s body to crumble. His figure was sent flying outward.


    Next, countless spears continuously appeared in different locations. Each spear was like the brush of a deity. However, each spear was actually blocked by Ye Futian. Each time Ye Futian was sent flying, the Renhuang felt that Ye Futian would certainly be unable to withstand the next spear. Yet, he discovered that there was always another spear that Ye Futian could block.


    What was even more frightening was that he discovered this place had become Ye Futian��s domain of the Great Path. The chill grew more and more intense, already beginning to invade his body and affect his speed. The light of catastrophe that descended from the sky also kept destroying his shadows.


    Not only was Ye Futian not defeated, but the Renhuang instead was being gradually restricted.


    ��Something is off.�� The others also began to realize this. Currents of the Great Path also appeared around them. The currents were everywhere. The vast space seemed to be affected by Ye Futian��s currents of the Great Path. It appeared to have become his own domain of the Great Path.


    ��Do not dawdle any longer. Kill him,�� ordered Yan Dongyang as a cold look flashed past in his eyes. This time, their lineup was extremely powerful. They had eight eighth-tier Renhuangs alone. Yan Dongyang and Ling He were considered the ones with the weakest cultivation among their lineup. Against such odds, it was difficult for Ye Futian to escape them. No matter how talented he was, he would certainly perish.


    ��Hmm,�� the others answered as they nodded their heads. They stepped forward, and immediately, astonishing auras of the Great Path burst forth from different directions simultaneously, sweeping towards Ye Futian.


    At the same time, the Yin Yang Diagram in the sky above consumed the power of the Great Path around them. The light of catastrophe that descended in the form of swords. Everywhere they landed, everything was destroyed.


    Yan Dongyang and Ling He were similarly in the attack range.


    They frowned as they glared at Ye Futian. Ye Futian wielded the long spear in his hand. He stood against them alone. As he swept a glance towards them, he said, ��With these people, it is still not enough!��

 Chapter 2050 - The Slaughter

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Yan Dongyang and Ling He frowned. All of them were not enough?


    ��Be careful,�� someone reminded them. The Yin Yang pattern that floated above their heads felt extremely dangerous.


    Psst�� There was a sharp and terrifying sound. The destructive current of the Great Path from the Yin Yang pattern attacked downward, keeping everyone in its grip. Yan Dongyang and Ling He were also caught up in the attack.


    Having felt that terrifying current of destruction, both of them released the Divine Wheel of Great Path. At the same time, there were also divine items that were blooming with brilliant radiance.


    Yan Dongyang seemed to be wrapped up in the form of the true dragon as a gigantic shadow of the dragon appeared. The falling currents of destruction were attacking it, making terrible sounds. Yan Dongyang found that the shadow of the dragon could not resist the coming attacks. An armor of golden dragon scale gradually attached itself to his body, which made him appeared fierce and terrifying. His eyes were frightening to behold. When he first fought Ye Futian at Wangshen Watchtower, he didn��t have an accurate sense of his power. It wasn��t until much later that he realized Ye Futian had been hiding his true strength all along.


    Now he knew clearly that he and Ye Futian were hardly at the same level, and that his opponent��s combat effectiveness was at a totally different realm.


    Ling He fared no better as he was busy fighting off the destructive currents of swordsmanship that fell from the void.


    By this time, other cultivators were taking actions as well. The three cultivators of the Eighth Realm unleashed the terrible power of the Great Path at the same time. Thousands of spear shadows appeared, and countless afterimages appeared in this part of the space. Lingxi Spear bloomed once again, and penetrated the void in a single strike. In another direction, a Lingxiao Pagoda appeared on the mountain top above Ye Futian��s head; it was the Divine Wheel of Great Path from one of the cultivators of the Eighth Realm. The light of the Divine Wheel came crashing down. It flattened everything in its path and kept Ye Futian in place. Behind Ye Futian, a sacred giant dragon appeared, and the roar from the Song of the Yang Dragon shattered mountains and rivers. The sky and earth seemed to come apart as waves of sonic attacks swept through the area, directly attacking the spiritual soul. The sharp claws of the massive true dragon slammed down and torn apart that corner of the sky.


    Ye Futian was attacked at the same time by three powerful cultivators of the Eighth Realm. That space of the Great Path was about to burst and shatter; there was simply no room to hide.


    Yan Dongyang and Ling He stared in that direction. Could Ye Futian survive such a choreographed attack?


    The storm of destruction came with a vengeance. Both the spiritual soul and the physical body were crushed by the terrifying Great Path, it seemed completely unstoppable.


    The starry storm that surrounded Ye Futian was broken up and destroyed. Although the attack of the swordsmanship was quite strong, it could not affect the blow from the opposing three cultivators. Life and death were only in a matter of instant.


    At this moment, an extreme chill swept out, and shutdown the space with ice. This slowed down all three cultivators�� attack speed, and time seemed to come to a stop. At the same time, a terrifying sacred radiance bloomed from Ye Futian. This sacred radiance contained the might of the Great Path, which meld into Ye Futian��s body as well as his Fighting Will. All three cultivators of the Eighth Realm felt a supreme pressure of might, as if this coercion was coming from an even higher level of existence.


    This moment seemed endless. Their attack could have arrived in an instant, but everything seemed to have slowed down. The attack that could have accomplished in an instant was delayed and did not fall as expected. However, they saw the divine light that lingered upon Ye Futian. The Fighting Will of the long spear swept out and destroyed all power of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian��s body moved, and man and spear became one. When the spear was piercing forward, that cultivator of the Eighth Realm from Lingxiao Palace only felt that the Great Path madly collapsing and shattering. It seemed that it was not Ye Futian he was facing, but some descendant of the gods who would not be denied.


    As the shadow of the spear passed through, the crowd saw countless golden fragments appeared in the wake of the spear, and that everything had turned into dust.


    Time seemed to stand still, and all the cultivators looked at that cultivator of the Eighth Realm from Lingxiao Palace. He stood there, motionless, with golden divine light surrounding his body, like a statue.


    In the next moment, that statue-like figure shattered into nothingness, turned into a cloud of golden dust and disappeared.


    A cultivator of the Eighth Realm, obliterated just like that.


    Everyone else��s face changed when they witness what had taken place. Not only that, but they also saw a magnificent imperial glory emitted from Ye Futian��s body. It shot straight into the heavens. The imperial glory had been integrated into the Fighting Will of the spear, and made that Fighting Will a reality, materialized into terrifying aurora of the spear.


    ��How is this possible?�� Ling He stared at Ye Futian, unable to believe what he was seeing before his eyes. Wasn��t Ye Futian the chosen heir of Eastern Deity Island? How could he possess such terrifying power?


    Was that the imperial glory on his body?


    How could he embody the Will of the Great Emperor?


    Was he really no more than just the chosen heir of Eastern Deity Island?


    Yan Dongyang��s expression was equally comical. His eyes were glued on the scene playing out in front of him as if he couldn��t believe what he was seeing. A powerful existence of the Eight Realm had just perished like that, felled with a single strike of the spear.


    Ye Futian paid no attention to any of them. The spear in his hand pointed forward, and the Imperial glory on his body rushed straight into the sky. It was as if directly integrated into the Yin Yang pattern so that the falling light of catastrophe also became golden.


    ��Watch out!�� people exclaimed as the light of catastrophe fell. A cultivator of the Seventh Realm was torn apart instantly. His body shattered into nothingness.


    The expression of the other cultivators changed drastically. Except for the two cultivators of the Eighth Realm, the rest of the people were retreating, releasing a terrifying current of the Great Path. However, Ye Futian was suspended in mid-air, and the Yin Yang pattern kept expanding. The falling Ying Yang light of catastrophe shattered and destroyed the Great Path. Under the light of catastrophe, all the cultivators were also shattered into nothingness.


    The screams continued. Except for the two cultivators of the Eighth Realm, no one else was able to resist this catastrophic light of destruction. Of course, Yan Dongyang and Ling He were still alive, but it was not because they had the ability to resist. They were still breathing because Ye Futian was not in a rush to kill them.


    At this moment, Ye Futian moved toward the two cultivators of the Eighth Realm. When the light of catastrophe came down, the two cultivators resisted with all their might. When they saw Ye Futian was coming toward them, their faces paled.


    Buzz! The Yin Yang pattern directly shone on a cultivator of the Eight Realm. As the two extreme powers of the moon and the sun descended, accompanied by an infinite catastrophic light of swordsmanship, that cultivator of the Eight Realm released the Lingxiao Pagoda on his body to the extreme to resist the attack. However, Ye Futian disappeared from where he stood in an instant.


    The long spear blast upon the Lingxiao Pagoda with a loud bang. Under the overwhelming Fighting Will, the Pagoda of the Divine Wheel shattered and was destroyed. The light of catastrophe descended as that cultivator of the Eighth Realm screamed. But in the next moment, a long spear passed through his skull and ended his life.


    ��Who are you?�� the remaining cultivator of the Eighth Realm from the ancient royal family of Yan asked Ye Futian as his eyes fixed upon him.


    ��The one who killed you.�� As soon as Ye Futian��s voice faded away, the spear was unleashed. As the terrifying spear blasted on the sacred dragon, and cracks continued to appear on its body. At the same time, the light of catastrophe fell, tearing the dragon apart and rushed into their defenses. There was another scream as the Yin Yang Catastrophe came down upon them. The body of the other shattered little by little, until it turned to dust.


    In a blink of an eye, an extremely powerful army of Renhuang was reduced to just Yan Dongyang and Ling He, who were still alive. All the others had perished.


    Ye Futian turned to face Yan Dongyang and Ling He. Finally, there was a strong sense of fear and dread in their eyes. Ling He looked at Ye Futian and said, ��You can��t kill us!��


    ��You were killed by a demonic beast. How does that have anything to do with me?�� Ye Futian responded coldly.


    ��No���� Ling He replied, ��If we die here, everyone will know it��s your doing. The Yan Kingdom, Lingxiao Palace, and even the Domain Chief��s Manor will not let you off the hook.��


    ��When you were after me, didn��t you ever consider the consequences?�� The Fighting Will puffed out of the spear that was in Ye Futian��s hand. Its murderous intent was burning hot. He had killed so many by this time that there was no difference if he killed these two or not.


    Ling He glanced in the direction where those people had disappeared and seemed to realize that Ye Futian no longer had any recourse. He said, ��There is still a chance. As long as you let us go, all the grievances will be forgiven. The Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace will no longer pursue the matter. What say you?��


    Pah�� The response was a strike from Ye Futian��s spear, piercing his throat. Ling He stared at the man in front of him, an extremely painful expression in his eyes. He couldn��t believe this was true, that he would be killed just like this.


    The spear spun slightly, and Ling He��s body immediately shattered and turned to dust. It was as if he had never existed in the first place.


    Yan Dongyang��s eyes fixed on Ye Futian, and a great sense of fear struck him. He seemed to have a premonition of his fate.


    Ling He had been exterminated and the other would not let him get away with it; he had no escape.


    ��You will be with us soon enough,�� Yan Dongyang said to Ye Futian. His tone was extremely confident. It was as if he had foreseen the end of Ye Futian.


    ��You won��t see it anyway,�� Ye Futian replied. As his voice faded, the light of catastrophe fell. Under that light of catastrophe, Yan Dongyang uttered a terrible cry as his body was torn apart, turning little by little into nothingness.


    All the cultivators had been killed!

 Chapter 2051 - The One Behind the Scenes

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Ye Futian had slaughtered all the cultivators, he retracted the imperial glory, which should not be exposed in front of the others. He raised his hand to take away the pagoda that had sealed off this space in the void. The aftershocks of the Great Path still lingered.


    He did not leave but stood there in a daze. His brows were knitted tightly, like he had thought of something awful.


    Ye Futian had a strong sense of foreboding. This was not because he had just killed the cultivators from the ancient royal family of Yan and Ling Xiao Palace. Strictly speaking, they had violated the rules first and forced him to fight back because he had no other choice.


    What really disturbed him was this whole series of events. It seemed that they could all be linked together. However, if they were to be linked together, they inevitably pointed toward the speculation that would upend all his plans. Worse yet, he may also be facing the calamity between life and death, possibly perishing in the Donghua Heavens.


    Just as Ye Futian was deep in thought, a powerful aura suddenly came from the distant void. He raised his head and saw a group of people descending on him. The man in the lead had divine light shining all over him, possessing an unparalleled temperament.


    When Ye Futian saw the appearance of this man, his uneasiness became stronger. It was as if his suspicion was getting closer to becoming the truth. Although he was guessing, he had hoped that he was wrong. Once it had been proven to be right, the consequences would be unimaginable.


    But things seemed to be moving in the worst possible direction.


    The man that appeared was the number one genius talent of the Donghua Heavens, the proud son of the chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor��Ning Hua.


    The person behind him was the cultivator from Domain Chief��s Manor who had entered the Secret Zone with him.


    Ning Hua looked down at Ye Futian as his eyes surveyed the area below. His sight swept toward the broken ground and those corpses. His face suddenly became extremely cold, full of murderous intent.


    Ye Futian didn��t explain anything but merely looked up at Ning Hua.


    Ning Hua stared at him as he stepped forward. The light of the Grand Seal of the Great Path was shining, and traces of divine glory of the Seal enveloped this boundless space. The Way of the Seal was hidden inside his eyes and directly rushed into Ye Futian��s eyes. Ye Futian suddenly felt that all the will of the Great Path was sealed shut, and the same with the Great Path that surrounded him.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt the gap. Even though they both possessed a perfect Great Path, his opponent was an upper Renhuang of the Seventh Realm at his peak while he was just a Renhuang Fourth Realm. The gap between them was not insubstantial. Moreover, Ning Hua himself was a genius known as the number one figure in the Donghua Domain.


    Such a gap was difficult to address. Ye Futian had killed more than a dozen powerful cultivators before, but he knew he had no chance against Ning Hua.


    Above Ning Hua, a divine picture of a seal hung high in the sky as the divine light of the Great Path spilled down upon Ye Futian. At the same time, Ning Hua raised his palm and dealt a single blow. This blow shook the void with a violent tremor, and endless palm strikes seemed to overlap, turning into countless patterns of the Great Path that attacked in unison.


    Silently, Ning Hua directly launched the attack.


    The long spear in Ye Futian��s hand puffed out terrible Fighting Will as the spear lanced forward. However, the radiant pattern of the Great Path swept through his body, and the power of the long spear, as well as the power inside of Ye Futian, seemed to be sealed instantaneously.


    Multiple hits from the palm strike landed at the same time; even the aurora of the spear was annihilated.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian��s body was knocked back and hit the black mountain wall fiercely, causing the entire side of the mountain to vibrate violently.


    Sure enough, without any words or questions, he had resort to a strict offense.


    Ye Futian was obvious on Ning Hua��s stance, and it also confirmed his suspicion. Suddenly, he felt a coldness all over.


    It turned out that what he had always wanted to do was a huge mistake in itself. He was walking into the abyss, step by step, all by himself.


    ��While in the trial at the Secret Zone, you slaughtered people from all forces also there for the trial. You should die,�� Ning Hua said with a cold tone. He stood in the void and looked down at Ye Futian. There was contempt in those arrogant eyes.


    Even though Ye Futian had extraordinary talents, he still had just one thing to say��that was he should be executed.


    He wanted Ye Futian dead.


    As soon as his voice fell, all the cultivators behind him immediately moved forward and headed toward Ye Futian. Ning Hua didn��t need to take action himself; they would take care of Ye Futian and ensure his demise.


    The terrible aura of the Great Path descended, and Ye Futian looked bad. His eyes were staring coldly at those cultivators who were approaching him.


    ��Stop����


    At this moment, there was a great shout. In the distance, with the speed of the wind, the aura of the Great Path descended. Several people were rushing over with extreme speed. It was Li Changsheng, Zong Chan, and the others who had extricated themselves from the battles on the other side.


    ��Vice Chief, what is the meaning of this?�� Li Changsheng said from mid-air. When his voice fell, he was already at Ye Futian��s side, looking at Ning Hua and the cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    ��My father has already said that in the Secret Zone, there must be no killing. However, Ye Futian has slaughtered all the Renhuang. You may report to the Millet Emperor that this man belongs to the Domain Chief��s Manor.�� Ning Hua spoke with total authority. He had no intention to spare Ye Futian��s life.


    ��Brothers,�� Ye Futian transmitted his voice to Li Changsheng and Zong Chan, is there any way to tell the Millet Emperor that there is a problem with the Chief?��


    When Li Changsheng and Zong Chan heard Ye Futian��s voice transmission, their hearts trembled. They were no fools, and when they heard what Ye Futian had to say, a bold possibility came to them suddenly. It made their hearts skip a beat.


    Was that the problem?


    This was precisely the reason why Ye Futian felt hopeless.


    He chose to come to the Domain Chief��s Manor to participate in the Donghua banquet, displaying his superior strength and talent, and entered the Secret Zone for trial. All these efforts were so that he could enter the Domain Chief��s Manor with absolute dominance to cultivate. Then, what could the ancient royal family of Yan and Lingxiao Palace possibly do to him?


    However, he realized now that he was dead wrong.


    Neither force��the ancient royal family of Yan or Linxiao Palace��had the slightest scruples about killing him. Why was that? They had set their sights on him from the very beginning. Clearly, they had this intention before entering the Secret Zone. It was not something that just happened by chance.


    The Donghua banquet was taking place here, and the Chief was just outside. Was demonic beast a plausible excuse? Surely the Chief was not so na?ve as to believe it.


    Since it was not plausible, why did the others dared to do what they did?


    Remembering Ling He��s aggression and confidence, and Yan Dongyang��s last words, coupled with the action of the Palace Lord of Ling Xiao Palace at the banquet, a thought started to form inside Ye Futian��s mind. Even before that, the Lingxiao Palace had pledged itself to the chief��


    They might have been doing the bidding of the Chief.


    Before, when Ling He was courting Qin Qing, the goddess of Fluttering Snow Palace, it was also in the effort to link these top forces to form a net of power.


    Ling He and Qin Qing, Ning Hua and Taihua Goddess!


    The more he thought about it, the more alarmed he became.


    The Chief of Donghua Domain was the one ruling things behind the scenes!

 Chapter 2052 - Lurking Perils

    Ye Futian also remembered something else. The Millet Emperor had asked him if Supreme Deity Donglai had any memory of the last battle.


    Moreover, if Supreme Deity Donglai still retained some memory of it, why didn��t he pass them on to Goddess Donglai? Nor did he tell her the details of that last battle. The Millet Emperor and outsiders knew that Supreme Deity Donglai still had some residual memories of the battle.


    Now, Ye Futian understood that it was because Supreme Deity Donglai didn��t want to implicate Goddess Donglai and the rest of Eastern Deity Island, as well as the Millet Emperor. If they knew the truth, disaster might ensue.


    According to Goddess Donglai, the death of Supreme Deity Donglai caused the conflict between the Millet Emperor and the ancient royal family of Yan. The Chief came forward to mediate the matter and ruled that the Millet Emperor could not involve himself further with Eastern Deity Island. Based on that ruling, the ancient royal family of Yan dropped the matter with Eastern Deity Island. At the same time, Eastern Deity Island stopped its involvement with the outside world, so peace was restored.


    Although the ancient royal family of Yan and Wangshen Watchtower had grudges, they were able to maintain a semblance of peace, and the Donghua Domain remained orderly.


    However, now Ye Futian truly comprehended that the death of Supreme Deity Donglai not only involved the ancient royal family of Yan and Lingxiao Palace, but it was also very possible that the Domain Chief��s Manor was behind the whole thing. This was the reason why when they were at Turtle Deity Island, in front of the Chief, Lingxiao Palace did not hesitate to get between the grudge match between the ancient royal family of Yan and Wangshen Watchtower. After that, the two sides had always worked together in their dealings with Wangshen Watchtower. After they entered the secret zone, they had flouted the rules set by the Chief and directly moved against them with bad intentions.


    After given the matter considerable thought, everything suddenly became clear. The Chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor was the true power backing the ancient royal family of Yan and Lingxiao Palace. Because of this, they had no qualms about killing them here as they please, intending on killing him and all the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower in one fell swoop. They didn��t need to worry that the Chief would punish them.


    The Chief was one behind the scenes. Why would he punish them?


    Of course, Ye Futian suspected that he might be the fuse; his talent had alarmed many. Otherwise, everything may remain the same as it was before. For the sake of maintaining order in the Donghua Domain, Chief Ning could do nothing against them. It wouldn��t really threaten them anyway.


    His existence had motivated many with the worst of intentions.


    ��Okay,�� Li Changsheng replied quickly. Clearly, he had a way to get in touch with the Millet Emperor. He had traded transmission treasures back when he was at Penglai Deity Island. Other top figures may also have transmission items at their disposal.


    When he heard Ye Futian��s voice transmission, Li Changsheng understood that this matter was of grave importance and would likely affect the entire Wangshen Watchtower. Even his master, the Millet Emperor, would not be spared.


    Before, the master was only hypothesizing that Lingxiao Palace may have participated. Still, no one could have thought that the person behind it all was the helmsman of Donghua Domain��Chief Ning.


    As a result, the entire Wangshen Watchtower was now in the same precarious situation as Eastern Deity Island once was.


    ��


    At the Domain Chief��s Manor, the clouds and mist surrounded the place with a divine aura. Inside Donghua Palace, a group of top masters was still there. They drank while looking down at a mountain below, which would be the exit of the secret zone. Those who entered the Fuyao Secret Zone would eventually emerge after they had run through its course.


    The group chatted casually, talking and laughing, discussing who would be the first cultivator to get out of the secret zone.


    At this point, the Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace, who was talking and laughing, suddenly turned pale. His face became extremely gloomy, and a terrible aura spread from him. It caused the entire Donghua Palace to quiet instantly.


    Everyone looked at Ling Yunzi, the Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace. Someone asked, ��What��s happening?��


    Chief Ning also looked at Ling Yunzi and asked, ��What is it?��


    Ling Yunzi showed a pained look in his eyes, clenching his fists. He said, ��Something has happened to Ling He.��


    Chief Ning��s expression changed slightly. Everyone within the Donghua Palace had different looks on their faces, but they were all wondering, Did Ling He perish in the secret zone?


    Although there was some danger in the secret zone, Ning Hua and the others from the Domain Chief��s Manor were with him, as well. Theoretically speaking, someone with Ling He��s status ought to be fine.


    However, at this moment, Ling Yunzi suggested that something had happened to Ling He.


    While Ling He was in the secret zone, no one outside would know what happened inside. Ling Yunzi would only get a sense of foreboding if Ling He were dead.


    Clink!


    The sound of broken wine glass was heard. Before anyone understood what happened, they looked in the direction of the sound. It was Emperor Yan.


    Emperor Yan��s face had a horrible look on it as the wine glass shattered in his palm and turned into dust. The wine spilling on the table. His eyes were a little hollow as he looked in the direction of chief Ning. He whispered, ��Dongyang����


    Yan Dongyang!


    Everyone trembled in their hearts. What was going on?


    Ling He and Yan Dongyang, two genius talents from two major principalities, descendants of prominent heritage, coupled with strong cultivation and outstanding talents. How could both of them have died?


    Furthermore, didn��t they bring top Renhuang with them?


    For a moment, Donghua Palace was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. There was also a slight sense of suppression.


    ��Did they encounter danger in the secret zone?�� Emperor Xi whispered, breaking the silence inside the Donghua Palace. Chief Ning glanced around and offered, ��You both have our condolences.��


    The Millet Emperor sat quietly. He faintly felt that an aura from Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi falling on him. He frowned and wondered, Could this have anything to do with Wangshen Watchtower?


    But everyone was in the secret zone, so no one knew exactly what was happening.


    Unless��


    They had planned this ahead of time.


    Without thinking more about the matter, his heart trembled suddenly. His eyes sharpened slightly when he received a message, and he was stunned for just a second.


    The Millet Emperor controlled his own emotions so that there was no fluctuation in his own aura. As if everything was business as usual, he lowered his head and took a sip from the wine glass, but there was a great disturbance in his heart.


    Could it be Domain Chief��s Manor of Donghua Domain?


    The Millet Emperor was a little bewildered before, but everything became clear when he received this message. He now understood everything.


    However, he could not afford to reveal this knowledge.


    ��Chief, it suddenly occurred to me that I have something that needs handling. I need to leave for a few moments.�� Millet Emperor controlled his emotions and raised his glass to Chief Ning.


    Chief Ning looked at the Millet Emperor with a strange look in his eyes but asked softly, ��It��s not easy for us to get together. What��s so important?��


    ��A private matter,�� the Millet Emperor responded, and Chief Ning nodded slightly, not revealing whether or not he had any doubts. On the surface, everything seemed to be just fine.


    ��What does the Millet Emperor mean by this?�� Ling Yunzi said suddenly, his voice icy.


    Emperor Yan also looked at him with a cold expression. These two major cultivators both dropped their aura faintly on the Millet Emperor.


    ��I don��t understand the meaning of your words,�� said the Millet Emperor with a frown.


    ��Lingxiao Palace and the Yan Kingdom happened to have some grievances with Wangshen Watchtower. And now, something has happened to Ling He and Yan Dongyang. What does the Millet Emperor know?�� Ling Yunzi said coldly.


    ��The Millet Emperor ordered the hit?�� Emperor Yan interrogated unceremoniously without any further pretenses.


    ��Are you kidding me?�� Likewise, the Millet Emperor released wisps of pressure from his body. ��The Chief set the rules regarding this trip to the secret zone. Would I be so foolish as to let the people of Wangshen Watchtower violate them? Besides, you two were full of confidence before, specifically targeting the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. How dare you attribute the cause of any mishaps to me now? When did Wangshen Watchtower become so worthy in your eyes? Do you think that your cultivators are somehow inferior to my disciple inside the secret zone?


    ��Or, do the two of you know something that made you suspect Wangshen Watchtower in the first place?��


    The Millet Emperor��s questioning silenced everyone for a while. The Thunder Punishing Skylord said, ��Before, it was always Lingxiao Palace and the Yan Kingdom that took the initiative. Even inside the secret zone, the Millet Emperor would not be so bold as to authorize Wangshen Watchtower to make enemies of two great principalities. Not to mention, it would violate the rules set by the Chief; this is indeed unreasonable.��


    Ling Yunzi and Emperor Yan looked at the Thunder Punishing Skylord with indifference. They knew what orders they had given, so they had a pretty good idea of what might have happened. Their estimation would not be too far off. Otherwise, they couldn��t figure out who gave the order.


    However, some things could not be said openly. He couldn��t very well admit that they had ordered the people from the two great principalities to assassinate Wangshen Watchtower and Ye Futian.


    ��The Millet Emperor picking this juncture to leave is too much of a coincidence. If the Millet Emperor thinks that this has nothing to do with Wangshen Watchtower, why not stay?�� said the Palace Lord of Lingxiao Palace coldly.


    ��Ling Yunzi, you mean to suggest that I gave this kind of order and now am going to abandon the disciples of Wangshen Watchtower and get myself out of here?�� The Millet Emperor��s eyes were now sharp and unforgiving as he questioned Ling Yunzi. This line of logic was in itself contradictory and absurd.


    As soon as he finished speaking, the Millet Emperor stood up and said, ��If I want to leave, are you going to stop me?��


    Then, the pressure from his body was released. Instantly, this space became extremely suppressed. The aura of the Great Path from these three men collided with each other, causing a gust of wind to blow within Donghua Palace.


    A dead silence. Everyone else was watching quietly. No one spoke. This kind of conflict would not be participated by other forces. It was enough for them to wait and see.


    ��No need to argue. We will get to the bottom of this. I can understand your feelings, but it is best to wait for them to come out.�� At this time, Chief Ning said, ��If the Millet Emperor has something else to handle, please go and take care of it.��


    The Millet Emperor looked at Chief Ning deeply. Judging from Chief Ning��s strength and status, everything must be under his control, but so was he. The disciples of Wangshen Watchtower were still in the secret zone. What else could he do?


    Suppressing the thoughts in his head, the Millet Emperor nodded slightly and said, ��Thank you, Chief.��


    With that, he turned to step into the void and disappeared. Watching his departing figure, Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi��s both appeared extremely gloomy.


    The Millet Emperor must have gotten some news!

 Chapter 2053 - Domineering Ning Hua

    After the Millet Emperor left, it fell quiet inside the Donghua Palace. The various giant level figures had different expressions, but they did not say anything.


    Ling Yunzi and Emperor Yan still had sullen expressions. A cold aura emanated from their bodies. Although they had many descendants, be it Ling He or Yan Dongyang, they were both the most outstanding among their heirs. It was especially so for Ling He. He was the successor chosen by Ling Yunzi and was to be the future master of Lingxiao Palace.


    Yet, he had perished within the secret zone.


    However, no matter how Ling Yunzi tried, he could not fathom how Ling He had died.


    Just as the Millet Emperor had said, the two top forces held an absolute advantage against Wangshen Watchtower no matter how they looked at it. How is it that two of their core members ended up being killed?


    This meant that many other Renhuangs had also perished.


    Ling Yunzi said, ��Chief, our Lingxiao Palace, and Great Yan Ancient Royal Family could not see eye-to-eye with Wangshen Watchtower. They might have come into conflict in the secret zone. However, the Chief has already established the rule that the cultivators of the Donghua Domain have come here to train and should not kill each other. After they emerge, if it is found that Ling He and Yan Dongyang have been assassinated by others, I hope that the Chief can hand the culprits over to us so that we can deal with them.�� He suppressed the murderous intent and rage in his heart. He tried to keep his voice calm.


    As giant level figures, very few things could cause their hearts to be stirred. However, it was not the case this time. Their descendants had perished.


    ��Alright,�� Chief Ning answered as he nodded his head. ��During the Donghua Banquet, before everyone entered the secret zone, I established the rule that there should be no manslaughter. If Ling He and Yan Dongyang indeed perished in the secret zone��not because of their adventures inside but by the hands of Renhuangs of the Donghua Domain��I will certainly make sure justice is upheld.��


    ��Many thanks, Chief,�� said Ling Yunzi as he nodded his head. They clearly knew what had happened. This was merely them laying the foundations for later. If their heirs had truly been killed by the disciples of Wangshen Watchtower, then the members of Wangshen Watchtower would soon join the deceased.


    As for the Millet Emperor, since the disciples of Wangshen Watchtower were all here, he could not walk away on his own. They did not believe that the Millet Emperor would just desert them.


    ��If someone else made a move first, but instead,�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord uttered in a low voice. Two sharp glares instantly turned towards him. They were the gazes of Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi. This scene caused the Thunder Punishing Skylord to pause. He then shook his head, smiled bitterly and said, ��I am not implying anything else. It is just that the Renhuangs all entered the secret zone. It is inevitable for them to encounter extenuating circumstances. Once conflict arises and they begin to exchange blows, they won��t keep everything under control. If someone else attacks them first, should or shouldn��t the other party counterattack? How can you control that? If someone else tries to kill the other party, how should the situation be handled?��


    Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi both released cold auras. Although the Thunder Punishing Skylord claimed that he was not implying anything, he was clearly directing his speculation at them.


    However, the Thunder Punishing Skylord was also not that concerned about their gazes. Once one reached their level of cultivation, they would do as they pleased. He had a good impression of Ye Futian. Before this, on Turtle Deity Island, the two forces had previously joined forces to go against the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower. If Ling He and Yan Dongyang had truly been killed by the members of Wangshen Watchtower, it might be that Ling He��s side had instigated the fight. If they were to still condemn the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower then, that would not be just.


    The other party wanted to lay the foundations for their argument later, so he also spoke up to see how Chief Ning would handle the situation.


    Chief Ning also hesitated for a moment when he heard what the Thunder Punishing Skylord said. He revealed a pensive look. Such a question was not so easy to answer.


    ��Speculating now is meaningless,�� Chief Ning declared. ��Ning Hua is also in the secret zone. We still do not know what exactly happened. Once everything is over and they have emerged from the secret zone, everything will be clear. We can decide how to handle this then.��


    Since the Chief said so, Thunder Punishing Skylord did not go on. He smiled and did not say anything. He was also curious as to what had happened in the secret zone.


    Although the other giant-level figures also had their own thoughts about the matter, they did not reveal them. It was better to see how things played out later.


    ��


    At that moment, in the secret zone, two groups of cultivators stood facing each other. Aside from the cultivators of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace, the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, as well as the Domain Chief��s Manor, were also present.


    Ning Hua swept an extremely sharp gaze towards Ye Futian.


    Standing not far behind Ning Hua, Yan Hanxing had an even colder look. His murderous intent was frightening.


    ��Vice Chief, the members of the Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace attacked us first. Young Brother Ye was forced to defend himself,�� Li Changsheng said to Ning Hua. He had already secretly informed the Millet Emperor. However, he had come into dispute with Ning Hua over this matter. Hence, he controlled his emotions as he tried to talk it out with Ning Hua.


    Right now, no matter how enraged he was, he had to hold it in. He had first to settle the issue with Ning Hua.


    At the very least, the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower had to make it out of there alive for there to be any hope of survival for them.


    ��Vice Chief, Ye Liunian defied the rule set by Chief and killed the members of our Yan Kingdom. He should be sentenced to death,�� accused Yan Hanxing in a cold tone as he took a step out. Dragon cries shook the space. The divine dragons roared and churned as they charged ahead.


    Li Changsheng also took a step out. The powerful aura of the Great Path emanated from his body and blocked off Yan Hanxing��s path.


    The cultivators of Lingxiao Palace also stepped forward to attack. However, they were held off by Goddess Donglai.


    ��Ye Liunian killed those who entered the secret zone for training. Regardless of why he did so, we will take him into custody first. No one shall get in our way,�� Ning Hua said. His tone was overbearing. Immediately, the Domain Chief��s Manor cultivators to his left and right stepped out. Terrifying currents of the Great Path swept over the space with frightening pressure. The pressure immediately pressed down on Ye Futian.


    However, at that moment, a heavenly might of the Great Path appeared in the vast space. Countless stone tablets appeared around them, enveloping the space. It completely covered Ye Futian, shielding him. The divine tablets circled around and released enormous pressure. They burst forth like the heavenly might of the Great Path. There was a loud rumbling, and the Great Path shattered. Zong Chan��s figure stood there, holding off the cultivators of Domain Chief��s Manor.


    ��Vice Chief, shouldn��t you investigate the truth of the matter before drawing conclusions?�� Zong Chan asked. Although everyone here already knew who the mastermind was, it had not been publicly revealed yet. As the Vice Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor, Ning Hua still had his reservations.


    However, the deaths of Ling He and the others coincidentally gave Ning Hua an excuse to act.


    ��After we take him into custody, we will naturally get to the bottom of this issue,�� Ning Hua said as he swept a glance at Zong Chan. ��I said, no one shall get in our way.��


    Ning Hua looked at the countless divine tablets that Zong Chan released as he took a step forward. Zong Chan was one of the four most prominent figures in the Donghua Domain. He was an upper-level Renhuang with a flawless Great Path. Ning Hua wanted to see how long Zong Chan could last against him.


    Ning Hua personally stepped out. Divine light of the Great Path circled him. He was insufferably arrogant. In an instant, countless ancient characters of the Great Path roared out and covered the sky. These characters were all characters for ��seal.�� In an instant, they were everywhere in the vast space, suddenly turning it into his absolute domain. He sealed off the space. Even the power of the divine tablets was similarly sealed away!

 Chapter 2054 - Insufferable Arrogance

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ning Hua and Zong Chan were both powerful. Both of them had flawless seventh-tier Great Paths. The power of the Great Path burst forth from both of them. Divine light circled the vast space.


    Endless Divine Light of the Seals enveloped the space. In the sky above, a God Seal Pattern appeared. It poured down like a heavenly river as it churned towards Zong Chan.


    With Zong Chan at the center, countless divine tablets circled him. The endless space seemed to be enveloped by the stone tablets.


    Rumble. The divine tablets descended upon different locations in the space, suppressing this part of the sky. It caused the space to be filled with an unparalleled Great Path of Suppression. In the sky above, a heavenly tablet appeared. It seemed ancient, and the heavenly might of the Great Path emanated from it. It plunged downwards towards Ning Hua.


    The world around them rumbled. The Great Path around them stretched out far and wide. The heavenly tablet plummeted down and suppressed the space. It seemed as though no one could block it.


    However, Ning Hua, who was surrounded by divine light, did not bat an eyelid. He had a proud look on his face. He seemed to look down on everything. He swept a glance at the heavenly tablet of the Great Path falling towards him. He extended his arm, and endless Divine Light of the Seals surrounded him. It was as though countless sealing runes were dancing around his palm.


    The next moment, Ning Hua took a step forward and immediately walked towards the heavenly tablet plummeting towards him. He raised a finger and pointed it at the sky.


    There were a series of spells known as God Seal Spells. He was using the God Seal Spell known as God Seal Finger. Its might was unfathomable.


    Once the God Seal Finger was unleashed, the endless Divine Light of the Seals radiated outwards, sweeping towards the oncoming heavenly tablet. As the finger landed, the space trembled violently. The heavenly tablet also shook vigorously. It stopped advancing. It was as though the space it was in had been completely sealed.


    Loud rumbles could be heard. The heavenly tablet vibrated intensely. Endless divine light rained down, forming the Power of Suppression that pressed down on Ning Hua. Alas, the area around Ning Hua��s body had become an absolute Sealed Domain. It was impregnable.


    When Zong Chan saw this, he formed seals with his hands. The countless divine tablets around them shook and were then detached from the ground. They circled the space and charged towards Ning Hua.


    Ning Hua swept a glance at these divine tablets. He had a proud look of indifference. He stepped up into the air. Divine might emanated from him as his body became a Divine Body of the Great Path. Everywhere he passed by, the Great Path was sealed. He twirled his hands and then sent out a palm strike straight ahead. Countless sealing runes flew out. Each rune contained the might of the Great Path and suppressed this space.


    ��Set,�� Ning Hua uttered this single word.


    Right after he said this, a gigantic rune landed on a stone tablet. The stone tablet was immediately frozen in its spot. Although the light of the Great Path still circled the tablet, it could not break free. The rune was printed on its surface, sealing off the space.


    As countless runes flew out, the surrounding stone tablets all stopped in their tracks. Even though their divine light filled the sky, they still could not budge at all. The entire sky seemed to become a single piece. The absolute Sealed Domain was completely under Ning Hua��s control.


    Power of the Great Path radiated from Zong Chan��s body, but he still could not shake off the runes. Zong Chan understood that his Divine Wheel of the Great Path was still inferior to Ning Hua��s. Before this, during the assessment in Donghua Academy, he had a fifth-tier Divine Wheel, whereas Ning Hua could cause the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels to show six divine lights. Only Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel might have a chance to compete with Ning Hua��s. However, Ye Futian��s cultivation Plane was far inferior to Ning Hua��s. Hence, they could not be compared against each other; they were not even on the same level.


    Ning Hua looked at Zong Chan. They locked gazes across the space. Frightening currents of the Great Path immediately clashed between them. Zong Chan felt unparalleled might emanating from Ning Hua��s pupils. Ning Hua looked down on the world, and his might reigned over all. No one could prevent him from invading their wills.


    Frightening Divine Light of the Seals invaded Zong Chan��s pupils and seeped into his mind and will. This caused Zong Chan to be greatly affected. Then, a voice called out.


    ��You have a flawless Great Path, and your ability is not bad. However, you are still unqualified to get in my way,�� said the voice with domineering authority. It was insufferably arrogant. As the voice said this, Ning Hua pointed a finger at the sky. As the finger landed, Zong Chan saw the finger grow infinitely larger. It immediately invaded his mind and will. It then landed on his body.


    Bang!


    There was a huge sound. The God Seal Finger was an extremely powerful attack. It caused Zong Chan to let out a dull groan. His Great Path collapsed, and his figure was sent directly flying outward. A bloody hole appeared on his body. The Qi in his body was being frenziedly suppressed.


    His face was pale as he glanced at Ning Hua from afar. Ning Hua stepped into the air, still appearing insufferably arrogant as he glanced back at Zong Chan contemptuously. Zong Chan recalled how the members of the Donghua Domain rated the four most prominent figures. Ning Hua occupied his own level while the other three were another level below.


    Who could stand against him?


    Ning Hua was the top monstrous figure in the Donghua Domain.


    At that moment, Zong Chan began to realize that Chief Ning was extremely ambitious. He was mandated to be the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain. However, he seemed unwilling to settle and was not satisfied with his current standing. He wanted to secure his grip over the entire Donghua Domain. When Ning Hua reached his peak in the future, they would be two extremely powerful figures. When the time came, they would be figures that stood at the very top of, not just the Donghua Domain, but the entire Divine Prefecture.


    After he swept a glance at Zong Chan, Ning Hua looked towards Ye Futian. Although the Donghua Heavens was said to have four top prominent figures, Ning Hua did not take the others too seriously. Be it Desolation or Zong Chan, he did not see any one of them as a match for him. His equals were in the other domains of the Divine Prefecture, not in the Donghua Domain.


    He was currently the top monstrous figure in the Donghua Domain. In the future, he would be the leader of the Donghua Domain.


    ��You have defied the rules and committed manslaughter in the secret zone. I will seal your cultivation and take you into custody while your sentence is pending,�� declared Ning Hua as he looked at Ye Futian. His tone was cold and arrogant. He was extremely overbearing.


    In the distance, many cultivators were approaching them. However, Ning Hua ignored them and ordered, ��Take him into custody.��


    As he said this, cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor emerged again and approached Ye Futian,


    Ye Futian turned to look at the cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor walking up to him. He had an extremely ugly expression. He had offended Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace. He had participated in the Donghua Banquet to join Domain Chief��s Manor. By doing so, the Divine Prefecture would be his place of respite, and Lingxiao Palace, as well as Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, would not be able to touch him.


    However, how could he have imagined that the place he wanted to join was the force behind all this? The Domain Chief��s Manor was the true mastermind behind the scenes. Wouldn��t he be walking into a trap if he joined them?


    Ning Hua��s ability was powerful. No one could stand against him. There were also top figures from the other two forces. Ye Futian would not be able to escape at all. Once he was taken into custody, one could imagine the consequences. Since the mastermind was the Domain Chief, they would not let him go easily. After all, he was the true inheritor of Supreme Deity Donglai��s teachings.


    ��Follow me,�� at that moment, a voice whispered in Ye Futian��s ear. As the voice said this, a blinding light shot out. Many people could not keep their eyes open. The cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor who were walking towards Ye Futian also closed their eyes slightly as the bright light shone on them. When they opened their eyes, Ye Futian��s body had already disappeared without a trace. A beam of light appeared in the distance.


    ��Presumptuous!�� Ning Hua yelled. His will swept towards the beam of light. With a single step, he traversed across the space. He raised his hand and grabbed the air. Divine Light of the Seals immediately enveloped the vast space as he grabbed out into the distance.


    As he clenched his palm, the space was sealed off. However, in the distance, only a beam of light was left behind, but there was no sign of any figures.


    They had escaped so quickly? Many people thought to themselves in astonishment.


    ��They used a ritual implement,�� someone said. The other party used a ritual implement. Otherwise, they would have been unable to utilize such speed. They already knew who had taken Ye Futian away.


    He was previously a legendary figure in the Donghua Domain. Not long ago, he had lost to Ye Futian during the Donghua Banquet. He did not want to join Donghua Academy or the Domain Chief��s Manor. He was Chen Yi.


    In the mountain range, wills were blocked off. The beam of light traversed through the mountain range and was quickly hard to catch as Ning Hua did not know where it went. This caused Ning Hua��s gaze to turn extremely cold.


    He glanced at the other cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower as a cold aura emanated from his gaze.


    ��Ye Liunian defied the rules and committed murder in the secret zone. Not only have all of you not helped maintain order, but you also aided him in escaping. How should we deal with you?�� Ning Hua said in a cold tone as he glanced over the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower. His voice was still overbearing. Li Changsheng, Zong Chan, and the others felt that, to Ning Hua, no one else was his equal. He did not take any cultivator from the various forces of the Donghua Domain seriously.


    ��Vice Chief, you did not investigate the truth of the matter before attempting to take him into custody. If that is how you do things, you can do whatever you want,�� Li Changsheng mocked. As expected, Ning Hua was preparing to also act against the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Vice Chief, since we are in the secret zone, no one, be it Ye Liunian or the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, can escape from here. After we leave this place, we will meet the Chief as well as the various forces. Why don��t we wait for Chief to determine how to handle this issue then?�� a voice nearby suggested this. Ning Hua turned to look at the person who had spoken. It was Goddess Jiang Yueli of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow.


    Jiang Yueli naturally also felt that something was strange about this matter. Before this, when they passed by, they saw the cultivators from the Wangshen Watchtower being pursued. The other party had been relentless in their pursuit but appeared to have been killed instead. The cultivators of Domain Chief��s Manor, led by Ning Hua, immediately took action on the members of Wangshen Watchtower. She felt that this was strange. The truth of the matter probably still needed to be investigated.


    Hence, she had spoken up. They should leave it to the Chief to decide after they left this place.


    Jiang Yueli did not ponder too much about the issue. She naturally did not know that the Chief was the true mastermind behind the scenes.


    Ning Hua knew what was going on behind the scenes, but he couldn��t reveal this in public. He looked at Jiang Yueli and then swept another glance at the cultivators from the Wangshen Watchtower. He still had an indifferent look in his eyes, as if he was dismissive of them.


    ��Since Goddess Jiang has said so, I will honor her words. After we leave this place, my father will determine your fate,�� Ning Hua announced. It was as Jiang Yueli said. These people couldn��t escape the secret zone. They would not be going anywhere.


    If that was the case, there was no need for him to be hasty. Right now, he also lacked an excuse. After all, Ye Futian was the one who killed those people. It wouldn��t be appropriate for him to kill the cultivators from the Wangshen Watchtower. This would easily arouse suspicion from others that Domain Chief Manor was aiding the Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace.


    Even though that was the reality, no one could know.


    Jiang Yueli nodded her head slightly. Li Changsheng looked at her and said over transmitted thoughts, ��Many thanks, Goddess.��


    If Ning Hua chose to attack now, they would not be able to do anything. For now, they could only play by ear!

 Chapter 2055 - Chen Yi’s Reason

    Jiang Yueli looked at Li Changsheng and the others with her beautiful eyes. Over transmitted thoughts, she replied, ��It was nothing.��


    The reason why she had spoken up on their behalf was that she had indeed seen Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace instigating the matter. After all, she had personally witnessed the other party pursuing the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower. Now that the other party had been killed off instead, if the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower were punished, it would be unjust.


    These people also seemed to have all been killed by Ye Futian. How had he managed to do so alone?


    This dispute was so intense that the various cultivators seemed to have forgotten about the battle itself. How had Ye Futian killed Ling He and Yan Dongyang? The other party must have had powerful Renhuangs protecting them. Yet, they had all been killed.


    Upon closer inspection, how terrifying exactly was Ye Futian��s combat ability?


    How much was he hiding?


    No one knew. No one had observed the battle. Those who did had all been slain aside from Ye Futian. With these deaths, Lingxiao Palace and Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would most likely not let Ye Futian off. Moreover, Yan Dongyang and Ling He had also died. No matter what, the two forces would surely kill Ye Futian.


    If the Chief sided with Ye Futian, that would be best. However, judging from Ning Hua��s attitude, that would be difficult. There would certainly be a large-scale battle once they left this secret zone. Ye Futian was in a precarious position. It would also be difficult for Wangshen Watchtower to protect him.


    After all, Great Yan Ancient Royal Family itself was against Wangshen Watchtower before this. Ye Futian only happened to come along and joined Wangshen Watchtower to cultivate.


    ��After we leave the secret zone, await your sentence,�� ordered Ning Hua as he swept a glance at Li Changsheng and the other cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower. The tone of his voice was domineering, and he used words that screeched in their ears.


    Await their sentence. It was as though, to him, the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower were criminals waiting to be sentenced.


    Li Changsheng and Zong Chan naturally understood where Ning Hua was coming from. Indeed, they had to await their sentence. Since the Chief himself was part of this, he would undoubtedly stand on Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace��s side. If that was the case, why would he consider their position? They would most likely face a crisis after leaving this place.


    Over transmitted thought, the Millet Emperor instructed them to stay in the secret zone for as long as they could, asking them to delay their return to the outside world. The Millet Emperor was probably making preparations. However, if that happened, the Millet Emperor himself might offend the Chief.


    Of course, since the Chief was part of this himself, he was most likely also involved in Supreme Deity Donglai��s death back in the day. If that were the case, the Chief and the Millet Emperor would naturally be at odds. It was just that the Chief had disguised it very well.


    They knew that the Millet Emperor had always wanted to get to the bottom of Supreme Deity Donglai��s death. However, from the looks of it now, the closer they were to the truth of the matter, the more dangerous it would be.


    Li Changsheng and the others did not say anything. The cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower all had cold looks in their eyes. They were suppressing the rage within them. However, this place was the turf of Domain Chief��s Manor. The other party was also the vice chief. Given the predicament they were in, no matter how angry they were, they had to hold it in for now.


    ��The cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower killed a prince of our Yan Kingdom. Vice Chief, you may wait for the Chief to set a verdict. However, the Yan Kingdom cannot wait. I hope Vice Chief can understand,�� a cold voice said, filled with murderous intent. The person who had spoken was the crown prince of the Yan Kingdom, Yan Hanxing.


    Ning Hua glanced at Yan Hanxing and then turned to leave. It was as though the matter was unrelated to him.


    ��


    On the other side, along a mountain stream, a beam of light flashed past and then came to a stop along the stream. Two silhouettes appeared there. One of them had white hair and was dressed in white robes. It was Ye Futian, who had participated in the large-scale battle.


    He looked at the person beside him. Ye Futian had met him before and had even fought against him. Chen Yi was rumored to have previously been a legendary figure in the Donghua Heavens. There were many stories about him. He had an extremely powerful ability and was proficient in the Sword of Light. His speed and killing power were terrifying. He actually managed to save Ye Futian from Ning Hua��s clutches. It was apparent from this how frightening his speed was.


    It was just that Ye Futian could not figure out why Chen Yi had helped him.


    Chen Yi had also offended Ning Hua in the process of saving Ye Futian.


    They were in the Donghua Heavens, and Ning Hua had a high standing here. It was definitely not wise to snatch away someone from Ning Hua��s hands. Moreover, Chen Yi had done so to a cultivator who had defeated him and with whom he had no connections.


    Hence, Ye Futian was perplexed. He looked at Chen Yi and said, ��Many thanks, but why did you help me?��


    Chen Yi looked back at Ye Futian. He smiled and said, ��Would you believe me if I said that I believe we hit it off quite well?��


    ��I do not believe so,�� Ye Futian immediately replied. Chen Yi blinked. He then smiled and said, ��I have been undefeated all this time. The only time I have ever lost was to you during the Donghua Banquet. If you were killed or crippled by Ning Hua, I would not have the chance to regain my honor. Hence, you have to live.��


    ��Is that so?�� Ye Futian looked somewhat suspiciously at Chen Yi. This time, Chen Yi had offended Ning Hua. Who else would dare to do so?


    Chen Yi merely did so because he wanted to battle Ye Futian again and regain his honor?


    ��You still don��t believe me?�� Chen Yi said when he saw the look in Ye Futian��s eyes. ��Then, it might be because I cannot stand the actions of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace. They attacked first and were instead killed off, yet they claim the contrary. I really can��t stand that the Domain Chief��s Manor came to take you into custody. Where is the reasoning behind that?��


    Ye Futian did not say anything. Each reason Chen Yi gave sounded absurd. However, that was not important. What was important was that the other party had helped him escape. Ye Futian still had a chance of survival.


    Ye Futian peered into the distance. He did not continue questioning Chen Yi. The reason why he had helped Ye Futian was not important, regardless of what it was.


    Would the members of Wangshen Watchtower be in danger? Ye Futian thought to himself. He had killed Ling He and Yan Dongyang. Even if Ning Hua wanted to act, he would still need to consider the image of the Domain Chief��s Manor. He could not just kill the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower without reason. Their lives should still be safe. However, right now, Ye Futian could not foresee what would happen in the future and how these events would play out.


    ��Currently, you are the nail in the eyes of two top forces. Ning Hua also wants to take you into custody. It seems that you have nowhere to go. What do you plan to do?�� Chen Yi asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian shook his head. He was also at a loss. Before this, he had participated in the Donghua Banquet to join the Domain Chief��s Manor. Who knew that it would end up like this?


    The Domain Chief was the true mastermind. When Ye Futian obtained the teachings of Supreme Deity Donglai, he was destined to be at odds with the Chief.


    ��I have a suggestion,�� Chen Yi said.


    ��What is it?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��The Demon God Temple,�� Chen Yi explained. ��There is a disturbance in the Demon God Temple. The various demonic beasts have gathered over there. This secret zone certainly contains some secrets. Even the members of Domain Chief��s Manor have not managed to uncover these secrets. Why don��t we head over and try out our luck? Who knows? We might stumble upon some benefits.��


    Ye Futian frowned. The various cultivators were also gathered there. If they went over, wouldn��t they instantly draw the attention of the other cultivators?


    With his current situation, it seemed inappropriate!

 Chapter 2056 - Sealed Space

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Chen Yi seemed to have detected Ye Futian��s hesitation and said, ��Don��t worry. The Demon God Temple is located in a restricted area in the mountain. Even the Chief can��t do anything about it. No one can approach the restricted area. With all the demons there, people from the Great Yan and the Lingxiao Palace wouldn��t dare to act recklessly. Besides, I can get myself out safely if I encounter danger.��


    Ye Futian looked at Chen Yi, who appeared to possess a Light-elemental magic weapon and unparalleled speed.


    ��How did you know the chief can��t do anything about the Demon God Temple?�� Ye Futian asked Chen Yi. It seemed that Chen Yi knew more than he should.


    ��Why would the Demon God Temple still be in the secret zones if the Chief knew what to do? He would have pillaged it a long time ago. You don��t believe that the Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor in the Donghua Domain is some nice man, do you?�� Chen Yi said, ��All the chiefs of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture are extraordinary old monsters who have lived for long. They have tremendous influence and aim to advance to the highest cultivation plane to free themselves from the Heavenly Path��s restraint. They would not hesitate to exploit anything that could be beneficial to cultivation.


    ��Few things in the world remain appealing to them. They only care about the path to the pinnacle.��


    Ye Futian nodded in agreement. Chen Yi had a point. Moreover, Ye Futian could tell from this incident that Chief Ning was a crafty, devious, and hazardous person who could kill with underhanded means. These old monsters were not good people for sure.


    However, Ye Futian was still secretly suspicious even though Chen Yi made a good point. This prominent figure who had become a legend in the Donghua Heavens many years ago gave Ye Futian a mysterious feeling. Ye Futian couldn��t easily figure out Chen Yi��s thoughts.


    ��There is no need to keep thinking about it. Why would I help you if I intended to harm you? Few people in the Donghua Heavens can impress me, and you are one of them. We can go anywhere in the Divine Prefecture if we work together,�� Chen Yi said with a smile. Ye Futian nodded and stopped hesitating. He said, ��Let��s go.��


    After that, they rushed through the mountain in the direction of the Demon God Temple. In the meantime, Ye Futian took out the Zimu Yuanyang Mirror to communicate with Xia Qingyuan. He asked her to stay safe and not to go to any dangerous places.


    They started to feel the rhythm again as they approached the area. Hearts palpitating, Ye Futian and Chen Yi could hear the pounding sound that came from their chests. They knew they were close to the destination.


    ��What kind of place is the Demon God Temple? Why does it make our hearts beat rapidly?�� Ye Futian asked Chen Yi as though he intended to assess how much Chen Yi knew about the Demon God Temple.


    ��Are you asking me?�� Chen Yi turned back and looked at him with a smile. Ye Futian didn��t push for an answer.


    ��Let��s check it out there,�� Chen Yi pointed at a mountain in front of them. Then they climbed to the top of the mountain and looked into the distance. The Demon God Temple sat on the barren land surrounded by the black divine mountains. It seemed to be a short distance away, yet also looked unreal and elusive. Plenty of demonic beasts were struggling to approach the temple while letting out deep bellows. Their bodies were changing and their blood boiling. With eyes glowing red and hearts pounding violently, they were desperate to get close to the Demon God Temple.


    The Black Wind Condor was among the demonic beasts. It darted a glance at the mountains afar where Ye Futian was at this moment.


    ��Boss, the Demon God Temple must contain some divine item that could make the demonic beasts evolve and transform. I can feel its huge impact without getting near it.�� Ye Futian��s eyes sparkled as an idea occurred to him. Many powerful Demon Emperors were also moving toward the Demon God Temple. But they all acted with extra caution as if the closer they got to the Temple, the slower they walked and the stronger their Demonic Qi became.


    ��Be careful,�� Ye Futian transmitted his voice back to the Black Wind Condor. He gazed at the area of the black Divine Mountain where a lot of Demon Emperors and Renhuangs were gathering. The battle hadn��t broken out yet. Human cultivators who entered the secret zones were still there.


    Besides, he also saw the strange young man who attacked them before.


    Ye Futian felt a chill run down his spine. It looked like that the attack before was arranged by someone.


    Only the Domain Chief��s Manor had the capacity to make it happen.


    It was a scheme to murder Ye Futian and other cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. They would have died in the hands of Ling He, Yan Dongyang, and others if Ye Futian didn��t employ his full strength.


    Ye Futian couldn��t extend his divine consciousness very far in this area. The rhythm would shatter it. Ye Futian could only rely on his eyes.


    ��Do you know why there are demonic beasts in the secret zones?�� Ye Futian asked Chen Yi. He wondered how much Chen Yi knew about the Domain Chief��s Manor and the secret zones.


    ��I heard a little about it,�� Chen Yi answered, ��Rumor has it that the secret zones are more than a trial field for cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain. It is also a giant Sealed Land. But it��s unclear what exactly is being sealed here. Perhaps the targets are these demonic beasts. The secret zones become their prison and keep them here.��


    ��The secret zones are sealing in something?�� Ye Futian thought to himself. While gazing at the front, he heard a howl of anguish. A cultivator in the Renhuang Plane exploded surprisingly. The scene was startling and grisly as the blood sprayed everywhere. It seemed that the Renhuang blew up for not being able to withstand the rhythm.


    ��So terrifying.�� Ye Futian narrowed his eyes. He could feel the relentless rhythm from afar. His body might actually burst apart if he went too close.


    ��Demonic beasts have stronger Blood Force and can resist it better. It��s tough for human cultivators to approach the Demon God Temple,�� Chen Yi explained to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded. The demonic beasts had potent Blood Force and were usually a cut above human cultivators at the same level. However, they also had significantly inferior comprehension skills and mostly relied on their instincts.


    One human cultivator was the closest to the Demon God Temple. It was Desolation from the Desolate God Palace. The frightening black energy currents flowed around his body. Every step he took trembled the ground and sterilized the field. While treading forward, his heart was also palpitating, and his blood was surging and roaring inside as if it were about to rush out of his body.


    Many big demon beasts were around and gazing at the Demon God Temple. Why did the abnormal changes suddenly happen at the Demon God Temple?


    Would this be an opportunity for them?


    They had been imprisoned in the total darkness here for so many years, being trampled upon and experimented on by human cultivators at will. There was no way for them to break the seal and escape.


    Ye Futian��s heart was still pounding rapidly. Standing on top of the mountain, he started to feel that the secret zones were nothing ordinary. Thinking of that, he released the energy currents of the Great Path from his body and spread it to the boundless space. His eyes also became strange and eerie. In an instant, a shocking scene came into his sight and made his heart beat violently in his chest.


    ��That is���� Ye Futian was astounded. Staring straight ahead, he saw a magnificent view. The whole world appeared to be fake, created by the Great Path. The energy flowing in the world was the Grand Seal Great Path. As the Divine Light of the Seals glowing brightly, numerous sealing runes became visible.


    He couldn��t have a clear view from the sky. But it looked like there was a divine item. The space of the entire secret zone was sealed off as though the endless secret zone was a formidable Great Path domain of Grand Seal.


    The Demon God Temple was even more shocking. Ye Futian previously thought that the Demon God Temple belonged to the Demon Clan. But now, he found out that the Demon God Temple was also shrouded by the Divine Light of the Seals. Like a mix of patterns of the Great Path, the Grand Seal Great Path closed off the area with the Demon God Temple at the center.


    It was too blurry for his real eyes to see. He could only sense it vaguely with his divine eyes.


    This is the Consummate Great Path, Ye Futian thought to himself. The Consummate Great Path formed an Absolute Great Path domain and created a separate space, seemingly ordinary yet unique. Only people in the same cultivation level could sense its existence.


    Ye Futian happened to be able to sense and see it.


    Rat-a-tat. The rhythm grew stronger and stronger inside the Demon God Temple, making the cultivators�� hearts pound more violently.


    ��Watch out.�� A Renhuang with bulging blue veins yelped when he felt that his blood was about to rush out. Immediately, with a fizz, his blood sprayed out of his body. He let out a piercing cry in agony and was turned into a pool of blood.


    ��This���� Everyone around was palpitating with fear. Ye Futian��s eyes were fixed on the sealed divine temple. What on earth was inside?

 Chapter 2057 - Attempt on the Demon God Temple

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Chen Yi asked Ye Futian, ��The Donghua Domain sealed the secret zone here and guarded the Demon God Temple with countless big demon beasts in the mountain. What do you think they have inside?��


    Ye Futian shook his head and said, ��It can make people��s hearts palpitate and blood boil. Anyone who comes closer would self-explode. It doesn��t seem to be a magical weapon or the Will of the Demon God. Those two would not have such effects. I can��t guess it out.��


    ��Do you want to try to get in to have a look?�� Chen Yi��s eyes were blazing. He was restless as though he was eager to enter the sealed Demon God Temple to see what was inside and satisfy his burning curiosity.


    Ye Futian gazed into the distance. The big demon beasts and human cultivators all wanted to get in. Nevertheless, anyone who approached the Demon God Temple was under tremendous pressure and couldn��t be careless for a split second. Several cultivators already died in front of the Demon God Temple. They blew up immediately despite being at the Renhuang Plane.


    ��Sure,�� Ye Futian made a prompt decision without hesitation. He agreed to check it out with Chen Yi.


    He could see the sealing energy present in the void and wondered if he had a chance to get in. The chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain was behind this, which meant that Ye Futian was already facing desperate conditions right now. He was very likely to be killed even if he left this place.


    That being the case, he might as well attempt on the Demon God Temple. Whatever that was sealed in the Demon God Temple must be a divine item. Even Chief Ning had to do his utmost to apply the sealing techniques here. Therefore, the divine item must deserve the efforts.


    If Ye Futian could get his hand on it, he might be able to pose a threat to Chief Ning?


    He had no choice but to give it a try under current circumstances.


    Thinking of that, Ye Futian walked down the mountain and stepped forward. Chen Yi cracked a smile upon seeing Ye Futian moving. He followed Ye Futian close behind and walked toward the barren area.


    At this point, plenty of cultivators were already heading to the Demon God Temple from all directions through the surrounding barren area. There were both native Demon Emperors and Renhuangs who came from other places. Nonetheless, most casual cultivators had given up and didn��t dare to act rashly. They would be better off searching for opportunities elsewhere rather than risking their lives here.


    People who attempted on the Temple here were almost all Renhuangs from various top forces.


    Ye Futian and Chen Yi immediately attracted many people��s eyes. They dashed through the field at full speed while maintaining the same pace. Soon, they overtook a line of cultivators and reached the front.


    Their Blood Force was rolling and surging as they were approaching the Demon God Temple. Ye Futian felt that the blood in his body was getting out of his control and rushing wildly. He could hear the pounding heartbeats from his chest.


    ��Brother Ye,�� a voice rang out from nearby. It was Jiang Jiuming from the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family of the Luotian Continent. He was surprised to see Ye Futian and Chen Yi together. Ye Futian and Chen Yi fought against each other in the past. How come they were on the same team now? Was it because they appreciated each other��s talents?


    Chen Yi was a powerful cultivator. Jiang Jiuming wasn��t confident that he could defeat him if he were ever matched against him.


    Ye Futian nodded at Jiang Jiuming. He figured that Jiang Jiuming might not be aware of the change in the situation since Jiang Jiuming didn��t know what happened on the other side.


    ��The Demon God Temple is quite strange. Your heart will beat rapidly, and your blood will boil and rush out of your body if you get too close. Be careful,�� Jiang Jiuming reminded Ye Futian since he was new here. Although Ye Futian was a remarkable cultivator, his talents and combat ability wouldn��t make much difference here.


    ��Thank you,�� Ye Futian turned back to respond to Jiang Jiuming, then kept moving forward at a slower pace. The rhythm originated from the Demon God Temple was getting stronger, and he could only advance after adapting to the change. The Renhuangs who exploded before failed to adjust their bodies and couldn��t bear the pressure, which led to their demise.


    Ye Futian unleashed formidable energy of the Way of LIfe which surrounded his body. He was filled with the endless power of life, which boosted his blood essence and replenished his strength. Although his heart was pounding, he managed to keep it under control.


    He headed straight to the black divine temple. Another screech rang out toward the front. Blood spraying, someone was flung back, passing by many people. He uttered a quiet sound and threw up a pool of blood. It was a rather tragic scene.


    The man inhaled a deep breath, and his eyes were filled with regret. He couldn��t hold out against the rhythm. It looked like he wouldn��t be the fortunate one to enter the Demon God Temple after all. He wondered if anyone could solve the mystery of the Demon God Temple.


    Maybe Ning Hua the Vice Chief knew the secret. But he wouldn��t come here.


    Bang. Ye Futian kept walking. Under the protection of the power of the Great Path of Life, he strode forward and passed more cultivators, which astounded many of them. Not only did Ye Futian have extraordinary talents, but he could also surpass them here.


    Rat-a-tat. Ye Futian��s heart was beating more rapidly, and the blood in his veins was flowing wildly. He started to slow down. His eyes glowed eerily and the energy currents of the Great Path spread forward to help him make out the area ahead. Numerous scenes popped in his head. Seals were interwoven together in front of him. He could vaguely see the Divine Light of the Seals shining in the sky, blotting out the sun and covering the entire field. The Demon God Temple was enveloped and sealed by it.


    ��Em?��


    Many people showed a strange look when they noticed Ye Futian, including top cultivators from the Desolate God Palace. They realized that Ye Futian overtook most of the people in no time and had reached the front. He was about to catch up to Desolation.


    Besides that, big demon beasts were also there, such as the handsome young man from before.


    Nevertheless, Chen Yi was not as energetic as Ye Futian and stopped following Ye Futian a while ago. His face reddened, and the Blood Force was gushing in his body. The condition of his heart and blood flow was about to reach his limit. His exceptional fighting ability was no use here.


    It was a little embarrassing for him to talk Ye Futian into coming here while he couldn��t keep up himself.


    But he absolutely shouldn��t strain himself here and could only do what his strength allowed.


    A line of people raced to the front and was stunned to see Ye Futian. After the initial shock wore off, they glared at him with intense hatred and sheer malice. They didn��t expect Ye Futian to come here directly. How audacious��


    These were cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace. They couldn��t track down Ye Futian. Instead, they battled against Li Changsheng and the others, having no choice but to let them off the hook when they retreated later.


    ��Let��s go.�� These cultivators charged at Ye Futian and planned to kill him right here. The Chief wouldn��t blame them!

 Chapter 2058 - Courting Death

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A range of Divine Mountains stood before them. The Demon God Temple was located on the desolate moor surrounded by the Divine Mountains. Cultivators were marching to the black divine palace from all directions.


    At this point, people sensed that a hint of menace was approaching. A group of cultivators with icy eyes glared at Ye Futian, who was leading the way to the moorland.


    ��Em?�� Many people, including cultivators from the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family, showed a strange look. They were surprised to see cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace charging toward Ye Futian with malice. What happened between them?


    The cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace also felt the pressure coming from the divine palace as they were moving forward. Their hearts were pounding violently, and blood rushing in a frenzy. A peculiar type of power shielded the area. Any divine consciousness they released was crushed here immediately.


    Therefore, they soon slowed down. Watching from behind, they saw that Ye Futian kept moving forward and had increased the distance between them. Approaching the Demon God Temple, he had joined the first echelon and entered the area where most people couldn��t get to.


    A frightening golden dragon took shape behind Yan Hanxing. Baring fangs and brandishing claws, it made threatening gestures while hovering in the sky and blotting out the sun.


    ��Go.�� Yan Hanxing pointed his finger forward while staring at Ye Futian. In an instant, the divine golden dragon roared and pounced toward Ye Futian. With a series of raucous noise, the golden dragon seemed to have encountered tremendous resistance and obstruction. The closer it got to Ye Futian, the slowlier it moved. All of a sudden, its gigantic body started to disintegrate and break into pieces.


    Upon seeing it, Ye Futian took out a divine sword and jabbed the dragon in the sky. Without any suspense, the sword pierced through the divine golden dragon, and its giant body shattered at once.


    Ye Futian��s divine sword flew back to him. His heart rate was still increasing. Ye Futian certainly knew that he didn��t fend off the attack from Yan Hanxing so easily by himself. It was because they were situated in a special area where even top Renhuangs might blow up due to the pressure. The attack of the Great Path generated by a Renhuang surely would be destroyed just the same.


    Yan Hanxing also realized the situation. He glared at Ye Futian from behind and let out a deafening roar. It was the Song of the Yan Dragon. The terrifying Sonic Wave charged at Ye Futian directly. Nevertheless, Yan Hanxing could clearly feel that the power of the Sonic Wave was weakened continuously. It was no longer threatening when it reached Ye Futian and was shattered in the end.


    Fizz�� Another Renhuang who was walking in between Yan Hanxing and Ye Futian died after uttering a yelp. He was concentrating on withstanding the scary power coming from the Demon God Temple and was attacked by the Song of the Yan Dragon out of the blue. His Spiritual Will was devastated right away and could no longer protect him. He died tragically.


    ��Go ahead and attack him if you want. Don��t get other people into trouble,�� someone said to Yan Hanxing in an irritated tone. A lot of cultivators turned back and glared at Yan Hanxing. In the area between Yan Hanxing and Ye Futian, they were worried about becoming collateral damage like the man before.


    With a grim expression, Yan Hanxing wrapped his body with the energy of the Great Path and protected himself with a real dragon. He burst out tremendous Spiritual Will and stepped forward, charging at Ye Futian with the intent to kill him.


    Yan Hanxing was not the only one. Powerful Renhuangs from both the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace were moving toward Ye Futian, aiming to swarm around him.


    Ye Futian turned back to have a look, then kept going forward. His face was stern as well. With a thundering bang of the Great Path, he protected his body with the Divine Tree and unleashed formidable Energy of Life. His Great Path remained strong, and his Spiritual Energy was at its peak.


    He slowed down as if he couldn��t sustain himself. But the enemies were approaching him from behind. Plenty of notable cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace were getting closer to Ye Futian.


    ��What happened?�� Jiang Jiuming wasn��t informed of the situation and was shocked to see their behavior. There seemed to be irreconcilable conflicts between Ye Futian, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, and the Lingxiao Palace. They all acted as though they were determined to kill each other.


    However, before they entered the secret zones, the chief had personally ordered them not to fight against each other inside the secret zones. They had to keep things under control even if conflicts arose.


    Ye Futian turned around, took a few steps, and stopped. His heart was pounding violently, but the energy currents of the Great Path flowed out of his body and spread to the surrounding area. A hint of menace gleamed in his eyes. These people wanted to approach him from behind and kill him?


    He waited for a while, and some of the enemies were pretty close already. Yan Hanxing reminded the others, ��Be careful.��


    Yan Hanxing sensed enormous pressure. So did everyone else. The tiniest mistake might bring death to themselves. They had to be extra cautious.


    Ye Futian already stopped in front of them. He probably didn��t have the strength to keep going any longer.


    A cultivator from the Lingxiao Palace took out a spear that was glowing with the terrifying, golden divine light of the Great Path. It looked like it could penetrate the space and would allow him to slaughter Ye Futian as long as they moved a little closer.


    The Blood Force was surging in their bodies, and their hearts were palpitating in the chests. They were about to reach their limits.


    At this point, Ye Futian took a few steps closer to the Demon God Temple and stopped again. The cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace were unsettled.


    But they were here already and couldn��t give up now.


    Thinking of that, they moved forward a little bit more. The closer they got to the black palace, the stronger the pressure was. Their hearts were beating even more rapidly.


    The spear holding by the Renhuang from the Lingxiao Palace stretched out and emitted brilliant divine light. Just when he was about to strike Ye Futian, Ye Futian moved two steps closer to the Temple. The energy currents of the Great Path were roaring around his body. His face was contorted when he turned back as though he was suffering from great pain.


    ��He can��t hold on any longer,�� said Yan Hanxing. He felt like he was reaching his limit and would be in danger if he moved forward more. Ye Futian was closer to the Temple than them and must be in a more vulnerable situation.


    With that in mind, they kept going to push Ye Futian further. Ye Futian would either self-explode or be killed by them. There was no way out for him.


    But just when they thought Ye Futian couldn��t sustain himself, Ye Futian walked a few steps further into the desolate moor. Eight Renhuangs from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace were close to him enough. They forced themselves to take one more step. Several of them already reached the threshold. The Great Path around their bodies was bellowing, and their Spiritual Will was strained. They were about to break down.


    The black divine temple emitted a frightening pressure that suppressed them, upset their Blood Force, and trembled their hearts. The blood in their bodies was boiling.


    At this moment, Ye Futian turned around to face them. His dark eyes were filled with intense hatred, and his cold face was not distorted anymore.


    ��I will grant your wish since you��re so eager to die,�� said Ye Futian. The energy currents of the Great Path from his body flowed along with the dark energy that originated from this area rather than being destroyed. The moon hung in the sky and shone the Yin Divine Light upon the cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace.


    The Renhuangs closer to Ye Futian were astounded and frightened.


    They released the Great Path to defend themselves from the Yin Divine Light. Bathing in the Yin Divine Light, they felt that a bitter chill was invading their Spiritual Will and freezing their spiritual souls. Their defense seemed even more useless at this moment.


    How can he unleash the energy of the Great Path? they thought to themselves. How did Ye Futian achieve that?


    Ye Futian��s frosty eyes shot them a cold glare. He had a perfect Divine Wheel and the Great Path formed by the Natal Spirit of the World Tree, which could still release energy in this space. He tested it before and had been waiting for his enemies to provoke him.


    ��Retreat���� Yan Hanxing bellowed. With a shrilling cry, a person who was trying to protect himself from the energy of Ye Futian��s Great Path couldn��t hold on any longer. Blood spurted out, and his body exploded into countless pieces.


    With a series of screech, five cultivators were killed in the blink of an eye. Yan Hanxing protected his body with the pure-blooded dragon, which was also shattering under attack. He uttered a snort and pulled back in a rush. Fizz! Hearts pounding, he threw up a pool of blood and was also bleeding from his eyes, nose, and ears.


    He turned around and ran away from that area immediately. The other two cultivators who survived the attack were not in better condition. They had no choice but to take to their heels despite being eighth- and ninth-order Renhuangs.


    More cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace who attempted to rush forward stopped as soon as they saw what happened to Yan Hanxing. Instead, they beat a hasty retreat with sullen faces.


    Ye Futian killed more high-level Renhuangs from their side.


    ��Ye Liunian!��


    They were consumed with hatred.


    Other cultivators who witnessed the battle were also disconcerted. Ye Futian slaughtered several Renhuangs from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace. Did he finally fall out with those two groups?


    However, would the Domain Chief��s Manor let him off the hook for disobeying the rule set by Chief Ning?


    How would Ye Futian explain to Chief Ning after leaving the secret zones?


    The bystanders had no idea that Chief Ning was behind everything. Ye Futian couldn��t care less about the rule because Chief Ning was waiting to kill him anyway if he got out.

 Chapter 2059 - Fraught with Dangers

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On top of that, the cultivators Ye Futian just killed were not nobodies. Apart from Chief Ning, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace wouldn��t let it slide, either.


    Everyone was shocked to see Ye Futian slaughtered the cultivators here, defying several high-level masters. How could they spare his life after he got out?


    Most of Renhuangs here witnessed Ye Futian��s performance at the Donghua Banquet. With his extraordinary talents and remarkable abilities, he hadn��t lost any match yet. Even the genius cultivators couldn��t beat him. Certainly, he could have had a limitless future and might even become the best in the entire Divine Prefecture.


    He carried out a massacre without scruples in the secret zones. Wouldn��t he alter his destiny by doing so?


    A lot of people couldn��t figure out the reason. Under such circumstances, he wouldn��t have any chance to survive unless Chief Ning pardoned him. Considering his exceptional talents, would Chief Ning show mercy on him if he was willing to join the Domain Chief��s Manor?


    The crowd soon found out the answer.


    A group of people, including vice chief Ning Hua of the Domain Chief��s Manor, arrived somewhere nearby. They followed the cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace and came over.


    Ning Hua��s piercing gaze focused on Ye Futian. They were far away from each other, yet the bystanders could already feel the might of the Great Path.


    Ning Hua seemed to be angry, his eyes frosty.


    Of course, Ye Futian also noticed Ning Hua, who couldn��t have arrived at a less opportune moment. Ye Futian turned around and kept walking forward. He was under horrifying pressure at this moment. But Ning Hua would capture him and seal his fate if he didn��t push forward.


    The Goddesses from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow had a puzzled look on their exquisite faces. They didn��t understand why Ye Futian would come here and put his neck in the noose.


    Moreover, he killed several powerful Renhuangs from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace.


    Those two top forces surely suffered a great loss from this trip to the secret zones.


    Ning Hua stepped forward. Everyone turned their attention to him. What did he plan to do?


    Buzz! Like a bolt of lightning, Ning Hua directly charged at Ye Futian, who infuriated him by committing murders in the secret zones. Ye Futian killed several Renhuangs right under his nose.


    ��He is so fast���� Ning Hua��s speed made the crowd tremble. He rushed straight to Ye Futian at full speed as if the pressure from the Demon God Temple couldn��t affect him at all.


    Of course, that was impossible. The only possibility was that Ning Hua held out against the pressure with his great strength.


    Ning Hua��s body was surrounded by the brilliant divine light of the Great Path. He sealed off that space and unleashed a burst of energy that darted toward Ye Futian at front. Soon, it reached Ye Futian��s body.


    ��Ning Hua is going to attack Ye Futian?�� Lots of people were astounded by what just happened. With his status and identity, Ning Hua virtually represented the Domain Chief��s Manor. If he intended to attack Ye Futian right now, how could Ye Futian survive, even if he made out of the secret zones alive?


    What on earth happened? Why would an incredible cultivator who displayed phenomenal talents at the Donghua Banquet antagonize the best cultivator in the Donghua Domain when they were already facing imminent peril?


    Ye Futian would have no chance to survive if he were hit by Ning Hua.


    Jiang Yueli and Qin Qing exchanged a look, both feeling sorry for Ye Futian. Ning Hua might actually aim to kill Ye Futian this time since they were at each other��s throats already. They didn��t understand why Ye Futian would come here. If he waited till he got out of the secret zones and explained the incident to the chief, he might still have a chance if the cultivators from the Great Yan and the Ling Xiao Palace attacked him first.


    Clearly, they were not aware of Ye Futian��s current situation either.


    Ye Futian saw Ning Hua��s move and kept going forward. Ning Hua chased after him. Although he gradually slowed down, the divine light around his body was even more dazzling. He even shot two beams of divine light from Ye Futian��s eyes, which inhibited Ye Futian��s power. Ning Hua��s Great Path seemed to break free from the restraint in this space as well.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian unleashed a tremendous life force inside his body. The branches and leaves of the World Tree Spirit reached every part of his body and transformed him into a Divine Tree filled with grand energy of life that prevented him from falling into decay.


    To everyone��s surprise, Ye Futian sped up and kept moving forward. He overtook Desolation and became the cultivator who was closest to the Demon God Temple.


    ��He is crazy!��


    Everyone was astonished. Since Ning Hua had moved on Ye Futian, perhaps Ye Futian was desperate to find a way to escape from the hopeless situation. He had no choice but to brace himself to keep going!


    Ning Hua followed Ye Futian forward without any hesitation. Despite being under tremendous pressure, he walked with firm and steady steps, emitting the bright divine light of the Great Path. How could he fail to accomplish what Ye Futian was capable of?


    The divine light of the Grand Seal Great Path dazzled around him and transfigured into numerous ancient characters. Countless Seal Spells swirled in the air and sealed off that space, which turned this area into his Great Path domain. Even the might of the Great Path of the divine temple couldn��t resist the Seal Spells. Ning Hua raised his hand and pushed forward a terrifying cyclone. Raging waves took shape and dashed the space. Ye Futian immediately felt enormous pressure.


    Ye Futian turned around and aimed his figure at the incoming attack. The figure turned into a brilliant divine sword. With a deafening bang, two forces came into collision. The raging waves kept moving forward. It shattered the space and shook the area Ye Futian was in.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian was flung away with a loud bang. He was already under extreme pressure and took a hit from Ning Hua. Like a tight string, he could break at any second.


    Ye Futian uttered a low rumbling sound and threw up a mouthful of blood. He could hear his heart pounding violently and feel his blood rushing wildly. His blood force was surging.


    ��It��s over!��


    A terrible thought popped up in people��s minds when they saw what happened to Ye Futian. This genius cultivator was probably going to meet his end. Ning Hua��s attack directly sent Ye Futian to the area right in front of the illusory Demon God Temple.


    Since Ye Futian was severely injured already, he probably would explode right away.


    The crowd stared at the silver-haired man ahead who was not moving a muscle. A lot of them were suffering from palpitation. Cultivators who were standing close to each other could even hear the heartbeat of other people. The Goddesses from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow were also gazing at Ye Futian. Some of them didn��t have the heart to watch Ye Futian die here. They didn��t expect that Ning Hua would kill Ye Futian.


    It would be a great pity if such an incredible young man bit the dust like this.


    Although it hadn��t been long since Ye Futian made a name for himself in the Donghua Domain, no one could ignore his presence because of his mind-blowing ability. Every cultivator from every top force in the Donghua Domain knew about Ye Liunian.


    Ye Liunian was already in the same league as the four best cultivators.


    People��s eyes were glued on Ye Futian in the silence. Motionless, Ye Futian��s body didn��t explode as many people expected even after a while. On the contrary, a beam of blinding divine light of the Great Path shone from his body.


    The blazing divine light of the Great Path wrapped around Ye Futian. Countless branches and leaves spread out. He transfigured into a Divine Tree filled with magnificent energy of life that would never die out.


    Some people even had a vague feeling that Ye Futian became different now, but they couldn��t exactly name the difference. He was protected by the divine light and as striking as God��s son.


    Ye Futian��s eyes changed into a golden color. He raised his head and darted Ning Hua a cold look.


    Bathing in the brilliant divine light, Ye Futian turned around and walked toward the Demon God Temple. Countless pairs of eyes were glued on him. How did he survive it?


    More importantly, what did he want to do?


    He was walking straight to the divine temple as though the pressure coming from the temple couldn��t kill him.


    Ning Hua frowned. He also sensed that something about Ye Futian had changed. It felt like Ye Futian activated a special type of power, but Ning Hua couldn��t figure out what it was exactly. Even so, he knew that the power was the reason that Ye Futian could withstand the pressure and approach the divine temple.


    What kind of power was it?

 Chapter 2060 - The Sealed Item

    At this point, Ye Futian finally stood in front of the Demon God Temple. Although the Demon God Temple was towering over everyone, it still seemed unreal and elusive.


    Terrifying thunder roared. The Great Path in Ye Futian��s body was vibrating. His heart kept pounding violently, and his blood was rolling and surging in the veins.


    Much to everyone��s surprise, he managed to stand in front of the Demon God Temple in one piece.


    ��Back off,�� a cold voice rang out. It was the Demon Emperor who fought against Ye Futian and the others before. He emanated a frighting amount of the Demonic Qi from his body. The Demon God Temple was their holy land where no outsider could approach for years. They were trapped there to look after the divine temple. All they had wished for was that one of them could enter the temple someday, obtain the heritage from the Demon God, and break free from the sealing power.


    Yet now, a human cultivator reached the Demon God Temple.


    ��He can��t get in,�� Ning Hua gazed at Ye Futian and declared. He was the son of the Chief and certainly knew what kind of a place this was. He was well aware of the sealing power the divine temple was subject to. It was the ultimate divine sealing technique that made the temple visible to the eyes but not tangible.


    Even though Ye Futian was standing in front of the Demon God Temple, it was utterly meaningless. Ning Hua never attempted to enter the Demon God Temple because he knew that no one could get in.


    The divine sealing techniques were accomplished with the Divine Book��s help, which was a priceless treasure and a divine item that was created before the collapse of the Heavenly Path.


    Each Domain Chief��s Manor of the eighteen domains in the Divine Prefecture possessed a precious treasure. Many master cultivators of the Divine Prefecture��s top forces also owned ancient divine items, which was why they had the opportunities to cultivate to the highest level. The Millet Emperor, for instance, received a divine stela.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor had a divine item in their possession as well. Therefore, There was no point for Ye Futian to stand there since he couldn��t get in the Demon God Temple anyway.


    According to Ning Hua��s father, the divine sealing technique created the Delusive Divine Seal that was invisible and intangible. It kept the Demon God Temple in the Land of the Void.


    Ye Futian obviously realized it as well. Staring straight ahead, his eyes glowed with strange divine light. He sensed the horrifying divine sealing technique. The Demon God Temple radiated infinite Divine Light of the Seals yet had no shadow or real shape. The Will of the Great Path emanated from Ye Futian��s body. The energy currents of the Great Path circulated. In an instant, beams of the Divine Light of the Seals flowed toward Ye Futian and were absorbed by his Life Spirit and Life Palace.


    Wrapped around with Divine Light of the Seals, he started to have a clearer view of the Demon God Temple. It seemed as if he was about to integrate with the Divine Light of the Seals.


    However, Ye Futian��s figure became blurrier in other people��s eyes. He seemed farther away. At that moment, many people had an illusion that Ye Futian was getting closer to the unreal divine temple, notwithstanding that neither the divine temple nor Ye Futian had moved at all. They still felt this way.


    ��What is going on?�� An astonishing look showed on people��s faces. Did Ye Futian really have a way to get inside?


    Ning Hua also knitted his brows in confusion.


    At this point, Ye Futian really felt like he was standing in front of the Demon God Temple. The energy of the Great Path inside his body was roaring even more wildly. His heart was pounding loudly, and he could feel the strong vibration.


    Staring at the door in front of him, Ye Futian reached out both hands and pushed forward. A ray of blinding light shone out of the Demon God Temple at once. Everyone closed their eyes right away.


    Bang.


    One after another, cultivators were flung away. Even Ning Hua felt a terrifying quiver that made him step back. He put down his hands that had been shielding his eyes and looked at the glaring light. The silver-haired man pushed open the door of the Demon God Temple with both hands. Bathing in the dazzling light, Ye Futian looked like God.


    ��How could it be possible!�� Ning Hua was astonished and confounded. He tried it before and knew it was impossible. But Ye Futian somehow pushed the door open.


    Could it be that the abnormal movement in the Demon God Temple happened because the seals were loose? Perhaps Ye Futian only had such an opportunity because the Demon God Temple itself had changed?


    At this moment, the condition in that area changed abruptly. Brilliant divine light shone from the Demon God Temple directly to the sky. The divine light illuminated the entire secret zone.


    Someone uttered a yelp and exploded for not being able to bear the pressure. Other people ran off in a frenzy. Even powerful cultivators like Ning Hua beat a hasty retreat. They stared at the radiating divine temple and saw rays of divine light casting from the sky above the secret zone. Ning Hua raised his head and watched the divine light that seemed to contain limitless sealing power coming from above.


    At that point, the entire secret zone was shaking. The divine light of the Great Path shining from all directions looked like countless flashes of lightning. Everyone had an illusion that they had become infinitely small at this moment. It was rare for domineering Renhuangs to feel helpless and humbled.


    The power generated at this time seemed to be coming from the authority of heaven.


    ��What happened just now?�� All the cultivators raised their heads to look at the sky. The world was on a rampage at this moment. Many people only realized now that the secret zone was a sealed Space World. The Divine Light of the Seals shone upon the Demon God Temple from above while more divine light was being cast from all directions. They vaguely saw a book that looked like the God Seal Book high up in the sky.


    But there seemed to be a breach on the seal. The breach was enlarged when Ye Futian pushed the door open. The energy inside the Demon God Temple was getting worse. The unparalleled divine light of the Great Path blazed down. Many demonic beasts were prostrating themselves on the ground, worshiping the Demon God Temple.


    It was the energy of the Demon God.


    ��Is the seal broken for real?�� Ning Hua muttered to himself upon seeing the horrifying scene. As powerful as he was, he didn��t feel confident at all at this moment. He was puny in the face of this kind of power.


    ��Get out of here now,�� Ning Hua ordered without hesitation. Everyone pulled back immediately at full speed. But a large number of demonic beasts couldn��t bear to leave. They stayed in the area and worshipped the Demon God Temple.


    Buzz��


    The divine light shone from the Demon God Temple and collided with the Divine Light of the Seals coming from above. In the blink of an eye, everything was demolished.


    The mountains were crumbling and collapsing, the ground cracking. The secret zone was being destroyed as the space was torn open.


    In the midst of that, Ye Futian walked into the Demon God Temple. He broke the seal and triggered everything simply by pushing the door open.


    He stood in place and raised his head to watch everything that was happening around him. His heart was beating so wildly that he was on the verge of kneeling over. At this moment, the Divine Tree appeared in his body. The divine light of the ancient tree protected him from being annihilated.


    ��Is this the Demon God?�� Ye Futian could feel his heart pounding while staring at the gigantic thing in front of him. He entered the Burial Ground of the Gods. Legend had it that there were plenty of Gods in the distant past.


    Nobody had stepped foot in the mysterious site located in the secret zone of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain. Other than the chief, probably no one in the entire Donghua Domain knew that a divine item was sealed here!

 Chapter 2061 - Certain Death

    It was a gigantic beast. Its body was dazzling, covered in brilliant feathers of all colors. These feathers fanned out, seemingly containing countless multicolored jewels. They also seemed like mirrors, refracting dazzling divine light.


    On his head, he wore a crown adorned with gemstones. He was filled with an unparalleled majestic aura.


    This was a Peacock Demon God. Aside from unparalleled majesty, he was also beautiful beyond comparison. Right then, the jewels on his feathers seemed to radiate endless colorful light. It broke the seals and the locks, shooting light out into the vast space. Countless beams of divine light shot out into this part of the secret zone, causing the space to collapse and crumble.


    Ye Futian��s heart was beating violently. This proud Peacock King had his eyes closed. There was not a speck of life force on him. This was a Peacock Demon God who had long perished. Otherwise, who could keep him trapped here?


    He was certainly also an extremely ancient Demon God. Yet, even though he had perished for eons, he still looked so dazzling and required so many sealing techniques to keep him sealed away here.


    What exactly caused him to have such frightening destructive power still?


    Ye Futian��s heart was still beating intensely. As he stood before the Peacock Demon God, he felt a suffocating pressure. Ye Futian felt his blood churning inside his body. A dazzling divine halo radiated from his body. The World Tree Life Spirit was frenziedly unleashed. It was bathed in imperial glory and stood there erect like a deity.


    If it weren��t for the World Tree, Ye Futian wouldn��t have been able to withstand such pressure.


    Thump�� Thump��


    The sound of his heartbeat persisted. Ye Futian looked at the body of the peacock. The body of the Peacock Demon God, shining with brilliant divine light, was hollow. It was covered in divine light. The blood in his body had long dried up. This dazzling figure retained his appearance when he was still alive.


    ��What is that?��


    Ye Futian stared ahead. From inside the Peacock Demon God, he could hear a thumping sound. Ye Futian��s heart also beat furiously to this rhythm.


    He saw a resplendent crystal. It shone with divine light. It seemed that it was the reason the Peacock Demon God was unleashing such a divine halo. It also caused other people to be unable to approach it. They would not be able to withstand its power.


    Thump��


    The thumping sound continued. With each beat, Ye Futian felt as though his heart was about to leap out from his body. His expression became one of intense interest. A thought surfaced in his mind.


    Was this the Divine Heart of the Peacock?


    It was the heart of the Peacock Demon God!


    The heart of the Peacock Demon God, who had perished eons ago, was actually still beating?


    It was the heart of a God.


    Buzz. Brilliant light radiated outwards. A terrifying sound came from the outside. Everything was shattering and being destroyed. The entire secret zone was collapsing.


    The Divine Heart of the Peacock actually flew out from the Demon God��s body. The branches of the ancient tree wrapped around it. The Divine Heart of the Peacock allowed the branches to do so. They seemed to attract one another. It then released a resplendent divine halo and surged into Ye Futian��s World Tree Life Spirit.


    Buzz!


    Multicolored lights instantly shone from Ye Futian��s figure. The World Tree wrapped around the Divine Heart of the Peacock as though it was forming a cocoon around it. It enveloped the heart within it. The heart then gradually disappeared, entering into his body and his Life Palace along with the Life Spirit of the World Tree.


    ��


    Outside the secret zone, in the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Right then, in Donghua Palace, which was situated on a high mountain peak and had a waterfall that flowed down like ribbons, a group of cultivators was drinking wine and chatting casually.


    However, at that moment, a frightening commotion could be heard coming from below. Divine light directly punctured the space. The region below was the exit of the secret zone. From there, countless beams of divine light pierced the space and shot up into the heavens.


    Chief Ning stood up. His expression suddenly became very serious. He walked up to the edge of the waterfall and peered down below. He saw divine light penetrating the space across a vast and endless region. Intense rumbling could also be heard. The divine light contained unparalleled might. More and more beams appeared. After shattering the space, they pierced the heavens. They were extremely dazzling to behold.


    The giant level figures in Donghua Palace all stood up frantically and walked up to the top of the waterfall. They revealed astonished expressions as they looked down below. What was happening?


    ��Chief, what is going on?�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord asked. He looked at Chief Ning, who had a serious gaze as he stared down below.


    Something had happened.


    Yet, how was this possible? The entire secret zone was a gigantic seal. A divine item was sealed inside. Let alone the junior cultivators, even giant level figures like themselves could not break the seal.


    This seal was not set up by Chief Ning but the Imperial Palace. This was the will of the Great Emperor.


    Buzz!


    A beam of divine light flew out, and a page of the Heavenly Scroll appeared in the sky. It was gigantic. The Heavenly Scroll released endless Divine Light of the Seals, but it still could not prevent the shattering of the secret zone.


    Beams of resplendent divine light shot up into the sky and onto the Heavenly Scroll. The Heavenly Scroll seemed to be sentient as it twirled frenziedly. Endless Divine Light of the Seals formed an array as they plunged downwards. However, they were still shattered. With loud ripping sounds, the Heavenly Scroll was torn apart and turned to ash and smoke.


    The next moment, an astonishing exploding sound came from inside the Domain Chief��s Manor. The ground beneath them cracked apart inch by inch, propagating endlessly into the area. The mountain peak that they were on also trembled violently, and cracks appeared beneath their feet.


    ��Chief.�� The people around him realized that something was off. What exactly was going on?


    However, Chief Ning did not seem to hear them. His facial expression was extremely ugly as he stared at the tattered Heavenly Scroll. His divine item had actually been destroyed?


    Silhouettes directly shot up from down below. They all appeared very pathetic. The first person to emerge was Ning Hua. He stood in the sky and raised his head to look in the direction of Donghua Palace. He did not have a good expression on his face as well. Like Chief Ning, he still could not wrap his head around what had happened.


    The divine light gradually dissipated. Silhouettes emerged one after another. Various Renhuangs, as well as many Demon Emperors, appeared. They were somewhat confused. They never imagined that they would emerge in such a fashion. However, even if they managed to get out, it was pointless. They had not broken the seal themselves, so they still could not stand against the cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Chief Ning had an extremely sharp look in his eyes. He glanced over at the various cultivators. He then looked at Ning Hua and asked, ��What happened?��


    ��The seal was broken,�� Ning Hua replied.


    ��How was it broken?�� Chief Ning asked.


    Ning Hua revealed a strange look. He recalled that Ye Futian opened the door of the Demon God Temple. Ning Hua still believed that the seal had unraveled itself.


    However, Ye Futian had indeed opened the door and initiated the unsealing.


    ��Ye Liunian opened the door of the Demon God Temple and broke the seal,�� a voice cried out. The person who had spoken was not Ning Hua, but Yan Hanxing, the crown prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    ��That��s impossible,�� Chief Ning exclaimed as he looked at Yan Hanxing. How could Ye Futian have possibly broken the seal?


    No matter how talented he was, Ye Futian was only a fourth-tier middle-level Renhuang.


    ��Chief, you can ask the others,�� Yan Hanxing replied. Chief Ning looked at Ning Hua. Ning Hua said, ��When we entered the secret zone, there was a disturbance in the Demon God Temple. Right then, I sent Ye Futian flying towards the Demon God Temple. He pushed open the door, and then everything else happened. It might be a coincidence.��


    How could Ye Futian have entered the Demon God Temple?


    Chief Ning had an indifferent expression. Even he could not enter there.


    Ye Liunian! Chief Ning glanced around at the various cultivators. He asked, ��What happened to Ling He from Lingxiao Palace and Yan Dongyang from the Yan Kingdom?��


    ��Ye Liunian killed them,�� Ning Hua replied. The expressions of the various giant-level figures froze. So, it was truly Ye Futian��s doing?


    A murderous aura emanated from Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi. Their auras enveloped the vast space. The Millet Emperor had excused himself and left because he already knew about this beforehand.


    ��Where is Ye Liunian?�� A terrifying aura emanated from Emperor Yan��s figure. It enveloped the space below. His murderous intent burst forth undisguised.


    The other giant level figure revealed strange expressions. Emperor Xi looked down below and said in a low voice, ��Chief established the rule himself. Ye Liunian should know the consequences of defying it. Why did he still kill people in the secret zone?��


    Clearly, Emperor Xi wanted to know Ye Futian��s motive for doing so. This was intended to help Ye Futian.


    If the members of the Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace had attacked him first, Ye Futian would have an excuse.


    However, today, Ye Futian would certainly die. No one could save him!

 Chapter 2062 - The Chief’s Decision

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Various cultivators emerged one after another. Their figures floated in the sky as they looked towards Donghua Palace.


    The cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower were also here. Li Changsheng also appeared. He took a step forward and bowed towards where Chief Ning was. He said, ��Reporting to the Chief. After all of us entered the secret zone, we reached the mountain range of demonic beasts and were attacked by Demon Emperors. Yet, during this incident, not only did the members of the Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace not join forces with us to defeat the demon clan cultivators, they instead tried to kill us. At that time, dozens of Renhuangs pursued Ye Liunian. Among them were Yan Dongyang from Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. as well as Ling He from Lingxiao Palace. Might I ask this: Were the Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace members trying to kill Ye Liunian? Or was Ye Liunian trying to kill them? May Chief judge fairly.��


    Although Li Changsheng was already aware that Chief Ning was behind all this, they could not mention this now. Even if they knew about this, they had to feign ignorance. That way, Chief Ning could at least fake his stance on the matter. Otherwise, if they were to tear off his mask, there would be no escape for them.


    ��Utter nonsense,�� someone yelled out in a cold tone. His voice shook the sky, causing Li Changsheng��s blood to churn. Emperor Yan stood at the edge of the cliff. He looked at Li Changsheng intently. The pressure that acted on Li Changsheng was insufferable. Emperor Yan said in a cold tone, ��According to what you claim, Ye Liunian should not have survived.��


    ��Vice Chief should have also seen this,�� said Li Changsheng as he looked at Ning Hua.


    ��I arrived later and saw that several people had fallen to Ye Futian. I am not clear as to what happened before I arrived,�� Ning Hua replied.


    ��I saw what happened. We were passing by at that moment. The members of the two forces were pursuing Ye Liunian and the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower,�� a calm voice said. The person who had spoken was Jiang Yueli from Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. After she said this, she did not reveal any more. This matter was too complicated to get involved in. It was not appropriate for them to interfere. However, there would not be an issue if she just mentioned what she saw.


    It would be best if a figure like Ye Futian could live. Although the hopes of him surviving were slim, she still helped out by mentioning this. At the very least, it could prove that these two major forces had attacked Ye Futian first.


    ��When we were outside, we also mentioned that we would face each other if we had the chance. Ye Liunian also mentioned a group battle during the Donghua Banquet,�� Yan Hanxing said in a cold tone. ��Hence, after we entered the secret zone, we naturally wanted to experience the cultivation of the Renhuangs from Wangshen Watchtower. We were sparring and exchanging pointers. How can that be considered attacking them? Has Wangshen Watchtower lost even a single member? However, Ye Futian defied the rule established by the Chief and directly went for the kill. Even after Vice Chief forbade him from doing so, he continued to kill the Renhuangs of the Yan Kingdom as well as Lingxiao Palace in front of everyone.��


    ��Hey���� a voice cried out. Chen Yi stood in mid-air as he looked at Yan Hanxing and said, ��Crown prince of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, even though you are a ninth-tier Renhuang, you speak so shamelessly? Their abilities were inferior, and they ended up being killed in Ye Liunian��s counterattack. Why do you make it seem as though they just stood there and waited for Ye Liunian to kill them? In front of the Demon God Temple in the secret zone, how many Renhuangs from your two forces faced Ye Liunian alone? When they were killed instead, you claim that Ye Liunian killed them in front of everyone. According to you, should Ye Liunian have just stood there and be killed?��


    As Chen Yi said this, everyone��s gazes gradually fell on him. Frightening pressure enveloped his body, but Chen Yi had no fear. He bowed slightly at Chief Ning and said, ��Chief, I witnessed the entire thing. The two major forces were pursuing Ye Liunian all the way. He was merely forced to defend himself.��


    ��Where is Ye Liunian?�� Chief Ning asked. His voice reverberated in the space and spread far and wide. Down below, a silhouette dashed out and became a beam of light that descended upon the peak. It was Ye Futian. He bowed slightly at Chief Ning, just like Li Changsheng had done. He also understood the predicament he was in. Even though he knew what kind of person Chief Ning was, he still had to strive to stay alive.


    ��Reporting to the Chief. The members of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace pursued me all the way in the secret zone. I was forced to counterattack,�� Ye Futian slowly said. ��Chief wanted us to train in the secret zone. By some fated coincidence, I accidentally opened the Demon God Temple, causing this series of events. I hope Chief can forgive this misstep.��


    Ye Futian clearly knew what he was facing, but he still acted calmly, as though it was not a problem. Panic and fear were meaningless right now.


    Chief Ning looked at Ye Futian. Setting aside the matter with the Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace, Ye Futian breaking the seal and causing the divine item to be destroyed was unforgivable. However, Chief Ning was the one who allowed the cultivators to enter the secret zone to train. He had no excuse for blaming Ye Futian; he had not mentioned that they could not enter.


    At that moment, the space suddenly fell silent for a short while.


    ��I believed that what they say is mostly the truth. Ye Liunian naturally wouldn��t just sit there and await death given the conflict between these forces. As for being able to break the seal, as expected, this fellow is a genius,�� Emperor Xi said with a smile. He appeared very casual about it, seemingly wanting to resolve the issue effortlessly.


    ��Emperor Xi, this person killed a prince of the Yan Kingdom and the Lingxiao Palace Young Palace Lord in the secret zone, as well as many Renhuangs,�� Emperor Yan stated. Emperor Xi actually admired Ye Futian and was speaking up for him.


    Emperor Xi smiled and did not say anymore. Such were cultivators. The situation faced by Ye Futian today was indeed very disadvantageous to him. These people would not question right and wrong. They only wanted results. They wanted Ye Futian��s life.


    Now, it depended on how Chief Ning viewed this situation.


    Ye Futian voiced out, ��Before this, Chief claimed that the members who passed through to the training in the secret zone could enter the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate. I discussed this with the Millet Emperor before coming here. I came precisely to join Domain Chief��s Manor. That is why I followed the Millet Emperor and participated in the Donghua Banquet. Now that the secret zone has shattered, I wonder whether or not I still have the chance to join the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate?��


    Ye Futian��s expression was calm as he bowed towards Chief Ning. This immediately caused everyone to look at him in astonishment. Ye Futian actually brought up joining Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate now. This surprised everyone.


    Those who entered the secret zone were especially surprised. They had witnessed firsthand Ning Hua nearly killing Ye Futian. Under such circumstances, Ye Futian should have become sworn enemies with Ning Hua. Yet, he swallowed his pride here and asked to join the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate. He was bold.


    Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi both looked at him with strange expressions. This white-haired youth was indeed a genius. He actually brought up wanting to join the Domain Chief��s Manor in such a situation. Under normal circumstances, if they had no affiliations with the Domain Chief��s Manor, the Chief might actually agree to accept him and protect him. Domain Chief��s Manor would then have another outstanding monstrous figure.


    However, Ye Futian must not have known who was the mastermind behind Supreme Deity Donglai��s death.


    Hence, it was impossible for Ye Futian to join Domain Chief��s Manor. Chief Ning would not harbor something that would later do him harm.


    Chief Ning looked at Ye Futian and said, ��I understand what all of you have said. Each side has its own story. It seems that the conflict between the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Lingxiao Palace, and Wangshen Watchtower cannot be reconciled. Regardless of whatever reason you had, you defying my rules and killing the cultivators of the two major forces is still the truth. Some say that it was with reason, but I cannot defend you. Hence, Ye Liunian, you can forget about cultivating in the Domain Chief��s Manor.��


    When they heard the Chief��s words, many people were stunned. It appeared that Chief Ning was giving up on this prominent figure. Such a monstrous existence was rejected by the Domain Chief��s Manor even though Ye Futian had actively stated that he wanted to join them.


    He has been rejected, thought the Renhuangs to themselves. A monstrous figure like Ye Futian had actually been rejected.


    ��Aside from that, the grudge between your three forces cannot be reconciled by others. As such, settle it among yourselves,�� Chief Ning continued. The various cultivators looked at the Chief. He was giving up on Ye Futian.


    Settle it among yourselves. How could Ye Futian stand against two giant level figures?


    It was certain death!

 Chapter 2063 - Returning With a Watchtower on His Back

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Emperor Xi, Thunder Punishing Skylord, Sword Goddess from Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, and the others glanced at Chief Ning.


    The Millet Emperor had left. There were only the disciples of Wangshen Watchtower here now. Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi��the Lingxiao Palace Palace Lord��were both here. To ask them to settle the matter among themselves now was equivalent to declaring the death sentence for Ye Futian. How could the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower handle either Emperor Yan or Ling Yunzi alone?


    Chief Ning appeared to be impartial and took a middle stance, but in reality, he had already thrown Ye Futian into the deep end.


    The giant level figures were all somewhat surprised. Why was Chief Ning giving up on such an extraordinary figure? Ye Futian had already made it clear his willingness to join the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate. He also mentioned that he came to participate in the Donghua Banquet for this exact reason. They did not believe that Ye Futian was lying. After all, Ye Futian��s situation before this was originally difficult. He had offended two major forces. Entering the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate would be beneficial for him. He could avoid the Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace from targeting him.


    However, Chief Ning had turned down this offer.


    From the looks of it, Chief Ning was prejudiced against Ye Futian.


    Otherwise, with his position and identity, he could still protect Ye Futian.


    ��Chief, for you to be impartial is enough for the Yan Kingdom. We will naturally deal with this matter ourselves,�� Emperor Yan said. He swept a glance at Ye Futian, who was floating in the sky ahead, as well as the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower. A pressure that filled the skies radiated from his body. The powerful Renhuangs from Wangshen Watchtower immediately felt an extremely powerful pressure of the Great Path acting on them.


    ��Ye Liunian from Wangshen Watchtower, you killed my son, Yan Dongyang, in the secret zone. You deserve to die.�� Emperor Yan��s voice shook the heavens like the cry of a dragon. This caused the eardrums of the cultivators to vibrate violently. Many people sealed off their senses and protected their wills and minds. The voice of Emperor Yan contained the power of the Way of Sonic Wave.


    Ptui.


    Ye Futian let out a dull groan and coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood. Formless soundwaves of the Way of Sonic Wave swept towards him. They were like unblockable heavenly might. His body was sent flying outwards from the shockwave. His face turned as pale as a sheet.


    Emperor Yan had immediately attacked. He was prepared to kill Ye Futian.


    Emperor Yan raised his palm. A huge divine golden dragon appeared above Ye Futian. It was as though it was formed from the Heavenly Path. It took shape and enveloped Ye Futian��s figure. The huge golden claws of the dragon hooked onto the space and enveloped the space that Ye Futian was in within it. Ye Futian had nowhere to run to.


    Ye Futian raised his head and saw the giant claw of the divine dragon slashing down towards him. It blocked out the sun and the sky. It descended upon him like divine might. He could not block it at all. His opponent was a giant level figure. How could Ye Futian stand against him?


    ��Wait,�� at that moment, a voice called out.


    The golden claw that was slashing down suddenly stopped, hovering above Ye Futian��s head. Emperor Yan turned around and looked at the person who had spoken. It was Emperor Xi.


    ��Emperor Xi, what advice do you wish to offer?�� Emperor Yan asked.


    ��Since both parties will be settling it among themselves, now that Millet Emperor isn��t here, doesn��t it seem inappropriate for you to attack them immediately?�� Emperor Xi asked calmly. He then looked at Chief Ning and said, ��Since that was the decision, at the very least, they should wait until Millet Emperor returns, right?��


    ��Before this, I have always heard that Emperor Xi didn��t concern himself with the affairs of the world. However, ever since you made it through your divine tribulation, you seem to have begun to concern yourself with the matters of the Donghua Domain. Will you intervene in the grudge between our two parties?�� Emperor Yan asked.


    Emperor Xi had already made it through the first stage of his divine tribulation. His status was extraordinary. His ability was extremely powerful. Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi were still somewhat cautious of him. If Emperor Xi intervened in this matter, things could be troublesome.


    ��Since Chief agreed to not interfere in this matter and allowed both sides to settle it themselves, it stands to reason that you should wait for the Millet Emperor to return before settling it among yourselves. Otherwise, how will the world assess the Donghua Banquet this time around?�� Emperor Xi said with a smile.


    ��The Millet Emperor himself most likely left and escaped intentionally after knowing the truth of the matter,�� Ling Yunzi added. His murderous intent was intense. If it wasn��t for the Donghua Banquet and that there were many giant level figures from the Donghua Domain here, Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi would have already attacked and eliminated Ye Futian and the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Huh?�� Just as Ling Yunzi said this, he realized that something was amiss. He looked up into the sky and saw the wind and the clouds shifting. It was as though an extremely powerful divine might have appeared.


    ��What is going on?��


    A powerful pressure enveloped the heavens. In the vast space, everyone felt a suffocating pressure.


    It was not just them. At that moment, countless cultivators across the Donghua Heavens were looking up into the heavens. Divine might descended from above and pressed down on the space. Countless people felt their hearts trembling violently inside their chests.


    What was this aura?


    It was too terrifying. It was like a divine might.


    Dong.


    A loud sound came from the sky. Countless cultivators in the Donghua Heavens looked up. An extremely terrifying scene appeared in the heavens above.


    There was a silhouette there. However, right now, the silhouette appeared exceptionally miniscule, seemingly insignificant. On his back, he carried a divine watchtower. It was gigantic. Divine might emanated from the divine watchtower, sweeping across the vast space. A great pressure loomed over the Donghua Heavens.


    ��It is the Millet Emperor,�� someone cried out in surprise.


    What was he carrying on his back? The crowd was in awe. The Millet Emperor walked over while carrying a divine watchtower on his back.


    Dong. Every step he took, he advanced a vast distance across the endless space. The moment his footsteps landed, the continent shook violently. Divine might descended from the sky. Everyone could feel its suffocating power.


    ��What is the Millet Emperor going to do?��


    Outside the Domain Chief��s Manor, countless people were looking up into the sky. They were witnessing this scene in awe. The Millet Emperor had returned with a divine item on his back.


    This was the divine watchtower that fortified Wangshen Watchtower. It was the true Wangshen Watchtower. The Millet Emperor was carrying on his back just like that. It was as though he was carrying part of the sky.


    Inside the Domain Chief��s Manor, the cultivators were similarly looking in his direction. This included the top figures of the Donghua Palace.


    Bang!


    There was another loud ring. As the skies trembled violently, the Millet Emperor��s silhouette appeared in the sky above Donghua Palace. He appeared above all of the giant level figures, carrying the divine watchtower on his back.


    At that moment, the crowd finally knew why the Millet Emperor had suddenly disappeared and left. It seems that he already knew about the situation in the secret zone. He promptly returned to Wangshen Watchtower. Now, the Millet Emperor came back carrying Wangshen Watchtower.


    He went that far, the giant level figures thought to themselves when they saw this scene. He actually returned carrying the divine watchtower. He was prepared to fight.


    The expressions of Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi changed. They stared at the silhouette in mid-air as well as that astonishing heavenly might.


    Chief Ning also looked up at the Millet Emperor. His eyes narrowed.


    Just a while ago, the divine item of the Domain Chief��s Manor had been destroyed. Ye Futian had broken the seal and resulted in its destruction. Right now, Millet Emperor brought over another divine item.


    The Millet Emperor��s figure shook, and the divine watchtower immediately slid off his back. There was a loud rumble that reverberated far and wide. The gigantic divine watchtower stood in the sky and suppressed this part of the space. Instantly, an astonishing storm swept out. Many Renhuangs fell to the ground, unable to withstand the Power of Suppression!

 Chapter 2064 - Enforce the Law on Behalf of the Great Emperor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Millet Emperor was like a deity as he stood in the sky above the Donghua Palace. The divine watchtower stood next to him, like a Gate of the Heavens. It suppressed everything below. Everyone in the Domain Chief��s Manor could sense this frightening power.


    As expected, Millet Emperor had known of this news beforehand. He had left before this to return to the Wangshen Watchtower and retrieved the divine watchtower. He was prepared to wage war.


    This time, there was going to be a huge commotion during the Donghua Banquet. A storm was brewing.


    The other cultivators realized this. They looked up at the silhouette of Wangshen Watchtower far off in the sky above. They were curious as to what had happened. Millet Emperor had carried the divine watchtower over here. He stood in the sky above Domain Chief��s Manor and suppressed this part of the sky.


    Emperor Yan accused in an indifferent tone, ��Chief, what I said was true. The Millet Emperor knew before this that the members of his force had defied the rules set by Chief and had brutally murdered the Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace��s disciples. Hence, he intentionally went back to make preparations and came here to pressure us. He does not take Chief seriously in this Donghua Banquet.�� His tone was oozing with a chilly aura.


    Wangshen Watchtower was a divine item and was very powerful. Rumor had it that it was an ancient treasure. There were also rumors that Wangshen Watchtower was a Gate of the Heavens before the Heavenly Path collapsed. By some fateful encounter, the Millet Emperor obtained it. Its might was extremely frightening. Various cultivators were cautious of him. This was also the reason why they eliminated Supreme Deity Donglai but not the Millet Emperor.


    Carrying Wangshen Watchtower, the Millet Emperor was already enough to pose a threat to them.


    ��This time, Chief organized the Donghua Banquet and gathered the various forces. The disciples of Wangshen Watchtower first defied the rule of killing cultivators in the secret zone. Now, the Millet Emperor wishes to stir up a storm in the Donghua Domain by carrying the divine watchtower over here. Incredible,�� Lingxiao Palace Palace Lord, Ling Yunzi also spoke up. It was as though he placed all the responsibility on the Millet Emperor and the members of Wangshen Watchtower.


    From the looks of it, they had to get rid of Millet Emperor and the members of Wangshen Watchtower this time. Otherwise, they would eventually become a thorn in their side.


    ��Chief, the Millet Emperor might have figured out something,�� Ling Yunzi told Chief Ning over transmitted thoughts. Chief Ning looked up at the Millet Emperor. Before this, Ning Hua had also briefly explained to him what had happened. Based on his judgment, be it the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower or the Millet Emperor, they probably no longer trusted him. Hence, they had immediately prepared for battle.


    That meant that the other party had indeed figured out something. It was just that owing to his ability and position, they did not state it outright. They could only endure it for now.


    When he thought of this, Chief Ning made his decision. From the looks of it, the Millet Emperor and the forces of Wangshen Watchtower needed to be eliminated. The divine item of Domain Chief��s Manor, the Heavenly Scroll of Sealing, had been destroyed. They needed to replace it with another divine item to fortify the position of the Domain Chief��s Manor. Although this divine watchtower was not compatible with Chief Ning��s cultivation, it was still considered an absolute treasure.


    Chief Ning said, ��Millet Emperor, this is the Donghua Banquet. For you to carry the divine watchtower here, are you planning to suppress the various forces of the Donghua Domain as well as my Domain Chief��s Manor? How presumptuous of you.�� No one could sense his emotions from his tone. He still appeared very calm, but his words already indicated his stance.


    Before this, he had said that both sides should settle their differences. There seemed to be some changes. These words were already chastising the Millet Emperor.


    Before the Millet Emperor arrived, Emperor Yan wanted to attack Ye Futian. Chief Ning did not speak out and did not stop Emperor Yan. Now that the Millet Emperor had arrived, although the commotion he created was larger, he only did this as a last resort. If he did not do so, he could not withstand the power of Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi, two peak figures, alone. Hence, he had directly carried the divine watchtower over here.


    He was already prepared for the worst-case scenario.


    ��Chief, you worry too much. The Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace have gone against the Wangshen Watchtower at every turn,�� the Millet Emperor replied. ��Hence, I had no choice but to return home and prepare. I carried the divine watchtower here only to ensure that I can lead the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower away from here. I hope Chief can forgive this.�� His voice shook the skies.


    ��If that is the case, put your divine watchtower away and let me handle this matter,�� Chief Ning continued as he looked at the Millet Emperor.


    Ye Futian and the other members swept a glance at the Chief. He would handle the matter?


    Before this, he had already shown how he would handle the matter. He would not get involved with either side, allowing both parties to settle it among themselves. Just now, when the Millet Emperor was not around, Emperor Yan directly attacked Ye Futian. Fortunately, Emperor Xi had stopped Emperor Yan.


    Now that the Millet Emperor had returned, Chief Ning wanted him to put the divine watchtower away. This was Chief Ning��s way of handling things.


    ��This matter involves the grudge between our two parties. Chief, you do not need to worry. We will settle it ourselves.�� How could the Millet Emperor possibly put the divine watchtower away? He looked down below and said, ��The grudge between Wangshen Watchtower and the Yan Kingdom as well as Lingxiao Palace will not involve any other force.��


    This was what Chief Ning had promised before. Both sides would settle it among themselves.


    Chief Ning stared at the Millet Emperor as pressure emanated from his body. His gaze also gradually turned cold. He said, ��This is the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain. Today is also the Donghua Banquet. It seems that you do not take my words seriously anymore.��


    The Millet Emperor looked at Chief Ning. These words were completely unreasonable. From his attitude, Millet Emperor also understood that Chief Ning wanted to forcefully be a part of this and chose his side.


    From the looks of it, them wanting to bear the ridicule and temper their rage in order not to offend the Domain Chief��s Manor would not work. The other party was not going to let them go.


    ��That is not my intention,�� the Millet Emperor replied. The Millet Emperor had already stated his stance, but if Chief Ning wanted to take part forcefully, he could not do anything about that. Any reason that Chief Ning gave would have been sufficient.


    ��Humph,�� Chief Ning coldly snorted.


    The pressure from his body grew stronger, becoming extremely intense. His gaze was no longer calm, instead containing a cold aura. He stared at the Millet Emperor in the sky and said, ��Ye Liunian defied my will and brutally murdered the cultivators who entered the secret zone. Regardless of whatever reason he had for doing so, what is done is done. I wanted to give face to you and Wangshen Watchtower by not getting involved even though he defied my rule. However, you brought your divine watchtower here and entered Domain Chief��s Manor with such a show of force. It seems that you are the same as Ye Liunian. You have not taken the Donghua Banquet seriously at all.��


    As Chief Ning was speaking, his aura of the Great Path emanated outwards and enveloped the endless space. Everyone could feel the pressure coming from him.


    In Donghua Palace, the giant level figures all looked at Chief Ning. They revealed looks of profound understanding.


    So that was why.


    From the very beginning, Chief Ning, who ruled over the Donghua Domain, had already decided. He allowed the other party to go after Ye Futian and did not get involved, appearing as an amiable person. However, given the current situation where the Millet Emperor came with the divine watchtower, he could no longer maintain his fa?ade. He could only lay his stance bare.


    He was going after Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian would not be able to escape.


    The Millet Emperor swept a glance at Chief Ning. As expected, he had directly revealed his goal and dropped his fa?ade.


    The Millet Emperor threatened, ��I do not care who set the rules. I only know that the disciples of Wangshen Watchtower have done nothing wrong. Today, I will leave with them. I will kill anyone who dares touch a cultivator of Wangshen Watchtower. Whoever kills a junior of Wangshen Watchtower, I will do the same to their juniors.�� He stepped forward and placed his hand on the divine watchtower. Terrifying loud rumbling sounds could be heard immediately. Countless divine tablets seemed to appear in the sky. They descended from above and enveloped the entire Domain Chief��s Manor.


    There were so many people in Domain Chief��s Manor. Even Chief Ning was cautious. Unless they could instantly subdue the Millet Emperor, if Wangshen Watchtower came crashing down, the heavens and earth would be shattered and torn apart. Countless people would die then.


    He would kill the juniors of whoever killed his juniors? Did this include Ning Hua?


    ��The Millet Emperor is quite savage today,�� the Thunder Punishing Skylord said to Emperor Xi over transmitted thoughts. This time, the Millet Emperor had fallen out with the Domain Chief. Even though he was going against three giant level figures, one of which was the Chief who stood at the peak of the Donghua Domain, he was still unafraid.


    Emperor Xi replied over transmitted thoughts, ��Before this, I found it strange as to why Ling Yunzi was always flattering Chief. Now, I seemed to have glimpsed some clues as to why. From the looks of it, Chief and Ling Yunzi have long been in cahoots. Their relationship is most likely not ordinary. There is also the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. It seems that there is more than meets the eye about the death of Supreme Deity Donglai.��


    They were all figures at the peak of the domain. They weren��t foolish. The other giant-level figures also vaguely realized what was going on.


    However, the Millet Emperor��s show of force still came as a surprise to everyone. As expected of the Millet Emperor. Only a cultivator at the peak would show such boldness.


    When Ling Yunzi and Emperor Yan heard Millet Emperor��s words, they laughed sinisterly. They were waiting for this end result. The only pity was that Ling He and Yan Dongyang had perished.


    However, the Millet Emperor and the members of Wangshen Watchtower were about to join them.


    After today, there would be one less figure and force at the peak of the Donghua Domain.


    Since the Millet Emperor had said so, Chief Ning did not hold back.


    Chief Ning looked up at the Millet Emperor. He had an imposing manner, and his expression was cold and indifferent. He said, ��I was tasked by the Great Emperor to oversee the Donghua Domain. I have always hoped for the prosperity of the Donghua Domain and that more prominent figures would emerge. Although the various forces of the Donghua Domain had their conflicts and disputes, I also hoped that they would get along. Hence, I organized the Donghua Banquet. I also set rules before all of you entered the secret zone. However, the Millet Emperor wishes for the peace of the Donghua Domain to be shattered. If that is the case, I will enforce the law on behalf of the Great Emperor. Millet Emperor, I find you guilty.��

 Chapter 2065 - Falling Out

    Enforcing the law on behalf of the Great Emperor.


    Millet Emperor was guilty!


    Ning Yuan was the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain, the one who oversaw the domain. He claimed that Millet Emperor was guilty and that he was enforcing the law on behalf of the Great Emperor. He officially declared that he was going to kill Millet Emperor.


    The significance of his statement in the Donghua Domain could not be understated. These words would determine the fate of the Wangshen Watchtower as well as Millet Emperor.


    At that moment, countless cultivators inside and outside of Domain Chief��s Manor felt their hearts tremble. The name of the Wangshen Watchtower might be erased from the Donghua Domain.


    After all, Ning Yuan was the overseer of the Donghua Domain. Since he had made up his mind, it was impossible for the Wangshen Watchtower to exist in the domain anymore.


    Even the giant level figures of the various forces looked at Ning Yuan in astonishment. He was going to deal with the Wangshen Watchtower. They never imagined that such a storm would be swept up during the Donghua Banquet. It seemed that this Chief had long intended to eliminate the Wangshen Watchtower.


    What greater schemes were at play here?


    Millet Emperor lowered his head and looked at the proud figure standing in Donghua Palace. Before the Donghua Banquet was held, he already had a bad premonition. After Li Changsheng sent him the message, he understood why Ling Xiao Palace dared to go against the Wangshen Watchtower together with Great Yan Ancient Royal Family so unscrupulously in front of everyone back on Turtle Deity Island. It turned out that Domain Chief��s Manor was backing them. Hence, they had no scruples to do so.


    Recalling that Domain Chief��s Manor had stepped out to mediate the matter of the death of Supreme Deity Donglai, Millet Emperor could not help but feel a sense of mockery. He never imagined that he had been fooled for so many years and that the person behind all this was the Domain Chief, Ning Yuan.


    He had always wanted to get to the bottom of the matter. Now that he finally knew the truth, he felt a wave of sadness and grief.


    Ning Yuan, the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain, had such sinister schemes. This was definitely not good for the domain.


    ��Chief, you probably have wanted to eliminate me for a long time,�� Millet Emperor suddenly said. ��Now, you finally found an excuse to do so.��


    Since Ning Yuan had already decided to enforce the law on behalf of the Great Emperor and was prepared to personally join the battlefield to deal with Millet Emperor, then, Millet Emperor did not need to hesitate. He did not need to tolerate the other party anymore. If that was the case, they might as well stir the pot even further and let the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture know what kind of person the Domain Chief was.


    Ning Yuan looked up at Millet Emperor. Millet Emperor continued saying, ��Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Ling Xiao Palace have been against us all this while. On Turtle Deity Island, they joined forces to deal with the disciples of the Wangshen Watchtower. Chief, you also turned a blind eye back then. Now, during the Donghua Banquet, you have done the same. Ning Hua tried to kill Ye Liunian in the secret zone before investigating the truth. Domain Chief��s Manor has already chosen its side but just did not reveal it. Am I right?��


    ��Presumptuous,�� Ning Yuan replied in a cold tone. His figure gradually floated upwards. Immediately, a powerful Grand Seal Great Path appeared in the vast space. Countless sealing runes circled around them and immediately sealed off the space.


    ��Since it has come to this, it doesn��t matter even if I am presumptuous. I wish to ask Chief something: Who killed Donglai?�� Millet Emperor asked. His voice shook the heavens and the earth, reverberating inside and outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor. Countless people could hear him clearly.


    They had heard everything before this as well publicly. In an instant, across the vast space, all the cultivators, inside and outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor, were in an uproar.


    Millet Emperor was interrogating the Chief as to who killed Supreme Deity Donglai.


    His meaning was clear. Did that mean that Chief Ning Yuan was also involved in the death of Supreme Deity Donglai?


    Millet Emperor was implying that, before this, Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Ling Xiao Palace had the backing of another superpower, Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Could this be true?


    Many people were suspicious of this. After all, this was a one-sided claim from Millet Emperor. If it were true, the Chief��s schemes were too sinister. Was he truly trying to unify the Donghua Domain under his rule?


    Although the Donghua Domain was considered a part of the Divine Prefecture and the forces of the domain were under the jurisdiction of Domain Chief��s Manor, in reality, each superpower was independent and was not controlled by any other force, including Domain Chief��s Manor. Unless there was a decree from the Imperial Palace, which they might obey to some extent, Domain Chief��s Manor could not command the superpowers of the entire domain. For the various cultivators to participate in the Donghua Banquet, they were already showing the Domain Chief due respect.


    For instance, could Chief Ning Yuan order Emperor Xi, Thunder Punishing Skylord and Sword Goddess of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow around?


    It was obviously impossible.


    However, if it was as Millet Emperor claimed it to be, the Domain Chief was very ambitious. He wanted absolute authority over the Donghua Domain.


    ��Millet Emperor, you are out of your mind,�� Ning Yuan said as he looked at Millet Emperor. ��I organized the Donghua Banquet in accordance to the will of the Great Emperor that martial arts in the Donghua Domain will prosper. Yet, Millet Emperor wishes to stir up conflict and does not listen to dissuasion. If that is the case, from this day forth, the name of the Wangshen Watchtower shall be eliminated from the Donghua Domain. However, this matter does not concern the disciples of the Wangshen Watchtower. I can overlook their involvement. However, Ye Liunian defied my rules, so he needs to remain here. The rest of you may leave.��


    The name of the Wangshen Watchtower was eliminated from the Donghua Domain.


    As expected, Domain Chief Ning Yuan would not allow the Wangshen Watchtower to continue existing.


    However, he was willing to spare the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower. He only wanted Ye Futian.


    The giant level figures understood everything when they saw this scene. The disciples of the Wangshen Watchtower were insignificant to Ning Yuan. It was the same with Eastern Deity Island. Since the Chief spared Eastern Deity Island once, he would not go after them again. After all, he was the ruler of the Donghua Domain. He could not go around massacring people as he pleased.


    However, he had to take Ye Futian into custody. This person had extraordinary talent, possibly even above that of Zong Chan. Prior to this, he had also broken the seal. Chief Ning did not know what benefits Ye Futian had received from doing so yet. How could he let Ye Futian go?


    Ning Yuan rejected Ye Futian��s appeal to join Domain Chief��s Manor as a cultivator. He wanted Ye Futian��s life.


    The Renhuangs of the Wangshen Watchtower in all directions looked at Ning Yuan. Li Changsheng said, ��The Wangshen Watchtower is not in the wrong in this incident today. Since Chief has made your stance clear, you do not need to reprimand the Wangshen Watchtower as well as blame Master. All of this stems from the Yan Kingdom and Ling Xiao Palace. The world will be the judge of who is right and who is wrong. As for leaving here, as disciples of the Wangshen Watchtower, we will naturally leave together.��


    ��You seek your own deaths,�� said Emperor Yan as he swept a glance at the crowd. The Renhuangs of the Wangshen Watchtower would all die today.


    In reality, they had always wanted to deal with the Wangshen Watchtower. Now, they had the chance to do so. After today, the Wangshen Watchtower would cease to exist in the Donghua Domain.


    ��Changsheng, Zong Chan, take the others and leave. Retreat back to the Wangshen Watchtower,�� Millet Emperor ordered. This battle was a battle of giant level figures. Li Changsheng and the others would be at a severe disadvantage here.


    Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi stared at Li Changsheng and the others. Millet Emperor continued saying, ��If any of you attack the juniors of the Wangshen Watchtower, I will not hesitate to massacre all of you.��


    ��Understood,�� Li Changsheng replied as he nodded his head. They understood the situation they were in. Remaining here was extremely disadvantageous for them. They could only retreat for now. With their levels of cultivation, they were of no help to Millet Emperor. It was only after they had escaped that Millet Emperor would have the chance to retreat as well.


    Millet Emperor had carried the divine watchtower here for their sakes. Otherwise, with his level of cultivation, if he had escaped before this, no one could have done anything about it.


    ��Let��s go,�� Li Changsheng said. The cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower immediately took to the skies and headed out of Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Ning Yuan looked at them and said, ��I said that Ye Liunian must stay behind.��


    As he said this, Ning Hua stepped out. At the same time, other cultivators from Domain Chief��s Manor also dashed in the direction Li Changsheng and the others were escaping.


    On the other side, the Renhuangs of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Ling Xiao Palace also left their positions and chased after Li Changsheng and the others.


    However, Ning Yuan, Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi, these three giant level figures did not move. They remained standing where they were, seemingly uninvolved with this matter.


    However, the situation was clearly extremely disadvantageous for the cultivators of the Wangshen Watchtower. Ning Hua alone was an invincible existence and was difficult to deal with.


    Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi looked at Millet Emperor mockingly. Even if the three of them did not attack, Ning Hua and the other cultivators were more than sufficient to kill off Li Changsheng and the others. None of them would escape.


    Whether Millet Emperor himself would make it out of here alive today remained to be seen.


    Millet Emperor did not attack. Pressure of the Great Path that was frightening beyond comparison descended upon the area. However, Millet Emperor was still waiting for Li Changsheng and the rest to escape far from this region.


    Ning Yuan was similarly waiting for Ning Hua and the other cultivators to leave and for the members of Domain Chief��s Manor to retreat.


    They all had their concerns. If they immediately started fighting, the junior figures would not be able to withstand their power. Both sides clearly did not want such a situation to occur. Hence, they had reached a tacit understanding.


    However the pressure in the vast space became more and more intense. It was suffocating!

 Chapter 2066 - The Hunted

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Millet Emperor��s divine consciousness shrouded the boundless space. Ye Futian and the other cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower were gone, but they were still within the scope of detection. At his level of cultivation, his divine consciousness was more than powerful.


    Not only him, but it was the same with the other masters. Though they were physically here, they had also noticed the movement in the distance. Ning Hua and the others didn��t seem to be in a hurry to catch up with the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. They seemed to deliberately keep their distance.


    Besides, many cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor were also retreating.


    However, many Renhuang outside the Domain Chief��s Manor were fixated on the sky above, their hearts greatly troubled. The Donghua banquet had turned into an internal conflict of the Donghua Domain, and even the Domain Chief��s Manor was involved. The Millet Emperor believed that the Chief had taken aim at Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��Those who have nothing to do with this matter, leave within ten breaths�� time,�� said the Millet Emperor, allowing other Renhuang to leave this space. Everyone stiffened but soon flickered their way to withdraw speedily without any hesitation.


    The Millet Emperor was preparing to battle right here.


    In an instant, all the cultivators retreated into the distance, getting as far away from the Domain Chief��s Manor as possible.


    The Millet Emperor looked down at Chief Ning Yuan and said, ��Ning Yuan, you keep claiming that this is a grievance among Wangshen Watchtower, the Yan Kingdom, and Lingxiao Palace, but in the end, you made your move; you are not worthy of being in charge of Donghua Domain.��


    When his voice fell, the watchtower flew high into the sky as a terrifying power of the Great Path was released from it. Suddenly, with the Domain Chief��s Manor as the center, countless divine tablets and stone gates fell down, turning into a divine wall that sealed the Domain Chief��s Manor. From where he was, the Watchtower seemed to be the only exit, like a heavenly gate.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor was suppressed and shut down, clearly meant to be a battlefield. The Millet Emperor completely let himself go without any further inhibitions. The disciples of Wangshen Watchtower had to resign themselves to their fates. He closed up the space and would not participate. Neither could the other three major opponents, so they had to depend on their own destiny now.


    After seeing him taking action, the sacred light surrounded the space, and within the forbidden space, there were countless characters of seals appearing, covering this space. Some even directly falling on the divine wall, blocking the way of suppression, creating a twofold blocking.


    It was based on a tacit understanding that they let those youngsters leave without the participation of either side. This was their battle; if one of them took action, none of the youngsters on either side would be able to bear it.


    Thus, the situation at hand.


    Now, both sides had sealed the space at the same time, using it as a battlefield. The rest of the youngsters had to depend on themselves as to what happens later. Of course, to Ning Yuan, they had an absolute advantage. Ning Hua led Renhuang from the three major powers in pursuit. Were could those Renhuang from Wangshen Watchtower escape?


    In that battle, Ning Yuan had no doubts, and even fewer doubts about what was about to happen here.


    The Millet Emperor himself was extraordinary in strength, and now that he had come with the Watchtower, his combat power increased to another level. He was definitely a dangerous character at this point. However, the divine items at Domain Chief��s Manor were destroyed, and neither Emperor Yan nor Ling Yunzi had carried any divine items with them.


    Even so, as the three major figureheads, they still had the absolute advantage. Ning Yuan was even confident that he himself alone was enough to deal with the Millet Emperor, who came with the Watchtower. However, on account that the Millet Emperor had thrown all care to the wind, he could not afford to be careless.


    The Millet Emperor stood under the watchtower, like a deity who had integrated with the Great Path of this heaven and earth. Rumbling thunder rang out as the Great Path of suppression enveloped this space. The three major figureheads felt they were being fettered by the invisible oppressive force. Besides them, there were also other powerful figures that remained in Donghua Palace. They did not leave but stood by to watch the battle, wanting to witness this showdown.


    The watchtower released an extremely dazzling divine brilliance, and an ancient aura came from beyond the sky. Countless divine brilliance fell on the Millet Emperor as if he had been completely integrated with the watchtower.


    He raised his palm and pressed it downward in the sky. From the firmament, a shining divine light bloomed as it penetrated the sky. As if the sky had collapsed, it attacked the three cultivators in a flash.


    At this time, outside where those Renhuang had retreated to in the distance, they experienced true fright as they witness the situation yonder. With the Domain Chief��s Manor as the center, there was a storm of the Great Path frantically rushing towards it. There seemed to be a divine light falling from the sky that lit up the forbidden void with dazzling radiance, but they couldn��t see the battle inside the battlefield.


    Today, the Millet Emperor came carrying the watchtower to battle Chief Ning Yuan, and Emperor Yan was there with Ling Yunzi. No one knew if this master of Wangshen Watchtower could leave alive.


    ��


    In another place, Ye Futian and the others moving forward quickly in Donghua Heavens, heading in the direction where the Leng family compound was located. They wanted to take the space teleportation grand matrix to return to Wangshen Watchtower.


    At this time, Li Changsheng, Zong Chan, and other cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower were looking worrisome. They weren��t concerned about themselves, but they were worried about the Millet Emperor. In this battle, the fate of the Millet Emperor was unknown. If there were only Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi, they wouldn��t be so worried. But there was another man, the one who was in charge of Donghua Domain��Chief Ning Yuan.


    No one knew the true origin of Ning Yuan or how strong he was. Even if he came with the watchtower, Li Changsheng and the others still didn��t think that the Millet Emperor had a great chance of winning. The Chiefs of the 18 domains were powerful characters. Only those transcendental figures in each domain could stand with them shoulder to shoulder.


    Although the Millet Emperor established Wangshen Watchtower and became a principality himself, he was still far behind.


    Behind them, the mighty group of Renhuang chased through the void and began to accelerate their speed forward. Ning Hua stepped into the void with divine light shining upon his body. His speed was lightning fast.


    ��Almost there,�� the patriarch of the Leng family said. They were originally there to observe the ceremony and never thought that they would encounter this situation. Based on their previous relationship with Wangshen Watchtower, they were, of course, on the side of Wangshen Watchtower.


    But Leng Qinghan was not here. She was a disciple of Donghua Academy; she would be fine as long as she��s under Donghua Academy��s protection.


    However, at this moment, the face of Leng��s clan leader paled. Not only him, but Li Changsheng��s divine consciousness had already seen the situation inside the Leng family compound, and his expression was equally gloomy.


    The once prosperous Leng family compound had now turned into a ruin. It was under attack, and the space teleportation grand matrix had been destroyed as well. At this moment, those who were currently occupying the compound included the Yan family. They were the ones who challenged Leng Qinghan at the first battle on Donghuang banquet, a branch of the ancient royal family of Yan.


    ��Damn it���� The clan leader of the Leng family watched the scene in front of him with red eyes. Many were lying in ruins. His clan had been through a bloodbath. These two major clans had always had frictions over the years. Now, the other side took this opportunity and slaughtered the Leng family.


    ��It seemed that this matter of Wangshen Watchtower had dragged you all into it.�� Li Changsheng sighed, and his eyes also showed great pain. This conflict that was aimed at Wangshen Watchtower would be avenged sooner or later; because of the death of Supreme Being Donglai because the man behind all of it was Chief Ning Yuan of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Therefore, this day would come sooner rather than later, and they had to destroy Wangshen Watchtower. Ye Futian��s appearance had provided the perfect excuse to speed up their plan to attack Wangshen Watchtower. Even if Ye Futian were not a factor, there would be other excuses, just like the intervention of the Domain Chief��s Manor was purely for superfluous reasons.


    ��I never expected it would be the Chief.�� Storm Demon��s eyes were icy. He, too, understood that the person who caused this chaos was Domain Chief, Ning Yuan, of Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Without him, The Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace would not dare to do this. Although they were able to suppress Wangshen Watchtower, they were not so blatant as to commit outright slaughter. After all, the Millet Emperor was there. If they were to start the massacre, they would be equally in trouble.


    But because of Ning Yuan, those people dared to be so imprudent.


    Back then, Supreme Being Donglai probably perished under such circumstances as well.


    The cultivators from the Yan family levitated into the sky, intercepting them. There was an even stronger reinforcement behind to hunt them. There seemed to be nowhere for them to escape.


    ��Continue ahead and attack,�� Li Changsheng said. As he was approaching the Leng family compound, he was releasing a terrible murderous intent. Not only him, but Zong Chan and other Renhuang were the same; the murderous intent on them was frightening.


    A long spear appeared in Ye Futian��s hand as a monstrous battle intent erupted, and divine light surrounded his body. Cold murderous intent shot out from his eyes, accompanied by an extreme chill.


    The group was moving fast, and within a few moments, they had already arrived at Leng��s family compound. The Yan family cultivators stood in the void above the ruins, and an aura of the Great Path erupted. Under the leadership of the Yan family��s patriarch, they lined up with a true dragon surrounding each of them, suppressing this corner of the sky. When they saw those cultivators coming their way, they immediately unleashed the attack of the Great Path at the same time. All the true dragons roared and rushed forward, flooding the void.


    Li Changsheng and Zong Chan were the fastest, traversing through directly, and the body of those massive divine dragons shattered and burst one by one.


    Likewise, Ye Futian was fast to the extreme, turning into a stream of light. A powerful Renhuang of the Seventh Realm was in front of him, with a mighty aura erupting from his body. When he saw Ye Futian attack, he raised his hand to blast out an overwhelming Dragon Seal.


    Buzz!


    Ye Futian��s spear lanced out, and the overwhelming spear intent blasted directly on the Dragon Seal, splitting it from the middle, shattering it.


    With a wet sound, the spear penetrated through his opponent��s body. A Renhuang of the Seventh Realm pulverized in the void instantaneously, with no time for even a scream.


    ��Be careful!�� the patriarch of the Yan Family yelled, and he didn��t look so good. Their order was to destroy the teleportation grand matrix and intercept it here, but they didn��t expect that reinforcements would come so slowly.


    It was as if they didn��t care whether they lived or died!

 Chapter 2067 - Desperation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The strength of the Yan family from Donghua Heavens was much inferior to those cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. After a brief collision, many Renhuang were killed. After all, the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower were striking back with their full power, without mercy.


    However, the cultivators of the Yan family managed to delay the escape for the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower. In just a few short moments, the terrifying pressure of the Great Path had descended from the distance.


    A figure turned into lightning, shuttled through the void with divine light lingered upon his body; it was Ning Hua. He was rushing toward Ye Futian with greatest speed. The main goal of this mission was to take down Ye Futian, followed by the total destruction of all the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower.


    Not only because of the strength that Ye Futian had exhibited, but there was also another important reason: he had opened up the Demon God Temple, and may have obtained the things left behind by the Demon God.


    Therefore, no matter what, Ye Futian must be captured. It wouldn��t matter as much if the others escaped, but Ye Futian must not.


    Boom!


    With a loud bang, a sky tablet directly blocking in front of the divine light that was transformed by Ning Hua. A figure appeared in front of Ye Futian, and it was Zong Chan. Although he could not compete with Ning Hua either, but given this situation, only he and Li Changsheng could somewhat counter Ning Hua��s attack.


    If Ning Hua was to get to Ye Futian, there would be no doubt what would happen.


    Bang!


    Without the slightest hesitation, the sky tablet was pierced and shattered. Zong Chan��s body continued moving forward, blocking the way. He raised his arm and struck out. Suddenly, tablets appeared behind him surrounded by divine light, and a monstrous force burst out from his palms. The great palm prints were like the prints transformed by the sky tablet, shattering the void.


    Another violent sound of collision came out, shook the space they were in with great violence. With them as the center, a terrible storm radiated out, sweeping toward the surrounding areas. Those Renhuang whose cultivation were not strong enough were knocked out immediately.


    Zong Chan was also knocked out and went flying. He made a muffled groan, and the blood inside his body tossed and churned. Not only that, his arms were surrounded by an aura of the Grand Seal, and that terrible Grand Seal Great Path rushed into his body, trying to seal up his path.


    Moreover, Zong Chan cultivated the Gate to World Suppression that could suppress the Great Path with incomparably tyrannical strength, with extremely overbearing power for direct attack. But even so, he was knocked out by Ning Hua in their direct exchange. Ning Hua, however, was standing there steadily, demonstrating his powerful strike.


    ��Shredding Power!��


    He had long heard that Ning Hua was an expert in assorted powers of the Great Path and had cultivated many extremely powerful magical powers. The art of seal was one of his most expert abilities. But, at the same time, he had also mastered other abilities, which now work in sync with the power of the Grand Seal Great Path. He was indeed the premier genius talent of Donghua Heavens, one and only among his peers.


    When the two made exchanged and collided, the cultivators that had chased them came forward and surrounded the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower in a circle, standing at different positions in the void. Everyone was far apart, because after all, these were the existence in the Renhuang Realm.


    A lot of cultivators gathered in the distance, looking up at this space. Their hearts trembled violently; what a terrifying group of Renhuang.


    That person was the Vice Chief Ning Hua. What was happening?


    All the Renhuang stood in the sky, as the pressure of the Great Path suppressed this part of the space. Even standing far away, one could feel that suffocating power. They were all surrounded by the divine light of the Great Path, and many cultivators were releasing their own powerful Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    ��I gave you a chance, but you insist on seeking your own death,�� Ning Hua said, looking at Zong Chan. As his voice fell, his body floated above the sky as he released his Divine Wheel of Great Path. An extremely shocking Grand Seal Divine Wheel suspended in the sky in an instant, and continued to elevate.


    At this moment, infinite characters of the Seal Spell appeared in the vast space, rained down from the sky and were everywhere. For a moment, as if this space had now turned into his unique domain of the Great Path, all other powers of the Great Path were bound to be shutdown.


    Buzz! Infinite Grand Seal divine light shoot toward every cultivator from Wangshen Watchtower. Giant characters fell as everyone madly releasing their own power of the Great Path. However, as soon as that divine light touched it, their power instantly lost its edge.


    ��How powerful!��


    Those who were watching the battle from afar felt nothing but fright. Was this the power of Ning Hua? A magnificent character of Donghua Domain; he was invincible and incomparable.


    Confronted with this, Li Changsheng, Zong Chan and the others were looking grave. Li Changsheng was moving forward, and a Divine Wheel of the ancient tree appeared upon him, with countless branches and leaves reaching toward the divine light of seal. At the same time, Zong Chan was standing high above the sky, facing Ning Hua. Numerous stone tablets appeared above the sky and falling down, completely blocking this corner of the sky. Somewhere high above, an ancient door appeared. There was divine light falling on him, so that Zong Chan��s body was also bathing in radiant divine glory.


    If no one stopped Ning Hua, cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower would be slaughtered, with their power sealed shut, and no way to resist the attacks from other Renhuang.


    In the vast void, the divine tablet and the divine light of seal collided. Zong Chan stared at Ning Hua across the air, a brilliant divine light erupted from him, and an ancient door seemed to have opened above the sky. As he stepped out, countless divine gates slammed down instantly, blocking the area where Ning Hua was.


    The Gate to World Suppression slammed down, turning into a white light, and shot straight toward Ning Hua.


    ��You ask for it.��


    Ning Hua spat out in an icy voice. When his voice fell, countless divine light and the characters of the Seal Spell went straight forward, turning into a massive seal pattern, traversing the sky like a divine matrix.


    Boom��


    The white light slammed down, and the Gate to World Suppression blasted upon the Grand Seal Divine Matrix, causing it to tremble violently. Furthermore, Zong Chan��s body was connected to the divine gate above the sky. Countless divine light shot out, and those endless divine gates overlapped again and again with the attacking gates. The repeated slamming down was causing cracks to appear in the Grand Seal Divine Matrix.


    When Ning Hua saw this, he was rather surprised. As someone who was his equal in Donghua Heavens, Zong Chan indeed had considerable strength. If it wasn��t him, Zong Chan would be an unparalleled figure.


    Unfortunately, there would only be dead ends for him today.


    The infinite Great Path of divine light flowed inside Ning Hua��s body, as if he was now a Grand Seal divine body. Even more radiant divine light of seal fell on the seal pattern, repaired and reinforced the Grand Seal Divine Matrix that was broken up. His figure floated forward and he put his hand on the Grand Seal Divine Matrix. Suddenly, the divine light of the matrix became brightened in an instant, engulfing the void. All the Gates to World Suppression


    that were attacking were surrounded and bound by that Grand Seal Divine Light.


    The Divine Light of the Grand Seal Great Path engulfed the void and swallowed toward Zong Chan, causing the power of the Gate to World Suppression to be weakened continuously.


    But Ning Hua did not stop his movements. Another palm print fell and a divine light split the Gate to World Suppression from the middle, and multiple divine gates were shattered into nothingness, exploding frantically.


    He continued to step forward, and his eyes stared into Zong Chan��s eyes. Suddenly, the divine light of the Grand Seal invaded him, and Zong Chan immediately felt that his spiritual will and spiritual soul were about to be sealed shut, and that his whole world was now turned into a sealed world. Its power of the Great Path was everywhere, like a prison that intend to imprison his spiritual will, imprison his soul, and his body, with nowhere to run!

 Chapter 2068 - The Killing Spree

    Among the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, besides Zong Chan, others such as Li Changsheng, Goddess Donglai, Alchemy Emperor, the clan leader of the Leng Family, and Blade Demon were all powerful combatants. But the number of their opponents was still greater. After all, they were facing a combined force from four sides.


    At this time, Ye Futian was on one side of the battlefield, looking at the Renhuang surrounding him. Those from the ancient royal family of Yan, the Lingxiao Palace, and many other Renhuang from the Yan family had their eyes on him as the primary target. This was the consensus among several major principalities: they must take down Ye Futian.


    An incomparably splendid divine brilliance bloomed from Ye Futian, and the extraordinary imperial glory radiated from him. Ye Futian, at this moment, was like a son of god bathing in infinite divine light. Strong murderous intent filled his radiant eyes.


    ��This is���� The surrounding cultivators were shocked, including those from the ancient royal family of Yan and other forces. Their heartbeats quickened as they felt this power at close range. It was as if he was the master of the Great Path who would not be denied.


    ��It��s the will of the emperor.�� Many cultivators trembled fiercely. Ye Futian actually possessed the will of the emperor. How could this be possible?


    Never mind those who were around, even those cultivators of all sides who came from far away were in shock. The masters had stayed behind for battle at the Domain Chief��s Manor, but their progeny hurried along to this battlefield, wanting to see what was happening here. At least, the situation here would not affect them.


    When they saw Ye Futian releasing the imperial glory from his person, it had caused a great disturbance in their hearts.


    Who was this Sword Emperor Liunian, who seemed to have come out of nowhere?


    Why did he possess the will of the Great Emperor?


    Was he really just an heir of Supreme Being Donglai?


    At this moment, many were wondering about Ye Futian��s true identity. How many Great Emperors were there in this world?


    In the land of Divine Prefecture, as far as they knew, there was only one person in the Imperial Realm, and that was the supreme being who had unified Divine Prefecture, Donghuang the Great himself.


    ��Ye Liunian��s name was unheard of before. It is as if he came out of nowhere. He may have other identities,�� someone suggested.


    ��The first time I saw him was on Eastern Deity Island at Penglai Continent, and he was just an unknown back then. Now it seems that he may be a descendant of some hermits or that he had some fortuitous encounters. Otherwise, as an ordinary casual Renhuang cultivator, such strength is unlikely,�� Jiang Jiuming also said. Everyone had many opinions about this, and their hearts were extremely disturbed.


    At this moment, Yan Hanxing knew how Ye Futian had killed Yan Dongyang and other cultivators in the secret zone. It turned out that he was much stronger than he could have imagined.


    Li Changsheng and Zong Chan, who were in the midst of fighting, also sensed the situation with Ye Futian. Sure enough, this junior brother of theirs was just as he had expected. He was not an ordinary man, which he had always suspected.


    Above the sky, a gigantic pattern of Yin and Yang appeared. The aura of the infinite Great Path between the vast heaven and earth flowed toward the Yin Yang pattern. As the pattern grew, it began to cover the sky above the Leng family compound, with strands of divine brilliance falling. They were similar to sword intents but were filled with the power of yin and yang. There was the terrifying Divine Fire of Wutong, as well as the ultimate power of Yin that hid within the Sword Qi.


    ��Kill!��


    Ye Futian surveyed the crowd. Suddenly, divine light burst out of the Yin Yang pattern above the sky and blasted toward the Renhuang of the other side, launching a group attack, covering all opponents at once. All the Renhuang from the Yan family were covered within, and among them, Renhuang below the Eighth Realm looked up in horror as the threat of death was upon them.


    Roar�� At this moment, the dragon��s chants resounded through the void, shattering mountains and rivers. They seemed to pulverize this space outright as the sky and earth were being torn apart.


    One Renhuang of the Six Realm was protected by the true dragon. His Divine Wheel of the Great Path was a divine dragon that was protecting his body. But the Yin Yang pattern rained down divine light as sizzling sounds were heard. The body of the divine dragon shattered right away, as fragile as a thin film that could not withstand a blow. Divine glory pierced through the defense and landed on the opponent��s body.


    ��No���� A scream was heard, and that Renhuang turned into dust and disappeared under the divine glory of swordsmanship.


    But it wasn��t just him. The crowd discovered to their horror that cultivators below the realm of Upper Renhuang had all disappeared, like dust and smoke. What was in front of them was so shocking that in a blink of an eye, Renhuang that were around Ye Futian were reduced by more than half as they were massacered.


    There was an Upper Renhuang of the Seventh Realm who was madly resisting, and at the same time, his body drifted backward with incredible speed. He was already a hundred miles away in a flash.


    However, the Yin Yang pattern above had obscured the sky and the sun. That light of catastrophe seemed to have locked onto his body and rained down that destructive divine glory. It seemed to shuttle through the space. Even though it was hundreds of miles away, it still penetrated through directly.


    A powerful Upper Renhuang of the Seventh Realm was equally fragile.


    ��What level of offensive power is this?�� The cultivators in the distance never felt so scared. The power of the Great Path was torn to pieces like paper.


    The most frightening thing was that this was a mass attack, a killing spree on a large scale.


    In this short while, dozens of Renhuang perished; it was a day of reckoning for them.


    The cultivators of the Yan family fared the worst. Generally speaking, their strength was relatively weaker compared to the others, and they were right at the center of the fight. In addition, Ye Futian deliberately retaliated against them, so he didn��t hold back. In just a moment, there weren��t many Renhuang left from the Yan family.


    The surrounding cultivators thought that this was the price of participating in the struggle among top forces. Participating without the requisite confidence and strength was all but equivalent to death. Even as these cultivators were surrounded to attack those from Wangshen Watchtower, they could not vanquish them. In the first confrontation, followed by Ye Futian��s attack, the Yan family had lost over half of their Renhuang in these two fights. They had borne the brunt of the most damage.


    In this battle, although the Yan family destroyed the Leng family with whom they had long had grudges, they themselves didn��t fare much better in the end.


    ��Kill him!�� Clan leader Yan said coldly. He himself was tangled up with clan leader Leng, and when he saw the cultivators of his clan being slaughtered thus, his eyes were full of strong murderous intent.


    When his words fell, those Upper Renhuang from the Yan family who were still alive walked toward Ye Futian. Among them were two Renhuang of the Eighth Realm and five Renhuang of the Seventh Realm. It was a terrifying group for sure. They took out long spears at the same time and launched them toward Ye Futian. The golden dragon spear cut through the void, piercing through it, and descended instantly in front of Ye Futian. In a short while, a terrifying storm appeared in front of Ye Futian, which seemed to be stirred up by a terrible dragon.


    Boom�� The imperial glory of the Great Emperor was released. Ye Futian��s body seemed to have been transformed into a golden divine tree, which strengthened his spiritual will to its extreme. This was the divine tree obtained from Eastern Deity Island. A boundless and majestic breath came out from it as the branches and leaves of the divine tree reached into the surrounding spaces, engulfing those attacking dragon��s shadows.


    Those dragon shadows were coming fast with great momentum, as if they were mowing down the divine tree, madly tearing at its branches and leaves. However, those branches and vines seemed endless, spreading into the far distance at an even faster speed, covering this corner of the sky.


    In an instant, within a radius of hundreds of miles, it was full of branches and leaves from the divine tree. A towering divine tree of thousands of meters stood between heaven and earth. The Yin Yang pattern above rained on the catastrophic light of the Great Path, forming a horrific closed loop.


    In the space of this closed-loop, there were two completely different auras from the power of Yin and power of Yang. For all the cultivators trapped in it, they felt an extreme discomfort, as if this was Ye Futian��s Great Path field, and no power between heaven and earth could come into it.


    Boom!


    Another world of starry skies appeared in this space, surrounded by stars. At this moment, Ye Futian stood there like the master of this world. Even a Renhuang of the Eight Realm felt the threat of death.


    Ye Futian, at this moment, was extremely dangerous.


    Buzz!


    The infinite divine brilliance fell down, attacking those cultivators. The branches and vines also reached into the crowd at the same time. The bodies of those several cultivators of the Seventh Realm were swallowed up then obliterated by the light from the Yin Yang pattern, without a trace.


    At the same time, Ye Futian��s body was moving. He stepped across the void to attack a cultivator of the Eighth Realm. A golden divine flame appeared around the cultivator, burning the vines that rolled towards him. There was a terrible golden divine dragon around him. He was holding a dragon spear with the golden flame.


    The light of catastrophe fell from the void, and the dragon spear in his hand pierced into the sky, turning into terrifying light beams. But at the same time, Ye Futian, who was coming toward him, slapped his left hand forward. Suddenly, infinite numbers of starry stone tablets came down, like ancient divine gates. There was also the sound of Buddha lingering, which bewitched the soul.


    The other was clad in a golden dragon armor, and the divine flaming dragon spear danced in his hands. The banging sound continued as each of the stone tablets exploded and shattered; the man��s spear method was astounding.


    But at this moment, Ye Futian appeared in front of him. With another palm strike, it sent him into the starry world, while the ancient divine tablets and the golden divine elephants coming down at him. Although his spear method was domineering, after his spear strike, he saw Ye Futian in the void; he was god-like. He couldn��t help wondering in his heart, how could a Renhuang of the Fourth Realm be so threatening to him?


    Boom!


    A divine tablet came from the starry sky and was pierced by his spear again. But in the next moment, he saw a pair of icy eyes that caused his thoughts to pause for a moment. Just as he broke free from its constraint, he saw more divine tablets slamming down.


    Suddenly, he felt a powerful sense of danger. When he stabbed the spear again, a shadow of the spear flashed away, and he realized that something was terribly wrong and tried to get away.


    Bang! With a loud sound, the divine tablet that was smashing down was broken open again by him, but he felt an extreme chill as a shadow flashed away. The next moment, he saw a man with a spear appearing in front of him, and that spear had already gone into his forehead.


    How could one person possess so many powerful abilities, and every one of them threatened his life until he was finally terminated by a single strike.


    This was the last thought in his mind. In the next moment, his skull burst as his soul and spirit dispersed.


    The other two cultivators of the Eighth Realm were still being restrained by the power inside the realm of the Great Path. They were a little hopeless to see the death of their companion. The person who was killed was the strongest person next to their clan leader, but Ye Futian had killed him. Could they have any hope to survive this?


    In this battle, would the Yan family of Donghua Heavens become history?!

 Chapter 2069 - The One to Die

    Ye Futian, alone, controlled one side of the battlefield, killing many Renhuang. But the vast area centered around the Leng family compound had expanded to hundreds of miles, with several battlegrounds in action.


    In the battlefield area where Ye Futian was located, he focused on killing the Yan family��s cultivators. However, comparatively speaking, Wangshen Watchtower was still much weaker. This time, in addition to the Yan family that acted as the interceptor, the forces that came to chase after them also included the cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor, the Yan Kingdom, and Lingxiao Palace.


    This kind of opposition was far stronger than what Wangshen Watchtower could match. They were not really on the same level, and many extraordinary characters were extremely powerful.


    Take Domain Chief��s Manor, for example. In addition to Ning Hua, there was a Middle Renhuang of the Sixth Realm with incredible strength. He possessed a perfect Great Path. He was known as the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor, who looked around middle-age with excellent combat effectiveness. He had been cultivating for many years and was much older than Ning Hua. However, his realm was not anywhere close to that of Ning Hua��s. Even so, each of his realms had a solid foundation, which made his combat effective particularly terrifying. Even inside the Domain Chief��s Manor, he enjoyed unusually high regard and position.


    Before entering the Domain Chief��s Manor, he had already made his name in the Donghua Heavens.


    There was only one purpose for entering the Domain Chief��s Manor. After breaking into the realm of Upper Renhuang, one could still maintain the perfection of the Great Path, thus reaching the strongest realm to experience the three catastrophes of the gods.


    At this time, several Renhuang from the Leng Family and Wangshen Watchtower had already perished by his hand. He cultivated in swordsmanship and the Great Path of Space until he finally formed one-of-a-kind swordsmanship. He had studied many books in Donghua Pavilion, mastered and comprehended all the great swordsmanship methods, and blended them all into his own abilities. He realized and created superb swordsmanship, the Thousand Arms Divine Sword, and because of this, he was known as the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor.


    In the void, the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor was attacking a Renhuang. As he allowed his swordsmanship to bloom, there seemed to be a thousand arms swinging the swords at the same time above the sky. Thousands of sword shadows were actually real sword strikes.


    He was attacking a Renhuang of the Seventh Realm from the Leng Family. The light of the swords was shining, and the sword of the hurricane created countless terrible space storms in the sky. The light of the swords tore through the space and slashed towards those thousands of sword shadows.


    Many sword shadows shattered, but there was one that seemed endless. No matter how fast he swung the sword out, it was not faster than the many swords that were formed by a single thought.


    The light of the sword quickly extinguished, and divine swords pierced through the void. In an instant, that Renhuang of the Seventh Realm let out a pitiful scream as he was penetrated by countless divine swords. He then turned into dust and smoke, his soul and spirit dispersed, and nothing was left of him.


    ��Ever since the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor entered the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate, he had kept a low profile. People seldom hear of him, but his strength was getting more terrifying. Each sword from the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor bloomed with swordsmanship that seemed to be from the full strength of an Upper Renhuang. His one sword was like tens of thousands of swords,�� someone said thoughtfully.


    In this battle, there were many powerful characters. This Thousand Arms Sword Emperor had not been noticed by many, but his strength was, in fact, mighty.


    However, the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor continued moving forward as his eyes locked onto the other Renhuang. A coldness flashed through his eyes. Wangshen Watchtower had made an enemy of the Domain Chief��s Manor, so death was the only outcome. How could he allow anyone to live?


    However, at this moment, a figure appeared in front of the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor, blocking his way.


    The Thousand Arms Sword Emperor was stunned for a moment as he looked at the man that appeared in front of him. This man was not cultivating in Wangshen Watchtower but a well-known figure in the Donghua Heavens. He was the one who fought with Ye Futian at the Donghua banquet, Chen Yi.


    Obviously, the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor did not expect him to be here. He knew of Chen Yi as a Renhuang cultivator of the Fifth Realm who possessed perfect Great Path and extraordinary strength. He was regarded as one of the Donghua Heavens�� top geniuses, someone who could match him.


    ��This matter doesn��t seem to have anything to do with you, does it?�� the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor said to Chen Yi.


    ��No, it doesn��t.�� Chen Yi nodded slightly.


    ��Then, why do you seek your own demise?�� Thousand Arms Sword Emperor was quite surprised and asked with some curiosity. He couldn��t figure out why someone so outstanding would want to get involved in this deadly conflict. Although Chen Yi was very strong, so was he. Both of them were enchanting figures of Donghua Heavens, men with the perfect Great Paths. However, his realm was far greater than Chen Yi��s, and in his opinion, if Chen Yi wanted to stop him, Chen Yi would definitely be the one to die.


    He couldn��t quite understand why a man like Chen Yi would get involved for the sake of those at Wangshen Watchtower. No one in their right mind would do this. Furthermore, he was someone with infinite potential. Whether he chose to enter Donghua Academy or the Domain Chief��s Manor, he would most definitely be valued. In the future, he would have the opportunity to pursue the supreme realm as a master lording over his own domain.


    Not only did the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor himself unable to understand his motive, so were those many people watching in the distance. They now observed the battlefield over there with some curiosity.


    Why did Chen Yi step out to help Wangshen Watchtower?


    Because of that battle with Ye Futian at Donghua banquet?


    Even if this was the case, it was not enough for him to forsake his own life.


    ��We haven��t fought yet. How do you know that I would be the one to die?�� Chen Yi looked at the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor and asked him rhetorically.


    The Thousand Arms Sword Emperor saw a glimmer of light in Chen Yi��s eyes. It was as if he had contained within him an extraordinary self-confidence. This was a man who was extremely confident in himself. Of course, he was justified in his belief in himself.


    But this time, Chen Yi was facing him, and the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor couldn��t understand where his confidence was coming from.


    With a smile, the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor asked again, ��I��m just curious, why do you want to help them?��


    He couldn��t seem to puzzle out this question.


    ��Because I don��t like how this is going.�� Chen Yi responded with a smile, ��Is that reason enough?��


    The Thousand Arms Sword Emperor still couldn��t understand, but he didn��t plan to either. So, he smiled and swung his sword.


    With a turn of his thought, the shadows of a thousand swords appeared. Chen Yi saw thousands of divine swords slashing toward him as if every sword was different. However, under the shadow of all of them, the space he was in was torn into countless segments. There was nowhere for him to escape. In fact, few were able to get out alive under the Thousand Arms Divine Sword.


    Buzz!


    Chen Yi released an extremely brilliant light, and the Divine Wheel of the Great Path bloomed. Rays of light and shadow bloomed outward, and the light was everywhere, in all directions; no corners could escape it. They collided with the thousand-fold sword shadow that came smashing in.


    For a moment, the space where Chen Yi was was filled with terrifying destructive power.


    The Thousand Arms Sword Emperor lowered his head to looked at the battlefield. The Path of Light was a powerful Great Path ability, but there was a gap between realms. He didn��t think the other could best him. His arms stretched out and formed a sword seal. At this moment, the Great Path resonated, and the vast world transformed into a sword domain that shrouded a boundless space, swallowing Chen Yi within.


    In this space, just with the finger movements of the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor, a thousand arms seemed to appear between heaven and earth, swinging swords at the same time. Each sword was different but bloomed at the same moment, slashing toward Chen Yi from different directions.


    The cultivators in the distance felt their hearts trembled. Under the Thousand Arms Divine Sword, its divine light traversed the space, cutting through the void, and could strangulate a space in just an instant. Everything inside would turn into dust and disappear forever.


    The sword of the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor erupted with an astonishing howl, piercing through the eardrums of those who heard it. Faintly, the soundwaves that tore through the space could be detected; it was terrifying. The light of the sword aurora shattered under the sword shadow and countless divine swords converged toward where Chen Yi was. It was as if he was the place where the Thousand Arms Divine Swords meet��the absolute center.


    When this sword strike fell, Chen Yi would surely turn into dust with nothing left.


    Thousands of Divine Swords arrived instantly, but Chen Yi seemed not to see them, as he merely stood there quietly. In the next moment, a divine light burst from Chen Yi��s body, and as this light bloomed, all those looking at the battlefield were blinded temporarily. When they looked there again, Chen Yi��s temperament seemed to have morphed!

 Chapter 2070 - The Illumining Body of the Great Path

    The cultivators far away were all attracted by the battlefield Chen Yi was on. They focused their eyes on him and saw him emitting brilliant divine light from his body and illuminated the entire area. The divine light obliterated anything it touched on the way and broke the Thousand Arms Divine Sword that was cutting him into pieces.


    ��This����


    Everyone was trembling, astonished. Although they already knew that Chen Yi was a legendary genius who possessed extraordinary combat ability, they were still staggered when they saw with their own eyes what he was capable of.


    The top cultivators�� eyes were also glued on Chen Yi. It was such a dazzling scene that even they felt their hearts pounding with excitement.


    ��Who is this Chen Yi?�� Jiang Yueli muttered. It seemed that Chen Yi intentionally hid his ability at the Donghua Banquet. He didn��t exert his full strength during his fight with Ye Futian. Neither did Ye Futian, of course.


    That was already an astonishing match. At this moment, it took Ye Futian and Chen Yi by surprise that both of them were hiding their capacities and were able to wield more power. It was a shocking discovery.


    ��He probably has a special constitution. A natural-born body of the Great Path,�� someone said in a low voice.


    ��Illumining Body of the Great Path?�� Jiang Yueli said. Some people were born with a body of the Great Path suitable for a certain type of worldly Great Path. These people were destined to forge a perfect Great Path since they were blessed by the Heavenly Path.


    The onlookers realized that Chen Yi might be one of the blessed ones. That could explain why he was able to command so much power.


    ��If that��s the case, Chen Yi may be stronger than the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor. With his talents, no wonder he isn��t willing to join the Domain Chief��s Manor or the Donghua Academy. But why would he help Wangshen Watchtower?�� Jiang Yueli asked with a curious look on her gorgeous face. She was a little puzzled.


    After all, based on talents and abilities Chen Yi had displayed, Chen Yi was easily one of the best cultivators in the entire Donghua Domain.


    However, it didn��t seem that he had a close relationship with Wangshen Watchtower. The only interaction between them was that one fight he had with Ye Futian at the Donghua Banquet.


    This was probably a mystery that no one could figure out. Only Chen Yi knew the reason behind this.


    Maybe he told the truth. He hated to see such things and intervened on the spur of the moment.


    On the battlefield, the Thousand Arms Divine Sword was smashed to smithereens at the touch of the divine light. The Thousand Arms Sword Emperor could only see unparalleled beams of divine light charging at him. He couldn��t open his eyes and was completed blinded by the light. On top of that, a ray of light invaded his mind and paralyzed his brain for a short moment.


    It threw the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor into a panic. He felt a palpable sense of danger from the depths of his heart. He brandished the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor again. But the divine light radiated from Chen Yi moved too fast. It already reached the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor by the time he caught sight of it.


    The Thousand Arms Sword Realm was penetrated through and torn apart. In a split second, countless beams of the divine light pierced through the body of the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor and turned transparent.


    The Thousand Arms Sword Emperor looked down at his body and couldn��t believe it was really happening. The beams of the divine light bored through him and made his body disappear gradually.


    He raised his head in astonishment and stared at Chen Yi, who was dazzling, like the God of Light. How could he be so powerful?


    The Thousand Arms Sword Emperor couldn��t believe that he would meet his end in such a way. He was one of the best cultivators in the Donghua Domain and a superstar in the Domain Chief��s Manor. Apart from Ning Hua, few people could be a match for him.


    He was going to prove his path to the pinnacle in the future.


    How could he lay down his life here?


    The divine light shone brilliantly as the body of the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor crumbled to bits and was eventually turned into a cloud of dust that dissipated as if he never existed at all.


    ��Thousand Arms Sword Emperor was killed.�� The audience far away, including the ones from the top forces, was appalled by the scene. It felt surreal to watch a legendary Renhuang like the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor being slaughtered here.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor suffered a great loss while hunting down cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower.


    Both sides were inflamed and attacked each other with no mercy.


    Chen Yi didn��t stop after the Thousand Arms Sword Emperor was killed. He almost transformed himself into a flash of light. The divine light radiating from his body contained horrifying killing power and directly shone upon many Renhuangs from the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    At this point, no one but the high-level Renhuangs could survive the divine light. They were turned into dust as soon as the divine light touched their bodies. It looked quite similar to how Ye Futian dealt with the Renhuangs from the Great Yan.


    ��So powerful.�� Even people far away were shaking in their shoes.


    ��Chen Yi dares to massacre cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor. He is insane.�� Some people had a hard time processing what just happened. Why would someone like Chen Yi annoy the Domain Chief��s Manor? He could have kept himself out of their business. Why did he insist on getting involved in a storm that had nothing to do with him in the first place?


    Chen Yi��s action brought him a blood feud with the Domain Chief��s Manor. How could the Domain Chief��s Manor let him off in the future?


    In fact, even cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower didn��t understand why Chen Yi would do such a thing.


    ��Chen Yi, do you know what you��re doing?�� someone from the Domain Chief��s Manor bellowed at him from afar.


    ��Of course.�� Chen Yi raised his head and darted a glance at them. The person shouting at him was an eighth-order Renhuang. However, Chen Yi didn��t show any fear at all and charged at him like a streak of light. Furious, the eighth-order Renhuang unleashed his Great Path to fight against Chen Yi.


    Nevertheless, a dead body fell from the sky in a little while. The eighth-order Renhuang was slew by Chen Yi.


    ��Chen Yi is also capable of killing eighth-order Renhuangs, just like Ye Liunian.��


    Besides Ning Hua��the best cultivator in the Donghua Heavens��two more legendary fighters emerged during this battle. Ye Futian had the will of the emperor, and Chen Yi had the Illumining Body of the Great Path.


    One was a fourth-order Renhuang, who could do away with high-level Renhuang at the eighth order.


    Ye Futian and Chen Yi made many cultivators from top forces feel ashamed for not being able to hold a candle to the two of them.


    Bang�� At this point, the crowd was startled by a deafening noise coming from somewhere. They looked in that direction and heard a voice bellowed with menace, ��You��re courting death.��


    ��Zong Chan is in danger.��


    People saw that it was Ning Hua speaking. He knocked Zong Chan down and severely injured him. Although Zong Chan was a prominent cultivator from Wangshen Watchtower, he couldn��t stand firm against Ning Hua. Bleeding from his mouth, Zong Chan could feel the blood force rolling and surging in his body. The Gate to World Suppression was bust.


    The entire area was enveloped by the Grand Seal Divine Matrix in the sky. Ning Hua shot a dark glance at Chen Yi. Since Chen Yi begged to be killed, he would certainly grant his wish!

 Chapter 2071 - : Zong Chan’s Death

    Ning Hua��s eyes were filled with malice. He was determined to kill Zong Chan before making a move on Chen Yi.


    His eyes focused on Zong Chan, who he had severely injured. The infinite Divine Light of the Seals enveloped Zong Chan��s body right away and invaded his spiritual soul. As a result, Zong Chan��s power of the Great Path was largely restricted. Although Zong Chan and Ning Hua were equally famous, their power was not on the same level. Zong Chan��s Great Path was overwhelmed by Ning Hua. Adding to his injury, he no longer had the ability to hold out against Ning Hua.


    Ning Hua outstretched his hand and shot the Divine Light of the Seals from his palm. The Divine Light of the Seals fell on Zong Chan��s body and transfigured into a giant ancient rune: ��Seal.��


    Zong Chan was immobilized, and the entire area he was in was locked down.


    Zong Chan was incapable of saving himself at this point.


    Ning Hua folded the fingers tightly into his palm. A frightening storm gathered around his fist and swirled like a horrifying black hole.


    He lifted his foot and took a step forward. Trudging through the space, he walked toward Zong Chan.


    ��Watch out.��


    Li Changsheng was facing Yan Hanxing��the Crown Prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. But he had to ignore Yan Hanxing when he saw that Zong Chan was in grave danger. As a result, he took a hit from Yan Hanxing. He also seized the opportunity and raced in Zong Chan��s direction. His power of the Great Path already reached Zong Chan before he could physically get to him.


    Countless vines and leaves crawled toward Ning Hua, each of them like an extremely sharp sword that could slash the sky. They fired on Ning Hua mercilessly.


    Bang! Ning Hua rushed through the vines and leaves with crushing force. The glaring Divine Light of the Seals slowed down the attack charging at him.


    Li Changsheng��s face changed. It was too late.


    Buzz!


    Another figure rushed over like a flash of light. He was even faster than Li Changsheng and pounced on Ning Hua with blinding divine light. It was Chen Yi. He was available to come and help at this moment since he just slaughtered his opponent.


    Ning Hua raised his left hand and pushed it toward Chen Yi, who was jumping on him from above. His hand changed into a seal pattern and shut off the space like the Heaven-Locking Divine Matrix. Countless Swords of Light rained on the pattern yet couldn��t penetrate the Divine Matrix. The Divine Matrix was engraved with innumerable runes, each of which emitted exceptionally brilliant light that sealed off the area. Even the power of Light couldn��t get through.


    Who could stop the absolute power and the ultimate Great Path?


    Bang!


    Chen Yi��s body fell on the pattern on the Divine Matrix and broke some of the seals. But the gigantic pattern was still sturdy and secure. Chen Yi was not on the same cultivation level as Ning Hua and couldn��t force himself through Ning Hua��s defense. They were not in the same league, after all.


    ��There is no need to rush. I will deal with you after Zong Chan,�� Ning Hua glanced at Chen Yi and said. He was still moving forward with unstoppable force while speaking.


    Li Changsheng still wanted to help Zong Chan. But the Crown Prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was not easy to handle either. Yan Hanxing chased Li Changsheng and launched a series of onslaughts to deprive him of any chance to lend a hand.


    Despite the willing hearts of the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower, they couldn��t rush over to help Zong Chan.


    Only Chen Yi and Ye Futian had demonstrated overwhelming power and vanquished their opponents. Everyone else on the battlefield was subdued. Even a powerful cultivator like Zong Chan was brought to his knees by Ning Hua.


    Several ninth-order cultivators concentrated on dealing with enemies at the same cultivation level from the Domain Chief��s Manor, the Great Yan, and the Lingxiao Palace. They were in danger themselves and had no spare moment to aid Zong Chan.


    Nevertheless, a long spear showed up in front of Ning Hua at this moment.


    Ye Futian came into sight along with the spear. He unleashed unparalleled intent of battle and bombarded Ning Hua��s body with the Yin Divine Light. The spear shattered the space and shocked the entire battlefield.


    Bang!


    With a deafening bang, Ning Hua��s fist smashed on the spear and made it shake violently. The power of Yin invaded Ning Hua��s body, but Ning Hua emitted the sweeping Divine Light of the Seals and looked directly into Ye Futian��s eyes.


    Ning Hua��s arm trembled for a moment but kept moving forward. At this point, Ye Futian felt as if the Great Path was shattered, and waves of energy burst out and spurted into his body through the spear. The Seal Spells rained on him, and the Divine Light of the Seals penetrated his defense.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian was flung away. He gave a low moan and threw up a mouthful of blood in midair. After all, he was three levels lowered than Ning Hua, who was definitely not an ordinary Renhuang.


    The power of the seal spread through Ye Futian��s body. He felt like he couldn��t gather his strength for a moment. Ning Hua glared at him with his cold and fierce eyes.


    ��Are you all eager to die?�� Ning Hua��s robe was flapping in the wind. He was arrogant and domineering like a living legend.


    He was unrivaled and unstoppable on this battlefield.


    He would kill them one by one if they all delivered themselves to him.


    Ning Hua released even more terrifying divine light from his body and moved forward again. He arrived in front of Zong Chan with one step.


    At this point, Ning Hua seemed like a relentless God.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. Although Zong Chan��s Great Path was suppressed, he managed to muster the last of his strength and summoned several Divine Monuments, which tumbled over Ning Hua.


    The ancient runes bloomed on top of Ning Hua��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path, fell upon the Divine Monuments, making them shake violently. Then, Ning Hua raised his hands and launched the counterattack. The Divine Monuments exploded at once. Ning Hua turned himself into a blurred shadow and came upon Zong Chan. As the Divine Light of the Seals blazing down from the sky, Zong Chan shook uncontrollably, struggling to free himself from Ning Hua��s power. He looked up and glared at Ning Hua with unyielding determination.


    ��It��s not your fault you were born at the wrong time,�� said Ning Hua. He disappeared in a second. With an exploding sound, everyone saw Ning Hua appeared in front of Zong Chan. His unrelenting fist will punched through Zong Chan��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path and his body.


    ��Younger brother!�� Li Changsheng shouted. Although he could always remain calm in the past no matter what kind of situation he was in, he was seized by grief and rage at this moment, his eyes bloodshot. In the meanwhile, he was hit by Yan Hanxing and hurled away. He glared in Zong Chan��s direction, even as he was retching blood.


    Li Changsheng was not the only one. Everyone was watching Zong Chan.


    Zong Chan of Wangshen Watchtower was one of the four prominent cultivators in the Donghua Domain. He was a high-level Renhuang with a perfect Great Path and seemed to be destined to reach the top of the world and become a master in the Donghua Domain.


    Would he meet his end here today?


    His body was punched through.


    A translucent and illusory figure appeared. It was Zong Chan��s spiritual soul who tried to escape. Nonetheless, Ning Hua closed his hand and emitted the Divine Light of the Seals, which immobilized Zong Chan��s spiritual soul. The translucent figure squirmed and distorted yet couldn��t break free.


    Ning Hua didn��t leave Zong Chan any chance. He threw another punch and unleashed the Shredding Divine Light. Zong Chan��s spiritual soul shattered and evaporated. His physical body also dropped and was crushed.


    A remarkable cultivator of Wangshen Watchtower and a future master drew his last breath in this battle. He was slaughtered by Ning Hua, the legendary genius of the Donghua Domain.


    Such a scene seemed surreal to many people. They started to realize that perhaps the Domain Chief��s Manor had set out to attack Wangshen Watchtower. Otherwise, why would Ning Hua kill Zong Chan with such decisiveness?

 Chapter 2072 - Speaking Out

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Zong Chan��s death shocked the cultivators on the battlefield. After all, Zong Chan was a genius who was expected to become the best of the Donghua Domain. Nevertheless, Ning Hua slaughtered him before he could reach the top of the world.


    Jiang Yueli, who was on a par with Zong Chan as one of the four prominent cultivators in the Donghua Domain, was especially discomposed. She gazed in Zong Chan��s direction, waves of emotion surging in her heart. It felt surreal that Zong Chan had just lost his life like this.


    Ning Hua was so domineering and didn��t show any mercy. He killed Zong Chan at once without giving him any chance to fight back.


    Jiang Yueli started to believe the Millet Emperor��s words now. The chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor might already be a player in the game and had been targeting Wangshen Watchtower since the beginning. Considering everything that had happened so far, Jiang Yueli had more confidence in this speculation now.


    If that was the case, the Lingxiao Palace might have an ulterior motive behind their constant attempts to approach them. Ling He even showed romantic interest in Qin Qing.


    Their chief was quite an ambitious and pushy man. It seemed that he intended to grip all the forces in the entire Donghua Domain in his hand.


    Ning Hua appeared to have inherited the same ambition and behaved in an even more forceful way. After all, he had gained fame as the best cultivator in the Donghua Domain a long time ago. Jiang Yueli had an ominous feeling. A person like Ning Hua naturally would make her feel suspicious and alarmed.


    Since Zong Chan had died, there was one less extraordinary cultivator in the Donghua Domain now.


    It looked like Wangshen Watchtower was destined to have a tragic ending.


    The cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower scattered around the battlefield were inundated by a fury of indignation and grief. But it was useless. Several Renhuangs died in the battle, and they had fewer people now. It seemed that they had no way out at this point.


    Ye Futian��s bloodshot eyes gazed at Zong Chan��s dead body. He felt a spasm of pain in his heart. Although he wasn��t particularly close to Zong Chan, he was always impressed by Zong Chan��s honest character and great magnanimity. On top of that, Zong Chan had remarkable talents and would have had a boundless future if he didn��t lose his life here.


    Moreover, the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower might all be killed here. None of them could contend with Ning Hua. As strong as Ye Futian was, he only had the ability to kill Renhuangs below the eighth order. He couldn��t win against the peak-level Renhuangs for the enormous gap between their cultivation levels.


    At this point, Ning Hua started to attack Chen Yi. The divine light penetrated the void with all speed. Thankfully, Chen Yi also moved like a whirlwind. A flash of light illuminated the sky. Ning Hua��s attack didn��t catch up to Chen Yi.


    ��You need to leave.�� At this moment, Ye Futian heard a voice coming through the void. It was Chen Yi. Ye Futian raised his head and looked in the direction of the voice. Chen Yi was standing in midair and staring at him.


    Ning Hua was watching them from the other side. His eyes were filled with murderous intent and sheer malice.


    Since both Chen Yi and Ye Futian wanted to die, he would certainly grant their wish.


    ��Other people from Wangshen Watchtower might still have a chance if you leave with me. Ning Hua will definitely chase after you. Everyone would die if you stayed here,�� Chen Yi added. Ye Futian knew that he was telling the truth. No one could contend with Ning Hua��s unstoppable force. The Wangshen Watchtower could only have a slim chance of survival if he took to his heels and lured Ning Hua away.


    Besides, it was meaningless for him to stay here. His inferior cultivation level determined that he could not defeat Ning Hua at this point and would die sooner or later.


    ��Okay.�� Ye Futian understood that he didn��t have to hesitate at this moment. He nodded decisively in agreement and was ready to leave.


    Chen Yi released a beam of extremely dazzling divine light upon hearing Ye Futian��s answer. The light temporarily blinded everyone��s eyes. Even Ning Hua had to use his hands to shield his eyes for a moment.


    ��Em?�� Ning Hua seemed to have realized that something was wrong. The blinding divine light disappeared the next moment. So did Ye Futian, who streaked away at breakneck speed like a bolt of lightning.


    ��Humph,�� Ning Hua snorted. Ye Futian wanted to escape?


    Ning Hua let Ye Futian get away in the secret zones because of the mountains standing in the way. Did Ye Futian think that he could make off again this time?


    Ning Hua took a step forward and locked on Ye Futian with his divine consciousness. His body turned into a shadow as he chased after Ye Futian like blazes.


    Yan Hanxing and many other cultivators originally wanted to pursue Ye Futian. But they remained on the battlefield when they saw Ning Hua ran after him. They were absolutely confident about Ning Hua��s ability.


    There was no point for them to chase after Ye Futian if Ning Hua couldn��t catch him.


    Ye Futian would die without a doubt. Ning Hua would not let him get off alive.


    Yan Hanxing looked at Li Changsheng and said, ��Since Wangshen Watchtower is eager to be destroyed, we will wipe you out today.��


    ��Folks,�� a woman��s voice rang out at this moment. Yan Hanxing and the others looked in the direction of the voice. It was Jiang Yueli, the legendary cultivator from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. She stood in the sky far away and watched the battlefield intently with her beautiful eyes, said, ��Zong Chan was the best disciple of Wangshen Watchtower. Since he is dead and Ning Hua has already gone to chase after Ye Liunian, why do you have to kill everyone here?��


    The crowd focused their eyes on Jiang Yueli. As the first disciple of the Sword Goddess and possibly the most powerful one of the four prominent cultivators of the Donghua Domain, Jiang Yueli��s words carried a lot of weight. She was an eighth-order Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. Even Ning Hua might not be able to win against her.


    To some extent, Jiang Yueli was in the same league as Ning Hua, second only to the master cultivators in the Donghua Domain. She was one step away from reaching the pinnacle.


    Now, she pleaded on behalf of the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower herself.


    ��The Chief is kind and generous and didn��t want to quibble with the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower before. Since Ye Futian is the one who violated the chief��s order, it would be enough if Ning Hua could capture him. Moreover, Zong Chan passed away, and Wangshen Watchtower has lost more than half of their men. As the chief who presides over the entire Donghua Domain, he probably doesn��t want you to start a massacre right here. I��m afraid that the chief might have a hard time explaining the mass execution if the Great Emperor heard about it and sent people here to inquire,�� Jiang Yueli continued.


    Jiang Yueli had a point. The Renhuangs from the Domain Chief��s Manor pondered over the issue. An elder took a glance at the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower, who either died or severely injured. Zong Chan was dead, and Ning Hua was already hunting down Chen Yi and Ye Futian. It was indeed meaningless for them to keep slaughtering the rest of the cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower, who probably couldn��t hold any sway anyway.


    ��Stop,�� a high-level elder ordered. The cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace all packed in. Wangshen Watchtower was in a disadvantageous position and certainly wouldn��t pick a fight on their own initiative. As furious as they were, they had no choice but to suppress their emotion.


    At this point, they could only hope for the Millet Emperor to be safe.


    ��Since the Goddess has spoken, we will let you live as you are not the culprits. You sabotaged the Donghua Banquet held by the chief. I hope you can conduct yourselves well in the future. Otherwise, even if the chief is generous enough to spare you, other people in the Domain Chief��s Manor will not let you off lightly,�� a ninth-order Renhuang from the Domain Chief��s Manor announced loudly. They decided to stop.


    It wasn��t absolutely necessary to kill these people. Moreover, the Great Emperor indeed might send people over to inquire into this matter. It would be easier for the chief to explain if they didn��t wipe out Wangshen Watchtower right now.


    The cultivators from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and the Lingxiao Palace stopped unwillingly. Everything would be over as long as the Millet Emperor was killed. Wangshen Watchtower would be eliminated from the Donghua Domain, and it didn��t matter if they killed his disciples or not.


    ��Lucky you,�� Yan Hanxing said and darted a glance at Li Changsheng. Li Changsheng sighed to himself and slightly nodded at Jiang Yueli to show his gratitude. It grieved him to think about their loss, but he recognized that they were indebted to Jiang Yueli since she stopped the massacre.


    Then, Li Changsheng descended slowly through the air. Drowning in great sorrow, he came to Zong Chan��s dead body and held him in his arms. Brother Zong was supposed to be the future of Wangshen Watchtower and the master in the coming times. Yet he lost his life here.


    Wangshen Watchtower would be eliminated.


    And he had no ability to exact revenge.


    Li Changsheng raised his head and gazed into the distance where the Domain Chief��s Manor was. The only wish he had at this moment was for the Millet Emperor to be alive!

 Chapter 2073 - : Mysterious Person

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On the other side, Chen Yi and Ye Futian turned themselves into a flash of light and ran away. With lightning speed, they raced a very long distance in a short time.


    The flash of light streaked through the sky in a straight line, moving for miles in a few seconds.


    Even so, they still couldn��t get rid of Ning Hua.


    Behind them, Ning Hua was stepping on a golden leaf that was engraved with dazzling patterns of Space. The golden leaf turned Ning Hua��s body into a beam of golden Divine Light of Space that traversed the void. A line of golden dots appeared on the sky, closely following Chen Yi and Ye Futian at full speed.


    Taking along a Ritual Implement of Space, Ning Hua chased after Ye Futian and Chen Yi to stop them from escaping.


    Just like the Renhuangs from the Domain Chief��s Manor, Ning Hua didn��t care about the fate of other cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower since he already slaughtered Zong Chan. Ye Futian and Chen Yi were the only ones who still had values to him. Ning Hua was such an arrogant person who considered everything and everyone beneath his notice. In his opinion, even someone like Li Changsheng was nothing but a high-level cultivator who didn��t possess a perfect Great Path and didn��t deserve his attention.


    Other Renhuangs from Wangshen Watchtower were a group of nobodies who were nothing different from common folks. He didn��t think too highly of Zong Chan and killed him without scruples, let alone others.


    So far, only Ye Futian and Chen Yi seemed to be adequate in his eyes and deserve a little effort. Therefore, he chased after them without hesitation and didn��t spare a second of thought for other cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��This guy is already at the highest level of the Renhuang Plane. Who would have thought that he also brings the finest Ritual Implement of Space with him?�� Chen Yi��s voice rang out from the flash of light. He was a little frustrated since he thought he was fast enough to shake off their pursuer, especially with the help of a ritual implement.


    Much to Chen Yi��s surprise, as a peak-level Renhuang, Ning Hua still carried a ritual implement for speed. He was well-prepared to root them out for good.


    Ye Futian didn��t respond. He was still burning with rage and even felt a little guilty. This might not happen so soon if he didn��t associate himself with the Millet Emperor. That being said, he also understood that the chief would attack the Wangshen Watchtower sooner or later since he was related to the death of the Supreme Deity Donglai. After the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family made the first move, this would happen eventually. But Ye Futian��s involvement surely expedited the process.


    The most ridiculous thing was that Ye Futian once considered seeking the patronage of the Domain Chief��s Manor. Who would have thought that the Domain Chief��s Manor that presided over the Donghua Domain was the mastermind behind the scheme?


    At this point, Zong Chan was killed, Wangshen Watchtower suffered great casualties, and the Millet Emperor��s life was hanging in the balance. They might be fighting a bloody battle in the sealed space of the Domain Chief��s Manor right now. Even if the Millet Emperor arrived with the divine stela, Ye Futian didn��t believe that he could defeat all three master cultivators. The Millet Emperor might have a chance if it was only Ling Yunzi and Emperor Yan, as long as they didn��t bring divine items at the same level. But Chief Ning Yuan was also there.


    Many people believed that the chief was the very best cultivator of the entire Donghua Domain.


    ��You can��t get away.��


    An arrogant voice rang in Chen Yi��s and Ye Futian��s ears and trembled their spiritual souls. It was as if the Grand Seal Great Path had fallen from the sky. The Great Path had been incorporated into Ning Hua��s every move. Even his voice contained its power.


    ��We can��t escape this way,�� Chen Yi said in a low voice, his brows knitted tightly together. Ning Hua was at a higher cultivation level and would catch up to them sooner or later. They were in trouble.


    However, thanks to the great distance in between, Ning Hua couldn��t fire on them with the Great Path, though he could keep track of them. The light would disappear from his sight as soon as he launched an attack. That was why Ning Hua hadn��t struck a blow yet.


    But Ning Hua kept chasing them and wouldn��t give up.


    They traveled an enormous distance at full tilt. Even though they were still inside the Donghua Domain, they had been far away from the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The chase had been going on for an hour. The Divine Light of the Seals fell from the sky continually, attempting to block Chen Yi and Ye Futian. Ning Hua tried multiple times to seal the void. But the speed of the light that was made up of Chen Yi and Ye Futian exceeded the speed of Ning Hua gathering his power of the Great Path. He couldn��t seal them off at once.


    ��How much longer do you plan on running?�� Ning Hua spoke to them, his voice reverberating through the void. The flash of light ahead of him was still racing forward in a straight line without stopping for a second.


    At this moment, Ning Hua frowned and said, ��Who is it?��


    He sensed an extremely strong vibration of the Great Path that was created by a terrifying force.


    As soon as his voice faded away, a figure came into view in the sky, landed on the ancient peak, and stood there quietly.


    The person wore a plain robe, his face blurred and indistinguishable as if he didn��t want to reveal his identity. The energy emanated from his body was faint and calm, but nothing ordinary. It seemed to form a harmonious combination with the Heavenly Path.


    Chen Yi and Ye Futian darted across the sky above the person. After all, they didn��t dare to stop since they didn��t know who the person was. Ning Hua also charged in that direction. Nevertheless, the person raised his hand and pushed it forward. In an instant, a gigantic palm took shape and blotted out the sky. It pressed down upon Ning Hua and blocked his way.


    Ning Hua threw a forceful punch. With a deafening noise, the giant palm was cracked open and broke to pieces. However, Ning Hua also stopped. He took a few steps back and stared at the figure.


    Chen Yi and Ye Futian stopped running to check the commotion behind. They turned around and looked at the figure with a puzzled expression.


    ��Do you know him?�� Chen Yi asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian shook his hand. How could he recognize him when he couldn��t even see his face clearly?


    Besides, what kind of person could stop Ning Hua?


    Other than the Millet Emperor, he didn��t know anyone in the Divine Prefecture who had such abilities.


    Ning Hua glared at the person and said, ��There is no need to hide your face since you��re already here. Why are you afraid of revealing your identity? Who are you?��


    ��I��m a nobody in the Donghua Domain. My identity is not important. I��m only here to advise the vice chief to show some mercy,�� the man said calmly under Ning Hua��s gaze. Ning Hua summoned the Divine Wheel of the Grand Seal. An enormous Grand Seal Divine Matrix appeared in the sky and shone the divine light upon the person.


    At this point, the mysterious person also emitted the brilliant divine light of the Great Path. Ning Hua, Ye Futian, and Chen Yi were all stunned right away.


    ��Perfect Great Path, eighth-order.��


    All of them studied the mysterious cultivator who came out of nowhere. Second to the master cultivators of the Donghua Domain, there were four prominent cultivators��Ning Hua, Jiang Yueli, Desolation, and Zong Chan��who were high-level Renhuangs with perfect Great Path and were assumed to be the future masters.


    They were the only four genius high-level Renhuangs known to the public in the Donghua Domain.


    But the fifth one just popped up in front of them.


    Moreover, he was at the eighth order, which meant that he probably had proved his path and possessed the perfect Great Path since many years ago without anyone knowing.


    He hid his identity and addressed Ning Hua as the ��vice chief.�� It was almost certain that he was a cultivator in the Donghua Domain rather than an outsider from other domains. Besides, he probably concealed his face because Ning Hua might recognize him.


    Then, who could he be?


    Ning Hua couldn��t figure it out. Chen Yi and Ye Futian also didn��t know why this person suddenly came out to help them block Ning Hua.


    ��Could it be���� Chen Yi��s eyes glinted as though he had a guess.


    ��Could it be what?�� Ye Futian asked Chen Yi.


    Chen Yi himself came out of nowhere to help Ye Futian. Now there was another one.


    Could he and Chen Yi come from the same place?


    Was that why Chen Yi was speculating something?


    ��Nothing. I��m just thinking where he could be from,�� Chen Yi answered quietly. He went through and excluded the possibility of all the top forces in the Donghua Domain in his head. He couldn��t figure out who this person might be!

 Chapter 2074 - Came to a Close

    Chapter 2074: Came to a Close


    Ning Hua looked at the person in front of him and started to take him seriously. He stepped forward while still emitting the brilliant divine light of the Great Path from his body.


    He was curious to see who on earth this person was.


    The mysterious man remained self-possessed when seeing Ning Hua was charging at him. He formed a seal with his hands. In an instant, the Great Path resonated in the space, and the divine light shone brightly. A divine wall towering into the sky took shape with him at the center and blocked Ning Hua��s path forward.


    The divine wall slanted and pressed down from above with unstoppable momentum and the authority of heaven. Exquisite and intricate patterns were engraved on the divine wall and outlined several formations of the Great Path. The formations glowed with the divine light and seemed invincible. The mysterious person looked like the God of Earth at this moment.


    Upon seeing the divine wall that obstructed his way, Ning Hua released the divine halo that swept across thousands of miles of land. He outstretched a hand and pushed forward. The Divine Light of the Seals climbed up on the divine wall, trying to seal it off. Nevertheless, the divine wall kept extending into the distance as if it could reach as far as the person��s divine consciousness could cover. It was impregnable and indestructible.


    ��What kind of defense is this?�� Chen Yi and Ye Futian behind him were also astonished by the power. The mysterious person stood on top of the ancient peak, and even the mountain was rooted out and became a part of the Great Path. The divine wall he summoned divided the area into two by chopping up in the middle. Ye Futian and Chen Yi couldn��t see what was going on outside, but they felt that the wall was like an unshakable barrier made by God.


    Bang!


    With a loud thump, the divine wall vibrated violently as though it was attacked by a fierce force at multiple places. Under the sustained and relentless attack, the divine wall shone even more brightly and refused to yield.


    The mysterious cultivator gazed at Ning Hua while giving off unparalleled divine light from his body. A separate divine wall appeared in the sky and began to fall upon Ning Hua. In the meantime, the divine wall in all directions started to move toward Ning Hua and if it was trying to close him in.


    Buzz! Ning Hua was aware of the danger and drew back immediately. He stopped his attack and pulled out through the energy field that hadn��t been consolidated yet. He was afraid of not being able to get out if he was confined within the divine walls.


    ��Who on earth are you?�� Ning Hua stared at the mysterious person who seemed to have integrated himself with the Great Path and blended into the world. His body was embedded in the divine wall as though he was part of it.


    Based on his observation, Ning Hua vaguely felt that the person was not only at a higher cultivation level but also had a deeper comprehension of the Great Path. By integrating himself with the Great Path, he truly reached the perfect state and created a resonance and unleash the incomparable power of the Great Path that even Ning Hua��s attack couldn��t penetrate.


    ��Please go back, Vice Chief,�� the person spoke calmly and didn��t answer Ning Hua��s question. Ning Hua was still radiating dazzling divine light and wouldn��t let it go. He came to hunt down Ye Futian and Chen Yi. With his prestige and reputation, how could he explain himself if he went back empty-handed?


    The mysterious cultivator noticed Ning Hua��s hesitation and formed a seal with both hands. Tremendous force fell from the sky at once, coupled with strong resonance. An enormous hand appeared and pressed down upon Ning Hua with all speed.


    It looked like the God Hand.


    Bang!


    With a deafening sound, Ning Hua was nailed to the ground. A giant indentation in the shape of a hand became visible on the ground. Ning Hua slowly surfaced with an embarrassed look. His frosty eyes glared at his opponent.


    He didn��t expect to be overpowered by anyone in the Donghua Domain, except for the master cultivators. In his mind, even Jiang Yueli, who was at the eighth order, probably couldn��t defeat him either.


    Who was this person?


    An eighth-order Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. Which top force in the Donghua Domain could have someone like this?


    Jiang Yueli of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow was the only one known to the public.


    ��We��ll see each other again soon,�� said Ning Hua. He turned around and left with resolution. He seemed to understand that he would not be able to breach the person��s defense to capture Ye Futian and Chen Yi. He wasn��t even a match for him in a face-to-face clash.


    The mysterious person gazed at Ning Hua��s receding figure for a while. Moments after Ning Hua was out of their sight, he asked, ��Vice Chief, what else can I help you with?��


    ��I know who you are,�� a voice came from afar. Ning Hua left for real after that. The mysterious person withdrew his power, turned around, and looked at Chen Yi and Ye Futian.


    ��Thank you very much, senior,�� Chen Yi and Ye Futian expressed their gratitude.


    ��The Donghua Heavens are not safe. Come with me,�� the mysterious person said. Then, he led Chen Yi and Ye Futian away. A lot of people came to the site after they were gone. Their hearts trembled when they saw the deep indentation on the ground, which was still emitting frightening Will of the Great Path. Some people even stepped in and sat down to cultivate themselves.


    For cultivators of the younger generation, this was a mark of the Great Path left by a true legend.


    ��It was the vice chief who was defeated here?�� someone asked.


    ��Yes, I think it��s him.��


    ��Who on earth has such terrifying power that can beat the vice chief?�� The crowd was confounded and amazed. Wasn��t Ning Hua the finest genius in the Donghua Domain who was unrivaled and second only to the master cultivators? Who could prevail over him?


    Nonetheless, they had no clue since even Ning Hua himself couldn��t figure it out.


    ��


    On the other side, almost half of the palatial Domain Chief��s Manor was destructed and burned down.


    The battle over there was finished already. Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi��the Palace Lord of the Lingxiao Palace��were both injured. Their distressed expression undercut their usual ethereal quality. Even the chief was a little disheveled. He descended from above with a displeased look. The energy around his body undulated slightly.


    ��Chief.�� Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi also had a stern face. They already knew what happened��the Millet Emperor was still alive and got away.


    ��The divine stela truly is a divine item from the distant past and can borrow the authority of heaven. The Millet Emperor escaped, albeit being seriously injured. I have to trouble you two to spend some effort to track him down and capture him, to keep him from murdering innocent people,�� said Ning Yuan. Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi nodded.


    ��We will track his whereabouts once we get back.�� Emperor Yan nodded in agreement. They needed to fetch their divine items to trace the Millet Emperor. Although the Millet Emperor was severely wounded, he could still pose a huge threat to them once he recovered. They had to exterminate him completely, just like how they handled the Supreme Deity Donglai.


    Ning Yuan raised his head and saw that the people who chased after cultivators from Wangshen Watchtower were coming back.


    ��Chief.�� The elder bowed and was about to report the news when Ning Yuan waved his hand and said, ��I already knew. You did the right thing. Even though the Millet Emperor broke the rules, the disciples of Wangshen Watchtower are mostly innocent. As long as we capture Ye Futian, it��s alright to let other people go. I��m sure they will know how to behave in the future.��


    ��Yes.�� Everyone nodded.


    Ning Yuan gazed into the distance. Shortly after, he frowned and spoke to Ning Hua thousands of miles away, ��Ning Hua, where are you?��


    Ning Hua was still on his way back when he heard his father��s voice. He replied, ��Someone intercepted me and took Ye Futian and Chen Yi.��


    Ning Hua��s voice traveled through the void and echoed in the Domain Chief��s Manor. All the cultivators were stunned upon hearing him. Who could intercept Ning Hua?


    ��Who is it?�� Ning Yuan asked.


    ��I don��t know. He deliberately concealed his face. Besides, he is an eighth-order Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. He can forge a divine wall that can screen off the void.�� Ning Hua answered, ��I couldn��t penetrate his defense.��


    Everyone in the Domain Chief��s Manor was staggered. Who had such abilities?


    Even Ning Hua couldn��t break his defense? Who could it be?


    ��They escaped!��


    Ning Yuan��s expression grew grim. Ye Futian stole the treasure in the Demon God Temple in the secret zone and ran off?


    How could they let him get away?


    He looked around the room and scrutinized everyone present, then asked, ��Does anyone know which force has such a person?��


    They had never heard of this man before.


    ��I don��t know.�� Everyone shook their heads. Both Ye Futian and the Millet Emperor escaped. It seemed like the Domain Chief��s Manor failed to achieve their goal this time. Even so, it was a pity that Zong Chan died.


    Zong Chan was already a seventh-order Renhuang who would have had a boundless future. Yet he died in Ning Hua��s hands.


    ��Maybe he is from another domain?�� someone suggested.


    ��Perhaps he was trying to mislead us by covering his face,�� someone else said.


    Ning Yuan��s face was steely. He looked into the distance and said to Ning Hua, ��Come back first. We��ll talk about it later.��


    Who was hindering them in secret?


    Could it be someone sent by one of the master cultivators here in the Donghua Palace right now?


    Besides them, who else could raise such a powerful cultivator?


    Were they after the treasure of the Demon God Temple?


    Regardless, Ning Yuan had to send someone to investigate since he couldn��t find out the truth by speculation alone.


    ��I have been a bad host for letting the Donghua Banquet turn into such a mess. I will invite you to gather again in the future if the chance arises,�� said Ning Yuan. The crowd was silent. No one expected the Donghua Banquet to become a storm like this.


    Furthermore, the storm was probably not over yet.


    ��I won��t keep you any longer. Please suit yourselves. However, I will send people to inquire into the matter. Please forgive me if the investigation affects you later,�� said Ning Yuan. The crowd was surprised and confounded. Did Ning Yuan mean that he would investigate all the forces?


    ��The Lingxiao Palace will cooperate fully,�� Ling Yunzi said.


    ��The Great Yan will cooperate with the chief as well,�� said Emperor Yan. Nevertheless, other master cultivators didn��t express their attitudes right away. Proud and esteemed, they wouldn��t give their approval before knowing exactly how Ning Yuan wanted to conduct the investigation.


    ��I will bid you goodbye, Chief,�� the Sword Goddess spoke and left. Other people also made their departure following her. The turmoil seemed to have come to an end for the time being!

 Chapter 2075 - Familiar Place

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    No one imagined that the Donghua Banquet, which had shaken the Donghua Domain, would end in such a fashion. If it weren��t for the incidents that occurred after, Ye Futian and Chen Yi would have become prominent figures in the Donghua Domain. They would have unlimited glory, and the Wangshen Watchtower would also be basking in the sun.


    However, the name of Wangshen Watchtower was eventually eliminated by the Chief from the Donghua Domain. Ye Futian and the Millet Emperor were being hunted down. The Domain Chief��s Manor issued warrants for their arrests.


    In that battle, many Renhuangs perished. Among them were many famous figures such as Thousand Arms Sword Emperor. He had fallen to Chen Yi. Many people witnessed how powerful Chen Yi truly was in that battle.


    Of course, there was also Ye Futian; he actually possessed the will of the emperor.


    After a few days, news came from Domain Chief��s Manor that Ye Liunian was not his real name. Rumor had it that Domain Chief��s Manor investigated and found out that Ye Liunian was actually Ye Futian. He was from the Original Realm��an ancient world that most people in the Divine Prefecture were unfamiliar with.


    Rumor has it that the members of the top forces of other domains had been the ones who discovered this. Ye Futian was from the Original Realm and had made many enemies there. He was extremely famous in the Original Realm. He had entered the God��s relic before and had obtained the will of the emperor from there. He was a monstrous existence who had a major fateful encounter.


    Only then did the world know why Ye Futian was so powerful. It turned out that his origins were extraordinary. He was more than just a mere cultivator of Eastern Deity Island.


    Aside from that, many people were curious about another person. It was the cultivator who had taken Ye Futian from the hands of Vice Chief Ning Hua. The cultivator had a flawless eighth-tier Great Path and had not revealed his power before in the Donghua Domain. No one in the Domain knew about such an existence. Who was he?


    Where had Ye Futian been brought to now?


    ��


    On a continent far from the Donghua Heavens, on an island in the vast ocean region, a beam of flowing light shot across the sky and landed on the island. Two of these figures were Ye Futian and Chen Yi. The other person was an ordinary-looking middle-aged man. He appeared very ordinary. From his appearance, no one could possibly imagine that this person had a flawless Great Path that was at the peak of the eighth-tier. His combat ability was astounding, and he was the strongest person below the giant level figures. Even Ning Hua had been pushed back by him.


    Ye Futian looked around at their surroundings. He glanced around at the familiar island. He felt his heart stir when he figured out who had helped him.


    ��You should know by now,�� the middle-aged man said as he smiled at Ye Futian. ��I received orders from my master to cut off Ning Hua. Fortunately, I made it in time. After that, I brought you back here.��


    ��Many thanks, Senior,�� Ye Futian said as he bowed slightly. If it were just him and Chen Yi, they would not have necessarily been able to escape Ning Hua��s pursuit. The other party had no intention of giving up.


    ��There is no need. You should be thanking my master instead,�� the middle-aged man said with a smile.


    ��It was nothing. There is no need to thank me.�� Two silhouettes emerged from the courtyard ahead. Both were people Ye Futian recognized. When he saw the two of them emerge, Ye Futian bowed and greeted, ��Emperor Xi, Senior Skylord.��


    The person who had helped him was Emperor Xi, who was also the master of the middle-aged man.


    Ye Futian had heard before that Emperor Xi had not taken any disciples. It appeared that the rumors were false. Emperor Xi had taken in a disciple. It was just that he had not made it public. The disciple had cultivated on Turtle Deity Island all this while and had never made an appearance. Hence, no one knew of him.


    Emperor Xi nodded his head slightly. He introduced Ye Futian, saying, ��This is my disciple, Yang Wuqi. He rarely ventures outside. Hence, he does not know many people. I am sure the people outside also do not know who he is.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly. From the looks of it, Yang Wuqi was Emperor Xi��s secret disciple.


    ��I witnessed everything that occurred during the Donghua Banquet this time. Some things were not your fault. You also have extraordinary talent and should not perish just like that. Hence, I ordered Wuqi to head over. Fortunately, he held off Ning Hua,�� continued Emperor Xi as he looked at Ye Futian. ��It was a shame that he could not make it there sooner. Zong Chan��s death was a pity.��


    When Ye Futian heard Emperor Xi mention Zong Chan, he also felt sad. Zong Chan��s talent was exceptional, and his Great Path was flawless. However, his death felt so wrong.


    All of this was because of the Chief.


    However, Emperor Xi did not say any more about this. After all, the fact that it involved the Domain Chief��s Manor made it more complicated. It was already very difficult for Emperor Xi to have helped them. If word of this got out, he would offend three superpowers. Even though Emperor Xi��s cultivation was high, it would still pose a risk to him.


    Ye Futian bowed as he said, ��For me to be able to escape, no matter what, I must thank Emperor Xi and Senior Yang for your help. Although my cultivation is low, if there is an opportunity in the future and Senior has any request at all, no matter where I am, I will certainly rush over to fulfill it.��


    ��I have already said that you do not need to thank me. For me, this is nothing. Even if the Chief finds out, he cannot do anything to me,�� Emperor Xi said calmly. ��The Chief will certainly report the incidents during the Donghua Banquet to the Imperial Palace. Before this, it was Eastern Deity Island. Now, it is the Wangshen Watchtower. If there are any more disturbances in the Donghua Domain, the Imperial Palace most likely will have questions.��


    Of course, Emperor Xi helped out because he had broken through to the next Plane. He had already prepared himself. When he faced the second stage of his divine tribulation, he might perish. Hence, he did as he pleased now and did not have any qualms about doing so.


    Currently, Emperor Xi might not have imagined that he had benefited himself by helping Ye Futian this time.


    Ye Futian also did not say anymore. He understood what Emperor Xi meant. At the end of the day, the Chief was the person charged to oversee the Donghua Domain. If the Donghua Domain were turned upside down, he would not come out unscathed.


    Moreover, the will of Donghuang the Great was for martial arts to prosper. However, Ning Yuan had dealt with Eastern Deity Island and then the Wangshen Watchtower, stirring up trouble. If he caused any more trouble, he would most likely draw the attention of Donghuang the Great.


    Emperor Xi continued, ��Domain Chief��s Manor has already issued warrants for your capture in the Donghua Domain. They are investigating the various forces. They might even send people to search the top forces. It is safer here on Turtle Deity Island. Unless Ning Yuan comes in person, no one else would dare search here. Both of you may cultivate here for some time. Once the commotion has died down, you can make plans for later.��


    ��Alright,�� replied Ye Futian as he gladly accepted Emperor Xi��s offer. Although the Donghua Domain was very big, they would still be in danger if they went outside. Once the commotion died down, the chances of Domain Chief��s Manor finding him would be lower. Of course, the precursor to that was that Ye Futian did not draw attention to himself.


    Emperor Xi nodded slightly and said, ��I have already ordered people to monitor the island. No one is to approach this area. On the island, you can walk around freely and cultivate as you please. You do not need to feel hindered.��


    Although Emperor Xi rescued Ye Futian from the clutches of the Domain Chief��s Manor, he did not seem to be concerned about having done so. His ability was powerful, so he had a certain level of confidence. His will could also cover the entire Turtle Deity Island in a single sweep. He naturally had absolute control over the island. Who would dare betray him?


    This place was a world ruled by Emperor Xi.


    Ye Futian nodded his head. Emperor Xi smiled and turned to leave. Thunder Punishing Skylord gave Ye Futian a look as he smiled and said, ��Focus on cultivating. You do not need to worry about other things. Improving your ability is everything now.��


    Ye Futian understood Thunder Punishing Skylord��s meaning; he was telling Ye Futian not to be anxious about seeking revenge. He could only improve his ability for now.


    Although they did not discuss much how this storm had started, they all knew that the Domain Chief��s Manor intended to deal with Wangshen Watchtower. Ye Futian had been forced to kill while he was being pursued. His crime was completely unwarranted and was merely an excuse.


    The Wangshen Watchtower suffered heavy casualties this time. Zong Chan was killed, and Ye Futian was constantly being pursued. It was natural for him to hate Domain Chief��s Manor to his bones. He would make sure to pay them back.


    Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord turned to leave. They acted so casually, as though they had done something not worth mentioning.


    ��Ye Liunian is my alias. My real name is Ye Futian. I am from the Original Realm,�� Ye Futian said to the two silhouettes. He had declared his real name because he did not want to face Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord with a fake identity. This storm had also grown so large. He had even been forced to unleash the will of the emperor. Many people would certainly notice this, including those from other Realms.


    He could no longer keep his identity hidden. The other forces would soon know that he was still alive and come to the Divine Prefecture.


    Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord stopped in their tracks. They then smiled and continued walking. They did not seem to mind who Ye Futian was or where he came from. They helped Ye Futian purely because they wanted to help him. That was all!

 Chapter 2076 - Could He Live Long?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In a region in the Donghua Domain, a group of people was traversing across the sky. The leader was Goddess Donglai. They were rushing towards Eastern Deity Island.


    ��We most likely will not be able to stay on Eastern Deity Island for long,�� Alchemy Emperor said next to Goddess Donglai. Goddess Donglai nodded her head and said, ��After we get back, we��d better prepare to evacuate Eastern Deity Island and find another place to settle down.��


    The Alchemy Emperor did not say anything. He looked far behind them. Not long ago, they had parted ways with Li Changsheng. He had decided to return to Wangshen Watchtower. Alchemy Emperor was somewhat worried. Li Changsheng would probably never return.


    However, Li Changsheng had insisted on doing so. They could not do anything about it. This was the principle that he held on to.


    Xia Qingyuan retrieved the Zimu Yuanyang Mirror and was conversing with Ye Futian over transmitted thoughts. After knowing where Ye Futian was based, she was much more relieved. Now, in the entire Donghua Domain, the only person who could truly protect Ye Futian was most likely Emperor Xi.


    Coincidentally, Emperor Xi had helped him out. That way, even if it was discovered, Emperor Xi had the ability to go against the Chief of the Donghua Domain.


    At that moment, on an ancient peak on Turtle Deity Island, Ye Futian sat there quietly. After hearing that Li Changsheng had returned to Wangshen Watchtower on his own, he felt a pang of sadness. Older Brother Li usually joked around casually, but he was truly a man who took brotherhood seriously.


    Otherwise, why would he return to Wangshen Watchtower at a time like this?


    Currently, Wangshen Watchtower was the most dangerous place for him. Li Changsheng was surely aware of this. Ning Yuan had personally declared that the name of Wangshen Watchtower would be eliminated. That meant that the Wangshen Watchtower did not exist anymore.


    Why did he return to Wangshen Watchtower now?


    ��


    In the Dongxiao Continent, at Wangshen Watchtower.


    At Wangshen Watchtower, there were many cultivators from all around the Dongxiao Continent, especially from the main cities of the Dongxiao Continent. After the Renhuangs of the various forces caught wind of the news of the downfall of Wangshen Watchtower, they came here to pillage and loot. This even resulted in a huge battle. Many of the ancient palaces of Wangshen Watchtower had collapsed and were destroyed. It was as though this place was an ancient ruin and not a holy land for cultivating.


    At that moment, below Wangshen Watchtower, a silhouette stepped onto the stairs leading up to the tower. This person was an elder, and he carried a corpse with him. He instantly drew the attention of many people.


    Up above, some people looked down at the person who had arrived. They could not help but narrow their gazes.


    It was Li Changsheng. The corpse was that of Zong Chan.


    Li Changsheng actually dared to return to Wangshen Watchtower. Was he seeking his own death?


    The other cultivators had heard about the battle during the Donghua Banquet. The Millet Emperor was severely injured, and he escaped from the Donghua Heavens. After that, Emperor Yan personally led an army over here to track down the Millet Emperor. The news shook the entire Dongxiao Continent. Rumor has it that most of the members of Wangshen Watchtower had perished or were injured. Zong Chan had been killed and the name of Wangshen Watchtower had been eliminated by the Chief. It no longer existed.


    Hence, the members of the various forces threw coal on the fire and came to Wangshen Watchtower to pillage and loot.


    Now, Li Changsheng had actually returned. For the other cultivators, this was tantamount to suicide.


    However, those who saw Li Changsheng dashed away. They were still very cautious of him. After all, they took advantage of the situation, and Li Changsheng was the top disciple of Wangshen Watchtower.


    Bang!


    With a loud explosion, the stone step beneath Li Changsheng��s feet split apart. He looked up into the sky above. His cloudy eyes were now filled with a cold look. The once glorious and prosperous holy land of the Dongxiao Continent was now in such a state. Everywhere was left in ruins, and it had fallen into dilapidation.


    ��Let��s go.��


    A Renhuang dashed away. When the Renhuang saw Li Changsheng shatter the stone step beneath his feet, he could faintly sense a suppressed rage coming from Li Changsheng. At that moment, Li Changsheng was emanating a cold majestic aura. He even emanated murderous intent. This caused the Renhuang to feel very uneasy, especially since Li Changsheng had carried a corpse back with him.


    However, the Renhuang had just stepped into the air when countless branches and vines swept towards his figure and entangled him. Flames of the Way radiated from the Renhuang��s figure as he attempted to burn off the vines. Yet, frightening halos of the Great Path flowed over the vines and the leaves. The flames could not touch them.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. The vines embedded themselves in the Renhuang��s body, causing him to scream in pain. His entire person was buried within the vines, and he was gradually suffocating. His person could no longer be seen.


    Very soon, the vines were dyed red with blood. With a rustling sound, the vines turned to dust, and blood poured down like rain. The Renhuang had perished and no longer existed.


    This caused the expressions of the Renhuangs on the Wangshen Watchtower to change drastically. Many of them frantically prepared to leave. However, Li Changsheng took a step forward and flew into the air. His figure shot straight up into the sky above Wangshen Watchtower. At the same time, his will enveloped the space far into the distance, forming a terrifying domain of the Great Path. The vines of the ancient tree blocked out the sun, enveloping this part of the sky and the vast space within it.


    The expressions of many Renhuangs changed. They looked up above Wangshen Watchtower. Right now, Li Changsheng stood high in the air. Vines swept out from his figure and covered the sky. Everyone could sense murderous intent filling the air.


    At that moment, Li Changsheng seemed to have completely changed. He was different from before and was no longer the Li Changsheng who many of the cultivators of the Dongxiao Continent knew.


    Buzz.


    In the vast space, countless branches rustled as they descended upon the Renhuangs. An extremely sharp aura suddenly emanated from the branches. It was as though they contained Sword Will.


    Ptui. Ptui. Ptui.


    The next moment, sounds could be heard, followed by many screams. The branches that filled the sky pierced through many Renhuangs. Fresh blood rained down from the sky. The sky above Wangshen Watchtower was dyed crimson. In a flash, countless Renhuangs were killed.


    ��Senior, I only came here to admire Wangshen Watchtower. I have no other intentions,�� some people said in terror.


    ��Senior Li, we are members from Alchemy Divine Palace. We only came here to take a look,�� other voices cried out. They were all desperate pleas. Alas, Li Changsheng did not seem to hear them. Endless divine halos enveloped this space. The branches were like indestructible blades, killing them off silently.


    Right now, Li Changsheng had become a God of Death.


    During the Donghua Banquet, the Wangshen Watchtower had faced a huge crisis and was hunted down by three major forces. More than half their force was dead or injured. Zong Chan had died in battle, and the Millet Emperor escaped with heavy injuries. Now that Li Changsheng had returned to Wangshen Watchtower, the cultivators of the Dongxiao Continent were actually rampaging around here. One could imagine how Li Changsheng felt upon seeing this.


    As for the excuses given by the cultivators, he ignored them. Came to admire the tower? Came to take a look?


    Couldn��t they do so from afar? If Wangshen Watchtower had not suffered such a catastrophe, would any one of them have dared to step into Wangshen Watchtower so presumptuously?


    They stood on Wangshen Watchtower. Hence, that meant that they believed that Wangshen Watchtower had fallen and no longer recognized its existence. Hence, Li Changsheng showed no mercy.


    Rumble. Just then, an intense rumble came from afar. On one side, Flames of the Way burned away the branches. A sage-like figure charged into Li Changsheng��s domain. The figure had a cold and indifferent expression. It was the Palace Lord of Alchemy Divine Palace. He stared at Li Changsheng. In a cold tone, he said, ��Li Changsheng, you are presumptuous.��


    Li Changsheng swept a glance at the other party. From another direction, Yan Hanxing and the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family cultivators appeared, along with members of some of the top forces of the Dongxiao Continent. From the looks of it, they had already discussed how they would divide up the Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��The Chief has already ordered the removal of the name of Wangshen Watchtower from the Donghua Domain. Li Changsheng, the Chief showed mercy and spared your life. However, you went on a killing spree and frenziedly slaughtered the cultivators of the Dongxiao Continent. Since you have done so, we will eliminate you,�� Yan Hanxing said in a cold tone. He had been waiting here all this while. The moment Li Changsheng returned, he would certainly die.


    Li Changsheng shouldn��t have returned.


    Li Changsheng glanced at the other party. He did not say anything. His figure descended upon the highest region of Wangshen Watchtower. He walked up to a place that had sunk in. This was where the divine watchtower initially stood. The divine watchtower was taken away by the Millet Emperor, leaving behind a deep pit.


    Li Changsheng placed Zong Chan��s corpse within the pit. He said, ��Younger Brother, you comprehended the Way here. Rest in peace here as well.��


    As he said this, he sat down beside the corpse. In an instant, a divine tree appeared on his body and took root in the ground, planting itself in Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��I grew up in this place. If I am to meet my end, it should also be here.�� As Li Changsheng said this, a divine aura radiated from his body. The roots of the ancient tree dug deep underground frenziedly. It took root deep in the lands of the entire Wangshen Watchtower. He wanted to become a part of Wangshen Watchtower.


    He had spent his life here. If he were to die, it should also be here.


    Li Changsheng could not live long in the end!

 Chapter 2077 - Insignificant Renhuang

    The world only knew Li Changsheng as the chief disciple of the Millet Emperor but didn��t know much else about him. All they had was a vague impression that Li Changsheng had been following the Millet Emperor for many years.


    In fact, Li Changsheng had been with the Millet Emperor long before the founding of Wangshen Watchtower, but it was a time too long ago. It could be said that he had watched Wangshen Watchtower gradually gain its status and become worshipped by those in the Dongxiao Continent and became the faith of the land, an absolute holy land.


    In the process, he had given much as he watched every disciple being admitted into Wangshen Watchtower.


    He was present every time Wangshen Watchtower recruited disciples. When Ye Futian and the others entered Wangshen Watchtower, he was there as well and witnessed the conflict between Ye Futian and the ancient royal family of Yan.


    Li Changsheng spent his most formative years at Wangshen Watchtower.


    Now, Wangshen Watchtower had its name struck out and ran over by Renhuang from all over Dongxiao Continent; this was why his killing spree.


    At this time, Li Changsheng was fully prepared to die. He was sitting at the peak of Wangshen Watchtower, the Divine Wheel of the ancient tree rooted in this land; its endless vines and branches bloomed throughout the entire Wangshen Watchtower.


    However, higher above, a terrifying figure stood there, burning the world like a scorching sun. The area where he was burned with endless flames that came into being, appearing in every corner of Wangshen Watchtower, burning the branches and leaves of the ancient tree.


    The Palace Lord of Alchemy Divine Palace had been in seclusion for many years, and his cultivation had already entered the state of transformation. He reached the peak of Renhuang many years ago and had been pursuing the ultimate supremacy ever since. This time with the disturbance at Wangshen Watchtower, he came to see any opportunity of the Great Path. He did not expect Li Changsheng to slaughter everyone indiscriminately. The deaths of the people from Alchemy Divine Palace aroused his great anger.


    Wangshen Watchtower had been removed from the list. As someone who was about to die, Li Changsheng dared be so arrogant.


    He squeezed his hands, and immediately, the entire world around him was burning. Black flames turned everything into ashes. Once full of vitality, those ancient branches, and leaves singed as soon as they were met with the flames, turning into ashes.


    His pupils were filled with terrible flame as he cast a glance at Li Changsheng. Suddenly, countless black flames fell from the void, like countless black meteorites.


    But Li Changsheng no longer cared. He sat there quietly as the ancient tree continued growing, its countless branches and leaves swayed like sharp blades, harvesting the lives of those who were within Wangshen Watchtower. He closed his eyes and sat there quietly. It was as if all this had nothing to do with him anymore.


    When the flames invaded, a divine light screen formed around Li Changsheng. Nonetheless, it was being eroded by the flames little by little.


    At the same time, the cultivators from the ancient royal family of Yan also launched their attacks. Two powerful cultivators of the Ninth Realm summoned a divine dragon whose presence shielded the sky. Its claws were as hard as steel, full of boundless sharpness. They pierced toward the light screen and tore it apart, causing cracks to appear.


    But even so, they still weren��t able to get to Li Changsheng for quite a long time.


    In the sky above, Yan Hanxing was full of murderous intent as he witnessed this. A loud dragon chant was heard, and the vast space of Wangshen Watchtower trembled violently. The rest of the Renhuang from the ancient royal family of Yan also vocalized the dragon chant at the same time. The Song of the Yang Dragon resonated, shattering the void as the Great Path of Terror frantically reverberated through the space.


    An incomparable divine dragon appeared around Yan Hanxing, sheltering this corner of the sky.


    This divine dragon swallowed up the Great Path between heaven and earth. Its massive body was flying high above the firmament, shaking the void. Its claws were glowing with terrible golden brilliance as if they were indestructible. The sight induced fear to all those who saw it.


    ��Li Changsheng, if you want to die, I will let you.��


    As Yan Hanxing��s voice faded, the giant dragon swooped down, tore through the space with its extremely sharp claws, and broke through the defense.


    Psst��


    A sound rang out, and the claws of terror penetrated Li Changsheng, putting a hole in him. In front of the huge claws, Li Changsheng appeared extremely small; it was as if he was being nailed there. Truly, it was a cruel sight to behold.


    ��He��s dead.��


    Everyone was trembling fiercely as they watched what had just transpired. Li Changsheng died in Wangshen Watchtower.


    Those who Li Changsheng did not kill were thankful for their good fortune. In the few moments since Li Changsheng had set foot onto Wangshen Watchtower, many Renhuang in the Watchtower had perished. Their unceremonious deaths had frightened the others. Now, Li Changsheng was finally dead.


    Blood drops fell on the land upon which Wangshen Watchtower stood, and Li Changsheng no longer felt any pain.


    However, even in death, he kept his watch over this land. Wangshen Watchtower would always exist in this world.


    Buzz��


    Countless divine light splashed everywhere, dazzled many. They saw countless green light rays fly out of the pierced body, blending into the world into the ancient tree, into those endless leafy branches.


    It seemed that Li Changsheng had integrated his spiritual soul into this land, taken root, and existed alongside the Wangshen Watchtower.


    ��He��s dead. His soul and spirit have dispersed.�� When everyone saw this, they retracted their aura. Yan Hanxing, the Palace Lord of Alchemy Divine Palace, and the other Renhuang looked indifferently at the corpse below. Zong Chan was already killed in the previous battle, and now the chief disciple of the Millet Emperor was also dead, leaving only Ye Futian and the Millet Emperor himself.


    The Millet Emperor was not their responsibility; only the likes of the Chief could handle him. Right now, as long as they could find Ye Futian and kill him, it would be considered the end of Wangshen Watchtower.


    As for the others, they didn��t care much.


    ��Let��s go.�� Yan Hanxing said, ��No need to stay here any longer. Burn Wangshen Watchtower to the ground.��


    The Chief had already ordered the name of Wangshen Watchtower to be struck out from Donghua Domain. From now on, there would be no more Wangshen Watchtower.


    He turned around and was about to leave.


    However, at this moment, a light suddenly lit up on a blanket of emerald green branches and leaves on the ground. It was as if there was a strange movement. No one noticed this, but after that, lights lit up the branches and leaves in this space as the branches and leaves were swaying, turning emerald green. A vigorous vitality emerged, allowing this almost withered ancient tree to suddenly rise from the ground, growing wildly.


    Countless spots of light appeared between heaven and the earth, full of vitality. It was as if it existed everywhere. At this moment, the whole world was filled with light.


    ��What��s happening?��


    The crowd felt that something was amiss. The Palace Lord of Alchemy Divine Palace immediately released a terrifying divine flame to destroy everything; however, the divine fire of the Great Path fell on the branches and leaves as those spots of light, but failed to destroy them. The branches and leaves were still swaying, and more and more light spots now lit up. A light turned into ancient branches and leaves. As the tree grew madly, getting taller. It was as if it was about to pierce through the sky.


    ��That��s not right���� Yan Hanxing seemed to sense that something was wrong. He released his divine consciousness and touched his brow chakra with his finger. Suddenly, a terrible divine light shot out from his eyes, looking at this space like a sharp sword. At this moment, he no longer saw an infinite spot of light but countless elusive figures.


    And every single figure looked like Li Changsheng, everywhere at once.


    ��Impossible!�� Yan Hanxing��s face changed to one of horror, and his heart throbbed. He had killed Li Changsheng with his own hands, and he saw Li Changsheng perish here with his own eyes. What was this that he sees before him?


    This was impossible.


    At this moment, many things went through in Yan Hanxing��s mind, and suddenly a thought came into his head, ��Was this the Becoming?��


    As the Crown Prince of the ancient royal family of Yan, he knew more about the unknown realm than others.


    Because he knew, hence the fear.


    Did he force a top-level existence to come into being?


    Boom!


    Yan Hanxing was no fool. As soon as the thought crossed his mind, he made a quick decision and immediately disappeared. In an instant, he had already fled into the distance. He shouted at the same time, ��Retreat!��


    Everyone saw that Yan Hanxing had disappeared immediately without even realizing what had happened; they only heard the order to retreat.


    They looked at the place where Yan Hanxing was and saw that he had disappeared and could not be seen even from a distance. He had already moved away from Wangshen Watchtower and left with incredible speed.


    Did he sense something had happened?


    ��Go.�� Although the rest did not understand what had happened, upon Yan Hanxing��s order to retreat, they did not hesitate.


    At this moment, the infinite divine light from heaven and the earth fell right on top of that ancient tree. Suddenly, the towering ancient tree pierced the sky, and its endless branches and leaves enveloped mountains and rivers.


    At this moment, one of the branches was swiping in one direction. Some Renhuang intending on leaving in that direction were stopped. He had maintained the forward motion, but in the next moment, his body was split in two. He had died a horrid death on the spot.


    In this instant, all the Renhuang felt a bitter coldness deep inside their bones. They didn��t even have the chance to realize what was happening before some Renhuang were slaughtered.


    Buzz!


    Above the divine tree, abundant branches and leaves swayed as the branches moved toward the Renhuang toward Wangshen Watchtower. They passed through the void before those people realized what was happening and watched these leafy branches passing through them. Immediately, a shower of blood fell from the void.


    ��Get out of here!��


    Everyone��s expression changed to one in shock as they fled frantically. However, the ancient tree had reached up all the way to the heavens, filled the sky with its presence, and its shade shrouded this vast space. A clattering sound came out as countless branches and leaves fell from the sky, and the sound of slaughter seemed to go on forever.


    At this moment, Wangshen Watchtower turned into a world of blood as each and every one of the powerful Renhuang was killed off like ants.


    Even though he was the Palace Lord of Alchemy Divine Palace and the flame upon his body was so fierce that it could set the mountains and the oceans on fire, the moment when the branches and leaves came down, the flame was put out. Its defense of the Great Path was as fragile as paper and could not withstand a single blow.


    The branches and leaves passed through his body and instantly solidified his body in the void. His face was full of horror and disbelief as he fixed his eyes on the divine tree.


    ��The Becoming!�� he spat! As his soul turned to dust, he was obliterated without any power to fight back.


    Outside of Wangshen Watchtower, there were some cultivators, even some at the Renhuang-level, who would never be able to forget what they saw at this moment. The divine tree penetrated through heaven, and as the branches and leaves slammed down, these Renhuang were as insignificant as ants!

 Chapter 2078 - Cultivating at Turtle Deity Island

    The battle at Wangshen Watchtower once again shocked the Donghua Domain. After everyone from all the top forces on the main continents learned of the news, it spread to the other continents in Donghua Domain and became a legend.


    On the day that the Chief ordered the name of Wangshen Watchtower to be struck from Donghua Domain, Wangshen Watchtower was pillaged by all the participating Renhuang. At the time, Wangshen Watchtower��s chief disciple, Li Changsheng, ascended to the top of the Watchtower, intending to go down with it. He had given his spiritual soul to every inch of the Watchtower when he was besieged by everyone as he shed his blood.


    However, he came back from death miraculously and was resurrected. Li Changsheng��s spiritual soul merged into Wangshen Watchtower, and the Becoming made his rebirth possible. He cut down those Renhuang and washed Wangshen Watchtower with their blood. Li Changsheng returned and broke through the shackles in cultivation, proving the supremacy of the Way.


    Yan Hanxing was the only one who managed to escape because of his premonition. After that, Wangshen Watchtower was sealed off as everyone was being slaughtered, including the Palace Lord of Alchemy Divine Palace.


    Wangshen Watchtower was destroyed, and Zong Chan was killed. No one expected that this situation would force another powerful figure to come into being.


    After Li Changsheng��s breakthrough and departure from Wangshen Watchtower, some people speculated that he searched the Millet Emperor. Before, because Li Changsheng could not see any hope of revenge, he waged his life in the final confrontation. It was different now. The person he was today would be able to get his revenge. He and the Millet Emperor would be enough to contend against the ancient royal family of Yan and Lingxiao Palace. Under such circumstances, Li Changsheng no longer needed to seek death as the last resort but could focus on avenging Zong Chan and those dead disciples of Wangshen Watchtower.


    The Millet Emperor was still alive, and now there was Li Changsheng. Perhaps, from now on, no one would dare to set foot on Wangshen Watchtower carelessly, even if it remained in ruins. However, anyone who wanted to enter Wangshen Watchtower must consider the consequences.


    Everything seemed to be different now.


    This turmoil seemed far from over, but no one was arguing about who was right or who was wrong anymore. After, it didn��t matter. What matter the most now was how the turmoil would evolve in the future. Its ripple effects were yet to be seen.


    It was already days later when Ye Futian learned of the news. He was cultivating when he heard it in Xia Qingyuan��s transmission. He had been worried about Li Changsheng, and now he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.


    Yang Wuqi came to see Ye Futian, and when he saw that Ye Futian had stopped cultivating, he looked relieved. He said with a smile, ��It seems that you already knew.��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Never expected that the chief disciple of the Millet Emperor would have this opportunity. After this breakthrough, it will not be easy for the Domain Chief��s Manor and the Yan Kingdom to deal with him,�� Yang Wuqi said. After the breakthrough, he had reached another level, and another world had opened up.


    Even though Li Changsheng, who had just had the breakthrough, was not yet strong enough to take on those figureheads of the opposition. The Divine Prefecture was a massive territory, and Li Changsheng could be anywhere. He could leave Donghua Domain, and it would not be easy to track him and take him out.


    Ye Futian nodded. He was also happy for Li Changsheng, but when he thought of Zong Chan, his mood darkened again. He whispered, ��If Brother Zong Chan is still there, Wangshen Watchtower might produce three giants in the future.��


    ��If Zong Chan was still around, Li Changsheng might not have this great opportunity.�� Yang Wuqi said, ��Perhaps this is what they meant by ��What goes up must come down.�� Don��t think too much about it. You have to look forward, and when you reach the Ninth Realm one day, it won��t be a problem to explore the possibility to reinstate Wangshen Watchtower.��


    Ye Futian didn��t say much/. ��Some of my friends may be here in a few days, and I will have to rely on your hospitality.��


    ��I will do my best.�� Yang Wuqi nodded.


    ��Thank you.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly. Goddess Donglai and Xia Qingyuan were already on their way.


    ��


    After Goddess Donglai and the others returned to Eastern Deity Island, they divided all the island resources to the cultivators. They dismissed them, letting them go back to where they belonged.


    Although principalities like the Domain Chief��s Manor wouldn��t care much about Eastern Deity Island and wouldn��t even bother to attack it, they still had to guard against the Ancient Royal Family of Yan to avoid involving the others. Therefore, Goddess Donglai decided to dissolve Eastern Deity Island. Even though she was very reluctant, it had to be done to avoid the risks.


    Of course, Eastern Deity Island still existed, guarded by some who volunteered to stay behind on Penglai Deity Island. Goddess Donglai hung on to the hope that she may return there one day.


    After disbanding Eastern Deity Island, Goddess Donglai took a few people and started heading towards the Divine Ocean Continent.


    On this day, when they crossed the Divine Ocean, they saw a huge island in front of them that resembled a divine turtle.


    ��We are here,�� said the Alchemy Emperor. He was also following along with Goddess Donglai. The Millet Emperor and Supreme Being Donglai were his benefactors. Now they had both fallen victim to unfortunate events, and it was revealed that it had been the doing of Chief Ning. Hence, he decided to follow Goddess Donglai and help her in her endeavor.


    A powerful divine consciousness swept towards everyone. Alchemy Emperor and Goddess Donglai both looked over there and saw a figure came from the void. The man who crossed the space and showed up in front of them was ordinary-looking, and there was no detectable aura being released from him. Nonetheless, the Alchemy Emperor, Goddess Donglai, and the others knew that this man was anything but ordinary.


    Yang Wuqi folded his hands together and bowed slightly to the others, introducing himself, ��Yang Wuqi.��


    After being introduced, Goddess Donglai and the others also greeted him in return. Xia Qingyuan said, ��Thank you, Elder, for your assistance the other day.��


    Yang Wuqi gave Xia Qingyuan a look and nodded with a smile, ��It��s but a small matter; everyone, this way.��


    The group turned and headed towards Turtle Deity Island. Soon, they came to a mountain peak, and there was a huge manor there. In one area at the back of the mountains, a figure stood there quietly, looking into the sky. Upon seeing Goddess Donglai, Xia Qingyuan, and the others, he was filled with emotion.


    Little Condor came to Ye Futian��s side as Ye Futian patted his head. He then looked at Goddess Donglai with a smile. ��I am relieved to see that the senior sister is alright.��


    ��What are your plans for the future?�� Goddess Donglai asked. The Domain Chief��s Manor had put them on the wanted list. The entire Donghua Domain was officially in the control of Domain Chief��s Manor. They would be wanted fugitives unless they left Donghua Domain.


    ��I plan to be in retreat for some time first.�� Ye Futian said. ��To elevate my cultivation some more, I will continue to cultivate on Turtle Deity Island before I break through the realm.��


    During this trip to attend Donghua Banquet, he felt a great deal of pressure. Now, in addition to this side of Donghua Domain, those top forces that he had offended in the Original Realm may have gotten wind by now that he was still alive. He must be more cautious.


    There were four realms in Renhuang. With the perfect Great path, even if he could deal with ordinary cultivators of the Eighth Realm, it was not nearly enough for figures at Ning Hua��s level. When facing those opponents, he had no power to fight back and could only be crushed.


    This was the reality of cultivation, an endless journey. He used to think that Renhuang was high above everything. But when he reached this level, the enemies he came in contact with were in an even higher realm.


    Therefore, he could only force himself to keep moving forward. Perhaps one day, when he finally entered the realm at the peak of Renhuang, he could truly dominate the land of the Divine Prefecture.


    Goddess Donglai nodded. With Emperor Xi in charge of Turtle Deity Island, it couldn��t be a safer place.


    ��In this case, we had to trouble Emperor Xi,�� Goddess Donglai said to Yang Wuqi.


    ��It��s quite alright. Master has already said that you can stay here as long as you want.�� Yang Wuqi smiled. ��I��ll bid my goodbye now and leave you to catch up.��


    After that, he turned and left.


    Goddess Donglai sighed. This was the confidence brought on by having great strength. Even if Chief Ning Yuan found out about it one day, he would probably not dare to touch Emperor Xi. He had already declared war on Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng, he really could do without another opponent as powerful as Emperor Xi or the likes of Thunder Punishing Skylord. If he were foolish enough to do that, perhaps even the Great Emperor would question his sanity and abilities.


    After all, the Great Emperor sent him to take charge of Donghua Domain, not to start a war.


    Furthermore, what happened before at Donghua Banquet was mishandled, which caused many forces to be wary of the Domain Chief��s Manor. However, this was to be expected. If Ye Futian had been killed by the ancient royal family of Yan in the secret zone, the situation would be totally different. In that case, even without his participation, the ancient royal family of Yan, Lingxiao Palace, and the Millet Emperor would go to war. Then, it would have been the same as the death of Donglai Supreme Being; no one would suspect him.


    Ye Futian was quite the variable in the whole equation.

 Chapter 2079 - Divine Prefecture Calendar Year 10058

    At Turtle Deity Island, in the Cultivation Court at the back of the mountain. A white-haired figure was sitting cross-legged; it was Ye Futian.


    At this time, there was a breathtaking scene in Ye Futian��s life palace. In front of him, a divine heart floated in the air. Around the divine heart, a boundless and massive illusory figure appeared. It was the shadow of a Peacock Demon God.


    Inside the world of the life palace, there was a strange vision of heaven and earth. The wings of the Peacock Demon God spread out, sheltering the boundless void, blocking out the sun. There were jewels bedecking its radiant divine wings, and like mirrors, they reflected the divine glory that would cover a boundless space. Every place illuminated by the divine light seemed to be the realm that belonged to the Peacock Demon God.


    That divine heart madly gobbled up the power of the Great Path between heaven and earth, and the currents of the Great Path circulated to create this vision. Ye Futian had a feeling that the Peacock Demon God was supposed to have existed in this world. His power and the world of Ye Futian��s life palace were one and the same.


    This also reminded Ye Futian of when he experienced his own Becoming; he was destined to have the perfect Great Path.


    Inside this extremely splendid realm of the gods, Ye Futian could feel an ancient aura which he perceived vaguely. In this realm of the gods, any areas illuminated by the gems on the wings of the Peacock Demon God would be shattered and destroyed. Just as when they were in the secret zone, wherever the divine light reached, everything was destroyed, the Great Path collapsed, the secret zone pulverized, and Renhuang perished.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and stared at the crystal-like heart of the demon god. This thing was the heart of the demon god, a veritable divine item, which was now one with his own spiritual soul. What would happen if he were to refine it?


    When his thought turned to this, countless branches and leaves danced on the ancient tree of the world as they swept toward the heart of the demon god, covering it. They then entangled and swallowed it within the ancient tree of the world, as the ancient branches and leaves absorbed its power, turning it into nourishment to incorporate it into the spiritual soul.


    At this time, in the outside world, there were also infinite branches and leaves spreading out. Many ancient branches and leaves appeared upon Ye Futian, who was sitting there. There were roots underneath his feet, taking hold inside the earth. It was as if his entire person had turned into an ancient tree.


    Gradually, Ye Futian fell into a fantastical realm. In that wondrous mood, he seemed to transform into a divine tree, with those ancient branches and leaves transformed as parts of his body, as his breath of life became extremely robust.


    Boom, boom�� The sound of heartbeats was loud. Ye Futian��s brows twitched. The power of the Peacock Demon God��s divine heart flowed to every part of his body, sinking into his blood. It seemed to have felt his heart and resonated with it, causing his heart to beat violently.


    This feeling was kind of like the feeling he had when he was standing outside the Demon God Temple in the secret zone. However, once the spiritual soul swallowed the divine heart, this feeling subsided.


    However, it appeared again at this time, and it became even more intense. His heart thumped violently, and the blood in his body tossed and roared frantically.


    Buzz!


    Ye Futian felt that a divine light had penetrated the divine heart and the fierceness of his own heart. It was as if he had been inexplicably summoned. The two established a certain connection so that even being shrouded by the ancient tree of the world in his spiritual soul, and there was still a steady stream of divine brilliance flowing towards Ye Futian��s heart.


    This made Ye Futian��s entire body extremely tense. This was the Demon God��s divine heart, which had formed an inexplicable connection with his own heart. His heart would burst if he were not careful.


    His heartbeat became frighteningly rapid. He could even hear the violent sounds of his heart beating. The life force inside of him exploded, and the currents of the ancient tree of the world went toward the heart. He tried to protect it, but the divine heart had started building a bridge with his own heart.


    Boom, boom��


    At this moment, Ye Futian, who was wrapped up in the branches and leaves of the divine tree, burst out miles of brilliance as his heart beat wildly. There was a sacred brilliance blooming; it was the imperial glory surrounding his body. Ye Futian��s breath of life, at this moment, was so strong that the ancient tree of life couldn��t stop the divine light from being released as the light pierced into the high heavens.


    Buzz!


    Suddenly two men appeared on the opposite peak. It was Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord. They saw the terrifying vision on Ye Futian and were slightly disturbed. However, they knew that Ye Futian harbored a great secret. This genius talent who came from the Original Realm, in their view, was no less talented than Ning Hua.


    Emperor Xi raised his hand and waved, and immediately this space was sealed to prevent the divine light from spreading outward. When Thunder Punishing Skylord saw Ye Futian��s distorted face, he asked, ��Master, should you intervene?��


    Emperor Xi shook his head and said, ��This is his opportunity of the Great Path. He had to rely on himself. Let it be.��


    Thunder Punishing Skylord nodded. He had no idea what Ye Futian was going through at the moment. Still, seeing the terrifying light of the Peacock Demon God pervading his body, it might be related to the secrets inside the secret zone at the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Ye Futian seemed to be refining that power.


    Ye Futian lasted in this state for a long time in the same dreamy state for 14 days. He encountered danger several times, but Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord sat there and watched without interfering. Nor did they allow others to disturb the place, merely allowing Ye Futian the space to cultivate by himself.


    14 days later, an unparalleled glow exploded from Ye Futian. His entire person had undergone quite a change. His chiseled, handsome face seemed even more attractive, with a subtle hint of sharpness.


    ��He succeeded.�� There was a smile in the eyes of Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord. They knew that some changes had taken place in Ye Futian, but exactly what, they were not sure. It seemed that he had integrated with some powerful force.


    ��Let��s go.�� Both of them were people at the top and had no desire to fathom anything, nor did they have any designs on divine items. If they were that sort of people, they would have no reason to help Ye Futian. They could take those secrets from him.


    Before these two men, Ye Futian had no ability to fight back. This was also why Ye Futian could cultivate here at ease. Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord were both extraordinary and powerful figures with unusual mindsets. If they had coveted his treasures, they need not pretend with him. They could take them away from him.


    After the two left, Ye Futian still sat there as a powerful vision appeared. In a boundless world, the Peacock Demon God stood between heaven and earth. Its divine wings spread out, emitting brilliant divine light. Now that he had merged with the divine heart, he could better comprehend this sensation.


    Above his body, an even more majestic vitality emerged, immensely exuberant.


    The heart that beat inside his body was so radiant, like a crystal. The divine heart of the Peacock Demon God had been integrated into his own so that his heart was now a divine heart full of vitality. Every time it beat, it contained a majestic breath of life and power that filled him with infinite strength.


    After the integration, Ye Futian did not stop but continued to cultivate in retreat. Studying ways to familiarize himself with the power to refine it and elevate toward a higher realm.


    This time, he wouldn��t leave unless he obtained the breakthrough.


    When Ye Futian was in retreat, the Domain Chief��s Manor had issued an order to arrest him, the Millet Emperor, and the others. There were even cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor that came to the Divine Ocean Continent. However, they were repelled by the Thunder Punishing Skylord as they attempted to enter Turtle Deity Island. With these two great figures guarding Turtle Deity Island, no one dared to make a move. Especially when Emperor Xi himself was someone who had experienced the divine tribulation. Even those close to the Chief had to observe the protocol, so naturally, no one dared suggest searching the island.


    The Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng both disappeared as if they had vanished into thin air. Some said they had escaped to other regions. At the same time, some even claimed that they had gone to Divine Prefecture and picked up Ye Futian to leave together, waiting to return another day when they had achieved higher cultivation.


    But this was anyone��s guess. No one really knew where Millet Emperor and Ye Futian were.


    With the passage of time, this turmoil continued to fade until the world forgot it.


    Donghua Domain was too vast. There were many disturbances daily in the cultivation world, and with other major events happening, no one would stay in the past forever.


    ��


    Time flew by fast, and the world was changing infinitely.


    Time was fleeting. In a blink of an eye, many years passed.


    This year, shocking news spread across all continents in the Donghua Domain. Ning Hua��the first genius talent in Donghua Domain��broke through the realm at Donghua Academy and entered the Eighth Realm of Renhuang. This news reverberated throughout the entire Donghua Domain.


    Ning Hua��s breakthrough meant that he was now invincible except for the figureheads in Donghua Domain; he had truly arrived at the peak. Some even said that Ning Hua was capable of fighting with some masters. Many were actually looking forward to such battles. But everyone also knew that a battle of this magnitude was rare and could only occur by chance.


    From this point on, Ning Hua was closer to the peak than ever, as there was only one realm left before he became a Renhuang of the Ninth Realm. Countless people were looking forward to witnessing Ning Hua��s victory when he broke through the Ninth Realm.


    As for names such as Ye Futian, Chen Yi, and Li Changsheng, they were gradually forgotten, and not many mentioned them again. After all, a long time had passed since then.


    The year 10058 of the Divine Prefecture calendar was an extraordinary one for Donghua Domain. In addition to Ning Hua��s breakthrough, the ancient royal family of Yan made an official alliance with Lingxiao Palace in marriage. Their alliance formed a new great superpower which put a lot of pressure on the other powerful principalities in the Donghua Domain.


    Aside from all that, it was rumored that Ning Hua might become path companions with Goddess Taihua of Taihua Mountain. If this were the case, Domain Chief��s Manor��s status in Donghua Domain would rise to a new high and become an existence on the level of an overlord!

 Chapter 2080 - Alliance Marriage

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Emperor Yan had seven heirs. Yan Dongyang was killed by Ye Futian, leaving four other princes.


    This was the alliance marriage of Emperor Yan��s second son, Yan Zhu.


    Yan Zhu was a seventh-tier Renhuang and was very powerful. However, when he became a middle-level Renhuang, his Great Path became flawed. His talent was no match for Yan Dongyang. Hence, his standing in Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was not as high as his younger brother, Yan Dongyang.


    However, the crown prince of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Yan Hanxing, already had a Path Companion, and Yan Dongyang was killed. Yan Zhu was the most suitable candidate for this alliance marriage. Hence, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family chose him to marry a princess of Lingxiao Palace.


    In reality, this was an alliance between the two top forces. That way, the two major forces would be even more powerful in the Donghua Domain.


    Of course, some giant level forces were speculating whether Domain Chief��s Manor was pulling strings behind the scenes.


    After all, during the Donghua Banquet, they noticed that Lingxiao Palace, which was also a force in the Donghua Heavens, only followed the heels of Domain Chief��s Manor. The attitude that Lingxiao Palace Palace Lord displayed towards Chief Ning Yuan was abnormal. After all, Lingxiao Palace and Domain Chief��s Manor were from the same continent. So, the crowd could tell.


    Now, Lingxiao Palace and Great Yan Ancient Royal Family were allying and becoming an extremely powerful force. Their might was frightening. In addition, they might also have the backing of Domain Chief��s Manor behind them. This alliance would put greater pressure on the other giant-level forces.


    The alliance marriage between the two giant level forces sent ripples throughout the Donghua Domain. The news spread to the main continent of the domain and even beyond to other continents.


    Rumor has it that Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would cross half the Donghua Domain to bring back the princess of Lingxiao Palace. They would not utilize a teleportation matrix, instead opting to travel across many continents. They wanted the world to know of this event and attract worldwide attention.


    After news of this got out, many people were excited. They wanted to witness this grand event.


    Great Yan Ancient Royal Family did this to make this alliance marriage glorious and to enjoy the attention. At the same time, this sent out a message to the rest of the world that they took this alliance marriage seriously.


    Some people estimated that if Great Yan Ancient Royal Family departed from the south region of the Donghua Domain and headed over to the Donghua Heavens in the center of the domain, they would need to cross thousands of continents, big and small. One could imagine how grand an event this would be.


    Great Yan Ancient Royal Family even estimated the time they would take. They would depart a month in advance and head over to the Donghua Heavens according to a schedule. They would arrive at the Donghua Heavens a month later to marry the princess of Lingxiao Palace.


    On this day, in the main city of a small continent in the south region, the city was alive with activity. In a large tavern, guests were toasting each other, and it was very lively. They were busy discussing various events of the day.


    ��Did all of you know that Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace are having an alliance marriage?�� someone said.


    ��I heard some news of this. These giant level forces at the peak and the ancient royal family are too high above us. Normally, we would not care much about them. However, this time, the commotion they caused is too huge. It is hard not to know about it,�� said someone with a smile. The continent they were on was similar to the continent that Ye Futian arrived when he first reached the Divine Prefecture. It didn��t even have a name.


    To them, the top forces were indeed far beyond their reach, too far above them. Those were all forces and figures of legends. They could only hear of such things from the mouths of others.


    ��It is an alliance marriage between two forces at the peak. To display their sincerity, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family made a spectacle of the event. It also shows that they are taking this alliance marriage seriously. I wonder whether they will pass through the continents where we are. I would like to see how powerful the lineup that Great Yan Ancient Royal Family sent for the wedding is.��


    ��The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family probably won��t bother with a nameless continent like ours,�� someone said. ��If all of you wish to see the procession, there is a continent that Great Yan Ancient Royal Family will certainly pass through.��


    Many people nodded with smiles on their faces. They seemed to know which continent the person was referring to.


    ��It is the Tianchi Continent, right?�� suggested someone.


    ��That��s right. The Tianchi Continent is the main continent among our group of continents. It overshadows many continents around here. Since Great Yan Ancient Royal Family wants to make their event as grand as possible, a look at the map will tell you that Great Yan Ancient Royal Family will pass straight through the Tianchi Continent on their way to the Donghua Heavens. They would not go around it,�� said the person who had spoken with a smile. The crowd around him nodded their heads. His analysis was spot on.


    Since Great Yan Ancient Royal Family wanted to head over to the wedding grandly, they should be passing through the Tianchi Continent.


    ��The lineup of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family is powerful, so they will certainly be extremely fast. Even if we manage to see them, it will be over in the blink of an eye. Why do we need to trouble ourselves for so little?�� someone said with a hearty laugh. Many people nodded their heads. They were also curious and wanted to join in the fun, but they would not waste too much effort.


    For most cultivators, traversing continents was no easy feat. It was far more convenient for Renhuangs.


    However, as they spoke, a group of people was drinking wine quietly at a table in the corner. They were listening attentively to what the people were saying.


    This group of people had an extraordinary temperament. Among them, a silhouette wore a straw hat. White hair trailed down from the straw hat. Some people suspected that this person was an old monster who had cultivated for many years. However, he still appeared very young. It might be due to his high cultivation.


    They did not know that the group sitting there were cultivators currently wanted in the Donghua Domain. It was Ye Futian��s group.


    Ye Futian tapped the tabletop with his finger. After he heard what the other party said, he stood up and walked outside. The others immediately followed behind him. Their figures flashed, and the group dashed across the space like lightning, disappearing in an instant.


    The people in the tavern who noticed this scene felt their hearts tremble violently. Who were those people? Their speed was actually so terrifying.


    In the sky above, a group of people was traversing among the clouds. They were extremely fast as they whizzed through the clouds. The figure wearing a straw hat was Ye Futian.


    ��What are you doing?�� asked a person behind him. It was a woman with outstanding appearance and extraordinary temperament. It was Goddess Donglai, the Island Lord of Eastern Deity Island.


    ��I am going to the Tianchi Continent,�� answered Ye Futian.


    Goddess Donglai��s heart quavered. This fellow��


    The others also revealed serious expressions. Although there weren��t many of them, they still had a very powerful lineup. The top figures of various forces, such as Goddess Donglai, Alchemy Emperor, the head of the Feng Family, Storm Demon, and many more cultivators, were gathered together here. They were all top-tier Renhuangs. Such a lineup was very formidable. If it wasn��t for the fact that they had offended superpowers, they could roam wherever they pleased.


    However, after just emerging from seclusion, was Ye Futian preparing to cause a scene again?


    It had been a few years since that incident. These past few years, the Donghua Domain had gradually forgotten them. It would be very safe for them to leave the domain now. Even if they did not leave, no one would notice if they cultivated on some small continents or continued to remain on Turtle Deity Island.


    However, once they intercepted Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, their cover would immediately be blown. They would most likely return to restless days of running for their lives!

 Chapter 2081 - Intercept

    The Tianchi Continent was very prosperous. It was similar to the Penglai Continent, possessing many ninth-tier Renhuangs. It was considered the main continent in the surrounding region.


    These past few days, the Tianchi Continent seemed exceptionally lively. Many people on the continent suspected that Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would pass by here on their way to the wedding in the Donghua Heavens. For most people, they had never seen the cultivators from these giant level forces of the legend before. Moreover, the lineup for the wedding procession this time would certainly be very powerful. Many people were waiting in anticipation.


    If the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family passed through the Tianchi Continent, they would pass through Crimson City in the center. Hence, countless cultivators rushed over to Crimson City, intending to catch a glimpse of the cultivators from the giant level force.


    Of course, many people had no interest in joining in the fun. Some scoffed at the idea.


    However, many top forces in Crimson City were standing ready, preparing to show themselves when the other party passed through the city. If they had the chance to come in contact with such powers, it would definitely be beneficial for them.


    On this day, on the outskirts of the Tianchi Continent, the cries of dragons suddenly could be heard. This caused countless people to tremble. They frantically looked up far into the distance. Purple, golden divine light shot across the sky. Powerful, gigantic divine dragons streamed across the sky. At the very front were nine dragons, all of them upper-level Demon Emperors. They were pulling a luxurious chariot. On the divine dragons stood cultivators, all of them Renhuangs. They were adorned in dragon armor and appeared extremely majestic. They gave off a solemn vibe.


    There were similarly dragons to the left, right as well as behind the chariot. The lineup was terrifying. They roared as they passed by in the sky above. Everywhere they went, the cries of dragons filled the skies, seemingly reminding the people below that they were passing by.


    Many demonic beasts down below bowed down. The cultivators were also trembling in awe. Many of them even wanted to bow their heads. They had never seen such a terrifying procession. An upper-level Renhuang was a top cultivator in the eyes of these ordinary folk.


    However, right now, in the heavens above, nine Purple Gold Dragons were pulling a chariot across the sky. The procession of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family sped across high in the sky. In an instant, they had vanished far off into the distance, disappearing from view. They were extremely fast. Yet, the awe-inspiring scene remained in the minds of the crowd for a very long time.


    This majestic scene was especially unforgettable for the young cultivators.


    So this was a superpower.


    A mere wedding procession was already so terrifying.


    The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had arrived in the Tianchi Continent.


    After some time, the people of Crimson City, far off in the distance, eventually received this news. Some people sent word of this to Crimson City. After that, the news spread rapidly, sweeping across the city. In the central district, many people were standing ready. In a tavern, many people were looking in the direction Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was approaching from. They were busy discussing this.


    These people were the top forces and families of Crimson City. They were already waiting here, prepared to welcome the arrival of the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. They were truly sincere.


    It was not just one force. Other top forces were also waiting in different locations far away, hoping that they would encounter Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. Even if they could not, showing their faces was enough.


    Everyone here was waiting quietly. Not long after, brilliant divine light shot over from the sky in the distance. The cries of dragons could faintly be heard. Everyone knew that the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had arrived.


    However, they should still be some distance away. From the dragon cries, they were headed in this direction towards the central district of Crimson City.


    As expected, after some time, they saw nine dragons pulling a chariot. The scene was majestic.


    The nine divine dragons were tens of thousands of feet long and were terrifying, blocking out part of the sky. Many of them had not seen such an astonishing scene before. Only the giant level forces could control powerful dragons to draw their chariots. If the dragons changed form, they were also top Demon Emperors. No matter where they were, they would be top cultivators.


    ��The members of Jiang clan of Crimson City welcome the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family into Crimson City,�� a voice called out energetically. The nine divine dragons let out low roars. Their huge eyes glanced ahead as they released great pressure. Even the members of the top forces felt this absolute pressure. This wedding procession could sweep away many of the top forces here.


    The Demon Emperor in the middle was a ninth-tier existence.


    Aside from that, an overbearing elder, who stood before the dragon, was similarly a ninth-tier Renhuang. The members of Crimson City speculated that among this procession, there might be more than three ninth-tier existences. To them, this was a power which they could not stand against.


    Moreover, aside from ninth-tier existences, they also had many eighth-tier upper-level Renhuangs. Among the nine leading divine dragons, one was a ninth-tier Demon Emperor, three were eighth-tier, and five were seventh-tier. They were absolutely menacing.


    There were also many upper-level Renhuangs at the back. This lineup could take over a continent.


    The leading elder swept a glance at the other party. He nodded his head slightly and said, ��No need to stand on ceremony. We are merely passing through. Please go about your own business.��


    Although they slowed down slightly, they still kept moving forward without stopping.


    At the same time, a few of the leaders of the top forces of the Tianchi Continent came over and saluted with their fists. Then, one of them asked, ��Would all of you like to take a break in Crimson City before continuing on your journey?��


    ��There is no need,�� the elder replied. The other party did not say anymore. They frantically made way for the wedding procession, standing on both sides as they sent the procession off.


    At that moment, the elder frowned slightly. He sensed someone��s will sweeping over their procession. It swept over everyone here without any subtlety. It was extremely presumptuous behavior.


    ��Who is it?�� the elder cried out as he glanced down below. He had a cold and indifferent look in his eyes. He spotted a tavern as he followed the direction of the will. There was a group sitting there, drinking quietly.


    Just as he shouted this, the group of people lowered their wine cups and looked up at them. At that moment, the elder felt that something was off. There were actually a few ninth-tier Renhuangs among the group.


    Why had so many ninth-tier Renhuangs gathered in the Tianchi Continent?


    One of the members of the group took off his straw hat, revealing a head of silver hair. He had a handsome appearance and was a charming lad. He also appeared somewhat enchanting. People could tell at a glance that this person was extraordinary.


    ��Ye Liunian!�� The elder cried out as his expression changed. Back during the Donghua Banquet, the elder was not present; however, that did not prevent him from recognizing Ye Futian. The core figures of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had all seen Ye Futian��s portrait.


    Rather, the elder should not be calling him ��Ye Liunian.�� Instead, he was Ye Futian��the cultivator from the Original Realm.


    ��Be careful,�� the elder immediately warned. ��Everyone, be on your guard.��


    Since Ye Futian dared to appear here, he had clearly come prepared. Many years had passed. They nearly forgot about this person and were no longer searching for his whereabouts. They never imagined that just as they were about to forget about him completely, Ye Futian appeared.


    ��Who is Ye Liunian?�� asked many people around the area. They had never heard of him. After all, they were not cultivators from the major continents.


    ��Seven years ago, Ye Liunian was an incredible figure during the Donghua Banquet. He is wanted by the Domain Chief��s Manor. After disappearing for seven years, I never imagined that he would appear here today,�� said many people who had heard of him. Their hearts were stirred. Ye Futian, who had disappeared for seven years, had appeared here. This meant that his group had been monitoring the movements of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    Why had they come here this time?


    Buzz. Silhouettes dashed into the sky. In an instant, Ye Futian��s group shot up into the sky and appeared high above the clouds. They immediately blocked off the other party��s path. Their figures spread out. Ye Futian��s group also consisted of very powerful figures.


    They were Goddess Donglai, Alchemy Emperor, and the head of the Leng Family��Sky Sword Leng Kuangsheng. A few cultivators had followed Goddess Donglai from Eastern Deity Island and had once followed Supreme Deity Donglai. Ye Futian, Chen Yi, as well as a number of the cultivators of Wangshen Watchtower, were also among their group. Aside from Ye Futian, Chen Yi, and Zi Feng, they were all upper-level Renhuangs. Such a lineup was very formidable.


    The cultivators from the top forces of Crimson City were astonished. They were struggling internally. Ye Futian actually appeared here and was prepared to intercept the wedding procession of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. Should they aid the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family?


    This was a rare opportunity that was hard to come by. However, if they took part, they would be killed if they were even the slightest bit careless.


    Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng were also still out there.


    ��Kill them,�� Ye Futian said. As he said this, the various cultivators charged forwards. The aura of the leading elder of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family filled the sky. A pure-blooded dragon protected his body. The divine dragon beneath him let out a loud roar and immediately charged towards Ye Futian as it prepared to subdue Ye Futian first.


    If they could bring back Ye Futian, it would also be considered a great contribution.


    Goddess Donglai and Alchemy Emperor appeared in front of Ye Futian. They immediately charged towards their opponent and the dragon.

 Chapter 2082 - Massacre

    There weren��t many people on Ye Futian��s side, but they were all elite figures. They also came prepared.


    Back during the Donghua Banquet, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace joined forces to destroy Wangshen Watchtower, killing or injuring most of their members. After Wangshen Watchtower disbanded, using this opportunity, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace began to grow closer, even reaching the point of having an alliance marriage.


    If Great Yan Ancient Royal Family directly used a teleportation matrix to head over to the Donghua Heavens, Ye Futian��s group could not do anything to them. However, Great Yan Ancient Royal Family wanted to welcome this marriage with fanfare. They traveled across thousands of continents grandly for all the world to know.


    When Ye Futian��s group heard this news, they decided to come over to take a look. Coincidentally, they found out that Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would pass through the Tianchi Continent. How could they let such an opportunity slip past them?


    The Tianchi Continent was situated in between the Yanyun Continent and the Donghua Heavens. It was far away from both continents. Even if Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi caught wind of their exploits, it was impossible for both of them to rush over in a short amount of time. This gave Ye Futian��s group enough time to do many things.


    They wanted to get this done and over as soon as possible!


    The various cultivators charged straight towards the members of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. A large battle instantly ensued. Terrifying attacks of the Great Path swept across the land. It was as though the world was about to end. The commotion was terrifying. The sky, which was initially clear for tens of thousands of miles, became overcast as destructive storms swept up.


    The crowd below saw a brilliant divine sword light cleave a line through the sky. Frightening thunder clouds covered the sky as they saw divine fire descend, setting this part of the sky ablaze. They also saw gigantic divine dragons slash out with their menacing dragon claws, ripping apart the space.


    The cries of dragons roared, causing the eardrums of many people to ring. The cultivators below frenziedly escaped. Some people coughed up fresh blood from the residue waves. Light of the Great Path also landed on the ground, causing the buildings below to collapse and be destroyed. Cracks appeared on the ground as well.


    Only Renhuangs could manage to remain in the space below and truly witness this huge battle.


    Their gazes were all on one person. He had white robes and white hair. His appearance was handsome beyond comparison, and he appeared very elegant.


    This person was Ye Futian, who had shook the Donghua Banquet back then. Rumor has it that he was undefeated during the Donghua Banquet. He had no equal among those at the same level of cultivation. When he entered the secret zone, he activated the ruin in the secret zone and also killed Yan Dongyang, Ling He, and a few eighth-tier cultivators. His records in battle were too glorious.


    On top of these impressive records, there were also rumors from when Ye Futian stood before the Divine Mirror of Heavenly Wheels in Donghua Academy. Even though Ye Futian was wanted, after the storm of incidents, there were many stories about Ye Futian. As time went on, people had gradually forgotten about him. Now that he had appeared again, these people instantly recalled his doings back then. They wanted to see how incredible this person was and whether the rumors were true or not.


    Some people considered these rumors to be exaggerated due to the commotion back then. He might have done many astonishing things, but they must certainly have been blown out of proportion. It was natural for such things to happen. Such was the way of the world.


    However, merely based on his appearance and temperament, he was indeed extraordinary.


    Ye Futian��s figure floated in the air in the center of the battlefield. He floated towards the chariot drawn by the nine divine dragons. Frightening divine light circled his entire body. An astonishing storm whipped up around him. In the skies above, a Yin Yang Diagram appeared. The terrifying Yin Yang Diagram kept expanding as it rotated in the sky. Frightening divine halos descended like lightning.


    Poof.


    The light that descended from the Yin Yang Diagram landed on the figure of a seventh-tier Renhuang. The Renhuang was instantly pierced through by the divine light. His body actually disintegrated after that, turning to dust which scattered to the winds.


    Around the chariot, Renhuangs charged up into the sky one after another. Yet, the divine light of the Yin Yang Diagram seemed endless, raining down constantly like a divine tribulation of the Great Path. Puffing sounds could be heard non-stop. Renhuangs beneath the eighth-tier were immediately vaporized. They could not withstand the killing blows of the Yin Yang Diagram.


    The people down below also saw a seventh-tier divine dragon try to swallow Ye Futian. However, divine halos rained down from the Yin Yang Diagram. The gigantic figure of the divine dragon was actually pierced through immediately. It then disintegrated bit by bit and turned to dust. A miserable roar came from the sky.


    As Ye Futian stood there, he seemed undefeatable.


    ��So powerful.��


    Many people felt their hearts stir when they saw this majestic scene. One could only truly know a person��s ability by witnessing it for themselves. Listening to rumors was misleading. Having personally witnessed Ye Futian standing there, they actually believed that he was invincible.


    At that moment, an even more terrifying dragon roar filled the skies. The crowd looked over in that direction. An eighth-tier Dragon Emperor charged up into the skies, his ten-thousand-foot-long figure swaying as he did so. A frightening storm was swept up. Before the gigantic creature, Ye Futian appeared miniscule. Even the claws of the Dragon Emperor were far larger than Ye Futian��s body. The Dragon Emperor��s claws were like the sharpest blades in the world. They were hideous and terrifying.


    Many people felt their hearts beating heavily as they witnessed this scene. It was as though Ye Futian would be directly consumed by the dragon right then.


    The divine light that rained down from the Yin Yang Diagram landed on the dragon��s gigantic figure. It pierced through his scales and caused his body to be covered with blood. However, it could not immediately kill off the dragon. The defensive power of an eighth-tier Demon Emperor was far greater than that of a human cultivator. His dragon scales were like ritual implement armor and were extremely sturdy.


    The fact that the massacring light that showered down from the Yin Yang Diagram could rip apart his defenses was already very astonishing. Yet, it still could not instantly kill an eighth-tier Dragon Emperor.


    Ye Futian still stood firmly in his spot as he saw the gigantic creature approaching him. He had a look of confidence in his eyes. A long spear appeared in his outreached hand. The battle intent that emanated from the long spear filled the sky, resulting in his entire person also being encapsulated in terrifying battle intent.


    Rumble.


    A beam of divine light immediately shot up into the heavens. It consumed his figure. A shadow of the peacock appeared behind Ye Futian��s figure. He appeared extremely divine. At this moment, Ye Futian��s will rose to extremely frightening levels. His enchantingly handsome temperament became even more prominent.


    The shadow of the peacock spread its wings. Divine light radiated from its feathers and swept outwards. It was dazzling beyond comparison.


    The Dragon Emperor sensed an aura that made him shiver. He let out an intense dragon roar. There was a faint hint of terror in his voice, as though he was sensing the aura of a Demon God.


    Buzz!


    The crowd saw Ye Futian��s figure move. Beams of divine light descended, and Ye Futian stood in the middle, moving along with the divine lights. The Dragon Emperor opened his gaping mouth and swallowed Ye Futian before the crowd could make out what was happening.


    The next moment, the crowd witnessed a dazzling scene. Terrifying divine light pierced through the flesh of the gigantic dragon from the inside. His figure was extremely dazzling. The crowd could see the beams of light penetrating outwards from his body. All of this happened in an instant.


    Roar!


    The huge figure of the Dragon Emperor trembled violently as it let out an astonishing roar. With a rumbling sound, a brilliant silhouette appeared from the dragon��s figure, emerging from within him. The eighth-tier Dragon Emperor trembled violently as it roared. Its body exploded frenziedly. It seemed to be in incredible pain.


    Blood rained down. The gigantic figure of the Dragon Emperor exploded and was ripped apart. It fell to the ground below and appeared extremely pathetic.


    Divine light circled the white-haired Renhuang. He appeared immaculate and still looked otherworldly. Although he penetrated through the figure of the Dragon Emperor, he seemed not to be stained by any filth. The divine light had blocked off everything.


    ��So powerful!��


    The cultivators who were observing the battle felt their hearts tremble violently. An eighth-tier Dragon Emperor was killed in a single blow. That spear strike appeared simplistic, but it was astounding. It was terrifying, piercing straight through the figure of the eighth-tier Dragon Emperor.


    They also heard rumors that Ye Futian possessed the will of the emperor. If he activated it, his combat ability would be even more powerful.


    However, right now, even though he had not done so, it was still enough to kill a Dragon Emperor in a single blow. One could imagine how frightening Ye Futian was.


    From the looks of it, the rumors regarding Ye Futian were not only true, and they could even be said to have failed to capture the true might of Ye Futian. Only by witnessing it firsthand could they know how powerful he actually was.


    The other Demon Emperors roared furiously at Ye Futian. Their roars shook the skies. Ye Futian swept a glance at them. He tilted his long spear as he stood alone high in the sky. The shadow of the peacock spread its wings. Divine light immediately shot out from the ocelli on its divine wings. The light was like terrifying lightning. The divine phenomenon appeared in the sky above. The divine lights that shot out were like peacocks that charged towards the Demon Emperors.


    Rumble.


    The powerful seventh-tier dragons were immediately torn to shreds. Blood splattered everywhere as divine light penetrated straight through them and caused their bodies to disintegrate. They let out painful roars that seemed to be full of dissatisfaction.


    Ye Futian stepped forward in the sky like a god of judgment. Everywhere he passed, the dragon shrieked.

 Chapter 2083 - Spear

    Yan Zhu��the prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family��was sitting in the chariot. Right then, he got up and walked out of the chariot. He stood before it and looked towards the silhouette ahead.


    Was this the Ye Futian who killed his younger brother Yan Dongyang? Now, Ye Futian had intercepted their procession on their way to the wedding to kill him.


    ��Your Highness, please step back. This man is dangerous,�� a man in black robes said as he walked up beside Yan Zhu. He advised Yan Zhu to step back and retreat. Ye Futian was even more powerful than he was back then. During the Donghua Banquet, Ye Futian was a fourth-tier Renhuang; now, he was already at the fifth-tier. His Great Path had also stabilized, meaning that he had reached his current Plane about three or four years ago.


    Aside from Ye Futian��s cultivation level, he seemed to have had fateful encounters. A faint Demonic Qi that filled the air seemed to emanate from his body. It was highly likely that this was connected to the fateful encounter that he obtained from the Demon God Temple in Domain Chief��s Manor��s secret zone back then.


    Far away, Ye Futian swept a glance in his direction. Ye Futian��s pupils emanated a charming and enchanting look. They were deep and cold. Yan Zhu felt a chill down his spine. Ye Futian looked at them with a cold, merciless look. It was as though he was looking at dead people.


    Yan Zhu was the prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, and the cultivators here were all elites. Their lineup was powerful. On the other hand, Ye Futian only had so many people on his side. They dared to intercept the procession, ignoring their numbers. It sounded laughable, yet right now, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family cultivators actually felt threatened.


    Ye Futian was walking towards them. Everywhere he passed by, blood rained down from the sky. The dragons roared sorrowfully, and the Renhuangs were turned to dust. No one could stop him. Even an eighth-tier Dragon Emperor was killed by him instantly. No one below the ninth-tier could stop him.


    Far outside the battlefield, the top forces of the Tianchi Continent, who had come to welcome Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, were conflicted. Should they interfere in this battle?


    They also looked towards Ye Futian. They naturally knew who this person was. As expected, this legendary youth was as terrifyingly powerful as the rumors claimed. Eighth-tier Renhuangs were killed like ants by him. He slaughtered his way forward towards the chariot. If he continued doing so, Yan Zhu might truly be in danger.


    If they took action now, their help would definitely be timely, and they would certainly gain favor with Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. Yet, was it worth doing so?


    How great would the risk be?


    It was hard to gauge. Hence, they were all indecisive. They seemed to be waiting for other forces to act. No one wanted to go first.


    Once the arrow left the bow, it could not be called back. Once they helped Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, they might be gambling the fate of their clans.


    They were also worried that should Ye Futian��s group succeed in killing Yan Zhu and the rest of the cultivators in the procession, would the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family be angry at them for not lending aid?


    Although this matter was initially unrelated to them, they were present here after all. They had also intentionally come to welcome the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. If they merely watched from the sidelines when the great battle ensued and resulted in the Renhuangs from the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family being eliminated, Emperor Yan might put the blame on them and purge them all if he was feeling cruel. When that happened, they had no chance to reason with him. In the world of cultivation, one could not do anything if the other party did not reason with you.


    This caused many of them to regret coming here. Why did they need to join the fun? By coincidence, they encountered a huge battle here. They were stuck between a rock and a hard place. They could neither attack nor stand by idly.


    On the other side, Yan Zhu did not retreat. As a prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, when faced with Ye Futian��s group trying to kill him, how could he retreat?


    Even if he did so, what difference would that make? If the Yan Kingdom lost this battle, the result would not change.


    ��Go face him,�� Yan Zhu said. The black-robed man nodded. He was an elder of the Yan Kingdom who had been guarding Yan Zhu since he was young. He had been a ninth-tier Renhuang for many years. He could be considered Yan Zhu��s guardian and his personal bodyguard.


    This time, he followed beside Yan Zhu as he made his way over to the Donghua Heavens for the wedding. Now, they were being attacked.


    He stepped forward and crossed the sky, heading over towards Ye Futian. Ye Futian seemed to notice him, looking up in his direction. He saw the black-robed man walking over. A very dangerous aura emanated from the other party. Dark currents circled him, and a terrifying black dragon also appeared. In the elder��s hand, he wielded a long black spear which emanated menacing destructive currents.


    Sensing this aura, a terrifying divine light shone from Ye Futian��s body. He appeared insufferably arrogant. This black-robed elder was very dangerous. Even Ye Futian did not dare underestimate him. A ninth-tier existence was already at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. The dark currents contained a dense power of destruction and corrosion.


    ��Everyone, stand down,�� the black-robed elder shouted. Immediately, the cultivators around Ye Futian stepped away from the battlefield. The destructive black aura covered the sky and circled the area where Ye Futian stood. The aura formed a black dragon that immediately charged towards him, intending to consume him.


    Buzz!


    The light of the Demon God radiated from Ye Futian��s figure, the heart of the Demon God beating in his body. Beams of multi-colored light radiated from his figure. The divine shadow of the peacock appeared. It was tens of thousands of feet tall and was astonishing to behold.


    ��This is����


    The cultivators felt their hearts beating vigorously. The ten-thousand-foot tall shadow of the peacock spread its wings. Brilliant light shot out from its dazzling divine feathers, blasting towards the body of the dragon. It caused the black dragon to turn to dust instantly. The frightening current of corrosion and destruction did not manage to reach Ye Futian��s figure at all before being destroyed by the divine light.


    Countless people looked towards the battlefield. The divine light of the peacock lit up the space and caused the hearts of many people to beat heavily. The Dragon Emperor let out long roars. In a human voice, a Dragon Emperor said, ��It is the aura of the Demon God. He has obtained an item of the Demon God.��


    The cultivators felt their hearts tremble intensely. Ye Futian had obtained an item of the Demon God?


    As expected, he had obtained it from the secret zone of Domain Chief��s Manor. The light of the Demon God circled him, and he appeared insufferably arrogant.


    Ye Futian wielded his long spear. Divine light circled xfhim. He pointed his long spear forward at the ninth-tier cultivator. Beams of divine light flowed over the long spear and shot out towards his opponent.


    Buzz!


    Ye Futian��s body shifted. He struck out with his spear. The heavens and earth shook. In an instant, the crowd saw many silhouettes of Ye Futian appear at the same time. Under the divine light of the peacock, there seemed to be more than just one Ye Futian and one spear.


    Was this the ability bestowed by the Demon God?


    The crowd felt their hearts quavered. The expression of the black-robed man similarly changed. He sensed that each spear was real. Before Ye Futian had reached him, the black-robed man seemed to see an unparalleled Peacock Demon God charging towards him. The divine light of the peacock shone on his body, making him feel as though he was no match for the Demon God.


    An intense roar sounded, seemingly causing the heavens and earth to quake. The terrifying black dragon appeared, bellowing at the sky. The black-robed man had nowhere to run. He stabbed his long black spear forward. A frightening black dragon appeared before his spear and collided with the gigantic shadow of the peacock.


    The instant the two divine lights collided, frightening light blinded the people around them. Many people could not keep their eyes open. A terrifying wave of destruction spread out with both of them as the center, radiating outwards for thousands of miles.


    At that moment, all the buildings for thousands of miles in Crimson City were reduced to flat ground. Countless cultivators coughed up fresh blood. The cultivators observing the battle up close had it worse. They never imagined that a battle high in the sky would produce such terrifying shockwaves that swept across thousands of miles.


    Renhuangs could barely hold on. Only middle-level Renhuangs could see what had happened. They saw the shadow of the Peacock Demon God rip apart the black dragon. Beams of the divine light of the peacock became long spears that directly pierced forward. Ye Futian and the black-robed elder switched places. The two of them stood silently in the sky. It was as though time had stopped.


    The terrifying aftershocks changed the heavens and the earth, but the battlefield itself was exceptionally quiet.


    However, the next moment, the figure of the black-robed elder immediately turned to dust, which scattered to the winds.


    A single spear strike killed a ninth-tier cultivator.


    Seven years ago, Ye Futian could kill eighth-tier Renhuangs. Now, he could already kill ninth-tier Renhuangs at the peak.


    A mighty fifth-tier Renhuang had appeared!

 Chapter 2084 - Total Annihilation

    In the world of cultivation, there were no clear distinctions for mighty figures. People of different levels of cultivation had different definitions about who could be considered mighty figures. However, in the Divine Prefecture, it was widely considered that Renhuangs above the seventh-tier were mighty existences.


    Eighth-tier and ninth-tier Renhuangs were naturally considered mighty figures. Ye Futian was currently a fifth-tier Renhuang, yet he killed a ninth-tier Renhuang with just a single spear strike. Then, could Ye Futian be considered a mighty figure?


    For many people, a fifth-tier mighty figure was an inconceivable notion.


    Right now, Ye Futian just stood there. The shadow of the Peacock Demon God stood behind him. Enchanting divine light enveloped his figure as though he was a descendant of the Demon God.


    He gazed ahead, and his gaze pierced the space, landing on the silhouette in the chariot far off in the distance. He was looking at the prince of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Yan Zhu.


    Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Ling Xiao Palace wanted to have an alliance marriage. They even caused such a commotion over it in the Donghua Domain. If that were what they wanted, Ye Futian would grant them their wish. This alliance marriage would indeed shake the Donghua Domain. However, it would do so in a different manner.


    Yan Zhu noticed Ye Futian��s gaze. Yan Zhu had been looking over the battlefield all this while. He had witnessed everything. Since he was born, the black-robed elder, who had followed him for many years and had taken care of him, had been killed by Ye Futian with a single spear strike. Yan Zhu was overwhelmed with emotions.


    Was there hate? Of course.


    However, the relationship between the Yan Kingdom and Ye Futian had no chance of reconciliation. Even though he was not familiar with Ye Futian and bore him no ill will, Yan Zhu had to acknowledge everything the Yan Kingdom did. Yan Zhu was a prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and represented the Yan Kingdom in the marriage with Lingxiao Palace.


    Who else could he blame?


    It could only be said that the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family did not deal with things cleanly. They had offended Ye Futian, and yet they did not clean up after themselves, allowing the other party to retaliate.


    Now, who could still stand against Ye Futian? A ninth-tier cultivator was killed with a single strike of the spear.


    After a few years, Ye Futian was much more frightening than he was when he became famous overnight during the Donghua Banquet. Today would be a catastrophe for Yan Zhu and Great Yan Ancient Royal Family.


    Far off in another direction, the members of the top forces of the Tianchi Continent had somewhat stunned expressions. Their hearts were filled with astonishment. They were initially hesitating over whether they should attack. From the looks of it now, they had thought too much. Even if they lent their aid to the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, could they stop Ye Futian?


    They might perish on the spot.


    The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family cultivators, who were still battling in different locations, finally felt an intense sense of danger and terror. They certainly had not imagined that this group of people would actually pose a threat to their lives. The wedding procession of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was intercepted along the way to the wedding.


    Ye Futian wielded his spear and stepped forward, walking towards Yan Zhu. Dragons roared, and several Renhuangs sent out attacks towards Ye Futian. However, the dazzling Peacock Demon God spread its wings and released unparalleled divine light. Everywhere the light touched, the attacks of the Great Path disintegrated.


    Ye Futian advanced. His long spear was like a dragon as it pierced out across the space. Just now, countless images of the spear appeared with a single pierce and charged out in different directions.


    Bang.Bang. Bang. Silhouettes immediately turned to dust and exploded. The space shook violently. Everywhere the spear passed, no one was left alive. Be it Renhuang or Demon Emperor, all perished before the spear.


    Even a ninth-tier cultivator was killed with a single strike, let alone others beneath him. They couldn��t be able to withstand a strike from the spear.


    No one blocked Ye Futian��s way as he crossed the space with a single step. He came to the space above the chariot and looked down at the second prince of Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, Yan Zhu.


    Yan Zhu also looked up at Ye Futian. He felt a sense of melancholy. As a prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, he actually had no means of retaliating right now. It seemed as though the only path that laid before him was death.


    He watched as Ye Futian raised the spear in his hand and then stabbed it out. Yan Zhu released the terrifying pressure of the Great Path. Cries of dragons filled the skies. Right before he died, he unleashed his most powerful attack. However, it wasn��t very sensible. Before the spear, his attack was as insignificant as paper. The long spear penetrated through it and stabbed through his head. Ye Futian did not say anything meaningless, killing him instantly with a single strike.


    Yan Zhu felt a pang of pain. His facial expression gradually twisted. The next moment, his figure turned to dust and disappeared into nothingness. He had perished.


    Behind him, there was still the army of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family. They had personally witnessed Ye Futian stab a spear through Yan Zhu��s head. They watched as Yan Zhu was pierced through in the air. They were giant level forces from the Divine Prefecture who were heading over for a wedding in Lingxiao Palace. However, they had been intercepted along the way and had actually lost miserably.


    Prince Yan Zhu was killed on the spot. The protagonist for the alliance marriage between the two forces had perished.


    At that moment, Ye Futian raised his head and looked at them. He cast a glance at them, and countless beams of divine light shot out from the wings of the peacock. There were endless puffing sounds as the Renhuangs could not withstand the might of the divine light at all. They offered no resistance as they were killed. They did not even have the chance to retaliate before perishing.


    ��Run!�� someone shouted. The various cultivators immediately retreated. They could not be concerned with what happened here; those who remained would all die.


    Yet, when the divine light swept out, no one could escape. Silhouettes disappeared one after another, turning to dust.


    Ye Futian turned around and headed over to other battlefields, immediately joining them. In the sky above, the sound of astonishing collisions could be heard.


    This large-scale battle did not last long. Very soon, it ended.


    After five minutes, no one was left on the battlefield. Ye Futian��s group had left. None of them had perished, and only a few were injured.


    Whereas for Great Yan Ancient Royal Family�� countless gazes peered across the battlefield. No one was left. The wedding entourage of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had been annihilated. All of them had been killed.


    True figures at the peak could slaughter a city single-handedly.


    Today, the fifth-tier Renhuang Ye Futian enlightened them on how one person could sweep away an entire army of Renhuangs.


    In a grandiose manner, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family traversed countless continents as they headed towards the Donghua Heavens for the wedding. This shook the Donghua Domain. However, it had ended in such a fashion. Even in their dreams, the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family probably had not imagined this.


    How would the other cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family feel when they heard the news?


    This alliance marriage had ended prematurely.


    ��Times have changed,�� lamented the members of the top forces of the Tianchi Continent, who were overwhelmed with emotion. It was as though everything had been a dream. Knowing that the other party would pass by, they had come from far and wide to welcome them. However, they witnessed Ye Futian��s group annihilating the wedding procession that consisted of an army of Renhuangs.


    Someone said in a low voice, ��Indeed. He is merely a fifth-tier Renhuang. Before this, I felt that the rumors were exaggerated. Now that I have seen it firsthand, not only are the rumors not exaggerated, but they also failed to truly capture Ye Futian��s might. He is definitely another Ning Hua. If he does not die, it will be hard to tell who will be the top figure in the Donghua Domain in the future.��


    The rising generation was to be reckoned with!


    If Ye Futian reached the peak of the Renhuang Plane, how powerful would his combat ability be? They could not imagine it!

 Chapter 2085 - The Plan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The assassination of the wedding party from the ancient royal family of Yan��s had caused great upheaval in the Donghua Domain. The news of the pending marital alliance between the two major principalities had already spread throughout the domain, and Lingxiao Palace had made all the preparation. Everyone was looking forward to the grand occasion when these two forces would be joined together.


    However, no one could have predicted that after all these times, Ye Futian would surface again. And they would never have thought that soon as he appeared, he would slaughter the army of the ancient royal family of Yan, announcing his existence by taking the life of the Crown Prince, Yan Zhu.


    The alliance of marriage between the Great Kingdom of Yan and Lingxiao Palace was effectively destroyed. With the death of the person who was to be married, it was impossible to change to another set of people to complete the alliance.


    This was a blow that neither force could afford to let go of. They couldn��t very well continue with someone else marrying the Princess of Lingxiao Palace and have her become the laughing stock of the Donghua Domain. Everyone understood that this was the end of the attempt to form an alliance via marriage.


    Both families were angry beyond words and had dispatched their people to Tianchi Continent to investigate. Once they learned of Ye Futian��s strength and his companions had accumulated, they sent a powerful team to search for them. At the same time, the Domain Chief��s Manor reissued the wanted order, stating that Ye Futian was ruthless beyond doubt and had slaughtered the cultivators of Donghua Domain indiscriminately and that he must be brought to justice. The Domain Chief��s Manor sent out the Donghua Army to assist in the search.


    However, the Donghua Domain was much too vast, with countless continents. Even if the Domain Chief��s Manor wanted to find them, it would be a difficult task.


    Unless the area could be shut down and searched in person by the masters, continent by continent, it would be impossible. But this would be a long and arduous process. Nevertheless, this incident had sounded the alarm for these top principalities that Ye Futian and his companions were still running amok.


    Out there, it was not just Ye Futian and the others, but the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng were still alive as well. If they went out to search, they could not predict what would happen. They must proceed with extreme caution.


    After all, Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi by themselves could not guarantee a victory against the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng, not when the Millet Emperor was also carrying the Watchtower.


    Who knew if they were still in Donghua Domain or not?


    ��


    On the other hand, Ye Futian and the others left Tianchi Continent after killing Yan Zhu and his companions, returning with due speed. After all, no one knew whether the masters themselves would be coming, so leaving quickly after such a surprise attack was necessary.


    At this moment, a group of people was shuttling through the mists of the clouds. But Ye Futian��s brows were slightly knit as he felt something faintly out of order. He said, ��The elder who is with us, please show yourself so we may pay our respect?��


    He had felt several times that someone was following them, which made him uneasy. Someone whose presence was difficult to detect must be a cultivator whose level was far above his, at least a Ninth Realm of Renhuang.


    ��You guys are ballsy.�� A voice came just as Ye Futian saw a ray of light blooming. A figure appeared in front of Ye Futian and others. It was Li Changsheng.


    ��Senior brother.�� Ye Futian was stunned but then smiled. He didn��t expect to see Li Changsheng here.


    ��Junior Brother Ye, you guys were a little impulsive this time,�� said Li Changsheng, and Ye Futian understood. Their hunt this time was full of risks. Although they had observed that Emperor Yan did not accompany the ancient royal family to escort them personally, the probability still existed, no matter how small it was.


    Once such minute possibility became a reality, the situation would become extremely dangerous, with a genuine possibility of a catastrophe of the greatest degree, hence Li Changshengs comment that they were somewhat impulsive.


    ��It seems that even if we didn��t do it, the senior brother would have done it,�� Ye Futian smiled at Li Changsheng.


    Li Changsheng��s temperament had gone through some great changes after his breakthrough. Nowadays, there was no smile on his face, which made him look a little colder, and he exuded authority without needing to be emotional.


    What happened back then had influenced him profoundly.


    ��When Junior Brother Zong Chan was killed, over half of Wangshen Watchtower��s cultivators were butchered and injured. Now that the Great Kingdom of Yan and Lingxiao Palace wanted to ally? I won��t let them succeed so easily,�� said Li Changsheng. Even if Ye Futian and the others did not take action, he would have killed them himself with no care for the consequence.


    Blood debts must be repaid with blood, and it was an alliance of marriage between these two major enemies.


    ��Senior brother, do you have any news about the Millet Emperor?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Li Changsheng shook his head, ��After I left Wangshen Watchtower, I left the Donghua Domain behind as well. I was able to stabilize my realm while in the outside world, but I had no news of Master. Master was seriously wounded in that battle, so it must have taken him some time to recover. No news is good news.��


    Ye Futian nodded. In light of Li Changsheng��s breakthrough in cultivation, it was understandable for him to leave the Donghua Domain. After all, the Donghua Domain still posed a considerable threat.


    ��Where were you guys all these years?�� Li Changsheng asked.


    ��Turtle Deity Island,�� said Ye Futian. ��Emperor Xi ordered his disciples to assist us, and after that, we have stayed on Turtle Deity Island to cultivate ever since then.��


    Li Changsheng was deeply moved when he heard what Ye Futian said. It turned out that Emperor Xi had been helping. In this case, Ye Futian was safe indeed.


    ��Let��s go. I will follow you guys to Turtle Deity Island,�� Li Changsheng said as Ye Futian nodded. The group immediately set off in the direction of Turtle Deity Island. With Li Changsheng leading the way, the time for them to get back was greatly reduced.


    On Eastern Deity Island, Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord seemed to have felt Li Changsheng��s presence as they walked out to the courtyard to receive them. Looking into the distance, they saw Li Changsheng had returned with Ye Futian and the others.


    ��Greetings to Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord.�� Although Li Changsheng broke through the realm, he paid respect to both men as elders. Aside from the fact that he himself was of a later generation, he was grateful that Emperor Xi had helped them in their time of need.


    ��You are a cultivator of this level now and need not be so formal,�� said Emperor Xi with a smile. But the fact was that even if Li Changsheng broke the realm, he was not yet at the same level as him. Emperor Xi possessed the perfect Great Path and had passed the first level of divine tribulation.


    ��Changsheng thanks you for taking care of my brothers,�� Li Changsheng said as he bowed.


    Emperor Xi didn��t say anything more but asked, ��Is there any news from the Millet Emperor?��


    At Donghua Banquet last time, the Millet Emperor carried the Watchtower to the Domain Chief��s Manor to fight all three top masters. He had witnessed the battle and must admit that that kind of courage was commendable. Especially considering it was his own disciples that he was fighting for, Emperor Xi respected the Millet Emperor tremendously for what he did.


    Not many cultivators would do that.


    The Millet Emperor had risked his life in that battle.


    Li Changsheng shook his head.


    Emperor Xi looked at him and said, ��No matter, the Millet Emperor has the watchtower in his hands, and there won��t be many who could overpower him in the Divine Prefecture. Perhaps he is somewhere nursing his injuries. He will appear sooner or later.��


    ��Mmm.�� Li Changsheng nodded.


    ��What are your plans for the future?�� Emperor Xi asked Li Changsheng again.


    But Li Changsheng looked at Ye Futian and the others instead and asked, ��Junior Ye, what do you think?��


    ��I have been relying on the kindness and care of Emperor Xi these years and have been cultivating in retreat on Turtle Deity Island. Now, I can deal with common Renhuang in the Ninth Realm. This interception to extinguish those from the Great Kingdom of Yan also indicated my own willingness to go out and explore the world,�� Ye Futian said. They couldn��t cultivate on Turtle Deity Island forever.


    ��Have you thought of where you wanted to go?�� Li Changsheng asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head. He hadn��t thought much of anything for the time being.


    ��Go to the other domains.�� Li Changsheng said, ��I have been out and about these past few years. The Divine Prefecture is so vast; even Donghua Domain is but one out of the 18 domains. Not to mention, Donghua Domain is no longer a place for you to stay. So, go to other places for trials, and try to raise your cultivation to Upper Renhuang as soon as possible.��


    Ye Futian understood Li Changsheng��s meaning. Now that he had offended the three top forces in Donghua Domain, he couldn��t achieve much here. If he caused any further disturbances, the Domain Chief��s Manor would get wind of it, and he would be on the run again.


    Now, leaving Donghua Domain seemed a wise choice.


    ��Brother, do you have an idea?�� Ye Futian asked Li Changsheng.


    ��Mmm.�� Li Changsheng nodded. ��I will take you with me. Afterward, while I investigate the whereabouts of the master, others can stay here in the Donghua Domain. But your case is a little special, junior brother.��


    Everyone understood Li Changsheng��s concern. Ye Futian��s achievement was too outstanding, which made him really conspicuous. The three top forces had set on killing him, so he was the most unsuited out of everyone here to remain in Donghua Domain.


    ��Yes,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    Emperor Xi and the Thunder Punishing Skylord listened without saying anything, but both smiled. Li Changsheng had high hopes for Ye Futian, who was his junior brother, and wanted to train him to become stronger.


    After all, everyone understood that even if Ye Futian had elevated his strength greatly, and Li Changsheng had now stepped into another level, revenge was no easy matter; it was nearly impossible to achieve it. Li Changsheng��s breakthrough gave them a glimmer of hope, but it couldn��t be done now, not even with the Millet Emperor adding to the mix.


    Therefore, Li Changsheng hoped that Ye Futian would be stronger. Li Changsheng could see the hope in him, the hope to strike back at the Great Kingdom of Yan, Ling Xiao Palace, even the Domain Chief��s Manor!

 Chapter 2086 - The Four Corner Village

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the year 10058 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, several shocking events had occurred in the Donghua Domain. In addition to Ning Hua��s breakthrough, the marriage between the ancient royal family of Yan and Lingxiao Palace was also a much-anticipated event. However, everything that happened later caused an uproar like never before.


    When Ye Futian reappeared, he and his group destroy an entire army of Renhuang, including crushing a Renhuang of the Ninth Realm with a single strike. The chaos that ensued was no less shocking than Ning Hua��s breakthrough.


    However, all of this was confined within the bounds of the Donghua Domain.


    There were countless continents in each of the 18 Divine Prefecture domains, and countless major events were taking place every day. Take one domain, for example. Only events such as relating to Ning Hua or the destruction of the Yan Kingdom��s wedding party could rouse any sensation. Other major events were happening in their own domain.


    Therefore, only the top forces in other domains might hear of them outside Donghua Domain when these events occurred. Other than that, the cultivators of other domains would not understand much about anything. The Divine Prefecture was such a vast area, with countless news every day and different focuses on different matters. Most of the energy and attention would only be limited to things happening in their own domain.


    Ordinary cultivators would have no idea about who was who with those top figures from other domains.


    For example, the Shangqing Domain, which neighbored the Donghua Domain, was not so concerned with what was happening in the Donghua Domain, and the transmission of news was equally limited. Ning Hua was the Vice Chief of the Donghua Domain, and Ye Futian made his name in Donghua Domain. The ancient royal family of Yan was a giant force in Donghua Domain as well. Whatever happened to them was easily of much interest in the domain. However, an ordinary cultivator in Shangqing Domain might be curious about who Ning Hua or Ye Futian was.


    In this way, it was hard for the news to spread further because there weren��t many who paid attention to it.


    In the Shangqing Domain, there was a very prestigious continent called the ��Four Corner Continent.��


    The name Four Corner Continent sounded common enough, and its location remote. As it was at a corner of the Shangqing Domain, it was far off from even the main continent of the Shangqing Domain. It was sparsely populated, and the entire continent was not large in size. It was hardly comparable with the main continent of the domain.


    However, such a continent had a great reputation in the Shangqing Domain. Countless cultivators came each year, including those from top principalities.


    All of this was because of a special place in the Four Corner Continent called ��Four Corner Village.��


    Although it was just a village, this village was held in high regard in the entire Shangqing Domain and even in the Divine Prefecture.


    There was no reason other than Donghuang the Great had once entered this village to cultivate. It was said that he had come to this village to seek the Way. At that time, he wasn��t yet the Great Emperor, but Four Corner Village had already enjoyed its reputation. Thus, some even called Four Corner Village the Emperor��s Village.


    The Four Corner Continent was not great in size and sparsely populated, but off and on, people could be seen traveling through its air space. Those who came here, especially cultivators from the outside, almost all of them were headed toward Four Corner Village.


    At this time, in the sky above the continent, there was a group of cultivators traveling by air, shuttling through the clouds and mist. The person leading the group was a white-haired young man, Ye Futian.


    Next to Ye Futian was Xia Qingyuan, with Chen Yi sitting behind him. Zifeng stood quietly in the back, as well as Beigong Ao and his daughter. As for the one who carried them, it was naturally the much hardworking ��Condor Sama.��


    There were not many who came on this trip. Only a few of them��Xia Qingyuan, Zifeng, and Little Condor��need no further elaboration. Beigong Ao and his daughter had been following Ye Futian since they left home. For Chen Yi to follow Ye Futian was a surprise, but of course, Li Changsheng must have encouraged Chen Yi to travel with them.


    Li Changsheng felt that Chen Yi was an extraordinary character suitable for making the visit to the Four Corner Village.


    ��We should be there soon,�� the Black Wind Condor said in a human voice.


    ��Four Corner Continent is not that big; we ought to be close. Once we found the Four Corner Mountain, we can find the Four Corner Village,�� said Ye Futian. This was what Li Changsheng wanted. Once he had decided to come to the outside world for trials, Li Changsheng sent them directly to the Four Corner Continent and told them to go to the Four Corner Village.


    After Li Changsheng��s breakthrough, he ended up in the Shangqing Domain and heard some things.


    As for why Li Changsheng himself didn��t escort them to the Four Corner Village, it was because of the Four Corner Continent��s special status in Divine Prefecture. Donghuang the Great had ordered that those of the master level may not be allowed to step onto the Four Corner Continent.


    In addition, there was another rule in Four Corner Village: private fights were strictly forbidden inside the village, except between the villagers. Outsiders who dared to harm the others inside the village would be killed without exception.


    Some said it was because Donghuang the Great once cultivated in the Four Corner Village. Others said it was because of the special nature of the Four Corner Village. In any case, no one would dare to disobey the Great Emperor��s command.


    Because of this, this sparsely-populated, remote continent was full of mystery in the eyes of the world. Its lofty position even warranted the personal attention of the Great Emperor himself.


    Because of the Four Corner Continent��s special nature, buildings were not allowed here, so the entire continent was a series of endless mountains and plains. There were no cities, and human traces were rarer still. Only in the void were there people who may be traveling through from time to time.


    ��Little Condor, you can follow the others if you don��t know the way,�� Ye Futian whispered.


    ��Understood.�� Little Condor nodded slightly as he expanded his consciousness to sense that people from different directions were all moving toward one direction. He understood that by keeping up with the others, those who came from the Shangqing Domain would be more familiar with the direction than they were.


    Before long, a mountain appeared in front of them, and a special aura seemed to linger there. The entire mountain range seemed elusive, with celestial mists all around it.


    ��There��s a pressure of the Great Path. Go down,�� Ye Futian commanded. Those in the distance were swooping down as well, and the Black Wind Condor could feel the mysterious pressure of the Great Path in this area. It permeated between heaven and earth as if it was everywhere, forcing him to go lower.


    Ye Futian, after swooping down, came to the foot of the mountain. There was a winding mountain road in front of him, leading all the way to the top. The scenery on the mountain was breathtaking. There was a stone tablet halfway up the mountain engraved with a few words: ��Four Corner Village.��


    After the stone tablet, there was a staircase. The staircase could only accommodate one person at a time as it was very narrow, with mountain walls on both sides. From top to bottom, there was a mysterious atmosphere permeating downward. It was no easy task to gain entry through this staircase.


    At the entrance to the Four Corner Village, only a passageway could be seen.


    The Four Corner Village was invisible from the outside. Only by traveling through that passageway could one enter the village.


    According to Li Changsheng, the order of the Great Path from these four corners was different from that of the outside world, and there was a Divine Relic inside.


    It was said that this passageway could not be crossed by those who did not possess great luck. Failure to pass through meant that it was impossible to enter the Four Corner Village.


    ��I should probably wait for you guys down here,�� Beigong Ao said to Ye Futian. Although he was already a Renhuang of the Eighth Realm, he knew his own ability. If it were really as Li Changsheng described, it would be impossible for him to enter the Four Corner Village.


    ��There��s no harm in trying; the place won��t hurt anyone.�� Ye Futian continued, ��Perhaps, you have great luck.��


    ��Sure,�� Beigong Ao nodded. What Ye Futian said seemed to be reasonable enough. Perhaps just following Ye Futian was a kind of luck in itself.


    1


    In front of them, two groups of people had arrived. Standing in front of the tablet, there were not so many people from either side, but each one of them had an extraordinary temperament, outstanding in their own ways. It was easy to discern that they were unusual figures in a glance.


    They walked directly toward that narrow passageway, one after the other, moving upward. Suddenly a mysterious aura spread out from the passageway as celestial mist enveloping them all.


    ��Let��s go up, too,�� said Ye Futian as he walked up the mountain road. He looked up at the passageway and stepped onto the stone steps. Ye Futian was in the front, with Xia Qingyuan and the others following behind.


    This passage did not bring them any pressure. Except for those mysterious currents flowing around them, there was nothing particular. Ye Futian��s steps were incredibly light when he thought it would be difficult. In fact, it couldn��t be easier as they steadily moved forward.


    It was the same for Xia Qingyuan and the others. They went up easily. Even Beigong Ao and Beigong Shuang were following behind without difficulty.


    ��


    Above the passageway, there was a stone village. The paths inside the village were very ancient, made of blue stones. The houses themselves also looked as if they had been through a lot. However, the village was spotless and tidy, with a good many ancient trees all around.


    At this time, many were walking along the road. Besides them, there were bright red maple trees in full bloom, which instantly colored the sky a crimson red. People in the village were not surprised by this, and occasionally, someone would look into the distance, sensing that someone else had entered the passageway.


    However, the red maple leaves kept blooming and became more radiant. Gradually, some stopped to look at the ancient trees and saw what had withered on the maple tree began blooming again. They were increasing in volume as well as beauty.


    ��Another lucky newcomer is here.�� A hunched old man walked over with a smile. Wherever he passed, the red maple trees were in full bloom. Flowers covered the ground. It didn��t take long for all the red maple trees in the entire village to come alive. The entire mountain was covered in red leaves to form a most beautiful sight.


    Many people walked out of their houses to look at the ancient trees inside the village. Their eyes betray the disturbance they felt inside. Soon, a bright red light bloomed over the village, coloring the sky a beautiful crimson red.


    ��The flowers bloomed everywhere, and red maple leaves cover the ground. Who has entered the village to cause such an extraordinary sight?�� an old man narrowed his eyes and murmured.


    ��What a strong aura,�� someone commented again. It seemed that there would be honored guests arriving in the Four Corner Village.


    At this time, in front of a private study in the village, many sat here, listening to the preaching of an old man in front of them. The old man had an immortal aura about him. It was as if he was not from this world. He glanced at the sky and then looked into the distance. Suddenly, with his body as the center, a divine light lingered and rendered his visage with solemnity.


    This had not happened for many years. Many people were entering the village this time, but the sky was full of a red glow for the first time.


    He still vaguely remembered the last time when visions like this appeared and who was the person that came. Now, he was already a well-known figure in the world.


    This time, who would it be again!

 Chapter 2087 - A Peculiar Village

    In front of the private school were teenagers. Their gazes were all fixed on the strange phenomenon. Their gazes were pure. In a low voice, someone said, ��It is so beautiful. This is the first time I have seen such a thing.��


    ��Sir, I heard that divine phenomena are miracles that only appear when a person of great destiny enters the village. Do you know who has arrived?�� a youth asked.


    The teacher of the private school retracted his gaze as he looked at the group of youths. He smiled as he shook his head and said, ��I do not know yet. After the person enters the village, won��t we all know?��


    The youths all smiled. They knew that their teacher was joking with them.


    ��Sir, may we go to the entrance of the village to take a look?�� someone suggested.


    ��Hmm, I also want to go take a look.�� The youths were quite young; they were at the age where they were full of curiosity. One by one, they got up. Strange light flowed over their bodies. In an instant, divine light flowed in the space. It was dazzling beyond comparison. The maple tree in the private school similarly radiated with its most beautiful red maple.


    ��Sit down,�� the elder instructed sternly. The youths immediately whimpered and sat down obediently, their heads lowered. They seemed to be afraid of the elder.


    ��Let��s continue our lesson,�� the elder said nonchalantly as though nothing had happened at all. It was as though he had not seen the phenomenon in the village. When the youths saw the teacher acting this way, they hung their heads in disappointment and sat there obediently. They quickly returned to their routine. Sounds could be heard coming from the private school.


    Outside of the private school, the villagers who heard the sound would look towards the private school. Brilliant golden light shone from there. It was as though countless runes were floating in the sky.


    ��.


    Unlike in the private school, many villagers gathered together in the direction of the entrance.


    Right now, at the entrance of Four Corner Village, there were many figures. Aside from the villagers, there were also cultivators from the outside. It was very easy to differentiate between the two parties.


    Regardless of who they were, the villagers all wore very plain clothes. In the village, there was no extravagant clothing. As for the people from the outside, anyone who could enter Four Corner Village was no ordinary person. Hence, their clothes were very fancy, and they had extraordinary temperaments.


    Therefore, the difference between the two parties was very obvious. Anyone could tell them apart at a glance.


    Finally, a group of people entered the village from an entrance ahead. There were only two of them. One was a handsome youth, while the other was an elder who was following behind him quietly.


    Seeing such a pair, the villagers could roughly guess where they were from. The youth should be from a major force while the elder was his servant.


    For only one person to be accompanying the youth meant that the elder was no ordinary servant. He was definitely an incredible figure.


    Of course, the youth also had very powerful cultivation. With his temperament, he seemed unique as he stood there.


    The youth was not too surprised upon seeing such a crowd. His expression was calm as he swept a glance over them. He also gazed at the phenomenon in the sky. Seeing this, he seemed to have a faint smile.


    Clearly, he was not unfamiliar with Four Corner Village. At least before he came here, he already knew much about this place.


    ��He has also come,�� the outsiders around said as they revealed strange expressions when they saw the youth. However, they returned to normal immediately. The competition was very fierce. The people who arrived were more and more outstanding. Now, even this person had appeared in Four Corner Village.


    No wonder divine phenomena and red maple filled the skies.


    ��Who are you, and where are you from?�� a villager asked. Some outsiders knew who this youth was, but the villagers did not.


    ��My surname is Lu. I am from the Upper Nine Heavens,�� the youth said. The members of Four Corner Village revealed strange expressions when they heard him say this.


    His surname is Lu.


    He was from the Upper Nine Heavens.


    In the Shangqing Domain, a cultivator who dared claimed that his surname was Lu in such a tone could only come from one clan. The other party was not only from the Upper Nine Heavens of the Shangqing Domain. He was from the Upper Third Heaven.


    The villagers did not know much about the outside world. However, they were very familiar with the giant level forces of the Shangqing Domain. They were closely related to the villagers.


    ��Would you be willing to be a guest at my place?�� a villager came forward and asked.


    Many other villagers also extended their invitations. They seemed to hope that the youth would head over to their homes.


    However, the youth did not answer. Although many people invited him to do so, he still stood there quietly, seemingly waiting for something.


    At that moment, a person walked out of the crowd. This person similarly appeared very ordinary. He looked at the youth and said, ��My surname is Fang. I have a son who is now attending the private school in the village. If we were to have a guest at home, it would certainly liven up the place.��


    The youth looked at the other party. Their eyes met, and the youth replied with a smile, ��Then, I am sorry for intruding.��


    ��Please, this way,�� the other party invited as he gestured with his hand. Then, the few of them left together.


    ��There is someone else.�� After they left, the crowd saw another group of silhouettes emerge. This time, the leader was a woman. She was exceptionally beautiful and extremely enchanting.


    ��An Ruosu.�� Someone else recognized this woman when she appeared. She was also an extraordinary figure.


    Just like before, many people invited her to their homes, but this woman also made the same decision.


    Many of the villagers began to disperse. However, many outsiders remained standing there. They looked at the figures as they left. Someone said, ��The two of them have come. It is going to be exciting this time.��


    ��This will make it interesting,�� a group of people said as they left. Red maple leaves were still in full bloom, as enchanting as fire. The members of Four Corner Village were discussing who these red maples had bloomed for.


    Was it for the extraordinary youth from Upper Third Heaven, or An Ruosu, who was a peerless beauty?


    Not long after they left, another group of people appeared from the Glimmer of Sky and stood at the entrance of the village. It was Ye Futian��s group.


    Nearby, there were still a number of people around. They looked over in the direction of Ye Futian��s group. They could not help but reveal strange looks. There were actually even more people arriving. This group seemed to have quite a number of members.


    Ye Futian similarly sized up this mountain village. He looked up. Red maple covered the sky. The laws that governed this entire world seemed to be different from the outside world.


    This is a small, independent world, Ye Futian thought to himself. From the outside world, one could not see Four Corner Village at all. Only by passing through the Glimmer of Sky could one reach this place. It was truly a mysterious land.


    Legend also has it that Donghuang the Great once cultivated in Four Corner Village.


    At that moment, someone walked over with their hands behind their back. He looked at Ye Futian��s group and asked, ��Who are you, and where are you from?��


    ��I am Ye Futian from the Donghua Domain,�� Ye Futian answered. The other party looked at him with a bizarre expression. Ye Futian was actually a person from beyond the domain. He seemed to have come here to obtain fateful encounters. However, how could such things be so easily obtained?


    He did not say anything and turned to leave. After the others heard what Ye Futian said, they also did not pay much attention to him and turned to leave. They thought that this group was here for the same reason as the two previous individuals, but it seems that they were thinking too much.

 Chapter 2088 - Ling

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian could not make sense of the situation. He walked forwards quietly. The divine phenomenon caused the village sky to be covered with red maple leaves. It made this place feel as though it was beyond this world. It was very beautiful.


    In the streets, figures would appear from time to time and size him up curiously. However, they would then turn and leave.


    Ye Futian recalled what Li Changsheng told him. He had a basic impression of the Four Corner Village. He also knew that outsiders would enter Four Corner Village every now and then to seek the Way. These outsiders were also not ordinary figures.


    The Glimmer of Sky was not ordinary either. Li Changsheng said that it was rumored that only those with great destinies could pass through the Glimmer of Sky and enter the Four Corner Village.


    However, Ye Futian did not have too strong a reaction to this. He even suspected that Li Changsheng might have been misinformed or that the rumors had been exaggerated.


    After all, his entire group was here. It was as simple as climbing a flight of stairs. They walked up the Glimmer of Sky without sensing any pressure.


    ��Where are we headed next?�� Xia Qingyuan asked gently beside him.


    ��Elder Brother said that in order to enter the village, we need the villagers to accept us in. However, from the looks of it now, there does not seem to be anyone here to welcome us,�� Ye Futian replied in a low voice. The villagers were the masters of Four Corner Village. Here, outsiders needed to obey the rules. Even combat was absolutely forbidden in the village.


    ��Just now, when we entered the village, someone approached us. They must dislike us because we are from the Donghua Domain. No one is willing to take us in,�� Chen Yi mumbled. Ye Futian looked at him and asked, ��Are you familiar with the laws of the village?��


    ��I have heard some things,�� Chen Yi responded. Ye Futian revealed a strange expression. This fellow truly did not reveal his secrets. He actually knew so much about the village. Even now, Ye Futian felt that Chen Yi was mysterious. However, Chen Yi indeed treated him well. He was also too lazy to dig up Chen Yi��s secrets, allowing Chen Yi to maintain his mysterious side.


    ��Would you mind sharing what you know?�� Ye Futian said.


    Chen Yi told Ye Futian, ��Four Corner Village is a mysterious place. It is a world on its own. Rumors claim that it possesses a Divine Relic and that there are outstanding people here. There are many cultivators with exceptional talents here. They were born with Bodies of Way. Some outsiders claimed that the gods blessed Four Corner Village. Like the ancestors in ancient times, anyone who awakened their Spirit Roots was a natural cultivator. Once they left this place, they would become extraordinary figures in the outside world. Hence, many major figures came from the village.��


    This caused Ye Futian to reveal a strange look. Top forces possessed divine items that could aid cultivators in forging flawless Divine Wheels of the Great Path. However, from what Chen Yi was saying, it was completely different for the village. This place was like the world before the collapse of the Great Path. It was a holy land blessed by the grace of the gods. Once one awakened to their talent, they would naturally be born with Bodies of Way and Spirit Roots.


    This might mean that they had similar cultivation with Ye Futian and were also people born with flawless Great Paths.


    ��However, it is both a blessing and a curse,�� Chen Yi continued explaining. ��Although the village is blessed, it is rare to come across someone who can truly awaken their talents. Many people also died early on in their cultivation journey. Many of them do not manage to live more than a few decades. Rumor has it that their bodies exploded while they were cultivating. Hence, Four Corner Village gradually came up with the rule that aside from an extremely select few, other people are not allowed to cultivate. The others will live ordinary lives. Therefore, there are many ordinary people in the village without cultivation.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly. He also noticed this issue. Most of the villagers were extremely ordinary people. It was as though they were villagers in an extremely rural area. The name ��Four Corner Village�� was indeed appropriate for this place.


    It might be that the place was named ��Four Corner Village�� precisely due to this deeper meaning to its name.


    That meant that the prohibition established by Donghuang the Great intended to protect the villagers.


    ��If that is the cause, what Way are we seeking in the village?�� Ye Futian inquired.


    ��This is also my first time here,�� said Chen Yi with a smile as he shrugged his shoulders. Ye Futian did not know whether he did not want to reveal this, or he truly did not know.


    At that moment, on the stone streets ahead, there was a young girl with a ponytail. She hopped over towards them. Ye Futian looked ahead and saw that the young girl was around her early teens. She was not considered an absolute beauty, but her face was pleasing to look at. She wore very simple clothes that were surprisingly clean. Her eyes were especially intelligent.


    She walked up to Ye Futian and stopped not far from him. Her clear eyes sized up Ye Futian��s group. She seemed curious about them.


    As she looked at Ye Futian, she glanced over at Xia Qingyuan, who was standing to the side. Her gaze leapt between the two of them. She then mumbled, ��They are so good-looking.��


    Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan��s appearances did not need to be mentioned; no villager could compare with them. However, there were many outstanding figures among the outsiders. For instance, the two parties who arrived before Ye Futian��s group also stood out from the crowd.


    ��Little sister, do you need anything?�� Xia Qingyuan asked gently. This little girl was very pleasing to look at. She was lively and full of vigor.


    ��No one wants to take all of you in?�� the young maiden asked in a low voice. Children said what they like, but her words stunned Ye Futian��s group. They then shook their heads and smiled bitterly.


    They appeared pathetic.


    ��Hmm,�� Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. ��That seems to be the case.��


    The villagers appeared to be exceptionally honest, completely different from the people in the outside world.


    ��Then, all of you can come to my place,�� the young maiden said with a smile. Ye Futian nodded his head as he looked at the sincere smile of the other party and said, ��Alright. Will your family members allow us in?��


    ��My grandfather will certainly agree,�� the young girl said innocently with a smile.


    ��Then, what about your parents?�� Ye Futian continued asking.


    The sparkle in the young maiden��s eyes seemed to dim a little when she heard Ye Futian say this. However, she immediately returned to normal and answered, ��I don��t have parents.��


    Ye Futian was stunned. As he peered into the innocent eyes of the little girl, he fell silent for a while.


    ��Let��s go then,�� said the young maiden. She did not seem to mind. She led the way ahead and said, ��My name is Ma Ling. The villagers call me Ling.��


    ��Ling,�� Ye Futian muttered to himself.


    ��Yup,�� the little girl responded. She turned around and smiled at Ye Futian and the others as she said, ��I cannot remember my parents. From what my grandfather told me, not long after I was born, they cultivated in secret without telling Master. Something happened after that, and now, only Grandfather and I are left.��


    ��Master?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Hmm,�� Ling answered as she nodded her head. ��Master is Master. Everyone in the village listens to him. If Master says someone can cultivate, that person can cultivate. If he says they can��t, they can��t. Master once told my parents that they couldn��t cultivate, but they did not listen. That is why Grandfather told me to listen to what the Master says and not cultivate.��


    When Ye Futian heard her say this, he immediately understood. That meant that Ling was one of the villagers who could not cultivate, just like Chen Yi mentioned before. It appeared that things were just as Chen Yi described them to be. It was both a blessing and a curse. Four Corner Village was blessed by the grace of the gods. Yet, it was also cursed that only a select few could cultivate.


    As for the Master, who Ling referred to, he was most likely an extraordinary figure.

 Chapter 2089 - Coincidence?

    Chapter 2089: Coincidence?


    Ye Futian followed Ling to where she lived, which was a simple small courtyard.


    Out in the yard, an old man sat quietly on a chair, who seemed to be quite leisurely and at ease.


    ��Grandpa!�� Ling called out while she was still a way off. The old man looked in their direction, assessing Ye Futian and those who were following behind Ling. Ye Futian saw the old man but did not detect any aura from him, only that he appeared ancient!


    ��We have guests.��


    He slowly stood up from his seat, crouching slightly. He did not appear to be particularly mobile. Those eyes looked a little muddy as he looked in Ye Futian��s direction.


    ��Please sit, Grandfather,�� Ye Futian stepped forward and said. There were many ordinary folks in the village, so this old man must be one as well. The old man looked around 80, but Ye Futian himself was not much younger in reality. Strictly speaking, it was not appropriate for him to address the man as ��grandfather,�� but this was his way of showing respect.


    If it were based strictly on actual age, perhaps, it would be more appropriate to call him ��older brother.��


    But in the world of cultivation, age was the most unimportant factor, and no one cared much about it.


    ��I��m fine.�� Seeing Ye Futian being courteous, the old man waved his hand. ��Please come in and sit down.��


    ��Thank you, elder,�� replied Ye Futian.


    ��Just call me ��Old Ma,���� the old man said with a smile, leading Ye Futian and the others inside the house. Ye Futian would temporarily settle down here.


    The place where Ye Futian settled down seemed quiet, which only juxtaposed the liveliness of the two parties that arrived before him. In addition, more people were entering the Four Corner Village after them every day.


    Gradually, the Four Corner Village became quite high-spirited. After Ye Futian got acquainted with Old Ma and Little Ling, he decided to walk around the village to orient himself with its layout.


    Old Ma asked Little Ling to give Ye Futian a tour of the village. As they walked on the bluestone streets inside Four Corner Village, he could see that even though the village was more lively than usual, it was still far from the prosperity most major cities had to offer.


    However, although the Four Corner Village did not have majestic landscapes, its general disposition was one of exquisite elegance. A clear river sat along the cobblestoned streets, while small boats would occasionally sail on the river. Sometimes an acquaintance or two would stop and greet Little Ling, which was always met with an enthusiastic response from her.


    When they walked onto a bridge, a chubby middle-aged man came from the opposite direction and said, ��Little Ling.��


    ��Uncle Zhong,�� Little Ling responded. With a smile on his face, the man glanced at Ye Futian and the others next to Little Ling and asked, ��Guests?��


    ��Well, this is Uncle Ye,�� Little Ling nodded.


    ��From where?�� the man inquired further.


    ��From very far away. Uncle Ye said it was the Donghua Domain.�� Little Ling didn��t actually know where that was; she didn��t have a clear idea about many things.


    The chubby man gave an assessing look at Ye Futian and the others and continued, ��Look good, but maybe not so useful. Did Old Ma pick?��


    ��Grandpa asked me to go and see. That��s how I met Uncle Ye and the others,�� replied Little Ling.


    ��Old Ma is way too careless,�� the chubby man said with some disbelief. ��Each house has only one quota, and you guys gave it away so easily.��


    He shook his head as he walked on by. When he passed Ye Futian, he was still mumbling, ��After all, they just don��t know what��s good for them. Too bad now that Fang family has got their boy and the cooperation of the Lu family; they will probably have the best chance. Although you don��t understand, there was a chance to choose someone known in our Shangqing Domain. No need to waste it on these people.��


    He was not afraid to anger Ye Futian and the others. In this Four Corner Village, outsiders were absolutely forbidden to do anything violent. No one had dared to break this rule in all these years; it was an order from Donghuang the Great himself.


    Furthermore, he believed that even if someone dared to violate the rule and did something in this village, the violators would not be able to get out of the village alive, even without Donghuang the Great lifting his little finger.


    ��Uncle Ye, don��t mind him.�� After the chubby man left, Little Ling raised her head, her clear eyes filled with innocence.


    ��I won��t.�� Ye Futian smiled and put a hand on Little Ling��s shoulder, saying, ��Let��s continue our walk.��


    ��Good.�� Little Ling nodded with a smile as she forged forward.


    This village was not that big, nor was it small. Ye Futian and the others walked for quite a while before they came to a grand mansion. Someone shouted, ��Ling.��


    Little Ling turned around and saw that the person calling her was a teenager dressed neatly, which, in this village, was considered a luxury. He had a smile on his face and possessed an extraordinary temperament. There was even a faint wisp of aura coming out of him, indicating that he was a cultivator.


    What��s more surprising was that at such a tender age, his cultivation was considerable.


    Ye Futian understood that those in the Four Corner Village were either unable to cultivate, or if they could, they would be someone with extraordinary talent. This young man was clearly someone gifted in cultivation.


    ��Brother Fang Cun!�� Little Ling called out. Her voice was a little tentative. She seemed a little self-conscious in front of the boy.


    The boy was named Fang Cun, and his eyes showed some contempt. He glanced at Ye Futian and the others and said, ��Little Ling, come over here for a second.��


    Little Ling bowed her head as she walked next to his side, and she heard Fang Cun say to her, ��There are so many people who have entered the village recently, and you guys are too careless in picking them up. Was this your grandfather��s idea?��


    Little Ling still hung her head as Fang Cun pulled her around and walked inside the house. Upon entering the house, Little Ling felt a faint sense of coercion and saw a middle-aged man stood quietly in front, looking at them.


    There were quite a few people behind the middle-aged man, and next to him, there was an extraordinary young man.


    ��Grandpa Fang.�� Little Ling said. The Fang family was different from theirs. The Fang family was well known in the Four Corner Village because they had produced some powerful characters. Now their descendant, Fang Cun, was also extremely talented. He was studying at the private study with the teacher; he was a favorite.


    Moreover, Little Ling had heard from the villagers that Fang Cun��s father was now mighty in the outside world. But as for the specifics, it was not something that she could have known.


    The Fang family could pick anyone who entered the village, and no one would refuse their invitation.


    ��Mmm.�� The middle-aged man nodded slightly and looked at Little Ling, saying, ��Little Ling, did your grandfather invite those people?��


    ��I guess so. Grandpa heard that someone came to the village, so he asked me to check it out, and if there was an opportunity, to invite these people to our house,�� Little Ling replied.


    The middle-aged man nodded slightly and said, ��Very well, you may go.��


    ��Sure thing, Grandpa Fang.�� After Little Ling left, Fang Cun looked at her, walking away as he asked the middle-aged man, ��Grandpa, why do you ask Little Ling these things?��


    The middle-aged man did not respond. He looked at the young man next to him and heard the young man whisper, ��I heard that this man came a long way from the Donghua Domain. He may have come to Four Corner Village to try his luck. I heard that because he had entered the village at the same time as the ones named ��Lu�� and ��An,�� so he was kind of overlooked.��


    ��Yes, because of the people in front, they were completely passed over,�� the middle-aged man next to him nodded.


    This surprised the young man, and he asked, ��What do you mean?��


    The neglect they referred to seemed to be somewhat different in meaning.


    ��Do you know the rules of the passage way?�� the middle-aged man asked.


    ��Yes, those without great luck may not enter,�� the young man responded.


    The middle-aged man nodded. ��I have observed these so-called people of great luck over the years. Generally speaking, cultivators with a perfect Great Path may enter the passageway, while those who do not will find it difficult to get in, having a very slim chance of doing so.��


    When the young man heard his words, he was contemplating as his eyes showed some disturbance, as if he had thought of something.


    ��How many people in the group outside possessed the perfect Great Path?�� The middle-aged man continued, ��If all of them were, then it would be kind of alarming. There are so many cultivators with perfect Great Path. It would be difficult for the top forces of the Shangqing Domain to exert their powers.��


    ��That��s not possible,�� the young man murmured.


    ��If not, then it��s even more concerning,�� said the middle-aged man, his eyes narrowed slightly. The young man looked at him and heard the middle-aged man continued, ��Someone with enough luck can shelter the others to enter into the village without being felt by the others. If one man took them into the village, that meant that one man��s luck was extremely strong. It��s not clear yet who caused the phenomenon of the blooming red maples.��


    The young man next to him suddenly looked very solemn. Before, everyone believed that it was caused by one of two men, or more precisely, that young man named Lu. After all, he had a greater reputation in the outside world; his talent was said to be extraordinary.


    But listening to what the middle-aged man said, it might be possible that it was not because of that person or even An Ruosu, but another previously unknown person.


    ��Old Ma isn��t old at all.�� The middle-aged man squinted his eyes. Was this all a coincidence?

 Chapter 2090 - Disputes Between Youths

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian continued following Little Ling to stroll around Four Corner Village. They came to a street where the houses were grouped densely together. This was Four Corner Street, which was the center of Four Corner Village.


    They met many people here. There were villagers as well as outside visitors.


    ��None of these people from the outside seemed to be simple characters,�� Beigong Ao muttered.


    ��Those who could enter the Four Corner Village are all people with great luck. As far as I know, only those cultivators with perfect Great Path may have such luck. Therefore, the cultivators we see in Four Corner Village are most likely on the same level as Ling He, Yan Dongyang, Goddess Taihua, Jiang Yueli, and Qin Qing. Naturally, all of them are more than meets the eye,�� Chen Yi said lazily.


    Beigong Ao nodded, but he was still a little confused, asking, ��Then, how did I get in?��


    ��How should I know?�� Chen Yi shrugged. ��Maybe you are also a person of great luck.��


    Beigong Ao glanced at Ye Futian. Since he had gotten to know Ye Futian, he had indeed gone through some great changes. Strictly speaking, he indeed had some great luck.


    ��Uncle Ye, I will take you guys to the private study,�� Ling said.


    ��Where is that?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��The place where the teacher teaches. It is a pity that I can��t go there to study.�� Ling��s eyes dimmed a little. Ye Futian was a little curious about this teacher already, so he didn��t oppose going to see him.


    They walked along Four Corner Street until they came to the end, where a wall appeared. In Ye Futian��s eyes, this wall seemed to be shining with a strange light, glittering with gold.


    At the other end of the wall, the voice of preaching could be heard faintly. Ye Futian perceived an unusual aura. He raised his eyes and was able to see through everything with his divine eyes. He saw golden characters appeared in the sky above. It was as if every character had the deafening divine sound of the Great Path within it.


    ��This����


    Ye Futian��s eyes revealed his shock. This was the first time he had seen such a marvelous sight. Not only him, but the cultivators around him all felt something unusual. Their eyes lit up, slightly surprised.


    Who was this teacher teaching in the private study?


    ��The teacher must be giving some great lecture.�� Ling looked forward enviously. At this moment, the rays of light gradually dissipated, and the voice inside stopped, followed by some whispers.


    After a few moments, some people started walking out from both sides of the wall. They were a group of youths, some older and some younger. The youngest may have only been seven or eight. It wasn��t a big group, but these young people were probably the ones who possessed the greatest luck of all in Four Corner Village.


    Ling had said that she was not allowed to cultivate, and even if she was allowed to cultivate, it might cause trouble later on down the road. This meant that these were all people who had the ability to cultivate. Moreover, they were born with the hidden Great Path and were different from the others. As long as they continued to cultivate, they would all become extraordinary figures in the future.


    Ye Futian also discovered an interesting phenomenon. The villagers in Four Corner Village were easy to identify. Most of them dressed plainly in humble clothing, while a few in this group dressed lavishly and appeared different from the others.


    It seemed that some in Four Corner Village had close contact with the outside world. Otherwise, there would not have been such luxurious clothing inside the village. It stood to reason that the villagers inside Four Corner Village had different backgrounds, as proven before by the exchange Ye Futian had with the Fang family.


    ��Ling.�� A youth of about 12 or 13 was walking toward them. The boy had an honest but childish face, and he was quite large for his age. Although he was still young, one could see how burly the boy would become. For this reason, he looked more mature than the rest and would probably grow up to be a big guy.


    Four Corner Village itself wasn��t extensive, so most people in the village knew each other well.


    ��Brother Tie Tou,�� Little Ling called out with a smile. The young man that was called ��Tie Tou�� scratched his head, looking particularly good-natured.


    ��Tie Tou, do you get shy when you see little sister Ling?�� the teenage boy next to him joked. These young guys were tender in age but quite precocious.


    Tie Tou suddenly blushed as they kidded him and said to Little Ling, ��Ling, are they the guests of your house?��


    ��Mmm.�� Little Ling nodded and introduced, ��This is Uncle Ye and Sister Xia.��


    ��Hello, Uncle Ye,�� Tie Tou said. He looked at Xia Qingyuan and asked, ��Is Sister Xia a goddess?��


    Xia Qingyuan was stunned for a moment but then smiled softly and said, ��Not at all.��


    ��How could someone not a goddess be this pretty?�� Tie Tou scratched his head and made all the other teenagers laugh.


    1


    ��Dumb*ss.��


    A nicely dressed young boy of the same age spoke up now, which attracted the attention of many. The youth was blessed with good looks, and at a young age, he had a majestic temperament that was rarely seen.


    ��You are not?�� The boy named Tie Tou glared at the other youth.


    The youth with the majestic temperament didn��t pay any attention to anyone else but Ye Futian and Xia Qingyuan. Although he was young, he didn��t have the slightest fear of strangers, nor was he nervous at all. One could even say that he was scrutinizing Ye Futian and his companions. From this, one could see the arrogance and defiance of the youth.


    ��My brother said that many cultivators from the outside are like this; the women don��t have to be goddesses to be pretty.�� The boy looked at them and continued, ��As far as I know, there were two other groups of people that entered the village before them, and one of them was the genius talent Lu Qixing of the Lu family from the Three Layer Continent in the Shangqing Domain, and the other one was An Ruosu. We saw the red maples blooming when we were in the study, and y��all know who had invited those two to their house. No one cared about these people when they entered the village, and that��s why they went to Old Ma��s house. So what��s the big deal?��


    The youth who spoke seemed rather keen. Ling hung her head, and though she felt she was being wronged, what the boy said was the truth, so she dared not argue. The boy��s family held extraordinary status in Four Corner Village and was a favorite of the teacher.


    In front of the other person, she appeared quite self-conscious.


    ��I only know that teacher said all visitors who came to Four Corner Village are guests from far away, not at all the buckets of trash that you are talking about,�� Tie Tou cursed in a low voice, looking displeased. The youth turned around slowly as he stared at Tie Tou, with an exceptionally sharp look in his eyes.


    ��I��m not afraid of you if you want to fight.�� Tie Tou took a step forward. Even though he was young, there was a curious light that flowed upon his body. Like a wild beast, there was an oppressive force that appeared around him.


    Those from outside of Four Corner Village were not allowed to fight, but there was no such ban being placed on villagers.


    ��Would a blind blacksmith find it fit to fight with me?�� The young man responded carelessly, appeared nonchalant, and he didn��t seem to care much about Tie Tou at all.


    ��You���� Tie Tou felt a sudden rage when he heard what the other had to say. He growled like a tiger. However, at this moment, there were two more teenagers now stood behind the handsome boy, staring at him with a sneer.


    ��Enough.�� A voice came from behind the wall, and though Tie Tou was still angry, he quieted down when he heard this voice. He looked in the direction of the wall and said, ��Sir, Muyun is being a jerk.��


    ��Muyun���� The voice inside spoke again, but before he could finish, Muyun bowed slightly towards the wall, saying, ��Sir, Muyun misspoke, please forgive me.��


    ��Don��t do it again,�� said the teacher as Muyun nodded. He gave Tie Tou one last glance and turned to leave. Clearly, he didn��t really think that he did anything wrong. It was only because the teacher had spoken that he admitted his wrongdoing.


    Furthermore, he only apologized to the teacher, not to Tie Tou.


    Ye Futian had been watching quietly. Obviously, he would not pay much attention to what these youngsters had said. But, he was a little surprised by the attitude of the teacher. The teacher should be someone with high standards, and his words should have great authority. However, he didn��t criticize the boy��s rudeness much but merely chastised him casually. Was this the attitude he had toward the kids from Four Corner Village?


    ��Ling, take Uncle Ye to my house for a visit,�� Tie Tou said to Little Ling.


    Little Ling raised her head to looked at Ye Futian. It was then that Ye Futian took his eyes off the wall and smiled at her, and nodded. ��Sounds good.��


    As they spoke, they turned to leave and headed towards the other side of Four Corner Street.


    Not long after, they came to a blacksmith��s shop and saw a shirtless man with messy hair forging inside the shop. The sound of iron being forged could be heard. The man did not stop even when Ye Futian and the others came over, and the sound of iron being struck was rhythmic. Upon listening more closely, the interval between each hammer strike was precise each time, not missing a beat.


    After a few moments, and only when the man was finished did he stop. He raised his head in Ye Futian��s direction, and that was when Ye Futian saw his hollow eyes and realized that the man was actually blind.


    Only at this moment did Ye Futian realize how nasty those remarks from Muyun were!

 Chapter 2091 - Insolent Young Man

    The blind man was Tie Tou��s father. Most villagers called him ��Blind Tie.�� He was used to the name and wasn��t offended by it. As a result, his real name had been forgotten.


    ��Tie Tou, are there guests here?�� facing Ye Futian and the others, Blind Tie asked his son.


    ��Dad, it��s Little Ling and her guests. She passed by, and I invited her to come in,�� Tie Tou said to Blind Tie.


    ��Uncle Tie,�� Ling greeted Blind Tie in a silvery voice. She was well acquainted with Blind Tie since her grandfather, Old Ma, visited him occasionally. According to her grandpa, her parents used to be dear friends with Blind Tie. Ling didn��t remember much about her parents, but she was close to Blind Tie, as he treated her very well. She had also been playmates with Tie Tou since childhood.


    ��Oh, it��s Little Ling.�� Blind Tie��s voice became much gentler. He said, ��I haven��t seen you in a while. Is your grandpa in good health?��


    ��Yes, grandpa is well,�� Ling nodded.


    ��That��s good. Old Ma hasn��t come for some days,�� Blind Tie said. ��Come, sit down. Your guests should feel free to have a seat if they don��t mind my shabby house.��


    ��Not at all. We��re sorry for disturbing you,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Any friend of Old Ma is a friend of mine. Unfortunately, I��m blind and can��t attend to you. Please suit yourselves.�� Blind Tie then turned to Tie Tou and said, ��Tie Tou, pour some tea for our guests.��


    ��No need to trouble you. I really like the ironware you forged. Can I look around?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Sure,�� Blind Tie nodded.


    ��Thank you very much.�� Ye Futian walked into the blacksmith shop to check the ironware. He picked up a knife. Although it was only ordinary iron, the knife was perfectly hammered out. The cold glint off its shiny blades flashing a warning.


    Ye Futian pulled a strand of his silver hair and dropped it from above the blade. The hair fluttered down and was immediately cut in half. Ye Futian couldn��t help but exclaim, ��Amazing knife!��


    ��Not a big deal,�� Blind Tie said casually. Ye Futian inspected the same kind of knives placed near the knife he just tested. Much to his surprise, all the knives achieved the same performance.


    ��This is superb craftsmanship,�� Ye Futian expressed his admiration.�� Mr. Tie, how did you manage to forge these knives so perfectly and consistently?��


    ��You can do the same thing after working in a blacksmith shop for decades,�� Blind Tie answered. He was saying that mastery came from experience.


    Ye Futian cracked a smile but didn��t reply. He turned his attention to other weapons. Chen Yi, on the other hand, had been standing not far from Blind Tie. He seemed to be rather curious about him and sized him up and down.


    ��Uncle Tie is the best blacksmith in the village. All the ironware we use is made by Uncle Tie,�� Ling chimed in. Then, she looked at Tie Tou and said, ��Tie Tou, you will be able to help Uncle Tie in the future when you acquire the skills from practice.��


    ��I will.�� Tie Tou smiled fatuously and said, ��Actually, practice is useful for other things too.��


    ��What else can it do?�� Ling asked out of curiosity. Although she had heard of certain things in Four Corner Village, she didn��t understand many of them because of her young age. She wanted to study and cultivate in a private school, but she didn��t really understand its meaning.


    As far as she knew, her parents died as a consequence of cultivation. So she was particularly sensitive about it.


    ��I heard that a good cultivator can fly in the sky, drill into the ground, move the mountains, and fill up seas,�� Tie Tou said with a yearning look on his face.


    ��Then are you going to fly away from the village?�� Little Ling asked.


    ��That��s okay. I will bring you with me.�� Two teenagers were chatting about a subject that they didn��t understand.


    Blind Tie continued to forge the iron. Ye Futian and Chen Yi didn��t have anything else to do, so they said, ��Ling, we have been here for a while. Let��s not disturb Mr. Tie any longer.��


    ��Alright.�� Ling nodded and stood up. ��Uncle Tie, we��ll go back now.��


    ��Oka.,�� Blind Tie nodded and said to Tie Tou, ��Go send Little Ling out.��


    ��Certainly.�� Tie Tou nodded and stood up to lead the way. Even though he was still a teenager, he seemed to be growing into a responsible man already.


    ��Goodbye.�� Ye Futian could tell that Blind Tie wasn��t an enthusiastic host. He followed Tie Tou and Little Ling and left the shop. Walking next to Ye Futian, Chen Yi transmitted his voice directly to him, ��This man is not so simple.��


    ��Why do you say that?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��I believe that practice makes perfect. But do you really think that a blind man can forge that kind of weapons?�� Chen Yi said,�� Besides, although the ironware is nothing but common items, they are absolutely the best. He would be a remarkable armorer if he knew how to cultivate.��


    ��But I can��t detect any trace of cultivation from him.�� Ye Futian actually felt the same way as Chen Yi.


    ��That��s why he is not simple. He might even be at a much higher cultivation level than you and me,�� Chen Yi replied with a smile. They communicated via voice transmission, so other people didn��t hear their conversation.


    Ye Futian seemed to be ruminating about it. The situation in Four Corner Village might be more surprising and complicated than he expected. Even an ordinary blacksmith was so powerful��


    Among the group of teenagers who came out of the private school earlier, the boy named Muyun appeared to have a high status. Tie Tou obviously wasn��t highly respected in the village. But if Tie Tou��s father really was a top-level cultivator like Ye Futian and Chen Yi suspected, how powerful would Muyun and other teenagers�� fathers be?


    Muyun seemed to be insinuating that his older brother was cultivating in Outer Realms. He wouldn��t be so haughty and pompous if his older brother weren��t an extraordinary cultivator.


    While Ye Futian and the others were walking back, several teenagers suddenly popped up in front of them and blocked their path. The ringleader was Muyun, who Ye Futian had seen earlier.


    ��Muyun Shu, what do you want?�� Tie Tou stared at the young man in front of him. Muyun Shu was his full name.


    Muyun was one of the most well-known and influential surnames in Four Corner Village.


    ��The teacher said you made a lot of progress recently. I wonder why a blind blacksmith��s son can gain the teacher��s praise. I��m here to test and see if you deserve his approval,�� Muyun Shu said with a disdainful look.


    The son of the blind blacksmith was commended by the teacher.


    It vexed Muyun Shu.


    Ye Futian looked at the three teenagers in front of them and was surprised that they would pick a fight right here.


    He didn��t like Muyun Shu. He realized that there seemed to be two different types of people in the village. One type of villager lived a quiet and secluded life. Muyun Shu belonged to the other one.


    As he expected, there were conflicts wherever people resided. Even teenagers couldn��t rise above the cliche. He was similar when he was young.


    ��Good,�� Tie Tou took a few steps forward and shielded Ling behind him. The light was glowing from his body as he released a bundle of domineering energy. Ye Futian even faintly sensed a bit of will might from the glowing light.


    Ye Futian was astonished. Tie Tou was still in his teens and couldn��t possibly comprehend the Great Path. The only exception Ye Futian had met was a person with the Divine Fetus of the Great Path.


    There was no way that Tie Tou had understood the Will of the Great Path. So it must be that he was born with this power. Perhaps his innate ability was activated for some special reasons.


    Did it happen in that private school?


    When Ye Futian was outside of the private school before, he saw that the sound inside turned into golden runes like the Divine Music of the Great Path.


    Muyun Shu darted a menacing look at Tie Tou.


    ��Tie Tou, they have more people. Don��t fight with them,�� Ling hurried to say.


    ��Bigmouth. What an annoying orphan,�� Muyun Shu mocked her. Ye Futian frowned in displeasure. It was the second time this boy said such biting words. He was unscrupulous and ill-behaved at such a young age.


    ��Shut up!�� Tie Tou bellowed in a frenzy.


    ��These hooligans,�� Beigong Ao said and stepped forward. Muyun Shu shot him a cold look and warned, ��You don��t have the right to intervene in matters concerning Four Corner Village. Otherwise, you would be a dead man walking.��


    Beigong Ao glared at Muyun Shu with frustration. How could a young man be so insolent?


    At this point, the crowd started to gather around them. Some young men wearing fine clothes were observing them quietly from afar.


    It seemed like a lot of people were watching the drama unfold with great interest.


    ��He is right. Stay out of our business,�� one man said offhandedly.

 Chapter 2092 - Seven Divine Techniques

    The outsiders were also filled with curiosity about the young people in Four Corner Village.


    They might possess extraordinary talents themselves, but so did the young men in Four Corner Village who could cultivate. The number of cultivators who came from Four Corner Village in the Shangqing Domain was relatively small, but all of them had gained considerable fame.


    Among the countless cultivators, one in ten million might come to be a Renhuang. The chance of becoming a prominent cultivator in the Shangqing Domain was infinitesimal. Nevertheless, such a small village had produced several distinguished Renhuangs who were well known in the Shangqing Domain. This was definitely a land of miracles.


    There were plenty of rumors circling about this village. The top forces in the Shangqing Domain all had some connections with Four Corner Village. They had been keeping a close eye on the situation inside the village. Of course, they would like to see what these young men were capable of.


    Muyun Shu, in particular, was from the Muyun family of Four Corner Village. He had an older brother who was a powerful figure in the Outer Realms.


    Outsiders had shown up in all directions on the street. They were all enjoying the exciting sight with an ambiguous smile. After all, it was only a group of teenagers.


    ��I can do it,�� Tie Tou turned around and said to Ye Futian, Beigong Ao, and others. Ye Futian recognized the determination in Tie Tou��s eyes and nodded to him. Beigong Ao also pulled back.


    Ye Futian raised his head and scanned the crowd gathered around them. He immediately noticed that none of them was common folks. These people acted like commoners in the village without raising any attention or suspicion. They didn��t reveal their abilities here, while in fact, they were all renowned cultivators outside.


    Nevertheless, the villagers were not interested in them or impressed by their reputation. Since these people were living in Four Corner Village, they had to follow the rules of the village.


    Muyun Shu himself wasn��t eager to fight. Instead, the two people by his side walked toward Tie Tou. Infuriated, Tie Tou stood in place like a fierce beast. As young as he was, he had formidable energy surging on his body which gave an idea of his strength.


    Buzz!


    The two young men launched the first attack. They rushed toward Tie Tou with all haste like two bolts of lightning. One of them was flashing with silver light, and the other sounded like the howling wind. They reached Tie Tou from both directions at the same time. One person pushed his hand forward while the other made a chopping motion as though he was using his hand as a blade. As they released their power, a faint and grating sound echoed in the air. Their attacks fell upon Tie Tou simultaneously.


    Bang. At this moment, Tie Tou emitted brilliant golden light from his body. As his burly figure became golden and shone brightly, it seemed like the divine light of the Great Path was glowing on him. The attacks from the two young men hit him but only made a crisp sound. He took a few steps back.


    Tie Tou opened his arms and then stamped forward abruptly. Even the stone tiles on the ground cracked. A terrifying golden storm formed around them. With his arms open, Tie Tou rushed forward and smashed the two young men in their chests. The two boys were pushed back immediately and fell hard on the ground. Blood streamed down from the corner of their mouths.


    Bang!


    Tie Tou stamped his foot again. Countless golden rings of light began to wrap around his body from the top and encased him like a shell. The onlookers narrowed their eyes and watched the golden divine light descending from the void above.


    It was the energy of the Great Path.


    He was only a teenager who hadn��t comprehended the power of the Great Path, nor did he understand how to utilize it. Nonetheless, he was born with the energy of the Great Path. Even the cultivators from the top forces felt jealous of his gifts.


    ��Wonderful,�� someone said in a low voice. They had become immensely interested in a brawl between some teenagers. Four Corner Village surely deserved its reputation.


    They started to understand why the cultivators who came from Four Corner Village could advance so fast.


    The villagers were blessed by the Great Path yet were also cursed by it. Few of them truly reached the pinnacle in the end.


    ��Come on!�� Tie Tou glared at Muyun Shu in front of him and shouted.


    Muyun Shu stood still and stared at Tie Tou, his eyes filled with impudence and arrogance. Then, he walked over to Tie Tou, step by step. Looking at the golden rings of light coming from the void above, he thought to himself, ��I really underestimated Tie Tou. He has made quite some progress indeed. No wonder the teacher praised him.��


    Buzz!


    Muyun Shu also gave off a brilliant golden light. The more frightening thing was that a magnificent pattern appeared behind Muyun Shu and started to display scary spectacles.


    It was a Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird. Each of its feathers looked like a dazzling divine sword. The Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird spread its wings as though it was hovering and soaring in the pattern. There were other big demon beasts as well �� Kylin, Taotie, demonic dragon, and phoenix. But all the big demon beasts were slaughtered and annihilated wherever the Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird flew by as though it was the king of all the demonic beasts.


    ��It��s the Picture of the Domineering Golden Peng Bird.�� Everyone��s eyes were glued to the scene. The Muyun family had the Life Spirit of the Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird and could form the horrifying Picture of the Domineering Golden Peng Bird by birth. The cultivator from the Muyun family living in the Outer Realms had killed many of his peers on the strength of that.


    Rumor had it that there were seven Supreme Divine Techniques hidden in the Divine Relic in Four Corner Village. One of them owned the Muyun family. Three were each owned by three different families. One was lost outside and taken by a top force in the Outer Realms. And the last two were still unknown to the world so far.


    It was also why cultivators from all around the Shangqing Domain came to Four Corner Village ceaselessly over the years. On top of that, the visitors were all remarkable geniuses from top forces. Ordinary folks didn��t even have a chance to come here.


    A young man like Muyun Shu could already summon such an extraordinary phenomenon. It was indeed a natural gift that made people envy.


    Buzz! A whirlwind abruptly swept this area. Two feathered wings became visible behind Muyun Shu as though he had transformed into a young Golden-Winged Peng Bird. Flapping his wings, Muyun Shu vanished into thin air.


    Tie Tou had a serious look on his face. He certainly knew how powerful Muyun Shu was. Muyun Shu was one of the best students of the teacher. Moreover, the Muyun family enjoyed a much higher status in Four Corner Village than his. That was why Muyun Shu was so haughty and insolent.


    Bang! Tie Tou stamped the ground and smashed the stone tiles. He charged forward and raised his arm to throw a punch. However, a flash of golden divine light appeared, and the young Golden-Winged Peng Bird popped up in the sky above. Muyun Shu��s body hovered in midair. He lowered his head and looked down at Tie Tou��s figure below, said, ��You��re too slow.��


    Buzz!


    Before his voice away, he dove down, drawing a golden arc with his body. Tie Tou looked up and threw another forceful punch at him. Nevertheless, he felt like he only hit the void. The next moment, Muyun Shu��s golden wings slashed at Tie Tou. With a scraping sound, Tie Tou felt a sharp pain and was flung away.


    He fell on the ground, and the rings of golden light wrapped around his body were torn apart. He had a bad gash on his back that kept bleeding. Clenching his teeth, Tie Tou bore the pain and didn��t say a word.


    ��Tie Tou!�� Little Ling rushed over to him and helped him up. Tie Tou��s bloodshot eyes were fixed on Muyun Shu, who was still hovering in midair. Muyun Shu spread his wings open like a young, arrogant war god.


    Ye Futian didn��t intercede and had been watching them quietly. He witnessed what Muyun Shu was capable of and began to understand why he was so conceited. The young man certainly had his reason to feel good about himself. Judging by Muyun Shu��s performance just now, he was definitely one of the best cultivators of his age in the entire Divine Prefecture, let alone the small Four Corner Village. The top forces would fight hard for a genius like him.


    Even so, Ye Futian detested Muyun Shu��s character. The young man didn��t even show any mercy to his homeboy. Ye Futian had no doubt that Muyun Shu would use lethal force if allowed.


    ��You know the result now. That��s enough,�� said Ye Futian.


    Muyun Shu turned his head and darted a disdainful look at Ye Futian. Then he turned back to Tie Tou and spoke, ��You have to ask him. Tie Tou. I will let you off if you make way for me whenever you see me in the future.��


    ��In your dream!�� Tie Tou stood up, his eyes blazing. Ye Futian stepped forward, but someone said, ��It��s none of your business. You should stay out of Four Corner Village��s affairs.��


    Ye Futian glanced at the man speaking. He was obviously an outsider as well.


    Ye Futian didn��t care and kept going forward. He went to Tie Tou��s side and said to Muyun Shu, ��You��re schoolmates with each other. A sparring session is enough.��


    ��F*ck off!�� Muyun Shu scoffed at Ye Futian in a contemptuous tone.


    ��Mind your own business,�� someone else warned Ye Futian. Chen Yi surveyed the crowd and found this place more and more interesting.


    ��Uncle Ye, I can still fight.�� Tie Tou��s eyes were tinged with blood. He stepped forward and glared at Muyun Shu. ��Don��t think too highly of yourself.��


    Then, he unleashed even more intense energy from his body. Beams of frightening golden divine light shone brilliantly.


    ��Tie Tou.��


    At this moment, a voice interrupted him. A blind man walked over to them from afar. It was Blind Tie, the owner of the blacksmith shop.


    ��Dad.�� Tie Tou looked in the direction of the voice.


    ��Come back with me,�� said Blind Tie. Tie Tou shot a look at Muyun Shu, unwilling to give up. However, he had no choice since his father was standing next to him. He lowered his head and said to Little Ling, ��Little Ling, I��m going back now.��


    ��Okay.�� Little Ling nodded. Tie Tou walked toward his father.


    Blind Tie turned around and left while Tie Tou quietly followed behind. Muyun Shu looked at them and said, ��It��s not over yet.��


    Blind Tie stopped and turned around to face Muyun Shu. Muyun Shu had a strange feeling that he was being stared at by a fierce beast, even though it was a blind man that couldn��t actually see. To his surprise, he was ill at ease as fear rose in him.


    ��Let��s go.�� Blind Tie turned back and left with Tie Tou. Muyun Shu didn��t stop them this time. He just stared at their receding figures with his frosty eyes.

 Chapter 2093 - Inquiry

    Ye Futian gazed at Tie Tou and Blind Tie��s receding figures with a thoughtful look.


    He caught a trace of energy coming from Bling Tie in the short moment just now. That kind of energy made Muyun Shu, an arrogant teenager, feel a thrill of fear. That was why he backed down.


    Just as Ye Futian and Chen Yi expected, Blind Tie was not an average blacksmith.


    On top of that, Muyun Shu probably knew about it.


    Although Muyun Shu was still a young man, he was not a simpleminded boy. Judging from his usual insolent and haughty attitude and how he asked Tie Tou to get lost before, it was strange that he didn��t dare to block Blind Tie��s way.


    With Muyun Shu��s temperament, he was unlikely to let Blind Tie off easily if Blind Tie was only an ordinary blind man.


    Moreover, did Tie Tou attempt to release his Life Spirit in the end?


    Tie Tou controlled himself and held back his power because of Blind Tie��s arrival. But he didn��t seem ordinary either.


    Many people shifted their attention to Ye Futian after Blind Tie and Tie Tou were gone. Muyun Shu glanced at Ye Futian. His eyes were still filled with self-assured hubris and contempt. Although Muyun Shu was surprisingly talented, Ye Futian was not pleased with the young man��s attitude.


    ��It��s best for you to leave the village as soon as possible.�� Muyun Shu didn��t show much fondness toward Ye Futian. He warned him with a cold stare.


    ��Why is that?�� Ye Futian looked at Muyun Shu and asked.


    ��There is no why; I��m only offering my advice. It��s up to you whether you listen or not.�� Then, Muyun Shu turned around and walked toward a group of people who were scrutinizing Ye Futian and Little Ling as though they were meddling outsiders who didn��t belong here.


    ��Let��s go.�� Ye Futian looked at Little Ling, who was standing next to him, and reached his hand out to her.


    The situation around them seemed to have scared Little Ling a bit. She looked nervous and anxious. Upon seeing Ye Futian��s hand, she raised her head to look at him. The gentle smile on Ye Futian��s face brought her some peace. She placed her hand in Ye Futian��s palm.


    Ye Futian beamed and started walking while holding her hand. Little Ling also cracked a smile. The wide grin on Ye Futian��s face seemed to be contagious. It calmed her down and even helped her overcome her stress and anxiety.


    Although they were surrounded by plenty of people, none of the onlookers stopped Ye Futian and the others from leaving. What happened here today was a squabble between teenagers, which had nothing to do with Ye Futian. Furthermore, outsiders were not allowed to pick a fight inside the village. Any visitor, regardless of their cultivation level, had to behave themselves in the village.


    The crowd slowly dispersed after Ye Futian and Little Ling left. No one stayed around since the drama was over already.


    Ye Futian didn��t pay much attention to others. Along with Little Ling, he quietly walked on the stone-paved path in the village. At this point, he certainly realized that Four Corner Village was not an ordinary place. None of the young men studying in the private school was an average teenager, let one Muyun Shu, who was an extremely talented boy.


    On top of that, Blind Tie was an exceptional man as well. Even Tie Tou was hiding some secrets.


    The voice of the teacher in the private school was like the Divine Music of the Great Path. Golden runes floated in midair when he was giving lessons.


    The entire village gave Ye Futian a strange and mysterious vibe. It looked like that he needed some time to explore.


    A lot of people were whispering and gossiping while watching Ye Futian walking through the village.


    ��What is Old Ma thinking? What��s the point of using a random guy to fill a rare opening?��


    ��Exactly. Everyone else either invited prominent cultivators in the Shangqing Domain, such as stars of the younger generation of the powerful forces or cooperated with top cultivators from the Outer Realms to achieve a mutually beneficial result.��


    ��This young man looks handsome and poised. I heard that he is not from the Shangqing Domain. But what can he bring to Old Ma? How will he compete with the others?�� The crowd chattered incessantly.


    Ye Futian didn��t fully understand some of the rules of Four Corner Village yet. He overheard people��s conversation and decided to find a chance to ask Old Ma about it when he got back.


    ��It��s not Old Ma��s fault. The boy of the Ma family was quite good back in the day. It��s a pity that he died so young. Old Ma only has Little Ling to keep him company now. He is not in good health either. Those top cultivators from the Shangqing Domain probably don��t want to stay in his family anyway. It looks like his family doesn��t have the luck on their side.��


    Although the villagers kept their voice low, their gossip and whispers were caught by Ye Futian. Some people talked with compassion and sympathy, while some were simply gloating as if they were waiting to be amused by watching Old Ma make a fool of himself. There was no shortage of this type of people anywhere.


    Four Corner village was no exception.


    Ye Futian and the others returned to Little Ling��s home. Old Ma was still sitting quietly by himself outside of the house and seemed quite relaxed.


    ��Grandpa.�� Little Ling walked over and buried her face in Old Ma��s lap. Old Ma rubbed her head and asked in a gentle voice, ��Who upset you?��


    ��Muyun. He bullied Tie Tou and was not polite to Uncle Ye. He even asked Uncle Ye to leave the village,�� said Little Ling. She explained her grievance to Old Ma since he was the only family she had in the village.


    ��That boy from the Muyun family is too impudent and conceited. Sooner or later, he will learn his lesson. Just don��t pay any attention to him,�� Old Ma said quietly.


    ��I didn��t bother him. He blocked our way,�� said Little Ling,�� He also injured Tie Tou.��


    ��How is Tie Tou doing now? Is he okay?�� Old Ma asked with concern.


    ��He is alright. Uncle Tie took him back,�� Little Ling answered. Old Ma nodded and replied, ��Tie Tou is a good boy. He will definitely have a bright future.��


    ��Yes, I think so too. Tie Tou said he will fly out of the village in the future,�� Little Ling said with an innocent smile. Perhaps she didn��t know what a bright future meant yet. People in her age were still in a bewildered state about everything.


    ��I��m sure he will. Little Ling, you must be tired. You should go sleep,�� Old Ma said with a loving smile.


    ��Alright.�� Little Ling stood up and turned back to speak to Ye Futian and the others,�� Uncle Ye, Sister Xia, you should get some rest too.��


    ��We will,�� Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He was confused by the way she addressed them. He was fine with being called ��Uncle Ye,�� but why did she refer to Xia Qingyuan as a ��sister��? Didn��t that make him one generation older than Xia Qingyuan?


    After Little Ling was gone, Ye Futian looked at Old Ma and asked, ��Can I stay here to have a short chat with you?��


    ��Have a seat,�� Old Ma nodded. Ye Futian casually sat down in a chair on the other side of the door next to Old Ma.


    Lounging in the chair, Ye Futian seemed to be at ease. He stared at the sky and asked, ��Little Ling took us to the blacksmith shop just now. We met Tie Tou��s father, who has extraordinary ability in forging weapons. Even though he can��t see, he manages to produce flawless ironware. Do you know what happened to his eyes?��


    ��What do you mean what happened? Are you asking how he lost his sight?�� Old Ma asked.


    ��Yes,�� Ye Futian nodded and said.


    ��It��s been so many years. I don��t remember what happened exactly. I think he was a little aggressive in his younger days and lost an eye during a fight with some other people,�� Old Ma cast his mind back to the past and answered.


    ��In that case, Mr. Tie knew about cultivation when he was young?�� Ye Futian continued asking. Old Ma lived in the same village and should more or less know something about Blind Tie. Ye Futian had no reason to beat around the bush. He wanted to see how much Old Ma could tell him.


    ��Of course he knew about cultivation.�� Old Ma had no intention to hide the truth. He nodded and answered, ��Not only that, but Blind Tie was quite good when he was young!��

 Chapter 2094 - The Legend of Four Corner Village

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at Old Ma by his side. Old Ma raised his head and stared at the sky, immersing himself in the memory.


    ��At that time, he was studying in the private school. The master liked him a great deal since he had extraordinary talents and remarkable abilities. Later on, just like you guys, some outsiders came to the village, including people from top forces in the Shangqing Domain. They found him, treated him well, and formed a close relationship with him. They even took him in as a brother. So he followed them and left the village.��


    Old Ma slowly told Ye Futian the story. ��After that, the villagers who had been outside told us that he gained great fame out there and was well-known to countless people. He made a name not only for himself but also for Four Corner Village. However, it was, in fact, against the master��s original wish. The master said that he shouldn��t mention the Village or spread our name when he was outside. Maybe the master knew that it would bring trouble to the village.��


    ��Following that, the villagers heard some bad stories about him. He came back shortly after. He was covered in blood, lost his eyes, and was in pretty bad condition. The master saved his life and helped him recover. Ever since then, he became Blind Tie and didn��t like to talk to people anymore. He spends every day hammering out iron in the blacksmith shop. We later heard rumors that Blind Tie was betrayed by his ��brothers,�� and his unique technique was also stolen. The only thing he managed to bring back after putting up a life-and-death fight was a child. That��s Tie Tou.��


    It sounded like a simple and even a little clich�� story. But how many things actually happened behind this abbreviated version?


    Perhaps only Blind Tie knew.


    It took Ye Futian by surprise that Blind Tie from the blacksmith shop had such a story. No wonder he wasn��t enthusiastic about their visit. Blind Tie probably wouldn��t invite them into his blacksmith shop at all if not for Little Ling. He was certainly suspicious and distrustful of the outside visitors since he was betrayed by people like them back in the day.


    ��What kind of a person is the master? He doesn��t want Four Corner Village to be famous?�� Ye Futian posed more questions. Little Ling, Tie Tou, and even the arrogant Muyun Shu were all extremely respectful of him. Old Ma still referred to him as the ��master,�� even at his age.


    Ye Futian hadn��t heard anyone calling the teacher by his real name yet.


    ��The master has been in the village for many, many years. He is the protector of the village. When I was a kid, my grandfather told me that the master had been protecting the village ever since his grandfather was still alive. His grandfather��s grandfather��s grandfather said the same. No one knows how old the master is and how long he has been safeguarding the village. Everyone here, including people from those influential families, listens to the master,�� Old Ma continued. ��The master often says that good fortune follows upon disaster while disaster lurks within good fortune. Four Corner Village is a special place and shouldn��t be mentioned to the outside world. The villagers who left shouldn��t come back either unless they are in a life-or-death situation. Once they are back, they are not allowed to leave again.��


    ��The master spends every day teaching students. He has never left the village or even the school. No one actually knows him personally. But rumor has it that Four Corner Village was in danger many years ago due to its reputation. Outsiders swarmed in and tried to occupy the village until the master defeated them. After that, some big shot, who allegedly was the head of the Outer Realms, came and issued an order. Ever since that, no one dared to stir up trouble in the village; they have to behave themselves during their visits.��


    Ye Futian nodded. He, of course, understood who was the big shot Old Ma was referring to. Donghuang the Great Emperor was here!


    Donghuang the Great Emperor came and studied here. Then, he proved his path, unified the Divine Prefecture, and issued an injunction to protect Four Corner Village. That was why the village looked like this nowadays.


    Moreover, according to Old Ma, the master was the protector of Four Corner Village and never took an interest in the affairs of the Outer Realms. He didn��t even concern himself with some conflicts that happened inside the village. Just like what Old Ma had said, no one actually knew the master personally.


    ��What did the outsiders want? Why was Blind Tie betrayed? What did they want to get from him?�� Ye Futian grew more and more curious about the village. Since Old Ma didn��t seem to mind his questions, he felt free to make more inquiries.


    ��It has something to do with the tale of the origin of the village,�� Old Ma explained unhurriedly. He turned his eyes to Ye Futian and asked, ��You didn��t know anything about Four Corner Village before you came here?��


    Ye Futian and his companions were probably the only people who didn��t know the village��s history. The other cultivators in the Shangqing Domain all had a thorough knowledge of the legend. After all, Four Corner Village was a famed place in the Shangqing Domain. Even though common folks might not be aware of it due to its remote location, the top forces in the Shangqing Domain were very familiar with the village.


    ��I came from the Donghua Domain under a senior��s recommendation. Indeed, I don��t know much about the village,�� said Ye Futian.


    Old Ma nodded slightly. He lounged on the chair and gazed at the sky and said, ��Although the village is only a small village, there is a rumor circulating. The world was operating under a different order millions of years ago. Many gods controlled the forces of nature at that time. One of them was called God Sifang. He presided over a vast land and established the Four Corner Divine Nation, which Four Corner Village used to be in ancient times. Of course, many people don��t believe that. But people living in the village convinced themselves even if they had doubts. Who doesn��t like to have a splendid history? Besides, Four Corner Village really is a magical place. You can treat this as a story regardless of its veracity.��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��According to the legend, the God of the Four Corner Divine Nation assigned seven people as the Lord Protectors. Because of their different aptitudes, God Sifang taught them each an extremely powerful technique. Together, they were called the ��seven great divine techniques�� and were handed down to later generations. Although it��s hard to know whether the legend was true, the seven great divine techniques do exist. People in Four Corner Village may be born with different abilities. Some people are blessed by their ancestors and have an innate talent for one of the divine techniques. They said that some of the divine techniques were lost, but some are still here in the village. The Muyun family that Little Ling told you about before possesses one of the divine techniques. They are born with the Life Spirit of the Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird and have incredible speed. Rumor has it that one of the seven Lord Protectors had the Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird as his personal mount. Maybe the Muyun family has that bloodline.��


    Ye Futian listened quietly. Although Old Ma was talking about the Muyun family, he couldn��t help thinking about Blind Tie. Could it be that��


    ��Tie Tou��s father also inherited one of the divine techniques��the Divine Hammer of the Protector. It��s said to come from one of the Lord Protectors who received a Divine Hammer of the Protector from God Sifang and inspired awe throughout the world with his tremendous strength. Therefore, both Tie Tou and his father were born with extraordinary strength.��


    Old Ma continued, ��I also heard that a treasure that took Blind Tie decades to forge, along with the divine technique, was taken away from him by the people who betrayed him.��


    The story took Ye Futian by surprise. He was present when Muyun Shu showed off his ability. Muyun Shu was only a young man yet was already able to unleash incredible power. Obviously, it was an extraordinary technique. Still, Ye Futian was amazed by the story behind it.


    That being the case, Tie Tou also wanted to display his skill before his father stopped him.


    Muyun Shu apparently was aware of Blind Tie��s reputation. That was why he was too scared to attack him. Moreover, it might also be part of the reason why he picked on Tie Tou. They were both inheritors of the divine techniques and were eager to compete against each other.


    Nevertheless, the Muyun family currently enjoyed a high status in the village. Ye Futian heard that Muyun Shu��s elder brother was also a remarkable cultivator in the Outer Realms who could send messages back despite not being in the village.


    According to Old Ma, people who left the village couldn��t come back under normal circumstances.


    ��Then why does Four Corner Village allow visitors and even invite them as guests?�� Ye Futian continued to ask. It was an important question. Li Changsheng told him that visitors would only have opportunities in the village if they were approved by the villagers.


    But he didn��t know exactly what kind of opportunities they would have!

 Chapter 2095 - Day of Sacrificial Rites

    Old Ma hesitated for a moment, then continued, ��Many years ago, cultivators from all kinds of places swarmed into the village. Four Corner Village might no longer exist if not for the master��s protection. Even so, the villagers couldn��t stay in this bubble forever. Many people are eager to go out and see the outside world.


    ��Four Corner Village attracted the attention of the world since its reputation has spread around. All the top forces in the Shangqing Domain have their eyes on us. We may keep them from going in, but we can��t stop every villager from leaving the village. Even though that powerful person established rules to protect Four Corner Village, he couldn��t forbid outsiders from fighting with villagers who had already left the village. If that��s the case, everyone from Four Corner Village would act without scruples and offend with impunity.


    ��Therefore, some things are bound to happen. Most people didn��t want to be trapped in this small village forever, especially those who knew how to cultivate. Otherwise, why did they bother to cultivate in the first place? As a result, the village and the outside slowly reached some tacit understanding and built an alliance. Four Corner Village allows the outsiders to come and visit, but they also need to provide help to the villagers. For instance, many people who left the village may be supported, looked after, or even invited by outside forces. The unfortunate experience of Tie Tou��s father is only an anomaly.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. He understood the situation a little bit better now. People living in this world sometimes had no command over things that happened to them. Tragedies may befall someone simply because of the treasure he possessed and the jealousy it caused. Unless Four Corner Village was completely hedged off from the outer world and all the villagers never left home, they could hardly forbid every outsider from stepping foot in the village. No one would be able to leave and survive in the outer world if Four Corner Village offended all the top forces in the Shangqing Domain.


    Just like what Old Ma said, the villagers might be more likely to feel satisfied with the size of the village if they were all common folks. Nevertheless, Four Corner Village was a magical place that produced several cultivators with extraordinary talents. The village was too small for them. How could they be trapped here forever?


    It was only natural for them to long for entering the outer world.


    ��You know why people from the Outer Realms all come to the village at this particular time, right?�� Old Ma turned to Ye Futian and asked.


    ��I don��t know.�� Ye Futian shook his head.


    Lost for words, Old Ma darted Ye Futian a glance. How did this guy come here without knowing anything?


    Why didn��t the people who sent him here give him some information about Four Corner Village?


    ��Because the Day of Sacrificial Rites of Four Corner Village is coming. The village has a Day of Sacrificial Rites every four years. On that day, the ancestors of Four Corner Village will manifest and perform divine miracles. The village will become another world. The Day of Sacrificial Rites technically lasts for seven days, and it��s an important opportunity for the village. Some people will be lustrated or gain inheritance or awakening on that day. That��s why it��s crucial for us.��


    Old Ma continued to explain, ��Every four years, many people from the Outer Realms will come to the village right before the Day of Sacrificial Rites. All of them are influential cultivators. Some villagers can have the chances to invite them to participate in the Day of Sacrificial Rites. Many common folks in the village rarely get to lay hold of any cultivation opportunity. Their collaboration with the outsiders can be mutually beneficial.��


    ��If that��s the case, by inviting me to be your guest, you guaranteed me a chance to participate in the Day of Sacrificial Rites?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Yes, that��s basically it,�� Old Ma nodded and said. ��Therefore, the villagers all want to pick disciples and offsprings of influential families in the Outer Realms who have fortunes and resources. The same goes for the outsiders. They want to be hosted by the most prosperous families in the village. Having children studying in the private school is a good indicator of the family��s status. They have a better chance to succeed on the Day of Sacrificial Rites.�� Old Ma added, ��Besides, the outsiders also want to rope the influential families in by allying with them. So the members of those families will join those forces after they left the village.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and had a better understanding.


    It seemed like Four Corner Village really was a place of miracles. Otherwise, the top forces in the Shangqing Domain wouldn��t pay so much attention to it.


    ��What kind of opportunity do you want?�� Ye Futian asked Old Ma.


    ��I don��t want anything for myself. I hope to see if Little Ling can have better luck.�� Old Ma turned around and shot a glance at Little Ling, who was hanging out with Xia Qingyuan behind them. Ye Futian wondered if Old Ma wanted Little Ling to become a cultivator as well.


    The Day of Sacrificial Rites might change the destinies of the villagers for real.


    ��When is the Day of Sacrificial Rites?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��It��s almost here. It doesn��t have an exact date. We will all know when the day comes,�� Old Ma replied. Ye Futian didn��t know what to say. Four Corner Village was an interesting place indeed. Even its Day of Sacrificial Rites didn��t have an exact date. The villagers only knew the day was here when it already happened.


    Ye Futian was also very curious to see what kind of a world Four Corner Village would become on that day.


    Ye Futian started to feel less anxious now that he had learned about the back story. The village was a mysterious place, but it would reveal itself in time. All he needed to do at this time was to wait quietly and patiently.


    ��Old Ma, you seem to be in a chatty mood.�� Someone walked past them on the stone-paved street not far away. He turned back to look at Ye Futian and Old Ma, who were sitting in the front yard, and spoke to them with a smile. ��People in the village all know what you want. But what��s wrong with staying here? So you can��t cultivate, so what? Why do you have to be so stubborn? You shouldn��t think about it too much.��


    While speaking, he shot a look at Ye Futian and cracked a pleasant smile. This man was Old Ma��s friend. He often chatted with Old Ma and knew his thoughts well.


    Back in the day, Old Ma��s son and daughter-in-law died because of cultivation. Now Old Ma wanted his granddaughter to become a cultivator as well.


    ��I know,�� Old Ma grinned and replied.


    ��Even though you have the determination, you could be wasting your chance by selecting such a random person. All of your efforts will come to naught. Old Ma, you should go ask around what kind of people other families invited,�� someone else said. Nonetheless, this one��s taunting comments were obviously less friendly. Everyone in the village was different.


    Old Ma smiled and nodded without responding. At this point, a young man walked over to them. Ye Futian recognized that he was Fang Cun, who they had encountered on the way. Fang Cun came from an influential family that enjoyed a high status in Four Corner Village.


    Fang Cun surveyed Old Ma and Ye Futian before speaking, ��Old Ma, my grandpa asked if you want to pay a visit to our house, along with him.��


    He pointed at Ye Futian.


    ��You can go back to tell your grandpa that it��s not necessary,�� Old Ma shook his head and replied.


    ��Alright,�� Fang Cun nodded and darted Ye Futian an odd look. He turned his nose up at Ye Futian before. It was said that no one wanted Ye Futian when he first came to the village. Only Old Ma was stupid enough to pick him.


    However, Fang Cun��s family seemed to have a different view and even asked him to come and invite Old Ma and Ye Futian over.


    Much to Fang Cun��s surprise, they turned him down.


    Fang Cun was a little embarrassed. He turned around and left immediately.


    ��I will go to have some rest inside. Suit yourself,�� Old Ma stood up and said to Ye Futian. Then, he walked into the room.


    Ye Futian still lounged in the chair quietly. Little Ling went to hold Old Ma��s arm to help him walk. Xia Qingyuan sat down next to Ye Futian and glanced at him. Then, she also lay back in the chair and said to Ye Futian, ��We haven��t been so relaxed for a long time.��


    ��Yes,�� Ye Futian smiled and nodded. ��Doesn��t it feel good?��


    Xia Qingyuan took a brief look at Ye Futian. There wasn��t much she wanted in life. She was happy to stay in a village like this with Ye Futian for life. Every day was carefree, without worries or conflicts.


    Ye Futian noticed that Xia Qingyuan was gazing at him. He smiled and said, ��Even a retreat like this is still plagued by sordid affairs.��


    Xia Qingyuan didn��t respond. During the following days, Ye Futian and the others had been enjoying the peace and quiet. They occasionally took a walk inside the village and had become familiar with the people and the layout.


    Ye Futian actually wanted to pay a visit to the master in the private school. But he dropped the idea since he didn��t have a good excuse.


    A recluse like that would certainly come to him if he wanted to meet him!

 Chapter 2096 - Ancient Divine Nation

    Days passed. Although there would occasionally be conflicts in the small village, overall, it was still peaceful. It was rare for there to be large disturbances.


    The people who were supposed to arrive from the outside world had already entered the village. They had all received invitations from the villagers. After all, those who could enter the village were all people with good fate. When the Day of Sacrificial Rites came, the villagers also needed to rely on and form alliances with people of powerful fates.


    For those who were famous in the outside world and had powerful fates, they found companions among the cultivators who studied in the private school. When both parties had powerful fates, they would likely obtain benefits when the Day of Sacrificial Rites came.


    On this day, the night was dark, and the village was sleeping soundly. The entire Sifang Village was peaceful, and many of its inhabitants had wandered into dreamland. Those who weren��t sleeping were cultivating.


    Right then, beams of bright light suddenly lit up Four Corner Village. A mysterious aura emanated outwards and descended upon the village, enveloping the entire village within it.


    Gradually, the entire village was lit, appearing golden in color.


    Ye Futian suddenly opened his eyes. He looked out the window and then got up and went outside. He sensed that the entire courtyard was enveloped in a mysterious aura. The village suddenly lit up with brilliant light. Countless lights danced before his eyes. The scenery was constantly changing.


    At that moment, people walked up beside Ye Futian one by one, including Old Ma and Little Ling. Old Ma watched the scenery change before him. There was a look of longing in his eyes. He was holding on to the hands of a little girl. It was Little Ling.


    ��It is so miraculous,�� Beigong Shuang exclaimed in a low voice. The scene before her kept changing. It was as though they were in an overlapping space and were entering another world.


    ��The Day of Sacrificial Rites is about to begin. The spirits of the ancestors will appear, and then all of you will appear in their world. There, you will all be able to obtain fateful encounters. Little Ye, I��ll leave Ling to you,�� Old Ma said to Ye Futian.


    The Day of Sacrificial Rites was a significant event for Four Corner Village. Not only outsiders attached importance to it; the villagers did so too. Each generation would only have one such opportunity. Anyone who experienced the Day of Sacrificial Rites would not be able to do so a second time. This applied to both villagers and outsiders.


    The villagers would usually choose the youths among the next generation to experience it. This was the most suitable age. However, since they themselves had experienced it before and no longer had the chance to do so, cooperating with outsiders was a good choice.


    Hence, Old Ma handed Little Ling over to Ye Futian, asking him to take care of her.


    Ye Futian naturally understood. Old Ma hoped that he could let Little Ling obtain a fateful encounter.


    Little Ling would also only have this one chance to do so. Hence, when Old Ma chose Ye Futian, many of the villagers were critical of his decision. They even mocked Old Ma, saying that he chose Ye Futian because he had no other option.


    ��Leave her to me,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head. If they truly managed to find a fateful encounter, he would naturally do his best to look after Little Ling.


    With his most recent understanding, the Day of Sacrificial Rites was the only opportunity for the village youths to change their fates. Incredible figures had the chance to become even more suitable for cultivation, while those who had yet to awaken to their talents had the hope of doing so.


    Rumor has it that the village��s legendary Seven Major Divine Techniques came from the Day of Sacrificial Rites and could be obtained from within.


    To this day, two of the seven Divine Techniques had yet to appear.


    Back then, Little Ling��s parents lost their lives due to not being able to cultivate. This might be one of Old Ma��s regrets.


    Everything before Ye Futian��s eyes continued to change. Very soon, the village disappeared. Old Ma��s silhouette also gradually became blurry and vanished. It was indeed miraculous for someone just a few feet away to disappear from their view.


    When everything cleared up, they were still standing where they were. However, they were no longer in the courtyard but instead had appeared in another world. Here, divine halos shone down from the sky. The place oozed with divinity. Gazing into the distance, they seemed to make out a magnificent divine nation. A divine palace floated high in the sky.


    ��Is this the Ancient Divine Nation?�� Ye Futian mumbled to himself.


    ��It is so beautiful,�� said Little Ling as she looked out into the distance. Ye Futian looked at Little Ling beside him. She could also see it. Old Ma said that upon entering this realm, different people would be able to see different things. Some people would be able to see fateful encounters, while others wouldn��t be able to do so.


    Was this an illusory world?


    In the distance, silhouettes were traversing through the sky, heading towards the divine region far away. Ye Futian held Little Ling��s hand as his figure rose into the sky. Nearby, some people glanced over in their direction. Muyun Shu was also among the crowd. There was a youth with extraordinary temperament beside him who should be his ally.


    ��Elder Brother Tie Tou!�� Little Ling shouted beside Ye Futian. He turned his head around and looked down below. A figure was frenziedly running barefoot on the ground. This figure was a youth. It was Tie Tou. He had actually come here alone without a companion.


    It seemed that he was the only person without a companion. He was running around frenziedly alone down below.


    ��Little Ling,�� the youth greeted Little Ling as he raised his head and greeted her back. He appeared to be a simpleton. Ye Futian��s figure floated down until he stood before Tie Tou. He asked, ��Are you here alone?��


    ��Hmm,�� Tie Tou replied as he nodded his head. ��Father said that I can still obtain fateful encounters alone.��


    Ye Futian recalled Old Ma��s story. Blind Tie himself did not trust outsiders at all. He also did not want to ally with anyone. Hence, he would rather Tie Tou experience the Day of Sacrificial Rites alone.


    ��Come with us then,�� Ye Futian invited. Tie Tou scratched his head hesitantly.


    ��Elder Brother Tie Tou, come with me and Uncle Ye. Uncle Ye will look after you,�� said Little Ling in her tender voice. Tie Tou nodded his head with a silly smile on his face. He looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Many thanks, Uncle Ye.��


    ��Let��s go,�� said Ye Futian as he carried the two of them and traversed the sky together, heading straight ahead. In the sky of this world, beams of golden light descended from above. They appeared dazzling. The further they advanced, the more brilliant the golden light appeared. It seemed to be radiating from the divine nation.


    ��What is that?�� At that moment, Ye Futian asked his group as he looked ahead. Over there, he saw two large armies engaging in a fierce battle in the sky above. However, no aura emanated from their battle. That meant that it was an illusion and was not real. It might be that it was just an image that once existed in this world.


    ��Uncle Ye, what are you talking about?�� Little Ling asked beside Ye Futian as she looked at him with her innocent eyes.


    Ye Futian looked at her and asked, ��Can��t you see it?��


    Little Ling shook her head.


    Beside them, the gazes of Xia Qingyuan and the others landed on Ye Futian. They had somewhat strange looks.


    This made Ye Futian understand. It seemed that he was the only person who could see this scene!


    ��All of you can��t see it?�� Ye Futian asked in a low voice.


    They shook their heads. For them, there was nothing ahead.

 Chapter 2097 - Disgust

    Ye Futian looked back at the battlefield when he saw the group shaking their heads. It was a battle between two very terrifying armies. Although he could not sense their auras, from just the image, he could faintly make out how intense the battle was.


    This made Ye Futian realize that different people would actually see different things here in this world.


    It might be that there was truly an element of fate.


    Did this mean that his fate was more powerful than that of the people around him?


    ��Let��s go,�� said Ye Futian without stopping as he continued to advance. They seemed to have arrived at the palace of the divine nation. It was grand here. When Ye Futian saw this, he could imagine how prosperous this place was in the past.


    From the looks of it, the rumors about Four Corner Village were very likely true. In the past, Four Corner Village was once a divine nation.


    ��Uncle Ye,�� at that moment, Tie Tou said this as he looked up ahead. He seemed to be hinting for Ye Futian to head over there.


    Ye Futian also looked over in the direction Tie Tou was looking at. There was a flight of stairs. At the top of the stairs was a large group of cultivators. They appeared to be a large army. They were ascending the stairs. He did not know how many cultivators there were, but at the very top, Ye Futian saw a blurry figure. It did not seem real, appearing like faint currents that formed a human shape.


    However, when Ye Futian wanted to get a clearer look at it, it would appear even blurrier.


    ��Can anyone make out what is over there?�� Ye Futian asked Xia Qingyuan and the others who were beside him. Xia Qingyuan and the others shook their heads with perplexed looks. It was the same as before. Could it be that in this world, Ye Futian could see much more than they could?


    ��I can see it,�� Tie Tou said. ��There is a giant over there. He looks so majestic. The hammer is so big. How heavy is it?��


    When Ye Futian heard Tie Tou��s words, he revealed a strange expression. Tie Tou could actually see it. He had heard stories from Old Ma regarding Blind Tie. Tie Tou might have inherited Blind Tie��s talent and awakened some abilities. Hence, it was possible that he had formed resonance with this place.


    This might be Tie Tou��s fateful encounter.


    ��Let��s head over,�� Ye Futian said, bringing Tie Tou along. When he advanced and reached the area, Ye Futian suddenly sensed an extremely majestic power. The power became a formless wave that caused his body to tremble. It actually caused his figure to be pushed backward. Xia Qingyuan and others turned around and looked at Ye Futian. They had no reaction to this power because they could not see the scene before them at all.


    ��It is indeed miraculous,�� exclaimed Ye Futian, somewhat curious. Tie Tou let go of Ye Futian��s hand and walked ahead alone. Ye Futian saw Tie Tou step onto the stairs and walk up. Then, he stood before the illusory figure.


    Ye Futian looked at Tie Tou. He now had an even deeper understanding of what Old Ma had said. The master of this world was the first ancestor of Four Corner Village. This place was originally left behind for them. As an outsider, Ye Futian seemed to be repelled by some force.


    On the other hand, Tie Tou could see the place and walk straight up to it. Was this an ancestor passing down his teachings to his descendant?


    When Tie Tou stood there, beams of dazzling divine light circled around him. He himself did not feel anything as he raised his head and looked around. However, Tie Tou soon sensed that something was different. The illusory figure seemed to take shape. The divine light that circled around the figure immediately entered into Tie Tou��s body.


    Then, his figure suddenly trembled violently. Tie Tou grabbed his head with his hands and let out a painful cry.


    ��Elder Brother Tie Tou,�� called out Little Ling. She felt afraid when she saw Tie Tou shouting in pain. She wanted to step forward, but Ye Futian still held on to her hand. He said, ��He is alright. He should be inheriting some of the ancestor��s teachings.��


    ��Hmm,�� replied Little Ling as she nodded her head. Yet, she still looked straight ahead somewhat anxiously.


    At that moment, an extraordinary power suddenly surged throughout the space. Countless beams of golden divine light seemed to descend upon the place where Tie Tou stood. Ye Futian could faintly make out countless figures merging to form a gigantic silhouette who stood tall in the sky.


    Based on what Old Ma said, the Sifang God Seat had seven major Lord Protectors. This should be one of them. Tie Tou would be inheriting his abilities.


    Even more powerful divine light immediately descended. This caused a unique power to emanate in the space. Tie Tou was enveloped in the divine light. A crisp sound kept coming from his body, as though the bones, muscles and blood vessels in his body were undergoing metamorphoses.


    From far away, people were heading in this direction, looking towards where Tie Tou stood.


    From one direction, Muyun Shu and his group had arrived.


    Muyun Shu stared at Tie Tou. Although Muyun Shu was still young, he acted more mature than his age. His gaze was cold as he looked at Tie Tou. Tie Tou had actually obtained a fateful encounter. That meant that Tie Tou was experiencing an awakening.


    Muyun Shu��s figure advanced. He actually dashed towards where Tie Tou stood. However, just like Ye Futian, as he was doing so, a formless power actually sent Muyun Shu��s figure flying outwards as he tried to approach Tie Tou.


    Muyun Shu stabilized himself as he glared at Tie Tou. He also could not make out clearly what was happening around Tie Tou. He could only see Tie Tou being surrounded by divine light. He knew that Tie Tou had obtained a fateful encounter.


    This power was actually hindering him, not allowing him to approach Tie Tou.


    ��Stop him,�� Muyun Shu ordered the people beside him. His behavior caused Ye Futian to scowl. Muyun Shu was a well-known figure in Four Corner Village. He was a monstrous youth. Yet, he actually acted so unreasonably. No matter how they put it, Tie Tou was from the same school as him. They all studied in the private school and were all members of the village.


    Muyun Shu should feel happy for Tie Tou for awakening to a great power. They were both locals here. It was naturally a joyful occasion for them to be able to inherit more divine teachings from their ancestors.


    However, Muyun Shu didn��t think so. He was very egoistic even though he was still young. He did everything as he pleased.


    ��Both of you are locals of Four Corner Village. Since now you pose a chance of encountering fateful encounters at this place, then go your own way. You should each mind your own business and not interfere with each other,�� Ye Futian said to Muyun Shu. His tone was cold. This youth was acting presumptuously.


    ��Are you criticizing me?�� Muyun Shu fixed his gaze on Ye Futian. A cold light flickered in the eyes of this arrogant youth. He seemed to be looking down on Ye Futian.


    ��Get out of my way,�� ordered Muyun Shu as he glared at Ye Futian, who was blocking his way.


    Ye Futian was similarly staring at the other party. Even though Ye Futian didn��t like Muyun Shu��s personality, he took into consideration that Muyun Shu was just a youth and they were in his village now. Ye Futian was not interested in getting serious with Muyun Shu, but the latter acted even more insolently.


    ��Get lost,�� Ye Futian spat. He could not take it anymore. He looked at Muyun Shu with a look of disgust. Ye Futian had cultivated for many years and had encountered many villains. However, this was the first time he had met such a despicable junior in his early teens.

 Chapter 2098 - Vicious

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Muyun Shu stared at Ye Futian. Did he just tell him to get out of here?


    In the village, no one dared to speak to him in this manner.


    Several cultivators next to Muyun Shu gave Ye Futian a cold stare. They had heard some people mentioning Ye Futian and his group in the village. They heard that he came to the village with Lu Qixing and the others, but no one paid much attention to them at all. Later, they were invited by an ordinary citizen in the village as guests, hence their presence here.


    For some cultivators from Donghua Domain to come onto their turf, and in Four Corner Village, no less, to be this blatantly disrespectful was unthinkable.


    They came from the outside world to the Third Heaven of Shangqing Domain. Nanhai family in the Shangqing Domain was known by all cultivators in the domain. Anyone who heard its name knew what it represented.


    The distribution of the top forces in the Shangqing Domain was kind of special, and completely different from that of the Donghua Domain. The giants of the Donghua Domain were positioned in major areas, while all the giants of the Shangqing Domain were concentrated in the central area of ??the domain, which was also known as the group of continents called the Upper Nine Heavens.


    Upper Nine Heavens was the absolute core of?? the Shangqing Domain. Almost all the giants and top figures were cultivating in this continental group.


    Among them, the Upper Third Heaven was a symbol of a powerful family. Anyone who cultivated in the Upper Third Heaven would inevitably attracted attention no matter where he went.


    Lu Qixing, who had entered the Four Corner Village previously, was from the Lu family in the Three Layer Heaven of Shangqing Domain. His status was immensely prestigious, as Lu Qixing himself was a well-known figure.


    Nanhai Family was also a principality from the Shangqing Domain, located in the Upper Third Heaven, almost at the pinnacle of this domain.


    Of course, when they arrived in Four Corner Village, the villagers did not care about their status in the outside world, and no one would care to mention it. But the reality was that the relationship between the Nanhai family and the Muyun family was an unusual one and far surpassed an alliance in the ordinary sense.


    Once, a peerless genius talent came out of Four Corner Village and swept countless talented figures aside. It was rare for him to be met with a worthy opponent, and he was heavily recruited by the top forces in the Shangqing Domain. However, this man was extremely arrogant, and few could convince him, much less keeping him under their control.


    In the end, this peerless talent who came out of Four Corner Village was tamed by an exquisite beauty. She was equally stunning in looks and talent, and was a goddess from the Nanhai family. The two met because of a battle and came together because of their mutual appreciation of each other��s talent. Together, they became a couple much envied by the world.


    Only later did this peerless figure learned that his beloved��s family was a major force in the Shangqing Domain, and she was a member of the Nanhai family in the Third Heavens. In the end, he became the son-in-law of the Nanhai family.


    A principality that stood at the top of the Shangqing Domain had grabbed a once-in-a-lifetime genius as their son-in-law. These two great figures came together, and their story became a much-celebrated legend. Their union was sensational at the time, with all the top principalities from the Shangqing Domain in attendance, with great fanfare.


    That peerless genius talent belonged to the Muyun family from Four Corner Village; Muyun Shu��s elder brother, Muyun Lan.


    The Nanhai family knew that Muyun Lan had a younger brother cultivating in the private study inside Four Corner Village. He inherited the divine method of Four Corner Village and had been greatly valued. A few years ago, they sent someone to the village to train Muyun Shu systematically. The trainer himself was a powerful figure himself. Otherwise, he would not have been able to enter the village.


    It was apparent that they attached great importance to Muyun Shu. His elder brother, Muyun Lan, was a genius talent and his younger brother had equally great potential. Naturally, the Nanhai family would not pass over such an opportunity. In the future, these two peerless figures would rise from the Nanhai family to reinforce its status in the domain. If giants were able to be born from the Nanhai family, it would solidify the standing of that family that much stronger and enjoying many centuries in power.


    Muyun Shu had known that he was extraordinary ever since he could remember. Apart from having a teacher in the private study teaching him, everyone in the Nanhai family had given him the best resources for cultivating, thus spoiled him to become the arrogant personality he now exhibited.


    A young man next to Muyun Shu was named Nanhai Qing. This person was a favorite in the Nanhai family. He did not enter the village recently but had already been here for three years. The Nanhai family sent him to Four Corner Village as a trial to see what he could learn in Four Corner Village. Of course, the key was Muyun Shu��s cultivation and his opportunity this time.


    Aside from the fact that ordinary folks could not physically enter Four Corner Village, those top forces would not yield any opportunities like this to them either.


    There were two other men behind Nanhai Qing who were powerful cultivators in the Upper Renhuang Realm. They weren��t people with perfect Great Path, but when those of great luck entered the village, they could generally bring along some other people into the village with them. The fact that the Nanhai family would bring a few people inside was not surprising.


    In fact, every top force would have dispatched several representatives to the village.


    For that reason, the Fang family suspected Ye Futian��s luck was formidable. If the people around him did not possess a perfect Great Path, it meant that they came in under his luck. If he could bring so many people in, his luck had to be extraordinary.


    Nanhai Qing had sensed the aura from Ye Futian and his group. He realized that at least two of them were cultivators with perfect Great Path. It seemed that these people were not ordinary and were top cultivators from the Donghua Domain.


    ��Which force in the Donghua Domain are you from? Don��t you think you are overstepping your bounds?�� Nanhai Qing said to Ye Futian and the others. Where they were coming from was of little interest to him. This was Shangqing Domain, and the Nanhai family had always been a force standing at its pinnacle. Clearly, they were not afraid of any force from the Donghua Domain.


    ��That is none of your concerns,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��You are too bold!��


    The two Renhuang on either side took a step forward, and a powerful wave swept out towards Ye Futian and the others.


    Donghuang the Great had banned outsiders from fighting inside Four Corner Village, but they were allowed to fight on the day of sacrifice. This was an unwritten rule recognized by everyone inside the village, and Old Ma had informed Ye Futian as much.


    When the two Renhuang stepped out, they were like stormy waves sweeping toward Ye Futian and his people. This stormy wave contained the ultimate aura that was as sharp as a sword, extremely domineering, as if it was full of sword intent.


    Both of them were cultivators in the Eighth Realm. They were here to protect Nanhai Qing and Muyun Shu. Although they did not have the perfect Great Path, their realms were still terrifying, as they were almost at the peak of Renhuang.


    ��How dare you be so rude in Four Corner Village! Take them down and dispose of their cultivation, and drive them out of the village,�� Muyun Shu said coldly. Ye Futian detected a murderous intent on this teenage boy.


    It seemed that previously in the village, he had suppressed his own temperament. Perhaps there were still some others in the village to whom he was beholden. Ye Futian thought it might be the teacher in the private study. If he were allowed to follow his nature without outside constraints, he would be a domineering and frightening dictator.


    He was already so vicious and ruthless at such a young age, talking about disposing the others of their cultivation at every turn, trying to prevent Tie Tou from obtaining his opportunity.


    Beigong Ao took a step forward and came to that cultivator of the Eighth Realm. An astonishing sound faintly rang out from his body, making this space full of oppression. Two storms of the Great Path collided in the void but didn��t cause too great of a change in the power of the Great Path from the outside; it seemed that the rules and orders of the Great Path in this space were quite different.


    On the other side, Zifeng stepped out as an astonishing aura erupted from her body, and a magnificent divine flame of the Great Path appeared all around her. Radiant phantom shadows of the phoenix now appeared in the sky.


    Zifeng had followed Ye Futian in her cultivation, and Ye Futian had not deceived her either. He turned the Divine Fire of Wutong into a domain of divine flames that she could cultivate. Now Zifeng was already a demon emperor of the Sixth Order with perfect Great Path. Her aura was so astounding that even the cultivators of the Eighth Realm felt its pressure.


    ��Phoenix.�� Nanhai Qing cast a glance at Zifeng. It seemed that this group of people was not simple. He had already discovered three cultivators who possessed perfect Great Path, which could almost only be countered by master-level principalities.


    ��And it��s a female phoenix, no less. I require a personal mount. How about you follow me and be my mount?�� Muyun Shu said after seeing Zifeng. His tone was as rude as ever.


    Buzz! A stream of scorching and violent flame swept out, heading towards Muyun Shu. However, an invisible storm blocked just in time, and in the next moment, Zifeng turned into a fire-colored afterimage and charged forward. A cultivator of the Eighth Realm in front of Muyun Shu waved his hand, and a sword field appeared. A meteor shower of swords fell everywhere. Every strand of the sword field contained the sharp power to tear the space. It was as if one sword strike could poke a person full of holes.


    On the other side, Beigong Ao was clashing with the other cultivator of the Eighth Realm.


    A violent air current shrouded this space. Nanhai Qing looked at Ye Futian and the others who were opposite of him. Although he was the only one on this side, he seemed full of confidence while his eyes showed his indifference. It was as if he had never viewed Ye Futian or anyone else with much importance.


    He had already sensed Ye Futian and the others�� cultivation and determined that their realm could never pose a threat to him. Although there were several of them, they would not last even one round with him.


    Nanhai Qing was Renhuang of the Sixth Realm, with perfect Great Path. He was already a figure at the peak of this realm. His combat power was extraordinary, and he could even make war with ordinary cultivators of the Ninth Realm. Most cultivators of Eighth Realm would not have much chance fighting against him.


    Ye Futian��s aura was only Renhuang of the Fifth Realm; no matter where he came from, he could never have a chance against him.


    However, he realized that Ye Futian was not looking at him but had his full attention on Muyun Shu. Then, he started walking towards Muyun Shu instead!

 Chapter 2099 - Apology

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Nanhai Qing was stunned when he saw Ye Futian was about to do. Was it possible for him to ignore his existence to this extent?


    Ye Futian continued forward as if to bypass him. He aimed at Muyun Shu.


    Coercion of the Great Path permeated from his body, suppressing this space instantly. Inside this area, it was difficult for anyone to move.


    There was an invisible pressure of the Great Path that made those within its reach feel as if they were being trapped underwater, suffocating. It wasn��t easy to move even an inch.


    Obviously, Ye Futian, too, felt this power. The divine light flowed upon his body as he took a step forward as if the pressure of the Great Path was not enough to constrain him.


    Nanhai Qing wanted to do something, but a figure suddenly appeared in front of him. This man had a smile on his face and stood there, watching him silently. Nanhai Qing felt ill at ease. The man��s speed was way too fast. It was so fast that he did not have the time to react before the man was already in front of him.


    In addition, two rays of light now shot out from this man��s eyes. The dazzling light almost made him blind, and there was immense chaos that incapacitated his mind for a brief moment. Although he was able to break free in a second, Nanhai Qing��s eyes were still full of dazzling light, so he was unable to look away and could only focus his attention and wait.


    At this moment, Nanhai Qing felt greatly threatened, and a sense of danger manifested immediately. He did not move, but his eyes fixed on the man in front of him.


    ��The Way of Light!��


    Nanhai Qing had seen a lot and knew in an instant that the other was an expert in the Way of Light, which threatened him greatly. He dared not act rashly. He felt that as soon as he moved, the person in front of him would launch an attack against him.


    Moreover, this man��s realm was comparable to his own, which shocked Nanhai Qing. Someone who possessed perfect Great Path and at the same level as him, and this man wasn��t even the most central person in the group like Ye Futian.


    Nanhai Qing no longer held his opponent with even the slightest contempt. He was threatened by the man in front of him in an instant, and he could no longer care much about Ye Futian anymore.


    Of course, it was Chen Yi that appeared in front of him. Chen Yi was already powerful when he was at Donghua Banquet last time. He had not squandered all these years and had been improving himself.


    And, the progress he made was considerable.


    The appearance of Chen Yi tied up Nanhai Qing. A strange situation now presented itself. Ye Futian walked directly to Muyun Shu with no interference, as no one was there to stop him. As long as Chen Yi was there, Nanhai Qing would not dare to make a move.


    Ye Futian got in front of Muyun Shu and saw that his expression went through quite a change. Muyun Shu glanced at Nanhai Qing and the others and cursed them silently. This pile of garbage had no power at all, and they had the audacity to tout themselves as part of the Nanhai family, which was a top power in the Third Heavens.


    They couldn��t even deal with these outsiders.


    Those eyes that were on Ye Futian still showed defiance, without any intention of backing off. He stared at Ye Futian and said, ��Even though outsiders weren��t forbidden to fight on the day of the sacrifice, if you dare to touch anyone inside Four Corner Village here, you��ll never get out alive.��


    Regardless of whether it was the day of sacrifice or not, as soon as outsiders entered the village, they were under restraints that absolutely prevented them from trampling on the dignity of the villagers. They were not allowed to act against them.


    Therefore, Muyun Shu was not afraid of Ye Futian. It seemed so certain that the other would have no way to deal with him.


    Ye Futian walked up to Muyun Shu and looked down at him with a contemptuous expression. ��If you are this arrogant in the outside world and not in this village, you wouldn��t even know how you died.��


    Muyun Shu frowned as he raised his head to look at Ye Futian coldly. ��When I get to the outside world, everyone will know my name. Who would dare to touch me?��


    People say that the young were arrogant, let alone an extraordinary young man like Muyun Shu, whose talent and temperament were superior. There were still things that he didn��t yet fully understand, but there was no denying the kind of blind confidence he had in himself.


    Boom! An invisible force pressed against Muyun Shu��s body. For a moment, Muyun Shu��s expression was terribly awkward. Those cold eyes pierced Ye Futian like sharp swords, as he felt be an invisible hand that was holding him in place.


    Buzz!


    A pair of radiant wings of the golden roc appeared behind him, wanting to spread out and break free from the coercion.


    However, he was unable to flap his wings freely. The invisible pressure of the Great Path seemed to have turned into an invisible hand that clamped down on his body so that he could not move at will.


    ��You move against me in Four Corner Village�� Do you want to die?�� Muyun Shu stared at Ye Futian coldly.


    ��I don��t have to do anything else other than staying here with you like this. I have lots of time, and seven days are nothing to me.�� Ye Futian ignored his threatening words and said instead, ��How about I stay with you like this and teach you how to behave properly?��


    ��You wouldn��t dare!�� Muyun Shu stared at Ye Futian and said menacingly. Ye Futian meant to restrict him completely so that he would be imprisoned.


    If so, the day of sacrifice would completely pass him by.


    Such an important occasion for an opportunity. And he��s stuck here with Ye Futian?


    ��If you don��t want to, then bow to Tie Tou three times to apologize,�� Ye Futian said coldly.


    ��Me? Apologize to him?�� Muyun Shu heard Ye Futian��s words and glanced at him. ��Impossible.��


    ��If this is the case, then you don��t need to look for any opportunities. I will help you by staying here with you.�� Ye Futian replied and turned to look in the direction of the battlefield. Muyun Shu��s expression changed; he realized that Ye Futian was serious.


    On this battlefield, those three pieces of useless garbage had no time to look after him. Nanhai Qing, who was said to be a man of great ability, was restrained by a young man so that he could not act.


    In the other two battles, their side did not have any advantage at all either.


    They saw what was happening on this side with Ye Futian, but they didn��t worry about Muyun Shu��s safety. No matter how bold Ye Futian was, he wouldn��t be so bold as to do anything to Muyun Shu in Four Corner Village. Or he would not leave the village alive.


    ��Sorry.�� Muyun Shu spat out in a gloomy voice. Before when he saw Tie Tou here, he just wanted to ruin his chance. But now, that seemed impossible. He didn��t want to be tangled up with Ye Futian; he just wanted to go elsewhere to find his own opportunity.


    ��I didn��t feel the sincerity. You have to face Tie Tou and bow down three times.�� Ye Futian turned and looked at Tie Tou. Muyun Shu clenched his fists as his eyes fixed upon Ye Futian. However, his expression returned to normal in an instant as he bowed down to Tie Tou, saying, ��I��m sorry.��


    Three times in a row. Muyun Shu actually bowed down and apologized three times.


    Then he looked at Ye Futian with a smile. ��Was that acceptable?��


    Ye Futian looked at Muyun Shu and felt a faint chill crawl down his spine. This young man gave him an ever more terrifying feeling. He would grow up to be an extremely narcissistic person.


    ��Get out of here.��


    Ye Futian retracted his aura, and Muyun Shu immediately regained his freedom. He gave Ye Futian one deep parting look, then turned to leave, saying, ��Let��s go.��


    From those eyes, Ye Futian could feel a murderous intent. However, knowing what he knew of this young man, he was not surprised at all!

 Chapter 2100 - An Unobstructed View

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Nanhai Qing and the other two also left with Muyun Shu. Before his departure, he took a good look at Ye Futian and the others. It seemed that he underestimated these cultivators who came from the Donghua Domain.


    He even had a suspicion that these people might be from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain.


    If that was the case, the Donghua Domain must have a grand scheme planned and attempt to encroach on Four Corner Village in the Shangqing Domain.


    After Nanhai Qing and the others were gone, Ye Futian turned around to look at Tie Tou. Basking in the divine light, Tie Tou was surrounded by a dazzling circle of light. Ye Futian could vaguely see a shadow as gigantic as God visible in the sky above Tie Tou as if it was the spirit of his ancestor.


    If the rumors were true, this godlike shadow could be one of the seven Lord Protectors from the past. Was Tie Tou a descendant of his?


    Bang��


    Tie Tou generated another burst of energy. To everyone��s surprise, it was his Life Spirit blooming. The Life Spirit seemed to wake up again and towered over everyone like a God. He brandished the Divine Hammer in his hand and overpowered everything else in the world. Like an unstoppable army, the Divine Hammer carried tremendous momentum and caused a frightening scene.


    It was an extraordinary phenomenon of Tie Tou��s Life Spirit, similar to the Picture of the Domineering Golden Peng Bird that Muyun Shu displayed before. Apparently, Tie Tou also experienced an awakening while numerous pictures popping up in his head.


    Ye Futian and the others waited for him quietly. They didn��t interrupt Tie Tou��s experience as they didn��t need to rush. The Day of Sacrificial Rites lasted for seven days. On top of that, the cultivation opportunity wasn��t first come, first serve. Instead, it depended on the person��s luck. Everything was predestined. Therefore, there was no need to be impatient.


    Little Ling was a little anxious. She had been staring at Tie Tou. Since she didn��t know much about cultivation, she was worried that something bad might happen to Tie Tou. Her eyes were glued to him the whole time.


    Tie Tou was her best friend in the village.


    Moments later, the strange and extraordinary phenomenon disappeared. Tie Tou slowly opened his eyes. His clothes were torn apart because of his body growth. He looked around and noticed his bare skin and Little Ling��s fixed gaze. An embarrassed smile appeared on his face.


    ��Tie Tou, you seem to be taller.�� Little Ling felt everything was so magical. Tie Tou had grown so much in such a short while.


    ��Brawnier as well����


    ��I don��t know either.�� Tie Tou scratched his head. Even so, he was more knowledgeable about it than Little Ling. After all, he studied under the master in the private school ever since the master told him that he had the gifts for cultivation. He learned about many things and gained a better understanding of cultivation.


    ��Uncle Ye,�� Tie Tou suddenly recalled something and shifted his eyes to Ye Futian, asked,�� Dad told me that I could sense the opportunity and may experience an awakening. Does what happened just now count as an awakening?��


    ��It probably does,�� Ye Futian nodded. People in Four Corner Village were unique. Honestly speaking, the villagers who were considered not suitable for cultivation probably could become fine cultivators, as well, let alone the gifted ones. Tie Tou already possessed plenty of hidden talents and experienced an awakening here in the Ancestral Lands of Four Corner Village.


    ��I feel better now. Dad will be happy.�� Tie Tou scratched his head and said with a silly smile. It was as though the point of cultivation for him was to make his blind father happy.


    He should be able to satisfy his father after he got out of here.


    ��Let��s go and take a look at other places,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Okay,�� Tie Tou nodded and said. ��Maybe Little Ling could have a chance to experience the awakening as well. Then she will be able to study and cultivate under the master in the private school along with me.��


    Little Ling��s bright eyes were filled with hope. Studying with the master in the private school had always been her wish. She was eager to be instructed by the master every day.


    The villagers all admired the master, but she rarely had the chance to meet him.


    Ye Futian and the others continued to move forward. Some people made discoveries in different areas, but more had not found any clue. They were wandering around randomly, searching for opportunities.


    ��They are all students in the private school,�� Little Ling said in a low voice. She envied the students who could be taught by the master, and she recognized every one of them. The people who obtained opportunities were all students in the private school.


    The master indeed had a good eye.


    ��Yes,�� Tie Tou nodded as well.


    Ye Futian learned from their conversation that people who were chosen by the master usually could come by some cultivation opportunities during the Day of Sacrificial Rites. Perhaps the master already recognized their innate ability beforehand.


    ��That being so, I probably don��t have a chance.�� Little Ling was dispirited and disappointed by the thought. Since the master didn��t choose her to study cultivation with him, she was likely to go back empty-handed like many other people.


    ��That��s not true. I asked the master, and he told me that there were exceptions in the past. Some people suddenly gained the ability to cultivate after they came here. Maybe you��re one of them,�� Tie Tou comforted Little Ling.


    ��Alright.�� Little Ling knew that Tie Tou only said it to make her feel better.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the sky above. The splendid ancient divine nation seemed vivid and ethereal at the same time. The grand palace gloried in the admiration and worship of people.


    Ye Futian noticed that Muyun Shu and his mates were walking toward the left of the divine nation��s palace. He could vaguely see a dazzling divine bird there. The bird looked like a golden statue, and Muyun Shu went inside.


    Muyun Shu had the Life Spirit of the Golden-Winged Peng Bird, an inheritance allegedly from one of the seven Lord Protectors. It was only natural for him to gain an opportunity here. Besides, Muyun Shu was already said to be a very impressive cultivator who possessed tremendous talents.


    A God with a pair of wings on his back radiated brilliant golden light in the sky above the Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird. Muyun Shu was suspended in midair as if he was being baptized by God. In an instant, beams of the blinding divine light shone from his body and attracted many people��s attention. All the young men were jealous of Muyun Shu��s luck.


    Even outsiders sighed to themselves. It was crucial to find the right person. The Nanhai family already recruited Muyun Lan as their son-in-law. Adding Muyun Shu to their side, they would become inconceivably powerful in the future.


    Muyun Lan and Muyun Shu would certainly grow into master cultivators as long as they didn��t die unexpectedly. As cultivators from Four Corner Village, they were born with the perfect Great Path.


    ��Amazing,�� Ling stared in that direction and said quietly. Even though she didn��t think well of Muyun Shu, she had to admit that he was brilliant like the son of God at this moment.


    ��I will definitely be better than him,�� Tie Tou glared at Muyun Shu and said with grim determination.


    Ye Futian was tickled by Tie Tou��s teenage spirit. He cracked a smile and said, ��You certainly will.��


    Then, he took a scan around, wondering what kind of power brought this world into being and why he could see everything here.

 Chapter 2101 - Reality and Illusion

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Muyun Shu was on one side of the Divine Nation, while someone else was on the other side. There was another splendid picture on display over there.


    It seemed like a starry dimension where a godlike shadow manifested himself. He stood on the back of a giant Divine Ape from the starry sky of ancient times. Together, they conducted themselves in a stately and majestic manner, which made the godlike figure on the Divine Ape��s back even more regal. He looked like the king of the starry sky.


    Ye Futian came to the realization that it was probably also one of the seven Lord Protectors. Shi family in Four Corner Village inherited this technique. A young man from the Shi family was standing there right now.


    Out of the seven Divine Techniques, four of them were in possession of four different families��Muyun family, Shi family, Gu family, and Tie family. In fact, Blind Tie was the only one in the Tie family who possessed the technique. The villagers had been treating him differently ever since he lost his vision and came back to the village. Many people believed that the Tie family would be replaced sooner or later. It all depended on whether Blind Ties son, Tie Tou, was blessed with the technique.


    Even though some people might come by some other cultivation opportunities, no one outside of the four families was endowed with the Divine Techniques.


    Ye Futian stood in place and quietly watched everything, pondering what kind of power brought this world into being. He released wisps of energy from his body, and his eyes started to glow with eerie divine light as if he was trying to see through this world.


    At this moment, the world became much clearer to him. Ye Futian sensed that this seemingly illusory world was actually quite real. The energy of the Great Path was perfect, and it really seemed to be a world set up by the ancient Gods.


    The villagers believed that only people who were blessed by Gods could acquire cultivation opportunities here. Ye Futian supposed that it was because the blessed ones were compatible with the Great Path here. That was why they could see some of the scenes of the Great Path and gain cultivation opportunities from those. Common folks couldn��t sense anything happening here because their minds were not matched with the Great Path.


    Nevertheless, why did this world only appear every four years on the Day of Sacrificial Rites named by the villagers?


    This world would materialize every four years on the Day of Sacrificial Rites, cover the village, and bring some people into the Space World.


    Ye Futian looked around and said, ��Let me go up and have a look.��


    Then, he soared into the sky and kept heading upward until he was high above this world. His bright eyes looked down as though he was trying to fathom the mystery of this world.


    He saw plenty of extraordinary phenomena, including the Divine Hammer of the Protector, the Picture of the Domineering Golden Peng Bird, the God riding the Divine Ape of the Starry Sky, and numerous Doors of Space��


    Ye Futian assumed that he would be able to see all the cultivation opportunities of the seven Divine Techniques. What exactly were the villagers blessed with?


    Soon, Ye Futian��s gaze focused on a tree that was swaying gently and quietly in the wind. It was only around three meters in height, not particularly tall or thick. No one else would pay attention to such an ordinary and inconspicuous tree.


    Nonetheless, Ye Futian noticed that wisps of energy were flowing from the tree to the earth.


    Ye Futian moved toward the tree like a flash of lightning. Soon, he landed in front of the tree. Although Xia Qingyuan and the others were surprised by Ye Futian��s action, they walked in his direction.


    Ye Futian stood in silence in front of the ancient tree, watching its branches and leaves swaying in the breeze and making a rustling sound. He couldn��t sense its magic even when he was right in front of it. However, he doubted that an ordinary tree would appear in the world of the Ancient Divine Nation for no reason.


    Besides, this seemed to be the only tree here.


    Plants were also a form of life. This ancient tree was virtually the only living thing in this world.


    Ye Futian watched the slow and rhythmical movements of the ancient tree. Wisps of energy, along with his divine consciousness, flowed out of his body and slipped into the ancient tree.


    When Ye Futian��s energy of the Great Path penetrated the ancient tree, the tree swayed a little harder as though it was reacting to the invader. Invisible waves spread out, and the ancient tree was growing. Soon, it became over 100-meter tall with a much denser canopy that was swing nonstop.


    With some rustling sounds, the branches of the tree suddenly started moving and attacking Ye Futian frantically. The gentle ancient tree became infuriated without warning. Ye Futian quickly stepped back to dodge the attack, but the ancient tree was so fast that it swept through the entire area in a split second. No one was swift enough to escape. Ye Futian was engulfed in no time.


    Ye Futian was taken by surprise. The ancient tree swallowed him and tied him up with its plant stems. It injected energy into his body as though it was going to dissolve and absorb him.


    At this point, Xia Qingyuan and the others also arrived. They were staggered by the change of events. Beigong Ao and Chen Yi immediately stepped ahead. They blasted the ancient tree with fierce Divine Thunder and slashed it with the Sword of Light, but nothing could tame the tree.


    ��Uncle Ye.�� Little Ling and Tie Tou also ran forward with a worried look on their faces.


    ��What the heck is this?�� Chen Yi said. The dazzling divine light burst out of his body didn��t have any effect on the ancient tree.


    Ye Futian began to have a vague feeling that the ancient tree attempted to occupy his body. He unleashed a jolt of terrifying energy and illuminated the area overtaken by the ancient tree. In the meantime, he released his World Tree Spirit to strike back at the ancient tree. The two types of energy intertwined with each other.


    A spot of light came into Ye Futian��s sight. Ye Futian felt like the light spot contained life and was the Spirit of the Tree.


    The ancient Divine Tree had become sentient.


    The light spot charged directly at Ye Futian. Ye Futian exerted all of his Spiritual Will to release the three types of power of the Great Emperor simultaneously. Blood surging in his veins, he shot out three rays of divine light and surrounded the Spirit of the Tree.


    Four beams of divine light twisted together and gave off a blinding glare. Ye Futian saw many pictures within the light spot. The Spirit of the Tree was very likely to be endowed with a wisp of God Sifang��s Spiritual Will and became a living thing. It was supporting this world.


    Ye Futian never thought that he would fight against the spirit of a tree. He couldn��t afford to be careless. His three beams of divine light transfigured into three different power of intent and bombarded the Spirit of the Tree, which was overwhelmed after some time.


    At this moment, the vines and stems that were binding Ye Futian��s body disappeared instantly. Chen Yi and the others exhaled a sigh of relief. However, Ye Futian was still standing in front of the ancient tree as if he was merged with the tree. He opened his eyes, raised his head, and stared at the leaves, through which he saw the whole picture of this world.


    He also noticed something else. There was an illusory world underneath this area. Four Corner Village and many of its villagers were trapped inside the illusory world and couldn��t get in.


    Ye Futian only understood until now that Four Corner Village was the unreal world and this space which only appeared every four years was the real world.


    The discovery and realization astonished Ye Futian. Everyone in the village was living in an illusory world without knowing. Did that mean that only people who had the Spirit Root and were capable of experiencing awakening could enter the real world?


    That might be why the master could predict who could cultivate and who could not. Even if the people, who couldn��t cultivate on their own accord, it would only be a dream that happened in an unreal world.


    Numerous pictures came into Ye Futian��s view one after another. Then, he saw another leaf that looked like a mirror. An old man with an ethereal quality appeared in the mirror.


    The old man seemed to be looking at Ye Futian as well. Their gaze crossed. Ye Futian had never seen the old man before, but he already knew he was the master of Four Corner Village.


    ��Master?�� Ye Futian transmitted a wisp of Spiritual Will over.


    The master nodded slightly in the mirror as if he received Ye Futian��s message.


    ��This is the real world?�� Ye Futian wanted to confirm his conjecture. The old man nodded again.


    ��What should I do?�� Ye Futian asked. At this point, he didn��t know what his next step should be anymore. He had no choice but to seek advice from the old man.


    ��Let them see the real world,�� a voice rang in Ye Futian��s head.


    Ye Futian pondered for a moment and nodded, said, ��I understood.��


    The master was sitting quietly in the private school of Four Corner Village. He gazed into the distance. Did the chosen one finally come to the village?


    He looked in the direction of the village. In an instant, the sky glowed brilliantly, and the villagers woke up with a start. They were astounded by the splendid scene that seemed to have enveloped the village.


    ��This is�� the world of the Divine Nation,�� someone exclaimed. The cultivators who had been there during the past Day of Sacrificial were also wondering what was going on.


    As always, many people from the village could step into the world of the Divine Nation and gain cultivation opportunities there when it was revealed on the Day of Sacrificial Rites. At this moment, however, the restriction was lifted, and every villager could enter the world of the Divine Nation.


    What did it mean?


    A lot of people could feel their hearts pounding rapidly in the chests.


    Blind Tie in the blacksmith shop raised his head as though he could see the world with his blind eyes. The hammer in his hand fell on the ground.


    Old Ma stood outside of the yard. The scene in front of his eyes suddenly reminded him of the glowing sky on the first day Ye Futian and his friends entered the village.

 Chapter 2102 - : Expel

    Chapter 2102: Expel


    The villagers all walked out of their houses and stared at the extraordinary phenomenon in front of them. The divine light of the Great Path shone from the sky, and the Ancient Divine Nation manifested itself. Even though they were still inside the village, the village basking in the divine light seemed more unreal to them at this moment. It felt like they had always been living in an illusory world.


    A lot of people whispered to each other, discussing the marvel in front of their eyes. Someone spoke out, ��Did our ancestors and the ancient Gods create this miracle?��


    Several top cultivators were ruminating. They had never seen such marvelous spectacle before. Did this mean that the two worlds would officially become one from now on?


    ��People from Four Corner Village are descendants of the Four Corner Divine Nation and have the blood of Gods running through our veins. Our ancestors have protected us for millions of years. Many people of every generation are endowed with talents for cultivation. It is all because we reside in a special place and are blessed by our ancestors. We can obtain cultivation opportunities on the Day of Sacrificial Rites every four years. Now, the relic of the Divine Nation manifested itself directly and became a real world. Does that mean that more and more villagers will gain awakenings in the future and everyone in the village will be able to cultivate?�� an old man muttered quietly. He seemed to know a lot about the history of the village.


    It was their fervent hope that their speculation was true. In that case, the Four Corner Village would become more prosperous and influential in the future.


    Four Corner Village already had a splendid history and a rich heritage. After countless generations, most people had lost the ambition to revive their former glory. But some cultivators were not resigned yet. Not only did they want to leave the village themselves, but they were also eager to open Four Corner Village up to the world and gain a foothold in the Outer Realms.


    The more knowledge they acquired, the stronger this desire grew.


    The families that inherited the Divine Techniques were great examples. The Muyun family had already secured a place for themselves outside of the village. Muyun Lan was a well-respected son-in-law of the Nanhai family in the Upper Third Heaven of the Shangqing Domain in the Outer Realms.


    ��Let��s go ask the master,�� someone suggested.


    ��That��s right. Let��s go to ask the master what is happening,�� more people concurred. A large number of villagers started marching toward the private school right away. At this point, however, a voice rang out from the direction of the private school.


    ��There is no need to come. If this scene lasts, more people in Four Corner Village will discover their talents for cultivation. Even people who didn��t gain awakenings will be able to cultivate by themselves.��


    The voice reverberated through the village and caused a commotion. A tumult of shouting and discussing broke out. The news came as a bombshell.


    Nevertheless, some elders also worried that Four Corner Village might attract more attention. Should they let outsiders enter the village when the time came?


    Everything would start over. Would this secluded village become a part of the Outer Realms in the future?


    ��Master, what happened? Did the spirit of our ancestors create this marvel?�� someone faced the direction of the private school and asked.


    ��Kind of,�� the master replied. Although it was not a definitive answer, many people were thrilled to hear his response. The ancestors manifested themselves and granted blessings upon Four Corner Village. From now on, everyone in the village would be able to cultivate.


    In the past, only a small number of people in Four Corner Village could have the opportunities to cultivate. It had been a source of anguish for many people across the generations. They all experienced the same disappointment and resentment in their teenage years.


    Their offsprings could finally be freed from this pain now.


    Everyone in the village would be able to cultivate.


    Not only the villagers who were currently in the village were astonished, but the people who entered the world of the Divine Nation were also surprised to find out that they had returned. Instead of coming out of the world of the Divine Nation, the two worlds merged into one, and they could see the rest of the villagers now.


    ��What on earth happened?��


    All of them were astounded and couldn��t figure out what had happened. The glowing sky blanketed Four Corner Village, and the village was illuminated by the brilliant divine light after the two worlds merged.


    Ye Futian was still standing next to the ancient tree. He quietly watched everything around him. Because he already knew the truth, he was the only one not taken aback by it.


    Although Chen Yi and the others didn��t know the exact details, they were certain that it had something to do with Ye Futian. They were quite shocked as well.


    ��Uncle Ye, we��re back?�� Tie Tou asked.


    ��Yes,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    At this moment, a blind man walked toward them and shouted, ��Tie Tou.��


    ��Dad.�� Tie Tou turned around and saw Blind Tie. He said excitedly, ��Dad, I did it!��


    ��Good,�� Blind Tie nodded.


    ��By the way, Uncle Ye helped me when Muyun Shu that *sshole wanted to attack me,�� said Tie Tou. Even though Blind Tie couldn��t see, he seemed to know where Ye Futian stood. He faced him and said, ��Thank you a lot.��


    ��It��s not a big deal,�� Ye Futian replied casually.


    ��We��re back?�� Little Ling only realized what happened now. Then, she cracked a silly smile and greeted Blind Tie, ��Uncle Tie.��


    ��Little Ling,�� Blind Tie nodded at Little Ling. Other villagers were also welcoming their family members. People from the Muyun family walked in the direction of Muyun Shu. Since Muyun Shu was still experiencing his awakening, they stopped and watched him intently. They had high hopes for him.


    Old Ma came staggering up the street. He said with a smile, ��Little Ling.��


    ��Grandpa.�� Little Ling ran to Old Ma, who grinned and rubbed her head, said, ��Not bad.��


    Little Ling didn��t quite understand what Old Ma meant, but she didn��t ask either.


    Ye Futian was intrigued by Old Ma��s arrival. He already knew that Blind Tie used to cultivate. But how did Old Ma hobble all the way here so quickly?


    ��Little Tie, you have a successor now. Congratulations,�� Old Ma said to Blind Tie.


    ��Uncle Ma, this boy is still young.�� Despite his answer, Blind Tie couldn��t hide the joy on his face.


    ��You need to work harder too,�� Old Ma rubbed Little Ling��s head and said,


    ��Me?�� Little Ling looked up at Old Ma with confusion and grumbled. She couldn��t cultivate at all and couldn��t see any extraordinary phenomenon in the world of the Divine Nation. She still didn��t understand her grandpa��s words.


    ��Listen to your Uncle Ye and learn from him,�� Old Ma added. Little Ling nodded again cluelessly.


    A surprised look came over Ye Futian��s face. He stared at Old Ma and wondered if he misjudged him. Was this seemingly ordinary old man not what he appeared to be either?


    If not, how to explain what he just said?


    Ye Futian vaguely sensed that Old Ma knew something as well. Otherwise, what did he mean when he asked Little Ling to learn from Ye Futian?


    ��Let��s go. We can chat more when we��re back,�� said Ye Futian. The Divine Nation��s world was now permanently integrated with Four Corner Village, rather than appearing every four years. It meant that nothing here would disappear again, and they didn��t need to rush for cultivation opportunities anymore.


    ��Alright.�� Old Ma nodded and said to Blind Tie, ��Do you want to have a chat at my place?��


    ��Okay,�� Blind Tie nodded and answered. Then, they began to walk to Old Ma��s house. Four Corner Village remained after being merged with the world of the Divine Nation, but everything felt different under the glowing sky. Although Four Corner Village was merged with the world of the Divine Nation, the village still existed.


    Old Ma took out a bottle of wine after they sat down in the yard. He said, ��Old Wang brewed this many years ago. It��s been a long time since he passed away, and I didn��t want to drink such precious wine. I��m gratified to see the change in the village today. It��s a good time to enjoy this.��


    He poured a couple of glasses for Blind Tie, Ye Futian, and the others, then sat down and said, ��Everyone in the village will be able to cultivate from now on. More and more excellent cultivators will emerge. How exciting it is.��


    ��Old Ma, I��ll drink one with you.�� Blind Tie raised his glass to Old Ma. He knew that Old Ma was missing his son. As happy as he was, he couldn��t help feeling sad at the same time.


    ��Good.�� Old Ma nodded and clinked his glass on Ye Futian��s too. He smiled and said, ��If only this happened a few decades earlier.��


    ��It��s all in the past now. Don��t think too much about it,�� Blind Tie said.


    ��You��re right,�� Old Ma smiled and shook his head. Little Ling was romping around with Tie Tou and said no idea what the grownups were talking about.


    Ye Futian, on the other hand, listened to their conversation carefully. He now realized that Old Ma was not a simple man either.


    Other villagers also figured out that the relic seemed to be permanent this time. The initial astonishment slowly passed, and many of them returned home. They had plenty of time in the future to explore.


    While Old Ma and the others were drinking, they were interrupted by a commotion outside. A group of people came into sight outside of the yard. One person said, ��Old Ma, excuse us.��


    Then, they walked directly into the yard and surveyed Ye Futian and his friends with cold eyes. The head of the group seemed to be in his 40s. His stately manner lent him an intimidating presence. Little Ling and Tie Tou were both nervous, while Little Ling was terrified.


    It was because they noticed Muyun Shu standing next to the middle-aged man. Apparently, these people came because of them.


    Muyun Shu stared at Ye Futian, his eyes gleaming. He gained another awakening and brought some members of the Muyun family here after he went back home. The middle-aged man was his father and the head of the Muyun family��Muyun Long.


    ��Get out of the village yourselves, and I will let this go,�� Muyun Long said in an arrogant and domineering tone.


    Ye Futian and his friends certainly understood who Muyun Long was talking to. He wanted to kick them out of Four Corner Village.


    Old Ma and Blind Tie put down their wine glasses with a grim expression on their faces. Old Ma was especially displeased. They came to his house and tried to expel his guests!

 Chapter 2103 - The Four Families

    Old Ma looked at Muyun Long and said, ��You��re throwing out my guests in my house. Isn��t that inappropriate?��


    Muyun Long darted Old Ma a disdainful look and said, ��Old Ma, I��m already saving your face by not doing it myself. This man attacked my son in the relic of the ancestors of Four Corner Village. How audacious. That��s why the Muyun family decides to banish him and his friends on behalf of Four Corner Village.��


    ��If that��s the case, please do me a favor and banish the people standing behind you, too. They wanted to attack my son in the relic of the ancestors of Four Corner Village. How audacious. I��m sure the Muyun family is impartial and fair-minded. Why don��t you banish them as well and come to talk to me about how your son tried to keep my son from gaining his awakening?�� Blind Tie, who was sitting in silence before, suddenly chimed in at this moment.


    Needless to say, he was referring to the three cultivators from the Nanhai family.


    Nanhai Qing shot Blind Tie a glance. Of course, he had heard about Blind Tie and how he stirred up a storm in the Outer Realms back in the days. Even so, how dare he expel members of the Nanhai family? Blind Tie was indeed hubristic as usual. He didn��t know to restrain himself even after he lost his sight.


    Muyun Long remained calm and looked at Blind Tie. He said, ��It was merely a joke between two teenage boys, not a real fight. Why did you take it to heart? On the other hand, this outsider undeniably assaulted my son today. This is unforgivable. Old Ma, if you insist on defending your guest and keeping him here, don��t blame me for starting a fight.��


    While speaking, Muyun Long released wisps of energy from his body to show off his formidable power. It turned out that Muyun Long was also an extraordinary cultivator and had ventured into the world in his younger days. He then returned to the village to hide from his enemies and promised the master that he wouldn��t go out again. After that, he lived in the village, and his son, Muyun Lan, later left the village and killed his old enemies for him.


    Muyun Long had been outside and was well aware of the excitement and adventures out there. Needless to say, he wasn��t content with staying in the village. For years, he had been focusing on raising and training Muyun Shu, his youngest son. In the meantime, he was quite ambitious and allied within the village.


    Now that Four Corner Village had transformed, he sensed that the opportunity he was waiting for was finally here.


    He knew that Four Corner Village was a famed place of miracles in the Shangqing Domain, and he believed that the master was wrong about keeping villagers from leaving this small piece of land. He was not the only villager who was unwilling to be trapped in Four Corner Village. Many people were ��imprisoned�� here and wasted their potential. It was quite a shame.


    If people of Four Corner Village could go out into the world, they would surely become an influential force like the Upper Third Heaven of the Shangqing Domain. At that time, they would dominate the world and revive the Four Corner Divine Nation their ancestors established. No one would feel oppressed or disgruntled anymore.


    ��You think you can represent Four Corner Village?�� Ye Futian raised his head and shot Muyun Long a look. Like father, like son. No wonder Muyun Shu was such a haughty and insolent boy. He obviously learned it from his father. Muyun Shu��s attempt to attack Tie Tou was ��a joke between two teenage boys.�� Now Muyun Long wanted to expel Ye Futian from the village. How was that reasonable?


    Certainly, it was apparent that Muyun Long had no intention to argue with reason in the first place. He was here to pick a fight.


    However, outsiders were not allowed to fight inside the village.


    Ye Futian and the others would be put on Muyun Long��s chopping block.


    ��As one of the inheritors of the seven Divine Techniques, the Muyun family is naturally qualified. You can ask around if you don��t believe me,�� Muyun Long boasted loudly. Plenty of people had gathered outside of the yard during their argument.


    ��That��s right. The Muyun family is a pillar of the village and has been taking charge of day-to-day affairs. Muyun Long is one of the principals. Of course, he can represent Four Corner Village,�� an old man echoed.


    The old man was right. Despite its small population, Four Corner Village had many daily matters that needed to be taken care of. The master only focused on teaching students and didn��t concern himself with other things in the village. Although the villagers respected the master the most, the four families were in charge of managing Four Corner Village daily.


    Other than the Muyun family, the Shi family, and the Gu family, the Tie family used to be one of the four. After Blind Tie returned to the village without his sight, the Tie family had been on the wane, and the Fang family took its spot.


    Although the Fang family didn��t inherit any Divine Technique, they had raised several powerful cultivators in each generation and built a greater reputation in the village. Some youngsters of the Fang family were also cultivating in the Outer Realms and were alleged to be rather famous.


    ��Even though Muyun Long is one of the principals, there are other people who have the same level of authority. He is not the sole decision-maker in Four Corner Village,�� Old Ma narrowed his eyes and said.


    ��Old Ma, I initially wanted to save your face. Who would have thought that you have no idea how to behave sensibly? Then I have no choice but to ask others to join me,�� Muyun Long said coldly. ��Folks, you all heard me. Come in now.��


    Upon hearing his words, several people walked into the yard one after another. Old Ma quickly recognized the familiar faces.


    The heads of the Shi family, the Gu family, and the Fang family were all here. Shi Kui of the Shi family was a burly man with intimidating muscles. He looked as if he had infinite strength.


    Gu Huai of the Gu family was tall and slender. He was dressed in black and had a gloomy and sinister look which gave off a danger.


    Fang Gai of the Fang family was a man wearing extravagant clothes. Ye Futian had already met him when his grandson Fang Cun had a short encounter with Little Ling when Ye Futian arrived at the village.


    ��Everyone seems to be in a leisurely mood. The village just experienced dramatic change, yet somehow you all have time to visit my humble home,�� Old Ma said slowly.


    ��Since the two worlds have merged and stabilized, everyone in the village will be able to have a chance to cultivate in the future. We don��t have to rush into action now. I came over to have a look when I heard about the dispute here,�� Fang Gai said with a smile.


    ��If that��s the case, what do you think of Muyun Long��s decision?�� Blind Tie asked in a cold tone.


    The crowd watched them in silence. Fang Gai cracked a smile and said, ��Of course�� It��s not right.��


    Stunned, many people stared at Fang Gai in confusion. Even Muyun Long turned around slowly and focused his gaze on Fang Gai. He narrowed his eyes slightly with displeasure.


    Fang Gai was never at odds with Muyun Long in the past. He had always been a yes-man, and his son was cultivating outside of the village.


    However, he opposed Muyun Long in public.


    What did he mean?


    ��Fang Gai, what��s not right?�� Muyun Long questioned him in a forceful voice.


    ��Old Ma and Blind Tie have explained it clearly. Muyun Shu was the one who tried to pick a fight with Tie Tou. Muyun Shu has always been a bully. We all live in the same village, and it��s not a big deal to exercise some forbearance on usual occasions. But he is not a child anymore. Doesn��t he understand that he shouldn��t interrupt his peer during the awakening? On top of that, you use it as an excuse to expel other people��s guests. That��s out of line.��


    Fang Gai replied with a smile. The tension in the yard was almost palpable.


    Fang Gai��s answer might be a little too frank and straightforward.


    He clearly targetted Muyun Shu and reprimanded him harshly.


    The villagers all felt quite strange. How was this the same Fang Gai who was always easygoing and smiley?


    Why did he change all of a sudden? Moreover, he was firing at the Muyun family, which was even more unexpected.


    Nonetheless, he was telling the truth. Everyone who had studied in the private school knew that Muyun Shu was a bully who enjoyed pushing around other people. He certainly had the ability to do so as well. His parents turned a blind eye to his insolent behaviors because of his exceptional talents.


    ��Fang Cun, look how righteous your grandpa is,�� Muyun Shu said to Fang Cun, his eyes gleaming with threatening menace.


    ��My grandpa is not wrong. You are at fault here. Why did you come to cause trouble for Little Ling��s family?�� Fang Cun retorted in an irritated tone. The teenage boys quarreled just like the elders did.


    ��Very well.�� Muyun Long spat out two words and didn��t continue to argue. Then, he looked at Shi Kui and Gu Huai and asked, ��What do you two think?��


    Muyun Long felt very assured since the Muyun family was the strongest and the most influential one among the four.


    Much to his surprise, Fang Gai challenged his decision right away.


    ��Outsiders attacking villagers is unforgivable. I agree to expel them from the village,�� Gu Huai of the Gu family said in a low voice.


    The Muyun family and the Gu family both agreed to expel Ye Futian, while Fang Gai opposed.


    Right now, the Shi family was the only one left.


    Shi Kui could decide if Ye Futian could stay in the village.


    Ye Futian had been sitting in silence without moving. These people didn��t know what the transformation meant for Four Corner Village. Otherwise, they wouldn��t waste time squabbling here.


    ��I don��t think it��s appropriate,�� said Shi Kui, ��If we were to banish him, we should kick out the people who tried to attack Tie Tou as well. Then, we can discuss what happened between Muyun Shu and Tie Tou.��


    Shi Kui believed that the conflict between Tie Tou and Muyun Shu was an internal affair. They should treat everyone equally if they decided to banish the outsiders for starting a fight.


    Therefore, two principals said yes, while two said no.


    Muyun Long��s face grew grim. He didn��t expect Shi Kui and Fang Gai to oppose him.


    ��Should we ask the master?�� a villager in the crowd asked quietly. They usually sought advice from the master when they couldn��t make a decision. Everyone in the village trusted the master��s judgment.


    However, Muyun Long had a different idea in mind. He always thought that the villagers relied on the master too much, and it was time for a change.


    ��Our ancestors manifested themselves, and the village just went through an extreme transformation. There will be more and more cultivators in Four Corner Village, and things will become even trickier. Master, shouldn��t we change our approach accordingly?�� Muyun Long didn��t ask the master about Ye Futian or the incident between Tie Tou and Muyun Shu. Instead, he wanted to negotiate about the future of Four Corner Village!

 Chapter 2104 - Seeking a Change

    Even though Muyun Long was not even close to the private school, no one doubted that the master could hear his question. The master was omnipotent in Four Corner Village. In the past, he chose to stay in the private school and devote himself to teaching the youngsters how to cultivate. He intended not to intervene in the affairs of Four Corner Village.


    But now Muyun Long specially asked him if Four Corner Village should adopt a new approach.


    ��What kind of change do you want?�� As expected, the master��s voice penetrated through the void and answered Muyun Long��s question with another question.


    Muyun Long��s words clearly conveyed the impression that he already had a plan in mind to change Four Corner Village.


    ��Master, you said before that everyone in the village would be able to cultivate in the future. Is that true?�� Muyun Long asked.


    ��Yes,�� the master replied. ��All the villagers will be able to cultivate, but they may reach different levels in the end, just like everyone in the Outer Realms.��


    ��I understand,�� Muyun Long nodded and said. ��But Four Corner Village is blessed by the spirits of our ancestors. More and more extraordinary cultivators will be raised here in the future now that the ancestors have manifested themselves. I believe this to be an opportunity. Our village has brought up plenty of remarkable cultivators, yet we are still isolated and cut off from the world. The villagers have no idea of the scene of bustling activities out there. They can only hear a word or two from the people who had been outside. This is very unfair to the villagers. Since we��re given the chance to cultivate now, shouldn��t we officially open ourselves up and build a bridge to connect with the outside world? Four Corner Village should allow people to come and go at will and no longer be sequestered.��


    While speaking, Muyun Long scanned the crowd around him and said, ��Folks, what do you all think?��


    ��That��s right.�� A lot of people nodded in agreement. Someone gazed into the distance and said, ��Master, Muyun Long has a point. It doesn��t matter for old guys like us who are halfway to the grave already. But our children are still young. Why should we confine them in this small village when they have a chance to broaden their horizons outside?��


    ��Exactly. I also heard that cultivators have a much longer life expectancy and won��t experience aging and illness the same way we do. People who comprehended the Great Path might even live forever.��


    Many people had thought about this, let alone the ones who were already on Muyun Long��s side. Although the master had unchallenged authority in the village, he was a mysterious man who had lived for an extremely long time. No one even knew which generation he was from. Because the master usually stayed out of the daily affairs and Muyun Long had managed Four Corner Village for many years, Muyun Long had a great influence on many villagers.


    These villagers were all of the same mind.


    ��I also agree with Muyun Long��s idea,�� said Gu Huai. The head of the Gu family seemed to be in harmony with Muyun Long all the time.


    At this point, the subject of the discussion had shifted away from Ye Futian, which was exactly one of Muyun Long��s intents.


    Four Corner Village had the potential to gain foremost authority as soon as it opened up to the Outer Realms. At that time, Muyun Long would have a chance to fully control the village. His ambition had grown outside of the village a long time ago.


    Dealing with Ye Futian and Old Ma would be as easy as pie when he reigned over Four Corner Village.


    As for now, he needed to chip away the master��s prestige and authority first. In the meantime, he was also curious to see what the master was capable of. The master was so mysterious and secretive that no one knew anything about him.


    The crowd fell into a moment of silence after a heated discussion.


    The master spoke again moments later, ��What do others think?��


    ��Muyun Long��s argument was reasonable. But our Four Corner Village only exists because of the master��s protection. This is eventually the master��s decision,�� Fang Gai said. Muyun Long immediately shot him a cold glance upon hearing him. This b*stard��


    Fang Gai��s response was quite artful.


    Ye Futian also glanced at Fang Gai, who was indeed a crafty person.


    Fang Gai not only expressed his opinion but also reconfirmed the master��s absolute authority. He obviously didn��t believe that Muyun Long could challenge the master��s position in Four Corner Village.


    Both the older and the younger generations of the Muyun family had been quite capable and domineering. Besides Muyun Long, Muyun Lan and Muyun Shu possessed great talents as well. Muyun Lan, in particular, enjoyed a very high status in the Outer Realms. It was not surprising that Muyun Long was eager to extend his influence further.


    ��I will listen to the master, too,�� Shi Kui of the Shi family said.


    ��It��s up to the master���� Other villagers echoed in quick succession and soon reached a consensus. They held no less sway than Muyun Long��s followers. Muyun Long��s expression changed a little. But he understood that people��s reaction was normal since the master was revered by the villagers for a long time.


    Most people in the village had their own minds and agenda. More and more villagers would grow disgruntled with the master if he rejected Muyun Long��s suggestion.


    Soon, everyone quieted down, waiting for the master��s response.


    At this moment, the master��s voice rang out again.


    ��Alright!��


    The master��s reply took Muyun Long by surprise. He clearly didn��t expect that the master would agree, and he wasn��t the only one shocked by this decision. After all, Four Corner Village had been cut off from the world for countless years. They always followed the rules and were used to being secluded. Even though some were eager to go out and see the world, they still had mixed feelings when the master said ��alright.��


    They were astounded that the master would agree to the proposal.


    Did it mean that Four Corner Village would open itself up to the world for real from now on?


    In addition to the villagers, the guests from other forces also had a stunned look on their faces. Was Four Corner Village about to change its ways?


    They all knew that what happened today would probably have a tremendous effect on the entire Shangqing Domain.


    However, at this moment, no one knew what kind of effect it would be.


    Silence reigned for a few moments, and then whispers broke out. Everyone began to converse avidly.


    ��Are you serious?�� Muyun Long gazed into the distance and asked, eyes widened. As much he wanted it, he didn��t think the master would agree so easily and readily.


    Was Four Corner Village really going to change?


    ��Yes,�� the master replied. ��You��re right. This is an opportunity indeed. I understand everyone��s wish to go outside. Since the ancestors have manifested themselves and the Ancient Divine Nation has merged with Four Corner Village, we might as well make use of this opportunity. Besides����


    The crowd listened intently. What did the master want to say?


    ��I��m aware of the incident just now. Right now, the four families are in charge of the day-to-day affairs in the village. The even number makes it possible to reach a tie when you arbitrate in disputes. Therefore, that should change as well.��


    ��Ugh����


    Many people were surprised, and Muyun Long was sweating. What kind of change did the master mean?


    ��Since the opportunity is here, all seven Divine Techniques that were passed on by the ancestors will emerge. We need to wait patiently for the seven Divine Techniques to find the corresponding descendants. By that time, the seven families will be able to manage Four Corner Village and pass judgment on important issues together,�� said the master. Everyone��s heart was pounding rapidly.


    According to the master, all seven Divine Techniques passed on by the ancestors would find their descendants. It meant that the other three Divine Techniques would come out as well. It was a significant piece of news for Four Corner Village!

 Chapter 2105 - Fang Gai

    No one had doubts about the master��s words; even Muyun Long didn��t suspect the master.


    The master was always right. The seven Divine Techniques would definitely come out since he said so.


    Did it mean that the four families would become the seven families in the future?


    Muyun Long felt apprehensive about this possibility. He vaguely sensed that everything was part of the master��s plan. Who would the other three families be?


    Would the outsiders get their hands on it?


    Plenty of outsiders had gained some benefits in the history of Four Corner Village. Otherwise, they wouldn��t persist in coming to the village. Even so, it was unlikely for them to inherit the Divine Techniques.


    The villagers were descendants of the Four Corner Divine Nation. They were destined to be the inheritors of the Divine Techniques.


    More and more people in each generation experienced awakenings. All seven Divine Techniques could emerge eventually. But the villagers didn��t expect the day to come so quickly. According to the master, it was probably expedited because of the transformation that happened just now.


    The master stopped talking after that, but his silence didn��t bring peace and calm back to everyone��s mind. What happened on this day had epoch-making significance for Four Corner Village. The master allowed the villagers to make contact with the Outer Realms. In the meantime, he predicted that all seven Divine Techniques would come out soon. Four Corner Village was about to go through a complete change.


    As for now, no one knew if the change would be for better or for worse.


    ��Since the master had spoken, you can go back now,�� Old Ma said, looking at Muyun Long and the others. Two out of the four families currently in charge of Four Corner Village were opposed to expelling Ye Futian. The master also said that they should wait until all seven Divine Techniques had come out to make a decision together.


    Under such circumstances, Muyun Long couldn��t insist on kicking Ye Futian out.


    ��Since the master said so, I have no choice but to look forward to witnessing the emergence of the seven Divine Techniques,�� said Muyun Long. Then, he turned around and left with the group. The crowd dispersed at once and moved on to keep exploring the mysteries of this new world.


    The rest of the three Divine Techniques would turn up soon. It was crucial to people living in Four Corner Village. Everyone was fervently expecting the big reveal. What if they happened to be the chosen ones?


    Many common folks in the village hoped to inherit the Divine Technique and become powerful cultivators. Otherwise, the villagers wouldn��t be so eager to make contact with the Outer Realms and end the seclusion.


    The locals in Four Corner Village were not the only ones who had their fingers crossed. The cultivators who came from the Outer Realms also had high hopes.


    Could they have the chance to inherit the Divine Techniques?


    This was an extremely important and probably the biggest opportunity they had ever encountered. No one could foresee what the future held.


    Many of them had already informed their families and asked them to send more people here. Now that Four Corner Village had officially opened up, cultivators from the Outer Realms should be able to come in freely, shouldn��t they?


    They had to try, at least.


    Four Corner Village became even more bustling and lively now. After moments of peace that came with the initial shock, the village turned back into a buzzy place teeming with cultivators. They originally thought that they didn��t have to rush to seek cultivation opportunities. But now, everyone was dreaming of inheriting the Divine Techniques and wouldn��t waste a single moment.


    However, Ye Futian and the others returned to their relaxed state. They went back to sit around the table. Old Ma and Blind Tie were both calm and composed as well.


    ��The Muyun family is becoming more and more absurd,�� Old Ma said in a low voice. ��No wonder their son behaves like this. Muyun Shu was a good kid when he was little. Who would have thought that he would grow into a bully?��


    ��The Muyun family has been quite domineering in recent years. They exert a strong influence in the village and inevitably succumb to hubris and ambition,�� someone else next to them said with a smile. ��Based on what Muyun Long said, he probably wanted to open up Four Corner Village a long time ago.��


    ��His son is rising to fame in the Outer Realms. If the village remained closed, his son wouldn��t have a chance to visit him, let alone showing off the wealth and power he acquired outside. Of course, Muyun Long wants the village to open up.�� Old Ma hit the nail on the head and pointed out the most important reason.


    ��Fang Gai, you probably want the same thing. Don��t say it��s not your wish as well.��


    ��Hey!�� Fang Gai grinned and said, ��I already said that I would unconditionally follow the master��s guidance.��


    Old Ma glanced at Fang Gai. This man was quite crafty and slippery.


    ��Why did you offend Muyun Long in public this time?�� Old Ma asked.


    ��To be fair and just, of course,�� Fang Gai walked to the table and asked, ��Can I sit down and have a few drinks with you guys?��


    He narrowed his eyes and stared at Old Ma and Blind Tie. He had been standing by the side for a long time, yet these two bastards didn��t even invite him for a drink. How ungrateful.


    ��Sit,�� said Old Ma. Fang Gai pulled his grandson, Fang Cun, to sit alongside him. Fang Cun��s bright eyes surveyed the people around the table. He didn��t fully understand his grandfather��s action.


    ��Little Ling is getting more beautiful every day. You will surely be a stunner when you grow up!�� Fang Gai praised Little Ling after taking his seat. Little Ling blinked and looked down in embarrassment. He muttered, ��Grandpa Fang.��


    ��What a shy girl, haha.�� Fang Gai laughed. ��Fang Cun, don��t pick on Little Ling again.��


    ��I didn��t pick on her,�� Fang Cun defended himself with frustration.


    Fang Gai flicked Fang Cun on his forehead for talking back. Little Ling hurried to say, ��Grandpa Fang, Fang Cun really didn��t pick on me.��


    ��That��s good. Ask Fang Cun to play with you more in the future.�� Fang Gai laughed. Meanwhile, another boy was glaring at him at the moment. Fang Gai noticed Tie Tou��s fierce stare and pointed at him. ��Tie Tou, you should join them too so you won��t be bullied as well.��


    ��I won��t be bullied,�� Tie Tou raised his chin and said.


    ��Hah, who else was bullied that day by the boy from the Muyun family?�� Fang Gai joked.


    ��My dad didn��t allow me to fight back. I��m not afraid of him at all,�� said Tie Tou. He jerked his head up and said with indignation. Other people couldn��t help but laugh. Ye Futian darted a glance at Fang Gai. He was impressed by how quickly Fang Gai acquainted with Little Ling and Tie Tou. The atmosphere became cordial and relaxed at once as if they had always been good friends.


    ��Quit teasing him. Everyone else is out there searching for cultivation opportunities. Why didn��t you go?�� Old Ma asked Fang Gai.


    ��The cultivation opportunities are predestined. Since the ancestors manifested themselves, I believe everything is part of a plan. This is not something that can be forced. It all depends on luck,�� Fang Gai said, ��My family is not lucky enough. I need to let my grandson absorb some good fortune here.��


    ��Why are you looking for good fortune in my house?�� Old Ma said with a scowl on his face.


    Fang Gai looked at Old Ma with his squinting eyes. He was certain that Old Ma was an old fox trying to hide his good fortune. From what he could see, Old Ma��s home was the luckiest place in the entire Four Corner Village.


    ��Old Ma, we have known each other for many years. Why are you so cagey around me?�� Fang Gai gazed at Old Ma and asked, ��Muyun Long and I are not the same kind of people, are we?��


    ��Who knows?�� Old Ma said.


    ��You old b*stard���� Fang Gai cursed in a low voice, ��What an ingrate. I shouldn��t have helped you just now.��


    ��Skip the nonsense. Just tell me what you want to do.�� They grew up in the same village and were around the same age. Even Muyun Long was a whole generation younger than them.


    Therefore, they knew each other very well.


    ��Muyun Long is getting more and more outrageous. Four Corner Village might be led astray if he remained in power. No one knows what would happen. I will side with you no matter what. Tie Tou basically inherited the Divine Technique and should have a say, according to the master. Either way, we should make the village our priority no matter what ulterior motive I may have.�� Fang Gai said, ��Since you two don��t like me here, I won��t overstay my welcome.��


    Then, he stood up and left with Fang Cun.


    The rest of the people watched them going away. Little Ling sneaked a peek at Old Ma and said quietly, ��Grandpa Fang is a good man.��


    Although Fang Gai and Fang Cun enjoyed a high status in the village, they had never pushed anyone around. They liked to joke around but never with any malicious intent.


    ��I know. But this old fox is hatching a secret plot.�� Old Ma shot a glance at Ye Futian. Fang Gai didn��t say a word to Ye Futian from start to finish. But did he really come here only to visit Old Ma and Blind Tie?

 Chapter 2106 - Do You Want to Die?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In Four Corner Village at the moment, cultivators from everywhere were seeking their own opportunities.


    Ye Futian and the others were drinking happily. The ease and contentment inside the small courtyard seemed to have no care of what was happening in the outside world, creating a unique scenery of its own.


    The two kids, Tie Tou and Little Ling, both looked outside from time to time, as if greatly desired to see the excitement out there.


    Ye Futian looked at them and smiled, ��Old Ma, let me take them out for a bit.��


    ��Mmm, sounds good,�� Old Ma nodded.


    The two teenagers had been expecting it. When they heard Ye Futian��s words, they jumped up and ran towards Ye Futian, hand in hand. Little Ling walked up to Ye Futian and held one of his fingers. The three of them went outside together.


    ��Uncle Ye, where are we going?�� Little Ling looked up at Ye Futian and asked.


    ��You��ll know it when we get there,�� Ye Futian said with a smile while leading Little Ling, Tie Tou next to them. He looked around curiously and found that the whole village had become very different. Many people seemed to have encountered their opportunities.


    It seemed that it would be exactly as what the adults had said. In the future, there would be more and more cultivators in the village, and they would become even more powerful. He wanted to go and see for himself.


    Ye Futian led Little Ling and Tie Tou all the way until they came to the tree.


    Little Ling and Tie Tou looked at the tree curiously and whispered, ��Uncle Ye, what kind of tree is this?��


    ��Path-seeking Tree.�� Ye Futian said, ��Little Ling, go sit under the tree.��


    ��Okay.�� Little Ling nodded, and then sat quietly under the tree. Tie Tou followed along and sat next to her. He raised his head and looked at the tree with curiosity.


    ��Close your eyes and feel it quietly. See if you can see anything,�� Ye Futian stood beside Little Ling and said to her softly. His voice was gentle, floating in Little Ling��s mind.


    The little girl sat there quietly and closed her eyes obediently. After adjusted her body position, she became very still.


    The ancient tree gently swaying and made a rustling sound. Not far away, there was a group of people coming in this direction. The man in the lead was Lu Qixing of the Lu family. He looked at the tree and could only sense that the tree was somehow different but could not really discern how it was different.


    Lu Qixing saw Ye Futian and Little Ling, and looked at them curiously.


    The little girl and Tie Tou both sat quietly. After a while, Tie Tou opened his eyes and looked at Ye Futian. Just as he was about to open his mouth, Ye Futian made a gesture to silence him. Tie Tou scratched his head, glanced at Little Ling, who was next to him, and understood what Ye Futian meant. So, he resisted the urge to speak.


    The leaves fell down from the swaying ancient tree and landed on Little Ling. It was as if invisible air currents were flowing into her body. Gradually, Little Ling entered into a state of wonder. She felt as if she was not sitting there, but floating in the air. Countless radiant divine glory covered her body as she entered into another space.


    ��It��s so beautiful.�� Little Ling was amazed. She saw a number of gorgeous golden doors appearing in different directions as if these golden doors were presenting themselves to her.


    In the sky above this space, a golden glow came down from the heavens and landed on Little Ling. For a time, Little Ling was shrouded in that magnificent glow.


    Ye Futian looked up and saw that a golden door of space appeared faintly in the sky above the temple. It was the glow from there that fell on Little Ling.


    At this moment, Ye Futian understood certain things. It turned out that Little Ling was also a villager who could be awakened to inherit the seven great divine techniques. It seemed that Old Ma might have known something about that.


    He felt that Old Ma��s appearance was rather deceiving.


    Ye Futian had seen one of the seven great divine techniques was hidden in the sky above, but he didn��t know who it belonged to. He brought Little Ling to cultivate here because he wanted to see what kind of talent she might have and what kind of power she could inherit. He didn��t expect it to be the divine method of the space.


    Little Ling��s body floated and came to the void. It was as if she was being sucked inside the golden gate. At the same time, in different places inside this space, many people felt a strange fluctuation. However, they couldn��t see exactly what was there. They were shocked to find Little Ling��s body shifting in space, appearing in different directions continuously.


    ��This����


    ��That��s Little Ling.��


    ��Is she about to be awakened?!��


    Voices came one after another as everyone in Four Corner Village focused their attention yonder.


    Little Ling was determined by the teacher as someone who could not cultivate. And now, she might actually be inheriting extraordinary abilities. Could it actually be the divine technique?


    After all, the teacher had said not long ago that the seven great divine techniques would be revealed soon; it was hard not to make some conjectures about it.


    ��Such a strong spatial force fluctuation,�� some outside cultivators looked over there and commented. It was possible that another divine technique was about to reveal itself.


    In another direction were the people of the Muyun family. Muyung Long and Muyun Shu looked up at the figure in the void, and neither of them looked pleased.


    Not so long ago, they had gone to Old Ma��s house to drive them away.


    Now, Little Ling was about to awaken.


    ��Damn it,�� Muyung Long cursed silently. His expression remained indifferent. His eyes swept toward the distance. It was as if he had seen Ye Futian, who was standing underneath the tree. His eyes were extremely cold.


    Could it really be as he had worried, that this person was someone with extraordinary luck?


    Muyung Long had seen the red maples bloomed all over on that day, and it was only because of the conflict that he tried to chase Ye Futian away�� He was just a little concerned.


    And now, it seemed that his concern was fast becoming a reality.


    Moments later, Little Ling��s body returned underneath the ancient tree, and she sat there quietly, shrouded in the glow. From the void downward, it was as if all these doors poured directly into her. A beautiful vision now formed behind Little Ling.


    Shadows flickered in this direction. From a distance, they saw the three under the tree.


    Ye Futian and two young people formed a beautiful serene picture.


    The people in the village were a little surprised. When Little Ling took Ye Futian to her house as he first entered the village, no one in the village thought it was a good idea. But now that Little Ling had received the opportunity of a lifetime, they knew that this might have something to do with Ye Futian.


    So, did it mean that this white-haired young man was a man of great luck?


    Nonetheless, a group of men walked toward the tree, including people from the Muyun family. They could feel that the tree was unusual. Would they have a greater chance of awakening by comprehending here?


    Tie Tou took a step forward but did not speak. He stood there with his arms open, not allowing anyone else to cross and disturb Little Ling.


    ��Get out of the way!�� Some outsider chided him and continued forward. However, Ye Futian glanced at the person as an invisible pressure enveloped the man, causing him to stop in his tracks. He turned his attention to Ye Futian.


    ��Tie Tou, what are you doing?�� A voice was heard as Muyung Long and the others walked over to the boy. The person next to him reached out and tried to grab Tie Tou.


    However, in the next moment, that man��s hand was imprisoned by the hand of another. He struggled a bit but saw that the other��s hand had a firm grip on his arm.


    His expression changed as soon as he raised his head and saw the man standing in front of him. The man��s eyes were hollow and without light; he was blind. It was Blind Tie. His arms weren��t covered by sleeves, so his perfect bronze muscles could be plainly seen, full of power.


    Blind Tie flung his arm forward, and the man stumbled backward several steps. Blind Tie took a step forward and blocked him. Though he couldn��t see with his eyes, he seemed to see everyone.


    He stood there like a statue. It was as if no one could get past him.


    Many stared at the blind man. Once upon a time, when Blind Tie returned to the village, his life was hanging by a thread, and he was dying. He was blinded, but it was the teacher who saved his life. After that, the blind man worked quietly, blacksmithing, and had never displayed his strength to anyone. It had been the way he was for a dozen years.


    No one knew Blind Tie��s true strength now or how much ability he had been able to recover from the damage he suffered before.


    But what they saw in front of them shocked everyone. By simply standing there, Blind Tie actually made everyone feel an invisible pressure. It seemed as if there was an impassable barrier.


    ��How dare you!�� Nanhai Qing took a step forward and rushed toward Blind Tie. Blind Tie raised his arm when Nanhai Qing came close, and all anyone saw was just the flicking of a phantom.


    Bang! The sound was heard when Nanhai Qing, the proud son of the Nanhai family and a well-known genius talent in the outside world, was slammed to the ground.


    Blind Tie bowed his legs as his arms clasped Nanhai Qing��s neck, pressing him firmly to the ground. He chided him with spite, ��An outsider raising his hand inside the village! Do you want to die?!��

 Chapter 2107 - Who’s to Be Expelled?

    Nanhai Qing was pressed against the ground and couldn��t move. His breathing was rapid, and the aura upon his body was erratic, but it was so disorganized that he could not gather them into any usable form.


    His face was flushed red because of the stifling. His eyes fixed on the muscular body in front of him as he was firmly held in place.


    As an existence of Middle Renhuang and a genius talent belonging to the Nanhai family, his position was lofty in the outside world. However, at the moment, he was suffering the worst humiliation of his life. No one could imagine his current state of mind.


    However, those around him had a different take. More than the shock of Nanhai Qing��s humiliation, they were more astonished by Blind Tie��s show of strength.


    Especially for those cultivators from the outside, Four Corner Village had always been a mysterious place. The village did not produce many powerful people, but each one of them was strong beyond terrifying. Back then, this Blind Tie was also a well-known figure.


    But then, the man became blind and returned to the village. Over time, he was forgotten by the world, and his existence was only a faint memory.


    However, the person that Blind Tie humiliated was Nanhai Qing, a Renhuang cultivator of the Sixth Realm with perfect Great Path. Blind Tie was able to render him completely without resistance. So much so that Nanhai Qing��s power of the Great Path was unable to condense and take form. The power possessed by Blind Tie was not inconsiderable. Perhaps this genius talent of the Naihai family had never suffered such humiliation like this before. Those from the outside had their concerns and wouldn��t act so boldly.


    But the people inside Four Corner Village was another story.


    The villagers themselves were stunned as well. Blind Tie had been striking iron in the shop all these years and no longer displayed any of his powers anymore. When he returned to the village, he was blind and on the verge of death. The teacher saved him and gave him his life back, but many speculated that he might have lost his cultivation in the process. They never expected that he was still so powerful.


    The teacher was truly amazing to have saved Blind Tie and restore his strength to the same level as it was before.


    ��Blind Tie, you��ve gone mad.��


    When Nanhai Qing was taken down, Muyun Long took a step forward, and the aura of the Great Path exploded fiercely from him. He rushed towards Blind Tie, rousing a great gust of wind around them so that everyone in the distance retreated quickly.


    Muyun Long, the head of the Muyun family, was a mighty man himself.


    Blind Tie raised his head and faced Muyun Long, saying coldly, ��Muyun Long, you tout yourself as one of the people in charge of Four Corner Village, but you are condoning an outsider to violate the rules of the village, allowing him to raise a hand against people inside our village?��


    Muyun Long��s face was austere. The ironclad rule for the village had always been that outsiders were not allowed to fight inside the village, let alone take action against the people inside the village.


    ��The village has changed, and the relics have merged with Four Corner Village. The teacher has agreed to the changes and allowed Four Corner Village to have contact with the outside world. Naturally, some of those staled rules will need to be revised as well. Under these circumstances, it is hard not to have some conflict.�� Muyun Long continued coldly, ��Don��t forget that the people behind you had also tried to move against my son, Muyun Shu. I wanted to chase him out of the village, but remember how I was stopped?��


    ��Muyun Long, who was the one who raised his hand first?�� At this time, Old Ma came over and said, ��Your son instructed outsiders to move against Tie Tou, and not only did you not chastise Muyun Shu, but aided him in expelling the others. Once again, it��s a guest of the Muyun family who wants to break the rules. I know Muyun Lan��s name rang throughout the world outside, and he��s also the son-in-law of the Nanhai family. Therefore, the Muyun family is no longer focused on the welfare of Four Corner Village. How could us villagers be as valuable in your eyes as the people from the Nanhai family?��


    Muyun Long stared at the Old Ma, and so did everyone else in the village.


    There were conflicts between the two parties again, and it��s Muyun Long and Old Ma��s family. This time, no one expected that Little Ling would be the one to inherit the divine techniques. Perhaps Muyun Long was a tad too anxious when he saw what had happened, causing the Nanhai family to take part in the action. However, no one expected Blind Tie to be such a powerful interceptor.


    ��In my opinion, Muyun Long, you are too selfish. You only care about the interests of outsiders and not the welfare of the village. You and Muyun Shu should be expelled from Four Corner Village.�� Old Ma said nonchalantly. This immediately made the heartbeats of everyone inside the village skip a beat.


    Exile Muyun Long from Four Corner Village?


    ��Do you know what you are talking about?�� Muyun Long stared at Old Ma. Expel his family from Four Corner Village?


    The Muyun family enjoyed great status in Four Corner Village, and he was now the unofficial head of the four great families inside the village. How dared Old Ma talk about expelling him.


    ��This time on the day of the sacrifice, Tie Tou and Little Ling had received the opportunity to awaken, thus inheriting the technique of their ancestors and honoring our village. This should have been a great joy in the village, but Muyun Long was envious of their fortune and tried to intervene twice to stop Tie Tou and Little Ling, directly undercutting the interests of this village. The Muyun family is no longer worthy of staying in the village. Teacher, please decide,�� Old Ma said as he put his hands together. It appeared that he was quite serious and was not just venting. He really wanted to drive out the Muyun family.


    Those foreign principalities were disturbed by these allegations. Four Corner Village had long been isolated from the world, and the people inside the village must have accumulated some deep-seated grievances. It seemed that the conflict this time had brought out this dissatisfaction, and the two sides were now completely at an impasse.


    ��I agree.�� Blind Tie let go of Nanhai Qing as he seconded the suggestion, facing the teacher.


    People from the Muyun family had tried to move against his son before. This time, they aimed Little Ling, and he and Old Ma were completely fed up. He couldn��t fault Old Ma for being so angry.


    The seven great divine techniques belonged to Four Corner Village. Anyone, as long as they were villagers, all had the opportunity to inherit the divine techniques. Tie Tou and Little Ling to inheriting the divine techniques ought to be the pride of the Four Corner Village, but what did the Muyun family do?


    Instantly, many people inside Four Corner Village were whispering, talking and pointing at Muyun Long. If It weren��t for Muyun Long��s attempt to drive Ye Futian away, they still wouldn��t know what happened on the day of the sacrifice when Muyun Shu wanted to do something to Tie Tou.


    But this time, many had seen it with their own eyes, and it was indeed the guests of the Muyun family who wanted to sabotage Little Ling��s awakening. This, indeed, upset many in the village. A closer look at Muyun Long��s behavior and thinking carefully back over the years, he had always considered the interests of his family first, not the interest of the village.


    They had not thought much about it before, but Old Ma��s words had awakened many people. After all, they were simple villagers who would never think much about matters like this.


    Aware of the talking and pointing behind him, Muyun Long��s expression was not so good. This was the first time he was scolded by so many villagers. Those whispers began to express dissatisfaction with him.


    He didn��t expect the situation to end up like this.


    ��I have said before that Four Corner Village must solve the problems in the village on its own. Since it can��t be decided, we must wait until after the seven great divine techniques have been revealed so the heirs of the seven families may decide together. This way, the will of the Four Corner Village would be properly represented.�� Far into the distance, an elusive voice was heard by everyone.


    Now that Tie Tou and Little Ling had both awakened, the Tie family would become one of them. Together with Little Ling and the Fang family, that was already three families. Previously, the Shi family also supported Ye Futian, which meant that the balance inside the village had already begun to shift. If the Shi family were also dissatisfied with the Muyun family, the possibility to expel Muyun Long would become very real.


    Of course, the teacher said that all seven great divine techniques would have to be revealed, so there was a possibility that the Fang family may be replaced, but no one knew who would be the replacement.


    However, judging from the teacher��s words, it was not hard to fathom that the ending must not be far off. Especially after Little Ling��s awakening, this school of thought was even stronger. All the other divine techniques would be revealed and find their heirs.


    ��It seems that Old Ma was correct this time in finding Ye Futian, who must be a man of great luck. It seems that it was he who brought Little Ling along.�� Many people looked at Ye Futian and made the connections secretly in their hearts.


    ��As for the outsiders, since Four Corner Village is in an unusual time now, they won��t interfere. But there is only one thing: I won��t tolerate outsiders attacking the villagers of Four Corner Village.�� As the voice fell, terrifying coercion dropped from the sky. The hearts of many skipped a beat as they felt that majestic coercion of the Great Path.


    ��Furthermore, as to what to what directions to take towards the outside world in the future, the seven will decide after the seven great divine techniques have been revealed,�� the teacher continued. Still, he didn��t get involved. Everything would follow the will of the Four Corner Village!

 Chapter 2108 - Searching

    Muyun Long didn��t look so good. Although the teacher remained neutral, he had an ominous feeling about this recent turn of events.


    It was as if everything was as the teacher expected, including his thoughts, could not escape the discerning eyes of the teacher. He was like a god overlooking all of Four Corner Village, omnipotent, and everything was under his control.


    These thoughts crossed Muyun Long��s mind because he believed that, with his current level of cultivation and the status of the Muyun family inside and outside the village, there shouldn��t be another god-like existence above him. He wanted to see how far he could go.


    His first step was to open up the Four Corner Village so that it was no longer limited to this little corner of the world but would truly dominate the territory it was in and lord over this land.


    Four Corner Village, located on an extremely barren continent, and was completely different from all other continents he had ever seen. In the Upper Ninth Heaven, those continents were so prosperous that, in comparison, the Four Corner Continent didn��t even seem to exist. After he opened up the connections, he wanted to be like those top outside forces, to turn this continent into a place of extreme prosperity. Four Corner Village ought to be worshipped and revered by all the cultivators.


    But until now, he felt as if he was still under the shadow of the teacher. Not long ago, he had thought that this would be a great opportunity for him. But now, it seemed that he was still under the control of the teacher.


    The seven great divine techniques would all be revealed eventually. If Ye Futian, Old Ma, and the others were to control the advantage, it would be him that would be expelled by Ye Futian, not the other way around.


    In the past, this was something that he had never considered before. But now, it was something he had to face.


    Furthermore, when Lao Ma asked the teacher to expel him, something impossible to even think of in the past, the teacher did not outright refuse his suggestion. Instead, he said that the heirs of the seven great divine techniques would decide. What did that imply?


    The teacher did not negate the possibility.


    When Muyun Long considered all this, he became quite aggravated.


    He raised his head to look at Nanhai Qing, who was in front of him. Although Blind Tie had let go of him, a strong sense of anger and humiliation lingered on Nanhai Qing. Traces of aura surged but were suppressed by him as he did not dare to strike back.


    A guest of the Muyun family was humiliated so publicly.


    Everything seemed to undergo a subtle change, and Four Corner Village was on the precipice of transformation. This seemed to be what he was asking for, and yet��


    Many cultivators were coming this way, but no one acted impulsively anymore. They kept looking at Little Ling and the tree, unsure what was so amazing about this tree.


    At this time, rays of divine light poured into Little Ling��s body. She wiggled as she opened her eyes, blinking. She looked up at Ye Futian and said, ��Uncle Ye, it looks like I can cultivate.��


    ��Well, you can,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��But, the teacher had said that I couldn��t cultivate. So, could I or couldn��t I?�� Little Ling seemed to ponder the instructions given by the teacher. In the village, if the teacher decided one couldn��t cultivate, it was the end of the matter.


    ��Have you forgotten that there is a chance for awakening on the day of the sacrifice? Little Ling herself has great luck as well. You couldn��t cultivate before, but after experiencing the awakening, you will be able to cultivate from now on,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Is that so?�� Little Ling blinked, already believing Ye Futian��s words with all her heart. She looked at Old Ma and Blind Tie next to him. Old Ma cheerily said, ��Uncle Ye is right. You have already experienced an awakening so that you can cultivate in the future. You forgot that the teacher said not long ago that even if there were no awakening, the village is not the same as it was before. Everyone can cultivate.��


    ��Yes,�� Little Ling scratched her head with a silly smile on her face.


    ��Little Ling, we can cultivate together now.�� Next to her, Tie Tou smiled happily.


    ��Mmm,�� Little Ling nodded.


    ��From now on, we can all study and learn from the teacher,�� Tie Tou said. Little Ling looked at Ye Futian with a brilliant smile, full of simple contentment.


    ��Thank you, Uncle Ye,�� said Little Ling.


    Ye Futian rubbed her head and smiled casually, but his mind drifted. He thought that perhaps only the teacher and himself truly understood the truth behind the changes that were taking place in Four Corner Village. They were the only ones who knew that the seven great divine techniques would be revealed eventually.


    Now that Little Ling had inherited the divine technique, he was on his way to find the next heir of the divine technique.


    At this time, many people came to the tree. After Little Ling finished cultivating, no one was stopped from approaching it.


    Lu Qixing was dapper and gentlemanly. He glanced at the tree and thought that he had felt the tree was extraordinary but difficult to grasp. He looked at Ye Futian and bowed slightly, introducing himself, ��Lu Qixing from Shangqing Domain.��


    ��Ye Futian.�� Ye Futian responded. Lu Qixing was being so polite so that he couldn��t be overly arrogant.


    ��I want to inquire if Emperor Ye had comprehended the mystery of this divine tree?�� Lu Qixing asked.


    ��This tree is peculiar and connected to this space, but I haven��t comprehended its secrets yet.�� Ye Futian responded with a smile. Clearly, this was not the truth. But, how could he tell a total stranger everything?


    Lu Qixing did not fully believe what Ye Futian told him. He suspected that Ye Futian might have comprehended some mysteries of the tree. Otherwise, he would not be bringing Little Ling to cultivate under it. Of course, he wouldn��t divulge things of this nature to him.


    ��Brother Ye seems to be a person of great luck,�� Lu Qixing commented. Since many said that his luck was unparalleled, they believed it was him who caused these visions. But now, it appeared that it might not have been the case.


    Ye Futian had entered the village around the same time he did, and they both had passed through the same passageway.


    Then, could the visions on that day caused by Ye Futian?


    And he wasn��t the only one who had doubts. Many people now thought of the same thing. After all, luck often went hand in hand with chance. Ye Futian helped Little Ling to awake to a divine technique that had never been revealed before. Such chance was a manifestation of luck.


    When Ye Futian entered the village, it was Little Ling who chose him.


    ��Ye Futian.��


    At this time, a beautiful woman stepped toward Ye Futian. Her eyes fastened on him as she whispered, ��In the year 10051 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, the Donghua Banquet was hosted by the Chief of Donghua Domain, well-attended by its cultivators. At the Donghua Banquet, a man went undefeated and whose thundering reputation was known throughout the world. The man called himself Ye Liunian, but later it was rumored that his real name was Ye Futian.��


    As powerful figures in Shangqing Domain, clearly, some had heard about the news regarding Donghua Banquet. But years later, An Ruosu still remembered a man who appeared at Donghua Banquet at the time. According to reliable sources, that man��s talent was equivalent to that of Ning Hua, the number one genius talent of Donghua Domain.


    An Ruosu was extremely dedicated to following the happenings in the cultivation world and paying attention to the top figures from everywhere. She didn��t just limit her attention to those in Shangqing Domain and top figures in other domains. That was how she had heard of Ye Futian��s name.


    As her voice faded, all eyes were on Ye Futian. Someone had speculated whether Ye Futian was from the Domain Chief��s Manor from Donghua Domain. Now it seemed that it was very likely that he was someone selected by the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor.


    They seemed to be waiting for An Ruosu to continue, so she said, ��However, this genius talent offended all the major forces, even the Domain Chief��s Manor, and became a wanted fugitive. At the time, a battle exploded in Donghua Domain, the Domain Chief and several other masters went to war, and the Millet Emperor fought against the three of them with the Watchtower at his back.��


    Many trembled when they heard her words.


    He had ignited the war between major forces?


    ��I have heard about this as well. I didn��t expect that the main character in that event at Donghua Banquet would show up in Shangqing Domain��s Four Corner Village.�� A young man, who was also a top figure in Shangqing Domain, spoke up. He had heard about that great battle.


    But he didn��t expect that one day he would have interaction with them.


    It appeared that this man might indeed be the one who caused the visions that day.


    The villagers chattered. They didn��t expect this man to have such a famous history. Old Ma had the foresight to pick someone with great luck.


    Ye Futian merely smiled. ��I came to Four Corner Village to find opportunities, as well. As for those other things, they are not so important.��


    As he was speaking, he nodded slightly to An Ruosu. Then he instructed Little Ling and Tie Tou, ��This tree is extraordinary. Comprehend carefully under this tree and see if you can gain anything more from it.��


    ��Mmm,�� Tie Tou and Little Ling both nodded and sat down obediently. Ye Futian sat with them as well, eyes closed and appeared to be resting.


    His divine consciousness seemed to merge with the ancient tree as traces of his consciousness spread and expanded. In his mind, everything in this space was crystal clear, even the fluctuations of the aura.


    In the village, not far from them, several people were looking at him. Ye Futian knew the man, Fang Gai, who was in the lead. He had left quite an impression on Ye Futian.


    Fang Cun stood next to Fang Gai. Wisps of aura came out from the youth as if in resonance with this space.


    ��So, that��s it.�� Ye Futian exclaimed silently. Fang Cun��s luck was incredibly strong; all he needed was a chance. Could it be that Fang Gai already knew that?


    He continued to look at other places. In the lively village at this moment, he saw a lonely figure squatting under the bridge of the village, playing with the rocks by the river. It was as if the hustle and bustle of the village had nothing to do with him.


    The boy was very young, about as old as Little Ling. He wore tattered clothes. It was as if no one had cared for him. He squatted by himself under the stone bridge, looking a little lonesome.


    However, Ye Futian detected traces of extraordinary aura from him. At this moment, Ye Futian vaguely understood how the teacher was able to determine whether or not a person had the potential to cultivate!

 Chapter 2109 - His Intention to Accept a Disciple

    Ye Futian opened his eyes and gazed across the land. There were seven major Divine Techniques. Now, in addition to Little Ling��s, the village already mastered five Divine Techniques. Namely, the Muyun family, Tie family, Shi family, Gu family, and Little Ling.


    Adding on the two techniques encountered by Fang Cun and that youth, all seven major Divine Techniques had been found. They appeared in the village at the same time.


    ��I��ll go for a walk around the village,�� Ye Futian said in a low voice. He then walked away. The others still stood below the ancient tree, comprehending the Way and cultivating. Many of them had some epiphanies in cultivation. However, no one sensed the existence of Divine Techniques.


    ��Master Ye.��


    Right then, a silhouette appeared before Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at the figure blocking his way. It was Fang Gai from the Fang family. Before this, he was one of the persons-in-charge of Four Corner Village. Not long ago, he had helped Ye Futian, disagreeing with Muyun Long wanting to banish Ye Futian.


    Fang Gai was also the earliest person to speculate that Ye Futian might be an extraordinary figure. He had asked Little Ling about Ye Futian before.


    ��Head of Fang family,�� Ye Futian greeted as he nodded his head slightly.


    Fang Cun stood beside Fang Gai. Fang Cun raised his head and looked at Ye Futian, appearing somewhat curious.


    ��This brat has always been unruly. Now that I know the name of Master Ye, may you help me discipline this brat and take him as your disciple?�� Fang Gai asked Ye Futian. He actually wanted Fang Cun to become Ye Futian��s disciple.


    This made Ye Futian feel somewhat strange. He said, ��The youths in Four Corner Village have Master to guide them.��


    Fang Gai continued, ��Although Master guides them in their studies and is their teacher in name, he has not truly taken them in as disciples. Now that this brat has begun his journey of cultivation, if he can become a disciple under Master Ye��s tutelage, there will be someone to keep him in check in the future.��


    Many people looked over at Fang Gai. Muyun Long had a hostile look on his face. This old fox saw that Ye Futian possessed powerful fate and wanted to get Fang Cun under Ye Futian��s wing. He was ambitious, wanting Fang Cun to inherit Ye Futian��s teachings.


    ��Actually, Fang Cun is born with extraordinary talent. With the current changes of the rules of Four Corner Village, over time, he will come across a great fateful encounter and become an extraordinary figure. There is no need for him to become my disciple,�� Ye Futian said. He did not grant Fang Gai his wish.


    Although Fang Gai had helped Ye Futian before, Ye Futian still did not know him well enough. He could roughly guess what Fang Gai��s intentions were for doing so. Ye Futian would naturally not accept disciples so easily.


    Seeing that Ye Futian did not agree to it, Fang Gai directly struck Fang Cun��s head with his palm. He scolded Fang Cun and said, ��You b*stard. This is what you get for being unruly. Now even Master Ye does not see worth in you. You only know how to waste your time every day instead of cultivating properly.��


    Fang Cun looked up at his own grandfather with a confused look. He rubbed his head with his hand. What was going on?


    Why was he in the wrong when Ye Futian was the one who did not want to accept him as a disciple?


    His grandfather was being unreasonable.


    ��Fang family does not have any unfilial children like you. If you don��t come across a fateful encounter, don��t even think about coming home in the future,�� Fang Gai scolded. Then, he apologized to Ye Futian and said, ��This brat lacks discipline. Master Ye, please forgive this unsightliness.��


    ��This is Senior��s family matter,�� Ye Futian said as he walked ahead. Fang Gai slapped Fang Cun in the head again. Fang Cun��s figure tipped forward towards where Ye Futian was headed. After he stabilized himself, Fang Cun turned back and glanced at his grandfather. His grandfather glared at him. Fang Cun could only follow Ye Futian obediently.


    Old Ma and Blind Tie were watching over Little Ling and Tie Tou. Ye Futian walked alone through the village. Fang Cun followed behind him quietly. Ye Futian was somewhat speechless. This Fang Gai was practically��


    Ye Futian came to a stone bridge. He then squatted there and gazed down at the youth playing below. The youth seemed to notice him. He looked up at Ye Futian, somewhat avoiding Ye Futian��s gaze. He seemed afraid of strangers.


    ��What is your name?�� Ye Futian asked.


    The youth hesitated to answer and lowered his head. He seemed very nervous.


    ��Master Ye is asking you something. Why do you hesitate?�� said Fang Cun to the youth. The other party glanced at Fang Cun. Then, with his head lowered, he answered softly, ��My name is Duo Yu.��


    ��Duo Yu?�� exclaimed Ye Futian with a strange look.


    ��Mmhmm,�� replied the youth as he nodded his head. ��That is what the villagers call me.��


    ��Come over here,�� said Fang Cun. Duo Yu seemed somewhat afraid of Fang Cun. He walked forward timidly. He mustered his courage to look at Fang Cun. Fang Cun glared at him and said, ��Why are you acting like a girl when you are a boy? You keep hiding away from others all day. Do you truly consider yourself unnecessary?��


    The youth lowered his head again. He was unnecessary.


    ��Master Ye, this fellow is usually like this. He is very timid. Don��t mind him,�� said Fang Cun.


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly. Although Fang Cun was unruly and had a strong sense of personality, he had a good heart. He was completely different from Muyun Shu. The first time Ye Futian met Fang Cun was when Fang Cun blocked Little Ling and talked bad about Ye Futian. He did not have a good impression of Fang Cun. However, having met Fang Cun a few times, his impression of him had changed.


    ��What are you thinking about? This is Master Ye.�� Seeing that Duo Yu was standing there stunned, Fang Cun was so agitated that he leaped down beside Duo Yu and slapped him on the head.


    ��Master Ye,�� Duo Yu greeted Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded his head. He looked at Fang Cun and saw Fang Cun smiling at him. Ye Futian thought to himself that this brat was as sharp as his grandfather. Seeing that Ye Futian had come looking for Duo Yu, Fang Cun must have figured out something as to why he had done so.


    ��Is he usually so stiff and overlooks etiquette?�� asked Ye Futian as he put on an expressionless face. He pretended that he was somewhat unhappy about this as he coldly uttered this sentence.


    When Fang Cun saw the look on Ye Futian��s face, he quickly added, ��No, no�� Master Ye, please don��t misunderstand. Duo Yu��s backstory is rather unfortunate. He has been an orphan since he was young, growing up together with the villagers. Hence, he is more withdrawn. Due to some matters with the elders, many people are also prejudiced against him and gave him the name ��Duo Yu.�� People got used to calling him that over time. This fellow has been an introvert since he was young and does not talk much. However, he definitely isn��t being impolite on purpose. He always helps out in the village and treats each family as his elders. Now, most people in the village like him. It is just that his name has yet to be changed.��


    Duo Yu still stood with his head lowered, not saying a word. Fang Cun had been the one talking all this while. As he looked at the two polar opposite youths, Ye Futian smiled.


    Although there were people like Muyun Shu in the village, overall, the people here were still rather simple. Fang Cun and the youth before him now were such people. When Muyun Shu saw that Tie Tou and Little Ling were cultivating, he wanted to prevent them from awakening. However, although Fang Cun was also a little frivolous and domineering, he still managed to figure out why Ye Futian came looking for Duo Yu and wanted to speak up on Duo Yu��s behalf. From this, Ye Futian could see how different Muyun Shu and Fang Cun were.


    ��Bring him up,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Alright,�� Fang Cun answered with a grin. He then patted Duo Yu and said, ��Aren��t you gonna thank Master Ye?��


    Duo Yu did not understand why he had to do so, but he still said to Ye Futian, ��Thank you, Master Ye.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head. He then turned around and walked off. Fang Cun dragged Duo Yu along. Duo Yu was still somewhat fearful. He did not know why Ye Futian wanted him to follow along.


    Right then, Ye Futian thought that teaching the Way here and guiding these simple fellows in their studies and cultivation like Master was also an interesting proposition. If he ever wanted to rest, this would be a good place to do so.


    At that moment, Ye Futian actually had the urge to accept disciples.


    Although he had accepted disciples before, he had been very utilitarian about it. This time, he did not think much of it. He rather liked these four youths.


    Little Ling, Tie Tou, Fang Cun, and Duo Yu. These four kids had no ulterior motives. Each one of them was different. Once they inherited the Divine Techniques, what would their futures be like?


    As for Muyun Shu, in Four Corner Village, he was replaceable!

 Chapter 2110 - Reputation

    Ye Futian brought Fang Cun and Duo Yu along as he walked around the village. He then headed over to the ancient tree.


    A villager saw this and shouted over, ��Duo Yu, why have you come running over here as well?��


    ��Aunt,�� Duo Yu called out as he glanced bashfully at Ye Futian, who was ahead.


    ��Maybe our little Duo Yu might have talent in cultivation. Master said that everyone in the village can cultivate in the future,�� an old man said with a smile. ��I wonder whether an old bag of bones like me can still cultivate or not.��


    ��It might be possible. After you start cultivating, you might become a handsome young fellow,�� said someone playfully to the side. People started commenting one after another. When Ye Futian saw this scene, he felt that the village was indeed simple. Although what they said could not be believed, and they were just joking, he could feel the villagers�� warmth toward Duo Yu.


    ��Everyone seems to like you quite a lot,�� Ye Futian said to Duo Yu, who was beside him.


    Duo Yu scratched his head. He did not know how to respond. Beside him, Fang Cun replied, ��Duo Yu was raised by many villagers. He was brought up by the joint effort of the villagers. This fellow is also obedient. Many villagers like him.��


    ��Hmm,�� Ye Futian replied as he nodded his head. ��Go call the other fellows in the village.��


    Fang Cun blinked and responded, ��Alright, I��ll be off then.��


    As he said this, Fang Cun went off to call them over. Among the youths of the village, Fang Cun��s position was very high aside from that of Muyun Shu, who could not be compared to. As a descendant of the Fang family, Fang Cun also bore an air of authority. His ability to summon people was not ordinary.


    Not long after, a group of youths clustered around Fang Cun as they walked over and came before Ye Futian. Fang Cun shouted, ��Aren��t you all going to greet Master Ye?��


    ��Nice to meet you, Master Ye.�� Most of the youths could not cultivate before this. They all looked curiously at Ye Futian. They did not know why Fang Cun had gathered them over.


    Was Master Ye also called Master?


    Could it be that his abilities were on par with that of Master?


    ��Let��s go,�� said Ye Futian as he nodded his head. He then led the youths forward. When the villagers saw this scene, they were somewhat surprised. What was Ye Futian doing?


    It felt as though he was the ringleader of a gang. A group of children followed behind him.


    Even Xia Qingyuan and the others were stunned. Little Condor��s large eyes blinked. Since when had Boss changed personalities? He no longer preferred beautiful women and now wanted to be the leader of a group of youths?


    The outsiders also revealed strange expressions. What was he doing?


    Many people followed them. Their group once again came to the ancient tree. There were already many people cultivating and comprehending the Way here, including the outsiders. The people there heard some noise. When they opened their eyes, they saw Ye Futian and his group of youths. Some people frowned. What was this fellow doing?


    Some people also revealed looks of interest. They watched Ye Futian with curious gazes.


    ��Uncle Ye,�� Little Ling called out to Ye Futian. She then looked behind him and felt that something was strange.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian with a smile. He then turned and said to the group of youths, ��Master has said that the people in the village may have the chance to cultivate now. Before this, an ancestor of Four Corner Village came to me in a dream. The ancestor once cultivated and comprehended the Way beneath this tree. Hence, I call it the ��Path-seeking Tree.�� If you have nothing else to do, sit beneath the tree and comprehend the Way. You might have the opportunity to awaken to your abilities. Remember, you must be sincere when doing so. Your ancestors told me this in a vision. If one day is not enough, spend two days at it. If two days is not enough, spend ten days or half a month. Your ancestors also cultivated in such a manner. Do you understand?��


    ��Hmm���� The people around him revealed different expressions. The outsiders and the cultivators in the village did not believe Ye Futian��s words. The ancestor came to him in a dream and gave him a vision?


    Such utter nonsense. Even if the ancestor came to someone in a dream, he wouldn��t find an outsider.


    This fellow was purely making up stories.


    However, why was he tricking these youths? Could it be that he knew that this tree was indeed extraordinary? Before this, he had been the one who brought Little Ling to the tree, resulting in Little Ling awakening to her abilities.


    Many of the villagers did not think too much about it. They mostly believed what Ye Futian said.


    As for the youths, they were all nodding their heads. How could they possibly know any better? They would take other people at their word.


    ��Aren��t you all going to thank Master Ye?�� Fang Cun said to them. The youths immediately complied with his orders.


    Ye Futian looked at Fang Cun. This rascal was a sly one.


    ��All of you, sit down and cultivate here. If there is anything you don��t understand, ask Little Ling, Tie Tou, as well as Fang Cun,�� instructed Ye Futian. The youths nodded their heads and then found spots to sit down.


    Ye Futian revealed a satisfied expression and then left.


    After he left, many of the youths whispered to one another. Someone asked Little Ling, ��Little Ling, how do you cultivate? Can you teach me, please?��


    ��Yeah, teach me as well,�� requested many other youths as they came forward.


    ��Off with you. Go cultivate on your own. Don��t disturb Little Ling,�� said Tie Tou as he stood and blocked off Little Ling.


    ��Oh, Tie Tou, you are so protective of her,�� Fang Cun said with a smile.


    ��Fang Cun, mind your own business,�� Tie Tou said as he looked at Fang Cun.


    ��Master Ye has instructed us to listen to him when he is around. When he isn��t, you all should listen to me,�� Fang Cun said as he tilted his head upward.


    ��Did Uncle Ye say that?�� countered Tie Tou with a look of dissatisfaction.


    ��If you don��t believe me, why don��t you ask Master Ye?�� Fang Cun retorted.


    ��It��s alright, Tie Tou. Let��s listen to Elder Brother Fang Cun,�� Little Ling said as she walked up to them. ��I will instruct them.��


    ��Sister Ling is still the most understanding.�� Fang Cun then turned around and said to the group of youths, ��Did you see that? From now on, Little Ling is your elder sister.��


    ��Sister Ling,�� someone said in a low voice.


    ��Why should she be our elder sister? I am older than her,�� someone complained.


    ��Little Ling is the inheritor of a Divine Technique, a person chosen by the ancestors. Are you dissatisfied with that?�� Fang Cun challenged as he walked up to the person. The person who had spoken immediately retreated.


    Ye Futian, who had walked far away, saw all of this. He did not know whether to laugh or cry. Fang Cun would be extraordinary in the future. He would be a king among children. In the future, these youths would all be subdued by him.


    Blind Tie stood guard over them. Old Ma walked up to Ye Futian and said, ��When these kids grow up, they will be incredible figures. Fang Cun has some leadership qualities. He is much more impressive than that kid from Muyun family.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head in agreement. Muyun Shu was too self-centered and arrogant. He only looked out for himself and was snobbish. People like him were destined to be unable to work well with others. Fang Cun, on the other hand, was different.


    ��Now that the villagers of Four Corner Village can cultivate, I wonder how it will be after a few decades,�� Old Ma continued.


    Ye Futian said, ��There will certainly be droves of cultivators. A few of these kids are born with the Way. Four Corner Village has always been a special space. In reality, it has always been showered by the Great Path. Master must have done many things. Once these people begin their cultivation journey, they will grow in leaps and bounds.�� Once the villagers began cultivating, the sky was the limit.


    ��Hmm, in the future, the village will merge with the outside world. The youths are the future of the village. You lead this group of youths now. In the future, they will certainly be exceptionally respectful towards you. Why don��t you stay in the village?�� Old Ma proposed.


    Ye Futian looked at him. Old Ma continued, ��Prior to this, I heard people say that you offended many incredible foes in the outside world. Although the village is small, we can still protect you. With Master here, not many people can force their way into the village.��


    Ye Futian smiled. Old Ma was looking out for him. Staying in Four Corner Village was indeed not a bad choice.


    ��I will think about it. However, the Muyun family still wants to banish me from the village. I��ll play by ear,�� Ye Futian replied. Old Ma nodded his head.


    For the next few days, the youths cultivated underneath the tree obediently. Ye Futian would regularly head over to take a look. Occasionally, he would also sit beneath the tree.


    As expected, many of them actually awakened to their talents and were able to begin cultivating. They would encounter surprises every day. This made the villagers very happy. These youths were the future of the village. The older generation had no hopes of venturing out themselves. However, they were certainly happy that the younger generation could cultivate, grow and venture out into the outside world one day.


    Gradually, the villagers warmed up to Ye Futian. Their good impression of him improved immensely. Everyone called him Master Ye, and he slowly grew accustomed to such a title.


    The village only had one Master before. Now that they called him ��Master Ye,�� it itself was an immense sign of respect. Fang Gai was the first to call him that. After that, Fang Cun led the youths in calling him Master Ye, and it slowly spread from there.


    Fang Cun��s improvement was the most significant. After a few days, Fang Cun experienced an awakening, resulting in divine phenomena appearing and startling everyone.


    Today, countless people stood around the ancient tree. They were looking at Fang Cun, who was sitting there. Beams of divine light shot into his body. Around his body, an independent space seemed to form. The space kept shifting and was extremely miraculous.


    Fang Gai was naturally overjoyed. He had a beaming smile on his face. He had long sensed that these youths were qualified to experience awakenings. Each generation was improving over the last one. Only now, with Fang Cun��s generation, they finally had the chance to cultivate.


    ��I succeeded,�� said Fang Cun, who completed his cultivation as he revealed a look of surprise. He bowed slightly at Ye Futian and said, ��Many thanks, Master Ye.��


    ��This is your own doing. I had no part in it,�� Ye Futian replied, shaking his head.


    ��Master Ye is truly incredible.��


    ��It seems that Master Ye truly is a person with powerful fate,�� the villagers discussed. They revealed looks of sincere respect.


    In the distance, Muyun Long watched this scene with a livid expression. The Fang family had also awakened to their abilities. Fang Cun inherited a Divine Technique. The Fang family��s position would improve once again.


    Now, the Muyun family already seemed to have no chance of victory.


    Ye Futian had only been in the village for a few days. Now, his fame was like the sun in the sky. It already eclipsed the fame Muyun Long had accumulated in the village over many years.


    When that happened, it would not be Ye Futian who would be banished, but rather their Muyun family.


    He could not imagine what would happen if the Muyun family was banished from Four Corner Village.


    ��Will they be here soon?�� Muyun Long asked Nanhai Qing over transmitted thoughts.


    ��They will soon be here. The people from the outside world are gradually making their way over to the Four Corner Continent. The members of the Nanhai family will soon arrive,�� Nanhai Qing replied. Muyun Long nodded his head. There would be a change in Four Corner Village. Foreign forces would also be arriving. No one knows who would emerge as the final victor at the end of everything. Four Corner Village would certainly belong to him!

 Chapter 2111 - Return to the Village

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Outside of Four Corner Village, a group of cultivators descended. This group had frightening auras. The leader was dressed in a long robe and bore an air of authority.


    This group of people was the members of the Nanhai family. The cultivator in the lead was Nanhai Wuji. He was the top giant figure in the Shangqing Domain and the Chief Elder of the Nanhai family. His ability was monstrous. This time, he had personally led his people here. It was apparent how much importance they placed on the changes of Four Corner Village this time around.


    The Nanhai family was more deeply connected to Four Corner Village than most forces of the Shangqing Domain. Hence, they placed the greatest importance on the village. The Proud Son of Heaven, Muyun Lan, was a son-in-law of the Nanhai family.


    Muyun Lan naturally had come along. He stood beside Nanhai Wuji. He wore a long, golden robe and was very elegant, giving off an otherworldly vibe. A frighteningly sharp aura emanated from his gaze.


    After many years, this was the first time Muyun Lan had returned. The rule in Four Corner Village was that those who left could not return to the village unless they had special circumstances. Muyun Lan had long been unsatisfied with this rule. For many years, he had wanted to return for a visit, as well as lead the members of Four Corner Village out to truly face the outside world. However, he couldn��t change the village.


    Now, an opportunity had arisen. Four Corner Village finally decided to interact with the outside world.


    ��Lan, let��s head in,�� said Nanhai Wuji beside him. Muyun Lan nodded his head. The group of people then walked towards the Glimmer of Sky.


    Now, the rules of Four Corner Village had changed. Before this, Four Corner Village was an illusory world. Now, it was a physical space. Other people could truly sense where Four Corner Village was located. Hence, the Glimmer of Sky could no longer prevent cultivators from entering.


    After their group headed in, more cultivators descended. They were cultivators from other top forces. After receiving news of this place, they rushed over to Four Corner Village. They were arriving one after another.


    In Four Corner Village, when the members of the Nanhai family entered, Muyun Lan took a few steps forward. A familiar sensation swept over him. He looked at the independent space with skies filled with multicolored lights. Four Corner Village was still the same. However, things had also changed. The multicolored lights merged with the relic and enveloped the space, transforming it into a true land of miracles.


    In the village, someone nearby turned around and looked in the direction of their group. The person��s heart trembled slightly. However, someone spotted Muyun Lan, and their heart quavered. The person pointed at him and said in a trembling voice, ��You are�� the young master of the Muyun family.��


    Muyun Lan glanced at the other party and then nodded his head slightly. He then walked towards the village.


    People from the village kept gathering around to see the commotion. They were busily discussing as they cried out, ��Muyun Lan is back!��


    In the distance, the people who were busy cultivating and seeking fateful encounters looked over in their direction. Muyun Lan had returned?


    They turned around and looked over in their direction. They saw the cultivators of the Nanhai family, as well as Muyun Lan.


    The figures of Muyun Long and the rest of the Muyun family dashed over very quickly. A short while later, the group came face-to-face with Muyun Long and the others. Muyun Long smiled happily and said, ��You have returned.��


    ��Father,�� Muyun Lan said as he bowed slightly.


    ��Elder brother,�� called out Muyun Shu. He sounded familiar yet somewhat distant.


    ��Little Shu,�� replied Muyun Lan as he walked up to Muyun Shu with a smile. He hugged Muyun Shu��s shoulder and said with a smile, ��I never imagined that Little Shu has grown so big.��


    ��Muyun Lan has returned����


    ��Are those the members of the Nanhai family around him?�� Far away, countless gazes were looking in their direction. Endless whispering could be heard.


    Even the cultivators from the outside world were extremely concerned. Muyun Lan had returned. It appeared that Four Corner Village was about to turn lively.


    ��Elder Brother, someone bullied me,�� said Muyun Shu to Muyun Lan. It seemed that he had become emboldened.


    He had heard that his elder brother had become well-known outside and was a prominent figure with extremely high cultivation.


    ��Who bullied you?�� Muyun Lan asked.


    ��Blind Tie and Ye Futian,�� Muyun Shu said as he turned and looked into the distance. Underneath a tree stood Blind Tie and Ye Futian. There were many youths around the two of them.


    Blind Tie stood there, not moving an inch. Ye Futian glanced over in their direction. Coincidentally, Muyun Lan was also looking over at him. They locked gazes with each other.


    When Ye Futian saw Muyun Lan��s gaze, he could faintly sense that Muyun Lan was also an extremely sharp figure. He would most likely be hard to deal with.


    Ye Futian had heard from Old Ma that Muyun Lan was already famous in the outside world. He was now cultivating with the Nanhai family and had married the princess of the Nanhai family.


    Muyun Lan swept a glance at Ye Futian and then shifted his gaze away and said, ��Give me a moment.��


    As he said this, he stepped forward and walked towards a place. Not long after, he reached the outside of the private school. Muyun Lan bowed slightly and said, ��Student Muyun Lan has come to greet Master.��


    Back in the day, Muyun Lan had also been taught by Master. It was not just him. Anyone who could cultivate in the village was one of the Master��s students.


    This was the bond between student and teacher. Regardless of what position Muyun Lan held now, he needed to understand the etiquette and would come to greet Master.


    ��After venturing to the outside world, you are no longer my student. There is no need for ceremony,�� said Master. His voice was extremely calm. He had established a rule that the villagers should not simply leave Four Corner Village, and those who left should not return. At the same time, as long as the person left, their relationship as teacher and student would end there. Hence, Master said that Muyun Lan was no longer his student.


    ��Back then, I received Master��s guidance in my cultivation and have benefited greatly from it. Although I have left the village for many years, I am still Master��s student,�� said Muyun Lan.


    ��How thoughtful of you,�� replied Master.


    Muyun Lan continued, ��Master, I heard that Four Corner Village has changed and will interact with the outside world. In your opinion, what will the village be like in the future?��


    ��Before you came, I have already said that the matters of Four Corner Village will be determined by the will of the village. After the inheritors of the Seven Major Divine Techniques appear, they will decide the future of the village together. I will neither take part nor intervene,�� replied Master.


    Muyun Lan did not say anymore. He bowed towards the private school and said, ��I understand.��


    As he said this, he turned and walked away, leaving the place.


    Muyun Lan walked towards the ancient tree. Most of the people in the village were there.


    Muyun Shu and the others followed behind him, heading over there. Muyun Shu had a cold and indifferent expression. He had a brazened murderous aura as he stared at Ye Futian and Blind Tie. He was also looking at the cultivating youths. He couldn��t stand looking at them. They were all lackeys of Ye Futian now. They were pathetic ants that hopped on the bandwagon. Even if they could cultivate, what use would that be?


    Muyun Lan stopped in his tracks as he looked towards Blind Tie and Ye Futian. Blind Tie took a few steps forward. Although he could not see, he was facing Muyun Lan. A formless aura was surging from him, causing this space to feel somewhat suppressive.


    ��An outsider?�� said Muyun Lan as he looked past Blind Tie at Ye Futian. For those from Four Corner Village, Ye Futian was also an outsider!

 Chapter 2112 - Condescending Attitude

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at Muyun Lan and noticed the people around him who were from the Nanhai family. He said, ��The people with you are also outsiders. Is that wrong?��


    ��No, it��s not,�� Muyun Lan replied.


    A surge of invisible energy sprang from Nanhai Wuji��s body and pressed on Ye Futian. Frowning deeply, Ye Futian stared at Nanhai Wuji.


    He certainly sensed how dangerous Nanhai Wuji was.


    ��I heard that the Great Emperor once issued an injunction that forbids master cultivators from setting foot in the Four Corner Continent,�� Ye Futian spoke in a flat voice.


    Nanhai Wuji��s expression remained the same. Of course, he knew about the injunction. No one in the Shangqing Domain didn��t. It was why they had never visited Four Corner Village or explored this corner of the world in the past.


    He finally had a chance now.


    That being said, he didn��t dare to ignore the Great Emperor��s decree. He only came, knowing that he wouldn��t be punished.


    ��The Divine Priest of the Great Emperor issued a new order several days ago. The injunction regarding the Four Corner Continent and Four Corner Village is lifted now,�� Muyun Lan looked at Ye Futian and said. His words set tongues wagging. Some people already heard about it through families living in the Outer Realms. But the majority of the crowd didn��t know about the news yet.


    People living in Four Corner Village were particularly confounded. They used to be protected by the Great Emperor��s order. What did it mean to them now that the injunction was lifted?


    Ye Futian also showed a surprised look on his face. Why would the Great Emperor revoke the decree all of a sudden?


    ��When did this happen?�� Old Ma narrowed his eyes and asked.


    ��The Great Emperor is the ruler of the Divine Prefecture. There is nothing he doesn��t know about. Everything that happened in Four Corner Village didn��t escape his attention either. The injunction is not necessary anymore now that Four Corner Village has transformed and is connected with the Outer Realms,�� Muyun Lan said calmly.


    An odd look came over Ye Futian��s face. He recalled his time in the Eastern Barren Territory many years ago. The decree about the Eastern Barren Territory was revoked, and Princess Donghuang later showed up and took away Mr. Du.


    After that, he entered the Upper Worlds and almost died in the Void Realm. Princess Donghuang gave him a chance to survive by letting him go through the Gate of the Void Realm. It was how he arrived at the Divine Prefecture.


    Now, the injunction about Four Corner Village was also lifted after his arrival. These two things seemed to be somehow connected. Could it be a simple coincidence?


    It also meant that he was under the surveillance of Donghuang the Great wherever he went. He never escaped from his watch. Since the Great Emperor knew about everything that happened in Four Corner Village, he certainly learned about Ye Futian��s visit.


    It was not a good feeling. On top of that, Ye Futian couldn��t figure out why Donghuang the Great Emperor chose to revoke his decree now.


    Perhaps, it was only because Four Corner Village didn��t need to be sequestered and protected anymore now that its laws had changed and it had opened up to the Outer Realms.


    ��Since the injunction is lifted, even outsiders can take action in Four Corner Village now,�� Muyun Lan stared at Ye Futian and continued speaking. An invisible form of pressure immediately enveloped Ye Futian. Ye Futian was reminded of the time when he was facing Ning Hua back in the days.


    Muyun Lan was a renowned figure in the Shangqing Domain. He must possess tremendous power.


    His cold voice seemed to be another form of intimidation.


    Ye Futian was not the only one affected by Muyun Lan��s energy. Even Blind Tie, Old Ma, and others sensed the invisible pressure. The entire village would be put in grave danger if outsiders could fight inside the village. After all, most villagers were common folks.


    They had no clue why the Great Emperor revoked his decree at such a critical moment. Was it because the village stopped being cut off from the world?


    ��You shouldn��t forget who you are just because you have been outside,�� Blind Tie faced Muyun Lan and said. Even though they were allowed to fight in the village now, Muyun Lan shouldn��t forget that he was born and raised in Four Corner Village himself. A battle inside the village would only damage his hometown.


    ��Of course, I know who I am.�� Muyun Lan looked at Blind Tie and said, ��This is where the Muyun family resides and is where I was raised. No one wants the village to be prosperous more than I do. I hope the villagers can go to the Outer Realms and broaden their horizons. Therefore, I certainly don��t want a clash to happen in the village. I would hate to see anyone starting a fight here, let alone myself.��


    ��Why are you still talking if you know all that?�� Old Ma spoke evenly.


    ��I��m only reminding you not to forget who you are. You should remember who grew up in the village and who came from the outside,�� Muyun Lan scanned the crowd and added. ��The seven Divine Techniques have come out, and everyone in the village will be able to cultivate in the future. I will direct more resources for cultivation back to the village to help the master train more cultivators. Only that will make sure Four Corner Village gains a strong foothold in the Shangqing Domain. I can let bygones be bygones and forgive your past misdeeds.��


    Muyun Shu��s face changed upon hearing his brother��s statement. He raised his head and looked at his elder brother with a puzzled face. Was Muyun Lan going to let them off? Muyun Shu was not pleased with such a decision. But he had no choice but to obey his elder brother. He glared at Ye Futian and the others with frosty eyes.


    ��I heard that you came from the Donghua Domain and have done many things for Four Corner Village. You can stay here and become a member of the village in the future. Four Corner Village will be a sanctuary for you and protect you from the danger in the Donghua Domain if you repay us by helping the villagers�� cultivation process.��


    Ye Futian listened to Muyun Lan and quietly stood in place. Old Ma, on the other hand, gave Muyun Lan a death stare. Muyun Lan��s seemingly magnanimous proposal revealed what a haughty man he was. His condescending attitude suggested that he was the ruler of Four Corner Village while Ye Futian was merely an outsider.


    Muyun Lan gave Ye Futian a chance to be a member of Four Corner Village as compensation for everything he had done for the village. Ye Futian could escape from his enemies from the Donghua Domain by taking sanctuary in the village.


    ��Are you the one calling the shots in Four Corner Village?�� Blind Tie challenged Muyun Lan in a cold voice. He stood upright like a statue and didn��t flinch, even when facing master cultivators like Muyun Lan and Nanhai Wuji.


    ��Of course, it should be a collective decision made by the villagers. Nevertheless, I am a member of Four Corner Village. Any suggestion I offered is to bring advantage to the village. I��m sure everyone in Four Corner Village can understand me,�� Muyun Lan said. ��I hope you don��t forget that you are also a part of the village.��


    ��Of course I won��t forget. However, before making these hypocritical suggestions and presumptuous judgments, you should think first about what you have done for Four Corner Village,�� Blind Tie responded calmly. ��It��s none of your business whether he stays or not. The village will take care of it.��


    Muyun Lan gazed at Blind Tie in silence for a few moments. Then, he replied, ��I guess I will have to wait and see.��


    After that, he also walked over to the ancient tree and glanced at the young people cultivating by its side. As someone who came from Four Corner Village, he understood that these youngsters would all become extraordinary cultivators in the Outer Realms.


    Ye Futian wasn��t too bothered by Muyun Lan. He was an outsider indeed. Nowadays, however, he was more important to Four Corner Village than Muyun Lan.


    To some extent, he didn��t stay because he needed Four Corner Village as his safe haven. Instead, it was because the village needed him.


    That being said, he didn��t give too many thoughts to Muyun Lan��s speech. Everything would work out in the end.


    Following the footsteps of the Nanhai family, more and more cultivators came to Four Corner Village. A lot of top cultivators were curious to visit the village since the decree was revoked now.


    At this point, another group of people arrived at the entrance of Four Corner Village. The head of the group was also a master cultivator. He took in a deep breath and carefully examined the village. Then he spoke quietly, ��Turns out it is an independent world.��


    He heard that Four Corner Village only looked like this due to the transformation. What was it like before? He supposed that he would never get an answer.


    More and more people swarmed into Four Corner Village. In the meantime, a large number of cultivators from the Four Corner Continent also gathered here. Many forces in the Shangqing Domain sent people here to see what would happen in Four Corner Village.


    It was quite an assembly on the Four Corner Continent.


    Rumor had it that the future of Four Corner Village might be determined in the following days. Would this magical village become a top force in the Shangqing Domain?


    So far, no one really knew the strength of the village.

 Chapter 2113 - Seven Divine Techniques Emerged

    More and more people had arrived at Four Corner Village, including plenty of master cultivators from some top forces. These visitors were attracted here since the injunction was lifted and the rules had changed. Their arrival turned the village into an even more crowded and bustling place, which was not easy for some villagers to get used to.


    The village was packed with cultivators from the Outer Realms. All of them possessed great abilities, which brought tremendous pressure on common folks living in the village.


    Ye Futian and Old Ma were having a casual chat while sitting in the yard.


    ��There are more and more people in the village. It��s not a good thing. Four Corner Village will not be the same Four Corner Village if this goes on,�� Old Ma said slowly. ��Besides, most villagers have just begun to cultivate. Being surrounded by a large number of powerful cultivators from the outside makes them feel stressed, especially since these outsiders have been quite active in the village.��


    ��The outsiders all want to collaborate with the villagers, particularly the ones who inherited the Divine Techniques,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��The last Divine Technique of the seven Divine Techniques should come out soon. By that time, the seven inheritors of the Divine Techniques will pass judgment together on affairs concerning Four Corner Village. What��s your plan when the time comes?�� Old Ma asked.


    ��If they want Four Corner Village to become an independent force, they have to close the village to the outsiders first. They might face a lot of pressure if that��s the plan,�� Ye Futian said. ��Unless the master����


    Ye Futian still couldn��t get the measure of many people in Four Corner Village. However, even with its great legacy and strong tradition, Four Corner Village could hardly overpower all the strong cultivators from all over the domain. On top of that, the Muyun family��


    Ye Futian could agree to ally with the Muyun family. Nevertheless, according to Muyun Lan��s proposal, Ye Futian would be nothing more than a refugee hiding under Four Corner Village��s protection. The Muyun family would be in charge of the village, and no one knew what they would do. Ye Futian couldn��t even be certain that the Muyun family would keep their promise and let their conflicts in the past slide.


    At this moment, some people came to Old Ma��s house. A voice rang out outside of the yard, ��Is Mr. Ye here?��


    ��Yes, please come in,�� said Ye Futian. The person was clearly asking only for the formality. They were already outside and could see Ye Futian in the yard.


    As soon as Ye Futian answered, several people walked in. The head of the group was a middle-aged man with a stately bearing. Even without the perfect Great Path, he seemed to be a ninth-order Renhuang and a master cultivator who stood at the top of the food chain. He smiled and spoke to Ye Futian, ��We came from the Shangyu Deity Nation and would like to collaborate with Mr. Ye.��


    The Shangyu Deity Nation was one of the top forces in the Upper Third Heaven of the Shangqing Domain. It possessed formidable power and had a rich heritage. According to the legend, the Shangyu Deity Nation had a long history and had been a domineering power in the Divine Prefecture since millions of years ago. Even though it fell into decadence often, it was revived and revitalized each time by some remarkable leader who came out of nowhere.


    ��Collaborate how?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Four Corner Village is now a gathering place for a variety of people. Many of them came here with ulterior motives. The Shangyu Deity Nation is willing to help Mr. Ye gain control of the village. Together, we can accelerate the village��s development and grow its power. The Shangyu Deity Nation will be Four Corner Village��s close ally.�� Instead of talking out loud, this person transmitted his voice directly to Ye Futian. Even Old Ma couldn��t hear him.


    The outsiders had been inquiring about the situation in Four Corner Village. Ye Futian was quite popular among the villagers and had a great fortune. He helped several teenagers in the village start cultivation and even inherited the Divine Techniques.


    At this point, many people in Four Corner Village already forgot that he was an outsider. They all treated him as a member of the village. Therefore, Ye Futian had a good chance to gain control of Four Corner Village. Nonetheless, the Nanhai family and the Muyun family still posed a threat and might hold the village in check.


    For that reason, if the Shangyu Deity Nation threw its weight behind Ye Futian and handled the Nanhai family on his behalf, they could relieve Ye Futian from the pressure and boost the villagers�� confidence. In that case, they could kick the Muyun family out and join the game themselves.


    Although the Shangyu Deity Nation had enjoyed a good fortune for many years, they were pressured and threatened by new groups rising to power. The Nanhai family, in particular, had been forging ahead in recent years. They took in Muyun Lan as their son-in-law while Muyun Lan��s younger brother, who was still living in Four Corner Village, would also become an extraordinary cultivator in the future.


    The Shangyu Deity Nation also needed to join forces with exceptional and promising cultivators. They would become even stronger if they could reign over Four Corner Village.


    ��What��s the price?�� Ye Futian also transmitted his voice back rather than speaking out loud.


    ��There is no price, Mr. Ye. We only need you to permit people from the Shangyu Deity Nation to enter Four Corner Village to cultivate after you are put in charge. The village is a magical place blessed by Gods, and the Shangyu Deity Nation hopes to share its good fortune. Besides, the Shangyu Deity Nation is happy to provide shelter for any villager who wants to travel around the Outer Realms. We are looking forward to becoming a strong ally of Four Corner Village,�� the person replied.


    Only a top force would dare to make such an offer. The situation in Four Corner Village was complicated and unclear at this hour. Anyone who controlled the village would have a target on his back.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly without explicitly accepting or rejecting the proposal. He said, ��I��m sure you know that I��m not a native villager. I came from elsewhere, just like you did. Even though I have been highly involved since my arrival, I don��t hold sway over the future of Four Corner Village. The villagers trust the master the most. He has already said that the seven inheritors of the Divine Techniques will rule the village together. If you have any plan in mind, you can discuss it with them when the time comes.��


    The man looked at Ye Futian and more or less understood what he meant. Then, he nodded and said with a smile, ��In that case, we will wait for a little longer. Sorry to bother you, Mr. Ye.��


    He nodded slightly at Old Ma as well and left with his people.


    After that, other groups also came to look for Ye Futian and proposed to collaborate with him. Some people wanted to ally with the entire Four Corner Village, while some were only interested in obtaining the Divine Techniques.


    ��It��s a touchy situation.�� Ye Futian walked out of the yard and went to the ancient tree. The teenagers obediently followed his instruction and were sitting in front of the tree to cultivate. Even some outsiders obtained cultivation opportunities.


    Nonetheless, they couldn��t acquire the Divine Technique simply through comprehension.


    ��Mr. Ye.��


    ��Hello, Mr. Ye.�� The teenagers greeted Ye Futian one after another upon seeing him walking over. They all respected him a lot.


    Ye Futian nodded at them, smiling gently. He either patted them on the shoulders or rubbed their heads when he walked past them.


    ��Mr. Ye, five more people can cultivate now.�� Fang Cun came to Ye Futian and reported excitedly. More and more young people came to the ancient tree to cultivate. It seemed that all the teenagers in the village would be able to cultivate together before long, just like the master said.


    ��Not bad.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��You need to work hard too.��


    ��I know,�� Fang Cun said, ��I can wait for them.��


    Ye Futian flicked Fang Cun on his forehead. Then, his eyes fixed on a young man nearby. Duo Yu had been sitting there in silence. Wisps of energy were swirling around him. There was abundant energy of the Great Path flowing into his body, cleansing and transforming him.


    This Space World was established by the spirits of ancient Gods. The young men cultivating here were gradually influenced and transfigured by the energy within. This small area in Four Corner Village was an independent world built by the will of the Great Emperor.


    And the ancient tree was the root of this world.


    Ye Futian quietly stood next to the ancient tree. He leaned against the tree and looked at the young men with a smile. The young men felt like the world became clearer in an instant as an invisible jolt of energy was injected into their bodies.


    Ye Futian left moments later. Shortly after his departure, an extraordinary phenomenon appeared in the sky above Four Corner Village. Ye Futian, who was already back in Old Ma��s yard, looked up. It was the direction of the ancient tree.


    He cracked a smile when he recognized the extraordinary phenomenon in the sky. All seven Divine Techniques had come out.


    ��Duo Yu����


    ��It��s Duo Yu.�� Many people exclaimed in surprise over there. They didn��t expect the inheritor of the last Divine Technique to be Duo Yu.


    The outsiders also stared at the extraordinary phenomenon. Finally, all seven Divine Techniques had emerged.


    What kind of changes would happen in Four Corner Village in the future?


    At this moment, the entire village was filled with tension.

 Chapter 2114 - Taking a Master

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many people gathered in front of the ancient tree and watched Duo Yu obtaining the Divine Technique through awakening. The villagers were overwhelmed with mixed feelings. After all, Duo Yu was only an insignificant orphan in the village. He couldn��t even cultivate before the transformation of Four Corner Village. No one expected him to be the one who inherited the last Divine Technique.


    The outsiders were also astonished by the magic of Four Corner Village. They couldn��t see anything, but Duo Yu was able to obtain the Divine Technique through awakening. It felt like everything was destined to happen.


    Most importantly, however, they cared about the Divine Technique itself. Duo Yu obtained the Divine Technique that was previously lost to Four Corner Village. It was the Eye of Samsara, which was an extremely powerful divine method of illusion that could trap the target in the endless cycle of death and rebirth. The targe couldn��t escape from the illusory world of samsara and would eventually die after his spiritual will was destroyed.


    At this moment, a pair of intense and eerie eyes became visible in the sky above Duo Yu. A similar scene appeared behind him as well. It was the Life Spirit he awoke.


    At this point, a mysterious incident popped into the outsiders�� minds. Many years ago, another extraordinary cultivator inherited the Eye of Samsara and left Four Corner Village. Nevertheless, a horrifying tragedy happened to him shortly after he rose to fame in the Shangqing Domain.


    An incredibly powerful cultivator from the Palace of the Illusory God��a top force in the Shangqing Domain��carved out the eyes of the last inheritor of the Eye of Samsara. He stole the Eye of Samsara and integrated it with his own eyes. Therefore, the Eye of Samsara��one of the seven Divine Techniques of Four Corner Village��was lost in the Outer Realms.


    In order to protect Four Corner Village, the master prohibited the villagers from having dealings with the Outer Realms. Many forces and groups in the Shangqing Domain were hankering after the precious Divine Techniques of Four Corner Village. Back in the days, Blind Tie also suffered a similar ordeal because of that.


    He and the inheritor of the Eye of Samsara both had a tragic story. But there was one difference. The person who attacked the inheritor of the Eye of Samsara fully passed off the Eye of Samsara as his own. Blind Tie, on the other hand, lost his eyes and only part of the cultivation method of the Divine Technique.


    Therefore, technically speaking, one and a half Divine Techniques of Four Corner Village were lost in the Outer Realms, including the whole Eye of Samsara and half of the Divine Hammer of the Protector.


    Duo Yu now inherited the Eye of Samsara decades later. People couldn��t help but speculate that Duo Yu was a descendant of the cultivator whose eyes were carved out.


    Either way, Four Corner Village reclaiming all seven Divine Techniques was earth-shattering news and had special significance to the villagers.


    Moments later, Duo Yu opened his eyes, and the extraordinary phenomenon disappeared. Surprisingly, instead of looking exhilarated, he was only sitting still in a daze.


    ��Duo Yu.��


    ��Duo Yu, good job.��


    ��Duo Yu, don��t forget about your auntie when you become an amazing cultivator in the future.�� Loud noises came from all sides. People in Four Corner Village were offering congratulations to the young man.


    Duo Yu looked at the familiar faces as a fatuous grin spread across his face. He stood up and scanned the crowd as if he was searching for someone.


    ��Mr. Ye is at Little Ling��s place,�� Fang Cun walked over and spoke to Duo Yu.


    Duo Yu immediately ran off. Many people watched his receding figure and noticed his change. He could run much faster after his awakening.


    ��He needs to thank Mr. Ye for everything.��


    ��Exactly. Duo Yu can change his name now.��


    A lot of people laughed and joked. Duo Yu sprinted to Old Ma��s house and happened to see Ye Futian walking out from the yard.


    Duo Yu tried to stop, yet his body kept moving forward. His feet slid down the road, and even his shoes were smoking due to friction.


    When he finally stopped completely, Duo Yu raised his head and looked at the man in front of him. He didn��t know what to say. Instead, he scratched his head and cracked a silly grin at Ye Futian.


    He wouldn��t even dream about cultivating if Ye Futian didn��t take him to the ancient tree. Becoming a cultivator was nothing more than a foolish wish for him. Even when the master announced that everyone in the village would be able to cultivate in the future, Duo Yu didn��t think that he would be included.


    He was the most insignificant person in the entire village.


    Inheriting the Divine Technique was beyond his wildest dream.


    Indeed, everything that happened just now felt like a dream to him. Not only could he cultivate now, but the villagers also told him that he inherited one of the seven Divine Techniques passed on by their ancestors.


    ��Mr. Ye.��


    Duo Yu prostrated himself and knocked his head on the ground to show his gratitude to Ye Futian.


    He didn��t know any other way to express his pure, raw emotion.


    Ye Futian gazed at Duo Yu��s skinny body that was dressed in shabby clothes. He didn��t stop him. This reticent young man must have been holding back his feelings for a long time. Perhaps it was better for him to vent it in this way.


    Fang Cun was running after Duo Yu. But he stopped as soon as he saw Duo Yu bowing down before Ye Futian. Instead, he quietly watched them from far away.


    Ye Futian walked over to Duo Yu and squatted down. He patted Duo Yu on his head and said, ��Why are you crying? You are a grown man who can cultivate now. You will be responsible for protecting the village in the future.��


    Duo Yu raised his head and saw the smile on Ye Futian��s face. He used the sleeves to wipe his eyes yet still couldn��t stop tears from rolling down his cheeks.


    ��Mr. Ye, can I learn cultivation from you?�� Duo Yu asked, crying. He stared at Ye Futian with shining, expectant eyes.


    Ye Futian was moved and didn��t have the heart to turn Duo Yu down. He smiled and nodded, said, ��Of course.��


    ��Then you��re my teacher now, Mr. Ye,�� said Duo Yu, ��The villagers often say that ��a teacher for a day is a father for a lifetime.�� With you as my teacher, I will finally have a family.��


    Ye Futian was surprised. He outstretched his arms to hug Duo Yu and said, ��Duo Yu, everyone in the village is your family. You have always been a member of the village and will always have families by your side.��


    ��Yes,�� Duo Yu gave a solemn nod and beamed radiantly despite the tears on his face.


    Standing next to them, Old Ma was touched by the scene. Although Little Ling also lost her parents, she had Old Ma to care for her. On the other hand, Duo Yu was an orphan who was tossed around and neglected by everyone. He never dared to show his feelings and always had a silly grin on his face. No one had paid attention to him or cared about his well-being.


    Otherwise, his emotions wouldn��t erupt so suddenly and dramatically, and he wouldn��t see Ye Futian as his dearest family.


    Honestly speaking, Ye Futian didn��t have much contact with Duo Yu. He only took him from the riverside to cultivate under the ancient tree.


    ��Disciple Fang Cun greets the master,�� a voice said. Ye Futian turned around and saw Fang Cun also prostrating himself on the ground. He wanted to be Ye Futian��s disciple as well.


    ������


    Ye Futian blinked rapidly and had an almost irresistible impulse to beat up this boy.


    ��I suppose the master has acquiesced in taking me as your disciple. I promise to follow you around and cultivate studiously,�� Fang Cun said while knocking his forehead on the ground continuously. Ye Futian stared at him in frustration and said, ��Aren��t you a clever one!��


    ��Hehe,�� Fang Cun simpered, ��Master, thank you for your compliment.��


    Ye Futian was at a loss for words.


    ��Uncle Ye, I want you to be my master too.�� Little Ling also ran over to them from afar.


    ��And me,�� Tie Tou shouted. They both kneeled along with Fang Cun and said to Ye Futian, ��Disciple Little Ling and Disciple Tie Tou greet the master.��


    Little Ling and Tie Tou were still innocent children who probably didn��t understand what they were doing. Even so, they imitated Fang Cun and repeated his words in their tender voice. They simply wanted Ye Futian to be their teacher.


    After all, Uncle Ye treated them so well.


    Ye Futian felt like he was ��coerced�� by a couple of children. Now he could not extricate himself from this difficult situation and had no choice but to take them as his disciples.


    ��The children have shown their wholehearted devotion. Just take them,�� said Old Ma. Blind Tie was also waiting nearby.


    A lot of people were watching them from afar with mixed feelings. The four children each inherited a Divine Technique. What kind of a position in the village would Ye Futian rise to once he became their teacher?


    No one thought that an outsider would be able to enjoy such a high status. Before Ye Futian��s arrival, only the master had this level of prestige.


    How did Ye Futian achieve that?


    In the meantime, everyone had to admit that all four children only started to show their talents for cultivation after Ye Futian arrived at the village.


    ��I believe the other three��s wholehearted devotion. But I can��t take Fang Cun,�� Ye Futian said. Fang Cun was too slippery and crafty.


    ��Master, you can��t be prejudiced against me. Heaven knows how sincere I am,�� Fang Cun swore solemnly, but Ye Futian didn��t buy it at all.


    A group of people walked over to them, including cultivators from the Muyun family. Muyun Lan said, ��The master is the only teacher in the village. Even if he didn��t take you as his direct disciples after you started cultivation, you should be grateful and treat him as your master. Why are you all begging to become Ye Futian��s disciples? Do you have any respect for the master?��


    ��The master told us a long time ago that even though he teaches us how to read, write, cultivate, and seek the Great Path, he doesn��t want to officially take us as his disciples. Now that we have met another man who can teach us cultivation, of course, the master wouldn��t mind,�� Fang Cun replied.


    ��Fang Cun, you��re so pathetic. Even a person like him can be your teacher,�� Muyun Shu scoffed, ��Is he good enough?��


    ��The kids sincerely want to acknowledge Ye Futian as their master. This doesn��t seem to concern the Muyun family. Why don��t you mind your own business?�� Old Ma looked up and said to them, ��By the way, there is another dispute that needs to be settled now. All seven Divine Techniques have emerged. The inheritors are chosen by the spirits of our ancestors and can represent the will of Four Corner Village. Shouldn��t we call for the villagers and make decisions on things that are still hanging in the air?��


    The cultivators from the Muyun family were not pleased. Did Old Ma really want to cast out the Muyun family?


    They did agree that the inheritors of the seven Divine Techniques would work together to pass judgment on the affairs of Four Corner Village.

 Chapter 2115 - Village Chief Selection

    ��Old Ma is right. The master said that the inheritors of the seven great Divine Techniques could represent the will of Four Corner Village. Now that the village has gone through tremendous changes, the rules should be reset as well. I echo Old Ma��s proposal for summoning the villagers to hold a public discussion.��


    Fang Gai, the head of the Fang family, also agreed with Old Ma.


    ��Agree,�� Blind Tie nodded. Their opinion carried great weight since their successors��Little Ling, Fang Cun, and Tie Tou��were all inheritors of the Divine Techniques.


    All three of them proposed to hold a public discussion. It was apparent that Four Corner Village was about to have a new set of rules in place.


    ��In that case, let��s hold a discussion,�� Muyun Lan responded offhandedly.


    ��Let��s ask the master to be the moderator for this discussion and set it up outside of the school,�� Old Ma added. The crowd nodded in agreement. The master was obviously the best choice.


    ��Let��s go to inform everyone in the village. Come on.��


    Old Ma, Fang Gai, Blind Tie, and their successors walked in the direction of the private school. The villagers immediately followed behind them.


    The outsiders, on the other hand, didn��t march with them. They watched the crowd from afar while hatching all types of plans in their heads.


    Since Four Corner Village decided to end its seclusion and establish contact with the Outer Realms, they would certainly make some changes. The outsiders couldn��t predict what types of changes would occur.


    A large number of villagers gathered outside of the private school. Almost everyone in the village was there. Facing the outer wall of the school, Old Ma bowed slightly and said, ��Sorry to disturb you, master.��


    Many people bowed to show their respect for the master. The villagers held the master in high esteem from the bottom of their hearts.


    The crowd waited for the master in silence. Some villagers set up seven chairs for the seven families. Ye Futian watched them quietly and couldn��t help exclaiming to himself about how simple and unworldly the villagers were. They probably didn��t realize that this discussion would determine the future of Four Corner Village.


    ��Please.�� Muyun Long didn��t hesitate. He sat down in the middle, Muyun Lan and Muyun Shu standing behind him. Old Ma darted them a glance and sat in the next chair with Little Ling. After that, Blind Tie sat down with Tie Tou and Fang Gai with Fang Cun.


    ��Duo Yu, you should sit as well.�� Fang Gai pointed at the empty chair next to him. Duo Yu turned around to look for Ye Futian. After Ye Futian gave him a nod, he walked hesitantly to the chair and sat down. Even so, he didn��t seem to belong there.


    Although Duo Yu could cultivate now, he didn��t have the right bearing or sufficient self-assurance yet. Unlike Muyun Shu and Fang Cun, he conducted himself with little confidence.


    Even after sitting down, Duo Yu still looked nervous and anxious. His eyes darted uneasily to Ye Futian now and then. The other inheritors had family members around and had been taught by the master in the past. Duo Yu, on the other hand, had never met the master. Ye Futian was the only person who could boost his confidence.


    ��Don��t worry. You have started your cultivation journey. You are a grown man from now on,�� Ye Futian transmitted his voice to Duo Yu. His words made Duo Yu feel more at ease. Duo Yu nodded solemnly and sat up.


    More and more people arrived. All the villagers flocked together and stood quietly in the field outside of the school. Muyun Long waved his hand and spoke to the crowd, ��Today is a great day for Four Corner Village. Thanks to our ancestors�� blessing, the seven great Divine Techniques have each found their inheritor. From now on, the youngsters in the village will all be able to cultivate. In the meantime, the master has allowed the villagers to establish contact with and travel back and forth to the Outer Realms. Our Four Corner Village will be forever changed. Therefore, we ask everyone to come here today and discuss the future of the village together.��


    Muyun Long sat in the center and took the lead to speak as if he was still in charge of Four Corner Village. His domineering and condescending attitude didn��t change either.


    The villagers whispered to each other quietly. Muyun Long waved his hand again and said, ��Here is the first thing on the agenda. For many years, many cultivators from the outside have been here to look for cultivation opportunities. But Four Corner Village has always been protected by our ancestors. Now, the village has undergone a great transformation, and the injunction was lifted. It means that we may be facing dangers and risks in the future. For that reason, while preparing to step outside the bubble and visit the Outer Realms, we should also ensure the village��s security. Therefore, I propose to ally with some groups in the Outer Realms to strengthen the forces of Four Corner Village. What do you think?��


    ��I don��t agree,�� Blind Tie rejected the proposal right away. He faced the crowd and said, ��You want to build an alliance with the Nanhai family, right? Don��t forget how the Divine Techniques of the village were stolen, how I lost my eyes, and what happened to the original inheritor of the Eye of Samsara. I��m sure the Muyun family knows what kind of evil intention the people in the Outer Realms are harboring.


    ��Has the Nanhai family already mastered the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique?�� Blind Tie questioned Muyun Long. He was filled with distrust of people in the Outer Realms.


    ��I agree,�� Old Ma chimed in. ��Everyone knows that people in the Outer Realms have nasty motives. They want to steal the Divine Techniques from the village. Muyun Long, I��m sure you know that trusted aids are usually eliminated when they have outlived their usefulness. I��m on board with your suggestion as long as the Nanhai family opens itself to Four Corner Village as well. Unless they allow our villagers to freely enter all of their secret zones and study their core art of sorcery, it would not be an equal alliance.��


    ��Muyun, everyone is aware that Muyun Lan is currently cultivating in the Nanhai family. Shouldn��t you recuse yourself?�� Fang Gai spoke up as well. Muyun Lan looked quite embarrassed. As he expected, Old Ma, Blind Tie, and Fang Gai teamed up against him.


    ��Feel free to ignore my suggestion if you believe that Four Corner Village doesn��t need an ally or if you think that the villagers can be safe and sound in the Outer Realms after you have offended all the top forces in the Shangqing Domain. Try not to forget that cultivators from the Outer Realms are now allowed to fight in the village since the decree is revoked. If you believe that I only proposed it for my personal interest, I hope you can figure out a way to solve the upcoming problems,�� Muyun Long responded coldly.


    The villagers whispered to each other. They all had different opinions in mind. The common folks were naturally concerned about their safety. It would be a terrible disaster for them if the outsiders started a war in the village.


    ��With the master here, who dares to stir up trouble in the village even without the decree?�� Blind Tie said coldly. The villagers shifted their eyes in the direction of the school at once. Blind Tie was right. Who would have the nerve to cause trouble when the master was here?


    The master was a Godlike figure in the village. Everyone believed that the master was omnipotent. There was nothing he couldn��t achieve.


    ��The master would be put under quite a lot of pressure if you have the entire Shangqing Domain as your enemy, wouldn��t he? You are protected by the master in the village. But what about the people who travel around the Outer Realms?�� Muyun Long asked.


    ��Why would we offend the entire Shangqing Domain?�� Ye Futian joined the conversation at this point. ��To establish contact with the Outer Realms, Four Corner Village will act in unity as a single group, just like any other force in the Outer Realms. Do all the forces in the Upper Nine Heavens of the Shangqing Domain allow any random person to come and go freely? Which top force doesn��t have cultivation opportunities?


    ��Moreover, even if other forces are not satisfied with the arrangement, we can still hand out limited passes like before. They can cultivate in the village as long as they have the villagers�� consent. In that case, we would at least be friendly with each other. Why would they turn into enemies?�� Ye Futian said. Many villagers were persuaded by him.


    However, tragedies might befall someone simply because of the treasure he possessed and the jealousy it caused. Four Corner Village was a unique place, and they might affront other groups in the Outer Realms regardless.


    ��Mr. Ye is right. If we have to be dependent upon others to protect ourselves, we might as well be cut off from the world. Why should we establish contact with the Outer Realms at all? How could Four Corner Village remain its nature if outsiders keep swarming in like this?�� Old Ma added, ��One more thing. Muyun Lan was born and raised in the village, and he is now in cahoots with the Nanhai family. According to what Muyun Long just said, the Nanhai family would be our enemy rather than a friend as long as we don��t agree to form an alliance with them and let them enter the village freely. Since Muyun Lan is one of the seven inheritors of the Divine Techniques, I would like to ask what he thinks.��


    ��It��s fine if you disagree with my proposal. But why did you attack the entire Muyun family? Old Ma, how can you say you don��t have self-serving agenda?�� Muyun Long gave a snort of disgust. ��Then, you can expel the outsiders yourselves.��


    Old Ma shot Muyun Long a look and continued to speak, ��The seven great Divine Techniques each has an inheritor now. But I think we still need a Village Chief to lead us forward. This person can put forward motions regarding the village, and the seven inheritors will decide on the proposals together. What do you think?��


    ��I agree,�� Blind Tie still supported him unconditionally.


    ��Me too,�� Fang Gai said.


    ��What about you, Duo Yu?�� Fang Gai asked.


    ��I agree, too.�� Duo Yu nodded. He knew that Grandpa Ma was working together with Ye Futian. All he needed to do was to follow their lead.


    The villagers nodded in accord as well. It was a good suggestion in their minds. In that case, the village wouldn��t be a group without a leader anymore.


    ��I think the master is the most suitable person to be the Village Chief. Master, what do you think?�� Old Ma turned around to face the outer wall of the school.


    ��I won��t take the position,�� the master replied.


    The villagers were a little disappointed. The master still didn��t like to get involved in things outside of the school. He would have been a perfect choice for the position of Village Chief.


    ��We have to look for someone else since the master isn��t willing to take up the post,�� Old Ma said. ��I will recommend another person who has done many things for Four Corner Village without any ulterior motive. He would be a fitting Village Chief.��


    A strange look came over many people��s faces. Some of them already knew who Old Ma was referring to. They all looked in Ye Futian��s direction.


    Old Ma also turned his head and said to Ye Futian with a smile, ��Mr. Ye is an extraordinary cultivator with remarkable talents and great fortune. Four Corner Village started to change right after his arrival. Besides, he is currently leading the youngsters in the village to cultivate. I believe that Mr. Ye is a fine candidate for the job.��


    Even Ye Futian was taken by surprise. Old Ma wanted to select him without consulting with him first.


    Most villagers were also astounded by Old Ma��s recommendation.

 Chapter 2116 - Banishment

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian had done a lot of things for Four Corner Village, indeed. He was the one who helped Little Ling gain the awakening and inherit the Divine Technique.


    After that, he brought together the young people in the village and directed them to cultivate under the ancient tree, which helped them start their cultivation journey. Fang Cun and Duo Yu both gained awakenings subsequently.


    It could be argued that three Divine Techniques emerged owing to Ye Futian. Therefore, Ye Futian certainly made a considerable contribution to Four Corner Village.


    Having said that, Ye Futian was not a native of Four Corner Village. He was an outsider who possessed great fortune.


    Many people in the village believed that Ye Futian could be a good friend of Four Corner Village. The Muyun family��s previous proposal for expelling Ye Futian wasn��t amenable to reason. They seemed to be eager to kick him out after his service was no longer needed. Even so, the villagers weren��t keen on the idea of making Ye Futian the Village Chief.


    Old Ma��s suggestion started a commotion. Most people were not on board. Although Ye Futian had won some popularity and admiration in the village, it was not enough to make him the Village Chief.


    The Village Chief would have authority over the entire village. Obviously, Ye Futian was not esteemed enough.


    Perhaps more people would subscribe to the idea if Ye Futian was born and raised in the village. However, he was an outsider.


    Muyun Lan was only looking after himself while Ye Futian was not from the village. Some people felt that it was a shame that their advantages couldn��t be combined. There was no perfect choice.


    ��Old Ma, are you joking?�� Muyun Long spoke in a disdainful tone. ��Everyone in the village knows that Ye Futian used his good fortune to help Little Ling gain the awakening. Are you repaying your personal debt to him in this way? Handing over the entire Four Corner Village on a silver platter? You have no selfish interests indeed. What an admirable person you are.��


    ��Little Ling isn��t the only one who received Ye Futian��s help. A large number of villagers only started cultivating thanks to him. Of course, no one can compare to the head of the Muyun family, who made a desperate attempt to stop someone from gaining awakening and inheriting the Divine Technique. That is truly admirable,�� Old Ma sneered and snapped back, ��Appointing Mr. Ye as our Village Chief is my suggestion. Little Ling and I certainly support the motion. The Muyun family disapproves. What about the other five families?��


    ��I agree with Old Ma,�� Blind Tie assented right away. He and Old Ma were certainly of one mind.


    ��Wait a moment���� Muyun Long interrupted the voting process, ��I have to say that you hatched a good plan. Four inheritors acknowledged Ye Futian as their master and sent him to the top directly. Together, you will be in charge of Four Corner Village in the future. What a clever plot. I think that a simple majority can decide ordinary and routine matters. But major issues, such as electing a Village Chief, should have the assent of at least six families or eighty percent of the villagers.��


    The master said that they would make decisions after all seven great Divine Techniques came out since seven was an odd number. But he didn��t clarify if a simple majority would be enough to make a ruling. Even so, everyone assumed that to be the master��s intention.


    Now Muyun Long deliberately interpreted it differently to make it difficult for Old Ma and the others to team up against him.


    ��The head of the Muyun family was quite domineering when he wanted to unilaterally expel people. Now he switched sides without hesitation to serve his agenda. How impressive,�� Old Ma mocked him relentlessly. ��We��re not going to get anything done if we do what you said. Anyway, I still nominate Ye Futian to be the Village Chief. Other people should vote on it.��


    ��Uncle Ma,�� Ye Futian suddenly spoke up at this moment, ��I��m very grateful for your appreciation, but I haven��t been here long enough to win everyone��s trust and respect yet. I��m not a fitting candidate for the position of Village Chief. You or Mr. Fang would be a much better choice.��


    Ye Futian��s words touched the villagers. Ye Futian certainly had adequate self-awareness and knew that becoming the Village Chief with only four families�� support would put other villagers in an awkward position.


    Old Ma heard Ye Futian and didn��t insist on it. He said, ��In that case, the issue of electing a Village Chief can be tabled for now. But there is another thing that I think should be settled now.��


    He spoke in a formal and detached voice. His dignified bearing made him seem different from the feeble, old man he was before. He scanned the crowd and eventually fixed his eyes on the Muyun family, then said, ��I don��t need to bring up everything the Muyun family has done, but I have to say something about Muyun Shu. I didn��t want to be too harsh on a young man. However, he harbors malicious intent and repeatedly attempted to harm or even kill his fellow villagers. For instance, he deliberately interrupted Tie Tou��s awakening despite knowing how dangerous it could be. I can��t imagine what kind of a man he will become, considering how vicious he already is at such a young age. Therefore, I propose to banish Muyun Shu from the village so the villagers can be safe from his abuse.��


    ��You old imbecile, how dare you���� Muyun Shu immediately stepped forward and cried out. This ignorant old man dared to propose to expel him from the village. When had he ever suffered such humiliation?


    The cultivators of the Muyun family, including Muyun Long, were staggered.


    Old Ma wanted to banish his son from the village.


    ��Do you know what you are saying?�� Muyun Long said sternly, ��Banishing a young man who inherited the Divine Technique from the village?��


    ��I agree to banish Muyun Shu from the village,�� Blind Tie expressed his opinion.


    ��Muyun Shu crossed a line for sure. I��m also on board,�� Fang Gai echoed. Three families approved so far.


    ��Me too,�� Duo Yu said in a low voice. He hung his head and didn��t dare to look in the direction of the Muyun family. Although he hadn��t met Muyun Shu many times, he wasn��t a fan either. Muyun Shu always felt it beneath him to even shot a direct look at Duo Yu.


    ��How dare you!�� Muyun Long smashed his hand on the chair and cracked its arm. His eyes were filled with rage and malice.


    ��Four families have agreed. I have another proposal. Muyun Long is a self-serving man who has never taken the welfare of the village into consideration. He sides with the Nanhai family more often than with us. I believe that Muyun Long shouldn��t serve as one of the representatives. Therefore, I propose to unseat the Muyun family and select another family to replace them.��


    The villagers were stunned by Old Ma��s words. No one thought that he would propose to expel Muyun Shu and unseat Muyun Long so decisively. The Muyun family would lose their foothold in the village if Old Ma got his way.


    Old Ma had always kept a low profile. The villagers didn��t expect such aggression from him.


    Apparently, he was taking action against the Muyun family to remove their influence in Four Corner Village and kick them out of the game completely.


    ��I agree.�� Tie Tou and Fang Gai acted as one.


    ��Duo Yu, think carefully before you speak,�� Muyun Long warned Duo Yu in a threatening tone.


    ��Despicable,�� Blind Tie scorned Muyun Long for attempting to coerce a teenager.


    ��I�� agree,�� Duo Yu looked down and replied weakly. Even though he wouldn��t dare to offend the Muyun family in normal times, he understood that they were on the opposite side of Ye Futian. He certainly knew how to decide at this moment.


    Muyun Long stared at Duo Yu and spat out two words, ��Very good.��


    Four out of the seven inheritors of the Divine Technique agreed to remove him from his position. Adding to their attack on Muyun Shu, they were virtually declaring war against the Muyun family, intending to kick them out completely.


    ��The Muyun family is one of the inheritors of the seven great Divine Techniques. Banishing us is quite laughable. Before ousting the Muyun family from the village, are you prepared to lose the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique and let it circulate in the Outer Realms?�� Muyun Long��s voice was as cold as ice.


    ��The Divine Technique will never be lost. The people may leave the village, but the Divine Technique will not,�� said Ye Futian.

 Chapter 2117 - All Was Lost

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��You have no right to speak here.�� As soon as Ye Futian��s voice fell, he heard a chiding coming from Muyun Shu. There was hostility in the boy��s eyes.


    He had always been a favorite in the village, spoiled and doted by many people. Everyone had made provisions for him until Ye Futian showed up in the village. Then, everything changed.


    Now, these rascals actually proposed to expel him from the village, to chase him, Muyun Shu, the number one amongst his generation of the Four Corner Village, out of the village! How unthinkable and preposterous.


    ��Kid, shut your mouth!�� Fang Gai barked at Muyun Shu. He never liked Muyun Shu and had suppressed his dislike for him all these years. Now that he could make his own choices, the Muyun family must be expelled from the village. Although the Muyun family may elevate the overall strength of Four Corner Village, their hearts were no longer for the village, so what would be the use of allowing them to stay? On the contrary, the stronger they became, the greater the threat they posed to the village.


    ��Someone who��s been expelled from the village had no right to speak.�� Young Fang Cun also stepped forward to scold Muyun Shu.


    Muyun Shu stared at Fang Cun. The fierceness in his eyes was tinged with a faint murderous intent.


    Fang Cun��s eyes were full of contempt as he returned the stare without fear. In the village, Fang Cun had always been one of the boys who were not afraid of Muyun Shu. Now that he had inherited the divine technique, he had no reason to fear much, especially when this punk dared to shout at his master.


    ��You want to die?�� Muyun Shu stepped forward. The aura upon his body roared madly.


    ��Think I��m afraid of you?�� Fang Cun stepped forward as well. The two youths faced each other pointedly. They were of similar age, and both had inherited the divine technique, so neither feared the other.


    Muyun Long and Muyun Lan didn��t stop them. Fang Gai and the others also just watched quietly.


    Tie Tou wanted to step in to help, but Blind Tie stopped him with a hand on his shoulder as if allowing the two youths to continue their conflict by themselves.


    Buzz! The intention of the Great Path circulated as Muyun Shu levitated into the air. A magnificent vision now formed behind him, and it was the Picture of the Domineering Golden Roc. He surveyed Fang Cun, who was below, and yelled, ��Get up here!��


    Fang Cun soared into the air, with the light of the Great Path lingering around his body. Countless streamers of light flowing about, creating a small world in this space.


    In this small world, the phenomena of heaven and earth were abound with endless changes. There were mountains and rivers, and changes in the universe. It was as if a world was hidden in this small space.


    Fang Cun had inherited the divine technique, Miniature World, one of the seven great divine techniques.


    Ye Futian suspected that Fang Gai had always known that they had the potential to inherit the divine technique of Miniature World, hence the reason for Fang Cun��s name. Now, it seemed that Fang Cun was justified to inherit the divine technique of Miniature World.


    Buzz! The wind was raging as the wings formed by countless divine lights slashed down. Golden brilliance tore through the space as Muyun Shu rushed towards Fang Cun. His eyes were extremely cold, revealing his desire to end Fang Cun��s life right here.


    All the grownups were looking at them, and their hearts slightly trembled. Muyun Shu was but a teenager, but the strength he exhibited was truly frightening; it painted a terrifying picture. Even the war between grown men could be no fiercer.


    Buzz!


    Divine light smashed down and pierced into the Miniature World, but now countless rays of light were blooming inside of it. They shattered Muyun Shu��s attack so that it could not get close to Fang Cun within the Miniature World.


    The wind tore through the space as Muyun Shu swooped down, and his wings spread wide to shield the sky. Like a truly sacred golden roc, it tried to bisect the space and split it in two. If Fang Cun were to be hit by it, he would no doubt be cut in half.


    A bright vision erupted from the Picture of the Domineering Golden Roc. Tie Tou and the other youths watched anxiously, worried that Fang Cun would get hurt.


    Boom! The Miniature World exploded around Fang Cun. Suddenly, mountains slammed down as rivers were rushing. A terrible sight appeared between heaven and earth. The radiant golden roc swooped down to break through those mountains and rivers, continuing its way through.


    Fang Cun��s eyes still showed some determination as an extremely sharp light flashed through them. A golden light burst out from the Miniature World, like infinite golden divine wings. In the next moment, the crowd saw that several golden rocs had appeared.


    Buzz! One gigantic golden roc rose against the momentum as if trying to tear through the sky. It collided with Muyun Shu, who was coming in for the kill. The void shook violently as two golden divine lights clashed. Muyun Shu was knocked backward, and so was Fang Cun. The two young men separated, but Muyun Shu couldn��t hide the great shock in his eyes.


    ��Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique.��


    Not just Muyun Shu, but everyone around them was speechless, to say the least. Everyone in the village was stunned. Even Old Ma and Fang Gai stood up and stared at Fang Cun in disbelief.


    What was going on?


    In addition to the Miniature World, how could he also know of the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique?


    Although it was not in its orthodox form and far from flawless as the one released by Muyun Shu, it was indeed the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique, just in a less completed form. However, the essence of the technique was clearly detectable.


    Even Muyun Long and Muyun Lan had their hearts pounding. Their eyes were glued to Fang Cun as Muyun Long looked at Fang Gai coldly and said, ��How did you steal it?��


    Had it been leaked by Muyun Shu?


    Fang Gai looked bewildered because he didn��t know how this could have happened either. He looked at Fang Cun and shouted, ��Fang Cun, what��s going on?��


    Fang Cun turned and glanced at Ye Futian. When he saw Ye Futian nodded to give him permission, Fang Cun said, ��Didn��t the master already said? Even if the people leave the village, the divine techniques remain. The divine techniques belong to the village; no one can take it away, and no one is irreplaceable.��


    Fang Cun��s words and his actions were heard and seen by everyone. In an instant, all eyes were on Ye Futian once again; was it taught by him?


    Muyun Long��s expression was gloomy and cold. Fang Cun knew the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique, which meant that Ye Futian had already begun teaching him before he officially became Fang Cun��s teacher when everyone was still looking for opportunities.


    Why would Ye Futian do this?


    It seemed that this was pointed at them. Even as they went to Old Ma��s house that day to chase Ye Futian away and when Old Ma proposed to expel Muyun Family, Ye Futian had already begun to lay the trap for them.


    No one was irreplaceable. So that even without the Muyun family in the village, the divine techniques would still be here.


    No wonder Fang Cun treated Ye Futian differently, following him around, trying to apprentice under him.


    Fang Gai was a little shocked. He didn��t expect to be kept in the dark or that his kid��s lips were this tight. Nonetheless, he was ecstatic at this moment. It seemed that the Muyun family was destined to be out of the picture after all.


    He cast a sideways glance at Ye Futian, thinking that this man was more than meets the eye. He may look calm and nonchalant on the outside, but he had been plotting against the Muyun��s family in secret.


    In fact, Ye Futian had no choice in the matter either. He had offended the Muyun family, and his identity had been exposed. Now that the ban had been lifted, he had to protect himself and avoid being expelled by Muyun Long. Otherwise, not even he could guarantee that there won��t be some catastrophe in the near future.


    Muyun Shu regarded Ye Futian with gloomy eyes. How could he know of the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique?


    ��How did you do it?�� Muyun Long��s eyes still focused on Ye Futian.


    ��The head of Muyun family had said before that I am a person of great fortune. Since I am a person of great fortune, I can see things that many can��t. Although I cannot inherit the divine techniques, I can still learn something from them,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��So, do you mean that you have mastered all seven great divine techniques?�� Muyun Long asked again.


    ��I can perceive them,�� Ye Futian replied. Muyun Long turned his head to looked into the distance, ��So, you comprehended under the ancient tree because you could see more than the others. It seems that their awakening and cultivation were no coincidence after all.��


    At this moment, Muyun Long knew that he had lost, truly and totally defeated. The ability exhibited previously by Fang Cun suggested that Ye Futian could bring more to Four Corner Village than they had suspected before. In fact, he might already have brought more to them than they knew.


    The relationship between the Muyun family and Ye Futian was one that could never coexist. In addition, Ye Futian controlled four out of the seven families, and they all supported Ye Futian. This meant that Muyun Long could no longer surpass Ye Futian in the opinions of the people in the village.


    He knew he was selfish, and Ye Futian had been working to promote Four Corner Village. If it weren��t because Ye Futian was not a member of the village, he might indeed have already become the village chief.


    ��Muyun Long, the teacher had witnessed everything. Now that a decision was made, why don��t you leave on your own and save some dignity for yourself?�� Lao Ma said. The request for Muyun Long to withdraw from the seven great families had been agreed by four of them, so even if the other two opposed, Muyun Long would still lose.


    ��Furthermore, Muyun Shu is arrogant beyond reason. He took action again today and said some crazy things. Please get him out of the village,�� he continued. Muyun Shu��s eyes were extremely cold, but Muyun Long stood up and said, ��Let��s go.��


    Once he finished speaking, he began to walk toward the outside, not intending to stay here any longer.


    This time, they had lost so completely that he was left with nothing to say.


    Muyun Lan turned to take one last look at Ye Futian and the others, then left as well. He didn��t expect that his return after so many years away would end like this; it was a bit ironic.


    Ye Futian and his people watched the Muyun family��s departure, wondering if they would give up so easily and let this be the end of it.


    Probably not.


    Muyun Long had great ambition, while Muyun Shu was extremely arrogant. Coupled with the relationship between Muyun Lan and the Nanhai family, things would not end so easily. The cultivators from the Nanhai family were now inside the village, including their elder Nanhai Wuji!

 Chapter 2118 - Reluctant to Leave

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Muyun Long and the others left, Old Ma looked at everyone and said, ��Muyun family��s withdrawal means that we are one short of the seven families. Now, we happen to have someone here who is an expert on divine techniques. I move to have him replace the Muyun family. What say you?��


    Everyone instantly understood who Old Ma recommended.


    Undoubtedly, he meant Ye Futian, who had taught Fang Cun the divine technique he also cultivated.


    All eyes fell on Ye Futian as people in the village talked amongst themselves. Many agreed that Ye Futian did do a lot for the village. It would be a little overboard to nominate him as the village chief, but as long as he was willing to become a member of Four Corner Village, it would be acceptable for him to replace the Muyun family.


    ��What are you hesitating? Without the master, the village would never make it to this point. Are you saying that the master was less worthy than those devious people from the Muyun family?�� Fang Cun couldn��t help but feel displeasure when he heard some dissenting whispers.


    ��Master Ye would indeed be the best candidate,�� someone in the village spoke up for Ye Futian.


    ��Master Ye treated Duo Yu kindly, so that not only could he cultivate, but he also inherited the divine technique with Master Ye as his teacher. I support Master Ye,�� someone else piped up. More villagers started to express their opinions. They were simple and innocent in nature, and now more were giving their approval when they heard these testimonials.


    Old Ma then said, ��Everyone, please take a stand.��


    ��Agreed,�� Blind Tie uttered.


    ��I agree too,�� Duo Yu added quickly.


    ��I��m fine with it,�� Fang Gai said.


    Now, four families had already agreed, which was more than half of the votes needed.


    ��I agree, too,�� Shi Kui of the Shi family nodded his approval as he looked towards Ye Futian.


    Only the Gu family, which had always been closer to the Muyun family, had not yet expressed its position. Gu Huai, the head of the Gu family, now set his eyes on Ye Futian and said, ��I have no objection.��


    ��Perfect!�� Old Ma said with a smile, ��Now that everyone has agreed, it��s decided. Master Ye, please.��


    Ye Futian looked at Old Ma with a resigned smile. He had wanted to stay behind the scenes, but Old Ma seemed insistent in getting him involved. He had no choice but to walk up to the chair and faced everyone in Four Corner Village, saying, ��Ye Futian, thank you for your trust.��


    The sight pleased many people, especially for Ye Futian��s disciples. The four youths smiled brilliantly. It seemed that they were able to keep the master in the village after all.


    Xia Qingyuan and the others were glad as well. They were the only outsiders who were allowed to participate in this discussion. Now Ye Futian had completely integrated into the village and became one of its members.


    ��Master Ye, the matter regarding the Muyun family has been resolved, but now cultivators from all sides are in the village. If we chase them out directly, we will probably offend the entire Shangqing Domain. What do you advise?�� Old Ma asked Ye Futian. He was giving him a tough problem to solve right off the bat.


    This matter was indeed difficult to resolve. Any little carelessness would cause serious trouble.


    ��Let everyone know that the Four Corner Village is the same as before, opening up once every four years. The top forces in Shangqing Domain may select a chosen few to enter the village to cultivate. Before this, only people of great luck may enter the village. Now, it can be changed so that only people with perfect Great Path may enter the village and limit their time inside the village.��


    Ye Futian slowly said, ��In addition, from now on, Four Corner Village will operate like other forces inside Shangqing Domain, as a principality in its own right. If any cultivator from any forces wishes to enter the village outside the four-year period, they may notify the village of their intent to visit. They may visit once the village has approved their request.��


    From now on, the village would be the same as the other top forces in the Shangqing Domain. It would become a force based in the Four Corner Continent, and as such, it would not always be available to the outside world. A window every four years was a prudent choice and a good buffer. It was similar to what they had done in the past to avoid such changes from being opposed by other forces.


    ��That��s doable.�� Old Ma nodded in agreement.


    The others also nodded. Ye Futian��s idea was a pretty good one, taking the needs of both sides into consideration, as well as the feelings of all the principalities in the Shangqing Domain. If they were not satisfied with this decision, it would be unreasonable on their end.


    After all, those principalities themselves would not be so willing to give unlimited access to the outside world themselves.


    Since the Four Corner Village decided to contact the outside world, they would exist as an entire principality in itself and no longer as a simple ��village.��


    Everyone in the village nodded in agreement as well and approved Ye Futian��s proposal. The other six presented no differing opinion, so the matter was considered unanimously approved.


    ��How long is the proper duration of cultivation for those principalities to stay inside Four Corner Village?�� Shi Kui asked.


    ��Let��s make it seven days. From this time forward, and starting from today, all forces may stay in the village for seven days. After this time, they may not re-enter for four years.�� Old Ma spoke, and everyone nodded in agreement.


    ��Since the decision has been made, let��s inform them,�� Shi Kui added, not knowing how people from other forces would react after hearing this and whether or not they would accept Four Corner Village��s decision.


    If they chose not to accept it, the whole thing could be thornier than expected.


    ��Today��s discussion has concluded. You may leave now,�� said Old Ma. Immediately, everyone in the village dispersed. The leaders would now communicate the decision to outsiders and leave ordinary villagers out of it.


    After the people in the village dispersed, Old Ma and the others paid their respect in the direction of the private study by bowing slightly. As they were leaving, the teacher still did not show any interest in the matter. However, the teacher must have seen everything that transpired and would undoubtedly appear when he felt the need to intervene.


    The group returned to the ancient tree. Now, people from all forces knew that this ancient tree was extraordinary, so most of them had gathered here to cultivate, trying to comprehend the tree.


    People from all forces stood up when they saw Old Ma and the others approaching. They had some ideas as to the kind of decision that Four Corner Village had made.


    A man walked out of the group, and it was Fang Gai. He looked at the crowd and said, ��Four Corner Village summoned the people in the village to discuss matters internally, and decisions have been made. You are all aware that the Four Corner Village today is different from how it was before. Great changes have taken place, and the ban has been lifted so that more and more people now entered the village. Today, Four Corner Village has decided to step out of this corner of our world and assume its place as a principality within the Shangqing Domain. As such, it would be unsuitable for everyone to continue staying in the village to cultivate. Not long ago, the village made a joint decision����


    Fang Gai informed everybody of their decision, and the crowd was silent after he spoke.


    The Four Corner Village that decided to be part of the world would become a major principality in the Shangqing Domain, and its potential was endless.


    No one responded, but everyone had their own thoughts about the matter. The Four Corner Village, isolated from the world and yet a part of it, meant completely different things to them. It may directly influence the power structure of the Shangqing Domain.


    Furthermore, Donghuang the Great once sought to cultivate at Four Corner Village, which was part of its history.


    ��For many years, Four Corner Village has always been above the world. As a holy land in the Shangqing Domain, even the Great Emperor himself has issued orders to prevent anyone causing trouble inside the village. For many years, people from all forces came to the village to seek enlightenment and had always treated the village with respect. Now, Four Corner Village wants to dismiss all these forces with just a few words, given us only a few days every four years to cultivate inside the village; isn��t that a bit too extreme?�� A voice was heard, and the speaker was none other than the cultivator from the Nanhai family. He had been the first to resist the decision.


    ��The day of the sacrifice happens once every four years. In reality, no one would gain anything from entering the village. Normally it��s only every four years during this time that y��all would come here looking for opportunities. The day of the sacrifice only lasts a few days, so there really isn��t much change to speak of. In addition, since Four Corner Village has now decided to join the world, it will become a principality in its own right. Friends of the village who want to come to cultivate may simply let us know in advance, and we will definitely host you with hospitality. However, if all you wanted was the right to come and go as you please, let me ask you this: would the Nanhai family allow that on their own land?��


    Fang Gai asked rhetorically, then ignored the man as he didn��t much care about his reaction.


    Nanhai Wuji smiled and said, ��It seems that the village is determined to drive us out. In that case, let��s cherish these last few days here.��


    No one said anything more. However, Ye Futian had a feeling that these people were communicating through voice transmission with each other.


    No one questioned or objected openly further. This land belonged to Four Corner Village, and the village had the right to make its own decisions without anyone��s input. Unless they meant to take over the village, all they could do was remain silent.


    But the displeasure in this silence could be felt distinctly.


    Watching these people continued to cultivate, Fang Gai frowned slightly. He felt a little uncomfortable, feeling a sense of suppression.


    This silence, on the contrary, was ominous. Would these forces withdraw after seven days?


    What were they planning on doing?


    Right now, no one knew the answer.


    The Muyun family did not leave the village; only Muyun Shu was expelled. They had ordered Muyun Shu to be sent to the Nanhai family. As for the others, they were still waiting. Perhaps they were waiting to see what would happen in Four Corner Village after seven days?


    Watching everyone��s reaction, Ye Futian realized that this matter would not end so easily!

 Chapter 2119 - The Fallout

    The next few days passed in relative peace at Four Corner Village. Everyone cultivated side by side, peacefully and quietly.


    Ye Futian was now a member of the Four Corner Village. He was allocated a residence of his own and often gave cultivation lessons to the young people under the ancient tree. Gradually, more and more youths embarked on the journey of cultivation.


    Currently, Ye Futian was sitting under the ancient tree, appeared to be at his leisure. In the distance, a woman stood there quietly, looking at Ye Futian. A voice was then transmitted to him, ��Do you really have no plan to find an ally?��


    Ye Futian looked in the direction where the voice came from and saw An Ruosu there, radiant as ever. Ye Futian responded with voice transmission of his own, ��What does the goddess wish to say?��


    He had researched the top principalities in Shangqing Domain. An Ruosu came from the An family of the Upper Ninth Heavens, which belonged to the Middle Third Heaven; it was a major principality in its own right.


    It was said that once, the An family was an ancient dynastic power. In the past, An Ruosu would be considered a princess from an ancient royal family. Of course, even as a familial principality, it remained an ancient royal family. Its existence was backed by a profound history.


    An Ruosu sat far away without looking at Ye Futian. It was as if she didn��t want people to know that they were in communication.


    ��If you don��t start gathering allies, I��m afraid Four Corner Village will be singled out,�� An Ruosu replied.


    Many things were not able to be sorted simply by reason. Although this land belonged to the Four Corner Village, many forces had come to this land of great fortune and knew that it was a divine relic. Ask them to give it up now and leave as if nothing had happened would be easier said than done.


    ��Teacher is in the village,�� said Ye Futian. Although the teacher didn��t interfere with affairs regarding the outside world, if someone was to do something to the village, the teacher couldn��t ignore it.


    ��The teacher is indeed very strong. As far as we know in the Shangqing Domain, the teacher��s strength may be in the top five in the entire domain. However, this time it isn��t just one principality that Four Corner Village is facing. In reality, these people also wanted to see just how powerful the teacher is. If he turned out to be stronger than expected, everything would be resolved. But if that is not the case, what do you think will happen? Do you have an idea of the teacher��s strength?�� An Ruosu asked.


    ��It seems that the goddess knows some things that we don��t.�� Ye Futian did not respond directly. From what An Ruosu had said, he could deduce and reach conclusions on his own. Various forces might be allying preparation to deal with Four Corner Village.


    However, clearly, these forces had not yet fully reached an agreement, or An Ruosu wouldn��t be here talking to him. After all, they weren��t all of the same force, and their minds and hearts weren��t entirely aligned.


    It was not completely implausible that some of these principalities might use the pretense of allying as an attempt to undermine some of them, but at what price?


    Would they allow those in the alliance to come and go freely in the future?


    An Ruosu did not respond, but it was true that she did know quite a few things. In the past few days, various forces appeared to be comprehending and cultivating quietly, but that was not all they did. There were still people coming from the outside world even now.


    Four Corner Village��s attempt to purge these forces from Shangqing Domain might not go quite so easily.


    ��Thank you, goddess, for the reminder. I will think it over,�� Ye Futian added when he saw no response from An Ruosu. And An Ruosu did not try to persuade him further. She merely said, ��When you are ready, let me know.��


    ��I will,�� Ye Futian replied.


    An Ruosu then got up and left. Ye Futian left soon after as well. He found Old Ma and asked him, ��As we expected, these forces may not give up easily this time, and we may yet face their anger. If we can��t find a way to resolve the situation, they might take this opportunity to take over the village for themselves.��


    Old Ma narrowed his eyes and said, ��Even before Four Corner Village had any contact with the outside world, many in the village met an unfortunate fate. Blind Tie was just a more obvious example among them. In fact, there were some cultivators from the village that never returned once they left. Those people have wanted to return to Four Corner Village for a long time. If they find an opportunity, they will destroy this village without hesitation.��


    Old Ma did not doubt the ruthlessness of these people. Such were the rules of the cultivation world.


    ��So, do we need to recruit a couple of forces?�� Ye Futian asked tentatively. Obviously, Old Ma knew more about the village than he did. His impression of Old Ma had long since changed. Old Ma probably knew a thing or two about the true strength of the village.


    ��No, I want to see what these greedy people are going to do.�� Old Ma said coldly, ��Wait for me here. I��m going to find someone.��


    ��Sure,�� Ye Futian nodded. It didn��t take Old Ma long to come back with a cultivator who possessed a somewhat chilling aura. It was Gu Huai of the Gu family.


    ��Clan leader of the Gu family,�� Ye Futian got up and paid his respects.


    Gu Huai nodded slightly. Previously, he and Ye Futian had some unpleasant exchanges. When Muyun Long wanted to expel Ye Futian, Gu Huai had agreed. It was clear that Gu Huai supported Muyun Long at that time. However, the Muyun family was now out of the picture. Four Corner Village had rejected them.


    ��The divine technique that the clan leader cultivated is the Ancient Divine Immortal Form?�� Ye Futian said.


    ��It seems that this village could keep no secrets from Master Ye��s prying eyes.�� Gu Huai stared at Ye Futian as he spoke. There was great aggression in his eyes, which made those around him a little unsettled.


    ��People in the village know that I was bestowed with good fortune. Over the years, my luck is indeed much better than most, so I can see many things inside the village that others can��t.�� Ye Futian smiled and continued, ��Of course, although I could perceive these divine techniques, they belong to Four Corner Village, and only the true descendants of the village may inherit them completely.��


    Gu Huai nodded in acknowledgment. It was almost impossible for the others to learn of it completely. After all, this was the inheritance of Four Corner Village.


    ��Gu Huai, I know that Muyun Long had a good relationship with you before, and you have always wanted to experience the outside world. Now that the teacher has given his permission, the village will be a force in Shangqing Domain in the future. However, various forces now seemed to intend on making Four Corner Village a target, and you must have seen the position taken by the Muyun��s family. I hope you will make your own decisions,�� Old Ma said.


    Gu Huai looked toward him and heard Old Ma continued, ��No matter what, you are a member of the village. The Muyun family has forgotten about this, but I believe you won��t.��


    Gu Huai��s expression was somewhat serious. At this time, Ye Futian said, ��There were some misunderstandings with the elder before, but now that I am a member of the village, I will endeavor to do my best to assist the young people of Four Corner Village. The potential of Four Corner Village will inevitably shake up the entire Shangqing Domain.��


    Looking at Ye Futian and Old Ma, Gu Huai seemed a little displeased. He turned around and walked outside. Old Ma and Ye Futian looked a little surprised. At this time, Gu Huai stopped and said, ��Old Ma, you underestimated me.��


    As he finished speaking, he went away. But Old Ma smiled instead and said, ��In a few days, we will come to you and make amends.��


    He knew that this matter had been settled.


    He was worried that the conflict would become a thorn between Gu Huai and Ye Futian. Considering that Gu Huai was close to Muyun Long before, he deliberately approached Gu Huai.


    However, it seemed that he was overly concerned. Just as he had said himself, no matter what, Gu Huai was still a member of the Four Corner Village.


    In a blink of an eye, seven days had passed.


    On this day, Fang Gai, Old Ma, and the others came to the ancient tree and saw that the cultivators from all forces gathered here. They were facing different directions. They focused on their cultivation as if nothing was happening.


    ��Everyone, seven days are up. Our village is small. We won��t keep everyone any longer,�� Fang Gai said as he stepped forward.


    As if they hadn��t heard it, they remained quietly cultivating. Only in one direction, someone spoke up, ��Is this the way of hospitality in Four Corner Village?��


    ��There are no forces that would wait on their guests as you seemed to expect here. If there is, Four Corner Village surely has done far more,�� Fang Gai replied.


    However, no one paid any attention to them. The sight disturbed Fang Gai, Old Ma, and the others greatly. Clearly, they were acting this way deliberately.


    ��Everyone.�� Fang Gai��s voice cooled a few degrees. He continued, ��The time has come. Please give back Four Corner Village its tranquility.��


    ��All the forces in Shangqing Domain have gathered in our village. This is supposed to be a grand occasion to be celebrated, and the village should have treated our guests with hospitality. What is the meaning of this, Fang Gai?�� Muyun Long asked.


    ��Muyun Long.�� Fang Gai looked at him indifferently. It seemed that Muyun Long was prepared to side with outsiders, after all.


    ��For many years, this place has always been a holy land of the Shangqing Domain. On this land, there is Four Corner Village, in which the villagers were hospitable and friendly. In return, we also respected Four Corner Village and dared not blaspheme the village in the least. But now, Four Corner Village is ready to take this place for its own, expelling all others for self-interest, purging all dissidents, and depriving the head of the Muyun family of control over the village. It is devious indeed.��


    A voice was heard, and it was a cultivator from the Nanhai family. In his words, he separated this space from Four Corner Village. It was as if this place was just a place of cultivation in the Shangqing Domain and Four Corner Village was just a part of the holy land, completely separating the two.


    Hearing such words, the people in Four Corner Village were greatly angered as their eyes directed coldly at the speaker.


    ��That��s right, if you are cultivating in the same space, then let��s not reject each other. It��s much better if you can coexist in peace.�� Someone else continued, ��But if Four Corner Village insists on having its way, then we will have no choice but to seek justice for the Muyun family.��

 Chapter 2120 - Acknowledge

    This was already a direct threat.


    The Nanhai family used the Muyun family as an excuse to put Four Corners Village in a difficult situation. They actually wanted to seek justice for the Muyun family.


    This reason was somewhat laughable. It was completely illogical. However, under such circumstances, they were looking for an excuse to give Four Corners Village a warning: if they wanted to banish the Muyun family, it would lead to war.


    The members of the other forces listened as they sat quietly. They did not say anything. However, this silence seemed to represent their stance on the matter in and of itself.


    ��Nanhai family, you are forcefully segregating a portion of Four Corners Village away. You also want to interfere with the matters of the village,�� Old Ma said. ��If that is the case, I believe that the name of Nanhai family can be removed from the guest list of the next open day that we have every four years. In the future, the Nanhai family will be forbidden from stepping foot into the village. What are your opinions on this?��


    ��Only natural,�� Blind Tie said coldly.


    ��No problem,�� said Fang Gai as he nodded his head. The others also revealed their stance on the matter one after another. This scene caused the cultivators of the Nanhai family to reveal ugly expressions.


    Their family would be forbidden from stepping foot into Four Corners Village?


    ��Also, Muyun Long, are you conspiring with the Nanhai family to stand against the village?�� Old Ma said as he looked at Muyun Long.


    ��The village is in the wrong in this matter. As a member of Four Corners Village, am I not even qualified to voice out my opinion?�� replied Muyun Long in a cold, indifferent tone.


    ��Understood,�� Old Ma replied, nodding his head. ��If that is the case, I suggest that Muyun Long has betrayed the village. From this day forth, the entire Muyun family will be banished from the village. What are your opinions on this?��


    ��Agreed.�� Blind Tie and the others revealed their stance on the matter. Very quickly, they all agreed. They would not just strip Muyun Long of his authority in the village but would also banish the entire family.


    The Muyun family was no longer a part of Four Corners Village.


    ��I never imagined that, having grown up in the village, I would one day be banished,�� Muyun Lan mumbled. He seemed to be self-deprecating and mocking himself. After he left Four Corners Village, he was renowned far and wide and entered the Nanhai family. He was currently a prominent figure in the Shangqing Domain.


    However, upon returning to the village, he was not received gloriously but was instead rather from the village. It was a mockery.


    If that was the case, he did not need to show any respect to the village.


    ��Nanhai family and Muyun family, please leave,�� ordered Old Ma.


    Nanhai Wuji took a step forward. He only took one step, and the space around him suddenly felt suffocating. A vast divine might enveloped this entire small world. The ordinary folk in the village felt that it was difficult to breathe. They revealed pained looks, and their hearts started to beat intensely. They felt as though the entire world was about to collapse.


    ��Are all of you sure of your decision?�� Nanhai Wuji asked in a loud voice. His voice shook the heavens and the earth, causing the space to tremble. He stood there like a deity with unparalleled authority.


    The members of Four Corners Village had very cold expressions. Nanhai Wuji was a giant level figure. Such a figure had powerful destructive capabilities. He could easily destroy a part of this vast space. If a battle of such a scale were to erupt in this space, the village might not be able to cope with it. The villagers would not be able to withstand such a threat.


    Nanhai Wuji��s body gradually floated into the air. He peered into the distance and said, ��I have long heard of Master��s name. I came to Four Corners Village but have yet to catch a glimpse of Master. I wish to meet Master to ask whether the way Four Corners Village treats its guests is rather inappropriate.��


    As he said this, he took a step forward. He wanted to head over to the private school. In Four Corners Village, the strongest person was the legendary Master. However, no one knew how strong Master was. Nanhai Wuji wanted to find out for himself.


    However, just as he stepped out, an extremely dazzling divine halo exploded in the sky. The brilliant divine halo shot directly towards Nanhai Wuji, causing him to stop in his tracks. He took a step back and saw a golden divine door appear, separating the space.


    Then a silhouette slowly rose into the air and floated there, blocking in front of Nanhai Wuji. When they saw the person, everyone��s gazes were frozen there as they revealed looks of amazement.


    Many people in the village, including the cultivators of the Muyun family, were also looking at the silhouette in surprise.


    ��How is this possible?�� Muyun Long said in a low voice. The silhouette floating in mid-air was actually Old Ma. He was someone who never stood out and whom many people believed was an ordinary person who could not cultivate. He had never revealed the aura of a cultivator. He was just an ordinary person.


    However, his one attack was powerful beyond comparison and blocked Nanhai Wuji��s path.


    He was also a giant level figure.


    ��Old Ma,�� exclaimed Ye Futian as he looked up at the silhouette.


    He had already speculated that there was more to Old Ma than met the eye. However, he was still astonished when he witnessed Old Ma��s ability. He was actually so powerful. No wonder Old Ma seemed exceptionally confident recently. He probably was not planning on hiding this fact.


    Spatial divine halos radiated from Old Ma��s figure, seemingly forming its own domain as he stared at Nanhai Wuji.


    ��You are still unqualified to meet Master,�� Old Ma said as he looked at Nanhai Wuji.


    At that moment, Old Ma raised his head and looked into the distance. A few beams of frightening aura came from afar and descended upon Four Corners Village. The next moment, he saw a few illusory figures appear above them.


    When these figures appeared, the space seemed to be frozen. Countless divine lights rained down and enveloped everyone. Even the powerful Renhuangs felt that they were insignificant.


    Ye Futian also looked over in that direction. Three figures had arrived. These three figures appeared ethereal, seemingly somewhat illusory, like they weren��t corporeal. It was as though they were spirits who had left their bodies. They also seemed as though they were formed from the will of the Great Path and had come from beyond this world, descending upon Four Corners Village.


    Old Ma looked up at them. Beams of divine light shone, attempting to block off the three figures. However, the three figures immediately passed through the divine light and continued to advance.


    ��We heard that Four Corners Village was about to join the world, so we came over specifically to pay Master a visit,�� a voice said. The voice filled the space and caused the entire village to tremble.


    The next moment, the three silhouettes became three beams of divine light descended upon the private school. At the same time, a fourth aura appeared. A dazzling divine halo shot up into the heavens, causing brilliant divine light to appear in the sky above. Everyone knew that this was Master.


    Who could the three figures be? The crowd was astonished. Old Ma had displayed his powerful ability. Yet, he had actually been unable to block off the three of them. It was apparent how frighteningly powerful the three figures were.


    At this moment, even Nanhai Wuji did not move. He naturally knew who those three figures were. They were three existences who could cause the Shangqing Domain to tremble by just stomping their feet.


    Today, they had come together. It was apparent how highly they viewed Four Corners Village as well as Master. The importance of the village was far greater than anyone could imagine.


    Four Corners Village joining the world had immediately spurred them to pay a visit.


    Ye Futian glanced at the crowd. He saw that the members of the top forces of the Shangqing Domain all revealed respectful expressions. He roughly guessed what level of existence the three figures who arrived were at.


    They were probably among the few standing at the peak of the Shangqing Domain who came to Four Corners Village wanting to see Master��s ability.


    As he turned around, Ye Futian looked towards the private school. Four beams of divine light immediately pierced the heavens. Although a battle did not ensue, an unparalleled might enveloped the space. Divine phenomena even appeared in the village at the same time. A Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird spread its wings and soared in the sky. A divine hammer suppressed the heavens and the earth. An immortal old god stood in the sky. These divine phenomena were originally difficult to see. However, right now, they had manifested.


    This scene caused the people in the village to be filled with awe. What level of existence was Master exactly?


    Over here, no one continued to battle. Everyone had stopped doing so. They understood that the most crucial battle was over where Master was. If Four Corners Village wanted to join the world and become a superpower, they had to pass this stage first.


    In that direction, the light grew brighter and brighter. Not long after, a blinding divine light radiated outwards. The next moment, among the divine light that burst forth, the crowd could faintly make out the three silhouettes disappearing in a flash. The suppressive aura disappeared without a trace in an instant.


    ��Retreat from Four Corners Village.��


    ��Congratulations to Four Corners Village for joining the world.��


    ��From this day forth, the Shangqing Domain has another holy land.��


    Ethereal voices cried out, causing the hearts of the crowd to tremble slightly. Even the Chief Elder of the Nanhai family, Nanhai Wuji, could not remain calm. Were the three figures acknowledging the position of Four Corners Village in the Shangqing Domain?

 Chapter 2121 - Master

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Not long after these voices were heard, the various cultivators all retreated from Four Corner Village. Very soon, the cultivators from the outside left.


    Muyun Long and the other cultivators stood at the entrance of the village. They glanced back at it. They never imagined that they would still lose in the end. Master was stronger than he had imagined. Master managed to get three extraordinary figures to acknowledge Four Corner Village. From this day forth, Four Corner Village would stand at the peak of the Shangqing Domain like the other superpowers.


    Although the village still had very few cultivators, their greatest power was already enough to solidify their status.


    ��Let��s go,�� said Muyun Long as he turned to leave. Muyun Lan looked at the village with a meaningful look. One day, he would surely return.


    The villagers were somewhat elated. Master had shocked his powerful opponents. Four Corner Village could join the world and cultivate and would no longer be restricted from this day forth. They would be able to see the wider world and would no longer be confined to the village. For many of the villagers who had never seen the outside world their entire lives, it was undoubtedly something to be excited about.


    ��They have left,�� Fang Gai said as he gazed into the distance.


    ��Things have finally quieted down,�� Old Ma also commented. They knew more about Master��s ability than others. Of course, they were also unsure what level Master was at exactly. However, at least they knew that it was not something Nanhai Wuji could stand against.


    ��You lot, come over to where I am,�� a voice called out from afar. Old Ma and the others knew that Master was calling them over. They bowed and replied, ��Yes, Master.��


    ��You, come over as well,�� the voice called out again. Ye Futian clearly sensed that this was directed at him. He bowed slightly and followed behind Old Ma and the others as they headed over to the private school together.


    There were six people, namely Old Ma, Fang Gai, Gu Huai, Shi Kui, Blind Tie, and Ye Futian.


    In reality, the village currently had seven persons-in-charge. However, Duo Yu was still young, so he had not come along with them. Currently, these six people could represent the will of the entire village.


    Once they arrived at the private school, the six of them were very respectful. They saw a figure sitting quietly on a futon after they entered and walked into the square courtyard.


    This was the first time Ye Futian had met Master. Master��s sage-like body seemed somewhat ethereal. He seemed otherworldly, as though he was a deity that could not be comprehended by normal minds.


    ��Master,�� greeted the six of them as they bowed slightly. Ye Futian also did the same. Although he was standing before Master, he still could not sense Master��s aura and could not confirm how powerful Master was. However, he knew that he was far inferior and could not compare to Master at all.


    ��Sit down, all of you,�� Master said. The six of them nodded and sat themselves down in different spots.


    ��Four Corner Village will be joining the world. All of you must have been waiting for this to happen for a long time,�� Master said. Fang Gai, Blind Tie, and the others did not say anything. Master seemed to have already seen through their thoughts.


    Indeed, they were supportive of the village joining the world. When Muyun Long suggested that the village should join the world, no one objected. No one would be willing to be forever confined to the village once they cultivated to a certain level.


    They also did not wish to see the younger generation remain in this small village forever. Even though the village was unique, this did not affect their yearning for the outside world.


    ��I know what all of you are thinking. Yet, do you know why I have always prevented Four Corner Village from entering the world?�� Master asked.


    ��The time was not right,�� Fang Gai replied.


    ��That is one reason,�� Master said. ��Before this, you have all seen the end result of those who left the village. Most of them perished outside. And few made it back alive. Even fewer remained outside. However, among them, the hearts of a few had already moved away from the village after seeing the prosperity of the outside world. How would they be satisfied with staying in a village? Their hearts had already changed.��


    The crowd thought of Muyun Lan. Currently, he was famous in the outside world and had become an extraordinary figure in Nanhai Family. After marrying the princess of the Nanhai Family, Muyun Lan indeed had a change of heart. With such a glorious life, what he pursued now was no longer that which he pursued before.


    ��That was why the village had its previous laws,�� Old Ma commented.


    ��Hmm. That is also a very important reason,�� Master continued. ��Before this, the village was actually an imperfect world and was also illusory. The laws of the land were also defective. This illusory world was bathed in the world of the relic. We have been living in a dual-layered space all this while. Some people could sense the Way in the relic and attain the protection of the ancestors. Hence, they could cultivate. However, for the rest, if they forcefully cultivated, it would cause their cultivation to go haywire, and it would not end well. Old Ma is an exception. He died once before. However, it was a blessing in disguise as he formed his own Great Path. Yet, his cultivation stopped at that level, and he could still be consumed by it. I��ve always asked him to act cautiously. For many years, he has never displayed his ability. If Four Corner Village were to join the world under such conditions, it would have been meaningless as few people would have been able to leave.��


    ��Master, then what exactly has caused the laws of the village to change?�� Fang Gai inquired. If it was because the ancestors had manifested, why had they done so now and not sooner?


    Master advised, ��You do not need to know about this in detail. It might just be that right now is the best opportunity. Now, everyone in the village can cultivate freely. Even if they don��t cultivate a flawless Great Path, it will not end in tragedy. However, as to what the village will do after it joins the world, all of you need to think carefully about it. In the future, the village will no longer be separated from the world. It will be the same as other forces and will need to develop and expand. Otherwise, others will look down on us. The people who left the village before this are good examples to learn from.��


    ��With Master around, what do we need to fear?�� Shi Kui said.


    ��For many years, I never left this place for special reasons. I have been given restrictions and cannot leave the village. Hence, you will need to depend on yourselves in the outside world,�� Master continued. This caused them to be somewhat surprised.


    That meant that Master could only protect those in the village. Once one left the village, Master might not be able to do anything.


    ��Joining the world was the collective will of yourselves and Four Corner Village. Whether it is a blessing or a curse, you should go out and see the prosperity of the world. You are destined to pay some price for doing so. From this day forth, the village is no longer the village that does not concern itself with outside matters. Instead, we need to face the conflict of the outside world. I hope that all of you can defend your decision,�� Master continued.


    They nodded their heads seriously. They all had stern expressions.


    Master was reminding them and making sure that they were alert.


    Master recommended, ��Of course, with your abilities, all of you will not lose to the other top forces. However, Four Corner Village has a serious generational gap. We do not need to act too hasty. I suggest that we fortify and increase everyone��s cultivation Planes and cultivate the next generation of cultivators.��


    ��Understood,�� Old Ma said as he nodded his head. ��The juniors who inherited the divine techniques should grow very quickly.��


    ��Hmm, their cultivation environment is far superior to that of all of you. They will be the future of Four Corner Village,�� Master said. ��That is all I have to say. All of you may leave.��


    As they got up, Master looked at Ye Futian and said, ��You, stay.��


    Ye Futian felt somewhat strange. However, he still nodded his head and remained here. The others were perplexed. They did not know what Master wanted to say to Ye Futian.


    After they left, Master said to Ye Futian, ��Thank you.��


    Ye Futian looked at Master. He then understood what Master meant. Before this, Fang Gai had asked what had caused the change of the laws. In reality, it was because of Ye Futian; he had changed everything.


    ��Master, you do not need to thank me. This was all a fateful encounter,�� Ye Futian replied. He himself did not have such ability; it was all because of the World Tree.


    ��This isn��t a coincidence. It is fate,�� Master replied.


    ��Fate?�� Ye Futian asked as he looked at Master incredulously.


    Master smiled slightly as he nodded his head and said, ��There are some things that I only understood after you came here. The fact that it was the right time now was because you came to Four Corner Village. All this is fate��s design.��


    ��I don��t understand,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��You will naturally understand in the future.�� Master didn��t explain, causing Ye Futian to be even more perplexed.


    What design did fate have in store for him?


    Why had Master said so?


    ��I will leave those children to you,�� Master continued. Ye Futian did not linger on the issue. If Master did not explain it further, he naturally had his reasons for doing so.


    ��I will do my best,�� Ye Futian said as he nodded his head.


    ��You may leave,�� said Master. Ye Futian got up, bowed, and then left.


    ��


    The village was peaceful. However, in the Shangqing Domain, a storm had swept up. Countless people knew that Four Corner Village had joined the world. The superpowers had also acknowledged its existence. From this day forth, the village would be another superpower in the Shangqing Domain.


    For a while, countless cultivators rushed over to Four Corner Continent. However, they did not do so to enter Four Corner Village.


    After they arrived, they began cultivating in Four Corner Continent. They were even prepared to settle down in the continent for the long term. Many cultivators from other continents migrated here. There were even some top forces with powerful Renhuangs who established cities in this desolate continent.


    In the world of cultivation, places that were near to superpowers would undoubtedly be prosperous. In the Shangqing Domain, such a phenomenon was exceptionally obvious. In the Shangqing Domain��s Upper Nine Heavens, it was now a group of continents that were far more powerful than the countless continents beyond the Upper Nine Heavens.


    Currently, Four Corner Continent was beginning to develop. If they did not seize the opportunity now, they would not have such a chance in the future.


    Hence, for a long period of time after, countless cultivators migrated over. Cities were erected all over the continent!

 Chapter 2122 - Leaving the Village

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was the year 10,060 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. Ye Futian had been at the village for more than a year.


    During this period, the villagers had been cultivating peacefully and did not leave the village. They followed Master��s advice to remain in the village and strengthen their foundations, allowing more ordinary villagers to join in on the cultivation journey. After all, since the ordeal last time, Four Corner Village might have been targeted by the entire Shangqing Domain. It took time for them to fade away from people��s minds.


    Ye Futian had also been cultivating in the village, comprehending the village��s divine techniques and teaching them to the youths.


    The youths in the village started cultivating one by one. Of course, since they had different talents, the strongest youths could still cultivate from the very beginning, especially the few youths who had inherited the divine techniques. They were born with the Way in them. In the past, at the private school, Master decided the candidates who could cultivate based on whether the youths were compatible with the Way of the ancient god. When Master taught them, he also refined their bodies with the Way, so that they were compatible with the power of the Way from a young age. After these youths officially started cultivating, they could progress at a tremendous pace and did not have to follow the conventional path.


    Currently, Master was still teaching the Way. Ye Futian and Old Ma were in charge of teaching the youths other stuff. Fang Cun and the rest progressed quickly. Their speed of cultivating was astonishing.


    Of course, Ye Futian was also cultivating and improving.


    At this moment, in the village, the divine haloes shone, as usual, enveloping this ancient village. There was no nighttime in the village. The sky was always daytime, and everyone was constantly bathed in the divine haloes. Divine phenomena filled the sky. There were golden divine gates, dazzling golden-winged Giant Peng birds, and illusory figures of the ancient God of War. All these images that could once only be sensed by those with extraordinary talents were now projected on this part of the sky by Ye Futian, with the help of the power of the divine tree. Everyone could bathe within this power.


    Ye Futian sat beside the divine tree, seemingly entered into meditation. He was completely in harmony with the heavens and earth, as though he was part of the surrounding.


    ��Master,�� shouted someone as they dashed towards Ye Futian from afar. Ye Futian��s eyes were still shut, but he naturally knew who had come. He reprimanded, ��Fang Cun, are you truly not afraid of me beating you?��


    As Ye Futian said this, he opened his eyes, and the halo around his body dimmed. He stared at the youth in front of him, who was all grown up now. Fang Cun approached 15 this year, and he would soon be an adult. He was almost as tall as an adult. There was still a glint of youthfulness on his face. His eyes were sparkling. One could tell with a glance that he was a smart guy.


    Only this brat dared to disturb Ye Futian while he cultivated. Little Ling, Duo Yu, and the rest would wait beside him if they saw him cultivating.


    ��Master would not do so. If Master were cultivating in seclusion, you would have an invisible barrier around you. If there isn��t one, that means that Master is merely meditating,�� Fang Cun said with a smile. He seemed to understand Ye Futian very well.


    Ye Futian glared at him and said, ��Speak your mind. What seems to be the matter?��


    ��Master, I heard that a city has been built outside of the village. Now, it has grown quite spectacular. There are countless cultivators in the city. Little Ling, Tie Tou, and the others wish to go take a look around the city,�� Fang Cun said. There was a faint look of anticipation in his eyes.


    Although Four Corner Village decided to join the world, Master had previously instructed Ye Futian and the others to remain in the village to cultivate for the past year. They had not left at all.


    They heard that a huge change was happening beyond the village. The elders said that, before this, the lands beyond the village were desolate. Now, upon hearing that their Four Corner Village was about to join the world, the outside world built a city. The youths were naturally curious and wanted to go out and take a look.


    For people of this age group, it was natural for them to like having fun and be curious.


    It was especially so for Fang Cun. This brat was originally mischievous. Now that he would soon be 15, how could he possibly stay put in the village?


    ��Little Ling, Tie Tou, do the two of you want to venture out?�� Ye Futian shouted into the distance. Soon, the two youths appeared beside Ye Futian and replied, ��Master, no, we don��t.��


    Fang Cun slapped his forehead with his palm. His lies had been exposed mercilessly. These two fellows were not reliable at all.


    Duo Yu followed the two and joined the group. Since the four youths had become Ye Futian��s disciples, they were very close with each other. They would cultivate together and spar with each other.


    Fang Cun was the eldest among the four, and he was smarter, so he crowned himself the eldest brother. Tie Tou was the second while Little Ling was the third. Duo Yu was younger and more introverted, so he was the youngest brother.


    Staring at the four youths in front of him, Ye Futian sensed that time had indeed passed by quickly. Especially since they were children, they grew up in the blink of an eye. When he first came to the village and met them, they still looked like little kids. However, they were all teenagers now. They were at the height of their youth.


    ��Duo Yu, has Fang Cun been bullying you?�� Ye Futian asked Duo Yu, who was standing at the very back.


    ��No,�� Duo Yu replied as he shook his head. ��Elder Brother Fang Cun has been very kind to me. He always instructs me in my cultivation.��


    Fang Cun smiled bitterly. Master was full of distrust towards him.


    ��Master, with my current abilities, what level would I be at in the outside world?�� Fang Cun asked curiously.


    ��Of course, you would be at the very bottom,�� Ye Futian answered. ��After so many years, only a few people have ever left the village. At your level, anybody from the outside world could handle you. Once you are outside, don��t simply cause trouble. Do you understand?��


    Fang Cun��s eyes lit up as he asked, ��Master, does this mean that you will bring me out?��


    ��Did I say that?�� Ye Futian answered with a glare.


    ��It would be good to take them outside,�� said Old Ma as he walked over just then. ��These fellows have not seen the outside world. I am sure that they want to have a look. In the past, we would need to travel far in order to do so. However, now, there is a city right beyond the village. The people of the outside named it Four Corner City.��


    ��Grandfather Ma still gets us,�� Fang Cun said.


    ��Cease your flattery,�� replied Old Ma. He would not fall for such a ruse. ��If you wish to go outside, you must not go off on your own. Tie Tou��s father will bring all of you. You should head over to the ironworks and ask whether Tie Tou��s father will agree to take all of you.��


    ��Second Brother, you��re up,�� said Fang Cun as he patted Tie Tou��s shoulder.


    ��What use can I be? You might as well depend on Little Ling,�� Tie Tou said while glancing at Little Ling beside him. Tie Tou��s father treated Little Ling much better than he treated him.


    ��Hehe.�� All smiles, Fang Cun looked at Little Ling. With these two here, his request would surely be approved.


    ��Master, we��ll go see Uncle Tie now.�� Fang Cun led the three away and left Ye Futian alone, heading towards the ironworks. On the other hand, Old Ma walked towards Ye Futian.


    ��What do you think?�� Ye Futian asked Old Ma.


    ��Hmm.�� Old Ma sat down and said, ��It��s been more than a year since the previous incident. We��ve no idea how many other people are targeting Four Corner Village. Master has warned us before. However, since we have decided to join the outside world, we��ll need to venture out sooner or later.��


    Ye Futian responded, ��In such a short amount of time, a city has risen. I reckon quite a lot of cultivators have migrated to this Four Corner City. We��ll find all sorts of people there. Perhaps cultivators from various forces are lurking in the city too.��


    ��That��s naturally the case. Hence, there��s a need to make a trip outside and issue a warning to those with ulterior motives. We��ll need to venture out anyway. Let��s see who��ll be the first to be warned by us,�� Old Ma said. Ye Futian nodded and replied, ��Since you��re prepared, I��ll not say any more. These four lads are the future of the village. If they head out, we must make sure that they��ll not suffer any losses.��


    Old Ma smiled and said, ��Even though they��re your disciples, I do not care any less for them than you. Don��t forget. I��m an elder in this village.�� Ye Futian understood what Old Ma meant by that. He nodded and said, ��That��s good.��


    Not long after, the four youths returned. Blind Tie, Xia Qingyuan, and the others were also following behind them.


    ��Master, Uncle Tie is here. Let��s head out,�� Fang Cun said.


    ��Alright,�� replied Ye Futian as he got up with a smile. He then led them outside of the village.


    Now, the entrance of Four Corner Village had already been relocated. The entrance was where the Glimmer of Sky was. It was a Door of Space. Extremely intense waves of the Great Path of Space emanated from it. They immediately walked through it, and their figures disappeared from the village and appeared outside.


    Standing outside the village, they walked forwards, stood on the mountain range, and looked out into the distance. As expected, a majestic city was built around the mountains. It was vast and endless. Ye Futian was somewhat emotional. When he first came here, it had been a desolate land!

 Chapter 2123 - Attack

    ��Wow!�� Gazing at the magnificent city far away from a high vantage point, Fang Cun could not help but express his fascination. Was this the outside world? At that moment, his eyes lit up. The outside world must be quite fascinating! It was no wonder his father, as well as every generation before him, went out to explore.


    ��So big���� Little Ling also mumbled with a look of yearning.


    Growing up in the village and having spent their entire lives in the village, this was the first time they went out and saw the outside world. In the past, they had only got to know the outside world from afar.


    ��So many people. The sky is filled with flying people!�� Tie Tou looked at the people flying around in the sky.


    Only Duo Yu remained silent while looking at everything. While he was more cheerful than before, it was not a complete change. He was still introverted and did not like to speak that much.


    However, his eyes still oozed an expectant look. So, the village is only so small, and there are so many people outside�� he thought.


    Ye Futian looked at the four teenagers and could not help but lament a little bit. These teenagers were only starting to step into the world. In the past, they had thought that their village was the entire world. Now, everything would change. However, it was hard to say they would forever hold on to the same kind of teenage naivety and pureness.


    Back when Blind Tie and the others left the village, they also had similar feelings. However, the cruel world would ultimately change everything.


    ��Come, let��s go out and explore,�� said Ye Futian. After that, they leaped into the sky and headed towards their destination.


    Not long after, they arrived in Four Corner City.


    Four Corner City��s streets were wide. The flow of people from both sides of the street never stopped. In the past year or so, countless practitioners had moved into the city from afar. While Four Corner City had remained very quiet, they were not in a hurry. For a powerful faction, as long as they did not encounter a huge disaster, it could last for a very long time, thousands to tens of thousands of years at least.


    With such a long time horizon, it was natural for the surrounding areas to grow and develop. Moreover, the complete opening of Four Corner Village was inevitable and would attract practitioners from the outside. Since they had already decided that they would join the world, they would surely head towards a path of greatness. By then, many opportunities would appear.


    Fang Cun led the other youngsters scurrying all over the place. The dazzling array of items on display in shops on the two sides of the street completely captured their attention. They had not even seen some of the clothes before.


    Blind Tie followed the teenagers from behind quietly, protecting them from danger. Ye Futian and the others followed further behind with smiles on their faces.


    Xia Qingyuan said, ��It sure is nice to be young without a worry or care in the world.�� She was a little envious of the teenagers. Pure and naive. It was because they knew and understood so little about the world that they could relax and enjoy it so much.


    ��I was like this, too, when I was a teenager. But my godfather taught me a lot of things,�� said Ye Futian with a chuckle. Everything that happened in Qingzhou seemed a century ago. His memory from back then had become hazy, and it seemed like it was such a long time ago.


    Time corrodes memories.


    Xia Qingyuan looked at him. Unlike Ye Futian, when she was a teenager, she was the proud daughter of Emperor Xia��the master of Emperor Xia��s realm��and as such, she also knew a lot of things. She was a lot more mature than her peers.


    The two of them grew up in completely different environments, and the environment that Ye Futian grew up in seemed a lot more relaxed.


    However, it being so relaxed had also made everything he experienced later so much harder.


    ��I��d like to meet your godfather,�� mumbled Xia Qingyuan.


    ��Why?�� Ye Futian asked with a chuckle.


    ��I��d like to see what kind of person created a person like you.�� Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian.


    ��In truth, I��d also like to know what kind of person he is,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. He did not understand his godfather as well.


    ��Hey, you guys, slow down a little,�� Ye Futian shouted at the teenagers in front of them. Then, he picked up his pace to catch up to the four teenagers in front. The teenagers had become excited and had winds in their steps.


    After a few hours, they were still running around everywhere. Three of them had new outfits on. Little Tie, Tie Tou, and Duo Yu��s outfits were quite simple before. At that moment, it was like they had become someone else completely. They looked a lot more lively as their bodies oozed the vigors of youth.


    ��Brother Fang Cun, just how big is this city? How come we haven��t finished exploring it no matter how much we explore?�� Little Ling asked Fang Cun, who was standing beside her.


    ��Hah, this is nothing. At our pace, we can��t even finish exploring an entire city in a year,�� replied Fang Cun. Little Ling looked at him in shock. Was it so big?


    ��Stop.��


    At that moment, a voice appeared. Blind Tie stepped on the ground and created a formless wave that led to a low grumble from the ground. Everyone walking around the area stopped moving. Their hearts trembled violently. Even the houses on the sides were trembling.


    Baboom, baboom�� Hearts beat faster as gazes shifted towards Blind Tie, who continued to stand there. His might completely shrouded the place and spread further away. Everyone could feel the suffocating pressure.


    Fang Cun and the other three teenagers also stopped moving and turned around to look at Blind Tie.


    ��Fang Cun, come back!�� Ye Futian shouted. Fang Cun and the others turned around to walk toward where they came from. From afar, several beings with frightening aura had arrived, and they were headed towards their location. At that moment, many people in the surrounding area regained their senses and immediately understood what was going on. They quickly scattered and left the area. They had realized that a battle between some powerful characters was about to take place.


    Bang, bang, bang�� Buildings began to crumble while the bluestones on the ground also started to crack. A powerful windstorm blew toward them.


    Blind Tie took a step forward. A dull rumbling sound rang in the air, and, in an instant, the space around them and everything within it trembled. Chasms appeared on the ground, and the windstorm was actually unable to progress further. It was stopped in its tracks outside the space that Ye Futian��s group occupied.


    From afar, several powerful Renhuangs had arrived, and they looked toward Ye Futian��s group.


    This was the largest and most intense conflict since the founding of Four Corner City. The aura belonged to a person at the mighty level.


    Did the people from Four Corner Village come?


    They saw Ye Futian, Blind Tie, and the teenagers and guessed where they had come from. They were most likely from Four Corner Village. However, who was the one who initiated the attack?


    Back then, three peak figures arrived at the village. After that, they recognized the existence of Four Corner Village and gave the order to leave Four Corner Village. Now, so many powerful cultivators had come again. Did that mean that they had not yet completely given up?


    Bam! Blind Tie took a step forward. This body seemed to have grown tall and stalwart. He stretched out his arm and opened his palm. Then, in an instant, a Hammer of Tianshen appeared in his palm. At the same time, beautiful and vague patterns appeared behind him. It was as if a Tianshen had appeared.


    Blind Tie swung his arm forward. In the direction of his swing, heaven and earth shook and crumbled. Everything within a hundred miles of in that direction had been annihilated; only ashes were left. Moreover, those were only the aftereffects caused by the main attack. The real attack directly struck one of those powerful practitioners.


    It was an elder. His expression changed completely. He whose cultivation level had already reached the sky was actually feeling a tiny sense of powerlessness at that moment. With his body as the center, a terrifying windstorm appeared. However, at that moment, the windstorm was completely suppressed.


    Rumble! The Hammer of Tianshen slammed downward and, accompanied by an excruciating shout, the elder was gone, and only ashes remained!

 Chapter 2124 - Sealed City

    Blind Tie took a step forward. The ground rumbled as cracks spread hundreds of miles wide. Then, Blind Tie��s body appeared high in the sky as if he was a Tianshen divine deity standing there with the divine hammer in his hand, a golden divine light covering the space around them.


    In Four Corner City, many people lifted their heads to look into the sky as their hearts trembled violently.


    It was the first mega battle in Four Corner City since its founding. No one would have expected that it would come so soon. So, were these some mega-powerful characters from the village? He was blind, yet his strength was frightening.


    Beautiful golden divine light radiated from Blind Tie��s body. He raised the divine hammer. All the powerful cultivators who released their aura earlier felt that they were suddenly locked within by a destructive Power of the Great Path.


    Rumble��


    Blind Tie��s divine hammer descended. Like the Hammer of Tianshen, strokes of golden lightning suddenly struck from the sky. In an instant, several cultivators on the ground were blasted into smithereens.


    The people in Four Corner City were very excited. Particularly the people whose cultivation levels were higher. It was their original objective for visiting Four Corner City, after all. They came to cultivate in the city to see stronger people, after all. Now that they saw the mighty figures of the village, they were certainly not disappointed.


    However, the top figures of the Shangqing Domain had already recognized Four Corner Village. Just who was still feeling dissatisfied? To actually come after practitioners from Four Corner Village. Did they not know the immensity of heaven and earth?


    Then, the color of the sky changed. The people in Four Corner City lifted their heads. The sky above the city was completely covered in an oppressive aura. It was as if the end of the world had come and was incredibly terrifying.


    ��This is���� The hearts of those who had reached the Renhuang level trembled. A big shot had arrived and was above them. The Great Path��s powerful might emanating from this person felt like it was on a whole different level.


    Which big shot of the Shangqing Domain had come?


    Then, two people appeared in two different locations in the sky at the same time. Around the area where they stood, frightening images appeared. Around one of the two persons that appeared, dragons howled, and clouds stirred as the person transformed into a holy and divine giant dragon.


    Behind the other person, a pagoda that could crush the world converged. The pagoda had nine levels, and a ray of suppressive light shot downward. The entire Four Corner City was suppressed under its might.


    Behind them, a group of cultivators followed. They were all incredibly powerful figures, and they stepped into Four Corner City at the same time.


    While Blind Tie could not see, he could sense them. He turned toward them. The light was blinding, and even though he could not see, he could feel the blinding divine light. Blind Tie knew that two big shots had arrived.


    However, his expression was the same. He stood there like an iron tower.


    ��Who goes there!?�� Blind Tie shouted. His voice shaking heaven and earth.


    Underneath him, Ye Futian and the others stood there. When he saw the people who appeared, Ye Futian seemed calm, but a tinge of coldness could be seen in the glint in his eyes.


    He recognized the two big shots who had arrived. They were not big shots of the Shangqing Domain. Instead, they came from the Donghua Domain; they had come for him.


    The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family��s overlord from the Donghua Domain��Emperor Yan��and Ling Yunz�� the Ling Xiao Palace��s palace lord in Donghua Domain��s Donghua Heavens.


    They had actually come to Four Corner City to find him.


    However, the grudge between them did not reach the point where they would give their lives to get even with him. Even if one were to ignore everything that happened back then at the Donghua Banquet and only focused on what happened after��Ye Futian murdering one of the parties in the marriage alliance between the two major factions, the prince of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and with the groom��s bride escort team of the Great Yan��the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would never let him go. After all, the marriage had fallen apart.


    Moreover, at that time, he displayed a strength that could kill a cultivator on the ninth plane level. As such, the people who appeared were naturally only incredibly powerful big shots. Otherwise, they��d have no chance of taking him down. Not to mention the fact that Ye Futian now also had the backing of Four Corner Village.


    As such, two powerful big shots had to kill him.


    ��I come from the Donghua Domain. Ye Futian is a wanted person in our Donghua Domain. He had committed an unforgivable crime in the Donghua Domain. Our domain lord personally issued this wanted notice. We come today to bring him back to the Donghua Domain,�� said Emperor Yan, his voice causing the entire sky to tremble.


    Everyone in Four Corner City could hear his voice. They were incredibly shocked.


    They had also heard of Ye Futian of the Four Corner Village before. They had heard that this person was instrumental in the changes that took place at the Four Corner Village. They never expected that he was a wanted person from the Donghua Domain. Now, two powerful big shots from the Donghua Domain had come to get him.


    ��He is now a resident of our village,�� said Blind Tie. Clearly, Four Corner Village would not hand him over; they would protect Ye Futian.


    ��It looks like there��s no need to waste time talking anymore.�� Ling Yunzi, the palace lord of the Lingxiao Palace, took a step forward. In an instant, the sky changed color, and a suffocating force slammed downward and covered the entirety of Four Corner City.


    The sky looked like it was about to crumble. The nine-level Ling Xiao pagoda stirred the sky and, as if all the power of the Great Path had merged into it, from beneath the pagoda, a ray of divine light shot down toward Blind Tie. The dull sound caused heaven and earth to shake violently. In only a moment, multiple buildings in Four Corner City were destroyed.


    Countless gazes focused on the area right beneath the pagoda. Blind Tie��s body seemed like it had transformed into a Tianshen. Countless beams of Divine Light of the Great Path came from every direction and landed on his body. Then, he brandished his divine hammer and swung it up toward the sky, trampling over everything in the world, Divine Hammer of the Protector.


    When the two attacks collided with each other, the sky seemed to split. Bright lights filled the sky, and Blind Tie��s Tianshen-like body was sent flying down. He slammed feet-first into the ground, creating a huge and deep hole in the ground.


    His plane level was slightly lower. He was a Renhuang of the eighth plane with a perfect grade Great Path.


    Ling Yunzi lowered his head to glance at Blind Tie. Practitioners with perfect grade Great Paths were very hard to deal with. Their blood forces were infinitely exuberant and powerful. Their spiritual soul or physical bodies could be considered perfect. Reaching the eighth plane level meant that he was very close to the peak. Even he could not directly kill him.


    Just as he prepared to strike again, Emperor Yan beside him also took a step forward. Many cultivators inside Four Corner City rose into the sky. They were all here to deal with Ye Futian��s group. This time, two big shots were leading the lot from the Shangqing Domain.


    Vuong! Then, at that moment, rays of light spread all across the sky. Everyone lifted their heads and saw a figure high up in the sky. The figure stood there as bright divine lights spread from his body. It was beautiful and absolutely captivating.


    The divine lights spread to eight sides of Four Corner City like spatial doors flying in their own direction. Before long, everyone could see that the divine lights of the Great Path that had spread in several directions were now rippling and flowing in the sky. The spatial doors seemed to have merged and transformed into one giant spatial light screen that spanned across and covered the entire Four Corner City.


    ��This is�� sealing the city.�� The people in Four Corner City saw the scene unfold before them in utter shock. The figure standing high in the sky had directly sealed Four Corner City. He sealed the city using the Great Path of Space, not allowing anyone to exit the city.


    No one would have expected a high-level battle like this taking place in Four Corner City only after a little more than a year since its founding. Moreover, a being close to being a God actually existed and had sealed Four Corner City.


    More people appeared. Fang Gai and Shi Kui also appeared. Fang Gai moved to Ye Futian and his group��s side and said to the teenagers, ��Come to my side.��


    Fang Cun and the others walked to Fang Gai��s side. Then, an individual space was formed to protect the teenagers.


    When the people of Four Corner City saw that, they vaguely understood what was going on. It looked like Four Corner Village was already prepared.


    Moreover, the objective of their first large-scale battle was to establish themselves as a force not to be reckoned with. Four Corner Village people knew that powers from the outside world had their own devious plans and schemes. So, they would use this battle to establish themselves and show the world that they should stop thinking about Four Corner Village.


    Four Corner Village had come prepared.


    Naturally, Emperor Yan and the Lingxiao Palace palace lord were aware of this. They came after the people from the Shangqing Domain invited them to deal with Ye Futian. They knew that they were being used.


    However, despite knowing that, they still came. The only reason was that Ye Futian needed to be killed. It could not wait any longer.


    It had not yet been that long since Ye Futian annihilated the groom��s bride escort team. Now, he had joined the Four Corner Village and gained himself an amazing position. He now had a strong backing. If things were to continue like this, considering Ye Futian��s talent and potential, he would only become even more difficult to deal with in the future.


    Also, noting the grudge between them, by the time Ye Futian grew strong enough, he would never forgive them so easily. Ye Futian would most certainly seek revenge.


    As such, even if they knew they were being used, they had still come. Moreover, they had to come personally. Otherwise, they would have no chance of killing Ye Futian.


    ��Our Four Corner Village encounters an assault the first time we enter the world. Since that is the case, we will kill all who came and took part today. No mercy!�� Old Ma said loudly with a cold tone. A murderous aura shrouded the entire Four Corner City.


    If they did not start killing today, the Four Corner Village would have a hard time growing in the future!

 Chapter 2125 - Massacre

    Roar��


    Just as Old Ma finished speaking, the howl of the dragon in the sky filled the air and caused the sky to shake violently. The practitioners in all corners of Four Corner City felt as if their spiritual souls were going to crumble. The dragon��s howl had the strength to destroy heaven and earth.


    The frightening soundwaves in the sky surged towards Old Ma��s location like a heavenly river. Old Ma raised his arm and struck his palm out. In an instant, countless overlapping sky doos appeared. With that, the frightening shockwaves of the Great Path gradually dissipated until there was nothing left.


    A bright and beautiful beam of purplish golden light shot down from the sky. An unparalleled purplish gold storm appeared in the sky. The storm became increasingly terrifying as it sucked everything around it towards it.


    Then, the onlookers suddenly found out that Old Ma had disappeared. He had been sucked into the terrifying storm��the Dragon Storm.


    The area seemed to have become Emperor Yan��s world. A gigantic divine dragon appeared. Its head was as big as a mountain. It looked down toward Old Ma. On the dragon��s head stood Emperor Yan with his hands behind his back. He looked at Old Ma with a murderous gaze. They were going to kill Ye Futian. No one could stop them.


    Within the storm. Old Ma seemed exceptionally small.


    The giant dragon��s moved down and directly devoured an entire area. A destructive dragon��s roar reverberated in the air.


    The tiny figure inside the storm seemed unable to withstand that force. The demon dragon had devoured the sky. In an instant, Old Ma was devoured into the belly of the frightening divine dragon.


    Emperor Yan frowned. He felt uneasy. That was too easy. A person of that caliber would never be so easily defeated. Old Ma did not even try to block the attack and had directly entered the dragon��s belly.


    Divine light filled his eyes. Then, the dragon��s scales were covered in a frightening golden radiance and had become tough and indestructible.


    At the same time, another terrifying force appeared inside the dragon��s belly. Before long, beams of spatial light started to seep out of the dragon��s belly as if they were going to burst out.


    The light became stronger and stronger. The divine and holy dragon scales could not hold off those beams of light. When the lights pierced through the dragon��s body, it looked as if the divine dragon��s body was being cut open by the Divine Light of Space little by little.


    Vuong! There was a blinding burst of light. Then, the dragon��s body was destroyed.


    Old Ma glanced at Emperor Yan. The next moment, rays of divine light shot out from his body. It looked as if multiple divine doors of space were peeled off from his body and had appeared in several different spots. They hung in the air and covered the vast space within it.


    Within those divine doors of space, a frightening space storm appeared. What was more frightening was that Old Ma��s body was still releasing rays of divine light. The number of divine doors of space kept increasing. It was as if they were endless.


    Emperor Yan frowned. He sensed the power of the divine doors of space. Every single divine door seemed to possess an infinite amount of the power of the Great Path of Space.


    The next moment, divine lights covered the sky, and countless divine doors of space shot towards Emperor Yan, completely wiping out the area around him.


    One of the seven great divine techniques of the Four Corner Village, the incredibly powerful divine technique of releasing countless Divine Doors of Space��Eternal Space, also known as Space Exile. Cultivators who had reached the peak of their cultivation level could send people into exile inside the deep and endless world of space, leaving them inside for the rest of their lives. People who had reached the level of a divine being could even create an entire world of space. The Tianshen created this divine technique. If the Tianshen were to use it, who knew how strong it could be.


    In a brief moment, Emperor Yan was stuck inside an endless overlapping space. The scene sent those watching underneath the sky into utter shock. They could only see Emperor Yan��s figure becoming blurrier and smaller as if he was no longer in the same world.


    ��So powerful.�� The hearts and minds of the people in Four Corner City shook violently. Emperor Yan was an incredibly powerful figure from the Donghua Domain. Was he going to be killed just like this?


    At that time, a huge and horrid battle was ongoing in another location. Ling Yunzi was also an incredibly strong figure. His strength could not be doubted; however, he was completely restrained. Blind Tie, Shi Kui, and Gu Kui, these three powerful cultivators, fought him at the same time.


    While the three had not yet reached the peak of the Renhuang plane, every one of them was an eighth-plane level being with a perfect grade Great Path who possessed amazing combat strength. Shi Kui possessed the Ancient Divine Immortal Form and was already an incredible figure several years ago. He had the opportunity to step into the outside world. However, the outside world was too dangerous, and many who had left the village had met their demise. As such, he did not leave and decided to continue cultivating and training until he reached the peak plane level. With an immortal body, he could easily storm and dominate the world. Who could kill him by then?


    At the same time, he was also one of the people who strongly agreed to the Four Corner Village entering the world. He had longed for this day since a long time ago. Naturally, he did not want to leave and not be able to return.


    Shi Kui was undoubtedly powerful. The attack and defense of the Starry Great Ape that he summons were unparalleled. Combining them with Blind Tie��s unrivaled attack power, the three cultivators were able to fight and restrain Ling Yunzi.


    ��Four Corner Village��s potential is too scary.�� The people inside Four Corner City lifted their heads to watch the battles. Several incredibly strong mighty figures with perfect grade Great Paths, Four Corner Village was indeed a place watched over by the Gods. If any one of them could take one step further, a whole new world would open up to them.


    However, it was said that it was a lot more difficult for people with perfect grade Great Paths to pass this last plane level hurdle. In the Divine Prefecture, many talented geniuses were stuck on this plane.


    Since their Great Paths were the perfect grade and the ninth plane level was the peak of the Renhuang, this meant that passing that hurdle would make one a truly perfect Renhuang. Those who make it through would become a mega-powerful figure who could found a new top faction.


    After that, progressing further would become even harder. They would need to go through divine tribulations. Rumor has it that not many in the entire Shangqing Domain had done that. The actual number was probably only known by those who stood on the top.


    Apart from these people, Four Corner Village also had several Renhuang level figures who could cultivate. However, they had not yet entered the high-level Renhuang stage. They were targeting those who intended to take action earlier.


    While protecting the four teenagers, Fang Gai was also moving forward. His divine consciousness covered a vast space, and he stretched out his hand toward a group of Renhuang not far from him. Then, the next moment, he directly appeared not that far away in front of the group. Following that, a bright and beautiful divine light surrounded his opponents. The cultivators moved backward in an attempt to leave but immediately discovered that they had been trapped inside a separate space world and were unable to leave.


    The next moment, they found out that their bodies had shrunk significantly, and they were trapped inside a miniature world. Fang Gai stretched out his arm towards them, and then he closed his palm to make a fist. In that instant, the miniature world was crushed, along with the practitioners inside it.


    ��Amazing,�� Fang Gai said. It looked like his one year of cultivation was not wasted. Unlike the others, the Fang family only truly awakened and inherited the divine techniques from Fang Cun��s generation. As for himself, he had not awakened the inheritance, and his strength was the result of a year��s worth of cultivating with the help of Ye Futian.


    Fang Gai felt that, in a village where the worldly rules changed greatly, and at his age and plane level, to progress so much that he was able to evolve, it was an amazing opportunity.


    He could not do anything but admit that that wily old fox �C Old Ma �C really had foresight. To pick out Ye Futian immediately back then and to have Little Ling bring him back.


    ��Retreat,�� said the cultivators. After that, they began to retreat. However, Four Corner City was already sealed. Where could they go?


    Fang Gai took a step forward and said, ��Since you��re already here, there��s no need to leave.��


    At that time, Ye Futian also appeared in another direction. The few Renhuangs who were there were the Renhuangs who first targeted them and exposed their auras. Their factions were still unknown.


    Their eyes were cold when they saw Ye Futian arrive. While Ye Futian was somewhat famous in the Shangqing Domain, not many people knew Ye Futian��s actual strength. They only knew that he made great contributions in the Four Corner Village. To most, he was just a Renhuang at the fifth plane level.


    Without delay, the group initiated their attacks. Great Path attacks shot through the air, straight towards Ye Futian. Strokes of golden divine light transformed into swords, and gigantic palms struck from the sky. Destructive light of the Great Path shrouded Ye Futian��s body, and multiple attacks were thrown at him as the cultivators wanted to take him out instantly.


    If they took down Ye Futian, they would still have a chance to leave.


    However, at that moment, Ye Futian��s body was surrounded by beautiful divine lights. All the Great Path attacks were stopped in their tracks. The attacks roared and loud noises reverberated in the air; however, they did not even manage to shake Ye Futian a little. He stood there quietly. Odd-looking beams of divine light appeared around his body and destroyed all the Great Path attacks targeting him.


    Ye Futian stood there, and whistling sounds of swords swooshing about could be heard. A terrifying storm of Sword Qi suddenly appeared in the vast sky. It looked like all the Great Path current in this area had transformed into Sword Qi.


    Multiple swords glided around in the sky. Ye Futian glanced at his opponents. Then, the swords charged.


    In an instant, countless blades of light filled the sky as if trying to tear apart the entire world. The practitioners were instantly crushed into nothingness. Dead.


    Further away, a few Renhuangs began to move backward. They wanted to escape. Their two powerful big shot leaders were completely restrained, and Four Corner City was sealed. They had a horrible feeling and had no intention to linger.


    Ye Futian looked at them. Whistling sounds came from the sky, and the Sword Qi swooped across thousand of miles.


    The next moment, above Ye Futian, swords pierced through the sky, leaving multiple beautiful sword gashes in the sky. The people far away cast a powerful Great Path of Defense power to block his attack. However, with a flash, the swords punctured through their bodies easily.


    With Ye Futian��s current cultivation level, Renhuangs below the ninth plane level were no match for him. As for anyone below the high-level Renhuang stage, they were like ants!

 Chapter 2126 - Retreat

    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at those who fled. Some of them had never taken action nor revealed their aura before. If they escaped into the crowd, they might never be found. However, since they had come for Four Corner Village, their guilt was certain.


    Swords roared between heaven and earth as they rose to traverse hundreds of miles of distance. They were gone in a moment.


    Ye Futian��s body suspended in the air as brilliant divine light bloomed from him; his body seemed to have turned into the light itself. He then moved forward with incredible speed. A group of people was escaping but seemed to have sensed something. As they turned their heads to look back, they saw a terrifying demonic light directly rained on them, and in the next moment, they turned to ash.


    ��Is he that strong?�� It was the first time that people in Four Corner City had ever seen Ye Futian making a move, and it was more powerful than they could have imagined. All these Renhuang were like insignificant insects that couldn��t counter the divine light of the Great Path he released.


    A Renhuang of the Eighth Realm turned to face Ye Futian, both of his palms pushed forward at the same time. Suddenly, a golden divine matrix appeared in front of him, bursting with incomparable radiance. It slammed toward Ye Futian with great oppression.


    Ye Futian��s body continued moving forward. There seemed to be a divine illusion of the peacock that appeared. The divine light released from his body was demonic and radiant. Countless rays of divine light rained down and broke through the divine matrix immediately. He then penetrated the body of the other. The man��s face paled as his body turned into speckles of light, disappearing without a trace.


    ��A powerful existence of Renhuang in the Eighth Realm gone in a single blow.�� Many people trembled violently. Was this Ye Futian��s true strength?


    They had heard that this man had great luck. The village was different after his arrival as he played an important role in the changes in Four Corner Village. Later, he joined Four Corner Village and became a key figure, even replacing its previous leader, Muyun Long.


    Because of him, the village expelled Muyun Long.


    There were even rumors that Ye Futian had accepted four disciples. These four disciples had all inherited the village��s divine techniques; it was conceivable of the kind of status he would occupy in the village. When these four disciples of his come into their own, becoming the village leaders, he would be greatly respected as their master.


    But that day was still far away into the future, and perhaps he would have already become even more powerful by then.


    Ye Futian continued moving forward, chasing those in the other direction. But he saw that there was a mighty atmosphere permeated in front of him. A group of men stood in the sky, with extremely powerful cultivation. These people took action and intervened, helping Ye Futian and the others to intercept those who were fleeing.


    The sight in front of him caused Ye Futian to stop. He looked ahead and saw that these cultivators seemed to have woven a great net, which caught those fleeing cultivators. For a moment, the sound of collision rang through heaven and earth.


    It didn��t take long for the confrontation to be over. Those who fled were all terminated, and the head of those who performed the termination spoke loud and clear, ��Search all of Four Corner City. Arrest anyone who plotted against Four Corner Village. You may execute them on the spot.��


    The man��s tone was cold and contained a strong murderous intent. It was as if he shared the same indignation as Four Corner Village, which made Ye Futian wonder if the man was also from the village. However, he had cultivated in Four Corner Village for a couple of years now, and he was pretty sure he did not know the man, as this man was not a cultivator of the village.


    But at this time, the few in the lead walked in the void and came to Ye Futian��s side. They saluted Ye Futian and Fang Gai, who was behind him. ��The Zhang family from Qingyang Continent. Now that we have entered the Four Corner City to cultivate, we pledge ourselves to your cause.��


    Ye Futian understood everything immediately. It seemed that he was a cultivator from the outside, wanting to establish a good relationship with Four Corner Village.


    For this reason, he did not hesitate to risk offending the forces who came to attack Four Corner Village this time. Those people may very well be from other major forces. In doing what they did, the Zhang family risked becoming a target themselves.


    It appeared that they wanted to take this opportunity to befriend the village.


    ��If this is the case, we are much indebted to you.�� Fang Gai nodded slightly and did not rebuff their gesture. Although he had never left Four Corner Village before, he knew enough about things of the world and was well-read. He knew much more than most people inside the village. More importantly, he was astute, as could be deduced from his treatment of Old Ma and Ye Futian.


    For that, Fang Gai understood their intentions.


    Now that the Four Corner Village had officially emerged as a principality for cultivation, this was their first major battle out of their little corner of the world. Four Corner City was built around Four Corner Village, so it was quite natural for it to be an affiliated territory of Four Corner Village. In any case, all that had trespassed was destiny.


    If Four Corner Village wanted to be part of the world, it must develop and grow, even recruiting more people from the outside to cultivate at Four Corner Village and contribute to the city. It was also necessary to gain control of the Four Corner City not to miss any opportunities when the village itself started to develop.


    The Zhang family in Qingyang Continent was a power familial principality that was an absolute ruler of its own domain. However, they had reached the peak of where they were, and it was difficult for them to make further advancement unless they were attached to an even greater force.


    However, all the principalities within the Upper Nine Heavens in Shangqing Domain had long been formed. Even though the Zhang family was a power of the first-class on a continent, they were still nothing by the standards of the Upper Nine Heavens. There were many other forces at the same level as they were, and some even stronger. It wouldn��t be difficult for them to gain a foothold, but it would be difficult for them to get ahead.


    Therefore, they needed an opportunity.


    After learning about what had transpired in Four Corner Village, countless people from the Shangqing Domain migrated to build the city. The clan chief of the Zhang family knew that this was the opportunity he had been waiting for, and they couldn��t afford to miss it. So, they abandoned everything they had built in Qingyang Continent and moved the entire family here. The first group that arrived in the Four Corner City participated in the construction of the city, had developed and grown in the process. With the strong backing of their familial power, they had already gained incredible control inside Four Corner City.


    This time, they finally caught a break. Today was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Therefore, he acted decisively and gave the order to search for those fugitives inside Four Corner City to get on the good side of Four Corner Village.


    What came after that would depend on fate.


    Men plan, but heaven decides.


    Boom�� At this moment, a shocking collision came from the sky, and the entire Four Corner City shuddered violently.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked yonder, only to see Emperor Yan had broken free from the power of spatial exile. A towering divine light burst out from him, which made Ye Futian feel that there was a divine power in the center of that glow. It was a terrifying divine power.


    ��Divine item!�� Ye Futian exclaimed silently.


    Many of these major forces possessed divine items, which served as their last resort. The Millet Emperor had the Watchtower, and the ancient royal family of Yan, being an extremely ancient royal power, must have inherited some invaluable treasures. However, Emperor Yan didn��t take it to Donghua Banquet. After all, he probably didn��t expect that a war of that level would erupt at the banquet.


    However, this time was different. He had taken into account the potential danger of this trip and came prepared. In order to avoid unforeseen situations, he carried the treasure on his person this time so that he was able to break free of the spatial exiled power.


    However, the battle did not seem to have stopped. Above that high sky, terrifying divine lights collided. Everyone inside Four Corner City felt that the sky and the earth were about to collapse. It was not simply an illusion. The sky and the earth seemed to be on the verge of being torn apart in a frightful battle scene.


    ��Old Ma actually fought against Emperor Yan, who was aided by the divine item, and he did not lose,�� Ye Futian secretly marveled. However, this divine Item was probably not more powerful than the Watchtower. The Millet Emperor and the Watchtower were almost integrated into one entity.


    A devastating storm encompassed an area of great radius. It was tinged with an extreme sense of oppression. It seemed as if the sky was about to fall down. Of course, this level of warfare was alarming. If the battlefield were inside Four Corner City, the city would surely be razed to the ground.


    Even though they were very far away, everyone could still feel that power of suffocation.


    ��Break!�� A great roar came from above the firmament, followed by a dragon chant. The purple golden divine light pierced through the sky, shattering the sealing power and breaking the spatial power that had closed up this area.


    ��Retreat,�� Emperor Yan said as Ling Yunzi left the battlefield to follow him. He turned into a beam of light, fleeing toward the far distance. In a blink of an eye, two beams of light disappeared between heaven and earth at the same time, leaving Four Corner City in ruin!

 Chapter 2127 - Of the World

    Still watching the two disappearing figures, Old Ma said loudly, ��From today on, cultivators from the ancient royal family of Yan and Lingxiao Palace of Shangqing Domain are strictly forbidden to set foot on the Four Corner Continent. Any violators will be killed on sight. If there is a next time, I will bring the cultivators from our village for a visit.��


    His voice could be heard for thousands of miles. Although no one chase after them, these two must have heard what he said. This was a warning to them that if today��s situation were to repeat itself, they would pay a visit to the Great Yan Kingdom and Lingxiao Palace. By then, the battlefield would no longer be limited just to Four Corner City.


    The people in Four Corner City raised their heads to looked at the sky. Those men were plainly dressed but displayed extraordinary power. This battle was enough to prove the formidable strength of Four Corner Village.


    Moreover, the premier cultivator in Four Corner Village hadn��t even lifted a finger this time.


    It was said that there was a teacher in Four Corner Village who was truly the premier cultivator in Four Corner Village, but no one from the outside had seen him. No one knew where he came from or how he ended up there. In fact, not many in the entire Shangqing Domain had seen him.


    Nanhai Wuji, the great elder of the Nanhai family, had once asked for an audience with the teacher but was refused by Old Ma because he was unworthy to meet with the teacher.


    ��Those involved in the attack today, we will only go after those who entered the city and not chase after the force behind them. On the same note, if this ever happens again, no matter who it is, Four Corner Village will pursue the matter to the end.�� Old Ma looked at the sky below and saw that the Zhang family was still making arrests. But this time, he was not planning on investigating which forces were behind the scenes or involved.


    Today, Four Corner Village��s unveiling was a show of force, and the others were testing them. They used the two major forces in Shangqing Domain as scouts.


    As the first battle by Four Corner Village as a principality, the purpose of the showdown had been achieved. Old Ma understood that if they insisted on pursuing the matter, many others were involved. But this battle was a warning to them.


    As for those who came here, he would not extend any courtesy to them. The loss of their lives would be used as a reminder for those who came after them.


    The Zhang family possessed great strength, and the net that they cast inside Four Corner City had captured many of the offenders.


    Old Ma and the others landed inside the Four Corner City. By now, this area had already been destroyed. There were ruins everywhere. It was as if all the efforts to build it had been in vain.


    However, the significance of this battle could not be measured simply by the destruction of a city.


    Cultivators were able to build cities quickly. If a significant amount of manpower was dispatched, a small city could arise from the ground in a single day.


    Fang Gai had now allowed Fang Cun and a few other youths out of the village. All of them had witnessed the battle that occurred just now, and the young people had a more realistic understanding of cultivation. Was that the kind of battle between powerful cultivators? Indeed, they were still too young; there was too vast of a gap for them to catch up.


    Tie Tou looked at Old Ma and his father with admiration. He didn��t expect Grandpa Ma and his dad to be so strong.


    This battle was enough to leave a deep impression on the hearts of these young people.


    ��Grandpa, which one of you is better?�� Fang Cun asked Fang Gai.


    ��Look at you.�� Fang Gai gave him a little tap on his head. But then Fang Cun looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��Master, tell me if you can you beat both of them.��


    ��Of course, I��m not as good as Grandpa Ma or your own grandfather,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Your strength has opened the eyes of old guys like us. Such a realm of cultivation with such combat power�� In a few years, us old guys will be far behind you,�� Fang Gai commented. Ye Futian��s display of power had surprisingly delighted them.


    ��Well, in the future, the village will still depend on you young people,�� Old Ma said. The teacher could only be the guardian of the village. But if Four Corner Village wanted to expand, it must rely on the growth of Ye Futian and these young people.


    Now, Four Corner Village was blessed by its ancestors�� Great Path. It enjoyed a unique environment for cultivation. It was difficult for it not to rise.


    ��Hey, Master, you must teach me and not hide anything,�� Fang Cun said expectantly.


    ��Of course,�� Ye Futian reassured him.


    Fang Cun was stunned. His face fell, and those around them had smiles on theirs.


    People in the distance were watching them from afar. It seemed that it was a foregone conclusion that Shangqing Domain would have one more major principality, and no one could stop it from happening.


    Before long, Zhang Ye��the head of the Zhang family��brought a group of men over and said, ��Sir, out of those who have been exposed, some have been killed on the spot for resisting. These are the ones we captured. What do you want to do with them?��


    ��Kill them,�� Fang Gai said coldly.


    ��Very well.�� Zhang Ye nodded, then turned around with his men. He quickly put an end to the rest of them. Fang Gai and the others made a secret note to themselves as they watched Zhang Ye handle this piece of nasty business. He had formidable cultivation and was ruthless in action. He was a man with great resolve. Doing so also burned bridges. If he ever left the Four Corner City, he would be everyone��s target.


    Zhang Ye stood there after he returned. Although he said nothing, Old Ma and the others understood as they looked at each other. Fang Gai took the initiative and asked, ��This Four Corner City was built around Four Corner Village and is named the same. We will just come straight to the point: what is your name?��


    ��Zhang Ye,�� the other replied.


    ��Zhang Ye, from now on, you will be in charge of Four Corner City, and you will be allowed to build your own force inside Four Corner City. You may enter Four Corner Village to cultivate. In addition, you may select those with outstanding and suitable talents for us to assess and evaluate whether they may also enter Four Corner Village to cultivate. Of course, this matter is not urgent. You should focus on getting the city under control first.��


    ��Yes,�� Zhang Ye nodded slightly. He knew he had succeeded. From this moment on, he worked for Four Corner Village, and he could enter the village to cultivate.


    It was just as he had planned. Since Four Corner had now entered the world, it must consider expanding and becoming stronger, and as such, it must absorb powerful cultivators from the outside to strengthen itself. Now, this matter fell on him, which was of great significance.


    ��From now on, you will be the external deacon of Four Corner Village,�� Old Ma added.


    ��Thank you, elder.�� Zhang Ye bowed slightly to express his gratitude. Old Ma was someone of influence. Even someone like him had to bow down in front of someone like Old Ma.


    Old Ma did this to preserve Zhang Ye. Since Zhang Ye had basically thrown in his own lot with theirs, he couldn��t very well leave him out in the cold. What��s more, Four Corner Village was indeed in need of useful people now.


    First of all, to enter the world and participate in cultivation, they couldn��t keep staying in the village and stay blind to everything that happened outside. Everything about the outside world must be well understood.


    From the instant they decided to venture outside of the village, many things needed to be done.


    In the village, beside the teacher, Old Ma and the other six were in charge, acting as the elders in Four Corner Village. Now there was no village chief yet appointed, so Old Ma was acting as the Senior Elder. The teacher was the most suitable person as the village chief, but since he demurred, the position was vacant. Fang Gai and the others had intended to elect Old Ma as the village chief, but Old Ma disagreed.


    Now, to designate Zhang Ye as an external deacon meant he would work for them on all affairs related to the outside. In the future, they would need to recruit a group of cultivators, like Zhang Ye, as their external agents.


    Of course, this matter couldn��t be rushed. In order to become a powerful character, each person their own pursuit, and not everyone was willing to serve Four Corner Village like Zhang Ye.


    Zhang Ye came to Four Corner Village because he and his family had reached a bottleneck and sought a new opportunity. So, they came here to serve the village, looking for their chance.


    Old Ma didn��t say much. He looked at Blind Tie next to him and said, ��Go to the village and cast a few weapons. Later, they will be placed in Four Corner City. I will arrange a spatial seal power inside the city to cover the periphery. Only the main entrance of the city may be used to enter and exit the city, and those who enter the city will need to be screened and controlled in the future.��


    ��Good,�� Blind Tie nodded.


    ��Yes.�� Zhang Ye also took the order and saw Old Ma levitate into the air. An astonishing divine light bloomed from him, turning into an infinite light screen above the sky. He was getting ready to lock the city and encapsulated Four Corner City. As such, except for powerful figures who could break free and come and go as they pleased, anyone else who wanted to make trouble in the city would not be able to escape so easily with the entrance guarded.


    It didn��t take long for the people in Four Corner City to feel a mighty aura. A radiant divine light shrouded the boundless space. Above the very high part of the sky, a pale golden light appeared, but it was hard to see it with the naked eye because it was so high.


    Although Old Ma had shrouded the city, it would not affect normal operations and combat in the air, so he had sealed it from a high altitude.


    Watching all this happening, Ye Futian felt some emotion inside. He had originally wanted to enter the City Lord��s Office to cultivate, but he was humiliated instead. Even the City Lord himself wanted to kill him. By coincidence or fate, he entered Four Corner Village��a cultivating holy land out of this world.


    However, now that Four Corner Village was part of the cultivating world, everything that happened today symbolized another new beginning. Four Corner Village had formally entered the world and began to develop its influence!

 Chapter 2128 - Chaos Ensues

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Four Corner City began to rebuild. The Zhang family that migrated from Qingyang Continent also began constructing the City Lord��s Office and organizing forces within the city. Four Corner City would be attached to Four Corner Village and become its subsidiary power, but this was not due to the dominant nature of the Four Corner Village. Everyone inside Four Corner City was a conglomeration of different places; what was their intention?


    It was the common goal of those who had migrated here to cultivate. Four Corner Village being in control of the Four Corner City meant that the city would have the best opportunity for the greatest development; it would grow stronger and become more prosperous. Furthermore, cultivators from Four Corner City would have the best chance to cultivate at Four Corner Village.


    At this point, the City Lord��s Office had been constructed in a grand manner and occupied a considerable area inside Four Corner City. Four Corner Village commanded Zhang Ye to build the City Lord��s Office and take charge. Naturally, he wanted to do his best he could. Today, the City Lord��s Office had seen prestigious visitors, with many cultivators who wanted to be accepted into the City Lord��s Office so that they may have an opportunity to gain entry into Four Corner Village in the future.


    Currently, Zhang Ye was entertaining some guests inside the office. It was a lively scene with drinks and chatters, and those who sat with him were powerful cultivators. In his position, it was his job to network with powerful and capable people and forge good relationships with them.


    He knew very well that many in Four Corner Village were stronger and better than him. He was allowed to make assumptions in this position, not because of his cultivation level but because he was the first person to stand up and do some things for the village. He understood his own position: it was to do real work for Four Corner Village, recruiting more powerful allies, especially those who were much powerful than he was.


    Since the establishment of the City Lord��s Office, Zhang Ye had enjoyed quite a good reputation in the city.


    While everyone was enjoying the banquet, someone came in and said, ��City Lord.��


    Zhang Ye looked at the man and asked, ��What is it?��


    ��There is a Renhuang who said he has something significant and wants to see the city lord,�� replied the messenger. Zhang Ye was a little surprised, but still, he said, ��Let him come here then.��


    ��I told him I��d bring him here, but he said that he must see you alone,�� the messenger replied.


    Zhang Ye frowned, weighing the matter, then said to everyone, ��I need to step out for a brief moment.��


    With that said, Zhang Ye followed the man and came to a courtyard. However, there was no one there when he arrived. On the stone table in the yard, there was a package. Zhang Ye frowned and walked over to open it. There was a single line written on a piece of paper. It was accompanied by a jade slip, which seemed to be sealed by a forbidding force.


    Zhang Ye frowned as he read the content of the message. He expanded his divine consciousness, attempting to track down the person but could detect no one suspicious around the City Lord��s Office. The person was long gone, and it was clear that his cultivation was considerable.


    Zhang Ye held the jade slip in one hand as he crushed the letter in the other. He had a feeling that this matter was fraught with danger. If he were to follow instructions, he might get involved in a conspiracy. However, if he refused, the consequences were not something he could be responsible for.


    When his thoughts turned to this, Zhang Ye returned to the banquet and took his leave of the people there. He then left the City Lord��s Office and headed towards the mountain range where Four Corner Village was located. This jade slip was not for him, but he was instructed to deliver it to a man inside the village.


    These days, Ye Futian often cultivated quietly in the village and gave lessons to its young people, even instructed them on the divine techniques. He was the only one who could see all seven great divine techniques, so even though he did not directly inherit these divine techniques, he was the only one who knew the seven great divine techniques the best.


    Under the ancient tree, Ye Futian sat there looking at a figure in front of him. Fang Cun was cultivating, trying to incorporate the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique into his abilities.


    Not far away, a man walked over; it was Fang Gai. He stood there quietly, with his hands behind his back, watching Fang Cun cultivating.


    ��Uncle Fang.�� Ye Futian turned his head and smiled as he saw Fang Gai.


    But Fang Gai seemed not to have heard him as he kept his eyes on Fang Cun.


    ��Uncle Fang!�� Ye Futian was a little surprised. People at Fang Gai��s level usually didn��t get this distracted.


    Fang Gai came to his senses just then. He looked at Ye Futian and smiled. Seeing his smile, Ye Futian asked, ��Uncle Fang has something on his mind?��


    ��Not at all!�� Fang Gai shook his head. Seeing Ye Futian regarded him with some doubts, Fang Gai said with a smile, ��These days, everything feels a little unreal. The village changed so much, and I haven��t gotten used to it yet.��


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. Fang Gai was shrewd, but he had never left the village before, so it was normal for him to be unaccustomed.


    ��Uncle Fang will get used to it soon,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Mmm,�� Fang Gai nodded. Looking at Fang Cun, he said, ��The boy is stubborn, and all was made possible because of you. We might still need to trouble you to look after him in the future.��


    ��Why is Uncle Fang suddenly so formal?�� Ye Futian teased. ��Since I have accepted this little guy as my disciple, I will do all that I can for him.��


    ��I am not worried.�� Fang Gai nodded. ��By the way, I heard that there are some treasures from the outside world that can be used to communicate through thin air, is that right?��


    ��Yes, I have one on me,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��I��m thinking we might need to get some for the people in the village. This way, it would be more convenient.�� Fang Gai said, ��I will go to the City Lord��s Office to see what they can do.��


    ��Very well,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    Fang Gai took another look at Fang Cun before he turned to leave.


    Ye Futian watched Fang Gai depart and felt that he seemed a little odd today. However, he couldn��t really put his finger on it.


    Fang Gai went to the City Lord��s Office and did indeed obtained a set of communication treasures. He gave them to Old Ma and the others so that they could communicate with each other.


    The next day, Ye Futian was in his own yard when Fang Cun��s voice was heard.


    ��Master!�� Fang Cun shouted from outside.


    ��Come,�� Ye Futian answered. Fang Cun entered the courtyard and said to Ye Futian, ��Master, my grandpa is acting strange.��


    ��How is he strange?�� Ye Futian��s heart jumped; he had the same feeling yesterday.


    ��Today, he suddenly said a lot of strange things to me, asking me to take care of myself and follow Master from now on and listen to the Master, and then he left the village. I have a feeling that something is happening to Grandpa,�� Fang Cun said, worried. He was at a sensitive age and came to Ye Futian immediately.


    ��Let��s go see Grandpa Ma.�� Ye Futian instantly got up and took Fang Cun. As they walked directly forward, they shortly appeared at Old Ma��s house. When Ye Futian expressed what he had observed and what Fang Cun had said, Old Ma��s face changed.


    ��What��s happening?!�� Old Ma murmured.


    ��I don��t know,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Yesterday, Zhang Ye came to the village looking for him.�� Old Ma said, ��Let��s go.��


    The group headed outside the village with incredible speed.


    As they came out of Four Corner Village, Old Ma expanded his divine consciousness, covering an endless, vast area. Countless sights were imprinted in his mind, and Four Corner City was laid out before his eyes. However, he did not find Fang Gai anywhere.


    He took Ye Futian and Fang Cun and came to the City Lord��s Office in one step.


    Zhang Ye bowed slightly and paid his respects when he saw the arrival of Old Ma, ��Greetings to the elder.��


    ��What did you want with Fang Gai that day?�� Old Ma asked him coldly, with a pressure of might in his voice. Zhang Ye sensed that something was amiss, so he bowed respectfully and replied, ��I received a package the day before, and there was a letter and a sealed jade slip. The letter instructed me to give the jade slip to Elder Fang and not mention it to anyone. This matter was of great importance to Elder Fang, and if I delayed the matter, Elder Fang would surely blame me, and I would not be able to shoulder the consequences myself.��


    Old Ma looked intently at Zhang Ye and saw that the man didn��t seem to lie, nor did he need to lie. Zhang Ye shouldn��t be blamed for this. Under the circumstances, he didn��t have any choice. After all, he didn��t know what the jade slip was about.


    ��What could make Uncle Fang leave without saying anything?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��There is only one possibility.�� Old Ma looked into the distance with icy eyes. It seemed that there were still forces in the dark unwilling to give up, still plotting for the divine techniques.


    ��What?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Fang Huan, Fang Cun��s father.�� Old Ma said, ��Four Corner Village has changed so much, but Fang Cun��s father has not appeared. Now, even Fang Gai has disappeared. There could only be one possibility.��


    Next to them, Fang Cun��s face suddenly changed as he clenched his fists, looking very anxious.


    Ye Futian noticed his change and put his hand on Fang Cun��s shoulder.


    ��Master,�� Fang Cun looked up at Ye Futian.


    ��Your grandpa has a high level of cultivation, and nothing will happen to him. They probably just wanted the divine technique,�� Ye Futian said. The first sentence was to comfort the boy. If someone dared to make a move, they probably came prepared and backed by major principality. Otherwise, they wouldn��t dare.


    Fang Gai must have understood it himself, and worried that he would not be able to come back, hence the things he said.


    ��Mmm.�� Fang Cun nodded as if to comfort himself, but the expression in his eyes was still full of worry.


    ��I��ll go and take a look,�� Old Ma said. His body flashed towards the outside, as fast as lightning, disappeared in an instant.


    While Ye Futian and Fang Cun were waiting, Zhang Ye also stood there quietly without saying a word.


    After some time, Old Ma came back again and did not look well. He shook his head, ��I didn��t find him.��


    ��Uncle Fang left behind some communication treasures before he left; it must be for delivering messages. We should know who it was soon,�� Ye Futian said. Old Ma took out something that Fang Gai gave him. Now, all they could do was wait!

 Chapter 2129 - Solution

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Old Ma and the others had no choice but to go back to the village and wait. At the same time, they gathered several key members to discuss what to do next.


    Soon, everyone in Four Corner Village learned of the news, and many from the village gathered outside Old Ma��s courtyard, waiting for any emerging news about Fang Gai.


    Although the village people occasionally had some altercations with one another, the village was generally harmonious. Fang Gai was well-liked by everyone, so people in the village were worried when they learned what might have happened to him.


    The villagers had often heard that most people who had gone out of the village never made it back due to having met unfortunate ends at the hands of those on the outside. Blind Tie himself, too, only came back after having lost his sight. People in the village had their own thoughts about these incidents, but because the village was isolated from the world outside, these thoughts were largely suppressed.


    But now that the village was part of the outside world, something like this seemed to have ignited the resentment that had been in their hearts.


    Were these people on the outside wolves? Treating people in this village as prey?


    Just as the village began to integrate itself into the world, and everyone finally able to cultivate, someone dared to do this to Elder Fang Gai.


    ��Old Ma, we have to get Fang Gai back,�� some of the elders said.


    ��Uncle Ma, how is Uncle Fang now? Do you have any news?��


    ��We better take the initiative to attack.��


    The voices outside came, one after another, all of them tinged with grievances. Old Ma was discussing these matters with Blind Tie, Shi Kui, and the others in the courtyard. There was no news yet, and they had no idea as to Fang Gai��s current situation.


    As time passed, the courtyard seemed extremely oppressive. At this moment, the treasure that was placed on the stone table suddenly lit up, rays of light were released from it. They flowed to the area above Old Ma��s head and formed a light screen.


    In an instant, everyone��s eyes were fixed on Old Ma. After Old Ma had received the news, he looked at the crowd and said coldly, ��Indeed, it was a major force in Shangqing Domain��the ancient royal family of Duan��that was holding Fang Huan. They thought Fang Gai would bring Fang Cun, exchanging Fang Huan��s life with the divine technique. But Fang Gai went by himself, and now he has fallen in their hands as well.��


    Bam! Blind Tie slapped his hand down on the stone table, and the table immediately shattered. Veins were popping out on his muscular body, and he appeared extremely angry. He thought of the time in the past when he was blinded by someone who claimed to be a brother. Because of his personal experience, he had always loathed those from the outside. This was why he didn��t particularly have a good impression of Ye Futian in the beginning.


    Now, people were plotting against Fang Gai, still trying to take away the divine techniques of Four Corner Village. These forces had really regarded Four Corner Village as their prey. All of them were watching, and everyone wanted a piece of them.


    ��Uncle Fang has also cultivated the divine technique of Miniature World. If he hands it over, the Duan family should release them. Now the news had come back, and it��s impossible for them to think that we won��t avenge this transgression.�� Although Ye Futian was also very angry, he tried to restrain himself.


    He had seen many similar instances like this along the way of cultivation. Although Four Corner Village had shown great strength in cultivation, it was a new force, after all; its foundation was not as deep as it needed to be. Those forces were not in fear of them, and all of them wished to take a bite out of Four Corner Village.


    Especially in today��s Shangqing Domain, there were already several divine techniques that have been leaked to the outside. For example, the Nanhai family took away the Muyun family, and the Palace of the Illusory God took the Eye of Reincarnation by force. Therefore, the other principalities had similar ideas, which caused today��s situation.


    The ancient royal family of Duan was an extremely ancient royal family with a long history. It was said to have been descendants of a god with a rich background, belonging to the Middle Third Heaven of the Upper Nine Heavens.


    Old Ma appeared in deep thoughts before he said, ��Fang Gai was right to obtain the communication treasures before he left; at least it will give the other party something to be concerned with; otherwise, it would have been more dangerous. Since we have received the news of his whereabouts, his life should not be in immediate danger. However, if we were to count the Divine Hammer of the Protector, there are already three divine techniques that have been leaked outside. If we allow one more divine technique to the outside, would Four Corner Village still be Four Corner Village? Based on what I know about Fang Gai, he probably won��t hand it over.��


    As he was speaking, he stood up and said, ��Let��s take a trip to the Duan family.��


    They didn��t seem to have any other choices. The other had taken their people, so they would have to make a personal visit.


    The ancient royal family of Duan dominated and ruled the Giant Gods Continent with throngs of cultivators. Stepping onto their territory was definitely not a good idea.


    The overlord of the ancient royal family of Duan possessed incredible cultivation and was one of the strongest people in the Shangqing Domain. He was not someone that Old Ma could deal with.


    The teacher couldn��t leave Four Corner Village. If they go, they may not be able to complete their mission.


    ��I don��t think that��s a good idea,�� Ye Futian said, suddenly, and everyone turned their attentions to him. Ye Futian thought for a few moments, then raised his head and said to Old Ma, ��Uncle Ma, are you sure you can get them back from the grasps of the Duan family?��


    Old Ma shook his head. In reality, he had no idea on what level was his combat power. But, the strength of Duan Tianxiong of the royal family of Duan must be at the top level. He was not sure if he could overcome the man.


    Furthermore, the risk would be elevated if they were to go onto the territory of the other.


    ��What are your thoughts?�� Old Ma asked Ye Futian.


    ��The ancient royal family of Duan wants the divine technique and blackmailed us using our own people. If so, why not use their own device against them?�� Ye Futian responded. ��As long as we can take an important member of the Duan family, we can ask them for an exchange.��


    Old Ma looked at Ye Futian, and everyone listened carefully as well. Ye Futian had been around for many years and had more experience than they did. Perhaps he could think of some alternatives.


    ��How do we get close to the powerful figures inside the Duan family?�� Old Ma asked.


    ��I��ll go,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��No way,�� Old Ma flatly refused that suggestion.


    ��I haven��t finished yet. Uncle Ma, you can disguise your aura and stay hidden. If anything happens, the most we would need to do is to make the exchange with divine technique; this is what they wanted. The Duan family has not feuded with Four Corner Village, so they will exercise some restraints on their part. As long as they can get the divine technique, they will try to avoid creating a blood vendetta.�� Ye Futian said slowly, ��Now, if we can��t rescue Uncle Fang, we will need to make the exchange, so why not give it a try?��


    While everyone was still hesitating, Ye Futian stretched out his hand as a mask appeared in his palm. As soon as he put it on, the aura on his body undergone some slight changes, and it was a little different from before. At this moment, Ye Futian was like a celestial being, surrounded by celestial light with a bit of celestial aura, full of life��s essence.


    ��Like this, even if someone from the Duan family had seen me before in Four Corner Village, they might not be able to recognize me. If I can��t get close to the core figures of the Duan family, I won��t take any action. With Uncle Ma close by as my backup, we ought to give it a try,�� Ye Futian continued.


    ��In addition, we work both angles simultaneously. Leak the news from Four Corner Village that we are sending an envoy to the Duan family to negotiate the release of the hostages so that they dare not act rashly. At the same time, it would serve as a distraction,�� Ye Futian continued. As long as the Duan family was fully aware that they had already received the information, they would have some concerns restricting their actions.


    ��This incident was caused by Zhang Ye. Although he was an unwilling participant in the matter, he mishandled the whole thing. So, let him atone himself as the envoy,�� said Ye Futian. Even if there was to be war between the two sides, generally, the messenger was exempt, so he would not be in much danger.


    Everyone contemplated on Ye Futian��s words. After a few moments of silence, Old Ma nodded and said, ��Okay, Shi Kui, you are going to leak the information and order Zhang Ye to go and demand their release while I leave in secret with Futian. The others in the village will refrain from leaving during this time and must keep this information to ourselves.��


    ��Yes.�� Everyone nodded in agreement.


    Shi Kui turned to head out of Four Corner Village. Everyone looked at Ye Futian with a solemn expression and said, ��Be careful.��


    Blind Tie sat there quietly. He had wanted to attack them directly, but Ye Futian��s suggestion was indeed the better choice.


    As for Ye Futian, whether it was Blind Tie or anyone else in the village, they had a better understanding of the kind of person he was. This man had proven that he was loyal and worthy. It seemed that Ye Futian truly regarded himself as a member of the village.


    At this moment, in everyone��s hearts, they had recognized Ye Futian, the former ��outsider,�� as one of their own.


    ��Old Ma, let��s be on our way,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Mmm.�� Old Ma nodded.


    The two talked as they walked out.


    ��Master,�� a voice said. Ye Futian turned his head and saw Fang Cun��s eyes were full of tears. He knelt and bowed to Ye Futian.


    ��Get up!�� Ye Futian chided. Fang Cun raised his head to look at Ye Futian and got up as commanded.


    ��There are no tears in the cultivating world, only strength. As the village elder and your teacher, this is something I should do. No need to kneel.�� Ye Futian said to Fang Cun, ��No matter where you are in your cultivation in the future, just remember to be worthy of your true self.��


    ��Yes, Master,�� Fang Cun replied as he stood there. At this moment, he seemed to have really grown up.


    ��I am going to help bring your grandpa and father back,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. He then stepped forward. After a few moments, he and Old Ma disappeared as they turned into a light of space, without anyone being the wiser.


    At the same time, Shi Kui went to the City Lord��s Office and ordered Zhang Ye to go to the Giant Gods Continent to negotiate. For a while, the news sent shockwaves throughout Four Corner City. No one expected that the ancient royal family of Duan had not given up and continued to covet the divine techniques that belonged to Four Corner Village. In their desperation, they had even taken Fang Gai��the elder of Four Corner Village��and his son as hostages.


    This time, how would Four Corner Village handle it? Would Four Corner Village, now that it had joined the world, go to the Giant Gods Continent to fight the Duan family?

 Chapter 2130 - Alchemy Grandmaster

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Upper Nine Heavens in the Shangqing Domain was one continent within a vast and endless group. The overall strength of the Upper Nine Heavens Continental Group had the topmost ranking in the entire Shangqing Domain.


    The Giant Gods Continent was the main continent in the continental group of Upper Nine Heavens, with throngs of strong cultivators.


    The ancient royal family of Duan was a symbolic power of the Giant Gods Continent as well as its holy land.


    Recently, news from the Giant Gods Continent that the ancient royal family of Duan had taken the cultivators of Four Corner Village as prisoners. It was said that Fang Huan, a cultivator from Four Corner Village, had killed a cultivator from the ancient Duan family in a confrontation and was arrested by the ancient royal family. His father, Fang Gai, received words that instructed him to use the divine technique he possessed in exchange for his son��s freedom.


    Not only did Fang Gai of Four Corner Village not turn over the divine techniques, but he had also injured the cultivators of the Duan family and was taken prisoner. The ancient royal family of Duan claimed that they hoped Four Corner Village could give them justice in this matter.


    This news became public after Zhang Ye set off from the Four Corner Continent. Obviously, both sides had good ideas of the other��s movements and responded accordingly.


    As expected by the people in Four Corner Village, although the Duan family had taken their people hostage, their plot was exposed. They now had enough concerns that they dared not directly execute the hostages out of fear that they would anger the Four Corner Village and be retaliated against.


    After all, no one dared to underestimate the power of Four Corner Village today; the top three figures recognized it.


    Even the ancient royal family of Duan had to keep that fact in mind.


    After both sides released their own version of the incident, it was clear to everyone what was going on. Fang Huan��s conflict with the ancient royal family of Duan could not be verified at this point. The pretext of asking for an explanation from Four Corner Village had only one purpose, and that was to get the divine technique.


    However, since Fang Gai didn��t hand over the divine technique, it was probably not an easy task for the ancient royal family of Duan to get it now. Furthermore, the envoy from Four Corner Village was already on his way.


    ��


    Giant God City on Giant God Continent was known as one of the largest cities in the Upper Nine Heavens. The structures within the city were extremely magnificent and spectacular. It was the largest city in the Giant God Continent, and the ancient royal family was also located within the city boundaries.


    At this moment, outside the Giant God City, a massive demonic beast came from the void, sheltering the sky.


    This demonic beast was pure white with the horns of a goat but had wings on its back. Its eyes were extremely bright, and an auspicious divine light surrounded its body; it was Baize, the sacred beast.


    A man stood on Baize��s back, his white garment dancing in the wind, but a mask covered his face, so his countenance could not be discerned. The eyes that were exposed were extremely brilliant, with a faint celestial light lingering about him. There was a sense of holiness about the man as if he was an existence not of this world. One glance was enough to feel his uniqueness.


    This masked figure was Ye Futian, who had encountered Baize the Demonic Beast on the road. It was a sacred beast at the level of demon saint, so he allowed the beast to accompany him to the Giant Gods Continent.


    Baize traveled by air. It gradually descended, soaring at a low altitude. Looking at this splendid city, Ye Futian drew up his plans. To get close to the important core figures of the Duan family, he had to attract them to him instead of the other way around.


    So, he had to gain a reputation in Giant God��s City, and it needed to be a great one so that the entire city would know about him. Only then could he attract important enough figures from the ancient royal family to appear.


    There was a map in Ye Futian��s mind, and the general situation of Giant Gods City and the distribution of its powers. These were information he obtained after entering the Giant Gods Continent. Since they weren��t secrets, they were easily obtained; Ye Futian had made a note of them.


    In addition, he had some general understanding of the most important and well-known figures in the Duan family.


    In order to achieve notoriety with the fastest speed, the most prosperous and happening place was the key. In every city, where treasures were changing hands had to be the most happening place.


    There were several cities within cities inside Giant God City, one of which belonged to the ancient royal family of Duan. The existence of the royal family was equivalent to that of a city.


    The Ninth Street in the Giant Gods City was the ninth street in the city. This ranking referred to the size of the street, but when it came to fame, Ninth Street was the most prestigious street in all of Giant Gods City.


    On this street, there were the most prosperous taverns and inns inside the city and the largest trading market. Common wisdom had it that nine out of ten treasures in Giant Gods City came from Ninth Street.


    This street, also known as the Ninth District, was a city within a city.


    The place that Ye Futian chose to stay was Ninth Street inside of Giant Gods City. After he arrived and descended, he sat on Baize to tour this famed street. Even though he came on Baize, no one paid much attention to him except for an occasional glance or two.


    On the road, there were many powerful demonic beasts, and Renhuang-level characters could be seen everywhere. This was the center of ??Giant Gods City. This largest trading place was the gathering place of some of the strongest cultivators in Giant Gods City.


    Ye Futian discovered that the items traded in some random shops on the street were all saint-level treasures. Though imperial-level treasures could occasionally be found, it was rare.


    After all, these shops were small holes-in-a-wall, and the real treasures were inside the big trading pavilions.


    Moving forward on Baize Demonic Beast, Ye Futian saw an impressive inn. The aura of heaven and earth was richly endowed upon it; this was the Ninth Inn. It was the most eminent inn on Ninth Street and opened only to those of Renhuang Realm, with treasures as the only acceptable form of payment.


    Although the Ninth Inn was resplendent, it was not large in size, as it was not as majestic as many inns on the mainland. The operation of an inn was difficult enough due to the limited space on Ninth Street.


    Furthermore, the most well-known thing about the Ninth Inn was that no matter what happened on the Ninth Street or who was involved in what conflicts, as soon as the person entered the Ninth Inn, their safety was guaranteed by the inn. Fighting was absolutely forbidden inside Ninth Inn, but outside of the scope of the inn, anything could happen.


    One could say that it also served as a sanctuary.


    For many years, the Ninth Inn had never had any incidents. This fact spoke more of the background of the inn��s owner more than anything else. Some people said that the Duan family was the power behind the Ninth Inn, but this had never been confirmed. Still, such rumors persisted over the years.


    It could be viewed as an inn, or it could be said to be a formidable force in itself.


    In a large trading place like Giant Gods City, conflicts and confrontations, or even killings, were commonplace. Having such an inn in a place like this, its influence must be considerable.


    Baize Demonic Beast, with Ye Futian on its back, headed towards the inn. There were guards at the entrance, and knowing the rules, Ye Futian released his aura and was immediately let through.


    Ye Futian stepped off the back of Baize Demonic Beast and led him forward. They came to the lobby of the inn, where a woman received them.


    ��Elder,�� said Ye Futian. The woman smiled and nodded at Ye Futian. He took out a porcelain bottle and handed it to the woman. ��How long can I stay?��


    The woman carefully assessed the bottle, then replied, ��Elder, please wait while I check.�� As the woman spoke, she left to have the item inspected.


    It didn��t take long for the woman to return. She bowed slightly to Ye Futian and said, ��Elder may stay as long as you wish; the way, please.�� Ye Futian was surprised as he confirmed again, ��As long as I want?��


    ��Yes,�� the woman nodded.


    This piqued Ye Futian��s curiosity. Obviously, the person who inspected the item was an expert and knew how precious was the panacea he gave them. Of course, the Ninth Inn was not an ordinary place, and he knew the amount of panacea he gave was not enough for the generous offer of stay. After all, it was not unusual for a cultivator to stay for years or even decades.


    The real reason for them to do so was because they valued the item. Obviously, they appreciated it.


    ��Thank you very much.�� Ye Futian nodded slightly. The woman led him to a courtyard, one of the tallest in the Ninth Inn, with a view of Ninth Street.


    Here, he was an alchemy grandmaster!

 Chapter 2131 - Grandmaster of Mystery

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Ye Futian settled down in the Ninth Inn, he went out to gather some more information. He was a little relieved after hearing the news that came out from the ancient royal family of Duan. As he expected, the ancient royal family of Duan wouldn��t risk doing anything to Fang Gai for the time being.


    Thus, he could proceed with his own plan at ease without feeling rushed.


    At this time inside the Ninth Inn, Ye Futian stood by the edge of the courtyard, gazing at the scenery on the Ninth Street. Indeed, it was the most happening place in Giant Gods City, with multitudes of cultivators coming and going. At a glance, many extraordinary figures could be perceived, and Renhuang were seen everywhere.


    It was said that this was the place with the most traffic of cultivators inside Giant Gods City, not including the ancient royal family of Duan.


    Ye Futian had no plan to approach anyone on his own initiative. He turned around and sat down in the courtyard. With a wave of his palm, an alchemy cauldron suddenly floated in the air. Ye Futian sat cross-legged in front of it then closed his eyes. Rays of flames spread out from his body, and instantly the alchemy cauldron was enveloped by the flames of the Great Path.


    He began conducting alchemical activities right there inside the Ninth Inn.


    Alchemy Masters were an incredibly rare breed in the cultivating world. Only a select few of those who could be considered masters in alchemy could also be considered powerful Alchemy Grandmasters. Therefore, each powerful Alchemy Grandmaster was inordinately valuable to those who cultivate, especially those who were having difficulties breaking through their realms and sought a little extra help from external forces. However, no matter which realm of cultivation, the price of that precious panacea may not be something that they could afford.


    Take the cultivators of Upper Renhuang Realm, for example; the panacea they needed had to be the best, which was costly. Never mind whether such an item could be found in the first place. Even if a suitable one was found, whether or not the seeker had the ability to ingest it was an entirely different matter.


    In the world of cultivation, top-level Alchemy Grandmasters enjoyed highly-respected positions, and some would be recruited by major principalities as guests in their households, with a superior status.


    Ye Futian knew very well the appeal of a powerful Alchemy Grandmaster, so he started to refine the panacea directly in the courtyard.


    The flame of the Great Path was vigorous in the alchemy cauldron as the elixir continued to pour into it. Gradually, a fragrant scent began to emerge. As it spread towards the surrounding areas, an unusual change of the aura in the surrounding heaven and earth occurred, forming a terrible vortex in the sky, urging the power between heaven and earth to poured continuously into the cauldron.


    The Ninth Inn was the most prestigious inn on Ninth Street, and only Renhuang may enter. Inside the inn, there were throngs of cultivators.


    At this time, in a courtyard of the inn, an old man seemed to have smelled something. His nose twitched as he was cultivating, but he expanded his divine consciousness outward. After a while, he opened his eyes and looked up.


    ��Interesting. There is an alchemy grandmaster here,�� the old man murmured.


    Not only him, but others gradually walked out of the other courtyards as well. They all looked towards a place in the middle of the Ninth Inn, apparently sensing the presence of an alchemy grandmaster there.


    Ye Futian deliberately slowed down the speed he was conducting the alchemical process, which attracted even more people. There was now a glow of the Great Path that appeared in the void, which made many exclaim in amazement. It seemed that whatever he was making would be of an extremely high level.


    ��What a strong aura of life,�� someone said without even so much as a disguise in his voice. It was so that everyone inside the inn could hear it.


    ��Well, it is the life-elemental pill of the Great Path he��s making, which will stabilize the foundation of the Great Path. The power of life is the source of everything. This grandmaster is not a simple man. Do any of you know him?�� someone asked, already exploring Ye Futian��s true identity.


    ��It��s not that simple. Even before the pill is made, a glow of the Great Path appeared; this has to be the pill of a perfect grade. As far as I know, there are only two or three alchemy grandmasters capable of this feat. It just so happens that there is one on Ninth Street, but they are not the same person, and that grandmaster was not staying at the inn,�� someone said.


    Many people had heard that there was a very well-known trading pavilion on Ninth Street. It was the largest trading place on Ninth Street with precious pills to be found. This trading pavilion was called Tianyi Pavilion, and it was a powerful force in and of itself. That grandmaster they were referring to was a guest at Tianyi Pavilion. He had high status and was well-respected. In the Giant Gods City, many people would ask him for a panacea.


    Obviously, that grandmaster would not appear here, and Tianyi Pavilion and the Ninth Inn were two different principalities. Furthermore, that grandmaster would not be wearing a mask, and the pills he made were not the life-elemental kind.


    Just as they were chattering amongst themselves, they saw a glow from the attic, and everyone saw a radiant pill of the great path had been made. It was suspended in the air and released a strong fragrance. Many looked intoxicated; the pill itself must be a great tonic.


    Even an old man of the Upper Renhuang Realm felt a strong attraction and said, ��This medicine is beneficial for people who are cultivating in the Upper Renhuang Realm. This grandmaster��s alchemy seems to be not any lesser than that of Grandmaster Tianbao.��


    ��Is it really that powerful?�� someone asked.


    ��Even if it is not as good, it will not be too far beneath it, at most the difference of two levels,�� said that Upper Renhuang cultivator. The two levels were referred to the difference in the grade of the pill.


    Obviously, Ye Futian heard the sound of these chattering. He stretched out his hand, and suddenly, the panacea fell into his palm. He immediately put it away and extinguished the flame in the alchemy cauldron. At this time, someone asked, ��Dare we ask how to address the grandmaster?��


    Ye Futian ignored the question, and the inn fell silent for a moment.


    Many marveled secretly that this grandmaster was truly arrogant to blatantly ignored the question. However, these powerful alchemy grandmasters were said to have their sights higher than their heads, such as that Grandmaster Tianbao. They may be extremely pompous, but they could afford to be.


    Therefore, the Renghuang who had asked the question didn��t seem to mind.


    ��Never heard of the name of the master before, so master must have come from afar. May I ask the master what important matter do you have with Ninth Street? Perhaps we can be of assistance,�� another man said. Ninth Street was the largest trading market in Giant Gods City, and almost everyone who was here came for trading. If they could know the purpose of this alchemy grandmaster, perhaps they would be able to forge a relationship with him.


    ��You can��t help me,�� Ye Futian said unemotionally. His voice was a bit hoarse with a sense of vicissitude. It was befitting of the impression he gave out as a middle-aged man.


    ��If the master will not tell us, how will we know?�� someone said lightly.


    ��I came to Ninth Street just to try my luck; this place may not have what I was looking for.�� Ye Futian��s tone of voice was indifferent. He appeared profoundly inscrutable, which made many in the inn hold him in an even loftier position. His arrogant tone told them that what he was looking for must be something extraordinary. There were those from the Upper Renhuang Realm, and Ye Futian rejected them with just a few words. What he was looking for must be something extremely precious.


    ��Your words are too preposterous. There are no treasures that can��t be found on Ninth street. Although your alchemy ability is outstanding, you are a little too conceited.�� The man who spoke was sitting in the yard of the inn, sipping tea. This man had a high level of cultivation and might be a powerful figure in the Eighth Realm.


    ��Is that so?�� Ye Futian spoke with a still hoarse voice. ��I��m looking for Phoenix��s Marrow, 10,000 years old. Please help me find it.��


    The person��s hand froze in mid-air as he was holding the teacup. He hesitated for a moment before he drank the tea, but his expression became a little more serious. He said, ��Although the cultivation of your realm is extraordinary, and you have superb alchemy skills, you must know the kind of treasure that is the Phoenix��s Marrow of 10,000 years. What do you have the use for it?��


    ��It doesn��t matter. Like I said, I came to Ninth Street to try my luck,�� Ye Futian replied lightly, then opened the door to walk into the room. He ignored everyone inside the Ninth Inn, leaving all the powerful cultivators behind.


    However, the more he acted like this, the more mysterious of an impression he gave. Especially his request for the Phoenix��s Marrow, which was a divine item. It was a rare treasure even outside the realm of apothecary. If he were to make it into panacea, what level would the medicine be?


    Because of Ye Futian��s mysteriousness, his one endeavor in alchemy caused a sensation that spread from the Ninth Inn and onto Ninth Street. Soon, many people got wind of an alchemy grandmaster that had arrived at the Ninth Inn. He could produce the pill of the great path required by cultivators of Upper Renhuang Realm, and it caused quite a tumult.


    Many cultivators of the Renhuang Realm came to the Ninth Inn for an audience with Ye Futian, but all were refused by him, without exception.


    In addition, he had produced a second panacea, which was of a higher order. When the pill of the great path was finished, the glow from it envelopedNinth Street and was seen by everyone on the street. However, this mysterious master with the mask had not achieved fame until he attracted Tianyi Pavilion��s attention!

 Chapter 2132 - Affront

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian sat quietly in the courtyard of the inn. He gazed into the distance and seemed quite relaxed.


    Baize walked over to him, his tail wagging. Ye Futian took out a pill and fed it into the beast��s mouth. As soon as Baize Demonic Beast swallowed it, formidable energy burst out of his body. The Demon Saint glowed brilliantly as the light of the Great Path illuminated each part of his body. He looked at Ye Futian with gratitude. A low and deep voice came from his abdomen, ��Thank you, senior.��


    ��Achieve the breakthrough first,�� Ye Futian said to him. Baize sat down and started to cultivate. As expected, he soon radiated the bright light of the Great Path from his body. A gigantic shadow of a demon became visible behind him. He was advancing to a higher plane.


    Everyone in the inn sensed the change. Although the Ninth Inn was a famous place, it was not very spacious. For cultivators at such a high level, nothing that happened in the inn could escape their detection.


    Moreover, Ye Futian didn��t try to keep it a secret in the first place. He intended to let everyone see what was happening.


    Before long, Baize achieved the breakthrough. The energy was surging in his body. Ye Futian took out another pill and fed it into his mouth. Baize Demonic Beast opened his eyes and shot Ye Futian a grateful look. Then, he continued to cultivate to fortify himself. It was a life-elemental pill of the Great Path that wouldn��t have any side effects.


    ��Giving a pill of the Great Path to a demonic beast that is only a Demon Saint���� People in the inn were at a loss for words. The pills were clearly at the imperial level, yet Ye Futian recklessly wasted two of such precious things on a Demon Saint who wasn��t capable of digesting them.


    What a willful act, other Renhuangs thought to themselves. Why couldn��t Ye Futian give the valuable pills to them?


    He must have a large number of pills on him since he casually fed two to his mount.


    Alchemy Grandmasters were usually liberal with pills.


    Besides, Ye Futian was aloof and unapproachable. He didn��t care for anyone who tried to be friendly with him. People staying in the inn were all prominent figures in their local areas, yet this Alchemy Grandmaster wasn��t interested in being friendly at all.


    Around this time, a group of people headed to the inn, but they didn��t come for lodging. Upon their arrival, the head of the group said loudly, ��We heard that an Alchemy Grandmaster is staying in the inn. May I ask if he is here?��


    He didn��t use his divine consciousness to examine the inn��s situation since it could be considered offensive.


    Everyone heard his voice and looked outside. They immediately realized who these people were.


    ��They came so fast,�� someone whispered.


    ��I didn��t think that he would attract the attention of the Tianyi Pavilion so quickly.�� [1]


    None of them spoke up. They watched Ye Futian in silence and waited for his response. Ye Futian didn��t care to befriend other guests in the inn before. Would he treat these people from the Tianyi Pavilion differently?


    Silence reigned all around. Ye Futian didn��t respond. Instead, he gently groomed Baize��s white fur in a leisurely manner as though he didn��t know they were talking to him.


    ��I am Tang Chen from the Tianyi Pavilion. We want to invite the master to visit the Tianyi Pavilion,�� the head of the group added. He looked up in the direction of the Demonic Qi and knew that Ye Futian was there.


    ��Tang Chen!��


    Many people narrowed their eyes in surprise. Not only had the Tianyi Pavilion acted promptly, but they also attached great importance to the invitation. Tang Chen was an important figure in the Tianyi Pavilion. He was a disciple of Grandmaster Tianbao and excelled in both cultivation and alchemy. The Tianyi Pavilion obviously thought highly of the mysterious Alchemy Grandmaster by sending Tang Chen over to deliver the invitation.


    ��I��m not available,�� Ye Futian replied coldly. His hoarse voice made his rejection sound even more disrespectful. It was as if the Tianyi Pavilion meant nothing to him.


    Ye Futian��s response reinforced the impression that he was an arrogant and standoffish man. Nevertheless, Ye Futian felt rather satisfied deep inside. He wasn��t expecting to draw the attention of the ancient royal family of Duan right away. After all, the Duan family was a supreme force that reigned over the entire Giant Gods Continent. Ye Futian was pleased that he could make the Tianyi Pavilion take notice in such a short time. It meant that he was one step closer to his goal.


    Tang Chen��s brows knitted tightly together upon hearing Ye Futian��s reply. It was beyond doubt that the Tianyi Pavilion was a top group in the Ninth Street and had always commanded respect from everyone. Few people were given the honor of visiting the Tianyi Pavilion. Tang Chen only came here personally and delivered the invitation with courtesy because the mysterious person was an Alchemy Grandmaster.


    Nonetheless, politeness and respect were not reciprocated at all. The man claimed that he was not available even though he was doing nothing but sitting still and feeding his demonic beast. Apparently, it was a poor excuse.


    ��My master would like to meet you in person. We would be filled with gratitude if you could honor us with your presence.�� Although Tang Chen was upset, he composed himself and made another plea.


    Ye Futian was still sitting quietly in the chair, acting like nothing was happening. He gazed into the distance and spoke casually, ��Shouldn��t your master come to me if he would like to meet me? Why should I go to him? In that case, why should I accept your invitation at all?��


    Ye Futian��s impudent reply shocked every cultivator in the inn.


    Who was Tang Chen��s master?


    Grandmaster Tianbao was the best Alchemy Grandmaster on Ninth Street and enjoyed the highest status in the Tianyi Pavilion. As far as everyone knew, no one in the entire Giant Gods City, except for the ultimate grandmaster of the ancient royal family, was better at alchemy than Grandmaster Tianbao.


    Now this mysterious man asked Grandmaster Tianbao to come to meet him.


    Even though what Ye Futian said was reasonably sound and Grandmaster Tianbao technically should come if he were the one interested in meeting Ye Futian, the wide disparity in social status had to be taken into consideration as well. How could a man like Grandmaster Tianbao come to meet a nobody?


    To receive an invitation was a great honor already.


    Ye Futian��s response probably affronted the Tianyi Pavilion.


    As expected, Tang Chen��s face grew grim. He believed that he was polite and respectful enough, yet this hubris Alchemy Grandmaster dared to order Grandmaster Tianbao around. How audacious!


    ��No one on Ninth Street has ever asked my master to come. You are the first.�� Tang Chen��s tone changed.


    Ye Futian didn��t seem annoyed or scared. Baize finished his cultivation and leaned against Ye Futian. Ye Futian caressed his white fur and didn��t respond further. He didn��t appreciate Tang Chen��s attitude and their condescending invitation. They acted as if they were bestowing some special favor on him. He wouldn��t accept the invitation even if he were interested in the Tianyi Pavilion.


    Tang Chen��s eyes became frosty after he was ignored by Ye Futian again. Even so, he didn��t dare to break the rules of the Ninth Inn. He darted Ye Futian a meaningful glance and said, ��I hope you enjoy your stay here.��


    After his final remark, he turned around and left with the people who came with him.


    After Tang Chen was gone, someone said to Ye Futian, ��Master, the Tianyi Pavilion is one of the most powerful forces in the Ninth Street. Grandmaster Tianbao��Tang Chen��s master��is also a superior Alchemy Grandmaster who can make the ninth-grade pills of the Great Path. You probably offended them just now. You are safe in the inn but have to be careful when you��re outside.��


    ��That��s right. The Ninth Street has good and bad people mixed up together. The situation here is quite complicated,�� another person echoed. Ye Futian was still sitting quietly as if he didn��t hear any of them. People had no idea if their friendly warnings were received.


    Ye Futian��s reaction frustrated everyone in the inn. This mysterious man was as stubborn as a mule.


    At this moment, Ye Futian stood up and said to Baize Demonic Beast, ��We haven��t gone outside since our arrival. Let��s go out to try our luck and see if we can find good ingredients for alchemy.��


    Then, he sat on Baize��s back and rode across the courtyard and out of the inn. An odd and surprised look came over every cultivator��s face.


    They were reminding him to be careful, yet he didn��t take them seriously at all. Instead, he rode the demonic beast and swaggered out of the inn.


    What a bold man, other Renhuangs thought to themselves. Ye Futian offended the Tianyi Pavilion and received a warning from Tang Chen just now, yet he still dared to leave the inn. What an arrogant Alchemy Grandmaster�� Did he not care about the Tianyi Pavilion at all? Or was he confident that the Tianyi Pavilion wouldn��t act against him?


    ��Let��s go to have a look.�� Many Renhuangs were intrigued. They followed behind Ye Futian and left the inn as well.


    Ye Futian rode down the street and seemed extra relaxed. Judging by his mask, some people on the street realized that he might be the new Alchemy Grandmaster everyone was talking about.


    In the meantime, Tang Chen��s divine consciousness was still scanning and monitoring the area. Ye Futian stepped out of the inn before Tang Chen and his people had gone far.


    [1] In the original text, the author used ��Tianxin Pavilion�� initially and changed it to ��Tianyi Pavilion�� later. I used ��Tianyi Pavilion�� throughout for consistency.

 Chapter 2133 - Turn the Score

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian rode on Baize��s back and pranced down the street. Baize Demonic Beast appeared to be following Ye Futian��s instruction to move at a relatively slow pace.


    Ye Futian himself sat in a reclining position and seemed to be at ease. Some people tried to use the divine consciousness to see through his metal mask. However, a thick mist obscured Ye Futian��s face under the mask, and no one could get a clear view. Ye Futian glanced over the people who attempted to make out his face with their divine consciousness. One of them screeched with pain as his eyes began to bleed.


    ��Master, have you thought it through?�� A voice came from afar at this moment. Tang Chen and the others popped up on the street and spoke to Ye Futian.


    ��F*ck off!�� Ye Futian��s voice was hoarse. Tang Chen was so embarrassed that his face turned ashen. Ye Futian humiliated him in public and showed no respect for him at all.


    Tang Chen was a prominent cultivator. In addition to that, no one had ever dared to be so rude and insolent to a disciple of Grandmaster Tianbao of the Tianyi Pavilion. Tang Chen invited Ye Futian to visit the Tianyi Pavilion, yet Ye Futian cursed him.


    The onlookers were astounded that Ye Futian told Tang Chen to f*ck off. They whispered to each other in dismay.


    People who were not caught up in the incident asked around about Ye Futian��s identity. They instantly learned that he was the Alchemy Grandmaster who came to Ninth Street searching for the Phoenix��s Marrow of ten thousand years. What an overbearing man he must be for telling Tang Chen to get lost.


    They wondered how Tang Chen would react.


    Tang Chen didn��t start a fight right away. Instead, he stepped forward and followed Baize from behind. Other people who came from the Tianyi Pavilion joined him as well.


    Baize Demonic Beast continued sauntering down the street. More and more people gathered on the street to watch the drama unfold. With intense curiosity, they stared at Ye Futian, who was wearing the metal mask. Who on earth was this mysterious master?


    Ye Futian closed his eyes in repose as though he was letting Baize stroll aimlessly. While in fact, his divine consciousness spread over an enormous distance and was keeping a close eye on the situation on Ninth Street. As for Tang Chen and the others, Ye Futian wasn��t intimidated by them at all. He was waiting for them to make the first move.


    How could he rise to fame in the Giant Gods City if he didn��t stir up big trouble? To attract the attention of the ancient royal family of Duan, he had to be a famous and noteworthy figure on Ninth Street first.


    Ye Futian stopped in front of a building on the left side of the street. Although many cultivators were in the building, Ye Futian forced in his divine consciousness and inspected the situation inside. Upon detecting Ye Futian��s divine consciousness, one of the cultivators frowned and said, ��Can we help you, sir?��


    Ye Futian raised his hand and threw a porcelain bottle at them. The bottle landed perfectly on the table in front of the person who spoke. Then, Ye Futian said to him, ��Give me that Fiery Dragon Plant.��


    The person unplugged the porcelain bottle, took a brief look, and put the cork back immediately. He took out a blazing red plant and said to Ye Futian, ��Please take it, sir.��


    Before his voice faded, the blazing red Fiery Dragon Plant flew toward Ye Futian, who was waiting outside. Ye Futian swept it in with his sleeve in a flash. Both of them moved so fast and finished the transaction before many people realized what happened.


    ��So efficient����


    A lot of spectators were speechless with astonishment. The person in the shop didn��t even bargain for such a valuable item. The red Fiery Dragon Plant was extremely precious. Ye Futian must have great confidence in his pills since he used them to trade for the plant. The person in the shop wouldn��t accept the payment with alacrity if it were not a good deal.


    It showed how free-handed Ye Futian was. No wonder he was an Alchemy Grandmaster. This kind of liberality put many Renhuangs to shame.


    Nevertheless, ordinary Renhuangs were not comparable with an Alchemy Grandmaster anyway. An Alchemy Grandmaster could make better and more valuable pills with the same ingredients. Common cultivators naturally had to be more conscious of the balance between cost and benefit.


    Ye Futian paid no attention to the crowd��s amazement. He kept riding down the street and purchased more valuable herbs along the way. All of them were rare and costly ingredients for alchemy.


    He seemed to have an inexhaustible supply of pills for trading. No one knew how many pills he was carrying with him. The onlookers exclaimed at his deep pockets. Many of them were tempted to jump on him.


    In fact, several Renhuangs had had their eyes fixed on Ye Futian. They blended in the crowd and followed Ye Futian the whole time. Ye Futian appeared to be carrying countless treasures. They would strike it rich if they managed to rob him successfully.


    Although they knew that they would benefit much more by befriending this Alchemy Grandmaster, they had no connection with Ye Futian and couldn��t possibly profit off him in that way. As a matter of course, they started to have other wicked ideas.


    Furthermore, from what they could see, Ye Futian seemed to be an outsider who had no one to rely on here. He also offended the Tianyi Pavilion, which made him a good target.


    Soon, a cluster of buildings came into view ahead of them. The name ��Tianyi Pavilion�� was carved on the gate outside.


    It was the biggest trading center on Ninth Street.


    Tang Chen didn��t expect to follow Ye Futian all the way here. What on earth did Ye Futian want to do?


    At this point, Baize Demonic Beast stopped, turned around slowly, and began to walk back as though he didn��t intend to visit the biggest trading center on Ninth Street.


    While everyone was staring at Ye Futian, one person stepped forward. It was Tang Chen. He blocked Ye Futian��s way and said, ��Master, since you are here, why don��t you spend some time inside? There is no rush for you to leave.��


    Several men also stepped out in other directions, following Tang Chen��s lead.


    The crowd recognized that two of them were well-known Renhuangs on Ninth Street.


    The middle-aged man who dressed in black was called Ku Mu. The younger Renhuang was an offspring of a prominent family on Ninth Street. Both of them had made a name for themselves. By stepping forward at this moment, they seemed to be siding with Tang Chen as if they had communicated with him via voice transmission.


    ��I heard that the master has extraordinary skills in alchemy, and I would like to see it for myself. I wonder if the master can grant my wish,�� the younger man said. He was at the peak of the middle-level Renhuang Plane and had an imperious bearing. Ku Mu, a seventh-order high-level Renhuang, was even more powerful.


    Ye Futian was still riding on the back of Baize Demonic Beast, ambling along the street. Baize Demonic Beast became hesitant when he sensed the forceful energy emanated from the people ahead. Ye Futian patted him gently and said, ��Keep moving.��


    Baize Demonic Beast followed his instruction and continued to walk. Tang Chen stared at Ye Futian and said, ��Master, you are already at the gate. It��s better if you can honor us with your visit.��


    While speaking, he released an invisible energy current of the Great Path to block Ye Futian��s path.


    Ye Futian still paid him no heed. An invisible energy shield protected Baize��s body. He pressed ahead without being affected by Tang Chen��s pressure.


    ��What a pretentious buffoon! I want to see your face under the mask!�� The young Renhuang took a step forward and raised his hand to grab Ye Futian��s mask. A giant, hand-shaped shadow bore down upon Ye Futian��s head.


    Buzz! The invisible energy currents of the Great Path flowed around Ye Futian��s body, sealed off the area, and blocked the giant hand.


    At this moment, Tang Chen and Ku Mu also took action and moved toward Ye Futian.


    Ku Mu outstretched his arm and flapped his sleeve. Right away, innumerable rotten stems and vines twined around the Great Path of Space and closed off the area Ye Futian was in. Tang Chen charged forward and shot a Flame of the Way at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian emitted a beam of golden divine light from his body. It turned into a light screen which shielded him from the incoming attacks.


    All three cultivators frowned slightly and stared at Ye Futian. They didn��t expect Ye Futian to be so tough.


    Buzz!


    The golden light screen blazed with a tinge of red and spewed a terrifying wave of fire.


    ��Master, we invited you with good intention. Why do we have to come to blows?�� Tang Chen sensed the wave of fire and hurried to call a truce.


    The ferocious Flames of the Way engulfed the area and charged at the three cultivators. They were petrified and desperate to retreat. However, Ye Futian lifted his hand and locked them in place with the Great Path of Space. They couldn��t move a muscle.


    ��Master, please show some mercy.�� Tang Chen��s face was deathly pale.


    The invisible hand immobilized them as the Flames of the Way leaping toward them.


    ��Stop it.��


    A stern voice came out of the Tianyi Pavilion, but Ye Futian ignored it completely. The brilliant divine light swept across the area, and the Flames of the Way devoured the three cultivators. With an ear-piercing shriek, they were annihilated under everyone��s watch.


    Bang�� Bang�� Bang�� Several streams of powerful energy rushed out of the Tianyi Pavilion.


    ��How audacious!�� a voice boomed as if it carried the authority of heaven. A fierce face appeared in the void.


    Ye Futian raised his head to take a glance. Then, his body transformed into a ray of light that streamed away through the void.


    The entire Ninth Street trembled as the fierce face gave a bellow of rage. A burst of terrifying energy chased after Ye Futian.


    However, the ray of light that Ye Futian transfigured into dashed all the way back to the Ninth Inn in a flash. Ye Futian landed in the courtyard and launched his counterattack while the terrifying energy thrusting down from above.


    Bang. The two types of energy came into collision in midair. Someone in the inn declared, ��Don��t break the rule.��


    Anyone who entered the Ninth Inn was protected by the inn. No one was allowed to attack the guests.


    The frosty face appeared in the sky above and glared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian remained calm and expressionless. He darted a casual look at the sky.


    ��You murdered the disciples of the Tianyi Pavilion in broad daylight. You��re so out of line,�� the face spoke. He was the Chief Elder of the Tianyi Pavilion and a formidable ninth-order Renhuang.


    ��Are you blind?�� Ye Futian shot a disdainful glance at the face. The three cultivators were going to kill him. He might be trapped in the Tianyi Pavilion forever without any hope to make it back if he didn��t fight back. Ye Futian would never show any mercy to people who bore malicious intent against him!

 Chapter 2134 - Master Arrogance

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A middle-aged man wearing a fur coat walked out of the inn. He hovered in midair and looked at the face above, said, ��As far as I know, your people attacked him first. In addition to that, no one is allowed to fight within the perimeter of my inn for any reason. Do you want to challenge that rule right now?��


    While speaking, he fixed his piercing gaze on the face floating in the void.


    The middle-aged man was the owner of the Ninth Inn. He was also a ninth-order Renhuang and one of Giant Gods City��s best cultivators who possessed tremendous power. Although he looked like he was in his 40s, it was said that he had been operating the Ninth Inn on Ninth Street for hundreds of years. Neither his appearance nor his cultivation level changed from when he first opened the Ninth Inn.


    The top cultivators on Ninth Street certainly knew each other very well. Needless to say, the Chief Elder of the Tianyi Pavilion was aware of the identity and ability of the owner of the Ninth Inn. Even so, he was here not to represent himself but the Tianyi Pavilion.


    ��Tang Chen was one of the people he killed. I��m sure that you know he was Grandmaster Tianbao��s disciple. One of the other two men was from the Wang Family. The Ninth Inn may have its own rules, but we better honor the code of Ninth Street as well. How about handing him over to me?�� the face responded.


    ��Since when does the Ninth Street have a code? Handing him over to you would ruin the reputation of my inn, wouldn��t it?�� the middle-aged man in the fur coat replied in a casual and relaxed manner. It was obvious that he would never let the Chief Elder take Ye Futian away.


    ��Lin Sheng, can you do me this one favor?�� a rusty old voice said from afar. Many people were startled at once. In the meantime, they felt a rush of formidable energy radiating upon Ninth Street. Everyone looked into the distance, knowing who was speaking.


    It was Grandmaster Tianbao.


    Plenty of people on Ninth Street had heard Grandmaster Tianbao��s voice before.


    Grandmaster Tianbao was asking Lin Sheng, the owner of the Ninth Inn, to surrender the mysterious man who killed his disciple Tang Chen.


    ��Grandmaster, I would gladly lend a hand if it was anything else. But this is about the fundamental rule of my inn. How can I secure my place on Ninth Street in the future if I break the rule right now? Therefore, I have no choice but to ask for your forgiveness and understanding,�� Lin Sheng replied. He couldn��t break his own rule.


    The rule was the foundation of the Ninth Inn and how Lin Sheng established himself on Ninth Street. The Ninth Inn would be worthless and degraded if he made an exception now.


    ��Lin Sheng, just this one time. Make an exception once, for Grandmaster Tianbao��s sake. I��m sure everyone on Ninth Street can understand it. We will buy you drinks to show our appreciation another day,�� another voice rang out. It was the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion this time.


    ��Lin Sheng, this man murdered an offspring of our Wang Family in broad daylight. Are you determined to protect him?�� another voice boomed. At this point, the confrontation occurring in the Ninth Inn attracted everyone��s attention on Ninth Street.


    Several top cultivators active on the Ninth Street were demanding the Ninth Inn to surrender Ye Futian.


    Although conflicts were rather common and frequent on Ninth Street, it was different this time. To everyone��s surprise, a mysterious outsider who had no roots in Giant Gods City slaughtered Tang Chen and two other men in public and stirred up this storm. The uproar probably would calm down once Ye Futian was killed in revenge. After all, he had no one to rely on Ninth Street.


    ��The famed Ninth Street of Giant Gods City is not so impressive after all.��


    At this moment, Ye Futian, who was sitting in the middle of the courtyard, suddenly spoke up. Countless pairs of eyes focused on him in an instant. Wearing a metal mask, Ye Futian lowered his head and groomed Baize��s white fur in a laid-back manner. He said, ��A couple of self-important fools tried to badger me into meeting someone and even used force on me. They acted so recklessly and blindly and thought some Grandmaster Tianbao is worthy of my visit.��


    The crowd was astounded by Ye Futian��s words. Grandmaster Tianbao��the best Alchemy Master and armorer in the Ninth Street��was not deserving of his visit?


    Ye Futian slowly stood up. The intense energy of the Great Path of Life burst out of his body and shot up into the clouds. The green divine light illuminated the sky and made every cultivator��s heart tremble.


    The energy of the Great Path of Life was formidable and impeccable.


    ��They attacked me since I didn��t want to go. Don��t they deserve to be killed?�� Ye Futian looked up and said, ��They think a mere Grandmaster Tianbao can summon me at will. Let me tell you, none of the masters on Ninth Street are worthy of my attention.��


    Ye Futian��s contemptuous remark left everyone open-mouthed. Many people in the crowd began to examine Ye Futian again carefully.


    Grandmaster Tianbao was held in such high regard on Ninth Street because of his super skill of making pills. An Alchemy Grandmaster was highly cherished and respected among cultivators. Grandmaster Tianbao could create incalculable value for the Tianyi Pavilion.


    Nevertheless, this mysterious man might be an Alchemy Grandmaster who had even better potential than Grandmaster Tianbao.


    He had the perfect Great Path of Life with vigorous and robust energy of the Great Path. As a result, he must be able to make perfect pills of the Great Path of Life. It was beyond imagination how remarkable the pills he made would be if he advanced to a higher cultivation level in the future.


    No wonder he didn��t care for Grandmaster Tianbao at all.


    Lin Sheng was also surprised by how powerful Ye Futian was. He looked up at the people in the void and said, ��You all saw it with your own eyes. How would you react if I sent some people over to demand your presence?��


    According to Lin Sheng, he already believed that Ye Futian was on equal footing with Grandmaster Tianbao. In his opinion, Grandmaster Tianbao had no right to summon Ye Futian to the Tianyi Pavilion.


    Grandmaster Tianbao never expected that Ye Futian wouldn��t appreciate his imperious and condescending invitation. His men tried to strong-arm Ye Futian. Of course, Ye Futian would fight back.


    ��Shameless,�� Grandmaster Tianbao��s voice said from a distance. ��You should respect me as your senior even if you have an extraordinary Great Path and can make excellent pills. I sent people to invite you out of courtesy. Who would have thought that you were such a haughty man?��


    ��Out of courtesy?�� Ye Futian gazed into the distance and said, ��I have returned to the inn and have no interest in heading out again today. But I will visit the Tianyi Pavilion tomorrow and see how good you really are at alchemy.��


    Was that�� a challenge?


    Did this mysterious Alchemy Grandmaster intend to challenge Grandmaster Tianbao in alchemy?


    How arrogant!


    It seemed that he had considered Grandmaster Tianbao beneath him since the beginning. What a conceited man he must be.


    Standing in the courtyard, he was facing several top cultivators of Ninth Street who came to capture him, yet he didn��t take them seriously at all. Was it simply the typical arrogance of an Alchemy Grandmaster?


    ��How fascinating,�� Lin Sheng said with a smile. ��You all have heard him. This mysterious master will pay a call on the Tianyi Pavilion tomorrow, and we will be able to witness the spectacle by then.��


    Everyone on Ninth Street was watching the situation in the Ninth Inn closely. They were all shocked that the mysterious master dared to challenge Grandmaster Tianbao. His arrogance was beyond people��s imagination.


    If he really was so capable, Grandmaster Tianbao indeed insulted him by sending his disciple to summon him to the Tianyi Pavilion.


    Even the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion was at a loss for words at this moment. Ye Futian had informed them that he would go to the Tianyi Pavilion tomorrow. What else could they do at this point?


    While the Cabinet Master was still contemplating a response, Grandmaster Tianbao answered offhandedly, ��In that case, I will be waiting for you in the Tianyi Pavilion.��


    ��Let��s wait for a day then.�� The domineering energy was pulled back. The Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion left, and the face in the void also disappeared. The crowd dispersed in a short time. However, a few Renhuangs were still monitoring the inn with the divine consciousness as though they were worried that Ye Futian would slip away.


    Although the top cultivators took off, for now, Ninth Street was thrown in a ferment. Everyone discussed the mysterious outsider who issued a challenge to Grandmaster Tianbao, who was unrivaled in Ninth Street when it came to alchemy. Grandmaster Tianbao could make extremely high-grade pills and had been a well-respected guest of the Tianyi Pavilion.


    All the big fish in the Ninth Street gladly associated themselves with Grandmaster Tianbao. Even the ancient royal family of Duan had sent people to make contact with him. If not for having a better grandmaster within the Duan family, they would undoubtedly recruit Grandmaster Tianbao.


    Nonetheless, many people were not fully convinced yet. Although the mysterious man had a perfect Great Path, he was on a lower cultivation level than Grandmaster Tianbao. It would not be easy for him to compete with Grandmaster Tianbao in alchemy.


    Having said that, some people might be willing to take him under their protection as long as he could display excellent alchemy skills.


    The news soon spread from Ninth Street to other parts of Giant Gods City. The arrogant and mysterious master on Ninth Street slowly rose to fame.

 Chapter 2135 - Took the Hook

    Ye Futian continued to rest in the courtyard after the top cultivators left. Grandmaster Tianbao was the best and the most renowned alchemy master on Ninth Street. It was alleged that he could make ninth-grade pills of the Great Paths. Ye Futian certainly couldn��t do that.


    But that didn��t matter. Since Ye Futian was at a much lower cultivation level than Grandmaster Tianbao, he couldn��t win the challenge. Nevertheless, winning was not his goal anyway. He simply needed to do his best to make pills and take advantage of Grandmaster Tianbao��s fame during the process.


    An Alchemy Grandmaster from the outsider challenged the best Alchemy Grandmaster on Ninth Street. Ye Futian was confident that his move had attracted considerable public attention.


    ��Master,�� a voice rang out. Lin Sheng, the owner of the Ninth Inn, walked over.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly at Lin Sheng and said, ��Please have a seat.��


    Lin Sheng sat down right away without feigning politeness. He said to Ye Futian, ��Master, why did you issue a challenge to Grandmaster Tianbao? Tianyi Pavilion is their territory. You might get yourself in trouble there. Are you sure that you can walk out unscathed?��


    ��It��s going to be alright,�� Ye Futian replied. ��I won��t bring you any trouble.��


    ��That��s not what I meant,�� Lin Sheng explained with a smile, but he still didn��t understand where Ye Futian��s confidence came from. He continued, ��Perhaps someone will step up and offer you protection if you can demonstrate superlative alchemy skills. In that case, even the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion wouldn��t harm you without thinking twice. I��m heartened by your optimism, and I wish you the best of luck.��


    ��Thank you,�� Ye Futian gave an enigmatic nod. Lin Sheng cracked a smile and said, ��Master, I will leave you to it then.��


    After that, Lin Sheng stood up and left the courtyard. He was rather excited about what might happen at the Tianyi Pavilion tomorrow. Ye Futian seemed impossible for him to read. Could he really compete with Grandmaster Tianbao in alchemy?


    Lin Sheng couldn��t predict the result and had no choice but to wait patiently.


    He was not the only one on the edge of his seat. A lot of people were waiting with bated breath as the news circulating in and beyond Ninth Street.


    What kind of a place was the Tianyi Pavilion? It was the largest trading center on Ninth Street. On top of that, Grandmaster Tianbao was the best Alchemy Grandmaster on Ninth Street. He made the finest pills for the Tianyi Pavilion. Now, a mysterious outsider killed Grandmaster Tianbao��s disciple and issued him a challenge. How conceited the man must be!


    ��


    The Tianyi Pavilion was extra busy and crowded the next day. Not only the residents near Ninth Street gathered there, but many cultivators from other parts of Giant Gods City also showed up, including people from various prominent and influential families in the city.


    Ninth Street was acknowledged by everyone to be the largest commercial hub in Giant Gods City. It was also a place that was frequented the most by people from aristocratic families in the city. Needless to say, the people from the distinguished families were more or less on familiar terms with Grandmaster Tianbao.


    Of course, they would come on this day to watch the drama unfold.


    There was an elevated stage in the Tianyi Pavilion where auctions were usually held. But it was empty on this day for Grandmaster Tianbao and Ye Futian.


    A lot of seats were located under the stage to accommodate auction participants. At this point, the seats were filled with cultivators who came to watch the match. Some people didn��t show up in person but had covered the entire field with divine consciousness to not miss a single detail.


    Even so, more cultivators swarmed in to witness the competition with their own eyes.


    A voice boomed at this moment, ��Cabinet Master, the man just headed out.��


    The Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion immediately walked out of a great hall and strode in the direction of the elevated stage. He was accompanied by several people who all had a stately bearing.


    ��Have a seat,�� the Cabinet Master gestured and said to everyone. All of them were from aristocratic families in Giant Gods City, including a man who enjoyed the same status as the Cabinet Master.


    ��Where is Grandmaster Tianbao?�� someone asked.


    ��Grandmaster Tianbao is still resting. He will come out soon,�� the Cabinet Master replied.


    ��Alright. I��m surprised that so many people came here today. This is good. Let��s check out ow this clown who doesn��t know his limitations is capable of. He even dares to challenge Grandmaster Tianbao,�� an old man chuckled.


    ��We need to have a drink with Grandmaster Tianbao after he takes care of this clown. I want to ask him to make a pill for me,�� another person said. He was here to seek favor with Grandmaster Tianbao. Most of the people came here not only because of curiosity but also to reinforce their relationship with Grandmaster Tianbao and to ask him for pills, which were crucial to the youngsters in their families.


    ��Sure,�� the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion said, ��The Grandmaster wouldn��t accept this man��s challenge if Lin Sheng didn��t insist on saving him. He is nothing but a fool who overestimated his abilities.��


    They couldn��t kill Ye Futian when he was inside the Ninth Inn. It was obvious that they didn��t want to fall out with Lin Sheng after all. Otherwise, a prestigious man like Grandmaster Tianbao wouldn��t care to compete with Ye Futian at all since it was utterly meaningless. However, if Grandmaster Tianbao accepted the challenge, Ye Futian would come to the Tianyi Pavilion voluntarily and have no chance to make off alive.


    While chatting casually, they noticed that several people who had courtly manners were mixed with the crowd. An elderly man gazed at the distinctive group, his eyes narrowed.


    ��They are���� the old man muttered. Right away, the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion and his companions looked in that direction as well. A group of young men and women, attended by several people, were standing there. They kept a low profile and seemed unfathomable.


    Startled, the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion stood up and was about to walk over to them. Coincidentally, one of the young men darted the Cabinet Master a look at the same time. He nodded slightly at the Cabinet Master and transmitted his voice to him, ��Keep doing whatever you need to do. Don��t mind us.��


    The Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion paused for a moment and sat back down. He transmitted his voice back to the young man, ��Yes, Your Highness. Please let me know if Your Highness needs anything.��


    ��Okay,�� the young man replied and looked away. Several people alongside the Cabinet Master also greeted the young man via voice transmission. They were all surprised to see people from the ancient royal family here. It seemed that the news reached rather far indeed.


    That being said, they might have come here simply out of curiosity.


    The excited crowd created a din in the Tianyi Pavilion. Far away, many cultivators cleared out a path. Baize Demonic Beast was sauntering down the street, carrying a man wearing a metal mask. The man seemed extremely relaxed; even his eyes were closed under the mask. Everyone felt that this Alchemy Grandmaster was exceptionally arrogant. It was as if he considered everything and everybody beneath his notice, including Grandmaster Tianbao.


    ��Such an attitude!�� Many people were lost for words. The man didn��t take Grandmaster Tianbao seriously at all.


    The young people who came from the ancient royal family were intrigued by Ye Futian. They came out to watch the fun after learning about the eccentric Alchemy Grandmaster, who was staying on Ninth Street. He appeared to an interesting man indeed, but his alchemy skills were unclear.


    Ye Futian and Baize strolled down the street without hurry. The crowd made way for them spontaneously. Plenty of people were wondering if Ye Futian was feigning nonchalance.


    Ye Futian didn��t open his eyes until Baize Demonic Beast stopped. He shot a glance at the people in front of him. The Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion and the others were all staring at him with a cold and stern face. They didn��t attack him right away only because they accepted his challenge the day before. They were men of high standing who cared about their reputation on Ninth Street and wouldn��t go back on their word.


    ��Where is him?�� Ye Futian asked casually. He scanned the stage and didn��t see Grandmaster Tianbao.


    Before his voice faded, a lithe figure flew out of the great hall and landed on the stage with extraordinary grace. It was Grandmaster Tianbao.


    Grandmaster Tianbao darted a look at Ye Futian. He never thought that a youngster would be so impudent and audacious. Without mincing words, he said, ��You really have the nerve to come. I will take your life for sure after we make the pills.��


    ��Great arrogance for an old man,�� Ye Futian snickered. Baize carried him forward to the stage. He jumped off and walked over to Grandmaster Tianbao.


    ��I would also like to see what kind of pills you��re capable of making and what makes you think that you can summon me at will,�� Ye Futian said contemptuously. Grandmaster Tianbao��s eyes were filled with menace, his long beard flowing in the wind. However, he heard the Cabinet Master talking to him via voice transmission, ��Grandmaster, the ancient royal family has sent some people here. You need to take the competition seriously even if you want to kill him.��


    ��Alright,�� Grandmaster Tianbao replied. He darted a disdainful glance at Ye Futian and said, ��Let��s begin!��

 Chapter 2136 - Success

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Grandmaster Tianbao didn��t want to waste his breath on Ye Futian anymore and jumped to start at once. Everyone knew that Grandmaster Tianbao didn��t believe this to be an equal match. He was eager to finish the competition early so he could kill Ye Futian as soon as possible.


    Grandmaster would not let Ye Futian live no matter what kind of pills he could make. Ye Futian slaughtered Grandmaster Tianbao��s disciple, who went invite him over for a visit. If he could survive this unscathed, Grandmaster Tianbao would lose all prestige he had on Ninth Street.


    Ye Futian shot Grandmaster Tianbao a contemptuous look from behind the mask. Then, he stood on the opposite side and waved his hand. An alchemy cauldron appeared, floating in midair.


    ��Humph,�� Grandmaster Tianbao snorted. Another alchemy cauldron popped up in an instant. Ye Futian and Grandmaster Tianbao stood face-to-face. Their cauldrons were on opposite sides.


    Buzz��


    A jet of superheated steam immediately shot out and billowed around the cauldrons. The audience near the edge of the stage felt the touch of the intense heat. Some people couldn��t help but raise their arms to protect their faces from the heat. After that, they saw that the Flames of the Way were lit under the two alchemy cauldrons at the same time.


    ��True Fire of Six Ding.�� The crowd sized up Grandmaster Tianbao��s Flames of the Way. The golden flames were blazing under the cauldron and formed a brilliant pattern. Grandmaster Tianbao obtained this ninth-grade imperial-level Flames of the Way during a serendipitous encounter in his early years. It was why he had a high success rate of making ninth-grade pills of the Great Path even though he was only at the peak of the eighth-level Renhuang Plane.


    There were only a handful of grandmasters in the alchemy circle. In addition to that, even an Alchemy Grandmaster couldn��t always successfully make pills of the Great Path that were on a par with their cultivation level. Nevertheless, Grandmaster Tianbao��s success rate of making eighth-grade pills of the Great Path was higher than 90%. He could even make an effective ninth-grade elixir three out of ten times. The statistics were awe-inspiring. Apart from his remarkable Flames of the Way, it was also because Grandmaster Tianbao had extraordinary alchemy skills.


    Many people looked in Ye Futian��s direction. His Flames of the Way felt unique. Strong and vigorous, they were burning as if they would never die out.


    On top of that, the Worldly Spiritual Qi in the surrounding area was flowing toward his Flames of the Way to fuel the blaze.


    ��Fifth-level, perfect-grade,�� the crowd exclaimed. It confirmed the rumor that had been circulating. Grandmaster Tianbao also noticed Ye Futian��s Flames of the Way and began to take him more seriously. A greedy look flashed in his eyes. It seemed that he couldn��t simply kill Ye Futian as he imagined. He needed to find a way to seize hold of Ye Futian��s Flames of the Way first.


    While the Flames of the Way were burning, both Ye Futian and Grandmaster Tianbao poured herbs and other ingredients into the alchemy cauldrons, their sleeves flapping in the wind. They closed their eyes to concentrate on creating the elixir. Silence reigned over the stage. The audience was waiting quietly as well. No one dared to speak a word to disturb Grandmaster Tianbao and Ye Futian. Only the crackling sound of the Flames of the Way could be heard.


    Elixirs couldn��t be made in an instant. While Ye Futian and Grandmaster Tianbao remained silent on the stage, the spectators started to talk to each other in whispers.


    The popping and crackling noises came from both alchemy cauldrons.


    ��That is���� Someone noticed that Ye Futian��s Flames of the Way formed a dazzling phoenix around the alchemy cauldron.


    ��His Flames of the Way are so gorgeous,�� a person murmured. Moreover, Ye Futian��s Flames of the Way gave them an inexplicable feeling that it would burn for eternity.


    It seemed that the mysterious Alchemy Grandmaster was not an ordinary man indeed. No wonder he dared to provoke Grandmaster Tianbao and even issued a direct challenge to compete against him in alchemy.


    ��This is getting interesting.�� Lin Sheng was also among the crowd. Although he was prominent enough to sit on the stage, he chose not to due to the conflict over Ye Futian between him and the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion. He would rather watch the match from below.


    Ling Sheng was very intrigued by Ye Futian. This mysterious Alchemy Grandmaster was arrogant, overbearing, and eccentric. Why did he act this way? What was his purpose?


    Did he want to become famous?


    This seemed to be a risky way to gain fame.


    ��Who do you think will win?�� someone whispered under his breath.


    ��Grandmaster Tianbao, of course. He will surely do his utmost to make a ninth-grade pill of the Great Path this time. With his marvelous ability, it is very likely to be a success. This person is at a much lower cultivation level than Grandmaster Tianbao. We have to wait and see what kind of elixir he can create,�� one person replied. It was apparent that most people believed that Grandmaster Tianbao would win a resounding victory.


    Everyone was confident that Grandmaster Tianbao��s elixir would be at a higher grade than Ye Futian��s. There was no suspense in that regard.


    The Flames of the Way were burning more and more intensely. Ye Futian and Grandmaster Tianbao kept tossing new ingredients into the alchemy cauldrons.


    ��It looks like Grandmaster Tianbao is attempting to make a ninth-grade elixir.�� People could tell what kind of pills Grandmaster Tianbao wanted to make based on the ingredients he put in the cauldron.


    Of course, the ingredients Ye Futian used were also rare and precious. He obtained several of them through trading on Ninth Street.


    The Flames of the Way blazed up. As time went by, a rich aroma wafted out of the cauldron. Even though the pills were not finished yet, the fragrance was already tantalizing and intoxicating.


    The alchemy cauldrons were vibrating in the void, making a sizzling noise.


    Grandmaster Tianbao outstretched his arm and slapped on the alchemy cauldron. The cauldron instantly started to spin in front of him. The Great Path��s energy currents rushed down from above as soon as he formed a seal with both hands. Much to everyone��s surprise, the alchemy cauldron was devouring the power of the world.


    The terrifying Flames of the Way were licking the alchemy cauldron, and the incandescent glow of the fire illuminated the clouds. The entire sky was turned scarlet.


    The flames converged and lunged into the alchemy cauldron like Fiery Dragons.


    ��Grandmaster Tianbao is making fire-elemental pills of the Great Path. It��s his strong suit.�� Some people immediately understood what Grandmaster Tianbao was aiming for.


    On the other side, a faint call of the phoenix was coming out of Ye Futian��s alchemy cauldron. A translucent Divine Phoenix took shape and wrapped around the cauldron. Ye Futian was emitting brilliant celestial light from his body. He looked like a heavenly deity as wisps of sacred energy flowing from him to the cauldron.


    The Great Path��s divine light shot into the clouds, and an extraordinary phenomenon came into view. A gigantic shadow of a phoenix appeared in the sky as an overpowering aroma rising from the alchemy cauldron. The clanking sound inside the cauldron was becoming louder and louder as well.


    ��Judging by the extraordinary phenomenon, he is as good as Grandmaster Tianbao!�� A lot of people were astonished by Ye Futian��s ability. Ye Futian kept his eyes shut behind the metal mask. He exerted all his strength and went into a state of abstraction. Unlike the conceited man everyone on Ninth Street remembered, Ye Futian looked majestic and dignified like a true master.


    ��What type of pill is he making?�� someone asked.


    ��If I recall it correctly, he said he came to the Ninth Street to try his luck in searching for the Phoenix��s Marrow of ten thousand years, which is the main ingredient of some elixir.��


    ��What kind of elixir?�� People were curious.


    ��Immortal Elixir, which can bring the dead back to life. It can grow flesh and bones that will never perish. Therefore, even a dead man with a broken body can come back alive,�� someone said. ��This man always wears a mask. Could it be that he suffered an irreparable injury to his face and wants to heal it with this elixir?��


    ��Seems like it��s going to be over soon.�� The crowd gazed at the cauldrons without blinking. Grandmaster Tianbao��s performance was to be expected, but Ye Futian did come as a big surprise. The mysterious Alchemy Grandmaster was anything but ordinary for sure.


    After a short time, the aroma of the elixirs finally jumped out of the alchemy cauldrons. A beam of divine light pierced the clouds and shone like a high flame. It gave a red glow to the sky above Ninth Street and even cast light upon the areas nearby. Countless people in Giant Gods City turned their eyes to the source of the light.


    ��The elixir is made.�� The audience stared at the scarlet elixir as big as a palm taking shape in front of Grandmaster Tianbao. The flame current rushed frantically toward the dazzling elixir.


    The entire area was tinged with red.


    ��Divine Fire Elixir, ninth-grade,�� an expert announced. This was not the first Divine Fire Elixir made by Grandmaster Tianbao. The elixir was extremely beneficial to people who cultivated the Great Path of Fire. Consuming it could directly enhance the cultivator��s Flames of the Way and increase his fire-elemental power. In addition to that, it could temper the cultivator��s body and even cleanse his spiritual soul.


    Grandmaster Tianbao took a brief look at the Divine Fire Elixir before putting it away. With a satisfied look on his face, he glanced at Ye Futian on the opposite side. He would love to see what Ye Futian was capable of besides boasting and swaggering.


    At this moment, rays of blinding divine light shone out of Ye Futian��s alchemy cauldron. An elixir emerged immediately after that. Furthermore, an enormous shadow of a phoenix also appeared in the void as if it was greeting the elixir.


    The elixir rose high in the sky and was caught by the phoenix. Instantly, the will of the Great Path of Life filled the space. Everyone on Ninth Street felt more energetic; it was as though they had been recharged.


    ��Ugh����


    ��Such a powerful pill.��


    Ye Futian��s elixir was as good as Grandmaster Tianbao��s, if not better.


    ��A perfect sixth-grade pill of the Great Path. Impressive,�� Lin Sheng expressed his approval, ��This pill may be even more effective than the ninth-grade one. Besides, it is probably more helpful for cultivators below the ninth level.��


    At this point, Lin Sheng finally understood why Ye Futian was so confident. This pill alone was enough to save Ye Futian��s life today. Plenty of people, including Lin Sheng, would not let Ye Futian die here.


    This Alchemy Grandmaster was much more valuable than Grandmaster Tianbao. Lin Sheng would even argue that they were not at the same level at all!

 Chapter 2137 - A Resounding Victory

    Grandmaster Tianbao stared at Ye Futian��s pill with an embarrassed look on his face.


    He had lost the match the moment Ye Futian��s pill emerged from the cauldron. They didn��t need to compare the actual effects of the pills. As a fifth-order Renhuang, Ye Futian created a perfect sixth-grade pill of the Great Path. He had proved that he was more capable than Grandmaster Tianbao. There was no reason to drag the competition on any longer.


    It was safe to say that Ye Futian had won a resounding victory over Grandmaster Tianbao in this competition that Grandmaster Tianbao was so confident of winning.


    Ye Futian defeated him.


    Grandmaster Tianbao was once the best Alchemy Grandmaster on Ninth Street. Now, he didn��t deserve the title anymore.


    The audience was jabbering with astonishment and excitement as well. They stared at the pill, wondering if it was really so marvelous.


    ��What kind of pill is it?�� someone asked.


    ��Nieyuan Pill,�� a voice answered. It was an exceptionally refined young man. Startled, the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion narrowed his eyes and looked at the young man from the ancient royal family.


    ��A perfect, sixth-grade Nieyuan Pill. It can alter a cultivator��s constitution and build an extremely strong foundation of the Great Path. Is this pill for sale?�� the man asked. Ye Futian turned around and darted him a look. He paid attention to the young man��s sophisticated manner and immediately realized that he was not an ordinary spectator.


    Moreover, he noticed that the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion was also looking at the young man in a special way.


    Could it be��


    Thinking of that, Ye Futian raised his hand with the palm facing up. The pill flew into his hand at once. Ye Futian put it in his mouth and swallowed it. Right away, his body emitted bright light of the Great Path and intense energy of the Great Path of Life.


    To everyone��s surprise, he ate it himself.


    ��I��m not here today to trade pills,�� Ye Futian spoke calmly. He glanced at Grandmaster Tianbao and asked, ��Now, do you still think you can summon me as you please?��


    Many people were swayed by Ye Futian��s remark. Ye Futian had shown marvelous alchemy skills. No wonder he behaved so arrogantly. Indeed, Grandmaster Tianbao had no right to demand Ye Futian��s presence. He treated Ye Futian like an ignorant child by sending Tang Chen to invite him over. Tang Chen tried to use force when Ye Futian refused to go. That was why he was killed.


    Now it seemed that Tang Chen��s death was not unjustified at all.


    One might well imagine how Grandmaster Tianbao would react if Ye Futian sent someone to request his presence.


    ��You��re better at putting on superior airs than making pills,�� Ye Futian scoffed. He scanned everyone sitting on the stage as if he was referring to all of them, including the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion.


    Grandmaster Tianbao glared at Ye Futian. His eyes grew dark and threatening. All of a sudden, towering flames surrounded Grandmaster Tianbao��s body as he dashed forward at lightning speed, leaving a streak of fire behind. Grandmaster Tianbao reached Ye Futian and raised his hand to strike his head. There seemed to be a blazing sun in his palm that could annihilate everything.


    ��Watch out!�� Lin Sheng cried. No one expected that Grandmaster Tianbao would attack Ye Futian outright.


    The audience was dumbfounded, their eyes glued to the stage. Grandmaster Tianbao was vanquished in the alchemy competition. He couldn��t bear the humiliation and chose to kill Ye Futian here and now.


    It was obvious that Grandmaster Tianbao was a ruthless and decisive man. Ye Futian was an outsider who had no connection in Giant Gods City. As long as he died, Grandmaster Tianbao would still be the best Alchemy Grandmaster on Ninth Street. Who would give offense to him over a dead man?


    All the problems would be solved once Grandmaster Tianbao killed Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian remained expressionless when he saw Grandmaster Tianbao coming. An eighth-order Renhuang, Grandmaster Tianbao was heading for a fall due to his overconfidence.


    A bundle of frightening energy burst out of Ye Futian��s body. He raised his hand and dashed it against Grandmaster Tianbao��s. Two distinctly different types of energy met head-on.


    Bang!


    With a deafening noise, the terrifying shock wave traveled outward and reached the audience under the stage. Many people hurried to release their power to protect themselves. Nevertheless, there were still plenty of spectators who were blown away by the shock wave and suffered serious injuries. It was a scene of utter chaos.


    Stronger cultivators bore up against the shock wave and stared at the battlefield on the elevated stage. Ye Futian was standing firm instead of being incinerated by Grandmaster Tianbao��s attack as people expected. When their hands touched, Grandmaster Tianbao felt two completely opposite types of the purest form of destructive energy rushing into his arm.


    What kind of power was that?


    Grandmaster Tianbao was disconcerted. He was flung away, and his arm was injured so badly that he thought it was about to fall off. The horrifying energy surged into his body and attacked his spiritual soul. He felt that two distinctly different types of power were consuming him.


    Grandmaster Tianbao uttered a low moan, his face as white as a sheet. A trickle of blood was dripping down his chin from his mouth. He lifted his head and glared at Ye Futian. Somehow he was wounded during the blitz attack he launched against Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian also took a few steps back. He raised his head, darted a contemptuous look at Grandmaster Tianbao, and ridiculed, ��A puny man like you dared to make a sneak attack on me. How laughable. You probably can��t win against me even in a fair fight. You��re not a match for me at either alchemy or cultivation, and you don��t deserve to compete against me.��


    The audience became even more astonished. Who would have thought that Ye Futian also possessed impressive strength and fighting ability?


    No one had even imagined that the arrogant and mysterious Alchemy Grandmaster would be so dangerous and formidable.


    Even the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion began to waver at this point. What Grandmaster Tianbao did just now was beneath his status. On the other hand, Ye Futian had displayed better potential in both cultivation and alchemy. He was already much more valuable than Grandmaster Tianbao. It was beyond imagination how much profit he could bring in the future.


    If the Tianyi Pavilion could recruit him��


    Besides, it was probably impossible for the Cabinet Master to kill Ye Futian now. If he launched an attack, there was no doubt that someone would step up to protect Ye Futian to forge a friendship with him. He would be doing everyone else a favor.


    As the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion, he was well capable of assessing the situation.


    Having said that, it was not appropriate for him to speak at this moment since he might affront Grandmaster Tianbao.


    ��Wonderful,�� Lin Sheng said. ��What an amazing Alchemy Grandmaster you are. So can we all agree that Grandmaster Tianbao was in the wrong before for being reckless and thoughtless?��


    Grandmaster Tianbao disrespected Ye Futian by sending his disciple to bring him to the Tianyi Pavilion. It was reckless and thoughtless for sure.


    However, at that time, no one knew that Ye Futian was such a mighty figure.


    Right before this match, many people firmly believed that Ye Futian would lose the challenge and even his life to Grandmaster Tianbao on the stage.


    What about now?


    Everyone knew clearly that nothing would happen to Ye Futian now. Instead, a lot of people on Ninth Street would scramble to associate themselves with Ye Futian and win his friendship.

 Chapter 2138

    Grandmaster Tianbao was too ashamed to stay on the stage any longer. He flapped his sleeves and was about to turn around and leave.


    ��Grandmaster Tianbao, are you going to leave without an apology?�� Lin Sheng said with a snicker. He was not afraid of offending Grandmaster Tianbao who worked for the Tianyi Pavilion and had no interests coinciding with him.


    ��That��s right. Tang Chen was merely a disciple of Grandmaster Tianbao, yet he dared to use violence against this master to force him to come to the Tianyi Pavilion. He was way out of the line. In addition to that, Grandmaster Tianbao attempted to murder this master just now. It��s not right to take off like this,�� someone else said. He was a powerful cultivator who had some bad blood with the Tianyi Pavilion, which was why he spoke up in a sarcastic tone.


    ��That��s enough. Both sides are in the wrong for being thoughtless and inconsiderate. This is simply a misunderstanding. That��s all for this matter,�� the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion declared. Although he was on the same side as Grandmaster Tianbao, he didn��t dare to come down on Ye Futian right this moment.


    He couldn��t recklessly affront Ye Futian, who had just proven his strength to everyone at the scene. He had to bear in mind that the cultivators from the ancient royal family were also present. They witnessed everything and might want to rope Ye Futian in. After all, Ye Futian was an Alchemy Grandmaster with limitless potential.


    In the meantime, he needed to save Grandmaster Tianbao��s face, which was why he wanted to put an end to this matter as soon as possible.


    ��Misunderstanding?�� Ye Futian said in a mocking tone, ��You didn��t show any civility or respect when you went to capture me yesterday. I��m afraid that I would be killed by you immediately if I didn��t stand my ground. Even though there isn��t much I can do right now, rest assured that I will never forget about it. We can settle the scores later if you can��t account for your behavior.��


    Ye Futian��s aggressive scolding put an uncomfortable look on the Cabinet Master��s face. However, other people around were secretly enjoying the drama. The Tianyi Pavilion suffered a major setback this time. Being resented by such an extraordinary Alchemy Grandmaster was not a trivial matter. Apart from his amazing alchemy skills, Ye Futian was bound to become a better cultivator than the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion sooner or later.


    This arrogant Alchemy Grandmaster was as domineering as usual. He insisted on explanations for the actions of the Tianyi Pavilion.


    The Cabinet Master stared at Ye Futian with a grim face. He said, ��What do you want me to do?��


    ��Do you need to ask me?�� Even though Ye Futian was wearing a mask, his unflinching gaze was making the Cabinet Master feel very unease.


    The Cabinet Master was tongue-tied. An awkward silence followed.


    Everyone understood that the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion was unable to extricate himself from this difficult situation. If he took a stand against Ye Futian, the ill feelings between them would only become worse. But if he gave in, he would lose respect from others. On top of that, what should he do with Grandmaster Tianbao?


    Could he ask Grandmaster Tianbao to leave the Tianyi Pavilion?


    It was hard for him to make up his mind to lose an Alchemy Grandmaster.


    Ye Futian showed no interest in letting them off. Nevertheless, he wasn��t deliberately making things difficult for the sake of the Tianyi Pavilion. In fact, he didn��t care about the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion or Grandmaster Tianbao at all.


    Not only could Ye Futian easily beat Grandmaster Tianbao in alchemy, but he could also kill him with little effort. The so-called best Alchemy Grandmaster on Ninth Street was beneath Ye Futian��s notice.


    Ye Futian was only causing trouble for the Tianyi Pavilion in order to make a scene and attract the attention of the ancient royal family.


    He speculated that the young man who spoke before was not an ordinary commoner. Therefore, he was putting on a show on purpose rather than sincerely demanding an explanation.


    As the situation came to a standstill, a voice rang out, ��Since the Tianyi Pavilion is at fault, Cabinet Master, why don��t you offer an apology?��


    Many people were stunned by the suggestion that the Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion should apologize.


    Who was it?


    They turned around and saw that it was a young Renhuang. He was surrounded by several people who were around the same age and carried the same stately grace. They were attended by a small group of people standing behind, making sure they have enough room in the crowded space.


    Who was he?


    The Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion darted a look at the young man. His eye twitched slightly. Then, he turned to Ye Futian with an enigmatic expression.


    He said, ��The Tianyi Pavilion is indeed in the wrong. As the Cabinet Master, I am responsible for the mess. I am sorry for our rash and disrespectful act and humbly ask for your forgiveness.��


    ��Ugh���� A lot of people in the audience were dumbfounded by the Cabinet Master��s apology. They realized that the young man was not an ordinary person and began to see him in a new light.


    Ye Futian was also surprised. He vaguely sensed that he might have achieved his goal. They had taken the bait.


    ��Do you think a simple apology is enough?�� Ye Futian replied coldly as though he still didn��t want to let it go. He shifted his attention to the young man and looked directly into his eyes. The young man cracked a smile and said, ��Master, your alchemy performance was phenomenal. May I ask your name?��


    The young man, affable and unassuming, asked with extra politeness.


    ��My last name is Qi,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Master Qi.�� The young man cupped one hand in the other before his chest to show respect and said, ��How should this matter be handled in your opinion?��


    ��Do you have the authority to make decisions?�� Ye Futian asked him tentatively.


    ��Yes, I do,�� the young man nodded without hesitation. The crowd was even more intrigued now. They shifted their eyes to the Cabinet Master to see his reaction. To everyone��s surprise, the Cabinet Master remained expressionless and apparently acquiesced to the young man��s statement.


    The young man really could make decisions and tell the Cabinet Master what to do.


    Who had this kind of power on Ninth Street?


    No one.


    The Cabinet Master of the Tianyi Pavilion was already at the top of the food chain. No one could order him around. Unless��


    An idea popped into many people��s heads and filled them with astonishment. Did people from that place come to Ninth Street as well?


    ��It seems that you��re not an average man. In that case,�� Ye Futian gazed at the young man and said, ��I want the Phoenix��s Marrow of ten thousand years. If you can get that for me, I will forget about what happened today and even offer other things to trade.��


    The young man was stunned for a moment upon hearing Ye Futian��s request. Then he laughed, ��Master Qi, you certainly didn��t hold back. I��m afraid that you overestimated me.��


    He was aware that Ye Futian figured out his identity and tried to take advantage of him.


    Nonetheless, the Phoenix��s Marrow of ten thousand years was not a common ingredient. Even he had to put in some effort to obtain it. It was not as simple as it sounded.


    ��So, can you get it?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��We can try,�� a female Renhuang next to the young man answered. She had been quietly watching the situation and only chimed in now. No one dared to act frivolously in front of her for her breathtaking beauty and dignified manner.


    ��How confident are you?�� Ye Futian looked at her and asked.


    ��We will give it a shot but can��t make any promises,�� she replied. The young man nodded with a smile and echoed, ��That��s right. We can do our best. But the Phoenix��s Marrow of ten thousand years is not an ordinary object. It will take some time.��


    ��Okay. I will let them off the hook if you can give me your word,�� said Ye Futian. The crowd looked at him. It was clear that he came to Ninth Street specifically to acquire the Phoenix��s Marrow of ten thousand years.


    ��Good. If we can find it, Master, we don��t need anything else in return. All we want is to become your friends,�� the young man said with a carefree smile as though something as precious as the Phoenix��s Marrow of ten thousand years was nothing but a tool for him to forge friendships.


    ��No problem,�� Ye Futian replied. ��Let��s talk on the way.��


    ��Alright. Please,�� the young man outstretched his arm to show the way. Ye Futian nodded, walked to the edge of the stage, and climbed onto Baize Demonic Beast. Baize carried Ye Futian and sauntered away. The crowd spontaneously made way for him to walk on.


    Watching Ye Futian��s receding figure, everyone understood that he was another prominent figure rising from Ninth Street, where he was only staying temporarily. Now that the ancient royal family had entered into the picture, they would probably recruit him.


    They would have never thought that Ye Futian was here exactly for the ancient royal family!

 Chapter 2139 - Plotting

    At the Ninth Inn, Lin Cheng personally hosted a banquet in honor of Ye Futian and the visitors from the ancient royal family of Duan.


    Many cultivators in the inn were paying attention to this meeting. They had guessed where the group of people came from, and now, all of Ninth Street was closely watching their interactions.


    At the banquet, Lin Cheng personally poured wine for the young couple who sat in the main seats. Ye Futian didn��t know how to address them but heard the young man smile and said, ��I think Master Qi must have guessed a thing or two, so elder doesn��t need to hide it.��


    Lin Cheng smiled and nodded. He gestured with his hand and said politely, ��Your Highness, please.��


    The young man nodded with a smile and cast a glance at Ye Futian. As expected, Ye Futian��s expression remained steady. ��The master must have already guessed who we are.��


    ��Tianyi Pavilion is the number one trading pavilion on Ninth Street, and both of you were able to command the Pavilion Master of Tianyi Pavilion. Who else could you be other than the cultivators from the ancient royal family? But, of course, I have no idea as to your actual identities.�� Ye Futian didn��t continue with his pompous facade. Facing those from the ancient royal family, it would be preposterous for him to continue with this act.


    On Giant Gods Continent, the ancient royal family of Duan was a peak existence. No matter how powerful an alchemy grandmaster might be, his status would not be higher than that of the man in front of him.


    ��I am Duan Yi, and this is my sister Duan Shang, and we are members of the ancient royal family.�� The young man introduced themselves to Ye Futian, looking very polite and courteous, without the hubris of being a descendent of the Duan family.


    The ancient royal family of Duan had many descendants, and the competitions were fierce among them. Of course, what they were pursuing was not power but cultivation. In the cultivating world, power was determined by cultivation level, and a powerful alchemy grandmaster could provide great benefits to cultivation, thus, a subject for recruitment.


    Therefore, Duan Yi had displayed enough respect toward Ye Futian without the slightest exhibition of superiority.


    ��Your Highnesses,�� Ye Futian bowed slightly with his hands together. They came from the ancient royal family and had the surname of Duan. Their identities were beyond doubt. Now that he had come into contact with the prince and princess of the ancient royal family, his plan was halfway there.


    He could even take them down right now, but it would be complicated. Moreover, he wouldn��t get away easily because he still needed assistance from Old Ma.


    The most important part of the plan was to tease out important figures from the ancient royal family. Now that Duan Yi and Duan Shang were right in front of him, his plan was on track, as long as there were no unexpected events.


    ��Master is overly courteous.�� Duan Yi waved his hand and said, ��Master��s alchemy technique is so outstanding that it��s unfathomable we have never heard of your name before. Where is the master cultivating?��


    ��I��m not a cultivator of the Giant Gods Continent and have been traveling around the Shangqing Domain in search of medicinal plants and to practice alchemy. Now that my alchemy technique has gotten better, I came to the Giant Gods City for some hard-to-find materials, ��Ye Futian replied.


    ��No wonder.�� Duan Yi nodded, ��It is true that only the main continent of the Upper Nine Heavens has the possibility of finding Phoenix Marrow of 10,000 Years. Is the master intent on making the Immortal Elixir?��


    ��So, Your Highness is aware?�� Ye Futian looked at the other.


    ��This Immortal Elixir is said to be capable of life and death, as well as growing flesh from scratch, a truly divine potion. I heard from the elders in the palace that the Phoenix Marrow of 10,000 Years is its main medicinal ingredient. Why is the master so eager for the Immortal Elixir?�� Duan Yi asked again.


    ��I have been seriously injured before, which left a major defect in my Great Path, so I require the Immortal Elixir.�� Ye Futian turned his eyes to look at other places. Duan Yi looked at Ye Futian��s face and said understandingly, ��I am too nosey. Let me drink up as an apology.�� As he finished speaking, he drained the content of the cup by himself.


    ��No worries, Your Highness,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��The master is outstanding in both alchemy and cultivation. I am curious as to who had the pleasure of calling you their disciple?�� Duan Shang regarded Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes and asked. Duan Yi raised his brows slightly; this was also the question he wanted to ask, but it was better for Duan Shang to pose it.


    It was hardly possible for such a formidable character to cultivate independently; there were not many like him in all of the Giant Gods Continent. In addition to his excellent alchemical ability, his Great Path of cultivation was also flawless.


    If Ye Futian had a master, the person must be someone extremely eminent, and it was possible that they would have heard of the person too.


    Ye Futian directed his gaze at Duan Shang. Under the stare of those eyes peeking out beneath the mask, Duan Shang felt an invisible pressure. Ye Futian��s eyes seemed to be bottomless, as vast as a starry sky.


    Duan Shang had a feeling that this grandmaster must not be very advanced in age.


    ��My master prefers peace and quiet without being disturbed. He instructed me that I may only reveal his identity to extremely close confidantes and to bring them to see him,�� Ye Futian replied pleasantly. Duan Shang was a little stunned, and she then avoided Ye Futian��s eyes after that. His explanation seemed reasonable, but why was it that she felt something was out of place?


    However, many hermits cultivated in seclusion. Perhaps, Ye Futian��s master was one of them, which was not entirely surprising.


    ��If so, we won��t inquire further.�� Duan Yi said, ��Is the master comfortable staying here? If you came to the palace as our guest, it would allow us to host the master properly.��


    ��That��s quite alright. This inn is pretty good, and Elder Lin is taking good care of me.�� Ye Futian responded with a smile and thought that there was no way he would go to the palace. If he did, he would be under their control.


    ��Alright then. After I get back, I will search for the Phoenix Marrow of 10,000 Years for the master.�� Duan Yi didn��t skip a beat. Although Ye Futian had pulled back in his swagger, the arrogance in his bones was still there. Even with them, there was not the slightest hint of fawning. It was as if their status as prince and princess was not enough for him to lower himself in any way.


    But because of this, Duan Yi felt that Ye Futian was more than what met the eye, and perhaps his master was really someone even more prestigious, which would explain his confidence.


    They chatted for a while longer before Duan Yi and Duan Shang bid their farewell. When they left, Ye Futian added, ��Even if the Phoenix Marrow of 10,000 Years cannot be found, please be sure to send word so that if I leave, I will have a chance to say goodbye to Your Highness.��


    The two nodded slightly as Ye Futian��s eyes fell on Duan Shang, making her feel a little peculiar.


    ��No problem, even if we don��t find it, we will visit the master soon,�� Duan Yi replied.


    ��Since we are friends, no need to be so formal. If your Highness doesn��t think I am being too bold, perhaps you may address me as Brother Qi,�� Ye Futian continued.


    ��If Brother Qi doesn��t mind, it is the best.�� Duan Yi smiled heartily. ��If so, we will visit Brother Qi again tomorrow.��


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Goodbye, Brother Duan and Princess Shang.��


    The two left and headed towards the palace. Duan Yi smiled and said, ��Master Qi is quite interesting. He calls me Brother Duan but addressed you as Princess Shang. His way of talking was quite amusing.��


    Duan Shang��s expression was cold when she said, ��I feel this man was a little unusual.��


    ��Indeed.�� Duan Yi nodded. ��A such a powerful alchemy grandmaster is unfathomable. If he wanted, he could go to any top principalities. I wonder if he has wanted anything else other than the Phoenix Marrow of 10,000 years.��


    ��Mmm,�� Duan Shang acknowledged.


    ��It��s fine. We��ll have to investigate him a little more,�� Duan Yi said. He smiled and told the person behind him, ��After we get back, send a few cultivators of the Ninth Realm from the palace to Ninth Street. Remember to tell them to act normally and don��t do anything. Just be ready for our orders.��


    ��Yes, Your Highness.�� The man behind him nodded.


    ��I��m curious about where this master really comes from,�� Duan Yi said with a smile. He had completely lost the friendly and insouciant guise that he wore when he was with Ye Futian. He seemed calculating.


    In the Ninth Inn, Ye Futian returned to his room after the others had left. He closed the door and took out the communication device as a divine consciousness shot into it, transmitting a message.


    After he sent out the message, a light lit up from the device as the response was transmitted back. Ye Futian put away the device, then closed his eyes to meditate.


    He must act quickly this time, and they couldn��t afford any delays that would give way to unforeseen changes. If he was careless, failure was all but certain.


    On this day, a major event concerning the ancient royal family of Duan occurred in the Giant Gods City. The envoy from Four Corner Village arrived at the ancient royal family and demanded the release of their people. Just recently, news from Four Corner Village had spread to Giant Gods Continent, and many powerful figures in Giant Gods City had heard about it by now. The presence of the envoy from Four Corner Village caused quite a stir.


    After Zhang Ye arrived at the palace, he was not received by the Overlord of the ancient royal family. Instead, a prince met with him, and as expected, did not agree to hand over the hostages. However, Zhang Ye was allowed to see Fang Gai and his son to ensure their wellbeing. It was obvious that they just wanted the divine techniques, which Fang Gai refused to give up. As long as they could get their hands on the divine techniques, they would release the hostages.


    Zhang Ye proposed to communicate with Four Corner Village and settled down in the palace. At the same time, he sent back the latest information, which was also shared with Ye Futian. He was relieved to know that Fang Gai and his son were still alive and well, although this was expected.


    Next, it all hinged on his plan. In a way, Zhang Ye would be facing some danger, but nothing would happen to Zhang Ye as long as the plan succeeded.


    Ye Futian continued making panacea in the inn. Many from Ninth Street requested to see him, but Ye Futian had declined all such requests. Those who wanted to see him had no choice but to leave, unaware that Ye Futian��s refusal to meet with them was his attempt of not getting anyone else in trouble later on!

 Chapter 2140 - Action

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian had been waiting quietly in the inn.


    The next day, Duan Yi and Duan Shang arrived as promised and came to the Ninth Inn to see Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had sensed their arrival and immediately sent out a message. He then walked out of his room to meet Duan Yi and Duan Shang. He smiled and greeted them, ��Brother Duan. Princess Shang.��


    ��Brother Qi.�� Duan Yi and his people landed in the courtyard, as he smiled and said to Ye Futian, ��After I went back yesterday, I made some inquiries, and we came here to share some good news with Brother Qi.��


    ��Oh?�� Ye Futian looked at Duan Yi and prompted, ��The treasure was found in the palace?��


    ��Mmm,�� Duan Yi smiled and nodded. Ye Futian thought that the ancient royal family was indeed plentiful in resources. Precious things as the Phoenix Marrow of 10,000 Years could be found there.


    Should he accept it or not?


    Of course, Ye Futian remained calm on the outside as he looked at Duan Yi with a smile on his face, ��Brother Duan has been working hard at my behest. If there is anything Brother Duan requires of me, I will gladly be of service.��


    ��No need.�� Duan Yi dismissed the notion with a wave of his hand and spoke very heartily, ��I have said before that there is no need for Brother Qi to do anything in exchange.��


    Ye Futian nodded, thinking that Duan Yi seemed quite decisive in this initial contact. At least, that was what it appeared to be so far. As to whether he had any ulterior motives, it was something yet to be seen. At their level, it would be difficult to know if he had deliberately camouflaged his true intentions or not.


    ��But���� At this moment, Duan Yi stopped as if considering how to phrase this next sentence. Ye Futian saw that the other had paused, so he asked, ��Is there a problem?��


    ��No.�� Duan Yi shook his head, ��There is an alchemy grandmaster in our palace; I don��t know if Brother Qi has heard of it?��


    ��I heard something about that here.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��This Phoenix Marrow of 10,000 Years belongs to this grandmaster. After I explain the situation, this grandmaster is willing to give it to Brother Qi. If Brother Qi needs assistance in refining the Immortal Elixir, he is also willing to help. Therefore, this master would like to invite Brother Qi to the palace and hand over the Phoenix Marrow to you and conduct the process together to lend a hand to Brother Qi.��


    Duan Yi said, ��What do you think?��


    Ye Futian was taken aback as he didn��t expect Duan Yi to make such a request and asked him to go to the palace.


    The eyes under the mask looked at Duan Yi. At this moment, he felt that Duan Yi was not as simple as he appeared. Here at the inn, he had some subjectivity regarding his own movements. If he were to go to the palace, he would be in a completely passive situation, and it was not an overstatement to say that his life and death would be in Duan Yi��s hands.


    He was invited to the palace to get what he asked for, which was an interesting strategy, but the outward reason was impeccable. They were helping him and were even willing to assist him in his endeavor.


    For a moment, Ye Futian didn��t know quite how to respond, to agree or to refuse?


    Now, he needed some time.


    It was definitely impossible for him to go, but if he refused, everything he said previously would appear a bit hypocritical and full of holes.


    ��I know the reason why Brother Qi desires the Immortal Elixir, so I thought nothing of it when I agreed our grandmaster��s offer to assist on behalf of Brother Qi. Rest assured that once the Immortal Elixir is made, absolutely no one would take it for his own as it is promised to Brother Qi. As a member of the ancient royal family, I, Duan Yi, can make this guarantee.�� Duan Yi said openly, ��Everyone in the inn must have heard it as well. Brother Qi need not worry about unforeseeable events.��


    ��Brother Duan overthinks the matter. This here is the Giant Gods City. If Brother Duan wanted to do anything at all, there is no need to go about it with such efforts.�� Ye Futian said with a smile, ��No problem, I will go with Your Highness.��


    Duan Yi had blocked any possible excuses from him with a few words. He could only acquiesce for the time being.


    He was beginning to realize that this man was anything but simple, quite contrary to what he had imagined before. It seemed that he had misjudged Duan Yi. The prince of the ancient royal family could not be a simpleton, after all.


    ��Then, thanks to Brother Qi and our grandmaster, it seems that we will have the opportunity to witness the making of the Immortal Elixir.�� Duan Yi smiled and continued, ��This legendary elixir is said to be able to raise the dead and grow flesh from bones, but I��ve never seen such a thing before. I wonder how amazing it would be?��


    ��Brother Qi, this way, please,�� Duan Yi said with a smile. As long as Ye Futian went to the palace, he would find a way to keep him there. By then, everything about Ye Futian would be thoroughly investigated and revealed.


    ��Just a minute, I have to wait for someone.�� Ye Futian said, ��Brother Duan, let��s sit here while we wait.��


    ��Waiting for someone?�� Duan Yi looked at Ye Futian with some doubts. ��Didn��t Brother Qi come here alone? Who are you waiting for?��


    ��An old friend had made an appointment to meet me here. After he arrives, Brother Duan will know who he is,�� Ye Futian responded with a smile.


    ��Very well,�� Duan Yi nodded. Ye Futian had agreed to go to the palace readily enough, so he couldn��t very well refuse Ye Futian��s request. A few more moments of waiting couldn��t possibly do any harm. As long as Ye Futian was there, he couldn��t believe that this talented alchemy grandmaster would escape him.


    This alchemy master must serve him, or else it would be meaningless.


    The two chatted in the yard. Both Duan Yi and Duan Shang were very curious about the person Ye Futian was waiting for. However, as Ye Futian did not wish to reveal the person��s identity, Duan Yi was hard-pressed to inquire further. At this time, Duan Shang asked, ��Is the person we are waiting for also an alchemy master?��


    ��No.�� Ye Futian shook his head and said, ��This elder is not an expert in alchemy.��


    ��Brother Qi��s elders?�� Duan Shang said.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Someone from your clan?�� Duan Shang continued to probe.


    Ye Futian looked at her with a smile and replied, ��Is Your Highness really that curious about matters relating to me?��


    Duan Shang looked at those eyes under the mask, her eyes cast to the side slightly, and said, ��I��m just curious as to who is worthy enough for the master to wait here, so I wanted to know who this person might be.��


    ��Patience, princess. Your Highness will know when he arrives,�� Ye Futian responded.


    People chatted casually around them, but Ye Futian keenly sensed that many were focusing their attention at the inn. Yesterday, he had caused quite some commotions on Ninth Street, so it was normal that he attracted their attention. However, this time he felt a little different. It was as if someone was monitoring their movements.


    Perhaps it was because Duan Yi was here?


    However, whatever the reason might be, it no longer mattered. As a precaution, Old Ma had been staying just outside the city. When Duan Yi and the others arrived, he had sent a message, and Old Ma should be on his way over.


    Old Ma��s cultivation was more than enough for him to reach Ye Futian quickly, but before they could execute their plan, he didn��t want to attract unnecessary attention.


    At this time, inside Giant Gods City, Old Ma had restrained his aura, just as when Ye Futian had first seen him, there was nothing that could be detected from him at all. Even around his body, there was not the slightest indication of his actual strength.


    But when he paced casually, he was able to traverse the void. Many people in Giant Gods City expressed a surprised look where Old Ma had passed. They turned their heads to take a look. They had sensed someone passing by. It was as if it was someone quite ordinary, but all they saw was a shadow.


    It was a strange feeling. It seemed a little unreal, but it really happened.


    Although Old Ma did not employ a great force in his travel, he was still speedy, nonetheless. It didn��t take him long to arrive outside of Ninth Street. A sweep of his divine consciousness revealed Ye Futian��s location. He commanded, ��Take them down.��


    At this time, Old Ma��s voice was heard in Ye Futian��s mind as he was chatting with Duan Yi and Duan Shang. His eyes darted and saw that Duan Yi��s expression had changed ever so slightly.


    ��Is something the matter, Brother Qi?�� Duan Yi asked when he saw the expression in Ye Futian��s eyes. Suddenly, he had a bizarre feeling, as if he sensed an inexplicable danger. However, as to where the danger was coming from, he couldn��t say.


    Would it have something to do with them waiting here?


    However, on Ninth Street in Giant Gods City, what could happen to them?


    Unless��


    Duan Yi looked at Ye Futian, and his eyes suddenly became solemn, with a faint sense of caution. He asked, ��The person Brother Qi is waiting for is here?��


    ��He��s here.�� Ye Futian nodded, ��I would trouble Your Highness to come with me.��


    As he finished speaking, a powerful aura of the Great Path immediately shrouded this area, sealed shut by an overwhelming power of space!

 Chapter 2141 - Can’t Get Away

    Duan Yi and Duan Shang��s expressions changed to shock as the aura of the Great Path exploded out from them. However, the tyrannical force of the spatial power had sealed the void tightly, making it difficult for them to move. At the same time, countless branches and leaves appeared in this space, wrapping around them until they were well tucked within.


    Boom�� An extremely violent aura was released from the two of them as they levitated into the air, wanting to rush forth. Behind them, and at several different positions on Ninth Street, other tyrannical auras also exploded, and a few of them was a Renhuang of the Ninth Realm. The nearest person was right behind Duan Yi and Duan Shang. That Ninth Realm cultivator raised his hand to grab Ye Futian, turning the space into a prison, hovering around Ye Futian.


    All around them, the streaming light of the Great Path circulated. That prison of the Great Path was extremely secure and made a roaring sound. However, a brilliant burst of divine glory now exploded upon Ye Futian��s body as his eyes became quite demonic. A massive illusion of the peacock appeared and shot out a terrifying light of seven colors.


    Ye Futian��s body turned into a flash of lightning. It blasted hit the prison with a blast, causing the prison to shatter and collapse. But at this moment, many Renhuang descended in his area at the same time; their aura of the Great Path was frightening.


    Boom! A suppressive pressure of the Great Path enveloped this corner of the world. This vast world seemed to have transformed into a world of a starry sky, giant stone tablets coming to suppress this space.


    Both Duan Yi and Duan Shang were cultivators of the ancient royal family, with extraordinary talents and strong cultivation. But at this moment, facing Ye Futian, they felt that they were tiny in comparison. It was as if they had no ability to fight back.


    They realized now that the flaming ability Ye Futian exhibited before was just one of his many abilities, and it was a relatively minor one.


    He could even battle the cultivators in the Ninth Realm.


    This meant that Ye Futian didn��t need to fear any cultivators on the Ninth Street, including the pavilion master of Tianyi Pavilion, which explained his audacity. His own strength dictated that he need not fear anyone he encountered.


    ��Who are you?�� The vast space seemed to turn into Ye Futian��s field of the Great Path. Duan Yi and Duan Shang found that though their cultivation was not lower than that of Ye Futian, it seemed impossible for them to contend with him.


    Ye Futian��s figure flashed and appeared in front of them.


    ��Careful, Your Highness!�� someone cried out. But they were too close, and Duan Yi and Duan Shang��s movements were restricted. Ye Futian reached out, and in one fell swoop, both of them were restrained, and their bodies rose into the sky with him.


    Other Renhuang wanted to stop them, but an old man appeared high in the sky as a supreme coercion enveloped this corner of the world. Suddenly, everyone on Ninth Street seemed to feel the Might of Heaven as their bodies trembled slightly. This was��


    The man was Old Ma. At this moment, he exposed his whereabouts to help Ye Futian to escape.


    In the area above Old Ma, a huge spatial door appeared, from which a terrible spatial power surged out. The space door seemed to open up to another place. It seemed that once walked through it, one might disappear into a completely different world.


    ��If visitors from Four Corner Village have already arrived, why not come to my palace so I may fulfill my duty as the host.�� When the voice fell, the entire Giant Gods City seemed to have changed as a terrifying force now spreading from the city.


    It was only at this moment, did the people in Giant God City realize that people from Four Corner Village had arrived.


    This meant that whoever had gone to the palace for negotiation was just a ruse; Four Corner Village had other plans at work.


    The people on the Ninth Street were even more shocked to find this arrogant alchemy grandmaster with mighty strength had come from Four Corner Village, and his alchemy techniques were unbelievably outstanding.


    Ye Futian felt that he was unable to move another muscle. Old Ma wanted to lead him into the spatial door, but at this moment, the entire Giant Gods City was illuminated by a terrifying divine light. An incomparable sacred power now shrouded the entire city, and everyone��s body became extremely heavy, like statues glued to the ground. They could hardly move even half a step, and Ye Futian was no different.


    Boom!


    With a loud bang, the spatial door was shattered by an attack. Old Ma took Ye Futian up to a higher part of the sky but saw that in the area above Giant Gods City, a gigantic god-like figure was there in the direction of the imperial palace.


    ��The Overlord.�� Countless cultivators in the Giant Gods City had no idea what had happened.


    Upon hearing the voice of the Overlord, they gathered that something was afoot. Their hearts trembled as they saw his face from afar. This was the master of the Giant Gods Continent��the Overlord of the ancient royal family of Duan.


    ��I��ve heard that there is a being in the village not often seen. No one even knew that he could cultivate. But he has, in fact, broken the shackles and created his own Great Path. I am pleased to finally meet you today,�� the Overlord of the Duan family said. He had clearly guessed Old Ma��s identity.


    ��Four Corner Village has never harmed the ancient royal family of Duan. But Your Excellency has seized our people from Four Corner Village to pilfer our divine techniques. It is not behavior befitting of your position,�� replied Old Ma. The divine light emitted from him had covered Ye Futian and the others. Even though they weren��t able to leave, the prince and princess of the ancient royal family of Duan were under their direct control.


    ��Four Corner Village was not part of the cultivating world before, and there were only a few who had left. According to the village rules, once they left, they were no longer part of the village. Fang Huan killed a member of the ancient royal family, so we captured him. It just so happened that the Four Corner Village was entering the cultivating world around the same time that I decided to spare his life by exchanging it for the divine techniques. If Four Corner Village disagrees, I will not force the matter,�� the Overlord said.


    Of course, these were all words from the other side, and there was no way to know whether they were true or not. No one knew if Fang Huan had really done what they said he did, but there were definitely some conflicts.


    In any case, there was no doubt that the Duan family coveted the divine techniques of Four Corner Village. Otherwise, they didn��t need to hatch these devious plans, including sending a letter to lure Fang Gai into their lair and try to procure the divine techniques.


    Unfortunately, it had not succeeded thus far.


    ��Now that your Excellency also has hostages in our hands, the divine techniques are no longer on the table for exchange,�� said Old Ma.


    However, the man only smiled and continued, ��Even if your cultivation is extraordinary, you can��t walk out of this city. If you want the two of them, it is difficult to say whether you two could get out of this bind at all. ��


    Old Ma looked down and saw a majestic aura of the Great Path permeating out of the vast Giant Gods City. A great power dragging on the space above so that even he was affected. Other cultivators from the Giant Gods City and Ye Futian found it was extremely difficult for them to move.


    ��Are there divine items sealed beneath the city?�� Old Ma looked at the Overlord of Duan in the distance and asked.


    ��This city itself is a divine item.�� The other responded, ��It��s useless to threaten me with the two of them. Four Corner Village just entered the world. I don��t think you want to take any risks.��


    As Old Ma stared at the other, Ye Futian spoke up, ��Sir, the ancient royal family of Duan had threatened us with hostages taken from Four Corner Village first, and we only resorted to this measure after being pressed; it��s an even exchange. If you do not care about the consequences, why should we? It is true that Four Corner Village just joined the cultivation world, but we are not afraid of anyone. As long as the teacher is there, Four Corner Village is still what it always meant to be. In the past, three top figures of the Shangqing Domain entered Four Corner Village and recognized its existence. Although the teacher loathes matters from the outside, he would come to seek justice if he were really provoked. Then, whether or not Giant Gods City could survive his wrath would be anyone��s guess.��


    The teacher couldn��t leave the village for special reasons, but it didn��t mean that the Overlord of the Duan family knew what they were. He could use this chance to feel out the stance of the other man.


    The ancient royal family of Duan was acting secretive before, and it must be because they didn��t want the news to leak and offend Four Corner Village. They, too, had their concerns.


    The Overlord of the Duan family looked at Ye Futian and said, ��You are the one who is rumored to have come from the Donghua Domain to cultivate.��


    ��Indeed, I am,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��I heard that you have extraordinary talent and not someone native from the village. You possess great luck that allowed you to control the divine techniques of the village. You even drove out the original leader of the village. Your name is known throughout the Donghua Domain; even the Domain Chief��s Manor was hunting you. Now you are here again to intercept my kin. You are indeed a rare animal,�� Duan Tianxiong from the Duan family said loudly, and everyone finally realized just how legendary this alchemy grandmaster truly was.


    ��The Overlord gives me too much praise.�� Ye Futian took off the mask, revealing a strangely handsome face. His long silver hair moved with the wind, and his appearance surprised many. This genius alchemy grandmaster had turned out to be such an enchanting figure!

 Chapter 2142 - Impossible Task

    Duan Tianxiong looked at Ye Futian and said with a smile. ��Duan Yi, Duan Shang, though you are the prince and princess of the family, now you know first-hand that there are always those who excel even the best of them. You are the same age, but the gap between you is so vast so that you two have become the hostages in the hands of others.��


    Duan Yi and Duan Shang looked at Ye Futian at a loss. When they heard Duan Tianxiong��s words, they were ashamed. Indeed, there was a huge gap between them and Ye Futian.


    It could be said that they were not even on the same level as Ye Futian, or they would not have fallen into his clutches.


    ��Whenever you two have returned home, you should take a good look at yourselves and think about this,�� Duan Tianxiong continued. As the Overlord, he was truly extraordinary. Under such circumstances, he still remembered to make it a teachable moment without the slightest hint of worry for their safety; he was a true leader.


    He turned his attention back at Ye Futian again. He said with a smile, ��Domain Chief Ning Yuan of Donghua Domain didn��t promote a genius talent like you, but put you on the most wanted list instead. I have no idea what he was thinking when he did that. If it were me, I certainly would not have done that.��


    Aside from the turmoil Ye Futian caused in the Shangqing Domain, his undertaking in the Four Corner Village alone was enough to surprise everyone. Now that he had taken two of his descendants into his hands as hostages while revealing himself as an outstanding alchemy grandmaster. The sky was the limit for such a man and too terrifying to contemplate where he would end up. Although he did not have an influential background, he had been through various trials and experienced much in the world.


    He couldn��t understand why the Domain Chief of Donghua Domain would forsake such a talented person.


    ��Since Your Majesty holds me in such high regard, why don��t we stop right here and forge a friendship between us? The prince and Her Majesty may remain my friends. After all, what happened today went against my intention, as I was forced by circumstance,�� Ye Futian suggested to Duan Tianxiong.


    His goal was simple enough: save Fang Gai and Fang Huan. As for the Duan family, Four Corner Village had just joined the cultivating world, and he did not want to make them their enemy. The most important thing was to focus on their own development and get themselves established first.


    It was best to resolve this matter peacefully, so the two sides could stop this vendetta.


    As for the friendship he referred to, it was nothing more than diplomatic words. They both knew the reality very well, and this was to give each other a way out.


    ��I have no strong feelings about this, but what I said was not false, and I will never deceive you. Fang Huan did take the life of our kinsman. If I let him go, where is the justice for us?�� Duan Tianxiong said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at the man and realized that Duan Tianxiong couldn��t let bygones be bygones. The Giant Gods City was his territory; he could easily shut down everything here so that no one could leave. Ye Futian had taken Duan Yi and Duan Shang hostage, but the real power was still in Duan Tianxiong��s hands.


    ��In that case, I have a suggestion. Would Your Majesty care to take a listen?�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Yes,�� Duan Tianxiong replied from the air.


    ��I will go to the palace alone for our people. Your Majesty, as the judge, will not interfere. If no one can stop me without employing divine items that will restrict my mobility, I will take our people away with me. If anyone can intercept me, I will leave your people to you and the divine techniques. What does Your Majesty think?�� Ye Futian looked at Duan Tianxiong from across the sky and said loudly and clearly. Everyone was shocked.


    Countless people looked up at that handsome and exceptional figure. His silver hair was flying in the wind, and he exuded an air of indescribable self-confidence and insolence.


    Even Duan Yi and Duan Shang, who was taken by him, now looked at Ye Futian in shock. The man without the mask was even more audacious and daring. Never mind the Ninth Street or Giant Gods City, even the cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan were not taken seriously by him.


    He wanted to rush the palace and take his people away. It was a bold proposition.


    Ye Futian��s proposition was based on some of the things that he found out before. In the royal palace of the Duan family, there was no Upper Renhuang with perfect Great Path like Ning Hua. People at that level of cultivation posed the most threat to him. Without this type of cultivator, even if they were in the Ninth Realm, he had the power to combat them.


    Now, the two sides were at the point of no return. If he won, he might take his people away. If he lost, they would need to hand over the divine techniques.


    ��You mean, you want to rush the ancient imperial palace by yourself?�� Even Duan Tianxiong��s voice was slightly perturbed. A cultivator of Renhuang Fifth Realm wanted to break into the ancient royal family of Duan. How insolent. Did he really think that no one from the ancient royal family could stop him?


    ��Yes,�� replied Ye Futian. It was just one word, yet it was sonorous and determined. Even Old Ma had to take a second look at him. This guy�� rushing the palace by himself was pure madness, to say the least.


    The Duan family was a major force in the Middle Third Heavens. It held the most esteem because Duan Tianxiong had the true strength to dominate the area. However, the ancient royal family of Duan had no lack of powerful cultivators, and there must be countless of them inside the palace, including some old monsters in the Ninth Realms.


    ��Futian, it��s too risky,�� Old Ma transmitted his voice to Ye Futian.


    ��Old Ma, there is no better option than this. Even if we fail, it will only be paying the price of the divine techniques. Would you say Uncle Fang is not worth it?�� Ye Futian explained. Old Ma had no reply.


    When they were at the village, he had known that Ye Futian was a person who cared about the others, or else he would never have felt so close to him. He even went so far as to push him to become the village chief of Four Corner Village. However, his proposition encountered some resistance because Ye Futian was still inexperienced. After all, he was an outsider before, not someone who was native to the village.


    However, Old Ma had to admit that Ye Futian was right. The only way was to give it their best shot, for there were no other options.


    ��Well, if you are sure, I will indulge you.�� Duan Tianxiong said, ��I��ll be waiting for you here.��


    Ye Futian looked at Duan Yi and Duan Shang. ��I would ask your two majesties to bear with us for a while longer.��


    He then handed the two of them over to Old Ma.


    Old Ma looked at him, still hesitating. Ye Futian��s entry into the ancient royal family meant that he would be completely within their control once he set foot there.


    ��Don��t worry, as the Overlord, he will not go back on what he promised.�� Ye Futian knew just what made Old Ma so worried, so he tried to assure him. Old Ma nodded slightly. Duan Tianxiong had agreed to Ye Futian��s request for a battle in front of everyone; he would see that the agreement was honored.


    ��I��ll go with you,�� Old Ma said, leading Ye Futian in the direction of the ancient royal palace of the Duan family. At this time, the light from Giant Gods City gradually dimmed until it disappeared. There was terrifying pressure. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.


    ��Let��s go.�� One after another, they levitated into the air, heading in the direction of the ancient royal family.


    ��Conducting this rescue mission inside the palace of the ancient royal family by himself? He��s crazy.�� The entire Giant Gods City was roiling. Countless people rushed toward the location of the ancient royal family, wanting to witness this battle.


    ��As a mere Renhuang of the Fifth Realm, Ye Futian is attempting something impossible. Does he think he has the power to alter his fate and manipulate the will of heaven?�� some elders with powerful cultivation commented, not at all optimistic about Ye Futian��s future.


    To attempt a jailbreak inside the palace of the ancient royal family all by himself�� How difficult would that be?


    If Ye Futian succeeded in taking his people away with throngs of cultivators inside the palace, even without the direct involvement of the overlord himself, the ancient royal family would forever be shamed, with no hope ever to raise their heads again.


    In an instant, Giant Gods City was feverish over this news, which had swept through the city in a short time. After all, because of all the events that led to this moment, all the cultivators inside Giant Gods City were paying close attention to this meeting. Now that Ye Futian had set the terms of the battle, how could it not electrify Giant Gods City?


    Many people marveled that if Ye Futian could successfully carry out this battle, it would be enough for him to make his name known throughout the world, even in all of the Shangqing Domain.


    Only that no one was optimistic about his prospect because everyone thought it was an impossible task!

 Chapter 2143 - Invasion of the Ancient Royal Family

    The ancient royal family of Duan was a majestic city within a city, feeling ancient and historic.


    At this time outside the ancient royal family, a white-haired man stood there, his deep-set eyes looking straight inside of the city. Behind him, from sky above, many cultivators had come in a hurry, as their attention focused on Ye Futian and the ancient Imperial city.


    Did he intend to go in there by himself?


    Within the ancient royal family, there were also mighty figures now made their appearance. Many cultivators stood in the void and looked at the person standing outside. They knew what had happened. A man who came from Donghua Domain originally, had joined Four Corner Village. Now he wanted to enter the ancient royal family under his own power alone to take away their prisoners. His arrogance and audacity spoke volume of his contempt to them all.


    What Ye Futian said had already offended the powerful cultivators of the entire ancient royal family. They had deemed him arrogant beyond reason and impertinent to boot.


    In that palace, the ground was sprinkled with a layer of holy radiance, and a magical force sealed the level below to prevent the ancient royal family from being affected by the impending battle.


    In the depth of the ancient royal family, there were two men, Fang Gai and Fang Huan. They were staring at a place, somewhere far away, and Fang Gai was overwhelmed with emotions. He did not expect Ye Futian to come in this manner. Now, he could only hope that nothing would happen to him.


    ��Fang Cun��s Master?�� It was Fang Huan, who looked to be about middle-aged. His long black hair was a little disheveled, but his eyes were dark and shiny as he questioned Fang Gai.


    ��Mmm,�� Fang Gai nodded. He had mentioned Ye Futian to Fang Huan.


    ��Isn��t he a little too impulsive to do this alone?�� Fang Huan asked. One man to take on the entire ancient royal family?


    If it was him, there wouldn��t be much concern. There was no Upper Renhuang with perfect Great Path in all of the ancient royal family of Duan, and he was already perfect at the Seventh Realm; even cultivators at the Ninth Realm would not pose a problem for him. But Ye Futian, as he understood from his father, was only at Fifth Realm, how could he possibly hope to get in?


    ��He doesn��t look like someone who behave carelessly. If he dared to say that it must mean that he was certain of his chances,�� said Fang Gai.


    Of course, it was also possible that Ye Futian had no choice but to take the gamble. If he lost, he would have to surrender the divine techniques.


    Fang Gai sank deep into his own thoughts.


    A fearsome divine Might enveloped the boundless space. Duan Tianxiong stood on the top of the tallest hall in the palace with many cultivators behind him. Their eyes focused on the figure outside. Although the distance was great, in their powerful sight, it was as if everything was right in front of them.


    Duan Tianxiong was curious to see just how this man, notorious for upsetting the balance of Donghua Domain, could really penetrate the ancient royal family like he claimed.


    ��Ye Futian came to our territory alone, so you may take action one at a time, but you must not intercept or choreograph your attacks at the same time.�� Duan Tianxiong announced in a loud but clear voice, full of strength and power.


    ��Yes, Overlord.�� Voices resounded throughout the void. As cultivators of the ancient royal family of Duan, they also cared about their reputations. Ye Futian was a Renhuang of the Fifth Realm, attempting to break into the ancient royal family under his own power. If they were to stymie his effort together, it would be as if they were trying to win by numbers alone.


    Furthermore, was there really nobody from the entire ancient royal family who could take him down?


    Next to Duan Tianxiong, there was a young man with unmatched temperament, who bore some resemblance to Duan Tianxiong. He was the prince of the ancient royal family of Duan, Duan Qiong.


    As a Renhuang of the Sixth Realm, Duan Qiong possessed perfect Great Path, along with incredibly aggressive strength. He did not believe that Ye Futian could succeed. Him alone would stop Ye Futian in his track.


    ��Go and tell all the cultivators of the ancient royal family of Duan to meet him in the challenge. It would be a good opportunity for them to know that there is always someone more powerful than what they have experienced,�� Duan Tianxiong ordered Duan Qiong.


    ��I��ll go now.�� Duan Qiong nodded as he went about carrying out this command. Clearly, they took Ye Futian��s entry into the ancient imperial city as a trial to polish the haughty Renhuang inside the ancient royal family, so they could see just how fearsome a top figure could be from the outside world.


    Outside the ancient royal family, Ye Futian looked forward and said in a loud and clear voice, ��Ye Futian from Four Corner Village, seeking your instructions.��


    When his voice faded, he walked into the ancient Royal family under the gaze of countless eyes. For a moment, everyone inside Giant Gods City stared at him with slight trembling in their hearts and found that they were all very much looking forward to this battle.


    Although everyone thought that Ye Futian would lose for sure, they were perhaps still secretly hoping for a different outcome.


    Ye Futian stepped into the ancient royal family, and a mighty pressure shrouded his body. It was an invisible pressure, formed by the terrifying aura of the many Renhuang inside the ancient royal family, and had transformed into an astonishing force. The coercion felt extremely uncomfortable, but he appeared cool and collected as ever, and walked forward in the void.


    Traces of divine light surrounded him, rendering his body totally radiant as if he was a transcendent being.


    At this moment, a figure stood in the sky above Ye Futian. This man was also dressed in white, like a gentle scholar, he was holding a silver long sword that felt like a cold star, gave out a feeling of chilling sadness. His arm moved slightly as the silver long sword whirled slightly with it. A cold air pressed toward Ye Futian, as a cold light swooped toward him.


    This man was an Upper Renhuang of the Seventh Realm. He appeared in an instant and his sword was so incredibly fast that no one could keep up with its movements. It was only in seconds that a cold atmosphere enveloped the void, chilled the spiritual souls, as countless cold light of the sword sheltering the sky. The area around Ye Futian seemed to have transformed into the realm of swordsmanship, where there was only the sky full of sword aurora. Life and death could be determined in just a turning of the mind.


    The swords rain down in the sword domain like a meteor shower, and they seemed on the verge to pierce through Ye Futian��s body. However, at this moment, the divine light flowing around Ye Futian��s body became even more dazzling, and a chiming of the swords rang between heaven and earth. There were countless rays of light that came from his body, and each ray of light turned into a sword intent.


    The wisps of swordsmanship and divine brilliance traversed with the meteor sword shower, created a spectacular sight in this space. The two men stood between the sword screens as the other man launch another sword strike, passing through the void, aimed at its mark.


    But Ye Futian raised his hand and pointed, colliding with the sword of the other.


    In an instant, the radiant sword river was torn apart, as countless swords pulverized into dust and vanished. The silver long sword made a crystalline sound as cracks crept on it.


    Ye Futian pointed his finger forward, and in the next moment, the Great Path reversed its course, and everything seemed to have returned to their previous state. The body of the other man flew backward, his sword domain disappeared, and the skyful of sword intent also dissipated into nothingness.


    That swordsman in white stood there looking at Ye Futian and groaned suddenly as blood trickled down the corner of his mouth. His eyes fixed on Ye Futian who had never even moved.


    Just one finger.


    Although they knew the odds of winning were not optimal, they did not expect to be defeated so badly.


    Ye Futian casually raised his hand at random and disarmed the other��s swordsmanship with just a point of his finger. Moreover, with the same swordsman��s abilities, it seemed that the two of them were not at all on the same level of cultivation. The fact remained that the other man��s realm was higher than that of Ye Futian.


    ��Awesome.�� Many let out a praise, but they were not too surprised. This was just a Renhuang of the Seventh Realm. If Ye Futian wanted to enter the ancient royal family, this was just the beginning. If he had trouble with a Renhunag of the Seventh Realm, then this entire attempt was a ridiculous farce.


    Ye Futian continued to move forward. There were Renhuang standing proudly on either side in the sky above in the front, and their eyes all fastened on Ye Futian.


    Even if his Great Path was perfect, he was, after all, a Renhuang of the Fifth Realm. Could his combat effectiveness be really that powerful?


    Another Renhuang of the Seventh Realm made a move, as he lifted his hand and pressed it down. Suddenly a Five-Fingered Mountain appeared above Ye Futian. The vast space was overwhelming, and the sky above Ye Futian was completely sealed off. The Five-Fingered Mountain was flowing with magnificent splendor, as if it could suppress all things and was totally indestructible. This, in fact, was a very powerful type of the Great Path.


    Heaven and earth roared as the Five-Fingered Mountain was on the verge to fall on top of Ye Futian. Ye Futian raised his hand and pointed a finger at the sky. Suddenly, a brilliant divine sword pierced the center of the mountain. In an instant, countless cracks appeared on it and in the next moment, the mountain pulverized and collapsed immediately.


    That Renhuang still attempted to return with another attack, but Ye Futian��s eyes directed toward him. With a single glance, he felt a deep chill to his bones, as if he had stepped into the world of eye sorcery. In this corner of the world, Ye Futian walked towards him, appeared in front of him in one step to traverse the space, as the divine sword pointed at his brow chakra.


    Bang�� He retreated rapidly away from the battlefield. However, everything seemed to return to normal in the next moment. He looked in the distance and saw that Ye Futian was still where he was without moving, as if everything that just happened was an illusion. It was a trick of the eye sorcery that lured him into Ye Futian��s world.


    Cold sweats crawled down his spine as he stared at the white-haired young man. He realized that this demonically handsome young man was in possession of power that was terrifying beyond words. A person of the Seventh Realm could not possibly contend with him.


    ��Watch out! He is very powerful.�� He spoke via voice transmission to the others. Ye Futian could bring the others into the world of eye sorcery in just a glance, as that was his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Ye Futian possessed a pair of divine pupils and one careless move would risk falling into his trap with no hope for redemption. If they were on a real battlefield, he may have already fallen into his hands in a single thought.


    Above the firmament, golden ancient seals suddenly appeared all over the sky, and there seemed to be extremely radiant patterns that appeared on those ancient seals, which aroused the resonance of the Great Path. Standing high above the sky, he raised his hand and slammed them forth. Instantly, infinitely golden ancient seals blasted downward at the same time as the Great Path resonated with the attack, and the sky and earth shattered by its unstoppable force.


    Ye Futian looked up and took a step forward. At this moment, many were hearing the Sound of Buddha in their ears. Countless golden tablets now surrounded around Ye Futian.


    Boom, boom, boom�� The ancient seal exploded madly, as Ye Futian��s speed turned into that of light. In an instant, the crowd saw the two man came into contact, and the person who stood in the way flew out directly. Ye Futian continued forward, even speeding up now as he rushed towards all those cultivators!

 Chapter 2144 - Unstoppable

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian shoved past a lot of people, yet none of them could stop him. Every person who attempted to block Ye Futian was at least a seventh-order Renhuang. People who hadn��t reached the high-level Renhuang Plane; they didn��t even have a chance to make a move.


    Almost everyone from the ancient royal family was nearby, watching how Ye Futian was marching into the palace as if there were no resistance at all.


    It seemed that seventh-order Renhuangs weren��t capable enough to thwart him.


    Ye Futian rushed through another area and slowed down his pace as he sensed a ton of formidable energy pressing on him from ahead. Several eighth-order Renhuangs were standing in front of him, blocking his path.


    They also noticed that Ye Futian was approaching. One of them rose in midair, towering over Ye Futian. In an instant, the sky changed color as thunder rumbled in the dark, rolling clouds. The world was transformed in a flash. Ye Futian felt like he was in the Great Path Domain of Thunder.


    The deafening booms that came from the gigantic thunder drum above the man��s head drowned out all other sounds. The terrifying thunder could shatter people��s spiritual souls.


    Ye Futian raised his head and took a quick look. It was a quite unusual Divine Wheel of the Great Path that contained two types of power of the Great Path��the Great Path of Thunder and the Sonic Wave. It was why it could launch an effective attack on its opponent��s physical body and the spiritual soul at the same time.


    Instead of personally charging at Ye Futian, the eighth-order Renhuang waved his hand at the thunder drum.


    Bang�� The sudden blare almost split everyone��s ears. Countless people from the ancient royal family could feel their spiritual souls trembling and their Qi and blood surging in their bodies. Even cultivators at the Renhuang Plane were greatly affected by the shock wave. One could well imagine how horrifying it must be to be directly struck at the center of the storm.


    Ye Futian felt that infinite Divine Thunder crashed down upon him from above, and the blinding light flew at his spiritual soul like blazes. He would be slaughtered immediately if he were a little less strong.


    The invisible Sonic Wave spread out from Ye Futian��s body. A faint shadow of an ancient Buddha with a ferocious face manifested himself behind Ye Futian. The gilded Buddha cast the golden divine light on Ye Futian as though he dressed him with a set of invincible golden armor.


    Bang!


    The blinding light of the thunder crashed down from the sky. It cracked the golden armor and penetrated Ye Futian��s body. Glowing with the purple light of the thunder, Ye Futian trembled slightly as he was engulfed by the thunder light.


    Nevertheless, he remained unscathed even as he was irradiated by the terrifying and ruinous thunder light. He emitted powerful energy of life, which made his Body of Way indestructible.


    ��Em?�� The eighth-order Renhuang frowned in surprise. Ye Futian was trying to bear the attack with his body?


    Moreover, the thunder light only jolted Ye Futian a little and didn��t injure him at all. In the eighth-order Renhuang��s eyes, Ye Futian was so arrogant that he didn��t take the attack seriously at all.


    The Renhuang raised his hand and released numerous shadows that smashed into the battle drum of the Great Path. The battle drum started to pound right away, and the horrifying sound wave of the Great Path swept across the world as if the earth was about to crack open. Even the cultivators outside of the palace felt the Qi and blood surging and rolling in their bodies. Some groaned in agony, and some were bleeding from their mouths.


    The people inside the palace were not seriously affected as they were protected by the divine light of the Great Path. But other Renhuangs who were not under the protection suffered the pain and discomfort as well.


    On the other side, Ye Futian looked like he was about to be devoured by the destructive thunder light. Many Renhuangs were on pins and needles. Would Ye Futian be killed by the ancient royal family if he wasn��t strong enough?


    The ancient royal family would never show any mercy on Ye Futian. It was impossible to control the attack so precisely anyway.


    The blazing divine light of thunder fell from the sky. Countless pairs of eyes were glued to Ye Futian. Bathing in the dazzling, golden divine light, Ye Futian stood upright and firmly on his feet. His Divine Body of the Great Path was unbreakable.


    A scary starry dimension formed around Ye Futian��s body. Then it was transformed into a Great Path domain which blocked the devastating attack.


    ��Even this won��t do.�� A look of frustration furrowed the eighth-order Renhuang��s brow. Could a fifth-order cultivator with a perfect Great Path really possess such strong power?


    ��Why don��t you take a hit from me too?�� Ye Futian said. Before his voice faded, a majestic and towering Vajra Buddha took shape and emitted the brilliant Light of Buddha. The Buddhist voice reverberated in the air and developed an invisible sound wave in the space. It was the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm.


    Almost instantly, the powerful eighth-order Renhuang felt dizzy and listless. He outstretched his arm, trying to wave at the War Drum of Lightning again. However, Ye Futian threw a hard punch at him. Innumerable Divine Monuments smashed down from the sky and squashed everything in the area.


    At this moment, Ye Futian seemed extra sturdy and imposing in the eighth-order Renhuang��s eyes. Fierce and relentless, his strike was developed based on his comprehension and cultivation of the Gate to World Suppression.


    The eighth-order Renhuang let out an angry roar. He raised his hand to continue to beat the War Drum of Lightning, impelling the spine-chilling thunder light to dash against the Divine Monuments.


    Nonetheless, an ancient sky tablet that was engraved with words appeared and plummeted from the sky. The eighth-order Renhuang was caught in a crossfire.


    Bang!


    With a loud noise, a crack appeared on the battle drum. The eighth-order Renhuang was flung away. He vomited a pool of blood, his face ghastly pale.


    The eighth-order Renhuang was vanquished.


    Bang. Ye Futian kept marching forward like a conquering hero. The void trembled beneath his feet. Several eighth-order Renhuangs joined hands and summoned a stunning amount of power of the Great Path. They were ready to attack Ye Futian at the same time.


    ��Eighth-order Renhuangs can��t harm me even when working together,�� said Ye Futian. Instantaneously, the incoming assailants were encased in Ye Futian��s Great Path domain. The Light of Buddha, the Buddhist Voice, and the Divine Monument of World Suppression bombarded the Renhuangs trapped in the starry dimension. It was a horrific sight.


    Ye Futian didn��t consider eighth-order Renhuangs worthy of his attention.


    Just when one of the cultivators was about to fight back, Ye Futian kicked it up a notch. A brilliant and magnificent pattern became visible in the starry dimension, and a majestic Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird emerged in the sky. The bird was slaughtering various big demon beasts as though it was the king of beasts.


    The extraordinary phenomenon looked remarkably real. Even Old Ma was staggered by the scene unfolding before his eyes.


    Everyone in the village knew that Ye Futian could comprehend the Divine Techniques and even cultivate them. Yet, no one realized that he had already achieved so much and could successfully conjure up the extraordinary phenomenon. The Divine Techniques were the villagers�� unique heritage. How did Ye Futian master the techniques as an outsider?


    Anyway, Ye Futian managed to do it. He charged at one of the cultivators like the Golden Wing Roc Emperor, who could put any monster to death.


    Ye Futian��s target was busy blocking the attack from the Divine Monument. He was barely holding up against the Divine Monument when Ye Futian rushed toward him as the Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird. A glint of golden light flashed briefly, and blood sprayed across the sky. Another eighth-order Renhuang was hurled away.


    ��He is so powerful. He can defeat an eighth-order Renhuang with one strike.�� The onlookers were dumbfounded. The terrifying Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird soared in the sky and pounced on their enemies. All the eighth-order Renhuangs were brought to their knees in the blink of an eye. No one could block Ye Futian��s path.


    The eighth-order Renhuangs suffered the same fate as the seventh-order ones. They were not good enough to stop Ye Futian.


    ��It would be a tremendous feat even if his quest ended here,�� someone far away from the palace commented. Ye Futian had demonstrated superb strength and talents. No wonder he could become a well-known spokesperson of Four Corner Village in the Donghua Domain despite being an outsider.


    Even Duan Yi and Duan Shang, who were under Old Ma��s control, were amazed by Ye Futian��s performance so far. They never expected this Alchemy Grandmaster to have such extraordinary fighting ability. Even eighth-order Renhuangs couldn��t stop him from advancing.


    There were always people better than you, no matter how good you might think you were. Duan Yi��s foolish plot against Ye Futian only backfired on himself.


    While Ye Futian was striding forward, Duan Tianxiong spoke up, ��Everyone below the ninth-order should stay back.��


    Many Renhuangs who attempted to thwart Ye Futian immediately drew back and left the battlefield. They were not capable enough to join the fight and could only watch from the sidelines.


    A ninth-order Renhuang showed up in front of Ye Futian.


    He stood firm like an insurmountable mountain that was blocking Ye Futian��s way.


    Ye Futian also stopped and gazed at the middle-aged man in front of him. The man with indomitable spirit put up a stout defense with his presence. Ye Futian��s face grew somber.


    After all, Ye Futian was only a fifth-order Renhuang. His cultivation level was significantly lower than his opponent��s. Even though he had activated the emperor��s will to kill someone of the ninth-order in the past, he was well aware that a ninth-order Renhuang would be a formidable enemy.

 Chapter 2145 - Invincible Spear

    Ye Futian stood there. Then suddenly, a surge of powerful might covered the entire ancient royal family. The feeling was suffocating.


    Surrounded by divine light, Ye Futian could only feel a divine force pushing against him. It was mighty and reminded him of the feeling of being immobile.


    In front of him, the ninth-realm Renhuang��s body emanated a might that felt like it originated from a Tianshen. The Renhuang stared at Ye Futian. A sense of grandeur emanated from his body. This practitioner was a royal member of an ancient royal family. While he was not a core member, he was still powerful.


    Then, his gaze shifted towards Ye Futian. In that instant, Ye Futian could only sense a powerful force hidden within his gaze, and it was a pressure that came directly from the spiritual soul.


    The winds and clouds over the Ancient Imperial City changed their colors as if the entire palace had transformed into his Great Path of Space. Beams of divine light flowed around as the figure of an ancient god appeared. It was stalwart and lofty.


    Ye Futian raised his head and saw multiple giant god figures appear in the sky. A vast amount of might emanated from each, and every giant god figure, all who were outsiders to the Ancient Imperial City trembled in their hearts. The might was too powerful. This was the strength of the Ancient Royal Family of Duan.


    At that moment, the ninth-plane Renhuang moved his body. He took a step forward, and the foot of a Tianshen descended from above. The sky quickly changed color, and the frightening storm pressed against Ye Futian, intending to crush him.


    All around Ye Futian, the starry Great Path domain was crumbling, stars were breaking into pieces, and the divine monument was cracking. At that moment, everything was going to be destroyed. The space he occupied was about to be completely crushed.


    Ye Futian��s gaze shifted towards the sky. The formless giant leg was stomping downward, intent on crushing everything within its range. He raised both his arms and swung them forward. Instantly, countless Doors of Space danced forward. These Doors of Space seemed to have formed a separate independent space until a gigantic light screen of space that devoured everything was formed.


    When the attacks landed, they directly fell into the Doors of Space.


    Boom�� From the space, a shockingly loud explosion was heard. After that, the Doors of Space shattered into pieces. Frighteningly powerful aftershocks continued to descend upon Ye Futian. His body shook violently before falling straight down from the sky, landing upon the light screen covering the ancient royal family. It was extremely heavy.


    When a type of Power of the Great Path reaches a peak level, a mighty force would be created.


    The ninth plane. It was the peak cultivation level of a Renhuang. The attack of someone so powerful, just how frighteningly strong was it? No matter how talented a person was, it would still be challenging to withstand it.


    The hearts of those watching from afar skipped a beat when they saw this scene unfold before them. However, this was actually what should have happened. Ye Futian was already freakishly strong, but ultimately, he was limited by the constraints of his plane level. For a person on the fifth plane level to fight against someone on the ninth plane level? It was just incredulous. It was almost impossible.


    The ability that he had shown at the fifth plane level was already amazing and shocking enough.


    Rumble�� Just as the onlookers were deep in their thoughts, the ninth-plane Renhuang continued to walk forward. As he walked, everything around him shook. Every step he took felt as if the mountains and rivers would crumble. The blood of the Renhuangs within the ancient royal family boiled. Some even made some low grunting sounds as they became collateral damage.


    The huge battle had also affected the other Renhuangs.


    Meanwhile, Ye Futian was right in the center of the mighty attack. One could only imagine the kind of pressure he was facing.


    Then, Ye Futian slightly lowered his head. A ninth plane level was still too much for him to deal with, after all. Moreover, he was not your everyday run of the mill ninth-plane Renhuang. He was a member of the Duan Ancient Royal Family. Perhaps Ye Futian would only have the strength to fight against ninth-plane level figures after reaching the Renhuang sixth plane level.


    ��You��ve done pretty well. This battle today will be enough to spread your name everywhere. However, provoking our great Duan royal family has its price,�� said the Renhuang loudly. His voice shook and spread all across the land. Just his loud and powerful voice was enough to feel the authority of heaven. When he continued to step forward, Ye Futian made a slight grunting sound.


    He raised his head and glared straight at the person walking towards him. Then, he said, ��Really?��


    Just as he finished speaking, an immensely powerful and endless aura spread from his body. It was an exuberant life aura. Spiritual wills rose instantly from that point onward. At the same time, a ��dong�� sound could be heard between the sky and land as if a heart was beating. Ye Futian��s blood boiled in his vessels. Then, a beautiful array of divine light burst forth from his body. It was the Light of the Demon God.


    Vuong! Strong and billowing winds raged between heaven and earth, and a holy, illusory divine and gigantic peacock that covered the sky appeared. Ye Futian took a step and charged into the sky. He stood at the center of the peacock illusion. The peacock spread its wings like a demon god; its wings had multiple eyes, each of which released a beam of frightening divine light that created multiple continuous explosions all around his body. As the Great Path was crumbling, these beams of divine light had directly destroyed the Power of the Great Path pressing against him.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was like the son of the Demon God.


    ��Imperial Glory and the Peacock Demon God.�� The overlord of the Duan Ancient Royal Family��s gaze rested on Ye Futian. He heard that Ye Futian was pursued by Ning Yuan from the main house of the Donghua Domain because of these. He broke the seal off a ruin, and he had personally witnessed today the true strength of the Peacock Demon God.


    Ye Futian extended his hand. Then, suddenly, in his palm, a spear suddenly appeared. Surrounded by a monstrous amount of battle will and devouring tens of thousands of divine light. At that moment, Ye Futian stood there, and he looked like the peerless god of war. Even if facing against a ninth-plane level Renhuang, he could still fight.


    ��Hmph.�� A cold grunt was heard. The ninth-plane cultivator moved another step forward. This time, a towering Tianshen stomped downward with the intent to destroy everything in its path. Ye Futian��s figure looked immensely small when compared to the illusory the Tianshen.


    However, the illusory body of the peacock had materialized. Divine Lights of the Great Path were released, and with his body as the center, a frightening and destructive domain was formed. Great Path continued to be crushed.


    Vuong! Winds raged as the Peacock Demon God��s flapped its wings. Divine light burst forth and filled the area. Ye Futian raised his arm and thrust his spear towards the illusory Tianshen. What followed was a gigantic illusion of a peacock charging towards the Tianshen. Countless illusory spears also appeared at the same time. Every spear thrust was like a ray of divine light.


    The illusory peacock and Tianshen clashed together. Great Paths were on the verge of crumbling. Many people could only feel heaven and earth breaking apart. Countless rays of divine light struck the body of the Tianshen, puncturing and creating multiple holes on its body. After that, the Tianshen��s illusory body began to crumble and dissolve.


    ��He can actually put up a fight against a ninth plane Renhuang?�� Many people were shocked, and they could not put their shock into words. Was that really just someone on the fifth plane level?


    At that moment, everyone who was watching the battle seemed to have forgotten Ye Futian��s plane level. The only thing they felt was that this was a battle between truly might figures. It was unbelievably intense and crazy.


    The expression on the face of the ninth plane level Renhuang of the Duan ancient royal family became several degrees colder after he witnessed the scene before him. His expression turned serious. He stepped into the sky. In that instant, the only thing everyone could feel was that the world was crumbling. Countless meteorites fell from the sky towards Ye Futian. Every single one of those meteorites looked like they could shatter the sky. If it were any other common Renhuang, he or she would undoubtedly be crushed instantly.


    The aura emanating from Ye Futian��s body became even wilder. The giant illusory Peacock Demon God spread its wings. Blades of divine light shot towards those falling meteorites and turned them into dust.


    ��Rumble, rumble, rumble���� The sky shook. The space where Ye Futian was located looked like the Tianshen had buried it. The Tianshens looked down at him at the same time. After that, they raised their gigantic legs and stomped toward the space that Ye Futian was in. They wanted to completely bury that space.


    Heavy. Solemn. Ye Futian��s space had turned into an absolute forbidden domain. It looked like everything was about to become still and be destroyed by this great force.


    Under this great force, Ye Futian was also withstanding a frightening pressure. He felt like he was going to be killed by this great force. Inside his body, his heart beat intensely. Surrounded by divine light, it looked like the heart of a demon god.


    He had already devoured the divine heart of the peacock. Its power was terrifying.


    Ba-dum, ba-dum, ba-dum�� In the vast space, the hearts of everyone within also beat intensely, as if they were going to break into pieces.


    ��What is this power?�� They looked toward the direction where they sensed the power came from. It was where Ye Futian was located. The unparalleled power was bursting from his body.


    The next moment, all they could see were countless blades of beautiful and bright divine lights shooting out. These blades of divine light pierced the sky and destroyed the descending meteorites. The blades of lights looked like the Tianshen��s light that destroyed everything in its path; it seemed as if there was nothing they could not destroy.


    ��Vuong!�� Ye Futian��s body also started to move at that moment. The gigantic illusory peacock��s body charged towards a certain direction along with countless blades of divine light. The divine lights merged into the spear, and battle will completely engulfed the entire area.


    Ye Futian��s spear thrust forward. In an instant, one Tianshen turned into dust. The gigantic Peacock Demon God��s illusory body charged towards a location, and it was the location of the ninth plane level Renhuang.


    His expression changed slightly. A Tianshen appeared near him while a frightening defensive force was formed around him.


    The gigantic peacock arrived. Ye Futian��s spear devoured the divine light and arrived instantaneously.


    Bang�� Everything was going to be crushed. It was invincible. The Tianshen crumbled, and his opponent��s defense was instantly dissolved.


    A spear directly arrived right in front of the ninth plane level Renhuang. A terrifying storm of the Great Path raged and caused the long hair and shirt of the Renhuang to flutter and dance wildly. Two mighty Power of the Great Path had clashed together. However, Ye Futian��s spear did not reach its target. Otherwise, it would have already broken through his opponent��s defensive Power of the Great Path and pierced right between his eyes.


    The ninth plane level Renhuang stared at the white-haired figure in front of him intensely. The two bright eyes first showed shock. Then, they became darker. Finally, it was a look of relief. He lamented quietly, ��The youth has surpassed the older generation.��


    After that, he turned around and walked toward a certain place. He bowed to Duan Tianxiong and said, ��This subordinate is useless.��


    A ninth plane level Renhuang was not able to block Ye Futian��s attack. Defeat.


    The Duan Ancient Royal Family became eerily quiet. No one thought that Ye Futian would ever get this far. A ninth plane level Renhuang was defeated by a fifth plane level Renhuang. It was as if there was nothing that could stop him from moving forward.


    On that day, was the ancient royal family of Duan that controlled the Giant Gods Continent about to be broken by Ye Futian alone?


    It looks like the Shangqing Domain will soon have another famous great figure, thought the practitioners outside the palace. Their hearts shivered. The Shangqing Domain did not have that many great figures of this caliber!

 Chapter 2146 - Concessions

    On this day, whether or not Ye Futian could utterly defeat the ancient royal family of Duan or not, his name would spread worldwide. This battle would make him famous.


    A person at the fifth plane level had actually infiltrated the ancient royal family of Duan. Seventh and eighth plane level Renhuangs could barely last a round against him. And even when a ninth plane level Renhuang appeared, he was still defeated by the hands of Ye Futian. This battle record of his was completely unheard of.


    The ancient royal family of Duan��s Giant Gods Continent was a Middle Three Heavens of the Upper Nine Heavens. Ye Futian being able to break into the ancient royal family of Duan meant that he who was at the fifth plane level had already made his way into the ranks of some of the mightiest cultivators of Shangqing Domain. He was truly a fifth plane mighty figure.


    Old Ma was also shocked by the strength displayed by Ye Futian over the course of this battle. So, the divine technique of Four Corner Village was only the icing on an already amazing cake that was Ye Futian. The techniques and skills that he possessed were already so amazingly powerful. A person like him was definitely not any weaker than the awakened people in their village. Ye Futian was truly a person who could lead Four Corner Village forward in the future.


    Master could not leave Four Corner Village. Ye Futian could become the representative of Four Corner Village.


    After all, after Four Corner Village entered the world, they had to stand on the peak of the Shangqing Domain. He himself was not sufficient; they needed someone even stronger to stand up. It was not that Old Ma was too ambitious, but it was necessary. Considering everything that had happened up to that point, if Four Corner Village were not powerful, could not even exist in the world?


    Their Four Corner Village was more special than any other factions. As such, they had to stand on the top.


    At that moment, within the ancient royal family, figures stepped into the air one by one. They appeared in front of Ye Futian. It was not a lot of people, and they stood in different locations. However, the aura emanating from each of them was terrifying. A strong and oppressive pressure radiated from them. They released the aura from their bodies, and it looked like they were just as powerful as the ninth plane level Renhuang that Ye Futian had just defeated earlier.


    While there was not a lot of them, they were truly the strength of the ancient royal family of Duan. Apart from the overlord, they were the key reason why the ancient royal family of Duan could conquer the Giant Gods Continent. Each of them was a mighty figure that could completely change the world just from a few stomps if they wanted to.


    Some of them were even figures that the practitioners of the ancient royal family rarely saw in their daily lives. They only stepped up after Ye Futian defeated the ninth plane level Renhuang. Clearly, they were shocked by the battle, hence, why they stepped out of the land of cultivation.


    For example, in a spot further away from Ye Futian, somewhere deep within the ancient royal family��s base, an elder stood on top of an ancient palace. He donned a simple long robe, but the power radiating from his body gave a sense that he was immovable. He was an elder of the ancient royal family. He spent most of his days deep in cultivation but was alerted and stepped out due to the earlier fight.


    Seeing the appearance of these people, the hearts of the outsiders watching the battle shivered intensely. It looked like even though Ye Futian had defeated a ninth plane level Renhuang, defeating the ancient royal family of Duan was quite impossible. The difficulty was immense. Even some ancient and old monsters had now appeared.


    In this place, it was a given that figures who had reached the peak of the Renhuang for many years and were single-mindedly dedicated to breaking their shackles so that they may reach the next level existed. Such figures were too frightening.


    None of these people would be easy to deal with. For Ye Futian to go through them and defeat them one by one, it was simply an impossible task.


    However, after the battle, no one would ever underestimate Ye Futian. Even if he were to lose right now, his name would still spread far and wide. His exceptional battle record since stepping into the palace was enough.


    Among the ranks of ninth plane level Duan ancient royal family cultivators, there was a person who was at the sixth plane level. This person was extremely talented, and his aura was exceptional. Even when he was standing among a group of esteemed ninth plane level cultivators, he did not seem out of place. The Might of the Great Path emanating from his body was not inferior in any way.


    This person was the prince of the Duan ancient royal family, Duan Qiong.


    Before, he thought that Ye Futian had bitten off more than he could chew. He was sure that Ye Futian would not be able to get past him.


    Ye Futian was a fifth plane level Renhuang with a perfect grade Great Path. However, he was a sixth plane level Renhuang who also had a perfect grade Great Path.


    They both possessed perfect grade Great Paths. The difference in their plane level was insurmountable. Not to mention, he was the prince of a royal family. It was natural that he had absolute confidence in himself. Ye Futian��s arrival was simply the delivery of some divine techniques.


    However, right then, even though he still did not think that Ye Futian was capable of defeating the ancient royal family, at the very least, he was not confident enough to say that Ye Futian��s combat strength was beneath him.


    There was even a high probability that Ye Futian was stronger than him.


    ��Duan Qiong, what do you think your chances of winning are if you were to fight him?�� At that time, someone��s voice reached his ears. It was the overlord, Duan Tianxiong��s voice, asking him a question.


    ��Not much chance at all,�� answered Duan Qiong. The power emanating from Ye Futian��s body, the demonic imperial divine brilliance made him feel, albeit slightly, that if he were faced against Ye Futian��s attack, it was likely that he would not be able to withstand more than a few strikes.


    ��Yes,�� answered Duan Tianxiong. ��The Donghua Domain actually let someone like this go. Since Ning Yuan did not keep him for himself, he should not have let him leave the Donghua Domain alive. He would most definitely haunt him in the future. It is no wonder they sent two such amazingly strong cultivators from the Donghua Domain to Four Corner City. It looks like they have also realized that. And now, we are also at a crossroads and need to make a choice. Tell me what you think.��


    Duan Qiong instantly understood what his father meant.


    His father said that since Ning Yuan did not use Ye Futian, he should not have let him leave. He should have killed him.


    Now, the ancient royal family of Duan should consider how they want to interact with Ye Futian. They needed to consider the relationship between them. Defeating Ye Futian and taking the divine techniques meant that they would become enemies. Four Corner Village would never forget this, and Ye Futian would most likely remember it as well. Then, it was highly probable that they would end up as enemies.


    Based on his father��s words, an enemy like that should not be left alone and must either be killed immediately, or they should not make a potential enemy like that in the first place.


    Even though, at that moment, Ye Futian could not yet threaten the ancient royal family of Duan, what about the future? He was only at the fifth plane level at the moment. Once he stepped into the ninth plane, if he still maintained his perfect grade Great Path, just how strong would he be?


    ��Father, killing Ye Futian is the equivalent of starting a war with Four Corner Village. Moreover, under the circumstances of today, it is quite immoral and shameful. Furthermore, the master of Four Corner Village is an unknown factor. Also, Duan Yi and Sister Shang are in their hands. This choice would be quite dangerous,�� analyzed Duon Qiong. Then, he said, ��As such, I suggest we give it up.��


    ��Yes,�� answered the overlord Duan Tianxiong. ��It looks like we have to give up the divine techniques.��


    ��The cultivation of the divine technique is to give our Duan family another method. It won��t change anything essentially,�� answered Duan Qiong.


    ��But, one of the seven great divine techniques of Four Corner Village is somewhat similar to the power that we cultivate. We had wanted to take it to see how we can assimilate the technique into our cultivation. But since we��ve already reached this step, we can forget about it,�� Dun Tianxiong said. He had already made up his mind.


    Just as Duan Qiong said, killing Ye Futian was, in truth, an unwise choice. It was not possible to do that. Now that the battle had already reached this stage, ignoring his position, he actually admired this youngster a lot. His achievements in the future could be incredible.


    If he chose not to kill Ye Futian, it would mean that he had no choice but to give up the divine techniques.


    Ye Futian did not know what Duan Tianxiong was thinking. He continued forward. The peacock divine light on his body shone brightly as he held the spear in his hand. He stepped forward toward another cultivator at the ninth plane level.


    At the same time, the ninth plane cultivator released a shocking aura. His face was solemn. He treated the battle seriously. After the previous battle, who would dare underestimate the fifth plane level Renhuang in front of them?


    ��That is fine.�� At that moment, a sound suddenly rang in the air.


    Gazes shifted quickly towards the person who spoke. It was actually the overlord of the Duan ancient royal family, Duan Tianxiong.


    ��That��s enough. You can step back,�� said Duan Tianxiong. The ninth-plane Renhuang looked at his overlord with a slightly confused face. However, he still obeyed the command and stepped back.


    Ye Futian was also similarly confused. He looked at Duan Tianxiong, perplexed.


    Duan Tianxiong looked at Ye Futian and said with a loud voice, ��While the battle today has not finished, the ancient royal family of Duan has lost. For so many powerful cultivators to fight a Renhuang of the fifth plane, even if we win at this stage, it would still count as a defeat. So, there is no need to continue fighting.��


    Many people had looks of realization on their faces after hearing Duan Tianxiong��s words. Indeed, the ancient royal family of Duan��s ninth plane figures had appeared, but so what if they defeated Ye Futian?


    Even if they had won, it would still count as a defeat. However, they would be able to get their hands on the divine technique.


    The battle itself did not really have much meaning. Ye Futian��s battle had proven that he was strong.


    ��Ye Futian, a younger generation fifth plane Renhuang has defeated members of our Duan ancient royal family. With your own strength, you entered our palace. Even though I��m a little bit annoyed, I have to admit that no one in our Duan family can stand head-to-head against you in terms of abilities. This battle can be considered a lesson to them all. Let��s leave this matter as it is,�� Duan Tianxiong said, addressing Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at him oddly and said, ��So����


    ��Let them go,�� Duan Tianxiong looked toward a direction. Ye Futian��s gaze shifted there, and after a brief moment, from the depths of the palace, two figures leaped across the sky and moved towards them. One of them was Fang Gai, while the other one, a person who had a few points of similarities to Fang Gai, was naturally Fang Huan.


    ��Thank you for obliging, lord,�� Ye Futian said to Duan Tianxiong with a polite bow. ��This young one also experienced great pressure in the last battle. If I were to keep fighting, there��s a high chance I will lose. My actions today were also because I had no choice. Now that you have fulfilled my quest, this young one is immensely grateful.��


    With the other person being the lord of a royal family whose side still held the initiative, Ye Futian was naturally not going to make a fuss about it, especially since it was the overlord who was willing to take a step back and end things peacefully. After all, if their opponents were to keep going on forcefully, they would not have had any other choice.


    Old Ma was also very grateful after seeing this. He did not expect things to end early. He was also anxious about Ye Futian earlier. The ancient royal family of Duan willingly letting their captives go was, naturally, the best result they could wish for.


    He also let go of Duan Yi and Duan Shang and said, ��Apologies for the offense.��


    The two who were freed were also incredibly grateful. They leaped into the air and stepped back into the sky above their ancient royal family palace. They gazed at Ye Futian. They would most likely never forget the battle on this day. The Alchemy Grandmaster had actually struck and successfully infiltrated their ancient royal family of Duan all by himself.


    If things were to continue, no one would know what would have happened. Even though Ye Futian humbly said that he would lose, no one really knew how things would end for events that did not transpire. Ye Futian also gave the ancient royal family some face.


    Both sides had made concessions to end this debacle!

 Chapter 2147 - Bury the Hatchet

    The father and son duo of Fang Gai and Fang Huan met up with Ye Futian and Old Ma. Fang Gai��s gaze fell on Ye Futian. His heart was filled with emotions. It looked like pushing Ye Futian for the position back then was the right choice. Nonetheless, the old him never would have anticipated something like this happening today.


    Ye Futian attacked the ancient royal family alone to save the two of them. It was a battle between him and the ancient royal family of Duan��s overlord. While the battle had not yet ended completely, Ye Futian��s domineering and overbearing strength had completely convinced Duan Tianxiong, the overlord of the Duan family.


    They naturally understood that Duan Tianxiong freeing the two of them early was due to Duan Tianxiong realizing Ye Futian��s limitless potential. He most likely did not want to become Ye Futian��s enemy in the future, which was why he took a step back and released the two of them early instead of letting the battle continue.


    ��Thank you for your hard work,�� Fang Gai thanked Ye Futian.


    ��I��m just glad you��re both fine,�� Ye Futian answered with a casual smile.


    ��I heard father said that Fang Cun had found himself a teacher. I was worried about who the teacher was; whether he could teach Fang Cun or not. But now, it looks like I worried for nothing. This is Fang Cun��s luck,�� Fang Huan said, which made Ye Futian look toward him. While Fang Huan��s hair was a little messy, his outstanding aura could still be felt. His bright eyes and piercing gaze showed that he possessed an exceptional aura.


    ��Fang Cun is brilliant. He does not need much teaching,�� answered Ye Futian with a chuckle.


    Fang Huan nodded and bowed slightly to Old Ma. ��Uncle Ma.��


    ��After several years of not seeing each other, I see that you��ve matured some more,�� said Old Ma with a laugh. In truth, he had become very seasoned. Back when he left, he looked green and young, and traces of his age were nowhere to be found. It looked like he had experienced a lot over the past decade.


    Then, at that moment, someone said, ��Fang Huan.�� They turned around to look at the source of the voice. It was Duan Tianxiong. Then, he said loudly, ��With regards to the event of the past, both sides had faults. However, we will forget about it completely. Let��s treat it as if nothing had happened before and forget about everything. What do you say?��


    Fang Huan nodded. ��I was also in the wrong in that incident. Since Your Highness is willing to forget about it, I have no qualms about it.��


    Both were exceptional people. They would not let themselves be tangled in something like that for a long time. Both sides had lost some face. However, now that they had both decided to take a step back to resolve this grudge match, they would not keep dwelling on it. They had at least that amount of magnanimity.


    ��Alright. Since that is settled, we understand that Mr. Ma and everyone from Four Corner Village came from afar. What say you we sit down, have a drink, and bury the hatchet? We can also use it to celebrate Four Corner Village��s entry into the world.�� Duan Tianxiong said. Then, he asked, ��What do you say?��


    ��If Your Highness is willing to hold a banquet, we would be honored to attend,�� Old Ma replied. The implication of Duan Tianxiong holding a banquet for them was not only just that they had buried the hatchet, but there was also the recognition of Four Corner Village��s entry into the world. To the current Four Corner Village, it had an extraordinary meaning. Naturally, there was no downside to having an additional faction recognize them.


    Perhaps enemies could become friends. Who��s to say what could happen? Now that they had entered the world to cultivate, it was natural that they had to consider many things.


    ��Very straightforward. Please, go ahead,�� Duan Tianxiong said. After that, he strode downward.


    Old Ma and the others followed behind. Inside and outside of the ancient royal family of Duan��s palace, all the practitioners felt as if they were inside a dream. A raging battle had suddenly de-escalated. In addition to that, the two sides involved in the battle decided to bury the hatchet just like that, and they were even going to drink liquor together.


    Not long ago, Fang Gai was still a prisoner of the ancient royal family. Then, in the blink of an eye, he had become a VIP guest?


    The switch of position was so drastic and fast that many still could not wrap their head around it.


    And the one that caused all these to happen was not any of the big shots from the Four Corner Village. Instead, it was the exceptional and stylish white-haired youngster called Ye Futian.


    His name would spread far and wide because of this battle. Moreover, it had made the overlord of the ancient royal family of Duan recognize his strength and want to interact with him.


    Of course, considering the strength displayed by Ye Futian in the battle, Duan Tianxiong��s admiration and recognition of him was more than expected.


    ��


    Inside the ancient royal family base, a banquet was set up in front of a large hall. All the core figures of the ancient royal family of Duan were present. The Duan ancient royal family overlord Duan Tianxiong, the crown prince Duan Qiong, and the prince Duan Yi and princess Duan Shang and others.


    Duan Tianxiong sat in the main seat. The number one person on the guest side of the seats was Old Ma, and directly opposite him was the crown prince Duan Qiong.


    After Old Ma, the seats were occupied by Fang Gai, Ye Futian, and the others.


    Before long, delicacies and cuisine were served. Beautiful women surrounded them as food and liquor were served up. It was a very harmonious atmosphere. There were no signs of a battle or grudge remaining. It even looked as if they were friends who had come to visit.


    ��I��ve always had a wish to go walk around Four Corner Village and visit the master since a long time ago. However, due to the prohibition order, I have never been able to head there personally. Nonetheless, I have been an admirer of Four Corner Village for many years. I wanted to get my hands on the divine technique this time because the cultivation technique of our royal family is somewhat similar to one of the divine techniques of Four Corner Village. That��s why I wanted to take a look,�� said Duan Tianxiong. He did not have any reservations and spoke his mind. Since they had already made peace with each other, there was no need to avoid the topic.


    ��Indeed.�� Old Ma nodded. The divine technique inherited by the Shi Family was similar to the cultivation technique of the ancient royal family. It was also one of the seven great divine techniques passed down from their ancestors, the Starry War Song. Its attack power was extremely strong, and its impact frightening.


    Naturally, Ye Futian also knew of this technique. He had even cultivated it a little.


    ��Many years ago, the Shangqing Domain was very respectful to Four Corner Village. Otherwise, we would not have sent people over there to obtain Great Path opportunities generation after generation. However, Four Corner Village��s decision to enter the world has caused many factions to raise their guard. That��s also one of the reasons why everyone keeps testing you. However, after today��s incident, we, the Duan family, are no longer an enemy of Four Corner Village,�� Duan Tianxiong said. Then, he continued to say, ��After drinking this cup, every unhappy thing or incident that took place in the past will no longer be brought up.��


    As he spoke, he raised his cup to Old Ma and the others. Everyone raised their cups and drank their liquor all in one go. They smiled and forgot old grudges and all other unhappy things.


    ��The Four Corner Village itself is already very mysterious and powerful. I would never have thought that the Donghua Domain would send such an exceptional person away to the Four Corner Village. I wonder what Ning Yuan, the chief of the Donghua Domain��s main house, was thinking,�� Duan Tianxiong said while looking at Ye Futian. He continued, ��Did he not try to recruit you into the main house of the domain?��


    He had heard of the incidents that took place in the Donghua Domain. It caused quite a ruckus. The Millet Emperor had started a war against the main house��s chief Ning Yuan behind the back of Wangshen Watchtower. As such, news of this had also spread to the other domains. The incident did not shine a very positive light on Ning Yuan. However, concerning the specifics of what had happened, that was unclear to Duan Tianxiong. After all, he did not try very hard to get the details.


    ��Elder, you might find this funny, but back when I accompanied Wangshen Watchtower to the Donghua Heavens to take part in the Donghua banquet organized by the domain��s main house, my original intention was to join the domain��s main house,�� Ye Futian said while laughing at himself. Back then, he wanted to rely on the main house and deal with some potential threats.


    ��Oh?�� Duan Tianxiong looked surprised. They did not take in a monstrously powerful person like him even when he went to them himself?


    ��In truth, before I participated in the Donghua banquet, the chief of the domain��s main house, Ning Yuan, had already allied with the Lingxiao Palace and the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family to deal with Wangshen Watchtower. However, Wangshen Watchtower only thought that the latter two were targeting them. They did not know that Ning Yuan was behind the plan. We went there without knowing it, but our enemies had already planned and set up everything in advance so that they could kill the practitioners of Wangshen Watchtower, including me,�� answered Ye Futian.


    ��Understood,�� Duan Tianxiong nodded. Then, he said, ��That means that your respective positions were already set in stone before you��d even met. By the time Ning Yuan realized your talent, he would only want to kill you as soon as possible so that he may eliminate any future problems.��


    ��That��s right.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��I��m afraid Ning Yuan will regret this in the future,�� Duan Tianxiong said with a laugh. ��If I were Ning Yuan, I would also most likely try to eliminate you. There would be too many future problems. You should be careful when you are moving about outside in the future.��


    ��This young one knows.�� Ye Futian nodded. Naturally, he understood this.


    ��Now, you have Four Corner Village behind you. Even Ning Yuan would have to be cautious with you. I��m sure he isn��t very comfortable right now,�� said Duan Tianxiong, laughing. It was easy for him to understand what Ning Yuan was feeling. When he made his decision earlier, he had considered similar factors.


    ��I noticed that you have quite a variety of cultivation techniques. I��m sure you did not only cultivate and train at Wangshen Watchtower, right? I��m guessing you were already pretty talented and amazing before that. Moreover, you also excel at alchemy. Do you not have your own family faction?�� At that time, the crown prince Duan Qiong looked at and asked Ye Futian curiously.


    ��I come from the Original Realm,�� Ye Futian replied. It was not a secret. Anyone would easily find out where he was from as long as they did some digging into the events that transpired in the Donghua Domain.


    Duan Qiong was stunned. He had heard of the Original Realm before. He was quite shocked and never thought that Ye Futian was a practitioner from the Original Realm.


    With that, everything was possible. They did not understand the Original Realm and only heard that the Original Realm was the source of everything. However, it had long waned. Many years ago, the channel to the Original Realm was opened. Many people went there to look for opportunities. That included some of the top factions of the Divine Prefecture. Of course, some of the factions already had ties with the Original Realm.


    It looked like Ye Futian��s experiences were very complicated.


    It was also impossible for them to know what kind of environment helped create such an exceptional person.


    ��Brother Ye��s cultivation techniques are incredibly powerful. You excel at multiple types of Great Path, and your strength is profound that you make us ashamed of ourselves,�� said Duan Qiong. In the earlier battle, Ye Futian showed different types of power, and each one of them was very powerful.


    ��Your highness, your praise is too much,�� answered Ye Futian with a chuckle.


    ��You��re both going to be the best of the best in the future. You should interact with each other more,�� said Duan Tianxiong. He hoped that Ye Futian could become friends with his offspring.


    ��Most certainly. Moreover, I sure had some luck with brother Duan and Princess Shang,�� said Ye Futian while laughing. He raised his cup apologetically to the two.


    ��What the grandmaster said is right,�� Duan Yi raised his cup while smiling forcefully. He spoke and ridiculed himself a little.


    ��Your highness the prince and princess, I hope you don��t bear a grudge,�� said Ye Futian apologetically. Then, he raised his cup and drank it all in one shot. The two also drank their cups. The situation had already reached this stage, so it was natural for them to keep the past in the past. Moreover, the issue between them was not big.


    ��Haha!�� Duan Tianxiong found the young ones interesting and let out a hearty laugh. After that, he looked at Old Ma and Fang Gai. Then, he raised his cup and said, ��We will drink too!��


    Old Ma and Fang Gai raised their cups and drank together. The banquet was filled with laughter, and the atmosphere was excellent. Seeing the atmosphere at the banquet, no one would have been able to guess that the two sides were engaged in a huge battle that shook the entire continent!

 Chapter 2148 - : Visit

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    While everyone was drinking to their hearts�� content at the banquet, Overlord Duan Tianxiong said to Old Ma, ��I have a suggestion. How about we build a teleportation grand matrix between Four Corner City and Giant Gods City?��


    It meant that people living in the two cities could teleport through the teleportation grand matrix rather than traveling all the war across the continent.


    ��Since Four Corner Village has joined the rest of the world, you certainly need to establish contact with the Upper Nine Heavens. It would cost everyone tremendous effort and time if they had to travel across the continent each time. However, with a teleportation grand matrix, the villagers could get to Giant Gods City right away or use it as a transfer station if they wish to visit other places in the Upper Nine Heavens,�� said Duan Tianxiong.


    Giant Gods City was located in the Middle Third Heavens of the Upper Nine Heavens, an integral part of the Nine Heavens Continents. Meanwhile, the Four Corner Continent was in a remote area that was far away from everywhere else. Although master cultivators like Old Ma had no problem traveling across the continent, it was rather time-consuming for other people.


    Old Ma pondered for a while. It was a nice proposal that would benefit Four Corner Village a great deal. Duan Tianxiong obviously wanted to establish a friendship with Four Corner Village. However, courtesy demanded reciprocity. Four Corner Village had to pay Giant Gods City in some way if they wished to gain from Duan Tianxiong��s work.


    ��Old Ma, I think it��s feasible,�� said Fang Gai.


    Old Ma also nodded and said, ��In that case, we will have to trouble Brother Duan.��


    Old Ma felt comfortable with addressing Duan Tianxiong less formally now.


    ��It��s not a big deal. I will personally order people to build the teleportation grand matrix. In the future, if Futian or anyone else in the village wants to cultivate in the Upper Nine Heavens, they can come to Giant Gods City and spend some time in my palace. We will have more chances to hang out together and exchange ideas,�� Duan Tianxiong said with a smile.


    As the saying went: ��Out of blows, friendship grows.�� Duan Tianxiong had started to appreciate Ye Futian for the talents he displayed during the fight. He had also grown to respect the magical Four Corner Village. Since he decided not to hanker after the Divine Techniques anymore, it would hurt him to become friends with Ye Futian and Four Corner Village.


    ��Alright,�� Old Ma nodded and said, ��The cultivators of the ancient royal family of Duan can also come to visit our village through the teleportation grand matrix.��


    Duan Tianxiong cracked a smile and glanced at Old Ma, who apparently knew to reciprocate the gesture. He nodded and said, ��We thank you for your hospitality in advance. Our youngsters have long been yearning for a visit to the village. I will surely send them here to feel the magic of Four Corner Village personally.��


    ��That way, I will be able to come to invite Brother Ye to join me if there is anything exciting happening in the Upper Nine Heavens,�� Duan Qiong chimed in with a broad grin on his face.


    ��I��m new to the Shangqing Domain. Brother Duan, I indeed have to trouble you to take me along if anything is exciting,�� Ye Futian nodded and replied. He didn��t turn down Duan Qiong��s kind offer. There were many cultivation opportunities in the Divine Prefecture. He couldn��t stay in the village and cultivate in seclusion forever. Sooner or later, he had to go out and see the world.


    Duan Qiong had more access to information here. Ye Futian would join him gladly if he found some cultivation opportunities.


    Now that the ancient royal family of Duan had taken the initiative to befriend Four Corner Village, Ye Futian certainly wouldn��t reject them. It was always better to have more friends, even if they had ulterior motives behind their kindness. At this stage of the game, no one would spend time on people from whom they couldn��t benefit. Ye Futian was well aware that he could never have genuine friendship here as he had experienced in the Lower Worlds.


    He couldn��t find more real friends like Yu Sheng, Wucheng, or his senior brother.


    Ye Futian and the others bid their goodbyes and left after the banquet.


    After they were gone, countless people fervently discussed what happened here in Giant Gods City. The ancient royal family of Duan captured people from Four Corner Village and interrogated them about the Divine Techniques. Four Corner Village sent envoys to negotiate, while Ye Futian disguised as an Alchemy Grandmaster to approach the prince and princess. He took them as hostages and rose to fame by successfully forcing his way into the palace. The two sides somehow established a friendship after the fight and enjoyed a grand banquet in the palace. The dramatic turns of events almost seemed surreal.


    People heard that even Duan Qiong, the extraordinary Crown Prince of the ancient royal family of Duan, admitted his inferiority to Ye Futian with regret. The remarkable cultivator from Four Corner Village was allegedly more talented than anyone in the ancient royal family of Duan.


    Later, a piece of news came from the palace. The Overlord had ordered people to build a teleportation grand matrix to connect Giant Gods City and Four Corner City. The announcement astonished everyone again. Nevertheless, the teleportation grand matrix was beneficial to cultivators in the Giant Gods Continent as well. They would be able to visit Four Corner City through the matrix.


    In addition, Ye Futian��s reputation grew far and wide, beyond the Giant Gods Continent.


    Nevertheless, none of these was Ye Futian��s concern for now.


    ��


    Ye Futian and the others returned to Four Corner Village. Everyone was exhilarated to see Old Ma and Ye Futian came back with Fang Huan and Fang Gai.


    A person sprinted over from afar and stopped in front of everyone. It was Fang Cun.


    Ling, Tie Tou, and other kids followed Fang Cun behind. A lot of villagers were also coming, including several elders.


    ��Grandpa!�� Fang Cun shouted at Fang Gai. However, he was tongue-tied when he looked at Fang Huan.


    Fang Cun was only a young child when Fang Huan left the village. Now, he was a 15-year-old teenager.


    It was fair to say that Fang Huan wasn��t a responsible parent. Fang Cun hadn��t met his father for many years and didn��t have many memories about him either. Even so, he always remembered that his father left the village and put him into his grandpa��s care after his mother��s cultivation accident.


    Therefore, Fang Cun still had strong feelings for Fang Huan even though they hadn��t seen each other in years.


    ��Fang Cun.�� Fang Huan stepped forward with a smile. He gently rubbed Fang Cun��s head and said, ��You have grown up!��


    Fang Cun looked up at his father and said quietly, ��Dad.��


    ��Yes.�� A big grin spread across Fang Huan��s face. He struggled in the outside world for many years and lived through all kinds of experiences. But there was no place like home.


    All the villagers present smiled with gratification and muttered, ��It��s good you��re back. As long as you��re back����


    ��Old Ma, good job!�� an old man expressed his approval.


    ��It had nothing to do with me.�� Old Ma laughed, ��Futian brought them back. I probably wouldn��t be able to save them if not for him.��


    Many people were puzzled. Blind Tie asked, ��What happened?��


    After Old Ma briefly recounted the story, the villagers started to see Ye Futian in a new light. They held him in even higher regard and finally accepted him as one of them.


    Before this incident, although Ye Futian had done many things for the villagers and became one of the seven elders, he was always an outsider rather than a native born and raised in the village. Inevitably, people were more or less on their guard around him.


    However, Ye Futian single-handedly barged into the palace of the ancient royal family and saved Fang Huan and Fang Gai when they fell into dire straits. Even Shi Kui and Gu Huai couldn��t help but treat Ye Futian with more respect now.


    ��Thank you, master,�� Fang Cun bowed to Ye Futian and spoke loudly. The young people in the village had accepted and approved Ye Futian a long time ago. After all, they were more trusting and open and were willing to get close to anyone who treated them well. Ye Futian was the person who helped Little Ling and Duo Yu find their destinies.


    Fang Cun and Tie Tou also received significant help from him. Of course, Fang Cun would worship Ye Futian even more after he saved his father.


    ��You don��t need to be so courteous to me.�� Ye Futian flicked Fang Cun��s forehead. Fang Cun looked up and flashed a silly grin. He didn��t seem as mischievous as usual.


    ��Fang Huan spent so many years outside and finally came back. We must have a grand celebration. Should we prepare a banquet?�� an old man suggested.


    ��Good idea. We should celebrate the bright future of the village.�� Everyone was on board. The warm welcome also brought a smile to Fang Huan��s face.


    ��Home sweet home,�� Fang Gai said to Fang Huan in a low voice. He wondered if Fang Huan was still the same person after spending such a long time in the Outer Realms. He heard several years ago that Fang Huan had gained considerable fame in the Outer Realms. He could only wish that his son didn��t turn into another Muyun Lan.


    Fang Gai still felt a strong sense of belonging to the village.


    ��Yes,�� Fang Huan nodded and answered. Indeed, he was moved by the warmth and love of the villagers.


    He raised his head to check out the village and felt like he was in a dream. Everything seemed to be different now.


    ��All the Divine Techniques have come out. It would help if you talked to Futian more. Maybe you can have a chance to gain another awakening and cultivate the Miniature World,�� Fang Gai said.


    ��Sure. I will cultivate in seclusion for a while in the village,�� Fang Huan nodded and replied. He was currently a seventh-order Renhuang. If he could breakthrough into the eighth order, no one except for the master cultivators would be able to defeat him.


    It was a particularly joyful day in Four Corner Village.


    Fang Huan cultivated in the village and spent a lot of time with Ye Futian in the following days. He soon attained the Miniature World and became even stronger. On the other hand, Ye Futian also cultivated studiously while coaching the youngsters at the same time.


    During this time, powerful cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan in the Giant Gods Continent worked alongside matrix sorcerers to build a teleportation grand matrix in Four Corner City.


    The news created a huge buzz. The direct transportation between Giant Gods City and Four Corner City indicated that Four Corner Village and the ancient royal family of Duan had established a friendly alliance. It was more than a mutual acknowledgment between two top forces.


    Other top forces probably wouldn��t make a prey of Four Corner Village after learned about this.


    Year 10061 in the Divine Prefecture Calendar. A large group of people with majestic bearing arrived at Four Corner City through the teleportation grand matrix and headed straight to Four Corner Mountain. Their arrival set tongues wagging in the city. Many people already figured out that they were cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan.


    Rumor had it that Crown Prince Duan Qiong was here.


    Before long, Ye Futian, who was cultivating in the village, received the news as well. The ancient royal family of Duan came to visit Four Corner Village. Led by Crown Prince Duan Qiong, they specifically asked to meet with Ye Futian.


    Soon after he got the news, Ye Futian saw several people walking over to him from afar. They spoke simultaneously, ��Brother Ye.��


    Sitting under the ancient tree, Ye Futian recognized that they were Duan Qiong, Duan Yi, and Duan Shang.

 Chapter 2149 - Big Change

    Chapter 2149: Big Change


    ��Brother Duan,�� Ye Futian greeted Duan Qiong.


    Duan Qiong and the others came over and checked out the cultivation site. They looked up at the extraordinary phenomena in the sky and the magical ancient tree and exclaimed, ��Four Corner Village is indeed a marvelous place now. This could be considered a holy land for cultivation.��


    ��Brother Duan, you can stay and cultivate here for a few days if you��d like,�� Ye Futian smiled and said.


    ��I would love to do that. However, I��m coming for something else this time,�� Duan Qiong replied. Intrigued, Ye Futian asked, ��What is it?��


    Duan Qiong personally came all the way from Giant Gods City for something other than cultivating in the village; it must be a crucial and urgent matter.


    ��We got the news from the Domain Chief��s Manor in the Upper Nine Heavens of the Shangqing Domain. It��s said that some changes may happen in the Divine Prefecture soon. Perhaps they will summon powerful cultivators from the eighteen domains in the Divine Prefecture. At this point, the Domain Chief��s Manor has issued an order to call for representatives from various top forces to discuss what lies ahead. Has Four Corner Village received the news?�� Duan Qiong asked.


    ��No, we haven��t,�� Ye Futian shook his head and answered. ��Some changes in the Divine Prefecture?��


    Duan Qiong specifically said the Divine Prefecture rather than the Shangqing Domain or other domains.


    ��Yes, we heard that it has something to do with the Original Realm. There are some conflicts between the Divine Prefecture and other forces. Maybe there is another war coming,�� Duan Qiong continued, ��You came from the Original Realm. I suppose you know something about this?��


    A surprised look crossed Ye Futian��s face. Of course, he knew something about it. Only equally powerful forces could be in opposition to the Divine Prefecture. There were some conflicts for sure when Ye Futian was still in the Original Realm.


    The Dark Court, the Empty Divine Realm�� Some of the most powerful forces in the world took part in the mess in the Original Realm. Even so, Ye Futian thought that the Divine Prefecture had already controlled the situation. Did the tension and hostilities become worse now?


    ��I do know a little.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Okay,�� Duan Qiong nodded and continued, ��As you can imagine, there will be disastrous consequences if a war on this scale breaks out. It has been peaceful for almost 400 years since the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefecture. We built up our home little by little during this time. But I��m afraid that all the cultivators in the eighteen domains in the Divine Prefecture would be in peril if a war breaks out.��


    Donghuang the Great Emperor unified the Divine Prefecture and promoted martial arts. He usually stayed out of trivial matters and let people develop freely. Nevertheless, the entire Divine Prefecture surely would be tightly governed by the Donghuang Imperial Palace during wartime. No one could escape from the fate of fighting in the war.


    Moreover, it was impossible to imagine how war at this level would end. Many continents would collapse and perish.


    ��It��s that serious already?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��We��re not there yet, of course. But I heard that tensions have been rising. War is likely to happen in the future if this goes on. I guess they want to take preventive measures before it��s too late,�� said Duan Qiong, ��Four Corner Village happens to join the rest of the world at this time. I don��t think that you would be left out. Perhaps a messenger from the Domain Chief��s Manor will come soon. I decided to come here through the teleportation grand matrix as soon as I received the news. Brother Ye, we can go together to the Nine Heavens if you want. It will be a good trial.


    ��Since the Domain Chief��s Manor delivered the message to all the forces this time, many master cultivators and top Renhuangs will be there,�� Duan Qiong added.


    Ye Futian nodded. He was a little surprised to hear that the conflict had gone this far.


    He had no idea what the situation was like in the Original Realm. He had been in the Divine Prefecture for many years and really hoped to get a chance to visit back.


    At this moment, they heard some noise from afar. Ye Futian looked in that direction and saw Fang Gai and the others talking to someone.


    ��How can we help you?�� Fang Gai asked. Ye Futian immediately understood that it was the envoy from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain. The Domain Chief��s Manor probably sent messengers to inform various forces located in different directions at the same time.


    ��The chief asked us to invite the head of Four Corner Village to the Domain Chief��s Manor to discuss some matters. Other forces and groups are invited as well. We only came because the injunction has been lifted, and Four Corner Village has ended the sequestration. Otherwise, the chief wouldn��t send us to disturb you,�� the envoy said.


    Fang Gai nodded slightly and answered, ��I understand. The representatives of Four Corner Village will be there.��


    ��Thank you.�� The envoy nodded and said, ��We have delivered the message and will be leaving now.��


    ��Alright,�� Fang Gai replied. There was no point in keeping a messenger here longer.


    The villagers gathered around and asked, ��What��s it about?��


    ��The envoy of the Domain Chief��s Manor specifically came to deliver the invitation. It must be something important,�� Fang Gai said, ��The Crown Prince also arrived moments earlier and seems to be talking about this with Ye Futian. Maybe they have more information.��


    Fang Gai��s words prompted the crowd to move in Ye Futian��s direction. Duan Qiong repeated what he said to Ye Futian just now. The villagers were astounded. No one expected it to be something so critical and serious.


    ��What a fortuitous time for our Four Corner Village to rejoin the world.�� Fang Gai shook his head and made a wry smile. It was impossible to foretell the effect of this conflict. Cultivators living in the eighteen domains in the Divine Prefecture would probably be drafted by the Donghuang Imperial Palace if a war really broke out.


    Old Ma walked over and said, ��The master certainly can��t go. I will pay the Domain Chief��s Manor a visit this time.��


    Then, he looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Futian, you can join me if you want. Who else wants to go?��


    ��I will go with you,�� said Fang Gai. Ye Futian saved him from the ancient royal family of Duan. It was only proper for him to ensure Ye Futian��s safety this time.


    ��If Uncle Ma is going, it��s better for you to stay and take care of the things in the village. I should go,�� Blind Tie chimed in. Everyone looked at him in surprise. They wondered what would happen when Blind Tie met his former enemies there.


    Perhaps he just wanted to take a walk outside.


    ��I will go with you too,�� Fang Huan said. He had made considerable progress and felt that he encountered a cultivation bottleneck period. He needed an opportunity to make a breakthrough.


    ��Alright,�� Old Ma nodded and said, ��you can go with Duan Qiong and the others. I will get there by myself and wait for you guys there.��


    Ye Futian and the others would be safer when traveling with people from the ancient royal family of Duan. At least the top forces in the Shangqing Domain wouldn��t attack them in public.


    ��Good.�� Everyone nodded in unison.


    ��In that case, let��s set out now,�� Duan Qiong said. No one disagreed, and they left Four Corner Village together.


    Besides Blind Tie and Fang Huan, Ye Futian was also accompanied by Chen Yi and Zi Feng, who had been cultivating in the village for a long time and were eager to have a trip as well.


    They went from Four Corner City to Giant Gods City with the help of the teleportation grand matrix, then headed to the Nine Heavens.


    Their destination was the top main continent in the Upper Nine Heavens of the Shangqing Domain��Shangqing Continent!

 Chapter 2150 - Cangyuan Continent

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Shangqing Domain, the Upper Nine Heavens was composed of a cluster of continents that were structured like a pyramid.


    At the very top was the Shangqing Continent, surrounded by other less significant continents. The Shangqing Continent was unquestionably the center of activity in the Shangqing Domain. Apart from the Shangqing Continent, where the Domain Chief��s Manor was located, other continents were also packed with prominent forces and were rather influential in general.


    In recent days, the news slowly spread in the Divine Prefecture and reached the continents in the Upper Nine Heavens. In the meantime, the notice from the Domain Chief��s Manor requesting the presence of representatives of various groups also went around fast in the Shangqing Domain. Many people had set out for the Shangqing Continent, including plenty of powerful cultivators who were curious about the situation.


    At this moment, a group of cultivators was marching through the clouds somewhere. It was an impressive assembly that consisted of Ye Futian, other people from Four Corner Village, and cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan.


    They gazed into the distance and could see the continents that were floating in space. Because of the extended distance, the cluster of the continents looked like a single tectonic plate of an irregular shape.


    They had traveled through many continents on their journey. When they looked up at the sky, they could vaguely see a splendid Heavenly Palace far, far away, towering over everything as though it was the center of the continents.


    ��That��s the Shangqing Continent. Although we can see it with our naked eyes, it is still a great distance away,�� Duan Qiong said. They had occasionally met other cultivators on their way. It was safe to assume that those people were heading to the Shangqing Continent as well.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. He was not in a rush. Back in the Donghua Domain, every top force had a teleportation grand matrix that was directly connected with the Donghua Heavens. Yet, it was not the case in the Shangqing Domain. According to Duan Qiong, most of the top forces in the Shangqing Domain were located in the Upper Nine Heavens. Therefore, teleportation grand matrixes were not necessary. Even if something serious happened, the master cultivators could get to the Shangqing Continent in a short time.


    As they moved forward, they approached two continents that were adjacent to each other. Ye Futian and the others noticed that many cultivators from various directions were making a stopover in one of the continents.


    ��I��m surprised that we are passing by this place,�� said Duan Qiong, ��It is a relic continent that is rather rare for cultivators to come across. It��s made up of ruins and relics instead of a place for humans to inhabit. A Great Emperor used to cultivate there back in the distant past. People in the Upper Nine Heavens named it the Cangyuan Continent.


    ��Nevertheless, countless cultivators have been there to search for relics over the past centuries. They all wish to obtain treasures from ancient times. Generation after generation, the relics on this continent have all been raided and plundered. It��s hard to find any more cultivation opportunities there. On top of that, some places are filled with dangers. Thus, few people are willing to explore the continent nowadays. That being said, cultivators who come from other continents far away still want to have a tour. After all, one of the Great Emperors allegedly cultivated there,�� Duan Qiong explained to Ye Futian in detail.


    ��Do you want to take a look?�� Duan Yi asked Ye Futian.


    ��Let��s check it out since we��re passing by anyway. We won��t waste much time,�� Ye Futian replied. They didn��t need to make a detour as it was on their way. Ye Futian would like to visit the relic continent, but he didn��t have high hopes for encountering any cultivation opportunity.


    ��Alright, let��s have a look then,�� said Duan Qiong. Right away, they sped up in the direction of the Cangyuan Continent.


    They arrived at the Cangyuan Continent before long.


    While descending from the sky, they could vaguely see cultivators scrambling in the Cangyuan Continent in different directions.


    With the dilapidated walls, a desolate scene was all around. Giant steles were split open, and splendid ancient buildings were in ruins. Ye Futian also noticed a divine gate that was over a hundred yards tall and covered with cracks. Innumerable broken stones and fallen pillars scattered on the ground as though the place used to be the entrance of the continent.


    Ye Futian sensed an indistinct smell of the ancient history as soon as he set foot on the continent.


    Over the years, this relic continent had gone through countless rounds of plunder and test of battles.


    ��According to the tales, the original ruler of the Cangyuan Continent had reached the pinnacle of cultivation. Any character he carved could represent the Heavenly Path. If he carved ��Heaven,�� a stretch of sky that could project overwhelming might would materialize; if he carved ��Kill,�� unparalleled and unstoppable deadly force would emerge. All creatures would be annihilated wherever his runes landed,�� said Duan Qiong. He learned about these from the antique books possessed by the ancient royal family.


    Besides that, some of the characters carved by this early ruler still existed on the Cangyuan Continent, which was why the continent was infested with hidden dangers to this day. Some cultivators who came to the Cangyuan Continent to look for cultivation opportunities in the relics died inexplicably.


    Ye Futian was surprised by the story. He didn��t know what kind of power the ancient Great Emperor possessed. Nevertheless, he understood that the Great Emperor was certainly far superior to any Renhuang. Donghuang the Great Emperor was the only one in the entire Divine Prefecture who had reached that level. One could well imagine how powerful he must be to reign over the vast Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian and the others kept moving forward at a faster pace into the depth of the continent.


    The solemnity and immensity of time that Ye Futian sensed initially were becoming more and more intense. They noticed a lot of cultivators in the distance and sensed a burst of energy coming from afar. They raised their heads and saw a beam of brilliant divine light that shot up into the sky and pierced through the clouds.


    ��What is that?�� they looked in the direction of the light and whispered to each other.


    Could it be that someone found an unknown cultivation opportunity in the relic continent?


    ��Let��s go.��


    They quickened their steps, marching in that direction. The energy they sensed before grew stronger and stronger. They saw that a lot of cultivators gathered around the light. Apparently, many people stopped at this relic continent just like them. And it seemed that someone had discovered something.


    As they approached the site, a cluster of tumbledown ancient buildings came into their sight. Although the buildings had fallen into ruin, it was not hard to imagine how splendid they were in the past.


    Moreover, the buildings sat on a vast expanse of land. It was probably the place where the Great Emperor used to cultivate.


    Many people from the Outer Realms were here too. They also gazed in that direction. Some of them were even walking toward the area. Everyone was curious to see what happened there and if a new cultivation opportunity had emerged.


    They only intended to have an easy tour of the place. Discovering a new relic would be a fortunate stroke of serendipity.


    ��Em?��


    At this moment, a person shot a look at Ye Futian and his companions from the other side of the buildings. His piercing gaze riveted on Ye Futian like a sharp, icy sword. Hair standing up on the back of his neck, Ye Futian sensed the glare directing at him.


    He turned around and saw an arrogant young man��Muyun Shu.


    Of course, Muyun Shu was an adult now. He had outgrown his childishness and became a menacing presence. Even though it had been years since he last saw Ye Futian, his hatred for him didn��t diminish even a little bit.


    The Muyun family enjoyed a high status in Four Corner Village, and he used to be the ringleader of all the children.


    However, everything changed after Ye Futian arrived at Four Corner Village. He never even dreamt that he would be expelled from the village. Subsequently, his father and everyone else in his family were banished as well. It was a tremendous shame that he would never forget.


    Now, he met Ye Futian again here on the Cangyuan Continent.


    ��Who is he?�� A female Renhuang next to Muyun Shu noticed the sudden change in his expression. She was a middle-level Renhuang from the Nanhai family with a dignified posture.


    The Muyun family followed Muyun Lan to the Nanhai family after they were expelled from Four Corner Village. Muyun Shu was well respected and valued in the Nanhai family thanks to his extraordinary talents and promising potential. The Nanhai family put priority on grooming him and sent excellent cultivators to train and protect him. This middle-level female Renhuang was one of Muyun Shu��s cultivation instructors. It was an illustration of how much importance they attached to him.


    After he left Four Corner Village, Muyun Shu enjoyed a luxurious life in the Nanhai family. It was nothing like his old days in the village, and it provided him a chance to see the real world. Even so, Muyun Shu could never cease to think of the humiliation Ye Futian brought upon him.


    ��Ye Futian,�� Muyun Shu answered in a cold and menacing tone. The female Renhuang and other cultivators around Muyun Shu all turned their eyes to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was a well-known figure nowadays. Rumor had it that he singlehandedly forced his way into the palace of the ancient royal family of Duan. His reputation spread throughout the Shangqing Domain. Even the cultivators in the Nanhai family had heard about him.


    Ye Futian darted a disdainful look at Muyun Shu as well. He had always despised the young man and wasn��t shy to show his contempt. He loathed Muyun Shu no matter how talented he might be.


    ��I��m surprised that you dare to leave Four Corner Village,�� Muyun Shu said to Ye Futian coldly, ��I would be hiding in the village for life if I were you,��


    Everyone around Ye Futian frowned in disapproval. Condor-sama scowled at Muyun Shu and said, ��Little b*stard, how come you��re as stupid as the time when you left the village. It seems that the lesson you got back then was not enough.��


    ��You vile beast. You��re courting death!�� Muyun Shu shifted his anger to Black Wind Condor. His eyes were filled with malice, and even his body was emitting brilliant golden light. He charged at Black Wind Condor immediately.

 Chapter 2151 - The Confrontation

    Since Muyun Shu had initiated the attack, the cultivators from the Nanhai family stood ready in full battle array. They emitted the will might from their bodies to intimidate the enemies.


    Black Wind Condor was surprised that Muyun Shu rushed over right away. He always detested Muyun Shu for his arrogance and impudence. Now that he had a chance to teach the boy a lesson, he clawed at him and bellowed, ��Little b*stard, you��re in over your head.��


    A striking Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird slammed into a sharp, black claw in midair and made a thundering noise. The magnificent Picture of the Domineering Golden Peng Bird popped up at once behind Muyun Shu��s back. He dashed directly at Black Wind Condor in a flash.


    Black Wind Condor was not afraid of a boy, of course. He immediately spread his black wings, which blotted out the sun and stirred up a crazy whirlwind.


    The Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird and Black Wind Condor came into collision in the sky. Black Wind Condor��s razor-sharp claws tore through space and ripped up the shadow of the Golden-Winged Giant Peng Bird. He aimed straight at Muyun Shu��s head.


    Muyun Shu was born in Four Corner Village with the innate energy of the Great Path and was taught by the master in the village for years. Therefore, he had a unique cultivation journey and was much better than most of his peers. Nevertheless, he was still too young to withstand Black Wind Condor��s attack.


    ��How dare you!�� Just when Muyun Shu was about to be torn apart by Black Wind Condor��s claws, a wild explosion of energy erupted. A giant hand smacked at them like a crashing wave and transformed into an overwhelming mass of shadows.


    Bang! Black Wind Condor was thrust back with a loud noise, and he could barely maintain his balance. Muyun Shu was also swept back by the shockwave. He was forced back and vomited a mouthful of blood. Nonetheless, the injury didn��t seem to bother him. He glared at Ye Futian and Black Wind Condor defiantly as though everything was part of his plan.


    Muyun Shu was not stupid. He was well aware that Black Wind Condor was a Demon Emperor and way out of his league. He didn��t have the ability to kill Ye Futian without any help. Knowing that Ye Futian��s reputation had spread to the Upper Nine Heavens, Muyun Shu had to set the Nanhai family against him to get rid of him by their hands.


    Despite his young age, Muyun Shu was a devious and calculating person.


    ��Kill this vile beast,�� Muyun Shu ordered in a cold voice. The sixth-order Renhuang, who intervened just now, darted a hesitant glance at Black Wind Condor. However, he still raised his hand to attack since Muyun Shu was injured by Black Wind Condor.


    All of a sudden, a beam of blinding thunder light shot out like blazes. The sixth-order Renhuang lifted his arm to defend himself when he saw the Giant Palm of Thunder God blasting at him from above. The giant palm was engraved with patterns of the Thunder God, and the dazzling divine light of the Great Path of Thunder flooded the area.


    Crash��


    In an instant, the vast land was illuminated by the glaring light of thunder, and even the void was almost shattered and destroyed. When the two hands came into collision, the sixth-order Renhuang wasn��t blown away by the blast. Instead, he was struck by lightning. His badly charred body shivered while falling from the sky, and even his hair all stood on end. It was such a ghastly scene.


    Beigong Ao retreated to his original place behind Ye Futian and the others. He showed some mercy in his strike and didn��t take the sixth-order Renhuang��s life right away. After all, he didn��t know what Ye Futian intended to do. In the meantime, he had to fight back with a solid blow to demonstrate their strength when they were under attack.


    ��How dare you assault cultivators from the Nanhai family! You have some nerve!�� Muyun Shu roared in anger. However, he didn��t even dart a glance at the wounded Renhuang. Not only did he not care about his injury at all, but he was also hoping that he died on the spot. In that case, the Nanhai family would wage war against Ye Futian straight away.


    Ye Futian��s brows knitted slightly. Muyun Shu was an arrogant and nasty bully when he was living in the village. He even attempted to kill Tie Tou. Ye Futian was sick to see him behaving in the same way still. Besides, Muyun Shu was not an ignorant teenager anymore. Without a doubt, he was deliberately causing hostility between Ye Futian and the Nanhai family.


    ��Little bastard, didn��t your parents teach you some manners?�� Chen Yi also felt repugnance toward Muyun Shu. He had never seen such a vicious and impudent young man.


    ��Somehow, you��re still so egotistical even without the protection of Four Corner Village. Just wait until I finish you off. I will grill that beast for dinner and kill the others slowly,�� Muyun Shu glanced over them and said, ��This woman is not bad looking. We can keep her a little longer to have some fun.��


    Xia Qingyuan��s expression changed upon hearing Muyun Shu��s rude words. Her eyes became frosty and were filled with malice.


    Muyun Shu insulted and humiliated them one by one.


    ��Little bastard.�� Beigong Ao took a brief look at Ye Futian and stepped forward again. The thunder light engulfed the sky in the blink of an eye. However, another powerful Renhuang behind Muyun Shu also stepped up. He unleashed terrifying energy to shield Muyun Shu from the thunder light.


    A chilly breeze circled Ye Futian as he focused his icy and piercing gaze on Muyun Shu. In an instant, Muyun Shu felt like he was drowning in icy water without the ability to save himself. He uttered a terrified yelp.


    ��How dare you!�� The powerful cultivator from the Nanhai family walked over to Muyun Shu and blocked Ye Futian��s gaze. As he raised his arm, millions of divine swords appeared in the sky above. Then, the divine swords plummeted when he made a downward gesture with his hand. They were transformed into a terrifying sword river and flooded the area.


    Blind Tie came forward in heavy and forceful steps. With a thundering boom, he raised his hand and blocked the path of the sword river. The swords made a series of sharp whistling sounds and were halted midway down from the sky.


    Blind Tie��s hand abruptly closed into a tight ball, and the sword river disintegrated and dissolved instantaneously. He turned to face Muyun Shu and the others. His blindness didn��t stop him from expressing his deep-seated detestation of them.


    ��Muyun Shu, you��re a disgrace to Four Corner Village.�� Blind Tie��s stony and throaty voice reverberated throughout the area.


    The cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan had been watching quietly from the side. They knew that there had always been bad blood between the Muyun family and the rest of Four Corner Village. It seemed that the Nanhai family was bound to get involved as well.


    Although Muyun Shu was ready for a battle here and now, the Nanhai family was at a disadvantage at this moment since their key figures were not present.


    At this point, a burst of intense energy arrived on the scene. Everyone looked up in that direction and heard an arrogant voice, ��Since when can a blind imbecile comment on members of the Muyun family?��


    ��Brother, they want to kill me,�� Muyun Shu recognized the voice and hurried to trump up a charge against his adversaries. The incoming person was indeed Muyun Lan, the most extraordinary cultivator of the Muyun family and the current son-in-law of the Nanhai family.


    A beautiful woman was by his side. With her gorgeous face, flawless skin, and effortless elegance, she looked like a Goddess who could only be revered from afar. She was Nanhai Qianxue �� the precious daughter of the Nanhai family and Muyun Lan��s wife.


    The couple marched over in long strides. Everyone could feel their intimidating presence even before they came near the scene. Muyun Lan, in particular, radiated confidence and danger. His eyes glowed with golden light and his penetrating gaze riveted on Ye Futian and the others.


    More powerful cultivators from the Nanhai family were following Muyun Lan and Nanhai Qianxue. It was an impressive assembly.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor also summoned the Nanhai family to go to the Shangqing Continent. They passed by the Cangyuan Continent and made a quick stop like everyone else, which led to everything that had happened so far.


    In a short while, Muyun Lan stopped in the sky above the crowd and looked down at Ye Futian and the others.


    Ye Futian stared back at him. Needless to say, Muyun Shu was trying to stir up trouble with his false accusation. Muyun Shu might be a young man, yet he was no less cunning than an experienced old fox. He deliberately drove a wedge between Ye Futian and the Nanhai family to instigate his elder brother Muyun Lan and the Nanhai family to kill Ye Futian.


    A lot of people who came from other groups were watching the drama unfold from far away.


    The cultivators from Four Corner Village and the ancient royal family of Duan were standing behind Ye Futian, who newly rose to fame, while Muyun Lan and the powerful Nanhai family from the Upper Third Heaven were on the other side.


    ��Blind Tie, I don��t want to make things difficult for you considering that we are both natives of Four Corner Village. Apologize to Muyun Shu and back off. I won��t take your offense to heart,�� Muyun Lan looked out on the crowd and declared in an overbearing tone.


    He commanded Blind Tie to apologize and pull back. Obviously, he was ready to take action against Ye Futian.


    ��Muyun Lan, you have cultivated for too long in the Outer Realms. Since you have forgotten who you are and where you came from, there is no need for you to refer to the village incessantly. Muyun Shu is a grown-up now. I let him off in the past because of his young age. But he only became more insolent. If you don��t smack him and ask him to apologize today, it will leave me no choice but to teach him a lesson myself. Don��t blame me for showing him no mercy,�� Blind Tie hurled back at Muyun Lan. He stood upright in a dignified manner, not flinching at all.


    Muyun Lan was a well-known cultivator, but so was Blind Tie. They were both eighth-order Renhuangs with the perfect Great Path. Apart from the master cultivators, other people could hardly be a match for either of them.


    ��Brother, this blind imbecile was extremely disrespectful to father and had a hand in pushing our family out of Four Corner Village. Since we ran into him here, we should kill him now,�� Muyun Shu said bluntly. He was desperate to massacre everyone in cold blood.


    Muyun Lan��s face grew stern upon hearing Muyun Shu��s words. Golden divine light shone from the sky as he moved downward. Almost instantly, the entire area lay bathed in the glaring light. Blind Tie wasn��t afraid at all. He stepped forward and struck back with overwhelming power. Although he couldn��t see himself, he still looked like an invincible war god in other people��s eyes.

 Chapter 2152 - Clash of Divine Techniques

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Sensing the battle intent emanating from Blind Tie, Muyun Lan dashed up high into the sky. His golden gaze shot down below as he stared at Blind Tie and said, ��If that is the case, then let me see how much you have improved since returning to the village.��


    Bang. Blind Tie took a step forward, and his body shot up into the sky. He appeared right in front of Muyun Lan. The two of them stood at opposite ends and stared at each other. In an instant, divine lights shone brightly, and the scene was terrifying.


    A dazzling, divine phenomenon appeared behind Muyun Lan. A world seemed to form in the sky above him. A majestic Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird became the ruler of the world. It was the king of all demons as the surrounding demons prostrated before it. Everywhere the divine light of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird covered, everything else appeared dim in comparison.


    Streaks of golden light flashed across the sky with unparalleled speed. In an instant, a shadow of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird had come very close to Blind Tie. Its golden claws ripped the space as it directly pounced onto Blind Tie. Its speed was so astonishing that nobody had time to react to it. Everything happened in a split second.


    Even though Blind Tie couldn��t see anything, his senses were very sharp. A brilliant light pillar appeared and enveloped his body. The shadow of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird crashed into the light pillar, causing cracks to form. However, the shadow of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird couldn��t break through the light pillar. Clearly, its attack was still lacking in power.


    Blind Tie took a step forward, and the shadow of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird shattered and turned to dust. A domineering divine might erupted from Blind Tie��s body. Myriads of light pillars descended from the sky. Divine phenomenon similarly took shape behind Blind Tie. A towering war god stood unfazed, with a divine hammer in his hand. The war god shone as brightly as the heavens and earth and emanated a menacing aura.


    Amidst the divine phenomenon, countless illusory figures of Blind Tie could be seen. Each illusory figure radiated a golden halo and held a divine hammer. In this part of the sky, Blind Tie was the absolute ruler.


    Right at this moment, a long cry could be heard. The body of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird expanded, and it became more than 100 Zhang long. It was akin to a divine bird, which shielded the endless space under its wings. When the crowd raised their heads and looked up, all they could see was the face of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird.


    The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird flapped its wings, and immediately, countless golden, flowing lights were stirred up within the heavens and earth. Every streak of golden flowing light contained ferocious attacks that could slaughter dragons and phoenixes. The illusory figures of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Birds flooded the sky, and they charged toward Blind Tie all at once. The scene was spectacular.


    Blind Tie faced his opponent, and he raised his head slightly. Even though he couldn��t see what was going on, an unparalleled divine halo burst forth from his body. His body seemed to have merged into one with the war god behind him as both of them were unleashing divine haloes. Blind Tie lifted his arm high up, and the war god followed suit. He then swung his arm and smashed the divine hammer downwards.


    Instantly, the various golden illusions that appeared in the sky waved their divine hammers simultaneously. They brought their hammers down on the endless flowing light charging towards them. Dull rumbling sounds could be heard. Even though the battlefield was far away from them, the cultivators below still felt a suffocating pressure that was heavy beyond comparison. The sky above them was occupied by two powerful cultivators and had become a battlefield.


    In the sky above, the heavens and earth roared as their attacks clashed against each other. Endless flowing light destroyed and disintegrated everything around them. The space was frenziedly blown apart. A destructive storm was swept up, sweeping down below. It caused many Renhuangs to release the power of the Great Path to protect their bodies.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked up at the battlefield high in the sky. Both of them had inherited the divine techniques of Four Corner Village, the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique, and the Divine Hammer of the Protector. Their cultivation levels were almost the same. Ye Futian did not know who was stronger.


    Seeing the relentless attacks, Muyun Lan��s expression seemed unchanged. His eyes were still calm and at ease as he extended his hand. In the sky above, countless beams of light shot out from the brilliant pattern. Each Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird seemed to become a golden, indestructible blade.


    As Muyun Lan waved his hand, the countless beams of light immediately shot forward. It was as though the end of the world had arrived.


    Blind Tie��s illusory figures still kept waving around the golden divine hammers. However, the endless beams of light kept shredding and shattering his illusions and continued to descend, charging towards Blind Tie.


    Blind Tie raised both his hands at the same time when he sensed this power. Countless divine halos instantly radiated from the figure of the deity. He waved the divine hammer and smashed it down on the space in front of him, suppressing this part of the space.


    Rumble. The divine hammer came crashing down. Almost everything was turned to dust. The endless golden light that the Golden-winged Giant Peng Birds became was also destroyed. The relentless power immediately crashed towards where Muyun Lan was.


    Muyun Lan flapped the divine wings on his back. He instantly became a light beam that shot up further into the sky, disappearing from his original spot.


    The sky trembled violently. An astonishing wave spread out. However, Muyun Lan��s figure had already disappeared. He appeared high in the sky. Covered in divine halos, he was still peering down at Blind Tie below.


    From their clash just now, Muyun Lan understood that it was practically impossible to deal with Blind Tie with simple attacks. His opponent��s ability had not deteriorated, and he was still mighty. This was expected from a cultivator who, like him, had inherited a divine technique and left the village before.


    A vast aura exploded from Muyun Lan. It seemed as though beams of divine halos were shooting out from afar. The divine halos enveloped the endless space and formed his domain of the Great Path. The scene from the Picture of the Domineering Golden Peng Bird seemed to manifest in the real world. Beams of light descended, and cracks appeared in the sky. The space was ripped apart, and a part of the space was shattered.


    Buzz.


    Golden divine wings spread out and blocked out the sun. With a long screech, Muyun Lan��s figure dashed up into the sky. He immediately became part of it, becoming a divine Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird. This Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird had the face of a man but the body of a bird. Its wings blocked out the sky, and its gaze pierced the space as it stared down at Blind Tie.


    Only now did Muyun Lan truly reveal his full might.


    Frenzy gales tore apart the space as the gigantic Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird flapped its wings and traversed across the sky. Immediately, countless cracks of the Great Path appeared in the space. The bird flew at Blind Tie with a frightening momentum. If the bird hit him, his body would most likely be destroyed.


    It is the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique, Ye Futian thought to himself as he looked at the battle above. When faced with this kind of Art of Supreme Attack, aside from some giant figures, very few men could withstand it.


    Blind Tie also felt threatened. His body merged with the body of the war god as he transformed into a real war god. He extended his arm, and endless divine halos gathered, forming the Divine Hammer of the Protector. Streaks of divine halos draped on his body from the heavens above. He emanated a steadfast power. This power grew gradually stronger, as though the might of heaven was coalescing in his body.


    Rumble.


    When the war god raised his arms to swing the divine hammer, an intense rumble reverberated in the sky. The Great Path of the heavens seemed to be crumbling frenziedly. All the attacks that were aimed at the war god would be destroyed. No power of the Great Path would come close to his body.


    The Divine Hammer of the Protector could suppress all chaos in a divine nation. It was an absolute, unparalleled power. It could also crush the sky.


    The illusory figure of the war god transformed by Blind Tie radiated colorful lights as he lifted the divine hammer with both his arms. In the sky, another gigantic illusory figure of a deity appeared. The deity seemed to be lending its power to Blind Tie so that the latter could swing this destructive hammer.


    Rumble.


    In the sky above, the Great Path crumbled as cracks appeared in the space. It was the shattering of the domain of the Great Path. The divine hammer, with its unparalleled power, was swung forcefully towards the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird. The might of the divine hammer enveloped the entire space. It was impossible for the Giant Peng Bird to escape.


    At this very moment, even Muyun Lan could not take the blow head-on and needed to evade the hammer. With speed as fast as lightning, the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird shifted and changed course, ripping the space apart as it charged towards the war god.


    However, Blind Tie��s divine hammer actually swiftly made a turn and chased after its opponent, leaving behind afterimages. A thundering rumble sounded as the divine hammer and the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird crisscrossed in the sky.


    Bang.


    With a loud bang, the gale stirred up by the divine hammer pushed the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird backward. At the same time, a menacing heaven-slaying light slashed downwards and left a mark on the body of the war god.


    Gales howled unrestrained in the sky above. This part of the sky had transformed into the illusory figure of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, and countless heaven-slaying lights materialized. At the same time, Muyun Lan��s body turned into a beam of light and traversed across space.


    Blind Tie could not see all of this, but he still waved the divine hammer around solemnly. Around him, it was as though various illusions appeared. When he swung the Divine Hammer of the Protector, the heavens and the earth rumbled, and a vast power pressed down on this part of the sky.


    When both of them clashed again, the crowd below felt as though a Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Demon God and a war god were fighting. Both of them unleashed attacks that contained unparalleled power. The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird had peerless speed while Blind Tie had immovable strength.


    Ye Futian observed the battlefield and knew that it was practically impossible for Muyun Lan to shake Blind Tie. Although Blind Tie could not see, he became even calmer and sturdier. He stood there like an immovable deity. His cultivation Plane was also slightly higher than that of Muyun Lan.


    ��I never imagined that he would be so powerful,�� commented Duan Qiong, somewhat surprised. Back then, he had heard of Blind Tie when Blind Tie was in the outside world. Later on, Blind Tie was blinded by others and returned to the village. Now that he had emerged again, he was even more frightening than before.


    Blind Tie had stayed in the village for many years. He had always been smithing. Although he did not rely on his cultivation, his technique was much more powerful. His Divine Hammer of the Protector was even more refined and flawless.


    When Muyun Shu saw that his elder brother could not take down Blind Tie, his expression changed slightly. This blind man had never revealed his abilities in the village. Many people believed that he had already been crippled and could no longer cultivate. They never imagined that he was actually still so incredible and had even grown more powerful.


    ��Elder Sister-in-law, can you help me kill him?�� Muyun Shu asked Nanhai Qianxue, who was beside him. Nanhai Qianxue was also a prominent and renowned figure. She was the Proud Daughter of Heaven of the Nanhai Family. Her abilities were extraordinary; she had a flawless Great Path and had already reached seventh-tier cultivation.


    Now, with Muyun Lan and Muyun Shu, the future of the Nanhai Family was glorious. It was highly likely that various giant-level figures would be born. Adding on the fact that Nanhai Family was originally from the Upper Third Heaven and had powerful abilities, they might even ascend to the peak of the Shangqing Domain and become the strongest force.

 Chapter 2153 - Mark of the Earth

    Nanhai Qianxue��s beautiful eyes swept toward Ye Futian. This was a man well-known in the region who achieved his notoriety in Four Corner Village and made considerable waves at the ancient royal family of Duan.


    Of course, the Nanhai Family was not an entity with whom the ancient royal family of Duan could hope to be compared, one that was turning out many impressive figures in their younger generation. Naturally, she didn��t think that a Renhunag of Fifth Realm could be compared with her.


    However, she felt a sense of threat from the person next to Ye Futian, and it was Fang Huan. He was also a cultivator from Four Corner Village. He stood quietly beside Ye Futian, but a slight pressure could be felt around him, especially when Muyun Shu asked her to attack Ye Futian. This man raised his eyes to look at her, and she was instantly alarmed.


    She thought that Fang Huan, who was previously taken prisoner by the ancient royal family of Duan, was pressured by them to exchange the divine techniques for his freedom.


    This man had made quite a name for himself after leaving Four Corner Village; his name was known even in the Upper Ninth Heaven. For some unknown reason, he was involved in a confrontation with the Duan Family and was taken prisoner. However, the two parties had now become allies rather than enemies, and this cultivator from the Four Corner Village was probably the one who could threaten her existence.


    ��Older sister need not trouble to take action.�� A voice was heard as a man walked out from behind them. It was Nanhai Qing who had been to Four Corner Village. When he first entered Four Corner Village, he was full of youthful hubris. He wanted to join forces with the Muyun family to take over the village and procure an ally for the Nanhai family. Instead, he was publically humiliated by Blind Tie.


    Previously, he had been standing quietly behind because Blind Tie was there, and he was too embarrassed to make his presence known. Now that Muyun Lan was busy dealing with Blind Tie, he would deal with Ye Futian himself.


    Nanhai Qing stepped out, and Nanhai Qianxue did not stop him. In their generation, she and Nanhai Qing were the two most outstanding figures.


    A wild aura erupted from Nanhai Qing. Suddenly, this space seemed to be filled with terrifying invisible giant waves, causing the Black Wind Condor and Xia Qingyuan to retreat involuntarily. Just the pressure of the Great Path alone felt hard to resist.


    He took a step forward, and suddenly a heavy and coercive might swept out, slapping towards Ye Futian and the others. Duan Qiong remained calm, observing all this quietly. He knew very well that Nanhai Qing was the genius talent of the Nanhai family.


    But, he had witnessed Ye Futian��s battle with the ancient royal family of Duan. He thought it would be hard for anyone to best Ye Futian, so he had strong confidence in Ye Futian that Nanhai Qing would not likely win.


    Perhaps if Nanhai Qianxue got personally involved, there was a chance.


    Ye Futian��s glance swept over Nanhai Qing, then landed on Muyun Shu, who was behind him, with an icy expression in his eyes. His patience with Muyun Shu had reached its limit. If it weren��t because the Nanhai family was behind him, he would have already killed the guy.


    But even if he couldn��t kill him now, Ye Futian would never let him off the hook.


    Extending his hand, a spear suddenly appeared in his palm. An extremely wild aura swept out in an instant with overwhelming fight intent. Ye Futian was surrounded by divine light, and the aura of the Great Path was escalating madly. What��s more terrifying was that a trace of demonic breath was released from him as the peacock divine light surrounded him. His temperament had become wickedly enchanting, and those wicked eyes of his made Muyun Shu feel very uncomfortable. A faint sense of terror was born in his heart as he felt Ye Futian��s murderous intent aiming at him.


    With his brows tightly knitted, he squinted his eyes as he stared at Ye Futian with extreme sharpness, an unbridled look still on his face.


    ��Huh?�� At this moment, Nanhai Qing frowned. The peacock divine glory was extremely radiant, and the sky was instantly filled with its glow. A tremendous vigorous aura of life erupted from Ye Futian. At this moment, the aura that came from Ye Futian was no less than him, a Rehuang of the Sixth Realm with perfect Great Path.


    Many cultivators around them focused their attention on Ye Futian, and all of them felt the aura that permeated from him. Just how strong was this cultivator who rose from Four Corner Village?


    Today��s battle with Nanhai Qing would be enough to attest his true prowess.


    Nanhai Qing clearly felt Ye Futian��s power and did not dare to hold Ye Futian in contempt any longer. Behind him, ancient seals in the shape of squares continued flying out, and each of them seemed to contain terrible power, with characters engraved upon them.


    Suddenly, hundreds and thousands of square ancient seals flew out, covering the sky and sheltering the sun.


    Above this ancient seal, rays of divine light were deployed at the same time. Heavy and majestic power swept out. Its aura annihilated all existence, and everything that stood in its way was pulverized and destroyed.


    When Ye Futian saw this, the same terrible divine light came from his body as well. When the wings of the peacock opened, the destructive divine light, like lightning, collided with the light of the ancient seals so that they collapsed and shattered in the void.


    ��Is that the light of the demon god?�� Someone asked in shock.


    ��I heard that he robbed the opportunity of the Domain Chief��s Manor when he was in Donghua Domain and inherited the power of the peacock demon god. Now, the divine light of the Great Path was not any inferior to the light from the Mark of the Earth unleashed by Nanhai Qing when the two collided,�� people were discussing amongst themselves.


    The Mark of the Earth was one of the specialties of the Nanhai Family.


    It was rumored that the ancestors of the Nanhai Family had obtained a divine item once upon a time, through which they cultivated the Mark of the Earth and the Hand of God. Alone, the power of each was infinite; using together, the combination was unequivocally unparalleled. The Nanhai Family had used them to dominate the area and became one of the top three transcendent forces in the Shangqing Domain.


    The divine light emitted by the Mark of the Earth continued to overlap, seemingly without end. It seemed that countless divine seals were running through the void, aiming at Ye Futian, covering all the space where Ye Futian was at. All the rest of the cultivators except Ye Futian had retreated to avoid being affecting.


    The peacock��s divine wings trembled slightly as the divine light emitted frantically, running through the overlapping illusions of the divine seals.


    Nanhai Qing��s hands gathered to form another seal, and a phantom of thousand hands suddenly appeared behind him, as if these countless hands materialized from the ether. Above, hundreds of thousands of Mark of the Earth condensed and permeated the area with an unparalleled sense of heaviness. Ye Futian felt a heavy pressure had descended upon this corner of the sky.


    Buzz!


    Ye Futian stepped out suddenly and didn��t wait for Nanhai Qing to attack. He acted first as his entire person turned into a streamer of light, ignoring the space between them. With his majestic fight intent, he pierced the spear straight forward. All the seals were shattered in its path. Thousands of phantom spears appeared as a straight light in the void.


    Boom�� An incomparable pressure of the Great Path crushed this corner of the sky. Nanhai Qing slapped his palm forward, and it turned into a gigantic handprint that covering the sky. On the handprint was a character of the Great Path that shot out brilliant divine light, destroying all existence beneath the sky. Its power was astounding.


    But at this moment, Ye Futian��s spear arrived, and it blasted directly on that boundless giant handprint.


    Boom, boom, boom!


    An unparalleled brilliance erupted from the long spear, and the crowd saw rays of divine light rushed into the great handprint and filled every crevice inside the handprint.


    A crystal clear crunching sound was heard, and they saw those lights turned into cracks. Everyone found to their shock that the terrifying giant handprint broke apart madly. Then came a loud bang as it collapsed and shattered in the void.


    The spear continued its forward movement and pierced straight toward Nanhai Qing. Numerous ancient seals behind Nanhai Qing gathered to form a massive divine seal that blocked him. Accompanied by a loud noise, the spear did not manage to tear it apart, but it could knock Nanhai Qing outward.


    ��How strong!�� Everyone trembled inside when they watched the demonically handsome young man with his silver hair dancing in the wind. Nanhai Qing was a Renhuang of the Sixth Realm with perfect Great Path, and he was repelled by a single spear strike. The force was able to break all kinds of contraptions, and this one strike contained awesome might.


    Pssst! The divine light of the peacock bloomed and was shining brilliantly. Ye Futian seemed to be shrouded in a mysterious demonic light. The divine brilliance that bloomed from him seemed capable of penetrating the shredded space. He glanced at Muyun Shu and continued moving forward with incredible speed.


    At this moment, a figure stepped into the void. This figure was incomparably graceful, like a goddess. She raised her hand and waved. Suddenly a sight appeared, similar to the one when Nanhai Qing attacked. Infinite seals appeared suspended in the air as if directly destroy the space Ye Futian was in, imprisoning him.


    Ye Futian didn��t seem to see it as his body accelerated with increased forward speed, almost to the extreme. Nanhai Qianxue frowned and saw the seals of the heavens gather together at a terrifying speed, suddenly turning into an infinite and boundless Mark of the Earth.


    The coercion erupted from this divine seal slowed Ye Futian��s speed. Those characters lit up simultaneously as Ye Futian��s spear pierced upon the massive Mark of the Earth. This time, he could not break it open, as if the Mark in front of him was indestructible.


    Buzz! The divine light shining on the Mark of the Earth was spinning, turning into a giant imprint that spun towards Ye Futian. Suddenly, Ye Futian felt the spear in his hand trembling wildly. If it were not a truly excellent divine item, it would probably have shattered a long time ago.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian��s body was repelled backward into the distance with a loud bang as he floated in the air, his eyes fixed on the divine seal in front of him.


    ��I��ll deal with him.�� A voice was heard. Fang Huan walked past Ye Futian and headed towards Nanhai Qianxue, who was a Renhunag of the Seventh Realm with perfect Great Path, same as him. For her to attack someone like Ye Futian, who was in the Fifth Realm, was just unfair!

 Chapter 2154 - Abuse

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian did not refuse Fang Huan��s offer. He saw him take a step forward towards Nanhai Qianxue.


    The shadow of many arms appeared behind Nanhai Qianxue, and she appeared as a goddess of a Thousand Hands. Divine seals now gathered together and turned into a massive Mark of the Earth. Her palms slammed forward, and everything in front of her was about to be shattered and destroyed.


    However, brilliant divine light shot out from Fang Huan��s body, turning into Miniature World. The terrifying attack of the Great Path blasted at him but was unable to get to him.


    Ye Futian glanced at the battlefield yonder and surmised that Fang Huan should have no problem dealing with Nanhai Qianxue. At the very least, he wouldn��t lose quickly. Although his opponent was the proud daughter of the Nanhai Family, Fang Huan was equally well-known after leaving Four Corner Village and had created quite a reputation for himself. Moreover, he inherited the divine technique after he returned, and his strength had become even stronger.


    As his eyes turned in another direction, Ye Futian looked at someone in the distance. It was Muyun Shu.


    As if he had sensed the gaze from Ye Futian, Muyun Shu felt a chill run up and down his spine. He involuntarily took a step back.


    Ye Futian took a step towards him. Now that Muyun Lan and Nanhai Qianxue were both occupied with their own opponents, Nanhai Qing could do nothing to him and had been defeated. Indeed, Muyun Shu should feel afraid.


    The surrounding crowd expressed a look of surprise when they saw what was happening. The cultivators from the Nanhai Family were subtly being suppressed. Although there weren��t many that came from Four Corner Village, they were all elites among the elites. Muyun Lan and Nanhai Qianxue were well-known throughout the Shangqing Domain.


    But these two major characters were both stymied. Blind Tie and Fang Huan were fighting one of them, and Nanhai Qing was repulsed outright by one spear strike.


    ��Little beast, are you afraid?�� Behind Ye Futian, Chen Yi smiled as he looked at Muyun Shu. None of the people with Ye Futian were pleased about Muyun Shu. This boy was quite recalcitrant in his personality, cruel and unruly, with a strong air of defiance and hostility. He cared for no one and intended to kill them using the Nanhai Family.


    This kind of person, with stronger cultivation, could do more harm. If it were up to them, they would have ended him right there and then. However, they understood that killing Muyun Shu would be a difficult task. He had the Nanhai Family at his back, so killing Muyun Shu would be equivalent to declaring war with the entire Nanhai family, which would put them at a disadvantage.


    There were so many powerful characters from Four Corner Village, and the four major disciples of Ye Futian would undoubtedly grow up to be extraordinary figures. Now was the time to keep a low profile and wait for the opportune time. They needed time to allow Four Corner Village to continue to grow.


    Even if they wouldn��t kill him, they had to teach him a lesson.


    Seeing a few people coming in his direction, Muyun Shu��s eyes were full of cold murderous intent. He said to those behind him, ��Stop them.��


    A cultivator of the Ninth Realm from the Nanhai family took a step forward, and Nanhai Qing blocked them in the front with his eyes focused on Ye Futian.


    Rays of the peacock divine light unleashed in straight lines, stabbing toward the two. Ye Futian, holding a spear, stepping into the void. Suddenly, the sky and the earth roared, and a heaviness descended. It was as if all the stars in heaven were to crush this corner of the sky. Ye Futian himself turned into a stream of light that moved straight forward. All the crowd saw was an infinitely gigantic peacock demon god that bloomed with great brilliance, and everything that was touched by it was pulverized.


    ��Let��s move together,�� Nanhai Qing said, intending to join forces with that cultivator of the Ninth Realm. An equally powerful aura also emerged from him.


    However, just then, he felt a sting in his eyes as that brilliant light seemed to have blinded him so that he could not open them. His expression suddenly changed with the shock when he saw that a light was coming straight at him, accompanied by a mocking voice saying, ��Get out of the way!��


    Nanhai Qing made a roar, and an incomparable divine brilliance burst out of the Mark of the Earth and violently struck forward. However, rays of light appeared, and there seemed to be divine swords hidden in the light: the swords of light.


    Bang, bang, bang! The swords of light fell and pierced the many characters upon the Mark of the Earth, directly obliterating its light and passing through it little by little until the strong light pierced the void with a roar. The Mark of the Earth collapsed and shattered. Nanhai Qing was knocked back yet again.


    However, the bright light remained moving at an unfathomable speed. It was the Way of Light, and its speed was unparalleled.


    ��Get away!�� Nanhai Qing yelled, and the Divine Wheel of the Great Path appeared behind him. It was as if it was a divine seal itself, releasing an extremely radiant divine glory. A light screen of divine seal appeared in front of him to block the attacks. As the sword fell, it caused the light screen to tear and shatter, and the two looked at each other face-to-face. Nanhai Qing��s expression was as gloomy as could be. He stared at the figure on the other side of the light screen and saw cracks continuously appearing on the light screen of the divine seal.


    ��Who can you stop?�� Chen Yi unleashed a slap, and the light screen shattered instantly. Nanhai Qing flew out again. His face paled.


    In a single day, he had been defeated twice. He claimed to be a man at the top of his power and was one of the top enchanting members of the Nanhai family. However, he was repeatedly humiliated and defeated time and time again.


    A cultivator that he hadn��t seen and hadn��t even heard of before had knocked him back with a sword strike. He was someone who was an expert at the Way of Light.


    This man was an unknown entity. He didn��t even know who this man was. But a person like this was able to defeat him.


    ��Sixth Realm with perfect Great Path, and the swordsmanship is the Way of Light.�� Everyone was greatly disturbed when they saw the man covered by those dazzling lights. Who were these people from Four Corner Village?


    Was any random person as powerful as this?


    Even the people from the ancient royal family of Duan were speechless when they saw this. Even Duan Qiong and Duan Yi were stunned. Chen Yi was someone they had been in contact with before. He was laid back, and neither his appearance nor temperament were too outstanding. He had not been conspicuous among the crowd. They never expected him to be so strong.


    Now Duan Qiong thought, Ye Futian aside, can I deal with Chen Yi?


    Outsiders aside, even Ye Futian couldn��t really see through Chen Yi. This guy had always been relatively casual, following him around without any ulterior motive. He lost to Ye Futian at Donghua Banquet, but later, Ye Futian found out that Chen Yi had not exerted his full strength in the fight; he had kept his true strength hidden.


    These past few years, Chen Yi had not exhibited anything extraordinary, just quietly cultivating. When he entered the Renhuang Sixth Realm, he was not particularly joy, treating it as just another day. Even Ye Futian had no idea what it was that Chen Yi wanted. Or, was it really as he occasionally joked: that he just wanted to stay around someone who could beat him so that he had more motivation to cultivate?


    However, Chen Yi did not seem to harbor any bad intentions and had no ulterior motive. If it were not Chen Yi who led him in escape, Ning Hua would have already caught up with him, so he didn��t bother to ask any questions. Everyone had their own private thoughts and things that they didn��t want to talk about. If Chen Yi didn��t want to talk about it, he would not ask him either.


    But at this moment, Ye Futian had no time to think about any of this. As soon as Chen Yi made his move, so did he. The war god-like spear with the divine glory of the peacock lanced at that Renhuang of the Ninth Realm without any hesitation. Ye Futian repelled him with a single strike. With a flash of his body, he went straight towards Muyun Shu.


    There are still some Renhuang in Nanhai Family who wanted to step in to stop them. But when Ye Futian��s spear pointed at them, it was enough to stop them dead in their tracks. Who among them could withstand a strike from him?


    Muyun Shu immediately turned around to escape, but a loud rustling sound was heard as the vines from the ancient tree wrapped tightly around his body. The divine glory shone upon Muyun Shu, summoning the golden-winged roc to break him free, but he was bound tightly. The vines twirled towards Ye Futian, delivering Muyun Shu in front of Ye Futian.


    ��How dare you touch me?�� Muyun Shu stared at Ye Futian icily, still full of unbridled arrogance.


    Ye Futian raised his hand and waved. A giant handprint appeared in the void and went directly towards Muyun Shu.


    Bang! This giant handprint directly landed on Muyun Shu��s face. With a scream, he spat out blood and a few teeth. A palm print was clearly visible on his face, already swollen.


    Turning around, Muyun Shu stared at Ye Futian. His eyes were icy as if he came from hell.


    ��I will definitely make you beg for death,�� Muyun Shu said coldly.


    Bang! Another giant handprint was thrown at him before he could finish his threats; Muyun Shu was looking quite disheveled.


    Bang, bang, bang�� A series of slaps were thrown out in succession, and Muyun Shu was dumbfounded. With his head throbbing in pain and his spiritual soul shook, he became a little confused.


    Ye Futian glanced at him, his eyes pierced directly into Muyun Shu��s mind, and he took him into a terrifyingly fantastical space.


    He was tied to a blood-colored stone tablet in this space, with sharp blades in front of him, piercing on his body, trying to nail him there.


    ��No���� Muyun Shu had a bewildered and frantic look on his face at the moment, as he struggled and snarled in panic.


    ��Kneel!�� A god-like voice sounded in his head. At this moment, Muyun Shu dared not struggle but knelt in the air and pleaded, ��Let me go.��


    He was afraid now. In this space of illusion, Ye Futian seemed to really want him dead. Stuck between states of sanity and insanity, he suddenly had a strong desire to live.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he withdrew his sight, and the vines that seemed to bind Muyun Shu disappeared. He fell to the ground. He knelt on the ground, his body trembling nonstop.


    He opened his eyes and became more lucid. His body trembled even more violently when he saw what was in front of him.


    No, it couldn��t possibly be�� was this him, Muyun Shu?


    Lifting his head, he saw Ye Futian standing in the air looking down at him, with eyes full of contempt. At this moment, Muyun Shu felt his heart twist, and he was in extreme pain.

 Chapter 2155 - A World in A Word

    Bang!


    In the void, a figure descended from the ether. It was Muyun Lan.


    He landed directly next to Muyun Shu. At the same time, Blind Tie also returned behind Ye Futian. In their battle, Muyun Lan realized that he couldn��t overpower Blind Tie. After returning to the village as a blind man, he seemed even stronger than before, be it in perception, attack, or reaction speed. He couldn��t see with his eyes, but he was more terrifying than when he could see!


    Muyun Lan lowered his head to look at Muyun Shu, who was beside him. His eyes were icy and gloomy. He left when Muyun Shu was still very young, so he almost had never seen him since. He and his younger brother communicated entirely through transmissions. As the absent elder brother, he thought he had not done much for him, so he doted on him and indulged his whims.


    But at this moment, Muyun Shu was being treated thusly.


    ��Older brother.�� Muyun Shu��s eyes were glowing with blood as he regarded Muyun Lan. Those eyes made Muyun Lan feel enraged.


    Nanhai Qianxue also stopped fighting immediately and came to his side. Seeing Muyun Lan��s expression, she knew just how badly he was feeling at this moment.


    ��Get up.�� Muyun Lan helped Muyun Shu up, then handed him over to the care of the Nanhai Family. He raised his head to look at Ye Futian, his eyes filled with terrible murderous intent, not just toward Ye Futian, but to all the cultivators from Four Corner Village. This was not the case before, because after all, he was a cultivator from the village. Even if Four Corner Village did not want him and he lost in the fight, he still cared about their history together.


    However, his own feelings aside, the people in Four Corner Village did not seem to care bout the past as much as he did. Everyone was following Ye Futian��s lead and even abused his brother. In his eyes, Muyun Shu was nothing more than a teenager.


    He looked at Ye Futian, Blind Tie, and the others. He said, ��From today onward, I, Muyun Lan, am done with Four Corner Village.��


    Blind Tie, Fang Huan, and the others were moved slightly when they heard his words, but they did not have too much emotion. The Muyun family was expelled from Four Corner Village because of their own doings. The Muyun family was too ambitious and wanted to take control of the village and even entertain the possibility of joining forces with the Nanhai family, which was tantamount to betrayal.


    Muyun Shu was more akin to a jackal. Perhaps the people in Four Corner Village didn��t resent Muyun Lan so much. But as for Muyun Shu, even people like Blind Tie wanted him dead. This little beast was not worth calling a human being.


    Therefore, the positions of both sides were destined. They could ever only stand on the opposite side as enemies.


    Buzz! An extremely radiant golden divine glory flashed and was gone. A shadow of a golden-winged roc appeared in the void, rushing directly at Ye Futian. At this moment, Ye Futian sensed that a terrifyingly sharp aura covered him.


    ��Be careful.�� Blind Tie��s reaction was incredibly fast, and he appeared in front of Ye Futian in an instant. He raised his hand, and a hammer strike came down. The gigantic divine hammer and the terrifying incoming golden-winged Roc converged. With a loud bang, the body of the golden-winged Roc shattered, but a gust of wind was set off between heaven and earth.


    Muyun Lan did not continue to attack. He knew that they had lost in this confrontation. Although there were still those in the Nanhai Family who had not taken action, it was of little use. Apart from him and Nanhai Qianxue, no one else could decide the outcome of the battle. What was more, the Renhuang of the Duan family had been watching from the sidelines.


    If they fought desperately at all costs, Muyun Shu and the others could not afford such a price either.


    Therefore, his gaze swept toward Ye Futian. There was an undisguised murderous intent in his eyes. But he turned around, walked towards the direction of the relic in front of him, and said, ��You guys stay and take care of Little Shu. The others will come with me.��


    After that, he went straight inside. He knew that Ye Futian and the others would not touch Muyun Shu anymore. If they had wanted to kill him, they would have done it before��Ye Futian didn��t dare.


    Many people were watching all this taking place. They didn��t expect that the cultivators of the Nanhai Family would be at a disadvantage, suppressed by Ye Futian. They asked for a truce, and Muyun Shu was brutally humiliated.


    If it weren��t for Ye Futian��s concern about Nanhai Family, they probably would have already killed Muyun Shu on the spot. It would seem that this enchanting young talent still had a long way to go and had no capital to be as unruly as he had been.


    ��Let��s go take a look, too,�� Duan Qiong walked up and said in a low voice. Ye Futian nodded and headed inside as well.


    Previously, a beam of light had sailed across the firmament from the relic and was seen from far away. It would indicate that something had been discovered, possibly relics that had not been plundered. Now that the turmoil here had been settled temporarily, they ought to check it out.


    The cultivators from Nanhai Family and Muyun Lan had also entered, and they must have discovered something. Moreover, there were many other cultivators in the relic, and none of them had not come out yet.


    Ye Futian and the others walked directly into the relic and felt that they had stepped into the ruins of a magnificent ancient city. Many dilapidated buildings were thousands of meters high and awe-inspiring. There must have been many splendid and ancient buildings in their heyday, but now they lay in ruins.


    As they continued walking forward, an invisible coercion gradually spread out in front of them. Before they got any closer, they could feel its transcendent power.


    Ye Futian revealed a trace of surprise. The relic had been plundered throughout generations and should have already been depleted by all the lootings. All that could be taken had already been taken away. Now, after so many years, could there still be opportunities of the Great Path?


    If so, why hadn��t it been discovered before?


    Ye Futian didn��t think too much. They sensed the aura as they continued moving forward. It didn��t take long for them to feel that they had entered the world of another space as if a wave of invisible power swept toward them.


    ��Be careful. This force is powerful.�� Blind Tie couldn��t see the situation outside clearly, so he reminded Ye Futian as the situation here seemed a bit complicated.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. He had felt this power seemed to become stronger as they moved further along until Ye Futian and the others came to the place where the dazzling divine light originated. They stopped and watched the scene ahead in shock.


    Not just them, but many people in this area had no time to even pay attention to the violent battles taking place outside, loitering in this space instead.


    In the front, what seemed to be the central area of the relic, there were four incredibly massive stone pillars surrounded the area. These four stone pillars were hefty and were far apart, surrounding a particular area. Terrifying brilliance dazzled in that area, and the four stone pillars were also bursting with dazzling light.


    ��This is an independent space,�� Ye Futian murmured.


    ��Yes, a small world. It is self-contained,�� Blind Tie said. Besides the Nanhai Family, there were other cultivators from other major principalities. All of them were focusing their attention to the front, their expressions solemn, waiting with their guard up.


    Not long ago, someone tried to rush in by force and was slaughtered without a trace.


    ��The Cangyuan Continent was plundered long ago. Why are there any relics appearing now?�� said Duan Qiong from the ancient royal family of Duan. He looked at the people around them and thought that these people should know how this relic appeared.


    ��Because a word was solved.�� At this moment, someone raised his head and spoke to Duan Qiong, who was in the void.


    ��Solved a word?�� Ye Futian looked at the speaker.


    ��Yes, one word.�� The man nodded and continued, ��One word contained an entire world. All these wonders are here because of the emergence of one word that materialized what we see before us now.��


    Ye Futian felt unsettled when he heard the man��s words. On the way over, he had heard from Duan Qiong, and the others talked about how terrifying the former master of Cangyuan Continent was. Now, he was hearing that the wonderment in front of them was nothing but a word.


    ��Previously, someone had discovered the word ��boundary�� in the ruins of the relic. After trying to communicate with it, the ancient word was cracked. Then, when the word disappeared, what is in front of us appeared. This world was hidden in the word ��boundary��.��


    A world hidden in one word�� Ye Futian��s heart was quite stricken with this knowledge!

 Chapter 2156 - Walked Right Through

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and the other martial artists looked ahead. Within the four pillars that surrounded that space, they could roughly make out a magnificent sight. It was like an incomparably luxurious ancient palace, and it looked majestic.


    The word ��world�� sealed a little world within it, and this little world was very likely to have something to do with the previous owner of this place, or it could even have been left behind by the previous owner back then.


    Ye Futian wasn��t the only one who thought this way; everyone else thought the same way too. However, the four pillars that had seemingly formed a terrifying seal around the little world had made it impossible for all the cultivators to step in. Otherwise, all of them wouldn��t have been waiting here for so long and would have gone in a long time ago.


    Woong! A Renhuang who came later tried, and an illusionary shadow created by divine consciousness flew straight towards the pillars of light in front. But once it came close to the pillars of light, it began to bend, and after it entered the area surrounded by the pillars, the shadow created by divine consciousness was bent so badly that it shattered. The shadow ceased to exist, which made that Renhuang let out a muffled cry, and he looked a little embarrassed.


    ��The Great Path here is not compatible with ours. If we try to enter by force, we will be destroyed, and our spiritual souls will also fall apart and turn to dust. We can��t go at all,�� that Renhuang said in a slightly low voice.


    For many years, nobody had discovered anything on this continent, but their trip this time gave them a pleasant surprise. They had found this hidden little world, which could be hiding a huge secret. It might have even been left behind by the deities who once occupied this place. But now, they were all blocked from entering it, and none of them liked this feeling of being stuck outside very much.


    Ye Futian��s gaze became extremely frightening and deepened greatly as he looked fixedly in front. He noticed that the space surrounded by the pillars was completely different from the world outside the pillars. It was as if this space was a void. If it didn��t have a barrier around it that forbade anyone from entering it, most people probably couldn��t even see that this space existed.


    This made his heart suddenly start palpitating because he had discovered an extraordinary phenomenon. The way this space existed was very similar to a place he had been to before.


    Four Corner Village!


    Back then, the space occupied by Four Corner Village was also impossible for ordinary people to see since it was an illusionary space. Only certain people on the Day of Sacrificial Rites were able to see it and enter it. These people were all people with great fates, and to Ye Futian, this so-called ��fate�� was really an ability to perceive. It was one��s ability to perceive the path that was incompatible with this world.


    Such a discovery made Ye Futian recall many things. It seemed as though the legendary people of the past lived in a different world from the world he lived in today. That year, the Heavenly Path collapsed, and the world went through a major change, and that��s how there was now a difference between this world and the Original Realm.


    Was there a link between the relics that the ones before him had left behind and the Original Realm?


    But of course, the real reason why Ye Futian��s heart was palpitating was not any of these. It was his Spirit.


    This Spirit was a World Tree, so it was able to develop a connection with divine items from the past, and it could even help him absorb from the land of demons and swallow the hearts of demons. This enabled him to overlap the two spaces of the Four Corner Village, which made it truly frightening.


    But what did all of this really mean?


    What exactly was a World Tree? Was it really just a Spirit that had been passed on?


    After cultivating to his current level, the things that Ye Futian understood could no longer be compared to what he understood in the past. Cultivators who had reached the Renhuang level could already remodel and change their own Spirits. As their cultivation level increased, they could make their own Divine Wheel of the Great Path go through a complete transformation, which, in turn, influenced and changed their Spirit. As it continued to evolve and be passed on, a real divine item could change one��s fate against heaven��s will, and so, it was only natural that the Spirit could also be changed.


    He couldn��t help but wonder if this World Tree Spirit was as simple as what he had inherited.


    It seemed like yet another opportunity to confirm his own Spirit.


    ��This space here is a space of the Great Path that a legendary character of the past has left behind, and it is incompatible with the Great Path of Space we have right now. This little world could be said to be a different world.�� Just then, someone spoke up as if he had also sensed something special about this space.


    The person who had spoken was Muyun Lan. He was a cultivator who had come from Four Corner Village and seemed to be more sensitive towards the aspect of cultivation. Also, his own cultivation level was very high, so he could sense that this space was different from the ordinary.


    ��This world here doesn��t want outsiders to enter, so it has become a twisted and destructive space. So if one barges in by force, one would enter into a twisted Great Path of Space?�� said Nanhai Qianxue as she looked at Muyun Lan.


    ��That��s right.�� Muyun Lan nodded. ��If one can get in by force and can withstand this amount of force, then there��s a chance you can go in. The other possibility is that those gifted in the cultivation of Perfect Grade Great Path of Space might be compatible and enter this space.��


    ��Perhaps, I could give it a try,�� said Muyun Lan. His expression was grim as his eyes were fixed ahead.


    Nanhai Qianxue looked at him and said in a low voice, ��It��s too risky for you to do that.��


    This was merely Muyun Lan��s conjecture, and even though Muyun Lan��s Great Path was perfect and could be compatible with the power from that space��s Great Path, the space before them was left behind by someone great in the past. It would have reached the pinnacle of cultivation. So there was still a difference between the two.


    If Muyun Lan barged in like that, it would be very dangerous.


    ��Before this, I didn��t try because I wanted to see it more clearly. But I think I��m quite sure now, and I��m 80% confident of this. Even if I fail, I don��t think I��d be trapped either, given my level of cultivation,�� said Muyun Lan. He was determined to try barging in.


    Nanhai Qianxue knew Muyun Lan��s temperament and knew he was an extremely proud man. Since he wanted to try, then she wasn��t going to be able to stop him.


    ��Be careful,�� said Nanhai Qianxue.


    ��Don��t worry.�� Muyun Lan nodded. After that, the Divine Light on his body glowed brilliantly as he unleashed the power of the Great Path of Space to its maximum. His entire body was glowing with the Divine Light, and the golden roc wings behind him spread out as if it was able to break through the void at any time. If there were any sign that he might be trapped, he would give up immediately.


    The others all turned towards Muyun Lan. This man was indeed a legendary character of their era, and his boldness and resolution were much higher than a normal person��s. He actually wanted to barge in by force.


    They watched as Muyun Lan walked towards the space surrounded by the pillars, flapped his wings, and entered the space. At that moment, they saw countless streams of lights flashing in the space as it enveloped his body. The rest of them watched Muyun Lan with much anxiety. Would he be successful?


    The family members of the Nanhai family were the most anxious, especially Nanhai Qianxue.


    They saw that Muyun Lan had run into some trouble inside, but he was still making progress. He seemed to have entered that space��s dimension, and all the cultivators watching were surprised that they couldn��t sense him anymore. His speed had slowed down as he moved along cautiously.


    Muyun Lan seemed to be walking extremely slowly. Even though there was no sign of any great battle happening, many still felt like their hearts were in their mouth. Just then, they saw Muyun Lan suddenly increase in speed as he rushed in like a bolt of lightning. In the next moment, his body had entered the world surrounded by the pillars. Muyun Lan��s body seemed to become especially small as he stood inside. It was as if the measurement standards of the world inside were different from the world outside.


    In that case, even though this space didn��t look very large from the outside, it might actually be huge once one got in.


    ��He��s gone in.�� Many of them felt their hearts tremble. Muyun Lan had been able to go in, but it was hard for the rest of them to do so. It was already rare to find a Perfect Grade Great Path cultivator in the first place, and someone who had perfected the Great Path of Space was even rarer. Even the top factions of power might not find many among themselves.


    ��Muyun Lan has gone in. I suppose he will become enlightened again,�� said one of them.


    Just then, they saw another person walk forward, which caused a strange look to appear on many of their faces, especially on the cultivators from the Nanhai family. The person walking towards the front was none other than Ye Futian.


    Nanhai Qing had a nasty look in his eyes. Did this fellow want to enter the space too?


    Even though his Great Path was perfect, it was still not easy to barge in. But he also hoped that Ye Futian would give it a shot, and the best would be if he died inside as well.


    ��Ye Futian,�� murmured someone softly. Would he be able to go in?


    It was probably going to be difficult and rather risky.


    But Ye Futian stood before the pillars and released small amounts of aura towards the light in between the pillars. In no time, the power of his Great Path flowed continuously into the space and merged with the Great Path of Space inside.


    After that, everyone looked on in shock as Ye Futian walked right in without running into any obstruction. He just walked right through and into the space in the middle of the pillars.


    ��This���� All the cultivators watching felt their eyes widen, and their mouths fell open. How was this even possible?


    How did Ye Futian do this? Even though his Great Path was perfect, his cultivation level was low, and it was way off from Muyun Lan��s level. How did he manage to go in with such ease?


    Even Nanhai Qing, who had been hoping to watch Ye Futian die a horrible death moments ago, suddenly kept that thought away as he witnessed with his own eyes how Ye Futian had just walked right across this area and entered the space!

 Chapter 2157 - Use for Training

    Many of them felt that this was simply ridiculous. Never mind the rest of them, even Duan Qiong stared with his eyes and mouth wide open as he watched Ye Futian saunter into the space. That seemed a little too easy, didn��t it?


    Even though Muyun Lan had made it before Ye Futian did, Muyun Lan ran into some difficulties and seemed to have managed to enter the space after being very cautious. But Ye Futian had just walked right in as if this space was no different from the outside world.


    This scene was challenging for anybody to explain.


    ��Even though this fellow is also gifted in Great Path of Space, he��s made the process look a little too simple,�� said someone incredulously.


    ��Even I want to give it a shot now,�� grumbled another. Indeed, after watching Ye Futian walk in so easily, many of them felt tempted to try. But it didn��t take long for someone to learn his lesson. If he hadn��t reacted quickly enough, he might have died on the spot.


    This really puzzled a lot of people. Why was Ye Futian able to do this so easily, but they ended up nearly losing their lives from merely trying?


    Only the ones who were close to Ye Futian thought this to be normal. They didn��t look surprised at all, as if this was to be expected.


    ��He and Muyun Lan have both gone in. Would the two of them end up fighting?�� someone suddenly asked in a low voice. The others realized all of a sudden that Ye Futian and Muyun Lan had quite the feud, and they had gotten into a really violent fight outside not too long ago.


    And now, Ye Futian had gone in after Muyun Lan. Wasn��t he asking to get beaten up again?


    ��In the earlier fight, the Nanhai family and Muyun Lan didn��t gain the upper hand and were actually kept at bay, so Muyun Lan might not actually dare to do anything to Ye Futian. Otherwise, nobody knows what would happen in the outside world,�� replied another. Many of them agreed. Anybody who witnessed the fight outside earlier knew very well that Ye Futian and the people of Four Corner Village had definitely gained the upper hand in that fight. If Muyun Lan tried to kill Ye Futian in there, nobody out here would be able to stop Blind Tie.


    Ye Futian understood this very well too. After he entered the space, he felt like he had come to a completely different world. Looking in from outside and being inside this world itself gave him a very different feeling altogether.


    He now felt that he had truly come to a completely different Space World. It was very real, and it was neither an illusive realm nor a void space. It was a place a legendary character of the past used for cultivation.


    All the buildings in this place were pure white and seemed to have been carved out of white jade. White jade pillars were tall enough to reach the sky as they held this place up and extended into the clouds.


    The beautiful sight before him gave him the feeling that he was now in a heavenly palace. Even the Donghua Palace of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor wasn��t this majestic. This made Ye Futian believe that this was a place where some godlike person must have cultivated. The ruler of the Cangyuan Continent possibly sealed off the place where he cultivated so that it would not be destroyed and would survive till today.


    A solemnness rose in his heart as Ye Futian continued to walk ahead. But someone quietly stood in front of him and turned around to look at him. It was Muyun Lan who had come in earlier. He didn��t expect Ye Futian to have come in after him.


    But even though he saw that Ye Futian had made it in here, there was no dramatic change in his gaze. He just looked at Ye Futian with some frostiness as he said in a distant tone of voice, ��If I don��t tell you to move, you shall stand there and not move.��


    With that, he started walking forward. His voice had an authority that was not to be questioned, as if he had given Ye Futian the command to stand there, and he was not allowed to move.


    Ye Futian frowned. He knew that Muyun Lan wouldn��t dare to do anything to him, but he didn��t expect Muyun Lan��s personality to be so audacious. He had come in here, but Muyun Lan didn��t allow him to move.


    Ye Futian picked his feet up and started moving forward as well. But the moment he took one step out, Muyun Lan stopped walking as well. Beams of gold Divine Light that carried the power of the Great Path emanated out from him.


    Woong!


    All of a sudden, a golden figure appeared in front of Ye Futian. In an instant, the terrifying illusion of a golden-winged roc appeared from nowhere and came down murderously towards him. Its incredible pair of wings flapped and tore through the air as it made its way towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian shifted himself instantly and disappeared from where he was standing earlier to appear in a different place. But he soon realized that in the blink of an eye, several more illusions of golden-winged rocs had appeared before him. Each one seemed so real as they carried a ferocious aura while coming at him at the same time. They seemed to have drowned out the space here, and he had nowhere to escape to.


    At that moment, a gargantuan illusion of a peacock appeared behind Ye Futian. It gave off countless beams of light from its body and attacked all the illusions of the golden-winged rocs. But they were unable to hold up against the attack power of the golden-winged rocs.


    Ye Futian thrust his long spear outwards, only to see a golden-winged roc use its sharp claws to block the attack. It had actually used its razor-sharp claws to grab hold of the long spear as the other illusions continued to attack from other directions.


    The illusion of the peacock unleashed a glaring amount of Divine Light. It was as if it had come out from countless pairs of eyes at the same time, but it was still unable to fend off the force coming towards it that seemed to be able to blot out the sky.


    Bam! With a loud blast, Ye Futian flew out from the impact and was sent far into the distance. At that moment, all the illusions disappeared as they merged into one and returned to Muyun Lan��s body. Those jealous-looking eyes were filled with cold-blooded and murderous thoughts.


    If not for the fact that he couldn��t kill Ye Futian now, he would have done it right now and gotten rid of this man.


    ��The power of Level-eight.��


    The aura on Ye Futian trembled as he looked up at Muyun Lan in front of him. Muyun Lan was at Renhuang Level-eight Perfect Grade Great Path, and he was reaching its peak already, so he was practically invincible, while Ye Futian��s level was too far from his after all. Dealing with an ordinary Level-eight Renhuang was no problem to him, and he would even have the upper hand. Still, Muyun Lan was a compelling character from Four Corner Village and had experienced enlightenment. It was really way too difficult for him at Level-five to defeat Muyun Lan.


    Everyone looking in from outside narrowed their eyes as they watched the battle. Muyun Lan had seriously tried to attack Ye Futian?


    But Muyun Lan didn��t seem like he intended to really kill Ye Futian. There were too many things he had to consider, so he didn��t dare to go too far. However, from what they could see, it looked like Muyun Lan was purposely trying to stop Ye Futian from discovering any secrets within that space.


    Blind Tie couldn��t see what was going on inside, and he couldn��t sense it either, but his ears twitched, and he could overhear the discussions among the rest of the people. His expression turned cold as he started walking towards where the cultivators from the Nanhai family were standing. Nanhai Qing and the rest immediately tensed up and were worried that Blind Tie was here to take revenge.


    ��Do not make me repeat myself,�� said Muyun Lan aggressively before continuing to walk on. It was as if he had been standing there without moving throughout the attack.


    ��But I want to understand a Level-eight Golden Roc Heaven Slayer Technique.�� Ye Futian ignored whatever Muyun Lan said and continued walking forward. The blasts of Great Path resounded from his body as countless beams of Divine Light shot out from within his body. His whole body was filled with exuberant energy.


    Even though he was not at a level able to fight Muyun Lan, who was at Level-eight Perfect Grade Great Path, he didn��t mind making use of Muyun Lan to hone his fighting abilities. Before leaving the Donghua Domain, he had heard that the most talented and powerful person of the domain, Ning Hua, had already reached Level-eight.


    Regardless of whether it was Ning Hua or Muyun Lan, these were all rivals that he would eventually need to face in the future. So wasn��t a chance to hone and perfect his skills a really rare chance?


    A tremendous amount of pressure filled the space. Ye Futian��s body served as the center of this pressure, and a starry dimension with innumerable stars surrounded him. A bright white moon hung high in the sky as it emanated a chilling air, causing the space to nearly freeze over.


    Muyun Lan��s body was suspended in the air as the incredibly glorious Picture of the Domineering Golden Peng Bird appeared on his body. His gaze swept towards Ye Futian and his murderous intentions intensified, but he tried his best to hold himself back.


    Chi-chi�� A golden-winged roc flew out ferociously like a beam of light as it seemed to become a beautiful sword. This golden sword-like bird tore through the air and flew murderously towards Ye Futian. Many more golden-winged rocs surrounded it as if they were determined to kill everything in their way.


    Ye Futian shifted his consciousness, and the Divine Light from the frosty moon shone down on the legendary birds and affected their speed but was unable to destroy them.


    At the same time, he raised a hand and slammed it down, causing all the stars to instantly rain down towards the birds like divine monuments coming down from the sky.


    Bam! Bam! Bam! It shattered all the force that it landed on, and even though the golden rocs continued to fly towards Ye Futian, their strength had been greatly diminished.


    Many Doors of Space appeared in front of Ye Futian and made their way towards those sword-like birds. The divine swords created by the golden-winged rocs broke through the doors and shattered them, but just then, a long spear attacked them, blocking the swords and blocking the attack.


    But in the same instant, a strong wind began to howl as an enormous bird smashed down from the sky as it aimed straight for Ye Futian. The illusion of a peacock behind Ye Futian unleashed an incredibly gorgeous Light of the Demon God from itself. The incomparably huge peacock shot into the sky as it became one with the Divine Light to collide with the bird that was smashing down.


    Boom�� Ye Futian was sent flying out again from the impact, and he gave a muffled cry. The blood force within his body roiled, but he caught his breath again almost instantly. He held a long spear in his hands and looked towards Muyun Lan. An eagerness to fight blazed in those eyes.


    Muyun Lan stared at Ye Futian and could sense that eagerness to engage in battle from Ye Futian��s body. He could sense that Ye Futian was making use of him to train himself up, and he knew that his threats didn��t mean anything to Ye Futian at all. They both knew very well that he didn��t dare to do anything to Ye Futian, so Ye Futian ended up using his attacks to hone his fighting ability instead.


    When he realized this, Muyun Lan��s expression darkened even further, and his murderous thoughts intensified greatly. But he had to think about the situation outside. Terrifying beams of Divine Light came down, and he wished he could kill Ye Futian on the spot. But he couldn��t do that.


    Muyun Lan spun around and left. He continued walking deeper into the space and didn��t bother stopping Ye Futian anymore. He knew there was no point in doing that, and he would only serve to benefit Ye Futian instead.


    Ye Futian felt that it was such a pity. It was so hard to find a rival at this level. An ordinary Level-nine character wasn��t his match either. But Muyun Lan had realized what Ye Futian was trying to do, so he decided to just leave!

 Chapter 2158 - The World Has No Path

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Muyun Lan was in front, and Ye Futian was in the back. The two of them walked on at the same time and passed many pillars that were so tall that they reached the clouds. Divine consciousness didn��t work in this place, so they had to use their eyes to observe everything.


    They could vaguely sense a terrifying form of pressure in front, so they lifted their heads to look into the distance. They could make out a flight of stairs that extended high up towards the sky, and there were even more majestic-looking golden pillars at the top of the stairs. They sparkled brightly. It was as if there was something even more frightening to behold in that place.


    ��What��s over there?�� thought both of them in their hearts. Muyun Lan had already started walking briskly towards the stairs. He didn��t walk too quickly, but each step was strong and steady. Every step he took created a booming sound, making one feel a tremendous amount of pressure.


    This authoritative pressure wasn��t something that he unleashed on purpose. It was a natural sort of formidability that made his expression grim as he fixed his gaze in front. His expression was bleak because he could sense that this series of chance encounters might really have led them to find an actual relic of the past, and it could really be something left behind by a truly incredible person of the past.


    Muyun Lan had been willing to marry into the Nanhai family to become their son-in-law, not only for the sake of his cultivation. He used to be from the village and knew very little about anything else. His knowledge of the world outside was blurry and as good as none. He only knew about cultivation and his wish to go out and explore the world.


    After wandering out there for several years, his knowledge expanded. But it was only after he met Nanhai Qianxue and came to the Nanhai family that he found out about the great secrets of ancient times. That was when he realized that there were still so many astonishing secrets to be uncovered and many stories that had been buried in the long river of history.


    And since he was facing what could be the relic of a godlike character, he became very solemn, and his heart was tumultuous. The gods of ancient times were those who dared to fight the heavens and were heaven-defying existences themselves. This sort of undefeatable boldness was something that triggered his ambition. He wished he had been born in that era to have competed with the Heavenly Palace.


    Ye Futian looked equally solemn. But unlike Muyun Lan, he was still in the process of searching while cultivating. He was searching for the secret of his own past, he was searching for the truth behind the World Tree, and of course, he wanted to know what this world really was like.


    There were many things that he felt like he had come into contact with but wasn��t able to see clearly.


    But as his cultivation level continued to rise, he was beginning to inch toward the truth slowly.


    When he reached the stairs, he also felt this odd authoritative pressure coming from it. This pressure was ancient and solemn and wasn��t brought here by some other power. It seemed like the purest form of might. It had no form or shape, but it weighed heavily on him and made him feel like he was suffocating.


    Ye Futian started walking up the stairs. His body was surrounded by the glow of the Divine Light of Great Path as if he was a divine being himself, but the Divine Light of Great Path didn��t seem as pretty or eye-catching in this place. On the contrary, it seemed somewhat dim, as if that mighty pressure had kept everything under its control, which caused Ye Futian to feel that the power he had didn��t seem to do any wonders for him, and he had to rely on his own body to endure everything that came his way.


    What��s up there? wondered Ye Futian. His heart was immensely calm. He looked up into the sky, and there was some anticipation in his eyes.


    But there was no way he could increase his speed, and he had no choice but to go up one step at a time.


    In front of him, Muyun Lan had stopped walking, and his breathing seemed to have quickened. He hadn��t released any aura and did not unleash any of his Great Path power. It was clear that Muyun Lan had gone through the same thing as Ye Futian. He had also realized that the powers he had were useless because this authoritative pressure had no regard for any Great Path power. It was a pressure that weighed on one��s spirit.


    But after a few moments, he continued walking up. Ye Futian followed behind him. His breathing started to quicken as well. He didn��t stop and began to close the gap between himself and Muyun Lan. The two of them continued to walk higher and higher up the stairs.


    When Muyun Lan stopped again, he was left with only the last three steps. He took a deep breath, then picked up his feet and went up again. He stood at the top of the stairs, and for one moment, Muyun Lan��s gaze froze. He stood where he was without budging an inch and just stared straight ahead.


    Ye Futian figured that Muyun Lan must have seen something. He continued walking up from behind Muyun Lan, finally reaching the top and stood on the landing. After that, his gaze was also frozen like Muyun Lan��s, and he, too, stood there without moving as he stared at what was in front of him.


    And so, the people outside witnessed a bizarre scene before them. These two enemies were actually standing side by side, quietly looking ahead. The people outside couldn��t see exactly what was there and could only see an extremely bright ball of light.


    ��What did they see?�� Everyone��s hearts trembled as a strong sense of curiosity overwhelmed them. These two were archenemies. What could they have seen that would make them stand there without moving the slightest bit? Many of them wished they could also go in to see what was there.


    But until now, the two of them were the only ones able to enter the space. Nobody else had been able to go in.


    If they wanted to know what the two of them had seen, they had to wait for them to come back out.


    At the same time, inside the space, Muyun Lan and Ye Futian were faced with a glaring flash of golden Divine Light. The gleaming Diving Light was so glaring that their eyes hurt. This place seemed to have been a place where one cultivated. Characters were carved into the pillars that seemed to reach the sky, and they were all over the floor as well. It looked like a gigantic formation, and it also resembled an altar.


    But right in the middle of this area, Muyun Lan and Ye Futian saw a golden coffin. That glorious golden Divine Light emanated from this golden coffin, and it hurt their eyes to look upon it. The mighty pressure was coming from this coffin as well, and it made both of them pant heavily. Even though they were powerful, they felt like their legs were about to give way. That was how frightening the pressure was.


    In this place, it seemed like none of the Great Path power was of any use. The might that shone on them had eliminated all the power they had.


    ��It��s those words.��


    Muyun Lan and Ye Futian looked towards the words written on the pillars. Five pillars had five different words on them: ��the,�� ��world,�� ��has,�� ��no,�� and ��path.��


    ��The world has no path!�� Muyun Lan murmured to himself. Just when he was about to unleash the Great Path aura within him, it was instantly distinguished. For as long as the Divine Light of those ancient words shone down on him, the Great Path did not exist. No path existed in this space.


    ��The world has no path.�� Ye Futian was equally shaken as he murmured these five words to himself. What did they mean?


    What was the ��path�� here referring to?


    The world had no path? Then what was the power that they had all been cultivating?


    If this sort of power existed, then why did it disappear completely in this space? Why wasn��t it able to exist in this space?


    Muyun Lan and Ye Futian��s hearts were both filled with questions as they looked towards that coffin.


    Bam. Ye Futian stepped out, which caused the floor to resonate loudly. Even though his movement was extremely limited within this space, he still took that step out anyway. The strength of the World Tree within his body slowly spread through the rest of his body, which filled his body with strength.


    Muyun Lan��s expression froze when he noticed Ye Futian��s movement. He tried to take a step forward only to find that he wasn��t able to.


    It was already not easy for him to remain standing under this tremendous pressure. But Ye Futian was actually able to continue walking.


    Did that mean he wasn��t as powerful as Ye Futian?


    Muyun Lan was a proud man by nature, so even though Ye Futian had made a name for himself recently and was incredibly gifted, he didn��t think that he would be any less than Ye Futian. But after they had both entered this relic and come here, he didn��t have any more strength to keep walking, while Ye Futian could continue walking ahead. This was a terrible blow to Muyun Lan��s pride.


    The Great Path resonated within his body, and it seemed like Divine Light was flickering behind him as he forced himself to take a step forward. But all of this was quickly extinguished by that formless Divine Light from the coffin.


    PFFT! Muyun Lan made a muffled noise as blood dribbled from his lips, but he still insisted on taking this step forward. He looked towards the front to see that Ye Futian was still walking ahead. He was walking very slowly, but he had already made three steps forward.


    Ye Futian seemed to have sensed Muyun Lan��s movement, so he turned back to glance at Muyun Lan to see that Muyun Lan was still trying to move forward despite bleeding from the mouth and nose. If he went on like this, he might end up bleeding from even more places.


    This man was naturally proud and was one who refused to give up or give in. But this obstinance wasn��t always a good thing. Ye Futian had taken more steps forward only because the World Tree wasn��t affected by the Divine Light and had given him more strength. Otherwise, he would have remained where he was.


    ��The path of cultivation is not an easy one. Don��t go down the path of destruction,�� said Ye Futian in a low voice. Muyun Lan looked at him. Was Ye Futian advising him now?


    Was he mocking him? Or was he laughing at his misfortune?


    ��If you die like this, then I��d have one rival less. It��s better if you leave yourself alive for me to kill,�� continued Ye Futian. After that, he didn��t care about him anymore and took yet another step forward.


    Muyun Lan was bleeding from more places now, so he ended up giving up. He moved his body backward to stand at the edge of the staircase once again and didn��t dare to try moving forward anymore.


    Meanwhile, Ye Futian had already reached the coffin. The glaring rays of light made it hard for him to open his eyes, so he used a hand to block some of it. He looked towards the inside of the coffin, and his heart pounded wildly as his hand froze.


    He had just taken one look, and Ye Futian let out a tragic-sounding yelp as his body was sent flying right out. He crashed into one of the pillars and vomited a mouthful of fresh blood. Blood was also seeping out from his eyes, and he looked awful.


    Muyun Lan felt his own heart pound wildly when he saw this. He stared straight at that coffin, then looked towards Ye Futian.


    He watched as Ye Futian put a hand over his eyes, and it was dyed red by blood. The energy from the World Tree within his body extended to his eyes. He slowly moved his hand away, and the blood had all dried up. His eyes opened again to look towards the coffin.


    ��What��s there?�� Muyun Lan couldn��t help but ask Ye Futian even though he knew Ye Futian was injured.


    Ye Futian��s gaze looked back at where Muyun Lan was standing. Muyun Lan looked back at him as if he was waiting for a response from Ye Futian.


    What was inside this coffin?


    At that moment, Muyun Lan felt his heart pound wildly on its own accord.


    But even though Ye Futian wanted to say something, he didn��t say anything in the end. His heart was also pounding equally wildly!

 Chapter 2159 - The Remains in the Divine Casket

    ��What on earth is it?�� Muyun Lan asked again since Ye Futian didn��t answer. His eyes glowed with curiosity. The thing almost blinded Ye Futian and left him open-mouthed. What could it possibly be?


    What was hidden inside of a divine casket that was sealed in the mysterious site of relics of ancient Gods?


    Was it a body?


    Could it be the remains of ancient Gods if it was indeed a body?


    Sacred remains?!


    Ye Futian still didn��t answer Muyun Lan��s question. It was not that he didn��t want to reply but that he couldn��t tell what it was or to put it into words. Was it a corpse? He had trouble describing it clearly.


    While he still felt staggered and disconcerted at this moment, he was also filled with wonder and a strong urge to explore. His eyes, which had recovered from temporary blindness, were glued to the divine casket.


    Beams of divine light illuminated his body. It was imperial glory instead of the ordinary divine light of the Great Path. His eyes reflected the dazzling light and shone brilliantly as if they were eyes of God.


    He stepped forward again, walking over to the divine casket. He wanted to give it another try to identify the thing in the casket. He was almost blinded just now for taking a brief look. Any other cultivator at the same level would have lost his sight already.


    Muyun Lan clenched his fists and stared at Ye Futian without blinking. This jerk wouldn��t tell him what was inside the casket. Muyun Lan exerted himself to move a step forward, attempting to take a look himself.


    ��Even if you managed to get here, you probably would be blinded after one quick look. Do you really want to try?�� a cold voice said to Muyun Lan. Muyun Lan dropped the idea right away. He stood frozen to the ground and was at a loss for words.


    He certainly had been performing worse than Ye Futian even though he was unwilling to admit it. He saw what kind of price Ye Futian paid to look inside the casket, and he knew he was very likely to be blinded if he tried it himself.


    Of course, Muyun Lan noticed how Ye Futian was glowing with the imperial glory as well. Ye Futian was fortunate enough to obtain the will of the Great Emperor during a serendipitous encounter. Perhaps it was why he was better than Muyun Lan and was confident enough to try again.


    Ye Futian walked extremely slowly. Each of his footsteps was heavy. It was as if he was carrying tons of weight. He paused for a second when he reached the divine casket. His eyes already turned into a rich and bright golden color as though they were brightened by the divine light. Ye Futian approached the divine casket one more time to look inside.


    In an instant, countless rays of divine light pierced into Ye Futian��s eyes. He felt excruciating pain in his eyes, and even his spiritual soul was shaken violently. The blinding golden divine light seemed to be an endless flow of runes. Each rune was left by the ancient Gods and contained enigmatic power.


    More remarkably, the countless runes all seemed to be coming from a body, which was essentially made up of golden runes. It was a corpse indeed. The sacred remains.


    However, the dazzling and magnificent sacred remains didn��t have blood, flesh, or bones.


    Even if a God died, his body would never decompose, and his blood wouldn��t dry out either. Moreover, he could resurrect himself even if he only had one drop of blood or one patch of skin left. Ye Futian couldn��t imagine what Gods were capable of, but at least they would have bodies that could last forever.


    That being said, the sacred remains in front of him were composed of innumerable runes. It was a spectacular sight.


    Buzz��


    Ye Futian felt a strong, sharp pain in his eyes. He let out an agonized yelp and fell back. Two streams of blood trickled from his eyes and made him look miserable.


    Even though he was well prepared this time, Ye Futian couldn��t endure the pain for more than a split second. The runes that formed the remains thrust into his eyes and head. He couldn��t persevere in the face of this kind of power.


    ��Was this developed after a God��s death?�� Ye Futian was astounded even though this was not the first sacred remains that he saw. In the past, he had encountered the Divine Heart of the Peacock left by the Peacock Demon God.


    What did the sacred remains mean this time?


    ��


    At the moment, this area in the Outer Realms was surrounded by a lot of cultivators. They were all eager to know what was going on inside. Why did Muyun Lan stop moving forward?


    What happened to him?


    Ye Futian, as opposed to Muyun Lan, walked into the area that couldn��t be discerned. Did it mean that Ye Futian was doing better than Muyun Lan in the relic?


    All of a sudden, everyone sensed the formidable authority of heaven. Many of them raised their heads to look in the direction of the source of the terrifying energy. They immediately saw a person appear in the sky above them.


    It was an old man with an ethereal quality. His long, white beard was flowing in the wind, making him look like a deity.


    ��Who is that?�� Everyone��s heart was pounding with excitement and anticipation. The cultivators from the Nanhai family bowed to the old man and said, ��Greetings to the clan leader.��


    The clan leader of the Nanhai family was here!


    The crowd was almost blown away. No one expected to see master cultivators here, let alone the preeminent leader of the Nanhai family.


    He arrived so quickly. It seemed that the cultivators from the Nanhai family informed him of the situation, which attracted him here at once.


    The clan leader of the Nanhai family gazed at the area below with a solemn expression. He asked, ��How was this discovered?��


    After years of raiding and plundering, they thought there was no valuable relic left in the Cangyuan Continent. This was why it was shocking for them to see the situation here. This meant that they missed one of the most important relics on this continent.


    ��This area came into sight after someone solved the mystery by chance,�� a person replied. The clan leader of the Nanhai family was lost for words. Was it that simple?


    Nevertheless, it was meaningless to inquire about the details or regret the past. Instead, he focused on the present and watched the area intently.


    Just when he was about to make a move, another burst of fierce energy arrived. A voice rang out in midair, ��I was wondering what Brother Nanhai was rushing for. It turns out that there is God��s relic on the Cangyuan Continent.��


    Before the voice faded, another master cultivator came into view.


    ��Brother Nanhai, it��s quite selfish of you to not share the news with us.�� A succession of master cultivators showed up, one of whom looked like a majestic ruler in his lavish imperial robe.


    ��The sovereign of the Shangyu Deity Nation.��


    It appeared that most of the mighty figures of the Upper Third Heaven had arrived.


    They all went to the Shangqing Continent at the request of the Domain Chief��s Manor. However, the leaders of the Nanhai family and the An family left abruptly, which caught the attention of other master cultivators. They followed them here, which led to what happened just now.


    The crowd was electrified to see the most prominent cultivators arriving one after another. The Domain Chief��s Manor invited them over. Yet, who would have thought that they all gathered here in the Cangyuan Continent?


    Everyone could feel a great force of intense pressure pressing down over their bodies because of these mighty figures�� presence.


    However, they were only staring at the area below while unleashing terrifying energy to surround the pillars. Subsequently, the crowd was hit by a strong yet invisible wave. It felt like a surreal spatial storm to the cultivators nearby.


    ��Back off.��


    A voice boomed in the void. The cultivators immediately pulled back. But the invisible undulation of energy grew more intense. It turned into a gale and was transformed into a real spatial storm.


    Buzz��


    A wicked storm struck again, and blinding light flooded the space. At this moment, all of the wrecked buildings were once again smashed to smithereens, dust clouds blowing in the wind.


    After the storm finally subsided, the crowd standing far away suddenly realized that the area had changed. To everyone��s astonishment, numerous stone pillars soared into the clouds as if they were part of a splendid divine palace.


    ��This is what��s inside!�� Many people felt their hearts pounding rapidly. Was the divine palace inside the relic moved out by the master cultivators by force?


    Ye Futian and Muyun Lan naturally sensed the change as well. They raised their heads to look at the people hovering in the air. Although he had never met any of them, Ye Futian knew that they were mighty figures from various top forces.


    ��Old Ma.�� Ye Futian recognized Old Ma, who was behind the crowd. Old Ma followed other people here too.


    ��Father-in-law,�� Muyun Lan shouted at the clan leader of the Nanhai family. The man nodded and responded, ��Muyun Lan, pull back for now.��


    Muyun Lan nodded slightly. There was no point for him to stay now that the master cultivators had arrived.


    Before he made a quick exit, he darted a glance at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was quietly withdrawing from the area. Even so, many master cultivators in the air noticed him. They stared at him for a while, surprised that he could approach the divine casket.


    In fact, the master cultivators were also astounded to see that it was a divine casket.


    As soon as they focused their attention on the inside of the divine casket, several of them closed their eyes. Others shrieked and immediately teleported away, then reappeared in the sky extremely far away.


    ��What is that?��


    A voice echoed through the area. Even the clan leader of the Nanhai family drew back without looking at the casket. His eyes closed tightly.


    ��Ugh����


    The spectators were stunned by their reaction. What on earth was inside the dazzling divine casket? Even the most powerful cultivators recoiled in horror.


    There was no doubt that it was something left by the ancient Gods. A cultivator from the Nanhai family rose into the air, trying to sneak a peek. But the clan leader bellowed, ��Back off. You can��t look at it!��


    Startled, the man stopped right away. He understood that he had to curb his curiosity when he saw the expression on the clan leader��s face. He couldn��t even cast a brief look at the divine casket.

 Chapter 2160 - Shenjia the Great Emperor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The master cultivators stood in different directions and seemed extremely cautious. Even people as powerful as them didn��t dare to look. One could well imagine what kind of horrific thing was lying inside the divine casket.


    ��Is it him?�� someone asked the clan leader of the Nanhai family. He was awfully afraid and didn��t have the courage to look himself.


    ��Yes,�� the clan leader of the Nanhai family nodded and replied.


    ��I��m surprised that the remains of an ancient legend are preserved till today,�� the person exclaimed.


    ��Father-in-law, whose body was it?�� Muyun Lan asked. It turned out that his guess was right. It was sacred remains indeed. However, how could a corpse contain so much terrifying power that even the master cultivators had to stay away?


    ��If I��m correct, this should be Shenjia the Great Emperor,�� the clan leader of the Nanhai family said in a low and solemn voice. Even he felt deep respect and admiration for such a legendary figure.


    The majority of the world had never heard about Shenjia the Great Emperor. Only the master cultivators vaguely knew something about him. It was arcane history from ancient times. Ordinary cultivators outside of the most influential families couldn��t possibly obtain such information.


    On top of that, even the families that rose to prominence in recent years didn��t have chances to access the secret stories from ancient times. It had to be aristocratic families with a long lineage.


    ��Shenjia the Great Emperor who didn��t believe in the Heavenly Path?�� Muyun Lan was taken aback. He had learned about the little-known stories of many mighty figures in ancient times since he married into the Nanhai family. Many supreme cultivators achieved spectacular feats and left a mark in the history of time.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor was one of them. He didn��t worship the Heavenly Path and dared to challenge the mainstream belief. He once carved the words ��heaven�� and ��earth�� to demonstrate unmatched confidence and firm resolve to confront heaven.


    ��He didn��t believe in the Heavenly Path.�� Ye Futian silently repeated Muyun Lan��s words. Astonished, he looked at the runes on the stone pillars. This supreme cultivator in ancient times didn��t believe in the Heavenly Path and built these stone pillars to destroy the established Great Path.


    What kind of bold vision and elevated state of mind he had?


    Ye Futian could hardly imagine.


    What on earth was the highest level of cultivation?


    He once heard that the Heavenly Path collapsed because it was broken during the great war from the distant past. Now he couldn��t help but wonder if the Heavenly Path came apart because there were too many marvelous cultivators competing against heaven at that time.


    It would be a shocking history if his speculation were true.


    Nevertheless, no one knew what exactly happened in the past. At least Ye Futian couldn��t figure it out yet.


    He had cultivated for such a long time and thought that he had acquired plenty of knowledge. Nowadays, however, it was becoming clear to him that there were much more that he didn��t know. He felt like an ignorant child.


    Now, almost all the master cultivators in the Shangqing Domain were daunted by a corpse of an ancient legend. They couldn��t even take a brief look without undergoing tremendous pressure and risk. Who could come near the sacred remains?


    At this moment, another person stepped forward and looked down into the divine casket. It was the Overlord of the Shangyu Deity Nation. His body was releasing terrifying energy, and his eyes glowed with the divine light. His gaze penetrated the space and focused on the sacred remains directly.


    Nonetheless, even with his dominant power and thorough preparation, he only held on for a short moment before shifting his eyes away. Although he managed to look at the sacred remains for a longer time than the clan leader of the Nanhai family did, it didn��t mean that he was stronger than him. He was more prepared.


    ��It��s undoubtedly Shenjia the Great Emperor,�� the Overlord of the Shangyu Deity Nation said. ��Rumor has it that Shenjia the Great Emperor was able to transform the Great Emperor into runes. His physical body was invincible and imperishable as a result of longtime and high-level cultivation. I would have never thought that I could see his sacred remains so many years later. Even though Shenjia the Great Emperor has already passed on, his body here is probably still in a class of its own.��


    His remarks tantalized many people. Overlord Shangyu had a point. Anyone who could control the sacred remains would be unrivaled in the Divine Prefecture. Apart from Donghuang the Great Emperor, who could prevail over the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor of ancient times?


    Although the sacred remains could be used as the ultimate weapon, ordinary folks could barely take a look, let alone control it.


    Notwithstanding, the lack of ability didn��t stop people from fantasizing about it.


    Who didn��t want to become the unparalleled fighter in the world?


    All of a sudden, the wind started to gust, and the clouds rolled in. Another person arrived while carrying intimidating power with him. The crowd looked up at the sky. The master cultivators already realized who just turned up.


    It seemed that it would be difficult for them to seize hold of the sacred remains for themselves now.


    ��I invited all of you to come to the Shangqing Continent. Yet it looks like you are all gathered here instead.�� The crowd heard his voice before seeing his face.


    Everyone raised their heads and saw a middle-aged man emerging in the sky. His hair was completely grey even though he seemed to be only 40 years old. Judging by his handsome face and majestic bearing, it was not hard for people to guess his identity. He was the Domain Chief of the Shangqing Domain.


    ��Domain Chief, you��re here too.�� The master cultivators greeted him one after another. The chief nodded and looked in the direction of the divine casket. He said, ��Who would have thought that there are sacred remains hidden in a relic on the Cangyuan Continent in the Shangqing Domain? We would have turned the Cangyuan Continent upside down if we knew that the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor still existed.��


    The top forces surely would do their utmost to thoroughly search through the Cangyuan Continent if they had known before.


    However, things would become tricky now that the Domain Chief had personally come. Everyone was conceiving all sorts of sinister plots in their heads before the chief��s arrival. But it would be even harder for them to get their hands on the sacred remains now.


    The Domain Chief shot a glance at the divine casket and said, ��It��s Shenjia the Great Emperor indeed.��


    He bowed slightly to the divine casket below to show his respect for the ancient legend. Then, he scanned the crowd and announced, ��Let��s head to the Shangqing Continent together since you are all here. I will bring the divine casket to the Domain Chief��s Manor and report to the Donghuang Imperial Palace later.��


    Everyone��s heart sunk upon hearing his decision. The Domain Chief��s plan was indisputable. The others might be able to question him if he only said to bring the casket back to the Domain Chief��s Manor. But he specifically added that he would report it to the Donghuang Imperial Palace later, which meant that he would only hold the divine casket temporarily for safekeeping. Who could challenge his decision after he stated his intention of waiting for Donghuang the Great Emperor��s instruction?


    That being said, it was unclear how long he planned to keep the divine casket in the Domain Chief��s Manor before reporting to the Donghuang Imperial Palace. He might hold on to it for a while.


    Either way, his argument was watertight.


    ��It��s extremely rare to encounter the sacred remains of the Great Emperor in early ancient times. Domain Chief, after you bring the casket back to the Shangqing Continent, can we study it together for a while to make some progress in cultivation?�� the Overlord Shangyu suggested. They had to compromise at this point for a chance to study the sacred remains. At the very least, they couldn��t let the Domain Chief hog it for himself.


    ��No problem, of course. Any cultivator would be eager to study such a divine body from the early ancient times,�� the Domain Chief nodded and said. ��I understand what you mean.��


    ��Thank you, Domain Chief.�� Everyone nodded in agreement. It would be inappropriate for them to push further at this point.


    Nonetheless, none of them was satisfied with the arrangement. The Domain Chief settled the issue of jurisdiction over the sacred remains moments after his arrival. The last word belonged to the most powerful person for sure. No one cared or inquired about the person who discovered the relic in the first place as if it didn��t matter at all. Of course, it was only a trivial detail indeed.


    ��Let��s go back to the Shangqing Continent together since we��re all here,�� the Domain Chief said. Then he turned his eyes to the area below. With a deafening sound, the earth quaked violently. Cracks appeared one by one as though the ground was about to be split open.


    The intense divine light of the Great Path illuminated the area. The Domain Chief made a grabbing gesture with his hand, and the entire relic was uprooted, creating a series of thundering noises.


    The onlookers were stunned to see the Domain Chief attempting to move the relic away in one piece.


    The whole site slowly rose into the air like a castle. It was encased in the form of fearsome energy. The power of the casket was contained and did not affect the movement.


    ��Let��s go,�� the Domain Chief said. He set out right away while carrying the relic. The clan leader of the Nanhai family looked down at Nanhai Qianxue and Muyun Lan. ��Come up.��


    ��Yes.�� They joined him and left together. Othe master cultivators also brought their youngsters along with them.


    ��Let��s set off too.�� Old Ma, who had been standing by the side quietly, finally spoke to Ye Futian and the others.


    Duan Tianxiong was right next to Old Ma. He nodded slightly at Ye Futian and joined them as well.


    Everyone from the top forces left the scene before long. Many cultivators who had no one to bring them along with could only lament the lack of chance to even go near the Divine Relic.


    People of Four Corner Village were traveling together with cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan. Ye Futian asked Duan Tianxiong, ��Your Majesty, have you heard about Shenjia the Great Emperor before?��


    ��Only a little,�� Duan Tianxiong nodded and replied. ��He didn��t believe in the Heavenly Path and challenged the Gods. The supreme cultivators in early ancient times were often determined to compete against heaven since they had reached the pinnacle of cultivation. Shenjia the Great Emperor was one of them. Nevertheless, even I couldn��t imagine that kind of ultimate power. We don��t have people like that anymore.��


    Ye Futian was deeply moved by the story. Cultivation had no limit. But did it mean that a cultivator had to take on the Gods when he reached the peak? To challenge the Heavenly Path.


    Even Duan Tianxiong could hardly imagine a spirit like that.


    How would the contemporary Great Emperor compare with the Great Emperors in ancient times?

 Chapter 2161 - Disappointment

    The Shangqing Continent was definitely the key area in the Shangqing Domain; it was visible from a far away.


    Ye Futian and the others initially planned to head straight to the Shangqing Continent. However, they had to take a detour because of what happened in the Cangyuan Continent. Now that the situation was resolved, they followed other cultivators and marched to their original destination through the infinite space. Soon, they arrived at Qing City, which was the capital of the Shangqing Continent.


    Qing City was a hotspot for cultivators of different forces from every corner of the domain. The Domain Chief��s Manor had sent the invitation to all the groups, and they welcomed visitors and representatives with open arms. Rumor had it that the Domain Chief��s Manor summoned everyone this time because critical changes were happening within the Divine Prefecture and war might break out. A lot of people were desperate to know who the Divine Prefecture would be fighting.


    What kind of a disastrous calamity would it be if the entire Divine Prefecture was engaged in war?


    Countless people gathered in a remote area and gazed at the Domain Chief��s Manor, which was the most powerful cultivation group in the entire Shangqing Domain. It was a wonderland for many cultivators who longed to join the Domain Chief��s Manor and cultivate there.


    At this moment, the crowd suddenly felt a burst of intense energy coming from the sky. A distant booming sound froze everyone in their tracks. Their hearts trembled with fear. Who on earth was coming? How could someone stir up such a storm?


    The cultivators inside the Domain Chief��s Manor certainly sensed the disturbance as well. One after another, they sprang up and took to the air, gazing at the sky far away.


    At once, they saw a shocking and thrilling scene. A group of people came into sight in the sky. In the meantime, however, there was also a grand building moving along their side. It seemed that an entire piece of land was uprooted and brought here.


    ��It��s the Domain Chief.��


    Everyone in the Domain Chief��s Manor was amazed and electrified.


    ��What is happening?�� Did the Domain Chief move a whole city here?


    None of the cultivators understood what was going on. Moments later, they saw that the Domain Chief slammed the floating city down from the sky. With a rumbling noise, the imposing structure landed on the vacant lot outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor, which happened to be large enough to accommodate it.


    ��What?�� The cultivators in the Domain Chief��s Manor immediately sprinted out toward the lot. They were eager to check out the mysterious structure. The spectators outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor were also filled with curiosity and desired to look.


    ��Send people to guard the area. No one is allowed to lay eyes on the thing inside the divine casket. I hereby proclaim a strict ban on approaching the area for cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor. Anyone who violated the ban would lose his vision or even life. The outside cultivators are also prohibited from looking at the divine casket. The trespassers will face the consequence themselves,�� a firm and solemn voice rang out. Everyone was astounded and perplexed at the same time.


    A divine casket! What was inside?


    Moreover, the Domain Chief warned that anyone who took a look would lose their vision or even be killed. How horrifying!


    That being said, the Domain Chief��s injunction only made people burning with curiosity. What could be inside? Why did he prohibit people from approaching it?


    ��Domain Chief, what is that?�� one of the cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor asked directly.


    ��The sacred remains.�� The Domain Chief gave a straightforward answer. The event that occurred in the Cangyuan Continent would be made public in less than no time. He might as well tell the truth now.


    The sacred remains!


    The Domain Chief brought back the sacred remains!


    Every cultivator, both inside and outside the Domain Chief��s Manor, was astonished by the answer. They were even more intrigued now. However, they were deterred by the Domain Chief��s warning and didn��t dare to act recklessly.


    Only now did the crowd notice the cultivators following the Domain Chief. Everyone behind the Domain Chief seemed intimidating and unapproachable. They probably were mighty figures who came back to the manor along with the Domain Chief.


    ��I will send someone to inform to the Donghuang Imperial Palace as soon as I return to the Domain Chief��s Manor. Would you like to stay for a few days in the Domain Chief��s Manor to get some rest?�� the Domain Chief said to the people behind him. They darted a glance at the divine casket below. The clan leader of the Nanhai family answered on their behalf, ��There is no need to trouble you. We will stay in town, waiting for your order. We can go to the Domain Chief��s Manor whenever you need.��


    Besides, they were allowed to check out the divine casket at any time anyway.


    ��Alright,�� the Domain Chief nodded and said, ��In that case, I will not take up more of your time. Please suit yourselves. I will invite you over in a few days when the Donghuang Imperial Palace enlightens me as far as the next step.��


    Everyone nodded their consent. They took another look at the divine casket and left separately.


    ��Let��s go, too,�� Old Ma said to Ye Futian and the others. They left with the cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan and found an inn in the city to stay in.


    After the Domain Chief and other master cultivators left, the news about the divine casket and the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor swept across the capital of the Shangqing Continent. Astonished and intrigued, a large number of people flocked to the area outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor, eager to have a look.


    The Domain Chief��s warning also spread widely. It was said that even the Domain Chief and other master cultivators couldn��t look directly at the sacred remains when they were back in the Cangyuan Continent. Average Renhuangs would suffer a gruesome death even if they only sneaked a peek.


    Even so, the more grisly the rumor became, the more people gathered outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    After he settled down in the inn, Ye Futian couldn��t concentrate on cultivation. His mind was still occupied by the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor in the divine casket. At this point, Duan Qiong happened to come to look for him. He said, ��Brother Ye.��


    Ye Futian stopped cultivating and turned his eyes to Duan Qiong. Duan Qiong asked, ��Are you able to focus?��


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head; he couldn��t concentrate.


    ��Earlier today, you saw the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor in the divine casket, right? If not for what happened after that, perhaps you could have cultivated with it for a while longer and might have even learned or discovered something. But we probably don��t have a chance now since the Domain Chief has taken the divine casket away. He will likely submit the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor to the Donghuang Imperial Palace before long.��


    Of course, Ye Futian understood it as well. It was disappointing to miss the rare opportunity.


    He might be able to make considerable progress if he could really study the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Duan Qiong noticed Ye Futian��s expression and said with a smile, ��Let��s go. People are gathering outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor. I even heard some people in the inn talking about it. We should check it out too. Maybe you can have more time with the sacred remains and comprehend something.��


    ��Good,�� Ye Futian nodded and answered at once. He was not thrilled that the Domain Chief seized hold of the divine casket. But he didn��t have enough power to challenge him.


    The master cultivators swarmed to the relic and dominated the situation. Even Muyun Lan was a nobody in front of them, let alone Ye Futian. Those mighty figures didn��t even notice their existence.


    Ye Futian had no choice but to watch the divine casket being taken away. The opportunity slipped through his fingers.


    Not only were Duan Qiong and Ye Futian of the same mind, but Blind Tie and the others also came to join them. Soon, they returned to the area outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The neighborhood looked completely different now. Countless cultivators thronged the streets.


    The crowd made an awful din. A lot of powerful cultivators were guarding the divine casket. An arrogant Renhuang, who rebelled against the warning, was blinded after one brief look in the casket.

 Chapter 2162 - Archenemy

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Although the Domain Chief issued a ban, he also said that outsiders who disregarded his warning and insisted on examining the divine casket would suffer the consequences.


    Therefore, the guards sent by the Domain Chief��s Manor would only put people on notice. If someone really attempted to break through the barrier, they wouldn��t stop the interloper by force.


    As a result, the Renhuang, who was quite famous in Qing City, became the first sacrifice. Stumbling through the crowd, he was still bleeding from his eyes and shrieking in agony.


    However, what happened to this Renhuang served as a cautionary tale for everyone else. The Domain Chief was not exaggerating to scare people. Whatever was inside the divine casket could blind people in an instant.


    Countless cultivators gathered outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor. Both the ground and midair were seething with people. They were all tempted to take a look, but few had the courage and confidence.


    At this moment, a person walked in long strides toward the space above the divine casket. Many people noticed him and were impressed by his dignified manner. He certainly was not an ordinary man. A beautiful woman behind him reminded him, ��Be careful.��


    ��He is going to give it a try.�� The crowd watched him with bated breath. This cultivator stepped forward to check out the divine casket.


    ��That��s Nanhai Qianxue, the precious daughter of the Nanhai family. The man is her husband, Muyun Lan,�� someone in the crowd said loudly. The spectators made a loud din. Muyun Lan��the renowned genius from the Nanhai Continent��also came to inspect the divine casket.


    Ye Futian, who was also standing in the crowd, focused his eyes on Muyun Lan. It seemed to him that Muyun Lan felt bitter about his failed attempt in the Cangyuan Continent. He was eager to have another try after they arrived at the Shangqing Continent.


    Muyun Lan was disgruntled and resentful indeed. Back on the Cangyuan Continent, he couldn��t move forward at all despite his burning desire to take a look at the inside of the divine casket. He kept asking Ye Futian what was inside, but Ye Futian never responded. Muyun Lan felt deeply humiliated in that circumstance.


    His father-in-law and other master cultivators arrived shortly after that. Even with their tremendous power, they couldn��t look directly at the sacred remains in the divine casket. Now, Muyun Lan was more eager to see how terrifying the sacred remains truly were and why most people couldn��t take a brief look.


    Muyun Lan was fully prepared this time. On top of that, he planned to look down at the divine casket from above, so he wouldn��t be repelled by the potent force again. His body was illuminated and shielded by the brilliant divine light of the Great Path, and his eyes glowed with a golden radiance.


    He kept moving forward and reached the sky above the divine casket. With one glance at the divine casket, he seemed to see endless runes of the Great Path instead of a dead man��s body. Those runes of the Great Path immediately blasted into his eyes.


    The ancient characters bludgeoned the way through his defense and stabbed at his eyes in a split second. No matter how strong a cultivator might be, the eyes were always the vulnerable spots. Although Muyun Lan was mentally prepared, he had to hurry to close his eyes. He stumbled several steps back, his body shaking violently. The onlookers saw him covering his eyes with both hands. Blood seeped through his fingers and streamed down his cheeks.


    Many people were struck dumb by the scene. The crowd stood in shocked silence, watching Muyun Lan suffering in midair. Even a forceful cultivator like him was wounded so badly that he was bleeding from his eyes. People could only guess what the sacred remains could do to an average man. Muyun Lan would lose his vision if he tried again. The magnitude of the danger was beyond anyone��s imagination.


    What on earth did Muyun Lan see?


    No one dared to take a look at something right in front of them. It also sounded ridiculous.


    Nanhai Qianxue ran to check on Muyun Lan. Muyun Lan removed his hands and shook his head at her. He said, ��I��m alright.��


    Despite what he said to comfort his wife, he could still feel the sharp pain in his eyes and would never forget the amount of power contained in each rune.


    ��Don��t look at it again,�� Nanhai Qianxue said in a soft voice. Although she was rather intrigued, she curbed her curiosity and didn��t try it herself.


    ��Yes,�� Muyun Lan nodded and replied. One glimpse was enough for him. At least he saw what was in the divine casket with his own eyes and finally let go of the obsession that had started on the Cangyuan Continent.


    He cast his mind back and finally understood why Ye Futian didn��t answer his questions even after looking at the sacred remains several times. Ye Futian probably didn��t know how to put it into words.


    ��Muyun Lan, how did it feel?�� someone asked. A lot of prominent cultivators were watching Muyun Lan in the front rows. They were cultivators from various top forces. A few of them stopped at the Cangyuan Continent before, but most came directly to the Shangqing Continent and only learned about the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor from the elders.


    ��No matter how many years it has been since Shenjia the Great Emperor��s demise, his sacred remains are not something that are to desecrated by us. We don��t even get to catch a glimpse. I suppose that only a Great Emperor who dared to challenge the Heavenly Path would be able to achieve that,�� Muyun Lan exclaimed. He had lost his usual arrogance. How could he remain to be self-satisfied when he couldn��t even look at a corpse?


    As an eighth-order Renhuang with a perfect Great Path, he was virtually unrivaled among his peers. Apart from several master cultivators, only a handful of cultivators in the entire Shangqing Domain were in the same league as him. Nevertheless, as strong as he might be, he was a puny ant who was absolutely incomparable with Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    The more powerful the cultivator was, the more deeply he understood cultivation and the humbler he became.


    Many people were surprised by Muyun Lan��s remark. They noticed the abrupt change in him and felt different from what he used to be. People who were familiar with Muyun Lan knew him as an extremely arrogant and proud man. Nevertheless, he couldn��t help but be humbled by the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    ��I heard that someone outdid you on the Cangyuan Continent,�� a person said. With an indecipherable expression, Muyun Lan answered, ��Yes.��


    As a matter of fact, Ye Futian was more successful than him when they both tried to break into the relic on the Cangyuan Continent. He couldn��t deny it.


    ��Where did this Ye Futian come from? I heard that he forced his way into the palace of the ancient royal family of Duan, and no one could stop him,�� someone asked.


    ��Duan Qiong is the most outstanding cultivator in the ancient royal family of Duan. They also have several other ninth-order Renhuangs, albeit not as good as Duan Qiong. It��s said that Ye Futian is only a fifth-order Renhuang. Such an impressive feat is enough to make him famous throughout the ShangqingDomain,�� another person chimed in. These people participating in the conversation were all distinguished cultivators from different top forces.


    Ye Futian was a name that came up more and more often nowadays, and they even heard people in the Shangqing Continent talking about him a few times.


    ��He should be here too,�� someone muttered while scanning the crowd, trying to find Ye Futian.


    Duan Qiong was not thrilled to hear these people building Ye Futian up at the expense of the ancient royal family of Duan. Nevertheless, he didn��t take it to heart since he had become Ye Futian��s friend.


    Before long, a lot of people fixed their gaze on Duan Qiong and Ye Futian. Apparently, they recognized both of them.


    Plenty of people were familiar with Duan Qiong. They presumed that the silver-haired man next to him was Ye Futian. He was a handsome and dashing man dressed in white with a graceful manner.


    Ye Futian stood in place quietly. Many people nearby spontaneously kept a respectful distance from him and Duan Qiong. The empty space around them attracted even more attention.


    Ye Futian was surprised that people in the capital city of the Shangqing Continent would know about him. He assumed that it was because he looked at the sacred remains on the Cangyuan Continent.


    ��Rumor has it that you and Muyun Lan both entered the relic on the Cangyuan Continent. You have seen the sacred remains in the divine casket, too, right?�� Someone asked Ye Futian.


    ��Yes, I did,�� Ye Futian nodded and replied.


    Ye Futian��s confirmation dispelled some people��s fears. Both Ye Futian and Muyun Lan had seen the sacred remains in the divine casket and only suffered minor injuries. The previous Renhuang must be blinded due to lesser strength.


    As scary as the sacred remains seemed to be, they were somewhat convinced that they wouldn��t completely lose their sight if they gave it a try.


    ��What do you think of the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor?�� the same person asked again.


    ��It can��t be seen,�� Ye Futian raised his head and answered calmly.


    ��It can��t be seen?�� Everyone was perplexed Ye Futian had seen it, so had Muyun Lan. Why did he say it couldn��t be seen?


    ��Do you mean that we can��t go to look at it?�� someone asked for clarification.


    ��If you ask for my opinion, I think the sacred remains can��t be seen. The Domain Chief also reminded us and issued a ban,�� Ye Futian replied in a flat voice. It was not his problem how they interpreted his response.


    ��So will you go to see it again?�� one person asked.


    ��Yes, I will,�� Ye Futian nodded and said. A murmur of surprise passed through the crowd.


    Ye Futian told them that the sacred remains couldn��t be seen. Then he confirmed that he would go to look at it again. What did he mean?


    Was he implying that all the other cultivators were inferior to him?


    The master cultivators also shifted their eyes to Ye Futian. One middle-aged man spoke loudly, ��What an impressive answer from the famous cultivator from Four Corner Village. You certainly live up to your reputation.��


    Ye Futian clearly sensed a strong vibration nearby when the man was speaking. Startled, he turned around to look for the energy source. Much to his surprise, Blind Tie was facing the middle-aged man while unleashing formidable power from his body.


    Blind Tie had always been composed and quiet ever since Ye Futian met him. After he lost his vision, he was the blacksmith in the village for many years while cultivating his temper and spirit.


    Blind Tie��s strong reaction prompted Ye Futian to check out the middle-aged man. Blind Tie lost both his sight and trust in people from the Outer Realms because he was betrayed by a friend who also stole the Divine Technique from him decades ago.


    The middle-aged man seemed to possess tremendous power. Ye Futian assumed that he was the one who blinded Blind Tie.

 Chapter 2163 - Who Can View The Sacred Remains

    Ye Futian had been inquiring about Blind Tie��s story in Four Corner Village. He learned which top force betrayed Blind Tie and stole the Divine Technique in the past.


    There was a supergroup called the Demon Cloud Clan in the Lower Third Heavens of the Nine Heavens. The Demon Cloud Clan had a relatively short history compared to other sizable groups in the Shangqing Domain. It didn��t rise to power on account of a rich heritage. Instead, it was established and developed solely by one extraordinary and domineering cultivator��the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan had cultivated for a long time and possessed astonishing power. Although the Demon Cloud Clan was based in the Lower Third Heavens, many people believed that the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan was already in the same league as the master cultivators in the Middle Third Heavens.


    On top of that, the cultivators from the Demon Cloud Clan were exceptionally ambitious and forceful. As a result, the group had advanced and expanded rapidly.


    The current generation was led by Mo Ke, the eldest son of the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan. He was bestowed with outstanding natural talent and had become an intimidating cultivator. Many people believed that he might even surpass the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan and achieve more in the future.


    Rumor had it that the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan suddenly rose to prominence thanks to obtaining a divine item. It was also why Mo Ke, his eldest son, was able to make breakthroughs again and again. The son had become more successful than the father. Although he was from the Lower Third Heavens, Mo Ke was one of the most noted cultivators in the Shangqing Domain. He was an eighth-order Renhuang with a perfect Great Path and was only one step away from becoming a master cultivator.


    If Mo Ke managed to advance to the ninth-order, the Demon Cloud Clan would spring up and become one of the most influential forces in the Shangqing Domain. They might even have enough prestige to compete with the top forces in the Upper Third Heavens.


    Mo Ke was also famous for his relationship with Blind Tie from Four Corner Village. Back in the day, they traveled through the Shangqing Domain together like close brothers. Both of them were extraordinary cultivators who were well sought-after. However, Mo Ke betrayed Blind Tie later. Not only did he steal Blind Tie��s Divine Technique, but he also blinded and almost killed him.


    The news came as a bombshell at that time. Many people despised the Demon Cloud Clan for their ruthless behaviors and unscrupulous means to get ahead. The groups in the Upper Nine Heavens also stayed away from the Demon Cloud Clan.


    That being said, everyone had to admit that the Demon Cloud Clan was growing stronger and stronger owing to their sheer brutality and wild ambition. They were probably aiming at the Upper Third Heavens.


    As soon as he sensed the rage emanating from Blind Tie, Ye Futian figured out the identity of the middle-aged man in front of him. This man must be Mo Ke, the eldest son of the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan and the culprit who betrayed and disabled Blind Tie.


    Ye Futian raised his head to stare at Mo Ke and said, ��I will keep studying the inside of the divine casket. If you ask me again whether the sacred remains should be seen, my answer will remain the same. It��s not my business if you look at it or not. You will know once you have seen it yourself. There is no need to ask me if your mind is settled already. Look at it if you want, don��t if you don��t have the balls.��


    The crowd was baffled by Ye Futian��s response. He sounded extremely arrogant, and it was hard to tell in which direction he was pushing. Should the others look at the sacred remains or not?


    Based on what he said to Mo Ke, he seemed to be goading Mo Ke.


    Mo Ke was not an average cultivator. Nowadays, he was a wunderkind who was almost unrivaled among his peers in the Shangqing Domain.


    Of course, Mo Ke wouldn��t fall into Ye Futian��s trap so easily. He slowly turned his eyes to Blind Tie and said, ��It��s been a long time since I saw you last.��


    Blind Tie lifted his chin to face Mo Ke. Even though he couldn��t see, Mo Ke��s face had been imprinted on his mind. How could he ever forget what Mo Ke looked like?


    He calmed down a lot, surprisingly. Although he still seemed stern and hostile, he regained his composure and didn��t rush to action when facing his archenemy.


    ��I heard that you made a lot of progress after you went back to the village. I didn��t go to Four Corner Village with everyone else last time because I know you don��t want to see me. Nevertheless, I was still happy for you when I heard the news about you,�� Mo Ke continued. He spoke as though they were still good friends who wished each other the best.


    ��How happy are you?�� Blind Tie asked in a flat voice. It was impossible to detect his emotion from his tone.


    ��I��m genuinely happy for you,�� Mo Ke said.�� ��At least at one point, we were brothers who went through thick and thin together.��


    ��Brothers?�� A mocking smile crept onto Blind Tie��s face. They were ��good brothers�� indeed.


    He only fell for a so-called brother like Mo Ke because he was naive and over-trusting when he first left the village.


    ��So many years have passed. Sometimes I also feel guilty for doing you wrong and letting you down in the past. However, since Four Corner Village has rejoined the rest of the world, we can let go of the bad blood and become friends again like in the old days. The Demon Cloud Clan can be an ally for Four Corner Village as well,�� Mo Ke said.


    ��So that we can be betrayed by you one more time?�� Blind Tie said, ��Your strength has increased for sure. But I��m more surprised that you are even more shameless now.��


    Mo Ke stared at Blind Tie in silence for a short moment. Then he shifted his attention to Ye Futian and said, ��This young man from your village is much more arrogant than you when you first left the village.��


    ��He is better than me,�� Blind Tie replied. ��Of course, he is far better than you, too, in every aspect.��


    Blind Tie held Ye Futian in high regard not only because of Ye Futian��s cultivation level but also for his character. Ye Futian was far superior to Mo Ke and would never double-cross Blind Tie.


    ��Is that so? I��m surprised that even you would praise him with such enthusiasm. No wonder he became so famous in such a short time. The entire Shangqing Domain knows of his name by now.�� Mo Ke cracked a mirthless smile and took a deep look at Ye Futian. After that, he turned around and walked toward the divine casket. His eyes sparkled with dark and golden demonic light. It seemed as if he had a pair of frightening demonic eyes.


    Mo Ke took a few steps forward to approach the divine casket. Then he lowered his head and looked in its direction with a grave face. Although he criticized Ye Futian for being arrogant, he was well aware of the danger posed by the sacred remains. Muyun Lan was on a par with Mo Ke, if not better. Yet even he bled from his eyes after one peek and was convinced that the sacred remains shouldn��t be desecrated. How could Mo Ke underestimate the power of the sacred remains?


    The terrifying black demonic light burst out of the demonic eyes. However, everything was annihilated when the ancient characters hit Mo Ke��s eyes. The runes bludgeoned into his head as though he was defenseless prey.


    Bang��


    He didn��t dare to look for one more second. He protected his body with great demonic might and jumped back with all possible haste. He didn��t cover his eyes as Muyun Lan did. Blood streamed from the tightly closed demonic eyes. He looked like a ghastly Asura.


    The sacred remains couldn��t be seen.


    Ye Futian was not wrong. The sacred remains shouldn��t be seen indeed. Anyone who attempted to look at it would suffer such an outcome. Mo Ke was no exception.


    Muyun Lan and Mo Ke had been defeated.


    Two extraordinary Renhuangs were wounded like this. What would happen to other average cultivators if they tried to look at the sacred remains too? No one dared to imagine.


    Muyun Lan and Mo Ke were already mighty, second only to the mighty figures.


    Mo Ke��s eyes recovered in a short time. He shot a glance at Ye Futian after he opened his eyes.


    ��Let��s see how you will study the divine casket,�� Mo Ke said to Ye Futian.


    Everyone fixed their gaze on Ye Futian. Ye Futian claimed that he would look at the sacred remains in the divine casket again. What would happen to him when two of the best cultivators couldn��t withstand the power of the sacred remains?


    Ye Futian turned to Mo Ke and replied, ��Studying the divine casket is my business. It��s not a performance for your benefit.��


    Mo Ke disregarded Ye Futian��s response and said, ��It��s all the same.��


    ��Of course they are not the same. I��m not interested in looking at it yet,�� Ye Futian replied. He had no reason to be polite to Blind Tie��s enemy.

 Chapter 2164 - Eye Sorcery

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Mo Ke lowered his head and stared at Ye Futian as a formless pressure was unleashed from his body and enveloped Ye Futian.


    But Ye Futian stared right back at him without any inhibition. His deep eyes were colored with some disdain and aloofness.


    No matter how powerful Mo Ke��s level of cultivation was, the things he did would not earn him any respect. Instead, they only made others despise him.


    An invisible storm appeared within the space. Behind Ye Futian, Blind Tie took a step forward, and a tremendous amount of Great Path power surged out of him and headed straight for the space. It clashed with the authoritative pressure that Mo Ke had unleashed and actually transformed into this invisible storm, which created a suffocating feeling in this place.


    ��Since you do not dare to look, then do not speak so boastfully.�� Just then, a voice came from afar. It sounded rather cold and distant, carrying a tinge of disdain.


    Everyone looked at where the voice came from to see a group of elegant-looking people. They were all in white, and their aura was intense, especially the leader of the group. He was overwhelmingly valiant looking, particularly those eyes of his. His eyes didn��t seem to look like the eyes of the other people, and they exuded an otherworldly beauty.


    ��Cultivators from the Palace of the Illusory God,�� someone among the crowd muttered in a low voice.


    ��That��s Bai Yan from the Palace of the Illusory God.��


    In no time, the leader of the group was quickly recognized as one of the Palace of the Illusory God��s best disciples, Bai Yan. He was a direct disciple of the current Illusory God, a Level-six Perfect Great Path cultivator. His prowess was extraordinary, and he killed without leaving any traces. One look from him was enough to kill.


    ��Palace of the Illusory God!�� Ye Futian said this in his heart. Another enemy of Four Corner Village had appeared. When Four Corner Village was going through that change, none of the cultivators from the Demon Cloud nor the Palace of the Illusory God had appeared. These two factions of power had the deepest feud with Four Corner Village, and the Divine Techniques of Four Corner Village had gone to these two factions.


    Someone from the Palace of the Illusory God had once taken the Eye of Reincarnation from the one who was to inherit the Divine Techniques of Four Corner Village and put it into his own eye instead. That way, he robbed Four Corner Village of its Divine Techniques in this terribly cruel fashion.


    After Ye Futian thought about how Four Corner Village would have passed the Divine Techniques on, he guessed that the cultivator who got his eyes dug out by the Palace of the Illusory God was very likely to be connected to Duo Yu and was likely a senior related to Duo Yu by blood. That��s why Duo Yu could be awakened and inherit the Eye of Reincarnation.


    ��If you dare, you can try it yourself,�� said Ye Futian very nonchalantly.


    Bai Yan spun around and looked toward Ye Futian. It took only an instant for Ye Futian to see a pair of terrifying eyes��a pair of eyes that could bring a person into an illusionary world. That pair of eyes seemed to be filled with Divine Light, which soon turned into a huge whirlpool that sucked in one��s consciousness.


    He didn��t say anything, and it took only one look at Ye Futian to bring Ye Futian into his world of Eye Sorcery.


    When everyone else saw Bai Yan turn around, as well as the Divine Light flowing in his gaze, they immediately understood that Bai Yan had used his Eye Sorcery on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s body appeared within the realm of the Eye Sorcery. An enormous shadow appeared near his body like a god of sorts. It held a long spear in its hand and was aiming it towards Ye Futian��s body.


    This deity seemed impossible to fend off as it held the ultimate authority within the world of its Eye Sorcery.


    Boom�� The terrifying deity brought its divine spear down as it made a stab at Ye Futian��s body. In that instant, Ye Futian seemed especially miniscule. The spear of the deity came right down onto Ye Futian��s body, but instead of going through Ye Futian, it was blocked from doing so.


    ��Hmm?�� A surprised voice came out from the emptiness as the Divine Light around Ye Futian started flowing, and he looked into the emptiness within the illusionary realm. He said, ��You wanted to try using an illusory method like Eye Sorcery to control my consciousness at your level of cultivation? You��re not good enough.��


    This voice resounded in the outside world as well because it had come out from Ye Futian��s own mouth. Even though everyone could see that the two men were standing there without moving, they knew they had already started fighting.


    ��Is that so?�� Bai Yan��s said icily. The Divine Light in his eyes became even more terrifying as they shot straight towards Ye Futian��s body. Many of them could sense an invisible force covering Ye Futian.


    Inside the world of the Eye Sorcery, Ye Futian continued standing there. A frightening windstorm started blowing towards him. It twisted and destroyed the space he was in as it threatened to swallow him as well.


    This was a true storm that attacked the spirit, and there was nowhere to hide in the space of the Eye Sorcery. That actual spiritual windstorm was like a knife that cut through the space as it hit Ye Futian��s body, making him feel like he had been stabbed.


    But his body seemed to be protected by Divine Light as it stood there and looked towards the outside. Outside, Ye Futian��s gaze had also become incredibly sharp as it cut through all emptiness and rushed straight into the other person��s Eye of Reincarnation.


    In that instant, Bai Yan felt as if a terrifyingly sharp sword had stabbed right into his consciousness.


    This was Eye Sorcery.


    Ye Futian was also good at Eye Sorcery.


    Two frightening gazes collided, and a terrifying illusion appeared between their bodies. It was as if it was the image of the fight between their Eye Sorcery attacks.


    Boom! A chilly wind flew right into Bai Yan��s eye, making him feel an extreme coldness that nearly stopped his thoughts from being able to move and threatened to freeze his very soul.


    Right there and then, Bai Yan wanted to stop using his Eye Sorcery, only to find that the Divine Light that shot out from Ye Futian��s eyes had gone right into his consciousness. Within that illusion, everyone around them saw the frosty moon. They saw the incredibly gorgeous divine sword and the impossibly invincible long spear.


    A terrifying amount of Great Path Divine Light turned the tables as it enveloped all of Bai Yan��s body within itself. Ye Futian��s eyes became even more terrifying to look at, and everyone else��s heart was palpitating.


    Was Ye Futian actually using Eye Sorcery to fight Bai Yan?


    Bai Yan��s expression was clearly changing. It looked like he was struggling and wanted to get out of this fight, but the Divine Light had fully enveloped his body. He seemed to be completely entrenched inside and had no way of getting out.


    This really puzzled a lot of people. Bai Yan��s best technique was Eye Sorcery, but the technique he was best at was now being attacked by the same thing. Worse still, he hadn��t gained any advantage, and it wasn��t wrong to say that he was actually losing now.


    ��How dare you use the Eye Sorcery technique that you stole from someone else in front of me!�� spat Ye Futian. He took a step forward. With a loud explosion, Bai Yan��s body flew backward. His face was deathly pale, and fresh blood seeped from his eyes.


    ��My goodness���� Everyone felt their hearts tremble when they saw this scene. Ye Futian��s eyes slowly regained normalcy, but the way he looked at Bai Yan was still filled with nothing but disdain.


    Bai Yan��s bleeding eyes opened to stare at Ye Futian. His face was as white as a sheet. This was the greatest humiliation he had ever suffered.


    He had used his best technique to attack Ye Futian but had been humiliated in return. He had literally asked for it.


    My goodness, is he really that powerful? all the cultivators thought as they all looked at Ye Futian. They had heard some rumors about how powerful Ye Futian was, but this was the first time they had watched him fight. Even the cultivators from those highly acclaimed factions of power were surprised. Ye Futian had used Eye Sorcery to defeat Bai Yan, an expert in the Eye Sorcery. What sorcery was this?


    They now looked at Ye Futian more respectfully than before. Few in the Shangqing Domain could compare to someone with such gifting. Even the strongest fighters from the ancient royal family of Duan had been thoroughly thrashed by him and had admitted defeat. And now, Bai Yan had been soundly defeated by Eye Sorcery.


    Ye Futian didn��t look at Bai Yan anymore and just walked towards where the divine casket was. Everyone��s eyes followed his movement as he walked past them. What would happen when Ye Futian looked at the ancient body lying in the divine casket?

 Chapter 2165 - You’d Get Used to it After a Few Times

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Rumor had it that Ye Futian had looked into the divine casket back at Cangyuan Continent while Muyun Lan could only watch on from the side.


    And now, they were going to witness this for themselves.


    Both Muyun Lan and Mo Ke��s eyes started bleeding when they looked upon the body. Was Ye Futian really able to look at the body without getting injured?


    They watched as that man with white hair continued to walk toward where the divine casket was. A terrifying aura of light shone in his eyes because those eyes of his seemed to be hiding true Divine Light within them. He had tried this several times when he was at Cangyuan Continent, so he knew how terrifying this corpse could be. He also knew how he could minimize the force that surged out of it.


    He walked all the way to one corner of the casket and took a glance into the casket.


    With just that one glance, he witnessed that incredible scene yet again. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had transformed into countless ancient inscriptions, and those inscriptions went right into his eyes and into his consciousness, causing his body to tremble slightly. Those beams of light had not only entered his eyes, but that frightening Divine Light had also enveloped all of Ye Futian��s body. It was as if those inscriptions were printed directly onto his body.


    ��He��s really done it.�� Everyone felt their hearts shudder when they saw this scene. They knew that Ye Futian must have looked upon the body inside the casket; otherwise, this amazing scene would not have happened.


    However, he did not end up getting thrown backward, and his eyes did not bleed. The inscriptions within the casket were even projected onto his body. This made a lot of them wonder, Isn��t a body lying within that divine casket? Where did these inscriptions come from?


    Were great and talented people like Muyun Lan and Mo Ke unable to even glance at the inside of the casket because of these inscriptions?


    Then, how was Ye Futian able to do this?


    Woong! Just then, they watched as Ye Futian��s body was thrown backward, and his eyes shut fast. Countless eyes were on him right now, so the vast space they were in seemed rather quiet.


    After a few moments, Ye Futian��s eyes finally opened again. Tiny capillaries in his eyes had burst, and it was clear that it had been painful for him to resist the force from the casket earlier. His eyes had undergone a tremendous amount of pressure, but he managed to hang in there and look in a few more times.


    Muyun Lan and Mo Ke had been unable to do it, but Ye Futian, who was only a Level-five Renhuang, had managed it. This made many of them gasp. Rumors didn��t appear out of thin air; they had heard a lot about Ye Futian before this and how he was truly as capable as his fame claimed him to be. His gifts and potential were astonishing, and he was definitely no less powerful than Muyun Lan or Mo Ke.


    ��What do you think now?�� someone in the crowd looked up at Mo Ke and asked. It was Fang Huan from Four Corner Village. He knew everything about what Mo Ke and the Demon Cloud had done. As a cultivator from the village, Fang Huan also viewed Mo Ke as an enemy.


    Before this, all these cultivators threatened Ye Futian, and many of them had thought too highly of themselves. They thought that Ye Futian was being arrogant and wasn��t truly as powerful as the rumors claimed he was.


    But how about now?


    Mo Ke looked down at Fang Huan. His aloof gaze carried some frostiness. He had been rather surprised, too, and didn��t think that Ye Futian would have been capable of this. It seemed like this white-haired young man who had stormed the ancient royal family of Duan and gained the recognition of Four Corner Village was not simple at all.


    ��He��s really not bad,�� replied Mo Ke. After that, he looked towards Ye Futian and asked, ��How did you do that?��


    He had looked into the divine casket before too, and he knew what was going on in there. One glance had been enough to strike fear in his heart till today. Even though he still wanted to look in, his heart was extremely wary.


    So how did that Ye Futian actually do it?


    Ye Futian turned to look at Mo Ke and said, ��You��d get used to it after a few times. Do you want to come and try?��


    ������ Everyone looked oddly at Ye Futian. Why did his words sound so fake?


    If one looked into the divine casket a few more times, you��d get used to it?


    Was this fellow trying to fool Mo Ke?


    Mo Ke looked at Ye Futian rather doubtfully as well. After a few times?


    His heart still felt fearful after just that one glance into the casket. Would he really become used to it if he tried looking again?


    If that was the case, then why didn��t Muyun Lan try again?


    ��Are you trying to fool me?�� asked Mo Ke as he stared at Ye Futian. He was sure there was something special about Ye Futian. Since he could do something that neither himself nor Muyun Lan had been able to, there must be something about him that the two of them didn��t have, allowing him to gaze into the casket.


    ��Before this, you asked me a question and refused to believe my answer. Now, you��re asking me a question again, and you still don��t want to take my word for it. In that case, why bother asking me?�� retorted Ye Futian. Mo Ke kept his eye on Ye Futian as a cold glint flashed in his eyes. If not for the fact that he was a little wary today, he would have unleashed an attack on Ye Futian to force him to say how he had done it.


    But cultivators from both Four Corner Village and the ancient royal family of Duan were here. Also, they were right outside the Domain Chief��s Manor. Since there was probably nothing he could do, he decided not to attack.


    ��If you��re not going to look at it, then I��m going to continue looking,�� said Ye Futian to Mo Ke before going back towards that same upper corner of the divine casket again.


    At this moment, countless eyes were frozen as they stared at Ye Futian in shock.


    Was he serious?


    Was it true that he was getting used to it after taking a few more looks, as he said earlier?


    Mo Ke had an equally puzzled look on his face when he watched Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was really using his own actions to prove his point?


    Before this, Ye Futian had already proved himself with his own actions. He said that he could look into the casket, and he really did it.


    Countless eyes watched as Ye Futian stood diagonally above the casket and looked in. Again, it only took one glance for light to envelope him and for that gorgeous Divine Light to shoot out at Ye Futian.


    ��He��s doing it again.�� Chen Yi shook his head as he looked at Ye Futian. He understood this fellow now. Ye Futian went all out no matter what and didn��t seem to understand the concept of staying low-key. So many people were here right now, and many of them would be watching him closely.


    Chen Yi was right. Many cultivators from the Shangqing Domain and other top factions of power were all here. Some had walked over, while some remained in the shadows. But regardless of where they were, they all looked towards that white-haired person in the air.


    There was even a group of people standing in the air inside the Domain Chief��s Manor. They, too, looked at Ye Futian��s body.


    But actually, Ye Futian wasn��t trying to attract attention. He didn��t want to miss such an opportunity. Back in the Cangyuan Continent, he had wanted to take a few more looks at this casket so that he could comprehend the secrets within, but it had been taken away, and there was nothing he could do about it. This left him feeling empty and disappointed.


    So when Duan Qiong suggested coming here, he agreed to it without hesitation and immediately came out to view the body in the casket. He knew that he didn��t have much more time to do this, and he had already gained some enlightenment from looking at the corpse.


    As everyone else continued to watch, Ye Futian looked into the casket several more times. In fact, the amount of time he could spend looking increased the more times he tried to take a look.


    It was as if what he said earlier was right��one could really get used to it after a few times.


    Thus, the hesitant and indecisive Mo Ke from before decided to take a step forward again. It seemed as if he believed what Ye Futian said and wanted to try again!

 Chapter 2166 - Zhou Muhuang

    Everyone was puzzled by what Mo Ke was doing. He walked up and took a look at the sacred remains in the divine casket.


    Mo Ke growled after taking a single look. His body was sent reeling, and blood dripped from his eyes again. The scene was harrowing.


    ��The hell!�� Everyone around looked at Ye Futian, who was standing in front.


    We��d get used to it after taking several looks??? How are we supposed to keep looking like that!? they wondered.


    Mo Ke had only taken a look on his second try, and his eyes were still filled with blood.


    How are we supposed to keep looking? We will probably go blind if we look one more time, let alone several! This is terrible, they thought.


    It was then that all of them realized that Ye Futian was toying with Mo Ke; there was no way one could get used to it just by looking more. Yet Mo Ke actually believed those ridiculous claims of his��


    Ye Futian had tried this personally, taking repeated looks at the sacred remains. It was indeed as he had put it��he eventually got used to it.


    Mo Ke would not have been duped otherwise.


    Mo Ke opened his eyes moments later, and the look in his eyes was filled with cold killing intent. He saw how effortless and graceful Blind Tie and Ye Futian had behaved before. Yet, being repeatedly fooled by Ye Futian in front of everyone was something that someone of his status could hardly stomach. It was true embarrassment. One could easily imagine his mood at that moment.


    Formless power emanated from Mo Ke. Someone was seen shooting into the sky. It was none other than Blind Tie. Blind Tie had also decided to release a powerful aura, which shrouded over Mo Ke. Seemingly, he was trying to remind Mo Ke to remember his place.


    Mo Ke sensed that aura and shot a look at Blind Tie, yet his eyes were still filled with killing intent. There was still blood beneath his eyes, making him look rather eerie.


    ��There are things that one is not worthy of looking at, and there is nothing that one can do to change it. It��s not like all those years ago, where one could take whatever one wished,�� Blind Tie said, jabbing at Mo Ke being unworthy of looking at the sacred remains.


    ��You never changed, did you? Still as blunt with your words as ever,�� Mo Ke said plainly. ��If I were unworthy of looking at the divine casket, isn��t that the same as saying that no cultivator in the Shangqing Domain would be worthy of doing so?��


    ��While my words do not sound pleasant, it is the truth. It is what it is, and I myself am not worthy of doing so either. Is there any reason for me to sugarcoat it?�� Blind Tie replied. He had, of course, gotten to know Mo Ke better after what had happened all those years ago, that the man he once called a brother was someone who would get what he wanted by any means necessary.


    What he said earlier was deliberately worded to provoke him, but given that his conscience was clear, he didn��t mind at all.


    While what Blind Tie said didn��t sound nice, everyone who was present was a cultivator at the Renhuang Plane, and some were indeed very, very powerful. As such, they knew that Blind Tie was telling the truth.


    These were not just any sacred remains but the remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor��a great emperor and a god of ancient times. If they were not allowed to look at it, that would only mean that they were indeed not worthy. There was nothing to be ashamed about.


    Mo Ke moved his sight away from Blind Tie and turned to Ye Futian. He walked up to Ye Futian after seeing the other man was about to retreat, shrouding massive pressure over Ye Futian, placing a lockdown on the space Ye Futian occupied. He coldly said, ��If you��re already used to it, why not take a few more glances instead of retreating?��


    The divine light around Ye Futian was terrifying enough that Mo Ke closed his eyes all of a sudden, about to retreat, yet he was prevented from doing so by the powers of the Great Path.


    Boom�� He emitted a huge pressure, which he then withdrew. Blind Tie attacked after sensing what was happening. He brought down a divine hammer from above, viciously aiming at Mo Ke.


    Mo Ke raised his hand and grabbed outward. A massive hand took hold of the specter of that divine hammer, and the mighty pressure of the Great Path swept all over the place, causing a harrowing storm below as it traveled downwards, causing many to reel from the shock right away.


    ��What are you two doing outside the Domain Chief��s Manor?�� A voice came from the Domain Chief��s Manor. The voice was heard before the man was seen. A group of people then walked out of the Domain Chief��s Manor and emerged in the air, looking at Mo Ke and Blind Tie fighting each other.


    Mo Ke pulled his hand back, and Blind Tie stopped attacking as well. Ye Futian retreated and glanced at Mo Ke.


    There were young men and women, as well as powerful elders that had just emerged. They concealed their powers. Also, they needed to stand in midair in order to cast a faint pressure over everyone.


    The leader was a middle-aged man who was the son of the Domain Chief��s Manor of Shangqing Domain��Zhou Muhuang. He could also be called the young master of the Domain Chief��s Manor. His powers were towering, and he was already one of the most powerful cultivators to be found in the Shangqing Domain. He was at level nine of the Great Path. Even the titans among the top-notch cultivation forces wouldn��t have many among them capable of winning against Zhou Muhuang.


    The father and son of the Shangqing Domain were both standing at the very pinnacle.


    Of course, given that even Zhou Muhuang himself had trained for over 100 years, the chief was definitely much older. He was someone of supreme power among those of the previous generation. However, due to Zhou Muhuang having unparalleled training, he appeared rather young, around 40.


    In the Shangqing Domain, few dared to be disrespectful to that young master. This was due to his status and because his powers were more than enough to put a great many powerful fighters in the domain in their place.


    ��Greetings, young master,�� many greeted. Those with weaker powers had even bowed to Zhou Muhuang. The man stood where he was and scanned the crowd before saying, ��At ease, everyone.


    ��This divine casket was brought here from the Cangyuan Continent. It is unimaginably mystical yet very dangerous. That was why my father forbade anyone from looking at it, but if any of you would like to take a look, the Domain Chief��s Manor won��t stop you. However, the consequences are all yours. You all are the best that the Shangqing Domain has to offer. Anybody who would like to learn about the divine casket is welcome to do so. There is simply no need for fights,�� Zhou Muhuang elaborated.


    Although both Mo Ke and Blind Tie were powerful cultivators and of advanced age themselves, if one were to really go about counting, they would probably be deemed juniors to Zhou Muhuang, especially in the case of Blind Tie. Blind Tie was probably the youngest and was probably far younger than Zhou Muhuang. As such, it was only natural for Zhou Muhuang��s words to carry immense weight.


    ��Forgive us for our impulsiveness, Muhuang,�� Mo Ke cupped his hands and said. Despite his status, he still had nothing to brag about before Zhou Muhuang.


    ��Right.�� Zhou Muhuang nodded. ��My father invited cultivators from all over, and we would not wish to see any altercations break out. Should there be any personal feud among you, I��d advise you to try not to act on them here.��


    ��With you being the one giving the word, I shall do as you say, Muhuang,�� Mo Ke replied, and Blind Tie nodded.


    Zhou Muhuang nodded and turned his eyes back to Ye Futian. ��Your reputation precedes you, Emperor Ye. You��re indeed as dashing as you are reputed to be.��


    Everyone was stunned. Zhou Muhuang was of such prestigious standing that he could afford to ignore Mo Ke and Blind Tie. He did not need to be courteous, even to the many titans from the many cultivation forces out there.


    Yet, he seemed to have taken a liking to Ye Futian very much, complimenting the man as he did.


    ��Zhou Muhuang, a young master of the Domain Chief��s Manor of Shangqing Domain. Level nine, perfection in Great Path.�� Ye Futian looked at the middle-aged man and recalled Duan Qiong��s introduction. According to Duan Qiong, not even her father��Duan Tianxiong��would beat Zhou Muhuang. Furthermore, one could tell just how ambitious he was from his name alone.


    Zhou Muhuang.


    Just how many expectations had his father piled on his son?


    Was he hoping for his son to become the great emperor then?


    Ye Futian had been in two domains before��the Donghua Domain and the Shangqing Domain. The ones from the Domain Chief��s Manor were all mighty. There were Ning Yuan and Ning Hua from Donghua Domain, and both were mighty beings.


    The way Ye Futian saw it, those of the Domain Chief��s Manor who ruled over the 18 domains in Donghuang the Great��s stead were all supreme beings in their own right. All of them were titans, and the powers of such people were every bit on par with those who served the Great Imperial Palace directly. Said titans could actually be more powerful instead.


    It would seem that the establishment of the Domain Chief��s Manor reigning over the 18 domains was anything but simple.


    The years in which Donghuang the Great ruled over the Divine Prefectures were not all that long. The nobles of the Divine Prefectures carved up their own territories, and powerful beings were aplenty. Donghuang the Great would naturally need to enlist the help of those who were of supreme powers, to begin with, if he were to rule over the Divine Prefectures. That was probably how the Domain Chief��s Manors of the 18 domains came about. They weren��t necessarily considered closed ones of Donghuang the Great.


    ��You speak too highly of me, senior.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly. Despite being the young master, he was nonetheless Ye Futian��s senior, so there was nothing wrong for him to address him as such.


    ��I know a thing or two about your exploits. You hail from Donghua Domain, then went to Four Corner Village. You��ve gotten acquainted with the ancient royal family of Duan. You are nothing less than extraordinary. It is a pity that Ning Yuan of the Donghua Domain��s Domain Chief��s Manor overlooked your brilliance, wanting to actually kill someone of your caliber. I wonder what was he thinking.��


    Zhou Muhuang then said to Ye Futian, ��Ye Futian, if you intend to train in the Domain Chief��s Manor of Shangqing Manor, you��d be welcomed to do so by both my father and me.��


    Everyone was stunned upon hearing what Zhou Muhuang just said. The first thing he did after coming outside was try to get Ye Futian to his side. He had actually invited him to train in the Domain Chief��s Manor. One could tell that he was incredibly impressed with Ye Futian and wanted to capitalize on this opportunity.


    Furthermore, he was totally unfazed by the powers at Donghua Domain and voiced Ning Yuan��s mistakes just like that. One could tell that the Domain Chief��s Manors were hardly acquainted with each other and left each to their own devices.


    So long as Ye Futian was willing to agree to join the Domain Chief��s Manor, he would definitely be able to rise to greater heights in terms of status. By then, not even those from the Donghua Domain could easily do anything against him.


    Ye Futian was rather surprised by the treatment. This treatment was rather ironic given that he had intended to train in the Domain Chief��s Manor back at the Donghua Domain. Instead, it was he had been set up and hunted instead.


    When he had lost all such intentions, those of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain extended their invitation instead.


    However, he was no longer in a state suitable for doing so.


    He had joined Four Corner Village prior and was already one of them; he was not about to abandon the village for the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    ��I��m sorry, senior. I��ve joined Four Corner Village, and it would be unsuitable for me to train in the Domain Chief��s Manor. I��m afraid that I have no choice but to pass up the offer. Truly, I beg for your forgiveness,�� Ye Futian replied.


    Blind Tie, Fang Huan, and the others nodded in silence. Those from the village had indeed been right about Ye Futian. He would have received more benefits, and great ones at that, if he were to choose the Domain Chief��s Manor over the village.


    However, given that he had become one of the cultivators of the Four Corner Village and the village had decided to train openly in the world, that itself would then make the village one of the titans in the Shangqing Domain. Given the circumstances, he couldn��t join either without renouncing membership of the other. If the village were to remain closed to the world, it wouldn��t have been a problem.

 Chapter 2167 - Getting Close

    Zhou Muhuang heard what Ye Futian said and nodded. ��I understand.��


    The way the others behind Ye Futian looked at him suggested that they were having other thoughts. It was indeed quite a pity for Ye Futian to pass up such an opportunity, as Ye Futian was someone with such superb talent that it was incredibly possible for him to become a titan on his own.


    However, he would most definitely achieve success a lot more quickly if he were to train in the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Most importantly, Ye Futian had a lot of enemies. The way they saw it, there were just too many superb geniuses perishing on their way to greatness. If Ye Futian were able to train in the Domain Chief��s Manor and, as such, gain the Domain Chief of the Shangqing Domain��s protection, he would have been at considerably lower risk. Yet, he chose to remain with the Four Corner Village instead.


    Zhou Muhuang looked up at the crowd and said, ��A lot of all of you present today are the best that the Shangqing Domain has to offer. It would be impossible for you not to look at the divine casket. Anyone who wishes to take a look, please do not get in the way of the others. Whether or not any of you can gain something from it or not is entirely up to you.��


    Everyone nodded. There was nothing else the others could say, given that Zhou Muhuang had spoken.


    Zhou Muhuang was then seen walking up to the divine casket at that moment, taking a look inside. Massive fluctuations of the Great Path rumbled around him from him taking just a single look. Yet, that pair of frightening eyes continued to look into the divine casket. It took him quite a while to close his eyes and back away.


    All who saw what happened were in awe, deeming that he had indeed lived up to his prestige of being among the strongest. While Zhou Muhuang��s training was only one level higher than Muyun Lan and Mo Ke, the difference of just one level was, in itself, a chasm. No matter how superb said people were, they could still never win, even if they were to join hands in the face of Zhou Muhuang.


    ��So, this is what those at great emperor level are like?�� Zhou Muhuang mumbled to himself. His aura was flighty, making him feel like someone who was above mortals. He could tell that those ancient symbols seemed like that they were beyond what people knew to be the Great Path. It could even be said that those were in the path that Great Emperor Shenjia himself created.


    With those symbols carved within his body, that body itself had become a manifestation of the path.


    Someone was walking to Zhou Muhuang��s side at that moment. That woman had a superb appearance, and her bearing was extremely elegant. It felt like she was a goddess that had descended to the mortal realm.


    The woman was none other than Zhou Muhuang��s sister, Zhou Lingxi.


    Zhou Lingxi took a look at her brother, who then told her, ��Be very careful if you��re about to look. The level Great Emperor Shenjia reached all those years ago is already somewhere we mere mortals cannot comprehend. All powers that we��re versed in are utterly useless before him. Be prepared if you really want to take a look.��


    ��I want to take a look,�� Zhou Lingxi answered. Insistence was seen in her eyes. She deemed herself capable of bearing whatever cost it could have incurred, and she would never rest until she got to look at the sacred remains with her own eyes.


    ��Alright then.�� Zhou Muhuang nodded and didn��t stop Zhou Lingxi.


    Zhou Lingxi went up, and she shrouded herself with divine light, which made her look even more spiritual and mystical.


    That princess from the Domain Chief��s Manor was, too, a supreme genius. She had superb cultivation talents and was at perfection at level six. One more step, and she could already make a step into high-level Renhuang. One could imagine just how terrifying the powers the Domain Chief��s Manor would command by then.


    Other than the Domain Chief himself, it was obvious that even his children were people who were a cut above the rest.


    Zhou Lingxi went up to the divine casket and took a look inside. There was no miracle happening. Despite being a princess of the Domain Chief��s Manor, her eyes were bloodied, and her aura wavered from a single look. She was sent reeling back as blood poured all over her face. She covered her face with her hands and looked in very, very bad shape.


    Many felt pity that a female Renhuang was in such a pitiful state.


    Zhou Muhuang came to his side without saying anything. Zhou Lingxi took a while before her state gradually steadied. She moved her hands away, and her eyes remained bloodshot even then. This gave her a tinge of withering beauty. She looked like she was some beautiful woman who was about to pass away.


    ��Are you alright?�� Zhou Muhuang asked.


    ��I��m fine.�� Zhou Lingxi shook her head slightly. Slivers of watery mist appeared, and she wiped the blood off of her face. Her eyes remained slightly bloodshot still, making it obvious that that one look before had greatly damaged her eyes. She was only at level six, after all. This put her beneath the likes of Muyun Lan and Mo Ke.


    Many murmured among themselves, looking like they were seriously discussing something. Many cast impressed looks at Ye Futian.


    They could tell from what happened with Zhou Lingxi when she looked at the divine casket how rare someone like Ye Futian actually was.


    When he was being compared to Muyun Lan and Mo Ke, he had been able to do better than they had. Zhou Lingxi, too, was at a level higher than Ye Futian, and everyone was able to see what happened to her.


    Zhou Lingxi turned her eyes around to look at Ye Futian. She walked up gracefully to him, which caused him to wear a puzzled expression.


    Zhou Lingxi then came to Ye Futian��s side, and she actually bowed to him. He raised his eyebrows slightly and asked, ��What warranted that, Princess Lingxi?��


    ��I��d like to ask you something, Sir Ye,�� Zhou Lingxi said. Ye Futian then replied, ��Please, Princess Lingxi, just tell me what you would like to know.��


    ��I was unable to take the strain after just taking one look inside the divine casket, which enabled me to learn what was so extraordinary about you, Sir Ye. However, I was more or less able to tell what was inside the divine casket. I��d like to know how you prevented yourself from being injured by the sacred remains inside.��


    Zhou Lingxi asked, and many were wearing curious looks, as she was not the only one who wanted to know; everyone around was curious as well. Mo Ke had, too, asked before, but Ye Futian never wanted to say anything.


    However, given that it was the princess of the Domain Chief��s Manor asking for his advice after taking such damage, Ye Futian simply couldn��t refuse.


    Ye Futian looked at the princess, and he indeed was finding it difficult to refuse to answer.


    However, the sacred remains which he was able to gaze on were more complex as far as the secrets of the World Tree were concerned, which meant that he could never tell her the whole truth.


    He had even wondered if the princess was actually asking for his guidance or if she was just testing him.


    It seemed that, eventually, t would be more likely that the former was true, given that she had looked in the coffin herself and had been severely damaged because of that. Furthermore, be it the Domain Chief��s Manor itself, or the Zhou siblings, they had all been very courteous with him.


    ��If it is something that you find inconvenient to voice, Sir Ye, then please forgive my rudeness.�� Zhou Lingxi looked at Ye Futian before bowing again.


    ��It��s not actually all that inconvenient. It was just that the very reason why I could gaze upon the remains is due to something particular about my training. Furthermore, I experienced some surreal encounters back in the Donghua Domain that allows me to resist such effects to a degree. However, they will not do you much good, princess,�� Ye Futian answered.


    ��I see.�� Zhou Lingxi nodded. ��It seems that I don��t have the opportunity to learn by looking at the sacred remains then. Given that you have such an ability, Sir Ye, are you able to sense the will of the ancient gods from the sacred remains?��

 Chapter 2168 - The Goddess Qihuan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Although Ye Futian was responding to Zhou Lingxi, this was only polite small talk. In reality, no one knew what he was actually doing. They could only guess. Perhaps it was because he had received the gift from the Demon Monarch in the Donghua Domain back that that he could block the Great Emperor��s divine armor will.


    ��This is a rare opportunity indeed. If you come to some understanding, Emperor Ye, I would hate to miss out on it,�� said Emperor Zhou Mu with a smile.


    ��I understand,�� said Ye Futian with a nod. ��I will work hard and see if I can glean some ancient cultivation arts from the divine body. However, if I only get to look at it for a little bit, then that will be too short a time to learn much. The divine body is full of wonder, but it will be hard to get much out of it.��


    ��The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor is indeed wonderful. We will see it together. If you have any doubts, Emperor Ye, you can find me in the Domain Chief��s Manor at any time, and we can discuss your feelings,�� said Emperor Zhou Mu.


    ��Thank you, elder,�� said Ye Futian with a slight nod.


    Zhou Mu said no more to him. He turned to the crowd around them and said, ��If any of you want to come, you must take caution that you do not make any mistakes. If you do not have enough control, you should not try. Of course, if you think you do have enough control, you can come with Emperor Ye and try to seize this opportunity.��


    Everyone nodded. Given Emperor Zhou Mu��s lofty position, he naturally had the right to lecture them like this.


    On saying this, Emperor Zhou Mu turned and left, leading them towards the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    He turned his head and saw Zhou Lingxi still standing there. ��Lingxi, are you staying here, or are you returning to the manor?�� he asked.


    ��I will stay here and watch. You go on ahead,�� said Zhou Lingxi.


    ��Alright.�� Emperor Zhou Mu nodded and did not linger any longer.


    Zhou Lingxi stood not far from Ye Futian, smiling at him and saying, ��I expect that you will be able to gain an understanding of the Imperial Will from the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, Mister Ye.��


    ��You are too kind, Princess Lingxi,�� said Ye Futian with a smile and a nod.


    Among the crowd, Chen Yi and some of the others felt that this scene before them was quite strange. This Zhou Lingxi seemed quite close to Ye Futian.


    ��It is still essential to keep up appearances,�� murmured Chen Yi. Even in the Renhuang plane, appearances still mattered.


    ��You don��t understand,�� whispered Condor-sama, looking at Chen Yi with a bit of contempt. It was not surprising that Chen Yi had not understood.


    ��I don��t understand?�� sneered Chen Yi. ��What don��t I understand?��


    ��The boss has walked all this way on his own, under his own halo. How could you understand it��? said Condor-sama.


    ��What?�� Chen Yi looked at the condor as if it were an idiot. ��Even demons can flatter so shamelessly?��


    ��Spring insects no nothing of ice. How can common people understand the world of masters?�� said Condor-sama enigmatically. Chen Yi wanted to hit it.


    But there was no need for him to do it. The black wind condor felt a cold will. It turned around and saw Xia Qingyuan looking at it coldly. It shrank back. She was murderous!


    At that moment, a soft, clear voice rang out: ��Of all the heroes, Emperor Ye is the only one who can observe the divine body. In that case, is he the most powerful of all the proud heroes of the Shanging Domain?�� The clouds in the sky shifted as a group of figures descended. Many veiled women were pulling a carriage behind them. The chariot was very spacious, and behind a thin veil, there seemed to be a charming figure reclining, seeming almost insubstantial. Even looking through the thin curtain, she seemed to be exquisitely beautiful.


    The black wind condor looked up and whispered, ��Do you understand?��


    Condor-sama��s expression was profound and mysterious; it was like he was in a divine trance.


    Chen Yi��s mouth twitched. He seemed to understand a bit now.


    Everyone��s eyes were upon the carriage. If Empresses were pulling the carriage, what kind of person could be inside?


    ��It��s someone from the Palace of the Illusory God,�� someone whispered.


    ��It��s her.�� The cultivators from the top powers narrowed their eyes. They already knew who was coming. This woman was an incredibly famous figure in the world of cultivators. And she was a bit eccentric.


    She had been born in the Palace of the Illusory God, but it was said that she had been kicked out when she was young due to an inter-family conflict. She had lived a hard life and experienced much suffering. However, she had managed to slay all the members of the family who had hurt her own family all by herself. This had caused a great stir when it happened, and many people had heard of it. But in the end, the Palace of the Illusory God had accepted her once again.


    This woman was called the Goddess Qihuan by the world of cultivators.


    She had already cultivated up to the ninth tier, and although her Great Path was not perfect, he illusions were powerful. She could entice people towards any earthly desire and make them fall into a deep trance from which they could not pull themselves out of. Thus, she was called Goddess Qihuan. When she had dealt with her family��s enemies, she had hurt them so badly that they no longer wished to live.


    ��Careful, that is the Goddess Qihuan of the ninth tier. Her illusions are frighteningly powerful, and she is a tricky swordswoman. She is an eccentric of the Palace of the Illusory God,�� said Duan Qiong to Ye Futian telepathically. The Palace of the Illusory God and the ancient royal family of Duan were both great powers of the Middle Third Heavens and had come into conflict many times. Thus, he understood them very well. He naturally knew of the Goddess Qihuan.


    Ye Futian was a bit uncomfortable when he heard this. This Goddess Qihuan seemed to be praising him, but her words had pushed him to the forefront of this storm. What he had done before had attracted a lot of attention. Now Goddess Qihuan had said that he was the most powerful of all the proud heroes of the Shangqing Domain?


    A title like that was absolutely not a good thing.


    ��You honor me too much, senior. The reason I can observe the divine body is due to the specialty of my cultivation. I would not dare call myself the most powerful. There are many other Renhuangs who are much stronger than me,�� Ye Futian called up into the sky. Although he knew her name, he did not call her Goddess, opting for ��senior�� instead.


    Laughter like that of a silver bell rang out. The woman descended into the air above Ye Futian, the curtain before her blowing in the wind. Everyone could faintly see a stunning figure lying within. Her eyes seemed able to enchant people��s very souls. She smiled at Ye Futian. Just an ordinary glance from her seemed able to send one into a trance. She made it so that she was the only thing that Ye Futian could see. His consciousness was drawn into the carriage where he beheld her perfect, flawless form.


    This woman was no less beautiful than Zhou Lingxi, and she had a more concrete sense of charm about her. Her killing power was greater as well. Everyone appreciates beauty, and cultivators were no different. But they were able to control their appreciation of beauty and would not let their minds to affected. This was especially true for Renhuan level cultivators; they would certainly not sink to that level.


    Thus, her beauty was not that enticing for Ye Futian.


    ��It hurts me to hear you call me that, Emperor Ye,�� said the Goddess Qihuan softly. Even her voice seemed to have a mysterious charm to it that would make people fall into reveries.


    ��You are much older than me, senior, and you have cultivated to a much higher level. That is why I call you senior��to show you respect. Why would you say that I am hurting you?�� said Ye Futian casually, looking up at the figure in the sky. He was still calling her ��senior�� and not ��goddess.��


    Goddess Qihuan smiled and came out of the carriage, standing before it in the air, wearing a gorgeous red robe. She looked graceful and luxurious. In an instant, she transformed from an alluring woman into a noble Empress, brimming with peerless elegance.


    In the instant that she changed her manner, many people would not even dare to look at her.


    Ye Futian was surprised. This change had been so quick. She truly was a cultivator of the Palace of the Illusory God.


    ��If that is what you wish, Emperor Ye, then so be it,�� she said with a smile. Her noble atmosphere spread out as her gaze fell upon Ye Futian. In an instant, her form seemed to enter into his mind.


    ��I have heard of your deeds, Emperor Ye, and I admire you greatly. I wish to become your friend,�� continued the Goddess Qihuan, smiling. As her voice reached him, Ye Futian seemed to enter another space, a world of illusion magic.


    In this world, there was only him and the Goddess Qihuan.


    ��Your method of making friends is rather peculiar,�� said Ye Futian.


    Goddess Qihuan stepped through the air towards Ye Futian until she was right in front of him. ��I don��t want the common people of the outside world to disturb us,�� she said. ��Here there is only you and me. You can confide in me anything you want. How does that sound?��


    ��We have only just met. Why speak of confiding things in each other?�� Ye Futian��s face was impassive as he spoke.


    ��We may have just met, but I have heard your name for a long time. Why can��t we confide in each other?�� Goddess Qihuan stood in front of Ye Futian, staring right into his eyes. At that moment, a powerful will entered into Ye Futian��s mind. Suddenly, many images flashed through his mind, and many of them were images of this woman.


    Ye Futian was suddenly incredibly wary. He let loose a burst of a powerful will that cut through everything. It sliced right through the images of Goddes Qihuan in his mind.


    Boom!


    Everyone outside only saw Ye Futian take a few steps backward, after which he steadied himself and looked up into the air. Goddess Qihuan was still standing there calmly, looking extremely noble.


    She grinned down at him and said, ��I never thought you would be someone prone to infatuation, Emperor Ye.��


    ��What power is this?�� Ye Futian��s heart trembled. He narrowed his eyes as he gazed at the figure in the air. This Goddess Qihuan was able to invade his willpower and spy into his emotional world.


    He had never run into power like this before.


    ��If you do not mind, I would truly like to become friends with you, Emperor Ye,�� continued Goddess Qihuan.


    ��I do mind,�� said Ye Futian coldly. He swept his gaze over her as she stood there in the sky and said, ��Since this is only the first time you have offended me, I will not pursue justice in this matter. If there is a next time, the consequences will be on your own head.��


    ��Huh?�� Surprised looks came over everyone��s faces. The situation had changed so quickly!

 Chapter 2169 - Injured

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian had just threatened Goddess Qihuan, a cultivator of the ninth tier. This was unspeakably arrogant.


    But considering his past victories, he had fought his way through the ancient royal family of Duan singlehandedly, sweeping away all of their Renhuangs. He had defeated ninth-tier Renhuangs before, and that had not even been the first time he had done so. Moreover, as long as their Great Path was not perfected, perhaps Ye Futian really would not be too worried about them.


    But Goddess Qihuan was no ordinary person. She could not be compared to ordinary ninth-tier Renhuangs. Her cultivation techniques were mysterious and unique, and she could excite any of her opponents�� desires. It seemed that she had done something to Ye Futian before that had prompted this reaction from him.


    However, everyone knew that Goddess Qihuan must not have used her full power. She was testing him. If she had really acted against Ye Futian, things would not have ended so simply.


    Goddess Qihuan was stunned when she heard Ye Futian��s words. She stared at him with her beautiful eyes and saw the white-haired young man staring back at her, cold will filling his deep eyes. Clearly, her invasion of his mind had angered him.


    ��You are not even the least bit concerned with saving face, are you Lord Ye?�� she said, looking down at him. At that moment, noble will suffused her. ��I am curious, are you really able to be so rude to Emperor Ye?��


    There was a bit of coldness in her tone as she stared at Ye Futian once more with her charming eyes.


    Boom! In that instant, divine light wrapped around Ye Futian, and a terrible demonic air flow swept out through the sky. The image of a divine peacock appeared, shining its brilliant light through all the heavens as well as towards Goddess Qihuan. At the same time, Ye Futian��s eyes became both strange and terrible as his gaze seemed to pierce the Goddess.


    ��Just try me,�� said Ye Futian. As they felt the violent airflow coming from him, everyone also felt a suffocating pressure. For a time, the vast area around them was silent. No one had thought Ye Futian would do this.


    At that moment, Ye Futian, who had been ignited by anger, was like the descendant of a demon god. He was completely different from how he had been before. He floated in the air, silver hair dancing behind him like silver blades. It was an overwhelming sight.


    Perhaps this was the real Ye Futian. This proud son of heaven, who had come from the Donghua Domain, had made his name in Four Corner Village and had swept through the ancient royal family of Duan was now showing his true glory.


    Goddess Qihuan stared at Ye Futian. Try him?


    She was naturally not afraid of Ye Futian. But the way he was acting right now put a little bit of pressure on her. Suddenly, she smiled, and it was like a hundred flowers coming into bloom, both delicate and beautiful. It made all the cultivators who were watching become stunned. She had transformed from a noble Empress into a charming beauty in an instant. Both of these attitudes were present within her, which made her even more alluring. It was like her image had been imprinted on everyone��s mind.


    ��No wonder you are the most famous genius in the Shangqing Domain. Your charm and mannerisms are impressive, Emperor Ye. There are many heroes in the Shangqing Domain, and yet I do not know how many of them can compete with you,�� said Goddess Qihuan. As she smiled, the tense atmosphere seemed to disappear instantly. Everything was light and breezy. Ye Futian still did not retract his aura, but at that moment, everyone relaxed a little bit.


    Ye Futian could see that the Goddess Qihuan had no intention of attacking him. He ignored her words and recalled his aura, becoming a completely different person in an instant.


    Off in the distance, more people were coming, including the Prince and Princess of the Shangyu Deity Nation, the cultivators of the Lu clan, and more. They stood in different places, some looking at the divine casket and others at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had clearly become a focal point for all the cultivators. Apart from the greatest figures, he was the only one who could observe the corpse within the divine casket without being instantly injured. The others, even those as powerful as Muyun Lan and Mo Ke, could not do this.


    Ye Futian ignored their gazes and continued to observe the divine body. Since this was the way things were going to be, he did not need to worry about it anymore. He would gaze at the corpse for a little longer before it was taken away.


    As time passed, Ye Futian continued to stare at the divine body.


    Moreover, he started trying to have the ancient characters enter his body.


    At that moment, he was standing in the sky gazing down at the divine casket. A halo of light was around him, and it seemed like ancient characters were carved into his body. What was most frightening was that the characters that were rushing into his eyes were having a wild effect on the world within him.


    Within his life palace was the spatial world that the World Tree had forged. The sun and the moon hung high in the sky, and the stars revolved. But once those characters rushed in, they swept through wildly, destroying everything. Even the stars collapsed as thunder and lightning smashed everything to dust. The characters that had charged in tried to destroy everything. They even attacked the World Tree itself.


    This was the first time Ye Futian had been in this situation. Previously, even when he had encountered a divine item, the World Tree had still stood firm as the absolute master and had even swallowed and absorbed their power, just like it had with the heart of the Demon Peacock God.


    But this time, the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor within the divine casket was giving off endless characters that were all rushing through all his spirits and attacking everything.


    A great, stormy wave rose within his World Tree life palace.


    Boom!


    Ye Futian began trembling incessantly. After a moment, he groaned, and his body was sent flying backward. He spat up a mouthful of blood. His face had gone deathly white.


    But as he landed on the ground, he sat up and crossed his legs. A porcelain bottle appeared in his hand. He crushed it and took out a pill from within, swallowing it. Powerful life will suffused his body.


    But even so, his trembling body was still giving off great booming noises. Everyone was staring at him, watching more and more blood pour out of his mouth. His face was so pale it seemed as if he was suffering from great pain.


    ��I was too impulsive,�� he said to himself. He had done this a little too sloppily. He thought he could adapt himself to this power, but obviously, he was nowhere near good enough.


    Xia Qingyuan strode towards him, a worried look on her face. The cultivators of Four Corner Village were concerned as well. This man seemed to have bitten off more than he could chew this time.


    ��Is he gravely injured?�� All the cultivators around were watching Ye Futian. This was the first time they had seen him get hurt while looking at the divine casket. Previously he had had no problems.


    The power of the characters coming out of the divine casket was truly frightening to behold.


    Ye Futian kept spitting out mouthfuls of blood. His aura had grown much weaker. Many people, though he had been wounded to the very core, that his Great Path had suffered injury. It would truly be a shame if one of the world��s top figures fell just from observing the divine body.


    However, after a while, Ye Futian��s aura began to gradually revive. Divine trees surrounded him as his body became a tree of life. He began to recover swiftly. Everyone could clearly sense that Ye Futian��s weak aura was beginning to strengthen.


    ��What a marvelous recovery!�� everyone thought to themselves as they watched him. His rejuvenation was so swift that they were all shocked. Previously, they had clearly felt how grievous the injury that Ye Futian had received was. He had possibly even been injured in the very root of his Great Path. However, he had still been able to start healing so quickly.


    ��This is the Great Path of Life. To have such a robust life aura is something that even peak-level Renhuangs would not necessarily be able to obtain,�� said an upper-level Renhuang as he spoke with those around him.


    Many people nodded in agreement. They had also noticed how vigorous Ye Futian��s life aura was.


    Before long, Ye Futian had healed enough where he was as good as new. He had returned to peak fitness.


    At that moment, Blind Tie and Fang Huan came over to his side and whispered, ��How do you feel?��


    ��I feel fine,�� Ye Futian answered.


    ��Be a little more careful. Don��t put yourself in danger in your rush for success,�� Blind Tie reminded him.


    ��I will take care,�� said Ye Futian with a nod.


    ��Do you still want to keep going?�� said Xia Qingyuan from behind them. Her tone was cold. Ye Futian looked over at her and saw that her beautiful eyes held him in an icy, tight gaze.


    ��Don��t worry about it, I will be careful,�� said Ye Futian with a smile at Xia Qingyuan. However, she did not seem satisfied with his response. She kept glaring at him.


    Ye Futian rose and stretched out, looking very casual. However, when his eyes fell upon the divine casket, a sharp look appeared in them. He turned to Xia Qingyuan again and said, ��Does it look like I��m having trouble? This divine casket cannot injure me to my core.��


    ��So what happened before was not an injury?�� said Xia Qingyuan.


    ��Compared to the risks I take when cultivating, something like this which I am in complete control of is nothing,�� Ye Futian said to her telepathically. ��Don��t worry. I know my limits. Moreover, I have already begun to understand something from it. It will probably help me with my cultivation and might even help me observe the abilities of the ancient gods.��


    When she heard his telepathic message, Xia Qingyuan looked at him. He seemed to be completely unconcerned. She knew that she would not be able to convince him. Once he had made up his mind, she had no way of changing it. She could only say, ��Don��t put yourself into too much danger.��


    ��I won��t,�� said Ye Futian with a nod and a smile. Then he looked at the divine casket once again. His gaze became fixed upon it. Although he had received a terrible wound before, he did not shrink back from it in the least. If he could really take this power into himself and comprehend it, it would perhaps be very helpful for his cultivation.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian once again stepped forward. This made everyone look at him. Was he going to try again?


    This man was truly not afraid that he would not be able to withstand it.


    While they were still considering this, Ye Futian had once again come up to the divine casket!

 Chapter 2170 - Reply from the Imperial Palace

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A very strange phenomenon happened outside of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Divine light glittered within a certain space, which held a set of sacred remains.


    Despite so many supreme people throughout the Shangqing Domain coming to that place, only Ye Futian alone was able to gain access to the sacred remains and train with them.


    Ye Futian went into that space on the second day, intending to train near that divine casket. He had sustained many injuries, yet he seemed like some undying immortal, capable of recovering very quickly every time he sustained injuries. The whole process had been repeated so many times over that the cultivators present were all in awe at just how tenacious he was.


    Yet, he was forbidden from going inside the place holding the casket by the guards from the Domain Chief��s Manor. The chief himself had given orders forbidding anyone from looking at the divine casket, but they allowed those supreme cultivators to do so anyway. However, the place at which the divine casket was held was barred from entrance.


    ��Emperor Ye, please train outside,�� one of the Renhuang guards said to Ye Futian. Despite forbidding Ye Futian from getting inside, he was, nonetheless, being very polite. His powers had been seen by all cultivators present, after all, and they all deemed that someone with such powers would definitely be able to achieve great things. He could possibly even stand at the very top of the Shangqing Domain if he were to be able to stay alive.


    Ye Futian looked at the person who got in his way, and a faint pressure actually emanated from those deep eyes of his. At that moment, yet another person walked up to his side, saying to the Renhuang guard, ��I want to take a look inside as well. Let us pass.��


    The Renhuang guard took a look at the one coming up to Ye Futian��s side and nodded. ��Yes, my lady.��


    The one who asked for the guard to make way was none other than Princess Lingxi. Despite the rules laid down before, her status was superior. As such, no one dared to object when she was the one giving Ye Futian passage. Furthermore, she wanted to get inside herself as well.


    ��Thank you, Princess Lingxi.�� Ye Futian nodded at Zhou Lingxi.


    ��I��ve seen what you��re capable of, Sir Ye. I��m curious if you��ll be able to actually learn something using the divine casket. I��ll be watching you from afar, and I assume that I won��t be getting in your way,�� Zhou Lingxi said.


    ��Of course it wouldn��t,�� Ye Futian replied. There was nothing else he could say. She was the one who let him inside, so it was ridiculous for him to tell her to stay outside instead.


    ��I look forward to it.�� Zhou LIngxi flashed a smile, which stunned him for quite a bit. That brimming smile of hers felt rather surreal to him. Zhou Lingxi, who was a female Renhuang, actually had a tinge of pure beauty about her. The tone with which she talked to him made him feel like he had traveled through time, triggering some emotional fluctuations inside him.


    ��What is it?�� Zhou Lingxi saw Ye Futian staring at her and asked, feeling rather surprised.


    ��It��s nothing.�� Ye Futian snapped back to reality and smiled. ��After you, princess.��


    ��Sure.�� Zhou Lingxi nodded as both of them walked into that space. Countless eyes were looking at them. Both of them walked to the space between the stone beams and then walked up the stairs to reach the divine casket.


    Some people murmured under their breaths after seeing how the two of them looked like a match made in heaven. ��Emperor Ye and Princess Lingxi sure look like a good fit for each other.��


    Quite a number of them nodded. There was no need to say more about her status as the princess, and her powers were superb as well. Ye Futian was extremely dashing with his white garb and silver hair. His talents were so extraordinary that hardly anyone throughout the Shangqing Domain could be compared to him. If such an extraordinary figure were to be able to pair up with the princess, it would have been quite a story to tell, just like how it had been with Muyun Lan and Nanhai Qianxue back then.


    A good number of people talked after hearing what was said. The two of them really did look like a good match for each other.


    However, there were also some displeased by what they heard.


    ��A bunch of mortals who know next to nothing.�� Condor-sama looked at the expression of some people by its side and mumbled, ��Rhe way I see it, there is only one princess fitting enough to be by his side.��


    The look of some princess by his side softened somewhat. The bird took note of that and thought that its days would probably be easier.


    Ye Futian and Zhou Lingxi walked up the steps and arrived not far away from the divine casket. Divine light emanated from the stone pillars around it.


    ��There was no path in this world,�� Zhou Lingxi murmured in a subdued tone. Her body was subjected to terrifying pressure, causing her aura inside to fluctuate. She then commented, ��I wonder what level Emperor Shenjia was at all those years ago, daring to utter such words.��


    ��I assume that you��ve heard of rumors regarding the collapse of the Heavenly Path,�� Ye Futian then said to Zhou Lingxi.


    ��I do.�� She nodded. ��I heard that there were some extremely powerful people that emerged in ancient times and that the Heavenly Path balked under the power they commanded.��


    ��Perhaps those people had been fighting the Heavenly Path the whole time,�� Ye Futian muttered.


    Zhou Lingxi looked at him and nodded, then adding, ��It is often said that there is no end to one��s cultivation. Yet, when one reaches the most powerful of levels, one will naturally need to break the shackles and start all over. Perhaps these supreme overlords in ancient times were daring enough to fight the Heavenly Path. This space will really be able to wreck the will of the Great Path on me.��


    ��Right.�� Ye Futian then said, ��Please stay here, princess. If you were to proceed any further, you��d probably be in danger.��


    ��Alright, I shall stay here and watch while you look at the sacred remains to further your learning.�� Zhou Lingxi nodded and smiled.


    The people outside were watching the whole time while they chatted. It looked like Zhou Lingxi indeed had intentions of getting close to Ye Futian. Given her status, she had no need to go so far otherwise. A superb genius like no other would catch the attention of even the daughter of the Domain Chief Manor indeed.


    Ye Futian walked up to the divine casket. That time, he was walking up to the casket from that space within. His sight was on the sacred remains within. At that moment, the feeling was far more intense than looking at the sacred remains from outside. Countless runes rushed into his eyes right away and then surged into his Life Palace.


    The world of his Life Palace, as well as his body, were totally different at that moment. His blood seemed to be of golden color, which emanated an incredibly dazzling divine glow. This made him look like an overlord of all the humans, and he truly was a cut above the rest.


    Dazzling divine light shrouded his body, making him look like a young great emperor. The world of his Life Palace was even more terrifying. Sacred light dazzled everywhere, enveloping the entire place. The World Tree had turned into a divine tree, shooting up to the heavens. Its branches spread far and wide, connecting the world. The swaying branches and leaves emanated a divine glow, which was extremely dazzling. It seemed it might be readying itself for the attack that was to come.


    As expected, as the boundless runes surged into his Life Palace, they invaded the whole place like towering waves, crushing everything in their path.


    Boooooooom�� Frightening rumbles seemed to be heard from within his body, so much so that even Zhou Lingxi, who was standing not far away, trembled deep down, finding the commotion a little frightening. She wondered just what Ye Futian was doing that allowed him to resist the invasion from the sacred remains.


    Furthermore, she was curious as to what Ye Futian was trying to achieve.


    He looked as if he was completely drowned within a short period of time. Zhou Lingxi��s mind was thoroughly shaken as she stood by the side. She felt as if she was experiencing the rumbles herself as well.


    She wondered what he was trying to learn through those sacred remains.


    Ye Futian was sent reeling back before long again, sustaining injuries just like before. However, he was hardly fazed, and that look in his eyes looked just as steeled as ever. He simply went to the side and sat down with his legs crossed, meditating to recover and looking at ease. It was as if he had gotten very used to all that had just happened.


    Zhou Lingxi thought, as she was looking at his incredibly handsome looks, that other than talent, he had been able to come so far due to factors that had to do with his temperament. There was an air of seriousness about him when he trained, which she had never seen. He remained completely unfazed despite all the injuries he sustained.


    Those outside were still only able to watch, unable to do anything. Ye Futian remained training inside several days since then, and Zhou Lingxi was present the whole time.


    Whenever titans came to visit, they came up close and looked inside. Their sight would often linger on Ye Futian.


    Despite the presence of said titans, Ye Futian looked completely at ease. He was devoted to his own training and ignored anything else completely, entering a trance.


    Ye Futian was still training that day. He stood before the divine casket, clad with divine light, looking like a heavenly god. Dazzling divine light emanated all over him, and the rumbling in his body sounded like towering waves.


    At present, what he saw in his own world seemed to no longer be just runes but a true god. The sacred remains within the casket of Great Emperor Shenjia seemed to have been resurrected, standing before him. All those boundless runes seemed to have become a part of him. His body became like a world of its own, and those runes looked like all the rules governing that world.


    Ye Futian seemed to want to take a closer look. He seemed to be able to see Great Emperor Shenjia appearing right before him, and the emperor looked like a true god just by standing around.


    Booom! Ye Futian was sent flying yet again, and it was more serious that time. He was blasted off of the steps right away, crashing into a stone pillar far away. He coughed up blood and sustained massive injuries.


    Those outside gasped at the scene.


    ��Sir Ye.�� Zhou Lingxi turned around and made her way down the steps. Ye Futian then supported himself with his hand on the pillar as he sat up, leaning on the pillar. He shook his head, then smiled and said, ��I��m fine.��


    He then closed his eyes to train after that. Zhou Lingxi felt rather moved upon seeing all that. Despite being such a supreme being, he was still putting his life on the line just to further his training, ignoring the cost to himself.


    The cultivators outside were thoroughly impressed. Every single supreme genius, while indeed possessing superb talent, was just as hardworking.


    At that moment, divine light dazzled from within the Domain Chief��s Manor. A group of people came, and titans from all corners appeared one by one. The chief came out to greet them personally as he scanned the crowd.


    ��News from the imperial palace then?�� someone asked.


    ��Indeed.�� The chief nodded and continued, ��It is the will of the great emperor that the divine casket of Great Emperor Shenjia shall be taken care of by the Shangqing Domain, given that it was found in Shangqing Domain itself. The imperial palace will not interfere.��

 Chapter 2171 - Constructing the Divine Mausoleum

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The man speaking was watched by all who were present, and all of them felt something right there and then.


    The Palace��s decision to not take away the divine casket and leave it for those at the Shangqing Domain��where the divine casket was discovered��to deal with it spoke volume of its magnanimity.


    They thought that only the likes of the imperial palace would be able to be so magnanimous. They had actually refrained from claiming the body of an ancient god.


    The imperial palace would only need to say the word for the divine casket to be delivered to them otherwise.


    Yet, those from the imperial palace actually told them to take care of the casket as they saw fit.


    But then again, none from the domain itself would have dared to fight the Domain Chief��s Manor for the right to the casket.


    As such, the divine casket would probably be left at the Domain Chief��s Manor for good, serving as a sacred relic of the place.


    But then again, while that was the common thought among those present, with the titans from the cultivation forces arriving, it was probably not all that easy for the Domain Chief��s Manor to claim the casket as its own.


    At that moment, the place appeared unusually silent. The supreme titans were all present. None of them spoke, and they just looked at the chief who just emerged from his residence.


    The atmosphere of the place seemed to appear rather weird. It would seem that all of them were waiting for someone else to speak first.


    ��The great emperor is generous enough to leave the divine casket for us, the cultivators of Shangqing Domain,�� someone said. Someone had finally spoken after the silence persisted for some time. The man who was speaking was none other than the leader of the Nanhai Clan. He looked at the chief and continued, ��We of the Nanhai Clan were the ones who discovered the divine casket. It was then brought here by the chief to report to the imperial palace. Now that word from the imperial palace has arrived, how would you intend to deal with this divine casket then?��


    The divine casket was so out-of-their-world that none of them, despite their powers, were able to learn from it. Yet, they nonetheless knew of the value of the sacred remains which the casket held. That was the body of Great Emperor Shenjia, and it had devolved into boundless runes to the point that the body couldn��t be observed. Even they��the pinnacle cultivators that reigned supreme over Shangqing Domain��would suffer backlash just by taking one look at the body. They also knew repeated looks would even cause serious injuries.


    They were thinking if they were able to take it home for further study.


    Of course, they were definitely not the only ones harboring such thoughts. None of those from the top-notch cultivation forces wouldn��t have wanted the divine casket for themselves so as to peer into the secrets harbored by the sacred remains. If they were to be able to get more powerful in the future, they might actually be able to learn what the Imperial Realm was like.


    Whoever was holding the casket at the moment, the others would probably wouldn��t just back away from claiming it, even if said holder was the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Domain Chief Zhou looked at the crowd, and despite hearing the question clearly, he didn��t rush to give an answer. Although he was the one with the most authority in all of the Shangqing Domain, he was still unable to so casually order people from top-notch cultivation forces around because those people were not actually his subordinates. They were cultivators of the Divine Prefecture like everyone else. And while they would do him favors and give him face, they were not about to comply with his every command.


    It was especially so when one such divine relic was concerned. He naturally knew that if the Domain Chief��s Manor were to claim such a relic as their own just like that, he would have invoked the wrath of everyone present. The forces would be displeased with either the Domain Chief��s Manor or with him, so much so that some might actually get into an altercation.


    As such, he needed to be cautious with the matter.


    ��The divine casket of Great Emperor Shenjia was discovered in the Cangyuan Continent by chance. As such, it could be considered as something that belongs to nobody. While many discovered it before, nobody was able to take it away. That is, until all of you came. Then, you all brought the casket here to report to the imperial palace. However, given that the imperial palace��s reply was for us of the Shangqing Domain to take care of it on our own, it was apparent that the great emperor was wise and wished to see the Divine Prefecture be strong. Giving us the divine casket to the Shangqing Domain was an act to see that we could learn by using it.�� The chief elaborated, ��In that case, we shall not let the great emperor down.��


    Everyone was still listening silently, and some were already frowning. The leader of the Nanhai Clan was able to more or tell what the chief meant, and he knew that the chief would probably still intend to keep the divine casket around.


    As expected, the chief then continued, ��I shall build a divine mausoleum near the Domain Chief��s Manor, in which the divine casket of Great Emperor Shenjia shall be placed. Guards would be assigned to the mausoleum, and all top-notch figures from the continent shall be permitted to enter the place. Any from the Shangqing Domain who are sufficiently powerful will be permitted entry as well, so as to ensure that the cultivators of the Shangqing Domain are able to learn by observing the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia for generations to come. What do you all think of this?��


    Everyone knew what the chief meant by what he said. Constructing the divine mausoleum by the side of the Domain Chief��s Manor and placing the divine casket inside was but a ploy for the Domain Chief��s Manor to keep the casket under their control. They could research and learn from the divine casket at all times, yet it was ridiculous for those of the top-notch forces to stay back at the Shangqing Domain all the time.


    The divine casket was anything but ordinary, which meant that studying from it was anything but easy.


    As soon as the divine mausoleum was finished, the divine casket would be put completely under the Domain Chief��s Manor��s control.


    However, the way the chief put it was so perfect that they couldn��t come up with any reason to object, as it would be more ridiculous to think that the divine casket could be placed on their respective continents instead.


    Furthermore, the ground they stood on at that very moment was right outside the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The leader of the Nanhai Clan said that they were the ones who discovered the divine casket, but what the chief said had practically denied such claims. The divine casket was dug out by chance, to begin with, and the ones who discovered it earliest were not even qualified to get inside. If anyone were to be said to be the earliest to observe the divine casket, it would be Muyun Lan and Ye Futian. Yet, it was not to say that the casket would belong to any who laid eyes on it first.


    The divine casket belonged to none, and any would be able to fight to claim it.


    However, given that no one fought over it and it had been brought to the Domain Chief��s Manor instead, it was only natural that the chief got to call the shots.


    Silence blanketed the place yet again. No one said anything, and they all seemed to be thinking.


    Despite feeling displeased deep down, no one stood out to object to it. Anyone who dared to object first would have gotten on the bad side of the chief, after all. Furthermore, such objection would be futile all the same.


    Moreover, the chief didn��t say that the divine mausoleum would be constructed within the Domain Chief��s Manor��s grounds, and the place would be built elsewhere instead. That meant that he had indeed taken into consideration the thoughts of others. He would have simply built the place inside the Domain Chief��s Manor and then claimed the casket as their own otherwise.


    But then again, as far as practical application was concerned, the divine casket was still practically theirs.


    ��If the divine mausoleum is to be built, is it to say that my juniors would be allowed to train inside at any time we wish?�� the leader of the Nanhai Clan asked.


    ��That is a given,�� the chief replied. ��All from the top-notch cultivation forces of the Upper Nine Heavens, including those from Four Corner Village, would be permitted to freely enter the divine mausoleum at all times.��


    Everyone nodded, seemingly having accepted the proposal.


    In terms of raw power in the Shangqing Domain, those of the Domain Chief��s Manor would probably still be the most powerful. Even those supreme beings would hardly be able to match Zhou Muhuang��the young master��let alone the chief himself.


    Furthermore, the cultivation forces also deemed it imperative to not offend the Domain Chief��s Manor unless absolutely necessary. Even if there were to be anyone who didn��t agree to it, it eventually still wouldn��t have changed anything.


    There was literally nowhere else the divine casket could be placed after all.


    ��Well then, given that the chief has given his word, we will naturally not object to the proposal,�� the leader of the Nanhai Clan said, giving face to the chief. He agreed to the proposal right away.


    ��I��m fine with it as well,�� the leader of the Lu Clan seconded the decision.


    With two of the greatest clan leaders having agreed to it, it would be pointless for the others not to be alright with it. Everyone else then agreed to the proposal of having the divine mausoleum built near the Domain Chief��s Manor, placing the divine casket within.


    ��Well then, that settles the matter. I shall order for the construction of the divine mausoleum and place the divine casket within. When the construction of the divine mausoleum is completed, we shall gather around and discuss some other matters. The actual purpose of bringing you all together was actually to discuss something else. But the case with the divine casket has taken precedence instead,�� the chief said, and everyone nodded. The purpose of them being there was not initially due to the divine casket.


    The appearance of the divine casket was but an accident.


    At that moment, Ye Futian, who was recovering by the side, opened his eyes and looked at the Chief. With the divine casket not being taken away by the imperial palace, he would be able to rest easy as that meant that he could have more time to learn from the sacred remains.


    Those of Four Corner Village were allowed to enter the divine mausoleum any time after all.


    ��There would be no need for you to rush then, Sir Ye. You will have plenty of time to learn from here on out.�� Zhou Lingxi smiled at Ye Futian as she spoke to him. She saw that Ye Futian had seemed to be racing against time, sustaining injury after injury. Yet, he still insisted on learning.


    However, there was no longer a need to do so.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, ��The great emperor is indeed magnanimous.��


    ��Indeed.�� Zhou Lingxi nodded and added, ��Well, then, in that case, let��s head outside. How about I give you a tour inside the Domain Chief��s Manor, Sir Ye?��


    Ye Futian looked at her and said, ��Thank you, Princess Lingxi. I��m indeed getting exhausted from training from the past several days, and a break would be nice. However, I��ll be taking a rest in an inn so that I don��t get in your way.��


    ��Sure.�� Zhou Lingxi didn��t say anything else. She nodded and added, ��When you have the time, we shall walk around in the manor again.��


    ��That would be nice.�� Ye Futian nodded, and both of them walked outside.


    Zhou Lingxi bode him farewell as soon as they both emerged outside, returning to the Domain Chief��s Manor, which caused the chief to look at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian went back to where his own place and saw cold eyes looking at him. He felt rather exasperated as he rubbed his brow and said, ��Let��s head back.��

 Chapter 2172 - Yet Another Gathering

    Ye Futian trained alone in the inn.


    He had been training in isolation right after he returned from the Domain Chief��s Manor. He was seen sitting cross-legged at the moment. Great Path rumbling was heard from his body like a tsunami.


    The terrifying power of the Great Path howled within the world of his Life Palace, causing divine light of the Great Path to keep seeping out of his body. The power of the Great Path tempered his body over and over, growing his physical body stronger and stronger as the will of the Great Path became increasingly intense.


    It took quite a while before he stopped training. The divine light of the Great Path surged all over his body, causing his body to seem to have developed into a body of the Great Path. His eyes were filled with the intense will of the Great Path when he opened them again.


    Voom! The light swept all over his body, and a formless fluctuation appeared, spreading everywhere around him. It caused the others from the inn to look where he was training. It was apparent that they had all sensed the will of the Great Path, which emanated from his body.


    He got up and opened the door, seeing several people standing right outside. Someone walked to his room, and it was none other than Duan Qiong. He glanced at Ye Futian and sensed that Ye Futian��s bearing seemed to have changed somewhat. He then grinned and said, ��I knew that you were probably about to finish training when I sensed your aura. Your level has gotten somewhat deeper, and I��d say that you wouldn��t take long to make it to level six of Renhuang Realm.��


    ��I��ve made some progress.�� Ye Futian nodded. Furthermore, the progress he made was not that of some kind of path or that of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. The progress he made was overarching, and he made a comprehensive leap forward. His understanding of the Great Path became more profound, and his level got even deeper. With the powers of Great Path which he had developed so far becoming more powerful, so was his Divine Wheel of the Great Path.��


    ��I��d say that even I, at level six perfection of the Great Path, wouldn��t able to win against you as you are right now. If you were to be able to make it to level six of Renhuang Realm, even those at level seven perfection of the realm wouldn��t be able to beat you. By then, I��m afraid that only the likes of Muyun Lan could contend.�� Duan Qiong felt rather impressed. He was naturally able to tell that Ye Futian was still very young, yet his combat prowess was already above that of countless supreme ones of the previous generation.


    If he were to make even further progress, he would possibly be able to touch the peak of combat prowess, excluding those who were deemed the titans. Judging from his rate of progress at cultivation, he probably wouldn��t need many years, so much so that he might only need a dozen to 20 years, to achieve such a goal.


    Ye Futian might actually stand a chance at reaching the levels of the titans before he turned 100 years old, and that would have been rather harrowing.


    ��I��ve managed to learn something watching the sacred remains of the Great Emperor Shenjia in that casket,�� he added. That was the whole truth. He would come back with considerable gains every time he observed the sacred remains. Despite being repeatedly injured, every single injury was, nonetheless, a temperance of sorts to him, enabling him to grow stronger every time.


    He was even able to vaguely sense the deepest secrets of Great Emperor Shenjia and just how terrifying said great emperor was. Even just a single look would have brought about a surreal amount of learning. Yet, those titans were unable to observe the sacred remains.


    ��Right.�� Duan Qiong nodded. ��I��m somewhat jealous of you. At present, I��ve only taken one look, and I��ve never been more miserable before. It would seem that I��d have no hope of learning through the sacred remains. When the divine mausoleum is completed, you could train at the Shangqing Continent for a period of time, learning as you stay in the divine mausoleum often.��


    ��That��s what I��m thinking,�� Ye Futian grinned as he replied. When the divine mausoleum was completed and the divine casket placed within, he would stay around and train for a period of time there.


    All that he had learned so far, other than furthering his training in the Great Path, he had also vaguely sensed something mystical, so mystical that he was still unable to place it. He deemed that he might need more time to learn from it.


    He looked outside and saw a good number of people gathering around. Chen Yi took a look at him and said, ��You��re about to make a breakthrough?��


    ��I��m getting such a feeling. It probably won��t take long. I should be able to make a breakthrough within a year,�� he replied. Cultivators were very perceptive of their own progress, and he already had such a feeling about himself. One year was actually a conservative estimation. In actual fact, he vaguely sensed that he was mere steps away from making a breakthrough, and he had probably lacked some kind of catalyst.


    ��You plan on training like how you did before?�� A grumbling voice was heard. Ye Futian saw Xia Qingyuan looking at him, and she was feeling rather displeased. The way she looked at it, the way he trained was practically self-torture, inflicting severe damage on himself as he trained.


    Given his talents and powers, he would still be able to make a breakthrough without training like that.


    ��Qingyuan, you don��t understand what I feel every time I look at the sacred remains. If you knew, you wouldn��t have thought much of it.�� Ye Futian said to her, ��Every time I look at the sacred remains in the casket, every attack was actually a process of tempering on my path. What I��ve accumulated would bring about further change in me, which was why I felt that it wouldn��t take me long to make my next breakthrough. Such opportunities were hard to come by, and they are now right before my eyes. How could I pass up the offer?��


    ��I know that you��re worried, but you know what kind of powers I��m good at. The injuries were hardly more than mere pain to me, and none of it would affect my foundations. Such injuries are utterly beneath mentioning when compared to the growth of my powers, don��t you think?�� Ye Futian explained.


    Xia Qingyuan naturally was able to understand what he said. In actual fact, he was able to comprehend it all, yet when she saw him undergo such a torturous process of temperance over and over, she felt awful for him nonetheless.


    While she was going through all that on her own, she was still able to sense just how intense the pain was as he was being tempered by the sacred remains. He wouldn��t have ended up with severe injuries every time otherwise.


    ��Relax.�� Ye Futian clapped on her shoulder and added, ��Compared to what we��ve been through before, this is nothing.��


    She naturally knew how much he had been through throughout his journey. She lowered her head and nodded. ��But still, don��t push yourself too far. Don��t get the kind of injuries that you won��t recover from.��


    That was the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia, and any lapse of judgment could have come with severe repercussions. There had been times when he had been so anxious to make progress that he had been even more severely injured than before. Thanks to his ridiculous healing powers, he was able to make it without any serious repercussions.


    ��Seems like it��s getting increasingly rowdy outside.�� He cast his glance outside and was able to see many people in the air heading towards the area where the Domain Chief��s Manor was.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor intended to construct the divine mausoleum to house the divine casket, which naturally caught the cities�� attention. That divine mausoleum would most probably become yet another important landmark of the Shangqing Domain.


    But then again, that was only if the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia were still inside.


    He continued training in the inn for the next several days, and the commotion outside remained. Many top-notch figures in the Domain Chief��s Manor would definitely need to build the place to be extraordinarily sturdy. There were even pinnacle Renhuang figures laying down arrays in the divine mausoleum so as to build a foundation of the Great Path with it.


    If the divine mausoleum was any less sturdy, any commotion that it could encounter in the future could probably bring the entire place down right away.


    However, none of that had anything to do with him. He simply shut himself in to train and cared about nothing else.


    That remained until one day when the divine mausoleum��s construction was completed. Those from the Domain Chief��s Manor went out to inform the titans of the supreme forces to have them head to the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    A supremely majestic building was erected somewhere nearby the Domain Chief��s Manor. The place was huge and looked very tall and mighty. Furthermore, it had truly been constructed in the form of a mausoleum, a mausoleum fitting for a god.


    Other than that, they had indeed placed the divine casket containing the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia inside, thus truly making it a divine mausoleum. The order which the chief gave was considered an act of respect towards that great emperor.


    They had been very insolent before for interrupting the rest of the sacred remains of the great emperor, yet there was no way around it. There was just no way the physical body of an ancient god, when unearthed, would be able to rest in peace, as countless would certainly fight to get their hands on it.


    The very reason why such a thing never happened with that sacred remains was that Ye Futian had brought the divine casket there. Furthermore, given how difficult it was to even take a look at the remains, claiming and taking it away was anything but easy. As such, there was probably no cultivation force capable of just hauling the divine casket away from where it was.


    The center of the mausoleum was very tall, and it was built in the form of a spire. The divine casket was moved inside, with this spot serving as its resting place. Countless formidable ones arrived outside the divine mausoleum en masse. The news spread for several days, and many cultivators from the city showed up.


    Other than the completion of the divine mausoleum, that was also the day which the Domain Chief��s Manor summoned the forces from all corners. There was just no way they wouldn��t have showed up.


    A group of people took to the air. Those people were none other than Ye Futian and those with him.

 Chapter 2173 - News of the Void Realm

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Chapter 2173 �C News of the Void Realm


    Ye Futian and those with him landed. Before the divine mausoleum, there was an empty field where the fighters from the Domain Chief��s Manor were standing guard. There were quite a lot of cultivators from top-notch cultivation forces that had arrived before him.


    ��Let��s get over there.�� Duan Tianxiong and Old Ma were there as well. They led their entourage over to that spot.


    That day was the day when the divine mausoleum was opened, as well as the day the chief would hold a meeting to discuss matters.


    There were people from top-notch cultivation forces coming to that area one after another. Some were chatting among themselves while others walked up to them.


    The leader of the Nanhai Clan took a look at Duan Tianxiong and Old Ma before his gaze rested on Ye Futian.


    ��Will he not be present for the meeting today?�� the leader of the Nanhai Clan asked Old Ma. The clan leader had been one of the three who showed up at Four Corner Village when the village experienced quite a commotion. That man the clan leader was referring to was someone of unimaginable power from the village. He was every bit on par with the three of them.


    As such, they retreated from the village and told their men to back off, acknowledging the existence of Four Corner Village.


    With that master in charge, it was near-impossible for the three to take over the village. Even if they were to do so, the cost would probably be beyond what they could sustain. As such, they would naturally not take such risks.


    Furthermore, they sensed that that master had some special relationship with the village. If they were to act against that master back in the village, it would probably be them at a disadvantage instead.


    At that moment, it became apparent that the master was unwilling to show despite the fact that the chief was holding a meeting. This made the master as mysterious as anybody could imagine one to be.


    ��The master is a hermit, and he involves himself with nothing but the affairs of the village. I��m certain that the chief will understand,�� Old Ma replied, and the leader of the Nanhai Clan chuckled. Many members from other cultivation forces showed up one after another.


    A huge group of people headed over at this moment, and the man taking the lead was none other than Zhou Muhuang. He was followed by his people. Zhou Lingxi was among them.


    She then took a look at Ye Futian and nodded at him with a smile. Ye Futian naturally returned the gesture. Xia Qingyuan��s eyes darted between the two of them quite a bit.


    Sh*t, the condor thought to itself. It simply turned its head away, pretending to have seen nothing.


    Zhou Lingxi was not the only one; Goddess Qihuan, Bai Yan, Mo Ke, Muyun Lan, and a few others carefully glanced at Ye Futian as well. It became apparent that while he had not been in the Shangqing Domain for long, word of his deeds had spread far and wide, making him one of the topmost figures in the domain. There were few among his peers capable of being compared to him. As such, even during such events when top-notch cultivation forces gathered around, he could still attract a lot of attention.


    ��Welcome, everyone.�� A man was seen landing on the ground. He was none other than Chief Zhou. He looked at the crowd and said, ��Let��s get inside the divine mausoleum for further discussion.��


    ��Very well.�� Everyone nodded. The chief took the lead, and the titans from all other top-notch cultivation forces followed right behind him. Duan Tianxiong and Old Ma walked up as well. Other cultivators from said forces followed right behind the titans as they went inside the divine mausoleum.


    Zhou Lingxi slowed down and got to walk with Ye Futian��s group. She came before Ye Futian before long.


    ��How has your training been the past several days?�� Zhou Lingxi looked at Ye Futian. She commented, ��It would seem that your bearing has changed somewhat. While it��s not all that obvious, it��s, nonetheless, somewhat noticeable still.��


    ��Changes have happened, indeed. I��ve come to learn quite a bit from looking at the divine casket back then, and my understanding of the Great Path has deepened somewhat,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��That explains it.�� Zhou Lingxi grinned and continued, ��With the divine mausoleum finished, you could train here from here on out. I��m afraid it won��t take you long to break into the next level.��


    ��I hope so.�� Ye Futian nodded as the group walked into the mausoleum.


    The divine mausoleum was built in such a way that it appeared magnificent. There was a passage within and a stone door not far away. The door remained opened and was guarded by Renhuang guards, who stood to the sides.


    ��This door has a massive array carved into it. And it is melded with the place into a single entity. So long as there are two guards assigned here, no one could force their way in and sneak into the mausoleum. That is unless they are someone of our level,�� Chief Zhou introduced. ��Other than that, the entire divine mausoleum is one single entity, and it has a massive array in place. Even if the intruders were able to get inside, the place would be sealed up immediately after the array is activated. No one other than very powerful beings will be able to escape.��


    ��The chief has really put his mind to it.�� Everyone nodded, but that line wasn��t actually all that sincere. The location of the mausoleum meant that the place was basically under the Domain Chief��s Manor��s control. Everyone else had to go there if they were to study and research the sacred remains.


    Passing through that passage led them to an extremely majestic palace within the mausoleum. The chief had moved the entire space of that divine casket in there. Stone pillars were erected in the air, and there was that staircase as well, which, without a doubt, led to the divine casket above.


    As such, the central area of the divine mausoleum was in the shape of a spire. On the walls around the spire, training platforms were hovering in midair, and they were all of different positions. Sitting at the very front of the platforms would allow one to see the sacred remains inside the casket. And if they were to be sent reeling behind, they would be stopped by the walls. There were countless lines on the walls which glittered with divine light.


    The entire divine mausoleum was like a super-powerful great array in itself.


    The place was not actually complex, so much so that one could even say that it was actually very simple. The place was still mainly used for training, and as such, it only needed to be sufficiently safe and sturdy. There was no need to complicate the layout at all.


    ��With the divine casket there, all of you can come and train as you wish.�� The chief then added, ��There is one other thing that I summoned you all here for, and that is to discuss the matters of warfare of the Divine Prefecture. Given that all of you have been training for many years, I��m sure you are all familiar with what happened hundreds of years ago. Ever since the passage leading to the Void Realm was opened, a great many forces went there for a pilgrimage. That included those from outside the Divine Prefecture who had taken an interest in the Void Realm and clashed with the forces from the Divine Prefecture. The war happening in the Void Realm has gotten increasingly intense in recent years, and I wonder if any of you have heard of it.��


    Ye Futian was rattled deep down. Ever since he came to the Divine Prefecture, all connections with the Void Realm had been severed, including those with some monsters which he used to control. Said connections were completely severed as soon as he entered the Divine Prefecture. He deemed that this had to do with both realms being of different spaces.


    The chief then claimed that there was a war going on in the Void Realm at present.


    He wondered if said war would involve the entire Void Realm.


    He wondered if all whom he knew from the Void Realm were doing fine.


    He came to worry intensely for them. Many years passed, and he had been very diligent at training, thinking that he could return when he had finally reached the pinnacle of Renhuang Realm. However, his heart sank as soon as he heard the news, and he wanted more than anything to return there at once.


    ��We��ve heard some stories about it, but we don��t know much,�� the leader of the Lu Clan said. Some other forces were interested in the Void Realm, but they were not one of those people.


    ��The Dark Court has invaded the Void Realm, nullifying the treaty all those years ago. They are waging war. There were also other forces seen appearing at the same time. According to news from the imperial palace, there are now signs of the war spreading. Also, the Dark Court has begun to amass more troops, commanding the armies of the dark world to make their way there. The Divine Prefecture is under a lot of stress as well, requiring support from the 18 domains. All of you are top-notch forces of the Shangqing Domain. If the imperial palace were to call us to arms, I��d hope that all of you could cooperate and send your most formidable warriors there. What do you all think of this?��


    The chief then continued slowly, ��Besides, this would be a great opportunity to test one��s mettle. Not only would the forces from the 18 domains would be there, but there will also be forces outside the Divine Prefecture getting involved. It is a grand event that is hardly ever seen during times of peace.��


    ��The Dark Court has made the Void Realm into a battlefield?�� the leader of the Nanhai Clan asked.


    ��There are possible signs of it.�� The chief nodded.


    ��Sir, how is the war going in the Void Realm now?�� Ye Futian couldn��t help but ask, feeling rather worried.


    ��I��ve not been in the Void Realm, so I didn��t know specifically how things are in there. If you all are fine with it, I may send my men to gather your forces. Of course, anyone who is unwilling to join will not be pressed to do so,�� the chief continued.


    Everyone nodded and made it apparent that the chief had their support. Of course, it was entirely up to them to decide just how powerful would the fighters they send. Naturally, nobody would refuse such a request under these circumstances.


    ��Thank you, all of you.�� The chief then said, ��With the divine mausoleum completed, I��m sure all of you would like to stay around for a bit. I have yet to act as a proper host despite being the host. As such, I have thrown a banquet in the manor. How about we move there now?��


    Everyone nodded and took a look at the casket before heading outside. There were untold numbers of fighters gathered just outside, yet the vast majority of them would probably not be able to get inside the divine mausoleum.


    Countless pairs of eyes looked at those who emerged from the divine mausoleum, and the chief addressed them all, ��The divine mausoleum is now complete, and anyone who fulfills the requirements will be permitted to train inside. However, my advice remains the same: do not attempt without caution.��


    Everyone understood what he meant. There was literally nobody who didn��t already know just how dangerous the sacred remains of the Great Emperor Shenjia were.


    After taking care of things over there, the chief and many formidable ones took to the air and made their way toward the Domain Chief��s Manor. Some formidable ones up front were chatting, while Ye Futian��s brow was locked tight. Xia Qingyuan could relate to his feeling at the moment, as she, too, was worried about things over there. All of their friends and families were over there, and there was no telling what would happen if the entire place became a warzone.


    ��It��ll be fine,�� Xia Qingyuan comforted him despite worrying about the same things herself.


    ��Yeah.�� Ye Futian nodded. His only wish at the moment was to get back there and check on things as soon as possible.

 Chapter 2174 - The Domain Chief’s Hints

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The banquet at the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor was ready, and the people from the cultivation forces took their seats.


    Ye Futian and the others around him were present, sitting with those from the village. The table beside them sat cultivators of the ancient royal family of Duan.


    The chief sat at the main seat, and Zhou Muhuang sat beside him. The seats below him were taken by Zhou Lingxi and some others. All of them had superior bearings.


    Chatter was everywhere as soon as everyone took their seats in the banquet. The chief then raised his cup, and everyone quieted down. Everyone everywhere turned their eyes to the chief.


    ��It is not every day that we all get to gather like this. I��d like to take this chance to see the renowned ones from the cultivation forces of the Shangqing Domain better. The successors of old people, like Muhuang, have reached a decent level of training. There are also many renowned ones behind, and some had even made it to the high-level Renhuang Realms and were perfect at their levels, all of whom would possibly get to the very pinnacle. Right now, those of Four Corner Village have become a part of the world, and quite a number from the village are superb. They look even more powerful than any from the cultivation forces of the Shangqing Domain, including those of the Domain Chief��s Manor. It would seem that since the war all those years ago, the Divine Prefecture would see a new era where renowned ones emerge everywhere.��


    The chief made his speech, and it was apparent that he had high opinions of those from Four Corner Village.


    In actual fact, the powers commanded by the village were indeed extremely powerful. Other than Old Ma, Fang Gai, Blind Tie, and the other elders were all cultivators whose Great Path levels were perfect. Their combat prowess was also extremely terrifying. Fang Huan was considered one of the later generations. While it could be said that the village had saw fractures among the generations, as all others other than those people mentioned were all incapable of cultivation, the generation after that was all capable of cultivation. As such, the place held terrifying potential.


    If one were to consider only those who were perfect at higher Renhuang levels, even if the individuals from all top-notch cultivation forces throughout the Shangqing Domain were to be taken into account, the number would still only more or less equaled those of the village.


    People of such levels were few and far between throughout the Shangqing Domain, and Four Corner Village couldn��t be judged using usual conventions.


    Of course, two were exiled from the village and were not actually cultivators from the village, and those two were the ones from the Nanhai Clan��Muyun Lan and Muyun Long.


    From a certain standpoint, the Nanhai Clan was the top-notch cultivation force that had the greatest number of cultivators at such levels, other than Four Corner Village.


    ��Those at the zenith will eventually fall, and those at rock bottom will eventually rise.�� The lord of Shangyu Deity Nation said, ��During the war all those years ago, countless cultivators perished, and countless more died in the chaotic world. Now, with the world united as one and the wars subsided, all forces had finally and gradually regained vitality. The later generations continued to train and develop into what we are today. We will walk towards glory, riding the rising waves we are on right now.��


    Everyone nodded. Those of the previous generation had all lived through those times. There had been untold numbers of powerful ones who had perished back then. They were actually considered fortunate to be able to survive and reign over a certain region during peacetimes.


    ��Indeed.�� The chief nodded. ��However, a chaotic world gives rise to heroes. Never forget that Donghuang the Great rose to prominence at that age. Among the many renowned figures standing the pinnacle of the 18 domains today, many cultivators managed to shine in that era. They had all retreated to behind the scenes to teach their juniors in order to become great figures themselves in the eras to come.��


    Chaotic times saw the rise of the best as well.


    ��The cultivation environment of present times is far better than what it used to be,�� some said, feeling rather impressed. Times changed, and time had indeed changed everything considerably. The eras back then were totally different from the present.


    ��When the cultivation environment gets considerably improved, the pressure is lacking. As such, the war against the Dark Court this time would serve as an opportunity.�� The chief then added, ��Muhuang will be heading to the Void Realm this time. I��d like to know your thoughts. What would you do if the imperial palace were to call you to arms?��


    ��But relax, we��d just chat in today��s banquet, and I wouldn��t mind any opinions put forth. The conflict of the Divine Prefecture is not something that a single force could steer.��


    ��I would send all core members of the Nanhai Clan. It is indeed an opportunity like none other,�� the leader of the Nanhai Clan said. The others nodded, and at that moment, the chief looked at Ye Futian and said, ��I heard some rumors saying that Emperor Ye hailed from the Donghua Domain and achieved great fame in the Donghua Banquet. I heard that you went to the Donghua Domain from the Void Realm?��


    Everyone turned their eyes to Ye Futian as soon as the chief said what he said. Everyone wondered if Ye Futian really was from the Void Realm.


    Few actually knew about that, as they had only heard that Ye Futian was originally from Donghua Domain, and he was hunted by the Domain Chief��s Manor of said domain. There was a wanted notice issued against him, and there were even people of top-notch forces in that domain attacking Four Corner City just to do so, but they failed nonetheless.


    Ye Futian was stunned, as he never anticipated that the chief would ask him such a question. He took note of the eyes on him and replied, ��I was indeed, but that was something that happened many years ago.��


    ��When you left the Void Realm, had forces like the Dark Court made it there?�� the chief then asked.


    ��Yeah. Before I left, the Dark Court did open a passage leading to the Void Realm,�� Ye Futian replied. In actual fact, he was involved in the incident the whole way, and he played a great part in what actually happened, but he didn��t elaborate on any of that.


    ��I assume that the Dark Court was only probing their way into the place when they first arrived. How were things back then?�� the chief continued.


    ��Two of the seven kings of the Dark Court were there, and a good number of formidable people arrived. The devil generals were there as well, but there had been two divine generals from the imperial palace being there as well,�� he replied. The chief nodded slightly. ��They were probably probing only then. The entourage seemed formidable, but they had yet to send the best of their forces. Things might have changed considerably over the years.��


    Ye Futian didn��t say much, as he didn��t want to talk too much about himself back in the Void Realm.


    ��It had been difficult for you to come all the way here from the Void Realm. I��ve heard quite a few things about you. You arrived first at the Donghua Domain, then to Four Corner Village, and then to where you are now, rising to prominence along the way. Lingxi told me a lot about you, and the way I see it, your achievements in the future won��t be any less than Muhuang��s,�� the chief continued. Many wore peculiar expressions, and the way they looked at Ye Futian changed.


    Many among them knew how extraordinary he was and his future was definitely be anything but ordinary. They were not surprised that the chief was holding him in such high regard as well, but the key to their surprise was the meaning behind what the chief said.


    The chief mentioned both Zhou Muhuang and Zhou Lingxi when he talked to Ye Futian, and the meaning behind that was something worth looking into.


    ��You flatter me, chief. The young master is already at the pinnacle of Renhuang, and that is my goal,�� Ye Futian replied. He looked rather humble, yet one would wonder if that was really his only goal.


    That was a level that he would definitely reach.


    ��Among the many renowned ones throughout Shangqing Domain, only you get to look at the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia in the divine casket. I heard from Lingxi that you were able to learn through it. I��d say such an appraisal would be apt. In fact, said appraisal might have been watered down instead.�� The chief laughed heartily and continued, ��Lingxi never complimented anyone like that, and you��re the first one that caught her attention. She has mentioned things about you quite a few times.��


    That rocked the minds of the formidable ones around, and the banquet became unusually quiet, as everyone had their ears perked.


    What is the chief trying to do here?


    Those behind Ye Futian looked rather complicated as well, especially Xia Qingyuan. She turned her eyes at the chief, wondering what the man meant by what he said.


    Ye Futian felt rather weird about it all as well, being rather puzzled as to why the chief brought such things up on an occasion like that. Zhou Lingxi was of esteemed status, and her social standing was high. She had extremely formidable powers as well, and such a person would catch massive amounts of attention. However, many wouldn��t have any other thoughts, as they knew just how impossible those thoughts could be.


    ��Thank you for your compliments, Princess. It might just be me being lucky that I��m able to look at the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia.�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��There is no need to be so humble. I could naturally see just how good you are myself. Lingxi hardly sees anyone that she is impressed with, and she speaks highly of your level. I agree with what she said. You two may get in touch more in the future when you have the chance. It would benefit both of you if you two could train together,�� the chief smiled and added. His intentions behind his words became increasingly obvious.


    Zhou Lingxi didn��t look sheepish or shy as well. As a very esteemed female Renhuang of Shangqing Domain, she appeared at ease, as she smiled as she looked at Ye Futian.


    Is the chief trying to make Ye Futian his son-in-law? That was the thought that came to the minds of everyone present. Muyun Lan and Nanhai Qianxue had been a couple that everyone deemed to be a match made in heaven, and the Nanhai Clan gained themselves a powerful son-in-law.


    They wondered if the Domain Chief��s Manor was trying to pull the same trick as the Nanhai Clan.


    Furthermore, it was apparent that not only was Ye Futian��s potential not below that of Muyun Lan, but he could actually be above Muyun Lan.


    Many cultivators from the Nanhai Clan wore complicated expressions. Zhou Muhuang had invited Ye Futian into the Domain Chief��s Manor before, and the latter refused. Yet, if Ye Futian were to be the son-in-law of the chief, he would then naturally be considered as a member of the Domain Chief��s Manor nonetheless.

 Chapter 2175 - Cultivating in the Divine Mausoleum

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian also wasn��t sure about what the Domain Chief and Zhou Lingxi meant. Humans were impulsive by nature. The higher the cultivation level a person achieved, the more self-possessed and dispassionate he became. Most cultivators could leave emotions out and weigh the pros and cons rationally when they reached the Renhuang Plane.


    Of course, Ye Futian wouldn��t assume that Zhou Lingxi had fallen in love with him during such a short time. That being said, the Domain Chief obviously made those remarks with Zhou Lingxi��s permission. Otherwise, he wouldn��t say it in front of everyone.


    In that case, what on earth did they mean?


    Could they genuinely intend to let him marry Zhou Lingxi on the strength of his remarkable potential and promising future? Did they want him to join the Domain Chief��s Manor?


    Nevertheless, the possibility felt too simple and didn��t fit the Domain Chief��s Manor��s usual style.


    Unless the Domain Chief��s Manor somehow figured out Ye Futian��s true capacity and was eager to rope him in by any possible means.


    However, the Domain Chief��s Manor only dropped a hint and didn��t say anything explicitly. To avoid embarrassment for both sides, Ye Futian certainly wouldn��t react in a presumptuous way either. He replied with a smile, ��The Vice Chief and Princess Lingxi both have extraordinary talent. I will gladly learn from them if I have a chance in the future.��


    The Domain Chief smiled and nodded without saying anything further. For a high-ranking man like him, an indirect suggestion in public was enough to show his high opinion of Ye Futian.


    There was no doubt that Ye Futian could join the Domain Chief��s Manor as the son-in-law, as long as he was keen on the idea himself. In that case, he would be backed by both the Domain Chief��s Manor and Four Corner Village. No one in the Shangqing Domain would dare to touch him no matter what he did.


    ��Zhou Lingxi deliberately approached you in the beginning. I��m afraid that she has some ulterior motive.�� Xia Qingyuan talked to Ye Futian through voice transmission. Although Ye Futian couldn��t help but chuckle to himself, he knew that Xia Qingyuan had a point.


    He carefully thought back on how Zhou Muhuang invited him over, and Zhou Lingxi made advances on him ever since he arrived at the Shangqing Continent. The cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor seemed a little too warmhearted and generous as well. Ye Futian knew he should be more cautious. Although the Domain Chief��s Manor hadn��t shown any malicious intent yet, there was nothing wrong with staying vigilant.


    At the very least, Ye Futian couldn��t place too much trust in the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    ��Why does the Dark Court want to attack the Void Realm?�� someone asked.


    ��The Void Realm was the Original Realm at first and became an abandoned land later. Nonetheless, it remains to be a special place. Perhaps the Dark Court believes that the Original Realm still holds a great value,�� the Domain Chief replied. ��Or maybe neither side wants to turn their own territory into a battlefield, so they picked the Original Realm.��


    In fact, the Domain Chief didn��t tell the whole truth. He also heard a rumor about a prophecy.


    The change of the world would originate in the Original Realm.


    The prophecy was known by few people and was far from concrete. Nevertheless, as far as the Domain Chief knew, the prophecy was made by an authoritative figure as his prediction for the future of the world.


    The Original Realm was shattered when the Heavenly Path collapsed. If the change of the world really arose in the Original Realm again, it must be predestined by divine will.


    Regardless, the deserted Original Realm was likely to be the beginning of the new world. It also meant that a major event would probably take place and even transform the entire world.


    Of course, the Domain Chief would never tell this to the public. After all, he had no solid proof, and no one could guarantee what would happen in the future. What he heard was nothing but an elusive prophecy.


    In the meantime, Ye Futian felt anger rising from within. They chose the Original Realm as the battlefield because they didn��t want to damage their own territories?


    Why did people living in the Original Realm deserve to suffer the calamity and ruin of war?


    Ye Futian grew up in the Original Realm. His attachment to the Original Realm was far greater than his feelings for the Divine Prefecture.


    While everyone else was engaged in casual conversations, Ye Futian was not in the mood for small talks. He couldn��t stop being worried about the situation in the Original Realm. As soon as he finished the current stage of cultivation, he planned to set out and return to the Original Realm when the Donghuang Imperial Palace summoned everyone over.


    ��Mr. Ye, is something bothering you?�� Zhou Lingxi darted a look at Ye Futian from nearby and asked with a smile.


    She could tell that Ye Futian was absent-minded.


    Ye Futian exhaled a long breath to keep his anxiety and distress under control for now. It was meaningless for him to fret about the possibilities. Instead, he should be focusing on improving his strength before he went back to the Original Realm. He would be able to protect himself better if he managed to advance to the sixth order. Otherwise, there was no point for him to go back. He might even become a burden.


    ��Many friends of mine live in the Void Realm. I��m a little worried about them,�� Ye Futian replied. Zhou Lingxi nodded and said, ��We probably will head to the Void Realm in a few days. They will be all right.��


    ��Thank you, Princess Lingxi,�� Ye Futian answered, nodding slightly. Zhou Lingxi gave a slight smile without saying anything else.


    The banquet went on. The mighty figures were still chatting with each other while the youngsters listening to the conversations intently. The guests didn��t split up and leave until the banquet was over.


    ��Mr. Ye, would you like to take a walk in the Domain Chief��s Manor?�� Zhou Lingxi invited Ye Futian. ��There are many unique places in the manor that can be helpful for cultivation.��


    The Domain Chief��s Manor was not an ordinary residence. It was as good as a scaled-down city.


    ��Thank you, Princess Lingxi. I would like to return to the divine mausoleum to continue my cultivation there. I��ve been making some progress these days and shouldn��t stop halfway,�� Ye Futian replied. Zhou Lingxi nodded and said, ��All right. Still and all, the divine casket will remain in the divine mausoleum. Mr. Ye, you don��t have to rush and risk injury.��


    ��I understand.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��Princess Lingxi, please excuse me.��


    ��Yes,�� Zhou Lingxi answered. Ye Futian turned around and walked away. Xia Qingyuan was waiting for him not too far away. She darted a glance at Zhou Lingxi when Ye Futian came over, then left with him, side by side.


    Zhou Lingxi certainly understood the meaning of Xia Qingyuan��s look. However, she still had a faint smile on her beautiful face, which made it impossible to guess what she was thinking.


    The cultivators from various groups left the Domain Chief��s Manor in succession. Nevertheless, many of them seemed to have the same destination. They were all heading to the divine mausoleum.


    Although the banquet was over, the divine casket was still in the divine mausoleum. These cultivators surely wouldn��t miss the precious opportunity. They planned to cultivate next to the divine casket for a while and would only leave for real if they failed to gain anything from it.


    Who would be willing to go home without trying their luck at the divine mausoleum first? Even the master cultivators were curious to see how special the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor truly was.


    More and more people arrived at the divine mausoleum. The cultivators from the top forces went straight into the mausoleum. Ye Futian and other cultivators from Four Corner Village and the ancient royal family of Duan, including Old Ma, also showed up. Apparently, they planned to cultivate for some days inside the divine mausoleum.


    The crowd gathered in the divine mausoleum. Plenty of people had settled on the training platform already.


    Ye Futian and the others stood in the area below and stared ahead. Only a few people were capable of entering the inner zone. Ye Futian was probably the only one outside of the mighty figures.


    Ye Futian moved forward into the inner zone rather than the training platform overhead. He walked directly in the direction of the divine casket.


    Other cultivators were not surprised by Ye Futian��s move. These top figures of various groups were also eager to see if Ye Futian could really comprehend something with the help of the divine casket.


    Ye Futian walked to the divine casket and looked right at it. In an instant, the divine light illuminated him, and ancient characters were engraved on his body. A series of deafening noise reverberated through the mausoleum and impelled the crowd to gaze at him with an astonished look.


    Ye Futian really could cultivate with the aid of the divine casket. How did he withstand the power of the sacred remains?


    Even the mighty figures were astounded. They stared at Ye Futian and sent out pulses of energy, attempting to gauge his power and figure out his secret cultivation method.


    However, they failed to sense anything from Ye Futian but a wisp of the energy of the Demon God. Was this happening simply because he inherited the Will of the Demon God?


    Seeing that Ye Futian had been watching the divine casket continuously for a long time, the cultivators from different groups started to grow anxious and impatient. With a solemn look on their faces and intense energy of the Great Path surrounding their bodies, they approached the divine casket and looked down from the training platform.


    The divine casket was situated in the divine mausoleum right now. Why should they wait longer before trying their hands at it too?


    They might as well go back to where they came from if they didn��t have the courage to make an effort. What was the point of staying here?


    Before long, however, a succession of cultivators started to moan in agony. Many people were bleeding from their eyes, their faces ghastly pale. They pulled back with all possible haste. It was the first attempt for some of them, but some had tried to look at the sacred remains before. After sensing the terrifying power of the divine casket, they began to see Ye Futian in a new light.


    Why was he able to do it?


    Old Ma and the others watched everything quietly. Ye Futian was the only one in the divine mausoleum who could successfully study the sacred remains. They wondered if the attention he attracted to himself was a good thing or not.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian wasn��t bothered by what happened around him. He was absorbed in cultivation and paid no heed to other people��s thoughts and opinions.


    Day after day, Ye Futian was engrossed in cultivation. He sometimes pondered in front of the divine casket and sometimes cultivated on the training platform. The energy of the Great Path emanated from his body was more and more domineering. Many people suspected that Ye Futian was close to breaking through into the next level. He was using the divine casket to temper his body and work his way up to the sixth order of the Renhuang Plane.


    Other cultivators believed that few Renhuang in the Shangqing Domain could defeat Ye Futian after advancing to the sixth order.

 Chapter 2176 - : The Sacred Remains’ Movement

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the blink of an eye, over a month had passed since the divine mausoleum was built.


    Some of the master cultivators were still inside the divine mausoleum. They had been cultivating there as well and had made considerable progress. By now, they could more or less comprehend the imperial glory of Shenjia the Great Emperor during his glory days.


    Of course, Ye Futian undoubtedly remained to be the person who achieved the most thorough comprehension.


    He was sitting on the training platform at this moment with terrifying sounds of the Great Path coming out of his body. Nevertheless, he was not looking at the sacred remains, as his eyes were shut tight. He glowed with the dreadful divine light of the Great Path, and his skin was engraved with countless runes and characters. It seemed that his entire body was engulfed in the divine light emitted by the runes and characters.


    Over the past few days, the cultivators inside the divine mausoleum had been watching Ye Futian transforming himself little by little. As he achieved more and deeper comprehension through studying the sacred remains, the changes in his body became more apparent as well. Everyone was aware that Ye Futian was on the edge of a major breakthrough.


    That being said, other cultivators didn��t know that the scenes in Ye Futian��s Life Palace were even more gruesome. At this point, Ye Futian had entered a mysterious world where his consciousness had materialized. A man of great height and powerful build towered over him. It was Shenjia the Great Emperor who seemed to be raised from the dead, now standing in front of him.


    They confronted each other face to face. Ye Futian felt like he was facing not a human cultivator but a God and his Path. He found laws and orders of the Path of Shenjia the Great Emperor. To put it more accurately, he had identified him as Shenjia the Great Emperor himself.


    He was Shenjia the Great Emperor, the man who challenged the Heavenly Path and proclaimed that there had been no Path in the world until he came forth.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian��s body almost turned into a melting pot for the Great Path. Various types of energy of the Great Path emanated from his body as the deafening noise inside him blasted continuously and relentlessly. All the cultivators in the divine mausoleum could feel the fierce power of the Great Path rushing out of Ye Futian.


    ��This is���� Many people couldn��t help but turn around to look in Ye Futian��s direction, including some in the middle of a cultivation session. They all sensed the formidable force coming out of Ye Futian��s body.


    Ye Futian studied the sacred remains in the divine casket and cultivating the Great Path with its help. Was he going to advance to the next level, finally?


    This possibility disheartened most of the genius cultivators from top forces. They hadn��t achieved anything while Ye Futian was ready to move up to a higher cultivation level already.


    Ye Futian easily put everyone else in the shade when it came to cultivating with the help of the sacred remains in the divine casket.


    However, instead of trying for the higher level, Ye Futian was actually caught in a remarkable state of mind at this moment. He had abundant experience with obtaining several distinctly different skills through cultivation and comprehension. The most frequently used cultivation method in the later stage was the Deed of Thorough Comprehension.


    The Deed of Thorough Comprehension could be cultivated in both the standard and the reverse order. Back in the days, the Sky River Great Elder cultivated the Deed of Thorough Comprehension in reverse order. Although he achieved a major breakthrough and reached the level of fake emperors, he was also demonized by the process.


    To cultivate the Deed of Thorough Comprehension in the standard order meant to absorb the power of everything in the world into one��s body to build up and strengthen oneself. On the contrary, the Sky River Great Elder cultivated the Deed of Thorough Comprehension in reverse order and surrendered his own Path to the world. He offered himself up as a sacrifice and never achieved true spiritual transcendence.


    Despite that, either way of cultivating the Deed of Thorough Comprehension was beneath Shenjia the Great Emperor and was never on an equal footing with his own cultivation method.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor only cultivated himself. He rose above the Path and established the world by himself. His own body was his Path. Not a single person after him ever had the same level of vision and boldness.


    Ye Futian could almost perceive the ego and pride of Shenjia the Great Emperor from his remains. He became aware of his cultivation method and his ambition to reign over the Path.


    Perhaps this was where the ultimate cultivation led to?


    Did all the Great Emperors pursue the same goal?


    Ye Futian had no way of knowing. At least now, he could make out the cultivation path of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Moreover, the feeling became stronger and stronger, and, subconsciously, he followed the same path.


    As he continued to cultivate in such a way, Ye Futian entered a marvelous state where he was mesmerized by Shenjia the Great Emperor and his cultivation path.


    The forceful Great Path kept tempering his body, and the deafening noise attracted more attention. Everyone was wondering what was coming Ye Futian��s way.


    Not only did the spectators not know, but Ye Futian also couldn��t tell. Cultivating through comprehension was a magical experience. Sometimes the cultivator would get lost in a hypnotized state. Right now, Ye Futian was sent into such a trance where he completely relaxed.


    His consciousness floated in an illusory world. He saw himself everywhere; it was as though the entire world was filled with his consciousness. The divine light of the Great Path kept radiating from his body. Ye Futian started to let this burst of power run free.


    Ye Futian even forgot about time and couldn��t extricate himself from cultivation.


    ��His body���� The onlookers around noticed the astonishing changes in Ye Futian��s body. They stared at Ye Futian and sensed the extremely powerful energy of the Great Path emerging from him.


    Could it be that he really used the sacred remains in the divine casket to comprehend the Great Path and even tempered his own body with it?


    Some mighty figures were intently watching Ye Futian��s cultivation process as well.


    ��Maybe he picked the right way,�� a voice rang out. It was the clan leader of the Nanhai family speaking to Muyun Lan, Nanhai Qianxue, and other people behind him.


    The clan leader also comprehended a little from studying the sacred remains, but he hadn��t applied it to cultivation yet. He realized that Ye Futian had taken one step further than all the master cultivators, himself included.


    He suspected that Ye Futian might have selected the correct cultivation path and was elevating himself with the help of his comprehension.


    As time went on, everyone felt that Ye Futian was making progress and growing stronger every second. But no one knew for sure how powerful he became.


    Ye Futian��s efforts even made the stone wall behind him vibrate violently; the loud booms echoed through the divine mausoleum.


    Surprisingly, he floated forward and descended from the training platform. Everyone��s gaze was fixed on Ye Futian, who was approaching the divine casket from above.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were still closed shut. Staying afloat right above the divine casket. In between the stone pillars, he came face to face with the sacred remains.


    Bang�� The crowd was dazzled by the terrifying divine light and heard the deafening noise coming out of Ye Futian��s body. They even sensed that the energy was flowing out of the divine casket as well.


    All the mighty figures gaped at the divine casket at this moment. They saw that Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body was moving inside the casket!

 Chapter 2177 - Divine Mausoleum Collapses

    ��What is happening?��


    The look in their eyes changed, and they watched in shock. Were they hallucinating?


    However, it was impossible for them to hallucinate at their level of cultivation.


    At that moment, they clearly saw the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor move, and it was an extremely curious feeling. Their eyes were shining with a frightening divine aurora as they turned their attention there.


    Ye Futian��s body was still emitting sounds of violent rumbling as infinite characters flew out from his body. It seemed as if he had achieved a certain resonance with the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor so that infinite characters were also bursting from the corpse. They floated everywhere inside the mausoleum.


    At this time, those major figureheads felt a powerful aura that gave rise to a strong sense of danger. Each of them called out to their own Renhuang cultivators and commanded loudly, ��Get back! Be careful.��


    The cultivators around them had no idea what was going on, but they became very alarmed when they heard this command. At the same time, the characters that were floating in the void became even more radiant as frightening divine glory shot out from them. Many felt as if their eyes would be blinded, so they dared not look directly at them.


    ��Ah���� There were shrill screams as blood oozed from the eyes of those whose cultivation was weak. Instantly, a chaotic atmosphere swept across the divine mausoleum, and those cultivators retreated quickly and took care to avert their eyes.


    Boom! Those major figureheads sensed the danger and took a step forward. At this moment, those characters, blooming with incomparable divine glory, swept toward this space.


    Boom, boom, boom! But those major figureheads were prepared for it. The terrifying power of the Great Path almost sealed off the space entirely, blocking the power that had erupted from the sacred remains. However, in the next moment, the divine light of the ancient character penetrated their defenses, slaughtering toward them.


    Psst�� Someone��s body was pierced by the divine light. It was as if the defense of the Great Path had no effect at all.


    ��Get out,�� a voice commanded, and those major figureheads waved their hands at their people, signaling for them to retreat to the outside, as they could no longer stay in this divine mausoleum.


    The speed of these top cultivators was unimaginably fast. In just an instant, all of them had retreated toward the entrance at the same time. In this short moment, the divine glory of those ancient characters had flooded the space inside the mausoleum.


    A violent booming sound came out as the matrix engraved inside the divine mausoleum was activated. The entire mausoleum was spinning like a stunning pagoda. Just like the divine matrix, an unparalleled power was suppressing this space.


    In the space below, the stone pillars oscillated and began to crack, then started to shatter. The sacred coffin was moving violently. Inside the coffin, infinite characters burst out, and some blasted onto the divine matrix and bumped around inside the mausoleum. As they collided with the space inside, an astonishing sound erupted, causing the entire divine mausoleum to vibrate wildly.


    Numerous characters blasted on the radiant divine matrix, and soon, cracks began to appear on the matrix itself. As these golden cracks continued to spread and expand, they did so rapidly.


    ��Ka-cha!�� There was a violent sound, and some characters rushed directly into the divine matrix so that it began to collapse and disintegrate. The entire divine mausoleum trembled even more violently.


    Outside, all the major figureheads had already taken their own cultivators to retreat. Even the people from Four Corner Village had withdrawn. Xia Qingyuan was forcibly taken out by Old Ma; she didn��t even have time to react.


    Many cultivators were still gathered around the divine mausoleum, and their attention was focused inside the mausoleum at the moment. A golden light was shining on the massive mausoleum, even as the terrifying matrix was spinning. However, at this moment, cracks continued to appear on this supreme matrix, and the outer part of the mausoleum began to crack as well.


    On the day when the divine mausoleum was constructed, they remembered that the Chief had personally proclaimed the sturdiness of it; he was protected by a supremely powerful matrix to prevent the fiercest fluctuations. However, they never dreamed that the divine mausoleum would disintegrate so soon.


    They could guard against the violent aura fluctuations from other cultivators, but they couldn��t guard against the sacred remains inside the coffin.


    Countless eyes were glued there, and there were chattering noises. What was happening inside the divine mausoleum?


    The cultivators of various top principalities had retreated from the divine mausoleum. Could it be that even the likes of them could not withstand this terrifying force?


    They all wanted to know just what was going on inside the mausoleum.


    ��Elder, what happened?��


    There were voices, but those major figureheads paid them no mind. They continued to stare at the divine mausoleum and saw that the divine matrix was beginning to disintegrate with a force that could not be stopped. They knew that the collapse of the mausoleum was inevitable and could not be avoided.


    If the divine mausoleum were to collapse without setting a proper defense on the outside, what terrible consequences would that be?


    At this time, in the direction of the Domain Chief��s Manor, there were wisps of horrific aura that could be felt, and the two of them were particularly tyrannical. In the next moment, they saw two figures appearing above the divine mausoleum, looking down below.


    These two were the Chief and Vice Chief, Zhou Muhuang.


    ��Get out of here. Now,�� Chief Zhou said to the massive crowd around him. A terrifying coercion swept out, covering the divine mausoleum. The cultivators that were around also sensed the threat as soon as the Chief reminded them. If the divine mausoleum were to collapse, even the divine matrix would not withstand the power inside. How terrible would that be? And how could they bear it?


    When they thought of this, their bodies instantly withdrew. They cleared out of this area quickly to avoid being attacked by that force.


    At the same time, a terrifying coercion from the Chief enveloped this divine mausoleum.


    Bang�� Finally, with a loud noise, the divine mausoleum collapsed and shattered. A dazzling light shot from it as infinite characters flew in every direction. Each character contained its own horrific power.


    The terrifying power contained within these characters swept through everything, attempting to move farther away. However, a figure stood there in the sky above, and the cultivators who were fleeing in the distance saw the Chief stood there like a god, an astonishing light screen formed around him, shrouding that area. Those overwhelming characters shot out but were blocked by that dreadful light screen.


    At this moment, everyone felt that inside the light screen, there seemed to be a world controlled by the Domain Chief and that he was the master of that space.


    A dreadful divine glory now emerged from the Chief, causing the light screen to spin as if it were about to form a massive matrix on its own.


    Below, the divine mausoleum had now completely collapsed and shattered, and a sacred coffin was revealed. Inside the sacred coffin, the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor was lying there quietly; it was as if he had never moved. But that terrifying divine glory had indeed exploded from it.


    What was even more astonishing was that there was a cultivator standing there in front of the sacred coffin. He seemed capable of ignoring the terrifying power coming from the sacred remains inside the coffin and had even achieved some resonance with it. Countless characters lit up upon his body, full of divine brilliance. The body of the Great Path was roaring as an extremely tyrannical aura now burst out from him.


    ��He��s breaking through the realm!��


    Many were trembling. Ye Futian actually using the sacred remains in the coffin to break through the realm. He became the only one who was still cultivating in the divine mausoleum. Not only was he there, but he was also resonating with that power and using that power to break through his own physical limitations and elevate.


    How did he do it?


    Such frightening talent was something that no one in the Shangqing Domain could come close to accomplishing. While those major figureheads dared not linger a moment longer, he was busy cultivating inside.


    Many of them even wondered if all this happened because he was cultivating and the cultivation had caused such horrific happenstance.


    At this time, Chief Zhou��s eyes were fixed on Ye Futian, who was below. He had the clearest view because Ye Futian was breaking through the realm right below him. The aura released from Ye Futian was indeed the aura of the Renhuang Sixth Realm with a perfect Great Path.


    However, Ye Futian��s aura of the Sixth Realm was far more terrifying than the same levels aura from other cultivators. Even those in the Seventh Realm with perfect Great Path could hardly compare with the mighty power exuded from Ye Futian from the Chief��s estimation. When Zhou Muhuang was breaking through, his aura was certainly a lot less intimidating.


    This man��s potential was so great that it was difficult to find his likes in all of Shangqing Domain. He had the possibility of becoming the topmost existence among giants.


    Furthermore, he had even achieved resonance with the corpse of Shengjia the Great Emperor; who knew what would happen next?


    Boom, boom, boom�� Ye Futian��s body was roaring, and when the Chief sensed the power inside Ye Futian��s body, he was even more astonished.


    ��Is he refining his body?��


    The Chief felt that Ye Futian��s breakthrough this time was different from other cultivators. The body of the Great Path seemed to have become a truly divine body, which was terrifying. All the power of the Great Path was erupting from his body. It was as if his physical body was the Body of Way and that he had completely become one with the Way.


    At this moment, the Chief��s eyes showed extreme disbelief. It was as if he wanted to see through Ye Futian but could not. What secrets were harbored by this cultivator from the Original Realm?

 Chapter 2178 - Crisis

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    What the spectators didn��t know at this moment was that Ye Futian was also suffering in agony from his cultivation. Although he had broken the bonds of the current cultivation plane, a monster wave was forming in his Life Palace. There seemed to be a shadow of ancient God standing in front of him in the illusory world.


    The endless characters and runes flooded his Life Palace as well. At this moment, the World Tree was transformed into a towering Divine Tree and created a new world. As Ye Futian sat down under the tree, his face appeared in the new world as if he had been incorporated into it.


    Ye Futian didn��t understand why this was happening. Nonetheless, the impact created by the collision of these two forces was earth-shattering. Ye Futian would not be able to withstand it if it happened inside his physical body. He might even be annihilated right away.


    Fortunately, the clash occurred in his Life Palace.


    The crowd witnessed an astonishing scene at this moment. Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body, which was inside the violently vibrating divine casket, slowly rose and was suspended in midair. Ye Futian��s body was completely enveloped in innumerable floating runes.


    After that, the sacred remains moved forward in the direction of Ye Futian��s body.


    ��What is happening?�� Everyone��s heart was pounding rapidly as they witnessed this scene.


    Ye Futian resonated with the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Was he trying to snatch the sacred remains for himself now?


    A beam of blinding light shot forth. Much to everyone��s astonishment, the sacred remains began to cling to Ye Futian��s body. Ye Futian seemed to be fully integrated with the runes, and the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor crept into Ye Futian��s body with the aid of the runes.


    ��This is���� A lot of people were dumbstruck. Not only did Ye Futian generate a resonance, but he was also integrating himself with the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor now.


    Under everyone��s watch, Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body really maneuvered into Ye Futian��s body and disappeared. Ye Futian glowed with terrifying divine light with countless ancient characters engraved on his skin. It seemed that he had merged with the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    ��Uh����


    Did he devour Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body?


    The incessant rumbling noise hadn��t stopped. Even the Domain Chief was stopped in his tracks. The light screen released by him faded away as he lowered his head to look at Ye Futian.


    What on earth just happened?


    Why could Ye Futian merge with Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body? How was it possible for him to achieve that even if he could generate some kind of resonance?


    The Domain Chief watched everything with his own eyes yet still couldn��t figure out how Ye Futian made it happen.


    He gaped at the silver-haired man below and didn��t know how to handle the situation.


    At this point, the intimidating pressure disappeared. The master cultivators all popped up in different directions and stepped forward while staring at Ye Futian from above with a grim look on their faces. Nonetheless, Ye Futian hadn��t woken up yet. He seemed to be cultivating still, a ferocious noise coming out of his body.


    One person proceeded toward Ye Futian. It was Old Ma. He certainly understood that Ye Futian was in a dangerous situation and was very likely to be attacked right now. After all, Ye Futian had consumed the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor, which every master cultivator hankered after.


    If Ye Futian really consumed it for himself, these mighty figures would never take it lying down. They would definitely gang up on Ye Futian.


    Old Ma had a bad feeling. The situation didn��t look rosy for Ye Futian.


    However, none of them knew that Ye Futian had no command over what just happened. He didn��t intend to consume the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor at all. On the contrary, Shenjia the Great Emperor chose to attach his body to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was suffering tremendous pain right now and couldn��t extricate himself from the situation.


    ��Domain Chief, the Donghuang Imperial Palace placed the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor here so everyone in the Shangqing Domain could cultivate with it. How should we deal with this now?�� the clan leader of the Nanhai family asked. He certainly would not let Ye Futian take Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body away.


    None of them achieved any real comprehension. How could they let Ye Futian be the sole beneficiary?


    On top of that, Ye Futian used the power of the sacred remains to break the bonds of the cultivation plane and advanced to the sixth order.


    ��Domain Chief, Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body was bestowed on the Shangqing Domain by the Donghuang Imperial Palace to facilitate cultivation. Everyone here saw with their eyes that Ye Futian was the only one who could comprehend the sacred remains ever since the divine mausoleum was built. He even generated a resonance with Shenjia the Great Emperor just now. In this case, why don��t we help him succeed? Ye Futian is cultivating in Four Corner Village and should be treated as a member of the Shangqing Domain as well,�� Old Ma lifted his chin and said. Although his voice was flat, he was secretly worried that Ye Futian would be in grave danger.


    ��Who said that we didn��t comprehend anything?�� someone refuted, ��Moreover, the sacred remains were bestowed on the Shangqing Domain by the Donghuang Imperial Palace. How can he keep it to himself?��


    The tension was palpable in the divine mausoleum.


    Old Ma stood by Ye Futian��s side and looked around to scan the crowd. Suddenly, a forceful spatial storm formed and opened a Door of Space in the void.


    ��Watch out. He is running away,�� someone said coldly.


    Before the voice faded, Old Ma pulled Ye Futian and stepped across a Door of Space.


    Many people turned to the Domain Chief, surprised that he didn��t intervene.


    Nonetheless, the clan leader of the Nanhai family and Overlord Shangyu both rushed forward with their arms outstretched. They pulled the Door of Space open and followed Old Ma and Ye Futian over there.


    Other master cultivators also left the divine mausoleum right away to chase after them. On the other hand, many cultivators stared at the rest of the people from Four Corner Village with a malevolent look on their faces.


    ��This is solely about the sacred remains. We should not implicate innocent people,�� Duan Tianxiong from the ancient royal family of Duan spoke up. Other people had no choice but to drop the idea of attacking the cultivators from Four Corner Village.


    ��Let��s go to the Four Corner Continent,�� Duan Tianxiong said. He waved his hand at the crowd.


    With Zhou Muhuang by his side, the Domain Chief gazed at the place where Ye Futian and Old Ma had disappeared. No one could figure out what he was thinking.


    ��Let��s go to the Four Corner Continent,�� said the Domain Chief. They immediately left the divine mausoleum as well.


    Although Old Ma and Ye Futian escaped through the Door of Space, they had nowhere else but Four Corner Village to go. They were watched and chased by so many master cultivators from various top forces. There was no way for them to get out of their clutches straight away.


    Before long, the divine mausoleum was swept by the terrifying energy currents. All the mighty figures from top forces left the area in long strides. Other famous cultivators pulled out soon as well.


    Countless cultivators outside of the divine mausoleum stared blankly at the vacated spot where the divine casket used to be. Everything changed so fast that it almost felt surreal. No one had ever thought that this would happen when the divine mausoleum was built not so long ago.


    Ye Futian took the sacred remains away.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian couldn��t really steal Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body under the master cultivators�� watch. The mighty figures in the Shangqing Domain would skin him alive if he integrated himself with the sacred remains for real.


    ��


    Bursts of horrifying energy sprung up in the sky above Four Corner City. With a loud bang, the entire city quaked violently. The Light Screen of Space that Old Ma set up to surround Four Corner City shattered at once as tremendous might pressing upon the city. Beams of blinding light pierced through the void, heading directly toward Four Corner Village.


    ��Are you going to get the entire Four Corner Village into trouble?�� a cold and intimidating voice rang out. More pressure came from the sky and overwhelmed the city.


    Every cultivator inside Four Corner City was trembling in fear at this moment. What on earth happened?


    Didn��t the Domain Chief summon the extraordinary cultivators to the Shangqing Continent, located in the Upper Nine Heavens?


    Why did Old Ma flee back with formidable enemies chasing after him?


    The scary divine light shot directly into Four Corner Village and disappeared. More and more people arrived and surrounded Four Corner City. That being said, the master cultivators didn��t really set foot inside the village. Instead, they stayed in midair and watched the village from above.


    Old Ma couldn��t break free since they had trapped him here already.


    Even so, they still held reverence for the master in Four Corner Village. Therefore, none of them were willing to be the first one to barge into the village. They wanted to wait for other people to step up.


    A succession of powerful cultivators arrived in the sky above Four Corner City. It was obvious that there were even more on the way. Everyone in the city was shaking in their shoes.


    What on earth just happened?


    Four Corner Village would be obliterated with so many hostile cultivators if these people decided to launch an attack.


    Besides, it was apparent that they were enemies who came with malicious intent.


    A lot of confused people were eager for an answer. The people who migrated to Four Corner City from Outer Realms were especially worried since they would be affected the most if Four Corner City was destroyed.


    In addition, they didn��t know if the master cultivators would choose to fight right over their heads.


    The entire city would be flattened if a battle broke out here.

 Chapter 2179 - Pressure on Four Corner Village

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Four Corner Village was quiet and peaceful as usual. However, as soon as Old Ma and Ye Futian came back, a swarm of people followed them and surrounded the village. Old Ma took Ye Futian and headed directly to the private school.


    They arrived at the private school in a short moment. Ye Futian seemed to be suffering from tremendous pain right now. Loud and scary noises were still coming out of his body.


    ��What happened?�� Several people rushed over to Old Ma and Ye Futian.


    ��Master.�� Fang Cun, Little Ling, and other teenagers sprinted over to check on Ye Futian. Old Ma faced the school��s gate and spoke to the man inside, ��Master, Ye Futian consumed a sacred body. It was the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor from many years ago. Now people from numerous groups have chased us here and surrounded the village.��


    Old Ma gave a brief account of what happened before. He was well aware that it was meaningless to argue with the master cultivators under the circumstances before. Those mighty figures would never let Ye Futian go. If Ye Futian stayed there, he would undoubtedly be killed by them since they were determined to retrieve the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor even if it meant disemboweling Ye Futian.


    For that reason, Old Ma had no choice but to take his chances and bring Ye Futian back to Four Corner Village.


    That being said, he knew that he would not be able to leave if the Domain Chief stepped in to stop him when he created the Door of Space. However, for some inexplicable reasons, the Domain Chief let him go and gave him a chance to leave through the space passage.


    Perhaps the Domain Chief was confident that Ye Futian and Old Ma would be captured in the end anyway, so it didn��t matter for them to run away now.


    Beams of divine light came out of the school and focused on Ye Futian��s body. The light swaddled Ye Futian tightly and pulled him into the school straight away. In a flash, Ye Futian disappeared in front of Old Ma.


    Old Ma stared at the school. As worried as he was, there was nothing else he could do at this point. He certainly realized that Ye Futian was in grave danger for consuming the sacred remains. He had no choice but to ask the master for help.


    Inside the private school, Ye Futian��s body floated in midair. An old man with an ethereal quality appeared in front of him.


    ��Master,�� Ye Futian opened his eyes and moaned.


    ��I can��t help you with your condition. This is something you have to do on your own,�� the master said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded and closed his eyes again. The imperial glory glowed intensely from his body, and the rumbling noise reverberated through the school as if his Body of Way could explode at any second. It was a grim and dreadful scene.


    A spasm of pain made Ye Futian contort his face. He seemed to be struggling for his life.


    ��Get the f*ck out of here!�� he bellowed with rage. Countless brilliant runes and characters emerged from his body one after another. It was as though they were being detached.


    Immediately after that, a ray of golden divine light shone brilliantly, and a figure was propelled out of Ye Futian��s body. It was Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    ��Phew���� Ye Futian opened his eyes and stared at the dazzling sacred remains. A sense of fear still possessed him when he thought about the experience. The sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor attempted to destroy his Life Palace.


    In the past, the World Tree in Ye Futian��s Life Palace could devour and digest any kind of treasure, including divine items. However, it failed to do so this time. Not only that, it was barely able to kick out the sacred remains after a hard and protracted struggle. If the fight went on, Ye Futian and his Life Palace might be obliterated.


    As soon as Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body emerged, a burst of blinding divine light swept across space. The light dimmed gradually and gently poured over the sacred remains. The divine body laid flat as though it was an ordinary corpse.


    Only moments earlier, this corpse unleashed enough power almost to take Ye Futian��s life.


    ��Master, I apologize for troubling you.�� Ye Futian slightly bowed to the master. He wasn��t cheerful about advancing to the next stage. He would never choose to consume the sacred remains if the situation was in his hands. He was well aware of how much trouble it would bring. With his cultivation level and experience, he couldn��t control or take away the sacred remains.


    Now, he had no choice but to hand over the sacred remains. Otherwise, he might drag Four Corner Village into trouble.


    ��


    At this point, more and more cultivators had come to Four Corner City, including Zhou Muhuang. They hovered in the sky above the city.


    ��Muhuang, where is the chief?�� someone asked Zhou Muhuang, who was just arriving.


    ��He is right behind. I got here first,�� Zhou Muhuang replied.


    ��Ye Futian snatched the sacred remains for himself, and Old Ma brought him back to Four Corner Village. How should we deal with them?�� One person threw out the obvious question. The cultivators in Four Corner City started to realize what happened upon hearing their conversation.


    Ye Futian snatched the sacred remains for himself?


    ��I believe that Ye Futian will return the sacred remains. We can decide what to do with him later if he refuses,�� Zhou Muhuang said. ��Let me go in and take a look first.��


    ��Good.�� Everyone nodded in agreement. Then, Zhou Muhuang walked into Four Corner Village in long strides.


    Within seconds, a lot of people in the village sensed Zhou Muhuang��s formidable energy. In the meantime, a voice boomed, ��This is Zhou Muhuang from the Domain Chief��s Manor. Nice to meet everyone in Four Corner Village.��


    Old Ma and Ye Futian both walked over. They stood on the ground and raised their heads to look at Zhou Muhuang in the sky.


    ��Vice Chief,�� Ye Futian greeted him. Zhou Muhuang looked down and said to Ye Futian, ��Almost all the cultivators from the Outer Realms are here now. They are gathering above Four Corner City.��


    Ye Futian��s expression was somber even though it was not beyond his expectation.


    ��You generated a resonance with the sacred remains and took them with you. Even though the cultivation opportunity was your own fortune, I��m sure you understand the consequences under such circumstances,�� Zhou Muhuang said. Ye Futian didn��t make a sound, but he obviously understood what Zhou Muhuang meant. Just when he was about to respond, Zhou Muhuang added, ��But we have one solution left right now.��


    ��What solution?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Zhou Muhuang looked directly into Ye Futian��s eyes and transmitted his voice into his head, ��I invited you to join the Domain Chief��s Manor before. My sister is also very fond of you. The Domain Chief��s Manor will handle the situation for you if you are willing to become a member.��


    A surprised look came over Ye Futian��s face. He certainly remembered that the Domain Chief��s Manor had repeatedly tried to rope him in. Unlike the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain, the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain seemed quite confident in beating him. Did they want him because they favored his potential?


    Regardless, Ye Futian obviously would not accept such an invitation.


    ��Thank you very much, Vice Chief. However, since I am a member of Four Corner Village, I naturally cannot join the Domain Chief��s Manor. I��m afraid that I have to disappoint you,�� Ye Futian replied through voice transmission.


    Zhou Muhuang gazed at Ye Futian and asked, ��Have you thought it through?��


    ��Yes,�� Ye Futian nodded and said. He would never join the Domain Chief��s Manor even after he returned the sacred remains.


    ��Good,�� Zhou Muhuang replied in a flat voice. ��In that case, you should take care of the mess by yourself.��


    Then, he turned around and walked out of Four Corner Village with a stern look on his face. He invited Ye Futian on many occasions, yet this young man didn��t show any respect for him.


    Moreover, did Ye Futian really think that everything would be over and return to normal once he surrendered the sacred remains?

 Chapter 2180 - The Demand

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Zhou Muhuang left, Ye Futian said to those around him, ��I��ll go and deal with this.��


    ��How?�� Old Ma asked him.


    ��I didn��t deliberately plunder the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The sacred remains were guarded by the entire Shangqing Domain and couldn��t be taken away at will. Now, it will be returned to them,�� said Ye Futian.


    Old Ma nodded. He knew very well that the sacred remains had being watched over by all the top figures in the domain, and it was pretty much impossible for anyone to take it for themselves.


    ��


    Outside of Four Corner Village, after Zhou Muhuang came out, everyone��s attention turned to him. But Zhou Muhuang merely said, ��Everyone, take care of this matter however you see fit.��


    When his voice fell, people from all forces suddenly had a cold expression on their faces as they stared in the direction of Four Corner Village.


    Did Zhou Muhuang mean that he would not interfere and they should do whatever needed to be done?


    This made them wonder, what did Zhou Muhuang and Futian talk about after he entered the village?


    Before, the Domain Chief��s Manor was still quite smitten with Ye Futian; however, now it seemed that they were not going to get involved, after all.


    Of course, they could see that the Chief did not detain Old Ma was giving Ye Futian a chance to breathe.


    But none of this mattered anymore.


    There were more and more people inside Four Corner City. Major figures had arrived one after another, including the cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan, which had brought along the others in Four Corner Village, as well as Xia Qingyuan.


    Seeing the situation here, all of them wore a worrisome look. The situation seemed very unfavorable.


    The people in Four Corner City kind of knew what had happened. Ye Futian had, in fact, seized the sacred remains from the Shangqing Continent, which ignited public outrage.


    This proud son of heaven who made his name in Four Corner Village was causing upheavals everywhere he went. There were all kinds of top figures in the Shangqing Continent, including major forces, and Ye Futian had snatched the sacred remains.


    At this time, someone cast a glance at Fang Huan and the others from Four Corner Village. ��Go in and tell them to turn him over. If any of you insist on sheltering Ye Futian, we��ll have no choice but to go in ourselves.��


    Both Blind Tie and Fang Huan looked grave. The current situation was indeed quite disadvantageous to them.


    At this moment, several people walked out of the village, and the person in the lead was Ye Futian. Old Ma followed next to him, and behind them were the sacred remains, shrouded and bound by traces of magical power.


    ��Huh?�� The sight surprised many. Hadn��t the sacred remains been swallowed by Ye Futian? And here they were again!


    Could Ye Futian be swallowing and heaving up the sacred remains at will?


    Moreover, he was able to control the terrifying power of the sacred remains and brought them outside. Had Ye Futian already refined the power within the sacred remains?


    Ye Futian stepped into the void and surveyed the crowd. ��Some issues occurred while I was cultivating a while back. It was not my intention to take away the sacred remains. I apologize for the trouble that led all of you here. I will return sacred remains momentarily and send them to the Shangqing Continent.��


    As Ye Futian finished speaking, everyone��s eyes were on him. Those sharp eyes seemed to want to see through him. An immeasurable pressure permeated from the void to oppress this vast area outside of Four Corner Village.


    ��How did you manage to take away the sacred remains?�� the Nanhai Family clan leader questioned him. The strong pressure in his voice directly descended upon Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian could resonate with the sacred remains and even swallow the sacred remains. This meant that there must be a secret method hidden on him. Naturally, he wanted to know just how Ye Futian was able to achieve this impossible deed.


    He and all the others from other principalities, who were standing high above the sky overlooking Ye Futian��s, also wanted to know the answer.


    It was difficult before to get an answer out of him by force but now was a great opportunity to interrogate him once and for all.


    Could they master Ye Futian��s method so that they, too, could comprehend something from the sacred remains?


    ��This has to do with the methods of my own cultivation. Forgive me for not being able to divulge,�� responded Ye Futian.


    ��The sacred remains have been swallowed by you already. Now even if you release it, who knows if you are controlling it?�� The clan leader of the Nanhai Family continued. His gaze never left Ye Futian.


    ��I think so as well.�� A voice echoed the sentiment. It was the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud. His eyes rimmed with a solitary chilling light. He stood high above the sky and stared at Ye Futian below. Everyone experienced a chill.


    The cultivators from the other forces obviously didn��t want to let it go, either. Several cultivators spoke up and all for one purpose��to force Ye Futian to tell them how he could resonate with the sacred remains.


    However, Ye Futian had no way to give them an answer.


    ��Through my own cultivation, I was able to comprehend the power of the sacred remains. I developed a certain resonance with the power of the sacred remains. This kind of cultivation method cannot be duplicated. All you elders are major cultivators in your own right and have your own methods of cultivation. I believe you, too, will eventually find a way to comprehend the sacred remains in your own ways.�� Although Ye Futian was extremely displeased, he had no choice but to control it, for the time being, suppressing what he really thought of them.


    However, his words were clearly not convincing enough. Those gazes that stared at him seemed to want to completely extract his secrets and control his method of comprehending the sacred remains.


    ��All the cultivators in the Shangqing Domain, myself included, could not control the sacred remains, except you alone were able to swallow the sacred remains and took it away all by yourself. Now, how could we simply believe it was just a cultivation method?�� An indifferent voice was rebuking him. Clearly, none of them intended to let Ye Futian off the hook.


    ��Then, what do the elders have in mind?�� Ye Futian asked, looking up at the people in the void.


    These top figures stood arrogantly in the air, looking down at him, indifference in their eyes. The Domain Chief did not come this time and was represented by the Vice Chief, Zhou Muhuang. However, he seemed to be just an observer at this time, quietly watching on the sideline.


    Ye Futian understood that Zhou Muhuang would not intervene. In the village just now, Zhou Muhuang��s attempt was probably to give him a chance to get out of it.


    Perhaps he had foreseen this predicament.


    ��Take a walk with us,�� said the clan leader of the Nanhai Family. Not only did he intend to get the sacred remains back, but he also wanted to take Ye Futian with them. He had plundered the sacred remains and escaped back to Four Corner Village. Now, he thought he could end the matter by simply returning the sacred remains? It was not going to be so easy for him.


    Ye Futian fell silent. He looked at the clan leader of the Nanhai Family and thought that if he were to promise to go with them, would he ever come back alive?


    These people wanted to know the secret of his comprehension of the sacred remains, and they would no doubt probe into his innermost secrets. Therefore, if Ye Futian agreed, it would result in his almost-certain death.


    Furthermore, he trusted none of these people.


    However, even if he disagreed, could he resisted the will of the cultivators in the entire Shangqing Domain as represented by them?


    If he couldn��t change their minds, resistance was the only way.


    ��Please forgive me for not agreeing to your request,�� Ye Futian replied after a moment of silence. When he finished speaking, the space suddenly became even more repressed. Traces of extremely powerful coercion permeated the entire Four Corner Village, inside and out.


    TIn the distance, the cultivators of Four Corner City sighed when they saw the terrifying group in the void. It was as if all the cultivators of an entire domain had deemed Ye Futian as their enemy and came together to take him down. How could he resist a force like that?


    ��Everyone, the taking of the sacred remains was not intentional. Now that it is to be returned to you, none of this is necessary,�� Old Ma said, stood not far behind Ye Futian, looking at the cultivators in the void.


    Did all of them intend to take down Ye Futian?


    Perhaps this was what they meant when they say the tallest tree always got its top blown off first.


    ��It��s just asking him to come with us and talk. What are you so afraid of?�� the Nanhai Family said nonchalantly.


    ��No one from our Four Corner Village can be taken away so casually!�� erupted Old Ma. However, facing the titans of the Shangqing Domain, even Old Ma appeared slightly insignificant at the moment. Any one of these cultivators was someone who could dominate an era on their own.


    When they heard Old Ma��s words, all of them appeared somewhat in disdain. They merely glanced at him indifferently and said, ��If Four Corner Village wants to get involved, don��t blame us later.��


    After that, he asked, ��Who among you will go get him?��


    None of these top figures wanted to make a move on Ye Futian. After all, it was not so honorable to take down someone younger than they were, so they hinted for someone in the younger generations from various forces to take action.


    Several cultivators stepped out at the same time to answer his call, and they were all top figures from every one of the forces present. Among them, there was Mo Ke of the Demon Cloud. He possessed a perfect Great Path in the Eighth Realm, which was the same as Blind Tie.


    Looking down at Ye Futian, Mo Ke said, ��I don��t know what power you gained by devouring the sacred remains.��


    After that, he raised his hand and grabbed towards the sky below. This terrifying great hand was like a demonic handprint. It flashed a terrible dark golden light and descended in front of Ye Futian, grabbing at him.


    Blind Tie and the others mobilized at the same time. A terrifying golden hammer exploded with astounding divine light, sweeping out as the hammer smashed on that demonic handprint. A frightening sound was heard as a horrific storm swept through the surrounding area.


    At the same time, many cultivators from Four Corner Village stepped out and stood behind Ye Futian, staring at the figure in the void.


    The clan leader of the Nanhai family sneered when he saw them. Four Corner Village wanted to get involved?


    If so, that would be even better.


    Boom�� A horrific aura permeated the atmosphere, and dominating figures stepped out from the void one after the other. Muyun Lan was also among them. This time, his opponents were cultivators from Four Corner Village. They were his former acquaintances.


    Watching the cultivators from all sides coming at them, Old Ma sighed inside. The sacred remains had been returned, but were they still reluctant to drop the whole thing?


    Four Corner Village owed Ye Futian a favor, so, in any case, they could not let the others take him away!

 Chapter 2181 - Sacred Remains Eyes Opened

    Fang Gai, Blind Tie, Fang Huan, Shi Kui, and other cultivators stepped forward as they came to Ye Futian��s side, one by one. At the same time, the pressure from all major principalities descended in the space.


    In a moment, a terrifying coercion hovered above Four Corner Village.


    Moreover, as the head of each major principality directed their glance at the crowd, many of them realized something significant��the strength of Four Corner Village was indeed awesome. The cultivators surrounding Ye Futian were Upper Renhuang with perfect Great Paths who could almost compete with the top enchanting figures from the Shangqing Domain.


    They even had a thought that since today��s confrontation would result in a grudge with Four Corner Village, it would be better to��


    Now that Four Corner Village was trying to protect Ye Futian with all their might, it provided the excuse they need to get rid of this anomaly in the Shangqing Domain.


    In the void, an extremely radiant Picture of the Domineering Golden Roc


    appeared, covering the sky and obscuring the sun. Fang Gai yelled, ��Muyun Lan, so you��re finally attacking the village?��


    ��We have to take this man with us,�� Muyun Lan said loud and clear in the void. He stood there in arrogance. As his voice faded, the brilliant divine wings of the golden-winged roc, that were trembling behind him, turned into sharp blades and slashed down as if to bisect the space.


    Fang Gai snorted coldly as he stepped forward, blocking the position where Muyun Lan had struck. When the terrifying Divine Wing of the golden roc chopped down in front of him, they could not touch his body and were stymied by an incredible power. This was his absolute domain.


    All the other powerful cultivators also took action. With Blind Tie and the others guarded the area around him, each manning a position. A massive ancient god appeared, swinging his hammer towards the sky to smash the void.


    Therefore, a majestic sight appeared in the sky above Four Corner Village. It was as if there were ancient gods protecting Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian, standing in the middle, was warmed to his core when he saw what they were doing. This incident was entirely an accident and not intentional; he did not expect to bring this crisis upon Four Corner Village.


    If it couldn��t be resolved, he would have no choice but to go with them.


    In the sky above, there was a magnificent vision behind a beautiful figure. It seemed that a statue of the Thousand-Hand Goddess appeared, and those palm prints madly overlapped and turned into a gigantic Goddess Seal, slamming towards Ye Futian.


    This person was the daughter of the Nanhai Family��Nanhai Qianxue.


    A bonfire of anger was burning inside Ye Futian��s heart. The first person to speak was the head of the Nanhai Family. The Muyun family had betrayed Four Corner Village for the Nanhai family, so the people who most wanted to move against the village were the cultivators from the Nanhai family.


    Divine glory was flowing upon Ye Futian��s body as boundlessly radiant peacock divine wings now appeared behind him. A monstrous roar of the Great Path came out from inside of him. It was as if he had incarnated to a peerless divine body with a horrific aura.


    Previously, he had already broken through to the Sixth Realm with a perfect Great Path. His body was now terrific after having undergone the transformation endowed by the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Coupled with the Divine Heart of the Peacock that was already inside of him, his own life force was incredibly vibrant. Instantly, a divine light swept out from him with piercing rays. Even an existence of the Seventh Realm, such as Nanhai Qianxue, felt an immediate threat of danger.


    The power erupting from that body of the Great Path alone was no longer any lesser than hers.


    Behind Ye Futian, radiant and divine peacock wings fluttered, their colorful divine light dazzled beyond words. In the next moment, Ye Futian��s body was gone in a flash as he went straight toward the gigantic handprint of the goddess, unleashed by Nanhai Qianxue. It left behind a brilliant divine glow in the sky. The momentum of its splendor was unstoppable.


    ��Watch out!�� the clan leader of the Nanhai family let out a cry as he felt the power erupting from Ye Futian at this moment. At the same time, a strong pressure fell directly upon them. This was almost at the same moment when Ye Futian��s attack tore through Nanhai Qianxue��s handprint and smashed it into smithereens.


    Without the slightest hesitation, his body continued rushing towards Nanhai Qianxue.


    Nanhai Qianxue felt a brilliant peacock shadow swoop down, and a finger pointed at her. It turned into an infinite divine sword light, shattering all existence.


    Boom! A Mark of the Earth now stood in front of Nanhai Qianxue, but when Ye Futian��s finger landed, everything was destroyed. Crackling sounds from an explosion were heard as Nanhai Qianxue��s body flew back. Ye Futian��s palm followed her and slammed down, wanting to take her down on the spot.


    But at this moment, an unstoppable coercion fell upon Ye Futian, blasting him. This palm was like the power from the gods of heaven; even the firmament trembled violently as it landed on Ye Futian. Nothing was able to block this strike, and all of his defenses were immediately shattered.


    Ye Futian��s body was knocked back instantly. His whole body shook as blood came out of his mouth, and his face was pale.


    When he fell back after the blast, his eyes fixed at the figure high above the sky. The clan leader of the Nanhai Family had attacked him. The blow from a cultivator of this level was powerful beyond description. If Ye Futian��s own physical body were not already so strong, this blow would have pulverized all his internal organs.


    A supple and gentle power supported Ye Futian��s body, as Old Ma appeared next to Ye Futian. His eyes swept towards the clan leader of the Nanhai family, who was in the void, said, ��If you wanted to fight, then fight. Why wait until now?��


    Everyone else stopped their fights subsequently. With such powerful characters in action, their battles were rather inconsequential.


    The clan leader of the Nanhai Family glanced at Nanhai Qianxue. Ye Futian��s blow had caused a few blood streaks to appear on Nanhai Qianxue��s body. If he hadn��t intervened, Ye Futian would have been able to take Nanhai Qianxue down in a short time. His terrifying combat power frightened people like them.


    ��We have given Four Corner Village all due respect. If Four Corner Village still insists on getting involved, we will show no mercy.�� The clan leader of the Nanhai Family ignored Old Ma but chose to threaten them coldly instead.


    Old Ma raised his head to look into the void as the strong pressure came crashing down. Besides the clan leader of the Nanhai Family who acted, all the others were powerful existence standing at the peak of the Nine Heavens.


    This was a pointless battle; Four Corner Village simply had no ability to resist these forces.


    Ye Futian still had traces of blood at the corners of his mouth. His eyes were trained on the head of the Nanhai family as he said, ��Old Ma, you guys go back.��


    He knew he would not be going with these people; however, if they were determined to take him by force and had no way to resist, there was no need to involve the entire village.


    Old Ma looked at Ye Futian. It was an obvious dilemma for him. He looked at Blind Tie and the others beside him and said, ��Leave now, I will go with Futian.��


    Since the village couldn��t be involved, the only option was for him to go with Ye Futian.


    ��None of you are going.�� At this time, a voice came from Four Corner Village, which startled everyone. Old Ma turned his eyes in the direction of the village but saw no one. He only heard the voice.


    As for whose voice it belonged to, it couldn��t be more clear.


    ��Teacher!�� Old Ma called out, discernible respect in his voice.


    Regardless of his level of cultivation, his respect for the teacher was from the heart. But given the predicament they were in today, perhaps even the teacher had no way of solving it.


    All the other cultivators were also looking in the direction of the village. The head of the Nanhai Family and the others frowned slightly. Was the teacher finally going to intervene?


    If so, it was even better.


    Then, all of Four Corner Village could be captured in one go.


    ��It��s fine if you wanted the sacred remains, but why do you want to take away someone from the village? In that case, the sacred remains stay, and our people, too.�� An elusive voice came out from inside the village, causing many people��s eyes to sharpen slightly.


    What kind of arrogance was this?


    For some reason, the people of Four Corner Village were electrified when they heard this voice. Their fists clenched tightly, and their blood was boiling hot.


    The teacher was the patron saint of the village, but he was also someone from legends. He cared not for the daily affairs of the village, merely focusing on teaching the youngsters. As for the true strength of the teacher, it was something that only existed in ancient legends inside the village.


    But no one knew just how strong the teacher actually was.


    Before entering the cultivating world, several titans had visited Four Corner Village once, and after meeting the teacher, they recognized the status of Four Corner Village.


    But they still had no idea how strong the teacher was.


    And now was the teacher finally going to take action?


    He had deemed that no one could leave the village and that the sacred remains would stay.


    The clan leader of the Nanhai Family and other powerful cultivators felt his strong sense of confidence when they heard what he had to say. No one dared to be so arrogant in the face of top figures from all sides. No one in the Shangqing Domain dared to act like this, not even the Chief himself.


    Now, this teacher from Four Corner Village was the first one to speak so irreverently.


    ��I��m afraid that even the teacher will not be able to keep it,�� the clan leader of the Nanhai Family said.


    ��Do you want to try it?�� the voice inside said again. Wisps of breath came out of Four Corner Village, trailing toward the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    This sightly surprised many present. They saw the brilliant light shining on the corpse of Shengjia the Great Emperor��the golden corpse that was floating in the air.


    ��What��s going on?�� Everyone��s heart was beating violently; even those titans were concentrating their attention there. How could the teacher of Four Corner Village be able to control the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    Unless it was him who taught Ye Futian?


    At this moment, everyone couldn��t help but remember some of those rumors concerning the teacher of Four Corner Village.


    Hundreds of years ago, legend had it that the Great Emperor had once sought the Way and cultivated in this village.


    Under the gaze of numerous eyes, that golden body floating in the void now stood up, erected in the sky. In the next moment, those frightening eyes suddenly opened!

 Chapter 2182 - God’s Power

    The sacred remains had opened their eyes!


    All the cultivators trembled inside, their eyes unable to move away from the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    These sacred remains seemed to have been resurrected, surrounded by countless divine lights. A series of characters appeared next to the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, blooming with dazzling divine splendor.


    ��How can it be!��


    Those major figureheads fixed their attention on the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, perturbed by the implications. All of them had personally tried to comprehend the sacred remains. They were, therefore, keenly aware of the terror that contained within it. Control issues aside, they couldn��t even comprehend it.


    But now, the sacred remains seemed to have resurrected and were being controlled by someone else.


    The wisps of aura that permeated from Four Corner Village dispelled any doubts that the person who controlled the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was the teacher from Four Corner Village.


    ��Since the sacred remains were given to the Shangqing Domain by the Imperial Palace and taken by Ye Futian. From this day forward, they belong to Ye Futian. If the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain and other forces have any doubts, you may come and try to seize the sacred remains, or you may go to the imperial palace and ask the Great Emperor himself.�� A quiet and ethereal voice was heard; it made everyone��s hearts beat wildly.


    Those who disagreed may come and fight for it or go to the imperial palace to ask Donghuang the Great.


    What that calm voice expressed was tremendous confidence; it was a confidence that the Great Emperor himself would have agreed with his declaration.


    The Great Emperor had once come to Four Corner Village to issue an injunction, prohibiting major figureheads outside from setting foot on the Four Corner Continent, further prohibiting outside cultivators from harming the villagers inside. It was easy to see that the Great Emperor was partial to Four Corner Village. Coupled with the words just spoken by the teacher, it was almost certain that the teacher personally knew Donghuang the Great.


    And this had been before Donghuang the Great had his current standing, at a time when he was still just a Renhuang.


    They didn��t know how far back they went, but the teacher seemed absolutely confident in what he said.


    Beneath Four Corner Mountain, countless cultivators in Four Corner City looked over and heard what the teacher said. The voice couldn��t be more tranquil but seemed to contain unparalleled confidence and strength.


    On this day, the cultivators from the Shangqing Domain intended to lay siege upon Four Corner Village. Did the teacher intend to destroy the enemy by himself?


    All of them recalled the rumors that circulated about the teacher.


    Suddenly, on the Four Corner Mountain, there was an extreme sense of oppression. All those figureheads stared at the body of Shengjia the Great Emperor and wondered, could the teacher truly and completely control the body of Shengjia the Great Emperor?


    ��Even though the teacher and the Great Emperor had a history together, the corpse of Shengjia the Great Emperor was given to Shangqing Domain, and it is not up to the teacher to decide to whom it belongs.�� An indifferent voice was now heard, and it was the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud, who was exuding a terrifying aura. A horrifying demon cloud appeared behind him like some phantom of a demon god, suppressing this corner of the world.


    Boom!


    Like an ancient demon god of bygone ages, a mighty power erupted from him, summoning a frightening spear of the demon god, covering the sky and the sun, piercing the void. A black track was left in the firmament, stabbing down at the sacred remains from high above the sky.


    Bang! An astonishing sound came out, and a frightening aura swept across the sky toward the vast area far away. The Demon God��s spear pierced the body of Shengjia the Great Emperor. It seemed as if it had penetrated the body, and its terrifying destructive power attempted to tear open everything in its path.


    However, to everyone��s shock, they discovered that the golden body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was no longer flesh and blood but was instead a divine body transformed by infinite characters. A dreadful power firmly locked onto that spear of the demon god and started to destroy it little by little.


    ��This���� The hearts of many were beating erratically. Such a horrific attack did not affect the sacred remains, for the remains were no longer an ordinary physical body but now an immortal and indestructible divine form.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud saw this and realized it was useless to deal with the sacred remains directly. He stretched out his palm and made a grabbing motion toward where Ye Futian was, wanting to take down Ye Futian first.


    An overwhelming mighty power descended on Ye Futian, and he felt as if he was suffocating to death.


    However, at this time, a figure appeared in front of Ye Futian, and it was the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The infinite divine brilliance of the ancient characters was released from his body, drowning the void and this corner of the sky with ever dazzling divine light. The crowd saw characters flying out towards the heavens.


    ��Be careful.�� Everyone��s expression revealed shock. It was as if they had entered a spatial tunnel, and those characters were like invisible waves that brought everyone into the world of another space.


    Ye Futian and the others disappeared. Only the cultivators from all sides were still here, and of course, the body of the Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    The sight caused the hearts of many to tremble violently, and they could hear their own hearts thumping. Even though they were major figureheads, they felt an indescribable dread at the moment. Looking at the body of the Shenjia the Great Emperor, they seemed to perceive the resurrection of a god.


    What��s more terrifying was that when immeasurable divine glory enveloped this space, they saw an extremely sacred figure. It was a giant, transformed by the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, and they seemed to be inside his body.


    Was this the Domain of the Gods?


    Who was the teacher, and why could he control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to this degree?


    The Great Elder of Demon Cloud saw the body walking towards him, turning into a ray of light as Shenjia the Great Emperor raised his palm, slamming towards him. He was surrounded by ancient characters as supreme as the heavens, overwhelming the world they were in.


    The Great Elder of Demon Cloud felt a strong sense of threat. He roared, and suddenly, a terrifying demon god appeared. This demon god had a black golden divine light shining all over him, looking invincible. Loud booming sounds came out as the great palm print turned into the sky above, slammed down for the kill.


    The demon god��s palms reached toward the sky, wanting to lift it up. But when that palm print of the god fell, it intended to crush everything. The demon god roared and screamed, but his body was bent under the weight of that palm nonetheless.


    Boom! With that noise, the demon god��s knees crumbled as terrifying rumbling sounds were heard. His body was continuously bursting. The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud was pale as blood came out of his mouth. He pleaded, ��Teacher, please have mercy!��


    With a loud boom, the palm print slammed down, knocking the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud into the far distance.


    Every one of the major figureheads that were around panicked. They were the highest existence in Shangqing Domain, standing at the peak of cultivation. There were not many who could compare to them in the entire Divine Prefecture.


    However, at this moment, in front of the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, they seemed to be facing a giant god, a true god that was utterly unshakable.


    The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor looked to the other side, and his eyes pierced directly into the eyes of the clan leader of the Nanhai Family. He said, ��For making a move against the youngsters of Four Corner Village, this palm strike is for you.��


    When his voice fell, the eyes of Shenjia the Great Emperor closed as infinite characters rushed into his consciousness. It was just like he was before when he watched the sacred remains.


    Numerous palm prints appeared, covering the sky and obscuring the sun, like the giant handprint of the god. The head of the Nanhai family roared in anger, and his palms slapped forward. However, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor rushed forward as infinite ancient characters turned into countless divine lights. With a loud bang, the giant handprint with terrifying attack power was pulverized into nothing. The body of Shengjia the Great Emperor penetrated it, completely ignoring that terrible attack.


    Everyone around realized that the divine light inside Shenjia the Great Emperor could destroy all Ways. This corpse was the corpse of the gods, therefore transcended the scope of ordinary corpses. The sacred remains contained the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor when he was alive. They were capable of breaking the Great Path.


    Once this corpse was controlled, it would be as if the power of the resurrection of gods was in hand. How terrifying would that power be?


    No one could stop it.


    The divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor unleashed a punch strong enough to smash everything. The blast landed on the body of the clan leader of the Nanhai Family, piercing his physical body. The terrifying force now rushed inside his body as the clan leader couldn��t stop the blood coming out of his mouth. He was expelled directly out of this spatial world, which was completely shattered.


    Cultivators from the outside could see into the void again. They saw the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud madly vomiting blood. The aura of the clan leader of the Nanhai Family was greatly weakened. His body was punched through, and he was wounded by the Great Path.


    The rest of the cultivators stood in different positions, and all of them trembled. Even though they were major figures, they stood there with dread and anxiety. They had never faced such a situation before and never even thought that there would be an existence so great that it could make them so desperate.


    ��Do any of you have any more comments?�� Shenjia the Great Emperor uttered again, and everyone was silent. In the cultivation world, strength would always reign first. Shenjia the Great Emperor could destroy all of them right here, right now; what more opinion could they possibly have?


    Zhou Muhuang trembled inside when he saw everything that had happened, and he was greatly unsettled by what he saw. No one would have thought that the teacher could control the corpse of the Shengjia the Great Emperor and explode with such power.


    Today, the siege laid upon Four Corner Village by all these cultivators was destined to be in vain.


    ��The teacher��s cultivation is superb. If you claimed the sacred remains, then let it stay here. The Domain Chief��s Manor will report to the imperial palace, and I will bid my goodbye presently,�� said Zhou Muhuang as he put his hands together. What else could he do?


    The rest of the major players turned to leave with great disturbance in their hearts. This incident had shown them just how fearsome Four Corner Village was now.


    It seemed that the rise of Four Corner Village was a foregone conclusion, as there was nobody who could stop its ascendance. The cruel strike that the teacher meted out to the clan leader of the Nanhai Family just now must have meant as a lesson.


    Among the crowd, probably only Muyun Lan had the most conflicted feelings. When he was young, he was a student taught by the teacher, seeking the Way under his tutelage. This time he came as the enemy of the Four Corner Village. When he thought about the times he spent here as a youth, he was filled with emotion. Even though he knew the teacher was strong, he never expected that it was to this scope.


    ��Teacher,�� Muyun Lan called out.


    ��You have chosen your own path. Follow it,�� an ethereal voice replied, and Muyun Lan was slightly stunned. He then bowed slightly in reverence and turned to walk away!

 Chapter 2183 - Cultivation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It didn��t take long for the top-notch cultivators from all over the Shangqing Domain to leave, with only those of the ancient royal family of Duan remaining behind.


    They were all feeling intense shock deep down, thinking that it had been fortunate for them not to have to continue becoming enemies of the Four Corner Village, instead making friends with them. While the master from the village didn��t concern himself with affairs outside, who knew what would have happened if something were to happen to the Four Corner Village?


    At present, Duan Tianxiong felt that the master from the village was more than what met the eye.


    That was the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia, and he wondered just how that master managed to control it so perfectly.


    The master was practically invincible for being able to manipulate the powers of that sacred remains.


    That would be like truly gaining a godlike weapon in one��s hands.


    Some forces of extremely ancient lineages in the Divine Prefecture were said to have such treasures in their possession. Despite that, it was still not certain that they would be able to resist the master of Four Corner Village when he controlled the body of Great Emperor Shenjia. The power was so terrifying that despite having only been a bystander back then, Duan Tianxiong was still shocked to the core.


    Someone as powerful as the leader of the Nanhai Clan hadn��t been able to endure a single hit, having his body penetrated and was forced to retreat.


    Everyone from the Shangqing Domain was forced to reevaluate the powers of Four Corner Village anew at the moment.


    The cultivators of Four Corner City saw everything that transpired and were all in awe, hoping even more intensely that they would be able to train in the Village.


    However, only those from the Village knew that while the master was indeed powerful, yet the master himself had said that he had been put under some kind of limitation, preventing him from leaving the village. That time might have been a coincidence, where Ye Futian brought the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia into the village, which the master could use to put the rest in place.


    Ye Futian breathed a sigh of relief. He had been prepared to be taken away, and he didn��t expect the master to act at such moments. Furthermore, the master had actually been able to achieve perfect manipulation of the sacred remains.


    That battle alone cemented his renown of being invincible.


    After that battle, no other cultivation forces of the Upper Nine Heavens, the Domain Chief��s Manor included, would definitely dare to do anything against those from the Village so easily or thoughtlessly. That meant that it would be a lot safer for villagers to venture outside from then on out.


    The people throughout the Shangqing Domain had to elevate the status of the cultivators of the Village to that of those from the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    ��I never expect that I would be able to witness such a magnificent battle today. There could hardly be anyone capable of matching the powers of the master,�� Duan Tianxiong commented, and he spoke very highly of the master. That battle was more than enough to be known as the most intense one throughout the domain.


    Titans of the Upper Nine Heavens all over the Shangqing Domain attacked Four Corner Village, and they were all repelled by the master alone. Despite the fact that he had only fought by making use of the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia, the battle was unlike any other.


    Furthermore, the master was truly someone out of the world. Ye Futian had previously brought the sacred remains in order to return it. It was also obvious that the master who had controlled the sacred remains didn��t desire the sacred remains, as he wouldn��t have let Ye Futian bring that body out otherwise.


    It was only until when people were about to attack Ye Futian and take him away that the master made his move, telling them to back off and leave the sacred remains behind as well. The master made good on his word, as he managed to keep Ye Futian and the sacred remains behind.


    The cultivators of the village said nothing. Old Ma then said to Duan Tianxiong, ��How about we head inside the village for a bit?��


    ��That wouldn��t be necessary for me. However, Duan Qiong and the young ones have always wanted to take a look at the village. How about letting them stay behind and take a tour around the place then?�� Duan Tianxiong smiled as he said to Old Ma, who then nodded. ��Very well.��


    ��In that case, I shall take my leave. None would dare to do anything to the village after what happened here. Right now, we shall just wait for news from the imperial palace,�� Duan Tianxiong added. Old Ma and the others nodded.


    Ye Futian was feeling rather restless after hearing that. With the dust settled then, he, too, hoped that news from the imperial palace would come sooner rather than later. He was feeling very anxious to return to his native realm and check things out back there.


    Duan Tianxiong took his leave, and everyone returned to the village. The sacred remains were controlled by the master and headed to the private school. Ye Futian was summoned by the master as soon as he returned, and he went to the school as well. The sacred remains lay at the side without making moving. It seemed as if he was completely under the master��s control.


    ��Thank you, master.�� Ye Futian bowed to the master. The way he saw it, the master seemed to have become even more mysterious, and he was unable to see through the master at all.


    According to the villagers, the master had been around for a very, very long time. Yet, no one actually knew how long. It was possible that the master was as old as the village itself.


    Furthermore, the master had a mystical air about him. He made himself feel so surreal to the others that it seemed like he didn��t belong to the mortal world.


    ��Given that the sacred remains came with you, it became apparent that your destinies were intertwined, and there was indeed no need for you to return it. Now that the cultivators of the Shangqing Domain are so brutal with their approach, then we have no need to play nice with them. Just come here if you want to learn from the sacred remains from here on out. If anything were to happen, it��d be easy to nip it in the bud in time as well,�� the master then said to Ye Futian.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian bowed. ��There is something I��d like to ask, master.��


    ��Please,�� the master replied.


    ��What actually happened when the Heavenly Path collapsed back in ancient times? Is the very extreme of cultivation breaking the Heavenly path? Why would someone with your kind of powers stay in the village all the time?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Matters with the world of cultivators are not as simple as you thought they would be. Cultivators sought the highest level achievable, and there was a war between gods taking place in ancient times. As for the limitations on me now, know that even in the present day, what you see may not actually be true, let alone what happened in ancient times. You��ll be able to get to know such things when you��ve reached a certain height,�� the master said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was feeling rather unsettled, wondering what the truth behind the collapse of the Heavenly Path was and what was going on with the world of cultivators currently.


    He wondered if what he was seeing was indeed not the truth.


    ��There is no need to overthink it. The answers would be laid before you once you��ve reached the required level. By then, you wouldn��t be able to turn a blind eye to it even if you want to,�� the master continued. Ye Futian nodded and bowed once again. ��Thank you, master.��


    He left the private school, and several people went up to him as soon as he emerged. They were none other than Fang Cun, Little Ling, Tie Tou, and Duo Yu.


    The four of them had grown quite a bit, and the way they saw it, things changed every day.


    After knowing just how surreally powerful the master was, he came to understand why the youngsters from the village were all so powerful, being born with an aptitude for the Great Path, destined to a cut above the others. All of them had incredibly frightening potential.


    The achievement of the four of them would probably eclipse that of Fang Gai, Old Man, Blind Tie, and the others. All of them would grow up to be extremely renowned figures.


    ��How has your training been going recently?�� he patted their heads and asked.


    ��Teacher, I��ve been watching them the whole time. They are doing fine, and the master has been teaching us as well,�� Fang Cun smiled and replied. The boy was considerably more respectful to Ye Futian than how he used to be. And that respect was genuine, and the boy was indeed less naughty than how he used to be.


    That probably has to do with him having grown considerably.


    ��Sure. Don��t slack off in your training.�� Ye Futian smiled as he spoke to them. After hearing what the master told him, it would seem that the world was more complicated than what he had imagined. Furthermore, with forces like the Dark Court being on the move, they may have to fight a war at a scale huge enough to engulf the entire Divine Prefecture.


    The war of the Origin Realm might probably be only a trigger. There was no telling what would happen in the future, but it was extremely probable that the entire world would see massive changes. Everyone needed to be prepared, and if some massive change did happen, everyone needed to grow faster in order to take on what was to come in the future.


    ��


    The battle in Four Corner Village rocked the entire Shangqing Domain. All the forces involved returned, and everything was unusually silent. No one brought up the sacred remains again, yet the cultivators of the Shangqing Domain all knew that after the battle, there was an invincible being in the Upper Nine Heavens of the Shangqing Domain that no one could afford to mess with.


    It was said that the leader of the Nanhai Clan went into isolation to recuperate from his injuries as soon as he returned.


    The Four Corner Continent had gotten even rowdier as more cultivators began to move in. At present, be it the powers at the very top, the number of very formidable ones, or those of later generations, the village was at the very peak of the Shangqing Domain��s standards. No one knew just how powerful the village would become in the future, and it was extremely possible that they would be the force that would reign supreme over the entire Shangqing Domain.


    When the day came, Four Corner Continent would naturally be incredibly prosperous, and there was no way one would miss out on an opportunity like that.


    However, none of that seemed to have anything to do with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged under the ancient tree in the village. Xia Qingyuan was not far away, and the bird flew around lazily. The four little ones solemnly surrounded Ye Futian. The scene looked like some surreal drawing, looking very peaceful, serene, and beautiful.


    His eyes were closed as he sat under the tree. The leaves and branches swayed as it shrouded him. Rumbles continued to be heard from within his body as he continued to clad in divine light.


    Time passed, and the lot of them were completely steeped in their own training, shutting out the outside world entirely, elevating their powers quietly to stabilize their levels, and casting aside everything in the outside world. The way he saw it, only cultivation would prepare him for his return to Origin Realm.

 Chapter 2184 - News from the Imperial Palace

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Time passed. Four Corner City was bustling and prosperous, while Four Corner Village remained serene and peaceful.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged under an ancient tree in that holy land in the Four Corner Continent. His body flowed with the divine shimmer of the Great Path. Different kinds of Great Path powers emanated from his body, making him look like a manifestation of the Great Path itself.


    A terrifying aura emanated from his body. A terrifying scene took place with him at the center. It was as if the space he occupied became its own independent space. His face was vaguely seen in that space, and a specter, like an ancient god, appeared there.


    He levitated and melded with that world like he had become an ancient god. The space kept expanding, shrouding the skies. The phenomenon in that space became increasingly terrifying. Everyone saw many things appearing above that ancient god-like body of his. The sun shone on everything below. There was a cold, icy world under the cold moon, a peacock spreading its divine wings, a roc tearing through the skies, a divine ape howling at the sky, a divine elephant standing tall��


    All these phenomena melded into a beautiful picture that was extremely stunning. In that picture, that tall, mighty being standing over everything was filled with raging power. It looked like the true god that reigned over everything.


    That scene had shaken the entire Four Corner Village. The beautiful picture dazzled with glittering divine light. Many who looked at Ye Futian from afar felt as if the terrifying power of the Great Path was seeping into them right away. Those who were of weaker training dared not even get close.


    Old Ma, Blind Tie, and some others flew to where he was, standing from afar as they watched him train. The splendid phenomena shocked them to the core, and their eyes reflected the dazzle of that splendid scene.


    He had been steeped in training the whole time and would head to the private school to experience the power of the sacred remains, as well as to seek the master��s teachings. Everyone was able to sense that he was making progress every day. That progress was more than just in terms of his level; it was also his progress in the understanding of cultivation.


    All of that finally culminated in a drastic change, and he became very, very different.


    At that moment, he opened his eyes, and terrifying divine light shot from them. It was as if those eyes were the sum of his being. The mystical phenomena around him disappeared in an instant, returning into his body. He came to stand alone in midair again. However, everyone was able to sense that that body of his had become completely different from how it had been before. It was as if he had just experienced a total change from the inside out.


    ��So, you finally got it?�� Old Ma walked up to Ye Futian and asked. He knew what had happened to the young man.


    ��Yeah, I finally got it.�� Ye Futian smiled and nodded.


    ��How do you feel?�� Old Ma then asked.


    Ye Futian grinned and lifted his arm. The rumbling of the Great Path was heard from his arm right away. It was filled with terrifying power. He took one step forward, and rumbling was heard all over the place. It was as if the earth itself was shaking.


    What just happened caught all of their attention. Eyes were all locked onto Ye Futian, thinking just how terrifying such a presence was. They all wondered just how terrifying such powers were, given that Ye Futian was able to cause such a rumble by just lifting his arm and walk.


    Chen Yi went up and stared at Ye Futian intensely. ��Some people were born with the Great Path in them, and such people were known to have Great Path physiques. Those of supreme talents were known to have what is known to be Divine Bodies of the Great Path. Right now, I wonder what that body of yours shall be called.��


    ��Divine Body of the Heavenly Path, perhaps,�� Ye Futian grinned and replied. It sounded like he was joking. That was what he claimed his body to be when he was facing Zhan Yuan of the Violet Heavenly Palace in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms back in the Void Realm. Zhan Yuan claimed to be of the Supreme Body of the Great Path, so he called his body the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path instead.


    ��A nice name.�� Chen Yi nodded instead. ��Only the name ��Divine Body of the Heavenly Path�� is fitting of that physique of yours right now. Everybody from the outside may feel like an imposter when compared to you. They will probably have to doubt the authenticity of their Great Path physiques if they run into you.��


    Ye Futian grinned as he shook his head. He had just come up with something random from the depths of his mind. Claiming to have the ��Divine Body of the Heavenly Path�� indeed sounded rather pompous.


    ��The name will do.�� Old Ma nodded and continued surprisingly, ��Let��s just call it the ��Divine Body of the Heavenly Path,�� then. I guess if you are to be able to finish molding that physique of yours, you would be able to pass it down to your descendants.��


    If one��s cultivation gets to such a level, one��s talents may indeed be passed down. After forging such a formidable physique, there is definitely a chance for him to pass it down to his descendants. But then again, he didn��t seem to have any thoughts of having children.


    Ye Futian was speechless upon hearing what they just said. He had only been joking, and they all actually took it at face value, thinking that the name of ��Divine Body of the Heavenly Path�� was a fitting name.


    Well, there goes any attempt of keeping a low profile then��


    ��How powerful is this body of yours right now?�� Chen Yi asked, feeling rather curious.


    ��Now that you��re the same level as me, I could stand here and let you attack me to the best of your ability. You probably still wouldn��t be able to kill me,�� Ye Futian chuckled as he answered.


    ��Umm����


    Chen Yi took a look at the Ye Futian, thinking that the other man was being somewhat pompous indeed.


    ��Well, although you��ve attained the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path, I��m still of the Divine Body of Light. Are you sure about that?�� Chen Yi looked at Ye Futian, feeling somewhat irked. He really wanted to try his hand then.


    ��Divine Body of Light���� Ye Futian was feeling rather intimidated. The name did sound rather frightening, after all.


    ��Don��t forget that among the nine divine techniques among the Four Corner Village��s heritage, there is the Ancient Divine Immortal Form, and I��ve incorporated it into my body.�� Ye Futian smiled as he continued speaking. His current body was indeed something that someone on the same level as him would find very, very hard to kill.


    But then again, he meant those who had reached perfection at level six of the Great Path. As for those at level six and had yet to reach perfection, he could literally stand and let them hit him with all they had. They were no longer in the same league as him, so he wouldn��t bother comparing himself with them.


    ��Alright, you win.�� Chen Yi rolled his eyes and thought that he had to be more hardworking when it came to his training; otherwise, the other man would eventually come to look down on him.


    Ye Futian didn��t continue bragging. He simply took a look at Old Ma and asked, ��Is there any news from the outside?��


    Despite having trained in isolation the whole time, he was also waiting for news from the Imperial Palace.


    When can we depart to the Origin Realm?


    ��The Imperial Palace is too far away, and we have no way of getting any word from the Void Realm. Even the ones at the Domain Chief��s Manor probably won��t know a lot about things at the moment. The Void Realm and the Divine Prefecture were separated, after all. We can only continue to wait for news from the Domain Chief��s Manor,�� Old Ma answered.


    Ye Futian nodded, feeling rather disappointed. He was hoping to get news as soon as possible, after all.


    ��I��ll go and check things out with the master,�� Ye Futian said, and everyone else nodded. He then made his way to the private school.


    He took a look at the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia when he got to the master��s place. He had not been wasting any of his efforts learning from the sacred remains. In actual fact, his ability to create his own Great Path physique was something he learned from Great Emperor Shenjia��s sacred remains.


    ��Master,�� Ye Futian turned around and called out to the mystical figure.


    The master nodded and said, ��The change that you��ve undergone this time boosted your powers considerably.��


    ��It was all thanks to your teachings,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Actually, it��s all because of your own training. I��ve only given you a pointer or two. You��d have been able to get this far with or without me around.�� The master then continued, ��You should be able to take on great powers from here on out, and you can increase the frequency of resonating with the sacred remains here. Continue to hone your body to bring it closer toward perfection.��


    ��Right, I understand.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Get back to your training then.�� The master didn��t say any else. He turned around and left. Ye Futian went up to the sacred remains and continued to train with his eyes closed. He would be completely steeped in his training, for the time being, casting everything outside aside.


    ��


    Year 10062 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar.


    Someone from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain came to Four Corner Village.


    Ye Futian stopped training right away after knowing that someone from the Domain Chief��s Manor came. He went to where the emissary was, where Old Ma and the others were.


    ��I��ve come on the chief��s orders to inform Four Corner Village that the Imperial Palace is calling cultivators throughout the 18 domains to arms, heading to the Origin Realm. Should anyone be willing to go, please head for the Imperial Domain. If any cultivator from Four Corner Village is willing to head there, they could head to the Domain Chief��s Manor with me, and we shall embark together afterward,�� the emissary said. Ye Futian was feeling restless. The day has finally come.


    He had been waiting for the news the whole time, waiting for the Imperial Palace to call the formidable ones throughout the 18 domains to arms. It seemed that the conflict over at the Void Realm had gotten extremely intense, exceeding his imagination.


    Back then, the forces involved had already decided the ownership of the Void Realm through a battle, and he wondered if those from the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm broke the treaty again.


    It hadn��t been that many years, right?


    Just what has happened back in the Origin Realm indeed?


    ��The news from the Imperial Palace is not a forced conscription, and the Domain Chief was not making any demands. Anybody willing to head over, please come with me,�� the emissary continued.


    Old Ma nodded and replied, ��Thank you, sir. Let��s head out then.��


    He knew that Ye Futian had been waiting for that day to come, and they had long determined who among them would be heading over. With the news already delivered, it was naturally time to make their departure, and there was little preparation needed.


    ��Very well, let��s go.�� The emissary nodded, and the group headed outside the village.


    Ye Futian was feeling extremely restless at that moment. After all, he had been training for quite a long time. He was still worried about the Origin Realm.

 Chapter 2185 - The Very Extreme of the Heavens

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Domain Chief��s Manor, Shangqing Domain.


    Formidable ones kept showing up from all corners, and Ye Futian��s gang was actually the slowest to show up. All the other forces were at the Upper Nine Heavens, with only those from the Four Corner Continent being elsewhere. Furthermore, they didn��t head to the ancient royal family of Duan via the teleportation grand matrix. Instead, they had come with the emissary.


    As such, everyone was already there when Ye Futian and his people showed up at the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    In the manor, everyone present turned their eyes at Ye Futian and the group of cultivators from Four Corner Village.


    What happened outside the village last year stuck in their minds; it seemed like it had happened the day before.


    The impression was so intense that they came to see those from the village in a different light. Prior to that, despite the fact that those of the Four Corner Village had finally opened themselves up to the world and that the other cultivation forces saw great potential in the village, the villagers were, nonetheless, new to the world at large. Therefore, they were lacking in a lot of ways and had a lot to learn. However, that battle with the master back then cemented their reputation as being invincible. This was so much so that even those from the Domain Chief��s Manor were forced to reevaluate those from the village.


    The matter of the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia eventually blew over, and this was due to the effect of that one battle. The way things worked in the world of cultivation was still decided by one��s actual powers. They dared to attack the village before because they thought that the village couldn��t possibly take on the combined might of the entire Shangqing Domain.


    However, no one else dared to bring up the matter with the sacred remains since the master intimidated all of them with his show of power.


    The sacred remains were taken away, and there was nothing they could do about it.


    The gaze from the formidable ones lingered most on Ye Futian, as it had been he who took the sacred remains away back then and had made a breakthrough by learning from them. His bearing felt rather different, and he was apparently stronger than how he had been back then.


    The lineup from Four Corner Village was indeed powerful. Old Ma was there. Several high-level Renhuang, who were at perfect level-eight, were around, and Ye Futian��s gang was there as well. With the master taking charge of matters in the village, they had nothing to worry about. Anybody who dared to act against the village would need to really think things through.


    At that moment, a group of people showed up. The domain chief, Zhou Muhuang, Zhou Lingxi, and the others were there. The chief didn��t bring up the matter with the sacred remains of Great Emperor Shenjia. It was as if they really had put the matter to rest; it seemed like nothing had ever happened in the first place.


    Zhou Lingxi had only turned to look at Ye Futian and flashed a faint smile. ��You��re here, Sir Ye.��


    Ye Futian came to rather dislike the Domain Chief��s Manor by then. When the Domain Chief��s Manor tried their best to get him to train in the Domain Chief��s Manor back then, he began to question what they were up to. Everything that happened since then made him feel that those from the Domain Chief��s Manor had too strong of an agenda. This was especially true, given what Zhou Muhuang proposed back then. This could be seen both as an opportunity as well as a threat, and turning it down could spell trouble for him.


    In actual fact, if those of the Domain Chief��s Manor had emerged to mediate things, with him handing over the sacred remains and those from the Domain Chief��s Manor calling it even, what had followed afterward probably wouldn��t have happened. The Domain Chief��s Manor still had enough authority and influence to be capable of that much, yet Zhou Muhuang said nothing after Ye Futian rejected his proposal.


    Ye Futian didn��t begrudge those of the Domain Chief��s Manor for not helping him out, as neither of them owed one another any favors, to begin with. However, at the very least, what transpired had driven a permanent wedge in their relationship, and they could never be friends.


    But then again, Ye Futian didn��t rudely ignore Zhou Lingxi when she greeted him. He simply nodded and smiled in reply.


    The chief stood at the very front and scanned all of the formidable ones who showed up. The very best to be found throughout the Shangqing Domain had all gathered there. It was a given that several titans had not shown up. Also, some forces, who had two cultivators deemed to be titans, had only fielded one to lead their teams; they were interested in checking things out at the Void Realm as well.


    They had only heard some rumors regarding the Void Realm so far, after all.


    ��The reason why I��ve gathered you all here is that we have received word from the Imperial Palace. I��ve mentioned a thing or two about what happened in the Void Realm before. In actual fact, some changes took place in the Void Realm many years ago. The Dark Court had opened a passage leading to the Void Realm, and the imperial palace reacted to it according. This led to some of the forces of the Divine Prefecture heading over there.��


    The Chief continued as he addressed the crowd, ��However, the Imperial Palace didn��t give any orders back then, and the commotion was manageable. Those who headed to the Void Realm back then had something to do with the Void Realm, to begin with. However, things are somewhat different now. The Imperial Palace hopes to have cultivators from the 18 domains to check things out at the Void Realm, and I��ve received some news myself that there were some great changes within the Void Realm. This is not an official conscription from the imperial palace, and no one will be forced against their will to join. The Imperial Palace might simply want all of you to go over there and have a look at things.��


    Everyone listened quietly. All of them received news more or less, but such news was scarce, and they still had no idea how things actually were over at the Void Realm.


    ��This time, Muhuang will lead our forces from the Domain Chief��s Manor. Please take care of each other when you get there. That place is truly in a chaotic state right now. All top-notch forces from the 18 domains will see their people there, and forces not of the Divine Prefecture may be heading there as well. I hope that we of the Shangqing Domain can be more united when we��re out there,�� the Chief said to the crowd. Everybody nodded in response. Given their levels and status, they didn��t need the chief to tell them more about what they were supposed to do.


    ��Enough from me now. We��ll talk more on our way there. Let��s depart. We can first use the great teleportation matrix to get to the Imperial Realm before heading towards the Imperial Palace,�� the chief said as he took the lead.


    The Divine Prefecture was ruled by Donghuang the Great, with the Imperial Palace serving as its center. All the other 17 domains spread out from there. There were countless continents found throughout the Divine Prefecture.


    Under such circumstances, the Imperial Palace, naturally, needed teleportation matrixes to keep an eye on what was happening throughout the 18 domains. As such, all domains had similar matrixes that led straight to the Imperial Domain. If something were to happen, they could save time and deal with the issues as quickly as possible.


    The teleportation matrix over at the Shangqing Domain was constructed inside of the Domain Chief��s Manor itself. It was a terrifyingly huge, supersized great teleportation matrix. The entire manor lit up with dazzling divine light as soon as the matrix was activated. The beams of divine light shot to the air, and a teleportation portal leading to the stars appeared in the sky.


    At that moment, countless cultivators, both inside or outside the manor, looked over to the sky at that place.


    The entire sky lit up as they all gazed, conjuring terrifying divine brilliance, and an ancient, sacred passage materialized.


    ��Let��s go, Muhuang,�� the Chief said to Zhou Muhuang, who was the one to lead all the formidable ones in that expedition.


    ��Very well.�� Zhou Muhuang nodded and took the first step, entering that supersized matrix. Their bodies were all shrouded by extremely dazzling divine light. They shot to the sky right away, entering that terrifying space passage. Shortly after, they disappeared.


    One figure after another behind Zhou Muhuang disappeared. All cultivators from the city looked in the direction of the Domain Chief��s Manor when the matrix was activated. They looked at the figures up in the sky disappear as they stepped into the passage hanging in midair.


    ��


    The Imperial Domain was the highest point of the heavens and the absolute center of the Divine Prefecture.


    The Imperial Domain was different from the other domain. When they all emerged from the portal, none of them appeared on land; they were all hovering midair instead.


    Dazzling beams shrouded them, and the light was utterly blinding.


    Ye Futian looked around him and was quickly stunned by what was right before his eyes.


    He saw the spaces beneath him had countless continents far away. Due to the continents being very far from each other, all of them looked like islands suspended in midair, yet they were very neatly aligned as they hovered in between heaven and earth. It seemed as if all of them were the same in terms of altitude.


    Every single continent among the countless continents shot dazzling divine beams from them diagonally, all of which headed for the highest point in the heavens.


    The beams coalesced into stairways leading to the heavens, and all of them, due to being arranged in steps, looked like literal stairways.


    Ye Futian and all the others appeared in that area.


    They looked up at the sky above them. At the highest point of the heavens, where the divine light from the many continents shot at, lay a city hovering in the air. That city dazzled with terrifying divine light. It looked as if it was where the gods lived.


    Divine light from that city shot downwards and connected the countless continents beneath right away as if uniting them.


    That scene was very, very shocking to any cultivator who came, so much so that even someone like Ye Futian was stunned by the dazzling landscape he just saw. He was able to guess what was at that highest point of the heavens.


    That was the center of the Imperial Domain, where the imperial palace was found. That was the place where Donghuang the Great took up residence��the Imperial City.


    Ye Futian was feeling completely rocked deep down. Despite wanting nothing more than to return to Origin Realm at the moment, it was still challenging for his mind to stay calm after his arrival.


    He had finally arrived at the absolute center of the Divine Prefecture��the Imperial City. All the answers he sought would be found in that very city. The city was located at the highest point of the heavens. Be it his origins, information regarding Emperor Ye Qing, his godfather, and whatever else, everything he needed to know would be here. He might be able to find all the answers to all of those questions there.


    Having trained for so long, he had almost reached higher Renhuang levels and finally came into contact with the Imperial City, which was the very core of the world.

 Chapter 2186 - Return

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Zhou Muhuang looked up at where the imperial palace was and said, ��Let��s get up.��


    Everyone continued moving upward after he said that, moving along that stairway conjured from divine light. It was like they were moving up to a real heavenly court.


    They stood high up in the sky, which didn��t look all that far away. However, that was only because they were standing under divine light, and the space had nothing else for reference, which made them feel like common people looking up at the stars in the sky.


    That was the imperial palace reigning throughout the entire Divine Prefecture, the very top of the heavens.


    They finally saw someone after some time. A door appeared before them, leading to the gates of the Imperial City, where formidable guards stood over the gates.


    That Imperial City was something that one could not step in from outside, as it was shrouded in terrifying divine might. Entrance into the city required passing the heavenly gates.


    ��I��m Zhou Muhuang of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain, hereby leading the cultivators of the Shangqing Domain to the Imperial City. I hope that we would be granted passage,�� Zhou Muhuang went up and said to the guard, who then seemed to be communicating with the ones in charge inside. He nodded and said, ��Please.��


    The guards made way right after that. All of them then went inside the gates right away. The terrifying power of space emanated from inside.


    Ye Futian and the others felt like they were inside another space after getting in there. The place was surrounded by divine light, and mystical qi filled the place. The Imperial City was not a single entity; there were many hovering cultivation temples everywhere, all of which were inhabited by very powerful cultivators. Anyone permitted to train and stay inside the Imperial City would be someone with esteemed status or descendants of ancient formidable ones.


    The Imperial City was the most mysterious place in all of the Divine Prefecture. No one knew just how many formidable beings there were in there, and even the cultivators throughout the 18 domains had only heard rumors about it.


    Some speculated that among the countless cultivation temples in the imperial city, some ancient cultivators were found inside.


    Everyone went on to look all over the place after getting there. Towering divine glows fell like waterfalls in there, making it seem like there was an extremely magnificent hall of the gods within. That was the highest point of the heavens; it was the very peak of the nine heavens.


    That was the Imperial Palace.


    That was the place where Donghuang the Great lived. This was the most powerful of places throughout the entire Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian wondered what kind of people would be able to live inside that Imperial City and see the Imperial Palace all the time.


    There were definitely many top-notch cultivation forces in the many continents in the Imperial Domain, and he wondered about the Imperial City inside the Heaven��s Gate.


    I think that the core forces of Donghuang the Great are in here, including the divine generals, the leaders of the legions, and people of that sort, he thought.


    Ye Futian was feeling rather restless, wondering what kind of relationship he shared with the Imperial Palace.


    Zhou Muhuang then brought the formidable ones toward the Imperial Palace. Once they got near the Imperial Palace, they discovered just how magnificent and vast the place actually was. The Imperial Palace had its own strata, and they were stopped right outside the place. Some formidable ones came to receive them, and Ye Futian actually knew the man. It was none other than the palace lord of Empty Imperial Palace��the emissary who the Imperial Palace sent to oversee the Void Realm.


    The emissary seemed to have seen Ye Futian and his eyes lingered on him for a brief moment. He smiled and then looked at the crowd before saying to Zhou Muhuang, ��Thank you all for coming.��


    ��It is an honor for us to serve the Imperial Palace, and we would certainly give it our all. All top-notch forces throughout the Shangqing Domain sent their people to the Origin Realm,�� Zhou Muhuang replied.


    ��Allow me to lead the way,�� the palace lord of the Empty Imperial Palace said as he did so. Divine might lay upon everyone, and even someone as powerful as Ye Futian felt that pressure on him; it felt rather solemn.


    No one said anything during the journey, and everyone followed the palace lord of the Empty Imperial Palace in silence.


    There was more than one way leading to Void Realm other than the Imperial Palace. Yet, given that it was the Imperial Palace that called the formidable ones to arms, it was only natural for them to head over there through the Imperial Palace. Those of the Shanqing Domain were not the ones doing so, as those from the rest of the 18 domains were doing the same as well. Many formidable ones had made it to the Origin Realm.


    The palace lord led them on a detour around the external fringes of the Imperial Palace instead of heading inside the palace itself. He even slowed down and deliberately came near Ye Futian, saying, ��It has been years since we last met, and it would seem that your powers have seen considerable growth, Emperor Ye. It looks like what happened all those years ago was a blessing in disguise. You��ve now become someone capable of reigning supreme somewhere in the Divine Prefecture.��


    The battle back in the Void Realm all those years ago saw Ye Futian at an undisputed disadvantage. Everyone thought that he was dead, and the palace lord certainly didn��t expect to see him reappear.


    It was all like a dream.


    He wondered just how Ye Futian managed to leave alive and come to the Divine Prefecture.


    He was oblivious to the fact that Princess Donghuang helped Ye Futian in secret. And except for the two of them, there were probably only a few others who knew about it. Being only a subordinate of hers, Princess Donghuang naturally did not need to tell the palace lord any of it.


    ��You flatter me, sir. I was just lucky back then.�� Ye Futian then asked, ��Have you been in the Origin Realm this whole time? How are things over there now?��


    The palace lord of the Imperial Palace then smiled and said, ��I��m afraid you��ll need to be psychologically prepared, Emperor Ye. Things in the Origin Realm are completely different from how they once were. The changes are so significant that the place might as well be somewhere else altogether. You��ll be able to see for yourself once you return, and there��s no need for me to say more.��


    Ye Futian��s heart sank, feeling a formless pressure washing all over him and making him feel restless deep down.


    What is going on with the Origin Realm?


    Obviously, the Origin Realm had seen extremely huge changes and was completely different from what it was when he left. As for the specific changes, he would only know when he headed back to find out himself. The key, however, would be if all his friends and family were still around.


    I wonder how they are doing, Ye Futian thought.


    The palace lord brought them to pass by certain areas with guards guarding them and came to somewhere rather mystical. There was an empty space before them, and there was a terrifying aura sealed within a gate of space. The place was surrounded by starlight, and it felt like a world of stars in itself. There was a deep spatial passage, which enabled them to sense something else from within.


    ��This is the gate of the passage leading to the Origin Realm. Enter, and you will be able to pass through this space and reach the Origin Realm. I��ll let the rest of you head over on your own,�� the palace lord then said to the crowd. They were rather surprised that they were told to make the trip on their own instead of having someone from the Imperial Palace take the lead.


    It would seem like things had yet to spiral into an all-out war.


    They would have been required to move as a single unit otherwise.


    ��Thank you, sir.�� Zhou Muhuang nodded to the palace lord of the Empty Imperial Palace and walked inside before everyone else. All the others then followed him into the passage.


    Ye Futian walked through the gate and then into the passage. He felt like he was in the middle of nowhere mere moments later. There seemed only to be an endless void sprawled out before him. He saw many stars, and at that moment, he felt like he was seeing familiar faces in those stars.


    There were Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Wuchen, and his other brothers and sisters-in-training. He wondered how they were all doing.


    Nianyu should have all grown up right now, I guess, he thought.


    I wonder how my teachers and the mistresses are doing as well, he wondered.


    Xiao Muyu, Dou Zhao, Long Chen, and the others. How is their training going? How much progress have they made? How far have those supreme geniuses of perfect levels of the Great Path come?


    Lord Taixuan. How is the old man doing now?


    During the battles in the Origin Realm back all those years ago, he had been attacked by many from a good number of foreign forces like Tianshan Academy, the Golden Divine Nation, the Shen Clan, the Solar Divine Palace, and so on. All of them were out to kill him and get rid of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which the Lord had protected again and again. There were also formidable ones from the divine palace, Emperor Nan of the Nantian Divine Kingdom, Xiao Dingtian of the Xiao Clan, and many other seniors of his. He wondered how all of them were doing during the years after his departure.


    Is the Heavenly Mandate Academy still around? he wondered.


    Are the Dragon Gods, the Divine Elephants, and the Sky Demon Court still united after and fighting alongside the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    All of those familiar faces flooded his mind. All those memories surged right there and then before he was even in the realm itself. It was as if he had recalled all that he had been through throughout the years��the crises, all those times when they helped each other, and the battles they fought, their lives hanging by a thread��all at once.


    His eldest brother, second brother, his teacher Qi Xuangang, and the rest. While it had been many years since they last met, he felt like they were still close all the same.


    Though he had been training in the Divine Prefecture for many years, to him, the memories he had in the Divine Prefecture would never be as intense and profound as those he forged back in the Origin Realm.


    That was his home, where his family was.


    Of course, there were also a lot of his enemies back there, like the overbearing Shen Clan, the arrogant Golden Divine Nation, the traitorous Jian Ao from Tianshen Academy, the antagonizing Solar Divine Palace, and those who hailed from the Divine Prefecture and showed nothing but contempt for everything, like the Holy Land of Taichu and some others. He would also never forget their faces as well.


    If it hadn��t been for Princess Donghuang having mercy in that last battle back in the Void Realm, where he was ganged up on by so many formidable ones, he would have perished for sure.


    Furthermore, that happened when he fought on the side of Divine Prefecture against the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm. Yet, those forces, which were supposed to fight alongside him, had turned against him and wanted to kill him instead. This was especially true for the Tianshen Academy. He remembered all of that all too well.


    An intense emotional fluctuation happened as those memories flooded his mind, and everything in front of his eyes changed. He stood in midair and looked at the place before him. A familiar feeling washed all over him.


    After 20 years, he was finally back.

 Chapter 2187 - Changes in the Heavenly Mandate Academy

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian spread his will out and scanned the vast space he was in. A majestic building appeared in his mind, and he learned where he was right there and then.


    The most powerful place among the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms was the Empty Imperial Palace of the Imperial Realm.


    The location from which he emerged after passing through that passage from the Imperial Palace was none other than the Empty Imperial Palace.


    ��Emperor Ye, you are from the Void Realm. Could you lead the way for us?�� Zhou Muhuang then asked Ye Futian.


    ��The Void Realm isn��t that huge to you all, unlike the Divine Prefecture where there are countless continents. This place only has 3,000 realms, and the strongest is the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. This is the Imperial Realm, and I believe that it wouldn��t take you much time to get to know the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms.�� Ye Futian then added, ��It has been quite some years since I was last here, and I need to see my friends and family. I shall take my leave here.��


    He then walked away from that place right afterward. It was indeed as he put it. He had been gone for 20 years, and he missed his home, which meant that he had no time to serve as a guide for Zhou Muhuang and the others.


    Ye Futian, at the moment, wanted nothing but to go home to his people.


    ��We, too, shall take our leave,�� Duan Tianxiong of the Duan Clan cupped his hands and said, leaving with Ye Futian and those from the Four Corner Village. He paid no heed to what the others might think of them. The way he saw it, Ye Futian had the strongest potential among all in the Shangqing Domain, and he had the master to serve as his backing. As such, he had nothing to lose by being friends with someone like that.


    Zhou Muhuang watched as those people went away. He took the initiative to talk to Ye Futian to ease the tension between the two of them. He knew without a doubt that what happened before had driven a wedge into their relationship, and Ye Futian became very, very guarded.


    However, Ye Futian seemed not to bother to give him any face, refusing his request and leaving right away.


    Ye Futian traveled at very high speeds in the air. He was very anxious and wanted to check things out at the Heavenly Mandate Realm as soon as possible.


    Old Ma and the others seemed to be able to sense his worries, and they followed him quietly, heading for Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    ��


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy back at the Heavenly Mandate Realm had once been a renowned academy before Ye Futian left. It had forged the strongest alliance among the 3,000 realms with the Yuanyang Clan, the Dou tribe, the Xiao Clan, the Divine Palace, and some other forces. Countless cultivators had come to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to train.


    However, it was precisely due to the prestige of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the threat that Ye Futian posed, the Shen Clan, the Golden Divine Nation, and some other forces allied with the ones from Divine Prefecture forging an alliance that was even more terrifying. The opposing forces had waged two battles against them, with the first one to destroy the Divine Palace. That battle at the Sea of the Path shook over half of the forces throughout the nine realms. There was then the battle at Heavenly Mandate Academy to kill Ye Futian, who fled to the Divine Prefecture after that battle and lost all connection with the Void Realm.


    20 years passed since then, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy was no longer as esteemed as it had once been. Instead, the place looked rather dilapidated, with a good number of places among those majestic buildings now broken. Scars of the Great Path powers remained.


    An old man lay on a bench in one of the compounds inside the academy to rest. The old man had silver hair and coughed every now and then. His aura appeared rather weak, and given his cultivation level, it would have been impossible for him to look that weak. He had apparently been severely injured.


    ��Grandpa Xuan, you��re slacking off again.�� A voice was heard, and a girl was seen walking up to him. The girl was beautiful and sported features that men would kill for. She looked like some kind of goddess.


    She came to the old man��s back and massaged him. The old man flashed a beaming smile right away, and an amicable look appeared in those tired eyes of his. It was apparent that he doted on that girl very much.


    ��I wasn��t slacking off,�� the old man said in a rather lazy tone.


    ��You��re basking in the sun instead of healing your injuries, and that��s slacking off,�� the girl said with a grin on her face. There was a tired look on his face as he added, ��Injuries like that don��t heal easily, and once you��ve gotten used to it, it��s like they are there the whole time anyway. By the way, I may be old, but I can still take it. I��d be fine.��


    The girl��s eyes looked glum upon hearing what that old man said. She was seemingly sad for him. She knew that Grandpa Xuan��s injuries were actually quite severe, as they would have been all healed given the old man��s cultivation level. If the injuries couldn��t heal well, it only meant that the Great Path injuries he sustained were very, very harsh. This was so much so that they might be stuck with him for the rest of his life.


    ��It��s good to hear that you can withstand the injuries, but you have to tend to the academy as well.�� A voice was heard, and two other people were seen walking up to them. One of them was pitch-black all over, and the aura around him felt somewhat terrifying; it seemingly having something to do with his powers.


    ��Tianhe, I��ll leave the academy in your hands,�� the old man said gently. That man was his old friend, and he, naturally, wouldn��t stand on formality.


    ��You��re the college chief. This is your job,�� the Sky River Great Elder said with a low tone. That old man was none other than the college chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy��Lord Taixuan.


    ��Man���� Lord Taixuan grinned as he shook his head. He knew that that old friend of his was only paying lip service. If that man were to truly be able to just cast everything aside, he wouldn��t have returned. He had avoided the place for many years until he knew what happened there, which prompted him to return.


    ��He is right. You��re the chief, and this is your responsibility. Don��t even think of dumping it on someone else right now,�� the woman by Sky River Great Elder said. That woman was Shen Luoxue, the great elder��s wife. There was yet another very pretty girl behind them, and it was Feixue. She went up to Lord Taixuan and advised him, ��Grandpa Xuan, you should really pay more attention to your health.��


    Lord Tiaxuan wore a bitter grin and shook his head. ��Alright, alright. Geez, I got it.��


    He then smiled and looked up at the sky and said, ��I wonder if I could still make it in time.��


    ��What do you mean ��make it in time?�� We��re around, so what��s there to fear?�� the Sky River Great Elder asked.


    ��The world has changed considerably now, and things are not how they used to be. You can see how many terrifying ones are among those from the Divine Prefecture. We��re still far from being strong enough.�� Lord Taixuan sighed.


    ��The place has changed considerably, and a lot of things won��t go back to the way they used to be. We could only do our best to live from here on out,�� the Sky River Great Elder added.


    ��Yeah.�� Lord Taixuan nodded. ��It��s been 20 years, I guess. I wonder how they��re doing now.��


    The arm of the girl behind Lord Taixuan flinched, and she looked up at the sky. Her thoughts seemed to have traveled back to when she was still little, back when she was still very young and innocent. She missed her sister and brother-in-law.


    How are they doing now, I wonder? she thought.


    There were many people out there who said that his brother-in-law was dead, yet Grandpa Xuan and the others said that her brother-in-law would be fine and that he had only left for the time being. However, it had been 20 years, and she was all grown up. She wondered why wasn��t he back yet.


    The Sky River Great Elder and Shen Luoxue sighed as well, thinking that over 20 years had passed just like that.


    Actually, they, too, didn��t know if Ye Futian had truly been able to leave alive. While he did indeed say that he could retreat unscathed, it was still an enigma until the present day. They could only choose to believe that he was still alive and was already at the Divine Prefecture.


    ��He had only become a Renhuang when he left all those years ago. I think that it wouldn��t be that easy for him to return,�� Shen Luoxue sighed and added. Those who came to the Origin Realm were all super cultivation forces. It would have probably taken Ye Futian considerably more time to return, for he had to, at the very least, get to higher levels of Renhuang Realm after all.


    Coming to think about it, 20 years were still too short a time.


    ��I��m afraid that we won��t be able to hold on,�� Lord Taixuan sighed and said.


    ��We will be able to hold on, Grandpa Xuan. He and the others will come back to see you,�� Hua Nianyu comforted him. Lord Taixuan then nodded and smiled. ��I sure hope that I live to see that day.��


    They then seemed to have sensed something all of a sudden as they talked. Lord Taixuan and The Sky River Great Elder looked at the sky, and the murky eyes of Lord Taixun became sharp all of a sudden, piercing into the sky like swords. There were many powerful presences apparent, and none of them were familiar. There were even two extremely terrifying presences among them who were every bit on par with him.


    Who is it this time?


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy all looked up to the sky right away. They watched the clouds above rolled, and dazzling divine light of space rained down. A group of people then shot through the sky and appeared high above. All of them then came to stand in the sky above the academy.


    When those people stopped moving, Lord Taixuan, Sky River Great Elder, and the others seemed to be completely stunned. It seemed like they had spaced out instantly.


    The eyes of Feixue and Hua Nianyu were locked in place as well. It appeared as if time had stopped moving as they looked at the one in the lead among those people.


    That man��s silver hair billowed alongside his white robe in the wind, and he also sported very chiseled features on that handsome face of his. It was a very familiar sight for them all.


    A beaming smile was seen in the eyes of Lord Taixuan after he being stunned for quite some time. He looked incredibly relaxed at the moment, seemingly having released all of the tension he had accumulated over the years. Lord Taixuan finally confirmed that that man had indeed lived back then and had even returned alive.


    Sunlight shone off the weathered face of that old man, illuminating the wrinkles that covered his face.


    ��You��ve returned,�� the old man said. His voice wasn��t loud. His casual tone sounded somewhat relaxed, glad that the man had returned.


    Cough, cough�� He then coughed for a bit after that. His aura appeared rather weak.


    That silver-haired figure in the air felt quite a heartache upon seeing that. He was also fuming deep down as he was told that Lord Taixuan had suffered serious injuries.


    What has happened throughout the years I��ve been gone? he


    wondered.


    Jieyu, Yu Sheng, Wuchen, and the others aren��t around. Where are they? And what is with Lord Taixuan��s injuries? Why does the Heavenly Mandate Academy look so rundown?

 Chapter 2188 - Changes in the Original Realm

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Naturally, the practitioners from the Heavenly Mandate Academy also saw the figure with the white head. It felt like it was a dream.


    20 years ago, he was regarded as the number one prodigy of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. However, he was envied by many, and the factions of the Nine Realms did not allow him to live. Several divine prefecture factions, the Shen Clan, Golden Divine Nation, Tianshen Academy, Sky Reaching School, Martial God Clan, Solar Divine Palace, Celestial Worthy Temple, School of the Emperor Star, and the Holy Land of Taichu allied together to annihilate Ye Futian in front of the world.


    Since then, the number one prodigy of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had died. Many practitioners felt a huge sense of grief. In 20 years, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had undergone tremendous changes. Nowadays, fewer and fewer people talked about him. This legendary person who had ��died�� was gradually being forgotten.


    However, on this day, leading a group of practitioners, he had reappeared in the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian was still alive.


    The number one prodigy of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had come back alive.


    In an instant, the Heavenly Mandate Academy erupted in chaos. Almost everyone in the academy knew who Ye Futian was. Even practitioners who joined the academy later had witnessed Ye Futian��s prowess and strength in the past. He was a powerful practitioner in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. How many had not witnessed his stylish and peerless displays in the past?


    Many practitioners even had tears in their eyes. They were ecstatic. In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, many practitioners idolized Ye Futian. He had long become the symbol of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Even though he was not the college chief, he was still a totemistic character. Tons of his juniors who had never even spoken to him before had nothing but respect for him.


    The peerless figure who dominated an era and overshadowed the other geniuses and prodigies across the realm with elegance had changed the structure of the Nine Realms with his strength alone. However, it was perhaps also his peerlessness and sharpness that led to the sad ending. Nonetheless, it did not influence the respect countless people felt for him. It was a respect that came from the bottom of their hearts.


    Now, seeing Ye Futian return, none could describe the emotion that they were feeling. He was actually alive.


    At that moment, Ye Futian lowered his head and looked at the elder, his eyes slightly pink, and said, ��I��m back.��


    As he spoke, he landed on the ground. He walked until he was in front of Lord Taixuan. The relationship between Lord Taixuan and Ye Futian was not that of a simple master-disciple relationship. Lord Taixuan was an elder who truly took care of him. Since Ye Futian cultivated at Taixuan Mountain, Lord Taixuan had taken extra care of him and treated him like family.


    After the Heavenly Mandate Academy was founded, Lord Taixuan became the college chief.


    Now, seeing Lord Taixuan hurt, one could only imagine what Ye Futian was feeling.


    ��Who is it?�� Ye Futian asked, an eerie coldness tinged in his tone. He was naturally asking about the perpetrator who had injured Lord Taixuan.


    However, a bright smile of pure joy and happiness was the only thing in Lord Taixuan��s eyes that showed the vicissitudes of life. Clearly, he did not mind the injury. He replied softly, ��It is not important. I am relieved now that I see that you are back. Over these past 20 years, I had begun to suspect that you had tricked us back then.��


    Behind Lord Taixuan. Hua Nianyu, with her reddish eyes, looked at Ye Futian and shouted softly, ��Brother-in-law.��


    She still remembered everything when she was young. Back then, she had no worries. Her sister and brother-in-law took care of her, Grandpa Xuan pampered her, and the people at the academy loved her. Then, after her brother-in-law left, she seemed to have grown up in one night.


    Now that her brother-in-law was back, she felt great.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at the woman behind Lord Taixuan. An elvish-looking beauty. She looked similar to Jieyu. Just as beautiful. In an instant, Ye Futian��s gaze became soft and his smile warm.


    ��Little Nianyu, you��ve grown up.��


    Ye Futian lamented in his heart. 20 years was not a long time for practitioners on a higher plane. It was but a flick of a finger. However, for Nianyu, it was her youth. The best time of her life. And they did not provide her with enough sense of security. This made Ye Futian feel guilty.


    He still remembered going to the city of Qingzhou to pick up Nianyu back in the day. Back then, he swore to take good care of Little Nianyu until she grew up. However, he went to the Divine Prefecture, and 20 years had passed. One of the most important periods of Nianyu��s life.


    ��Yes.�� Nianyu nodded slightly. She felt a sense of familiarity and strangeness, both at the same time. The strangeness was because it had been too long, and the familiarity was her memories of Ye Futian had never faded away. She had never forgotten that period of the wonderful time when she was growing up. It was one of the best times of her life. She was like a princess who was pampered and protected by everyone.


    ��Where��s your sister? How is she?�� Ye Futian suddenly felt worried. ��Also, what about Yu Sheng, Wu Chen, and the others? Why do I not see them anywhere?��


    ��They��ve left,�� Nianyu said softly.


    ��Left?�� Ye Futian was stunned. Then, Lord Taixuan said, ��After you left, many things happened. Princess Donghuang personally witnessed the battle before you left. All the factions agreed that all grudges and rivalries ended with your death. So, after your disappearance, Princess Donghuang gathered a group of people to head to the Divine Prefecture to cultivate and train. All the practitioners who possessed a perfect grade Divine Wheel could go. Jieyu, Ye Wuchen, Gu Dongliu, and Dou Zhao left. They have not been back since. Like you, they have been gone for over 20 years.


    ��They went to the Divine Prefecture!��


    Ye Futian was stunned. This was something that did not occur to him at all. Moreover, Princess Donghuang was the one who led them, and just like himself, they had been gone and have not returned in over 20 years.


    Where did they go?


    When would they come back?


    ��Yu Sheng, he went with Mei Ting,�� said Lord Taixuan.


    ��Devil General Mei Ting!�� Ye Futian��s pupils shrunk. He was just worried that if Yu Sheng was with Princess Donghuang, would they discover something about him. However, it turned out that Yu Sheng had chosen another path and left with Mei Ting.


    He knew that Yu Sheng��s relationship with the Devil World could never be severed. This relationship ran very deep. Mei Ting came a few times specifically to look for Yu Sheng.


    ��It should be fine. Back then, Mei Ting respected Yu Sheng��s decision. It was Yu Sheng himself who chose to head to the Devil World,�� said Lord Taixuan. Ye Futian nodded. He completely understood Yu Sheng��s choice.


    Seeing himself surrounded and pursued by various factions, Yu Sheng also suffered in his heart and felt immense anger. He wanted to become stronger. So, he chose to head to the Devil World. Even though his future was filled with uncertainties, Yu Sheng knew that the Devil World was a cultivation holy land for him. He could only grow rapidly in the Devil World.


    As such, he chose to leave with Mei Ting.


    With that, Ye Futian wondered when he would be able to see Yu Sheng again.


    Ye Futian lamented in his heart. People close to him, his lover, his friends, they were no longer here. Everything was related to that battle. His ��death�� made the people close to him choose paths that would help them grow faster. That was why each of them had chosen to leave this realm.


    ��Apart from that, after you left, there have been a lot of major changes in the Original Realm,�� said Lord Taixuan. He then continued, ��In the battle with the three major factions, the two factions that you defeated, the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm, were quiet for some time. However, after a while, they began to commit atrocities throughout the Original Realm. They even destroyed many realms.��


    ��Destroyed realms?�� Ye Futian��s pupils shrunk.


    ��Yes. Do you still remember the incident in the Shadow Realm?�� Lord Taixuan asked. Ye Futian naturally remembered. The power of Yin was inside the Shadow Realm, and he had obtained that power.


    ��The Solar Realm also contains the Divine Power of the Sun. The Divine Prefecture faction in the Upper Worlds, the Sun God Mountain, never left that realm. The Dark Court thought that every realm in the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path contained ancient treasures. As such, they began to destroy the weaker realms, and they ended up destroying many realms. They had even destroyed the Hidden Land Realm, a realm that they previously controlled. Indeed, they certainly did discover mighty divine powers. However, many realms within the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were destroyed. Their acts have certainly plunged many people into misery and suffering,�� said Lord Taixuan.


    Ye Futian��s heart was cold. The Original Realm was said to be the world before the Heavenly Path crumbled. Even though it was later discarded, it was still the Original Realm. It was likely due to this that the opponents began to wreak havoc and inflict mass destruction.


    ��In addition, many practitioners even searched in the boundless space outside the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. In truth, many practitioners from other realms had already been doing this before the Divine Prefecture��s chaotic period. In fact, the Original Realm no longer has that many cultivation resources left. However, they seem to want to squeeze out and extract all remaining value left in the realm, and they really did manage to find several such sites. Later, the Divine Prefecture also sent people over to the Original Realm to stop them. However, the number of cultivators from the Dark World kept increasing while the factions from the Divine Prefecture kept arriving. All of which has led to the current chaos in the Original Realm.��


    Ye Futian listened quietly. He would never have thought that the Original Realm would be turned upside down 20 years after he had left.


    No wonder the imperial palace gathered practitioners from the Divine Prefecture to come to the Original Realm. It looked like a chaotic battle was about to take place in the Original Realm.


    Perhaps this was why Donghuang the Great sealed the Original Realm back then.


    After 300 years, the Original Realm had again become not peaceful.


    At that time, who knew how many powerful beings were gathered in the Original Realm?


    ��Younger brother.�� A voice appeared. Ye Futian shifted his gaze towards the figure approaching the courtyard of the academy. Instantly, Ye Futian withdrew all the negative emotions he was feeling, and a bright smile appeared on his face. Several figures entered the courtyard and approached them. A sense of familiarity washed over Ye Futian.


    ��Second sister.��


    ��Master. Ma��am.��


    ��Master.��


    ������


    Ye Futian called them out one by one. Each was someone familiar and close to him. Zhuge Mingyue, Hua Fengliu, Nandou Wenyin, Qi Xuangang, Douzhan, Zhuge Qingfeng, and others. Everyone appeared in front of him. Seeing that they were all well and good, Ye Futian naturally felt happy, and as such, a bright smile appeared on his face.


    While the Heavenly Mandate Academy had undergone a tribulation, everyone was fine. Only the guardian of the Heavenly Mandate Academy��Lord Taixuan��himself was seriously injured!

 Chapter 2189 - Chaotic Original Realm

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Zhuge Mingyue, Hua Fengliu, Qi Xuangang, and the others were, naturally, extremely happy upon seeing Ye Futian return. Bright smiles could be seen on each of their faces.


    Before Ye Futian left, he had told these close friends and family that he would not die. However, everyone who had witnessed that last battle could not help but feel a little worried, particularly after 20 years without any news. How could they not worry after that?


    Now that they saw him return, the huge burden in their hearts could finally be released.


    ��Younger brother, you have become even more handsome now.�� Zhuge Mingyue walked over beside Ye Futian. She sized him up from top to bottom as if she was afraid that a piece of Ye Futian��s had gone missing. The Ye Futian who left for 20 years had matured quite a bit. His aura had become even more exceptional. Before Ye Futian left, he had already reached the cultivation level of a Renhuang. Now, he was most certainly a lot stronger. His cultivation level was most likely the same as a big shot now. So, naturally, his aura was outstanding.


    ��Elder Sister is also more and more beautiful.�� Ye Futian smiled brightly. In front of his second sister, he still maintained some of the youthful disposition back then.


    ��How have you been all these years?�� Zhuge Mingyue asked Ye Futian while looking at him. After 20 years outside, he had come back with so many amazing and powerful practitioners with him. He must have experienced and gone through a lot.


    ��I��m just like this. Don��t worry about me, elder sister. I want to know what happened to the Heavenly Mandate Academy all these years. Also, how are our old friends?�� Ye Futian asked. This was the thing that he most wanted to know.


    After hearing Ye Futian��s words, everyone became quiet. After a moment of silence, Qi Xuangang said, ��Let��s take a seat and talk.��


    ��Yeah, let��s wash off the dust of travel and properly welcome younger brother back first.�� Zhuge Mingyue nodded and smiled gently. After that, she instructed others to make preparations.


    ��Lord.�� Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan.


    ��You guys go ahead. I��ve grown old and enjoy the quiet. I won��t disturb you young ones in your conversation,�� Lord Taixuan replied with a gentle smile.


    Ye Futian was stunned. Then, from the side, Sky River Great Elder also said, ��Go ahead, Luo Xue and I will stay here to accompany him.��


    ��Then, I will also stay to accompany Grandpa Xuan,�� Hua Nianyu said gently.


    ��Aren��t you always missing your brother-in-law? Now that your brother-in-law is back, why are you accompanying me? Go, accompany your brother-in-law and have a chat,�� said Lord Taixuan with a gentle smile.


    ��Oh,�� replied Hua Nianyu. Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan and did not say much. Then, he said, ��Alright then. Grandmaster, please do take care of Lord Taixuan.��


    ��Of course,�� said Sky River Great Elder while nodding.


    Ye Futian��s group left the place. He had many questions, in particular, questions related to Lord Taixuan��s injuries. However, Lord Taixuan did not want to tell him about it. Since that was the case, he had no choice but to ask about it while avoiding Lord Taixuan.


    Ye Futian��s return caused the Heavenly Mandate Academy to become extremely lively. Every practitioner in the academy talked about his return. They wondered what Ye Futian��s cultivation level was, as well as who those people who came with him were.


    However, they also knew that Ye Futian wanted to hang out with his close friends and family, so naturally, no one dared to disturb him.


    Inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian gathered and chatted with his close ones for a long time as if they had endless things to talk about. After so many years, he had missed so many people, and even though Yu Sheng and the others were not around, the people around him were also his family. He wanted to speak to each of them and ask them how they had been doing.


    Old Ma and the people from Four Corner Village sat quietly on the side. The people from the ancient royal family of Duan naturally did not disturb Ye Futian��s gathering with his family. Moreover, at that moment, Duan Tianxiong was a little shocked. Naturally, he was able to see Ye Futian��s status in the academy. He understood quickly after a simple scan using his divine consciousness.


    It was as if Ye Futian was the soul of the entire academy. What shocked him even more was that several mighty big shots were in the tiny academy in this Lower World. Apart from the earlier Lord Taixuan and Sky River Great Elder, there were still others inside the academy.


    That showed Ye Futian��s standing in the Lower Worlds.


    However, it was not entirely surprising. Ye Futian was so exceptionally talented. It was inevitable that he would be such a famous, monster-like existence in this Lower World.


    Just as they were casually chatting, a frightening aura spread to their location from afar. Ye Futian looked towards the source and sensed a group of powerful cultivators heading towards them. A frightening demonic aura shrouded their surroundings.


    ��What��s going on?�� Ye Futian��s pupils shrank. He stood up and, with a flash, appeared in the sky. He then saw many other familiar people there.


    ��The major clans of the Demon Realm, the cultivators of the Sky Demon Court, the Divine Dragon, and the Divine Elephant clans had arrived. Apart from that, the group leader was the sovereign of the Nantian Divine Kingdom, Emperor Nan.


    Emperor Nan looked just as elegant as ever. However, the conditions of the demonic clans were not as great. Many of the top demonic clan cultivators had blood stains on their bodies. The Divine Elephant Emperor��s large and muscular body was covered in bloodstains.


    ��What happened?�� Ye Futian��s heart trembled.


    At the same time, when Emperor Nan and the others also saw Ye Futian and his group, they seemed perplexed. In particular, the cultivators of the major demonic clans. Their eyes opened wide and stared after they saw Ye Futian standing there.


    ��You��re back.�� Emperor Nan was the first to regain his senses. A gentle smile appeared in his eyes.


    After 20 years of not seeing each other, the number one prodigy of the Original Realm had finally come back.


    ��Elder Emperor Nan.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly. After that, he looked at the elders from the demonic clans and asked, ��What is going on here?��


    Clearly, Ye Futian had just returned and still had no idea what was going on.


    ��Come down first, then we��ll speak,�� Qi Xuangang said. Ye Futian nodded. Then, the group descended from the sky and landed on the ground.


    At that moment, Ye Futian��s head was filled with questions. He moved and left the main seat to Emperor Nan.


    Emperor Nan was the strongest person in their alliance. Moreover, he was considered kind to them and had constantly helped them fight in the past.


    ��The Original Realm has changed a lot. You should already know this, right?�� Emperor Nan asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. ��Yes, I��ve heard. But I do not know the details.��


    ��Now, inside the Original Realm, cultivators from the outside fill the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. In particular, the Nine Supreme Regions. The Heavenly Mandate Realm is also not an exception. Many practitioners from various factions have come to these places. Now, the Demon Realm has been occupied by the cultivators of the Dark Demon Clan. I went there earlier and brought them back to the academy,�� said Emperor Nan.


    The leaders of the main demon clans lowered their heads. They felt rather ashamed.


    ��Based in the Demon Realm, we never would have thought that we��d one day be exiled from there. Initially, we were unwilling to go, but there is no denying that we are weaker than them. So, we can only accept it as it is. In truth, we had already moved out before. But we still have not given up. This time, Emperor Nan went with us to the Demon Realm and helped us get some of our clansmen over,�� said the Divine Elephant Emperor in his deep voice tinged with a slight sense of decadence.


    ��The Dark Demon Clan has powerful characters. Losing to them is natural. Nowadays, it is not only the Demon Realm. Even other places, including the Heavenly Mandate Realm, 10,000 Divine Mountain, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, are considering moving to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. By gathering together, our strength will also increase. Even though factions have their own respective teleportation grand matrixes, the world is too chaotic nowadays. No one knows if they should hang on or give up.�� Emperor Nan said, ��You came back at just the right time.��


    ��What��s up with Lord Taixuan��s injuries? Also, what happened to the Xiao clan, Dou tribe, Yuanyang Clan, and the Clan of the Seven Slayers?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Not great. After external forces entered the Original Realm and started occupying the Nine Realms, many factions from the Divine Prefecture also came. I��m sure you remember the battle from 20 years ago. Even though those factions did not dare to touch us easily because of Princess Donghuang��s orders, as the world changes and with more powerful cultivators arriving from other realms, some of the factions have had reinforcements through clansmen from outer realms. Now, they are raring to go again. In addition, the Shen clan in the Upper Worlds also sent cultivators here to join forces with the Tianshen Academy and the Martial God Clan to pressure the Xiao and Yuanyang clans. It is also the same for the Dou tribe in the Ziwei Realm.��


    Emperor Nan explained slowly, ��As for Lord Taixuan��s injury, it happened in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Now that multiple realms in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path have already been destroyed, even Hidden Land Realms have become fertilizers for the dark forces. The Solar and Shadow realms are no longer great places for cultivation like in the past. Now, some of the forces and factions have their eyes on the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The first one on their sight was the Demon Realm. They have already begun wreaking havoc and causing destruction. Apart from that, the Heavenly Mandate Academy has also become a target. Some of these factions believe that the Heavenly Mandate city is the entrance to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.��


    Ye Futian��s pupils shrunk. He had experienced the incidents back in the Shadow Realm in the past. The Youyue Divine Palace in the Shadow Realm disintegrated completely due to it. The Goddess of the Youyue Divine Palace, Chang Xi, also joined the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate later. Those people directly opened up a passageway to the center of the realm in the area where the Youyue Divine Palace was located in an attempt to obtain the Power of Yin.


    The Void Realm is the Original Realm. The main world before the Heavenly Path crumbled. After the crumbling of the Heavenly Path, the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path was formed. The Nine Supreme Imperial Realms are the cores of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path. The nine realms were most suited for cultivation. Now that outsiders had their eyes on them, the nine realms themselves have become like treasures.


    ��So, this is why Lord Taixuan was injured?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Yes.�� Emperor Nan nodded. ��Also, it happened right inside the Heavenly Mandate City.��


    Ye Futian spread his divine consciousness towards the Heavenly Mandate City. In an instant, it shrouded the entire area, and many practitioners inside the Heavenly Mandate City seemed surprised and slightly irritated. Who was the impudent fool who dared to do this?! To actually scan the entire Heavenly Mandate City without any reservations using his or her divine consciousness.


    Was it another heavyweight from outer realms?


    ��Hmm?�� Then, at that moment, Ye Futian sensed an immensely frightening and powerful aura. The person did not hold back and sent an attack directly at his divine consciousness, which resulted in Ye Futian��s divine consciousness withdrawing instantly. A powerful and domineering divine consciousness now shrouded around them.


    Emperor Nan raised his head to glance at it. At the same time, Duan Tianxiong and Old Ma frowned. Their divine consciousness shot out at the same time, their gazes extremely sharp.

 Chapter 2190 - A Plan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The wills of several titans rolled out with frightening force. Over half of the Heavenly Mandate City was able to sense that terrifying pressure of the Great Path, which felt like pressure from the heavens, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy was at the center.


    Countless cultivators looked at the sky right away, wondering what had happened.


    The people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were no longer surprised by such phenomena anymore. There had been too many extremely formidable people in recent years. Many of them were from the realm itself, and there had even been super battles before. Everyone knew that the Origin Realm was a realm within a realm, so they were no longer be as shocked as they used to be.


    However, they noted that the terrifying pressure seemed to have emanated from the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and they wondered: since when had so many terrifying people gathered at the academy?


    There were cultivators somewhere else in the city, and one of them emanated a terrifying aura. He looked up, and his eyes seemed to have seen right through space and watched right above the academy, looking into what was going inside. He couldn��t help but frown somewhat.


    There seemed to be two very powerful cultivators added to the side of the academy, and those two were people he had never seen before, whom he deduced to be from other realms.


    The wills of both parties clashed and parted. Back at the academy, Ye Futian looked at Emperor Nan. Old Ma then mumbled, ��there seem to be many forces within this city.��


    ��Right.�� Emperor Nan nodded. ��There are indeed several forces.��


    ��So, that was them?�� Ye Futian then asked Emperor Nan, who shook his head instead.��I could only say that they��re in this as well.��


    ��The Dark Court forces came before, then those of the Divine Prefecture. Yet those of Divine Prefecture are just like those of the Dark Court, as both wanted to destroy and plunder the Heavenly Mandate Realm. In the eyes of such cultivators, the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms were like a treasure trove. But they didn��t just go all out right away, only voicing their intention to take the Heavenly Mandate Academy, so as to take control of the realm first.��


    Emperor Nan elaborated further, causing Ye Futian to feel cold deep inside. The Dark Court came to the Origin Realm, and the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture should have repelled the ones from the Dark Court. Yet, that was not how things went. The forces from the Divine Prefecture all had their own agendas, and they were all thinking about plundering the realm as well.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had long become the symbol of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. With the Violet Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty annihilated, the 10,000 Divine Mountain, the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven, and the forces of the Demon Realm had all aligned with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Brahma��s Pure Sky had actually long lost its influence, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy became the undisputed ruling force of the realm. Seizing the academy would be equaled to seizing the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm, and those forces would be able to do as they pleased by then.


    ��That is to say that there are a lot of forces who are in this then?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Emperor Nan nodded. ��A battle broke out above the academy just a month ago. Many forces joined that battle, and Lord Taixuan put his life on the line to repel them. He succeeded in intimidating them, causing them to give up for the time being.��


    ��My current level of powers meant that going all out would be of little help. It was due to reinforcements from all sides coming to the academy��s aid that ended up intimidating those people, preventing those foreign forces from slaughtering everyone there. Now, be it the Dou tribe, the Xiao Clan, or the Yuanyang Clan, everyone was having a hard time. Our former enemies are now leaning on all of them,�� said a voice.


    Lord Taixuan and the others were walking up to them. Lord Taixuan then added, ��the Origin Realm is going to see change, and everything may be reshuffled. Unlike the years before, this is reshuffling in its truest sense, and I have no way of telling if the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be able to stay around in the realm.��


    It was apparent that Lord Taixuan was feeling pessimistic about things. There were simply too many foreign forces coming in, and some were indeed very terrifying. Worse still, from the looks of the recent turn of events, the Origin Realm might become a battlefield.


    There was no telling how many innocent lives from the Origin Realm would be lost.


    ��That one that just hit us is in this. Are they from the Divine Prefecture too?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Yeah, a titan from the Divine Prefecture indeed. The leading figure is extremely powerful, every bit on par with Emperor Nan.�� Lord Taixuan nodded. Emperor Nan confirmed what he just said.


    Ye Futian sighed. He had learned this firsthand many years ago. Be it the Song Imperial Palace, the Holy Land of Taichu, the Shen Clan of the Upper Worlds, or the Sun God Mountain, all looked down on the Origin Realm. The way they saw it, the Origin Realm was a lower world and one that was sealed.


    As such, they showed little restraint and did as they pleased. After making their move against the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they dared to stay in Heavenly Mandate City itself, probably knowing that the academy wouldn��t dare to do anything against them.


    Ye Futian then turned his eyes at Duan Tianxiong and said, ��Could you look into their background for us, senior?��


    Duan Tianxiong was the lord of the ancient royal family of Duan, reigning supreme somewhere. He was of Middle Third Heavens of the Shangqing Domain. His breadth of knowledge meant that he would know a lot better about the many forces from the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Sure.�� Duan Tianxiong spread his will out, enveloping the entire place and coming right above the place where that other party was. The cultivators over there frowned, especially the leading figure. He looked far away and saw a spectral face up in the sky, which was none other than that of Duan Tianxiong. He then said with a booming voice, ��I��m of the Duan Clan of Shangqing Domain. May I know where you are from, sir?��


    The leading figure had a terrifying presence. He looked up at that face and replied casually, ��Mithraism of the Tongtian Domain.��


    Duan Tianxiong looked at the figure and then gradually disappeared. He then told Ye Futian back at the academy, ��Mithraism of the Tongtian Domain of the 18 domains. They are not quite considered top-notch among those found in the Divine Prefecture. Middle class, I��d say. According to what I could speculate, that would be on par with the ancient royal family of Duan. The Mithraism Hierophant is the more powerful among them, and he probably is here personally.��


    ��Understood.�� Ye Futian nodded. He then looked at the ones around him, especially those considered top-notch.


    The allied forces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were anything but weak, and one of the reasons they were bullied was because the foreign forces were more numerous, and they didn��t care much for the native forces. Other than that, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had a lot of enemies and restraints. The academy was right there in the city and had a lot of cultivators in it. In contrast, the foreign forces had all brought only a group of their own people, which meant they had little to care about.


    At present, the one very top-notch figure by his side was Lord Taixuan, whose injuries were to such extent that he could be taken out of the equation. Other than Lord Taixuan, there was also Emperor Nan, the Sky River Great Elder, the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace, as well as Old Ma. Even without Duan Tianxiong, they would still stand a chance of killing one top-notch figure.


    ��Are there any other top-notch figures other than the Mithraism Hierophant, or are there any other forces affiliated with them?�� Ye Futian then asked Duan Tianxiong telepathically. Duan Tianxiong��s pupils contracted slightly as he stared at Ye Futian. He could tell from Ye Futian��s words what Ye Futian meant.


    ��Probably none.�� Duan Tianxiong then answered, ��Are you thinking what I think you��re thinking?��


    ��Old Ma is versed with spatial powers, meaning that he could lock down the battlefield. I��m thinking, in that case, the rest of you seniors will be able to get the fight done quickly,�� Ye Futian answered telepathically.


    Duan Tianxiong��s eyes glittered. Theoretically speaking, with so many formidable ones taking on a single person, they should be able to securely deal a crushing blow if they were to go all out, which meant that it would indeed be possible for them to fight and get rid of the enemy quickly.


    Furthermore, the Heavenly Mandate City was not actually huge, and there were other top-notch forces around. There was then the concern about the other forces coming to the aid of those of Mithraism if they were to act against the members of that cult.


    It would be a lot of trouble heading their way if they were not to kill the enemy.


    ��Have you thought about what happens if we fail?�� Duan Tianxiong asked.


    ��We would have still succeeded in intimidating them even if we fail. They weren��t that concerned when they acted out against the Heavenly Mandate Academy back then,�� Ye Futian said without much care. There were no other forces back at Shangqing Domain that dared to touch the Four Corner Village without hesitation. If the other forces from Divine Prefecture were to look into it, they would be as wary of the Four Corner Village as well.


    After all, the battle which the master fought right outside of the village brought an absolute intimidation factor.


    Duan Tianxiong played the scenario out in his mind. If they were to act at the same time, they would give the enemy a lesson that they wouldn��t forget, even they were to fail. That would prevent the enemy from retaliating without hesitation in the future.


    If the operation were to succeed, that would be the end of Mithraism, and there would no longer be any loose ends. There were concerns with the Imperial Palace, but since it was the other party that attacked in the first place, there was nothing much the Imperial Palace could say about it.


    As such, although Ye Futian��s thoughts were bold, they were doable.


    ��If you really do intend to do this, I can help you stall the other forces and buy you some time,�� Duan Tianxiong said. The other forces will definitely show up if they were to act. He would be able to buy Ye Futian and the others some time if he were to stall those other forces. If they succeed in killing the hierophant, they would be able to shock everyone around.


    ��Thank you,�� Ye Futian said. Both communicated telepathically, yet Emperor Nan and the others were perceptive enough to tell more or less what was going on and that Ye Futian seemed to be in some kind of discussion.


    Ye Futian communicated his thoughts to them telepathically afterward, causing Emperor Nan, Lord Taixuan, and the others to take a good look at him. What he proposed was a bold move. With so many powerful foreign forces showing up and so many forces having taken them on before, that move would have probably triggered something and was indeed risky.


    However, it was worth a try nonetheless.


    Intimidating the foreign forces aside, they saw it imperative to take revenge for the serious injuries that they had inflicted on Lord Taixuan.


    ��This is feasible,�� Emperor Nan voiced his agreement. Emperor Nan had been something deemed capable of slaying gods many years ago. He had been behaving himself for many years, especially after his daughter, Nan Luoshen, was born. With the Origin Realm now in peril, he deemed that it was time to cast away some of his restraints.

 Chapter 2191 - The Hunt

    The group in the Heavenly Mandate Academy came to a decision during that telepathic discussion. Ye Futian rose and left the place with Old Ma and those from the village following right behind him. Emperor Nan, Duan Tianxiong and the others remained behind in the academy instead of following them.


    Ye Futian were to get there first and they would show up later.


    While Heavenly Mandate City was quite vast, yet it was not that huge of a place to those like Ye Futian. All of them got to the air and flew at blitzing speeds, reaching the place where the cultivators of Mithraism before long.


    The people of Mithraism all sat there. The hierophant was a middle-aged man wearing a golden robe, which dazzled under the sunlight. His hair was tied and he looked very magnificent. He then took a look at Old Ma and knew that the man was anything but ordinary. That man was one of the top-notch fighters just like him.


    All the others following behind were powerful as well, which surprised him somewhat. He had never seen those people around in Heavenly Mandate City, speculating that those people were from the Divine Prefecture. The ancient royal family of Duan from Shangqing Domain was there as well.


    The only thing that he was oblivious to was what those people had to do with the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    ��Greetings, Mithraism Hierophant, my name is Ye Futian.�� Ye Futian greeted the hierophant while staying midair.


    ��Ye Futian.�� The hierophant felt that the name sounded rather familiar, like he had heard it somewhere in the Void Realm. At that moment, some cultivators in the area were feeling very shocked, with their sight nailed at that silver-haired young man.


    They were not the only ones, with many other powerful cultivators saw it when Ye Futian was making it his way there from the academy. There were a lot of other Renhuang Realm figures appearing far away, looking where Ye Futian were and felt very shocked.


    Ye Futian actually survived that battle 20 years ago.


    He had returned.


    Countless cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm bore witness to that battle. Almost everyone in the city saw that intense battle taking place in the air, and they all wondered how did Ye Futian managed to survive.


    That legendary being who had been very renowned among the nine realms 20 years ago, was thought to be an unparalleled genius who had perished for 20 years. Yet, there he was, standing alive and well before everyone.


    There were lots of chatter from everywhere. The hierophant scanned with his will and sensed that countless were talking about Ye Futian. He couldn��t help but felt intrigued, looking at that silver-haired young man in midair and asked, ��you seem to be famous in this city.��


    ��I��m famous not only in the Heavenly Mandate City. 20 years ago, I��ve been famous in the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm and even the nine realms.�� Ye Futian answered while standing midair. Wills were sensed scanning that place at that moment. It was apparent that quite a lot of cultivation forces were paying attention to what was happening over there.


    While Ye Futian sounded like he was talking big, yet everyone from the city knew that he was telling nothing but the truth. There was literally no cultivator in Heavenly Mandate Realm who didn��t know of Ye Futian��s name.


    The hierophant looked at him and Ye Futian continued, ��I was the one who pushed for the establishment of the Heavenly Mandate Academy more than 20 years ago, and I was the one who had consolidated the forces of the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm, making the academy the holy land for cultivation throughout the realm.��


    ��Your level of training more than 20 years ago shouldn��t be high. It��d be rather extraordinary of you to be capable of such achievements.�� The hierophant said. He was naturally able to sense Ye Futian��s level��level six of Renhuang Realm.


    That meant that Ye Futian probably wasn��t at the level he was at currently 20 years ago.


    ��I was doing fine. I heard that you came from the Divine Prefecture, sir, and you have acted against the Heavenly Mandate Academy.�� Ye Futian then added.


    ��So?�� The hierophant looked up at Ye Futian with very pointed eyes. There seemed to be a very powerful force washing all over the place in an instant, shrouding over Ye Futian and making him feel extremely stifling.


    ��Nothing much. I��ve just returned from the Divine Prefecture as well and I��m curious just how powerful Mithraism from the Tongtian Domain actually is, seeing how you dare to do as you please in Origin Realm.�� Ye Futian added, ��As such, I��d like to see if there��s anyone from your cult considered capable.��


    Several people around the hierophant, who were all at Renhuang Realm emanated very powerful presence. There was even an elder who was at level nine, who harbored extremely frightening aura.


    All of them looked up at Ye Futian, taking note that the young man was indeed there asking for trouble, wanting to fight someone at Renhuang Realm from the cult.


    The cultivators of the city far away were all shaken to their cores, seeing how Ye Futian went on to challenge Mithraism, who had acted against the Heavenly Mandate Academy right after he returned.


    ��Who among you would heed the challenge?�� The hierophant sat where he was and asked casually, seemingly unfazed by what was happening. Nothing much could happen with him in charge after all.


    Someone who was at level seven of Renhuang Realm rose to the air. His eyes were filled with fiery divine light and emanated frightening aura. Old Ma and the others backed away, making space for Ye Futian and the cultivator who just emerged.


    Booom�� a frightening might of the Great Path washed all over the place, shrouding over Ye Futian. The sky seemed to have been shrouded by the flames right away and a terrifying ring of fire appeared right above Ye Futian, which turned into a terrifying region of flames.


    The flames roared and shot at Ye Futian right away. All eyes were on Ye Futian. However, he didn��t bother evading and simply stood his ground, until the roaring flames engulfed him altogether.


    That cultivator at level seven of Renhuang Realm glared at Ye Futian, wondering if he was having a death wish.


    The flames were extremely destructive as they surrounded Ye Futian. However, he looked like he was simply basking in the flames, standing quietly in the air and let flames engulf him without moving a muscle.


    ��That��s all?��


    Ye Futian asked with a calm tone, yet those two words were like a massive insult. That cultivator at level seven of Renhuang Realm then conjured a terrifying sun halo. Beams of divine light shot from it and he seemed to have turned into a sun god. He then stepped out and threw a palm attack right away at Ye Futian, which looked like it could shroud and burn down the skies.


    The intense heat from the palm attack was very terrifying.


    Yet, he saw that Ye Futian simply remained standing around like he saw nothing. That cultivator from Mithraism was someone very formidable in the cult, and he had never been belittled before. That terrifying palm attack blasted out right away, and Ye Futian simply extended his hand and clapped at it calmly.


    Boom�� The flames were extinguished right away and the palm attack was shattered. That man was sent flying backwards and spitting blood. All of his internal organs felt like they had been ruptured by that one attack, and his aura got increasingly weak by the second.


    What happened caused several cultivators at Renhuang Realm from the cult standing up at the same time, staring at Ye Futian and towering aura washed all over the place, putting an extremely pressure over the sky.


    Ye Futian was then seen scanning at those people and the look in his eyes remained filled with contempt. None of them felt like a threat to him.


    ��So, this is a force from the Divine Prefecture then? You��re welcomed to come at me at once,�� he then said.


    The hierophant wore a cold expression right there and then. He was naturally able to sense that while Ye Futian was only at level six, yet his Great Path was perfect. Ye Futian��s current level of powers had fully enabled him to fight common cultivators at level eight of Renhuang Realm.


    Overbearing auras burst and several cultivators at Renhuang Realm came right at Ye Futian. Old Ma flashed and came to the side of the hierophant, causing the hierophant to turn his eyes at him. However, Old Ma had no intentions of making a move. He simply looked at the sky and said, ��they probably aren��t a match for him after all.��


    Those cultivators charged at Ye Futian, who burst with frightening pressure from his body all of a sudden. He took a step out into the sky and divine light glittered on his body, like a divine body shinning with a dazzling glow.


    He looked at those people coming at him and he remained unflinching.


    ��Kill.�� All of them were onto him soon enough and terrifying palm attacks were thrown at him right away.


    Boom�� Extremely terrifying might washed all over the place. The attacks blasted onto his body right away, yet his body simply burst with unparalleled, blinding aurora. Those who charged at him were shocked to see what happened, noting that they failed to make him budge at all.


    At the very next moment, a terrifying spatial storm formed around his body and he was seen shooting upwards. All of those cultivators felt as if their bodies had been put under lockdown, shooting into the clouds alongside him.


    Booom!


    The hierophant stood up and his powers reached unbelievable heights in an instant, extending his hand right away to grab at Ye Futian in the sky. A spatial divine beam was seen emerging, shrouding the entire place and blocking his move. Old Ma was then seen appearing right above him.


    Booom!


    Old Ma waved and the people from the village disappeared right away. He continued to rise to the sky at the same time. The hierophant stepped into the air, causing the place to rumble as he shot to great heights. It didn��t take them long to reach the sky above Heavenly Mandate City. Countless cultivators turned to look at where they were at once.


    Ye Futian stopped and looked down. Several very powerful ones from the Four Corner Village made their move as the hierophant shot to the skies, making their way to the surrounding areas right away.


    The hierophant sensed towering might and scanned around him. He then saw frightening spatial powers appeared around him, locking down the area he was in like some kind of divine walls.


    It was then that he realized that Ye Futian hadn��t been there to fight those cultivators at Renhuang Realm; they were there for him.


    Those top-notch figures from the Heavenly Mandate Academy intended to hunt him down, and he never expected that those people would actually have the guts to hunt him down right before the many cultivation forces around them.

 Chapter 2192 - The Death of the Mithraism Hierophant

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A towering aura swept all over above the Heavenly Mandate City, with several terrifying powers bursting in several different directions. A storm whipped up in the sky in an instant, causing all cultivators in the city to be in shock as the storms swept past. Some who were of weaker training were reduced to trembling in fear under all that pressure, lying on all fours right away.


    ��How insolent����


    A voice reverberated in the air. Those from top-notch forces, who were out to watch a show, saw that those from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were actually out to hunt down the Hierophant of Mithraism, and they were all in shock.


    Quite a number of cultivation forces had acted against the academy back then. If those people from the academy actually managed to kill the hierophant, it would mean that those people would be coming for them next. With that being said, all of them sensed danger right away. So, they burst with terrifying might in the air as well.


    However, the academy had been prepared for such a scenario. Duan Tianxiong made his move right after those from the academy made their move. He rose into the air, and a terrifying specter of a heavenly god overlayed his body. It was as if that specter had melded with him and made him a god as well.


    Frightening rumbles were heard, and the place was placed in a lockdown. It was like a heavenly fortress was shrouding the vast space and covering the battlefield.


    What he needed to do was but to stall them for some time for Ye Futian and the others to get enough time to finish the hunt.


    The others had naturally made their moves when Duan Tianxiong made his move. The handful of titans attacked at the same time the Hierophant of Mithraism realized that he was being targeted.


    Old Ma stood high in the air, and countless spatial gates appeared on him as he made his way to the Hierophant. The gates seemed to be out of throw the hierophant into the spatial turbulences.


    The Hierophant glittered all over and became like a true god. The divine light of the sun burned the skies and conjured a terrifying destructive power with him at the center. He kept moving forward, and the gates continued to burn as he moved.


    However, he seemed to be thrown into a chaotic space at that moment, with countless spatial gates circling around him.


    Boom�� He raised his hand and attacked the spatial gates. That massive palm attack of his destroyed everything in its path, yet at the same time, the others around him attacked as well.


    The Divine Sword Qinghe burst with brilliant bluish-green divine light, tearing everything in its path and destroyed that incoming palm attack from the Hierophant as well, then kept moving in an unstoppable manner.


    Sky River Great Elder, the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace, and a divine monument came at the Hierophant at the same time, making it look like the space that he occupied was about to collapse.


    Booom.


    A terrifying divine fiery stream swept all over the place. The Hierophant put his hands together, looking like he was praying, and a burst of unparalleled force shot to the clouds. It burst through the spatial gates, looking like it was about to break through the divine walls on the outside. Divine light shrouded the Hierophant, and he seemed to have changed altogether, looking like some god.


    A massive idol of the sun god appeared in front, and the sun god looked like it would destroy everything as its divine flames burst, snuffing out any other power of the Great Path and reducing everything to dust. The streams spread all over the place and destroyed all of the spatial gates around with the divine light of flames.


    The Hierophant was naturally aware of what he was dealing with at the moment. His life was on the line, and he had to give it his all to fight.


    Several attacks that came at him were all repelled. Even Emperor Nan��s Divine Sword Qinghe had to evade the Hierophant��s might. The Hierophant was indeed mighty and was incredibly capable. He was still at the perfection of the Great Path of the Renhuang Realm, meaning that his combat prowess was extremely powerful. As far as one-on-one battles were concerned, none of the few attacking him dared to claim that they could beat him.


    Boom�� Terrifying rumbles were heard on the outside, and the divine walls began cracking, making it clear that there were frightening battles taking place outside as well.


    Several formidable ones had acted against Duan Tianxiong at that moment, intending to get inside the walls. While Duan Tianxiong was indeed formidable, having to seal the place with his might of the Great Path while holding all those people back was difficult. He could only hold on for so long.


    Old Ma and the others took a look at the sun god idol. They were able to sense its might. They knew right there and then that it would be challenging to complete the hunt quickly.


    That sun god idol lit up the entire place, and the divine light emanating from it was powerful enough to tear everything in its path.


    ��Make your move,�� Old Ma said, and spatial divine light lit up all over him as soon as he finished.


    He flashed and disappeared from where he stood right away, appearing right before that terrifying sun god idol. They all went right before the hierophant. That was a distance that beings at their level could ignore altogether.


    Vooom�� The spatial divine light drowned out that sun god idol right away. Boundless spatial halos surged from Old Ma, surrounding that sun god idol and everything around it, including himself.


    A frightening, destructive power burst from inside.


    ��Get moving.��


    Emperor Nan and the others realized what Old Ma was doing. He was going all out to help Ye Futian finish the operation. He was using his own might of the Great path to devour that towering, magnificent sun god idol.


    The hierophant shouted angrily. His hands remained closed in midair. The towering divine flames were about to tear every power of the Great Path apart, emerging out of that spatial storm. The frightening spatial storm continued to burn and looked like it could collapse at any given moment.


    The divine power of the Hierophant��s Great Path surged inside.


    Booom! A terrifying palm attack blasted and the hierophant counterattacked by extending his hand to attack. His palm attack of the sun was terrifying, and it clashed with what was coming from the Sky River Great Elder.


    A terrifying divine tower shattered the divine light high up in the sky, and the Hierophant outward blasted with his other hand.


    At the same time, Emperor Nan��s Divine Sword Qinghe came at the Hierophant yet again.


    Booom! A frightening rumble was heard, and Duan Tianxiong, who was outside, was eventually unable to hold any longer. The walls were destroyed, and everyone out there saw that massive space inside. They then saw blinding divine light stinging their eyes. The divine light of the sun blasted out in a frenzy. Yet, a divine sword capable of shattering everything hit the Hierophant.


    The Hierophant let out a pained roar as his power of the sun blasted Emperor Nan and the others. However, Divine Sword Qinghe went on to tear everything in its path, and that magnificent tower in the sky rained down the light of calamity, shattering the Hierophant��s body bit by bit.


    A spectral figure appeared and looked like it was about to run, yet Emperor Nan and the others were not about to give him that chance, tearing that apart alongside what they were already destroying.


    ��No���� An anguished roar reverberated throughout the entire Heavenly Mandate City, shaking the sky. Countless cultivators from the city looked up, seeing blinding beams of divine light emanating. It was as if something had just been destroyed.


    The hearts of countless people raced, wondering if a top-notch figure had just been killed.


    On the battlefield, Emperor Nan and the others were all repelled, yet their eyes were all set in one direction��the place where Old Ma was. A destructive, fiery aura was sensed from Old Ma at that moment. His aura appeared rather weak, and his face looked somewhat charred as well.


    It was apparent that he was injured. He had paid some price to successfully kill the Hierophant of Mithraism.


    ��Are you alright?�� Emperor Nan asked, feeling rather impressed with Old Ma��s feats. He wondered what kind of relationship that man had with Ye Futian to be going to such lengths. That attack had been very, very risky, and Old Ma was putting himself on the line. Any misstep and he could have ended up with extreme injuries.


    ��I��m fine,�� Old Ma replied and looked around him. A terrifying aura came down, and several top-notch beings stood in different places, yet none of them made a move.


    The man was already killed, and they were too late.


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy actually managed to kill the Hierophant of Mithraism.


    At that moment, all cultivators from the cult were shaking in fear. Many of their own had been taken down by Ye Futian, not far away from Duan Tianxiong. Those people were all trembling deep down, and their eyes nailed to the place where their leader had just been snuffed out. It seemed as if they had a hard time believing what just happened.


    The Hierophant is dead?


    Mithraism was a titan among the cultivation forces of Tongtian Domain, reigning supreme, and their powers were mighty. The Hierophant was at the pinnacle of Renhuang Realm, which meant that he was among those standing at the very top.


    They had all come to the Void Realm with a condescending mindset, looking down on the cultivators of the Origin Realm, seeing the sealed Origin to be just a fractured, incomplete world that the Divine Prefecture had left in the dust.


    Yet, their Hierophant ended up being killed in the Origin Realm.


    Despite all of them still being at the Renhuang Realm, they all knew that that was the end for them.


    Booom�� A terrifying power of both extreme Yin and extreme Yang surged into their bodies. Ye Futian hovered midair, and those whom he seized all wore twisted expressions.


    It didn��t take long for all of them to get reduced to dust by that very power. All of them ended up killed.


    That caused the ones from forces originating from the Divine Prefecture to stare at Ye Futian, sensing an immense threat from him.


    Ye Futian scanned those fighters at the same time. The very reason why he killed all those whom he seized was to send a warning to those foreign cultivators, telling them not to throw their weight around in the Origin Realm.


    The death of the Hierophant of Mithraism would probably serve as a sufficient warning to those foreign forces that came to Origin Realm.


    At that moment, countless cultivators in the city looked up at Ye Futian, who just killed scores of cultivators at Renhuang Realm, thinking that the number one legendary figure in the Origin Realm had finally returned.


    He had become even more terrifying at present, and those powerful cultivators at the Renhuang Realm were little more than bugs before him.


    They wondered just how far had he transformed, coming back 20 years later from then.

 Chapter 2193 - The One Who Injured Lord Taixuan

    Ye Futian didn��t care what the others thought. He surveyed the crowd and was surprised to find an acquaintance among the people.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened as he focused on that figure in white.


    This middle-aged man in white came to the Original Realm more than 20 years ago and had participated in many battles afterward. He was a cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu in the Divine Prefecture of the Upper Worlds. Once upon a time, he had taken the cultivators of Taichu Holy Land and intended to preach in the Heavenly Mandate Academy then take over direct control of the Academy, making it into one of the many branches of Taichu Holy Land.


    In those 20 years, had he left and came back again? Or had he been in the Original Realm all along?


    The middle-aged man in white clearly saw Ye Futian as well. His eyes had been following Ye Futian, the Renhuang Sixth Realm with perfect Great Path.


    Back then, when Ye Futian was ��killed,�� he was in the Second Realm of Renhuang. In 20 short years, he had crossed four major realms. This cultivation speed was unbelievably fast, something that even the top enchanting genius in Taichu Holy Land could barely follow.


    Of course, more importantly, Ye Futian didn��t even die.


    How could Ye Futian still be alive?


    In that battle, various forces had participated, and they all witnessed Ye Futian hunted down in the attack. Back then, even the space itself was torn apart. There were a series of terrible spatial fissures that buried Ye Futian within them. In such a fierce battle, with lethal attacks from major figureheads, how could he have survived?


    However, Ye Futian was now in front of him. He brought with him the cultivators from Divine Prefecture.


    He had spent most of these years in the Original Realm, studying the situation here. All great changes in the world would begin in the Original Realm. This was something he had heard when he was still in the Holy Land of Taichu. That was the precise reason why the Taichu Holy Land had come here 20 years ago, wanting to preach here and take root in the Original Realm; he wanted to observe all the changes taking place here closely.


    Until now, more and more forces had arrived from Divine Prefecture. In addition, the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and many other realms had infiltrated in the shadows. All the forces realized that after nearly 400 years of peace. The world might experience a new round of unrest, and the starting point could very possibly be the Original Realm. And all these principalities wanted to seize this opportunity.


    It could be said that the Original Realm had already sunk into chaos nowadays, and all foreign cultivation forces had come to prey upon them.


    ��You��re not dead?�� the middle-aged man in white said as he looked at Ye Futian. Many forces had participated in that battle back then. If they had seen Ye Futian standing here, what would they think? Perhaps they would be even more astonished than he was.


    Ye Futian looked at the middle-aged man in white and saw that he was rather calm. He came from the Holy Land of Taichu in the Divine Prefecture, and this holy land was not just any ordinary top-level principality. It was a preaching force in the Upper Worlds of Divine Prefecture, and its power may be at a more transcendent level than most. Therefore, although he was surprised to see that Ye Futian had survived, he did not seem to dwell upon this disturbing fact.


    At least, as a Renhuang of the Sixth Realm, he was not yet a threat to the Holy Land of Taichu.


    ��I was lucky. You guys opened the spatial tunnel that allowed me to go to the Divine Prefecture,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    ��It��s impossible.�� The middle-aged man in white stared at Ye Futian. He was there at that battle. The spatial fissure only appeared after the attack. In other words, those aggressive attacks had torn through the space. The attack had fallen upon Ye Futian first, then tore through the space.


    How were attacks able to tear through space not able to kill Ye Futian?


    This made no sense at all.


    ��If it��s impossible, then what am I?�� Ye Futian smiled. The middle-aged in white suddenly doubted his own judgment. Facts spoke for themselves. Ye Futian was standing in front of him now. If that was impossible, then what or what was the person standing in front of him?


    Ye Futian was standing here, alive. And not long ago, he had hunted down a giant figure, the Hierophant of Mithraism. He had demonstrated superior combat effectiveness, easily obliterating a group of Renhuang.


    Among the Renhuang killed by Ye Futian, there were those at the Ninth Realm, which was considered at the peak of Renhuang. Even without perfect Great Path, the combat power at this level was far superior. So, why were they so easily killed by Ye Futian?


    The Holy Land of Taichu was a preaching holy land, and they did a lot of studies on various realms. Cultivators with perfect Great Path at the Sixth Realm could deal with ordinary Renhuang of the Eighth Realm. But as a basic rule, they would have difficulty in dealing with those in the Ninth Realm. That was unless they were naturally gifted individuals with outstanding combat effectiveness.


    Perfect Great Path alone did not explain the ease he had killing Renhuang in the Ninth Realm, a feat that could not be achieved unless the person was an unparalleled talent. This meant that this white-haired young man, who was once known as the number one genius talent in the Original Realm, remained a top-notch figure in all of the Divine Prefecture.


    The middle-aged man in white fell silent. Naturally, Ye Futian did not forget the events that had taken place in the past. It seemed that this guy could not be spared and that a great battle in the Original Realm was likely.


    However, looking at Ye Futian��s entourage, it seemed that it was more difficult than ever to kill Ye Futian. He had even brought two major figureheads with him, worthy of his reputation as a genius talent.


    ��The ancient royal family of Duan from the Shangqing Domain.�� The old man in the white robe looked at Duan Tianxiong. He then directed his attention to Old Ma and said, ��And this one, which force in the Shangqing Domain is this one from?��


    ��Four Corner Village,�� Old Ma replied.


    ��Four Corner Village����


    Those cultivators from Divine Prefecture looked at Old Ma. Clearly, they had heard of Four Corner Village before.


    The same was true for the old man in the white robe. Four Corner Village in the Shangqing Domain was not a top principality before, but the Great Emperor favored it. It was rumored that Donghuang the Great had once gone to Four Corner Village to seek the Way before becoming the Great Emperor, therefore forging a relationship with the village.


    But he was not clear as to what changes had taken place inside Four Corner Village. And since when had the giants from Four Corner Village started to leave the village?


    However, the other cultivators from Divine Prefecture frowned. Before they came to the Original Realm, a major event had occurred in the Shangqing Domain of Divine Prefecture. Because this matter involved those whose existence was on the level of the Ancient Emperor, the news spread quickly to other domains.


    Regarding the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    One of the cultivators of Divine Prefecture set his eyes on Ye Futian, assessing him seriously before asking, ��Are you that person in the Shangqing Domain who was the only one to observe the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor?��


    Ye Futian glanced at the man; he didn��t expect this matter as common knowledge among the top figures in other Domains of Divine Prefecture.


    But it might as well. That battle in Four Corner Village had a strong deterrent effect.


    ��Indeed, it was me,�� Ye Futian replied.


    That cultivator��s eyes sharpened slightly. There was not much information about Ye Futian. What they had heard the most was that just before they went to the Lower Worlds, all the major principalities of the Shangqing Domain descended upon Four Corner Village and coerced it with great pressure. However, they returned with their tails between their legs. One of the most powerful forces in the Shangqing Domain, the clan leader of the Nanhai Family, was grievously injured by a single blow. Moreover, that mysterious figure in Four Corner Village had activated the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    This made Four Corner Village even more mysterious. And that teacher from Four Corner Village was an unfathomable figure.


    They had never expected that this enchanting genius talent, who could perceive the sacred remains and who was connected to Four Corner Village, was actually involved with the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Lower Worlds. No wonder he was so daring as to slaughter the Mithraism Hierophant outright. It seemed that he had the backing of that mysterious cultivator inside Four Corner Village.


    This Heavenly Mandate Realm was no longer so easy to provoke.


    The middle-aged man in white from the Holy Land of Taichu frowned. He had not heard of this event before. It seemed that Ye Futian had also caused quite a stir in the land of Divine Prefecture.


    But all the giants from the Upper Worlds were now becoming a little more cautious.


    ��In the future, we will no longer participate in the matter regarding Heavenly Mandate Realm. How about we forget all the unpleasantness from the past?�� a top figure from Divine Prefecture said. With Four Corner Village behind Ye Futian as support, there was no need to engage with them. They would simply avoid the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future.


    Ye Futian stared at the man who spoke. If he allowed this, who was going to be responsible for injuring Lord Taixuan?


    ��That will work.�� But Lord Taixuan of the Heavenly Mandate Academy responded, ��Everyone, withdraw from the Heavenly Mandate City henceforth, and we will forget about what happened before.��


    Although he could see that Ye Futian had made some connections outside, he did not want Ye Futian to make too many enemies. This battle had killed the Mithraism Hierophant and attracted the attention of these people already. If they really wanted to, they would undoubtedly unite against them. Coupled with enemies of Heavenly Mandate Academy from before, who had been eyeing them all these years and had been pressuring their allies in the Ziwei Realm as well as the Imperial Realm. If they continued making enemies, the pressure would only increase.


    And now, with chaos at hand, his injury was nothing by comparison. He only hoped that Ye Futian��s return could save the Heavenly Mandate Academy and ensure its survival in the challenging times ahead.


    Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan, who had come to his side. He transmitted his voice to Ye Futian, ��Without them, there will be other forces. Let it go. If you really want to, remember the person who injured me, and wait until you reach the top of Renhuang Realm, then you can do what you please with him.��


    ��Who was it?�� Ye Futian asked. This was the first time that Lord Taixuan had mentioned the person who injured him. Before, Emperor Nan had said that many forces were involved, but the person who caused Lord Taixuan to be injured by the Great Path would be the one who actually struck him.


    ��He is not in the Heavenly Mandate Realm now, and at present, none of us can deal with him. For the time being, just leave it alone; you can avenge me later.�� Lord Taixuan was very cautious. Clearly, the opponent this time was formidable, and he was worried that Ye Futian would act impulsively.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian nodded in response.


    ��In the Holy Land of Taichu, the master of Taichu Sparring Grounds was someone with monstrous cultivation. Even Emperor Nan was unequivocally suppressed when facing him. If he is determined to attack the Heavenly Mandate Academy, it will be difficult for the Academy to exist. But this man was haughty beyond imagination and cared not to attack anyone below the level of figureheads, so he did not unleash his lethal attacks. Not long ago, because of something that happened elsewhere, he left for the time being. But the threat this man poses to the Heavenly Mandate Academy is a frightening thought,�� Lord Taixuan said via voice transmission.


    Ye Futian was deeply surprised. It appeared that he needed to understand from Duan Tianxiong just how strong the Holy Land of Taichu, this preaching holy land in the Divine Prefecture, really was. The master of Taichu Sparring Grounds should be the elder of Mu Qingke, who had fought him once and would be the strongest person who came to the Holy Land of Taichu this time. No wonder Lord Taixuan had been secretive about the identity of the person who injured him.


    Even though he had brought two cultivators, Lord Taixuan knew that it was tough to deal with that transcendent existence from the Holy Land of Taichu!

 Chapter 2194 - Unrest

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The cultivators of all forces departed. When the middle-aged man in white, who was from the Holy Land of Taichu, saw everyone else had left, he departed as well. It seemed that he needed to investigate the situation inside the Divine Prefecture and find out what exactly happened concerning the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    It seemed that Four Corner Village, which used to stay away from the world of cultivation, was now a force that posed a great threat.


    There were still many people in the lower strata of Mithraism. Watching the departure of their top leaders, they felt a little hopeless. The moment the Hierophant was killed, they knew that Mithraism as an organization was over. Without peak-level figures, it was virtually impossible to gain a foothold in Divine Prefecture. Even if they did not disband on their own, they would become prey to the other forces.


    On the surface, all the top forces that were involved in cultivation in Divine Prefecture appeared to co-exist peacefully. However, under the surface of that calmness was extreme cruelty. The loss of any top figures would mean the loss of their standing in the cultivation world. Even if they did not disband, their cultivation resources would be snatched away by others, or even the enchanting figures in their sect might defect to other principalities, which would spell disaster.


    Of course, at the moment, they were still awaiting the judgment from Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian glanced down at them and said, ��If I find that any of you kills one more person in the Original Realm, I will kill you all.��


    However, those cultivators were relieved when they heard Ye Futian and walked away without any arguments. All the really powerful people among them had already died at Ye Futian��s hands. Mithraism was over, and none of them wanted revenge, as that would only spell their own deaths.


    ��Let��s go back.��


    After the battle had concluded, Ye Futian and the others returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The cultivators of the academy were excited beyond words. Before, there was always a dark cloud hanging over their heads, pressing down on their hearts. The first battle after Ye Futian��s return had dissolved the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s immediate concerns.


    At least, there was no need to worry about the sword that was hanging above the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If they had not shocked and awed these opponents, they may come back at any time and attack the Academy.


    Now that the Hierophant of Mithraism had been killed, other forces had also retreated and would not dare to move on the Heavenly Mandate Academy lightly.


    However, Ye Futian��s heart was still heavy, and Lord Taixuan��s words put him under more pressure. Four Corner Village had the teacher as an effective deterrent, but he was not the teacher, after all. There were too many forces that had come to the Original Realm this time; Heavenly Mandate City alone was stationed by several major forces.


    Coupled with supreme forces such as the Holy Land of Taichu, he realized just what kind of reality the Original Realm was facing today. They had the strongest alliance in the Original Realm but still faced such terrible pressure. What kind of pressure came from the rest of the forces in the Original Realm?


    Today��s Original Realm was already the playground of outside cultivators.


    When all the cultivators gathered together, Ye Futian asked Duan Tianxiong, ��Does Elder know much about the Holy Land of Taichu?��


    ��It��s the top holy land for cultivation in Divine Prefecture; surely, I know of it.�� Duan Tianxiong nodded slightly, ��In the 18th domains of Divine Prefecture, there are a few cultivation holy lands similar to the Holy Land of Taichu, but they are basically the same as the ancient royal family of Duan. However, the Holy Land of Taichu is different. It��s a well-known cultivating holy land in the entire Divine Prefecture, the symbol of the Taichu Domain, even Taichu Domain Chief��s Manor has to show their respect. In the Taichu Domain, the Holy Land of Taichu was more like its core.


    ��The Holy Land of Taichu has produced many extraordinary cultivators, and the entire Taichu Domain is under its influence. Cultivators from all the continents in the domain are proud to enter the Holy Land of Taichu to cultivate and would travel, no matter the distance, to seek the Way there. The Taichu Saint Emperor is an unparalleled Renhuang and must have experienced the great tribulation to get to where he is. Beneath Taichu Saint Emperor, there are several top figures, one of whom is the master of Taichu Sparring Ground. As far as the outside world knows, there are at least five giants in the Holy Land of Taichu, a true behemoth,�� Duan Tianxiong explained to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened slightly. No wonder the Holy Land of Taichu was so overbearing when it came to the Original Realm, intending to preach there as if it was a favor to them. Now it was revealed that the person who was tasked with this assignment in the Lower Worlds was not the topmost figure himself. That cultivator in white and the Purple Robe War Emperor were not true representatives of the peak combat power from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    No wonder Lord Taixuan was being so cautious.


    ��20 years ago, what forces came to the Original Realm?�� Duan Tianxiong asked. It seemed that 20 years ago, some things happened here, and Ye Futian had some interaction with Taichu Holy Land.


    ��Song Imperial Palace, Sun God Mountain, the Shen Clan, Celestial Worthy Mountain, and possibly the Mo Clan. There may be other forces in the shadows,�� said Ye Futian.


    Duan Tianxiong frowned slightly when he heard his answer, a surprised look on his face.


    ��No wonder.�� Duan Tianxiong said, ��The powers that you speak of were powerful forces in the Divine Prefecture, so they first came to the Original Realm. Back then, there was no order from the Great Emperor. And you offended these forces?��


    How could Ye Futian have known about these forces in the first place? Listening to Duan Tianxiong��s explanation, he understood that these forces were the giants among the giants in Divine Prefecture.


    ��Several forces were targeting me at the Heavenly Mandate Academy at the time,�� said Ye Futian, ��Later, they wanted me to die and joined forces to hunt me down. I faked my death and went to the Divine Prefecture instead.��


    ��It��s amazing that you are still alive.�� Duan Tianxiong said, ��So, you have already exposed your superior talents in the Original Realm to the point that they wanted to exterminate you. Now that the passage is open, and with even more powerful cultivators coming, you better not provoke these forces just yet.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. Everyone around him looked solemn after hearing it.


    ��Back then, it was not our intention to offend them, but we had no choice.�� Emperor Nan said, ��To this day, the Heavenly Mandate Academy has never taken the initiative to attack anyone until just now with the Hierophant of Mithraism.��


    Survival in the world of cultivation was often without much choice.


    Even though he knew those forces were powerful, he had no choice.


    ��It seems that the battle at Four Corner Village in the Shangqing Domain was necessary, after all. The teacher had instilled fear in the world with this battle, and anyone who cultivates in the Divine Prefecture will hear about it eventually and take heed,�� Duan Tianxiong said. Ye Futian knew he was referring to the departure of some top cultivators not long ago, as partly due to the deterrent effect of that battle.


    Outside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian��s return and the death of the Hierophant of Mithraism caused an uproar.


    Especially in the Heavenly Mandate City, news spread at lightning speed throughout the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm, and the whole realm was shaken.


    Ye Futian��the number one genius talent in all of Nine Realms and perhaps, even in all of 3,000 Realms of the Great Path��first became known in Heavenly Mandate Realm and founded Heavenly Mandate Academy to preach and cultivate. Countless people in the realm admired and respected Ye Futian, but they were also the ones who suffered the most from the news about Ye Futian��s death.


    Now, he was back, returning with the cultivators of Divine Prefecture, having slain the Hierophant of Mithraism.


    Furthermore, they knew very well that Ye Futian��s return concerning not only Ye Futian��s own power but his future.


    This was a monstrous genius talent that could shake the Nine Realms to their core and cause the cultivators in all Nine Realms to join forces to extinguish him. Those forces would find it difficult to rest at ease as long as he was alive.


    They heard that the first Upper Renhuang who attacked Ye Futian after his return could not split his physical body. Such a mighty Renhuang was easily exterminated by Ye Futian like an ant.


    After the cultivator in white returned to the Holy Land of Taichu, he started to investigate what had happened in the Divine Prefecture regarding the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Not long after that, he was shocked by the news he received. Ye Futian was known throughout the Shangqing Domain as the only person who was able to comprehend the power within the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Furthermore, in the battle for the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, a mysterious cultivator from Four Corner Village was able to control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor perfectly while outside of the village. It erupted with the unimaginable power of the gods. No one was able to withstand his attack, and the clan leader of the Nanhai Family was seriously wounded by a palm strike.


    Since then, even the Domain Chief��s Manor in the Shangqing Domain dared not demand the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor from Four Corner village. The whole matter had been concluded. The cultivator from the Shangqing Domain that arrived in the Lower Worlds was greeted by Ye Futian personally.


    At the same time, the Shen Clan, outside the temple, with several people standing there, looked into the distance. Someone appeared in the sky below and came to deliver some news.


    Ye Futian had returned, alive.


    The white-haired young man who had once led people to invade the Shen Clan left a strong impression on its cultivators. It was impossible to forget him.


    20 years ago, with all the forces surrounding him and hunted him, he did not die and had returned alive.


    At the same time, Tianshen Academy also received the news. In an attic, Jian Ao looked into the distance. Ye Futian had returned as a Renhuang of the Sixth Realms with a perfect Great Path. Jian Qingzhu left with Princess Donghuang a long time ago and had not returned. Now, to which realm had he gone to cultivate?


    He was a little worried.


    In the Xiao Clan of the Central Emperor Realm, a group of cultivators broke through the sky at the same time and arrived at the palace that sat atop the Xiao Clan. They stared at each other as they got the shocking news just now.


    He came back.


    The Dou Tribe in the Ziwei Realm was a ramshackle existence now. They were now in a dilapidated state, as they had been invaded before. However, at this time, there was hearty laughter from inside the Dou Tribe, vibrant and powerful.


    At the same time, in another place in the Original Realm, a group of cultivators seemed to emerge out of a gate from the void and came to the land of the Original Realm. This group was made up of mighty cultivators, their strength terribly powerful, and many were giant-level figureheads.


    ��Vice Chief, we have arrived in the Original Realm,�� someone said as he looked at a young man with a superb temperament. This young man was the Vice Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor from the Donghua Domain��Ning Hua.


    The cultivators from the Donghua Domain had descended upon the Original Realm!

 Chapter 2195 - Reunion

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the moment, inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the seat of an ancient temple was filled to the brim. It was full of cultivators.


    Multiple powerful and leading figures were inside the academy at the same time.


    The clan lord of the Dou Tribe, the Great Elder of the Xiao Clan, Xiao Dingtian, Yuanyang Clan��s clan leader, and the Clan of the Seven Slayers�� clan leader had all arrived.


    By now, every practitioner of the nine realms had already learned of Ye Futian��s return, as well as his killing of the Mithraism Hierophant shortly after coming back. The pressure on several of the major factions decreased instantly, and they each came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to meet Ye Futian.


    Back then, the Heavenly Mandate Academy alliance was successfully established because of Ye Futian��s influence. These leading figures agreed to an alliance because each of them saw Ye Futian��s limitless potential. That was what prompted the establishment of the strongest alliance within the nine realms; it also gave birth to an opposing alliance that was just as frightening.


    In these 20 years, while Ye Futian had disappeared, they had maintained their alliance. After all, their enemies were too strong. If they did not work together, the end result could have been devastating. It was only because of the alliance��s stability that nothing major happened to them until today. While they were facing a lot of pressure, it was not enough to impact their fundamentals.


    Now, after 20 whole years, their wait for Ye Futian, who faked his death, was finally over.


    His return would strengthen the alliance. The potential and talent that Ye Futian displayed also increased their confidence in the future.


    As long as they could keep hold of Ye Futian, they would be able to support a person to assume the role of the new king 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, a person who could stand at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    In the banquet, Ye Futian raised his cup and said to everyone, ��Thank you, seniors and elders, for your hard work all these years. I went to the Divine Prefecture back then and left everything here to you all. I am ashamed.��


    As he spoke, he drank from his cup, and the other practitioners also followed suit, raising their cups. Xiao Dingtian said, ��The Nine Realms�� change is a trend of the world. It cannot be changed. In truth, it is only because of the alliance established back then that we are still safe and sound today. Some factions have already crumbled and dissolved. Among them, various factions of the Hidden Land Realm have already yielded.��


    The others nodded. Xiao Dingtian was correct. The changes of the Nine Realms were a world trend that could not be stopped.


    If the world wanted to change, no one could prevent it from doing so. All they could do was to adapt and survive amidst the changes, and this powerful alliance had undoubtedly emboldened them. If they were to remain single factions, they would not have been able to withstand some of the more major changes and incidents.


    ��Moreover, it also provided opportunities to the younger ones. Dou Zhao and the others all managed to prove their paths and obtained a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel. After that, they went and followed Donghuang Princess to cultivate and train in the Divine Prefecture. These are all opportunities,�� said the clan leader of the Dou Tribe heartily.


    ��That��s right. Now, we have to wait for their return,�� said Xiao Dingtian. Back then, Xiao Muyu proved her path and obtained a perfect Divine Wheel, resulting in her becoming the Goddess of the Xiao Clan. Everything had to be attributed to Ye Futian. Back in the day, in the Original Realm, practitioners who had Perfect Grade Divine Wheels were scarce. However, Ye Futian managed to create a team of such people single-handedly.


    It was comparable to a miracle. However, he managed to do it. Not only was his talent unparalleled, but he was also able to help others achieve greatness. It was due to this that everyone trusted Ye Futian and was willing to follow this junior forward.


    ��The changes of the Original Realm come from the strongest factions of the outer realms. The practitioners that appear are all influential and exceptional figures. If they did not have these opportunities, they would have only been able to look up and gaze upon those monster-like geniuses in the Divine Prefecture,�� said the clan leader of the Yuanyang Clan.


    They were also clear on one truth: the Original Realm was indeed a prohibited land and could not be compared to the Divine Prefecture. If the next generation did not receive those opportunities, the gap between them and the geniuses of the Divine Prefecture would have been immeasurable.


    In truth, it was Ye Futian who made them.


    ��Dou Zhao, this little b*stard has been gone in the Divine Prefecture for 20 years now. Who knows when he will come back and how his cultivation��s been?�� said the clan leader of the Dou Tribe with a hearty chuckle. They were all looking forward to the return of those who had left for the Divine Prefecture many years ago.


    The changes of the Original Realm led the imperial palace to order and provide domain chief manors to the 18 domains and allow the cultivators to enter the realm. Clearly, the imperial palace is very aware of the situation here. Since that is the case, the Donghuang Princess should be bringing them back soon, thought Ye Futian. Then, he said, ��I think it will not be long.��


    ��Yes.�� Everyone nodded, agreeing somewhat to Ye Futian��s guess.


    ��Why don��t you tell us about your experiences in the Divine Prefecture these 20 years. We��re quite curious,�� asked someone with a laugh. Ye Futian nodded and briefly summarized his experiences in the Divine Prefecture over the years, eliciting sighs and sympathy from his listeners.


    Who knew that Ye Futian would encounter such tragedies and challenges immediately after entering the Divine Prefecture. He was almost killed. It was a good thing Xia Qingyuan followed along and was able to save Ye Futian.


    It was rare for the group to have this moment of leisure to chat about Ye Futian��s experiences in the Divine Prefecture and the changes experienced in the Original Realm. After 20 long years, many things had changed.


    As people feasted and drank until they were half-drunk, something strange seemed to originate from the sky. Everyone quickly shifted their gaze over and beamed their divine consciousness over. After that, several people became stunned. Following that, several hearty laughs came about.


    ��The brats are finally back,�� said the clan leader of the Dou Tribe with a hearty laugh.


    Ye Futian stood up excitedly. He raised his head to look into the sky. Then, beams of lights flashed, and from afar, a group of people traveled and finally reached the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Seeing these figures, the people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy were very excited. Back then, the people who had Perfect Grade Great Paths and made a name for themselves by following Ye Futian back in the day had all come back from the Divine Prefecture. Moreover, each of their aurae was a lot more exceptional. They looked a lot brighter than they were back then.


    Now, they must have grown a lot stronger.


    After all, they left with Princess Donghuang.


    The group stood up in the sky and gazed down to look at many familiar faces. When they saw the white-haired youth, everyone was briefly stunned. Then, bright smiles appeared on their faces.


    ��So, you��ve come back as well.�� Dou Zhao looked quite excited when he looked at Ye Futian.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��I��m back.��


    ��You, little brat! You��re ignoring me?!�� Roared the Dou Tribe��s clan leader.


    ��Ugh���� Dou Zhao blinked several times. Then, he looked at the clan leader of the Dou Tribe. ��Old man, don��t be so calculative.��


    ��It looks like your bones have become hard after 20 years,�� said the clan leader of the Dou Tribe. After that, he cracked his knuckles, which made Dou Zhao shrink his head back a little. Every practitioner at the banquet smiled after watching that scene.


    At that time, the figures in the sky descended slowly. Ye Futian��s excitement and happiness suddenly dimmed in his gaze. A tinge of worry could be seen in his profound eyes.


    ��Young brother.��


    ��Young brother����


    Then, Sword Saint and Gu Dongliu landed in front of Ye Futian at the same time. Ye Futian was naturally happy meeting his two senior brothers. They had not seen each other for 20 years after all.


    ��Big brother, second brother!�� Ye Futian shouted. Then, he looked behind them and asked, ��Where��s Jieyu?��


    Hua Jieyu was not there.


    She did not return with the rest of the group.


    Hua Fengliu, Nandou Wenyin, and Hua Nianyu also walked over to look at them. They were clearly apprehensive. Yu Sheng left with Mei Ting back then, but Jieyu left with the same group. However, right at that moment, they did not see Jieyu return.


    ��Younger brother, you do not need to worry. Jieyu should be fine,�� answered Gu Dongliu. ��Back then, after you left, Jieyu experienced a complete life-changing awakening. After that, she became silent. We do not know what had happened to her. However, your second sister has already spoken to her. Jieyu recovered her memory. After we reached the Divine Prefecture, Jieyu��s cultivation rate was the fastest. Based on what Princess Donghuang said, Jieyu might have cultivated a long-lost secret technique that was from ancient times. She has many illusory bodies, which include Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress and Jiutian Goddess. After reaching the divine realm, apart from cultivation, Jieyu moved alone. After a while, she left by herself. The princess did not stop her. However, with her frightening progress, she may reach the Lady of Brahma��s Pure Sky��s level soon. In addition, she has already reshaped her body of the path. She is definitely stronger than us,�� explained Gu Dongliu to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian listened to Gu Dongliu closely. He would never have imagined such drastic changes occurring to Jieyu after he left. However, these were all good things.


    Back when he left, he was most worried about Jieyu. Back then, Lord Taixuan and the others had warned him that Jieyu might not be the Jieyu that he knew. Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress�� cultivation was special. Jieyu could be her body of the path. Helping Jieyu cultivate might have been helping Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress.


    However, he still took care of Jieyu. Even though it was a new Jieyue, she was still his wife.


    Now, upon hearing from his second brother that Jieyu might have recovered her memories, he was happy; however, he did not know how she was doing.


    Nonetheless, it was still a relief.


    As he thought of that, Ye Futian showed a smile and looked at the others. Wuchen, Yaya, Xiao Muyu�� Familiar faces one after another. They were all very close and personal.


    ��You��re back.�� He patted Wuchen��s arm firmly. Ye Wuchen��s aura had also changed drastically. He looked at Ye Futian and smiled. Then, he nodded and said, ��I��m back.��


    Seeing that he was fine, Ye Futian was happy. Back then, the three of them left from a small place, and it was not easy to reach where they were today. Yu Sheng�� Ye Futian wondered how he was doing.


    ��Yaya. Swordmaster.�� Ye Futian habitually rubbed Yaya��s head. Yaya also responded habitually by staring at him. 20 years later, this person��s habits still had not changed.


    On the side, Swordmaster of Lihen could not help but smile after looking at the actions of these two. Only Ye Futian could thoroughly and completely subdue this sky sword emperor. Normally, her tempers were ridiculous; no one would ever dare touch her head. They��d have been met with a sword to their face.


    ��Master.�� Xiao Muyu looked at Ye Futian excitedly. Her master really did not lie to her. He was still fine.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian replied. ��How��s your cultivation?��


    The Xiao Muyu now was completely different from the Xiao Muyu back then. Her aura of an empress was more outstanding.


    ��I��m a middle-level Renhuang now,�� Xiao Muyu smiled and answered. In the past 20 years, she had become a Renhuang of the fourth plane. She was actually not that far away from the fifth plane.


    ��Moreover, my Divine Wheel is still perfect,�� said Xiao Muyu proudly.


    ��Not bad. You have the demeanor of your master,�� Ye Futian laughed and said. Instantly, everyone around them also laughed. The relationship between this pair of master and disciple was truly quite hilarious. However, Xiao Muyu��s respect for Ye Futian was truly from the heart!


    Seeing familiar and close friends one after another, Ye Futian was thrilled. If Yu Sheng and Jieyu were here, it would have been perfect!

 Chapter 2196 - : Quiet Guqin Tune

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Gu Dongliu, Ye Wuchen, and the others�� return naturally made the practitioners gathered at the Heavenly Mandate Academy happy. In particular, the older generation was delighted after seeing that the younger generation had grown stronger.


    Sounds of laughter never ceased during the banquet. Everyone was happy, and the sounds of chitchat came from every direction.


    Sword Saint, Gu Dongliu, and Zhuge Mingyue gathered together. The cultivators from the Demon Realm gathered in another group. At the current juncture, the three major clans of the Demon Realm��Sky Demon Court, Dragon Clan, and the Divine Elephant Clan��had long become one. They were no longer constantly bickering with each other like in the past. Over the past few years, whether it was the few major demon clans that stayed behind in the Heavenly Mandate Realm or the younger generations who left for the Divine Prefecture, they had become sworn to life and death.


    However, after learning about the changes of the Original Realm and the invasion of the Demon Realm, Jun and Long Chen were still incredibly infuriated.


    Unexpectedly, after 20 years, the Original Realm did not revert to an orderly and peaceful state, and there were even signs that things would turn completely chaotic.


    Ye Futian did not say much during the banquet. He spent more time observing the conversations of everyone else. He looked at the older generation asking those who had returned about events that occurred in the Divine Prefecture. He sat there and listened quietly, a bright smile hanging on his face all the while.


    However, underneath that smile and deep inside his heart was actually a sense of sadness.


    If one were to ask him who the two most important people were in his life, he would answer without hesitation that they were Jieyu and Yu Sheng. Even though Wuchen, his older brother, second sister, and third brother, each held a significant position as well and were people whom he would trust his life with, they could not replace Jieyu or Yu Sheng. It was just like even though he would give his life to protect his third brother, if one were to ask his third brother who was more important to him, Ye Futian or second sister, the answer would clearly be his second sister.


    And the fact was that these two most important persons of his life were absent in this gathering. The subtle sense of loneliness that he felt could not be hidden; it was impossible for him to lie to himself.


    ��Do you miss her?�� Xia Qingyuan gently asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at the girl beside him and nodded gently. Back then, they worked so hard to finally find Jieyu, and now, he had not seen her in 20 years. How could he not miss her?


    ��Since third brother said she��s alright, I��m sure she��s fine. Since she has already recovered her memories, after learning of the changes of the Original Realm, she might come back herself,�� said Xia Qingyuan gently. Ye Futian looked at the girl whose head was slightly lowered beside him. As Xia Qingyuan was being considerate to him, he felt a sense of guilt.


    He knew that he owed this little princess of Emperor Xia��s Realm a lot. She could have been pampered and lived a life of luxury; however, she spared no thoughts of her life and chose to go through the crevice of space to chase after him into the Divine Prefecture. She never complained, nor did she regret it. She also never asked for anything in return.


    ��Missing Jieyu?�� Zhuge Mingyue appeared on his other side and looked at him with a gentle smile. Gu Dongliu and the others also shifted their gaze toward them.


    ��A bit,�� answered Ye Futian, gently nodding.


    ��Before Jieyu left, I spoke to her. While the battle against Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress was won, Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress became her. Even though Jieyu became a lot colder, perhaps it was because of your battle�� Dongliu also said it, Jieyu��s cultivation rate is the fastest among all of us. She��s growing at a ridiculous pace. Since this is the case, she will surely return by herself,�� said Zhuge Mingyue as she stretched out her long and slender fingers to rub Ye Futian��s head.


    Ye Futian let out an awkward smile. Only his second sister would treat him like this.


    ��Thank you, senior sister,�� Ye Futian said, smiling. ��I hope she comes back soon.��


    ��You also don��t have to worry too much about Yu Sheng. His relationship with the Devil World is quite deep. The Devil World is definitely a more suitable location for him to cultivate,�� said his eldest brother��the Sword Saint. Sword Saint knew about some things back then. He received a demonic blade once upon a time, a blade that he had been using since. Moreover, he received teachings about a demonic method which he had been continuing to cultivate.


    He was now wondering what the relationship between that mysterious person and Ye Futian and Yu Sheng was.


    However, one thing he could confirm was that the Devil World��s Devil General Mei Ting had come and brought Yu Sheng away. He was not that worried about Yu Sheng��s safety. However, he did not know when they would be able to reunite.


    He cultivated in the Divine Prefecture and knew just how vast the Divine Prefecture was. It was a continent that had an endless border.


    However, the Devil World was still a region outside the Divine Prefecture. So just where could it be?


    Who knew how far Yu Sheng was away from him. Unless the Devil General brought him back, he did not know when they��d be able to meet again.


    ��Even though we are miles apart, we are still close brothers. It is just a matter of time. By the time you reach the peak, how can you not meet each other again?�� asked Sword Saint. Ye Futian nodded. By now, all he could do was to work hard and continue to cultivate.


    ��It looks like I should also try to cultivate and train faster. Otherwise, I might be left behind by Yu Sheng,�� said Ye Futian, laughing. Yu Sheng, who had gone to the Devil World to cultivate, must be growing rapidly. His experience and growth were definitely not inferior to the training and tribulation he went through in the Divine Prefecture. It was possible that Yu Sheng��s training would completely release his talent and potential. By the time they met, Ye Futian could not be the one left behind.


    Dou Zhao snuck up to Ye Futian��s side and asked, ��What��s your plane level now?��


    ��What? What do you want to do?�� Ye Futian looked at Dou Zhao��s glaring eyes. ��This bastard�� His skin must be itching for a lashing.��


    ��I��ve grown somewhat in the Divine Prefecture. I just want to know how your cultivation��s been these years.�� Dou Zhao��s eyes shone. Over the years, he grew tremendously. He cultivated and trained diligently every day. Before returning, he kept wondering when he would be able to spar a few rounds with Ye Futian or Yu Sheng.


    ��Not bad. I��m at the sixth plane now. Is there any problem?�� asked Ye Futian with a gentle smile.


    ��Ugh���� Dou Zhao��s eyes widened as he stared at Ye Futian for a moment. He rolled his eyes and said, ��It��s fine. I��m just asking.��


    Careless!


    Later, Xiao Muyu also came over and glanced at Dou Zhao with a smile. It looked like the guy had become a little bit full of himself and was looking for a beating.


    ��Master!�� Shouted Xiao Muyu after she reached Ye Futian��s side.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded with a gentle smile.


    ��Master, have you been well over the past few years cultivating in the Divine Prefecture?�� Xiao Muyu asked.


    ��Do I look unwell?�� Ye Futian shrugged his shoulders.


    ��True. With your old man��s talent and strength, how could you not shake the world and dominate an entire generation wherever you go?�� said Xiao Muyu, laughing. ��I have also grown a little bit over these few years. If possible, I��d like Master to give me a few pointers and tell me where my cultivation problems lie.��


    ��Sure.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    After that, the other people who returned from the Divine Prefecture came over to exchange a few words with Ye Futian. The practitioners from Four Corner Village and the Duan Ancient Royal Family stood on the side, not interfering. However, they watched everything carefully. It seemed as if Ye Futian had a unique meaning to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    ��You are his disciple?�� Old Ma asked Xiao Muyu.


    Xiao Muyu naturally sensed that the aura emanating from this group of people was exceptional, particularly Old Ma. Xiao Dingtian made a brief introduction on the side and said, ��This is an elder from the Divine Prefecture��s Four Corner Village. Your master is cultivating at his village.��


    ��Xiao Muyu.�� Xiao Muyu bowed slightly at Old Ma and the others upon hearing Xiao Dingtian��s introduction. She seemed very polite.


    For Ye Futian to cultivate there, this place must be incredible.


    ��Yes.�� Old Ma smiled and nodded. ��I do not have anything particular in mind for you, but your master did not tell you that you have several junior brothers and sisters now.��


    Xiao Muyu was stunned. She turned around to glance at Ye Futian. She looked pleasantly surprised. Her master actually took in new disciples.


    ��Are they here?�� Xiao Muyu looked around Old Ma. However, those practitioners all had outstanding auras. Every single one of them looked like they were amazing. So, they probably weren��t.


    ��No, they are still young. They��re at the village,�� said Ye Futian with a chuckle.


    ��I do want to meet my junior brothers and sisters,�� said Xiao Muyu.


    ��Then, they are my junior nephews,�� Dou Zhao said on the side. Back when Ye Futian received disciples on behalf of his master, they all went into Sky River Great Elder and could be regarded as Qi Xuangang��s disciples.


    ��If there��s an opportunity, you should all head to the village and visit those little brats,�� Old Ma said with a gentle smile. With just a few words, he seemed to have become closer to the people there. Moreover, even though Old Ma was a powerful and influential figure, he always stayed in the village. So, a sense of simplicity emanated from his body, and it was easy for people to get close to him.


    ��All right, I will definitely have my master bring me there,�� said Xiao Muyu with a smile.


    At the banquet, groups chatted as people talked about everything under the sky. Everyone was happy. After some time, people finally began to leave, albeit unwillingly.


    Ye Futian walked over to Hua Fengliu. Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin sat in the courtyard. Tang Lan and Nianyu were also there.


    ��Why have you come here?�� Compared to 20 years ago, Hua Fengliu had aged a bit.


    ��I��ve missed you, old lady,�� said Ye Futian with a gentle smile.


    Hua Fengliu glared at him and said, ��Relax. Even though I��m a bit older now, I��m still not that weak.��


    Many people returned, but Jieyu did not. Seeing everyone gathering around, the ones feeling the worst were naturally Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin. They really suffered a lot because of everything related to Jieyu back then.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��I��m just here to sit with you for a bit.��


    ��As you like,�� said Hua Fengliu as she leaned lazily back. Ye Futian actually brought a chair over and sat there. He sat there quietly, looking at Hua Fengliu and the others.


    Then, Hua Fengliu asked gently, ��Have your Guqin skills become rusty?��


    ��I probably still remember,�� answered Ye Futian.


    ��Play a tune,�� said Hua Fengliu.


    ��Okay.�� Ye Futian nodded. After that, he crossed his legs and sat down. Moonlight descended from the sky and fell upon his grey hair, creating a scene that oscillated a sense of loneliness.


    1


    The tune of the guqin began slowly as if it was the meditation tune that Ye Futian played when he first began learning the guqin. Sitting quietly under the night sky, the tune of the guqin surrounded them. Quiet and lovely. Apart from the silence of the night, the dancing musical notes seemed to be tinged with a sense of longing.


    Nandou Wenying glared at Hua Fengliu. Why did she ask Ye Futian to play the guqin and evoke the longing he felt in his heart.


    Seeing the lonely figure, with Jieyu still away, he must feel terrible.


    Hua Nianyu sat with her elbows on her knees. Holding her jaw with her palms, she listened to Ye Futian play the guqin quietly.


    Hua Fengliu slowly closed her eyes.


    The tune of the guqin surrounded them underneath the tranquil moonlight as if they were in an exquisite scroll painting!

 Chapter 2197 - : The Truth Back Then

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian, Gu Dongliu, and the others returned from the Divine Prefecture. Naturally, they had many things to say to each other. This night was exceptionally quiet.


    In the morning, the Heavenly Mandate Academy still maintained its beauty of tranquility. The disciples of the academy seemed to have become more energetic. Their confidence in the academy��s future was full again after witnessing the return of Ye Futian and the others. They were no longer as pessimistic as before.


    The chaos of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path left the college chief, Lord Taixuan, severely injured. Before this, the practitioners of the academy were similar to Lord Taixuan in that they were pessimistic about the academy��s stature. They did not think that the academy was able to remain forever. If they did not want to be annihilated, they would have had to dissolve themselves sooner or later so that they could remain safe.


    However, Ye Futian and the others�� return was like a ray of light in the darkness. It brightened up the entire Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Perhaps they could actually sail past this chaotic time and survive through this chaotic world.


    Ye Futian rested at the courtyard of Hua Fengliu��s residence the day before. In the morning, Ye Futian woke up early. He served tea and greeted each of his teachers. The firsts were Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyiin. After that, it was Qi Xuanguang and then Dou Zhan. He visited his teachers and walked around their neighborhoods while talking to his brothers.


    Now, his plane level had already surpassed several of his teachers. However, these teachers aided him at different times in the past, and their kindness was something that Ye Futian would never dare forget. 20 years. He did not fulfill his duty as a student. So, it was natural that he would have to pay more attention and do more after coming back.


    After serving tea and greeting his teachers, Ye Futian returned. He then went to create and refine some pills for his teachers and other people of the academy.


    In terms of the situation outside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, he did not want to deal with them for now.


    However, as Ye Futian prepared to create and refine pills, he found out that it was difficult to do that. The reason was that quite a number of people came looking for him.


    ��Brother Futian.�� Ling��er was no longer the little brat back then anymore. However, her calling Ye Futian ��Brother Futian�� still revealed a sense of her lively youth.


    Youyue Divine Palace��s Goddess Chang Xi also came back from the Divine Prefecture. She also came to visit Ye Futian. Fei Xue also came from her grandmother Shen Luoxue��s place to discuss some things with Ye Futian. In a short time, a huge crowd had formed around Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian did not think that they would be so early. So, he had no choice but to set his pill-making endeavor aside for the moment.


    The quiet and tranquil academy had not seen such life in a long time.


    However, the calm environment was quickly disrupted. The clouds and the winds above Heavenly Mandate City swirled, and a frightening aura descended from afar and pressed against the entire city. Ever since the establishment of the Heavenly Mandate Academy inside the Heavenly Mandate City, the ancient city had gone through several major events like this before. As a result, the people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy of the current day looked up in the sky calmly as they wondered, What��s happening? Which big shot arrived?


    Inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s different compounds, heads tilted upwards as gazes pierced through the sky and focused on the cultivators coming from other realms.


    Ye Futian, who was in the middle of a conversation, frowned. He raised his head and looked into the sky. His gaze pierced through the sky, and he instantly knew who it was.


    So fast!


    He had just come back and did not have time to visit this person. However, these people had already been contacted. They departed and arrived early at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Moreover, his formation and team were the same as those from a few weeks ago; it looked extremely dangerous.


    Above the swirling clouds, figures that looked like divine giants stood tall as if looking down on everyone. They specifically looked towards the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The heart of the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s practitioners beat rapidly. It was a very familiar scene.


    It was as if they had gone back in time in an instant and returned to that battle 20 years ago��the battle to kill Ye Futian, no matter what happened.


    How could Ye Futian forget each and every one of those practitioners from the top factions?


    The practitioner of the Shen Clan stood tall, wearing his stylish outfit. The cultivator from the Golden Divine Nation was equipped with his blindingly shiny golden gears. The unfathomable Jian Ao from Tianshen Academy and the practitioners of Tianshen Academy; the cultivator of the Solar Divine Palace who bathed in the Divine Light of the Sun, as well as the Sky Reaching School, Martial God Clan, Celestial Worthy Temple, and the School of the Emperor Star. And finally, who could forget the cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu. Both the white robe cultivator and the Purple Robe War Emperor were present.


    Apart from those big shots, powerful Renhuangs from various factions were also there. These factions did not come from one particular location. Instead, they communicated and came here all at the same time. To gather at the Heavenly Mandate Academy and descend into the Heavenly Mandate City. As such, a replica of the scene from 20 years ago emerged.


    In an instant, might shook the sky, and the entire Heavenly Mandate City was put under unparalleled pressure. At that moment, even powerful Renhuangs on a high plane level felt their breathing hasten, their heart rate increase, and their blood pumping faster.


    A frightening formation. In comparison, common Renhuangs were like ants. They would not even qualify to be in consideration of making that group.


    These big shots were all looking at Ye Futian. They had heard about Ye Futian��s return. Several factions felt quite uneasy, especially some of the weaker factions. They also heard that Ye Futian did not only just return alive, but he had also brought a bunch of powerful figures along with him and killed the Mithraism Hierophant.


    This operation was led by the Shen Clan, Tianshen Academy, as well as a few other major factions from the Central Emperor Realm. After all, they were mainly gathered in the Central Emperor Realm. No matter what, if Ye Futian did not die and managed to gather a group of powerful allies, they had to come and have a look themselves. After all, this powerful alliance was capable of killing the Mithraism Hierophant directly. He was an immense threat to each of their faction. If his target was not the Mithraism Hierophant but was one of them instead, what would have happened?


    ��He really is still alive.�� The clan leader of the Shen Clan looked downward at Ye Futian. It felt kind of surreal. In the battle back then, one of the Shen Clan��s big shots and Great Elder Shen Ji died in battle. They suffered great losses, but at least they thought that they had got rid of Ye Futian.


    However, right now, Ye Futian was in front of them. One could only imagine the emotions he was feeling.


    The Golden Divine Nation��s sovereign��s gaze was also very sharp. It pierced through the sky. He wanted to kill Ye Futian directly. Two of his sons were killed by Ye Futian back then. As such, killing Ye Futian was a must. That final battle only took place because of their determination.


    Everyone thought that Ye Futian had died, to the extent that none of his remains were found. However, he was very much alive, and he had returned in a much stronger form.


    The college chief of Tianshen Academy, Jian Ao, stared at Ye Futian. Back then, even though his killing of Ye Futian was an injustice, after all, Ye Futian saved Jian Qingzhu before. Ye Futian was too outstanding. His existence completely dominated an entire generation. Even Jian Qingzhu did not have any hopes of raising his head. He wanted to send Jian Qingzhu to train in the Divine Prefecture, to let him have the chance to follow Princess Donghuang so that the Jian Family can return to the Divine Prefecture.


    As such, he wanted to kill Ye Futian to clear the obstacles for Jian Qingzhu. He wanted Jian Qingzhu to be number one in the Original Realm.


    Apart from these big shots, several faces familiar to Ye Futian also appeared, including an influential person who rivaled him back then.


    They heard that Ye Futian was now stronger to the point where he could even kill a Renhuang of the ninth plane!


    ��I hope you are all well,�� said Ye Futian while looking at the familiar figures that appeared in the sky. These people wanted to kill him and be done with it. He was also the same. If he had the strength to do so, he would kill them all without any hesitation.


    ��How did you do it back then?�� Asked the clan leader of the Shen Clan, staring at Ye Futian. The grudge was the deepest between Ye Futian and the Shen Clan, as well as the Golden Divine Nation. The reason was from a long time ago. They suffered heavy losses in the battle against the Heavenly Mandate Academy in exchange for Ye Futian��s death. However, they now discovered that they did not actually get anything in exchange.


    The Shen Clan��s clan leader��s question was also on the others�� minds. Ye Futian. Just how did he do it?


    ��I��ve said it before. Thank you, everyone, for opening the space passage which sent me to the Divine Prefecture to train,�� said Ye Futian, laughing. ��Perhaps if I had remained in the Original Realm, my cultivation wouldn��t have progressed as fast.��


    Oppressive might descended from the sky. Did they make Ye Futian?


    ��Impossible,�� said the Shen Clan��s Shan Gao while staring at Ye Futian. Then, he continued, ��The attack landed on your body first before tearing a crack in the space. You were undoubtedly dead. Unless�� You used the divine item to block that hit and escape your death.��


    Shen Gao��s words were exactly the thoughts on the others�� minds. However, that frightening attack would even annihilate an amazingly powerful ritual implement. Only a true divine item could have truly blocked that attack.


    Ye Futian�� What kind of divine item did he have on him?


    Gai Qiong suddenly recalled something. His pupils shrank slightly, and his face became distorted.


    Even though he had some guesses, he did not dare to say them out loud.


    He did not have any proof.


    Even if he had any, he might not dare say it in front of everyone.


    Before that battle, Princess Donghuang said that she had to be fair in terms of rewards and punishments. She first gave Ye Futian a treasure. Then, she approved the battle.


    Back then, he did wonder about the prize that Princess Donghuang awarded to Ye Futian.


    Now that Ye Futian had come back alive, he vaguely guessed that Princess Donghuang had awarded Ye Futian with a divine item that allowed Ye Futian to preserve his life in that battle. Recalling it again now, that huge battle seemed a little bit too intentional.


    However, back then, Ye Futian really was in a desperate situation. As such, his wish of death, along with his determination to die, had not been questioned by any of them.


    Now, it looked like he actually knew that he was not going to die.


    Gai Qiong guessed it. Naturally, the others were not dumb. After that, Princess Donghuang invited the exceptionally talented people to follow her into the Divine Prefecture to train. Among these followers, the majority of them were practitioners from the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    It was as if Princess Donghuang had favored Ye Futian.


    As they reached this conclusion, they felt saddened. They should have killed Ye Futian; however, 20 years ago, they were tricked by the princess.


    Moreover, they could not really do much about it. The princess�� reward and punishment were fair and unproblematic. Ye Futian certainly deserved credit. However, even if someone were to voice it out, what could they do? Princess Donghuang��s actions back then were also not a problem.


    Back then, the princess did not want Ye Futian to die!

 Chapter 2198 - A Single Punch

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian saw the fighters not saying anything and knew that they probably were speculating something. The circumstances that led him to flee the Origin Realm were rather peculiar, and that those kinds of attacks would have definitely killed him, after all.


    However, given that it was a chance given by Princess Donghuang, none of them would dare to say anything about it even if they knew.


    ��The Origin Realm is now in peril. Are you all here to ask for another fight?�� Ye Futian looked at them and said, ��This time, I won��t be fighting like I have a death wish, as I did 20 years ago.��


    They all wore concerned expressions on their faces. Ye Futian hadn��t been fighting with a death wish back then; he knew that he would be able to escape.


    They all knew that things were different on that day. If they were to dare kill Ye Futian, the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Academy might probably go all out.


    Furthermore, the academy��s lineup seemed to have gotten even more powerful, with two more titans added to the roster.


    It was also a given that their powers saw some change as well, yet if they were to go all out with the academy, they would be put in a dangerous spot all the same. If a battle of such levels were to break out again, there would probably be no turning back from it.


    It was just as how Ye Futian put it. The Origin Realm was in peril, and the dark forces now had their eyes on the realm. If they were to go out to destroy the academy��s alliance and ended up damaged in the battle, they would most probably meet their doom all the same and wouldn��t be able to survive the tumultuous times.


    It was especially so for those native forces without any backing from the Upper Worlds. If both parties were to fight right there and then, one party would definitely be snuffed out. Without such threats around, their own alliance would fall apart all the same, as none of them have any delusions about their own alliance. If they were to get into any trouble in that battle, the clan forces would probably end up doomed in those tumultuous times.


    As such, despite having come en masse, they had in truth realized that things at present were different altogether from how things were 20 years ago.


    Furthermore, it was said that Ye Futian had backing from the Upper Worlds and that legendary Four Corner Village seemed to have a super-powerful mysterious figure among them.


    With the Hierophant of Mithraism killed, news spread, and the forces had already looked into Ye Futian before they came.


    The leader of the Shen Clan stepped out, and a terrifying spatial storm swept out. Terrifying fissures of the Great Path appeared around the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which looked like an abyss. If he were to attack the academy right there and then, the academy would be destroyed on the spot.


    After Ye Futian��s ��death�� back then, they had promised Princess Donghuang never again to meddle with things in the Origin Realm, which was why they behaved somewhat the whole time.


    Before Ye Futian��s return, they had initially thought of wearing down the powers of the Heavenly Mandate Academy slowly, putting pressure on the academy from all sides and causing the academy to eventually fall apart in the chaotic storms of Origin Realm. They had almost achieved what they set out to do by then. Lord Taixuan had been severely injured, and they only had to wait for some years for the alliance of the academy to fall apart.


    Yet, Ye Futian returned at such a time, and those people who left with Princess Donghuang had all returned as well.


    Furthermore, the first thing he did when he returned was to kill the hierophant of Mithraism, alerting the many cultivation forces instantly.


    Ye Futian and the others had been able to kill a cultivation force with a cultivator at perfect peak level Renhuang Realm, which meant that if things would be just as dire even if they were to target just one or two of those people.


    Given that Ye Futian had returned alive, the promise they made with Princess Donghuang was naturally nullified, with both parties capable of going at each other��s throats.


    The pressure remained, and there was only silence. The entire Heavenly Mandate City was in an extremely stifling atmosphere, so much so that countless cultivators in the city dared not even breathe loudly.


    ��If you all were to insist on fighting, then please make your move. If you��re not out to fight, then what are you all doing at the Heavenly Mandate Academy?�� Lord Taixuan emerged and addressed those would-be invaders. While one could tell that he was weakened just from his voice, yet the tone he used was, nonetheless, stern.


    20 years passed, and things would no longer be like how they had been 20 years ago. If they were to fight again, it would be their last stand.


    If the other party were to ask for a fight, then they would be getting one.


    ��Not only are you all here this time, but many at the Renhuang Realm are here as well. I guess that you��re not here to ask for a fight?�� Ye Futian continued. If they were there at the academy to ask for a fight, they would have probably only let the titans do the work. Bringing the others at Renhuang Realm would only be getting in their way and do the supposed battle no good.


    The outcome of that battle between both sides was only determined by those at the very top, after all.


    The others were able to see that those formidable ones had joined hands to lean on the academy, yet everyone nonetheless knew that things at present were indeed different from how things were 20 years ago.


    Furthermore, they all sensed that while they were standing off at the moment, extremely powerful wills scanned the place on and off. That was the sign of top-notch cultivators watching how things were going at the battlefield, and they naturally knew who was watching.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm at the moment, there was more than just the alliance surrounding the Heavenly Mandate Academy; there were also the top-notch dark forces.


    Those people were watching intently as well.


    If they could join hands, they wouldn��t mind allying with those people to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but they dared not to do so. It was a massive taboo for them to ally with the dark forces out in the open to snuff out a force from the Divine Prefecture, and doing so would probably invoke the Imperial Palace��s wrath. They naturally knew about that much, so even if they were to have such intentions, they would have to do so in secret, using each other just like how it had been before.


    If they were not there to ask for a fight, showing up en masse would naturally mean that they were there as a show of might. They were concerned that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would take them on just like how they did Mithraism, which was why they gathered their allies from all those years ago to pressure the academy.


    They needed to send a message to the academy at least, telling them that if they were to dare do anything, the allied forces would come down on the academy at any given moment, and a battle would break out.


    At present, both sides had a lot more to be concerned about than they had before.


    ��I heard that you��ve made yourself quite famous in the Shangqing Domain. You��re the only person capable of learning from the corpse of Great Emperor Shenjia, I presume?�� a cultivator at the Renhuang Realm asked. That person was not one of the titans but was one from the Holy Land of Taichu. His bearing was formidable, and he carried himself with powerful confidence. There was a tinge of his intent to do combat when he looked down at Ye Futian.


    That cultivator was said to be very renowned and had been quite influential in the Origin Realm. The many titans in the Origin Realm were actually all gathered there because of him alone, and that itself spoke of Ye Futian��s importance.


    Is he really as exceptional as he is rumored to be?


    Just how powerful are his talents?


    Ye Futian looked up at that man, and he totally didn��t expect that a Renhuang Realm figure from the Holy Land of Taichu would come out to ask questions. He, naturally, was able to sense the pointedness of the look in the other party��s eyes. He then replied, ��Indeed.��


    ��The number one genius who shook the Origin Realm. I��d like to see how powerful you are today.�� That fighter didn��t waste any more time talking. He stepped out right away onto the battlefield. Towering aura washed all over the place with frightening might.


    That man was from the Holy Land of Taichu and was a formidable Renhuang Realm being in that holy land. He had made his name for many years and was perfection at level six of the Great Path. It was not every day that he made his move, and his focus was on his own training. He wanted to break the barriers of his level and made it to level seven.


    He was not the only one, as there were others from the Holy Land of Taichu at the Renhuang Realm present. There were also such people at the side of the Solar Divine Palace, and all of them were eyeing Ye Futian.


    However, since someone else had already made their move, they stood aside to see just how capable Ye Futian was.


    Booom�� That powerful cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu stepped out and exerted his pressure. Terrifying waves of the Sky River swept all over the place, bringing about a towering might that was out to suppress all living beings.


    The cultivators from the academy were naturally able to sense that terrifying might.


    Yet, Ye Futian only took a casual look above him. Level six, at perfect Great Path. That meant that the man was considered quite powerful, and there were not many people at such levels, even at Shangqing Domain.


    That man could indeed be considered a supreme cultivator.


    Yet, someone of such level seemed to fail to have Ye Futian take them seriously all the same. He remained standing quietly after taking a look at the other man. He looked up and said, ��If you��re out to test my might, I��ll tell you to give up. You��re not qualified enough to do so.��


    That man was among the most powerful at the Renhuang Realm in the Holy Land of Taichu. He had supreme powers, yet to Ye Futian, the man was not qualified enough to test his mettle.


    That was insolence unlike any other, and such powerful beings from the Holy Land of Taichu had never been belittled like this before.


    A terrifying storm of Great Path erupted right away. The academy seemed to have been put under a hurricane. The disciples of the academy all grunted and felt like they were about to be crushed under the pressure of that terrifying might of the Great Path. However, a formless pressure then supported them and stopped that opposing might above the air.


    Ye Futian was the only one who stepped out and submitted himself to experience that terrifying might from the other party in earnest.


    He was all confident and leisurely when he stepped out, walking totally unfazed.


    The storm came down in an instant, and the terrifying storm of the Great Path tore through the space. The other man continued to come lower, and every step he made become even more terrifying.


    Ye Futian remained unflinching and took a cold stare at him. As a palm attack came down from that terrifying storm, Ye Futian charged at the eye of that storm, completely ignoring the power of the storm of Great Path.


    ��How insolent!�� the other man shouted angrily and turned the storm into his own field, stacking of terrifying attacks like it was doomsday, and he out to destroy the world.


    However, he saw an incredibly dazzling figure zipping through those terrifying attacks of his right away. It was as if that dazzling figure had just ignored all that powers thrown at him. That dazzling figure made it past that frightening storm and appeared right before him.


    A rumbling was heard, and that sound seemed to have emanated from Ye Futian��s own body. His lifted his arm and threw a single punch. That powerful cultivator at Renhuang Realm from the Holy Land of Taichu was blasted away before everyone��s eyes.

 Chapter 2199 - The Withdrawal

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    That violent strike shook the hearts of all the top figures who were above the sky. His flesh passed through the spatial storm that tore through the area, hitting the man of the same realm. His body was broken, and his internal organs were wounded as bright red blood stained his clothing.


    They looked at the figure in the void as divine light flowed upon Ye Futian��s torso like a divine body of the Great Path. His body was the Way.


    Several powerful Renhuang stepped forward. Although they were not on the level of giants, they were full of frightening aura nonetheless. Among them, there was an elder from the Holy Land of Taichu. His hair was half white, and his temperament was out of this world. He was carrying a sword on his back. He was clearly a swordsman.


    This man had the cultivation of the Eighth Realm and gave out a strong sense of threat. He looked down at the area below, and thousands of swords fell at the same time. Even the crowd in the distance felt a strong aura of swordsmanship.


    ��Eighth Realm, and an extraordinary Eight Realm at that.�� All the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy fixed their attention on the man. The aura of this Eighth Realm cultivator was unusually powerful. It far surpassed the existence of anybody ordinary of the Ninth Realm.


    In fact, this cultivator was once an extraordinary man in his own right. When he was a Middle Renhuang, his Great Path had been perfect. When he broke the realm to reach Upper Rehuang, some accidents had caused imperfections in his Great Path and left it incomplete. However, he worked hard at his cultivation and spent ten years cultivating an extremely powerful sword technique. He was a well-known figure in the Taichu Sparring Grounds at the Holy Land of Taichu. It was a pity that he couldn��t be the master of it.


    An incomplete Great Path was a major misfortune.


    But his combat effectiveness was one of the most powerful in the Holy Land of Taichu. And his swordsmanship was not something that ordinary cultivators in the Ninth Realm could bear.


    When he stood above the sky, Ye Futian could feel a trace of pressure. The light of the Great Path flowed endlessly upon his body. It was as if his body was the source of the Great Path.


    Buzz!


    The two looked at each other in the air. Ye Futian felt the gaze of the other shot at him that suddenly turned into a sword of heaven, piercing into his spiritual world, capable of immolating the soul.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were equally terrifying. At a glance, it seemed like an endless space, so that no matter how far down the sword plunged, it could never reach the end, as if trapped in the door of endless space.


    ��Buzz!�� An overwhelming sword intent enveloped the boundless space. The place where Ye Futian was seemed to have been transformed into a sword domain, a world of swords. The elder��s sword flew out of its sheath to intercept, and suddenly the swordsmanship in the firmament was like a fierce giant beast.


    ��Chop!��


    The man uttered a word, and in the sword domain that sheltered Ye Futian, sword lightning suddenly appeared, traversing the void and cutting through it with an unimaginable speed that was hard to detect with the naked eye. It was as if a single thought would cut through the space.


    Boom�� A monstrous power of the Great Path swept out above Ye Futian. The sword of horror slashed down but did not cut through his body as expected. An amazing divine light exploded out from Ye Futian, like an immortal divine body, imperviously to the swords.


    ��HIs physical form is this strong?�� Those major figureheads felt that their breath was taken away just by the sight in front of them. They were all giants from various places and had seen many enchanting figures in their times, especially top cultivators from the Upper Worlds. The enchanting genius talents they had seen were in the hundreds of thousands, with many shocking existences among them.


    But no one had ever seen anyone whose physical form had been cultivated to such a frightening level.


    In other words, it was no longer a matter of strength regarding his physical body, but rather that his body had already become one with the Way.


    That body was a pure body of the Great Path. Not only had it become one with the Way, but it possessed many various Ways, which accounted for its great defense.


    Buzz!


    The swordsman was still standing in place, but there was an even stronger sword intent that manifested. Another section of the sword he was carrying on his back jumped out again. Suddenly, the swordsmanship became more terrifying as another sword came in for the kill.


    Ye Futian continued forward as the Great Path roared, howling in the void. The sword came in for the kill but was unable to break through his physical defenses. It was as if his body was truly indestructible.


    The swordsman from the Holy Land of Taichu closed his eyes as he condensed a seal between his hands. In an instant, the sword behind him came out section by section, and with every section that came out, a sword was unleashed for the kill.


    In a blink of an eye, nine swords appeared in different positions around Ye Futian��s body and pierced at him at the same time, emitting a sharp and piercing chiming sound. A terrifying sword storm tore through the space but still could not annihilate Ye Futian��s physical body.


    ��How strong!�� Everyone was shocked, and there was a great disturbance in their hearts. Ye Futian��s physical form was stronger beyond expectation. Could that be the body of a human cultivator?


    This was the real body of the Way.


    That sword intent is incredibly strong. But even so, it still didn��t manage to cut Ye Futian, everyone thought. Only to see that the sword behind the man finally became completely unsheathed. At the moment when the sword was unsheathed, a chiming was resounded between heaven and earth. That cultivator seemed to emerge out of his body with his sword. He descended in front of Ye Futian. The shadow of this illusion was massive, like a god holding a sharp sword homing in for the kill. Suddenly the nine swords around Ye Futian seemed to transform into a terrible sword matrix, resonated with the sword that fell for the slaughter.


    ��Adjudication!�� the swordsman spat out the word as he unleashed the Sword of Judgement. In the past, few people who fought him could stop this sword of his, and he, too, believed that Ye Futian would be no exception.


    This sword obliterated the flesh as well as his spiritual soul.


    But at this moment, Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked like a glaring Vajra Buddha. With a loud roar that rocked heaven and earth, shattering mountains and rivers, it seemed that the Buddha was unleashed by the roar. As the Vajra Buddha who slew the demons, its power shocked the swordsmanship.


    Ye Futian raised his arm and stretched out his hand. The sword river was flowing as it gathered toward his body. His physical body and the swordsmanship were one and the same.


    A chiming sound was born from the sword domain. It was a long and persistent howl that resonated with Ye Futian��s fingers. An infinite sword intent directly entered into his body of the Great Path and became one. The monstrous swordsmanship from the other seemed to be used by him.


    ��The coercion of the Great Path.�� Those giants trembled inwardly. Ye Futian was able to inflict coercion of the Great Path against a Renhuang in the Eighth Realm as if to proclaim that only he was the master of this spatial swordsmanship.


    The crowd saw Ye Futian��s raised arm pointing forward. Suddenly a sword seemed to have materialized, a sword transformed by Ye Futian��s body.


    The nine swords were crushed as Ye Futian��s finger landed on the elusive phantom of the divine sword.


    Bang!


    In an instant, this Desolation Swordsmanship collapsed and disintegrated. The swordsman from Taichu Holy Land shuddered as the spiritual soul entered his body. His face was white as a sheet. Blood poured out of his mouth. His breath was weak, as he was wounded by the Great Path.


    The crowd rushed towards him and saw that there were cracks upon his body. These cracks were hard to see with the naked eye, but those who cultivated could sense that there were cracks in his swordsmanship.


    On the contrary, Ye Futian��s whole body was brilliant. Sword aura surrounded him, unmoving and unshakable.


    Could this be the strength of someone in the Sixth Realm?


    All of them had heard that Ye Futian was the only one who could perceive the corporal body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Could the transformation of his physical body be a reward from successfully comprehending the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    He��s too strong. Eighth Realms. And it��s a powerful figure from the preaching holy land of the Upper Worlds. Now, there are probably not many, other than the giants, who can defeat him, someone thought. Perhaps it would take a top genius from the outside world to be able to defeat Ye Futian?


    If there were no one from the Upper Worlds, Ye Futian would probably be ranked invincible just right under the major figures among all the forces in the Original Domain.


    After his return, he was already near invincible under the major figureheads. Where would he be in another 20 years?


    No wonder all the forces would gather here after receiving the news that Ye Futian had returned.


    They had to come and see for themselves how much advancements had been made by Ye Futian.


    At this moment, high above the sky, all those major figureheads wanted to kill Ye Futian immediately, but they had some concerns. Killing Ye Futian would provoke an all-out counterstrike from the major figures forming the alliance at Heavenly Mandate Academy, not to mention, there was a mysterious cultivator in Four Corner Village in the Upper Worlds.


    ��Do you still want to continue?�� asked Ye Futian.


    When those top figures heard what he said, they were silent. They were in a dilemma now; they dared not kill him outright, but leaving him alive would be too great a threat.


    The truth was that forces such as the Martial Gods Clan and Sky Reaching School had come to regret their decisions. If they could ask for a truce now, they would, but that possibility had come and gone. The conflict 20 years ago doomed them to their position today. Even if they were to seek reconciliation in private, their allies would never agree to it and may even turn on them.


    It was impossible to get out of this predicament where one of the two sides must be destroyed.


    ��20 years in the Divine Prefecture has done you good.�� Shen Gao looked at and said to Ye Futian, ��I always thought highly of you, but unfortunately, you have been stubborn and unamenable. Now things have gone through great changes in our world, and the Original Realm is on the brink of major disasters. If you are willing to let go of old grievances, we can, perhaps, sit down and talk.��


    ��Of course. Now that the Original Realm is on the verge of great changes, I am willing to let go of old grievances and work with all the forces from Divine Prefecture. This is also the hope of the imperial palace,�� replied Ye Futian, agreeing readily. However, Shen Gao and the others were alarmed.


    Although Ye Futian agreed willingly, they knew that it was impossible. Ye Futian was toying with them.


    Even if Ye Futian agreed, could they really trust him? Could they leave Ye Futian alone and let him cultivate until he reached the peak of Renhuang?


    They all knew that as long as Ye Futian was still alive, they would never have peace of mind.


    However, they didn��t need to come out and say it, as everyone had an implicit understanding.


    ��The Original Realm is changing rapidly, and the Imperial Palace��s cultivators had come from Divine Prefecture in the Lower Worlds. An internal conflict really shouldn��t have happened; let us stop here,�� said Shen Gao.


    ��I agree,�� Ye Futian replied. The Heavenly Mandate Academy could not go to war either, same as them.


    ��Then it��s farewell,�� said Shen Gao. He took his people to leave with him. The rest of the other forces looked at the ground below, disappearing one after another. Soon, in the mighty void, the powerful cultivators who came with the coercion disappeared between heaven and earth. It was as if they had never appeared at all.


    Who could imagine that not long ago, most of the power of the Original Realm gathered here? It was as if they were here to annihilate Heavenly Mandate Academy for good.


    Now, it ended in such a comical fashion.


    Ye Futian watched those disappearing figures but did not relax inside. This was a warning to the other, warning them not to start things they couldn��t finish.


    But he knew very well that, given the chance, they would not hesitate to kill him!

 Chapter 2200 - The Transformation of the Ziwei Realm

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Shen Clan and the Golden Divine Nation had launched their attack, but they did not go about it in the same way they had 20 years earlier. They had just made some threats and then retreated. This made the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm realize that this truly was not like it had been 20 years ago. Most of the forces that had come here were of one mind. They were not here to start a war but to protect themselves against Ye Futian��s actions.


    The best outcome would be for the two sides to temporarily create a delicate balance and not disturb each other. They would live in this volatile situation.


    At the same time, they had come once to test out just how powerful Ye Futian was now. But when they saw the frightening strength that he had displayed, they became even warier in their hearts. They wanted to attack, but they were unable to.


    After the other forces had retreated, the Heavenly Mandate Academy and its allied forces enjoyed a period of calm. They did not take any actions but cultivated in peace, improving themselves gradually.


    That was how the situation stood. No one was willing to shatter the peace.


    They understood that the world would fall into chaos, but they had no way of changing this situation.


    The power of the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm had all seeped in there at the same time. It was unavoidable that the world would fall into chaos.


    However, the power of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and its allies was there. The other powers would not dare to act against them lightly. Thus, all the cultivators were able to enjoy a time of peace. The forces that had come watched all the changes in the Original Realm.


    The days passed one after another. Ye Futian cultivated calmly in the Heavenly Mandate Academy, practicing alchemy and giving the pills he created to others to use. They could struggle through taking the pills to improve their physiques, allowing them to go even further along the path of cultivation.


    Now that he was a Renhuang, he was in harmony with heaven and earth. If he was not killed, he would live forever and not wither away. Thus, he would naturally spend time helping those who were his elders.


    Even while the Heavenly Mandate Realm was at peace, the other realms were experiencing a time of great turmoil. Something major had happened in the Ziwei Realm.


    At that moment, Ye Futian and others were all cultivating in the Heavenly Mandate Palace. The teleportation grand matrix lit up, and Dou Zhao appeared within the matrix along with a group of people.


    Ye Futian and the others naturally noticed this. They watched as Dou Zhao strode through the air towards them until they reached the place where they were cultivating.


    ��Is something the matter?�� Ye Futian asked Dou Zhao.


    ��Something has happened in the Ziwei Realm,�� said Dou Zhao in his clear voice. ��Those guys are all crazy. They have cut open the veins of the earth within the Ziwei Realm. Moreover, it was the faction from the School of the Emperor Star that went down and opened the underground door, causing an earthquake throughout the whole realm.��


    Ye Futian��s eyes narrowed slightly. Had they acted against the Ziwei Realm?


    Moreover, it had happened at the School of the Emperor Star.


    The School of the Emperor Star was the most powerful force within the Ziwei Realm. Taking the Emperor Star as its name, its inheritance must be extraordinary.


    ��What happened?�� A group of figures walked in, all of them looking at Dou Zhao. The forms of the Nine Realms all seemed to hide some secrets. Now, the forces that had come from outside did not want to let such a thing go. They wanted to open up the secret doors.


    For the cultivators who had come from other realms, they basically did not care whether people from the Original Realm lived or died, and they definitely did not care about their cultivation. They wanted to uncover the secrets of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. They wanted to unearth their treasures and leave. And if their actions caused the realms to collapse, what did that matter to them?


    ��Previously, there had been news spreading through the Ziwei Realm that the School of the Emperor Star was protecting the veins of the earth there. Now, it seems like that information was not false. The School of the Emperor Star must know something, which is why they agreed to have those outsiders come and open the door. They discovered a frightening underground palace in the core of the Ziwei Realm,�� said Dou Zhao.


    ��An underground palace?�� Everyone��s eyes narrowed. The Shadow Realm had had the Shadow Divine Stone underground. Why would there be a palace under the Ziwei Realm?


    ��Now, those who are going to the Ziwei Realm have guessed that this underground palace is probably an imperial palace,�� continued Dou Zhao. ��An ancient palace of the Great Emperor. Of course, this is only a guess. As of yet, no one has uncovered its secrets. All of the realms must have heard this news by now, though, and many cultivators are heading to the Ziwei Realm.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and said, ��Go and let the others know.��


    With the Heavenly Mandate Academy as its center, the teleportation great matrix could send people to many other top-level powers. The Dou tribe, the Clan of the Seven Slayers, the Nantian Divine Kingdom, the Xiao clan, and the Yuanyang clan were all connected through the teleportation great matrix in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    ��Very well.��


    After a while, the teleportation great matrix was activated, sending people to the other forces to let them know what was going on.


    Before long, cultivators from all over were gathering at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    ��You are wounded, and the academy needs someone to guard it, so please do not leave,�� said Ye Futian to Lord Taixuan. Lord Taixuan nodded. These days, he spent all his time recovering. When Ye Futian and the others came back, he could rest a lot easier, and the pressure on him would lessen quite a bit. The Heavenly Mandate Academy needed someone to guard it.


    If some sort of problem were to suddenly arise, they would be able to temporarily deal with it if they had someone powerful there.


    The other cultivators set off, activating the teleportation great matrix.


    ��


    The Dou tribe stood high in the heavens, looking vast and mighty within the Ziwei Realm.


    The elder of the Dou tribe was there waiting for them. When he saw them coming, he came out to meet them, saying, ��Something big will likely happen here in the Ziwei Realm.��


    Everyone nodded. They naturally still remembered what had happened twenty years ago with the Shadow Realm. Ever since then, the Shadow Realm had been set on a ruinous path.


    Now, people had opened up the veins of the earth in the Ziwei Realm. After this, it would likely go the same way as it had with the Shadow Realm.


    And before that happened, this sword would probably sweep up countless cultivators of the Ziwei Realm.


    ��Let��s go and take a look,�� said Xiao Dingtian. He wanted to go and see what lay beneath the earth of the Ziwei Realm as well.


    Ever since the Dark World had started to rampage through the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and destroyed many realms, the top forces of the Nine Supreme Realms had guarded their secrets closely. The Shadow Realm and the Hidden Land Realm had already changed beyond recognition. The forces of Sun God Mountain now controlled the Shadow Realm.


    The Central Imperial Realm was the most stable because there were so many top forces there. The Empty Imperial Palace was there as well, and no one would dare move against them lightly.


    Thus, the place that most powers would want to strike first was the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Many of them had taken the opportunity to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but they had been blocked by the powerful figures there.


    Now, the Ziwei Realm had been struck first.


    Everyone stood up together and flew up into the sky, heading off into the distance. They pierced through the air, moving faster and faster.


    After a while, they descended from on high down towards the Ziwei Realm. They saw that terrible cracks had appeared in the earth here that spread out into the endless distance. None of them knew how wide the gashes were. They filled the entire realm.


    The closer they came to the School of the Emperor Star, the cracks became even more terrible. The atmosphere of the whole realm had become disturbed. The aura of heaven and earth was mightily unsettled.


    When they came near to the School of the Emperor Star, they saw an endlessly deep black hole that was vastly wide. It seemed to have broken open swiftly, like a sinkhole.


    A terrifying aura was seeping out of the sinkhole. Many cultivators stood around it, gazing down into it.


    Ye Futian and the others moved downward. The horrible aura that was seeping out of the sinkhole had faint divine light flowing in it. As they moved into the sinkhole, they could tell that it was this terrifying power that had caused the cracks all over the Ziwei Realm to appear and spread out continuously.


    ��What frightening power!�� Everyone could feel the aura seeping out from within. Even these powerful and famous figures were all afraid of it. It was very similar to what had happened in the Shadow Realm.


    ��If things continue like this, the whole Ziwei Realm will likely be split open, which lead to the realm being divided into different continents,�� said the elder of the Dou tribe, a hint of sorrow in his tone.


    The most unfortunate ones were the common folk. The lower one��s level of cultivation, the more terrible it would have been for them. They would likely have been destroyed in this transformation. They had been buried for these people��s ambition.


    The School of the Emperor Star was gone, but its cultivators were still there. They stood off in another direction, staring down. The Palace Lord held a scepter in his hands, and divine light wrapped around him, mingling with the faint divine light coming out of the sinkhole.


    ��You did not hesitate to bury the School of the Emperor Star, and you also sought to open up the forbidden door?�� The elder of the Dou tribe lowered his head as he spoke, his voice empty. This made the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star look up at him, purple radiance flashing in his eyes.


    ��The School of the Emperor Star will only become stronger from this,�� answered the palace lord, looking back at the elder.


    ��Even if you do open the forbidden door, why do you think the ones who will get the most out of it will be you?�� said the elder of the Dou tribe sarcastically. This transformation would attract cultivators from many different realms. If the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star wanted to unearth the treasures to claim them for himself, it would not be easy.


    Even the forces allied to him would probably gaze at him like a tiger gazing at its prey.


    ��You do not need to concern yourselves over this,�� the palace lord responded, looking back down into the empty space. Divine light flashed on his scepter, looking incredibly terrifying. It was as if it was able to produce a resonance with the power coming out of the hole.


    This made many people wonder. Could it be that the divine item underground had a connection to the modern School of the Emperor Star?


    Up in the sky, cultivators appeared one after another as more forces descended upon the Ziwei Realm. When they arrived, they stood in different places, looking down in the hole in the earth. They would not act lightly here.


    As more cultivators arrived, Ye Futian saw some familiar figures. They were people that he knew from the Divine Prefecture, such as people from the top forces in the Shangqing Domain and the Donghua Domain. They had shown up here as well!

 Chapter 2201 - Terrifying Formation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Cultivators from many different places were all gathered there. The ones who had come from the Donghua Domain and the Shangqing Domain naturally saw Ye Futian and the others as well.


    At that moment, someone with an incredibly sharp gaze was staring at Ye Futian. There was a fierce look of pride in his eyes and a sense that he looked down on and despised everyone beneath him. It was, of course, Ning Hua, the vice chief of the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain��s Manor and the man who was known as the greatest genius of the Donghua Domain.


    Standing near him were cultivators from all over the Donghua Domain. They had not split up when they had come to the Original Realm. Now that the Original Realm had undergone great changes, they all had more or less the same goals. Thus, they had gathered together as a group, with the forces of the Domain Chief��s Manor as their center.


    The cultivators of the Donghua Domain already knew all about the storm that Ye Futian had caused in the Shangqing Domain. Back then, the Palace Lord Ling Yunzi of Lingxiao Palace and Emperor Yan of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family had even attacked Four Corner City, and thus they had paid great attention to that area. Afterward, they never would have thought that Ye Futian��s name would make all of the Shangqing Domain tremble and that he would become the central figure of Four Corner Village. He had received the protection of the master of Four Corner Village. When the cultivators of the Shangqing Realm had attacked him, the master had driven them away.


    Now, Ye Futian��s status had risen greatly. It would not be that easy if they wanted to move against him.


    Ye Futian looked back at Ning Hua, and terrifying killing will poured from his eyes. He had not forgotten Zong Chan��s death at the battle of the Donghua Domain. He would also never forget the dismissal of Wangshen Watchtower.


    Zong Chan was the favored disciple of the Millet Emperor��the foremost genius of Wangshen Watchtower. He was an upper-level Renhuan with a perfect divine wheel of the seventh tier. He was one of the four great figures of the Donghua Domain. He had an incomparably bright future. He had been fated to become one of the heroes of the age.


    However, he had been slain by Ning Hua in the battle where the Domain Chief��s Manor targeted Wangshen Watchtower. Ye Futian would not forget that.


    This debt would certainly be repaid.


    If Chen Yi had not brought him out of that battle, and if Emperor Xi had not sent his personal disciple Yang Wuqi to save him by blocking Ning Hua, allowing Ye Futian to be brought to Turtle Deity Island, things would have gone very badly for him. He would have died at Ning Hua��s hands.


    It could be said that Ye Futian wished to kill Ning Hua, even more so than he wished to kill the cultivators of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace. He was the man that he must slay.


    The two of them locked gazes, and their eyes were cold and full of murderous intent. But there was still arrogance in Ning Hua��s eyes, whereas Ye Futian��s were full of determination. Even though Ning Hua was the vice chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain, he would still kill him.


    At that moment, a beautiful woman nodded at Ye Futian and said, ��I trust you have been well since last we parted, Emperor Ye?��


    Ye Futian looked over at her. Qin Qing was one of the three great disciples of the Sword Goddess of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow in the Donghua Domain. Beside her were two other goddesses��Jiang Yueli and Chu Hanxi.


    And the Sword Goddess herself was standing before the three of them. She had come in person to the Empty Realm.


    Due to the complicated relationship between Ye Futian and the Domain Chief��s Manor, the cultivators of the Donghua Domain naturally had to maintain a certain distance from Ye Futian. Qin Qing did not have to be like this. One reason was that several of the goddesses of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow regarded Ye Futian��s favorably and thought that he had perhaps even more potential than Ning Hua. The second reason was due to the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow��s own strength. The Sword Goddess was the foremost sword wielder in the Donghua Domain. Even the Domain Chief had to respect her. Thus, they did not have to worry too much about this relationship.


    ��I hope you have been well as well,�� replied Ye Futian politely. Then he looked at Sword Goddess and said, ��Greetings, senior.��


    Sword Goddess nodded slightly. She knew all about what had happened to him in the Shangqing Domain. He was indeed worthy of being called a hero. He had become more and more outstanding ever since he had left the Donghua Domain. Now the master of Four Corner Village was taking care of him. If Domain Chief Ning Yuan wanted to move against him, he would have to think long and hard about it.


    The other people that he knew also looked at Ye Futian, like the Taihua Skylord of Taihua Mountain and the Goddess Taihua. Ye Futian was skilled at the Divine Melody, and he had left a deep impression on them.


    Huang of the Desolate God Palace naturally saw Ye Futian as well. This talented man had displayed his enormously powerful divine wheel at Donghua Academy and had become incredibly famous in the Shangqing Domain after he left. Who knew how powerful he was now?


    Ye Futian��s two great enemies had come as well: Emperor Yan of the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Palace Lord Ling Yunzi of Lingxiao Palace. They stared at Ye Futian, their murderous intent clear on their faces.


    The Domain Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor Ning Yuan had not come. Emperor Yan and Ling Yunzi had come because Ning Yuan had promised to guard their lair for them. Lingxiao Palace was in the Donghua Heavens, so Ning Yuan was able to guard it directly. The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family was nearby as well, and so the Domain Chief��s Manor had secretly sent a top figure there as well. Moreover, the Domain Chief��s Manor had set up a teleportation matrix connecting the two forces so that they could support each other instantly.


    Their goal was obviously to protect against the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng. They hoped that when the two of them appeared, they could take them down to avoid future troubles. Otherwise, these two great powers would not be able to eat or sleep in peace. They would not dare to make any rash actions. Whenever they left, they had to worry about the safety of their home.


    Domain Chief Ning Yuan did not dare to leave either. The Millet Emperor and Wangsheng Watchtower had a deep alliance. The Millet Emperor, who bore the divine stela, could wield its power, giving him the ability to let loose terrifying combat ability. He was even able to fight Ning Yuan, which had been put to the test last time. Thus, Ning Yuan had to stay at the Domain Chief Manor.


    Ye Futian swept his gaze over the people from these forces. When the Original Realm was in chaos, people gathered from all directions. The Millet Emperor, Li Changsheng, Zong Chan, and the other cultivators of Wangsheng Watchtower should all be here too, but there was no trace of them. Zong Chan had been slain, and the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng were hidden away in secret. This was all the fault of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    He naturally understood that the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family and Lingxiao Palace had been sent here by the Domain Chief��s Manor. The Domain Chief��s Manor was backing them.


    In another direction, Ye Futian could see many of the forces from the Shangqing Domain: cultivators from the Nanhai Family, the Lu family, the Demon Cloud clan, and more were all there. They were gazing at Ye Futian as well.


    Nowadays, no one in the Shangqing Domain did not know Ye Futian.


    In the battle where they had threatened Four Corner Village, the master had fought like a stampeding god. Ye Futian��s name was now incredibly glorious as well and had spread all throughout the world.


    Seeing the many powerful people around Ye Futian, they could already tell that he had come from the Original Realm and that he was a cultivator from there. But they never would have thought that he was so powerful within the Original Realm. And there were many powerful people following him as well.


    Sure enough, the light of such a person could not be concealed here. Presumably, before he had left the Original Realm, his name had already shaken this unfallen world.


    The forces of the Original Realm naturally did not need to say very much. They were obviously very familiar with Ye Futian.


    It seemed that Ye Futian left a deep impression everywhere he went.


    Of course, in addition to this, many of the top figures who had come from the mainland were not familiar with Ye Futian. Many of the cultivators here had frightening auras, and their power filled the sky. Standing there was like standing amidst the ancient gods.


    Ye Futian had never before seen such a terrifying formation. Even back when the Divine Prefecture and the two great powers had fought a small-scale war, there had not been a formation like this.


    After all, the power that the three forces had mobilized at that time had been limited. But this time was different. The Imperial Palace had let all the forces of the Divine Prefecture come here, and most of the forces from the Dark Realm and the Empty Divine Realm had sent their top figures to the Original Realm.


    Thus, it could be said that once the Original Realm began to change, the group of people that appeared was unprecedently strong. Not only were the heroes of the Original Realm there, but also all the top powerhouses of the vast world.


    In addition to those of the cultivators that had come, there was also a terrible aura coming from the darkness. No one went out into it, but everyone could sense the invisible power seeping out of it. Who knew how many cultivators coveted the power of the Original Realm?


    Because of this, Dou Zhao had scolded the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star. Although the forces that had come from the Divine Prefecture were greedy, many of them still had some scruples and would not dare be too outrageous. The Imperial Palace was ever-present, and they would not dare to directly destroy the Nine Realms.


    However, as a native power of the Ziwei Realm, the School of the Emperor Star had actually destroyed the base of power for their own faction. They had opened up the veins of the earth. In that way, the other forces did not need to stand on ceremony and had come here one by one.


    Perhaps this was because the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star held a scepter that could produce a resonance with the power within. Maybe that was why he thought he could do it!


    Beside Ye Futian, Old Ma looked into the deep hole. ��The power coming out of there is terrifying. It will not be easy to go in.�� Terrible light was shining out, and the power that seeped out of the hole could truly be called horrifying. Even top-level figures would not lightly set foot inside.


    ��This power will probably gradually weaken. You can see that right now, it is spreading out through the entire Ziwei Realm. The peak of the power has been unleashed. It will probably lead to the destruction of the Ziwei Realm,�� Emperor Nan whispered, seemingly concerned. If this was truly the case, the cultivators of the Ziwei Realm were truly unfortunate. They would likely be thrust into an abyss of misery.


    The actions of the School of the Emperor Star had truly been without pity or mercy!

 Chapter 2202 - A Stone?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The crowd did not dare to make any sudden movements as they gazed down from the sky above. The endless rumbling sounds were as though an earthquake was occurring. The entire Ziwei Realm was quaking.


    ��Return immediately and protect the tribesmen,�� the chief of the Dou tribe ordered the cultivators behind him.


    ��Understood,�� acknowledged the cultivators as they left and returned to the Dou tribe.


    The Clan Leader of Clan of the Seven Slayers also naturally realized this. He immediately gave the same order. They all sensed that something big was about to happen to the Ziwei Realm. The catastrophe this time would be even direr than what happened to the Shadow Realm last time.


    In the endless space in the sky above, beams of divine light shone down onto the ground. The divine light resonated with things underground, causing the light to glow even brighter and radiate out into the vast space.


    The cracks in the ground kept propagating outwards, followed by intense rumbling. The crowd vaguely sensed that the underground palace was about to break out through the ground. It seemed that it would destroy the entire Ziwei Realm as it emerged from below.


    ��A celestial force,�� said Ye Futian as he looked up at the divine halos that were raining down.


    ��Hmmm, it is indeed a celestial force of heaven and earth,�� commented the chief of the Dou tribe beside Ye Futian as he nodded his head. ��Also, this is no ordinary power. It carries an air of nobility, as though it possesses a supreme aura.��


    ��That means that these powers correspond to the different powers of the Ziwei Realm. It seems that everything is secretly connected,�� said Emperor Nan in a low voice.


    At that moment, the hearts of the cultivators of the Ziwei Realm were trembling frenziedly. They were in a state of panic when they discovered that their entire world was changing.


    The ground collapsed and shattered as cracks propagated outwards. There were even large chunks of land that were completely split off from the Ziwei Realm and floated in the sky.


    What was happening? Many people did not even know what was going on. Panic was spreading frantically.


    The Ziwei Realm was one of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. There were countless living beings and cultivators living in it. This panic seemed to coalesce into a mass of frightening emotion. Even across the vast distances, the top figures in the direction of the School of the Emperor Star could faintly sense it.


    The figures of Emperor Nan, the chief of the Dou tribe, and other cultivators leaped into the sky. Their terrifying wills swept out and enveloped the vast space as they said, ��The Ziwei Realm is about to collapse. All cultivators, take to the skies.��


    ��How are we going to deal with this?�� asked the chief of the Dou tribe.


    ��The Ziwei Realm is full of cultivators. They should know what to do when they see the changes to the surface of the Realm. However, the small number of ordinary folk who have no cultivation will meet their end,�� lamented Emperor Nan. As he gazed at the Palace Lord of School of the Emperor Star, there was a cold look in his eyes.


    Right then, the Sound of Buddha filled the skies. An ancient buddha from the Mountain Realm descended with his hands together and a stern expression on his face. Sensing the situation in the Ziwei Realm, he said, ��The Palace Lord of School of the Emperor Star will bear the consequences for acting in such a manner.��


    The Palace Lord of School of the Emperor Star looked up at the buddha. It was Master Pudu. He replied, ��I believe in fate, not cause and effect.��


    Right now, he wanted to change his fate.


    The major change in the world was an opportunity. There had always been an ancient legend in the School of the Emperor Star. He wanted to open this forbidden door to see whether the ancient legend was true.


    Master Pudu chanted the Sound of Buddha. The Light of Buddha circled him, bearing an air of compassion.


    The cultivators of the Dark World destroyed the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. As a local force of the Original Realm, the School of the Emperor Star was also attempting to open this forbidden door. It would inevitably backfire on them.


    Terrifying divine light burst forth from below. The crowd saw the cracks grow bigger and bigger. Gradually, the entire continent was splitting apart.


    Rumble. Loud, intense rumbling could be heard. The people in the sky above still stood there watching. Underneath the dazzling light of the stars, huge boulders were flying towards them. However, the boulders were immediately destroyed and turned to dust before they could reach the cultivators.


    The entire Ziwei Realm was falling to pieces. Countless cultivators from the Ziwei Realm were weeping.


    Ye Futian stared down below. Huge boulders the size of mountains were crashing towards him. However, when they approached him, they were destroyed and shattered to pieces by the power of the Great Path. He gazed down below and secretly sighed. The disturbance this time was even more frightening than back then in the Shadow Realm.


    Among the Nine Supreme Realms, the Ziwei Realm was most likely about to follow the footsteps of the Hidden Land Realm. It would end up being destroyed.


    This frightening phenomenon persisted for a long while. The crowd still stood high in the sky above. However, it was as though they were standing in a vast empty space. They were no longer above a world. Around them, countless boulders were floating about. In the distance, it was as though large chunks of the continent had broken apart and were moving in different directions.


    Beneath them, beams of blinding light shot up at the crowd. Starlight also rained down from the endless space. The lights intertwined.


    Was the underground palace so big?


    The crowd felt their hearts leap. Even the giant level figures felt their hearts tremble.


    It was too big. It seemed endless, as though the underground palace that caused the Ziwei Realm to be torn apart covered the vast space.


    Was this actually an underground palace?


    It might be that, previously, the crowd had only seen the tip of the iceberg.


    ��Was there such a large underground palace?�� the chief of the Dou tribe asked. ��What do all of you think this looks like?��


    The various cultivators in the sky were looking at the huge object that had appeared. An extremely frightening starlight was radiating from within it.


    ��A stone,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��A stone?�� the chief of the Dou tribe asked as he revealed a strange look. Was this a stone even larger than a city?


    ��If it was a different shape, doesn��t it look like a star?�� asked Ye Futian.


    The people around him revealed strange looks. This power and the starlight flowing around it did indeed make it resemble a star.


    ��Is it a meteorite left behind by a falling star?�� suggested the chief of the Dou tribe.


    ��It might be a stone of the Heavenly Path from ancient times,�� said Ye Futian. This caused the people surrounding him to reveal thoughtful expressions.


    ��Of course, this is all just simple speculation,�� said Ye Futian in a low voice. ��Such pure power of the Great Path birthed the Ziwei Realm after many years. It made the Ziwei Realm and now will also destroy it.��


    ��It might be as you say,�� said the Dynastic Overlord of the ancient royal family of Duan. He felt that what Ye Futian said seemed very close to the truth.


    ��However, if it is a stone, why are they trying to open it?�� asked Duan Tianxiong. Ye Futian revealed a pensive look when he heard him say this. He looked over at the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star. The other party walked down towards the ground.


    ��It might be that this stone contains secrets?�� Ye Futian guessed.


    As they were speaking, an astonishing lightning storm appeared in the sky above. Terrifying divine lightning descended from the sky and directly struck the gigantic stone. However, the gigantic stone floating in the air did not budge. The attacks of the top figures could not move it at all.


    If this was truly a stone, the stone itself was a very precious divine item.

 Chapter 2203 - A Divine Miracle

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the vast sky, there were many cultivators. They all stood in different locations, but their gazes were locked on the huge stone.


    They had never seen such a huge stone. The stone contained an astonishing aura of the Great Path on it. It was as though the purest and most ancient power of the Great Path was emanating from it.


    Some of the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had pensive looks. The collapse of the Heavenly Path formed two unique Realms. The Original Realm was an ethereal world. Many years ago, countless cultivators had come to extract all the divine treasures here. Over the countless eons, all the valuable treasures of the Original Realm had been ransacked.


    Yet, it seemed as though some secrets still existed.


    If all that was left was this gigantic stone, it was not very valuable for the cultivators. After all, they couldn��t devise any use for the stone. They couldn��t even move it to another location.


    Perhaps precisely for this reason, the giant level figures in the past didn��t do anything to it.


    However, right now, could they discover something within it?


    Right at this moment, a figure emerged from the crowd and walked towards the gigantic divine stone. This person was none other than the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star. With a scepter in his hand, he approached the stone with a serious expression. He was surrounded by starlight as he put on a pious attitude.


    This scene caused the Shen clan and other alliance forces of the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star to reveal strange expressions. Could it be that what the Palace Lord said was true?


    This time, the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star actively invited them to join forces with him to open this forbidden door. Before this, they were suspicious as to why he would do so. After all, the School of the Emperor Star would suffer the greatest loss since the place would be flattened and disappear. Logically speaking, the Palace Lord would not want that to happen.


    This was unless the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star had secrets that he didn��t tell them. He might know some secrets about the Ziwei Realm.


    All the cultivators in the vast sky remained still and observed the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star. His figure appeared exceptionally tiny on top of the gigantic divine stone.


    Suddenly, divine lights shone from his body. An ancient book appeared in his left hand. The pages in the book had yellowed, indicating its long history. It had been passed down for countless years. However, as this ancient book slowly opened, brilliant divine light actually surged from within it. It intertwined into a gigantic pattern like a star atlas.


    ��It seems that the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star has actually kept some secrets,�� said the chief of the Dou tribe. Many people realized this. Right now, the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star had a stern expression as he held the ancient book. The power of the Great Path around him frenziedly surged into the book. The star atlas formed from the ancient book immediately kept expanding, spreading out towards the vast space.


    Very quickly, a beam of light shot out from the star atlas and landed on the gigantic, seemingly endless, divine stone. Right then, many people astonishingly discovered that grooves began to appear on the divine stone and actually appeared to add radiance to the star atlas.


    The star atlas grew brighter and brighter. In the heavens above, endless starlight shone down and resonated with the divine stone. Then, a beam of even more brilliant light shone down. The beam of light seemed to break the divine stone apart, causing it to shine even brighter. The dazzling divine light kept flowing like a current all over the divine stone.


    The grooves that resembled the night sky bore a majestic sense of beauty. Many cultivators exchanged glances with the people beside them. They could not hide the astonishment in their eyes.


    The divine stone seemed to be carved with grooves.


    ��It is a matrix,�� commented Ye Futian in a low voice. ��It might even be a divine matrix.��


    ��There is a divine matrix carved on the outside of this divine stone?�� someone asked. They were astonished. If such a gigantic divine stone was enveloped in a divine matrix, how frightening would the matrix be?


    What sort of matrix would it be?


    Many people suddenly became cautious. If this matrix were dangerous, it would most likely affect the vast space.


    The Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star stopped in his tracks. The beam of light descended from the sky. It was blinding. The frightening currents of light still spread across the divine stone. More and more grooves appeared, and brilliant starlight faintly radiated from them.


    Ye Futian narrowed his gaze and stared at the divine stone down below. What was that light that was seeping out from the divine stone?


    Could it be that this divine stone could be broken apart?


    If that was the case, what was hidden within such an enormous divine stone?


    ��Is this divine stone a sealed object?�� other cultivators suggested. They had some speculation as to what it was. If this divine stone was a sealed object itself, what sort of divine item would be sealed within it?


    It was such a terrifying grand matrix. Could it be that it was a sealing divine matrix? This star atlas must be the key to unlocking the seal. In the sky above, many giant level figures began to roughly figure things out. If it were as they speculated, the sealed item within would be extraordinary.


    Otherwise, who would go to such lengths to keep it sealed?


    Giant level figures had tested the grand matrix out. Their attacks could not affect the divine stone at all. The divine item that they could not break apart was merely a seal for another item. One could imagine how terrifying the person who set this up must have been.


    For a moment, everyone was speculating as to what was contained inside.


    Right now, they merely hoped that the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star could successfully unlock the seal of the divine stone.


    For now, they could only wait.


    The crowd waited patiently in the sky above as they watched the flowing divine light spread and envelop the gigantic divine stone. After a long while, the exterior of the divine stone finally lit up with blinding divine light. The countless engravings intertwined like a terrifying divine matrix.


    The Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star stood high in the sky and looked down at the divine matrix below. A pattern appeared on the star atlas that pointed to one location. A beam of divine light instantly shot towards that direction. The figure of the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star floated towards that point.


    Right then, the cultivators in the sky followed behind him. They faintly sensed that he was about to unravel the matrix.


    The figure of the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star stopped at a spot. Right now, he was exceptionally excited. His gaze revealed a feverish look of obsession. The ancient legend was actually true. The mysterious book that he found turned out to be the real key to unlocking the secrets of the past.


    Their School of the Emperor Star actually had such astonishing origins. How could he not be emotional?


    If he could inherit what was in the divine stone, could he break through the shackles of the Heavenly Path?


    The various cultivators could sense the excitement of the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star. A person of his cultivation level would have an extremely calm state of mind. Yet, faced with such a divine relic, he could not suppress the emotions overflowing from deep within his heart.


    However, the Palace Lord of the School of the Emperor Star was still a person who stood above the rest. He took a deep breath and came to a spot. He then released the scepter in his hand and allowed it to gravitate towards the matrix below. It happened to enter a vortex, like a key opening a ruin.


    In that instant, endless divine light burst forth from the divine matrix. It outshone the sun and caused many people to be unable to open their eyes. The cultivators were sent flying from the shockwaves. Ye Futian was also pushed back high into the sky by the formless wave. It was the same for the giant level figures.


    The divine stone opened, and the sealed history within it was also opened. Dazzling divine light lit up the heavens. Right then, even the cultivators from other Realms could see the light from this space. The divine light radiated outwards for billions and billions of miles, reaching the ends of space like a divine bridge.


    Flowing light of the Great Path circled the figures of the cultivators. It blocked the storm that sent them flying. They looked towards the divine light. Then, everyone saw an astonishing scene that caused their gazes to be frozen there. Intense ripples of emotion welled up within them, and they could not calm down for a long while.


    They saw an actual divine miracle!

 Chapter 2204 - Sealed Off World

    Ye Futian was similarly astonished at the miraculous scene before his eyes. Intense waves of emotion welled up inside of his heart.


    Even though he had an extraordinary imagination, he had not dared to imagine that such a scene would appear before his eyes.


    The thing sealed within the divine stone was not a divine item; it was a world.


    The starlight that radiated out for billions of miles lit up the endless space. Many cultivators of other Realms looked up towards the direction of the light.


    After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the Void Realm became the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Aside from the Realms, other places were endless void.


    However, right now, endless starlight forged a divine bridge. The cultivators saw a galaxy when they looked up at the sky. The starlight orbited around in space. The countless stars in the sky vaguely formed a dazzling pattern. They formed a gigantic silhouette. It seemed as though the galaxy was formed from the body of a deity.


    This was a true independent world. A separate world was sealed within the divine stone.


    What was truly astonishing was that the cultivators saw traces of human civilization within the galaxy across the vast distance. The sealed-off world was the same as the outside world. It was a world where cultivators existed.


    This made them think of the Original Realm subconsciously. Wasn��t it also the same?


    It was a true divine relic.


    Only a deity could pull off such a feat.


    Was this a world from the ancient era? Many people thought to themselves with serious expressions. No one knew when the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms were formed, to begin with. This world was sealed in the core of the Ziwei Realm. This meant that a deity might have created this world and sealed it away to protect his people during the collapse of the Heavenly Path.


    After countless years, the dust-laden seal was finally opened today, and this world appeared once again. Whose work was this?


    This silhouette formed from the endless starlight must be that of the deity.


    Which ancient era deity was this?


    ��The changes in the world originate from the Original Realm,�� someone mumbled.


    It seemed that the rumors were not made up. An ancient world actually appeared in the Original Realm. Most likely, even Donghuang the Great had never imagined this would happen.


    Down below, the Palace Lord of School of the Emperor Star looked up into the sky with a stern expression.


    ��What do you know?�� Right then, someone looked down and asked the Palace Lord of School of the Emperor Star.


    ��Which Great Emperor is this?�� Another person asked. Since the Palace Lord of School of the Emperor Star had obtained the key to open the seal, he should know some things.


    ��He is the Star Lord of Ziwei, Ziwei the Great,�� declared the Palace Lord of School of the Emperor Star. As expected, the ancient legend passed down in the School of the Emperor Star was true.


    A few top figures from other Realms had stern expressions. They had guessed as much. In ancient legends, the Star Lord of Ziwei was one of the most powerful gods in the world. He ruled over a segment and was a god worshipped by countless people.


    They never imagined that they would be able to see a divine relic left behind by Ziwei the Great today. It was a world that he had previously protected. Even though Ziwei the Great had perished long ago and disappeared into the annals of history, he had sealed the world off and protected his people. His worshippers had, fortunately, survived the catastrophe of the Heavenly Path.


    This kind of strength to change one��s fate was unprecedented; such a legendary figure was awe-inspiring.


    How powerful exactly were the gods back then?


    At that moment, silhouettes rose into the sky and headed over towards the galaxy. If that was a world previously protected by Ziwei the Great, how was their cultivation after so many years?


    They wanted to take a look.


    ��Let��s go.�� Ye Futian and the others similarly took to the skies. In different locations in the empty space, the various cultivators traversed the sky and headed towards the galaxy.


    The cultivators were extremely fast. However, after the divine matrix was opened, the sealed divine light reached the ends of the space and shone out billions of miles. The distance was actually very far away. In the endless void, the various cultivators also pulled apart the distances between them as they traveled. After all, compared to the endless void, their figures were miniscule.


    Aside from that, the cultivators of the Ziwei Realm had lost their homes. They followed the beam of divine light and headed forward to seek a new place to call home. However, with their level of cultivation, it would take them a long time to arrive.


    Ye Futian and the others traversed across the empty space. They also took a long time to reach the world of the galaxy. Many stars were orbiting within the space. Each of them was filled with prosperous signs of life. They all showed traces of humankind.


    ��I never imagined that we would see an ancient world in the Void Realm,�� exclaimed Emperor Nan. His heart could not calm down. They headed towards a world and landed on the ground. The world was teaming with life. It was the same as the world they lived in. Under the protection of the divine light of Ziwei, this galaxy functioned with its own independent set of rules.


    For the people who lived here, they did not even know what had happened. The seal of their god had been opened, and the world they were in had been connected with the Original Realm. However, the laws of this world had not been destroyed due to the protection of the divine light. Their galaxy still functioned with its same principles. Hence, they only felt a small tremor just now before everything returned to normal.


    Ye Futian exchanged glances with the people around him. From this day forth, there would be another world in the Original Realm aside from the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    They came to a city with many cultivators. However, their level of cultivation did not seem to be high.


    ��Let me go down and ask around,�� said Ye Futian. His figure immediately disappeared from his spot in a flash and appeared in the city��s streets below.


    The streets were filled with people. Ye Futian appearing out of thin air drew the attention of many around him. His handsome face, as well as his white hair and robes, served to accentuate his extraordinary temperament. Some women even snuck gazes in his direction from time to time.


    This person was certainly an extraordinary senior.


    ��Young miss, may I ask you about some things?�� Ye Futian could not help but ask a beautiful woman who was looking at him. The woman��s eyes sparkled, and she seemed to avoid him a little. She lowered her head slightly and said, ��Certainly, sir.��


    ��Where is this place?�� asked Ye Futian.


    The woman raised her head and looked at him when she heard his question. She revealed a strange expression.


    ��Of course, this is Tianyi City.��


    ��Which world are we in?�� Ye Futian continued asking.


    The woman��s expression grew even more bizarre. This man was so handsome, yet it seemed that he had lost his mind.


    Ye Futian also felt that something was off. Indeed, for an ordinary person, she might not know the truth of this world at all. It was like back then when he was cultivating in the city of Qingzhou. How could he have possibly fathomed what the world was like back then?


    He thought that the Nine States continent was the entire world.


    ��Sorry to have disturbed you,�� said Ye Futian as he turned and left. He shook his head slightly as he thought to himself. From the looks of it, he needed to find the strongest person in this Realm to get the answers he wanted.


    The woman saw Ye Futian shaking his head. She thought to herself that it was such a pity that this pretty face was actually a fool!

 Chapter 2205 - World of the Great Emperor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and the others very quickly found the strongest place in the area��Tianhuan Palace.


    Tianhuan Palace was at the center of this world. It was a ruling force of this independent world. The most talented figures would be sent to Tianhuan Palace to cultivate.


    As Ye Futian traveled along, he discovered that, overall, the abilities of the cultivators of this world were actually very powerful. They were far superior compared to the standard of the Original Realm. They were even on par with the core continents of the Divine Prefecture. He discovered many people who had flawless Great Paths. This should be related to the uniqueness of this world.


    Ziwei the Great sealed away this world. They should have inherited his Path.


    This world might be functioning based on the laws that Ziwei the Great set.


    Tianhuan Palace was situated in the central region of this star world. It towered between the heavens and the earth majestically, its palaces seeming overbearing and grandiose.


    Ye Futian��s group came to the outside of Tianhuan Palace, and they looked into its courtyard. Ye Futian said to the people beside him, ��You all should come along.��


    The people inside this place should all be top figures. It would probably be more effective if people of the same level as them visited them.


    ��We are cultivators from the Original Realm. We have come to offer our greetings to Tianhuan Palace,�� Xiao Dingtian declared loudly. His voice reverberated in the space and descended upon the vast Tianhuan Palace.


    Immediately, countless cultivators within Tianhuan Palace looked up. Wills swept over towards them. The cultivators revealed astonished expressions. Many of them took to the skies with extremely serious looks on their faces.


    What was going on?


    So many powerful cultivators had arrived.


    However, from the main hall of Tianhuan Palace, an elder wearing grey robes emerged and stood outside the main hall. His gaze seemed to pierce the space as he looked outside. He replied, ��Tianhuan Palace welcomes our distinguished guests. Please come in.��


    ��Many thanks,�� replied Xiao Dingtian. Immediately, the cultivators headed into Tianhuan Palace. They came straight up to the outside of the main hall of Tianhuan Palace and saw the grey-robed elder. He had restrained his aura, yet they could still sense that he was a giant level figure.


    The Renhuangs around him were also extraordinary cultivators with frightening auras.


    However, right now, they were looking at the people from the outside world with cautious looks. After all, this lineup was too powerful. It was sufficient to eradicate their Tianhuan Palace. If the other party came with ill intentions, Tianhuan Palace would most likely be in deep trouble.


    After Ye Futian and the others entered, they showed no ill will, instead bowing respectfully at them. When they saw this, the other party also courteously bowed back at them. Tianhuan Palace Palace Lord asked, ��Where have you all come from?��


    ��We are all from the outside world. Sir, do you know that this independent world has undergone some changes? �� Xiao Dingtian asked.


    ��Hmm,�� replied Tianhuan Palace Palace Lord as he nodded his head. ��We are already aware of it. The seal has been opened, has it not?��


    The various cultivators narrowed their eyes. It seemed that Tianhuan Palace Palace Lord already knew about this. That meant that these top figures knew the truth about their cultivation world.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Xiao Dingtian as he also nodded his head. ��We are cultivators from the outside world. After the seal was unraveled, we came to this world. Hence, we intentionally came over to seek guidance as to what sort of world this place is.��


    Before this, when asking passersby, some of them took Ye Futian for a fool. However, the strongest people in the realm immediately understood their intention.


    From the looks of it, the other party might know much more than they imagined.


    ��Hmm.�� Tianhuan Palace Palace Lord nodded and said, ��Everyone, please come in.��


    ��Many thanks,�� replied Xiao Dingtian as he saluted with his fists. He then followed the other party and sat down at the seats arranged in front of the main hall. Both parties sat across from one another. Tianhuan Palace Palace Lord then said, ��Since you all have broken the seal and come from the outside world, you should know about some things.��


    ��We suppose this is an ancient world? Back during the collapse of the Heavenly Path, Ziwei the Great sealed off this independent world. After countless eons, today, the seal has finally been opened,�� said Xiao Dingtian.


    The other party nodded their head slightly and explained, ��In our world of Ziwei, similar ancient legends have been passed down. Back then, Ziwei the Great protected our people by sealing our world away in this Ziwei Segmentum. You all from the outside world must have certainly seen it. Our world is also known as the Ziwei Segmentum. These are all lands ruled by Ziwei the Great back in the day. This Ziwei Segmentum forms its own world. There should be little difference between our world and the outside world. However, these secrets are only known by the top figures. Unless one reaches the Renhuang Plane, it would be difficult to leave one��s own star, let alone this segment.��


    Ye Futian and the others nodded their heads slightly. It was as they had expected.


    This place was the world of Ziwei the Great.


    ��Did the Great Emperor leave behind his will?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��He should have,�� the other party replied as he glanced at Ye Futian and nodded his head. ��Although no one has seen the actual body of Ziwei the Great, in the world of Ziwei, he is the supreme deity. All the laws here obey the will of Ziwei the Great. The entire segment is encompassed within his will. I believe that this is the display of the will of Ziwei the Great. He has always been protecting this world.��


    Ye Futian and the others understood what the other party said. Ziwei the Great was the god worshipped by everyone in this world. He was the supreme deity and existence, the religion of the people of this world. This was to be expected as this was the world he protected.


    ��How is the outside world like?�� asked Tianhuan Palace Palace Lord. It was not just him who was curious. The other cultivators of the world of Ziwei also looked at Ye Futian and the others with curious looks.


    Xiao Dingtian slowly explained, ��Many years ago, when the Heavenly Path collapsed, it was rumored that the world faced a huge catastrophe. The Heavenly Path was shattered, and the various deities perished. Later on, the Original Realm and the outside world were formed. We are from the Original Realm. It is also known as the Void Realm. The world of Ziwei was sealed within the divine stone at the core of the Ziwei Realm in the Original Realm.�� He gave a brief introduction to the other party regarding the current situation in the outside world.


    ��The outside world must be much larger than the world of Ziwei, then?�� someone asked.


    ��All of you will be able to leave this place in the future. When the time comes, you may see for yourself,�� Xiao Dingtian said. ��By the way, where is the core of the world of Ziwei located? We wish to see the core region of this world.��


    ��On Ziwei Imperial Star,�� the other party replied. ��If you stand in the sky and look towards the segment, Ziwei Imperial Star is the highest and brightest star that you will see. Ziwei Imperial Palace is located there. Legend has it that, back then, it was the cultivation training ground of the Great Emperor. That place is the absolute core of this world. It rules over the world of Ziwei. Our Tianhuan Palace is on Tianhuan Star. However, Tianhuan Palace takes orders from Ziwei Imperial Palace. It is the holy land of this world. If you wish to explore the secrets of this world, you can head over there.��


    The crowd nodded their heads. It was not just them. Other cultivators had also come to this world. It was just that they were now scattered across different regions. Everyone would certainly gather at Ziwei Imperial Star.


    This world actually also had a Ziwei Palace. However, the word ��Imperial�� was added to it.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace was once the cultivation training ground of Ziwei the Great!

 Chapter 2206 - Ziwei Imperial Palace

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Imperial Star, the largest starry world in Ziwei Segment, had countless cultivators.


    The cultivators of this starry world were believers of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Ziwei Imperial Palace, located in the Imperial City, was the absolute holy land of this starry world. No one had ever questioned its authority. All the cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum believed in Ziwei the Great. The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were spokespersons of Ziwei the Great: everything they did was the embodiment of the will of the Great Emperor.


    In this world, those with the best talents and the strongest cultivation would eventually enter the Ziwei Imperial Palace, which was the most supreme of all cultivation places.


    Because of this, the strength of Ziwei Imperial Palace was beyond imagination, easily in control of the entire Ziwei world, impossible to be dethroned by anyone or any forces. After so many years, Ziwei Imperial Star had always stood at the peak of Ziwei Segment, worshipped by people in this world.


    Ye Futian and the others came to the Imperial City of Imperial Star from Celestial Star. When they stepped into this city, they could feel a solemn and magnificent aura. All the cultivators here were incredibly strong, much stronger than those in the main cities of Divine Prefecture that Ye Futian had been to.


    In Ziwei Segmentum, the status of the Imperial City was probably equivalent to the center of the Divine Prefecture in the Outer Realm, the same as the Imperial City where Donghuang the Great resided, a supreme land.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace itself was like a magnificent city. When Ye Futian and the others came to the outside of the imperial palace, they saw a city within a city that stretched for thousands of miles, extending all the way to higher ground. Inside, it was full of holy and magnanimous aura, far more spectacular than the Tianhuan Palace they had visited before.


    Outside Ziwei Imperial Palace, anyone who passed by would worship it, gazing inside with eyes full of awe. This demonstrated the position that Ziwei Imperial Palace occupied in the hearts of cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��People from the outside came to this segment at the same time. We are probably not the first to arrive. Maybe someone else was here already,�� said Duan Tianxiong, everyone nodding in agreement. Nan Huang said, ��This place is unfathomable. I��m afraid that none of us will defeat the strongest cultivator that Ziwei Imperial Palace has to offer.��


    The crowd was disquieted for a moment but understood right away: Tianhuan Palace had cultivators on their level. The palace lord of Tianhuan Palace had personally explained that they were all under the command of Ziwei Imperial Palace. This showed just how powerful and great Ziwei Imperial Palace was.


    This was the place where Ziwei the Great used to cultivate, and it might contain ancient secrets beyond their imagination. What Emperor Nan said was true enough: the strongest cultivator of Ziwei World, who could rule this segment, was probably someone that none of them could contend with.


    ��Let��s go. Let��s visit them and see what kind of place Ziwei the Great cultivated in,�� Emperor Nan continued as he moved forward. Looking at the guardian outside the imperial palace, he said, ��Outside visitors are coming to visit the Imperial Palace.��


    ��Enter,�� the guard outside the imperial palace said as if he had already received the order. He did not continue to report, merely letting them through.


    ��Thank you,�� Emperor Nan said as the group of people walked inside. After entering, they kept moving in the air. Ziwei Imperial Palace was too vast. Traveling by air was far faster than traveling on land.


    Across each and every ancient and majestic palace, they perceived a tremendous powerful aura, many of which were from Renhuang. Divine consciousness was surveying over them.


    Ahead, several silhouettes rose into the sky, standing on top of several palaces. They were surrounded by starlight, and their auras were frightening. Each one of them possessed an extraordinary temperament, and all of them were powerful Renhuang.


    The group of people gave Ye Futian and his people a meaningful look, sizing them up.


    Another man levitated and stood on top of the highest palace in this area, looking at everyone. He said, ��Welcome, everyone, to Ziwei Imperial Palace.��


    ��Apologies for coming and disturbing you,�� Emperor Nan said politely.


    ��When the restriction was lifted, naturally, everyone wanted to come here. Before you, many people already arrived.�� The man continued, ��Ziwei World had been sealed off for many years and had not been in contact with outside cultivators. They cultivated inside Ziwei Realm and were curious about the strength of cultivators from the outside. Will you indulge them? Perhaps learn from each other.��


    Emperor Nan looked at those powerful cultivators in the Renhuang Realm and saw that they were full of the aura of the Great Path. They were all Renhuang with perfect Great Path. This realization alarmed Emperor Nan quite a bit. It seemed that after Ziwei the Great sealed off this world, he must have left something behind. The palace lord of Tianhuan Palace said that the will of the Great Emperor was always there, in charge of this world. This claim may not have been an exaggeration.


    He looked at Ye Futian and the others beside him. He saw Ye Futian, nodded, and replied, ��Very well.��


    He knew that the others would definitely want to see the cultivation strength of these men, so he wanted to observe and verify them.


    And they were the same, wanting to experience the strength of the top cultivators in Ziwei Realm.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace was where the strongest figures in Ziwei Segmentum gathered; it was just like how all the most enchanting geniuses in the 18 realms of the Divine Prefecture gathered together and trained as a collective.


    The cultivators here symbolized the pinnacle of this world.


    Therefore, both sides were curious and wanted to test each other.


    ��In that case, please feel at home,�� the major figurehead of the other side said, and an invisible force immediately enveloped the space. Ye Futian and his party continued moving forward. Everyone who stepped out was a cultivator in possession of a perfect Great Path, including several highly capable existences from the village. The other side also had existences at this level.


    ��I��ll go first.�� Dou Zhao stepped in the void, and the void shuddered, letting out a violent roar. A cultivator of the same realm on the opposite sidestepped out. His eyes shone brightly, like stars.


    Boom�� A monstrous attack swept out, and Dou Zhao��s offense was domineering and direct, pushing forward without stopping.


    When he attacked his opponent, he saw extremely radiant starlight flowing. The battlefield seemed to be transformed into a starry world. His opponent raised his hand to blast out a punch, pure and simple. However, it felt extremely heavy. It was as if the stars around him were flowing forward at the same time.


    Bang. With a loud noise, Dou Zhao��s fierce body was knocked back. This sight surprised the clan lord of the Dou Tribe, Ye Futian, and the others to no end. Was their attack power as strong as this?


    ��It��s pure starry Great Path,�� Emperor Nan murmured. Dou Zhao knew he had underestimated the enemy. Suddenly, a divine light appeared in the center of his brow chakra. As the Will of the Fighting God opened up, a terrifying fighting intent now burned upon his body. He stepped forward again.


    Boom!


    A stream of light penetrated the void, and Dou Zhao��s body seemed to have transformed into the body of the Fighting God. As he moved forward, his body was bathed in the divine glory of the Fighting God. Meanwhile, the starlight flowed around his opponent��s body. It was as if he was surrounded by the stars. He raised his palms and slapped them forward. A star atlas appeared, surrounded by stars.


    A violent sound came out, and the star atlas light screen blocked Dou Zhao��s attack, but the surrounding stars seemed to be cracked. It looked as if these stars were supporting the pattern on the star atlas, making it indestructible.


    The other man��s palms slapped on the star atlas. Instantly, in the galaxy, countless stars ran counter to the flow, sweeping out towards Dou Zhao. Dou Zhao��s body seemed to be drowning within them.


    Now, it was no longer a matter of underestimating the enemy. It was not easy for Dou Zhao to gain victory over his opponent.


    ��Open!��


    An even more terrifying Will of the Fighting God erupted. The sixth, seventh, and eighth successive eruptions�� And the Fighting God seemed to appear. Continuous punches slammed down to smash those terrifying starry attacks that were raining down.


    ��This is the imperial palace��the place where the Great Emperor cultivated. The power of the imperial palace��s cultivators may be inherited by the Emperor himself. Unleash your true strength. This is a good opportunity for you,�� Emperor Nan said. Immediately, one man after another walked out to find their own opponent, waiting for an explosive battle to break out.


    ��Aren��t you going to strike?�� a Renhuang looked at Ye Futian and asked. He was also in the Sixth Realm and had an extraordinary temperament.


    Ye Futian looked at the man. He slightly nodded and said, ��If you are ready, I will take action. No matter what happens, please don��t take it to heart.��


    That Renhuang in the Sixth Realm frowned. They were cultivators of the imperial palace, standing at the top of Ziwei Segment, and every one of them was a person with extraordinary talents. What did Ye Futian mean by this?


    ��I��ll be waiting to see it.�� The other nodded as he gazed at Ye Futian. He was surrounded by starlight; it was as if a starry world had appeared with him. The cultivators of the Ziwei Segment bathed in the divine glory of Ziwei the Great and received his inheritance. Therefore, those truly powerful cultivators had a similar cultivation specialty��the stars.


    Ye Futian looked at the other. Then, with a flash, he disappeared from where he was standing.


    In just an instant, Ye Futian descended in front of the other and slammed with a punch. In his fist aurora, the Great Path howled and roared. Likewise, the man released the star atlas as a defense that blocked in front of him.


    Ye Futian��s fist blasted and slammed directly on the star atlas.


    A terrifying storm of the Great Path swept out, followed by loud rumbling noises. The stars on the star atlas burst and shattered as cracks began to appear on the atlas. In a few moments, the atlas completely disintegrated, being pulverized into nothing.


    Boom! The fist fell on the man��s body, knocked that Renhuang��s body into flying. However, Ye Futian deliberately held back and did not cause his opponent to be seriously injured.


    Even so, after the man stopped, blood was still spilling from the corner of his mouth as he raised his head to look at Ye Futian in amazement!

 Chapter 2207 - Mighty Deterrance

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It was really unexpected!


    Were cultivators from the outside this powerful?


    The man looked at the other battlefields again and found that none were in a situation like his. There were winners and losers in each fight, but he was the only one whose defense was penetrated with one strike. Was his combative power that inferior?


    Obviously, that was not it. He knew very well what level was his strength was; it wasn��t the topmost, but by no means was it the worst, so the outcome was completely unexpected. Unless, of course, the opponent he faced was the most terrifying on the opposite side.


    The major figurehead in the imperial palace also cast a glance toward Ye Futian, showing some surprise. Not only did Ye Futian surprise them, but everyone in his group did. There were a few notable characters among those who had arrived before them, but none like this group standing right before them. Each one of them was powerful in their own right.


    However, seeing many giants, such as Emperor Nan and the others, he thought that he might not be facing just a force. Still, an awesome alliance, which would account for so many powerful people gathered in one group.


    In the distance, there was another astonishing aura, as starlight was shining down and falling on Ye Futian. Ye Futian saw a man appearing above him in the next moment, and the sky was sprinkling starry glory. It was as if he was in a galaxy, and that there was a meteor shower in that galaxy, an extremely sharp meteor shower��sword rain!


    Boom! An astonishing aura of the Great Path erupted from Ye Futian. His body howled madly as a terrifying booming sound came from within. The meteor sword rain fell with the most radiant brilliance.


    A sharp and harsh sound came out as the sword rain fell on Ye Futian��s body, but it failed to do any damage to his body. The sight caused many around him to cease their own fighting as they looked, shocked, at Ye Futian.


    How could his defense be unbreakable?


    Did all the outside cultivators have such powerful physical bodies like him?


    At this level, anyone in the Sixth Realm would be annihilated. However, under the brilliant divine light, Ye Futian went against the momentum and shuttled through the meteor sword rain by turning into a stream of light. He blasted out with a punch.


    The Renhuang who attacked was high above the sky but was knocked into the air nonetheless. He didn��t make it back until a few moments later. His eyes were fastened on Ye Futian as well.


    He looked at Ye Futian��s body and wondered, How can this physical body be so strong?


    Not only him, but everyone else was staring at Ye Futian��s body as if they were looking at a monster. The major figurehead from Ziwei Imperial Palace said, ��Many cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace are exposed to the sharp divine light of Ziwei the Great, so their Way is complementary to their physical form. But you, how did your Way incarnate in your body?��


    Some extraordinary characters in Ziwei Imperial Palace also possessed the body of the Great Path. However, it was still impossible for them to be like Ye Futian at this moment. He could see that Ye Futian��s physical body had already been transformed into the Way and was one with it.


    ��Because of some opportunities, I once comprehended the cultivation method of a Great Emperor. After the baptism of comprehension, this body of Way was cast. Although you are repelled, there is no need for concern. After all, most of the outsider cultivators did not fare any better than you,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��You are quite conceited,�� that major figurehead said, looking at Ye Futian, but it was not meant as a reprimand. If any enchanting figure from the outside world were as terrifyingly strong as Ye Futian, it would be a huge blow to all of them.


    But Ye Futian said that most cultivators from the outside fared no better than them, so he must have real strength to back up his claim. Presumably, on the outside world, he was also someone at the top.


    ��Well, come with me,�� that cultivator from the imperial palace announced. Everyone stopped fighting. Dou Zhao, however, seemed not to have had enough of his share of the fight just yet.


    ��How should we address the elder?�� Ye Futian��s figure flickered, caught up behind the other group, and asked that peak figurehead.


    ��Lord Mu,�� replied the Renhuang, who was defeated previously by Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded and followed Lord Mu as he led the way forward and came to a palatial complex, saying, ��You guys will settle down here first. When the palace lord is available, he will summon you.��


    When everyone heard his use of words, their expressions moved slightly. ��Summon,�� he had said.


    It seemed that Lord Mu viewed the palace lord of Ziwei Palace as a supreme being who should be worshipped. But it was true that in all of Ziwei Segmentum, aside from Ziwei the Great, who was the deity believed by those in this world, it was the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace who had the actual control of this Segmentum. He was the equivalent of the lord ruling this world. Just like Donghuang the Great in the Divine Prefecture, his status was unquestionably the most sovereign.


    At this time, they suddenly sensed an astonishing aura. A flash went through their eyes as they raised their heads to look into the distance.


    In the depths of the imperial palace, there was a horrific aura high above the sky. A super-powerful existence was releasing the pressure of the Great Path that sheltered the sky and obscured the sun, covering a boundless space that had begun to spread toward the entire imperial palace.


    ��Foolish idiot,�� Lord Mu reprimanded in a cold voice. Ye Futian and the others looked in the same direction he was looking. Was it a cultivator from the Original Realm who had clashed with Ziwei Imperial Palace?


    But this was to be expected. Those from the Original Realm were major powers themselves, and some were superpowers from the Divine Prefectures. Ziwei Imperial Palace was the ruling force of this segment, so there was the possibility for conflicts.


    ��This is the imperial palace, you cur.�� Some Renhuang also commented coldly. Emperor Nan and the others released their divine consciousness. They suddenly realized that the man who attacked was not the top cultivator from Original Realm but some major cultivator from Divine Prefecture.


    At this moment, they saw a divine light shining in the sacred ancient temple that led to the Nine Heavens as if a starry world had appeared. Starlight from countless stars fell, shining on the Might the man had released.


    Suddenly, there was a scream, and everyone saw that the storm was madly dissipating, having been pierced and destroyed. However, the starlight remained, shining upon the Nine Heavens. Yonder, a starlight divine sword appeared, then pierced into the void. In an instant, a major figurehead was seen struggling and roaring, ��Please be merciful!��


    Buzz! An unparalleled coercion swept through, and that distorted face gradually dissolved. Under that utmost and supreme Might, the transgressor dissipated, and his body and Great Path were both destroyed. Everything was reduced to dust. He was now part of the history of those who had fallen within the bounds of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Lord Mu and the others regarded what just took place with absolute tranquility, aside from a cold snort. It was as if this was the expected conclusion for anyone who dared to make trouble inside Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    But Ye Futian and the others were quite uneasy in their hearts. That was a top figure from Divine Prefecture, who had been dispatched as simply as that. Nonetheless, that man was indeed a bit too arrogant to think that he could behave this way on someone else��s territory. It was no wonder the other had not spared him.


    They saw the divine sword disappear as if flying back to that towering hall on its own. Everything returned to normal, as calm as if nothing had ever happened, and the order of the imperial palace undisturbed. Other places were just the same as Lord Mu here, in total calmness.


    Lord Mu turned his head and glanced at Emperor Nan and the others. He said, ��Before you arrived, we have already done some research on the outside world. The Original Realm is ruled by Donghuang the Great, and there was only one Great Emperor in the Divine Prefecture. Other than that, it was just cultivators of all the top principalities from every side. To be honest, although there are many major principalities from the outside world, there are definitely not many who can do what they want in Ziwei Imperial Palace. That man just now was on a fool��s errand.��


    There was a strong confidence in his words, which was probably a veiled threat to Ye Futian and the others, reminding them not to act too presumptuously inside the imperial palace.


    Ye Futian and the others nodded slightly in acknowledgment. As expected from Emperor Nan, the strongest figures in Ziwei Imperial Palace may be way more powerful than any of them. If the other dared to make such a proclamation and deal out such fatal and severe punishment, it must be that they were sure of their stance. This, in itself, was a demonstration of extreme confidence.


    Ye Futian even suspected that there were divine items left by Ziwei the Great in the imperial palace that may be used by the Palace. After all, this was the place where Ziwei the Great once cultivated, and such a possibility was very high.


    As the group descended inside the palace, Lord Mu continued, ��I know who you are and why you are here. Cultivators from the outside have discovered a world long forbidden to them. Naturally, they want to explore it for themselves. And this being a relic left by the Great Emperor, everyone wanted to come to the imperial palace and try their luck to see if there was anything left by Ziwei the Great. However, everything still needs to be arranged by the palace lord, and I hope all of you can abide by the rules of the imperial palace.��


    ��We understand.�� Emperor Nan nodded slightly. That previous killing of a top figure must be Ziwei Imperial Palace��s deliberate display to deter all the cultivators. After all, the top forces from the outside world had gathered here, and even the likes of Ziwei Imperial Palace must be under tremendous pressure because of it.


    On their own, no single person or force could triumph over Ziwei Imperial Palace, but what about all the outside forces together as a whole?


    No matter how powerful the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace was, there were also supreme existences from the Divine Prefecture. The imperial palace should think long and hard about that first!

 Chapter 2208 - Palace Lord of Imperial Palace

    Ye Futian and his group settled down in Ziwei Imperial Palace, for the time being, enjoying the good food and drinks provided by Lord Mu. Afterward, people from other outside principalities also rushed over to Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace refused none who came and hosted all of them inside the imperial palace.


    And because these various forces also understood how powerful Ziwei Imperial Palace was, they did not act hastily and waited very patiently. They were curious to meet the master of this segment, Star Lord of Ziwei, to see what kind of supreme existence this legend was.


    Time passed, day by day. Ye Futian and the others remained inside a palace, cultivating and waiting patiently.


    Old Ma came over and sat down as he said to Ye Futian, ��Who knows when the palace lord will summon us.��


    ��It should be soon.�� Ye Futian smiled and said, ��Old Ma, do you feel all this is kind of familiar?��


    ��Mmm,�� Old Ma nodded. ��You mean like the Village.��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian knew Old Ma understood what he meant. Now that Ziwei Segmentum had opened up, Ziwei Palace was exposed to the outside world, just as Four Corner Village was when it first opened up. Four Corner Village joined the cultivation world, and every principality in the Shangqing Domain swarmed to gain entry to the village.


    In fact, there was only one distinction. The forces that entered Four Corner Village at the time were only limited to the Shangqing Domain. But now, it was the entire outside forces with Ziwei Imperial Palace in their sight, which was a very different scenario. Even as powerful as Ziwei Imperial Palace was, they had to treat the situation carefully. Otherwise, they would be in the same predicament as Four Corner Village once was.


    ��But we are one of them now.�� Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. Although they didn��t do anything, their presence here signified a certain attitude.


    ��At least we won��t do any harm,�� said Old Ma.


    Ye Futian smiled and didn��t say anything more. He did not come here, intending on destroying or plundering. However, for those who cultivated, because of their attraction and desire for sources of power, more often than not, it caused them to threaten others unaware. There was no good explanation for this: their presence here was already a threat to Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��If one day, I can make all the rules, perhaps it won��t be like this,�� Ye Futian murmured. If he possessed the utmost power, then he would be able to set the rules.


    Now, he cultivated fervently, wanting to obtain even greater power just to live, not only for himself but for Heavenly Mandate Academy as well. He used to think that the stronger his cultivation was, the freer he would be. But the reality was that the stronger his cultivation, the less control he had over his life and the more burdens he had to carry.


    Therefore, he could only continue forward until he reached the end of his cultivation path.


    ��I hope that I will have the opportunity to see that day with my own eyes,�� Emperor Nan came over and said, seemingly highly expectant of Ye Futian��s aspiration.


    Setting the rules�� Who would set the rules of this world?


    The rules of Divine Prefecture were set by Donghuang the Great.


    If Ye Futian wanted to set the rules, then he must head toward the altar and stand on that supreme place of all.


    Even the current palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace could only devise the rules of this segment. Now that this segment intersected with the outside world, his rules were greatly restricted.


    Ye Futian smiled at Emperor Nan and thought, How long will this day take?


    It was anybody��s guess.


    ��


    After a few more days, more cultivation forces had gathered at Ziwei Imperial Palace. On this day, above that palace towering into the sky, there was a most sacred glow that spilled into space below so that the boundless Ziwei Imperial Palace was bathed in its divine light. It appeared dignified and solemn.


    At the palace occupied by Ye Futian and his group, they looked in that direction and saw someone approaching from the sky. ��Everyone, the palace lord has come out of his retreat. He has now summoned everyone. This way, please.��


    Everyone nodded, then followed the man to levitate into the sky, moving towards that most sacred temple.


    Not just them, but in every direction, cultivators from many top principalities were also traveling by air, heading in the same direction from different places.


    After a while, they came to a magnificent temple that reached high into the sky. Divine light shone from above, rendering a sense of solemnity and holiness.


    Many cultivators, clad in starry long robes, were already standing on both sides in front of the temple. Every one of them was a major figurehead. On one side was the temple, a staircase on the other side. There were also many Renhunag in starry long robes standing on the staircase, facing the base of the staircase.


    There was a massive space at the foot of the staircase, open and empty. At this moment, those cultivators who came from the sky were brought to wait inside this open space. Forces were continuously coming over, waiting and looking up the stairs.


    Many of these top figures had unfathomable eyes, secretly thinking that this summoning ceremony by the Ziwei Palace Lord was truly spectacular, as spectacular as if a real emperor were summoning them.


    However, they did not treat the whole affair with disrespect. After all, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace was the master of this segment and could be considered an imperial figure himself.


    In this world, he was the supreme being of Most High.


    When Ye Futian arrived, there were already many cultivators from other principalities. They landed on the ground, assessing what was waiting in front of them. It was the first time they had seen such a show of force with so many powerful figures waiting on both sides. Was the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace the strongest person he had ever seen?


    Some of Ye Futian��s acquaintances were present. With the arrival of more and more top principalities, the forces that gathered here at Ziwei Imperial Palace this time may be far beyond imagination. Not only were there the top forces from all 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture, but there were also top forces from the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm.


    Surveying from atop the staircase, this makeup was simply mind-boggling.


    More than half of the terrifying forces from the Original Realm had assembled here.


    The opening of a long-forgotten world��a world that was sealed off by the ancient and legendary Ziwei the Great��and it was the same world where Ziwei the Great once cultivated. How could they resist the urge to come here?


    At this time, an extremely dazzling light flashed through the temple, and three figures appeared, walking out from the temple.


    The man in the middle was the head of the group. He appeared to be a stately elder about 50 or so in age. There was a terrible starry divine aurora in his eyes, and the robe on his body was embroidered with patterns of the stars. His long black hair casually hung behind him. His temperament alone was enough to hint at his extraordinary status, and he naturally exuded a superior aura about him.


    As he moved forward, the cultivators on both sides bowed to him and saluted, saying loudly, ��Greetings to the Palace Lord.��


    Likewise, the cultivators that were standing on the staircase also turned to face him, saluting and calling, ��Greetings to the Palace Lord.��


    That elder was the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    He was holding a scepter in his hand��the Scepter of the Stars. With each step, the scepter in his hand fell on the ground and made a crisp clicking sound, which was exceptionally clear in the silent space.


    The Palace Lord of Ziwei Palace from the Original Realm was among the crowd. Seeing the sight in front of him, he had mixed feelings. The ancient legend was true, after all. He did re-open the history that was once hidden in the past. But everything that happened afterward was totally different from what he could have imagined. The heirs of Ziwei the Great were really here, and they were the ones who continued to carry on the Way of Ziwei the Great; they didn��t need him to do the inheriting.


    The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace stepped forward until he was at the front of the staircase. He surveyed the crowd with eyes that seemed not to be human, but more like two bright stars, with starlight flowing behind them. When he scrutinized the mighty groups of cultivators below, his eyes were extremely tranquil, still carrying the aura of someone far superior.


    On the contrary, although the makeup of the cultivators below was awesome in their own right, they felt an invisible pressure of might nonetheless, like pressure from those above.


    ��A powerful existence who had experienced the divine tribulation of the Great Path,�� someone remarked secretly.


    Duan Tianxiong looked at the other as he transmitted his voice to Ye Futian and others around him, ��This man has experienced at least one divine tribulation, and very possibly two.��


    Threefold of divine tribulations, and after passing through these three tribulations, one became a deity.


    Duan Tianxiong could feel the aura from the man and estimated that the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace might be a super existence who had survived two divine tribulations. If this was indeed the case, another level of existence could face giant-level figureheads and crush them easily.


    Then, it was no surprise that those top cultivators treated him with such respect.


    In the vast space surrounded by top cultivators, it was extremely quiet, and no one spoke. Everyone was waiting for the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace to speak. The master of Ziwei Segmentum, measured by the standard on the outside, would surely be the existence of a supreme giant.


    ��Everyone here must already know much about Ziwei World, so I will not bother making any introduction. Many years ago, Ziwei the Great sealed this world that is open today, years later, to connect with the outside world again. As the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, I welcome everyone with us today,�� said the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace. His voice was not overly loud, but it resounded throughout this space so that everyone heard it clearly.


    ��You are here, and my summoning you today is to hear your thoughts,�� continued the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��In the outside world, Ziwei the Great is a deity of the old days, a god from ancient times. Now, we are here in the world of Ziwei the Great, and we want to ask the Palace Lord that if there are relics left by the Great Emperor so that we can feel the essence of this legendary great emperor,�� a man said in a loud and clear voice.


    This was what everyone wanted to ask. The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace looked at the man and nodded. ��Yes, and they are in this imperial palace. Here is the place where Ziwei the Great once cultivated!��

 Chapter 2209 - Consensus

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord naturally knew why the crowd had come. He told them very calmly that this place was the previous cultivation training ground of the Great Emperor. The Great Emperor��s relic was located here.


    ��If that is so, can Palace Lord allow us from the outside world to also pay tribute to the splendor of the Great Emperor? May we also see the relic left behind by Ziwei the Great?�� asked someone straight away. They were already here, so there was no need to beat around the bush. It was best to speak directly about their goal for coming here.


    The crowd nodded in agreement as they looked at the Palace Lord. From the look in their eyes, it was understood that they also had similar thoughts.


    ��You may do so,�� said Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord. He still agreed to their request very readily. This caused the various cultivators to feel somewhat strange.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord was too easygoing; it was as though he would agree to anything they said.


    Aside from eliminating a top figure who came into conflict with them, Ziwei Imperial Palace had been very welcoming and did not turn them away.


    ��However, the place where the relic of Ziwei the Great resides has been passed down for generations. It is the holy land of our Ziwei Segmentum. Even here, it is not a place that just anyone may enter. It will only open once after many years to allow the most outstanding figures in the segment to enter.��


    The Palace Lord slowly continued, ��Also, because the place where Ziwei the Great��s relic resides is ancient, it is somewhat unstable. Hence, in the Ziwei Segmentum, top figures don��t enter into that place. Now that the seal to the Ziwei Segmentum has been opened and we are connected to the outside world, I rule over the segment and uphold the will of Ziwei the Great. I will allow the divine light of Ziwei the Great to shine on even more cultivators than before. Hence, even though all of you are not members of the Ziwei Segmentum, I can allow all of you to receive the same treatment as the cultivators here.��


    When the crowd heard his words, they vaguely understood his meaning. It seemed that this Palace Lord was also calculative. He gave some leeway, but he similarly set down restrictions. He set it so that only their most prominent figures could enter, using the laws of the Ziwei Segmentum to bind them.


    Whether or not any rules he mentioned were true was not important. The Ziwei Segmentum was under his jurisdiction. He himself was the rule maker. Were rules themselves important?


    ��Palace Lord, overall, what do you mean to say?�� someone asked.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord looked around at the crowd and said, ��Since all of you have come, I will allow all the cultivators from the top forces to choose their finest Renhuangs to enter the divine temple where Ziwei the Great previously cultivated. However, they must be cultivators with flawless Great Paths, and they cannot be peak Renhuangs with ninth-tier cultivation.��


    ��How about it?�� the Palace Lord asked as he looked at the crowd.


    He stood at the top of a flight of stairs. Divine light shone from his body. His star-like eyes still bore an indifferent look. His words had already prevented most of the cultivators here from venturing in, including the giant level figures.


    They had been held at bay by the words of the Palace Lord. The other party had no intention of letting them inside.


    The other party also said that Ziwei the Great had previously cultivated in this divine temple.


    They had come from the shattered Ziwei Realm. All of them wanted to seek out the secrets of Ziwei the Great. The giant level figures similarly had such an intense desire to unravel this mystery. For them, such an opportunity was even more precious.


    However, Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord was wary of them and did not allow them to enter.


    In such a way, it was their turn to consider whether they wanted to accept his terms.


    Since the other party had given them leeway and allowed the top monstrous figures of the various forces to enter the Great Emperor��s relic, would they concede to his restrictions?


    For a moment, the crowd seemed very quiet. None of them responded. They were also originally from various forces. They were not just a small group of people, so their opinions would differ.


    ��Huh?�� Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord saw that the crowd did not respond, so he asked, ��Do you all have any opinions about this?��


    ��We are all from the outside world. We also wish to pay tribute to the splendor of the Great Emperor recorded in the history books. Why must Palace Lord deny us such an opportunity and set restrictions on us?�� someone asked. Clearly, they did not want to agree to the conditions set by the Palace Lord.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord glanced at the person who had spoken. He then said, ��Very well. Since you disagree with my suggestion, then what I mentioned before no longer concerns you. Sir, please leave.��


    When the person heard the words of the Palace Lord, he narrowed his eyes. He was the first to object. There should be many people of the same opinion as him. However, before the others could agree with him, the Palace Lord immediately spoke and banished him!


    It was deterrence again!


    He knew that he had become an example for the others.


    The cultivators from the other forces revealed strange looks. Initially, some wished to speak. Yet, when they saw the dominant nature of Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord, they kept their mouths shut for now and instead looked at the person who had spoken.


    The person who had spoken did not move. From behind Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord, a few figures rose into the sky and stood in the air above the crowd. Their gazes landed on the person who had spoken. One of them said, ��Palace Lord has decreed. Sir, please bring along your members and leave the Imperial Palace.��


    They emanated faint pressure from their bodies. When the cultivator from the top force saw this scene, his expression was ashen. He was the first to be banished.


    He clearly knew that the other party might not hold back in dealing with him if he resisted. After all, he was to be an example for the others.


    Before this, a top cultivator had perished in the Imperial Palace as a deterrent for the other cultivators.


    ��Let��s go,�� the person said in an ice-cold tone. He led a group of people and rose into the sky. He then turned and left the place without causing any trouble.


    With just his own power, he could not cause much of a pushback. If he forcefully resisted, he would end up dead the moment he got careless.


    He did not wish to take that risk; hence, he immediately left.


    The crowd glanced at the leaving silhouettes. Was this considered being aware of current affairs or lacking boldness?


    However, the might of Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord made them feel threatened.


    ��If anyone else has any differing opinions, you can also choose to leave like him. The Imperial Palace definitely will not stop you,�� declared the Palace Lord loudly as he stood at the top of the stairs. He seemed to be asking for their opinions, but he would not listen to them at all. Those who opposed him would be banished.


    Clearly, the other party would allow them to send their members into the relic. However, they needed to follow his rules.


    Most crucially was that the ability of Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord himself could already overwhelm everyone present here. No one could stand against him directly.


    ��Alright, I agree to Palace Lord��s suggestion,�� a calm and indifferent voice cried out. Some people began to concede. Or rather, it should be said that they wanted to take a step back first. They would let their juniors enter the relic of Ziwei the Great and take a look around first before making any decision for the future.


    ��I also have no objections,�� people declared one by one. Very soon, more than half of the forces had agreed, declaring to have no objections and agreeing to the rules set by the Palace Lord.


    After a short while, the various cultivators fell silent. Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord glanced at the crowd and said, ��The divine temple behind me is where Ziwei the Great cultivated back then. Inside here, there is a relic left behind by the Great Emperor. Now, select your candidates and let them follow me into the divine temple.��


    Actually, there was no need for a selection.


    The other party had already laid down the conditions and restrictions. Those who fulfilled the conditions would naturally not hesitate to step forward. Hence, cultivators with flawless Great Paths stepped forward one by one. There were no peak figures with ninth-tier cultivation.


    ��Go on,�� Emperor Nan said to Ye Futian and the rest.


    ��Be careful,�� Xiao Dingtian cautioned Xiao Muyu. Immediately, Ye Futian��s group stepped forward. Among their group, most of the cultivators were of the allowed level. There were many from Four Corner Village. Hence, this rule gave them a huge advantage.


    Of course, they still did not know what the situation in the relic was like.


    However, they did not need to worry about any schemes. After all, even the ruler of the Ziwei Segmentum would not dare to offend all the forces from the outside world in one go. If he did so, he would probably bring about the destruction of the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    Since that was the case, the people who stepped forward were the finest Renhuangs of the various forces. These Renhuangs all stepping out at the same time was a majestic sight to behold.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord glanced over the crowd of cultivators who had stepped forward. He then turned and said, ��Follow me then!��

 Chapter 2210 - Starry Cultivation Court

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The group of people followed behind the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace and headed into the grand ancient divine temple.


    The top figures of the various forces waited where they were, watching the multitude of figures who walked forward into the divine temple. Many cultivators entered the divine temple. They came from various forces and were not just the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. Wanting to obtain a fateful encounter would most likely not be simple.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord also intended to restrict them. He would certainly set up his own precautions. Having ruled the segment for countless years, Ziwei Imperial Palace probably did not want the teachings of Ziwei the Great to be obtained by outsiders.


    In a sense, Ziwei Imperial Palace was only displaying a dominant stance on the surface. In reality, they were taking a step back as well. After all, they were involved with too many forces at the moment.


    However, letting the cultivators from the outside explore first was also fine.


    In front of the majestic ancient divine temple, divine light rained down and enveloped the entire temple. The various cultivators had stern expressions as they followed the Palace Lord inside.


    Inside the divine temple, a starry world appeared before their eyes. It was as though there were many doors made from stars that led to different locations.


    ��All of you may enter,�� Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord said as he pointed ahead. ��Past these doors, you will enter the relic left behind by Ziwei the Great and reach the place where he previously cultivated. This is the most sacred and restricted area of our Ziwei Imperial Palace. There will be people inside guarding the seals. After you enter, there will be people there to help you open the seals.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord,�� replied the crowd as they nodded their heads. They then stepped forward and passed through the door, entering another space. Just as the Palace Lord had said, they seemed to have entered into a large hall. There was an astonishing matrix within the hall, and two cultivators with extremely frightening auras were guarding it.


    These two cultivators glanced at them and immediately activated the grand matrix. Countless beams of divine light instantly flowed around them, as though the stars in the heavens were moving around them. Frightening light from the matrix lit up the entire hall, flowing endlessly. Ye Futian and the others looked down at their feet. In the next moment, beams of light flooded their bodies.


    In an instant, everyone felt as though the world was spinning. They seemed to pass through countless halls and enter into a starry world. However, in the span of a thought, their figures came to a halt. Yet they knew that the matrix had already brought them to another place.


    ��What is this place?�� wondered some of the cultivators.


    The cultivators glanced around at their surroundings. They were slightly astonished. They sensed that they were actually in space. Around them was a galaxy. Starlight flowed, and it was a majestic sight to behold. Yet they were standing on something solid. It was as though this was a starry divine temple without walls.


    There was a stairway that led up into the sky. Beyond the majestic galaxy, there was a blurry silhouette. It was like the scene they had witnessed in the galaxy in the segment. It was the silhouette of Ziwei the Great.


    ��Is this a starry divine temple?�� someone mumbled. This miraculous place made them feel as though they were in a dream world. They sensed that the Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace had not tricked them and had indeed sent them to the place where Ziwei the Great previously cultivated.


    For a legendary existence like Ziwei the Great, only such a unique place was suitable for him to cultivate in. Instead of a large hall, he made the starry sky his own cultivation court.


    Buzz. The crowd advanced upward. Since they were already here, they would naturally explore the relic of Ziwei the Great. What had the Great Emperor left behind in this starry cultivation court?


    After Ye Futian sized up the majestic scene, he turned his gaze in one direction. When he saw a cultivator standing over there, a murderous intent flashed past in his eyes.


    In that direction, the other party seemed to have noticed Ye Futian��s gaze. He also looked in Ye Futian��s direction. Their eyes met, and immediately, their frightening gazes revealed murderous looks. Sealing divine light seemed to immediately shoot out of the other party��s eyes and invade Ye Futian��s mind.


    The divine light of the Great Path flowed over Ye Futian��s body, blocking off the sealing power. Light shrouds of the Great Path expanded outwards from their bodies. A formless pressure of the Great Path appeared between the two of them.


    The cultivators around the two of them sensed something and looked in the direction of the other parties.


    The person that Ye Futian was staring at was none other than Ning Hua��the vice chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor.


    When the Four Corner Village cultivators and the Heavenly Mandate Academy saw this scene, they realized that Ye Futian most likely had a vendetta against this person. Otherwise, Ye Futian would not behave in such a manner.


    On the other hand, Ning Hua was surrounded by cultivators from the Donghua Domain. They looked toward Ye Futian and were slightly shocked. From the looks of it, the current Ye Futian actually intended to kill Ning Hua.


    Moreover, the lineup around Ye Futian was sufficiently powerful to pull off this kill.


    ��Rumor has it that you made quite a name for yourself in the Shangqing Domain. Is that the reason why you dare to be so presumptuous now?�� Ning Hua stared intently at Ye Futian. A hint of disdain could be found in his arrogant gaze. Ning Hua was an eighth-tier Renhuang with a flawless Great Path. He was the top monstrous figure in the Donghua Domain. Aside from the giant figures, he was without equal. He was confident that very few cultivators below the giant figure level in the Divine Prefecture were on par with him.


    This trip to the Original Realm was a trial for Ning Hua. He might have a chance to spar with top figures from other parties while coming in contact with them. However, he had not expected that Ye Futian, who he formerly defeated, would actually intend to kill him now. If it weren��t because Ye Futian was saved by someone, Ning Hua would have killed him back then.


    Ye Futian did not respond to the other party. His white robe fluttered as he cast a glance at the cultivators beside Ning Hua. Cultivators from the few top forces in the Donghua Domain were present, including cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. Qin Qing communicated with Ye Futian through transmitted thought, saying, ��Renhuang Ye, before coming here, Domain Chief has asked various forces to take care of Ning Hua, and we have agreed to it. If Renhuang Ye wants to attack Ning Hua, can you please do so on another occasion?��


    The cultivators of the Donghua Domain came together. Since Domain Chief Ning Yuan was not personally here, cultivators from other forces were naturally responsible for taking care of Vice Chief Ning Hua. Otherwise, they would most likely have difficulty explaining themselves to Ning Yuan after they returned to their domain.


    Beside Ning Hua, Desolation from Desolate God Palace, Goddess Taihua, and the others also turned their gazes toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian knew that what Qin Qing said was true. If he were to attack, the cultivators of the Donghua Domain wouldn��t just sit back and watch.


    ��The top monstrous figure in the Donghua Domain?�� Ye Futian said as he looked at Ning Hua and smiled. His smile bore an air of mockery. Ning Hua frowned and said, ��Back when Zong Chan was killed, you were fortunate to have survived. Who saved you?��


    He actually did not know back then that the Donghua Domain still had such an incredible figure. Even his father did not know who the person was. After that, they speculated that the person who aided Ye Futian might be related to Emperor Xi. However, they had no evidence. Even the Domain Chief had to be polite to a powerful cultivator who had survived a divine tribulation. He could not just head over and interrogate Emperor Xi.


    ��You��d better pray hard for your luck to keep you alive in the future,�� said Ye Futian as he swept a glance at Ning Hua. He then turned around and headed forward. Right now, the cultivators of various forces had already departed to explore the cultivation court of Ziwei the Great. Only their groups were wasting time.


    Ye Futian stepped into the sky, and his group also took to the skies at the same time. Ning Hua stared at his silhouette. Murderous intent flowed within his gaze. He never imagined that the antlike figure who pathetically ran for his life back then had actually dared to threaten him now.


    Just because Ye Futian had entered Four Corner Village, did he think that he could act presumptuously due to their backing?


    If that were the case, time would tell.


    ��Let��s go.�� Ning Hua similarly stepped up into the sky and headed forward. His speed was extremely fast. The other cultivators also followed behind him!

 Chapter 2211 - The Last Writing of the Great Emperor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s group kept advancing upwards. They looked at the vast galaxy, and it felt as if they were in a dream. It wasn��t easy to differentiate between the illusory world and the actual world.


    The cultivators who left before them seemed to have made their own discoveries. They began to disperse and head off in different directions.


    ��It seems that there are ritual implements,�� said Dou Zhao beside Ye Futian. Ye Futian naturally also saw this. There seemed to be ritual implements floating around among the stars in the vast world of the galaxy.


    ��They might be items that were previously used by Ziwei the Great. With Ziwei the Great��s level of cultivation back then, any item that he used would contain a sliver of the will of the emperor,�� Gu Dongliu added from the side.


    However, they continued upward without stopping. In the starry sky, they seemed to see a few floating star lights that were very far away. As they gradually approached these star lights, the star lights became clearer.


    ��They are writings,�� someone said.


    Many people discovered the runes floating in space. They seemed to be writings.


    The runes were formed from starlight. They floated endlessly within the galaxy, eternal and indestructible.


    In the end, many people made out the line of writing that was casually floating around in the galaxy. Their hearts trembled intensely. Was this the writing of the Great Emperor?


    A line of writing that he casually wrote was forever etched in the starry world.


    ��Is this the last writing of the Great Emperor?�� said someone who made out the line of writing with a trembling heart. These seemed to be the final words of the Great Emperor.


    In the end, Ye Futian��s group also made out the line of writing floating in the sky. They understood its contents.


    Each character seemed to be independently floating there. However, the characters could also be read together and formed a complete paragraph.


    ��In this War of the Heavenly Path, all life will face calamity. I will be heading off to join the battle. I do not know when I will return. I will seal off the Ziwei Segmentum myself. Even if I perish, my will will remain to protect Ziwei from being destroyed.��


    This line of runes floated high in the sky. They were astonishing. It was as though they were left behind before Ziwei the Great went off to meet his end.


    What sort of battle was the War of the Heavenly Path?


    Ziwei the Great left to join the battle. Who was he up against?


    Against the heavens? Against the various gods?


    What secrets were there about the collapse of the Heavenly Path? What exactly was the event? Was it a battle between gods? Why did it cause the fall of the gods? What exactly happened in the ancient age?


    Ever since that war, the Heavenly Path collapsed and the Age of the Gods was a thing of the past.


    Ye Futian recalled Shenjia the Great Emperor. There was originally no Path in the world, and he did not believe in the Heavenly Path.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor was physically invincible, but he still died in the war. Ziwei the Great ruled the Ziwei Segmentum. He was the legendary Ziwei the Great. However, before he went to war, he foresaw that he might perish. What sort of intense battle did they join?


    It was as though this part of history was sealed away. It might be that only a few remaining gods in the world knew the truth of the divine war in the past.


    However, Ziwei the Great still left behind his will and protected the Ziwei Segmentum from being destroyed during the calamity. This kind of courage and strength was indeed amazing. He was worthy of being a figure who shook the world.


    The cultivators who came today were all from extraordinary backgrounds. They came from various top forces and knew about these things to a certain extent. It was precisely that they knew some things that they were even more curious. They were curious about the era, how the battle was like, what had happened, how it had become the twilight of the gods, and how it caused the collapse of the Heavenly Path.


    They wished that they could travel back through time and space and return to that era to witness the ancient war of the gods. It was an unprecedented battle that would have no equal after. In the present day, it was impossible to imagine what such a battle would be like.


    ��Huh?�� Right then, Ye Futian��s group saw many cultivators rushing towards the direction of the runes. They could not help but reveal strange expressions. What were the cultivators doing?


    ��There is a brush over there,�� said Chen Yi as frightening divine light shot out from his eyes. He saw a brush floating in the space where the runes were. It emanated faint starlight.


    Back then, Ziwei the Great had etched these runes into the fabric of space. If he had indeed used this brush to do so, that meant that the brush was extraordinary. The brush that the Great Emperor used to write, even if it was an ordinary item, would become extraordinary. Moreover, nothing that the Great Emperor ever used was ordinary.


    This might be a divine brush.


    The cultivators headed up into the sky. Although they could clearly see the runes, the actual distance between them was still very far. The runes were extremely high up in the space.


    ��Let��s also go take a look,�� said someone beside Ye Futian. Their group rose into the sky and followed the ancient starry path upwards. After some time, they discovered that some cultivators had already arrived, and a large battle had actually erupted immediately. They seem to be fighting over the brush.


    As expected of a divine item left behind by the Great Emperor. It caused a battle to erupt instantly over it.


    ��Do you want to go over?�� Fang Huan asked Ye Futian. Among their group, Ye Futian had become the core.


    ��No,�� Ye Futian replied when he saw what was going on over there. ��I sense that things aren��t as simple as they appear.��


    ��How so?�� Fang Huan asked.


    ��If the brush was a divine item, why is it left here?�� answered Fang Gai before Ye Futian could answer. The people around them also realized this and revealed strange looks as they glanced over in the direction of the brush.


    They were merely guests invited to this place.


    If it was a divine item that could be taken away, the brush by right should not exist here.


    Unless it was placed here to stir up conflict.


    Of course, the people who were fighting over it might already know this. However, with a divine item before them, even if it were a trick, they would still dive in headfirst.


    ��For the forces from the outside world to gather en masse here, Ziwei Imperial Palace must certainly be stressing immensely over this. For Ziwei Imperial Palace, the best strategy is to divide and conquer, letting conflict arise between the forces from the outside world,�� continued Fang Gai. If that was the case, it was highly likely that the other party had already laid out their traps before the cultivators from the outside world arrived here.


    The most direct and effective method of doing so would be by placing treasures for them to fight over. Ziwei Imperial Palace also needed to put in some investment to do so. Otherwise, the cultivators of the various forces would probably not bat an eye at the treasure.


    Ye Futian looked up at the endless starry sky. He said in a low voice, ��Back then, Ziwei the Great cultivated in this starry sky. How can one sense the will of the Great Emperor across such a vast space?��


    If the teachings of Ziwei the Great were truly in this space, what did they need to do to inherit them?


    After countless eons, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace must have attempted to do so countless times. Whether or not they had managed to do so was still unknown.


    ��Could it be that Ziwei Imperial Palace is tricking us? They might have just simply pointed in one direction. But in actuality, nothing exists there?�� Duan Qiong asked. He was somewhat suspicious.


    After pondering for a moment, Fang Gai said, ��They probably wouldn��t have resorted to that. Palace Lord allowed us to come in here after all. At the very least, this is the place where Ziwei the Great previously cultivated. The writing should also be real. If it were fake, it would be hard to keep it secret from all the various forces. It would instead backfire on them.�� Duan Qiong nodded his head. Although this starry cultivation court was majestic and beautiful, he could not make out anything peculiar at the moment.


    ��I wonder how high this starry ancient temple is. Let��s continue upwards,�� said Ye Futian. Their group continued exploring upwards, seeking out the secrets of the cultivation court of Ziwei the Great!

 Chapter 2212 - Nebula

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s group traveled along the ancient starry road upwards. In the endless starry world, starlight rained down from above. The crowd gradually sensed a solemn will. It was as though they could sense a heavenly might by just standing there. They could vaguely make out that this place was indeed the previous cultivation court of Ziwei the Great.


    At the end of the starry space, the illusory silhouette formed from gathered starlight gradually became clearer. It was actually the illusory figure of Ziwei the Great. This silhouette carried the entire starry world on his back and held a Heavenly Scroll in his hand. This Heavenly Scroll emanated brilliant starlight that shot out in different directions.


    In the direction where the starlight radiated out towards, the crowd vaguely saw many places where the starlight gathered. There seemed to be uniquely shaped nebulae there. It also seemed like galaxies existed there. However, they were not real, instead formed from endless starlight gathering in one place.


    Right then, the silhouettes of cultivators also appeared before these nebulae. They seemed to have discovered something.


    ��Let��s go take a look,�� Ye Futian said. His group immediately headed over towards a sword-shaped nebula. The gathered starlight formed a sword that floated in the starry sky. Many cultivators were standing before this nebula.


    When Ye Futian��s group arrived, they sensed that there seemed to be a sword within the nebula. They did not know whether or not there actually was a sword. However, no one entered into the nebula to retrieve it. It was because someone had already tried to do so before Ye Futian��s group arrived.


    ��It is a Sword Will,�� said Ye Wuchen beside Ye Futian. From the nebula, he actually sensed the existence of a Sword Will.


    Could it be that Ziwei the Great had previously cultivated here?


    Had the Sword Will he unleashed formed a sword-shaped nebula?


    This nebula was very expansive, enveloping hundreds and thousands of miles of space. It was like a sword of stars hanging in the starry sky. Endless starlight flowed within it. Even the flowing star light contained Sword Will within it.


    ��Did Ziwei the Great also practice swordsmanship?�� someone asked in a low voice. Ye Futian gazed at the nebula and saw the flowing Sword Will. His gaze seemed to become extremely bright. It was as though everything in the world changed within his pupils. In his eyes, there was no galaxy, only countless swords.


    He saw countless swords flowing in the starry sky. They were eternal and indestructible, forming a majestic and beautiful nebula.


    The river of swords was reflected in his eyes. It was as though they had entered into his Eye Sorcery Zone and into his mind.


    Ye Futian felt as though the entire world was changing. As he stood there, within the galaxy of swordsmanship, in an instant, terrifying Sword Will descended. Endless sword light in the galaxy rained down on him. He could not evade them at all. It was as though they flooded space and time. Astonishing light burst forth from his pupils, followed by the aura of the Great Path. Yet, the river of swords descended and immediately buried his figure.


    Rumble. Ye Futian felt a sharp pain in his eyes. Blood actually seeped out from them. He stumbled backward a few steps. He lowered his head and closed his eyes, no longer looking forwards.


    This scene surprised the people beside Ye Futian. They frantically looked at him.


    What happened?


    Could it be that he saw something again?


    Many people from other forces were also looking at Ye Futian. Among their own members, someone had experienced something similar to Ye Futian just now. An indifferent voice said, ��This might be the remnant Sword Will of the Great Emperor. One should not simply try to comprehend it.��


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and did not look at it the same way as before. He took a deep breath and calmed his aura. His heart was still shaking. Back then, he had a similar experience when he first saw the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor. This time, he had been careless and looked directly with his eyes. His consciousness had entered into the Sword Will, and that resulted in him being attacked.


    If that was the case, were the other nebulae also remnants of the will of Ziwei the Great?


    Ye Futian turned around and looked far into the distance in other directions. If it was as he speculated, this place was a cultivation holy land. There was law power left behind by Ziwei the Great here.


    However, Ye Futian was not very interested in this. After all, he had already cultivated using many different methods and was not lacking in law powers. The Body of Way that he forged from observing the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was already mighty.


    In the heavens above, what was the Heavenly Scroll that Ziwei the Great held in his hand?


    Was the remnant will of Ziwei the Great truly contained within this illusory figure of him?


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt a powerful Sword Will suddenly appear beside him. He turned and glanced to the side. He saw Ye Wuchen shining from head to toe. Sword Will flowed over him. There was even the faint sensation of an extremely divine will of swordsmanship coming from him. His glabella seemed to shine with brilliant sword light. The light immediately pierced towards the river of swords ahead. Clearly, Ye Wuchen��s consciousness had also entered into the Sword Will. He was a swordsman, so he naturally would be able to sense it.


    After a short while, Ye Wuchen��s figure was sent flying backward violently. A formless storm of Sword Qi swept up around his body. A streak of blood appeared on his forehead. As he steadied himself, he opened his eyes. His gaze was not as sharp as before. He actually seemed decadent. The aura on his body was also fluctuating.


    Ye Futian took out a bottle of pills and passed it over to Ye Wuchen. Ye Wuchen immediately took the bottle, poured out a pill, and swallowed it. A vibrant life force immediately enveloped his body. He still held onto the bottle of pills, ready to consume them at any moment if needed.


    ��What type of Sword Will did you detect just now?�� Ye Wuchen asked Ye Futian.


    ��See for yourself,�� answered Ye Futian. Then, a divine light burrowed into Ye Wuchen��s mind through his glabella. After a short while, Ye Wuchen looked up at Ye Futian. He was somewhat surprised as he said, ��The swordsmanship contained inside this Sword Will is complicated. We have both sensed different things.��


    ��Huh?�� uttered Ye Futian as he revealed a strange expression. They had both sensed different things?


    ��Let��s try again,�� Ye Futian told Ye Wuchen.


    ��Alright,�� replied Ye Wuchen as he nodded his head. The two of them continued to gaze at the river of swords ahead. Ye Futian��s eyes once again became very frightening. Could it be that he had underestimated this river of swords before this?


    He peered inside once again. In the galaxy, billions of divine swords were flowing. However, this time, he expanded his will, radiating it out towards the entire galaxy. He wanted to get a clearer look.


    He did not try to sense the flow of the Sword Will anymore. Gradually, his brilliant eyes closed, and he stopped using his eyes to see, instead feeling with his heart.


    His consciousness seemed to be standing in an endless starry sky. He was overlooking the galaxy. At that moment, he no longer saw countless swords flowing. He only saw one sword. It was a starry divine sword that stretched across the starry world. This was completely different from what he had sensed just now!

 Chapter 2213 - Swallowing the Nebula

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian felt like he could see a divine sword of stars stabbing towards him. The will of the Great Path in him exploded, enveloping his body in sparkles. It was like he had the body of a god.


    Boom�� He felt the divine sword come straight for him, so he instinctively started to retreat, and his consciousness shook violently.


    At that moment, Ye Futian broke out from that mode. He took a deep breath and looked out at the calm galaxy of stars in front of him. The feeling he had before disappeared. But he knew that this nebula wasn��t ordinary, and it carried an astonishing amount of swordsmanship within itself.


    After a few moments, something similar seemed to have happened to Ye Wuchen. He looked towards Ye Futian only to hear Ye Futian say, ��I��ll pass it on to you.��


    ��Alright.�� Ye Wuchen ceased all formalities. He knew that Ye Futian wanted to help him to comprehend this nebula. Ye Futian��s cultivation methods were already very powerful after all, so even with the addition of Ziwei the Great��s sword technique, it might not help him grow very much stronger.


    Ye Futian used his divine consciousness to pass everything he had comprehended to Ye Wuchen. After that, they continued to digest this, and they understood more and more about swordsmanship. Each time they understood more, they felt different.


    They were not alone. The other cultivators also experienced the same thing. Yaya, Swordmaster of Lihen, and the rest were all cultivators of swordsmanship, and they were all comprehending this. Besides passing on his enlightenment to Ye Wuchen, Ye Futian also passed it to the rest to see if they could reap anything from this nebula.


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy weren��t in any hurry either, and they just waited quietly. This nebula seemed to contain the will that Ziwei the Great had back then while cultivating, so Ye Futian and the rest were trying to comprehend it and see if they could gain any enlightenment.


    Dou Zhao looked towards the rest of the starry dimension. Several people were cultivating before the nebula in different areas. It was as if the nebula in this starry cultivation area might be hiding pockets of Ziwei the Great��s cultivation.


    ��Why don��t we head to other areas to have a look first?�� Dou Zhao broke his silence.


    ��You can do that, but try not to walk too far away. Otherwise, if anything happens, we won��t be able to reach you in time,�� replied Fang Gai. Dou Zhao nodded. ��Got it.��


    With that, the group began to split up and walk towards other areas. But Fang Gai and Blind Tie remained by Ye Futian��s side. Fang Gai murmured to Fang Huan, ��Why don��t you go explore the areas as well?��


    ��Sure.�� Fang Huan nodded and walked away. Eventually, this area was only left with the few of them.


    Ye Futian and the rest were still deep in cultivation, and time continued to tick by slowly. Without them realizing it, they had already been in this state of comprehension for several days. But because they were deep in their cultivation, they didn��t feel it at all. A few days felt like the blink of an eye to people at their level of cultivation. One simple session of comprehension could take several days, or it could even take several months.


    As he stood in front of the nebula, Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked at the nebula before him. But when he looked at them now, they didn��t look like a nebula anymore. He could now see several different sword truths, and this interstellar cloud looked like it had become countless outlines of swords that moved before his eyes.


    Of course, when he looked at the nebula, an astonishing aura burst forth from his body. His Great Path was roaring, and his eyes seemed to look like those of the gods. His eyes were filled with an aggressive will to fend off that powerful sword will.


    Even though he was standing there, in reality, he felt like he was standing within the nebula. The sword will surged towards him and drowned him. It was as if he was comprehending it all by himself.


    But Ye Futian and his companions weren��t the only ones comprehending things now. There were other cultivators outside the nebula who were doing the same thing. In fact, while trying to comprehend it, they were also trying to enter it.


    Woong!


    Ye Futian opened his eyes again. He looked at Ye Wuchen and the rest next to him to see that they were still cultivating and comprehending. After a long time, Ye Wuchen opened his eyes and looked towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded at him slightly. Their eyes met, and they understood what each other was thinking about.


    ��I��ll try.��


    After Ye Wuchen finished speaking, his body whooshed by as he went forward to approach the river of swords. He walked right to the edge of the nebula, then an incredible and terrifying Great Path aura descended. At that moment, a gargantuan illusion appeared. It was an illusion of Ye Wuchen.


    This illusion was extremely sharp and exuded an impossibly powerful sword will. After that, it headed towards that immense and borderless nebula.


    Ye Wuchen��s consciousness seemed to have transformed into a giant that entered into the nebula.


    ��Is that how you do it?��


    When the others saw this scene, they looked surprised. They watched as Ye Wuchen��s illusion went into the nebula. Then, countless amounts of sword will appeared, flowing with the sword will within the nebula.


    ��That��s really ambitious.�� The pupils of everyone else watching narrowed slightly, but most of them were waiting to see what would happen next.


    Before this, someone else had also tried to do something similar to what Ye Wuchen was doing. He had expanded his divine consciousness to cover the vast space so as to envelope the entire nebula to comprehend the sword will within it. It was a very bold move, but the consequences were a tragedy. His divine consciousness suffered terrifying attacks and his souls nearly shattered. He had been severely injured.


    And now, Ye Wuchen was the second person who dared to use such a method. There was only one aim in doing such a thing: to swallow up the entire nebula. That was a very ambitious thing to do.


    Did Ye Futian teach him to do this?


    Before this, they had noticed that Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen were in close conversation, and it seemed like Ye Futian had passed on everything he had comprehended to Ye Wuchen before Ye Wuchen finally decided to do this. So part of this decision must have had something to do with Ye Futian.


    Many eyes were now fixed on Ye Wuchen��s body. Just then, a brilliant light exploded from Ye Wuchen��s body. The divine light of the sword will was so gorgeous that everyone could sense an extraordinary aura. At the same time, the sword will that covered the nebula also exploded with an equally gorgeous glow, and it began to intertwine with the nebula slowly.


    Boom��


    An astonishing aura exploded from Ye Wuchen��s body as if many beams of sword will were shooting out from inside him, threatening to completely shatter his body.


    Wisps of divine light flashed around Ye Futian��s body, and green divine light wrapped itself around Ye Wuchen. It carried the intense presence of the Great Path of Life.


    At the same time, Ye Futian fixed his eyes on the nebula as he comprehended the two sets of sword will within the nebula.


    Swordmaster of Lihen and Yaya and the rest were all staring rather anxiously at Ye Wuchen. This plan of theirs was a little crazy, but the two of them had really gone ahead with it.


    Woong!


    As the glow from the sword will covered the nebula, the glow of the sword will around Ye Wuchen��s body also became brighter and brighter. His body was trembling slightly, and even his soul was beginning to tremble, but he felt that the decision that he and Ye Futian had chosen was the right one. After comprehending the various sword wills hidden within the nebula, they wanted to use this method to fully comprehend the sword truth inside the nebula. But if they were the slightest bit careless in doing this, they would pay a hefty price.


    This wasn��t just a matter of whether his own body could take it, but more importantly, it depended on how deep their comprehension of this nebula was before this.


    Reality had proven that after he and Ye Futian had spent days comprehending the nebula, they had come very close to the sword truth hidden in the nebula. He had the chance to fully comprehend the whole sword truth within the nebula.


    ��They��re not dead yet?�� The other cultivators were surprised to see what was happening. Did the two of them make the right choice after all?


    They didn��t know that before Ye Wuchen embarked on this, Ye Futian had already briefly tried this method out. Otherwise, he wouldn��t have allowed Ye Wuchen to do this.


    The frightening glow had covered the entire interstellar cloud. Ye Wuchen��s body shuddered violently, and an enormous sword light exploded from his body. At that moment, the sword will that flowed around his body seemed to have become a river of swords.


    At the same time, the nebula started to shift and actually turned into a galaxy as it started to engulf Ye Wuchen��s body.


    The glow wrapped itself around Ye Wuchen in an instant, but it did not swallow him up. On the contrary, the immense amount of light went straight into his body. The divine light from Ye Wuchen burst forth into the distance, lighting up the entire starry dimension as a powerful sword will blasted from within him.


    This caused everyone��s heart to pound wildly as they stared fixedly at his body. Had he really swallowed the nebula?

 Chapter 2214 - Strike Terror

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A truly frightening and miraculous thing happened to Ye Wuchen. After he had swallowed the entire river of swords, his body emanated an incredible amount of sword will. Beams of light shone into the vast universe, and his entire body glowed brilliantly as if he was in a dreamlike domain of swordsmanship.


    He shut his eyes tightly, and wisps of sword will continued to flow through his body. The piercing sounds of a sword��s blade could be heard coming from within his body as if he was purifying and training it.


    ��He actually managed to swallow it successfully.�� Everyone��s eyes were on Ye Wuchen. When they saw that his body had not been destroyed, they knew that he would probably succeed in swallowing the entire nebula, inheriting the sword will the nebula contained.


    This nebula was very likely to have been left behind from Ziwei the Great��s period of cultivation. By swallowing it, Ye Wuchen could reap really tremendous rewards.


    Woong! An unbelievable amount of sword will exploded, causing the clothes of many to move and flap from the sheer force of the explosion. The illusion of a divine sword appeared on Ye Futian��s body, and it looked like the divine sword that they had seen within the nebula.


    This divine sword wasn��t an actual physical sword but an illusion, so it flickered from time to time. But it exuded a tremendous amount of sword will and seemed to be formed by a terrifying sword qi. It seeped bit by bit into Ye Wuchen��s body, resonating with the swordsmanship within him and merging with his body.


    Boom�� Just then, an extremely powerful sword cultivator appeared to walk in the emptiness. This sword cultivator was a powerful Level-seven Renhuang, and his eyes possessed tremendous sword might. He descended and landed above Ye Wuchen. An incredible amount of sword will flowed over his body. He pointed at Ye Wuchen. He launched an attack on Ye Wuchen without holding back at all.


    Nine divine swords came down from the void. Blind Tie and the rest wanted to help, and Ye Futian frowned as well, but he didn��t go forward to help and even stopped Blind Tie, Fang Gai, and the rest from going forward. They watched as the terrifying divine swords came down in an instant, carrying an equally terrifying mightiness as they made their way towards Ye Wuchen to kill him. But a shocking amount of sword qi burst out from Ye Wuchen��s body. His own body did not release this, but it came from the incredible sword hidden within the giant sword that he had swallowed. This shattered the sword will that came towards him.


    ��That sword will is really powerful.�� Everyone watching felt their hearts tremble and palpitate. Ye Wuchen��s level of cultivation was way too low, so there was no way he could have released such a shocking amount of sword might. But the sword will he had swallowed turned out to be powerful enough to defend him against that attack.


    This made the expression of the sword cultivator from the void turn nasty as if he could only watch as Ye Wuchen swallow up all of that energy and inherit the sword might hidden within the nebula.


    ��He doesn��t have the right to control and swallow this sword cloud and inherit the energy within at all.�� A voice suddenly spoke up. The one who spoke was a middle-aged man in a black robe who carried an extremely wide and large sword. His jet black hair flew wildly in the space, and his eyes were deep and equally black. He looked down at where Ye Wuchen was with folded arms.


    Anyone in this place was extraordinary. They were perfect cultivators of the Great Path from top-tier factions of power. This man was no different. He did not come from the Divine Prefecture, but he was a powerful sword cultivator from the Dark World. He was practically invincible now and was a Level-eight cultivator in swordsmanship. He was only one level away from the peak of his abilities.


    Over the past number of days, he had been trying to comprehend and trying to think of a way to obtain the power of this nebula. He had tried several different methods, but he never thought that the person who would eventually swallow the nebula would turn out to be a mid-level Renhuang sword cultivator.


    Ye Wuchen was considered one of the weaker sword cultivators among the people gathered here. Most of the other cultivators were stronger than him.


    ��If you have the right to, then why didn��t you get any of it?�� Ye Futian looked at the other party and asked him.


    The sword cultivator in black glanced at Ye Futian. His jet black eyes contained a tinge of ruthlessness, and it made him seem very dangerous.


    ��So I��m going to kill him and try again to see if I can get it.�� The sword cultivator in black unsheathed the sword he was carrying. It was a huge black sword that emanated a frightening aura of death around it. The moment he held the giant sword in his hand, a terrifying aura exploded from his body and put pressure on the rest of the people around him.


    ��Be careful,�� said Fang Gai in a low voice. He could sense that this man was a very powerful threat.


    Of course, Ye Futian had felt that too. He shifted slightly to stand in front of Ye Wuchen, while Fang Gai remained by his side to protect both of them. There were many powerful cultivators here, and Ye Wuchen was still in the midst of cultivating and absorbing that powerful nebula, so he needed someone to protect him throughout the process.


    Blind Tie floated up, and the illusion of an ancient god appeared behind him. He reached a palm out, and a giant divine hammer appeared in his hand. He gripped it hard, and a Great Path Divine Light flowed out. It contained a shocking amount of power.


    The man in a black robe raised his palm, and a frightening dark typhoon instantly appeared. The typhoon winds seemed as sharp as swords as it tore through the space and seemed terribly heavy.


    With a shift of his body and the raising of his hand, a terrifying dark sword qi appeared in the space instantly. When his sword came down, the frightening typhoon covered the entire place, while deep and terrifying dark cracks appeared in the space. The cracks kept moving forward, taking over the vast space and heading straight for where Ye Futian was.


    The crack in the middle, in particular, looked like a dark, venomous dragon as it carried sword light and tore through everything it touched.


    At the same time, Blind Tie made a move too. A majestic divine light encompassed the vast void. He swung the divine hammer in his hand wildly and raised both arms. The clothing on his arms began to tear as his muscles began to swell, and he was full of an incomparably wild and explosive power.


    Boom��


    An ear-deafening blast was heard as the raised divine hammer slammed against the space, instantly forming a terrifying screen of light that could fight against all attacks. Those black cracks of sword will were immediately blasted to the sides, causing several cracks in the screen of light but failing to shatter it. Meanwhile, the divine hammer collided directly with the giant sword in the middle, and it seemed like the entire pace was going to explode and shatter as a terrifying storm surrounded them. Anyone who wasn��t at least a high-level Renhuang quickly retreated. That terrifying storm could tear through space, causing scary beams of light to appear in the sky.


    Eventually, Fang Gai unleashed a light screen in front of him to protect his side from suffering any residual impact.


    Several powerful Renhuangs felt the urge to fight as well. Most of the people left were sword cultivators, and they unleashed a barely visible sword will, which filled the space with suffocating pressure, which made everyone feel very uncomfortable.


    The divine light around Ye Wuchen��s body remained just as bright. As that intense sword continued to seep into his body, the sword light from his body became even more brilliant and glorious. His swordsmanship aura kept becoming stronger, and he looked like he might even break through to the next level.


    When he saw all this happening, Ye Futian looked around at the others around him and said, ��Everyone has come here to cultivate. If you��ve missed the chance here, there are opportunities in many other places, and you can all head elsewhere to continue your comprehension. Since someone has already taken this nebula, then I hope all of you can leave him alone.��


    But his words didn��t seem to have affected the others very much. The sword will that the other cultivators unleashed only became stronger, and several parties were unleashing astonishing amounts of sword might from all directions. They were all raring for a fight as they put pressure on where Ye Futian was. It was as if they were all waiting for one person to start fighting before they would all join in. After all, Fang Gai was protecting them, so it wouldn��t be easy to get past him either.


    When he saw that everyone around him wasn��t convinced, Ye Futian took a step forward. The Great Path Divine Light in his body began to surge, and his body seemed to be roaring. His eyes suddenly gleamed coldly, as if an icy moon had appeared within his pupils. His body suddenly became impossibly cold, and his frosty voice said, ��If all of you insist on trying, then I��m afraid some of you might have come here for nothing.��


    ��Is that so?��


    A sharp voice rang out. Ye Futian looked up above to see a Level-seven Renhuang from a top-tier faction of power in the Divine Prefecture wave his palm. Countless beams of gold light instantly burst from his body, and a horrifyingly sharp aura swept through the space as many reddish-gold divine swords appeared around his body. These reddish-gold divine swords were so many that they blotted out the sky, covering the entire space. All of them were pointed towards Ye Futian, and each sword was incredibly sharp as if they could cut through anything in the world.


    ��You want to try?�� said Ye Futian as he looked at the other party.


    ��I��m going to try.�� The moment the other party finished speaking, he stepped into the void. In that instant, the reddish gold divine light slashed right through the void, causing the brilliant gold sword light to hurtle downwards and cover the sky. At the same time, the innumerable number of divine swords came down. The sight was terrifying to behold.


    Woong! Everyone watched as Ye Futian didn��t dodge the attack at all. Instead, he ran straight into that ultra-powerful array of reddish-gold divine swords as if he wasn��t afraid of anything at all.


    The Renhuang who made the attack frowned. How was this man so audacious?


    Could anyone survive these divine swords?


    However, at the same time, Ye Futian��s entire body glowed spectacularly in the midst of the divine swords as an astonishing amount of Divine Light burst forth from within his body. He seemed to have transformed on the spot and transformed into a divine sword that could reach the heavens. He was now a starry divine sword, and the divine light of the stars surrounded his body. He carried an impossibly sharp aura and a power to tear through space.


    Kaboom�� Everywhere that the starry divine sword went, the reddish gold divine swords broke and shattered. The starry divine sword was under an intensely aggressive attack as well, but it continued to slash through the reddish-gold swords and head towards the other party.


    The eyes of the attacker exploded with an alarming divine light. A Divine Wheel of the Great Path appeared in the sky as one giant reddish-gold divine sword tore through and clashed head on with the starry divine sword that was coming its way.


    The two giant swords crashed into one another, creating a destructive storm that surged through the void, and threatened to break everything apart.


    ��My flesh has become the way so my physical body will not perish. But aren��t you afraid of dying if your Divine Wheel gets destroyed?�� A voice resonated in the void, and a thunderous blast rang out. The starry divine sword went forward regardless, and several crack lines appeared. But at the same time, the giant reddish-gold sword began to show cracks as well.


    This caused the other party to give a muffled groan as he immediately kept his sword away and retreated. A beam of sword light cut through the void, sending the other party flying out. The starry sword disappeared, and Ye Futian appeared in its stead. His gaze looked towards the other party, who had flown far out. ��I��ll spare you this time. But if anyone tries to do anything again, I��ll make sure you die!��


    With that, he looked at everyone around him. A level-six Renhuang had actually struck terror in everyone��s hearts!

 Chapter 2215 - Take It That We Don’t Know Each Other

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The entire place fell silent. All the Renhuangs were standing in different spots, but they were all staring intently at Ye Futian.


    None of the people here were simple or ordinary.


    But even so, Ye Futian remained as audacious as ever. Then again, it seemed like he did have the right to be.


    A Level-six Perfect Great Path Renhuang had completely defeated an extremely powerful level-seven one. Everyone could feel that the sword cultivator��s attack earlier had been really aggressive, and any other Level-six Perfect Great Path Renhuang would probably have been killed by those divine swords. After all, the difference between each level was extremely great, especially since the sword cultivator was already a high-level Renhuang at Level-seven.


    But Ye Futian had become the attack itself and ran right past the swords from the other party, forcing the other party to use his Divine Wheel of the Great Path to block the attack, which caused cracks to appear in his Divine Wheel.


    Besides Ye Futian, Blind Tie��s fighting abilities were extremely powerful as well. He was now engaged in a huge battle with the Level-eight cultivator in black from the Dark World, and their fight had gone deep into the galaxy, which was a terrifying sight to behold. There was also Fang Gai, who was protecting Ye Wuchen. This combination of people made for a seriously strong team.


    Just then, Ye Wuchen emanated countless beams of sword light from his body, which shot into the starry skies. An astonishing sword qi completely covered his body as a galaxy of sword will entered his body. He broke through to the next level and reached Level-five Renhuang.


    1


    Woong.


    The aggressive sword light burst into the sky, and Ye Wuchen opened his eyes. His entire body was glowing like an actual sword of the Great Path. He looked around him.


    Ye Futian looked down towards Ye Wuchen to see Ye Wuchen looking at him too. He nodded slightly and didn��t say any words of thanks. Given their relationship, there was no need for all this formality. They didn��t need to say anything for the other person to understand.


    ��He has already inherited the path, and it has been fully absorbed into his path, so it is really meaningless for all of you to continue fighting. Why waste time on this?�� said Ye Futian in a loud voice. The other cultivators glanced at Ye Wuchen, then some immediately turned and left.


    It was true that this vast space was where Ziwei the Great had cultivated, but since Ye Wuchen had already swallowed the nebula, fully absorbed it, and broke through to the next level, there was no point in staying here.


    One after another, they left and gave up on continuing to fight. Even the sword cultivator who had been forced to retreat after attacking Ye Futian earlier had left.


    After the shocking sound of a collision was heard, Blind Tie was forced backward, while the other party had been sent flying to somewhere even higher. He threw a glance down at Blind Tie as his black robe flapped wildly and his black hair danced madly.


    ��If there��s a chance, I��ll fight you again,�� he declared loudly before turning to walk away. Blind Tie couldn��t see him, but he knew that the other man had walked away. He kept away his aggressive aura and said, ��That man is mighty.��


    Ye Futian had come over as well. He knew how powerful Blind Tie was since he had been able to fight Muyun Lan. Since that man in black had fought Blind Tie without obviously losing, he was certainly a very powerful fighter himself.


    ��The Divine Prefecture itself is already huge, and there are more worlds than that. Half of the best cultivators have appeared here, so it��s not surprising that such powerful characters are here too. There might even be some who are even more powerful around,�� replied Ye Futian. Blind Tie nodded. He understood that too.


    This place had gathered the top fighters of the entire world, not just the best of one domain.


    Ye Futian looked towards Ye Wuchen again and asked, ��How are you feeling?��


    Ye Wuchen had swallowed the entire nebula, but Ye Futian didn��t know how much he had gained out of doing that.


    ��The bit of sword will that Ziwei the Great left behind contains a sort of swordsmanship.�� Ye Wuchen looked at Ye Futian with a gleam in his eyes. He was rather excited inside as well. He had gained way more than a breakthrough in level this time.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. This had indeed been a wonderful opportunity. After all, not everyone had attained the powers of Great Emperors more than once like himself.


    The swordsmanship of the sword will that had been left behind from Ziwei the Great��s cultivation was extremely valuable to a sword cultivator.


    ��Come on, let��s go to other places to have a look,�� said Ye Futian, and they all left the place. Since the nebula had already been swallowed up, this area no longer had anything of value, so nobody stuck around.


    They all continued walking around the galaxy to look for where the others had gone. Just then, they noticed that a fight had broken out in front.


    Ye Futian looked in the direction of the fight, and his brows immediately furrowed slightly.


    ��Oh no!�� Blind Tie exclaimed before suddenly breaking out into a run at breakneck speed.


    The rest of them also quickly headed to that area. Ye Futian flew through the sky and arrived at that area in just a few moments, while Blind Tie and Fang Gai had already gone over first. They immediately got into a fight and clashed fiercely with them, causing the entire galaxy to shake violently.


    Ye Futian increased his speed and came to where Fang Huan and Zi Feng were. The aura around Zi Feng trembled violently and seemed to be injured. But her entire body was covered in Divine Fire so that she could recover very quickly.


    Above him, Shi Kui and Gu Huai were standing in different places, but they were both facing powerful opponents. But of course, the one who had the most powerful cultivators surrounding him was Chen Yi.


    Several cultivators were standing around him, and they all possessed a terrifying aura. Some of them were even Level-eight cultivators. The way they stood in this huge space had formed a tight circle around Chen Yi as if they were afraid that Chen Yi would escape again.


    Before this, Chen Yi had escaped, so they started attacking his companions to force him to return.


    When he saw this scene, Ye Futian knew that Chen Yi must have been the one who got into real trouble. Otherwise, the majority of the cultivators wouldn��t be surrounding him now.


    ��Take this.�� Ye Futian walked over to Zi Feng and passed her an elixir. Zi Feng shook her head and said, ��I don��t need it.��


    She was a divine phoenix, so her self-healing ability was powerful. But her nasty and icy gaze was staring straight at the cultivators before her now. It was as if she was furious with them.


    She was someone who was rarely bullied. Back at the Eastern Deity Island, she bullied others and never the other way round. It was true that none of these people were from ordinary backgrounds, but neither was she. Her father was Lord Phoenix, and he dominated that region with the Supreme Deity Donglai.


    Ye Futian didn��t try to persuade her further. He looked up at Chen Yi and asked, ��What did he do?��


    ��He snatched a treasure from the nebula,�� replied Zi Feng. ��Furthermore, it was when the others had helped to open the way in. They were about to get to the treasure when he dashed in and grabbed it instead.��


    Ye Futian felt his heart twitch slightly. This fellow was a really vicious one. No wonder so many people had surrounded him.


    ��But he did an excellent job,�� Zi Feng complimented him. The divine light in her eyes glinted as she stared at the others and said, ��Also, he could have just run off with the treasure but got implicated by us. These fellows actually turned around to attack us to force Chen Yi to come back.��


    ������


    Ye Futian looked at Zi Feng in shock. This obstinate phoenix was also someone unafraid of trouble.


    Earlier on, Ye Wuchen��s situation wasn��t so bad. Everyone was here to cultivate, and you owned whatever comprehension you gained from the cultivation. Most importantly, once he had swallowed the nebula, it belonged to him, and nobody else could take it away from him. But treasures were different. As long as you had your hands on it, you were constantly in danger. Once others found out you had a treasure, they would naturally want to snatch it from you.


    ��If you hand it over now, we can let you off,�� one of the powerful cultivators surrounding Chen Yi spoke up. They didn��t dare to let their guard down. Chen Yi had other treasures on him, and he moved at the speed of light.


    That was how Chen Yi managed to get that treasure earlier. They had opened up the way only to end up benefitting Chen Yi and allowing him to take the treasure away. There was no way they were letting this fellow off easily.


    ��The treasure was left behind in the galaxy, so it belongs to whoever manages to get their hands on it. Since all of you helped open the way, I can only thank everyone from the bottom of my heart. There are many other treasures in the galaxy too. You can look around. Several others have already made their way there. Why insist on targeting me?�� responded Chen Yi with a smile. His body was bathing in divine light as if he was ready to run any minute.


    He looked down and glanced over at Ye Futian. He transmitted his voice over, ��Are you going to help me or not?��


    Ye Futian looked up at him. This fellow actually knew how to ask for help?


    ��How do you expect me to help you in such a situation?�� replied Ye Futian via transmission. ��I��ll take care of the folks below. You can save yourself and run if you can. Just take it that we don��t know each other!��


    ������ Chen Yi stared down at Ye Futian in shock. He couldn��t believe such a heartless person existed!


    Just take it that they didn��t know each other?!

 Chapter 2216 - Mightiness

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Seeing that Ye Futian clearly didn��t intend to fight at all, Chen Yi knew that he had been heartlessly abandoned. He couldn��t help but curse Ye Futian for being a disloyal friend, thinking it had all been a waste of his kindness before.


    It seemed like he had to rely on himself.


    Chen Yi looked around at the people surrounding him. All these powerful cultivators had sealed this entire area off, so if he wanted to escape, he would have to smash right through the Great Path energy they used to seal the area. That would be a bit too difficult to do.


    ��So, none of you intend to do me this favor?�� said Chen Yi as he looked around.


    None of them budged after hearing what Chen Yi said; they even looked at him rather mockingly. Was this guy still able to do anything about this situation?


    ��Since you��re not going to do me any favors, then fine, I��ll give you the treasure.�� The next thing Chen Yi said made everyone take a double-take. They stared at him speechlessly, then watched as a treasure really appeared in Chen Yi��s hand and glowed brilliantly. He flung it out from his hand, and it floated in the void. That was exactly the item he had snatched earlier.


    ��What the����


    Everyone was stunned for a moment, but it only lasted one moment. An explosive blast could be heard the next moment as several hands reached out to grab the item. Some of them immediately tore through the void. Each one accelerated to their maximum speed to be the fastest to get their hands on that treasure.


    They couldn��t be bothered about Chen Yi anymore at this point. Several large palms were headed straight for the treasure, and the sounds of their palms crashing into one another were horrifying as a fight immediately broke out. Nobody was going to allow anybody else to get their hands on it.


    Woong!


    Just then, a beam of light suddenly shone and flashed right past everyone else. This beam of light was too quick, so all they saw was a flash of light that passed and disappeared immediately. But what also disappeared immediately after that was the treasure they were fighting for just a moment ago. Everyone looked up in shock to see the beam of light shoot out into the distance, cutting a line through the sky and leaving only a faint trail.


    ��I can��t believe all of you didn��t learn your lesson,�� a provoking voice came from afar. The cultivators felt like they had been played out, and their expressions were particularly nasty. Chen Yi had fooled so many high-level cultivators, and the worst part was that he had pulled the same trick on them twice.


    Once they started fighting among themselves, he had gone at top speed to dash in and run off with the treasure. They had made the same mistake twice, and this stemmed from their greed. After all, the moment Chen Yi flung the treasure out, the first thing they thought of was to hurry up and snatch it. If one didn��t grab it, someone else would. Nobody would think of guarding Chen Yi since that meant that someone else would get their hands on the treasure instead. If someone else got the treasure, there was no point in holding Chen Yi captive anymore.


    Besides, all of this had happened too quickly. Chen Yi had very cleverly used this sort of logic to trick these people again and run off with the treasure yet again.


    Boom, boom, boom�� An alarming aura began to explode from each person. Beams of divine light shot through the sky at an insane rate as they tore right through the galaxy. Each beam was headed for that first flash of light. It was obvious that many of them were incensed.


    It was no longer a simple matter of fighting for treasure now. They were now feeling challenged and insulted.


    Some of them knew that they couldn��t catch up with Chen Yi, so they remained where they were without bothering to give chase. Instead, they looked down below them, and their gaze fell on Ye Futian and his other companions.


    It was as if they were one team. This was exactly how they had forced Chen Yi to retrace his steps.


    Ye Futian had a strange look on his face now. This fellow had actually just run off with the treasure. What a ��surprise.�� But did that idiot purposely say those provoking words as revenge on how Ye Futian wanted to pretend not to know him?


    As expected, the cultivators around Ye Futian had an unfriendly look in their eyes. Blind Tie, Fang Gai, and the rest were gathered together, and they looked back at the other cultivators warily.


    ��Everyone here are high-level people from various factions of power. Every feud is traced back to one person, just like how every debt belongs to a creditor. Since he��s the one who snatched a treasure from all of you, all of you can go and snatch it back from him. We are not well acquainted with him, so I hope that everyone will not implicate the innocent,�� said Ye Futian as he stretched his arms out in a shrug.


    But it was obvious that nobody was buying it. Several mighty shadows put pressure on them as they trapped them within this space. Even though this was only one of the areas in the starry space where people had gathered, there were still a fair number of high-level cultivators. Some of them were also Perfect Great Path high-level Renhuangs.


    ��If we take all of you down, he��s going to come back for sure,�� said one of them.


    ��If you still insist on implicating the innocent, then we��re not going to sit by and do nothing,�� said Ye Futian in a cold and distant voice. He looked around at the cultivators around him. More than one person from each major faction of power had come, and while some were powerful, some not so. Besides those high-level Renhuangs, there were also Renhuangs of other levels.


    A terrifying aura descended as nobody cared about what Ye Futian said. In fact, some of them had already begun to make their attack. One of them raised his hand, and a Storm of the Great Path immediately gathered above him, followed by the appearing of a storm pagoda. This storm pagoda was suspended in the skies and kept expanding until it covered the whole place. Frightening lightning bolts could be seen below the storm pagoda, and each part of the storm seemed to contain alarming levels of destructive power.


    Blind Tie flew up into the sky and took a step forward. The heavens and earth roared as his divine hammer appeared once more. An equally alarming powerful storm was born, and it weighed heavily on this vast space.


    Every cultivator standing in different positions started to launch their attacks. Shi Kui, Gu Huai, and the rest also took a step forward to unleash their own frightening auras.


    Ye Futian glanced at all those Renhuangs with an aloof look on his face. The power of the Great Path flowed through his body, and a ferocious booming resonated from within his body, echoing in this space, causing loud blasts to ring out loud.


    More frighteningly, his body seemed to give off a seemingly sacred sort of glow, which made him look extremely otherworldly. His eyes seemed to transform into demon eyes, and it was as if a heart was beating wildly within him, causing this demonic qi to fill the place.


    Doong��


    Doong, doong��


    Many eyes were staring at Ye Futian. They seemed to all have sensed the aura of a Demon God. The aura that was emanating from Ye Futian��s body shocked them somewhat. This was the aura of a Level-six Renhuang, but even Level-seven Renhuangs felt threatened. Just his aura alone was already no weaker than powerful Level-seven Renhuangs like themselves.


    Also, there was an incredibly frightening force that gripped their hearts, causing their hearts to palpitate, as if they could hear the wild pounding of the heart within Ye Futian��s body.


    ��Be careful, there��s the aura of the Demon God,�� said one of them as he stared at Ye Futian. He could tell that Ye Futian must have had some incredible experiences.


    ��That��s Ye Futian. He got to view the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor in Shangqing Domain, and it��s said that he comprehended the extraordinary body of the Great Path, and now his physical body is invincible,�� spoke another man. Ye Futian was surprised that this other man knew who he was. It seemed like he was gaining a reputation out there now, so even cultivators from other domains knew of his existence.


    But these cultivators still looked like they were prepared for battle as if this information only made them want to spar with Ye Futian even more than before.


    Woong!


    A demonic storm swept through space, and a gigantic illusion of a peacock appeared behind Ye Futian. When the Peacock God spread its feathers, it was as if countless pairs of eyes had appeared, and each pair of eyes was shooting out a frightening demonic light.


    The next moment, he suddenly turned into a flash as he dashed towards one particular direction at breakneck speed.


    ��Stop him!�� someone shouted loudly. A powerful Level-seven Renhuang immediately took a step out, and the divine might of the Great Path came crashing down. A giant appeared in front of Ye Futian. It was glowing gold all over as if it was wearing golden armor.


    When it saw that Ye Futian was coming its way, it stretched its arms forward to make an attack. Its golden divine fists penetrated the air, and countless illusions of golden fists appeared in the sky. Each of them shot upwards so fiercely that they seemed to be able to punch a hole in the sky.


    But Ye Futian didn��t dodge or retreat but continued to hurtle towards the giant��s divine fists. Ye Futian��s executed his Flesh Becoming Way, so his physical body made from flesh and blood became close to a divine body instead, containing all sorts of Wills in it. He was practically invincible, and one punch could break the entire starry sky.


    Boom, boom, boom��


    Their attacks collided head-on, and the collision threatened to destroy everything around it. The ear-deafening blasts of the Great Path coming from within Ye Futian��s body rang in the air. Several cultivators tried to attack him from all sides, but none of them managed to get close.


    Boom!


    Several frightening beams of light shone through the space, and the golden divine fist was shattered. The illusion of the Peacock God went right through it, and a violent attack immediately hit that level-seven Renhuang. His body went flying out into the distance.


    But Ye Futian did not stop there. After he had transformed into a flash of light, he started heading for the weaker Renhuangs behind him.


    ��Stop him!�� shouted one of them loudly. Several powerful Renhuangs blocked Ye Futian��s body at the same time, but Ye Futian��s body resounded with the Sound of Buddha. Many Vajras with furious looks in their eyes went right into his opponents�� heads. Then he raised his hand, and his palm became a Divine Monument of World Suppression, which came hurtling down on them. This was an incredibly domineering move.


    Every person who tried to kill Ye Futian earlier was forced backward by the impact. Some were still trying to block him, so Ye Futian swung his other hand forward. An indestructible long spear instantly appeared and shattered everything it pierced.


    ��Retreat!�� All the Renhuangs behind started running far away from Ye Futian, but he suddenly clenched his fist, which immediately caused sealed off the space before him. Several Renhuangs were trapped in this space. After that, Ye Futian sent several leaves and branches towards them, which surrounded everyone in the space. A terrifying chilly air instantly filled the space, which brought their body temperature down to zero. They had been encased in ice!

 Chapter 2217 - Fighting Everyone Himself

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The other cultivators looked toward Ye Futian to see vines extending from an ancient tree surround the bodies of those Renhuangs in front of him, and nobody dared to do anything rash.


    Even though the people under Ye Futian��s control weren��t from the same group as each other, nobody dared to do anything that might kill someone else. Everybody here had an extraordinary identity, and any deaths would result in a lot of trouble. Once a feud was created, nobody knew what sort of consequence would await them.


    The Renhuangs were sealed in ice.


    Everyone��s eyes were on Ye Futian. That cold air he had sent out wasn��t like the ordinary Will of Ice but seemed more like the Power of Yin instead. It was bitingly cold and was at subzero temperatures. Wisps of the Power of Yin had flowed out of Ye Futian and through the vines of the tree, which then spread into the bodies of the Renhuang that were under his control, sealing all of them in ice. Even if one had a powerful Will, there was no way of getting out of this.


    Several cultivators, who had left the earlier battle, came towards Ye Futian from all directions and surrounded him. They took a step forward, and an alarming aura and might of the Great Path weighed heavily in the air. Their gazes were icy cold as they stared at Ye Futian and said, ��Let them go.��


    Clearly, some of the cultivators sealed in ice were on their team.


    ��As I said earlier, every feud is traced back to one person, just like how every debt belongs to a creditor. None of you came here alone, so if you want to get the treasure, then go look for the person who took the treasure,�� said Ye Futian as he looked back at everyone else. After he finished saying that, the branches unraveled themselves and the Power of Yin receded. A loud blast was heard immediately after that as the Renhuangs struggled out of their frozen state.


    ��Otherwise, I won��t be so kind the next time,�� continued Ye Futian.


    The Renhuangs who struggled out of their frozen state trembled slightly all over because the coldness had seeped into their limbs and bones, even seeping into their souls. When they were sealed in ice earlier, they felt as though their life and even their thoughts were about to stop, as if they were truly going to become a corpse.


    The Power of Yin was an absolute sort of iciness, so it could also freeze and seal souls. If Ye Futian let them go too late, they could suffer irreparable damage to their Great Path.


    ��You��re truly the only Renhuang who has been able to view Shenjia the Great Emperor��s divine body,�� sounded an authoritative voice. A powerful old man was speaking as he stared at Ye Futian. The aura he emanated was terrifying, and he was a Level-eight. As he stared at Ye Futian, he observed that the boy had a full head of silver hair, a brilliant glow around his body, the air of the Demon God coming out from him, the illusion of the Peacock Demon God hanging high above him, as well as an incredible amount of Divine Light circulating within his body.


    Such a constitution could be considered invincible. It was rare to see anybody of the same level.


    On top of that, he could also see at least three different mighty powers that he had inherited. There was the power from the Peacock Demon God, the Power of Yin, and the terrifying body of the Great Path created from looking at Shenjia the Great Emperor. All these powers he inherited seemed to have turned him into a human-shaped monster, and he was way more terrifying than all the other Perfect Great Path Renhuangs.


    During the short fight earlier, all of them had already noticed this. Never mind the Level-six Perfect Great Path cultivators �C even those at Level-seven were unable to withstand his storm-like attacks. This body of the Great Path was certainly invincible to those at the same level as him. If he launched an attack, none of them would be able to defend themselves against him.


    The very powerful Level-seven cultivator who fought Ye Futian before this had been very aggressive. However, he still ended up being sent flying by Ye Futian��s violent attack before Ye Futian turned to deal with all the other people behind him.


    It seemed like this young man with white hair wasn��t only going to become the most extraordinary person in the Shangqing continent. Still, he would probably have a place among the best and most legendary characters of the Divine Continent.


    ��I would like to know the extent of your prowess.�� Just then, a middle-aged Level-seven Renhuang took a step forward and looked at Ye Futian as he stood above him. He didn��t say that he wanted to fight because of Chen Yi. Instead, he said he wanted to know Ye Futian��s true fighting abilities.


    He wanted to know how powerful this logic-defying Renhuang that appeared from nowhere in Shangqing Continent really was.


    ��I would like to know too. I want to know the prowess of a cultivator who was the only one who managed to comprehend the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.�� Yet another man stepped forward. He was also a frightening Level-seven.


    Blind Tie and the rest came over to where Ye Futian was. They watched as one powerful cultivator after another stepped forward. Several powerful Renhuangs were all interested in sparring with Ye Futian.


    For cultivators from top factions of power, they were already the kings and leaders of the region they were from, and very few opponents could match them in power. Any high-level Perfect Great Path Renhuang would be considered the cream of the crop in whichever region they were from. For example, the four legendary characters from Donghua Domain, Ning Hua, Zong Chan, and the rest were all at this level.


    People like them also wanted to spar with others at their level too. Ye Futian could be considered someone invincible in his region as well, and was a powerful Renhuang who could even fight those from other regions as well. Such a character was hard to come by. He was truly a genius among geniuses and would be someone who would make the name of the Divine Continent be heard far and wide in the near future. And so, they all wanted to have a go.


    Of course, some thought that if they could take Ye Futian down at the same time, that would be even better.


    Ye Futian looked at the people around him. Every single person who had stepped forward had a terrifying aura around them. They were all cultivators at the same level as Zong Chan back then, so they could be considered people who were nearly at the top of the cultivation world.


    ��Sure,�� replied Ye Futian as he looked at all of them. ��If a Level-eight does not want to fight, then the rest of you can try together. But if all of you lose the fight, then that will be the end of today��s matter.��


    ������


    All of them were speechless after hearing what Ye Futian said. He said that they could try together?


    A Level-eight was definitely not going to try. If it was a real battle of life and death, then your level didn��t really matter. But if it was merely a friendly match to spar and understand Ye Futian��s true capabilities, then it wasn��t ethical for someone who was two levels higher to participate. The difference between the two levels would automatically make it unfair even before fighting, and it really wouldn��t be considered sparring anymore.


    As for a Level-seven, Ye Futian had already displayed incredible prowess earlier by defeating a Level-seven soundly earlier. So all the Level-sevens wanted to give it a shot.


    But this young fellow was actually telling all of them to try together. Those words were a little too arrogant.


    In the high skies, one of them had jet black eyes and seemed to have a dark aura around him. He stared rather deeply at Ye Futian and had gathered with the other Level-seven cultivators. From his point of view, Ye Futian��s value had gone way beyond the value of that treasure that Chen Yi had run off with.


    If he could take Ye Futian down and strip him of all the inherited powers he had, that would be worth way more than one measly treasure.


    With that in mind, a strange glint gleamed in his eyes, and he started to get a little excited now.


    ��In that case, let them fight then.�� The few Level-eight cultivators stepped back to move out from the fighting arena. Ye Futian took a step forward and stood in the vast starry space. In front of him, several powerful cultivators were releasing terrifying auras that weighed heavily on Ye Futian.


    Blind Tie and the rest were standing at a lower area and looked warily at the fighting arena. Even though the other cultivators claimed that it was just a sparring session, they still had to beware of someone suddenly making a fatal move. Human hearts were hard to predict, and these were cultivators from various factions of power, so nobody knew what each other was really thinking about.


    Woong!


    Just then, a frightening and incredible illusion appeared behind one of the Renhuangs. A glorious sun appeared, dyeing the stars red. The vast space looked like it had been covered with flames as the divine light of that endless sun, turning into several divine swords of the sun.


    His eyes had also transformed into the sun and shot out terrifying divine flames. With one thought, the divine sunlight shone down, and the devastating divine fire of the sun burned everything in its path to a crisp as it threatened to devour Ye Futian��s body.


    Everyone could feel that intense heatwave in the air, and everywhere that the divine sunlight touched seemed to be on fire as they all turned into the color of flames. The illusion of the Peacock Demon God behind Ye Futian gave off a gorgeous light, sending out several beams of demonic lightning which contained the Power of Yin. It clashed head-on with those divine swords of sunlight.


    In that instant, a frightening collision exploded in the space. Two forces had crashed into one another among the stars, and one side had been destroyed and dissipated. The countless divine swords of sunlight had actually been unable to reach Ye Futian at all. The other powerful cultivators felt their pupils constrict slightly as they stared at Ye Futian. Their bodies also exploded with a mighty might of the Great Path and started to conjure up a terrifying attack!

 Chapter 2218 - Practitioners of Three Major Realms

    The practitioners from afar gazed towards the battlefield. They saw the Sun Sword Rain, Sun God Sword, and Sun lightning display two completely different colors. They were gorgeous.


    At the same time, the attacks of the others arrived. Stars appeared in a person��s hand. Above him, a giant appeared. When he extended his large palm forward, the palm of the giant in the sky grabbed at Ye Futian��s body directly as if a giant starry palm. Stars revolved in the palm, and an immeasurable strength hid within it, a strength that could annihilate everything in its path.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at it. He could only feel heaven and earth-changing. He had entered the enemy��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path��s domain. It was like a starry dimension. In this starry dimension, the giant starry palm slammed towards him. It would annihilate everything. It was unstoppable.


    Boom�� An endlessly overbearing aura burst from Ye Futian��s body. The crackling sound of explosions covered the entire sky. It was like the roar of thunder. He raised his arm, and countless Starry Stele appeared everywhere. Every stele contained a frightening ancient inscription, which was the extreme attack power he learned from the Millet Emperor��s Gate of World Suppression.


    Then, at that moment, a whooshing sounded. Golden spatial storm sliced through the sky as if countless thin and sharp blades had sliced the sky into pieces. They sliced towards Ye Futian��s body. Multiple cultivators attacked at the same time. Wave after wave of attacks poured towards him.


    A chill flashed in Ye Futian��s eyes as the attacks flew at him. He leaped into the sky. His not-so-stalwart body caused the sky to tremble violently as if he was a humanoid monster. Divine lights radiated from his body. It was as if his mortal body had transformed into a starry battle form. Stars revolved. Divine lights of the Great Path of Space and the lights of the Demon God also radiated from the surface of his body.


    The frightening golden blades had sliced through the sky and were imminent. They slashed towards his body. However, space light runes appeared. Everyone was surprised to discover that multiple Doors of Space had appeared around Ye Futian. They revolved around his body and formed an absolute space, devouring all the attacks coming at him.


    Bang! A loud bang rang in the air. Ye Futian stepped into the sky while his body shot straight towards a certain direction. It was the direction of the person who summoned the Starry God of War. The Starry God of War moved in the sky and extended its hand toward Ye Futian.


    Vuong! Ye Futian��s body transformed into lightning. Divine Light of Peacock burst from his body as they merged into one. Infusing the Path of Sword, he was like an indestructible sword. He flew directly across the sky. Loud rumbling noises rang in the air. His body went directly through the frightening giant starry palm. Then, he charged into the star giant��s body. In an instant, countless beams of frightening divine light shot out of the star giant��s body. Following that, its body burst into pieces.


    The light did not stop after puncturing the giant. After going through it, Ye Futian continued charging towards the practitioner. The practitioner moved his body back, but the light was too quick. In an instant, it had arrived in front of him. A giant figure that looked like an ancient god appeared behind him and extended both its arms out in front to block Ye Futian��s attack.


    Boom! Ye Futian��s body reached as a sword, slamming into both his opponent��s palms. Rumbling sounds rang in the air. Cracks appeared on both palms as they continued to crackle and crumble. Ye Futian directly passed through those cracks. Then, he raised his hand and pointed.


    With a plop, the person��s body was punctured and blown away. He could not withstand Ye Futian��s close-range attack.


    However, at that moment, a frightening golden figure appeared n the sky. It slammed a monstrous divine fist at Ye Futian. Countless streams of golden light appeared and filled the starry sky. They also buried Ye Futian��s body. Every fist was huge. Fists that radiated golden light filled the sky. They came from every direction. There was no way to escape.


    ��What an overbearing attack.�� Many people trembled as they watched. Duan Qiong recalled a super-powerful faction as this scene. Ye Futian also felt a sense of familiarity. Back then, he was pursued by a ridiculously strong person with similar skills. Back then, it was also a battle in the Void Realm. It was a battle in the Shadow Realm. A powerful Renhuang of the Empty Mountain pushed him to the brink.


    Ye Futian stared wide-eyed as the golden divine fists flew toward him.


    Boom, boom, boom, boom�� Fists slammed into Ye Futian��s body. His tiny body was directly buried under a flurry of fists. The practitioners watching from afar could not help but feel their hearts tremble as they gazed at the center of all the divine fists.


    The golden light from the divine fists radiated brightly. Waves of fist wills surged forward. An overbearing Renhuang wearing a golden outfit appeared in the sky. He looked down at Ye Futian below him. An enormous amount of the Power of the Great Path continued to ooze out from his body.


    In the middle of the flurry of divine fists, everyone could see a tiny body in the midst. Both arms and legs were extended to withhold the gigantic divine fist. His body was also hit. However, the onlookers were shocked to discover the profound coldness in his eyes. He raised his head to look at the cultivator in the sky. He was actually fine.


    ��He��s still okay even after this?��


    Peoples�� hearts beat faster. They looked at the beautiful giant body; the golden shockwaves of its divine fists could continuously destroy a human��s body and completely annihilate a person. Even if Ye Futian��s body was unparalleled, even if he survived, he should have been severely injured.


    However, even after taking those hits, he was actually still fine.


    Was his body still that of a mortal��s?


    Dong, dong�� It was as if everyone could hear his intense heartbeats, which made everyone��s heart beat in rhythm with his. Ye Futian raised his head. An arrogance that completely disregarded everything could be seen in his gaze, the Power of Yin began to emanate from his body. In an instant, the golden divine fist began to be covered under a veil of frost.


    At the same time, an illusion of the Peacock Demon God formed. A frightening divine light burst from within Ye Futian��s body. In an instant, blindingly bright divine light burst forth, and those giant divine fists were completely blown to bits. Before long, they were all swept away, and nothing was left.


    Meanwhile, Ye Futian��s figure still floated in the sky. His pitch-black pupils scanned the cultivators as if he was an indestructible person. It was as if he could not be killed or destroyed.


    Under the raging winds that tore through space, the Peacock Demon God flapped its wings. Ye Futian directly headed towards the Empty Mountain practitioner in the sky. He also wanted to pay him back for earlier.


    The Empty Mountain practitioner��s eyes shrunk. He took a step in the sky. Then, behind him, a giant golden God of War illusion appeared. Then, he extended both his hands at the same time. Countless divine fists filled the sky, and each of the fists flew towards Ye Futian as if they were a stream of golden fist will. The sun and sky were completely blocked out.


    Vuong! A golden Space Divine Wing appeared above Ye Futian. Then, a frightening image appeared above the sky. It was actually a picture of a golden roc heaven slayer. It looked as if a giant ancient roc with golden wings had appeared. Ye Futian��s body had transformed into the giant golden-winged roc. He flew across the sky and plowed through the flurry of golden fists, destroying them into bits and pieces all the way until he reached his opponent.


    The Empty Mountain practitioner was actually still calm even though Ye Futian had easily arrived in front of him. The golden divine giant behind him covered his body; its arms moved forward. Two fists flew out and broke through the sky. Nobody knew just how powerful they were. One punch could have destroyed thousands or tens of thousands of miles of space.


    Roar�� Then, a shocking roar rang in the air. Ye Futian��s body had transformed into a Starry War Ape. Its body was humongous, and it also swung both its fists forward. The flung fists were like two stars that had been shot forward.


    Rumble! A devastating sound of collision filled the air. Countless stars flew forward and made the golden body of the enemy tremble.


    Whether it was the Golden Roc Heaven Slayer or the Starry War Ape, they were among the seven great divine techniques that he learned from Four Corner Village. Ye Futian had cultivated at the village for many years. He had reached a level where he could use them at any time. His understanding of the divine techniques was very profound.


    As the two collided together, a shadowy figure appeared above them. It was as if a Dark Ancient God had appeared above them. Countless gray streams of air swirled and flowed toward Ye Futian��s body. In an instant, everything around him had been devoured. The gray streams of air were like dark chains that had tied him up and flowed into his body, which made Ye Futian feel the strength drain from his body. His spiritual soul was shaken.


    ��Soul Chain!�� Ye Futian raised his head and glanced above. He saw a dark pair of eyes. This was one of the strongest practitioners of the Dark World. The dark streams of air being drawn towards him were Soul Chains.


    Bang! Both his arms vibrated. He sent the Empty Mountain practitioner flying away. Ye Futian��s shifted his gaze toward the cultivator with an intense and cold stare. Soul Chain. He wanted to take his spiritual soul and keep it locked up.


    In this battle, he faced powerful practitioners from the three Major Realms��the Divine Prefecture, Empty Mountain, and the Dark World��all at the same time.


    Naturally, after seeing this scene, the other practitioners could not help but slightly shrink their eyes and stare at the frightening image up above. A God of Ghost illusion seemed to have appeared above Ye Futian. It had a pair of dark eyes. The Soul Chain that originated from above the God of Ghost��s illusion surrounded Ye Futian as if it wanted to extract Ye Futian��s soul. On Ye Futian��s body, an illusory figure of a person had already begun to appear. His spiritual soul wanted to leave the body.


    The person did not come for the treasure. He came for Ye Futian. Indeed, Ye Futian��s value was higher than the treasure. That was why the cultivator from the Dark World suddenly intervened.


    A battle. A battle against the practitioners of the three Major Realms. This battle was enough to help Ye Futian be famous!

 Chapter 2219 - Attacked Instead

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It looked like Ye Futian was in danger!


    All the cultivators looked towards the battlefield. They could see Ye Futian��s spiritual soul already.


    His physical body was at an unrivaled level, and he was practically invincible. In the battle earlier, he had proven to have fought with great ease. Even level-seven Perfect Great Path cultivators were unable to break through his defenses. But when that high-level cultivator from the Dark World made an attack, he targeted Ye Futian��s spiritual sol.


    A cultivator��s spiritual soul was a lot weaker than the cultivator��s body, and very few cultivated the power of their spiritual soul. So once it was attacked, that cultivator would be in deep trouble because a spiritual soul was way more fragile than a physical body.


    This Dark World cultivator dared to use such a vicious method of attack at this time, probably because he had the ability to attack a spiritual soul. Otherwise, given the incredible fighting prowess that Ye Futian displayed earlier, this man probably wouldn��t have dared to do anything rash.


    After all, right now, he was trying to capture a soul. He was trying to lock down Ye Futian��s spiritual soul and take it away, which was an extremely ruthless move and was no longer within the definition of a friendly match. Once the spiritual soul left its body and was taken away, Ye Futian��s physical body would become nothing but an empty shell with no soul, and others could do whatever they wanted with it.


    When they saw this happening, all the cultivators from Four Corner Village started moving towards where the fight was and was ready to head upwards to attack. But at the same time, Level-eight cultivators also began walking towards them and blocked their way. One of them said very loudly, ��They were the ones who came up with this friendly match, so why are all of you going to interfere?��


    It was obvious that none of these people would be kind to Ye Futian. Once they found an opportunity, they would happily bring Ye Futian down since that was their original intention for fighting in the first place. Now that this Dark World cultivator had made such a move, it was great news for them. That way, they wouldn��t offend Four Corner Village. Many of them had heard about how a mysterious man with a terrifying prowess was in Four Corner Village.


    ��Get lost!�� roared Fang Gai angrily. A frightening Divine Light of Space shone brilliantly as he wanted to go right through the crowd. But those level-eight cultivators immediately unleashed a Great Path domain to separate him from the battlefield, stopping them from getting near and providing help.


    In an instant, a terrifying clash broke out on this side, too.


    On the other side, back within the battlefield, the soul chains forced Ye Futian��s spiritual soul to leave his body, and they were also able to eat away and hurt his soul. This made Ye Futian feel a deep chill inside him. That was a chill that came from his spiritual soul.


    His heart turned cold, and a murderous thought shot out through his eyes. An attack on his spiritual soul was as good as an attempt to kill him.


    Woong! The brilliance of Divine Light sparkled and covered Ye Futian��s body, giving him an otherworldly glow. Ye Futian��s spiritual soul seemed to have really left his physical body and was being pulled away by those dark chains.


    Ye Futian��s physical body stood in the space without moving. His spiritual soul seemed to have become a physical body in itself, and a frightening illusion appeared, like a celestial shadow.


    The eyes of the Dark World Renhuang grew icy as even more frightening dark chains headed for that celestial shadow. But at that moment, all those chains seemed to be covered in a layer of frost, which slowly encased the chains in ice. This iciness spread at a rapid pace, moving along the dark chains and headed straight for the gigantic illusion of the dark deity in the void.


    Brr�� That powerful deity-like body felt a chill that seeped into his bones, and the Dark World cultivator shuddered. He felt like his own spiritual soul was cold all over as if it had been attacked by the cold.


    Boom!


    The terrible cold continued to climb upwards, following the soul chains and entering the illusion of the deity. After that, a terrifying heat was unleashed. Ye Futian��s spiritual soul glowed brilliantly and seemed to become the yin-yang symbol as the sun and moon intertwined. Both cold and hot were unleashed at the same time, causing both the Power of Yin and the Power of the Sun to rush into the body of the illusion of the deity.


    A bloodcurdling scream was heard as the deity instantly suffered a terrifying attack on its spiritual soul. Countless beams of Dark Divine Light shot out in an attempt to destroy Ye Futian��s brilliantly shining spiritual soul. But Ye Futian��s spiritual soul brought both the Divine Light of Yin and the Sun further up, swallowing all the Dark currents and destroying everything.


    It was as if he was letting the other party take hold of his soul. Since he wanted his spiritual soul, then he could have it.


    Boom�� This time, it was the Dark World cultivator��s turn to suffer. He gave a low roar as the illusion of the deity continued to get destroyed. With a loud roar, his body flew upwards and tried to get away. He got rid of the soul chains and stopped trying to take Ye Futian��s spiritual soul.


    However, the Divine Light of Yin and the Sun that Ye Futian��s spiritual soul had unleashed caused the illusion of the deity to continue shattering into tiny pieces. The other party immediately retreated to a faraway place, screaming along the way. Even his body seemed to become a little unreal.


    ��Oh my goodness���� All the other cultivators watching felt their hearts tremble at this sight. The Dark World cultivator nearly got killed instead?


    They watched as Ye Futian��s spiritual soul floated back downwards and returned to his physical body. His body of the Great Path sparkled as Divine Light enveloped his body. He looked up to glance at the figure that had disappeared into the distance. This Dark World cultivator had tried to use his spiritual soul to attack him but had gotten attacked instead. Even though Ye Futian hadn��t managed to kill him, his spiritual soul had been very severely injured. If there was nobody powerful enough to help him or if he couldn��t get the precious spiritual soul elixir, he would take at least the next eight to ten years to recover from today.


    He looked around at the crowd and said to all the cultivators surrounding him, ��Does everyone still want to continue?��


    Before this, several cultivators had attacked him at the same time, and everyone had been forced to retreat and were hurt. But some who hadn��t made any attack earlier. However, after seeing what happened in the battle earlier, all of them already understood that Level-seven Perfect Great Path Renhuangs couldn��t possibly defeat Ye Futian unless you were one of those geniuses.


    He had defeated cultivators from the three major worlds without any exception. Even those Dark World cultivators�� sudden attack on Ye Futian��s spiritual soul had backfired and got attacked instead. One could say that this battle had been pretty straightforward and one-sided, barely even threatening Ye Futian.


    That powerful cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm had already gone all out with such a domineering attack. He had been able to shatter the Divine Fist in the void and slam down on Ye Futian��s body, but even though he had hit Ye Futian, the impact of his hit had been broken, and he had not been able to hurt Ye Futian at all.


    How was anyone supposed to continue fighting such a monster?


    One man had been able to defeat some of the best from the three major worlds. If one wanted to defeat Ye Futian, they��d have to find a Level-eight Renhuang to do it.


    ��In that case, then this matter comes to a close here. If you want to get that treasure back, then go and look for the one who took it. Don��t implicate innocent parties,�� said Ye Futian before going back down to where Fang Gai and the rest were.


    The fight on their side also stopped. All the level-eight cultivators stared at Ye Futian, and they all looked a little unsettled. They couldn��t believe that the earlier attack hadn��t worked.


    They had purposely blocked Fang Gai and the rest from helping Ye Futian so that the Dark World cultivator had a chance to take Ye Futian down. They didn��t expect this attempt to fail.


    ��Please don��t waste any more time. There are treasures in other places as well.�� After Ye Futian left them with those words, he turned and left. His companions also followed behind him, marching off confidently and leaving this place.


    This time, nobody tried to stop Ye Futian anymore. Everyone watched as Ye Futian walked off, and a look of deep thought could be seen in their eyes.


    ��I��m afraid this man will become a truly great character in the Divine Continent,�� someone finally spoke up. All of them were the cream of the crop among their peers, but it had been a very long time since they saw a Renhuang as extraordinary as Ye Futian.


    He was only at level six now. But in the future, he would probably become a super-powerful character. Of course, that was assuming he didn��t die before that!

 Chapter 2220 - Might

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Ye Futian and his companions left, they continued to head further up the starry skies. He didn��t bother himself with Chen Yi. He had experienced that fellow��s speed for himself after all. Back then, Ning Hua already had trouble catching up with him. Furthermore, his cultivation level had increased, and his Way of Light was certainly much stronger, and his speed would be much faster. He was probably the fastest person in the world when it came to running for his life.


    Otherwise, he wouldn��t have been able to snatch that treasure under the noses of so many powerful cultivators.


    There were several nebulas in different parts of the starry skies. Fights had broken out in many places, and it was a terrifying sight to behold. Thankfully, they weren��t on land but in space, so these fights would not bring harm to innocent parties, and everyone could fight to their heart��s content here.


    Ye Futian didn��t know how many treasures here had been placed by cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace, but it was clear that certain areas had been left behind from Ziwei the Great��s cultivation. For example, the nebula that Ye Wuchen had swallowed earlier was probably the sword will left behind by Ziwei the Great, which turned into a sword-shaped nebula.


    Besides that place, there were many other parts, which were extremely difficult to comprehend. Many high-level cultivators were still trying their best to comprehend and uncover all the secrets within, but they had not been successful so far.


    ��Where are we going?�� Fang Gai stood beside Ye Futian and asked him.


    Ye Futian��s eyes looked towards the highest point in the sky, where the illusion of a great emperor stood in the starry sky with a Heavenly Scroll in hand. That was probably where most high-level cultivators had congregated, and they would probably be the best from various worlds. All of them wanted to uncover this ultimate secret and find out what was the greatest inheritance that Ziwei the Great had left behind.


    Also, what was in that Heavenly Scroll?


    This was also something that piqued Ye Futian��s interest the most. But of course, if Ziwei the Great had really hidden an inheritance here, then it would certainly not be easy to obtain it. Ziwei the Great was a great emperor of ancient days, and this place must have existed for many, many years now. Ziwei Imperial Palace was in control of everything here, but the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace still had not gained enlightenment of these secrets till today. So this was definitely a complicated process.


    Ziwei the Great was a ruler of the Ziwei Segmentum. This Segmentum worshipped Ziwei the Great, and top cultivators cultivated like him. This place was filled with some of the world��s greatest geniuses, and if even these people had been unable to comprehend anything, the chances of them comprehending anything were slim.


    But of course, it wasn��t all hopeless. This time, several things that the great emperor had left behind had been inherited. After all, some of the most legendary characters from all over the world had come this time. Many of them were extremely gifted, so their overall abilities were greater than the cultivators in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Ye Futian stopped walking and stood in the vast starry sky. The stars above shone on him as he turned back to look at the vast starry world.


    ��What��s wrong?�� Gu Dongliu asked him quietly.


    ��Nothing. I was casually looking around to see if I could see anything different,�� replied Ye Futian. ��I want to go up there and have a look. Do you want to come with me or go elsewhere? There are many other places around here where you can gain enlightenment.��


    ��We��ll go to other places and not waste anytime there. But two people ought to go along with you,�� said Gu Dongliu. Even though he possessed an extraordinary inheritance himself, he had some degree of self-awareness too. If any of them were going to stand out among the rest of the cultivators here, only Ye Futian fit the bill. It was impossible for the rest of them.


    He wasn��t looking down on himself. This was just a sincere understanding of himself. There were way too many legendary characters here. After being sent by Princess Donghuang to the Divine Continent to cultivate all these years, he also saw some super powerful legends and confirmed that their difference in level was significant. If he said that he was confident of winning the cultivators in these starry skies, that would definitely be a sign of audacity.


    It was better to go elsewhere to have a look and try his luck to see if he could be enlightened.


    ��I��ll go with him,�� avowed Blind Tie. He couldn��t see and never thought about inheriting anything else. He was happy to cultivate his Divine Hammer of the Protector to the best he could. Having one powerful move was better than having a thousand low-level moves. Cultivating one aspect to its maximum was better than having to learn a thousand different cultivation techniques.


    The Divine Hammer of the Protector had also been left behind by a great character from history, the Four Corner Great Emperor. He was a pioneer of Four Corner Village.


    As for why he wanted to protect Ye Futian, it probably came out from a hope he had in Ye Futian. Ye Futian had completely rewritten Four Corner Village��s destiny, and they all knew that if they wanted to continue to rewrite Four Corner Village��s destiny, the most important person was Ye Futian. He was considered one of the villagers, but all his disciples were the future of the village, including his own son.


    And so, after they left Four Corner Village, Blind Tie had always been taking up the role of protecting Ye Futian. Fang Gai also did the same.


    ��I��ll stay with him, too. The rest of you can go and have a look elsewhere,�� Fang Gai spoke up. He didn��t have strong ambitions either, since the next two generations after him were even more outstanding. He and Fang Huan had been rescued from the ancient royal family of Duan by Ye Futian, and Fang Cun was now a disciple of Ye Futian. So Ye Futian was a huge benefactor to his family, and everything he did now was not only for the sake of the Fang family��s future but also a bid to repay Ye Futian for his kindness.


    Also, Fang Gai himself was a brilliant man who could tell that Ye Futian was the right choice. That was why he went along with Old Ma to chase the entire Muyun family out of the village.


    Everything that happened later showed that he had certainly made the right choice.


    Now, even the Nanhai family could not surpass the extraordinary position that Four Corner Village had within the Shangqing Continent. The village would only become more and more powerful, so Muyun Long was bound to regret staying with the Nanhai family in the future.


    ��Sure.�� All of them nodded slightly. With two Level-eight cultivators protecting Ye Futian and Ye Futian��s own prowess, as long as they didn��t run into anybody too powerful, they should do just fine.


    Actually, Ye Futian by himself was already enough, but his position was way too important to the rest, so they placed his safety as their priority. On top of that, Ye Futian often attracted powerful attacks on himself. Now that he wanted to comprehend Ziwei the Great��s inheritance, he could run into the most powerful character in this universe.


    The group split ways. Ye Futian, Blind Tie, and Fang Gai continued heading upwards, while the rest left for other parts of the starry sky.


    As they headed upwards, Ye Futian could feel a divine aura that felt like true might hit him. It was as if one of the Great Emperors of the past was still around. It was as if the will of Ziwei the Great was still here, and that��s why this might existed.


    At this moment, Ye Futian and his companions couldn��t help but feel a sense of solemnity rise from their hearts. As they moved upwards and looked up at the illusion of that divine face above them, they felt like this god was looking back at them. They were in front of a god, so they ought to bow down and worship.


    Besides them, many other cultivators were already in that same space. Also, these were all legendary geniuses from all over the world. Only such people would come here directly!

 Chapter 2221 - Formed from the Starry Sky?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ziwei the Great held a Heavenly Scroll in his hand. His illusory figure stood in the sky above all the cultivators. He appeared very close to all of them, yet he couldn��t be reached. It was as though the cultivators would never be able to come in contact with his illusory figure.


    This was a face that was embedded among the stars. Ziwei the Great was right in front of their eyes; he was omnipresent. However, he was also ethereal. The cultivators could sense his might, yet they could never pinpoint his exact existence. He was like the moon reflected in a body of water.


    Yet, the might of Ziwei the Great felt so real, solemn, and ancient. It was as though he was standing in the sky, staring at the cultivators across space and time.


    Moreover, the illusory figure of Ziwei the Great had been here since time immemorial. His illusory figure was the eternal existence that protected this starry world, or it could be said that he protected the entire segment.


    What was this face made of? Was it a will left behind by Ziwei the Great? Ye Futian thought to himself. If an ancient, god-like Ziwei the Great had left behind his will, was it possible for him to resuscitate and come back to life?


    After all, Ziwei the Great was an all-powerful god. Even if just a sliver of his will was left in the world, by right, it could be said that he was immortal since he had not completely disappeared from existence.


    In this part of the sky, many cultivators stood beneath the illusory figure of Ziwei the Great. All of them had solemn looks on their faces as they raised their heads and gazed at the illusory figure. Even though they were all top figures from various parts of the world, none of them revealed arrogant attitudes when standing beneath the illusory figure. All of them showed their respect for the ancient Great Emperor.


    Furthermore, according to legend, Ziwei the Great was no ordinary god. He was one of the strongest in existence. He might be a cultivator among the gods; he stood at the pinnacle among all the gods.


    After all, according to ancient legend, it was the Age of the Gods before the collapse of the Heavenly Path.


    The gods also had differences in the strength of their powers during the Age of the Gods.


    Some of the cultivators sensed Ye Futian��s arrival. Most of them didn��t care about him; they were focused on immersing themselves in their own meditation. Once in a while, some of them would turn around and take a look at Ye Futian, but they showed no emotion in their eyes. They would avert their eyes after casting a glance at him. It was as though Ye Futian did not exist.


    Most of the cultivators who stood here were monstrous figures at the peak. They were extremely prideful. Let alone those who didn��t know who Ye Futian was, even those who recognized him acknowledged his presence with an indifferent attitude. They would not regard him with special respect.


    Among all those who were present, Ye Futian saw a few familiar figures. For example, Ning Hua, the Vice Chief of Donghua Domain Manor, was amidst the crowd. Clearly, he also regarded himself as a top figure. He intended to comprehend the secret of Ziwei the Great, unveiling any teachings that might be hidden in this illusory figure.


    Ning Hua also turned around and glanced at Ye Futian. A hint of murderous intent flashed in his eyes. However, he soon shifted his gaze. He did not plan to attack Ye Futian here. Instead, he focused all his attention on comprehending the secrets of Ziwei the Great.


    Upon arriving, Ye Futian quickly scanned across all the cultivators who stood in different directions. After that, he joined the crowd in raising his head and looking at the illusory figure. He was examining how this illusory figure of Ziwei the Great was formed.


    At first glance, this illusory figure of Ziwei the Great seemed to merge with the starry sky and appeared in front of the cultivators. However, after carefully observing it, Ye Futian managed to figure something out. The illusory figure of Ziwei the Great was merged with the starry sky, seemingly formed from countless connecting stars. The endless stars forged this illusory figure, allowing the cultivators to make out of this ancient Great Emperor.


    Could it be that Ziwei the Great put all the stars in place to form this illusory figure?


    Were all these light dots formed by stars? Ye Futian pondered as he looked at the starry sky with his head raised.


    All the cultivators who stood in the sky had attempted to comprehend this scene for a long while, yet up until now, none of them could comprehend it. They could only sense a vast and majestic might. Similar to Ye Futian, they could see that an ancient god was above their heads, but they could not come in contact with the illusory figure.


    These cultivators exchanged their thoughts with each other. They were very open to sharing their speculations, intending to join forces to unveil the secret.


    They were aware that if the teachings of the Great Emperor truly existed here, the teachings had not been comprehended by anyone after all these years. It would be challenging to decode the secret if they only relied on themselves. It was almost an impossible mission. Therefore, they were open to sharing to rely on the collective wisdom of everyone present.


    If the teachings of the Great Emperor were truly hidden here, the cultivators would not hesitate to fight against everyone present to seize the teachings. However, they must first locate where the teachings were. Right now, none of them saw anything at all. They were willing first to work together to unveil the secret, then only fight against each other to seize the teachings.


    Extraordinary people naturally had extraordinary temperaments.


    Right then, someone��s gaze landed on Ye Futian. He said, ��Come on up. After observing the silhouette of the Great Emperor, what are your thoughts?��


    Ye Futian looked at the person who had spoken. This person also had an extraordinary temperament. There seemed to be no ulterior meaning to his words. Ye Futian said, ��I just arrived here and have yet to observe in detail. Naturally, my findings cannot be considered comprehension. However, from observing, the silhouette of the Great Emperor is merged with the starry sky. I suspect that the silhouette of the Great Emperor might be formed from the stars.��


    When the cultivator in the space heard what Ye Futian said, he revealed a smile. He looked at Ye Futian with a serious gaze and said, ��Sir, may I know who you are and where you are from?��


    ��I am Ye Futian. I am from Four Corner Village in the Shangqing Domain of the Divine Prefecture,�� replied Ye Futian. When the other party heard his answer, he revealed a look of realization. He smiled and said, ��So you are the only cultivator from the Shangqing Domain who managed to comprehend the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. No wonder you are so outstanding. It is an honor to meet you.��


    Ye Futian saluted back with his fists. The other party smiled and said, ��We have been observing the silhouette of the Great Emperor here for some time. We spent a lot of time exchanging our insights and confirming our findings with one another before coming to a conclusion. The silhouette of the Great Emperor appears to be connected to the various stars in the sky. That is to say that it seems the figure of the Great Emperor has merged with the starry sky. In reality, the stars in the sky are all linked together to form the silhouette of Ziwei the Great. I never imagined Renhuang Ye would immediately see through this key point. Impressive.��


    Around him, many people in the starry sky looked down at Ye Futian. They were clearly astonished by his previous view. Indeed, the conclusion they had come to was immediately pinpointed by Ye Futian. He had immediately seen through the most crucial point. As expected, such comprehension lived up to his reputation. Rumor has it that he was the only person who managed to comprehend the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. It seemed that the rumors were true, and he indeed had exceptional talents.


    When Ye Futian heard what the other party said, he suddenly understood. So that was the case. He was speculating when he said this. In truth, he was not very confident in his speculation. He never imagined that it was actually true. Since even the other party had come to the same conclusion, it should be the case.


    The silhouette of Ziwei the Great was formed from the starry sky.


    ��Come on up and let��s comprehend together,�� a peerless figure called out to Ye Futian in the starry sky above. His back was towards Ye Futian as he faced the silhouette of Ziwei the Great. His tone was calm, but he seemed to be a high-ranking cultivator. He had an imposing aura.


    The other cultivators did not mind him. Many people said, ��Renhuang Ye and his group, come up and let��s comprehend together. Let us see whether we can comprehend the mysteries of Ziwei the Great together.��


    Ning Hua��s group swept a glance in the direction of Ye Futian. A cold look flashed past in Ning Hua��s eyes. He never imagined that Ye Futian would immediately stand out once he arrived. He was being exalted by the crowd. Many people had high hopes in him. From the looks of it, he had improved immensely in the last few years. Ye Futian could almost pose a threat to Ning Hua.


    However, Ning Hua did not pay much heed to him. After all, for Ning Hua, Ye Futian had to die.


    ��Many thanks, everyone,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head slightly. He did not turn down their offer and immediately rose into the sky above and comprehended with the crowd!

 Chapter 2222 - Empty-handed

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s group stood beneath the starry sky. Above them was the face of Ziwei the Great. His gigantic face was one with the starry sky. As they gazed up at the face, they discovered that they were minimal. They were as insignificant as grains of sand in the ocean.


    The solemn aura persisted. The part of the starry sky that Ye Futian was in was tranquil. Very few people were talking. They were all silently looking up above at the starry sky.


    Even if they could not comprehend the mystery of the silhouette of Ziwei the Great, by just standing there, they could still perceive different things. It was a comprehension that came with their state of mind.


    These people were all the finest figures of the various Realms. Taking those from the Divine Prefecture as an example, many of the core figures of the 18 Domain Chief Manors were present here. Aside from them, there were also some powerful existences from mighty forces, cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm, and top figures of the Dark World.


    In their own respective worlds, they were all-powerful existences. They were peerless, and they were renowned far and wide, exalted by the masses. Yet, here, they were no longer the figures who stood at the peak. Before this god, beneath this starry sky, everyone felt that they were tiny. Compared to the entire universe, they were still insignificant. Even though they had cultivated to such heights, they were still unqualified to pry into the secrets of this world.


    It might be that only in such an environment could they feel this way.


    Some comprehended the majesty of the Great Emperor while comprehending the vast starry sky.


    Ye Futian discovered that although the various cultivators were standing under this part of the starry sky, they were seemingly divided into three groups. He was unsure as to whether or not this was intentional. Among these three groups, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture made up the greatest number of people.


    The other two groups should be the cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm and the Dark World.


    ��Renhuang Ye, have you heard of the legends of Ziwei the Great back in the day?�� the Renhuang who had spoken before this asked Ye Futian as he walked up beside Ye Futian. Ye Futian shook his head and replied, ��I know very little about the Great Emperor figures of ancient times. Please enlighten me.��


    ��Legend has it that Ziwei the Great once unified this segment and became its ruler. In this Ziwei Segmentum, all living things among the various stars worshiped him. Aside from him, there were a few other Great Emperor figures in this segment. They each held a position and ruled over their own domain. Ziwei the Great was not an ordinary Great Emperor. There were Great Emperor level figures beneath him, and he was also called the Star Lord of Ziwei. He was known as the master of the various stars,�� the cultivator said. ��This segment was sealed away by Ziwei the Great for countless eons. It might be that it was not like this back in the day. It might have been even larger than this. It is hard to say for sure. Among the stars that merged to form the silhouette of Ziwei the Great, were there previously cultivators on these stars?��


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly. Great Emperor figures naturally also had power levels. Before the collapse of the Heavenly Path, during the Age of the Gods, the gods ruled the world. There were surely many existences at the Great Emperor level back then. It was natural for there to be outstanding figures among them. Ziwei the Great was one of them. He was a Star Lord who ruled over a segment.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor was also a powerful Great Emperor figure. Otherwise, he would not have dared to say that the world originally had no Paths. He wanted to challenge the Heavenly Palace and the Heavenly Path.


    During that glorious era, when the various gods contended with each other, how many peerless figures roamed the world exactly?


    Ye Futian imagined that it would certainly be exciting if he could return to such an era.


    Unfortunately, it was most likely impossible to return to such an era ever again.


    ��Alright, I will leave Renhuang Ye to your own comprehension,�� the Renhuang said. Ye Futian nodded his head slightly and did not say anymore. He continued to gaze up at the starry sky. A sensation of feeling small welled up inside of him.


    He attempted to clear his mind. His focus wandered the galaxy. His consciousness seemed to float around, traversing the endless starry sky.


    Could it be a matrix? Ye Futian thought to himself. However, what sort of matrix could be formed from billions of stars?


    It would be impossible for him to unravel it. Most likely, all the cultivators here would not be able to unravel it. Probably only Great Emperor level existences could use stars to form a matrix.


    As his consciousness floated in the space, he saw a brilliant light that was exceptionally bright in the starry sky. It was the Heavenly Scroll in the hand of the Great Emperor. It appeared mysterious. The Great Emperor held it in his hand, yet it could not be touched. Naturally, someone had tried to do so before this. It was not just them. Over the countless years, the members of Ziwei Imperial Palace would have certainly tried to do so as well. Hence, Ye Futian did not have any intention of retrieving the Heavenly Scroll. It was a foolish dream to want to do so.


    He only hoped to solve the mystery behind the silhouette of Ziwei the Great or rather the mystery hidden within it.


    His consciousness wandered the starry sky for a long while. However, he still did not manage to grasp anything. Ye Futian only sensed the vastness of the starry sky, the majesty of the galaxy, as well as how miniscule he was. The heavenly might that lingered in the space seemed to have lasted since ancient times. As he stood there, he could not sense anything else.


    If he continued doing so, he might have some insights into the world, but it would be impossible to unravel the mystery of Ziwei the Great.


    As Ye Futian retracted his consciousness, he opened his eyes and sighed inside as he looked at the starry sky as well as the silhouette of Ziwei the Great. He felt that it would be challenging to unravel this mystery.


    Ye Futian glanced at the others and asked Blind Tie and Fang Gai, ��Have you managed to comprehend anything?��


    Fang Gai shook his head and answered, ��I only felt as though my lifetime of cultivation is insignificant while being here.��


    On the other hand, Blind Tie said, ��If Ziwei the Great truly left behind a sliver of his will, what would it look like if all the stars came crashing down?��


    ������ Ye Futian looked at Blind Tie with a look of surprise. This fellow had an interesting way of thinking!


    However, Ye Futian actually could not help but ponder about it. What would it look like if all the stars came crashing down?


    A world would most likely be destroyed. The entire segment might even be destroyed.


    Was this the power of Ziwei the Great? As Star Lord of Ziwei, he could control the various stars in the sky.


    ��Renhuang Ye, have you managed to comprehend anything?�� asked the Renhuang when he saw Ye Futian return from his comprehensive state.


    ��Unfortunately, no,�� replied Ye Futian as he shook his head.


    The person said, ��It��s nothing. For the past few days, with so many cultivators here, all of us have not had much substantial insight. There have been people who sensed the existence of specific stars that make up the silhouette of Ziwei the Great. However, their findings are still unclear and will most likely not be of much use.�� Ye Futian looked up at the starry sky. Could he sense those stars?


    ��I��ll take a look and see whether I can find anything,�� replied Ye Futian. ��Thanks for the reminder.��


    ��This isn��t a useful clue.�� the other party smiled, shaking their head and not paying much heed. Ye Futian closed his eyes once again. His consciousness reached out toward the starry sky, heading towards the stars that made up the silhouette of Ziwei the Great. Based on their conclusion, there might be something among those stars!

 Chapter 2223 - Mystery of the Stars

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s consciousness kept ascending. His mind seemed to form an illusory figure that wandered in the sky. His consciousness went to an extremely high place. The gigantic illusory figure of Great Emperor Ziwei became larger and larger. Soon, his consciousness could no longer detect the full image of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    On the contrary, the light dot which he was approaching was getting brighter and brighter. The star was dazzling as it twinkled. The star grew larger as Ye Futian��s consciousness traversed higher and got closer to it. He could vaguely make out land, mountains, and rivers in the star. It was as though it was a real world.


    Ye Futian was rather shocked when he saw this. Many thoughts went through his mind. Even though he had his speculation before wondering here, it was just his guess. Now that he had verified through observation that his speculation was indeed true, he was still greatly impacted by the reality. This dot of light was indeed a star.


    Then, were the billions of light dots in the sky above various actual stars?


    Where were they?


    After they entered the divine hall of Ziwei Imperial Palace, they were teleported by the matrix to this starry sky. They discovered that they were no longer within the great hall but an actual part of the segment. There were countless stars here as well as the illusory figure of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    However, the star that Ye Futian was looking at was barren. There were no signs of human civilization, just endless continents of deserts. He could not sense the presence of life on it at all.


    As he stood there, Ye Futian��s consciousness experienced tremendous pressure. There seemed to be a formless power in the space that pressed down from the sky. He floated over with his consciousness, but it was extremely unstable; it was as though it would disperse at any moment.


    Although Ye Futian had come to this star, he still had nothing to show for it. Very quickly, his consciousness retreated from the star, pulling backward as it floated through the endless space. The light from the sky full of stars shone down on him. Their pressure grew greater and greater. Ye Futian��s silhouette appeared somewhat blurry, as though it would disappear at any moment.


    Unbeknownst why, he suddenly felt a strange sensation. In the Void Realm, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path all had signs of the presence of cultivators. In the Divine Prefecture, each continent had signs of human life. How was it that among the billions of stars here, there were actually no signs of human life?


    Was it possible for special stars, where human cultivators had once cultivated on them, to exist among these endless stars?


    What would happen if they tried to approach the special stars?


    Could they reach the stars?


    Ye Futian��s consciousness retracted. He opened his eyes and revealed a pensive look. He knew that he had to be patient. It would definitely not be easy to want to comprehend the secrets of Great Emperor Ziwei. Since Ziwei Imperial Palace had not been able to unravel his secrets even after all these years, it was impossible for Ye Futian and the others to do so in just a short amount of time.


    Ye Futian looked at the cultivator who talked to him before this and asked, ��Has anyone tried to reach these stars?��


    ��They are out of reach,�� replied the other party. His answer caused Ye Futian to reveal a surprised look. They could sense all the stars in the sky, yet they couldn��t reach them?


    Even though the cultivators were situated in this vast starry sky and the stars were extremely high above them, in the end, there should be a finite distance between the cultivators and the stars. Why was it that they could not reach the stars?


    Could it be that all these stars existed in an entirely different form than what they appeared?


    ��I think most likely Ziwei Imperial Palace has tried to reach the stars before too,�� the Renhuang commented. Ye Futian nodded in agreement.


    Ye Futian revealed a contemplative expression as he was puzzled by the phenomenon.


    Right at that moment, a dazzling divine light poured down from the sky and instantly attracted the attention of all the cultivators. All the cultivators looked in the same direction and saw a silhouette ascended high in the sky.


    The halo of the Great Path shone brilliantly around his body. It was a unique radiance. The robe on the cultivator fluttered as he became the center of attention. In the sky, a beam of light shone down and landed on his body. This scene caused the surrounding cultivators to be greatly amazed.


    Everyone traced the source of the light and discovered that the divine light actually originated from one of the stars in the starry sky.


    A dazzling light was emitted from the star and was directed at the cultivator. In an instant, the cultivator seemed to be baptized by the divine halo. He became one with the stars in the sky and resonated with the star that shone a light on him.


    ��This���� Everyone was shocked by the scene which happened before their eyes. They had been here for days, yet they had not been able to decipher the secrets of the illusory figure of Great Emperor Ziwei. Through their discussion, they had managed to obtain some insights. Unfortunately, their insights were far from allowing them to unravel the secrets of the illusory figure.


    However, this scene that had just occurred meant that they had reached a huge breakthrough.


    The cultivators could resonate with the stars in the sky!


    ��It��s him!�� exclaimed someone. All the cultivators immediately recognized the cultivator who managed to resonate with the star. He was a famous figure from the Divine Prefecture. He was well-known for his exceptional talent.


    So, he was the first one who unraveled the secrets of the stars?


    The cultivator dashed upwards with an astonishing speed. It was as though he was rushing towards the star. The divine light of the Great Path, which shone down from the star, also intensified, engulfing the cultivator in it. It was as though a very powerful force descended from the starry sky and pierced through the heavens.


    Ye Futian also raised his head and looked in the direction of the cultivator. His heart quivered. Just now, his consciousness also ventured towards one of the stars, yet he discovered nothing from it. How did the other party do this?


    Could it be that each and every star in the sky was unique?


    Could it be that some stars could pour down the divine light of the Great Path to resonate with the cultivator who detected it?


    ��Are there special stars?�� asked a powerful Renhuang from the Divine Prefecture towards the cultivator who was floating high in the sky. The voice of the Renhuang penetrated through the starry sky and reverberated in the eardrums of the cultivators.


    ��Yes, �� the other party replied immediately. ��Find a star which can resonate with you. Among the billions of stars in the sky, some are different.��


    When everyone else heard his reply, they were astounded. This cultivator actually shared his insight with everyone without keeping the secret to himself.


    Immediately, everyone raised their heads and looked at the countless stars in the sky.


    Just as the cultivators were regaining their composure, a terrifying dark divine light poured down from the sky in another direction. Under the brilliant starry sky, this divine light, which was as dark as ink, appeared exceptionally striking. It caused everyone��s gazes to be shifted in the direction where the dark divine light was.


    The next moment, this dark divine light descended in a straight line and landed on a figure. This cultivator was from the Dark World. He wore a black robe and had a set of deep eyes. He looked at the sky while his robe fluttered. Then, he extended his arms, and his whole body floated up into the sky. His body seemed to be greedily absorbing the light which was pouring down from the sky.


    Another cultivator had done it.


    The hearts of everyone trembled. If the first person did it out of coincidence, what did it mean when two people managed to do so consecutively?


    Everyone had a chance to do so too.


    Were the secrets of this starry sky finally being revealed?

 Chapter 2224 - More Than One

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When the crowd saw that two cultivators resonated with the stars in the sky, they all closed their eyes and attempted to do the same.


    It was as though the two cultivators who had succeeded cleared up a path for the rest of them. The crowd could see hope now.


    Down below, the other cultivators in the starry sky also raised their heads and looked over in this direction. They saw the divine halos of the Great Path shining down from the stars in the heavens. Their hearts immediately trembled. Their figures also rose into the sky. It seemed that the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei were contained in the various stars in the sky.


    Very quickly, the various cultivators arrived here. Their gazes were fixed on the two figures. Intense emotions welled up inside all of them.


    ��Is this a Divine Relic?�� someone mumbled. A Divine Relic left behind by Great Emperor Ziwei was finally found?


    Did that mean that they would also have a chance of finding another?


    Right then, Ye Futian also looked at the two figures. Bathed in divine light, the two figures seemed to be inheriting some form of power. It was power coming from the stars in the sky above them. The power contained within the divine halos of the Great Path should be compatible with the two cultivators. Not just anyone could sense the star containing divine power and inherit the power within it.


    At the very least, it was definitely not as simple as the crowd imagined it to be.


    The top prominent figures of various Realms had gathered here, yet, up until now, only two people had managed to do so. Hence, it would most likely be a dream for others to want to attempt to do so. Ye Futian predicted that only a handful of people would succeed.


    Would finding a compatible star and resonating with it be that easy? Ye Futian thought to himself. Then, his figure floated in the sky, and he emptied his thoughts. His consciousness once again wandering in the endless starry sky.


    In an instant, the light of endless stars appeared in his view. It was as though all of them had appeared before him. His consciousness rose high in the starry sky and came before the gigantic face of Great Emperor Ziwei. The starry sky seemed to fall silent; it was as though only the sky full of stars existed. Each star shone with brilliant starlight. They seemed ethereal and unreachable.


    This time, he did not head over towards one star. He had already tried to do so once before this. There was nothing on the star that he had gone to. It was an endless wasteland. It might be because of the star, or it might be his own lack of compatibility.


    If he tried to visit each star one at a time, how long would he need to try out each star in this vast sky? A few decades? Centuries? He couldn��t sense each star in the sky above.


    Then, how had the two people before this managed to do so?


    Was it a coincidence, or was it inevitable?


    Ye Futian did not head over towards the stars. He instead wandered the starry sky, aimlessly floating about. He did so purely to see whether or not he could sense anything. After all, it was impossible that he would discover the mysteries of the stars after having just arrived.


    The two who succeeded had been here for several days before managing to communicate with the stars in the sky and drawing the divine light into them. It was naturally impossible for him to immediately do so upon arrival.


    Although he did not know who those two cultivators were, they were certainly the most outstanding figures among those present.


    In the starry sky, Ye Futian��s illusory figure floated about aimlessly. He walked around in space, occasionally stopping to observe the various stars, comprehending the vast, mysterious place. Gradually, his consciousness completely entered into a zen state. He forgot about everything in the outside world and even forgot about his own being. There was no noise, no stray thoughts. It was as though his own being had followed his consciousness here.


    After floating around in the sky for a very long time, Ye Futian still did not manage to grasp any pattern. His consciousness continued to wander around the starry sky. He came beneath a star. The star radiated frightening starlight, and it was shining brightly. It was the star that had resonated with the cultivator from the Divine Prefecture below.


    What was different with this star?


    The illusory figure of Ye Futian, formed from his consciousness, stood there, observing quietly. However, he still could not make out anything unique about this star. He then floated towards another star. Although the next star radiated dark divine light, it appeared to be a star hidden within the Dark World. It was actually difficult to sense its presence.


    This caught Ye Futian by surprise. What was off about it?


    He began to observe the area of the segment around this star. Suddenly, he sensed an extremely powerful divine might of the Great Path. It came pressing down on his consciousness. His expression changed slightly. Gradually, he found it difficult for his consciousness to withstand this pressure. His consciousness dissipated and disappeared without a trace.


    ��Huff���� Ye Futian exhaled deeply. His eyes revealed a sharp divine light. In the instant that his consciousness dissipated, he seemed to have discovered something.


    As he looked up in the direction of the star, Ye Futian��s figure dashed up into the sky and shot straight towards the high heavens. Many cultivators around Ye Futian stared at his figure and could not help but reveal strange expressions. What was he doing?


    Could it be that he actually wanted to search the various stars?


    Ye Futian came to a region higher in the sky. There were no signs of humans here, and the other cultivators were also not here. Divine light shone from his body as he sat down cross-legged. The divine halo of the ancient tree circled his figure. A silhouette immediately flew out from within his body. Ye Futian��s spiritual soul had actually separated from his flesh and floated high into the sky.


    His spiritual soul was bathed in divine halos, seemingly containing the will of the Great Emperor. His physical body sat cross-legged underneath the starry sky motionlessly.


    Blind Tie and Fang Gai also came here, protecting his physical body. Fang Gai raised his head and peered at Ye Futian��s spiritual soul that had left his body high in the sky. He revealed a strange look. What was Ye Futian doing?


    Blind Tie��s expression also twitched as he raised his eyebrows slightly. He similarly did not understand what Ye Futian was doing. However, knowing Ye Futian, he must have a reason for doing so.


    Ye Futian might be onto something.


    In the sky above, Ye Futian��s spiritual soul replaced his previous consciousness. He once again came to the place his consciousness was before. An intense pressure still landed on him, acting upon his spiritual soul directly. However, at that moment, his spiritual soul radiated with brilliant divine halos. It was extremely dazzling and was indestructible.


    He stared intently at the sky above. Many dark stars appeared in the heavens. These dark stars seemed to form a dark silhouette that appeared in the starry sky. This dark silhouette had a pair of dark eyes that were staring at him. Right then, Ye Futian felt as though he was being stared at by a god.


    Rumble. Ye Futian��s spiritual soul was sent flying back into his physical body. His heart was pounding. As he opened his eyes and stared up at the starry sky, there was an intense look of awe in his gaze.


    He seemed to have discovered another secret of the starry sky.


    His figure that was sitting cross-legged got up. Ye Futian��s gaze seemed to pierce the endless space as it swept across the sky. His silver hair danced frenziedly. Behind him, Fang Gai and Blind Tie were shocked. What was going on?


    ��So there is more than one Great Emperor!�� he exclaimed internally.


    Ye Futian was astonished. He seemed to have unraveled the mystery of this part of the starry sky!

 Chapter 2225 - Mystery

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the endless starry sky above, there were actually silhouettes of other Great Emperors.


    However, the silhouettes of these Great Emperors were eclipsed by the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei. Ye Futian recalled what the Renhuang had said to him before. Legend has it that Great Emperor Ziwei ruled over the segment back in the day. He was also known as ��Star Lord of Ziwei.�� Beneath him, there were other Great Emperor level cultivators. With the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei present, the other Great Emperors were hidden in the vast starry sky.


    It seemed that back when Great Emperor Ziwei sealed off the segment, it was not just him who left behind something in this starry cultivation court. The other Great Emperors under him also left behind their powers to be inherited. Only after doing so did they leave the segment and participate in the War of the Heavenly Path.


    That meant that, right now, the two cultivators had sensed the power of the Great Emperors. Starlight descended upon them, and they were now inheriting the power of the Great Emperors.


    Ye Futian suddenly wondered whether or not they had seen what he had seen. Or had they resonated with the stars by chance?


    He would not know the answer; only the two cultivators themselves would know.


    However, discovering this secret was crucial for comprehending the mystery of the starry sky.


    Ye Futian��s figure went over to the cultivation court of one of the two cultivators. Then, just like before, his spiritual soul left his body and floated into the endless starry sky. He glanced around the star that was shining down on the cultivator. As expected, he once again saw a divine silhouette. The star that shot down divine light contained unparalleled power that resembled imperial glory. Was the star an Imperial Star?


    How many Imperial Stars were there here in this endless starry sky?


    His spiritual soul wandered over to other locations, no longer observing the cultivation of the two outstanding Renhuangs. They could sense the existence of the Imperial Stars and obtain the teachings of the Great Emperor. They were certainly also extraordinary and monstrous figures who stood at the peak.


    Although the most powerful figures from various Realms were gathered here, there would only be a handful of figures like these two Renhuangs.


    Beneath the starry sky once again, Ye Futian sat down cross-legged. He sensed the heavenly might coming from the sky above. His expression became stern. It would certainly be challenging to sense the presence of an Imperial Star.


    He wanted to find other Imperial Stars in the starry sky. Right now, Ye Futian speculated that these Imperial Stars were crucial in unraveling the mystery of Great Emperor Ziwei. If he managed to find these Imperial Stars, he would most likely be able to discover the secrets in this segment which was ruled by Great Emperor Ziwei.


    Streaks of divine lights surrounded Ye Futian. His spiritual soul left his flesh and was enveloped by the divine light of the Great Path. The halo of the Great Emperor was faintly radiating. It was dazzling. His spiritual soul wandered in the endless starry sky.


    When Ye Futian��s spiritual soul reached a spot, he paused, and his consciousness scanned the starry sky as he was surrounded by divine light. Soon, Ye Futian was completely immersed in the starry sky. He had forgotten about everything else. He was fully engaged in sensing the starry sky. It was vast, majestic, quiet, and barren.


    Countless stars twinkled in the starry sky. Ye Futian��s consciousness drifted past many of them. There were innumerable stars in the sky. Attempting to locate the Imperial Stars among them was no different from finding a needle in the sea. It was a tough task.


    However, Ye Futian noticed a pattern when comprehending the cultivation of the other two Renhuangs just now. The Imperial Stars were each surrounded by a small segment that formed a silhouette. The silhouettes were similar to that of Great Emperor Ziwei. If Ye Futian could locate another silhouette amidst these endless stars, he would most likely be able to find an Imperial Star.


    However, even locating a silhouette was an arduous task in this vast starry sky.


    How did the other two Renhuangs do it?


    Aside from Ye Futian, many cultivators in this starry sky cultivation court had come to the higher sky. All of them were eager to discover the secrets of this starry sky after they witnessed the success of the two cultivators receiving the star lights. However, even though there were many cultivators around, they appeared exceptionally tiny here. After they dispersed to various directions, their existences were insignificant. They were like grains in the ocean.


    Moreover, it was challenging for the cultivators to communicate with the stars in the sky like the other two cultivators did. Nevertheless, everyone wanted to give it a try.


    The division of day and night did not exist in this place. Nobody paid heed to the passing of time either. Another day had passed without anyone noticing. The spiritual soul of Ye Futian was still observing the starry sky. He was determined to locate a small-scale segment that could form the silhouette of a human figure.


    Finally, he found a region. Some of the stars in this region were stars that formed part of the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei. However, if he looked at these stars in isolation, he could faintly make out the silhouette of another figure. Even though the figure was roughly traced out by the stars, Ye Futian could sense the solemn might emanating from it. The face that appeared in Ye Futian��s mind had a majestic temperament.


    Was this figure the Great Emperor that used to rule this part of the Ziwei Segmentum? Ye Futian wondered. After such a long time, he finally managed to identify a silhouette. Ye Futian��s discovery made him respect the two cultivators who succeeded even more. Their achievement in discovering the silhouettes of the Great Emperors was indeed groundbreaking. This made Ye Futian realize that there were many talented people in the world. Many of them were as exceptional as Ye Futian himself.


    After finding the silhouette of the Great Emperor, the next step would be locating the Imperial Star.


    Based on Ye Futian��s previous observation, the Imperial Star should be within the silhouette of the Great Emperor, so it would be somewhere in this region.


    Ye Futian��s consciousness wandered to one of the stars. He found nothing. Then, he moved on to the next star. Similarly, he detected nothing. This star was similar to the ones he sensed before. They were all barren stars without any trace of living beings or the Path left by the Great Emperor.


    Ye Futian tried again and again. However, all his attempts resulted in failures. After a long while, he had gone to all the stars in this region, yet the outcome was demotivating. He found absolutely nothing!


    Floating in mid-air, Ye Futian gazed at the starry sky with a blank expression.


    There was no Imperial Star!


    How was this possible?


    Did something go wrong?


    Before this, he had explored the Imperial Stars that resonated with the other two cultivators. By right, he should be on the right track. However, the reality was right before his eyes. He had failed. None of the stars in this region was the one he was looking for. It was as though the Imperial Star did not exist at all.


    What exactly went wrong? Ye Futian thought to himself. He was puzzled. He didn��t understand what went wrong.


    Was there a hidden star?


    Ye Futian recalled the situation he witnessed. If there was a hidden star, how could he detect its existence?


    Ye Futian looked at the two Renhuangs. In the distance, the two beams of starlight were still shining on both of them. It was as though the star lights would shine forever. Besides that, the Path that each Renhuang cultivated matched the divine power of the star that shone on them. This meant that the Path of the cultivator and the Path of the star surely resonated.


    When Ye Futian thought of this, the divine light of the Great Path circulated in his body. The World Tree emitted a rustling sound in the Life Palace. Instantly, the vines of the ancient tree enveloped his body, emanating a divine halo. At the same time, countless wills appeared on Ye Futian��s body of the Great Path. Behind him, both the sun and the moon shone brightly as he was surrounded by stars. Myriads of divine phenomena radiated from his body simultaneously. His consciousness was still locked onto the region in this segment. He was sensing his surroundings quietly.


    A moment later, twinkling starlight slowly lit up in a direction. It was as though a star suddenly appeared in the void of the starry sky.


    Buzz. Ye Futian��s consciousness pounced towards the direction of the starlight. His entire body glowed even more brilliantly as divine light surrounded him. He could sense the star clearer now. The star grew brighter and brighter, as though a power was born from it. The power was communicating with Ye Futian across the sky; the two formed a resonance.


    He did it!


    Ye Futian��s heart was palpitating wildly. He was one step away from success. This Imperial Star was about to be unraveled by him!

 Chapter 2226 - Blind Tie’s Opportunity

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s consciousness swept out toward the stars. Gradually, he began to be able to see one star that shone with incomparable brightness. An unimaginably powerful golden storm swirled around it. This terrifying storm seemed strong enough to shatter anything it touched.


    As his consciousness went out toward that star, the figure of the Great Emperor up in the sky gradually began to grow clearer. Its entire body was suffused with dazzling light, and golden radiance swirled around its majestic form. It gave off a sensation of boundless dominance.


    Although this imperial figure had appeared earlier, the feeling it gave off was completely different from back then. The same imperial image felt completely different at different times and looked different as well. It was becoming more and more frightening. It was as if it was truly a golden god with a radiance that could dazzle the entire world.


    Boom!


    At that moment, Ye Futian forcefully broke away from it. His consciousness had not made contact with the star. On the contrary, he had been pulling away from it.


    He opened his eyes. His heart was beating wildly, but there was a thoughtful look in his gaze. Would the inheritance that the Great Emperor had left behind be there only once and disappear, or would it exist there forever?


    He did not know, but his body was without equal, and his combat skills were practically unmatched. There were no opponents who could stand before him. Even inheriting the power of the Great Emperor would only be of limited use toward his advancement. It would not give him a way to discover how to transcend.


    The moment before, he suddenly had a thought. The power of the Imperial Star would be most suitable for Blind Tie.


    How would it be if he were the one to inherit this power?


    It would certainly produce a transformation in him.


    Blind Tie had been betrayed and blinded back then, returning to the village with regret and sorrow. The master had healed him and helped him recover. But an injury like the one he had received was certainly still there. Moreover, Blind Tie��s enemy was here today. Mo Ke of the Demon Cloud was no weaker than him. If he wanted revenge, it would be quite difficult.


    If he inherited this power of the Great Emperor, he would have the opportunity to break through to the ninth tier. In addition to gaining the inheritance, he would be able to fight with the Demon Cloud.


    At that moment, Fang Gai and Blind Tie did not know what Ye Futian was thinking. They had just seen brilliant radiance appear upon his body and thought that he had discovered something. However, Ye Futian had suddenly pulled back, and everything seemed to return to the way it had been before. This made a look of surprise appear on Fang Gai��s face. Blind Tie��s face twitched as well. Although he could not see what was going on, he could sense it all very clearly.


    ��Uncle Tie,�� they all heard Ye Futian call. Blind Tie was stunned. He looked up to where Ye Futian was, his eyebrow twitching. He looked very hesitant.


    ��Come here,�� called Ye Futian. Blind Tie did not understand, but he still moved over to where Ye Futian was. He stood by Ye Futian��s side and asked, ��What is the matter?��


    ��I am going to pass on everything that I just understood to you. Why don��t you try and do this, Uncle Tie?�� Ye Futian said to him telepathically. Blind Tie had still not fully grasped the meaning of Ye Futian��s words. He saw a beam of light appear from Ye Futian��s forehead, which then entered his own forehead. Suddenly, everything that Ye Futian had just realized was transmitted into Blind Tie��s mind. It was like he had seen it all himself. As long as he followed the path that Ye Futian set before him, he would find it.


    After he saw all this in his mind, Blind Tie naturally understood what Ye Futian had come across. He could already take the inheritance of the Imperial star, but at the critical moment, Ye Futian had given it up and called him over.


    What did this mean?


    He was giving the inheritance of the Imperial Star to him!


    ��No,�� said Blind Tie, flatly refusing him. The inheritance of the Imperial Star was extremely precious. He could not accept it.


    ��Uncle Tie, this thing is essential for cultivators, but I do not lack such things. Here in the starry region, my only target is to inherit the power of Great Emperor Ziwei. The master of this Imperial Star must have once been the servant of Great Emperor Ziwei,�� said Ye Futian to him telepathically. ��Moreover, don��t you want to prove yourself worthy of reaching the peak of the Renhuang plane? Don��t you want to gain the ability to take revenge for your blinding?��


    Blind Tie was moved when he heard Ye Futian��s words. This was indeed his obsession. Moreover, he knew clearly that what Ye Futian had said made a lot of sense. Ye Futian already had the inheritance of the Great Emperor. He was the only one who had been able to comprehend the corpse of the Shenjia Great Emperor and forge a perfect divine body from it. And if Blind Tie were able to obtain the inheritance of a Great Emperor, he would have a great chance of achieving his vengeance.


    ��Don��t waste time. Whether or not you can make contact with the Imperial Star will depend on your skill,�� continued Ye Futian. ��I will continue to search for other Imperial Stars. Many of them must exist within this starry region.��


    Blind Tie finally nodded. Since his eyes could not see, his other senses were more perceptive than most other cultivators. Moreover, he had great hope that he would succeed.


    He sat down cross-legged, feeling out toward the path where Ye Futian had been searching before. With Ye Futian helping him to broaden his horizons, it would be much easier. This was definitely an opportunity that Ye Futian had given to him.


    Ye Futian saw Blind Tie gripping his hands tightly. ��Uncle Tie, do not be conflicted in your heart. Relax.�� He understood that his state of mind must be in turmoil. If that were the case, it would affect his senses.


    Blind Tie nodded and relaxed his fists. He gradually fell into a state where he forgot himself. He freed himself from conflicted thoughts. He did not think about anything like that.


    Ye Futian stood off to the side, seeking the positions of other Imperial Stars.


    If he could find all of them, could he unravel the inheritance that Great Emperor Ziwei had left behind?


    Moreover, he wanted to see if Bind Tie could complete this step. If he could do it, he would allow other people to see if they could do it when he found more Imperial Stars.


    Fang Gai, who was standing off to the side, did not know what was going on. The two people were communicating telepathically. After all, the matter of the Imperial Star was too important, and there were many cultivators there in the Starry Dimension. They did not want to let anyone else hear and create bad ideas in their minds.


    But compared to Blind Tie��s previously downcast expression, solemnity and gratitude were written on his face now. Given the scene before him, he was able to guess a little bit of what had happened.


    He looked over at Ye Futian. In his heart, he thought that Four Corner Village had not looked at the wrong person. He had not chosen wrong, and neither had his master.


    This cultivator who had come to the village from another realm was the true future of Four Corner Village.


    Perhaps he could even transform the village.


    Time passed bit by bit. All the cultivators were searching through the starry sky. After a while, Ye Futian found another starry region where he saw a faint figure. This had taken a lot less time than before. Clearly, after gaining a bit of experience, Ye Futian was starting to become familiar with this.


    And at the same time, not far from Ye Futian, incredibly brilliant light of the Great Path was flashing all over Blind Tie��s body. Up in the sky, a star was growing brighter and brighter, becoming extremely radiant. It became golden, as if it was made entirely of gold.


    Beams of light shone down, all of them shooting towards where Blind Tie was. In the next instant, everyone could only see a single beam of light pierce down from the starry sky. Stars began to fall as well, falling directly toward Blind Tie.


    Boom!


    An extremely brilliant divine radiance covered Bind Tie��s body. Although he could not see, he could sense an incomparably powerful divine figure standing in the sky like a god of war. A golden army covered it, and it was filled with a sense of infinite power. It was breathtaking.


    He had succeeded. Ye Futian had opened the way, and he had followed his path. He could now feel the existence of the Imperial Star.


    Powerful golden light pierced through his body. As he was bathed in that light, Bind Tie could feel his body filling up with unimaginable power.


    Afterward, Fang Gai��s heart was beating wildly. And he was not the only one. All of the people from Four Corner Villages�� hearts were racing. They went over to Blind Tie. The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy went over as well. This was a man who always protected Ye Futian.


    ��Father.�� Fang Huan went over to Fang Gai��s side. There was a look of surprise in his eyes and a little bit of doubt.


    ��This is the opportunity that Futian gave to this guy,�� Fang Gai said to him telepathically. Fang Huan��s heart trembled slightly. He had directly given the inheritance of the Great Emperor to Blind Tie?


    Previously, Fang Gai and Blind Tie had volunteered to protect Ye Futian. They had not had any intention of cultivating. They did not want to come to this place to gain anything; they just wanted to protect Ye Futian. However, Blind Tie had inherited the power of a Great Emperor.


    When one planted flowers intentionally, they would not explode; when one unintentionally planted willows, they would spring to life!


    Blind Tie, who had not wanted to cultivate, had received a cultivation opportunity that most people could only dream of.


    And at that moment, the cultivators from other realms were all staring at Blind Tie. Someone said, ��Who is that?��


    The vast majority of them did not know Blind Tie. It seemed that he had come with Ye Futian. Why had he suddenly received the inheritance of the Great Emperor?


    How had he done it?

 Chapter 2227 - Another Imperial Star

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Soon, many people had realized that Blind Tie was the cultivator who had protected Ye Futian before. After all, many people knew Ye Futian nowadays. When he had gone up to the highest point in the starry sky, all of them knew who he was.


    ��That is the man who protected Ye Futian,�� someone said outright.


    ��Why is he the one who received the inheritance?�� Many people looked surprised at this. Ye Futian��s previous pronouncement had shocked them all. As soon as he went up, they had guessed that Emperor Ziwei was scattered through the stars in the heavens. And Ye Futian was the only one who had been able to comprehend the corpse of Emperor Shenjia.


    Thus, if Ye Futian received the inheritance, perhaps they would not have been so shocked. But now, it was Blind Tie who had received, someone whose eyes could not see, someone who had once protected Ye Futian.


    ��Could it be that his senses are stronger because he is blind?�� someone guessed.


    ��No,�� said someone looking up into the sky. ��Ye Futian asked him to come up there.��


    He had seen with his own eyes what Ye Futian had done there. After that, Ye Futian had asked Blind Tie to come up.


    ��What do you mean?�� someone beside the Renhuang who had spoken asked, a look of surprise on his face. ��That is impossible.��


    Who would give the inheritance of a Great Emperor to someone else?


    Moreover, was Ye Futian really so supremely powerful? Not only had he discovered the deep secret of the Imperial Star, but he had given it over to someone else? This was too shocking. There were so many cultivators there who wanted to find the Imperial Stars but could not do it. They certainly would not give that chance to someone else.


    After speaking, they could not help but look back up to Ye Futian. They saw that he was not far from Blind Tie. He was cultivating up there in that field of stars. He was looking at Blind Tie, a smile upon his face.


    Although he had opened the way for him, Blind Tie had still needed to rely on himself to sense the Imperial Star, which was not a simple matter. Previously, the power of the two cultivators who had discovered the Imperial Star was the same as the Imperial Star��s power that they had come in contact with, which is why they produced a resonance with it. Thus, Ye Futian had let Blind Tie inherit the power of this Imperial Star since his own power made him well suited to discovering that Imperial Star.


    Anyone else would not have been guaranteed success.


    These were his main reasons for doing this. But Uncle Tie himself had only been able to do this because of his extraordinary understanding.


    Many cultivators flashed over there towards where Blind Tie was floating. This scene made Ye Futian and those with him frown slightly, and there was a strange look in their eyes. They looked upon the people coming towards them warily. What did this mean?


    No one had dared disturb the two people before. So why were they coming towards Blind Tie now?


    Ye Futian naturally saw this. He knew that the two cultivators who had made contact with the Imperial Star before were exceptional, and their backgrounds were quite extraordinary. Thus, no one dared to have any ideas about disturbing them. Now, Blind Tie had made contact with an Imperial Star. Were they getting ideas this time?


    He temporarily stopped trying to make contact with a new Imperial Star and turned his gaze to the people who were coming. He could see that they were continuing forward towards where Blind Tie was. He could see that many cultivators were below him, all of them staring at Blind Tie.


    Fang Gai and the others were guarding the perimeter and watching in all directions. Seeing that the others were still continuing forward, they could not help but release some of their power. Fang Gai said, ��He is cultivating, so I hope you will not disturb him. If you have something to say to him, why don��t you wait until he is finished and then say it?��


    ��I want to ask, how did you make contact with this star?�� a Renhuang asked Blind Tie in a loud, clear voice. Fang Gai frowned. These people clearly did not have good intentions. When they saw that Blind Tie had inherited the Imperial power, they had gotten ideas. They wanted to know the secret of how to make contact with the Imperial Stars.


    Boom! At that moment, a divine light shone down upon Blind Tie. His body moved slightly as he turned to face the man who had spoken. A terrifying aura spread out from him as a divine hammer appeared up in the sky, filled with world-destroying divine power.


    The divine hammer was bathed in the radiance of the Imperial Star, and its light filled the heavens. A terrifying burst of power shot out from within it, pressing everything down. All the Renhuangs in the area around it felt their hearts begin to beat faster.


    This was not right. He was bathed in the radiance of the Imperial Star. It was like he could draw power out of it.


    In that case, since Blind Tie was already at the eighth tier with a perfect divine wheel, how many people there would be able to compete with him?


    Boom!


    An even more terrifying power seeped out. Everyone could see the divine hammer growing larger until it covered the sky. It was like a heavenly hammer of stars, with enough power to destroy an entire realm. It floated in the air above everyone��s heads. The Renhuang who had spoken could feel his heart racing, and a frightened look came over his face. If that hammer fell, would he be able to withstand it?


    Finally, terrifying divine radiance burst out of the hammer and crashed down from the sky, crushing an entire area and splitting the Imperial Star into two parts. Dazzling radiance flowed out from the starry sky, cutting through the world of stars and falling not far from where all the Renhuangs were standing. A wild windstorm blew towards them, surrounding them with the power of the Great Path. Still unable to withstand the terrifying storm, everyone retreated into the distance, their clothes flapping about them wildly in the wind.


    After a while, the storm finally disappeared. Everyone looked up and saw that the hammer was gone as well. Blind Tie was still bathed in the light of the Imperial Star and cultivating. He had turned and was no longer facing them.


    Everyone��s hearts beat faster. They naturally knew that the hammer had merely been a threat and that it would have actually struck them. If it had, probably not even one of them could have withstood it.


    After making contact with the Imperial Star, Blind Tie had been able to directly use its power. This put him in an unassailable position. No one could steal his inheritance, and he would not succumb to anyone��s threats.


    It seemed like anyone who had ideas about doing anything to him would find that task impossible.


    The cultivators all left the area. They would have to rely on themselves to be able to sense the Imperial Stars.


    Ye Futian relaxed after he had witnessed this scene. He looked over at Blind Tie. Divine light was falling from the Imperial Star in the sky. This light contained divine power within it. That was why he had been able to wield that hammer and threaten all those heroes.


    Ye Futian flashed away, returning to his previous position. When Blind Tie had made contact with the Imperial Star, he had felt the existence of yet another Imperial Star. He sat cross-legged once again, gathering his spiritual energy. He returned to a state of forgetting himself.


    This time, many people were all watching him. Many of them guessed that Blind Tie had only been able to make contact with the Imperial Star because of Ye Futian. So now that Ye Futian was continuing to cultivate, they naturally wanted to watch and see if he could do it again!


    His senses entered into the endless starry sky. The stars outlined a vague image. Above this vague image, two hands were holding something, but he could not see clearly what it was.


    This time, Ye Futian once again unleashed the power of the Great Path. The light of the Great Path flowed; however, he did not feel an Imperial Star like he had before. He could not produce any resonance.


    Could it be that his cultivation was not well suited to this Imperial Star?


    As he thought of this, his aura began to boil as he increased the power of the Great Path to the next level. However, he still could not sense anything.


    This made Ye Futian frown. According to his previous experience, he should not be able to make any mistakes. Since he had found the image of the emperor, the Imperial Star should be right there. What kind of power did this Imperial Star hold?


    Ye Futian remembered that he still had a kind of power that he had not unleashed. Suddenly, endless guqin strings appeared in the air, and a stormy melody swept out from them, becoming guqin notes. At this moment, they seemed to form rhythmic sorcery.


    ��Rhythmic sorcery?�� A surprised look came over Ye Futian��s face. This Imperial Star had something to do with rhythmic sorcery?


    As he thought of this, the strings of the Great Path trembled, forming music. It was the Song of the Lost Divine. A powerful storm of rhythmic sorcery covered his body of the Great Path. Suddenly, the image in the sky gradually grew clearer. He could once again see the figure of an emperor clearly. It was holding something. It was holding a guqin.


    His consciousness was able to perceive the emperor��s existence. This Imperial Star was in the shape of a guqin, and a terrifying rhythmic sorcery storm was upon it.


    Could he inherit it?


    Of the people here besides him, no one was skilled or powerful at rhythmic sorcery. They probably could not connect with this Imperial Star.


    He retracted his consciousness, and a thoughtful expression came over him. He would be a bit careful when it came to the inheritance of a Great Emperor. There was the potential to create a powerful entity here. If he inherited it himself, he could increase his strength, but Ye Futian felt that would be a little pitiful.


    He looked down. It seemed like only one of the people that he knew had the chance to inherit this Imperial Star. But the two of them were not close.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian flashed downward. Over there, a beautiful young woman was standing calmly. She looked surprised when Ye Futian came over to him. She did not understand why he was doing this.


    ��Greetings, goddess,�� said Ye Futian. This goddess was, in fact, the Goddess Taihua. He had an idea. Of course, he could not lightly give the inheritance of a Great Emperor to someone he did not know. That would be up to the Goddess Taihua!

 Chapter 2228 - Missed Opportunity

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Renhuang Ye, what pointers do you have for me?�� Goddess Taihua asked Ye Futian. Ye Futian observed her expression. Goddess Taihua seemed to wear a look of caution. Back then, they had fought each other before. During the Donghua Banquet, the two of them had fought using Divine Melodies.


    Ye Futian also knew that Ning Yuan, the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain, was ambitious. He wanted complete control over all the forces in the domain. He meant for Ning Hua and Goddess Taihua to be married. As for what Taihua Mountain thought about this, Ye Futian was unsure.


    However, the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor was destined to be Ye Futian��s enemy. He naturally did not want to see the forces of the Domain Chief��s Manor grow stronger.


    ��It can��t be considered pointers. Back during the Donghua Banquet, I exchanged notes with Goddess over songs. I thought we were quite agreeable, so I wanted to get to know Goddess better. In the future, if we have the opportunity, we could discuss music and learn from each other. What do you think, Goddess?�� Ye Futian suggested.


    Goddess Taihua��s beautiful gaze revealed a strange look. She looked seriously at Ye Futian as thoughts surfaced in her mind.


    Ye Futian was currently considered to be in his prime. During the Donghua Banquet, he had displayed his caliber and was well known in the Donghua Domain, gaining fame overnight. Later, when he went to the Shangqing Domain, he also became famous there. His talent was not less than Ning Hua.


    Now, he was approaching her. His goal for doing so was enough to cause Goddess Taihua��s imagination to run wild.


    Far off in the sky, Ning Hua was looking over in this direction. His gaze was extremely sharp. His figure also floated over as he stared at Ye Futian.


    Was Ye Futian already acting so presumptuous?


    It was not just him. The members of the Donghua Domain all knew the relationship between the three parties; they could not help but feel intrigued. The beautiful gazes of Qin Qing and the other goddesses of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow revealed strange looks.


    Was Ye Futian trying to undermine Ning Hua?


    Was he purely trying to make Ning Hua look bad?


    ��Renhuang Ye, you are too kind. With your attainments, I feel that I have nothing worth teaching you,�� answered Goddess Taihua. She naturally also sensed that the atmosphere around her was off. She kept a distant aura as she said this.


    Ye Futian also understood Goddess Taihua��s intent. She was turning him down. Goddess Taihua did not want to have anything to do with him.


    If that was the case, he did not need to reveal his intention. The other party��s attitude was already made very clear.


    ��Alright. Sorry to have disturbed you, Goddess,�� said Ye Futian as he bowed slightly. He then turned and left. All throughout this exchange, his etiquette had been thoughtful. Goddess Taihua felt strange as she looked at his silhouette. She did not know what Ye Futian was thinking and why he had suddenly approached her.


    Many of the members of the Donghua Domain were puzzled. With Ye Futian��s level of cultivation, he couldn��t be trying to court her. Why had he suddenly approached Goddess Taihua? What was his intent?


    Right then, they saw Ye Futian return to where he was high in the sky. He closed his eyes and silently cultivated. Not long after, divine light descended upon Ye Futian from the heavens above. Instantly, countless gazes were drawn over towards him. They all revealed looks of astonishment.


    ��That is���� In the starry sky, the various cultivators felt their hearts thumping. He had communicated with another Imperial Star?


    Many people looked up at the Imperial Star in the sky. They could faintly make out a divine silhouette. For a moment, an astonishing storm of Rhythmic Sorcery appeared around Ye Futian��s figure. The sound of a guqin could actually be heard. The frightening Rhythmic Sorcery swept out. The cultivators in the starry sky could sense its beat.


    A guqin seemed to appear in the starry sky.


    When Goddess Taihua saw this scene, her face turned pale instantly. She seemed to have caught on to something.


    1


    Aside from her, all the cultivators from the Donghua Domain also realized why Ye Futian had approached her just now.


    ��Before this, the blind Renhuang, who followed and protected Ye Futian, inherited an Imperial Star,�� said Qin Qing. Her heart was palpitating wildly as she looked at Jiang Yueli and Chu Hanxi beside her. The two were also staring at her with trembling hearts.


    Did such a monstrous figure really exist?


    ��From the looks of it, Ye Futian is indeed talented,�� Jiang Yueli whispered. ��He can locate the Imperial Stars, and he chooses to let others inherit the teachings from them. Before this, Ye Futian has most likely been given the chance to inherit the Imperial Star to the blind Renhuang.�� As she said this, she was astonished by his act.


    Giving up the teachings of the Great Emperors so that others could inherit them?


    He had been so casual about it. Ye Futian also seemed to have the ability to easily locate an Imperial Star. Both points were enough to make their hearts tremble.


    Seemingly thinking of something, their gazes shifted towards the direction of Goddess Taihua. The Imperial Star that Ye Futian was communicating with right now was passing on the Way of Rhythm. They then thought of the fact that he had wanted to give up the teachings of an Imperial Star to someone else.


    Then, why had he come searching for Goddess Taihua, who was similarly proficient in Rhythmic Sorcery and cultivated the Divine Melody?


    1


    The answer was on the tip of their tongues.


    They also noticed that Goddess Taihua��s facial expression was becoming extremely interesting to look at. She seemed somewhat pale. Clearly, they understood that Goddess Taihua had missed an opportunity just now.


    Ye Futian had actually thought of giving up the teachings of the Imperial Star to Goddess Taihua.


    He was not trying to court her. He was clearly testing Goddess Taihua��s attitude before giving her a great fateful encounter. However, such an encounter had just slipped away from her. Goddess Taihua��s distant attitude had caused Ye Futian to give up on his previous thought and instead inherit the teachings of the Imperial Star himself.


    They wondered how Goddess Taihua was feeling right now.


    Right then, Goddess Taihua had extremely complicated emotions. She wondered why Ye Futian had chosen her.


    Why would he give away such a great fateful encounter to a stranger like her?


    From the way Ye Futian acted just now, he had the intention to do so. Otherwise, he would not have come looking for her and then returned to inherit the teachings of the Imperial Star.


    She was extremely conflicted inside at the moment. Even the top Renhuangs would waver and would not be able to calm down quickly if this occurred to them.


    What did a fateful encounter with the Great Emperor signify?


    Especially for cultivators like her, it was too important. Moreover, it was an Imperial Star that had the Way of Rhythm that she was compatible with.


    Did she regret her decision?


    Of course, she regretted it. How could she not regret it? Those were the teachings of a Great Emperor.


    It could be said that no one else was feeling more conflicted than she was at the moment.


    Nearby, Ning Hua��s expression turned extremely ugly when he saw Goddess Taihua��s expression change. He naturally also understood what had transpired.


    He looked up at Ye Futian. How did he manage to do it?


    It was not just Ning Hua. Everyone wanted to know the answer to this question. As they witnessed Ye Futian bathing in the divine halo, the cultivators walked over towards where he was and looked at the silhouette in the sky. If communicating with one Imperial Star was a coincidence, suppose he managed to do so with a second Imperial Star?


    In this starry sky, there was actually someone who could locate Imperial Stars and casually communicate with them. The crowd naturally knew what this meant!

 Chapter 2229 - : What the Ziwei Imperial Palace Was Thinking About

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    None of the cultivators wanted to fight Ye Futian anymore; they had already learned their lesson from Blind Tie. When one was basking in the Divine Light of the Imperial Stars, one could use the energy from that Divine Light. If they tried to attack him at such a time, they were bound to lose miserably.


    Even though they didn��t intend to attack Ye Futian, they remained on guard in the area surrounding Ye Futian and kept their gaze fixed on him.


    Everything that Ye Futian had done had too great an impact. He was now the only one who could communicate with two Imperial Stars, and he had even given away the enlightenment of one of them. This made everyone else guess that Ye Futian was very likely to be someone who could also comprehend a third or even a fourth Imperial Star.


    They might even have the chance to decode the secrets of this starry sky.


    If all the Imperial Stars were found, would it possible to find what Ziwei the Great left behind?


    Because of this, the way everyone else looked at Ye Futian had changed; this young man held the key to possibly unraveling the secrets of this place.


    But it was going to take quite some time to comprehend the Imperial Stars.


    Of course, Ye Futian knew that all the other cultivators would start getting some ideas about him, but he couldn��t be bothered with them. As long as he continued to find Imperial Stars and communicate with them, he would end up attracting the attention of others anyway. There was no way of hiding that from all these cultivators.


    But none of them would do anything to him because everyone in this place wanted to unlock the secrets of Ziwei the Great.


    As he quietly basked in the Divine Light of the Imperial Star, he felt like he had stepped onto the star itself. An incredible burst of rhythms appeared and tapped out rhythm patterns in his mind. Out of all the zither tunes that Ye Futian had heard of before, the only one that could compare with these intense rhythms was the Divine Melody Taihua of Taihua Mountain, reminding him of Taihua Goddess.


    It was a pity that the Taihua Goddess didn��t want to interact with him and kept a distance from him. Since that was the case, he wasn��t going to give his precious enlightenment away for nothing.


    He had originally thought that if the Taihua Goddess intended to get close to him and become friends with him, Taihua Mountain could ally with him. With the support of the Taihua Skylord, they would have yet another powerful source of strength. But of course, all that was just his wishful thinking earlier. It wasn��t worth mentioning anymore now.


    As he continued to bask in the Divine Light, Ye Futian��s mind and body could feel a very heavy rhythm weigh on him. The body of that Great Emperor seemed to be imprinted in his mind, and a frightening song of the Great Path emanated from his body. It was as if the Great Emperor had left behind a powerful will here.


    A scene seemed to appear within Ye Futian��s mind. In the midst of the great burst of rhythms, a heavy weight shattered everything. All the stars in the sky were destroyed and became nothing but dust under the weight of the rhythms. The pulsating reverberation of the notes carried the most terrifying power in the world, one that could destroy everything.


    Is this what it looks like when the Way of Rhythm reaches its peak? thought Ye Futian to himself. Everywhere around him had been completely destroyed. Even the vast sky of innumerable stars had been turned into powder from the impact of the rhythms as if the whole world had fallen apart. It was a truly terrifying sight to behold.


    Ye Futian was completely immersed in that mode, and his senses had invaded the Imperial Star as if he was lying in the midst of the burst of rhythms. As the Divine Light from above continued to shine on him, the divine power of the rhythms washed over Ye Futian��s body, causing the storm of rhythms around him to become more and more frightening.


    As time went by, the cultivators surrounding him also walked away. They could keep standing here and waiting. There were other Imperial Stars, so they wanted to try their luck with those.


    After one day, yet another legendary figure had successfully established communication with another Imperial Star. He was the envy of all the cultivators.


    Five Imperial Stars had already been taken.


    Several high-level cultivators from various factions of power were gathered in one area. They looked up at the sky, and one of them said, ��That was the fifth one. If each Imperial Star represents one Great Emperor, that means that the things that five Great Emperors left behind have all been discovered.��


    ��According to legend, how many Great Emperors were under Ziwei the Great back then?�� asked another in a low voice.


    ��Eight,�� replied one of them. ��According to legend, eight Great Emperors, including Tiankui and Wenqu, assisted Ziwei the Great and ruled over the segment. They were incredibly powerful and were certainly one of the most powerful of their time. Ziwei the Great was also a Great Emperor who wielded great power. If each Imperial Star truly represents one Great Emperor as guessed and the Imperial Stars that represent five Great Emperors have already been found, that means there should be three Imperial Stars left.��


    ��Only three left,�� someone murmured. There were fewer and fewer opportunities left.


    But of course, even finding these Imperial Stars were a problem in themselves.


    ��


    At the same time, many other high-level cultivators were still gathered outside Ziwei Imperial Palace. Some of them sat by themselves, while some of them were chatting with one another. To people of their level, the time that passed over the last few days was very short and was only enough for a brief meditation.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace had arranged places for all of them to rest, but since it was rare for all of them to be together, they wanted to exchange pointers on cultivating the Great Path with one another.


    ��I wonder what��s happened inside. Where have they been sent to?�� murmured one of the high-level cultivators.


    ��The best cultivators from each place went in, so if Ziwei the Great has really left any incredible secrets behind, I��m sure people with their ability would be able to find it.��


    ��Yes, that��s possible. But will the Ziwei Imperial Palace���� One of them wondered if Ziwei Imperial Palace would pull any stunts on them.


    ��Don��t worry. I have sent them to where Ziwei the Great used to cultivate and have left them on their own. We will not interfere in any way,�� a melodious and surreal voice said from the Ziwei Imperial Palace; it sounded like everything that was happening was within his control.


    The high-level cultivator who spoke earlier gave the representative from Ziwei Imperial Palace an apologetic smile and said, ��Palace Lord, I hope you don��t take offense. I was too narrowminded in my thinking.��


    The Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace didn��t respond. He sat cross-legged in the middle of the Ziwei Imperial Palace with several cultivators in front of him. The Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace asked, ��How are things?��


    ��Five Imperial Stars have already been discovered and understood,�� replied one of them.


    ��These are truly the best cultivators the outside world has to offer. I hope that they will be able to complete everything successfully,�� said the Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. He didn��t seem surprised at all and sounded like everything was within his control.


    All these years, the Ziwei Imperial Palace had also been trying to understand the secrets of Ziwei the Great. However, they had not been able to find what Ziwei the Great had left behind.


    Now that cultivators from all lands had come forth, they hoped that the things that Ziwei the Great had left behind could be discovered.


    Nobody believed more strongly than them that Ziwei the Great must have left something behind because they were from the Ziwei Imperial Palace themselves.


    ��


    None of the cultivators among the stars knew anything about what was happening in the outside world, and they certainly had no idea what the Ziwei Imperial Palace was thinking about.


    The cultivators who had received enlightenment from the Imperial Stars completed their cultivation one after another. Ye Futian stopped as well. The Divine Light around his body faded, and he stopped comprehending the power of the Imperial Star. Also, he felt that the power from this Imperial Star could last forever and wasn��t something that would end after one session of comprehension. That meant that other people could continue to gain power from this Imperial Star later.


    These Great Emperors had left all this power behind back then, probably in the hope of helping their descendants.


    This also probably meant that all these years, there should have been several people just like himself, coming to the Ziwei Imperial Palace, discovering the existence of Imperial Stars, and gained enlightenment.


    The moment he completed his cultivation, he saw a group of high-level cultivators walk towards him. Everyone was looking at him from all directions. Nobody else before this had been treated this way, not even Blind Tie. Ye Futian was the only one.


    But of course, he knew why too. He was the only one who had found two Imperial Stars and had given one away too. After finding out about such a thing, there was no way the other cultivators would just let it be.


    ��Renhuang Ye, I have heard much about how incredibly gifted you are. I didn��t expect you to have such a powerful comprehension ability even in this place. You were the one who found two Imperial Stars, right?�� one of them asked him directly.


    Ye Futian looked at the other party and just nodded without hiding anything from him. He couldn��t deny anything even if he wanted to. None of the cultivators here were stupid!

 Chapter 2230 - One Appearing After Another

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everyone had a slight shift in their eyes and a tremor in their hearts when they saw Ye Futian nod.


    After that, someone else asked him directly, ��Renhuang Ye, could I ask how you managed to do that? Do you have any tips to share?��


    Ye Futian shook his head and replied, ��Five Imperial Stars have appeared, and I��m sure everyone has already discovered some of their secrets. Finding an Imperial Star in the sky relies solely on one��s senses. As long as you sense the existence of a Great Emperor and get a sense of where the Imperial Star is positioned, then you can use your subconscious to communicate with the Imperial Star, where you can will the power of the Imperial Star to pour down and baptize you in it.��


    Everyone hummed to themselves for a moment after hearing what Ye Futian said. Even though they all knew this, very few people had been able to pull it off. But when Ye Futian explained it, he made it sound like it was something straightforward.


    ��The Imperial Star I sensed earlier was a rhythm star. Anyone who specializes in cultivating rhythm can try releasing your Way of Rhythm and see if you create any sort of resonance with that Imperial Star. Then you can start communicating with that Imperial Star,�� Ye Futian continued. He sounded gentle and elegant as he seemed to be sharing with them everything he knew. He didn��t look like he was trying to hide anything from the other cultivators.


    ��Renhuang Ye, are you saying that more than one person can understand this Imperial Star?�� One of them had realized what Ye Futian was implying with these words and couldn��t help but look slightly surprised. That would mean that all of them had a chance at comprehending the Imperial Star.


    ��That��s right.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��According to the feeling I got earlier, that should be the case. The existence of the Imperial Star can cleanse those who cultivate and help one to metamorphosize. I believe everyone had roughly seen where the Imperial Star is, so all of you can give it a shot.��


    One of them looked deep in thought. ��If that��s the case, then doesn��t that mean we could also unleash our senses towards the Imperial Star when you are communicating with it?��


    ��I��ve not actually tried that before. But if you really rely on others to first start communications with the Imperial Star, then try to come in later, wouldn��t you end up getting swallowed up by the Imperial Star instead? Its energy might just gobble you whole,�� remarked Ye Futian. Many others pondered this possibility seriously. It seemed possible as well.


    ��There��s probably some of the will of the ancient Great Emperor of Ziwei Segment left behind on the Imperial Star, so when communicating with the Imperial Star, you��re really trying to resonate with that bit of will left behind. If both sides are unable to resonate well, I would think that the chances of getting swallowed instead are very high, so I hope everyone will consider this method very carefully first,�� Ye Futian continued.


    After hearing what he said, everyone��s expressions became more serious than before. Could they only rely on their own strength, after all?


    But that didn��t seem to be the case either. Before this, Ye Futian had allowed Blind Tie to receive the power of the Imperial Star.


    ��If Renhuang Ye is willing to help, would things be easier to manage? Like what happened to your friend earlier,�� a Renhuang standing further off spoke up. The look in many of their eyes began to burn excitedly. This was indeed what many of them were thinking about.


    ��In theory, that might be the case. But I still stick by what I said. It really still depends on one��s ability to perceive and strength of perception and whether or not the power your own body has cultivated can resonate well with the Imperial Star. Otherwise, I would think that you won��t sense a single thing,�� continued Ye Futian.


    ��In that case, could I ask if Renhuang Ye is willing to help all of us to sense the position of those two Imperial Stars?�� asked another person.


    ��That��s right. Since you��ve already inherited the power of this Imperial Star, then could you also help us to seize this very rare opportunity?�� yet another person chimed in. It seemed like all of them were hoping to use Ye Futian as a shortcut to gain the powers from these Imperial Stars.


    ��Well, that��s theoretically possible.�� Ye Futian smiled faintly and looked at the person who last spoke. ��But I��m not familiar with any of you, so what good does it do me if I do this? After all, the power of these Imperial Stars is so precious, so it��s only natural that I would give it to someone close to me. I��m sure all of you can understand that.��


    ��Renhuang Ye, what do you want then?�� asked one of them.


    ��I want someone to kill the vice chief of the Donghua Domain Domain Chief��s Manor. Ning Hua. As long as I can sense any Imperial Star, I will help him,�� said Ye Futian with a smile on his face.


    Some distance away, Ning Hua��s pupils constricted slightly when he heard these words. His gaze was chilly as he glared straight at Ye Futian from afar. Murderous thoughts surged through his body.


    Both he and Ye Futian wanted to kill each other, but some issues prevented them from doing so directly. So now, Ye Futian was hoping to make use of someone else to get rid of Ning Hua instead.


    If anyone here were willing to kill Ning Hua, that would be someone who dared to go up against the power of the Donghua Domain Domain Chief��s Manor. So even if this person made it out of this place, he would become sworn enemies with the Donghua Domain Domain Chief��s Manor.


    In that case, not only would Ning Hua die here, but the Donghua Domain Domain Chief��s Manor would also have several new powerful enemies.


    ��Why go through so much trouble? Just take him down. Isn��t that easier?�� said Ning Hua icily from a distance.


    ��If anyone wants to do that, then you will be treated the same way as Ning Hua,�� Ye Futian responded. The meaning of his words was clear. If anyone tried to kill him, then the assailant would also be part of this deal.


    ��Besides, I heard from everyone else here that Ziwei the Great had eight Great Emperors under him. If this corresponds to eight Imperial Stars, it means that there are still three more Imperial Stars that have not appeared yet. Doesn��t everyone want to find the last three Imperial Stars to see if we��ve got a chance at deciphering the secrets of Ziwei the Great?�� Ye Futian went on, revealing exactly what everyone was thinking about.


    Five of the eight Imperial Stars had already been found, so it was natural for them to look forward to the remaining three. If they were really able to obtain the things that Ziwei the Great had left behind, the rest was insignificant.


    Ziwei the Great had cultivated in this cultivation space. The Great Path will that the eight Great Emperors under him had left behind was already so incredible. What about the things that Ziwei the Great left behind himself? Surely they were great beyond compare, right?


    ��All of you can consider the conditions I offered earlier. Then, we��ll join hands in decoding the deep secrets that Ziwei the Great left behind in this starry space,�� Ye Futian continued speaking. Many of them had their eyes focused on Ye Futian and had different thoughts going through their minds.


    ��We��ll do it then,�� said one of them. It was a cultivator with an extraordinary aura around him. The rest didn��t raise any objections, so someone else said, ��In that case, Renhuang Ye, why don��t you see if you can communicate with the other Imperial Stars?��


    ��Thanks for your understanding, everyone.�� Ye Futian nodded. Every single person here was the best from their region, and their magnanimity was above the average person. Besides, all of them were here for only one thing�Cto comprehend what Ziwei the Great had left behind.


    The only thing that everyone wanted to do in this place was to unravel the secrets of Ziwei the Great.


    Ye Futian stood beneath the starry skies and looked up. He closed his eyes and sent his consciousness into the vast skies. There were only three left, so they might be hard to find.


    Just as Ye Futian had thought, it took him a really long time before he finally spotted the image of another Great Emperor. He found another one in the tiny segment he was observing.


    Ye Futian joined up the location of this star to the position of the other five stars and looked at their formation. He noticed that they seemed to be at different parts of Ziwei the Great��s body but seemed to form a unique sort of shape. He wasn��t sure if this formation was connected to anything.


    ��What sort of power would be in this Imperial Star?�� thought Ye Futian to himself. He unleashed an immense amount of Great Path aura to sense exactly where that Imperial Star was.


    When the other cultivators saw that Ye Futian had unleashed his Great Path aura, they all turned to look at him. Was he about to discover yet another Imperial Star?


    ��Huh?�� Just then, Divine Light suddenly poured down from a different location and shone brilliantly. All of them turned to look in that direction instead, and their hearts trembled violently. Someone else had been able to locate an Imperial Star, and he had done it before Ye Futian did.


    That meant that as long as Ye Futian successfully communicated with the Imperial Star he had sensed, seven Imperial Stars would have been found, and they would be left with just one last Imperial Star. Then everything that the eight Great Emperors under Ziwei the Great would have surfaced.


    Would Ye Futian be successful this time?

 Chapter 2231 - The Last Star

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    This time, Ye Futian did not hide the power of the Great Path. He also unleashed his detection to its utmost limit as he charged towards the silhouette of the Great Emperor. Soon, the vague silhouette of the Great Emperor gradually became clearer. However, it was surrounded by layers of turbulent air. Ye Futian��s heart skipped a beat.


    It was actually��


    Ye Futian was surprised. What he detected this time was a domineering Demonic Qi.


    Was there a Demon Monarch among the eight Great Emperor level figures who served under Great Emperor Ziwei?


    He continued to explore. The silhouette of the Great Emperor became clear to him. As expected, even though the Great Emperor appeared human, he seemed demonic. One could tell from a glance that the Great Emperor was not a human cultivator. The Demonic Qi churned, and Ye Futian could vaguely sense a flaming storm of Demonic Qi. An enigmatic star twinkled.


    Suddenly, a terrifying demonic might swept towards Ye Futian. It was as though countless demons appeared before his eyes. In an instant, his consciousness crumbled and was pushed back into his body by the might.


    ��Such an overbearing might,�� Ye Futian mumbled as his pupils contracted. He opened his eyes and looked at the heavens above. His gaze was exceptionally sharp. He didn��t continue trying to communicate with the star. Instead, he turned around and looked in another direction. The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy who came together with him were standing there.


    ��Third Brother, Long Chen, Jun, and Zi Feng, come over here,�� said Ye Futian. They immediately revealed strange expressions. Despite that, they still dashed over in a flash.


    ��This Imperial Star is a Demonic Star. I will pass on all that I have experienced to you. Try to sense it and see who can communicate with the Imperial Star first. If you manage to do so, you can proceed to receive the baptism of power from the Imperial Star,�� instructed Ye Futian. He also did not know who would be the most suitable candidate. He could only let them attempt together to see who could sense it first.


    Although the others would still have a chance to sense it after Ye Futian had done so, there was still one more Imperial Star that had yet to be found. He was prepared to seek out that Imperial Star first. If he had time later, he would then inherit the power of these Imperial Stars and receive baptisms of power.


    ��Younger Brother, what about yourself?�� Gu Dongliu asked.


    ��Third Brother, there is still one Imperial Star that has yet to be discovered,�� Ye Futian replied. Gu Dongliu immediately understood his intention. He nodded his head and said, ��Alright, we will give it a try. You go on ahead and find that last Imperial Star.��


    ��Hmm,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head. Then, his divine consciousness passed on all that he had sensed to the others. As to who would manage to sense the Imperial Star first, it depended on their fortune. Of course, if they had time later, they still had opportunities to do so.


    It was just that they did not know how much time Ziwei Imperial Palace would give them.


    That being said, they had been in this space for quite some time. Ziwei Imperial Palace was rather generous, actually allowing them to comprehend the power of the Imperial Stars here. Nevertheless, that did not seem to be an issue. The power of the Imperial Stars was eternal. They could not take the Imperial Stars away from this space.


    Even if they were baptized in the power of the Imperial Stars, it still did not affect Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    After Ye Futian gave his instructions, he left the region. Gu Dongliu and the others sat there and comprehended. In the starry sky, the cultivators who saw this scene were envious. Only the people close to Ye Futian received such treatment. They clearly knew that Ye Futian had already sensed the presence of another Imperial Star. However, he had not comprehended its power for himself. Like before, he had passed on this opportunity to others.


    Since this Imperial Star had been discovered, it seemed that there was only one last Imperial Star that had yet to be found. From the looks of it, Ye Futian planned to find where this last Imperial Star was.


    As expected, Ye Futian��s silhouette appeared in another location. He continued to comprehend the various stars in the sky. If all eight Imperial Stars were found, would the mystery of Great Emperor Ziwei be unraveled?


    In the endless starry sky, the stars twinkled and shone. Ye Futian��s senses wandered the starry sky. With his previous experience, he was confident that if there existed a small segment in the silhouette of the Great Emperor, he should be able to find it.


    His consciousness took the form of his silhouette as he floated around the vast starry sky. He traversed across countless regions of stars as he searched carefully. Right now, Ye Futian was completely immersed in his search. Everything in the outside world seemed irrelevant to him.


    The gazes of many people were fixed on Ye Futian��s silhouette. It seemed that the monstrous figures from various forces had high hopes in him. Even if it wasn��t them, as long as Ye Futian could locate the final Imperial Star, it was considered a breakthrough for all of them.


    The cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Academy, as well as Four Corner Village, had even higher hopes in Ye Futian. They wondered whether or not he would find the last Imperial Star.


    Time passed by gradually. Ye Futian was not the only one searching for the Imperial Star. Many other cultivators were also doing so. However, no one had managed to find it yet. In the part of the starry sky that Ye Futian was at, time seemed to have come to a halt. He sat there motionlessly.


    Just like that, a long time passed. Ye Futian retracted his consciousness and opened his eyes. He let out a long breath and felt somewhat tired. Having cultivated to his level, he was naturally not physically tired. However, he was mentally drained by the process. Finding the presence of the Imperial Star in this vast starry sky was extremely draining mentally.


    He glanced over to a nearby spot. His third brother, Gu Dongliu, and the others were comprehending. However, they had yet to communicate with the Imperial Star. Ye Futian hoped that someone among them could manage to do so.


    After resting for a while, Ye Futian continued to sense. The stars in the sky were endless. He naturally would not be disheartened for not being able to find the Imperial Star.


    Everything remained the same. He continued to be in his state of zen. Just like that, a day passed. On this day, brilliant starlight shone down on where Gu Dongliu and the others were. The starlight landed on Gu Dongliu��s figure. Right then, frightening Demonic Qi emanated from his body, causing Gu Dongliu��s handsome face to appear demonic.


    Long Chen, Jun, and the others shook their heads and smiled bitterly. They never imagined that, as demonic beasts, they had actually failed to communicate with this Demon Monarch Imperial Star. Instead, Gu Dongliu had managed to do so.


    However, back in the day, Gu Dongliu had obtained a great fateful encounter in the Demon Realm. He possessed the teachings of a Demon Monarch. Hence, it was not strange that he had communicated with the star now.


    When the other cultivators in the starry sky saw this scene, they could not help but lament. Ye Futian had helped another good friend of his. Now, there truly was only one last Imperial Star left.


    Goddess Taihua also glanced over here. She had a complicated look in her eyes. With Ye Futian��s help, she would have had a very high chance of communicating with the Imperial Star that contained the Way of Rhythm.


    However, it was now impossible for her to ask for Ye Futian��s help. What was gone was gone. She would not go and ask for his help. Ye Futian wouldn��t necessarily agree even if she did.


    ��There is only one last star left,�� someone mumbled as they looked at the starry sky.


    ��That��s right. There is only one left. He has already been scanning for it for a day. I wonder whether or not he will find it soon?�� pondered a cultivator to the side as he looked up into the starry sky at Ye Futian, who was quietly sitting there. Ye Futian was completely in his state of zen. He should be able to find the last Imperial Star, right?


    After all, he had already found three of them.


    Time passed slowly. Everyone was waiting. Some people had tried searching for the Imperial Star themselves, but the last Imperial Star had yet to appear. Even Ye Futian had not found it.


    After three days, Ye Futian retracted his consciousness once again. He felt his heart stir. His gaze was not as calm and confident as before. How many times had he failed?


    For the previous Imperial Stars, he had not taken so long to locate them. Yet, this time, he had not come across anything after a long time.


    ��How is this possible?�� lamented Ye Futian as he frowned. His consciousness swept over the various stars, yet he still could not find it. Why was that?


    Was this Imperial Star hidden deeper within space?


    It wasn��t just him. Other people had not managed to find it too. It seemed as though the last Imperial Star was the hardest to find!

 Chapter 2232 - A Ray of Hope

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Were there truly eight Imperial Stars? Ye Futian thought to himself.


    Even he began to suspect this. For several days, his consciousness had scanned the sky of stars, but he still could not locate it.


    The few monstrous figures, who managed to communicate with an Imperial Star before this, similarly had not found it.


    This aroused suspicion in Ye Futian.


    His figure turned around and glanced in other directions. He saw that many people in the starry sky were looking at him. They seemed to be waiting for him to find the last Imperial Star.


    ��I scanned the starry sky but have not found the final Imperial Star. Back then, under Great Emperor Ziwei, are you certain that there were eight Great Emperor level figures?�� Ye Futian asked the crowd loudly.


    ��Legend has it that the Eight Glorious Emperors under Great Emperor Ziwei were eight Great Emperor level figures. There should be no mistake in that. The Imperial Stars that have been communicated with seem to prove this point as well. Before this, the Imperial Star in that direction should belong to Great Emperor Tiankui,�� someone said as they pointed in one direction. The person seemed certain. This caused a twinkle in Ye Futian��s eyes as he nodded his head slightly.


    ��If that is the case, the last Imperial Star is mostly hidden deep within space. It won��t be easy to find,�� Ye Futian stated. ��Everyone, let��s try hard together.��


    ��Hmm,�� the crowd responded as they nodded their heads. Then, Ye Futian continued to sit down cross-legged with his eyes closed. Divine light circled around his figure as his consciousness floated over towards the starry sky. He began to continue his search for the Imperial Star.


    The ethereal starry sky was vast and boundless. Ye Futian was even more serious than before. He focused all his energy on scanning the sky. This Imperial Star was too crucial. When the Eight Glorious Imperial Stars appeared, all the pieces would fall into place, and they might be able to trigger the secret left behind by Great Emperor Ziwei.


    Hence, this time, Ye Futian was very focused.


    The starry sky was vast and appeared very quiet. In this quiet starry sky, it was as though time did not flow. Ye Futian spent an even longer time to sense the entire starry sky this time around, passing over each region of stars.


    However, he still came out empty-handed.


    It was not just him; it was the same for the other cultivators. No one managed to find the last Imperial Star.


    Ye Futian sat underneath the starry sky. His ink-black eyes stared at the starry world. He could not help but be suspicious. Although there were Eight Glorious Emperors under Great Emperor Ziwei, was it possible that one of them had not left behind their power to be inherited?


    If that was the case, could the remaining seven Imperial Stars be sufficient to unravel the secrets of the starry sky?


    He couldn��t help but glance at the locations of the seven Imperial Stars. He unleashed powerful detection as he closed his eyes. The entire starry sky appeared in his mind, with the seven Imperial Stars shining brightly.


    In Ye Futian��s Life Palace, he developed a world with an endless starry sky to match the locations of each Imperial Star. He wanted to see whether he could deduce any pattern from the Imperial Stars by doing so.


    After a long while, he still made zero discoveries. He retracted his consciousness and once again opened his eyes. The starry sky remained vast and mysterious, like a riddle that would never be solved. It was full of unknowns.


    Other cultivators who were similarly attempting to find the last star also encountered dead ends like Ye Futian. Everyone present in this starry sky felt helpless. They were out of ideas.


    All their probing and searching came to a halt. Ye Futian was the person with the highest chance of succeeding among all of them. However, even he was similarly feeling helpless. From the looks of it, they were still far from being able to unravel the secrets of the starry sky.


    Ye Futian gazed at the starry sky and the illusory silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei. All the illusory figures of the other Great Emperors formed part of the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei. Were they somehow related?


    However, Ye Futian still didn��t discover anything even after staring at the silhouettes for a long time.


    ��You still can��t find anything?�� someone asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian didn��t turn around. He merely shook his head quietly. His gaze was fixed on the sky above. He said in a low voice, ��I can��t find it. It is as though it never existed. I have tried a few times to no avail.��


    Everyone fell silent when they heard his words. Even Ye Futian said that he couldn��t locate the last star. It was most likely truly hard to be found.


    The others would have an even harder time trying to locate the last star.


    Could it be that the secrets of the starry sky would remain unfathomable even with all the monstrous figures from various realms gathered here?


    If that was the case, the best inheritance they could get was the power unleashed from communicating and resonating with the few Imperial Stars. As for the secrets of Great Emperor Ziwei, they would remain hidden in this endless starry sky for future generations to discover.


    ��If we simultaneously communicate with all the Imperial Stars found and make the divine lights fall from the stars, would it help to unravel the secrets?�� suggested someone. This suggestion caused many people to reveal strange expressions. Was this idea worth a try?


    ��We can try,�� said a cultivator who had resonated with one of the Imperial Stars.


    ��Since we can��t find it with other ways, there��s no harm trying it,�� seconded another cultivator who had also resonated with an Imperial Star. It seemed like many of them agreed to try out this method. Ye Futian glanced at them and then nodded in agreement. Since they were all out of ideas, they could only attempt whatever was possible.


    Immediately, Ye Futian, Blind Tie, Gu Dongliu, and the others went to the Imperial Stars that they had communicated with, respectively. The other cultivators also took their positions. This time, they began to communicate with the Imperial Stars in the sky together.


    Not long after, divine light shone down from the heavens. Seven consecutive beams of divine light shone down at the same time. For a moment, the entire starry sky was lit up. It was extremely dazzling to behold. It was as though seven pillars of divine light had descended and were holding up this starry world.


    Ye Futian was bathed in the divine light of one of these Imperial Stars. At the same time, he observed the other locations. The seven beams of divine light did not interfere with one another, as though there was no connection between them at all.


    The starry sky also did not show any signs of response. Everything seemed normal.


    The other cultivators observed the changes in the starry sky. They saw the starlight flowing, but it did not appear to have any pattern to it.


    After some time, Ye Futian stopped communicating with the Imperial Star and retracted himself from that state.


    As he looked at the starry world, he felt a sense of helplessness. He still had not obtained anything.


    Throughout all these years, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace had most likely failed in many attempts as well.


    Right now, Ye Futian was certain that the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace had also resonated with the Imperial Stars here. As for how many stars the latter could establish a connection with, he did not know. However, they were most likely also exploring how to unravel the secrets left behind by Great Emperor Ziwei.


    Unfortunately, up until now, no one managed to unveil the secrets yet.


    They had attempted many methods to no avail.


    Ye Futian��s pupils turned exceptionally bizarre as he stared at the stars in the sky. He could see the starlight flowing, forming a star chart. The starlight flowed towards where the seven Imperial Stars were. It was as though the seven stars were seven points of focus that were endlessly absorbing all the starlight.


    ��Huh?�� Ye Futian revealed a strange expression. Observing from the outside seemed to give off a different sensation than when he was among the stars.


    The vast star chart seemed to have some sort of unique pattern, yet it felt as though it could not be traced. However, right then, Ye Futian felt a ray of hope!

 Chapter 2233 - Found It

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Right at this moment, a figure floated towards Ye Futian. The figure was a maiden with outstanding temperament and appearance.


    She wore a purple long dress, and the hem of her skirt fluttered. She looked like an ethereal goddess. Purple light twinkled in her eyes as she stared at Ye Futian.


    ��Are you observing the starry sky?�� the maiden in the purple dress asked softly.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��My name is Luo Su. I cultivate songs and rhythm. I am also a successor of the Divine Melody like you. I am from Outer Violet Heaven of the Divine Prefecture,�� the maiden introduced herself. ��Perhaps, Renhuang Ye and I can be friends.��


    Ye Futian looked at the maiden. Outer Violet Heaven was naturally a top force in the Divine Prefecture. However, he knew very little about it. This female Renhuang had a pair of clear and bright eyes. She gave off a dependable vibe.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was somewhat surprised that she would actually take the initiative to approach him. He understood what she wanted. Since she was proficient in songs and rhythm, she could only be here for one reason.


    Before this, quite a lot of cultivators intended to approach Ye Futian for the same reason. However, Ye Futian warded off all those people with the condition that the person who received help from him had to help him to kill Ning Hua. After all, no one was willing to kill the Vice Chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor for the sake of a fateful encounter. Moreover, it was hard to say whether they had the ability to kill Ning Hua.


    If they ended up being targeted by the Vice Chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor instead, it would be disastrous.


    Why would Luo Su think that he would agree to her request?


    However, she indeed came at the perfect timing.


    Luo Su explained, ��Before this, I have sensed this Imperial Star, but I was still missing something. If Renhuang Ye is willing to help me, I��m sure that I��ll be able to resonate with the star very quickly. Then, Renhuang Ye can observe the pattern of the seven stars as an outsider. It might help you to have new discovery and locate the eighth Imperial Star.�� She continued, ��Of course, if Renhuang Ye has other conditions, you may voice it out as well. I��ll do it as long as it��s within my capabilities.��


    Ye Futian took a good look at this beautiful female Renhuang. Luo Su��s calm and sincere attitude made him feel comfortable around her. Before this, he intended to pass the teachings of the Imperial Star to Goddess Taihua. In reality, he was using it as a chance to get closer to Taihua Mountain and form good connections with them. However, Goddess Taihua��s cold attitude caused him to abandon his plan.


    Now, Luo Su had proactively come forward. She was also a successor of the Divine Melody. There was no reason not to help her. After all, for Ye Futian, there was no harm in doing so. If he could forge a friendship with a top force, he was more than willing to do so.


    ��You know that I am proficient in the Divine Melody?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��How could I not tell the lost sound of the Great Path, the rhythm of the Song of the Lost Divine?�� replied Luo Su as she smiled. Ye Futian nodded and said, ��Alright. If that is the case, I am willing to be friends with you.��


    As he said this, divine light shone from his glabella and shot towards Luo Su��s glabella, burrowing straight into her mind. Luo Su did not stop him from doing so, allowing the light to enter her mind. She seemed to have a faint realization as she smiled at Ye Futian. She bowed her head slightly and said, ��Many thanks, Renhuang Ye. I will head over and give it a try.��


    ��Alright,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded back at her. Luo Su floated upwards, her purple dress fluttering as she went off. Her detection swept out towards the starry sky. Not long after, in the starry sky above, starlight descended, and powerful Rhythmic Sorcery surrounded her figure. The various Imperial Stars in the heavens resonated.


    ��So fast,�� commented Ye Futian as he revealed a look of astonishment. It seemed that Luo Su was not lying. Before this, she was almost able to communicate with the Imperial Star. With Ye Futian��s guidance, she had managed to do so in a very short amount of time.


    The seven stars gathered as Ye Futian stood observing from below. This time, the star chart seemed even more complete.


    Was this a divine matrix? Ye Futian thought as he gazed at the star chart above. There was flowing starlight and the seven silhouettes of the Great Emperors.


    Ye Futian was most likely the only one who could see the silhouettes of the seven Great Emperors. The rest of the cultivators could only see the divine halos emitted by the Imperial Stars. As for the cultivators immersed in the divine lights, they would probably be able to sense the silhouette of the Great Emperor they formed a connection with.


    Ye Futian��s senses were fully immersed in the starry sky. He seemed to become one with the stars. His consciousness flowed with the starlight. Gradually, he noticed that the flowing starlight and the dazzling silhouettes of the Great Emperors were all facing the same direction.


    The image of the entire starry sky seemed to appear in Ye Futian��s pupils. The image even appeared in his mind.


    ��They are facing the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei,�� Ye Futian said as his heart pounded. He felt as though he was beginning to discern a pattern. The seven silhouettes of the Great Emperors were all facing the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei. If so, that should also be the case for the eighth silhouette.


    The seven silhouettes of the Great Emperors were at different locations. However, they were each at the center of a region. Yet, it felt as though something was missing.


    What was missing? Ye Futian��s mind raced.


    The seven silhouettes of the Great Emperors were facing the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    Where was the eighth silhouette?


    He began to search the starry sky. He did not know where the location of the last silhouette of the Great Emperor would be. It should match the star chart and the positions of the other seven silhouettes of the Great Emperors.


    Time passed. The seven cultivators remained as they were, causing the positions of the Imperial Stars to be clearer. At the same time, this allowed Ye Futian to more easily sense the presence of the silhouettes of the Great Emperors. Unsure as to why, the cultivators in the starry sky actually believed that Ye Futian would most likely be the one to find the eighth Imperial Star.


    This had nothing to do with his identity or his ability. It was purely because Ye Futian had performed the best so far.


    Since he performed the best, he naturally had the highest chances of success.


    Ye Futian seemed to be using the crudest method to determine the location of the silhouette. However, even so, he still had not managed to find it after a long time. This made even the others suspicious. Could it be that the eighth Imperial Star truly did not exist?


    After a long while, even Ye Futian became restless. He retracted his consciousness. His vision gradually returned to normal. He sighed internally. The starry sky was too vast and mysterious. He could not solve its mystery. The star chart had exceeded his abilities.


    ��I can��t solve it,�� Ye Futian said to the cultivators who were all staring at the starry sky. In reality, everyone present had their own agenda to pursue. However, they were unified by the same goal now, which was to unravel the secrets of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    ��Are we really all out of ideas?�� Someone sighed and lamented softly, ��Great Emperor Ziwei was a Great Emperor from the past. What exactly was his intention for leaving behind this starry cultivation court? Could it be that the teachings of the seven Imperial Stars are the only thing being stored here? How about the Heavenly Scroll that Great Emperor Ziwei is holding? What does it mean?��


    When Ye Futian heard the person��s words, his gaze turned around slowly and stared in the direction of the Heavenly Scroll that the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei held in his hand. He was momentarily stunned. Then, he looked in other directions.


    At this moment, Ye Futian��s heart quivered uncontrollably.


    The Heavenly Scroll. Ye Futian��s heart trembled as his gaze was fixed on the Heavenly Scroll in the hand of the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei. Before this, some cultivators attempted to unravel the secret of the Heavenly Scroll, but all of them had failed. Some of them tried to retrieve it, but it was even more futile of an endeavor.


    Why must the teachings left behind by the Great Emperors be stored within a star? Ye Futian exclaimed internally. All of them seemed to have been caught up in the wrong line of thought. It was true that there were eight Great Emperors under Great Emperor Ziwei. However, the teachings of the Great Emperors might not necessarily have transformed into the Imperial Stars.


    Ye Futian might have found it!

 Chapter 2234 - Deciphered

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian drifted in the direction of the Heavenly Scroll that was held in the hand of the Great Emperor. The Heavenly Scroll seemed to have been transformed by the starlight as well, appearing elusive and untouchable.


    Ye Futian��s consciousness glide towards the Heavenly Scroll, surrounded by the divine light of the Great Path. Just as he communicated with the imperial stars before, he wanted to see if the same method could be used to communicate with the Heavenly Scroll. However, the Heavenly Scroll was still covered in endless divine brilliance, quietly resting in the hand of the figure that was Ziwei The Great, without the slightest change.


    The cultivators in the starry sky had seen Ye Futian��s action, and a surprised look crossed their faces as their eyes continued to focus on the Heavenly Scroll.


    Everyone knew that Ye Futian was trying to solve the mystery of the starry sky and wanted to find the eighth imperial star. But why did he gravitate toward the Heavenly Scroll? Had he discovered something?


    ��Emperor Ye,�� someone in the starry sky asked, ��is there any secret in the Heavenly Scroll?��


    Ye Futian��s eyes were still fixed on the Heavenly Scroll. He said to the others while his back was turned, ��The eight Great Emperors under Ziwei the Great have found seven imperial stars. The eighth imperial star does not seem to exist in the starry sky. My guess is that all eight Great Emperors didn��t need to transform the power of inheritance as imperial stars; why can��t it be transformed as the Heavenly Scroll?��


    He did not conceal anything from the others. All the cultivators were in the starry sky, and everyone could see everything he was doing. He couldn��t hide anything, and he didn��t want to hide anything either. Anyone who could uncover the secret of Ziwei the Great��s inheritance would have to rely on their own abilities, fair and square.


    ��You mean that this Heavenly Scroll might be the inheritance left by the eighth Great Emperor?�� asked another.


    ��This is just a speculation and has not been confirmed.�� Ye Futian responded, ��We can try together and see if we can unlock the mystery of the Heavenly Scroll.��


    ��Very well.�� Hearing Ye Futian��s words, all the cultivators flickered their way in the direction of the Heavenly Scroll, releasing their own consciousness. They each explored the secret of the Heavenly Scroll, trying to see if they could produce any resonance with it.


    The seven cultivators who were communicating with the imperial stars also looked there and seemed to have some thoughts. Ye Futian glanced at them as he drifted towards higher ground and said to them, ��Can you please continue and let me observe some more? I feel that there is something else missing, and these seven imperial stars are the key.��


    The seven cultivators didn��t say much when they heard what Ye Futian had to say. They continued to communicate with the imperial stars, trying to induce the divine light to descend.


    Ye Futian continued to observe the starry sky, the starry sky map, the positions of the seven imperial stars, and the direction that the imperial shadow was facing.


    His eyes were unusually bright, and in his mind, the starry sky was spinning as a picture seemed to start emerging. This picture of the starry sky evolved on its own, but Ye Futian could detect a sense of pattern within it, which quickened his heartbeat.


    He tried it just now, and not just him, but all the other cultivators had tried as well. There was no way to unlock the mystery of the Heavenly Scroll. This Heavenly Scroll seemed to exist in a surreal space and could not be pried. It seemed that something else was still missing.


    ��Everyone,�� Ye Futian was in the air and looking at the seven, ��could you please stop for a moment and change your position to communicate with the imperial stars?��


    Gu Dongliu, Blind Tie, and Luo Su were the first to listen to him. They stopped communicating with the imperial stars. After that, the other four cultivators also stopped and moved towards Ye Futian. One of the Renhuang in black asked, ��Why change the position?��


    ��The place where the Heavenly Scroll is located may be the place where the seven stars converge, so I have an idea, and I hope you can try it out with me. As for whether it will work or not, I cannot guarantee,�� said Ye Futian.


    When the other four heard what he said, they did not say anything but were willing to work with him. One of them said, ��How to change the positions?��


    Ye Futian looked at the space below the Heavenly Scroll as seven rays of brilliance fell from him, landing on seven locations. Then, he assigned each of the seven people as they went to the position assigned. Even though four of them were extraordinary cultivators in their own right, at the moment, they were willing to listen to Ye Futian this one time. There was no loss even if they failed because if they succeeded, they could unlock the mystery of the starry sky.


    Therefore, all of them were hoping that Ye Futian would succeed.


    ��We can start now,�� Ye Futian looked at them and said. The seven closed their eyes and began to communicate with the imperial stars, as they were familiar with the drill by now. Soon, above the firmament, there were divine lights of the Great Path descending, and the divine light of all seven imperial stars began to fall, connecting with them.


    This time, they were not standing directly beneath it but at an angle. The divine light seemed to cross and change positions. However, under the shocking gaze of many, the seven divine rays of light actually finally stopped at the same point.


    ��Seven stars converging.�� The heart of those who were in the distant starry sky skipped a beat. This sight was an absolute wonder.


    At this moment, they had a feeling that perhaps Ye Futian was right.


    Because the place where the seven stars were converging just happened to be the palm of Ziwei the Great, the location of the Heavenly Scroll.


    The seven divine lights fell on the Heavenly Scroll, and a magnificent dazzling sight appeared from the Heavenly Scroll. The rays of divine light passed directly through the scroll and landed on those seven figures simultaneously. Therefore, an amazingly splendid sight now appeared under the stars.


    At this moment, the pages of the Heavenly Scroll began to turn, and infinite characters were floating out from the scroll, spreading to the endless starry sky in an instant. Countless divine lights shot into the sky, illuminating the starry sky world.


    ��The Heavenly Scroll is open!�� Everyone��s hearts were beating quickly. Ye Futian was right; he had found the inheritance of the eighth Great Emperor.


    This volume, located in the most conspicuous position, was also the most difficult inheritance to decipher.


    Ye Futian was indeed a god-given genius. He had deciphered the Heavenly Scroll, and who knows what changes would happen to this starry sky world.


    ��Look there!�� someone exclaimed. They saw that when the Seven-Star Divine Light passed through the Heavenly Scroll, it floated towards that seven figures with infinite characters, descending directly upon them. At this moment, the divine light on the seven was even more dazzling and radiant.


    ��Could it be that what was hidden in the Heavenly Scroll was the true inherited ability of the seven imperial stars?�� The hearts of all the cultivators were beating wildly. If so, this was probably the only opportunity�Cthe time when the Heavenly Scroll was opened.


    ��Ye Futian!�� Someone��s attention went to Ye Futian. He gave this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to Luo Su, a cultivator from Zixiao Domain of Divine Prefecture.


    The inheritance of the Great Emperor was given away like this, which made others felt quite sorry for him.


    And Goddess Taihua, who saw all this played out before her, felt disquieted in her heart. An emperor-level inheritance was given to Luo Su?


    This opportunity belonged to her, but she gave it up so easily that a great opportunity now had slipped away.


    However, Ye Futian himself didn��t seem to feel anything, as if he didn��t care about this inheritance at all.


    His eyes continue to focus on the Heavenly Scroll as the Seven-Star Divine Light fell and gathered on the Heavenly Scroll. The scroll opened, and changes occurred. The divine light shot towards the firmament, and in an instant, the entire starry sky lit up, and stars filled the sky.


    The shadow of the Great Emperor seemed to become clearer at this moment, gradually coming into focus as it materialized. An eternal aura came from the firmament, as a true Might from Heaven.


    ��Ziwei the Great.��


    Standing under the starry sky, everyone could feel that supreme majesty, as if the Great Emperor��s Will had awakened.


    Has the mystery of Ziwei the Great been deciphered? many thought secretly. Before, many guessed that the eighth imperial star was the key to unlock the mystery of the starry sky. Now, it turned out that the eighth imperial star was not what they thought it was, but the secrets of the eight Great Emperors beneath Ziwei the Great had been unlocked.


    Then, would the mystery of Ziwei the Great be revealed?


    ��


    At this time, inside Ziwei Imperial Palace, the starlight circulated, as the entire hall seemed to be changing.


    The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace opened his eyes, and all the cultivators sitting inside the palace trembled. A voice was heard saying, ��The inheritance of the eight Great Emperors has been deciphered. The starry sky is lit up, and Ziwei the Great��s figure is becoming ever clearer.��


    Buzz! The starlight was flowing, but the cultivators inside the palace had disappeared. In the void, the voice of the Palace Lord of the Imperial Palace master said, ��How was it deciphered?��


    ��The seven stars gathered and shine their light upon the Heavenly Scroll, causing the Scroll to change,�� someone responded. ��That Scroll was the inheritance left by the eighth Great Emperor.��


    ��Who did it?�� another voice asked, but it was so elusive it was hard to tell where it came from.


    Outside, the cultivators who came here from the Original Realm changed the expression on their faces at this moment. They looked up at the sky and saw that the firmament seemed to be changing, and the whole world seemed to be changing as well.


    ��What��s going on?�� Someone whispered. Suddenly it turned into a world of starry sky. In it, they saw an infinite number of stars, as if they were in the segment, rather than just on a star.


    ��Ziwei Imperial Palace lit up just now. What��s happening?�� Those top cultivators stared in the front. They felt an unusual aura. Many cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace seemed to have left, making their way somewhere else.


    From the Imperial Palace in the distance, cultivators were flickering their way here. Cultivators from the outside stared at the front, and someone murmured, ��Has the inheritance of the Great Emperor been deciphered?��


    Even figures of great capacities couldn��t help but become quite excited. Their emotions fluctuated greatly. What would happen if the inheritance of Ziwei the Great were to be revealed to this world?


    All the cultivators from the Imperial Palace seemed to have rushed there.


    ��Should we go too?�� someone asked.


    ��Let��s go.�� Those cultivators moved in the direction of Ziwei Imperial Palace. At times like this, they couldn��t be concerned about so many other things!

 Chapter 2235 - The Domineering Imperial Palace

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the starry sky world, Ye Futian looked at the changes that took place in the sky. Just as he expected, the Heavenly Scroll in the hands of Ziwei the Great was the key; it was the key to unlock the mystery of the starry sky.


    Now, the key had been found.


    Perceiving a divine might that permeated from the sky, Ye Futian had a feeling that the Will of Ziwei the Great had been revived.


    Below the starry sky, a series of extremely domineering aura diffused out. Ye Futian lowered his head to look below and saw the starlight shining. The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace had personally led his cultivators to this place and arrived under the starry sky in just a moment��s time, looking up at that divine shadow.


    Seeing this sight, those outside cultivators couldn��t help but shuddered. But, they also understood something.


    The truth was that Ziwei Imperial Palace was using them. For untold many years, Ziwei Imperial Palace had not found this key to decipher the mystery of the starry sky. Now, with the lifting of the ban on Ziwei the Great and Ziwei Segmentum��s contact with the outside world, cultivators from the outside were allowed here, looking for the inheritance left by Ziwei Great.


    Therefore, they allowed these outside cultivators to enter this starry sky world, the personal cultivation ground of Ziwei the Great. As to why there was a restriction being placed on the cultivation level of top figures, it was probably because once these major figureheads got into the mix, even Ziwei Imperial Palace would have a hard time controlling the situation once the mystery of the starry sky had been deciphered.


    And as there were no giant-level figures among these cultivators here, the situation was much easier to control, and no one would pose a real challenge.


    After the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace arrived, they stood there and watched the changes in the starry sky. The Palace Lord looked solemn and bowed to the figure of Ziwei the Great in the sky. Not just him, but everyone who came from Ziwei Imperial Palace did the same. This was the god they worshipped, the master of Ziwei Segmentum.


    The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace surveyed the cultivators in the starry sky and saw the eight who had inherited the divine glory of the Great Emperor. He said loudly, ��In this starry cultivation ground of Ziwei the Great, it seems that everyone had some gains, even inheriting the power of the Great Emperor. It is a most satisfactory ending. We can handle everything here from here on out. Everyone, please return to your homes.��


    The mystery of the starry sky seemed to have been resolved, and they didn��t wish these outsiders to continue to linger here, so they started asking everyone to leave.


    Not all the outsiders came here either. Obviously, this was not a place they could easily get to, nor would Ziwei Imperial Palace allow them to open a passageway so easily to get to this starry space.


    Hearing these words from the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, many had a strange expression. Indeed, Ziwei Imperial Palace was not some benevolent host. They had used them to solve the mystery of the starry sky, and now they wanted to chase them away so that they could have this starry sky world to themselves.


    They were skilled enough in this type of doublecross.


    However, none of them moved, especially the eight who were still inheriting the divine powers; how could they give up and leave? Obviously, they were unwilling to. The same was true for other cultivators. After having finally seen the changes in the starry sky, it was possible that the inheritance of Ziwei the Great would descend, and everyone was anticipating it. How could they possibly want to leave now, at this point?


    No one wanted to leave.


    It was the same for Ye Futian. Clearly, he understood everything as well. It could be said that this mystery was solved almost entirely by him. Now, were they expelling him?


    Cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace walked forward, as the Palace Lord holding the scepter from which strands of domineering aura diffused. More than that, the cultivators behind him were also releasing the coercion of the Great Path.


    In a moment, under this starry sky, all the cultivators felt an extremely powerful sense of oppression. Some wanted to move, but under the pressure of the Great Path, even their breathing had hastened.


    Was this to expel all the cultivators immediately?


    Ziwei Imperial Palace seemed truly determined.


    ��Everyone, the Palace Lord has already allowed you to cultivate here for many days. Now, many have received the opportunities of the Great Path, even inherited the power of the Great Emperor; it is now time to leave, don��t be greedy!�� a cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace said loudly.


    ��Ziwei Imperial Palace asked us to be here. Now that the mystery of the starry sky is unlocked, you want to take everything we have created? It��s rather unreasonable,�� said a cultivator who was bathing in the divine light and who had inherited the power of the Great Emperor. The divine light upon him was as frightening as his aura was breathtaking. He did not seem to be affected at all by the oppression.


    When everyone looked there, they remembered that they had the power of the Imperial Star at their disposal, and a few of them were already in the Eighth Realm themselves. Might they have a chance to compete with the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace?


    The people from Ziwei Imperial Palace looked at the cultivator who spoke up. They knew very well that those who had inherited the power of the Imperial Star could use its power of the Great Path in battle, hence, their audacity in a direct challenge.


    These people themselves were extraordinary genius talents from the outside world. As those who stood at the peak, they had nothing to fear and feared nothing.


    ��Everything you have created?�� The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace glanced at the speaker. His expression was tranquil, but his deep-set eyes revealed his indifference. ��This is the Ziwei Segmentum here, and you came through the passage of Ziwei Imperial Palace. I am the one who gave you the opportunity, and now you think this place belongs to your?��


    The starry sky was full of oppression, and both sides were insistent in their differing opinions. Of course, there was no reasoning to be had in the first place.


    ��Go now. I don��t want to use my power on you.�� The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace stood there in the sky with a scepter in hand. Starlight circulated, filled with the terrifying power of the Great Path. Even those cultivators who had been baptized by the Imperial Star felt a great coercion.


    None of the seven made a response to the Palace Lord. Their expressions were grave as the aura of the Great Path circulated upon their bodies. Aided by the power of the Imperial Star, rays of terrible light beams diffused out. They had not yet completed the inheritance, so even if the Palace Lord tried to stop them right now to rob them of their fruits, he would not be able to accomplish it.


    None of them would hesitate to fight.


    Among these seven, a few of them were supreme existence in the Eighth Realm. With the help of the Imperial Star��s power, even when they face giants at the peak of Renhuang, they would not retreat, for they were sure they would be able to contend with them; they could perceive their own strength at this moment.


    But they were not quite sure about taking on the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace. In their estimation, this master of Ziwei Segmentum may have already passed the second divine tribulation of the Great Path, which made him an absolutely terrifying existence. Anyone at this level, there was no certainty that he could be defeated even aided by the power of the Imperial Star.


    Therefore, they waited with great caution. Bathed in the divine glory of the Imperial Star, they were filled up with great prowess, as if they were ready for the oncoming battle.


    In the sky above, Ye Futian merely cast a glance at the situation below before turning his attention back to the changes in the starry sky. He then drifted in a certain direction.


    ��Stop him. It was he who unlocked the secrets of the Heavenly Scroll.�� A voice came from among the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Suddenly, the Palace Lord turned his eyes toward Ye Futian as he lifted the scepter in his hand. He pointed in the direction where Ye Futian was in the sky and said, ��Stop.��


    However, at the moment the scepter was raised, a god-like phantom appeared in another direction. The ancient god held a massive sky hammer, blasting in the direction of the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    From top to bottom in the firmament, a terrifying divine light destroyed everything, smashing directly across the distance. The starry sky was shocked by this frightening force.


    However, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace was still standing firmly in place, raising the scepter in his hand. Suddenly a starlight screen appeared all around him as if he was guarded by the stars, which blocked the area around them.


    Boom�� The sky hammer fell, cracking the starlight screen, but did not beak it. Its defense power was horrifying to imagine.


    Clearly, Blind Tie also felt the terrible defense power of this star, and the cultivators in the starry sky felt amazed; it was so powerful.


    They had detected how terrifying the attack was, but they couldn��t break through the defenses. How frightening was the strength of someone who had survived two major divine tribulations?


    The Great Path field of the surrounding stars was probably almost in an invincible state.


    Furthermore, even though cracks had appeared on that terrifying star light screen, it was being repaired rapidly. In a short moment, it was as good and perfect as it was before.


    The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace drifted higher into the sky. Suddenly, that radiant star light screen went up along with him as well.


    ��Probably won��t be able to stop him,�� thought the cultivators who were in the starry sky. They looked in the direction Ye Futian was and saw him moving in the void with great speed toward the place where the seven stars had converged. It was also the place of the Heavenly Scroll.


    This sight caused the hearts of all the cultivators to beat wildly, and many stepped out as well and headed straight in the same direction. They believed in Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2236 - Will of the Great Emperor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Evidently, underneath this starry sky, the powerhouses all felt that what Ye Futian did was correct, and he had the chance to inherit Great Emperor Ziwei��s power.


    After all, everything that happened today was brought about by Ye Futian himself.


    Hence, when they saw Ye Futian striding forward, the powerhouses from everywhere followed despite their previous goal of exploring the secrets of this starry dimension and seeking the power of Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance.


    But now, the secrets of the starry dimension might have been deciphered, and Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance might have already surfaced. Naturally, they would not remain at such close terms. If there really were an inheritance, they would inevitably fight for it.


    Many eyes were staring at Ye Futian. Seeing that Ye Futian was heading towards the Heavenly Scroll, amassed of the seven stars, the rest of the powerhouses rushed straight over with great haste. However, as Ye Futian had departed in advance, he would still be the fastest person to arrive.


    At this moment, a horrifying streak of dark divine light broke through the void. A ginormous dark hand that could see no edge appeared in the starry sky and directly smashed towards Ye Futian��s body to halt him. At the same time, several attacks appeared from other directions and whooshed towards Ye Futian simultaneously to stop him from becoming the first person to arrive. Ye Futian��s gnosis of this starry dimension was too profound. They were worried that he would find Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance immediately. Should that happen, it would be too late for them.


    Clang�� But at this moment, a sonorous sound of a zither emerged. It was brimming with energy. In invisible rhythm was vibrating while it swept across the starry dimension. The energy of this sound ripple was a wisp of blooming Diving Light that descended from the Imperial Star from above the skies. It flitted around Ye Futian��s body, and within the faction of a second, the energy of the attacks that were coming at him vanished into ashes.


    Every attack was decimated.


    Many glanced in one direction, only to see Luo Su bathed in Divine Light. She, too, looked at them with her alluring eyes. It was she who destroyed all the attacks that were coming at Ye Futian.


    ��Go,�� Luo Su opened her mouth and said. Ye Futian nodded and quickened his pace.


    Some looked at Luo Su with cold eyes. It seemed as if she was returning a favor to Ye Futian. Previously, Ye Futian allowed her to inherit an Imperial Star and acquire the inheritance of a Great Emperor. Now, she was not coveting for the inheritance of Great Emperor Ziwei. She was already satisfied with complete inheritance over one Great Emperor��s power.


    Her action was undoubtedly wise. Even if Luo Su wanted the inheritance of Great Emperor Ziwei, her body would most likely be unable to take it. Besides, with her previous encounter with Ye Futian, they have established friendship among themselves. If she could assist Ye Futian in obtaining the inheritance of Great Emperor Ziwei, it naturally would not be a bad thing for her.


    In the future, she would have an extra friend that was super powerful at the Outer Violet Heaven.


    At another location, a massive war had erupted likewise. The light of stars emerged at the space around the Place Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace like a boundless nebula marching towards the high clouds. Blind Tie attacked him once again but was still unable to break him. He was only able to stall his upward motion.


    ��Stop them!�� Blind Tie said. However, the few cultivators chose to watch and do nothing this time.


    It seemed that Ye Futian was after Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance, and for that, the aces of Ziwei Imperial Palace were all staring at him. Coincidently, while Ye Futian had all of the Ziwei Imperial Palace��s attention, they would have more time to draw upon the power of the inheritance.


    With Luo Su helping Ye Futian, the only ones who could attack on their side were Blind Tie and Gu Dongliu.


    Above the sky, an even more stalwart figure, who seemed matchless, appeared. An anomaly emerged in the sky; it seemed like a true god dancing with a hammer. With the light of the Imperial Star, the hammer plummeted and blasted toward the celestial body.


    In addition, a magnificent Picture of a Thousand Demons appeared in the void. Like a terrifying Divine Matrix, there were infinite Demon Gods in it. The Divine Light from the Imperial Star fell on it, and thousands of demons charged towards that direction.


    The eyes of the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace were still indifferent. He was already extremely displeased about being hindered, but the opponent was still thinking about snatching the power of Great Emperor Ziwei underneath his eyelids?


    He lifted the scepter in his hand and pointed it towards the sky. The veil of starlight constantly fluctuated and mystically transformed into the shape of a sword that resembled the Sword of Stars.


    Bzzz! a streak of terrifying Divine Light shook the world. The starry divine sword emitted an unmatched Divine Light of Annihilation and pierced through the starry sky. The thousands of demons were shredded into pieces. Gu Dongliu had a weak cultivation base after all. Even with the power of the Imperial Star, it was still impossible for him to stop the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    The Divine Light collided with the godly figure in the air. The Sword of Stars could overrun all fortifications, but it shattered into nothingness after it made a crack on the Divine Hammer.


    The Divine Light pierced through the anomaly and shattered all existence.


    The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace strode forward across the void and paced towards the upper sky.


    The power that Blind Tie could borrow from the Imperial Star was limited, and the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace was a genuine powerhouse. Even across the entire Divine Prefecture, only a very few could ever stand up against him.


    But while they were fighting, Ye Futian already arrived at where he was heading: above the Heavenly Scroll where the seven stars were gathered.


    An infinite light beam fell on his body and instant penetrated his body. Above the starry sky, starlight that could see no end showered down on his body. At this very moment, Ye Futian could only feel as if his body was being torn apart, which sensation originated from the depths of his very soul.


    At last, Ye Futian was still the first to arrive.


    Above the sky, stars were shining, and God��s might descended. The body of Great Emperor Ziwei brimmed with an unrivaled authority of heaven; it was as if it was revived. The pressure was so immense that no cultivator was spared from the feeling of suffocation.


    Luo Su ceased his attack after Ye Futian arrived at his position. Subsequently, the others arrived one after another. Likewise, they did not attack Ye Futian. After all, he had already reached the final destination, and there was no point in attacking anymore.


    When they came into Ye Futian��s domain, they were also bathed in the horrifying Divine Light of Stars. Many people felt extreme pain that was somewhat unbearable.


    What kind of power is this?


    It seemed that there was no advantage in being the first to arrive. They could still come to this place. But what about after they arrive?


    What would happen?


    Nobody knew what was going to happen next.


    The powerhouses of Ziwei Imperial Palace arrived as well. The Palace Lord looked up at the sky. He could only feel his body trembling as an urge to grovel on his knees and worship emerged. Because his cultivation base was powerful enough, the power he could perceive was also more intense.


    At this moment, it felt for him as if he had witnessed the return of Great Emperor Ziwei, and the Great Emperor was just right above the starry sky looking at him.


    ��Great Emperor.�� The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace bowed down and worshipped him. The rest of the other cultivators did the same with solemn expressions.


    Was the Will of the Great Emperor resurrected?

 Chapter 2237 - Unbearable Power

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��What a powerful aura.�� The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace shuddered. This heavenly might was the aura of the Great Emperor, and it seemed to have come from the ancient times to reappear in this world.


    Above the firmament, all the stars in heaven lit up as the figure of Ziwei the Great materialized and became clearer and more dazzling. Even those eyes that were cast by stars could be seen.


    Buzz! The heavenly might descended, along with rays of infinite starlight, falling on the area where Ye Futian and the others were. Suddenly, the cultivators in that area felt the supreme might from heaven, and it felt like Ziwei the Great himself was getting close.


    Perceiving what��s in front of them, even the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace dared not act recklessly. The Great Emperor had manifested, what could they do now?


    ��Get over there,�� said the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace. As soon as his voice faded, he moved towards Ye Futian, stepping into the space where the seven stars had gathered above the Heavenly Scroll.


    In an instant, an incomparable divine might descended upon their bodies, and the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace felt the supreme coercion of the Great Emperor.


    Boom! The scepter trembled violently as it hit the ground; even he had felt an overwhelming pressure. The starlight circulated all around him, and the starry sky robe he wore fluttered in the wind.


    He looked up into the sky and saw the Great Emperor seemed to want to enter his body with all the starlight of the heavens. The starlight was falling on him and seemed to pass through him.


    Is the Great Emperor choosing his heir now? The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace thought as he perceived this power. Even his heart was experiencing great disturbance at this moment. They may have been right this time to let the cultivators from the outside into the cultivation field of Ziwei the Great. These people had helped them unlock the secret of the Great Emperor.


    If the Great Emperor were indeed choosing an heir as he had surmised, then, as the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace who had been in charge of Ziwei Segmentum for all these countless years, he would be the rightful heir.


    Terrifying starlight shot out from his eyes. It was as if thousands of stars were hidden in them. His long black hair was sharp as blades as he raised his head and looked at the shadow of the emperor. After waiting for these many long years, the day had finally come for the mystery of the Great Emperor to be unlocked. He had guarded this segment for what seemed like forever. Could he finally inherit the power of Ziwei the Great?


    The threshold that could not be crossed by mere mortals would pose no trouble when aided by the inheritance of Ziwei the Great.


    At this moment, a group of people rushing into the sky from below, and they were every one of them a top figure. It was the cultivators from the Original Realm who had entered Ziwei Realm. They forced their way into Ziwei Palace after overcoming many obstacles and caught this brilliant scene before them.


    Above them, it seemed that the Great Emperor had manifested.


    ��The inheritance of Ziwei the Great has been unlocked?�� Those major figureheads marveled at what they saw. Indeed, this amazing vision was a sign. They didn��t expect it to be revealed, and by whom?


    Furthermore, the power contained within the seven rays of starlight seemed to be extremely powerful, as if there was an emperor-level aura in the starry sky. What could this mean?


    Right away, the cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Academy, as well as those from Four Corner Village, recognized Ye Futian, Blind Tie, and Gu Dongliu, and their hearts throbbed.


    Blind Tie and Gu Dongliu were bathing in the divine light.


    And Ye Futian was above the Heavenly Scroll and beneath the shadow of the emperor.


    At this moment, the top figures of Heavenly Mandate Academy and Old Ma from Four Corner Village understood something significant. Ye Futian must have helped Blind Tie and Gu Dongliu so that they could bathe in the imperial glory. After all, there were only seven people there, and in this vast world populated by all kinds of genius talents from everywhere, they should never have such good fortune to be in the position they were in.


    Among them, probably only Ye Futian had such genius ability to help them win over the inheritance.


    ��Luo Su.��


    At this time, cultivators from Violet Heaven of the Outer Realm saw that Luo Su was bathing in the imperial glory as well, and that caused their surprise to no end. Although Luo Su was talented and powerful in her own right, how could this be when the competition was so stiff?


    Moreover, that Imperial Star seemed to contain great rhythmic power.


    Was Luo Su relying on her own musical attainments?


    The cultivators each had their own ideas, but soon their attention was drawn by the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, as many cultivators had also gathered there. Clearly, they were fighting for the strongest inheritance, and it might be the power passed down by Ziwei the Great.


    The majestic figure of Ziwei the Great was in the sky above that group of people. Everyone could feel that sacred coercion.


    ��Did Ziwei the Great leave his will in this starry sky?�� People marveled secretly. Then one after another, they moved towards the sky above. There was no time to think so much about that; the inheritance had been revealed, and they must fight for it.


    How could they miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?


    This was Ziwei the Great they were talking about; a Great Emperor who stood at the top in ancient times.


    Their realm was already at the level of giants now, on the verge of greatness. The inheritance of the Great Emperor would help them advance further. At their current realm, what could it mean to advance further?


    Only they themselves knew the answer to that question.


    Now, one step was akin to an entirely different world, and they were only a few steps away from standing at the top.


    How could they miss such an opportunity?


    For a time, these giants from everywhere swarmed towards that area. Like other cultivators, they, too, felt the supreme sacred coercion.


    At this moment, they had no idea what kind of pain was being imposed and experienced by the cultivators who had already descended.


    Endless starlight penetrated their bodies and their spiritual souls. They seemed to be caught up in a horrific world of illusion. In this terrifying world, their bodies and spiritual souls no longer belonged to them anymore but were being pulled by force to become part of this starry sky.


    Even more frightening was that in front of them, a god-like figure appeared; it was the figure of Ziwei the Great. This god was now walking towards them, aiming at them with power great enough to collapse their will.


    ��Ah���� A shrill scream was heard. A powerful cultivator could not withstand that power, and the collapse of his will was accompanied by this sharp scream as his spiritual soul perished and turned to dust. Finally, his physical body fell helplessly from the sky.


    Unexpectedly, under this starlight, he perished because he couldn��t withstand this power.


    ��This���� The hearts of those who were close to this area beat violently. How could he perish?


    What kind of power of inheritance was this exactly?


    They saw that the others also had a painful look on their faces, even the top figures from Ziwei Imperial Palace. It was as if they were under extremely terrible coercion; was it the true power of the Great Emperor?


    ��Let��s get out of here.�� At this moment, another cultivator, who looked to be in excruciating pain, did his best to extricate himself from the place where the seven stars converged using pure force.


    After he managed to escape, he was seen panting violently, as if he had a truly terrifying experience. Horror was written all over his face.


    When he raised his head again to looked at the starry sky, there was no more greed in his eyes, just fear, awe, and the deepest respect.


    Was this the power of the Great Emperor��s inheritance?


    Indeed, how could it be that easy, after all? Even with the mystery of the starry sky unlocked, the inheritance power left by Ziwei the Great could not be so easily obtained.


    Whoever wanted to inherit that power must first be prepared to pay with their own lives.


    Truly, they were overconfident in their own strength. They thought it was enough to unlock the mystery of the starry sky and find the inheritance of Ziwei the Great. Now that they had finally felt the power of Ziwei the Great, they realized just a trace of his real power was more than they could bear.


    As he raised his head to look at those cultivators, he couldn��t help but thought, who among these cultivators was worthy to obtain the inheritance of Ziwei the Great?


    Perhaps many people would perish here.


    His eye drifted to one of them involuntarily, where Ye Futian was. He had unlocked the mystery of the starry sky, but in the end, perhaps he was facilitating the process for someone else.


    These people from Ziwei Imperial Palace were determined to win!

 Chapter 2238 - The Sigh of the Great Emperor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    More and more cultivators collapsed because they couldn��t bear the power. A few cultivators with insufficient willpower collapsed directly with no time to escape and perished in that field of starlight.


    Some people were hit hard but were able to break free. They moved to the side. Like the cultivators from before, they were speechless in the backdrop of the starry sky.


    It seemed that they were overthinking, after all.


    Who could remain unmoved with the inheritance of Ziwei the Great within reach? But not anyone was eligible for the inheritance.


    Obviously, they didn��t have that sort of ability yet.


    They thought that this time, they had been conned by Ziwei Imperial Palace. After all, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace was an overbearing character, and he was here in person. Furthermore, he was a descendant of Ziwei and had been in charge of this segmentum. It was only natural that the inheritance of Ziwei the Great would go to him.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace let them in for the express purpose of unlocking the mystery of this starry sky and sought to benefit from their effort.


    The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace at this time stretched out both of his hands, still holding the scepter in his right hand. His black hair dancing wildly in the wind as his clothing fluttered. He closed his eyes as he endured that heavenly might. It was as if entering a state of ecstasy as he embraced all of its power.


    ��How strong!�� Those cultivators who were on the sideline watched with amazement. They couldn��t bear this power at all, but the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace embraced it willingly, allowing the starlight to enter his body as he endured the heavenly might.


    They couldn��t help but sigh. Everything seemed to be happening just as Ziwei Imperial Palace had calculated.


    At this time, Ye Futian was bearing that terrifying power as well. He felt that every fiber of his being no longer belonged to him. His spiritual soul entered into the starry sky and was split into countless fragments. It merged into the sky that was full of stars.


    He had a feeling that if he were not careful and allowed this power to overwhelm him, his will would be broken, and his spiritual soul would collapse and perish.


    Inside his body, an even stronger power bloomed, and the ancient tree of the world seemed to have transformed into invisible branches and leaves. It integrated into the spiritual soul so that everything grew madly. No matter where the spiritual soul drifted, ancient trees connected to it. His roots were still intact.


    In Ye Futian��s Life Palace, a figure that seemed to be Ye Futian sat there, firmly rooted. In the world of the Life Palace, there seemed to be countless doubles of Ye Futian scattered in different positions, but all of them were led by the tree of the ancient world.


    I can still keep going, Ye Futian said in his heart. He, too, was suffering great pain at the moment, but he was hanging on. He had already gotten to this point and solved the mystery of the starry sky by himself. No matter what, he couldn��t just give up and leave it to the others.


    He felt that if he could take possession of the inheritance of Ziwei the Great, he might control this starry sky.


    The current situation was actually perilous for him. His previous performance was way too dazzling. Everyone worked together and did not turn against him. They even hoped that he could solve the mystery of the Imperial Star and the starry sky.


    However, that was then. Once the matter had concluded, the situation would be different, and he very well might be isolated for retaliation.


    He was still controlling the inheritance of the Imperial Star and its power. Would the other forces let him off the hook so easily?


    There were many from the top forces here who would want his help to communicate with the power of the Imperial Star. At that time, anything could happen, and he may very well become everyone��s target.


    Therefore, in some sense, he was now in a very difficult position.


    Although he may still face the same great threat if he had taken the Great Emperor��s inheritance, it also meant a great opportunity. The will of the Great Emperor seemed to be there and was in charge of this starry sky world. If he could use the help of his power, it would be unimaginable.


    Now, he could only give all he had.


    As his thought turned to this, Ye Futian completely let go of himself and released his spiritual soul, whereafter he drifted into the starry sky. His world had completely changed. His body and spiritual soul disappeared, and it was like he was part of the starry sky world.


    He felt that he was also merging into the starry sky, and he could see everything below. The sceneries were so clear, a feeling that Ye Futian had never had before.


    As an astonishing celestial might descend, which made even Ye Futian tremble in his state of oblivion. He seemed to see Ziwei the Great. It was not that he had not before but was now seeing him face to face.


    It was like the boundless and majestic figure of Ziwei the Great was right in front of him. The two looked at each other in the starry sky, facing one another.


    Had the will of Ziwei the Great really existed in this starry sky world and had never been destroyed?


    It existed by way of the boundless starry sky and would be here forevermore.


    At this moment, the body of the Palace Lord began trembling ever so slightly. Even a being as great as himself seemed to be under unparalleled pressure. At this point, there were not many who could remain standing in that space. Each of them was a top-notch figure in their own right, and most of the people could only watch all this happen from the side.


    ��The Great Emperor.�� The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace seemed to have seen something. He spoke in a solemn voice. He was incredibly respectful. It was as if he had seen the Great Emperor.


    ��Great Emperor, please bestow the power on me.�� There was a degree of pleading in the voice of the Palace Lord, enough to make many people tremble. The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace had already sensed the Great Emperor��s existence, and was this a dialogue he was having with Ziwei the Great?


    If so, it was simply astonishing.


    Indeed, it seemed that everything belonged to Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace allowed them to come to this starry sky, but Ziwei Imperial Palace was ultimately the winner.


    The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace saw that Ziwei the Great was looking at him. However, there was indifference in his eyes. It was as if he did not intend to choose him. The Palace Lord had a doubtful look on his face as he once again called out respectfully, ��Great Emperor.��


    However, Ziwei the Great did not acknowledge him.


    But, from Ye Futian��s perception, the figure of Ziwei the Great was approaching him, zooming in on him.


    At this moment, Ye Futian could feel the real existence of Ziwei the Great, as if he had never fallen.


    Was it because the starlight was lit, and that revived the Great Emperor��s will?


    Then, Ye Futian heard a sigh, as if it was from the Great Emperor himself. This shocked Ye Futian to no end. Why was the Great Emperor sighing?


    Not only did Ye Futian hear it, but all the cultivators in the entire starry sky world heard the sigh as well.


    ��This is��?�� The eyes of countless people sharpened as their hearts beating violently. Whose sigh was this?


    Was this the sigh of the Great Emperor?


    The Great Emperor remained?


    Such a simple sound had such a tremendous impact on these cultivators as if it made them perceive the existence of Ziwei the Great.


    Similarly, this sigh caused the Palace Lord��s heart to skip a beat. Why did the Great Emperor sigh?


    At this moment, he had an inauspicious premonition.


    He had a faint sense that the Great Emperor had no intention of choosing him.


    At this time, the pressure on Ye Futian was getting even more terrifying. It was as if he was about to be completely torn apart and destroyed. However, he was still holding on by a strong will. He sensed that the Great Emperor was watching him. Perhaps, there was a chance he would be chosen.


    Ziwei the Great left an enigmatic mystery in the starry sky, but in the end, it was not the person who solved the mystery that received the inheritance, nor was it decided by competition. Ziwei the Great would be the ultimate decider.


    His Will had long survived in the world, had never decayed, and was integrated into the starry sky. When the starry sky lit up and the will restored, he would choose the heir he wanted himself.


    This kind of setup was quite shocking to him.


    ��Everything is a reincarnation of fate.�� An ancient voice sounded in Ye Futian��s mind, still tinged with the sound of a sorrowful sigh. In the next moment, Ye Futian felt a strong coercion merge within him. He felt that his spiritual soul was on the verge of collapse. It was an indescribable pain along with the fluctuation of starlight as Ye Futian��s consciousness began to falter in that boundless pain. Gradually, his consciousness was becoming blurry.


    In this instant, Ye Futian felt that he had become a part of the starry sky without any sense of the self. He was now on the verge of a deep slumber.


    The stars were endless, and Ye Futian had a feeling that he was the starry sky itself!

 Chapter 2239 - Unwilling

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The vast starry sky was extremely radiant at this moment. Extremely brilliant starlight sprinkled and covered the starry sky world, rendering it more gorgeous than ever before.


    In the area where Ye Futian was, an invisible heavenly might was born suddenly and swept out all the cultivators. In an instant, only Ye Futian was still there. However, it seemed that he had lost consciousness, floating helplessly in the starry sky, bathing in endless starlight and that sacred imperial light.


    At the same time, the seven rays of divine glory still connected the heavens and the earth, and the seven were unaffected. They had not given up the inheritance, nor did they go over to fight with Ye Futian. It was an unwise choice to give up this imperial-level inheritance that they have already obtained to compete for something unknown.


    Not only were there outside cultivators who had come to the starry sky previously, but also the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace, as well as other powerful characters from the outside; they knew what the right choice to make was.


    Those cultivators who were knocked down were stunned when they finally came to their senses. Then they looked at Ye Futian, who was floating in the starry sky.


    Did Ziwei the Great make a choice?


    Everyone was knocked down. There, the heavenly might was so horrific that someone as strong as the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace suffered the same fate just like everyone else.


    ��No���� The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace had a hard time accepting this reality. Since he stepped into this starry sky, his expression had remained composed, not betraying any of his true feelings, as he was absolutely confident in himself.


    He had been in charge of the Ziwei Segmentum for many years and acted as the spokesperson of Ziwei the Great. In this starry sky, the inheritance of Ziwei the Great should naturally belong to him. This was a matter of course, and there shouldn��t be any surprises at all.


    But what was the meaning of what he was seeing in front of him?


    The inheritance of Ziwei the Great was obtained by someone else?


    The will of the Great Emperor had chosen another and not him as the master of Ziwei Segmentum?


    How could this be happening!


    He could not accept a conclusion such as this. Ye Futian was just an outsider, a cultivator from other worlds, and not someone from Ziwei Segmentum. Why did the Great Emperor choose him?


    He didn��t understand, and neither did any of the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Their faces were full of disappointment. The truth was they had been slightly hopeful that the Great Emperor would choose one of them. After all, they were extraordinary talents from Ziwei Imperial Palace and should have a better chance than most.


    But no, the Great Emperor had not chosen any of them. Ziwei Imperial Palace seemed to be the outsiders instead.


    They didn��t understand why it ended like this. Even if they were not strong enough, what about the Palace Lord? He had been guarding Ziwei Segmentum. Shouldn��t the Great Emperor choose him to continue to rule this segment?


    Here used to be the world of Ziwei the Great.


    Before, what was the meaning of the sigh from the Great Emperor?


    No one knew the reason, except the result in front of them: Ziwei the Great had chosen Ye Futian. No one knew better than the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace and its cultivators that this was indeed the choice of Ziwei the Great. Only the ruling forces of Ziwei Segmentum understood with certainty that the will of Ziwei the Great had always existed in this starry sky.


    Today, Ziwei the Great had made his choice.


    A cultivator from the outside world, a white-haired young man in the Sixth Realm of Renhuang, had inherited his will.


    The people in Ziwei Imperial Palace didn��t understand, but the cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Academy were pleasantly surprised. Sure enough, even in this starry sky, among the top figures from Divine Prefecture, Dark World, and Empty Divine Realm, and even those from Ziwei Imperial Palace, he still stood out and became the ultimate winner, recognized by the Great Emperor himself.


    He was like the son of something divine. No matter who was competing with him, he had never lost.


    The cultivators from Four Corner Village had a different understanding. No wonder the teacher treated Ye Futian differently from the others. It looked like that the teacher got it right after all. Ziwei the Great had also chosen Ye Futian, who was a truly unparalleled genius talent.


    The people of the Shangqing Domain were also amazed, moved, even envious. When they were fighting over the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor, Ye Futian distinguished himself from the rest by being the only person who could comprehend the sacred remains. Now, he was, once again, the one and only.


    It was as if he was born to be so dazzling.


    If the sacred remain was just an accident, then what of Ziwei the Great��s choice?


    Was it just by chance? How could there be so many coincidences?


    All of this must be that Ye Futian had some extraordinary talents, probably even amazing talents. Otherwise, how could he become the one who stood out in this starry sky and have had defeated someone like the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace?


    Ning Hua of Donghua Domain and the others were equally conflicted in their minds.


    Of course, the most tormented crowd would be the local forces from the Original Realm, the sworn enemies of Ye Futian. The turmoil in the Original Realm had attracted the arrival of powerful outsiders. Although they had heard about some of Ye Futian��s deeds while he was in the Divine Prefecture, they thought that those were just stories. Ye Futian had already threatened their peace of mind.


    And now, he was the one inheriting the will of Ziwei the Great. What did it mean?


    If Ye Futian was allowed to continue with his growth, it could spell disaster for everyone.


    Undoubtedly, Ye Futian would become a peerless figure in the future, one of the strongest cultivators to stand at the peak. How could they contend with him? When Ye Futian was strong enough, he would certainly bring a major purge upon them; on this point, they were all in agreement.


    Cultivators from the Shen Clan, Golden Divine Nation, Tianshen Academy, and others were extremely conflicted. It seemed that Ye Futian must be eliminated and must not be allowed to continue his development.


    Everyone��s attention was focused in one direction, which was where Ye Futian was.


    At this moment, the starlight was still brilliant, but Ye Futian��s body was drifting towards the starry sky with incredible speed. It was as if he was being pulled by a divine light, soaring upward.


    Buzz! At this moment, the crowd felt an astonishing breath that made the hearts of these cultivators skip a beat. Who was about to make a move?


    To make a move at the time while the Great Emperor was passing on his inheritance?


    When everyone saw the person who acted, they were shocked. It was the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Even the cultivators from the imperial palace were quite surprised when they beheld this sight, watching the Palace Lord attacking Ye Futian.


    Ziwei the Great was the deity of Ziwei Segmentum and the master of this world. Even though he did not choose a cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace, the Imperial Palace was obligated to accept any decision he made.


    After all, as they ruled Ziwei Segmentum, they themselves were the executors of Ziwei the Great��s will.


    Now, the will of Ziwei the Great had chosen Ye Futian, then they, too, were expected to follow the will of Ziwei the Great, even allowing Ye Futian to enter the imperial palace.


    But the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace did not. At this moment, he chose to attack Ye Futian.


    Old Ma and the other cultivators changed their expressions. Could someone such as the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace be corrupt?


    Everyone could easily guess the reason behind his action. He, who should have been the obvious heir of Ziwei the Great, had now become insecure because Ziwei the Great had chosen Ye Futian and not him. Perhaps in his view, the inheritance of Ziwei the Great should belong to him.


    Indeed, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace did think so. How many years had it been?


    He had lived untold many years and had been guarding Ziwei Segmentum for Ziwei the Great. He had already cultivated to the highest realm, the peak of human capacity, and with this one last step, he would be among the gods.


    But he couldn��t cross this step. All the hopes were tied with the inheritance of Ziwei the Great. This time as if aided by the heavens, the outsiders arrived to unlock the secret of the starry sky. He thought that he was finally moving closer to that final step.


    The significance of this step to him was beyond anyone��s imagination. He had feared that he would never be able to pass through its threshold, and only Ziwei the Great could help him.


    One more step and he would become a deity himself, standing at the peak of the world.


    At a moment like this, Ziwei the Great didn��t give him the chance to take that last step. One could only imagine how he felt.


    Unwilling, anger, even jealousy.


    His mind had completely changed. The Great Emperor had deceived him. He had upheld the will of the Great Emperor and guarded this segment for countless years. Why did he not choose him in the end?


    Above the firmament, the starry divine sword appeared, traversing the void. No one could stop it, nor were they able to stop it in time.


    The starry divine sword straddled the void, and a violent booming roar came from above the firmament. It slammed it at Ye Futian, intending on cutting him down, ending any chance he might have of getting the inheritance.


    The Great Emperor had betrayed him first, so he could not be faulted for being ruthless in return. From now on, not only would he no longer worship Ziwei, but he would be its worst enemy.


    The heart of Old Ma and the others were beating wildly; they were extremely worried. That terrifying starry divine sword penetrated the void and pierced into the starlight, aiming at Ye Futian for the kill. However, at this moment, in the starry light beam that fell from the sky, there was an irresistible sacred majesty hidden within it. As soon as the Starry divine sword entered into it, it burnt like paper on fire, turning into fragments little by little. Soon, it disappeared altogether in ashes, dissipated before it could even touch Ye Futian.


    Seeing this, the cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Academy and Four Corner Village were much relieved. However, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace looked extremely upset. Was everything already planned by the Great Emperor?


    But he still couldn��t understand: why was Ye Futian chosen?


    What��s so special about that white-haired young man?


    And, what could he do even if he did receive the inheritance?


    There were so many powerful people here. As a mere Renhuang of the Sixth Realm, could he survive them?


    Even if this starry sky world could protect him for the moment, what about after he was out of it? Who would protect him then?


    Looking at the figure that drifted toward the starry sky, everyone��s mind was wondering as they could only watch. Even the Palace Lord himself couldn��t do anything about it, let alone them.


    Ye Futian knew none of this. He was still immersed in the previous sensations. His body and spirit soul no longer belonged to him but to this starry sky world. Like Ziwei the Great, he seemed to become one with this starry sky!

 Chapter 2240 - Awaken

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the starry sky, time seemed to stand still as everything returned to tranquility.


    In the quietude of the starry sky, everyone looked at Ye Futian, who was protected by the will of the Great Emperor and out of anyone��s reach.


    All the cultivators could only watch it happen, watching Ye Futian as he inherited the will of Ziwei the Great.


    A terrible power was still surging from the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, and he was most reluctant as he watched. Those eyes that looked toward Ye Futian were filled with hateful, murderous intent. He watched the starry sky with an overwhelming sense of resentment.


    He couldn��t bear any of these. Why did Ziwei the Great make such a choice?


    ��Palace Lord.�� A group of cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace came to him, and one of the elders whispered, ��Palace Lord, the Great Emperor must have his purpose in doing this. Since the Great Emperor has made a choice, we have to respect it.��


    This old man was an elder from Ziwei Imperial Palace who had followed the Palace Lord for countless years in cultivation, or else he would not have dared to say such words at a moment like this. Because he was a close associate, he took a risk in persuading the Palace Lord.


    As the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace slowly turned his eyes to them, there was a degree of coldness in them. When the old man saw those eyes, his heart skipped a beat. He could sense the strong resentment in his eyes. He just never expected that the choice of the Great Emperor��s will would have had such a major impact on the Palace Lord, enough to alter his state of mind completely.


    He was no longer the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace that he knew.


    Perhaps it was because of the total dismantling of his faith. The Emperor that he had worshipped in countless years had now betrayed him. This was what the Palace Lord felt. He had lost his faith, and it completely changed his state of mind. This sudden and utter change was enough to throw even a top figure like the Palace Lord out of balance.


    ��Palace Lord,�� others called out to him. Compared to the Palace Lord, they were much more flexible. Their minds were not so firmly made up. Furthermore, even though they had some hope for the Great Emperor��s inheritance, it was more like an audacious hope, not something that could be reflected in reality.


    When they saw the changes in the Palace Lord, it was natural for them to console him. After all, this was the will of the Great Emperor, and Ziwei Imperial Palace was the executor of the will of the Great Emperor.


    ��Shut up, all of you.�� The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace glanced at everyone with an icy look. Everyone could feel his tremendous changes, and for a time, all the cultivators fell silent. The Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace looked towards the firmament. He said, ��If you still recognize me as the Palace Lord, then you will immediately kill this person and seize his inheritance as soon as this is over. This inheritance belongs to Ziwei Segmentum by right and Ziwei Imperial Palace, not some outsider.��


    When everyone heard his words, their hearts throbbed. It seemed that he had already made up his mind. No one could change it.


    No one tried to persuade him any further, as everything must work according to its own fate. However, since the Great Emperor had measures in place, it wouldn��t be easy for the Palace Lord to kill Ye Futian. No one was certain whether the will of the Great Emperor was still around.


    If the Great Emperor��s will was really there, the Palace Lord��s actions might very well offend the Great Emperor.


    The cultivators from the outside world watched in the direction of Ziwei Imperial Palace and its cultivators with some sympathy. No wonder the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace lost his mind. At his cultivation realm, there were possibilities that he may never advance further. But he was only a step away from the utmost peak.


    The inheritance of the Ziwei the Great was his last and ultimate hope, but the Great Emperor did not choose him��his spokesperson��but Ye Futian. No matter who this happened to, no one could swallow such treatment in silence.


    The cultivators from other forces also sighed. This was the inheritance of Ziwei the Great. Now, did it find someone it could belong to?


    No cultivators from top principalities in Divine Prefecture would have imagined that someone like this could come out of the ether and seized the inheritance of the Great Emperor.


    Of course, he was also the one who solved the mystery of the Great Emperor. It was as if this was how everything should have happened as a matter of course.


    ��Shall we go?�� the cultivators from the Shen Clan asked, prepared to leave.


    Many forces from the Empty Realm sighed secretly in their hearts, and a thought crossed their minds. If Ye Futian did obtain the inheritance of the Great Emperor, there could only be two outcomes. One was that he would be slaughtered and the inheritance would be taken from him. But in that case, it wouldn��t be their turn anyways.


    Another possible outcome would be that the Great Emperor had left measures in place to protect Ye Futian and kill any attackers. In this latter scenario, they were not safe here. If Ye Futian had really gotten the power of the Great Emperor, it was possible that he would deal with them right here, right now.


    For them, there was not much point in staying now.


    ��Let��s go,�� someone said. Suddenly, many cultivators stepped away, leaving this starry sky world behind, moving away from these conflicts.


    When they found an opportunity in the future, they would deal with Ye Futian then.


    Now, they shared a sense of urgency. They couldn��t leave Ye Futian alone for much longer; the threat he posed to them was far too great.


    Soon, many left.


    In another direction, the other seven cultivators who were being baptized by the imperial stars also came out and stopped comprehending and cultivating. They looked at the figure in the starry sky and saw Ye Futian seemed to have fallen into a deep slumber. No one knew how he was doing at that moment.


    ��Luo Su.��


    The Outer Violet Heaven��s cultivators were there. A middle-aged man called out to her as Luo Su responded, ��Father.��


    ��What��s going on?�� Luo Su��s father was Lord Luo of the Outer Violet Heaven. He had amazing cultivation and an expert in divine melodies.


    ��Before, when I comprehended the imperial star, it was with Emperor Ye��s help that I was able to inherit the power of one of the imperial stars. Emperor Ye is the first to perceive this imperial star that can be inherited by me,�� Luo Su explained.


    Lord Luo looked shocked at this unexpected revelation and glanced in Ye Futian��s direction. He didn��t expect this white-haired young man who had inherited the power of the Great Emperor would help Luo Su, his daughter.


    It seemed that if he were to get into trouble, they had to help him however they could.


    Many people were slightly surprised when they overheard this conversation and looked at them curiously. Among them, including Lord Taihua, clearly perceived the power that was contained within the imperial star, and it was rhythm.


    His daughter, Goddess Taihua, had amazing attainments in music as well and was greatly talented.


    So, if they were speaking of acquaintance, his daughter had fought with Ye Futian at Donghua Banquet. Why did Ye Futian rather help Luo Su instead of his daughter?


    This was a surprise to him.


    Goddess Taihua seemed to understand the meaning in her father��s eyes. She lowered her head slightly and sighed in her heart. Ye Futian had originally wanted to help her but was refused by her. Now she could only watch Luo Su as Futian inherited the imperial star. He thought about what an excellent opportunity she had lost.


    She communicated with her father through voice transmission, and Lord Taihua didn��t say much except, ��Don��t think too much now that it��s over.��


    ��Mmm,�� Goddess Taihua nodded.


    At this time, Lord Taihua was also considering how to face Ye Futian. In a sense, Ye Futian��s potential was higher than Ning Hua��s. If he did not get himself killed, his future achievements would be astounding.


    But Ye Futian was already in a feud with the Domain Chief��s Manor of Donghua Domain. And now, the Domain Chief��s Manor seemed to want Ning Hua and his daughter to come together.


    Therefore, for him, this matter seemed to be getting thornier by the minute, and he would have to make some decisions soon.


    All the cultivators were waiting quietly. It seemed that after a very long time, above the sky, Ye Futian slowly opened his eyes as his body floated upward.


    At this moment, everyone��s eyes were focused on that figure. Ye Futian seemed to have transformed. In the center of his brow chakra, there seemed to be a ray of sacred light, and his entire body was shrouded in a layer of divine glory. Such a majestic posture was befitting of a young Great Emperor!

 Chapter 2241 - Invincible Being

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Divine light also radiated from Ye Futian��s eyes. Ye Futian looked like he had undergone another metamorphosis.


    Did he obtain Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance!? many practitioners wondered. After looking at the change in Ye Futian��s aura, it was highly likely that he had obtained the power of Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance.


    From the ground, Ziwei Imperial Palace��s palace lord leaped into the air and walked toward Ye Futian. The cultivators in the area could clearly sense the murderous aura that he was emitting.


    Clearly, the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace wanted to take back the inheritance that he thought belonged to him.


    He was the person in charge of the Ziwei Segmentum now. Even though he used to follow the will of Great Emperor Ziwei in the past, his faith in Ziwei had waned.


    Now that Ye Futian obtained Ziwei��s inheritance, he wanted to kill Ye Futian, destroy his own belief, and seize the inheritance.


    ��Palace Lord!�� the practitioners of Ziwei Imperial Palace shouted, in a tone that sounded like they did not want the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace to do that. If the palace lord really went ahead and did that, their beliefs would be overlooked. Everything that they believed in the Ziwei Imperial Palace would be subverted.


    Every practitioner in the Ziwei Segmentum embraced the belief of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    However, how would the Ziwei Imperial Palace��s palace lord hear the pleas of their heart at that moment? His mood had completely changed; the palace lord��s mind was already made up.


    A ray of frightening Starry Divine Light flew into the sky. It was gorgeous and eye-catching, like a shooting star, albeit from the bottom up. It flew across the sky��s horizon and went straight towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian shifted his gaze towards that bright divine light. Then, as if an astounding God��s Might was contained within him, a vigorous and powerful voice came out of Ye Futian��s mouth, ��Outrageous!��


    The voice echoed in the starry sky and resonated with the entire sky. It made every practitioner shudder. Even the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace quaked intensely in their hearts. They stared straight at Ye Futian.


    Was this Ye Futian��s voice?


    At that moment, many of the practitioners felt a sense of deja vu. The voice sounded like the Great Emperor. It was as if it was a scolding from Great Emperor Ziwei.


    The beautiful divine light stopped moving. The palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace was also stunned. He looked at Ye Futian. The expressions on his face kept changing. It seemed a little distorted as he opened his mouth and said, ��Great Emperor.��


    He felt the existence of the Great Emperor��s will.


    Ye Futian lowered his head to look at Ziwei Imperial Palace��s palace lord and said, ��I have inherited Great Emperor Ziwei��s will. From this day forth, I will represent Great Emperor Ziwei in leading the Ziwei Segment. You will all obey my commands.��


    The voice was majestic and dignified. It sounded like Ye Futian but also the Great Emperor. Many could not tell if it was real or it was just an illusion.


    Nonetheless, it still made the hearts of the cultivators tremble. Ye Futian said that he had inherited Great Emperor Ziwei��s will and that from today onwards, he would represent Great Emperor Ziwei and take charge of the Segmentum!


    Ye Futian was going to take charge of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    This�� Was he going to directly replace the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace?


    If he took charge of the Ziwei Segmentum, what would happen?


    Ye Futian was going to take charge of one of the most domineering factions in this world. It had an unparalleled influence.


    However, the expression on the face of Ziwei Imperial Palace��s palace lord changed once more after he heard Ye Futian��s proclamation. In the beginning, he panicked and did not know what to do because he sensed the Great Emperor��s aura. However, after hearing Ye Futian��s proclamation, the anger in his heart seemed to have been reignited.


    Did he want to take charge of the Ziwei Segmentum in the name of Great Emperor Ziwei?


    Then, what was he?


    He had been managing the Ziwei Segmentum in the name of Great Emperor Ziwei for many years, and he had long since become used to this status. He was the master of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    However, at that moment, with just a simple proclamation, Great Emperor Ziwei handed over the Ziwei Segmentum to this heir?


    What did his years of service count for?


    As he thought of that, a frightening surge of energy emanated from the body of Ziwei Imperial Palace��s palace lord. In the vast and boundless starry dimension, starry divine lights lit up. It looked as though countless starry divine swords had appeared. They then pointed towards Ye Futian.


    Even if the Great Emperor��s will were with him, the palace lord would still kill Ye Futian.


    On this day, the palace lord would destroy the existence that he worshiped and had dedicated countless years to.


    Boom! His body, along with that frightening energy, charged into the sky and towards Ye Futian��s position. The cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace were speechless when they saw this happen. In the end, they had still reached this stage after all.


    Everything would change.


    Either their palace lord would die, or Ye Futian would be killed and the Great Emperor��s will would be destroyed along with him. No matter what happened, they never could have imagined an ending like this. Even though the mystery of the starry dimension was resolved, they were faced with such a cruel situation. If they had known before, they would have never tried to solve the mystery of the starry dimension and decipher the inheritance that the Great Emperor left behind.


    However, it was already too late. They could only watch as things unfold before them �C to witness the imperial palace lord charge at Ye Futian to kill him.


    Not only the practitioners of Ziwei Imperial Palace were watching. The other cultivators in the dimension were also watching. Some of the factions that held grudges against Ye Futian had already left quietly. Ye Futian��s proclamation earlier instilled a sense of fear in them. It was as if Ye Futian had borrowed from Great Emperor Ziwei��s will to speak. If that were really the case, Ye Futian might become incredibly scary as he would be able to fight with the Great Emperor��s strength.


    The frightening energy seemed to have reached Ye Futian��s body. However, at that moment, every star in the sky seemed to be moving. Then, the countless stars in the vast and boundless sky began to emanate a fearsome divine light all at the same time. The next moment, those divine lights merged and transformed into a Heaven-slaying Divine Sword.


    The Heaven-slaying Divine Sword descended directly from above, and in an instant, every single starry divine sword charging towards Ye Futian had been destroyed.


    As the Heaven-slaying Divine Sword drew closer towards the Ziwei Imperial Palace��s lord, the palace lord let out a powerful roar. His body was then surrounded by a gigantic star that looked like a layer of formidable defense. It was an absolute Starry Domain. It would not be destroyed.


    Rumble! A shocking rumbling sound rang in the air. The sky trembled as the hearts of the practitioners beat rapidly. They could feel the entire Starry World shaking intensely. The stars seemed to be moving. The stars, real stars, in the sky had actually moved. They flew towards the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace in the starry sky.


    ��This����


    Every cultivator present was utterly stunned by the scene in front of them. Stars in the sky had actually fallen from the sky and surrounded Ye Futian. Those were real stars. They were enormous, and as they descended, they completely covered the sky. These flew towards the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Bang! A loud bang. The palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace��s star defense was destroyed. The fearsome divine lights continued to fly towards him. The palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace looked exceptionally small at that moment. Between the stars and the divine sword, he had no way to escape.


    ��Bang, bang, bang!�� Sounds of crashes rang in the air simultaneously. A horrible scene of destruction was left in the sky. It looked like heaven and earth had crumbled. Multiple stars were crumbling into pieces. These stars had turned into giant boulders as well as dust. The giant boulders fell from the sky as if they were falling meteorites.


    The cultivators in the lower part of the sky stood still. Giant boulders were falling towards them, but their Powers of the Great Path could destroy those boulders. It looked like they were standing in the middle of a crumbling world. However, no one paid any attention to that. Their gazes were focused on the sky. The Ziwei Imperial Palace��s palace lord still stood there. An extremely beautiful ray of divine light pierced his body. However, despite this, he did not immediately dissipate.


    He still held his staff firmly in his hand. His blood-red eyes looked up into the sky, staring at Ye Futian��s figure. He naturally knew that this was not Ye Futian��s doing; the Great Emperor��s will was still there.


    Then, the body of the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace began to blur. He suddenly smiled. It was an eerie-looking smile, which was also tinged with a sense of sadness.


    ��Great Emperor, just what am I��?�� It seemed like he was asking a rhetorical question, though it also looked like it was a question directed at Great Emperor Ziwei. Just what was he?


    He did not understand. He only felt that his life was sad.


    No one responded. It was impossible to respond. Amidst that sad smile, the spiritual soul of the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace broke into pieces before dissipating into nothingness.


    ��I hate!��


    A voice filled the sky. It was the voice of the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace. While he had died, he did not go willingly. He left his hatred behind. Under the starry sky, the cultivators present could feel the residual hatred that he left behind scattered in the air.


    He hated. Of course, he hated.


    The practitioners in the sky were speechless. He was an incredibly powerful being, a God-defying existence who had gone through the divine tribulation twice. However, just like that, he died. Moreover, he died with an endless amount of hate. It was certainly a loss.


    How unfortunate! they thought. However, the ending was decided as soon as the palace lord moved against Ye Futian. It could not be changed. The Great Emperor��s will, even though just a strand, was still an existence that could not be contended with.


    Many people also felt a sense of sadness. The palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace��s last question echoed in their minds.


    Great Emperor, just what am I?!


    Yes! What was he?


    Perhaps, in the eyes of the Great Emperor, mortals were like ants. In front of his heir, the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace was, naturally, just like an ant. He was directly stepped on and killed. There was absolutely no nostalgia.


    They looked into the sky, at Ye Futian��Great Emperor Ziwei��s heir.


    It seemed like the Great Emperor��s strand of will had assimilated with Ye Futian. However, no one really knew what the actual details were. Only Ye Futian himself knew.


    In truth, when Ye Futian saw the death of Ziwei Imperial Palace��s palace lord, he also experienced slight emotional fluctuations. After all, he was an incredibly powerful cultivator. If he were to guide and support Ye Futian, what kind of situation would they be in?


    Unfortunately, the hatred harbored by the lord of this imperial palace towards him was just too strong. With his faith already collapsed, the palace lord wanted to kill Ye Futian, even if it meant becoming an enemy of Great Emperor Ziwei��s will. When that happened, it was already decided that there was no going back. Ye Futian��s only choice was to kill him. An enemy like that was just too dangerous.


    Everything was finally over. Ye Futian succeeded in controlling the power he inherited from Great Emperor Ziwei. Moreover, just as he expected, Great Emperor Ziwei also left room for maneuver and helped him resolve future issues. Under the sky in the starry dimension, no one would be able to touch him.


    Great Emperor Ziwei��s will was no longer with Ye Futian in his body. Instead, it was in the stars in the sky. The revolution of the power of the stars meant the existence of the Great Emperor��s will.


    As for Ye Futian, his spiritual soul had already assimilated into the stars in the sky. He had become one with the Great Emperor��s will. As such, as long as he was under the sky, he was an invincible being!

 Chapter 2242 - Shock

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After the palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace died, the starry dimension fell into temporary silence. No one spoke. They could only stare at the figure in the sky.


    Many world-class cultivators had come to the starry dimension; however, at that moment, the white-haired youth at the sixth plane level was most definitely the true protagonist. He was the brightest star under the starry sky.


    The practitioners from the Heavenly Mandate Academy held their fists tightly. For Ye Futian, this was yet another large opportunity. It had an extraordinary meaning. In this chaotic era, if Ye Futian could take control of the Ziwei Segmentum, he would utilize immense power and resources.


    The power of the Ziwei Imperial Palace could easily overpower all the factions in the Original Realm. Even if it were in the Divine Prefecture, not many forces could be stronger than the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    However, the only regrettable thing was the palace lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. A top-notch cultivator had died. If only he followed the Great Emperor��s will and supported Ye Futian, everything would have been different. A cultivator standing at the peak was someone who could make the total number of normal cultivators obsolete. He would have been able to crush all the cultivators in the Ziwei Segmentum himself. It was a difference in quality.


    One can only sigh at how things turned out. It was miserable.


    Then, at that moment, Ye Futian lowered his head to look towards a location in the sky below him, where Ziwei Imperial Palace��s cultivators had gathered. Then, he said, ��Are you willing to follow my will and support him?��


    The voice echoed in the sky. While it came out of Ye Futian��s mouth, the voice also reverberated in the sky above the stars. It was as if Ye Futian was not the actual person speaking, but instead, it was the Great Emperor��s voice.


    Great Emperor Ziwei wanted the practitioners under the Ziwei Imperial Palace to support Ye Futian.


    The voice was majestic and dignified. God��s Might diffused downward.


    The cultivators had just recently witnessed the death of their palace lord. In truth, their hearts had not calmed down. Doubt had also begun to form in their minds. Regardless, it was still the Great Emperor��the God that they believed in since the first day they started cultivating. It was their religion.


    Moreover, under the circumstances, who would dare disobey the Great Emperor��s will?


    Then, one person bowed slightly and said, ��I willingly obey the Great Emperor��s will and will support him.��


    ��We will obey the Great Emperor��s will.�� The cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace lowered their heads. They were willing to obey the Great Emperor��s will even though they still had some doubts in their minds. After all, the Great Emperor personally asked them. What else could they have done?


    That was the God of the Ziwei Segmentum. While he died many years ago, he was still their God. In the eyes of the people of Ziwei Segmentum, the Great Emperor was an eternal existence. Moreover, he had just appeared in front of them.


    ��Support Ye Futian and help him reach the top. He will be in charge of the Ziwei Imperial Palace and rule the Ziwei Segmentum. If he one day inherits the emperor��s throne, it will also serve as an opportunity to all of you,�� the voice sounded again, still echoing all over the boundless starry sky. The echo kept on going and did not stop for a long time.


    Upon hearing this, the hearts of many trembled. Ye Futian�� inherit the emperor��s throne?


    Did Great Emperor Ziwei believe that Ye Futian would one day reach the peak and enter the Great Emperor Plane?


    Was that the reason why he chose Ye Futian instead of Ziwei Imperial Palace��s palace lord?


    The hearts of the practitioners from Divine Prefecture and those from the outer realms trembled.


    Emperor. An existence that stood at the peak of this world.


    At that time, how many great emperors were there under the Heavenly Path?


    Inheriting the emperor��s throne was easier said than done.


    Like other practitioners, the Ziwei Imperial Palace cultivators also felt uneasy. If Great Emperor Ziwei really thought that, they understood it a little bit more. The Great Emperor wanted someone who could inherit his emperor��s throne.


    To them, to all of Ziwei Segmentum, the appearance of a Great Emperor would hold extraordinary meaning.


    As they thought of this, their hearts seemed to have calmed down a little bit. They could accept Ye Futian��s existence now.


    ��Yes, Great Emperor,�� said the cultivators, bowing. Seeing this, the practitioners from the outer realms understood that there was a high possibility that Ye Futian would become the ruler of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    After inheriting Great Emperor Ziwei��s will, he would rule one of the strongest factions in the world.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace, a gathering place for the cultivators of the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    Everything is over now, thought many practitioners. The inheritance belonged to Ye Futian. He was the largest winner.


    Of course, seven other people gained powers from the Great Emperor��s inheritance; however, two of the seven were Ye Futian��s companions. One was Luo Su, who Ye Futian helped.


    Moreover, after Ye Futian mastered the Great Emperor��s inheritance, the entire Starry dimension belonged to him. Lighting a star was a piece of cake to him. He could also help others cultivate. To them, these were all incredibly meaningful.


    This was an ending that no one foresaw. Traces of unrest in the Original Realm; the opening of the long-sealed Ziwei Segmentum that ultimately came under Ye Futian��s control.


    After this day, perhaps everyone from the Divine Prefecture��s top factions would know Ye Futian��s name.


    ��


    Starlight revolved. The aura emanating from Ye Futian��s body began to change again. While still exceptional, his eyes no longer contain emperor might like before. In that instant, everyone started to understand. The Great Emperor��s will had previously assimilated into Ye Futian��s body.


    Ye Futian��s body floated downward. Immediately, Emperor Nan, Old Ma, along with many other cultivators, began to move towards him. Even though things seemed to have already settled, they could not lower their guard. What if someone who still wanted to confront Ye Futian for wresting the power of the inheritance away for himself still existed?


    Upon reaching the ground, Ye Futian nodded to them slightly. After that, he walked towards the Ziwei Imperial Palace cultivators and said, ��Your junior �C Ye Futian �C is honored to meet his fellow elders and seniors.��


    As he spoke, he actually bowed to the cultivators proactively. It seemed incredibly polite. The scene left a slightly good impression on the people of Ziwei Imperial Palace. The Great Emperor wanted them to support Ye Futian. Naturally, they were not very comfortable with that. After all, Ye Futian was younger than them. However, they could not do anything since it was an order of the Great Emperor. For Ye Futian to be so polite with them, they were naturally feeling better.


    ��By the name of the Great Emperor, we will support Emperor Ye. From today onwards, Emperor Huang should assume the Ziwei Imperial Palace��s position of palace lord. What do you say?�� Said an elder. He was the second-in-command of Ziwei Imperial Palace, the Supreme Elder of the palace. He was also a practitioner who had lived for many years. His seniority in the family was very high.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. Then, he said, ��The Great Emperor has also demanded something from me. With my cultivation level, I should not be qualified to take this position. However, since it is the will of the Great Emperor, I will gladly obey. Of course, even though I am the palace lord, affairs related to the Ziwei Imperial Palace and the Ziwei Segmentum will still be cared for by all of you, dear elders. I will focus on cultivation and hope to reach your levels as soon as possible so that I do not let the Great Emperor down.��


    Clearly, Ye Futian did not have any intention to rule the imperial palace on that day. He still needed time. He would move step-by-step.


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace nodded slightly. They admired Ye Futian��s action and behavior somewhat. They were also feeling a lot better.


    Raising his head, Ye Futian gazed at the starry sky. Then, he said, ��In the future, Ziwei Imperial Palace practitioners may come here to cultivate. I can help give them a push.��


    Everyone knew what Ye Futian meant by that. That arrangement would greatly help the Ziwei Imperial Palace practitioners.


    Ye Futian began to relax after he saw that the cultivators had calmed down. He finally completed the arrangements for Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    In truth, it was not Great Emperor Ziwei issuing commands earlier. It was all a part of his plan. He disguised himself as Great Emperor Ziwei to issue those orders. The will of Great Emperor Ziwei did indeed exist, and it did assimilate with the starry sky. He could also borrow its power; however, it was impossible to let Great Emperor Ziwei speak.


    Ye Futian himself did everything. To take control of Ziwei Imperial Palace and completely rule the starry cultivation court, he had to do what he did.


    Otherwise, he might have even faced grave dangers. Ziwei Imperial Palace might target him, and the other external factions might have also targeted him.


    The good thing was that everything had been settled by now. He was also recognized by Ziwei Imperial Palace and would soon become the new palace lord.


    With these arrangements settled, Ye Futian gazed again at the practitioners far away and said, ��Everyone, let��s leave things at that. Please.��


    Clearly, he was ushering for the guests to leave.


    Everything was over. It would have also been inappropriate to ask the practitioners to remain there.


    The practitioners looked at Ye Futian. Some of them frowned and said, ��Emperor Ye. You have obtained the Great Emperor��s inheritance. However, there are many bizarre and astonishing places in the starry dimension. There is also the Imperial Star. Emperor Ye, why not be magnanimous and keep this starry cultivation court open? What do you say?��


    Ye Futian looked at the person who spoke. So, they wanted to stay and continue cultivating, huh?


    There was no way something so easy existed in the world.


    He smiled and said, ��Dear senior, you misunderstood me. It is not that I do not want you to cultivate here, but instead, the will of the Great Emperor has awakened. He watches over everything that happens within the dimension, and no matter what you do, the Great Emperor would know. If you wish to join Ziwei Imperial Palace, the Great Emperor will most likely have no opinion. However, if you want to stay and cultivate at the court, unfortunately����


    After a brief pause, Ye Futian continued and said, ��If you don��t believe me, you can give it a try. I will not intervene.��


    After hearing Ye Futian��s words, the cultivators were doubtful. The Great Emperor��s will had recovered, and he would not allow it?


    ��Let me try,�� said a person. Shortly after, a figure suddenly leaped into the air. The person headed towards a higher altitude while gazing at the stars. However, at that moment, countless stars suddenly became brighter. Following that, a frightening mass of Heaven��s authority spread from above, causing the expressions on the practitioners�� faces to change abruptly.


    The mass of heaven��s might continued to push downward; Starry Divine Lights spread downward, which caused the powerful figure to salute the starry sky and say, ��Apologies for disturbing the Great Emperor, please forgive me.��


    As he spoke, his body turned downwards he began to retreat. In an instant, that mass of emperor��s might had vanished.


    This scene caused the expression on everyone��s faces to change. They continued to stare at the starry sky.


    The Great Emperor��s will had awakened. Would it always exist?


    If that were the case, they would have no hope.


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace felt all kinds of emotions as they watched the series of events take place in front of them. However, the awakening of the Great Emperor��s will was most certainly a boon for them.


    However, they did not know that Ye Futian staged everything.


    ��Since that is done, we will take our leave,�� said a person to the sky, saluting. The Great Emperor was there. What else could they do?


    ��Dear seniors, elders, please go ahead,�� Ye Futian said. Before long, the practitioners started to move as they prepared to leave this place!

 Chapter 2243 - Threat

    A great number of cultivators appeared in front of the Divine Palace of the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian stood at their center atop a flight of stairs. The people on either side of him and behind him were all top figures from Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    The people down below were the cultivators of the palace.


    The Ziwei Imperial Palace was the controlling power of the Ziwei Segmentum. All of the top figures in the Segmentum cultivated there, so there were naturally many people there. There were cultivators as far as the eye could see. There were even a great number of Renhuangs.


    Cultivators from other continents had come as well. They were all vassal forces of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. Once they had been notified, they had come via the grand matrix of space.


    Once they learned of all that had happened, they could not help but be shocked.


    Cultivators from Tianhuan Palace had come as well. Their Palace Lord looked at the white-haired figure whom everyone was clustered around. He felt like he was in a dream. None of it seemed real.


    Not long before, Ye Futian had brought people to Tianhuan Palace to seek out information. There they had learned of the situation in the Ziwei Segmentum. He had been the one to tell Ye Futian all of this and who had asked him to come to the Ziwei Imperial Star.


    Now, Ye Futian had inherited the mantle of the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Today, the Ziwei Imperial Palace had called together all the Ziwei Segmentum cultivators to announce this news officially. The old Palace Lord had fallen. From now on, the Ziwei Imperial Palace would have a new Palace Lord.


    A group of cultivators was standing off to the side. They had come from the Heavenly Mandate Academy and some of the allied forces. Cultivators from Four Corner Village were there as well. The other forces had already left, but these were still there. They wanted to witness Ye Futian take the position of Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace together.


    The Supreme Elder of Ziwei Imperial Palace, Renhuang Chen, stepped forward holding a scepter. This was the scepter that the previous Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace had wielded, and now Ye Futian had inherited. However, Ye Futian did not accept it. Instead, he had given it to the Supreme Elder.


    Moreover, he had left the Supreme Elder in charge of the affairs of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the Ziwei Segmentum on his behalf.


    Previously, aside from the Palace Lord, Renhuang Chen was the most accomplished cultivator and the person with the highest status. Ye Futian had let him keep face by giving him the scepter. Obviously, he had done this to win over the people��s hearts. After all, although he was the new Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, his position was not that secure. But if Renhuang Chen were helping him, his station would be as solid as a mountain.


    Thus, Ye Futian had done everything he could to win over Renhuang Chen. Moreover, he did not want to be bothered with the daily affairs of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Renhuang Chen could do it easily since he was so familiar with them.


    Renhuang Chen walked down the steps holding the scepter. He looked down at the vast crowd of cultivators, lifted the scepter, and spoke in a loud, clear voice, saying, ��Ye Futian uncovered the secret of the stars at the Starry Cultivation Court. He found the inheritance of the Great Emperor and inherited it. Now, in accordance with the will of the Great Emperor, Ye Futian will be named the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.��


    His voice rolled out, going to every corner of Ziwei Imperial Palace and ringing in everyone��s ears. Everyone knew what had happened up in the starry sky. None of them would bring up the death of the former Palace Lord again. It was not important.


    Now, Ye Futian was the new Palace Lord.


    All of the powerful figures on both sides of Ye Futian and those behind him bowed to him, honoring him as their Palace Lord. ��Congratulations, Palace Lord.��


    Below them, the crowd of cultivators bowed as well. ��Congratulations, Palace Lord,�� they called out in ringing voices.


    The cultivators who had come from other continents bowed as well, congratulating him together. ��Congratulations, Palace Lord.��


    For a time, their voices filled the air, seeming to produce a resonance with heaven and earth that made everyone��s hearts tremble.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace had a new Palace Lord: Ye Futian!


    He stepped forward, gazing at everyone, then said in a loud, clear voice, ��I have inherited the will of Great Emperor Ziwei and have uncovered the secret of his cultivation area. All of the powers of the various star continents in the Ziwei Segmentum can follow my lead. The cultivators of the Imperial Palace will get this chance as well.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord,�� everyone answered. They held great expectations in their hearts about the mystery in the starry sky of Great Emperor Ziwei��s cultivation area. It was said that there were many powers that the Great Emperor had left behind there. They would all have the chance to cultivate there.


    ��You may all leave for now. You are free to cultivate here in Ziwei Imperial Palace as you like,�� continued Ye Futian. Supreme Elder Renhuang Chen waved his hand, and everyone dispersed. They had just wanted to call everyone together to hold a simple ceremony. They did not want anything too complicated.


    After taking up his position as Palace Lord, he brought some cultivators into the starry sky to cultivate. His goal in doing this was to win the people over even faster. Since he had taken this position, he naturally had to show his worth to them. Otherwise, how would the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace get people to trust him?


    The forces from the various continents of the Starry Dimension, Ziwei Imperial Palace, and the Ziwei Segmentum were all there, as well as the cultivators who had accompanied Ye Futian from the Original Realm. They had all come to the starry sky.


    Ye Futian, who stood at the front of all the other cultivators, had inherited the will of Great Emperor Ziwei. Now, what method could he use to make them understand the power of the Imperial Stars?


    They all watched as Ye Futian floated up towards the stars. He looked up into the sky, and with a single thought, the stars all suddenly lit up with brilliant radiance. And in several places among them, smaller starry regions seemed to appear. The images of emperors appeared there.


    Seven imperial figures appeared amid the stars. There was an Imperial Star in each region where they appeared, shining with incredibly brilliant starlight.


    ��Go on. As long as you can connect with one of the Imperial Stars with your consciousness, you will resonate with its power, and you��ll be able to inherit the power of the Great Emperor,�� Ye Futian called out as he looked down at the others. There was a burst of responses from the starry sky.


    All of the cultivators trembled within their hearts. Was Ye Futian already able to light up all the Imperial Stars? If that were the case, understanding and resonating with them would be trivial. Any cultivators who were well suited to the different types of power would have a chance.


    ��Let��s go.�� Many figures moved up into the sky. Some of the top figures even stepped towards the stars. They wanted to comprehend the power of the Great Emperor as well.


    As the cultivators went forward, they started to connect to the Imperial Stars. Before long, a cultivator succeeded at resonating with one of them, making it give off a divine radiance. This cultivator was bathed in the divine light.


    ��So fast!�� someone said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian turned to look and saw that Renhuang Chen, the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Imperial Palace. He looked up to where Ye Futian was and said, ��You made the positions of the Imperial Stars appear, decreasing the difficulty of comprehending them by an incalculable amount. In this way, as long as you are talented and have cultivated talents that are compatible with the stars, you will have a chance.��


    ��Yes,�� said Ye Futian with a nod. That was indeed how it was.


    ��If this is the case, the future power of the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum will undergo a complete increase. There will be changes even after many years. And this is in addition to having you as Palace Lord. I have great expectations,�� said Renhuang Chen to Ye Futian with a smile.


    ��Perhaps the Ziwei Segmentum will become another superpower.��


    He truly was expecting great things. The Ziwei Segmentum, which had been sealed off for countless years, now finally had made contact with the outside world. Moreover, now he knew what the situation was like out there. He obviously hoped that the Ziwei Segmentum could once again bring about the glory of the age of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    Thinking of this, he understood Great Emperor Ziwei a little bit. Perhaps this was the reason that he had left behind his inheritance and the starry sky. Leaving it to worthy people would lead to glory for the Ziwei Segmentum. If the seal were not broken, then in the future, a cultivator like Ye Futian would appear, who would uncover the secret and break through the seal himself.


    Perhaps the Great Emperor had thought of all of this before he had sealed off the Ziwei Segmentum.


    At that moment, several people entered the area down below. Their figures flashed as they shot into the sky at incredible speed.


    ��Emperor Ye,�� came a voice. Ye Futian looked down and saw several people coming toward him. He knew the two people at the front. The first one was Luo Su, whom he had helped before, and the other was Luo Su��s father, Lord Luo.


    ��Palace Lord, Supreme Elder, they say that there is an important matter that they must see you about,�� said a cultivator from the Ziwei Imperial Palace behind them.�� Renhuang Chen nodded. Ye Futian looked at the two of them.


    Then, Lord Luo said, ��Emperor Ye, now that all of the powers have left, there are some people who still have dark intentions towards you. They might act against your forces in the Original Realm and force you to go there where they will deal with you.��


    Ye Futian��s expression changed when he heard these words. His eyes grew cold.


    He was now in control of the Ziwei Segmentum and held immense power in his hands. They would dare force his hand like that?


    ��Are there a lot of enemy forces?�� he asked.


    ��Yes,�� said Lord Luo, nodding. ��Forces from the Divine Nation, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm are all planning to join together. People are dealing with them to make this happen.��


    Ye Futian naturally understood. His enemies were a bit worried and urgently wanted to kill him. However, they did not have enough power by themselves, and so they wanted to take this opportunity to join forces and deal with him.


    They could not do this in the Ziwei Segmentum, so they wanted to force him to return to the Original Realm where they could act against him more effectively.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were full of murderous intent. He had wanted to spend some time cultivating in Ziwei Imperial Palace. But now, it seemed like he wouldn��t be able to. He did not know what would happen in the Original Realm!

 Chapter 2244 - Transfer

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at Lord Luo and said, ��Thank you for telling me this, Lord Luo.��


    Previously, he had helped Luo Su obtain the inheritance of an Imperial Star. Now, Lord Luo had come specifically to tell him this. This was obviously in order to repay the consideration that he had shown to Luo Su before.


    ��This is but a small matter, although it will be very dangerous for the Original Realm,�� said Lord Luo. ��Moreover, many forces are having this same thought. If they join together, even if you go there, it will still likely be very dangerous. Our opponents are purposely trying to draw you there. You should be careful.��


    Ye Futian naturally understood this as well. His opponents could not kill him in the Ziwei Imperial Star. Thus, they wanted to lure him to the Original Realm to deal with him there.


    He had many secrets and inherited powers, including the divine corpse of Great Emperor Shen Jia and now the inheritance of Great Emperor Ziwei. Many cultivators were likely jealous of him.


    Particularly the forces of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm. They would not be terribly worried about this. After all, even if he retaliated against them in the future, the forces that he would actually act against would probably only be the ones in the Original Realm and the Divine Nation. No matter what, he would not get to the ones in the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm.


    Unless Ye Futian, one day, dared to attack them there. But how strong would he have to get to dare do that?


    Renhuang Chen looked at Ye Futian and said, ��What do you think, Palace Lord?��


    If the Palace Lord of the Original Imperial Palace were still alive, he would have been strong enough to threaten an entire horde of heroes. But he had fallen, and now there was no one in the Ziwei Imperial Palace at that level. Although many great figures were there, if many forces allied against them, they would have a hard time dealing with them.


    ��If you lead a group of people along with me, I will do my best not to leave Ziwei Imperial Palace in danger,�� Ye Futian said to Renhuang Chen.


    There was a bit of hesitation in Renhuang Chen��s expression, but he still nodded and said, ��I hear your orders Palace Lord, and I will obey them. I will go with you.��


    ��Thank you, Supreme Elder,�� said Ye Futian with a slight nod.


    After a while, the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace gathered there, all of whom were top-level cultivators. They watched as Ye Futian stepped forward and said, ��I have just become the Palace Lord, so I should not put you all in danger. After all, this is a personal matter. But the situation is very tense, so I must be so bold as to ask you for your help. If you have the chance in the future, please report this matter to your seniors.��


    ��The Palace Lord��s words are serious,�� said Renhuang Chen. ��They want to seize the inheritance of the Great Emperor, but when he is here, they have no way to do so. If he does not leave, things will be fine, but their forces have used his home in the Original Realm to threaten him. So, this is all a personal matter for him.��


    After all, there was no relationship between the people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��Say no more, Palace Lord. We will set out,�� said another cultivator. The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were still grateful to Ye Futian for everything that he had done for them before. He was not arrogant or domineering, and he had not given any orders after becoming Palace Lord. Instead, he had given the authority to the Supreme Elder. And the first thing he had done after that was to bring them here to cultivate.


    ��Even if some forces have allied, they are still different powers, and it will be easy to split them,�� said Renhuang Chen. ��The Palace Lord��s talent is incredible. After you leave, you can invite some friends if it will be beneficial. You can even bring them here. In this way, some people will probably be willing to lend the Palace Lord their strength.��


    Renhuang Chen was still here, but it seemed like he was already thinking about the situation when he returned.


    Ye Futian nodded. ��The Supreme Elder has spoken rightly. Let��s go. We can talk more on the road.��


    ��Alright,�� said Renhuang Chen with a nod. A group of powerful figures stepped directly into the sky, leaving the starry world behind them. After they left, they started to leave the Ziwei Segmentum, preparing to go to the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian sped onward through the endless sky. Beams of light still seemed to be shining towards the Ziwei Segmentum from the Ziwei Realm in the Original Realm. This was the phenomenon that had appeared when the forbidding power was broken. Moreover, some cultivators from the Ziwei Realm who had lost their homes were still traveling along these beams of light in the direction of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    But those cultivators who were of low level would probably never reach their destination.


    The cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum were a little bit shocked when they saw this scene. They had not realized they had been enclosed in the Ziwei Realm within the Original Realm, hidden in the Divine Stone. Just how strong had Emperor Ziwei been at the peak of his power?


    ��We have finally left,�� said Renhuang Chen with a sigh. The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace had always known about the existence of the sealing force. They knew that they had been sealed within a starry real and that they had not made contact with the outside world for countless years.


    Now, the seal had been broken, the way was open. They were finally going to make contact with the outside world. This had a great deal of significance to the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The group of cultivators rushed through the sky like beams of divine light. They moved with steps two fast for thought as they rushed in the direction of the Original Realm.


    ��


    These days, the Original Realm had calmed down quite a bit. The Heavenly Mandate Realm was just the same.


    They already knew about the great changes that had happened in the Ziwei Realm and that it had even been destroyed. They had heard there was another world sealed within the Ziwei Realm. Now, this world had been opened, and the cultivators of the many top forces that had come to the Original Realm had gone inside to investigate it. They had left behind very few people.


    Lord Taixuan had not gone with them but had stayed at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Right now, he was swamped sending the cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Academy out.


    Once Ye Futian heard the news, Little Condor, who had been left behind at Heavenly Mandate Academy, knew about it as well. He immediately notified Lord Taixuan. Thus, Lord Taixuan had immediately acted, sending people out to other realms.


    Thus, there was currently almost nobody in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Either they had been sent out, or they had heard Lord Taixuan��s orders to depart temporarily. There were only a few people left there.


    As the College Chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy, Lord Taixuan was naturally still there. Anyone else could leave, but not him.


    Several quiet coughs from Lord Taixuan could be heard throughout the quiet Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    A person waited off to the side. It was a woman.


    ��Your wound has not completely healed, My Lord. Why don��t you avoid overworking yourself for the time being?�� the woman asked, not understanding him.


    Lord Taixuan smiled and looked at the woman, saying, ��Why are you still here, Loulan?��


    ��My Lord, I am of low standing and have no value. The cultivators of those top forces will not deign to kill me,�� said Loulan Xue.


    ��You have always waited on others these years at the palace. You were the one who watched Nianyu grow up. It must have been hard,�� said Lord Taixuan with a sigh. ��You must have followed Futian since early on?��


    ��Yes, ever since the Nine States in the Lowest Realm,�� said Loulan.


    ��You poor girl,�� said Lord Taixuan shaking his head. Ye Futian was too dazzling. The more people there were by his side, the less he cared for them all. The distances grew too great, and it was hard for him to connect with them.


    ��My Lord, the Heavenly Mandate Academy has taken good care of me these past few years. I am satisfied with the fact that I have achieved my current level of cultivation,�� said Loulan Xue with a slight smile.


    ��Satisfied?�� Lord Taixuan did not say any more. Perhaps she did not require much. She just wanted to be able to see him.


    At that moment, Lord Taixuan looked up into the sky. A terrifying force was descending. A dark figure landed upon one of the buildings within the Heavenly Mandate Academy, looking down at the ground.


    Soon, a mighty group of cultivators appeared in the sky like an army of gods. They stood in different places, and every one of them was so dazzling they were hard to look at. Divine light wrapped around them, and their auras were supernatural.


    They all had ugly looks on their faces. This was because they had discovered that the Heavenly Mandate Academy had emptied so quickly. There was no one there. The news had leaked back to them that their opponents, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, had already left.


    It seemed as if their plan would come to nothing.


    Gai Cang, the ruler of the Golden Divine Nation, looked down and said, ��Lord Taixuan.�� His voice was cold. ��Do you think that since you sent your people away, we can��t find them? Where can they go in all the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path?��


    ��Gai Cang!��


    Just as Gai Cang was speaking, they all heard a voice come out of Black Wind Condor, spitting out his name, making Gai Cang look over at him. A torrent of overwhelming pressure descended as Black Wind Condor��s bird eyes were filled with a strange and mysterious light.


    ��Believe it or not, when I return, your Golden Divine Nation will be the first that I destroy!�� The voice came out of Black Wind Condor again, making the color on Gai Cang��s face change. He fixed his gaze on Black Wind Condor.


    ��Ye Futian!��


    These seemed to be Ye Futian��s words. He was coming back?


    ��Yes,�� replied Black Wind Condor. ��You all come from powerful forces. You all had the same opportunity as me at the Ziwei Great Emperor��s Cultivation Court. But I was the one who uncovered the Great Emperor��s secret. Now, you all are greedily trying to seize Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance. You have come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy and used the cultivators of the Lower Realms to threaten me. Have you all lost all sense of propriety?��


    ��We are not threatening you. We are just waiting here for your return,�� came an indifferent voice from a black-robed cultivator. It was one of the top cultivators of the Dark World.


    ��Very well. In that case, I will be there soon,�� came the voice from Black Wind Condor. ��If you do not abide by the rules and attack the cultivators of the Divine Realm and the Original Realm from the Heavenly Mandate Academy, I will do to you whatever you do to them. I will go to your places and slaughter everyone there.��


    The voice was full of murderous intent, which caused fear to sprout in all of their hearts. If they could not deal with Ye Futian, this was a grave threat!

 Chapter 2245 - Déjà vu

    The sovereign of Golden Divine Nation, Gai Cang, stepped forward. Divine light flowed over his figure. From afar, he clenched his fist and a gigantic Golden Giant Palm immediately appeared on Black Wind Condor��s figure.


    Black Wind Condor struggled furiously. However, the Golden Giant Palm was frighteningly powerful. It was not something Black Wind Condor could break free from.


    Kacha. The Golden Giant Palm suddenly tightened. Black Wind Condor let out a sorrowful cry. Red light seeped out of his jet black eyes as he stared at Gai Cang up in the sky.


    ��Head back to the divine nation immediately and bring over the core members. Also, evacuate everyone else,�� Gai Cang immediately ordered.


    ��Yes,�� replied the cultivators behind him as they received his order.


    They understood his intentions. Shen clan and many other cultivators also gave the same orders. Some people personally returned while others sent people back.


    The actions of Heavenly Mandate Academy had alarmed them.


    Gai Cang glanced around at the crowd as he loudly said, ��Members of the Original Realm, I believe I do not need to say much. Today, even if we just stop here and go back, do you believe that Ye Futian will not come with his group to massacre us if he has truly taken charge of Ziwei Imperial Palace?��


    For the top forces who had stirred up the conflict back in the day, there was already no way out for them now. They had no choice but to kill Ye Futian to prevent future peril.


    During his journey to the Ziwei Segmentum this time, Ye Futian had undergone another metamorphosis and now ruled over Ziwei Imperial Palace. He had immediately backed them into a corner. There was no escape for them.


    They had no way out of this predicament aside from killing Ye Futian and completely settling this score.


    Gai Cang told the cultivators from the other forces, ��As for everyone else, to my knowledge, not only does Ye Futian possess the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei, he has also previously obtained the teachings of Shenjia the Great Emperor in the Divine Prefecture. Back when he was in the Original Realm, he had already received the teachings of a Great Emperor. I suspect that he keeps some secrets. By capturing Ye Futian, one will obtain more than just the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei.�� He continued, ��Aside from that, by killing Ye Futian and destroying Heavenly Mandate Academy, the secrets of the Heavenly Mandate Realm will be revealed to all. There might also be astonishing secrets within.��


    His words had riled up quite a number of people. They had indeed looked into Ye Futian��s background and discovered that this person was a legendary figure among the younger generation. He had risen the ranks at a shocking speed and had also inherited the teachings of many Great Emperors. This was definitely not a coincidence. What secrets was he hiding?


    Not only did the cultivators not back down, they were even more resolved to act.


    ��Have all of you considered the consequences if you fail?�� asked Lord Taixuan as his rickety body stood up straight right then. He got up and looked at the various cultivators in the sky. He then said, ��You can ask them. More than 20 years ago, the various forces of the Original Realm came over with the intention of killing Ye Futian. Faced with certain death, Ye Futian still managed to survive. After he returned, Gai Cang and the others ended up in their current situation. If all of you were to fail again, what will the situation be like in another 20 years?��


    ��Moreover, yet alone in 20 years, who among you can singlehandedly withstand the retribution of Ye Futian now?�� Lord Taixuan continued, ��I am old and there are not many people left in Heavenly Mandate Academy. Our deaths are insignificant. Using us to threaten Ye Futian was a mistake. I hope that all of you will consider this thoroughly. Otherwise, once the end result differs from what all of you imagine, what will the consequences be?��


    ��Ye Futian will certainly return. With the cultivators present here, it won��t be like 20 years ago. We will definitely kill him, even if we need to shatter the Realm,�� said Gai Cang in a cold tone as terrifying golden divine light emanated from his figure.


    As he said this, he looked at Black Wind Condor and said, ��Since you have heard what I said, then quickly return to your master. Before you return here again, I will not touch the others. If you do not return or attempt to play tricks on us, we will wipe Heavenly Mandate Academy off the face of the earth. We will also hunt down the cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Academy who flee.��


    Black Wind Condor was still struggling to break free as he glared at Gai Cang. He said, ��If anything happens to any of them, I will not return to Heavenly Mandate Academy, but instead head over to your Golden Divine Nation. I will massacre all the cultivators who attempt to flee.��


    ��I will be waiting,�� answered Gai Cang as he flung Black Wind Condor. However, a formless power held him back. It was Lord Taixuan.


    His gaze swept across the various cultivators. Aside from the various forces that participated in the war back then, there were many other forces. There were forces from the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World and even the Empty Divine Realm. They were just standing there. Lord Taixuan did not know who would attack and who was just here to spectate.


    Far off in other locations, cultivators from many other forces appeared. Among them, there were many forces from the Donghua Domain as well as the Shangqing Domain.


    Sword Goddess of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow from the Donghua Domain was also here. She had a number of disciples with her. From the looks of it, Ye Futian would face some trouble this time around.


    There were people from three major Realms who wanted to kill him. A tree that stood out in the forest would be toppled by the wind. Ye Futian was indeed the most outstanding monstrous figure that she had encountered. His path of development had been too astonishing and too rapid. No wonder his enemies in these top forces were uneasy. They could only resort to killing Ye Futian, regardless of the cost. They would not be at ease until Ye Futian was dead.


    From the looks of it, Heavenly Mandate Academy was about to be pulled into a huge war. What would the end result be?


    Right now, the cultivators of the various forces had their own agenda. They were contemplating whether they should participate in the war.


    When Ye Futian and the others returned here, what would they choose to do?


    In the distance, there were many cultivators in Heavenly Mandate City looking over in this direction. They did not dare to approach, only peering over from afar. The silhouettes that appeared in the sky were like deities. Although the people in Heavenly Mandate City were already used to cultivators appearing in the city, the lineup before their eyes still made their hearts tremble.


    These were the cultivators from the top forces that had returned from the Ziwei Realm. Why had they all gathered over here in Heavenly Mandate City and descended upon Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    What astonishing thing had Ye Futian, that Proud Son of Heaven, done again? He actually drew so many cultivators here, stirring up such a storm.


    In a tavern in the distance, there was a jet black silhouette sitting quietly and drinking wine alone. It appeared very lonely. This gave the people in the tavern a sense of d��j�� vu. It seemed that such a scene had occurred once more than 20 years ago.


    The person who had been drinking wine in the tavern back then also seemed to be this person.


    Rumor has it that he was a powerful presence in the Devil World, Devil General Mei Ting.


    Mei Ting had once again come to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. However, unlike last time, someone had heard rumors of a disturbance in the Original Realm and sent him to survey the situation. It was not an order from the Devil Emperor.


    After more than 20 years, Mei Ting was still contemplating the same question.


    Who exactly was this Ye Futian?


    These past few years, Ye Futian seemed to have stirred up storms in the Divine Prefecture. After returning to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he immediately caused such a huge commotion. He truly seemed to be the center of the storm wherever he went.


    No wonder that person had asked Mei Ting to come take a look for himself. It might be because he knew Ye Futian too well. He knew that the commotion in the Original Realm would certainly involve Ye Futian.

 Chapter 2246 - Standing

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the atmosphere around areas surrounding the Heavenly Mandate Academy was very oppressive. The cultivators stood in the sky while their might shrouded over the entire Heavenly Mandate City.


    The cultivators in the city moved towards this area. However, they did not dare get too close. They gazed at the God-like figures from afar.


    They lamented in their minds. The Heavenly Mandate Academy had undergone all kinds of trials and tribulations since its founding. They experienced several life or death battles. Moreover, the lineups of these battles were always incredible. In addition, every single battle seemed to be associated with the white-haired youth from the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    On this day, something was happening yet again. It was, again, due to Ye Futian. Moreover, the scale this time had surpassed any of the previous times. Members of the top factions from the Divine Prefecture, Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm had gathered together on this day.


    Here, on this day, one could say that it was a grand banquet.


    A breeze gently went by. The surroundings of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were extremely silent. Everyone was waiting quietly, though each bearing a different objective.


    From afar, sounds of people drinking alcohol appeared occasionally. It was Mei Ting, sitting alone and drinking atop a tavern.


    In the battle back then, Mei Ting was able to intervene directly. However, for today��s battle, even Mei Ting could not intervene. The lineup this time around could not even be compared to the lineup in the battle back then. Multiple powerful cultivators had been gathered today, and many of them were the leaders of those top factions. Some of these people��s individual strength surpassed his.


    Just on the Divine Prefecture alone, several domain chief-level characters had arrived. In addition, some ridiculously powerful cultivators had passed their Great Path divine tribulation. There were 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture and many influential and powerful characters, and now, more than half of them had come to the Original Realm.


    Time passed slowly. Everyone was amazingly patient. They waited quietly. No one seemed to be in a rush.


    Now, only Ye Futian needed to arrive.


    Of course, many cultivators were here to watch; they had no intention of being involved in this storm.


    In truth, Ye Futian��s status today was also not comparable to back then. Many exceptionally strong cultivators stood behind him. For example, the master from Four Corner Village and the more recent Ziwei Imperial Palace. Just as Lord Taixuan said, it might be better if they killed Ye Futian right then and there. If they failed to kill Ye Futian, the hidden consequences would be more profound.


    Now, no one knew how this battle would unfold. While many powerful cultivators from various factions had come, how many would actually participate in the battle against Ye Futian?


    Everything was still unknown.


    Amid the silence surrounding the Heavenly Mandate Academy, occasional chatters would appear. Some people whispered. Time passed by quickly, and after a while, a vast and powerful might suddenly spread across the sky. In that instant, everyone raised their head to look into the sky.


    Everyone inside Heavenly Mandate City could feel the invisible and forceful pressure arising from the might. They looked up.


    As soon as they looked up, bright star lights flew across the sky like meteors, and they headed straight towards Heavenly Mandate City.


    Before long, those bright rays of divine light landed in a central area of Heavenly Mandate Academy. Then, just above the Heavenly Mandate Academy, multiple figures appeared above everyone.


    The practitioners from various top factions below the figure moved away. They then raised their head to look at those figures.


    Multiple powerful cultivators surrounded ye Futian. He continued to move and walk downward. Beams of overbearing aura shot towards them. However, the lineup of cultivators around Ye Futian was equally frightening. An invisible force blocked the assault of the others�� might.


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian walk down until he arrived inside Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    ��Welcome back,�� Lord Taixuan smiled and said to Ye Futian. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was once again facing a disaster. Everything was because Ye Futian was too outstanding. In Ziwei Segmentum, he had yet again achieved something that no one else had done before.


    Moreover, this time, he came back with a group of incredibly powerful cultivators.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��I hope you are well, lord.��


    ��How can I not be? But these people, they have not given up on killing you,�� said Lord Taixuan as he raised his head to gesture at the sky. Then, the sovereign of Golden Divine Nation Gai Cang��s body was already emitting a frightening golden divine light glow. The other cultivators had also released their path might, which spread down and shrouded the entire space below them.


    However, many factions that were part of the agreement had not begun to move. This prompted Gai Cang to ask, ��Everyone, what are you waiting for?��


    ��What is the Great Emperor��s purpose of opening a passage to the Void Realm? What does he want you to do? My fellow compatriots from the Divine Prefecture, I urge you to seriously consider that,�� said Ye Futian loudly. ��I cultivated at the Divine Prefecture��s Shangqing Domain��s Four Corner Village. I can also be considered a member of the Divine Prefecture. Now, I have inherited Great Emperor Ziwei��s legacy. What��s so bad about that? If you are willing to lend me a hand today, you will be able to freely head to the Great Emperor��s Cultivation Court in the Ziwei Segmentum to cultivate. I can already summon the Imperial Star directly. Any practitioner who is compatible can inherit the Power of the Imperial Star.��


    Ye Futian��s voice covered the entire sky. This made the faces of Gai Cang and a few others distort. However, they did not dare to do anything alone. After all, the lineup around Ye Futian was also incredibly powerful. If the cultivators on their side had not yet decided, it would be easy for him to be annihilated.


    ��Gai Qiong, you are a practitioner under the Great Emperor. How dare you conspire together with Gai Cang? Just why did the Great Emperor send you the lower realm? Now, you are working with practitioners of the outer realms against the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a Divine Prefecture faction?�� Ye Futian��s gaze locked on to the person behind Gai Cang as he shouted, ��In the future, when the Great Emperor starts assigning blames, can you withstand the accusations?


    ��Also, to the other Divine Prefecture factions, if you work with these people from the outer realms today, how will you explain it to the Great Emperor in the future?��


    Ye Futian��s words really made many Divine Prefecture factions worry. The events today were indeed too boisterous. The Imperial Palace would most certainly learn of it, and they were afraid they might have some thoughts about it.


    Of course, not all top factions of the Divine Prefecture were under the command of the Imperial Palace. Only the chief manors set up by the Great Emperor in the 18 domains were considered forces directly under the Imperial Palace.


    ��Emperor Ye is right. You have to know what your priorities are. This time, my ancient royal family of Duan stands with Emperor Ye,�� said Duan Tianxiong, prompting Ye Futian to look at him oddly. To Duan Tianxiong, this was also a huge gamble.


    Even though their relationship was already quite good, one could not really say they were very close. After all, everything they had faced was a life-or-death situation.


    However, the situation today was an opportunity. Everyone could see Ye Futian��s future. The gamble was on whether Ye Futian would live or die on the day and the conclusion of this crisis. After many years of cultivation, who would not want to progress further?


    In the Shangqing Domain, Duan Tianxiong��s Duan Ancient Royal Family was in the Middle Third Heaven tier. Several major factions from the Upper Third Heaven still existed and were suppressing them.


    Duan Tianxiong��s plane level had also stopped progressing for many years. Ye Futian would be his opportunity.


    Otherwise, it was difficult for him to progress even a step further.


    ��This is�� He is gambling everything he has, huh?�� Many cultivators from the Divine Prefecture looked at Duan Tianxiong, including some of the top factions from the Shangqing Domain. If he were to fail, the consequences would be unimaginable!

 Chapter 2247 - Support

    ��Thank you very much,�� Ye Futian nodded and said to Duan Tianxiong.


    This was a life-and-death battle. To stand up and support him like this, one could say that he had just sworn to live or die together with Ye Futian. One can only identify one��s true friend in the midst of critical times.


    ��Master!�� Jiang Yueli shouted at the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow��s Sword Goddess, who was standing beside her. Qin Qing also looked at her master. They had been in contact with Ye Futian in the past. Nothing else needed to be said about Ye Futian��s talent. It had been proven more than once before.


    They had wanted to become Ye Futian��s friend for a long time. Qin Qing and Ye Futian��s relationship in the past was also quite good.


    Now, Ye Futian was facing a life-or-death situation, and he needed some friends to stand up and support him. As long as people voiced their support one after another, the situation could be reversed. After all, many of the factions of the Divine Prefecture did not display strong hostility. In truth, most were here to observe.


    Killing Ye Futian and snatching away Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance�� With so many top factions around, even if they were to really kill Ye Futian, who would the Great Emperor��s inheritance belong to?


    They would still have to fight for it anyway. Were all the factions going to start another war for it?


    As such, the factions that were truly determined to kill Ye Futian were only those that held grudges against Ye Futian. In addition, there were those from the Dark Court and Empty Divine Realm �C powers that could not wait for the world to fall into chaos and disorder. They could not wait for the Divine Prefecture factions to divide and break out into violent conflict.


    At that time, many people felt a powerful aura emerge. In that instant, many raised their head to look up into the sky. As they looked up, several figures took a step forward. Every single one of them was an exceptional figure. The aura emanating from each of their body was extremely frightening.


    Slight facial expression changes could be seen on the faces of a few people from the top factions of Donghua Domain the moment these people emerged. Ning Hua��s gaze became particularly interesting when he saw the cultivators in the sky step up.


    ��He is right. My fellow compatriots from the Divine Prefecture, why did the Great Emperor open the passageway? You should consider this carefully. If you ally with the powers from the outer realms against our own Divine Prefecture factions, would the Imperial Palace have nothing to say?�� The person leaped into the sky and said loudly, ��As a practitioner of the Divine Prefecture, Ye Futian taking the power of Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance should be a great occasion. At least Great Emperor Ziwei��s Inheritance did not get stolen.��


    Those people walked downward. Ning Hua looked at them. He did not look too good. He could vaguely guess some of the events that occurred in the past.


    It was truly them. Only they could have saved Ye Futian back then.


    However, why would this elder who had retreated from the world and lived on Turtle Deity Island extend his hand to help Ye Futian?


    To the point that he had come here, on this day, to support Ye Futian.


    This person was an influential and top figure from the Divine Ocean Continent��s Turtle Deity Island, an incredibly powerful being who had passed the first Great Path Divine Tribulation, Emperor Xi. On his side was the Thunder Punishing Skylord. In addition, two others were beside him, and they were the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng.


    Emperor Xi��s action was no longer a secret anymore.


    One should know that the grudge between the Millet Emperor and the main house of Donghua Domain was intense, to the point where it was life-or-death. With Emperor Xi leading them today, no words were necessary for one to know the meaning.


    They no longer cared about the views of the domain��s main house chief anymore.


    The practitioners of Donghua Domain instantly understood the moment they saw that scene. They would never have imagined Emperor Xi appearing at that moment to support Ye Futian.


    Naturally, the most surprised person was Ye Futian himself. He did not only see Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord, but also the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng.


    The Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng�� These two elders helped and cared for him a lot back in the day.


    ��Emperor Xi. Lord.�� Ye Futian first bowed slightly towards Emperor Xi and Thunder Punishing Skylord before shifting his gaze to look at the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng; a smile could be seen in his eyes.


    ��We still managed to come in time after all,�� Li Changsheng said, smiling.


    Millet Emperor walked to Ye Futian��s side and patted him on the shoulder. Then, he said, ��I��ve heard a lot about you. Not bad.��


    ��Elder, have you been well?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Yes, my injury has almost fully recovered.�� Millet Emperor smiled and nodded. After that, he looked around at the cultivators around them in the sky and said, ��We can fight now.��


    ��Count me in,�� said someone. Emperor Xi, Millet Emperor, and various others shifted their gaze towards the person who spoke. The person who walked out was actually the Sword Goddess of the Divine Palace of Flutterring Snow. This surprised Ye Futian slightly. He did not think that the Sword Goddess would step up to support him at a time like this.


    The Sword Goddess�� gaze was sharp as she looked around at the cultivators around and said, ��Emperor Xi��s words are exactly what I wanted to do. Everyone from the Divine Prefecture, tread lightly. If you do not want to help the Heavenly Mandate Academy, that��s fine. But if you really intend to join hands with the practitioners of the other realms, the Imperial Palace will surely be unhappy. Moreover, several domains�� main houses are present here today, right? You have come here. I am sure your respective chiefs have given you their instructions. Should we not have the same enemies?��


    Indeed, many cultivators that came today belonged to the main houses in their domains, including Donghua Domain��s main house��s chief Ning Hua, the vice chief of Shangqing Domain��s main house, Zhou Muhuang, as well as the main houses of other domains.


    However, they did not intend to go against Ye Futian, nor had they displayed any intention of assisting him. They continued to watch. The possibility of them personally issuing commands for the cultivators to target Ye Futian was quite low. If that were the case, it would be difficult for them to offer an explanation to the Imperial Palace.


    ��Sword Goddess of the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. No wonder you are the strongest Female Renhuang of our Donghua Domain,�� said Emperor Xi, laughing. That courage was a rare sight to behold.


    ��Thank you, palace lord.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly at the Sword Goddess. To stand up for him at this time, he would remember this friendship forever.


    ��You��re being polite.�� The Sword Goddess did not pay him any mind. Her sharp eyes moved as her gaze shifted towards the sky. Then, she said, ��Nowadays, turmoil is imminent. An amazing person has appeared in our Divine Prefecture, yet, even though every one of us should be helping him grow, you are considering working with forces from the outer realms to deal with a genius from our own Divine Prefecture; to fight among ourselves and weaken the overall strength of the Divine Prefecture�� Even if the Great Emperor does not convict you, people will remember this. I want you all to consider this carefully.��


    The cultivators who stepped out successively were quite influential. Their words affected many people. This battle�� Those from the Divine Prefecture really should reconsider joining in.


    ��It is an inheritance. There is nothing wrong with a cultivator taking it away.�� A cold voice appeared. Then, a sharp blade of light descended from above, and in the sky, a mighty figure appeared. He stood there. It looked as if he was indestructible, like a sharp sword that could shock the world.


    ��The Master of Taichu Sparring Grounds.�� Ye Futian immediately knew the identity of this person when he saw him. The number one cultivator of the Holy Land of Taichu��s Taichu Sparring Grounds. The Swordmaster of Taichu. He was also the person who injured Lord Taixuan.


    Seeing him stand there, the gazes of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy and several other factions were cold. Back then, they were pushed to the brink by this Swordmaster of Taichu. Lord Taixuan��s swordsmanship also suffered severely.


    ��Everyone, if you really want to keep delaying this, the situation might become more difficult to control,�� Gai Cang looked around at the cultivators and said. Earlier, quite a few factions had agreed to ally together and kill Ye Futian.


    If they allowed Ye Futian��s supporters to continue talking, more people might start to waver.


    The cultivators from all sides released powerful might. The practitioners of the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm were mostly already prepared to strike. They had nothing to worry about. They had nothing to do with Great Emperor Donghuang��s accusations or convictions. It was also difficult for Ye Futian to seek revenge against them. Moreover, they could also weaken the Divine Prefecture��s strength with this. Why would they hold back?


    As such, they naturally did not mind making a move.


    ��Internal affairs of the Divine Prefecture will be resolved internally. No matter what, forces from the outside have no business interfering,�� said a powerful voice. The person who spoke stood at a certain spot, and several powerful beings surrounded him.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked over. He was from the Divine Prefecture; however, Ye Futian was not familiar with him.


    After all, there were 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture, and he had only been to the Donghua and Shangqing domains. So, he only knew the top figures of the two domains. The practitioners from the other domains�� even if they stood right in front of him, he would not be able to recognize them.


    While Ye Futian did not recognize him, many people did know who he was. The person who spoke was a cultivator from the main house of the Taishang Domain. Moreover, the Taishang Domain was one of the stronger domains among the 18 domains. It was closer to the Divine Prefecture Imperial Domain and was incredibly powerful.


    The words of the cultivator from the main house of the Taishang Domain naturally carried a lot of weight. Once he spoke, many cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had odd expressions on their faces. His words were targeting the cultivators from the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm.


    He excluded them. Issues concerning Ye Futian were all the Divine Prefecture��s internal affairs.


    It seemed like someone strong wanted to support Ye Futian. They did not want external forces to be involved in this event. At the very least, they did not want the Divine Prefecture and the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm to deal with Ye Futian together.


    Then, from the direction of the Dark World��s factions, a top figure asked, ��Are you guys still going to take it or not?�� Now, the cultivators who wanted to kill Ye Futian were in the worst spot. Gai Cang and the others seemed to have been put in a passive position.


    Powerful cultivators had voiced their support for Ye Futian one after another. Moreover, in the name of justice, the people from Divine Prefecture did not dare to act rashly. However, Gai Cang��s group was not like most others; if they did not kill Ye Futian, only death awaited them.


    Now, the factions from the Void Realm were truly in the back seat!

 Chapter 2248 - Adversity

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��If you say that the various forces of the Divine Prefecture are one, Ye Futian now controls the cultivation court of the Great Emperor of the Ziwei Segmentum. Since that is the case, let him completely open up the cultivation court for the members of the Divine Prefecture to cultivate in,�� a voice cried out right then. This voice contained some sharp aura. It was Swordmaster of Taichu.


    Swordmaster of Taichu��s gaze was as sharp as a sword as he stared in Ye Futian��s direction. He continued saying, ��Aside from that, Ye Futian should share the secrets of the divine corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, as well as the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei, with the other cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. That way, the abilities of the various forces of the Divine Prefecture can be improved.��


    When Gai Cang and the others heard Swordmaster of Taichu��s words, they immediately responded, ��That��s right. If Ye Futian can do so, then from this day forth, the various forces of the Divine Prefecture will be as one, and there will no longer be any conflict. We will immediately fall back. If anyone from the outside world plans to go against him, the forces of the Divine Prefecture will certainly not stand by and watch.��


    ��Such perverted logic,�� Emperor Xi said as he looked up at them. He said, ��Don��t you think this request is too preposterous?��


    ��You said that the forces of the Divine Prefecture should all be in the same camp. Now, when I offer such a suggestion, you claim it is preposterous. If that is the case, why can��t we go against him?�� Swordmaster of Taichu continued, ��Each force is independent. We ourselves wish to seize the power of the teachings of the Great Emperor. It is unrelated to the other forces, and we have not allied with cultivators from the outside world. It just so happened that our goals are aligned.��


    The Holy Land of Taichu was the top cultivation holy land of the Taichu Domain. This force stood above the Taichu Domain Chief Manor as the symbol of the domain. Even if Donghuang the Great were unsatisfied with them, he would not do anything. He would not act upon the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Wouldn��t that be shooting himself in the foot?


    The Swordmaster of Taichu stepped forward and came down. He said, ��Since all of you believe that we have colluded with cultivators from the outside world, then, may we trouble you to help us keep them at bay? Regarding the issue with Ye Futian, the forces of the Divine Prefecture will settle the score with him ourselves. As for whether the cultivators from the outside can take action or not, that is not something we can control. Sorry to trouble the members of the Taishang Domain over this matter.��


    As he said this, his gaze became sharper and brighter as he continued walking downwards. In an instant, an ear-piercing hum of swords filled the space as though tens of thousands of swords were resonating. In the surrounding space, an astonishing storm instantly swept up. He said, ��To prevent trouble afterward, why don��t we all make a deal? We will share the teachings inherited by Ye Futian with anyone who attacks him and helps us. How about it?��


    Buzz. An astonishing Sword Will descended from his figure like a sword river; it was terrifying. The surrounding cultivators retreated backward as though the residual power from his swordsmanship was enough to kill them.


    Swordmaster of Taichu believed in human nature. Here, they were definitely not the only ones who coveted the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei and the inherited power of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Many others had the same idea as them. It was just that the others were hesitating and did not dare to take action. If that were the case, he would lead the charge.


    ��Charge!�� he cried out.


    Immediately, the sword river descended from above as fast as lightning. At the center of the sword river, a gigantic divine sword appeared. It seemed to be formed from the Sword Qi that had gathered and had the power to rip apart the space. It pierced straight towards Ye Futian; its might was shocking.


    In an instant, the various cultivators spread out. They stood far away in different locations. The divine sword came slashing down, splitting apart and destroying everything in its path.


    At that moment, the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Imperial Palace, Renhuang Chen, wielded a scepter in his hand and pointed it at the sky. A defense shroud of starlight immediately surrounded their figures. In an instant, it was as though actual stars were circling them.


    The astonishing divine sword slashed down on them, gradually piercing the shroud of starlight. Cracks appeared on the shroud, but the divine sword still could not shatter it.


    Renhuang Chen held the scepter in his hand, and divine light constantly surged towards the shroud of starlight. The sword river actually swarmed down over the frightening shroud. The surrounding space around the vast Heavenly Mandate Academy was instantly flattened and reduced to ruins. Menacing sword slashes covered the region.


    ��Huh?�� Swordmaster of Taichu frowned. As expected, there were crouching tigers and hidden dragons in the Ziwei Segmentum. He never imagined that aside from the Palace Lord who had been killed, there were actually such incredible figures. His sword actually could not break through this person��s defenses.


    ��Are all of you truly not planning to act?�� questioned Swordmaster of Taichu loudly. Immediately the top figures from the Original Realm, who had grudges against Ye Futian, stepped out one by one. However, none of them had cultivation who could beat Renhuang Chen. Most likely, even if they all attacked together, they would not be able to break through Renhuang Chen��s star domain.


    Right then, another cultivator stepped forward. This person had an astonishing aura. He was the clan leader of the Mo clan. When they saw him, many people revealed strange expressions. Just as Duan Tianxiong had told Ye Futian prior, the top forces that had come over from the Original Realm 20 years ago were all superpowers in the Divine Prefecture. For instance, the Holy Land of Taichu ruled over the Taichu Domain and had many cultivators among their ranks.


    It was the same for the Mo clan. They were also a terrifying force. Rich power surged from the figure of this cultivator from the Mo clan. It made the hearts of those who saw him tremble.


    Aside from him, in another direction, the cultivators from Sun God Mountain also stepped out. Their bodies were bathed in the Divine Fire of the Sun and were extremely frightening. They had previously participated in the battle of the Original Realm 20 years ago. They also bore grudges against Ye Futian. In a moment like this, they naturally would not give up such an opportunity. It was best if they could eliminate Ye Futian here and now.


    In the direction of the forces of the Divine Prefecture, a few more forces walked out. Among them, there were actually a few forces from the Shangqing Domain. These forces had vendettas against Four Corner Village. Now that Ye Futian was surrounded by other cultivators, it was a good opportunity for them to settle the score. Even if Mister in the village were to seek revenge later, he couldn��t find all who participated.


    Nanhai Family, Palace of the Illusory God, and Demon Cloud all stood out. They all had deeper grudges with Ye Futian compared to the others.


    Seeing top forces walk out one by one, members from the other domains of the Divine Prefecture also slowly made their way forward. The forces who were interested in the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei stepped out. Although many cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum, there were numerous top forces from the Divine Prefecture. They only needed a fraction of their numbers, and the other party would have a hard time standing against them.


    The cultivators of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm observed the proceedings with looks of interest. They had initially planned to join forces with the Divine Prefecture and participate in this battle. However, with the words from the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture, it was not appropriate for their forces to be allied. The members of the Divine Prefecture were preparing to act on their own.


    If that were the case, the cultivators of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm would stand there and watch; it would be more beneficial for them to swoop in later. This made them even more interested in the battle. They would first let the forces of the Divine Prefecture fight amongst themselves.


    When Ye Futian saw the scene before him, he said to the various cultivators in the sky, ��What I said before this still holds��anyone willing to aid me today, the door to the cultivation court of Great Emperor Ziwei will forever be open to you. As long as you can communicate with the power of the Imperial Star, you will be able to inherit the will contained within.��

 Chapter 2249 - Engage in Battle

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Although Ye Futian spoke up, none of the cultivators moved.


    There were many forces from the Divine Prefecture here. They all had their own thoughts on the matter. Should they go against Ye Futian and directly seize the teachings? Or should they help Ye Futian and be able to venture into the cultivation court of Great Emperor Ziwei to cultivate?


    They might still be able to observe for a bit and see how the battle progressed first.


    On the battlefield, various cultivators attacked the shroud of starlight simultaneously. The shroud was pressed against the ground, and frightening cracks immediately appeared. The ground began to split apart, forming terrifying gorges that continued to propagate into the distance. It seemed as though the ground within a radius of thousands of kilometers was about to split apart.


    The cultivators who were observing from a distance continued to retreat when they saw this terrifying scene. This large-scale battle would most likely spread to the entire Heavenly Mandate City. It was impossible to observe the battle up close. Once the battle completely broke out, the top figures would not hold back their combat power and attack area.


    Under the combined attacks of various cultivators, more and more cracks finally appeared on the shroud of starlight. Beams of divine light descended from the sky above and entered the cracks, seeping into the shroud. Finally, with a beam of dazzling light, the shroud of starlight was completely shattered.


    In the instant the shroud shattered, two silhouettes dashed out. They bore monstrous might and were extremely fast. These two figures were Renhuang Chen as well as Emperor Xi��two extremely powerful existences.


    Frightening starry divine swords appeared around Renhuang Chen��s figure. They immediately covered the vast space, blanketing all of the cultivators in the sky. He directly unleashed his wide area divine technique. In an instant, the top figures standing in the sky, who were attacking them, frantically released their power of the Great Path that clashed with the starry divine swords. A few of the strongest figures stood at the very front.


    Emperor Xi��s attack arrived at the same time. The two of them tore the space apart in an instant, causing deep and terrifying jet-black cracks to appear in the space. The various cultivators frantically dispersed, forced back by the attacks.


    In the heavens above, various cultivators appeared in different locations. On the ground, Ye Futian still had various cultivators guarding him. Millet Emperor was standing beside him with the Wangshen Watchtower on his back. Astonishing divine might emanated from the watchtower.


    Buzz. At that moment, a beam of light from the divine swords pierced through the space. It seemed as though it appeared from the cracks. It ripped apart the very fabric of space as though it wanted to consume this region.


    A cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace immediately stepped forward to cut it off. However, Sword Qi that filled the sky swept out from the terrifying cracks. The divine swords seemed to merge into the cracks and then come slashing out in Ye Futian��s direction.


    Bang. The Millet Emperor furiously stomped his foot on the ground. An endless, frightening power of the Great Path immediately exploded outwards from his figure. He raised the Wangshen Watchtower in his hand and charged into the fray. Divine gates appeared around him, forming Gates of World Suppression that charged forwards. The gates shattered the divine swords slashing towards them and blocked off the attacks descending upon where they stood, seemingly forming an absolute defensive zone.


    Back then, during the battle of the Donghua Banquet, using the Wangshen Watchtower, the Millet Emperor was already a powerful figure who could go toe-to-toe with Domain Chief Ning Yuan of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor. Once he merged with the Wangshen Watchtower and became one with it, he could fully unleash the might of the Gates of World Suppression. He could stand on par with the powerful figures who faced divine tribulations of the Great Path. Hence, ordinary figures could not break through the defensive power of the gates.


    High above, Swordmaster of Taichu gazed down at the defenses below with a gaze as sharp as swords. Powerful gales and clouds immediately swept up in the sky above. A frightening galaxy of swordsmanship appeared in the heavens, birthing countless divine swords from within it. The galaxy filled the skies, and its might was extremely menacing. It roared down from the sky. It was as though its might grew as it descended. The people in the surrounding regions could all sense its power.


    ��Everyone, be careful,�� warned Ye Futian as he looked up at the sky. The Millet Emperor took a step into the air. Even more divine gates appeared as the Wangshen Watchtower floated in the sky. It seemed to summon ancient Gates of World Suppression which suppressed all powers. It caused the wave of power sweeping downwards to be unable to continue advancing. The two powers that filled the sky had yet to collide when a terrifying, intense sound could be heard.


    Rumble. The sword river destroyed everything in its path as it swept down. Extremely frightening dark cracks appeared. The cracks seemed to coexist with the swords. The space of the Original Realm was not very stable. It could not withstand such a forceful attack.


    As the sword river came slashing down, the Gates of World Suppression that seemed to come from ancient times also rained down. They swept up a terrible, destructive storm. The surrounding space was completely ripped apart as though there was a terrifying black hole.


    While the two of them were clashing against each other, many of the other cultivators were also busy. Among them, a powerful cultivator from Sun God Mountain was summoning the Divine Fire of the Sun. His entire person was bathed in the Divine Light of the Sun. The divine flames of the Great Path circled around him. He was like a Sun God, radiating immense heat that incinerated everything around him. It was as though the intense power of his flames could instantly melt away all existence.


    Rumble.


    A terrifying fire domain appeared like a domain of the Great Path. All the cultivators present were enveloped within the scorching fire domain. The Sun was high in the sky. A flaming deity appeared beneath the Sun and grew larger and larger. It appeared to be the Sun God.


    The deity radiated terrifying Divine Light of the Sun that shone over everything. Everywhere the light touched, everything was reduced to ashes and scattered into nothingness.


    A few cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace stepped out. They would be against the Divine Power of the Sun.


    They extended both their hands at the same time. Immediately, with this region as its center, a grand matrix of starlight appeared and circled around the various cultivators. This grand matrix of starlight shone brilliantly. When the Divine Fire of the Sun shone down on it, it could not penetrate the grand matrix. The light of the Divine Fire of the Sun was blocked off by the starlight.


    The Sun God in the sky extended his palm. From the Sun, the unparalleled Divine Power of the Sun surged out and actually formed a gigantic Sun God sword. The Sun God��s sword appeared enormous as the Sun God wielded it in his hand. It was as though the Divine Light of the Sun was concentrated on the sword.


    The silhouette of the Sun God stabbed forward with the sword in his hands. The Divine Light of the Sun expanded rapidly. The Sun God��s sword immediately stabbed into the starlight. Terrifying divine flames corroded the grand matrix of starlight. It gradually turned the grand matrix into the color of flames and began to reduce it to nothingness, resulting in the matrix being shattered.


    These top figures from the Divine Prefecture all had astonishing abilities. Many of the best among them were superior existences who had faced divine tribulations of the Great Path. The difference in plane was not something numbers could make up for.


    If the members of the Divine Prefecture had a few more figures who survived divine tribulations among them, it would be a disaster for Ye Futian��s side.


    Seeing the Sun God sword stabbing past the matrix bit by bit, Ye Futian stared up at the sky above. There was a cold look in his gaze. Unless it was the last resort, he did not want to take the risk!

 Chapter 2250 - Ye Futian’s Confidence

    Watching the Sun God Sword continue to slam down for the kill and the group of cultivators in the void, Ye Futian knew that he had no choice but to give it all he had.


    Not to mention, there were cultivators from the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm following closely behind them. Fighting was the only option.


    When his thought turned to this, someone suddenly appeared in front of Ye Futian. This figure was dazzling with divine light in a stunning physical form. It released a terrifying light, which seemed to be cast from infinite characters.


    Buzz! The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace, who were close by, moved away from Ye Futian when they saw this. Their hearts beat wildly.


    It was a physical form that would inspire awe in one��s heart.


    In the void, the eyes of many major figureheads sharpened as their hearts trembled violently. Especially those from the Shangqing Domain, they were every one of them revealing a dazzling light. It was as they stared at the body that had manifested.


    Rather, it was not really a body at all but a corpse.


    ��The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.�� The cultivators from Shangqing Domain shuddered as they came to this realization. Top cultivators from other domains clearly became aware of what it really was. Only the sacred remains, the body of deity, could be the source of such frightening power.


    However, what did Ye Futian mean to do by releasing the sacred remains at this time?


    Was he not afraid of it being taken by the others?


    People from the Shangqing Domain had experienced the horror of the sacred remains. Of course, it was controlled by the teacher from Four Corner Village last time. However, this time, it was Ye Futian who brought out the sacred remains. Could it be that he could now control the sacred remains after having cultivated for a period of time?


    But how could he achieve this in his realm?


    As their eyes were fixed in that direction, those cultivators, who were on Ye Futian��s side, were much relieved. It seemed that Ye Futian had kept some aces in his pocket, or else he would not have returned so quickly.


    It was not so easy to take him down and kill him just like that.


    At this time, Ye Futian released an extremely brilliant divine light, and ancient tree branches started spreading, turning into countless air currents. They blended into the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, infiltrating it little by little. At the same time, an elusive figure transposed on top of Ye Futian. It was a shadow of himself. His eyes seemed to be opened as he moved towards the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, attempting to enter and integrate with it.


    Under everyone��s gaze, the shadow and those infinite air currents entered the sacred remains as if attempting to control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor by way of his spiritual soul. This sight made all those from the Shangqing Domain more than a little nervous.


    Could it be that Ye Futian was really able to do it?


    If he had the same ability as the teacher from Four Corner Village, how unimaginably frightening would that be?


    That��s simply impossible!


    They thought that even if the teacher from Four Corner Village had taught something to Ye Futian, the fact remained that Ye Futian��s realm was far inferior to that of the teacher. How could he control the sacred remains like the teacher did and cause such superior combat power to erupt?


    Nonetheless, even if Ye Futian could really control the sacred remains, the fighting power that he could draw from it was bound to be more limited.


    This was the only way the people from the Shangqing Domain could console themselves.


    In the Shangqing Domain, there was already an unfathomable teacher in the village, along with some other cultivators who were very powerful and terrifying in their own right. If there was now another person like Ye Futian, who could completely control the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, would there be any foothold left for anyone else in the future?


    Perhaps soon, the Domain Chief��s Manor would no longer be able to control this new force that was the Four Corner Village.


    Zhou Muhuang was also among the crowd. As the Vice Chief of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor, he did not participate.


    At this moment when he saw Ye Futian��s spiritual soul separated in an attempt to take over control of the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, his heart couldn��t help but trembled violently. He had fancied Ye Futian��s talent back then and wanted to recruit him into the Domain Chief��s Manor to cultivate. He had even asked Zhou Lingxi to befriend Ye Futian for that very purpose.


    However, Ye Futian was unmoved, as he had no intention of entering the Domain Chief��s Manor at all. He preferred to remain in Four Corner Village to cultivate and rejected his overture.


    Later, Ye Futian alone comprehended the method contained within the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Following that, many cultivators participated in the siege of Four Corner Village, which ended with the teacher��s shocking battle that suppressed all those who attacked.


    After that, Ye Futian cultivated in Four Corner Village for a time then came to the Lower Worlds with them.


    Now, did he actually manage to control the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    When he thought of this, Zhou Muhuang felt some conflicted emotions in his heart, even a sense of jealousy regarding Ye Futian. With his own extraordinary realm, if he could gain control of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s corpse, it would definitely be another kind of comprehension that would have helped him impact a higher realm. But what he could not have accomplished, that no one in the entire Shangqing Domain could have accomplished, was achieved by Ye Futian. He was now a singular existence.


    At this time, the Sun God Sword above Ye Futian and the others had already penetrated. The Divine Fire of the Sun was extremely horrific as it torched all existence with what seemed to be an unstoppable force. The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace wanted to block it only to hear a voice command, ��Get out of the way and protect my body.��


    When that voice fell, the eyes of the Shenjia the Great Emperor opened, and an extremely dazzling divine light shot out, which penetrated the void like an indestructible divine sword. At the same time, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor seemed to come alive once more, as the emperor who had returned.


    Those eyes were tinged with an undeniable iciness as well as a faint sense of contempt. It was as if they contained both the will of Shenjia the Great Emperor and Ye Futian, that they were of the same entity.


    Boom!


    As soon as he stepped on the ground, even more terrifying cracks appeared, chasing into the distance. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor moved at last. It turned into a terrible divine light, surrounded by infinite ancient characters. His body rocketed into the sky until it perched above the firmament.


    The Sun God Sword fell but was caught by Shenjia the Great Emperor directly without hesitation, as he reached out and grasped unto the sword. The terrifying Divine Fire of the Sun instantly invaded and shrouded the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor as if trying to burn him up completely.


    However, these were the sacred remains. How could they be refined by the Divine Fire of the Sun?


    ��This���� The hearts of all the cultivators who witnessed this scene beat violently. Was he trying to grab the Sun God Sword with his own bare hands?


    Among those who were present, who would dare to attempt such a feat?


    Perhaps only Ye Futian would. He who had control over the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor dared to catch the divine sword with his bare hands. The corpse of the Great Emperor had not been corrupted for centuries, undying and indestructible. The Divine Fire of the Sun was not released by the gods, after all, so how could it destroy a corpse like the Great Emperor��s?


    Suddenly, the hand of Shenjia the Great squeezed, and under the shocking gaze of everyone, the Sun God Sword cast by the sun��s divine light was broken up bit by bit and begin to self-destruct. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was moving upward as the Sun God Sword continued to shatter, creating a terrifying field of fire around it. Even though the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was bathed in this field of fire, it didn��t appear to be aware of it.


    When Shenjia the Great Emperor was alive, he was a supreme existence who dared to battle the Heavenly Path!

 Chapter 2251 - Might of the Sacred Remains

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The sight before them had a strong impact on everyone. Ye Futian had really taken over the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor and was able to use it in battle and urge great power from it. Even the Sun God Sword released by a top figure from Sun God Mountain had been destroyed just like that.


    Everyone had estimated the strength of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Even though the imperial palace was very strong, without the existence of their former palace lord, they were not so fearsome. After all, there were many principalities on this side. Even without counting the cultivators from the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm, the Divine Prefecture itself would have enough forces to act against Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s own realm was lowly enough, and he could only rely on other cultivators to protect him, so it should not have been too difficult to take him down.


    However, the scene before them was clearly unexpected. Ye Futian, who was able to control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, was himself the top cultivator amongst them all. Of course, it was still unclear just how much strength he could actually produce.


    They just hoped that it was not the same as when the teacher from Four Corner Village was in control of the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Otherwise, no one here could possibly bear it. In the battle outside of Four Corner Village, the teacher did not go easy on them. The clan lord of the Nanhai family was gravely injured without any ability to fight back. If the teacher of Four Corner Village were here in control of the sacred remains, none of them would even entertain the thought of touching Ye Futian.


    But now it seemed that the teacher had taught Ye Futian how to do it.


    In fact, Ye Futian himself was under unbelievable pressure by doing this. After all, he was still a distance away from the teacher as far as their realms were concerned. It could be said that there was an entire level of difference between their existence. To control the sacred remains, the load he had to bear was frightening to even think of, and it could very well be turned around to hurt himself.


    And this was even under the condition that he had controlled the several kinds of will of the Great Emperors. Otherwise, it would be even more impossible to achieve.


    In the void, the cultivators from Sun God Mountain did not look too good. Was the power of the sacred remains this terrifying?


    Although Shenjia the Great Emperor was no more, back when his corpse was still in Shangqing Domain, no one dared to even glance at it, for it held terrifying power that was beyond words.


    ��Attack the spiritual soul, destroy his spiritual soul,�� a voice reminded everyone that the body of Shenjia the Great was impossible to be broken. Ye Futian separated his spiritual soul to enter into the body of Shenjia the Great, thus gaining control over the corpse.


    Therefore, if they could shatter his spiritual soul through the sacred remains, Ye Futian would undoubtedly perish.


    Although all the cultivators were stunned by Ye Futian��s control over Shenjia the Great Emperor, many top figures were watching with blazing eyes. Their minds were reeling as their interest was now piqued, and they were dying to make a move.


    The corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor was so terribly powerful. How could they not covet it?


    Now, if Ye Futian could be killed here, not only was it possible to obtain the inheritance power of Ziwei the Great but the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor would also be kept here. Who could resist that?


    It was just too strong. The power that erupted from these sacred remains made them tremble in fear.


    Attack of the spiritual soul!


    How could they attack Ye Futian��s spiritual soul inside the sacred remains?


    At this time, the cultivators from the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm who stood a distance away were already aching to make a move. They didn��t think that Ye Futian would have brought the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor with him. This way, they could kill him and capture the sacred remains. The payout could be great.


    They weren��t quite certain whether they could control the inheritance of Ziwei the Great through Ye Futian, but the sacred remains appearing in front of them was a fact. Facing its mighty power, how could they resist?


    However, they wanted to see just what kind of power Ye Futian could urge from the sacred remains.


    Boom�� A terrifying sound was heard, and the sun god-like figure was still expanding and growing, as if it had swallowed the sun��s divine power between heaven and earth. For a time, an infinite area was shrouded inside of it.


    These massive and boundless eyes of the Sun God shot out a terrifying divine light, like two fire beams, directly falling on the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. However, it was still unable to burn up the body. Ye Futian controlled the body of Shenjia the Great to move upward, shuttling in the fire field like an immortal existence.


    At this moment, a real sun appeared on the chest of the Sun God. It contained an unparalleled destructive solar storm that was capable of devouring all existence. The ever-expanding solar storm was moving in the direction of Shenjia the Great, about to swallow him whole into the storm itself.


    At this time, the arms of Shenjia the Great Emperor moved. He raised his hand and pointed outward like a sword. In an instant, infinite characters flew out of the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and filled up the space. To everyone��s shock, they found that all these characters were actually just the same one word, sword.


    Endless characters gathered together and turned into an incomparable storm of sword qi, pointed at the sky above, and aiming toward that solar storm for the kill.


    Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! The sword that was made up by those infinite characters pierced directly into the solar storm. At this moment, everyone��s attention was glued there. They wanted to see just how powerful Ye Futian��s first attack would be, aided by Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Soon, they saw it.


    When the divine sword penetrated the solar storm, the storm actually began to burst and shatter. Its Great Path collapsed, and everything was turning into dust and disappeared into nothingness.


    In a short moment, all the cultivators saw the destruction of that massive solar storm, as it vanished immediately.


    What was even more frightening was that the divine sword which contained those characters was still around, rushing into that majestic, god-like body.


    ��The power of destruction.��


    A shocking voice spoke. In the next moment, everyone saw a figure rise into the sky. It was as if, with a single thought, it had separated itself from the figure. Soon afterward, that sun god-like body followed suit in its continuous collapse and destruction.


    High above the sky, that supreme cultivator from the Sun God Mountain appeared. He looked down at the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor below, and his heartbeat quickened.


    Path destruction. This spell could destroy the power of the Great Path, perhaps suppressing all power of the Great Path. Destruction was imminent as soon as it hit its target.


    He was an existence that had already survived the divine tribulation of the Great Path, with an intimate understanding of the Great Path so that his perception of it was very clear. According to legend, Shenjia the Great Emperor wanted to battle the Heavenly Path and thoroughly destroy it. In his arrogance, he declared that there was no such thing as the Great Path in the natural order of the world.


    Therefore, this was the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Even though he had been dead for many years, the power contained within his body was incomparable and had the power to extinguish the Great Path. Back then, in the Shangqing Domain, no one under the status of giants had the ability to even gaze upon the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. One look would cause blood to ooze from their eyes.


    In the void, a series of ancient characters were floating in the air. After circling in the void, they flew directly back into the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Ye Futian��s spiritual soul was inside the body of Shenja the Great Emperor. He was under extremely horrific pressure at the moment, as if he had entered a domain composed of endless characters. In this domain, each of these infinite characters contained incredible and incomprehensible power.


    This was a world of infinite mystery, composed of characters from the Great Path, which contained unspeakable power. If he could be in full control of it, Ye Futian believed he could kill all the cultivators here and end all his opponents instantly.


    However, it was not easy for him to use any of these powers while consuming a large amount of energy, let alone exert all his power. If he had tried, his spiritual soul would not be able to bear it, and it would cause a backlash.


    Furthermore, he was not yet fully familiar with this power!

 Chapter 2252 - Erupt

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��So powerful!��


    The surrounding aces shuddered when they saw the combat power from the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, which Ye Futian was manipulating. The destructive light was evidently something that even existences on the Sun God Mountain that had gone through a Great Path and divine tribulations must avoid.


    The power of annihilation. The power to destroy the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was incomprehensibly terrifying.


    In this way, wouldn��t it be better no one go head-to-head against Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body?


    ��His control over the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor should be limited. Besides, it is bound to place a heavy burden on him.�� At this moment, a voice arose, leaving the pupils of many top figures constricting. If Ye Futian could truly control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor with ease, he would not have ceased at that moment earlier on. Instead, he would proceed to strike a heavy blow on his opponent like what the master did in the battle outside Four Corner Village.


    ��Attack his spiritual soul, restrain him, and exhaust his energy,�� said another voice. ��Also, destroy his original flesh.��


    Ye Futian��s flesh remained, guarded by a group of powerhouses from the Ziwei Imperial Palace. As long as Ye Futian��s flesh was destroyed and his spiritual soul was deprived of a vessel, his death would be inevitable.


    ��Let��s attack together,�� the crowd concluded. All of a sudden, all over the sky, brewed an appalling storm, assuming a form that seemed extremely horrifying. A myriad of daunting attacks descended simultaneously, heading directly toward the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Around the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, which was under Ye Futian��s control, the intense booming of a Great Path sounded. Within a fraction of a second, the Divine Light of Antiquity surrounded the body. Once those astonishing attacks driven by Great Paths came into contact with the body, they would blow up directly. The defensive energy around him was impenetrable.


    This flesh��


    The people were panic-stricken as they watched. How should they fight a seemingly impenetrable defense?


    However, seeing that Ye Futian did not take any action, their assumption should be valid. Ye Futian could not control the sacred remains at will like the master of Four Corner Village, maybe because he was not accustomed to it. Besides, at his current level, even when strengthened with the will of the emperor, controlling such a horrifying corpse was still a terrifying thing to do. The burden it would cast on him must be immense, and for that, they could try to exhaust him.


    Right at this very moment, the sound of a zither abruptly arose. The sound was extremely dense. Seemingly morphed into invisible sound waves, they went into Ye Futian��s ears, causing his spiritual soul to tremble violently as if he was struck with unparalleled might.


    Heavy, powerless, even breathing seemed extremely difficult.


    Divine Melody Taihua.


    The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor raised its head, looked into the void, and caught sight of the emergence of Taihua Skylord��s figure. The figure was sitting legs-crossed in the void. His Great Path was a zither. Amid a massive zither, melodies constantly sounded and morphed into sound waves imbued with great might. It was the Divine Melody Taihua.


    As this rhythm continued to fluctuate, the entire realm seemed extremely dense. The people��s hearts were trembling as many of them even felt shocked down in their spiritual souls.


    Evidently, the Divine Melody Taihua was infused with enough power to damage one��s spiritual soul. They were about to launch attacks on Ye Futian��s spiritual soul.


    Ye Futian did not expect that Taihua Skylord would attack him at this moment in time. Previously, at Great Emperor Ziwei��s Cultivation Court, he even hoped to win Taihua Skylord over with the help of Goddess Taihua.


    However, Taihua Skylord had opted for a completely different direction as to become his enemy. Was this because of that incident?


    Under the immense pressure, his adaptability to the body of Shenjia the Great began to deteriorate. He felt that it was much harder to maintain smooth control.


    At this moment, the sound of a zither arose. The crowd saw an ace walking forward. He descended on the ground not far away from Ye Futian. His fingers incited the zither of the Great Path between heaven and earth, turning them into an equally terrifying melody that rippled outward. It collided with Divine Melody Taihua and stirred up a remarkably sharp whistle.


    ��This���� The people around were shocked. The entity who made a move this time was Lord Luo from beyond the Zixiao Domain. Likewise, he excelled in Divine Melody. In the midst of this confrontation of melodies, the surrounding Great Path attacks collapsed and shattered, forming a Storm of the Great Path.


    In the distance, Goddess Taihua and Luo Su pondered in their minds as they watched the scene. Goddess Taihua did not anticipate that her father would attack Ye Futian now. Previously, she missed an opportunity, but now that her father had attacked, he would probably become sworn enemies with Ye Futian. In today��s situation, Ye Futian and others were already in an extremely perilous condition. Any powerhouse that further launched attacks at them was undoubtedly adding salt to their wound, desiring to send them to their doom.


    In the midst of such a situation, the course of action would spell lifelong hatred that could never be resolved.


    On another battlefield, someone was attacking Ye Futian��s physical body. They wanted to break through the defenses of the Ziwei Imperial Palace��s aces and strike Ye Futian��s body. Among these people, the strongest person was Gai Cang, a sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation. A godly figure emerged behind his back, and the Sigh of the Divine God sounded. With the potency of Godly Power, a Golden Divine Spear penetrated the void and stabbed onto the defensive barrier constituted of Starry Brilliance, breaking it bit by bit.


    Ye Futian was still standing where he was, immersed in the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s flesh. However, he was looking at everything that took place on the surrounding battlefield. Nothing could escape his senses.


    Boom�� A gust of an even wilder rune storm erupted from Ye Futian��s body. Encircled in golden Divine Light, the unceasing runes morphed into an appalling tempest and swept towards the void, where they converged.


    Under the watchful eyes of many powerhouses, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor raised his head and glanced at the horrifying tempest converged of runes. Over there, a golden rod, brimming with splendor and brilliance, emerged. The body of Shenjia the Great extended his hand, gripped it against the void, and brought it into his palm. His body also gradually enlarged and morphed into in godlike vessel. The daunting lines of runes burnt onto his flesh, which inflicted the sensation of extreme pain on those who were looking at him.


    The other hand of Shenjia the Great Emperor extended likewise and gripped the towering rod. A gust of horrifying God��s might erupted. Every cultivator within the battlefield in the void felt an outburst of sheer terror.


    Ka-boom��


    An overwhelming might erupt. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor picked up the sky-piercing rod, swept it across the aces hovering in the sky. In an instant, a line was drawn between heaven and earth, and a terrifying dark fissure emerged. It felt as if space itself was torn apart. Following the strike with the rod, the afterimages of the rod cleaved space apart. The horrifying fissure devoured all existence, and at the same time, the tempest force swept across all Great Paths.


    The aces battling in the void swiftly retreated in different directions, distancing themselves within a fraction of a second. No one was bold enough to approach the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    And at this very moment, the body glanced towards one direction. It was the direction where Gai Cang was at. Shenjia the Great raised his feet and paced towards Gai Cang!

 Chapter 2253 - Killing Spree

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Gai Cang��s eyes suddenly changed. Watching Ye Futian walk towards him, there was horror in his eyes. The power was so strong that it swept and destroyed everything; even that cultivator from Sun God Mountain, who had survived the divine tribulation, had to avoid its edge, let alone him.


    Buzz! The divine light was brilliant. Gai Cang��the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation��retreated without putting up a fight, fleeing into the void instead, wanting to escape from this space. Needless to say, everyone was surprised. Even as a strong existence at this level, his choosing to escape was unexpected. The body of Shenjia the Great was indeed awfully fearsome.


    This sight caused much fear in the hearts of those from the Original Realm who were enemies with Ye Futian. After Ye Futian destroyed Gai Cang, would it be their turn next?


    There was a terrifying light in the eyes of Shenjia the Great Emperor, and rays of divine light shot out toward the sky. It was as if divine characters descended on the sky above Gai Cang, forming an area of absolute restriction.


    Gai Cang��s body slammed onto it with great force but couldn��t break through. His face became even gloomier. When he turned his head, he saw that the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had already come upon him, controlled by none other than Ye Futian. Without any hesitation, it lifted the long rod with both hands and forced it down. In an instant, a terrifying dark crack completely tore through the space.


    Gai Cang let out a roar as the golden divine light skyrocketed, puffing out infinite divine glory. A god-like figure appeared slamming down the golden spear, trying to block the blow.


    However, the horrible pitch-black crack descended with the rod��s shadow, smashed that god-like body, blasting it to pieces. There was a look of desperation in Gai Cang��s eyes. Although he had unleashed infinite golden brilliance, he still couldn��t stop his body from being torn apart and pulverized.


    Bang! When this strike landed, everything disappeared. Everyone saw Gai Cang��the sovereign of the Golden Divine Nation, disappear into nothing��his soul and spirit were scattered, and he was killed by one strike of the rod. Furthermore, no one lent a helping hand during the process when he was being killed. They just watched a top cultivator perish thusly.


    The Golden Divine Nation had lost its sovereignty, and its future decline would be inevitable.


    Many people��s hearts trembled. Cultivators from the Shen Clan, Martial God Clan, Jian Ao of Tianshen Academy, and many other top figures developed a strong sense of dread. Gai Cang was their ally who had once fought side by side with them against Ye Futian and Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    However, now that they had witnessed Gai Cang��s death, they must have felt a sense of sadness and loss.


    And what if Ye Futian were to turn around and deal with them?


    Now that Ye Futian had control over the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, who could fight him? None of the top figures from the Original Realm were qualified to contend with him; they would probably end up like Gai Cang, who was directly wiped out by a strike of the rod.


    In the far distance, some cultivators from the Golden Divine Nation had born witness to this shocking finale. They now felt a tremendous sense of sorrow.


    Their sovereign had died just like that in the battle?


    Ye Futian killed him in the presence of all the cultivators. He had been executed. Were all the principalities ganging up on Ye Futian?


    And they were beaten by a single person, who forced all of them to retreat, and none dared to stand in front of him.


    ��Gai Cang.��


    There was still another top cultivator in Golden Divine Nation��Gai Qiong. Having witnessed the death of his own brother, who perished before his eyes while he was completely powerless, he knew that even if he had intervened, the outcome would not only have been the same, but he would have lost his own life as well.


    At this time, Shenjia the Great Emperor turned around and looked in the direction of Gai Qiong, as if it was attracted by his voice.


    ��Gai Qiong, you cultivated at the imperial palace as a subordinate of the Great Emperor. But you colluded with cultivators from the outside to instigate internal conflicts within the Divine Prefecture. Furthermore, you have put me in danger many times before, so your punishment today, hopefully, will be understood by the imperial palace.��


    When his voice fell, a blinding divine light burst from the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. His physical form traversed the void, fast to the limit, and the long rod in his hand danced and smashed down once again.


    Gai Qiong��s face changed suddenly with shock. A god-like figure stood between heaven and earth. Both of his palms slammed forward, and two monstrous handprints tried to stop the strike launched by that horrifying long rod.


    However, terrifying dark cracks were still appearing as the space was collapsing, and turbulent air currents raged between heaven and earth. This rod seemed to poke through the Original Realm, even affecting the power of the Great Path.


    Bang! Another frighteningly loud noise was heard, and another top cultivator had perished. A cultivator from the imperial palace was killed by a single strike from Ye Futian. His soul was scattered and dispersed into nothingness.


    It was simply too menacing. Ye Futian, who had control over the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, could use the power contained within the body to display an explosive power of annihilation. Every attack had the ability to tear and shatter the space; even those top figures could not block any of his attacks.


    In a blink of an eye, two top figures were killed off. They had been brothers, and both of them were pillars of the Golden Divine Nation.


    With the fall of these two major figureheads, the Golden Divine Nation was finished. It could no longer claim to be a top principality and would probably face the fate of dissolution.


    ��Who can contend with Ye Futian at this moment?�� These cultivators shuddered, especially those who were his sworn enemies. They wanted to surround Ye Futian and destroy him, only to find that Ye Futian was the greatest existence after leveraging the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor. No one could stop his powerful presence.


    The battlefield had expanded. Cultivators from different forces had retreated into the far distance, avoiding coming any closer. They feared that a sudden attack from him would lead them to the same fate as Gai Qiong and Gai Cang.


    All the cultivators were unnerved by one person.


    To cultivators from the Shangqing Domain, this was like d��j�� vu from the battle outside Four Corner Village. Ye Futian also used the terrifying power in the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great to block and slaughter all who were in his way.


    The cultivators from the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm were waiting and watching. They had no intention to make a move. It was as they were in no hurry. After the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture had killed each other, they would then assess Ye Futian��s prowess while in control of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s sacred remains. If he could maintain his performance at this peak level, it would be difficult to take him on.


    Here, no one could compete head-to-head with Ye Futian. Among the cultivators here, the strongest were those who had survived the first major divine tribulation. As proven by the cultivator at this level from Sun God Mountain, he was repelled by Ye Futian directly and did not dare to attempt another head-on challenge.


    In the distance, above the tavern, Mei Ting stood there quietly. No matter what terrifying changes had taken place on the ground, he remained motionless and steady. But those eyes that looked at the body of Shenjia the Great had become somewhat different. His curiosity about Ye Futian was getting stronger. What kind of person was he that he could achieve things that no one else could?


    Control the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor and obtain the inheritance of Ziwei the Great all so that Yu Sheng would be willing to follow him!

 Chapter 2254 - Invincible

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The powerhouses who attacked Ye Futian were not looking too happy. Under such circumstances, not to mention killing Ye Futian and snatching the inheritance and the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, protecting themselves was an issue.


    ��Banish the corpse and go for his flesh,�� someone suggested. Immediately, the eyes of some aces glistened. This was a legit plan. They could first banish the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, who Ye Futian was controlling.


    ��Do it.��


    As soon as the words fell, someone acted. The top aces from the Shen Clan exuded a terrifying aura. An appalling spatial storm emerged. The storm tore the void open and even contained the power to sever one��s spiritual soul.


    Slash. There was a loud shout, and the destructive spatial storm moved to devour Ye Futian��s body. They were not the only ones who attacked. The other aces also launched attacks at Ye Futian. Above the sky, a terrifying pagoda shattered the void and slowly ripped the region apart, bringing about a terrifying black hole.


    ��Bury!�� a voice yelled. The murky fissure devoured the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, burying it within the endless void.


    ��Destroy his flesh,�� another voice sounded. Immediately, the aces rushed downward simultaneously, charging directly towards the area guarded by the powerhouses of the Ziwei Imperial Palace to shatter Ye Futian��s flesh. As long as Ye Futian��s flesh was destroyed, with no vessel for his spiritual soul to settle in, he would not be able to control Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body for too long.


    Ace of the Shen Clan, Shen Gao. A cataclysmic spatial storm emerged on his body, showering down from above the sky and tearing apart all that existent. Every cyclone was like a divine spatial blade that was slicing through the void, slashing down onto the ground below the vault with the intent of cutting through the star-shaped barrier.


    The attacks of the other aces descended one after another. A pagoda smashed into the void, and an ancient clock exploded at the top, stirring up a destructive cyclone of unparalleled might. The defensive barrier was about to shatter.


    Whoosh! Shen Gao excelled in spatial power. He seized the opportunity and unleashed a slash towards a fissure, immediately tearing it apart. He morphed into a ray of light and slashed downwards, diverting his attack to the crowd, hoping to scatter the powerhouses who were guarding Ye Futian. All of these people had terrifying levels and were the top-notch figures of Ziwei Imperial Palace. None of them were weak. To destroy Ye Futian��s flesh, they must first scatter the body parts, rendering them unable to band together to protect Ye Futian.


    However, at the location where his attack landed, a fissure abruptly appeared, and from within what looked like a murky hole came a hand shining with dazzling brilliance. This hand slowly stretched forward and gradually grew in size. It morphed into a massive palm composed of massive amounts of runic combinations. It moved towards the sky, blocking out the sun, shattering Shen Gao��s attack. At the same time, it moved toward Shen Gao, who was flying in its direction.


    Sensing that something was not right, Shen Gao��s expression altered drastically as he halted his body with the desire to retreat.


    ��Be careful,�� the clan lord of the Shen Clan yelled as he watched nervously.


    Divine Light dazzled. Shen Gao wanted to travel through space and leave only to discover the massive palm gripping at the void. Suddenly, endless amounts of runes appeared above the sky, turning into an even larger palm that blocked the entire realm. It clenched into a fist, blocking Shen Gao��s path of retreat.


    Within the fissure, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor emerged once again. Naturally, the palm belonged to him.


    ��His control got even stronger.�� Looking at the scene that was unfolding, the powerful warriors�� hearts were thumping wildly. Ye Futian was seemingly familiarizing himself with Shenjia the Great Emperor��s flesh and the way to tap into his powers. He was seemingly becoming more and more accustomed to it.


    The ginormous palm abruptly clenched, emitting a loud bang. Terror was written on Shen Gao��s face. He had seemingly plunged into an absolute space that he could not leave. He could only watch as the godly hand contained him at where he was.


    In an instant, he was caught by the palm, and a terrifying divine brilliance erupted from his body. The appalling spatial storm seemed not to affect them at all. As long as they came into contact with the palm, they would be turned to ash. He could not escape.


    ��Ahh!�� A miserable shriek sounded. The palm tightened as the Divine Light slowly destroyed Shen Gao��s flesh, causing his body to shatter and gradually dissipate. A phantom escaped from the flesh. It was Shen Gao��s spiritual soul.


    However, the Divine Light on the palm immediately ran through him and turned him into ash. The spiritual soul could not escape as well.


    Bam! In the midst of pathetic screaming, the palm clenched, directly obliterating Shen Gao. It felt as if it were done without effort. In other words, he had been crushed like an ant. This had those cultivators, who were originally tempted, second-guess their greed and ambition.


    He was too dangerous. At this moment, Ye Futian, who was controlling the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, could be seen as a Killing God. To have wiped out Shen Gao with one single palm�� Should he do the same to them, they would probably end up like him.


    No matter how greedy they were, they must still preserve their lives. Their only choice was to wait and see. They refused to believe that Ye Futian could maintain control over the sacred remains for an extended period of time.


    The better was his control over the sacred remains, the greater the exhaustion it would become to his body. Sooner or later, his spiritual soul would not be able to bear the immense burden.


    However, at this moment, the aces from the Shen Clan were feeling a little hopeless. Shen Gao was killed. He was from the original Shen Clan in the Divine Prefecture; however, he was crushed and killed in such an overwhelming way. Shen Gao was one of the aces who partook in the raid of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which included Gai Cang and Gai Qiong from before.


    Now, Ye Futian was having his revenge. He wanted to seize this opportunity to massacre his enemies from the past.


    Even the power of Space Exile was useless against him?


    How could he be killed then?


    Their only choice was to exhaust him to the point where he would crumble under his own weight.


    At this moment, Ye Futian gazed at the aces hovering in the void. He knew that many of them had not made a move yet and were only spectating. In fact, all of them were looking at him with desire. The more they witnessed the power of Shenjia the Great��s body, the stronger their greed became.


    For those who have cultivated to their level, who did not want to venture toward the ultimate plane?


    If a top figure who had gone through a Divine Path and divine tribulation could manipulate the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor like him, they would become near invincible.


    Most certainly, Ye Futian was well aware in his heart that aside from him, it was tough for anyone else to control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, even for those who had gone through a Divine Path and divine tribulation. But of course, that would exclude the master.


    As for how the master was able to do so, Ye Futian had not figured it out yet. Most certainly, he did not question him either, as he was an entity who was beyond this world.


    Looking at the powerhouses around him, the pressure Ye Futian was under intensified. His spiritual soul was becoming a little unstable. He could not sustain such a battle for too long. He must think of a way to end this battle as soon as possible. If not, it would become more and more troublesome.


    Once something happened to him, the powerhouses staring at him

 Chapter 2255 - Sword of Annihilation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    I need to kill a few big shots, or kill more of them at once, Ye Futian thought. His eyes looked around the vast space and then in one direction. There was a battlefield over there. Two powerful existences were currently engaged in a heated battle.


    One of them was the Holy Land of Taichu��s Swordmaster of Taichu. The Swordmaster of Taichu had exceptional combat prowess. If he were eliminated, it would cause a pretty great impact. Succeeding the Swordmaster of Taichu, if he could further kill a few entities who had gone through their divine tribute, he could probably alter the current situation of the battle.


    However, killing such figures did not seem easy as well.


    What that in mind, Ye Futian��s spiritual soul assumed control over the vast realm that dwelled within Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body.


    Boom! A horrifying gust of sword might erupt from the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Countless sword-shaped runes appeared around his body. This time, Ye Futian��s spiritual soul had seemingly tapped into a unique state. It felt as if he had completely merged with the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Beyond his spiritual soul, countless streams of light were flowing and fueling the power within Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body. His dreadful pupils gazed into the sky as if it could pierce through heaven and earth.


    ��This���� Many people looked at the area around Ye Futian��s body. Suddenly, the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body erupted again and became even more horrifying. The wisps of Sword Will turned into an unceasing storm of Sword Qi that began raging across the earth. On top of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body, one could even vaguely see the face of another person. It belonged to no other than Ye Futian.


    The aces that were looking at him trembled on the inside. What was that supposed to mean? Could it be that Ye Futian wished to seize complete control over the sacred remain?


    ��All of you, back off.�� At this moment, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor uttered a few words. It was Ye Futian��s figure. Swiftly, the aces on Ye Futian��s side who were engaged in combat retreated. They seemingly understood what he meant.


    Whoosh�� A ghastly Sword Will swept across the sky and clamored vigorously. In the front of the seemingly infinite amounts of Sword Qi loomed a massive fissure. The Sword Will began to wreak havoc across the realm as if it was the Sword of All Manifestations.


    Ye Futian. He was using the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to unleash his own power!


    The hearts of the aces trembled. If that was the case, how powerful would he be?


    Nobody knew.


    ��Go!�� Ye Futian shouted. All in an instant, Sword Qi enveloped the boundless space. Above the sky, there also seemed to be sword-shaped runes. For a while, everyone in the entire Heavenly Mandate City could see the sky full of Sword Runes infused with the power of annihilation.


    ��Be careful,�� someone reminded him. Many powerhouses could feel the threat. It felt as if the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had been completely replaced by Ye Futian and had become a part of him. If that truly had happened, he would be able to unleash his own techniques at will.


    Boom��


    Heaven and earth rumbled, and the dark fissure engulfed the realm. In front of the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, a sword that felt as if it could destroy everything in the world appeared. In front of the sword, a ginormous rift emerged and was getting deeper and deeper.


    ��We gotta leave.�� Having sensed the intensity of the power, somebody spoke up. Immediately, people wanted to retreat.


    The Swordmaster of Taichu even ripped the space apart and headed into the void. His expression altered likewise. Evidently, he did not expect that Ye Futian would be that much of a maniac. To unleash an attack of such a level, how badly would it exhaust his own spiritual soul?


    Nobody knew. Maybe only Ye Futian himself was aware of it.


    He might be taking a gamble.


    He wanted to unleash a destructive blow and finish off his enemies, not enemy.


    ��Let��s retreat.�� Even the aces that were spectating the battle in the distance began retreating. This boundless space was seemingly enveloped by Sword Qi, especially by those that originated from the sword in front of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body. The sword seemed invincible, and no one had the courage to face that blade. Whoever that taken a strike from that blade would most probably perish.


    The people on Ye Futian��s side retreated underneath him. In that way, they would not be affected by the wrath of the sword. In the distance, the aces of the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm were also retreating and departing the domain. Evidently, they also felt afraid.


    As for the powerhouses who were previously engaged in combat, all of them were fleeing in different directions. The scene had every spectator in the distant Heavenly Mandate City shuddering in pear. A bunch of top aces was actually fleeing because of a streak of sword might.


    1


    Lord Taixuan stared at the sword. Likewise, ripples of emotion emerged within him. This was the sword he passed on to Ye Futian, the Fleeting Swordsmanship.


    Now, Ye Futian was preparing to use the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor to unleash an attack with this sword to wipe out his opponent.


    The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had already fused with Ye Futian. The body��s face looked just like Ye Futian��s. His eyes were extremely sharp. He looked into the sky and pointed. All of a sudden, a sword was discharged.


    When the blade was unleashed, heaven and earth crumbled, and unceasing amounts of Divine Swords pierced through the void and swept across all existence. The sword in the middle went all the way up. The powerhouses witnessed what was called ��crumbling heaven.��


    It was like the Heavenly Path collapsing and everything turning into nothingness. All that went into the fissure of nothingness would collapse and perish. The sword passed through space, penetrated the fissure, and began to tear the surrounding area apart. This tearing force became more terrifying as it gave rise to a boundless black hole above the sky.


    ��No���� A miserable scream sounded. People could see the body of an immensely talented cultivator shredded into pieces within the fissure. He died with a crumbled body and a shattered soul. It was pathetic. He did not even get a chance to escape.


    This terrifying storm continued to wreak havoc as it moved towards the distance. Those powerhouses who were fleeing were also entrained into the stream and slaughtered. They were completely powerless against that force.


    Horrible screams sounded continuously. There were also miserable shrieks. In the advent of the sword attack, a plethora of aces perished into dust.


    In the distant dark fissure, the Swordmaster of Taichu moved his sword and unleashed an earth-shattering attack. The surging stream of sword energy cleaved space apart. He wanted to escape. However, everything was collapsing. No one could escape, including him.


    What��s more, this sword was aimed right at him.


    When the attack fell, the river of sword energy unleashed by Swordmaster of Taichu was destroyed bit after bit. He looked at the scene in front of him, feeling only despair and a sense of disbelief.


    He was the person in charge of the Holy Land of Taichu��s Taichu Sparring Grounds. He was one of the strongest existences across the entire Taichu Domain. However, even he could never expect that he would die and plummet after arriving in the Lower Realm.


    Why would this happen?


    Besides, the one who killed him was a mere level six at the Renhuang Plane.


    Boom�� The Divine Sword of Annihilation plummeted. Just like the others, the body of the Swordmaster of Taichu shattered into dust. From then onward, the Holy Land of Taichu lost one of their top aces.


    The cultivators in the distance were rendered speechless by this scene as they gazed at the ravaged space. Was this swordsmanship something that a mortal could perform?!

 Chapter 2256 - Coveting Eyes

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A massive hole opened in this realm. Many top aces were destroyed and slaughtered amidst the struggle. The sight of it left many shuddering in fear.


    Did the collapse of a Heavenly Path during ancient times look like this as well?


    During the battle between gods, the Heavenly Path crumbled.


    The cultivators in the same faction with those slaughtered aces trembled intensely on the inside as they strugglingly watched the scene unfold. An indescribable sense of fear emerged within their hearts.


    Especially the powerhouses of the Holy Land of Taichu in the distance. Their swordmaster was slaughtered at the scene. Ye Futian, he was having his revenge. Back then, when they were battling against the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the Swordmaster of Taichu once severely wounded Lord Taixuan.


    Hence, with this attack with a sword, he slaughtered their swordmaster.


    They did not expect that as the hegemonic faction whose powers were at the pinnacle of the Taichu Domain, they would encounter a calamity of destruction at this place.


    The fissure on the ground gradually healed after the massacre. In both directions, two people walked out strugglingly. However, they were too severely wounded. They were bleeding. If they had not had special means, they would have perished as well.


    Hooh�� Some exhaled deeply. They were alive. The top ace of the Mo clan and the super-powerful existence from the Sun God Mountain survived the blow. However, they were in an unsightly state. Deep down within, they were still shivering intensely.


    They were actually forced into such a situation where their lives hung by a thread.


    Besides, the attack was not targeting them but the Swordmaster of Taichu. If not, the chances of them surviving were extremely slim.


    Even Mei Ting, who had been sitting there as steady as Mount Tai, sipping on wine, stood up and looked at Ye Futian at this moment. How did he unleash such an attack?


    That was a sacred remain, the flesh of Shenjia the Great Emperor himself. At the level Ye Futian was at, it was impossible that he could sustain the burden of it. He heard that many top aces could not even look at it because they would sustain severe injuries should they do so, let alone control the sacred remain to fight and unleash power of such caliber.


    This attack was evidently unleashed by Ye Futian borrowing the power of the sacred remain. However, its power was on par with the terrifying might of aces who have gone through a level two divine tribulation.


    This attack almost annihilated the enemies of the original void. From then on, in this land of the original realm, it was speculated that no one could contend against the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Of course, the premise was that Ye Futian was still alive.


    Not only were the outsiders shocked, but also the powerhouses around Ye Futian. The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace looked at the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor surrounded by divine light. At this moment, they understood the meaning of what Ye Futian said when he brought them here. It turned out that he himself had such a trump card.


    At this moment, they also faintly understood why Ye Futian was selected to inherit Great Emperor Ziwei. A Great Emperor was, after all, a Great Emperor. He had selected the most outstanding person. The people from Ziwei Imperial Palace had no idea about Ye Futian��s past, but through this battle, they saw how terrifying Ye Futian would become in the future.


    He was a person who had the chance of being at the zenith of the world. Like that the Great Emperor of the starry cultivation court said, he might very well inherit the throne in the future, revive the glory of Great Emperor Ziwei and lead the Ziwei Segmentum toward an era of greatness.


    Imperceptibly, Ye Futian used a battle to convince these big shots of Ziwei Imperial Palace. In the past, this would never have crossed their minds.


    With silent control, the storm gradually dissipated. The sky was brimming with the remnants of destruction.


    Time seemingly stopped. Many people gazed at where Ye Futian was at. Divine Light was circulating on the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. However, he did not move anymore. He just stood there quietly.


    Everybody was staring at him, making speculations on whether Ye Futian could unleash another similar attack.


    That transcendent attack. How much had it exhausted him?


    What kind of state was Ye Futian currently in?


    Silence. Absolute silence.


    Nobody spoke. There was no sound. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor quietly hovered in the air, making absolutely no movements.


    People were thinking about testing him out, but no one was bold enough to do so. What if he could still fight? What if he could still perform the same attack all over again??


    Should that be the case, whoever made the first move would be courting death.


    The eerie scene played out within this space.


    In fact, there were many top powerhouses among the crowd who had not made a move. After all, there were 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture. Many big shots had come from the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm. However, they remained as onlookers all along. Among them, many were looking at Ye Futian as if they were looking at prey.


    They were not in a hurry. So what if Ye Futian could unleash another similar attack?


    Nothing would change.


    They were well aware that sooner or later, Ye Futian would crumble to the weight of power, and when that happened, it would be very simple for them to deal with Ye Futian.


    However, what they have to consider was that after they dealt with Ye Futian, there would most probably be another fierce battle, a vie for the flesh of Ye Futian and Shenjia the Great. This battle would probably be even more terrifying and would involve even more forces.


    In the distance, the aces from the Dark World were patiently waiting. They were not in a hurry. They were just quietly watching everything that was happening. Everything would come to an end, and sooner or later, Ye Futian would collapse to the immense burden.


    With so many powerhouses starting at one prey, getting it was by no means an easy task. It depended not only on who was stronger but also on who was more patient.


    The aces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked at the aces within the void. They were far away and scattered in different regions while they looked at them with envious eyes. The attack just now left them in shock. However, it was not enough to get them to retreat. Everyone was clear about this.


    Lord Taixuan and others were all looking at Ye Futian with worry. What would be the outcome of this battle?


    At this moment, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor abruptly moved. Though the actions were simple, they sent tremors down to the hearts of many of the powerhouses. All of them stared at him fixedly.


    ��Are you still waiting for something?�� Ye Futian looked around at the crowd and said. Naturally, he understood their intention. Besides, what they were thinking was also right. It was true that he was now bearing an unfathomable burden of power. That attack he delivered earlier on had exhausted a massive chunk of his power. If he were to continue to fight like this, he would very likely crumble.


    No one responded. The aces just stared at him and turned a deaf ear to what he said. Ye Futian wanted them to give up. Was that even possible?


    ��You are refusing to leave because all of you want to kill me, seize the inheritance, and acquire the sacred remains. However, none of you will be able to control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Likewise, none of you can obtain the inheritance of Great Emperor Ziwei. What I��m telling you is not a lie. Even if you kill me, it will be meaningless.�� Ye Futian continued, ��If you are still reluctant to leave, I will treat you as my enemy!��

 Chapter 2257 - Taichu Saint Emperor

    Is he threatening us? people wondered.


    The crowd looked towards where Ye Futian was at. At this moment, Ye Futian was still using his words to deter the powerhouses.


    Could it be that he could still fight?


    Besides, was retreating that simple of a thing?


    Even if they retreat, they could return at any time for another battle; it was completely meaningless.


    At this moment, a horrifying energy ripple abruptly appeared above the sky. An awe-inspiring aura suffused, and everyone could feel the ghastly might.


    ��What��s going on?�� Many raised their heads and looked at the sky. How could this aura be so tyrannical? Even the big shots felt the fear-instilling aura.


    It was simply too powerful.


    ��This is bad.�� Over where the aces of Ziwei Imperial Palace were, the Supreme Elder, Renhuang Chen, had his eyebrows knitted. His facial expression was slightly perturbed. Not only him, but every powerhouse of Ziwei Imperial Palace felt a bad premonition.


    ��A powerful existence has arrived.�� Emperor Xi, too, raised his head and looked at the land above. The gust of might descended from the sky as if it came from a far-away land. When the entity was still far afield, his might had already penetrated the space and arrived.


    He faintly felt that it was an extremely horrifying existence, and his Plane might very well be above him.


    At present, the existence��s identity was still unknown.


    The storm raged, and at last, a figure emerged at the sky above the Heavenly Mandate Academy. But of course, the Heavenly Mandate Academy right now had been razed to the ground and no longer existed.


    ��All hail Saint Emperor.��


    In the distance, several figures groveled on their hands and knees in an extremely pious and respectful manner. At the same time, their spirits were somewhat heightened.


    ��Saint Emperor.��


    The crowd��s hearts thumped as they looked at the arriving figure. Saint Emperor of the Holy Land of Taichu. He had come. A figure at the pinnacle of the Taichu Domain, an existence that had survived two major divine tribulations.


    The Taichu Saint Emperor lowered his head and cast his eyes on the body of Shenjia the Great below. His eyes were filled with disdain. With just a single glance, people could feel an extremely horrifying threat being emitted from him. The eyes of Shenjia the Great Emperor stared back at him. A gust of daunting Divine Light erupted.


    Almost nobody in the Shangqing Domain dared to look right into those eyes. But at this very moment, the eyes of Taichu Saint Emperor were looking straight into the eyes of Shenjia the Great Emperor. A mighty aura permeated the vicinity, giving people the feeling as if he was the ruler of this land.


    ��So powerful.�� Everyone could feel his immense strength. Figures at his level were rare even across the entire Divine Prefecture. In the Donghua Domain and the Shangqing Domain, such entities did not even exist. One could only imagine how terrifying he was.


    Even in Ziwei Imperial Palace, only their original Palace Lord was on that level, and he was the person who ruled over the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    When existences at this level advance one step further, they would be able to step into the Plane that all cultivators yearn for��the Great Emperor Plane.


    At that Plane, one would truly become the ruler of heaven and earth.


    ��Even the Saint Emperor of the Holy Land of Taichu is here.�� The aces trembled within. This was the first superpower that descended upon the Original Realm, an existence standing at the very top of the pyramid.


    Within his personal arrival, who else could go up against him and contest for the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    Ye Futian was bound to perish. Nobody could possibly go up against such an entity.


    And not long ago, Ye Futian just killed the Swordmaster of Taichu. Now, he was probably going to pay for it.


    Likewise, Ye Futian stared at his opponent. The Saint Emperor has arrived in person, huh?


    The master of the Holy Land of Taichu descending upon the Original Realm.


    He had not experienced the power of someone of this caliber. The only time he had ever felt such an existence was at Great Emperor Ziwei��s Cultivation Court. However, he was not borrowing the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor to slaughter his opponents; it was because Great Emperor Ziwei��s will was there with him.


    In that starry dimension, he could be fearless. The true will of the Great Emperor was infused with that boundless starry dimension, and for that, he could take down powerhouses at any level.


    But things were different over here. He was merely controlling a sacred remain. What��s more, his control over it was not complete yet. He could only borrow the power within it, and the conduct itself would also cause immense stress to his own body.


    Ka-boom�� A shocking aura erupted from the body of Taichu Saint Emperor. At this very moment, everyone in Heavenly Mandate City could feel the Divine Wrath. He stood high up in the air and looked down condescendingly. He looked down as if all the living were ants, even Ye Futian, who was commanding the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    None of the aces in Heavenly Mandate City dared to look up at the sky. They were feeling nothing but fear.


    ��This is bad,�� Mei Ting said when she saw the situation over here. The way this was progressing was anything but reassuring for Ye Futian and those at his side, especially for Ye Futian himself. With the Swordmaster of Taichu killed and their Saint Emperor descending, there was a strong possibility that he would kill Ye Futian. There was no way that he would let him go.


    The Taichu Saint Emperor raised his arm slightly. It was a simple move, yet everyone could feel a heart-trembling aura. The entire realm was shuddering because of his one simple action.


    At the very next moment, the Taichu Saint Emperor could be seen raising his arm and pointing his finger downwards. With that action, the Great Path crumbled, and everything within heaven and earth was about to be destroyed. In a different dimension, a murky and appalling fissure emerged. It continued to expand and gobble up all that existed.


    His finger also fell directly onto the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Boom�� Following a loud boom, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was shocked for the very first time. What��s more, this trembling force immediately penetrated the body of Shenjia the Emperor and descended upon Ye Futian��s spiritual soul.


    Though the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor could not be destroyed, the runes within his body were still shaking violently. Having suffered from the impulse, the body was blasted into the ground.


    ��So powerful.�� The crowd��s hearts were thumping. Was this what a super existence who had gone through a level two divine tribulation looked like? Even Ye Futian, who was invincible a while ago, seemed so vulnerable.


    Perhaps Ye Futian had already exhausted all his strength and was incapable of tapping into the power of the body of Shenjia the Emperor. That was why he thought about using his words to deter the crowd.


    The powerhouses of the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked over, and all of them had a strong sense of restlessness emerging within them. Such an attack would destroy Ye Futian��s spiritual soul. They paced towards that direction, only to see Taichu Saint Emperor moving a step down in the air.


    With this very move, the realm suffocated, and it seemed as if everyone could hardly move. He was the master of this realm.


    ��A Saint Emperor indeed.��


    At this moment, a voice came from afar. It seemed as if he came from a place very far away. The Taichu Saint Emperor turned around and looked towards the distance. Suddenly, a terrifying aura of the same level permeated, frightening everyone in the vicinity.


    Had another superpower that had gone through a level two divine tribulation arrived?


    As anticipated, the man seemingly ripped space apart and stepped forward. This powerhouse was not from the Divine Prefecture but the Dark World. On his body, there was a frightening aura of destruction.


    ��This is getting crazy.�� The aces shuddered within. Yet another superpower had arrived. This storm was about to get worse!

 Chapter 2258 - Return to Where You Came From

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Were they attracted to Ye Futian?


    Looking at what was happening in the Original Realm, it was speculated that someone must have notified the greatest entities of the existing forces. Great Emperor Ziwei��s Inheritance and the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor�� These were all inherited powers of the highest tier. It was not all that surprising that beings of that level were attracted here.


    In this world, who does not want to be on top?


    If one hailed as king gazed upon the mountains below, what would they see?


    Another terrifying aura descended. In another direction, someone arrived; it was a super powerhouse from the Divine Prefecture.


    He was the third person to arrive.


    The three aces that came did not attack Ye Futian immediately. For them, taking down Ye Futian did not have too much significance. After all, it was Shenjia the Great Emperor��s power that Ye Futian was borrowing; it was not his own power. That attack that he unleashed earlier was probably the limit of his strength. There was no way he could maintain control over Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body and fight continuously.


    Their problem was not Ye Futian. Instead, it was among those who had arrived and who could snatch Ye Futian.


    At this moment, the space was torn apart, and divine light flickered. Yet another powerhouse had arrived. This being was from the Empty Divine Realm. The Divine Light of space surrounded him from head to toe. Seeing this scene, the crowd below was already kind of used to it.


    Originally, they thought the battle between the top powers would decide the outcome of this great battle. However, none of them had anticipated that things would evolve into this current state. Many of the top figures who came previously were spectators. With great powers arriving one after another, no one was expecting them to do anything.


    ��I would advise you two not to interfere with the Divine Prefecture��s affairs,�� the Taichu Saint Emperor said in a chilly tone.


    ��Ziwei and Shenjia are both Great Emperors of the Age of the Gods. Since when is this the Divine Prefecture��s affair?�� The ace from the Empty Divine Realm faintly answered. He does not care about his opinion at all. Now that the inheritances of two Great Emperors were passed on to one single person, how could they possibly not fight for it.?


    The Taichu Saint Emperor snorted. He moved his hand towards the lower sky across the void, only to see several others releasing formidable auras at the same time. Despite having the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor before him, it was actually levitating in the air. Ye Futian had seemingly entered an unconscious state and could no longer control Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body.


    The aces from the Heavenly Mandate Academy completely altered their expressions. They wanted to move, but they discovered that the power of the Great Path of this realm was seemingly being controlled and locked away by somebody; they could not even move.


    Such absolute power had them all shocked.


    Many were struggling as they stared at the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, hovering in midair. Those who were familiar with Ye Futian had reddened eyes, but no matter how hard they struggled, it was futile. With four of the greatest existences moving against them, this realm was completely dominated and could not accommodate anybody else��s power.


    People from the Ziwei Imperial Palace were slightly pissed when they saw this. They also felt confused. When they had just recognized Ye Futian��s abilities, something like this happened. Who else could save Ye Futian?


    The outcome was clear.


    At this moment, the Taichu Saint Emperor and the rest of the titans raised their heads and glanced at the sky above. Tyrannical auras were being exuded from all directions. It seemed that several auras had descended and were pressing down upon the entire Heavenly Mandate City.


    Everyone in Heavenly Mandate City felt the supreme authority of heaven. Above the sky, Divine Light circulated. The might of the Great Path descended. Countless people experienced difficulty in moving as they felt a faint urge to grovel and offer their worship.


    The storm was seemingly getting more and more intense, beyond all control.


    Even Mei Ting felt the unrivaled might. Amid battlefields of this level, he was completely powerless, unless the few that arrived could affect the war field itself.


    Should Ye Futian fall over here, no one knew what he would plan going forward.


    Judging by his personality, he would probably take the battle back to them.


    A precious stone leads its owner to trouble��


    After Ye Futian acquired the power of the inheritances, he became too attractive. The more powerful an entity, the stronger they would desire to seize such powers and comprehend the might of a Great Emperor. What��s more, the Great Emperors Shenjia and Ziwei were both at the very pinnacle of strength as far as great emperors went. Back in ancient times, they were on par with overlords and were existences at the top of the game.


    But the inheritance of two aces was now in Ye Futian��s hands. How was it possible for him not to attract the jealousy of others?


    Above the sky, palms were extended simultaneously, moving toward the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Within a fraction of a second, a cataclysmic storm erupted. It used the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor as its center. Several energies emerged at the same time, causing a horrifying fissure to transpire in that space.


    ��The Original Realm belongs to the Divine Prefecture. The arrival of the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm is a violation. Could it be you desire war?�� A rumbling voice sounded amid the void, striking fear into the hearts of people.


    ��You are dealing with an entity of the Divine Prefecture. There is no need to glorify your own actions,�� someone responded with a sneer. A terrifying aura pressed down from the vault. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor shuttled in and out the fissure as if a tug of war.


    Appalling energy sealed off Heavenly Mandate City. It felt as if no one was allowed to escape, and everyone had to remain within.


    At this very moment, the sky trembled, and a daunting aura swept over them. In an instant, Heavenly Mandate City no longer looked like a city.


    ��What��s going on?��


    The powerhouses that were fighting for the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor knitted their eyebrows together. They raised their heads and looked at the sky, only to see a streak of Divine Light pierce the highest point in heaven. A muffled sound arose, and the energy that had the Great Path shackled was instantly broken.


    The eyes of several top aces penetrated the boundless space as they sent their perception to a very distant place. A streak of Divine Light came from beyond the realm and instantly illuminated the world. Subsequently, what seemed like a face appeared beyond the clouds; it was an old man with a sage-like demeanor who seemingly had powers that were beyond reach. At this moment, it felt as if he were the supreme ruler of this realm and the representative of the Great Path of this segment in space.


    ��Who is it?�� Someone shuddered on the inside.


    What kind of power was this? What level were they at?


    Some were able to recognize this person. They revealed shock in their eyes. How can this be? What level is he at exactly? they wondered.


    None of the top powers from the Shangqing Domain looked unsurprised. All of their hearts were trembling violently.


    The face glanced at Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body. In an instant, rays of Divine Light entered the body of the Shenjia the Great Emperor. A phantom was directly forced out of the remains.


    It was Ye Futian��s spiritual soul.


    Ye Futian��s spiritual soul left the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and returned to his own flesh. However, he had seemingly tapped into an unconscious state.


    On the other side, the eyes of Shenjia the Great Emperor abruptly opened. Horrifying Divine Light pierced through space and swept across the aces. A voice sounded from his mouth, ��Return to where you came from!��

 Chapter 2259 - Imperial Realm?

    Return to where you came from!


    That simple sentence was seemingly imbued with unparalleled dominance. Evidently, the one controlling the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was no longer Ye Futian. Just now, Ye Futian��s spiritual soul was already knocked back into his own flesh.


    Another ace had taken over Shenjia the Great Emperor; it was the one who arrived from beyond the sky a moment before.


    Powerhouses of the Divine Prefecture knew that only two people could control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. One of them was Ye Futian, and the other one was the master of Four Corner Village, the mysterious and powerful figure who shocked the aces in the battle at the Shangqing Domain��s Four Corner Village.


    Evidently, the one who came was the master of Four Corner Village. Did he come from the Shangqing domain because he sensed what was happening?


    ��Master.�� The villagers�� hearts were thumping rapidly. At such a crucial moment, the master had arrived like a God descending into the world.


    In their knowledge, this was the first time the master had entered this world in a true sense.


    Previously, in the battle where various forces of the Shangqing domain raided Four Corner Village, the master merely borrowed the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to partake in the battle outside the village. However, this time, they had clearly witnessed the master arriving from beyond the clouds, descending upon this very location.


    As they thought before, nobody knew the master��s background, nor did anyone know how powerful he was.


    So, how strong was the master exactly?


    Legend had it that the village encountered another catastrophe at an earlier time. Powerful beings forced their way into Four Corner Village and were repelled by the master. Subsequently, the Great Emperor issued a ban, and since then, nobody dared to enter Four Corner Village to cause trouble. This was all until the ban was breached, ultimately leading to the raid within the Shangqing domain.


    But even during that time, nobody could see through the master��s power.


    Then what about today?


    The moment the master descended, it seemed as if his might enveloped the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm. Even when several superpowers who have gone through a level two divine tribulation arrived, the master still made them go back to where they came from.


    Who was the master? What level was his Cultivation Base at?


    Back then, why did the master tell them that they must not leave the village?


    No one knew the answer. The master was probably the only person who knew.


    The aces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were already feeling helpless. However, little did they know that at this moment, an elder descended like a God and straightforwardly replaced Ye Futian, controlling the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Besides, looking at the reaction of some of the aces above the sky, they seemed afraid and were faintly shocked.


    This person may be a super powerful existence.


    A few top figures, including the Taichu Saint Emperor, were staring at the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. At this very instant, things were much different from when they were facing Ye Futian. All of them were feeling an intense threat. The moment the gust of might descended, they already sensed that this powerhouse who came from beyond the clouds was more profound in terms of Cultivation Base having arrived at the unknown. However, they still could not determine if he was at ��that�� level.


    But even if he were not there yet, he would also be infinitely close to it.


    ��Four Corner Village, master?�� the Taichu Saint Emperor looked at the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and asked. Every single person living in the area Donghuang the Great once barred, even those in the other realms, would have also heard of Four Corner Village. It was the mysterious master��s first appearance, in a sense. At this very moment, he lost the domineering confidence he had before.


    This storm would perhaps venture towards a different outcome.


    ��Go back.�� The master��s voice sounded once again. His voice was still extremely serene. However, in the midst of the peace and calm was confidence without compare as he asked these top powerhouses who arrived to return themselves.


    The powerhouses in the void were, naturally, unwilling. They were still standing where they had been, exuding might that was horrifying to the extreme.


    It seemed as if they wanted to give it a go.


    The master naturally knew what they were thinking. The eyes of Shenjia the Great Emperor swept towards the Taichu Saint Emperor in the void. With only one glance, unceasing amounts of runes emerged above the skies and arranged themselves into a horrifying pattern, seemingly forming a realm of its own.


    With this glance, the void did not crumble, nor did the Great Path crack. However, the original Great Path was seemingly replaced, morphing into a world of absolute space. That was a picture��the Domineering Golden Peng Bird. A Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird of boundless sacredness split the world apart, annihilating all that existed.


    The Taichu Saint Emperor��s face changed suddenly. He rushed into the sky with the intent to escape. However, his body could not seem to escape the realm. At the level of the Taichu Saint Emperor, a single stride of his could span across the infinite space, traverse across realms, or even leave the Heavenly Mandate Domain altogether.


    However, he could not escape the Domineering Golden Peng Bird.


    In that picture world, the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird went rampant across the skies. With one single blow, it razed all that existed. The crowd saw the Taichu Saint Emperor, who was fleeing, take a direct hit. He vomited blood from his mouth. The attack seemed unstoppable.


    Everyone��s heart thumped violently. How could he��


    The master��s once single glance was as powerful as the Taichu Saint Emperor. With just one single glance, people could not even escape.


    What kind of level was that?


    Between heaven and earth, everyone��s heartbeats could seemingly be heard. Top figures from the Dark World, Empty Divine Realm, Divine Prefecture, and the Original Realm of the Ziwei Segmentum were shocked, their hearts beating rapidly.


    Many of them had heard of the master��s battle against the patriarch of the Nanhai Family using the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    However, comparing that battle with this scene before them, it was unfair.


    The scene that unraveled was too shocking. Was this something that a mortal could achieve?


    Cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu were frozen in place as they gazed at what had unfolded. They saw the picture above the sky slowly dissipate. A figure appeared amid the void; it was the Taichu Saint Emperor. However, at this moment, his aura seemed extremely weak. His face was as pale as paper, and his eyes were smeared with a sense of fright and shock.


    How is that possible?!


    The master of the Four Corner Village, he��


    Not only the Taichu Saint Emperor, but the other top aces seemed to have felt it as well. They stared fixedly towards the lower sky at the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. This master from the Shangqing Domain��s Four Corner Village, who was controlling the sacred remains. Who exactly was he?


    Was he of the Imperial Realm?!


    Thinking about this, their heartbeats raced even more. Was Four Corner Village secretly harboring an Imperial Realm?


    Back then, Donghuang the Great once went to the village to cultivate before being hailed as an emperor. Later on, a ban was issued after the Divine Prefecture��s unification. Could that be the reason?


    Was Donghuang the Great once instructed by the master of Four Corner Village?


    No one would have expected such an outcome��the appearance of such a daunting existence. The powerhouses of the Heavenly Mandate Academy regained their senses as they looked at the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor in shock.


    It seemed that they would have to worry about Ye Futian no more. With an ace of this level guarding Ye Futian, who would dare to touch him?


    Only a very few across the Divine Prefecture could afford to provoke him!

 Chapter 2260 - Status

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Great Emperor!��


    An existence at the Imperial Realm from ancient times?


    In that era, Gods plummeted. However, for countless years, it was unknown if the Ancient Gods still existed. The sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor, The Will of Great Emperor Ziwei from the Ziwei Segmentum�� These were all remnants of the Age of the Gods.


    In this world, there were bound to be many ancient remnants. Those standing at the pinnacle of the world of cultivation would know more about these secrets.


    Therefore, was Four Corner Village hiding a Great Emperor from view?


    However, they figured that even if Four Corner Village��s master was once a Great Emperor, he could never be a ��complete�� Great Emperor. Otherwise, he would not have secluded himself in Four Corner Village for so many years. So there had to be something that they were oblivious to.


    A true Great Emperor could kill others with his very mind; there was no need to borrow the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Hence, the master of Four Corner Village had to be under some restrictions.


    But no matter the case, at least before them right now, he was invincible.


    Among the powerhouses, the minds of those from the Shangqing Domain were the most intensely affected. An existence that might be a Great Emperor was hiding in Four Corner Village. What would this imply?


    When they remembered that they joined forces to attack Four Corner Village in the past, they felt a little ridiculous. As the master was in closed-door training, he did not do anything during their first assault. Should the master truly desire to kill, no cultivator who participated in the raid on Four Corner Village would be able to leave alive.


    Muyun Long and Muyun Lan were present among the aces of the Nanhai family. At this moment, waves of horror were stirred up in their hearts. Was he the true master?


    Their understanding of the master was just superficial.


    Muyun Long even once thought about replacing the master��s position in the village and controlling Four Corner Village. Thinking about it right now, it felt just like a joke. He actually thought about replacing someone who was a literal God. What was he thinking?


    Besides, they led the Muyun family to break away from Four Corner Village because of their ambition.


    Muyun Lan felt the same. He was arrogant and proclaimed himself to be a person of unparalleled talent. He became famous across the Shangqing Domain, joined the Nanhai family by marrying a daughter of theirs, and lived a life of glory. He was once the master��s disciple and was very respectful towards him. However, due to what took palace back then, he severed the respect and emotion he shared with him.


    Thinking about it at this moment, it turned out that nothing was beyond the master��s control. He could see everything vividly, as he was all-knowing; however, he would never interfere.


    All until the appearance of Ye Futian!


    The last two times he showed up were all related to Ye Futian, especially this one. Because Ye Futian was in danger, he came all the way from the Divine Prefecture, descended upon this realm, and saved Ye Futian.


    Therefore, just like Shenjia the Great Emperor and Great Emperor Ziwei, had the master selected Ye Futian?


    Why would that happen?


    What was so special about Ye Futian that gave him such unbelievable luck? Those figures from ancient times, whether it be the fallen Gods or Great Emperor Ziwei, whose remnant will still remained, had all chosen Ye Futian.


    He was given control of the sacred remain, Ziwei the Great Emperor allowed him to control the Ziwei Segmentum, and the master was willing to come out from the village to shock the people of this world.


    The white-haired youth had the favor of a thousand amassed on himself. Was this a coincidence?


    Or could it be that he had shocking talent?


    Nobody understood why. Muyun Lan did not understand why he could not gain the favor of so many of these figures.


    Was he not the Child of Destiny?


    1


    The interspace reverted to its quietness from before. Nobody dared to make a move. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor levitated in the air as the master looked around the vicinity without so much as a single ripple in his eyes.


    Previously, a mere glance from him bested the Taichu Saint Emperor. Who would be bold enough to make a move against someone at such a transcendent level in cultivation?


    Besides, they all understood that if the master willed it to happen, that blow from just now could kill the Taichu Saint Emperor immediately, but he did not do so, just like that time he was outside Four Corner Village. Facing the powerhouses who were raiding the village, he did not proceed to reap away lives. Instead, all he did was severely injure the patriarch of the Nanhai family.


    The master preached kindness in the village, and it seemed that he was as equally as benevolent when he was outside. Even towards enemies, he would not attack with the intent to kill.


    At this moment, rays of Divine Light showered down amid the void. It was so gorgeous that it compelled many to lift their heads and look at light sprinkling down from the sky. Over there, figures descended from the high above and hovered in the void.


    The Divine Light was dazzling. The leader of the entities was an indescribably beautiful and striking woman. She was so noble and pure that people only dared to look at her without harboring a single thought of disrespect.


    Seeing the appearance of this figure, many bowed slightly and saluted her. Many top aces across the Divine Prefecture opened their mouths and said, ��Your Highness.��


    That woman who arrived was the only daughter of Donghuang the Great��Princess Donghuang.


    Princess Donghuang could be seen looking at the crowd, and, at last, her gaze fell onto the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. She strode forward towards it while the many powerhouses behind her followed. They arrived at the space not far in front of the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Under everyone��s gazes of surprise, Princess Donghuang bowed gently, facing the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. With great respect, she said, ��Master.��


    Seeing this, mild ripples coursed through the hearts of the Divine Prefecture��s powerhouses. The princess arrived and bowed to him as a gesture of respect. From this, one could discern the master��s social status. It seemed that the rumors were true. When Donghuang the Great cultivated in Four Corner Village, the master was probably the one who guided him.


    With the existence of this relationship, the status of Four Corner Village was obvious.


    It seemed that the ban Donghuang the Great previously issued was not to let anybody disturb Four Corner Village and the master��s cultivation. Subsequently, Four Corner Village decided to affiliate themselves with the world, and Donghuang the Great lifted the ban because he knew that as long as the master was present, no one would be able to lay their fingers on Four Corner Village.


    The funny thing was that many aces of the Shangqing Domain attacked the village due to the ban being lifted.


    ��No need to be so courteous, princess,�� the master replied. Princess Donghuang opened her mouth and said, ��You��ve once taught my father, so I must bow to you when I see you.��


    ��That happened so many years ago. It isn��t worth mentioning,�� the master said casually.


    ��My father always remembered your teachings, master,�� Princess Donghuang said with a smile. Subsequently, she turned around and looked at the aces of the Divine Prefecture. The softness she had instantly vanished, replaced by a sense of chilling awe. Like a Goddess, she swept her eyes coldly across those aces of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��The passage to the Original Realm opened, and the aces across 18 domains are summoned, and this what you ended up doing. You��re even about to join forces with Dark World and Empty Divine Realm,�� Prince Donghuang chided. When her chilling voice sounded, the powerhouses were as silent as a winter cicada. Although those top aces were not afraid of Princess Donghuang, they dared not to provoke her blatantly. Should they infuriate the imperial family, who could afford to bear the consequences?!

 Chapter 2261 - Ending

    Nobody talked. The many forces dared not to answer. Besides, whoever volunteered to come forward and speak would be courting death itself.


    When Princess Donghuang saw that nobody was talking, she cast her gaze at the fighters from the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm in the distance. ��A battle took place 20 years ago, and you promised that you would leave if you were defeated. Now that you have again returned to the Original Realm, it seems that the Dark Court and Empty Mountain are deliberately trying to incite a war.��


    The powerhouses from the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm did not respond. A figure at the Imperial Realm was present among their opponents. Naturally, they would not dare to say anything. What if this powerhouse, who could control the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, attacked them?


    Nobody could stop him.


    Most certainly, those at the Imperial Realm would usually not partake in war. Otherwise, should a war between Imperial Realms be triggered, the sky would fall, and the earth would crumble.


    ��Since you are here, Princess Donghuang, we will be taking our leave,�� someone said. Subsequently, the aces from both worlds left. There was no point in staying. With the presence of a super powerhouse, who could kill Ye Futian and snatch the inheritance?


    And that was an example of courting death.


    The Divine Prefecture��s Taichu Saint Emperor served as a warning for them. Should the opponent display no mercy, the top figure from the Taichu Domain would perish here.


    Swiftly, aces from both worlds vanished without a trace. Not only had they left the Heavenly Mandate City, but they also departed the Heavenly Mandate Realm. It seemed that this place was no longer convenient for them to stay.


    After they left, Princess Donghuang once again looked at the powerhouses from the Divine Prefecture. She opened her mouth and said, ��20 years ago at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, you stirred up war with the desire to resolve your old grievances. Today, you descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy and incited a civil war within the Divine Prefecture once more. The Dark World and Empty Divine Realm are glaring at us like a covetous tiger. Since that��s the case, you may resolve your grudges independently, and I shall not interfere. However, if any force colludes with the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm to deal with our cultivators once more, the Imperial Palace will deal with you without delay.��


    Hearing Princess Donghuang��s words, some breathed a sigh of relief while some blanched and looked horrified.


    Some forces who came from the Divine Prefecture sighed in relief. It seemed that Princess Donghuang did not intend to pursue this matter. However, some forces local to the Original Realm had a strong sense of terror emerge from within their hearts.


    Previously, many of their aces were killed by the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, which had been controlled by Ye Futian. However, some forces still had their aces with them. Many top forces of the Original Realm had partaken in the great battle that took place years ago and had forged a hatred with the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ye Futian. With this incident, the hatred had further intensified.


    At present, Ye Futian had powerful figures on that level beside him and the powerhouses from the Ziwei Segmentum. Without the assistance from the top forces of the Divine Prefecture, what could these forces from the Original Realm use to contend with the collective strength of Ye Futian and his allies?


    As long as Ye Futian regained his senses, recovered, and seized control of the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor again, he would be powerful enough to wipe out the aces from the Original Realm.


    Under such circumstances, where the princess told them to resolve their grudge on their own, how could they not panic?


    ��Your Highness, the Divine Prefecture has once again sustained heavy losses in this battle, and the situation is even more difficult for those from the Original Realm. After two wars, I would assume that the forces from the Original Realm would no longer entangle themselves in this matter. Hence, may I implore you to restore peace to the Original Realm. What is your take, Your Highness?�� somebody asked. Someone actually offered to resolve the grudge of the Original Realm.


    What��s more, the one who had spoken was a top figure of the Original Realm; it was the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Jian Ao.


    Hearing Jian Ao��s words, aces from the Heavenly Mandate Academy showed expressions of shock as they looked towards him. Restore peace to the Original Realm?


    Jian Ao. He actually said he wanted peace to be restored in the Original Realm at this very moment in time!


    Back in time, he followed the powerhouses of the Original Realm to raid the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Today, he was also involved in the alliance between various forces to kill Ye Futian. Now that the outcome was a foregone conclusion, he suggested a peace treaty.


    Princess Donghuang also looked at Jian Ao with a faint sense of indifference. Why was he saying this now?


    In fact, there had not been too much of a grudge between Ye Futian and Tianshen Academy before. Besides, Ye Futian had once cultivated in Tianshen Academy. He had a good relationship with Jian Qingzhu since he had once saved him before.


    But all that Jian Ao ever thought about was killing Ye Futian.


    ��You were allowed to battle without interference in the past, and it will remain this way,�� Princess Donghuang answered with apathy. Jian Ao��s eyes revealed his discontentment. Now that Ye Futian was nothing like his former self, should war break out, he would be able to lead his alliance of powerhouses to sweep across the Original Realm.


    How could they still fight?


    Only death would await them.


    ��A brilliant mind you have, College Chief,�� Lord Taixuan could not help but sneer. What wishful thinking from Jian Ao. He was on the attack when he wished, but now he was asking for peace?


    ��Do your wish for the Original Realm to be destroyed overnight?�� someone else said. This time, it was ace from the Sky Reaching School.


    At present, it was speculated that all of them were amidst fear.


    Once Ye Futian woke up and lead the aces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Ziwei Segmentum to seek revenge, no one among the forces of the Original Realm would be able to stop them. Only destruction would await.


    Princess Donghuang looked at him with an icy glare. Previously, when they waged war against the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they had never thought of these questions.


    ��Why are all of you still here?�� Princess Donghuang ignored the statement and looked at the other aces. The eyes of those from the Divine Prefecture glistened. Subsequently, they gently bowed and left the place.


    When the aces from the Original Realm saw this, they knew that the princess would not do anything for them.


    Likewise, they departed one after another. Given how things have developed, retreating was their only option.


    Swiftly, all the powerhouses from various places departed and vanished without a trace.


    After they left, the area in space became a lot quieter. The only ones who remained were Ye Futian and his allies.


    The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor looked in the direction where Ye Futian was and said, ��I shall take these sacred remains with me. Take good care of him.��


    Upon finishing, he looked at Princess Donghuang and said, ��I shall be returning.��


    ��Safe journey, master,�� Princess Donghuang made a light bow and said. Subsequently, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor rushed into the sky. It broke through the void instantaneously and vanished out of sight.


    Princess Donghuang lowered her head and glanced down. Then, she took her men and left. After this incident, no one should dare to trouble Ye Futian and his allies.


    After the other powerhouses�� departure, the aces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ziwei Segmentum gathered around Ye Futian. At this moment, he was still in a coma. It seemed as if he had fallen into a deep sleep. The previous battle already exhausted a great deal of his energy. Later on, he was even attacked by the Taichu Saint Emperor. One could only imagine how much pressure he had withstood. It was already extremely fortunate that his spiritual soul was not destroyed. However, by having his vitality damaged like this, it was unknown when he would recover.


    The crowd looked around. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was gone, razed to the ground as it had been wiped out in the battle!

 Chapter 2262 - Outcome

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Lord Taixuan and the rest of the people were inspecting Ye Futian. An ace from the Ziwei Segmentum stepped forward. Purple starlight coiled up around his body, and a wisp of healing energy seeped into Ye Futian��s body.


    However, Ye Futian remained in a coma and showed no signs of awakening.


    ��I��m afraid he needs more time,�� that man said in a low guttural voice. When one��s spiritual soul became damaged, it required time to recuperate. Recovering within a short period of time was most likely impossible.


    ��Mm.�� Lord Taixuan and the others nodded. All of them understood Ye Futian��s situation. The series of events has evidently inflicted great damage upon him. Controlling the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor itself might have caused a burden so tremendous that it was simply unimaginable.


    He stood up and took a glance at the fissured ground and the Heavenly Mandate Academy that was no more. Lord Taixuan and others sighed. They looked at each other and asked, ��What should we do next?��


    It could be to rebuild the Heavenly Mandate Academy or something else.


    Having suffered so many blows, the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Heavenly Mandate City were in a state too pathetic to describe.


    ��Let��s rebuild the academy for now. No one should dare to find trouble with us easily in the future,�� the Sky River Great Elder opened his mouth and said. Lord Taixuan nodded gently while Renhuang Chen, the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Segmentum��s Emperor Palace, said, ��After the academy is rebuilt, we can build teleportation grand matrixes at both here and the Ziwei Segmentum so that both sides can look after each other. Should something occur, help can be provided at once.��


    When the crowd heard the Supreme Elder��s words, they nodded seriously. If that was carried out and the Heavenly Mandate Realm and Ziwei Segmentum became connected, they would establish themselves as a superpower. That, along with the fact that the forces of the Original Realm were shocked by and even afraid of them, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would, in a true sense, be standing at the pinnacle of power among forces in the Original Realm.


    Most certainly, the now chaotic Original Realm did not consist of just local forces as more of them actually arrived from the Outer Realms.


    ��Go and get the others back,�� said Lord Taixuan. After this battle, be it forces of the Original Realm or Outer Realms, it was speculated that they would not be bold enough to provoke the Heavenly Mandate Academy. With a guardian supposedly at the Imperial Realm, who would dare to make a move against them?


    If the master of the Four Corner Village wanted a bloodbath, no one could stop him, and a myriad of aces would fall. However, he did not do so. But even so, no one should be bold enough to behave with impetuosity anymore.


    When Lord Taixuan finished, the aces parted ways and began to work, mending the fissured ground. They commenced the rebuilding of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Some aces also departed into the void to get the others back.


    The Supreme Elder of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, Renhuang Chen, said, ��I will take him to the Great Emperor��s Cultivation Court at the Ziwei Segmentum to recuperate. The Will of the Great Emperor is present over there. Besides, the Palace Lord himself has developed resonance with the stars. Hence, his recovery may be hastened there.��


    ��Good.�� Lord Taixuan and the others nodded. This suggestion was a positive one. Ye Futian had already acquired the Great Emperor Ziwei��s inheritance. The starry cultivation court that harbored the Will of the Great Emperor should help Ye Futian with his recovery.


    ��In that case, I shall depart with him right now. Apart from that, I will also look into the construction of the teleportation grand matrixes,�� Renhuang Chen continued. The crowd nodded. Emperor Xi, who was beside him, said, ��I wonder if I may tag along? I would like to see what a starry dimension that contains the Will of Great Emperor Ziwei looks like.��


    Emperor Xi was someone who had gone through a level one Divine Tribulation. Knowing that the Will of the Great Emperor was present there, he wanted to get a feel for it and see if it could help his cultivation.


    ��That��s certainly no issue,�� Renhuang Chen nodded and said. Emperor Xi was on par with him in terms of Cultivation Base and could be considered one of the top figures. What��s more, he was an elder figure to Ye Futian, who came to provide him assistance in times of crisis. Ye Futian was also the Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. How would he disagree with him going to the starry dimension to cultivate?


    With all factors combined, there was no reason for him to turn down Emperor Xi��s request.


    ��Let��s set off then,�� Renhuang Chen opened his mouth and said. Immediately, the aces took Ye Futian and left for the Ziwei Segmentum. Emperor Xi, the Millet Emperor, and the Thunder Punishing Skylord also tagged along to experience the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Lord Taixuan and his party remained. For them, they had plenty of chances to do so. With Renhuang Chen��s suggestion of building teleportation grand matrixes between both places, when construction was complete, they could go back and forth between that starry dimension and their own at any time.


    The aces became busy with their own affairs, and various forces from the Original Realm returned. But after returning, the ambiance within these forces became different from before. They were panicking.


    For the Shen Clan, their Chief Elder, Shen Ji, died in the battle that took place more than 20 years ago. At present, with their clan lord and Shen Gao having been killed in succession, the only ones left alive were a few powerhouses from the Shen Clan at the Upper World. At this moment, all the Shen Clan��s aces were gathered as they gazed at the top figures from their clan at the Upper World.


    At present, they could only place their hopes on them. With the relationship between the Shen Clan and the Heavenly Mandate Academy, if the other party were to seek revenge, they might destroy the Shen Clan.


    However, even with their aces from the Upper World, could the Shen Clan still keep themselves alive?


    ��Select a batch of people and come with me,�� those aces said to an elder of the Shen Clan. Immediately, members of the Shen Clan displayed expressions of despair. Were they going to abandon the Shen Clan at the Lower World?


    Selecting a batch of people and leaving implied that only some powerful ones would be taken away, while the others would be left behind and forsaken.


    ��Understood.�� That elder from the Shen Clan dared not oppose them. Given how things had become, he had no choice.


    ��You��re dismissed,�� the ace of the Shen Clan from the Upper World continued, making it so that the powerhouses of the Shen Clan were now obsolete. The Shen Clan of the Lower World was completely abandoned. They were asked to disband and would no longer be one of the top powers of the Original Realm.


    After that battle, the powerful Shen Clan that had dominated the Central Emperor Realm for so many years was going to pass away like a cloud, becoming a distant part of history.


    Everybody felt waves of sorrow.


    The cause of everything could be pinpointed on a single person��a cultivator who was once an inconspicuous figure, looked down upon by the Shen Clan. He was a disciple of Qi Xuangang, whose master was the Sky River Great Elder.


    The three top powers of the Shen Clan died because of him, and the Shen Clan itself dissipated because of him.


    Not only the Shen Clan but many forces in the Original Realm were also experiencing similar scenarios.


    For instance, in the Golden Divine Nation, their aces were no longer unified, and many had left the Golden Divine Nation. Before they left, a great war broke out, which led to the looting of treasures and resources left behind by the Golden Divine Nation. The battle was so horrible that it even led to the fall of their prince.


    With the King of Divine Nation gone, as well as Gai Qiong, who was left to care? With the Divine Nation was at the verge of crumbling, it was only natural to loot whatever they desired. Identity and whatnot; none of those bore any significance.


    As of now, everyone needed to focus on keeping themselves alive.


    Most certainly, some forces were not planning to disband. However, they were discussing whether or not to head towards the Heavenly Mandate Academy to beg for forgiveness, for peace, and to iron out the grudge between both parties. Otherwise, no matter how enormous the Original Realm was, they would have no place in it!

 Chapter 2263 - Current Status

    The reconstruction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was soon to be completed. After all, it was an easy task for top figures to rebuild an academy.


    Moreover, the Heavenly Mandate Academy became bigger and grander after its reconstruction. The cultivators that were sent away were brought back to the academy. The alliance forces also gathered. The Heavenly Mandate City seemed to have regained its previous glory and liveliness. The disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy returned to the academy while countless other cultivators in the Realm yearned to be accepted by them.


    The previous battle was too awe-inspiring. Rumor has it that ancient mysterious Great Emperor level figures were also present and that the body of a Great Emperor had appeared, controlled by Ye Futian. The cultivators of the top forces of three major Realms combined had not been able to take down Ye Futian.


    Many people were moved by this. The Heavenly Mandate Academy had truly been through a lot. Although it had not been established for very long, it had faced numerous tribulations. The same could also be said for Ye Futian. He was one with the Heavenly Mandate Academy and had faced multiple trials. Yet, he always seemed to be able to weather the storm.


    Now, besides the forces of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, even the cultivators from the outside world could not kill him.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy also released news that Ye Futian now controlled the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei. He was now the master of the Ziwei Segmentum and was crowned the Ziwei Imperial Palace Palace Lord.


    The members of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were in awe. Ye Futian was considered the most legendary figure in the history of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. His legend was also still being written. No one knew what heights he would reach in the future.


    They wondered whether they would see his silhouette standing at the top of the world. Many cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had a faint sense of anticipation. They hoped that they could witness this legend being born from the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Right now, the situation was lively in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. All the alliance forces gathered, and all who had left returned. They were somewhat emotional witnessing the current situation of the academy. They had never imagined that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would rise again from adversity and become the most stable force in the Original Realm. The academy was now the hottest topic discussed by many outsiders.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy would soon become the number one force in the Original Realm.


    Moreover, this was not an exaggeration. It was a soon-to-be fact.


    All the cultivators from the alliance forces, such as the Nantian Divine Kingdom ruled by Emperor Nan, Dou tribe, Yuanyang clan, Xiao clan, and the Divine Palace, were thrilled. The status of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had totally changed after this calamity. The battle was significant since it caused the power structure of the Original Realm to be completely overwritten.


    Right at the moment, many cultivators traversed across space and arrived outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They halted in midair once they approached the academy. Then, they landed and stared at the academy, which had been rebuilt. They had complicated looks on their faces.


    ��The cultivators from the Sky Reaching School have come to visit the Heavenly Mandate Academy,�� a voice called out loudly. The cultivators from the Sky Reaching School were here.


    The cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Academy went silent for a moment. Then, a voice responded, ��What business do you have with us?��


    This voice was from Lord Taixuan.


    ��We��re here to extend a formal apology,�� said the hierophant of the Sky Reaching School. ��The Sky Reaching School was involved in the matter which occurred over these past few years. We were wrong. So, we��re here to apologize and to congratulate the Heavenly Mandate Academy for your reconstruction.�� In moments like this, even if the other party were top cultivators, it was impossible for them not to admit their wrongdoings.


    If they did not apologize to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they might be eradicated by the academy when the latter came to settle the score. Another outcome would be them hiding somewhere remote in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, never to appear again.


    ��Martial God Clan is here to extend our apology!�� another voice cried. Many parties arrived one by one. These top forces from the Original Realm were here to visit the academy or apologize for their previous wrongdoings. In just a short amount of time, the outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was crowded with cultivators from all over.


    The cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate City felt their hearts stirred when they looked at this scene. This was the outcome brought forth by the terrifying battle. The Heavenly Mandate Realm seemed to have become the center of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. All the forces here either came to pay homage or to extend their apology.


    Most likely, all the forces in the Original Realm had realized that the current situation in the Original Realm was completely different. The Heavenly Mandate Academy would become a bona fide superpower, which ruled over the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the various cultivators naturally also heard these voices. They looked towards the outskirts with cold looks on their faces. The other forces finally knew that they needed to come and offer their apologies.


    Back then, how had these forces treated the Heavenly Mandate Academy? They participated in multiple raids and wanted to kill Ye Futian and completely eradicate the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Now, would a simple apology suffice to settle the score?


    ��How shall we deal with them?�� Lord Taixuan asked the various cultivators. Before him were the alliance members of the various top forces such as Emperor Nan and the others.


    Now, they had to consider how they would deal with the various forces. Were they going to write off their wrongs?


    ��Shen clan has already disbanded. The Upper Worlds Shen clan has left with a group of members, and the other cultivators of Shen clan have dispersed on their own,�� said Emperor Nan. Everyone understood why the Shen clan had disbanded. They knew that the Heavenly Mandate Academy couldn��t spare the Shen clan and the other large forces that stood with Golden Divine Nation.


    If the Shen clan did not disband, it would certainly be destroyed. So, such an ending for them was inevitable.


    ��It is the same in Golden Divine Nation. There was a civil war, and many people died. The nation has completely fallen,�� someone said.


    The forces that had not disbanded and those whose top figures were not killed in the battle still had a sliver of hope. They came to apologize with the hope that the Heavenly Mandate Academy would spare them.


    ��We naturally cannot easily let the other forces go free,�� said Sky River Great Elder in a cold tone. How could they get off so easily? Before this, these forces wanted to eliminate them. Now that they came to offer their apologies, how could the Heavenly Mandate Academy write it off like that?


    ��Hmm,�� responded Lord Taixuan as he nodded his head. He continued, ��We will wait for Futian to return and decide their fates.��


    As he said this, he turned and said to the people outside, ��All of you, leave for today.��


    When the various forces heard the words of Lord Taixuan, they felt uneasy. None of them left. They remained outside the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Other forces of the Original Realm also arrived one after another. Some forces, who had not participated in going against the Heavenly Mandate Academy, were instead invited inside.


    The cultivators in the distance saw the various forces of the Original Realm arriving one after another. It seemed that they were bearing witness to history in the making. From this day forth, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be the top cultivation holy land of the Original Realm.


    ��


    Ye Futian was naturally unaware that all this was happening in the Original Realm. In the starry cultivation court of the Ziwei Segmentum, Ye Futian��s figure was floating among the vast starry sky. Endless starlight shone down on his figure. It was extremely bright, as though he was enshrouded in divine halos.


    Emperor Xi and the others stood below, watching Ye Futian. Emperor Xi exclaimed, ��The starlight is actually healing him. It is so miraculous.��


    ��I heard that this place contains the will of Great Emperor Ziwei. It seems that it is true,�� added Millet Emperor, who stood beside him. They could all sense that the starlight raining down from the starry sky was actually repairing Ye Futian��s damaged spiritual soul. This scene was astonishing even for people of their cultivation Plane. They had never witnessed such a scene before.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Emperor Xi as he nodded his head. ��No wonder Renhuang Chen brought him here. From the looks of it, it won��t take long before he is as good as new!��

 Chapter 2264 - Awakening

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was in a state of deep slumber. He forgot about his state of self, as he was a part of the starry sky. In other words, he was the starry sky.


    When he was inheriting the power of Great Emperor Ziwei, his spiritual soul merged with the starry sky and became one with it. Hence, Emperor Xi and the others could sense that the starlight was repairing Ye Futian��s injured spiritual soul. They had no idea what he had been through previously; therefore, they were astonished by it.


    Even so, Ye Futian remained in his state of deep sleep. The injuries he suffered this time were too great; he couldn��t recover in a short period of time.


    Emperor Xi and the others cultivated in the starry sky. At the same time, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were busy setting up the teleportation grand matrix that would connect the palace with the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Since the seal had been broken and the Ziwei Segmentum was now connected with the outside world, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace could naturally explore the outside world. Ye Futian was the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the key figure of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Therefore, it made sense for them to connect the two places and form a strong alliance.


    In the future, Ye Futian could replace Donghuang the Great in ruling over the Original Realm.


    However, right now, their task was to overcome the distance between them and the cultivators from the outside world.


    Time flew by. It was unknown when the passageway that connected the two Realms was completed.


    On this day, at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, many cultivators stood on a powerful starry sky teleportation grand matrix. When the light lit up, a beam of divine light shot up into the sky, forming a space passageway.


    The next moment, all the people standing on the starry sky teleportation grand matrix disappeared. Outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, all the cultivators felt their hearts tremble as they witnessed the scene. The people in the Heavenly Mandate City were even more shocked by the occurrence. Did those cultivators go to the Ziwei Segmentum?


    They wondered what the legendary Ziwei Segmentum, the world established by Great Emperor Ziwei, looked like. In the future, would they have a chance to visit the place too?


    When the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy reappeared, they were already in Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    When the figures of Lord Taixuan and the rest appeared in Ziwei Imperial Palace, Lord Taixuan felt slightly emotional as he stared at the majestic building before him. He had not come here with the rest last time. So, this was his first time visiting the superpower that ruled over the Ziwei Segmentum. Now, Ye Futian was the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��Greetings, Renhuang Chen.�� Seeing Renhuang Chen walking over in their direction, Lord Taixuan and the rest greeted him by nodding their heads and bowing slightly. They paled in comparison to Renhuang Chen, be it in their years of cultivation or the Plane they were at. Even Lord Taixuan showed his respect for Renhuang Chen.


    ��Welcome, everyone.�� Renhuang Chen nodded with a smile. ��Feel free to have a look around Ziwei Imperial Palace.��


    As he said this, he turned around and led the way. Lord Taixuan and the rest followed him and took a tour around Ziwei Imperial Palace. After that, Lord Taixuan asked, ��Has Futian recovered yet?��


    Renhuang Chen replied, ��He is still cultivating in the starry cultivation court. But you don��t need to worry. He is gradually recovering. His damaged spiritual soul is also getting better. There shouldn��t be any problems.�� Lord Taixuan nodded and said, ��Let��s go visit him. I��ll also check out the starry cultivation court. I have yet to visit the place. Let me experience the will of the Great Emperor too.��


    ��Alright,�� agreed Renhuang Chen with a smile. ��Let��s go.��


    As they said this, they entered Ziwei Divine Temple to access the starry cultivation court.


    They noticed that Emperor Xi, the Millet Emperor, and Thunder Punishing Skylord were also around when they arrived. Ye Futian��s body was floating in the starry sky and was bathed in starlight. It was as though he was being baptized by the divine light.


    Like Emperor Xi and his group, Lord Taixuan and the rest were also astonished by this scene. Was Ye Futian actually repairing his spiritual soul by bathing in starlight?


    Right at the moment, Ye Futian��s body moved slowly. His eyes opened, and brilliant light shone from them. A starry world seemed to be encompassed in his pupils. He stood up from his initially lying position and felt very refreshed. His spiritual soul was stronger now than it was before the major battle. Not only was his spiritual soul fine now, but the battle seemed to be a blessing in disguise for him.


    ��He is awake,�� someone commented. When the people beneath the sky saw that he was awake, they had smiles on their faces. He had woken up earlier than they had expected. After experiencing such an intense battle, he actually woke up in such a short amount of time. As expected, this starry world was indeed amazing.


    Ye Futian floated towards the crowd. When he saw Emperor Xi and the rest, he bowed slightly. Then, he looked at Lord Taixuan and said, ��Lord Taixuan is here too.��


    ��Hmm.�� Lord Taixuan nodded and updated him, ��Renhuang Chen has ordered people to build a starry sky teleportation grand matrix that connects Ziwei Imperial Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. I have just arrived not long ago. I didn��t expect you to be awake now.��


    Ye Futian was pleasantly surprised when he heard Lord Taixuan��s words. This was indeed the progress he wished. He nodded at Renhuang Chen and said, ��Thank you, Elder, for your hard work.��


    ��Palace Lord is too polite. I was doing my job,�� responded Renhuang Chen.


    ��Did Master arrive before I went unconscious?�� Ye Futian asked. During the battle, he lost consciousness right when Master arrived. He had exhausted himself. On top of that, he received a heavy blow from Taichu Saint Emperor. His body couldn��t take it, and he fell unconscious.


    ��Hmm.�� Li Changsheng nodded and said, ��Futian, you��re indeed a lucky guy. After you went to the Shangqing Domain, you managed to enter Four Corner Village. Then, you got acquainted with Master. We speculate that Master might have been a Great Emperor level figure in the past.��


    ��Great Emperor level?�� Ye Futian��s heart quivered slightly. Master was previously a Great Emperor?


    However, Master said that he was under restraints. What exactly was going on?


    Was he the ancestor of Four Corner Village? Four Corner Great Emperor?


    ��Back then, Older Brother was the one who sent me to the village. Therefore, Older Brother should take credit for this,�� Ye Futian said to Li Changsheng. ��Master is a legendary figure that is not concerned with worldly matters. I am also unsure of his actual identity. However, Master was indeed very good to me.��


    Throughout all these years, several cultivators had left Four Corner Village and encountered perilous situations. Many of them perished. However, Master had never interfered once. This time, Ye Futian faced danger in the Original Realm, and Master actually traversed the worlds to save him. Master came to the Original Realm from the Shangqing Domain of the Divine Prefecture directly to hold the fort.


    Everyone nodded in agreement. Perhaps Master could also tell that Ye Futian was extraordinary.


    ��How is the Original Realm now?�� inquired Ye Futian. Seeing that Lord Taixuan and the rest were here, he speculated that they had already resolved the crisis. However, he had no idea what the situation was like now.


    Lord Taixuan explained, ��After the battle, Master kept everyone in line. Princess Donghuang came too. Her arrival caused the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to behave. After that, no one stirred up any trouble. One by one, the forces in the Original Realm visited the academy and offered their apologies. Now, we��re waiting for you to go back and decide what to do with them.�� They were waiting for Ye Futian��s decision because everything that happened had to do with him.


    The target that the enemy forces had always wanted to eliminate was Ye Futian. Therefore, Lord Taixuan and the rest were not qualified to decide the matter for him. It all depended on him. Regardless of his decision, they would support him.


    ��Offer their apologies?�� repeated Ye Futian as a cold look appeared in his eyes. How could they be let off so easily?

 Chapter 2265 - High-level Renhuang

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian didn��t leave to settle the matters in the Lower Worlds right away. Instead, he lit up all the Imperial Stars, allowing the cultivators beneath the starry sky to comprehend the stars for their cultivation.


    He also cultivated beneath the starry sky. He had been through quite a lot recently. He received the inheritance of the Imperial Stars and the teachings of the Great Emperors. Moreover, he experienced a battle of life and death. He felt that his cultivation had improved by a lot, reaching the pinnacle of his current Plane. Perhaps, he could try breaking through to the next Plane.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged beneath the starry sky. Starlight twinkled and showered on him. He appeared immaculate. Many people had their gazes fixed on him as though he was a deity. A lot of them lamented internally. Ye Futian would sooner or later become a great hero.


    The rest were meditating. Quite a few of them were bathing under the divine halo of the Imperial Stars and were baptized by their powers.


    They could sense and comprehend the Imperial Stars easily after Ye Futian lit them up. Hence, as long as their Paths matched any of the Imperial Stars, they could communicate and resonate with them. They could rely on the Imperial Stars to cultivate.


    This starry world seemed to have become a bona fide cultivation holy land after the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei were made clear to the world.


    All the cultivators, who cultivated under the starry sky and received the baptism of the powers of the Imperial Stars, improved at an astonishing speed. Moreover, there were other cultivation relics, which existed in this starry sky. The relics were very beneficial for their cultivation too.


    Ye Futian naturally improved at the fastest rate. He absorbed the starlight in this endless starry sky and merged with the starry world. Dazzling starlight flowed around his body. As time passed, the echo of the Great Path could be heard rumbling in his body. Brilliant and vibrant lights were unleashed by him. The lights were similar to a Divine Wheel of the Great Path and were one with the starry sky.


    Sensing the transformation in Ye Futian��s body, many people raised their heads and looked in his direction. All of them saw the gleaming divine phenomenon. The starlight moving around Ye Futian was 10,000 Zhang in radius, and it transformed into a divine phenomenon of the Great Path. When the others looked at him, they had a feeling that he was the ruler of this starry world. He was like the reincarnation of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    What teachings did Ye Futian receive from Great Emperor Ziwei? Renhuang Chen wondered as he raised his head and looked at Ye Futian. Everyone knew that Ye Futian received the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei. However, nobody knew exactly how Ye Futian did it and what kind of powers he inherited.


    The starry phenomenon behind Ye Futian grew even more dazzling and vibrant as it resonated with his body. All the cultivators sensed that his body had merged with the starry world. Colorful starlight shone continuously from his body.


    ��This is���� Many people��s eyes narrowed as they sensed the power of the Great Path being strengthened in Ye Futian��s body.


    Suddenly, many other divine phenomena burst forth in tandem with the starlight. There was the sound of the rhythms, the hum of swords, and the trumpeting of the divine elephants. The divine light of his Eye Sorcery was mesmerizing. On top of that, an absolute space appeared with the sun and the moon both present along with the stars. It was as though the endless power of the Great Path was being generated in it.


    Roar. Everyone in the starry sky could detect the growling that was reverberating from Ye Futian��s body. His flesh was the Way. The rumble of the Great Path grew more intense, causing the entire starry sky to resonate with it. It was as though the stars in the sky were howling.


    Was Ye Futian about to break through to the next Plane? The hearts of all the cultivators present quivered. Ye Futian was already a sixth-tier Renhuang. If he broke through to the next Plane, he would become a high-level Renhuang.


    Moreover, he seemed to have broken through to the sixth-tier not long ago.


    Could it be that his recent experience catalyzed his progress in becoming a high-level Renhuang? If so, the rate of his improvement was undoubtedly shocking.


    With Ye Futian��s combat ability, he was most likely invincible among everyone below the giant-level figures after becoming a high-level Renhuang.


    The divine phenomena in the sky intensified. Starlight surged into Ye Futian��s body. Everyone��s prediction was verified. Ye Futian was indeed trying to break through to the next Plane. He was pushing to cast off the shackles of the middle-level Renhuang Plane so that he could advance to a higher level.


    Ye Futian felt his body become one with the starry sky. Everywhere his mind ventured to, it became his territory. His spiritual soul and his flesh were merging the worldly Great Path and were indestructible.


    This sensation was miraculous. The divine light of the Great Path shone brighter as he entered deeper into this state. The blinding divine light brightened up the entire starry sky.


    This commotion caused everyone to raise their heads and stare at the sky. Their hearts were trembling.


    It was too intense.


    ��It��s the first time I witnessed such a huge commotion when someone is trying to break through to the high-level Renhuang Plane,�� Renhuang Chen said. He was the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Imperial Palace. He had seen countless prominent figures and Proud Sons of Heavens pushing to break through to the high-level Renhuang Plane. However, none of them were comparable to Ye Futian.


    This commotion was too shocking. Ye Futian was resonating with the entire starry world.


    Emperor Xi and the rest nodded in agreement. They were similarly taken aback by what they saw.


    Emperor Xi added, ��Besides that, for Ye Futian, it seems that the bottleneck to reach the high-level Renhuang Plane is non-existent. There are no shackles, and he can forcefully break through to the next Plane.�� It was tough for countless cultivators to retain their flawless Great Path while breaking through to the high-level Renhuang Plane. However, it seemed to be an easy feat for Ye Futian. He could forcefully break through the shackles right away.


    Finally, streaks of divine light shot up to the heavens from Ye Futian��s body. All the Divine Wheels of the Great Path that surrounded him emitted rumbles of the Great Path at the same time. Then, the crowd saw Ye Futian slowly opening his eyes while sitting cross-legged. His silver hair fluttered in the starry sky. His temperament was extraordinary.


    The divine light moved around him. The aura on Ye Futian��s body changed. It became even more frightening than before. Moreover, it had undergone a quantitative metamorphosis.


    ��He is now a high-level, seventh-tier Renhuang,�� someone said as the crowd watched with astonished looks in their eyes. Ye Futian breaking through to the high-level Renhuang Plane was a significant event.


    ��I have broken through to the next Plane,�� said Ye Futian as he let out a long breath. It was essential for him to break through to the next Plane this time. In his current situation, he would be facing more and more powerful adversaries. It was already difficult for him to cope as a sixth-tier Renhuang. Even as a seventh-tier Renhuang, he was pushing it. However, using the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, he could still shock and awe the various cultivators with his abilities.


    It would be challenging for him to bear such a burden. Now that his cultivation Plane had increased, his endurance had also improved substantially. Aside from him and Master, no one could control the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Now that the body had been brought back to Four Corner Village by Master, Ye Futian would need to return to the village when he had the chance. With the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor by his side, he would at least have a powerful weapon as a trump card.


    After breaking through to the next Plane, Ye Futian��s figure headed downwards. The various cultivators all came to him. The Millet Emperor said, ��Back when you first joined Wangshen Watchtower, the four most prominent figures in the Donghua Domain were still out of reach for you. I never imagined that in a few short years, you managed to reach this Plane. Now, you will most likely be on par with Ning Hua and the others.��


    Millet Emperor was emotional right now. It was unfortunate that his disciple Zong Chan had been killed by Ning Hua and had not reached this stage. Otherwise, he, too, would have continued to grow.


    ��Ning Hua,�� repeated Ye Futian. When he heard this name, a murderous intent flashed past in his eyes. He would sooner or later kill this Vice Chief of the Donghua Domain.


    ��We��ll first return to the Original Realm and deal with the forces there,�� said Ye Futian. Lord Taixuan and the rest nodded in agreement. After delaying the matter for so long, it was indeed time to settle the score with them.

 Chapter 2266 - Wait

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a streak of Divine Light of Space shot down from the sky. As if it originated from beyond the vault of the world, it immediately opened up a space passage.


    Subsequently, a group of people appeared and descended within the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    At this moment, aces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked in one direction in concert, which was the direction where the teleportation grand matrix was located. The Great Lord had returned.


    Ye Futian, he should be back as well?


    Beyond the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a group of people was levitating in the air and striding forward. Seeing that the white-haired youth was among those people, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy sighed in relief. As they had anticipated, Ye Futian was there. They all believed that even after being severely wounded, Ye Futian would eventually recover, as he was the embodiment of miracles themselves.


    Besides, it could be noticed that Ye Futian��s temperament had seemingly become even more exceptional. In the same white clothes and same white hair, his aura already gave people the feeling of a powerful figure. It felt even stronger than the aura he had during the last great battle.


    Could it be that he had attained yet another breakthrough?


    The heartbeats of many throbbed. If their guess were correct, right now, Ye Futian would already be a high-level Renhuang, genuinely embarking on the path towards the peak.


    Cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Academy were unlike before. Their outlook of the world was not at all low. Regular high-level Renhuanugs could no longer make them feel surprised. After all, they had met top aces from various worlds. However, Ye Futian was different. Should he step into high-level Renhuang, the significance would be extraordinary.


    The group of people came in front of an enormous hall. Aces from all places gathered over. All of them were familiar figures, and they all discovered the changes in Ye Futian��s body.


    ��Have you attained a breakthrough?�� Shen Luoxue asked Ye Futian while facing him. She felt that Ye Futian was kind of different.


    ��Yeah.�� Ye Futian nodded. Shen Luoxue was speechless. This man��s speed in cultivation was truly terrifying. On this very day, she could still remember the scene where Ye Futian would save Qi Xuangang. His growth was too quick. Because of him, the Shen Clan became a thing of the past; their members had either left or were scattered about. Even Shen Luoxue felt kind of bad about what had taken place. After all, she was once a member of the Shen Clan. The blood that flowed within her was the same as those from the Shen Clan.


    Speaking of which, her emotions toward Ye Futian were somewhat complicated. However, having cultivated until her level, it was entirely normal for the state of her mind to alter. She knew that Ye Futian could not be blamed for whatever happened. Even if Ye Futian did not kill them himself, the Sky River Great Elder would. And if the Sky River Great Elder were the one who arrived, perhaps she would feel even more pain.


    Besides, after the catastrophe, the Sky River Great Elder promised that he would not exterminate nor drive away those from the Shen Clan.


    Following the deaths of a few of the Shen Clan��s major figures, the grudge they shared could be considered alleviated.


    Ye Futian also asked about some things going on in the Original Realm at this point. The Shen Clan and the Golden Divine Nation were no more, and all of their top aces were killed. However, many forces were still alive. But many forces had been disbanded, and they had come previously to seek peace and forgiveness.


    However, that was, by no means, an easy thing to accomplish.


    ��Lord Taixuan, please order our men to covey a message the forces of the Nine Realms. Tell them that the Heavenly Mandate Academy is calling them for a gathering at our premises,�� Ye Futian said to Lord Taixuan.


    ��Very well.�� Lord Taixuan nodded. Although Ye Futian was the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s core figure, he was still the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s College Chief. Ye Futian had always shown him much respect and had asked him to issue the order.


    He gazed at Sky Demon Court��s Demon Lord, Dragon Gods�� Clan Lord, Jiang Chengzi, and many more. He opened his mouth and said, ��The journey to the Nine Realms is a long one, so I might need to trouble all of you to make it possible. Travel to the Nine Realms and tell the various forces to make a trip to our academy.��


    ��Very well then.�� The people did not have any opinions. They discussed among each other about their respective destinations and set off directly. Some of them used the grand matrix of space to travel to the Central Emperor Realm, while some also traveled into the void to various realms.


    Seeing the aces traveling into the void, ripples of emotions surfaced within the hearts of the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s cultivators. For the Heavenly Mandate Academy to gather the various forces, it seemed that they wished to solve all grievances once and for all.


    After hearing this, cultivators of Heavenly Mandate City rushed to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to witness this grand occasion with their very own eyes.


    The last time the forces of the Nine Realms arrived, Lord Taixuan did not call for a meeting nor solve the issue. Instead, he was waiting for Ye Futian to return.


    Now, Ye Futian had returned.


    A sense of pride surged within the hearts of those from the Heavenly Mandate City. Who could have thought that the Heaven Mandate Realm, which was once deemed the weakest, would one day wield the authority to call upon the Nine Realms, including the most powerful��the Central Emperor Realm��with one single order?


    Such glory was something that cultivators of Heavenly Mandate City dared not even think about in the past. But now, it was about to come true.


    Everyone was patiently waiting, prepping to witness this glory.


    Time went by slowly. After a long time, some forces finally arrived. The first to arrive was actually the force from the Central Emperor Realm. As people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy went through the teleportation grand matrix to convey the message, they were the fastest to arrive.


    From the Central Emperor Realm came the Tianshen Academy, Martial God Clan, and the Sky Reaching School. The Shen Clan was destroyed, but the Celestial Worthy Temple was still standing. However, as the Celestial Worthy Temple was backed up by forces from the Upper World, they did not come. It was only natural that forces from the Upper World would never lower their heads and apologize. If Ye Futian wished to lead his alliance of aces to assault the Celestial Worthy Temple, all they had to do was give up temporarily.


    The Shen Clan had already disbanded.


    The few other forces, namely the Nantian Divine Kingdom, Yuanyang Clan, and Xiao Clan, were the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s allies, and they were already present within the academy.


    ��I, Jian Ao, have led the cultivators from the Tianshen Academy here to attend the assembly,�� a voice came from beyond. A gust of cold was stirred up in the hearts of the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s cultivators. Jian Ao was indeed an extremely shameless person. He had seemingly forgotten everything that took place back in time.


    ��The Sky Reaching School is here.��


    ��The Martial God Clan is here.�� The powerhouses from various forces spoke loudly. Their voices reverberated throughout the void.


    ��Please wait.��


    From within the academy, a voice arose from above the great hall. It was Ye Futian��s voice. Thick and imbued with great penetrative force, it made the hearts of the aces inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy and outside the Heavenly Mandate City tremble.


    With the arrival of many top aces, Ye Futian��s reply was only two words: ��please wait.�� He was asking for them to wait outside.


    These top forces were all overweeningly arrogant in the past, and Ye Futian even once trained in Tianshen Academy. When did these forces ever place Ye Futian in their eyes? But what was happening here now, just after a few years?


    Ye Futian asked them to wait outside.


    What Jian Ao and the other aces were feeling right at this moment�� Probably only they would know.


    However, they were not at all furious. Their life was in the hands of Ye Futian. What kind of attitude could they have?


    They could either leave and relinquish the faction they were in while it was notable that they would not necessarily succeed, or apologize and beg for peace!

 Chapter 2267 - Humbling

    Aces from various realms arrived one by one, so did those from the Mountain Realm. Ye Futian invited the aces from the Mountain Realm to enter the academy.


    ***This means powerful people from different worlds.***


    Aside from them, several cultivators that were not from the top powers across the Nine Realms came to visit the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The aces from the Nine Realms could all feel that on this very day, the structure of the Nine Realms had completely been altered.


    At that time, because of foreign invasion, forces of the Divine Prefecture were not too friendly toward those from the Original Realm. Their minds were full of foul intentions against one another. They were thinking about invading the Original Realm and obtaining the last of their worth. After that battle, many forces from the Original Realm were placed under the control of those from the Divine Prefecture, such as the Shen clan, Solar Divine Palace, Celestial Worthy Temple, and many other forces.


    If that battle had not taken place, the Original Realm would have been completely devoured, sooner rather than later. Whether it is the Dark World or the Empty Divine Realm or maybe even the forces of the Divine Prefecture, they would devour the Original Realm little by little.


    However, that battle reversed the state of affairs. Its significance was phenomenal. It could even directly determine the future of the Original Realm.


    Now that Ye Futian had healed from his injuries and gathered the forces from the Nine Realms, people had become aware that drastic changes might dawn upon the Original Realm.


    Hence, several cultivators that were not from the mainstream factions came to visit the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    And the Heavenly Mandate Academy welcomed all of them as they called upon the aces from various forces to enter the academy. In an instant, a myriad of powerful beings was gathered inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The powerhouses ventured to the square in front of the academy��s great hall and looked at the white-haired youth standing above the stairs. The person was no other than the most legendary figure in Original Realm over the past few years.


    Many aces that were not from the top powers were invited into the Heavenly Mandate Academy. On the contrary, the aces from top forces such as the Tianshen Academy and Martial God Clan were left outside waiting as they were not eligible to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy. It was slightly ironic.


    One could consider that as a humiliation. However, compared to their numerous efforts to kill Ye Futian in the past, such humiliation would amount to nothing. After all, the hatred between them was a matter of life and death.


    As more and more powerhouses arrived, the inside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was extremely lively. An uncountable number of aces were inside Heavenly Mandate City to partake in the grand occasion.


    Above the great hall, Ye Futian invited the Tianxian Temple��s eminent monk, Master Pudu. It was rumored that the Mountain Realm was in fact related to the Upper World of Buddhism and that Donghuang the Great had once trained there.


    ��Master Pudu.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly facing Tianxian Temple��s Master Pudu. Master Pudu put his palms together devoutly and said, ��I��m amazed by what you managed to attain.��


    In the past, he actually had some conflicts with Ye Futian because of the incident with Ye Qingyao. He sensed that Ye Qingyao may lead to great calamity in the future, and yet Ye Futian insisted on protecting her. For that, both sides almost got into a fight.


    However, they had their own stand back then, and they both bore no hatred. Besides, with the size of their hearts, they would not take this matter to seriously.


    ��The Original Realm is in turmoil. What are your thoughts on this, Great Master?�� Ye Futian asked while facing Master Pudu.


    ��To have amassed the forces of the Nine Realms, perhaps you already have a plan in mind?�� Master Pudu replied as he slightly made some speculations internally.


    Ye Futian nodded. This time, not only did he want to end those forces, but also he wanted to settle the old accounts. In the meantime, he hoped that the land of the Original Realm would not be devoured by this storm and become completely devastated. Things were already tragic enough at the Hidden Land Realm and Ziwei Realm.


    ��I would like to hear about the details,�� Master Pudu said.


    ��I��m planning to gather together the forces of the Original Realm to fight against the foreign enemies as one. What do you think, Great Master?�� Ye Futian asked. If the forces of the Original Realm were to face up against the top powers of the Outer Realms, then all of them would seem to be on the weaker end, especially when so many have arrived from the Outer Realms.


    However, if the forces of the Original Realm could come together as a combined power, coupled with what the Heavenly Mandate Academy had now, then they could definitely turn themselves into a superpower by leaps and bounds. Unless they counter existences that have gone through a level-2 divine tribulation, then their position would be as solid as a rock.


    What��s more, Ye Futian had a legendary figure backing him up, someone who was speculated to be an Imperial Realm. With that, the forces of the Outer Realms would not dare to act rashly.


    ��Good.�� Master Pudu held his palms together. ��If that��s what you wish to do, you may proceed. The Tianxian Temple fully supports your decision.��


    ��Thank you, Great Master,�� Ye Futian said. Then, he cast his eyes upon the people below. The aces of the Mountain Realm��s Shenxing clan had arrived. This force was no friend in the past. Like many of the other forces, they were here to make an apology.


    ��Others, you may enter now,�� Ye Futian��s vivid voice sounded. Immediately, forces from the Outer Realms stepped foot into the Heavenly Mandate Academy. As if receiving Buddha��s decree, they were extremely obedient. Some of the top aces did not even have their temper with them right now.


    In the current situation, they have no choice but to lower their heads.


    When the top forces walked over, people from the various forces gave way to them. Everyone was looking at them, and that felt extremely unpleasant for the cultivators of those forces. However, they could only brace themselves and advance. They felt as if they were criminals waiting to be judged. A word from Ye Futian may yield enough power to decide their fate.


    Jiao Ao was also there. He looked forward, only to see that Ye Futian and others were also looking at their direction. He discovered that something had changed about Ye Futian��s demeanor. He might have attained a breakthrough. This made Jian Ao feel somewhat speechless. He once wanted to kill Ye Futian and pave the way for Jian Qingzhu.


    After all, before Ye Futian, Jian Qingzhu, Shen Hao, and a few others were the most talented people in the Original Realm. And Jian Qingzhu was even above the others.


    But at that moment, Ye Futian came out from nowhere, and nobody could rival against him. No matter how talented those people were from the Original Realm, they would still pale in comparison with the talents of Ye Futian. What��s more, Jian Ao knew that Princess Donghuang from the Imperial Palace thought of Ye Futian very highly. She spared Ye Futian the last time around. Iif not, Ye Futian would have already fallen. And by sparing Ye Futian��s life, that could only mean a treasure gifted by the princess.


    Despite the unpleasant feeling he had on the inside, Jian Ao guessed that since Ye Futian had summoned them, he would not go on a massacre, and if he really were to do so, that would be equivalent to blood bathing the forces of the Original Realm. He probably would not do so. Otherwise, instead of gathering the various forces, he could have gone to them and kill them right away.


    Ye Futian an extremely haughty person and today. His arrogance might have grown to an extent where he no longer had the top forces of the Original Realm in his mind. His way of thinking might be beyond that.


    Hence, even if it meant humiliation, he still attended.


    The forces moved forward one step after another, and the people around backed off to give them enough space. Those top figures who were once full of conceit bowed slightly and said, ��We have come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to present our apologies to Renhuang Ye!��


    On this very day, the top figures of the Original Realm lowered their heads at the Heavenly Mandate Academy!

 Chapter 2268 - Rectifying the Original Realm

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian lowered his head and glanced at the ground with piercing eyes. Being sieged multiple times by the forces of the Nine Realms and surviving until this very day had not been easy for him. One could consider him extremely lucky.


    They wanted to end things up with just an apology. Did they think they could get away with it so easily?


    He looked at the powerhouses and said loudly, ��Many times, you tried to kill me and destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The grudge between us concerns life and death and will be lifted only when there is one side left. Now, you wish to solve this grudge with a single apology. Do you think it��s possible?��


    The rumbling voice reverberated across the void. In and out of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the hearts of many shuddered in fear.


    Everybody understood that it was certainly impossible. No one across the Nine Realms was unaware of this feud. If it were not for the support Ye Futian received from his many allies and the little bit of innate luck he had, he would have been dead a very long time ago. It would be the same for the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which had been raided several times.


    The Divine Palace had been disbanded due to the war back then. Although their main enemies were the Shen Clan and the Golden Divine Nation, the other major forces participated in the battle as well. It was only natural that in order to resolve the issue, a great price had to be paid.


    For Ye Futian to have summoned them this time, he probably already had an idea in mind.


    ��On this very day, the Original Realm is in chaos, and cultivators in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path are now facing a great calamity. We should not have stirred up civil strife. The incident back then was our fault, and we, too, know that this hatred cannot be easily resolved. If you have any requests, you may present them to us. If it is within the boundaries of my power, I will strive to accomplish it,�� Jian Ao said.


    Ye Futian glanced at Jian Ao with contempt. Jian Ao was the College Chief of Tianshen Academy. Across the entire Original Realm, he could be considered one of the few figures standing at the pinnacle of power. Being able to do so was already a humble move from him. However, Ye Futian knew that Jian Ao was only putting on an act.


    Initially, there had been no grudge between him and Jian Ao. In fact, Ye Futian might have even owed him something. After all, he had cultivated for quite some time at Tianshen Academy. When Jian Ao participated in the battle in the name of righteousness, the unpredictability and profoundness of the human mind could be seen.


    In comparison, Jian Ao��s descendent, Jian Qingzhu, had a completely different personality.


    ��Alright then.�� Ye Futian did not hesitate. Immediately, he nodded his head and agreed to his proposal. That, however, left Jian Ao with a strange expression, but it quickly returned to normal. He had already guessed that Ye Futian had an idea of his own and a plan on how to deal with them.


    The reason he gathered the forces of the Original Realm was to announce his decision, and whoever was against it would probably be killed on the spot.


    ��Just like what College Chief Jian said, the world is now in chaos. The arrival of various forces has threatened the safety of the Nine Realms and even the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. We, as cultivators of the Original Realm, must unite to repel this catastrophe. If not, I dare not imagine what will happen in the future.�� Ye Futian continued, ��Your sense of righteousness is profound, College Chief Jian. Since that��s the case, I will get straight to the point. In the name of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, I call on the forces of the Nine Realms to ally. Together, we will ward off the Outer Realm��s invasion and cruise through this orderless age.��


    At the vast venue, the inner hearts of the aces shuddered when they heard Ye Futian��s words. They came to understand Ye Futian��s thoughts. In fact, most of them did in advance.


    Ye Futian wanted to unify the Original Realm into one single force.


    What��s more, based on the current state of affairs, should all forces be unified, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would get to exert absolute dominance over the rest. The aces were about to fall under the reins of his power.


    Many were gossiping. Ye Futian looked at the crowd. On the side, all the people were top figures. Behind him were aces of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. Now, the power around Ye Futian was already enough to sweep the Original Realm.


    Under such circumstances, who would be bold enough to defy him? What��s more, those forces that went against him in the past owed him their lives. If they disobeyed and he proceeded to kill them, no one would have said a thing.


    Ye Futian continued, ��From today onward, with the Heavenly Mandate Academy at the core, the Nine Realms shall come together as a massive alliance. The Mountain Realm will be placed under the control of the Tianxian Temple. Forces of the Mountain Realm, you must regard the Tianxian Temple as your leader.��


    Previously, Ye Futian asked for the opinion of Tianxian Temple��s Master Pudu, and the master had expressed his willingness to assist him. Since that was the case, Ye Futian could proceed to do anything with his heart at ease. The Original Realm must come together as a formidable force. They may spare the lives of their previous enemies, but they must be placed under control and receive direct orders from the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If not, what would be the use of him keeping them alive? To keep them as future enemies?


    ��Secondly, the Divine Palace will be reconstructed at the Higher Heavens Realm��s Sea of the Path. The power hierarchy in the Higher Heavens Realm will be reformed, and all forces must obey the orders issued by the Divine Palace,�� Ye Futian continued. For every subsequent realm, they must be placed under the control of his close allies.


    Most certainly, right now, of the Nine Realms, only half of them remained. The Hidden Land Realm, Ziwei Realm, and Shadow Realm were mostly destroyed, and the Solar Realm was controlled by the Sun God Mountain.


    In reality, the Nine Realms was no longer what it used to be.


    ��The same goes for the Myriad Realm. The Heavenly Mandate Academy will send our men there to construct a new faction. All forces of the Myriad Realm will be placed under our direct control and will have to listen to our dispatchers for orders.��


    Now that the Ziwei Realm was destroyed, the Dou tribe could be relocated to the Myriad Realm. Besides, some forces such as the Millet Emperor��s might be dispatched to help them exert more control and deter the others in the Myriad Realm.


    When the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng arrived at the Original Realm, they told him that they planned to stop and cultivate in the Original Realm for a period of time. When things changed in the future, they would head toward the Donghua Domain for revenge.


    ��At last, forces of the Central Emperor Realm will be completely reorganized. Jiao Ao will longer be Tianshen Academy��s College Chief. Emperor Nan of the Nantian Divine Kingdom will join Tianshen Academy and assume the position of College Chief. He would take charge of Tianshen Academy and cultivate the future power of the Central Emperor Realm. Meanwhile, the Xiao and Yuanyang clans of the Nantian Divine Kingdom will join Tianshen Academy to assist Emperor Nan and govern the Central Emperor Realm. All resources gathered are to be amassed at Tianshen Academy and be distributed under their jurisdiction. Besides, the most powerful youth of all forces must be sent to Tianshen Academy for training.�� Ye Futian continued, ��These are just temporary placements. The specifics will be made known to all of you later, and all forces must cooperate.


    ��At the same time, the teleportation grand matrixes that connect to the Heavenly Mandate Academy will be built across the Nine Realms, allowing reinforcements to be dispatched at any time across the Nine Realms.��


    Ye Futian��s voice resounded through the void. He looked at powerhouses and asked, ��Any objections?��


    As soon as his voice fell, the vast space plummeted into silence. Extracting the firewood from under the cauldron�� It was a decisive move to replace Jian Ao directly with Emperor Nan and better Tianshen Academy and all forces at the Central Emperor Realm. This time, the changes in the Original Realm were mainly focused on the Central Emperor Realm.


    Not only did he have his own people manage the academy, but the academy was also granted the privilege to directly take whatever resources from various forces and control their most promising youth within the faction��s boundaries!

 Chapter 2269 - Succession

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Countless eyes looked toward Jian Ao and the other powerhouses. According to everything that Ye Futian had said, the Original Realm would be completely placed under the rule of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, thus ending the rivalry that had been going on in the Nine Realms for many years.


    Would Jian Ao and his affiliates agree to his proposal?


    It seemed that they did not have a choice.


    They came to apologize. Could they not comply?


    At this point, if they disagreed with Ye Futian��s conditions, perhaps only death would await them.


    Presumably, they would already have been prepared for this when these people were on their way here.


    ��Very well then. What you say, we follow. I will give you my full cooperation and hand over my position to Emperor Nan,�� Jian Ao said. As everyone had anticipated, Jian Ao agreed to Ye Futian��s conditions without even the slightest bit of hesitation. He gave up his position as Tianshen Academy��s College Chief and cooperated with the power handover.


    Before they came, it was true that they were already prepared.


    Being able to keep their lives and their factions were already extremely fortunate. They should not be expecting that Ye Futian would conduct his reformation without disrupting them.


    Likewise, this was all within Jian Ao��s expectations. Hence, he complied readily.


    Seeing Jian Ao��s compliance, the corner of the eyes of the other aces twitched. They felt extremely unsettled. However, there was no other choice.


    ��Very well,�� he said.


    ��We are willing to cooperate with the Heavenly Mandate Academy.�� The Hierophant of the Sky Reaching School, the Martial God Clan clan lord, and the other powerhouses nodded in agreement to Ye Futian��s demands. It was not like they could disagree anyways. Their only option was to lower their heads and submit.


    Seeing that the strongest figures were complying immediately within the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the powerhouses felt powerful emotions surging in their hearts.


    Today was bound to be a historic day in the Original Realm. From today onward, the Original Realm would be unified, and the era of the Heavenly Mandate Academy would begin.


    In the past, forces in the Nine Realms governed their respective territories. Who would have thought that there would ever be a day like today? It was even less likely that people would have imagined that, in the end, the force that would unite the Nine Realms would come from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, which had once been the weakest among them all.


    What��s more, the faction was an emerging force. The youngest force was the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Everything was like a dream. However, this was reality.


    The Empty Imperial Palace would not interfere either. Princess Donghuang once said that she would not bother with these disputes and grudges, and it was up to them to decide on their own. Ye Futian��s actions were justified. Coupled with the ongoing chaos in the Original Realm, his purpose of unifying the Nine Realms was to defy undesired variations in the future. Therefore, even the Imperial Palace would have acknowledged everything that he was doing.


    ��Since that��s the case, you may remain in the Heavenly Mandate Academy while you wait for the final arrangement,�� Ye Futian opened his mouth and said. The powerful figures nodded without any objection. Since they already agreed to it and they did not have the power to change anything, acceptance was the only thing they could do.


    A loser must accept his fate. They were the losers, and losers were unqualified to negotiate terms and conditions. Being alive was already a gift from the opposing party.


    Ye Futian turned around and looked at Emperor Nan, Lord Taixuan, and others. Every one of them was pleased. Lord Taixuan was still the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but he left everything today for Ye Futian to decide. He was solely responsible for every decision made and every order issued.


    Now, although Ye Futian had just only broken into high-level Renhuang, he already had the demeanor of a top figure. Besides, in a few years, even without their backing, Ye Futian would still be able to hold the four seas by himself.


    It was believed that this day would arrive in the near future.


    ��My apologies, gentlemen. Your plates may have to remain full for quite some time,�� Ye Futian said to Emperor Nan and the others. It would naturally take some time and energy to rectify the forces of the Nine Realms. In fact, Emperor Nan was unwilling to involve himself in these affairs. But because of Ye Futian��s request, coupled with the complicated situation of the Original Realm, he could only agree to stand up and take the reins of Tianshen Academy for Ye Futian.


    Tianshen Academy, located in the Central Emperor Realm, was still quite important to the Nine Realms.


    ��It��s alright. Just leave it to us,�� Xiao Dingtian of the Xiao Clan and said. He and the Yuanyang Clan��s clan lord would serve as Vice College Chiefs of Tianshen Academy and assist Emperor Nan in managing the Academy. According to the plan, Tianshen Academy and the Heavenly Mandate Academy would work together to bring up extraordinary cultivators for the Original Realm.


    All the cultivators of the Original Realm had special feelings for the Original Realm. The same was true for Emperor Nan. Therefore, he proceeded without hesitation.


    Master Pudu of the Mountain Realm��s Tianxian Temple was also aware that Ye Futian was not doing this for his own benefit. After all, with the power Ye Futian possessed right now, he did not need these forces to improve himself. The reason he did so was for the Original Realm. For that reason, when Ye Futian mentioned it to him, he agreed without delay to assist Ye Futian in whatever he would do next.


    ��Excellent. In that case, your duties are settled. In the meantime, we shall commence the construction of the teleportation grand matrixes,�� Ye Futian said. Immediately, the aces began arranging for everything that was about to happen.


    ��Futian.�� At this moment, Lord Taixuan suddenly opened his mouth and uttered Ye Futian��s name. Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan only to hear him say, ��When the Heavenly Mandate Academy was founded, your cultivation base was relatively low. That was why I served as the first College Chief. Now that many years have passed, it��s been a while since you became the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s core figure, and your cultivation has reached a high-level Renhuang. I think it will not take you too long to catch up with me. I guess I will return the position of the College Chief to you right now.��


    His words had all the aces halting their steps as they turned to look at Lord Taixuan. He wanted to retire and give Ye Futian the post of College Chief.


    The people below felt a sense of admiration when they heard these words. It was true that Lord Taixuan had no selfish intentions when he assumed the post back then. Like what he said, he merely assumed the post in Ye Futian��s place. And today, he wanted to return it to him. He did not want anything for himself at all.


    One must know that right now that the Heavenly Mandate Academy had direct control over the Nine Realms. They could even be considered the ruler of the forces of the Original Realm. The social status of the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s College Chief was only imaginable. But right at this very moment, Lord Taixuan was giving away his position.


    ��I still lack the necessary strength, Lord Taixuan. So, I guess I��ll have you to continue to shoulder the burden,�� Ye Futian said. He wanted to turn down his offer. Like Lord Taixuan, he did not care about power. For them, that was insignificant.


    ��It��s time that I return it to you,�� Lord Taixuan said with a smile, adhering to his own thoughts and wishes. The people around looked over, only to hear Emperor Nan say, ��You are the one who singlehandedly created what we all see today. Lord Taixuan has also been burdened with many worries over the years. It is time that you let him rest.��


    ��He��s right, Futian. You should accept his offer.�� The others tried to persuade Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked at the familiar faces and then at the smile on Lord Taixuan��s face. Immediately, having understood everyone��s intention, he nodded.


    Lord Taixuan turned to the crowd and said, ��From today on, Ye Futian will be the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.��


    Countless eyes looked in that direction. On this very day, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would unify the Original Realm. Ye Futian took over the position of the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s College Chief on this very day!

 Chapter 2270 - Revenge

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Original Realm, a thorough cleanup operation had begun.


    With the Heavenly Mandate Academy as the center, its allies began to take over major forces within the Nine Realms. They disrupted these top forces by completely splitting them apart. They controlled their young progenies by sending them to Tianshen Academy for cultivation.


    As for Jian Ao and the others, they were also split apart by Ye Futian, being relocated to different places. For example, Jian Ao would be neutralized among the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace. In this manner, even if he had truly domineering power in the Original Realm, he couldn��t make any waves without Renhuang Chen destroying and crushing him easily. If he were anything but obedient, he would pay for it with his life.


    Other top cultivators were in the same predicament and were under control. They had made several moves against Ye Futian in the past, so it was impossible to allow them absolute freedom. It was already a favor to them to allow them to surrender their powers and submit themselves under his control.


    The space teleportation grand matrix had begun to be built one after the other. The land of the Nine Realms formed a pattern with the Heavenly Mandate Academy at the center and radiated outward. As soon as movement was detected, it could gather its allies with the fastest speed. Adding Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ziwei Imperial Palace into the mix, cultivators from all sides were completely connected.


    For the first time in more than 300 years, the Original Realm had formed such a pervasive unification, ending nearly 400 years of division.


    Regarding the changes that took place in the Nine Realms, these external forces had made a note to themselves, and most of them had not left the Original Realm. Instead, they stayed on quietly, observing these changes, and their hearts were greatly disturbed.


    Previously, neither the forces from the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, nor the Empty Divine Realm had paid much attention to the forces within the Original Realm. In their eyes, they were but targets to be slaughtered at will. Before, many forces had participated in the campaign against Heavenly Mandate Academy, and the Holy Land of Taichu had paid a heavy price��the death of Swordmaster of Taichu himself.


    But now, everything was different. The forces in the Original Realm had been unified. Coupled with the power from Ziwei Segmentum, it was not so easy to be taken down any one force in the Original Realm. Be it the Divine Prefecture or the Dark World, there were not many forces that would provoke the Heavenly Mandate Academy in its current state unless they conspired together.


    This situation did not bode well for forces from the outside. Their desire to grab more resources from the Original Realm seemed an impossible endeavor.


    The Solar Divine Palace of Solar Realm was the only force that did not submit besides the realms that had been destroyed.


    Once upon a time, the Solar Divine Palace had unified the Solar Realm, and all the forces in the entire Realm obeyed the orders given by Solar Divine Palace. In addition, they had the support of Sun God Mountain��a supreme power in the Upper Worlds. Nevertheless, even at a time like this, they did not submit.


    After all, Sun God Mountain was a supreme power in the Upper Worlds. According to legend, they were descendants of the Sun God and had all the rights to be proud as they were qualified to do so. In the Upper Worlds, Sun God Mountain was one of the top principalities.


    At this time, inside Solar Divine Palace, the blazing solar divine fire shrouded the palace; the currents of flames flowed about in extreme brilliance.


    Inside the Divine Palace, in front of the solar pattern, a majestic figure stood there, surveying the crowd below. It was the top figure from the Sun God Mountain who had fought with Ye Futian that day, the man who had passed the first Divine Tribulation. However, he was almost killed by Ye Futian��s shocking sword while he had control over the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    ��What��s the situation outside?�� asked the man of might power from Sun God Mountain.


    ��Heavenly Mandate Academy has taken control of the top forces from all realms,�� a strong man responded. ��Should we evacuate?��


    All realms had gone to pledge their allegiance to Heavenly Mandate Academy, but the Solar Divine Palace had not.


    However, Solar Divine Palace had participated in several assault operations in the past. The fact that they did not apologize and pledge fealty was not something that Ye Futian would easily overlook.


    That top cultivator from Sun God Mountain pondered for a moment. Were they doomed to fail this time?


    Now, with the power gathered by the Heavenly Mandate Academy, unless it were the Divine Mountain Lord himself who came to the Lower Worlds, they would probably be unable to stop its momentum. This meant that they would have to abandon the Solar Realm.


    The Divine Mountain Lord was, at the moment, cultivating in retreat; he had not left the mountain for many years. Therefore, he couldn��t come to the Lower Worlds. This time he brought a group of cultivators to the Original Realm on a mission. However, were they going to have to give up the Solar Realm after all that?


    He was somewhat reluctant.


    Now, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had been taken away by that one from Four Corner Village. But, perhaps, he still had a fighting chance.


    At this moment, he seemed to have sensed something. He raised his head and looked into the distance. He immediately felt a horrible aura descending. As if coming from outside the firmament, these auras were greatly terrifying, and each one was incredibly strong.


    Soon, all the cultivators from Solar Divine Palace felt an oppressive force. They knew that trouble was afoot.


    Ye Futian, who had cleaned up all the principalities in the Original Realm, was unlikely to let them off the hook. Now, it seemed that the time of reckoning was upon them.


    In addition, in different areas high above the sky were many top forces from the Divine Prefecture. They were here, looking in the direction of the Solar Divine Palace below. As soon as they detected movement from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, they had come, knowing that an impending battle was bound to erupt.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy would not let Solar Divine Palace off the hook.


    Soon, above the sky, a group of cultivators appeared. There weren��t many of them, but each one of them was like a god, standing high above the void, looking down at Solar Divine Palace below. The sight vaguely reminded them of an event once upon a time, when all the major forces were surrounding and looking down upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Among them was the supreme cultivator of Ziwei the Great, Renhuang Chen, holding a scepter, standing high above the sky. Radiant starlight continued to fall.


    Ye Futian was also there, standing next to Renhuang Chen, with other powerful cultivators, such as the Millet Emperor, next to them. Thus, everyone in attendance was a powerful major existence.


    Suddenly, the vast Solar Divine Palace was being oppressed below, and everyone could feel the suffocating pressure. The expressions of many cultivators in the Divine Palace changed. They did not understand why that figure with mighty power from Sun God Mountain was not retreating.


    Now, it seemed too late.


    Heavenly Mandate Academy was here to exact its revenge.


    Boom�� Suddenly, Solar Divine Palace was submerged by a terrifying divine fire. Downward from the Divine Palace, there seemed to be a passage leading to the center of the earth, like a powerful Flaming Divine Matrix had been urged at the moment. Instantly, the divine flames radiated out into a radius of thousands of miles, and the ground began to burn. The area where the Solar Divine Palace was now seemed to have been turned into a terrifying blazing furnace.


    For a moment, the cultivators from Solar Divine Palace couldn��t bear this tremendous power.


    ��No���� Some people��s faces revealed a look of shock and disbelief as their bodies turned into nothingness little by little. Many let out miserable screams.


    Inside, many top cultivators from Solar Divine Palace looked at that man with great capabilities, shock written all over their faces. It turned out that he could not care less about whether those from the Solar Divine Palace lived or died!

 Chapter 2271 - Divine Power Underground

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The entire Solar Divine Palace turned into a terrifying Divine Sun Furnace and continued to spread into the far distance. With the Solar Divine Palace as the center, the entire vast expanse of land was on fire, and the earth was about to be destroyed by the intense heat.


    Countless people levitated into the air, heading higher into the sky, trying to escape that terrible vision of the flame. However, because the Solar Divine Palace was in the center, few could escape, and many perished under the terrible flame of the Way, killed off simply by being burnt away.


    ��Didn��t even spare their own people.�� In the void, Ye Futian and the others looked down into the lower sky. That powerful existence, who had passed through the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, was urging the divine flame in the middle of the earth. A monstrous flaming aura soared, and he seemed to have turned into a god of flames surrounded by the divine light of the flames, with no one who could get close to him. Anyone who approached him was in danger of being burned alive.


    ��How cruel.�� Everyone secretly marveled. This supremely powerful figure from the Upper Worlds, as expected, did not care much for the cultivators from the Solar Divine Palace. To raise the Earthly Divine Fire, he didn��t hesitate to spend the lives of those from Solar Divine Palace.


    ��Watch out!�� Renhuang Chen reminded Ye Futian. This cultivator from Sun God Mountain couldn��t give up the Earthly fire of the Solar Realm, which was why he did not leave. Moreover, he was confident enough that the cultivators from Heaven Mandate Academy couldn��t trip him up. After all, without the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, there were not many who could compete with him.


    Feeling the aura from others at this moment, Renhuang Chen also sensed a vague threat. Although Ye Futian had broken into the realm of Upper Renhuang, if he suffered an attack by someone at this level, he would undoubtedly die from it. So, he had to rely on Ye Futian to be extra careful.


    Boom�� A horrific aura flooded the space, and the infinite divine fire of the Great Path directly swallowed up the void. Thousands of miles of space all turned into a world ruled by flames, as if it was the realm that belonged to the divine fire. That cultivator from Sun God Mountain seemed to transform into a veritable Sun God, with the Divine Wheel of the Sun behind his back. The divine light shot out toward Ye Futian and the others in the void with frightening destructive power.


    Renhuang Chen extended the scepter in his hand. Suddenly, a field of stars appeared around the cultivators. They were surrounded by starry divine light and a world of starry skies. It was as the Divine Light of the Sun directly fell upon these stars until the terrifying divine fire seemed to engulf them all. Slowly, the surface of the stars began to burn little by little, causing the stars to ignite.


    What was happening in this area was too terrifying to behold. Many cultivators from the Solar Divine Palace had a desperate look on their faces. Fighting here meant that they would all die. There would be no survivors. That powerful man from the Upper Worlds had intended for all of them to be buried here. No wonder some cultivators from Sun God Mountain had already left before this.


    It turned out that he already had a plan, and he did not even take the Solar Divine Palace in the Lower Worlds into consideration at all. To him, everyone here was as insignificant as an ant. As such, totally without any value. The only thing that really mattered was the Solar Realm itself.


    This caused the cultivators from Solar Divine Palace to feel a deep sense of sorrow. It was ludicrous that they thought the cultivator from Sun God Mountain would protect them. They never expected that the other had never even considered their safety, so how could he care if they lived or died?


    Under the power of the Divine Fire of the Sun, the stars were actually showing signs of melting. Renhuang Chen looked down into the sky below and said, ��He is borrowing the power of the underground.��


    ��In the land of the Nine Realms, the Shadow Divine Stone was once found inside the Shadow Realm. It could be the same with the Solar Realm. There might be divine items existing, thus accounting for the birth of the Solar Realm. The cultivator from Sun God Mountain came to the Lower Worlds and must have already begun to excavate the divine items inside the Solar Realm. It��s not so strange that he would be able to draw on the power of it,�� said Ye Futian. Renhuang Chen nodded gently. He came from the Ziwei Segmentum, and he was not so familiar with everything that went on in the Original Realm.


    However, he had heard that Ziwei Segmentum was previously enclosed inside a massive rock in the Ziwei Realm.


    The cultivator from Sun God Mountain extended both of his hands, and the body akin to the Sun God was terrifying beyond words. The divine fire that rushed out from the heart of the earth gathered together and turned into a terrifying Sun God Sword. But more than that, in the area above him, the currents of Great Path circulated as if containing the source power of the Great Path and had also converged and formed into many Sun God Swords.


    In an instant, countless Sun God Swords fell all at once, aiming at the ground surrounded by the starry sky in front of them.


    Bang, bang�� The terrifying attacks landed as stars, one after another, collapsed and shattered, broken under the attacks of the Sun God Sword. The terrifying attacks continued to move forward, killing all the nearby cultivators. At the same time, the divine fire in this area came down to burn this boundless space.


    Renhuang Chen took a step forward, and a terrifying divine glory came out from his body. On him, wisps of starlight shot out as well and turned into a frightening starlight screen to block the intrusion of the divine fire. At the same time, terrifying and mighty power was flowing within the scepter. As he pointed the scepter forward, many starry divine swords suddenly appeared and smashed toward the Sun God Sword before colliding.


    However, Renhuang Chen��s attack was surprisingly at a slight disadvantage. His Starry Divine Sword was penetrated by the Sun God Sword, and the light screen seemed to be on the verge of being pulverized.


    ��We have to seal the power from the underground,�� Ye Futian said as he swept his eyes to the area below. It seemed that this man from Sun God Mountain could leverage the divine power underground to exert supreme strength. No wonder he was reluctant to leave. It seemed that he did not excavate any divine items from the Solar Realm, but he could borrow some of its power.


    ��I��ll go.�� The Millet Emperor spoke up, and as his voice fell, he was already on his way towards the sky below with the Watchtower on his back. At the same time, he said to Renhuang Chen, ��You know what to do, so, please.��


    Renhuang Chen understood what he meant by that�Cit was for him to slow down the opponent so that he could seal the divine power that surged underground.


    Boom�� An even more terrifying force erupted from Renhuang Chen. It was as if he had turned into a starry world all of his own. Countless starlight flowed as he continued moving forward with a scepter in hand. Suddenly, those Sun God Swords continued to shatter and collapse as an incredible power emerged from his body, directly slamming toward the opponent at close range.


    As the cultivators from Sun God Mountain saw the oncoming slaughter, a sacred flame shot out from his eyes, and that Sun God-like body continued forward. His palm was outstretched as if it had turned into a Divine Sun Furnace, intending to incinerate Renhuang Chen.


    The scepter in Renhuang Chen��s hand hit the palm, which was like a solar forge. A terrifying force swept through the land as if to shatter the earth as well as heaven. However, the space remained stable with no signs of damage, nor did any dark cracks appear. This was because the entire space had been controlled by the two of them and was shrouded by their Way.


    At this moment, the Millet Emperor carried Wangshen Watchtower toward the ground below. A heavenly might descended, and there was a terrifying divine power surging within the Watchtower, flowing towards the ground!

 Chapter 2272 - Ruination

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    An area formed by the ??Great Path had appeared around the Millet Emperor. It was as if an ancient divine gate from the past was now being summoned, surging toward the ground below.


    The Watchtower continued to expand until a divine gate capable of suppressing the world emerged from it. It crashed through the ground and revealed itself to be the Gate of the World, capable of suppressing all the forces in the world.


    The divine fire that gushed from beneath the ground could not melt away the Gate of the World, and the world beneath the ground was cut off. The cultivator from Sun God Mountain instantly began to wilt. Unable to leverage the power from under the ground, his momentum was clearly not as strong as before; the situation in which Renhuang Chen was being suppressed was rapidly reversing.


    Boom�� A terrifying divine power rocked the godlike body as it burst out, smashing the Solar Divine Palace inside the divine flames. Those eyes glanced at the Millet Emperor in the sky below, knowing full well that it was him who suppressed the power underneath the ground. Now, his power was blocked, and he was being repelled.


    Unsurprisingly, it wasn��t easy to contend with the others just on the strength of a single person. It seemed that it was an impossible task, after all.


    The terrible rumbling sound came out, and the space around him had been transformed into a starry sky world. It was as if he was in the absolute domain of the starry Great Path. The starry sky world was full of shining bright stars that sprinkled down their radiant divine light. The starlight was like countless lines that connected these stars, forming a horrific starry sky matrix.


    Renhuang Chen floated in the air as if to become one with the starry sky. It seemed as if he was the master of this starry sky world. He held the scepter in his hand as his blue robe fluttered in the wind. There was an unfathomable aura coming from him; it was incomparably sacred.


    The cultivator from Sun God Mountain knew very well that the others wanted to keep him here to finish him.


    In another direction, the Millet Emperor was walking this way, still carrying Wangshen Watchtower on his back. It was difficult for him to fight against the man who had borrowed the power from the underground. But now, with that source of power shut off, he who carried the Watchtower was absolutely qualified to participate in the battle. Not to mention that they had Renhuang Chen on their side.


    The cultivator from Sun God Mountain looked at the two, knowing that they wanted nothing more than to detain him here permanently, in this land of the Original Realm, and kill him once and for all.


    In the other direction below, where Ye Futian and the others were, the cultivators from Solar Divine Palace met their miserable end. Many were killed by that powerful cultivator from Sun God Mountain. The divine fire he summoned had burned many people to death; the layout of the field had prevented them from escaping.


    Everyone who was still alive was at the Renhuang level. However, at this moment, there was nothing but desperation and hopelessness in their hearts.


    ��Solar Divine Palace is willing to submit to Heavenly Mandate Academy,�� a voice from below said. It came from a cultivator of the Solar Divine Palace. But Ye Futian did nothing except glance indifferently toward the sky below, thinking, Now they are willing to submit?


    He had given them a chance before, but the Solar Divine Palace did not take it. Only when they were in dire strait, as they were now, did they think of surrendering. But, unfortunately, they had overestimated his generosity.


    ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy is not recruiting right now,�� Ye Futian replied indifferently, and the cultivator in the sky below paled instantly as a feeling of desperation crept up on him.


    Boom�� Next to Ye Futian, many top figures started to move downward as a collective horrific aura burst out from them, suppressing the cultivators from the Solar Divine Palace. There was extremely tyrannical murderous intent upon all of them.


    At this moment, the Solar Divine Palace understood that the end was upon them��they were finished.


    The battle afterward was one-sided. Without any doubts, every cultivator from Solar Divine Palace was slaughtered, one after another. Under such absolute and domineering power, there was no way for them to fight back. Thus, on this day, this most powerful principality in the Solar Realm had been wiped out.


    The truth was that the Solar Divine Palace had the same chance as the Shen Clan and the Golden Divine Nation to save themselves. At the very least, they wouldn��t have ended up like this, but they had been used and sacrificed by their own people.


    On another battlefield, the stars that surrounded the man from Sun God Mountain suddenly shot out many rays of starry divine lights, and these divine lights now turned into Starry Divine Swords, crossing heavens and earth, trying to destroy this side of the space. It had shut off all the escape routes, leaving nowhere to go. Once anybody was hit by any one of these swords, there would be nothing left.


    These attacks came in an instant, and when that cultivator from Sun God Mountain saw this, that godlike body started to burn. It was as if he was transformed into a blazing sun. Then, with his body as the center, a terrifying solar storm manifested to destroy everything.


    The divine glory of the sun spilled out, and the space was burning. When those destructive Starry Divine Swords came in front of him, they entered into an absolutely powerful field. Those swords took on the color of fire and began to melt. By the time they got to him, they had already melted into nothingness.


    An existence that had been through the divine tribulation of the Great Path was frightening enough, for it had already come infinitely closer to the origin of the Way. Nevertheless, it would not be so easy to kill him.


    At this time, the large starry matrix that surrounded them gathered into one point, and that was where Renhuang Chen appeared. He extended the scepter in his hand, and a terrible rumbling sound was heard. Suddenly, starlight seemed to fall from somewhere outside the firmament. It was as if they were summoned here to bestow the divine glory.


    At this moment, the endless and vast area of ??the Solar Realm turned into a starry sky world. The light of hundreds of millions of stars gathered, all flowing in the direction of Renhuang Chen, and converged upon the scepter he held. They seemed to draw on the power of the nine heavens, summoning the power of the starry Great Path from somewhere outside the firmament.


    Even as mighty as the man who came from Sun God Mountain was, he, too, felt a strong sense of threat at this time. His eyes, burning with the Divine Fire of the Sun, stared at the figure in the void; they held a sense of great apprehension.


    He wanted to get away from here.


    Boom! Light of the divine fire rushed straight into the sky, wanting to pierce the starry sky world and leave this area. Suddenly, the starry sky above the firmament seemed to be set ablaze, bathing in the divine fire. However, Renhuang Chen stood high above the sky. He didn��t seem to be aware of it, but he continued summoning that force. If he wanted to finish off his opponent here, he must mobilize extraordinary power to unleash the fatal attack.


    The Millet Emperor had wanted to make a move but was shocked by the power summoned by Renhuang Chen at this time. This power was nothing close to anything he could have produced, not even with the help of Wangshen Watchtower.


    After all, Renhuang Chen himself, with his scepter in hand, was already an existence who had experienced the divine tribulations. The scepter was a divine item passed down by the Great Emperor once upon a time, and only the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace may possess and control it. However, Ye Futian didn��t claim it for himself but handed it over to Renhuang Chen instead. Therefore, Renhuang Chen was quite partial to Ye Futian since their trust seemed to be mutual.


    Outside the firmament, brilliant starlight descended and gathered on the scepter. As Renhuang Chen stretched out his hand, the scepter suddenly flew out of his hand and began to float in the air. The shape of the scepter seemed to change as if it was transformed by all the stars in the sky until, finally, a sword emerged.


    In the vast starry sky world, boundless starlight converged on the sword and transformed it into a heavenly divine sword. As it was transformed by stars in the heavens, it was crushing this corner of the sky.


    Sword intent flowed down one by one, and everything was suppressed in the world below. Finally, the cultivator from Sun God Mountain fixed his attention on the sword and felt the threat of death approaching. He looked at Renhuang Chen and said, ��If I perish here today, all the cultivators from Sun God Mountain will come to the Lower Worlds to seek justice. Is this something the Heavenly Mandate Academy wants?��


    ��It seems that you had forgotten the last battle quickly.�� Renhuang Chen glanced at the man indifferently and continued, ��Since it was you who started this war, it��s only fitting that you die here, as you have proven you are not up to the task. So let��s end it now.��


    When his voice fell, Renhuang Chen pointed his finger down, and the Starry Divine Sword penetrated heaven and earth as a loud rumbling sound was heard. The world was pierced through by the Star Divine Sword as it came down from the firmament.


    Boom�� That supreme existence from Sun God Mountain fought hard to resist, unleashing the Sun God Sword to smash and shatter everything without discrimination. The Divine Sun Furnace attempted to melt the sword, but it was useless. This Heavenly Star Divine Sword slammed down, led by the power of the heavens and the stars, summoning powers outside of this world to gather upon this one sword.


    The sword struck, and the body of that cultivator from Sun God Mountain was penetrated. But then, his body disintegrated little by little until it turned into an illusion. Finally, a face was revealed in that soon-to-disappeared illusion, and it was full of reluctance and disbelief.


    How could he meet his end on a battlefield in the Lower Worlds?


    Bits of the flaming divine light dissipated, and a cultivator of supreme existence��someone who had survived the first divine tribulation of the Great Path��had been killed on this spot. The starry sky world disappeared as well, with many observing the battlefield from different locations in the distance. The witnesses trembled in their hearts and were shocked beyond belief. They did not expect Renhuang Chen from the Ziwei Segmentum would possess such terrifying strength. The scepter in his hand had killed an existence of the same level from Sun God Mountain, and he didn��t even allow the man a chance to escape.


    In this battle, the entire Solar Divine Palace was wiped out, and everyone from there was slaughtered. From this moment forward, the Solar Realm would be controlled in the hands of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was systematically gaining control over all of the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian witnessed everything that occurred. He walked up and said to Renhuang Chen, ��Thank you, Elder.��


    ��It was what I��m supposed to do. If it weren��t for the Millet Emperor, who had suppressed the underground power, I probably wouldn��t have been able to kill him. Most likely, I would have even been at a disadvantage. I still don��t know what is underneath this ground.�� Renhuang Chen looked below as the Millet Emperor extended his palm toward the sky blow. Instantly, rumbling sounds were heard, and the power that suppressed the underground disappeared.


    Suddenly, everyone perceived a majestic force surging out from the ground underneath. Hot airflow diffused towards the ground above. Very quickly, the temperature of the air became scorching hot, and even the ground appeared red-hot. It was as if it had been branded by a hot iron.


    It has been many years since Solar Divine Palace has started the process, and then there was that cultivator from Sun God Mountain who came here from the Lower Worlds. All this meant that they probably have already started channeling the power from the earth��s center, just short of finding a method to completely control or take it away. So this explains why that cultivator from Sun God Mountain was so reluctant to leave��he still wanted to use it to fight, Ye Futian reasoned in his heart.


    Especially when he felt that hot air current, he sensed that the man had already achieved some kind of communication with the power in the heart of the earth. Otherwise, there was no way he could have used it to fight.


    Everyone around him nodded in agreement. If the cultivator from Sun God Mountain could use the power of the earth��s center to fight before, it stood to reason that a channel already existed, just that there was no way to master it completely!

 Chapter 2273 - Geo Center Storm

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The group strode down. It was not only Ye Futian��s group; many practitioners in the sky also came down. The cultivators of every faction wanted to see what was hidden inside the center of the Solar Realm.


    The formation of every one of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms seemed to contain a unique factor. The Shadow Realm had a Shadow Divine Item. So, what about the Solar Realm?


    Beneath the destroyed Solar Divine Palace, a large gap had appeared. It was the spot where the mighty figure from the Sun God Mountain stood earlier. Scorching heat flowed out of the gap as if lava was spewing out from it.


    ��Did we already reach the surface layer?�� The cultivators�� hearts fluctuated. The power contained within the center affected the entire Solar Realm. However, it should not have been as farfetched as the current moment. Otherwise, the Solar Realm would have long been turned into a world of fire. How could any lifeform survive?


    ��This should be caused by the Solar Divine Palace,�� mumbled someone. The others nodded slightly. They also had the same guess in their minds. Otherwise, it would not have become like this.


    Rumble�� Then, the surface was burned into nothingness. The ground was melted, and the location of the Solar Divine Palace was completely transformed into a world of fire. Figures stood in the air one after another. If they were to look down from above, they would be able to notice that a deep pit of flames had appeared within that vast area.


    ��There��s a matrix.�� Divine light glowed from everyone��s eyes. They looked down at the flames and could only see a powerful matrix deep inside the pit. The matrix looked like it had transformed into an image of the sun. Surrounding it was a solar storm that whirled continuously. The storm swirled and twisted, causing the power underneath to be devoured into the image of the sun incessantly.


    An extremely shocking aura burst from the image of the sun. At that moment, everyone finally understood why the divine palace was directly burned to the ground and why the practitioners within the divine palace were burned to death. Such a powerful matrix. If it were to explode completely, even the powerful figures��not to mention the cultivators of the Solar Divine Palace��would have to retreat for a bit, and they would not dare to touch it.


    Before, the cultivator from Sun God Mountain borrowed this power to extract the forces from underground to make the power flow into his body and erupt amazing strength.


    ��Don��t get close. This matrix has been running for a long time. It has been devouring the divine powers surging from below. If you get too close, I��m afraid you might be burned to a crisp,�� instructed Renhuang Chen in a low voice. He could clearly sense just the magnitude of the power within.


    If anyone were to go underground carelessly and enter the area covered by the matrix, they would likely be burned to ash. The person would not even know what killed him.


    Everyone stopped in their tracks. Odd expressions hung on their faces. What the current situation meant was that it was going to be difficult to enter from there.


    ��We need to destroy the matrix first. Let the Divine Power of the Sun disperse,�� said a cultivator from one of the factions present. The others nodded. They had also realized this.


    ��Then, let��s work together and destroy it first,�� suggested someone. Many people nodded in agreement. Ye Futian glanced below and said to Renhuang Chen, ��It looks like I have to trouble elder, again.��


    Back in the day, he was able to get his hands on the Power of Yin. Now, his plane level was no longer comparable to back then. If he were to descend, he was confident that he was the person most likely to obtain the Solar Realm divine item.


    ��Okay.�� Renhuang Chen understood Ye Futian��s meaning. He nodded. Then, he concentrated his strength and prepared to destroy the matrix himself.


    While the matrix was strong, without someone controlling it, the groups�� powerful attacks would naturally destroy it.


    As Ye Futian and the others moved aside, they could see the other cultivators converging their Power of the Great Path, which later transformed into multiple frightening attacks that flew directly into the flame below. The attacks directly landed within the matrix. In an instant, the Solar Matrix was destroyed and disintegrated. A destructive force raged and spewed outwards. Flames spread around the area, and in an instant, everything within a radius of tens of thousands of miles had turned into scorched earth.


    Only after the frightening power of flame dispersed from the direction of the Solar Divine Palace did the cultivators start walking downwards again. It seemed as if a passage towards the center had been opened there.


    After the matrix was destroyed, the scorching air on the surface had dispersed. However, the deeper they went, the more intense the scorching aura became.


    Most of those who had entered were the best of the best. They were heavyweight-class existences. Before long, they had gone deep underground. As they went deeper, they quickly noticed that rocks could no longer be found around them; it had become a world of flames. It seemed like nothing else could exist in this environment.


    ��Further.�� They continued to venture deeper. Multiple rivers of flame seemed to flow all around this world of flame. The cultivators moved past and across them. Some of the younger Renhuangs had come along. For these Renhuangs, the further they went, the harder it became. The Power of the Great Path of Defense on their bodies was on the verge of collapsing as they could no longer withstand further assault from the path of fire.


    ��Agh���� Suddenly, an excruciating wail filled the air. Then, a gust of scorching air came into contact with a person, and the person directly burst into flames. His Power of the Great Path had been burnt out.


    ��What��s going on?�� Everyone looked over to where the sound came from and saw a gust of scorching air that seemed different. The expressions on the faces of some of the more powerful cultivators changed after they sensed the power contained within.


    ��Stop going down,�� said a powerful figure to the younger Renhuangs who had followed them there.


    ��That gust of scorching air seems different. We might be getting close to the central zone,�� said Renhuang Chen to Ye Futian. Starry light surrounded his body as he tried to keep Ye Futian protected inside.


    ��No need. I can sense it,�� said Ye Futian. Renhuang Chen glanced at him and nodded. Since Ye Futian said that, it most likely meant that he was confident.


    The group continued to move downward. Ye Futian��s expression also became slightly solemn. It felt similar to the experience he had last time in the Shadow Realm.


    As they ventured deeper, the number of gusts of scorching air similar to the earlier one had increased. Even the heavyweight-level existences had begun to act more cautiously.


    Ye Futian only knew that he could hardly walk anymore. The strength of the flame in this area had reached a level that he could almost no longer withstand.


    Then, at that moment, a whirling storm suddenly appeared in front of them. Inside the storm were countless gusts of those earlier scorching air. In an instant, the cultivators stopped moving and stared at the storm.


    It looked like a sun was right in front of them, and the storm was like a storm generated by the sun.


    The expressions on many of the top cultivators�� faces changed. How were they going to enter?


    If they were to step into the storm, they were afraid that it would be too dangerous. Even heavyweight-level figures could not guarantee that they would be able to enter and get out alive.


    Renhuang Chen also stared at the scene before him. It was no wonder the cultivators from Sun God Mountain failed to obtain the divine item from the center of the Solar Realm!

 Chapter 2274 - Solar Divine Stone

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Among the cultivators who came to the earth��s center, many extraordinary figures cultivated the flaming Great Path. They stood before the storm and perceived the power inside, trembled before such aura. It was the source of the flaming Great Path, every strand of flowing current contained divine prowess.


    Dared they explore?


    Many people thought of the same thing, but they quickly dismissed it. They realized that it was almost impossible to accomplish the task. After all, the Solar Divine Palace had been here for years, and even the cultivator that came to the Lower Worlds from Sun God Mountain was unable to get to the divine item inside, despite having opened up this channel. If the cultivator from Sun God Mountain couldn��t do it, how could they?


    Of course, divine item aside, could they enter and use its power to cultivate just like that cultivator from the Solar Divine Palace?


    While the cultivators were considering the consequences of going inside, some were already on the move. A major figurehead, bathed in the divine light of flames, walked directly into the storm. He was instantly obscured by the moving storm, but his vague outline could still be seen in the flaming storm. He was moving towards the core, the eye of the storm.


    This cause some uneasiness in other cultivators; did they even want to try?


    There might be danger in the storm.


    Among those from the Heavenly Mandate Academy, everyone��s eyes were on Ye Futian. Renhuang Chen asked, ��Are you going in?��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��It��s too dangerous,�� said Renhuang Chen. ��This storm is powerful. The strength of the flaming Great Path on the outer rim may equal the Great Path��s strength of some of these top cultivators. If we insist on getting deeper inside the core, even I may not survive it. This must be the reason why that cultivator from Solar Divine Palace failed.��


    ��Among the Nine Supreme Regions of the Original Realm, there are two realms that complemented each other: the Shadow Realm and Solar Realm. These two realms are somewhat similar in nature. I have entered the core area of ??the Shadow Realm before,�� Ye Futian said to Renhuang Chen. Traces of currents flowed about him, producing a chilling sensation. When Renhuang Chen perceived this aura, his eyes sharpened a bit as he glanced at Ye Futian.


    It seemed that Ye Futian had a great many opportunities before he received the inheritance of Ziwei the Great. If so, he might be overthinking the whole thing, as Ye Futian himself should know his own limits much better.


    ��Since the palace lord has had a similar experience before, I won��t say anything more. However, please be careful. After all, there are still some risks; allow me to go in with you. If there is an emergency, I can be of assistance,�� said Renhuang Chen.


    ��Sure.�� Ye Futian nodded and did not reject Renhuang Chen��s thoughtfulness. He then walked forward, with Renhuang Chen and others in tow. Renhuang Chen, especially, was sticking to him closely.


    Before they had entered into the storm, Renhuang Chen vaguely detected an unusual current flowing above the surface of Ye Futian��s body. This current spread towards the surroundings and seemed to turn into invisible branches and leaves of a tree. When these currents met with the invading flaming currents, they actually swallowed them up.


    This made Renhuang Chen feel even more unsettled. He looked at the white-haired man in front of him and felt that Ye Futian was more unfathomable than ever before.


    Boom�� A violent aura of the Great Path erupted from Ye Futian��s body. As his body was a body of the Way, the sound of the Great Path roared from it. The divine light hovered on the surface of his body as he walked into the storm, just like that. Amazingly, even at his realm, he was not burned up by that fervently fiery flaming power of the Great Path.


    With him as the center, a strange phenomenon was taking place. Flames that flowed freely inside the storm now turned into a cyclone surrounding him. Gradually, it infiltrated into his body little by little until it was completely swallowed by his body.


    At this moment, Renhuang Chen realized that Ye Futian had secrets that no one knew.


    Perhaps, the will of Ziwei the Great chose him for a reason, and it had something to do with this.


    Some people who had entered chose to stop here, quietly perceiving the power of the Great Path or trying to use it to cultivate. Occasionally, some of them would continue moving forward tentatively to see where their limits might allow them to proceed.


    Others were moving forward persistently as well, wanting to enter deeper into the area.


    Ye Futian and Renhuang Chen kept moving. In this terrifying storm, the deeper they got, the darker the color of the flames. In the most inner area of the core, the color was red as blood, shocking to behold.


    And all the flame��s energy seemed to diffuse out from that central region.


    As they continued moving, Ye Futian gradually slowed down as well, and more cultivators had stopped, find it difficult to move forward. They had entered an area even deeper, where it was difficult for the strongest among them to move any further. Only those who had passed the test of the Great Path Divine Tribulation dared to venture deeper.


    Renhuang Chen, who was following Ye Futian, felt it as well. If he went any deeper, perhaps he, too, would not be able to continue walking.


    Faint traces of Imperial Glory hovered around Ye Futian and upon that body of immortal Great Path. There was also the terrifying divine light of flames that flowed about him, and his body seemed gradually being eaten away by the power of the flames.


    He paused briefly. Although his realm was not as strong as he was now, he remembered when he was frozen and almost lost his life in the Shadow Realm. At present, his realm had much improved, but the power of Sun God Fire was definitely no less menacing than the power of shadow. If he couldn��t bear it, the result would not be just being frozen but being burned to cinders with no hope of ever returning.


    There were some unusual movements in his life palace, and the Ancient Tree of the World kept swaying, moving toward his limbs and muscles, protecting his indestructible physical body in case of unforeseeable circumstances. At the same time, those ancient branches turned into an invisible power that spread towards the surrounding area, as the Ancient Tree of the World stirred again in his life palace.


    At this time, Ye Futian��s body seemed to have been transformed into a sacred tree. He lifted his foot and continued forward.


    Renhuang Chen looked at him, hesitated for a moment, then followed him forward, continuing to venture deeper into an area even closer to the core.


    At this time, Ye Futian��s body acted like a monster. Under the gaze of Renhuang Chen, he was madly devouring the flaming currents. As they poured into his body, they seemed to be swallowed into a bottomless pit.


    ��What kind of ability is this?�� Renhuang Chen exclaimed secretly after witnessing this spectacular sight. It seemed that his worries were unwarranted. Inside this place, he might not be stronger than Ye Futian after all. At the moment, he was already experiencing a strong pressure, and the starry defense had begun to show signs of weakness. If he went any further, he might not be able to make it.


    ��Palace Lord!�� Renhuang Chen called out when he thought about this, and Ye Futian turned his head to look at him. He heard Renhuang Chen say, ��I can only walk to this point.��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian merely nodded but continued to walk deeper to the core inside. When he saw this, Renhuang Chen didn��t know what else to say.


    Not only him, but the other top figures behind them sharpened their eyes as well. How was Ye Futian able to achieve this?


    It didn��t take long before Ye Futian entered into the area around the core. The crimson flames were dark and terrifying; it was as if they could swallow people up in an instant. Under the shower of the divine light, everything in this area was on the verge of being burnt up, except for the place where Ye Futian was standing, in a small area of ??vacuum.


    Ye Futian saw the eye of the storm ahead; it looked like a crystal. One glance would make the beholder��s eyes sting.


    ��Is this the Solar Divine Stone?�� Ye Futian marveled secretly. This power was not any lesser than the original power of Yin. The ultimate solar fire was pure to the extreme!

 Chapter 2275 - Consumed

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was continuing to advance. Outside the storm, many people could faintly make out his silhouette. Their hearts trembled violently as they wondered: was this fellow crazy?


    Why would he continue to advance under such circumstances?


    Even the giant-level figures did not dare approach the divine fire. Could it be that Ye Futian wanted to reach the eye of the storm?


    Even cultivators who had survived the divine tribulations of the Great Path did not dare approach the eye of the storm. Ye Futian sure had some guts to try to approach it.


    Nervously, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy stared at the blurry silhouette. Under their attentive gazes, Ye Futian actually successfully made his way towards the region where the eye of the storm was. As he advanced step by step, it seemed he would reach the divine fire.


    The area where the divine fire blazed was the core of the entire Solar Realm. It contained terrifying power that was beyond anyone��s imagination. However, Ye Futian had actually succeeded in approaching it. He had just become a high-level Renhuang not long ago. Was he not concerned that he would be incinerated by the divine fire?


    At the moment, intense rumbling sounds could be heard from Ye Futian��s body. The divine light of the Great Path circled around him as the imperial glory shone. Streaks of the divine halo of the ancient tree expanded outwards and were consumed by the current of the divine fire. The menacing divine fire seemed to be able to engulf Ye Futian at any second. Soon, Ye Futian was sucked into the storm.


    Rumble. Wave after wave of destructive heat gushed towards Ye Futian. He knew that he was in danger.


    Divine light expanded outwards together with the branches of the ancient tree. The branches stretched towards the eye of the storm. However, the formless ancient tree seemed to catch on fire when it came in contact with the heat current. One could faintly make out the silhouette of the tree. Fortunately, even though the tree was bathed in divine fire, it was not reduced to ashes. Instead, the branches were still moving forward.


    The branches of the towering ancient tree that were on fire directly penetrated the eye of the storm. It was as though the branches wanted to wrap around it. Everyone else was shocked when they saw that the ancient tree was swallowing up the sun.


    However, almost simultaneously, the divine fire retaliated and surged directly into Ye Futian��s body.


    Rumble. Ye Futian��s body caught on fire instantly. It was as though he was about to be incinerated into nothingness. Ye Futian��s current body was formidable. It could be considered a divine body of the Great Path, especially since his body was fortified by the will of the Great Emperor and the Life Spirit. In terms of flesh, even the top giant-level figures could not be compared to Ye Futian.


    However, even so, Ye Futian��s body was still burning at this moment. It seemed like he was about to be consumed by the divine fire. Not only was his flesh on fire, but even his spiritual soul was on the verge of being destroyed by the blaze.


    Even under such circumstances, Ye Futian still did not give up. He was also not consumed and destroyed by the divine fire. The ancient tree completely enveloped the divine item of the Solar Realm in the eye of the storm. The ancient tree then immediately consumed it, pulling it into the Life Palace. It disappeared in an instant.


    At that moment, the surrounding Flames of the Way appeared to be extinguished, losing their previous destructive power.


    The surrounding Flames of the Way were constantly weakening. Gradually, they calmed down. The giant-level figures on the outside all sensed this. They revealed strange expressions. The intensity of the current of flames was weakening, and it appeared to be dissipating.


    What was going on?


    They were somewhat astonished. As they looked on, the power of the entire solar storm was gradually dissipating. It seemed that it would completely vanish.


    What had happened?


    Their gazes landed on Ye Futian. Right now, Ye Futian��s figure was standing there motionlessly. He was bathed in Flames of the Way. It was as though his body was being consumed by the flames. The crowd saw that even Ye Futian��s indestructible body appeared to be burned.


    The various cultivators narrowed their gazes as they looked at Ye Futian. Would this peerless genius be incinerated by the Flames of the Way?


    A formless wind appeared in the space, guiding the scorching current of flames. No one knew where this wind came from. The scorching gale swept up. Ye Futian��s figure had yet to dissipate. As the crowd watched, they could faintly make out strange light shining from his body. Divine halos seemed to emanate from him.


    He was not dead.


    When the crowd saw this scene, their hearts trembled. In the center of the solar storm, Ye Futian��s body was actually not incinerated?


    Then, what about the divine item at the center of the solar storm?


    Did Ye Futian pocket it?


    Ye Futian��s body did not move an inch. His body kept experiencing changes. The crowd could sense that his ridiculously powerful flesh was healing gradually from being burnt. His speed of recovery was baffling.


    Even at their level of existence, the cultivators would most likely not recover after being corroded by the solar storm.


    What exactly happened to Ye Futian��s body?


    Everyone could faintly sense that a scorching heat was emanating from his body. It was as though his body contained a terrifying aura of flame. The crowd��s speculation was more or less verified. From the look of things, the divine item located at the core of the solar storm was indeed retrieved by Ye Futian.


    However, how did he manage to do it with his current cultivation Plane?


    Even cultivators who had been through the divine tribulations of the Great Path could not get close to the storm, let alone retrieve the divine item. Otherwise, the Solar Divine Palace or the super cultivator from Sun God Mountain would have pocketed the divine item long ago. The rest of them wouldn��t even have a chance to be here.


    Yet, Ye Futian managed to do it.


    The cultivators from the Original Realm were aware that Ye Futian had pulled off a similar feat back when he was in the Shadow Realm.


    Countless intent gazes were fixed on Ye Futian. The secrets of his body seemed exceptionally appealing now. He possessed the flesh of Shenjia the Great Emperor, the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei, and many other secrets. It was as though there was nothing he couldn��t do.


    Renhuang Chen and the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy could not help but walk up behind Ye Futian. They faced the various cultivators as their cold and indifferent gazes revealed looks of warning.


    However, even if they did not act this way, no one dared to touch Ye Futian. After all, everyone still vividly remembered that battle. Master had appeared in the world and was undefeatable when using the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. With that precedent, anyone who wished to attack Ye Futian had to think twice.


    Aside from the flow of scorching currents, the space suddenly fell silent. Ye Futian��s body floated in space like a statue. He remained motionless and did not show signs of life. There was only a blazing aura emanating from within his body. No one knew what was happening to him now.


    At that moment, in Ye Futian��s Life Palace, some intense changes were taking place.

 Chapter 2276 - Protection

    Renhuang Chen and the others continued to guard the area. The flames at the center faded. The entire Solar Realm changed as the flames receded.


    The cultivators from the Solar Realm could sense that the earth seemed to have undergone some changes. However, the ordinary cultivators couldn��t pinpoint exactly what had changed. Only those with more profound cultivation could sense what was happening.


    The Solar Realm would most likely be different from now on.


    Time trickled past. The cultivators who were gathered at the center gradually left the place. It was meaningless for them to stay around. After all, they couldn��t possibly attack Ye Futian to snatch the treasure. No one could kill him in the previous battle. Now, the cultivators had to seriously consider the consequences if they wanted to lay a finger on him.


    Only Renhuang Chen and the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy remained there. They were protecting Ye Futian.


    After a long while, the aura of flame on Ye Futian gradually subsided. In his Life Palace, a true world seemed to have formed. The sun and the moon both shone high in the sky while being surrounded by stars. He had finally seized control of the power of Yin, the Power of the Sun, and the power of the stars.


    Moreover, he also possessed the Undying Flames of the Divine Fire of Wutong.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes, and beams of Divine Fire of the Sun shot out from his pupils. The beams were scorching hot. His gaze seemed to be capable of burning everything he laid his eyes on.


    Renhuang Chen and the rest noticed that Ye Futian��s temperament had changed once again. However, the changes were subtle. After all, Ye Futian possessed many other abilities.


    Ye Futian turned around and looked at the crowd. He said, ��Let��s go.��


    The crowd nodded and followed him. After a while, they left the underground world and traversed up into the sky. They looked down, and all they saw was scorched earth. The flames had receded, but the ground was torched.


    The Solar Divine Palace had been burnt to ashes. It now existed only in history. The Solar Realm also no longer contained the Power of the Sun.


    In the distance, many cultivators of the Solar Realm noticed that Ye Futian and his group had emerged. All of them focused their attention on him and his group. Among the onlookers were quite a few cultivators from the major forces of the Solar Realm. They could tell the identities of Ye Futian and his companions with a mere glance.


    The Solar Divine Palace had been eradicated. From now on, the Solar Realm was also under the jurisdiction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If the Heavenly Mandate Academy wanted to, they could directly rule over the Solar Realm.


    However, the current Solar Realm seemed to have lost its value. Even the Earthly Divine Fire had disappeared. It should have been pocketed by someone among Ye Futian��s group. Most likely, Ye Futian himself had taken it.


    The local cultivators had all heard rumors of Ye Futian pulling off a similar feat in the Shadow Realm. What he did was something that the cultivators of the Sun God Mountain failed to do. Even the other top figures had trouble approaching the divine item. Most likely, only Ye Futian had a chance to succeed.


    Therefore, most of the onlookers actually speculated that Ye Futian, who had the weakest cultivation level among his group, had taken the divine item.


    Ye Futian scanned the crowd. Then, he said to his companions in a low voice, ��We should not give up on the Solar Realm.��


    All Nine Supreme Realms were part of the Original Realm and were the strongest lands of cultivation. They were also the future of the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian had decided to control the entire Original Realm, so he was unwilling to give up the Solar Realm just like that.


    ��Who should we send here?�� Lord Taixuan asked.


    ��Perhaps we can build an academy here,�� Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan and suggested. ��Then, we can recruit all the talented figures in the Solar Realm to cultivate there. It will become a branch of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Those with exceptional performance will be sent to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to further their cultivation. How about it?��


    ��Okay. Your suggestion is plausible.�� Lord Taixuan nodded in agreement. In the distance, all the cultivators were excited when they heard Ye Futian��s words. They also had a chance to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Currently, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was definitely the center of the Original Realm. There was no place greater than it. It was the king of the Original Realm.


    ��We will further discuss this matter when we are back in the academy,�� Ye Futian concluded. The rest nodded. Then, they traversed space and left the Solar Realm.


    The cultivators of the Solar Realm stared at the scorched earth with mixed feelings.


    ��


    The news of Solar Divine Palace being eradicated soon spread across the Nine Realms. Currently, all Nine Realms were controlled by the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Hence, news traveled exceptionally fast. The news stirred up a huge commotion in the Central Emperor Realm.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian and the rest had returned. Someone was reporting the updates to them in the main hall.


    The person reported, ��All the cultivators of Celestial Worthy Temple have evacuated the place and disappeared. Many of them are now dispersed in various locations in the Imperial Realm.�� The Celestial Worthy Temple was supported by a superpower force. Therefore, they did not come to pledge their allegiance to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Right now, everyone in the organization had been dismissed.


    Clearly, they knew that they would be in danger like the Solar Divine Palace.


    In reality, the reason the Solar Divine Palace was eradicated was the super cultivator from the Sun God Mountain. Otherwise, the Solar Divine Palace might have been spared from the calamity.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded. The person left the hall after giving his report.


    The core members of Celestial Worthy Temple would most likely leave together with the people from the Upper Worlds and head to Celestial Worthy Mountain in the Divine Prefecture. As for the rest of the cultivators, it was meaningless for Ye Futian to hunt them down. Since he did not hunt down every single member of the Shen clan, he naturally would not do so to the members of Celestial Worthy Temple.


    ��Has the restructuring of the Central Emperor Realm forces been completed?�� Ye Futian asked Xiao Muyu, who was beside him.


    ��Hmm.�� Xiao Muyu nodded and said, ��It is more or less completed. Now, we have all the forces in the Central Emperor Realm under control. After the battle in the Solar Realm, we practically control every single force in the Original Realm, except forces from the outside worlds.��


    Ye Futian nodded. Since they had completed mmarshalingall the forces in the Original Realm, it was time for him to unite the entire realm. After that, the outside forces would most likely not dare to attack them easily.


    Ye Futian mumbled, ��But many other realms in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path are still suffering. They are defenseless against the invasion of the outside worlds.�� Lord Taixuan nodded in agreement and responded, ��Before you returned, many realms in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were attacked and seized by the Dark World. Currently, many forces from the Dark World still have control over these realms.��


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded. He looked into the distance and said, ��Issue my order to the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. From this day forth, all 3,000 Realms of the Great Path are under the protection of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If any forces run rampant and kill the innocents in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will surely hunt down these forces.��


    Many people were shocked when they heard Ye Futian��s words. All their gazes were fixed on him. Ye Futian actually wanted to protect the entire 3,000 Realms of the Great Path?


    The outside forces were so powerful, and the world of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was vast. It was plausible for the Heavenly Mandate Academy to control the Nine Realms, but it would most likely be an arduous task for them to expand their protection to the entire 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. It was an insanely difficult mission.


    However, after hesitating for a moment, the cultivators present still nodded obediently. They bowed and said, ��Understood.��


    Many cultivators turned around and prepared to leave. Lord Taixuan and the other top figures also said, ��We��ll help to relay this message too.��


    They were gratified by Ye Futian��s order.


    Ye Futian was now the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. After he seized control of the Nine Supreme Realms, it was righteous for him to be willing to protect the entire Original Realm from being tormented by disasters!

 Chapter 2277 - Undercurrent

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Ye Futian issued the order, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy went to various main realms in the Supreme Realms to spread the news. One of the realms was the Crimson Dragon Realm, where Ye Futian had cultivated before.


    On top of that, some cultivators began the construction of the teleportation grand matrices. The matrices would connect various main realms with the Nine Realms as the center. Then, more matrices would be built to connect the main realms with the smaller realms. With this, the academy could gradually expand its influence to the entire 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Moreover, the matrices could monitor the activities that occurred in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Before Ye Futian, no one had managed such a feat before. The Nine Supreme Imperial Realms were the Upper Worlds, and their superiority was unfathomable. Everyone in the Lower Worlds yearned to explore the Nine Realms. Unfortunately, various forces in the Nine Realms had always contended with one another, and they had never achieved unity before. In the past, let alone unity across all Nine Realms, even forces that coexisted in the same realm were frequently fighting for dominance.


    However, the old era had ended. Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy had kicked off a new era��an era where they ruled the Nine Realms. This was why they could rule the entire 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Of course, they were not doing this for authority and control. For the strongest force, this was not very significant. Everyone knew that Ye Futian did so due to his attachment to the Original Realm. He did not wish for it to be invaded and destroyed.


    After the crisis, the lands of the Original Realm seemed to have calmed down. Be it the cultivators from the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, or the Divine Prefecture, they all kept a low profile.


    Before this, they could rampage around the Original Realm and could be seen all over the Nine Supreme Realms. However, a superpower had formed in the Original Realm. No force dared to act recklessly now.


    Right now, Ye Futian was cultivating in the starry cultivation court of the Ziwei Segmentum. It was not just him; many people were cultivating there. The Ziwei Segmentum and the Heavenly Mandate Academy were connected. They could travel back and forth between the two realms at any time. This place was undoubtedly the most suitable holy land for cultivation. Hence, for the time being, they were all cultivating here.


    Right now, in the vast starry sky, the sound of guqin filled the space. The sounds of the guqin were solemn and sonorous. Ye Futian was actually bathed in the divine halo of the Imperial Stars as he played. It was an almost dream-like scene.


    Beside him, Luo Su quietly listened to Ye Futian playing. As she was also an inheritor of the Divine Melody, Luo Su felt that Ye Futian infused more emotion than she did when he played. Even though this was a powerful and sonorous tune, it seemed to contain a heavy sense of longing.


    She believed that Ye Futian was certainly a person who had a lot of stories to tell.


    Ye Futian had now become the ruler of the Original Realm. He was just a seventh-tier high-level Renhuang, yet he could already command the various top figures to fight for him. What sort of treatment was this? Even the Proud Sons and Vice Chiefs of superpowers of the Divine Prefecture did not have such rallying power.


    Who was Ye Futian, the person who ruled over the Original Realm, thinking about?


    At that moment, from down below, a person came towards them. When he arrived, he cast a glance at Ye Futian and then at the group of cultivators beside him.


    ��What is the matter?�� asked Gu Dongliu, who had just finished cultivating, when he saw the person arrive.


    ��I bring news from the Original Realm,�� replied the person. ��In one of the realms, a force from the Dark World is causing trouble. This force is mighty. Even the cultivators that we sent out have not returned. This might need to be reported to the College Chief for him to handle.��


    ��Alright, you may leave first,�� replied Gu Dongliu as he nodded his head slightly. The person immediately left. Gu Dongliu headed up into the sky and walked up beside Ye Futian.


    ��Younger Brother,�� called out Gu Dongliu. Ye Futian immediately stopped playing and asked with a smile, ��Third Brother, what is the matter?��


    ��There is news from the Heavenly Mandate Academy. A force from the Dark World is causing trouble in a Lower World of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. This force most likely has powerful backing,�� said Gu Dongliu. Ye Futian frowned. He already ruled over the Nine Realms. It was impossible for the cultivators of the Dark World not to know about this.


    That could only mean that the other party was not afraid of this fact.


    ��It seems that this force has powerful backing,�� commented Ye Futian.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Gu Dongliu as he nodded his head. ��If the force were easy to deal with, Lord Taixuan and the others in the academy would have already ordered people to handle it. However, since they sent someone to inform you, the force might have a cultivator who has survived a divine tribulation and is not easy to deal with. We might need Renhuang Chen to hold the fort.��


    Gu Dongliu clearly understood Lord Taixuan��s intentions. If they could have handled it themselves, they would not have disturbed Ye Futian while he was cultivating.


    ��Understood.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��Third Brother, please continue to cultivate here. After that, I will head out.��


    Right now, for Gu Dongliu and the others, cultivating was the most important issue at hand. In this current chaotic era, their abilities and cultivation Planes were still lacking. They needed time to improve. Even if they went to the Lower Worlds, they would not be of much help.


    ��Alright,�� replied Gu Dongliu as he nodded his head. He then saw Ye Futian walk away. When they saw him leaving, some people followed behind him and left the space. Ye Futian found Renhuang Chen, and they headed over to the Heavenly Mandate Academy through the teleportation grand matrix.


    In the academy, Ye Futian met with Lord Taixuan and the others. He asked, ��Lord Taixuan, how is the situation overall?��


    ��These past few days, although the Original Realm appears peaceful, in reality, an undercurrent is surging. Cultivators from the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm have gradually arrived in the Original Realm. It might be that they are acting in the same manner as the forces of the Divine Prefecture. They are channeling more forces into the Original Realm. Thus, the current situation might be even more complicated than before. However, they might still be acting cautiously, as they had yet to go overboard in the Nine Realms for now.��


    Lord Taixuan continued, ��However, in the Lower Worlds, there are forces which have begun to act.��


    ��What value do the Lower Worlds hold for them?�� asked Ye Futian incredulously. Although the Original Realm had undergone some changes, the value of the Lower Worlds was still relatively small, especially for the superpowers.


    ��We are not sure. However, it seems that it is related to cultivating. Many people have already lost their lives,�� said Lord Taixuan. ��This force is somewhat sinister. They will probably be hard to deal with.��


    ��Understood,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head. ��Where are they now?��


    Since he had already given the command to protect the Original Realm, he would kill anyone who acted against it. This was the first force that acted against it since he made the announcement. If he did not deal with them, his previous promise would ring hollow, and other forces would most likely follow suit.


    Right now, other forces were probably observing from the shadows.


    ��They were last seen in the Crimson Dragon Realm. They have already traveled through quite many realms. As for where they are now, we will need to investigate once we arrive in the Crimson Dragon Region,�� explained Lord Taixuan.


    ��Alright,�� said Ye Futian with a cold and indifferent look in his eyes. The Crimson Dragon Region��s main realm was the Crimson Dragon Realm. He had previously cultivated there. Emperor Xia��s Realm was also in the Crimson Dragon Region.


    As Ye Futian said this, his group immediately departed and headed towards the Crimson Dragon Realm through the teleportation grand matrix!

 Chapter 2278 - Cruel

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and the others arrived in the palace of the Crimson Dragon Realm. The Crimson Dragon Emperor personally came to welcome them.


    When he saw the current Ye Futian, the Crimson Dragon Emperor was overwhelmed. Although they had not had many interactions, he knew everything that had happened to Ye Futian. Back in the day, Ye Futian and his brother Yu Sheng had previously cultivated in the Crimson Dragon Realm for a period of time. They had even stirred up quite a storm when they entered the palace.


    Later on, Ye Futian followed the juniors of Crimson Dragon Emperor and ventured to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to cultivate. After several decades, when Ye Futian once again returned to the Crimson Dragon Realm, he returned as the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the ruler of the Nine Realms, and the person who controlled the Original Realm.


    This made him seem like some surreal figure.


    ��Crimson Dragon Emperor,�� greeted Ye Futian as he walked forwards. The Crimson Dragon Emperor bowed and said, ��Greetings, Renhuang Ye.��


    ��No need for formalities,�� said Ye Futian. ��Crimson Dragon Emperor, do you know where the force of the Dark World is now?��


    ��Hmm,�� responded Crimson Dragon Emperor as he nodded his head. ��We have been keeping tabs on their movements. If Renhuang Ye wishes to head over there, I will lead the way.��


    ��Alright. Let��s head over immediately,�� said Ye Futian.


    As he said this, their group immediately departed. Their speed was breakneck.


    Along the way, Ye Futian asked Crimson Dragon Emperor, ��What has this force done?��


    Crimson Dragon Emperor explained, ��They used people to refine life force for their own cultivation. It is an extremely evil dark art. Currently, several realms face the danger of being eliminated. Before this, the Heavenly Mandate Academy also sent people down here, but even they have not made it back alive. The other party might be an extremely powerful force in the Dark World. Otherwise, they would not dare to act without restraint.�� This caused Ye Futian��s gaze to narrow. A cold, murderous look flashed past in his eyes.


    They actually went to such lengths.


    This force had openly massacred people in the Original Realm and used them to refine the life force of their own cultivation.


    The group traversed the sky at a rapid pace. After some time, they arrived at a realm. The realm was filled with the aura of death. The entire space was dark, and there were no signs of life. The ground was littered with corpses. The scene could only be described as tragic.


    The scene of corpses littered across the ground shocked Ye Futian and the others greatly. Yet alone Ye Futian, even the cultivators from the Lower Worlds of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were livid. Their gazes were filled with murderous looks.


    The Divine Light of Space flashed, and in an instant, Ye Futian appeared on the ground. A woman carrying a little girl was sitting on the ground. She stared blankly at her surroundings. The eyes of the little girl were filled with terror. A few dead bodies were lying in front of them.


    ��Bring them to the Crimson Dragon Realm,�� instructed Ye Futian. ��Crimson Dragon Emperor, make arrangements for all the survivors in this realm to be relocated to the Crimson Dragon Realm.��


    ��Understood, Renhuang Ye.�� Crimson Dragon Emperor nodded. He was similarly filled to the brim with anger. Murderous intent rampaged in his mind.


    It was too cruel.


    This was a living hell.


    Countless lives in the Original Realm were used by the force of the Dark World for their cultivation. Almost all the cultivators in this realm had been eradicated. The situation was too tragic.


    Buzz. Renhuang Chen unleashed a frightening will, and it expanded outwards into the distance. He said, ��Let��s locate the force of the Dark World first. Otherwise, more lives will be sacrificed.��


    Ye Futian stood up, and with a flash, he appeared beside Renhuang Chen. Starlight twinkled around Renhuang Chen, and it enveloped the group within it. The next moment, starlight shone, and they disappeared.


    Not long after, they arrived at another realm. The aura of death also pervaded this realm. A terrifying will of death seemed to envelop the heavens and earth. The clouds of death loomed over the entire sky, covering the sun.


    ��Found them,�� said Renhuang Chen.


    He took a step forward, and the group once again shifted to another place. When they appeared again, they were in mid-air, looking down at the ground below. There was a huge altar set up. Towering black stone pillars surrounded the altar. On the altar sat an exotic black-robed youth.


    Many cultivators gathered around the altar. They seemed to be protecting the black-robed youth.


    From within this altar, countless shadows seemed to rush out, screaming into the distance endlessly. In the divine consciousness of Renhuang Chen and the others, they saw countless cultivators shrouded and bound by these shadows. The cultivators were swept up into the air, and then their life force was stripped and extracted from them. Their life force was channeled into the center of the altar and consumed by this youth.


    Bang. A frightening aura burst forth from Renhuang Chen��s figure. It severed the connection between the altar and the vast world. The cultivators of this realm were immediately released. The people who were bound freed themselves. They revealed shocked looks.


    Down below, a few figures appeared on the stone pillars of the altar. All of them had extremely powerful cultivation. Among them, a black-robed elder had an aura so terrifying that even Renhuang Chen felt threatened.


    As expected, it was as Lord Taixuan; the others had surmised this. There was an existence who had survived a divine tribulation of the Great Path among the force from the Dark World. This force was most likely a superpower from the Dark World that had descended upon the Original Realm. They were using the lives of the members of the Original Realm to refine the life force for cultivation.


    The youth at the center of the altar raised his head. Menacing light of death flashed in his pupils as he stared at Ye Futian and his group. The youth��s level of cultivation was very powerful. He was an eighth-tier Renhuang. His aura was unfathomable. Moreover, he was protected by the Tribulation level mighty existence. One could imagine the status of the youth.


    This youth was most likely a direct descendant of the leader of a giant-level force in the Dark World. Its status was akin to that of the Holy Land of Taichu.


    ��You��ve disturbed my cultivation,�� said the youth. His tone was sinister. He had only recently arrived at the Original Realm. It was because there were 3,000 Realms of the Great Path here, so there were plenty of living beings for him to use for cultivation. There were restrictions in the Dark World, so he couldn��t do as he pleased. However, he could do whatever he wanted here.


    Rumble. Terrifying might of the Great Path descended and pressed down from the heavens. Murderous intent flared up in Renhuang Chen��s eyes as he stared at the black-robed youth. He had cultivated in the Ziwei Segmentum for many years. Yet, he had never seen such a bloodthirsty cultivator like this youth. The value of human lives was insignificant in the youth��s eyes. He actually used people to refine his life force for his own cultivation.


    The moment Renhuang Chen unleashed his might, the sky seemed to crumble. Rumbling sounds kept thundering. The stone pillars collapsed, and the altar was destroyed. The vast space became the domain of Renhuang Chen.


    However, at the same time, the Tribulation level elder from the Dark World force stepped forward, and a storm that struck fear in the hearts of the people around swept out. A dark aura churned in the sky. Death loomed over the vast space. Everyone was trapped in this domain of death. It was as though all the cultivators here would be slaughtered.


    Both of them were figures of the same level. Neither of them wanted to act recklessly!

 Chapter 2279 - Kill

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    From afar, more and more cultivators moved closer. With a few leaps, they arrived at the altar.


    Ye Futian scanned the incoming crowd. These cultivators all had strong auras. They were most likely from different forces in the Dark World. However, at this moment, they seemed to be from the same alliance. The gazes of the cultivators were fixed on Ye Futian and his group as they unleashed their might.


    From this scene, Ye Futian understood that this youth was from an overlord force in the Dark World. Its position was just like that of Ziwei Imperial Palace in the Ziwei Segmentum. All the other top forces had to obey them.


    No wonder the youth dared to act so presumptuously. His first words upon seeing their arrival were that they were disturbing his cultivation!


    ��Could I trouble you, Elder, to send the members of this realm to the side?�� asked Ye Futian. Renhuang Chen nodded in acknowledgment. Immediately, his will enveloped the entire realm. In an instant, all the cultivators in the realm felt a formless pressure acting on them. For them, this pressure was similar to that of a deity.


    ��Be gone,�� ordered Renhuang Chen. A terrifying, formless power reverberated outwards. At that moment, the cultivators in the realm were sent flying backward by the shockwave. The formless power pushed them to the boundary of the realm. They were kept outside by a gigantic defensive shroud of starlight. This was also to protect them.


    In the heavens above, Renhuang Chen raised the scepter in his hand. Starlight flashed in his pupils as he stared at the people below. Even the Tribulation level black-robed elder felt a sense of danger at that moment. He could naturally sense how powerful Renhuang Chen was.


    Someone informed him over transmitted thoughts about the battle at Solar Divine Palace. The expression of the black-robed elder immediately turned much more serious. His black robe rose as the deadly aura around him thickened.


    ��Kill them,�� ordered Ye Futian. There was resolve in his tone as he said this.


    These cultivators from the Dark World slaughtered the innocents in the Original Realm, causing the annihilation of an entire realm. They killed countless lives and destroyed many realms. It was impossible to spare the lives of these cultivators. Ye Futian was determined to kill all of them regardless of their status.


    Rumble. The terrifying starry divine swords descended from the sky and charged towards the cultivators in the air. The strongest starry divine sword pointed straight at the black-robed elder. The swords plummeted like meteorites. The scene was frightening.


    The black-robed elder swept a glance up into the sky. Endless dark light gathered in the vast space. A dark giant appeared out of thin air. It was gigantic and was like the deity of the darkness. Many arms extended from the torso of the giant. All the arms attacked at once. Black punches shattered the space and charged towards the divine swords.


    The two powers collided. Immediately, cracks appeared in the heavens and earth as an unparalleled storm rampaged. Even the giant-level cultivators were knocked back by the shockwave. Only Renhuang Chen and the black-robed elder stood still in the middle of the battlefield.


    Ye Futian��s figure was also sent flying into the distance by the shockwave. However, he looked at the battlefield with a cold gaze and said, ��There��s no need to look after me. Kill them.��


    All the giant-level figures around him charged in different directions. Top figures from the Dark World also emerged from the crowd. In an instant, a terrifying destructive storm erupted in the sky. A massive battle was taking place in the sky above this realm. The scene was more shocking than that when they were at Solar Divine Palace.


    Kacha. After a short while, the earth split apart, and the realm was shattered. It could not withstand the attack of a figure at Renhuang Chen��s level. The realm itself was being torn apart.


    In another location, Ye Futian stood alone in the void. His gaze was fixed on one person. He was staring at the youth who was previously cultivating on the altar. This person was also the culprit for this massacre of the living beings within the realm.


    The youth seemed to have noticed something. He glanced at Ye Futian from where he stood. Their gazes met, and the frightening divine light of the Great Path shot out from their pupils.


    Boom! Astonishing divine light shot out from Ye Futian��s eyes. It attempted to penetrate straight into the consciousness of the other party. It was his Eye Sorcery.


    However, the youth��s gaze was similarly frightening. As Ye Futian��s gaze invaded his own, the silhouette of a reaper appeared in the other party��s gaze. It was as though a divine residence was erected within his eyes. The purest power of death lurked within his eyes, blocking off the attack of the invading Eye Sorcery.


    The youth��s gaze suddenly became even more terrifying. Beams of light of the reaper shot out straight from his eyes. They formed true death currents of the Great Path, which were extremely pure. They immediately shot towards Ye Futian at astonishing speeds.


    Ye Futian stood there motionlessly. His body was like that of a divine being. He allowed the death current to invade his body. The divine light of the Great Path flowed over his figure, and the death currents seemed to be flooded by the light. The death currents could not touch him at all.


    Currently, the power of Ye Futian��s flesh had already reached an incredible stage.


    The youth frowned. After he arrived in the Original Realm, he had heard of Ye Futian��s name. Rumor has it that this person was very powerful and was the top figure in the Original Realm. Even in the Divine Prefecture, he was a monstrous figure at the very top. There were many legends about him. For example, it was rumored he controlled the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, and inherited the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    However, the youth was similarly a figure whose name was renowned in the Dark World. His cultivation Plane was also higher than Ye Futian��s.


    Ye Futian was a seven-tier Renhuang while he was at the eighth-tier.


    The two of them exchanged gazes across space. Then, the youth saw that Ye Futian traversed the space and moved towards him. The youth floated up, and his body became the Deathly Body of the Great Path. Dark divine light circulated around him. His dark long hair danced in the wind. He was akin to the reaper.


    He pointed his finger towards the sky, and immediately the clouds churned, and the wind howled. The entire space was shaking. A Boundless Deathly Imprint appeared in the sky. He then pointed a finger at Ye Futian. The myriads of death currents instantly moved toward Ye Futian. The death currents flooded the sky. It was the purest power of death, seemingly able to annihilate every form of life.


    Boom! The Boundless Deathly Imprint transformed into a river of death that flooded Ye Futian��s body. However, an awe-inspiring halo flowed around Ye Futian��s divine body of the Great Path. Two polar opposite powers, the power of Yin and the power of the Sun, flowed on the surface of his body. His body became the Way, and the Deathly Imprint, which came close to his body, was destroyed. The Boundless Deathly Imprint failed to inundate Ye Futian��s divine body of the Great Path. He broke free from the current as the divine light flowed around him. This caused the black-robed youth to frown.


    Under the attack of his Deathly Imprint, even an eighth-tier cultivator with a flawless Great Path would be instantly destroyed. However, Ye Futian��s body seemed indestructible and immortal. With the power of Yin and the Sun��s power, its destructive power was also very frightening.


    His attack actually did not affect Ye Futian. This caused the black-robed youth to sense a sliver of danger.


    Buzz! Ye Futian accelerated, descending like a meteorite bathed in flames as he charged towards the black-robed youth.


    Boom! Astonishing death currents burst forth from the body of the black-robed youth. In an instant, the vast space was buried in the Will of Death that took the form of a reaper. Its pupils swept towards Ye Futian, who was charging down towards it!

 Chapter 2280 - Stay

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    That eye was like the Eye of Hell. A Hell Reaper appeared and devoured everything. Limitless death currents swirled towards Ye Futian��s body as if they were tentacles.


    When the power submerged Ye Futian��s body, despite his god-like body, his body still began to corrode while his divine light was suppressed. The Death Will was eroding into him.


    It was like Ye Futian had fallen into a Divine Wheel Domain. Countless illusions of ghosts and deities surrounded the space he was in. It was like true hell, and no end was in sight.


    Clearly, this black-shirted Renhuang of the eighth plane was not just your ordinary cultivator. He was extremely powerful.


    Boom! At that moment, a gorgeous diagram suddenly sprouted from Ye Futian��s body. It was like a Divine Diagram of the Great Path. A sun and a moon seemed to surround it. The polarizing power of Yin and Yang transformed into a Yin Yang Divine Diagram. Moreover, it kept growing bigger and bigger. The frightening power of Yin and Yang burst from within and wiped away all the death currents surrounding Ye Futian. It had countered all the demonic powers.


    ��A domain, huh?�� Ye Futian scanned the large Great Path Domain. It looked like he was stuck inside it.


    The Yin Yang Diagram suddenly became gigantic and floated behind him. The Divine Fire of the Sun and the Power of Yin swirled out at the same time. Moreover, the Yin Yang Diagram also contained the mighty Sword Will, which had been transformed into the Sun Sword and the Shadow Sword. Both Sword Wills darted around him and wiped out all the demons.


    Then, a frightening rumbling filled the air. Under the Divine Swords of Yin and Yang, the domain formed by the Divine Wheel of the Great Path trembled. At that moment, a Hell Reaper appeared within the domain. It looked just like the youngster. His heart fluctuated slightly as he felt the destructive powers hidden within the Yin Yang Diagram.


    These were two extreme powers. The Divine Power of the Sun and the Divine Power of Yin. However, they were both controlled by one person.


    The young man trained in the purest form of the Great Path of Death. Moreover, his level was higher than Ye Futian��s. However, his Great Path was still suppressed by Ye Futian��s strength. His body definitely contained some extraordinary divine powers.


    Then, the horrendous Hell Reaper extended its palm to grab Ye Futian. Multiple horrible marks of the reaper were within its palm. Through the dark divine light, loud rumbling noises filled the air. Its arm faced upwards and its palm instantly shrouded the entire space. Escape seemed impossible.


    ��Just how strong is the full-powered attack of a Renhuang of the eighth plane?�� Ye Futian wanted to see just how strong he was.


    Vuong! Divine lights flashed. Ye Futian��s divine body of the Great Path shot down. He did not try to dodge and charged straight towards the giant palm of the Hell Reaper that contained multiple marks of the reaper.


    Divine lights of Yin and Yang surrounded Ye Futian��s body as he transformed into a Sword of the Great Path. At that moment, his body could transform into the Great Path, and with that, all the Powers of the Great Path that he wielded would be able to blossom.


    At that moment, his figure, while dashing downward, was more beautiful and attractive than a meteor.


    The Hell Reaper��s giant palm smashed outward and clashed with Ye Futian��s body. The marks of the reaper in the middle of its palm exploded into frightening divine lights of death that sent wild shockwaves toward Ye Futian��s body. Ye Futian��s body, which had transformed into a sword, was blocked by the reaper��s marks. The destructive light spread toward his surroundings.


    A crisp crack sounded. Ye Futian��s body of the Great Path had become notably darker. However, at that moment, cracks had begun to appear on the marks of the reaper. The number of cracks increased rapidly, and after a while, they were destroyed and turned into frightening death currents. As for Ye Futian, his body continued to charge downward after he directly punctured the Hell Reaper��s arm. Each and every inch of the reaper��s arm where Ye Futian passed by cracked and crumbled. In an instant, he had reached his opponent��s body.


    Rumble�� The Great Path Domain crumbled in that instant. A figure was sent flying outside. The giant Hell Reaper��s body was also destroyed.


    Heaven and earth returned to normal. Ye Futian floated in the sky. While the divine light on his body had dimmed considerably, his image was still breathtaking. Feeling the residual death currents inside his body destroyed by divine powers, Ye Futian could not help but feel somewhat shocked. If it were someone else, they would have most certainly died under the marks of the reaper.


    Underneath, the black-shirted youth coughed fresh blood out from his mouth. His face was slightly pale as he raised his head to stare at Ye Futian, who was floating in the sky. In the Dark World, he had never suffered such an overwhelming defeat. Moreover, his opponent today was a practitioner whose plane level was below his.


    Then, at that moment, a Yin-Yang Diagram floated in the sky. Divine lights of Yin and Yang descended simultaneously, shrouding the endless space, including the black-shirted youth��s body. The frightening radiance of a divine sword shot downward in an attempt to annihilate its intended target.


    As the divine sword closed in to kill the black-shirted youth on the spot, balls of frightening dark clouds suddenly appeared above the youth��s head. The clouds rumbled and roared. Then, a demonic figure seemed to appear. Black blades of light seemed to appear from within the frightening dark clouds. When the divine sword arrived, it was devoured and had failed to strike its target.


    Roar�� The demonic cloud, carrying the demonic figure within it, flew towards Ye Futian in the sky. In an instant, the entire space looked like it was about to be destroyed. It was a horrifying scene.


    However, at that same moment, a ray of Divine Light of Space veiled Ye Futian��s body. When the demon attempted to devour him, the Divine Light of Space directly transported Ye Futian away. It was Old Ma.


    At the same time, a powerful heavyweight-level figure also appeared beside the black-shirted youth.


    Ye Futian��s cold glare shifted towards his opponent. He had failed to kill him.


    He was already able to estimate his combat strength through the battle earlier. With the number of abilities and skills he possessed at that moment, he would dominate his opponent at the seventh plane level. If he were on the eighth plane, even freakshow and genius-level existences would not be a problem.


    Since he could defeat the black-shirted youth, Ning Hua would most likely not be a problem.


    Among the giants, he should have already reached the peak.


    His gaze shifted toward the powerful cultivator who initiated the move earlier. Ye Futian��s eyes, which held a murderous aura, exhibited his eagerness to try. He wanted to duke it out with the heavyweight figure.


    The black-shirted youth stared at Ye Futian. The pride and arrogance that he displayed earlier were no longer evident in his eyes. He completely lost to Ye Futian. If it were not for the support from someone else, he might have died at Ye Futian��s hands.


    ��Retreat!�� the black-shirted youth said. He wanted to retreat and temporarily leave this place.


    The practitioners of the Original Realm seemed somewhat difficult to deal with.


    As soon as he spoke, the top figures of the Dark World prepared to leave the battlefield. However, when they raised their head, they could only see Ye Futian speaking to Renhuang Chen, who was standing high above in the sky. ��Seal this realm. Do not let a single person leave.��


    ��Roger.�� Renhuang Chen nodded. Then, in an instant, the entire space was shrouded by a frightening light screen. The light screen was surrounded by Divine Lights of Stars, making it look like a real galaxy. The space within had been turned into a Starry Domain. Unless the Starry Domain broke, none of their enemies would be able to leave.


    The youth��s gaze turned cold as he saw this unfold before him. The people of the Original Realm actually wanted to make them stay there!

 Chapter 2281 - Support

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Come up,�� said Renhuang Chen, high up in the air. Suddenly, multiple figures charged into the clouds towards the sky. Then, they landed beside Renhuang Chen.


    They knew what Renhuang Chen wanted to do.


    At the same time, the cultivators of the opposing side had also gathered together in an area below them. The black-robed elder raised his head to look at Renhuang Chen. In the earlier battle, he had already sensed that his opponent��s battle strength was above his own, and the scepter in his opponent��s hands was also extraordinary. This person was very frightening.


    Then, the Star Light Screen of the area began to twirl. Countless rays of starlight descended from above. Intense roars rang in the air. After that, blades of starry divine swords emerged high up in the sky. At the same time, as Renhuang Chen extended his hand holding the scepter, the scepter directly connected to the Star Light Screen and devoured the limitless starlight. After that, everything converged and transformed into a sky-reaching, divine sword that pointed downward.


    A ray of starlight shot outward into the sky. It was as if all the starlight in the Nine Heavens had landed onto the starry light screen and converged into the starry divine sword, making it more powerful.


    One after another, the gigantic starry divine swords seemed intent on burying the entire world. The top figures of the Dark World felt a sense of crisis. Each of them released a frightening Power of the Great Path from their bodies.


    The incredible existence above who had gone through a tribulation wanted to annihilate them all on the spot.


    The black-shirted youth��s gaze was cold. Aurora of the Reaper shot out from his pupils. In the Dark World, the faction he belonged to was one of the best. Apart from the Dark Court and a few other factions, no one else would dare to act so impudently in front of them, not to mention the fact that they were trying to kill them.


    Now, in this land within the Void Realm, which had long become abject, there was actually a faction that intended to destroy them.


    The black-robed elder had a solemn expression on his face. He stood in front of the youth. The cultivators of the Dark World also gathered behind him. Then, his black robe fluttered, and a frightening aura burst from his body. It seemed as if black clouds had covered the sky and blocked out the starlight.


    A world of inferno seemed to have emerged in this space and covered the vast sky and boundless land. It also seemed to want to devour Renhuang Chen and the others in the sky. Inside this space, multiple shadows of demons and ghosts appeared. They held dark spears, crimson-colored demonic hammers, reaper��s sickles, and many others. It looked like the real hell.


    There was also a frightening light of catastrophe blinking. It was the light of catastrophe from the reaper; it crushed anything in its path.


    A frightening treasure also appeared in front of the black-robed elder. It looked like it was crafted from a Divine Wheel of the Great Path. A powerful and frightening power seemed to be propagating within it. The light of catastrophe flashed incessantly. It looked like a mighty dark magic item had been smelted into his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. They had merged into one, and it was extremely powerful.


    ��Kill!�� Renhuang Chen shouted from the sky. Suddenly, the endless starry divine light swept past the darkness. With vast and mighty world-destroying strength, it shot downward.


    Frightening sounds of rumbling filled the skies. The starry divine swords pierced through heaven and earth. Accompanied by the descent of the blinding divine light, the swords shot toward the cultivators of the Dark World. All the cultivators of the Dark World released intimidating Power of the Great Path as they prepared to block it. The strongest person was naturally the black-robed elder, who blocked the attack right in front of him.


    When the starry divine swords pierced into the Space of Inferno, the demons and ghosts directly slammed into them. Blades of light of catastrophe also shot towards them. In an instant, heaven and earth seemed to crumble as a devastating and destructive storm appeared within the Space of Inferno.


    Rumble, rumble, rumble�� The starry divine sword in the middle contained the greatest might. It shot downward. Demons and ghosts were directly punctured and destroyed. They could not block it at all.


    This was also the sword that killed the tribulation level existence on Sun God Mountain in the past. One could only imagine just how scary it was.


    Boom! The sword smashed into its enemy. Like a God stopping a God-slayer, the sword directly shot towards the cultivators below. The black-robed elder had a solemn expression. He threw the black alms bowl in his hand into the sky. Suddenly, the black alms bowl transformed into a separate space that devoured everything. The gigantic starry divine sword was actually devoured by this black alms bowl.


    Then, inside the bowl, the starry divine light and destructive dark divine light exploded at the same time. Loud sounds of explosions continuously came from within. The black alms trembled violently. The black-robed elder raised an arm and held the black alms bowl. A surge of the Power of the Great Path flowed into the bowl. The dark energy in the surrounding area also surged crazily into the bowl as if trying to devour all Power of the Great Path.


    The shaking became more and more violent. Two rays of divine light turned around and shot upwards into the sky. A ray of starry divine light�� A ray of destructive light of catastrophe. They were interwoven together.


    In the sky, Renhuang Chen��s purple robe also began to flutter. He extended his foot forward. Divine powers poured into the scepter in his hand from below. Then, a loud explosion ensued. A loud and violent sound came from the black alms bowl.


    The black-robed elder could be heard letting out a slight grunt. After that, vague sounds of something breaking and cracking could be heard. Then, many people were surprised to find out that underneath the giant black alms bowl, cracks had appeared. Blades of frightening starry divine light leaked from within. It was as if they were going to burst out from there at any moment.


    The black-robed elder��s black robe expanded. He raised his hand to point at the black alms bowl. Then, a more powerful Divine Power of the Great Path seemed to surge into it. Two types of auras crashed and collided with each other within.


    Boom! A powerful blast rang in the air. The black alms bowl finally burst open. The black-robed elder spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. His aura had also weakened significantly. However, even though the black alms bowl was broken, the starry divine sword was also destroyed. It did not continue homing in to kill its target.


    ��He destroyed a Divine Wheel of the Great Path.�� The hearts of many cultivators from the Dark World beat violently. That was a tribulation-level existence. He was actually pushed into this state? He had one Divine Wheel of the Great Path destroyed, and he also suffered severe injuries. It looked like it would be near impossible for him to recover.


    This strike was enough to diminish the prospects of this black-robed elder. It seemed like he couldn��t progress even a step further. His cultivation could even deteriorate.


    However, at that moment, it was not time yet to think about such things. Right then, they did not even know if they would be able to get out of there alive, much less think about anything related to the future.


    Rumble, rumble, rumble�� Starry divine lights began to converge again. In the sky, the Star Light Screen continued to breed devastating powers. It looked like it would not stop until they were annihilated.


    The cultivators from the Dark World knew that they had encountered someone extremely difficult this time. They were actually going to kill them for a few commoners of some realms.


    Bang!


    However, at that moment, the Star Light Screen suddenly shook violently. The space they were in was already sealed. However, for such violent shaking to occur, it was clear that someone was attacking from the outside.


    Renhuang Chen spread his divine consciousness outside the sealed territory and saw that many cultivators had appeared. Then, another loud bang. Multiple cracks appeared on the Star Light Screen. After that, it broke. High in the sky, from multiple different directions, cultivators stood tall and proud. The auras emanating from their bodies were frightening. They were all top-level cultivators.


    Seeing the scene before them, light returned to the eyes of the Dark World cultivators below. Someone had come to support them!

 Chapter 2282 - Infernal King

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Renhuang Chen focused on the cultivators who appeared, only to see one of them stepping forward at this moment. The aura permeated from the man was terrifying, as he was also an existence of the Tribulation level. The other cultivators who with him also possessed an aura that was equally as frightening.


    These people were from the Dark World.


    They recognized Ye Futian and his party. Almost all the top cultivators from the Original Realm had participated in that battle at Heavenly Mandate Academy. Only those who descended on the Original Realm later did not witness what took place during the battle. Even so, they had heard about Ye Futian and Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��The cultivators from Dark Court!�� Ye Futian marveled. That powerful existence who came forward may be from the Dark Court.


    Like the Imperial Palace in Divine Prefecture, the Dark Court was a ruling power in the Dark World. It had an unknown number of cultivators who possessed unimaginable prowess.


    Gai Qiong, who was killed by Ye Futian, was one of Divine Prefecture��s divine generals. Of course, in the Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture, there was no lack of individuals with this cultivation level, and the Dark Court was no exception. This powerful existence who had arrived was one of the cultivators presided over the Eight Thrones in the Dark Court, a supreme existence ranked close to the top, the Infernal King himself.


    The reason for the Infernal King to come in person was because he had an extraordinary relationship with this young man in black. He came from the same bloodline as the young man and later became a cultivator on the throne after he had entered the Dark Court to cultivate.


    In the cultivation world, anyone who had passed the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path was regarded as a supreme cultivator. In Ziwei Segmentum, aside from the previous palace lord, only Renhuang Chen was a cultivator of the Tribulation level.


    Donghua Domain in which Ye Futian had cultivated before Emperor Xi, it was rumored that only the Domain Chief of Donghua Domain had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. And the Domain Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor was a supreme being who could rule in the stead of the Great Emperor if need be. Therefore, cultivators of the Tribulation level were highly regarded.


    The fact that a supreme existence of Tribulation level was willing to protect the young man in black called the young man��s background into question. It was not hard to imagine from what great force was he originated. This was also the consensus between Ye Futian and the others.


    In truth, the youth in black came from one of the top principalities in the Dark World, the Infernal Clan, which ruled boundless territory within the Dark World. Legend had it that in the ancient times, the clan had godlike cultivators passing down their inheritance until this day. However, the true depth of their strength was unfathomable.


    The Infernal Clan had produced many extraordinary figures for the Dark World. Among them, the Infernal King was the most excellent. When he was appointed, he was named the Infernal King��the master of the Infernal Throne.


    Strictly speaking, the Infernal King was the junior brother of the current clan leader of the Infernal Clan. Therefore, the young man in black should be addressing him as ��Uncle-Master.��


    It was not hard to deduce the status of the young man in black in the Dark World. This was why he acted so recklessly when he reached the Original Realm, refining the vitality of other cultivators for his own gain with impunity, destroying the realm at every chance he had.


    The Infernal King��s eyes were indifferent, and a chill shrouded this space. He was the top three existence among the eight kings of the Dark Court. In addition to the two top cultivators among the eight kings, there were also individual supreme existences above the eight kings, as well as that old monster who had previously hidden in the shadows. His status could be considered as being at the very peak of all existence.


    Their entry to the Original Realm this time was supervised by him. In addition to the battle at the Heavenly Mandate Academy last time, the Dark World had sent a cultivator who had passed the second Divine Tribulation. On the outside, it appeared that he commanded all the cultivators of the Dark World in the Original Realm.


    ��Uncle-Master.�� Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened when he heard the young man in black calling out to the Infernal King. His eyes swept toward the Infernal King and the youth in black.


    Was this young man have some direct connection with the Dark Court?


    No wonder he was so brazen to kill without discrimination.


    The Infernal King nodded slightly, but the look on his face was gloomy. His eyes swept over at Ye Futian and the others coldly, and there was a strong murderous intent in his heart. However, he was also a little apprehensive, so he did not dare to attack Ye Futian outright.


    After all, the memory of that battle was still fresh in his mind. The teacher who came to this world may be of the Imperial Realm, and they couldn��t afford to offend someone at this level. Remember what kind of character the Saint Emperor of the Holy Land of Taichu was?


    A supreme being who had passed the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path was comparable to his senior brother��s position as the clan leader of Infernal Clan in the Dark World. Divine Prefecture aside, even in the entire world, such a person was at the top of all existences.


    A person at this level was almost killed on the spot. If it weren��t for the opponent��s mercy, he would have been killed most unceremoniously with great embarrassment to boot.


    Ye Futian, now, was regarded as one of the thorniest characters who could not be provoked, at least in the land of the Original Realm. So it was best not to touch him. Anything that happened to Ye Futian would anger that mysterious but supreme existence, and they would not be able to stay in the Original Realm.


    ��Let me settle the matter by taking him away; what do you say?�� the Infernal King proposed while looking at Ye Futian. His group was actually a bit stronger in strength, but he didn��t dare to touch Ye Futian carelessly.


    At the moment, several existences of the Imperial Realm had reached a tacit agreement with one another, achieving a state of balance. If the teacher was truly a hidden figure of the Imperial Realm, any provocations might have unforeseeable consequences, and even he would not be able to bear the responsibility.


    Therefore, even the Infernal King had his concerns.


    ��Uncle-Master,�� the young man in black looked at the Infernal King questioningly. Would they let him go?


    The powerful existence among them, who was of the Tribulation level, had lost his Divine Wheel of the Great Path. If it weren��t for the Infernal King and the others who arrived in time, Ye Futian and the others would have killed and destroyed them right here. And now, to spare them?


    To let the whole matter go!


    Even though he had heard of that battle, could there really be someone of the Imperial Realm?


    Even if someone of the Imperial Realm were really to intervene, wouldn��t the master of the Dark Court come in person?


    Obviously, as someone merely cultivating in the Infernal Clan, he did not have as many concerns as the Infernal King. After all, their responsibilities were different��the Infernal King was responsible for the entire situation.


    Likewise, Ye Futian could never allow the Infernal King to take the young man away; his eyes showed indifference. This man was a menace in the Original Realm, killed and slaughtered at will at every turn to bring hell on earth, causing many to lose their lives. How could he let him go just like that?


    ��Can you leave him?�� Ye Futian pointed to the young man in black and replied. He could see that the cultivators from the Dark World didn��t want to offend him, and that was why he proposed that he would drop the matter when he could take the young man with him.


    At any rate, this blood debt must be repaid.


    The dark eyes of the Infernal King looked at Ye Futian, revealing a mighty and coercive spirit upon his person, exerting a tremendous sense of oppression on him. He thought he had already conceded quite a lot to Ye Futian. As the Infernal King, he didn��t pursue this matter further and was willing to let the whole thing go as long as he could take his people away.


    But Ye Futian refused to give up and demanded him to hand over the young man.


    Renhuang Chen��s figure appeared in front of Ye Futian, the scepter in his hand covered in brilliant light, releasing wisps of starry divine light. A powerful pressure was now released toward the Infernal King, as he could faintly detect that the strength of the Infernal King was above the old man in the black robe. If there was a battle, they had no advantage to speak of. They may want to detain these people, but it would be difficult!

 Chapter 2283 - Thoughts

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��No!�� The Infernal King stared at Ye Futian and refused. A mighty pressure permeated the atmosphere, colliding with the aura of Renhuang Chen.


    Renhuang Chen might be strong, but as the number three person presiding over the eight thrones of the Dark Court, he was not afraid of Renhuang Chen.


    He didn��t attack Ye Futian because he had some reservations regarding that mysterious teacher, not because of Ye Futian himself or any of these cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy. Otherwise, he would have already gone to war with them.


    As a cultivator from the Dark Court and as the master of the Infernal Throne, apart from those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation and the Emperor of the Highest, not many others could scare him.


    As for his nephew, how could he hand him over? Whether it was from the standpoint of the Dark Court or the standpoint of the clan��


    If he had handed his nephew over today, wouldn��t that mean the Dark Court was in fear of a junior figure? And how would he explain this to his senior brother?


    In the Dark World, his senior brother, the clan leader of the Infernal Clan, was an existence with transcendent status.


    Clearly, Ye Futian felt the aura from the Infernal King. He knew it was highly improbable for this master of a throne from the Dark Court to relinquish the guilty party to him.


    Surveying the situation and judging from the makeup of the cultivators present at the moment, the Dark Court was a few degrees stronger than they were. If they started a war, they could have a high chance of losing.


    He glanced at the young man in black in the sky below, and his murderous intention was stronger still.


    ��This is not over yet,�� said Ye Futian coldly. He then looked at the Infernal King and said, ��Please leave, all of you.��


    The Infernal King knew what Ye Futian meant. Obviously, the matter would not end there, and he was not so quick to write this off, but he was constrained by the current circumstances to let them go. In the future, he would find a way to execute his nephew.


    ��Even though you have powerful backings, you need to recognize who are the masters of this world,�� said the Infernal King. He then waved his hand, beckoning his people to go.


    The master of the Divine Prefecture, such as Donghuang the Great, the master of the Dark Court, the Evil Emperor of the Empty Divine Realm, and several other supreme cultivators were considered the true masters of this world.


    Perhaps there was someone behind Ye Futian who was on the level of the Great Emperor, but if he was foolish enough to declare war on the Dark World, then the master of the Dark Court himself may get involved personally.


    Before leaving, the young man in black looked at Ye Futian coldly, as well as that strong cultivator whose Divine Wheel of the Great Path had been shattered. Both left with reluctance. They came from the Infernal Clan and were humiliated in the land of the Original Realm. If it weren��t for the intervention of the Infernal King, they would have died here. This was such an unbearable disgrace.


    In the distance, dark currents tumbled and roared. Soon, those men disappeared.


    Watching them leave, Ye Futian retracted his focus. Although he was now in the realm of Upper Renhuang, and his combat power had reached the level of near-invincible, just a hair beneath those major figureheads, he was still a little behind if he wanted to contend with the peak forces in this world.


    ��Let��s first settle the cultivators from this world first and take them to other domains,�� said Ye Futian. This domain had been destroyed by this great battle and had previously experienced unprecedented blood bath. It was no longer suitable for any cultivators to remain here.


    ��Yes.�� Someone nodded next to him. The Crimson Dragon Emperor, who stood behind him, was deep in his thoughts. Ye Futian had done a lot already. For the people of the Lower Worlds, he almost wiped out the cultivators from a superpower in the Dark World. If it were not for the arrival of the Infernal King at the last minute, these invaders would probably die right here.


    However, this time their opponent was the Dark World, and the strength of the Original Realm was still lesser. If their opponent unified and combined all the forces of the Dark World, it would not be something that the Original Realm or their ally could hope to contend.


    ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy is still not strong enough,�� Ye Futian said in a low voice, looking at the carnage that was left behind. He felt sorry that he was unable to detain the guilty party successfully.


    At present, the strength of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was not enough to protect the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and save it from catastrophes.


    ��This is not something that can be changed overnight. After all, the Dark Court itself had gotten involved,�� said the Sky River Great Elder, who was next to him. ��What��s more, the young man called the Infernal King Uncle Master, so they must have some special relationship. If you want war, Heavenly Mandate Academy has to face the Dark World. Although the Academy is much stronger today, it has no way to compete with the Dark World and the power hidden within its shadows.��


    Ye Futian certainly understood that the Dark World was a force comparable to that of Divine Prefecture, and how strong was the Divine Prefecture?


    In the land of the 18 domains, the power of any one domain was already extraordinary enough. The sum of all eighteen domains would be beyond even the wildest imagination. With the power of the imperial palace to boot, it was something terrifying.


    More recently, the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s foundation was bolstered by the cultivators from Ziwei Segmentum. Otherwise, even if all the top forces in the Original Realm were to unite, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would not be taken seriously by anyone.


    ��If we want to contend with the Dark World, we have to join forces with the Divine Prefecture.�� Emperor Nan said, ��It��s just that each of the forces in the Divine Prefecture has their own ideas and issues, and they divided by many internal disputes. When many forces fought against you and tried to unite Divine Prefecture, we saw how difficult it was. But, perhaps we can start with some of the forces and convince them to develop an alliance with Heavenly Mandate Academy first.��


    ��I understand.�� Ye Futian nodded. He understood what Emperor Nan meant. In that battle once upon a time, several major principalities stood by his side, such as Lord Luo from Outer Violet Heaven and the Sword Goddess from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow in the Donghua Domain. These forces had remained friendly with him after the battle and might enter the starry cultivation court in Ziwei Segmentum by way of Heavenly Mandate Academy at any time.


    ��Princess Donghuang is ??already in the Lower Worlds. She should have the ability to clean up and consolidate the powers in the Divine Prefecture,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��The Divine Prefecture is a little different. Except for the Domain Chief��s Manor of the 18 domains, the imperial palace does not directly control the top principalities of the Divine Prefecture. Unless there is a real chance for war, the imperial palace probably will not order them to do anything,�� Emperor Nan responded.


    ��That��s true enough,�� Ye Futian responded. He had fallen into contemplation. In the land of the 18 domains, each Domain Chief��s Manor held great influence. However, when it came to forging a relationship with the Donghua Domain and the Shangqing Domain��the two domains he had personal experience with��his relationship with these two Domain Chief��s Manors was not excellent.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor in the Donghua Domain wanted to get rid of him for a long time now, and the Domain Chief��s Manor in the Shangqing Domain wanted to control him.


    ��Let��s go back first,�� Ye Futian proposed, and everyone nodded in agreement. There was no sense for them to stay here after the cultivators of this world had left.


    Then, the group levitated in the air to depart. In the void, Ye Futian looked down to survey the destruction of the realm, which fed the murderous intent that was still blazing in his heart as his eyes drifted somewhere far away.


    Emperor Nan��s words reminded him that he really must strengthen the power of the Original Realm!

 Chapter 2284 - The Alliance

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and the others returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but the whole affair was far from over. The murderers who had ravaged the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were not apprehended and punished. Instead, they were brought back by the Dark World.


    This matter, of course, was not over.


    However, the battle that took place in the Lower Worlds had created quite a lot of waves. Cultivators in both Divine Prefecture and the Dark World noticed the news, and all the principalities were on high alert. Although Ye Futian did not fulfill his promises, at the very least, he was working hard on making them a reality.


    Had it not been for the Infernal King arriving in person from the Dark Court just in time, perhaps Ye Futian would have already killed those cultivators who brought terror to the Lower Worlds. It was said that they were the cultivators from the Infernal Clan, a peak principality of the Dark World.


    In that battle, a cultivator of the Tribulation level had his Divine Wheel of the Great Path crushed, which spoke volumes of the Heavenly Mandate Academy��s resolve.


    As such, even though Ye Futian was not able to fulfill his promise for the time being, the cultivators from various forces in the Dark World would do well to remember the trouble they got themselves in and no longer dare to wreak havoc in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. In reality, how many of them dared to compare themselves with the Infernal Clan?


    Furthermore, if something happened to them, the Infernal King may not arrive in time to rescue them. After all, the Infernal King himself was a cultivator from the Infernal Clan.


    Likewise, the forces in the Divine Prefecture were aware of Ye Futian��s determination. The Heavenly Mandate Academy, an ally, was actively fulfilling the promise made by Ye Futian to guard the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, not to control it.


    But for this, Ye Futian and the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy who had participated in that battle were greatly dissatisfied. They had witnessed the cruelty and bloodlust of their opponents. They had destroyed the realm and rendered it an Inferno on earth. However, these killers left with their lives, which, of course, was much to their chagrin.


    In the Starry Sky World, there were many top cultivators at Ziwei the Great��s cultivating court. In addition to the many powerful men from Heavenly Mandate Academy, some forces represented the Divine Prefecture.


    For example, the cultivators from the ancient royal family of Duan, the cultivators from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, and the father and daughter duo of Lord Luo and Luo Su from Outer Violet Heaven were all in attendance. Emperor Xi, Thunder Punishing Skylord, the Millet Emperor Li Changsheng, and the others had been comprehending the mystery of this starry sky all along to see if they could comprehend something from it. After all, the Great Emperor was an irresistible allure for any top-level cultivators. They hoped that in perceiving the meaning of the Great Emperor, they might have the opportunity to explore the mystery of a higher realm.


    At this time, Ye Futian and the others had returned as well. Although they were eager for revenge, Ye Futian understood the situation clearly. He knew the limit of his own strength. What could he use to attack the forces in the Dark World?


    The strength of Heavenly Mandate Academy was far from enough.


    ��Emperor Ye.�� At this moment, in the starry sky, several beautiful ladies turned to look at Ye Futian. They were the three goddesses from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow��Qin Qing, Jiang Yueli, and Chu Hanxi. The Sword Goddess was not far in the sky above them; she was comprehending the will hidden within this starry sky world.


    The higher a person��s realm, the more they could sense that unfathomable aura. Vaguely, they could perceive that this starry sky seemed to be transformed by the will of the gods in heaven. Although they were not able to detect anything solid, it did bring them some insights.


    For some lucky person, perhaps an epiphany could be experienced.


    Ye Futian nodded to the goddesses, then said to Jiang Yueli, ��Goddess Yueli has been in the Eighth Realm for many years and is the existence closest to the peak of Renhuang. I wonder if this starry sky world could help the goddess take that one last step.��


    ��I��m afraid it��s a bit difficult than that.�� Jiang Yueli smiled gently while looking at Ye Futian. She said, ��This last step is also the most difficult step to take. Once this step is taken, one then embarks on the path to higher pursuits. However, under this starry sky, a mysterious and unpredictable power is perceived. I hope I could comprehend something from it.��


    She then smiled and continued as if she had remembered something, ��Don��t keep talking about me. When I saw Emperor Ye last, I never thought that your strength would grow so rapidly. Today, your combat effectiveness should be well above mine.��


    Ye Futian��s growth was indeed frightening. In her eyes, he was still a young genius talent who used to tag along with Li Changsheng and Zong Chan. However, now, he was stranger than her even if he was behind in realm.


    1


    ��Goddess Yueli is overly modest. I am only in the Seventh Realm; quite a bit below the goddess still,�� Ye Futian replied.


    Next to them, Qin Qing and Chu Hanxi were both astounded by Ye Futian��s growth. They knew that their senior sister was right; Ye Futian��s combat effectiveness was already far above them. Now, other than the major figureheads, it��s hard for anyone to compete with him.


    Once upon a time, he was chased and threatened by Ning Hua, who did everything to suppress him. But today, if the two were to meet again in battle, Ning Hua probably wouldn��t be able to defeat Ye Futian.


    ��Whatever power that the goddesses want to perceive, I can urge the divine power of the starry sky so that the goddesses may perceive it more clearly,�� said Ye Futian. The three of them were speechless when they heard what he said; it seemed that Ye Futian was in full control of this starry sky world.


    At this time, the Sword Goddess, who was above in the sky, came over to Ye Futian and said, ��Is the will of Ziwei the Great still in this starry sky world?��


    Ye Futian bowed slightly toward the Sword Goddess, extremely courteous, and replied, ��To answer elder��s question, the will of Ziwei the Great has been completely integrated with this starry sky world. As long as this starry sky world exists, then the will of the Great Emperor exists with it also, unless the starry sky world is vanquished somehow. However, what kind of tribulation would be able to vanquish this world? That would probably be something that requires the intervention from the Great Emperor.��


    Here, he could leverage the starry sky in battle. Back then, even the original palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace was killed by him when he leveraged this power. Therefore, only the likes of the Great Emperor might stand a chance to destroy this starry sky; anyone else would perish.


    The Sword Goddess nodded gently and understood everything. This was probably the reason why she had sensed a mysterious and unpredictable force in this starry sky.


    ��May I perceive it a little more clearly?�� the Sword Goddess asked.


    ��Of course,�� replied Ye Futian. ��Elder, please follow me.��


    ��Well, then.�� The Sword Goddess nodded as the two moved higher up. The face of Ziwei the Great was still there, and they appeared just under that massive visage. Ye Futian looked up at the starry sky, and the boundless sky suddenly brightened up a few degrees more. As the stars shone, the infinite divine glory of the stars showered upon the Sword Goddess, who was beside him.


    At this moment, the Sword Goddess raised her head to look at the starry sky. She stretched out her hand to touch the starlight, and that feeling became even stronger.


    Many cultivators now looked at them and marveled at Ye Futian��s absolute control over this starry sky.


    A turn of his thought could attract the divine glory of the starry sky; even the will of the Great Emperor could be summoned.


    After a long while, the Sword Goddess said to Ye Futian, ��Thank you very much.��


    ��Elder is being too formal.�� As Ye Futian moved his thoughts, the starry divine light gradually dissipated. He continued, ��In this starry sky world, aside from these Imperial Stars, many stars contain some type of particular powers, suitable for many in the Renhuang Realm to comprehend. However, this was not necessary for someone like yourself and your realm. However, if you agree, people from Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow may come here to cultivate and use this place as a place for cultivation.��


    The Sword Goddess stared at Ye Futian, wondering if he meant for the cultivators of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow to cultivate here?


    Once he saw the sharpness in her eyes, Ye Futian continued, ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy could be an ally with Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow. Now that chaos reign over the Original Realm, sooner or later, it will spread to the Divine Prefecture and the rest of the world.��


    The Sword Goddess understood Ye Futian��s meaning instantly. While her eyes were still fastened on Ye Futian, she then nodded and said, ��Very well.��


    Clearly, she was willing to accept him as an ally. In fact, she was very optimistic about Ye Futian��s future prospects!

 Chapter 2285 - The Future

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s potential was clear enough to the Divine Prefecture. But the cultivators from the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm, too, could see his potential and the future that awaited him. He possessed various kinds of imperial-level inheritances, all of which were lusted after by many enchanting geniuses, but none could obtain and control them except Ye Futian. Such a stunning figure would be another legend in the making.


    There was even a chance for him to prove the realm in the supremacy of the Way.


    But today��s Ye Futian was still in a period of development, and because he was limited to his own strength, he needed allies. The kind of alliance formed at a time like this would naturally be the most stable.


    Now, the Sword Goddess�� cultivation had reached a bottleneck. After the peak of Renhuang, the crossing of the Divine Tribulation follows, which would be a real challenge unimaginably difficult to accomplish. Perhaps, Ye Futian may be able to help her in the future. It was an opportunity for Ye Futian as well as for herself.


    ��Thank you, elder.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly to the Sword Goddess. The Sword Goddess had strong cultivation and was definitely a powerful ally.


    ��I��ll talk to the other elders,�� Ye Futian said again, and the Sword Goddess nodded. ��Go,�� she said.


    Obviously, she understood that Ye Futian wanted to strengthen the power of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The Original Realm used to be nothing. But since its unification under Ye Futian, with the power of Ziwei Segmentum behind him, the Original Realm was now a mighty force. As it continued to seek allies, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would become stronger still.


    Compared with other principalities in the Divine Prefecture, the academy had already surpassed most of them. Even the Domain Chief��s Manor was no longer a competition unless it recruited some powerful cultivators who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Once such an existence had been produced by the Heavenly Mandate Academy, it would immediately become one of the most powerful principalities in the Divine Prefecture.


    Furthermore, this was not taking into consideration that teacher from Four Corner Village. If that teacher was included, then the Heavenly Mandate Academy could be regarded as a pinnacle principality. However, the teacher seemed to live outside of this world and had no interest in participating in secular affairs. Even though he made an appearance in that battle in the Original Realm, it was only for protecting Ye Futian, and he did not demonstrate his full strength.


    Ye Futian found the Duan family as well. Duan Tianxiong from the ancient royal family of Duan agreed readily enough. He was on Ye Futian��s side in that battle and would never refuse such a request. In addition, he was already quite optimistic about Ye Futian when they were still in the Divine Prefecture. Later, he had witnessed the strength and the cultivation of the teacher from Four Corner Village, coupled with more and more revelations of Ye Futian��s enchanting talents. He would obviously never miss an opportunity to form such a powerful alliance with the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Finally, Ye Futian came to Emperor Xi and bowed, saying, ��Emperor Xi.��


    ��I heard what you said just now; do you want me to become an ally of the academy as well?�� Emperor Xi smiled and asked Ye Futian.


    ��I dare not.�� Ye Futian shook his head and said, ��My life was saved by the elder, or I may very well have already perished in the battle at Donghua Domain. Many of our friends also owed the elder for sheltering them in their time of needs, so I am in no position to demand anything from you. I only wanted to let you know that the elder and cultivators from Turtle Deity Island are more than welcome to cultivate at Ziwei Imperial Palace any time you wish. You can also go to Four Corner Village if you wish. There are some cultivation grounds in the village that may be suitable for Renhuang from Turtle Deity Island.��


    ��Mmm.�� Emperor Xi smiled and nodded. ��If I have the opportunity, I would also like to visit the teacher in the village, but I don��t know if he would see it as a disturbance to his cultivation.��


    ��If Emperor Xi were to visit in person, the teacher should be willing to receive you,�� Ye Futian replied.


    As for Emperor Xi and the Millet Emperor, Ye Futian would not mention anything about the alliance. He had previously cultivated at Wangshen Watchtower, and he owed Emperor Xi his life. So, he wouldn��t talk to them about the alliance because their relationships were different.


    Moreover, even if he didn��t mention it, in time of real crisis, Emperor Xi, the Millet Emperor, and the others would not stand idly by. All of them were there in the last battle.


    ��Futian.�� Emperor Xi looked at Ye Futian and suddenly asked, ��You now have comprehended the will of many Great Emperors, and your understanding is deeper than most, so the speed of your cultivation is much faster than of ordinary people. How many years will it take you to reach the peak of Renhuang?��


    ��Within 20 years,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��20 years,�� Emperor Xi nodded. If he could really do it in 20 years, it would be considered extremely fast. With Ye Futian��s combat effectiveness, once he stepped into the peak of Renhuang, he would unlikely to find any opponents beneath cultivators of the Tribulation level.


    ��How about Divine Tribulations?�� Emperor Xi asked again.


    Ye Futian shook his head. ��I haven��t even touched the peak of Renhuang. I have no idea how long it will be for me to cross the Divine Tribulations.


    ��Which level do you think you can reach?�� Emperor Xi looked at him and asked. When he was crossing the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path on Turtle Deity Island, it was fraught with danger. He felt that was already his limit, and his cultivation had reached its limit.


    He was quite satisfied with his own progress. Even if he stayed at this level, he would still be one of the top cultivators in the world.


    However, any cultivator would want to go to higher ground and see further, and he was just a few steps away from the highest point. But these couple of steps were insurmountable for the majority of the people.


    Ye Futian revealed a look of contemplation as if recalling his youth. He thought of his adoptive father. After having experienced so much, the memories of the past were like a century ago and had become a little obscured with time. But some things had already been seared inside of him.


    He was destined for greatness, and he believed in his adoptive father and himself. He knew that in time, he would reach that point.


    ��Imperial,�� Ye Futian looked at Emperor Xi.


    Emperor Xi looked at Ye Futian��s eyes and saw there was great confidence in the depth of those eyes. With this one word, how many in the world dared to say that they were capable of setting foot in that realm?


    Even those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path dared not to lay so bold a claim.


    But Ye Futian had bluntly stated that he could get there.


    Emperor Xi was touched in his heart; this youngster had such unshakeable confidence in himself.


    ��I can��t wait to see it,�� Emperor Xi said with a smile and some expectations.


    At this moment, an extremely powerful aura suddenly came upon them, causing Emperor Xi and Ye Futian to end their conversation. They looked far into the distance and saw that a figure was bathing in an incomparable starry glow under the stars. Above the starry sky, an Imperial Star was emitting magnificent divine glory. As the Imperial Star��s divine glory descended on that cultivator, terrible changes took place in him as his aura continued to become stronger.


    ��Uncle Tie!�� Ye Futian had a surprised look on his face, as that cultivator who bathed in divine glory was Blind Tie.


    An indescribable golden glory burst from Blind Tie, and the shape of the divine hammer could be faintly made out, filled with shocking power. He was covered with golden armor, shining lights streaming all around him. An even more perfect aura now spread out from him.


    The cultivators in Four Corner Village were looking there as well, feeling quite emotional.


    Blind Tie was about to make a breakthrough!

 Chapter 2286 - Blind Tie’s Breakthrough

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the starry sky, many cultivators looked yonder, and their hearts were disturbed.


    Blind Tie was the first person Ye Futian helped after he communicated with the Imperial Star, and he gave that Imperial Star to Blind Tie. Later, Blind Tie inherited the will of the Imperial Star. Even after everything was over, he often bathed in the Imperial Star to cultivate.


    Since then, he had not stopped cultivating.


    Now, he was about to break through the realm.


    He was already an Upper Renhuang in the Eighth Realm. This breakthrough meant that he would step onto the peak of Renhuang, with a perfect Great Path. It was a leap that would allow him to become a major figure among the giants, shoulder to shoulder with cultivators from many top principalities in the Divine Prefecture.


    Back then, the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan, who betrayed and blinded him, was also at the peak of Renhuang. After this step, his cultivation would be equivalent to that of the Great Elder, and Mo Ke would no longer be a contender.


    The breakthrough of Blind Tie also excited so many others. He was also the first person to break through the shackles of the realm in the starry sky world. The event itself held extraordinary significance. This, inevitably, encouraged the other cultivators to increase their own expectations.


    No one was happier to see this than Old Ma. When he was in the village, Blind Tie had the best relationship with him, and they were very close friends; even Tie Tou and Xiao Ling were childhood sweethearts. No one understood better than him the pain that Blind Tie had endured over the years. Witnessing this day, Old Ma was happy for him, and a bright smile hovered around the corner of his eyes.


    Next to Old Ma were Fang Gai, Gu Huai, and some others.


    ��This guy was lucky beyond belief,�� Fang Gai said with a smile.


    ��It��s not just luck.�� Old Ma said, ��He was betrayed once upon a time, and when he returned to the village. He almost lost his cultivation. After the teacher cured him, he began to recover his state of mind. For many years, he forged as a blacksmith, cultivating his mind and soul. After so many years, hatred is no longer his only focus. He came out of the village to protect Futian, and because of that, he received this opportunity and the achievement of this day. Perhaps this is all fate.��


    ��Mmm, indeed.�� Fang Gai smiled and nodded. The luck was true enough, but everything was destined to be this way. Whether it was a coincidence or fate, Blind Tie would become another top cultivator in the village after Old Ma.


    After Blind Tie��s breakthrough, apart from the teacher, Four Corner Village would have two giant figures. Not only did they need to keep up, but those youngsters need to grow up quickly.


    ��We have to work hard too,�� Fang Gai smiled and said to those who were around him. Blind Tie had now surpassed him.


    The person next to him smiled and nodded, looking towards Blind Tie. The divine glory of the Imperial Star rushed madly into his body as Blind Tie was suspended in midair. The armor on his body seemed to be getting brighter and more radiant. He now resembled a god of war. The aura from his body was constantly increasing in strength.


    The roar of the Great Path came from him. It was as if he was resonating with the starry sky. The divine light enveloped the boundless space, seemed to have turned it into a divine body of the Great Path, blooming with divine glory. This state lasted for quite a while and was accompanied by the endless radiance that lit up the starry sky.


    As the divine light on the Imperial Star was not there, even as Blind Tie was still suspended in the air, his body seemed to have calmed down. The divine light on his body retracted, though his entire body was still as bright as a divine body.


    ��He did it!��


    Those cultivators in the starry sky shuddered. After a while, Blind Tie moved his body as his head raised slightly. Although he could not see, his perception had become much sharper.


    ��Congratulations!�� Many cultivators put their hands together and greeted Blind Tie, congratulating him on the breakthrough.


    He was the first person after Ye Futian to break through the realm in the starry sky world.


    People from Four Corner Village arrived, and Old Ma smiled, saying, ��Not bad.��


    ��Blind Tie, now you are much better than us old guys,�� Fang Gai said with a smile. They were all from Four Corner Village, and they were happy for him.


    However, after the breakthrough, Blind Tie did not feel too much excitement and appeared rather calm.


    ��Uncle Tie, congratulations.�� Ye Futian smiled and greeted him as well. Blind Tie turned around, facing where Ye Futian��s voice was coming from. ��Futian, thank you,�� he said.


    His words sounded a bit heavy, but they were from the heart. Ye Futian was sheltered by Four Corner Village, but he had done a lot for the village in return. Today, he was able to make a breakthrough because of Ye Futian.


    ��Uncle Tie, don��t say that. We are like family; there is no need for ��thank-yous.���� Ye Futian said with a smile, and Blind Tie nodded emphatically.


    That��s right, the people in Four Corner Village were a family of their own.


    Although Ye Futian entered the village later, Four Corner Village had already accepted him fully and regarded him as a member of the village.


    ��After your breakthrough, Mo Ke is probably trembling right now,�� said Fang Ge. The debt of yesteryears would be accounted for by Blind Tie sooner or later. Now that he had witnessed the peak of Renhuang, he would no doubt seek revenge at some point.


    How could Blind Tie possibly forget what Mo Ke and the Demon Cloud Clan did back then?


    A terrible coercive spirit came out of Blind Tie. Mo Ke was someone he must personally execute.


    ��The Demon Cloud Clan must be held accountable for what they did to Uncle Tie. However, Uncle Tie has just broken through, and the priority has to be stabilizing the realm. But the power on this Imperial Star can still be used. �� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Mmm,�� Blind Tie nodded. He hadn��t lost himself because of the breakthrough. Although in this realm, killing Mo Ke was not a problem at all for him, the strength of the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan was formidable. To kill him, his strength needed to be fortified some more.


    ��Uncle Fang, The Demon Cloud Clan should still be in the land of the Original Realm, right?�� Ye Futian asked Fang Gai, who was next to him.


    ��It��s possible,�� Fang Gai nodded. ��Now that the Original Realm has gone through such a change, with all the principalities of the Divine Prefecture still there, the Demon Cloud Clan probably won��t want to leave and may cultivate in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.��


    Ye Futian nodded. The power of Heavenly Mandate Academy alone could destroy the Demon Cloud Clan outright, but this was Uncle Tie��s goal for a long time. He ought to have a chance to accomplish it himself, with them on the side to assist.


    ��Uncle Fang, please go back to the academy and have them find out the whereabouts of the Demon Cloud Clan; see if they can find out where they are currently,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��No problem,�� Fang Gai nodded. Now Ye Futian was acting even more like a leader in his demeanor. Fang Gai was delighted to see Ye Futian behave like this. This was the only way he could truly become the leader of a dominant force.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy and Four Corner Village were all waiting for him to mature into his role.


    As formidable as he was, the teacher of the Four Corner Village did not care much for mundane affairs. Fang Gai could see that the village would eventually belong to Ye Futian in the future, and not him or Old Ma.


    Obviously, Old Ma had nothing to say about Ye Futian other than helping him, as he had done this since the beginning. Blind Tie��s breakthrough would only be better for Ye Futian in the future. Coupled with the teacher��s protection, some things did not have to be said out loud!

 Chapter 2287 - Revenge

    The Central Emperor Realm of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms was still the realm with the most cultivators. Although the Central Emperor Realm was now under the rule of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, there were still many principalities from the Divine Prefecture that stayed in the Central Emperor Realm to cultivate.


    The Demon Cloud was also above the Central Emperor Realm.


    In an ancient city inside the Central Emperor Realm, the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud was cultivating. In recent days, they had been keeping a low profile. Not only them, but the principalities of the entire Divine Prefecture were now much quieter than before. No one was out looking for trouble.


    The memory of that battle was fresh in their minds. Not long ago, Ye Futian and the many cultivators under his command had almost wiped out several Renhuang cultivators from one of the top forces in the Dark World. Obviously, the principalities from Divine Prefecture were hesitant to cause any more trouble.


    Strictly speaking, the Demon Cloud had had some previous entanglements with Ye Futian. When he was comprehending the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor in Shangqing Domain, Mo Ke was incredibly rude to Ye Futian. Later they had gone to Four Corner Village as well.


    Therefore, the Demon Cloud would not be causing any waves in the Original Realm. After all, the Original Realm was now Ye Futian��s territory.


    However, at this time, the Great Elder, who was cultivating, suddenly frowned, and there was a slight sense of unease; it was as if he was agitated. Demonic clouds tumbled and tossed all around him as his brows knitted tightly together.


    Suddenly, his eyes opened, and those dark eyes stared into the distance; his expression changed.


    ��Go,�� the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud said. He disappeared from where he was only to reappear in front of Mo Ke. With a wave of his hand, a group of his people was taken directly into the void.


    In an instant, his body rushed straight into the sky, descended high above the firmament.


    But at the same time, the sky suddenly seemed sealed shut as wisps of terrifying starry divine light descending in glory, turning into a starry light screen, shuttering that corner of the space. A figure appeared high above, and it was Renhuang Chen who had directly locked down this area.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud stopped and hovered in midair, with Mo Ke close behind him. Both of them were powerful cultivators from the Demon Cloud, and neither of them looked pleased.


    Renhuang Chen, the Tribulation-level cultivator from Ziwei Segmentum, had blocked them in.


    Looking further ahead, a group of cultivators came in mighty formation. The man in the lead, clad in white and with a head of white hair, was Ye Futian. Next to him was a plainly dressed middle-aged man. Though he could not see, there was an astonishing aura permeating from the man��s body. Both the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud and Mo Ke could feel a faint sense of oppression. The man was none other than Blind Tie.


    Blind Tie couldn��t see, but when he stood there, Mo Ke felt as if someone��s stare had bored into his being. The feeling was so clear that he instinctively knew who it was. Even though the man didn��t use his eyes, Mo Ke felt like the sensation was sharper than any stare.


    ��You have broken through the realm!�� Mo Ke could feel the power from Blind Tie, and the expression on his face was priceless. A long time ago, he had severely injured Blind Tie and wounded his eyes. Not only did Blind Tie recover from such a mortal blow, but now, he had broken the shackles of the realm and set foot on the Ninth Realm to witness the perfect consummation of the Renhuang realm.


    This was the realm that he dreamd of, but now, Blind Tie had stepped into this realm before him. He was coming for him.


    He knew very well why the other man was here��to seek revenge for the past.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud sensed it as well. He stared at Blind Tie and wondered just what kind of chance did he stumble upon to break the shackles of the realm so quickly and set foot on the peak of Renhuang. Was all of this possible because of the starry cultivation court?


    Blind Tie continued forward as the divine light of the Great Path burst out from him, and there was unbridled anger in this divine light. He faced Mo Ke was and said, ��The time of reckoning has come for what happened before.��


    The moment his voice fell, a terrifying brilliance of the Great Path shot out from Blind Tie towards every crevice within the starry light screen. Like a god of war, his body seemed to be covered with a layer of golden armor.


    In the starry sky world, Blind Tie had obtained power from the inheritance of a Great Emperor. Although it was not from Ziwei the Great himself, this emperor was an Imperial level existence under the command of Ziwei the Great.


    An infinite and domineering god of war gradually condensed and emerged, appearing high above the sky. Like a true deity, a shocking power erupted from his body, enough to suppress and awe the world and everything inside it. The divine hammer in his hand showed a brilliant and incomparable glory that radiated outward, turning into rounds of light screens that wandered between heaven and earth.


    Blind Tie took a step forward and stood on high ground. His figure seemed to overlap with the figure of that heavenly deity. At this moment, Mo Ke, who had cultivated with Blind Tie once upon a time, felt an irresistible heavenly might.


    He stared at the man in the void and realized that this was no longer the ��brother�� of yesteryear but a powerful existence at the peak of Renhuang.


    The Great Elder of Demon Cloud moved forward, blocking the place where the divine light had landed. The mighty demonic power on his body was roaring and howling with great menace. An overwhelming demonic shadow seemed to sweep into the sky, contending with that deity in the void, refusing to back down.


    But at this moment, wisps of spatial divine light descended, covering the area where he was at. Another figure appeared in front of the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud. It was Old Ma.


    ��Once, you blinded his eyes and robbed the divine methods of Four Corner Village. Now it��s time to settle these transgressions. Let them resolve their differences between them, and don��t worry, it��s not your turn yet,�� Old Ma said lightly. Divine glory of the space unleashed madly, shrouding the vast void.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud became alert and soared into the sky. However, at the same moment, Blind Tie made his move in the void. That heavenly being, holding the Divine Hammer of the Protector, directly smashing down into the space below.


    Boom! A dull thud resounded between heaven and earth. A destructive might swept down, blasting below, suppressing an entire land to wipe out everything within it.


    ��Watch out!�� the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud shouted, but he was waylaid by Old Ma, unable to stop the attack from Blind Tie.


    Mo Ke roared, and a demonic double seemed to have materialized, blocking above him. But the instant the divine light fell, the demonic shadow was crushed and pulverized. In the next moment, the force fell on Mo Ke, penetrating his physical body and his spiritual soul.


    ��No���� Mo Ke looked extremely fearful and let out a miserable roar. In the next moment, his body was shattered immediately. It vanished like ash and smoke as his spiritual soul also collapsed. Under the attack of that power, he had no way to stop it at all. Unable to even stop a single blow, he was directly obliterated. His old acquaintance didn��t say another word and didn��t waste any time.


    But he was not the only one. In the vicinity, under the sweep of the divine light, all the cultivators from the Demon Cloud were wiped out, as each and every one of them disappeared as if they had never existed in the first place. Where the divine light passed, none survived. All were punished by death!

 Chapter 2288 - Overpowering

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Mo Ke!�� The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan broke through Old Ma��s defenses and looked down at the figure disappearing into thin air. His eyes were bloodshot, and power rolled out from him in violent waves.


    Mo Ke had been slain like this. He had been killed without a chance to react. And it was not only Mo Ke; other cultivators of the Demon Cloud Clan had been killed by a single attack as well. They had all been slain.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan raised his head and looked up at Blind Tie. His deep, dark eyes were filled to the brim with murderous intent.


    However, Blind Tie ignored him. This hammer had been his obsession for so many years, but he felt very little joy or appreciation in his heart. He felt only calm.


    In the past, he and Mo Ke had been very close and had called each other brothers. But he never would have thought that he was plotting against him. It was only through the divine art of spying that he had saved his own life.


    For so many years, he had dreamed that he would kill Mo Ke and get revenge one day.


    Now, he had finally done it. He had resolved a matter that he had held close to his heart.


    Ye Futian and the others looked at Blind Tie and seemed to sense his state of mind. There was no sorrow there, no joy. Perhaps it was a kind of relief.


    Fortune and misfortune go hand in hand. If it had not been for the things that had happened back then, he probably would not have returned to the village, and his state of mind would not have been purified. And now, he would not have had the chance to reach the ninth tier of the Renhuang plane. Everything had been decided by fate.


    Mo Ke had wasted his talents scheming back then, doing all that he could. And yet, a single hammer had still frightened him to death. So what did all the time he had spent back then matter in the end?


    Blind Tie faced towards where the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan was. He spat out his words, saying, ��Uncle Ma, let me come over there.��


    Old Ma and the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan were facing each other. He nodded when he heard Blind Tie��s words, then moved off to the side, opening up a path to let him through.


    After he stepped aside, Blind Tie and the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan were facing each other. One was above the other people. Terrifying power of the Great Path was seeping out from both of them.


    ��You were the one behind everything that happened back then. You made Mo Ke do it,�� said Blind Tie. His voice was still calm. It was as if he was not too concerned by all of this. It seemed like he just wanted to bring it to an end.


    ��Yes,�� the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan admitted openly. Of course they had been his orders. If it had not been for him, how could Mo Ke have done it? And how could he have succeeded? After all, Blind Tie had been no ordinary figure back then.


    ��Mm.�� Blind Tie said no more. He just nodded calmly. Neither of them liked to talk much. They obviously did not need to say very much either. This was a matter of life and death. One of the two of them would definitely die.


    But the one who would die would probably be the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan. With the cultivators around him, he had no way to slay Blind Tie.


    So the outcome already seemed to be decided��the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan would die.


    Actually, everyone understood that this made sense, including the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan. When the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy arrived, along with a person at the Tribulation level, how could he hope to kill Blind Tie?


    ��Back during the Battle of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, you said that the people of the Divine Prefecture were slaughtering each other. But now, you led the Heavenly Mandate Academy in a battle against the upper Divine Prefecture. Excellent,�� said the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan coldly. But as he said this, he already felt a little bit timid.


    They had not even started fighting, and he was already feeling timid. That was why he had said that. Otherwise, the slaughter would have started.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan understood his fate.


    ��This was a grudge between you and Four Corner Village. What did the Heavenly Mandate Academy have to do with it?�� said Old Ma, sweeping his gaze over the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan. ��Back then, you ruined his eyes, almost killing him, and stole the divine item of Four Corner Village. What is wrong with us coming to repay our debts now?��


    ��Why did people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy get involved in this dispute with Four Corner Village?�� asked the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan, looking up in the curtain of stars in the sky. If it were not for that starry curtain, he would not have to make a last stand here. He could have escaped.


    ��Unfortunately for you, I am a member of the village. So, I naturally had the right to get involved in this affair,�� said Ye Futian, looking at the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan from across the distance.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan looked back at him. Surging demonic power swept out from him, filling the entire vast area with his demonic aura.


    Woosh! The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan��s body suddenly disappeared, transforming into a beam of demonic light that pierced through the air.


    Ye Futian frowned. He could clearly feel a threatening will. Just as he was preparing to move, a figure descended beside him. It was Renhuang Chen, who was covered in starlight and transformed into a protective light curtain that wrapped around Ye Futian.


    However, the beam of demonic light shot up into the sky, as if it had changed direction instantaneously, then rushed onward into the high distance. Clearly, the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan��s target was not Ye Futian. That had been a diversion so that he could escape the area.


    His anger and his murderous intent had been real, but his desire to survive by leaving was even more real. So the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan had not sought revenge��he had sought to flee.


    Bang! A booming sound split the air as a black hammer appeared up in the air and smashed into the curtain of stars, making cracks. That was naturally the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan��s attack. He wanted to break open this forbidding power and flee the area that he was imprisoned in.


    But could he do it?


    The starlight that was upon Renhuang Chen flashed as he raised his scepter. Suddenly, brilliant starlight shot up straight into the air, repairing the places on the starlight curtain that had been damaged. In a flash, it was as good as new again. The repaired pieces seemed like they were a part of the original. If the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan tried to destroy it, it would be nearly impossible, as the difference in levels was too great.


    Just then, divine light burst forth, flowing between heaven and earth. A mighty divine force descended. The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan��s expression changed as he looked over in that direction and saw that Blind Tie seemed to have melded with the body of a god. His body was covered in golden armor, and unimaginable divine power was radiating from him.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan could even sense a hint of the aura of a Great Emperor about him.


    Boom! A divine hammer fell from the sky, smashing into the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan. The terrifying amount of pressure made the space around him freeze. And the Elder himself was no different as he sensed this supernatural power.


    ��It seems that your combat ability now measures among the greatest, Uncle. That is incredible,�� said Ye Futian as he looked at the divine light. As soon as he said this, the hammer fell again, and monstrous figures appeared in the air. But they could not block this attack. There was another loud booming sound, and the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan was sent flying backward. The space where he had been before seemed to split as the terrifying divine light raged through the air.


    Blind Tie seemed to have transformed into a god. He continued walking forward, swinging the hammer once again and slamming it into the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan as smoothly as flowing water.


    It was simple yet overpowering. He possessed limitless strength.


    Boom! Another dull boom rang out, and the air seemed to shatter as the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan was sent flying once again, blood pouring from his mouth. It seemed like he had been crushed and had no more power to resist.

 Chapter 2289 - Thoughts

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan was no weakling. On the contrary, he was one of the strongest figures in the Shangqing Domain. He dominated his generation.


    But at that moment, Blind Tie no longer seemed like a Renhuang who was close to breaking through to the ninth tier. In fact, he seemed like he had already done so many years ago and had developed his profound powers for a long time.


    What kind of power had the inheritance of the Imperial Star given him?


    Boom! Beams of burning divine radiance spread out from the figures of the gods of war up in the air, sweeping out through the heavens and the earth and covering a vast area. Many arms appeared up in the air. They were the arms of gods.


    The Divine Hammer of the Protector appeared, and images of divine hammers appeared in all those arms right afterward. It seemed as if each hammer contained unimaginable power. They fell accompanied by divine light. The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan, the top cultivator of the Demon Cloud Clan, could sense a deadly threat.


    He had a strange feeling; it was like he was not facing Blind Tie but an actual god.


    The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan had swept away all before him and had never been in such desperate circumstances before. Someone younger than him had reached his level. Although he had just broken through to this level, he was still able to crush him. He had beaten him from head to toe and had made it so that he had not even been able to unleash his own power. What kind of humiliation was this?


    But the current humiliation was nothing. As of right now, his very life was in danger. The area was sealed off, and so he could not escape. He would truly be smashed to death by Blind Tie��s hammers here.


    Boom! The hammers crashed down, and the heavens and the earth shook. It seemed as if everything would be destroyed. There came a great roaring sound from the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan��s body as the image of a demon god appeared behind him. Its many demonic arms reached up into the sky. The Demonic Hand Prints were incomparably powerful by themselves, and many of the arms held great black divine hammers. They moved away from him, smashing into the air and causing beams of black light to appear.


    The golden hammers fell, and the two forces collided together. Infinite divine light exploded outward when they clashed. It seemed as if the earth and the sky would split open. The demonic arms were all shattered wildly as the giant hammer went among them and destroyed everything.


    Bang! As this attack fell, it seemed as if everything was flattened. The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan was sent flying once again. His aura wavered, and his face had grown pale. His aura of the Great Path was no longer as sturdy as it had been.


    But the images of even more divine hammers appeared in the air, covering the sky in all directions.


    Blind Tie, who had transformed into a form like that of a god, was filled with limitless power. It was like the will of a Great Emperor had infused his strength. He had transformed into the master of this land.


    He waved his arms, and the hammers danced once again. His movements were still simple and graceful, but the divine power that burst forth in the air was still enough to shock even the greatest of figures.


    Countless beams of light all fell towards the same place. The figure of the demonic god tried to block them, but as the light fell, the hammers smashed down as well. Suddenly, the demonic figure split open and shattered. The hammers continued downward and smashed into the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan��s body.


    He was an incredibly powerful figure, and his Flesh had already become the Way. So even suffering a direct hit from these hammers was not enough to instantly kill him. But his body shook violently, and the hammers kept on coming, slamming into him over and over again.


    His expression kept changing. It was as if he was full of regret.


    Then, divine light pierced his body. As the countless beams of light shot through him, the Great Elder��s body started to disintegrate until he was destroyed. He had been killed on the spot.


    After the Great Elder had been slain, everything seemed to become calm. The violent atmosphere dissipated, and everything was like it had been before.


    Blind Tie stood calmly up in the sky. He still felt none of the pleasure of his great vengeance. On the outside, he looked extremely calm.


    After a period of silence, he turned and walked calmly over to Ye Futian��s side as if none of what had just transpired had happened.


    ��Congratulations, Uncle Tie,�� said Ye Futian with a slight smile. Now, Blind Tie would be able to let go of his heart��s obsession.


    He, the people of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and the people of Four Corner Village had all watched this battle but had not interfered. They had let Blind Tie achieve his own vengeance. And he had succeeded. He had used his overwhelming strength to slaughter the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan, Mo Ke, and more, resolving his grudge from many years ago.


    Old Ma and the others came over, patting Blind Tie on the shoulder. They had been greatly shocked by this battle as well. Even Old Ma had not been able to deal with the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan, but Blind Tie had crushed him all by himself. Moreover, the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan had had no power to resist him. He had been overpowered and destroyed.


    From this, it could be seen that Blind Tie had now become much more powerful than Old Ma. It looked like the inheritance of the Imperial Star was far from ordinary. It had given Blind Tie combat abilities beyond those of people on his level. He had been able to slay the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan, who had been at the peak of the Renhuang plane for many years.


    At that moment, the curtain of starlight dissipated. Many cultivators appeared in different places up in the air. They had come from different camps. All of them were top figures from the Divine Prefecture. After sensing the battle that was taking place here, the top figures from the Central Imperial Realm had come to observe the battle. All of them had been shocked by what happened.


    Blind Tie of Four Corner Village had broken through to the next level. Not only had he done that, but he had killed the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan right out. It seemed like the inheritance of the Imperial Star had given him much.


    Unfortunately, the Cultivation Court of Great Emperor Ziwei was already under Ye Futian��s control. They could not go there to cultivate.


    Ye Futian and the others transformed into beams of light and soon disappeared. But the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture did not leave. Instead, they watched down below. One of the top powers of the Shangqing Domain had been destroyed like this and would never return.


    A group of people was gathering together up in the sky. These were cultivators from the Shangqing Domain, including Emperor Zhou Mu, the Vice Chief. In addition, cultivators from the Nanhai Family were there too.


    The Demon Cloud Clan had been a top force of the Shangqing Domain, and yet it had been destroyed like this. The shock that this gave them was very fierce indeed. Moreover, the one who had destroyed them was Blind Tie of Four Corner Village, and many of the forces of the Shangqing Domain had conflicts with Four Corner Village. They had once gone and laid siege to it until they were forced to flee by the Master.


    The cultivators of the Nanhai Family were even more conflicted. Now, Ye Futian had led Blind Tie and the others to destroy the Demon Cloud Clan. Afterward, would he want to destroy them as well?


    A group of people from the Muyun family was there as well. They had seen Blind Tie become an even more powerful figure and slay the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan. It was obvious how they felt about this. Muyun Lan had once fought Blind Tie in the Shangqing Domain, and their powers had been evenly matched. But now, if Muyun Lan stood before Blind Tie, he would not even be able to withstand a single hammer blow!

 Chapter 2290 - Visitors

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After slaying the Great Elder of Demon Cloud, Ye Futian and the others returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but the incident had caused quite a stir in the Original Realm.


    Many top figures from the Central Emperor Realm had paid close attention to the battle, and the news spread rapidly.


    In Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian and the others had just returned. Before they had a chance to depart to the Ziwei Segmentum, they were informed that some visitors had arrived to request a meeting with him.


    In front of the main hall, Ye Futian scanned with his divine consciousness and saw a group of people outside the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Seeing their presence, Ye Futian frowned. Likewise, Old Ma and Blind Tie also raised their eyebrows. Then, Old Ma huffed contemptuously and said, ��What are they doing here?��


    ��Since they are here already, tell them to come in.�� Ye Futian didn��t seem to care and gave the instruction casually. Immediately, someone went to carry out the order.


    After a while, someone came around, and Ye Futian saw that the person was Muyun Long. Behind him was Muyun Lan, but he appeared unenthusiastic. Both of his hands were folded behind him as he looked toward Ye Futian and Blind Tie. His expression appeared somewhat conflicted.


    ��How dare you show your faces here,�� Fang Gai said sarcastically, looking at Muyun Long. All the discords in the past were caused by Muyun Long. Otherwise, they would still be cultivating in the village, and there would be no subsequent events. Muyun Long was full of ambition, wanting to take over the village, even having the idea to replace the teacher.


    But now, that ambition appeared rather ludicrous. Just Muyun Long alone, wanted to replace the teacher?


    The teacher was the totem of the village, its true spiritual leader. As long as he was there, Four Corner Village would always be what it always had been, and no one would challenge it.


    In fact, Muyun Long was very embarrassed as well, but he came despite this. He had seen the teacher descended on the land of the Original Realm and took control of Shenjia the Great Emperor, erupting with shocking combat power. When some had guessed that the teacher was in the imperial realm, he was greatly shocked and then taken over by endless regrets.


    It was ridiculous that they rebelled against Four Corner Village and left, and even more ridiculous that he had once wanted to replace the teacher in the village.


    Now, they had witnessed Blind Tie��s breakthrough and ascension to the peak of Renhuang. Muyun Long��s cultivation was far deeper than Blind Tie��s, even his eldest, Muyun Lan, whose cultivation was not beneath that of Blind Tie. In the battle at the Shangqing Domain, though he was unable to suppress Blind Tie, the score was pretty even.


    However, the gap had been widened now. Understandably, he was agitated by how things turned out. If they were still cultivating in the village, the teacher and the Imperial Star in the starry sky world could be used to communicate and comprehend.


    But not only did they leave the village, but they had also created this grudge with Ye Futian. The death of the Great Elder of the Demon Cloud was a warning to them. Therefore, this trip at this time was inevitable.


    What if Ye Futian were to seek revenge from them in the future?


    With the strength that Heavenly Mandate Academy possessed today, even the Nanhai family could ill afford its ire.


    With Ye Futian��s personality, it was a real possibility that he would eventually end up at their front door, seeking revenge.


    ��What happened at the beginning was indeed my fault, I admit it. However, we are all people from the village and belong to the same line, after all. No one can dispute this. Old Ma, for the sake of our friendship these many years, would you allow me to ask for forgiveness from the teacher? I am willing to return to the village to cultivate,�� Muyun Long pleaded, seeking to bolster his request with their relationship once upon a time.


    However, everyone knew where he was coming from. It was only to seek better resources to cultivate. In addition, he may be scared of Ye Futian at this moment, fearing his tendency to settle old scores.


    ��You left when you wanted to, and now you are asking to come back because you wanted to. What kind of place do you think our village is?�� Old Ma said quite sarcastically. At that time, Muyun Long and the others had wanted to take Ye Futian down and had attacked him.


    Muyun Long��s youngest, Muyun Shu, was even more outrageous. He had attempted to deal fatal blows to Blind Tie��s son, Tie Tou, without mercy.


    And Muyun Lan himself was a son-in-law of the Nanhai family.


    Now, he wanted to return to the village?


    ��I know we have offended. But we are in the same line after all. If the teacher wants to punish us, we will accept it. In the future, we are willing to listen to all of you, no matter what.�� Muyun Long still bowed his head and admitted his past guilt. He had put down his dignity to be allowed to return to the village.


    Ye Futian looked at Muyun Lan behind him and saw that he was standing quietly without saying a word. Obviously, it was not his idea to come and own up their guilt, but that he was dragged here by Muyun Long. Otherwise, Muyun Lan��s arrogant nature would never allow him to come here and bow his head like this.


    After all, even lowering their stance was no guarantee of the results.


    As if he had detected Ye Futian��s gaze, Muyun Lan looked at him as well and saw that in the depth of Ye Futian��s eyes, there was extreme tranquility without the slightest emotion in those eyes of his. It was as if he cared not at all for his existence. The look was familiar enough. Once, this was exactly how he looked at Ye Futian.


    It was an indifferent and careless look. Now, it was Ye Futian who regarded him thusly. Now in Ye Futian��s eyes, Muyun Lan was nothing. Aside from the power controlled in Ye Futian��s hands, Ye Futian��s own combat effectiveness was so strong that Muyun Lan might not be able to contend with him.


    Ye Futian��s sight slowly settled on Muyun Long, and he said, ��First, bring Muyun Shu and abolish his cultivation. Show me the sincerity of the Muyun Clan.��


    Muyun Long��s eyes sharpened as the expression on his face changed suddenly. Not just him, but Muyun Lan behind him also regarded Ye Futian with a cold expression. Did he ask them to abolish Muyun Shu��s cultivation?


    How could they possibly agree to it?


    ��Emperor Ye, we are sincerely sorry for what had transpired. You needn��t be so harsh,�� Muyun Long replied.


    ��I am being quite sincere.�� Ye Futian looked at Muyun Long, ��I won��t mention what you did back then, but your youngest, Muyun Shu, being so cruel and plotting at such a tender age, how could we let him back in the village to cultivate without abolishing his cultivation? You don��t really think we wanted to raise another you, did you?��


    Ye Futian��s voice was calm enough, but the indifference in his words was very obvious. Clearly, it was impossible.


    ��Sorry to have bothered you,�� Muyun Long said. He turned to leave.


    ��If there is a chance in the future, I will return the visit to the Muyun Clan,�� Ye Futian said casually, causing Muyun Long to stop abruptly. After pausing for a few moments, he started moving again to leave, this time with some heaviness in his footsteps.


    What Ye Futian said was rather potent with meaning and significance.


    After Muyun Long left, someone came to report again, ��Many forces from the Divine Prefecture are outside asking to be received.��


    Ye Futian��s divine consciousness radiated outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and saw the arrival of many top forces, which surprised him a little. It seemed that this was all caused by that battle. He never expected Uncle Tie��s breakthrough would have such an impact on the top forces in the Divine Prefecture. It appeared that they had some thoughts of their own about this turn of events.


    After all, it was tough to produce a figure at the giant level. This was already a cultivator standing at the top in Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2291 - For the Divine Prefecture?

    ��Everyone, welcome,�� Ye Futian said loudly. His voice reverberated throughout the space. Outside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, several cultivators from various top forces gradually made their way into the academy after they heard his words. They gathered at the main hall.


    Ye Futian scanned the crowd. There were quite a few familiar faces from some forces of the Shangqing Domain. Zhou Muhuang, the vice chief of Domain Chief��s Manor, and Princess Zhou Lingxi had come too.


    Zhou Muhuang looked at Ye Futian, who stood in front of the main hall. He felt that he was fortune��s fool. In the past, he intended to recruit Ye Futian when the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor gathered all the talented cultivators. He wanted to keep Ye Futian under the control of the Domain Chief��s Manor so that Ye Futian would be under his command. At that time, Ye Futian was but a Renhuang with extraordinary talent.


    However, judging from the current situation, Ye Futian��s status was no longer beneath his status as the vice chief of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian was superior to him.


    After all, the manor itself was the only force under the direct command of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor. On the other hand, the Heavenly Mandate Academy, led by Ye Futian, controlled all the forces in the Original Realm. The Ziwei Segmentum was under his command too. Besides that, all the cultivators from Four Corner Village were willing to follow him. Combining all these forces, it was obvious that Ye Futian was leading a superpower.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was supported by the mysterious master. Hence, Ye Futian��s current status was above that of Zhou Muhuang. When Zhou Muhuang visited the Heavenly Mandate Academy, he needed to wait for the host��s approval before he could pay his tribute.


    Aside from him, all the cultivators from the various top forces of the Divine Prefecture also needed to wait for the approval of Ye Futian to enter the academy this time. No one dared to barge into the place without an invitation.


    Not long ago, Ye Futian and his team killed many powerful cultivators from the Demon Cloud, including Mo Ke and the Great Elder of the clan. Even Zhou Muhuang��the ruler of Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor��did not dare to comment much on this matter. Now, most likely, nobody in the Divine Prefecture could command Ye Futian.


    Not to mention that the matter involved personal vengeance. Outsiders had no stance in the vendetta between the Demon Cloud and Blind Tie.


    ��All of you have traveled far to visit the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Please excuse me for not welcoming all of you sooner,�� Ye Futian said to everyone while bowing slightly. He was polite, and he spoke humbly. However, his humble speech also made people feel distant.


    Zhou Lingxi, who stood beside Zhou Muhuang, lamented internally. Back then, the Domain Chief��s Manor intended to use her to keep Ye Futian around. However, he did not show the slightest interest in her at all. If the Domain Chief��s Manor had been more sincere in making friends with Ye Futian, then they would have at least been on good terms with him now.


    If that were the case, it would most likely not be a problem for their manor to want to cultivate in the starry cultivation court. After all, the ancient royal family of Duan was already cultivating there at the moment.


    ��Renhuang Ye, you��re too kind. We��ve come to ask for a favor,�� said a top figure. Their attitude toward Ye Futian now had changed completely. Even the giant-level cultivators spoke courteously and dared not act imprudently. After all, Ye Futian now possessed the power to determine whether the giant-level figures lived or died.


    ��Oh?�� Ye Futian raised his brows slightly and asked, ��What matter is Senior referring to?��


    He was clearly asking an obvious question.


    Everyone knew that Ye Futian was well aware of their purpose for coming here.


    ��We wish to have access to the starry cultivation court for cultivation,�� said the giant-level figure. ��Right now, Renhuang Ye has taken charge of the starry cultivation court and can borrow the power of the Will of the Great Emperor. If you would allow the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture to cultivate there, the overall abilities of the Divine Prefecture would improve. Your contribution would be significant. Of course, we��ll not use the starry cultivation court for free. We will pay an equivalent price in exchange for such access. Renhuang Ye can also name a price. How about it?��


    Ye Futian smiled at the other party and said, ��Senior, have you opened up the holy land of cultivation of your clan or force to the other forces from the outside world and the Divine Prefecture? I am sure that the members of the other forces will also be willing to pay to do so.��


    Currently, the starry cultivation court was under his control. It was considered to be his personal holy land of cultivation. Why would he allow others to cultivate in it?


    Ye Futian was not so selfless.


    He had also allowed all the forces to use the starry cultivation court back during the battle of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. As long as the forces were willing to join the battle and fight for the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they would be permitted to cultivate there at any time. However, none of the major forces were willing to stand out for them. Conversely, they were greedily eyeing the starry cultivation court. All of them wanted to add insult to injury. By killing him and destroying the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they would naturally obtain the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei and the starry cultivation court.


    Now that the situation had changed, they wanted permission to cultivate in the starry cultivation court. Wasn��t this too easy?


    The giant-level figure continued, ��I understand where Renhuang Ye is coming from. This is indeed a great request. All of us are part of the Divine Prefecture. Now that turmoil is imminent, improving the abilities of the forces of the Divine Prefecture to combat the invasion of outside forces will be considered a great contribution by Renhuang Ye. Moreover, all of us are willing to pay a high price in exchange for such access.�� The other members also nodded in agreement.


    ��In the future, if Renhuang Ye requires any assistance, you will only need to issue the command. The cultivators of the various forces of the Divine Prefecture will willingly provide aid. Wouldn��t that be perfect?�� someone else added, promising these things.


    However, if such a time truly came, whether or not the other party would lend their aid remained unclear.


    Ye Futian smiled. Were they pressuring him to act for the greater good of the Divine Prefecture?


    ��All right,�� replied Ye Futian. When he thought about this, he actually nodded his head and agreed. This stunned the various cultivators. Some of them gave Ye Futian suspicious looks. Ye Futian seemed to have agreed too easily. Although this was their original goal, they never imagined that Ye Futian would agree so readily.


    Things were likely not as they seemed.


    As expected, Ye Futian looked at them with a smile and continued saying, ��Since everyone has requested it, I will naturally not have any objection against the suggestion. Everything is for the sake of the Divine Prefecture. However, the Original Realm is also part of the Divine Prefecture. Since everyone has the same goal in mind, I��m sure all of you have heard of what happened recently. A force from the Dark World is committing massacres in the Original Realm. They have lost their humanity. I am determined to cast the Dark World out of the Original Realm. Are Seniors willing to follow me and wage war against the Dark World?��


    After Ye Futian said that, he scanned the crowd and concluded, ��This is for the greater good of the Divine Prefecture.��


    The cultivators were stunned when they heard Ye Futian��s words. Then, all of them fell silent. For the greater good of the Divine Prefecture?


    They were definitely not righteous; they were merely serving their own interests.


    The forces of the Dark World were very powerful. Currently, more and more top forces from the Dark World were descending upon the Original Realm. If the cultivators immediately declared war on them, it would be a matter of life or death. It would no longer be as simple as paying a high fee. The price might be their own lives.


    Hence, no one dared to agree to this so easily. After all, from the last battle, they knew that the Dark Court was cautious of Ye Futian. If the forces from the Divine Prefecture were to go on the initiative and declare war, the cultivators of the Dark World would most likely deal with them first.


    ��What��s the matter? The forces of the Dark World are so cruel. Seniors, don��t all of you want to expel them from our lands?�� Ye Futian continued pressuring them. His manner was imposing. Zhou Muhuang clearly sensed that the current Ye Futian was different from what he was before!

 Chapter 2292 - A Moving Relic

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the past, even though Ye Futian had extraordinary talents, he was but a Renhuang who had exceptional combat abilities in the Divine Prefecture. There were plenty of top forces in the Divine Prefecture. Therefore, no matter how monstrous he was, he was still insignificant.


    However, it was different now. Ye Futian was no longer just an extraordinary talent himself. His background and the forces he commanded were all among the finest. There were not many forces in the Divine Prefecture who could afford to offend him. Hence, his entire temperament naturally seemed different.


    Even among the 18 Domain Chief Manors, more than half of them did not command forces as powerful as those below Ye Futian. Only the Domain Chief Manors with chiefs who had survived the second stage of a divine tribulation dared to claim that they could suppress Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Even then, Four Corner Village still had a mysterious Master to hold down the fort.


    With such a background, even against all the top forces of the Divine Prefecture, Ye Futian��s manner was still imposing.


    Nevertheless, the crowd knew that Ye Futian had sought the aid of the forces of the Divine Prefecture during the battle of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Unfortunately, not many of them stood out to lend him aid. Many forces had even tried to kick him when he was down. Under such circumstances, they still came here seeking Ye Futian for permission to cultivate in the starry cultivation court. He would naturally not act kindly towards them.


    Someone said, ��Of course, we want to cast the forces of the Dark World out, too. However, the forces of the Dark World are different from the forces in the Divine Prefecture. They are very united. The Dark Court rules over all the forces in the Dark World directly. Recently, more and more top forces from the Dark World have arrived in the Original Realm. Their lineup is as powerful as that of the Divine Prefecture. It is not that simple to want to chase them out. Before we declare war against them, why don��t we unite the forces in the Divine Prefecture and improve our abilities by cultivating in the starry cultivation court first?��


    Ye Futian glanced at the person who had spoken. The other party��s words sounded reasonable, but in the end, he also wanted to cultivate in the starry cultivation court first. No one could guarantee what would happen after these cultivators gained the right to cultivate in the starry cultivation court.


    ��I disagree,�� Ye Futian refuted. ��Pardon me for speaking my mind frankly. Last time, when the Heavenly Mandate Academy was attacked, many forces from the Divine Prefecture were also waiting for the chance to join in the attack against me. Most likely, many of you wanted to kill me. I can��t tell for sure what everyone is thinking. If I allow all of you to cultivate in the starry cultivation court, but you end up becoming my enemies, wouldn��t I be foolish for inviting trouble upon myself? Since Seniors are interested in allying with me, then you should show some sincerity first.��


    Ye Futian��s speech caused the cultivators to fall silent. From the looks of it, Ye Futian was firm with his decision. If they wanted to gain access to the starry cultivation court for cultivating, they had to first join forces with him to eradicate the forces of the Dark World lurking in the Original Realm. Otherwise, he would not agree to their request.


    Last time, when all the forces went to visit Ziwei Imperial Palace in the Ziwei Segmentum together, the latter had no choice but to allow them to cultivate in the starry cultivation court. However, it was different now with Ye Futian in charge. They would most likely be unable to force him into accepting their request. It was because Master served as a deterrent.


    ��Since that��s the case, we��ll further consider your suggestion,�� said someone. Clearly, the person thought that the price they had to pay to cultivate in the starry cultivation court was too high. It was not worth it. Hence, the person was giving up.


    Right at the moment, quite a lot of people arrived. They actually traversed the space and entered into the Heavenly Mandate Academy directly. Naturally, this caused Ye Futian and the cultivators of the academy to frown.


    The incomers had serious expressions on their faces. They went straight to their respective forces and reported something to their seniors using transmitted thoughts. It seemed like something had happened.


    Someone also landed beside Ye Futian and told him something using transmitted thoughts. The news caused Ye Futian to narrow his eyes.


    One by one, the cultivators from the various top forces of the Divine Prefecture saluted their fists and said, ��Farewell.��


    After they said this, they immediately flew up to the sky and left.


    ��What happened?�� Lord Taixuan revealed a worried expression. The person who just communicated with Ye Futian through transmitted thoughts was a cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace. From the looks of it, something had happened. Otherwise, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture would not have left together. Most likely, they had also received the same news.


    Many people looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian said, ��In a void space outside of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, someone discovered a relic. According to speculation, it is a very ancient relic.��


    The eyes of the cultivators narrowed when they heard Ye Futian��s words. No wonder the visitors from the Divine Prefecture left in a hurry. Clearly, they had received the same news and decided to check out the relic immediately.


    The Original Realm was a void space formed after the collapse of the Heavenly Path. It was also called the Void Realm.


    However, it also became a unique place that consisted of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and countless void spaces. Nobody knew what lay in these void spaces. Many years ago, people had searched through and plundered the void spaces. Nevertheless, there was bound to be something that they missed.


    For example, all Nine Supreme Realms had their secrets. The Ziwei Segmentum, which was sealed by Great Emperor Ziwei, was hidden in the Ziwei Realm.


    The Original Realm had recently undergone a complete transformation. More and more changes were occurring. Hence, the appearance of an ancient relic didn��t seem bizarre.


    ��Do you have the coordinates of the relic?�� someone asked. The void space outside of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was vast and endless. The Ziwei Segmentum, for example, was very far from the Nine Realms. Hence, they had to build a powerful grand teleportation matrix to connect the two places.


    The cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace replied, ��Yes. The relic was discovered by some mighty cultivators from the top forces of the Divine Prefecture. Besides that, it was discovered because it was approaching the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Right now, most likely, a lot of people have caught news of its existence. The forces from the Divine Prefecture that visited the Heavenly Mandate Academy just now were only part of those who had come to the Original Realm. Many of them are making their way to the relic now.��


    ��A moving relic?�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��Let��s go and have a look.��


    After he said this, the group flew up to the sky right away.


    The cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace led the way, and they left the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They traveled towards a specific direction in the void. After a while, they had left the region where the Nine Supreme Realms were.


    As they progressed forward in the void space, Ye Futian and his group could gradually sense an unknown power. The power seemed to contain a faint might. It was as though heavenly might was transmitted across space to where they were.


    The power became clearer as they approached the space. Even the giant-level figures could feel a super strong pressure acting on them.


    ��This might!�� exclaimed Lord Taixuan. This unknown might gave off the same vibe as when they were cultivating in the starry cultivation court in the Ziwei Segmentum. Could it be that this was yet another ancient relic left by a Great Emperor?


    As they moved upwards, they discovered that a deep and scary-looking crack had appeared in the sky. A frightening storm formed. The crack was like a terrifying object that would leave marks in the space when it moved. Looking past the crack into the distance, one could faintly sense an extremely menacing power was moving.


    As expected, it was a moving ancient relic, and it was approaching the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    What exactly was it? It gave off such frightening pressure!

 Chapter 2293 - Relic of a Great Emperor?

    ��Let��s go!��


    The cultivators moved towards the direction where the might was emanating from. They traveled across space at an astonishing speed.


    As they approached the source of the might, they could sense the terrifying might intensifying. Rumbling sounds could faintly be heard in the void space. The massive crack remained in the void as they ventured past it. As various cultivators moved closer and closer to the source of the might, they even discovered dark fissures.


    ��It��s over there!�� exclaimed someone as they looked ahead in the direction where the terrifying aura was.


    All the cultivators narrowed their eyes. They saw a gigantic creature moving. There seemed to be a city built on top of the creature��s back. It was moving in a specific direction. Everywhere it passed, the space was ripped apart, and dark fissures were formed.


    When the dark fissures closed up, they became massive cracks.


    Right at this moment, Ye Futian and his group saw an astonishing divine light of the Great Path light up in front of the moving creature. There was more than one beam of light. Dazzling divine lights of the Great Path were ignited simultaneously in different directions. Then, all the lights pounced onto the gigantic creature, attempting to stop it from moving.


    Frightening rumbles thundered. The divine lights, which blocked in front of the enormous creature, were shattered into dust. The attack of the cultivators could not stop the creature from advancing. This was not the first time the cultivators tried to stop the creature in its tracks. They had been trying different techniques along the way, but all their attempts were futile. It was unstoppable.


    ��Let��s give up on making it stop,�� someone at the front suggested. The cultivators realized that making the creature stop was an impossible mission.


    The rest nodded in agreement. Then, the cultivators stepped up and headed towards the city on top of the creature. Since it was impossible to intercept the creature from advancing, they could only get on it to explore the city on its back while it was still moving.


    Ye Futian and the rest of the cultivators from various forces of the Divine Prefecture also arrived where the creature was. Aside from them, the forces of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm also caught news of this relic, and they gradually appeared from various directions. All their gazes were fixed on the gigantic moving creature. Their hearts trembled violently.


    The moving creature was a black turtle!


    With high speed, Ye Futian and his group caught up with the creature. They noticed that this creature carrying a city on its back was actually an enormous demonic beast. It was a black turtle. However, its head took the shape of a dragon head.


    ��It��s a Dragon Turtle. But it seems to be dead. It has no aura,�� commented Renhuang Chen, who was beside Ye Futian. Ye Futian also noticed that the creature was a colossal Dragon Turtle. However, its body was pitch black, with no signs of life. A mysterious power must be sustaining it for it to be able to keep moving.


    Not only was this black turtle dead, but the city it carried on its back was also filled with the aura of death. There was no sign of life. However, one could still sense a baffling might emanating from the city. It was an extremely domineering might.


    Ye Futian had witnessed the abilities of many Great Emperor level cultivators and experienced firsthand the pressure contained within their wills. He was certain that the pressure before him was from the will of a Great Emperor right now.


    That meant to say that the moving fortress was a relic left behind by a Great Emperor. The will of the Great Emperor might still be lingering in the city.


    Many other cultivators naturally shared the same speculation as Ye Futian. However, the Dragon Turtle emanated a mysterious pressure as it advanced while tearing apart the space. There was a solemn pressure acting on the crowd, making it hard for them to breathe.


    Right at this moment, the Dragon Turtle suddenly let out a dull groan. It sounded like a sorrowful wail. The reverberation of the sound caused the blood and Qi of the cultivators to churn. An intense sadness welled up in their chests. It was as though they could sense the despair in the voice of the Dragon Turtle.


    What kind of emotion was that? The hearts of the cultivators trembled violently. This Dragon Turtle was most likely a black turtle. Such a domineering sacred beast actually let out a groan which contained such an immense sorrow after it had died. What had actually happened before it died?


    Buzz. Endless starlight lit up in the heavens and earth, transforming into a starry shroud. The shroud of starlight popped up out of thin air. It was created by Renhuang Chen. He wanted to give it a try and see whether he could block the Dragon Turtle from advancing.


    The body of the Dragon Turtle crashed head on to the shroud of starlight.


    Kacha. A shattering sound rang. Without any suspense, the shroud of starlight was shattered into dust. The Dragon Turtle continued to move forward as though it had not encountered any hindrance.


    It seemed as though there was no power great enough to stop its will from advancing.


    Was it the will of the Dragon Turtle itself?


    ��It looks like we don��t need to waste our energy on making it stop. It��s unstoppable,�� concluded Renhuang Chen, who was beside Ye Futian. Renhuang Chen had only tried once, and he was certain about the creature��s capability. Ye Futian nodded in agreement. With a flash, he dashed towards the ancient city on the Dragon Turtle��s back.


    Ye Futian and his group landed on a ruin. They were surrounded by dilapidated pillars and crumbling walls. There was not an area that was in good shape. They could sense a much stronger might now that they were standing on the ruin. Ye Futian had a slight problem breathing normally when pressured by this might. The divine light of the Great Path flowed around his body, and his Emperor��s Light twinkled, slowly withstanding the mysterious might. After he stabilized himself, his will swept out and scanned the surroundings.


    ��What��s that?�� As they looked ahead at the center of the ruin, they saw a tall pile. It was like a tower. The mysterious might emanated from it.


    All the cultivators from various forces were making their way towards the tall pile. There seemed to be a weak light glowing inside the tower-shaped object. As the cultivators approached it, some of them launched attacks against it. The tower-shaped object shook when the intense attacks landed on it. However, it was not destroyed and still stood firmly.


    Yet another grating groan of sorrow sounded. The Dragon Turtle wailed again. The vibration of the sound caused the cultivators to feel restless.


    Weak light continued to glow on the tower-shaped object, further provoking the curiosity of the cultivators.


    ��Let��s attack together,�� suggested someone. Immediately, from various directions, the cultivators worked together to gather a frightening amount of power of the Great Path.


    ��Back down first,�� Renhuang Chen instructed Ye Futian. Renhuang Chen stood in front of the group, and a defensive light shroud was activated. At the same time, the cultivators once again launched an aggressive attack towards the tower-shaped object. This time, it finally shook violently when many attacks landed on it at the same time. Unable to withstand the vibrations, boulders started falling from the tower. It seemed as though it would crumble at any moment.


    Many gazes were fixed on the tower. The eyes of some cultivators narrowed in shock when the boulders fell.


    ��Those are���� exclaimed someone. After the boulders fell, there were actually human bodies stacked in the tower-shaped object. However, the bodies showed no signs of life. They were corpses.


    All the bodies in the tower seemed as though they had been here for an eternity.


    ��This is a grave!�� someone said in a low voice as they looked at the tower-shaped object.


    Their hearts trembled intensely. A black turtle was moving around in the void space bearing a grave on its back?


    Whose grave was it? Who was buried inside?

 Chapter 2294 - Awakened Corpse

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Terrifying storms continued to blow past the cultivators. When the black turtle tore apart space, fissures formed, and destructive storms continually surged out from them. The howling storms affected the cultivators. This was the reason why they attempted to stop the Dragon Turtle from moving just now.


    Unfortunately, up until now, no one was successful in making it stop. It was as though it had been moving in the vast void space since time immemorial.


    All the cultivators were shrouded with the divine light of the Great Path. Their gazes were fixed on the corpses in front of them. Many of the dead bodies were deformed; some only had tiny sections left. One could imagine the intensity of the battle they were involved in before they perished here.


    Even on this day, countless years after the battle, the dead black turtle was still wandering in space aimlessly with these dead bodies on its back. Nobody knew where this black turtle was heading.


    Everyone felt uncomfortable, as they were exposed to the destructive storms. Despite that, they still launched attack after attack at the tower-shaped grave. They were interested in opening up the grave and exploring the secrets hidden within. The powerful might, which instilled fear in everyone, emanated from within it. There might be an Emperor-level corpse hidden within the pile.


    Perhaps, the corpse was similar to the body of Shenjia the Great.


    The black turtle continued to let out sorrowful wails, affecting the cultivators. Right at this moment, a faint aura could be sensed from the tower-shaped grave. The faint light brightened slightly. Then, under the shocking gazes of all the cultivators, the rest of the corpses glowed and started moving.


    Some of the corpses floated in midair. At this moment, the cultivators who stood on the black turtle felt that they were being watched. It was a peculiar sensation. Before their eyes were indeed lifeless corpses; however, the corpses now gave off a vibe as though they were alive. The situation of the corpses was similar to that of the black turtle. It was undoubtedly dead, but it could continue moving while carrying this ruin on its back.


    Buzz! The corpses suddenly charged towards the cultivators. All the corpses seemed to have come alive. The eyes of some corpses, which had been closed for a long time, suddenly opened and emitted creepy light.


    ��Be careful,�� Renhuang Chen warned the surrounding cultivators. The gazes of the cultivators from various forces turned serious. These corpses actually moved and pounced on them. Who was controlling them?


    Accompanying the sorrowful wail of the Dragon Turtle, the corpses lunged at the cultivators. More than ten corpses pounced in the direction where Ye Futian and his group were. The speed of the corpses was astonishing. They were practically crashing towards them.


    A cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace, who stood in front, punched the space in front of him. Instantly, starlight circulated and shot outwards. The corpses crashed head-on into the starlight. Loud rumbles thundered. A few corpses were shattered into pieces, but some corpses managed to force their way past the gigantic stars. The collision between the corpses and the stars caused the stars to crumble continuously.


    The corpses were so powerful!


    The giant-level figure was shocked. The corpses actually broke through his attack. If they were so powerful even as corpses, what level were these people at when they were still alive?


    Most likely, all the cultivators buried in this tower-shaped grave had not been simple beings.


    Old Ma and the rest also unleashed their divine light of the Great Path to withstand the incoming corpses. However, the corpses ignored all resistance and continued to press forward. They were lifeless and were not afraid of death, so they kept pushing forward.


    Many countermeasures set up by the cultivators were destroyed by the terrifying push from the corpses. Ye Futian and his group were not the only ones being attacked. More and more corpses buried in the tower-shaped grave surged out and rushed towards different directions. The number of the attacking corpses was increasing. They were like an army of reapers. It was a frightening scene to behold.


    Buzz. Star Light Screens appeared all around, with Ye Futian and his group as the center. Renhuang Chen raised his scepter. The surrounding space became his absolute domain. More and more cracks appeared on the tower-shaped grave, and more and more corpses joined in the attack against the cultivators. However, all of them were blocked outside the screens. None of them could break through Renhuang Chen��s defense.


    Even so, the corpses still slammed themselves relentlessly on the screens, causing the screens to vibrate.


    At this moment, the sorrowful wail of the black turtle intensified. Ye Futian looked ahead and saw that, from within the grave, beams of divine halo shone. The halos transformed into a unique rhythm. The rhythm was permeated with immense sadness.


    Boom! A loud thud sounded, and another corpse appeared. This corpse was not deformed. He was garbed in blue robes. His hair was actually still jet-black in color, untainted by the passing of time.


    The rhythm surged out from the grave and permeated into the blue-robed corpse. Immediately, the corpse opened its eyes as though it had been awakened.


    His jet-black hair danced violently in the air. In different directions, a few other corpses that were at the same level as the blue-robed corpse appeared. The pressure emanated by these corpses was enough to make the giant-level figures from various forces feel threatened.


    ��Be careful. These corpses were existences that had survived divine tribulations of the Great Path when they were alive,�� a solemn voice rang, warning all the cultivators to beware of these newly awakened corpses. The capabilities of these corpses were unfathomable.


    A beam of blue light flashed, and the blue-robed corpse sprang in the direction where Ye Futian and his group were. His speed was shocking.


    He extended his arms and sent out a palm strike against the Star Light Screens that materialized from Renhuang Chen��s power of the Great Path. The Starlight Screens shook fiercely upon the impact. Then, cracks appeared on the screens.


    The facial expressions of Renhuang Chen and the rest changed. These corpses were insanely powerful.


    Since the city on the black turtle��s back was in a dilapidated state, the black turtle had most likely wandered around in the void space for a very long time. However, after so many years, not only were the corpses still in good condition, even the clothes that they were wearing also did not decay.


    Now, the corpses moved as though they had been resuscitated. The situation was too bizarre.


    Rumble. More and more cracks formed on the screens. Renhuang Chen raised his scepter and pointed it forward. With a loud bang, the Starlight Screens shattered into pieces. The screens were replaced with a gigantic starry divine sword, which charged straight towards the blue-robed corpse.


    The blue-robed corpse showed no intention of dodging the sword. He actually used his bare hand to grab the sword. The momentum of the divine sword caused the corpse to be pushed backward. However, at the same time, the divine sword was also disintegrating bit by bit.


    Ye Futian stood motionlessly at his spot. He was carefully listening.


    There was a rhythm playing.


    He heard a rhythmic sound coming out from the grave, affecting the corpses. It seemed like the corpses were awakened and gained their fighting spirit from the rhythm.


    Ye Futian listened to the rhythm attentively. It was a vehemently sorrowful rhythm. The wail of the Dragon Turtle echoed the rhythm. As Ye Futian listened, an intense grief welled up inside of him as well; it was as though he had no control over his feelings.


    Who is playing this rhythm? Ye Futian wondered as he stared at the grave ahead. What exactly was hidden inside the grave?


    ��I need to make a trip. Uncle Ma, please keep me company,�� Ye Futian said out loud all of a sudden. Old Ma looked at him and nodded. A dazzling light shone on Ye Futian. Then, he actually entered into a dark fissure formed from the space tearing. Old Ma followed closely behind him.


    Ye Futian wanted to make a trip to the Divine Prefecture. He wanted to return to the village and bring the body of Shenjia the Great to this ruin.

 Chapter 2295 - The Way Home

    After Ye Futian and Old Ma left, the other cultivators remained to hold off the attacks of the ancient corpses of the Great Path. These corpses, which could attack on their own accord, seemed to have minds of their own. Their combat ability was also astonishing.


    It was as though they were real cultivators who had experienced the divine tribulations of the Great Path.


    Renhuang Chen from Ziwei Imperial Palace and the top figures from various forces could not do anything to ward off these ancient corpses. After all, the corpses were already dead, and they were unaffected by the cultivators�� attacks. On the other hand, the cultivators�� lives were in danger as soon as they received a blow from these powerful corpses.


    Moreover, the rhythm coming from the grave intensified as time passed. This caused the ancient corpses to attack even more violently.


    In the end, all the cultivators were forced to retreat. After the cultivators got off the back of the Dragon Turtle, the ancient corpses ceased their pursuit. Then, the corpses returned to the grave, and the rhythm also dissipated. Everything on the Dragon Turtle��s back gradually returned to normal; it was as though nothing had happened.


    The cultivators stood in the void space around the Dragon Turtle. The terrifying storms blasted out from the fissures. The cultivators were enveloped by the divine light of the Great Path so that they could resist the churning storms. At the same time, they traveled in space and followed the Dragon Turtle closely. The cultivators and the Dragon Turtle advanced at the same speed in the same direction.


    ��What should we do?�� asked a cultivator from a top force in the Dark World. The people around him looked at each other in search of answers. Some of them fixed their gazes on the ancient city on top of the Dragon Turtle��s back. A light was still faintly twinkling amidst the dilapidated grave.


    A top figure analyzed the situation and said, ��The power that controls the ancient corpses comes from within the grave. Moreover, the might is at the level of a Great Emperor. Since there is an emperor��s might and it can direct the rhythm, we can more or less be certain that there is a will of the Great Emperor lingering in this ruin. The will of the Great Emperor has kept the Dragon Turtle moving in the void for all these years. It can also utilize the rhythm to activate the ancient corpses.�� The rest of the cultivators nodded in agreement when they heard his words.


    ��We have to assemble a bigger team of cultivators.��


    All of them felt that the current situation was tricky. Many top forces from the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm were here. Yet, with their collective effort, they still couldn��t seize control of this Dragon Turtle, which carried an ancient ruin on its back. Since they couldn��t explore the ruin by themselves, they could only request stronger backup.


    Frightening rumbles thundered. The Dragon Turtle continued to advance in a specific direction. It traveled across space and left behind terrifying cracks. The storms churned continually. All the cultivators from various forces were eager to try their luck. Some of them made their second attempt to explore the ruin. However, they were encircled, attacked by the ancient corpses, and forced to retreat.


    Therefore, a bizarre scene took place in the void space. The Dragon Turtle, which was carrying a ruined city, or more precisely a grave, on its back, advanced in space. It caused a huge commotion as it moved. Many cultivators from various top forces, including quite a few giant-level figures, followed behind it. The scene was shocking.


    This scene continued for a period of time. The Dragon Turtle carrying the ruined city slowly approached the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. It was about to enter the region where the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were.


    Fortunately, the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were widely dispersed. There was a large distance between each realm. The area of the void space in between realms was far larger than the cumulative area of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Therefore, this grievous Dragon Turtle might not necessarily collide with the realms.


    If, unfortunately, a collision between the Dragon Turtle and a realm really occurred, the realm would most likely be penetrated by the terrifying momentum of this beast.


    Lord Taixuan and the rest could only pray in their hearts as they observed the movement of the Dragon Turtle. They were not capable enough to stop it from advancing.


    ��


    On the other side, Ye Futian and Old Ma managed to return to the Divine Prefecture with the help of the divine item given to Ye Futian by Princess Donghuang. However, they landed in the Donghua Domain. They traversed space and moved towards the Shangqing Domain. Their destination was Four Corner Village.


    Old Ma naturally understood why Ye Futian wanted to come back. After experiencing the terror of the ancient corpses on the Dragon Turtle��s back, both of them understood that the cultivators from various forces would most likely be helpless.


    Under such circumstances, Ye Futian couldn��t be involved in the fight. With his abilities, he was not even qualified to participate in the battle. Hence, he had to make a trip to the village and retrieve the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Only then did Ye Futian stand a chance to fight against the other parties for the treasures in the ruin.


    Old Ma was proficient in the power of space. Hence, their speed was fast. They rushed to the Shangqing Domain from the Donghua Domain. Then, they arrived at the Four Corner Continent.


    The return of Ye Futian and Old Ma stirred up quite a commotion in Four Corner Village. Little Ling, Fang Cun, and the other two youngsters gathered around them. However, Ye Futian couldn��t afford to waste much time here. He went straight to the private school in search of the Master.


    In the private school, Master was meditating with his eyes closed. Ye Futian approached him and bowed slightly. He greeted, ��Master.��


    ��Are you here to retrieve the sacred remains?�� Master asked Ye Futian as he opened his eyes. He seemed to know Ye Futian��s intention for coming here.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Did something occur in the Original Realm?�� Master inquired. Since Ye Futian came from the Original Realm to retrieve the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, it was obvious that something had happened there and that Ye Futian required the power of the sacred remains.


    Ye Futian described the situation to Master, saying, ��In a void space of the Original Realm, a Dragon Turtle appears. It carries a ruined city on its back. There is a grave in the city which contains many ancient corpses of the Great Path. A rhythm is played from within the grave, and it can control the ancient corpses. It is menacing. The combat ability of the ancient corpses is also very shocking.��


    ��A Dragon Turtle carrying a ruined city, and a grave at that,�� Master mumbled. ��It is searching for its way home. Unfortunately, the way home is too far. It will most likely never be able to make it back.��


    ��Does Master know what��s going on?�� Ye Futian revealed a strange expression. It was looking for its way home?


    The battle which led to the collapse of the Heavenly Path in the past was also known as the End of the Gods. Countless top cultivators perished, and many gods fell. Even Great Emperor Ziwei had to rely on sealing his will in the segment to preserve it.


    The longer Ye Futian came in contact with Master, the more he felt that Master was mysterious. Master was most likely a figure from the ancient past. Perhaps, he knew what happened in the past and the secrets of the Dragon Turtle and the grave.


    ��I know,�� admitted Master while nodding his head. ��Go and see for yourself.��


    As Master said this, a body appeared beside Ye Futian. It was the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The divine light of the Great Path circled around the body, and it emanated an unfathomable aura. It was akin to a real deity. Ye Futian looked at it. Then, he moved towards it, and streaks of divine light flowed from Ye Futian into the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The two divine lights formed some resonance, and Ye Futian pocketed the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    ��Go. I will give you a ride so that you don��t have to travel all the way back again,�� Master instructed. After that, a gentle force enveloped Ye Futian and Old Ma. They were hurled outwards.


    It seemed like Master wanted to send them back to the Original Realm!

 Chapter 2296 - Stop

    In the Original Realm where the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were, there was a terrifying disturbance in the sky above the boundary of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. In the heavens above, menacing dark fissures seemed to appear.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm immediately glanced over towards the direction of the commotion. They saw an extremely astonishing sight. A gigantic Dragon Turtle bearing an ancient ruined city was traversing across the sky. As it did so, it was descending, seemingly approaching the boundary of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    The terrifying dark fissures seemed to consume everything.


    What was that?


    Countless cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm witnessed this awe-inspiring scene. They were greatly affected as this scene was too shocking.


    Not only were they looking at the gigantic Dragon Turtle, but they were also glancing at the cultivators around it. Each of these cultivators was a top figure. They were actually following the Dragon Turtle, which was carrying an ancient ruined city on its back as it advanced.


    What did they want?


    ��Lord Taixuan is also among them!�� someone exclaimed. Many people spotted Lord Taixuan and the others. The top cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were also there. It was not just them; the cultivators from various top forces were all there.


    ��Retreat!�� someone cried out. The Dragon Turtle was advancing at a frightening speed, descending towards them. No one knew where it would land. It was likely that it would crash on the outskirts of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Many cultivators were already beginning to retreat.


    In the sky, Lord Taixuan looked towards the direction where the Dragon Turtle was moving. He could not help but frown when he traced its trajectory. It was highly likely that it would collide with the boundary of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    However, they had no means of preventing it from doing so. Although more and more cultivators were rushing over to where they were, they were still severely outnumbered. They could not block the Dragon Turtle��s path. They had attempted to do so many times along the way.


    ��It��s getting close!�� someone shouted. The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm dispersed. The Dragon Turtle descended in an imposing manner. It appeared like an evil demon that wanted to consume everything. With an ancient city on its back, it descended upon the lands on the outskirts of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and crashed right into it.


    Rumble. The Dragon Turtle crashed into the boundary of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Terrifying fissures appeared on the ground, followed by earth and debris scattering everywhere. The frightening jet-black fissures consumed everything. It was as though the heavens and earth were collapsing. At that moment, the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm felt a tremor. The closer they were to this place, the more intense the tremor felt.


    There were even frightening cracks that propagated far into the distance. It seemed as though the land was being ripped apart. It was a catastrophe.


    Down below, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy unleashed the divine light of the Great Path, sweeping away a group who had not managed to get away, thereby protecting them.


    The Dragon Turtle��s advance was not hindered too greatly. It continued downwards, penetrating the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The lands along the boundary were immediately reduced to rubble and later consumed by the jet-black fissures.


    After the Dragon Turtle left, Lord Taixuan and the others left the people they had saved at a safe location before continuing to pursue it.


    The cultivators bowed slightly at Lord Taixuan and the others. Emotions welled up in them for having survived a disaster. The scene just now was too terrifying. They lowered their heads and peered down below. Their hearts still trembled intensely beyond their control. What exactly was that thing?


    There seemed to be a grave on the back of the Dragon Turtle.


    After piercing through the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Dragon Turtle had completely entered the region of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. It was still advancing further. This Dragon Turtle, which had wandered in the vast void for countless years, had finally arrived in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, where there were cultivators.


    ��We must stop it,�� said Lord Taixuan. It was too dangerous to allow this to continue. No one knew which continent the Dragon Turtle would crash into. Once it did, the continent would be reduced to rubble.


    The Dragon Turtle was still moving forward. More cultivators rushed over to where they were. Many powerful existences had survived divine tribulations of the Great Path. They were also chasing after the Dragon Turtle.


    Above the Heavenly Mandate Realm, two silhouettes suddenly appeared. They were Ye Futian and Old Ma. The two of them glanced down and saw the shattered lands of the boundary of the Heavenly Mandate Realm as well as the terrifying fissures of the Great Path.


    ��Let��s go.�� The two of them stepped forward and pursued the terrifying aura. Ye Futian frowned. As expected, the thing he was worried about had occurred. The Dragon Turtle had actually descended upon the lands of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. It had even shattered the boundary of the Heavenly Mandate Realm and was moving further into the region.


    Divine Light of Space shone. Old Ma��s speed was extremely fast as he traversed the space and chased after the aura. As they made their way over, Ye Futian and Old Ma saw a broken continent. Countless rubble was floating in the space. More than half of the entire continent was consumed by dark fissures.


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, and his heart was extremely heavy. The worst possible outcome had occurred. The Dragon Turtle had collided with a continent and shattered it.


    Finally, they sensed the terrifying aura ahead and knew that they were close.


    The two of them continued forward and finally saw the Dragon Turtle.


    Right then, in the space surrounding where the Dragon Turtle was traversing, many top cultivators appeared. Most of them were existences who had survived divine tribulations of the Great Path. The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm were all present. They seemed to have reached an agreement and were preparing to join forces to stop the Dragon Turtle from advancing. It was not because the other forces pitied the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, but rather that allowing the Dragon Turtle to continue moving would make it more difficult to claim the ruined city on its back. It was best if they could trap it here and stop it in its tracks.


    In front of the Dragon Turtle, a heavenly bulwark seemed to appear. Tens of thousands of runes lit up. It was extremely dazzling. The Dragon Turtle crashed right into the bulwark. Cracks appeared on its surface. However, the next moment, a Gate of World Suppression appeared there. It was like an ancient door of the gods that could suppress everything in this world. Wangshen Watchtower also blocked the Dragon Turtle��s path. Millet Emperor had appeared.


    Rumble. Terrifying rumbling sounds caused the space to tremble violently. Even the Gate of World Suppression was penetrated, and Wangshen Watchtower was knocked backward. However, the advance of the Dragon Turtle was beginning to weaken.


    After that, other cultivators appeared one by one. Various incredibly powerful figures had arrived. Emperor Xi and Renhuang Chen also attacked. This time, the cultivators of the three major realms were actually exceptionally united in their efforts to stop the Dragon Turtle.


    The Dragon Turtle began to slow down. It seemed sluggish. It let out a sorrowful cry. Followed by rumbling sounds, the Dragon Turtle finally came to a stop.


    In the void, it seemed as though an ancient ruined city had appeared out of thin air.


    From within the grave, the rhythm could be heard again. It contained an intense sorrow within it. The grave moved once again. The ancient corpses on it also floated up with it. It seemed as though the actions of the crowd had incurred the wrath of the grave.


    It appeared that there was indeed life within it.


    Ye Futian stared straight ahead. He faintly sensed that this Dragon Turtle had not stopped because the others had blocked its path, but rather the power that drove it had caused it to stop. Otherwise, it would most likely still have been difficult for the various top cultivators to prevent the Dragon Turtle from advancing.


    Master said that the Dragon Turtle was seeking its way home. Could it be that the owner of the grave was making his way home?

 Chapter 2297 - The Great Emperor Is Alive?

    After the Dragon Turtle came to a stop, at last, no more new dark fissures appeared. Everything gradually returned to being peaceful. However, in the void space, there was a ruined city floating about.


    In the void space around it, the cultivators stood staring at the ruined city. Ancient corpses emerged from the grave one by one as the rhythm played. It seemed to be controlling the movement of the ancient corpses. A few of the powerful ancient corpses were still around, standing in different locations. They stared wide-eyed at the surrounding cultivators. It was as though they themselves were cultivators who were still alive.


    These ancient corpses released extremely powerful auras. As the rhythm spread outwards, the ancient corpses began to move. They immediately pounced towards the surrounding cultivators.


    The power of each ancient corpse was comparable to that of a giant-level figure.


    ��We must destroy them right away,�� someone said. These ancient corpses were originally lifeless. They could only be stopped by destroying them completely.


    ��Hmm.�� The various cultivators nodded their heads in agreement. This time, the cultivators from three major realms were gathered around here. All of them unleashed auras of the Great Path at the same time. For a moment, the power of the Great Path around them rampaged and was extremely frightening. As Ye Futian, who was standing in the distance and did not attack, watched the situation over here, even he could sense the suffocating pressure sweeping outwards.


    There was a gigantic tower that came crashing down while unleashing destructive golden divine halos, flattening and shattering everything. Sword rivers annihilated everything within the space. Long dark spears traversed across the darkness. Divine halos of space tore the space apart. In an instant, the attacks of the various cultivators that burst forth simultaneously blocked out the sky. The entire ruined city was blanketed within these attacks. None of the ancient corpses could escape the range of these attacks.


    The rampaging power of these attacks came crashing down like an apocalypse might. Huge rumbling noises could be heard. In an instant, the ancient corpses that were charging towards the cultivators were mostly destroyed. They were buried within the ruined city; they could not charge out even if they wanted to.


    Jet black fissures appeared in the chaotic space, not settling for a long while. Once everything returned to normal, many ancient corpses had already disappeared, having been completely annihilated.


    Only a few powerful ancient corpses remained standing there. The chaotic, destructive power did not manage to destroy them. These ancient corpses were powerful existences that could stand against figures at the level of Renhuang Chen.


    In the grave, a light grew brighter and brighter. The rhythm also grew louder and louder. A loud bang could be heard as the grave burst open. A corpse stood on top of the grave. From within it, the formless rhythm surged nonstop into the corpse. It caused the corpse to be circled by halos of the Great Path. As the corpse stood there, a formless pressure swept out. It caused the various cultivators to stand around the ruined city to sense a terrifying pressure acting on them.


    Their gazes gradually became serious. The rhythm contained a unique power. It surged into the corpse that had appeared and caused the aura of the corpse to grow more and more powerful. Divine light actually circled around it, and the lifeless corpse seemed to be reborn into a body that was truly alive. Its hair was black as ink, and its skin became smoother. Its features became more defined, as though it had truly been resurrected.


    It was not just its features; from its body, halos of rhythm were released that circled around it and enveloped the other ancient corpses. The other corpses immediately lit up with beams of light. When the surrounding cultivators saw this scene, their expressions turned serious. Was this the corpse king?


    It seemed that with him as the center, the surrounding corpses all came back to life. Where was this rhythm coming from? Why did it contain such power?


    ��It is a long-lost Divine Melody. I think I know who is buried within this grave,�� claimed someone. The gazes of the crowd immediately shifted towards the speaker. It was Lord Luo from Outer Violet Heaven, a master of a Divine Melody.


    This rhythm was a long-lost Divine Melody?


    The hearts of the various cultivators stirred. Divine Melodies were created by Great Emperors. Only the melodies created by deity-like existences such as Great Emperors were qualified to be called Divine Melodies. The Nine Great Divine Melodies were all passed down from ancient times.


    That meant to say that, as expected, the master in the grave of the ruined city on the Dragon Turtle��s back was an ancient Great Emperor.


    Many people revealed contemplative looks. Some people seemed to have realized this. Their expressions changed instantly. Many people did not know about the mystery behind the Divine Melody. They could not help but ask, ��Which Divine Melody is it? Who is buried within the grave?��


    ��It is the Divine Requiem,�� said Lord Luo. ��It is the most sorrowful Divine Melody among the Nine Great Divine Melodies. It was composed by a prominent figure in ancient times, Shenyin the Great. Once the Divine Requiem is played, the world will be cast into sorrow. It can control the emotions of others, and they will not be able to break free of its grasp. No wonder the cry of the Dragon Turtle was so sorrowful before this.��


    Shenyin the Great.


    The hearts of the various cultivators trembled. This Great Emperor was also a figure who made it into the annals of history. In the legends, Shenyin the Great was a person who was true to himself. He was obsessed with the Way of Rhythm his whole life and cultivated it to its utmost limit. During his time, he was the top master of the Way of Rhythm. Otherwise, how could his Divine Requiem claim to cast the world into sorrow when played?


    ��How can it control these ancient corpses then?�� someone asked. These ancient corpses seemed to be controlled by the rhythm.


    Lord Luo explained, ��It is because this is not the true Divine Requiem. Shenyin the Great was the top master of rhythm of his era. He was terrifyingly proficient in musical techniques. It is not unthinkable that he can control ancient corpses. I am more curious as to whether the grave contains more than just the will of Shenyin the Great.�� His expression was stern. The surrounding cultivators also revealed strange expressions. They clearly understood what he meant by this.


    If only his will were present in the grave, how was it that it could activate the rhythm and control these corpses?


    It also seemed to be doing so as it pleased.


    However, if it was not just the will of the Great Emperor in the grave, what else was buried there?


    It was an astonishing line of thought.


    Lord Luo bowed towards the grave and said, ��Great Emperor, we stumbled upon this place in the void, so we wanted to explore it. We had no intention of disturbing you.��


    When the surrounding cultivators heard Lord Luo��s words, they were shocked. Lord Luo believed that the Great Emperor was still alive?


    How was this possible? If a Great Emperor from eons ago was still alive, why hadn��t he appeared in the world sooner? Why did the Dragon Turtle need to wander in the void? If the Great Emperor was still alive, he could have killed them all with a flick of his hand. Why did he need to act in such a roundabout fashion?


    ��Lord Luo, I believe you are overthinking things,�� someone said. The other cultivators clearly did not believe this legendary figure from the ancient era had survived until the present day.


    If that were the case, it would be too astonishing.


    Lord Luo continued, ��Everyone, you seem to have forgotten the mysterious Master of Four Corner Village. Nothing is impossible. After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, it was claimed that the gods had perished. However, can gods truly perish so easily? It might be that they exist in a different form in the world now.�� His words caused many people to frown. They seemed to have recalled something!

 Chapter 2298 - Corpse King

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everyone ignored Lord Luo��s words. There was movement in the grave aside from the rhythm playing. It surged into the various ancient corpses, especially the corpse king. The corpse king seemed to have come alive. A terrifying storm of rhythm emanated from his body and spread outward quickly.


    In an instant, the storm of rhythm enveloped the entire space. Everyone was within the domain of this rhythm. The rhythm was formless, yet its effect could be felt by all the cultivators present.


    The cultivators examined their surroundings. They could sense the omnipresent rhythm. Their eardrums vibrated with the rhythm; they formed some resonance with the music. It was as though their spiritual souls were invaded by it. Extreme grief welled up inside of them. They could feel despair and sorrow from deep within their souls.


    ��Beware.�� Many people reminded each other to be careful. The intense emotion mixed in the rhythm could directly affect the cultivators�� souls, causing them to feel miserable.


    Sorrow, despair, helplessness, and the futility of struggling propagated along with the rhythm. These intense emotions directly impacted the cultivators, causing their Mindfulness of the Path to be swayed. It also lowered their combat abilities. Countless images that were related to their traumas surged in their minds. The traumas that each cultivator recalled were all memories that impacted their hearts and their souls the most. The negativity that they felt was magnified continuously, causing them to dwell in misery.


    ��It��s the Divine Requiem.��


    Lord Luo��s emotions were similarly affected. At the same time, he was shocked by the might of the rhythm. This was the terror of the Divine Requiem. It would not attack the cultivators directly, yet it could perturb their Mindfulness of the Path and cause them to break down. Indirectly, it could destroy the cultivators.


    Humanity would dwell in sorrow as soon as the Divine Requiem was played. One could imagine how frightening this Divine Melody was.


    All the cultivators present had their own stories to tell. They had experienced countless tribulations to reach the peak of the Renhuang Plane. They had fortified their Mindfulness of the Path, and they were good at suppressing their emotions. Some of them even deserted all their feelings to achieve greater attainment in their Way. Nevertheless, their experiences remained as memories in their minds.


    The Divine Requiem had the magical power to evoke those memories hidden in their minds. It would then amplify the negativity felt by the cultivators, causing them to wallow endlessly in sadness. It would destroy the will of a person. Even top figures would be affected by this. As to how powerful the effect would be, it depended on who was playing the Divine Requiem.


    It was the same for Ye Futian. He thought that his Mindfulness of the Path and his conviction were firm. However, right now, his memories that had long been hidden were once again evoked. The scenes resurfaced in his mind and leaped into his consciousness. It was as though he had returned to the days of his youth. He saw his teacher and grandmaster. He even experienced the sorrow and despair he had felt back then once again. It was as though he had returned to the time when he was back at Sage Hall and experienced the death of Jieyu all over.


    The intense sorrow seemed to be magnified, causing grief from deep within his soul to emerge. It felt as though he had lost his ability to fight completely. This sensation was too frightening. He never imagined that the rhythm actually possessed such astonishing power. It could subdue its opponents without a fight, destroying its enemies through their emotions.


    ��This won��t do!�� a voice cried out from within Ye Futian. He had to break free; otherwise, he would be in grave danger. Setting aside the fact that the ancient corpses had not attacked, even if they didn��t, his mind would gradually be worn out if he continued to be immersed in this endless sorrow until he was eventually crippled.


    Was the Divine Melody played by a true top figure actually this powerful? Who was playing it now?


    At that moment, he actually came to the same preposterous conclusion as Lord Luo. Could it be that the Great Emperor was actually still alive?


    Who else could play such a Divine Melody?


    Rumble. At that moment, the Great Path resonated on Ye Futian��s figure. His body became a Divine Body of the Great Path. The endless divine light of the Great Path circled around him. Musical notes burst forth from inside his body. These dancing musical notes intertwined to form a melody and countered the attack of the Divine Requiem.


    However, right then, the ancient corpses began to move. This time, they no longer attacked frantically like before. Instead, they were following the movements of the corpse king.


    The figure of the corpse king floated up into the air. He stood at the center of the storm of rhythm. He was circled by the endless storm. The other ancient corpses seemed to follow him and appeared around his figure.


    The corpse king appeared like a truly extraordinary cultivator. He raised a finger, and immediately, the storm of rhythm in the vast space moved with his finger. Countless Sword Wills instantly appeared in the sky. These Sword Wills merged with the storm of rhythm. The humming of swords seemed to become a sorrowful wail. The hum of swords and the melody reverberated throughout the space.


    The other ancient corpses also did the same. The vast space was immediately enveloped by the sorrowful wail of swords. It was difficult for those caught in it to break free from its grasp.


    Buzz. The corpse king lifted his finger and pointed at the cultivators. Immediately, myriads of humming swords appeared in the vast space. Each and every one of the swords was tainted with inexhaustible sadness. All the swords slashed towards the cultivators at the same time.


    The swords seemed to be capable of destroying one��s spiritual soul. They were akin to the swords of great sorrow. A formless power was hidden within the swords as they charged towards the cultivators. All the top figures in the region were targeted by the swords.


    ��Be careful,�� warned Renhuang Chen as his figure appeared beside Ye Futian. Starlight illuminated and enveloped their surroundings. Ye Futian and the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were shielded under the Star Light Screen.


    Rumble. Endless Sword Will descended and blasted on the Star Light Screen. The entire screen was covered with invading Sword Will. Ye Futian and his group could clearly see how the Sword Will landed on the screen and caused it to shake violently. Cracks appeared on the screen. The terrifying melody permeated through the screen and affected the will of everyone.


    In other directions, cultivators from various top forces were also fighting hard to defend against the Sword Will. Even the giant-level figures felt threatened by the ferocious attack. Some people retreated frantically while some people sought protection from Tribulation level cultivators.


    Right at this moment, the ancient corpses dispersed. They moved simultaneously as they charged towards the cultivators in various directions. The corpse king remained where he was. His gaze was devoid of emotion. He was a dead man, after all. Naturally, he wouldn��t have any feelings.


    The corpse king glanced in one direction. His gaze landed on a giant-level figure from the Divine Prefecture. Then, he raised his arm and sent out a palm strike from across the space. A gigantic palm immediately appeared in the heavens and earth. Even the gigantic palm was ringing with a sorrowful wail. This palm of great sorrow flew towards the cultivator.


    The cultivator retreated frenziedly. The sorrowful wail seemed to be omnipresent. It seeped into his mind and disturbed his emotions, causing him not to be able to focus and retaliate with his full force. At this moment, the palm of great sorrow slammed into him. With a loud bang, his spiritual soul was shattered. His body plummeted from the sky. He was killed instantly with a palm strike!

 Chapter 2299 - The Great Emperor?

    ��Stand back���� a voice called out.


    Various top cultivators back down. Renhuang Chen, who was protecting the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, also said, ��Stand back for now. This corpse king is terrifying.��


    A giant-level figure had been killed with one blow so easily. The corpse king��s combat ability was astonishing. Cultivators who had not survived a divine tribulation would find it difficult to take a stand against the corpse king. Even Tribulation level cultivators were having a hard time fighting him.


    ��It is already too late,�� said Emperor Xi. A sorrowful wail could be heard all around them. They were all trapped in this domain of rhythm. The storm of rhythm that surrounded the vast space merged with the hum of swords and became a mournful wail of swords. It blocked out the sky and enveloped all the cultivators.


    In the ruined city, rhythm still floated out non-stop from within the grave towards the figure of the corpse king. There were certainly secrets hidden within the grave. It was also highly likely that it was the secret to the Divine Requiem. Could it truly be as Lord Luo had speculated and that the Great Emperor existed in a different form in the world now?


    If not, how could such a powerful rhythm be created?


    ��Seal off your senses. Do not let the rhythm affect you,�� someone reminded loudly. The grievous wails persisted. It directly affected the spiritual souls of the cultivators. The thick sense of sorrow pierced straight through to the hearts of the cultivators. If this continued, they would succumb to endless despair under the rhythm and would not be able to break free from its grasp.


    Many giant-level figures were already severely affected and had lost their will to fight.


    ��Elder, may I trouble you to guard my body?�� Ye Futian asked. As he said this, his spiritual soul left his body and entered into the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. With his current Plane in this domain, Ye Futian could not withstand a single blow to his body.


    Right then, a suffocating pressure appeared in the heavens and the earth. The sorrowful, wailing Sword Will in the sky trembled. There was a loud rumble. Someone immediately shattered the domain and entered the area. Many people raised their heads and looked at the person who had arrived. Their hearts were trembling.


    Before this, cultivators from the various top forces had already informed their clans or forces to send over super cultivators who had survived the second divine tribulation. It seemed that someone had arrived.


    The corpse king raised his head and swept a glance at the other party. He then raised a finger, and immediately cold Sword Will howled as it charged towards the other party. A frightening pattern of the Great Path appeared before the person who had arrived, blocking out the sky. When the sorrowful Sword Will stabbed forward, it actually sank straight into the pattern.


    Another extremely powerful aura descended and appeared above. Clearly, the second super cultivator had arrived.


    How could the relic of a Great Emperor appearing in the Void Realm not cause a commotion?


    Even the top super cultivators could not resist coming over to take a look to see whether there was a Great Emperor level existence here.


    After a short while, in the surrounding void, many super cultivators appeared. These people were definitely rare sights to behold. They stood at the very top, high above everyone else. After the Great Emperor, they were the strongest existences. They were the backbone of their forces and controlled superpowers. An example was Taichu Saint Emperor. He was already a cultivator at the top of the pyramid and was the ruler of the Taichu Domain.


    For cultivators of this level, their greatest obsession was the Great Emperor Plane. However, it was almost impossible for them to reach this Plane. Ever since the collapse of the Heavenly Path, how many Great Emperors had there been?


    No matter how talented these cultivators were, the Great Emperor Plane was always beyond their reach.


    After they arrived, they stared at these ancient corpses. Had these corpses been given life?


    Where was the rhythm coming from?


    As they pondered on this, they immediately stepped forward toward the grave. They wanted to see what secrets were hidden within. Were the remains of Shenyin the Great buried within this ruined city on the back of a Dragon Turtle?


    The ancient corpses around the grave charged towards the cultivators who were approaching them. Sword Will howled sorrowfully and rained down. However, the people who had arrived this time were powerful existences. A cultivator from the Dark World lifted a finger and the ancient corpse charging towards him became a pile of shriveled bones. It disappeared gradually and turned to ash.


    Another cultivator slashed out with his own Sword Will. The space was instantly shattered, and everything in its path was annihilated. Even the space before him was shredded into pieces, let alone the corpses. They were immediately reduced to nothing.


    Another cultivator merely waved his hand, and the ancient corpses were disintegrated. This was the absolute suppression of Planes. Once one reached this Plane, the difference between each Plane was insurmountable. Cultivators who survived the second divine tribulation could not be compared with those who only survived the first. The latter could be suppressed with a mere wave of a hand by the former.


    In an instant, most of the ancient corpses were destroyed. Only the corpse king was left standing there. He was staring at the cultivators who were approaching him with his deep gaze.


    The corpse king might have also been an existence who survived the second divine tribulation. Alas, he was but a corpse now. He couldn��t wield the same level of combat ability as he did when he was still alive. He had been weakened greatly. It was most likely impossible for him to deal with these super cultivators by just activating the rhythm.


    ��Sorry for the offense,�� one of the cultivators apologized. He then lifted his hand and pointed a finger forwards. The space in front of him instantly collapsed and shattered. A frightening black hole appeared. This space could not withstand an attack of a cultivator of this level. A simple attack would cause the Great Path to collapse.


    The other cultivators also attacked at the same time, aiming their attacks at the corpse king. Astonishing powers swept towards the figure of the corpse king simultaneously. The crowd could predict what the outcome would be; the corpse king would certainly be decimated by these attacks.


    At this moment, a menacing divine light surged from within the grave. The light transformed into the storm of rhythm which enveloped the corpse king. Many attacks landed at the same time, flooding the entire space where the corpse king was. However, after the destructive storm dissipated, the cultivators noticed that the corpse king was still standing tall, unharmed by the attacks. An even more frightening aura permeated from his body. The light from within the grave surged into his body frenziedly.


    The surrounding cultivators frowned. The corpse king was not eradicated even when faced with such attacks from the crowd.


    Furthermore, they could vaguely sense that the aura of the corpse king was undergoing metamorphosis. It was becoming stronger. An unparalleled might emanated from the corpse king, causing the cultivators to feel an overbearing pressure.


    It was the might of a Great Emperor.


    As expected, it was the aura of a Great Emperor. Could it be that the will of the Great Emperor was really hidden in the grave?


    Moreover, the user could control this might so freely. The thing hidden in the grave would most likely not just be the will of the Great Emperor.


    The hearts of all the cultivators quivered. Even those who had experienced the second divine tribulation found it hard to remain calm at this moment. Could it be that Shenyin the Great was really still alive?


    More and more cultivators found themselves believing the words of Lord Luo. Perhaps he was right. The Great Emperor might still be alive in another form. He might have even retained his consciousness. If that was the case, then the thing hidden in the grave was��

 Chapter 2300 - White Sarcophagus

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A horrific rhythmic atmosphere diffused from the corpse king and swept across the space without reserve. In an instant, heaven and earth were once again surrounded by rhythms and formed a domain dominated by it.


    Traces of musical rhythm burrowed into everyone��s ears, probing into their spiritual souls. Even those powerful beings who had passed the second Divine Tribulation felt a shudder in their spiritual souls.


    Buzz! The fluctuations of the rhythm continued to spread from the corpse king. It was as if his body was merely a conductor. In a brief moment, the vast land was enveloped by the will contained in the rhythm.


    The music of a song began to play, and every single beating note seemed to contain endless sorrow.


    ��The Divine Requiem.�� Lord Luo��s expression was solemn. He had a look of piety. He then sat cross-legged directly in this void, listening very carefully.


    Although this Divine Requiem was terrifying, it was also a great blessing to personally experience the long-lost Divine Requiem. Furthermore, it was possible that this Divine Requiem was being performed by Shenyin the Great himself. Even if he was not in human form, he existed in another form, playing this stunning divine tune.


    As a rhythmic cultivator, Lord Luo appreciated the opportunity to hear the Divine Requiem here, even if it meant that he must withstand terrible rhythmic attacks. He did not deliberately resist the attacks but allowed things to take their course, wanting to comprehend the fullness of the Divine Requiem.


    And because of his own cultivation in rhythm, he had stronger resistance than most.


    Of course, even if Lord Luo deliberately resisted it, it wouldn��t do him much good. The Divine Requiem had shrouded the vast space and rang throughout this corner of the sky. It had wormed into everyone��s ears and infiltrated their spiritual souls so that there was absolutely nowhere to hide.


    Those major figureheads who had retreated sat cross-legged, trying to shut down all their senses, but it was totally futile. Once the Divine Requiem started to play, that endless sadness quickly took hold of their minds, dragging them into a world created by the mood of dejection. So much so that they had forgotten where they were and were compelled to enter an atmosphere of extreme sorrow of their own making.


    As soon as the Divine Requiem sounded, the whole world grieved.


    As despondency percolated into this world, Ye Futian sat cross-legged like most people. Although his spiritual soul was in the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, it was still impossible for him to resist the invasion of the divine music. This rhythm was particularly good at invading the spiritual souls, and the strong sense of sadness took hold of him once again. It was a feeling of desperation, endless emptiness, and endless sorrow. This emotion was then amplified to the point that it could make anyone who heard it lose their mind. As if mired in quicksand, they immersed themselves in that extreme sadness, unable to extricate themselves until their will was completely eaten away.


    Even those strong cultivators who had survived the twofold Divine Tribulation were strongly affected. They looked at the corpse king in front of them while their own bodies were releasing a terrifying aura of the Great Path. They continued moving forward, intent on destroying the other. If they didn��t, they would also be affected by the rhythm to the point of falling within that inescapable mood.


    However, as they moved forward, the rhythmic storm became even more frightening, engulfing their bodies and madly infiltrating their minds. A strong sense of grief was born involuntarily; it was as if they could no longer control their own will but were controlled by that music.


    But the existence at this level had wills like iron that were hard to bend. Even in this state, they struggled to stretch out their hands, pointing at the body of the corpse king. A single arm was able to penetrate the rhythmic storm. It continued penetrating the storm little by little until that arm was in front of the corpse king, pointing directly at his physical body.


    In other directions, those who had survived the twofold Divine Tribulations also tried to touch the corpse king by any means possible. At this moment, the space had been completely torn apart and shattered, and there was no power to stop the madness of the storm or the collapse of that space.


    The extremely brilliant light and the light of darkness appeared at the same time. Then they saw the body of the corpse king began to disperse a little bit at a time, until it completely disappeared, destroyed.


    Is he dead? everyone wondered after what they had seen.


    ��That��s not quite right���� Their expressions became alert, though their sadness remained. The rhythm had not dissipated, and it was just a corpse. Even if its physical form was destroyed, it didn��t necessarily mean anything. Previously, the rhythm had been using his body as a medium to play the music.


    That top cultivator, who had reached the front, lowered his head to check out the tomb below. He saw wisps of rhythmic fluctuations that had begun to drift outward. As the man stepped out, a heavy pressure suddenly dropped down, causing cracks upon the tomb. It started to break apart in the middle.


    He wanted to see what was hidden inside the tomb.


    Even though everything that happened before was extremely uncanny, as if the Great Emperor had truly existed, he didn��t believe that Shenyin the Great was still alive. If so, how could he have allowed them to do what they had done here?


    Inside this tomb, there might be secrets that were yet unknown to them.


    Once the tomb was broken open, an ancient sarcophagus appeared inside. It was a pure white sarcophagus. The terrifying rhythm was coming from it, and even divine consciousness could not penetrate and scan it.


    This was enough to sober up several cultivators who had survived the twofold Divine Tribulation. They stared at this white sarcophagus. Was the body of Shenyin the Great inside?


    If it was indeed the corpse of the Great Emperor, then where did this rhythm come from?


    And why was it able to be played here?


    Moreover, the music from the sarcophagus did not stop but became stronger instead, so that these top cultivators felt as if they were inside an illusion, that they, too, were about to fall into that deepest sorrow.


    Boom!


    The aura from them was shocking. They fixed their attention on the sarcophagus. In any case, they were determined to break it open and expose the secrets inside the sarcophagus. If the corpse of the Great Emperor was really inside, it might be the beginning of another bloody conflict.


    Like before, they moved toward the sarcophagus, but the bursts of energy from the Great Path dissipated immediately when they got near the sarcophagus. Just like before, they tried to launch their attacks at close range. Someone stretched out a hand and pointed at the sarcophagus. His body penetrated and entered the rhythmic storm.


    Someone else unleashed an amazing sword that pierced through the storm, all the way down.


    The attacks of these powerful cultivators in the Original Realm were enough to shatter heaven and earth and destroy the Great Path. However, they were under incomparable pressure; it was as if their attacks were blocked as they struggled to move forward.


    However, they were getting closer.


    Lord Luo opened his eyes and looked ahead. His heart was beating violently. It seemed that the sarcophagus was really about to be opened.


    He had speculated that the Great Emperor might have existed in another form and that the behaviors of these cultivators were terribly disrespectful to the Great Emperor. If the Great Emperor truly existed in another form, no one would know what the consequences would be.


    However, these men were determined, and their minds were made up. It was impossible to stop them. Finally, someone��s attack took hold and landed on the white sarcophagus. A cracking sound was heard. The sarcophagus began to crack; it didn��t seem so difficult to break now.


    Bang! The ancient white sarcophagus exploded. At this moment, everyone��s eyes were fixed on the contents inside!

 Chapter 2301 - Divine Guqin

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    All eyes were glued to the scene ahead. Even in the midst of the emotional struggle, they opened their eyes and stared. They wondered what was inside the tomb in the ruin that had been pulled by the Dragon Turtle.


    No one doubted that the will of the Great Emperor was here and that it was Shenyin the Great��the first man of music in ancient times. Then, was the corpse of Shenyin the Great inside this white sarcophagus?


    Everyone stared at the broken sarcophagus and finally saw what was hidden inside. There was no corpse, no physical body of Shenyin the Great, and no one else either.


    In the sarcophagus, the rhythmic storm continued raging, and the rhythm was originated from the strings of a guqin.


    Inside this white sarcophagus, there was only a guqin, one that seemed to be alive, capable of playing divine music by itself.


    The hearts of all the cultivators were beating quickly. A guqin that could play the divine music?


    What kind of guqin was this?


    And who was controlling the guqin?


    Furthermore, they could feel the will of the Great Emperor contained within the sounds of the music. Did this mean that this guqin contained the will of Shenyin the Great?


    However, even if this guqin contained the will of Shenyin the Great, why was it playing freely, as if it was alive? It even had the power to control those ancient corpses with the music�� Could it be?


    As their thought turned to this, even those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation felt a great disturbance in their hearts. They stared at the guqin below and realized that there was only one possibility that could have led to such a situation. After Shenyin the Great had perished, he might have incorporated his consciousness into this guqin, thus infusing the guqin with life force.


    Perhaps Lord Luo was right. The Great Emperor may have existed in another form, such as inside of this guqin, so that he was able to use this guqin to play the divine music.


    Just as they were considering this possibility, they saw that a few top cultivators had already made their move as they started grabbing at the instrument. This was a true divine item, one that might possess the will of a Great Emperor. If it could be controlled, what would that be like?


    However, as soon as they grabbed for the guqin, an extremely radiant divine brilliance erupted from it. It contained supreme coercion, radiating and falling directly on several powerful cultivators. Suddenly, these men were repelled backward, and no one was able to remain standing under that divine brilliance. Even the others who were in the distance felt the pressure of the Great Emperor that permeated in the sound of the guqin.


    Their hearts beat wildly as they saw the guqin flying up and floating in the air. The strings on the guqin kept moving, and the Might of the Emperor diffused from the guqin itself and covered the boundless space. At this moment, those top-notch cultivators actually had the urge to worship the guqin.


    It was as if that guqin represented the Great Emperor himself.


    The sound from the guqin increased its coercion; it was more penetrating than before, piercing into their spiritual souls. Finally, the Dragon Turtle let out a violent bellow. It seemed as if even the corpse of the Dragon Turtle was deeply affected by it.


    All the cultivators were immersed in despair and sorrow. They couldn��t imagine how a person could perform such a sorrowful composition. What did Shenyin the Great experience to cause him to compose the Divine Requiem?


    Ye Futian felt the music a bit more deeply than the others. He was a student of the guqin and understood that the music represented a person��s state of mind. The person who could compose something like the Divine Requiem must have gone through endless sadness and despair himself. For a great existence, such as Shenyin the Great, who stood at the pinnacle of music, to have personally experienced such extreme grief was something unimaginable.


    The extreme sadness affected everyone��s emotions, and the sadness only deepened. It was as if even the souls were crying out as well. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor raised his head and looked at that beating guqin. Tears seemed to have stained the corners of his eyes.


    If one is immersed in this mood, what would it be like? Ye Futian wondered. He was surrounded by the Imperial Will and was closely guarding his thoughts. But at the same time, he let loose of his emotions and no longer resisted. He allowed the sound of guqin to invade his emotions. Since it was impossible to resist, why not accept it and feel the true feelings the music was trying to convey?


    As the sound of guqin continued to spread, heaven and earth fell into endless sorrow; even the Great Path seemed to be in grief. Similarly, the resistance of those major figures gradually weakened as more and more people quieted down. The aura of the Great Path upon their bodies gradually dissipated. Like Ye Futian, they were slowly immersed in the sound of the guqin, unable to extricate themselves from its hold.


    One by one, they sank into the mood created by the guqin in endless sorrow.


    Only those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path were still resisting, especially those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation. Their will was the most persistent, but even then, they were being affected profoundly. Their will was unrelenting, and they refused to surrender to the sound of the guqin. In their present state of cultivation, they were only one step away from the heavenly path. How could they be affected by the rhythmic path of the music? To them, this concept was unacceptable.


    Some continued to try to grab at the guqin. Several others also did whatever they could to try to obtain the guqin by force, using the supreme power of the Great Path to prevent the music from continuing.


    But those moving strings seemed to never stop, and round after round of sound waves swept out, making every movement extremely difficult to manage. When they got close to the guqin, radiant divine glory would bloom from it, like the might of the Great Emperor. It spread out with the sound of the guqin to suppress these cultivators. Every cultivator was incredibly tense as the strings continued to move, and another terrible imperial might descended upon them. Once again, those cultivators were knocked back again, and some couldn��t help but let out a muffled groan.


    Although it was just a guqin, it seemed to be alive, and there was no way to capture it.


    Those top figures looked at the guqin that floated in the void, and their hearts trembled. It seemed that Shenyin the Great might exist in this guqin in another form, giving it life. But, even if strong cultivators like them coveted the item, they were unable to achieve it. Unless it was the guqin itself that allowed them access without resistance, it could not be done.


    A storm of rhythm shrouded this vast space, and everyone seemed to quiet down. The aura of the Great Path they released gradually dissipated. One may see that there were traces of tears in many top cultivators�� eyes. The whole world seemed to be immersed in despair and sorrow; even the air was filled with sadness.


    The Dragon Turtle��s sad bellowing was heard at this moment. As it cried, the Dragon Turtle moved again. Accompanied by the violent sounds, the Dragon Turtle set off again to smash through those previous defenses. It gradually accelerated along with the sound of the guqin; it was as if it were still looking for a way home as it had done before. This time, the bellowing continued and persisted, resounding in this endless space in the void. It seemed that the whole world was filled with endless sorrow!

 Chapter 2302 - The Great Emperor Prevailed

    The Dragon Turtle set off. Rumbling sounds rolled across the void. Spatial cracks appeared between heaven and earth, and the sound of sad bellowing that came from the Dragon Turtle seemed to draw tears from the others as well.


    Even sadder was the Divine Requiem. Upon the immense body of the Dragon Turtle, that city of ruin formed a field dominated by the music of the Great Path. All the cultivators were trapped within it, including those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. They, too, were mired in the sorrowful mood of the Divine Requiem, falling into sadness so absolute that they were unable to escape by themselves.


    Those who had survived the second major Divine Tribulation had the strongest resistance, but they could not take hold of the guqin. Gradually, the sound of the guqin invaded their minds, sending them into the mood of absolute sadness. This absolute sadness overwhelmed even the strongest of wills and crushed them. Unless a cultivator could strip away his own emotions and desires, he would not be able to break free from this music played by the Great Emperor.


    No matter how strong anyone��s cultivation was, they had fallen into that feeling.


    Gradually, apart from the sad bellows of the Dragon Turtle, the space became extremely quiet except for that desolate, sorrowful sound from the guqin.


    Ye Futian had already fallen into this sadness and knew that he could not and did not resist the sound of the guqin. Instead, he had allowed himself to go with the flow and immersed himself in it. He wanted to see if this sadness could destroy him, but he also wanted to see what was hidden in this extreme sorrow.


    Because of his musical cultivation, he knew that every musical sound had its own meaning. He wanted to really feel the mood of Shenyin the Great when he was playing the guqin and see why Shenyin the Great was able to compose such sad music.


    After entering into that mood, the sorrow hidden deep in Ye Futian��s heart seemed to be coaxed out all at once. From his childhood until today, even those long-forgotten memories now surfaced in his own mind, accompanied by that music of extreme sadness. All his emotions seemed to be replaced by sadness; nothing else and no other emotions mattered anymore.


    He seemed to have returned to the past, directly entering into the memory of bygone ages. He saw Hua Fengliu��s cultivation being abolished, Jieyu��s death in the battle, and when the Imperial Advisor of Dali released him as he walked away�� All the sorrows of his past came to mind. His feelings were magnified even more to the point that he was unable to free himself. It was as if he could no longer escape.


    The tears on his face flowed freely, unbeknownst to him. Those eyes were no longer bright but were empty and hollow, occupied only by sadness and desperation. He looked just like the living dead. Ye Futian had forgotten everything else and what he wanted to do. Perhaps he had not expected to sink so deeply into the mood.


    And it was not just him. Everyone had fallen into it, including those who had gone through the Divine Tribulation. In those long years of cultivation, everyone had tons of stories from the past that were emotional to them. Normally, the things that they had experienced were suppressed so that it would not affect their emotional balance.


    But no one could escape the influence of this Divine Requiem. No matter how powerful one��s cultivation was, anyone, as long as they owned all their human emotions and desires, would be affected by it.


    If this scene were witnessed by people on the outside, it would have been absolutely stunning. Of the three major worlds��the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm��many were existences at the peak. They all had tears in their eyes. They had all fallen into this sadness, and it was a sight so rare it might not occur even every thousand years.


    In the quiet space, the guqin that contained the will of the Great Emperor floated in the void. The strings were moving on their own, playing this divine song with endless sorrow. It seemed as if there was no end in sight. The Dragon Turtle continued moving forward in the void, and dark cracks appeared one by one as if to bring everyone into endless darkness, into eternal exile.


    Behind Ye Futian, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were lost as well. Old Ma��s face was full of tears. He thought about the death of Little Ling��s parents. That unforgettable sadness was the eternal pain in his heart, no matter what cultivation level he had reached. It would always be hidden within the depths of his memory, but at this moment, it was thoroughly unleashed.


    Everyone had different kinds of sadness, but the ending was similar without exception. All the cultivators were caught up in that desolation.


    Time went by fast, and no one knew how long it had been. Ye Futian, trapped in that extreme sadness, suddenly sensed a trace of consciousness awakening inside him. He seemed to have entered a very mysterious mood. The sadness was still there. It didn��t dissipate, and he was still immersed in it. However, there seemed to be a consciousness there. An inexplicable force seemed to affect him, or he seemed to perceive the deep feelings contained in the sorrowful music.


    Although he had his eyes closed, everything in front of him was so clear. At the same time, it was so elusive and unpredictable. The guqin that was floating in front of him was no longer just the guqin itself. Before the guqin, a figure of peerless elegance appeared. The man looked to be about 30. He clad in clothes purer than snow. He had a temperament that was out of this world.


    Seeing the appearance of this figure, Ye Futian��s heart skipped a beat. It was as if a thought was pulling him back from all that sadness.


    Was this an illusion?


    In front of the guqin, a figure appeared. The guqin didn��t seem to be playing by itself but was played by this man. However, no one else was able to see him except for Ye Futian.


    ��This is not an illusion!�� A voice sounded inside Ye Futian��s head. This was definitely no illusion, but that he had truly entered the mood and perceived the sight in front of him, as well as the existence of the Great Emperor.


    As Lord Luo had said, Shenyin the Great continued to exist in another form. His life was integrated into this guqin, and he became one with it.


    This guqin was definitely not just as simple as an instrument and definitely not as simple as containing a trace of the Great Emperor��s will.


    ��Is it the Great Emperor?�� a voice came asked. It was Ye Futian��s. It was a voice from his soul. The Great Emperor of ancient times from countless centuries ago. It was the first man of music. Did his life persist to this day?


    If so, in what form did Shenyin the Great exist?


    After Ye Futian spoke, he waited quietly, as if for the other man to respond. Time seemed to flow exceptionally slowly. Then the sound of a sigh came out that seemed to contain endless sadness. With just a sigh, Ye Futian was once again brought back into that absolute grievous feeling.


    However, this sigh caused Ye Futian��s heart to beat wildly. It was as if all his previous speculations were confirmed. Lord Luo was right after all. The Great Emperor had really prevailed!

 Chapter 2303 - The Obsession of Shenyin the Great

    After the Great Emperor let out a sigh, there were no other sounds. He plucked the strings again, playing that sorrowful Divine Requiem.


    The sound of the music lingered, but the endless sadness remained. Those who were drawn into it were unable to extricate themselves, and even Ye Futian��s soul felt that tremendous sadness. However, but he gradually perceived a feeling in all of that sadness, which was exactly what he had been seeking in the sound of the guqin.


    He was an expert in music and understood that the rhythm of the music was originated from the heart. Behind every rhythm, there was a story, a feeling it tried to convey. When he plunged himself into this, it was with the intent to feel, to discover what was hidden in the Divine Requiem.


    What exactly did Shenyin the Great experience to compel him to compose such despondent music? Even when it was lost, it was still remembered by later generations and included in the roster of divine compositions.


    With the sound of the music, Ye Futian seemed to be getting many bits and pieces of information. What he saw in his mind��s eye did not seem to be too clear. It was somewhat elusive, like a story intertwined with many scenes that were now projected in his mind.


    Ye Futian didn��t do anything deliberately but continued to immerse himself in the sound of the music to feel. He already knew that he perceived the mood. He was almost able to see the origin of the Divine Requiem.


    The picture in his head gradually became clearer. With the sound of the guqin, Ye Futian��s consciousness seemed to have entered into another time and space, as if he no longer had any consciousness of the self but was now completely immersed in the mood.


    With clarity, Ye Futian could see two people. One was an elegant scholar, sophisticated and handsome. The other was a woman, beautiful and sunny, with a charming smile and a gorgeous face.


    Although this scholar was very young, one could vaguely discern vaguely Shenyin the Great as a young man. At that time, he was not yet so authoritative or majestic, and he did not have a strong aura. He was more like an innocent young master who exuded a delightful temperament.


    In these pictures, Ye Futian saw the two learning to play guqin together from the same master, who seemed to be a very powerful individual in music. The two of them learned guqin together. Gradually, they got to know each other and fell in love.


    Where they were, there was a peach tree grove that was exceptionally beautiful. The peach blossoms covered the ground just like something from a dream. They played music together and composed guqin music. This particular scene felt extraordinarily wonderful. The two were like a golden couple, and their master was very kind to them. He instructed them in cultivation and witnessed their growth and their love.


    Pieces of their lives were played out quickly, jumping here and there, and they sailed in front of Ye Futian��s eyes. The two had experienced many things together, falling in love, loving each other, experienced separation, frustration, and reunion; they had gone through a lot together. In some of the scenes, the two had also experienced many major events. Ye Futian saw the continuous growth of the young scholar in white. He saw that he had caused bloodshed within an entire clan for the sake of his beloved and that his lethal music had slaughtered thousands. In the wake of the pile of bones that had accumulated, he left with the woman.


    Many similar scenes ensued. During their times together, there were too many stories. Gradually, both of them had cultivated to a very high level, and their musical attainments were getting stronger as their status elevated with it. However, every few years, they would return to where they cultivated and play music together under the peach blossoms. They would take a pot of wine to visit their master, drink with him, and view the peach blossoms together.


    Among those countless events, this one seemed to be repeating the most, as if it was the most important thing in his life. No matter what realm he cultivated to and no matter how many difficulties he had been through in life, he would always return to the place he was from.


    Finally, the world changed, and it became heavy and oppressive. The scholar in white was no longer the same scholar in white of yesteryears but a world-renowned existence. Countless people wanted to cultivate under his tutelage. He had reached the top and became a supreme existence himself.


    In that era, it seemed a bit easier to cultivate, and there were many supreme existences.


    When the world was going through great changes in those years, he went through many tremendous wars, but there were not many scenes of these wars. Most of what��s been revealed were still those of him with his beloved. Until one day, there was something about the battle of the gods.


    In that battle, heaven and earth disintegrated, and the world collapsed. The entire world began to fragment as the Great Path fractured. Everything was on the verge of total destruction. It was a disaster for the entire world.


    And the scholar in white didn��t seem to have participated in the battle until the clan he belonged to was shattered. The peach tree grove turned into scorched earth, and his most respected master also perished. Out of anger, he finally joined the war.


    However, this battle resulted in the death of his beloved woman. In his extreme pain and sorrow, he cast a white sarcophagus for her. However, in the coffin, the woman turned into a guqin, wanting to accompany him forever, fighting with him in every battle.


    So, with the help of this guqin, he composed that stunning music, the Divine Requiem.


    When the Divine Requiem was heard, the whole world grieved.


    But in the end, he still couldn��t alter fate. The heavenly path collapsed, the world was shattered, and Shenyin the Great himself almost died in the battle. Before his demise, he incorporated his life force into the guqin and turned it into the soul of the guqin. It seemed to him that the two of them would be together forever, entombed within that white sarcophagus.


    When all these scenes disappeared from his head, Ye Futian finally understood where the guqin came from. It turned out that this guqin was the final resting place of two supreme cultivators, Shenyin the Great and his beloved girl. He finally understood why this Dragon Turtle was pulling a sarcophagus moving aimlessly in the void. And he finally understood why the Dragon Turtle was making those sad bellowing.


    Everything was because of that guqin.


    The teacher said that they were looking for a way home. However, the heavenly path had collapsed, and the old world, destroyed. How could they find the way home?


    Ye Futian couldn��t help but be reminded of that peach tree grove. The teacher of Shenyin the Great and the happy times Shenyin the Great spent with his beloved while learning the guqin together in the peach tree grove. The beautiful times he spent together with his teacher drinking, chatting, and playing music.


    Even when he had reached the top, his original intention never changed. He returned often and did the same thing. He was, indeed, someone who was true to his heart. Perhaps it was because of this that he proved the supremacy of the Way and became the Great Emperor��the first man of music.


    Ye Futian knew where the home was referred to by the Dragon Turtle��it was the peach tree grove. This, too, was the obsession of Shenyin the Great. He wanted to take his beloved to return to the peach tree grove once again.


    However, this seemed to be an impossible dream that was destined never to be fulfilled. The world before the collapse of the heavenly path and the world today were no longer the same.

 Chapter 2304 - Take Me Home

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian was overtaken by the atmosphere created by this guqin. It was from the sadness he experienced before. It seemed as if every note was no longer just a simple note but a feeling, a scene from the life of Shenyin the Great.


    His most respected teacher, his favorite hometown, and his most beloved woman were all lost in that great battle. If he had reached the peak of realms, what of it? He was so hopeless that he finally fell into total despair and composed the Divine Requiem��a composition that was known throughout the world.


    However, the outcome was that he too became part of that guqin.


    Those lively notes imprinted in Ye Futian��s mind as the rhythm became clearer. Suddenly, a guqin appeared in front of him, which was transformed by the Divine Wheel of the Great Path. The strings of the instrument moved, and every note seemed to be filled with immense sorrow. Each beating note seemed to resonate with the Divine Requiem.


    Ye Futian seemed to be playing the Divine Requiem.


    Some experiences of Shenyin the Great��s lifetime bore shocking similarities to Ye Futian��s; the two men resonated emotionally. However, even though he had fallen into that boundless dejection before, Ye Futian seemed to have escaped from it at this moment. Not quite a true breakaway, but he was able to reach beyond the emotion of sadness and had come to a place of acceptance, which was also the feelings conveyed by the Divine Requiem. Only the person who had gone through the progression of these feelings could compose this Divine Requiem.


    And Ye Futian seemed to have understood something and was doing exactly that.


    Although the notes he played were far from the true Divine Requiem, the feelings were there so that the notes he played were integrated into the atmosphere of the Divine Requiem, as if resonating with it.


    Gradually, Ye Futian��s music became much more skilled, and his sense of sorrow became even stronger. He was still immersed in the endless sadness, but his consciousness was quite lucid, surpassing the emotions he was feeling.


    As the music played, countless invisible currents surrounded Ye Futian��s person. In front of the guqin transformed by the Great Emperor, an elusive phantom sat quietly there; it seemed to be looking up at Ye Futian at the moment.


    It was as if he embodied a complete life force, like he were truly Shenyin the Great.


    ��What century is it now?�� A questioning voice drifted into Ye Futian��s ears, making his heart shudder.


    The Great Emperor had spoken.


    Although Ye Futian had been in contact with the will of Great Emperors before, aside from Emperor Ye Qing, this was only the second time that he had really seen a Great Emperor who was fully conscious. He was speaking to him.


    ��Elder, it is now the Age of the Divine Prefecture. It has been more than 10,000 years,�� Ye Futian replied. After hearing his answer, the figure fell into deep silence for a while, then let out a sigh. His eyes drifted to a place far away, then back down at his guqin.


    He had turned into a guqin, drifting about for countless years, and he had lost count of what year or age it was.


    ��Where is home?��


    The sound of a deep sigh was heard. It seemed that Shenyin the Great knew that he was without a home. His hometown had long been destroyed; his master and his beloved were no longer there. Everything existed only in his mind, a construct of his persistence.


    ��After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the world has changed. This is the Original Realm. After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the world is no longer stable.�� Ye Futian responded, ��The hometown that you seek, perhaps, no longer remains.��


    He didn��t lie to him. Ye Futian was being as honest as he could be. No matter how stubborn Shenyin the Great was, holding on to the idea of home, it was nothing but wishful thinking.


    There was another moment of silence. The phantom of Shenyin the Great looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��Who are you, and why are you in control of the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor?��


    Clearly, he had recognized that this divine body belonged to Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    ��I am Ye Futian, the College Chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Original Realm, as well as the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace in Ziwei Segmentum. I acquired the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor by chance and resonated with it. This caused the scene seen by the elder,�� Ye Futian responded.


    Shenyin the Great scrutinized him a little more closely. In short, Ye Futian had already received the inheritance of two Great Emperors.


    ��Ziwei Segmentum, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace�� Does Ziwei the Great still exist?�� asked Shenyin the Great.


    ��Ziwei the Great had already perished when the Heavenly Path collapsed. But he had left behind a will to seal up the entire Ziwei Segmentum. Not long ago, the seal was broken, and Ziwei Segmentum was connected to the outside world once again. The will of Ziwei the Great remains in the starry sky world and was inherited by me,�� Ye Futian continued.


    Shenyin the Great cast another look at Ye Futian, and that look seemed to contain deep suggestions. Not only did this man possess the inheritance of the two top Great Emperors, controlling the physical body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, but he had also inherited the will of Ziwei the Great. In addition, he was proficient in music, enough to comprehend the true meaning of the Divine Requiem. He was able to enter the world of his feeling. Indeed, he was truly an extraordinary individual. No wonder he could play the notes that resonated with the Divine Requiem and see everything that was in front of him.


    ��Sir, there is nothing ahead. The Original Realm is no longer the world it used to be. The hometown that you used to know is long gone. I hope that you can let go of your persistence to return to a place that no longer exists,�� Ye Futian said as he bowed. If they continued, the Dragon Turtle would keep going and inevitably impact the surface of other realms, destroying them. The worlds in the Lower World could not withstand the force of the Dragon Turtle; they would collapse immediately.


    Ye Futian could only persuade Shenyin the Great to let go of this stubbornness, as Shenyin the Great was the only one who could prevent this disastrous scenario from happening. Other cultivators, even those powerful enough to survive the second Divine Tribulation, had fallen into that endless sorrow in the music. They were completely unable to stop the Dragon Turtle��s forward momentum.


    ��The way ahead has ended. Where, oh, where is the way back?�� Shenyin the Great murmured. His casual sigh seemed to contain a strong sense of loss.


    He wanted to find a way home, but there was no road ahead.


    Where was the way home!?


    If he could not find the way back, where would he go?


    ��I pledge to find a grove of peach trees for you, sir, and bury the guqin when the peach blossoms are in full bloom,�� Ye Futian continued. Shenyin the Great looked at him now and saw from his eyes that he was truly sincere. The guqin could communicate and know the hearts of men. Perhaps Ye Futian could perceive his existence through the Divine Requiem and understood his feelings. This proved that they were of the same kind and that this young man in front of him bore some similarities to him.


    Shenyin the Great took one more look at Ye Futian. Divine lights appeared upon his body, shining directly upon Ye Futian. The light penetrated Ye Futian��s brow chakra. It bore into Ye Futian��s mind and consciousness.


    Shenyin the Great seemed to be connected to Ye Futian somehow. After a while, the divine lights dissipated, and the way that Shenyin the Great was looking at Ye Futian seemed to have changed.


    ��Perhaps everything in this world is destined,�� Shenyin the Great murmured to himself. He then said to Ye Futian,�� I will lend you this guqin for 300 years, until the day when higher heights can be reached in the future. Take me home now.��


    ��Take you home?�� Ye Futian looked at Shenyin the Great, a little puzzled. His home had disintegrated long ago and no longer existed. How were they going to go back?

 Chapter 2305 - Going to Ziwei Segmentum

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Shenyin the Great wanted to lend him the guqin for 300 years.


    Judging from the words spoken by the Great Emperor, it seemed that he had some expectation of him. Had Shenyin the Great detected anything from him?


    Why did the Great Emperor think that Ye Futian could take him home?


    Ye Futian didn��t quite understand, but he heard Shenyin the Great continue, ��I��ll take you back first. Where to?��


    ��Let��s go to Ziwei Segmentum,�� said Ye Futian. The Great Emperor had lent him the divine guqin, and many top cultivators were here watching them. Only in Ziwei Segmentum could they stop the coveting of these people, or at the very least, give them some time to cool down.


    ��Very well,�� Shenyin the Great agreed. Suddenly, a terrible rumbling sound came out, and the Dragon Turtle turned around and actually headed in the opposite direction. It was moving incredibly fast as it sped through the void and went back the same way it came.


    Great waves appeared on the guqin. Cultivators were knocked off of the back of the Dragon Turtle. When they were knocked off from the city��s ruins, the rhythmic storm on the back of the Dragon Turtle gradually dissipated as well, but that strong sense of sorrow remained.


    Ye Futian freed himself from the previous feelings and looked at the divine guqin floating in the void in front of him. he felt that everything was a little surreal, like a dream, extremely curious.


    The divine guqin floated upon him as strands of divine glory penetrated his brow chakra and seemed to have made a certain connection with him. Ye Futian felt a sense of familiarity. He stretched out his hands and stroked the strings. This was the divine guqin transformed by Shenyin the Great and his beloved. It had embodied their emotions for a lifetime, as well as their endless sorrow.


    ��Sir, what should be the name of this guqin?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��You name it.�� The voice of Shenyin the Great sounded in his mind.


    ��Let��s call it, ��Yearning,���� said Ye Futian.


    Shenyin the Great was silent for a moment, then agreed, ��Very well.��


    This guqin was then named Yearning.


    As for those top figures who were knocked off by the Dragon Turtle, they gradually regained their consciousness. All of them were powerful cultivators and could recover themselves after they came out of the sorrowful mood. Even so, they still felt an extreme sorrow deep inside their hearts. It was as if the sadness had been seared in their souls and could not be erased.


    Perhaps some things still needed one��s own willpower to defeat it.


    ��The Dragon Turtle���� They looked at the sky above and scanned across the sky with their divine consciousness. Then, one by one, they stepped into the void, chasing after the Dragon Turtle.


    Secretly, they were a little shocked. The Dragon Turtle had gone in the opposite direction.


    This seemed impossible.


    However, when they caught up with the Dragon Turtle, they saw a figure standing on its back��a man with white hair and white clothing. It was Ye Futian. This made those top figures even more shocked. Him again?


    How many times was this?


    The cultivators from the Shangqing Domain felt especially puzzled. From Shenjia the Great Emperor to Ziwei the Great, and now Shenyin the Great, why did it have to be him again?


    On the back of the Dragon Turtle, only Ye Futian was there. Did this mean that Ye Futian had been recognized by Shenyin the Great as well?


    What kind of existence exactly was this guy?


    Ye Futian looked at Renhuang Chen and the others. He nodded slightly at them. Renhuang Chen and the others stepped out one after another, arriving on the back of the Dragon Turtle, moving next to Ye Futian. There was shock in their hearts as well. All of them were trapped in that deep sorrow before, but had this been when Ye Futian contacted Shenyin the Great and gained his recognition?


    Lord Luo was amazed. He made extraordinary musical attainments himself and was already a giant-level figure. However, he was unable to perceive the sentiment within the Divine Requiem. Ye Futian must have done it; otherwise, he could not possibly stand on the Dragon Turtle now.


    He always believed that the Great Emperor was still around, existing in one form or another. Perhaps he had been integrated into that guqin, or else it would have been impossible for it to possess such power.


    So now, it should be the Great Emperor who had chosen Ye Futian.


    After Ziwei the Great, the inheritance of yet another extraordinary Great Emperor. This white-haired young man seemed to collect more and more halos along the way.


    As for the other top cultivators, they each had their own ideas. They had seen the guqin in front of Ye Futian. This guqin was definitely a divine guqin, a divine item, and it was able to play the Divine Requiem independently. It made them sink so deeply into it that they were unable to extricate themselves.


    Now, it was obtained by Ye Futian.


    ��Where is the Dragon Turtle going?�� They stared in the direction of the Dragon Turtle and noted that it was where the Dragon Turtle had come from. However, now it was going on the way back. Where did it want to take Ye Futian and the others?


    None of the top cultivators acted rashly but followed the Dragon Turtle instead. Obviously, they still had lingering fears about what had happened before. They were worried about offending the will of Shenyin the Great and that the Divine Requiem might resound again.


    It had been proven previously that no one could resist the Divine Requiem. No matter their realm of cultivation, all would fall for it.


    The Dragon Turtle continued moving through the void, continuing forward, passing through the surfaces of many realms. Many cultivators of the surface who witnessed the sight in the void could not help but felt greatly disturbed in their hearts.


    Lord Luo and other cultivators who were acquainted with Ye Futian also stepped onto the back of the Dragon Turtle and came to Ye Futian��s side. Lord Luo looked at Ye Futian said, ��Congratulations are in order.��


    Ye Futian clearly understood what the congratulations were for.


    ��Elder��s insight was far more impressive,�� responded Ye Futian. Lord Luo was the first person to recognize that the Great Emperor might exist in another form, and he had shown great respect to the tomb previously. Even those whose realms were higher than him, including the existences that had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, were not as accurate as he had been.


    ��You saw the Great Emperor?�� Lord Luo asked Ye Futian via voice transmission. Obviously, he had his suspicions, though he didn��t ask directly, opting to communicate through voice transmission.


    ��Mmm.�� Ye Futian did not deny it. ��In the depths of the music, I met Shenyin the Great.��


    Lord Luo��s look at Ye Futian was full of meaning. Although he had guessed it, he was still a little shocked when he heard that Ye Futian had seen the Great Emperor. To meet the Great Emperor in the sounds of guqin was also what he had desired. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be.


    Time passed as the Dragon Turtle shuttled through the space in the void, drove through immense space, until it was separated from the domain of the Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, and headed into deep space.


    This caused those top figures to wonder. They had been following without making any moves, wanting to see where the Dragon Turtle was going. At this moment, some people seemed to have realized something.


    ��He is going to the starry sky world.�� A top figure said, ��Following Ye Futian to Ziwei Segmentum.��


    Ye Futian would be able to borrow the power of Ziwei the Great in that territory. Once the Dragon Turtle took the guqin of Shenyin the Great to the Ziwei Segmentum, no one could overtake Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian seemed to be in complete control of Shenyin the Great and his will. Could he control the Dragon Turtle in whatever direction it went?

 Chapter 2306 - Giving Up

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Shall we strike?�� all the cultivators secretly asked themselves.


    The Dragon Turtle was taking Ye Futian and the guqin of Shenyin the Great to Ziwei Segmentum. If they delayed making a move on Ye Futian, they would have no opportunity when Ye Futian was in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    But again, who among them could be sure that they had the ability to deal with the guqin itself?


    These top figures hesitated. This guqin was a real divine item; the strings could move by themselves and play the Divine Requiem, which ensnared all the top cultivators in that endless sadness. If it could be obtained and controlled, what kind of power would that be?


    What was more, they had not yet unearthed the secret of Shenyin the Great, but Ye Futian may have already done exactly that.


    A top cultivator from the Dark World couldn��t wait any longer and struck. He raised his hand to grab at the Dragon Turtle. Suddenly, a terrible black hole of death appeared in the void, swallowing up everything. This black hole caused a huge vortex to appear in this space. The forward speed of the Dragon Turtle seemed to be affected as rumbling sounds of horror were heard. This space started to collapse madly. It was as if it was about to shatter completely into nothingness, and the Dragon Turtle, too, would be swallowed into that darkness.


    Previously, those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path had walked directly onto the back of the Dragon Turtle, wanting to snatch the guqin. They were attacked by the music and were ensnared in its throes. The fact was that their supreme strength combined was terrifying enough that they could hamper the forward movement of the Dragon Turtle.


    Upon seeing this, that guqin in Ye Futian��s arms flew out. It was as the strings were moving by themselves again. A horrific storm of rhythm swept at that top cultivator from the Dark World. The invisible rhythmic ripples seemed unstoppable, directly Invading the other��s mind. In an instant, the sadness that had not completely dissipated rushed into his heart again. The face of the cultivator from the Dark World changed. The music from guqin was still playing, but his figure retreated in a flash, abandoning his attempt to strike.


    Everyone stared at the guqin ahead, and it seemed that Lord Luo was right. This guqin did indeed contain a life force. Coupled with the coercion of the Great Emperor in its music, it seemed that Shenyin the Great indeed existed in yet another form in this world.


    Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain the phenomenon; it was as if the spirit of Shenyin the Great was at work.


    Did Ye Futian perceive the existence of Shenyin the Great? many cultivators wondered.


    At this moment, someone else made another move. An extremely tyrannical cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm slashed through the void with his palm, and cracks appeared between heaven and earth. It created a space of exile that swallowed up the road in which the Dragon Turtle was moving. Instantly, the Dragon Turtle, which was moving forward, was swallowed up as well.


    ��Exile!�� Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened. Judging from his opponent��s realm, he could easily destabilize the Great Path of the Original Realm, banishing them into a world of nothingness, even opening up a channel to the Divine Prefecture.


    Clearly, they were aware that the others wanted them to leave the Original Realm to be unable to move forward into the starry sky world in Ziwei Segmentum.


    The cracks in the space expanded, resembling an entrance to darkness, engulfing the gigantic Dragon Turtle along with the entire ancient city of ruins in tow. Ye Futian and the others instantly entered this unstable spatial crack where the Great Path. Inside was chaotic and disorderly. This was a land of banishment; it existed only when the space of the Original Realm was broken, but this place could also lead to the Divine Prefecture.


    The Dragon Turtle moved forward in the dark, but the same rhythm persisted as if guiding its direction. Accompanied by some violent roars, the Dragon Turtle navigated forward in the crevices of the void, then shuttled around and returned to the land of the Original Realm. However, along its path, the dark cracks became more and more terrifying, tearing the space apart.


    In this instant, the ginormous body of the Dragon Turtle was already in another remote place��much further away��as cultivators chased them from behind. Their expressions were solemn. It seemed that no matter what they did, this Dragon Turtle would continue to elude them.


    ��Elders, let��s stop here. If the rhythm is still playing as before, please ask yourselves, ��If you could, would you retreat under your own power?���� Ye Futian said loud and clear, ��The Great Emperor doesn��t care to tarry with all of you like this, but if you insist on this foolery, perhaps you will feel the anger from the Great Emperor himself.��


    All the cultivators who heard what Ye Futian had to say were stunned, and a great conflict ensued in their hearts.


    Ye Futian seemed to have indicated that Shenyin the Great was still here, alive, existing in the world in another form. He had autonomous consciousness. He could attack them if they continued to be unruly. The Great Emperor would take action.


    There was a thoughtful look in their eyes. It was as if they were contemplating the veracity of Ye Futian��s words. But in conjunction with everything that happened before, they realized that Ye Futian might not have been lying to them. What he said was probably the truth��the Great Emperor was still here. Otherwise, none of this made any sense.


    The Great Emperor was still here. With the first man of music in ancient times here, how dare they try to seize the guqin?


    Since the Great Emperor had already made his own choice, it would be meaningless no matter what they did. It was a foregone conclusion that could no longer be changed.


    Give up? many cultivators wondered. In fact, those giants who had not overcome the Divine Tribulation had already given up. In their previous experience of all that had happened, they knew that it was futile. It was already a great favor bestowed on them to allow them out of that grievous mood, so what other ambitions could they speak of at the moment? Not to mention that as long as there were other Tribulation-level cultivators around, it was far from their turn yet.


    Just as everyone was considering the matter, the Dragon Turtle marched forward and drove through the boundless void. Over time, the starlight fell from the sky. It seemed as if they had now entered the territory of Ziwei Segmentum.


    At this time, some cultivators stopped and did not continue their pursuit. Later, more people stopped moving forward. As they stopped one by one, they looked further down the road that the Dragon Turtle was on. They knew that there was no more hope. All they could do was watch the Dragon Turtle take the guqin, Ye Futian, and the others inside ??the Ziwei Segmentum.


    In a nutshell, the Dragon Turtle appeared with the ancient ruins of a city in tow, and Ye Futian was ultimately the only one who benefitted from it. For Ye Futian to be the one to take the inheritance of Shenyin the Great, what else could do anyone say or do?


    With such a genius talent to exist in the land of the Original Realm, Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm would not be quiet for long. Sooner or later, the cultivators in those worlds would meet him somewhere, somehow.


    ��Let��s go,�� someone said, then turned to leave. After that, many powerful cultivators left one by one; there was no point in staying here any longer.


    They had already entered Ziwei Segmentum. What else could they do now?


    After they left, the Dragon Turtle descended on Ziwei Imperial Star. Soon, the news began to spread wildly in the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian��the College Chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace��had obtained the inheritance of yet another Great Emperor after Shenjia the Great Emperor and Ziwei the Great!

 Chapter 2307 - Changes in Original Realm

    Starry sky world. Ziwei cultivation court.


    Beneath the boundless starry sky, Ye Futian sat cross-legged in a quiet location. Surrounded by stars, Ye Futian, who was fully bathed in the starlight, seemed extremely holy.


    In front of him lay the guqin that he named ��Yearning.�� At this moment, traces of rhythmic divine light continuously wafted out from the instrument, connecting with Ye Futian at his brow chakra so that his entire body was enveloped by the rhythmic divine light. In his mind, more and more memories presented themselves, and most of them were connected with music: music scores and the moods contained in each piece of the music.


    Shenyin the Great was the first man of music in his era. His attainments in music were so superior that few in history could be named along with him, either in ancient times or modern. Naturally, he was not only known for the Divine Requiem. The Divine Requiem was a shocking composition created after his own experience of great sorrow. However, even before that, he was already a master of countless pieces of music, some of which were extremely powerful, and their influence was not much weaker than that of the Divine Requiem.


    Now, Shenyin the Great was ready to pass on all this to Ye Futian when he regained consciousness again. He promised Ye Futian the guqin for 300 years. In return, Ye Futian would escort him home.


    Although Ye Futian was still unclear on the actual meaning of these words from Shenyin the Great, he was not about to pursue them if the Great Emperor himself didn��t deign to clarify. For him, the priority was to focus on his own cultivation. Now that he had control over Ziwei Segmentum and the Original Realm, he felt the pressure acutely. It was not enough for him to be a mere Upper Renhuang. He needed a stronger realm of cultivation.


    Day by day, Ye Futian had been receiving the inheritance of the guqin, and countless memories appeared in his mind. After a long while, the divine light on the guqin gradually dimmed, and the strings stopped moving as the divine light went out. However, Ye Futian didn��t stop cultivating. He sat there quietly, and he continued to be surrounded by the light of the rhythm.


    He needed time to perceive and digest the rhythmic Way passed on to him by Shenyin the Great. There were so many exquisite pieces of guqin music that he needed time to sort them out in his head.


    In the ground below, many looked up at Ye Futian. Those who could cultivate in the Starry Sky Cultivation Court were close confidants, as well as allies. As they witnessed Ye Futian inherit the power from Shenyin the Great, they couldn��t help but wonder what lied ahead for this young man.


    The Sword Goddess of Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow raised her head to look at Ye Futian. ��Ning Yuan, I am afraid things will not be quiet for long.��


    Previously, at the Donghua banquet, they knew very well how Ning Yuan, the Domain Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor, had treated Ye Futian. Ning Hua hunted Ye Futian relentlessly and almost succeeded in killing him. Today, the power that was within Ye Futian��s control was far above that of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor. If Ye Futian wanted to settle these old scores, he could do so now by heading over to Donghua Domain in the Divine Prefecture.


    However, that was the Domain Chief��s Manor under the rule of the Great Emperor. Presumably, Ye Futian had some concerns as well, so he wouldn��t act rashly. However, with his talent and potential, he may very well stand at the top in the future. As long as nothing happened to him, this debt would be settled sooner rather than later. At that time, the Domain Chief��s Manor in the Donghua Domain would be greatly endangered.


    As the current situation stood, Ning Hua, known as the number one genius of Donghua Domain, was hard-pressed to contend with Ye Futian. Aside from all the things that had happened in the past, it should not be too difficult for Ye Futian to kill Ning Hua. There were too many means and power under Ye Futian��s control, and Ning Hua had none of these.


    In the starry sky world, everyone was quietly cultivating, perceiving the power of the Imperial Star. Many had made progress. Especially cultivators compatible with the power of the Imperial Star made progress much faster than the others.


    Several months had passed, and Ye Futian stopped cultivating and started walking downward. There were familiar faces all around him.


    Someone walked towards Ye Futian. Lord Luo was heard asking Ye Futian, ��How was it?��


    ��Shenyin the Great was the first man of music in the ancient era. The rhythm technique he cultivated is far too sophisticated for me to fully control and absorb for the time being. These past few months have been far from adequate. I am afraid that I will need to cultivate and comprehend frequently in the future,�� said Ye Futian.


    When he heard those words, Lord Luo knew that Ye Futian had completely inherited the musical inheritance of Shenyin the Great.


    How much help would Ye Futian receive from this first man in music from ancient times?


    No one from the same generation as Ye Futian could compare with him just on the Way of rhythm alone.


    Fang Gai and Blind Tie came over as well. Although they were from Four Corner Village, they had regarded themselves as members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy after choosing to follow Ye Futian. Since Ye Futian was the center, whether it was the village or Heavenly Mandate Academy, or even Ziwei Imperial Palace, they would be part of Ye Futian��s power in the future. They knew this very well.


    ��How is it outside?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Not so quiet,�� Fang Gai replied. ��Since the Dragon Turtle dragged you to the Ziwei Segmentum, the news had shaken the Original Realm, and many cultivators from those top principalities wanted to visit you again. However, because you were not here, they were turned away. But judging from their intentions, it looks like they want to get close to you.��


    At the moment, Ye Futian was the most prestigious figure in the Original Realm; he had unlimited potential. Naturally, there would be forces from Divine Prefecture who wanted to befriend him.


    Everyone could see that Ye Futian was definitely regarded as one of the most enchanting genius existences in the Divine Prefecture and maybe even the entire world. His growth was akin to the journey of those other major figures.


    ��If the Divine Prefecture is not aligned to deal with the Dark World, what good does it do to befriend me?�� Ye Futian responded. Unless, of course, they could unite all the principalities and launch a war against the Dark World.


    ��Well, forget about this for now. There is something else. As soon as the Dragon Turtle incident happened, more cultivators came from the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm. Those top figures never left either. They began to search for the ancient relics in the boundless void of the Original Realm as if wanting to re-excavate the mysteries of the Original Realm.�� Fang Gai continued, ��And this time, it is said that several principalities have already re-discovered the relics of ancient times. As if it has been destined that as the entire Original Realm is changing, ancient ruins are also reappearing one after the another.��


    Ye Futian��s expression grew somber. Would more relics appear? And it seemed that there was more than just the one.


    The Original Realm was the interface that formed after the collapse of the heavenly path. It seemed reasonable for ancient relics to emerge. Ziwei the Great and Shenyin the Great had all appeared in the Original Realm.


    ��The change of heaven and earth originated in the Original Realm. It seems that this prophecy is not false after all,�� Lord Luo murmured. Ye Futian��s eye drifted toward Lord Luo, and he asked, ��Where did that prophecy come from?��


    ��I don��t know.�� Lord Luo shook his head. ��But now, cultivators in the Divine Prefecture and other worlds have all heard such prophesy, or else the top cultivators from other major worlds would not have descended in the land of the Original Realm!��

 Chapter 2308 - Intensified Changes

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Before Ye Futian returned from the Divine Prefecture, the Original Realm had been changing, as cultivators from all over the world began to descend.


    Now, because there were imperial-level relics that surfaced successively in the Original Realm, top figures had begun to actively search for them in the Original Realm.


    The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path of the Original Realm were now under Ye Futian��s control. What happened at the Infernal Divine Clan in the Dark World had shocked the cultivators from all sides. Now, no principalities dared to wreak havoc lightly in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Therefore, they could only circulate in other places in the void outside the world of 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    And now, many more relics had emerged one after the other. Were they being excavated?


    Ye Futian couldn��t help but feel emotional. What kind of a world was it like before the collapse of the heavenly path? That era was known as the Age of the Gods, and presumably, it was much easier to cultivate then than it was today; even powerful characters were far from what could be compared to today. However, a catastrophe caused the heavenly path to collapse and the gods to perish.


    Before the Original Realm, there was the world of the heavenly path. The existence of so many relics was reasonable, but it was not easy to fully excavate all of them. Even in the long history, many secrets had yet to be unearthed.


    ��Let��s go back to the academy,�� Ye Futian said. Although he had not yet fully understood all the inheritance of Shenyin the Great, it was already imprinted in his mind. He thought of continuing to cultivate in the starry sky world and improve himself. Even cultivating for a period of time would help him elevate his realm and enter the Eighth Realm.


    But the current changes that occurred within the Original Realm were something he wanted to witness.


    The so-called change in heavenly path originated in the Original Realm.


    In which direction would the Original Realm change?


    ��Mmm.�� Several people who were around nodded. There were indeed some differences in the Original Realm of today. Ye Futian was now the leader of the local forces in the Original Realm, and he should really go back and look things over.


    Furthermore, those willing to cultivate with Ye Futian hoped to witness a legend in the making. The change of heaven and earth originated in the Original Realm. For Ye Futian, he would be the king of the Original Realm.


    So would he be the main player behind this prophecy?


    Naturally, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy had such expectations.


    And Ye Futian himself had already revealed this kind of talent.


    Ye Futian walked down with many cultivators in tow. Ye Futian��s every move now inevitably affected many people, and many top-level cultivators were moving along with him.


    The most obvious ones among them were Old Ma and Blind Tie. These two top cultivators from Four Corner Village followed Ye Futian wherever he went, always guarding his side. Even the top figures from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were hard-pressed to be as devoted as these two.


    Perhaps it was because the two wanted to repay Ye Futian��Old Ma for Little Ling, and as for Blind Tie, Ye Futian had bestowed him with an even greater favor. After he stepped onto the peak of Renhuang and exacted his revenge, Blind Tie had pledged himself completely to Ye Futian.


    As for those companions with weaker cultivation, such as Gu Dongliu, Ye Wuchen, and the others, Ye Futian did not want them to move around so freely, instead having them stay in the starry sky world in retreat to concentrate on cultivation and improve their realms. After all, everyone fighting in the Original Realm now were giant-level figures; the least of them were cultivators at the peak of Upper Renhuang. Cultivators of any lower realms were not qualified to participate.


    ��


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy. Ye Futian and the others descended as they made their way back to the academy.


    A scan of his divine consciousness through the academy revealed that everyone in the academy was focusing on cultivating. Ye Futian smiled. Currently, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was the absolute core of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, and it is premier holy land, with a completely new look. The cultivators who came to the academy worked extremely hard, looking forward to the day they could enter the starry sky world to cultivate.


    Ye Futian��s figure flashed and arrived at a place.


    ��Brother-in-law,�� Hua Nianyu called out with a smile. Lord Taixuan was by her side.


    ��You are bothering Lord Taixuan again.�� Ye Futian looked at Nianyu and smiled.


    ��Not at all. I am keeping Grandpa Xuan company,�� Hua Nianyu said with a smile.


    ��That��s right. Nianyu often chats with me so I won��t be bored,�� Lord Taixuan replied, smiling, as he peered at Ye Futian. ��So were you able to control the inheritance power of Shenyin the Great?��


    ��Shenyin the Great had much wonderful divine music to pass down, and it will take time to master them all.�� Ye Futian continued, ��I heard that some changes took place in the Original Realm, so I came back to the academy. Is Lord Taixuan aware of what is going on outside?��


    ��I know some of them.�� Lord Taixuan nodded. ��It is said that several major forces have discovered the relics in the boundless space. Some relics were hidden between cracks in the space and have now been excavated. Some places��even ancient continents��have been discovered. Many forces from the outside world have shifted their attentions from the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path to the endless world of the void, looking for other discoveries.��


    ��There have been many cultivators who came here to search before. Why did this happen all of a sudden?�� Ye Futian asked, a little puzzled, as he was truly stumped.


    ��That is so.�� Lord Taixuan nodded in agreement. At this moment, someone else arrived, and it was Emperor Nan. He said, ��It may have something to do with the changes in heaven and earth. I don��t know why, but some changes are taking place in the Original Realm. Those changes had already begun before your return to the Original Realm.


    ��Before, when the Dragon Turtle carried Shenyin the Great, nothing of this sort had happened. But they appeared all of a sudden without warning. It was as if it was destined.��


    ��What force is leading this kind of change?�� Ye Futian asked; he really didn��t understand.


    The Original Realm was the world of the heavenly path once��the old world. After its collapse, everything turned to dust. Back then, the only place discovered was the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path as a place of cultivation. So where were the relics that now reappeared in the void? Where were they hiding before?


    They hadn��t been unearthed for many years. But why did they suddenly reappeared now?


    Emperor Nan looked deep in thought. It was as if he was considering something. But still, he shook his head and said, ��I don��t know.��


    What he suspected seemed a little farfetched and without basis. If that were the case, what was the reason?


    He couldn��t understand this himself, and there was no way to affirm his suspicions, so he didn��t say anything to Ye Futian.


    ��In that case, the changes in the Original Realm may continue to intensify in the future?�� Ye Futian queried.


    Emperor Nan nodded. ��If this continues to evolve, the changes in the Original Realm may indeed continue to increase in intensity.��


    Ye Futian frowned when he heard what Emperor Nan said. He seemed a little worried.


    ��The Original Realm has now attracted top figures from all parts of the world. If this change continues, I am afraid that the Original Realm will become a super battlefield, as it was in ancient times, and the cultivators from all worlds will compete in the Original Realm. I don��t know what will happen then,�� Ye Futian said in a low voice. Emperor Nan nodded in agreement!

 Chapter 2309 - Above Expectations

    Ye Futian and the others did not leave immediately after they returned to the academy. Although it was rumored that many relics appeared in the Original Realm, Ye Futian knew he couldn��t take them all.


    Now the changes in the entire Original Realm intensified, with more and more relics surfacing. If he were to grab everything out there, it would almost certainly cause public outrage and create enemies out of the whole world.


    Take the current situation, for instance. He had the inheritance from several Great Emperors, thus becoming the focus of many powerful cultivators. If it weren��t for the teacher who stood behind him, these top forces would have already attacked him and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They wouldn��t be waiting so docilely in the starry sky world for him to cultivate in peace.


    One principality wouldn��t be capable of dealing with him, but what if they combine their forces? If they couldn��t go to the starry sky world to challenge him, it certainly wouldn��t be a problem for them to challenge Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian knew very well that he had to give up some of the opportunities to other principalities in a situation like this instead of swallowing them all.


    However, Ye Futian had also dispatched cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy to go out and assess the current state of affairs in the outside world. Even if they were not planning to take action now, they must monitor the current movement of the Original Realm. Now that he had complete control over the Nine Supreme Regions, he also had eyes and ears in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, so he had an idea of everything that was happening. However, to know the occurrences in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and beyond, messengers had to be sent out.


    At present, all that was known had been spread far and wide. Perhaps some had discovered the relics while they were exploring, but they did not make it public. After all, no one wanted to attract even more rivals to this competition.


    Ye Futian��s circumstances were, in fact, a microcosm of all the forces in the entire Original Realm. All the forces had begun to mobilize, as the entire Original Realm was developing in this unknown direction.


    ��


    At this time, somewhere inside the Original Realm, suddenly heaven and earth underwent a terrible and violent change. This space began to collapse as a terrible dark vortex manifested. Later, a bright and brilliant divine light shot out from it as a group of people appeared with the divine light and stepped out of the vortex.


    The temperament of this group of people was extraordinary, and one single glance revealed that all of them were unusual, to say the least. They surveyed their surroundings, and their leader was heard marveling, ��The Original Realm! This must be the world before the collapse of the heavenly path!��


    ��Mmm.�� An old man next to him nodded.


    ��It has long been rumored that the Original Realm was a land of ruins. Those at the bottom continued to cultivate here, but they never expected that there would still be changes in the Original Realm. Do you know why?�� the leader continued to ask.


    The cultivators next to them looked thoughtful but then shook their heads.


    ��Perhaps someone thought that the world has been quiet for too long,�� the man said with a smile. But then his smile gradually receded as his inscrutable eyes stared into the distance. He expanded his divine consciousness to perceive the Way between heaven and earth. He was heard murmuring, ��Far too weak.��


    If it weren��t for the great changes in the Original Realm, he probably would never set foot in this land.


    As the man took a step forward, the others followed one after the other. A terrible aura permeated the space between heaven and earth, and there were traces of invisible divine light surrounding the area where they were, so they appeared as if they were some deities.


    At the same time, in other parts of the Original Realm, similar scenes played out asynchronously. Just as Ye Futian and the others discussed at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, more and more powerful cultivators made their way into this world. Many of them were peak powers that had previously dismissed the Original Realm as inconsequential.


    Still, the changes in the Original Realm continued. Somewhere in the Original Realm, many cultivators stood in the void. Their eyes looked up and forward, and somewhere further up in the vast nothingness, the entire space in the void was tossing and roaring. The space began to crack, and from those terrible fissures, massive structures gradually emerged and became visible in front of them.


    An ancient aura hit them in the face, like ancient mountain ranges from yore. There was an atmosphere of decay that harbored within, as well as a heavy sensation of death. Furthermore, there was a faint breath that quickened everyone��s heartbeat. It was as if this aura would not dissipate for years to come.


    At the same time, in another area of the Original Realm, a similar scene played out. The space of the void was torn apart, opened by some top cultivator with swordsmanship. It felt like the crack in this space was like a prison, and all the ancient relics were confined within.


    When this prison was broken open, the relics were released. Slowly, buildings re-emerged in the world. These buildings were full of ancient aura but also accompanied by a sense of death. As these fissures widened, these newly released relics were becoming more and more terrifying. It turned out to be a boundless and gigantic city. What they had seen seemed to be just the tip of the iceberg.


    However, this city embodied an ambiance of dilapidation, with broken walls and remnants of beams everywhere. It was as if it had experienced some catastrophe in a bygone era. It was extremely fortunate that some of these relics had been preserved and that they had not vanished in the destruction once upon a time.


    The top figure who cleft open the space in the void waited quietly beside him, watching a majestic and massive city gradually reveal itself.


    ��


    The entire Original Realm was constantly changing. The prophecy regarding the changes between heaven and earth originating in the Original Realm began to spread. By now, they were known to just about everyone. People started to believe in the prophecy. All the changes in the Original Realm made those powerful major forces tremble.


    Even the cultivators from the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had heard of this prophecy, and their hearts were greatly disturbed. No one knew what the Original Realm would look like in the future.


    In the Cottage inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Ye Futian was cultivating here when a group of men arrived. They were cultivators such as Old Ma, Emperor Nan, Xiao Dingtian, and the clan lord of the Dou Tribe. All of them came from the outside.


    ��What has happened to stir all the elders thus?�� asked Ye Futian, as he detected the solemn expressions on the faces of several top Renhuang.


    ��The changes that have taken place in the Original Realm now far exceed our expectations, and there are more and more ancient relics appearing in various places,�� Emperor Nan said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened when he heard this. If Emperor Nan said so, the changes in the outside world must have been drastic enough to cause Emperor Nan��s concern.


    ��In addition, the cultivators from the outside world have arrived. As far as Divine Prefecture is concerned, it is said that Ancient God Clan has arrived,�� Emperor Nan continued. Ye Futian��s eye focused a bit more as he whispered, ��the Ancient God Clan?��


    ��Yes, the Ancient God Clan. The Ancient God Clan that has lived on for countless centuries produced deities and still holds the heirs of the remains of the gods, who are qualified to be called the Ancient God Clan. They are the true power that stands at the peak. Even the imperial palace has to pay them proper respect,�� said Emperor Nan. Ye Futian, in turn, was quite uneasy when he heard what Emperor Nan had to say.


    It seemed that this time, all parts of the world had been disrupted!

 Chapter 2310 - : Visitors from the Devil World

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Ye Futian was at the Heavenly Mandate Academy, some top forces from Divine Prefecture had come to visit him. However, as he was in no mood to socialize, he gave Old Ma the task to receive them in his stead.


    The truth was Ye Futian needn��t care much about these visitors anymore, especially those common forces at the top. With the power that was currently in the hands of the academy, coupled with his own status today, even peak Renhuangs with perfect Great Paths did not have much to brag about in front of him.


    However, at this time, Ye Futian personally received a group of visitors who were old acquaintances. More than 20 years ago, these cultivators from Song Imperial City of Divine Prefecture had sought out Ye Futian. At the time, they wanted to take over the Heavenly Mandate Academy and force Ye Futian to cooperated with them, thus making Heavenly Mandate Academy a representative branch of Song Imperial City in the Original Realm. However, their overture was rebuffed by Ye Futian.


    And now, Ye Futian��s status was no longer that of 20 years ago, and the Heavenly Mandate Academy was no longer like it had been. The cultivators from Song Imperial City came with sincerity to form an alliance, without any ambitions as they had in the past.


    The Ye Futian of today was someone that all the cultivators from Divine Prefecture desired to befriend.


    At the same time, in some other location, a group of cultivators materialized in the void. This group of people had astonishing aura, and were all dressed in black, looking serious and solemn. The man leading the group did not appear to be his senior. He looked like he was only 30 years or so, but his actual age in cultivation was something else entirely.


    There was a sense of dominance in those dark eyes of his, which emitted a strong sense of coercion. The aura of all the cultivators around him was incredibly frightening, as every one of them was a top-notch character.


    No matter which world, few major forces could come up with such an astounding display of power.


    ��Now that great changes are taking place in the Original Realm, rumor has it that there are many ancient relics in the Void World outside the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. I wonder what will we encounter?�� a cultivator in all black asked. His voice was low and reverent.


    ��After so many years, I didn��t expect that the Original Realm would change so drastically. The changes of heaven and earth arise in the Original Realm. I would like to know just how the Original Realm will dominate these changes of heaven and earth,�� someone else spoke up as they looked at the young man in the lead. But the young man looked down to glance at the boundless void below and said, ��Let��s go to the Heavenly Mandate Realm first.��


    ��The Heaven Mandate Realm?�� The cultivators behind him looked puzzled, but the young man nodded and continued, ��The Heaven Mandate Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Academy, to see someone.��


    Many around him didn��t understand his intentions; only a very special few knew the reason behind the youth��s intention to go to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to meet this special someone. This was a top secret, and few were privy to this information.


    ��Mei Ting. Where is he?�� someone asked, referring to the Devil General from the Devil World, Mei Ting.


    ��He should be in the Heavenly Mandate Realm,�� the young man replied. ��Let��s go.��


    When he finished speaking, his figure floated forward, turning into a black light that moved at an incredible speed. The rest of the cultivators caught up with him, following along.


    In the Heavenly Mandate realm, Mei Ting did not fight and search for these ancient relics. He was still drinking within the bounds of the Heavenly Mandate City, much like a hopeless drunkard. However, only he himself knew that although the wine was good, he didn��t really drink it for the taste.


    He was staying in the Heavenly Mandate City for himself. He wanted to know certain things, which he still had no clue about.


    Perhaps time would give him the answer he sought.


    Suddenly, Mei Ting peered into the sky above, and his face revealed some surprise, and his eyes betrayed his emotions. He saw a group of men clad in black descended from the firmament, coming directly toward him as they landed above the tavern.


    The tavern seemed to feel that coercion. Everyone inside fell into dead silence. Mei Ting��s gaze was directed at the young man and the cultivators who surrounded him. He said, ��You have arrived as well.��


    The changes in the Original Realm had even attracted people from the Devil World.


    ��Mei Ting, you are having a good time,�� a Demonic cultivator commented. These cultivators were from the Devil World, and like Mei Ting, they were from the Devil Imperial Palace. All of them were supreme cultivators in the Devil World.


    ��Are you here for the relics of the Original Realm?�� asked Mei Ting.


    ��Mmm,�� everyone nodded. The young Demonic cultivator in the lead took a meaningful look at Mei Ting, then turned his gaze to the far distance where a majestic and imposing structure stood.


    ��That must be the Heavenly Mandate Academy, right?�� the young man asked.


    Mei Ting looked at him, then in the direction of Heavenly Mandate Academy. He knew what the other was thinking. He responded, ��It is indeed.��


    ��Indeed, Mr. Mei is in the mood.�� The young man smiled and said, ��Cultivators from all sides are busy looking for relics, but you, sir, are here drinking and enjoying the view of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Can you enlighten us as to your fascination with this place?��


    ��No fascination to speak of; I��m just bored,�� Mei Ting replied casually. This young man was rather special. He held superior status in the Devil World as one of Devil Emperor��s direct disciples. However, as one of the Devil Generals himself, Mei Ting��s status was not any lesser than the young man��s, so he didn��t bother affording the other with particular courtesy.


    Furthermore, the cultivators from the Devil World were somewhat different. The rule where the weak were preyed upon by the strong was more pronounced in their world. There were not many politics involved; only strength was the true metric for everything. As long as one was strong enough, one need not worry about offending anyone else.


    In the Devil World, conflicts and frictions between cultivators who cultivated together in the Devil Imperial Palace were commonplace.


    ��Bored?�� The young Demonic cultivator smiled and continued, ��Perhaps, it is because Mr. Mei is more interested in that academy. I have heard some things in the Devil World. Now that I am here in the Original Realm, I plan to visit their young king.��


    When he finished speaking, he levitated into the air and headed towards the Heavenly Mandate Academy. All the cultivators from the Devil World followed his lead.


    Mei Ting didn��t try to stop them when he saw this but allowed the others to do as they pleased. He wasn��t too worried about anything, as he knew the true strength that Heavenly Mandate Academy held currently. In truth, he was rather expectant of any potential conflicts; it would make things that much more interesting.


    Picking up the wine cup, Mei Ting drained another cup of wine, but his eyes were still focused on what was ahead. The real reason for that young man to come here to meet him was not Ye Futian��the young king of the Original Realm, as he called him. He thought that it must be because of Yu Sheng.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian was receiving the cultivators from Song Imperial City. At this time, they seemed to have perceived something as they raised their heads, looking towards the void. They saw that many top figures in the academy had risen into the sky, a grave expression on their faces. They were focusing on a group of cultivators in black that appeared above the firmament.


    They had sensed traces of oppression, indicating that these visitors were uncommonly powerful.


    The cultivators from Song Imperial City were equally alarmed when they saw this group of people. The old man who was in the lead was a little surprised. The cultivators from the Devil World had also arrived, and they had come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy first.


    Ye Futian directed his attention there and saw the young man who was in the lead. The two locked eyes, and Ye Futian felt a sense of hostility from the other.


    He was a little curious. Who was this person?

 Chapter 2311 - : Disciple of the Devil Emperor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian sensed the demonic might that circled this group of people. From it, he roughly guessed where this group had come from.


    Although Ye Futian did not know the identity of the young demonic cultivator before him, there was no doubt that his group was from the Devil World. Otherwise, the entire group would not have such an intense demonic aura.


    The cultivators of the Song Imperial City glanced at Ye Futian. They recalled that Mei Ting had also previously come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Why had the Devil World cultivators not searched for the relic but instead came here to find Ye Futian? From the expression in the leading youth��s eyes, they were clearly here for him.


    Could it be that there was some hidden secret behind this?


    The youth walked down towards Ye Futian. Blind Tie, Old Ma, and the others came forward to block him off, but Ye Futian waved his hand slightly. Blind Tie and the others stepped down and did not block the youth from the Devil World, allowing him to descend and land not far from Ye Futian.


    The demonic youth said, ��College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, the current ruler of the Original Realm, the top monstrous figure in the Original Realm who obtained the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor and the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei and Shenyin the Great��Ye Futian.�� He seemed to know Ye Futian quite well. The youth from the Devil World already knew all the things that Ye Futian had been through.


    Ye Futian looked at the other party. The cultivators from the Devil World who had appeared in the Original Realm before this mainly consisted of Mei Ting. Ye Futian also had some interactions with him. However, that was mainly due to Yu Sheng. Ye Futian never imagined that there were others in the Devil World who paid so much attention to him.


    It seemed that Yu Sheng��s status in the Devil World was extraordinary. Otherwise, this youth would not pay so much attention to Ye Futian��s existence.


    After all, from the looks of this lineup, the youth from the Devil World in front of him should be an extraordinary figure in the Devil World.


    ��Who are you, sir?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��I am Xiao Mu from the Devil World,�� replied the youth. Ye Futian might not be aware of the significance of that name, but in the Devil World, this name was already renowned far and wide. He was one of the direct disciples of the Devil Emperor. He had powerful cultivation and extraordinary status.


    A direct disciple of the Devil Emperor might inherit the title themselves one day. Whoever was the strongest would have the highest possibility of inheriting it.


    ��Xiao Mu,�� Ye Futian mumbled to himself. He did not know much about the Devil World, so he naturally had not heard of his name. However, from the lineup before him, Ye Futian had his suspicions. He said, ��Are you a cultivator from Devil Imperial Palace?��


    ��I am a disciple of the Devil Emperor,�� Xiao Mu replied. The expression of the surrounding cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy immediately turned serious. Compared to the monstrous figures from the Divine Prefecture who came before, the identity of this youth before them was even more spectacular.


    Who would dare to offend a disciple of the Devil Emperor so curtly?


    Even though Ye Futian had the backing of Master from Four Corner Village, with the other party��s status, it was worthless in their eyes.


    Why had such a figure come here?


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly. He had a rough guess as to why Xiao Mu had come.


    Now, Ye Futian was somewhat curious. What was his godfather��s status in the Devil World? What about Yu Sheng��s status?


    Now, he was certain that his godfather was a cultivator from the Devil World. However, Ye Futian did not know why his godfather had taken care of Yu Sheng and him. What secrets were involved in this? What happened 300 years ago?


    Ye Futian believed that it would not be long before he would stumble upon the truth. After all, he could now come in contact with figures at the very top. Even a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor had come looking for him.


    When Ye Futian reached the peak of the Renhuang Plane, he would probably have the opportunity to meet the figures at the very top.


    ��What business do you have with the Heavenly Mandate Academy?�� Ye Futian asked as he looked up at Xiao Mu. His voice was very calm. Xiao Mu gave Ye Futian a somewhat strange look. He seemed to look highly upon Ye Futian. As expected of the current top monstrous figure of the Original Realm. Even after hearing who Xiao Mu was, he had actually remained unshaken and was still calm.


    The white-haired youth before him was an extremely proud figure.


    ��I merely came to see what sort of person the young ruler of the Original Realm is like,�� said Xiao Mu. As he said this, his jet-black eyes became intense. They were a pair of demonic eyes. He looked towards Ye Futian as demonic might circled around his own figure. A powerful demonic aura flowed frenziedly and began to spread out around him.


    There was one part that Xiao Mu had not said out loud. He wanted to see what sort of person that fellow��s best friend was like and where level his cultivation and abilities were.


    Ye Futian looked at the other party��s eyes. The pair of deep, demonic eyes was terrifying. They bore endless overbearing pressure. A vast pressure pressed down on Ye Futian��s will. He was put into a hallucination. The person before him was no longer an approachable youth but instead a demon. It stood there towering above all things, gazing down on all existence. The demon faced Ye Futian, and its overbearing pressure pressed down on him. The demonic might could crush a person��s will.


    Divine light similarly shot out from Ye Futian��s eyes. It was dazzling. Even amidst the hallucination, Ye Futian stood on his spot quietly. The divine light flowed around him. His white hair and white robe accentuated his unparalleled temperament. It was as though he was a deity. Even when faced with the pressure from a demon, he remained unperturbed, and his facial expression was calm. The overbearing demonic might did not have any effect on him.


    Ye Futian had experienced many things to reach his current Plane of cultivation. He had faced the might of the will of the Great Emperors many times. He couldn��t be crushed by Xiao Mu��s will. Even though Xiao Mu��s will was domineering, it alone was not enough to cause Ye Futian��s will to be shaken.


    The surrounding cultivators all stood silently as they watched the two figures facing each other head-on. One had black hair and was garbed in a black robe, while the other had white hair and was garbed in a white robe. Both of them were equally outstanding. Their robes fluttered in the wind. They seemed to be looking at each other casually. However, a powerful gale was forming around them and stirring up debris.


    Their gazes alone contained such astonishing might. Even the top cultivators could faintly sense a pressure acting on them. They unleashed their auras of the Great Path to block the gale from spreading outwards. Otherwise, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would most likely be ruined by this raging gale.


    In the distance, Mei Ting glanced in their direction. As he had speculated, Xiao Mu was here to check Ye Futian out. Xiao Mu was most likely curious about Ye Futian��s ability.


    Xiao Mu was naturally doing this because of Yu Sheng.


    Rumble. Suddenly, a stronger gale swept out. The demonic might churned and roared. An extremely overbearing aura gushed towards Ye Futian. At the same time, the divine light on Ye Futian��s body grew brighter. Intense rumbling could be heard coming from his body of the Great Path. The gale became more and more violent and enveloped both of them in it. One by one, the top figures in the Heavenly Mandate Academy unleashed their auras. They shielded the entire Heavenly Mandate Academy in a light shroud.


    The next moment, Xiao Mu and Ye Futian shot up into the sky. Their speed was frightening. They were akin to two beams of light that shot up into the heavens. They were high above in the sky in an instant. Their raging auras of the Great Path exploded, expanding towards the Heavenly Mandate City!

 Chapter 2312 - Demonic Form and Divine Body

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Xiao Mu was an eighth-tier Renhuang and a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor.


    Ye Futian was a seventh-tier Renhuang. He controlled the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor. He was also the inheritor of the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei and Shenyin the Great.


    One was a top-level monstrous figure of the Devil World who was approaching the pinnacle. Another was the top monstrous figure of the Original Realm and the most prominent figure in the realm at the moment. The two of them suddenly confronted each other, standing across each other in the sky. Prior to this, there had been no premonition of a fight. With just an exchange of glances, they seemed to understand the other party��s intention.


    Be it Xiao Mu or the current Ye Futian, both of them had terrifying cultivation. The auras that the two of them released kept expanding, enveloping the vast space. All around the Heavenly Mandate City, countless people looked up into the sky. Their hearts were trembling intensely.


    Someone had actually come to challenge Ye Futian?


    For the people of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Ye Futian was already a legendary figure. He was the object of the faith of countless people, especially the cultivators from the younger generation. They worshipped him like a deity, and he was the goal that countless people pursued. He had pulled off too many miracles.


    The black-robed demonic cultivator was also extremely frightening. Who was he to dare challenge the current Ye Futian?


    ��I cultivated in the Devil World for more than 80 years. I joined Devil Imperial Palace when I was 30 and was later accepted by the Devil Emperor as a direct disciple. Now, I am an eighth-tier demonic emperor. In terms of cultivation Plane, I hold a slight advantage over you. I will hold back a little,�� Xiao Mu said as he looked at the figure standing across from him. His voice was overbearing and imposing. It contained an intense self-confidence. He claimed that he would hold back a little in his fight against Ye Futian and that he did not want to hold an advantage in terms of cultivation.


    Ye Futian��s white robe danced in the sky. His expression was still calm. He looked at the other party and said, ��There is no need to do so. I have cultivated for almost the same amount of time as you. Although my cultivation is at the seventh-tier Renhuang Plane, I have yet to encounter an equal match at the same tier. So, you don��t have to hold back.��


    Even when faced with a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor who was at a higher level than him, Ye Futian was still confident that he could put up a good fight against the other party. His confidence stirred up the emotions of countless cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate City.


    The demonic cultivator was actually a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor from the Devil World!


    Existences at his level were all cultivators who stood at the pinnacle of the cultivation world.


    Even so, Ye Futian, who had a lower Plane of cultivation, was still confident that he could put up a fight against Xiao Mu.


    Perhaps Xiao Mu would be the strongest opponent that Ye Futian had faced so far.


    Mei Ting, who was drinking wine in a tavern in the distance, looked in their direction too. He was also very interested in the battle. Ye Futian was a legendary figure that Yu Sheng willingly followed. Mei Ting wanted to see for himself how strong Ye Futian currently was.


    Xiao Mu would most likely be a huge challenge for Ye Futian.


    As one of the Eight Great Devil Generals in the Devil World, Mei Ting was well-aware of the ability of the direct disciples of the Devil Emperor. Those monstrous figures in the Outer Realms could not hold a candle to them. Being a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor meant that Xiao Mu received personal instruction from the Devil Emperor. Xiao Mu��s demonic art was taught by the Devil Emperor.


    The top figures from the Heavenly Mandate Academy had serious expressions too. They also realized how powerful Ye Futian��s opponent was. Xiao Mu was someone extraordinary, even for them. It was rare for them to encounter a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. The status of Xiao Mu was similar to that of Spear Emperor Du You, who came to the Original Realm more than 20 years ago with Princess Donghuang. Spear Emperor Du You was a direct disciple of Donghuang the Great.


    The Devil Emperor, who dwelled far in the Devil World, was a mighty legendary figure. How strong would his disciple be?


    The auras emanating from Ye Futian and Xiao Mu grew more and more frightening. The demonic might roared and churned. At the same time, intense rumbling of the Great Path could be heard from Ye Futian��s body. His body turned into the Way and became the Divine Body of the Great Path. It was domineering. In the previous battles, the Renhuangs at the same tier as Ye Futian could not withstand a blow from his flesh. One could imagine how menacing the divine body, which Ye Futian inherited from Shenjia the Great Emperor, was.


    Seemingly sensing the terror of Ye Futian��s flesh, Xiao Mu��s body was also metamorphosing. His demonic form was instantly covered with terrifying lightning. Black and purple divine lights gathered and merged with his body. One could sense the power of his flesh even better with their will. His flesh was fully charged with overbearing, destructive power.


    The gazes of the cultivators from the Song Imperial City narrowed when they saw this scene. The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were rather unfamiliar with the Devil Emperor. However, those long-standing top forces from the Divine Prefecture heard rumors about the Devil Emperor before.


    An elder said, ��Rumor has it that the Devil Emperor is a one-in-a-million genius in the Devil World. He has created many demonic arts which are unprecedented and unsurpassable. He is a bonafide legend. The demonic arts which he created are all top demonic techniques in the world. They are the pinnacle of demonic techniques. Furthermore, it is said that the Devil Emperor suits his teaching in accordance with his students�� aptitude. Based on the cultivation of each demonic cultivator, he teaches them different demonic arts so that the demonic arts are compatible with the learners.��


    The elder looked at the sky and continued, ��Rumor has it that all the disciples of the current Devil Emperor have inherited very formidable power. Since this Xiao Mu is one of his direct disciples, he must have inherited some form of demonic art from the Devil Emperor. I��m curious to find out how strong he is.��


    The facial expressions of many top figures from the Heavenly Mandate Academy turned solemn when they heard the elder��s words. They were not sure how strong the Devil Emperor was. However, the Devil Emperor was the one who ended the chaos in the Devil World. He was the legendary figure who united and ruled over the entire Devil World. His name was on par with that of Donghuang the Great. He was one of the very few cultivators who stood at the peak.


    How strong would his direct disciple be?


    Even though they had lots of confidence in Ye Futian, they were still uncertain about whether or not he could surpass the difference between their Planes and win the fight against this direct disciple of the Devil Emperor.


    The top figures would not have worried about Ye Futian if his opponent was not a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor, but instead a direct disciple of any of the top forces from the Divine Prefecture. After all, the direct disciples of the top forces paled into insignificance compared with the direct disciples of the Devil Emperor.


    Xiao Mu��s gaze was locked on Ye Futian. Both of them could sense how powerful the flesh of their opponent was. One was a demonic form, while the other was a divine body surrounded by endless runes and divine light.


    ��Let��s me experience how powerful the body of the Great Path inherited from Shenjia the Great Emperor is,�� Xiao Mu said loudly. His voice was deep and resonant. It caused the space to shake. He took a step forward. He didn��t unleash any demonic arts; instead, he intended to clash into Ye Futian head-on with his flesh.


    His Super Demonic Form was also an inheritance from the Devil Emperor. He refined it with demonic lightning to create his own demonic form of the Great Path. He had successfully forged the Super Destructive Heavenly Demon Form.


    Each and every disciple of the Devil Emperor had to cultivate the Super Demonic Form. Then, they had to merge it with their own flesh to create their own demonic form. The demonic cultivators were very particular about the cultivation of their bodies. Without strong flesh, it was hard for them to unleash the might of the demonic arts.


    As a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor, Xiao Mu had cultivated his body to its utmost limit. His body was domineering.


    When Xiao Mu stepped forward, the entire sky shook and thundered. The demonic might churned and exerted great pressure on everyone else. Ye Futian��s flesh was almost invincible. Since he had forged the divine body, he had not met anyone who could battle him with their flesh alone.


    However, now that he was facing Xiao Mu, even he felt a sense of pressure. It made him recall the initial sensation when he first met Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng��s body was very strong. Aside from his demonic art cultivation, it was also due to his innate abilities. Having cultivated in the Devil World, Yu Sheng��s body must have been trained to an even more terrifying level. Ye Futian wondered how Yu Sheng��s cultivation was progressing now.


    However, Ye Futian was not worried about Yu Sheng��s cultivation at all. That fellow would certainly not fall behind.


    His figure pounced forward, and he also stepped out. Both of them did not unleash law power attacks. Instead, they walked straight towards each other. Even so, before they even clashed, an extremely ferocious storm swept out. Intense rumbling of the Great Path filled the skies. The rumbling caused many cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy down below to have goosebumps as they watched the terrifying scene in the sky above. Was this the strength of the flesh that could be achieved by a cultivator?


    Even the giant-level figures were astonished. Renhuang Chen stood out to protect the Heavenly Mandate Academy, preventing it from being damaged by the shockwaves from the battle in the sky.


    In the sky above, demonic light and divine light swept out. The two of them walked straight towards each other. Then, both of them punched out towards their opponent at the same time. There was no fancy display of technique. Both of them unleashed terrifying attacks with just their bodies straight towards their opponent.


    Bang! The sky shook violently. An unparalleled storm swept out around them. With both of them at the center, a frightening cyclone was formed. Their figures were not sent flying. Both of them stood there, straight and tall.


    Ye Futian felt a menacing demonic light surge into his body. The demonic light contained unparalleled destructive power. It wanted to tear apart his flesh. However, the Divine Light of the Great Path circulated within him. His flesh was almost perfect and would not be destroyed so easily.


    Xiao Mu similarly felt a powerful shockwave surge up his arm and into his demonic form. However, his demonic form had also been honed and trained. In extraordinary locations in the Devil World, it had undergone the baptism of countless strikes of demonic lightning. It was an immortal and indestructible body. Even ninth-tier Renhuangs would have a hard time trying to destroy him.


    Yet, Xiao Mu was surprised. Ye Futian, who was clashing with him, had not been knocked back. He was taking Xiao Mu head-on. It was clear that Ye Futian��s body was indeed top tier.


    To be able to encounter such an opponent, Xiao Mu was feeling somewhat excited. Menacing demonic light flowed, and absolute power gathered in his arm. Once again, he punched out. Faced with his overbearing attack, an ordinary eighth-tier demonic emperor would be annihilated with a mere punch. He would not need to attack twice!

 Chapter 2313 - Broadsword Will

    The physical body constructed by Xiao Mu was the Super Destructive Heavenly Demon Form, with extreme destructive power. Not only was his body tempered to perfection, but once it collided with an opponent, it could tear and destroy the opponent apart immediately.


    When he was still cultivating in the Devil World, there was once a very well-known demonic figure behaving with arrogance and insolence. However, with his physical body alone, Xiao Mu could smash the opponent��s demonic form to pieces, killing him.


    With the terror brought on by his Super Destructive Heavenly Demon Form, Ye Futian��s cultivation at Seventh Realm shouldn��t be able to withstand even a single blow from him. However, the fact that Ye Futian��s physical body was strong enough to compete with him excited Xiao Mu inexplicably.


    At this moment, with Xiao Mu in the middle, a series of black streamers of silent destruction fell down and surrounded him. They began to spread outward, turning the vast space into a domain of silent destruction as well. Every one of these black streams of light seemed to contain the ultimate aura of destruction.


    The booming roars from Ye Futian��s body had become more intense. It seemed that there were many characters of the Great Path floating around him, a faint aura of swordsmanship circulating inside his body. It was as if his body had turned into a body of the sword. Ye Futian had cast his physical body with the Way, and it was his chosen medium of cultivation.


    As far as collisions of physical bodies were concerned, he wasn��t afraid of anyone, even those considered major figureheads. He didn��t think that his physical body would be weaker than his opponent, even if this Xiao Mu were personally taught by the Devil Emperor himself, who was also in possession of a body in the extreme with a higher realm. Still, he was not afraid of a physical confrontation.


    The two collided again; it was like an encounter between gods and demons. Above the firmament, two domineering bodies continued to collide, causing the sky to erupt with another violent howl. Even the space seemed to tremble. An extremely heavy sensation hung in the air.


    Streamers of pitch-black destructive light appeared upon Ye Futian, rushing into his body. But there was also a destructive Broadsword Will that invaded deep inside Xiao Mu, intending on destroying his Way.


    In the terrible trembling reverberation of the sounds, the expressions on their faces never changed. They appeared extremely calm, as if they were not affected at all, when in fact, such terrifying attacks would have already shattered anyone with lesser cultivation.


    Below, those cultivators from the Devil World shuddered inwardly. All of them were from the Imperial Palace of the Devil World, and all of them were extraordinary cultivators. Clearly, they had a better idea than anyone else regarding the true strength of Xiao Mu��s physical body. In their opinion, how could anyone from the land of the Divine Prefecture compete with the Devil Emperor��s own direct disciple?


    However, Ye Futian not only collided with him head-on but also confronted him when he was one realm lower. Was this the power of the body inherited from that legendary Shenjia the Great Emperor from the ancient days of yore?


    It seemed that in the land of Divine Prefecture, this once abandoned land in the Original Realm, a supremely enchanting genius had been born. This strength was no less than any top enchanting geniuses from the Imperial Palace.


    ��No wonder this man created so many legends in the Original Realm,�� someone whispered.


    ��So, did Xiao Mu know that this man is extraordinary? Was that why he deliberately came to the Heavenly Mandate Realm? To fight with him?�� someone asked. Many of them did not know about the relationship between Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, which was only known to a few.


    ��Perhaps. After all, this man is the number one enchanting genius in the Original Realm. He should be proud of himself, given that he��s able to fight Xiao Mu body-to-body,�� someone responded.


    ��But the outcome will remain the same.�� Someone looked up into the sky. This was not the ultimate state of Xiao Mu��s Super Destructive Heavenly Demonic Form. Super Destructive Heavenly Demonic Form was derived from the Devil Emperor��s Super Demonic Form, so its power is shockingly terrifying. Even though his opponent had inherited the body refining method from Shenjia the Great Emperor, Xiao Mu had inherited the body refining demonic method of the Devil Emperor.


    Therefore, they were confident that the winner of this physical battle would be Xiao Mu.


    The collision above the firmament became even more fierce. Again and again, the two met in the blasts, but not only did their momentum not weakened any, but it was getting more powerful than ever. The fierce roar of the Great Path in the firmament seemed to indicate it was on the verge of collapsing when these bodies would shatter the Great Path.


    In the battle, the Demonic aura from Xiao Mu intensified so that it was even more horrific. It was as if he was no longer a human but instead was made of the flesh cast by the ultimate destructive thunder. As he lifted his hands, hundreds of thousands of black demonic currents flowing into every part of his body so that his every move contained frightening destructive power.


    Gradually, Xiao Mu��s physical body seemed to have undergone another transformation during the battle. It was now completely pitch black, turning into the ultimate demonic body.


    Bang! There was another violent collision. The two banged against each other again, and at the moment of collision, Ye Futian felt an infinite destructive force rush into his body. Every part of his body was trembling, and he was knocked back.


    This was the first time the two had been separated by so much distance. Ye Futian steadied himself and looked up at the other side. Xiao Mu stood there like a giant demon god at this moment. His eyes were pitch black and fixed on him, full of boundless dominance. He addressed Ye Futian directly, ��Not bad. I didn��t expect to have to use my true strength against you. You deserve to be called ��The New King of the Original Realm.����


    His voice was domineering and confident, even tinged with a certain disdain. Divine light flowing around Ye Futian as he looked at that demon body and said, ��You are not too bad yourself. This will force me to be a bit more serious.��


    ��Huh?�� Xiao Mu frowned. What did Ye Futian mean by ��force him to be a bit more serious?��


    Did he mean that he didn��t take it seriously before?


    His demonic eyes stared at Ye Futian, and he saw the divine light flowing on Ye Futian��s body as an even more brilliant light burst from him. Faintly, he seemed to be hearing the sounds of Buddha and the divine light of the sun and the moon flowing about. The light reflected on that body, and a pattern was formed.


    Xiao Mu was somewhat alarmed. Before, was Ye Futian being casual, not using his full strength?


    Boom, boom, boom�� In this instant, Ye Futian��s body seemed to be howling fiercely like a terrifying behemoth, boundless divine splendor flowing about. His body moved forward and turned into a light, rushing straight towards Xiao Mu. At this moment, Xiao Mu��s demonic eyes perceived Ye Futian as a deity, full of incomparable brilliance.


    Xiao Mu��s eyes sharpened when he saw this before him. He looked extremely grave. He stepped forward, rocking the void as a massive demonic fist blasted forward, colliding with Ye Futian��s fist.


    The people below looked above the firmament, and the two of them seemed to have transformed into real gods and demons. The Great Path was shattered with one blow. Then, under the shocking gazes of the cultivators from the Devil World, Xiao Mu��s body was knocked away, flying backward. A terrible aura of destruction appeared on that dark demonic body, and the two extreme powers of sun and shadow wreaked havoc in his body. Even as the ultimate demonic body, it was difficult to bear such polarized bodies.


    The demonic light flowed as Xiao Mu ground to a stop, staring at Ye Futian. He realized that he had, unexpectedly, lost to his opponent in the collision between physical bodies of the Great Path. The Super Destructive Heavenly Demonic Form was suppressed and repelled by the blow just now. In the exchange that truly mattered, he had lost.


    Steadying himself, demonic might roared from within Xiao Mu. A terrible demonic domain appeared between heaven and earth, shrouding the boundless space. He stared at Ye Futian and appeared to have lost the edge of that arrogance, but his spirit of confidence and dominance remained.


    Although he had heard of Ye Futian��s reputation and knew of his relationship with Yu Sheng, he never thought he would lose.


    Of course, the failure resulted from that physical collision didn��t indicate a final outcome. Although cultivators of the Demonic Way tempered their physical bodies, it was definitely not the only thing that made them powerful. On top of everything, he was a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor.


    Above the firmament, pitch-black light streamers of Demonic Way flowed about and turned into demonic blades. A field of demonic blade appeared between heaven and earth. Infinite, pitch-black demonic blades moved about in the void, covering its vast terrain. The Broadsword will was filled with endlessly fierce destruction and murderous intent.


    A horrible cloud of catastrophe gathered as if the power of dark thunder was converging. Behind him, a massive and boundless demonic blade appeared, capable of cutting through a corner of the sky. Xiao Mu stretched out his hand, and the heaven and the earth suddenly let out a savage roar. In the storm of destruction, a pitch-black demonic blade appeared in his hand. Xiao Mu grabbed the demonic blade, and an unparalleled destructive force burst out from him.


    Just that Broadsword Will alone seemed to tear through the power of the Great Path. When Ye Futian felt this power, his expression became grave. This Broadsword Will was indeed terrifying!

 Chapter 2314 - The Blade and the Rod

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A strong Broadsword Will appeared in the entire field. Under this Broadsword Will, Ye Futian felt that everything he saw in front of him was changing. It was as if this place was no longer as it was previously. Instead, it was now filled with terrifying demon gods.


    These demon gods were each holding a demonic blade, standing in different positions, covering this corner of the sky. Terrifying Broadsword Will tore through the space, aiming toward him as if to crush his Will completely.


    Just this Broadsword Will alone was enough to shock everyone into silence, capable of knocking them down. Any Renhuang who was not firm enough would doubtlessly crumble under this Broadsword Will, unable to bear its intimidation.


    Xiao Mu held the blade in both hands. At this moment, all the demon gods in the heavens seemed to be holding the demonic blade in their hands as well. A fierce storm of destruction swept across the space. Before the blade was discharged, Ye Futian could sense the oppression of the Broadsword Will slashing down to suppress him, a pressure so heavy it was almost suffocating.


    It was simply astounding. Even when he was facing those at the peak of Renhuang in the Ninth Realm, Ye Futian had never experienced such intense oppression. Of course, it may be that someone at this level hadn��t really collided with him in the real sense of the word.


    But there was no doubt that Xiao Mu��s own combat power was spectacularly horrific. After all, he was the direct disciple taught by the Devil Emperor himself and a Renhuang of the Eighth Realm.


    Once in the realm of Upper Renhuang, the gap in each step of the realm was significant, much like an insurmountable chasm. But Ye Futian was now facing a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor, who was an entire realm higher than him.


    The roar that erupted from Ye Futian��s body of the Great Path became more fervent and violent. The Broadsword Will descended on his body but was unable to crush his will. There was a faint imperial divine glory shining upon him so that he appeared even more impressive.


    He had inherited the power of several Great Emperors. Among them, Shenjia the Great Emperor and Ziwei the Great were both extraordinary Great Emperor cultivators. Shenjia the Great Emperor had dared to challenge the heavens, while Ziwei the Great commanded several Great Emperors under him. Having inherited the Incomparable powers of these two, Ye Futian had constructed an indestructible physical body and spiritual will. In short, he was not that easily shaken.


    Furthermore, as he felt that potent Broadsword Will, his body boomed. And an equally intimidating spirit manifested upon him as well. The starlight flowed upon his body which seemed to transform into a starry sky world. At this moment, his physical body underwent another transformation. He became something like a divine body of the starry sky.


    Moreover, there was a terrifying howl of an ape that shook heaven and earth. Suddenly, strong coercion emerged as a massive War Ape appeared behind Ye Futian.


    Boom�� The War Ape trampled above everything, and suddenly, the sky roared. The vast space seemed to solidify. This War Ape, like a battle beast from the starry sky, was the Starry War Ape.


    An unusual vision appeared in the world behind Ye Futian.


    This sight before them made many cultivators trembled inside. What ability could cause such a vision to appear?


    Previously, they had not seen Ye Futian using it.


    The cultivators from Four Corner Village squinted their eyes as their hearts quivered. They had not anticipated Ye Futian to have cultivated this divine method to this degree. The Starry War Song, one of the seven divine methods of Four Corner Village, could summon the Starry War Ape, whose presence was incredibly wild and menacing. Its attack power was unparalleled.


    This particular ability was controlled by Shi Kui in Four Corner Village. At the same time, when Ye Futian unlocked the mysteries of Four Corner Village, he had also cultivated various secret methods. This was something known by all the cultivators from the village.


    Now, it seemed that Ye Futian was using another divine method from the Four Corner Village to fight against the disciple of the Devil Emperor.


    At this moment, Xiao Mu raised the blade with both hands, and the demonic light circulated upon the demonic blade, forming a frightening sight. In this field, many illusions of the demon god seemed to raise their blades simultaneously, ready to strike. Even before the strike was unleashed, its power was already shocking. It was as if it could shatter this corner of the sky, and ??no one was capable of stopping it.


    Cultivators from the Devil World below wore a solemn expression as their eyes fastened on Xiao Mu, who was in the void.


    Even though Xiao Mu��s Super Destructive Heavenly Demon Form was physically defeated by Ye Futian, now boosted by the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon, what kind of earth-shattering destructive power would be discharged by this combination?


    They were expectant as well. It seemed that Xiao Mu had never treated an opponent so seriously.


    Ye Futian had really angered Xiao Mu. And that had pushed Xiao Mu into his strongest state yet, gathering all his strength to battle with Ye Futian.


    Xiao Mu took a step forward, and a majestic and massive figure of the demon god appeared above the firmament. It stood there, containing the most supreme majestic spirit to crush down on this space. In this area, under the figure of that demon god, everything was null, and all beings were inconsequential.


    Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon contained nine styles of strike, and each strike morphed to increase in strength. When the nine strikes were released, even the Heavenly Demon would be cut down, hence the name.


    Xiao Mu��s hands slammed down. Even with cultivation as great as his, he needed to exert an incredible amount of strength to unleash this sword strike, as if on the verge of exhausting all of his energy to release it. Just this first strike alone seemed to have hollowed out his strength and spiritual energy.


    But at the same time, only when he smashed down with the blade did the cultivators around them realize what was happening.


    A pitch-black fissure appeared between heaven and earth, and everything was split open and pulverized. At the same time, the illusions of the demon god in their surrounding also mimicked their movements and struck. In this area of ??the Great Path, a series of blasting light of the blades cut through the void, destroying everything in their path.


    Even those major figureheads felt their hearts tremble when this strike was unleashed.


    It was simply too powerful. Just the first strike contained such horrific prowess. This was the true blade technique. Compared with the demonic blade in front of them, it seemed that what they had known before to be blade techniques couldn��t be considered ��technique�� at all.


    Terrifying rumbling sounds were heard, and the vision of the Great Path around Ye Futian was becoming more radiant as a starry world surrounded by countless stars was formed. When the blade light came down, the Starry War Ape howled into the heavens, and those surrounding stars created an unparalleled defensive force, blocking the invading Broadsword Will and those countless sword shadows.


    At the same time, a rod appeared in Ye Futian��s hand, as if it had been transformed by the stars. It was heavy, full of boundless and overbearing energy. When the blade slashed toward him, the rod blasted forth.


    These two terrifying forces met and collided in mid-air. The destructive demonic blade slashed through the shadow of the rod that had shattered the space. The power that erupted from the contact began to tear through the surrounding space. The Great Path was shattered into pieces, and cracks appeared where the attacks had occurred.


    Xiao Mu��s combination was the Super Destructive Heavenly Demon Form aided by the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon. However, Ye Futian��s Divine Body of the Great Path worked in sync with the Starry War Song from Four Corner Village and the power of the Starry Great Path. The ultimate power exuded from this combination was unimaginably frightening.


    The storm of destruction still raged between the two. Xiao Mu��s eyes were pitch-black and impenetrable. His arm retracted as the blade returned between his hands, raised high above. Dark divine light of thunder fell and circulated upon the blade. An even more powerful demonic light rushed into the sky, and Xiao Mu unleashed the second strike without any hesitation.


    Each strike from the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon was stronger than the previous strike. Even Renhuang at the peak couldn��t survive just a couple of these slashes!

 Chapter 2315 - The Heir

    Xiao Mu unleashed the second strike, and it was like an angry roar from the demon god. The blade opened up the sky, carving out a series of horrific destructive fissures.


    Ye Futian raised his head and saw a gigantic and boundless demonic blade slashing towards him, like a strike from the demon god himself.


    Boom! Surrounded by starlight, heaven and earth seemed to solidify. The starry power was everywhere, so the space felt tremendously heavy. The Starry War Ape roared madly as Ye Futian picked up a long rod and smashed it down. This shocking blow wanted to shatter the sky but collided with the demonic blade that blasted at him instead. The collision resulted in an eruption of terrible divine light that was hard for anyone to behold.


    There was a loud rumbling noise, and the surrounding Great Path seemed to be exploding in a most horrific manner.


    Nonetheless, this strike had been blocked and could not obliterate Ye Futian or get anywhere near him. This blow, at best, was barely adequate. It seemed that even the Nine Slashes of Heavenly Demon couldn��t crush Ye Futian��s attack, and these two had met their match in each other.


    The hearts of the cultivators below palpitated, especially those top figures from the Devil World. Xiao Mu unleashed the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon with all his might; its power had already come close to threaten even peak-level Renhuang. However, the second strike of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon did not seem to pose a real threat to Ye Futian because it had been successfully blocked by him.


    The Starry War Ape, as well as the power of the stars, and his body in the Great Path, were all extremely awesome. Multiple powers now blended into one, perfectly erupting from the center that was Ye Futian. The power that erupted was no lesser than Xiao Mu��s Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon.


    It seemed that to defeat Ye Futian, the second strike from the Nine Slashes was far from sufficient.


    The force of the second blow hadn��t completely dissipated before Xiao Mu took another step forward. There were terrible fissures in the surrounding space as the Great Path seemed to be torn and destroyed. Another wave of Broadsword Will gathered once again as if overlapping and reinforcing blade momentum from before. It was getting stronger. A terrifying coercion blasted down as the sky howled. The Great Path roared as those demon gods appeared, like some heavenly demons.


    Another strike appeared, blooming with a world-destroying demonic light, overlapping again with the blade momentum from before. They seemed to land on the same track and smashed down in the same trajectory. But it was heavier, stronger, and more uncompromising.


    The third strike of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon was already the most exquisite of the first three strikes and also the strongest.


    This offensive technique was a mass-slaughtering technique created by the Devil Emperor when he was besieged and suppressed by numerous demon emperors when he was unifying the Devil World. The Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon had beheaded countless demon emperors, terrorized the Devil World until it was flattened by him. Before he proclaimed his reign, he had always been hailed as one of the terrifying existences in the history of the Devil World. He was the first enchanting genius since the collapse of the heavenly path, whose name was known throughout the past and the present.


    After his proclamation as the emperor, many thought that the Devil Emperor was no lesser than the legendary Devil Emperors of ancient times. He wanted to become the first person in the history of the Devil World to unify the Devil World itself and unify the outside world.


    The blade technique created by the Devil Emperor was intimidating, to say the least. It was said that when the Devil Emperor deployed the eighth strike, it was almost near invincible, and no one could stop his blade.


    The staff technique converged again, blasting toward that third strike. However, this time it was not as before, as the staff shadow was shattered. Even though it was able to block that scary strike, it��s the first time Ye Futian��s staff technique was suppressed. He was repelled back a few steps.


    It was not that his own strength was any lesser than that of Xiao Mu, but that the attacking technique he deployed was not on par with the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon. After all, this was the ultimate slaughtering technique created by the Devil Emperor.


    The cultivators from the Devil World were a little relieved when they beheld this sight. Although Ye Futian was very powerful, the opponent he was facing was Xiao Mu. No matter how strong he was, how could he possibly compete with the Devil Emperor��s direct disciple, especially when this disciple��s realm was higher than his?


    Ye Futian��s inheritance was, after all, from the Great Emperors of yore, and the Devil Emperor was a Great Emperor who existed in the world right now.


    However, if Ye Futian and Xiao Mu were in the same realm, Xiao Mu would probably lose this battle in the end. If he had to battle with such difficulties in a situation where his realm was higher, it only served to accentuate Ye Futian��s natural talent and the strength of his combat effectiveness.


    As the first genius talent of the Original Realm, this young king of the Original Realm, indeed, did not disappoint.


    His prestige was not in name only. Otherwise, with so many top figures hanging around, how could he become the king of the Original Realm?


    Xiao Mu looked relieved when he saw that Ye Futian was repelled by the third strike. His dark eyes glanced at Ye Futian. He thought that he had finally backed down. Ye Futian had shown signs of defeat with that third strike, but it wasn��t enough. He wanted to destroy Ye Futian, and this was just the third strike.


    After the blade smashed down, its momentum did not disappear. On the contrary, it became stronger.


    There seemed to be a resonance in this area of Heavenly Demon. Those demon gods seemed to mimic the same actions as Xiao Mu, raising their blades.


    In the vast and boundless space, many demon gods raised their blades at the same time, and these forces resonated with one another. Before the blade was released, a terrible slaughtering and destructive power had already swept toward Ye Futian, with the potential to destroy everything.


    Ye Futian had retreated at the third strike, so the next two strikes should end the battle.


    Xiao Mu thought the fourth strike was gathering momentum, and the storm was getting more terrifying, raging in this space. The storm was capable of slaughtering ordinary Renhuang as it contained incredible power of ruination.


    Ye Futian sensed this power, and there was a divine light flashing through his eyes, and it seemed to become heavier still. The roar in his body became more violent and fierce, however. Characters flew out as his body morphed with the Way. It became something far more terrifying. At the same time, there was a divine light shining at his brow chakra, akin to imperial glory. He looked even more dazzling, like some heavenly deity.


    The stars in the sky centered around Ye Futian with just one thought, and the starry glory surrounded him. A phantom of Ye Futian seemed to appear on every star, and at the moment, Ye Futian seemed to be everywhere, becoming one with this starry sky.


    When the terrifying demonic blade came in for the kill, it collided with the starry field and was blocked by the light screen; it failed to come close to Ye Futian. With his body as the center, the stars had formed an absolute field of power, and this area of the Great Path was inching toward the other, on the prowl to invade.


    Ye Futian��s body floated in the center of this starry world, surrounded by countless starry divine lights that showered upon him. The cultivators below watched Ye Futian, their hearts beating wildly. Whether it was cultivators from the Devil World or the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the hearts of those cultivators palpitated. The cultivators from Ziwei, especially, were more electrified now than ever.


    Ye Futian was like the true heir of Ziwei the Great!

 Chapter 2316 - Victory and Defeat

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The changes to Ye Futian similarly caused the hearts of the cultivators of the Devil World to tremble. Before this, when they saw Ye Futian being pushed back, they had believed the battle to be over.


    However, it seemed that they were too optimistic. This battle was just beginning.


    Xiao Mu grew stronger and stronger. Ye Futian also rose to the occasion. He kept unleashing new abilities. He had not been going all out at all since the start of the battle. This made the top figures of the Devil World feel somewhat surreal. A seventh-tier cultivator actually dared not go all out when facing an eighth-tier direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. How confident was Ye Futian in his own abilities?


    An instant change appeared in Xiao Mu��s demonic eyes. Yet, the more powerful Ye Futian grew, the more it seemed to stir up Xiao Mu��s fighting spirit. His battle spirit was ablaze right now. A storm swept out, and the silhouettes of the demons in the sky moved, resonating with him.


    Lifting the blade with both his hands, all the power of the Great Path in Xiao Mu��s body surged into the demonic blade. It caused demonic light from the blade to pierce the heavens. Terrifying clouds covered the skies.


    The scene before the crowd was astonishing.


    On the other side, with Ye Futian��s figure as the center, divine starlight shone extremely brightly. His body radiated with imperial glory. Bathed in the divine light, Ye Futian was like a true god. Stars circled around him. His shadow was on each of the stars, as though he controlled all of them.


    Buzz. Xiao Mu slashed down for the fourth time. With this slash, the various demons in the sky also slashed down with their demonic blades at the same time. Frightening cracks appeared in the sky, ripping apart all of existence. Against these demonic blades, no one could survive.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! The demonic blades met with resistance this time. They cleaved down on the stars that filled the sky. The stars that circled around Ye Futian��s figure formed a light shroud of stars. The Blade Will of the demons were all blocked off by these stars.


    Only the domineering blade in the middle, which was the one of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon unleashed by Xiao Mu, cleaved the light shroud apart. At the same time, it shattered a star before it. It was as though no defensive power could withstand this blade. However, the people down below could all sense that the might of this blade had already been weakened. It would most likely be difficult for Xiao Mu to end Ye Futian with this slash.


    As expected, when the astonishing blade slashed down, countless runes appeared around Ye Futian��s body and formed an absolute domain of stars. The Blade Will flashed, but it could not break through the defense of the stars. Cracks appeared on the stars. Then, the momentum of the blade was halted, and it could not advance any further.


    As the cultivators beneath the sky watched, endless Blade Will landed on the stars. It caused cracks to form on the stars. However, the stars were not shattered, and they had successfully blocked this ferocious attack.


    Was this the defensive technique passed down through the teachings of Great Emperor Ziwei? many people down below thought. Great Emperor Ziwei was one of the most famous Great Emperor figures in the ancient era. He was a marvel of his time. How powerful was he?


    Rumor has it that Great Emperor Ziwei could control the various stars in the sky. He was the ruler of a segmentum. Such an extraordinary figure must have certainly cultivated powerful techniques. However, the various cultivators had never seen them before. They had only caught a glimpse of such techniques from observing Renhuang Chen during his battles.


    Now, Ye Futian seemed to be unleashing the power of the teachings he inherited from Great Emperor Ziwei. How powerful would this technique be?


    The defensive power of this technique was evident.


    The fourth blade was blocked.


    Xiao Mu initially thought that the previous two slashes were enough to end the battle. Unfortunately, he was wrong.


    By now, he had exhausted much of his strength. Each and every slash of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon took a huge toll on the user. It was already awe-inspiring for Xiao Mu to be able to unleash four slashes.


    Xiao Mu slashed down for the fifth time. His fifth slash was even more powerful than the fourth. The momentum was even more astonishing.


    The fifth slash caused cracks to form on many stars around Ye Futian. The defensive light shroud before Ye Futian shattered into pieces after being cleaved into half. Although Ye Futian still managed to block this fifth slash, the stars were on the verge of crumbling. It was as though they would be destroyed at any second.


    Xiao Mu didn��t underestimate Ye Futian. From his perspective, if Ye Futian hadn��t unleashed the power he inherited from Great Emperor Ziwei, the fifth slash would have certainly ended the battle.


    This fifth blade was absolutely domineering, yet it was still not enough to defeat Ye Futian.


    Right now, Xiao Mu felt too exhausted to press on. He took a step forward. He was akin to a demon as his gaze locked on Ye Futian. Xiao Mu proclaimed, ��This next slash should end the battle.��


    He couldn��t afford to drag the battle any longer; it cost a huge amount of damage to himself as he unleashed each slash of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon. While the slashes were very formidable, they also consumed much of the strength of the user. Xiao Mu needed to maintain both his flesh and mind at their peak state to truly unleash the might of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon.


    Otherwise, his attack would have the form but not the essence of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon. It would not retain its might too.


    Boom! A terrifying demonic aura enveloped Xiao Mu. The cultivators from the Devil World narrowed their eyes in shock. What was Xiao Mu planning to do?


    Was he going to send out a frenzy slash?


    Ye Futian stood still on his spot. He looked plainly at Xiao Mu; he was akin to an all-mighty god. There was absolute confidence shining in his eyes. He was more or less certain about Xiao Mu��s level of ability.


    From the looks of it, the sixth slash would be Xiao Mu��s limit.


    If Xiao Mu could slash down the seventh time, it was possible for him to defeat Ye Futian. If Xiao Mu could slash down the eighth time, Ye Futian would surely lose.


    Unfortunately, there was no what-if. The sixth slash would be Xiao Mu��s last slash.


    And Ye Futian was confident that he could block this sixth slash.


    It should be said that Ye Futian didn��t intend to block it; instead, he would retaliate.


    Boom! Xiao Mu��s body changed as he grew larger and larger. He merged with the demons in the sky and transformed into a demon himself. He wielded the blade with both his hands. When his Blade Will burst forth, terrifying fissures formed in the space.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt threatened.


    He finally moved. An illusory figure appeared above Ye Futian��s body. The illusory figure seemed to be Ye Futian himself. It was surrounded by divine light and abnormal phenomena. Ye Futian transformed into a deity and became one with the stars. Endless divine light of the stars shone on him. With his body as the center of the stars, an intimidating power gushed forth.


    Dazzling divine halos shone brightly. A sword appeared in front of Ye Futian. The celestial force all around Ye Futian rushed into the sword, causing it to keep expanding. It grew larger and transformed into a true starry divine sword.


    Xiao Mu slashed down. The sixth slash of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon caused the sky to dim as it charged towards Ye Futian. It could even slaughter gods. At the same time, the stars around Ye Futian became one as endless starlight surged into the sword. Ye Futian raised his arm and thrust the sword forward. The divine sword and the demonic blade collided head-on.


    Rumble! It was as though the world was falling apart. Apart from the divine sword, many stars cracked and shattered into pieces. The stars took the place of the starry divine sword to bear the power of the demonic blade.


    On the other hand, the blade was also trembling violently. It was similarly enduring an unparalleled power.


    One by one, the stars cracked and disintegrated. However, the divine light on the starry divine sword shone more and more brilliantly. It suppressed everything that was in its way, causing cracks to start forming on the demonic blade too.


    Bang! As cracks began to appear on the demonic blade, Xiao Mu let out a dull groan. His face was pale. He had unleashed six slashes out of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon. Yet, it was still insufficient to defeat Ye Futian.


    The blade and the sword were both destroyed. One after the other, they broke into pieces.


    Ye Futian looked at Xiao Mu and said, ��If you could unleash the seventh slash today, the loser would be me.�� He stood still, and his tone was calm. It was as though the victor of the battle had been determined.


    This exchange between the two had indeed determined the victor. At least, that was what Ye Futian surmised. As for whether or not this fight would continue, it depended on Xiao Mu. If they continued fighting, the result would not change as long as Xiao Mu didn��t unleash the seventh slash.


    Xiao Mu stood in midair quietly. His Demonic Will was not as rampant as before. He looked at Ye Futian and didn��t refute his words. It was as though he silently agreed to what Ye Futian had said. Not defeating Ye Futian with the sixth slash meant that Xiao Mu had lost the fight.


    Xiao Mu was not able to slash down for the seventh time. If he could unleash the seventh slash, the loser would surely be Ye Futian. Even Ye Futian admitted this!

 Chapter 2317 - Secret of the Devil World

    The outcome of their battle was decided.


    Down below, the cultivators of the Devil World were quite restless when they saw this scene before them. Xiao Mu had actually been defeated.


    Even the sixth slash of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon still could not take down Ye Futian. It had been blocked. After the power that Ye Futian inherited from Shenjia the Great Emperor and Great Emperor Ziwei burst forth, even the eighth-tier Xiao Mu could not touch him at all.


    After this slash, Xiao Mu was already worn out. Unleashing the sixth slash of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon had already drained all his strength. He had reached his peak condition right before that moment. However, after the slash, he had now slumped into a phase of weakness. Moreover, his demonic blade was shattered by Ye Futian.


    Yet, Ye Futian was not affected much. Right now, he was still in peak condition. His entire body was shining brightly. Brilliant divine halos radiated from his body. It was unparalleled. It looked as though he could unleash his previous attack once more at any moment. Hence, both of them knew the outcome of this battle. There was no need to continue fighting. Xiao Mu admitted his defeat.


    This young ruler of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was actually this strong.


    The various cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy secretly heaved sighs of relief. They were also moved. Ye Futian had surpassed the boundary of Planes and defeated Xiao Mu, a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. It would be hard to find someone on the same Plane as Ye Futian who could contend with him in various worlds. Even if there were such figures, there would not be many of them. They would truly be rare specimens and would be monstrous figures who stood at the pinnacle of their worlds.


    They were looking forward to Ye Futian��s growth even more. When he reached the peak of the Renhuang Plane and experienced a divine tribulation of the Great Path, how glorious would that day be?


    The ruler of the Original Realm would truly be able to shock the cultivators of various worlds. No one would dare trespass in the Original Realm. Ye Futian would become the absolute leader of the Original Realm.


    In a tavern in the distance, Mei Ting raised a cup of wine and drank from it. Before the battle began, even he did not know who would emerge as the victor. He was also very interested in this battle. Now that it had ended, he seemed to have a better understanding of Ye Futian��s combat ability. After all, for Mei Ting, Xiao Mu was a good opponent for Ye Futian and could check on Ye Futian��s ability.


    Did that person train Ye Futian to this level?


    It should have been impossible. That person did not have the time to do so. From what Mei Ting learned from Yu Sheng and the abilities that Ye Futian displayed, their abilities were not related to that person at all. Even for Yu Sheng, that person had merely passed on a set of demonic arts for Yu Sheng to train himself.


    So, Ye Futian��s achievements were all related to the fateful encounters that he had. Aside from being lucky and having many opportunities for him to have come so far in his cultivation, it also meant that he was extraordinary, to begin with. He was very talented. His real identity was even more intriguing now.


    ��Let��s go,�� commanded Xiao Mu. Then, he flew up to the sky and left the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He was a little weak. Moreover, it was meaningless for him to hang around any longer now that he had lost.


    The top cultivators from the Devil World took a good look at Ye Futian. Then, one by one, they flew up to the sky. Traversing the clouds, they left the place along with Xiao Mu. Soon, the group disappeared of those on the ground. Only a tint of demonic aura was left lingering in the sky.


    The cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Academy collectively heaved a sigh of relief after the demonic cultivators left. The latter emanated an imposing pressure on the rest of them. Even Renhuang Chen had his guard up the whole time while the demonic cultivators were around. If the group from the Devil World initiated an attack against them, it would put them in great danger. No one dared to act recklessly. After all, the incomers were cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Fortunately, the source of the pressure had disappeared now. The demonic cultivators leaving meant that the crisis was over.


    Ye Futian looked in the direction where the demonic cultivators had disappeared to. He appeared calm and showed no sign of joy upon winning a battle. During the battle, he also sensed the immense pressure imposed by the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. It was Ye Futian��s first time encountering an opponent who could clash head-on with him just with his flesh. Furthermore, the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon posed a threat to him. What would happen to him if one of the direct disciples of the Devil Emperor mastered the seventh, or even the eighth, slash?


    How could Ye Futian possibly defend himself against such a figure?


    How about the Devil Emperor himself? What kind of person was he?


    ��Renhuang Ye is indeed an unparalleled figure. Even an eighth-tier direct disciple of the Devil Emperor has lost to you,�� a cultivator from the Song Imperial City said to Ye Futian. The cultivator was very impressed by him. The wish of the cultivator to become acquainted with Ye Futian grew even stronger now. This battle had once again verified Ye Futian��s talent. He was a bona fide exceptional figure able to defeat a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. Most likely, very few people in the Divine Prefecture were comparable to Ye Futian now.


    ��I got lucky. If he mastered the seventh slash, I would most likely not have been able to withstand his attack.�� Ye Futian spoke humbly. ��Does Senior know anything about the Devil Emperor? What kind of person is he?��


    ��The current Devil Emperor is a living legend in the Devil World. He became famous even before Donghuang the Great did. Before Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture, the Devil Emperor had already ended the era of various demons fighting over the Devil World. He unified the entire Devil World. People claimed that no one, past or future, could compare to him. Not only would he inherit the glory of the Devil Emperors of the ancient era, he even wanted to bring it to new heights.��


    ��Bring it to new heights?�� asked Ye Futian as his heart trembled.


    ��Hmm,�� said the cultivator from the Song Imperial City as he nodded his head. ��I heard that he previously tried to do so.��


    Ye Futian��s heart was racing. After unifying the Devil World, the Devil Emperor wanted to bring it to new heights. Ye Futian naturally understood what that meant. The Devil Emperor had wanted to conquer other worlds and claim them all for his own.


    He had even attempted to do so before.


    What had happened back then?


    ��Did the Devil Emperor have incredible figures beside him who were very close to him?�� asked Ye Futian.


    The cultivator from the Song Imperial City had a pensive look. He softly said, ��I have heard of a secret, though I do not know whether or not it is true. This matter seems to be unknown to many. Even among the top forces, it is but a rumor that goes around. It is impossible to verify its legitimacy.��


    ��What secret?�� asked Ye Futian.


    The cultivator from the Song Imperial City continued, ��There were previously two prominent figures in the Devil World. It was not just the Devil Emperor alone. He had a brother. However, later on, this brother of his would disappear without a trace. Rumors claimed that he had betrayed the Devil Emperor. Others claimed that he had died at the hands of the Devil Emperor. There could only be one ruler of the Devil World.�� This caused Ye Futian��s heart to beat even faster.


    He could faintly sense that he was approaching the truth soon.


    It was just that even the top figures of the Song Imperial City knew very little about it. They had only rumors to go by, and they could not even verify the legitimacy of the information.


    The brother of the Devil Emperor?


    Then, what was Yu Sheng��s status?


    If what the other party claimed was true, then the brother of the Devil Emperor clearly had not died and had always been by Yu Sheng��s side. He became a lonely, frail old man. No one knew his status and who he was.


    However, why would such a terrifying figure claim to be a slave?


    Ye Futian could not wrap his head around this. What was the story behind all this? This information itself might be incorrect, and that person was not the brother of the Devil Emperor!

 Chapter 2318 - : Explanation

    The cultivator from the Song Imperial City was somewhat curious. Why was Ye Futian inquiring about those close to the Devil Emperor?


    On that same note, why had the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor immediately come looking for Ye Futian after arriving in the Original Realm?


    Mei Ting, a Devil General of the Devil World, seemed to be exceptionally interested in Ye Futian. Could it be that there were some secrets behind all this?


    However, the cultivator from the Song Imperial City did not inquire further about this. Each person had their own secrets. As long as they were unrelated to him, there was no need to pry. He had come to befriend Ye Futian, so he would not do anything to offend him. Prying into the secrets of others was undoubtedly one of the most offensive acts possible.


    Since there were secrets involved, it was naturally better for fewer people to know about it. Nobody wished to expose everything about themselves in front of others.


    ��If Renhuang Ye has other questions, feel free to ask me,�� the cultivator from the Song Imperial City said with a smile. ��I have cultivated for quite a long time in the Divine Prefecture. Even though I don��t claim to know much, I have heard of many things before.�� He appeared exceptionally sincere in his speech.


    Ye Futian had just defeated a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. The battle was significant, indicating that Ye Futian would attain even higher achievements in the future. He would certainly be able to experience a divine tribulation of the Great Path. The sky was his limit.


    Ye Futian naturally sensed the goodwill of the other party. The way the cultivators of the Song Imperial City treated him now was completely different from before. This change happened because of his current status and improvement in abilities. In the past, Song Imperial City wanted to take him under their wing to control him. Now, they wanted to befriend him.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian didn��t inquire further about the matters of the Devil World; it would be too obvious if he continued asking about them.


    ��Cultivators from all around the world have gathered here. Since the cultivators from the Devil World have arrived, most likely cultivators from the other Realms will also be here, right?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��I am not sure about the cultivators from the World of Buddhism. But I think they will be here too. I��m also not so certain about what��s happening in the Heaven Realm currently. As for the Human Realm, most likely some cultivators will come over,�� replied the cultivator from the Song Imperial City. ��It goes without saying for the cultivators from the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head. This time, the storm in the Original Realm was growing more and more intense. The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were not the only ones who caught wind of it. Top forces arrived in the Original Realm consecutively. Aside from that, before this, the Empty Divine Realm and the Dark World had constantly sent more cultivators here. Now, the cultivators of the Devil World appeared, and a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor had descended upon the Original Realm. Hence, Ye Futian was speculating whether or not the cultivators from the other worlds would also come.


    He did not know what had happened in the battle back then. The Dark World, the Divine Prefecture, and the Empty Divine Realm experienced their most direct conflict ever. The World of Buddhism had good relations with the Donghuang Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture. After all, Donghuang the Great had previously ventured to the World of Buddhism to seek the Path.


    Ye Futian knew more about the World of Buddhism because of his relationship with Yu Sheng. From the looks of it, the Devil World was not close with any other world. However, they also did not bear any obvious animosity towards any world. At least, that was what Ye Futian perceived at the moment.


    He had previously encountered a mysterious cultivator in the Heaven Realm.


    As for the Human Realm, he had never come in contact with it up until now.


    Now, would the cultivators of the Human Realm also come to the Original Realm?


    ��Does Senior know much about the Human Realm?�� Ye Futian asked.


    The cultivator from the Song Imperial City replied, ��I know little about it. I learned about it mainly from the ancient scriptures. Some elders mentioned something before. Rumor has it that after the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the main world formed was the Human Realm. From there, division occurred, and after countless years, things are what we see today. I heard that the Human Ancestor of the Human Realm is quite close with Donghuang the Great. The former has lent his aid to the latter before. The Human Ancestor has lived for eons. He is kind and is adored by many people. It is said that even Donghuang the Great looks highly on him. As for whether or not the few legendary top figures have good relationships among themselves, that��s not something I can possibly know.��


    Ye Futian nodded. Those figures were people on another level. They were at the true pinnacle. They were supreme rulers of the world.


    The people down below could only speculate about their relationships based on what they observed. Only the legendary figures knew exactly how things were among themselves.


    However, based on the bits and pieces collected, Ye Futian could roughly tell that Donghuang the Great was truly an imposing hero. 300 or 400 years after he had made his name known, he was already on par with those Great Emperors who had been dominant for centuries. Besides that, Donghuang the Great seemed to have good relationships with the World of Buddhism and the Human Realm.


    Back then, why did Donghuang the Great go against Emperor Ye Qing?


    ��Are there truly only seven Great Emperors in existence?�� Ye Futian continued asking. Now that he had reached his current cultivation Plane, he had the desire to know more about these things that were unknown to him. He wanted to know the truth of this world and its secrets. The cultivator from the Song Imperial City clearly knew more than he did.


    The cultivator from the Song Imperial City revealed a meaningful smile. He looked at Ye Futian and said, ��If there were only seven Great Emperors, then, does Great Emperor Ziwei, who Renhuang Ye met before, count as one of them? If not, what about Shenyin the Great?��


    When Ye Futian heard his words, he revealed a pensive look. He pondered on the meaning of these words.


    The other party smiled and continued saying, ��The world is too big. After having lived during the Age of Gods and reached the Great Emperor Plane, the Great Emperors can create so many miracles. Even if they have truly fallen, they will still leave behind remnants of themselves. Who knows? In some remote corner of the world, there might still be a Great Emperor who is alive.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head. The existence of Shenjia the Great Emperor, Great Emperor Ziwei, and Shenyin the Great also made him feel that way. There were too many mysteries and secrets in the world. Right now, he still could not comprehend all of it.


    ��The Ancient God Clan is a clan that claims to bear the inheritance of a deity. Is the Song Imperial City considered a force of the Ancient God Clan?�� asked Ye Futian.


    The other party shook their heads and said, ��The Song Imperial City used to have a Great Emperor. However, nowadays, we no longer bear the inheritance of a Great Emperor. Hence, we are not considered part of the Ancient God Clan. In the true sense, the forces which are part of the Ancient God Clan are like Ziwei Imperial Palace of Great Emperor Ziwei. He left behind his teachings to them. Only then are they considered part of the Ancient God Clan. This is actually similar to the previous topic. The forces of the Ancient God Clan are considered fortunate. The teachings of the Great Emperors were left behind and were passed down to this day. Sadly, most of the Great Emperors ended up like Shenyin the Great and were gradually forgotten to history.��


    ��Understood,�� responded Ye Futian. If that was the case, the Ancient God Clan contained the inheritance of the Great Emperors in the true sense. They could actually be considered the descendants of these Great Emperors. If an extraordinary figure appeared among them, they would also have the opportunity to prove their Path to the highest level.


    However, after so many years, the Divine Prefecture had only given birth to two Great Emperors �C Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. This was highly likely due to the situation in the current world. There was also a high chance that Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing had experienced some extraordinary fateful encounters.


    ��Senior, thank you for your explanation,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��What I said cannot be considered an explanation. I merely shared some unimportant details. Even if I didn��t tell you now, Renhuang Ye would learn in the future. My words are not worthy of your thanks,�� replied the other party. ��Renhuang Ye controls the Original Realm now. Perhaps, many years later, the Original Realm will be a new world.��


    Clearly, the elder was hinting at something else. The new world he mentioned alluded to an independent world!

 Chapter 2319 - Relic of the Cultivators

    Although the Original Realm was an independent interface, it was still part of Divine Prefecture. It had been under the rule of Donghuang the Great since that battle long ago. If Ye Futian wanted to obtain control over the Original Realm, it meant that he most definitely need to step into the Imperial Realm.


    Clearly, this was the cultivator from Song Imperial City flattering him.


    After that, the cultivator from Song Imperial City left as well and did not linger on much. His goal was to befriend the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but it was still premature to form an alliance. Ye Futian had also made his stance very clear in regards to the alliance. It was necessary for those interested in this alliance to follow him in declaring war on the Dark World.


    This was a precarious business. What��s more, even though the cultivator from Song Imperial City was optimistic about Ye Futian��s future and heaped praises upon him, these were just superficial gestures. He knew very well that Ye Futian��s position was, in fact, very unstable.


    Now that the Original Realm had attracted the attention of all the realms, the Devil World and other forces had descended closed behind each other, which meant that the Original Realm had become the center of an impending storm. Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy were the center of the Original Realm. They were the ones in charge of it, and everyone knew what that meant. If he wanted to climb towards imperial eminence, it would be a difficult journey fraught with many life and death situations.


    It sufficed to say there would be many narrow escapes on this journey.


    The fact was that Ye Futian was not some exception. Out of all those many splendid talents, who wanted to be on the road to becoming another Great Emperor, how many of them actually succeeded? After the collapse of the heavenly path, the Great Path suffered considerable damage, and the road to becoming the Great Emperor was blocked. Many had perished on this already thorny journey. How many among them had really reached their goal?


    Ye Futian had endless potential, but there were also innumerable dangers.


    Ye Futian himself didn��t dwell so much on these thoughts. He understood some of these things, but it didn��t do any good to think obsessively about them. The only way ahead was forward. Today��s conversation with the cultivator from Song Imperial City revealed some things about the top figures and the top principalities of this world.


    There were the Divine Prefecture from the east, the Western Heavenly World, the ancient Heaven Realm, the Empty Divine Realm, the Devil world, the Dark World, and the Human Realm, which was the center of the world at the time when the heavenly path collapsed.


    The rulers of these seven worlds, especially the Ancient God Clan from ancient times, represented the pinnacle of the cultivation world. They were the only ones who had the privilege to speak for the entire world; they were the existence that decided the rules of the world.


    And the Domain Chief��s Manors of all 18 domains and those top principalities were just secondary players; they were merely managing the world for them.


    He now had control over the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Ziwei Imperial Palace, but he still had a long way to go. If the teacher hadn��t scared off those men, there were still many principalities in this world who could have destroyed the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Just one existence had survived the second divine tribulation. It would be tough enough for them to overcome, no matter how rare the existence was at this level. The Divine Prefecture was not without them, and whatever the Divine Prefecture had, it only stood to reason that other worlds must have some of them as well.


    Furthermore, he had mentioned those unknown existences in his conversation with the other. Who knows? Perhaps, the cultivator from Song Imperial City had something that he didn��t yet make fully known to Ye Futian. After all, it did have involvements at a higher level, so the other man might be more cautious in what to reveal.


    The road ahead of him was long. It seemed that he had to cultivate to the top of Renhuang before he could have some credibility. At that time, with the help of the physical body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, he may be able to explode with extraordinary power. But for the moment, he was limited to defeating existences of the firsts level of the Great Path Divine Realm and subjected to considerable backlash if he leveraged the physical body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. He had no idea how many years it would take him to set foot on the peak of Renhuang.


    After the Devil World and Song Imperial City cultivators left, Heavenly Mandate Academy returned to normal, and Ye Futian continued to cultivate quietly while paying close attention to the changes in the outside world.


    Every few days, someone would arrive to report the latest from the outside world, and every time there were new movements in the Original Realm. For example, somebody had excavated and discovered the relics of the Great Emperor, and that some principalities had even obtained the relics of the Great Emperor.


    When Ye Futian heard about this, though he was enticed, he did not intend to fight for them.


    He had already reaped a lot from before, and that alone was enough for the others to look at him sideways. If he wanted to take all of the inheritances, he would only put himself in harm��s way and become a target of public outrage. On the contrary, if each of the top forces took some of these relics from the Great Emperor, he would attract far less attention, sticking out like a sore thumb.


    On this day, Ye Futian, Lord Taixuan, Emperor Nan, and the others were gathered together.


    In the courtyard, Ye Futian presided over their meeting. Although he was younger, he was now the College Chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy��the ruler of all of the Original Realm. So even the elders had to defer to him. Everyone was working toward the same objective��assisting Ye Futian to reach the pinnacle of the cultivation world.


    Because of this objective, these top figures were able to move forward as a team. Although their ultimate goals and beliefs were different, at the moment, they adhered to the same objective. Ye Futian was the One they had chosen from a long time ago, and they were now more certain than ever.


    ��In addition to the cultivators from the Devil World, the cultivators from the Human Realm have also appeared. Today, only the cultivators from Heaven Realm and the World of Buddhism from the west have yet to make their appearances. But the Heaven Realm was known to be secretive, so perhaps they have already arrived without us knowing,�� Emperor Nan continued. After the Devil World, the cultivators from the Human Realm had also descended in the Original Realm.


    All the worlds had gradually made their way to the land of the Original Realm; what kind of storm would be waiting for them?


    ��Are there many cultivators from the Human Realm?�� Ye Futian questioned.


    ��Not much for the time being, but there must be more that we don��t know about. Now, the news had spread to the Original Realm, the cultivation world in the Original Realm is about to boil over. The situation today is comparable to the one in the past,�� said Emperor Nan. ��Actually, because of the changes currently taking place in the Original Realm, the situation at hand has far exceeded the one in the past. Back then, not many cultivators came to the Original Realm. The two just couldn��t be compared.��


    Emperor Nan, however, was a cultivator who had experienced that turbulence 300 or 400 three or four hundred years ago.


    ��The rumor has it that the Human Realm was once the center of all the worlds after the collapse of the heavenly path and the place of blessings for human cultivators. The supreme Great Emperor of the Human Realm is called the Human Ancestor, whose name speaks volumes of his importance. All the cultivators who came from the Human Realm this time were said to possess the aura of the Human Ancestor��an abundance of righteousness.�� Emperor Nan continued, ��I also heard that the Human Realm claimed to be the most orthodox of the cultivation world.��


    Ye Futian nodded. He also wanted to take a look at all the cultivators from all the worlds. The Human Realm was the center of the world, formed after the collapse of the heavenly path. He was curious how the cultivation world there would compare to the one at Divine Prefecture. How would their cultivators compare to the one from Divine Prefecture?


    ��In addition to the arrival of cultivators from all major worlds, many amazing relics have also appeared. And now, evidence of human cultivators has appeared in one of the most important sites,�� said Emperor Nan.


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened slightly. ��Same as the Ziwei Segmentum?��


    ��Exactly.�� Emperor Nan nodded. The same world as Ziwei Segmentum had appeared. What could all this mean?

 Chapter 2320 - Shenyi Continent

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ziwei Segmentum was a world long sealed by Ziwei the Great. So, what kind of world would it be with human cultivators?


    ��At present, most of the cultivators and top principalities from various worlds are attracted by this continental relic that has just appeared. Not to mention, a world with human cultivators resembles a complete world, which entices a stronger desire to explore it. And, according to the news, the cultivators in this world are most extraordinary,�� Emperor Nan continued.


    Next to him, Renhuang Chen asked Ye Futian, ��Shall we go check it out?��


    Ye Futian pondered for a moment, then agreed, ��We might as well.��


    Previously there were many relics in the Original Realm, and he had never had the desire to go, wanting to give other people their opportunities. However, he was curious to see this other continent that had appeared in the Original Realm,


    ��Then let��s go straight away,�� said Renhuang Chen.


    ��Please lead the way, elder.�� Ye Futian nodded, and the group immediately set off on their journey. They leaped into the sky and left the Heavenly Mandate Academy, heading towards the boundless void.


    The land of the Original Realm was the void world that was formed after the collapse of the heavenly path. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was the area of human cultivation. This area was not considered large, but beyond the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, there was nothing but an endless void, full of unknowns.


    For example, Ziwei Segmentum was now visible in the boundless void, and so were all those major relics that had made their appearances one after the other.


    Ye Futian didn��t know the actual size of the Original Realm, and no one else really knew anything about the Original Realm either. Perhaps only Donghuang the Great and other Great Emperors knew some of its history.


    At this time, a new continent was floating in the endless void of the Original Realm.


    This continent was lying in the void, a faint brilliance emanating from within. It was as if it had existed here since the beginning of time and that it was a part of this vast space.


    Ye Futian and the others passed through the edges of the continent and continued moving upward. They saw that there were cultivators on the edge of the continent at this time, but they seemed to be quite accustomed to everything that was happening in front of them, as they did not act surprised.


    ��How did this continent come about?�� Ye Futian asked when he beheld the sight in front of him.


    ��The news we heard was that this continent has been traveling through the endless void, having been exiled for a countless number of years, and has not made its appearance until now,�� Emperor Nan responded. Ye Futian looked lost in thoughts. If this were the case, then that would explain the reactions of those cultivators on the continent.


    A world that had been exiled in the endless emptiness would obviously get used to all of this and may even felt what they saw now was pretty mundane.


    But, who had the terrible ability to exile an entire continent?


    Ye Futian and the others continued forward towards the continent. The cultivators on the continent looked up at Ye Futian and the others as they passed but then bowed their heads and went back to their own businesses. Similar occurrences had been happening recently, as cultivators from the outside came to their continent, so they had grown accustomed to it.


    ��The cultivation of these people is awesome,�� Ye Futian whispered as he walked forward. The cultivators on this continent felt extraordinary to him. Even those on the fringe of the continent were not at a low level; the lowest cultivation turned out to be the Saint Plane.


    ��If it��s a continent that has gone through tribulations, then it must be an extraordinary continent,�� Renhuang Chen whispered. Everyone nodded in agreement.


    If this continent had really been exiled in the endless void, and if it was able to survive until this day, then neither the continent itself nor the cultivators on it would be ordinary. Otherwise, it would have already been annihilated in its long history.


    The group meandered forward aimlessly. Although this continent was newly discovered with cultivators, it was different from Ziwei Segmentum, which was a field of stars. Here, it was merely a continent. Looking from another angle, the continent might have just been a place for the most powerful figures in ancient times.


    Of course, even for top Renhuang, this continent was still massive, at least for someone in Ye Futian��s realm. They continued to travel through the continent but still didn��t seem to have reached the central area.


    Ye Futian and the others looked at everything on the continent below. It didn��t seem too different from Divine Prefecture and the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, as far as cities, mountains, jungles, and cultivators were concerned, except that the aura of these cultivators on this continent was somewhat different. Generally speaking, their realm seemed to be a little higher.


    ��Shall we go down and make some inquiries?�� Renhuang Chen asked Ye Futian.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian understood his meaning and agreed. Instantly, Renhuang Chen moved, and in a flash was aiming towards the sky below. Not long after, Renhuang Chen returned and said, ��Same as the rumors. This continent is known as Shenyi Continent by the cultivators who resided upon it. According to them, it is a continent abandoned by the gods in ancient times. It has been floating in the void world for many years, constantly moving, and now appears in the Original Realm. As to the reason, they are as clueless as anyone. If we want the truth, we could go to Shenyi City, which is the center of this continent and also where the strongest cultivators are.��


    Ye Futian nodded. So this was Shenyi Continent?


    Even the cultivators on the continent knew that they were being abandoned by the gods once upon a time. But judging from their present situation, could the abandonment have been, in fact, a form of protection? Because of the abandonment, the continent did not perish and was able to see the light of day.


    ��Let��s go,�� said Ye Futian. ��Do these cultivators on the continent, like the ones in Ziwei Segmentum, know the origins of their own continent?��


    ��I was also curious about that, so I did some research. According to them, generations upon generations of ancestors have been exploring the continent for many years, wanting to see other worlds of cultivation and cultivators. After reaching the peak level, they discovered that this continent has great limitations, and the world seemed far too small. However, for years immemorial, they have not discovered anything until now. They have ascertained that all the legends were true: they were abandoned and exiled by the gods, and now they have truly come into contact with the outside world,�� Renhuang Chen explained.


    Ye Futian appeared thoughtful. They were not the only ones who were curious about this continent. The cultivators on the continent, too, had never stopped their search for the outside world until they had come to the Original Realm and discovered the truth. Perhaps, they were just as curious about the Original Realm as anyone else.


    ��So, the top forces from Original Realm should have already gone to Shenyi City already,�� Ye Futian commented.


    Renhuang Chen nodded. Then the group continued on its way in their mighty formation!

 Chapter 2321 - Midair Collision

    Shenyi City, the main city of this continent.


    When Ye Futian and the others arrived in Shenyi City, they felt an overpowering ancient aura. The architecture of this city was towering and ancient, full of solemnity, holding the aura of the Great Path. Its buildings were extremely sturdy, which was different from the structures found in the Divine Prefecture and the Original Realm.


    Perhaps this was because the continent had constantly been traveling through the storms in the void, so its buildings had to be incredibly sturdy to withstand the abuse of the weather, lest they should be destroyed by those incessant storms.


    After Ye Futian and the others arrived in this main city, they felt many divine consciousnesses scanning them; they were all powerful. Shenyi City was now the gathering place of powerful cultivators from all sides. Besides top local cultivators, there were also cultivators from other major worlds; they were paying close attention to everything.


    The arrival of Ye Futian and the others had clearly attracted some attention.


    Shenyi City was vast, but the distance that could be covered by the divine consciousness of those top figures was also quite considerable. For giant-level figures, their divine consciousness was sufficient to cover an entire city.


    Behind Ye Futian, the divine consciousness of Renhuang Chen and other cultivators spread out, surveilling the cultivators inside Shenyi City.


    Ye Futian himself did the same. He stood high above the sky as he released his divine consciousness and let it sweeping through this vast and endless area. He saw an area of note that had many cultivators gathering there. It seemed that many cultivators of the top forces from the Original Realm were crowding around that area.


    Furthermore, that extraordinary place piqued his curiosity as well. The aura emanated from there was incredibly terrifying.


    ��Let��s go.�� Ye Futian said, and his group of people immediately moved towards that area. Everyone looked particularly serious. Obviously, Ye Futian was not the only one who realized this; the others had also noticed the odd phenomenon there.


    It didn��t take long before they came to the outskirt of the area. This area was very extensive, and there were cultivators from various top forces stationed in different directions. Among them, some of the forces had cultivators with terrifying aura, along with shockingly powerful lineups.


    Previously, compared with other top forces, the camp of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, as represented by Ye Futian, was definitely a strong one. Apart from their lack of a powerful existence who had survived the second Divine Tribulation, few forces could be compared with them. However, in this city of the relic, he discovered several forces that were stronger than theirs.


    The Dark World was a foregone conclusion. The infernal King was there with top figures of many forces from the Dark World. In addition, there were many cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm, which Ye Futian had not seen before. Obviously, they had come here after the changes in the Original Realm had intensified.


    If these two principalities had arrived for a while, in another position, there was a group of powerful men with extraordinary temperament, exuding awe-inspiring righteousness. Every one of them had an outstanding posture and unparalleled style. And any one of them seemed to possess a particularly stunning style.


    Are those the cultivators from the Human Realm? Ye Futian thought. Cultivators from the Devil World were in another direction, and their temperament was unmistakable. Xiao Mu, who Ye Futian had defeated, was also among them. The Western World was composed of Buddhist cultivators and would be easily identifiable. By way of deduction, these could only be cultivators from the Heaven Realm or the Human Realm.


    However, the Heaven Realm was shrouded in mystery and had undergone major travesties. This group of cultivators had such an outstanding temperament that the only possibility was that they were cultivators from the Human Realm.


    Aside from that, there were many top forces from Divine Prefecture, including some with astounding temperaments. After all, the Original Realm was still considered the territory belonging to Divine Prefecture, so it was not surprising that most of these cultivators were from Divine Prefecture. Top forces from all sides were represented here, but clearly, that was not the case with other realms.


    Some of the top figures from Divine Prefecture were not any lesser than the cultivators from imperial palaces of each world.


    Here, ordinary genius talents were eclipsed.


    While Ye Futian observed these cultivators, other cultivators were also observing him, as many divine consciousnesses fell upon him. Clearly, they already knew who Ye Futian was. The Dark World and the Devil World needed no introduction, and many in the Divine Prefecture also knew of him.


    Those cultivators who were constantly scanning Ye Futian with their divine consciousness were mostly people who had never seen him before but knew him only by reputation. He was the genius talent who ruled the Original Realm as a Renhuang in the Seventh Realm and the Number One man in the Original Realm. He was the one who had suppressed all the geniuses in the Divine Prefecture, the heir of several Great Emperors, and no one who could compete with him. In addition, there was also a mysterious teacher in Four Corner Village who was solidly behind him, protecting him. He who might even be a mysterious cultivator of the Imperial Realm.


    Many of these divine consciousness that landed on Ye Futian seemed quite impertinent, and it displeased him. Peeping using the divine consciousness itself was an impolite act, and mostly it was done with a quick sweep, enough to know the existence of the other. However, if the scanning was done back and forth for a prolonged period of time, it was regarded as an act of open insolence.


    However, at this moment, many were behaving rudely. They had been looking up and down at Ye Futian as their divine consciousness continued to scan him.


    Some of the divine consciousnesses were particularly rude, which caused Ye Futian to frown. He laughed coldly, sending out his own divine consciousness instantly. It collided with that other divine consciousness. Some of them retreated on their own, but some persisted, choosing to confront him head-on.


    Although Ye Futian was not from any imperial palace, he was the heir of several Great Emperors and lord of the Original Realm. His position was so exceptional that no matter who challenged him, he would never back down.


    A super aggressive divine consciousness collided with Ye Futian��s. When he traced that divine consciousness, Ye Futian found its owner. A group of remarkable characters stood together, one of whom was wearing a golden robe, richly decorated. His aura was stunning with coercion that could only be found on an Upper Renhuang. He was extremely domineering, and he was surrounded by brilliant golden divine glory.


    ��Cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm,�� Ye Futian remarked to himself, recognizing where the other was from.


    Boom�� A violent storm swept across the sky and headed his way. The cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm cast a look at Ye Futian from very far away, and those eyes seemed to penetrate the space and landed directly on Ye Futian, with an overpowering spirit. Like a majestic and commanding god, examining Ye Futian closely.


    20-some years ago in the Original Realm, the Empty Divine Realm had tasted defeat in Ye Futian��s hands.


    A sudden coercion of this Great Path was felt keenly by everyone, as an equally astonishing momentum erupted from Ye Futian��s body at the same time. The divine light circulated above the body of the Great Path, and a violent roar was heard, booming nonstop, terrorizing its audience.


    When the two forces collided in midair, an invisible storm manifested in the surrounding spaces so that cultivators from all sides were compelled to watch the two colliding in the air.

 Chapter 2322 - Impressed

    When the crowd saw the scene, they understood what was going on. It looked like the cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm intended to test out Ye Futian��s abilities.


    Now, all the cultivators from various worlds knew of Ye Futian��s existence. Even if they had never seen him before, they had at least heard of him from word of mouth. Many people were discussing him even now.


    He was the top monstrous figure in the Original Realm, a young ruler, and the successor of the inheritance of a few Great Emperors.


    The cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm and Ye Futian stood at different locations. They were very far away from each other. However, for figures at their level, this distance amounted to nothing. The frenzy storm swept towards the region where Ye Futian was, but none of the buildings were destroyed. This caused many people to be impressed by the sturdiness of the buildings around.


    Right at this moment, the cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm flew up into the sky. His whole body shone with brilliant golden divine light. Xiao Mu from the Devil World looked in his direction. This cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm also had eighth-tier cultivation like Xiao Mu. However, it was most likely very hard for him to pose any threat to Ye Futian.


    Golden divine light enveloped the space. The illusory figure of an ancient god appeared. It raised its arm and instantly sent out a punch. Disregarding the long distance, the golden fist tore the space apart and blasted towards Ye Futian. This attack was similar to the one Ye Futian had experienced before. It seemed like many cultivators from the Empty Mountain were proficient in this kind of divine technique.


    Ye Futian extended his arm and pointed a finger in the air. An indestructible sword actually formed, and it directly collided with the golden fist. A terrifying destructive storm erupted, expanding towards the surrounding area.


    ��Impressive!�� many people exclaimed upon seeing Ye Futian��s attack. Ye Futian comprehended the body refinement techniques from the divine corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The body refinement techniques allowed Ye Futian to forge the divine body of the Great Path. His flesh could now become the Way and unleash unparalleled might. His casual pointing contained both the strength of his flesh and the power of swordsmanship. When the two powers combined, a powerful force burst forth.


    The other party was also aware that his attack couldn��t possibly shake Ye Futian. Otherwise, Ye Futian would not be qualified for his title as the top monstrous figure of the Original Realm. A gigantic illusory figure suddenly appeared and loomed over the region. Even the sky was tainted gold as golden beams of light shone across the land.


    In the sky above, a frightening golden storm was brewing. It was menacing. All the cultivators in this region raised their heads to look up. Then, countless arms appeared behind the ancient god. The arms veiled the heavens. All the arms attacked at once. In an instant, the entire sky was covered with golden fists. All the fists charged towards Ye Futian, seemingly wanting to overwhelm him.


    The divine fists rained down from the sky. Everything was distorted due to the punches. The terrifying punches shattered the space and smashed down towards Ye Futian, intending to bury him in them. The attack was absolutely domineering.


    Ye Futian raised his head and swept a glance at the fists. The space of the Great Path froze, and rumbling sounds thundered. Doors of Space materialized all around Ye Futian. The doors engulfed the golden punches which rained down on him. With Ye Futian��s body as the center, the Doors of Space formed a unique space. It was a Miniature World.


    However, even with the defense, the frenzy Fist Will traversed across the space, causing the Miniature World to shake violently. The doors showed signs of cracking.


    Ye Futian��s expression was calm. He cast a glance in the distance. An alarming Sword Will instantly erupted from his divine body of the Great Path. He pointed a finger at the sky. A divine sword immediately traversed the space and crushed the incoming fists. The divine sword shot up to the high heavens. It was a gigantic starry divine sword, yet it also contained the menacing Sword Will of Fleeting.


    All the cultivators turned their attention to Ye Futian. Ye Futian stood at his spot quietly and wielded the divine sword in his hand. The scene was magnificent. He swung his arm, and instantly, the starry divine sword slashed down. It cleaved the space and shattered the countless fists. The sword then plowed towards the cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm.


    The cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm had an indifferent expression. The golden illusory figure of the god, which was coalesced by the cultivator, extended both its arms and made a grab. When the sword descended, the illusory figure grabbed it with both its hands. Shocking rumbling sounds thundered. The sword continued to slash downwards, causing cracks to form on the pair of golden arms.


    Bang! With a loud bang, the starry divine sword which spanned across the sky crumbled into pieces. However, the arms of the golden illusory figure of the god were also chopped off.


    Ye Futian didn��t stop attacking. He pointed a finger upwards, and immediately, a diagram formed in the sky. It was a Yin Yang Diagram. The diagram kept expanding. The sun and the moon seemed to be up in the sky at the same time while the stars twinkled mysteriously. The power of Yin and the solar power, two polar opposite powers, appeared concurrently in the Yin Yang Diagram. The powers gave birth to Sword Will that caused the cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm to feel threatened even from a distance.


    ��Renhuang Ye is undoubtedly the top monstrous figure in the Original Realm. I��m impressed by your ability,�� said the eighth-tier Renhuang from across the space. This was his first time speaking to Ye Futian. Prior to this, he attacked Ye Futian without saying anything first. It seemed like he wanted to take revenge on Ye Futian for meddling in the affairs of the Empty Divine Realm before this.


    ��The outcome of our battle has yet to be decided. It��s still too early to speak of admiration,�� Ye Futian said indifferently. As he said this, the floating Yin Yang Diagram radiated a shocking halo of the Swords of Catastrophe. The halo outshone the sun. Just like how the other party intended to overwhelm him with Fist Will, Ye Futian returned the favor by having the divine Swords of Catastrophe rain down on him. The divine swords flooded the space and charged towards the eighth-tier cultivator.


    The cultivator took a step forward. Loud rumbling sounds reverberated. The gigantic golden illusory figure of the god coalesced. The radiance behind the god shone far and wide. It formed a spatial barrier, which covered the area where the cultivator was.


    Swoosh. Countless divine swords rained down. The swords infused with the power of Yin and the solar power landed on the light shroud. Slowly, cracks began to form on it, and pieces of the light shroud were being chipped off.


    Soon, the defensive light shroud formed by the illusory figure of the god was torn apart and disintegrated. The divine swords slashed downwards with a momentum that could destroy everything in their path.


    Right at this moment, a cultivator from Empty Mountain raised his hand. A golden geomantic compass appeared in the sky. It kept expanding as it dazzled with colorful lights. When the divine swords descended, they were sucked into the geomantic compass. Then, they disappeared without a trace. It was as though the swords had been engulfed by the compass.


    The Yin Yang Diagram floated high in the sky while the spatial geomantic compass guarded down below. The two faced each other.


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, he waved his hand, and the Yin Yang Diagram immediately disappeared. He looked into the distance and said, ��As expected of the cultivators from Empty Mountain. I��m impressed by your ability.��


    Ye Futian said the same line that the other party had said to him before. However, the subtext was significantly different. Ye Futian was clearly mocking the other party. After all, the cultivator from Empty Mountain attacked Ye Futian first; yet in the end, he needed to seek aid from another top cultivator in order to block off Ye Futian��s attack. The cultivator��s action was slightly disgraceful.


    From this battle, all the cultivators from various worlds had a better understanding of Ye Futian��s abilities. He was very strong. Even an eighth-tier cultivator from Empty Mountain was no match to him. Ye Futian didn��t even move from his spot. He merely stood at his original spot and sent out attacks from across the space. Yet, his attacks were already unbearable for the eighth-tier cultivator. Ye Futian��s combat ability was indeed astonishing.


    The cultivator from Empty Mountain was stronger than most of the cultivators.


    This meant that even among the eighth-tier Renhuangs, only very few of them could defeat Ye Futian.


    All the cultivators paid attention to this battle. Moreover, they were all exceptional figures from various top forces. Many top figures were ablaze with fighting will as they looked at Ye Futian. They were eager to test out how strong he was and whether or not they could be a match for him!

 Chapter 2323 - The Lost Clan

    Ye Futian sensed the battle intent, which wreathed around him. However, he ignored it. All those who were here were top figures from various worlds. It was normal for them to want to contend with the most monstrous figures from other worlds. Ye Futian��s arrival caused them to focus their attention on him. Even without him around, the rest of them would still contend among themselves.


    Ye Futian��s will expanded towards the unusual region ahead. The region was packed with buildings that were sturdy and simple in design. The buildings were cone-shaped and were spread out across various locations. The total space occupied by the buildings was wide. The buildings seemed to be surrounding a main building, which emanated a mysterious aura. Unfortunately, the power around formed a barrier, sealing off the main building. No one could probe any further with their will.


    With his will, Ye Futian could see that many cultivators were dwelling in the region. Their auras were formidable. Besides that, their auras were somewhat similar, indicating that they most likely cultivated the same techniques. They gave off an otherworldly vibe.


    Ye Futian and his group had just arrived, but some of the other cultivators had been here for a long time. Yet, they remained outside and had not entered the region. From the looks of it, it was not that they had no intention of entering the region, but rather, their entries were blocked by the people inside; it was intriguing.


    Had the cultivators inside the region stopped the cultivators from various worlds from entering?


    The people gathered here were all top figures from various worlds. Every one of them was a terrifying existence. Some of them had even undergone divine tribulations of the Great Path. How did the locals manage to block them from advancing into the region?


    Ye Futian was not the only one who thought of this problem. All the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy realized it too. Through transmitted thoughts, Renhuang Chen told Ye Futian, ��The cultivators inside are not simple. They might be very strong.��


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded in agreement. There was definitely a reason behind every abnormal situation. The scenario before their eyes now was clearly abnormal.


    In terms of combat abilities, even the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum back then could not hold off the lineups that were here today. The former would not even risk holding off the latter, either. However, right now, the cultivators had indeed been blocked from entering the region. This was obviously abnormal.


    ��Let��s find a place to rest in Shenyi City for now. We��ll wait and see how things go,�� suggested Renhuang Chen. The top figures from various worlds had all settled down at different places. It was unwise for Ye Futian and his group to stick their heads out. It was better for them to observe the situation and then figure out exactly what kind of place the unusual region was.


    ��Alright,�� replied Ye Futian, nodding. The group left where they were and found a simple tavern to rest. They were hoping to gather some information about the unusual region here. After all, they rushed here in a hurry. They made their way here right after they found out the center of the Shenyi Continent was here. Therefore, they knew nothing about the unusual region.


    There were quite a lot of people drinking in the tavern. Occasionally, some locals would look at Ye Futian and his group. Even though the locals were curious, none of them asked Ye Futian anything. All of them appeared calm. Many people had gathered in the city recently. They knew where these visitors were from, so they got used to seeing new faces.


    All the cultivators in the Shenyi Continent had high receptivity.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian discovered something astonishing to him. Along his way here, he had realized that the cultivation Planes of the cultivators in this continent were generally higher than that of the outside world. Moreover, the cultivators in this continent had exceptional temperaments. This observation held true, especially after they arrived at Shenyi City. In this ordinary tavern alone, there were a few Renhuangs.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian actually acutely sensed a hint of animosity from a few locals. He had no idea why they were hostile to his presence.


    More and more people slowly gathered in the tavern. The people who came all had rather high cultivation Planes. There were even some top-tier Renhuangs around. They sat down in the tavern quietly as though they weren��t paying attention to the other guests. However, Ye Futian could vaguely sense that these people had gathered here because of him and his group.


    Renhuang Chen frowned. As he lowered his head to take a sip from his cup, he said to Ye Futian through transmitted thoughts, ��Palace Lord, aside from people in this tavern, there seem to be more and more people heading towards where we are.��


    Ye Futian expanded his will, and it covered a large area. In his consciousness, many images flashed past; there were a lot of locals who appeared around those cultivators from the top forces. On top of that, more and more people were gradually making their way towards this region. There was a constant stream of Renhuangs traversing across the sky and landing in the city.


    ��What are they here for?�� Ye Futian asked through transmitted thoughts.


    ��Should I go check things out?�� Renhuang Chen suggested.


    Just when Ye Futian was about to say yes, a group of people entered the tavern. They were acquaintances of Ye Futian. Among them were Zhou Muhuang, Vice Chief of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor, and his sister, Zhou Lingxi. Ye Futian also spotted the Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor; he had come here personally.


    Clearly, the Chief was also here in the Original Realm due to the changes that had occurred to it.


    The Chief of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor approached Ye Futian. Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the other party. He greeted, ��Greetings, Chief.��


    Ye Futian sounded polite, but he didn��t stand up to salute the Chief. He merely nodded his head.


    Under normal circumstances, even though Ye Futian��s current status was extraordinary, he would still stand up and bow to the Chiefs since he was their junior. However, Ye Futian didn��t have a good impression of the Chief of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor due to past incidents. Therefore, he didn��t do so.


    The other party noticed this difference in detail too, but he didn��t show any signs of dissatisfaction due to Ye Futian��s current status. Instead, Chief Zhou said, ��I did not expect Renhuang Ye to attain such a great achievement in such a short time after our meeting at the Shangqing Domain. Congratulations!��


    ��Chief Zhou is too polite. Have a seat,�� Ye Futian responded. Since the other party showed signs of becoming friends with him, he would naturally treat them courteously.


    Chief Zhou and his group sat down. Zhou Lingxi said, ��When I first met Renhuang Ye, I was already certain that you��re an exceptional figure. But you much faster than I had imagined. Now, I pale in significance compared to you.��


    ��Princess Lingxi has praised me too highly,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. ��May I know what orders you have for me?��


    ��My words can��t be counted as an order for you. Ye Futian, you��re the ruler of the Original Realm now, so you don��t have to be so polite with me,�� Chief Zhou said bluntly. ��I��m sure you are aware of the situation here. Those people are here because of us. They are here to protect that place��the center of this Shenyi Continent and the dwelling place of the Lost Clan.��


    ��The Lost Clan?�� Ye Futian revealed an intrigued expression. The name of the clan was indeed extraordinary.


    ��Yes. The Lost Clan. Rumor has it that they called themselves the Lost Clan after they were abandoned by the gods. Since then, they have been on a journey of defying the gods,�� Chief Zhou explained. ��Before your arrival, my group was already here. The Lost Clan is very strong, far stronger than what we expected. The cultivators from various worlds were shocked by their abilities. Hence, nobody dares to venture into their region now. The cultivators of the Lost Clan have frightening willpower. It might be due to the environment of this continent.��

 Chapter 2324 - Rejection

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian listened quietly. He had already thought about this point��they should be one of the last groups of people to arrive. The top forces here had dispersed to different locations after they arrived. They had not ventured into the unusual region. Clearly, something had occurred before for the cultivators here not to dare to venture into the region.


    If that was the case, he roughly guessed the reason why the Domain Chief of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor had come looking for him.


    Chief Zhou said, ��According to my intelligence, after the Shenyi Continent was abandoned, it has been traversing through the void all this while, floating among the various destructive storms. Over countless years, it experienced countless extinction-level calamities. However, it has lasted to this day. The main contributor for this is the Lost Clan.��


    He continued explaining to Ye Futian, ��The Lost Clan is not a family clan, but rather is formed from the members of the entire Shenyi Continent. Anyone who joins the Lost Clan will offer up their lives. They will take an oath with their spiritual soul to protect this continent. The Lost Clan appears to be a family clan on the surface, but it is forged from the combined will of the entire Shenyi Continent. It is indestructible. It is precisely because of them that we can witness everything before us now.��


    From the other party��s words, Ye Futian immediately understood the reason for the animosity from the surrounding cultivators. At the same time, he also understood why the various cultivators had all rushed over here.


    It turned out that this was the center of their faith��the place that the members of this entire continent wanted to protect.


    From the looks of it, the Lost Clan had protected the Shenyi Continent through countless catastrophes and calamities. In the end, the continent had made its way to the Original Realm. From this perspective, the members of the Lost Clan were admirable. Ye Futian felt a faint sense of respect well up inside of him.


    Such temperament was noteworthy. It was just like how he wanted to protect the Original Realm. Their belief was far stronger than his own.


    It was because the Shenyi Continent was always on the brink of destruction. As the continent traversed through the void, the Lost Clan had no sense of security and could be destroyed at any moment.


    Such dire circumstances formed an extraordinary clan. It similarly forged a group of exceptional cultivators. It was no surprise then that he discovered that their average cultivation Planes were higher than those of any other continent that he had been to, including the lands of the Divine Prefecture.


    The people here were, on average, very powerful. Ye Futian also noticed something else. On this vast Shenyi Continent, the population was not very large and seemed rather scarce. Only here in Shenyi City was the population denser.


    Across the eons, the harsh environment must have already performed natural selection on the Shenyi Continent again and again. Hence, there was the Shenyi Continent and the Lost Clan that they saw today.


    Ye Futian understood this in his mind but still did not speak up. He was waiting for the other party to bring it up. After Chief Zhou finished introducing all of this, only then did he say to Ye Futian, ��There is a barrier in the region of the Lost Clan that seals away a building. Prior to this, we wanted to enter that place. However, we encountered obstacles. Inside, there seems to be a secret zone. From within it, many extremely powerful cultivators emerged and deterred the various top forces from entering. Hence, resulting in the situation you see before you.��


    ��You want to get inside?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Of course, it is not just me. Cultivators from the various worlds all want to enter and take a look around. Is the Lost Clan hiding some mysterious secrets in there? Is it related to the Great Emperors of old? If we can get inside, we will certainly come across huge discoveries,�� continued Chief Zhou. ��Hence, I have come looking for you. I actually want to form an alliance with you here.��


    The Chief of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor wanted to ally with Ye Futian.


    Naturally, it was not because of Ye Futian��s cultivation Plane, but rather the powers behind him as well as the astonishing talent that Ye Futian himself displayed. After all, Ye Futian had proven himself so many times before. There seemed to be no relic that possessed the inheritance of the Great Emperors that had not been claimed by him.


    The scene before them was somewhat surreal. When Ye Futian came to the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor back then, the Chief had not considered him worthy of his attention. Back then, he merely wanted Zhou Muhuang and Zhou Lingxi to win over Ye Futian, recruit him under the Chief��s control, and make Ye Futian his underling.


    However, now, he wanted to ally with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Chief Zhou, but he shook his head. He seemed to have decided to reject the other party��s offer. This scene caused Chief Zhou to reveal a strange look. He took the initiative to extend Ye Futian an invitation, but the other party had actually rejected his request for an alliance. The expression of Zhou Muhuang, who was beside him, also changed slightly. His gaze suddenly turned sharp as he looked at Ye Futian.


    Even though Ye Futian��s status was extraordinary, their standing was also high. The Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor was the most powerful force in the Shangqing Domain. They had proactively come to ally, but Ye Futian had actually turned them down completely.


    ��Chief, every time a relic appears, I also offend the various major forces. This time, cultivators from the various worlds have come here, including the forces of the Human Realm, the Devil World, and the Ancient God Clan from the Divine Prefecture. Even with the power of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, I don��t believe that I can deal with all of them. Can Chief Zhou handle them?�� asked Ye Futian. This caused Chief Zhou to frown.


    Ye Futian continued, ��If we can��t obtain anything, there is no meaning to forming an alliance. If we truly manage to obtain rewards, will you stand with the Heavenly Mandate Academy to face the animosity of the various forces together? I believe that you know the answer yourself.��


    To put it bluntly, the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor sought an alliance just so that they could rely on his power to obtain rewards. However, when the Heavenly Mandate Academy truly faced danger and if they went against the superpowers, the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor would most likely not dare to offend them.


    The so-called alliance would naturally be meaningless.


    When he heard Ye Futian��s words, Chief Zhou��s expression turned sullen. He appeared somewhat displeased. Ye Futian exposing this point was actually a slap in the face for him. Although what Ye Futian said was true, from his attitude, it was clear that Ye Futian didn��t want to deal with him.


    ��If that is the case, farewell then,�� said Chief Zhou. He then led the cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor away with a somewhat displeased expression. Zhou Lingxi looked back and glanced at Ye Futian. However, she did not say anything but followed the group and left.


    After the cultivators of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor left, Emperor Nan said, ��Such a direct rejection will probably offend others.��


    ��This isn��t the first time anyway,�� said Ye Futian nonchalantly. This was not the first time the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor was displeased with him. During the struggle over the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor, the Domain Chief��s Manor had already been very dissatisfied with him. Back then, Zhou Muhuang had even headed over to Four Corner Village to demand the village be handed over to him.


    It could be said that both sides were not on good terms, to begin with. Since that was the case, Ye Futian did not need to fake politeness and accept the other party��s alliance.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Emperor Nan as he nodded his head. He did not mind anyway. Ye Futian had also offended other forces aside from the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor. In the previous struggles over the relics, he had offended countless top forces. However, his offenses towards them could not be considered huge vendettas, merely fights over personal interests.


    Wills swept over them. It seemed that the arrival of Chief Zhou just now had drawn the attention of some people. They were spying on the situation over here.


    Ye Futian did not pay it much heed. However, he was somewhat curious about the Lost Clan!

 Chapter 2325 - Entering the Lost Clan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian waited quietly in the tavern. Everyone seemed calm enough. They, too, were probably just waiting.


    While they were chatting, the entire tavern suddenly quieted down. Ye Futian and the others were alarmed when they saw the majority of the cultivators in the tavern get up from their seats. This collective action surprised Ye Futian and the others more than just a little.


    He didn��t expect so many of the cultivators in the tavern were loyal to the Lost Clan.


    Outside the tavern, there was a group of people walking in this direction. Suddenly, all those who stood up greeted the cultivators who were coming this way. Their respect was clearly coming from their hearts, not simply a matter of formality. This sight was actually quite touching for those who witnessed it.


    This group of men came in front of Ye Futian and the others. When Ye Futian looked up at them, he already knew these were the cultivators from the Lost Clan. He knew it when they came; he just didn��t know why they came to him.


    In his assessment of these cultivators from the Lost Clan, he could see all of them were powerful in their cultivation with high realms. They weren��t clad in lavish clothes but were dressed rather plainly. Some of them even had tattered clothing simply draped on their shoulders, revealing bronze-toned skin underneath.


    Even in such unremarkable attire, nothing could conceal their extraordinary temperament. Just standing there, they felt quite solid, like towering mountains. There was not a strong sense of authority, but everyone could detect a strong sense of will and belief; it was a unique temperament from within. Ye Futian had known enough powerful cultivators to know that not many people were like this.


    But all the cultivators in front of him were like this.


    Aside from that, they exuded a great feeling of power just by standing there. They were like some indestructible existence.


    ��We are cultivators from the Lost Clan, here to welcome Emperor Ye and cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ziwei Segmentum, as well as Four Corner Village.�� The person leading the group greeted Ye Futian and the others. His hands were clasped together, somewhat resembling Buddhist etiquette, but it was a little different. However, his sincerity was obviously from the heart, as he treated the whole affair with great importance.


    What piqued Ye Futian��s interest was that these people had actually discovered their identities, knew where they were from, and who they were.


    It seemed that after the Shenyi Continent appeared in the Original Realm, not only did the cultivators of the Original Realm come to explore it, but the cultivators from the Lost Clan had also gone to the Original Realm to explore on their own, hence, their knowledge of them.


    Faced with such courtesy from the other party, Ye Futian got up and returned their gesture, ��Elder is overly polite. If our abrupt visit has disturbed the Lost Clan, we ask for your forgiveness.��


    ��No disturbance to speak of. We have been floating in the void world for many years and have never seen anyone from the outside. Now that there are visitors from everywhere, please know that the Lost Clan is not inhospitable. The Lost Clan is more than happy to make friends with Emperor Ye and all of you. That��s why we came here to invite Emperor Ye to be our guest so that you may get to know a bit more about us,�� the man continued. He caught Ye Futian and the others by surprise.


    The Lost Clan had invited him to be their guest.


    Weren��t they worried about letting wolves into the chicken coops, so to speak?


    Anyone could tell that the cultivators from the Original Realm and the other major worlds had unfriendly intentions, and each came with their own designs in mind.


    Ye Futian looked at the man and asked, ��Did the elder mean to invite us to the Lost Clan for a visit?��


    ��Yes, exactly. But because we don��t know you, we want to first invite Emperor Ye to visit the Lost Clan so that you may get to know us.�� The voice of the other man was calm and full of energy. Many cultivators around him looked at Ye Futian. Now that the Lost Clan had invited many people, would Ye Futian agree to go?


    However, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy frowned and were a little unsure. They had already known that the Lost Clan was a highly unusual clan whose strength may be great beyond their imagination. Perhaps even the Heavenly Mandate Academy itself might not be enough to contend with them, let alone Ye Futian on his own.


    Once Ye Futian entered the Lost Clan, he would be under the control of the other party. If the Lost Clan had some malevolent intent, he would end up in a very undesirable situation.


    ��You don��t know much about us, and we don��t know much about the Lost Clan either. It may not be suitable for him to travel by himself.�� Fang Gai stepped forward. Ye Futian��s safety was of great importance to them; this was their number one concern.


    ��In that case, we don��t have to invite only Emperor Ye. Even if every one of you joins him in the Lost Clan, it��s all the same to us,�� the man bowed slightly and replied. His mannerism was still courteous, but there was an immensely strong confidence in his tone. What he didn��t say with his words was that if the Lost Clan had any bad intentions toward them, the outcome would be the same no matter how many of them attended, so there was no need to invite just Ye Futian.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked at them in silence, but Ye Futian smiled and said, ��I believe in you, elder, and I am willing to go with you for a visit.��


    He had been curious about the Lost Clan before. Now that the Lost Clan had taken the initiative to invite him, he was willing to go along and take a look.


    ��Thank you, Emperor Ye, for your understanding.�� The cultivator from the Lost Clan continued, ��In that case, Emperor Ye, please come with me.��


    ��Elder, please lead the way,�� Ye Futian replied. Immediately the cultivator from the Lost Clan led the way in front, while Ye Futian followed behind, and cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy walked out of the tavern to see them off. As they spread their divine consciousness far and wide, they discovered that other cultivators, who had also been invited, were heading in the direction of the Lost Clan.


    It seemed that they had not invited just the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but other principalities had been invited as well. No wonder they invited just one person; if they had invited everyone, they might encounter some issues.


    After a few moments, Ye Futian and the others came to the outskirt of the Lost Clan, and Ye Futian discovered that cultivators were coming from different directions. These people had spread their divine consciousness far and wide and discovered each other��s existence.


    ��Emperor Ye, please enter,�� the man continued as Ye Futian stepped into the Lost Clan. Seeing that other principalities were also invited, Ye Futian understood that the Lost Clan couldn��t possibly mean them any harm. Otherwise, they would offend everyone at once, and no matter how powerful the Lost Clan was, they could not possibly endure collective hostilities from every principality.


    So, what was their intention?


    Inside, the Lost Clan was massive, with a sense of great solemnity. The buildings within its bounds were simple and scattered, but they felt weighty, just like the cultivators from the Lost Clan. Several cultivators began coming out of a simple room, looking at Ye Futian and other cultivators from different principalities. Suddenly, Ye Futian felt a heavy pressure. This pressure was not intended for him but was a signature specific to the cultivators of the Lost Clan. It was a substantial presence that made others feel its heft!

 Chapter 2326 - History of the Lost Clan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Very soon, the cultivators who entered the Lost Clan from different locations gathered together. Every one of them was an exceptional character in their own right. Some were strong while some were weaker, all at various realms. Some had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, and some were heirs of lofty statuses from top principalities.


    These cultivators were also here by invitation of the Lost Clan. They now appeared in front of that forbidden building.


    Ye Futian looked at the forbidden place in front. The space seemed heavily distorted. This was the center of the entire Lost Clan, and all the buildings seemed to surround the forbidden place in front of him. Obviously, this was a place of importance for the Lost Clan.


    Other cultivators knew better. They had seen many top cultivators from the Lost Clan who came out of this place before.


    ��Everyone, please.�� The cultivators of the Lost Clan stepped forward to guide them. Suddenly, a door swung opened in the twisted space in front of them. Ye Futian and the other cultivators stepped into its threshold, and it felt as if they were traveling through a tunnel of time and space, entering another world.


    There was a terrifying spatial power of the Great Path here; they could even feel many places inside, with distorted spaces as well.


    It was so deep ahead that no end could be seen.


    In here, their divine consciousness seemed to be distorted as well, unable to cover as great of a distance as they used to before, so they had to resort to using only their eyesight. However, as far as their eyes could see, there were many greatly capable cultivators with their own terrifying aura, accompanied by monstrous cultivations. Just the sight from their eyes alone gave the others invisible coercion. It was as those eyes held a frightening brilliance.


    ��What is this place?�� Asked a man who appeared no more than 30 and had a most unusual temperament. This man was a talent from the Human Realm. His appearance seemed typical, but he possessed a pleasant presence.


    ��The true core of the Lost Clan. Didn��t you come here to unearth the secrets of the Lost Clan? The true meaning of the Lost Clan lies here,�� said an elder from the Lost Clan who had led them here. ��We can talk while we walk.��


    As he was explaining, he continued to lead the way and took everyone deeper inside. At the same time, he said, ��Shenyi Continent was a land abandoned by the gods in ancient times. For countless years, it had been exiled in the void, having never known which way to go or what would happen tomorrow; it was like facing a night that would never end. According to legends, the Shenyi Continent was not like how it is now in that bygone era. It was perhaps many times larger than today, truly a grand world in every sense of the word. However, in the many years of exile, it had long since fallen apart and broke into different pieces.��


    ��More than that, many of the cultivators on the continent perished. It was many years ago, a time we referred to as the Dark Ages.�� The old man of the Lost Clan continued slowly, ��Until later, an original ancestor, the one who created the Lost Clan, came about and banded everyone together in order to fight against the perils of the unknown and realm of death. As the number one cultivator of the continent took command over the cultivators on the continent, they fought against the Dark Ages. From then on, the Shenyi Continent entered the era of the Lost Clan.��


    Ye Futian and the others listened quietly, no one interrupting. The old man was telling them the origin of the Lost Clan, and all of them were interested in this mysterious clan. Furthermore, this ancestor of the Lost Clan must have been a magnificent figure. No one knew what kind of realm he was in, what happened to him, or if he had fallen.


    ��After establishing the Lost Clan, extraordinary cultivators of the continent voluntarily joined the clan and worked together to guard Shenyi Continent. So that in a very short time, the Lost Clan became the undisputed premier principality of this land and the place where everyone held their faith. All those who wanted to join the clan must swear that they are willing to sacrifice everything, including their lives, to protect the continent. The ancestor of the Lost Clan fulfilled that oath with his own life. As did the rulers in the following generations and its top figures. They dedicated their lives to ensure the continued existence of the Lost Clan. Generation upon generation, it was precisely this belief that was guarding the Shenyi Continent. Today, the Shenyi Continent has finally left the endless darkness and come to the Original Realm. Before, we thought that this was just another area in ??the land of the exiles. But then we learned that Shenyi Continent might no longer need to experience the darkness as it once did.��


    Ye Futian was quite moved when he heard these words. Did generations of leaders really use their own lives to protect the Shenyi Continent?


    Moreover, the fact that they were top cultivators made it even more remarkable. Such sacrifice required firm conviction and fearless courage to achieve.


    If so, then everything that happened outside could be explained. Knowing that the Lost Clan was under threat, cultivators from all parts of the continent had rushed to the same place. If there were a war, those cultivators who came would probably do all they can to fight.


    This was some amazing faith.


    Only those who had faced desperation year after year, living in constant darkness, would have such belief, thinking that only if everyone had the same goal to protect the continent as a whole could they survive.


    If it weren��t for those men who persisted in this kind of belief, perhaps Shenyi Continent wouldn��t be here today.


    ��The endeavor of your ancestors, generation upon generation, was indeed admirable,�� someone remarked, and everyone seemed to be in awe. No matter what purpose drove them here, hearing this history incited respect from every one of them.


    They continued moving forward. The inside seemed extremely deep, with no end in sight. Many caves and recesses appeared on both sides, and it seemed that there was a bright divine light inside. The old man said, ��After our ancestors created the Lost Clan, they opened up this area here, using them as the last pure land for the Lost Clan. If the Shenyi Continent is broken apart, the people can still seek shelter and continue their existence in exile. The caves in here were left by generations of cultivators from the Lost Clan and are engraved with their cultivation methods. Later generations had left their deeds inside these caves so that even if Shenyi Continent was broken apart, the people who made it here could still cultivate inside these caves and continued their exile in the endless darkness until the arrival of dawn. This was the worst-case scenario.��


    Everyone nodded slightly, as they started to believe in what the old man was saying. Looking at everything inside, it was true that it appeared as the last refuge of a band of desperate folks. Its existence ensured the continuation of the Shenyi Continent. It was a holy land built by the sages before them, who were planning for the worst.


    ��Some of the caves in here are now occupied by cultivators who were actively cultivating. The cultivation methods created by our ancestors have been passed down from generation to generation, and they have all been engraved in there, still teaching the later generations, as they inherited the will of our ancestors while continuing moving forward until this point, where we have come to the Original Realm and met you all.�� The old man continued, ��This is the general situation of the Lost Clan. You are welcome to walk around and take a look. The Shenyi Continent has drifted to the Original Realm, and naturally, we don��t want to be enemies with any of you. We hope to make your acquaintances and become part of this world!��

 Chapter 2327 - Secret Zone Paradise

    After hearing this, everyone nodded. But someone suddenly asked bluntly, ��Can we enter the secret zone paradise to observe the enlightenment?��


    Immediately, the space hushed, perhaps too drastically. The attention of all the cultivators fastened on the old man from the Lost Clan, waiting to see his reaction. This was equivalent to asking whether or not they could use the secret zone paradise handed down from the ancestors of the Lost Clan for their own cultivation.


    This was also the true purpose for all the various principalities to converge here. A continent appeared out of nowhere in the Original Realm with countless cultivators on it. No matter how one looked at this event, it was hard for anyone not to be excited by it. Inevitably an association with divine relic was made with the appearance of this continent. Although the words of divine relic were never mentioned, none of these cultivators would believe what they had heard. There was no doubt that most of what the old man said was true, but equally, there may be other things that the Lost Clan had omitted.


    Therefore, they wanted to explore this magical place for themselves to see if they could gain anything from it. Even if there were no inheritance left by a Great Emperor, they wanted to see the inherited power left by the supreme cultivators, who were the ancestors of the Lost Clan, for themselves.


    More importantly, were there other purposes hidden within this mysterious space?


    Hearing this demand, the old man from the Lost Clan shook his head and said, ��The most precious treasures of the Lost Clan were housed inside this place, so we cannot disclose it to the public. Otherwise, would the Lost Clan still be considered the Lost Clan? Everything here is regarded as a top secret of the Lost Clan. Some of these places are considered forbidden areas, and even our own are not qualified to enter. Therefore, we hope you can understand our difficulty in complying with your request.��


    Once, a similar scenario had played out in Ziwei Imperial Palace. Various principalities had descended upon Ziwei Imperial Palace at the same time, attempting to pressure the Imperial Palace to open the passageway into the starry sky world. The thing was that the Ziwei Imperial Palace had its own design at that time. It had actually allowed the top figures of all forces to enter intentionally, hoping to leverage their abilities to unlock the mystery of the starry sky.


    ��This secret zone paradise is truly amazing; it was formed with the forces of creation between heaven and earth. It is extremely rare to build such a secret zone for those in the Lost Clan to cultivate in.�� At this time, someone else said, ��However, we came from afar, filled with nothing but respect and awe for the Lost Clan. Why not let us enter and cultivate within the Lost Clan so that we may really become friends and solidify our friendship?��


    Clearly, the man wanted to cultivate within the Lost Clan. Upon hearing his words, several cultivators nodded eagerly in agreement.


    After hearing about the history of The Lost Clan, it was true that most of them had the utmost respect for the Lost Clan. However, respect aside, it didn��t mean that they would abandon their own mission so easily.


    Otherwise, why would they bother to come?


    They were beginning to realize that perhaps it wasn��t so wise to come here. It was possible that they would not be able to gain anything for their trouble, after all.


    The cultivators of the Lost Clan frowned when they heard these words, and there were a lot of strange glances and expressions coming from the distance, displaying obscure but palpable displeasure. Suddenly, a powerful oppressive force shrouded this space. The invisible pressure alarmed those cultivators from outside, forcing them to tread very carefully.


    Although they were a conglomerate of many cultivators, it would probably still fall short of what they wanted to achieve.


    ��The Lost Clan wants to befriend everyone here, but it doesn��t mean that we are willing to sacrifice our own interest to serve yours. Now, everyone who came here is among the top cultivators of various major principalities. Have you ever allowed any outsiders to force their way into your family or clan to cultivate?��


    The old man��s exhortation silenced everyone, and they were unable to refute his logic. Indeed, who among them would allow other outsiders to cultivate in their own clan under those conditions? And they were talking about their most excellent cultivation method, no less.


    The Lost Clan, of course, didn��t want to either. They were the premier clan on the Shenyi Continent��the leader of the pack.


    ��In that case, what is the purpose of inviting all of us here to the Lost Clan?�� someone else piped up. The person who spoke was the top cultivator from the Devil World��Xiao Mu, the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. Previously, he was defeated by Ye Futian and injured severely; it was the kind of injury that went beyond surface-level injuries.


    However, any existence at this level was fully capable of recovering from this kind of injury rather quickly.


    ��I have said before��it was for all you all to learn more about the Lost Clan so that you can become friends.�� The old man looked at Xiao Mu and continued, ��Of course, if you still feel that wasn��t enough and want to understand us better, the cultivators of the Lost Clan are willing to have a friendly exchange with you so you can experience first-hand the cultivation methods carved inside the secret zone paradise.��


    The Lost Clan had already taken a step back before. But now, it didn��t seem likely that they were willing to back down any further.


    The Lost Clan had its own profound heritage in cultivation. There was no lack of forces that had attempted to enter their land by force before, but they could not achieve it for a reason.


    ��How?�� someone queried.


    ��The Lost Clan will set up a matrix for everyone to enter and challenge; the realm will be at the same level,�� the cultivator from the Lost Clan replied.


    ��How can you determine the outcome?�� someone asked. ��If the Lost Clan loses, could we enter the secret zone paradise to cultivate?��


    ��Yes,�� the cultivator from the Lost Clan said as he looked at the speaker. He then asked in return, ��Since you want to be allowed to enter our secret zone paradise to cultivate upon victory, what are you willing to wager in return if you are defeated?��


    The cultivator who spoke before now appeared dumbfounded; he hadn��t thought about this scenario.


    What would happen if they lost the battle?


    ��If you win, you want to enter our secret zone paradise, which is the holding place of the ultimate treasures of the Lost Clan. However, if you are defeated, would you be willing to hand over the cultivation methods you used during the battle, letting the Lost Clan enshrine them in the secret zone paradise for future generations?�� the old man proposed rather casually, which sent that cultivator into silence yet again.


    If so, it would be a fair exchange for both sides.


    ��I have no objection on the matter,�� Ye Futian shrugged indifferently. Many cultivators around him nodded as well, a strong sense of confidence in their eyes. In their opinion, how could they possibly be defeated?


    ��If no one objects, let��s go outside for the fight; it is not suitable to battle here,�� the old man from the Lost Clan directed. Everyone nodded and followed his lead to head outside. At the same time, many cultivators from the Lost Clan began to emerge as well, and some cultivators with phenomenal skills came out of the secret zone paradise with a shocking aura.


    For example, from the secret zone paradise at this moment, a shirtless middle-aged man appeared. His upper body seemed to be cast in golden bronze, and infinite power exuded from his entire person. His body seemed to be made out of gold; it was immortal and indestructible like it could never be broken.


    The cultivator in the secret zone paradise had a golden halo hovering above his head as if crowned by divine light, and it was radiant beyond description. He, too, walked toward the outside.


    Successively, in that unique isolated space of the Lost Clan, extraordinary figures came out one after another from the secret zone paradise, and everyone had a superb temperament.


    For countless years, the Lost Clan had been guarding this continent, protecting it from total destruction. They feared no death and had no regrets. They rarely fought major battles with anyone because there were not many opportunities to do so. But now, they had finally encountered the provocation of challenges from these human cultivators!

 Chapter 2328 - The Mightiness of the Lost Clan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    All the outside cultivators walked out of the Lost Clan and returned to their respective camps.


    Cultivators from various forces inquired about the situation inside those forbidden buildings belonging to the Lost Clan and were briefed by those who had returned.


    Ye Futian returned amongst the cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy and briefly recounted the Lost Clan situation. Everyone from Heavenly Mandate Academy was impressed with what they had heard and admired the Lost Clan for their persistence. As they understood it, their ancestors were awe-inspiring.


    They were willing to sacrifice everything to ensure the safety of the continent.


    The continent that was always pacing in front of death had strengthened these cultivators�� will far more than the cultivators from the outside.


    ��Futian, what are you planning on doing?�� Emperor Nan asked Ye Futian. He admired the spirit of the Lost Clan, and if they were to act against the Lost Clan, he would feel terribly uneasy in his heart.


    ��Let��s first take a look at the strength of the Lost Clan. For the cultivator from the Lost Clan to make such a proposal, they must have absolute confidence in their own ability. Moreover, they already had some preliminary exchanges with the outside before and potentially have a better understanding of others�� strengths. This is a resilient clan that was struggling on the edge of death, and perhaps they were much stronger than we had originally thought,�� Ye Futian explained. Emperor Nan nodded in acknowledgment without saying anything further.


    At this time, cultivators from all principalities stepped forward. They floated high above the firmament, standing in different locations to peer inside the Lost Clan. Someone said loudly, ��Requesting instructions from the Lost Clan.��


    ��Please send a representative so the Lost Clan could dispatch cultivators of equal realm,�� a voice urged from the Lost Clan. A cultivator from the outside stepped forward, and it was a Renhuang of the Eighth Realm from a top principality of Divine Prefecture who was endowed with outstanding temperament. He said, ��I wish to experience the strength of the Lost Clan.��


    ��Very well,�� came a response from inside the Lost Clan. Then nine cultivators from the Lost Clan stepped out from different directions, and each one was a Renhuang in the Eighth Realm. Their temperaments were somewhat similar, and each of these men was a powerful and imposing presence in his own right.


    The nine cultivators walked out at the same time, were stationed in different positions, and one of the cultivators from the Lost Clan said, ��You are the top figures from every world, so we of the Lost Clan will cut you no slack in this battle. This battle matrix is of our most cultivated methods in resisting outside attacks, with nine men acting as one. Of course, you can select eight more cultivators of the same realm to join you in battle.��


    As he was speaking, those nine cultivators had started taking their positions already, standing in different directions, facing the challengers who were coming forward. Just by simply standing there, they emitted an incredibly unbearable oppressive force that actually made that cultivator from the Divine Prefecture feel a momentum that was nearly impossible to overcome.


    In this battle, it wouldn��t be enough with just him alone.


    His gaze drifted to other principalities as if hinting for assistance. Suddenly, in different directions, some cultivators came forward one by one. They were all top-level Renhuang in the Eighth Realm. Among them, a cultivator who Ye Futian recognized also came forward. It was none other than Ning Hua of the Donghua Domain.


    ��I assume you have been told that if you win, the victors may enter the secret zone paradise of the Lost Clan to cultivate. But if you lose, you will each hand over the methods you have used in the battle and store them inside the secret zone paradise. Therefore, when you employ methods while fighting, I urge you to think carefully before you act,�� the cultivator from the Lost Clan cautioned them.


    As soon as his voice trailed off, those nine great Renhuang who had walked out immediately unleashed a monstrous coercion, and every one of them was surrounded by an extremely radiant divine light of the Great Path.


    Ning Hua��s eyes were shining with the divine light of the seal, directly aiming at the nine opponents in front of him. The light pierced into their eyes. However, he felt that these opponents returned his gaze, and those eyes contained an incomparably steady Will that seemed impossible to shake and even more impossible to imprison.


    He frowned instinctively. This one glance made him feel that he was in the presence of some very powerful opponents, far stronger than what he had expected, and every one of them seemed to be equally powerful.


    Buzz! The Divine Wheel of the Great Path shone brightly, as a gigantic seal pattern now appeared above the firmament, projecting a shocking divine glory. Its massive presence covered the sky and the sun and descended above the nine great cultivators. The divine light of the seal fell down as if intending to lock these nine cultivators in place.


    At the same time, other cultivators made their moves in unison, and each one of their moves contained a shocking attack.


    The cultivators of various forces looked towards the battlefield in the void and saw the violent roar of the Great Path erupted from the bodies of the nine cultivators. Extremely violent sounds of metal clashing were heard, sonorous and clear, as a golden light burst from their torsos. These lights turned into a substantial and palpable force, directly blasting onto the oncoming attacks.


    Above the void, there was a terrifying booming sound. The aura that erupted above their bodies already contained an unparalleled power.


    What was more terrifying was those golden bodies shining with the divine light between heaven and the earth. Their bodies were actually expanding, and when their flesh roared, their bodies turned into that of the ancient deities, standing in different positions like nine statues of great gods. The roar of the Great Path inside their bodies had a certain resonance, which turned into a horrific Great Path sound wave that swept out. Suddenly, all the forces that were attacking them exploded and shattered, utterly destroyed.


    This sight stunned many cultivators, even those who were watching the battle from afar. They looked at the scene that was playing out before them with some surprise. Were these people really in possession of such terrifying combat effectiveness?


    More importantly, they hadn��t even made their moves yet.


    Likewise, Ye Futian was looking at the battlefield at this time. He saw the power used by these cultivators. He understood that their physical forms were very strong and very possibly had already reached an extremely frightening degree, like that of a divine body.


    He thought of everything the Lost Clan had faced. Could it be possible that the cultivators of the Lost Clan had achieved such tyrannical form to withstand the external storms and cast this unbreakable defense with their own mortal flesh?


    Those cultivators continue to attack, but under violent physical coercion, the attack from the nine cultivators who came forward couldn��t even break through their opponents�� defense. The resonance produced by the physical body of the Great Path was so strong that it was quite horrifying.


    Although Ning Hua may not be considered a top figure in all of the Divine Prefecture, he was known as the number one enchanting genius in the Donghua Domain, and the combat effectiveness of the other cultivators with him was not weak either. However, at this moment, they were so passive on the battlefield, it greatly disturbed those who were watching the battle. It seemed that the strength demonstrated previously by the Lost Clan was not all that they were capable of, and their battle matrix was something even more terrifying to behold.


    That power of might was still expanding. Those ancient god-like figures stood between heaven and earth as if they were immortal and had been there since the beginning of time. There were divine shadows now manifesting in the surrounding space, as they became one with heaven and earth. The coercion now came down and corralled the nine mighty cultivators within, including Ning Hua. It was as if the nine of them had become prey in their trap.


    ��This���� When everyone witnessed this sight, they understood that the outcome had already been determined. The battle had ended earlier than expected. Facing the Lost Clan, these nine cultivators had no way to fight back!

 Chapter 2329 - Xiao Mu Prepared for Battle

    Under the united front of the nine cultivators, the Great Path boomed and howled continuously. Above the nine god-like figures, the golden divine glory turned into divine walls that moved to suppress the nine trapped in the middle.


    Ning Hua and the others felt a suffocating coercion when they saw those oppressive divine walls closing in on them. The divine wheels of the Great Path bloomed upon them, releasing the strongest divine might to blast toward those divine walls. However, the walls shut everything down. Even the most powerful spatial shredding power could not shatter nor break it.


    Boom! The divine walls turned into a prison, continuously oppressing the nine people within its bound. At this moment, the onlookers couldn��t help but wonder if this was the kind of power that the cultivators of the Lost Clan had been using to protect the Shenyi Continent.


    This power was capable of sealing the void shut. It was as if multiple cultivators had worked together to release the power to the extreme, and it was possible to shroud the entire boundless space of the continent.


    Clang, clang, clang! Ning Hua and the other cultivators attacked frantically but couldn��t move those divine walls a single inch. They could only watch the walls continuously closing in on them and finally stopped not far away from where they stood. However, the walls trapped all nine of them inside so that none could escape. None of their offensive moves could break this prison made of divine walls.


    ��Are you planning to continue?�� someone asked. The nine cultivators from the Lost Clan stood outside the walls in different positions. The golden divine light surrounded them, and the sound of it rocked the void. Ning Hua and the others stopped their attacks. They couldn��t help but feel a deep sense of helplessness. They were, without exception, extraordinary enchanting geniuses in their own rights, and the attack that they employed were vast. Nonetheless, they couldn��t even break free of the divine walls that kept them imprisoned. How could they continue to fight?


    ��Respect,�� one of the men said, as they now had a new understanding of the strength demonstrated by the Lost Clan. The powerful battle matrix formed by the nine cultivators was not something they could counter and overcome. Even if they were stronger, it would still be impossible.


    They had never expected that there would be a group of such terrifying and powerful beings existing upon this continent, which came out of nowhere.


    They were not the only ones who had this epiphany. The cultivators watching on the sidelines had the same realization as well, and there was a slight disturbance in their hearts.


    The cultivators of the Lost Clan were so powerful that they far surpassed their expectations. This level was already at the very top of cultivation as they knew it.


    More importantly, how many more cultivators like this were inside the Lost Clan?


    Those nine cultivators seemed to have walked out purely randomly, so what about the others?


    The divine light sparkled as the nine cultivators took down the divine walls. Suddenly Ning Hua and his cohort felt great relief, as that sense of oppression disappeared. They looked at the nine cultivators who, like deities, hovered above the sky, and they had no words to describe their feelings at the moment.


    Not only were they defeated, but they had been defeated so completely and miserably.


    It didn��t take long for the battle to end, and it was clear that they didn��t have any ability to fight back. They had not been able to pose even the slightest threat to those nine opposing cultivators.


    This unexpected turn of events made them doubt their own abilities. They were the top figures from all continents, so why did they lose so miserably in front of these cultivators from the Lost Clan? Were there too many of them, or were the cultivators from the Lost Clan too powerful for them?


    Somewhat depressed, they turned to leave, returning to their own camps. The nine cultivators from the Lost Clan were still there, but the old man behind the nine now reminded them, ��Everyone, don��t forget what you promised in the case that you lost.��


    These nine cultivators narrowed their eyes slightly. The losers were required to send the methods they used to the Lost Clan��s secret zone paradise.


    Was he serious in asking them to surrender the wager now?


    ��Anyone else want to give it a try?�� the old man from the Lost Clan asked. The nine cultivators of the Eighth Realm were still there, surrounded by divine light, releasing a horrific aura, waiting for the next opponents.


    If someone continued to challenge them, they would continue to oblige.


    Among the crowd, everyone looked at the location where those nine cultivators were. These outside cultivators seemed to be assessing whether or not they had the ability to break down those divine walls. The previous nine challengers were not weaklings, but the strength of the nine cultivators from the Lost Clan seemed much greater.


    At this moment, a cultivator stepped out, and his appearance surprised many cultivators, as their attention was now focused on the man who volunteered. It was none other than the cultivator from the Devil World and a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor, Xiao Mu.


    When Ye Futian saw Xiao Mu walking forward, his eyes revealed a bit of shock. Xiao Mu was a cultivator of an extremely powerful physical refining method, and his physique was not much less than his own. In addition, his Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon were incredibly powerful; there was no telling whether this level of attack would be able to shake the defense of those nine powerful cultivators inside the battle matrix.


    However, Xiao Mu��s cultivation method was the method of the Devil World, possibly passed down by the Devil Emperor himself. If he were to use it in this battle, what would happen if he was defeated?


    Did he really want to make a wager so tremendous that he could potentially hand over the cultivation method of the Devil Emperor himself to the Lost Clan?


    This seemed unlikely. Even Xiao Mu could not possibly decide something as grave as this. Not only him, but also no one from the Devil World present could make such a decision. If it was the Demonic Method passed down by the Devil Emperor himself, only the Devil Emperor himself could decide how the method would be passed on to the outside world. Without permission from the Devil Emperor, who would dare to make such a decision on their own?


    In this sense, Xiao Mu would be completely unable to fulfill the promise agreed upon by the cultivators from the Devil World. If he was defeated, he had no authority to hand over his cultivation method to the Lost Clan.


    For Xiao Mu to step forward under this condition, either he thought that he would definitely win or that he might have to renege on the agreement he had made earlier.


    This was something not only Ye Futian knew without a doubt, but other cultivators as well. In fact, Xiao Mu was not alone in this predicament. Many of those present couldn��t possibly make promises of this magnitude unless they planned not to use their own expert methods in the battle. However, in that scenario, how could they possibly defeat these powerful opponents?


    The nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan were no common folk.


    Xiao Mu��s action attracted much attention. All of a sudden, cultivators stepped forward from other directions. Every one of the cultivators who stepped forward was a character with extraordinary temperament and attracted attention from all sides. Several of them held extraordinary status so that the makeup of this group was far superior to the one before.


    Although Ye Futian was not familiar with these cultivators who came out, he could feel their temperament. He realized that these people were far stronger than the previous nine, and their overall strength would be much more powerful.


    After they walked out, they came to a place high above the sky, standing in front of the nine cultivators from the Lost Clan. A powerful aura bloomed from them, especially Xiao Mu. The demonic might tossed and roared, and even those who walked out with him could feel that oppressive force.


    The nine people from the Lost Clan also felt a sense of threat, but they did not appear alarmed by it; their expression was the same as usual, without the slightest bit of emotion. They stood in place, surrounded by the golden divine light of the Great Paths. Rounds and rounds of golden light screens spread out like waves of the Great Path, sweeping towards the nine challengers.


    ��Is everyone ready?�� one of them questioned loudly as the sound of his voice shook the void. After his voice fell, an astonishing aura burst forth from those nine opponents almost at the same time. In an instant, the demonic might overwhelmed the space, as demonic shadows appeared to shield the void. Xiao Mu took the lead to erupt with his own power!

 Chapter 2330 - Battle Matrix of the Rocks

    The golden divine light shone upon the nine great cultivators from the Lost Clan, and the divine light that burst out from them flooded the sky. Nine massive and boundless shadows of the ancient gods appeared, covering the surrounding area as they stood above the sky. Those golden divine walls appeared again, sealing the void to imprison them within its bounds.


    It seemed that they were resorting to the same method as before.


    The monstrous demonic might gathered, and a demonic god-like figure appeared. Xiao Mu, likewise, burst out with an aggressive force as a dark demonic blade appeared above his head. A horrific apocalyptic aura now erupted from the demonic blade, unleashing the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon right off the bat. It seemed that Xiao Mu wanted to split open these divine walls in the most direct and domineering way possible.


    The rest of the cultivators also bloomed with their own extraordinary specialty. One stretched out his palms and saw that the palms became a golden color and kept expanding. There seemed to be the most brilliant golden divine light from the runes in the center of the palms. Needless to say, it contained incredible and horrific power.


    There was also a cultivator holding the Infinite Ruler. When he waved, the ruler expanded and clearly contained the terrifying power of the Great Path. They were curious to see just how strong this divine wall was.


    ��You guys move first,�� Xiao Mu commanded, and the rest of his cohort nodded. Xiao Mu��s status as the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor was lofty and supreme; he was probably the strongest of them all. There would be no questioning his authority in asking the others to move first.


    As attacks were blasted out successively and landed on those divine walls, suddenly, an astonishing destructive power erupted, causing the walls to vibrate and tremble. It was obviously more powerful than the previous attacks from those nine people.


    After they unleashed their attacks, Xiao Mu��s Heavenly Demon Blade swung out, finding purchase on a weakened spot that was still trembling. Immediately, a crack appeared on the divine wall and spread quickly toward the inside.


    ��Continue to attack there,�� said Xiao Mu. Instantly, the other cultivators began their furious and violent attacks on that very spot, causing the crack to widen.


    The second strike of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon slammed down and tore a giant opening on the divine wall, which spread madly towards its surroundings. The opening continued to enlarge as other cracks began appearing in other areas.


    Buzz! The gigantic and boundless Infinite Ruler was thrown out and turned into a sky full of shadows, covering the sky and obscuring the sun. This came along with the booming roaring of the Great Path and the unparalleled power of spatial shredding of the Great Path. No corner was spared; it had made contact with every part of the divine wall.


    Crunch! There was a violent cracking sound as many cracks appeared on the divine walls. The attacks from other cultivators followed in its wake, and the cracks expanded. Xiao Mu��s third strike of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon smashed down for the kill. Finally, those countless cracks continued expanding faster until a light of destruction burst out. In an instant, the divine walls disintegrated and pulverized, completely in shambles.


    ��What an amazing defense.�� Ye Futian applauded silently. Not for the attacks from the nine cultivators but the sturdiness of the divine walls; they were too strong. Even a cultivator like Xiao Mu had to exert an inordinate effort to dismantle the walls. What kind of defense was this?


    Ye Futian reckoned that even he himself could not have done it. The battle matrix formed by these nine was incredibly awesome.


    He couldn��t help but asked himself at this moment: if he was on the battlefield now, could he possibly break its defense?


    It was probably unlikely.


    After the divine walls were pulverized, the nine great cultivators continued standing in those nine positions without wavering. The ancient god-like phantoms overshadowed their bodies and were still expanding until they resembled the bodies of the ancient gods, shrouding this corner of the sky.


    When everyone saw this, they were beyond surprised. The bodies of the nine ancient gods were connected. Their massive and towering bodies covered heaven and the earth as if to seal this space with bodies of flesh and blood.


    The hearts of many quivered. How strong would their physical defenses be?


    Xiao Mu and other cultivators fixed their attention on the nine ancient gods surrounding the void. An overwhelming power of the Great Path gathered once again, and the light from the Heavenly Demon Blade was shining. Jets of black destruction currents circulated ominously.


    They did not believe that the defensive power of these cultivators from the Lost Clan could be dominant enough to ignore their level of attacks.


    ��Move at the same time,�� said Xiao Mu. Suddenly he moved to attack one of the ancient gods. The fourth strike from the Heavenly Demon Blade unleashed. When the light of the blade bloomed, it seemed on the verge of crushing through the void as it smashed toward one of the ancient gods.


    Like him, the other eight cultivators did the same. Each selected an ancient god and exploded with massive attacking power. For a time, within this space of the Great Path, terrifying storms of destruction erupted.


    Numerous destructive attacks blasted on the bodies of these nine ancient gods at the same time. The terrifying power rocked the bodies of these ancient gods. Xiao Mu��s Broadsword Will, especially, seemed to have penetrated the defenses crafted by the golden divine light and rushed into the bodies of the ancient gods. The residual waves of the attacks jolted the physical bodies of the cultivators shrouded inside these ancient deities, and the terrifying destructive force aimed to crush and kill them.


    Bang, bang, bang�� The nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan were impacted on their flesh by that tyrannical attack, but they remained standing firmly, as indestructible as rocks, unfazed.


    ��This!�� All the cultivators were shocked when they beheld this sight, including Ye Futian. Physical bodies like this��


    In the attack just now, he clearly felt that all nine cultivators had been attacked. The one directly facing Xiao Mu had been hit the hardest. However, he was as solid as a rock, standing tall, like a truly invincible presence that would never fall.


    Moreover, the abilities currently demonstrated by these cultivators from the Lost Clan were their tyrannical and aggressive defensive powers, whether supernatural or physical. However, they did not demonstrate any substantive offensive moves. Could the environment be a factor?


    Their mission was to protect the Shenyi Continent, so their main focus was on defense, not offense.


    But such tyrannical physiques almost guaranteed that their combat effectiveness would be equally horrific. They would, no doubt, be able to slay an ordinary existence of the same realm in the blink of an eye. The physical tyranny of these people was probably not much lesser than that of Xiao Mu.


    What Xiao Mu cultivated was the Super Demonic Form passed down by the Devil Emperor.


    ��Once more.�� Xiao Mu��s eyes sharpened, and he became more somber as he made his command. He continued to gather an even stronger demonic might, and the fifth strike of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon condensed into existence. Its power overwhelmed the sky, frightening to the extreme. He couldn��t believe that he wouldn��t be able to defeat this defense.


    At this moment, all nine cultivators of the Lost Clan condensed the seals in their hands. Suddenly, phantoms of even more ancient gods manifested between heaven and earth, and invisible sounds of rhythm appeared in the void. Boundless and solemn, they made everyone feel an incredible heaviness.


    It seems that even Xiao Mu and his cohort cannot break the defense of the Lost Clan, Ye Futian thought when he saw this. They were far stronger, and this force was indestructible.


    Sure enough, when Xiao Mu��s fifth strike smashed down, the rest of the cultivators exploded with even stronger attacks, but the result was the same.


    All the powerful people from the Lost Clan stood in the distance and quietly observing as this played out in front of their eyes. These nine people were far from ordinary; they were cultivators carefully selected by the Lost Clan. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks that they crafted was not something that could be easily broken!

 Chapter 2331 - Choosing the Right Person

    Xiao Mu felt an incredible sense of defeat. He had already unleashed five strikes, which was at no small cost to himself. And now, he had only enough strength to launch one last strike of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon.


    However, at present, the fifth strike was still unable to get the job done. Would the sixth strike make any difference?


    Previously he was defeated at the hands of Ye Futian. Now, facing the cultivators from the Lost Clan, he was not faring any better. This was totally different from what he had in mind. He came from the Devil World and a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor himself. His cultivation was so tremendous that he thought no one could compete across all major worlds.


    But after coming to the Original Realm, he had tasted nothing but frustration. He was defeated right off the bat in the first battle by Ye Futian, who was an entire realm lower than him.


    In both battles that he had participated in after arriving in the Original Realm, Xiao Mu seemed to realize just how big the world really was and how many outstanding figures there were in the world. The Lost Clan that appeared during the changes taking place in the Original Realm was a good example; none of their cultivators were any less when battling the top figures in this world.


    Above the firmament, the nine powerful cultivators from the Lost Clan put their hands together. A divine light bloomed at their brow chakras, turning into thousands of divine shadows. It was as if they were the ancient gods who were as solid as a rock. They had transformed their incomparably resilient Spiritual Will in combination with the bodies of the Great Path and forged this body of the ancient god.


    The bodies of many ancient gods resonated and merged into one, turning this space into a rock domain, like a domain belonging to the deities. It was as indestructible as the will of the Lost Clan.


    Ye Futian was not the only one who felt the immensity of that power. Even others realized that those nine cultivators, who were as strong as Xiao Mu, still couldn��t break down defenses such as this one. The cultivators from the Lost Clan were experts at constructing defense, so much so that this defensive force could not be destroyed at all.


    Even the nine cultivators on the battlefield realized it themselves. Even so, they didn��t give up. The Great Path on their bodies roared as an extraordinary power burst forth. Xiao Mu, likewise, unleashed the sixth strike in the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon in concert with the rest of the cultivators. The attack this time was several times stronger than the previous ones.


    When the attack landed, the divine shadows that had filled the heaven shook violently, and some of them were shattered. Obviously, this extremely powerful attack could shake up the Battle Matrix of the Rocks to some extent. However, the outcome remained the same. The shapes of those nine cultivators from the Lost Clan were shaken a bit but remained as unmoving as a rock. Their physical bodies and Spiritual Will were integrated and were in perfect harmony with heaven and earth. Their Spiritual Will was as firm as a rock, and their physical bodies were deeply rooted in the earth. This was the true essence of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks; it was as the ancestors had intended when they created it. This was the only way that Shenyi Continent could be protected despite the darkness and continue its survival in the world.


    As Ye Futian observed this power from the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, he could clearly perceive the firmness of the will from these cultivators. He could see how the cultivators from the Lost Clan were able to survive these countless years, wandering through the dark world on the Shenyi Continent. They had turned their own bodies into rock to protect the continent from destruction.


    At this moment, there was more credence in what the cultivator from the Lost Clan had told them. This was certainly a clan worthy of great respect and friendship and definitely not as an enemy.


    ��Excellent.�� Cultivators such as Emperor Nan and the others also realized this and let out an emotional remark. How determined were they need to be to shuttle through these endless years in the darkness like this? They had forged rocks out of flesh and blood to protect the Shenyi Continent.


    This could not be achieved without a certain degree of conviction.


    It was precisely on account of their steadfast belief that they were able to explode with such terrifying combative power. Even the one as great as Xiao Mu, the Devil Emperor��s own direct disciple, had no way of defeating them. Their spirit was simply awe-inspiring.


    On the battlefield, Xiao Mu and the other nine cultivators were discouraged and frustrated. They knew they had been defeated, and it was impossible to break this defense. It was not just a matter of Xiao Mu and the others; the result would be the same with another set of nine cultivators. Perhaps if there were nine people at the same level as Xiao Mu, they might have a chance to destroy the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. But how strong of a force would be required then?


    ��Everyone, please exit.�� The Battle Matrix of the Rocks opened up and a passageway appeared, allowing Xiao Mu and his party to leave.


    Both sides understood that the outcome couldn��t be clearer, so there was no point in continuing the fight.


    ��Impressive.�� Xiao Mu��s eyes were pitch-black as he looked at the cultivator from the Lost Clan. He then exited the bounds of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks and returned to the camp that belonged to the Devil World. The other cultivators followed his lead and returned to camp with him, disturbed to their core.


    ��This battle was not your fault. Few would be able to break this battle matrix,�� an elder from the Devil World said to Xiao Mu. Even though he was watching the battle from the sidelines, he could sense the power exuded from the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    But it didn��t make Xiao Mu feel any better. Defeat was defeat; no amount of excuses could explain that away.


    ��It��s a great feat for you to be able to shake the Battle Matrix of the Rocks like this. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks forged by the nine of them requires the full eruption of their Spiritual Will and physical strength to the extreme to render the battle matrix indestructible. You have done very well already.�� At this time, the old man from the Lost Clan spoke up, perhaps wanting to comfort them.


    However, from his words, one could detect the Lost Clan��s strong faith in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. The power of the Great Path integrated Spiritual Will and physical strength. The ultimate power that erupted from it was then used to form this unbreakable battle matrix.


    For countless years, generations of cultivators from the Lost Clan had protected the Shenyi Continent by relying on superior defenses such as the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    Furthermore, this was not yet the ultimate configuration in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    ��Would there be anyone in the Renhuang Eighth Realm who wants to give it a try?�� the old man from the Lost Clan asked as he surveyed the cultivators from all forces. At this moment, those whose cultivation was at the very top were impatient, as if they were all eager to see just how strong was this Battle Matrix of the Rocks and if they could destroy it.


    ��I��ll try.�� At this moment, another cultivator came forward. This was someone from Divine Prefecture. When this man appeared, many cultivators from Divine Prefecture sat up and took notice. Obviously, many cultivators knew who the man was.


    Clad in white, this man was stunningly handsome. Just standing there, he seemed to be one with the Great Path, emitting an air of celestial detachment.


    After the Renhuang in white walked forward, he glanced at the nine cultivators from the Lost Clan and then at the cultivators from Divine Prefecture. Someone else walked out as if wanting to give it a try. However, the Renhuang in white saw him walked out and said instead, ��If you want to try it, try in the next round.��


    The Renhuang at the receiving end of this remark frowned. The man��s words were so impolite they were bordering on rude. However, the Renhuang in white didn��t seem to care at all. He looked at all the cultivators from Divine Prefecture and said, ��The Lost Clan��s Battle Matrix of the Rocks is indestructible, but all the principalities of Divine Prefecture are here as well, so how can there be battle matrixes that cannot be broken? Therefore, I would like to invite some others from Divine Prefecture to break the Battle Matrix of the Rocks with me.��


    His meaning couldn��t be clearer. He wanted to pick his allies, and that cultivator who had walked out was not considered suitable. In his opinion, the man was not worthy of fighting side by side with him!

 Chapter 2332 - Invitation to Battle

    The various cultivators all looked at the person who had spoken. He clearly wanted to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks for him to have stepped forward. He also wanted to select people to follow him to break through the matrix. Obviously, he placed great importance in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, and his true colors were showing.


    This cultivator was from the Ancient God Clan of the Nantian Domain in the Divine Prefecture. He was an existence with exceptional ability.


    He turned down the cultivators who had proactively stepped forward just now. He believed that the other party was unworthy of standing side-by-side with him in battle. If that were the case, the people that he wanted to select would certainly be figures of the same level as him. Was he planning to choose the most brilliant figures of the Divine Prefecture to follow him into battle?


    If so, it was indeed possible for them to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    Among the cultivators here today, the lineup of cultivators from the Divine Prefecture was indeed the strongest. After all, in name, the Original Realm was still under the rule of the Donghuang Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture. The top forces of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture had all come here, including the Domain Chief��s Manors as well as the Ancient God Clan. Hence, it was possible to choose nine of the finest eighth-tier Renhuangs from among the various forces of the 18 domains.


    The white-robed cultivator��s gaze shifted in a different direction. In that direction, a group of figures was radiating with golden divine halos. They were dazzling to behold, but their appearances were not outstanding. They quietly stood there, but they gave off an unshakable vibe. The temperament of these people was even similar to that of the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan.


    The gazes of many cultivators also turned to look in that direction. Ye Futian and the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were not familiar with the top forces of the Divine Prefecture. However, in the Divine Prefecture, many forces knew something about each other. When they saw this group of people, many cultivators from the top forces of the Divine Prefecture knew their identity.


    They were from the strongest force from the Vajra Domain of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture. They were also part of the Ancient God Clan and had inherited the teachings of a Great Emperor.


    When they saw the gaze of the white-robed youth, a cultivator from among this force walked out. He seemed to understand the intention in the other party��s gaze. The skin of this cultivator appeared golden. His eyes shone with a sharp, golden divine light. He looked at the white-robed cultivator and said, ��If that is the case, let us experience the Battle Matrix of the Rocks of the Lost Clan together.��


    The white-robed cultivator nodded his head slightly. He shifted his gaze again and looked in another direction. This time, he looked towards the cultivators of a top force from the Yuanshi Domain. Similarly, a cultivator immediately walked out from there. This time, the cultivator who emerged seemed older and gave off an otherworldly air. However, no one dared to underestimate him.


    The cultivators from the Dark World, the Devil World, the Human Realm as well as the other worlds watched all of this quietly. They all realized that the Divine Prefecture was preparing to send their strongest lineup into battle. Among the eighth-tier Renhuangs, even though they might not be the strongest group, they would definitely be considered the finest. They were adamant about breaking through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    Right now, even the cultivators of the Lost Clan had serious expressions. They seemed to have realized the resolve of the other party. Although they were confident in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, they did not dare underestimate this group.


    Each cultivator who stepped forward made the cultivators of the Lost Clan feel slightly pressured. Any one of them could prove a match for Xiao Mu.


    After that, the gaze of the white-robed cultivator continued to wander among the crowd. More and more people emerged. Not long after, seven cultivators had stepped forward. Including the white-robed youth himself, there were eight powerful cultivators.


    When some of the forces of the Divine Prefecture saw these eight powerful cultivators, they had serious looks. If such a lineup could not break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, it would most likely be impossible for the other cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to do so.


    There was still one more candidate to be chosen. Who would he choose?


    The white-robed cultivator��s gaze landed in one direction. The various cultivators followed his gaze. Many of them revealed strange expressions when they saw where he was looking. He was actually looking in the direction where the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were. The person that he was looking at was similarly clad in white robes. His hair was also white like his robes, and he appeared extremely handsome.


    Him?


    Many people revealed strange looks. His cultivation was only at the seventh-tier. For the final candidate, this monstrous figure of the Nantian Domain had actually chosen him?


    ��I have heard that you are the top monstrous figure of the Original Realm. Would you be willing to join us in battle?�� asked the white-robed youth. As expected, he was officially extending an invitation to this person. The final candidate he had chosen was Ye Futian.


    This also surprised Ye Futian. His cultivation was only at the seventh-tier Renhuang Plane. The people that the other party had chosen before this were all eighth-tier Renhuangs. He could not figure out why the white-robed cultivator had chosen him as the last candidate.


    However, he naturally knew that his own combat ability was sufficiently powerful. At the very least, he would not hold them back. After all, not long ago, he had defeated an eighth-tier demonic emperor and one of the direct disciples of the Devil Emperor, Xiao Mu. Hence, he was certainly qualified to join the battle.


    ��Isn��t it a little rash for him to be the ninth candidate?�� said a cultivator who had stepped forward before this. Although he also knew that Ye Futian was the top monstrous figure of the Original Realm, he was still a seventh-tier Renhuang.


    If Ye Futian was also an eighth-tier Renhuang like them, inviting him to join the battle was unquestionable. However, given that he was a seventh-tier Renhuang, he seemed to be out of place. The eight of them who came forward were all prominent figures renowned far and wide. It was not just in a city or a domain; even in the entire Divine Prefecture, they were still monstrous figures who stood at the peak.


    If the seventh-tier Ye Futian were to join them in battle, he would be a misfit.


    ��I believe in Renhuang Ye��s ability,�� said the white-robed cultivator. His temperament was otherworldly. He was still looking at Ye Futian, seemingly awaiting Ye Futian��s answer.


    Ye Futian contemplated this as he looked at the other party. After a short while in deep thought, he then nodded his head and said, ��Alright.��


    As he said this, he stepped forward. He also wanted to experience how powerful the Battle Matrix of the Rocks was.


    With their current lineup, Ye Futian realized that it might truly be possible to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Even without him, the possibility of doing so was still the same.


    Since it was so, there was no harm in him participating.


    He stepped forward, and immediately the gazes of the group from the Divine Prefecture landed on him. The other seven powerful cultivators were naturally curious towards the top monstrous figure of the Original Realm. As a seventh-tier Renhuang, he actually came forward to join the eight of them in battle.


    All around them, the cultivators of the various forces of the Divine Prefecture looked towards the battlefield. They glanced across the nine cultivators. Every one of them was a prominent monstrous figure. They would certainly develop and become the group of people that stood at the very top of the Divine Prefecture. They might even control a top force and gain great authority in the future.


    This group of people had joined forces to challenge the cultivators of the Lost Clan and break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    With this lineup, could they break through it?

 Chapter 2333 - Practicing Faith

    The eight cultivators from the Ancient God Clan included the heir of Haotian the Great from the Haotian Clan of the Nantian Domain, the successor of the Vajra Region of the Vajra Domain, the heir of Yuanshi the Great from the Yuanshi Domain, and the successor of West Imperial Palace from the West Sea Domain. Together with Ye Futian, they formed a super powerful lineup. Their mission was to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks set up by the Lost Clan.


    All the other cultivators put on serious expressions. They were full of anticipation and were eager to witness the battle.


    The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were especially excited about this battle. This lineup was terrifying. The cultivators chosen to join the battle were definitely the strongest ones among all the eighth-tier Renhuangs. Their abilities went without question.


    Ye Futian was the only seventh-tier Renhuang in the team. However, based on his glorious record, the crowd speculated that even though he was only at the seventh-tier, his combat ability would most likely not be any weaker than that of those monstrous eighth-tier figures.


    The crowd here had yet to hear about Ye Futian defeating Xiao Mu, a disciple of the Devil Emperor. Many of the cultivators here had long arrived on this continent. The cultivators from the Devil World arrived in the Original Realm much later. Besides that, they only came to this continent after Xiao Mu was defeated by Ye Futian.


    If the crowd had heard of the news, they would not have any doubts about Ye Futian��s combat ability at all. As the top monstrous figure who had defeated a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor, Ye Futian showed no sign of inferiority when standing among this powerful lineup.


    The white-robed cultivator who invited the rest to join the team was Hua Junlai from the Haotian Clan of the Nantian Domain. The Haotian Clan was part of the Ancient God Clan; they received an inheritance from Haotian the Great. Hua Junlai was the heir of the Great Emperor. His name was renowned far and wide in the Nantian Domain. He was definitely a leader.


    Moreover, he showed an understanding of the top forces from various domains. Otherwise, he wouldn��t have directly invited the cultivators from the Ancient God Clan of various domains to join him in battle.


    Aside from Ye Futian, the eight powerful cultivators who were selected all had powerful backgrounds. Their families could be considered among the most terrifying forces in the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Members of the Lost Clan, let us begin,�� Hua Junlai greeted the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan. Then, an extremely powerful aura of the Great Path emanated from his figure. It was not just him. From other locations, frightening auras of the Great Path burst forth.


    The instant these auras of the Great Path radiated outwards, and intense rumbling of the Great Path could be heard, causing the surrounding space to tremble. Radiant divine light similarly shone from Ye Futian��s divine body. The power of the Great Path inside his body roared. He swept a glance at the people around him. They stood at nine different locations. Sensing the strength of their power, Ye Futian speculated that the battle matrix of the Lost Clan would most likely fall to them.


    It was completely different this time. The nine people this time were all top monstrous existences. There was no discrepancy in their strength. Once all of them attacked at the same time, their power would be unparalleled.


    From his observation of the previous battle, the strength of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks lay in the fact that nine people acted as one. Even if one location was faced with the fiercest of attacks, the other parts of the matrix could instantly compensate and reach an equilibrium, ensuring that the battle matrix survived.


    However, if the entire battle matrix was attacked by the nine great cultivators�� most powerful attacks simultaneously, there was still a chance that it would be instantly shattered. Now, the nine of them had the ability to do so. It was because of this that Ye Futian decided to join the fight. Since the result was already determined, and the Lost Clan would not prevent the rest of them from entering the space, it was convenient for him to occupy one of the nine spots.


    This time, the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan had unprecedented, serious looks. They formed seals with their hands. Immediately, the sound of the Great Path could be heard. Illusory figures of ancient gods formed. They blocked out the sky and sealed off the space. Like before, the ancient gods were everywhere, sealing off this part of the sky. The nine great cultivators were all trapped within the matrix.


    The Lost Clan immediately started the battle with the power that they had demonstrated in the latter part of the previous battle. From this, it was apparent that they took the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture seriously.


    ��Everyone, how about we break it with one strike?�� asked Hua Junlai. Since they wanted to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, it was meaningless to waste any more time. If they wanted to break through it, they might as well destroy it with one strike by unleashing absolute power. Trying to wear it down like the previous nine people was meaningless.


    ��Agreed,�� someone responded. Immediately, the unparalleled power of the Great Path gathered around the nine of them. They were trapped in this vast space, yet judging from the brilliant imperial glories around them, one could still sense how powerful they were.


    A majestic and divine figure appeared behind Hua Junlai. It was the illusory figure of a Great Emperor. It was as though the Great Emperor himself had descended on earth. A shocking power erupted from Hua Junlai. His white robes fluttered while his long hair danced in the wind. He raised his arm, and the illusory figure of the Great Emperor followed suit. A gigantic palm instantly smashed towards the other party. The gigantic palm glowed brightly with divine light, and it caused the entire space to quake. It was as though the palm could directly shatter the space.


    At the same time, the cultivators who stood in different directions also unleashed their attacks. The successor of the Vajra Region pointed at the sky. His finger kept expanding as though it was a finger of the god of the Vajra Region. The finger was indestructible and could penetrate through all things.


    The cultivator from Yuanshi Palace waved his arm. Billions of Swords of Catastrophe immediately materialized in the sky. They lined up to form a mighty matrix of Swords of Catastrophe and rained down like the wrath of a god.


    The other five cultivators also attacked. Each and every attack was overbearing. Ye Futian didn��t stand idly too. A menacing aura burst forth from his body of the Great Path. His body transformed into swordsmanship. When he pointed a finger forward, countless divine swords in the heavens and the earth resonated and rang as Sword Will coalesced to form the Fleeting Divine Sword. It then charged towards one of the illusory figures of the ancient gods summoned by the cultivators of the Lost Clan.


    All nine of them attacked at the same time. In other places, very few could withstand any of their attacks. With all of them unleashing their attacks at once, how frightening would their collective power be?


    When the attacks landed on their targets, the shattering sound of pieces breaking apart could be heard. Cracks immediately appeared in the sealed space. Furthermore, the cracks kept propagating outwards. Then, the sealed space disintegrated. The figures of the ancient gods also exploded and turned to dust. The sky seemed to be collapsing.


    The matrix had been broken. The crowd felt their hearts tremble. As expected, even the sturdy Battle Matrix of the Rocks could not withstand the attacks of the top nine figures from the Divine Prefecture. The matrix was close to perfect in terms of defense; however, it was no match for these nine cultivators. Every one of them was a top existence who could rule over a region.


    Ye Futian had mixed feelings when he saw the sealed space collapsing. He was interested in testing out the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, but actually, he was unwilling to become an enemy of the Lost Clan. He found the faith practiced by the cultivators of the Lost Clan admirable.


    Unfortunately, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were determined to succeed in this mission. They would not pass up on the chance of cultivating in the secret zone. They were willing to put together such a strong lineup to break through this grand matrix.


    Just when everyone else thought that the matrix had been broken, the elder of the Lost Clan had a calm expression. He sighed inside as he glanced at the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan.


    The next moment, the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan shut their eyes. Divine lights shot out from their glabellas and converged at the same point. A solemn sound of the Great Path echoed. The atmosphere of the vast space suddenly changed.


    Then, the crowd witnessed the shattered space coalesce once again. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks was repairing itself.


    What was happening? The surrounding cultivators had puzzled expressions. Divine light shone brightly from the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan. Their flesh turned somewhat illusory, as though their entire beings were merging into this space of the Great Path. They transformed into ancient gods as their wills and spirits were pushed to their utmost limit.


    Ye Futian��s eyes narrowed when he heard the solemn sound of the Great Path. He turned his gaze towards the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan. A sense of uneasiness welled up inside of him.


    They were��


    Ye Futian suddenly thought of the faith held dear by the cultivators of the Lost Clan �C they would transform their flesh into rocks and protect the continent.


    At this very moment, could it be that they were still practicing their faith?

 Chapter 2334 - As Long as the Matrix Holds

    To the side, the various cultivators of the Lost Clan stood at different locations. Their expressions turned sullen when they saw the scene in the sky. Many of them put their hands together and bowed at the nine great cultivators high above. The elder of the Lost Clan also looked in that direction. He secretly sighed. However, his gaze was extremely resolute.


    On the day they joined the Lost Clan, everything had been determined. The cultivators of the Lost Clan were all prepared to offer up their lives at any given moment. No matter what plane they had cultivated to, no matter what status they held, they were all prepared to put down their lives. This was the belief that they had held onto resolutely for countless years. It was the faith that was planted within their souls.


    It was because of this belief that the cultivators of the Lost Clan could set aside all other distractions and all cultivate to a high cultivation Plane. Therefore, the overall ability of the cultivators of this continent was very powerful.


    Now, the Lost Clan had just emerged from the Dark World. Yet, they were faced with a new crisis. Cultivators from various worlds had come and intended to plunder everything that the Lost Clan had. Once the Lost Clan agreed to the cultivators�� requests, their inheritance would be slowly corrupted. Then, the influence of the outsiders would gradually be strengthened across the entire Shenyi Continent.


    Human greed knew no bounds. The Lost Clan did not believe that the other party would be satisfied and would leave the Lost Clan alone after they were granted access to cultivate in the cave. On the contrary, the other party would pillage the cave once they discovered the secrets of cultivation hidden within it. An even stronger urge to raid would well up in their hearts, driving them to take over the Lost Clan completely.


    If that were the case, even though the Lost Clan fought hard and escaped the Dark World, they would most likely be destroyed in the Original Realm. Sometimes, the hearts of humans were more terrifying than disasters looming in the dark.


    Hence, regardless of the price that they had to pay, the Lost Clan would not allow the cultivators from other worlds to seize control of the cave and cultivate there. To gain the cultivators�� trust, the Lost Clan was willing to let the cultivators briefly check out the place. This was to achieve a state that would allow the Lost Clan to exist peacefully in the Original Realm. The Shenyi Continent would become an independent continent like the other continents in the Original Realm.


    The Lost Clan would not lose in this battle. They could not afford to lose either.


    High above the sky of the battlefield, the vast space was sealed off by the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan. They transformed themselves into ancient gods and became one with the heavens and the earth. Ye Futian and the rest stood within the space. They witnessed the Battle Matrix of the Rocks take shape once again. This time, the matrix was even more menacing.


    Ye Futian saw the figures of the ancient gods surrounding them. Divine light flowed around the ancient gods. The faces of the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan could be vaguely seen imprinted on the faces of the ancient gods. It was as though the nine great cultivators had completely merged with the ancient gods. They had given up their consciousness, their self, and their flesh. Their entire being had become parts of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    Moreover, the Way of Rhythm twirled within the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Ye Futian sensed the solemnity from the rhythm. Besides that, the rhythm contained a hint of sorrow, great courage, and the resolution to do and die. The nine great cultivators were exhausting their lives as sacrifices to the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Their selfless act elevated the power of the matrix.


    This new Battle Matrix of the Rocks grew more brilliantly and was surrounded by divine light. Its beauty shocked all who saw it. The solemn Way of Rhythm played continuously, exerting a powerful pressure on the cultivators. Aside from Ye Futian, other cultivators also noticed the changes that occurred to the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    ��Everyone, have you gone mad?�� asked Hua Junlai, heir to the Haotian Clan from the Nantian Domain as he looked at the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan. They were merging themselves into the battle matrix. If the battle matrix were shattered by attacks, the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan would perish on the spot and be killed.


    Their lives were on the line.


    They forged the Battle Matrix of the Rocks with their own bodies of flesh and blood.


    There was no response. The unparalleled pressure persisted. The cultivators of the Lost Clan still did the same and did not take the initiative to attack. They established the Battle Matrix of the Rocks merely for defense. No matter how one looked at it, the Lost Clan appeared exceptionally friendly. They put themselves in a passive state of defending.


    When Hua Junlai and the others saw this scene, their expressions turned serious. He said, ��If that is the case, we won��t hold back.��


    As he said this, the illusory figure of the Great Emperor shone even brighter. He extended his palm, and an astonishing power immediately surged into his palm. The other cultivators also amassed frightening auras of the Great Path. Divine Wheels of the Great Path appeared. Even more alarming auras radiated from their figures.


    Only Ye Futian did not gather up his power. He glanced at the various cultivators and then looked in the direction of the members of the Lost Clan. He knew that if the Battle Matrix of the Rocks were shattered, the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan would die on the spot.


    Since the Lost Clan chose to do so, their resolve was evident. They would not back down at all. They took a passive stance, but, in reality, it also displayed their resolve. They would not let the cultivators from the outside world enter the core region of the Lost Clan to cultivate. This point was evident from them offering up their lives to protect the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    From the looks of it, the Lost Clan didn��t really want the powers cultivated by other cultivators either. They purposely brought up this condition just now. If they managed to survive, then they would most likely give up this condition to give face to the various forces. Their act would hopefully cause the various forces to feel ashamed. Then, the two parties would have an opportunity to resolve their differences and let go of the matter of cultivating in the cave.


    Ye Futian seemed to have understood the intentions of the Lost Clan. However, both sides were caught in a dilemma.


    The Lost Clan did not hesitate to pay such a high price to win this battle.


    Since it was so for this fight, it would also certainly be the same for the next. This time, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were the ones attacking. The top figures of the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Human Realm had yet to attack. There were also cultivators from other worlds as well.


    Under such circumstances, if the Lost Clan wanted to hold their ground and not surrender, how high of a price did they have to pay for it to be enough?


    How many top-tier cultivators of the Lost Clan needed to be sacrificed?


    When he thought about this, Ye Futian felt somewhat hesitant. Would he attack and break the Battle Matrix of the Rocks?


    If he did so, everything that the Lost Clan had done would be for naught. The nine great cultivators would also perish on the spot.


    Before this, he had only joined the battle because he believed the battle matrix would certainly be broken. He had never imagined the determination of the Lost Clan would be so strong and that this would be their trump card. Otherwise, he would not have participated in this battle.


    Just as Ye Futian was contemplating this, the other cultivators had already begun to attack. The frenzied attacks of eight powerful cultivators landed consecutively on the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Immediately, the sound of an astounding explosion could be heard. The entire space was trembling violently. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks was also shaking, seemingly unstable. However, as the divine light circled it, it still did not shatter.


    The nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan merged into the battle matrix and became ancient gods. They nodded their heads slightly and closed their eyes. They sat motionlessly there like statues. Right now, their lives were no longer their own. They only served to protect the Battle Matrix of the Rocks as martyrs.


    As long as the matrix held up, they would survive. If it fell, they would fall with it!


    The matrix had not shattered. The various cultivators in the distance were somewhat uneasy when they saw this scene. As long as the matrix held up, the Lost Clan would survive. What sort of faith was this? If they wanted to break through the matrix, they had to kill the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan!


    The Lost Clan was ruthless!

 Chapter 2335 - No Compromise

    Not only were the cultivators from the Lost Clan ruthless towards their enemies, but they were also ruthless towards themselves.


    They would risk their lives to protect their cultivation land. The cultivators from the top forces of the Divine Prefecture and other worlds doubted that they would ever endanger their own lives for the same cause. It was arduous for them to cultivate up until their current cultivation Planes. Those who stood at the peak of the cultivation world would treasure their lives even more than others.


    At the very least, they would not simply do something that they knew for sure would cause them to perish. There were very few things that were worthy of them risking their lives to protect.


    ��Why didn��t you attack?��


    After the storm dissipated, the eight powerful cultivators discovered that Ye Futian hadn��t attacked. He merely observed on the side while the rest of them attacked the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Ye Futian��s actions caused the others to be dissatisfied.


    The Battle Matrix of the Rocks had transformed and was now stronger than before. Ye Futian actually stood still while the rest attacked it. Did he have any intention to break through the matrix?


    Quite a few cultivators glared at Ye Futian as they frowned. They had unhappy expressions on their faces. Clearly, they were irritated at Ye Futian��s actions.


    Since Ye Futian wasn��t attacking now, wouldn��t he be gaining the opportunity to cultivate in the holy land of the Lost Clan without contributing anything if they managed to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks later?


    If that was the case, what was the point of inviting him to be part of the team to break through the matrix?


    Ye Futian explained, ��The Battle Matrix of the Rocks has been upgraded. It will most likely not be simple to break through it. Even though all of us here are top cultivators, it is still difficult for us to break through the matrix. Judging from the current situation, the cultivators from the Lost Clan will surely perish if we succeed in breaking through it. Do we have to go so far for a spar?��


    Ye Futian suggested, ��Why don��t we stop here? Let��s forget about the agreement too. What do you think?��


    After he said this, he turned towards the cultivators of the Lost Clan and said, ��I��m sure the Lost Clan will also agree to my suggestion, right?��


    He hoped that both parties would forgo this fight and end things here.


    The nine cultivators of the Lost Clan had merged themselves into the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. They were undoubtedly cruel to themselves. However, their resolute attitude would similarly provoke the ego of the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture would most likely fight until the very end to break through the matrix. Ye Futian was worried that if both parties persisted in this battle, their animosity towards each other would go beyond the point of no return.


    The situation would only worsen from then on. It was not something Ye Futian wanted to see.


    ��The eight major factions of the Ancient God Clan have come together for this mission. Is there a matrix that we can��t break through?�� said someone coldly. The speaker cast a sideways glance at Ye Futian as his annoyance towards him flared up. Not only did Ye Futian refuse to attack, but he was also arrogant and intended to teach the rest of them how to proceed with the matter?


    Did Ye Futian think that he was the only one with compassion?


    Since the Lost Clan insisted on fighting, the Ancient God Clan would naturally grant their wish. Even when faced with the upgraded Battle Matrix of the Rocks, they would still forcefully break through it. The history of the Lost Clan was indeed admirable. The Ancient God Clan respected them for it, but they would go all out in battle when faced with such formidable opponents. The Ancient God Clan would not show them mercy.


    Of course, the most important point was that the formidable power demonstrated by the Lost Clan piqued their curiosity. They were even more determined to have a look inside the cave.


    When Ye Futian heard the other party��s response, he was certain that they would not give up on this battle. Moreover, the other party regarded the eight of them as the representatives of the eight major factions of the Ancient God Clan, essentially excluding him from the lineup. The speaker ignored Ye Futian��s existence and claimed that even with only the eight of them, they would still be able to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    The cultivators of the Lost Clan also heard this conversation. Outside the battlefield, the elder of the Lost Clan glanced at Ye Futian with a shocked expression. It seemed like this Ye Futian was siding with their Lost Clan. Moreover, based on what he had said just now, the elder guessed that Ye Futian had understood his intention. Actually, the Lost Clan had no desire to obtain the techniques cultivated by the cultivators from the other worlds.


    ��Since the rest of them are not willing to compromise, Renhuang Ye doesn��t need to advise them anymore,�� said the elder of the Lost Clan.


    Hua Junlai cast a glance at the elder. Then, he said, ��Let us continue.��


    After he said this, the eight powerful cultivators once again amassed a strong force. At this moment, on the battlefield, there seemed to be a real halo of the Great Emperor shining. The eight powerful cultivators were all, without exception, the successors of the Ancient God Clan. Their families had inheritances of the Great Emperors. They were also top figures in their families. Hence, all of them had inherited the powers of the Great Emperors.


    Ye Futian was shocked when he sensed the power gathered by the eight of them. He glanced at the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. He dared not predict the outcome of this battle.


    Would the power gathered by the eight powerful cultivators succeed in breaking through the upgraded Battle Matrix of the Rocks?


    Rumble. Terrifying sound thundered as a frenzied storm rampaged. The eight powerful cultivators had once again attacked. Moreover, they had better control of their attack timing this time. All their attacks landed on the Battle Matrix of the Rocks simultaneously.


    The Great Path was on the verge of collapsing the moment the attacks landed. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks shook violently as cracks appeared on it. The illusory figures of the ancient gods seemed as though they would disintegrate into pieces at any moment.


    However, right now, the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan closed their eyes and put their hands together. Blood trickled down their bodies. Their blood appeared golden in color as it merged and flowed with the divine light. Red veins flowed over the cracks on the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, fusing them together. The scene was appalling.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the matrix. Bloody marks appeared on the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. He felt as though he could see similar scars appearing on the bodies of the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan. This Battle Matrix of the Rocks was forged with their own flesh.


    ��Continue.�� Hua Junlai and the others showed no sign of ceasing. They continued attacking. As more and more ferocious attacks landed on the matrix, the bloody marks on it also increased. Soon, the red marks covered the entire sealed space. Aside from golden halos, the ancient gods were also covered with a layer of crimson shimmer.


    ��Do all of you still want to continue this battle?�� asked the elder of the Lost Clan as he looked at the cultivators who were trapped in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. No matter how sturdy the matrix was, it would still crumble in the end if the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture attacked it relentlessly. When that happened, the nine cultivators from the Lost Clan would surely die.


    Even though the nine of them were ready to sacrifice their lives to hold up the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, it didn��t mean that the Lost Clan was willing to let them die just like that.


    If the other party chose to retreat, they wouldn��t have to go to such an extreme.


    ��The matrix has yet to be broken. How can we stop?�� replied Hua Junlai. Clearly, he intended to continue attacking until the matrix was broken.


    When the elder of the Lost Clan heard his words, he sighed internally. He glanced in the direction of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Among the battle matrix, the nine cultivators still had their eyes closed. However, the divine light on their glabellas shone even more brilliantly. An unprecedented aura radiated from their figures.


    Ye Futian frowned when he sensed the aura from the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. He could faintly sense that a dangerous aura was approaching and was emanating from within the battle matrix. He looked at the nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan and detected some changes happening to their figures.


    He was not the only one who sensed it. The other eight powerful cultivators also sensed this change and frowned. The next moment, divine light filled the sky. The nine great cultivators of the Lost Clan seemed to have activated all the cultivation that they had accumulated over their entire lifetimes.


    ��This isn��t good,�� said Ye Futian as he realized something!

 Chapter 2336 - Advocating Peace

    Ye Futian watched and noticed that as this dangerous aura permeated, the figures of the nine cultivators from the Lost Clan gradually became more elusive. It was as if they were making an offering of sacrifice.


    But at the same time, a sense of destruction manifested within the battle matrix made up by the nine of them, who had been passively defending until now. Hua Junlai and the others, strong as they were, could also feel an overwhelming crisis looming ahead.


    Instinct told them that it was dangerous and their lives may be threatened.


    Boom�� An astonishing roar of the Great Path was heard as those figures of the ancient gods continued to grow and expand. Those previously benign ancient deities were now filled with fierce and menacing spirits. They transformed into vengeful gods. They looked down into the battle matrix at those nine challengers and made no effort to disguise their murderous intent.


    At this moment, everyone realized that it was not that the cultivators of the Lost Clan were not experts in slaughtering offensive methods. It was simply that they were reluctant to use it. They had chosen to defend passively before because they didn��t want this battle to create any further grievances.


    However, even though they tried their best to guard the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, Hua Junlai and the others continued to press with their aggressive tactics and would not stop until they break down the battle matrix.


    If they continued their attack, it was just a matter of time before the battle matrix collapsed. The attacks of these eight cultivators had already threatened the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, and the outcome would be the total destruction of the battle matrix and the nine cultivators of the Lost Clan along with it. Hua Junlai and the others would force their way into the heart of the Lost Clan��s holy land and cultivate there. This was something that the Lost Clan could not accept, so their action of unleashing their lethal counterattacks was inevitable.


    Hua Junlai and his cohort had made a decision, and so did the Lost Clan.


    Since they were all going to die, why bother to maintain a semblance of mercy?


    ��This is crazy.�� The cultivators of the top principalities from Divine Prefecture scowled when they saw this latest development in the battlefield, especially those from the Ancient God Clan, whose cultivators were participating in the fight. Traces of aggressive aura erupted from them, covering the boundless space instantaneously. The air was so explosive that it could be ignited with just a turning of their minds.


    At the same time, several powerful cultivators also stepped forward from the Lost Clan and released astonishing coercion that directly engaged the momentum of several top principalities from Divine Prefecture. Every one of them looked solemn; their eyes showed their steely resolve.


    The cultivators from the Lost Clan had no fear in their eyes. They would do everything in their power to stay true to their beliefs, including sacrificing their own lives.


    With such an abundance of courage, what else did they need to fear?


    Having been in the darkness for so many years, now that the light was finally in sight, how could they fail at a time like this?


    The nine cultivators on the battlefield were also living proofs of their beliefs, fighting without fear, all for protecting their continent.


    Ye Futian saw this and thought that if this were to continue, both sides would probably suffer greatly; even the nine cultivators of the Lost Clan would probably die right on the spot. As for the people inside the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, there was no telling what would happen to them, but it would definitely not be anything good. If they didn��t die, they would certainly suffer grave injuries.


    At that time, when two uncontrollable sides go to war, the fighting would not be limited to the battlefield then but would also spill over to the outside.


    Outside, there were already many kinds of tyrannical auras colliding with one another because the space outside the battlefield was equally intense, on the verge of total explosion. It seemed that a conflict might break out at any moment.


    If the strength of this Battle Matrix of the Rocks had truly threatened the lives of the cultivators inside the formation, those top figures from the Ancient God Clan would, no doubt, intervene right away. After all, they were nothing like the Lost Clan. To those from the Ancient God Clan, there were not so many rules and restrictions to observe, and their attitude towards life was quite different from that of the Lost Clan; they didn��t have to fight with their lives here.


    The cultivators inside the Battle Matrix of the Rocks were the top enchanting geniuses from their clan, and the heir of the Ancient God Clan was amongst them.


    This battle was already an unequal affair. The Lost Clan had always been in an absolutely passive position. They had to desperately defend themselves, while the Ancient God Clan didn��t need to.


    That destructive coercion was getting stronger, with a terrifying might. All the ancient gods incarnated as glaring deities. Bloody divine light shot out from their eyes with horrific murderous intent. The rumbling sound came out as frightening golden divine light raging in this battlefield space, and every trace of divine light seemed to contain amazingly destructive power. Hua Junlai and others deployed a protective divine light to block the impact of this golden light. However, at this time, the depressive aura became so dominant that the entire space had been imprisoned, and those within it could hardly move their bodies.


    ��Kill.�� A cold murderous intent flashed across Hua Junlai and the others�� eyes, accompanied with a look of determination. It had become challenging for them to move at will, but an absolute divine brilliance of the Great Path erupted above them. They advanced slowly towards those ancient gods, moving in for the fatal blow.


    Bang, bang, bang�� Astonishing attacks fell as cracks appeared on the bodies of those Ancient God Clan.


    Boom! At the same time, a loud crash was heard, and the void seemed to be shattering and pulverizing as Hua Junlai and the others let out a low groan. The nine cultivators from the Lost Clan seemed to have forgotten themselves, burning themselves up while their strength was still increasing. The attacks from both sides stuck together, and no one was willing to back down. This would only end when one side was destroyed.


    At this time, Ye Futian moved, and an astonishing violent sound erupted from his divine body of the Great Path. The booming of the Great Path continued without ceasing, and the Sword Will roared. He moved forward like a sword himself, stepping into the void, in the midst of the enormous oppression of the battle matrix, inching closer to the battlefield.


    Gradually, his speed was getting faster. His body transformed into the Way, like an indestructible divine sword. He descended as a stream of light and directly blasted on the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. In an instant, fissures appeared on the battle matrix. A painful expression appeared on the Lost Clan cultivators�� faces, but they still didn��t waver.


    Ye Futian��s Sword Will was getting stronger, as that power penetrated everything and attacked the formation. When he beheld this sight, Hua Junlai and the others had a look of satisfaction on their faces. Finally, Ye Futian made his move.


    ��Break the battle matrix,�� Hua Junlai offered.


    ��How about stopping right here, right now?�� Ye Futian looked inside the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. His eyes seemed to penetrate through it, landing on those nine powerful cultivators from the Lost Clan. Although the nine still had their eyes closed, at this moment, Ye Futian felt as if he was facing them, conversing with them.


    Was it too late to stop now?


    If they stop, would these cultivators from Divine Prefecture stop?


    ��It��s not worth it for a fight. Both sides can take a step back. Let��s considered this a tie,�� Ye Futian suggested.


    Outside, when the old man from the Lost Clan saw this, his attention drifted towards Ye Futian��s location. Previously, he was a little surprised when Ye Futian made his move. He thought that Ye Futian would break up the matrix himself, but now it seemed that he wanted to advocate peace instead.


    The thing was, how could it be as simple as he thought? It was the people from Divine Prefecture who refused to give up.


    ��It��s not the Lost Clan who won��t let go,�� said the elder of the Lost Clan, who was on the outside.


    ��If they refuse to quit, I will leave it alone and let you deal with them, and they can be responsible for what happens after,�� Ye Futian continued. His words drew the attention of Hua Junlai and the others as they looked at him with some frostiness!

 Chapter 2337 - Reluctance

    Ye Futian��s words seemed to have a deterrent effect on both sides.


    Of course, this was made possible by his own tyrannical combat effectiveness. Ye Futian��s attack seemed to have threatened the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. This battle matrix may have been broken up had he continued with the attacks, resulting in the death of these cultivators from the Lost Clan, which would directly threaten the stability of the Lost Clan.


    If he stepped back now and choose not to participate, then the cultivators from the Lost Clan would continue their own attack. It was possible that the eight cultivators from Divine Prefecture would be slaughtered. In short, there would be casualties on both sides.


    Therefore, at this moment, Ye Futian seemed to be playing a key role in deterring both sides.


    He had the ability to advocate a truce. The Lost Clan had to agree, and so did the cultivators from Divine Prefecture. Or else, he would stop running the interference.


    However, the eight cultivators from the Ancient God Clan did not express any gratitude for Ye Futian��s suggestion. On the contrary, their eyes were icy when Hua Junlai asked, ��Emperor Ye, did you forget the reason why you were in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks?��


    Ye Futian was invited by him to break up the formation. Now, what was this that he was doing?


    He seemed to have forgotten which side he belonged to. If Ye Futian still remembered the reason he was here, then he should break up the formation with them, not uttering another word.


    But obviously, Ye Futian didn��t come here to break up the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. And now, the cultivators from Divine Prefecture were unsure of what Ye Futian had in mind, or what was it that he wanted?


    They thought that for cultivators who had reached this level, everything that they chose to do must have sufficient reasons so that they could convince themselves of their own purpose.


    But from Ye Futian, they had not seen any evidence of this yet.


    ��You were invited to join us to break the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, which you have clearly forgotten. Do you have any sense of propriety?�� another cultivator from the Ancient God Clan asked, sounding displeased with strong resentment.


    ��If you gentlemen wish to continue, I will have no choice but to withdraw.�� Ye Futian didn��t respond to the man who spoke, but his response, in turn, caused the cultivators from the Ancient God Clan to look quite uncertain.


    Their attacks were strong enough to shake the Battle Matrix of the Rocks in its ultimate configuration, which was the rocks forged by flesh and blood. However, when the cultivators of the Lost Clan were burning themselves up, even powerful existence like them could sense the great danger that was afoot.


    If Ye Futian withdrew, it was still the strongest blow dealt by the eight cultivators from Divine Prefecture to the cultivators from the Lost Clan. No one dared to predict what the outcome would be. They themselves would be in the same predicament where their chance of survival would be unknown.


    This was a tremendous gamble��wagering their own lives. With their status and positions today, were they willing to die here like this?


    Clearly, it was not a risk that they would take on easily or willingly. Their goal was to provoke Ye Futian into taking action, but no one expected that Ye Futian not only failed to obey but was using it as an opportunity to blackmail them into giving up, knowing very well that his inaction would spell disastrous consequences for all those who chose to continue in the battle.


    All eyes were focused on Ye Futian. After a while, Hua Junlai, with eyes so frosty, glanced at Ye Futian and addressed the Lost Clan, ��In this case, will the cultivators from the Lost Clan agree to stop fighting at this point?��


    Hua Junlai��s words suddenly relaxed the suffocating coercion that had permeated this space. Now that he had posed the question, it was obvious that he intended to give it up and not gamble with their own lives. With their status and positions, there was no need to fight to the death with the Lost Clan.


    The cultivators from the Lost Clan were willing to protect their caves�� holy land with their lives, but their opponents did not have the same resolve, unwilling to risk their lives or inconvenience themselves in the slightest. That aura served as a warning of any potential threats.


    ��Yes,�� the old man from the Lost Clan said. Unless it was the last resort, why would he order the nine cultivators from the Lost Clan to fight to the death, all at the same time?


    Once this final blow was delivered, there would be no retreat. The nine cultivators from the Lost clan would die, but their opponents would also pay an equally tragic price. They were forced by the situation; if the Lost Clan did not demonstrate the ruthless measures they were willing to take, there would be other battles to fight in the future.


    His voice fell, and the divine light began to flow backward, gradually dissipating. Suddenly, the figures of the nine cultivators from the Lost Clan started to solidify, gradually became clear. However, they seemed to have expanded quite a lot of their own life force as they appeared a little tired. Clearly, they had been weakened quite considerably.


    Both sides pulled back at the same time. This battle seemed to have ended there.


    As the two sides pulled away from each other, they fell into a short silence without exchanging words. However, solemnity and oppression could still be felt in the aura of the Great Path that lingered in the space.


    ��This exchange is considered a draw; there is no winner or loser.�� The old man from the Lost Clan spoke up, but no one responded. The entire space was still frightfully suppressed.


    At this moment, Hua Junlai turned around, and his cold gaze fell on Ye Futian. His white robe fluttered in the wind, and there were wisps of chill engraved on his face.


    ��Don��t you want to explain?�� Hua Junlai asked coldly. If Ye Futian had not deliberately done this, they might have been victorious. Their attack was so close to breaking the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Obviously, Ye Futian could deliver the final coup de grace but deliberately withheld, even using it to threaten them.


    He didn��t fault the cultivators from the Lost Clan; it was a gamble and battle between the two sides. However, in his opinion, Ye Futian had betrayed them.


    ��Perhaps Emperor Ye will be able to cultivate in the caves of the Lost Clan in the near future.�� Another sarcastic remark was heard from another cultivator of the Ancient God Clan. They were already a little irritated when Ye Futian was participating in the battle.


    Not to mention everything that had happened afterward.


    ��I don��t want to see anyone get hurt. The continuation of that fight will not benefit either the Lost Clan or any of you. It was just a friendly exchange; no need to pay such a dear price for something so trivial.�� Ye Futian looked at Hua Junlai as he responded.


    ��Really? Has Emperor Ye never heard of ��do what you agreed to do��?�� Obviously, Hua Junlai refused to accept Ye Futian��s explanation. If Ye Futian was reluctant to make a move against the Lost Clan, he didn��t have to agree to participate in the first place. However, since he did, he should have done all that he could to help them succeed.


    Not only did Ye Futian fail to do that, but he even refused to make a move and threatened them with his inaction.


    If he had picked someone else instead of choosing Ye Futian, would the outcome be any different? Could they have broken the Battle Matrix of the Rocks by now?


    ��What do you want?�� Ye Futian frowned. Wisps of Great Path coercion spread out from Hua Junlai��s body and directly suppressed upon him. It seemed that Hua Junlai wanted to challenge him.


    And Hua Junlai was not alone; other cultivators from Divine Prefecture were also staring him down, and some even took a few steps toward him. The same elusive aura fell on him as well, as if they, too, wanted to take action against him. Clearly, these cultivators were unhappy with him!

 Chapter 2338 - Face Off

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Junlai and the other seven cultivators. He said, ��My actions are indeed inappropriate. I didn��t think things through before agreeing to join the team. However, even if I go all out, I��m not confident that I��ll surely be able to shatter the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. The outcome of this battle is uncertain regardless. Even if we manage to break through, who can guarantee that we will come out unscathed?��


    With a clear and sincere voice, Ye Futian continued, ��The cultivators of the Lost Clan are willing to risk their lives to uphold the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. This act is admirable. I admit that I have a soft spot for them. Therefore, the Heavenly Mandate Academy and I will give up on this mission. We will not attack the Lost Clan. We will also give up on the chance of cultivating in the cave of the Lost Clan. We will not loot the treasures that belong to them.��


    He agreed to join the battle, yet he couldn��t give his best while the two parties were fighting. He was naturally at fault. However, he did so because he was impressed by everything that the Lost Clan did. So, he didn��t want to go to such extremes.


    ��You will give up on the chance to cultivate in the cave?�� reiterated a cultivator of the Ancient God Clan mockingly. ��With this gesture, the Lost Clan will most likely treat you as an honorable guest. They might invite you to cultivate in their secret zone after the battle is over.��


    Clearly, the Ancient God Clan cultivators thought that Ye Futian was trying to curry favor with the Lost Clan.


    Ye Futian gave the speaker a disdainful sideways glance. He said indifferently, ��What Plane have you reached? And what Plane have I reached?��


    Frowning, the other party stared at Ye Futian. He was an eighth-tier Renhuang, while Ye Futian was a seventh-tier Renhuang.


    ��You can��t break through the matrix. On the other hand, I am confident to challenge this seventh-tier Battle Matrix of the Rocks. If I join forces with other people, do you think that I will fail?�� Ye Futian retorted. What he meant was that if he were really interested in cultivating in the secret zone of the Lost Clan, he would have earned the right to do so fair and square by breaking through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    Ye Futian��s words also served to declare to the other party that just because the latter couldn��t break through the matrix, it didn��t mean that Ye Futian couldn��t too.


    It wouldn��t be a surprise to anyone if Ye Futian managed to break through the matrix with his cultivation at the seventh-tier Renhuang Plane. After all, Ye Futian��s combat ability was enough for him to contend with the top monstrous figures who were at the eighth-tier.


    ��You can��t tell for sure���� The other eight cultivators were somewhat doubtful. Even though Ye Futian was indeed very powerful, it was still not an easy task to want to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    However, Xiao Mu from the Devil World believed in Ye Futian��s words. Since Ye Futian could defeat him, it was most likely possible for him to break through the matrix forged by the seventh-tier cultivators from the Lost Clan. After all, the difference between each tier was enormous when cultivators reached Ye Futian��s and Xiao Mu��s level.


    ��Renhuang Ye is full of compassion,�� praised the elder of the Lost Clan. He then declared, ��The Lost Clan is glad to befriend Renhuang Ye.��


    ��Senior, many thanks,�� responded Ye Futian as he looked at the other party. ��Since the Shenyi Continent has come to the region of the Original Realm, it��s now part of the Original Realm and the Divine Prefecture. The Lost Clan should be allowed to exist here as an independent clan. This continent has been through countless challenges before it finally emerged from the void. I hope that the seniors from the Divine Prefecture can take this into consideration.��


    The Shenyi Continent had now drifted into the space of the Original Realm. Since the Original Realm was part of the Divine Prefecture, Ye Futian recognized the Lost Clan to be under the jurisdiction of the Divine Prefecture. In that case, the Lost Clan could be considered an independent faction of the Divine Prefecture.


    Unfortunately, even though Ye Futian��s friendliness towards the Lost Clan caused him to win their favor, it also caused him to offend all the cultivators from the Ancient God Clan. Ye Futian��s readiness to accept the Lost Clan formed a stark contrast with the actions of the Ancient God Clan. He made them seem despicable. Was Ye Futian using the Ancient God Clan to establish a good connection with the Lost Clan?


    Hua Junlai��s gaze was fixed on Ye Futian. A majestic might of the Great Path emanated from him and pressured Ye Futian. Hua Junlai��s white robes fluttered in the wind. His aura churned and grew more frightening. He took a step forward and said, ��Renhuang Ye, your words exemplify your noble character. Now you make it seem that we are the ones who are despicable. I invited you to join our party because I have heard that you have an exceptional temperament and have acquired the inheritances of a few Great Emperors. However, up until now, I have yet to see you attacking. Since that��s the case, I have no choice but to personally test out your ability.��


    Hua Junlai intended to attack Ye Futian.


    As soon as he said this, a menacing aura burst forth. His might descended upon Ye Futian. An illusory figure of a god appeared. It was as though Haotian the Great was reincarnated into the present. Hua Junlai stood in front of the illusory figure of the Great Emperor. He was akin to the successor of the god. His charisma was unparalleled.


    ��Since you want to get a taste of my power, I have no choice but to oblige your request,�� responded Ye Futian. His figure shot up to the sky like a meteorite. In an instant, he appeared high above in the sky.


    Hua Junlai also flew up to the sky. The two of them stared at each other from across the space. Their auras of the Great Path churned and roared. Their might spanned across the entire region. They seemed to be contending to be the ruler of this part of the sky.


    Hua Junlai raised his arm. Similarly, the illusory figure of the god raised his arm. Their movements were in sync. They sent out a palm strike. In an instant, the Great Path thundered, and the heavens and the earth shook. A gigantic palm directly descended upon Ye Futian.


    Far in the distance, Ye Futian felt as though the sky was collapsing. The entire sky transformed into a gigantic palm that was charging towards him. He had nowhere to hide. The entire space of the Great Path was within the attack range of this gigantic palm. Besides that, endless destructive divine light flowed around the palm. It was as though the will of Haotian the Great had been infused in the divine light. It would destroy everything along its path.


    Buzz. The fatal gigantic palm plunged downwards, eradicating every speck of existence along its way. Rumbling sounds rang. It was the reverberation of the Great Path emanating from Ye Futian��s body. Divine light burst forth from his body. It was likewise infused with imperial glory. The will of the Great Emperor could still boost his ability now, but its effect was not as strong as it was in the past. After all, Ye Futian was already approaching the peak of the Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian pointed a finger upward. Instantly, alarming sounds buzzed, and a myriad of starry divine swords shot upwards. They clashed with the descending gigantic palm.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. Shocking collisions echoed continuously. Each and every divine sword collided forcefully with the palm. Cracks immediately appeared on the gigantic palm. Then, the palm and the starry divine swords disintegrated into pieces together. Everything turned into dust.


    Far in the distance, Hua Junlai floated in the high heavens. He was at a higher position than Ye Futian. He was not as naive as to think that he could defeat Ye Futian with a single attack. After all, the other party was also a formidable existence that ruled over an entire Realm.


    He looked down at the silhouette below. A vast heavenly might burst forth from his figure. The silhouette of the Great Emperor behind him made it seem as though Haotian the Great had truly descended upon the world. He himself was a descendant of Haotian the Great and had inherited the will of the Great Emperor.


    Down below, where the Lost Clan was, the various cultivators looked up at the battle high in the sky. Their hearts stirred slightly. Before this, Hua Junlai was trapped within the Battle Matrix of the Rocks and could not go all out. He had been heavily restricted. He most likely felt aggravated over this.


    At this moment, in his battle with Ye Futian, he could finally unleash his combat ability completely. This powerful existence of the Ancient God Clan versus the young ruler of the Original Realm. Who was stronger?

 Chapter 2339 - Clash and Smash

    After the destructive current dissipated, Ye Futian raised his head and looked up. Hua Junlai was standing in the high heavens and was looking down on him like a deity.


    After taking a glance at Hua Junlai, Ye Futian felt as though the entire world had changed. The heaven and the earth around him were no longer that of before. Instead, he was trapped in a world enveloped by the will of Haotian the Great. Right above his head stood the figure of the Great Emperor.


    The sensation he felt was similar to that when he became one with the stars in the starry cultivation court and saw the figure of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    It seemed like the other party��s will had overtaken this part of the sky and transformed it into his domain of the Great Path.


    Streaks of divine light shone down from the illusory figure of Haotian the Great. The might pressed downwards. At this moment, Ye Futian could sense a domineering will pressuring down on him. It was akin to the will of a god, causing him to gasp for air. As a successor of the Ancient God Clan, Hua Junlai was undoubtedly an extraordinary figure. The pressure Ye Futian felt now was on par with that when he was facing Xiao Mu.


    For Hua Junlai to enjoy his current status, he would most likely be one of the strongest cultivators in the Haotian Clan. He was definitely at the top. Otherwise, it was impossible for him to have such status. When he was in the Original Realm, his will symbolized the will of the Haotian Clan.


    ��Ye Futian, do you admit to your wrongdoing?�� a voice called out. It rang in Ye Futian��s ears as though a heavenly might had descended. It caused the space to tremble and could shake the spiritual souls of those around and affect their wills. It was as though a deity was questioning him. The voice contained the law of the Great Path.


    ��Admit to my wrongdoing?�� Ye Futian looked up at the illusory figure of Haotian the Great in the sky. This was an illusion created by Hua Junlai, relying on the will of Haotian the Great to pressure him. It felt as though it was really the will of Haotian the Great passing judgment on all that Ye Futian had done.


    A cold and indifferent look flashed past in Ye Futian��s eyes. He bore a look of arrogance. Yet alone the will of Haotian the Great, even if the other party had completely inherited the teachings of Haotian the Great and wanted to pressure him into submission, he would not be able to do so.


    Beams of divine light that filled the sky radiated from Ye Futian��s figure as he stood in the air. Endless divine halos burst forth from his divine body of the Great Path, which was akin to that of a deity. He was too dazzling to behold. At the same time, various stars appeared in his surroundings and circled him. A towering illusory figure of a deity appeared. It was the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    Hua Junlai wanted to pressure him with just a mere sliver of the will of Haotian the Great?


    Back in the day, Great Emperor Ziwei was one of the most prominent Great Emperors. Ye Futian was his heir. He had unraveled the mystery of Great Emperor Ziwei in the starry world and now inherited his will. He would not allow such blasphemy.


    Brilliant divine halos shone. Two extremely powerful wills clashed. Even though the heavenly might that filled the sky circled around him, Ye Futian still stood there motionlessly.


    ��Even if I had committed any wrongdoings, since when were you qualified to pass judgment on me?�� replied Ye Futian imposingly. Even if Hua Junlai was a descendant of the Ancient God Clan, what of it?


    Hua Junlai actually asked Ye Futian whether or not he admitted to his wrongdoing.


    Although Ye Futian felt somewhat apologetic, it was because he had hurriedly agreed to the other party��s request without thinking things through. Otherwise, if he knew what would happen after, he would not have formed an alliance with the other party.


    It was as though there were two Great Emperors on the battlefield. Both of them contained menacing wills. They also seemed to be staring at each other from across the space.


    They were Haotian the Great and Great Emperor Ziwei.


    Both Great Emperors had unparalleled temperament.


    In the sky above, Hua Junlai looked down as he raised his arm. A terrifying pressure permeated across the space. The next moment, a gigantic palm smacked downwards. In an instant, the sky tore apart while the earth quaked. Frightening rumbling sounds echoed. The entire sky seemed to have ruptured. The palm eradicated everything that crossed its path.


    This gigantic palm spanned across this part of the sky. The palm was boundless and could destroy everything. No matter where one ran to, one couldn��t possibly escape from its attack range.


    This was the Art of Supreme Attack of the Haotian Clan��the Haotian Mudra.


    As soon as Hua Junlai attacked, he revealed his intention of ending the battle with a single blow. He was set to destroy Ye Futian without any mercy.


    Clearly, he had a lot of pent-up anger for not being able to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks earlier.


    Hence, he intended to vent his anger by killing Ye Futian with a single strike.


    At the same time, when Hua Junlai unleashed his attack, starlight flowed around Ye Futian, and the stars became one. Great Emperor Ziwei��s figure and Ye Futian��s figure overlapped and merged. A myriad of starry divine swords shot out. As sturdy as stone pillars, the swords blasted towards the descending gigantic palm.


    Bang! The Haotian Mudra continued to press down on him. Everything in its path was destroyed. The starry divine swords were similarly turned to dust. It seemed as though no power could withstand the Haotian Mudra.


    Buzz! Starlight gathered on his body. Ye Futian appeared like a Great Emperor reborn. He was majestic. All around him, countless starry divine swords shot up towards the Haotian Mudra in the sky. It was as though countless rock pillars were pummeling the Haotian Mudra. Although they were being destroyed at a frenzied pace, they still managed to hold back its descent.


    At the same time, amidst endless divine light, Ye Futian��s figure immediately shot up into the sky. He raised his arms, and the endless power of the Great Path emanated from within his body, forming a gigantic starry divine sword. It was as though the divine sword and his figure had merged. It directly attacked the Haotian Mudra.


    Right then, cracks appeared on the Haotian Mudra. Then, it shattered at a rapid pace.


    Bang. With a huge thud, the Haotian Mudra shattered into pieces. However, the starry divine sword similarly crumbled away.


    Ye Futian��s figure continued rising up. He charged through the Haotian Mudra, becoming a light beam of swordsmanship that shot straight towards Hua Junlai. He was extremely fast.


    When the various cultivators witnessed this scene, they narrowed their gazes. Ye Futian��s flesh and body were terrifyingly powerful. Was he planning to fight Hua Junlai up close?


    For cultivators at their level, the attack range of any of their blows spanned across the entire space. There was no need for them to engage in close combat. Furthermore, close combat was more dangerous than attacking from far anyway.


    Shimmering with imperial glory, Ye Futian charged towards Hua Junlai in the blink of an eye. The Great Path roared in his body. Hua Junlai showed no sign of fear when he saw Ye Futian pounce onto him. He didn��t dodge. The imperial glory of the Great Emperor enveloped his body. Both his hands were permeated with a menacing aura as he was ready to unleash the mudra. When Ye Futian got closer, Hua Junlai slammed both his hands downwards. The Haotian Mudra erupted with a terrifying might.


    The two clashed head-on. Ye Futian��s flesh was as sharp as a sword. The power of Yin and the solar power burst forth from his body simultaneously. He seemed to have transformed into a blade as he collided with Hua Junlai��s palms.


    The sky seemed as though it would collapse at any moment. The terrifying storm of the Great Path spiraled outwards. The two of them actually engaged in close combat. They tanked each other��s attacks with their flesh. They exchanged blow after blow, showing no sign of stopping.


    The various cultivators looked towards the battlefield. Many people down below released the power of the Great Path to block off the residue shockwaves. Terrifying storms swept out in the sky above, enveloping the vast space. The space seemed to be collapsing from the battle. The cultivators noticed that Hua Junlai��s condition felt off. He seemed to be expending more and more of his strength.


    In the end, a huge explosion could be heard. Hua Junlai��s figure was sent flying outwards. With a dull groan, he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood!

 Chapter 2340 - Total Aggression

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian stood above the firmament while Hua Junlai had been blasted to the ground below; the positions of the two seemed to have been reversed.


    The top figures of the various forces were below, watching the battlefield in the void intently, and their hearts were disquieted. Hua Julai of the Haotian Clan was crushed by Ye Futian from the Original Realm. In this powerful confrontation, Huan Junlai suffered major blows that wounded him.


    Obviously, the physical strength of the two was not at the same level. Ye Futian was far superior to Hua Junlai. After all, Ye Futian was only Renhuang in the Seventh Realm, while Hua Junlai was a Renhuang in the Eighth Realm. Hua Junlai getting crushed so badly suggested that there must have been a considerable discrepancy between them.


    At present, Ye Futian stood high above the sky, with divine light surrounding his body of the Great Path. His appearance made him look invincible. It was as if the real Great Emperor himself had truly descended amongst the world. Ye Futian had always prided himself as possessing the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path. And at this moment, his physical body was truly astounding.


    This physical body was formed based on the comprehension he received from the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Hua Junlai did not give up after being blasted down to the ground below. He raised his head and scanned for Ye Futian, who was above the sky. His eyes were cold, and murderous intent was blazing inside of him. Rays of divine light came down from the outer sky and fell upon him. That divine shadow became clearer now. It was as if Haotian the Great had reincarnated with him.


    Suddenly ethereal voices were heard between heaven and earth, and a terrible rumbling sound came out. The storm of the Great Path was raging madly within this boundless void and shrouding it. Above the firmament, an elusive shadow appeared, and it was the phantom of Haotian the Great.


    It seemed as if this corner of the world was the realm belonging to the Great Emperor, created by Haotian the Great.


    Hua Junlai��s was condensing the seal with his hands, and suddenly the phantoms of the Great Emperors in the heavens were doing the same at the same time; it was as if reflected by many mirrors of the same movements. It was as if there were only the existence of this divine seal in all of the world.


    The cultivators from Haotian Clan looked at the battlefield but did not interfere. Even if Ye Futian had the upper hand, he would not dare to harm Hua Junlai. Furthermore, Ye Futian��s superior power would serve as a challenge for Hua Junlai. Although they were unhappy with Ye Futian, it did not change the fact that Ye Futian was a great opponent.


    His combat effectiveness was not inferior to the enchanting geniuses from Ancient God Clan. His strength was most formidable.


    Boom��


    An astonishing sound came out as Ye Futian��s body of the Great Path roared and howled. Above the heavens, a starry sky world appeared, with countless stars circulating about. The sun and the moon hung high in the sky, sprinkling endless divine light that illuminated the stars. It was like an entirely independent world on its own. This force then collided with the phantoms in the heavens as if they were vying for control of this corner of the sky.


    Buzz! When the light of the sun and the moon sprinkled down, the stars were circulating. Each of the stars was rotating around this space, centered around Ye Futian��s position. They were spinning faster and faster as the world howled. In this rotating starry world, every one of the stars contained unparalleled prowess.


    Under the illumination of so much divine lights which fell upon Ye Futian, who was in the center of it all. Ye Futian of this moment was like the absolute ruler of this world, the king of the sun and the moon, the lord of the stars, and master of the starry rules.


    The phantom of Ziwei the Great appeared, descended upon the world and merged with Ye Futian. Faintly, the will of the Great Emperor descended into this world, pressed down with his might, coexisting with the will of Haotian the Great in this world, at the same time. By comparison, the imperial glory from Haotian the Great dimmed alongside the overpowering will in the surrounding space.


    Is this the power inherited from Ziwei the Great? the cultivators below wondered when they saw this sight before them. Ziwei the Great had been one of the most powerful Great Emperors in ancient times, who was in charge of Ziwei Segmentum. He was the god of the stars, who controlled the rules of the starry Great Path.


    At this time, they could detect this kind of rule power from Ye Futian. The rotation of the stars in heaven seemed to become more and more ethereal.


    Hua Junlai looked up and saw the magnificent spectacle in the void. At this moment, in his heart, he had lost the confidence he possessed previously. The arrogance in his eyes didn��t seem to be there anymore. He seemed to finally realize that this king of the Original Realm, who was of the Seventh Realm, had far superior combat effectiveness.


    A touch of reluctance flashed through his eyes as Hua Junlai formed the Haotian seal to attack. The heavens boomed as countless divine seals blasted down at the same time to smash through this corner of the sky, aiming toward Ye Futian.


    But at this time, the stars surrounding Ye Futian flowed frantically, forming an absolute enclosed space. When the divine seals in the heaven blasted down, heaven and earth shattered, while the violent roars shook this space. A terrifying storm destroyed everything and radiated toward the infinite space, spreading further into the distance.


    However, even though many of the stars that flowed around Ye Futian��s body had been destroyed, more of them continued to pour out according to their own rules, and an even more radiant divine light bloomed from that starry sky world.


    Those sharp eyes from Ye Futian swept across the surrounding heaven and earth. He then raised his hand to point towards the void, and the stars began flowing, rushing towards the surrounding sky and earth.


    Bang, bang, bang�� The terrifying sound caused heaven and the earth to collapse, along with those elusive imperial shadows. The starlight connected as one, as if carrying the divine light from the sun and the moon to destroy all those imperial shadows. Soon, all the imperial shadows shattered, and the Great Path domain of the other was pulverized.


    Ye Futian��s body was shining with brilliance. It was like the Great Emperor had descended into the world. He looked at Hua Junlai below and pointed with his raised hand. Suddenly a starry divine sword penetrated the void, overcame everything. Hua Junlai blasted out the divine seal, but it was for naught. The starry divine sword, carrying tremendous momentum, arrived in front of Hua Junlai in an instant.


    Boom! An extremely terrifying storm swept out, and the Starry divine sword stopped in front of Hua Junlai. That terrifying storm of destruction buffeted Hua Junlai so that his white robe fluttered wildly in the winds and his long hair danced with menace.


    Hua Junlai��s eyes were open, fixed on the divine sword that hung above his head, which nearly killed him. There was some sadness in his eyes. Not only was he defeated, but he was defeated miserably. Before, his combat had been boosted by the eruption of the Great Emperor��s will. But when Ye Futian called upon the will of the Great Emperor, he could not stop his attacks. Ye Futian, who had inherited the will of Ziwei the Great, was far stronger than they had ever imagined.


    At this moment, many cultivators remembered what Ye Futian said before. If he wanted to cultivate in the holy land of the Lost Clan, he could have simply broken the matrix all by himself. There was no need to resort to other means to placate the Lost Clan. He could break down the Battle Matrix of the Rocks set up by the cultivators in the Seventh Realm from the Lost Clan. No one doubted Ye Futian��s claim at this moment as he displayed his battle effectiveness; they believed he could achieve what he said he could.


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Junlai as he waved his hand. The divine sword flew back to him and didn��t slay Hua Junlai after all. He didn��t really want to kill Hua Junlai��they were not sworn enemies, and there were no major grudges between them.


    ��Do not do to others what you do not want others to do to you. Had this Shenyi Continent been a land without a master, with no one in control, it would not matter who tried to take it for themselves. But the Lost Clan had been established on this continent and has guarded the continent for many years. No one should try to take that away from them. It is not just,�� Ye Futian proclaimed loudly and clearly.


    However, those cultivators from other top forces were unmoved by what he said. They had lived longer and experienced more. Many of them had lived through the turbulent era three, four hundred years ago and experienced firsthand the cruelty of the cultivation world.


    Ye Futian was far too idealistic.


    The world of the cultivators was a ruthless one, and things such as pillage were commonplace. If one day they faced a similar situation, no one would pity them; they would make the same choice of robbing them of what they had.

 Chapter 2341 - Tension

    For Shenyi Continent to have appeared in the Original Realm and demonstrate such astonishing strength, how could these top forces not have some designs of their own?


    Moreover, no one knew what was in the secret zone of the Lost Clan, but they estimated that there must be some worthwhile secrets to be had. For the Lost Clan to survive these long years and the Dark Ages, there must be methods other than those they had displayed.


    ��Just mind yourself, and don��t worry about us. How we want to do things is none of your concern.�� In the crowd, a scratchy old voice, tinged with indifference, was berating Ye Futian.


    Even though Ye Futian��s current status was lofty, and he had demonstrated extremely powerful combat effectiveness, the cultivators who were present were no small figures. Aside from the top principalities from Divine Prefecture, many of them were at the top of the cultivation world. There was no lack of those who had passed the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path with the Ancient God Clan on their side.


    And this was only those from Divine Prefecture. In addition to Divine Prefecture, there were also top figures from the Dark World, Human Realm, and other realms, with imperial-level forces personally representing. No matter how closely such lineups were to be scrutinized, Ye Futian, at the very most, was just as a rising star. No matter how outstanding he was, he was just a young upstart.


    Ye Futian��s attempt to dissuade everyone��s plan about the Lost Clan was really overestimating his own influence.


    It was just as that old man had suggested, how these top forces decided to conduct their own business, needing no direction from Ye Futian.


    ��Go back,�� said another voice, still directed at Ye Futian, urging him to stand down. Although he had defeated and crushed Hua Junlai from the Ancient God Clan, it only proved that he had what it took to enter the secret zone of the Lost Clan. However, Ye Futian��s status was far from sufficient to keep a lid on the whole situation.


    Not just him; no one here could stop the development of the situation at hand.


    Ye Futian looked at the crowd and sighed inside. In fact, he knew very well that he could not alter things very much. After all, the forces who were here today were almost the very top forces in each of the known worlds. His own influence fell short by comparison and was not enough to change much.


    But looking at how things were playing out, any continuation would only cause harm to both sides until the two sides launched a full-on war. This thing had its own momentum that could not be stopped now. He had wanted to give it his best shot, but it was of no use.


    ��Emperor Ye is righteous, and the Lost Clan is most grateful. But today��s matter has nothing to do with Emperor Ye. Since everyone who came here refused to give up, we have no choice but to continue. Emperor Ye should not insist on interceding further. Of course, the Lost Clan is most willing to make friends with Emperor Ye.�� The old man from the Lost Clan spoke with some heartfelt gratitude towards Ye Futian.


    Besieged by all these principalities, only Ye Futian was willing to speak up for them. Furthermore, he had the ability to break down the Lost Clan��s Battle Matrix of the Rocks but didn��t. Obviously, he had no intention to rob them of the secret zone and their cultivation methods.


    ��True gentleman harbored no ill-will.�� Ye Futian was probably a good example of that saying.


    However, since the Lost Clan came out of the infinite darkness and drifted to the Original Realm, they were destined to experience this trial. If they did not endeavor to survive it, how could they possibly enjoy any peace in the future? To gain a foothold in the Original Realm, they must first overcome this challenge. If they did, then no one would dare to provoke them with impunity in the future. All the top powers of the world would have to weigh the matter carefully before they had any thoughts of challenging the Lost Clan again.


    However, they were facing a real catastrophe this time. What was at stake could not be more important to them all, and there was no guarantee whether they would survive it or not.


    Ye Futian looked at the old man from the Lost Clan and nodded slightly. Then he moved towards the ground below with no intention of lingering any longer; he could not change much anyways.


    Everything would have to depend on the Los Clan themselves now.


    The old man from the Lost Clan surveyed the crowd and said, ��According to the previous agreement, the losers must hand over to Lost Clan the cultivation methods used during the battle, to be kept in the secret zone caves, where they will be enshrined for future generations of the Lost Clan to cultivate. Previous battles have already determined many victories and defeats. Those who had lost, please hand over the cultivation methods you used on the Lost Clan.��


    Ye Futian, who had just returned to the group from Heavenly Mandate Academy, sharpened his eyes as he turned to look in the direction of the old man.


    What was this sudden change of attitude? The words from the old man obviously meant that he was getting more assertive. He began to demand the price the opponent had promised to pay if they were defeated.


    However, many in the crowd understood that this was simply a price these opponents could not afford to pay.


    For instance, would Xiao Mu��the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor��hand over the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon and the Super Demonic Form? It was completely an impossibility. The Devil Emperor would probably end this idiotic disciple��s life before that happens. Because of his lack of ability, he was defeated and lost the method taught by the Devil Emperor himself in a wager.


    The same held true for other cultivators. What they had used before were the unique methods of their respective clan forces, but they were unsuccessful in breaking down the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Now, the Lost Clan cultivators were asking for their cultivation methods. How could they hand them over just like that?


    No one spoke, and the space seemed a little too quiet. Those cultivators who were defeated seemed to look in other directions, looking at other people, to see who would take the initiative to do anything.


    Watching this, the old man understood how this would play out. He actually had no intention of asking for the cultivation methods of these top principalities. He knew very well that such request was impossible for them to comply. He did it to force these invaders to consider from the standpoint of the Lost Clan. Just like them, the Lost Clan would never allow outside cultivators to enter their secret zone.


    But the Lost Clan seemed to have underestimated the determination of these top cultivators. They seemed determined to gain entry to the secret zone of the Lost Clan no matter what. This was clearly evident from their previous action.


    If this was the case, there was no more need to continue being courteous. These defeated cultivators would either hand over what they had wagered, or it was going to be an all-out war.


    ��You are all cultivators from top principalities and top figures from all the worlds. Are you going to go back on your promises? Since you have been defeated, you should deliver what you promised,�� the old man of the Lost Clan continued, his voice indifferent but tranquil.


    The cultivators who were defeated previously looked on, still silent. In the direction of the Devil World, someone looked at the old man and said, ��Even if the Devil World is willing to surrender them, does the Lost Clan have the gall to accept?��


    Would the Lost Clan be so bold as to accept the cultivation method of the Devil Emperor? If they did that, they would undoubtedly offend the Devil Emperor themselves, but at the same time, would the Devil World let the Lost Clan off the hook?


    ��So, none of you intended to keep your promises from the very beginning.�� The cultivator from the Lost Clan continued, ��That is to say, you were lying to us right from the start. If you lost, you don��t need to pay any penalty, but if you won, you wanted to have the right to enter our secret zone to cultivate. With such a rotten deal, is there any need to continue talking about it?��


    As his voice trailed off, the surrounding space suddenly quieted down. Aura from cultivators of all principalities spread to cover the void as an invisible pressure radiated outward. There was an extreme discomfort in the atmosphere, faintly suffocating.


    In the far distance, many imperial-level cultivators walked in the direction of the Lost Clan, loosely forming a circle to surround the Lost Clan. They were powerful cultivators from all sides of the Shenyi Continent who came as reinforcement!

 Chapter 2342 - Stance from All Sides

    In the vast space around the Lost Clan, the atmosphere became unbelievably oppressive.


    From the Lost Clan, out came mighty cultivators, with some standing guard on top of the buildings, their eyes fixed on the cultivators from various forces of the worlds. There was no fear in their eyes, and eyes like that instilled fear in those who saw them.


    The cultivators of the Lost Clan were not afraid of death. From the day that they entered the Lost Clan, they had prepared to sacrifice their lives at any moment and were ready to meet their deaths. As those cultivators continued to progress, the beliefs and courage that they held deep in their hearts had far surpassed their fear of death.


    Countless years they had walked during the Dark Ages, and there was nothing more that could make them afraid. Everything they were facing now was just a repeat of what they had experienced in the Dark Ages.


    Cultivators from all sides wore the most serious expressions on their faces. There was no lack of cultivators who were not afraid of death, and not all of them were so awe-inspiring. But at this level of cultivation, death was somewhat frightening in itself. Take, for instance, the nine cultivators in the Lost Clan��s Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Any one of the nine would be an awesome figure in the outside world. But in here, they were just a member of the Lost Clan who would rather die guarding the battle matrix. The power they were capable of exerting was so shocking that the eight enchanting geniuses from the Ancient God Clan could not break it. Had they continued, both sides may very well sustain grave casualties.


    Therefore, if they were really to go to war, they had no clear idea just how many methods were at the disposal of the Lost Clan. But judging from the fearless courage exhibited by the Lost Clan so far, they would probably slaughter as many of the cultivators as possible so that the outsiders would also pay dearly for their transgression.


    ��The Lost Clan came upon the Original Realm by chance, and it was not our intention to cause any trouble. All we wanted was to coexist in peace. That is why we have invited everyone to enter our secret zone as a gesture of goodwill. We have even allowed everyone to cultivate in our secret zone through friendly exchanges. There is no need now to speak openly about what you are really coveting in your hearts. If this is the case, we will protect the Lost Clan at any cost. If the Lost Clan is destroyed, so will the secret zone; no one would obtain any inheritance from the demise of the Lost Clan,�� the old man addressed everyone with a solemn voice, grave but powerful.


    Even if the Lost Clan were obliterated, none of the cultivators from those various forces would be able to claim anything from the Lost Clan for themselves. The Lost Clan would destroy the secret zone.


    ��People of the Lost Clan is faithful to our pledge: protecting the Lost Clan with our lives,�� the old man continued as an even more solemn aura effused, enveloped the boundless space as invisible as the air. This atmosphere was formed by the common will of all the cultivators in the Lost Clan.


    ��Protecting the Lost Clan, with our lives.�� Voices were heard, one after the other, resounding inside the Lost Clan.


    ��Protecting the Lost Clan, with our lives.�� Outside the Lost Clan, those Renhuang cultivators who had arrived also reiterated the oath with one voice, sounding solemn. In an instant, a curious force filled the space between heaven and earth. As these voices continued to resonate, a shocking and oppressive ambiance seemed to suffocate many cultivators inside the space.


    In the secret zone of the Lost Clan, cultivators began to walk out one after another, all with a frightening aura. Many of them were elders, and some looked much older, with wrinkles all over their faces. But their eyes were piercing, spirited, and full of power, zooming in on the cultivators from all sides.


    In their eyes, there was a great power that was palpable.


    The solemn voice and that astonishing air shrouded all the cultivators from various forces. No one dared to act carelessly. The cultivators from all sides had tested the strength of the Lost Clan before and knew they were incredibly strong. After they had gone through the previous exhibition fighting inside the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, they had a much better understanding of the prowess the Lost Clan was capable of.


    At this moment, a group of cultivators took a few steps forward. These men had extraordinary and unparalleled temperaments, and a faint aura of righteousness could be perceived from them. The divine light that surrounded them gave an extremely pleasant feeling.


    Cultivators from the Human Realm.


    The man that was the head of the Human Realm congregation bowed slightly in the direction of the Lost Clan, who was in the distance, and said, ��The Lost Clan has been protecting the Shenyi Continent for countless years to ensure its existence and deserves our utmost respect. The Human Realm will not be enemies with the Lost Clan, and we won��t participate in any disputes and battles with the Lost Clan. The reason why we came here was the appearance of the relic. After learning so much about the Lost Clan, we have nothing but admiration for you.��


    Human Realm had forfeited. They chose not to take an opposing position against the Lost Clan.


    When the elder from the Lost Clan heard this, he made a bow with his hands together in front of him and said, ��The Lost Clan thanks you for your kindness and righteousness.��


    ��Emperor Ye from the Original Realm was right. Don��t do onto others what we don��t want to have done onto ourselves. Since Shenyi Continent has guardians for protection, there is no need to be so unrelenting and unreasonable. The Lost Clan is a principality that goes back to ancient times, and it is not easy for it to sustain its existence until this day. Why not just let the Lost Clan become a force in this world and cultivate?�� A cultivator from the Human Realm continued to advocate and looked toward Ye Futian while he was speaking.


    However, the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Devil World were quite unimpressed with the words and actions coming from the Human Realm. In their opinion, those from the Human Realm, like Ye Futian, were just a bunch of sanctimonious fakes. But they had heard that this kind of behavior was not unusual in the Human Realm. They had proclaimed themselves to be the most orthodox heirs after the heavenly path, descendants of the human race, even naming the Great Emperor of the Human Realm as the Human Ancestor.


    ��We didn��t say the Lost Clan couldn��t become a force in the cultivation world. We just wanted to enter their secret zone to take a look; there were no other intentions. But the Lost Clan couldn��t even agree to such a simple request. How can we be friends?�� An incredibly wicked voice was speaking, and it belonged to a top figure from the Empty Divine Realm.


    The Empty Divine Realm was also known as the Evil Emperor Realm. The master of the Empty Divine Realm was called the Evil Emperor, and it goes without saying that his disciples were also endowed with quite a bit of wickedness. The cultivator who spoke was one of Evil Emperor��s disciples.


    ��That��s right. If the Human Realm doesn��t want to participate, then please get out in our way. We just wanted to take a look inside the secret zone of the Lost Clan. I don��t believe the Lost Clan will begrudge us that.�� The cultivator from the Dark World also joined in. They had come this far; they would not give it up so readily.


    ��Of course, the Lost Clan cannot possibly agree to such request,�� said the cultivator from the Lost Clan. ��If you insist on entering the secret zone of Lost Clan, it will only be over our dead bodies.��


    When the voice fell, the sense of solemnity intensified. The divine light that was shining on the cultivators of the Lost Clan shrouded the boundless space. Phantoms of the ancient gods appeared everywhere in the surrounding areas.


    Right in front of them, and behind the great cultivators of the Lost Clan, the phantoms of the ancient gods that appeared were like true deities, massive and gigantic, reaching all the way to the sky; an aura of immeasurable horror now bloomed from them!

 Chapter 2343 - Crisis for the Lost Clan

    The Lost Clan was ready to move immediately. They had clearly taken their own lives out of the equation.


    The shadows of the ancient gods shrouded the boundless space, and many ancient deities resonated with one another and united into one entity, blocking out all the lights from the sky. This vast space was now transformed into a realm belonging to those ancient gods. Those ancient gods seemed to come into being through these cultivators from the Lost Clan. Suddenly, their eyes opened, emitting shocking divine light. They looked at those cultivators who moved against them.


    ��If you still wanted to force your way into the secret zone paradise of the Lost Clan, you better get on with it.�� A voice resounded through the space, and the heavens resonated with the call to battle immediately. A solemn voice was heard, and it seemed to be coming from a time long ago, veiled in an ancient and powerful aura.


    The cultivators from all the top forces watched with serious expressions. Gone was the relaxed attitude they had before. All of them were from major worlds, some even from the world��s top forces, such as the Empty Mountain cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm, cultivators of the Dark Court from the Dark World, the Devil Imperial Palace of the Devil World; they were the kings of each of these worlds.


    The Lost Clan was not inferior to any of them. They thought that perhaps the dark environment the Lost Clan was forced to contend with was a factor for their resilience. In addition, the ancestors of the Lost Clan must have also been some amazing characters. The Shenyi Continent itself was extraordinary on its own and was never meant to be some ordinary place, even since the beginning of times. But because they were abandoned by the gods, none of these cultivators on the continent were aware of their own ancestry or who they inherited it from. However, each generation of the Lost Clan was filled with genius talents, having allowed them to create a flourishing culture.


    ��Let��s get it on,�� a voice commanded, with the determination of those cultivators. Since this was where they were at, a battle could not be avoided no matter what. With the determination of the Lost Clan, they, as the challengers, had to defeat them before they could enter the secret zone paradise and glimpse upon the secrets of the Lost Clan.


    Rumble�� A terrific sound came out, indicating that the cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm had mobilized. Mighty and gigantic heavenly deities emerged, standing between heaven and earth, surrounded by divine light. Their presence was completely overpowering. Each of those golden divine rays was full of terrifying auras of destruction. Ye Futian looked there and realized that he had seen this ability before. Most of the cultivators from Empty Mountain seemed to have cultivated in this aggressive method.


    In other directions, the cultivators from the Devil World were also on the move. An overbearing demonic shadow appeared. It was as if the cultivators were summoning the demon gods. Their bodies of the Great Path became terrifying as those demonic bodies were surrounded by demonic glory. The cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace, including direct disciples of the Devil Emperor. Some of the top figures were all qualified to comprehend the Super Demonic Form in cultivation, thus creating their own Demonic Form. The tyranny of each persons�� Demonic Form would be determined according to different degrees of their comprehension and cultivation ability.


    But there was no one here who were not powerful existences themselves; none of them were simple.


    The cultivators from Divine Prefecture and the Dark World were starting their offensive as they gathered an extraordinary amount of power now. For a moment, the coercion in this space was simply terrifying. Many of those second-tier cultivators from Divine Prefecture��s top principalities felt as if their hearts were palpitating. The coercion on this side of the world had grown so strong that it was almost unbearable; they did not doubt that they were not even qualified to participate in a battle on this scale. The strongest participants in the battle had all been those existences who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, and quite a few of them had survived the second Divine Tribulation. Their strength was horrific beyond imagination.


    Under this kind of authoritative pressure, even those giants who had cultivated to the peak of Renhuang could also feel suffocating oppression.


    Seeing that the cultivators from all sides were ready to move, those from the Lost Clan did not hesitate any longer. Those ancient god-like figures released an incomparable aura. Like glaring deities, the golden divine brilliance from their eyes contained the might of total ruination. They turned into golden spatial lightning, blasting towards this corner of the sky.


    Accompanied by the slaughtering of this golden divine light, the space cracked wide open and was torn apart by the force of the golden divine light. If such terrifying power were to land on bodies made of flesh and blood, it would probably squash anyone unfortunate enough to be in its path.


    The cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm took the lead. Golden figures of heavenly deities moved in unison, directly blasting out billions of fists aurora, sheltering the sky and the sun. The blast radius covered the boundless space, and the entire world was within range of the attacks from the golden divine fists.


    The golden divine fist was torn apart and pulverized into nothingness. The golden lightning that shot out contained exceptional power, which continued to slaughter its way forward. Like an apocalyptical divine light, everything was shattered in its wake.


    But that fist aurora was infinite, one after the other, creating many destructive currents, enough to fill that vast space.


    In the world of cultivation, the destructive power that could be erupted from a cultivator who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path was quite astonishing. It was impossible to imagine the force that unleashed when multiple cultivators of such caliber attacked at the same time.


    Ye Futian and his people did not participate in the battle, nor did those tyrannical attacks move in their direction. This battlefield was actually very extensive, but even so, the entire vast space was within the rippling after-effects of the fight. No matter where they stood, there was simply no escape. Renhuang Chen walked to the very front to release the starry divine light, erecting a starry light screen around them. However, when those turbulent rogue waves of destruction impacted them, the starry light screen shaking wildly, cracks appearing upon it. Nonetheless, those cracks were quickly repaired as soon as they appeared.


    But to continue like this, it wouldn��t last long before it shattered for good and this space would be torn to pieces.


    ��This space won��t be able to withstand this kind of attack; it will completely collapse and shatter,�� Renhuang Chen observed.


    In the void, those ancient gods exploded with another attack. The ancient gods raised their hands and slammed in the direction of this space. An incomparably somber intention of destruction descended, hovered in the sky above everyone. This attack had covered this corner of the sky, and no one was able to hide from it, as everything was fair game.


    ��Break him,�� an indifferent voice came from the direction of the Empty Divine Realm. Suddenly, all the cultivators seemed to gather together as their Great Path resonated with one another, forming a supreme battle matrix. A boundless and massive deity appeared, raising his hand to blast out a punch. This punch pierced through heaven and earth, pulverizing the void as the divine light shielded the divine fist, making it invincible.


    Boom! The gigantic palm prints were penetrated. At the same time, people of all the top forces in other directions were also taking shot in turns. In the direction of the Devil Realm, a shocking demonic blade slashed down and split the sky open. It smashed through the humongous palm prints that came down and continued moving forward with great momentum, slaughtering into the images of ancient gods that were being conjured up by their opponent.


    The Lost Clan may be tyrannical, but in the end, it was just a single principality, and the enemies they faced were the ruling powers of all the worlds. Except for the absence of the imperial palace of Divine Prefecture, all other principalities had dispatched imperial-level representatives here. Under such conditions, it would be very difficult for the Lost Clan to overcome such an alliance of all the worlds.


    Looking at this battlefield, Ye Futian was a little concerned for the Lost Clan. The Lost Clan could not afford to lose this battle. If they lost, it would be total destruction. They would fight to the death, but those cultivators from the other worlds would not spare any of them either!

 Chapter 2344 - The Depth of the Lost Clan

    At the Shenyi Continent, with the Lost Clan at the center, a petrifying golden glory now permeated and radiated over the entire continent. The continent was colored by a dusky glow that shrouded the whole continent under its brilliance.


    Looking down from up on high, it was clear that what radiated over the entire continent was, in fact, a gigantic matrix covering the vast expanse of Shenyi Continent. Within this enormous matrix, splendid pictures and patterns could clearly be made out. In these patterns, one could vaguely see ancient gods standing there, blending into the matrix as if they were part of it.


    This mammoth of a super matrix was the result of generational efforts by the ancestors of the Lost Clan. After they had perished, some ancestors chose to integrate the last of their will into the matrix and became part of it. For countless years, this super colossal matrix had absorbed the will of many ancestors in the Lost Clan. Today, it had become a truly terrifying super matrix. Relying only on this super matrix, the Lost Clan was able to stay safe while traveling through the space of the void except in the most dangerous situations.


    The Shenyi Continent was not alone. The land of the Lost Clan also lit up with an incomparably splendid divine brilliance. The Lost Clan��s secret zone paradise was shrouded with a terrifying golden divine glory, which then gradually disappeared until nothing was left as if it had never been there before. This sight shocked many cultivators, and they remembered the words previously spoken by the cultivator from the Lost Clan.


    If the Lost Clan were defeated, they would not allow outsiders to enter the Lost Clan��s secret zone paradise. They would rather destroy it than allowing these outside cultivators to get what they wanted.


    Perhaps, what the Lost Clan had said was the truth.


    Inside the battlefield, the sky and the earth shattered, the space collapsed, and terrifying attacks collided. Many cultivators were injured, including some who were considered really powerful. However, that supremely aggressive Battle Matrix of the Rocks also sustained damages with those repeated attacks. Cracks began appearing until they finally collapsed and shattered. For this, the cultivators from all sides paid a heavy price. Some of the powerful cultivators had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, but they, too, had been severely injured by it.


    After the Battle Matrix of the Rocks was broken, both sides were immediately stationed in different positions above the firmament. Major figureheads stood scattered, an astonishing aura bursting from each of them. The atmosphere was so powerful that it was simply chilling.


    ��Are there this many top figures in the Lost Clan?�� There was a slight disturbance in the hearts of these cultivators. The Lost Clan was not facing just one group of forces but many top powers of the Divine Prefecture and cultivators from other worlds. The lineup was so powerful that it was almost something that no existence could contend with. The fact that the Lost Clan was able to hold them off was, in itself, quite an astonishing feat. This clearly demonstrated the terror the Lost Clan was capable of.


    After the two sides separated, a cultivator from Divine Prefecture looked at those great cultivators from the Lost Clan across the air and said loud and clear, ��The battle matrix collapsed. If you continue to fight, it will probably spell total disaster for the Lost Clan. Are you sure you want to do this?��


    ��Yes, we just wanted to go into the secret zone paradise to see what was so amazing about the Lost Clan��s cultivation method. We never thought about eradicating the Lost Clan. There is still time for you to change your minds now. There is no need to engage in such a huge fight,�� someone else piped up, urging the cultivators from the Lost Clan to give up their resistance and allow them entry into the secret zone paradise to cultivate.


    ��I would also like to reiterate and remind you that the Lost Clan did not come here to be your enemy. Our only goal to come to the Original Realm was just to cultivate quietly. But if you are insisting on taking such an aggressive stance against us, the Lost Clan will fight you at all costs,�� the cultivator from the Lost Clan replied.


    ��At all costs?�� All the cultivators directed their gazes toward the man who spoke. Before, they had some reservations and didn��t really intend to act on it. But now that they had reached this juncture, if they were to fight an all-out war, how would the Lost Clan contend with that?


    ��Does the Lost Clan really want to disappear forever from this world?�� one cultivator asked in a threatening tone.


    ��Long live the Lost Clan!�� a solemn voice declared as those words reverberated throughout the world. Then, all those hands clasped together with divine light lingering as that somber voice still ranging throughout the space. On the ground below, that matrix, which was covering the entire Shenyi Continent, seemed to be coming alive now. Endless rays of glory bloomed outward, rushing straight into the firmament. In an instant, a shining radiance enveloped the entire continent, and a voice seemed to be speaking from an era long forgotten, passing through time and space to awaken those ancestors of theirs.


    Boom�� A terrifying sound was heard, accompanied by the blooming of countless divine lights. Phantoms appeared above the sky as cultivators from the Lost Clan stepped up towards those phantoms as if to merge with them.


    ��Using the matrix to fight?�� Everyone��s eyes narrowed, and only then did they realize that this superb and gigantic matrix was not only protecting the Shenyi Continent from invasions but could also be awakened to fight and produce a certain connection with the cultivators of the Lost Clan.


    A real ancient deity appeared, standing tall between heaven and earth; it felt extremely massive. He glanced towards the space below, and a horrific golden divine glory beamed out from his brow chakra, which instantly turned into countless golden lightning, smashing down at the cultivators below.


    ��Watch out!�� someone cautioned as the cultivators beneath had sensed imminent danger. Suddenly, the group of men began to dodge and evade with incredible speed.


    But at the same time, in different positions above the sky, ancient gods emerged one after another. The top figures from the Lost Clan had integrated into them, resonating with the matrix and emitting golden divine light. This was far more terrifying than the Battle Matrix of the Rocks from before.


    It seemed that this was the truly superb battle matrix, the one that had kept Shenyi Continent protected.


    Those golden divine lights were like rays of spatial destruction. The space over which these rays passed was instantly penetrated. Whether it was a solid object or the void, everything those rays touched was bound to be pierced and destroyed. This was the ability used by the Lost Clan while they were traveling through the dark space to find a way out. It could pierce through the boundless space, and it bore through it effectively.


    Puff�� A top Renhuang was shot by the divine light of space. As his body was pierced by the light, his face paled and was overcome by a look of hopelessness. Then, as clusters of spatial divine glory hitting him at the same time, his body was torn apart and shattered, pulverized into nothingness. He died instantly.


    ��How powerful.�� When Ye Futian saw this, his heart trembled with awe. Above the firmament, ancient gods seemed to be standing watch over them all. The power of those ancestors seemed to have been awakened and integrated into the matrix and echoed the power exuded from the cultivators of the Lost Clan. The resonance erupted with the power of destruction, which was absolutely devastating for cultivators from every side.


    ��It seems that they have underestimated the Lost Clan,�� Emperor Nan observed. The depth of this ancient clan that had traveled through the dark world for countless years was truly frightening. Their strength could not be countered simply by one principality alone. Unless powerful forces, such as Empty Mountain and Devil Imperial Palace, united all of their top cultivators, they could not possibly stand a chance. However, the problem was that only a small number of their best cultivators were dispatched here!

 Chapter 2345 - : Sanctuary

    ��Break up the matrix,�� said a voice from the crowd as cultivators from all major forces converged into one. The cultivators from Empty Mountain were in one camp, while cultivators from the Devil World were in another. With so many cultivators assembling their strengths at the same time, small battle matrixes began to form.


    Cultivators from Empty Mountain took the initiative and attacked. Suddenly, countless fist auroras blasted toward the firmament.


    The cultivators from the Devil World were even more terrifying; they had summoned infinite demonic blades into being. As the demonic will tossed and rumbled, demon gods appeared to unleash the demonic blades at the same time. Most horrific was that amongst them, an even greater demonic god was gathering these hundreds and thousands of demonic blades into one, smashing it across the void as if intending to split open this corner of the sky. The sight was too shocking to describe.


    Among the cultivators of the Lost Clan who were in charge of the matrix, there were clearly a few frightening existences that had survived the second divine tribulation of the Great Path. Now, coupled with the strength of the matrix, they had erupted with an astonishing offensive prowess.


    Every cultivator from the top forces in Divine Prefecture was looking for the weak points of this Sky-Sheltering Matrix. They attacked those weak points again and again. In a short few moments, many horrific attacks had already exploded on this battlefield.


    Furthermore, cultivators from other major forces began to fall one after the other, greatly alarming those from other top forces. Although they had anticipated some danger ahead of the battle, they did not envision it would be this serious. Despite all the forces being combined, they were still caught off guard in such a short period of time.


    However, these were, after all, forces of the top existence in the world. Even though the Lost Clan had leveraged the amazing strength of this super matrix, they were still affected by the simultaneous attacks of these powerful cultivators. The ancient gods shook as they were perched above the firmament, and the light screen started to crack. The combined attacks from these cultivators were so terrifying, especially the demonic blades of the cultivators from the Devil World, which contained shocking power that was enough to cleave open the heavens.


    Ye Futian and the others did not participate in the battle, but they were also in this space since the battlefield had covered just about all the surrounding areas. They had no way to hide under the matrix, so they were affected to a certain extent. However, the cultivators from the Lost Clan were attacking with restraint and did not send any heavy blows in their direction. Therefore, they were still able to hold up their defenses, even though they had to contend with the threat of the aftershocks.


    But this battlefield was getting a bit too frightening now. Ye Futian thought that it was a waste for those top figures to be slain like this. If they hadn��t so greedily grabbed for the secret zone of the Lost Clan, they wouldn��t perish today.


    Crack! A crisp sound was heard at the same time as some ancient gods were being shattered; they were breached in an extremely tyrannical attack. It was the cultivators from the Devil World who broke out of their passive stance first, breaking down an ancient god, which injured several cultivators from the Lost Clan. Suddenly, cultivators from other major positions also began their counterattacks.


    ��The Lost Clan took the initiative and attacked first. They leveraged the will of their ancestors to power up the matrix. But a sustained battle would probably still be highly risky to the Lost Clan and will put them at a disadvantage,�� said Ye Futian. The cultivators next to him nodded slightly, echoing his sentiment.


    After all, these people were powerful cultivators in their own rights. Each of them was a peak existence in their own world, in possession of terrifying means and methods. Once they started to unleash their strongest measures against the Lost Clan, defeat was just a matter of time.


    In this battle, it was highly possible that both sides would suffer major losses, with the Lost Clan facing an even more bleak outcome.


    However, judging from the resolve and determination of the Lost Clan, even if they were defeated, they would make these challengers pay dearly for their victory.


    The battle continued. However, at this moment, an extremely overpowering aura suddenly spread from above the firmament. It was not on the battlefield but from outside the battlefield. After that, everyone saw the most radiant and glorious glow sprinkling down on this space, covering the entire Shenyi Continent.


    ��Huh?�� Ye Futian and the others were caught by surprise as that infinite glow continued to sprinkle with incredible brilliance. At the same time, an amazing atmosphere permeated from it.


    ��Someone is coming,�� Ye Futian said. Under that endless glow, a group of ethereal figures emerged. This group of cultivators was surrounded by extremely dazzling divine light. Their leader was a woman that resembled a goddess. She had an incomparable radiance, and her beauty was breathtaking. Her noble presence compelled everyone to lower their eyes.


    Those cultivators who were in the midst of fighting also saw the group that had just descended upon them. Gradually, many people stopped fighting, especially those from Divine Prefecture who had been the first to disengage in battle. Quite a few of them put their hands together and saluted, saying, ��Greetings to Your Royal Highness the Princess.��


    It turned out that this group of newcomers were cultivators from Donghuang Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture. The stunning woman in the lead was Princess Donghuang, who had arrived in person.


    This was the first time Ye Futian had seen her in 20-some years. This princess seemed to always make her appearance at the most critical moment.


    He wondered what had brought Princess Donghuang here.


    Although the cultivators of the Devil World and the Empty Divine Realm were not in the same camp as the Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture, they had to pay their respects now that the ruler of the Divine Prefecture was here. After all, in principle, the Original Realm belonged to the Divine Prefecture, and where they stood now was under the jurisdiction of the Divine Prefecture.


    As all the major cultivators stopped their offensives, the cultivators from the Lost Clan, likewise, retracted their aura and did not continue fighting. They seemed to know who had arrived. After they came to the Original Realm, they had made some inquiries about the Original Realm as well as the Divine Prefecture. It was obvious that they knew the master of Divine Prefecture had descended upon them.


    The ruler of Divine Prefecture��Donghuang Imperial Palace��could very possibly be the one who determines the fate of the Lost Clan.


    An elder from the Lost Clan bowing slightly and said, ��The Lost Clan has been in exile since time immemorial. Now that we have come upon the land of the Original Realm under the rule of Divine Prefecture, we hope the Imperial Palace will forgive us for our intrusion.��


    Princess Donghuang looked at the cultivators from the Lost Clan below and nodded slightly. Many were surprised when they beheld this sight. They could detect something from Princess Donghuang��s attitude towards the Lost Clan. If she wanted to protect the Lost Clan, things would become much thornier.


    ��Salutations to Princess Donghuang, from cultivators of the Human Realm.�� The person heading the congregation of the Human Realm smiled as he greeted the Princess.


    ��All of you from the Human Realm, welcome,�� Princess Donghuang responded. The cultivator from the Human Realm continued, ��My master has never forgotten about Donghuang the Elder. Is everything well with the Great Emperor?��


    ��Thank you, Elder. My father has been cultivating diligently and has been thinking of you often, Elder.�� The two chatted casually like good friends but were, in fact, not as familiar with each other as they appeared to be.


    ��If opportunity allows, we would like to go to the Imperial Palace to greet Donghuang the Great personally.��


    ��Very well.�� Princess Donghuang nodded slightly, appearing quite at ease. She then surveyed the crowd and said, ��This continent has traveled through the darkness until it came upon the land of the Original Realm. Since it is here now, it is considered part of the Original Realm. From now on, the Shenyi Continent will also be a member of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path in the Original Realm. It will be managed under the jurisdiction of the Lost Clan as a part of the Original Realm, belonging to Divine Prefecture under the command of the Imperial Palace. Lost Clan, are you willing to accept these conditions?��

 Chapter 2346 - Compromise and Struggle

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    These words from Princess Donghuang stunned everyone who had heard them, and many cultivators changed their expression. They clearly understood that this was Princess Donghuang giving the Lost Clan a chance to survive.


    By asking the Lost Clan to accept the authority of Donghuang Imperial Palace as a part of the Divine Prefecture under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Palace, Donghuang Imperial Palace may then legitimize its involvement in the whole affair.


    This was giving the Lost Clan a chance to make a choice. Of course, the Lost Clan was free to refuse. But in that scenario, it was very possible that the Imperial Palace from Divine Prefecture would choose not to intercede. After all, for Donghuang the Great to dominate all of Divine Prefecture, his concerns had to be much broader, and he would never involve the Imperial Palace in an all-out battle with several other major worlds on behalf of some irrelevant clans.


    Naturally, the finer points of this reasoning were not lost on the Lost Clan. Therefore, after hearing the pronouncements from Princess Donghuang, the elder of the Lost Clan hesitated only for a moment before he made a decision. Determination flashed through his eyes as he replied, ��The Lost Clan is willing to submit to Donghuang Imperial Palace and accept the command of the Imperial Palace. From now on, we shall be a part of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path in the Original Realm.��


    When they heard the reply from the Lost Clan, the cultivators from other forces were not thrilled, to say the least. Under such circumstances, it was obvious that Donghuang Imperial Palace would be involved. If so, it would be extremely difficult to move against the Lost Clan again, especially for principalities from the Divine Prefecture.


    Princess Donghuang surveyed the crowd around her slowly and said, ��All the forces from Divine Prefecture, hear me well. Now that the Lost Clan belongs to Divine Prefecture and has accepted the command of our Imperial Palace, please do not treat the Lost Clan as a foreign invading force. If opportunities allow in the future, you should befriend one another and learn together.��


    Indeed, Princess Donghuang intervened with her influence, and she had started with the principalities from Divine Prefecture first.


    Many from the top forces in Divine Prefecture appeared pensive as their eyes flickered and their brains were thinking hard. They found the current circumstance a little hard to swallow, especially those who had lost cultivators in the previous violent exchanges with the Lost Clan. They had not had the chance to settle these scores before they were asked to drop the matter altogether and get along with the Lost Clan.


    Then, had those cultivators who had perished died in vain?


    ��Princess, my brothers-in-arms fell at the hands of the Lost Clan. Where is our justice?�� a cultivator asked. He was the cultivator of the Ancient God Clan. He asked his question bluntly without backing down, not scared even in the face of the Imperial Palace.


    Princess Donghuang looked at the cultivator and calmly responded, ��After this confrontation settles down, if you still ache to settle the score, I will allow you to fight with the Lost Clan. The Imperial Palace will not get between the two of you over personal grievances.��


    The eyes of that cultivator narrowed. She would allow them to fight with the Lost Clan?


    On the Shenyi Continent, with the tyrannical power displayed by the Lost Clan, even the Ancient God Clan was an unlikely contender to take them on alone; the difference in power was simply too great. The other side was a major clan made possible by the energy of an entire continent. However, unless��


    But even if they were greatly displeased in their hearts, they could only endure in silence, suffocating on those unspoken words. One glance at Princess Donghuang revealed that the princess was no longer a young lass anymore. After many years of cultivation, she had become even more magnificent and ravishing. Aside from her status and position, she was a peerless empress in her own right.


    ��Since the Princess said so, we will have no choice but to put it aside for now,�� the person responded with a bit of displeasure in his voice. Even facing Princess Donghuang, he was not overly servile. After all, they were not under the direct jurisdiction of the Imperial Palace, and the Imperial Palace could not do much to them. If the Imperial Palace were to come down on them too aggressively, it would risk total and utter alienation.


    ��Mmm.�� Princess Donghuang didn��t seem to display the slightest emotion. She nodded nonchalantly, haughty and indifferent. She glanced at the cultivators from the other worlds and said, ��Once upon a time, in a battle long ago, the Original Realm came under the jurisdiction of Divine Prefecture. Now that changes are upon the Original Realm, which was why the Divine Prefecture did not object to your presence here, though you were uninvited. As the Lost Clan had recognized and submitted under the authority of the Imperial Palace, accepting its command, everyone, please feel free to disengage and take your leave.��


    Once the Lost Clan agreed to assimilate, then the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture may directly intercede on its behalf, preventing the others from fighting against the Lost Clan.


    ��Princess Donghuang, should this matter be forgotten just like this?�� A cold voice queried, and it was a top cultivator from the Dark World, whose tone was tinged with a few degrees of iciness. They had already declared war and broken down the matrix of the Lost Clan. If they continued with this momentum, they would surely take down the Lost Clan sooner rather than later.


    At this time, the Imperial Palace from Divine Prefecture unexpectedly interfered to prevent the battle from continuing.


    ��Since the Lost Clan has now submitted to Imperial Palace, the Imperial Palace will ask you to stop fighting with the Lost Clan. If you refuse to let this go, you should know that we don��t mind taking this as far as it needs to go,�� Princess Donghuang replied. Divine generals stood guard behind her, creating a frightening atmosphere. Once again, Ye Futian saw Spear Emperor Du You. However, this divine general stood behind several other people and didn��t seem to occupy too conspicuous a position.


    Obviously, because of the involvement of peak cultivators from several worlds this time, the Imperial Palace had dispatched a much more powerful delegation than before.


    For a time, the space was completely silent, as all the cultivators remain hushed.


    The Lost Clan was already very powerful on its own, and these cultivators, with great difficulties, had paid a heavy price for breaking down their defenses. Now, the top forces from Divine Prefecture would not continue to fight against the Lost Clan and may even fight for them in this latest reversal of fortunes. As long as Princess Donghuang was around, it would be impossible for the forces of these principalities from Divine Prefecture to get involved further. They had lost considerable strength on their side, but the other side was now being backed up by the supreme power that belonged to Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    If the battle continued under these conditions, they would most likely suffer losses and have no chance to take down the Lost Clan.


    Suddenly there was a voice coming out of this silent space, and a cultivator from the Human Realm said, ��The Lost Clan, a major clan in the world of cultivation, has not done anything wrong. If you refuse to give up and insisted on persecuting the Lost Clan, the Human Realm will not stand idly by.��


    This voice reverberated in the quiet space. The power between Divine Prefecture, the Human Realm, and the Lost Clan was enough to stymie any hopes for the other worlds to vanquish the Lost Clan.


    But to give it up just like that seemed rather anticlimactic and unsatisfying.


    ��The Human Realm is indeed the agent of righteousness. How come you didn��t intervene and allied with the Lost Clan earlier?�� A cultivator from the Dark World commented, his words dripped with thick sarcasm, full of unsaid accusations. It seemed that when the Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture had arrived, the Human Realm was much more willing to stand beside the Imperial Palace. Together, they had completely cut off any recourses the Dark World may have.


    ��Since the Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture has taken a stance, then we will drop this matter for the time being and will not make further demands on the Lost Clan,�� a cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm piped up to show that they were willing to let it go. In this case, what choice do they really have but to call it quits?


    ��However, now that the Original Realm is going through these changes, I��m sure Donghuang the Great must know very well that while we can agree not to touch the Lost Clan, the control of the Original Realm should be relinquished now. The turbulence in the Original Realm means that it shouldn��t no longer be under the control of any single entity.��


    Everyone was surprised because none of them expected the Empty Divine Realm to make a statement of this nature. The Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture had always regard itself as the master of the Original Realm, and now it was time for a change.


    This was a thought shared by cultivators from the Dark World as well as the Devil World, and their attention now fixed solely on Princess Donghuang!

 Chapter 2347 - Incoming Storm

    Control over the Original Realm?


    Princess Donghuang looked at the cultivators from various worlds. Although the Original Realm was still ruled over by the Divine Prefecture in name, in reality, the current huge changes in the realm were known by all the cultivators from various worlds. Did they truly consider the Original Realm to be the territory of the Divine Prefecture?


    If they truly did consider it to be so, beside causing a commotion in the Original Realm, they would need the permission of the Divine Prefecture to even step foot into it.


    Clearly, the various forces no longer had their reservations. Since the Original Realm was still considered to be under the jurisdiction of the Divine Prefecture in name, the Divine Prefecture would not let it go no matter what happened to it.


    This appeared to be meaningless, but it was crucial. At the end of the day, the Divine Prefecture had the moral high ground, and the forces of the various worlds were at a disadvantage on this front.


    Princess Donghuang declared, ��The jurisdiction of the Original Realm has already been determined for centuries. More than 20 years ago, a huge war erupted in the Original Realm, and the Divine Prefecture still emerged victorious. Now, the Divine Prefecture doesn��t want to dwell on this matter. The Original Realm belonged to the Divine Prefecture in the past and will remain so for the future.�� Her voice was arrogant and authoritative.


    The reality that the Original Realm belonged to the Divine Prefecture was unshakable and would remain unchanged for eternity.


    ��I heard that the Original Realm already has a ruler. The cultivators of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path all pledge their allegiance to this new ruler. The influence of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace is most likely not as strong as his,�� a cultivator of the Dark World provoked with a sinister smile.


    The various cultivators naturally knew who he was referring to. Everyone knew that the current direct ruler of the Original Realm was Ye Futian, the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He was also the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian was considered the ruler of the Original Realm by its members.


    He also fought for the Original Realm. Countless cultivators of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path acknowledged him and the Heavenly Mandate Academy. In contrast, the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace had limited influence over the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Its influence was certainly not as strong as Ye Futian��s.


    ��Ye Futian, the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, has unified the various forces of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and fights for their sake. He protects the cultivators of the Original Realm and rules over the Original Realm on behalf of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace. The Imperial Palace believes he has done superbly. Are there any problems with that?�� replied Princess Donghuang as she stared indifferently at the cultivator of the Dark World.


    She claimed that Ye Futian was ruling over the Original Realm on behalf of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace and that Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy were under their jurisdiction. There was no issue with her statement. However, what did Ye Futian think about this?


    Many people looked at Ye Futian. Yet, Ye Futian��s expression remained the same as before, showing no changes. They could not get a read on him.


    Was he ruling over the Original Realm on behalf of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace?


    Ye Futian never thought of it that way before. The Imperial Palace was its own entity. However, the Original Realm was the place where he grew up and cultivated. He had emotional attachments to the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. He unified the lands of the Original Realm in the hopes that they would prosper and survive through this chaotic era instead of disintegrating and having countless lives lost to the chaos.


    While he was doing so, the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace had not interfered at all.


    In terms of a sense of belonging, he naturally had none for the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace. Moreover, he was still not clear about the matters back then. Donghuang the Great might even be his enemy.


    However, he did not leap out to deny Princess Donghuang��s words. The Heavenly Mandate Academy ruled over the Original Realm by relying on Master��s deterrence to survive in this chaotic world. Otherwise, many forces would have long attacked them. They still needed the backing of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace. Forsaking the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace and proclaiming himself a ruler now? That would be suicide.


    As for the cultivators around Ye Futian, they all had their own thoughts. Many of them had high expectations for Ye Futian. They even believed that Ye Futian would walk the path to the top in the future and make the Original Realm an independent world.


    However, this path would certainly be full of thorns. How many would be buried along the way?


    For Ye Futian, his most important goal currently was further developing himself.


    ��There is no problem,�� the cultivator of the Dark World said as he looked at Princess Donghuang. ��Since the Divine Prefecture does not wish to relinquish control of the Original Realm and wishes to meddle in the affairs of the Lost Clan, then, we have no choice but to return and inform the Great Emperor and ask him to open the Door of Darkness. When that happens, I hope the Divine Prefecture will not regret this.��


    As he said this, he looked at the cultivators of the Empty Mountain as well as the Devil World and said, ��There is a prophecy that claims that the changes to the worlds will begin with the Original Realm. Does the Evil Emperor and the Devil Emperor have no thoughts about this? There seem to be too few members from the Devil World here today.��


    Among the cultivators of the various worlds, the members of the Devil World were the fewest in numbers. Only a group of them had come to the Original Realm. Aside from the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World was the second largest group. Cultivators from a large number of their forces kept arriving.


    Now, the cultivator of the Dark World was threatening to open the Door of Darkness, most likely with the intention to send a large number of cultivators of the Dark World to the Original Realm. If that were to happen, the Original Realm would change completely. No one knew what the outcome would be.


    ��We will naturally return to inform the Evil Emperor about this,�� a cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm said. ��Since the Divine Prefecture is still so domineering, then, let��s wait and see.��


    Attacking the Lost Clan today made the cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm feel that they were lacking in number.


    Recently, many relics appeared in the Original Realm. They were all relics of the ancient era. Even the Shenyi Continent that was floating among the chaos of the void had appeared. One could imagine how huge a change was occurring in the Original Realm. The prophecy might possibly come true.


    Under such circumstances, the various Great Emperors would certainly send large armies over by opening the doors connected to the Original Realm.


    The cultivators of the Devil World also revealed pondering looks. From the looks of it, they also needed to return to inform the Devil Emperor. If the prophecy came true, the Original Realm might continue to have huge changes. For now, no one knew what changes would occur in the future. Yet, if there were too few members of the Devil World present here, they would be at a disadvantage.


    When Princess Donghuang heard their words, her expression turned cold and indifferent. Three to four centuries ago, the Original Realm had already faced such a storm. However, the turmoil back then was not even on the scale of what she was seeing now. If it was as the cultivators of the various major forces had said, the next storm in the Original Realm would be unprecedented.


    The various worlds might choose the Original Realm to be the battlefield for their conflict.


    Ye Futian��s facial expression was the ugliest of them all. Now, he ruled over the Original Realm and protected the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. If what the other parties said were true, the Original Realm would undoubtedly be where the forces of the other worlds faced off against each other. The Original Realm would become a battlefield. For the members here, this was practically a catastrophe. No one knew what would happen then.


    Crucially, all of this was happening too fast. The appearance of the Lost Clan had accelerated this change. His cultivation was still not strong enough. Without having reached the peak of the Renhuang Plane, it was difficult for him to handle these changes.


    When Ye Futian thought of this, he was somewhat concerned.


    The cultivators of various forces of the Divine Prefecture all had their own agendas. They were not united with the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace. If the Original Realm completely fell into chaos, they would instead seize the opportunity to enrich themselves!

 Chapter 2348 - The Storm Has Settled Temporarily

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the quiet space, Princess Donghuang glanced around at the crowd. Were they threatening the Divine Prefecture?


    However, the situation in the Original Realm had now changed. An ancient continent like the Shenyi Continent had actually appeared out of thin air. The cultivators of various worlds couldn��t sit there and do nothing. After all, before this, the Lost Clan of the Shenyi Continent had displayed terrifying combat ability.


    On top of that, many other relics had appeared before this. How many secrets were waiting to be explored in the Original Realm now?


    The changes of the worlds would begin with the Original Realm.


    The various worlds would believe this prophecy to have come true, and they would keep sending their cultivators over to the Original Realm.


    The various worlds had been at peace for countless years. Now, they would soon choose the Original Realm as the battlefield for their conflict. It seemed to be pushed by the general trend of events and would most likely be unchangeable.


    ��Then, we shall wait and see,�� declared Princess Donghuang as she swept a glance over the crowd. If the various worlds wanted to lead their armies over here, then the Divine Prefecture would answer with their own.


    This fight was inevitable.


    Everything that happened today was originally targeted at the Lost Clan. However, no one imagined that it would escalate to such a situation. It appeared that the various worlds would invade the Original Realm and contest over it. Such a shocking development had been stirred up.


    Ye Futian secretly sighed. From the looks of it, the Original Realm becoming a battlefield was already inevitable. He had no means of stopping such a development.


    ��If that is the case, farewell,�� the cultivator of the Dark World said. Then, he left with the other cultivators.


    The cultivators of the forces of the Empty Divine Realm, the Devil World, and the other worlds also left the region of the Lost Clan. When they left, their figures bore frightening auras. The fires of war had been lit.


    The various forces left very quickly. Only the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace, the Heavenly Mandate Academy, as well as the Human Realm remained and had yet to leave.


    The elder of the Lost Clan bowed slightly at Princess Donghuang and said, ��Princess, many thanks for helping us get out of that predicament. The Lost Clan is grateful.��


    Although the Lost Clan were prepared to face anything, if the battle were to truly break out, they would most likely face annihilation. After all, the other party was the allied forces of the various worlds. Even though their Lost Clan was powerful, it would still be difficult for them to stand against such a force.


    ��You have seen everything. The armies of the various worlds will be coming. The doors of the Original Realm will be completely opened. The Shenyi Continent has now come to the Original Realm. You are now part of it and under the jurisdiction of the Divine Prefecture. You will not be able to sit out of this. If there is a war, I hope that the Lost Clan will also lend their aid,�� said Princess Donghuang as she glanced at the cultivators of the Lost Clan.


    The Lost Clan had to play their part since they had chosen to submit to the authority of the Divine Prefecture. If the Divine Prefecture engaged in war with the other worlds, then the Lost Clan needed to obey the orders from the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace.


    ��Since our clan has agreed to your request, we will certainly keep our promise. We won��t sit idly and do nothing,�� declared the elder of the Lost Clan. ��Moreover, our clan has lost the freedom to stay away from this conflict.��


    The various worlds had come here to attack the Lost Clan. Even if the Lost Clan intended to stay out of the conflict, would the cultivators from the various worlds possibly agree to that? They would most likely still attack the Lost Clan after they managed to defeat the army of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Princess, we��ve enraged the various worlds this time around. If they join forces to attack the Divine Prefecture, we��ll most likely face a huge crisis,�� a cultivator from the Ancient God Clan said while looking at Princess Donghuang.


    The cultivators who left the place were people from the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Devil World. Even during the previous war, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had not faced such a situation. If the other three major worlds decided to declare war on the Divine Prefecture, the latter had no chance of winning.


    Princess Donghuang looked at the speaker and said, ��The other three major worlds each have their own agendas. They might not join forces. If they really do, I hope all of you can contribute to defeating them. Right now, the Original Realm has undergone many changes. All of you should return to the Divine Prefecture first and summon cultivators from your respective clans to come here. Otherwise, if anything were to happen in the Original Realm, you might have a difficult time handling the situation.


    The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were of different minds when they heard Princess Donghuang��s order. However, on the surface, everyone nodded in agreement. They said, ��Since that��s the case, we��ll take our leave here.��


    Princess Donghuang nodded. The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture gradually left the place. Quite a lot of cultivators gave the cultivators of the Lost Clan a cold glance before they left. They were somewhat unsatisfied with what happened today. However, they couldn��t do anything given the current situation. Therefore, they could only play by the ear from now on.


    After the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture left, Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian was also staring at her. It was not their first time meeting each other. They met once back in the city of Qingzhou. They were both youths at that time. However, back then, one of them was exalted while the other was still a commoner. They weren��t even people of the same status.


    Now, Ye Futian was almost at the same strata as this princess of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Greetings, Princess. Many thanks for giving me the divine item as a present in the past,�� said Ye Futian as he bowed slightly. Regardless of how their relationship would turn out in the future, it was undeniable that Princess Donghuang was the one who saved him when he was surrounded by various forces 20 years ago. The divine item that Princess Donghuang gifted him allowed him to go to the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Back then, you defeated the cultivators from the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm. The item was a reward for you. You don��t have to thank me for it,�� explained Princess Donghuang. ��Now, you control the forces in the Original Realm. The Imperial Palace has also heard of your achievements. In the future, if war were to erupt in the Original Realm, I hope you��ll try your best to protect the place.��


    ��Understood,�� Ye Futian responded. ��It��s just that the current Original Realm is still weak. We don��t have any cultivators who have survived the second tribulation of the Great Path. If the cultivators from the various worlds were to attack us, I��m afraid that the forces in the Original Realm are no match for them. When that time comes, I hope the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace will send aid to hold the fort.��


    Compared to most forces in the Divine Prefecture, the Original Realm represented by the Heavenly Mandate Academy was already a superpower. However, if the various worlds sent their top cultivators over, the Heavenly Mandate Academy that lacked existences who had survived the second tribulation would appear somewhat lackluster.


    Princess Donghuang lowered her head and glanced at Ye Futian down below. Was he trying to set conditions with her?


    ��I will make my own arrangements,�� answered Princess Donghuang indifferently. ��There will be a storm in the Original Realm. I will return to the Imperial Palace.��


    ��Farewell, Princess,�� said Ye Futian as he bowed slightly. Princess Donghuang turned to leave. The cultivators of the Human Realm said, ��Princess, we will see you off.��


    As they said this, their figures dashed up into the sky and left with Princess Donghuang��s entourage.


    Only the cultivators of the Lost Clan and the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were left.


    The elder of the Lost Clan glanced at Ye Futian and said, ��Renhuang Ye, many thanks for your help today.��


    ��I haven��t done anything worthy of your thanks,�� said Ye Futian as he shook his head.


    ��Renhuang Ye is benevolent. If you had attacked with the other cultivators before this, the Battle Matrix of the Rocks would have fallen,�� the elder said. ��Our Lost Clan has no means of repaying this favor. Renhuang Ye, please come in and be our guest.��


    ��That won��t be necessary,�� said Ye Futian as he shook his head. ��Soon, there will be a huge change in the Original Realm. I need to return to prepare. I fear that there will be a bloodbath in the future.��


    The elder of the Lost Clan was stunned. He looked at Ye Futian and then nodded his head and said, ��If that is the case, we will not delay you any longer. Renhuang Ye, you must come visit us when you have the chance.��


    ��Gladly,�� replied Ye Futian as he saluted the cultivators of the Lost Clan with his fists. He then left with the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They did not stay with the Lost Clan.


    As they watched Ye Futian leaving, the cultivators of the Lost Clan gathered together. They stared at his silhouette as it disappeared from view and said, ��It appears that this man is truly selfless.��


    ��With the abilities he displayed, he doesn��t need to covet the cultivation techniques of the Lost Clan. Prior to this, he has already inherited the abilities of several Great Emperors,�� said the elder of the Lost Clan. He clearly had a certain level of understanding of Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2349 - The Arrival of All Parties

    After Ye Futian and the others returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, they got busy with preparations. They sent the weaker cultivators to the Ziwei Segmentum via the teleportation grand matrix.


    The Original Realm was about to face a huge change. The Heavenly Mandate Realm was in far more danger than the Ziwei Segmentum. With the will of Great Emperor Ziwei in the Ziwei Segmentum, even if Ye Futian and his group were threatened, not many forces dared to attack the segmentum outright.


    In contrast, the Heavenly Mandate Realm was far more dangerous and prone to attacks.


    Although Master had descended upon the Lower Worlds during the previous battles and served as a deterrent for all the forces, it was different this time. A storm would soon sweep over the Original Realm. The top powers of various worlds would be involved, and Great Emperor level forces would participate directly in this battle. With such backgrounds, the other parties would not be concerned with Master. If Master intervened when the battle ensued, the forces of the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Devil World all had Great Emperor level existences as well.


    Hence, Ye Futian had no choice but to be cautious just in case.


    While Ye Futian��s side was busy preparing, the cultivators of the various worlds were also doing the same. For a period of time, the Original Realm suddenly became exceptionally quiet. None of the forces stirred up trouble. The cultivators from some forces were still exploring the endless void of the Original Realm, but fewer conflicts broke out.


    Everyone understood that this was the calm before the storm. The various forces were all waiting. The Original Realm was about to face an unprecedented event. For now, the various forces did not dare act recklessly.


    As time passed, more and more cultivators arrived in the Original Realm. The first to arrive were the various top forces from the Divine Prefecture. Although some of them had already arrived in the Original Realm prior to this, that was only a portion of their forces. However, after the battle with the Lost Clan, they had no choice but to bolster their forces.


    In the Divine Prefecture, Donghuang Imperial Palace had also sent out a decree to the 18 Domain Chief��s Manors. By the will of the Great Emperor, the 18 Domain Chief��s Manors were ordered to lead the cultivator forces in each domain to the Original Realm.


    After receiving this command, they informed the top forces in each domain and then sent their cultivators over to the Original Realm.


    At the same time, in different locations of the Original Realm, more and more forces from the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Human Realm arrived. Currently, in the Original Realm, there had never been such a powerful lineup of cultivators.


    In a corner of the Original Realm, a towering demonic might churned and roared. It was then followed by the sky ripping apart. A terrifying demonic black hole appeared. One by one, figures emerged from it. The cultivators who arrived could no longer be called a group; they were a troop. They were a troop of armies from the Devil World.


    Mei Ting was here today too. He had personally come over to welcome the members from the Devil World. When he saw the arrival of the army, his heart also trembled violently.


    From the looks of it, the Devil Emperor had personally commanded the various forces in the Devil World to gather and send their cultivators over to the Original Realm.


    The cultivator who led the troop from the Devil World had exceptional temperament. He wore a jet-black robe, and his long black hair danced in the wind. His facial features were chiseled, and he was very handsome. However, he seemed somewhat arrogant. His dark eyes were deep like black holes. A formidable aura permeated from his body. Standing there, he appeared like the master of the world.


    Mei Ting approached the cultivator. The former actually bowed slightly as he greeted, ��Demon Sage.��


    Mei Ting was shocked. Demon Sage, who seldom left the Devil World, had actually arrived in the Original Realm. Only the command of the Devil Emperor could spur Demon Sage into action. Even the Devil Emperor placed great importance on the current Original Realm.


    ��


    In the Original Realm, in the Empty Imperial Palace of the Central Emperor Realm, a brilliant divine light shone down from the sky. Then, a group of people appeared. The Palace Lord of the Empty Imperial Palace personally came out to welcome them. The Palace Lord bowed and greeted the cultivator who led the group. The incomers were the cultivators from the Donghuang Imperial Palace. They had led their armies here to the Central Emperor Realm.


    Aside from them, some other forces of the Divine Prefecture and the Domain Chief��s Manors had landed in the Central Emperor Realm too. In reality, many of the top forces from the Divine Prefecture had arrived before the cultivators from the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    After the cultivators of the Donghuang Imperial Palace descended in the Central Emperor Realm, various forces of the Divine Prefecture also hastened and made their way towards the realm. A group landed in the region that was previously occupied by the Shen clan. Dazzling divine halos of the Great Path surrounded this group of cultivators. They were none other than the Shen clan from the Upper Worlds.


    Back then, many members of the Shen clan from the Lower Worlds died in battle. The survivors left the place, and the clan fell apart. Right now, the top cultivators of the Shen clan from the Upper Worlds had once again arrived in their territory.


    Many forces arrived and took the Central Emperor Realm by storm. Soon, Ye Futian received news of their arrival in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. He immediately issued an order, commanding his allies, such as Nantian Divine Kingdom, Yuanyang Clan, Tianshen Academy, and Xiao clan, to temporarily evacuate the Central Emperor Realm. All these forces moved towards the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They looked like they were migrating en masse.


    At the same time, as the various forces of the Divine Prefecture descended upon the Central Emperor Realm, numerous cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm arrived in the Myriad Realm. The forces of the Devil World also reached the Higher Heavens Realm.


    As for the forces of the Dark World, they were still in the Hidden Land Realm as they had been prior to this.


    The cultivators of the Human Realm actually also chose the Central Emperor Realm and appeared in the same realm as the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture.


    Although the various forces did not come in contact with each other, they seemed to have reached a tacit understanding to not disturb each other for now. However, they also similarly took over a realm each. After all, when mobilizing the army of a world, in order for large numbers of cultivators to be able to gather at a moment��s notice, they needed to choose a place to set up base. Otherwise, once the battle started, it was easy for them to be singled out and destroyed if they were dispersed.


    After all, with the current situation in the Original Realm, no one knew when the battle between the various worlds would begin.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, news trickled in, causing the cultivators of the academy to feel unprecedented pressure. This time, they were not just facing one or two top forces.


    The forces from various worlds had arrived and occupied the Nine Realms. Aside from needing a place to set up base, there was another reason for them doing so. It was to challenge the Divine Prefecture��s absolute control over the Original Realm. As for Ye Futian, the ruler of the Original Realm, he was merely seen as a member of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace.


    Under such circumstances, the Nine Realms were beyond his control. He could only relocate all his allies to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. If they remained outside among the cultivators of the various worlds, he would feel uneasy as they would constantly be in danger.


    In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian and the other cultivators gathered. Emperor Nan said, ��The cultivators from the various worlds silently arrived and occupied different realms. They are making a statement: the Original Realm does not belong to the Divine Prefecture alone. They��re carving it up.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. He understood the intention of the various parties for doing so. Before the chaos, the Original Realm mainly consisted of the Nine Supreme Realms. Now, the only realms that were still unblemished were the Central Emperor Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Myriad Realm, the Higher Heavens Realm, and the Mountain Realm.


    The Central Emperor Realm was controlled by the Divine Prefecture. The Heavenly Mandate Realm was under the control of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm seized control of the Myriad Realm while the cultivators of the Devil World invaded the Higher Heavens Realm. The Mountain Realm belonged to the cultivators of the World of Buddhism. The other forces did not conquer this place for reasons that were self-evident.


    Buzz. Right at this moment, a cultivator descended from the sky. He was Old Ma. He seemed excited as he straightaway walked up to Ye Futian.


    ��What happened?�� Ye Futian asked when he saw Old Ma��s expression.


    ��The Shenyi Continent is moving towards our Heavenly Mandate Realm,�� reported Old Ma.


    ��The Shenyi Continent?�� Ye Futian��s heart trembled violently. ��The entire continent is moving?��


    ��Yes,�� Old Ma replied while nodding. ��I suspect that its movement is controlled by the cultivator of the Lost Clan.��


    All the cultivators were somewhat surprised. The entire continent was moving?


    Emperor Nan said, ��Prior to this, the Shenyi Continent had been wandering in the endless void. Now, it has appeared in the Original Realm. The cultivators of the Lost Clan might indeed be controlling the direction of where the continent moves.��


    All the cultivators revealed strange expressions. If what he said was true, then the Shenyi Continent might be purposely moving towards the Heavenly Mandate Realm?


    Just as they were discussing this, a few powerful auras suddenly appeared in the sky above. Dazzling divine light shimmered, and a group of people appeared outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. One of the incomers said, ��The Lost Clan is here to visit Renhuang Ye.��


    Ye Futian and the rest naturally could detect the arrival of the Lost Clan. Ye Futian responded, ��Seniors, please come in.��


    After he said this, the cultivators of the Lost Clan entered the Heavenly Mandate Academy and came straight to where Ye Futian and the rest were.


    Ye Futian rose from his seat to welcome them. He greeted, ��Seniors, welcome to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.��

 Chapter 2350 - Alliance of the Continents

    Ye Futian invited the cultivators from the Lost Clan to take their places. He was hosting this banquet in their honor.


    As guests and hosts settled in, Ye Futian said to those from the Lost Clan, ��I��m actually a bit surprised that you elders could come to Heavenly Mandate Academy for a visit.��


    ��I��m here today to discuss some matters with Emperor Ye,�� said an elder from the Lost Clan. This man was the Great Elder of the Lost Clan by the name of Sikong Nan. The Sikong Family was a powerful family that went back as far as the Lost Clan for generations. When the Lost Clan was established, the Sikong Family gave up their own clan to join the Lost Clan. They became its member to guard the Shenyi Continent together.


    ��I��m all ears, elder,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��The Shenyi Continent has drifted into the Original Realm, and Princess Donghuang appeared that day, asking the Lost Clan to be part of the realm. Under these conditions, the Shenyi Continent is the same as the Heavenly Mandate Realm. We heard that the Original Realm is currently in a turbulent state, as top forces from all worlds have entered the Original Realm. Because of this, we would like to move the Shenyi Continent here, next to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. This way, it is easier for the Lost Clan and Heavenly Mandate Academy to look out for each other. What does Emperor Ye think of that?�� Sikong Nan asked.


    When Ye Futian heard those words from Sikong Nan, he was pleasantly surprised. He said, ��The strength of the Lost Clan far exceeds that of Heavenly Mandate Academy. If you are willing to ally with Heavenly Mandate Academy, we feel nothing but gratitude and delight. What other thoughts could we possibly have?��


    A few days before this, he had been considering the circumstances. The Heavenly Mandate Academy had been declining, and it was now in a weakened state. He did not anticipate that the Lost Clan would come to ask for an alliance with them. With such a powerful ally behind them, the strength of the Heavenly Mandate Academy would increase significantly.


    ��It��s most ideal that Emperor Ye has no objections. Besides, I have one other request,�� Sikong Nan continued.


    ��Please tell,�� Ye Futian encouraged him again.


    ��The Shenyi Continent has been moving through the darkness for so many years. Our main cultivation ability concentrates on tempering the physical body and defensive techniques. I��m sure Emperor Ye has already seen a few examples of that. For generations, the cultivators of the Lost Clan have not been experts at offensive techniques because they were rarely needed. The Shenyi Continent has faced threats of death and extinction for as long as we can remember, which meant that none of us had any interest nor use for offensive techniques. However, everything is different now. I was hoping that Emperor Ye could instruct our cultivators on how to cultivate in offensive methods,�� Sikong Nan explained further.


    The cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy were rather surprised by what they heard. They had seen the prowess of the Lost Clan, but for such a powerful clan to come to Heavenly Mandate Academy and ask Ye Futian to instruct them was unexpected. However, they understood the Lost Clan��s reasoning quickly.


    All of this had to be traced back to their history. Just as the Lost Clan had stated, Shenyi Continent had been in a dark storm for a very long time. Their opponents were their environments rather than actual cultivators. Therefore, they had cultivated their defenses to the extreme, whether it be physical or battle matrixes. All of them contained supreme defensive capabilities, passed down from one generation to the next while working hard to strengthen them.


    However, since the offensive techniques were not as useful to their circumstances in the past, there were fewer opportunities to resort to those until they gradually disappeared and were forgotten altogether in their long history.


    ��That��s not a problem, of course. I will do my best to teach some of the great offensive methods to the elders of the Lost Clan so that these elders may teach them to others in the Lost Clan. Furthermore, in my opinion, many cultivators of the Lost Clan already possessed powerful physical and mental strengths. Even though they had not cultivated in offensive methods, once they started, their own abilities would aid them in mastering these methods far faster, pushing their strength to a higher level,�� Ye Futian added.


    The Lost Clan didn��t need them before, but times were different now. To enhance their combat effectiveness, the Lost Clan was more than willing.


    ��If so, my deepest gratitude to Emperor Ye. In exchange, Emperor Ye may enter some part of our clan��s secret zone paradise to cultivate. But you can understand some parts of it, not all,�� Sikong Nan continued.


    ��Understood; we can talk about that later. Elder may allow some other elders from the Lost Clan to come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. I will take them to different places to cultivate offensive techniques. At which time, they will be able to teach other cultivators,�� Ye Futian said.


    Before, when he was controlling the Original Realm, there were many books in Tianshen Academy. In addition, there was the Imperial Palace in Ziwei Segmentum, as well as Four Corner Village, which also possessed large-scale offensive techniques. All these resources could prove useful in enhancing the combat effectiveness of the Lost Clan.


    The Lost Clan was so powerful that it would be of great help to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Of course, he was willing to do this for the Lost Clan because he trusted them. Everything he had seen on the Shenyi Continent before gave him a better understanding of just what kind of clan they were. They were able to convince Renhuang of the entire continent to fight on their behalf to protect the Lost Clan at all costs. This kind of courage was enough to explain many things.


    Of course, teaching the Lost Clan their cultivation methods was not an entirely altruistic act; he was not selfless like that. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was still weak, so it was in their benefit to make friends with the powerful Lost Clan. An increase in the strength of the Lost Clan could only help them.


    ��Very well. We will have to trouble Emperor Ye, then.�� Sikong Nan nodded. If Ye Futian was willing to help them, he had all the confidence in him. After all, he knew quite a lot about Ye Futian. That day, the Lost Clan had also witnessed his combat effectiveness. Coupled with his character, he was the kind of friend that the Lost Clan was willing to befriend. Because of this, he chose to move Shenyi Continent next to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Although the Lost Clan was powerful in and of itself, what happened the other day served as a reminder to the Lost Clan that they, too, were in need of allies. As outsiders who came out of exile in the void, it was easy for them to be treated as the ��other.�� This made them an easy target for different principalities. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was already in charge of the Original Realm, and they held no malice towards the Lost Clan. Even though they were weaker, there was still hope for them.


    ��Elder is too kind.�� Ye Futian raised his cup to make a toast. A terrifying sound came from the sky above. Everyone looked up into the distance and saw that somewhere far away, there seemed to be a behemoth approaching the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    At this moment, countless cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were shocked beyond belief. They felt that the earth beneath their feet was quaking; it was as if outside the firmament, something massive was approaching.


    ��What��s that?�� As the quakes were getting stronger, all the Heavenly Mandate Realm cultivators felt their hearts beating madly. Even though the thing was still far away, they could vaguely see something coming.


    Some powerful cultivators levitated into the sky to look further into the distance.


    ��It��s a continent,�� someone whispered, making the hearts of everyone around him skipped a beat. A continent was now approaching the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian and the others watched quietly as the table in front of them was shaking nonstop.


    The Lost Clan had moved an entire continent here.


    Finally, with a loud booming sound, the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm gave a violent shudder. As the trembling slowly calmed down, another continent appeared next to the Heavenly Mandate Realm; it was the Shenyi Continent.


    ��Would you like to take a look?�� Sikong Nan asked with a smile.


    ��Yes, and elder can pick some candidates from the Lost Clan to come back here with me.�� Ye Futian smiled and nodded as all the cultivators got up to step across the void. It didn��t take long before they came to the border between Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Shenyi Continent.


    The two continents sat side by side, a sight that amazed many people. All the cultivators on each of the continents came to the border and looked at the opposite side. They were extremely shocked. What was happening?


    A continent had actually descended from the sky and settled next to the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    ��From today onward, the Shenyi Continent and the Heavenly Mandate Realm will be adjacent to each other. The Lost Clan of Shenyi Continent has formed an alliance with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. We will face upcoming changes in the Original Realm together.�� Ye Futian declared audibly as he looked below. His voice resounded throughout the boundless space, and the hearts of many shuddered.


    The Shenyi Continent. The Lost Clan!


    Was this the continent with mighty cultivators from the Original Realm? It was said that the Lost Clan was extremely powerful. Now, it had formed an alliance with Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    ��Let��s go take a look on the other side,�� some cultivators said as they flickered toward the Shenyi Continent. Similarly, the cultivators on the Shenyi Continent were also very curious about the Heavenly Mandate Realm and were making their way in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. An interesting scene appeared. Both sides were heading toward each other��s continent. They were curious to explore.


    Ye Futian and the others looked at everything happening below them quietly. They smiled without saying anything.


    ��Let��s go,�� Sikong Nan said as the group continued moving forward. It didn��t take long before they came to the land of the Lost Clan again.


    At the same time, the news of the continent��s arrival quickly spread through the Nine Realms, and the cultivators within the Nine Realms all got wind of it. Likewise, those from all major worlds became aware of the matter, and many of them were not pleased. Whatever Ye Futian did that day at the Lost Clan had gained him their friendship, resulting in the Lost Clan taking the initiative to ally with him. Now, the Heavenly Mandate Realm had become an independent force as well, equipped with the qualifications necessary to compete with them!

 Chapter 2351 - Cultivating Like Crazy

    Thus, the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Lost Clan had become allies, and cultivators from both sides moved towards each other��s continent. The two continents now seemed to be one.


    Meanwhile, all the forces from outside were paying close attention to what was happening here. At this time, Ye Futian brought the cultivators from the Lost Clan to the starry sky world to cultivate.


    In the starry sky, the divine glory of the Imperial Star was shining. Ye Futian pointed to one of the Imperial Stars, which was the one that Blind Tie communicated with back then. Ye Futian said, ��This Imperial Star should be suitable for the cultivator of the Lost Clan. It could enhance the physique of those from the Lost Clan. Elders may want to go there and give it a try.��


    Sikong Nan nodded slightly. This time he brought some of the Lost Clan��s most powerful cultivators to the Ziwei Segmentum and to the Ziwei Imperial Palace��s own Book Collection Depository. Before that, Ye Futian had taken them to browse through the books inside Tianshen Academy, and the cultivators from the Lost Clan were madly absorbing and cultivating these methods.


    Sikong Nan looked at a Renhuang of the Ninth-Level next to him. Suddenly the man moved forward, came under the starry sky, and closed his eyes. He was communicating with the Imperial Star. After a while, he successfully established a connection with that Imperial Star.


    Now that the entire starry sky world was under Ye Futian��s control, it was no longer as difficult to communicate with the Imperial Star. As long as the cultivation method and the Imperial Star had something in common, a basic resonance was possible.


    Soon, that cultivator from the Lost Clan was bathing under imperial glory as he was baptized by the Great Path. His flesh started making crystalline chiming sounds, and his already powerful physique seemed to undergo some kind of change.


    The other cultivators from the Lost Clan were watching quietly. That power was incredibly strong.


    ��No wonder this is the Imperial Star left by the Great Emperor as an inheritance. If it weren��t for Emperor Ye, it would have been difficult for us to have this opportunity,�� Sikong Nan said gratefully to Ye Futian.


    ��The elder is too kind. Since we are now allies, it is my duty to ensure that the cultivation of all the elders from the Lost Clan improves. In the future, cultivators from the Lost Clan can come to this starry sky world to be baptized by the Imperial Star. Apart from that Imperial Star, there might be other Imperial Stars that are suitable for the cultivators of the Lost Clan to cultivate with,�� Ye Futian said.


    Sikong Nan nodded slightly. Ye Futian had demonstrated sufficient sincerity in this alliance. Not only did he allow them to read the book collections of cultivation, but he had also led them here to be baptized by the Imperial Star. Indeed, he had done all that he could.


    ��In a few days, I will take you on a trip to the Divine Prefecture,�� Ye Futian continued. Sikong Nan nodded slightly, wondering what they should give to Ye Futian in return?


    Just as Ye Futian promised, after some time, Ye Futian and the others left the Original Realm for the Shangqing Domain in the Divine Prefecture and came to Four Corner Village.


    Ye Futian went to the school first and announced himself, ��Teacher.��


    ��Go and do it.�� The teacher seemed to know Ye Futian��s intention in coming here; he answered him directly for a question Futian had not yet asked.


    Ye Futian was a little surprised, but he then bowed slightly to salute the man inside, saying, ��Now that the Original Realm is going through major changes, it was necessary for me to resort to some extraordinary means. I shouldn��t be bringing anyone to disturb the village, but in order to increase our strength, I chose to come here. Thank you, teacher.��


    ��The Original Realm will be changing, and with all these major worlds participating, I am afraid I won��t be able to help you much. What you are doing now is moving in the right direction, but the most important thing is not to forget to improve your own strength; strengthening yourself is the most fundamental principle,�� the teacher responded as if to remind Ye Futian.


    ��Futian understands. But cultivation is not made in one day��s time. I only wish that the great changes in Original Realm will come a little later,�� Ye Futian replied. He knew that he needed more time, but the changes in Original Realm were coming sooner rather than later. With the arrival of the major worlds, he didn��t have much time to cultivate independently. It might still take some years for him to reach the peak of Renhuang.


    That was why he was so anxious to improve the strength of their allies and the cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy so that Heavenly Mandate Academy may survive this great impending change.


    ��Everything is fated, and the changes happening in the Original Realm are part of it. Take care of yourself.�� The teacher said, ��Go.��


    Ye Futian bowed slightly to the teacher, then turned to leave.


    In Four Corner Village, a strange aura permeated, which contained the inheritance of divine methods. Like the starry sky world of Ziwei Segmentum, the divine methods inside Four Corner Village were also under Ye Futian��s control. He could make these divine methods manifest themselves, thus allowing the cultivators of the Lost Clan to learn from them.


    Among them was the picture of the Domineering Golden Peng Bird, Divine Hammer of the Protector, Miniature World, and other divine methods. All were suitable for many cultivators from the Lost Clan.


    After the cultivators of the Lost Clan arrived, with the help of Ye Futian, they greedily absorbed all the cultivation methods made available to them here.


    ��


    As time passed, Ye Futian led the cultivators from the Lost Clan and the Heavenly Mandate Academy to continue elevating their strength. In the lands of other realms, those other cultivators settled in as well and continued exploring the secrets of the Original Realm. Temporarily, none were making any moves.


    Cultivators from all sides descended on the Original Realm, and countless powerful men gathered. However, no one dared to act impulsively. Once a war erupted, it could lead to terrible consequences. Forces from all sides were acting with extreme caution.


    There was no change in the outside world, and Ye Futian was not about to provoke forces from the outside. He knew what he wanted to do, and he was constantly improving his own strength.


    After returning from Four Corner Village, the Lost Clan finally invited Ye Futian and a group of people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy to enter the secret zone paradise of the Lost Clan. Furthermore, they opened up many of the Lost Clan��s cultivation caves to Ye Futian and his group. It was natural for the Lost Clan to express their gratitude after Ye Futian had actively fulfilled his promises to them.


    At this time, Ye Futian came to a cave in the secret zone paradise of the Lost Clan. There was a terrifying atmosphere in this cave, and many patterns were carved on the surrounding stone walls. These pictures were all of human shapes. When comprehended with divine consciousness, it was as if he had entered into another world. All the patterns on the stone walls seemed to come alive as ancient deities appeared between heaven and earth. Ye Futian, standing in the middle of it all, appeared exceptionally small, like a grain of sand in the ocean.


    What was carved here was precisely the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    Because Ye Futian wanted to comprehend the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, the cultivators of the Lost Clan brought him to this cave. According to them, the Battle Matrix of the Rocks was created by the many ancestors of the Lost Clan, and they had carved the battle matrix into this cave paradise.


    All the ancestors who had first created this Battle Matrix of the Rocks had now fallen. They had sacrificed themselves in the process of protecting the Shenyi Continent.


    Ye Futian stood quietly in this world of the ancient deities. As he was looking at those ancient god-like figures, there was a heaviness in his eyes. he bowed slightly to t

 Chapter 2352 - Idea

    In the secret zone paradise, Ye Futian quietly cultivated. It was as though he was in an ethereal space. All around him were ancient gods. The figures of the ancient gods appeared extremely powerful, and their wills filled the sky. Their wills created a miraculous resonance and seemed to be one being.


    The Battle Matrix of the Rocks required merging one��s will and body of the Great Path to unleash its power to its utmost limit. However, before one cultivated the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, one needed to cultivate body refinement techniques. The bodies of the cultivators of the Lost Clan were impressive.


    Aside from that, activating the Battle Matrix of the Rocks required the various cultivators to be of one mind. The wills of the cultivators who activated the Battle Matrix of the Rocks needed to resonate and become one. This was also no easy feat. It necessitated absolute trust between all of the cultivators and needed a special cultivation technique to achieve.


    From the looks of it, it took a lot of effort for the seniors of the Lost Clan to create the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    Time gradually passed. Ye Futian comprehended the Way quietly. After a long while, he finally opened his eyes and retracted his spiritual soul. He looked at the stone walls. Everything seemed to have returned to normal.


    He turned around and walked out of the secret zone paradise. Outside, Sikong Nan was actually still there. He seemed to have been waiting for Ye Futian all this while, accompanying Ye Futian as he cultivated in the Lost Clan secret zone.


    ��The Battle Matrix of the Rocks requires a special cultivation technique to be set up, right? Can I have a look at it?�� Ye Futian asked Sikong Nan.


    ��Of course,�� replied Sikong Nan as he nodded his head. He led Ye Futian over to the location outside another secret zone paradise.


    ��This secret zone paradise is very dangerous. There have been cultivators of the Lost Clan who never made it out after they entered. However, those who wish to cultivate the Battle Matrix of the Rocks will need to go inside. There is a technique inside that tempers one��s flesh and will. It is the most direct method for doing so,�� explained Sikong Nan. ��However, with Renhuang Ye��s ability, entering this place should not pose an issue.��


    ��All right, I will go inside and have a look around,�� said Ye Futian. He then stepped into the secret zone paradise.


    Upon entering inside, Ye Futian instantly sensed a terrifying destructive power sweep over him. It felt as though the space was shattering. There were cracks all around him as well as lights of catastrophe. An incomplete space was sealed within the secret zone paradise.


    Inside, there was also no place to dodge or hide.


    ��This���� exclaimed Ye Futian as he felt his heart tremble. His flesh shook, and brilliant divine light burst forth from his body of the Great Path. Destructive winds washed over his figure. The winds were as sharp as blades and attempted to ravage his body. The friction between the winds and his body of the Great Path actually created screeching sounds.


    Rumble. An attack seemed to strike his spiritual soul directly. A bolt of black lightning appeared to charge straight into his consciousness. It contained terrifying destructive power.


    ��Was this setup to mimic the endless dark region?�� Ye Futian thought to himself as he walked forward step by step. This secret zone paradise was like a black hole that consumed everything. The further he entered the space, the more terrifying the attack power acting on him became. It seemed endless.


    The Shenyi Continent had been wandering around the endless darkness. It never saw the light of day and was always faced with calamities. Hence, they mimicked the endless darkness and established this region to temper the cultivators of the Lost Clan. This allowed them to experience and learn to adapt to the power of darkness in the Lost Clan secret zone whenever they wished.


    Though such a method was well-intentioned, it was very harsh. The Lost Clan did not hold back against their own members. However, if they had not done so, they would have long been destroyed and would not have survived until the present day.


    What was inside this place? Ye Futian thought. His spiritual soul could not penetrate the storm. As he continued to advance, even more terrifying destructive power attacked his flesh and spiritual soul.


    Gradually, his flesh shone with brilliant divine light and appeared more and more frightening. It seemed like a divine body of the Great Path. The will he unleashed also reached an extremely powerful state. Only then could he keep himself steady as he advanced. If even he had to resort to such methods, the cultivators of the Lost Clan would have had an extremely difficult time passing through the secret zone paradise.


    After passing through the storm of darkness, he came to another space. There was also a stone wall here. On it, the depiction of a cultivation technique was carved. It was a technique to train one��s flesh and will. Used in conjunction with the storm in the black hole, it could temper one��s flesh and will to an extremely powerful state.


    That meant that the cultivators who could activate the Battle Matrix of the Rocks had all been here before.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and began to cultivate. After a period of time, he left the place and once again met with Sikong Nan.


    ��How did it feel?�� Sikong Nan asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian commented, ��The seniors of the Lost Clan were admirable for managing to create such cultivation techniques. However, after creating them, the seniors did not derive other methods of attack. They merely utilized this to resolve the crisis of the Shenyi Continent and protect the continent. It is somewhat of a waste.��


    ��Renhuang Ye, what do you mean by this?�� asked Sikong Nan.


    Ye Futian explained, ��The Battle Matrix of the Rocks has astonishing defensive power. If the Lost Clan relied on the defense of the matrix and combined it with other offensive techniques, such a combination would be extremely powerful. If you were to face another battle like the one before, you would not need to sacrifice your lives. You could have directly deterred the cultivators of the Ancient God Clan from the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��The requirements for the Battle Matrix of the Rocks are very high. The cultivators in the battle matrix need to have their powers resonate. If they attack individually, it will destroy the balance of the battle matrix. The seniors who created the Battle Matrix of the Rocks did not create attack techniques for it. Does Renhuang Ye have any ideas in mind?�� Sikong Nan said when he heard Ye Futian��s words. He had a pondering look. He seemed to have noticed something from Ye Futian��s statement.


    ��Hmm,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head. ��I believe that the Battle Matrix of the Rocks can still be modified so that the cultivators in it can achieve resonance and unleash an Art of Supreme Attack of the Great Path. That way, the might of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks will be improved slightly.��


    When Sikong Nan heard Ye Futian say this, he revealed a strange expression. He said, ��If we can truly manage to do so, it will be more than just a slight improvement. Due to being a defensive matrix, the Battle Matrix of the Rocks has always been lacking in offensive capabilities. If it is as you say, it will be a transformation. Its power will improve immensely.��


    ��Maybe,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Renhuang Ye, are you confident in pulling it off?�� asked Sikong Nan.


    ��I will try,�� replied Ye Futian.


    ��All right. If that is the case, we will trouble you to do so,�� said Sikong Nan as he nodded his head.


    ��I will cultivate in the battle matrix secret zone paradise for a few days,�� said Ye Futian as he headed towards the previous secret zone paradise. He then once again entered there to cultivate.


    Sikong Nan stood outside and watched as Ye Futian walked inside. There was a look of anticipation in his eyes. If Ye Futian could add an Art of Supreme Attack to the Battle Matrix of the Rocks as he said, the overall ability of the Lost Clan would reach a whole new level. That way, in the current chaotic Original Realm, their ability to protect themselves would be higher.

 Chapter 2353 - Realization

    In the gigantic empty region of the Lost Clan, many powerful Renhuangs of the Lost Clan gathered.


    Sikong Nan and a few elders of the Lost Clan were also there. They were standing to one side and looking straight ahead. There were nine Renhuangs at the same cultivation Plane standing there. They were all eighth-tier Renhuangs with frightening auras.


    Among them, there was another white-haired figure. It was Ye Futian.


    After cultivating in the secret zone paradise for a few days, Ye Futian wanted to attempt to improve the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. This was their first experiment.


    The Lost Clan had a high opinion of Ye Futian. This might cause the ability of their clan to reach a new level. The cultivators were naturally exceptionally serious. Sikong Nan and the other senior members were all present.


    ��Seniors, please set up the matrix,�� Ye Futian said. The nine great Renhuangs stepped forward. They stood in the sky in different locations. The aura of the Great Path burst forth from their bodies as divine light shone brightly. Powerful wills emanated from their bodies.


    Instantly, illusory figures of the ancient gods appeared and loomed over the sky. They formed some sort of resonance under the influence of the wills of the Renhuangs. Then, they weaved together, and an enclosed space was formed.


    A solemn sound, similar to the rhythm of the Great Path, echoed. The space suddenly became exceptionally grim. Very quickly, the Battle Matrix of the Rocks took shape. A terrifying power erupted from the battle matrix, sealing off this part of the sky.


    Ye Futian stood in the battle matrix, wielding a long spear. Divine light of the Great Path circled around him, and terrifying battle intent emanated from the long spear. The sound of the Great Path also roared from within his body. Ye Futian��s figure flashed, and he charged out like a bolt of lightning. He was like a god of war as he stabbed straight out with his long spear.


    Bang. With a loud explosion, the illusory figures exploded and shattered. The long spear struck a point on the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. In an instant, the cultivators who had set up the Battle Matrix of the Rocks all closed their eyes. Their wills resonated, followed by the divine light of the Great Path shining. All of the defensive power of the battle matrix seemed to gather at the point that Ye Futian had struck, causing the long spear to be unable to pierce through.


    This was the strength of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. The defensive power of the battle matrix could be focused on one region, causing it to be as indestructible as a rock.


    ��Try attacking,�� said Ye Futian. A cultivator immediately lifted his hand and struck out. A gigantic palm strike charged towards Ye Futian. However, at the same time, a flaw surfaced on the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. In the direction of the cultivator who was attacking, a huge hole appeared. A cultivator attacking directly disrupted the balance of the matrix.


    Bang. Ye Futian��s long spear struck out and shattered the palm strike. He looked towards the battle matrix and then stepped out. He also merged with the battle matrix and became a part of it.


    Ye Futian waved his arm, and the guqin strings of the Great Path before him materialized into a guqin. He played some notes. As the music flowed, everyone��s hearts seemed to skip and beat according to the rhythm. Each and every musical note had the power to influence their hearts.


    When Ye Futian inherited the teachings of Shenyin the Great, he also received many songs that the Great Emperor had created. Even though the songs were not as good as the Divine Melody Song of the Lost Divine that he created, they still had their merits. After all, Shenyin the Great was the top Rhythmic Sorcerer of his time.


    The songs that he created were undoubtedly great.


    A song was played as the musical notes danced around in the air. The sound of the guqin was crisp and melodious. It contained a magical power, which allowed the cultivators to resonate with it through their spiritual energy. They seemed to have become one with the music.


    Gradually, the music enveloped every inch of the space. In the battle matrix, the spiritual energy of all the cultivators merged with the music. Their wills resonated with the beat of the music.


    In the distance, Sikong Nan and the rest of the cultivators were observing the happenings in the battle matrix. Their gazes changed as they sensed the transformation which occurred in the matrix. They could sense a rhythmic storm of the guqin. This rhythmic storm was a formless storm of Rhythmic Sorcery. It surrounded the entire Battle Matrix of the Rocks and became one with it. It was as though the music had completely merged into the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. The cultivators were astonished by this occurrence.


    ��I heard that he has received the teachings of the ancient Shenyin the Great?�� asked an elder of the Lost Clan.


    ��Hmm. Rumor has it that Shenyin the Great was the top Rhythmic Sorcerer of his time,�� Sikong Nan explained. ��There are relatively few cultivators in the world who are proficient in the Way of Rhythm. There are even fewer of them who can cultivate the Way up to a high level. It��s rare for someone to have such attainment in music. Ye Futian must have been very good in Rhythmic Sorcery even before he obtained the inheritance of Shenyin the Great.��


    The other cultivators nodded in agreement. They continued to listen to the music quietly. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks seemed to have become even more complete with the support of the music. Everything cohered into a unified whole.


    As the music grew more and more intense, the spiritual energy unleashed by the nine cultivators also intensified. The divine light shone brilliantly. The aura circulating in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks became even more frightening. The ancient gods were all shimmering with bright golden light. The cultivators in the battle matrix seemed to have lost their sense of self and joined together harmoniously.


    Rumble. Frightening aura spread outwards. The various cultivators moved at the same time. They looked ahead, and their movements were synchronized. The figures of the ancient gods raised their hands at the same time and sent palm strikes directly downwards. Intense rumbling of the Great Path could be heard. In the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, various palm prints appeared and came crashing downwards.


    This scene caused Sikong Nan and the other cultivators to have sharp gazes. They seemed to have witnessed the prototype of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks unleashing a powerful offensive technique.


    Powerful aura still emanated from within the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Then, a second wave of attacks burst forth. The ancient gods came to life. All of them sent out offensive techniques simultaneously. The might of their attacks was astonishing.


    Gradually, as they kept on attacking, their attacks seemed to not be as in sync as before. It appeared somewhat chaotic.


    ��Did it fail?�� mumbled the elders of the Lost Clan over where Sikong Nan was when they saw this scene.


    The surrounding cultivators stared at the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Sikong Nan narrowed his gaze slightly. He shook his head and said, ��No. Although the attacks appear chaotic, they are, in fact, following the same rhythm. Wherever an attack from an ancient god in one place weakens, the attacks in other locations will grow stronger.��


    The attacks landed time and time again. Suddenly, within the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, a gigantic palm print appeared. Its might was astonishing. It seemed to burst forth from one of the figures of the ancient gods. The body of the ancient god was dazzling from head to toe and contained world-dominating might. The will of the cultivators had all merged into the figure of this ancient god, causing awe-inspiring attack power to burst forth.


    When the attack landed, the heavens and earth seemed to collapse. It was far superior to any of the previous attacks.


    ��It is a success,�� mumbled Sikong Nan when he saw this scene. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks had been fully integrated. It was not only complete in terms of defense but also attack. They could gather the power of the battle matrix in different locations whenever they wanted and unleash a unified attack.


    They looked at the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. It was now complete. Compared to before, it had undergone a huge transformation.


    In the battle matrix, the eighth-tier Renhuangs also sensed this. They were all somewhat excited. Right then, their wills dispersed, and the battle matrix immediately dissipated. The sound of the guqin stopped playing, and the Battle Matrix of the Rocks disappeared along with it, leaving Ye Futian and the nine Renhuangs standing there.


    When the Renhuangs looked at Ye Futian, their eyes sparkled with astonishment. They did not expect the experiment to be successful. Just now, they could clearly sense that they were more unified than any of their previous attempts. The resonance they felt made them feel as though the nine of them were a single entity.


    ��Renhuang Ye.�� Sikong Nan and the rest smiled as they walked up to Ye Futian. Sikong Nan said, ��I did not expect us to succeed on our first trial. Your music is indeed marvelous.��


    ��We��re still far from succeeding,�� Ye Futian disagreed while shaking his head. This caused the rest of them to be stupefied. They were still far from success?


    Just now, hadn��t they succeeded?


    Ye Futian expounded, ��Just now, the nine cultivators did it with my music as the medium. However, in order for it to be called a success, Seniors from the Lost Clan need to be able to achieve the resonance on their own without the guidance of the music. Otherwise, you have to always rely on it.��


    ��Since that��s the case, then Renhuang Ye can be the crux of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks,�� said Sikong Nan with a smile. However, he also understood from Ye Futian��s words that they still had a long way to go. Ye Futian��s idea was plausible.

 Chapter 2354 - : Information

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian didn��t leave after trying to change the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Instead, he stayed in the Lost Clan, trying to improve himself.


    In his normal state, he could only urge the Battle Matrix of the Rocks at a level of Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm. To get to an even more powerful state so that he could lead the Battle Matrix of the Rocks in a higher realm, he would require some unique means.


    Although he hoped that one day the cultivators of the Lost Clan could break away from the sound of guqin while still achieving full resonance, it would take time and practice, as well as absolute mutual trust between each other. All of which could not be done in just a day or two.


    At the same time, Ye Futian asked some cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate in both the Battle Matrix of the Rocks and the Rock Battle Form to purify their spiritual will.


    At this moment, in a cave inside the Lost Clan, the Great Path roared inside Ye Futian��s body. Infinite characters flew out from that divine body, creating an extremely radiant sight. As those characters surrounded him, the divine light of the Great Path merged as well, and Ye Futian��s body was suddenly expanding. At the same time, a phantom of the ancient god appeared behind him, like a Vajra battle form that contained powerful coercion. His entire body was filled with brilliant light as the divine light of the Great Path circulated above this battle form.


    This was the Rock Battle Form. The ancestors of the Lost Clan combined the power of Gengjin and space to forge this powerful battle form, rendering it indestructible and invincible, which was also the foundation of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Although he attempted to use the sound of guqin to unify the Rock Battle Matrix, he himself was separated from it. He had considered that if there were to be battles in the future, he had to be within the matrix, so it became necessary for him to cultivate this battle form. By then, he could be a part of the battle matrix and work in sync with it during the fighting.


    There were nine levels of the Rock Battle Form. The first three levels were easy enough to cultivate, and the middle three levels weren��t considered difficult either; it was no problem for people in their realm to cultivate them. The challenges were mostly on the last three levels, which required powerful spiritual will to create a perfect battle form. The will and the battle form must be perfect as one. At the top limit of the cultivation, one transformed into an ancient deity and became part of it.


    Previously in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, those cultivators who were urging the battle matrix had attempted to urge the strongest state of their own Battle Form. However, it was very dangerous for them because they had not yet reached that point in their cultivation.


    There were many cave paradises in the secret zone of the Lost Clan, but Ye Futian did not have much interest in cultivating other methods inside those caves. He was an expert at many abilities, most of which were inherited from Great Emperors. Therefore, it was meaningless for him to cultivate other methods or abilities. What he wanted to achieve now was improving his overall strength.


    For him, this meant that it could only be achieved by altering the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. The battle matrix formed by top Renhuang was far different in combat effectiveness than the one that came just individuals.


    While he was cultivating, the other forces did not remain idle. How could the people from these top forces so easily let go of this continent that had descended? Ye Futian tried to avoid destroying the foundation of the continent, but these outsiders did not have those concerns; they simply didn��t care enough.


    Myriad Realm and the Higher Heavens Realm had both experienced severe destructions. Cultivators from the Empty Divine Realm and the Devil World were currently plundering the secrets of these two realms. It was the Central Emperor Realm that had been very quiet.


    Because the cultivators from Divine Prefecture were there, Princess Donghuang was there along with the great imperial army. None of the principalities from the Divine Prefecture dared to do anything foolish, and the cultivators from the Human Realm would not go about and cause damages at will.


    Today, out of all the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms of the Original Realm, probably only the Central Emperor Realm, the Heavenly Mandate Realm, and the Mountain Realm were still intact. No cultivators dared to touch the Mountain Realm because the power of Buddhism was still something to be reckoned with in the Upper Worlds.


    On this day, in the secret zone of the Lost Clan, Old Ma came looking for Ye Futian.


    ��Uncle Ma, did anything happened at the academy?�� Ye Futian asked when he saw Old Ma coming over.


    ��Nothing much. But not long ago, some people came to the academy asking to see you,�� Old Ma responded.


    Ye Futian raised his eyebrow slightly. Someone wanted to see him?


    For Old Ma to come and inform him personally, the person��s identity must not have been ordinary, or else Old Ma and the others would have refused this person outright instead of coming over to find him.


    As if he had read Ye Futian��s mind, Old Ma said, ��Lord Taixuan told them that you are cultivating in retreat and asked the visitor to come back in a few days. However, these people were extremely aggressive and had forced their way in. With supreme cultivators in tow, we couldn��t stop them. They went straight into the Cottage inside Heavenly Mandate Academy, saying that they will stay there until you get back.��


    ��But, they didn��t seem to be malicious. Although they forced their way in, they didn��t hurt anyone,�� Old Ma continued.


    Ye Futian nodded. Had the other party injured any of the cultivators inside the academy, Old Ma would not have such an easy-going attitude. Even so, for these people to force their way into the Heavenly Mandate Academy was still a little out of line and way too arrogant.


    ��Who were they?�� Ye Futian asked. He was already walking outside as he spoke. Clearly, he understood that since Old Ma came here, it meant that they couldn��t handle the situation and that he needed to go back.


    ��The Ancient God Clan of Divine Prefecture, the overlord of the West Sea Domain, the West Imperial Palace,�� Old Ma responded. ��Previously, they had also participated in that battle with the Lost Clan.��


    Ye Futian nodded, recalling some things about this principality. At that time, the person in charge of West Imperial Palace was a Renhuang of the Eighth-Realm, with overpowering strength. He was a man of few words and not fond of meaningless chit-chat. He wondered if it was him this time who led people to the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    But what business would West Imperial Palace have with him now?


    It didn��t take long before Ye Futian was out of the secret zone, bade his goodbye to the Lost Clan, and departed with Old Ma to the Heavenly Mandate Academy without asking anyone else from the academy to accompany them. After all, the two continents were now right next to each other; he didn��t need to bother anyone else from the academy cultivating in the Lost Clan. It was quite sufficient for him to handle this matter himself.


    Inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy, many cultivators from the academy were gathering around the Cottage. In a courtyard outside of the Cottage, a group of people stood there quietly. The person in the lead seemed particularly interested in the Cottage. The person was moving around freely as if this place was part of the West Imperial Palace. They did not show the slightest sense of peculiarity.


    At this moment, one of them looked up in the distance and said, ��He is here.��


    With that, the cultivators from West Imperial Palace looked in one direction and heard a voice from a distance, ��The West Imperial Palace came to visit us, and I was not able to welcome you in person. I ask for your forgiveness.��


    After those words fell, Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the sky above the academy, then descended into the Cottage inside, looking at the group of cultivators facing him.


    The makeup of the delegation from West Imperial Palace was a strong one. At the time when they were at the Lost Clan, he did not observe them too closely. However, now that he was reassessing the power of the Ancient God Clan, it was indeed terrifying.


    His eye directed at the cultivator heading the delegation again and saw that it was a woman. However, she appeared quite handsome, dressed in attire that appeared rather gender-neutral. Nonetheless, it was difficult to conceal her alluring feature and demeanor.


    Ye Futian remembered that in the last war with the Lost Clan, this woman was not part of it, so she might be someone who came into the picture later.


    But he saw that the woman, likewise, was assessing him in a similar way. ��Ye Futian, who came from the Lower Worlds under the jurisdiction of Emperor Xia��s Realm, entered Emperor Xia��s Realm to cultivate. Then he moved from the Crimson Dragon Realm to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Later, his name was known throughout the Nine Realms, reputed as the uncrowned king of the Original Realm.��


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened a bit. Had the other side been checking on him?


    Seeing Ye Futian��s expression, the person knew that he was a little displeased. She explained, ��Emperor Ye need not be surprised by this. In the battle at the Lost Clan, Emperor Ye��s performance was amazing in defeating the people of Ancient God Clan, and it was said that you also defeated the Devil Emperor��s direct disciple, Xiao Mu. How could we not be intrigued by such a legendary figure like yourself? And the West Imperial Palace is not alone. By now, the cultivation experience of Emperor Ye was probably quite a bit clearer to most top principalities in Divine Prefecture. After all, none of this is a secret. Everything leaves a trail to be followed.��

 Chapter 2355 - : West Imperial Palace

    Ye Futian��s eyes were a little cold when he heard what the woman had to say. Were these forces in Divine Prefecture checking into his background?


    Indeed, as the other stated, his climb to fame could not be completely erased. In the Heavenly Mandate Realm alone, more than a few people knew that he had first come from the Crimson Dragon Realm. And anyone who went to the Crimson Dragon Realm could surely trace his movements back to Emperor Xia��s Realm.


    Once they were at Emperor Xia��s Realm, it wouldn��t be hard to continue tracking his history, layer by layer. As long as they were determined enough, there was enough information for them to dig up.


    When they set their minds on investigating something, those top powers in Divine Prefecture had a way to uncover anything they want, unless it was something extremely secretive.


    ��It seems that Emperor Ye cared a lot about that. But as eye-catching as Emperor Ye has been, I��m sure you understand this is quite unavoidable. Not to mention that Emperor Ye has already relocated families and associates from the Lower Worlds to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, then sent them on to Ziwei Segmentum. There is not much sense in disguising these details.�� The beautiful eyes of the peerless empress from West Imperial Palace stared directly into Ye Futian��s as if she was trying to fathom something from those eyes of his.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at her. When they locked eyes, Ye Futian seemed to have calmed down, not showing his emotions from before. It seemed that he no longer cared about what the other person had to say.


    ��West Imperial Palace didn��t come here just to tell me this, surely?�� Ye Futian looked at the empress and said. ��Furthermore, the way by which you all forced your way into the Heavenly Mandate Academy doesn��t seem very friendly.��


    ��Emperor Ye was cultivating in the Lost Clan and avoided receiving visitors. Without using extraordinary measures, how could we meet Emperor Ye face to face?�� the Empress answered with tranquility. ��As for our visit this time, naturally, we are not here just to inform you that those principalities in the Divine Prefecture were checking you out; we just wanted to remind Emperor Ye that as someone who caused this many waves, you are attracting unwanted attention. What��s more, Emperor Ye is in possession of inheritances from several Great Emperors. Principalities from whichever side have some designs of their own.��


    ��Furthermore, don��t forget that while you were at the Lost Clan, Emperor Ye had already offended most of the cultivators in Divine Prefecture, including West Imperial Palace. Therefore, although the Original Realm is part of Divine Prefecture, Emperor Ye must have some ideas as to the feelings of these forces from Divine Prefecture. Now, cultivators in other worlds are also watching closely, and surely, they are not friendlies as far as Ye Futian is concerned. If anything were to happen in the future, how many forces do you think would be willing to stand up for the Heavenly Mandate Academy? Do you think those forces in the Divine Prefecture would?��


    The Empress continued. In fact, what she said was true enough. Although the Original Realm was part of the Divine Prefecture, if a war were really to break out, they would be lucky if these forces from Divine Prefecture didn��t join in on the attack.


    ��In that case, I have to thank West Imperial Palace for reminding me. However, I still don��t understand what any of this has to do with the West Imperial Palace,�� Ye Futian continued. The other was analyzing the situation with him and warning him at the same time, but could the West Imperial Palace have gone through all this trouble just to remind him?


    Why bother going through so much trouble?


    ��Heavenly Mandate Academy is the heart of the Nine Realms, and the Original Realm is part of the Divine Prefecture. Now, Emperor Ye��s achievements are one of a kind. As a Renhuang of the Seventh-Realm to sit at the top of Heavenly Mandate Academy, no matter how you look at it, it is something truly remarkable,�� the empress continued. In front of Ye Futian, there was always a faint aura of the Great Path permeating from her.


    Ye Futian looked at her with some vague understanding. After a moment of silence, he continued, ��So, what is the purpose of the West Imperial Palace coming to visit the Heavenly Mandate Academy?��


    ��Previously, I have talked to Emperor Ye about the current situation facing the Heavenly Mandate Academy. I think Emperor Ye and Heavenly Mandate Academy are both in need of friends. You will need to integrate into the Divine Prefecture so you won��t be isolated in the future.�� The woman continued, ��Although the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Lost Clan have forged an alliance, the Lost Clan is also considered an external force that came to the Original Realm from the void, and the Divine Prefecture still does not identify with the Lost Clan. The Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Lost Clan together could be considered powerful, but it will be difficult to face everyone together.��


    ��West Imperial Palace desires to ally with the Heavenly Mandate Academy?�� Ye Futian looked at her and asked.


    ��The West Imperial Palace is a supreme principality above all and has enough influence in the West Sea Domain. If Emperor Ye wants to, we can be friends. The West Imperial Palace will help the Heavenly Mandate Academy recruit other forces in the West Sea Domain to form an alliance. This way, the Heavenly Mandate Academy can become part of the entire Western Sea Domain of Divine Prefecture. There will inevitably be some forces in other areas of Divine Prefecture who will not agree, but there won��t be much they can do. Especially with Princess Donghuang in charge, it might restrain some of these forces in Divine Prefecture,�� the woman from West Imperial Palace continued.


    ��In that case, many thanks to the goddess,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy wishes to make more friends, and what better friendship than being allied with the West Imperial Palace and the forces in the West Sea Domain? Naturally, the Heavenly Mandate Academy is more than willing. I myself also want to be good friends with you, goddess.��


    Would the West Imperial Palace ally so easily with the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    If this were really the case, he wouldn��t mind. After all, he understood that what the other had just laid out for him was the truth. The situation as it stood today was not the most favorable for the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The woman from the West Imperial Palace was caught by surprise when Ye Futian readily agreed with her. This was a man who knew how to take advantage of any situation. If the West Imperial Palace wanted to stand on the side of Heavenly Mandate Academy, they would also endure a great deal of pressure; they knew the current situation better than anyone.


    The alliance was true enough, but it was not as simple as all that.


    ��Is Emperor Ye willing to enter the West Imperial Palace to cultivate, then?�� the woman asked suddenly. Ye Futian was stunned. To cultivate at West Imperial Palace?


    ��What exactly does goddess mean by this?�� Ye Futian looked at the other and queried.


    ��The West Imperial Palace is inherited from the West Emperor, and it is the overlord of the West Sea Domain. The inheritance of the West Emperor is contained in the imperial palace. I know that Emperor Ye shoulders the inheritance of several Great Emperors, but the inheritance of any Great Emperor is extraordinary. If Emperor Ye is willing to enter the West Imperial Palace to cultivate, you will have the opportunity to inherit from yet another Great Emperor.�� The woman continued, ��In addition, the West Imperial Palace will treat Emperor Ye fairly. Whatever status or conditions that Emperor Ye desires, we will consider them all.��


    Behind Ye Futian, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were looking at this peerless empress from the West Imperial Palace. Secretly, they were all amazed at the ambition expressed by West Imperial Palace. They were bold enough to persuade Ye Futian to cultivate in the West Imperial Palace, thus becoming a part of the West Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian��s status was not as it was once. Today, he was the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, and the leader of Four Corner Village��all at the same time. In addition, he shouldered the inheritance from Ziwei the Great, Shenjia the Great Emperor, and Shenyin the Great, simultaneously. Not long ago, he was ruling the land of the Original Realm.


    What kind of principality dared to convince him to cultivate under them?


    From the perspective of those from the Heavenly Mandate Academy, such a request was only possible unless it was the likes of Donghuang the Great, the Devil Emperor, the Evil Emperor, and other such characters of this caliber who requested person. For a Great Emperor who was no more, it was just not enough to attract Ye Futian to cultivate under him with the inheritance alone!

 Chapter 2356 - Xi Chiyao

    Ye Futian looked at the female Renhuang from the West Imperial Palace and said, ��May I ask who you are, Goddess?��


    ��I am Xi Chiyao from the West Imperial Palace,�� said the woman.


    ��Xi Chiyao,�� mumbled Ye Futian to himself. Behind Xi Chiyao, an elder from West Imperial Palace said, ��Goddess Chiyao is a descendant of the West Emperor and is the first heir of West Imperial Palace.��


    When Ye Futian heard the elder say this, he had a strange expression. Back during the battle against the Lost Clan, he had not seen Xi Chiyao. Another cultivator had participated in the battle. She most likely was not in the Original Realm back then. After Princess Donghuang gave the order, the various forces of the Divine Prefecture must have sent more of their members down to the Lower Worlds. Only then did Xi Chiyao come here.


    Xi Chiyao also claimed to be the descendant of the West Emperor and the first heir of the West Imperial Palace. Her status was extremely noble. From the looks of it, the other party also placed great importance on this matter.


    In reality, Ye Futian did not know much about Xi Chiyao��s status in the West Sea Domain. Xi Chiyao had already been famous for many years there. She was born into an extraordinary background. She was the direct descendant of the West Emperor. When she received her family inheritance, she awakened the bloodline of the West Emperor and had extremely high compatibility with its power. She displayed unparalleled talent and was a perfect fit for the teachings that the West Emperor had left behind. Hence, she was declared to be the first heir of the West Imperial Palace.


    If it weren��t for the fact that such a huge change was occurring in the Original Realm, it would have been impossible for a person of her standing to come to the Lower Worlds.


    There was a huge commotion in the various major worlds. A storm was surging in the Original Realm. The saying that the changes of the worlds would begin in the Original Realm had been passed down in the Divine Prefecture. Hence, various forces of the Divine Prefecture had arrived here. She, the Goddess of the West Imperial Palace and its first heir, had also arrived.


    As for why she had come to invite Ye Futian, it was actually because she wanted to test him. Based on the investigation carried out by the West Imperial Palace on Ye Futian, they discovered that there were suspicious elements regarding Ye Futian��s background. He originated from the Nine States in the Lower Worlds. However, there were many parts of his journey up to the present day that were unclear.


    As the Goddess of the West Imperial Palace, Xi Chiyao had a thorough view of the talents of the cultivation world. Ordinary people might rely on extremely tenacious will, faith, and chance to advance forward, but it was impossible for them to have a smooth journey all the way. Ye Futian had developed too rapidly to the point that he could subdue the various Proud Sons of Heaven. He did not appear to be an ordinary figure.


    If that was the case, it was likely that he was not from the Lower Worlds.


    According to their investigation, Ye Futian��s birthplace seemed to have vanished completely. The records of his youth were erased just like that.


    There were many mysterious points regarding Ye Futian. He seemed to hide many secrets. He also controlled the Ziwei Segmentum and the Four Corner Village and bore the teachings of several Great Emperors. Hence, Xi Chiyao had come over to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to win over Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian revealed a look of deep thought as he looked at Xi Chiyao and said, ��Goddess Chiyao, you mean to say you will agree to any condition I put forward?��


    Ye Futian was smiling as he looked at Xi Chiyao. Her temperament was extraordinary. There seemed to be a formless glow around her figure. It was as though divine light circled around her. Ordinary people would be ashamed of themselves and would not dare to approach someone with such temperament.


    When Xi Chiyao saw Ye Futian��s gaze scanning her, she revealed a strange look. The cultivators of the West Imperial Palace frowned slightly. Was Ye Futian after the Goddess herself?


    ��Renhuang Ye, what are your conditions?�� Xi Chiyao asked. Her expression was normal, and she appeared calm.


    Ye Futian slowly said, ��Since we are forming an alliance, we naturally need to show our sincerity. Goddess Chiyao has extraordinary talent. Would you be willing to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate with me as a member? If the West Imperial Palace is willing to allow me to inherit the teachings of the West Emperor, I will not let Goddess get the short end of the stick. I will guide you in your cultivation and give you the opportunity to inherit the teachings of the Great Emperors that I have obtained.��


    As he said this, a formless aura emanated from the bodies of the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace. They frowned, and their auras instantly turned solemn.


    ��So presumptuous,�� chided an elder as he coldly snorted.


    Goddess Chiyao was the first heir of the West Imperial Palace. Ye Futian wanted Goddess to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy and cultivate? She had to follow him?


    He also claimed that he would not let Goddess get the short end of the stick and would guide her in her cultivation?


    Ye Futian spoke with such arrogance.


    However, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had indifferent expressions, as though it was a matter of course. These cultivators of the West Imperial Palace had trespassed in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They wanted Ye Futian to join the West Imperial Palace to cultivate. They also wanted to form an alliance with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If that was the case, there was nothing to be said about the condition Ye Futian suggested. If he joined the West Imperial Palace to cultivate, Goddess Chiyao would likewise join the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Otherwise, wouldn��t Ye Futian be inferior to the other party?


    ��How is this considered presumptuous? Futian is the heir of several Great Emperors. He defeated a disciple of the Devil Emperor and an heir of the Ancient God Clan. He is also the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace. How is he inferior to Goddess Chiyao?�� Renhuang Chen said. His tone sounded displeased. Since the other party had come here, how could they not show any sincerity? How was this forming an alliance? They clearly wanted to claim the powers that Ye Futian controlled as their own.


    ��How can Goddess be compared to Hua Junlai?�� an elder of the West Imperial Palace coldly snorted. Ye Futian had defeated Hua Junlai, the heir of the Haotian Clan in the region of the Lost Clan. However, it was apparent that in the eyes of the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace, Hua Junlai was unqualified to be compared to Xi Chiyao.


    Xi Chiyao was the first heir of the West Imperial Palace and the top genius recognized in the West Sea Domain. She was destined to become the top figure and ruler of the West Sea Domain.


    Although Hua Junlai was the heir of the Haotian Clan, he was not the only heir in the clan. Xi Chiyao��s standing in the West Sea Domain could not be compared to Hua Junlai��s standing in the Nantian Domain.


    ��Hua Junlai is but a nobody who lost to Futian. However, Ye Futian managed to suppress him even though his own cultivation was a Plane lower than that of Hua Junlai. So what if Goddess Chiyao is even more outstanding than Hua Junlai?�� Renhuang Chen replied indifferently. The other party��s tone was arrogant, so he naturally did not mince his words either. Ye Futian was the heir chosen by Great Emperor Ziwei. He would not be inferior to the heir of the West Emperor.


    In ancient times, Great Emperor Ziwei was one of the strongest Great Emperors. He was an existence that stood at the peak. Several Great Emperors were under his command.


    Renhuang Chen was not holding back when he said this. The members of the West Imperial Palace believed that Goddess Chiyao was peerless. However, the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy did not think so. So what if she was Goddess Chiyao? Before Ye Futian, she was unqualified to act arrogant.


    ��I wish to hear Renhuang Ye��s opinion,�� Xi Chiyao said as she looked towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at her and said, ��I have already stated my opinion. Could it be that Goddess is not willing to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy and cultivate together with me?��


    When Xi Chiyao heard Ye Futian��s words, she actually smiled. She had a face that could launch a thousand ships. Many cultivators of the West Imperial Palace were somewhat mesmerized. Xi Chiyao rarely revealed such a smile.


    This Ye Futian was truly presumptuous.


    ��As expected of Renhuang Ye. You are exactly as I have heard,�� Xi Chiyao said as she smiled. ��Renhuang Ye, it is fine if you want me to cultivate with you. However, my answer will depend on your skill.��

 Chapter 2357 - Raining Swords

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When Ye Futian heard Xi Chiyao��s words, he smiled at her and said, ��Goddess Chiyao, do you mean to say that you wish to test me?��


    Xi Chiyao��s cultivation was at the same level as Hua Junlai from the Haotian Clan. She was an eighth-tier Renhuang. However, from the way the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace acted, Xi Chiyao��s cultivation should be far stronger than that of Hua Junlai. Unfortunately, Ye Futian knew little about these peerless figures of the Divine Prefecture.


    ?


    They were both cultivators of the Ancient God Clan, but there would certainly be a difference between them. After all, Xi Chiyao was the descendant of the West Emperor and was also the first heir of the West Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian wondered how her abilities would compare to Xiao Mu��s because he was a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor.


    Ye Futian wanted to test her abilities. He was also curious what level of combat ability a top monstrous figure of the Divine Prefecture had.


    The cultivators of the West Imperial Palace had displeased expressions. As expected, this top genius of the Original Realm was extremely arrogant. They had investigated everything about him before this. It was indeed the case that in Ye Futian��s long development, almost no one of his generation managed to suppress him. No wonder he behaved so presumptuously.


    ��If that is the case, I also wish to test out Renhuang Ye��s abilities myself,�� said Xi Chiyao. Divine light circled around her body as she looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful gaze. Ye Futian��s figure flashed. He traversed the space in an instant and appeared high in the sky.


    Xi Chiyao raised her head slightly as she took light steps forward. Divine light flashed, and she also floated upwards. In an instant, the two of them appeared in a region extremely high above the ground. In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, cultivators similarly rose into the sky. There were cultivators from the academy as well as the West Imperial Palace. They stood at different locations as they looked up at the two silhouettes in the sky.


    Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao stood across from each other. Their figures were extremely dazzling to behold. Ye Futian��s Divine Body of the Great Path shone brilliantly. Xi Chiyao was like a peerless goddess, noble and arrogant. Her temperament was without equal. Her body was bathed in divine imperial glory, causing people not to dare look at her directly. It was as though she was a true goddess.


    Xi Chiyao was the cultivator who had the highest compatibility with the teachings of the West Emperor. No one like her had appeared in the West Imperial Palace in the past millennia. She was the strongest person who awakened to its power. Hence, she had long been viewed as the first heir by the West Imperial Palace. In the current West Imperial Palace, no one could challenge her position.


    Wherever she went, she would always have multitudes of cultivators escorting her. The various cultivators of the West Imperial Palace would be there to protect her. This time, she had come to the Lower Worlds. That meant that the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace had also come along to the Original Realm.


    ��Goddess Chiyao, shall we?�� invited Ye Futian. He seemed polite.


    ��Renhuang Ye, your cultivation Plane is lower than mine. You should start us off,�� replied Xi Chiyao. From their exchange, others could see how proud they were. They were reluctant to make the first move.


    From afar, the wills of cultivators descended upon them. Many cultivators below knew that they were not the only ones around. The West Imperial Palace coming over to the Heavenly Mandate Academy had drawn the attention of many of the top forces from the Central Emperor Realm in the Divine Prefecture. Many of them had already arrived, but they had kept themselves out of sight and had not made themselves known.


    During the battle against the Lost Clan, Ye Futian suppressed Hua Junlai with his overwhelming might. Now, would he emerge victorious against Xi Chiyao, the top monstrous figure of the West Sea Domain and the Princess of the West Imperial Palace?


    ��If that is the case, then let��s attack at the same time,�� said Ye Futian with a smile. As he said this, the pressure of the Great Path enveloped the vast space, covering this part of the sky. A formless storm encapsulated the vast land. The humming of swords sounded, and Sword Will circled all around the space.


    Xi Chiyao similarly released her own aura. This aura was unfamiliar to Ye Futian. It was a Yin aura that seemed to contain a sharpness to it and appeared indestructible. He had never encountered an opponent with such an aura before.


    Xi Chiyao was unique.


    The heavens and earth seemed to dampen. In the heavens above, raindrops appeared and drizzled down on the Sword Will that Ye Futian had gathered. The next moment, his Sword Will was actually drowned out by the raindrops.


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. He extended his hand, and the raindrops landed in his palm. They actually pricked his skin, and a slit appeared on his palm. As the raindrops kept pouring down, his palm gradually turned red. Blood appeared, and he felt a bit of pain.


    ��Rain of swords!�� Ye Futian mumbled.


    The raindrops also landed on his body, piercing right through his clothes and directly landing on his skin. He felt an extremely uncomfortable prickling pain.


    Ever since he comprehended the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor and forged a Body of Way, Ye Futian��s flesh was extremely powerful. Even top monstrous figures of the same cultivation Plane as him could not break through the defense of his flesh. Their powerful attacks would not affect him when they landed on his body.


    Yet, these raindrops had actually pricked his skin and could make him feel pain. One could imagine how much power was within these raindrops.


    As expected, it was as he had sensed. The Yin aura bore an indestructible feel to it. It felt impenetrable. These raindrops were like water that could penetrate through rock. It was a form of will and a type of Way that became a part of Xi Chiyao.


    When Ye Futian looked at Xi Chiyao again, he was clearly more serious. He was no longer as casual as before. Before they even exchanged blows, he already sensed how terrifying Xi Chiyao was. She might pose a greater threat to him than Xiao Mu.


    As expected, the most prominent figures of the Divine Prefecture could not be underestimated. No wonder the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace were so confident in Xi Chiyao that they even came to invite Ye Futian to join the West Imperial Palace.


    Buzz.


    Suddenly, an extremely powerful Sword Will gathered in the sky. Swordsmanship resonated, and a storm of the Great Path swept up from around Ye Futian��s figure. It caused the raindrops to be unable to come in contact with his body. They were destroyed by the Sword Will. When he unleashed the attack power of the Great Path, the raindrops couldn��t touch him.


    Terrifying Sword Will swept across the space. In an instant, Sword Will filled the sky. A storm of frightening Sword Qi that contained billions of swords charged towards Xi Chiyao. However, Xi Chiyao quietly stood there, seemingly unperturbed.


    At the same time, a curtain of rain fell from the sky. It suddenly began to rain all around. Countless raindrops plummeted down from the sky, pouring down on the howling Sword Will. The raindrops pierced the swords. The countless raindrops directly drowned out the astonishing storm of Sword Qi. The countless humming swords were pierced through and could not approach Xi Chiyao.


    The rain grew heavier. Of course, this was no ordinary rain. It was a domain of the Great Path, Xi Chiyao��s domain of the Great Path.


    Rumble. With Ye Futian��s figure as the center, a starry world appeared. Stars circled around him and enveloped the vast space. The rumbling of the Great Path could be heard. The stars all contained unparalleled power.


    The divine light of the various stars coalesced around Ye Futian��s figure. When Xi Chiyao saw this scene, she did not plan to give Ye Futian the chance to gather his power. Her figure shifted. This was the first time she had moved since the two of them began their exchange. Before this, she had always remained standing there quietly.


    This goddess stepped forward with peerless grace. She lifted her slender and delicate hands. Immediately, the surrounding curtain of rain moved with her arms. Countless raindrops coalesced and actually formed swords. It seemed as though the swords formed from the rain did not have any power behind them at all.


    Xi Chiyao pointed forwards, and the multitude of rain swords pierced straight towards the various stars.


    The stars were gigantic and did not appear to be something that swords formed from rainwater could affect. However, when the rain swords landed on one star, they actually kept attacking one spot on the star. More astonishingly, as more rain gathered, the rain sword grew larger. Gradually, it formed a divine sword that resembled a waterfall from a heavenly river. It let out a violent sound.


    Rumble. The sword slowly pierced into the star. Then, like bamboo splitting apart, the divine waterfall sword stabbed into the star and frenziedly rampaged inside of it. In an instant, the star collapsed and was destroyed.


    This did not happen to just one star. All around Ye Futian, the various stars that had gathered were all destroyed from the attacks of the rain swords. One by one, the stars exploded and shattered. Ye Futian did not have the chance to prepare for an attack at all.


    Xi Chiyao appeared fabulous. She lowered her head and looked down at Ye Futian. After all the stars around him shattered, he seemed defenseless. However, Xi Chiyao was still circled by the rain swords. She appeared imposing.


    ��Renhuang Ye, be careful,�� said Xi Chiyao as she looked at Ye Futian with her beautiful gaze. Divine light circled her body. During their battle, it appeared even brighter and more dazzling than before. As she said these words, she pointed a finger downward. Immediately, countless raindrops poured down from the sky directly towards Ye Futian. The torrential rain coalesced into indestructible swords that flooded this part of the sky as they charged towards him.


    Although this attack was powerful, Xi Chiyao knew Ye Futian. This top monstrous figure of the Original Realm had defeated peerless Proud Sons of Heaven such as Xiao Mu and Hua Junlai. He would not perish from being unable to defend himself against her attack. Ye Futian was not that weak.


    However, it definitely would not be easy for him to want to defeat her!

 Chapter 2358 - The Eyes of West Emperor

    Every drop of rain became a sword, and every drop of rain was a sword that lashed out. When the raindrops gathered together, the swords became even stronger and more domineering.


    ��This is one of the divine methods of the West Emperor, the Raindrop Divine Sword.�� Cultivators of Divine Prefecture in the far distance were paying close attention to this battle. Xi Chiyao enjoyed a great reputation far and wide. As the most powerful blood awakener of the West Emperor in thousands of years, her battle garnered lots of attention.


    According to legends, the West Emperor created the Raindrop Divine Sword. One drop of rain could break open the sky. What was the definition of a Great Emperor? The Great Emperor was someone with the spirit of a pioneer, a world unto themselves. Take Shenjia the Great Emperor, for instance; his body was a world in and of itself.


    Xi Chiyao had inherited the ability of the West Emperor. In this realm of the Great Path, the raindrops that fell from heaven seemed to shine with sacred light. Naturally, these were no ordinary raindrops, and ordinary raindrops would not possess such terrifying power.


    As the rain fell and flooded the sky, there was nowhere to hide, nowhere to run. Ye Futian stood there watching those countless Raindrop Divine Swords coming at him, and even he was stunned in this blinding curtain of rain. All the surrounding stars were annihilated under the barrage of Raindrop Sword Will.


    At this moment, Ye Futian��s body of the Great Path was dazzling with the divine light, as the Great Path howled frantically. In an instant, he suddenly turned into the color of pure fire, as hot as the sun. He appeared as a divine body forged by it.


    Ye Futian had once comprehended the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and cast an extraordinary physical form himself. Since then, he had not stopped improving and cultivating this physical body to integrate all the power of the Great Path abilities into this physical form.


    At this time, his body turned into a bona fide Divine Body of the Sun and transformed into a sun. His body was releasing endless divine sunlight, radiated in all directions. When the divine glory of the sun touched the Raindrop Divine Swords, the swords hissed, then dissipated under the sun��s divine glory.


    At the same time, Ye Futian��s physical body became even more frightening. When the Raindrop Divine Swords reached not far in front of him, they could not get any closer before being incinerated into nothing.


    As a result, a very curious scene was now forming in that space. In the midst of the pouring rain, there was a most brilliant sun, which then created a rainbow in that area of the Great Path.


    Xi Chiyao did not waver in light of what had just happened but remained where she stood. While the rain came down even more urgently, it was accompanied by an extreme chill, as if on the verge of freezing this world. The divine glory of the sun wanted to break free of that curtain of rain but was foiled by those raindrops that were falling madly. All it could do was staying inside the area around Ye Futian, unable to completely break free of the rain curtain.


    Xi Chiyao stretched out her hand, and suddenly the Raindrop Divine Sword gathered on top of her palm. Those endless raindrops circled and rolled as they converge into a river, then gradually resembled a waterfall.


    Boom�� The waterfall came down with great force. The divine sword that was formed by the waterfall made of infinite raindrops fell with incomparable power and might; even the space seemed to have opened up. Nothing could stop this ferocious momentum.


    There was infinite divine light shining upon Ye Futian, and the will of the Great Emperor, likewise, bloomed from him. Like a youthful Great Emperor, peerless in elegance, infinite characters now flying out of his Divine Body of the Sun, converging into swords. Accompanied by the booming of the Great Path, Ye Futian raised his hand and pointed towards the sky. Suddenly, a huge Solar Divine Sword penetrated the rain curtain in front of him. All the sword will of the raindrops was destroyed and split open as it collided with the Waterfall Divine Sword.


    The Waterfall Divine Sword collided with the Solar Divine Sword, and the two actually merged into one another. The waterfall was torn apart, while the Solar Divine Sword showed cracks. The two divine swords entangled then exploded and shattered in the void, leaving a rain of swords behind in the sky.


    ��Emperor Ye did not disappoint, after all,�� Xi Chiyao said. With a turn of her mind, a pattern suddenly appeared in the sky, which sheltered the sun. I looked to be her Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    A terrible vision appeared above the firmament. A Sky River now appeared in this domain. In the middle of this pattern of Sky River, ring-shaped vortices appeared as if formed by the terrible gathering of waves the size of a tsunami. In the middle of each vortex, there was a hole that looked just like an eye.


    An even greater downpour of rain was now raging between heaven and earth. This curtain of rain shrouded the boundless space and the entire Heavenly Mandate City. Renhuang Chen and the others had already taken action to release the divine light of the Great Path on the ground below. They used their combined power to block the falling downpour.


    Otherwise, these raindrops were enough to slaughter every living soul, and it was not something that the people of Heavenly Mandate City could bear. A single raindrop was enough to kill them.


    The rain was getting heavier. The people in Heavenly Mandate City looked up high above the sky, and through the light screen, they could make out two figures that stood there. At this time, Xi Chiyao, who was bathing in utter dazzling glory, was incredibly luminous, like a Goddess befitting of her role as the descendant of the West Emperor.


    The terrible vision that hovered above her made her look like a goddess who was dominating this space.


    ��It��s cold.��


    Further in the distance, many cultivators from Divine Prefecture felt an extreme chill. In the world of rain, they felt a bone-piercing iciness. It was as if the chill was coming deep within the soul.


    ��That��s Xi Chiyao��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path,�� someone whispered. According to legends, Xi Chiyao had inherited most of the West Emperor��s abilities and was the veritable number one heir of West Imperial Palace. She was the premier enchanting genius in the West Sea Domain, a Goddess-level existence.


    Although Ye Futian had defeated Hua Junlai before, Xi Chiyao and Hua Junlai were not opponents on the same level; even Hua Junlai himself had to admit this.


    At this time, Ye Futian also noticed a strong sense of danger on the battlefield. The rumbling sounds came out as his body grew larger as if turning into a gigantic Battle Form of an ancient god. What��s more frightening was that inside his body, the divine light of the Sun and the Shadow burst out at the same time. In the next moment, a diagram flew out of him, which was the Yin-Yang Diagram.


    The diagram was expanding madly. The sun, moon, and stars appeared between heaven and earth, resembling a complete world. Ye Futian��s face was solemn as infinite stars surround this corner of the sky. Behind him, a divine shadow appeared, like the real manifestation of Ziwei the Great.


    Above the Yin Yang Diagram, the Shadow and Solar Swords of catastrophe smashed out, interwoven with the heavy rain as the two collided, destroying it.


    But high above the sky, in the midst of the Sky River, the eyes of the storm that was gathered by those horrific vortices became ever more terrifying. In the next moment, swords from those eyes of the storm lashed out, penetrating the void, and descended. None of the defenses could stop them, not even the light of the catastrophe released by the Yin-Yang Diagram.


    Boom, boom, boom�� A series of shocking collisions were heard. The sword light that fell from those divine eyes blasted above the stars. Ye Futian was like the young Great Emperor at this moment. All the stars in the heavens were at his beckon and call with the imperial shadow behind him.


    Horrific shattering sounds came out as the stars began to crack and shatter. The light from the Eye of Tianhe seemed to be endless, not just a one-time attack. However, the stars surrounding Ye Futian were rotating into infinity.


    Above a sky full of stars, rays of divine light landed on Ye Futian. At this moment, it seemed that all the power of the stars in heaven were at his disposal.


    At the same time, under the Sky River, the eye of the storm fell down like mad, which impacted all the stars. Soon, the stars collapsed and shattered immediately, like a world broken. The entire battlefield was shocking beyond words.


    ��That��s powerful.��


    A voice came from among the cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Academy. The speaker was Emperor Nan. Obviously, he felt the power of this proud daughter, the princess of West Imperial Palace��its premier heir. She was even more of a threat to Ye Futian than Xiao Mu ever was.


    Previously even Xiao Mu, the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor, didn��t make Ye Futian take him too seriously.


    However, this was not a surprise. Although Xiao Mu was a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor, he was one of many. Xi Chiyao was a descendant of the West Emperor and the strongest blood awakener in the past thousand years who realized the potential in her bloodline. She was the first person in the future of West Imperial Palace; this all made sense.


    Perhaps in all the lands of Divine Prefecture, not many could be found who were like Xi Chiyao.


    ��It was powerful indeed. This princess of the West Imperial Palace seemed to have awakened the power of the Great Emperor. No ordinary clans could compete with these people from the Ancient God Clan; they each have their own advantages,�� Lord Taixuan said in a low voice. There had never been any cultivators from the outside worlds in the Original Realm before, so they were considered the cream of the crop.


    But at the moment, they felt they were a bunch of weaklings. Aside from those who had survived the divine tribulations of the Great Path, even characters like Xi Chiyao who was powerful enough to pose a threat to them. If Xi Chiyao took a step further, such as stepping into the realm of Renhuang, they would be no competition at all and would probably be annihilated in seconds.


    Buzz! At this moment, Ye Futian��s figure disappeared, and there was a space divine light shining. In the collapsed starry space, he had disappeared, rushing out of that area. A divine light shined brilliantly as Xi Chiyao detected danger in the air.


    This was the Great Path of Space ability!


    Xi Chiyao felt that sense of danger, and her eyes suddenly became extremely frightening. She stood high above the sky as a terrifying storm erupted from her. Suddenly, her eyes turned into real divine eyes, shooting out rays of light that flooded the space.


    Suddenly, a figure appeared, and it was Ye Futian. His entire body was radiant beyond belief. And invincible. But at this time, Ye Futian could feel a powerful pressure. The divine eyes of Xi Chiyao looked down and turning the space into an area belonging to the Great Path. Destructive light came towards him, capable of immolating flesh and dismantling the soul.


    ��The Eye of the West Emperor!��


    The cultivators from Divine Prefecture perceived this scene with a tremendous shock. According to rumors, Xi Chiyao, the princess of West Imperial Palace, may have inherited the Eye of the West Emperor. Many people did not believe it before or had their doubts, but they couldn��t do anything but believe it now that they witnessed this scene.


    It seemed that Xi Chiyao had really inherited the Eye of the West Emperor.


    And Ye Futian, it seemed, was bound to lose. In this battle, he wouldn��t have a chance of winning.


    Under the Eyes of the West Emperor, all Great Paths were clearly perceivable with nowhere to hide, including the power of space Great Path. A power of total destruction zoomed in on Ye Futian. There seemed nowhere for him to escape, not in the heavens and not in the earth.


    However, Ye Futian��s body became even more brilliant as he continued to shuttle higher into the sky as if he feared nothing. His divine body roared nonstop, and an astonishing howling of the Great Path seemed to come from inside his body. In this shocking sight, he continued moving against the momentum, rushing towards Xi Chiyao!

 Chapter 2359 - Extraordinary Heritage?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Likewise, Xi Chiyao also became aware of the threat posed by Ye Futian. His body of the Great Path was extremely overpowering, almost like a divine entity. If Ye Futian were to get any closer, it would be very dangerous for her.


    The Eyes of the West Emperor was considered part of the Eye Sorcery Zone. At a glance, Ye Futian was completely submerged in the Eye Sorcery Zone. The rain was like silky threads, and these Raindrop Divine Swords transformed into endless rays of light. They all fell upon Ye Futian, and every raindrop contained invincible power. In addition, the rain had now transformed into threads, threatening to destroy everything in their path.


    ?


    The sword lights formed by the convergence of raindrops seemed to contain a power that could immolate spiritual souls. In this space, Ye Futian felt as if he was mired in a swamp; it was an extremely uncomfortable feeling.


    Buzz! More brilliant divine light bloomed as a peacock divine shadow appeared behind Ye Futian. Then phantoms upon phantoms manifested out of the ether, and Ye Futian seemed to be omnipresent at this moment.


    Faintly, there was a rhythm of roaring sound, and it was the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm that shattered all things. At the same time, many phantoms of Ye Futian pointed toward the sky above simultaneously. Suddenly, many divine swords unleashed and carried with them an incredibly sharp aura of pure murder.


    The sword lights that were converged by the raindrops were pierced through and through. But at the same time, many elusive phantoms of Ye Futian had also disappeared. Only one figure broke through everything while continuing its upward momentum. Soon, it appeared to reach the end of this Great Path field.


    At this instant, in that space of the Eye Sorcery, a figure surrounded by divine light appeared. It was as if the spirit soul of Xi Chiyao herself had separated from her body and entered directly into the realm of West Emperor��s Eyes. Furthermore, behind her beautiful figure, an extremely sacred imperial shadow appeared. It was as if the West Emperor had reincarnated, descending into this field of Eye Sorcery.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt that the rain had invaded his mind, and every raindrop pricked his will painfully.


    More than that, the strength of this conception seemed to have exceeded Ye Futian��s experience. In his mind, body, and even the world of his Life Palace, it was full of raindrops. This was the world of the all-encompassing rain for as long as he was in this field and under this conception.


    Ye Futian saw Xi Chiyao, who was above him, pointing at him. Ye Futian felt as if he was standing in the rain with nowhere to hide. At this moment, Xi Chiyao was no longer just a descendant of the Great Emperor. She was surrounded by divine light. It was as if she was an empress in her own right. And the one who unleashed these attacks was no longer her either, but the Great Emperor himself.


    This was clearly an illusion, but it felt so incredibly real. The cultivators in the West Imperial Palace considered Xi Chiyao as the premier heir, and as expected, she was stronger than imagined. It was possible that she may have already integrated the inheritance power from the West Emperor. After all, she was a descendant of the West Emperor himself and the most powerful blood awakener, so it was not surprising that she could perfectly combine her ancestors�� inheritance.


    Under such conception, the body and the spiritual soul, and even the Life Palace of Ye Futian were under simultaneous attacks; he felt that could really be destroyed at any moment. He, who had created this divine body of the Great Path, thought that it was an indestructible body. But the sense of danger was so real that he might have been killed just by this illusion alone.


    Boom�� Ye Futian��s Life Palace was also howling as a peculiar aura was released from his body. From the world of the Life Palace, divine light suddenly gushed out, drowning the will of the raindrops completely.


    When the Life Spirit of the Life Palace released all its divine might, the divine light on Ye Futian��s body became even more dazzling. In a single turning of the mind, an area of ??the Great Path now centered around him, shrouding the vast surrounding area as if swallowing up that world full of raindrops.


    Therefore, within the Great Path realm that belonged to the Eyes of the West Emperor, another Great Path realm was now competing for sovereignty.


    When she perceived this power, Xi Chiyao��s eyes released an incomparable radiance. She stared at Ye Futian and thought that, just as she had guessed, Ye Futian must have had an amazing heritage. Who exactly was he?


    But there was no time to think at this time. Her delicate hands pointed down, resembling a gesture from the West Emperor. At the same time, Ye Futian also pointed to the heavens. Two lights appeared in the area of ??the Great Path, and when the two lights intertwined, a most mighty force erupted.


    Shocking light lit up the space. In the next moment, they both retreated simultaneously as everything seemed to evaporate in an instant.


    The rain was still falling softly upon Ye Futian. That white-haired figure just stood there, so quietly, as he looked up at Xi Chiyao, who was standing above the rain.


    This princess of the West Imperial Palace was indeed stronger than Xiao Mu��the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor.


    Little did he know that Xi Chiyao, the princess of West Imperial Palace, was equally shocked and disturbed. Although she had no time to carefully discerning the ability that Ye Futian released just now, she knew that was the true testament of Ye Futian��s ability. His true Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    It was a pity that it was just for a moment. But in that brief moment��s time, Xi Chiyao seemed to have perceived something.


    Suddenly, the rain stopped, and there was no more rainfall in this entire world. Everything seemed to exist only in Xi Chiyao��s thoughts. The cultivators below looked up into the sky, wondering who had won this battle.


    It seemed that they had not seen any definitive results yet.


    The cultivators from West Imperial Palace were a bit confused. Like the others, they did not see everything clearly before Xi Chiyao had already withdrawn her strength. It was clear that she did not intend to continue the fight.


    What had just happened beneath the Eyes of the West Emperor?


    Did the Eyes of the West Emperor unable to inflict serious damage on Ye Futian?


    At this time, the white-haired figure standing in the void did not appear to be injured. His breath was calm, and he was unharmed.


    In the West Sea Domain, no one could battle Xi Chiyao, and there was no need for Xi Chiyao to use all of her strength. The Eyes of the West Emperor was enough to crush some of the topmost enchanting geniuses in the West Imperial Palace.


    However, did that number one genius talent in the Original Realm actually hold off the attack of the Eyes of the West Emperor?


    And remember, his realm was lower than that of Xi Chiyao.


    From this perspective, perhaps Ye Futian��s performance was even more impressive in this battle.


    What kind of existence was this that even Xi Chiyao was not able to defeat him?


    Those top forces from Divine Prefecture were equally shaken to their core. Hua Junlai of the Haotian Clan was defeated once at the hands of Ye Futian, but now even Xi Chiyao was unable to gain victory. Who was this Ye Futian? What kind of secrets was he harboring? In their investigations on Ye Futian, the most important detail was always missing: his birthplace. This one missing link seemed to suggest that something had been deliberately hidden.


    At this moment, above the firmament, Xi Chiyao actually gave the most alluring smile as she looked down at Ye Futian below. She said, ��Emperor Ye��s reputation is well-deserved. In the battle today, Chiyao was not up to the challenge. In this case, I would like to cultivate with Emperor Ye in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.��


    Xi Chiyao��s words stunned the cultivators of West Imperial Palace; what had just happened in this battle?


    Xi Chiyao had agreed to cultivate with Ye Futian in the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    The princess of West Imperial Palace, the reigning heir and the descendant of West Emperor, was to cultivate in Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    What was this all about?


    ��Chiyao, don��t be hasty,�� an elder from the West Imperial Palace cautioned Xi Chiyao via voice transmission. He seemed to worry that Xi Chiyao made this decision in the heat of the moment.


    ��I have my reasons,�� Xi Chiyao responded with voice transmission as well, which silenced the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace. There was no doubt about Xi Chiyao��s status within West Imperial Palace. Since she had made the decision, she must be quite serious, and no one could dissuade her.


    Ye Futian��s surprise was no lesser than the others, and he didn��t really understand it. He looked up at the figure in the sky. Was Xi Chiyao serious about following him in cultivation at the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    ��Is Goddess Chiyao serious?�� asked Ye Futian.


    But Xi Chiyao walked towards the area below and came to Ye Futian��s side. She then continued moving downward, preparing to return to the dry land below. As Ye Futian accompanied her, Xi Chiyao glanced back and smiled, ��I said before that I wanted to see Emperor Ye��s methods. Now that I have seen them in this battle, I am quite impressed. From now on, I wish to cultivate in Heavenly Mandate Academy, and I hope Emperor Ye will not deny me this opportunity.��


    They had already returned to the grounds of the Heavenly Mandate Academy below. Everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Academy was most surprised by this. Was Xi Chiyao serious about staying and cultivating?


    Did this mean that Ye Futian would also be cultivating at the West Imperial Palace?


    The Goddess of West Imperial Palace was a little too enigmatic.


    However, her strength was truly tyrannical. Before this, the cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy had never seen anyone who could battle Ye Futian to such a degree��not even the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor himself. Xi Chiyao��s combat effectiveness had indeed surpassed any challengers so far.


    But from this perspective, the cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy admired her quite a bit. Such a woman, no doubt, would achieve extraordinary feats in the future.


    At this moment, there were several tyrannical auras that came from a distance. Suddenly, just as the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy raised their heads to look afar, groups of cultivators had traversed through the void and entered the bounds of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    These powerful cultivators were all from top principalities in the Divine Prefecture, and several of them belonged to Ancient God Clan. With such a powerful background, the Heavenly Mandate Academy cultivators were unable to intercept them and could only allow them entry into the academy.


    ��Goddess Chiyao of the West Imperial Palace wanted to cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Academy?�� someone asked. Obviously, these cultivators had heard the conversation between Xi Chiyao and Ye Futian, and they had all observed the battle that had just taken place.


    Why would Xi Chiyao choose to cultivate inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy? Unless Xi Chiyao had detected something during their battle��


    Like the West Imperial Palace, they had checked into Ye Futian��s past and thought that anything unusual about Ye Futian must be because of some unearthed secrets.


    They were thinking that perhaps Xi Chiyao wanted to go to the Heavenly Mandate Academy as a way of winning Ye Futian over.


    ��Why, do you have something you want to say?�� Xi Chiyao responded nonchalantly, looking at the man who spoke.


    ��Goddess Chiyao wanting to cultivate at the Heavenly Mandate Academy has nothing to do with us. So how could we dare to have an opinion?�� the man asked with a smile. ��We are just curious, that��s all. Emperor Ye is talented, but even Goddess Chiyao��the descendant of the West Emperor��was much impressed by him. We thought that it must be because he has some extraordinary heritage!��

 Chapter 2360 - Abnormal Relationship?

    They were doubtful about Ye Futian��s background.


    Ye Futian naturally realized this. He glanced around at the various cultivators. When he heard Xi Chiyao��s statements before, he knew that the various forces of the Divine Prefecture had a deep understanding of him. It was normal for them to speculate.


    ��What sort of background could I have come from? Ever since I started cultivating in the Nine States in the Lower Worlds, I have passed through trials and tribulations to reach where I am today. I was born in a small place that most likely all of you have never heard of. If I came from an extraordinary background, wouldn��t I be the same as everyone here and be cultivating in the Upper Worlds of the Divine Prefecture?�� said Ye Futian with a smile. He appeared casual as he said this. Let alone other people who were speculating, even he himself was not clear about his own background.


    He naturally knew that his parents in Qingzhou were not his birth parents; they must be somebody else. It was very strange that his parents and family had disappeared. They might have intentionally wanted to hide something. Moreover, the existence of his godfather had proven this point. A super cultivator of the Devil World had been watching over him in Qingzhou and claimed that he was born an emperor. How could Ye Futian��s background be simple?


    Of course, he wouldn��t reveal these facts. Who knew what would happen if he did. Since his godfather had intentionally kept it a secret, he would need to do so too. If a day came that he did not need to do so anymore, he might know the whole truth then.


    A cultivator of the Divine Prefecture replied, ��For a cultivator from a small place, you have managed to suppress various monstrous figures and unify the Original Realm. You defeated the cultivators of the Ancient God Clan as well as the disciple of the Devil Emperor. You also inherited the teachings of several Great Emperors. With unparalleled talent, you have conquered most of the relics of the Great Emperors. You unlocked the teachings of the Demon Peacock Emperor back in the secret zone of the Donghua Domain. Renhuang Ye, I suspect no one will believe you when you claim that your background is ordinary.��


    ��It is reasonable for you to think so. It might be that I had an extraordinary birth and that I am a descendant of a deity who placed me in the mortal realm to grow and hone my will and character. No wonder I have such extraordinary talents. Thank you for reminding me. I seem to have understood some things,�� replied Ye Futian with a smile. ��However, if that is truly the case, the deity who gave birth to me is truly harsh, letting me face such trials and tribulations. In the future, if it turns out to be true, I will not recognize them as my parents.��


    When the crowd heard Ye Futian jokingly say this, they were speechless. This fellow was actually praising himself. However, what he said made sense. If the truth was as they speculated and Ye Futian��s background was extraordinary, why did he need to experience so many hardships?


    When they were investigating Ye Futian��s history of development, they discovered that it was no small feat that he had managed to survive to the present day. He had fought his way through to this day. Ignoring the talent that he was born with, all his experiences were real.


    Unless��


    Various people revealed contemplative looks. They seemed to be considering some possibility.


    Some senior cultivators understood that part of history better. It couldn��t be like that, could it?


    However, if it was truly so, they still did not dare to mention it. They merely speculated inside their minds. How likely was that possible?


    It might be that they were overthinking things. Some people were destined to be extraordinary from birth. They were rare finds that appeared once every thousand or ten thousand years. Such people were not unheard of in the history of the cultivation world.


    ��Rumor has it that Renhuang Ye has allied with the Lost Clan and allowed their cultivators to enter the starry cultivation court of the Ziwei Segmentum and the Four Corner Village,�� someone said, changing the subject. They no longer wanted to speak on the matter of Ye Futian��s background.


    Ye Futian responded calmly, ��Hmm, the Heavenly Mandate Academy has already allied with the Lost Clan. Currently, the Shenyi Continent is right next to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. I believe that all of you have already long known of this. I hope that all of you may set aside your differences and stand against the cultivators of the other worlds together with us.�� This was no secret; everyone already knew about this.


    ��A little grudge is no big deal. We are all reasonable people. For the greater good, we naturally know what to do. I believe it is the same for Renhuang Ye. Now, the Divine Prefecture is one. The various forces have united and are now allies. Since Renhuang Ye is willing to ally with the Lost Clan, you must certainly also be willing to ally with us. In the future, if the opportunity arises, Renhuang Ye can head to the Divine Prefecture to cultivate amongst our forces and learn the magnum opuses of our clans,�� someone said freely and frankly. This caused the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy to all reveal strange expressions.


    Was this fellow who was speaking coveting the cultivation techniques of the Ziwei Segmentum, the Four Corner Village, as well as the Lost Clan?


    Ye Futian could head over to cultivate with the clans and forces of the Divine Prefecture in the future?


    Now, the Original Realm was facing a huge change. Who could say for sure what would happen in the future? However, it was certain that the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture wanted to first cultivate the fateful encounters that Ye Futian had obtained.


    Ye Futian did not point it out. Now, most of the forces of the Divine Prefecture were dissatisfied with him and had objections with him. His stance during the battle against the Lost Clan back then had, in fact, aided the Lost Clan. Under such circumstances, he did not want to offend the forces of the Divine Prefecture further. Right then, this person made this proposal for him to concede and offer up the fateful encounters that he had obtained to the forces of the Divine Prefecture to cultivate. This would settle the score.


    In reality, they wanted Ye Futian to make a sacrifice to obtain the forgiveness of the forces of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Senior, what you say is true. I am also of the same mind. Hence, I made an alliance with the Lost Clan, and we exchanged cultivation resources with each other. I taught the members of the Lost Clan attack techniques and allowed their cultivators to head over to the starry cultivation court in the Ziwei Segmentum to cultivate. Similarly, the members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy also entered into the secret zone of the Lost Clan to cultivate. I myself have also mastered the Battle Matrix of the Rocks,�� revealed Ye Futian as he looked at the other party. ��If all of you are willing to form an alliance with us for the greater good of the Divine Prefecture, I will naturally have no objections. I am willing to offer up the cultivation resources that the Heavenly Mandate Academy controls in exchange for all your cultivation techniques. We shall improve together to face the changes in the Original Realm.��


    He said this in a friendly tone as he did not mind forming alliances. However, if the members of the Divine Prefecture merely coveted his cultivation resources, it was meaningless for him to concede. He might even be making his future enemies stronger by allowing the members of the Divine Prefecture to improve their abilities.


    If a force was not willing to forge an alliance and exchange cultivation resources, Ye Futian did not believe that the other party would be grateful for his aid. If he gave them an inch, the other party would ask for a foot. For instance, they might seek the teachings of the Great Emperors.


    If that was the case, he might as well draw a line in the sand clearly.


    When the elder heard Ye Futian say this, he narrowed his eyes slightly. It seemed that it was impossible for them to make this top genius in the Original Realm concede.


    During the battle against the Lost Clan, Ye Futian had offended many forces of the Divine Prefecture. Was he actually not afraid of the consequences?


    ��Then, what about Goddess Chiyao? If she joins the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate, is that considered having forged an alliance with you?�� someone asked. Divine light shot out from Xi Chiyao��s beautiful gaze as she looked at the other party. Her eyes actually contained formless pressure that enveloped the other party from afar.


    The cultivator who had spoken was a ninth-tier Renhuang. Xi Chiyao was actually not afraid of him, glaring at him all the same. He frowned and swept a glance at the other party. Xi Chiyao said, ��Since I have joined the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate, I will naturally follow the arrangements of the College Chief. I will cultivate in whatever Renhuang Ye allows me to.��


    As she said this, Xi Chiyao smiled and said to Ye Futian, ��Renhuang Ye, what do you think about this?��


    ��Goddess Chiyao, since you are willing to do so, I will not turn you away,�� replied Ye Futian. This caused the members of the Divine Prefecture to stare at the two of them. Why did the relationship between the two of them feel abnormal?

 Chapter 2361 - Suppression

    The cultivators looked at Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao. Now, the two of them were basically in sync.


    Was the West Imperial Palace planning to lay its hands on the cultivation resources that Ye Futian possessed? They actually did not hesitate to allow Xi Chiyao to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate and seduce Ye Futian. With the peerless elegance of Goddess Chiyao, even Ye Futian would have difficulty resisting her charms.


    They might even become a couple.


    Would the members of the West Imperial Palace be willing to marry off their future top figure?


    Was Ye Futian worthy of them doing so?


    If they set aside their statuses, the two of them were quite a match. Both of them were peerless figures. It was just that Ye Futian��s origins were not very clear. Now, everyone was speculating over it. However, Xi Chiyao was the true descendant of a Great Emperor. She was the descendant of the West Emperor and the strongest person to awaken to the power of his bloodline. She was the first to do so in a thousand years. With such status and exceptional talent, even as the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian was far from worthy of her hand.


    ��From the looks of it, Renhuang Ye is looking down on the other forces of the Divine Prefecture,�� someone said in a provocative tone.


    The person continued, ��You allied yourself with the Lost Clan and allowed Goddess Chiyao of the West Imperial Palace to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate. However, you seem unwilling to do the same with the other forces of the Divine Prefecture. It appears that Renhuang Ye has not let go of the incident with the Lost Clan.��


    ��Why do you say so? I have said that as long as you are willing, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will ally with the various forces of the Divine Prefecture and exchange cultivation resources,�� replied Ye Futian in a casual tone. He was not angered. He naturally understood that the members of the Divine Prefecture were intentionally provoking him and wanted to stir up conflict.


    ��Alright. Our Infinite Mountains is willing to offer up cultivation resources for exchange and form an alliance with the Heavenly Mandate Academy,�� a cultivator said. He was from the strongest force of the Boundless Domain, Infinite Mountains. They had inherited the teachings of an ancient Great Emperor figure. Now, they had taken the initiative to ally with the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy frowned. They were doubtful of the sincerity of the other party. Would the cultivators from the Boundless Domain really be willing to share their top cultivation resources with them?


    The cultivators from the Boundless Domain most likely intended to share some cultivation techniques perfunctorily in exchange for the cultivation resources in the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Renhuang Chen took a step forward and replied, ��Of course, there��s no problem. However, I need to first examine what kind of resources you are willing to share. Based on that, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will decide what level of cultivation resources we will exchange.�� It would not be easy for the other party to ally with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. If the other party only coveted their cultivation resources, they would not agree to their request.


    ��From the looks of it, the Heavenly Mandate Academy still does not trust the forces from the Divine Prefecture. The so-called alliance is only lip service. In reality, you have no intention of joining forces with us,�� snorted the cultivator from Infinite Mountains. He added, ��Looks like the West Imperial Palace is more capable in persuasion.��


    ��What do you mean by that?�� questioned a cultivator from the West Imperial Palace coldly. He gave the cultivator from Infinite Mountains a displeased glance. The latter paid no heed to it and merely smiled. A youth then emerged from the group of cultivators from Infinite Mountains. The youth was surrounded by the divine halo of the Great Path. The brilliant glory which surrounded him seemed to be a natural glimmer and not something he intentionally unleashed. It was as though he was born with a divine body and was destined to be exceptional.


    With a glance, the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace recognized the youth. He was the most talented figure among this generation of cultivators from Infinite Mountains. He was the Divine Child of Infinite Mountains and similarly the heir of a Great Emperor. He was powerful and was crowned Boundless Divine Child.


    Boundless Divine Child stepped forward as he looked at Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao. He said, ��I have long heard of the fame of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Since Goddess Chiyao is willing to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate, I also want to cultivate in the academy for a period of time. Will Renhuang Ye allow my sudden request?��


    Boundless Divine Child continued, ��Of course, I only ask Renhuang Ye to treat all of us equally. I am not interested in the cultivation resources of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.��


    As soon as he said this, another person emerged from the crowd and said, ��I also want to cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Academy for a period of time. Will Renhuang Ye allow it?��


    This person was the Divine Child of the Vajra Region. Golden light circled around his entire body. He appeared to have a golden divine body. It looked extremely powerful.


    Then, one by one, others expressed their intentions of joining the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate. This caused the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy to reveal strange looks. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was not some holy land. They might be considered the number one cultivation ground in the Original Realm, but these people were from the Ancient God Clan. Did they need to do so?


    Clearly, they had no intention of joining the Heavenly Mandate Academy for real. For them, the only value that the Heavenly Mandate Academy offered was the starry cultivation court as well as the teachings inherited from the Great Emperors that Ye Futian mastered.


    Or perhaps, these forces from the Divine Prefecture only wanted to pressure the Heavenly Mandate Academy and force Ye Futian to yield. They wanted the Heavenly Mandate Academy to compromise and share all their cultivation resources with all.


    Otherwise, why would they lower their statuses to cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Academy?


    Deep down, these cultivators from the Ancient God Clan most likely looked down upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which was a local force of the Original Realm.


    Moreover, during their battle with the Lost Clan, Ye Futian offended quite a few factions of the Ancient God Clan. After all, Ye Futian once collaborated with the Ancient God Clan to break through the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. These factions assumed that Ye Futian did not give his best during the battle, leading to their failure to break through the matrix. Otherwise, they would have entered into the secret zone of the Lost Clan then.


    Ye Futian himself forged an alliance with the Lost Clan and had access to their cultivation resources. He then attracted Goddess Chiyao from the West Imperial Palace to join him to cultivate in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. In the future, Ye Futian might draw the rest of the forces in the West Sea Domain to form an alliance with him. His academy would further expand its influence.


    This caused the Ancient God Clan from the Divine Prefecture to be irritated. Moreover, they were also interested in unveiling the secrets behind Ye Futian��s identity. Hence, they were intentionally suppressing Ye Futian now.


    Ye Futian saw various figures standing in different locations in the sky. Each and every one of them were outstanding cultivators. The cultivator from the Haotian Clan was among them too. Ye Futian even spotted Hua Junlai in the crowd. Judging from their auras and the divine light of the Great Path which surrounded their bodies, they had no intention of forging an alliance with him. They were clearly here to force him and the Heavenly Mandate Academy to yield to their demands.


    The other forces of the Divine Prefecture stood further behind. They did not declare their stance. However, they most likely wanted a slice of the pie and were waiting for Ye Futian to compromise.


    Xi Chiyao gazed up at the silhouettes in the sky. Each one of these figures were extraordinary. There were eighth-tier and ninth-tier Renhuangs. Many of them were renowned figures in their respective domain in the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture.


    Now, they were all standing in the sky and pressuring Ye Futian. They claimed to want to form an alliance, but they were pressuring him to yield in reality.


    However, this was unrelated to her. Although she said she wanted to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate, that did not mean that she would join Ye Futian in going against the various forces of the Divine Prefecture. She wanted to see how Ye Futian would resolve his situation.


    That day, in the region of the Lost Clan, it was Princess Donghuang descending upon the region that had resolved the crisis faced by the Lost Clan and allowed Ye Futian to escape his predicament. However, the forces of the Divine Prefecture clearly were not willing to let him go. Now, they had descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy simultaneously. The alliance between Ye Futian and the Lost Clan had clearly made the various forces upset!

 Chapter 2362 - The Siege

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Currently, if Ye Futian were to agree to their demand, then all the forces from the Divine Prefecture would swarm in and enter Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate. At that time, how could he maintain control of the situation?


    The capability of Heavenly Mandate Academy was limited, and there was still something left to be desired when comparing to these top forces from Divine Prefecture. In the case of the Ancient God Clan, in particular, the chasm between the two was even greater. Today��s occurrence was nothing more than these cultivators trying to bully their way into the Heavenly Mandate Academy in a bid to take over the cultivation resources controlled by Ye Futian.


    ?


    Ye Futian��s eyes swept toward those cultivators as an invisible oppressive coercion crept in every direction. The entire Heavenly Mandate City was under that majestic and awesome pressure.


    ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy was just one of the many principalities in the Original Realm. You are all from the top clans in Divine Prefecture, so there was no need for you to cultivate in Heavenly Mandate Academy. I��m afraid you praised the Heavenly Mandate Academy too much,�� said Ye Futian as he looked at these people.


    ��As the head of many clans, Emperor Ye is in charge of the inheritances of several Great Emperors, as well as being in charge of the starry cultivation court. These are all places worthy of our cultivation,�� someone retorted and did not disguise the greed they had for the cultivation resources at Ye Futian��s disposal.


    Their purpose was to intimidate Ye Futian.


    Today, it was not up to him to decide whether he would give in or not.


    ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy is a small place; I��m afraid we can��t accommodate all of you,�� Ye Futian responded.


    Ye Futian��s voice was indifferent. Immediately, the atmosphere froze and felt even more tense. This was Ye Futian directly refusing to receive them.


    ��So, Emperor Ye is ignoring our request,�� someone piped up.


    ��Emperor Ye claims that Original Realm is a part of Divine Prefecture and that everything was working towards an alliance within Divine Prefecture. But it seemed to us that you don��t really consider yourselves as a part of us. You think that the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the land of the Original Realm are an entity unto themselves.��


    Voices continued to filter in, blaming Ye Futian for some imagined transgressions and other made-up charges. They made it sound as if Ye Futian was the one who broke up the unity of Divine Prefecture and was resistant to share cultivation resources. In their mind, he was too selfish, and it was an indication that he had no sense of belonging to the land of Divine Prefecture.


    ��Emperor Ye also possesses the inheritances of several Great Emperors. I would like to see what kind of cultivation level was able to impress Goddess Chiyao so much,�� someone else said. It was none other than the descendant of Yuanshi the Great from Yuanshi Domain��the heir of Yuanshi Palace. His aura was astounding, and he stood out above everyone else.


    ��I would also like to see for myself the talents of Emperor Ye.�� The speaker was a top figure from the Boundless Domain. It was the Boundless Divine Child himself. He was surrounded by the divine light of the Great Path and was radiant beyond words.


    ��Emperor Ye controlled the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and comprehended an extraordinary body of the Great Path. I cultivated the Vajra Divine Body, and I would like to experience the might of Emperor Ye��s divine body firsthand.�� The Divine Child of Vajra Region also joined in. The power of the Vajra Divine Body was superb and domineering. It had passed down through the Great Emperor, who was also of the Ancient God Clan.


    After that, other voices continued to speak. Even those who didn��t speak had taken a step forward. Their bodies were radiant and bright, surrounded by divine light, and it was obvious that they all wanted to confront Ye Futian. For a time, the divine light of the Great Path was extremely brilliant as it sprinkled down upon Ye Futian. All those auras were truly terrifying, and the cultivators that were here to challenge Ye Futian were at least at the level of Hua Junlai.


    These heirs of the Ancient God Clan wanted to have their own exchanges with Ye Futian. But this could also be seen as Ye Futian being recognized by these top forces from the Divine Prefecture. He had defeated the Devil Emperor��s disciple as well as Hua Junlai and the descendant of the Haotian Clan. He had impressed Goddess Chiyao so much that she was now willing to enter the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate. This kind of strength needed no further embellishment. Therefore it was no surprise that these genius talents wanted to test the power of this reputed King of the Heavenly Mandate.


    Moreover, they wanted to see what secrets Ye Futian might be harboring and if he was hiding anything��


    Everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked quite somber. They raised their heads to look at the figures. Every one of them was an extraordinary talent, and this assembly was even more awe-striking than the one previously presented at the battle with the Lost Clan. Among them, there was even Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm. Never mind Ye Futian himself, just in Heavenly Mandate Academy alone and amongst its allies, they were hard-pressed to find some top enchanting figures of this caliber who could contend with these outsiders.


    Clearly, this was a bit too much. These cultivators were ganging up on Ye Futian at the same time.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at the cultivators who were in the void. He had a sharp look about him. His clothing now fluttered by itself, and his silver hair danced in the air.


    Then, they saw his body moved as he swayed upward, heading straight into the sky.


    ��Huh?�� Everyone was stunned. Ye Futian made a move alone and headed towards the challengers by himself. Could it be that he wanted to take on these cultivators by himself?


    Xi Chiyao also showed a look of concern. She had personally experienced Ye Futian��s strength and knew he was incredibly strong. Although the two of them had stopped, Xi Chiyao knew very well that it was difficult enough for her to defeat Ye Futian even when she was one realm higher than him. In the scenario of a sustained battle, the outcome was unpredictable.


    But even so, did he know what kind of challengers was he facing?


    Xi Chiyao also knew of these people. Even if she hadn��t seen them before, she had heard of their names and knew who they were. These characters were the top figures who were well-known in their respective domains. They enjoyed a reputation of their own.


    No matter how powerful Ye Futian was, he couldn��t face so many top enchanting existences all at once.


    These people deliberately pressed Ye Futian, forcing him to fight so that they could examine his combat effectiveness. At the same time, they wanted to have the opportunity to uncover Ye Futian��s secrets. If Ye Futian were to fight them, it was only a matter of time before he had to use all the tricks in his bag and expose all of his abilities in front of everyone.


    Those in the Heavenly Mandate Academy were a little puzzled when they saw this. Those cultivators were some top-notch geniuses. No matter how strong Futian was, it would not be easy to contend with all of them.


    At this moment, in the distance, a group of mighty and powerful cultivators came in a hurry. This group was made of people with extraordinary abilities and strengths. The man in the lead was Sikong Nan, indicating that reinforcements from the Lost Clan had arrived.


    The cultivators from various principalities of Divine Prefecture looked at them without too much concern, though. This here was not Shenyi Continent, and the Lost Clan, without the support of the super-matrix of Shenyi Continent, was unlikely to pose any serious threat against these various powers of the Divine Prefecture.


    They were curious to see what the use of Ye Futian��s alliance with the cultivator of the Lost Clan was.


    ��Futian,�� Sikong Nan called out.


    Ye Futian looked at the cultivators from the Lost Clan in the distance and nodded slightly at them, indicating that they need not take action. He floated high in the sky. As he surveyed the cultivators surrounding him, those people also returned his gaze. The divine light on their bodies was even more radiant and dazzling. It was as if they were the descendants of the gods.


    ��Do you want to come up one by one, or do you want to attack altogether?�� Ye Futian asked. All the cultivators who were present were famous figures in the domains of the Divine Prefecture. Naturally, they would not deign to rush in altogether against Ye Futian. They came to pressure him, but they didn��t want to really kill him.


    If Ye Futian were killed today, it would not be easy to explain it away to Princess Donghuang. Not to mention, there was a mysterious cultivator behind Ye Futian��the teacher from Four Corner Village.


    The divine light that shone upon these surrounding cultivators glistened with even more brilliance. They looked at one another as if to see who would make the first move!

 Chapter 2363 - : Mighty Opponents

    Above the sky, Ye Futian was standing tall, surrounded by all these cultivators who were challenging him. Under the crowning of the divine light, it was obvious that anyone who was here was someone with a commanding presence in the Divine Prefecture.


    At this moment, a voice came out as a man took a step forward. The man was brilliant all over while releasing a golden divine glory. His upper body was draped in a golden half-shirt, the same color as his skin, which seemed to be golden as well. This was the Divine Child from the Vajra Region, whose strength was tremendous.


    The Vajra Region was one of the principalities within the Ancient God Clan, housed inside the Vajra Domain of the 18 domains in Divine Prefecture. The method of cultivation in the Vajra Region was wild and aggressive, impenetrable and invincible. The cultivators�� physical bodies were tempered to the extreme to cast the Vajra Divine Body��also known as the Vajra Indestructible Form��impervious to any Great Path. Any existence of the same level, even if allowed to attack at will, could not manage to shatter this particular physical form.


    In the Vajra Domain, the Vajra Region was a world onto itself. It was a world carved by the gods in the days of yore. It was said that the Great Path Rule that was inside of it was somewhat different from those on the outside world. Those born into the Vajra Region were said to be extraordinary, baptized by the divine power of the Vajra Region during their growth. Only those who could awaken the power of the Vajra Region were qualified to become an official member. Those who could not would only exist in the margins of the Vajra Region, not considered one of its cultivators in any real sense. The same went for the many principalities within the Ancient God Clan, most of which were not at its core.


    Since there were not many cultivators for this reason, even the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Vajra Region had to be especially courteous to the cultivators in the region. The status of these cultivators was not necessarily lower than that of the Domain Chief��s Manor, and most of them were far above it.


    At this moment, the Divine Child of the Vajra Region looked at Ye Futian. He put his hands together and bowed slightly without speaking. However, the divine light of the Great Path bloomed, and an incredibly sharp aura expanded from him. The instant his arms moved, an extremely strong and sharp will suddenly manifested in the space, shrouded by golden divine light. Although he had not made his move yet, the sense of threat was clearly palpable.


    The divine light on the Divine Child was shining so magnificently and brilliantly, with indescribable radiance. He raised his hand and pointed towards Ye Futian across the space. In an instant, the power of this gesture penetrated heaven and the earth, leaving an arc of light in the void that zoomed in on Ye Futian, with intent to kill.


    Buzz�� The divine light was exceptionally bright, cutting through the space with absolute dominance. It was as if the power of this one finger was even more terrifying than any divine swords, that it was capable of penetrating everything and get in front of Ye Futian.


    Everyone was observing this attack closely. Vajra Region��s divine power was second to none, the likes of which were difficult to find even among the Ancient God Clan. They were all curious as to how Ye Futian would counter it.


    Ye Futian felt the threat from his opponent as soon as the man acted. Ye Futian��s entire body was full of brilliance, and a terrible light was released from the divine body. There was a roaring boom of the Great Path as his body turned into the Way with incomparable dominance.


    Infinite sword-shaped characters appeared, surrounding his divine body. Likewise, Ye Futian raised his hand and pointed. In an instant, there seemed to be infinite sword will that resonated between heaven and earth. Numerous sword-shaped characters gathered upon Ye Futian��s finger and came down with the motion of his finger. As his hand dropped, the sword manifested between his fingers, and at this moment, his divine body of the Great Path was a body of sword.


    Two forces of the two fingers converged and collided in the void. That Vajra Finger kept moving forward, destroying all sword will along the way. But upon Ye Futian��s body, endless divine swords gathered together, as if they had turned into a river of swords. The Vajra Finger navigated through the river as a terrifying divine glory erupted from it. However, it could not get closer to Ye Futian and pulverized under the infinite sword will.


    ��What an aggressive attack.�� Below, cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy shuddered. He was, indeed, the Divine Child of the Vajra Region. As expected, none of these people were ordinary. They couldn��t help but worried for Ye Futian.


    After all, this was never meant to be a fair battle. With all these cultivators laying siege on him, how was Ye Futian supposed to fight that?


    The Vajra Region��s Divine Child didn��t stop there. His hands clasped together, and suddenly an infinite golden divine glory bloomed from his body, which turned into a god-like phantom. He looked straight at Ye Futian, uttered a sound while his palms faced forward. Suddenly a gigantic and boundless giant palm blasted forward. At the same time, above the void, countless Giant Palms of Vajra manifested. They sheltered the heaven as well as this corner of the sky, intending on burying Ye Futian right here, right now.


    Ye Futian focused his attention there as his mind turned. Immediately he was surrounded by stars, which transformed this area into a starry sky world. Many of the stars seemed to merge into one as their brilliance became interwoven and revolved around Ye Futian.


    Accompanied by loud rumbling sounds, countless Giant Palms of Vajra blasted him with unspeakable belligerence. These giant palms madly expanded until they could crush these stars, causing them to explode. Nonetheless, they still could not break down the starry defense in this Starry Domain.


    The body of the Divine Child floated in the air as his Vajra Battle Form was becoming even more massive. In an instant, endless golden divine glory blanketed the world, as if the entire world was taken over by the Vajra Region. Above the firmament, endless Giant Palms of Vajra slammed down, covering this corner of the sky, including the Starry Domain.


    Boom�� At this moment, the many stars that surrounded Ye Futian began to explode frantically, as if the sky and earth were on the verge of being split wide open; the whole scene was beyond horrifying. Those frightening palms continued to strike down and swept toward Ye Futian, who was surrounded by the stars.


    ��Spectacular!��


    ��The divine power of Vajra Region is truly deserving of its reputation, verily one of the most domineering powers in the world.�� Some other cultivator from the Ancient God Clan whispered. As they were watching the battlefield, they were in no real hurry to join in the action. If Ye Futian were able to quell Xi Chiyao, it would not be easy for the Vajra Region��s Divine Child to take him.


    An even more radiant starlight was released from Ye Futian��s body, and the surrounding stars suddenly got brighter. The light seemed to have transformed into something tangible. With Ye Futian��s body roughly as the center, an absolute field now formed. Inside this area, a Starry Shield appeared, protecting Ye Futian.


    Boom, boom, boom�� The terrifying Giant Palms of Vajra blasted down, smashing on the light screen, but was unable to destroy it. The starry light screen was clear as crystal and completely transparent. The divine glory on Ye Futian seemed to melt into the light screen as if it was part of his Great Path Divine Body. This kind of large-scale offensive method, aggressive though it may be, was simply unable to breakthrough.


    Those who were watching exclaimed inwardly. As expected, someone that even Xi Chiyao could not take down would not be so easily defeated. Just the defensive power of this Starry Shield alone was astounding.


    Vajra Region��s Divine Child did not take any other actions before someone else stepped out. The man was the heir of Yuanshi Palace from the Ancient God Clan in Yuanshi Domain. He glanced there before pointed his right hand toward the sky. Suddenly a formation appeared in the heavens, as terrible swords chiming and reverberating between heaven and earth. Infinite Divine Swords were gathered within the formation, unleashing astonishing sword will. Each sword contained God-Punishing power, which was enough to destroy all existence.


    ��Despicable.�� Cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy looked on coldly, and some of them commented audibly. While the Vajra Region��s Divine Child was still attacking, someone else had stepped in to attack Ye Futian as well.


    ��It is comical that the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture��s Ancient God Clan had to join forces to fight against someone with a lower realm of cultivation,�� Fang Gai said sarcastically. However, the cultivator in the void responded, ��Don��t worry, it��s just a test, and we won��t hurt him. We just wanted to see the level of ability Emperor Ye has achieved.��


    As soon as the voice trailed off, the Formation Divine Sword came down from the firmament, much like the power generated by the God-Punishing swordsmanship. It aimed to destroy as it impacted the Starry Shield.


    What he did not say was that while they would spare Ye Futian��s life, they would press him to his utmost limit, forcing him to reveal all of his abilities and methods. They wanted to see if there was anything hidden by the Original Realm��s number one genius talent?


    When the falling swords fell on the shield, fine fractures appeared on the surface of the shield. With more and more fractures appearing, and the Giant Palms of Vajra continued blasting down as well, those fine fractures now turned into considerable cracks.


    ��The Divine Punishment Sword Matrix of Yuanshi Palace is indeed horrific, and this is just a small sword matrix.�� The surrounding cultivators were not only observing Ye Futian��s combat effectiveness, but they were also observing the strengths of those from the Ancient God Clan. Though they were aware of each other��s existence before, many of them had never met, much less making any exchange with one another.


    Now, they could see the level of strengths possessed by these cultivators.


    Of course, they may not use all their methods all at once; they would be wise to keep some of their abilities to themselves.


    Bang�� With continuous loud booms, the Starry Shield shattered. The terrifying God-Punishment Sword and the overbearing Giant Palms of Vajra continued blasting down, chasing after Ye Futian. Those in the Heavenly Mandate Academy were secretly worried when they witnessed this shocking battle scene. The opponents that Ye Futian was facing now were all excellent peak figures.

 Chapter 2364 - One Against Two

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many attacks descended upon Ye Futian. The crowd saw that his body was on the brink of being drowned out by the incoming attacks, but he didn��t move an inch. He was seemingly unfazed by the frenzy of attacks.


    A dazzling spatial halo shone on top of his Divine Body of the Great Path. Runes emerged and formed Doors of Space with his body as the center. They surrounded his body, causing him to be enveloped within them.


    ?


    Rumble. The God-Punishing Swords charged downwards to annihilate Ye Futian. Unfortunately, when they approached him, they entered into the Doors of Space directly. It was as though the swords disappeared into nothingness. However, they caused the Doors of Space to tremble violently.


    More savage attacks descended on Ye Futian. The Giant Palms of Vajra charged towards him at the same time as the swords. However, with Ye Futian��s body as the center, the Doors of Space shone even more brightly and transformed into an independent region.


    It was the Miniature World!


    Fang Gai and Old Ma were somewhat emotional when they saw this scene. The Miniature World was a divine spatial technique. Ye Futian was actually able to utilize it to such an extent. From the looks of it, Ye Futian had fully mastered all seven great divine techniques of the Four Corner Village. He had learned all their cruxes and was able to use them skillfully.


    The user of the Miniature World could form an independent world from his surroundings. The Miniature World could block off all attacks and ensure that the cultivator was free from all disturbances of the outside world. When cultivated to the highest level, the cultivator could form a miniature world around him and was completely isolated from the outside world.


    However, no cultivation technique was perfect. There was no such thing as an invincible divine technique. All techniques were either reinforced or restricted by other techniques. The might of a technique depended on its user. Even though the Miniature World was powerful, it was not an all-mighty technique that could completely ignore all other attacks. As the God-Punishing Swords and the gigantic palms blasted on the Miniature World consecutively, the Doors of Space also shook violently. Gradually, the Doors of Space were destroyed and disintegrated.


    Even so, they managed to block off most of the attacks. The collective attacks of the two cultivators were unable to break through Ye Futian��s defense.


    This scene caused Vajra Divine Child and the cultivators from the Yuanshi Palace to reveal astonished expressions. Ye Futian had indeed cultivated many different techniques. Each and every one of them was extraordinary. He had most likely learned this particular technique from the Four Corner Village.


    As expected, both the Ziwei Segmentum and the Four Corner Village contained exceptional cultivation techniques. With the addition of the teachings of the Great Emperors, Ye Futian was considered a walking treasure trove. As long as they could bring him under their control, they would have the chance to loot these treasures.


    Divine light radiated brightly on Ye Futian��s body. He shot up high into the sky. His pupils glistened with golden divine halos as he swept a glance at the two cultivators beneath him. Another domain of the Great Path appeared around him. The sun and the moon appeared simultaneously as the stars circled him. The entire world changed as divine phenomena occurred all around him.


    Right now, Ye Futian seemed to be no longer suppressing his own power. His aura of the Great Path enveloped the vast space. This part of the world seemed to become his own domain. The stars that circled around him and the sun, moon, and Yin Yang Diagram high in the sky emanated a powerful aura.


    Buzz.


    The divine light of Yin and Yang rained down. It also contained powerful Swords of Catastrophe that collided with the God-Punishing Swords. They actually were no weaker than them. Although Ye Futian��s cultivation Plane was a level lower, he mastered the power of Yin and Yang. Even against this god-punishing power, he could still hold his own.


    At the same time, starry stone tablets appeared. Countless runes and ancient characters were contained within them. The might of the tablets pressed down on the space and headed towards Vajra Divine Child.


    Countless divine tablets carved with ancient runes suppressed the space and clashed with the Giant Palms of Vajra. At the same time, a terrifying rumbling could be heard in the sky. Vajra Divine Child felt a powerful suppressive aura of the Great Path emanating from the sky and spreading towards him.


    He looked up and saw a slit appear on the horizon. In the sky above, a door from ancient times seemed to appear. It suppressed everything around it. At a glance, he seemed to be enclosed within this space. The door��s suppressive power was astonishing.


    It was the Gate of World Suppression. Down below, Emperor Xi glanced at the Millet Emperor beside him. The Millet Emperor had a look of relief in his eyes. Back in the day, the disciple he was most proud of was Zong Chan. However, Zong Chan had perished, being killed by Ning Hua. Now, although Ye Futian could not be considered his disciple, he had inherited Millet Emperor��s teachings. Ye Futian managed to unleash the power of the Gate of World Suppression to such an extent. He had far surpassed Zong Chan in his heyday.


    If Zong Chan witnessed this scene, he would most likely be pleased too.


    The facial expression of Vajra Divine Child turned serious. The Gate of World Suppression was a divine technique Ye Futian obtained through meditating in the Wangshen Watchtower. It was very powerful. Ye Futian modified the Gate of World Suppression based on his own understanding and cultivation style, making it more suitable. It could suppress a part of the sky. Similar to his other attacks, the Gate of World Suppression was a domineering power.


    Vajra Divine Child put his palms together. 10,000 Zhang golden divine halos burst forth. The majestic Vajra Battle Form glowed with even more frightening golden divine light, and its halos shone for 10,000 miles. Dang! With a loud clang, the gigantic battle form, akin to a god, raised his arm and sent out a palm strike. This endlessly big palm was engraved with countless Vajra runes. It was indestructible. It was the Art of Supreme Attack of the Vajra Region��the Vajra Divine Seal.


    In the sky above, the Vajra Divine Seal and the Gate of World Suppression collided. The sound of the collision echoed throughout the space. The Vajra Divine Seal radiated with brilliant halos as the entire palm shone brightly. It intended to eradicate everything that crossed its path. The Gate of World Suppression vanquished all attacks which it encountered. Both powers were extremely domineering.


    Rumble. An alarming sound thundered. The Vajra Divine Seal was shattered. The Gate of World Suppression followed suit and disintegrated. A terrifying storm swept out and covered the entire space. All the cultivators who had yet to unleash their powers did so now to block off the residue waves from the aftermath.


    ��He is so strong!�� exclaimed the cultivators who were standing below.


    They were impressed by the domineering attack. Their gazes all landed on the white-haired silhouette high in the sky above. The hearts of the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture all quivered violently.


    He actually was holding his own against two top-tier cultivators. Monstrous existences from the Vajra Region and the Yuanshi Domain were attacking him at the same time, and yet they still could not suppress him. He was fighting against the two of them alone, and his attack power was actually not weaker than that of the two powerful cultivators combined.


    Around them, many top figures were spectating the battle. Their hearts also stirred. The Heavenly Mandate Realm ruler, the top monstrous figure of the Original Realm, indeed had exceptional talent. He was peerless. Even in the entire Divine Prefecture, few people could compare to him.


    Xi Chiyao was smiling. Before this, she had sparred with Ye Futian, so she knew clearly that wanting to take him down would not be so easy. During her battle with him, if she hadn��t admitted defeat at the very last moment, the outcome of their battle would still be unknown. This was the result even with her going all out. How could these people possibly force Ye Futian to show his trump card easily?


    Unless a ninth-tier Renhuang shamelessly attacked him, these prominent figures would not be able to investigate Ye Futian��s true ability without bringing out their strongest attacks!

 Chapter 2365 - Something Was Off

    There were also slight changes in the expressions of Vajra Divine Child as well as the heir of the Yuanshi Palace. They seemed to have become slightly more serious. All the cultivators were watching this battle. They were the successors of the Ancient God Clan��s two major factions, yet they actually could not take down Ye Futian. The white-haired youth was attacking both of them at the same time alone. He was overwhelming them.


    It was as though the two of them acted as foils for Ye Futian.


    Thinking about this, their eyes burned even brighter. Vajra Divine Child put his hands together, and immediately, rumbling sounds could be heard all around them. The Divine Sound of the Great Path seemed to circle them. Golden halos filled the space, dyeing this part of the sky golden.


    Buzz.


    Vajra Divine Child��s figure leaped high up into the sky. His figure stood below the golden sky. He had a solemn expression as he put his hands together. After the golden divine light dyed the sky, the crowd saw a face appear. It seemed to be the face of the ancient god of the Vajra Region.


    Endless golden halos rained down and enveloped the space.


    It was the Vajra Dominion. When the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture in the distance saw this scene, their hearts trembled. From the looks of it, Vajra Divine Child was getting serious. He had actually unleashed the Vajra Dominion.


    The Vajra Region Ancient God Clan was a force in the Vajra Domain. They were established by an ancient Great Emperor. Currently, the cultivation grounds of the Vajra Region were part of an independent world.


    The Vajra Dominion was passed down from the Great Emperor. It was a super powerful technique. Within the Vajra Dominion, everything would be bound. Anyone who wanted to escape had to shatter the dominion first. It was extremely difficult to do so.


    Under the Vajra Dominion effects, the Vajra Region��s divine power could be unleashed to its most powerful state. Its might was overwhelming and without equal. Now, Vajra Divine Child was clearly unleashing his true ability, going all out against Ye Futian.


    In another direction, another cultivator was still around. The heir of the Yuanshi Palace stared at the battlefield. The appearance of the Vajra Dominion somewhat affected him.


    However, since Vajra Divine Child had unleashed his strongest teachings, then the heir of the Yuanshi Palace would temporarily assume the support role and not unleash his mega-battle matrix. He would first unleash a smaller matrix.


    After he considered this, the heir of the Yuanshi Domain pointed a finger upwards. Immediately, streaks of divine light radiated in the sky. Ripples formed in different locations. They were similar to water ripples and propagated outwards. Soon, a pattern was formed from one of the ripples.


    Similar scenes occurred at different locations in the sky. More and more patterns took form, and Sword Will whizzed in the heavens and the earth. Sword Will covered a vast space of 1,000 miles. The different patterns all ended up forming the same diagram. It was the God-Punishing Sword Matrix.


    Each and every diagram was a God-Punishing Sword Matrix. At a glance, there were 99 God-Punishing Sword Matrices hanging in the sky. The power which loomed over the space was enough to destroy this part of the sky. It was menacing.


    The heir of the Yuanshi Palace pointed his finger at Ye Futian. All 99 God-Punishing Sword Matrices also pointed towards Ye Futian. Instantly, Ye Futian felt as though his spiritual soul had been locked in place. It was as though he had nowhere to run. No matter where he went, only one outcome awaited him��annihilation by the God-Punishing Swords.


    ��This is still not the final form of the God-Punishing Sword Matrix,�� commented someone from a top force of the Divine Prefecture. This God-Punishing Sword Matrix had yet to reach its final form. If it was in its final form, it was similar to the battle form unleashed by Vajra Divine Child. The entire matrix would block out the sun and envelop the vast space. It would transform into a domain of the Great Path. When the God-Punishing Swords descended, all living beings would face their doom.


    Ye Futian glanced at the sky above. Both cultivators had coalesced frightening powers and unleashed the Art of Supreme Attacks. They were ready to kill him. However, even so, his facial expression remained calm and did not show many changes.


    He took a glance at the two cultivators. A formless aura was unleashed from his body and slowly permeated into the surrounding air. An independent region formed with his body as its center. In this region, the sun and the moon shone brightly at the same time. Stars flowed freely and obeyed their own rules. The region functioned with a different law compared to the outside world.


    Dazzling halos burst forth from his body and resonated with heaven and earth.


    ��Huh?�� Xi Chiyao looked towards where Ye Futian was. She faintly sensed something. During her battle with Ye Futian, he unleashed some power at the very last minute. She was not able to clearly sense what it was that time.


    Ye Futian��s current state was similar to that during their previous battle. Her gaze was dead fixed on him. She was curious whether or not the cultivators from the Vajra Region and the Yuanshi Palace could defeat Ye Futian.


    The rhythm of the Great Path circled them. The ancient god of the Vajra Region, which loomed over the sky, moved. Instantly, brilliant divine light radiated. The next moment, the heavens and the earth shook as though the sky was collapsing. Endless Vajra Divine Seals charged downward with an imposing momentum.


    At this moment, it was as though the sky was about to be crushed into pieces. Endless Vajra Divine Seals blasted towards Ye Futian simultaneously. This scene was spectacular. All the cultivators who were witnessing the battle on the sidelines felt their hearts tremble in fear.


    The sky was shaking violently as though it was on the verge of crumbling. The endless Vajra Divine Seals were capable of annihilating all existences. Who could stand against them?


    In an instant, the Vajra Divine Seals crashed down towards where Ye Futian was. They directly plummeted towards his figure. The space where Ye Futian stood appeared to immediately shatter, including Ye Futian��s figure within it.


    Rumble.


    A terrifying scene appeared where Ye Futian was. Countless Vajra Divine Seals crashed down and drowned out this part of the sky. It seemed as though they could not be blocked at all.


    However, Ye Futian merely glanced at them. His gaze was steady. The next moment, the Vajra Divine Seals that rumbled intensely as they came crashing towards him suddenly slowed down.


    The speed of such an attack was incredibly fast. It would have killed Ye Futian before he could think.


    However, right then, the various cultivators could clearly sense that the falling Vajra Divine Seals were slowing down. It seemed as though some power of the Great Path was slowing them down.


    Moonlight shone down and enveloped the space. It brought with it an extreme chill. It was as though the space was frozen solid. There was also the power of Space acting on this area. Within this area, the laws of the Great Path seemed to be different than that of the outside world.


    In here, Ye Futian was in absolute control. Even when such an overwhelmingly powerful attack entered into this domain of the Great Path, the effect of the power in the domain on it was much greater than that of the outside world.


    Buzz. Yin Divine Light rained down and encapsulated the Vajra Divine Seals. The divine seals were coated in a layer of cold frost. Even so, the frightening Vajra Divine Seals still descended upon Ye Futian with terrifying rumbling sounds, intending to crush him.


    Just then, the stars that were orbiting non-stop in the sky immediately collided with these Vajra Divine Seals. The stars shattered the seals in one great sweep. These Vajra Divine Seals did not seem as powerful as people imagined them to be as they shattered.


    ��What is going on?�� exclaimed some cultivators. They were stunned as they gazed at the scene in astonishment. Something was off!

 Chapter 2366 - Intense Fight Will

    ��It��s the Boundary Wheel!�� a top-level cultivator from the Ancient God Clan exclaimed. They looked at Ye Futian and his surroundings and saw that invisible current had turned into a Boundary Wheel.


    ��Yes, it is indeed the Boundary Wheel. The Vajra Dominion of the Vajra Divine Child is also considered Boundary Wheel. But there are some differences: his Boundary Wheel is centered on his body and spread outward, almost invisible. However, the domain of that Boundary Wheel is self-contained, like a world that was his domain,�� someone explained.


    The Boundary Wheel overlapped with the Great Path domain, and in that sense, the boundary could be defined as a domain. The Vajra Divine Child could very well overpower any space with his Divine Wheel and turn it into the face of Vajra Region��s ancient god. In this Vajra Dominion, the Great Path power derived from the Vajra Region would be unimaginably powerful, and he could exert his might to the fullest extent. His attacking method was fierce and invincible.


    If it were before, perhaps even Ye Futian would have some difficulty resisting those endless attacks that came from the sky. Infinite Vajra Divine Seals each contained the power to annihilate a world. With endless divine seals blasting down at the same time, their potency was almost apocalyptic.


    But at this moment, just when these attacks creeping toward Ye Futian and entered into the field around him, they slowed down unexpectedly, and their power seemed to weaken as well. They were first frozen by ice, then pulverized soon after. It was reasonable to believe that they must have entered within the domain of Ye Futian��s Boundary Wheel. Lying therein was Ye Futian��s world. The Great Path that he controlled was more than powerful, so much so that it could affect and weaken the Vajra Divine Seals considerably, thereby destroying them.


    ��Generally speaking, a Boundary Wheel will not have such power unless his Boundary Wheel is different from the others,�� some cultivator who had been through the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path said in a low voice. He was following the development in that area closely.


    ��Well, similar to levels of suppression, Ye Futian��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path might be of a higher level than that of the Divine Child, thus achieving the Great Path suppression. Therefore, even at a lower realm, he was able to block, even destroy the powerful attacks from his opponent with ease,�� someone else commented, analyzing Ye Futian��s ability and making sense of what they were seeing.


    At this moment, these top cultivators were even more interested in Ye Futian. As a matter of fact, Ye Futian was harboring some secrets. That was why everything about him was so different from the others.


    What kind of existence was the Vajra Divine Child? He was the heir of the Vajra Region, possessing the divine power of all of the Vajra Region. His offensive attacks were extremely overbearing and rarely find another who was worthy to compete with him. However, for such an existence to be suppressed by Ye Futian on the level of their Boundary Wheels, the reasoning behind this amazing phenomenon was provocative enough.


    This was something of which Xi Chiyao had become keenly aware. She recalled the curious feeling that she felt at the last moment of her fighting with Ye Futian. In truth, it was exactly as they had said. She was facing the same situation that the Vajra Divine Child currently was.


    At the time, she used the Eyes of the West Emperor to create a Great Path domain, and thought it was enough to suppress and crush Ye Futian outright, but she was unable to do so. At the very last moment, a strange sensation manifested, which was probably due to the reason these top figures had concluded.


    Ye Futian controlled the unique Divine Wheels of the Great Path, possibly with much higher levels of capabilities for him to suppress the Divine Wheels of the Vajra Divine Child in this fashion. Under this kind of condition, even though the realm of the Vajra Divine Child was higher than Ye Futian, his offensive attacks failed to touch Ye Futian. Moreover, those endless Vajra Divine Seals had disintegrated instead.


    The cultivators from West Imperial Palace stole a glance at Xi Chiyao. This Goddess of West Imperial Palace must have gotten some hints of it in the previous battle, which would explain her willingness to cultivate at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    In the battlefield, the Divine Child of the Vajra Region looked really bad when he saw what was happening. Those golden eyes pierced through the space and fell on Ye Futian. His attacks were blocked so readily that countless divine seals now shattered and disintegrated, unable to pose any threat to Ye Futian at all.


    In the meantime, on the other side, the heir of Yuanshi Palace was equally disturbed at this sight; was Ye Futian as strong as this?


    He was aching to see whether his attacks could upend Ye Futian.


    With a wave of the hand, rays of sword lights shot out from the God-Punishing Sword Matrix in the sky above. Countless sword lights came down at the same time as if intending to annihilate the space, and that everything would then be broken and destroyed. All would turn to nothing under the swords; even the area of the Great Path would be no exception.


    Psst�� A sharp and piercing sound was heard as God-Punishing Swords came down, entering the area of the Great Path that surrounded Ye Futian. In the next moment, those destructive swords suddenly decreased in speed and were covered with layers of frost.


    Even though the swords were still continuing their downward momentum, shredding the power of the Great Path as they went, aiming directly at Ye Futian; they were very much affected.


    Ye Futian waved his hand, and the divine light of the sun and the moon spilt, carrying the destructive Shadow/Solar Divine Sword. It aimed straight toward the downward-moving God-Punishing Swords. And as they collided, the invading swords were obliterated.


    Sure enough, the God-Punishing Swords of Yuanshi Palace suffered the same fate as the Vajra Divine Seals. As soon as any of them invaded into the dominion around Ye Futian, its effect was affected and began to weaken. In that dominion, Ye Futian��s power of the Great Path seemed to increase, easily blocking their aggressive attacks.


    This also meant that an attack at this level couldn��t even get close to Ye Futian, let alone defeat him.


    Around them, those top cultivators from Divine Prefecture, who had surrounded the battlefield, looked on. Their bodies dazzled with divine light, filling this space with their fighting will. They seemed eager to jump in, to see for themselves just how strong Ye Futian��s dominion was, and what level of power could he withstand?


    No matter how powerful any dominion was, it was highly unlikely to be totally indestructible. As long as the offensive power was great enough, they thought, even the entire dominion could be destroyed just the same.


    ��Want to give it a try?�� said someone whose eyes never deviated from the battlefield. His interest was piqued; this method must be what Ye Futian was ultimately relying on. This level of ability would be hard to undermine even by top figures in the Eighth-Realm.


    At this moment, these two major cultivators could not defeat Ye Futian, not even close.


    ��Let��s wait,�� someone else replied, choosing to continue observing rather than take action. The Vajra Divine Child and the heir of Yuanshi Palace had not been pushed to their limits yet. At present, everyone else was a little curious as to how this battle would end.


    At this moment, the Vajra Divine Child put his hands together, and immense divine light shot out from his body, which then merged into the divine phantom that hovered above the firmament. There seemed to be horrific divine sounds that lingered between heaven and earth. Immediately after, horrific divine light appeared. This golden divine light possessed terrifying penetrating power, which now honed in on Ye Futian.


    In the next moment, a massive and boundless arm appeared above the sky. This arm covered the sky and the sun, like a stone pillar that came from the sky, heading towards Ye Futian who was on the ground below. The arm went forward, and a frightening Giant Palm of Tianshen slammed out. A terrifying booming roared in the space, seemed to signify the impending collapse of this world; even the entire void was trembling now.


    Witnessing what had just taken place, everyone knew that this Vajra Region��s Divine Child was now determined to win, and he wanted to break down Ye Futian��s dominion to defeat him!

 Chapter 2367 - Ninth-Realm Joining In

    The arm came down all the way, penetrating directly into the Great Path domain around Ye Futian. Propelled by the Vajra divine power, it seemed that even the force of this Great Path domain was having difficulty affecting this Tianshen Arm.


    Shocking sounds of rumbling were heard, and the space was on the verge of shattering and collapsing. The stars within the Great Path domain were exploding, destroyed under the Giant Palm of Tianshen at the other end of that massive arm.


    The other end of the golden arm that had penetrated the void was directly connected to a golden body above the firmament as the Vajra divine power continuously poured into it. When the arm slammed down, to those in the distance, it was as if a golden light beam had punctured the void, from the firmament downward, with unstoppable force.


    Boom�� A vast radiant divine light erupted from Ye Futian. The divine light swept out with his body as the source, obscuring the sky and the sun. Terrifying divine light wrapped up on that Tianshen arm, so the mobility and power of that arm were greatly affected. Even though it was still attacking towards the ground below, it was slowing down considerably.


    Behind Ye Futian, a series of exceptionally beautiful visions now appeared. Accompanied by a long trilling whistle, Ye Futian seemed to have morphed into the Peacock Demon God. His visage was now becoming even more wicked and scary, and an astonishing demonic energy rushed out from him. As hearts were beating violently, a majestic demonic power burst out as infinite divine light bloomed.


    Buzz! When the massive arm blasted down, it was blocked by the Starry Shield. The divine light of the stars that surrounded Ye Futian intertwined and formed an absolute superb defense around him. The arm blasted right on the shield, which caused it to shake violently, but the downward momentum of that Tianshen Arm was also stymied.


    There was a loud bang, and cracks began to appear on the Starry Shield. It then shattered as the shield collapsed. The infinite Vajra divine power above the firmament was constantly pouring in until it finally broke down the shield. However, at the same time, that golden giant palm was shrouded by the supreme power of the Shadow as well, with much of its power now diminished.


    Above the firmament, the golden divine glory continued to fall, pouring into the arm to restore its power. However, at this time, Ye Futian, who was within the starry light screen, was shining brightly all over, as if he had turned into an indestructible divine sword. The Sword Will surrounding his body, just as numerous starlight showered upon him, as well as the power of the Demon God that was also covering his body. Under the support of multiple powers, Ye Futian��s aura was rising frantically at this moment.


    Buzz! Countless divine lights shot out toward that massive arm at the same time. They converge into a single beam that unified and turned into a sword.


    This sword strike pierced through the void and heaven and earth, hitting the Giant Palm of Tianshen in an instant. At the moment when the two attacks connected and collided, time and space seemed to have stopped. Soon after, countless rays of light shot into the Giant Palm as golden light diffused and filled the sky. The giant handprint started to crack as Sword Will rushed into it frantically, invading Tianshen arm through these cracks, intending to perforate it through and through.


    Sizzle�� A frightening Sword Will followed that golden arm and creeping upward. Everyone saw that Tianshen Arm split open. At the same time, a shocking sword light burst from the split arm, rushing high into the sky, and blasted directly at that divine figure above the firmament.


    Boom! Boom! The Tianshen Arm now pulverized and exploded with madness, and the arm crumbled. Vajra Dominion shook crazily in the void under that monstrous Sword Might, and it was leaving the Vajra Divine Child a little pale.


    Ye Futian raised his head to take a look. Then, a beam of light rushed into the sky. It was his body now that traveled as a sword. All the crowd saw was a sword light penetrating the void, directly blasting on the divine figure above.


    There was a crystalline crunching sound that was clearly audible. Everyone saw a sword that traversed heaven and earth. Some fractures appeared on that Tianshen phantom in the void, as the Vajra Dominion was totally shaken up. On the battlefield, Ye Futian didn��t seem to have moved a single inch. He was still standing where he was as if it had not been him who had made the attack just now.


    However, Ye Futian��s entire body dazzled; his physical body was the sword body of the Great Path, surrounded by endless starlight. With a turning of his mind, everyone saw yet another sword rushed into the sky with impeccable swordsmanship. The distance of space was nonexistent. The body was the sword.


    Boom! Another sword blasted upon the Vajra Dominion, and then the third strike, the fourth�� In a short period of time, it seemed that countless sword strikes had pierced through heaven and earth. And all of them slammed on the Vajra Dominion. That dominion, which contained indestructible divine power of the Vajra Region, began to show more and more fissures.


    The impact of what was taking place in front of them was indescribably shocking. Countless swords seem to be connected from sky to earth, hitting every location of the Vajra Dominion. If this continued, the Great Path domain of the Vajra Region would inevitably collapse. In that case, the Divine Wheel of the Vajra Divine Child would probably be broken.


    Many cultivators looked in the direction of the Divine Child and saw that golden face was revealing hints of struggle as if he was in some pain. Finally, accompanied by a muffled groan, with a turning of his thoughts, the infinite divine light disappeared in an instant, and the Vajra Dominion vanished as well. That endless divine light submerged into his body like mad, and he dared not continue.


    The Vajra Divine Child has been defeated, everyone thought as they witnessed the incredible scene that had just taken place in front of them. Under the joint efforts of these two major cultivators, the Vajra Divine Child was suppressed and had to withdraw his Great Path domain, which clearly suggested that he could no longer bear Ye Futian��s attack. If he were to insist on continuing the battle, even his Divine Wheel might collapse and shatter.


    Ye Futian looked towards the direction of the Vajra Divine Child but did not continue his attack. In another direction, the heir of Yuanshi Palace did not continue his attack either. The offensive and defensive techniques of the Vajra Region were known to be incredibly fierce and overpowering, but even the Vajra Dominion was now broken up. Even if he were to continue, it would be unlikely for him to defeat Ye Futian.


    This number one genius talent in the Original Realm was mighty indeed.


    The other cultivators in the vicinity focused on Ye Futian. It seemed that Ye Futian could not be suppressed until they take some action. The dominion force released just now by Ye Futian was considerable, and they still didn��t know if it had even close to Ye Futian��s limit.


    ��Not bad,�� someone praised. A top figure from Divine Prefecture looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��The reputation of the number one genius in Original Realm was well-deserved. Emperor Ye has infinite potential, and I can see that the dominion of Emperor Ye��s cultivation is truly extraordinary. I wonder how this Divine Wheel of the Great Path was cast?��


    Ye Futian looked at the person who spoke and saw he was also a powerful existence from the Ancient God Clan, a supreme cultivator from Infinite Mountains. He was a top Renhuang who cultivated at the Infinite Mountains. Moreover, he was of the Ninth-Realm. The aura that was being released by him was elusive yet terrifying.


    This Great Path domain was cast by his Natal Spirit; he wouldn��t be so crazy as to divulge that.


    So, he did not bother to respond. Those cultivators were still hanging around the surrounding space. Since they had come with bad intentions, he felt like he didn��t need to bother with common courtesy either.


    The cultivator from Infinite Mountains smiled when he saw that Ye Futian didn��t answer him. With a wave of his palm, infinite Divine Swords appeared between heaven and earth instantly, pointing directly at Ye Futian.


    Even a peak Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm was making a move now.


    ��If so, I am going to have to see for myself just how strong is Emperor Ye��s cultivation.��

 Chapter 2368 - Goddess

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Despicable creature!�� a voice shouted as someone rushed straight into the sky, heading towards the sky above; it was Blind Tie.


    A peak Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm had dared attack Ye Futian.


    ?


    All the cultivators from Divine Prefecture cast a glance at Blind Tie. A humongous and boundless handprint appeared above the sky, then blasted down on Blind Tie; it was from a Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm from Haotian Clan. His clothing fluttered, and he had an extraordinary temperament. With a raise of his hand, he managed to suppress the void with a single palm strike.


    Blind Tie shouted angrily, and his whole body was radiant, as the divine glory upon him skyrocketed. A divine hammer appeared, smashing into the giant palm that came slamming down. Loud booming sounds were heard as a dull groaning came from above the sky. Although Blind Tie impeded the other��s attack, he was pushed back as well; his upward momentum stopped dead in its tracks.


    Buzz, buzz�� In the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, several Renhuang of the Ninth Realm levitated into the air. However, at this time, many Renhuang from various principalities of the Divine Prefecture also stepped forward, blocking their way above the void, detaining them.


    ��This is a little overboard,�� Emperor Xi said, as his figure was also moving upward. But, an elder from Divine Prefecture interceded, ��It��s just an exchange; there is no need to worry. Rest assured, the Divine Prefecture and the Original Realm is one and we will not harm Emperor Ye.��


    As he finished speaking, an invisible pressure of might shrouded the boundless space. Although the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was a strong one, it paled in comparison with the many forces from Divine Prefecture. Especially at the top level, it was nearly impossible for them to compete with the other.


    However, from a distance, cultivators were rushing this way one after the other. They were cultivators from the Lost Clan. As soon as they got wind of the situation here, more and more of them hurried to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. But the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had isolated the battlefield, nor were they really that concerned about the cultivators from the Lost Clan.


    This was not the Shenyi Continent, and without that super grand matrix, the arrival of the Lost Clan meant nothing and changed nothing.


    Above the firmament, in the vast expanse of space, the battlefield now stretched over a tremendous distance. After all, when someone at their caliber fought, just a wave of a hand could cover an area thousands of miles wide. The top figure from Infinite Mountains raised his hand, and countless divine swords dropped down from the sky, and every one of them was tremendously monstrous, aiming at Ye Futian with the terrifying sound as they tore through the space.


    In the Great Path domain where these divine swords descended, there was some hindrance. But the person who made the move this time was someone in the Ninth-Realm. Therefore, even the Great Path aura in the dominion could not completely stop the divine swords. The stars flowed and shattered some swords, but those divine swords were everywhere in the sky, burying this corner of the sky without end.


    ��Boundless!�� Many looked up. Over there, the Boundless Divine Child was of the Ninth-Realm in this newest wave of engagement. If he took action, it would probably be impossible for Ye Futian to compete with him. Nonetheless, this battle was no longer a fair fight.


    Ye Futian was surrounded by a starry light screen, which created an absolute defense. But as that sky full of divine swords rained down, and loud rumbling sounds came out, the stars, including where Ye Futian was, were knocked back, then shattered.


    Ye Futian kept retreating while the infinite divine swords between heaven and earth were still attacking forward.


    Bang, bang, bang! The divine swords blasted in front of Ye Futian��s body and collided with him. Many divine swords crumpled, but Ye Futian was also knocked backward again as a muffled groan came out of him.


    A horrific storm of swordsmanship enveloped this corner of the sky, ??and the infinite divine swords suddenly stopped in the sky above Ye Futian, but still pointed at him.


    Boundless Divine Child was a supreme cultivator in the Ninth-Realm, and he was reputed to be exceptionally talented. He was already a top cultivator in the Boundless Domain, so for him to take action against Ye Futian, who was in the Seventh-Realm, was not an honorable deed.


    The cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy below watched with increased concern, but Old Ma said, ��Don��t worry, he can handle it.��


    Previously, he had gone to Four Corner Village with Ye Futian when Ye Futian brought back the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Ye Futian would surely bring out the divine corpse in the battle if he were truly in danger. These people would have no way of dealing with that just yet.


    However, it was still a bit too much.


    ��Emperor Ye doesn��t plan to release the true form of the Boundary Wheel for us to see?�� All the cultivators from Divine Prefecture stared at Ye Futian. They were waiting for him to reveal all his cards. They wanted to see all of the secrets that Ye Futian was harboring.


    However, even now, they still couldn��t figure him out.


    ��Don��t worry, you have my word that you will not be harmed; we just want to see how strong you are,�� the Boundless Divine Child continued. The vast space around them was surrounded by divine light, protecting Ye Futian inside.


    Ye Futian glanced at these cultivators, his eyes were cold to the extreme. He stretched out his hand, wanting to release the emperor��s corpse.


    ��I know that you controlled the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, but if you are really thinking about using it, you must consider whether or not you would be able to keep it,�� someone said nonchalantly, with a slight suggestion of threat. These cultivators from Divine Prefecture were all plotting against Ye Futian for the Great Emperor��s inheritance that he possessed. If Ye Futian were to unleash the body of the Shenjia the Great Emperor, those cultivators who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path would not simply stand by and watch.


    Clearly, Ye Futian understood this as well. He surveyed those people and asked, ��So, you are determined to force me to fight today?��


    Even now he still didn��t want to offend these principalities from the Divine Prefecture too well. Under the current situation in the Original Realm, what he wanted the most was to cultivate quietly to improve himself. However, if these people from the Divine Prefecture wouldn��t let him go, then he would have no choice but to unite the cultivators from the Lost Clan and fight back.


    ��Just want to take a look at Emperor Ye��s methods,�� said another cultivator from the Ancient God Clan, with divine light lingering. All of them were supreme cultivators. He continued, ��Here, today, this may be the best of the best from the Divine Prefecture.��


    As Ye Futian surveyed these cultivators, invisible currents from him swept toward the boundless space, moving in at these cultivators. At this moment, these peak figures from the Divine prefecture had a look of curiosity; it seemed that Ye Futian finally decided not to cover up his Boundary Wheel.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Brilliant divine light surrounded these cultivators as they gathered around Ye Futian. Every one of their auras were beyond terrifying, and their majestic style was second to none. When the divine light of the Great Path bloomed, a horrific aura condensed and emerged; they were ready to take action.


    However, right now, above the firmament, there was a sudden shower of divine light. This divine light was incomparably radiant and fell directly on the battlefield as if coming from outside the sky.


    ��What?�� Those top figures from Divine Prefecture looked into the sky; they were completely unaware of anyone coming.


    Every divine consciousness now aimed toward the sky and saw that in that sky full of divine light, there was a figure who now walked towards the battlefield below.


    In the midst of the endless divine light, a woman emerged, like Jiutian Goddess, who descended with divine glory. She bathed in the warm glow of the sun, with magnificent stature and a face that was incomparably ravishing. She was arrogant, noble, and elegant, as if she was not of this world.


    When their eyes beheld her, many cultivators from Heavenly Mandate Academy gasped. They watched the goddess who appeared above the sky with disbelief and shock.


    Ye Futian was showered with endless divine glory as he raised his head to look above the firmament. When he saw the goddess who came with this incomparable divine light, he could no longer look away!

 Chapter 2369 - We Meet Again

    ��Who is she?��


    The cultivators from Divine Prefecture secretly marveled at her. As they looked at Ye Futian, it seemed that her eyes were fastened on him as well.


    Ye Futian was also looking at her. This white-haired Renhuang who stood high above the void, the premier genius talent of Heavenly Mandate Realm, the College Chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy, Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, master of Four Corner Village, and the heir of Ziwei the Great, Shenjia the Great Emperor, as well as Shenyin the Great. At this moment, in those arrogant eyes of his, there was nothing but endless tenderness. An extremely brilliant smile appeared at the corners of his eyes.


    The smile was so pure and the eyes so clear. It was hard to imagine that someone who had cultivated to a level such could still be capable of such pure emotions. Even those who were not connected understood that the woman who appeared must be Ye Futian��s beloved.


    The beautiful eyes of the goddess who appeared in the void stared back at Ye Futian. The two looked at each other across the void, sharing an infinite affection for one another. She smiled with such beauty, without that coldness or pride, and without that ethereal temperament. All that was left was pure and simple beauty.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt as if they were lifetimes away. In his mind, he couldn��t help but think of the time when they laid eyes on each other for the first time.


    He knew that the one whom he had loved so deeply had finally returned to him as her whole self. Even though she had gone through the ordeal of the walk-in, she had found herself and come back to him.


    ��She is back.��


    From the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Lord Taixuan whispered to himself. More importantly, this was not the Hua Jieyu he had known from the Heavenly Mandate Academy once upon a time, but the Hua Jieyu that Ye Futian had always known and loved. She was quite different from when he had met her before.


    Back then, they had cautioned Ye Futian to be careful of Hua Jieyu. Back then, in the realm of Brahma��s Pure Sky, the Empress��s cultivation was at the peak of Renhuang, and the method of her cultivation was something peculiar. She had a secret method that had since been lost, and no one knew of its origin. Known as the 3,000 Realms of One Mind, it had the means to ��walk-in�� or seize another person��s physical entity for the user��s own purpose. They believed then that Hua Jieyu had been used by the Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress, and they worried that Ye Futian might be entrapped and also end up being used by her.


    Hua Jieyu, at that time, was indeed an unfamiliar entity to Ye Futian, like a blank piece of paper. Ye Futian had been quietly guarding and looking after her.


    But now, seeing Hua Jieyu��s smile, the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy realized that the wife Ye Futian had been missing had finally returned to him.


    It seemed that she had been right in heading over to Divine Prefecture at the time. And it seemed that in the battle where Ye Futian perished, she had already begun to recover from her trauma and had become self-aware. Not only did Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress fail to take over her consciousness, but she was also ultimately overtaken by Hua Jieyu instead.


    That year, the group that went to the Divine Prefecture had already returned to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, except Hua Jieyu. According to them, Hua Jieyu left to follow her own cultivation path, and no one knew where she went.


    Today, she returned alone, precisely when Ye Futian was besieged and suppressed by all the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian couldn��t help but smile. In addition to the gentleness in his eyes, there was also a touch of sadness. He wasn��t sad about this moment but for all the years that had passed. In all those years, they had been apart more often than they had been together. Now they met again��after more than 20 years.


    ��Fox, it��s been a long time!�� Ye Futian smiled brightly and reached out with his hand. Even across the void, he instinctively reached out for her hand.


    Hearing this familiar and yet strange term of endearment, Hua Jieyu��s eyes, which were full of bright smiles, suddenly filled with tears. Two teardrops flowed down on her ravishing visage, leaving two wet trails on that delicate face.


    No one had called her ��fox�� for what seemed like a lifetime.


    She hadn��t heard it for too many years. This was from back when they were still so young.


    Now, they had experienced and been through so much together.


    ��It has been a long time!�� Hua Jieyu smiled as she cried. She moved toward Ye Futian. This distance, short though it may be, seemed to be thousands of miles long.


    After deaths and separations, she was forced to cultivate after being invaded by the Empress. In an attempt to help her reclaim her memories, Ye Futian took her to all the places they had been when they were together. However, when she woke up again, what she saw was Ye Futian besieged and slaughtered. For her, it was unspeakably traumatic.


    Decades were nothing but a blink of an eye in the cultivation world. No one else could know what these two decades meant to her.


    When she woke up, he was already gone.


    Her body moved in the direction where Ye Futian was. Surrounded by divine light, she was so exceptionally gorgeous.


    However, this happy scene was frowned upon by the cultivators from Divine Prefecture, who had laid siege on Ye Futian. They had planned to deal with Ye Futian once and for all, forcing him to release the last of his abilities so they could unearth his secrets. But just at the most crucial moment, they had been interrupted by the appearance of Hua Jieyu.


    Her sudden appearance was too breathtaking to ignore. She came from outside of the firmament, surrounded by divine light, just like Jiutian Goddess descending into this world. She came with an unparalleled light. However, she clearly was not the Jiutain Goddess��a being from out of this world��but a woman who was Ye Futian��s beloved.


    Moreover, under the divine light from this woman, her aura was actually rather terrifying; it was the aura of a peak Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. The divine light was so dazzling that the onlookers felt they couldn��t see anything clearly.


    Ye Futian��s beloved had a higher cultivation level than him?


    Ye Futian himself was already the number one genius talent in all of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. He was extremely gifted. How could it be that his beloved was even stronger than him?


    The various forces in the Divine Prefecture had inquired into Ye Futian��s past and his cultivation history. They knew some things about him and that he had a wife. However, as far as their information went, Ye Futian��s wife did not seem to be an outstanding character, so they did not bother to inquire further. They didn��t know anything about Hua Jieyu and had no clue why her realm was higher than Ye Futian��s.


    Only the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy knew anything about this. They knew that Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress was the one who made Hua Jieyu.


    However, even if Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress was here, this shouldn��t be the kind of aura she was capable of.


    They could feel that Hua Jieyu appeared very different than how she used to.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu walked towards each other with smiles on their faces. It was as if everyone that surrounded them had nothing to do with them. In their eyes, there were only the two of them.


    After experiencing many deaths and separations, they had finally met again after more than 20 years. They didn��t intend to be separated again.


    Today, no matter who wanted to step between them, it would not happen. Not even those top enchanting figures from the Divine Prefecture could interfere.


    Seeing that Hua Jieyu was about to enter this area, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture glanced at her coldly. Soon after, the Vajra Divine Child was heard scolding her, ��Get back.��


    His voice sounded like a mighty bell, resonating between heaven and earth. It seemed that the divine power of the Vajra Region leaped out fiercely, slamming violently towards Hua Jieyu. SA series of Vajra Divine Seals had manifested in the space as if to vent the anger that he felt when he had been defeated by Ye Futian.


    Hua Jieyu lowered her head and cast a sideways glance at the Vajra Divine Child. At this moment, those beautiful eyes that had held endless tenderness suddenly became extremely icy. Infinite divine light erupted. In an instant, this vast world seemed to stand still, and those Vajra Divine Seals stopped dead in their tracks in the void as well. The eyes of the Divine Child were filled with great terror as countless images now invaded his divine consciousness. Above the firmament, divine light showered upon him.


    Boom! Hua Jieyu continued to step downward, and the Vajra Divine Child groaned as his face turned pale and he spat out a mouthful of blood!

 Chapter 2370 - Prearranged?

    ��This����


    What they saw in front of them horrified these cultivators. Great shocks were written all over their faces. Could she be this powerful?


    That was the Vajra Divine Child. Even with attacks fueled by the Vajra divine power, he could not get closer to his opponent. At the same time, the Vajra Divine Child was injured badly and was now vomiting blood.


    Before this, even Ye Futian had not been able to achieve this result. It took a great battle for him to drive back the Vajra Divine Child in defeat.


    Even though Hua Jieyu was a Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm, the combat effectiveness of the Vajra Divine Child should be more than sufficient to deal with someone in the general vicinity of the Ninth-Realm. Even if she was a genius cultivator of the Ninth-Realm, he should not be defeated to this extent.


    It was obvious that Hua Jieyu��s strength was extremely powerful.


    ��Attack of the Spiritual Soul.�� All the attention was now fixed on that peerless goddess. She was surrounded by divine light, like the Jiutian Goddess who had made her presence known in the mortal world. With just a thought, she had severely injured the Vajra Divine Child, and no one knew how much of her strength had powered that attack.


    ��There is a will of the emperor.�� Looking at that beautiful woman and sensing the divine light flowing about her, as well as her aura of the Great Path, many felt a hint of divine power. It was the will of the emperor. On Hua Jieyu��s person, there was also some will of the emperor that could be detected; it was the same as those cultivators from the Ancient God Clan. She might have the inheritance of the Great Emperor in her possession.


    Those cultivators from the Divine Prefecture who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path couldn��t be more surprised. This woman, who had appeared out of nowhere, had exhibited such impressive fighting powers. Furthermore, her divine power was so strong that she was actually not any lesser than Xi Chiyao, the Goddess of West Imperial Palace, who had previously fought in a friendly exchange with Ye Futian.


    It was important to note that Xi Chiyao was the most talented person from the West Imperial Palace in the past thousand years; she was most in sync with the inheritance of the West Emperor. She was in control of the Eyes of the West Emperor, which demonstrated the power she had inherited. However, Hua Jieyu��s aura was no lesser than Xi Chiyao, which could only indicate that she had also synced perfectly to the inheritance of a Great Emperor.


    ��It appears that she has gotten a wonderful opportunity in the land of Divine Prefecture,�� someone whispered in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Hua Jieyu had defeated the Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress and turned her thousands of incarnations into one, all of them unified inside her physical body. The Hua Jieyu they had seen years ago was already one with the Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress and all of her other incarnations. They didn��t expect that after she departed for Divine Prefecture, she would have the chance to obtain imperial-level inheritance; this was truly fortuitous.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu appeared to be cultivators with great fortunes, and such fortunate cultivators were an extreme rarity.


    However, Hua Jieyu didn��t care about anyone else��s gaze at this moment. After she repelled the Vajra Divine Child, she continued her way towards Ye Futian. Her eyes were still so gentle. Ye Futian, on the other hand, didn��t care much about Hua Jieyu��s current strength. None of that mattered. What was important was that she was back, in the truest sense of the word.


    Beneath the lingering divine light, Hua Jieyu walked into the crowd. At this moment, no one rushed in to stop her. Obviously, the strength she had just displayed was somewhat astounding. Her ability to repel the Vajra Divine Child with just a thought meant that her combat effectiveness was not any lesser than those Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm from the Ancient God Clan. It would not be easy to stop her.


    Those few moments seemed like an eternity. It was as if after a long, long time, the two of them finally walked back onto the same path.


    Ye Futian looked at the face that was so close to him. It was so familiar, and his smile became even brighter. Hua Jieyu was just the same. It was as if all the beauty of the world was alive in her smile. The two of them held hands. There was too much they wanted to say to each other, yet not a word was uttered.


    Ye Futian reached out with his hand and stroked her cheek. All of this was like a dream.


    It must have been rough for her in Divine Prefecture all these years.


    However, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture didn��t seem to want to allow this beautiful scene to continue. Tyrannical auras suddenly descended, falling on the two of them, breaking that peaceful silence.


    ��We didn��t expect Emperor Ye��s Path Companion to be so outstanding. Since that��s the case, let us see for ourselves what that��s like,�� said a voice. The person who had spoken was the Boundless Divine Child. When his voice fell, those countless divine swords once again slammed down from the void, heading straight for Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian were still staring at each other, not their heads.


    Buzz! On Hua Jieyu, an astounding divine light suddenly burst out, sweeping through all the surrounding space. Her long black hair flew in the wind, and in an instant, an amazing divine consciousness shrouded the boundless space. The entire spatial world was shrouded by an extraordinary telekinetic power.


    Those billions of divine swords that came down suddenly slowed down, and there was a hint that they were about to stop. It was as everything in this space threatened to stop dead in their tracks.


    When all the cultivators saw this, there was a slight trembling in their hearts. The Boundless Divine Child was also a Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm. Could his offensive power be so easily stymied?


    However, his expression remained unchanged. He scanned the area in front of him, raising his hand, then quickly pushed his hand down. Suddenly, infinite divine swords whistled and howled, overwhelming that corner of the sky.


    Hua Jieyu frowned slightly. She turned her head, and a touch of coldness flashed through her eyes. At this moment, she seemed different than how she was before.


    The divine light lingered as her mind connected with heaven and earth. Her eyes swept towards the billions of divine swords that covered the sky and the sun. In an instant, this space seemed to stand still as those endless divine swords clamored, wanting to come in for the kill, but they couldn��t move an inch. That oppressive force blocked the momentum of the divine swords, making this space even more suppressed.


    Donk! Boundless Divine Child stepped forward. At the same time, the other cultivators from Ancient God Clan who were around him took action as well. Supreme and awesome divine power of the Great Path spread out from them, suppressing the two people in the center of it all with total aggression.


    Even if she was a peak figure in the Ninth-Realm, what could she do? She still couldn��t stop their attack on Ye Futian.


    However, at this time, above the firmament, there was a terrifying aura that came emerged. The top figures from the Divine Prefecture were the first to act. They frowned and glanced above when they felt the presence of a frightening storm.


    ��Someone else is here?!�� They all felt a strange feeling now. Then, a terrifying aura fell from the sky, and there was a shocking demonic might that tossed and roared. Everyone looked up into the sky and saw that a mighty procession had come into their view.


    ��People from the Devil World?�� The cultivators from Divine Prefecture scanned the area high above the sky, wondering if the cultivators from the Devil World had come to meddle in these affairs as well.


    However, when the group descended, they realized that it didn��t seem to be the same group from the Devil World as before but was instead another group of people. It seemed that they were other cultivators from the Devil World.


    Furthermore, the person in the lead was not the Devil Emperor��s direct disciple, Xiao Mu, nor was he the Demon Sage from the Devil World. He was another young man, strapping and substantial. He was draped in a black Demonic Armor, and he was completely pitch black in appearance with a head of long black hair that fell upon his shoulders. A sense of immense dominance exuded from his entire body.


    This cultivator also appeared to be quite young, so who could this be?


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy showed a look of disbelief when they saw this young man. Did they all make a pact to come back together on this day?

 Chapter 2371 - Together Again

    Those who cultivated at the Heavenly Mandate Academy were familiar with this newcomer on the scene. He and Ye Futian used to be inseparable; he was his best brother-in-arms. Although his reputation was not as well-known as Ye Futian��s, the old timers at Heavenly Mandate Academy were well aware that his combat effectiveness was extremely powerful, not any less than Ye Futian.


    Moreover, the Devil General, Mei Ting, had once come to the Heavenly Mandate Academy just for him.


    Later, when Gu Dongliu and the others departed for the Divine Prefecture, they took him to the Devil World. Now, Hua Jieyu, who had been cultivating in the Divine Prefecture alone, had returned. Yu Sheng, who had been cultivating in the Devil World, did the same.


    All this seemed to be a coincidence, but more likely, it was not. Because the Original Realm was now mired in turmoil, cultivators from all of the worlds had descended. Whether it was Hua Jieyu, who cultivated in the Divine Prefecture, or Yu Sheng from the Devil World, they must have heard something about what was happening now. Therefore, it was not surprising for them to show up at this critical juncture.


    Currently, the attention of all the worlds was focused squarely on the Original Realm.


    What��s his position in the Devil World? the cultivators wondered as they assessed Yu Sheng. With so many cultivators from the Devil World guarding him in the center, Yu Sheng received some very special treatment. It was similar to when Xiao Mu had descended on the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    Could it be that he was also accepted as a direct disciple by the Devil Emperor?


    But it didn��t add up. Before Yu Sheng had gone to the Devil World to cultivate, Mei Ting, the Devil General, had personally arrived in the Heavenly Mandate Academy to find him for the express purpose of taking him to the Devil World. This meant that Yu Sheng already had some relationship with the Devil World even before he had gone there.


    His status in the Devil World may have something to do with his origin. If so, what was Yu Sheng��s true status?


    If Yu Sheng��s origin was unusual or extraordinary in any way, then what about Ye Futian?


    How did the two of them get to know each other? Why did they grow up together? And what was hidden in their shared history?


    Ye Futian looked there as well, bright smiles in his eyes. This guy had come back.


    And he was different than before. The hefty dude who used to follow him around was now someone filled with boundless domineering spirit. Like himself, Yu Sheng was now a peak Renhuang, standing at the top of the cultivation world.


    He must have made great progress in the Devil World; it seemed that he had made the right decision to go there.


    However, Ye Futian couldn��t help but wonder who his foster father was. And Yu Sheng, what was his relationship with the Devil World?


    However, none of this was important at the present moment. Surely, he would know the answers in the future. The most important thing was that his beloved and his best friend had both returned to his side.


    It felt just like many, many years ago.


    ��Yu Sheng!�� Ye Futian called with a smile.


    ��Yu Sheng!�� When those people from the top forces in the Divine Prefecture heard this name, they remembered someone. During their investigation into Ye Futian��s past, they had uncovered another person who was also extremely outstanding. Compared to Ye Futian��s wife, Hua Jieyu, this person was far more eye-catching. They knew that this person had grown up alongside Ye Futian, always by his side. More importantly, it was said that his combat effectiveness was extraordinary, comparable to Ye Futian��s.


    Later on, when a group of people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy departed for the Divine Prefecture, he disappeared. Rumor had it that he was handpicked by the Devil General of the Devil World himself. Because of his supreme demonic talent, he was taken to the Devil World to cultivate. It was very possible that he was destined to be a demonic cultivator.


    Now, he had returned. And from his aura and where he was standing, everyone realized that he must have achieved an extraordinary position in the Devil World.


    Could it be that he was a really direct disciple of the Devil Emperor?


    If so, it meant that his demonic talent was much higher than imagined. Otherwise, he would not have been taken to the Devil World, where he was valued by the Devil Emperor himself.


    However, the eyes of some cultivators from the Ancient God Clan flickered; they seemed to be considering another possibility.


    All this was way too strange, to say the least. If Yu Sheng had such an extraordinary talent, Ye Futian must be the same. Both of them were top genius talents in the world, and the existence of just one of them was already a rare enough find; not even the Ancient God Clan could find anyone as outstanding as this. But for two such extraordinary figures to appear in the same place and having grown up together, it was intriguing, to say the least.


    They returned to their previous conclusion that there must be something secretive about Ye Futian��s origin. What kind of secrets was he harboring?


    ��This is getting more and more interesting.�� Xi Chiyao watched everything with those beautiful eyes of hers, a smile on her face. First with Hua Jieyu, then the arrival of Yu Sheng with the cultivators from the Devil World. The situation here was becoming more precarious by the minute.


    As soon as Yu Sheng heard Ye Futian��s voice, he stepped into the void. Though he did not say a word, he was walking in the direction where Ye Futian was. Behind him, peak characters from the Devil World watched him quietly without following. Who would dare provoke the Devil World when they were standing guard here?


    These people from the Divine Prefecture were not that fearless just yet.


    Yu Sheng traversed through the crowd to enter the battlefield until he was next to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    Obviously, he had already seen Hua Jieyu, and he was indescribably happy to see the two of them back together again.


    ��Not too bad. Your cultivation has caught up with mine.�� Ye Futian punched Yu Sheng jokingly, a bright sunny smile on his face. He thought that his cultivation speed was extremely fast already, coupled with many fortuitous adventures and his having received the inheritance from several Great Emperors. Each time, it had sped up his cultivation considerably.


    But Yu Sheng��s cultivation was comparable to his. Yu Sheng was now also a Renhuang in the Seventh-Realm. Ye Futian had no idea how his cultivation had come about.


    Hua Jieyu��s cultivation was strong, but she was an exception as this was not the result of normal cultivation. Yu Sheng��s cultivation should be something that was achieved more traditionally.


    Yu Sheng, however, revealed a rare smile. He was extremely happy in his heart that they finally got to see each other again. As for his cultivation, after he had gone to the Devil World, the cultivation resources at his disposal were not something that Ye Futian could have imagined, so his progression was very speedy. He had thought that Ye Futian would have fallen behind.


    ��I��m late,�� said Yu Sheng. His first words were to blame himself for not getting there in time.


    Here, Ye Futian was being besieged and bullied by these pieces of garbage from the Divine Prefecture.


    Since birth until now, Ye Futian had always been his soft spot. When they were young, it had always been Ye Futian who protected him in front of his father. But since their youth, he had been the one who protected Ye Futian when they were away. His father always said that he was born to be a general and that he must guard the man in front of him with his life. This had become an instinct for him, and he had never wavered in this belief. Furthermore, everything Ye Futian had done for him convinced him that this was the right thing to do. Their brotherhood was forged by life and death; either one of them would be more than willing to protect the other no matter the cost.


    ��You are not late. Just in time, actually.�� Ye Futian said with a laugh. ��It��s been many years�� You and I have not fought together. Today, bullies here intend to do their worst just because their cultivation is greater than mine. Now that you are here, we could take them on together.��


    Not only did these people from Divine Prefecture not backing down, they even attempted to harm Hua Jieyu in their pursuit to continue persecuting him. It seemed that this battle was unavoidable.


    ��Good,�� Yu Sheng nodded. Just as before, no nonsense, just a simple word of acknowledgement!

 Chapter 2372 - Heavenly Demon Godly Advent

    When those top figures heard Ye Futian��s words, they were still tranquil; there was not much change in their appearances.


    Hua Jieyu in the Ninth-Realm, Yu Sheng in the Seventh-Realm, and Ye Futian, who was also in the Seventh-Realm. Did just the three of them really intend to take on these top figures from the Divine Prefecture?


    Although the Vajra Divine Child and the heir of Yuanshi Palace had been defeated previously, they were two cultivators in the Eighth-Realm. Among those who came from the Divine Prefecture, there were still many who had not yet taken action until now. None of these people could be considered weak. They had cultivators in the Ninth-Realm as well. How could Ye Futian and the other two fight that?


    Even though Hua Jieyu exhibited some supreme combat effectiveness, it was still not enough. It would take at least several times this strength to defeat all of these challengers. As things stood now, it was not even close.


    At this time, Ye Futian surveyed the cultivators and said, ��I didn��t want to provoke anyone, but all of you who came from the Divine Prefecture insisted on being aggressive. In the name of wanting to examine my cultivation, you know what it is that you are really after. Since you are aching for a fight, I have no choice but to oblige. In addition, you are all at a higher realm than me. Even peak Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm did not hesitate to bully me. Under these circumstances, know that I will give it all that I��ve got. ��


    At that level of cultivation, the gap between Ninth-Realm and the Seventh-Realm was a vast chasm. For the Boundless Divine Child in the Ninth-Realm to raise his hand against Ye Futian was something dishonorable.


    Those from the Divine Prefecture were quite indifferent when they heard what Ye Futian had to say. Maybe he would fight using the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    Perhaps this was the only way for Ye Futian to possibly shake them. However, if Ye Futian were to do so, no one knew what kind of great battle would erupt.


    Clang�� At this moment, a violent sound suddenly rang out between heaven and earth. In the vast space, an incomparably gorgeous golden divine glory bloomed. Everyone was taken by surprise. As their eyes turned to look in the direction of the light, they realized it was where the Vajra Divine Child was located.


    At this moment, the clothing covering the upper body of the Vajra Divine Child exploded and revealed a golden body. Countless divine lights were lingering upon this body, faintly forming a pattern that circulated inside him.


    ��How could this be���� The cultivators from Divine Prefecture stirred.


    ��He is urging the Secret Arts to coax forth all of his combat effectiveness.�� The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy watched with close attention. All the cultivators from the Ancient God Clan had many tricks up their sleeves that contained amazing strength. The Vajra Divine Child was no different.


    His cultivation was in the Eighth-Realm. With a title like the Divine Child, his defensive and offensive techniques were understandably unparalleled. But previously, he was defeated by Ye Futian, followed by an injury inflicted by Hua Jieyu��s mind strike. How could someone as proud as him endure what had just happened? To him, today��s battle was utterly humiliating.


    For that reason, the Vajra Divine Child did not hesitate to resort to the Secret Arts.


    The cultivators from the Vajra Region were solemn when they witnessed what was happening before them. They did not attempt to stop him. Clearly, they knew what the Divine Child was trying to do, but this was his own choice. In this battle��win or lose��it was all on him. After all, this confrontation was instigated by the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture first.


    Boom�� Infinite divine light erupted from him, covering the boundless space. The Vajra Dominion appeared once again, shrouding this corner of the sky. However, with the blooming of Vajra, the figure of the Divine Child seemed to have disappeared. Or rather, he had reincarnated as the god of the Vajra Region, who was now part of heaven and earth.


    An infinitely massive divine shadow appeared. Before this, the shadow was controlled and attacked by the Vajra Divine Child, but at this moment, the two merged into one.


    In the vast world, infinite golden divine light was pouring into his body. Above that god-like figure, infinite divine power was pouring into it as well. The aura was more terrifying than before. It far surpassed anything capable by the mere existence of Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm. It was as if he had transcended his existing realm.


    Horrific divine light shot out from the eyes of the Vajra Divine God, swept over Ye Futian and the two others. He must avenge his shame.


    In the far distance, the cultivators inside Heavenly Mandate City were truly shocked by what they saw. What was going to happen in this battle?


    The three of them glanced in the direction of the Vajra Divine Child, and their expressions did not change one little bit. As divine glory shining, hovering in front of Ye Futian, he said to Yu Sheng, ��Yu Sheng, how about you direct the fight?��


    ��No problem,�� Yu Sheng nodded in acknowledgment. Immediately, Ye Futian levitated into the air, sitting cross-legged. Wisps of divine glory now permeating between heaven and earth, and the sound of rhythm could be heard. In the vast space, suddenly, traces of the Great Path��s guqin music could be detected.


    A brilliant divine light twinkled, and it was none other than the guqin named Yearning that appeared in front of Ye Futian. When Yearning appeared, all the strings of the Great Path in the space seemed to light up with even more radiant divine light, intertwined with the guqin itself. The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture could clearly feel the real divine power contained within that instrument.


    ��Guqin from Shenyin the Great!��


    This guqin was acquired by Ye Futian on the Dragon Turtle, inherited from Shenyin the Great. He had never used it in any of the battles before, but no one dared to underestimate the power behind this guqin. This was a bona fide divine item, which contained the soul of Shenyin the Great. It was, in a sense, the continuation of Shenyin the Great��s life force.


    Ye Futian had already said that he would do all that he could, and it seemed that he was being serious. With cultivators in the Ninth-Realm taking shots at him, who could fault him even if he was resorting to a divine item?


    Hua Jieyu saw Ye Futian taking out the guqin, as she stood quietly by Ye Futian��s side, with amazing divine light also blooming on her, moving between heaven and earth. Her clothing lightly fluttered; it was just as if the Jiutian Goddess herself was guarding him.


    Yu Sheng stepped forward and standing out in front. He raised his head and glanced at the Vajra ancient god above the firmament. A shocking demonic light emitted from his eyes.


    Boom�� Traces of shocking demonic light bloomed from Yu Sheng, heading toward this world. Likewise, a force was also being urged inside his body, which strengthened his aura as it continued to rise. The demonic might tossed and roared as an incomparable demon god appeared.


    ��With the aura of the Great Emperor. Indeed, Yu Sheng has gotten the true inheritance of the Devil Emperor.�� The hearts of many trembled, as Yu Sheng was urging on the emperor��s will. Clearly, he had also inherited the capability of a Great Emperor, and it seemed that he had integrated the will into his own demonic body, perfectly as one. This discovery further confirmed to the others that Yu Sheng��s origin was likely astounding.


    However, could the gap between realms really be made up?


    The Vajra Divine Child, at this moment, was incredibly powerful.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Just as this thought came into their minds, demon-like figures appeared next to Yu Sheng. Each of the demon gods had a different face and aura; it was as if they had been called into existence. However, each demon god contained an unimaginable demonic power never seen before.


    When they saw the sight in front of them, the blood of these cultivators from the Divine Prefecture ran cold.


    Six demon gods!


    ��Heavenly Demon Godly Advents��one of the most powerful methods of the Devil Emperors. And he actually learned it.! Some of the old-timers from Divine Prefecture trembled fiercely. It was said that only a few people were ever able to control this skill, and very rarely did any of the Devil Emperor��s direct disciples ever cultivate this particular method.


    How could Yu Sheng know how to control the Heavenly Demon Godly Advent?!

 Chapter 2373 - Severed Arm

    The six Demon Gods stood tall with the world under their feet, their demonic might roaring like rolling thunder as if they were each the master of millions of demons. Each of the auras of their Demon Arts, which flowed on them, were unique from each other.


    Yu Sheng stood in the center with a solemn expression. As his demon might surged and roared, he raised his head and looked towards the Divine Child of the Celestial Vajra Region.


    Just then, golden divine light spanning more than 10,000 miles streamed down from the skies. One after another, terrifying voices of the Great Path echoed out from; it was as though these formless sounds could shatter the void. In the next instant, the celestial figure exerted an incredibly great divine force as he raised his hand to release a blast. Trillions of golden divine lights shot out, deluging the skies of the region. At the same time, countless Vajra Divine Seals came raining down. Within them was the strongest divine seal of all, able to destroy space itself.


    Unmatched demonic blades started forming in each of the six Demonic Gods�� hands; each of the Demonic Gods had different blade stances.


    In the next moment, the first swing of the blade was made. The physical world roared as rays of light shot out from the blade and shrouded the skies.


    Then came the second swing��even more powerful and overwhelming than before. It gushed forward continuously as it was complemented by the sword qi of the first strike.


    Followed by that, the third swing, and the fourth swing!


    ��Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon!��


    The powerful cultivators around them were shaken to their core. They never thought that Yu Sheng would use the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon in tandem with the Heavenly Demon Godly Advent. According to legend, this was a technique used only by the Devil Emperor when he conquered the Devil World and crushed countless demon overlords!


    Now, Yu Sheng used the Heavenly Demon Godly Advent to perform the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon, slashing six continuous times. Each slash was more potent than the last as the countless sword rays exploded in the air and almost split space and time in the area. The Vajra Divine Seals were crushed and eradicated.


    In the middle of it all, the first six slashes of the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon fused and emitted a sword ray that spanned more than 10,000 miles, forming a Sky-Splitting Demonic Blade that carried a Broadsword Will capable of tearing apart the skies of the region. At last, the Sky-splitting Demonic Blade slashed onto the strongest divine seal at the center.


    Tss�� As the Broadsword Will landed, the divine seal was split through the middle. At the same time, the supremely dominating demonic blade continued to slice towards the figure of the Celestial Vajra Ancient God. Everything in its way was shattered.


    The Vajra Ancient God��s palm slammed down on the skies beneath him. His vast golden divine light erupted, and his Vajra Divine Powers were exerted to their fullest potential with extreme ferociousness, directly blasting onto the Demonic Blade.


    ��Break!�� Yu Sheng roared. He raised his head to watch the celestial sky, where a Demon God Projection appeared; it was so large that one could not see where it ended. It slashed out a single Broadsword Will, which fused into the Demon Blade. It was as if the blade carried the Will of the Demon God himself.


    The Divine Seal was split up in an instant, and the arm of the Vajra Ancient God was slashed upon.


    A crack appeared on the arm and started expanding upward. The expression of the God projection above the celestial skies changed into one of shock and fear. The vast Divine Lights erupted again, and he wielded the full power of the Vajra Region. But at this point, it was already futile.


    The Demonic Lights inundated the skies. Starting from a thin line, the entire golden dominion was hacked in half while the golden light screen, which shrouded the celestial skies, was shattered. Some could hear an agonized scream coming from inside as a bright red bloodstain appeared from the broken golden lights. Some bits of blood spilled down and scattered into the void.


    The hearts of many who watched pounded, and all the powerful cultivators looked at the figure who stood in the void��the Divine Child of the Vajra Region.


    As the light screen shattered and the divine powers within dissipated, they saw a figure appear at the initial spot. It was the Divine Child of the Vajra Region. Shockingly, one of his arms was severed. Clearly, the arm of the celestial god was a manifestation of his arm, and it had been slashed off by Yu Sheng.


    The Divine Child of the Vajra Region had an arm slashed off by Yu Sheng!


    ��He��s ruthless!�� The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture gasped in their hearts. Yu Sheng seriously dared to do something so ruthless; an arm slashed off by his Demonic Blade was a wound on the Great Path. Even though a Renhuang Plane being could regenerate broken limbs, have incredible healing powers, and could survive nearly any injury so long as he was still breathing, if he were wounded by a Great Path power that was stronger than his own, it would be extremely difficult to recover. If he could exceed the Plane of the attack that caused the Great Path injury or obtain a high-level medication, then he could heal it completely.


    Otherwise, the severed arm was likely impossible to recover. No one knew if there were ways within the Vajra Region to heal it.


    But the only one ruthless enough to do such a thing was Yu Sheng. He really showed everyone how ruthless high-level cultivators from the Devil World could be and how bold and fearless they were to inflict such grave wounds upon the Divine Child from the Vajra Region. Even the powerful cultivators from the other Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture wouldn��t dare do such a thing.


    The hearts of the high-level cultivators from the Vajra Region trembled, their figures flew into the air, and strands of powerful aura started to erupt. But then one person stopped them, waved his hand, and the many numerous high-level cultivators all temporarily subdued their anger.


    This was the Vajra Divine Child��s fight; it was his hurdle, and he would have to face it eventually. No matter how powerful he became, there would forever be someone who would overwhelm him.


    The Vajra Divine Child had already cultivated to the Eighth Plane. If he could overcome this setback, then he could grow to become the Vajra Region Lord. If he fell before this hurdle, he would likely stop at this stage for the rest of his life, and it would be difficult for him to keep his status as the Divine Child of the Vajra Region.


    Furthermore, this was a fair battle. The person who severed his arm was Yu Sheng from the Devil World, who could have been taught the demonic arts by the Devil Emperor himself. What could they do about it? Try to get revenge on Yu Sheng? That would be starting a war with the Devil World.


    The Vajra Region was a force of the Vajra Domain; they were extremely powerful. But if they were really to start a war with the Devil World, they would be overestimating themselves.


    The Devil World was a force that could take on the entire Divine Prefecture on its own.


    ��You can all stop watching now. A cultivator who studied under the Devil Emporer, the most charming person of the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm, Shenying the Great��s Guqin, and a goddess�� What is there to hesitate about?�� said a voice; it was a powerful cultivator from the Haotian Clan.


    Since the Vajra Divine Child had one arm slashed off, the nature of this battle had changed. Before this, they were trying to use their aura and might to force their wills upon Futian, but now, this was a true battle between equals.


    The cultivators nodded, clearly understanding the situation. Divine Lights started circling around their bodies. Instantly, the vast voids were deluged by the Might of the Great Path. The aura emitted from it was terrifying beyond imagination. It encased the entire Heavenly Mandate City and expanded the battlefield to infinity.


    Atop the celestial skies, the power of the Great Path flowed. It was as if someone released the Divine Wheel of the Great Path to forge a Great Path Domain.


    Yu Sheng shifted his gaze away from the Vajra Divine Child towards the other cultivators. With that slash just now, he had roughly figured out the power level of the Vajra Divine Child. However, although the Vajra Divine Child released his Secret Arts, he was still only at the Eighth Plane; the Ninth Plane cultivators here were surely stronger than an Eighth Plane cultivator. Therefore, it was a safe bet that his battle would not be easy.


    Dang, Dang�� Just then, countless dancing notes entered the ears of all of the cultivators present, causing these powerful cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to feel an extremely strong will��the Will of Grief. Each note that entered their ears invaded their will directly and without exception, causing them to feel grief.


    ��We can��t let him continue playing the Divine Requiem,�� someone said as he looked towards where Ye Futian was located. Wherever he looked, space was being warped and twisted!

 Chapter 2374 - An Empress’s Inheritance?

    The person who intervened wore a lavish robe. It was a faint gold and shone magnificently throughout the area. He was surrounded by powerful divine lights of the Great Path of Space, and his pupils were also gleaming gold. When he looked toward Ye Futian, his gaze warped space as if creating a turbulent storm of physical space, crushing Ye Futian.


    Hua Jieyu, who was standing behind Ye Futian, looked towards the person in return, and an equally powerful but formless force of the Great Path erupted. Both of them stood still, yet heavy, muffled thumps sounded on the battlefield atop the void. It was as though nuclear blast waves were colliding, causing deep and dark cracks to appear where they came into contact.


    The man turned his gaze towards Hua Jieyu. He was a member of the Jiang Ancient God Clan of the Taishang Domain. The Jiang Ancient God Clan had extraordinary status in the Taishang Domain; even the house of the Lord of Taishang maintained a friendly relationship with them and gave them ample respect.


    According to legend, the ancestor of the Jiang Ancient God Clan obtained the Title of Heavenly Emporer Jiang��an extremely powerful being who established the clan. After he had fallen, the bloodline of the Jiang went extinct. So, the Heavenly Emporer Jiang used his supreme divine powers to protect the Jiang Clan from being wiped out during the ensuing years of turmoil, which enabled them to pass down their lineage into the present day.


    The Jiang Ancient God Clan was rather mysterious; very few people knew how powerful their full strength was, and no one dared to provoke them. But, naturally, the Jiang Ancient God Clan was supremely powerful.


    The person who struck just now was named Jiang Qingfeng. He was the most outstanding individual of this generation in the Jiang Ancient God Clan. At the peak-level Renhuang Plane, barely anyone in the entire Taishang Domain could compare with him.


    Jiang Qingfeng perceived the force from Hua Jieyu. He could clearly feel her telekinetic powers fusing into the Worldly Great Path, giving her absolute control over the area. With just one thought, it was as if time froze, and all other Great Paths were banished from the area; even Jiang Qingfeng��s Great Path of Space felt like it was sealed.


    Hum! An even more powerful Divine Force of Space erupted from him. The Divine Forces of Space on him were somehow like extremely sharp blades, cutting through the void and attempting to split open Hua Jieyu��s powers.


    Hua Jieyu was still standing there as magnificent divine lights of the great path erupted from her. Her eyes were like those of a divine being, colliding with Jiang Qingfeng��s gaze. At that moment, it was as though both of them had entered a world of the void.


    Jiang Qingfeng could only feel a powerful telekinetic force invading his consciousness. It felt like the force was corroding his spiritual soul. He saw countless divine projections walk toward him, and each one looked like Hua Jieyu��s true self rather than just a clone.


    His heart trembled, and finally, he understood why the Vajra Divine Child had been wounded��the opponent could directly invade their enemy��s consciousness and attack their spiritual soul. Moreover, this was an extremely dominating force that broke into their minds with just a split second of eye contact.


    ��Get out!�� A voice sounded in Jiang Qingfeng��s mind. Instantly, his consciousness turned into a collapsing world of space. It was as though the fabric of space and time were warping in order to reel in all of the millions of projections he saw and tear them into pieces.


    However, as the projections were crushed, an endless swarm of them continued to enter Jiang Qingfeng��s mind, pressuring him greatly. Even though these projections weren��t attacking him, he could still feel their great force. He didn��t dare to let down his guard, as it would only take one slip-up for his spiritual soul to be invaded, which would have dire consequences.


    ��Jiang Qingfeng is in trouble,�� someone said as the crowd looked up toward the arena high above. These high-level cultivators from the Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture naturally knew how powerful Jiang Qingfeng was. Yet, even at his level, he was facing trouble from Hua Jieyu. More Divine lights of the Great Path of Space seethed from Jiang Qingfeng��s body, yet he didn��t continue to attack. Instead, all of it was bound to him.


    ��Which Great Emporer��s inheritance did she receive?�� someone asked in a hushed voice. Both the divine lights on Hua Jieyu and the powers that she was releasing showed that she had clearly inherited the powers of one of the Great Emporers. But which one was it?


    It seemed that Hua Jieyu had absolute control over space and could invade other people��s spiritual souls.


    Hum�� Just then, a rage-filled roar echoed through the skies. The Divine Child of the Infinite Mountain didn��t just watch, but he attacked, too. Trillions of divine swords were launched in Ye Futian��s direction. However, two projections walked out from Hua Jieyu��s figure; they were perfect clones of her, even the aura of the Great Path on them was almost exactly the same.


    ��Exterior Incarnation!�� The group of powerful cultivators once again froze. They couldn��t believe that Hua Jieyu actually summoned Exterior Incarnations. Furthermore, the auras of these Exterior Incarnations were as strong as her true self.


    Divine lights of the Great Path erupted from these two Exterior Incarnations as well, and they were incredibly magnificent. The Incarnations raised their heads to look toward the void. Instantly, it was as if the unending stream of divine swords paused in action, and their speed slowed to a halt.


    How is this woman so powerful? one of the Ancient God Clan cultivators thought.


    ��In the past, which of the Great Emperors were well-versed in these powers?�� one of the cultivators asked openly, which prompted those around him to contemplate. Absolute control, spiritual soul attack, Exterior Incarnation�� All of the powers that Hua Jieyu had released so far were very unique, and they weren��t sure which of the Great Emperors cultivated them.


    ��I think there��s one person who did!�� one of the old cultivators of the Ancient God Clan said softly. Immediately, the cultivators turned their gaze toward him.


    The old cultivator explained, ��In the ancient era, legend has it that there was a female Great Emporer. She ruled trillions of living beings and projected trillions of her telekinetic powers to pass on her teachings to the world she ruled over. Every cultivator was influenced by her and thus contributed to her cultivation. She could even directly control these nearly infinite number of lives and was hence an extremely controversial figure amongst the Great Emperors.��


    Below the skies, cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy and Original Realm all had astonished expressions on their faces. Was there really a Great Emperor like that?


    Back then, Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress had an extremely uncanny and unique method of cultivation. It was said that her consciousness was spread across the 3,000 realms and that she had incarnations in each of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Hua Jieyu was one of those who had been influenced by her incarnation; she was almost the victim of a walk-in whereby she would become one of her proxy-cultivation furnaces.


    Yet, the powers the Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress cultivated were actually inherited from a Great Emperor from the ancient era?


    After Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress gave Hua Jieyu what she wanted, could it be that Hua Jieyu found the inheritance of the same Great Emperor in the Divine Prefecture?


    Just as they were speaking, countless musical notes streamed out of nowhere. They wove together into a song of grief yet carried a powerful, sonorous tone as they landed on the unending array of divine swords. Instantly, it was as if the physical space in the area exploded, destroying the divine swords and forming a thunderstorm of music, sweeping across the world.


    At the same time, an immense Will of Grief permeated through all matter in the area, seeping into the eardrums of the cultivators with every note. These notes contained unique mythical powers that directly infiltrated their spiritual souls. The sounds of the guqin contained a Will of the Great Emperor, and all the powerful cultivators present had sensed that their emotions were being influenced. Every single one of them felt the Will of Grief!

 Chapter 2375 - : A Decisive Battle

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The surrounding cultivators from the Ancient God Clan teamed up but felt a mighty pressure nonetheless. Facing Ye Futian and his two companions, they were no longer as confident as before.


    Whether it was Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, or Ye Futian himself, these three had far exceeded their expectations. Yu Sheng had smashed the arm of the Vajra Divine Child with a single blow��an injury that caused his opponent to exit the battlefield. Hua Jieyu blocked the two Ninth-Realm cultivators with a single telepathic thought. With her guarding by Ye Futian��s side, the area around him was impervious to anyone��s attack.


    ?


    As for Ye Futian himself, the Divine Requiem was getting more powerful. The sound of guqin seemed to contain powerful offensive force enough to destroy the Great Path. At the same time, sadness shrouded this space along with those beating musical notes; the entire space was under the influence of his rhythm.


    If it were just Ye Futian alone playing the Divine Requiem by way of the Sonic Wave, perhaps he would not have been quite as effective in creating such a strong impact on these people. However, what he held in his hand was the divine guqin Yearning, transformed by the Beloved of Shenyin the Great. It also incorporated the soul of Shenyin the Great as a memorial of their tragic love story. This divine guqin itself had already carried an extreme sadness so that every note that jumped out was full of sorrow.


    It didn��t take long for the rhythmic storm to spread to the boundless void, and the entire world seemed to be covered in sorrow. Even Hua Jieyu was no exception; under this rhythmic storm, she could feel that sadness as well.


    Of course, those sonic waves would not be attacking her, but they certainly concentrated all of their power directly on the minds of those cultivators from the Divine Prefecture.


    Those Renhuang in the Eighth Realm were the first ones who could not bear this overwhelming sense of grief. Take, for instance, the Vajra Divine Child and the heir of the Infinite Palace. Although they possessed great willpower, the Divine Requiem was the dirge of all ages. That sadness, which hid deep within their souls, suddenly sprung forth as great sorrow gushed forth like a fountain. They were meant to be mired in that extreme sadness, and their souls were trapped deep inside the endless sorrow.


    The cultivation of that cultivator in the Eighth Realm from Yuanshi Palace was extremely powerful. Terrible divine aurora shot out from his eyes as divine light lingered around him. A terrifying God-Punishing Will erupted from him, wanting to chase away the sadness, but his emotions were completely out of his own control. His mind recalled scenes long forgotten in the past, and they were all related to emotions hidden deep in his heart.


    He reached out with his hands and attempted to move but found that his arms seemed to have stiffened. His Will tried to control the power of the Great Path to execute the attack. But as soon as his mind moved, God-Punishing Swords whistled but without the prowess they possessed previously. They seemed to function at a fraction of the power they had once. When his mind was unstable, how could he mobilize the full power of his Great Path?


    In Yu Sheng��s direction, a figure of the Heavenly Demon that had been summoned took a look yonder and then raised his hand to unleash a strike of the sword he held, which destroyed the God-Punishing Sword Will outright. Its unstoppable momentum aimed squarely at his opponent.


    ��Watch out!�� the cultivator from Yuanshi Palace cautioned as a white-haired elder let out a soul-wrenching shout, so the spiritual soul of the heir from Yuanshi Palace felt almost concussed. However, this unexpected shock seemed to sober up his will a little. He used what little will he had to release the most brilliant Divine Light of the Great Path. Picture upon picture of God-Punishing Sword Matrix appeared in front of him, fiercely blasting forward.


    The demonic blade slammed down with mighty force, and those pictures of the matrix were shattered as they were being blasted apart. The body of the Yuanshi Palace��s heir flew backward, and the domineering Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon left a bloody mark on him.


    ��Can��t even block it!�� The hearts of the cultivators from Divine Prefecture trembled. The Renhuang in the Eighth Realm had cultivations higher than Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. But on the battlefield, Yu Sheng had urged the power of the demon gods, while Ye Futian resorted to the divine guqin of the Great Emperor. With their impeccable powers united up front, the Renhuang in the Eighth Realm were not their equal at all.


    Of course, Yu Sheng also noticed that several cultivators in the Eighth Realm were affected by the rhythm. He rose into the air as the six demon gods he summoned pulled up the rear to form Heavenly Demon Blades at the same time. Profuse Demonic Will was now causing considerable obfuscation in the boundless space, while the blades chopped down simultaneously in different directions, trying to crush and expel these Renhuang in the Eighth Realm out of the battle first.


    Under the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon, the Heavenly Demon Sword Will appeared in the firmament like chaotic swordsmanship that could split open a corner of the sky. As they slammed down, they had no problem finding their targets in different directions. Several top genius talents in the Eighth Realm resisted with whatever means they had, but the result was the same. All of them were injured with a single blade attack, the force of which knocked them into the far distance.


    Clang�� The sound of guqin continued to invade their minds, shaking them down. The Divine Requiem delivered to the listeners a power that was enough to corrupt the spiritual soul; it was now directly attacking the spiritual souls of those cultivators in the Eighth Realm. A muffled groan came out of them as their faces paled. All of them were injured by the shock.


    These cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had been relentless in forcing his hand. After dodging their provocation time and again, with these people refusing to give up, Ye Futian would no longer hold back.


    These Eighth-Realm cultivators were all enchanting geniuses from top principalities. Although they had their own aces up their sleeves, it was ultimately difficult for them to persist under this kind of orchestrated attack. They found it difficult to play their aces. They were repelled and injured. They had no choice but to extract themselves from the battle.


    The remaining cultivators in the Ninth Realm didn��t bother to lend a hand either. As soon as they heard this composition, they knew there was no hope for these Renhuang in the Eighth Realm. Under the blanket effect of the guqin, even their own emotions were being overwhelmed; their will and spiritual souls were affected like never before. Therefore, these cultivators in the Eighth Realm would only be a burden if they stayed.


    Ultimately, it was left for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to expel several of these cultivators in the Eighth Realm off the battlefield and to retire them from battle.


    The sound of guqin continued as before. As Ye Futian played, the rhythm was continuing to increase in strength. The vast and boundless world was covered by the rhythm, as traces of invisible sonic waves seeped into the minds of these cultivators in the Ninth Realm who were still on the battlefield. They stood there quietly, surrounded by the divine light before, but their eyes became more serious.


    On the ground below, everyone from the Divine Prefecture quietly watched the situation developing in the void. At this moment, the battlefield was becoming quieter than before, but it seemed way more oppressed as well. There were not many left in that vast area up on high.


    Ye Futian��s party of three were up against the four Renhuang in the Ninth Realm from the Divine Prefecture. These four people were already at the peak of the Renhuang Realm, and they were well-known figures in the land of the Divine Prefecture, existences whose names rang throughout the world.


    But now, these four cultivators were facing Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng, with only one Ninth-Realm and two Seventh-Realm cultivators among them. It seemed that this was not a fair fight at all on the same level. However, considering that Ye Futian was using the divine guqin, and Yu Sheng had released the demonic Secret Arts to increase his combat effectiveness, there was a feeling that they actually had the ability to battle these higher-level cultivators.


    As for the West Imperial Palace, they did not participate in this battle. Xi Chiyao looked at the battlefield high in the sky feeling some complicated emotions in her heart. It seemed that she greatly underestimated Ye Futian and his companions. She had thought that Ye Futian was the only top enchanting genius in his circle. She didn��t expect that Hua Jieyu and Yu Sheng were also existences of a similar caliber.


    However, this also confirmed her previous belief that Ye Futian was not as straightforward as he appeared. There must be some secrets they didn��t know about him!

 Chapter 2376 - Wang Mian of Tianyan City

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On that battlefield in the void, the seven of them simply stood there.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged, playing the guqin, while Hua Jieyu stood next to him. There were also avatars guarding them, summoned by Yu Sheng, who had called on the Heavenly Demons.


    ?


    And in different positions in front of them, four cultivators were peak Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm. They were Hua Junmo of the Haotian Clan in the Nantian Domain. He was the older brother of Hua Junlai, who had been defeated by Ye Futian.


    Pei Sheng��Divine Child of Infinite Mountains.


    Jiang Qingfeng from the Ancient God Clan��s Jiang family in the Taishang Domain.


    Wang Mian From Tianyan City in the Tianyan Domain.


    These four major cultivators were peak Renhuang from their own respective domains. As they stood at the pinnacle of Renhuang, their combat effectiveness was nothing less than extraordinary.


    And without exception, they were all of them from the Ancient God Clan.


    Haotian Clan inherited power from Haotian the Great; Infinite Mountains from Wuliang the Great; the Jiang family from Heavenly Emperor Jiang; Tianyan City in the Tianyan Domain from Tianyan the Great himself.


    Previously, the other three cultivators had already taken their shots one after the other. Although they did not mean to cause serious injuries, they had released their true strength. Now, only Wang Mian from Tianyan City had not made his move yet. A sharp golden divine glory had been surrounding him, and there was something curious about the divine light that lingered around him; it was as if it could be transformed into thousands of different matrices.


    In the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture, each domain had its own profound history and backstory. In ancient times, prominent figures had emerged out of every one of these domains, and many of them enjoyed the appellation of the Great Emperor. To this day, all 18 domains had retained some of their own particular features.


    The Imperial Domain where Donghuang Imperial Palace resided needed no further introduction. But other domains also had many surprising peculiarities. The Tianyan Domain, for instance, had always been a world-famous alchemical Holy Land for as long as recorded history. It was said that the Tianyan Domain, in ancient times, had once enjoyed exceptional prosperity, with many famous clans of armorers lining its streets. Countless cultivators from the other worlds came to the Tianyan Domain for the express purpose of seeking its ritual implements, accounting for much of its flourishing past.


    But after the collapse of the Heavenly Path, every world had experienced its own decline. The Tianyan Domain was not as magnificent as it once was, but its heritage for alchemy remained intact. And the Ancient God Clan had survived. Tianyan the Great was once an existence of the imperial-level alchemist, whose reputation was indisputable. He enjoyed great prestige among his peers.


    Some said that even today, Tianyan the Great may still exist in another form, such as an item or object to aid another future great being. They also said that he had since remained in Tianyan City.


    Tianyan City was a city, but it was also a principality. The entire city belonged to the descendants of Tianyan the Great. The Wang family in Tianyan had absolute control over Tianyan City. It was a de facto palace for the Wang family.


    Because of their armor-making skills, even today, Tianyan City held superiority in all of the Divine Prefecture. Its strength was tremendous, and Wang Mian��a genius talent from Tianyan City��was said to have the potential to become the future City Lord of Tianyan City, ruling over Ancient God Clan.


    Wang Mian��s gaze now drifted towards Ye Futian. Like everyone else, he had heard the invasive sound of the guqin, and his emotions were somewhat affected. However, those who had cultivated to the peak of Renhuang were not so easily swayed, as their will had to be incredibly determined. Those with stronger realms were less likely to be affected by the sound of the guqin. Of course, it also hinged on Ye Futian��s own realm. Had Ye Futian��s realm surpassed theirs, they would have been more likely to come under his influence.


    ��In truth, I came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to borrow something from you.�� Wang Mian looked at Ye Futian and said, ��If you are willing to lend it to me, I will leave with the rest of the people from Tianyan City. In the future, I will return to you the thing I borrowed, and Tianyan City will be indebted to you.��


    Everyone from the Divine Prefecture was quite surprised when they heard what Wang Mian had to say. They looked in the direction where the cultivators from the Wang family in Tianyan had congregated.


    What did they want to borrow from Ye Futian?


    Everyone knew the kind of place Tianyan City was. Legend had it that Tianyan City possessed the most powerful ritual implements of all 18 domains. There was even the possibility that an incomparable army may have existed somewhere there because, after all, they highly suspected that Tianyan the Great might still be around.


    What would Tianyan City possibly need so badly that they had to borrow it from Ye Futian?


    Unless��


    They all thought of a possibility.


    Ye Futian��s head lowered as he continued playing the guqin. He uttered a word from his mouth, ��No.��


    He didn��t ask him what it was that he wanted to borrow, but whatever item asked for by the Ancient God Clan would clearly not be something simple or easy. And Ye Futian would never try to entertain anyone like this to neutralize their hostility��no matter who they were.


    Wang Mian and the other cultivators from Tianyan City fixed their eyes on Ye Futian as they heard his reply. Many watched him with a sharp intention in their eyes, but they weren��t offended by it, really. If Ye Futian didn��t lend it to them, they would take it from him.


    Although Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu were here to help Ye Futian today, the reality remained that all the top principalities of various domains from the Divine Prefecture had come here to knock him down. They would never give up so easily. It was almost impossible for Ye Futian to extricate himself from this situation, as it were. Inevitably, he would need to pay in exchange for his own safety.


    Wang Mian didn��t seem to have heard Ye Futian��s refusal at all, as he continued, ��Emperor Ye has the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, of which Tianyan City is extremely interested. We are hoping that Emperor Ye could let us use the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.��


    ��No wonder!��


    The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were not surprised when they heard what he had said; they had half expected it already.


    Exactly what kind of principality was the Wang family of Tianyan? They were the number one armorer of the Divine Prefecture, whose power was inherited from Tianyan the Great. Whatever they wanted must have something to do with weapon-making or alchemy. Therefore, there could only be two possibilities. One was the divine guqin, and the other was the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    The divine guqin had integrated the soul of Shenyin the Great within it, hence possessing its current power. However, the corpse of Shenjia the Great had already been cast into a superior weapon, and the corpse itself was considered a most excellent and peerless divine weapon. It was just that Ye Futian��s realm was not yet high enough to urge its full power.


    Therefore, Tianyan City was desirous to get their hands on it, hoping to see how Shenjia the Great Emperor managed to achieve such greatness and whether this Great Emperor��s divine body could be deciphered.


    ��Shut your trap!�� a cold voice rebuked with mighty dominance. Accompanied by this voice was a terrible demonic light that appeared above the firmament presently. It traversed heaven and earth, smashing down for the kill. The Demonic Might tossed and roared, slashing at Wang Mian without hesitation. It was Yu Sheng who had unleashed his own attack.


    Wang Mian could call it ��borrowing�� if he liked, but it was really no different than robbing. With all these principalities here to pressure and threaten Ye Futian, could this be considered ��borrowing��?


    There was a terrifying golden divine glory in Wang Mian��s eyes. He cast one glance forward and watched the demonic blade came down in front of him with unusual calmness. Suddenly, a golden divine wall appeared in front of him, countless runes flowing upon it. Thus, the divine wall that fell from the sky formed a barrier in front of him, as those runes jumped out and erupted into rays of terrible divine aurora.


    Psst�� A sharp and piercing sound came out as a tremendously domineering Heavenly Demon Blade slammed down. But this dominant demonic blade, capable of splitting the space apart, failed to carve open the divine wall. At the moment when it chopped down, it was as if it landed on the strongest divine wall in the world. The blade broke, but it did not damage the defense.


    Obviously, the power of this strike still left something to be desired.


    Wang Mian��peak Renhuang existence from Tianyan City. How powerful was he?


    When these four cultivators started to treat this situation seriously, perhaps Ye Futian��s little party of three would not stand a chance of winning!

 Chapter 2377 - Coordination

    On the battlefield, Wang Mian��s gaze landed on Ye Futian, who was playing the divine guqin. He said, ��The Divine Requiem is indeed strong, but it isn��t insuppressible. As long as the space in this area is completely sealed and locked down, what effect could the sounds of the guqin have?��


    As he spoke, the divine lights on him erupted, and his golden iris looked ahead. Instantly, the Divine Wall before him expanded rapidly. It looked as if it was flowing and combined the properties of strength and softness. As it levitated, it expanded vertically.


    The crowd raised their heads and watched the Divine Wall. Inside, an unending array of divine light beams shrouded the space from the celestial skies to the ground, continuing to move toward where Ye Futian was. Moreover, the Divine Wall appeared behind Ye Futian as well.


    Soon, the three great cultivators were drowned inside the walls and were mere inches away from being sealed. The sounds of the guqin seemed to be affected as well.


    The Divine Prefecture cultivators watched the battlefield quietly. Wang Mian was the heir to the Tianyan Emporer of Tianyan City, so there were no doubts about his power. With Yu Sheng��s current Plane, it would be very difficult for him to break through Wang Mian��s sealing powers. Once the space in that area was sealed, it would be no small feat to break out and escape.


    All of the greatest cultivators could forge their own dominions, which they would have absolute control over.


    But Ye Futian didn��t even react to it; he was still playing the guqin piece. He didn��t move, so Hua Jieyu stood quietly by his side and didn��t move either. Yu Sheng was in front. His demonic might surged and roared as he stared at the scene before him.


    Soon, the hexagonal space was completely sealed. The Divine Wall trapped them within this sealed space, and a magnificent golden divine light erupted from within.


    ��Close!�� As the word came out from Wang Mian��s mouth, a deep and muffled sound could be heard from inside. Now, as the dominion was formed, the seal had been completed.


    With the power of this absolute seal, no power of the Great Path could seep through it, even if it were the formless Great Path of Rhythm. There was no way the guqin sounds could escape and affect them.


    As the seal was formed, they all listened for any sounds. Wang Mian wasn��t too concerned about the Guqin sounds that continued to echo the area, as some parts of the piece were already played previously. Naturally, its power would linger for a while more, but it should dissipate soon.


    The other three great cultivators watched from different locations. If Wang Mian could really seal the three, then Ye Futian��s guqin would be useless. Furthermore, if they could deal with them inside the Sealing Dominion, perhaps Wang Mian alone would be able to defeat them.


    They raised their heads and glanced at the void. Just then, waves of sound broke through into their ears. Immediately, the Will of Grief appeared from deep within their souls; even their hearts trembled lightly as it happened.


    The Divine Requiem seemed to be getting more and more aggrieved, and the storm of rhythm and notes which encased the world around them got stronger as well, as though it had permeated through all matter. As they perceived the rhythmic pulses in the skies of the area, they realized that not only did it not subside, it was getting stronger.


    ��Hmm?�� Wang Mian felt it too; it only took a moment to sense it. He stared forward, and his gaze passed through the Dominion set by himself to see Ye Futian inside. Ye Futian was still playing the guqin with his head lowered. It seemed like he wasn��t affected by the dominion at all. His mentality was also unfazed by the powers of the seal. It was as though he knew from the beginning that the powers of the seal could not block his Divine Requiem.


    Wang Mian��s expression was a little uneasy; he had already guessed the answer.


    ��What��s going on?�� one of the Divine Prefecture Renhuangs asked, puzzled. Wang Mian was of a far stronger plane than Ye Futian, yet his sealing powers didn��t manage to seal Ye Futian��s Great Path of Music?


    Some of the cultivators who had already overcome the Divine Tribulation instantly understood why. They looked at the skies as their expressions turned more solemn. They were able to sense part of it previously when Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao battled, but they didn��t think that Wang Mian would meet the same results.


    What did this mean?


    This meant that while Wang Mian��s Dominion sealed the physical space in the area, it didn��t seal Ye Futian��s Dominion, which meant that all of them were still within Ye Futian��s Dominion of Music.


    Ye Futian��s Boundary Wheel was even more powerful than Wang Mian.


    So powerful that Wang Mian and the others didn��t even realize that they were still within the Region set by Ye Futian.


    It seemed that the only way to break through Hua Jieyu��s defense was with brute force, after which they could squash Ye Futian so he would be unable to keep playing the Divine Requiem.


    Wang Mian reached out. Instantly, the countless runes within the Divine Walls of the void seal pulsated, twisted, and turned, and streamed out with magnificent divine light. Numerous golden spears formed on the Divine Walls, all of which were pointed at Ye Futian. Each of the spears was imbued with the Will of the Indestructible. Behind the spears were Matrices which induced the proliferation of this power, which only got stronger and stronger.


    That moment, it seemed as if there was an unending array of Matrices revolving on the Divine Walls of the hexagonal sealed space, as an uncountable number of golden spears pointed toward where Ye Futian was.


    ��Kill!�� Wang Mian��s voice sounded. Dragging on this battle would be disadvantageous to them. As his voice echoed in the air, one after another divine light ray erupted inside the sealed space, and the golden spears were launched at an immense speed, cutting across the void and bolting towards Ye Futian. The spears were so fast that the naked eye could only see beams of golden light.


    Hum! As Hua Jieyu��s gaze swept across the world around her, within a split second, countless afterimages poured out from her. At that moment, it was as though the entire void in the area was in a state of absolute stillness. Her immense telekinetic powers controlled the operations of the Worldly Great Path within the area, its power far exceeding what she had released previously.


    The golden light beams that emitted magnificent gleams before reappeared and formed back into spears. Their speed slowed as it became difficult to move under Hua Jieyu��s absolute control. It seemed that everything in this sealed space was under her command.


    Wang Mian��s palm slammed forward as the divine golden lights from his iris glowed brighter. A supreme force flowed into the Divine Walls and accelerated the revolution of the matrices to spit out even more golden spears.


    Boom�� As the divine lights shot out, terrifying forces erupted and launched toward Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    ��Jieyu, lend me a hand,�� Ye Futian��s voice sounded in Hua Jieyu��s head with musical notes that seeped into her consciousness. Hua Jieyu instantly understood Ye Futian��s intention. Hua Jieyu had absolute trust in him and wouldn��t resist anything that he asked of her. She let down all of her defenses and let Ye Futian enter.


    Quickly, she felt like something was happening��their spiritual energies seemed to be resonating. It was as if Ye Futian was sharing with her every bit of his existence.


    Strands of phantasmagorical lights shrouded the two of them. Hua Jieyu��s cultivation method was already unique, making it easy for her to coordinate with Ye Futian. The two of them entered a strange yet marvelous state. They could both sense everything about each other, and they could even use each other��s power.


    This feeling was otherwordly. It was as though if Hua Jieyu willed it, she could play the Divine Requiem as well. Their consciousnesses were completely interconnected!

 Chapter 2378 - Joining Forces

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were close together. One of them sat in a cross-legged stance while the other stood up. As divine lights surrounded them, it was as though the two of them merged into one. Their consciousnesses were interconnected, and their telekinetic powers fused together. They were able to sense every fragment of each other��s being.


    When Shenyin the Great composed this otherworldly piece titled the Divine Requiem, he was crowned as the greatest musician of his era. It wouldn��t be difficult to imagine the level of music which he had attained. He had composed countless guqin pieces throughout his life, and every single one could be considered a masterpiece. They may not even be much weaker than the Divine Requiem.


    ?


    However, the Divine Requiem was too unique. When the Divine Requiem was played, all of the world experienced grief, which was why it was considered a Divine Melody.


    Now, under the background of the Divine Requiem, Ye Futian played another Piece����Hearts as One.��


    The piece Ye Futian played at the Lost Clan to cause a metamorphosis of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks actually had the same core idea as this piece. In fact, that piece had been a variation of ��Hearts as One.��


    This Guqin Piece was composed by Shenyin the Great when he was together with the love of his life. They had shared everything, including their own cultivation and thoughts. Anyone could see how deeply in love they were. Their love was so deep that when his one true love passed on, Shenyin the Great composed the Divine Requiem.


    An even more terrifying storm of music erupted in an instant, the divine consciousness gushing out of Ye Futian became more powerful. The power of the Great Path which he commanded surged, and every note that pulsated out from him contained deeper and deeper artistic conception.


    Whether it was the four great cultivators or the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, they all felt the guqin sounds getting stronger. And so did Ye Futian.


    What power was this?


    As Wang Mian felt everything inside the sealed space, his gaze became sharper and his pupils constricted. Ye Futian could actually borrow cultivation from someone else? Although he had heard of it before, such techniques were extremely rare and always had some cost.


    There was indeed a cost to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu��s fusion. Ye Futian must be able to bear the burden of Hua Jieyu��s telekinetic powers, and Hua Jieyu must be able to completely open up to him and have absolute trust in him. Otherwise, there would be severe backlash for using the technique. In essence, this was equivalent to Hua Jieyu handing her life over to Ye Futian.


    Even if someone did succeed in practicing a cultivation method like this, very few would be able to commit to it at such a level.


    ��I see. So this is Jieyu��s cultivation method,�� Ye Futian felt happy for Hua Jieyu after sensing her consciousness. He knew Jieyu would run into great opportunities cultivating in the Divine Prefecture.


    As the sounds of the guqin shrouded the skies and the earth, it was as if everything was under Ye Futian��s control within this sealed space.


    Golden spears, which emitted magnificent divine lights, continued to blast down from above. Yet, as Ye Futian��s fingers ran over the guqin and melodies strummed out, the golden spears crumbled one by one, exploding in the air. Within his vast dominion, everything was destroyed.


    With one thought, all of the spears were obliterated.


    With his palm still on the Divine Wall, Wang Mian��s pupils constricted as he saw the scene before him. His golden iris looked toward Ye Futian��s figure inside the sealed space. He sensed his surging aura. It seemed as though Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian had merged into one. They were indistinct from each other. Their wills resonated, and their powers fused together.


    With one strum of the guqin, all of his attacks were annihilated; only the combined power of both of their telekinesis could do something like this.


    Magnificant divine lights continued to shine on the Divine Wall. The patterns on them formed into matrices as if brewing new attacks. But as Ye Futian hands strummed the divine guqin, one note after another pulsated out. Under the Will of Grief of the Divine Requiem, these notes were imbued with powers that could destroy Great Paths, causing the patterns on the Divine Walls to burst, destroying the flawless matrices inside the sealed space.


    Boom, Boom, Boom�� Gaps started to appear in the Divine wall due to the blast of the explosions, and the size of these gaps increased continuously. Gradually, it was as though the entire space was collapsing as the vast Divine Wall disintegrated.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Yu Sheng��s figures appeared before the cultivators once again. However, the auras on Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were no longer the same as before��they were almost indistinct from each other. Shrouded by divine lights encircling them, the two seemed like a godly couple.


    ��Not bad,�� Wang Mian said as he looked toward the two. He took one step forward as his aura surged. His expression became more solemn as he sensed that the will of the Divine Requiem was getting stronger, and it was swaying his emotions. Various imageries and scenes were starting to playback in his mind to waver his determination and weaken it.


    If his determination was influenced and his emotions were controlled by someone else, then his powers would be weakened. Letting this continue would be disadvantageous to them.


    The other three of the four great cultivators realized this as well. They could sense that the endless celestial skies and the lands that extended beyond the horizon were all shrouded in a formless storm of music. It was everywhere. The terrifying sound pulses were still invading their minds at an alarming rate.


    ��It��s time,�� Wang Mian said. Hua Junmo from the Haotian Clan, Pei Sheng from the Infinite Mountains, and Jiang Qingfeng from the Jiang Ancient God Clan all nodded. Their gazes locked in the direction Ye Futian was in. Divine lights encircled them, and astounding auras erupted from them.


    At this moment, the four great Ninth-Plane Renhuang cultivators finally got serious and were ready to attack simultaneously. Previously, they all looked down on their opponents to some degree. But now, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu��s fusion of powers made them sense critical danger.


    Sounds of the Great Path started resonating through the world as the projection of an Ancient God appeared behind Hua Junmo. It was as if Haotian the Great had descended upon the world, dominating all who stood before him. He looked down onto the battlefield as his body produced a supremely overbearing aura.


    Boooom�� As Hua Junmo raised his hand, the god-like figure exerted a force of assault. From up in the void to all the way down, a cosmic Haotian Seal engulfing the skies appeared, blocking all celestial skies that the three could see. There was nowhere to run.


    With a thought, Pei Sheng summoned countless phantasms which filled the entire area. Each one of them seemed to be a manifestation of him. As his true self waved his palm, all of the nearly infinite phantasms attacked, wielding their divine swords and dashing towards the three with killing intent, blocking out all possible escape routes.


    Jiang Qingfeng stomped on the void, his figure appeared atop the three, summoning a terrifying storm of space, ravaging the area.


    Behind Wang Mian, a colossal golden pattern appeared. This pattern rapidly expanded towards the skies, shrouding the skies and blocking out the sun. With terrifying booms, it was as though the Worldly Great Path was smelted into the pattern, creating a petrifying blackhole that swallowed all Great Path powers. Countless divine lights were reeled into it as the entire area turned into an apocalyptic region of obliteration. Anything that got close would be turned into ash and dust.


    Boom! Crack! A horrifying noise sounded. The force of the storm descended downward to shroud the vast space below. Within the gold-edged tornado storm, a magnificently shining divine spear rose; it looked like a true divine weapon, pulsating and emitting divine lights that spanned thousands of miles. As the spear smote down from the celestial skies, it caused a terrifying gash to appear, stretching from the skies to the ground!

 Chapter 2379 - The Exchange

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The sound of guqin sounded even more urgent under Ye Futian��s fingers. What came with the sound of guqin was the suffocating coercion that filled this vast space presently. It was as if the Great Path between heaven and earth was about to solidify, and even time and space were about to come to a standstill. In this oppressive space, the attacks from the other four cultivators did not stop but continued to press forward against them.


    Haotian Mudra came slamming down, completely covering this corner of the sky. Every note Ye Futian was playing exploded as they came in contact with the Haotian Mudra. However, the Mudra, as released by Hua Junmo, was far too terrifying. It was as if that phantom of Haotian the Great had pressed down from above the sky, destroying everything that was in its path.


    ?


    Likewise, an imperial shadow appeared behind Ye Futian with tremendous horror. Stars encircled the surrounding space as infinite beams of starlight shot out, and all the heavenly bodies were unified.


    Under the sound of the guqin, countless stars blasted toward the Haotian Mudra, hitting their mark again and again so that the Haotian Mudra trembled continuously. At the same time, with Ye Futian in the center, all the stars in this world spread out everywhere. So it was as if Ye Futian and his companions were inside a real starry sky world. The many attacking divine swords were being blocked by the stars, and whenever they penetrated through those interfering stars and zoomed in on Ye Futian, they were destroyed by the hopping musical notes.


    Boom�� The space-destroying storm released by Jiang Qingfeng traversed the void and came at them as if it could pass over their defenses and transform into a power akin to divine tribulation. It went in the direction where Ye Futian was without the slightest hesitation.


    As for the golden divine spear released by Wang Mian, as soon as that divine spear bloomed, cracks appeared in the void, and the stars that were guarding in front of him shattered and were pulverized. The momentum of that long spear was unstoppable as it continued to puff out infinite divine light.


    The power of the joint attacks from these four top figures was frightening, and this world seemed to be on the verge of breaking apart. The scenes that played out before them were apocalyptic.


    The sound from the guqin suddenly changed, and the space of the Great Path began to flow in reverse, as infinite Sword Will circulated between heaven and earth. Ye Futian��s sleeves fluttered, and the notes he played exploded with sharp and piercing sounds as the sound of sword chiming resounded throughout the void. Countless divine swords whizzed out, carrying the divine light, and collided with that light of catastrophe.


    At the same time, a powerful divine sword appeared between heaven and earth. When this sword manifested, a storm made of countercurrents appeared in the void.


    ��Song of the Lost Divine!��


    Everyone from the Divine Prefecture was greatly stunned. This was yet another divine melody. No one expected Ye Futian to have evolved to such an advanced degree and could use the skills freely and at will. With just a single turning of his mind, he readily and seamlessly switched between musical pieces.


    Lord Taixuan watched the development in the sky below and was deeply moved. It was by chance that Ye Futian came to cultivate the Song of the Lost Divine, and it was a purely fortuitous happenstance. It was with the Song of the Lost Divine that he was able to break the shackles of Renhuang. But now, Ye Futian��s accomplishment in this composition had surpassed his countless years of hard work. Perhaps this was a testament to Ye Futian��s natural talent.


    The Song of the Lost Divine was the lost sound of the Great Path. As the Great Path collapsed, the space was distorted and flowed in reverse. The offensive power that had been stymied seemed to be hindered yet again. And the golden divine spear that came in for the kill slowed down a bit as well. Soon after, the Great Path started to flow back with the countercurrent; it was as if time was moving in reverse. A sword came in to attack, carrying a terrifying power with it. It was none other than the Fleeting Divine Sword that collided harshly with the golden divine spear.


    The moment the two collided, a terrifying divine light pierced through the space as if it could slaughter all the Renhuang in this space with that light alone. The dazzling light beam blinded many Renhuang observing the fight. And it made it impossible for them to open their eyes. Many cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate City felt a sharp pain in their eyes which caused them to shut their eyes tightly.


    Above the firmament, the two forces collapsed and destroyed each other at the same time. The divine spear and the divine sword disappeared together.


    Watching the battlefield above the firmament, the hearts of all the cultivators quivered. Just with the sound of the guqin alone, they had effectively blocked the coordinated attacks from these four great cultivators.


    It seemed that when Ye Futian played the Divine guqin with Hua Jieyu��s power, he could exert far greater strength than on his own.


    ��Jieyu, why don��t you come and play the Divine Requiem?�� Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu, who was next to him.


    ��Sure.�� Hua Jieyu consented with a slight nod. She sat down cross-legged beside Ye Futian. As Ye Futian gave a little wave of his hand, the divine guqin Yearning appeared in front of Hua Jieyu. She was the daughter of Ye Futian��s first teacher��Hua Fengliu. She had been playing guqin since she was a young girl. Although she had not continued to pursue it and couldn��t be considered an expert, she did understand the concept of rhythm.


    But at this moment in time, she and Ye Futian shared one mind, and she didn��t need to be an expert. All she needed was their mutual understanding.


    Whatever she was playing was, in fact, what Ye Futian was playing in his heart.


    Even more so, it was with the help of divine guqin Yearning, which had been transformed by Shenyin the Great himself. The guqin itself already embodied the feeling of extreme sadness.


    When Hua Jieyu plucked the strings, she seemed to be immersed completely in that sorrowful mood. She was in perfect sync with the musical meaning of the composition. The atmosphere previously created by the Divine Requiem was still lingering in the space, having never disappeared. When Hua Jieyu started to play, she was merely sustaining the sorrow expressed by the music.


    ��How sad.��


    All the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, who were watching on the sideline, couldn��t help but lament when they heard this music. Hua Jieyu��s performance of the Divine Requiem was similar in feeling to Ye Futian��s performance, but the sadness she expressed was of a different kind. The magnitude of the tragedy that Hua Jieyu had to endure personally, compared to Ye Futian, was perhaps on an even grander scale. After all, as a woman, she had been taken away by her family and forbidden to continue her relationship with Ye Futian. She had used death as a way to prove her faithfulness, and she had also protected others with her life. She had lost her memory once and became someone else. All that she had experienced was full of endless desolation.


    Moreover, today��s Hua Jieyu had lived through countless lifetimes and experienced too much sorrow.


    In the brief moment that she had been playing the Divine Requiem, there were already tears in the corner of her eyes.


    Ye Futian did not stop just because Hua Jieyu was playing the guqin. He raised his hand and reached out. The Great Path was the string of an instrument made from heaven and earth. Guqin spirit had always been part of Ye Futian��s life spirit, imbued with the rhythm, and ��Sound of the Hearts�� linked him to Hua Jieyu, making them one.


    Ye Futian��s gaze swept across the void, perceiving everything between heaven and earth. Hua Jieyu was playing the Divine Requiem as controlled by him. At the same time, he was perceiving Jieyu��s unique abilities.


    When he closed his eyes, it was as if everything in this world was under his command, and he could perceive everything in this world as they were all under his power of telekinesis. It seemed that he could even see into the spiritual souls of the four great cultivators perceiving the existence of the souls inside their bodies.


    ��What?�� The eyes of the four major cultivators showed a slight alarm as they sensed that something was amiss. In this instance, they could feel that someone was stalking their spiritual souls, which was, in itself, an incredibly uncomfortable sensation. It was as if they were being spied upon. There was no privacy to speak of.


    In the void, Ye Futian��s raised a finger. It lightly trembled as if he had plucked the strings of the Great Path. At that moment, everyone felt their heartstrings trembled as well. It was as their spiritual souls had been shaken. Although it was very slight, it was the most uncomfortable feeling.

 Chapter 2380 - The Final Battle

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A strange situation now transpired on the battlefield. Under Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu��s joint efforts, the battle seemed to have stalled. Yu Sheng had not yet made any moves, and these four cultivators were already in trouble.


    They seemed to find themselves in an extremely embarrassing situation. Not only were they unable to break through the defense of their opponents, but the sound of the guqin also had a noticeable effect on their diminishing combat effectiveness.


    ?


    If Ye Futian��s performance of the Divine Requiem before was not enough to threaten them, it was because his realm was lower. But now, it was Hua Jieyu who was playing with her powerful mind. Hers was connected with Ye Futian��s so that she could express the mood of the Divine Requiem perfectly. Not to mention Ye Futian gave her the divine guqin Yearning to play.


    The atmosphere was so charged that in just a few short moments, the vast and endless void seemed to be shrouded in desolation. The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate City below who had been watching the battle in the sky now found an unimaginable sense of sadness in their hearts.


    Across the endless void, the sound of guqin softly blanketed the land below and entered the Heavenly Mandate City. Although the strength of the rhythm that reached the city was on the weaker side, it could still cause countless cultivators to fall into that sorrowful spirit until many of them began to cry uncontrollably.


    And in the middle of the battlefield, these four cultivators from the Ancient God Clan, who were already affected by the mood transmitted by the guqin, were now under unimaginable pressure. When they were attacked by Ye Futian before, their emotions had inevitably altered. A myriad of imageries began to appear in their minds, and gradually, their mentalities were held hostage by their emotions.


    There was a sense of grief that came from the bottom of their hearts. This sense of grief seemed to originate from inside out, from their hearts and their spiritual souls. They involuntarily thought of memories that had long been hidden in their pasts.


    They could clearly feel that their grip over the Great Path in the surrounding heaven and earth was weakening.


    Ye Futian could see the changes taking place on these cultivators, and he knew very well how powerful was the Divine Requiem. Although this power was invisible and its destruction could not really be detected outright, Hua Jieyu��s telekinesis prowess coupled with divine guqin was more than enough to trap all of them with no turning back��it was only a matter of time.


    Ye Futian��s outstretched hand was moving continuously, caressing the invisible strings, until each beating note hit the soul directly, causing the listeners�� spiritual souls to quiver. Although it was not enough to injure the others, it was chipping away at their will little by little until they finally collapsed and surrendered to that despair.


    They walked forward, and an even more terrifying aura bloomed from them. Under the lingering divine light, the shadow of Haotian the Great behind Hua Junmo pressed down again, blasting out an apocalyptic Haotian Mudra. Nonetheless, cultivators from the Divine Prefecture could feel something was not quite right.


    ��Hua Junmo seemed to be affected,�� someone whispered.


    ��Well, no one is exempt from the effects of the Divine Requiem. This Haotian Mudra was unleashed little too prematurely and does not have the momentum it did before.�� The discernment of these top figures was extremely astute, and they could calculate the power of the attack in a single glance, discerning the level and mental state of the person who released the attack.


    Ye Futian was unmoved. As the strings were plucked, mighty Sword Will was gathering as numerous divine swords rushing up against the momentum, hitting the Mudra in the midst of that terrifying storm. Horrific rumbling sounds were heard as the Mudra oscillated, bursting little by little until the swords had turned into a storm, stabbing madly until the Haotian Mudra was pierced, then completely exploded.


    Hua Jieyu focused her attention on the Divine Requiem while Ye Futian was conducting a series of guerrilla warfare at will. The two cooperated so perfectly that it seemed that the four top figures from the Divine Prefecture could only react passively.


    ��The combination of the divine guqin and the Divine Requiem is truly powerful. This guqin is the relic of Shenyin the Great, integrated with the soul of the Great Emperor; I guess it can be regarded as divine weaponry from the Great Emperor,�� said Wang Mian. He then looked at the other three. ��If this is really the best you can do, I am afraid we won��t be seeing anything. More likely, we will all be defeated here and now by the sound of the guqin.��


    Hua Junmo, Pei Sheng, and Jiang Qingfeng were clearly aware of the point he was making. They looked at the couple playing the guqin and saw Ye Futian��s silver hair dancing in the wind while Hua Jieyu sat cross-legged, playing meticulously. If this were not a battlefield, it would be a most beautiful scene to behold, just like a painting.


    Boom! Rays of divine light shrouded and drowning them. In their eyes, a certain transformation was happening again.


    Their strengths were still climbing. The aura from each of the four cultivators was becoming more frightening, and their willpower was getting more aggressive, resisting the will of the Divine Requiem.


    ��Are they going to release their aces before the real battle?�� someone whispered in amazement.


    ��It��s not that they don��t want to fight a decisive battle. It��s just that under the sound of the guqin, they are all greatly affected. Even if they fight, they will be under someone else��s control. The weakening of their own grasp over the Great Path is fatal. They can��t break down Ye Futian��s defense, and for them to continue being submerged in this mood, it will only get worse so that their hands are forced.��


    ��With the buttress from the divine power, their will invariably become stronger. Instead of being consumed by this tug-of-war and gradually falling into disadvantage, it is better to go all out and fight.�� Many people saw the situation clearly. If these four continue to fight against Ye Futian under such conditions, eventually, their strength would be weakened. It would affect the outcome of the battle, thus weakening their positions.


    Under the halo of the divine power, Hua Junmo was undergoing a certain transformation. The face of a deity appeared above the firmament as Hua Junmo��s figure left in a flash and levitated into the air. Strands of horrific aura penetrated through his body. It was as this force was becoming stronger. Hua Junmo himself seemed to have turned into a god. It seemed as if he was the incarnation of Haotian the Great, descending into the world, oppressing this corner of the sky with all his might.


    Soon, Pei Sheng of Infinite Mountains and Jiang Qingfeng of the Ancient Royal Family of Jiang also underwent some transformation. Under the lingering divine light, each one of them was like some kind of deity.


    Wang Mian floated high into the sky. The golden divine light enveloped the boundless void. Then, the light released from his body seemed to swallow up the infinite power between heaven and earth. As he waved his hand in the air, a piercing divine glory appeared inside his palm, and a golden divine spear manifested. It seemed to be the sharpest divine weapon in the world, but the entire Great Path of this space seemed to be refined by it as well. At this time, above Wang Mian, many stormy matrices were gestating above the firmament.


    Boom�� Golden light of destruction came down as a series of terrible cracks appeared in the space. It was no longer the same attack he unleashed previously. There was a great difference in the strength of the two attacks.


    ��It��s not too late to hand over the corpse of Shenja the Great Emperor. I can still let you go.�� Wang Mian lowered his head to look at Ye Futian, who was down below. His tone still carried an icy arrogance, as if he was the final arbiter of this world.


    But Ye Futian smiled sarcastically and retorted, ��But am I not the one who has whatever it is that you want?��


    At the same time, when Yu Sheng saw the cultivators in the void, an astonishing Demonic Might erupted from him. Then, a divine item flew out from him, and in an instant, that monstrous Demonic Will rushed straight into the sky!

 Chapter 2381 - Mighty Battle

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��What monster?��


    Everyone looked towards Yu Sheng. Inside the area surrounded by demonic might, Yu Sheng had donned a magnificent Demonic Armor, and a terrifying Will of the Demonic God erupted from within. Throughout the vast lands and skies, demonic might surged and roared like rolling thunder. In the void, a pair of dark, cold eyes appeared, petrifying all who dared to look at it.


    ?


    ��Demonic Mail!��


    The cultivators�� pupils constricted as they looked toward Yu Sheng. Who was this guy?


    The Demonic Mail is a gear of the Demonic Gods, a true divine item. As Yu Shang donned the Demonic Mail, all of the cultivators wondered how terrifying his power would now be?


    As terrifying booming noises sounded, a demonic projection appeared behind Yu Sheng, towering over the world like a Demonic God. As the projection shrouded Yu Sheng��s body, it fused together with the demonic might surrounding him, as though evolving into a true Demonic God.


    Likewise, a divine item appeared before Ye Futian, along with a terrifying aura that erupted from it. As Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body was summoned, Ye Futian��s spiritual soul detached from his body. Divine lights encircled Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body before his spiritual soul gushed into it. Immediately, Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body twitched, and by the time he raised his head, the horrific divine lights from his eyes made the hearts of anyone who witnessed it tremble.


    ��Are they all releasing divine items now?�� The cultivators�� hearts pounded. In the battle just now, the four great cultivators were hampered by the sound of the Ye Futian��s guqin. They had been unable to wield their full powers. To counter that, they all released their strongest weapons��the divine items. It was equivalent to going through a metamorphosis.


    They were already peak-level Renhuang Plane. And now they were even more powerful. It was an unequal battle, to begin with. But now that they had equipped themselves with divine items, how could the battle continue?


    So Ye Futian and Yu Sheng no longer held back, and both drew their divine items as well.


    As Hua Jiyu familiarized herself with Yearning��the divine guqin��the emotions in the Divine Requiem were growing stronger. Even as the four great cultivators drew their divine items, the Will of Grief continued to infiltrate their minds and corrode their determination, they could only temporarily subdue it with divine powers.


    ��Kill!�� The four stopped waiting. As Wang Mian voiced something, rays of divine light that obliterated everything in its way streamed out of the golden matrix conjuring atop his head. It was as though the divine lights rained judgment on the worlds, attempting to rain destruction upon where Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were.


    Boom! A figure descended from the skies. It was like a Demonic God had arrived, coming to a stop in the air above Ye Futian. It was Yu Sheng. His gaze swept across the skies high above him. Both of his eyes contained such dominating aura it was as though anyone who saw it would lower their heads and surrender at once. It was simply unparalleled.


    Many demonic projections appeared in the skies as though the Demonic Gods of the worlds had descended. Every single one had a terrifying aura. All of them were summoned by Yu Sheng.


    Hum! As the divine lights rained down to obliterate all living beings in their way, many of the demonic projections were crushed and destroyed, turning into dust and ash within an instant as they were unable to fend against the horrific divine lights shooting down from the Matrix.


    ��Leave me,�� Ye Futian said as he raised his head to glance at where Yu Sheng was. Of course, he understood that Yu Sheng intended to protect Hua Jieyu and him, but he didn��t need it.


    While Ye Futian��s physical body continued to sit quietly beside Hua Jieyu, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor moved. Ye Futian saw that horrific beam of light was blasting toward them. So with one thought, countless divine lights shot out from Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body, akin to mythic runes being summoned one after another. Pointing his finger ahead, countless divine lights converged instantly to form a Light Screen of Space. All of the attacks landed on the luminous wall yet weren��t able to break it.


    It was as though with a casual point of his finger, Ye Futian had created a world to block the attacks for him.


    Just then, the divine weapon in Wang Mian��s possession struck down, the golden divine spear hitting the Light Screen of Space.


    A deep, muffled thump echoed the battlefield as the Light Screen shattered. The golden divine spear had actually managed to pierce it! The terrifying divine lights from the spear continued the smite downward, intending to kill Ye Futian once and for all.


    A light screen of obliteration engulfed the entire space, blinding anyone who witnessed it.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body flew straight up. He neither dodged nor evaded, flying directly up into the skies like a beam of light as the divine lights on him shone magnificently. He raised his hand and pointed towards the divine spear ahead as his entire body turned into a supreme divine sword, colliding with the divine light that was moving down. As the two rays of light met, terrifying gashes appeared in the space around them.


    ��Break!�� Shenjia the Great Emperor yelled. Instantly, his Sword Will destroyed everything in its way as his divine frame moved with unstoppable force. Wang Mian��s expression turned more solemn. All of the divine lights from his worldly matrices converged onto him as if all the divine lights of the worlds had merged into one to fuse into his palm. He once again thrust the divine spear, directly colliding with Ye Futian.


    The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was like an unbreakable divine sword. As it collided with the golden divine spear, two force waves erupted from the collision. The Great Paths around them starting crumbling uncontrollably as they were destroyed by the shockwaves.


    ��Path Obliteration!�� called Shenjia the Great Emperor. Instantly, divine lights erupted from his body, shooting out towards the matrix patterns atop the skies. Horrifying divine lights of the sword pierced the matrix patterns, causing them to shatter one after another.


    An equally powerful force was exerted onto Wang Mian, he let out a muffled groan as his body was blasted into the air.


    Seeing this scene before them shook the divine prefecture cultivators to their core, they had heard before that Ye Futian could unleash extreme combat prowess with the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Now, they could confirm that it was no mere rumor. Wang Mian himself was an ultra-powerful Renhuang; he was peak-level Renhuang Plane and even wielding a divine weapon, yet he was still repelled by Ye Futian.


    Wang Mian��s arm trembled. He looked at the quivering golden spear on his arm. So this was the power of Path Obliteration of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    When they clashed just now, it was as though his Path was getting destroyed.


    In the meantime, in the other direction, the other high-level cultivators didn��t just watch. Hua Junmo transformed into Haotian the Great and exerted his dominating might. Great Palm Seals appeared and moved down, covering such a vast space that it was as if it shrouded the entire world. As huge explosions echoed the air, these palm seals slammed down on Ye Futian��s physical body and on Hua Jieyu.


    Letting his spiritual soul leave his body to control Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body was extremely risky. If Ye Futian��s own body were attacked and destroyed, his spiritual soul would have no physical vessel to reside in. Hua Jieyu��s guqin continued to irk and influence them.


    Yu Sheng looked high up above the skies.


    Boom�� His body was still expanding exponentially, transforming into a colossal Demonic God. Countless demonic projections around them guarded Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, while the Demonic God he had transformed into raised his hand to slam down on the celestial skies. Supreme demonic might flared the world as his palm collided with the Haotian Great Palm Seal.


    The world once again felt like it was falling apart. Great Paths collapsed, and dark gashes in space swallowed everything that came close. The force was so great that even the Heavenly Mandate City below the skies shook.


    The entire body of the Demonic God shined magnificently. Demonic lights flowed and turned throughout him, giving rise to unparalleled power. Instantly, violent blasts and explosions erupted from the collision, and the Great Palm Seal started exploding from the middle as cracks started appearing. As the cracks sprawled out, the Great Palm seal collapsed uncontrollably!

 Chapter 2382 - Heaven Tempering Divine Method

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��He��s strong!��


    The cultivators�� hearts pounded as they witnessed Yu Sheng��s attack. After he had donned the Demonic Mail, Yu Sheng��s aura evolved. It was as though he was possessed by a Demonic God. Legend had it that the Demonic Mail was forged from the will of a Demonic God, which is why it contained the soul of the Demonic God and was owned by generations of Devil Emperors.


    ?


    Now, Yu Sheng owned a Demonic Mail set, which told of his status in the Devil World.


    Could it be that the Devil Emperor saw him as the heir of the Devil throne?


    If that was the case, then this person before them could be a future Devil Emperor, which was an incredibly noble status.


    As Hua Junmo��s Haotian Seal was crushed, the eyes of the figure that stood in the void, towering above worlds, turned cold. He had now transformed into Haotian, yet he still wasn��t able to quash Yu Sheng?


    Boooom�� Horrifying, deafening noises echoed the air as rays of divine lights shot out. The supreme might of Haotian reigned over the land as if it were exerted by all worlds combined. A deep thump sounded as a celestial divine seal smote down, countless Giant Palm Seals fell all across the land, each of them containing terrifying divine lights. The seals engulfed the world as if they were crushing and destroying everything. This attack covered every inch of the battlefield; even the other cultivators had to retreat to avoid being hit.


    The attack came straight for Yu Sheng. The cultivators only saw shock waves rippling from the skies. The whole thing was akin to the sounds of the Demonic God. Centering around him, countless projections of Demonic Gods spawned, encircling the colossal Demonic God which he had transformed into.


    As a Demonic Blade coiled by horrifying Demonic Will appeared in Yu Sheng��s hand, harrowing demonic might surged and roared. It seemed that the projections of the Demonic Gods of the worlds resonated and synced as they simultaneously raised their demonic blades.


    Hum! Infinite demonic lights converged into Yu Sheng��s demonic blade, causing it to expand. Demonic God wielded the blade with both hands and slashed out, splitting the skies. In an instant, the countless projections of the Demonic Gods struck out with their demonic blades in perfect synchronization to collide with the falling Haotian Great Palm Seal. At the same time, their Demonic Wills converged onto the Demonic Blade at the center. Tens of thousands of demons resonated as the Demonic Gods of the worlds attacked as one. When the blade slashed forward, an endlessly large Demonic God projection appeared atop the celestial skies. This projection slashed out demonic light as well, which fused into the Demonic Blade and cleaved the skies.


    At this instant, terrifying cracks appeared throughout the world, from below the skies to all the way up high. Everywhere it passed, the Great Palm Seals were torn into fragments. Finally, the blade struck the sky-shrouding Haotian Great Palm Seal. As terrifying lights of obliteration erupted, the Palm Seal was torn apart by the dark storm of demon blades. With a flare of horrifying demonic lights, the divine seal was destroyed and split in half.


    Even more terrifyingly, the Demonic Light continued to move upwards, splitting up the skies and hacking apart the projection of Haotian.


    It was as if the sky was split in half, causing a fault line to appear. Haotian the Great��s projection seemed to be split open as well, and only the demonic light and the crack spanning the skies remained.


    All of the cultivators�� gazes turned toward that slash in the celestial skies. Their hearts pounded as they witnessed what was happening. At this moment, it was as if the entire space had gone silent, and everything was frozen in time.


    Suddenly, atop the celestial skies, bits of blood dripped down, caught by the eyes of the cultivators. It seemed that Haotian was bleeding.


    Hum! With the eruption of a divine light, Haotian the Great��s projection disintegrated and dissipated into the air. A figure appeared atop the celestial skies; it was Hua Junmo. But now, a wound appeared on his forehead. His aura became exceedingly frail, and his face was pale. Obviously, he was severely wounded and had to retreat from the battle.


    ��One slash!��


    The hearts of the cultivators pounded as they looked toward the Demonic God projection formed by Yu Sheng. Was this really that Seventh-Plan Demonic Cultivator they had seen before?


    Equipped with the Demonic mail, he had become so powerful and dominating. His blade cleaved the celestial skies, directly opening it up. Even now, the crack was still present in the air, and storms of obliteration continued to seep out from the dark cracks in space.


    The current Devil Emperor that reigned over the Devil world had dominated it many years ago. He was known as an unmatched genius, creating several demonic arts on his own. Some say that amongst all of the Great Emperors today, the Devil Emperor was likely the one who could wield the most legendary techniques. In the generation after him, likely only Donghuang the Great��another unparalleled genius��could compare to him.


    Now, it seemed that Yu Sheng had inherited quite a few powers from the Devil Emperor.


    This scene also shocked the other three great cultivators. At their level, it was very difficult for them to attack at the same time, as one person��s attack would occupy the entire battlefield and leave no space for anybody else. If they did attack simultaneously, the attacks would collide and interfere with one another. Their cultivation levels were simply too powerful, and their attack ranged too wide, leaving them no choice but to take turns.


    But Yu Sheng wounded Hua Junmo with just one slash, which led to the other three cultivators reassessing Yu Sheng��s level.


    Then there was Ye Futian, who blocked Wang Mian��s attack using the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. He clearly hadn��t used his full power. While Hua Jieyu was playing the Divine Requiem on the side, in actuality, she, too, was remarkably powerful.


    The battle was now three-on-three, and the differences between their planes seemed to be neglectable. At this point, Wang Mian and the two other Ancient God Clan cultivators seemed to have no advantage over Ye Futian��s group whatsoever.


    After Hua Junmo was gravely wounded, Pei Sheng and Jiang Qingfeng stopped attacking rashly. The three powerful cultivators stood atop the skies, looking down upon Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Jieyu. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng each took a different position. Between them was Hua Jieyu, on the ground, still peacefully playing the guqin.


    As the guqin continued to sound, the Will of Grief of the Divine Requiem grew stronger. Actually, with the current six cultivators remaining, Hua Jieyu could engage in battle without playing the Divine Requiem.


    ��The body of Shenjia the Great is right here. Come get it,�� a voice came out from inside Shenjia the Great��s body. It was speaking to Wang Mian, who stood atop the void. Since the beginning, Wang Mina wanted Ye Futian to hand over the divine frame of Shenjia the Great, and he even had the audacity to say that he would give Ye Futian a chance.


    Now, as Ye Futian��s spiritual soul had entered the body of Shenjia the Great for the battle, even if it would create a huge burden for him, he had to make Wang Mian pay the price.


    Hearing Ye Futian��s words, Wang Mian��s gaze turned into an extremely sharp blade as he once again raised the golden spear. But this time, his iris morphed into something different. They were no longer his own eyes but turned into a pair of divine eyes. As Ye Futian raised his head to look toward Wang Mian, a supreme force erupted from Wang Mian��s body.


    Just like before, matrices appeared one after another atop the celestial skies, but this time, their auras were even more terrifying and powerful. Divine lights flew out from Wang Mian and merged with the matrices. Then, Wang Mian raised his arm to point at the skies. His petrifying divine gaze looked toward the skies as well. The matrices intertwined and intersected as they started to fuse together, transforming into an endlessly huge pattern, swallowing all of the Great Path powers of the worlds. As these horrific patterns appeared, all of the powers in the vast space were reeled within. They assimilated to make it stronger, eventually forming a terrifying, sky-smelting whirlpool of divine powers.


    All of the high-level Divine Prefecture cultivators�� hearts pounded as they witnessed the scene above them. That was Tianyan the Great��s Heaven Tempering Divine Method!

 Chapter 2383 - The Decisive Strike

    Ye Futian looked up into the sky. With the support he derived from the divine power, the firmament turned into a divine matrix. Countless divine lights wove together, tempering the power of the Great Path in the heavens, merging into a divine matrix.


    In the vast and boundless space, divine lights shot down as sizzling was heard. Those cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, who were below, wore a serious and heavy expression as they released the defensive power of the Great Path to block the divine light that came down on them.


    ��The Heaven Tempering Divine Method tempers the power of the Great Path in the heavens and turns it into a divine matrix. Its power is enough to slay all enemies.�� The cultivators from Divine Prefecture secretly marveled. The Heaven Tempering Divine Method had been created by Tianyan the Great. It could be used to cast matrices, weapon-making, as well as kill others.


    In weapon-making, it was capable of the most powerful matrices, and in killing, it was also capable of the most horrific offensive techniques. Any areas covered by this divine method would be annihilated.


    According to legend, Tianyan the Great created the Heaven Tempering Divine Method when he was still at his peak. Its power was enough to shroud an entire space until the entire world was covered entirely. With a single thought, everyone in a realm could be slaughtered instantaneously. Its prowess was most dreadful.


    And now, Wang Mian was releasing the Heaven Tempering Divine Method. Clearly, its power would be no match to the one released by Tianyan the Great back then, but the power it was able to exert was plenty terrifying. He stood under the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix, raising the golden divine spear in his hand. The divine power surged into the matrix so that those countless rays of divine light seemed to fall with divine power as well.


    ��Let me help you,�� said a voice. It was none other than Jiang Qingfeng who offered up his help to Wang Mian.


    ��Yes.�� Wang Mian nodded. This Heaven Tempering Divine Method could temper the power of the Great Path in the heavens. If Jiang Qingfeng was willing to cooperate with him, he could temper his power and increase the magnitude of the Heaven Tempering Divine Method.


    ��I��ll help you too,�� someone else piped up. It was Pei Sheng. He walked over, and the three of them stood together under the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix. These two gave up their own separate attacks and urged their divine power to flow into the divine matrix.


    In an instant, the power of the Heaven Tempering Divine Method seemed to multiply significantly again. The divine light that fell became even more radiant, and it appeared as if it was cutting through space.


    In addition, the divine light that was falling had become more pervasive until it seemed that it was covering heaven entirely.


    ��This���� Everyone watched the Heaven Tempering Divine Method increase in power and felt the horror that it produced. Wang Mian, Pei Sheng, and Jiang Qingfeng had finally joined forces. These three major cultivators had gathered all the power at their disposal and poured it into the Heaven Tempering Divine Method to expand the prowess of this divine method. Presently, the Heaven Tempering Divine Method was way more powerful than when it had been urged on by Wang Mian alone.


    The sound of sizzle came out with endless divine light falling. The vast spatial world was completely isolated and even divided into numerous segments that were completely separate.


    However, many cultivators were in this space. No matter how many people there were, they would have to withstand this attack just the same. Nobody could possibly escape the attack of this divine method.


    Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Jieyu were standing below. They would not be able to evade this attack either. All they could do was to resist this force head-on.


    The cultivators from Tianyan City raised their heads to looked at the battlefield up high. In this battle, none of the principalities from the Divine Prefecture participated��not even when the Vajra Divine Child and Hua Junmo were severely injured did they choose to intervene. After all, at this level, peak Renhuang realm, they could bear any consequences as a result of their own actions as long as they were not dead.


    For everyone, this was an extremely rare battle, regardless of the outcome.


    Besieged by the Heaven Tempering Divine Method, would Ye Futian manage to withstand it with the help of Shenjia the Great Emperor? And what about Yu Sheng in the Demonic Mail. Or Hua Jieyu, who was playing the guqin?


    All three of them were within range of the onslaught.


    In that space were many phantom shadows of the demon god summoned by Yu Sheng. When the slaughtering divine light fell down, sharp piercing sounds were heard. Those phantoms shadows were shredded, annihilated, and then dissipated under that countless divine light. They vanished into nothingness, leaving absolutely no trace.


    All around Yu Sheng lingered a terrible blade will, which turned into a light screen, shielding his body. Those incoming attacks fell on the light screen, emitting shrieking sounds, but could not tear it apart.


    Around Ye Futian, the same was true. A sword screen appeared, surrounding his body to shield him from the falling divine light.


    Meanwhile, Hua Jieyu in the area below was still playing the divine melody, Ye Futian��s physical body next to her. When the slaughtering light came down and approached the area where she was, an astonishing force appeared. It seemed to solidify the space. A vacuum was forming around them.


    At this moment, this battlefield seemed a little strange. Everyone seemed to stand there without moving, but they all understood that the situation at hand was extremely dangerous. It might be the decisive moment when a clear outcome would emerge.


    In the silent space, there was nothing but the slaughtering divine light that rained down upon them. The cultivators from Divine Prefecture watched quietly. They were wondering if Ye Futian and his companions could overcome this divine matrix created by the joint force of the three cultivators as they worked together. They were trying to create an expanded Heaven Tempering Divine Method?


    If it could not be neutralized, it was very probable that Ye Futian��s party of three would suffer grave injuries.


    Wang Mian lowed his head to glanced at the three people below while his arm was still raised. When he looked up again at the divine matrix, his figure rushed directly into the matrix. Suddenly, a boundless and massive phantom appeared in the midst of the matrix. It was none other than Wang Mian��s face.


    Buzz, buzz, buzz�� A more horrific slaughtering light descended like the light of extinction. In an instant, deep and terrible fissures appeared below. Suddenly, golden divine light and the pitch-dark crevices interweaved, finding their murderous way to Ye Futian and his little party of three.


    When this attack landed, it was as if all the heavens were about to be silenced.


    ��Be careful,�� some cultivator from the Divine Prefecture cautioned from below. When such a horrific attack came crashing down, even those further down were under its influence. All those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path were busy gathering their powerful forces to protect themselves. As strong as they were, the slightest complacency would allow this attack to breach their defense.


    At this moment, the Heaven Tempering Divine Method was already the type of attack capable of slaughtering cultivators who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Boom! At this moment, Yu Sheng took a sudden step forward. That invincible demon god appeared directly above Ye Futian. It was as if it was blocking on top of him. In case that attack came blasting down, he would be the first line of defense.


    A boundless and massive demon god appeared, standing tall between heaven and earth. Numerous phantoms of the demon gods filled the sky again, but this time they were illusions only. However, all these phantoms resonated solemnly as if responding to the call of the Demonic Lord.


    All around Yu Sheng, actual figures of the demon gods appeared. It was as if they were superimposed over his body. They simultaneously unleashed their demonic blades as well. They slashed toward the firmament at the same time when Yu Sheng himself also unleashed the strike.


    All these incomparably powerful attacks gathered together, turning into one blade, slashing towards the upper sky. Yu Sheng��s body moved with the light of the blade, trailing upward.


    When Ye Futian looked up and saw this, he understood what Yu Sheng was trying to accomplish.

 Chapter 2384 - Relentless

    The demonic blade traversed the sky down, moving to the bottom. It split open the space and aimed at Wang Mian.


    Wang Mian had already merged into the divine matrix at this time as he surveyed the grounds below. Suddenly, the divine light erupted from where he was, and those annihilating divine light fell to strike Yu Sheng where he was.


    In an instant, Yu Sheng seemed to be submerged completely in that destructive light. Only the demonic blade remained, slashing high into the sky, colliding with the light.


    A terrifying destructive storm swept into the surrounding space now. The demon god that was transformed by Yu Sheng let out a low growl as his blade continued its upward motion. It split those rays of divine light. However, that devastating demonic blade began to crack, then began to break off inch by inch.


    Though the blade was broken, the Blade Will was still intact.


    That figure of the demon god, perched high above the firmament, was extremely domineering. The sword slashed all the way high above the sky, approaching the divine matrix.


    At this moment, Pei Sheng and Jiang Qingfeng also looked down where Yu Sheng was. They were already under the spell of the Divine Requiem, and their will had been greatly destabilized. Coupled with their efforts to urge all their power to pour into the divine matrix, they had no more strength to spare to carry out an additional attack on Yu Sheng.


    But even so, there was still a powerful will that erupted from both of them in a last-ditch effort to stop Yu Sheng from continuing his way up.


    But at this moment, a figure appeared high above the sky next to Yu Sheng; it was as if it had emerged out of thin air. This figure was extraordinarily striking with unparalleled beauty; it was Hua Jieyu.


    At this moment, Hua Jieyu��s beauty was ravishing. Her black hair flew in the wind. Her gaze swept towards Pei Sheng and Jiang Qingfeng as a tremendous telekinetic power rushed into their minds. Simultaneously, a frightening force covered this entire area until the space seemed to be in a state of tranquility.


    ��What��s happening?�� Many looked up, then down at the figure who was playing the divine guqin. Yonder, Hua Jieyu was still there. It seemed that an avatar of her had appeared above the sky.


    Somehow, that avatar seemed more like Hua Jieyu rather than just a phantom of her.


    ��Her soul is out of her body!�� some cultivator whispered. Hua Jieyu had managed to appear above the sky, leveraging the out-of-body technique in order to lend Yu Sheng a hand.


    Boom�� Yu Sheng��s blade continued to move upward. The divine light that blasted down was shattered, but Yu Sheng��s blade became shorter as well. Finally, it was completely broken. The Blade Will was entirely exhausted, wiped out bit by bit.


    Above the divine matrix, Wang Mian��s face was icy cold, and murderous intent flashed through his eyes. However, at this precise moment, a light appeared in the area below Yu Sheng. It was a boundless and brilliant divine light. A figure passed by him and appeared right beneath the divine matrix.


    The figure that appeared was the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    The moment he appeared, Hua Jieyu disappeared as her spiritual soul returned to her body. In an instant, she returned below to continue playing the divine guqin. It was as if none of this had ever happened.


    The strike from Yu Sheng was not a real attempt to break through the divine matrix��he was merely clearing the way for Ye Futian. He had cleft a path that brought them closer to the heart of the divine matrix so that Ye Futian could reach there without expending much effort. He could then reserve all his strength on the divine matrix itself.


    Buzz�� After the blade was broken, divine light sprinkled upon Yu Sheng but was blocked by the Demon Mail. Nevertheless, he was slammed into the ground below. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor now replaced him in his position. An unparalleled divine aurora burst out from his body.


    The flesh-and-blood body of Shenjia the Great Emperor then turned into a sword and continued forward. This body itself was an imperial weapon��the actual physical body of a Great Emperor.


    Surrounded by countless runes, the whole world now turned into a sword, striking at the heart of the divine matrix.


    Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu had cleared the way for him. It broke through a few rays of light. The divine body rushed into the divine matrix, colliding with it. It was exactly at the position where Wang Mian was.


    Underneath, all the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture stared at the scene playing out in the void. Their hearts throbbed. They were beyond shocked.


    Did he mean to rush into the divine matrix with the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    What a terrible clash it was! At this moment, a muffled sound came from the sky. Radiating from the site of the collision, a most devastating storm rampaged between heaven and earth. Even Jiang Qingfeng and Pei Sheng were knocked backward. At the core of the collision, an astonishing force had exploded.


    At this moment, everyone inside the Heavenly Mandate City saw a divine light sweep toward the surrounding heaven and earth. The entire sky above the Heavenly Mandate City lit up.


    A terrible rumbling sound was heard, and that divine matrix above the firmament was collapsing, shattering and breaking apart continuously. Soon, the divine matrix that shrouded that corner of the sky disintegrated. Light penetrated through heaven and earth in that central area, and another ray of light blasted higher into the sky.


    Boom�� Another loud boom, and the divine matrix crumbled. The air of destruction raged as countless people focused on the sky above. The body of the Shenjia the Great Emperor stood there, and it was precisely this divine body that had forced its way into the divine matrix. Wang Mian, at this moment, appeared above the firmament. He was still holding the golden divine spear but let out a muffled groan as blood seeped from the corners of his mouth. His face was as white as a sheet.


    His body was trembling ever so slightly. Clearly, he was grievously injured.


    It��s broken! everyone secretly exclaimed. Incredible shock took hold of their hearts. The Heaven Tempering Divine Method had been broken. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was like an immortal entity and had directly penetrated the divine matrix and broke it down by brute force.


    In this battle, many of the top figures from the Ancient God Clan had joined hands, but they failed to take down Ye Futian��s team of three and had been defeated soundly.


    Presently, even though Pei Sheng and Jiang Qingfeng were still operational with the ability to continue fighting, it was almost impossible for them to defeat Ye Futian��s team of three.


    It was obvious from the development so far that none of them had the ability to defeat Ye Futian on their own. Neither of them could overpower Ye Futian, who had resorted to the Divine Body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to augment his combat effectiveness. They weren��t even in the position to defeat Yu Sheng or Hua Jieyu.


    Above the void, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was still there, looking at Wang Mian, who was high in the sky. The two of them stood there like two statues. Neither moved. In fact, Ye Futian himself was also under great pressure. After all, this was the body of a deity��not of his own.


    Wang Mian stared at the divine body below. The flesh of Shenjia the Great Emperor deserved its reputation, after all. It had successfully penetrated the divine matrix and dismantled it.


    Beneath him, a terrifying aura headed high into the sky, which was frowned upon by many. The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy, as well as Ye Futian and his companion above the sky, had a slightly disturbed look in their eyes. Obviously, they felt those tyrannical auras that came from below.


    Although the confrontation in the void had ended, Ye Futian and his companions successfully blocked the united efforts from several top figures in the Divine Prefecture. However, their opponents seemed to have no intention of stopping. This battle was not over yet!

 Chapter 2385 - Exchange?

    Ye Futian lowered his head. Terrifying light shone in his pupils. He looked at the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture down below and questioned them, ��The sparring that you so wished has ended. What else do you plan to do?��


    Yu Sheng, in his demonic god form, similarly stared at the cultivators below. His jet-black demonic eyes were frightening. The demonic cultivators who came along with him immediately rose to the sky and scanned across the space.


    This scene caused the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture to reveal strange expressions. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were very close; they were sworn brothers who had been through various life-or-death situations together. If the cultivators chose to attack Ye Futian, they would most likely face Yu Sheng. The cultivators from the Devil World might intervene in the battle directly.


    Moreover, Yu Sheng seemed to have an extraordinary status in the Devil World. The crowd could deduce many things based on their battle just now. Yu Sheng mastered a few magnum opuses of the Devil Emperor. Besides that, he controlled the Demonic Mail and had the Will of the Demonic Gods. Judging from these, they could tell Yu Sheng��s status in the Devil World. He might be more than just a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. Perhaps Yu Sheng was one of the potential successors chosen by him.


    If Yu Sheng had a strong influence in the Devil World, he might even be capable of mobilizing their troops. If that were the case, then even the top forces of the Divine Prefecture would not be able to withstand him and his army.


    ��Renhuang Ye, you regard yourself as a cultivator of the Divine Prefecture, and you have said that we should unite to fight against the forces of the other worlds. However, are you in cahoots with the cultivators from the Devil World now?�� said someone from the crowd. The speaker had purposely hidden his exact location as he was afraid of offending Ye Futian and his alliances. Nobody knew who started this rumor of Ye Futian being in cahoots with the cultivators from the Devil World.


    Ye Futian scanned the crowd below with a cold gaze. Had these cultivators from the Divine Prefecture actually been treating him as one of them?


    They joined forces to attack him, and they showed no hesitation in killing him.


    From the direction where the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were, a cold voice sounded, ��All of you came to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and the top figures from the Divine Prefecture joined forces to attack the College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, who is but a seventh-tier Renhuang. Did you consider the unity of the Divine Prefecture when you committed such a shameless act? College Chief and Yu Sheng are good friends, to begin with. There��s no such thing as being in cahoots. All of you are good at victim-blaming. The top figures from the Divine Prefecture have lost this battle. If you are still unwilling to let it go, then attack us as you desire. You do not need to find any more baseless excuses to justify your actions.��


    When the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy heard these words, they put on cold expressions. They were all angry. The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were indeed pushing things too far. Up until this point, they were still looking for excuses for their overbearing actions.


    A chuckle could be heard. It was actually from the direction where the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace stood. Xi Chiyao said with a smile, ��Today, we have all witnessed that Renhuang Ye��s temperament is exceptional among that of the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. The Divine Prefecture is fortunate to have such a talented figure. He will surely become a pillar of the prefecture. Renhuang Ye has proven himself in this battle. There��s no need to persist in fighting. Everyone, why don��t we stop here?��


    When the members of the Divine Prefecture heard Xi Chiyao��s words, their gazes turned somewhat cold. This Xi Chiyao was a schemer to speak out for Ye Futian now. Before this, she also agreed to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate. Ye Futian had also approved her request. When they saw Ye Futian��s terrifying potential, the West Imperial Palace must have wanted to win him over.


    Yet another large group of cultivators arrived. They were the cultivators from the Lost Clan who rushed here from the neighboring Shenyi Continent. They stood high in the sky and looked at the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. One of them said, ��What happened today is exactly the same as what happened to the Lost Clan before this. Now, the Lost Clan has forged an alliance with the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and all of us are part of the Divine Prefecture. If other forces from the Divine Prefecture still can��t accept us, then we have no choice but to fight it out.��


    The cultivators of the Lost Clan and the Heavenly Mandate Academy were now in the same boat. If something bad were to happen to Ye Futian, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture would similarly exclude the Lost Clan.


    When the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture saw this scene, their determination to get rid of Ye Futian wavered. They all had different thoughts.


    Currently, Ye Futian and his alliances were much weaker than the collective forces of the Divine Prefecture, but the latter was not of a single mind. It was impossible for all of them to attack at once. After all, they belonged to different factions.


    If the forces from the Divine Prefecture attacked separately, they would most likely have a difficult time going against the Lost Clan. Moreover, them attacking Ye Futian now posed the risk of them offending Yu Sheng.


    Therefore, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were all contemplating what would happen if they declared war on Ye Futian now. What would Princess Donghuang think of this incident?


    Right then, an extremely domineering aura churned, and divine light radiated. Everyone looked down below. They noticed a man dressed in long golden robes standing in a corner. His aura was frightening, and it covered this part of the sky within a split second. It enveloped the entire space.


    ��He is the Lord of the Tianyan City and the head of Wang family,�� someone said.


    The hearts of the crowd trembled when they saw him. He was undoubtedly a giant-level figure in the Divine Prefecture and one of the few who stood at the peak. He was at the strongest level beneath the Great Emperor level. He was a super cultivator who had survived the second divine tribulation of the Great Path.


    Hence, everyone could sense his sharp aura as soon as he unleashed it.


    The Tianyan Domain gained its fame due to Tianyan the Great, one of the Great Emperors in the past. The Tianyan City was the center of the domain. Even the Domain Chief��s Manor had to give face to the cultivators of the Tianyan City. This Ancient God Clan was definitely the absolute rule of the Tianyan Domain. They had the final say in the domain.


    The Tianyan City had high status because they were the top force in manufacturing weapons. All the cultivators of the Tianyan City were proud; one could tell based on Wang Mian��s attitude just now.


    The Lord of the Tianyan City was certainly an authoritative figure in the Divine Prefecture.


    Right now, he had actually stepped out to meddle in this affair. Things were getting more and more interesting.


    With his status, he most likely feared no one.


    ��Wang Mian, stand down,�� commanded the Lord of the Tianyan City while looking at the sky above. Immediately, Wang Mian descended and stood in front of the Lord with his head down. Even though Wang Mian was a Renhuang at the peak of the ninth-tier, he showed no sign of arrogance when faced with the Lord. The Lord was the ruler of Tianyan City.


    The Lord didn��t look at Wang Mian. Instead, he raised his head and gazed at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. He had observed the entire battle just now. Even though the flesh of Shenjia the Great Emperor was but a corpse, it was the divine body of a god. It could actually penetrate the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix and forcefully stop the divine method.


    Most likely, a super divine matrix was hidden in this divine body.


    The Lord of the Tianyan City said, ��Little Friend Ye, Wang Mian has acted recklessly before this. But the Tianyan City is indeed very interested in the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Can you lend me the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor? I��ll surely return it to you. The Tianyan City is willing to exchange it with you using imperial arms.�� His words caused the hearts of the rest of the cultivators to skip a beat.


    Exchanging the sacred remains with imperial arms?


    The Lord of the Tianyan City was very open about the fact that his force owned imperial arms. As the top weapon-forging force in the Divine Prefecture and the successor of the teachings of a Great Emperor who was good at weapon forging, the Tianyan City was indeed the force with the largest amount of divine arms.


    However, was the value of imperial arms equivalent to that of the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    Imperial arms were divine arms that were infused with the will of the Great Emperors. If the weapon contained a strong will, it was indeed very powerful, and its value was no less than that of the sacred remains!

 Chapter 2386 - An Elder from the Devil World

    Ye Futian lowered his head to look at the crowd beneath him. So, it seemed like they were forcing him to yield with another approach now that they had failed in their attempt to plunder his treasures.


    How could he possibly lend them the sacred remains?


    Who would lend their divine items to others? Most likely, none in the world would do so. The request itself was something outrageous.


    In terms of their value, the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor were definitely more valuable than imperial arms. The former contained insights which would help the cultivators in cultivating. It contained the secrets of cultivation of Shenjia the Great Emperor, which would aid the cultivators in continually comprehending how the Great Emperor refined his divine body. This was also the reason why the cultivators of Tianyan City insisted on obtaining the sacred remains.


    They desired to unveil all the secrets hidden in the sacred remains. They wanted to try duplicating the recipe and using it for manufacturing powerful weapons.


    Hence, it was impossible for Ye Futian to exchange the sacred remains with them. Aside from the concern that the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was far more valuable than ordinary imperial arms, even if Ye Futian truly agreed to their request, there was still uncertainty of whether or not the other party would really exchange it with real imperial arms.


    Ye Futian rejected the Lord directly, saying, ��I have resonated with the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, and it can be used to improve my combat ability. Naturally, I won��t use it for an exchange. I hope Senior can understand.��


    The Lord of Tianyan City stared at the figure high above the sky, surrounded by dazzling divine light with a sharp gaze.


    A formless might loomed over this part of the sky. The Lord of Tianyan City was a mighty existence. He unleashed his might, and everyone in the entire Heavenly Mandate City felt a suffocating pressure. Even Ye Futian��s spiritual soul that was shielded within the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor felt an extremely powerful aura suppressing him.


    ��What if I insist on having it?�� said the Lord of Tianyan City. His aura turned even more menacing as divine light covered the entire space. It was as though he could attack Ye Futian right away with a mere thought.


    A momentary silence followed right after he said this. Many cultivators from the top forces of the Divine Prefecture secretly rejoiced. Before this, they were worried that no one would take the lead to attack Ye Futian for fear of offending the Devil World. However, the Lord of Tianyan City paid no heed to such concern.


    Besides that, his status was indeed extraordinary; he was capable of forcefully seizing the sacred corpse.


    Ye Futian felt a powerful pressure acting on him. The halo of ancient characters shone above the divine body and withstood the pressure. Ye Futian��s gaze was as sharp as a blade as he stared at the Lord of Tianyan City, who was standing down below. He said, ��Senior seems to be overconfident.��


    ��Am I ?�� The Lord of Tianyan City cast a glance at the sky. A beam of divine light directly pierced the space. The rest of them couldn��t even catch a glimpse of the trajectory of this divine light. Ye Futian felt an immense sense of danger.


    Rumble. Ye Futian��s aura burst forth as the Great Path roared in the divine body. A terrifying Sword Will slashed downwards without any hesitation. However, a beam of light shot straight up.


    Bang!


    With a loud thud, the sacred corpse was sent flying backward from the shockwave. Ye Futian��s spiritual soul, which was residing inside the corpse, shook violently. The crowd witnessed a beam of golden divine light penetrating the space. Deep and frightening fissures appeared between the two of them. Divine light merged into the dark fissures.


    Powerful figures such as the Lord of Tianyan City could shatter the stability of the space with a casual attack, causing fissures to form in space. With a mere thought, his divine light could directly penetrate the space and land on his opponent, regardless of how far apart they were.


    Even with the support of the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, Ye Futian was no match for the Lord since their cultivation Planes were too far apart. With the help of the divine body, Ye Futian could defeat powerful cultivators who had survived the first tribulation of the Great Path. However, he was still somewhat helpless when faced with cultivators at the level of the Lord of Tianyan City.


    Ye Futian��s spiritual soul, which was inside the sacred corpse, shook violently. Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu came up beside him.


    ��I��m alright,�� said Ye Futian while shaking his head. The two of them rested their worries when they heard him say this. They then looked at the Lord of Tianyan City with extremely cold gazes. A tremendous killing intent burned in their gazes.


    The Lord of Tianyan City stepped in midair and traversed upwards.


    However, right at this moment, a silhouette appeared in front of him. Demonic might churned and roared from this figure. He was frightening. He was definitely a top figure from the Devil World.


    The aura of this demonic cultivator was alarming, but he appeared somewhat old. The Lord of Tianyan City was trying to figure out the other party��s identity based on his appearance.


    Cultivators at such a level were rare in various worlds. They would at least be able to recognize each other by name. Even if they hadn��t met each other in person before, they would at least have heard of the other party. By right, the Lord would know of the existence of such a figure from the Devil World.


    However, the Lord of Tianyan City didn��t really care about the person��s identity before him. He himself was one of the top existences in the Divine Prefecture. Only cultivators at the Great Emperor level could make him fearful.


    ��A cultivator from the Devil World is actually lending aid to a cultivator from the Original Realm?�� questioned the Lord of Tianyan City. The aura of the demonic cultivator was imposing. It formed an absolute domain in the surroundings, inhibiting the Lord from attacking Ye Futian and the rest.


    ��Who is he?�� The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture also looked at this demonic cultivator. With his old age, he did not seem to be one of the Demon Sages or Devil Generals from the Devil World. They had never heard of his existence before.


    Unless��


    The cultivators revealed contemplative expressions. Could it be that this demonic cultivator was a powerful existence from the previous generation?


    In the history of the cultivation world, there have been countless prominent figures. The names of many of these figures had long been lost to the annals of history. However, it did not mean that they were no longer present. The higher a cultivator reached in terms of cultivation, the more they understood that there were still many unknown cultivators as well as powerful figures cultivating in seclusion out there in the world. They were all hidden from the world and unknown to all.


    Buzz.


    Divine light radiated, and the heavens and earth roared furiously. Frightening divine phenomena appeared behind the Lord of Tianyan City. A gigantic pattern appeared, and countless divine arms surged out from within it. It was as though each of these divine arms was the most powerful killing weapon in the world.


    ��Go!�� commanded the Lord of Tianyan City.


    In an instant, the space seemed to collapse and shatter. Endless divine light pierced through the heavens and earth, charging towards the demonic cultivator. The crowd saw frightening cracks appear and rampage the space.


    However, right then, a terrifying spiral appeared behind the elder. Demonic might filled the sky. It was like a menacing black hole that consumed all powers. Even the cracks in space were being swept into it.


    The divine arms that were charging towards him were immediately consumed by the black hole. They shot straight into it. The black hole was deep and appeared to be bottomless.


    The eyes of the elder from the Devil World also became black holes. When he looked at the Lord of Tianyan City, he appeared to even consume the latter��s will.


    Buzz.


    An extremely sharp aura burst forth from the body of the Lord of Tianyan City. His gaze was frightening. Endless divine light shot out from his pupils as they locked gazes.


    It was him. The Lord of Tianyan City felt his heart tremble as he recalled someone. This old monster had actually not died yet.


    When some of the elders of the Divine Prefecture saw this scene, they seemed to figure something out. Their expressions changed slightly.


    This old monster from the Devil World was actually still alive!

 Chapter 2387 - The Lost Clan Joins the Battle

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    This elderly cultivator from the Devil World was an ancient demon renowned in the Devil World for his ruthless brutality and killings. He was known as the Tuntian Demon Overlord. He was feared by countless powerful cultivators. Even in the devil world, he was dreaded and revered.


    This devil��s hands are stained with the blood of countless individuals. He had devoured several Renhuang level cultivators, including ultra-powerful individuals, to develop himself. The demonic art he��d cultivated was also fundamentally evil and dominating.


    Once, when many in the Devil World joined forces to eliminate him, it was said that countless had died in that battle, yet he still managed to escape. People continued to chase after him. Some said he was already dead. After disappearing for many years, no one thought he would now be working for the Devil Imperial Palace.


    This old devil was famous even before the current Devil Emperor. Come to think of it. It was likely the current Devil Emperor��an unparalleled great being��who subjugated him and incorporated him into the Devil Emperor��s own force, not allowing him to show himself all this while.


    After so many years, he was still stuck at the same cultivation level, unable to break through the final barrier. It seemed that this hurdle was still the ultimate mountain that he couldn��t climb over.


    More importantly, a being like that had been deployed by the Devil Emperor to protect Yu Sheng. One could see how important Yu Sheng was to the Devil Emperor.


    It��s likely that Old Demon Tuntian��s power level was on par with the Three Great Demon Sages.


    A Demon Sage, or even a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor, would have to lower their heads to greet him. After all, just think about how many Demon Sages there were in total!


    This meant that Yu Sheng��s status in the Devil World could be even higher than what they had initially thought.


    ��I didn��t think I would be able to meet a demon overlord from thousands of years ago. Since I��ve met you now, I have to experience your power for myself,�� the Lord of the Tianyan City said. The mythical phenomenon that was appearing behind him turned more terrifying. At the same time, he asked, ��Still not attacking�� Are you guys planning on just watching?��


    The other cultivators, who were at the top echelons of the Divine Prefecture, looked toward Ye Futian after hearing the Lord of Tianyan City. With Old Demon Tuntian here, even though the Lord of Tianyan City was incredibly powerful, it was unlikely that he could end the battle quickly. In order to capture Ye Futian, they would have to join in.


    Bong! As a blaring sound echoed the air. A figure walked forward as a supremely dominating golden light shot out from him, covering an enormous, vast space. It was the Vajra Region Lord. His divine lights deluged the skies, shooting toward Ye Futian.


    From another position, the Lord of Haotian Clan stepped forward as well. With several other overlord cultivators, they all took one step forward. Someone said, ��I��m afraid Renhuang Ye will have to explain his connection with the Devil World.��


    ��Given Yu Sheng��s status in the Devil World and how Ye Futian is said to have been friends with him since young, there��s probably some secrets about Ye Futian��s origin. We would like to know what this secret is,�� another person said. It seemed that the high-level cultivators present had found an excuse to intervene. As these apex cultivators walked forward, one could imagine how terrifying their auras were.


    Even with the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body, Ye Futian still felt a suffocating feeling. Sikong Nan and the other Lost Clan cultivators quickly blocked him.


    Just then, Ye Futian turned into a beam of light, Shenjia the Great��s body dashed straight into the clouds and continued flying toward the skies high above. If he were to really battle against cultivators of this level, any move could cause the collapse of the Great Path. Even though they were already at a high altitude, engaging in battle straight away would still cause damage to the Heavenly Mandate Realm, creating a calamity for them.


    The Lost Clan cultivators followed Ye Futian and flew into the skies as well. The overlords of the various factions glanced up and stepped up as well. Their expressions remained emotionless.


    Soon, up high in the sky, Ye Futian and the others seemed to have almost left the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They were in the stratosphere outside of the dominion��a nearly infinite space. Ye Futian stood there, and the Lost Clan cultivators stood around him in various positions. Terrifying auras started to erupt from all of them.


    Figures akin to that of Ancient Gods appeared one after another in the limitless void, towering over the celestial skies. There seemed to be some sort of resonance between them.


    For a time, a supreme aura streamed down from the celestial skies, forcing all of the cultivators who were chasing over to stop in their tracks and look up into the sky.


    ��Bind!�� As the voice sounded, divine lights inundated the skies. There were projections of the Ancient Gods in every direction atop the celestial skies. It was as if they were turning into a fortress, covering part of the world, spanning millions of miles.


    What appeared in the sky was incredibly magnificent. In the boundless void, an endlessly large World of Seals appeared. Moreover, each of these seals had been formed by an Ancient God.


    ��Battle Matrix of the Rocks.��


    The hearts of the cultivators dashing upward trembled. With the Ancient Gods resonating, their might exerted great pressure upon the skies. Within it, the cultivators all sensed a supreme aura.


    Just then, the sound of a guqin echoed out from within the Battle Matrix, and the cultivators�� expressions changed. They raised their heads and saw that inside the matrix, a figure sat cross-legged. It was Ye Futian. Before him was the divine guqin, which Hua Jieyu had returned to him. The Will of the Great Emperor erupted from him. He had pushed his own will to its fullest potential as he played the guqin.


    The piece wasn��t that powerful, but it had a unique magical effect. By following the rhythm of the guqin, it led to a resonance between the will of the cultivators inside the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. For a time, the Divine Prefecture cultivators could feel the aura of the Battle Matrix continuing to strengthen. The power of the resonance was growing.


    They frowned at what they sensed. Amongst the cultivators of the Lost Clan, they were already the most powerful beings in the Lost Clan. These were individuals who had overcome the second layer of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. There were also some who had overcome the first layer. These apex cultivators joined forces to forge the Battle Matrix of the Rocks and resonated in the process as if merging into one, indistinct from each other. It wouldn��t be difficult to imagine how powerful their auras were.


    The Vajra Lord put his hands together instantly. A terrifying sound echoed within the world. Atop his body, an endlessly large Vajra Ancient God appeared, and it continued to expand in size. The Ancient God emitted a magnificent golden sheen all across his body, containing an aura that felt like ultra-sharp blades.


    The Vajra Ancient God��s arms moved. Instantly, countless arms appeared all around the battlefield. They simultaneously struck out towards various positions in the celestial skies, covering every area of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    At that instant, it was as if physical space was about to explode and shatter under the pressure of such a terrifying attack. Those golden divine seals were endlessly large. It was as if they were palm seals of a divine god. All of the seals clashed into the Battle Matrix with supreme might at the same time.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Terrifying waves of sound engulfed all who were present. The void trembled violently, and the Battle Matrix trembled as well. Yet, the Ancient Gods�� figures continued to stand steady with no signs of collapse or destruction. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks was truly rock-steady��extremely firm and unmovable.


    ��Their defense is strong!�� The rest of the cultivators�� hearts wavered. Even such a dominating attack couldn��t move the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. All the attack did was make it tremble; it didn��t even make a crack. It was not difficult to imagine how strong the defense of the Battle Matrix was. This was very similar to the battle at the Lost Clan last time!

 Chapter 2388 - One Dominating Attack

    The expressions of the apex cultivators from the divine prefecture all turned rather solemn. Naturally, the Vajra Region Lord��s attack was extremely powerful, as he was indubitably one of the strongest in the Divine Prefecture. Yet even his attack didn��t manage to move the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. It was just like how the prodigies at Lost Clan back then weren��t able to break the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    But the difference was that those who were engaged in battle today were far more powerful. These were true overlords who were at the top of the cultivation pyramid. Of course, those who set down the Battle Matrix were stronger as well. These were the greatest cultivators of the Lost Clan. With their powers amplified by the Battle Matrix, their combined level wasn��t as simple as a sum of their individual powers.


    So, it��s not abnormal that the Vajra Region Lord wasn��t able to break the Battle Matrix.


    In the vast, boundless space, the Battle Matrix of the Rocks shrouded the skies as numerous endlessly large Ancient God figures stood atop the world. It was as if even the celestial skies of the area itself had turned into a projection of the Ancient Gods. It was like the sky had disappeared and was replaced.


    This entire part of the world transformed into the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    As the resonance grew stronger, the might that the Battle Matrix encompassed also became more and more terrifying. With the resonance of the Lost Clan cultivators, the skies merged into one and created an atmosphere of extreme solemness.


    As terrifying booming noises echoed in the air, the figures of the Ancient Gods started moving. Their eyes opened, and their gaze shot down from above. They looked down toward the people below them as if they were true divine gods.


    ��Attack together! Everyone, take a different position,�� someone inside the Battle Matrix said. The others nodded. The power of the Battle Matrix was far more powerful than the sum of the cultivators who formed it. However, the battlefield covered a huge area, and it was impossible to make every face of the matrix strong. Even though the entire Battle Matrix was whole, as long as their attacks were spread across every area in the matrix, there would be a chance to break it.


    ��Let��s go,�� one of the cultivators said. The Vajra Region Lord once again conjured his terrifying power as the figure of the Vajra Ancient God continued to expand, and countless golden arms appeared. There were rumors that the birth of the Vajra Region was related to the Western World of Buddhism. The first ancestor of the Vajra Region could even be a Buddhist cultivator, which explained why some of the arts from the Vajra Region were similar to that of the Buddhists.


    The countless arms were like the Thousand Armed Buddha, shining with magnificent divine lights. Unparalleled golden divine lights erupted from the frame of the Ancient God. This time, his target was no longer the entire Battle Matrix of the Rocks but only one specific spot on it. He only had to attack one of the faces and leave the others to the other cultivators.


    On the other hand, an endlessly large pattern appeared behind the Lord of Yuanshi Palace. The mythical pattern was like a true Great Matrix of Divine Retribution. As divine lights erupted, Swords of Divine Retribution that contained might that could destroy the skies moved within it. They pointed at another point in the Battle Matrix of the Rocks.


    The chief of the Jiang Clan Ancient Royal Family and the Lord of the Boundless Mountains were there. Every single one was a leader of an Ancient God Clan. They were the greatest beings of the Divine Prefecture. It was inconceivable that cultivators of their level would simultaneously release their powers. This was all in order to break the Battle Matrix of the Rocks with brute force.


    Inside the Battle Matrix, Ye Futian felt a faint pressure. After all, those inside the Battle Matrix were the most powerful cultivators in the entire Divine Prefecture, and he wasn��t sure how destructive their combined attacks would be. But at this point, all he could do was use all of his powers. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks caused power resonance, which gave them a significant advantage.


    The guqin continued to sound as the Battle Matrix merged into one. The greatest cultivators of the Lost Clan all let go of their will and allowed the sounds of the guqin to lead their wills towards resonance, fusing into the Battle Matrix. It was as if they were now all part of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks, indistinct from each other.


    The Matrix was them, and they were the Matrix.


    ��Do it.��


    One voice sounded, prompting the apex cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to attack simultaneously. The instant they launched the attack, it was as though the physical space inside the Battle Matrix of the Rocks was shattering again.


    But at the same time, inside the Matrix, it seemed that the Ancient Gods were moving. Terrifying divine lights shot out from the Lost Clan cultivators inside the Matrix, converging towards a single location. There, an Ancient God suddenly opened his eyes. As terrifying sounds rumbled in the air, his arms moved as well.


    Atop the celestial skies, an endlessly large Golden Divine Hammer appeared.


    Boom�� The Divine Hammer was raised by a Divine God. A terrifying aura erupted and swept through the world as the Divine Hammer smashed down from the sky.


    It was as though the world was covered by a Divine Hammer so large that one couldn��t see where it ended. When it came smashing down, countless projections of the Divine Hammer appeared all across the vast space as a golden hurricane destroyed everything in its way from top to bottom. Anything in its path had been completely obliterated.


    The Vajra Region Lord��s pupils constricted. It turned out that this attack had been directed at him, as it had come straight down in his direction. While others were also in its area of impact, he was the clearest target.


    Clearly, the Lost Clan cultivators chose to deal with them one by one, starting with him.


    Hum! Before the attack even landed, a storm of obliteration swept down from above. It was as though all Great Paths in the world had been crushed and shattered under the power of this attack.


    Terrifying sounds of explosions sounded. When the Divine Hammer finally landed, countless Vajra Divine Seals burst. They had been destroyed and crushed by brute force. It was a clash of two attacks, but the Divine Hammer was overwhelmingly more powerful.


    ��Careful.�� The Divine Prefecture cultivators below were shocked by what they saw atop the celestial skies. Although the battlefield was already in outer space, extremely high up, the flares from their battle were too powerful. Even from a region extremely far away, anyone of slightly higher cultivation levels could directly see what was happening inside the battlefield.


    As the attack landed, even the cultivators from the Vajra region felt concerned for their Lord. Some were even quietly speaking inside, wanting to alert the Region Lord to be careful of the attack.


    ��Divine Hammer of the Protector,�� the cultivators from the Four Corner Village who saw the divine technique were shaken to their core. Clearly, the Lost Clan overlord who launched the attack read the divine technique and cultivated them. The Divine Hammer of the Protector was indeed a good match for the power of the Lost Clan��s cultivation. Both had supreme strength and rigidity and were extremely dominating forces.


    As the Divine Hammer smashed down, the Vajra Divine Seals collapsed. The countless arms of the Vajra Ancient God propped up the skies and slammed onto the Divine Hammer. But it still wasn��t able to stop the hammer. As the Divine Hammer came down, these arms were crushed into fragments, and the hammer continued downward, below the sky.


    Blinding divine lights of the Great Path erupted from the Vajra Region Lord. He had transformed into the Vajra Divine Body, unable to be killed or destroyed, forged to be unbreakable. As the Divine Body raised his hand to attack, it collided with the Divine Hammer, which was smashing downward. A terrifying, deafening sound erupted.


    Tang�� As the sound of collision echoed the air, it seemed that cracks started forming on the Vajra Divine Body as a result of the blast. It started falling from the sky. As the cracks started sprawling all over the Divine Body, a muffled groan could be heard from inside. Then, as a blinding golden light started flashing from the Divine Body, the Vajra Region Lord reverted to his mortal form. It was as if he were becoming an ordinary man. There was even blood seeping out from the corner of his mouth. No part of him resembled the supreme apex cultivator that had loomed over this era.


    Clearly, even the Vajra Region Lord was wounded by this supremely dominating attack!

 Chapter 2389 - Aggression

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    While this blow injured the Vajra Region Lord considerably, attacks from other cultivators continued to land on the Battle Matrix of the Rocks. Inevitably, the matrix began to tremble, and fractures started to appear.


    Presently, the Battle Matrix of the Rocks was a united entity. However, when all the cultivators within the matrix gathered their strength to attack, most of their power was concentrated on attacking. Though the power to attack skyrocketed, it was at the expense of their defense, hence its weakened stability.


    Of course, there was no such thing as a perfect battle matrix in the world, and any method had its own inherent weak points. However, to injure a supreme cultivator, like the Vajra Region Lord, with a single blow meant that it must have been something that possessed a great deterring force.


    After the attack, the divine light circulated inside the battle matrix, and those fissures were quickly repaired. The expressions of the cultivators inside the battle matrix remained calm, and their breathing was stable. It didn��t seem like they were being affected much by this strike.


    Buzz! At this moment, the divine light continued to flow. Above the firmament, the massive and boundless divine hammer was taking form once again. The figure of the ancient god stood tall between heaven and earth. Both of his hands picked up the divine hammer. A horrific authority of might fell from the sky as the hammer was raised again above the crowd. It was as if it might smash down again at any time.


    And this time, it was still aimed at the Vajra Region Lord.


    ��Does everyone still wish to continue?�� said an indifferent voice from the battle matrix. This hammer did not come down right away; it was meant to intimidate these relentless cultivators.


    In the battle matrix, all the top figures were filled with divine light, and their aura was astounding. They had even resorted to divine items, but their eyes were somber and heavy. The Battle Matrix of the Rocks was more powerful than they expected. In the previous battle with the Lost Clan, the Battle Matrix of the Rocks was mainly used as a defense, but now, the battle matrix was gathering its strength for another attack.


    Furthermore, it was the super-powerful attacking divine method, the Divine Hammer of the Protector. This divine method was the secret knowledge from Four Corner Village. Without a doubt, Ye Futian had taught it to the Lost Clan.


    They stared at the white-haired man in the midst of the battle matrix with some coldness. Was this Ye Futian��s failsafe? Leveraging the strength from the Lost Clan��s Battle Matrix of the Rocks to discourage the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture so that they dared not act as they pleased.


    ��No matter how strong this battle matrix is, it will eventually collapse,�� said a figure with a degree of coldness.


    ��But before the battle matrix disintegrates, perhaps one or two peak-level characters will go down with the battle matrix as well. I am afraid it might even directly lead to some major power shift in the future setup of the Divine Prefecture,�� the voice inside the battle matrix continued, silencing everyone.


    If the mighty offensive force of the Battle Matrix of the Rocks were to keep attacking a single individual without discernment, it did have the possibility of annihilating an existence at the giant-level. Furthermore, once such characters perished, it would inevitably mean the weakening of their clans. To say that this had the possibility of changing the pattern of power in Divine Prefecture was not an overstatement.


    Any existence at this level was qualified to influence the future of Divine Prefecture.


    Who dared to gamble on that?


    For a time, the inside of the battle matrix became eerily quiet; only wisps of a terrifying coercion permeated the area. However, no one dared to make another move at the moment. Especially the Vajra Region Lord, who had just suffered a considerable traumatic injury, felt a sense of vague fear. If the divine hammer above the sky continued to pummel him without any concern, it could really drive him into a desperate situation. Although he had not yet reached his most powerful state, what about the Battle Matrix of the Rocks? No one knew whether the current attack was already its ultimate state or not.


    After all, the cultivators from the Lost Clan that were inside the battle matrix could potentially be stronger. Back then, in that battle at the Lost Clan, the cultivators in the final battle matrix attacked in spite of themselves, thus increasing the power of the battle matrix by leaps and bounds.


    The most likely outcome of continued combat was a lose-lose scenario for both.


    Finally, these top figures from the Divine Prefecture were silent. Although their aura was still blooming, the sharpness had been greatly reduced. It seemed that they had lost the momentum they held previously. Obviously, they no longer had the determination to take Ye Futian down.


    Ultimately, no one could guarantee if they would be the ones on the other end of the hammer when it finally smashed down.


    ��If you are dead set on continuing with the fighting, I��m afraid no one can predict the outcome. Please consider it carefully,�� the voice in the battle matrix spoke up again. ��Although Ye Futian is in possession of divine items, all of you are from the Ancient God Clan, and you know this very well. Why bother making up excuses to disguise your real intent to plunder?��


    This voice reverberated throughout the void, echoing in the battle matrix. The aura from some of these people gradually retracted as the divine light dissipated. Clearly, some had decided to give up altogether.


    Seeing that some of them had given up, other cultivators suddenly reconsidered the battle matrix that was up high. Although they were loath to let it go like this, they understood that today��s matter had to stop here. It would be challenging to take down Ye Futian given everything that had transpired unless every one of these top figures from the Divine Prefecture could unite to deal with him. Anything short of their full determination was not enough, as none of them had the bravado to be the first one to lead the charge.


    Gradually, other cultivators also retracted their auras, including the Vajra Region Lord himself. Witnessing this development, the divine hammer that was suspended above everyone��s head gradually dissipated and vanished. The battle matrix disbanded as all the cultivators from the Lost Clan were left standing in its place. Ye Futian had stopped playing the guqin as well. He looked down into the area below.


    Over yonder, there was another major battle, and the scene of destruction was extremely frightening. Nonetheless, it was currently at a stalemate, as one side had not been able to overcome the other.


    No wonder he��s the demon overlord from thousands of years ago, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture secretly marveled in their hearts. The Lord of Tianyan City��s combat effectiveness was absolute and doubtless. He was a super existence in armor-making, but all types of cultivation were interconnected. When his armor-making reached the topmost level, it was the same with his combat effectiveness. Not to mention, he had a most terrifying divine weapon in his possession.


    Even so, it still failed to repel Old Demon Tuntian, which was enough to demonstrate the terrifying nature of this type of demon overlord.


    The battle above subsided. The Lord of Tianyan City did not pursue the matter and eventually stopped fighting. His gaze swept to the sky above, and the sharpness of it was unmistakable. All the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had merged their power together, and they couldn��t even take down a Renhuang in the Seventh-Realm.


    His sharp eyes glanced at the other cultivators from the Divine Prefecture as he let out a cold huff. ��Let��s get out of here,�� he said.


    The cultivators of Tianyan City gathered around him, preparing to leave en masse.


    ��The Original Realm is the territory of the Divine Prefecture. The Heavenly Mandate Academy colluded with the devil overlord of the Devil World. They are unworthy of remaining in the land of Divine Prefecture.�� When he finished speaking, he waved his hand, and infinite divine light fell upon the land below.


    The attacks were swift and violent. They descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Academy in an instant.


    Boom, boom, boom�� In an instant, the Heavenly Mandate Academy crumbled like crazy under those terrible attacks. Although Ye Futian had already sent those in the academy who were weaker in cultivation than the Ziwei Segmentum, there were some Renhuang who had been left behind. They retreated frantically, but some were too slow and were buried along with the ruin that was the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    In a single turning of the mind, that magnificent academy was once again destroyed.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy watched all this in the sky above. Though their cultivation level was high enough, who could stop the attacks from the Lord of Tianyan City himself? Even before they had time to react, all they saw was the academy in a pile of rubble!

 Chapter 2390 - Lamentation

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After having destroyed the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the Lord of Tianyan City left with his cultivators. For him, it was nothing more than an impulse which he couldn��t care less, and there was no reason for him to care either. Even those ordinary Renhuang, who were considered powerful in the cultivation world, were nothing more than insects in his eyes.


    Tianyan City enjoyed a lofty position in the Divine Prefecture, and he who had the whole city in the palm of his hand had all the rights to be arrogant and proud.


    No one bothered to stop him. If the Lord of Tianyan City wanted to leave, then unless they unleash the Battle Matrix of the Rocks to hinder him, he could not be stopped. More importantly, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were still much weaker in comparison.


    Ye Futian looked skyward, watching the Heavenly Mandate Academy being destroyed yet again, watching the Lord of Tianyan City leaving with his minions just like that. An extremely icy murderous intent flashed through his eyes. This was the man at the helm of the Ancient God Clan, the cultivator who stood at the very peak of the Divine Prefecture. Even in defeat, he was still so unbelievably pompous and overbearing, destroying the Heavenly Mandate Academy mindlessly. He had no concern at all if there had been any cultivators inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    In the eyes of someone at this level, perhaps the lives of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy account for nothing at all.


    If it hadn��t been for him to make those arrangements in advance to send away as many people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy as possible, the consequences of the attack by the Lord of Tianyan City would be unthinkable.


    When he thought of that, Ye Futian looked at the figure in the distance that was slowly disappearing. A strong murderous intent flashed through his eyes. Did he think of the lives of all these people in the Heavenly Mandate Academy as nothing and that he could get away razing the Academy to the ground with a wave of his hand?


    If he were powerful enough one day, he would most certainly return the same treatment to the Lord of Tianyan City.


    Ruthless, other major forces from Divine Prefecture thought when they glanced at the Academy that was now nothing more than a pile of rubble. The Lord of Tianyan City was aggressive. This parting blow was because of the resentment that was still in his heart. He had failed to achieve his goal, which was to take away the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. But it might have also been because his descendant, Wang Mian, had been defeated.


    No matter what the reason was, it didn��t matter anymore. The strength of the Lord of Tianyan City was indisputable. Even if he had destroyed the Heavenly Mandate Academy, what could they do?


    Unless it were Ye Futian that they wanted to take away, then these people would stop at nothing to fight against them. Comparatively speaking, the destruction of a mere Heavenly Mandate Academy was a small price to pay.


    The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture left one after the other. Soon, all the major principalities had left and disappeared to return to the Central Emperor Realm. Since they failed to achieve their goal, there was no point in lingering any longer.


    However, there were also a few forces that had not left. Those were the forces on friendly terms with Ye Futian, and the cultivators of West Imperial Palace in the West Sea Domain had also stayed behind.


    The battle concluded, and Ye Futian��s spiritual soul came out of the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to return to his own physical body. A sense of weakness washed over Ye Futian, and his breathing began to fluctuate as his body drifted to the grounds below.


    Xi Chiyao was watching Ye Futian and wanted to say something. However, when she saw Ye Futian��s attention was focused on the area below, she kept her silence. Then, she saw Ye Futian and the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were moving further below, so she and the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace also followed along with them.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy was destroyed by a single blow, and the Heavenly Mandate City did not escape unscathed. The aftermath of that blow swept across all of the Heavenly Mandate City and shattered many buildings. Those with weaker cultivation were severely injured in the aftermath, and those who got a little too close perished needlessly. This sudden catastrophe due to the aftermath was an unexpected and unfortunate consequence.


    At the moment, many cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate City gathered at the place where the Heavenly Mandate Academy used to be. Looking at the Academy that was now turned into ruins, many people clenched their fists, deep in their shared grief and indignation.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had long become a symbol of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, respected and worshipped by everyone inside Heavenly Mandate City. They had all seen the battle that took place in the void. The kind of people that Ye Futian and the Heavenly Mandate Academy had come in contact with were no longer anyone that they could identify with. They were all heavyweights from Divine Prefecture and other worlds.


    They knew very well what kind of pressure that the Heavenly Mandate Academy was facing. They never anticipated that after the battle, a cultivator from Divine Prefecture would and could destroy the Academy with a wave of his hand.


    Ye Futian and everyone inside the Heavenly Mandate Academy landed on the ruins. All of them looked down at the ground below. A terrifying and sharp aura of the Great Path still remained inside the ruins.


    The Academy had been destroyed once again.


    Not only was Ye Futian angry, but the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy behind him felt the same. A coldness effused from them, and a murderous intent was more than obvious in their eyes.


    ��College Chief!�� some Renhuang called out. Their eyes were red. Some of their companions and loved ones had been killed.


    ��Renhuang Ye.�� Below, everyone in the Heavenly Mandate City was also looking at Ye Futian above the void and called out his name.


    ��Renhuang Ye����


    In the distant Heavenly Mandate City, some people bowed their heads in Ye Futian��s direction. He looked yonder and saw a corpse lying in front of the person who was kneeling and bowing. His voice was tinged with sorrow and anger.


    Divine consciousness shrouded the boundless space, and Ye Futian saw that many people were crying in many places.


    ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy will not be rebuilt. Just the teleportation grand matrix and a simple cultivation court need to be rebuilt. The rest of this ruin will remain as it is. The aura of the Great Path leftover by the Lord of Tianyan City is not to be erased. Let it stay here,�� Ye Futian said as if giving an order. This was the first time ever that he gave an order in a tone like this to the people around him.


    ��Understood.��


    ��Yes.��


    Behind them, Lord Taixuan and the others responded and took the order. They understood the meaning behind Ye Futian��s order. This was the shame of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, but it was also a reminder of the score to be settled. Keeping all of this here was a reminder to themselves that they should always remember all that had happened today and never forget.


    Before they could repay everything that happened today back to Tianyan City, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would not be rebuilt.


    Xi Chiyao was touched when she beheld the scene in front of her. It seemed that Ye Futian and his people were truly angered now and would remember what transpired today. The Lord of Tianyan City had dealt this random, unpremeditated attack because he didn��t care.


    But Ye Futian cared, and the people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy cared. The cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate City cared, and they would remember.


    It was inevitable now that Tianyan City and the Heavenly Mandate Academy had become mortal enemies. Ye Futian was not even this irate when he realized that they had come to relieve him of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body. Who in the Divine Prefecture didn��t covet the body of a Great Emperor?


    But this random strike from the Lord of Tianyan City seemed to have touched Ye Futian��s soft spot, and he really took notice now.


    It was very likely that in the future, Tianyan City��s crimes today would not be forgotten.


    The haughty Lord of Tianyan City didn��t care much about the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Perhaps he was too arrogant to realize that he might have offended someone with more potential than he was aware. Of course, perhaps in the eyes of Lord of Tianyan City, it didn��t really matter to him either. Even if Ye Futian reached the fullness of his potential one day, he needn��t fear. Given his status in Tianyan City, what could Ye Futian do to him?


    As to Ye Futian��s potential of becoming an Emperor, he hadn��t thought about it, and no one would either.


    In the countless years after the collapse of the Heavenly Path, how many new Emperors had come into being in the world?


    No matter how talented and unparalleled Ye Futian was, it wasn��t so easy to become an Emperor!

 Chapter 2391 - Yu Sheng’s Identity?

    The Heavenly Mandate Academy rebuilt the matrix. At the same time, they used the power of the Great Path to set up a barrier over the ruins. However, overall, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was still a barren ruin.


    Ye Futian stood on top of the ruins as he gazed into the distance. The stronger his cultivation became, the stronger the people he came in contact with. His enemies similarly became stronger. From the looks of it, only by truly standing at the peak could he avoid experiencing such things again.


    ��Renhuang Ye, do you really want to retain this ruin? Will you allow the once glorious Heavenly Mandate Academy to remain like this?�� asked Xi Chiyao as she walked up behind Ye Futian. Although she understood Ye Futian��s resolve, she still had a hard time understanding why he was doing this.


    Ye Futian turned around and glanced at Xi Chiyao. He nodded his head slightly. Xi Chiyao smiled and continued, ��Before this, Renhuang Ye promised to allow me to join the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate. Now, I have no choice but to follow you. Wherever you cultivate, I will follow.��


    After she said this, she suddenly felt a cold will acting on her. She shifted her gaze and saw the cold and indifferent gaze of the woman beside Ye Futian sweeping towards her. The powerful will had extraordinary attack power. Xi Chiyao was stunned. She then revealed a faint smile.


    ��Mrs. Ye, please don��t pay it much heed. I mean no harm,�� explained Xi Chiyao.


    Hua Jieyu did not look at her anymore, shifting her gaze away. Ye Futian extended his hand and grabbed hold of hers. Their fingers interlocked as they held hands. They could sense each other��s warmth. Xi Chiyao glanced over at their hands. It was not easy for them to still have such passion after reaching such a state. However, it might be so because they had reunited after a long time and had experienced many life-or-death situations together.


    ��There��s something else which I wish to remind Renhuang Ye of,�� Xi Chiyao continued. Ye Futian looked at her and said, ��Goddess Chiyao, please speak your mind.��


    ��After this battle, the forces from the Divine Prefecture will surely do a more thorough investigation on Renhuang Ye��s background, especially the origin of your friend here.�� When Xi Chiyao said this, she looked towards the burly figure standing on the other side of Ye Futian. The person was none other than Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu had been standing beside Ye Futian all this time.


    Xi Chiyao advised, ��Prior to this, cultivators from the Divine Prefecture have been speculating about Renhuang Ye��s background. Your friend had such an outstanding performance during the battle just now. The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture can tell that he most likely has extraordinary status in the Devil World. Such a figure is actually Renhuang Ye��s best friend, and the two of you grew up together. This will most likely become an important clue for the cultivators. Renhuang Ye, you need to be careful.��


    When she said this, her gaze was locked on Ye Futian��s. Aside from reminding him to be cautious, she also intended to test him out.


    Unfortunately, her probing was a let-down. She didn��t see any turbulence in his deep and dark eyes. It was as though he had no emotion. Ye Futian showed no response when she mentioned his background.


    Xi Chiyao had no clue that, in reality, even Ye Futian was unclear about his own origin. Who was he?


    Why would Godfather protect him? Who was Yu Sheng?


    However, what Xi Chiyao had said was true. Based on Yu Sheng��s performance today, one could tell from a glance that his status in the Devil World was very high. A demonic cultivator, who was a match for the Lord of Tianyan City, was actually guarding Yu Sheng. One could imagine how great Yu Sheng��s value in the Devil World was.


    Ye Futian could speculate the identity of Godfather by looking at Yu Sheng��s high standing in the Devil World. If so, who was Ye Futian?


    Why would he be together with Godfather and Yu Sheng? He was clearly not a demonic cultivator.


    It seemed like he had to ask Yu Sheng about this matter. Perhaps Yu Sheng would know something about it after his trip to the Devil World.


    ��Thank you for your reminder. If Goddess is willing to cultivate alongside me, I��ll surely not turn you away,�� replied Ye Futian. He then said, ��But I have something else to discuss with them now. Can Goddess give us a moment here?��


    ��Sure.�� Xi Chiyao smiled and left. The rest of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy also moved away, giving Ye Futian and the other two some space. Fang Gai even set up a spatial barrier so that the conversation between Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, and Hua Jieyu would not be overheard by others. It was very considerate of Fang Gai.


    Above the ruins, Ye Futian scanned the surroundings and lamented with a dry smile, ��I did not expect that when the two of you returned, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would be in such a state.��


    As he said this, he turned towards Jieyu. His hand was still holding hers tightly. His eyes twinkled with great joy. The two of them exchanged a glance. It was as though all their words were contained in their gazes. They could acutely sense each other��s emotions.


    They could learn about the state of the other party with just their wills connected. There was no need for words.


    Ye Futian raised his other arm and gently stroked Hua Jieyu��s hair. His gaze was loving and gentle.


    He smiled and said nothing. Then, he turned around and looked at Yu Sheng, saying, ��Yu Sheng, how are you doing in the Devil World?��


    ��I have been cultivating since I went there,�� replied Yu Sheng.


    ��Do you have any news about Godfather?�� Ye Futian suddenly asked. Yu Sheng frowned slightly. Then, he shook his head.


    ��How about his identity? Do you know anything about it?�� Ye Futian asked again.


    However, Yu Sheng still shook his head. It seemed he knew nothing about any of these matters.


    ��How about yourself? Do you know your status in the Devil World?�� Ye Futian probed further.


    Yu Sheng looked at him and, again, shook his head.


    ������ Baffled, Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng with a gaping mouth. Yu Sheng had been cultivating in the Devil World for more than 20 years now. With his current status and cultivation level, he actually knew nothing?


    This was��


    Yu Sheng said, ��After I went to the Devil World, the Devil Emperor met me in the Devil Imperial Palace. After that, he taught me demonic attack techniques. He even allowed me to cultivate with him. He taught me personally, prepared trials for me to experience, and assigned cultivators to follow me. I seem to be an alien in the Devil Imperial Palace. Many people speculated that the Devil Emperor places high importance on me due to my talent. They said that he wants to groom me as his successor. They regard me as a direct disciple of the Devil Emperor.��


    Yu Sheng continued, ��However, the Devil Emperor himself has never stated his intention of accepting me as a disciple. In fact, he seldom communicates with me aside from when we cultivate together. The other disciples of the Devil Emperor bear animosity towards me. No one has ever mentioned anything about my origin. Perhaps they know nothing about it. Or perhaps, they are fearful of mentioning it.��


    ��Is it due to the order of the Devil Emperor?�� Ye Futian speculated.


    ��Maybe,�� Yu Sheng replied. ��I have asked the Devil Emperor about it before. He didn��t respond to my questions. I thought of investigating the matter myself, but I found nothing. Everything in the Devil Imperial Palace is under the control of the Devil Emperor. If he chooses to hide the truth from me, I will most likely never be able to figure it out. Even if someone else knows the truth, they will surely hide it from me.��


    Ye Futian revealed a serious expression upon hearing Yu Sheng��s words. Throughout Yu Sheng��s stay in the Devil World for more than 20 years, the Devil Emperor taught him personally simply due to his talent. Was this possible?


    Why would the Devil Emperor groom a cultivator brought back to the Devil World without reason?


    Furthermore, judging from the Devil Emperor��s attitude, there were certainly some secrets related to Yu Sheng��s identity. The Devil Emperor didn��t want to tell Yu Sheng about it, yet he personally taught him cultivation techniques!

 Chapter 2392 - Under Suspicion

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    News of everything that happened in the Heavenly Mandate Academy very quickly spread throughout the Nine Realms. The cultivators from various major worlds all knew about this. They never imagined that the forces of the Divine Prefecture would end up having internal conflict first. The cultivators of the other worlds were happy to enjoy the show.


    In a courtyard in the Ziwei Segmentum, a group of people appeared. They seemed rather lively.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were among the group, as well as Hua Fengliu and Hua Nianyu. Hua Jieyu had returned safe and sound. The first thing Ye Futian wanted to do was to bring her to meet his master. When Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin saw that Jieyu had finally returned, they felt joy that could not be expressed in words. Smiles covered their faces. Hua Nianyu was also very happy. When she was young, her elder sister and brother-in-law had left, becoming remnants in her memories. Finally, they were reunited.


    Yu Sheng was not with them. After the incident in the Heavenly Mandate Academy was over, they had temporarily returned to Ziwei Imperial Palace. Yu Sheng had instead returned to meet with the others in the Devil World. With Yu Sheng��s current standing in the Devil World, Ye Futian did not need to worry about him at all. There was a devil overlord protecting him by his side. Moreover, with Yu Sheng��s identity, no one dared to touch him.


    The Lord of Tianyan City dared to act against Ye Futian, but did he dare to act against Yu Sheng, who might be the heir of the Devil Emperor? If he offended the Devil World, the Devil Emperor might order his armies to attack Tianyan City. When that happened, no matter how powerful Tianyan City was, it would still face the perils of extinction.


    After all, only Donghuang the Great was a match for the Devil Emperor.


    Hua Jieyu was chatting with Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin about her experiences these past years. She felt an intense sense of guilt towards her parents. It had been so long since the Ordeal of the Holy Palace. Only now had she truly returned to her parents�� side.


    Aside from their family, there was another woman in the courtyard. This woman had an extraordinary temperament and appeared like a goddess that was beyond this world. She was similarly beautiful like Hua Jieyu, but their temperaments were completely different. Hua Jieyu��s beauty was like that of the Jiutian Goddess. She appeared like a true deity. However, this woman appeared otherworldly, like someone from beyond this world. She was flawless and immaculate. People felt a sense of comfort just by looking at her.


    At that moment, Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin got up together and came before this woman. They actually bowed down towards her and said, ��Thank you, Miss Hua, for protecting Jieyu and preventing her spiritual soul from perishing.��


    ��Both of you need not be so polite with me. All these years, Jieyu and I have become one and are inseparable. I also feel extremely close with both of you. How could I accept such treatment?�� said the woman as she lifted the two of them up from their bows. Ye Futian stood quietly to the side and watched. When he saw this scene, he smiled and said, ��It should be expected.��


    It turned out that this woman was Hua Qingqing, one of the four major beauties of the Eastern Barren Territory back in the day. After Hua Jieyu entered Eastern Barren College, she was crowned one of the major beauties too. Hua Qingqing and Hua Jieyu were both famous beauties. Unfortunately, Hua Qingqing was not favored by fate. Her entire family was killed. She was spared from the calamity since her parents sent her to Book Mountain.


    Ye Futian also felt emotional when he found out that Hua Qingqing was the one who saved Hua Jieyu in the past. He recalled the scene where he played the Divine Melody on top of the mountain.


    ��Mom, Dad, what Qingqing said is true. She and I are one. We are of one mind. She knows my thoughts, and I know hers. After I inherited the teachings and proved my Way, I resuscitated Qingqing��s flesh. The two of us are like sisters,�� Hua Jieyu said while beaming. In the past, Hua Qingqing transformed into a spiritual lamp to protect her. Without her protection, Hua Jieyu would have long perished, and it would have been impossible for her to defeat Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress.


    Hua Fengliu had an idea when he heard Hua Jieyu��s words. He knew that Hua Qingqing was not favored by luck and had suffered from many misfortunes. As he looked at her ethereal beauty, compassion overflowed in his heart. He said, ��Miss Qingqing, may Wenyin and I have the honor of having you as our goddaughter?��


    In reality, the cultivation planes of Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin were far lower than that of Hua Qingqing. In the cultivation world, a person��s status was usually determined by their plane. Supposedly, Hua Fengliu should not have made such a request. However, Hua Fengliu was not someone who was restrained by rules. He was not interested in fame or power either. Moreover, Hua Fengliu was very close to Ye Futian, who was both his disciple and his son-in-law. Therefore, he did not feel inferior to them, and he did not consider his own cultivation plane when he made the request. He had this idea merely because he took pity on Hua Qingqing, not to mention she was of one mind with Hua Jieyu, and the two of them had shared a body before.


    His words caused Hua Qingqing��s heart to quiver. She raised her head and looked at Hua Fengliu with her crystal clear eyes. She beamed and said, ��The honor is mine. I��m more than happy to have such a blessing.��


    Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian grinned when they heard this. In that case, they were considered a family now. Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing were sisters; Hua Qingqing also had a home from now on.


    At this moment, a voice rang in Hua Qingqing��s mind �C her journey in this world was still unfinished.


    ��


    In Empty Imperial Palace in the Central Emperor Realm of the Original Realm.


    In the palace, divine light circulated and was extremely dazzling. The daughter of Donghuang the Great was staying here for now.


    Princess Donghuang, as well as the cultivators from Donghuang Imperial Palace, had made this place their base.


    Right then, outside the palace, a group of cultivators had come from the Divine Prefecture. They requested an audience with Princess Donghuang.


    Someone outside of the Empty Imperial Palace announced their arrival, and Princess Donghuang received the other party.


    Within the palace, before an ancient temple, Princess Donghuang stood at the top of a flight of stairs. When she saw the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, she asked, ��Seniors, what business do you have with me to have come all the way here?��


    ��Princess, we have come to deliver an urgent report,�� a cultivator from the Divine Prefecture answered loudly as they bowed slightly towards Princess Donghuang.


    ��Please make your report,�� she said.


    ��It is regarding Ye Futian,�� someone said as he then glanced in other directions. Princess Donghuang swept a glance around them. Immediately, a person behind her glowed with brilliant divine light. He sealed off the space and separated it from the outside world. Clearly, she understood the other party��s intention from their gaze.


    ��Will this do?�� continued Princess Donghuang.


    One of the cultivators who came reported, ��Princess, we have previously investigated Ye Futian��s background. He is from the Nine States��a mortal realm from the Lower Worlds. The Great Emperor had passed through there before. According to our investigation, Ye Futian should be from an island in the East Sea known as the city of Qingzhou. The place is isolated from the rest of the world and later on even disappeared. The entire island has vanished, as though it was wiped off the map by someone overnight.��


    ��What are you trying to say?�� Princess Donghuang inquired further.


    ��I have heard that Princess has also ventured to the city of Qingzhou before. There is the last statue of a certain someone there, and you have previously led a group over there to investigate.��


    Princess Donghuang looked at the other party with a sharp gaze. She asked, ��You are well-informed. What does this have to do with Ye Futian?��


    The person bowed and continued, ��Princess, Ye Futian has exceptional talent that is peerless in this generation. Even the monstrous figures of the Ancient God Clan had a difficult time against him. How could such a prominent figure not come from a special background? Moreover, his brother and good friend, Yu Sheng, actually received personal guidance from the Devil Emperor. Yu Sheng clearly has ties with the Devil World, and his identity is also certain to be extraordinary. Their birthplace is coincidentally the place where that person��s statue stands. Moreover, regarding Ye Futian��s surname, is it the one he was born with, or was he given the surname ��Ye��?��

 Chapter 2393 - Exposed

    When he said that, the air suddenly turned quiet.


    Ye Futian�� Was he born with the surname ��Ye,�� or had he been given the surname ��Ye��?


    Many didn��t know what happened back then, but as the most powerful organization in the Divine Prefecture, he naturally knew some insider information. The individual whom he spoke of just now was a taboo in the Divine Prefecture. He didn��t even dare say his name directly in front of Princess Donghuang and had to refer to him as ��that man.��


    But everyone present knew who ��that man�� was referring to.


    Back in those times, he was widely regarded as on par with Donghuan the Great, one of the two emperors of the Divine Prefecture��Emperor Ye Qing.


    However, many years ago, Emperor Ye Qing died one night, and all those in the top echelons of the Divine Prefecture knew that Emperor Ye Qing had died at the hands of Donghuan the Great. In the Divine Prefecture, who else but Donghuang the Great could kill Emperor Ye Qing?


    A cultivator on the level of a Great Emperor, even if he would let you ambush and assassinate him without resisting, anyone below the level of a Great Emperor wouldn��t be able to kill him.


    Only Donghuang the Great could do it. Moreover, Donghuang the Great ordered to wipe out all traces of Emperor Ye Qing��s existence after the incident.


    Now, they found out that Ye Futian came from Qingzhou City. Donghuang Princess once went there, and there was even a statue of Emperor Ye Qing there.


    Combined with Ye Futian and Yu Sheng��s natural gift, some amongst the top forces of the Divine Prefecture had begun to connect the dots between Ye Futian and Emperor Ye Qing. They came to report the matter to Princess Donghuang.


    If this suspicion proved to be true, then Ye Futian would die without a doubt.


    Furthermore, even if it weren��t proven, as long as the Donghuang Imperial Palace suspected Ye Futian, this would be the end of him. There would be no future for Ye Futian; he could even be brought away by the Imperial Palace.


    Donghuang the Great wiped away all traces of Emperor Ye Qing��s existence, so how could he tolerate someone related to Emperor Ye Qing to exist? Especially since Ye Futian could be Emperor Ye Qing��s kin.


    Ye, was that his original surname, or was it bestowed upon him after the fact?


    No matter which situation it was, the Donghuang Imperial Palace would not allow it.


    A formless might shrouded the space in the area, and terrifying divine lights shot out from Princess Donghuang��s pretty eyes and swept across the cultivators who were talking below her. Her gaze turned razor-sharp as a thought crossed her mind.


    ��You suspect that Ye Futian is related to Emperor Ye Qing?�� Princess Donghuang asked directly. Though the others didn��t dare to carelessly mention Emperor Ye Qing��s name, Princess Donghuang didn��t have any scruples. Even if Donghuang the Great knew about it, what could he do to his only daughter, whom he loved so much? He wouldn��t fuss about it at all.


    ��Ye Futian��s origins are strange, to say the least, and he has such great talent, not to mention he was able to receive the inheritance of several Great Emperors. After learning of his origins, we investigated several clues and had to raise this suspicion,�� one of the individuals said. ��But, we weren��t able to confirm the truth either. Everything so far is just speculation, which is why we came to the Donghuang Imperial Palace. We believe that Princess can investigate the matter and make the decision so we wouldn��t need to worry about it.��


    As long as the relation between Ye Futian and Emperor Ye Qing was proven, they wouldn��t need to worry about dealing with Ye Futian. However, all those secrets, treasures, and inheritance Ye Futian held would have nothing to do with them.


    Once the Imperial Palace decided to deal with Ye Futian, all of Ye Futian��s belongings��including himself��would belong to the Imperial Palace, and they would have no chance to obtain it.


    Of course, it would eliminate a threat for them. At least Ye Futian wouldn��t have the chance to develop himself.


    ��Understood,�� Princess Donghuang said coldly. ��I will investigate this matter, and the Imperial Palace will intervene. As for you, do not partake in the matter anymore, and don��t tell anyone about it.��


    ��Yes, Princess,�� the Divine Prefecture cultivators bowed and greeted her before leaving.


    The whole purpose of the trip was to alert Princess Donghuang. There was no need for them to be concerned about what happened afterward.


    After the cultivators left the Donghuang Imperial Palace, several figures appeared behind Princess Donghuang. All of those who appeared had their eyes locked on Princess Donghuang. One of them was surrounded by magnificent divine lights. Standing there, he gave off the impression of extraordinary elegance, as though he was someone of great noble status.


    ��Your Highness, do we head to the Heavenly Mandate Realm first to capture Ye Futian?�� that person asked. His voice was so apathetic it was as though capturing Ye Futian would be an extremely insignificant task for him.


    Donghuang the Great ruled over the entire land of the Divine Prefecture, and the whole prefecture was under his jurisdiction. While the forces of the Divine Prefecture faced difficulties dealing with Ye Futian, it would only take one command for the Imperial Palace to deal with him.


    Now, since the matter had involved Emperor Ye Qing, regardless of whether it was proven, it would justify capturing Ye Futian first then investigating.


    Princess Donghuang looked into the distance. She seemed to be deep in thought and didn��t reply to the person behind her. After being silent for a while, she then said, ��Deploy someone to monitor him. Don��t capture him just yet. Ye Futian is now the ruler of the Original Realm and has enormous influence. If he isn��t actually related to Emperor Ye Qing, then the whole affair will be a mistake, and he would likely hold a grudge against the imperial palace as a result. The decision shall be made after everything is thoroughly investigated.��


    ��Alright,�� the person behind her answered. He wasn��t concerned that Ye Futian would escape. If the Imperial Palace really wanted to get Ye Futian, the only path left for him was to run to another world to hide. Otherwise, where could he escape to with the Imperial Palace after him?


    ��I��ll arrange it,�� the cultivator said before leading the group to leave. They went to deploy people to monitor Ye Futian��s every move.


    Princess Donghuang did order the Divine Prefecture cultivators not to tell anyone else about this. But since they could think of it, the other organizations in the Divine Prefecture would likely be able to think of it as well. If what they had speculated turned out to be true, their actions would alert Ye Futian and prompt him to try to escape.


    As such, they must still have a grasp of Ye Futian��s whereabouts at all times.


    ��


    Ziwei Segmentum, inside the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian had been feeling uneasy for the past few days. He had a bad feeling about the situation.


    It was all still related to the battle on that day.


    Jieyu and Yu Sheng both returned and reunited with him. It was supposed to be a happy occasion, and he was indeed happy. But afterward, he was worried.


    During the battle, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture mentioned that they had investigated him. In addition, Xi Chiyao also reminded them. Now that Yu Sheng had returned, it was likely that those from the Divine Prefecture were even more suspicious now. While the Divine Prefecture was extremely distant from here, the top forces would still be able to find out many things. Unless all Nine States just vanished, there would be no way he could cover up his past.


    As long as they continued to investigate, even if there were no clues, the forces in the Divine Prefecture would still become suspicious. When that happened, it would cause great trouble for him.


    Just then, a figure arrived, speeding through the skies. In an instant, he landed before Ye Futian. It was Fang Gai. A concerned expression appeared on his face. He said to Ye Futian, ��Your suspicion was right��there are already rumors about you starting to spread there. I��m afraid this ain��t looking good for you.��


    ��What rumor?�� Ye Futian��s heart trembled a little as he looked at the Fang Gai. He had a feeling that it wasn��t anything positive.


    ��There��s news saying that you could be related to Emperor Ye Qing, that you could be his successor or even his descendent,�� Fang Gai said. Ye Futian��s pupils constricted a little. It seemed that his feeling was right; the inevitable had happened!

 Chapter 2394 - How Would They Deal With Him?

    Although Qingzhou City had already disappeared, the history of Ye Futian��s development could not be wiped away. In the Nine States, if one really wanted to investigate, they would be able to find out that he was born in Qingzhou City.


    If it were just his place of birth, it wouldn��t be worthy of suspicion. However, his growth, gifts, and the status that Yu Sheng had today, all of it pointed to an extraordinary background. Furthermore, when he was cultivating in the Nine States, there were details and hints that led others to speculate that he was related to Emperor Ye Qing.


    Of course, this relation couldn��t be proven because Qingzhou City had already vanished. Other than Yu Sheng, Jieyu, and his teacher Hua Fengliu, no one knew about his secrets.


    As such, the most they could do was to speculate.


    As for his true origin, it was even less likely that people would find out about it since he himself didn��t even know.


    Well then, who knew?


    Why did Emperor Ye Qing treat him that way back then? What was the relationship between them?


    The people who spread the rumors out there clearly had ulterior motives. In the Divine Prefecture, Emperor Ye Qing was taboo; the same went for the Original Realm. Even a statue of Emperor Ye Qing wouldn��t be tolerated, let alone someone related to him.


    Clearly, the person who spread the rumor wanted to use the Imperial Palace��s power to destroy him.


    What situation would he be facing after this?


    He had no way of knowing. Donghuang the Great was a prodigy of the era. He had united the Land of the Divine Prefecture and driven the Path of Martial Arts to flourish. Ignoring all else and just focusing on Donghuang the Great himself, he was an unparalleled, marvelous individual. But, how would he deal with people and things that had anything to do with Emperor Ye Qing?


    One could roughly guess based on what happened to Snow Ape back then.


    Emperor Ye Qing was a taboo figure in the Divine Prefecture. No one dared to mention him. Perhaps it was because he was taboo in the eyes of Donghuang the Great, and no one dared to provoke him.


    Fang Gai looked toward Ye Futian after he��d told him about the situation. Ye Futian had been calm all along; it seemed that he was thinking about something. At this moment, Fang Gai realized that the rumors out there could actually be real.


    Ye Futian was actually related to Emperor Ye Qing.


    Otherwise, he wouldn��t be so calm now and not even say a word.


    No wonder!


    Fang Gai sighed. It was no wonder Ye Futian��s talents were almost unmatched in this era, regardless of whether it was Four Corner Village or out in the world, or when facing the inheritance of Great Emperors. On every occasion, he had displayed unbelievable talent. It was as though receiving the inheritance of Great Emperors was as simple as grabbing something from his own pocket��all of it could be easily cracked and understood.


    Fang Gai had long thought that Ye Futian��s talents, which saw nearly no limit, were possibly owed to an extraordinary background.


    But he didn��t expect that it would be because he was related to Emperor Ye Qing.


    If it were true, was it even possible for the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace to let him off?


    At this moment, Fang Gai was greatly concerned for Ye Futian. This was different from antagonizing the various forces of the Divine Prefecture. While those forces all wanted to deal with Ye Futian, they weren��t united, and Ye Futian fended them off with just one battle at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. But if the Imperial Palace wanted to deal with them, they would be powerless.


    The entire Land of the Divine Prefecture had to follow the orders of the Imperial Palace.


    Just then, a divine light of space flashed from the Great Matrix of Inheritance inside the Imperial Palace. It was followed by waves of powerful auras that quickly spread out in the area. A group of powerful cultivators dashed through the air from afar. These were Devil World cultivators. It was Yu Sheng arriving with reinforcements.


    Yu Sheng knew the most about Ye Futian��s identity; he knew almost everything about Ye Futian. After he��d received the news, he immediately came over to see Ye Futian.


    ��Yu Sheng.�� Ye Futian saw that Yu Sheng was coming and called out to him.


    Yu Sheng landed directly beside Ye Futian. He looked at the people around them.


    ��We should go for a walk,�� Ye Futian said. The two of them left and came to the top of a building.


    ��You can come to the Devil World with me,�� Yu Sheng said to Yu Futian. After he��d heard the news, he came right away intending to bring Ye Futian back to the Devil World. Once Ye Futian entered the Devil World and was under the aegis of the Devil Emperor, even Donghuang the Great wouldn��t find it easy to deal with him.


    Furthermore, with Ye Futian��s talents, he would be greatly valued even in the Devil World.


    Ye Futian didn��t answer. His gaze extended far into the distance. From Qingzhou City back then till now, there was an invisible hand controlling everything, including the path of his growth. Where would his godfather be now?


    Who was he, and who was Yu Sheng?


    His godfather must know the answers to all of this.


    He didn��t come out to stop all this from happening. Perhaps, this wasn��t a dead end.


    ��Yu Sheng, have you thought that if even you already received the news and came here, how is it possible that the cultivators over at the Imperial Palace don��t know yet?�� Ye Futian said, ��If they really wanted to do anything to me, naturally, they would already be monitoring here. Leave? I don��t think it��s that simple. It could even infuriate those on their side. Rather than leave, it��s better for us to watch and see what happens. Let��s observe what the Imperial Palace will do.��


    ��You��re going to admit it?�� Yu Sheng looked toward Ye Futian. Even someone as calm and steadfast as him was getting a little nervous. This whole thing would have too great an implication; it could cause the doom of Ye Futian. He couldn��t keep his cool.


    ��Did you know that back then in the Nine State, I met Princess Donghuang several times? Now that the news has spread, how is it possible that she can��t guess what��s happening?�� Ye Futian said. The first time he met Princess Donghuang was in the Beast Mountain of Qingzhou City. She had been there to capture the Snow Ape, and he had been there too.


    If he claimed that that was a coincidence because he was from Qingzhou, what happened afterward would verify that it was unlikely to be a mere coincidence. As long as the people from the Imperial Palace investigated it, they would find many clues that would lead to the truth.


    The next time they saw each other, Princess Donghuang brought Mr. Du of the Cottage away.


    It was nearly impossible to hide all of this.


    ��How are you going to admit it?�� Yu Sheng asked.


    Ye Futian looked toward him and answered, ��Because of a coincidence, I encountered Emperor Ye Qing��s remnant soul while I was sightseeing in the Beast Mountains of Qingzhou City. I was then enlightened by his teachings.��


    It was now impossible to claim that they were totally unrelated. But saying it this way would already explain many things.


    The statement could be understood differently��the remnant soul��s teachings could be just advice, or it could be an inheritance.


    Yu Sheng��s brows were locked tight together. Would the Imperial Palace really let Ye Futian go just by saying that?


    But at the very least, they could not admit that there was any other form of relationship between Ye Futian and Emperor Ye Qing; it could only be an accidental encounter at Qingzhou City. If there were any other connections between them, it would be even less likely that the Imperial Palace would let Ye Futian go.


    ��It��s the best that we can do,�� Ye Futian said softly. Everything else would be up to fate.


    This was the problem that he was worried about all along. There was bound to be one day where some traces of his past would resurface and expose him, but he didn��t expect those from the Divine Prefecture to be the ones behind it. He didn��t even know who intentionally revealed the news, but he knew that it had been done with truly vicious intentions.


    Outside, cultivators from all across the world rushed toward the Ziwei Segmentum. Ye Futian turned out to be related to Emperor Ye Qing. Naturally, they would want to see how things would be resolved.


    At this time, outside the Ziwei Segmentum, in the boundless space of void, the most powerful organizations of the Divine Prefecture had already arrived. They were unable to pass through the Teleportation Grand Matrix, so they had to fly over. They stood atop the celestial skies and looked over at the Ziwei Segmentum. This whole segmentum was the legacy of a Great Emperor who stood at the apex of the ancient era. Today, it was controlled by Ye Futian.


    However, the vicissitude of the situation was certainly unexpected. Ye Futian was said to be related to Emperor Ye Qing. The Imperial Palace probably wouldn��t let this slip. This phenomenal cultivator, who had risen from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, made a name all across the Divine Prefecture and even attracted the attention of various apex cultivators, would have his life. threatened


    How would the Imperial Palace deal with Ye Futian?

 Chapter 2395 - Confrontation

    Ziwei Imperial Palace, at the peak of Ziwei Temple, there was a terrifying starry pattern, much like a grand matrix that was connected to the firmament.


    At this moment, there was a man sitting cross-legged, clad in all white and with white hair. It was none other than Ye Futian.


    His eyes closed tightly. In his mind, an infinite spatial world appeared, and a world presented itself. This world was populated with numerous cultivators, who were all busy and cultivating.


    In this picture, there were some places where the imageries were clearer than others. Many figures materialized. It was as if they were not far away from him, and they seemed to be coming to where he was.


    At the same time, inside the imperial palace, a group of people burst out and levitated into the air, heading outside.


    Gradually, many powerful auras permeated from a distance. Among them were many major figureheads who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Their auras were mighty as they approached this magnificent imperial palace and stopped just outside of it, above the firmament. Their eyes focused on the area in front of them as their divine consciousness swept inside. Many of these top figures seemed to have no qualms in doing so. It seemed as if they didn��t care at all what place this was.


    However, after they arrived, they didn��t act rashly but remained perched there. Gradually, more and more forces arrived closer to Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    The Ziwei Imperial Palace was vast, but the cultivators who were cultivating here were not ordinary either. When their divine consciousness was released, they could cover a massive space in an instant, including the entire Ziwei Imperial palace. For them, distance was not a familiar concept.


    Many cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace were also in the sky above, keeping watch with cold and indifferent gazes. These people were rude enough; they had descended directly on the imperial palace.


    ��You have come here uninvited. What is it that you want?�� Renhuang Chen stood high above the sky and queried coldly. Not long ago, there was a similar scenario that took place at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Could this be a repeat of that situation?


    ��Nothing at all. We are just here to marvel at the world created by Ziwei the Great,�� someone responded calmly. They stood at a distance and didn��t seem to want to gain entry into the imperial palace. It seemed as if they were here purely as onlookers.


    Renhuang Chen couldn��t say much when he heard the reply. They had not tried to enter by force, so what could he do?


    And in terms of strength, there were supreme existences who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path so that even if he were to make a move, he could not possibly contend with them.


    In fact, these were not the only ones who had arrived. Ye Futian, above the temple, could perceive that there were several other principalities, far away from Ziwei Imperial Palace. They were on their way here. They were not close to Ziwei Imperial Palace yet, but these forces included cultivators from the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and many others.


    This time, other worlds also took an interest. After all, too much was involved this time; it had to do with Emperor Ye Qing.


    He was someone who had fought side by side with Donghuang the Great. He was one of the two emperors who had unified Divine Prefecture. If Ye Futian was really his descendant, what would be the significance of this revelation?


    Ye Futian, whose surname was the same as Emperor Ye Qing��s, and the gap in their ages roughly matched up.


    If so, would Donghuang the Great send someone here to execute Ye Futian?


    Presumably, an answer would become apparent soon.


    Outside, mighty cultivators gathered, including cultivators from all sides and cultivators from other worlds and various principalities in the Divine Prefecture.


    Inside Ziwei Imperial Palace, there were also many who gathered together. Everyone who was associated with Ye Futian had arrived. This included the cultivators from the Lost Clan, the Heavenly Mandate Academy, as well as cultivators from other major principalities in the Original Realm. They were all waiting with heightened alert.


    Everyone understood the serious crisis Ye Futian was facing this time may be the most dangerous yet.


    Many crises in the past had the possibility of being resolved. Even when the forces of the Divine Prefecture were bearing down on them, they had been able to fight against it. However, if the Imperial Palace wanted Ye Futian��s life, he may have no choice but to die!


    There was no one who was not nervous, especially those who were closest to Ye Futian, including Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu.


    At this moment, in the distance, there was a powerful aura that diffused towards this side. The divine light of the space twinkled, and rays of light illuminated the space. A horrific aura descended. A group of cultivators materialized from the light beam and descended above the firmament, just like a pantheon of gods.


    ��She��s here���� The hearts of all these cultivators trembled. Everyone was waiting for this moment, and it was finally here.


    Rumors had been circulating in the Original Realm, so it was impossible that the Imperial Palace had not heard of them by now, so they must have received the information. And, if they knew, it only stood to reason that they would be here sooner rather than later.


    Indeed, as they turned their eyes, they saw that Princess Donghuang had personally descended upon Ziwei Imperial Palace. That unparallel figure, like the most revered goddess, was heading towards the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian, who had been keeping his eyes closed, had already seen it all. At this moment, he opened his eyes and looked above the firmament. He saw the arrival of the cultivators, led by Princess Donghuang, and the figures behind her were dazzled with divine light. It was as if they were all divine generals.


    This scenario looked so familiar to Ye Futian. He was experiencing d��j�� vu.


    More importantly, he had seen it more than once.


    On Mount Tianyao in the city of Qingzhou, above the Book Mountain in the Eastern Barren Territory.


    The Snow Ape and the master had all experienced it.


    Now, it was his turn.


    The scenario was the same, and the one who came was still Princess Donghuang. The only difference was that the Princess had become even more dazzling and radiant, and her cultivation was more terrifying than ever. She was no longer the girl of yesteryear.


    This time, would the ending be the same as before?


    Ye Futian didn��t know, and no one else knew.


    ��Your Royal Highness!�� Many cultivators from Divine Prefecture bowed to salute her. No matter what level these cultivators were at, they must maintain a certain degree of respect when facing the only daughter of Donghuang the Great. Even those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path dared not exhibit any ego in front of the Princess.


    Princess Donghuang nodded slightly but did not say anything more. Her gaze was fixed in one place, and that was above the temple, where Ye Futian was cultivating.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was sitting without anyone else beside him. He looked so alone.


    The entire Ziwei Imperial Palace was shrouded in an oppressive aura, and everyone��s divine consciousness was focused on one person alone��Ye Futian.


    However, under the divine consciousness of these top figures, anyone would feel an unparallelled pressure, no matter who they were. But Ye Futian just sat there quietly, with a holy luminescence that seemed to drape over him. When he stood up, his back was straight and seemed to be rooted firmly. No matter what happened, he would face it on his feet.


    ��Your Royal Highness,�� Ye Futian greeted with courtesy and reverence as he bowed slightly.


    ��Have you heard about those rumors on the outside?�� Princess Donghuang asked directly without beating around the bush.


    ��I have,�� Ye Futian replied honestly. He couldn��t possibly have denied it.


    ��Is there any relationship between Renhuang Ye and Emperor Ye Qing?�� Princess Donghuang asked, her eyes fixed on him intently.


    Ye Futian also looked into her eyes and responded, ��There is!��

 Chapter 2396 - A Little Trip?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s voice fell, and the space turned silent. The divine consciousnesses of countless cultivators from Divine Prefecture were fastened on him.


    Ye Futian had admitted outright that he had some connection to Emperor Ye Qing.


    Princess Donghuang, likewise, also focused her attention on the white-haired man who was atop the temple. However, the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Academy were concentrating their attention on her at the moment, and they were a little nervous. The next decision that the Princess made would impact Ye Futian��s fate.


    ��How are you connected?�� Princess Donghuang questioned.


    ��Does Princess remember me?�� Ye Futian looked at Princess Donghuang and asked. ��When I was 16, I saw Princess from a distance on the Beast Mountain of Qingzhou City.��


    When he first laid eyes on Princess Donghuang, he felt that there might be a fateful encounter between the two of them. And later, indeed, they met again.


    But did that encounter refer to the situation they were presently facing?


    ��Vaguely,�� replied Princess Donghuang.


    ��I grew up in the city of Qingzhou. I was born an ordinary person who cultivated in Qingzhou Academy for a time. When I was 16, I strayed onto Beast Mountain by mistake and saw a statue. It wasn��t until later that I learned that it was taboo in the Divine Prefecture and that the statue was of Emperor Ye Qing. By pure happenstance, I received a trace of Emperor Ye Qing��s Will, which altered my destiny, and the Snow Ape Emperor surrendered to me. Later, Princess descended with other cultivators, and I witnessed the last battle of the Snow Ape Emperor. It was there that I saw Princess for the first time.��


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian. It seemed that he had inherited the Will of Emperor Ye Qing from his youth. This was also a very good explanation as to why he was able to suppress all those genius talents so far and that no one had been able to compete with him. As someone who had inherited the Will of a Great Emperor in his youth, and it was no less than the will of Emperor Ye Qing. He had to be a peerless figure who stood out among everyone in the Lower Worlds.


    Therefore, this must have been the basis for how Ye Futian��s strength and development.


    Many found his explanation quite believable. Maybe he had omitted some of the details, but the general timeline sounded true enough. As for the rumors that Ye Futian was the heir of Emperor Ye Qing, this possibility could almost be ruled out altogether, especially for those privy to some inside information.


    As for both of them sharing Ye as the same surname, perhaps it was just a coincidence.


    Of course, he might also be hiding something. For example, he did not just receive something as simple as a wisp of the Great Emperor��s Will.


    Princess Donghuang stared deeply at him. Her eyes were so profoundly beautiful that it was impossible to discern what she was truly thinking.


    ��Is it really just as simple as a wisp of the will?�� Princess Donghuang asked.


    ��Princess, there was only a wisp of will left by Emperor Ye Qing in the statue at the time. Otherwise, with the power of a Great Emperor, why would he stay in Qingzhou City and wait for its destruction?�� Ye Futian continued, ��If the Princess still doesn��t believe me, you can go to Nandou Nation to investigate my birth further. There was no chance that I could be connected with anyone who��s a Great Emperor.��


    ��Why did Qingzhou City disappear?�� Princess Donghuang continued.


    ��I have no idea what happened after I took my teacher away. I didn��t even know that Qingzhou City had disappeared,�� Ye Futian replied.


    Princess Donghuang asked several questions in a row. Then ensued another silence.


    If it was just Ye Futian who had inherited a wisp of Emperor Ye Qing��s Will, then this matter could go either way. Because it was just the Will of Emperor Ye Qing, and only by chance, it all depended on how Princess Donghuang chose to handle the matter.


    No one spoke. The cultivators from all top forces in the Divine Prefecture only dared to observe in secret darkness from a distance. No one dared to say a word.


    Emperor Ye Qing was not a topic to be talked about openly. Even if everyone understood what was going on, they couldn��t say anything.


    Next to Princess Donghuang, someone spoke to her via voice transmission, ��Your Royal Highness, whether what he said is credible or not, you can��t let him go. It��s better to be safe than sorry.��


    What if there was a deeper connection between Ye Futian and Emperor Ye Qing?


    If one day Ye Futian were to really step into that legendary realm, what would happen then?


    Therefore, they might want to kill him unnecessarily than entertain the unthinkable��


    Princess Donghuang still appeared tranquil. The cultivators from all the worlds looked on in the distance. At this moment, a voice from the Dark World spoke up, ��It was a long time ago when the two Emperors turned against each other, and Donghuang the Great raised his hand against Emperor Ye Qing. Now, so many years later, Donghunag Imperial Palace won��t spare cultivator who happened to obtain just some trace of Emperor Ye Qing��s Will by chance?��


    This voice sounded rather sarcastic. The cultivators from the Dark World had never disguised their desire of wanting Ye Futian dead, but now they seemed to be speaking up on Ye Futian��s behalf, which was somewhat intriguing.


    ��Ye Futian, come to the Empty Divine Realm and we will give you a safe haven.�� At this moment, another voice spoke, and it was a cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm. However, this suggestion was full of bad intentions. Under the circumstances, those from Donghuang Imperial Palace would be more motivated to move against Ye Futian��an unspeakably ruthless scheme.


    At this moment, a man walked behind Ye Futian and stood there quietly. The man seemed to be dressed in the Demonic Mail. He had an exceptionally domineering spirit, and it was none other than Yu Sheng.


    After Yu Sheng made his presence known, a group of cultivators was behind him, protecting him. This time, the people they were facing were not ordinary folks, and the Devil World didn��t really want Yu Sheng to intervene. But if Yu Sheng wanted to make a stance, there was not much they could do.


    But Yu Sheng stood there as if to make a statement. It seemed that as soon as Princess Donghuang made the decision against Ye Futian, Yu Sheng would be the worst enemy Divine Prefecture had ever see��no matter the cost to himself.


    Princess Donghuang glanced at Yu Sheng, then looked back at Ye Futian and asked, ��You said you received the Will of Emperor Ye Qing. So, who is he, exactly?��


    The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had thought of this as well. If Ye Futian explained his own origin, then what about Yu Sheng?


    Obviously, this was an oversight. He was still unable to clearly explain who he really was or where he was from.


    ��I am curious to know that too, but perhaps only the Devil Emperor in the Devil World knows the answer.�� Ye Futian responded. His answer was scoffed at by those from the Divine Prefecture. Clearly, it was less than convincing.


    And Ye Futian, didn��t he know?


    ��Princess, he is lying.�� Next to Princess Donghuang, the voice transmission asked her, ��Did Princess ever know of his existence?��


    Princess Donghuang nodded slightly.


    ��Perhaps Ye Futian was the heir selected by Emperor Ye Qing himself; it cannot be as simple as chance,�� the person continued via voice transmission. An oppressed aura now enveloped the space.


    Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Yes or no? Follow me to the Imperial Palace, and we will sort everything out there.


    ��Ye Futian, would you like to come with us for a little trip?��


    There was a slight change in Ye Futian��s eyes. He was not too clear on what had transpired back then, but if he and Emperor Ye Qing really had some connections, then no matter the kind of person Donghuang the Great was, he would never let him off the hook.


    Once they found out the secrets he��d been hiding, he would most certainly not be allowed to live.


    ��If Princess doesn��t believe me, why waste time taking me with you?�� Ye Futian kept his composure and replied, but his heart was getting colder!

 Chapter 2397 - Master of the Segmentum

    Ye Futian��s reply silenced the space again. He had actually refused a request from Princess Donghuang, declining to follow the Princess to the Imperial Palace.


    ��It��s finished!��


    In the area surrounding Ziwei Imperial Palace, those cultivators from the Divine Prefecture thought there would be no doubt about the impending conflict. Ye Futian��s refusal implied that he may indeed have other secrets and that the Imperial Palace would have no choice but to take action against him.


    Sure enough, several cultivators stepped out from behind Princess Donghuang. One of them had a frightening aura. They were surrounded by divine light, and it was none other than Du You��the Spear Emperor. He was one of the direct disciples of Donghuang the Great, and Ye Futian had seen him in action before. He was exceptionally powerful.


    Buzz! A Godly Spear appeared in his hand, puffing out a terrifying light, as he floated towards the temple where Ye Futian was.


    Clearly, in the eyes of those from the Imperial Palace, Ye Futian��s refusal was equivalent to a crime against the Princess.


    Princess Donghuang said nothing. She seemed to be silently condoning the Spear Emperor��s action. Behind her, a group of people floated forward, and all of them were releasing a powerful aura, oppressing the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian had the support of the cultivators from the Devil World behind him. If they were to join in, a battle would be inevitable.


    Yu Sheng took a step forward, and the cultivators from the Devil World followed suit. But the eyes of Old Demon Tuntian sharpened. The Devil World had no right to meddle in the matter at hand. To confront the Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture��in the land of the Original Realm no less��would be both disadvantageous and foolish.


    This was really an internal matter within the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Apprehend him and take him away. Anyone who dares to interfere with the business of the Imperial Palace will be killed without exceptions!�� A cold voice came out of a cultivator from the Imperial Palace. The person��s aura was beyond horrifying, and he was someone that Ye Futian had never seen before. He was a supreme cultivator who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of Great Path, a peak existence closest to the level of the Great Emperor.


    Boom! A wave of demonic might erupted from Yu Sheng as dark demonic currents tossed and howled. Hs dark demonic eyes swept towards Princess Donghuang.


    ��Whoever dares touch him today will have to answer to me. As long as I live, anyone who touches him will die,�� Yu Sheng proclaimed. His statement was a cause of concern for the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. They frowned but did not stop what they were doing. Rays of divine light showered down to enveloped the temple below.


    This sight was so familiar; Ye Futian felt like he had seen it all before.


    This time, it was finally his turn. Was his fate the same as the Snow Ape Emperor or as his teacher, Mr. Du?


    Battle to the death, or be taken away as a prisoner!


    ��Yu Sheng, stand down.��


    What Ye Futian said took Yu Sheng by surprise. He turned around to look at Ye Futian. The demonic might roared upon him.


    ��Stand down,�� Ye Futian looked at him and repeated himself calmly. If there were to be a fight, he rather let it just be him; there was no need to involve Yu Sheng.


    ��Here. Unless Donghuang the Great comes in person, it won��t be easy to take me away,�� Ye Futian said matter-of-factly. Yu Sheng watched him and was silent for a few moments, then withdrew. The cultivators from the Devil World were still guarding close by. For cultivators from the Devil World, whether Ye Futian lived or died was not their concern.


    Besides, they would really like to see the abilities of Yu Sheng��s brother.


    After Yu Sheng and the others backed away, the light of the matrix above the temple lit up suddenly. Then, beams of divine light rushed into the sky, and high above the boundless sky. The scenery seemed to change as if it were being fast-forwarded. The clouds and winds were morphing and surging, akin to changes of nature. The sun and the moon moved in rapid succession, and with a single thought, night had fallen.


    Above the firmament, a starry sky world came into being. Countless stars were shining like countless pairs of eyes. The starlight fell as if this was the real world��the real Ziwei Segmentum.


    Starlight fell upon Ye Futian, making his long silvery hair appear even more luminous as he bathed in the divine light, standing quietly under the stars.


    ��I have never done any evil deeds to the Divine Prefecture, and I have always defended the Original Realm; I will not hesitate to fight for the Original Realm. So, if Your Royal Highness still insists on taking me away against my will, I will have no choice but to resist,�� said Ye Futian.


    Watching this exchange, people who were closest to the Heavenly Mandate Academy and to Ye Futian felt an immense sorrow in their hearts. Did it all come down to this?


    They knew very well what would ensue following Ye Futian��s resistance and his declaration of war with the Imperial Palace.


    This would push the situation to the point of no return.


    Those principalities from the Divine Prefecture held grudges against Ye Futian. They smirked silently. This was no more than Ye Futian seeking his own death. If there were ever a chance for him to get out of this mess, he had completely squandered it by now. He was courting death.


    Above the firmament, the Spear Emperor, Du You, and other cultivators from the Imperial Palace focused their attention on Ye Futian, who was below. Divine lights shone brightly upon them and yielded terribly sharp auras. The aura that hovered above the long spear in Du You��s hands was even more appalling. He looked at Ye Futian with a slight pity in his eyes.


    Did this worm actually think that he could shake the tree?


    Did Ye Futian really want to go to war with the Imperial Palace?


    He took a step forward, and the long spear in his hand pierced straight down. Instantaneously, a long spear pierced through heaven and earth, descending from the void all the way down, slaughtering towards Ye Futian. It was as if this strike would traverse the void and take Ye Futian down.


    Buzz!


    However, at this moment, the boundless starlight above the void sprinkled down, and those lights fell directly in front of Ye Futian, where they turned into a starry light screen. The Spear Emperor��s long spear arrived and blasted right on the light screen, which blocked the attack. The light screen was so brilliant that it shut out all the attacks, ones that came from a peak Renhuang.


    Ye Futian continued to stand there quietly and didn��t move a muscle. It was as if he had absolute confidence in himself.


    An exceedingly horrific aura came down from the sky, causing the Spear Emperor to look slightly concerned. The starlight had illuminated the entire Ziwei Segmentum. He looked up at the firmament and saw that there was a heavenly might that was descending. The countless stars seemed to have transformed into a massive and boundless face, the face of a deity.


    Ziwei the Great!


    ��This is the Starry Cultivation Court!�� All the cultivators from Divine Prefecture looked up into the sky as if the world had now coincided with the world of the Starry Cultivation Court.


    They looked quite surprised. Could it be that the entire Ziwei Segmentum was now shrouded by the will of the Great Emperor?


    The starry sky world was the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Ye Futian had inherited the will of Ziwei the Great and gained control over the starry sky world. He was able to awaken the will of Ziwei the Great, causing the change to occur in heaven and on earth as the heavenly bodies shifted.


    In Ziwei Segmentum, Ye Futian was its true master.


    Buzz! At this moment, a star above the sky lit up with horrific starlight. It was aimed directly at the Spear Emperor��Du You. Du You��s face altered a bit when he saw the extremely bright star release terrible starlight, heading right at him. It was an Imperial Star.


    He raised the long spear in his hand and stepped into the void. As the long spear pierced forward, it spat out infinite divine light to counter the light that had descended from the starry sky.


    When the two beams of light collided, the Spear Will was obliterated. That terrifying aura eradicated everything in its path as it continued down. The Spear Emperor was repelled by it. His body was knocked straight into the air.


    Boom! His body fell hard on the ground, creating an opening in the ground. Du You��s body was nowhere to be found because it had been blasted deep into the ground.

 Chapter 2398 - Fang Ru

    What was happening shocked everyone watching. Ye Futian had leveraged the power of the starry sky to fight, and all the stars in the heavens seemed to be under his direct command. The will of the Great Emperor was his will.


    Ye Futian had inherited the will of Ziwei the Great in the Starry Cultivation Court back then and had completely integrated with the will of the Great Emperor.


    The Spear Emperor, Du You, and the divine general of Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace were blasted beneath the ground by the starlight summoned by Ye Futian, who didn��t even move. Under this segmentum, it seemed that he was the master of this universe, and no one could usurp his authority.


    ��This is crazy,�� many thought. In the distance, people from the top principalities in the Divine Prefecture were watching in awe. In one direction, where the cultivators from Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor had congregated, Ning Yuan��s eyes swept through the space and zoomed in on Ye Futian. For him to have declared war on the Imperial Palace, Ye Futian had now burned many bridges and dug his own grave.


    So what if he was in charge of this segmentum? The entity in front of him was no longer just the top power of the Divine Prefecture but the principality that dominated and ruled all of the Divine Prefecture.


    The will of Ziwei the Great might be strong, but he was a fallen Great Emperor, after all. Now, only Donghuang the Great was the Ruler of all of the Divine Prefecture.


    Those divine generals in the void were brilliant with divine lights shining on their bodies, and a terrifying aura descended. Those sharp gazes were directed at Ye Futian, but they made no move against him. Du You had been suppressed by a single blow, and they didn��t think they would fare any better than him. The same fate would probably befall them as well.


    In this world, perhaps only the cultivators at the very top had the ability to deal with Ye Futian.


    The people from the Heavenly Mandate Academy didn��t feel elated when they saw the sight before them. On the contrary, they felt a sense of profound sorrow. Gu Dongliu had been cultivating and improving his cultivation in the Starry Cultivation Court in the days past, but he was still powerless when faced with today��s situation.


    Once upon a time, their teacher Mr. Du had been taken away in this manner. Now, facing these principalities of the Divine Prefecture, his junior brother had the power to battle them, and he was bold enough to resist. This was nothing less than open defiance against the authority of the gods.


    If their teacher had known that their little junior brother had progressed to this stage, he would probably be incredibly pleased. The Imperial Palace, on the other hand, would probably put an end to this. And when he thought about that, he couldn��t help but felt a deep sadness.


    Once, he had thought that they would have victory over all of their opponents, no matter who they were, as long as they were given the luxury of time. But what about the likes of Donghuang the Great?


    There was only desperation now. No matter how long they were given, they could only revere that which was the legend of the world.


    ��Your Royal Highness, I don��t want to fight, but it seems that I don��t have a choice.�� Ye Futian levitated above the temple and said to Princess Donghuang, ��Whatever happens today, no matter the outcome, I am responsible for my actions. I hope that it will not affect anybody else.��


    ��Very well.�� Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian��s and agreed to his request.


    ��Thank you very much.�� Ye Futian nodded slightly.


    Hearing what Ye Futian had to say, the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Academy sighed. If something were to happen to Ye Futian, could Ziwei Imperial Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Academy be able to survive in this troubled world?


    Today��s world was in utter chaos. With all these worlds upon them, there was no telling how many of them had set their eyes on the Starry Cultivation Court in Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Once Ye Futian was no more, the alliance between the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ziwei Segmentum, and the Lost Clan would very likely disintegrate as well. Then, it would spell nothing but pure disaster for all of them.


    These several great forces could connect and remain stable in these troubled times because Ye Futian had played a decisive role.


    ��Take him,�� Princess Donghuang spat with a measurable coldness. Immediately behind her, several extremely powerful beings stepped forward. The auras upon them were quite astonishing. With all the worlds coming, the forces representing the Divine Prefecture were also much more substantial this time. After all, the Original Realm was part of the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian perceived those horrific auras and wondered, how many powerful characters like these were there inside the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture?


    A ray of light illuminated Ye Futian, and in the next moment, his figure disappeared from right where he was standing. Many looked up in the sky and saw Ye Futian��s figure appeared above the firmament. He seemed to have integrated into the starry sky world as an unparalleled figure appeared behind him. It was the phantom of Ziwei the Great.


    The authority of heaven descended, and the horror in the atmosphere reached the peak as the coercion now overwhelmed the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    At this moment, in the Ziwei Segmentum, as well as the many starry worlds, countless creatures raised their heads to look into the firmament. They had felt that heavenly might, and with a tremendous shock. They were wondering, what was happening?


    ��Your Royal Highness, let me reiterate that I have no intention of fighting with the Imperial Palace. However, if the princess refuses to let the matter go, I would fight using the starry sky. Your Royal Highness should know that the previous princess of Ziwei Imperial Palace perished under the starry sky.�� Above the firmament, a voice was heard, full of a supreme godly might.


    Once, the previous palace lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace had intended on seizing the will of the Great Emperor and had been killed on the spot by Ye Futian, using the will of the Great Emperor. Afterward, Ye Futian inherited the position as the Palace Lord of the Imperial Palace. This event was witnessed by many cultivators in the Divine Prefecture; the Imperial Palace should have heard something about that as well.


    If Ye Futian could fight by leveraging the will of Ziwei the Great, the strength he exerted would be the same as it was then. Perhaps, under the prowess of a Great Emperor, no one would be able to compete with him.


    No wonder Ye Futian was so confident that he asked Yu Sheng and the others to stand down.


    Under this starry sky, unless it was Donghuang the Great himself who was here, Ye Futian had no fear of anyone.


    Under the starry sky, the cultivators from the Imperial Palace were a little hesitant. They did not expect that in the land of the Original Realm, they would be hindered by a Renhuang of the Seventh-Realm.


    At this time, a man who had been standing there quietly now walked out from behind Princess Donghuang. He was wearing a cape with a hood on his head, and now he took off the hood as he raised his head slightly to look up into the space high above.


    It was a middle-aged man who looked to be no more than 40. He had an elegant and scholarly temperament. There did not seem to be any aggression from him. Instead, he appeared aloof and detached. Previously, he stood quietly behind the Princess just like everybody else from the Divine Prefecture, inconspicuous and easily looked over.


    But the moment he walked out and stood under the starry sky, everyone could feel the exceptional temperament about him. He stood there as if he was the master of this world.


    ��Who is he?��


    Many Renhuang from Divine Prefecture did not recognize this man, but some top figures in the other worlds had made out who this elegant and erudite person was. They were amazed that he was the one who had been protecting Princess Donghuang.


    Behind Yu Sheng, Old Demon Tuntian saw the middle-aged man and whispered, ��Fang Ru.�� This was a contemporaneous existence of his, in an era when even Donghuang the Great was an unknown.


    ��Who is he?�� Yu Sheng asked Old Demon Tuntian, clearly feeling the importance of the man from the expression in Old Demon Tuntian��s eyes.


    ��Thousands of years would have taken his cultivation to the peak just below the Great Emperor. He is an existence known to have the most probability of impacting the Imperial Realm. Now that many years had passed, he is probably infinitely closer to that realm except for the shackle of the Heavenly Path,�� Old Demon Tuntian explained.

 Chapter 2399 - Peak Beneath the Emperor

    Ye Futian surveyed the area below and saw Fang Ru drift upwards. In the sky high above, he stood there quietly, surrounded by divine light. A brilliant image radiated outward from his location. It was a splendid vista, a scaled-down version of a much larger world.


    ��Vision of the World!��


    Everyone raised their heads to looked around Fang Ru. The vision that appeared was an entity all on its own. The power of the surrounding heaven and earth poured into it with insanity. It was as if the Vision of the World was a world of a higher degree that could borrow the power of the Great Path from the outside world and integrate it into this tiny world to be used.


    Fang Ru stood there quietly, unbelievably tranquil. Just by standing there casually, it was clear that all the power from the heavens was under his control as if he was the master of this universe.


    ��It seems that Fang Ru has already been exploring that kind of realm. His Splendid Vista is now become more developed, forming a world of its own. The rules inside of it have already surpassed the rules of the Great Path on the outside world.�� Some top cultivators marveled silently as they witnessed the sight.


    Fang Ru was a powerful existence who had achieved his fame millenniums ago. For countless years, he must have been pursuing and exploring that supreme realm, seeking a breakthrough, hindered only by the shackles of Heavenly Path. Presumably, the two had struck a deal for him to follow Donghuang the Great willingly. Perhaps, Donghuang the Great had agreed to give him some guidance here and there.


    Otherwise, as a supreme existence, Fang Ru did not need to condescend to protect the daughter of Donghuang the Great. Except for pursuing the most supreme realm of them all, someone like Fang Ru did not need to ask for anything else, much less obey someone else and act the role of a glorified guard.


    Unless it was the temptation of breaking through that realm that caused his change of heart��


    ��Would you like to create your own rules of the world? How difficult is it to break the shackles of the Heavenly Path? How can a person even begin to embark on that legendary road?�� Many people had the same questions, especially those who had already survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path; they were full of curiosity and anticipation. For those at that realm, there weren��t many things that could interest them enough to become an actual passion.


    They could clearly feel that Fang Ru might have taken a small step forward already. He stood there, and the world around him seemed to be at his disposal.


    Above the firmament, Ye Futian perceived Fang Ru��s mighty strength. This may be the strongest existence he had seen so far, other than the teacher, whose true strength was still a mystery. However, Fang Ru, as he stood in front of him, gave him a sensation that was entirely different from the others. It was tremendously powerful.


    But at this time, he was no longer himself in the common sense of the word. In the Ziwei Segmentum, he was its de facto master. He, whose will could be mashed with the will of Ziwei the Great, had all the stars in the heavens at his command.


    Or, one could say that within this starry sky, he was someone akin to a god.


    At this moment, he saw that Fang Ru had made a move below, and he was coming towards the starry sky. Suddenly this vast world seemed to be shaken because of him.


    Ye Futian glanced at the area below, and his thoughts shifted. Suddenly, a supreme coercion came from the sky, surrounded by the stars. When Fang Ru was on his way up, all these stars emitted the most brilliant starlight. It came down upon Fang Ru at the same time. It was a stunning sight when countless starlight began to fall at the same time, every starlight containing the might of the Way.


    Buzz! The starlight illuminated the area where Fang Ru was, but it was blocked from the outside. The imagery of the vista around Fang Ru was like a true scaled-down world. When the starlight fell, it failed to penetrate that world, unable to break through its defense.


    What was even more frightening was that all the power of the heavens seemed to be guarding surround Fang Ru, resonating with the world he created.


    His speed was so fast that it approached the limits of what was possible. It was hard to detect with the naked eye as he rushed directly above the firmament.


    The cultivators below could no longer see any trace of Fang Ru. There was only a ray of light, which seemed to have already entered into that brilliant starry sky world and headed towards the heaven full of stars.


    Because Ye Futian was leveraging the will of Ziwei the Great, he was able to merge with a heaven full of stars. Fang Ru had now actually gone over to attack, attempting to capture Ye Futian.


    Above the firmament, everyone saw that the light became even more radiant. Only those top cultivators could perceive the situation taking place in the starry sky.


    The stars in the heavens seemed to be moving like real stars, gigantic and massive. These humongous stars turned into meteors and slammed down at Fang Ru. The power that was generated from the stars that turned into meteors was plenty frightening. At the same time, many meteors fell, slamming into Fang Ru and his miniature world.


    Rumble�� The sky seemed to be shaking fiercely. Fang Ru raised his head and looked up. Instantly, all the power of the heavens seemed to vibrate and resonate with him. He raised his palm, and the heavens trembled. Infinite power of the Great Path gathered around as if affected by his every move.


    The gestures of his hands seemed to influence the entire world. What a terrifying existence! Even peak Renhuang and those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path felt this tremendous shakeup.


    How strong was someone who had achieved his fame millenniums ago?


    As if just by a simple gesture of raising a finger pointing the void and instantly, the sky was thoroughly shaken up. Those falling meteors that came blasting down were attacked at the same moment. Streams of light rushed above the stars.


    Boom�� It seemed that the sky was collapsing. The people below were shocked to see that the stars were exploding and being destroyed. It seemed as if they had been attacked by an inconceivable force, and all of them collapsed at the same moment. Any star attacking Fang Ru��s direction was ultimately crushed in this madness.


    ��Incredible!��


    The hearts of many trembled. Was this kind of power possible for mere mortals?


    None of them had expected that such incredulously terrifying power could be possible at the very peak of cultivation. If so, what kind of unimaginable power did the Great Emperor possess?


    Even Ye Futian was awed by Fang Ru��s might. When he saw that so many stars had shattered and exploded, he clearly perceived that all the stars were attacked simultaneously. Under Fang Ru��s finger, the power of the Great Path in all the heavens resonated with him. They blasted upon all the stars despite the spatial distance.


    He seemed to be able to take over the control of the Great Path power inside this world.


    Ye Futian had never come into contact personally with this kind of incredible power. Although he had slayed existences who survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, he did not do so, relying purely on his own strength. Leveraging the power of Ziwei the Great was not equivalent to using the power that belonged to himself. He hadn��t yet reached that level, so it was difficult for him to really understand what that realm would feel like.


    Fang Ru��s mighty strength made Ye Futian realize that it would be impossible to stop Fang Ru without the power of Ziwei the Great. Most likely, this man was standing at a level closest to and just beneath that of the Great Emperor.


    As his mind turned, it was as if he had entered into a state of selflessness. At this moment, the stars in all the heavens were shining at the same time the heavenly might descended. The phantom of Ziwei the Great became clearer; it was as if the Great Emperor had begun to awaken. Accompanied by the incoming heavenly might, even Fang Ru felt the pressure now as he raised his head to take on that gigantic phantom of the Great Emperor!

 Chapter 2400 - Qiankun Finger

    Ye Futian��s figure appeared there as well. He stood below the shadows of the Great Emperor, looking like the descendent of a god. As he closed his eyes, divine light flared from his body.


    At this moment, the stars of the celestial skies all started shining simultaneously. Ye Futian��s projection appeared on every single one of them. It was as if he existed everywhere at the same time.


    ��If I attack, then there��s no going back. Senior, are you sure you want this battle?�� A voice echoed the void, resonating with the skies. Ye Futian��s might exerted great pressure on all of the Ziwei Segmentum. He could sense Fang Ru��s power and knew that normal attacks would likely not affect him; the only way was to use the might of the heavens in his attack.


    Divine lights swirled around Fang Ru. He raised his head, looked at the celestial skies, and said, ��Do it.��


    Great Emperors were akin to gods��they could not be provoked. Even someone as strong as Fang Ru would be powerless before a Great Emperor. However, he was only facing the will of Ziwei the Great and not the Great Emperor himself. Regardless, he still wanted a sense of how powerful the might of a Great Emperor would be.


    At this instant, the Splendid Vista World behind him expanded dramatically. It seemed as if it was turning into an actual world. Below the starry skies, a small world appeared. When this small world manifested, it started reeling in and swallowing the powers of the Great Paths of the world. In the vast, boundless space, it was as if everything was resonating with the small world.


    Hum! Just then, endless divine lights started streaming down from the celestial skies, converging below Ye Futian. There, a supreme Sword Will started to form, giving rise to a divine sword that contained the might of the skies.


    This divine sword seemed to be capable of slashing the skies open.


    ��Merging all of the celestial stars into one to form a divine sword,�� someone said. The cultivators all looked up in shock. The previous Lord of the Imperial Palace met his demise under an attack similar to this. While Fang Ru��s power was nearly immeasurable, could he really endure such an attack?


    No one would know.


    After all, one could see how powerful Fang Ru was based on his attack just now, but there was no way of knowing his full power at this point.


    Booom! Terrifying sounds could be heard ripping through the skies. The super-sonic blasts caused the air to tremble. Below, countless people from the Ziwei Segmentum looked up towards the celestial skies. They saw the might of the skies forcing downwards together with the projection of Ziwei the Great. The divine sword was before the Great Emperor, slashing out as if it was wielded by the gods. The Great Paths were collapsing, crushed, and were ultimately torn into fragments. Deep, terrifying cracks appeared; it looked like an omen before the entire world, falling apart.


    Yet even then, the divine sword was entirely unaffected. All of the gashes that appeared in the Great Path couldn��t stop the ray of light from the sword. It continued to travel down the turbulence of cracks and gashes. It was unstoppable. Even escape by using the power of the Great Path of Space wouldn��t be possible, as space itself was collapsing as well.


    An attack on this level had already exceeded the physical limits of the Void Realm. Atop the skies, it was as if a crack had appeared, slashed open by the divine sword.


    ��Being able to receive an attack of the Will of Ziwei the Great is an honor,�� Fang Ru said as he looked up. ��However, even though he was a supreme being in the past, he had already passed and shouldn��t continue to exist in this world. The greatest of this time should belong to this era.��


    His voice was humble yet arrogant, overflowing with an endless might of domination. When he raised his arm, it was as though all the powers of the world started flowing towards him and converging onto his arm. At this moment, Fang Ru��s body flared magnificently. He looked like a divine frame, unparalleled in the mortal world.


    As he amassed unmatched power on his arms, countless divine lights started flowing towards his fingers. The divine lights flickering and erupting from his fingertips were more potent than the sharpest blades the world had ever seen.


    ��Qiankun Finger!��


    In the distance, Old Demon Tuntian, who was standing beside Yu Sheng, said, ��Fang Ru created the legendary technique, Qiankun Finger, on his own. It��s extremely powerful.��


    ��Going up against the Starry Divine Sword of Ziwei the Great with a single finger?�� a Demonic Cultivator beside him said softly, unable to conceive what he had just heard. Although Fang Ru had made a name for himself thousands of years ago, it did not justify how he could be so confident.


    Old Demon Tuntian��s voice sank as he said, ��Didn��t you sense the power contained in that single finger? The stars in the sky were crushed. This finger contained the power of the universe, and he had condensed his full power into it. While the attacks before this were all spread out, the true ultimate Qiankn Finger would look like this, concentrated at a single point. Once it erupts, its power would be able to fill up and destroy my Black Hole Whirlpool, which is said to be able to engulf the skies.�� He rated Fang Ru extremely highly. Even in his generation, there were only a handful of cultivators who had reached this level.


    Yu Sheng and the other Demonic Cultivators were shocked by the comment. They all knew how terrifying Old Demon Tuntian��s Power of Devouring was; it could literally devour everything, including celestial stars. Yet he just said that this one puny finger, upon eruption, would be able to fill his Black Hole Whirlpool capable of devouring all matter.


    ��Every cultivator in this world has their own methods of cultivation. The cultivators of the Infinite Palace are skilled with the infinite, endless, and boundless. But some people are skilled with the concentration of power instead. Imagine two attacks with the same weight. Do you think it would have more explosive force when it has the magnitude of a mountain or that of a rock?��


    Old Demon Tuntian continued as he watched the two attacks in the skies nearing each other, ��On top of that, the Qiankun Finger isn��t as simple as condensing and releasing the power of the skies. It was said that the Qiankun Finger contained a small world, compressing the power of a whole world into a micro world, operating based on some mysterious law. It seemed to be compressing an endlessly large supreme mythical matrix into one finger. When it erupts, its power will be unmatched.��


    As he spoke, the might of the celestial skies continued to force downward; even they could feel the power despite it being so high up.


    The projection of Ziwei the Great descended with the divine sword as Fang Ru was pointing to the sky with one finger. It was as though the two attacks weren��t even on the same order of magnitude. At this moment, Fang Ru looked so small and vulnerable; it was as though he would be crushed by any attack at all.


    But at the instant when the two attacks really came into contact, the cultivators�� visions were filled with a blinding light of obliteration which had erupted and deluged the skies, blocking out everything. The celestial stars were crushed and exploded in a massive chain reaction. Even the divine sword��the power of which was nearly unimaginable just moments ago��was disintegrating bit by bit. As the blast continued upwards, stars from even further out in the galaxy were obliterated as well.


    Many people couldn��t see what was happening as the blinding light flared in the skies. Yet, when the light finally faded away, they saw that the divine sword had disappeared.


    Atop the skies, the projection of Ziwei the Great was still there, and so was Ye Futian. However, his aura was precarious, and he was shaken to the core.


    Below him, Fang Ru was blasted down from the skies, and his aura was equally unstable. His posture was also not as straight as before.


    ��The might of Ziwei the Great�� It is indeed as powerful as legend says. But, it was only the Will of a Great Emperor after all��not an actual Great Emperor,�� Fang Ru said to Ye Futian, who stood in the skies. ��And this wasn��t your own power either, so you can��t show me the true divine power!��

 Chapter 2401 - Pleas From Various Forces?

    Ye Futian looked below. Naturally, he knew that Fang Ru was right that the will of Ziwei the Great was hidden amongst the celestial stars. He could indeed borrow them in battle, but his Plane was will a little low after all. He was only seventh-level Renhuang Plane, so his powers were limited even after borrowing from the celestial stars, let alone in comparison with the actual Great Emperor.


    In fact, he didn��t even manage to release 30 percent of the celestial powers. Otherwise, even if Fang Ru were only one step away from becoming Great Emperor, he would still be obliterated.


    So what if he was as powerful as one could be short of being a Great Emperor? The Will of the Great Emperor was carved into the celestial stars. The explosive power of its attack was equivalent to a portion of the power of the Great Emperor. It was just that Ye Futian couldn��t unleash it fully.


    Of course, even then, one could see how strong Fang Ru was. Even with such a powerful attack, all it did was make his finger bleed; it didn��t actually waver him or injure his Body of Way.


    At this point, Fang Ru��s aura was still terrifying, and the Small World continued to circle him. The lights of the Great Paths of the skies streamed into the Small World and resonated with it, contending with the divine might of the celestial stars.


    Princess Donghuang looked toward the figure high up in the sky and said, ��I gave you a chance before. Now, I��m giving you another chance. Follow me back to the Imperial Palace. If you are not directly related to him, we��ll close one eye and stop chasing after you. But if you continue to be stubborn����


    As she paused, her eyes turned cold, and her aura became dangerously sharp. She then continued, ��You will die here.��


    As she finished speaking, several figures walked out from behind her. Their mighty aura subdued that of even the celestial skies. Every one of them was an apex cultivator, and their terrifying auras could be sensed from miles away.


    Fang Ru levitated again. Divine lights surrounded him as his might fired up into the skies.


    The hearts of the Divine Prefecture cultivators trembled. That was the princess of the Divine Prefecture and the only daughter of Donghuang the Great. So what if Ye Futian was an unmatched genius? He was lucky that the princess was willing to give him a chance to follow her back to the Imperial Palace to clear up the issue. If Ye Futian didn��t comply, that would mean that he had lied to her.


    If that were the case, she could kill her then and there. Leaving him alive would serve no purpose. He could even betray them and join the other worlds in the future.


    Princess Donghuang��s words made many of the Divine Prefecture forces that had a grudge with Ye Futian laugh inside. Ye Futian was way too confident. He even dared to start a war with the Imperial Palace. If that wasn��t a death wish, then what was?


    No place in the Divine Prefecture could accommodate him at this point; even his attempt this time to escape into the crevices of space to hide away from the Divine Prefecture was futile. The cultivators here could travel across worlds to chase after him, so there��s no way he could escape. And if he left this celestial region, he would die even faster. Without borrowing power from the celestial skies, cultivators on the level of Fang Ru could easily deal with him. He could take Ye Futian��s life with a snap of his finger. They were of a fundamentally different level.


    The expression of the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Ziwei Segmentum all changed; they all felt a sense of despair when Princess Donghuang gave the kill order.


    Was there really no hope for Ye Futian?


    How did things become like this?


    At this point, it was as if every way was leading to a dead end.


    The cultivators from the other worlds all sneered inside. Ye Futian came out of nowhere and made a name for himself with his unparalleled talents. They even thought that a phenom of the era was about to rise from the Land of the Divine Prefecture, which would become a threat to them. It was especially so for the Dark World, who had battled Ye Futian several times before.


    A powerful aura started to engulf the skies above Ye Futian as waves of dark divine lights started spreading towards there. The Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace cultivators frowned, then they saw the cultivators of the Dark World arriving. They turned out to be from the Dark Court. The leading figure��s aura was especially terrifying; it was an apex-level cultivator as well. He was dressed in all-black, and a terrifying aura of obliteration surrounded him.


    Princess Donghuang looked toward them. What were the people of the Dark Court doing here?


    ��Donghuang the Great was the prodigy of an era and met no opponent in his time. He spurred the great prosperity of the Divine Prefecture. Such an incredible being. I��m sure he wouldn��t actually want to pick on the younger generation. Even if Ye Futian was related to Emperor Ye Qing, Emperor Ye Qing had already passed on. I��m sure that Donghuang the Great would remember their friendship and let some things go instead of taking out his grudge on a young boy,�� the cultivator from the Dark Court said. This caused those from the Divine Prefecture to show a strange expression.


    The Dark Court wanted to protect Ye Futian?


    They quickly realized what was happening. The Dark Court had some conflict with Ye Futian. If that had happened before this, naturally, they would want Ye Futian dead instead of him becoming their enemy. But now, knowing that Ye Futian could be related to Emperor Ye Qing and that the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace even took action to kill him, the Dark Court instead wanted Ye Futian to stay alive.


    But as a result, wouldn��t that enlarge the conflict between Ye Futian and the Divine Prefecture?


    Naturally, that was the situation they wanted to see happen.


    ��I thought so, too, of course. Donghuang the Great wouldn��t take things out on a youngster,�� a cultivator from the Empty Divine realm stepped forward as well. Under the celestial skies, what was happening now seemed rather odd.


    Back then, Ye Futian stood on the side of the Divine Prefecture in a war with the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm, and they had even won the war for them.


    What was this supposed to be now?


    The Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace wanted to kill Ye Futian, and the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm came to protect him instead.


    That was certainly interesting. The cultivators of the two worlds didn��t stand out just now. They must have been waiting for the relationship between Ye Futian and the Divine Prefecture to deteriorate completely. Only when Princess Donghuang gave the order to eliminate Ye Futian did they actually step out.


    ��You have no right to meddle in the Divine Prefecture��s business,�� Princess Donghuang said coldly as her gaze swept across the cultivators from the two groups.


    ��The Original Realm doesn��t belong to any single organization today. We��ve mentioned this before. Perhaps it is time to revise the division of the Original Realm. Ye Futian is a cultivator of the Original Realm, and we think he won��t belong to the Divine Prefecture or be a subordinate of the Princess. So what right does that give Princess to decide his fate?�� the cultivator from the Dark Court continued.


    Just then, Yu Sheng led his group to step forward as well. As such, the Devil World seemed to be protecting Ye Futian too.


    This made Fang Ru frown as there were actually three worlds intervening now.


    They all wanted to stop them from killing Ye Futian.


    Just then, another group of cultivators arrived from the skies, but they walked toward Princess Donghuang. The auras of these cultivators exuded justice and righteousness, and each of them had an outstanding temperament. They were cultivators from the Human Realm.


    One of the cultivators came before Princess Donghuang and said softly, ��Princess, past matters have already been settled, and now they are all just the past. Surely an unparalleled figure like Donghuang the Great wouldn��t fuss over things of the past. Why should the Princess care about a mere Renhuang Plane cultivator? I��m afraid that could even affect the Great Emperor��s reputation. How about we just leave him be?��


    Unexpectedly, the Human Realm was standing up for Ye Futian as well. However, they seemed to be coming from a slightly different standpoint!

 Chapter 2402 - Dialogue with the Great Emperor

    Except for the Divine Prefecture, the cultivators across various worlds were pleading on Ye Futian��s behalf.


    What was happening now seemed a little strange; even Ye Futian himself looked puzzled above the sky. The Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm were both principalities that had grievances against him, while he had never had many interactions with the Human Realm. On the contrary, the Human Realm was closer to the Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture.


    But now, they were advocating on his behalf. No doubt, the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm each have their own schemes, while the Human Realm seemed to be more concerned with the reputation of Donghuang the Great. As for the specific thoughts behind the action of each principality, it was something that only they know.


    Now, the problem was left in the hands of Princess Donghuang. She saw the situation unfolding in front of her. Those radiant beautiful eyes of hers looked at Ye Futian above the sky as she said coldly, ��Ye Futian violated the order of the Imperial Palace, and this is impertinent enough to declare war. It is an unforgivable offense.��


    ��Princess Donghuang pressed too hard. Isn��t it normal that others would resist under such circumstances?�� the top figures from the Dark Court said casually, seemingly taking Ye Futian��s side.


    Judging from their posture, it seemed as if they were ready to intervene by force in order to prevent the people from the Divine Prefecture from taking action.


    Fang Ru levitated into the air, and the cultivators from the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm were also standing in the vicinity, ready to battle at a moment��s notice.


    ��If you insist on interfering in the matters of the Divine Prefecture, I will have no choice but to ask my father to adjudicate,�� Princess Donghuang said indifferently. Everyone who heard her narrowed their eyes slightly.


    Asking Donghuang the Great to adjudicate?


    Divine light dazzled upon Princess Donghuang, and a terrifying divine might was released from her. In an instant, the divine light seemed to spill down from the sky, penetrating through the starry sky world as if from the outer world. As this divine light enveloped this boundless space, an inordinately strong emperor��s might effused from Princess Donghuang.


    Yonder, an elusive figure appeared. Clearly, it was not Donghuang the Great, but a projection of the Great Emperor onto the world.


    At this moment, cultivators from all sides��no matter who they were��lowered their heads and said, ��Greetings to Donghuang the Great.��


    ��Greetings, Great Emperor,�� others said.


    Even most of the cultivators from the Dark Court, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Devil World saluted the Great Emperor to show their respect. Although they were on the opposing side, the Great Emperor was a supreme existence, and they were not opponents of Donghuang the Great in any way. In the presence of such supreme existence, even if they were hostiles, they still had to observe the necessary formalities.


    The phantom did not speak but looked at Ye Futian, who was above the starry sky.


    Ye Futian��s heart trembled when he saw that figure. Once, he had seen the afterimage of Donghuang the Great on Sky Mountain. This time, it seemed that he was closer. He didn��t expect that the Great Emperor would visit the Original Realm in person because of him.


    Fang Ru stepped aside and bowed, leaving it to Donghuang the Great to decide.


    Donghuang the Great kept his eyes on Ye Futian, which made Ye Futian feel an inexplicable coercion. Those eyes were so profound that he could not fathom any emotions within them.


    ��It��s pretty impressive for you to obtain the inheritance of Ziwei the Great until this day,�� Donghuang the Great said. ��This is a feat worthy of being his successor.��


    The words of Donghuang the Great shocked all the cultivators who heard him. The Great Emperor had spoken and personally stated Ye Futian��s identity. He was indeed the heir of Emperor Ye Qing.


    No wonder��


    Ye Futian didn��t quite understand everything. Maybe he could be considered half an heir of Emperor Ye Qing, but he was far from being his successor. They had met just that one time, but Emperor Ye Qing knew of his true identity. But could Donghuang the Great really be in the dark about who he really was, even confusing him with the successor of Emperor Ye Qing?


    ��Great Emperor, so many years have passed since the events of yesteryear. Perhaps the Great Emperor already left those things behind,�� the top cultivator from the Human Realm spoke with lowered head. Donghuang the Great glanced at the speaker but did not say a word. He continued to stare at Ye Futian.


    At this moment, another astonishing aura descended from above, which alarmed everyone present. Another super powerful aura; who could it be?


    ��Donghuang.�� A voice was heard from the sky, and the crowd looked in the direction where the voice came from. A space-time passage seemed to have opened above the firmament. An image appeared at the end of the passage. It appeared to be a simple courtyard with a figure sitting quietly in the middle of it. The figure was looking in their direction. An endless distance separated them.


    ��This���� Many people were shocked beyond words. How far away was this person?


    ��Teacher, It��s been a long time.�� Donghuang the Great looked at the figure in the courtyard and talked to him from across the air.


    That figure, surprisingly, was the teacher of Four Corner Village.


    ��Indeed, it has been many years,�� the teacher said. ��I still remember when you first came to the village once upon a time. Many years later, Ye Futian came as well, and I felt some similarities between the two of you. Specifically, that you are one of a kind.��


    ��I didn��t know the teacher holds him in such high regard.�� Donghuang the Great said, ��No wonder he was selected.��


    ��This young lad is really not bad. Perhaps, in the future, he might have the opportunity to chase in your footsteps,�� the teacher continued.


    But Donghuang the Great smiled when he heard these words and said, ��Since the teacher sees it this way, I am also curious now to see how far this lad can go in the future.��


    ��Well, if so, I won��t say more. If you have the time, come and visit the village sometimes,�� said the teacher.


    ��Definitely,�� Donghuang the Great nodded. Then the divine light retracted as the passageway disappeared along with the teacher��s figure, which had now disappeared from the imagery. Everything returned to normal. It was as if everything that had just happened was an illusion��that nothing had really transpired.


    But it was all so real.


    Was the dialogue between two Great Emperors real?


    From beginning to end, the teacher had never begged Donghuang the Great to spare Ye Futian. It was more like a casual chat between two old friends. However, these few random words seemed to have determined Ye Futian��s fate.


    They could see that Donghuang the Great had agreed to let Ye Futian go.


    The teacher said that perhaps Ye Futian could walk in his footsteps.


    And Donghuang the Great said that was something he would like to see.


    As the world knew, Donghuang the Great was an unparalleled character. Emperor Ye Qing had already perished. Would Donghuang the Great care about a young lad?


    The Great Emperor who had suppressed an entire era was such a mighty existence. Would he be afraid of a young lad who might threaten him?


    Of course not. He was Donghuang the Great.


    ��You can handle the matters here yourself.�� Donghuang the Great left with one last command then looked at Ye Futian one last time. His figure gradually dissipated. Afterward, it was as if he had never appeared in the first place.


    The last sentence was clearly addressing Princess Donghuang, telling her to conclude the matter at hand.


    Clearly, he did not intend to take action against Ye Futian himself.


    ��Whew���� At this moment, the Heavenly Mandate Academy and other cultivators let out a deep breath. Was this over now?


    At the end of the day, they never expected that cultivators from all the worlds would stand up to protect Ye Futian, or that the teacher from Four Corner Village would have opened up a channel to start a dialogue with Donghuang the Great so that Ye Futian��s life could be spared!

 Chapter 2403 - Life After Catastrophe

    Donghuang the Great had decided not to take action against Ye Futian, which meant that the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture would no longer pose a threat to Ye Futian.


    Everyone had thought that Ye Futian was a dead man for sure, but they never expected such a dramatic turn of events.


    What would Princess Donghuang do next?


    Ye Futian was considered very powerful in the Original Realm. Although he was far from capable of contending alone with the many forces in the Divine Prefecture, in one-on-one situations, there was no single force below the level of Ancient God Clan that Ye Futian couldn��t overcome.


    Counting in the strength from the Lost Clan, then even the Ancient God Clan was no competition. No one was off-limit, given the power controlled by Ye Futian. Even the Ancient God Clan might even be suppressed.


    Ye Futian had been confirmed as the successor of Emperor Ye Qing, thus making him an enemy of the Imperial Palace in Divine Prefecture by default. Would Princess Donghuang allow him to continue developing his own power freely?


    But Donghuang the Great had already said that he wanted to see where Ye Futian could go in the future. Clearly, he didn��t care.


    How could a Great Emperor, unparalleled in the world, possibly be afraid of a young lad?


    In the many years that had passed, how many Great Emperors, such as Donghuang the Great, had come to pass in this world?


    Everyone��s attention was fixed on Princess Donghuang. She was looking at Ye Futian above the firmament right now and proclaimed, ��From this day forward, principalities belonging to Ye Futian will no longer be ruled by the Divine Prefecture. Ziwei Segmentum may make a choice, same as the various forces currently under the rule of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. As for the Lost Clan which had already agreed to submit under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Palace, it may no longer be involved with Ye Futian henceforth.��


    Once, when all the forces laid siege upon the Lost Clan, she came forward and saved them. The agreement was for the Lost Clan to accept the Imperial Palace in Divine Prefecture and submit to its rule. Given this condition, they could no longer ally with Ye Futian. If the alliance with Ye Futian were to continue, they would lose protection from the Imperial Palace.


    As for the Ziwei Segmentum, it was left by Ziwei the Grea and was never intended as a principality that belonged to the Divine Prefecture. Likewise, the Heavenly Mandate Academy consisted mostly of relationships developed by Ye Futian. Therefore, Princess Donghuang allowed them to make their own choices.


    However, among the two forces outside of the Lost Clan, the will of Ziwei the Great had long resonated with Ye Futian, and because of that, the Ziwei Segmentum would probably never escape his control. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was one with Ye Futian for so long that it was simply impossible for it ever to betray him.


    ��We have been entrusted by Ziwei the Great to do his bidding. The Palace Lord, once obtained the inheritance of Ziwei the Great, became the Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace and took charge of the Ziwei Segmentum. This is the will of Ziwei the Great, and those who cultivate in the Ziwei Segmentum must heed it. We hope the Princess will understand,�� Renhuang Chen explained.


    ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy was built by Ye Futian single-handedly. Without Ye Futian, the Heavenly Mandate Academy would not have been possible; I hope the Princess will forgive us.�� Lord Taixuan of the Heavenly Mandate Academy also spoke up. There was no doubt that they were willing to stand by Ye Futian.


    ��We were never part of the Heavenly Mandate Academy; we ended up there only after being threatened by Ye Futian to submit. Now, we are willing to serve the Princess,�� said a dissenting voice. It was none other than the College Chief of the former Tianshen Academy, Jian Ao.


    ��That��s right, we were forced by Ye Futian to be part of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and now we are willing to serve the Princess,�� said another voice. All those remnant forces from the Nine Realms that had surrendered to the Heavenly Mandate Academy now seized their chance to rebel.


    The current situation was turbulent, to say the least. Following Princess Donghuang and serving the Imperial Palace directly was the way to survive in these troubled times. Ye Futian had now offended the Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture beyond repair. His own safety was in jeopardy, and he would have to watch his back at all times. They were no fools, so they knew how to choose.


    ��Shameless beasts,�� Sky River Great Elder rebuked coldly. Instead of killing them back then, their lives had been spared, and they were given a chance to surrender. They never expected them to change their tunes so quickly and decisively now.


    But Ye Futian, who was still above the sky, didn��t feel quite that way. Betrayal was commonplace for these people, and he didn��t really care.


    Emperor Ye Qing was once his greatest secret. Now that it had been revealed, it was fortunate for him to be able to survive the revelation of such news. He had been worried about a day like this for a very long time and didn��t know what outcome to expect. The situation at the moment was far better than what he had ever imagined.


    This was supposed to be a catastrophe.


    ��Very good.�� Princess Donghuang nodded and continued, ��After you return, report to the Empty Imperial Palace.��


    ��Yes, Princess.�� Everyone bowed and nodded, greatly overjoyed in their hearts. It was a stroke of good luck to be rid of Ye Futian and follow the Imperial Palace.


    ��The teacher and my father are old acquaintances. For the sake of the teacher, I will no longer pursue the matters from today.�� Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian, who was high above the sky. She then turned around and looked into the distance as she continued, ��From this day forward, Ye Futian is no longer under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture. All your grievances are yours to resolve independently. In addition, the teacher has already made his stance known today. Since my father has decided not to interfere with his affairs, the teacher will no longer interfere with ours in the future.��


    The words of Princess Donghuang couldn��t be more clear to those cultivators from the various forces of the Divine Prefecture. Those who had been enemies with Ye Futian snickered in their hearts and understood the significance of the Princess��s words. This was no less than a declaration of open season on Ye Futian. What she meant was that the teacher from Four Corner Village could no longer stop them.


    It seemed that the Princess was pretty upset about what has transpired today. After all, Ye Futian openly resisted the imperial order and defied her. In addition, as the only daughter of Donghuang the Great, and with Ye Futian being the successor of Emperor Ye Qing, the two of them were destined to be enemies, fateful opponents.


    Therefore, it was completely reasonable for Princess Donghuang to harbor some grudges toward Ye Futian.


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy did not look so good. From now on, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture would have no more worries about the future. Now, without the Lost Clan, Ye Futian��s strength would be greatly reduced. Once he left the Ziwei Segmentum, he might be hunted by the forces from the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian was still in control of the Ziwei Cultivation Court, as well as the inheritance of several Great Emperors. Now, there was Emperor Ye Qing on top of everything else. So there was no telling how many others would covet what was in Ye Futian��s possession.


    ��Let��s go.�� After having said that, Princess Donghuang gave the order to leave. The cultivators from the Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture left with her just as suddenly as she had spoken.


    People from other top principalities in the Divine Prefecture left with her as well. Without Princess Donghuang here, none of them dared to dawdle any longer in the Ziwei Segmentum. After all, this was the territory controlled by Ye Futian, and in it, even those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path couldn��t best him. If Ye Futian wished to hurt them, it could be very bad for them.


    With shining rays of light, cultivators from all sides withdrew.


    Soon, those who cultivated in the Divine Prefecture disappeared altogether.


    Cultivators from the Human Realm left along with them as well.


    However, the cultivators from the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm were still there.


    At this time, the leader of the Dark World looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Although there were some grievances between Renhuang Ye and us, if Renhuang Ye is willing to enter the Dark Court to cultivate, we will not take any action. Instead, we will protect Renhuang Ye from the persecution of the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��The Empty Divine Realm welcomes you as well.��


    The cultivators from two major worlds were not just actively recruiting Ye Futian but were offering to put aside the many grievances that had appeared between them over the years. This was in spite of the fact that Ye Futian had killed many cultivators of the Dark World.


    He was the successor of Emperor Ye Qing. He was tremendously talented, and he had a Great Emperor standing behind him to boot. He was way too valuable of an asset.


    The point was that Ye Futian and the Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture were now on opposing sides. And because of Emperor Ye Qing, they would be mortal enemies with no possibility of reconciliation. If Ye Futian could be groomed as a weapon to be used against the Divine Prefecture one day, why pass up such a great opportunity?


    Future prospects aside, even Ye Futian now was already a prize with the strength he possessed and the power he controlled.


    Ye Futian glanced briefly at the cultivators from these two major worlds. Obviously, he understood their intentions quite well, so he responded without hesitation. ��Both of you have spoken up for me today. If something unforeseen happens in the future, I will remember what occurred today.��


    Clearly, this was a soft letdown.


    ��In that case, we will be leaving now.�� They didn��t say anything more. They would be watching how Ye Futian planned to engage with the principalities from the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2404 - Abandoned

    After the various forces left, Ye Futian descended from the starry sky. The sky was reconstructed, and the starry dimension disappeared. Myriads of stars disappeared from the sight of the crowd along with the silhouette of Ziwei the Great.


    Ye Futian landed in Ziwei Imperial Palace. Yu Sheng came up behind him. The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the Heavenly Mandate Academy all gathered around him.


    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief now that this ordeal had come to an end. However, they still couldn��t put their worries to rest completely since danger was still lurking.


    Right now, they were besieged on all sides. They had even offended the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture. The forces from the Divine Prefecture would no longer have any scruple about attacking Ye Futian and his allies. The former might even join forces to attack them. Of course, their prerequisite was that Ye Futian and his group left the Ziwei Segmentum. After all, if they chose to attack Ye Futian in the Ziwei Segmentum, they had to be prepared to face annihilation.


    A gentle breeze blew past, and everyone felt a bit chilly. The cultivators stared at Ye Futian silently. Their journey from now on would most likely be arduous.


    The various worlds were in chaos, and they were trapped here with a slim chance of breaking out of this predicament in a short time.


    ��We will temporarily abandon the Heavenly Mandate Academy,�� announced Ye Futian. Immediately, all the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy were overwhelmed with sorrow.


    They had formed deep bonds with the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Unfortunately, they were forced to abandon it now.


    Ye Futian instructed, ��Lord Taixuan, please make a trip to the Heavenly Mandate Academy and make arrangements for the cultivators who are still in the Lower Worlds to come to the Ziwei Segmentum. Then, please destroy the teleportation grand matrix.�� Lord Taixuan nodded. He was aware that in doing so, they would completely sever the connection between the Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Ziwei Segmentum, abandoning their base at the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    All these years, Ye Futian had contributed a lot to the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Original Realm. He had even been crowned the ruler of the Original Realm. However, the continual arrival of various forces in the Original Realm messed up the situation. This recent ordeal further complicated things. Everything had changed.


    Ye Futian was kicked out of the game; he was but an outsider now. He had to desert his base at the Heavenly Mandate Realm and leave the Original Realm temporarily.


    Nobody here questioned Ye Futian��s motive in doing so. All of them were aware that he was forced to make such a decision. The current Heavenly Mandate Academy was a dangerous place to be in. If they chose to remain in the Lower Worlds, they would be attacked at any moment. They would naturally not leave behind the teleportation grand matrix for their enemies to use. After the rest of their members from the academy arrived, they had to destroy the matrix.


    Lord Taixuan swiftly led others to carry out the plan.


    Ye Futian said, ��Right now, the Original Realm has undergone major changes. Cultivators from various worlds had come to the realm. However, all these things do not concern us now. In the coming years, we can only stay and cultivate in the Ziwei Segmentum. Fortunately, there is the starry cultivation court which was left by Ziwei the Great. It is very beneficial for our cultivation. I��ll meditate in the starry cultivation court for a period of time. At the same time, I��ll help everyone here with your cultivation too.��


    Prior to this, he had quite a few allies from the Divine Prefecture. However, after today��s incident, they had left him. After all, all the forces in the Divine Prefecture were under the command of the Donghuang Imperial Palace. Who would dare go against the Donghuang Imperial Palace and support him? Ye Futian himself also did not wish for his friends to do so. If they did so, they would be dragged into this murky mess.


    ��For you, increasing your cultivation plane is indeed the most important matter now,�� said Emperor Nan. Ye Futian was currently a seventh-tier Renhuang. If he cultivated to the ninth-tier and relied on the power of the starry sky in battle, even cultivators of Fang Ru��s level would not be able to withstand his attacks.


    Even if he did not do so, once he cultivated to the peak of the Renhuang Plane and relied on the sacred remains of Shenjia the Great Emperor and the divine guqin of Shenyin the Great, Ye Futian would also certainly be able to unleash even more terrifying might. When the time came, he would no longer be restricted wherever he went. At least when he was against some super-powerful cultivators, he would have more power to defend himself.


    However, the matters of the outside world did not concern them now.


    ��Do you want to cultivate in the Devil World?�� Yu Sheng asked Ye Futian. If Ye Futian went to the Devil World, he would not be restricted by others.


    Ye Futian shook his head. Over transmitted thoughts, he said to Yu Sheng, ��Only we know what happened back then. Now, our identities are unclear. The Devil World might have accepted you because your identity is special. However, it is different for me. No matter what I do, I will need to be more cautious.��


    Yu Sheng did not say anything. He understood that what Ye Futian said was correct. Only the two of them knew what had happened back then. Ye Futian was never considered an heir of Emperor Ye Qing. Yu Sheng��s father had been the one who raised Ye Futian. However, he did not teach Ye Futian any cultivation techniques. He only said that Ye Futian was born an emperor. As for Yu Sheng, he would become Ye Futian��s support.


    Hence, Ye Futian��s identity was definitely not what the outside world imagined it to be. It was not as simple as him being the heir of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Besides that, the way the Devil Emperor treated Yu Sheng, as well as the fact that the Devil Emperor was unwilling to tell Yu Sheng his identity, made him suspicious about his own origins.


    Ye Futian continued advising Yu Sheng, ��Yu Sheng, although I am restricted now, you are from the Devil World so that no one will dare touch you. You can still train in the outside world. The Original Realm has undergone a huge change, and there are various fateful encounters out there. You can venture out and explore with the various cultivators from the Devil World to see whether you can claim some fateful encounters for yourself.�� Yu Sheng nodded his head slightly. A cold look flashed past in his eyes as he said, ��I will investigate those who spread the rumors.��


    Yu Sheng clearly wanted to get back at them.


    They had ulterior motives for intentionally spreading rumors claiming Ye Futian was related to Emperor Ye Qing. They wanted Ye Futian dead.


    ��For now, don��t get into large-scale conflicts with the forces of the Divine Prefecture. Both of us need to keep a low profile. When we are sufficiently powerful in the future, we will not need to worry about being unable to seek revenge,�� said Ye Futian. Yu Sheng was somewhat unsatisfied, but he still nodded his head. However, he thought to himself that if he encountered the members of the Divine Prefecture when he was searching for fateful encounters outside, he would not show them mercy.


    Ye Futian glanced around at the other cultivators and said, ��I am sorry to have troubled all of you with this.��


    ��Palace Lord, we have been cultivating in the Ziwei Segmentum all this while. Now, you have opened up the cultivation court of Ziwei the Great for us. How can this be considered trouble?�� said Renhuang Chen.


    Xiao Dingtian from the Xiao clan said, ��The Heavenly Mandate Academy originally rose to prominence because of you. If it weren��t for you, whether or not we would be able to survive until today in this chaotic world would be up for debate. How can this be considered trouble? The Ziwei Segmentum is much larger than the Nine Realms. It��s pretty nice to cultivate here.�� Others also spoke up. Although their current situation was frustrating, recalling everything that had happened, they knew that Ye Futian had already done good enough as he led them forward.


    ��It is good to cultivate in seclusion for some time. We can improve our abilities,�� added Emperor Nan. They would most likely need to cultivate for quite some time.


    For the foreseeable future, they would not be leaving this place.


    ��Donghuang the Great promised to not meddle in your affairs. Once you overcome the divine tribulation, nothing will be able to stop you from going wherever you want,�� said Fang Gai. He seemed to be comforting Ye Futian.


    ��I understand,�� said Ye Futian as he nodded his head. He glanced over the familiar faces around him. He felt a sense of warmth well up inside him. He still had so many friends standing beside him and supporting him. He had no right to be decadent and slack.


    ��


    In the Heavenly Mandate Realm of the Original Realm.


    News of the war in the Ziwei Segmentum spread. Lord Taixuan led all of the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy away and then destroyed the teleportation grand matrix.


    After that, the cultivators from various forces descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Realm and occupied the ruins of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. They also began to conquer the Heavenly Mandate City.


    All the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm felt a sense of sadness over this incident.


    Had the figure of their faith left the Heavenly Mandate Realm just like that? He had actually been dealt with by the Imperial Palace. An era had ended. The era of Ye Futian was ended by the Imperial Palace.


    No one knew what the fate of the Heavenly Mandate Realm would be. Now, the cultivators here were at the mercy of the other forces. There would most likely be no one like Ye Futian, whose core tenet was to protect the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    At the moment, around the ruins of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, many cultivators had gathered. They were from all corners of the Heavenly Mandate Realm. An old man had brought along a youth. When the old man saw the scene before him, he sighed.


    ��Grandfather, has something happened to Renhuang Ye? Then, who will protect the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the future?�� the youth asked as he looked at the ruins.


    ��No, Renhuang Ye has only left temporarily. He will return in the future,�� replied the old man. However, how many years would it be before the hope of the Heavenly Mandate Realm returned?

 Chapter 2405 - Seclusion

    All the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had migrated to the Ziwei Segmentum. Ye Futian ordered them to build a new Heavenly Mandate Academy in Ziwei Imperial��the main city of the Ziwei Segmentum. This allowed the disciples of the academy, who followed him all the way here, to have a place for meditation. This would hopefully make up for their loss.


    At the same time, the core members of the academy could enter Ziwei Imperial Palace freely. Besides that, they were allowed to use the palace, and even the starry cultivation court, for cultivation.


    Everything proceeded in an orderly manner. After Ye Futian had decided to go into seclusion, he planned to sever the Ziwei Segmentum from the Original Realm. For the next few years, they would quietly cultivate here and stop caring about the matters outside.


    However, several days later, Yu Sheng still brought them some news. It was related to the forces involved in spreading the rumors back then. The Ancient God Clan from the Divine Prefecture was not involved. Instead, the forces involved were the top forces from the Divine Prefecture. On top of that, the Shen clan, Nanhai Family, the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor, and the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor had participated too.


    After these forces learned of the news, they spread it around immediately, ensuring that Princess Donghuang got wind of it. Actually, Princess Donghuang had known about it beforehand. However, she was forced to meddle in the affair by coming to Ziwei Imperial Palace directly after the news had been spread around.


    Ye Futian did nothing after learning the truth, but he kept a list of the forces involved in his mind. The vendetta between the Shen clan and him stemmed from what happened between him and the Shen clan of the Original Realm in the past. His grudges with the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor went without saying. However, he was surprised that the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor was involved in this too. Even though there was some friction between them, Ye Futian had not expected that the other party would want him dead.


    From the looks of it, there were indeed many people in the Divine Prefecture who wished for his death. The ones that he knew were only the forces that made their goal apparent. Many other enemies wanted to kill him.


    Ye Futian did not put much thought into this matter. Now that the ordeal was over, he did not have much to worry about since Hua Jieyu had returned to his side and he had met Yu Sheng. Ye Futian could fully concentrate on cultivating in peace.


    In the starry cultivation court of Ziwei Imperial Palace, there were many cultivators around. After Ye Futian entered the court, he raised his head and glanced at the endless stars in the sky. Hua Jieyu stood beside him quietly. She followed him here, and they prepared to cultivate together for a period of time.


    ��Jieyu, the teachings of the Great Emperor that you acquired are a little bizarre. During our seclusion this time, I want to work on other aspects aside from improving our cultivation planes. We can rely on each other��s cultivation to deepen our understanding of the art of cultivating,�� Ye Futian said gently. There were no secrets between him and Hua Jieyu. The two of them would share what they had mastered separately so that they could improve together.


    ��Hmm,�� Hua Jieyu nodded in agreement. ��I agree.��


    ��However, this time, we might need to cultivate for a long time. I��m afraid that it will be quite boring,�� Ye Futian said while staring at her lovingly.


    ��We have been apart for decades. There was nothing more painful than our separation. With you by my side now, how could I possibly feel bored?�� Hua Jieyu replied softly. The two of them exchanged a glance and smiled. Then, their figures flashed, and they dashed towards the stars.


    A lot of people were staring at their silhouettes. Some were envious of their relationship, while some wished for their happiness. After going through countless challenges, the two could finally be with each other now.


    ��Even though we have just experienced a huge disaster, it might be a blessing in disguise. Fortune and misfortune are two sides of the same coin, after all. Little Brother got rid of one of his worries and can now focus on cultivating. He has Jieyu by his side now too. It can be said that his current situation is rather perfect.�� Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu stood side by side in the sky as they looked at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. A glint of joy flashed in Zhuge Mingyue��s eyes as she said this.


    ��Hmm,�� Gu Dongliu nodded and said, ��Jieyu has been Little Brother��s concern for all these years. Now, he can finally rest his worry and cultivate quietly for a few years.��


    ��Unfortunately, someone else has to suffer,�� Zhuge Mingyue sighed while smiling wryly. Gu Dongliu looked towards a spot down below upon hearing her words. He saw a beautiful silhouette sitting and meditating there quietly. However, she looked somewhat lonely.


    In the starry sky above, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu went to the highest spot. Then, they sat cross-legged in the high heavens while the rest of the cultivators were cultivating down below.


    Not long after, all the stars lit up. Endless starlight shone on Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, causing them to glimmer.


    At the same time, the entire starry cultivation court grew even brighter. Endless starlight rained down, allowing the cultivators beneath to also sense the aura hidden in this place. They could particularly sense the powerful auras hidden in the Imperial Stars as they were showered in starlight.


    Lord Taixuan, Sky River Great Elder, Emperor Nan, Old Ma, and many other cultivators looked at the two silhouettes in the starry sky. Ye Futian was the embodiment of all their hopes. The future of all the cultivators present here depended on him.


    Lord Taixuan and the elders knew that they had little hope of turning the tide themselves. Aside from Ye Futian, most of his companions had also inherited the teachings of the Great Emperors. Ye Futian, along with Yu Sheng, Hua Jieyu, and Gu Dongliu, were the future of this starry world.


    However, they first needed some time.


    ��


    Ye Futian and the others began cultivating in seclusion in the starry cultivation court of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Meanwhile, in the Original Realm, storms were stirring up again. The cultivators of the various worlds were fighting over the fateful encounters that appeared. Regardless if they were relics in the Heavenly Mandate Realm or those that appeared in the Original Realm, all of them were being fought over by the various cultivators.


    The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, the Human Realm, and the Devil World were in constant friction with each other. Many small-scale conflicts erupted between them. However, they were still cautious towards one another. Therefore, no large-scale battles had occurred.


    However, the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm were always ready to move. They wanted to attack the Divine Prefecture many times, yet the Human Realm seemed to lean toward siding with the Divine Prefecture. Hence, these two major worlds had yet to seize the opportunity to start a divine war.


    The Original Realm was still changing rapidly. This was also one of the reasons why the war had yet to erupt. The various forces wanted to pillage more relics to increase their power. For now, no one wanted to face each other head-on.


    Yet, as time passed and there were more and more conflicts between them, many cultivators ended up perishing.


    At the same time, the monstrous Renhuangs with exceptional talent were developing more rapidly than before.


    However, all this seemed unrelated to Ye Futian��s group.


    After several years, in the starry cultivation court of Ziwei Imperial Palace, many cultivators were still cultivating inside. They did not involve themselves with matters of the outside world. They were considered the only top force within the Original Realm that had not participated in the conflict.


    Right then, many people looked up high in the sky. Up in the starry sky, many illusory figures appeared. They were all silhouettes of Ye Futian. They seemed to be everywhere, and each one was as real as the original.


    Buzz.


    Beams of sword light shot across and illuminated the starry sky. The various silhouettes stabbed out at the same time in tens of thousands of permutations.


    Ye Futian was obviously comprehending swordsmanship. Many people were watching from below as he practiced. Everyone seemed to have their own comprehension of what they saw.


    These past years, aside from comprehending the Great Path and increasing his cultivation Plane, Ye Futian also trained in attack techniques. He cultivated a myriad of techniques, many of which were powerful divine techniques passed down from the Great Emperors. However, since they were not his own power, he could not unleash their full potential.


    Hence, he needed to rely on his own ability to comprehend the techniques again in order to better utilize them. He then had to merge them, using his powers of the Great Path to make them even stronger.


    These years, the cultivators in the starry cultivation court witnessed Ye Futian��s growth. It was not just Ye Futian; the others were also improving.


    As the years passed, the outside world changed swiftly without cease. Only within the starry cultivation court did time seem to stop. Ten years felt like a day.


    Just like that, more than ten years went by. It seemed to have passed like the snap of one��s fingers!

 Chapter 2406 - Travelling Far

    It was the year 10080 on the Divine Prefecture Calendar and the 80th year of cultivation for Ye Futian.


    That day, under the starry night sky, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were bathing under the starlight.


    Both of their auras were rich and strong, their bodies shined magnificently, and divine light encircled them. Their planes had become deeper.


    Ye Futian had reached the eighth-level Renhuang Plane. Just one more level and he would be at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. As for Hua Jieyu, she had already reached the ninth-plane after inheriting the Brahma��s Pure Sky Empress��s cultivation and her millions of incarnations. In the ensuing years, she had been stabilizing her cultivation plane, only deepening it when she found the inheritance of a Great Emperor.


    Hua Jieyu had now truly reached peak ninth-level and was entering a bottleneck. If she went up just one more step, she would encounter the Three Tribulations.


    Both of them stopped cultivating. As they watched the numerous figures cultivating under the starlight, all sorts of feelings and thoughts welled up in their hearts.


    ��More than ten years. It��s my first time cultivating for such a long time,�� Ye Futian said softly. He��d never cultivated continuously for so long. But this time, he was forced to do so as he had to raise his power level. Dangers lurked everywhere out there, and many wanted him dead, forcing him to focus on strengthening his powers.


    ��Em,�� Hua Jieyu nodded lightly. It was her first time cultivating for so long as well. Being under this starry sky and bathing under the divine might of a Great Emperor helped with gaining deeper understandings, which made it very suitable for cultivation.


    ��It��s already year 10080 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, and I��m reaching 100 years old soon. Time flies,�� Ye Futian smiled as he spoke.


    ��Yeah, same for me,�� Hua Jieyu smiled as well as she looked toward Ye Futian. They had known each other when it was year 10,000 on the Divine Prefecture Calendar. Back then, they were still teenagers. Now, they were almost 100 years old. It did make one feel a little sentimental.


    Of course, it was extremely rare to have someone reach such a level of cultivation under 100. Their cultivation levels are rising far faster than their age, which made them both look really young. Ye Futian, with his fully white hair, still looked extraordinarily handsome, and his temperament alone would make him stand out in any crowd. He far surpassed his charm as a teenager. Hua Jieyu still looked stunningly beautiful. It was as if she was a Goddess of the Nine Heavens.


    ��Futian, Jieyu,�� Zhuge Mingyue called out. ��Y��all haven��t come down in a while.��


    Beside her, Gu Dongliu��s aura was also starkly different from years ago. Not too long ago, he had reached seventh-level Renhuang Plane. Back then, he received an inheritance from the Demon Realm. Afterward, he received the inheritance of the Imperial Stars under this starry sky. While the opportunities he had encountered couldn��t compare to Ye Futian��s, it far surpassed the vast majority of cultivators in this world. Really, there were really not many who had such chances.


    The cultivation levels of Xiao Muyu, Dou Zhao, Nan Luoshen, and others had also increased significantly. Of course, the one who had improved the fastest was Chen Yi, despite looking as if he never took anything seriously. There was a time when he was at a higher cultivation plane than Ye Futian. Even now, he was still on the same level as Ye Futian, reaching eighth-level Renhuang Plane.


    Since becoming acquainted with Ye Futian in the Donghua Domain, this guy always had a sense of mystery surrounding him. Today, even Ye Futian felt that he couldn��t see through Chen Yi entirely.


    Ye Futian knew that Chen Yi was the same as himself and held some secrets. But he never asked. After all, who didn��t have secrets? Chen Yi had saved his life before and treated him sincerely. To him, that was sufficient.


    ��Em, it was indeed a long cultivation session,�� Ye Futian smiled as he nodded.


    ��Futian,�� Old Ma, Blind Tie, and Lord Taixuan all walked over, and the group gathered together.


    ��Chief Elder, what��s happening outside now?�� Ye Futian asked. Although he hadn��t paid attention to the outside world for more than ten years, Renhuang Chen regularly sought information from out there to be aware of the basic situation.


    ��It��s chaotic out there, but many relics have surfaced. Many of the organizations had made great gains, including Emperor-level inheritance. This turbulent era is the best and the worst at the same time,�� Renhuang Chen said.


    ��Em,�� Ye Futian nodded, opportunities tend to appear in times of chaos.


    ��But, after so many years, many people had left the Original Realm and returned to where they came from. Especially the top forces who had already obtained the relics of Great Emperors. They didn��t dare to stay as they feared being targeted by everyone else, and they knew not to be greedy. As a result, the number of forces in the Original Realm has been gradually decreasing.�� Renhuang Chen continued, ��The conflicts between various worlds never stopped, but they also didn��t launch an all-out war. Perhaps it isn��t time yet.��


    ��How about the Heavenly Mandate Realm? How are they now?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��The situation at the Heavenly Mandate realm isn��t looking good now,�� Renhuang Chen said nonchalantly. Ye Futian had an idea what that meant, so he didn��t ask more about it. Without the Heavenly Mandate Academy, of course the Heavenly Mandate Realm wouldn��t be doing well.


    ��Futian, what are your plans after this? Continue to cultivate and raise your power levels?�� Lord Taixuan asked.


    Ye Futian had already reached the eighth-level Renhuang Plane. Even amongst all Renhuang Plane cultivators, it would be hard to match him equally. But out there, there were many Tribulation Level cultivators and even terrifyingly powerful individuals like Fang Ru.


    They were still a little lacking if they wanted to venture out there. Amongst them, there were no apex-level cultivators to protect Ye Futian.


    ��Nope,�� Ye Futian shook his head. ��After cultivating for so many years, I feel that I��m improving at a slower rate; it must be that I��m encountering a bottleneck. Jieyu had reached peak-level Renhuang Plane and needs an opportunity to break the shackles of the Renhuang Plane. So I would like to travel far.��


    There were still too many dangers in the Original Realm so that they couldn��t venture at ease. Ye Futian was actually planning to leave the Original Realm to travel.


    ��Travel far?�� The cultivators were a little startled. They asked, ��Where?��


    ��First, we��ll visit the Divine Prefecture. I need to return to Four Corner Village for a bit. Afterward, perhaps we will travel to the Western World,�� Ye Futian answered.


    ��The Western World?�� A rather surprised expression appeared on the cultivators�� faces. The Western World was unfamiliar to them, and all they knew was that Donghuang the Great once went there to cultivate. Why would Ye Futian want to go there?


    Behind the crowd, Hua Qingqing��s pretty eyes showed surprise. Could it be because of her?


    Jieyu knew about her, so ye Futian probably knew too, which was why he wanted to travel to the Western World.


    ��Em, the Western World is the safest as well, relatively speaking,�� Ye Futian said. He had never had a conflict with the Western World before, and no one knew about his existence there.


    Of course, other than going out there to experience the world, it was partly because of Hua Qingqing.


    The cultivators nodded. Ye Futian does need to travel far this time.


    ��Master, I��ll go too, ��Xiao Muyu said.


    ��And me.�� Dou Zhao and the others spoke up as well. They all wanted to follow Ye Futian.


    ��We don��t need this many people for the trip this time; it will make us a big target, and that will make the affair rather dangerous. You guys should focus on cultivating and raising your power level to reach the peak of the Renhuang Plane as soon as possible.�� Ye Futian rejected their request; he didn��t plan on taking a lot of people with him.


    ��Uncle Tie and I shall follow you. We can look after you,�� Old Ma said.


    ��Uncle Tie would be good enough. With Hua Jieyu and my current cultivation level, it��s actually already sufficient. Qingqing wants to follow us. That��s why we would need some extra help,�� Ye Futian said. Old Ma didn��t say more. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu��s levels were indeed stronger than anybody else��s now.


    ��Then I��ll follow you guys back to the village. I haven��t seen Little Ling for so long,�� Old Ma said.


    ��Yeah, Little Ling, Fang Cun, and the other kids�� They are probably all grown up by now. With the master teaching them cultivation, they��re probably all pretty strong now,�� Ye Futian smiled as he said.


    ��I��ll go too.�� It was Chen Yi. Ye Futian looked toward him. Chen Yi��s cultivation level was similar to his, so it wouldn��t be a problem.


    ��Since we��re traveling far, before heading to the Western World, could you accompany me somewhere first,�� Chen Yi asked Ye Futian. It was the first time he had spontaneously asked Ye Futian to go there.


    ��Sure.�� Ye Futian nodded without having too many queries. He asked, ��Where do you want to go?��


    ��Divine Prefecture, Great Bright Domain,�� Chen Yi answered.


    ��Great Bright Domain!�� A sense of astonishment appeared in Ye Futian��s eyes. He turned toward Chen Yi and asked, ��You came from the Great Bright Domain?��


    Chen Yi cultivated the Way of Light. Based on that, it was indeed possible that he had come from the Great Bright Domain.


    The Great Bright Domain was one of the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture. However, this domain was unique in that it had an exceptionally glorious history. It was mysterious and ancient. But now, it was said to be the most decrepit domain in the Divine Prefecture. The Great Bright Domain had been ravaged by time to the point that it didn��t even have a ruler-class organization.


    But looking into history, the Great Bright Domain was once the most glorious domain in the Divine Prefecture. Of Course, back then, it wasn��t even known as the Divine Prefecture.


    Instead, it was known as the Divine Bright Domain.


    Chen Yi wanted to go to the Great Bright Domain.


    ��Thank you,�� Chen Yi thanked Ye Futian. He appeared to be rather serious. Ye Futian immediately understood that this was likely one of Chen Yi��s secrets. While he looked like he didn��t take anything seriously, he was likely hiding dark secrets deep down.


    But why did he venture into the Donghua Domain back then?


    ��When are you departing?�� Lord Taixuan asked.


    ��In a few days. I��ll visit my teachers and leave a clone of my consciousness before leaving. Would you please continue with your cultivation? There is no need to worry about me,�� Ye Futian said. It wasn��t a huge deal, so there was no need to be so solemn. After he had made proper arrangements, he would leave straightaway.


    The cultivators nodded, then Ye Futian rose into the air and flew into the starry skies as a magnificent divine light erupted from him. Afterward, the stars shined as many of Ye Futian��s projections appeared. Amongst them was a projection of him sitting in a cross-legged stance under the starry sky. He looked tranquil. It was as if he were merging with the starry sky.


    All these years, no one came to disturb him because no one dared to do so. Ye Futian was able to control the celestial stars of the skies and borrow the Will of the Great Emperor in battle. He was basically invincible in this Segmentum, so who would be so bold to come for him?


    But now that he was leaving, naturally, he had to make some preparations for the unpredictable. After all, he didn��t know how many years this trip would take.


    This wasn��t just traveling far in the conventional sense; he was crossing the entire world!

 Chapter 2407 - Four Youngsters

    After Ye Futian left the Ziwei Segmentum, starlight encircled the entire Segmentum. If one watched the Segmentum from far away in the endless space, it would be as though the whole Segmentum was shrouded in starlight.


    Years ago, the Ziwei Segmentum was sealed inside a rock. When the seal was broken, it formed this Segmentum.


    Before Ye Futian left, he sealed the Segmentum once again using Ziwei the Great��s powers and left a clone of his consciousness inside the Segmentum to control the power of the seals so it wouldn��t get broken easily. Even if the seal were attacked, it would be as firm as a mountain. Only after he had done that did Ye Futian leave, feeling at ease.


    It was as if the whole ordeal in the Original Realm was unrelated to him. At that moment, he stood outside of the whole thing.


    At the Shangqing Domain, Four Corner Village had become a flourishing holy land in the area. Some say that inside the mysterious village of Four Corner City lived a Great Emperor��the master of Four Corner Village.


    When the rumor broke out, the entire Shangqing Domain erupted, and its influence even spread to the Divine Prefecture. Countless cultivators came to came to seek their paths from the master and wanted to enter the village.


    In a tavern inside Four Corner City, many cultivators had appeared here. Atop the tavern building, four young cultivators were chatting around an elegant stone table. All four of them exuded extraordinary temperaments. Below them, several people were standing in respect. There were even several among them who were of higher cultivation levels than the four.


    One of the four young cultivators with short hair spoke. ��You can stop wasting time on us. Master won��t be taking on any more students. However, since Four Corner Village had surfaced before the world, as long as you are willing to become a part of the village and focus on cultivation, you might be able to see the master someday if your performance stands out from the rest.�� After speaking, he released a deep sigh inside. Every year when they came out from the village, the same thing would happen.


    These people didn��t want to follow the rules and become the village��s external force, yet they wanted to meet the master to seek paths. How was that possible?


    ��Third Brother, there is no need to answer them,�� an extraordinarily handsome young man with long hair said. He picked up his glass and took a sip of wine. He was enjoying himself. The sarcasm in his gaze was clear as he looked toward those standing beside them. All of these people were desperate to seek results, everyone knew what they were thinking, and he never bothered paying attention to them.


    ��Yeah. All these years, masters only taught us. What gives them the right to be accepted?�� the only girl among the four cultivators asked softly. She looked graceful and dazzling, and her aura was similarly extraordinary.


    Only the dark, short-haired young cultivator sat in silence. He seemed like a quiet person.


    ��Who��s that?�� Just then, the long-haired young cultivator suddenly turned and looked into the distance. A golden divine light flashed past his eyes. The next moment, a figure appeared before the four of them.


    Instantly, all four of them stood up, which surprised all of the cultivators in the tavern. Who was this person?


    ��It��s Blind Tie,�� someone said softly. Blind Tie was really famous back in the day. Now, he had returned, and his aura was seriously powerful.


    ��Dad!�� the short-haired teen who was addressed as ��Third Brother�� exclaimed. He was the son of Blind Tie��Tie Tou. He was the little boy who had liked to follow Little Ling back then.


    The long-haired handsome youth was Fang Cun, and the only girl was Little Ling. The quiet short-haired teen was the kid who was used to being forgotten in the village��Duo Yu.


    Now, they had all grown up.


    ��Uncle Tie.�� Fang Cun and Little Ling revealed surprised expressions as they stood up. Only Duo Yu stood still in silence.


    ��Come with me,�� Blind Tie said before he flew into the air. All four of the cultivators trailed behind him and flew toward the sky.


    Before long, they saw the four people waiting in front. The silver hair of the person in the middle fluttered in the wind.


    Excitement appeared on the faces of the four young cultivators. They accelerated and flew before Ye Futian. Fang Cun and Little Ling rushed up and called out to him with big smiles on their faces, ��Master, you��re back!��


    ��Master.�� Tie Tou scratched his head a little as a candid smile appeared on his face.


    Only Duo Yu didn��t move; he stood where he was. He bowed toward Ye Futian and greeted him, ��Master.��


    Ye Futian had to take a second look before he could recognize the four of them. The kids were now all grown up.


    The four young cultivators were overjoyed to see him, but the way they expressed it was somewhat different; perhaps it was because of their personalities. Fang Cun was probably the most lively and playful one.


    Ye Futian knocked on Fang Cun��s head and rubbed Little Ling��s head. He then looked at Tie Tou, who had a smile that looked a little silly. All four of them seemed to have the same personality from when they were children.


    ��Duo Yu, no need to be like this when you see me,�� Ye Futian said when he saw that Duo Yu was still bowing.


    Duo Yu was the most pitiful kid among the four. As an orphan, he ate from the tables of all the families in the village, and no one had cared for him.


    ��Yes, Master.�� Duo Yu nodded before standing up straight and looking at Ye Futian. There was a special light in his gaze as he looked at Ye Futian. After all, his life had been changed by Ye Futian. Although the two of them didn��t spend that much time together, little Duo Yu, who grew up eating from other families�� tables, only he knew what Ye Futian appearing back then meant for him.


    ��Fourth Brother, no need to be so demure with Master. Just act natural,�� Fang Cun said, laughing a little.


    Ye Futian looked at him and said, ��What��s this? You guys ranked each other?��


    ��Master, we��re all your students. Of course we need to know who��s the most senior and who��s the most junior. I��m Big Brother, Little Ling is the Second Sister, Tie Tou is the Third Brother, and Duo Yu is the youngest, so he��s the Fourth Brother,�� Fang Cun said.


    Ye Futian looked at him and shook his head, though he felt warmth in his heart. This reminded him of his days cultivating in the Cottage.


    He was the most junior back then, and all his older brothers and sisters in the Cottage cared for him the most.


    ��Master, who are these two Goddesses?�� Little Ling had been paying attention to Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing all along. Little Ling paid special attention to Hua Jieyu, who stood closely beside the master, which made her guess Hua Jieyu��s identity, but she couldn��t be sure. This was because back then, when Ye Futian came to the village, it was with another person.


    ��This is your masteress, and this is a friend of mine. Her name is Hua Qingqing,�� Ye Futian said, smiling.


    Little Ling was startled for a moment before a sweet smile appeared on her face as she said, ��It��s Little Ling��s pleasure to meet masteress. You��re really pretty, just like a goddess. Aunt Hua, you too!��


    ��Since when did you start talking so sweetly?�� Ye Futian said. A gentle smile appeared on Hua Jieyu��s face as she complimented. ��Little Ling is pretty too.��


    ��Thank you, Masteress,�� Little Ling replied, smiling sweetly.


    ��Student Fang Cun. It��s a pleasure to meet Masteress.��


    ��Student Tie Tou. Pleasured to meet Masteress.��


    ��Student Duo Yu. It is a pleasure to meet Masteress.��


    The other three also greeted Hua Jieyu. They were much more serious than when they saw Ye Futian.


    ��No need to be so serious. Just treat me like you would your master,�� Hua Jieyu said, smiling. She felt the respect that the youngsters had for Ye Futian.


    ��Masteress is right. There is no need to act so restrained,�� Ye Futian said. ��Let��s go back to the village.��


    ��Yes.�� Everyone nodded before the group flew into the sky. Before long, they had returned to the Four Corner Village.


    The villagers were all thrilled to see Ye Futian return. As they walked into the village, Little Ling asked, ��Master, why didn��t Grandpa come back?��


    ��Grandpa felt at ease with Master taking care of you guys, so he wanted to stay there and work hard to raise his cultivation level in order to protect you in the future,�� Ye Futian replied and then smiled. Little Ling curled her lips and said, ��Master, I��m not a little girl anymore. I��m a Renhuang too now.��


    A 30-year-old Renhuang��that was indeed outrageous.


    Yet all four of the young cultivators were Renhuangs��100 percent authentic Renhuangs.


    However, their cultivation processes were unique; they were born with paths naturally, fostered by the Great Path, and taught from young by the master. From infancy, their cultivation contained the natural will of the path, which greatly accelerated their pace of cultivation and allowed them to reach their current level today.


    There were no shortcuts to cultivation; however, there were indeed unique individuals in the world.


    From this, it could be seen what Muyun Shu from the Muyun family in Four Corner Village had missed. Back then, Muyun Shu was the leader of the kids in the village.


    After the incident, the master, who was once just a teacher for basic knowledge, started teaching cultivation to Little Ling and the other three.


    ��Master is truly a once-in-a-lifetime figure.�� Ye Futian sighed inside as the group reached the private school.


    ��Master.�� Ye Futian bowed slightly.


    ��Come in,�� said a voice from inside. The group walked inside to the courtyard. Master was sitting there quietly, and his gaze passed over Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Hua Qingqing, and Chen Yi.


    ��You��re all not simple,�� he said softly.


    Ye Futian looked at Jieyu, Chen Yi, and Huang Qingqing, who was beside him. Not simple?


    Jieyu had the Great Emperor��s inheritance on her. Hua Qingqing��s origins were indeed not simple. Chen Yi held some secrets as well. Did the master see through all of that?


    ��Do you have something to do, returning to the village this time?�� Master asked Ye Futian.


    ��Master, we came to say goodbye and also to see the kids,�� Ye Futian said. ��We are planning to make a trip to the Western World. Before that, we��re also going to the Great Bright Domain.��


    ��That��s good.�� Master nodded. ��Rather than being trapped in the Original Realm, it may be good to put everything down and experience the outside world far, far away. You��ve only been to a few places thus far, so the Western World is a pretty good choice.��


    ��Master, we want to go too,�� Fang Cun said.


    ��Yeah.�� Little Ling and Tie Tou nodded as well. Duo Yu also looked toward Ye Futian; it seemed that he was looking forward to it too.


    Ye Futian looked toward the four of them. Just as he was about to reject them, Master said, ��These four youngsters have already learned what they have to learn, yet they haven��t gone outside Four Corner City before. It is indeed time for them to go outside. You should bring them along.��


    The four were all Renhuang Plane cultivators, yet they were all na?ve and simple. Their hearts were pure, and their personalities were as clean as blank pieces of paper. But it was precisely because of this that they had been able to move forward all this while and reach their current standing.


    Now, Master thought that it was time for them to head out.


    As Ye Futian heard Master say so, he hesitated, then nodded, and said, ��All right.��


    The four were all Renhuang Plane cultivators. They would be considered powerful cultivators outside, so he didn��t need to worry much about that. Not to mention, Blind Tie would be there too, so he could take care of them as well. It wouldn��t be a bad idea to bring them out and experience the world!

 Chapter 2408 - Chen Yi’s Secret

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Divine Prefecture was boundless and vast and held n infinite numbers of continental plates.


    The Great Bright Domain was the highest domain inside the Divine Prefecture other than the Imperial City. Located on the east side of the Divine Prefecture, it was a domain that was somewhat peculiar among all 18 domains. Because of its history, the Great Bright Domain was shrouded in mystery and was a destination to explore for many cultivators.


    Furthermore, compared to other domains in the Divine Prefecture, today��s Great Bright Domain had the smallest footprint as a majority of its territory had been divvied up by the other surrounding domains. It was no longer part of the existing Great Bright Domain. Some even claimed that the Great Bright Domain should have never existed.


    Therefore, so many years later, the so-called Great Bright Realm, in fact, was only a single continent. This one remaining continent was what the world referred to as the Great Bright Realm today, which was also called the Great Bright City.


    A domain was a city.


    Naturally, this city was vast and had a mystical allure.


    According to legend, the Great Bright City was actually the Bright Temple, and the entire city was the grounds of the Bright Temple. This was the reason that so many years later, the Great Bright City was shrouded in light and seemed to contain the power of light.


    However, the light was everywhere. Many people had been exposed to the light since the day they were born. It was precisely because it was everywhere that it was more difficult to capture and comprehend. In addition to being born with this kind of ability, the vast majority of the cultivators in the world were unable to perceive the Great Path of Light, let alone comprehend it.


    Chen Yi was the only expert in the Method of Light that Ye Futian had ever seen all these years.


    In the Divine Prefecture, the vast majority of those who cultivated the Method of Light were in the Great Bright City. This was the most suitable place for cultivating the power of light, but it was also the least suitable place for anyone who cultivated and comprehended other Great Paths.


    At this time, in the void outside the Great Bright Domain, a group of people was traveling through the void between the clouds and the mists. There were nine people altogether in this group. Under them was a flying boat flashing with golden light. It contained a mighty spatial power of the Great Path. It took them shuttling through the space constantly, moving through the clouds and mist.


    These nine were none other than Ye Futian and his entourage.


    Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Hua Qingqing, Chen Yi, Blind Tie, and four other youngsters, including Fang Cun.


    ��Almost there.�� At this time, on the flying boat, Chen Yi spoke up while still looking into the distance. He had always been somewhat of a jokester. He appeared sober and serious right now as he watched the brilliant light that was falling from the sky far away.


    ��No wonder it��s called the Great Bright Field,�� Ye Futian whispered. The light came down from the firmament, and it was visible to the naked eye. It was something extremely magical. It was enough to distinguish that continent from other areas. It seemed as if it was an independent world of its own. No one had any idea what kind of force was capable of causing such a vision.


    ��Are you from here?�� Ye Futian asked Chen Yi, who was next to him.


    ��Mmm,�� Chen nodded. ��I grew up here when I was a child. The light falling from the sky can make one perceive the power of light much more clearly. I have been able to perceive the existence of light since I was a child, and this type of light was nurturing to my body.��


    ��That explains the Illumining Body of the Great Path you possessed.�� Ye Futian looked at Chen Yi and continued, ��So, who are you?��


    Obviously, Chen Yi was more than he appeared.


    ��Who am I?�� Chen Yi smiled, a little self-deprecating. ��That blind man said that I was born to be extraordinary, but I never felt anything close to it myself. For many years, I have been accustomed to being alone by myself. I��m nothing special.��


    Chen Yi��s statement revealed a lot to Ye Futian; it seemed that Chen Yi was someone with a story.


    ��Then, why did you go to the Donghuang Domain?�� Ye Futian asked out of curiosity. The Great Bright Domain was actually quite a ways away from the Donghuang Domain. Chen Yi had gone over there in the early phases of becoming a Renhuang for unknown reasons.


    ��Because someone asked me to go,�� Chen Yi smiled and said, watching the area where bright lights were sprinkling down.


    Ye Futian didn��t quite understand what he meant. Did someone ask him to go?


    Who was it that had asked Chen Yi to go to the Donghuang Domain? It didn��t seem that he had achieved any major feats in the Donghuang Domain. Instead, he ended up escaping with him later and came along all this way.


    But Chen Yi didn��t seem to want to continue discussing this topic. He was still looking into the distance when he suddenly asked, ��Do you believe in fate?��


    Ye Futian looked pensive when he heard Chen Yi��s question. Fate?


    Why would Chen Yi ask him that?


    ��To a certain extent.�� Ye Futian nodded and continued, ��When I was a teenager, I knew an astrologer who was able to glimpse into the future.��


    ��I don��t, not really,�� Chen Yi said, his eyes moved away and redirected on Ye Futian. He smiled, ��However, even if I don��t much believe it, I still want to try it.��


    ��I don��t understand,�� Ye Futian said. He didn��t really understand what Chen Yi meant by that.


    ��Perhaps you will later,�� Chen Yi smiled and said. ��As for now, I can��t tell you.��


    Ye Futian looked slightly puzzled. He felt that today Chen Yi seemed to be speaking in riddles. His words were not transparent at all.


    What kind of secret was Chen Yi hiding?


    What was it that he wanted to say?


    The flying boat was still moving forward, shuttling through the void. Although they could see the place of light from afar, they were, in fact, still quite a distance away from there. The light scattered upon the world, covering the Great Bright Domain, rendering it much brighter than they ever imagined possible. Therefore, even though they could see it, they were actually still very far away.


    After a while, the flying boat broke through the clouds and mist and finally came to the Great Bright Domain.


    In the void, there was no mist or clouds��only the light that shone from the infinite source.


    Ye Futian stretched out his hand, and he could see the light shining on his hand with his naked eyes. This world was much brighter than any place he had ever been. When the light was shining on his body, he could feel something miraculous. Probably it was exactly as Chen Yi had described��someone could only be born with this kind of light power.


    ��Where are we going?�� Ye Futian asked Chen Yi.


    ��This Great Bright Domain used to be just a city, but it was, in fact, the territory of the Bright Temple. In this city, it was rumored that the ruins of the Bright Temple are there, and that��s where we are heading.�� Chen Yi said, ��Keep going. I will give you directions.��


    ��Do the ruins of the Bright Temple really exist?�� Ye Futian said with some doubt. ��If so, how many people came here over the years to try to find the ruins of the Bright Temple?��


    ��Are you asking me?�� Chen Yi shrugged and said, ��But you are right. Over the years, there have been many people who came in search of its ruins. Even the Domain Chief��s Manor guarding the Great Bright Domain was built close to the ruins for obvious reasons. However, no one has ever succeeded in finding the ruins, so who knows whether it exists or not.��


    ��Then, why did you ask me to come here with you?�� Ye Futian asked, and this question seemed to touch the heart of the matter at hand.


    Chen Yi looked at him and smiled, ��Because somebody believes in it!��

 Chapter 2409 - Blind Chen

    To the east of the Great Bright City, there was the land of the ruins. This area was fairly large, and people often came to explore it.


    At the far end of the ruins, there was a door. From the other side of the door, it was clear that some light seemed to be coming through the cracks, illuminating the ruins.


    This door was rather interesting. It was transparent in nature, but behind the door, there seemed to be more ruins; it was as if a small world existed beyond this door.


    Some had walked through that door before, but many who had walked through that door were blinded by the light inside. Some also tried to destroy the door but found they were unable to do so. Some of these people who tried were incredibly powerful, but all to no avail.


    Perhaps, because of the peculiarity of this door, many were convinced that these ruins were once the site of the Bright Temple.


    According to the legends, this door was called the Portal of Light.


    It had been said that all those in the temple must walk through it to experience the baptism of the light before they could become a part of the Bright Temple.


    Around the site of these ruins, many cultivators were gathering. However, in the many years that had gone by, these ruins had been explored over and over again, searched every which way possible. Any treasures that had once existed, no doubt, had long disappeared many, many years ago.


    If it weren��t for that door, no one would even entertain the notion that this was the site of the Bright Temple.


    Even so, in the Great Bright City, fewer and fewer people believed in it. On the contrary, this seemed to affirm the beliefs in a few very powerful principalities, and it was them that had been guarding and waiting in the surrounding area of the ruins.


    There was only this one city inside the Great Bright Domain, and the top forces in the Great Bright City spread out from the site of the ruins around the general area. It could be said that these dilapidated ruins were the absolute center of the Great Bright City.


    At this time, on the remains of these ruins were several young men and women with extraordinary temperaments standing there, looking at the Portal of Light.


    ��Does this door really lead to the light?�� a woman whispered. Her body was surrounded by a halo of Great Path brilliance, indicating that she was an existence in the Renhuang Realm.


    ��Who knows? But that��s what the elders have always said, so it must be true,�� the young man next to her replied solemnly.


    ��Perhaps they were wrong.�� The woman shook her head. ��In the past few years, the Original Realm has changed drastically, attracting cultivators from all over the world. Countless from the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture have gone to the Original Realm. There are even rumors that the changes between heaven and earth started in the Original Realm. Only the Great Bright City seems to have been isolated from everyone else in the Divine Prefecture. What��s the point of guarding these ruins just because of something that the blind man said?��


    ��Unless of course because the elders really believe that one day the Bright Temple will reappear here again?��


    ��At least the blind man from Chen��s Garden believes in it deeply,�� a slightly older cultivator next to them added. He appeared to be around 30 years or so, and there was a divine aurora hidden within his eyes.


    ��Can Blind Chen��s words be trusted?��


    The woman looked dumbfounded. ��Everyone in the Great Bright City has always said that Blind Chen is blind but can see the light. Just what is so special about him that so many people believe in what he said? As a blind man, can he really see the light?��


    ��Maybe. At least for these many years, no one in the Great Bright City has ever touched Blind Chen, and they all hold a certain respect for him. I do not know why, but those able cultivators must have their reasons,�� the person next to her joined in.


    A look of disdain flashed through the woman��s eyes, and there was some arrogance on her face.


    ��The Original Realm is the center of impending changes between heaven and earth, but the elders don��t care one bit. Just a word from Blind Chen and the entire Great Bright City will be destroyed by the ruins.�� The woman��s tone was mocking. She glanced at the Portal of Light ahead and said, ��Since the elders won��t, I will ask Blind Chen myself whether his words are true or not.��


    The people then looked at her, and they could see a hint of pride on her face. They all knew that the woman had wanted to go to the Original Realm when she heard that many top figures of the world had embarked on a journey there. These cultivators of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture and other cultivators from other worlds had uncovered many relics in the land of the Original Realm, all of which were events that she greatly desired to witness.


    But because of something Blind Chen said 20 years ago, the entire Great Bright City fell into a state of suspense, and no one dared to leave. Everybody stayed to guard and watch the ruins.


    No one ever questioned his words. But today, she wanted to ask him.


    How could a blind man see the light?


    ��Don��t be hasty.�� The person next to her exhorted, ��If they can, the elders must have done it a long time ago. Everyone in the Great Bright Domain believes in it, so there must be a reason.��


    ��So the light will descend, and the Divine Relic will reappear?�� The woman smiled sarcastically with a degree of contempt. Something Blind Chen said 20 years ago was why the cultivators of the Great Bright Domain waited for over two decades, including her own family. Because of it, they had missed the grand occasion at the Original Realm.


    At this time, in the void not far away was a flying boat, floating there silently, not disturbing anybody.


    Ye Futian and the others stood on top of the flying boat and glanced at the ruins ahead. He then put away the flying boat implement. ��These must be the ruins of the Great Bright Temple that Chen Yi was speaking of,�� he decided silently. He didn��t expect that the place would be so broken that only a single door was left intact.


    However, this door seemed a little interesting as light was emitted from behind it, suggesting that there was a world hidden behind the door.


    Ye Futian glanced at the woman speaking before them, then looked at Chen Yi next to him. But Chen Yi was expressionless; it was as if he hadn��t heard anything the woman was saying.


    Ye Futian remembered that on their way over, Chen Yi had mentioned that a blind man once told him that he was meant to be extraordinary. He wondered if the blind man named Chen that the woman was referring to was just a coincidence or if the blind man they talked about were one and the same.


    ��20 years ago?�� Ye Futian thought. It was some 20 years ago when Chen Yi met him in the Donghua Domain.


    ��That blind man is the same as he was before, fond of speaking nonsense,�� Chen Yi said in a low voice with a cold expression in his eyes. He seemed to be full of contempt for the blind man he referred to.


    As if they had heard what he said, those few people in the front turned to look at them. They could feel that Ye Futian and his party were unusual. The woman smiled and said, ��You too think that blind man was an imposter?��


    Chen Yi looked at the woman and asked, ��Who are you?��


    ��Lin Xi of the Lin family,�� the woman said.


    ��The Lin family?�� Chen glanced at the woman with indifference in his eyes and said, ��I can chastise that blind man, but who the heck are you?��


    ��You���� The woman��s expression altered slightly as coldness shot out from her eyes. Ye Futian was also caught by surprise. It seemed that what Chen said was different from what he thought!

 Chapter 2410 - The Blind Man Welcomes a Guest

    When Chen Yi was talking about the blind man, he did not seem to mind. However, when he heard other people hurling insults at the blind man, his attitude immediately changed. It was clear that he still respected Blind Chen very much.


    Ye Futian was curious about the identity of Blind Chen and what his relationship with Chen Yi was.


    Lin Xi from Lin clan glanced over at Chen Yi. There was a cold look in her eyes. She walked towards where Chen Yi was. The youths beside her also looked towards Ye Futian��s group. They had not seen these people before. They probably weren��t cultivators from the top forces of Great Bright City.


    There was only one city in the Great Bright Domain. The strongest forces were all in this region. This was different from other domains. The members of the local forces had seen each other before and could recognize each other at a glance. However, they did not recognize any of these people.


    ��Who are you?�� asked Lin Xi as she gave Chen Yi an indifferent look.


    Chen Yi swept a cold and arrogant glance at her and replied, ��You are not worthy of knowing.��


    The expression of the group of cultivators of the Lin clan changed slightly. Although these people had yet to unleash their auras, and they could not sense their overall cultivation levels, this group of cultivators had extraordinary temperaments. They should be very powerful. Otherwise, the members of the Lin clan would have already attacked Ye Futian��s group.


    Even so, their Lin clan was still a top force of Great Bright City. This person was putting on airs and looked down on other people. Wasn��t he being too presumptuous?


    A slightly older youth from the Lin clan flicked the hair on his forehead. The aura of the Great Path flowed around his body. He was actually a sixth-tier middle-level Renhuang. His aura was astonishing. The domineering aura permeated the space as it swept towards Ye Futian and his group. He said, ��In Great Bright City, no one is too mighty to be known by the cultivators of the Lin clan.��


    After he said this, a powerful aura of the Great Path burst forth from his body. Invisible Sword Will circulated in the space, causing a killing intent to loom over the surroundings. The formless Sword Will was everywhere. Ye Futian and his group could sense it clearly. With such a short distance between the two parties, the cultivator could launch an attack at them with a mere thought.


    ��You better not attack,�� warned Chen Yi as he cast a glance at the youth. He still had not unleashed his aura of the Great Path. Arrogance flashed in his eyes as though he was looking down on that cultivator of the Lin clan.


    It seemed like he did not take the other party seriously.


    Chen Yi��s attitude caused the pressure of the aura of the Great Path unleashed by the cultivator of the Lin clan to increase. The formless Sword Will howled impatiently as though it would erupt at any second. His gaze was dead fixed on Chen Yi as his palm extended forward slightly. He wanted to attack, but he was a little fearful of Chen Yi��s overbearing confidence.


    The space appeared exceptionally suppressive at the moment.


    A few other cultivators of the Lin clan also unleashed their wills. They stared at the group before them intently. Even though Chen Yi had not said much, his demeanor was presumptuous. He clearly did not take the Lin clan seriously.


    Chen Yi was not the only reason the youth was holding himself back from attacking. The gaze of the white-haired youth beside Chen Yi was too calm. This calmness originated from unwavering confidence. There was also the blind man who stood behind them. He was merely standing there quietly, but his presence alone was enough to suppress the others.


    This group of people was most likely a powerful foreign troop. Since the group refused to unleash their auras of the Great Path, the youth had no way of figuring them out.


    Buzz. Right at this moment, a beam of light shot up to the sky somewhere in the distance. The light was actually more brilliant than any other lights in the heavens and the earth. It was akin to a light that could illuminate Heaven itself.


    This scene caused the cultivators who had gathered here to reveal surprised expressions. All of them looked in that direction.


    ��It��s from Old Street,�� someone mumbled.


    ��That��s where Blind Chen lives,�� another person whispered. What was going on?


    Soon, another beam of light shot towards where they had come from. It was like a bridge made of light that extended all the way here from Old Street. The light shone on the ground. Aside from where they were, there seemed to be similar lights shining on other locations.


    At this moment, in Great Bright City, many cultivators from the large clans raised their heads and looked in the direction where the lights were shining. They expanded their wills and soon figured out the source of these beams of light.


    The blind man was welcoming a guest.


    Somewhere, a middle-aged cultivator commanded with a deep and rich voice, ��Go and find out who is the guest that Blind Chen is welcoming.��


    One by one, cultivators rose into the sky from various locations in Great Bright City. They were all rushing towards the same destination.


    Over at the ruins, Chen Yi looked in the direction where the light came from and mumbled, ��It��s Blind Chen.��


    After he said this, he ignored the cultivators from the Lin clan and left immediately. He moved towards where the light came from by traversing across the sky. Ye Futian and his group naturally followed after Chen Yi. The cultivators from the Lin clan watched them leave and still did not attack.


    ��Our clan members will most likely head over there too. Let��s go and check it out,�� the leader of their group said. Lin Xi��s gaze was cold as he continued to stare in the direction where Ye Futian and his group had gone.


    ��


    Old Street of Great Bright City was a narrow alley. An old mansion stood there. It appeared somewhat shabby, but it was still quite clean and tidy.


    A rather famous figure in Great Bright City resided in this mansion. He was Blind Chen. Some people crowned him Chen the Diviner.


    Chen the Diviner had never revealed his cultivation in front of anyone. No one knew his cultivation plane. He was just like any other ordinary, old, blind man. However, rumor has it that he had been living for many years. This set him apart from other people.


    The mighty figures in Great Bright City respected Blind Chen because his appearance remained the same throughout the years. He looked exactly the same now as he did when those mighty figures were still in their youths.


    Rumor has it that Blind Chen was a mighty astrologer. He could read fortunes and pry into the past and the future.


    However, this rumor had yet to be verified. No one could tell for sure whether or not it was true. It was because Blind Chen had never read anyone��s fortune before. Throughout the years, many people sought him for fortune-telling, but he refused to even meet them. Some people claimed that he did not dare to reveal God��s design for fear of dying early.


    Yet, more than 20 years ago, Blind Chen once said that light would descend upon them; the divine relic would appear once again.


    The people of Great Bright City treated Blind Chen��s words as a prophecy. Since then, various major clans and forces stationed in the city had never left this place before. Even when the Original Realm went through huge changes and the cultivators in the Divine Prefecture were called to assemble, they chose to remain here. They were all waiting for the prophecy to be fulfilled.


    They had waited for more than 20 years.


    Some people asked Blind Chen about the prophecy before, but he didn��t respond to them. After so many years, more and more people were suspicious about the validity of the prophecy. One of them was Lin Xi from the Lin clan. She did not believe in Blind Chen at all. In her opinion, he had deceived the crowd with a lie, causing them to miss out on an opportunity.


    She believed that opportunities awaited in the Original Realm. However, fortune and misfortune were two sides of the same coin. How many people had actually managed to obtain fateful encounters in the Original Realm?


    The seniors in Great Bright City most likely had their own considerations too.


    However, after more than two decades, the old mansion inhabited by Blind Chen finally showed signs of activity again.


    Currently, a beam of light shot up to the clouds from inside the old mansion. The door of the mansion was wide open. Beams of light radiated outward as though they were paving paths of light. Cultivators from all corners of the city arrived at the mansion by following the light trails.


    Was the prophecy he proclaimed more than two decades ago true or false?

 Chapter 2411 - An Honorable Guest?

    Cultivators gradually gathered in front of the old mansion. These cultivators all had extraordinary temperaments and were disciples from large clans.


    The Great Bright Domain was called the Divine Bright Domain in the past. It had passed its heyday and had now become one of the weaker domains among the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture. Moreover, the domain only consisted of one city. However, due to its glorious past, there were still quite a number of powerful forces residing in the current Great Bright Domain.


    ��The blind man has opened his doors,�� commented someone. At Old Street, many people stared at the light that was still radiating outwards from within the wide-open doors. Their hearts trembled. Throughout the years, the doors were shut most of the time.


    Now, the doors were open. Who was the guest that Blind Chen was about to receive?


    Was this related to the prophecy that he proclaimed 20 years ago?


    In the sky above Old Street, many silhouettes appeared. Their gazes landed on the old mansion too. These cultivators who had just arrived were people from different factions. They each occupied a spot in the sky.


    Ye Futian and his group arrived as well. They stood in the sky above Old Street as they observed the mansion. Ye Futian cast a glance at Chen Yi, who was beside him. Judging from Chen Yi��s response, he was most likely acquainted with Blind Chen. Moreover, their relationship was special.


    Was the beam of light that shot out from this mansion related to Chen Yi?


    As expected, Chen Yi looked towards the inside of the mansion with a conflicted look. He said with a low voice, ��Blind Man, I��m back.��


    ��Is this your home?�� Ye Futian asked softly.


    Chen Yi revealed a puzzled expression. Home? Did he have one?


    Who knows.


    Chen Yi had been calling him Blind Man since he was young. However, he was indeed raised by Blind Chen.


    ��I��ll go in and take a look first,�� Chen Yi said to Ye Futian and the rest.


    ��Go ahead,�� Ye Futian said while nodding. He was aware that Chen Yi had a special relationship with the owner of this mansion.


    Alone, Chen Yi walked forward and entered the doors. Immediately, countless gazes landed on him. The crowd revealed strange expressions. Someone asked right away, ��Who is he?��


    The various cultivators revealed puzzled looks. They were not sure; they had not seen this person before.


    Chen Yi entered the old mansion. Nothing happened after he entered. This caused the crowd to reveal even more bizarre expressions.


    Blind Chen actually allowed people to enter the mansion just like that?


    ��Many years ago, Blind Chen once took in a youth. The youth was dressed in rags and was filthy. However, Blind Chen still took good care of him. Do you all still remember this?�� Just then, a middle-aged man said this as he stood in the sky.


    A few elderly cultivators nodded and said, ��That��s right. Back then, there was also a rumor that someone saw light coming from the body of the filthy youth.��


    ��That��s right.��


    In different locations, one by one, people began recalling that there had been such a youth before.


    Someone claimed, ��I saw it with my own eyes before. I still remember that when I saw the light on his body back then, I was astonished. After that, I never saw him again. He seemed to have been hidden away by Blind Chen.��


    Down below, the group from the Lin clan also arrived. Lin Xi personally saw Chen Yi enter the mansion. She immediately understood why Chen Yi had such a huge reaction just now. So, he actually already knew Blind Chen and was raised by him.


    From the looks of it, the youth was Chen Yi without a doubt.


    Lin Xi lifted her head and looked in one direction. She discovered that the cultivators of the Lin clan had also arrived. Her group took to the sky and walked over to where the latter was. She then informed the seniors in a low voice about what had transpired before their arrival.


    ��Father, does the clan actually believe that Blind Chen can see the light and predict the future?�� asked Lin Xi incredulously.


    Her father shook his head and answered, ��No one knows. However, there is indeed more to Blind Chen than meets the eye. He has lived in Great Bright City for many years. When I was young, Blind Chen was already as he is now, and he is still around today.��


    ��Cultivators do have very long lifespans. What��s so strange about that?�� asked Lin Xi. ��Once one reaches the Renhuang Plane, they will live as long as the heavens and the earth.��


    ��Maybe,�� the middle-aged man replied indifferently. Lin Xi lowered her head and glanced down below. She then said, ��All the cultivators in the Great Bright Domain have wasted more than 20 years because of what he said. Until now, we are still waiting. I don��t understand.��


    When the middle-aged man heard what she said, he looked at the old mansion with a cold and indifferent gaze. What she said was true. After more than 20 years, where were the light and the divine relic?


    ��Today, we need to get a straight answer from Blind Chen,�� he said in a low voice.


    ��What��s the matter? Lin Kong, do you not trust the old diviner?�� another middle-aged man said loudly as he looked at Lin Xi��s father. This person was dressed in a long, blue robe. He was tall and had exceptional cultivation. He simply stood there and gave off the airs of an authoritative figure.


    This person was the current family head of the Lan family, a top force of Great Bright City. He had powerful cultivation and was a Renhuang at his peak.


    ��It is not that I do not trust him. It is just that, after more than 20 years, the old diviner should give us an explanation,�� replied Lin Kong in a deep voice.


    ��You can ask the old diviner personally later,�� the Lan family head answered with a smile. In another location, there stood a group of cultivators. They were adorned in long robes as red as flames. The mark of a red maple leaf was also carved on their bodies. Faint scorching currents of heat could be seen emanating from their figures.


    The leader of this group was a cultivator who appeared rather young. He was extraordinarily handsome, and his face was chiseled and well-defined. Although scorching heat currents were emanating from his body, he gave off a cold and arrogant air.


    He was Yu Hou from the Yu family. He was the cultivator with the most outstanding talent in the family. Aside from the sun flare, he also comprehended the Method of Light. Although he was just an eighth-tier Renhuang for now, the family head of the Yu family, who was Yu Hou��s father, had already begun to let him handle family matters.


    In another location, there stood a group of cultivators dressed in white robes. Their temperaments were outstanding, giving off an otherworldly vibe. This group of people was not from a major family. They were from a sect, the only sect in Great Bright City.


    Seven Stars Mansion was established by a prominent figure many years ago. The chief of Seven Stars Mansion had unfathomable cultivation and rarely made an appearance in public.


    Even today, the Seven Stars Mansion chief was not here. His seven disciples had come instead. They were the Seven Star Lords of Seven Stars Mansion. Each of them had very powerful cultivation. Their leader was currently the most exceptional cultivator in the sect, the head of the Seven Star Lords, Seven-Night Star Lord.


    Lin clan, Lan family, Yu family, and Seven Stars Mansion were currently the four strongest forces in Great Bright City.


    Of course, aside from them, several other forces had arrived. They were spread out across the region. However, they did not stand out as much as these four major forces.


    ��Since the old diviner has opened his doors to welcome a guest today, he will naturally solve the riddle that he left behind 20 years ago,�� said Seven-Night Star Lord. The rest cast a glance at him and ignored his words. They continued to stare at the old mansion intently.


    Today, Blind Chen welcomed a guest by showering the entire Great Bright City with light. All of them wanted to know who exactly Blind Chen was waiting to receive.


    Just as the crowd was discussing the matter, two figures emerged from the old mansion. The surroundings fell silent immediately. Everyone had their gazes on the entrance.


    Then, they saw two people emerging from the doors. One of them was Chen Yi, who had entered the mansion just now. The other person was blind and wore ragged clothes. He held a crutch in his right hand. He appeared no different than an ordinary, disabled old man. The crowd could not sense any aura from him. He was in his twilight years and looked like he would pass away at any moment.


    His long, white hair appeared somewhat unkempt. Besides that, he kept a long white beard. He looked as though he had not tidied his hair for years. With his appearance, he looked nothing like an erudite master. However, despite his shabby appearance, his body was squeaky clean. There was not even a single speck of dust on his ragged clothes.


    He was sloppy but not dirty!


    ��Greetings, Old Diviner.�� The heads of the Lin clan and Lan family were more polite. Even though they were standing in midair, they bowed slightly in the direction where Blind Chen appeared. However, Yu Hou and the Seven Star Lords from Seven Stars Mansion were not so courteous. Yu Hou stood there unbudgingly and said, ��The old master has finally come out from seclusion.��


    ��How can I not come out? There��s an honorable guest arriving today.�� Blind Chen took a few steps forward with the help of his crutch before he finally said something. Even though his voice was not loud, everyone around could hear him clearly.


    ��Is he related to the prophecy that you proclaimed 20 years ago?�� asked Lin Kong, the head of the Lin clan.


    ��Yes,�� replied Blind Chen. He actually admitted it right away. This caused the surrounding cultivators to turn serious. The guest was actually related to the prophecy.


    Furthermore, this was the first time Blind Chen validated any information related to the prophecy. From the looks of it, with the arrival of this extraordinary figure, the ruins of the Bright Temple might reveal itself once again.


    ��Who is this honorable guest that you are referring to?�� Lin Kong further inquired.


    Blind Chen held onto his crutch and continued to move forward in a certain direction. Everyone was observing where he was heading.


    Ye Futian still stood at his spot silently. When he saw Blind Chen moving towards him, he couldn��t help but reveal an astonished expression.


    Was he the honorable guest that Blind Chen mentioned?


    Even though Ye Futian had just arrived here along with Chen Yi, based on the intel that he briefly gathered, Blind Chen was not an ordinary old man. Even the top Renhuangs here crowned Blind Chen as Chen the Diviner. A person like him had no reason to welcome Chen Yi��s friend with such fanfare. Blind Chen even caused such a huge commotion with his exceptional hospitality.


    Moreover, Blind Chen mentioned that this guest was related to the prophecy.


    It was precisely because of this that Ye Futian felt somewhat strange. Something was off.


    Had Blind Chen been waiting for him?


    The things that Chen Yi said to him before this were also rather baffling. Why did he feel like his encounter with Chen Yi back then was not just a coincidence?

 Chapter 2412 - Catastrophe of Death

    Blind Chen walked to Ye Futian. He was leaning on a cane. Although he was blind, he seemed to be able to see him somehow. When he was facing Ye Futian, Blind Chen put his hands together to greet him and said, ��The blind man welcomes you, my young friend.��


    Ye Futian hurriedly returned the courtesy and responded, ��You are too kind, sir.��


    He didn��t ask him why he was getting special treatment, as everyone��s eyes were on them at this moment. It was neither the time nor place to ask any questions.


    At this time, all the cultivators around them were looking at them. Or rather, they were concentrating on Ye Futian.


    In the crowd, some of the older folks had lived for many years. Blind Chen had appeared the same for many years now. Moreover, Blind Chen was cold to everyone; nobody had ever seen him give anyone this kind of treatment, welcoming someone personally.


    Now, an outsider had made Blind Chen step out of that old house and bow to greet him. Who was this white-haired young man?


    Furthermore, Blind Chen claimed that this had something to do with the prophecy. Could it be that this cultivator was the key to opening the Relic of Light?


    This man seemed to have come back with Chen Yi. Was it because Blind Chen had already foreseen it, so he had asked Chen Yi to find him?


    At this moment, everyone was full of curiosity about Ye Futian.


    ��My young friend, you have come from afar. Please come to my humble abode to rest awhile,�� Blind Chen said to Ye Futian in a polite and friendly tone. Obviously, Ye Futian could not possibly refuse such a gesture, so he nodded and said, ��I would be more than happy to oblige.��


    Blind Chen nodded. Then, almost as if he were making an announcement to those faraway, he said, ��Since there are distinguished guests here today, I don��t have much time to entertain everyone so that I won��t keep you any longer. Please feel free to return to your homes at your convenience.��


    With that said, he led the way with the help of the cane and walked in the direction of the old house. Chen Yi followed him but turned back to take a glance at Ye Futian.


    At this time, Ye Futian was still full of questions. However, he followed behind Blind Chen, figuring that he could ask questions later.


    Nonetheless, the many cultivators that had gathered around frowned. So, was he hoping to dismiss them just like that?


    Today, cultivators from all major principalities had come with a purpose. Now, with the emergence of a mysterious young man who may have something to do with the Relic of Light, they felt they must get to the bottom of the matter.


    At this moment, a ray of light came down, carrying a fiery current with it. It was Yu Hou. This unexpected presence stopped Blind Chen and the others dead in their tracks. When they looked to the sky above, they saw Yu Hou looking cold and arrogant as he looked down and said, ��Who is this man, and what does he have to do with the ruins at the Temple of Light? How are we to interpret the prophecy? It is a rare occasion that drew all the cultivators from the Great Bright City here today. It is a perfect time for our questions to be answered.��


    ��Yes, everyone is here today, so why don��t you say a few words to let us know what is going on? And who is this young man in white?�� Lin Kong, the head of the Lin family, added. How could they leave without some explanation from the blind man?


    ��You will understand in the future. There��s no rush,�� Blind Chen said lightly. After a brief pause, he continued moving forward without any intention of stopping. He did not intend to explain anything to anyone else.


    Watching him walking towards the old house, everyone around him frowned, displeasure in their eyes.


    When the light appeared today, the blind man came out to greet the guests but didn��t even bother to speak to them before sending them on their way?


    At this time, a figure in the void descended from the sky, followed that beam of light, and landed above the old house.


    She simply stood there, watching Blind Chen and the others.


    ��Lin Xi, don��t be rude,�� in the void, the clan leader of the Lin family chastised her. However, next to Lin Xi, a few more people were descending as well. It was the same group of people that had quarreled with Chen Yi and the others at the site of the ruins.


    However, the cultivators who descended later did not bother to stop Lin Xi but hovered and watched her. Obviously, they had some ideas of their own.


    These later generations of Renhuang were egotistical individuals who held themselves in high regard. They had never understood the tolerance the elders exhibited to a blind man.


    Today, they wanted to find out why��no matter the cost.


    Even though Lin Kong had chided them on the surface, he didn��t order anyone to stop them. Obviously, he also had the thought of pushing the matter further.


    Blind Chen had overstepped his boundaries. For more than 20 years, he had never given them an explanation.


    ��Elder is well known by all, and I heard that the elder can predict the events of past and future, as well as prophesizing and predicting events not yet known. May I ask the elder to predict my future today so I see for myself?�� Lin Xi asked while looking at Blind Chen. Her words were respectful enough, but her tone was not all that kind.


    There was even a sharp Sword Will flowing upon her as if it might break out of her body at any moment and attack Blind Chen.


    Blind Chen raised his head slightly and faced in Lin Xi��s direction.


    Chen Yi took a step forward and said coldly, ��Get back.��


    ��Good.��


    But at this moment, Blind Chen spat out something that puzzled Chen Yi to no end. He turned back to looked at the blind man.


    Good? What did that mean?


    Lin Xi was taken aback as well. She looked at Blind Chen, not understanding at all what this word meant.


    ��I predict that you will have a catastrophe today,�� pronounced Blind Chen. As soon as his voice faded, the surrounding space suddenly quieted.


    There seemed to be some hidden meanings in what he said.


    Lin Xi stared at Blind Chen as well. His eyes sharpened more than before. A cold voice came out, saying, ��I don��t believe it.��


    ��I know you don��t believe it. It��s precisely because you don��t believe it that there is this catastrophe.�� Blind Chen continued in a calm voice and said, ��Go back now and you might escape it. If you continue to persist, I am afraid there is no running away from this catastrophe.��


    ��What catastrophe?��


    Lin Xi took a step forward as the Sword Will flowing in the direction of Blind Chen shrouded him.


    ��Catastrophe of Death.��


    Blind Chen��s response was simple.


    Catastrophe of Death!


    Was this a prophecy or a threat?


    Even the aura of those from the Lin family in the void suddenly chilled. Lin Kong, the clan leader of the Lin family, whose eyes contained that Sword Will of his, now directed towards Blind Chen who was below


    Catastrophe of death?


    Hearing these words, anger emerged in his heart.


    ��You exaggerate,�� Lin Kong said coldly. Suddenly, several cultivators from the Lin family stepped down and appeared all around Lin Xi, as if they understood the meaning of the words spoken by their clan leader.


    Although Blind Chen couldn��t see clearly, his perception seemed to have seen everything. There was a self-deprecating smile on his face as he said, ��Indeed, fate cannot be avoided after all.��


    All the surrounding cultivators displayed a curious look. If Lin Xi died, would that count as a prophecy?


    Would it be the words of Blind Chen that lead to her death or the prophecy itself?


    However, the cultivators from the Lin family didn��t seem to believe it.


    A powerful aura came down, and the quiet space was becoming slightly suffocating. Lin Xi continued to move forward towards Blind Chen. However, from Blind Chen��s perspective, this was fate!

 Chapter 2413 - The Coming of Catastrophe

    Blind Chen did not move. He stood there, still leaning on the cane in his hand.


    Chen Yi didn��t move either. He merely raised his head to look at Lin Xi, who had taken a few steps forward, stopping right on the edge of the old house. Close behind her in the sky above were cultivators from the Lin family, who were extraordinarily talented.


    Ye Futian and the others stopped as well as they directed their attention forward.


    In this suppressed space, the Sword Will seemed to escape into the invisible, hovering above Blind Chen and the others. Everyone��s attention was on Blind Chen and Lin Xi. They wondered if she would actually do something.


    If Lin Xi were to make a move, what would be the outcome?


    No one knew if the outcome predicted by Blind Chen was technically a prophecy or not.


    Lin Kong was watching as well. Up until this moment, he hadn��t stopped Lin Xi. However, the aura of the Great Path permeated from his body as his divine consciousness covered this area. He believed he could take action in a single moment.


    For cultivators at their level, this space was far too narrow, and they could easily cover it in a single thought, attacking from any direction, ultimately razing this entire area to the ground.


    ��Then try it,�� Lin Xi spat. His voice still held an incredible sense of cold arrogance. The moment her voice fell, an invisible Sword Will directed towards Blind Chen. This invisible Sword Will seemed to meander in the void, which could not be detected by the naked eye. Nevertheless, the existence of the Sword Will was real enough.


    Finally, Lin Xi made her move. She was no longer able to resist the temptation of giving it a shot. Even though the man in front of her was the mysterious Blind Chen, she still had her disbelief.


    Today, she wanted to find out, once and for all, if this blind man had been deceiving everyone all along.


    But the moment she acted, Lin Xi saw a ray of light. The light was extremely dazzling. It bloomed right next to Blind Chen, stinging everyone��s eyes. At this moment, she could not open her eyes, so she closed them tightly. She felt the whole world had turned into a world of light, which submerged everything in this space. She could not see anything except the light.


    Time seemed to slow down at this moment, and Lin Xi suddenly felt the breath of death. In this instant, countless thoughts burst into her mind, and there was shouting.


    ��Get back!�� the voice said.


    She heard it, but there was no time to react at all. In Lin Xi��s world, there was only the light. The light occupied her entire world and swallowed up everything, including her body and her spiritual soul.


    At this moment, she realized that she had lost, after all.


    Blind Chen��s ��prophecy�� had been fulfilled.


    Lin Xi��s body disintegrated under the light, turning into countless dots of light in an instant. It was as if she had never existed. Not only were the cultivators behind her unable to save her in time, but they simply had no way of saving her either. In that instant, the light also invaded their worlds and occupied everything.


    When they could finally see the world outside clearly, Lin Xi��s body had already turned into numerous spots of light, dissipating in front of their eyes.


    A figure appeared where Lin Xi was. It was Lin Kong. He stretched out his hand, trying to grasp something, but that spot of light evaporated in his palm, escaping his grasp. He had thought that he would be able to respond no matter what happened.


    But what had happened was so ruthless. No matter how fast the reaction, it could never be faster than the power of light. Under the light, Lin Xi was wiped out as if she had always been dust and smoke. How could he have stopped it?


    At such a close range, the light was shining upon them in an instant, and he was too slow. All he could do was watching his descendant disappear right before his eyes.


    As a matter of fact, just as Blind Chen had prophesized. It was the catastrophe of death!


    ��The power of light���� The hearts of all the cultivators trembled. They all looked at the man who released the light. It was not the blind man but the young man next to him.


    This young man��s appearance was not the most outstanding. But at this moment, there was a light shining upon his body; it was extremely dazzling.


    Chen Yi, the young man raised by Blind Chen many years ago, had now returned. He had the body of light, and his cultivation was tyrannical. This was the aura of a Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm, which was just a step away from the peak of Renhuang.


    Those cultivators from the Lin family who had clashed him in the ruins felt extremely apprehensive at the moment. Had they engaged with him in a fight then, they probably would have perished already.


    But at this moment, he had killed Lin Xi.


    ��Does the clan leader of the Lin family believe in the prophecy I foretold?�� Blind Chen said as Lin Kong turned to look at him.


    Prophecy? Did he consider this a prophecy?!


    Of course it was.


    He predicted events that had not yet happened, but the young man next to him determined whether this prediction would become a reality. In fact, Lin Xi and the cultivators from the Lin family had always had a choice. Lin Kong could have stopped Lin Xi in time. Or Lin Xi could have left instead of making her move.


    Then, would his prediction have failed?


    But there were no ��if��s now. The fact remained that his prediction had come true and Lin Xi was dead.


    Lin Kong stared at Chen Yi, holding back the grief and anger in his heart. At this moment, he could still maintain his sanity without taking direct action, demonstrating his tremendous self-control.


    ��The elder��s reputation is well-deserved; even your disciple is outstanding. A Renhuang of the Eighth-Realm at such young age,�� said Lin Kong. Not only did he not retaliate, but he kept his composure enough to give a compliment.


    Of course, the reason why he didn��t retaliate was because of fear.


    A young man taught by Blind Chen had become a Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm. So, what about Blind Chen himself? Was he really just a crippled old man?


    What if Blind Chen��s cultivation was higher than his? If he made a move, the outcome would probably be no different than Lin Xi��s, so he dared not act recklessly.


    ��He is not my disciple,�� Blind Chen replied.


    ��Whether or not he is a disciple of yours, he must have gotten this power of light from you, elder,�� Lin Kong probed tentatively.


    ��What are you doing, continuing to step on my roof?�� Blind Chen did not answer him but commented lightly. Lin Kong was silent. He looked in front and saw Blind Chen walking towards the old house with a cane, working his way towards him.


    The aura of the Great Path from Lin Kong enveloped this space, which was extremely oppressive, to say the least. However, Blind Chen seemed to have not perceived it, still moving forward slowly, approaching the old house with each step. In the meantime, Chen Yi��s attention was focused solely on Lin Kong, who was above the old house.


    As for the cultivators who were here, besides being shocked by Chen Yi��s strength, they were more curious about the identity of Ye Futian and those in his party.


    Chen Yi was raised by an old blind man, and he had returned to the Great Bright City many years later with spectacular strength. But who were Ye Futian and the others?


    Ye Futian and the others were the only distinguished guests who had compelled the old blind man to come out of that old house of his and welcome them in person.


    Were they invited by Chen Yi?


    If so, what realm was their cultivation level, and how were they related to the Temple of Light?


    These were all burning questions to them, but Blind Chen probably wouldn��t give them any answers like they wanted.


    The light was still on Chen Yi, shooting out in the direction where Lin Kong was. Lin Kong could make his move in a single turning of the mind, and Chen Yi could do the same. In such a short distance, once the battle broke out, no one could predict what would happen.


    Previously, Lin Xi insisted on doing what she wanted to do, and it had killed her. As for Lin Kong��the clan leader of the Lin family��what would he do?


    In the area around the old house, everyone��s eyes were fastened on Lin Kong.


    If he did not back off, what would happen?


    The sounds of the cane hitting the floor could be heard loud and clear. Blind Chen was getting closer to the old house. Lin Kong��s focus was always ahead. Finally, he said, ��Let��s go.��


    When his voice faded, Lin Kong levitated into the sky, taking the cultivators of the Lin family away through the air.


    After they left, Blind Chen stepped into the old house, and the door closed. Ye Futian and the others disappeared.


    But no one left, as they were still standing quietly in the distance. Lin Xi was killed, and Lin Kong, the head of the Lin family, would not drop the matter so readily.


    Perhaps Lin Kong was getting reinforcements and would be back soon.


    People in the Great Bright City knew that among the four top principalities, the clan leaders of the three families were not necessarily the strongest characters. Within the families was also the existence of old monster-level figures who were the actual support these families relied upon.


    The matter this time probably wouldn��t be resolved so easily!

 Chapter 2414 - The Person Behind the Scene

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian followed Blind Chen to the old house, which was simple, clean, and quite spacious.


    Blind Chen pointed at a chair with his cane and said to Ye Futian, ��Sit down, young friend.��


    ��Sir, you first, please.�� Ye Futian gestured with his hand as the group took their seats in order. Ye Futian was full of questions at the moment as he glanced at Chen Yi. Chen Yi was standing silently behind Blind Chen; he was obviously very reverent towards the blind man.


    ��Sir, there are some things that I don��t understand,�� Ye Futian started.


    ��My friend, you don��t need to say anything more, I know.�� Blind Chen nodded slightly, and Ye Futian did not pursue further, waiting for Blind Chen to continue.


    ��I��ve invited you here because I have a favor to ask you, my young friend,�� Blind Chen said to Ye Futian.


    ��What favor?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��To help me open the Relic of Light left by the Temple of Light,�� said Blind Chen.


    Ye Futian couldn��t suppress his surprise, so he asked, ��Sir, I just got here for the first time and didn��t know anything about the existence of the Relic of Light. Even if it really exists, why do you think that I can open it?��


    When Blind Chen heard this, he just smiled. ��The inheritances from Ziwei the Great, Shenyin the Great, and Shenjia the Great Emperor. Are there any relics in this world that my little friend cannot open? My friend has no reason to be so humble.��


    ��How do you know?�� Ye Futian looked doubtful as he glanced at Chen Yi. However, Chen Yi shook his head, ��I didn��t say anything.��


    Ye Futian was more puzzled than ever. Blind Chen must have been in the Great Bright Domain all this time. If so, how could he possibly know what took place in the Original Realm?


    According to what he heard from those outsiders, Blind Chen had never even walked out of this house very often and rarely communicated with the others. How could he know what happened in the Original Realm?


    ��How do I know is not as important. What is important is that I have been waiting for you, my young friend, for more than 20 years.�� Blind Chen��s words confused Ye Futian even more. He had been waiting for him for more than two decades?


    ��Are you a prophet, sir?�� Ye Futian asked. This seemed to be the only possibility.


    Could it be that Blind Chen was really capable of predicting the future as rumored?


    ��Not prophet so much; it��s just because I can��t see with my eyes that I perceive things more clearly than others and could see some things that ordinary people can��t,�� Blind Chen continued, but Ye Futian couldn��t really understand that either.


    ��As for why I waited for you, my friend, it was not because I predicted anything, but because someone had asked me once to wait for you. However, when I saw you, I was more certain than ever that you, my friend, are ndeed the one I have been waiting for,�� Blind Chen said.


    ��Who?�� Ye Futian asked. All this seemed to have become even more mysterious. Someone had asked Blind Chen to wait for him?


    And, it was more than 20 years ago. Who could it be?


    ��He didn��t want to say, so I dare not disclose it. As long as you know that this is the case, that is sufficient for now. I believe that you will know who it is in the future,�� Blind Chen explained.


    Ye Futian understood that Blind Chen wouldn��t say anything more at this point. The accurate word he used was not that he didn��t want to, but that he dared not to.


    Blind Chen was a mysterious and unpredictable figure, also known as Chen the Diviner. All four top principalities in the Great Bright City were a little apprehensive of him. However, he himself was convinced of a prophecy that someone else had told him more than two decades ago and he dared not reveal that person��s identity.


    Therefore, the identity of this other person was very intriguing. Just who was it that had exercised such great power over him?


    And what did it have to do with him?


    Could this involve the secret of his own birth?


    ��How do I unlock the secrets of the Temple of Light?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Previously, you went to the Portal of Light, and that is where the Temple of Light lies today,�� Blind Chen continued.


    ��What will happen after it��s unlocked?�� Ye Futian asked again.


    ��Chen Yi will inherit the power of the light,�� Blind Chen said.


    ��Chen Yi?�� Ye Futian looked at Chen Yi next to Blind Chen and saw Blind Chen nod. He continued, ��You must be familiar with Chen Yi��s abilities. As you know, he was born under the light, with the power of light flowing in his body, and he is destined to be the heir of the light. However, he needs your help now.��


    Ye Futian was more curious than ever as he glanced at Blind Chen and Chen Yi. He asked, ��I have a question that I hope the elder can answer.��


    ��Please go ahead, little friend.�� Blind Chen responded amicably enough.


    ��Did Chen Yi and I meet by chance or by careful arrangement?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Since he had been asked to help Chen Yi, he felt he had the right to know everything.


    When Blind Chen heard Ye Futian��s question, the expression on his face became somber. Chen Yi, too, was regarding Ye Futian with some seriousness. Obviously, no one wanted to be used. Before, Ye Futian had always thought their encounter was chance, and he had cherished it as such, treating him as a good friend. But if all this turned out to be a carefully arranged event, it would instill suspicion in his heart, as no one would be happy able being used as a tool by another.


    ��It was not a coincidence.�� Before Blind Chen had a chance to answer, Chen Yi already responded.


    ��Let me explain.�� Blind Chen interrupted Chen Yi and explained to Ye Futian, ��This still has something to do with the person I mentioned before. I can tell you that this matter was not arranged by me but orchestrated by someone else. As for Chen Yi, he doesn��t really know much of anything. He was just following what I told him to do. As for the person behind the scenes, although I can��t tell you who he is, I swear to you that he would never do anything to hurt you.��


    ��How can you be so sure?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��If he wanted you to die, it��s easy enough for him to do, so there is no need to spend so much energy to set it up.�� Blind Chen gave him an irrefutable reason. Someone that he was afraid of, someone whom even Chen the Diviner believed in must be some incredibly strong existence. And if such an existence had been keeping tabs on his every move in the dark, it must indeed be very easy to kill him if that were the goal.


    Ultimately, both parties had foreseen that he would come here.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian had a suspicion in his heart, so he didn��t say anything more but simply agreed. Chen Yi was a friend of his and had saved him once. Since there were no other intentions, he had no reason to refuse.


    ��Thank you, my friend.�� Blind Chen got up and bowed to Ye Futian slightly, saying, ��After Chen Yi inherits the light, he will accompany you and assist you. I believe he can be a great help to you, my little friend.��


    ��You are overly courteous, kind sir. Chen Yi and I are friends already, so there is no need to say those things.�� Ye Futian also got up and helped Blind Chen to sit down again. However, he knew very clearly now that someone had arranged all of this.


    He didn��t expect that what seemed to be a coincidental encounter at the Donghua Banquet in the Donghua Domain was not a coincidence, after all. Chen Yi had been there because of him. In light of this new perspective, some of the things that happened later made a lot of sense now.


    But, he still had one more question.


    What was Chen Yi��s background, and what was his relationship with Blind Chen?


    Why would Blind Chen think that he would be the heir of the light?!

 Chapter 2415 - Piety

    Outside of the old mansion, the various cultivators all remained there. No one left.


    Their wills enveloped the old mansion. However, after the doors closed, a faint light enveloped the old mansion and cut off their wills, preventing them from spying on everything that was happening inside. Naturally, no one tried to forcefully break through this barrier. They all waited outside patiently.


    As expected, not long after, a powerful aura spread out. In an instant, a group of cultivators descended. They were cultivators from the Lin clan.


    Their leader was an elder who appeared extremely authoritative and sharp. There were two other elders beside him who also had terrifying auras. They were all old monsters of the Lin clan and seniors of Lin Kong��the clan head of the Lin clan.


    ��Patriarch Lin.�� When they saw the authoritative elder in the lead, many people in different locations greeted him with a bow. They clearly recognized the other party. This elder was the patriarch and the mastermind behind the scenes of the Lin clan.


    Patriarch Lin glanced around him. He then looked towards the old mansion. A terrifying aura emanated from his figure and enveloped the space. All the cultivators present could sense a majestic pressure and an extremely sharp will acting on them.


    All around the mansion, many cultivators felt an extreme pressure suffocating them.


    ��Blind Chen, isn��t this too much?�� asked Patriarch Lin in a loud voice. His voice contained a menacing wave of sound. It caused sound ripples to form in the air. Even the old mansion trembled and seemed as though it was about to collapse.


    These past few years, Patriarch Lin had been cultivating in seclusion, attempting to break through to the next plane. If it weren��t for the events of today, Lin Kong would not have disturbed him.


    With a loud bang, the doors of the old mansion were immediately shattered. The light shroud that cut off the wills of the cultivators naturally also disappeared without a trace. The crowd looked inside past the doors. Then, a group of people emerged.


    Blind Chen still held on to his crutch. He looked at Patriarch Lin, who stood in midair, and said, ��I have warned your junior before. Since Lin clan hasn��t been able to discipline your junior, she will naturally have to pay the price for what she has done.��


    ��Lin clan has been rather courteous with you all these years, have we not?�� Patriarch Lin��s voice was cold as his might enveloped everyone present. Ye Futian frowned when a terrifying aura pressed down on him and the others. The aura belonged to someone who was at a level higher than Renhuang. The cultivation plane of Patriarch Lin had exceeded the Renhuang Plane. He was someone who had survived the first stage of the divine tribulation of the Great Path.


    Even though the Great Bright Domain was a weak domain, there were still many forces located here. The leading four major forces were all based in this region, forming a cluster of strong cultivators. The strongest existences were all cultivators who had survived the first stage of the divine tribulation of the Great Path.


    Of course, some mysterious cultivators could occasionally be spotted in the Great Bright Domain. They were foreign cultivators who came here to pry into the relic of the Bright Temple. However, all of them had found nothing, and they would soon leave the place. Only the cultivators of the four major forces stayed here permanently.


    Blind Chen did not respond to Patriarch Lin��s question. Instead, he took a few steps forward and announced, ��Haven��t all of you been wanting to verify the prophecy? Now, let us go to the Portal of Light.��


    The eyes of the cultivators narrowed when they heard his words. A brilliant light flashed in their eyes.


    Did Blind Chen mean that the ruins of the Bright Temple would appear once again today?


    Many people couldn��t help but take another look at Ye Futian. Blind Chen had been waiting for Ye Futian��s arrival, and he welcomed him with light today. Now that Ye Futian was here, they were going to the Portal of Light immediately. What did this mean?


    Even Patriarch Lin was stunned. The might he unleashed actually lessened. Clearly, the relic of the Bright Temple was far more important to him than the life of a junior.


    No one showed signs of attacking anymore. When they saw Blind Chen striding forward, they followed him and moved towards the Portal of Light. The gazes of the cultivators of the Lin clan were as cold as ice when they stared at Blind Chen��s back. However, since Patriarch Lin did not do anything, they suppressed their killing intent and followed behind him closely.


    Not long after, a group of people arrived at where the Portal of Light was. People would still occasionally come to this ruin. Many cultivators were observing this Portal of Light. They wanted to comprehend its mysteries. However, no one dared to enter inside.


    After all, in the past, all those who entered the Portal of Light ended up with tragic fates.


    ��Chen the Diviner has arrived.�� Many people recognized Blind Chen when they saw him.


    In Great Bright City, Blind Chen was still very famous.


    Rumor has it that his eyes were blinded after he entered the Portal of Light. They could not withstand the power of light in the portal. This caused him to lose his eyesight permanently.


    Now, why had Blind Chen brought the cultivators of Great Bright City here?


    Were they going to enter the Portal of Light again?


    Blind Chen��s figure landed in the ruins. Chen Yi, Ye Futian, and the others also landed. Behind them, the figures of the cultivators of the various forces remained floating in midair. They were waiting quietly behind them, awaiting Blind Chen to act. They were waiting to see how he was going to open the relic of the Bright Temple.


    The relic of light had not been opened for countless years. Was it going to open just because a mere youth had arrived here?


    Ye Futian himself did not understand. Blind Chen claimed that Ye Futian could unravel the mystery of the Bright Temple. However, there was just a Portal of Light here. What did Ye Futian have to work with?


    This Portal of Light also seemed very dangerous.


    Blind Chen faced the Portal of Light. His expression was stern. He had not been here for many years. Today, there was finally hope for the Mystery of Light to be unraveled.


    He bowed slightly towards the Portal of Light and then prostrated himself on the ground, worshipping the portal. It was as though this was his religion, and he was displaying his unparalleled piety.


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, he revealed a strange look. Who was Blind Chen exactly? Why was he so pious towards the Bright Temple?


    Could it be that there existed a connection between Blind Chen and the temple?


    However, the Bright Temple was a top force in ancient times. Why would Blind Chen have a connection with it?


    Ye Futian had heard that Blind Chen had lived for many years. Even so, he could not possibly be a cultivator from ancient times who survived until the present day, right?


    If it were so, it would be inconceivable.


    The cultivators of the various major forces were also stunned. Only the senior figures had normal expressions. Nothing seemed strange to them. They had clearly seen Blind Chen acting this way before.


    Blind Chen uttered some strange sounds. The crowd did not understand what he had said. Blind Chen then got up and stood there facing the Portal of Light. He said, ��More than two decades ago, I proclaimed that light would descend and the relic of the Bright Temple would reappear. Today is the day that the prophecy comes true. All of you wish to open the relic of the Bright Temple, right? Then, please enter the Portal of Light together.��


    When they heard Blind Chen��s words, the cultivators narrowed their gazes as they stared at his silhouette. Enter the Portal of Light?


    Everyone knew about the dangers of the portal. Was he asking them to seek their deaths by exploring inside?


    They obviously would not easily agree to do so.


    ��Old Diviner, you and your group should be the ones to lead the way,�� said Patriarch Lin in a cold tone!

 Chapter 2416 - : Probing

    None of the other cultivators moved. Clearly, none of them wanted to help the others get to the prize inadvertently.


    If the entry to the Portal of Light could be obtained so easily, they would have entered it already instead of waiting until now.


    Everyone knew about the danger that lay just beyond the Portal of Light in the city of light.


    Inside this seemingly transparent Portal of Light, a small world seemed to exist with an entire universe of its own.


    Blind Chen was quietly perceiving all of this, and he now commented casually, ��You all want to explore the relic of the light, but none of you are willing to sacrifice anything. Do you think that the relic of the Temple of Light will just appear in front of you as you stand here, waiting for you to inherit it?


    ��Many years ago, I tried to open the relic of the Temple of Light, but it was only possible from the inside. Now, the one who can open the Portal of Light that I��ve been waiting for all this time is here. Next, all of you will need to cooperate so that everyone can enter the Temple of Light together. To pave the way for our young friend to open the Portal of Light means that there will inevitably be some sacrifices. After the relics of the Temple of Light reappear in the world, whatever you can get from it will depend only on yourselves.��


    Blind Chen��s voice could be heard throughout the void, and everyone heard it loud and clear. However, no one responded to him as they just looked at Blind Chen without revealing much in their expressions. Of course, many of them were looking at Ye Futian.


    The one who could open the Portal of Light?


    So, the cultivators from the four major principalities would enter the Portal of Light just to pave the way for him?


    Why should they!


    Why should they pin their hopes on a youngster?


    ��Who exactly is this person? It��s hardly convincing just based on an old diviner��s say so,�� said the Lan clan��s leader in an indifferent tone. Up until now, none of them had been able to figure out Ye Futian��s true identity. All they knew was that he came with Chen Yi to the city of light. Perhaps it was Blind Chen who asked Chen Yi to search for him.


    ��You don��t need to know so much about who our young friend is. But, if anyone in this world can unlock the secret of the Portal of Light, then, under the Great Emperor, I am afraid no one else except our friend here can get it done,�� Blind Chen continued nonchalantly.


    The likes of the Great Emperors were excluded, of course. They were imperial-level existences, which would make it much easier for them to open the relics of other Great Emperors, so they cannot be taken into consideration. Therefore, he said it had to be under the level of the Great Emperor.


    But even so, it was still mighty high praise coming from the blind man.


    Under the Great Emperor, was Ye Futian the only one who could open the Relic of Light?


    ��I��m a little curious as to who he is, that the elder holds him in such a high esteem?�� someone else asked lightly. The person who spoke was Yu Hou��the cultivator from the Yu family. He possessed powerful cultivation. He was a Renhuang of the Eighth-Realm and the next clan leader of the Yu family. He had already begun to take over its control. He was one who had high hopes for himself and was proud at heart.


    He did not address him as the old diviner, just as an elder. It seemed that he neither respected nor believed in Blind Chen.


    Under the Great Emperor, only Ye Futian could achieve it?


    And all of them had to cooperate with Ye Futian?


    ��I am curious as well. To ask the cultivators of the four major principalities in the city of light to cooperate with an outsider to open the Portal of Light, simply based on elder��s say-so is not really that meaningful,�� said Seven-Night Star Lord of the Seven Stars Mansion. He was another genius whose cultivation level was equivalent to Yu Hou��s. He was the head of seven great Star Lords of the Seven Stars Mansion.


    What Blind Chen said just now was for them to enter the Portal of Light and pave the way for Ye Futian!


    The four top principalities in the city of light paving the way for Ye Futian!


    ��Why?�� the cultivator from the Lin family, who was in conflict with Blind Chen and the others, asked coldly. Why should they?


    How could a cultivator from the outside deserve such special treatment?


    ��Why?�� Blind Chen repeated casually and said, ��Although all of you are extraordinary individuals in the city of light, standing at the very top, if I am to be honest, I��m afraid that none of you can outshine our little friend.��


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look when he heard Blind Chen��s words. It looked like Blind Chen was deliberately provoking cultivators from various forces. Did he mean to use him to bring these four major forces under control, so would they accept his command in the future?


    However, if Blind Chen had asked him to enter the Portal of Light by himself, he would have been rather reluctant to do so. Ultimately, though he had promised Blind Chen, he couldn��t say he had implicit trust in him, and everyone knew that the Portal of Light was extremely dangerous. Ideally, it would be better if someone scouted out the way for him so he could determine the level of danger.


    Everyone fell silent after hearing what Blind Chen had to say. All the top characters from their city of light were here, and Blind Chen was talking nonsense again. Were they really no comparison to this white-haired young man?


    ��Is that so?�� Yu Hou said nonchalantly and without much emotion. ��I don��t really believe it. How about the elder has him prove himself by entering the Portal of Light, letting us see.��


    ��Sounds good���� Many cultivators echoed his sentiment, but each of them had their own scheme in mind.


    ��My young friend, I am afraid we will have to trouble you.�� Blind Chen spoke to Ye Futian via voice transmission, and Ye Futian immediately understood what he meant. It was probably just as he had speculated.


    ��Sure,�� Ye Futian replied with a single word. He then took a step forward and said, ��You can confirm it yourselves. If the elder were right, you would be the first to enter. If the elder is wrong, then I will enter the Portal of Light first.��


    Upon hearing Ye Futian��s words, everyone��s eyes sharpened slightly. Yu Hou and the others looked at Ye Futian keenly until someone said, ��How can we confirm it?��


    ��Don��t feel obligated,�� Ye Futian said casually, an invisible current flowing upon him. The aura of the Great Path effused from him, and the aura of Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm also bloomed.


    But when they felt his aura, all these cultivators were slightly relieved. After all, it seemed that he was not all that amazing; he was just in the Eighth-Realm.


    ��In that case, I will do it,�� said a voice. In the void, Yu Hou took a step forward, and countless eyes focused on him immediately. In the next moment, they saw an incredibly fervent sun appear behind Yu Hou. The sun expanded rapidly, turning into a terrible vision that lay across the sky. An incomparable light began to shoot out from the vision.


    This divine light was not only the light of the flaming Great Path; it seemed to also contain the way of the light. In a moment, countless rays of light rained down, not just on Ye Futian��s side, but they also snaked towards Blind Chen and the others. It was very obviously deliberate.


    But around Blind Chen and the others, an invisible power of light now shrouded them. It was Chen Yi who had made a move as he released the power of the light.


    Ye Futian didn��t move. He merely stood there and looked up. The divine light on Yu Hou��s body shone directly on his body, making a sizzling sound. This terrifying force of destruction seemed to want to drill into Ye Futian��s body, but an incomparable divine light circulated upon his body, making it impossible for that destructive light to invade.


    ��What?�� Everyone frowned. How could this be?


    Although Yu Hou didn��t make a direct move, the power he released was considerable. It was, however, completely ignored by the others.


    ��It��s far too weak,�� whispered Ye Futian, which made Yu Hou��s heart tremble. Then, he saw Ye Futian raise his head and look at him!

 Chapter 2417 - No Way to Fight Back

    Yu Hou��s expression changed, just as the sun behind him was changing as well, turning into a huge solar pattern. In a brief moment, this vast area became fiery hot as the temperature rose sharply, about to incinerate the entire space.


    Psst�� A piercing sizzling sound was heard, and a terrifying light of destruction shot out from the solar divine pattern, illuminating Ye Futian. In return, Ye Futian simply raised his head to look at Yu Hou as he raised his hand and pointed towards the void.


    Buzz! A light from his finger directly penetrated the space and fell on that gigantic pattern. In an instant, the pattern was pierced, and fissures begin to appear. Yu Hou let out a muffled groan. His face paled as he retreated rapidly higher into the sky.


    Between Ye Futian and him, a sword light appeared to connect heaven and earth like a sword that had traversed the void. It was not until Ye Futian pulled back his arm that Yu Hou finally breathed a sigh of relief. He looked at the figure below with great shock.


    How could he be so strong?


    As the same existence of Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm, he had considered his combat effectiveness quite worthy. He himself was an extremely well-known figure in the Great Bright City.


    Yu Hou was the most outstanding cultivator of the Yu family��s younger generation. But, he was defeated by a single finger.


    All the cultivators surrounding them were looking at Ye Futian with altered perception. Chen Yi had made a move before this. Lin Xi was obliterated just as the light was blooming. This was before the cultivators from the Lin family had time to render aid. At the time, everyone could see that Chen Yi��s strength was incredible.


    But Ye Futian was the one Blind Chen felt compelled to welcome in person. Blind Chen��s identity left a lot to the imagination, and his strength was a puzzle to them all.


    What they could have never imagined was Ye Futian was so powerful that Yu Hou was defeated by a single finger, unable to put up much of a fight. If Ye Futian stayed on the offensive, it was highly likely that Yu Hou would be slain.


    They didn��t know that when Ye Futian was yet a Renhuang in the Seventh-Realm, he had already defeated the Devil Emperor��s direct disciple, who was in the Eighth-Realm. Yu Hou may be a known figure in the Great Bright City, but compared to the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor or even the descendants of the Great Emperor from the Ancient God Clan, he was far from being on the same level. How could he even begin to dream of combating Ye Futian, who was in the same realm as him? The strength of the two was not even close.


    Furthermore, during the chaotic times in the Original Realm, Ye Futian was in retreat for more than a decade, focusing solely on his cultivation. His strength had far surpassed where he once was, and he was not on a level that Yu Hou could compare with.


    Among all the cultivators present, except for Ye Futian and his own group, only Blind Chen was not surprised. Since he knew about Ye Futian��s deeds in the Original Realm, he was quite unsurprised by his combat effectiveness.


    Just as he had said, people like Yu Hou may be the enchanting existence of Great Bright City, but in front of Ye Futian, they dimmed in comparison.


    ��Who are you, really?�� Yu Hou stood in the void and questioned Ye Futian while staring at him.


    Ye Futian glanced at him without bothering to respond. Now that he had offended the Imperial Palace, there were still many forces in the Divine Prefecture that had not forgotten about him, even if Donghuang the Great had let him off the hook. Although there might not be much danger to speak of in the Great Bright Domain, he was not eager to expose himself.


    After this business finished, he planned to leave for the Western World immediately.


    ��Who else would like to give it a try?�� Ye Futian asked, looking at the cultivators from the four top forces in the void. Now that Yu Hou was repelled by a single blow, other cultivators in the Eighth-Realm would hardly qualify as a challenge.


    For a time, no one moved a muscle.


    ��If no one else is interested in coming forward, then please enter the Portal of Light,�� Ye Futian looked at the door in front of him and said.


    ��The Seven Stars Mansion would like to see your strength.�� The Seven-Night Star Lord of the Seven Stars Mansion stepped forward. Several others followed right behind him. Everyone looked alarmed. Were these seven powerful cultivators ready to raise their hands against Ye Futian?


    ��Us seven at the Seven Star Mansion are one and the same. Your cultivation is superb. Ee hope you don��t mind,�� said the Seven-Night Star Lord. Obviously, he realized that the power of one man was hardly enough to affect Ye Futian in any meaningful way, so he wanted the seven of them to try in a united effort to see what kind of character this Ye Futian was.


    ��As you please.�� Ye Futian stood there quietly. It seemed as if he didn��t mind at all that he was up against a party of seven.


    The Seven Star Lords levitated into the air. In an instant, the firmament underwent a drastic change, and a starry sky world appeared above them, covering the entire area.


    The Seven Star Lords were stationed in different directions, forming a kind of a matrix. Seven stars moved as one coherent entity.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he slowly levitated into the air as well. After a while, he was suspended in the void right underneath the seven cultivators.


    Buzz! The Seven Star Lords of the Seven Stars Mansion possessed an astounding aura. The stars revolved as seven stars gathered together. The Seven-Night Star Lord raised his hand and slammed towards Ye Futian. Suddenly, a dull rumbling sound came from the sky. Many stars had gathered and surrounded that giant palm. It blasted toward Ye Futian at the same time.


    Ye Futian raised his head as he took in the sight. His mind turned ever so slightly, and suddenly, a miniature version of the starry sky world appeared around him. The starry light screen surrounded him and closed, turning into a defense. The attack in the void blasted down, and a sudden dull rumbling was heard. However, it could not shake the light screen that was blocked in front of Ye Futian.


    The expressions on the faces of the Seven Star Lords changed a bit. Their divine consciousness twitched slightly, and suddenly, even more stars appeared between heaven and earth.


    However, at this moment, Ye Futian��s mind turned again, and countless starlight spread outward as the will of the Great Path shrouded the boundless space. Soon, a great starry sky world appeared in this space, and the stars in the sky were shining brightly. They were suspended in the sky, surrounding the starry sky world formed by the Seven Star Lords.


    This�� All the onlookers watched with great interest. This was the suppression of the Great Path Domain, which directly overpowered the Great Path Domain of another. The Seven Star Lords watched the stars revolving in the sky. The power emitted from the stars alerted them. The energy effused from the Seven-Night Star Lord gradually diminished as he looked at Ye Futian and said, ��It seems that the old diviner was right, after all.��


    They had indeed been outdone by Ye Futian.


    In an instant, the starlight dissipated, and their auras retracted as well. Seeing this, Ye Futian did the same.


    The Seven Star Lords took one last look at Ye Futian, then stepped back, but not without some deep thoughts of their own. Indeed, there would always be some youngsters out there that could get the better of them. They had thought that their strength was second to none, but they never expected that someone could suppress them to this degree that they had no ability to fight back.


    There were many other cultivators from the Great Bright City around the Relic. Many of them were in total shock when they saw what just transpired in front of them. They were now even more curious about Ye Futian and everything about him.


    In front of him, these top figures from the Great Bright City looked like weaklings.


    Obviously, it was not because they were weak, but that Ye Futian was far too strong.


    ��I don��t think there is any need for more tests,�� Blind Chen said. ��I��ve already said that he is the one who can open the Relic of the Temple of Light, and so he is. All of you have been in the Great Bright City for many years, and if you, too, want to open the Relic of the Temple of Light, then, please believe what I have said and assist our friend.��

 Chapter 2418 - Entry

    Everyone was silent. They had seen Ye Futian��s true strength, and it was indeed extraordinary.


    It seemed that what Blind Chen had said could be true.


    However, entry to the Portal of Light had its own inherent risk. After all, there were many rumors about the Portal of Light. This was the only thing left from the glory days of the Temple of Light, thus shrouded in mystery.


    Among the people here, only Blind Chen knew the Portal of Light the best. Furthermore, they couldn��t fathom what Blind Chen was thinking or what he would do. They were concerned about some unforeseen motives on his part and that was why they hesitated.


    ��If none of you want the Relic of the Temple of Light to reappear, then just pretend I never said anything.�� Blind Chen continued, ��The person who can open it has been found, but your cooperation and assistance are requested. If you don��t want to lend a hand, I will have to find some other way.��


    Everyone remained silent when they heard Blind Chen��s words. Even Ye Futian himself didn��t quite understand what Blind Chen had in mind or why he was so convinced that he could solve the secret held by the Portal of Light.


    Although he had unlocked many relics belonging to Great Emperors, was Blind Chen��s confidence in him based on the man behind the scenes?


    In other words, the one who arranged for Chen Yi to meet him and guide him to this place��


    ��How many people do you need?�� someone asked; it was the cultivator who had gotten into it with Blind Chen earlier��Patriarch Lin. Not long ago, he was all hot and bothered about getting a piece of Blind Chen, but now he was the first to speak, which was kind of surprising.


    True enough, in the face of their own interests, all grievances could be set aside for the time being.


    ��Of course, the more the better, the greater the chance.�� Blind Chen responded, ��Moreover, the stronger the cultivation, the better. There is no point to send those with weaker cultivation.��


    Patriarch Lin pondered for a moment and did not immediately answer him. The Lan family��s clan leader also spoke up, ��What do you need us go in for?��


    Until now, they had no inkling of Blind Chen��s plan. He might not be telling them everything, but they had to ask, at the very least.


    ��To scope things out.�� Blind Chen��s answer was short and simple. ��You all know that there is a spatial world hidden behind the Portal of Light. But exactly what is inside, even I have no clue. Someone needs to scout the way ahead for our young friend here so that he has the opportunity to open the relic. This is why your help is much needed.��


    Blind Chen��s straightforward answer convinced many. It could be that Blind Chen��s really needed them to find the way inside the Portal of Light.


    ��How dangerous is it?�� someone from the Yu family asked.


    ��How should I know?�� Blind Chen replied. ��I don��t know that much about the Portal of Light either. I only know that the answer to opening this relic must lie beyond this Portal of Light, so I prophesized and strategized for this day. Today is the day that the light shall reappear. This is derived from my calculations. If my prediction is correct, then all of you will agree with me on this day anyway.��


    Everyone couldn��t help but reveal an odd look when they heard this, especially those from the Lin family. Those words sounded so familiar to them. It was not long ago since they heard the prediction made about Lin Xi.


    He had predicted that Lin Xi would face a catastrophe of death. But the premise was that Lin Xi would choose to raise her hand first, and indeed, Lin Xi had caused her own death.


    All things considered, they would agree to do this thing today, and did this mean that the long-awaited Relic of the Temple of Light would be revealed once again in the world?


    ��You have all arrived. There��s no need for you to continuing lurking in the dark,�� Patriarch Lin said loudly. Suddenly, in the distance, several powerful auras were detected from three major directions.


    Moments later, three powerful cultivators came out and walked over to them. They were the masters behind the other three top principalities.


    The patriarch of the Lan family, the patriarch of the Yu family, and the Chief of the Seven Stars Mansion.


    Three cultivators who reigned above Renhuang had descended. Their auras were terrifying, and their authority suppressed this corner of the sky.


    ��What do you think?�� Patriarch Lin asked as his eyes swept over the other three.


    ��Since the old diviner has spoken, we have to help,�� Patriarch Yu said, and the others nodded in agreement. The Patriarch of Lan family looked at them and said, ��If this is the case, then let��s first dispatch some cultivators from the family and have them assist the old diviner.��


    ��Very well.�� As they reached a consensus, the cultivators from all the major forces returned to their bases to call on more cultivators.


    ��If the Relic of the Temple of Light appears today, you will all be rewarded,�� Blind Chen said as he waited quietly.


    After some time, cultivators from those major forces arrived. Ye Futian knew very well that those who were sent here were not key figures at the core of these major families, as they were being sent on a highly risky mission. Those major forces would be most reluctant to risk the lives of their most central figures.


    Even though Blind Chen had previously said that those with stronger cultivation were preferred, how could they abide by Blind Chen��s words so easily?


    These cultivators were a little apprehensive at the moment. After all, they were supposed to enter the Portal of Light. However, the orders from their patriarchs were like orders from heaven, so even if they were reluctant, they had to obey.


    After waiting for some time, Blind Chen spoke again and asked, ��Is everyone ready?��


    ��All set. Please tell us what you want us to do, old diviner,�� said Patriarch Lan.


    ��Very well.�� Blind Chen nodded and continued, ��I must remind you that it is completely fine if you don��t want to go in. But once you are in, I cannot guarantee anything that might happen inside the Portal of Light. If something happens, don��t blame me.��


    When everyone heard the old man��s words, they were a little uncertain again, and but Yu Hou spoke at this time, ��Patriarch, I will go in as well.��


    In the previous battle with Ye Futian, Yu Hou was defeated by a single blow. Obviously, the wound was still fresh for him. Now the opportunity to enter the Portal of Light was upon them, he wanted to see if he could seize his fortune there.


    The patriarch of the Yu family glanced at Yu Hou, then nodded, ��As you wish.��


    After that, the top figures from all major forces took the initiative to ask permission from their respective families, intending on gaining entry into the Portal of Light.


    Soon, the cultivators who were to enter the Portal of Light were confirmed. As all of them moved forward, Blind Chen said, ��Everyone may proceed directly inside. It��s best to be prepared, however. Just proceed straight ahead.��


    Afterward, he spoke to Ye Futian via voice transmission, ��After you enter the Portal of Light, you must rely on your own wit, my friend. Even I will not be much help, but I will go in with you.��


    ��I got it,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Let��s go,�� Blind Chen said in a low voice when he saw that the cultivators in front of them had already entered the Portal of Light. Ye Futian looked ahead. He saw those who walked through the Portal of Light simply disappear; it was as if they had entered a mirror. It was truly amazing to behold.


    Behind this Portal of Light was an entire universe, mysterious and unpredictable.


    ��Once you enter, watch yourself.�� Blind Chen said, ��I will do my best to protect you, my friend.��


    Ye Futian sobered up some. Blind Chen��s tone was serious, indicating that their mission this time was highly risky.


    More importantly, what Blind Chen said seemed to suggest that his cultivation must be superior!

 Chapter 2419 - Inside the Small World

    Ye Futian told Uncle Tie, Hua Jieyu, and the others to stay on the outside. This was so that they could take care of Fang Cun and the young ones outside while keeping an eye on the four major forces in case they had any tricks up their sleeves.


    Only Chen Yi and Ye Futian were the two that entered the Portal of Light with Blind Chen. Ultimately this was their objective. Blind Chen asked Ye Futian to open the Relic of the Temple of Light, which would then be inherited by Chen Yi. There was no need for the others to participate.


    As the cultivators entered the Portal of Light, Blind Chen, Chen Yi, and Ye Futian also stepped through the door.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian had a strange feeling, as if he had entered into another world. In an instant, endless light flooded the space. And under the light, no one could open their eyes. In this space, there was nothing but the light.


    It seemed that this was a world of the light.


    Other people had entered as well. In this bright world, everyone seemed to be blinded. They tried to sync the power of the Great Path with the space inside this world, but the whole world was occupied by the light, and they could not sync with the Way of this world.


    There was only one kind of cultivator who was able to do so to some extent, and that was those who cultivated the Method of Light.


    Chen Yis released his divine consciousness, fusing his own method with the Great Path of this world. However, he found that he could only control a small area around himself. It was as if his cultivation was completely insufficient.


    ��This was once the place where the Temple of Light chose their disciples. It was where they received the baptism of light. Many years ago, anyone who wanted to enter the Temple of Light had to undergo the test of light��also known as the baptism of light��which was right in front of this Portal of Light. Those who failed would be killed. Only those who survived the baptism of light were qualified to enter the Temple of Light.�� Blind Chen continued, ��Just behind the Portal of Light, there is a Murderous Matrix of the Light. I asked them to come with us inside for them to clear the way for us. Pay attention, my friend. I will also be watching out for you.��


    ��I got it.�� Ye Futian acknowledged the warning. Blind Chen was known as the old diviner by people from the city of light. The cultivators of the city of light wanted to use him to open the relic of the light, just like he was using the four major forces and had them send in their people as matrix fodder.


    People at this level were far from benevolent and gentle souls.


    But Ye Futian also understood that although Blind Chen firmly believed that he was the one who could open the relic, he had no idea how that could be achieved or what kind of abilities he actually possessed.


    On the contrary, perhaps the man behind the scenes who guided Blind Chen knew much more. Not just about him, but also the secrets that were hidden behind the Portal of Light. He was so convinced that Ye Futian would be the one to open it.


    Ye Futian now released his perception freely, and wisps of aura circulated about him. The life spirit of the ancient tree of life was swaying inside his body with a faint glow of imperial glory. He understood that in this world of light, the divine power was the one that drove this space; otherwise, it would not have been so powerful.


    Therefore, ordinary cultivators were blinded in this world of light. Only those with an equivalent level may explore and see into this world, and only the power of a higher level was qualified to examine this world.


    Ye Futian did not hesitate to release the aura inside his body. He directly resorted to pumping his own life spirit into this world of light. At the same time, his eyes opened, and those eyes seemed a little wicked. There were stripes across the pupils, like the eyes of a deity, probing the secrets of this world.


    At this moment, Ye Futian could clearly see the area around him. It turned out to be a ruin; it looked like the aftermath of a world that had been shattered. The power of light was sprinkling down from a distance away, but everything was a little fuzzy. With his realm, he could only probe the area immediately around him.


    ��This here is the shattered temple!�� Ye Futian said as he stepped onto the ruins.


    The cultivators in front of him continued forward, and suddenly there was a shrill scream. Ye Futian looked in the direction of the scream and saw a light from above the sky directly shining upon that person. Instantly, one could see that person��s eyes revealing their agonizing pain as his hands covered his eyes. There was blood flowing from them. It was an extremely shocking sight.


    Ye Futian tried to perceive what was above, but it was a bit unclear. It seemed as if a strange power enveloped this world. There seemed to be a murderous matrix that hovered above the firmament above.


    ��The baptism of light?�� Ye Futian murmured to himself and realized right away that he could not set foot there. Over there, extremely radiant divine light penetrated the space, waiting to kill any passersby.


    Blind Chen seemed to have perceived it as well. The cane in his hand hit the ground and made a sound, indicating that he had veered away from that position and followed the person who hadn��t had an accident in front of him. Obviously, he had exceptional perception and was able to ascertain the specific location of the danger, thus avoiding it.


    Off and on, people were attacked, and many fell. Ye Futian could see all of this clearly, except for those who were too far ahead.


    The cultivators from the four major forces were proceeding with increased caution. Some even slowed down and were reluctant to be at the front. Obviously, they had become aware of Blind Chen��s true intention, which was using them as sacrifices in the bid to get through to the relic.


    At this time, the cultivators from the four major forces began to feel resentment in their hearts.


    ��Old diviner seems to know about the situations in here?�� an indifferent voice questioned. The speaker was Patriarch Lin. Several figureheads also came in with everyone. Since Blind Chen had come inside, they felt there was nothing to be afraid of.


    However, even they were exercising extreme caution. They followed behind the crowd, scattered behind Blind Chen. Just as Blind Chen followed behind their people, they were following behind Blind Chen.


    Blind Chen did not seem to see it, nor did he care, as long as he achieved his own goal.


    ��I��ve heard some of it,�� Blind Chen responded.


    ��Stop, all of you,�� the patriarch of the Yu family commanded.


    ��Stop.�� Several others also spoke up. Suddenly, the cultivators from the four major forces stopped. For a time, in this small world inside the Portal of Light, everything became so quiet that they could even hear the sound of their own breathing.


    ��The old diviner has gotten us knee-deep in this now. At least tell us what is going on!�� Patriarch Yu said coldly. Obviously, they knew that Blind Chen only told them some of the truth.


    It was highly likely that Blind Chen knew the condition of the small world inside the Portal of Light.


    Blind Chen stood quietly where he was and replied, ��I have already told you that I know very little. You all knew the danger in here before you came in, so why bother asking again?��


    ��What��s ahead?�� the Chief of the Seven Stars Mansion asked.


    This spatial world was fraught with danger, and now they wanted to know what was ahead.


    Blind Chen was silent for a moment and then exclaimed, ��The real Relic of the Temple of Light!��


    As soon as he said that, everyone was quiet!

 Chapter 2420 - Bright Temple

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As expected, Blind Chen knew about it.


    He actually knew that the real Bright Temple was hidden within the Small World of the Portal of Light, and he had been waiting for this day all along.


    Blind Chen�� Who was he actually?


    Although Blind Chen only told them part of the truth earlier, for some reason, all of the cultivators from the various forces subconsciously believed that the relic of the Bright Temple was right ahead.


    Although they couldn��t see anything, they had no doubts about it. Perhaps they would be able to see some light once they walked out of this area.


    ��Continue forward,�� Patriarch Lin ordered. He decisively made the people of his clan continue.


    ��Be careful. Try your best to avoid any danger,�� Patriarch Lan said as well, though his reminder clearly wasn��t very sincere. Otherwise, why didn��t he walk at the front himself?


    After all, these clan elders were the strongest among the cultivators, so they would have the greatest chance of evading danger if they ran into any.


    Yet, they obviously didn��t do so as they were worried that they themselves would be caught up in dangerous situations.


    The cultivators didn��t dare to disobey them, so they bit the bullet and continued to move forward, opening up the path for those behind them.


    The aura continued to spill out from Ye Futian. As he walked forward, the area that he could sense also became larger and larger. He could vaguely feel the Murderous Matrix of LIght above them, and the core of the matrix was right ahead as well.


    ��Ah!!!�� Just then, a blood-curdling scream came from darkness ahead of them, followed by several more. It seemed that none of the cultivators who moved forward managed to escape.


    ��What��s happening there?�� someone asked. Immediately, panic started to spread through the crowd. The cultivators leading at the front hesitated as well.


    In Ye Futian��s world of perception, in front of them, rays of light were shining down from the void above to form a cylindrical beam on the debris. At the center of the beam, light of obliteration was shooting down, destroying all the cultivators who walked into it.


    Moreover, these rings were now all interconnected. Unlike before, it was covering the entire space with its deadly attacks.


    ��Keep walking forward, do not stop!�� Patriarch Lin snarled. The expressions on the faces of the Lin Clan cultivators quickly turned a little ugly; it seemed that the elders really didn��t care about their lives at all. But the elders never cared about matters in the clan, and they had a fragile connection with the clan members, essentially not knowing them at all. It was honestly not surprising for the elders to not care about their lives.


    They were far more concerned about whether they can get something out of this Door of Space.


    ��The path ahead is a dead-end,�� Ye Futian said. All of the cultivators immediately stopped and started hesitating, unsure of whether they should keep moving. Obviously, even with the orders given to them, they knew that there was a large possibility they would die. Most of them wouldn��t be willing to do it.


    They were now facing a dilemma.


    Before them laid a death trap; not a single cultivator who entered previously came out alive.


    Now, if they continued t in, they would likely die.


    Under such circumstances, everyone was struggling.


    ��Old Diviner, what��s the meaning of your little friend there?�� Patriarch Lin asked impassively. He didn��t expect Ye Futian to advise people not to move forward, saying it was a death trap.


    By now, they��ve all realized that the relic of the Bright Temple could be just a short distance away from them.


    ��Of course it was out of goodwill,�� Blind Chen answered. ��Can��t you sense that it��s a dead-end there?��


    ��Dead end?�� Although the cultivators had their eyes closed, their eyebrows raised in curiosity.


    ��Old Diviner, if it��s a dead-end, then what should we do?�� Patriarch Lan asked. Blind Chen remained silent. It seemed like he perceived the danger before them.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian walked forward a few steps and was instantly able to see more clearly. As he walked to the edge of the circular murderous matrix, Blind Chen reminded him, ��Careful.��


    ��It��s fine,�� Ye Futian said. ��Chen Yi, come here.��


    Chen Yi walked forward as he heard Ye Futian. He stood still and waited for Ye Futian��s next move.


    ��Do you believe in me?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Yes,�� Chen Yi nodded. After all these years, Chen Yi knew Ye Futian��s character well. Also, since they were already inside, what was there to not believe him about?


    ��Walk in there, and make sure that other than the aura of light, there��s no other aura on you��not even a slither. You must only have the purest of light,�� Ye Futian said. There was no way to avoid this murderous matrix. The only way is to walk through it.


    He could feel that the rays of light before them could kill any Great Path powers except for the Great Path of Light. In other words, only the Great Path of Light could survive it.


    Only those who possess the purest Great Path of Light could receive the baptism of light and pass through the matrix.


    ��Alright,�� Chen Yi nodded and walked forward according to Ye Futian��s instructions. He retracted all the auras of the Great Paths on him. Afterward, only the powers of light flowed across the surface of his body. He walked forward with his eyes closed and took deep breaths. He was actually slightly nervous.


    But the next moment, he entered a state of zen. As he bathed under the light, there were no other auras on him other than light. It was as if he had turned into the most perfect, flawless Illuminating Body of the Great Path.


    Chen Yi was showered with a marvelous feeling. His footsteps slowed as he continued forward. It was as though he was enjoying every step. With every circle he walked past, he continued to greedily enjoy the baptism of the light.


    ��I knew it. It wasn��t antagonizing,�� Ye Futian said softly. Countless rays of light shone down from above and landed on where Chen Yi was. Then, the entire matrix morphed, and a path was opened up. Everything before them turned clear as well. Ye Futian watched what happened before him with shock and awe. His heart was moved by the magnificent display.


    Before them, a shockingly brilliant scene appeared; it was a divine temple so tall that the top was shrouded by mists and clouds. The entire temple was illuminated by divine light shining from above, and it looked like a holy relic in every sense of the word.


    ��The Bright Temple!�� Ye Futian��s heart pounded. He could scarcely believe that the Bright Temple was hidden within the Small World inside the Portal of Light. This was an ancient myth that had been passed down for countless years. Legend had it that the Great Emperor of Light created the Bright Temple in ancient times and erected it here.


    Countless years had passed since. People still remember this legend, and the Region of Light kept its name. He didn��t expect that he would see the holy land showered by the light in this Small World after all these years.


    The light became more magnificent as more and more rays shone down, affecting everyone��s vision except for Ye Futian��s. His eyes were still wide open as he stared at the scene before him!

 Chapter 2421 - Apostle

    Everything before them proved that the legends were all real. The Region of Light was indeed where the Bright Temple was.


    Ye Futian looked forward. The divine temple was incredibly grandiose and magnificent. It looked like an enormous castle, extending into the skies to shine down an endless array of light from high up in the air.


    Other than being ancient, the temple was a little dilapidated, with several areas damaged. These seemed to be damage from the great war of the ancient era. Below the divine palace, there was a door that looked like another Portal of Light. Two statues of light, each holding a scepter, stood on either side of the door. They seemed to be the guardians of light.


    The light continued morphing gradually. Yu Hou opened his eyes too as he could finally see the scene before him clearly. It sent waves of shock through his heart. He said softly, ��I didn��t think that the legend was real. This is indeed a divine relic.��


    One by one, the others opened their eyes. Although they were a little unaccustomed to the light, they were all gradually able to start seeing the scene before them. Perhaps it was because of the changes in the physical space of this Small World. When they raised their head to look at the skies above the divine palace, they could see a diagram of light that looked like a divine matrix. The power of light was shining down from there, guarding the divine palace.


    The cultivators started walking forward one after another. The cultivators�� eyes from each of the forces started getting heated as their gazes slowly filled with greed and desire. For generations, they had been on guard at the Region of LIght. Now, they finally saw the divine relic.


    They didn��t think Blind Chen��s prophecy would come true just by walking through the Murderous Light Matrix. No one thought that it would be that easy to break through the murderous matrix. Perhaps it was because they knew nothing about light, yet Ye Futian could see right through it.


    Bling Chen walked forward, supporting himself with the cane in his hand. He came before the remains of the Bright Temple and knelt on the ground once again. He kowtowed to the temple with great piety, as if he was the most pious believer of the Bright Temple, which made everyone even more suspicious of his true identity. Perhaps Blind Chen was related to the Bright Temple.


    Then, Blind Chen stood up and said, ��Chen Yi, go in.��


    ��Yes.�� Chen Yi stepped forward and walked towards the divine palace.


    ��Futian, sorry to trouble you,�� Blind Chen then said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded and followed behind Chen Yi, preparing to escort him into the Temple of Light to inherit the powers of light.


    Perhaps all of the secrets laid inside the Temple of Light.


    Hum! Just then, several extremely powerful auras erupted inside the space, the cultivators from all four of the great forces intervened, and the four elders were the first to attack.


    Patriarch Lin was the fastest amongst them. With just a thought, he spawned a Sword Will so great that it deluged the skies, traveling across the space and attacking Chen Yi and Ye Futian.


    But at the same time, Blind Chen turned. His back was facing where Chen Yi said he was. Blazing will of bright erupted from his body, blinding everyone who looked at it directly. The light inundated the space and blocked off Chen Yi from him. Formless pulses erupted from the voids as the will of light collided with the will of sword from Patriarch Lin.


    At this moment, Blind Chen finally unleashed his spectacular power. He turned out to be a cultivator who had overcome the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path as well. His power level was definitely comparable to the four great elders.


    ��Stop him,�� Patriarch Lin said with an ice-cold voice. Instantly, cultivators from all of the four great forces attacked. They had already paid a heavy price to get here and had suffered great losses, including the death of many of their clan members. Now that they had finally reached the divine palace, how could they let Chen Yi enjoy the fruits of their sacrifices alone?


    If they allowed him to do so, it would really be putting in all this effort for someone else.


    Blind Chen��s cane suddenly knocked a few times on the ground of the Bright Temple debris. Instantly, stone fragments and dust started flying, and at the same time, blazing light filled up the void. Everywhere the light went, terrified shrieks could be heard. The cultivators who dashed forward were pierced straight through by the light before being turned into ash and disappearing into the air.


    ��Sword of Light.�� The expressions on the four strongest cultivators changed. In just an instant, many of their cultivators died. They had all been killed by Blind Chen. Many of them had been Renhuang level cultivators. This made the rest of them hesitate and not dare to move forward.


    Blind Chen stood there as if he was a one-man army. Ye Futian and Chen Yi had already walked through the door and entered the Bright Temple.


    Boom�� The four great elders stepped forward at the same time. A terrifying dominion of the Starry Great Path appeared around them. Celestial stars surrounded them and blocked out the skies, and the sun and intercepted the Sword Will of Light from Blind Chen.


    A Divine Sun Diagram appeared behind the Great Elder of the Yu Clan and launched toward Blind Chen, clashing into his Sword of Light. It took a coordinated attack from the four strongest cultivators at the same time to stop the might of Blind Chen��s Path.


    ��Get in!�� Patriarch Lin��s raised voice echoed through the air, immediately prompting the rest of the cultivators to dash forward, going around the battlefield to enter the Bright Temple.


    The path might of the four great cultivators attacked simultaneously, attempting to overwhelm Blind Chen as the elders moved in an attempt to bypass him and enter the divine palace. At this point, they were far more concerned about the relic of the Bright Temple than if Blind Chen was dead or alive.


    While Blind Chen couldn��t see, the four cultivators�� every move appeared in his perception. An even more magnificent light erupted from him. Instantly, a dominion of light appeared and engulfed the skies. Inside this dominion, the four elders squinted as if they could no longer see. Here, there was only light; it was actually similar to what they had experienced inside the Divine Matrix of Light.


    Could it be that this was a type of the Powers of the Laws of Light?


    But inside this light, they saw a pair of eyes that made their hearts pound. Those eyes contained endless lights; it was Blind Chen��s eyes.


    Blind Chen opened his eyes!


    He opened his eyes with light!


    Tsss�� When the four great elders witnessed those eyes, they felt a stinging pain inside their irises, and their eyes started to bleed uncontrollably. The power of light had infiltrated their spiritual soul, attempting to purify everything and obliterate them in the process.


    Hum! A furious roar surged through the void as a formless sword pierced through space, stabbing toward their eyes within a fraction of a second.


    Yet the next moment, the eyes disappeared and reappeared in another location. It was as though these eyes weren��t actual eyes but the eyes of light.


    Blind Chen��s tattered clothes fluttered in the air as he stood atop the rubbles with an unyielding expression. The cane in his hand had morphed into a scepter of light similar to the scepter in the hands of the guardians who stood before the Bright Temple.


    Blind Chen was indeed related to the Bright Temple. He was the apostle of the Bright Temple who shouldered a mission passed down for generations. His mission was to find the heir of light.


    And Chen Yi was the one he was looking for. For him, Blind Chen could sacrifice everything.


    The only reason he stayed behind to block the way and let Ye Futian bring Chen Yi into the Bright Temple was that he had absolute trust in Ye Futian. Or perhaps it��s better to say that he had absolute trust in the person who came to look for him back then!

 Chapter 2422 - Invincible Renhuang

    Ye Futian and Chen Yi took the lead to enter the Temple of Light. A path of light appeared in front of them. There were many guardians on both sides, but they were motionless like statues. There was no aura coming from any of them, but their bodies were in surprisingly good condition. It was as if they had been obliterated directly without ever putting up a fight.


    ��Let��s move,�� said Ye Futian. He and Chen Yi walked in the direction where the light was coming from. After a few moments, they came to a place under the light. On the ground in front, there was a matrix of the light as the light was spilling down from the firmament. The light isolated the space and seemed to prevent them from going any further.


    Neither of them acted carelessly but stopped just outside the light. This divine matrix was probably not something straightforward and simple. The space inside the temple was massive, and the light beam radiated from the void. In this beam of light, there was no vitality. Ye Futian could feel vaguely that within that light in front, there was no room for any other Great Path power. There was not even a speck of dust. It was the purest of light.


    This divine matrix seemed to share something in common with the matrix on the outside. Chen Yi��s eyes flickered, and he had a desire to try it.


    But at this time, the cultivators from behind also caught up to them. The cultivators from the four forces were moving with incredible speed. They only slowed down when they were right behind them. Wisps of Great Path auras were released and enveloped the space. These cultivators had cut off any chances of retreating.


    They looked at the light beam in front of them with the same strong sense of dread. After all, everything that happened on the outside was still fresh in their memory. They got here by stepping on the bones of their many companions. Otherwise, they would have never been able to get this far. This was a path forged by the lives of the cultivators from all four major forces.


    ��Go forward and enter,�� said a voice. It was none other than the clan leader of the Lin family, Lin Kong. Patriarch Lin was one of the four cultivators fighting outside with Chen Blind, while everyone else was inside. Lin Kong and several other peak Renhuang cultivators were now inside as well.


    All of them unleashed a powerful coercion as the pressure pushed against both Ye Futian and Chen Yi. It was trying to force them into the divine matrix to open a way for them and see what would happen.


    Before, the cultivators from the four major forces had scouted the way, but now, it was Ye Futian and Chen Yi��s turn.


    Considering the great pressure released by all the cultivators, Ye Futian and Chen Yi appeared exceptionally calm, as if they hadn��t heard anything they said. Ye Futian��s eyes were still looking at the divine matrix just ahead. He was perceiving whether or not this divine matrix was the same as the one outside and if entry could be gained using the incomparably pure light.


    As for the people behind, he didn��t really care for them, not even a bit.


    When he saw that the two had completely ignored him, Lin Kong and the others had an extremely cold look about them, and their attention was now on Chen Yi. Since Blind Chen told them that Ye Futian was the key to opening the relic, they would first start with Chen Yi.


    Chen Yi had killed his descendant, Lin Xi.


    When his thought turned to this, Lin Kong��s eyes became cold, and he took a step forward. Then, he raised a finger and pointed in Chen Yi��s direction.


    Buzz! A tremendously radiant light burst out of Chen Yi. His body as the center, a Sword Wheel of Light appeared, surrounding him and clashed with the terrifying Sword Will that came in for the kill. The explosion erupted with frightening power, causing the sword of light in front of Chen Yi to shatter as he took a step back simultaneously.


    His cultivation was Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm, so attacks from cultivators in the Ninth-Realm could still threaten him.


    ��Are you going in by yourself, or should we make you?�� Lin Kong took a step forward and said coldly to Chen Yi. An invisible Sword Will enveloped Ye Futian and Chen Yi, and they felt that the space around them contained a horrific Sword Will. It was as if just a thought would drive the Sword Will to descend upon them in an instant.


    Ye Futian turned around slowly and looked in Lin Kong��s direction.


    He walked towards Lin Kong and said, ��If so, you can go in.��


    Lin Kong frowned. Was he telling him to go in?


    Although Ye Futian��s cultivation was tremendous and he had defeated Yu Hou in the eighth-realm and the Seven Star Lords, the gap between them was a fact. He was a peak Renhung in the Ninth-Realm.


    And at this moment, Ye Futian was so arrogant and confident that he told Lin Kong to go in.


    Ye Futian stopped, standing there with his white robe fluttering. He looked incredibly confident in himself and gave the onlookers a sense of preeminence. It was as if he was immovable.


    Buzz! A horrible Sword Will shrouded Ye Futian. In an instant, Ye Futian felt that he had entered the world of swords. Although nothing seemed to be around him, he knew that he had already fallen into his opponent��s domain of swordsmanship. He could perceive that it was an invisible domain, and in this domain around him, the swords were everywhere, hidden in the invisible space.


    ��You��re much too insolent,�� said Lin Kong. As soon his voice faded, he made the gesture of squeezing his palm. Suddenly there was a terrifying sharp sound all around Ye Futian, and the invisible sword that hid in the space moved at the same time. They slashed through the space, slicing through the void where Ye was. It seemed that with just a single thought, that space would be shattered into smithereens.


    Ye Futian stood there and didn��t move, but there was divine light circulating over the surface of his body. His physical body seemed to have been transformed into a divine body in an instant. He was surrounded by the incomparable divine light of the Great Path, and a shocking roar erupted from his body.


    A sharpish sound came out, and the space seemed to have been cut into fragments, with numerous sword marks. The terrible attack was coming at Ye Futian as well, and he actually seemed to be its focal point.


    Psst�� A harsh, scratchy sound came from Ye Futian��s body. Divine light blazed all over his body. Everyone was shocked to discover that when the Sword Will cut through the space and descended upon him. It was unable to move Ye Futian even an inch.


    ��How is this possible!�� Lin Kong��s expression changed quickly to shock. His Great Path attack could not break down Ye Futian��s defense?


    How could this happen? Was this really a cultivator in the Eighth-Realm?


    The expression of those surrounding cultivators changed; a cultivator of the Ninth-Realm could not make Ye Futian move?


    How horrific was this physical body?


    At this time, when they looked at Ye Futian again, he was surrounded by the divine light as if he were some kind of deity, invincible and all-powerful.


    Ye Futian��s clothes were moving freely. When he was still in the Seventh-Realm, he had already defeated Xiao Mu��the direct disciple of the Devil Emperor. Now that he was in the Eighth-Realm, he was battling superior Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm, Lin Kong was not even a concern for him.


    It seemed that the Great Bright City was still a pretty weak opponent for him. The current strength of Ye Futian��s divine body was already at the limit of an ordinary Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm. Ye Futian was confident that he was close to being invincible and was difficult to defeat by cultivators in the Renhuang Realm unless it were those exceptional enchanting figures of the world.


    ��Are you going in by yourself, or should I make you?�� Ye Futian asked Lin Kong. It was something Lin Kong had said to Chen Yi before, but now Ye Futian was using on him!

 Chapter 2423 - Change

    Lin Kong��s gaze froze. His attack could not even move his opponent an inch?


    What level of physique was this?


    If this was the case, how could he fight him?


    Other cultivators next to him were trembling as well, and no one dared to act hastily. They were all shocked by what they saw just now. Lin Kong was an existence at the peak of Renhuang, and there were just a few people who could stand shoulder to shoulder with him here. If Lin Kong��s attack could not shake Ye Futian physically, there was no point in anyone doing anything.


    When he saw that Lin Kong did not react, Ye Futian stepped forward. When Lin Kong saw him coming, his eyes showed a trace of defiance. He, who was at the peak of Renhuang, was cowed by a youngster?


    When his thought turned to this, his whole body became most radiant. The sword screen shrouded the boundless space, and suddenly, Sword Will was everywhere in the space within this temple.


    ��Kill!�� Lin Kong pointed his finger forward, and immediately there were countless sword marks in the space, arranged in a crisscross pattern. They not only segmented the void but were also cutting at Ye Futian��s body. This kind of attack was invisible and shapeless. Any ordinary Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm would have been shattered and extinguished instantly.


    But the one he encountered was Ye Futian. The sword marks carved in space blasted on Ye Futian��s body, producing a sharpish sound. The divine body was extremely brilliant, like an invincible golden body, completely unshakable. Ye Futian continued moving forward, but at the same time, Lin Kong��s finger came slamming down.


    At this moment, Lin Kong��s entire body was also bathed in the sword light. Between his fingers, the invisible Sword Will penetrated the void, and everything in front of him seemed to be shattered into nothing. This one finger aimed at Ye Futian as if concentrating all its power for a final fight. Clearly, Lin Kong realized that the strength of this white-haired young man was far above his.


    The streamers of the Great Path upon Ye Futian��s body was flowing about, and endless characters seemed to be circulating. He pointed his finger forward, and his body suddenly turned into a sword body of the Great Path. This finger seemed to be the sharpest sword in the world right now.


    Their fingers collided. A terrifying current of swordsmanship swept out, raging between heaven and earth. Then, they saw Lin Kong��s finger shattered, as the Sword Will penetrated through his arm. Blood spurted everywhere, and that arm was torn to pieces.


    Lin Kong let out a chilling scream as a giant hand clasped tightly around his neck. This hand was strong and sturdy. It seemed as if any movement could end his life for good.


    At this moment, there was a strong sense of dread in Lin Kong��s heart. Not only him, but the cultivators from the Lin family, as well as those around them, watched while their hearts trembled violently. Was this really the clan leader of the Lin family who was at the peak of Renhuang?


    In front of Ye Futian, a mere Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm, he had no way of fighting back. The one strike he unleashed was blocked, and caused his arm to be totally destroyed, and his life was now in the hands of his opponent.


    How could a Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm be this tyrannical?


    Ye Futian��s eyes were sharp, as they fixed upon Lin Kong. They were like the eyes of a deity, looking down on the Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm in front of him. Several other peak Renhuang were watching, speechless. No wonder Blind Chen was not worried, and merely occupying himself by tangling up a few patriarchs.


    It turned out that Ye Futian was exceptionally powerful.


    Ye Futian picked Lin Kong up and walked towards that Divine Matrix of Light. When they reached the front of the matrix, Ye Futian��s arm pitched, and Lin Kong��s body was thrown into the Divine Matrix of Light.


    In the sky above, beams of light spilled down, and countless beams of light landed on Lin Kong at the same time.


    Lin Kong let out a horrific scream, and then his body was penetrated by the light. The next moment, under everyone��s shocking gazes, his body turned into light as well. It completely dissipated between heaven and earth, not leaving the slightest trace.


    ��This���� A cultivator at the peak of Renhuang, under the light, disappeared directly and completely, turning into spots of light.


    The peak of Renhuang, gone in a flash.


    Of everyone that was here, who could enter that Divine Matrix of Light?


    Just as I thought! Ye Futian remarked silently to himself. This Divine Matrix of Light did not allow for the existence of any other Great Path except the light itself.


    However, he was feeling a little differently than before. Previously, when the divine matrix was circulating, there seemed to be a special kind of light that appeared, and it was not just a murderous matrix.


    ��Let me try.�� Ye Futian stepped forward, and inside the life spirit world of his body, the ancient tree of the world swayed. Currents that were shining with the divine glory of the Great Emperor spread outward. They then flowed into that Divine Matrix of Light.


    Suddenly, the light within the divine matrix seemed to detect the invasion of other Great Path powers, and suddenly, rays of brilliant divine light were shining, wanting to wipe out this invading force.


    However, this strand of will of the Way seemed unable to be erased. It was still existing in that light, wandering inside, invading gradually, even covering the area around the Divine Matrix of the Light.


    ��Chen Yi, bring those who were in the altercation before and send them inside,�� said Ye Futian. Chen Yi nodded in acknowledgement. Before, in addition to Lin Kong, several others from the Lin family had taken action against Ye Futian and himself. Clearly, he had perceived it.


    When he turned around, Chen Yi��s eyes fell on the two people from the Lin family. He asked, ��Do you want to go in on your own, or should I make you?��


    The two men paled while their bodies were moving rapidly in retreat. Entering that divine matrix was the same as death. Why would they go in there themselves?


    Buzz! Seeing the reaction of the two, Chen Yi��s body turned into a light, and the two Renhuang were caught at the same time. As the light flashed, the two Renhuang were thrown into the divine matrix.


    Suddenly, under the light beam of the divine matrix, the two figures slowly dissipated and turned into light, just like Lin Kong. It seemed that anyone who came here would face the same fate.


    But at this moment, the striations of light in the divine matrix changed, which was clearly captured by Ye Futian. Suddenly he seemed to understand everything.


    ��Same as before, but this time, you have to be more cautious. Any carelessness will result in total annihilation. Can you do it?�� Ye Futian asked Chen Yi.


    Chen Yi��s expression was particularly grave as he nodded. The way of light enveloped his body, and his entire person seemed to have turned into a physique of light as he walked forward.


    Chen Yi was born to be extraordinary. After all, he was an Illumining Body of the Great Path himself. Because of that, he maintained the purest state of light, which was also why Ye Futian felt comfortable allowing him to try. If it were someone else, that person would surely die.


    Blind Chen had found Chen Yi as the heir to inherit the light, so he most likely knew about this as well.


    Chen Yi stepped into the light, and suddenly rays of light passed through his body as he released his Great Path of light to its limit. His whole body released an incomparable light, and he became one with the light inside.


    At the same time, Ye Futian��s eyes were closed tightly, his mind moving slightly. Suddenly, the striations within the divine matrix were moving, as if controlled by his will. Below the divine matrix, a divine light shot straight up into the sky above, weaving together with the light that was falling down. Then, the two went straight above the firmament.


    At this moment, a terrible rumbling sound could be heard, and the whole temple was trembling. The divine light that burst out of the divine matrix was becoming more brazen. Ye Futian��s power of the Great Path retracted as he stared ahead. In ancient times, this divine matrix was probably urged by cultivators of the temple, but now there was just him.

 Chapter 2424 - Eyes Open

    Once the divine matrix was activated, a phantom appeared within the beam of light behind Chen Yi, like a heavenly god, and surrounded him.


    In the next moment, Chen Yi��s body swaying upwards, following the light released by the divine matrix all the way to the temple. The phantom of light disappeared with him. It was as if they had entered the core of the temple together.


    The beam of light suddenly dimmed as the divine matrix disappeared, and the light was gone. Inside the temple, loud rumbling continued, and the temple seemed on the verge of collapse. It seemed as if this divine matrix was the thing that supported the last ray of light from the temple.


    Ye Futian looked thoughtful at this moment. So, if the Divine Matrix of the Light disappeared, would the Temple of Light collapse?


    This was the Temple of Light where the gods gathered in ancient times, so it could not have crumbled so easily. That was unless the temple was already in shambles from the collapse eons ago but had been repaired only on the outside. The last divine matrix left in the Temple of Light was the power that had been holding it up all this time.


    From this perspective, the Temple of Light was very likely in possession of that last trace of the will from the gods, waiting for some future heir to inherit the light. When the person finally showed up, the temple would self-destruct and give way.


    As for Blind Chen, he was probably aware of some of these circumstances. He may have been searching for an heir of the light and found Chen Yi.


    Then, everything seemed to make sense now.


    The Temple of Light trembled even more violently. Looking up, cracks began to appear on the temple as it started to disintegrate. However, the cultivators here were extremely powerful, so nothing untoward would happen to them. Still, their hearts were greatly shocked.


    Where had Chen Yi been sent to?


    Bang! A falling boulder came down, and the divine light surrounding Ye Futian knocked the boulder away from him. The ruins around him began to pile up, and it didn��t take long for the entire temple to come down completely.


    At the same time, there seemed to be a boundless dazzling light above the sky that forced their eyes shut. In the next moment, an invisible force seemed to push them as the stars revolved, and the whole world was in a state of disintegration.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened his eyes again, the ruins were still under his feet, but they were no longer the ruins of the Temple of Light inside. In front of them, there was a door��the Portal of Light.


    On this Portal of Light, dazzling light was still blooming. It was as if it was the light that had pushed them out. All the cultivators who had entered it before were sent out at this time, including the five tops figures who fought outside the Temple of Light.


    Facing such a mysterious situation, they had no intention to continue fighting. In fact, they had stopped fighting as soon as the temple began to collapse, and the light bloomed. Watching the collapsing temple, their hearts were greatly disquieted. The temple had been turned to dust. Was this the Temple of Light they were looking for?


    And now, they had been sent outside. What was going on?


    ��What was happening?�� Patriarch Lin and other top figures asked as they looked for their youngsters. At the same time, Patriarch Lin found that Lin Kong��the clan leader of the Lin family��was missing. He wondered if that meant Lin Kong had been left behind in the Portal of Light.


    What did that mean? Could it be that Lin Kong had gotten the opportunity?


    But in the next moment, his hope was dashed. He saw some cultivators of the Lin family lowered their heads while others wore an expression of grief and indignation. Obviously, Lin Kong did not receive the inheritance, and from the reactions of those people, he could guess Lin Kong��s fate.


    However, Lin Kong was a peak Renhuang, and none of the people who entered had higher cultivation than him. At the most, they were even, so who killed him?


    ��My young friend.�� Blind Chen noticed Chen Yi��s absence with just a glance. He lowered his head slightly and called out to Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian already knew what he meant and replied, ��Don��t worry, sir. Chen Yi has already touched the light.��


    Blind Chen squeezed the cane in his hand. It seemed as if he was relieved. He raised his head slightly, facing the sky above, and said, ��Thank you for your guidance.��


    No one knew who he was referring to, but Ye Futian gathered that it might be to the person who had told Blind Chen to find him, once upon a time.


    Blind Chen was an honest man. Even though the man from many years ago was not here, he still felt the need to express his gratitude.


    ��My friend, great kindness has no adequate way to be repaid. After Chen Yi inherits the light, he will follow and assist you always,�� Blind Chen said to Ye Futian again. Several major cultivators who were around them were impressed by his words. Who exactly was this Ye Futian character?


    The blind man claimed outright that after Chen Yi inherited the light, he would assist Ye Futian!


    If Chen Yi were to inherit the light, he would be the heir of the Great Emperor of Light and the heir to the God of Light from ancient times. Would such a cultivator assist Ye Futian? Assist him to what end?


    But at this time, the cultivators from other major forces briefed their patriarchs on what happened inside the Temple of Light via voice transmission. Suddenly, their gazes toward Ye Futian changed.


    He, who was a Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm, had taken down Lin Kong so effortlessly?


    Furthermore, Lin Kong��s attack failed to shake his physical form, and he was captured by him instead of being tossed into the Divine Matrix of the Light. He met his end there.


    Buzz! Suddenly, a terrifying Sword Will was born between heaven and the earth. Patriarch Lin rose into the sky. As the Sword Will covered the entire sky, it hovered above this area as if it was omnipresent.


    ��Watch it.�� Blind Chen��s body appeared in front of Ye Futian in just a moment, as the most radiant light shrouded them both. The terrifying Sword Will descended upon them but was blocked by the light. If he were any slower, that terrifying attack would have landed right on top of Ye Futian.


    High above the sky, Patriarch Lin carried powerful momentum, and an absolute sword domain appeared in the space as if this was his world.


    A terrifying sword light shot out from his eyes as he looked at Ye Futian and said, ��No matter who you are, you must die today.��


    There was a strong murderous intent in this voice. Patriarch Lin was determined to kill Ye Futian not only because of Lin Kong��s death but also because he was the one who dashed their long-waited hopes and dreams.


    The other three cultivators levitated into the air as well. Their eyes were fixed on Blind Chen and Ye Futian. They had released a terrifying aura as they intend on continuing the battle from before.


    Ye Futian��s brows knitted slightly. The auras from all four cultivators exploded at the same time, covering the vast space. It seemed that he might have to use the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor for the fight.


    ��My friend, watch Chen Yi for me. I have other business to attend to,�� said Blind Chen. His voice was incredibly calm, containing neither joy nor sorrow. It seemed as if he was stating a simple fact. But Ye Futian had heard the implications in those words. He began, ��Sir, you don��t need to����


    Before he could finish his sentence, Blind Chen was already high above the sky and replied, ��My friend, the secret of heaven has been revealed, and I shall no longer be seen in the world. I am the agent of light, and now that the light has appeared, there is nothing in the world to detain me.


    ��Eyes open!�� When his voice fell, Blind Chen, who had been blinded for countless years, opened his eyes!

 Chapter 2425 - The Reason of Death

    The second Blind Chen opened his eyes, countless people in the immediate area closed their eyes. The bright light pricked their eyes painfully, especially those cultivators from the four major forces. Some of them even had blood oozing from their eyes. The sight was terrifying.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were still open. Although they hurt a bit, he continued to watch. Blind Chen seemed to have turned into the light itself. His entire body was radiant and bright. It was almost as if he was transparent. He had morphed into a phantom of the light, unleashing its endless brightness at Patriarch Lin. He drowned him with the light in an instant. At the same time, the light was also blasted at the other three cultivators.


    Patriarch Lin was terrified right now as a monstrous might erupted from him, and his incomparable Sword Will bloomed. His body soared into the sky, turning into a sword, wanting to escape through the air. Clearly, he had detected a strong sense of danger. He knew that this was no place to linger. He had heard the determination in Blind Chen��s tone when he was speaking before.


    Blind Chen wanted to use his life to take the lives of these other four. He had never intended to stay in the world for long. Before he left, he wanted to take them with him.


    Patriarch Lin rushed straight into the sky, but the light flooded everything. Afterimages appeared there, but at this moment, even those afterimages had gradually become more and more elusive under the light until they, too, turned into countless spots of light. It was as if it had been purified by the light, reduced into nothing but dust.


    ��The purification of light. The Divine Method of Light.�� The expressions of the other three cultivators were one of great fright. Rumor had it that this was the divine method created by the God of Light and could purify all things in the world. This method was particularly terrifying, and it was said that only the God of Light��s heir may learn of this forbidden technique.


    How could Blind Chen do it, then? However, Blind Chen seemed to be urging this forbidden technique at the expense of the gods.


    ��No���� There was an unwilling roar that came from the void. A massive face appeared above the sky. It then dissipated little by little, turning into countless spots of light. Someone as powerful as Patriarch Lin, who had survived the Divine Tribulation, was killed by a single thought, with nothing left.


    By the time the other three realized something was wrong and tried to escape, the light had already obscured the sky and covered the boundless space. Another phantom appeared above the sky, which was transformed by the shadow of Blind Chen. He seemed to have turned into a deity now, as the light was shining all over the space and directly shrouded the three people who were fleeing.


    ��Old diviner, we have no grievances nor grudges with you. Why resort to such fatal attacks on us!�� Patriarch Lan pleaded loudly.


    ��Old diviner, I swear I won��t touch Chen Yi!�� the Patriarch of the Yu family also shouted loudly. Their voices reverberated through the boundless void, all begging for mercy in the hopes that Blind Chen would spare them of their lives.


    Those incomparable eyes of light were emotionless in the void. With a turning of his mind, the light that could purify all thing came showering down, directly on top of the three cultivators, drowning their bodies in its brilliance. The three of them let out an angry growl to no avail. They watched their bodies disappearing little by little while their consciousness was still intact. Still, their bodies were disintegrating.


    ��Noooo���� The fear in their voices was palpable. It took many long years for them to cultivate to the level they were at now, and they were almost at the very top of the cultivation world. The city of light aside, even in the lands of the Divine Prefecture and all the major worlds, they were still qualified as top cultivators. And yet, were they to die just like this?


    The light��s purification of the divine method descended, and the three of them gradually turned transparent. Soon, these three top cultivators evaporated from the world. It seemed that in their demise, they had been turned into a part of that light.


    As of this moment, the top four cultivators from the city of light were killed. All of them had been killed by Blind Chen.


    Many cultivators from the city of light were looking this way, and many more had gathered around. They look at the elusive figure in the void, an existence that was almost akin to a god. Who could have imagined that this was the Blind Chen who was walking with a cane not so long ago?


    The descendants of the four major forces felt a little surreal; it was like they were in a dream. That hunched blind man, who seemed as if he knew nothing about cultivation, had killed off their patriarchs. Previously, many of them had even suspected that Blind Chen was a conman with no abilities whatsoever. Now they realized just how ridiculous that idea seemed in retrospect.


    However, Blind Chen��s form seemed to appear even more elusive at this moment. As if he was unable to turn his head, the phantom above the sky looked toward Ye Futian and said, ��My friend, don��t forget what I asked of you.��


    ��Sir, there was no need to do this.�� Ye Futian sighed.


    Blind Chen��s smile was enigmatic. Then his eyes drifted in the direction where the Portal of Light was. His eyes were full of piety once again. Then, his figure gradually disappeared and turned into a light, dissipating little by little between heaven and earth.


    He got what he came for.


    As the emissary of light, Blind Chen completed his mission and found the heir to the light. From now on, he was no longer needed in this world.


    Ye Futian watched him disappear, but there was turbulence in his heart. In the last words left by Blind Chen, he thought of something else.


    Before Blind Chen, another existence was known as a prophet who had experienced the sitting death just because he took one look at Ye Futian.


    The prophet claimed that he had peered into the secrets of heaven.


    Although Blind Chen said it was because his mission had been completed, he would no longer tarry in this world. Was this the real and only reason? If he wanted to, he could have stayed on to take care of Chen Yi even if he had just completed the mission; there was no need to fight the four major cultivators to the death.


    Then, there was another possibility��it might be because of him.


    Blind Chen told him that because someone else came to him first, he had asked Chen Yi to search for Ye Futian. Then, this whole affair could still be related to his own origin.


    Why was it that everyone who may know about his origin met a similar fate?


    Was there something more hidden behind what met the eye?


    Could he be overthinking the whole thing?


    Ye Futian had a strong suspicion that Blind Chen��s death was just a piece of the puzzle. He might have made a promise, like once Ye Futian helped Chen Yi inherit the light, Blind Chen had to go away.


    ��Teacher.�� Fang Cun and several other youngsters were a little confused. Although they were in the realm of Renhuang, they had never cultivated outside. This time, as they were following Ye Futian to the outside world, they had been diligently observing everything around them.


    Ye Futian didn��t explain much because there was no way to explain things of this nature clearly. In the meantime, Blind Tie and Hua Jieyu had come to his side.


    The cultivators from the four top forces were looking at Ye Futian. Now that Blind Chen and the four great patriarchs had perished together, only the cultivators from the four major forces were left with Ye Futian and his party. A grievance was born today, but other than the four patriarchs, who could possibly touch a hair on Ye Futian?


    Lin Kong��s death was still fresh in their memory. Although there were still cultivators in the peak Renhuang realm among them, none of them dared to attack Ye Futian now.


    Ye Futian surveyed the crowd, and there was an insouciance in his eyes. These people no longer concerned him since the four great patriarchs had already fallen. He had no problem handling the likes of the patriarchs, so the cultivators from the four principalities were of no interest to him at all.


    ��Are they all dead?�� At this moment, a strange hoarse voice came from a distance, with a degree of wickedness. Then, an extremely tyrannical aura enveloped this space, and everyone who remained expressed a look of concern.


    Was there still someone of this level hidden behind the scenes?


    ��The more dead, the better!�� the voice said. Its tone was uncanny. In the next moment, a figure dressed in black appeared in the sky above!

 Chapter 2426 - Departure

    ��Who is that?��


    Everyone looked quite surprised as their attention was captured by the figure in black that appeared. This man��s aura was dark and chilling as he surveyed the crowd below.


    In the Great Bright City was another tyrannical cultivator, such as this one who, right under their noses.


    He looked at the Portal of Light and said, ��I have waited for this day for many years, and now it��s finally here. Is this the heir of light?��


    When he spoke, there was an icy sneer in his eyes. No one knew who he was. Obviously, this person had been keeping himself hidden before, so that he went undetected by the people of the Great Bright City. Nor had he ever revealed his own strength as he lay in wait in secret.


    This is disastrous, the cultivators from the four major principalities secretly remarked to themselves. They had no idea how long this man had been inside the Great Bright City, as he had been lurking in the shadows until this moment. No wonder he meant to reap what benefits there were to be had after Blind Chen and the four patriarchs had fallen.


    Now, who else could stop someone at this level?


    The cultivators of the four major forces had paved the way for Chen Yi. But now, would Blind Chen, Chen Yi, and the others hand over everything to this man in the dark?


    The man in black redirected his gaze from the Portal of Light and swept over everyone around. He then released a horrific aura, and suddenly, a dark divine wall appeared between heaven and earth. The wall blocked out all the light and continued to expand to seal off this void.


    ��Elder,�� someone appeared to be quite alarmed at this juncture and said, ��we will leave right now and will not interfere in any matter that happens here. The inheritance of the light has nothing to do with us either.��


    A sneer flashed across the man��s face, and he said, ��Why don��t you just sit tight for the time being.��


    He wanted to see if Chen Yi could really inherit the light. If he were to seize it, he couldn��t very well leave any witnesses. Everyone here would have to die.


    ��This man harbors a strong murderous intent. I am afraid no one will be left alive,�� Hua Qingqing said to Ye Futian via voice transmission. Ye Futian knew that while they were setting the four principalities up, this man had been waiting for his moment in the dark. He meant to seize the inheritance. Naturally, he would want to get rid of all the evidence. He had hidden his identity so that no one knew of his existence. If he were able to intercept the inheritance of the Temple of Light, he clearly could not risk anyone knowing who he was.


    This person��s plotting mind was terrifyingly calculating.


    As if he had sensed Ye Futian��s gaze, the man in black looked down at Ye Futian and said, ��I��m a little curious about you. Who are you?��


    ��I��m just an ordinary cultivator,�� Ye Futian replied. ��The elder��s cultivation must not have gone unnoticed in the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��Not many know about me.�� The man in black said, ��How can the person invited by Blind Chen be someone ordinary? You are not forthcoming with your answer. Do you need me to force it out of you?��


    Ye Futian said, ��Of course, if elder wants to know, I am obligated to explain clearly and thoroughly.��


    As soon as he said that, Ye Futian waved his hand, and suddenly a physical form appeared in front of him. When that body appeared, everyone in the surrounding area instantly felt a strong oppressive force.


    In the void, the man in black was looking at that body as well. Ye Futian��s spiritual soul then came out of his own body and poured into that physical form. Suddenly, the divine body opened its eyes.


    ��That��s not right!�� The face of the man in black became alarmed. Right at the moment when the divine body opened his eyes and raised his head to look at him, his eyes felt a piercing pain. He felt as if that Great Path was about to annihilate everything.


    ��This is a divine body!�� He shouted, ��You come from the Original Realm.��


    ��Elder knows quite a lot.�� A voice came from the divine body. In the next moment, the divine body broke through the air, and a terrifying divine light appeared between heaven and earth.


    The man in black wore an expression of pure shock. A horrific aura of the Great Path descended, and countless divine lights transformed into sword lights, covering the sky and obscuring the sun. That divine body transformed into a sword that seemed to slice open the heavens. Its speed was unimaginably fast, and it cleaved open the sky in but a moment��s time.


    Countless many looked up at the radiant sight before them. The void that was previously sealed was splitting wide open and riddled with holes.


    Bang! The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor returned to its place. Ye Futian��s spiritual soul, once again, returned inside as he put it away. Looking again above the sky, the figure of the man in black gradually became more and intangible. There was a desperation in his eyes as he looked at Ye Futian, who was down below.


    He had always acted cautiously in his life, keeping a low profile to avoid attracting any attention to himself. He didn��t expect that he would die like this today.


    This was Ye Futian of the Original Realm, and that was the physical form of none other than Shenjia the Great Emperor himself.


    If there were any Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm in this world who could slay him, then it could only be the man in front of him. Why did he have to be here right now?


    The phantom evaporated, and the man in black disappeared from the void. His soul and spirit scattered and dispersed, and he was killed by a single sword strike.


    The cultivators from all four major forces froze when they bore witness to this scene. They looked at Ye Futian with great horror. How could they have known that he was as frightening as this?


    Even if Blind Chen didn��t open his eyes, the four great patriarchs would have perished in his hands anyway.


    That physical form was the divine body.


    Many years ago, it was rumored that in the Shangqing Domain, the physical form of Shenjia the Great Emperor had appeared and had been acquired by a young man named Ye Futian. Many top cultivators could not resonate with the Great Emperor��s divine body, but that young genius talent was the only one able to do it.


    It was said that the young man had amazing talent.


    Many people had heard of this lore, especially the cultivators from the four top forces. After all, any relic of the Great Emperor was of great interest in the world and inevitably attracted a lot of attention.


    The white-haired young man in front of them was that stunning and enchanting figure, Ye Futian!


    So, it was him.


    No wonder Blind Chen invited him to come. It would seem that Blind Chen had already known.


    It was ludicrous that the four major forces wanted to put up a fight. In the eyes of the others, it was but a joke.


    Ye Futian had never considered them as viable threats.


    At this moment, Ye Futian turned to look in the direction of the Portal of Light. He did not bother to look at those cultivators. It seemed as if he didn��t care whether they were there or not. This made the four major forces feel particularly self-conscious. It seemed that they were not worthy of being even considered by him.


    Ye Futian waited quietly. To him, the matter here was not worth the time or effort. He was just a passer-by. When Chen Yi came out, he would be able to embark on the rest of his journey.


    However, the whole affair with Blind Chen still left some impressions on his mind.


    Who was behind this? Why did Blind Chen end his life like that?


    No one could give him the answer to any of this. Anyone who might have an answer was not around him at this time or that they had fallen. This mystery looked as if it would not unravel any time soon.


    Time passed slowly. After a long while, a clear sound was heard. The Portal of Light showed some fissures, which then shattered and cracked bit by bit. From that Portal of Light which was breaking apart, a figure walked through. This figure was bathed in divine light. It was Chen Yi. He seemed to have undergone some transformation, and his entire temperament had changed so that he was more like a descendant of the light.


    When Ye Futian saw this sight, he knew that Chen Yi had already inherited the light. He had been successful.


    Chen walked to Ye Futian��s side without saying anything remotely like a thank-you, but he remembered everything in his heart. He looked around but did not see Blind Chen. He sighed inwardly as if he knew how things had ended. Indeed, Blind Chen had told him already.


    ��Let��s go!�� Ye Futian said softly.


    ��Mmm,�� Chen Yi nodded. The group then went on their way!

 Chapter 2427 - The Bodhi Divine Tree

    A few months later, a flying boat was traveling through the endless void.


    The void was full of darkness with terrible spatial turbulences to boot. Some of these turbulences even contained the terrifying and destructive aura of the Great Path. The flying boat was like an unsteady tumbleweed, bumbling shakily through this void.


    ��It��s really far,�� Ye Futian mumbled to himself. A spot of light was floating in front of him, as if a certain coordinate was hiding within, guiding them. It was something given to him by the teacher to guide him in his quest for the location of the Western World.


    Without such an item, it would not be easy to locate the Western World. It was simply impossible for any ordinary cultivator, who may perish at any moment, to travel through this endless void. Even Ye Futian himself had encountered many dangers along the way while traveling through this space.


    At the rear of the flying boat, there was Chen Yi, sitting cross-legged, cultivating quietly. He was constantly surrounded by the light, which illuminated the boat.


    ��Teacher, look ahead!�� At this time, a cry came out, and it was Little Ling. She looked into the far distance, where an extraordinary shocking sight emerged in front of them. It was slowly coming into focus in all of its spectacular splendor.


    ��I saw it,�� Ye Futian nodded. His vision was much better than Little Ling, so he had already seen it, but it was pretty fuzzy before.


    In the endless darkness and emptiness, a golden divine light appeared. A tree, like a tree of the world, was growing in this vast universe. This tree had been endowed with numerous branches and leaves, bright and lush. This towering divine tree was glowing with a golden divine light that seemed to be guiding their way.


    Ye Futian knew that the divine tree of the world in this vast universe was really quite far away from them, which was the reason why they could see the shape of the divine tree. If they were closer, they would only see parts and not the whole.


    It was similar to looking up at the night sky and discerning the shape of those stars or even the formations of stars.


    The same principle was at work here because the ancient tree of the world was still so far away that it didn��t appear to be very large. However, as they were getting closer, they found that it was actually a massive world.


    ��The legend is true indeed��the Western World is a Bodhi Tree,�� Hua Qingqing said softly. Her voice was soft and gentle as she looked at the spectacular sight in front of her with some emotions in her heart.


    ��Each flower is its own world, and each leaf is a Bodhi Tree, as they say.�� Ye Futian whispered, ��What exactly happened after the Heavenly Path collapsed in ancient times?��


    ��The Bodhi Tree of the World was once part of the Heavenly Path. After its collapse, it was scattered to one side. Later, some had proved the Way under the Bodhi Divine Tree, spreading the words of their belief in the Western World. Gradually, the Western World became a part of Buddhism,�� Hua Qingqing responded softly.


    ��The Bodhi Divine Tree has countless branches and leaves, and if one leaf is one world, then there are many, many worlds.�� Ye Futian was amazed in his heart by this revelation. They continued to move forward, and sure enough, even at the startling speed they were traveling, the distance seemed to remain the same for a long time. They did not seem to be getting any closer to their destination, so it was obvious that the place they saw was, in fact, extremely far away from them.


    However, as they kept moving forward, the Bodhi Tree eventually became enlarged in their field of vision. The closer they were getting, the bigger it became until they could no longer see the entirety of the Bodhi Tree except for countless golden worlds. Vaguely, they could perceive that there were numerous living things inside!


    Finally, they came to the outer parts of the Bodhi Tree, where countless golden divine lights were circulating. In the outer area of the Western World, there was a light screen with what appeared to be golden quicksand. Ye Futian could faintly perceive the power of Buddhism that was contained within as it stood guard over the Bodhi World.


    ��Be careful,�� Blind Tie cautioned, having vaguely detected the potential danger of this golden quicksand. Even the turbulences of the Great Path were blocked by it and could not find their way inside, which attested to its frighteningly powerful defense.


    Ye Futian nodded. Suddenly he was surrounded by divine light, which also shrouded the flying boat. Immediately, sword-shaped runes appeared around the boat.


    Buzz! The flying boat sped up suddenly, rushing directly into the golden streamers.


    In an instant, the defense around the flying boat was attacked by a horrific force. The quicksand slammed into their defensive light screen while the flying boat was swept into the storm by the fast-moving quicksand. Ye Futian and the others felt that everything was now spinning out of control, and they could no longer see where they were. They could only feel that the flying boat was traveling at a frightening speed. It was as if they had been swallowed up by that storm of quicksand.


    Ye Futian did not panic. Although his body was constantly turning upside down and whichever way, he maintained his composure. The life spirit of the ancient tree of the world in his body was swaying as well, and the divine glory of the Great Emperor was circulating about him. It turned into an absolute sword domain. As it formed a protective cover over the flying boat, it was impervious to all kinds of methods, including the terrifying attack that buffeted them.


    ��Teacher!�� Little Ling called out. Her body was being knocked about constantly. She seemed on the verge of panic as they were caught up in this storm of quicksand.


    ��It��s nothing,�� Ye Futian replied. Suddenly a small smile appeared on Little Ling��s face. The simple response from her teacher had settled her; she believed they would pull through just fine.


    After an unknown period of time in this storm of quicksand, Ye Futian and his party finally got tossed out. The flying boat returned to its previous steadiness as they continued traveling in the sky. They found that they were no longer in the Outer Realms but were now inside a world.


    ��Land.�� Looking down, land could be seen; it was populated by many cultivators with varied realms.


    ��The Western World is here,�� Ye Futian whispered, and Chen Yi opened his eyes.


    ��We probably just landed on a leaf of the Bodhi tree,�� Hua Qingqing whispered, and Ye Futian nodded in agreement. That Bodhi Divine Tree was synonymous with the entire Western World, and each one of those numerous branches and leaves was a world of its own.


    They were swept in here by the storm of quicksand. Very possibly, this was just a leaf of the Bodhi Divine Tree.


    ��How come there are not many monks?�� Fang Cun looked down and saw in the distant land. There were not many monks to be seen.


    ��Buddhism of the Western World is a supreme principality, but it is a human world, after all. How can they all be cultivating Buddhism? Most of them are cultivators of other sorts. Is it possible that everyone in the Divine Prefecture cultivates in the same ability as Donghuang the Great?�� Ye Futian asked him in return. Fang Cun scratched his head in confusion and finally replied, ��I guess that is the case.��


    ��However, most of the top cultivators here must cultivate in Buddhism,�� said Ye Futian. They looked forward and saw the clouds seemed to have turned into a gold color, and a golden celestial mountain seemed to appear in the distance, floating in midair.


    Then they heard a long and sustained howl. A huge demonic beast came out of the golden clouds and mist, splitting open the space with incredible speed. The clouds and mist tossed and roared as Ye Futian and the others felt an imminent danger. Soon after, they saw a gigantic golden divine bird swooping down at them.


    ��Golden-winged Roc!�� Ye Futian and the others exclaimed as they looked in front of them. They had just arrived, and there was already an attack by the divine bird. Was this some welcoming party?

 Chapter 2428 - Control

    The sharp claws of the Golden-winged Roc ripped through the air. The golden claws tore through the space and covered this corner of the world. It was swooping down at the flying boat occupied by Ye Futian and the others.


    Blind Tie stepped forward and raised his hand to blast out the golden divine hammer, suppressing the void without absolute might.


    Bang! There was a loud boom as the claws collided with the divine hammer in an explosion of brilliant golden light. The Golden-winged Roc flew back in retreat, then planted itself firmly above the golden clouds. Its wings spread wide to shield the sky and the sun. Its eyes were extremely pugnacious.


    His head now turned into a human head. His eyes were golden in color with an extremely intense look. This reminded Ye Futian of the Little Condor. It was a pity that the Little Condor��s cultivation was not yet high enough for him to cultivate in the Starry Cultivation Court. Otherwise, he could have elevated his realm like everyone else, and he would be here exploring with them.


    ��Outsiders, which world are you from?�� the Golden-winged Roc uttered, which revealed that he knew that Ye Futian and the others were coming from the outside world. It seemed that he knew they were drawn into this world by the storm of quicksand.


    ��We came from the Divine Prefecture, traveling to the Western World for trials. We hold no ill will,�� Ye Futian replied to the Golden-winged Roc. However, this divine bird was defiant by nature. His eyes remained fierce, and he continued staring down Ye Futian and his people. There was an otherworldly spirit in those eyes.


    ��Since you are guests from afar, please follow me to the mountain,�� the Golden-winged Roc said as he looked at Ye Futian and the others. Although it seemed like an invitation, his tone was rather forceful.


    Ye Futian glanced at the golden celestial mountain in the distance. It seemed to be floating on top of the golden clouds. There was a glorious ancient temple on the celestial mountain, which this Golden-winged Roc had presumably come from.


    However, he could also see that this Golden-winged Roc had ulterior motives, and none of them were good for them. But, as newcomers, they had no idea why the Roc felt offended and had started attacking them right from the start.


    ��We just got here and have no idea which world this is. What place is that celestial mountain ahead of us?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��This here is Six Desires Heaven, and the celestial mountain ahead is the divine mountain of Six Desires Heaven, known as the Holy Land of Six Desires Heaven. Your presence here is most fortuitous; you should find some time to visit it,�� the Golden-winged Roc continued.


    ��Six Desires Heaven!�� Ye Futian murmured. He was not yet familiar with the setup of the worlds in the Western World, and he needed time to investigate.


    However, this Golden-winged Roc did state the exact location of this divine mountain.


    More importantly, if a divine bird at the peak of the Demon Emperor Realm actually existed on this divine mountain, there might be other even stronger characters there, like those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path; their exact realm would be unknown. It would not be advisable to proceed with hast.


    ��There is no need. We have just arrived in Six Desires Heaven for the first time and will visit the Lower Worlds for now. We will visit the divine mountain later.�� Ye Futian responded with a faint smile. He declined the offer outright.


    He had no interest in engaging in false entreaties with the other and turned down the invitation. He found no reason to step into someone else��s territory so soon.


    When his suggestion was rejected by Ye Futian, a chilling expression flashed through the eyes of the Golden-winged Roc; it was as sharp as could be. His wings opened wide to cover this corner of the sky, and those golden divine wings casually flapped a couple of times. Nonetheless, wisps of stinging aura seemed to cut through the void, lacerating the bodies of Ye Futian and the others.


    Ye Futian and his group were shrouded in a golden light screen while the wings of the Golden-winged Roc beat vigorously. In an instant, countless golden feathers rained down, cutting across the space. Each and every one of those golden feathers seemed to be the sharpest blade, aiming to kill Ye Futian and his people.


    Blind Tie raised his head slightly as the golden divine light was shining all over his body. However, at this time, Chen Yi unleashed an endless light from his body. When the light collided with the feathers that slashed toward them, the feathers were unable to chop all the way through. They dissipated under the light instead.


    Ye Futian took a look at Chen Yi. After Chen Yi inherited the light, his cultivation level did not change, as he was still a Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm. However, his power had morphed, and he was able to block the attack from the other using the power of light he had inherited.


    ��What should we do?�� Chen Yi whispered, clearly asking Ye Futian for instruction. It seemed he had no doubts about his ability to overpower this divine bird, something as simple as asking this question, which demonstrated the confidence Chen Yi now felt.


    In the world of cultivation, reaching the level of Renhuang meant that a transformation had taken place and the once mortal form had been shed. Although the divine bird was born with its natural ability, it had no particular advantage to speak of. Furthermore, Chen Yi now possessed the Illumining Body of the Great Path.


    ��Keep control over him, but don��t take his life,�� Ye Futian replied without any intention of refusing Chen Yi��s offer to counterstrike. He knew Chen Yi wanted to honor his promise and repay him. This was what Blind Chen wanted. After he had inherited the light, Chen Yi would stay by Ye Futian��s side, assisting him.


    ��Done!�� Chen Yi��s body floated in the air, the light shining brightly. All the feathers were destroyed and disappeared under the light.


    The golden eyes of the Golden-winged Roc were as cold as a blade as he assessed Chen Yi. This one turned out to be a Renhuang of the Eighth-Realm and an expert in the rare power of the light.


    Buzz! A golden storm now raged between heaven and earth as the divine wings of the Golden-winged Roc slashed down. The wings magnified instantly as they split the void, aiming towards Chen Yi, who was floating in the air.


    The speed of the Golden-winged Roc was unimaginably fast, whether on the move or during an attack. The divine wings sliced down instantaneously, leaving a golden trace in the space, which blasted on Chen Yi��s body, but it turned out to be only an afterimage.


    A smear of light appeared in the void, approaching the Golden-winged Roc. It was the speed of light.


    Buzz! A gale raged. The Golden-winged Roc flapped its wings and disappeared right where he was, but the light pursued him relentlessly and with great speed. The two left nothing of their movements but shadows trailing behind them in the void, which was hard to detect by the naked eye.


    The Golden-winged Roc was known to be unparalleled in speed. One could only imagine how fast he might be. However, today he encountered Chen Yi, who was an expert at the power of light. He was even faster than him.


    Knowing that he could not be any faster than Chen Yi, the wings of the divine bird slapped together as countless golden sharp blades attempted to shatter the space inside. It was as a last-ditch effort to end Chen Yi right here, right now.


    But at this moment, his eyes saw the light. And in an instant, his eyes felt a sharp pain; it was as if they were being stabbed. It seemed that the power of the light had directly invaded his soul.


    In an instant, the Golden-winged Roc closed its eyes and dared not open them again.


    Numerous rays of light shone on his massive body now and pierced into his flesh. The Golden-winged Roc made a screeching and sustained howling as if he was in extreme pain. At this moment, another figure appeared in front of him and commanded, ��Open your eyes.��


    This voice seemed to contain a demonic power as the Golden-winged Roc couldn��t help but open his eyes. Then, he saw a pair of penetrating and terrifying wicked eyes invading inside of him, and a frightening spiritual will invaded his mind and proceeded to control him!

 Chapter 2429 - Great Elder Motian

    Chapter 2429: Great Elder Motian


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird stood amidst the golden clouds. The arrogance and the hostility in his eyes gradually dissipated. The beast had been tamed. He lowered his head and pledged his loyalty to Ye Futian, greeting him as ��Master.��


    The demonic light that flashed in Ye Futian��s eyes slowly disappeared. He cast an indifferent glance at the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird. Then, his mind received the memory of the beast.


    This Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird was named Mo Yunzi. The divine mountain before them was indeed a famous spot in the Six Desires Heaven. It was Motian Mountain. It was founded by Great Elder Motian, who was the Lord of Motian Palace. Since this Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird was the mount of Great Elder Motian, he was named Mo Yunzi. Great Elder Motian had been aiding Mo Yunzi in his cultivation. This caused his cultivation to improve until he reached the peak of the Demon Emperor Plane, making him a formidable opponent for many cultivators.


    ��Who dares to act so presumptuously?�� A cold voice sounded from the divine mountain in the distance. Then, the color of the sky changed. Golden clouds churned and thundered, accompanied by a sprinkle of golden light. A group of cultivators traveled to where Ye Futian and his group were at an astonishing speed. When the former approached Ye Futian and his group, they immediately surrounded them.


    The cultivators were all powerful Renhuangs. Based on the intel Ye Futian obtained from the memory of Mo Yunzi, Great Elder Motian was a very famous figure in the Six Desires Heaven. He was ranked among the top figures of the realm. Motian Mountain, where Great Elder Motian cultivated, was naturally a terrifying force as well. It was the number one force in the Six Desires Heaven.


    The group of cultivators who arrived had frightening auras. Their might of the Great Path loomed over the sky, enclosing Ye Futian and his group within it.


    In the distance, a terrifying aura intensified. A golden face appeared among the golden clouds. The face was none other than that of Great Elder Motian��the former master of Mo Yunzi.


    ��Brute!�� cursed Great Elder Motian as he swept a glance at Mo Yunzi. Clearly, he knew that Mo Yunzi had betrayed him. He had no idea what Ye Futian had done to Mo Yunzi. The latter actually managed to seize control of the beast.


    ��This is our first time here. We don��t want to disturb Senior��s meditation, nor do we want to get into a fight with the cultivators of Motian Mountain. We hope Senior will forgive our intrusion. I can release my control over Mo Yunzi,�� Ye Futian said loudly. The golden face in the sky showed no change in facial expression. It looked stern and distant.


    Great Elder Motian thought to himself: this youth actually had the power to control demonic beasts. He was very overbearing. The other person in their group was proficient in the Way of Light. Based on Great Elder Motian��s vast knowledge and experience, he knew for sure that there was more to this group than met the eye.


    The crucial point was that this group of people actually dared to attack Mo Yunzi right outside of Motian Mountain. Since they could seize control of Mo Yunzi directly, they would certainly have other trump cards up their sleeves. They were not as simple as they appeared to be.


    ��Are you cultivators from the Divine Prefecture?�� asked Great Elder Motian nonchalantly. If they had not relied on the help of Donghuang Imperial Palace, it was not an easy task for them to traverse the vast void to come to the Western World from the Divine Prefecture. Very few people would take the initiative to traverse the vast void to explore other worlds. Those who did so were all very powerful cultivators. Besides that, the cultivators needed to have strong determination and tough character to do so.


    After all, the Divine Prefecture and all the other worlds were borderless in essence. Countless fateful encounters awaited those who were bold. Normally, unless one desired to experience the cultures of different worlds, they did not need to travel to other worlds just for cultivation.


    ��Yes, we are,�� Ye Futian replied while nodding.


    ��Why did you come to the Western World?�� Great Elder Motian asked.


    ��We��re here for trials,�� Ye Futian responded. The gigantic face of Great Elder Motian stared at him. Obviously, he didn��t believe Ye Futian��s words completely. There were most likely other reasons which brought Ye Futian and his group here.


    ��Anyone who comes from afar is a guest. Since that��s the case, let go of him and follow me to Motian Palace,�� said Great Elder Motian. He turned around and seemed to be leaving. However, as the golden clouds churned and roared, an intense sense of danger suddenly welled up in Ye Futian.


    ��Be on your guard.�� Chen Yi, who was beside Ye Futian, felt the danger too. As soon as he uttered his warning, a beam of light flashed past at an astonishing speed. The instant the light shone, a gigantic golden palm grabbed the space where Ye Futian and his group were standing a second ago. The terrifying might of the palm crushed the space. This attack came from Great Elder Motian, who hid amidst the golden clouds.


    The beam of light retracted, disappearing into the distance. Its speed was amazing. Ye Futian swept a glance at where Great Elder Motian was located. Great Elder Motian was a figure that had experienced the first divine tribulation of the Great Path a few hundred years ago. According to the memory of Mo Yunzi, he was currently in seclusion, preparing to face the second divine tribulation of the Great Path. In other words, he was already at the peak of the first Tribulation Plane.


    Such a mighty figure actually attempted to kill them while they were distracted. Great Elder Motian was indeed someone who did not stand on trifles or principles.


    Based on his action just now, Ye Futian could tell that Great Elder Motian was ruthless. He would stoop so low as to launch a sneak attack on juniors who had lower cultivation planes than him.


    ��I bear good intentions and have invited everyone over to my palace to be my guests. Where are you going?�� A voice sounded from the sky. Then, golden clouds churned and thundered, covering the sun. The clouds enveloped the endless space. The entire sky transformed into an enormous face. It was the face of Great Elder Motian.


    The entire world seemed to have become Great Elder Motian��s domain of the Great Path. Ye Futian and his group had nowhere to run or hide.


    Many pairs of golden eyes appeared in the sky. When Ye Futian looked at the eyes, he could sense a menacing Devouring Power acting upon him.


    Ye Futian��s eyebrows furrowed. This Great Elder Motian was so cautious. First, he launched a sneak attack on them. Then, he besieged them with his domain of the Great Path. Up until now, they had yet to meet him in person. It was rare for someone to be so vigilant when faced with people at lower cultivation planes.


    Suddenly, an alarming Devouring Power pressed downwards. The eyes transformed into terrifying whirlpools, which consumed their auras of the Great Path. When the whirlpools swept past Ye Futian and the others, they felt incredibly miserable. It was as though the power of the Great Path inside their bodies was being sucked dry. Moreover, the whirlpools seemed to be capable of drawing out and devouring even their spiritual souls.


    Ye Futian��s power of the Great Path shielded the few people around him. The divine corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor appeared in front of him. At the same time, his spiritual soul left his body and intended to surge into the divine corpse. However, the moment his spiritual soul left his flesh, the countless pairs of eyes unleashed frightening Devouring Power, attempting to suck his spiritual soul away.


    Rumble. Hua Jieyu joined the fight. A menacing will formed a barrier around Ye Futian, blocking off the Devouring Power. This allowed Ye Futian��s spiritual soul to enter the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor smoothly.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor slowly opened his eyes. A terrifying aura burst forth from him. Ye Futian scanned the domain of the Great Path, which loomed over them with an indifferent gaze. This frightening Devouring Power nearly swallowed his spiritual soul, hindering him from entering the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    All the eyes embedded in the sky stared at Ye Futian. A voice reverberated, ��You own the flesh of a Great Emperor. Who are you?��


    Great Elder Motian naturally realized that Ye Futian was extraordinary. As expected, his wariness was founded. He couldn��t help but be cautious of cultivators who came from other worlds. After all, anything was possible.


    This person before him possessed the divine body of a Great Emperor. Ye Futian would most likely pose a threat to him!

 Chapter 2430 - Everyone Has Their Own Agenda

    The Devouring Power of the countless eyes in Great Elder Motian��s domain of the Great Path became more frightening. The power enveloped Ye Futian and the others. Hua Jieyu and Blind Tie were protecting Hua Qingqing, Fang Cun, and the others. However, as the Devouring Power intensified, even Hua Jieyu found it hard to withstand its pressure.


    Their bodies were actually sucked up into the sky. The terrifying devouring light of the Great Path swept towards their bodies, attempting to engulf them.


    However, right at this moment, a menacing aura burst forth from Ye Futian��s divine body. His Great Path rumbled, and he activated his divine power. His power contained an alarming might that could destroy all Great Paths.


    Ye Futian shifted his will, and instantly, countless swords appeared in the heavens and the earth. The swords buzzed and were covered with a layer of divine light. They were formed from Sword Runes.


    ��Go!�� Ye Futian swept a glance at the sky above. In an instant, countless divine swords burst forth. They seemed to ignore the distance and landed on the domain of the Great Path in the blink of an eye.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. The pairs of eyes exploded and turned into dust. The Sword Will immediately pierced through them and caused them to be eliminated at a frenzied pace. Ye Futian did not even need to attack them physically.


    After Ye Futian cultivated in seclusion for decades in the starry cultivation court, his current attainment in swordsmanship could not be compared to that of before. He managed to merge all sorts of divine techniques with different law powers. He even had much more refined control over the flesh of Shenjia the Great Emperor. All these improvements allowed him to directly kill a cultivator who had survived the divine tribulation of the Great Path before this.


    Right now, the swordsmanship that Ye Futian was using was Avici, an Art of Supreme Attack he once created.


    However, the current Avici was much stronger than before. It was activated with a mere thought, and it could instantly slash down on its target, disregarding the distance between Ye Futian and his opponent. Everywhere Ye Futian��s will covered, the sword could be mobilized in an instant, and its might remained equally amazing regardless of the distance it traveled.


    Right then, Ye Futian activated the divine power of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The power of Avici was terrifying. In the span of a single thought, it collided with the countless eyes within the domain of the Great Path and reduced them to dust. This caused the domain of the Great Path to tremble violently.


    After his swords burst forth, Ye Futian did not stop. Even more Sword Will coalesced and appeared endlessly. The Sword Will frenziedly shot up into the sky. Terrifying rumbling sounds could be heard. No matter how many pairs of eyes there were, they were all destroyed. It was difficult for the domain of the Great Path to remain stable, and it collapsed and shattered.


    The world returned to normal. However, the silhouette of Great Elder Motian did not appear. On the golden cloud in the sky, there was only his illusory face that was staring at Ye Futian.


    ��Charge!�� Ye Futian raised his head and swept a glance at that illusory face. A divine sword shot up into the sky and immediately pierced through the cloud, destroying it. The sword then continued advancing, traversing the space and actually heading off far into the distance.


    Many people turned to look at the divine mountain behind them. In that direction, a golden image of a sword appeared in the sky. It penetrated the space, leaving behind an extremely sharp aura of the Great Path.


    ��It is charging towards Motian Palace,�� uttered the Renhuangs of Motian Palace as their expressions changed. This white-haired youth was relying on the figure of the Great Emperor to launch his attack. He actually released a sword from a distance. After destroying the domain of the Great Path, the divine sword was flying towards Motian Palace.


    That was where Great Elder Motian was cultivating.


    Clearly, Ye Futian was aware that Great Elder Motian had not revealed his actual self to him. Instead, Great Elder Motian attacked him from a distance. He had set up a domain of the Great Path far away from Motian Palace to test Ye Futian.


    As one of the cultivators who stood at the peak of the Six Desires Heaven, Great Elder Motian was vigilant. Furthermore, his ability was extremely domineering. Ye Futian could sense that he was far more powerful than the Tribulation level cultivator whom Ye Futian had killed before this.


    In the distance where the divine mountain was, the sound of an explosion rang. The cultivators could detect that even the divine mountain shook slightly. Many buildings were flattened due to the explosion. Moreover, an extremely powerful aura burst forth. It was the aura of Great Elder Motian. Clearly, he personally blocked off the sword which was sent from here. Otherwise, the sword would have destroyed Motian Palace.


    Yet another astonishing Sword Will radiated from the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. A beam of frightening sword light shot up to the clouds. The Sword Will alone was enough to split the golden clouds. Its might was menacing.


    ��Little friend, please cease your attacks.�� A voice echoed from Motian Palace, which was a distance away. Great Elder Motian had spoken. He said to Ye Futian, ��What happened today is all a misunderstanding. This brute attacked you on his own accord. It is appropriate for you to punish him. I will let you decide what to do with him. I will not interfere with your decision.��


    The cultivators of Motian Palace were slightly astonished when they heard the words of Great Elder Motian. Both of them had already begun battling, yet the Palace Lord actually wanted to make peace and end the fight. It was apparent that Ye Futian was powerful. He obviously posed a threat to the Palace Lord for him to want to cease fighting.


    Otherwise, with their understanding of Great Elder Motian, he would have immediately taken Ye Futian down and seized the divine body of the Great Emperor from Ye Futian. He would not have let it go so easily. The only reason why Great Elder Motian might make peace was that he had no confidence in taking down his opponent. He believed that he might even lose.


    That white-haired youth could actually unleash such powerful combat ability with the divine body?


    When Ye Futian heard the other party��s words, he hesitated for a moment. He was having doubts as to whether he should continue fighting. Of course, he did not believe Great Elder Motian��s words. Great Elder Motian was cautious to the point that he could be considered cunning. Before this, he had actually made Ye Futian lower his guard with his words and then suddenly attacked Ye Futian. This was the first time Ye Futian had seen such a powerful figure act so careful and despicable. Such a person was very dangerous, and one could not lower their guard around them. How could Ye Futian trust him?


    Moreover, from Mo Yunzi��s memories, Ye Futian also knew about the character of Great Elder Motian. It could be said that Mo Yunzi directly attacking Ye Futian to pillage him was also due to the influence of Great Elder Motian. None of the members of Motian Palace were good people.


    The cultivators of Motian Palace did not conceal their desires at all.


    Aside from them, many other cultivators from the Six Desires Heaven behaved so too. Ye Futian was somewhat surprised by this discovery. He was well aware that even though this world was named the World of Buddhism, it was impossible for everyone here to adhere to the teachings of Buddha. However, he was still taken aback by the demeanors of the cultivators of the Six Desires Heaven. This was just the first location that Ye Futian had arrived at in this world.


    ��Alright. I was originally only defending myself as well. Since you put it that way, I will naturally stop. Please excuse any offense I have committed today. I should head over to offer my humble apologies,�� said Ye Futian as he advanced. He seemed to be heading towards Motian Palace. His tone was sincere, and he was exceptionally polite.


    ��Little friend, you need not act so politely,�� replied Great Elder Motian. ��I am fine. Little friend, you should take care of your friends instead. There is no need to pay me a visit.��


    As they conversed, Ye Futian and Great Elder Motian were aware that both parties had their own agenda. Obviously, Great Elder Motian knew that Ye Futian wanted to attack him by getting closer to him. Hence, he threatened Ye Futian by bringing up the others. After all, even though they were far apart, Great Elder Motian��s attack could easily traverse the space and land on Ye Futian��s group. This was similar to Ye Futian being able to attack Motian Palace from where he was now.


    Ye Futian stopped in his tracks. He then smiled and said, ��If that is the case, I will take my leave.��


    ��Little friend, farewell,�� replied Great Elder Motian. The two of them sounded like old friends having a chat!

 Chapter 2431 - Battle of Brain and Braun

    Ye Futian turned and left. The group left the place in a flying boat with extreme speed.


    Great Elder Motian was cunning and extremely cautious. If they threatened him with someone else and he decided to start a battle, the outcome would be tough to predict. To be safe, Ye Futian decided to give up and not make a move against him.


    After they left, on Motian Palace of Motian Mountain stood a middle-aged man in golden robes. His expression was very solemn. One figure after another landed around him and said, ��Great Elder, do we just let them go?��


    Great Elder Motian looked into the distance at the person leaving. That was the frame of a Great Emperor�� Of course, he wouldn��t let him go so easily.


    Ye Futian drove the flying boat as they traveled through the clouds. His spiritual soul was still inside the body of Shenjia the Great. Little Ling asked, ��Master, why aren��t you coming out?��


    ��It��s not time yet,�� Ye Futian answered. The flying boat��s speed was astonishing, yet Ye Futian abruptly stopped the boat and let it levitate atop the misty clouds after a while. Shenjia the Great��s brows locked tight together, and he said coldly, ��Senior, what is the meaning of this?��


    Clearly, he sensed that Great Elder Motian was following him from afar. If it wasn��t for his sharp senses, he might not even realize that the Great Elder was behind. Great Elder Motian had intentionally hidden his aura and followed from an extreme distance, yet he still sensed it.


    In the distance, it was still just Great Elder Motian��s face. His real body couldn��t be seen and was hidden as always. The face realized that Ye Futian had found out, so it stopped camouflaging itself and released a very faint aura that prompted the clouds to roll and ripple. A face appeared above Ye Futian. Great Elder Motian said, ��I didn��t have anything to do. Since our dear little friend came from so far away, I thought I could see you guys off.��


    ��Thank you very much, Senior. Having Mo Yunzi see us off is more than enough. No need to trouble you,�� Ye Futian said. The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird was already controlled, so he was naturally familiar with the Six Desires Heaven.


    He was cautious toward this Great Elder Motian previously, which was why his spiritual soul remained inside the body of Shenjia the Great. Still, he didn��t expect him to actually follow them.


    ��No worries, I��m also a little curious. Your spiritual soul left your body to control the divine body of the Great Emperor. That puts a great burden on you, right? Don��t you feel deep spiritual exhaustion? I thought this might not be good for you in the long run,�� Great Elder Motian probed. He obviously understood the crucial part of this, which is why he followed him all the way here. The moment Ye Futian could no longer handle the exhaustion, how would these Renhuang level cultivators be able to stop him?


    Previously when Ye Futian attacked, he could feel path-obliterating power and sensed danger. He wasn��t confident in starting a battle back then, so he decided to let Ye Futian leave. But as long as Ye Futian��s spiritual soul returned to his own body, who would be able to stop him?


    This divine body would naturally become his.


    He wasn��t in a hurry. To be safe, he was willing to wait until Ye Futian exhausted himself completely without doing anything else.


    Ye Futian was rather helpless as well. The opponent was far too cautious. It would be extremely difficult to eliminate him in an instant, and there would be huge backlash the moment he slipped up. After all, a full-force attack from a Tribulation Plane cultivator would be quite a problem for Jieyu and the others.


    But if he allowed this to continue, the dangers would become even greater. He couldn��t keep going forever, and Great Elder Motian was clearly a very patient person who wouldn��t mind continuing to spend as much time as needed on him.


    ��Well, senior doesn��t need to concern yourself with that.�� Ye Futian��s voice turned cold; he seemed agitated. This emotion was, of course, captured by Great Elder Motian. He snickered inside and didn��t get anxious, continuing to wait for the right opportunity.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said in a composed voice as he straightened his sleeves. The group started moving forward again. At the same time, Ye Futian started to analyze Great Elder Motian using the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird��s memories.


    ��If you want to attack, I��ll try my best to block his strike,�� Hua Jieyu transmitted her voice to Ye Futian. She clearly understood that Great Elder Motian was taking advantage of their weaker position to pin Ye Futian down. This would prevent him from committing fully to a battle with him.


    Otherwise, if Ye Futian had nothing else to worry about, he would fight him head-on.


    ��All right, no rush. Let me think of a solution,�� Ye Futian replied. His brain ran like an engine as he thought about how to deal with Great Elder Motian.


    As time passed, Ye Futian appeared to be more and more anxious, and the divine might of the Great Path started to erupt from him and embrace Hua Jieyu and the others within. Afterward, Shenjia the Great��s body flew through the void and toward the back. Its speed was so great that it was as though it turned into a sword as it flew.


    Boom! A deafening noise erupted and sent tremors through the skies, countless Gold Great Palm Seals were crushed and destroyed, and the divine frame traveled forward through the void. Right then, numerous golden eyes appeared in front of it as a terrifying Devouring Power descended upon them, attempting to reel in the divine frame.


    Shenjia the Great��s body once again pierced through it and continued forward, striking the face projection, yet it still wasn��t Great Elder Motian��s real body. From afar, several terrifying auras appeared. Ye Futian��s eye��s turned cold. He asked, ��Senior, what do you really want?��


    His voice was laced with agitation as well as a tinge of anger.


    ��You spiritual soul. Leave the divine frame of the great emperor and hand over the divine frame to me, and then I��ll let you guys leave. After all, there are no major grudges between you and me,�� Great Elder Motian said.


    Ye Futian pondered for a while. He appeared to be struggling internally. He then said, ��We��re willing to return senior��s mount as well.��


    Great Elder Motian was silent for a while, and then he smiled and replied, ��I was planning to give it to you as a gift, but since you��re this courteous, I suppose I can take it back.��


    Ye Futian must be doing this because he was afraid that he wouldn��t let them go, and of course, he would be willing to grant his wish.


    ��This divine frame is the body of Shenjia the Great from the ancient era. It��s very difficult to control. Do be careful with it,�� Ye Futian reminded the Great Elder, which prompted a marveled expression to flash across the face projection in the void. He then said, ��I got it.��


    ��I have just one more request. Can my friends leave first?�� Ye Futian asked.


    From afar, Great Elder Motian was thinking. He said, ��I��m sure you are aware that if I continued to follow you, sooner or later, you wouldn��t be able to handle it. If you��re planning to play any tricks����


    Yet, in actual fact, Great Elder Motian was sneering inside. So what if he let them go first? Did Ye Futian really think that he had no other way to track them?


    Every last one of them could forget about escaping.


    ��I understand,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��In that case, let them leave first.�� Great Elder Motian��s voice sounded. Ye Futian nodded and said, ��You guys leave first.��


    ��No.�� Hua Jieyu and the others appeared hesitant.


    ��Master,�� Fang Cun and the students called out as well.


    ��I��m not leaving,�� Little Ling said. Ye Futian didn��t tell them about the plan, so these younger cultivators�� responses were all out of genuine concern. How would they know that Ye Futian and Great Elder Motian were both planning their own schemes, both trying to deceive each other!

 Chapter 2432 - Schemed Kill

    Although Tie Tou and Duo Yu didn��t say anything, their attitude was clear, as they stood where they were.


    ��The Great Elder had agreed to the deal, and he will get the divine frame of the great emperor, so he wouldn��t do anything to master. Besides, doing anything to me wouldn��t benefit him. You guys leave right now,�� Ye Futian said to them. ��Uncle Tie, bring them away.


    ��Okay,�� Blind Tie nodded, then a powerful force embraced the youngsters.


    ��Uncle Tie.��


    ��Dad,�� the group called out. But Blind Tie ignored them and forcefully brought them away. Since Ye Futian had made the decision, he certainly had his own intentions and plans. After following Ye Futian for so many years, Blind Tie knew Ye Futian��s personality quite well; he wasn��t the type of person that would just hand over the body of Shenjia the Great so easily. With Ye Futian��s personality, unless he was really at the end of the road, there was no way he would do such a thing.


    Right now, the situation seemed far from such a case, so clearly, Ye Futian had other plans.


    ��Be careful,�� Hua Jieyu looked toward Ye Futian and said. After that, she left with Hua Qingqing, Chen Yi, and the others, passing through the void at an extreme speed.


    They brought Ye Futian��s mortal frame as well, but he was still in a stand-off with Great Elder Motian using Shenjia the Great��s body. Of course, until now, Great Elder Motians had been hiding in the dark.


    After a while, Great Elder Motian said, ��With their speed, they��ll probably be far away by now. They had long to escape the circumference of my divine consciousness. Is this good enough?��


    Ye Futian looked to the front and said, ��Senior wouldn��t get anything out of killing me. I trust that a cultivator on your level wouldn��t go back on his word, right?��


    ��Of course; I��m not the treacherous type,�� Great Elder Motian said sincerely. ��Once I get the divine frame, I will have achieved my objective. Why would I want to take your life?��


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian nodded. His expression was equally solemn. ��In that case, I��ll hand over the divine frame to senior.��


    As the voice sounded, a spiritual soul left the body of the Shenjia the Great and started to float away into the distance.


    Shenjia the Great��s divine frame levitated in the air, but there was no longer any vitality in it, though a powerful aura continued to seep out.


    A projection of Great Elder Motian��s face appeared, followed by an immense devouring power that swept towards the divine frame. Instantly, the divine frame started to fly into the distance.


    A pair of eyes appeared and looked toward the divine frame. In an instant, a muffled groan could be heard as the aura of the Great Path pulsed rigorously.


    ��So this is the divine frame of a Great Emperor, magnificent.�� A voice could be heard from Shenjia the Great��s body. Far away, a faint silhouette was leaving; it was Ye Futian��s figure transformed from his spiritual soul.


    As the voice sounded, a terrifying turbulent airflow surged toward Ye Futian��s spiritual soul, and a bone-chilling golden swirl appeared atop him as well.


    Hum! As the terrifying spiritual soul attack started to engulf Ye Futian��s spiritual soul, Ye Futian��s spiritual soul started to struggle, using every last bit of its strength.


    ��Senior, you���� Ye Futian gasped. His shock was answered by a laugh. ��My young friend, you have such great talent and potential. How could I be at ease if you didn��t die? Rest assured, I won��t be letting any of your friends off either.��


    Right after Great Elder Motian said that, a terrifying swirl completely devoured Ye Futian��s projection.


    After obliterating his spiritual soul, a figure walked out from the tempest of the Great Path and stood before Shenjia the Great��s divine frame. His gaze was immensely terrifying, and the air current of the Great Path surrounded his body. As he stared at the divine frame, it was as though he had entered into a different, fantasy-like world of his own, and his figure was encircled by countless runes.


    ��So this is the divine frame of a Great Emperor. Magnificent,�� Great Elder Motian muttered. His eyes were closed, and he even appeared to be straining himself a little.


    Just as his eyes closed, a sign of life suddenly appeared in the eyes of Shenjia the Great, and an ice-cold intent to kill erupted from those eyes.


    Great Elder Motian felt that something was not right. The next moment, it was as though Shenjia the Great��s body turned into a divine sword, piercing through the void within an instant. It was too late for the Great Elder to dodge now. The sword which the divine frame had transformed into pierced right through his body and appeared behind him.


    Intense emotions of fear appeared in Great Elder Motian��s eyes. It was the fear of death. His body trembled as it gradually started to disintegrate.


    ��How did you do it?�� Great Elder Motian asked. These were his last words.


    ��You were consumed by greed; otherwise, you would have been able to notice,�� Ye Futian answered. Great Elder Motian came to a sudden realization, so that was why he felt that something wasn��t quite right just now. It was no wonder.


    That spiritual soul was only a strand of Ye Futian��s actual spiritual soul. Most of it was still inside the divine frame; it was just hidden. Because of his greed and how anxious he was to obtain the divine frame, he became careless and let down his guard.


    He never expected that after a whole life of being cautious, in the end, he fell into the trap of such a young cultivator and had been killed by a single hit.


    Bang! Great Elder Motian��s body exploded into fragments. He was killed by such a sudden attack that he couldn��t even unleash his full power. When a cultivator was on his level, there was only a thin line between life and death.


    Ye Futian heaved a sigh of relief after killing Great Elder Motian. His figure flashed and shot off with great velocity in a direction. Soon, he met up with the others. His spiritual soul came out from the divine frame and returned to his mortal body.


    ��Master,�� Little Ling and the others called out to Ye Futian, only to see him sit crossed-legged on the back of the golden-winged great peng bird. He was closing his eyes and entering cultivation. As his Worldly Ancient Tree of the Soul started to operate, Ye Futian��s aura fluctuated. It seemed that he had sustained some injuries.


    ��Don��t disturb him,�� Blind Tie said. They had been attacked by Great Elder Motian just now as well, and this instance showed that the Great Elder also had unique attacks. He disappeared after a while. They knew that it was likely because the real Great Elder Motian had been killed by Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian seemed to be injured.


    Little Ling and the others realized what was happening and didn��t disturb Ye Futian. At the same time, the Golden-winged Great Peng Bird that Ye Futian was sitting on quivered. He also knew that Great Elder Motian was dead, and he was fully aware of how terrifyingly powerful his former master was. Not only was his cultivation level high, but he was also cunning and ruthless. Throughout the years, countless powerful cultivators had died at his hands.


    Yet now, with almost absolute certainty and control over the situation, he was killed by a cultivator of the younger generation.


    This new master of his was a hellishly talented prodigy. Everything that he did previously was to get Great Elder Motian to let down his guard so that he could kill him with a single strike. He had read the Great Elder like a book. And he was so young! How terrifying would he be in the future?


    Ye Futian also paid quite a hefty price to kill Great Elder Motian. After all, he had separated a fraction of his spiritual soul and let the Great Elder devour and destroy it to make him let down his guard. Only then could he bait out his real self and kill Great Elder Motian with one strike.


    That separated spiritual soul being destroyed actually did quite a bit of damage to Ye Futian. It would require a period of time to heal!

 Chapter 2433 - Lord Six Desires

    There was a divine mountain in Six Desires Heaven. It was located at its highest point. This divine mountain was constantly surrounded by ethereal mist, just like a celestial residence.


    On the divine mountain, there were many celestial mansions. Among them, the one located in the highest place was bathing in divine light, encircled by an ethereal aura. In those mansions and palaces, many superb celestial figures were covered in divine light. There were also many stunning beauties whose glamor could not be described with words alone.


    Here was the most powerful Holy Land in Six Desires Heaven��the Six Desires Heavenly Palace.


    And inside Six Desires Heavenly Palace resided the most powerful cultivator of all Six Desires Heaven, and that was the Palace Lord of Six Desires Heavenly Palace��Lord Six Desires.


    At this time, in the mist within the Six Desires Heavenly Place was the sound of music. Between the clouds and mist, many thinly-clad women danced gracefully. They wore white veils over their faces and dressed in long white dresses. One could tell that those veiled faces were exceptionally gorgeous.


    More importantly, none of them were weak in cultivation.


    In the heavenly palace high above, goddesses were dancing.


    ��All of you get out.�� But at this moment, a voice came broke the silence. It sounded rather harsh. In an instant, the music stopped, and the women bowed and withdrew, leaving quickly. The powerful figures stood on both sides of the hall. They looked at the master of the heavenly palace, who was perched above the stairs, and all of them were quite puzzled by the sudden change in mood.


    The Palace Lord of Six Desires Heavenly Palace wore a frown. A strange look flashed through his eyes. Someone below bowed and ventured, ��My Lord, did something happen?��


    Lord Six Desires glanced at the speaker, and a divine light shot out from his brow chakra. Immediately, an image appeared in front of him.


    ��Watch for yourselves,�� Lord Six Desire said. Everyone��s attention was drawn by the moving imagery instantly. It seemed to depict an ongoing battle, the duration of which was extremely brief. The battle ended in a moment��s time with the demise of one of the two combatants.


    However, the imagery shocked many who had gathered around, and their faces changed. They all knew the one who had fallen in the battle��it was the master of Motian Mountain��the Great Elder Motian.


    Someone had slain him.


    It turned out that this image depicted the exact battle between Ye Futian and the Great Elder Motian, which was also Great Elder Motian��s last moment.


    What is that? everyone present stared at Ye Futian and wondered.


    ��The divine body. It was probably the divine body of a Great Emperor,�� someone replied, causing the eyes of other cultivators to sharpen a bit. Could it really have been the divine body of a Great Emperor?


    Their eyes turned to Lord Six Desires just in time to hear his reply. ��This was transmitted to me before Motian perished to let me know how he died. This white-haired man possesses no high cultivation, but he can use the divine body of the Great Emperor, and that��s how he killed Motian.��


    ��Motian wanted the Lord to avenge him,�� someone said. In Six Desires Heaven, Lord Six Desires was its most supreme figure. Great Elder Motian and the others were frequent visitors here. Obviously, he had left something in this place so that he was able to transmit his last moments to Lord Six Desires.


    With this divine body, Lord Six Desires would definitely make strike back.


    Lord Six Desires waved his hand, and suddenly rays of light shone upon his body. Instantly, many images appeared below. There were quite a few people who appeared, and all of them had an extraordinary temperament.


    ��Greetings, My Lord.�� Everyone that appeared saluted Lord Six Desires.


    ��Look at this.�� Lord Six Desires showed them the scene where Motian had been killed. After watching, everyone in the group looked astounded and alarmed. They heard Lord Six Desires say, ��He is still in Six Desires Heaven. Si Ye, he is in your territory at the moment. Find him and don��t let him slip away.��


    ��Yes, My Lord.�� In one of the images, a woman nodded in response.


    ��Be careful. Only detain him. This man used the divine body to get close enough to kill Motian, so don��t let him get close to you,�� Lord Six Desires reminded her.


    ��Understood,�� Si Ye nodded.


    ��Go now.�� Lord Six Desires waved his hand, and suddenly those images disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. In Six Desires Heaven, Lord Six Desires also stood up. Everyone followed suit. All of them were disturbed deep in their hearts.


    They never expected that so many top cultivators in Six Desires Heaven would work together because of a white-haired youngster. A situation like this had not happened in many years.


    ��


    Ye Futian didn��t know anything of what was just described. He had never considered the possibility that the Great Elder Motian had set a trap for him right before he died, leaving him one more chance to take down him��even in death.


    They came to a city upon the mountain. It was very spacious, and there were many powerful cultivators. Ye Futian settled here in order to recover from his injuries.


    An ethereal air lingered in an inn on the mountain as Ye Futian sat by the cliff in cultivation. Wisps of aura encircled his body, and the life force continued to nourish his spiritual soul. He seemed to be gradually recovering.


    Many cultivators were drinking and chatting at the Inn. Blind Tie and Fang Cun were also there. Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing were on the other side with Ye Futian.


    ��There are so many mountains here,�� Fang Cun remarked. Since they entered Six Desires Heaven, they had discovered many mountainous locations for cultivation. It seemed as if everyone in this world was fond of building cities on mountains for cultivation purposes.


    Mo Yunzi, the Golden-winged Roc, had turned into his human form. He glanced at Fang Cun and said, ��The premier places for cultivation in this world are all on top of these mountains.��


    Fang Cun nodded. This was probably the characteristic of the Western World.


    At this juncture, a celestial atmosphere permeated from a distance. Many cultivators looked yonder and saw a group of goddess-like figures in white come through the void. All of them were stunning beauties clad in thin white dresses. They were most provocative with their movements. They had attracted everyone��s attention in an instant. The onlookers found it difficult to take their eyes off of these ladies.


    ��It��s them.�� The surrounding cultivators�� attention focused on the women who arrived. These women looked at these cultivators in return as their divine consciousness spread out and shrouded the mountain.


    Mo Yunzi��s eyes turned sharp. He had morphed into his human shape and soon learned of the identity of these people.


    Buzz! They continued walking towards the cliff. At this moment, Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked above the sky. The Golden-winged Roc had already secretly informed him via voice transmission, so Ye Futian was forewarned of these people��s identities.


    His brows knitted together tightly. After arriving at Six Desires Heaven, Motian Palace was certainly an unintended accident. But after having killed the Great Elder Motian, what did the other top figures want with him?


    If this was a coincidence, his luck was a little too unusual.


    Clearly, this was unlikely to be a coincidence.


    The other party had come here for him.


    At this moment, a celestial light descended from above the void, and all the cultivators on the mountain looked and saw a woman. Many of them bowed and saluted her. Obviously, they recognized who she was.


    The woman who had arrived was none other than Si Ye, but it was only a phantom. She lowered her head to glance at Ye Futian��s location. Ye Futian also looked up at her and asked, ��Was elder looking for me?��


    ��My Lord has asked for you and would be pleased with your presence at Six Desires Heaven,�� Si Ye lowered her head and replied to Ye Futian.


    ��Lord Six Desires!�� Ye Futian already knew some information regarding Six Desires Heaven. He knew who she was referring to��the most powerful cultivator in Six Desires Heaven!

 Chapter 2434 - The Invitation

    Ye Futian didn��t expect things to become so much more complicated. Now, even Lord Six Desires��the most powerful man of Six Desires Heaven��was intervening.


    He didn��t even know how Lord Six Desires could possibly know about what had just happened.


    Obviously, the death of the Great Elder Motian was why he had dispatched someone to bring him to Six Desires Heavenly Palace.


    Si Ye was an existence who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Her presence here could only mean that the confrontation with the Great Elder Motian had rippled through the entire Six Desires Heaven, especially amongst the peak cultivators in its upper echelon.


    Ye Futian could have never imagined that right after he arrived in the Western World, he would be embroiled in disturbance of this degree in Six Desires Heaven.


    ��Jieyu, Uncle Tie, I will go with them, but you guys should leave,�� Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu and Blind Tie via voice transmission.


    ��Uncle Tie can take the others and leave,�� Hua Jieyu responded to Ye Futian via voice transmission. She did not intend to leave. ��I��m concerned. I will shadow you in secret.��


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian didn��t bother to insist. He and Hua Jieyu shared one mind and soul. He understood it was impossible for Hua Jieyu to leave him behind at this time, so he could only accept what she had decided to do.


    The matter had escalated now. The presence of Blind Tie and the others would only become a burden, so he felt it was best to go by himself.


    Blind Tie understood Ye Futian��s intention very well and agreed without saying much. Although he had cultivated to the peak of Renhuang, he was still a little helpless when participating in battles that involved cultivators who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Only Ye Futian could battle such characters by using the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Once he settled things, Ye Futian looked up at Si Ye��s phantom and replied, ��How could I refuse an invitation from Lord Six Desires himself? Elder, please lead the way.��


    Si Ye seemed a little surprised. She did not expect this young man in white, who had killed the Great Elder Motian, would be so amicable. She did not appear in person precisely because she was worried that she would end up like the Great Elder Motian. She was a little wary of Ye Futian because of what she saw of Great Elder Motian��s last moments.


    ��Very good. Let us depart, then,�� Si Ye��s phantom replied. Immediately, those women in white turned around. Their figures drifted in the air as they were moving away. Ye Futian��s figure flickered as he proceeded to follow them.


    ��Teacher.�� Fang Cun and Little Ling both had worry and anger in their eyes. They were worried because they were afraid that something would happen to Ye Futian. They had anger because they had already encountered danger several times since they had arrived. Why couldn��t these people just leave them alone?


    Duo Yu clenched his fists tightly as if he resented his own lack of strength.


    The event before them had left some impressions on the four youngsters. It made them more eager than ever to become more powerful.


    On the contrary, Chen Yi appeared quite calm. Although he hadn��t known Ye Futian for very long, he had his own shares of crises. Ye Futian held many cards to his chest, and he had gone through a lot before and always emerged unscathed. Chen Yi was convinced that nothing would happen to Ye Futian this time either.


    Blind Chen had once said that Ye Futian was a man of destiny. Chen Yi did not quite understand what exactly ��destiny�� meant in this instance, but there was no need for him to understand it.


    He only knew that Blind Chen told him that he was meant to be the heir of the light, born to be exceptional, and destined to inherit the light.


    And as the person who was destined to inherit the light, Blind Chen also told him to follow Ye Futian and serve him.


    This request demonstrated the high esteem to which Blind Chen held Ye Futian.


    Because Chen Yi believed in Blind Chen, therefore he also trusted Ye Futian.


    ��We will go now,�� Chen Yi replied. Although they were of no help to Ye Futian, they should avoid being a burden to him. At least, they should ensure their own safety first so that Ye Futian could deal with the situation at hand without any worries.


    ��Yes.�� Blind Tie nodded, and the group set off right away to leave, but in a different direction from the one Ye Futian was about to take.


    ��


    On the journey, Si Ye still did not reveal her true shape, but Ye Futian could feel that she had been there all along. He was keenly aware of someone observing everything that was happening all this time.


    ��I have something I don��t understand. May I ask Elder to elucidate?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Go ahead,�� said a voice in response to Ye Futian.


    ��Elder��s mission must have been commanded by Lord Six Desires, but how did Lord Six Desires know what happened in the first place?�� Ye Futian continued.


    ��Great Elder Motian had sent an image to Lord Six Desires right before he died,�� the woman responded. Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened as he heard this. He did not expect that cautious and cunning old fox would be plotting against him even as he died. He had informed Lord Six Desires of this sordid affair. More importantly, he had revealed Ye Futian as the one who killed him.


    No wonder��


    ��How did Elder know of my location?�� Ye Futian queried again.


    ��That you don��t need to know,�� Si Ye responded. ��If you are really curious, you can ask Lord Six Desires yourself when you get to the Six Desires Heavenly Palace.��


    When Ye Futian heard the other��s answer, he immediately realized that it was probably because she did not want him to know. However, if the Great Elder Motian could manage to transmit the last moment of his demise to Lord Six Desires, he might have managed to leave a mark on him without his being aware of it.


    Ultimately, the realm of Great Elder Motian was much more powerful than him. Other than that, he couldn��t really think of any other possibilities. After all, once he arrived in Six Desires Heaven, Great Elder Motian was the only one he had an altercation with. After slaying his opponent, he did not have contact with anyone else. They themselves were practically unknowns in this place.


    Therefore, Great Elder Motian was still the key to all that had happened, but he had no idea what it was that made him so disagreeable to these people here.


    Therefore, it seemed that no matter where he went, he may not escape the eyes of Lord Six Desires. If this matter were to be resolved, it was impossible for him to avoid going to Six Desires Heavenly Palace.


    But, even Ye Futian had no clue what the outcome might be when he faced a cultivator who had survived a second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Time passed, and the group had traversed the endless distance. They finally came to the top of a divine mountain.


    This divine mountain stood tall above the sky, suspended in the firmament, bordering the heavens. It was, in fact, the highest point of Six Desires Heaven.


    The Six Desires Heavenly Palace was rumored to be the highest point of Six Desires Heaven.


    At this moment, Ye Futian set foot on the divine mountain with Si Ye. Not far in front of him, a beautiful woman with extraordinary temperament was leading the way. It was Si Ye��the top cultivator of Six Desires Heaven. She was now in her true shape as they neared this location. She knew that Ye Futian could not easily escape and that he meant to follow through and had come here on his own accord.


    Many people appeared, and they were swarmed by many divine consciousnesses as these emerging individuals tried to spy on Ye Futian. This white-haired young man in the Eighth-Realm of cultivation had managed to kill Great Elder Motian. Furthermore, he controlled a divine body, which was precisely the reason why he was able to obliterate a cultivator who had survived the Divine Tribulation with a single blow.


    Si Ye took Ye Futian all the way upward and into the depths of the divine mountain. The Six Desires Heavenly Palace was now in his field of vision. When he saw that magnificent heavenly palace, Ye Futian was nonplussed, as his expression remained calm, and as usual, not showing much surprise. Si Ye, on the other hand, was amazed by his composure. This young man had come all this way without the slightest reaction. Could he really be this sturdy?

 Chapter 2435 - Shameless?

    Up in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace, a deity-like silhouette sat cross-legged. On both sides of the stairway, there stood many cultivators. They were all extraordinary figures, and many of them were top-level Renhuangs.


    Today, not just the cultivators of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace were present. The cultivators of other forces of Six Desires Heaven were also here.


    Right then, the various cultivators were looking far into the distance. Si Ye brought over a white-haired youth. When he reached the bottom of the stairway, Si Ye bowed towards the silhouette on top of the Heavenly Palace and said, ��Lord, I have brought the person you wanted.��


    ��Thank you for your efforts,�� replied Lord Six Desires as he nodded his head. He sat on a golden futon cushion. Golden divine light also circled around him. He appeared divine and actually gave off a harmonious aura. The Six Desires Heavenly Palace was also like a true Heavenly Palace. It was covered in golden light everywhere. It faintly resembled a Buddhist holy land.


    Si Ye stepped back to one side. Immediately, the gazes of the various cultivators landed on Ye Futian. Their looks were full of curiosity. This junior youth was the one who killed Great Elder Motian, an existence at the peak of Six Desires Heaven.


    Lord Six Desires similarly sized up Ye Futian. Ye Futian bowed slightly at Lord Six Desires and greeted, ��Lord Six Desires.��


    ��Hmm,�� Lord Six Desires responded as he nodded at Ye Futian. He then said, ��Ye Futian, why aren��t you cultivating in the Original Realm? Why have you come to the Western World?��


    When Ye Futian heard the other party��s words, he revealed a strange look. This Lord Six Desires actually knew his identity.


    As expected, these giant-level figures were well-informed. Amidst the storm of events in the Original Realm, only the Western World was nowhere to be seen. This might be related to them practicing Buddhism. However, that did not mean that the Western World did not pay heed to the events in the Original Realm.


    When Lord Six Desires asked him this, Ye Futian understood that the other party knew about the happenings in the Original Realm these past years. Otherwise, he would not have recognized Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian said politely, ��Since Lord Six Desires knows what has happened in the Original Realm, you must certainly know about what I have faced there. Due to that, I decided to come and train. For me, the Western World is an unknown land, and I also have no enemies here. That is why I chose to come here. However, I never imagined that I would be attacked by Great Elder Motian. I was forced to defend myself. I hope you may forgive my offense.�� His tone was still calm.


    Since Lord Six Desires knew of Ye Futian��s existence, how would he deal with Ye Futian?


    When he heard Ye Futian��s explanation, Lord Six Desires nodded his head. He seemed to agree with what Ye Futian said. He then said, ��I already know everything about the incident with Motian. Such things happen in the cultivation world. You naturally did not do anything wrong. Motian can only blame his lack of ability compared to you.��


    As he said this, he introduced Ye Futian to the other cultivators, ��Some of you may have heard about him, but most of you still do not know who he is. It turns out that he is the top monstrous figure, Ye Futian, who was once known as the ruler of the Original Realm. He discovered the teachings of several Great Emperors and inherited the world of Great Emperor Ziwei. He unified the various forces of the Original Realm but offended the major forces of the Divine Prefecture instead. Even Donghuang Imperial Palace came after him. Is what I said correct?��


    ��I am honored to have garnered the attention of Lord Six Desires,�� said Ye Futian.


    Lord Six Desires continued, ��You provoked the hatred of the Divine Prefecture single-handedly and offended the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm at the same time, becoming the talk of various major worlds. You are also the heir of Emperor Ye Qing, who was previously one of the two emperors of the Divine Prefecture. It is difficult not to pay attention to you. However, it is still a surprise that you appeared in Six Desires Heaven and killed Motian.�� This caused the hearts of the cultivators who did not know Ye Futian to tremble.


    This cultivator, who killed Great Elder Motian, actually had such a glorious past in the Original Realm?


    He was the heir of Emperor Ye Qing?


    If so, why had Donghuang Imperial Palace let him go?


    Even cultivators of the Western World knew about the two emperors of the Divine Prefecture. It was just that their impressions of the two emperors weren��t as deep as that of the members of the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian did not say anymore. Lord Six Desires knew a lot about him. As to what Lord Six Desires would do, he must have already made up his mind. It was meaningless for Ye Futian to say anymore; he only needed to listen.


    ��Ye Futian, you made too many enemies in the Original Realm. Now, upon just arriving in the Western World, you killed Great Elder Motian. It seems that with your way of doing things, you will never find peace wherever you go,�� continued Lord Six Desires. ��You have exceptional talent and will achieve great things in the future. With the inheritance of Emperor Ye Qing, you will certainly pursue the highest peak one day. You should cherish your life more.��


    ��Thank you for the advice, Senior,�� replied Ye Futian.


    Lord Six Desires offered, ��It seems that your arrival in Six Desires Heaven is also fate. Why don��t you stay and cultivate in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace? You can reflect in the Heavenly Palace for some time. Consider it your penance for Motian��s death. If you are willing to join the Heavenly Palace, I will do my best to improve your cultivation. In the Western World, no one from the Divine Prefecture will disturb you here. You can focus on cultivating in peace.��


    After saying so much, he actually wanted Ye Futian to stay and cultivate in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace?


    However, was that all to it?


    Ye Futian did not believe that it was so simple. Lord Six Desires had actually generously offered to take him in to cultivate in the Heavenly Palace. He would even guide Ye Futian in his cultivation and help him improve.


    ��I dare not accept your offer. I have no contribution worthy of the Heavenly Palace. I would not dare to accept your generosity and gain the protection of the Heavenly Palace,�� said Ye Futian. He said this in a testing tone. He wanted to see what Lord Six Desires wanted exactly.


    Lord Six Desires expounded, ��Your talents and the techniques you cultivated are all treasures. While you cultivate, you can also help the members of the Heavenly Palace improve together with you. I will also be able to benefit greatly from this. If you are willing to go all out in sharing your resources with us, I believe that one day, you can become an absolute existence. When that time comes, aside from the Great Emperor, no one can stand against you.�� His voice was calm and did not waver at the slightest. It was as though he was explaining an extremely simple matter.


    When Ye Futian heard him say this, he felt chills down his spine. Before this, he had experienced Great Elder Motian��s ability firsthand. Compared with Lord Six Desires, Great Elder Motian��s methods were insignificant.


    Great Elder Motian had at least tried to rob Ye Futian directly. As for Lord Six Desires, he had been extremely polite to Ye Futian ever since Ye Futian came to the Heavenly Palace. He was generous and praised Ye Futian, allowing him to join the Heavenly Palace to cultivate and provide protection.


    However, Lord Six Desires was not just after one or two treasures, such as the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. He wanted all the inheritances that Ye Futian possessed. He wanted to use everything that Ye Futian had to strengthen his own members.


    This was plundering in the complete sense of the word. Lord Six Desires wanted to obtain his techniques and the teachings of the various Great Emperors. It was because Lord Six Desires knew about Ye Futian that he wanted everything Ye Futian had.


    It was one thing for Lord Six Desire to try to obtain them by force. In his eyes, he seemed to think that he was helping Ye Futian and providing a win-win situation. It seemed that he thought that Ye Futian should be grateful to him and willingly surrender all that he possessed.


    This was more than being shameless. Lord Six Desires had transcended shamelessness. From his point of view, it was righteous!

 Chapter 2436 - News

    Chapter 2436: News


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Although he felt a chill run down his spine, Ye Futian did not betray any emotion on his face. He appeared extremely calm, as though his heart was not wavering at the slightest.


    After he pondered for a while, he bowed slightly towards Lord Six Desires and said, ��Lord Six Desires, what you have said is precisely what I was thinking. In the Original Realm, the various forces of the Divine Prefecture are after me and Princess Donghuang led her divine generals to take my life. I was forced to only be able to cultivate in the Ziwei Segmentum and could not step foot in the Original Realm at all. Hence, I left the realm behind and came to the Western World to seek out fateful encounters for cultivation. When I reach the peak of cultivation, I will certainly return there.��


    Ye Futian��s tone was sincere. It seemed as though he was pouring his heart out. Of course, it was unimportant as to whether or not Lord Six Desires believed him.


    Before this, Ye Futian had gone against Great Elder Motian with brain and brawn. They had tried to outmaneuver each other. In the end, Ye Futian had emerged victorious.


    Right now, Lord Six Desires wanted everything that Ye Futian possessed. However, instead of plundering, Lord Six Desires attempted to get the treasures using a gentler way. It was because he had an even bigger scheme in mind. He desired not only the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor but all the teachings Ye Futian had inherited.


    Unless Ye Futian voluntarily gave Lord Six Desires the teachings, the latter couldn��t possibly acquire them through pillaging. If pillaging Ye Futian worked, Lord Six Desires would most likely not have used such a gentle way to achieve his goal.


    ��Since we are of the same mind, that��s naturally best,�� Lord Six Desires said, nodding in approval after listening to Ye Futian��s response. ��Ye Futian, since you said so, does it mean that you are willing to cultivate in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace?��


    Ye Futian affirmed his decision while nodding, saying, ��Hmm. I��m willing to become a disciple of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace. I will devote my time to mediation in the Heavenly Palace so that I can improve my cultivation and be able to return to the Original Realm in the future.�� He added on while looking at Lord Six Desires, ��In the future, if I encounter anything that I don��t understand while cultivating, I hope Lord Six Desires won��t mind going through the trouble to teach me.��


    Lord Six Desires replied, ��You have exceptional talent to begin with. The Six Desires Heavenly Palace benefits from you joining us as well. Since you��re willing to become a disciple here, I will naturally not mistreat you. You can come to see me regardless of what kinds of problems you face while cultivating.��


    ��Many thanks, Lord Six Desires.�� As Ye Futian said this, he waved his palm and instantly, the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor appeared.


    Ye Futian said, ��Lord Six Desires, this is the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. In the past, I was fortunate to comprehend and resonate with the divine body by accident, allowing me to be able to control it now. However, in the end, it is still not a part of me and thus, my spiritual soul is greatly exhausted whenever I use it. There��s a risk of me facing backlash too. Now, I will leave it here in the Heavenly Palace. With your profound cultivation, I��m sure you can better control this divine body.��


    The eyes of the surrounding cultivators narrowed as they stared at the divine body. Then, they averted their gazes and looked at Ye Futian. They were all shocked, putting on astonished expressions. Even Si Ye, who brought Ye Futian here, was taken aback by his action. No wonder Ye Futian appeared so calm throughout their journey here; he had most likely made up his mind on what to do since the very beginning.


    This fellow was bold to actually give away the divine body. After he did so, his life was not up to him to decide anymore. He had lost his trump card. He would be defenseless when faced with Lord Six Desires.


    Ye Futian submitting the divine body to Lord Six Desires meant that he was putting his life in the Lord��s hands. In order to gain Lord Six Desires�� trust, Ye Futian was bold and pushed himself past the point of no return.


    Si Ye had no idea what Ye Futian was really thinking. After all, Ye Futian managed to kill Great Elder Motian with a scheme. Great Elder Motian was cautious and cunning to begin with, so Ye Futian could pull the whole thing off meant that there was more to him than what met the eye.


    Anyhow, what Ye Futian thought was irrelevant now. The crucial thing was that Ye Futian could no longer escape from the grasp of Lord Six Desires. He was completely under the Lord��s control now. Most likely Ye Futian gave the Lord the divine body in exchange for his own safety.


    Lord Six Desires was extremely pleased with Ye Futian��s action. He scanned the surroundings and said to the cultivators in the Heavenly Palace, ��From now on, Ye Futian is a guardian of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace. He is one of us. Do you understand?��


    ��Yes, Lord Six Desires,�� replied the crowd, nodding obediently. Then, someone said to Ye Futian, ��Congratulations, Guardian Ye.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly in response. Then, he looked at Lord Six Desires and said, ��My spiritual soul was injured when I fought with Great Elder Motian. I need some time to heal my wounds. I don��t think I will be able to have any discussions with you in the near future. I want to rest for a period of time. After my spiritual soul has recovered, I will share what I have obtained through fateful encounters with you so that you can give me some pointers.��


    The crowd was speechless. That meant that he was going to surrender what he had obtained through fateful encounters to Lord Six Desires.


    As expected, Lord Six Desires was pleased when he saw Ye Futian proactively offering up the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and then expressing his willingness to share what he had learned through his fateful encounters. He revealed a smile on his face and nodded his head. He said to Ye Futian, ��No worries. Since your spiritual soul is injured, you naturally need to rest. We can wait until you have recovered to discuss other matters.��


    Even the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had been offered up. Ye Futian was merely an eighth-tier cultivator. No matter how he recovered, even if his cultivation became stronger after his recovery, it was meaningless. Lord Six Desires could destory him at any given moment. He was naturally not afraid of Ye Futian stirring up trouble.


    ��Many thanks, Lord Six Desires,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Escort Guardian Ye to cultivate in Yangxin Mountain,�� Lord Six Desires ordered one of the cultivators beside him. Immediately, someone came and led Ye Futian away from the hall. Ye Futian left with the person obediently.


    Of course, Lord Six Desires and other top cultivators were reluctant to leave the place. They remained at the hall, where the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was.


    Yangxin Mountain, which was located above the Six Desires Heavenly Palace, was indeed a suitable place for meditation. Ye Futian cultivated there calmly. As for the divine body, did the others think that it was that easy to be able to communicate with it?


    As expected, many days had passed and Lord Six Desires and the others were still at the hall trying to comprehend the divine body. They still couldn��t comprehend or resonate with it. However, the more challenging the task was, the more intense their desires to acquire it were.


    On the contrary, Ye Futian himself seemed to have really let go of the divine body; it was as though it was really a gift to Lord Six Desires.


    ��


    Six Desires Heaven was a part of the Western World, similar to a domain of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture.


    Blind Tie and the others left Six Desires Heaven and came to another region. Beneath them was the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, Mo Yunzi. He was mentally linked with Ye Futian and knew everything that was happening to him. Hence, Ye Futian had sent him to follow Blind Tie��s group.


    ��We have arrived.�� Their group advanced and traversed through the clouds.


    ��Let��s head to the central region,�� said Chen Yi plainly. They continued on their way.


    After a few days, news began to spread around this region.


    The ruler of Six Desires Heaven, Lord Six Desires, had obtained the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor as well as the teachings of the Great Emperors. Rumor has it that he was cultivating in seclusion and his cultivation was improving by leaps and bounds. He was undergoing a metamorphosis at a frenzied pace. In the future, he would become the strongest existence below the Great Emperors.


    Regardless of where they were, the cultivators all yearned to acquire the teachings of the top figures. The news regarding Lord Six Desires spread at an astonishing speed. All top forces had caught wind of it. More and more cultivators knew about it at an incredible speed!

 Chapter 2437 - Arriving at the Six Desires Heavenly Palace

    Ye Futian was initially still cultivating atop the Six Desire Heaven Palace, but Lord Six Desires invited him to come down from the Yangxin Mountain.


    Before the stairs, Lord Six Desires and the other high-level cultivators were all present. In the middle stood the divine frame of Shenjia the Great. Everyone kept a distance from the divine frame. Clearly, although quite some time had passed, no one could solve the mystery of Shenjia the Great.


    Until today, no one could bring it away, including Lord Six Desires himself, which was why he sent people to call Ye Futian over.


    ��Lord,�� Ye Futian bowed slightly toward Lord Six Desires and greeted him after arriving.


    ��How��s your injury?�� Lord Six Desires still remembered to care about Ye Futian��s injuries.


    ��Almost recovered. I should be fully rejuvenated in a few day��s time,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Mm.�� Lord Six Desires nodded and said, ��For the past few days, the others and I were all observing this divine frame of Shenjia the Great. Even now, we still cannot understand how it operates. No wonder you were crowned as the number one of the Original Realm and were chased after by various forces of the Divine Prefecture. Your talents are astonishing, to say the least. Back then, how did you reach resonance with the divine frame of Shenjia the Great?��


    With the status and power level of Lord Six Desires, it was definitely an embarrassing thing for him to be asking Ye Futian. Ye Futian had already spontaneously handed over the body, gifting it to him to study. Yet he couldn��t figure it out and had to come to consult Ye Futian. One could imagine the emotions going through Lord Six Desires. If it was easy to ask, he would��ve done it back then.


    However, so many days had passed, and he still couldn��t fathom it. Not to mention, there were some rumors starting to spread, so Lord Six Desires had no choice but to call Ye Futian over to consult him. He didn��t forget to praise Ye Futian before the fact, so at least it wouldn��t be as humiliating.


    Ye Futian appeared to be pondering before he answered, ��Lord, back then, when I was fortunate enough to see the divine frame in the Shangqing Domain, no one could communicate with it. In fact, even looking at it would inflict severe injuries, causing one��s eyes to bleed. I was no different. Afterward, through perception and understanding, I was able to resonate with the runes inside of the divine frame, which then allowed me to activate them and fuse with my spiritual soul and mortal body to gain control. But if you need a detailed explanation of how it was done, it��s really difficult to spell it out clearly.��


    Lord Six Desires nodded slightly. Naturally, he had also entered that world of runes inside the divine frame. However, it was a Domain of Path Obliteration. The moment he entered, he was attacked. When he tried to gain control over the body of Shenija the Great, he immediately experienced severe backlash.


    ��Is there any way to quickly gain control over it?�� Lord Six Desires asked, his voice lower than usual.


    Ye Futian pondered for a while before shaking his head. He looked toward Lord Six Desires only to see the Lord looking back at him.


    Although he appeared calm and composed on the surface, Ye Futian was exceptionally clear of the circumstances right now. With the relationship between him and Lord Six Desires, it was impossible to have mutual trust. Of course they were both trying to scheme against each other. Despite his explanations, how could Lord Six Desires completely believe him?


    Ye Futian said, ��Lord, previously, besides inheriting the divine frame of Shenjia the great, I also inherited his Divine Requiem and Ziwei the Great��s techniques of attack. However, Ziwei the Great��s inheritance is still dependent on the Ziwei Segmentum even after all this time because the Will of the Great Emperor was embedded within those celestial stars. When I was cultivating there, I could feel the presence of Ziwei the Great��s Will. As such, all I can do is to seek advice from Lord about my cultivation methods.��


    He used the word ��advice.��


    As expected, a gratified expression could be seen from Lord Six Desires�� eyes and brows. He said, ��Alright. Although I��m not an expert in music, the Great Paths are all interconnected. Perhaps I could still give you some advice. Besides, I would like to experience the Divine Requiem as well. As for the offensive techniques of Ziwei the Great, surely there��s something extraordinary about that, too.��


    Ye Futian sneered inside. He knew that Lord Six Desires was a greedy person who never knew content. His music and the techniques of Ziwei the Great, he wanted all of them. So long as Ye Futian mentioned them, he would want them.


    ��I��ll transmit it to Lord through divine consciousness,�� Ye Futian said as divine light started blinking between his brows and started to travel towards the middle of Lord Six Desires��s brows.


    With his cultivation levels, of course Lord Six Desires wouldn��t be afraid of Ye Futian. Without the body of Shenjia the Great, it wouldn��t even be possible for Ye Futian��s divine consciousness to launch a sneak attack on him, so he just allowed that divine light to enter into his forehead.


    Soon, the light dissipated from both of them. A smile appeared on Lord Six Desires��s face. He was clearly very satisfied with the information that Ye Futian had transmitted to him.


    Although the Divine Requiem was useless for him, it was a lost Divine Melody��the greatest composition of Shenjia the Great, who was the greatest musician of an era. Even if he just used it to trade in the future, he could exchange it for other supreme treasures. On top of that, the attacking technique of Ziwei the Great was also extremely powerful. He could study it and fuse it into his own methods of attack.


    ��Since you haven��t recovered fully from your injuries, you should go back first and try to recover as soon as possible. Later on, I��ll study these cultivation methods carefully. When I gain a decent understanding of it, I��ll give you some advice,�� Lord Six Desires said to Ye Futian. His tone was a lot more gentle than before. Although he knew that Ye Futian still had other treasures on him, he wasn��t in a rush to get them. Since Ye Futian was willing to hand them over spontaneously, he was glad to treat Ye Futian with some respect in return.


    He liked smart people.


    ��Alright, thank you for going through the trouble, Lord,�� Ye Futian said. Despite passing on cultivation methods to Lord Six Desires, he behaved as though he was indebted to him instead. Yet, none of the cultivators around felt that there was anything wrong. It seemed as if this was supposed to be how things go.


    Ye Futian was staying in Lord Six Desires��s territory, and his life was in the hands of the Lord. How would he dare not to hand over all of his possessions?


    The Lord was already being very generous to allow him to recover from his injuries and cultivate in peace.


    After leaving, Ye Futian returned to Yangxin Mountain and went back to cultivation. It was exactly as the cultivators in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace thought. He knew what sort of circumstances he was under and understood what should and should not be done.


    Right now, other than cultivation, all he should be doing was lay low.


    As for the divine methods that he transmitted to Lord Six Desires, it wasn��t complete, though it was extraordinary nonetheless. Although Lord Six Desires was powerful, he had never seen those two divine methods before, so naturally, he wouldn��t be able to tell. Besides, those were indeed real, just incomplete.


    ��


    After several more days, Lord Six Desires was still cultivating in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace.


    Suddenly, several powerful auras descended upon the palace encircled by a mist of divine aura, which made Lord Six Desires frown. He looked up into the air with a cold and impassive gaze as he said, ��Why not inform me before coming to the Six Desires Heavenly Palace?��


    The hearts of the cultivators who were cultivating in the palace trembled slightly when they heard the Lord Six Desires. Based on his tone, it seemed that those who arrived were on the same cultivation level as him.


    Otherwise, how would they dare to descend directly upon the Six Desires Heavenly Palace? And the Lord used the word ��inform�� just now.


    If it weren��t cultivators of the same level as him, he would likely have slammed his palm toward them already.


    So, who was here?


    Atop the skies, the clouds surged and rolled rigorously as waves of extremely powerful aura seeped downwards.


    Then, a voice sounded from high up in the air, ��Apologies for coming without notifying and disturbing Lord Six Desires��s cultivation.�� As the voice sounded, a figure appeared high up in the skies. Two other cultivators arrived from another direction.


    The three great cultivators arrived at the Six Desires Heavenly Palace at the same time. All three were cultivators on the same level as the Lord Six Desires, each an overlord of the region.


    At this moment, Lord Six Desires instantly understood what they had come for.


    Cultivators of this level coming personally. Clearly, it wouldn��t be for no reason. Recently, only one thing had happened in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace, so naturally, they had come for that.


    The three great cultivators looked downward at the divine frame of Shenjia the Great. A wave of amazement went through their hearts. So it was actually true. Lord Six Desires obtained a divine corpse, and it was the divine frame of a Great Emperor who stood at the very top of the pyramid in the ancient era��Shenjia the Great.


    Previously, this divine frame appeared in the Divine Prefecture. Now it was in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace.


    Lord Six Desires sneered inside. They��d already arrived here. What did they mean by disturbing his cultivation?


    What a sham.


    Of course, he knew all three of these cultivators.


    ��We��ve previously heard rumors that Lord Six Desires obtained the divine frame of Shenjia the Great. It turned out to be true. Since you obtained the diving frame, why didn��t you invite us to study it together? You��re here alone, yet you can��t fathom it. That��s rather boring, isn��t it?�� another of the three said while staring at the divine frame.


    They��d all heard that it was challenging to gain an understanding of the body of Shenjia the Great. Looking at the situation now, it seemed to be true. Clearly, until now, Lord Six Desires still hadn��t managed to do it.


    As they spoke, their divine consciousness expanded rapidly to their surroundings. It seemed that they were trying to encase the entire Six Desires Heavenly Palace in their divine consciousness.


    ��Don��t you think this is going a little overboard?�� Lord Six Desires could sense that their divine consciousness was directly invading the Six Desires Heavenly Palace, and his tone turned cold. This was an obvious provocation.


    However, the three of them didn��t care. They had already come to the Six Desires Heaven, so they wouldn��t concern themselves with that. Besides, they had already discussed this before coming over.


    As such, they could surely suppress Lord Six Desires so he wouldn��t dare to turn against them.


    ��We��ve heard that the phenom of the Original Realm Ye Futian was being imprisoned in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace by you, Six Desires, so we just wanted to see for ourselves. Don��t mind us.�� A smile appeared on their faces as they��d already found the answer. Of course, Yangxin Mountain was part of the area covered by their divine consciousness, and they could see a white-haired young cultivator there. His aura was extraordinary. That was probably Ye Futian.


    Lord Six Desires was seriously ruthless, imprisoning Ye Futian inside the Six Desires Heavenly Palace and forcing him to hand over the divine methods that he was cultivating. According to the rumors, other than the divine frame of Shenjia the Great, Lord Six Desires had also obtained several other inheritances of Great Emperors. He was exceedingly ambitious, wanting to become the greatest cultivator below the Great Emperors.


    Of course, that was the dream of all cultivators on their level, perhaps even further than that.


    It wasn��t a surprise to them that Lord Six Desires had such thoughts.


    However, now that they knew about it, Lord Six Desires can forget about having the divine frame of the Great Emperor and the divine methods all to himself. At the very least, they had to get a piece of the pie.


    ��Ye Futian willingly entered the Six Desires Heavenly Palace to cultivate as one of us. How is that imprisonment? I��m afraid what you said was blown way out of proportion.��


    ��Is it?�� one of the three cultivators said impassively as his divine consciousness landed on Yangxin mountain. He asked Ye Futian, ��Ye Futian, did you enter the Six Desires Heavenly Palace for cultivation willingly?��


    Ye Futian raised his head in Yangxin Mountain and looked toward the Six Desires Heavenly Palace. They were finally here!

 Chapter 2438 - Compromise, Balance

    Ye Futian remained silent and didn��t speak. Upon seeing his reaction, Lord Six Desires asked, ��Ye Futian, just speak the truth. Did you willingly enter the Six Desires Heavenly Palace? Did I force you to do it?��


    Ye Futian stood there and continued to be silent. At such times, not speaking would be more impactful than speaking.


    ��He��s right��just speak the truth. Did Lord Six Desires imprison you in the Heavenly Palace? Because of his threats, you had to hand over the divine frame?�� one of the three cultivators asked in an attempt to pressure Ye Futian.


    At this juncture, of course Ye Futian wouldn��t rashly follow what he said; that would be foolish. These people weren��t related to him in any way. Why would they care about his life? They had only come here because they cared about the divine frame and the inheritance of the Great Emperors. The moment he admitted that he was threatened, these people would have an excuse to act. Afterward, it wouldn��t matter if he was alive or not.


    ��Come over here and tell them,�� Lord Six Desires continued. His might shrouded the Six Desires Heaven.


    ��Six Desires, you are coercing him,�� a cultivator said, but Lord Six Desires didn��t care. Ye Futian finally moved. He knew that if he continued to remain silent, it would have the opposite effect of what he wanted. He walked out of Yangxin Mountain and flew through the air. He came before the main hall of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace and chose a position to stand in.


    He bowed slightly toward Lord Six Desires and the three great cultivators. ��Greetings, Lord and seniors. I was ��invited�� by the Lord to join the Six Desires Heaven. Lord Six Desires was willing to give me advice on my cultivation, which is why I entered the Heavenly Palace. The divine frame will be much more powerful in the hands of the Lord. It will then be able to protect me better. At the same time, the Lord is willing to teach me about the methods, which I have inherited from the Great Emperors. It will be beneficial towards improving my cultivation.��


    It seemed as though Ye Futian��s words came right from his heart. It was sincere, candid, and polite. Yet, the cultivators present could sense that something was wrong with what he said. He was ��invited�� by Lord Six Desires, the Lord was willing to give him ��advice�� in his cultivation, and was even willing to ��teach�� him about the methods inherited from the Great Emperor. Ye Futian needed Lord Six Desires to teach him about the methods of the Great Emperor?


    That was certainly a thought-provoking statement.


    Lord Six Desires also sensed that there was something wrong with what Ye Futian said, but after all, there weren��t any loopholes in his words. He had admitted that he entered the palace willingly. At this point, Lord Six Desires couldn��t flip on Ye Futian, as that would only prove the three great cultivators right��that he was threatening Ye Futian.


    One of the great cultivators said, ��I see how it is. If Lord Six Desires can do it, then I can too. I know that you have made many enemies in the Divine Prefecture. If you really get into trouble in the future, I��m afraid Lord Six Desires alone wouldn��t be able to fight them all. Besides, it��s been so many days, yet Lord Six Desires still hasn��t solved the mystery of the divine frame. It��s probably not possible for him to become the greatest cultivator below the Great Emperors.�� He continued, ��I came from Yemo Heaven, and I��m the lord of a heavenly palace as well. I��m willing to provide aegis for you and teach you cultivation. Are you willing to join my palace for cultivation?��


    ��Yemo, Ye Futian already joined my Six Desires Heavenly Palace. What��s the meaning of this?�� Lord Six Desires asked.


    ��Who said Ye Futian could only enter one palace?�� Another one of the great cultivators said, ��Moreover, Six Desires, you said you were going to provide protection for Ye Futian. Do you really think that you alone can fend against all of the forces from the Divine Prefecture? If that��s the case, would you like to take us on��one against three��and try to spar with the three of us?��


    This question made Lord Six Desires��s expression turn a little ugly. These three cultivators had clearly come to snatch Ye Futian from him.


    One against three. Of course, he couldn��t do it. These three were all on the same cultivation level as him. They��d known each other for years and had battled before. He couldn��t even guarantee that he would win one on one, let alone one on three.


    ��Lord Ye and Lord Liberty are right. I don��t mind either,�� the last person said. He was wearing a kasaya. He was a divine Buddhist monk with an extraordinary aura. The three great cultivators had reached the same conclusion. They were overtly snatching Ye Futian, making him join their palaces while he had already entered the Six Desires Heavenly Palace.


    And they believed that Ye Futian wouldn��t reject them.


    These three great cultivators were Lord Ye of Yemo Heaven, Lord LIberty of Liberty Heaven, and Lord Initial Zen.


    The Western World was vast, nearly boundless. It was said to have various worlds and various small words. All three of the cultivators and Lord Six Desires were powerful beings who stood atop all of these worlds, high above the masses.


    Cultivators of their level rarely appear together. Yet today, all four of them had come for Ye Futian. More accurately, they came for the divine item.


    In his mind, Ye Futian was a little taken aback by the words of the three cultivators. So this was the wisdom of the cultivators at the top of the pyramid. He only hinted a little, and they immediately knew exactly what to do. They knew that even if he was threatened, he wouldn��t say anything rash and could not have a falling out with Lord Six Desires. They proposed to let him join their palaces so he wouldn��t have to turn on Lord Six Desires. At the same time, these great cultivators could share his divine item. Perhaps they wouldn��t even have to fight each other. As long as Lord Six Desires made some small compromises, everyone would be satisfied.


    Such good scheming. Ye Futian couldn��t help but feel impressed.


    On top of that, he couldn��t reject them.


    It��s a pity that these four cultivators were well matched with each other. According to Mo Yunzi��s memories, not one of them was above the others in any way. As such, they were able to create a balanced situation.


    ��Ye Futian, do you agree to this?�� Lord Ye asked Ye Futian directly.


    ��I already joined the Six Desires Heavenly Palace, so I need the Lord Six Desires to agree to it,�� Ye Futian looked toward Lord Six Desires, appearing very composed. Of course, he wouldn��t reject them. Being controlled by Lord Six Desires alone was far more menacing to him than the four great cultivators forming a system of checks and balances on each other.


    But he wouldn��t agree directly. Instead, he let Lord Six Desires make the decision.


    ��Six Desires, what do you say?�� Lord Ye asked Lord Six Desires. Three gazes landed on him, which made his expression turn a little ugly.


    ��Hmph!�� Lord Six Desires snorted and said, ��Ye Futian already joined my Six Desires Heavenly Palace, yet the three of you are making such aggressive demands. I will remember what happened today.��


    ��Does that mean that you agree?�� Lord Liberty asked, but Lord Six Desires didn��t answer him. Instead, he turned toward the body of Shenjia the great and continued to study it. He started earlier than the other three cultivators. If he could understand the workings of the divine frame before the three of them, based on the power that Ye Futian could unleash back then, it would be enough to deal with the three of them.


    When that happened, he��d let them know who was in charge.


    But now, he would have to avoid direct conflict with the three. He had absolutely no confidence in battling them one on three.


    ��In that case, Ye Futian, from now on, you will be under us,�� Lord Ye said toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian sighed inside. It was a pity that they didn��t start fighting directly. But there was no rush. The seed of conflict had already been planted, and a fallout was a mere matter of time. He needed to wait patiently for some time.


    ��Thank you for being so gracious.�� Ye Futian bowed toward them. ��I shall take my leave first.��


    He turned and went off, leaving the place. The three great cultivators all stared at the divine frame of Shenjia the Great, then their figures descended and landed before it as their divine consciousness surged toward the divine frame. All of them wanted to study, understand, and obtain the divine frame!

 Chapter 2439 - Comprehension?

    The Six Desire Heavenly Palace appeared peaceful outside, but because the four cultivators were comprehending the divine body simultaneously, the heavenly palace was under a state of constant suppression.


    However, Ye Futian continued cultivating quietly as if no one was around.


    On this day, Lord Ye of Yemo Heaven descended on Yangxin Mountain and came to him.


    ��Greetings, Lord Ye,�� Ye Futian said while he gave a slight bow. These three had been here for a few days, so he knew of their identities.


    ��Mmm.�� Lord Ye nodded slightly at Ye Futian and said, ��You are considered one of us now. Would you follow me to Yemo Heaven to cultivate?��


    ��I��m able to cultivate quietly here at Six Desires Heavenly Palace. I have no plan to leave for the time being,�� Ye Futian replied. He knew very well that none of their conversations could escape Lord Six Desires�� ears, and Ye Futian understood what to say and what not to say.


    ��Don��t worry��you are also counted as one of our three clans. As long as you want, you may go to whichever place to cultivate. Lord Six Desires can��t stop you.�� Lord Ye continued to advocate, but Ye Futian remained unmoved. In fact, he seemed quite uninterested.


    To Ye Futian, there was no difference between going to Yemo Heaven and staying at Six Desires Heavenly Palace.


    In any of those places, he would be under their control and placed under house arrest.


    Ye Futian understood very well what all of them were after.


    ��I appreciate my Lord��s kindness.�� Ye Futian continued to respond calmly without much emotion. Lord Ye didn��t say anything more but continued via voice transmission instead. ��I know you are under the coercion of Lord Six Desires, but you can see from the situation today that the three of us have an absolute advantage against Lord Six Desires. As long as you are willing to comply with our wishes, we will take you away from here. Furthermore, we have no malice against you, and we will not harm you. Lord Six Desires, on the other hand, will most likely end you once you��ve given him what he wants.��


    ��Elder, I am already under the tutelage of Six Desires Heavenly Palace, so Lord Six Desires will not do me harm,�� Ye Futian responded via voice transmission. Lord Ye stared into his eyes and transmitted, ��If this is the case, then you, too, are also under our tutelage. Pass on the method you have cultivated to us three, and we will see if we can comprehend it and give you some pointers.��


    It was rumored that Lord Six Desires had obtained the divine method from Ye Futian. As Ye Futian had been under house arrest for many days, presumably this was true. No way Lord Six Desires would not covet the divine method in Ye Futian��s possession, so they, too, wanted to have a chance to cultivate it as well.


    ��I must ask your forgiveness in this matter, elder,�� Ye Futian refused through voice transmission.


    ��Mmm?�� Lord Ye frowned. An indistinct coercion was released from his body and descended upon Ye Futian.


    ��I hope Elder can understand the difficulties I��m facing.�� Ye Futian continued to communicate via voice transmission. Lord Ye responded with a disapproving snort.


    Then, a cold and indifferent voice said, ��Lord Ye, what do you think you are doing? Are you threatening this young man in secret? You said that you want Ye Futian to cultivate with you, but this is how you are treating him?��


    The person who spoke at this time was none other than Lord Six Desires.


    Lord Ye glanced at Ye Futian with cold eyes but soon left in a huff.


    However, he could sense that Ye Futian was deeply wary of Lord Six Desires; therefore, he acted with extreme caution.


    ��Ye Futian, Lord Ye has told me about you. If you want, the three of us can help you get out of this jam.�� A voice came landed on Yangxin Mountain, entering Ye Futian��s ears. This time the person who was speaking was Lord Liberty.


    Obviously, Lord Ye had had a talk with him, so Lord Liberty was now trying to persuade him, seeking to alter Ye Futian��s mind.


    ��I am afraid I don��t deserve such consideration,�� Ye Futian continued, ��But, it��s true that I have no intention of leaving for the time being.��


    Lord Liberty raised his brows slightly. It seemed that Ye Futian was still unwilling to take the chance.


    ��What is it that you want?�� Another voice now came into his ears; it was Lord Initial Zen who had spoke.


    The voice of Lord Initial Zen seemed to ooze a magical power as he was speaking to Ye Futian, ��You killed Great Elder Motian and are now trapped inside the Six Desires Heavenly Palace. I know this was done against your will. You may speak freely about what you want with us.��


    Ye Futian was somewhat moved at this gesture, but soon he composed himself again and responded, ��I have nothing to ask for now.��


    ��Think about it first and find me later.�� Lord Initial Zen��s voice was like the sound of Zen, which was extremely mesmerizing to those who heard him.


    ��Thank you, my Lord,�� Ye Futian responded, but he was secretly alarmed. Among these four cultivators, only Lord Initial Zen was a Buddhist cultivator. Furthermore, judging from the actions of these people, Lord Initial Zen might be the one who posed the greatest threat to him.


    Of course, he would not easily trust anyone here.


    In the blink of an eye, a few more days passed by. On this day, another group of people descended from the sky and came to Six Desires Heavenly Palace. This group of people had unusual and extraordinary temperaments. Upon their arrival, even the eyes of Lord Six Desires looked a little grave. Sitting there, he looked at the visitors and said, ��You have come from afar. Please enter the heavenly palace for a respite.��


    ��There is no need.�� The cultivator in the lead was also someone who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. He glanced at the divine body below, then said, ��Saint Zhenchan asked us to bring you a message. We heard that there is a divine body obtained by Six Desires Heavenly Palace. You may comprehend it for a period of time here, but after three months, you must transport the divine body to Zhenchan Hall.��


    The eyes of Lord Six Desires and the other three cultivators narrowed slightly, and there was disquiet in their hearts; even Saint Zhenchan was meddling in their business now.


    Sure enough, even someone at Saint Zhenchan��s level wanted to witness something like the divine body. These emissaries were sent to let them know that they had only three months before they had to surrender the divine body.


    They were well acquainted with the likes of Saint Zhenchan. Although they were all existences who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, there was still a great chasm between their realms. Saint Zhenchan was one of the Buddhas of the West Heaven, the controlling principality of the Western World. The control he had over his territory was total and absolute, his cultivation was monstrous, and the forces within his control were most terrifying.


    Lord Six Desires and Saint Zhenchan may be technically in the same realm, but if they were to battle, Lord Six Desires would not be an able contender in the least.


    The emissaries did not bother to wait for Lord Six Desires to respond before they turned around and left. It was as if they were here to announce the instructions, and Lord Six Desires�� consent was unnecessary. In the world of cultivation, this had always been the case.


    Ye Futian, who was cultivating, heard it as well. It seemed that finally, someone stronger was getting involved, and as a result, the pressure on Lord Six Desires would be greater.


    ��Three more months!�� Lord Six Desires secretly exclaimed. He looked towards the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, urging even stronger willpower as if he was willing to try no matter the cost. He must control this divine body, and as long as he could control it with elevated strength, what more could Saint Zhenchan do to him?


    Clearly, the other three cultivators had heard the proclamation as well. Out of all of them, Lord Initial Zen was the calmest. He belonged to the Buddhist sect and came from the same clan as Saint Zhenchan. If he ever encountered Saint Zhenchan in person, he was obligated to address him as his senior brother.


    As time went by, on this day, the divine body unexpectedly revealed rays of divine light. It seemed that the divine power inside had been urged somehow, and more was gathering.


    ��Huh?�� Lord Six Desire��s divine consciousness frantically poured into it as the power of the Great Path invaded the divine body. This caused the divine body to roar and howl. Golden divine light surrounding heaven and the earth with astounding aura. The other three major cultivators narrowed their eyes as they beheld this sight. Their eyes became heavy and serious all at once as the coercion of the Great Path was being unleashed.


    At Yangxin Mountain, Ye Futian closed his eyes, and a picture appeared in his mind. It was the picture before the great hall!

 Chapter 2440 - Disaster

    In front of the Great hall at Six Desires Heavenly Palace, the divine body roared. Just as Lord Six Desires directed his attention at the divine body, he saw the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor Jia suddenly flew straight towards him.


    ��Humph.�� The other three Lords opened their eyes and looked at Lord Six Desires. They didn��t expect Lord Six Desires would comprehend the body first.


    The Sound of the Buddha reverberated, resounding through the void between heaven and earth. It shook those who heard it to their core. An enormous golden Buddhist handprint appeared in the void, which then buckled down over the space occupied by the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, preventing the divine body from moving towards Lord Six Desires.


    Previously, all four of them had been comprehending the divine body here, but since none of them received any enlightenment, a certain delicate balance had been maintained among them.


    However, now it appeared that Lord Six Desires might be on the verge of comprehending the divine body, thus resonating with it. He might even take control of it. At a time like this, they couldn��t remain as tranquil as they had been. They must take action immediately.


    Lord Six Desires was no longer holding back either. His palms trembled in the air, and suddenly, the space seemed to be filled with crazy explosions. Some fist aurora burst through the air and blasted on that golden Buddhist handprint, splitting it open.


    At the same time, Lord Ye and Lord Liberty both made their moves as well.


    Suddenly, a terrifying dark space appeared in front of Lord Six Desires, filled with petrifying black vortices. A black divine halberd descended above his head, trailed by a wave of horrific destruction from above the firmament.


    Behind Lord Liberty, a gigantic divine shadow appeared, and a large palm slammed down. It covered the sky and the sun, overwhelming that corner of the world.


    The three great cultivators attacked at the same time.


    Lord Six Desires was surrounded by divine light, which had turned into a terrifying golden halo, forming a passive defense. Everything around him was in a state of topsy turvy, as the ground below was quacking and crumbling.


    Above the sky, the dark halberd of destruction appeared inside the storming vortices descended with pitch-black lightning. A terrifying phantom, like a deity in the night, appeared as a god of ultimate destruction in the void.


    The divine halberd slammed down in a second and blasted on the golden light screen, cracking the defense put up by Lord Six Desires. The terrible lightning wandered on the light screen as the surrounding space seemed on the brink of total destruction. However, the space of the Western World was far more stable than the one in the Original Realm and the Divine Prefecture, so the fissures didn��t extend far.


    But the Six Desires Heavenly Palace was in bad shape. When the storm was sweeping through the surroundings, chasms opened up in the ground, many of the buildings collapsed. The cultivators of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace had already retreated frantically at the beginning of the battle. They knew that participation in a clash at this level would spell certain death; they had absolutely no way to intervene.


    ��The three of you are overstepping,�� Lord Six Desires said as he slowly stood up. The golden storm that surrounded him became more frightening as he stood there like a heavenly deity.


    But the three of them didn��t bother to listen to what Lord Six Desires had to say. They rolled towards the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor with the power of the Great Path, forcing the divine body to float in their direction. They would not allow Lord Six Desires to comprehend and control the divine body.


    Boom! But at this moment, an awesome golden divine light bloomed from the divine body, like thousands of runes as they launched an attack on the three cultivators. The three of them looked quite solemn as they surrounded their bodies with the divine light of the Great Path, protecting their bodies and spiritual souls from this invasion.


    They let out a cold snort, and their eyes refocused on Lord Six Desires. It seemed that Lord Six Desires, who had been tied up by the attacks, was not giving up just yet. He was still attempting to control the divine body to fight them.


    ��What should we do?�� Lord Ye asked the other two via voice transmission, clearly seeking to discuss a solution regarding Lord Six Desires. Now that they were in an all-out confrontation, they had created a shared enemy. More importantly, Lord Six Desires seemed to be able to communicate and control the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, and that was a big concern for them.


    If they stopped here today, Lord Six Desires would surely retaliate later.


    ��Kill.�� A chilling word entered the ears of the other two, and the one who spoke was Lord Initial Zen. When he uttered the word, his voice was calm, his face peaceful and benevolent. The Buddha��s light lingered around him, but he was the most decisive.


    ��That��s right. Make sure there will be no future trouble.�� Lord Liberty agreed when he heard the word. All three of them were peak figures who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, and it was their nature to be so determined. Since they had already decided to do this, they would not hesitate or leave him a way out.


    In a short period of time, they had decided on killing a peer, the most powerful cultivator of Six Desires Heaven.


    ��Very well,�� Lord Ye replied, and the three of them immediately reached an agreement. In an instant, a horrific murderous intent swept through the entire Six Desires Heavenly Palace, and even the entire divine mountain was shrouded within. Meanwhile, that strong murderous intent was still diffusing from it.


    The expressions on the cultivators�� faces in Six Desire Heavenly Palace revealed sudden panic as they all detected the murderous intent from the three cultivators.


    If the altercation before was only a tentative probing, now, it was more than obvious that they were joining forces to annihilate Lord Six Desires.


    For the sake of the divine body, these top figures would do anything to take out a heavenly lord.


    Of course, there was another advantage if Lord Six Desires was dead��the possibility of keeping Ye Futian under their control.


    Lord Six Desires naturally noticed the murderous intent coming from the three cultivators; his face suddenly changed. When he raised his head to look into the void, he saw that the sky above the Six Desires Heavenly Palace was no longer the Holy Land that used to be surrounded by celestial mist. It was now covered with dark clouds of catastrophe, where black lightning of destruction flashed as they blast down on the divine mountain, creating cracks on the divine mountain. In that dark light of catastrophe, an elusive face appeared. It looked like the god of destruction. It was Yemo Heaven��s Lord Ye.


    This corner of heaven and earth had turned into an absolute realm, ruled by Lord Ye��s Destructive Way.


    At the same time, in the other direction, a god-like figure appeared; it was none other than Lord Liberty.


    The Buddha��s light lingered on the body of Lord Initial Zen as an ancient Buddha phantom appeared behind him. It was so boundlessly massive that it shielded the sky and obscured the sun. A glow began blooming in the darkness. The auras of each of the three great cultivators were breathtaking.


    Under this terrifying storm, all the cultivators on the mountain were appalled. This place, which was once the most powerful Holy Land of Six Desires Heaven, seemed to have turned into hell in but a moment��s time. Even the Six Desires Heavenly Palace was in the process of crumbling and disintegrating.


    These three great cultivators had steeled themselves in their resolve and no longer held back.


    ��You three are so heartless. What are you going to do with me today?�� The matter had gotten out of hand, and Lord Six Desires had no more fear as an overwhelming momentum swept at his three opponents. He regarded them with an extremely frosty look in his eyes.


    He didn��t expect that just when he had comprehended a trace of this divine body, he would be met with such overwhelming backlash. Vaguely, he felt that there was something very wrong with the turn of events. How could such little comprehension cause the divine body to have such a disproportionate reaction?


    But, there was no time for him to think things through.


    Yangxin Mountain, where Ye Futian was located, was also in the midst of disintegration and destruction. Above the ancient peak, Ye Futian got up and watched everything decay beneath his feet. He suspended his body in the air and looked into the far distance. There was an unmistakable chill in those eyes.


    Lord Six Desires had detained him here, wanting to control his life and the divine body, so now, let him have it!

 Chapter 2441 - War

    More and more cultivators gradually appeared on the outskirts of Six Desires Mountains. They watched the horrifying scene that covered the entire divine mountain from a distance away as their hearts trembled violently.


    These people were all cultivators from Six Desires Heaven. The commotion on the divine mountain shocked the Renhuangs. Many of them rushed over here, and they witnessed this battle.


    What was happening? The hearts of many people quavered. Their gazes were dead fixed on the battle. They felt as though the sky was collapsing and the earth would be split apart.


    ��The divine mountain is about to crumble,�� someone said. The divine mountain, which floated in the sky, cracked and broke into pieces. The pieces plummeted down and became ruins. The highest holy land that towered in Six Desires Heaven had been flattened during the battle.


    ��Rumor has it that the Lord confined an extraordinary cultivator who possessed a divine body. Lord Yemo, Lord Liberty, and Lord Initial Zen rushed over to the Six Desires Heavenly Palace upon hearing the news. Most likely, they are attacking Lord Six Desires,�� someone said. The cultivators could not see what was happening on the divine mountain. The region was sealed off by a domain of the Great Path. The independent space overflowed with destructive power.


    After a period of time, the sound of an explosion could be heard. A terrifying storm stirred up and spread toward the surroundings.


    ��Retreat quickly!�� The facial expression of the cultivators changed drastically as they nimbly retreated backward. The storm swept over them, and many of them were sent flying by the shockwaves. They spat out mouthfuls of blood. Even though they had tried to keep far away from the sealed-off domain of the Great Path, they were still affected by the residue shockwaves of the battle.


    However, even after the cultivators regained their composure, they did not take their eyes away from the battlefield. All of them were eager to witness the war that was happening inside the domain.


    The divine mountain no longer existed. It had fallen apart during the battle and was completely destroyed. This caused everyone��s hearts to skip a beat. Had the Six Desires Heavenly Palace been reduced to ruins just like that?


    A top force such as the Six Desires Heavenly Palace occupied a vast territory in the divine mountain. Its size was akin to that of a town. However, it had been flattened in the blink of an eye. One could imagine how vicious the battle was. Most likely many members of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace had perished.


    In the center of the battlefield, there were four cultivators standing. The cultivator who stood in the middle unleashed his aura without restraint. His killing intent was burning. His eyes were ablaze with rage. The cultivator was none other than Lord Six Desires.


    As for the other three powerful cultivators, they actually surrounded Lord Six Desires. They stood at three points around him. Each of them released astonishing might that pressed down on him. The battle had already reached this point. The Six Desires Heavenly Palace had also been annihilated. Many cultivators of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace had been killed. Things had already escalated to this point; it was impossible to want to make peace now. If they let Lord Six Desires escape, he would be a huge liability.


    Right now, rage fumed inside Lord Six Desires. He naturally knew what these three cultivators wanted to do. The other party had gone all out to eradicate him. They wanted to eliminate him here to prevent future trouble.


    Buzz. The wind and clouds in the sky churned angrily. The Great Path was howling. Divine halos shone. An illusory figure of the god of liberty appeared, shielding the sun and towering over everything else. It enveloped the vast space as though the entire region had transformed into the domain of liberty. When the god put his palms together to form a seal, 108,000 gigantic palms materialized in the sky above. The palms stacked together, and it was an impressive sight to behold.


    ��Lord Six Desires, you can only blame yourself for being ignorant of the current state of affairs,�� said Lord Liberty. Then 108,000 gigantic palms plummeted all at once. The space was on the verge of collapsing as it shook frenziedly. The palms overwhelmed the sky as they blasted towards Lord Six Desires.


    Rumble.


    A golden light screen once again appeared around Lord Six Desires. It seemed to be his domain. The golden light screen turned into an absolute region that contained a terrifying golden storm. Countless golden lightning flashed amidst the raging gale. When the palms of Lord Liberty approached Lord Six Desires, he raised his head and bellowed as he glared at the other party. Instead of shattering into pieces, the golden screen expanded toward the surroundings instantly. It was as though an explosion had occurred.


    An alarming golden storm swept across the sky. The scene was akin to a real divine tribulation. The storm charged toward the 108,000 gigantic palms. Everywhere the storm passed, the palms were instantly sliced and crushed. It was as though no other power of the Great Path could coexist with the storm.


    Buzz. The destructive golden storm scoured the battlefield and expanded outward, trapping all three major cultivators in it. This caused the entire space to become the domain of Lord Six Desires.


    When faced with such a horrifying storm, even Lord Liberty had to take a few steps back.


    ��It looks like he has gone mad,�� commented Lord Ye as he looked at the scene below. Endless divine light shot out from the body of Lord Six Desires. Every beam of divine light was connected with the light screen, demonstrating his dominance over his domain.


    When Lord Ye and the others saw this, they understood that Lord Six Desires was using all his power to resist their attacks. He had become one with his domain. This was a trick that was unique to the cultivators who had survived the divine tribulations of the Great Path. However, once his domain was destroyed, Lord Six Desires would suffer painful consequences. The mildest outcome would damage his Great Path; his cultivation might be lowered due to it.


    Of course, he would most likely perish here if he didn��t make it out alive. Therefore, he couldn��t be concerned with other matters such as his cultivation.


    Rumble. Yet another frightening sound thundered. Lord Ye had attacked. A destructive black hole appeared in the sky above. From within it, a halberd materialized. It directly pierced the space and charged toward where Lord Six Desires was. As the halberd blasted down, a myriad of halberd shadows flashed. All the halberd shadows slashed downward simultaneously. The violent light of catastrophe destroyed everything in its path.


    However, right at this moment, the golden divine lights, which connected Lord Six Desires and the sky, took the form of divine trees. Vines and leaves sprouted out and wrapped around the halberds.


    Countless halberds were blocked. Only the strongest halberd that split the sky cleaved through the golden branches and continued crashing down toward Lord Six Desires.


    When he saw this attack coming, Lord Six Desires seemed to become divine light. Countless bolts of golden lightning burst forth and shot up toward the halberd that was crashing down. Lord Six Desires pointed at the sky, and his body collided with the halberd. The halberd was formed from the Great Path, and his body was similarly formed from a powerful Way.


    When his finger and the halberd clashed, Lord Six Desires�� figure also appeared beneath the halberd. The destructive storm grew stronger and swept out toward the surrounding regions. The cultivators from the outside world saw countless destructive beams of golden light of catastrophe sweeping out all around them. No one could withstand such terrifying aftershocks.


    ��Lord Six Desires, you have run out of luck,�� said Lord Ye. Lord Initial Zen had yet to attack. Among the three of them, Lord Initial Zen was still in peak condition right now.


    Lord Six Desires would not walk away from this battle alive.


    On the battlefield, Ye Futian was also present. Divine light circled around him, preventing his body from being destroyed. Around him, the faint light of Buddha appeared. He revealed a strange look as he glanced at Lord Initial Zen in the distance.


    Even now, Lord Initial Zen still remembered to protect Ye Futian?


    Things were not going well for Lord Six Desires!

 Chapter 2442 - Mutual Betrayal

    Lord Liberty and Lord Ye unleashed even greater power of the Great Path. The illusory figure of the god which stood behind Lord Liberty sent out another palm strike. The gigantic palm crushed the heavens. Dull rumbling sounds thundered. It was as though the sky was collapsing.


    Far away, on the ground of the region where the attack was sent out, gigantic palm marks appeared. The ground sank. The scene was shocking to behold. If anyone were standing in that region, they would have been crushed to death.


    Lord Ye did not stop attacking either. The destructive storm intensified. Halberds surged into Lord Six Desires�� domain of the Great Path, intending to pierce his body.


    Under the ferocious attacks of two great cultivators, Lord Six Desires could no longer escape unscathed.


    ��You bullies have gone too far,�� barked Lord Six Desires coldly. As he said this, his body turned into a body of the Great Path. Divine light dazzled around him. It was as though his body was no longer made of flesh; instead, it was made of the Way. His body was translucent, and golden divine light radiated from within it.


    His body expanded quickly. As Lord Six Desires grew larger, his body resonated with his domain in the sky.


    ��Since you have acted so presumptuously, pay the price for your actions,�� Lord Six Desires uttered these words coldly. A beam of divine light shot up to the heavens and swept across space. The next moment, an unparalleled divine halo burst forth from Lord Six Desires�� body. An enormous illusory figure, which was akin to a god, appeared and merged with the domain.


    The presence of the god could be sensed in every corner of this space.


    Golden destructive vines and leaves extended outwards and enshrouded the space. Lord Liberty and Lord Ye were also swathed by vines and leaves. Their facial expressions turned somewhat ugly as they looked at Lord Six Desires. This fellow had gone berserk.


    The destructive divine light invaded where they stood. The branches that spread out curled towards them, even towards the gigantic divine illusory figure. They seemed to want to consume them in this domain of the Great Path.


    ��Lord Initial Zen, destroy his original body,�� said Lord Ye. They clashed directly with Lord Six Desires and were now restraining each other. It was difficult for them to pull themselves away. Only Lord Initial Zen was still in peak condition and was not entangled in Lord Six Desires�� attack. He could still make his move.


    Lord Six Desires had already gone mad. He was attacking them without restraint. All his attacks were mutually destructive. If Lord Initial Zen were to attack now, he only needed to attack Lord Six Desires�� original body and shatter it to kill him. Their chances of victory were extremely high.


    After all, they were three Lords joining forces. It would not be a surprise for them to be able to kill Lord Six Desires. It was now time for the decisive victory.


    Lord Initial Zen��s body shone with divine light. The golden light of Buddha was dazzling. An astonishing pressure was faintly emanating from him. However, he stood there motionlessly, seemingly having no intention of attacking. This scene stunned Lord Ye and Lord Liberty.


    ��Lord Initial Zen, what are you waiting for? Kill him to prevent future trouble,�� Lord Liberty shouted. Lord Six Desires�� attack of the Great Path had already entangled his divine illusory figure. The destructive light of the catastrophe that was at its peak was spreading towards him. This was the best time to kill Lord Six Desires. If Lord Initial Zen did not attack him now, the two Lords might be in trouble. Lord Six Desires already disregarded all consequences.


    However, after hearing Lord Liberty��s words, Lord Initial Zen still showed no signs of wanting to attack. He just stood there. This caused Lord Liberty and Lord Ye to feel uneasy. Their facial expressions suddenly became exceptionally ugly. They clearly realized what was going on.


    Lord Initial Zen did not intend to attack.


    He was doing this intentionally.


    No wonder Lord Initial Zen had not truly attacked all this while. He had actually intentionally done so to backstab them. If the three of them were all gravely injured, who would swoop in to reap the benefits?


    Lord Initial Zen was also from a Buddhist sect and was in the same sect as Saint Zhenchan. Even if Lord Six Desires escaped, among the three of them, the one who worried the least about Lord Six Desires seeking revenge against him was also Lord Initial Zen.


    When they thought of this, the two of them felt regret for being so careless. They initially thought that there would be no issues with the three of them joining forces to kill Lord Six Desires. Yet, they never imagined that Lord Initial Zen would actually stab them in the back at a time like this.


    ��Lord Six Desires, why don��t we all stop attacking at the same time?�� Lord Ye suggested decisively. Since Lord Initial Zen betrayed him and Lord Liberty, then he would give up. He would rather forsake the mission than let Lord Initial Zen��s scheme come to fruition.


    ��Alright. Both of you, stop first,�� said Lord Six Desires. Lord Ye was hesitant to stop attacking first, but Lord Six Desires was in a state of self-defense. Unless Lord Ye and Lord Liberty ceased attacking, it was impossible for the latter to remove his domain first. Lord Six Desires�� request was founded.


    Lord Ye communicated with Lord Liberty through transmitted thought. Then, the power of the Great Path exerted by the two of them gradually lessened. They seemed to be withdrawing their attacks slowly.


    When Lord Six Desires sensed this, he stopped attacking them too. However, he did not retract his domain.


    Right at this moment, an overwhelming might suddenly burst forth. Endless golden lights of catastrophe pierced the space and charged towards Lord Liberty and Lord Ye.


    At the same time, Lord Ye and Lord Liberty also let out a roar. Their bodies transformed into Way, destroying everything that came in their path.


    Both parties actually happened to launch an attack at the same time. Clearly, they were wary of the other party and had no intention of giving up the battle at all. They intended to first lower the guard of the other party before they struck a killing blow. After they experienced the betrayal of Lord Initial Zen, how could they possibly trust each other?


    All three of them plotted to strike and kill the other party first.


    Standing at the side, Lord Initial Zen quietly observed everything that was happening. The three strong cultivators delivered their strongest blows simultaneously. Destructive divine light spread out, forming a halo in the sky. The ring expanded outwards towards the vast space.


    Far away from the battlefield, many cultivators on the ground saw the destructive halo. They could sense the menacing auras brewing all the way on the battlefield. Their hearts trembled violently. How scary was that blow?


    Ye Futian��s body was protected by the Light of Buddha, but he was still sent flying backward by the shockwave. His divine body shook, and he was pushed back a great distance. He was no longer in the region where the Six Desires Heavenly Palace used to be.


    After the destructive divine light dissipated, when Ye Futian looked over in their direction once again, Lord Liberty, Lord Ye as well as Lord Six Desires appeared in three different locations. All three of them were gravely injured.


    Powerful figures such as Lord Liberty and Lord Ye were actually dyed red in blood. Their auras were weak. Golden destructive divine light circled around their bodies. It seemed that it was still destroying their bodies and spiritual souls. They had suffered severe injuries.


    Of course, Lord Six Desires was equally injured. Right now, he was extremely frail. His current aura paled in comparison with his aura at peak condition. His body was slightly bent over, and he was not standing straight. Blood oozed out from the corner of his mouth. His spiritual soul was damaged, and his ability was drastically weakened.


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, his heart stirred. He did not know how much of Lord Six Desires�� ability was left. However, he had paid the price.


    Currently, among the four powerful cultivators, only Lord Initial Zen was still at peak condition. He had been observing on the sidelines and had not participated in the battle. After the destructive light halo dissipated, he stood amidst the Light of Buddha. The golden Light of Buddha shone and was dazzling beyond comparison.


    At the moment, Lord Initial Zen would be the person to decide everything!

 Chapter 2443 - Fight to the Death

    Lord Initial Zen clasped his hands together and evoked the name of Buddha. The Sound of Buddha reverberated and resounded throughout the void as the golden Light of Buddha shrouded the infinite space.


    In an instant, the Light of Buddha was shining all over this world. Land within a radius of thousands of miles was under this light. A golden light screen appeared between heaven and earth as if setting up a domain of its own.


    Lord Initial Zen, who had not made a move until now, finally took action.


    For a time, the other three lords felt a coldness growing inside of them.


    Lord Ye was the most powerful person in Yemo Heaven, and Lord Liberty, too, was the most powerful figure of Liberty Heaven. They were both high and mighty existences that reigned above all living beings. However, at this moment, they felt nothing but remorse.


    If they had been more cautious, perhaps all this could be avoided. Everything they had done had paved the way for one man. Now, Lord Initial Zen was in a position to do whatever he wanted. Who else could stop him?


    Lord Six Desires was full of hatred, but there was some satisfaction as well. He felt the pleasure of taking revenge against Lord Ye and Lord Liberty. Both of them were in the same position as he.


    ��Initial Zen, you and I have never had any grievances. I can let go of all that had happened today, and you can have Ye Futian as well as the divine body. I will leave here and forget everything that happened. In the future, I will not do anything. With your strength and connections, you have no need to care about the likes of me.�� Lord Six Desire, admittedly, had been impulsive before. But now that he was grievously injured, he calmed down, and his instinct to survive kicked in.


    The hope was to leave here alive. As long as he could leave here, then there was still hope for everything.


    Lord Initial Zen glanced at him, still surrounded by the Light of Buddha. As he drifted forward, he had a peaceful smile at the corner of his mouth. ��There are indeed no grievances between you and me,�� he said. ��However, since the matter has escalated to this point, why would I let you go?��


    Such benevolent voice sent Lord Six Desires chills up and down his spine. When he looked at Lord Initial Zen, a faint sense of panic now filled his heart.


    Could Initial Zen be so ruthless that he really wanted to end him today?


    Lord Initial Zen was different from Lord Liberty and Lord Ye. He had an extensive background and had no fear regarding retribution. Even Saint Zhenchan was technically his senior brother and would let him off the hook.


    ��Six Desires, you have always prided yourself on your cleverness, but you have made the wrong decision at every turn. Do you know what the biggest mistake you made today was?�� Lord Initial Zen asked.


    Lord Six Desires looked at him, completely taken aback. At a time like this, Lord Initial Zen had the presence of mind to chat with him in leisure?


    What kind of mistake had he made today?


    ��How did Great Elder Motian die?�� Lord Initial Zen looked at him and asked. ��He never fought Ye Futian. How could you be so careless? With all four of us here, how dare you comprehend the mystery of the divine body?��


    ��I didn��t comprehend the mystery of the divine body��not all of it, just a little bit. If I had really comprehended all of it, would I show it?�� Lord Six Desires retorted. He realized something was amiss before, but now Lord Initial Zen��s words reminded him of another possibility, and the look on his face was becoming more unsightly.


    ��That��s why I said that you are being stupid. You didn��t really comprehend the body at all, but you thought you did, even just a little bit. What you didn��t know was that someone had deliberately aided you in sending you on your way to death. Not only did you not realize it, but you reveled in your greed instead, ��Lord Initial Zen continued.


    Lord Six Desires felt a chill in his heart. He turned his gaze to a direction far away, where Ye Futian was.


    He guessed what the answer would be. He had been fighting and had no time to think before, but everything became clear to him as soon as Lord Initial Zen spoke.


    Both Lord Ye and Lord Liberty glanced at Ye Futian in the distance, wondering what had happened.


    Ye Futian was a little surprised when he heard Lord Initial Zen��s words. He didn��t expect the first person who saw through the ploy would be Lord Initial Zen. Ye Futian had suspected that Lord Initial Zen was the most dangerous. He had been right about that.


    Lord Initial Zen looked at Lord Six Desires, the divine light still lingering. He continued, ��Six Desires, I must thank you since none of this would have been possible without you. After you die, I will take care of our young friend for you.��


    ��Initial Zen, we are both cultivators in the Western World, and it was not easy for us to cultivate to the state we are in today. Why can��t you just let me go?�� Lord Six Desires said as he looked at the Lord Initial Zen, seeking a way to stay alive.


    ��Since you can be killed or let go, why would I let you go? You have cultivated to this state, can��t you understand this?�� Lord Initial Zen replied simply and clearly. Since they had already become enemies, he was a hidden threat. Nothing would persuade Lord Initial Zen otherwise. If Lord Six Desires had the opportunity to kill him, he most certainly would not pass it up.


    As soon as his words fell, a strong murderous intent shot from his eyes, and a terrifying aura erupted from him. A gigantic Buddha appeared above the sky, sheltering the sky and the sun.


    Lord Six Desires stared at that massive body of the Buddha, and a hint of hatred flashed through his eyes. Compared to Ye Futian��s plotting, he hated Lord Initial Zen more. After all, he was the one who kept Ye Futian here first, so it was completely within his expectation for Ye Futian to plot against him for his own survival. Lord Initial Zen had not only plotted against him, but he also demanded his life, refusing to let him go. Naturally, he hated him even more.


    Today, would he die here?


    In his current state, facing Lord Initial Zen, who was in his peak form, chances were good that Lord Six Desires was unlikely to live to see another day.


    At this moment, a voice was transmitted into Lord Six Desires�� ears. His heart trembled.


    ��At this moment between life and death, why are you still hesitating?�� Suddenly, a hnt of decisiveness flashed through Lord Six Desires�� eyes. The golden divine light was shining, going toward another direction.


    At this moment, the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor appeared from nowhere, and that golden divine light was pouring into it madly.


    ��Huh?�� Finally, something managed to disturb Lord Initial Zen��s serenity. Lord Six Desires�� soul was now entering the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. What was this going to accomplish?


    ��Do you want to die?�� asked an indifferent voice. Just as Lord Initial Zen moved toward Lord Six Desires, the gigantic handprint of Buddhism directly blasted on the body, causing it to collapse immediately. It was pulverized under that terrifying attack.


    ��That��s nuts���� When Lord Ye and Lord Liberty witnessed this scene, their hearts trembled violently. If Lord Six Desires appeared crazy when he was dealing with them before, then he was completely insane at this moment and did not leave any way out for himself.


    Although individuals at their level could separate spiritual souls from bodies and may even remain strong, the fact remained that without a body, the spiritual soul had nowhere to return to. It would exist just like a lonely, wandering ghost. Even if there were the means of ��walk-in,�� the body that was hijacked might not be fitting.


    Lord Six Desires had to make this choice because he was driven into desperation. Lord Initial Zen refused to let him go and wanted to kill him. Lord Six Desires had no choice. If he didn��t go to the extreme, the only thing that awaited him was death.


    Just as they thought, Lord Six Desires made a decision almost instantly after receiving Ye Futian��s transmission. He had no choice, really. Either he would be killed outright or give up his physical body and seize the chance to avenge himself.


    Because his hatred was great, this choice had not been difficult at all. He had forsaken his body of flesh!

 Chapter 2444 - Battling Initial Zen

    ��What��s happening?��


    Lord Initial Zen was a little baffled. Was Lord Six Desires mad enough to abandon his physical body and allowed his spiritual soul to enter the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    But what was the point?


    Lord Six Desires had not comprehended the divine body. Therefore, he had no ability to control the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Unless��


    As Lord Initial Zen considered another possibility, he immediately glanced in the direction of Ye Futian, who was far in the distance. Could he have accomplished this? Instructing Lord Six Desires to control the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor!


    In other words, he was using the spiritual soul of Lord Six Desires to unleash the power in the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    This was the only possible explanation for Lord Six Desires�� steely resolve to abandon his own physical form so readily just for the opportunity of an all-out battle to the death.


    Boom�� Lord Initial Zen had a thought, and suddenly, the Buddha that stood between heaven and earth blasted its palmprints downward. These golden palmprints were endless, sheltering the sky and the sun. That giant Buddha palmprint in the middle, especially, was boundless and enormous. It directly slammed toward the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    But at this time, a most dreadful light exploded from the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Countless runes flew out as the power of Path Obliteration swept through this corner of the sky. The divine body of the Great Emperor raised his hand and pointed ahead, countering the giant palmprint that was blasting down.


    Numerous golden lights of destruction fell on the giant palmprints, containing the power of Path Obliteration, penetrating the palmprints readily. Soon, these gigantic palmprints began to pulverize like crazy. Even the palmprints that fell in the surrounding areas were destroyed by the blooming golden divine light.


    Lord Initial Zen regarded the sight in front of him with alarm. His attention was fixed on the divine body as he asked, ��Are you Ye Futian or are you Six Desires?��


    At this moment, who was in control of this divine body?


    In the distance, the golden divine light that had enveloped this corner of the sky suddenly descended in one specific direction. It was attacking Ye Futian��s actual physical location. As long as Ye Futian was taken down, it didn��t matter if the divine body was controlled by Ye Futian or Lord Six Desires. This battle was over.


    But almost at the same moment, golden runes surrounded Ye Futian��s entire body. A stream of light flashed across the void, and Ye Futian��s body appeared behind the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, protected by divine light, to guard him against any potential attacks from his opponent.


    Lord Ye and Lord Liberty witnessed the sight in front of them. They secretly thought that had Lord Six Desires and Ye Futian joined hands earlier, and if Ye Futian told Lord Six Desires everything, perhaps Six Desires�� body might have been preserved, and he would not have met such a miserable end.


    But the two sides were diametrically opposed, to begin with, each plotting against the other. Lord Six Desires had his own designs regarding Ye Futian, while Lord Initial Zen conspired against Lord Six Desires and the rest of them. But, in the end, it seemed that Ye Futian was the ultimate schemer, as he had hatched a plan of his own.


    In the end, who would profit?


    Ye Futian closed his eyes as his spiritual soul also separated from his body to enter the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The divine light of the Great Path continuously poured into the divine body, like infinite branches and leaves. It integrated the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and his own as if combining the two into one.


    The aura blooming from the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was becoming more terrifying. When his eyes opened, a world of runes appeared. In this world, it seemed to be occupied by nothing but endless runes. Even Lord Initial Zen and the phantom of the ancient Buddha could not escape it.


    At this moment, Lord Initial Zen felt a strong sense of threat. In this world of runes, he detected an aura of Path Obliteration. And those divine lights that came down seemed to have the ability to destroy all powers of the Great Path.


    Lord Initial Zen, looking solemn, clasped his hands in front of him. The massive figure of Buddha behind him projected infinite golden rays. In this world of the runes, the infinite Light of Buddha radiated as the endless light gathered in the void, turning into a gigantic and boundless Symbol of Wan!


    The Symbol of Wan revolved in the void, and a wave of mighty coercion erupted from above. Endless radiance sprinkled down as boundless and heavy energy permeated between heaven and earth.


    Accompanied by the Sound of Buddha, the rotating Symbol of Wan continued pressing downwards, and countless rays of light attacked the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. However, the divine body also emitted incomparable divine light, turning into a golden light of catastrophe that could end all Great Paths.


    At the same time, countless runes turned into branches and leaves and continued to bloom upwards.


    ��That��s the ability of Lord Six Desires.�� Lord Initial Zen sharpened his eyes when he saw this. Was Lord Six Desires the one controlling the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor after all?


    The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor seemed to be transformed into an ancient tree, and the branches and leaves were formed by those countless lights of catastrophe. It bloomed and grew until it had covered the entire sky. Then, it fell on that oppressive Buddhist Symbol of Wan with a terrible thud. The Symbol of Wan continued to press down. Its coercion was shocking and mighty, suppressing the world with unmatched prowess. Even the sky around them seemed to be on the verge of total collapse.


    With the descend of the runes, those branches and leaves, formed by the light of catastrophe, started to grow inside the runes and perpetrated within them. They seemed to have penetrated inside the Symbol of Wan. Even as the divine seal fell downward, countless branches and leaves had gotten inside of it.


    The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor pointed towards the sky, and in an instant, countless divine lights exploded within the Symbol of Wan. This massive and incomparable rune that had shielded the sky began bursting like crazy, shattered into countless spots of light, then dissipating into nothingness.


    ��The power of Path Obliteration!��


    Lord Initial Zen��s heart trembled when he felt that power. He could clearly sense the power of Path Obliteration contained within the blows dealt by Shenjia the Great Emperor. It was something that could destroy all Great Paths. More importantly, this was done under the condition that Lord Six Desires may not have absolute control over the divine body of the Great Emperor. Lord Initial Zen understood that Six Desires might have only achieved this by leveraging Ye Futian��s spiritual soul.


    Otherwise, if Lord Six Desires had comprehended and obtained full control of this divine body by himself, the power with which it could be exerted would definitely not be limited to this. It might have crushed him with ease. It seemed that his opponent was still acting under considerable restraints.


    Just as he was considering all the possibilities, endless runes appeared in the void once again. Each rune had turned into a halo of light, and each halo puffed out the light of catastrophe as if forming a sword. Lord Initial Zen could feel that the threat was getting greater by the moment. With each proficient maneuver of the divine body exercised by his opponent, he may soon be in danger.


    A quick battle was in order if he wanted to smash his opponent��s spirit soul once and for all, while Lord Six Desires was not yet familiar with the command of the divine body.


    When his thought turned to this, Lord Initial Zen��s countenance changed as he clasped his hands in front of him and closed his eyes.


    Suddenly, the Light of Buddha beamed all over the space, and numerous buddhas appeared between heaven and earth. In this vast space, these buddhas emerged from nowhere, all of them acting synchronously as him, as their presence engulfed this entire space.


    The Sound of Buddha lingered, resounding throughout the world, and it was an extremely uncomfortable feeling. Lord Ye and Lord Liberty both felt a painful tingling in their minds as their spiritual souls quaked. They had some difficulties maintaining their balance.


    This was the Buddhist��s supreme offensive technique, Way of the Sonic Wave, which could eradicate someone��s spiritual soul outright. The prowess of this sound could attack the spiritual souls even within the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor!

 Chapter 2445 - Murderous Intent

    Boom! Drowned by the attacks of the Sonic Waves, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was knocked back a few steps, somewhat shaken.


    Watching what was happening gave Lord Initial Zen a cold satisfaction inside. These two were using their spiritual souls to control the divine body; therefore, the spiritual souls were an obvious weak point. As soon as their spiritual souls were eliminated, this battle would be over.


    Lord Initial Zen��s eyes closed as the Light of Buddha burned fervently. The Great Path Sound of Buddha lingered, resounding through heaven and earth. The power of the Sonic Waves continued to sweep towards the divine body.


    But at this moment, Shenjia the Great Emperor managed to stabilize himself, and an even more dazzling divine light bloomed from the divine body. Infinite runes swept across this space, accompanied by the release of countless radiance. Even the power of that invisible Sonic Waves was being weakened.


    The Sonic Waves attack was invisible and left no trace, but it was definitely weakening under the divine light. It was gradually being suppressed and destroyed bit by bit.


    The Sonic Waves continued getting weaker. The vast world was full of divine light radiated from the divine body.


    ��Path Obliteration can obliterate all Great Paths. In its domain, no other powers of the Great Path are allowed.�� Lord Ye and Lord Liberty had sensed the true meaning hidden within this destructive attack, and their hearts palpitated as they watched.


    Furthermore, the power that erupted from the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was clearly becoming stronger. If this were to continue, Lord Initial Zen was very likely to��


    As soon as Lord Initial Zen thought he had discovered his opponent��s weak point, his Great Path Sonic Waves attack disintegrated. He couldn��t help but began to worry. The power that was erupting from the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was nearly invincible because it could annihilate any Great Paths.


    According to rumors, Shenjia the Great Emperor sought to contend with the heavenly path in ancient times.


    If the attacking power of Shenjia the Great Emperor was a kind of Great Path, then it could be a power much higher than theirs, so it was daring enough to compete with the heavenly path.


    This kind of power was nearly incomprehensible by the likes of them.


    Obviously, Ye Futian and Lord Six Desires�� control over the divine body was getting stronger.


    Buzz! At this moment, a string of golden Buddhist beads appeared in Lord Initial Zen��s hands. A horrific aura bloomed above the beads. There were 108 beads altogether, and each of the beads released a different kind of powerful aura. All of which stemmed from Buddhism.


    The power of the Great Path madly poured into the Buddhist beads. Then, Lord Initial Zen wave his hand, and beads flew out, only to reappear in the sky above the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. It was expanding continuously, turning into a massive halo, emitting the Light of Buddha as far as the eye could see.


    An extremely holy Buddhist divine glory sprinkled down from the void. Lord Initial Zen clasped his hands together in utmost piety. The power of the Great Path above the divine body rushed into the Buddhist beads with madness, and suddenly all 108 Buddhist beads burst open, turning into 108 sets of Buddhas.


    All 108 Buddhas then united into one body. Above the firmament, the Sound of Buddha lingered as a horrific aura diffused from each and every Buddha. The auras of all 108 Buddhas descended at the same time. Its collective might was enough to overpower the heavens.


    Clang! Voices came out as all 108 Buddhas moved in unison. The giant handprints blasted down, crushing the void, and suddenly, countless Symbols of Wan appeared. They slammed down on the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor at the same time as frightening rumbling could be heard. The entire space seemed on the verge of collapse.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor raised his head slightly and looked at the Buddhas in the sky. From within the divine body, even more branches and leaves now bloomed. There was a divine light surrounding the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, as a massive golden lotus could be seen faintly. Branches and leaves seemed to grow out of the golden lotus.


    This golden lotus first opened up with six petals, then six turned into 36 petals, and continued like so in repetition, going round and round, moving towards the giant handprints that slammed down from the void in attack.


    The dreadful handprints and the Symbols of Wan had all been blocked as if they were being swallowed by the golden lotus. What��s more terrifying was that every golden lotus was conceived by the destructive light of catastrophe.


    The lotus was born between heaven and earth, intending to envelop the boundless space and swallow up all 108 Buddhas.


    ��Six Desire Lotus!�� Lord Ye��s heart was trembling when he saw the scene before him. This was Lord Six Desires�� life spirit, hidden within his spiritual soul. And at this moment, it was blooming, carrying the Path Obliteration power inside Shenjia the Great Emperor. There was no telling how frightening it would be.


    The Six Desires Lotus was known for its ability to swallow the Paths of all things and produce the catastrophe of destruction. The endless desires gave rise to endless lotuses.


    ��It seems that Lord Six Desires is really controlling the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. He is maneuvering it with more proficiency. Initial Zen is going to be in trouble,�� Lord Liberty said to Lord Ye via voice transmission. But the two could only watch on the sidelines. Both of them had been grievously injured and had no way to participate in the battle at the moment. All they could do was wait to die.


    More importantly, Lord Initial Zen was the one who set them up, so there was no way they would be participating in this battle. They were content to watch from the side, but a bit of worry troubled them both.


    Now, they probably wouldn��t be able to get away even if they wanted to.


    The legend had it that the Six Desires Lotus contained endless desires. At this moment, endless lotus flowers were born, intending to swallow that 108 Buddhas. All 108 shadows of Buddha release a boundless and splendid Light of Buddha. An even more majestic shadow of Buddha now appeared above the firmament, as if its head was pushing against the heavens as the feet were planted firmly on the ground. The feet stomped down without warning, wanting to smash the golden lotus.


    The golden lotus blossoms shattered and pulverized one by one, but the Six Desires Lotus seemed to be born out of endless desires. Thus as it died, it was reborn endlessly and forever until it shrouded all 108 Buddhas. Then it turned toward that enormous and incomparable shadow of Buddha to swallow it up next.


    In an instant, the Six Desire Lotus that was born continuously submerged the entire sky. Then, a light of destruction bloomed from every golden lotus so that all 108 Buddhas proceeded to explode and pulverize. Even that boundless gigantic shadow of the Buddha was being eaten up little by little, then collapsed in total destruction.


    ��Puh���� Lord Initial Zen groaned as he spat out a mouthful of blood. The Light of Buddha on his body dimmed considerably. His eyes looked towards the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. ��My friend, I was never malicious to you. Why should it be like this between us? Stop now, and you can name any conditions you want,�� he pleaded.


    Lord Initial Zen wanted to negotiate a truce.


    Ye Futian laughed coldly inside when he heard the other��s plead. Lord Initial Zen had a scheming heart. He had set up Lord Ye and Lord Liberty, wanting to kill Lord Six Desires to avoid future trouble. It was still an unknown whether he would move against the other two lords��


    As for himself, if Lord Six Desires died and he fell into the hands of Lord Initial Zen, his fate would be thousands of times worse. Lord Initial Zen would definitely keep him under tighter control than Lord Six Desires ever had.


    Therefore, Ye Futian had planned accordingly and executed the plan as expected. He was lucky. He was right that Lord Six Desires didn��t hesitate when he was forced to face that impossible situation.


    ��Elder had misunderstood. It��s not me who was doing all this,�� said a calm voice from Shenjia the Great Emperor. It was light as a feather and carefree; it sounded as if nothing had anything to do with him, as if it were Lord Six Desires who wanted to continue this fatal exchange.


    ��Surely, my young friend is joking. How could he continue to control the divine body of the Great Emperor if you stopped?�� Lord Initial Zen continued. He knew very well that Lord Six Desires could no longer turn back as his body no longer existed. No matter what, Six Desires would want to kill him anyway. The only chance he had was to talk to Ye Futian.


    This time, Ye Futian didn��t pay any attention to him. The divine light sparkled on Shenjia the Great Emperor as countless golden lotus flowers swallowed toward Lord Initial Zen!

 Chapter 2446 - Unwilling to Let Go

    Lord Initial Zen retreated quickly with incredible speed. However, above the firmament, those infinite runes seemed to transform into golden lotus flowers at this instant, swallowing up all the Great Paths.


    An enormous lotus flower of Six Desires bloomed and swallowing in the direction of Lord Initial Zen, including that gigantic Buddha behind him.


    ��My young friend, you already have no place to go in the land of Divine Prefecture. Do you want to be hunted endlessly in the Western World as well?�� said Lord Initial Zen as mighty as ever, resounding between heaven and earth.


    Of course, I don��t want that, Ye Futian thought, but there was nowhere for him to go at the moment. Ever since he came to the Western World, from Great Elder Motian to Lord Six Desires, and now Lord Initial Zen, they all had regarded him as prey or as treasure, something to take for themselves.


    This being the case, all he could do was to teach them a lesson and make them pay.


    In addition, it was not like he had another choice either. Even if he could let Lord Initial Zen go, would the other be able to reciprocate the courtesy?


    This possibility was highly unlikely. If Lord Initial Zen did not die in this battle, he would surely try to take him down and keep Ye Futian firmly in his hold. Who knew what that would be like?


    Therefore, killing him was the only way.


    The Light of Buddha was burning fervently as a supreme power of Buddhism sprung from Lord Initial Zen. However, the infinite Six Desires golden lotus moved swiftly to swallow it up. In the golden lotus, Lord Initial Zen could see the elusive figure of Lord Six Desires, whose face was horribly distorted. Coupled with immense anger, he was coming to swallow him whole.


    In an instant, that enormous phantom of the Buddha began to collapse, followed by a chilling scream. Terrifying golden divine light bloomed like mad as Lord Initial Zen growled angrily inside the golden lotus. Then an image emerged, in which many Buddhist cultivators seemed to have appeared.


    There seemed to be a sacred Buddhist mountain, and on a golden lotus seat was a figure bathed in the Light of Buddha. Its appearance was extremely solemn and dignified. There was a holiness that was beyond description.


    ��Senior brother, avenge me!�� Lord Initial Zen howled, then the image disappeared. The Power of Path Obliteration raged wildly, destroying his body as well as his spiritual soul.


    Horrific aura rampaged in this space, and it didn��t take long before the body of Lord Initial Zen dissipated into nothing. His soul and spirit dispersed as he died. He disappeared entirely between heaven and earth.


    ��He��s dead!��


    Someone with the status of a Buddhist lord had been slain just like that.


    Moreover, he died at the hands of a youngster from Divine Prefecture.


    Lord Initial Zen had used those three great lords��his own peers��certain in his belief that he would be the ultimate winner. But in the end, he was tricked by Ye Futian. Ye Futian used the spiritual soul of Lord Six Desires to unleash an even stronger state of the divine body, causing it to burst with an unimaginable Power of Path Obliteration.


    In any world, there would not be many existences at the same level as Lord Initial Zen.


    Both Lord Ye and Lord Liberty were greatly disturbed in their hearts. They had thought of many possibilities, but never the one in which the body of Lord of Six Desires was totally destroyed and ended with Lord Initial Zen��s death. Furthermore, both of them were severely wounded, and their combat effectiveness had been greatly reduced.


    All this was so surreal.


    Only Ye Futian, after getting rid of the two major threats, Lord Six Desires and Lord Initial Zen, was likely to move forward.


    With nothing more than his spiritual soul, Lord Six Desires had no way of posing any threat to Ye Futian.


    As they looked at the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, they noticed that the divine light inside the divine body was raging. The divine body was moving frantically on its own. It seemed a little unsteady at times. Both of them looked on with some confusion, but as soon as they looked at each other, they guessed what was happening.


    After getting rid of Lord Initial Zen, Lord Six Desires must still have some resentment in his heart, and his spiritual soul now wanted to fight for the chance to seize the control of the divine body.


    Or perhaps, Ye Futian didn��t intend to allow the spiritual soul of Six Desires to walk out of here alive?


    A faint roar came from inside the divine body, and a terrifying divine light bloomed. Clearly, the two were locked in a confrontation.


    Lord Ye and Lord Liberty looked at each other, and there was a hint of greed that flashed through their eyes. But it vanished just as quickly as it had appeared.


    At present, even as lords, they needed to pay more attention to Ye Futian. Both of them had participated in setting up Lord Six Desires. This has indirectly led to his body being totally annihilated. Lord Initial Zen was killed mostly because of the powers borrowed from Lord Six Desires.


    Ye Futian had made good use of both parties in achieving his own goal. If they were just the tiniest bit careless, they might also be at risk, so they had to be extra cautious. Fortunately, Ye Futian and Lord Six Desires were mortal enemies. If they had formed a true alliance, the next target after eliminating Lord Initial Zen would be the two of them. In that case, they would be in deep trouble.


    Obviously, whether it was Ye Futian or Lord Six Desires, they were each plotting against the other and had started colluding. The outcome remained to be seen.


    ��Do you want to leave him alone?�� Lord Ye asked Lord Liberty via voice transmission.


    ��Wait until there��s a decisive outcome between them, and then we can reassess the situation,�� Lord Liberty responded. The problem now was that even if they decided not to move against Ye Futian, it wouldn��t necessarily mean that Ye Futian wouldn��t move against them later.


    Both men were trying to regain their strength and ease their injuries as much as possible so they could recover some of their power once again.


    Within the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, violent booming continued. It seemed that it would never end. Finally, a growl emerged, ��I admit defeat. Let me stay. I can help you.��


    This growl was tinged with wretchedness. It was the voice of Lord Six Desires. Obviously, he had fallen into a disadvantage in this altercation. If it was simply a contest between spiritual souls, Ye Futian could never come close to touching Lord Six Desires. However, within the divine body, Ye Futian was its absolute commander and had an undisputed advantage.


    Everything seemed to return to where it had all began. Ye Futian, who was currently controlling the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, turned to face Lord Ye and Lord Liberty. ��I do not wish to make too many enemies. How about you two elders stop at this point?��


    These two great cultivators had both survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Although both of them had been seriously injured, Ye Futian was not sure that he could overcome both of them. As a rule, people at this level must be treated with extreme caution.


    ��Today��s matter was a misunderstanding in itself. We know that Lord Six Desires restricted your movements without cause. All we wanted to do was help set you free from those chains. We didn��t expect Lord Initial Zen to do what he did. However, since the matter is over, let us be done as well,�� Lord Ye replied.


    ��In that case, many thanks to you both.�� As Ye Futian was making his reply, he moved backward carefully. The divine brilliance was still shining over his body. Ye Futian continued to stay vigilant. He didn��t want to risk a fight with these two opponents, but it didn��t mean he would lower his defense.


    For these two great lords to declare this was just some type of misunderstanding was ludicrous, to say the least. They were no different from Lord Initial Zen, except that they were not quite as calculating as he.


    ��Now!�� Lord Ye transmitted his voice to Lord Liberty as a terrible rumbling sound came out. The will of the Great Path enveloped this part of the world and hovered over this area. Even if they were severely inju

 Chapter 2447 - The Search

    Buzz! Divine light bloomed upon Ye Futian��s body as infinite runes shrouded the boundless space. He took one look at the two lords across from him, seemingly wanting to bring them into his realm of total annihilation.


    Lord Liberty and Lord Ye were both surrounded by the divine light of Sky Reaching Great Path. Even if they were deeply wounded, they could still communicate with the Great Path, gathering incredible power. Lord Liberty took a deep breath as a towering divine shadow appeared. It looked like the heavenly god of Liberty itself, unleashing a boundless and massive handprint at Ye Futian.


    Lord Ye, likewise, was gathering a terrifying power of destruction. This shockingly destructive light aimed at Ye Futian for the kill. It was akin to the Way of total annihilation.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body was brilliant all over, surrounded by divine light, and covered in infinite runes.


    A terrible attack descended to crush the runes. It blasted on the divine body, knocking the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor back. At the same time, divine lights came down from the firmament as if formed by those infinite runes. The incomparable divine sword traversed heaven and earth, zooming in on Lord Ye and Lord Liberty for the kill.


    The faces of these two changed slightly, busy gathering the power of the Great Path to resist. But they had already suffered heavy injuries, their bodies bore the scars of the Great Path, and their last tyrannical blow against Ye Futian had, in fact, pared their own strength down to the extreme.


    When the divine sword fell, it actually broke through their defenses and slashed toward them.


    Accompanied by the brilliance of these two divine lights, the two fell rapidly as sounds of howling and cracking came from the void. Lord Liberty and Lord Ye were once again penetrated by the light from the divine sword. They both let out a muffled groan as they spat out some blood. Their faces paled, and their injuries deepened with this most recent blow.


    Ye Futian and Lord Ye appeared in two completely different directions, with great distance between them. At this time, the divine light above the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor dimmed. He had also sustained a harsh blow from the two powerful cultivators, which caused the divine body to suffer considerable shock. His spiritual soul was also in great pain.


    Lord Ye and Lord Liberty managed to stabilize their stance but coughed out a mouthful of blood. Their auras were now exceedingly weak. They looked at Ye Futian, and their eyes were filled with coldness. It seemed like they were still unwilling to let go of Ye Futian and planned to continue their joint attack.


    The Great Path fluctuated violently with the turning of a mind. However, at this moment, a massive telekinetic power washed over them. They frowned before they saw a beautiful figure descending. She was surrounded by divine light, and her cold eyes were fixed on the two of them.


    The person who arrived was none other than Hua Jieyu. She hadn��t left with Blind Tie and the others but was hanging about nearby. She came here as soon as she heard about the battle.


    At this moment, in those cold and clear eyes of hers, there was a strong murderous intent.


    ��Jieyu, let��s go,�� Ye Futian said in a voice that seemed uncharacteristically weak, plucking at Hua Jieyu��s heartstrings. Her eyes refocused on him, and instantly, her gaze softened. Her shape flickered. She did not bother to heed Lord Ye or the other one any longer but chose to leave with the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Ye Futian loathed to let her get tangled in this mess because he still had some reservations. Even though Lord Ye and Lord Liberty were greatly weakened, they were existences that had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Such characters were a tremendous threat as long as they were alive. He was more worried about Jieyu being endangered that he rather retreat for now.


    Lord Ye and Lord Liberty did not bother to chase after them either. The truth was that they were unable to give chase, as they were greatly incapacitated at this time. As they watched the pair leaving, they sighed silently inside. Ye Futian was a dead man walking. The addition of another Renhuang wouldn��t make any difference. Since Lord Initial Zen had informed Saint Zhenchan of his death, presumably the cultivators from Zhenchan Temple were now on their way over.


    None of the four great lords were able to take down Ye Futian. In turn, they were set up by Ye Futian time and time again. Now, two were dead, and two were wounded. It was an outcome that was indescribably humiliating.


    Whatever the future held, the two of them probably would have no part to play after this miserable display.


    No one expected that a youngster from the Divine Prefecture would make such a mess out of things.


    ��Let��s go,�� said Lord Ye. Then, he and Lord Liberty dragged their injured bodies away from the battlefield.


    After they had left for a while, rays of divine light fell from the sky over the remanent of the divine mountain. A group of people descended soon after the light, all of them radiating with divine light. It seemed as if they were divine generals of sorts. Their brilliance was blinding and mighty. They were shrouded with a hint of the Light of Buddha, but they were no monks.


    Among the cultivators from the Western World, though many top figures cultivated in methods that stemmed from Buddhism, it did not mean that they were believers of Buddhism.


    ��Take the overall forces within Six Desires Heaven and search thoroughly,�� the man in the lead said, loud and clear. Immediately, the cultivators next to him broke through the air and departed towards various directions in the distance. The cultivator in the lead looked again in the distance and saw quite a lot of cultivators there. They were also present in Six Desires Heaven previously, but they had no way to intervene in that battle, nor did they dare chase after Ye Futian.


    When Ye Futian left, two lords had fallen, while two more were seriously wounded; who would dare make a move without careful consideration?


    ��Show me everything you saw,�� the man demanded. Right away, someone stepped forward. As his divine consciousness surged, an image appeared in the void, but only in parts. The Great Path had blocked off most of the space during the battle, and they could not witness many great battle scenes.


    Under the condition at the time, no one else dared to enter deep into the battlefield. Mere ripples from the battle would easily destroy them.


    After witnessing what little he could glean from the battle, the cultivator in the lead had a golden divine light in his eyes. Was the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor as powerful as this?


    ��He should have been seriously injured. If you would have intercepted him, he couldn��t possibly get away,�� the leader glanced at those in the far distance and commented. Among them, there was no lack of those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. However, because of the devastating consequences of the four lords, they didn��t want to detain Ye Futian.


    ��Let��s set off with the search.�� As the man commanded once more, all those cultivators levitated into the air immediately, heading for the different directions within Six Desires Heaven, ready to sniff out any trace of Ye Futian.


    Six Desires Heaven was a big world��unimaginably expansive with endless cities, domains, numerous celestial mountains, as well as cultivation courts.


    After Hua Jieyu took Ye Futian away from Six Desires Heaven, they did not go too far from where the fight took place. They came to a city and found a place to settle down. Traces of invisible aura fluctuated to cover up the place where they were resting. It was invisible and shapeless but capable of isolating any aura or divine consciousness from other top cultivators.


    This was a forbidden zone created by Ye Futian with his life spirit. Despite its perfect fit with the house and the courtyard, it was an independent small world completely undetectable by outsiders.


    The divine consciousness of top figures in the cultivation world could cover an extensive territory with a single sweep. But as they were used to conduct their search with their divine consciousness and not with their naked eyes, as long as their divine consciousness was cut off, it was no easy task to find a single person in this vast and endless land of Six Desires Heaven.


    In the courtyard, Ye Futian��s spiritual soul had already returned to his body, as he had his eyes closed and was deep in cultivation, bathing in the aura of the Great Path of Life. The aura from the ancient tree of the world in his life spirit had penetrated every part of his body, restoring and repairing it, as his spiritual soul was being nourished!

 Chapter 2448 - Master and Disciple

    A month later, in the courtyard where Ye Futian was staying, he was still cultivating with his eyes closed. The aura of the Great Path shrouded his entire body as he bathed in the brilliance of the Great Path. At this point, his body, as well as his spiritual soul, had almost fully recovered.


    He did not let Blind Tie and the others come back for him. After all, they were still in the territory of Six Desires Heaven. Saint Zhenchan had dispatched cultivators from all sides to search for them in Six Desires Heaven. They had turned the place upside down and inside out in their attempt to find him. At a time like this, he could not possibly allow Blind Tie and the rest of them to risk their lives by coming here. As long as they were outside of Six Desires Heaven, they were safe enough.


    In this one month��s time, Ye Futian did not leave the courtyard at all.


    At this moment, there was an invisible movement coming from outside the courtyard. It entered like invisible ripples that came in waves, and only Ye Futian had perceived this sensation. However, he didn��t pay much attention to it. He continued to cultivate with his eyes closed because he already knew who had come.


    Hua Jieyu was sitting close to Ye Futian. At this moment, her beautiful eyes opened as she looked forward and saw a young woman. This woman had exceptionally beautiful and clear eyes. Her refined features were particularly pleasing to look at.


    Her name was Hong Ye; she was the daughter of the owner of this house. She happened upon here once by chance and saw Hua Jieyu. She had been so taken, even enamored with Hua Jieyu that she asked Hua Jieyu to accept her as a disciple.


    Hua Jieyu had never thought of accepting a disciple before, so she didn��t agree to it immediately. However, Hong Ye was not deterred and would often come to visit. Gradually, Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian had developed some affection for this young woman and had recruited her help in conducting some small tasks, such as making inquiries about things happening in the outside world. Of course, the main purpose was to find out more about Saint Zhenchan��s search for them.


    In addition, he wanted to obtain a detailed map of this world. Not just the names of the places, but also the top powers and top cultivators in each world. Ye Futian wanted to get a clear picture of the basic situation in the Western World.


    However, Hong Ye��s cultivation base was not very high, so it was not easy for her to get what Ye Futian wanted. It took a lot of time and effort, but she finally got what he was after today.


    ��Goddess, this is the jade slip of the map. Once your divine consciousness enters it, you will be able to see everything,�� Hong Ye said while she took out a jade slip and handed it to Hua Jieyu. Once Hua Jieyu took hold of it, Hong Ye smiled sweetly and said, ��Goddess, can I ask you to be my teacher now?��


    Hua Jieyu looked at the woman in front of her, a little surprised. She didn��t expect the other to be so persistent.


    ��You will leave sooner or later, and I may disappear at any time,�� Hua Jieyu said to Hong Ye.


    ��It doesn��t matter. I don��t mind,�� Hong Ye continued.


    While Hua Jieyu was still hesitating, Ye Futian, who was next to her, opened his eyes and smiled at her. ��Jieyu,�� he said, ��since Hong Ye is sincere, why don��t you accept her as a disciple? Although she may leave at any time, while we are cultivating here, we may leave something behind.��


    Hua Jieyu immediately understood Ye Futian��s intention. When he saw how sincere Hong Ye was, he wished that Hua Jieyu would not care so much about the formalities between teacher and disciple. While they were here, they could teach Hong Ye a thing or two and mentor her just for the sake of making acquaintances with one another.


    The relationship of teacher and disciple had no real impact on any of them.


    Glancing at Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu pondered for a moment. She then nodded at Hong Ye. She handed Ye Futian the jade slip she had received.


    ��Thank you, teacher.�� Hong Ye was ecstatic when she saw that Hua Jieyu had finally agreed to her request. She immediately bowed down and said, ��Disciple Hong Ye greets the teacher.��


    ��Mmm.�� Hua Jieyu nodded slightly and said, ��Although you asked me to be your teacher, my cultivation may not be suitable for you. I will teach you some suitable methods, and if you have any questions regarding cultivation, you may also ask me.��


    The Hua Jieyu from once upon a time had practically no cultivational experience to speak of. But now, she had emerged with incarnations of many lifetimes, which were all part of her memory. She knew far more cultivation methods than Ye Futian, although none would be as powerful as the divine methods cultivated by him.


    ��It��s you, teacher. As long as it is taught by teacher, Hong Ye will work hard,�� Hong Ye said with mirth. The first time she was here, she had sensed that Hua Jieyu was extraordinary and saw her as someone not of this world. Whether it was her visage, temperament, her every word and action, or that hidden aura, she realized that Hua Jieyu was definitely a very powerful cultivator.


    Of course, Ye Futian was a powerful cultivator himself, though he was a little too conspicuous with his white hair and white clothing. Hong Ye couldn��t very well ask him to be her teacher in front of Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu nodded and said, ��Why don��t you go back first? I need to organize the cultivation methods in my memory and decide which ones are suitable for you.��


    ��Very well,�� Hong Ye nodded agreeably. ��I will go now.��


    With that, she smiled and left.


    After she left, Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian and saw that he looked at her with a smile. She then asked him, ��Why did you want me to accept her as a disciple?��


    ��Buddhism talks about predestination, doesn��t it? Since we are cultivating in the Western World, destiny is the reason why you two met. So you can leave something here, even if it is just to create a pleasant memory,�� Ye Futian responded. When he was speaking, he took the jade slip from Hua Jieyu. His divine consciousness directly penetrated it. In an instant, many images began appearing in his mind.


    Soon, the world of Buddhism made its impression in Ye Futian��s mind. When he withdrew his divine consciousness, he took a deep breath and was a little surprised. He didn��t expect that the strength of the Western World was so powerful that it was on par with the Divine Prefecture.


    The rest of their time was spent in relative quietude. Hong Ye came here often to consult Hua Jieyu about cultivation. Sometimes she would ask Ye Futian as well. Once, she even asked curiously, ��Teacher, what is your current realm in Rehuang?��


    Hua Jieyu ignored her, so Hong Ye looked at Ye Futian. But Ye Futian just smiled without saying a word. He did not respond to her question.


    ��It must be a very powerful level. Maybe you have already surpassed the Lower Renhuang Realm. That would mean Middle Renhuang,�� Hong Ye smiled and guessed. After cultivating for a period of time, she left again.


    These days, she came around quite frequently. Sometimes she stayed in their place days at a time.


    One day, when Hong Ye came to the courtyard again, it seemed that her eyes had undergone some change. They looked different from before. It was slightly uncanny.


    Hua Jieyu looked at her, clearly sensing something was awry.


    ��Hong Ye, what��s the matter?�� Ye Futian��s perception was so keen.


    Hong Ye glanced at him when she heard Ye Futian��s question. She bit her lip lightly, seeming to be in some pain while struggling inside.


    ��It must be false,�� Hong Ye reminded herself. She then said to Hua Jieyu, ��Teacher, please leave here quickly.��


    Hua Jieyu frowned slightly, but Ye Futian tensed up. These words had unsettled him!

 Chapter 2449 - Exposed

    ��Hong Ye, what happened?�� asked Hua Jieyu.


    Hong Ye looked at Hua Jieyu and said, ��Master, previously, you secretly asked me about what Saint Zhenchan��s underlings were up to�� Now, Saint Zhenchan has issued an order to investigate all mansions and cities in Six Desires Heavens. Moreover, a bounty is offered to anyone among the top forces of various regions who can identify the two fiends who instigated the fight between Lord Six Desires and Lord Initial Zen. The whistle-blower is required to reveal their images too.��


    As she said this, Hong Ye paused and looked at Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian. She then asked, ��Master, did the two of you really instigate the fight between the two Lords a few months ago? Were you the ones who caused the death of the two Lords when the four of them fought among themselves?��


    ��The bounty offered by Saint Zhenchan is surely an eye-watering amount. Why have you come to inform us to leave instead of reporting our whereabouts to him and claiming the bounty?�� Ye Futian asked. There was pain hidden in Hong Ye��s eyes when she looked at him. Then, she looked at Hua Jieyu and explained, ��Wouldn��t I be betraying my sect if I expose the whereabouts of Master? I can��t do that.��


    Ye Futian continued, ��Since you believe the rumors about both of us instigating the fight among the four Lords, have you considered this �C what bargaining chip did we have that was great enough to incite them to war? Furthermore, the reason was tempting enough to cause the two of them to kill each other.�� Ye Futian��s question caused Hong Ye to be stunned. She was puzzled. She looked at him and asked, ��What was it?��


    Ye Futian explained, ��I��m not a cultivator from your world. I��m from another world. I was detained in the divine mountain by Lord Six Desires due to the treasures I possessed. After the other three Lords learned about what happened, they were blinded by greed as well. They went to Lord Six Desires and demanded he give them the treasures. This was the cause of the fight. I have indeed instigated the fight among the four Lords. However, if I did not do so, I would have been at their mercy. I would not have survived.�� His words shocked Hong Ye. Ye Futian glanced at Hua Jieyu and noticed that she remained calm.


    ��So that��s why. In that case, their greed for treasure resulted in the war. Then, for Saint Zhenchan to spare no expense to search and offer a bounty for finding you means���� mumbled Hong Ye as she suddenly understood. She looked at Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian and said, ��Master, now the people in the city have seen both of your portraits. There is no way for you to leave. What should we do?��


    ��That won��t be a problem,�� said Ye Futian. ��Go and tell them that the two of us are here.��


    Hong Ye was stunned. She looked at Ye Futian and then at Hua Jieyu. She did not comprehend.


    ��Go,�� instructed Hua Jieyu.


    ��Master.,�� replied Hong Ye as she stared at her.


    Hua Jieyu explained to Hong Ye, ��If we do not sever the ties between us, we will only get you involved. Hong Ye, do not mention to others that you are my disciple. Aside from you, your father has also seen us, so we will certainly be exposed. However, he will not betray you. Go and inform them of our location. You might be able to claim the bounty. This is the last thing I can do for you as your master.�� Her voice was also exceptionally calm.


    ��No, I will go find my father. If he knows that you have taken me as your disciple, he will not sell you out, Master,�� said Hong Ye.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu gazed at her. She was still too young.


    Before personal gain as well as life or death, what did ties like this amount to?


    They barely knew each other. Why would her father risk his life for them?


    ��Hong Ye,�� Ye Futian continued, ��don��t worry. Even if you reveal our location, we can still escape. The people of the city cannot keep us here. Otherwise, how did we escape from the war of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace? Since things are bound to happen, there is no need to prevent them from occurring. Asking you to do this is to protect you. You don��t wish to make us feel guilty, right?��


    Hong Ye glanced back at Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu nodded and said, ��Go. We will be fine.��


    Seeing that Hong Ye was still hesitating, Hua Jieyu sternly ordered, ��As your master, I command you to go.��


    Hong Ye��s eyes were slightly red. She then nodded her head and replied, ��Yes, Master.��


    As she said this, she turned and left.


    After Hong Ye left, the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor appeared. As he looked at it, Ye Futian mumbled, ��I wonder when I can fight without needing to rely on this.��


    ��The opponents that you encountered are all cultivators who have experienced the divine tribulation of the Great Path. When you reach the peak of the Renhuang Plane, you might be able to forgo relying on the divine body,�� said Hua Jieyu. She only said that it was a possibility. Even if he did so, the opponents Ye Futian faced were still top figures who survived the second stage of the divine tribulation.


    Not long after, Ye Futian sensed that many powerful auras were approaching them from all directions. Right then, the formless wave had already disappeared. He no longer hid their auras. Wills swept over and scanned over their figures rudely.


    In the sky, the silhouettes of many cultivators continued to appear. Many of them were top-tier Renhuangs. After getting news of their location, they rushed over immediately. Saint Zhenchan��s reward was too irresistible. No one could remain unfazed by it.


    However, many people did not know of Ye Futian��s ability. The exact details of the war of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace had been sealed away. Only some details, just like what Hong Ye knew, were common knowledge. There were not many who were aware of the whole story of the incident.


    Hong Ye was also among the crowd in the distance. She stood behind her father and looked towards Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. She felt a pang of guilt, and her eyes were red. She had not managed to expose them. The one who had done so was her father, just like Ye Futian had predicted.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu did not look at Hong Ye. Ye Futian declared, ��Anyone who stands in our way will be killed without any mercy.��


    As he said this, the crowd saw a divine body float up into the sky. Hua Jieyu was beside the divine body. A terrifying aura emanated from it, and the Great Path rumbled. This caused the hearts of the surrounding cultivators to tremble.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said. Then, both of them stepped up into the sky and left the place.


    When the cultivators saw them leaving, they were all actually somewhat hesitant. They didn��t dare attack them right away.


    ��Hold them off. We only need to wait until the Lord��s underlings arrive,�� a deep and powerful voice sounded. A cultivator who was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane took a step forward and charged up into the air. Many ancient golden clocks plummeted from the sky, attempting to seal off the space and block Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu from leaving.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at the clocks. Dong! Dong! The sound of clocks ringing could be heard continuously. Divine light burst forth as all the clocks were shattered into pieces. With a flash, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor transformed into a beam of golden light and pierced the sky.


    Dong! The facial expression of the cultivator who was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane turned ugly. An enormous ancient clock appeared to protect him. However, the divine light directly penetrated the clock. The ancient clock crumbled, and the cultivator shook violently. Then, he turned into countless specks of light of the Great Path and dissipated. He had perished.


    ��This���� Those who saw this scene all felt their hearts tremble. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu immediately traversed through the sky and left. For a moment, no one actually dared to get in their way!

 Chapter 2450 - Ambush

    In the clouds, two silhouettes traversed through space quickly. They were moving as fast as lightning.


    Even though Saint Zhenchan ordered various cultivators to hunt down Ye Futian, very few could actually stand against him. In the entire Six Desires Heavens, Lord Six Desires used to be the only one who could confidently defeat Ye Futian.


    Lord Ye was a cultivator from Yemo Heaven, while Lord Liberty was a cultivator from Liberty Heaven.


    How many people among the cultivators beneath Saint Zhenchan could be a match for Ye Futian?


    It was most likely very difficult to catch Ye Futian unless Saint Zhenchan, his younger brother Lord Initial Zen, or someone at the same level as them personally pursued Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s own ability was enough for him to kill the Renhuang before this. However, with the help of the flesh of Shenjia the Great Emperor, his speed was even faster. Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu traveled in space, and they had reached another city in the blink of an eye.


    Right at this moment, a dazzling divine light suddenly shone down. Even the clouds were illuminated as the divine light poured down from the sky above. The scene appeared exceptionally divine. It was as though they had arrived in paradise.


    At the same time, a mighty aura pressed down and loomed over the vast space.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu stopped in their tracks. They raised their heads to look at the sky above. The space around them had been transformed into a sealed-off domain. Silhouettes of buddhas appeared among the golden clouds, enshrouding the sun.


    Ye Futian was well aware that they were no longer in the main space. Instead, they were currently in the domain of the Great Path of a top-tier cultivator. They had been intercepted.


    The Sound of Buddha reverberated within the space. Its sound was thunderous. The Light of Buddha pierced through the golden clouds. Many faces of buddhas could be seen in the sky. However, Ye Futian could not detect any cultivators.


    Buddhist runes and an enormous Symbol of Wan appeared. The symbol grew larger and larger, covering the entire sky. Then, the symbol plummeted, charging towards where Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were.


    The Symbol of Wan that blocked out the sun in the sky shone with the Light of Buddha. It was as though a heavenly might was charging down to crush all of existence.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the gigantic symbol that was descending upon him. The divine body raised its hand and pointed at the sky. Immediately, endless sword runes landed on the Symbol of Wan, followed by a dull thud reverberating in the space. A terrifying storm swept across the sky. Cracks appeared on the Symbol of Wan. It then shattered. It was destroyed with the point of a finger.


    However, the next moment, the various buddhas in the sky chanted the Sound of Buddha simultaneously. The Sound of Buddha circled Ye Futian. It was a Buddhist sound wave attack. The sound formed waves as they swept down and crashed directly into the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. They caused Ye Futian��s spiritual soul to tremble.


    This was the same sound wave attack technique that Lord Initial Zen had used back then. They were clearly from the same sect. These cultivators who were trying to kill him were Saint Zhenchan��s men. They were most likely from Zhenchan Temple and were his direct disciples.


    However, from the strength of this attack, Ye Futian knew that they were not existences who had experienced the second stage of the divine tribulation of the Great Path. The strongest among them had only survived the first stage. Otherwise, there was no need for them to act this way. It would have been sufficient for them to walk out and attack him directly.


    If Ye Futian wanted to break through this attack, he had to forcefully shatter this domain.


    Around the figure of Shenjia the Great Emperor, a space filled with runes appeared. Each rune seemed to contain the power of Path Obliteration. This was the Way of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    The runes flowed within the space and coalesced into many sword runes. Menacing Sword Will emanated from them, causing many runic divine swords to appear in the space.


    The emanating sword light had an astonishing pressure. The space gave off a bone-chilling aura.


    Ye Futian��s mind shifted, and immediately, the will of the space of runes burst forth and became beams of light. It ignored the rupturing of space and attacked the domain directly.


    It was as though countless beams of light immediately traversed the space and shot directly towards the various silhouettes of buddhas.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. Terrifying sounds could be heard. The various silhouettes of buddhas in the sky shattered frenziedly. The domain also shattered. The Light of Buddha remained, and the figures behind the domain were revealed.


    In the vast region around Ye Futian, many silhouettes appeared. They all had powerful auras, and there were even a few frightening existences who had experienced the first stage of the divine tribulation of the Great Path among them.


    Saint Zhenchan��s position in the Western World was very high. He could be considered one of the giant level figures who stood at the very top of the realm. There were not many people who were his equals. He had many subordinates in Zhenchan Temple. They were one of the most powerful forces in the Western World. Their power rivaled that of the Ancient God Clan of the Divine Prefecture.


    Saint Zhenchan himself was also a disciple of Buddhism and was considered orthodox in the Western World.


    That was why he had such a terrifying influence that could send cultivators to kill Ye Futian. The lineup he sent was extremely frightening.


    The various cultivators spread themselves out as they stared at Ye Futian. A suppressive aura enveloped the region. All of them were unleashing menacing auras. From the previous attack, they briefly experienced how terrifying was the power Ye Futian could release by relying on the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. It was sufficient to kill an existence who survived the first stage of the divine tribulation of the Great Path. No wonder Great Elder Motian had been killed by Ye Futian.


    The four Lords had also fallen to his schemes, two of them perishing and another two severely injured.


    Hence, even though their lineup now was extremely powerful, the cultivators from Zhenchan Temple were still very cautious. They did not dare underestimate Ye Futian at the slightest. Ye Futian had single-handedly destroyed the Six Desires Heavenly Palace. How could they take such an existence lightly?


    ��If you follow us to Zhenchan Temple, you might have a chance of survival. If you cooperate, Saint Zhenchan might forgive you,�� someone among the cultivators said. This person was grabbed in golden robes like battle armor. A beam of golden light actually emanated from his glabella as though it was an eye. It seemed as though it would open at any given moment. It gave off an eerie feeling.


    Ye Futian laughed coldly inside. He had experienced all this before. The cultivators of the world were mostly the same. Be it in the Western World or the Divine Prefecture, a man��s wealth was his own ruin by causing the greed of others. Ye Futian possessed the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and the teachings of the Great Emperors. It was difficult for others not to covet what he had. Hence, he naturally did not trust anyone. Moreover, he had killed the junior of Saint Zhenchan, Lord Initial Zen.


    Even if Saint Zhenchan did not kill him, Ye Futian would still be imprisoned for life and be forced to surrender all he had. Why would he choose this path to his doom?


    Ye Futian did not respond to the other party. The space of runes appeared, and countless runes shone. An astonishing intent of battle radiated out from the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    ��You do not know what is good for yourself,�� the person who had spoken to Ye Futian said in a cold tone. As he said this, as expected, the golden mark on his glabella lit up. It was as though a heavenly eye had opened. Immediately, a beam of menacing light shot straight out and landed on the figure of Shenjia the Great Emperor that Ye Futian was controlling. As this light shone on it, the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor seemed to be sealed by some power. The light formed its own domain!

 Chapter 2451 - No Bars Hold

    No matter how Shenjia the Great Emperor moved his body, he was always wrapped up within the divine light. At the same time, an extremely dangerous aura descended, and Ye Futian��s spiritual soul could clearly feel the threat.


    Psst�� A sharp sound was heard, and a beam of light that could tear through everything now shot out from the Heavenly Eye. It was invincible, containing the most terrifying space-tearing power. It directly slammed towards the divine body.


    Boom! In an instant, the attack descended on the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, causing the divine body to tremble. It even took a step or two backward.


    ��Go for it,�� someone called out as an overbearing power of the Great Path shrouded the area where Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were.


    However, right at this moment, a violent roar was heard. It seemed to come from the divine body itself. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor not only stopped moving backward but lurched forward abruptly, carrying the space-tearing light beam forcefully forward, rushing to those cultivators who were in the void.


    ��Open!�� The divine eye at the man��s brow chakra opened wide. A divine light of destruction shot out from it suddenly as if it meant to tear this space apart. Appalling golden traces appeared in the void, moving madly towards Ye Futian.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor did not retreat, however. His entire body was surrounded by the divine light, which served to protect the divine body. At the same time, his finger followed the beam of light to point upward. Another space-tearing divine light bloomed, turning into a sword. The sword collided with the divine light that came down for the kill, immediately destroying the beam of light.


    ��Careful!�� the other cultivators cautioned when they saw that the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was moving into the sky along the beam of light. After all, Ye Futian was able to kill Great Elder Motian with a single sword strike before. And there was no doubt whatsoever regarding the Great Elder��s combat effectiveness.


    Bang! However, that cultivator with the Heavenly Eye seemed to be without fear, even itching to collide with the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. He stepped down. Behind him came a massive and boundless divine shadow. It appeared above the sky. From above the infinite void, a divine light projected down, splitting the sky apart.


    When that Heavenly Eye of his was looking down, a devastating storm appeared from the firmament and blew down below. Ye Futian, however, was walking through this storm.


    A golden divine halberd appeared in the hands of the cultivator with the Heavenly Eye, puffing out unparalleled divine brilliance.


    Buzz! His figure flashed, and the gigantic divine shadow behind him was also moving with him. In this domain of the Heavenly Eye, it was as if his power of the Great Path could erupt to reach its maximum potential. This was his domain world, and he was its master. In this realm of the Heavenly Eye, he was the king.


    According to legend, the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was unparalleled and was one of the most powerful existences in ancient times. Now, while it was controlled by a youngster, it had managed to slay the Great Elder of Motian. He wanted to see for himself just how strong the body might be.


    Two rays of light rushed towards each other. Even though they were far apart, at this moment, the distance seemed to be non-existent. There were no human shapes that could be detected; only the light was visible.


    In an instant, the two figures collided. The divine halberd pierced the finger of Shenjia the Great Emperor, and this finger was the sharpest sword in the world right now.


    The divine light of destruction swept across the space, setting off a terrifying storm around it. It radiated into the boundless space, even to the extremely remote land. Countless cultivators looked up into the sky at this moment, but almost instantly, they began to flee frantically. The aftermath of the storm swept towards them, destroying any existence within its reach.


    In the area of collision, the divine light seemed to explode. The two figures separated, and Ye Futian was knocked backward, but the other muffled a groan. A trace of golden blood seemed to seep out from the eye that appeared in the brow chakra, and his face was a bit distorted.


    That cultivator endured severe pain and made a hissing noise to express his pain.


    Before Ye Futian was able to stop himself, a massive figure of Arhat suddenly appeared above him. It turned into a domain of the Great Path and covered him. This Arhat was in a reclining position, appearing as a Sleeping Arhat. With the Sound of Buddha, Ye Futian, who was within the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, felt drowsy all of a sudden. It seemed as if he was about to fall into a dream.


    Hua Jieyu, who was guarding behind him, also felt the onset of sudden drowsiness. Her mind was groggy, filled with only the shadows of the Sleeping Arhat. It seemed as if there was nothing else to do except follow suit and fall into a deep sleep.


    Ye Futian��s guard heightened. In Buddhism, the Sleeping Arhat was not an offensive ability for attacking purposes, but that didn��t mean it wasn��t dangerous. It could lead its targets to fall into a deep sleep, from which they could not awake on their own. Once the targets entered slumber, they were under the other��s control completely, with no hope of ever awakening on their own.


    Right at this moment, sounds of rhythm were heard. A guqin appeared in the void, and upon the guqin, a series of musical notes bounced out, permeating between heaven and earth. Suddenly there was a strong sense of sadness that instantly expelled the sleepiness.


    Even the cultivators in the void felt that powerful sadness.


    Boom�� A horrific sound came out while the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor faced forward. Under the rhythm of the Divine Requiem, infinite runes erupted from the divine body enveloped the boundless space. Soon after, a number of divine monuments appeared above the sky. It was as if they were made from the runes. They fell down continuously.


    Even more frightening was that a door now appeared above the firmament, coming from the outer sky. It was like an ancient divine door that was capable of suppressing everything in the world.


    Clearly, Ye Futian��s control over the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was becoming stronger. Every time he fought with the power of the divine body, it inevitably took a heavy toll on his body which required considerable time to recover. However, his suitability with the divine body was obviously getting better each time. Now, he was able to use the power from the divine body to enhance the divine methods he cultivated.


    The power of Gate of World Suppression was particularly explosive using the divine power of Path Obliteration within the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. There was no telling how powerful it might be in its ultimate form.


    Above the firmament, those cultivators from Zhenchan Temple, when they felt that divine might, also felt their hearts skip a beat. They had an unpleasant premonition.


    ��You guys evacuate first,�� a cultivator who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path proposed, ordering those Renhuang who had not yet experienced the Divine Tribulation to withdraw. Obviously, they all felt a serious threat.


    In the distance, at different positions in the void, all these Renhuang began to retreat. However, horrible rumbling sounds came out, as the Gate of World Suppression attacked the infinite divine monuments. As they rained down, this corner of the sky was completely covered, along with the entire vast expanse. There was, in fact, nowhere to escape in this world.


    Those Renhuang cultivators were releasing their own power of the Great Path now. The powers blasted towards the divine monuments that came at them from above. But the divine monuments were even more terrifying when coupled with Ye Futian��s own strength. The Gate of World Suppression, as unleashed by Ye Futian, would be difficult enough for these Renhuang to block. But now, as urged with the divine body��s Path Obliteration power, it was nearly impossible.


    Bang, bang, bang�� A series of terrifying sounds were heard, and many Renhuang were killed on the spot, as they could not block Ye Futian��s attack. Then, more Renhuang fell one after another until, in a blink of an eye, more than half of the cultivators who had arrived were either killed or injured.


    The divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was suspended in midair, the divine light shining all over it. The scene was mighty beyond words. Ye Futian, who had been pressured time and time again by these people, finally unleashed all the power within his disposal. He was ready to do his worst!

 Chapter 2452 - Attack

    After this blow landed, the cultivators who had been closing in on Ye Futian were knocked even farther back. Some cultivator who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path was retreating due to the injuries he received. When the Gate of World Suppression blasted towards him, he spat out a mouthful of blood. It was as if all his internal organs had been greatly impacted.


    Terrible rumbling sounds emerged as infinite runes surrounded heaven and earth; its coercion was overwhelming. Ye Futian looked in a direction and saw that the cultivator from before with the Heavenly Eye now wanted to get a piece of him.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor raised his arm, and immediately, the infinite runes gathered together. Each rune was a character that spelled out ��sword,�� and they surrounded the divine body. An aura of Path Obliteration permeated the entire area.


    Then, Ye Futian pointed in the direction of the man. In an instant, the infinite runes rolled forward and submerged the space. A divine sword appeared to pierce through heaven and the earth.


    As soon as the man felt that something was amiss, his body flew into rapid retreat at an unimaginable speed. At the same time, the Heavenly Eye in his brow chakra shot out at Ye Futian again. However, this time, the skyful of runes swept at him directly, forcing the divine light from the Heavenly Eye to flow back from where it came. That sword strike ignored the distance as it locked onto its opponent and chased him into the far distance.


    The cultivator with the Heavenly Eye knew that there was nowhere for him to run. As he let out a mighty shout, the divine light in the Heavenly Eye was released to the extreme, and he threw the divine halberd in his hand forward again. A beam of light seemed to penetrate through heaven and earth, just like before, and the two attacks collided again.


    But this time, the strike that Ye Futian unleashed seemed to be far stronger than before. The destructive runes directly flooded the space and pushed towards him. This time, everything was destroyed, and the divine light that bloomed from the Heavenly Eye was also retreating.


    His body retreated like a stream of light. It was not because he took the initiative to move back but that he was being pushed back by that terrifying force. He let out an angry roar. The divine light from the Heavenly Eye submerged the runes of swordsmanship in the front. It almost succeeded in blocking the momentum of the attack.


    Boom�� There was a terrifying sound, and a storm of destruction raged in the space. His body was still moving in retreat, but he was somewhat relieved to see that the attack in front of him had gradually weakened. It seemed that he was still able to intercept this blow.


    ��Watch out!�� someone exclaimed from a distance. Ye Futian��s heart skipped a beat when he heard it. Then, he saw a golden divine light directly shooting at him from the front. He could hardly see what it was. As the light was getting closer, it descended instantly in front of him, overlapping with the attacking divine sword as the two became one.


    Buzz�� The light penetrated without much resistance, piercing through the light beam from the Heavenly Eye. He felt a sharp pain in his brow chakra, and a figure appeared in front of him. It was the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. He placed his finger right on the Heavenly Eye of his brow chakra. At this moment, his eyes were filled with fear.


    ��No!�� As he squeezed out this last protest, his body was shattered. His soul and spirit were scattered and then destroyed. An existence who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path was killed right on the spot. All of this seemed like an uncanny instance of d��j�� vu, reminiscent of when Great Elder of Motian had been killed. Both had been pierced by a simple sword strike and had perished.


    This place was quite far from the previous battlefield, but spatial distance was nothing to cultivators of this level. After witnessing the fall of the cultivator with the Heavenly Eye, the others trembled fiercely. They seemed to have underestimated the prowess of Ye Futian. The Sleeping Arhat could not Influence his combat effectiveness, neither could the Heavenly Eye when it came to restraining him.


    It had not been long since the fighting started, and there were already heavy casualties.


    Ye Futian turned his head and looked at them with chilling eyes. ��Whoever keeps on chasing us will not be spared!�� he said menacingly.


    When his voice faded, he took Hua Jieyu into a stream of light and continued moving ahead without killing any other cultivators. Although he was the one who started the killing spree, it was not his objective. Right now, he wanted to leave and get out of this mess as soon as possible.


    A sustained fight would take more time. For him, it meant an increased degree of danger, which he was not willing to risk. Naturally, he wanted to leave as quickly as he possibly could.


    Those cultivators did not continue to pursue him after he left. Obviously, the short battle they were engaged in gave them a much clearer idea of Ye Futian��s combat effectiveness. With the help of the divine body, prolonged engagement in battle would only spell their own deaths, even if they joined their power.


    Ye Futian didn��t kill them because he didn��t have time. Also, he was worried about the arrival of more powerful individuals. Because of this, he was in a hurry to leave.


    ��What should we do?�� a cultivator asked at this time. They gave chase here and had been slaughtered by Ye Futian. Now, they had allowed him to leave, so they could not possibly reveal their failed attempt if he were to reemerge.


    They had lost a cultivator who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, as well as many top Renhuang. The loss they suffered was not easily ignored.


    ��What can we do?�� asked someone.


    Another person replied, ��We lack in strength, so what can we do? All we can do is go back and admit guilt, but it won��t be that easy for him to just walk away either.��


    ��Mmm.�� The person next to him nodded in agreement. Although Saint Zhenchan would not make a move himself, top-level cultivators were already on the way. Ye Futian had slaughtered so many cultivators from Zhenchan Temple; it would be unrealistic to think that he could get away unscathed.


    Never mind that Ye Futian was still inside the territory of the Six Desires Heaven, even if he managed to escape from Six Desires Heaven somehow, he would be mistaken to think that would be the end of the matter.


    ��Let��s go back,�� another person said. Everyone turned around to levitate into the sky. However, they appeared rather beaten, as this defeat made them feel rather frustrated. They had come with such a powerful group and thought that they had Ye Futian well in hand. But they would now return with such a heavy loss and without their intended subject, it was all very discouraging.


    People at this level always thought highly of themselves. After all, they were already at the top of the cultivational world, but this world had been turned upside down by a youngster.


    After they left, many people came to the battlefield here. A lot of them were shocked. They had all witnessed the terrifying battle that took place in the void and gathered that it must be the person that Saint Zhenchan had issued a kill order, but they could never suspect the person was this powerful.


    The storm that Ye Futian caused in Six Desires Heaven was indeed terrifying, and it had thrown things into disarray. First, he killed the Great Elder of Motian and then caused the destruction of Six Desires Heavenly Palace and the deaths of Lord Six Desires and Lord Initial Zen. Now Zhenchan Temple had ordered a thorough search of the entire Six Desires Heaven to pursue him until he was apprehended.


    It was not an exaggeration to say that he had managed to shock the entire Six Desires Heaven all on his own.


    But Ye Futian didn��t think so much about all that at the moment. He was still en route in his escape. Although he had killed many cultivators, he did not dare to be careless, moving fast in the direction away from Six Desires Heaven. Right now, he was still in the territory under Saint Zhenchan��s control, and it was imperative for him to leave as soon as possible.


    He didn��t feel great. On the contrary, he had a sickening premonition. The prior interception of those cultivators meant that they still had a way to locate him. If someone else at the Lord level arrived, he would be in imminent danger.


    Although he had become even more adept at controlling the divine body, it was still a tall order for him to fight against a top cultivator at the Lord level. Once he was intercepted by someone at this level, it would become a matter of life and death!

 Chapter 2453 - No Way Up to Heaven

    Ye Futian flew as high as he could so that he would be an even smaller target. In the midst of clouds, the golden divine light appeared like lightning. This was the first time he was moving with such urgency.


    Every time he shuttled through the void, a hint of golden brilliance was left behind in the clouds and mist, leaving traces. Even a faint aura of the Great Path remained, holding with some residual information.


    But this was unavoidable. In order to move as fast as he could, he had to resort to using the power of the Great Path. Unless he continued to hide in a house as before, but even that seemed futile now. Saint Zhenchan had ordered all of Six Desires Heaven to be searched. Images of Ye Futian were posted everywhere.


    The vast majority of the cultivators in Six Desires Heaven probably knew of their existence already. If they appeared anywhere they could be seen, they risked being exposed, increasing the danger they were already in.


    Time passed, and Ye Futian had no idea how long it had been. But he had a feeling of doom. This feeling was completely without reason, yet it made him more than a little uncomfortable.


    ��Jieyu, I will send you down there. Then, let��s separate,�� Ye Futian proposed to Hua Jieyu, who was beside him. The person Zhenchan Temple wanted was him. If they went on their separate ways, they would only follow him��not Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu looked at his eyes and shook her head. At times like this, there was no way for her to leave Ye Futian. They both understood that the events they had experienced before were largely due to their incredible luck. It was Lord Six Desires and Lord Initial Zen��s carelessness that caused them to fall into the trap Ye Futian had set out for them.


    But now, if he were really taken by the people from Zhenchan Temple, his luck wouldn��t continue as before. Saint Zhenchan would, no doubt, make sure that he would stay under his thumb. Moreover, Saint Zhenchan was someone higher in status than both Lord Six Desires and Lord Initial Zen, so it was safe to assume that his strength far exceeded their own.


    If Ye Futian were captured, there would be no way up to heaven and no way down to hell either.


    At times like this, she had no desire to go anywhere else. All she wanted to do was share his fate with him. Whether they lived or died, at least they would be together.


    Looking at the expression in Hua Jieyu��s eyes, Ye Futian knew that he couldn��t persuade her, so he resolved to hurry forward. That ill-fated feeling became stronger as time went by. Gradually, he had a vague sense that someone was tagging along.


    More importantly, this feeling was getting stronger. He keenly realized that he had been tracked down and that a top cultivator was spying on him.


    Unexpectedly, there was yet another top-ranking Lord. It seemed that he had underestimated Zhenchan Temple.


    However, the other party didn��t seem to be in a hurry to do anything, content with keeping tabs on him for now. This made him feel terribly uneasy.


    Ye Futian knew that even though he was currently in control of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s divine body, it was draining his energy. His realm was limited, and the strength of his spiritual soul was also limited. Since he was unable to fully control the divine body, he did so by consuming the power of his spiritual soul nonstop. The longer this whole affair dragged out, the weaker he would be in the future.


    Ye Futian could feel that the one who was tracking him was not overly eager. As long as he was under his watch and did not escape, it was enough for the moment.


    This time, a top-notch figure didn��t show any impatience. Ye Futian understood why he had such an ominous premonition.


    Finally, Ye Futian stopped moving forward, but the feeling of being followed remained. He knew he couldn��t get rid of the cultivator who was hiding in the dark, so he simply stopped. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor stood in the clouds as mist while Ye Futian surveyed their surroundings. He released his divine consciousness and vaguely felt a powerful aura, though he could not detect its source.


    ��Since the elder has already arrived, why continue lurking in the dark? Why not show yourself?�� Ye Futian said as if to no one in particular.


    ��Benevolence!�� The response was only one word. Golden light was shining everywhere. A figure appeared in the sky above Ye Futian, bathing in the golden divine light.


    The figure that appeared there was rather corpulent. One could even describe him as someone with a rather fat head and copious ears. The man��s head was shaved, like a monk��s, but he was not really a monk. His whole body was shining with golden lights. It was hard to imagine that such a portly man could manage speed so fast that he was able to find Ye Futian and stay on his tail.


    ��Is elder also from Zhenchan Temple?�� Ye Futian asked, still holding a slight sense of hope in his heart.


    The fat man smiled and nodded slightly. Not only did he come from Zhenchan Temple, but he was the number two person in charge of Zhenchan Temple��the Deputy Lord of Zhenchan Temple. Even Lord Initial Zen had to pay proper respect to him when he saw the man.


    Although this operation had been ordered by Saint Zhenchan, it was, in fact, supervised by the fat man. It was no surprise that he was the first person to track down Ye Futian.


    ��How about you come to Zhenchan Temple with me?�� Lord Blubber said to Ye Futian with a smile. He spoke just like a friend. His tone was calm and casual, not showing the slightest maliciousness. It seemed that the whole thing was a friendly invitation.


    ��You have to forgive me. I can��t,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��If you don��t go by yourself, then you will leave me no choice but to force my hand. Why do you want to do that? It would be extremely unwise.�� The man continued to advocate for his cause, but Ye Futian looked at him and responded, ��You leave me no other choice.��


    ��How much strength can you borrow from the divine body?�� Lord Blubber asked again.


    ��Whatever it is, it will be hard-pressed to compete with you, elder,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��If that��s the case, then why do you continue to resist?�� the other man exhorted. ��Take a walk with me, and perhaps those who around you may stay safe. If you don��t comply, I will have no choice but to take action. If, by chance, the goddess next to you gets hurt, it would be very unfortunate.��


    Ye Futian frowned. This Lord Blubber seemed to be friendly and amicable on the outside, always speaking with a smile on his face, but his words suggested he was definitely not some gentle, harmless creature. On the contrary, he may very well be a plotting, scheming, ruthless snake, as he was now threatening Ye Futian by using Hua Jieyu.


    Ye Futian lowered his head to look at Hua Jieyu, who was next to him. The two looked at each other. He could see that there was no fear in her eyes. Now, all they could do was face this problem calmly and openly.


    ��Elder, please make a move if you must,�� Ye Futian raised his head again and said to Lord Blubber, who was in the sky.


    ��As you wish,�� the other responded and proceeded to clasp his plump hands together. In an instant, the entire firmament shook violently. In this area high above, an incomparably radiant Light of Buddha manifested as if to block off all other heavens and created a world that was on its own.


    Numerous massive and boundless Symbols of Wan had completely shut down this corner of the sky. These Symbols of Wan interlocked and turned into a giant whole. The symbol continued to circle the firmament, accompanied by terrible booming sounds. The sky seemed to be on the verge of collapse, but Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu stood there without moving. They could feel shockwaves running through their bodies constantly.


    Ye Futian could clearly feel that the Symbol of Wan, as released by the cultivator in front of him, was completely different from the Symbol of Wan he had endured before. The difference was more than a little.


    Under this Symbol of Wan, everything had no choice but to be crushed.


    Boom�� Along with the descent of a terrifying divine light, this Symbol of Wan spiraled down at an incredible speed. It was as if a light had hit Ye Futian��s head.


    Shenjia the Great Emperor was radiant all over. Ye Futian pointed his finger at the sky, and countless runes of swordsmanship appeared, attempting to break through the supreme pressure from the Symbol of Wan just like before. But this time, the Sword Will could not penetrate and smash through it; it ended with the runes of the sword characters being totally destroyed.


    With a loud boom, the divine body shook and fell from the sky. On the other hand, a series of Symbols of Wan came down from the void as if trying to suppress everything in this world!

 Chapter 2454 - No Way Down to Hell

    Chapter 2454: No Way Down to Hell


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many Symbols of Wan descended, layer upon layer. It was as if each layer contained infinite supreme powers capable of suppressing the Great Path. They were descending continuously upon the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    Boom, boom, boom! The divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was being blasted continuously by those madly falling symbols. The spiritual soul inside his body was rocked. Even Hua Jieyu, who he was protecting behind him, was also shaken.


    Finally, the divine body stopped as it had nowhere to retreat. Both of his legs fell on the Symbol of Wan. This entire space was full of Symbols of Wan. The same held true for the space below. There was absolutely nowhere for him to go.


    Heavy forces of thousandfold continued to blast down from above, causing the divine body to let out a frightening roar. Ye Futian controlled the divine body, making it raise both hands. It pushed against a giant Symbol of Wan. When each symbol fell, it shook the divine body vigorously. Even his spiritual soul trembled because of it.


    Lord Blubber had no intention to stop his attack. Every blow he dealt was tens of millions times more powerful than anticipated, chipping away Ye Futian��s ability to resist.


    Gradually, the whole divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was bent and could no longer stand up straight. If this were not a divine body but a body of flesh and blood, perhaps it would have already collapsed and shattered. There was no way it could have endured all those attacks and lasted until now.


    When the last Symbol of Wan fell, a terrifying force swept out. Ye Futian muffled a groan as his spiritual soul bore a terribly heavy load.


    Above the void, Lord Blubber lowered his head to glance down below. His objective was to capture Ye Futian alive��not kill him, so he would have to pay close attention not to be too heavy-handed. If he accidentally smashed Ye Futian��s spiritual soul, it would be a terrible mistake. Ye Futian was still in control of the inheritances of several Great Emperors. He had already slaughtered many cultivators from Zhenchan Temple, so they needed to squeeze Ye Futian for all his worth. Otherwise, how could they possibly justify the deaths of all those cultivators?


    Therefore, he would be careful and measured as not to obliterate Ye Futian right away.


    ��Now, will you go with me?�� Lord Blubber lowered his head and said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian looked at the figure in the void and felt a little hopeless. The power of someone who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, whose control over the power of the Great Path had already surpassed any common sense of the word, was overwhelming. Even though he possessed the power of Path Obliteration, Lord Blubber was still indestructible. This was completely determined by the difference between their realms.


    If he had also survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, then with the help of the divine body, he should have no issue dealing with a figure at this level. But now, it was obviously too difficult.


    He lowered his head and glanced at Hua Jieyu. Even if the two were to become one, it would be hard for them to deal with a Lord-level character, and their outcome would still be hopeless.


    ��Let her leave, and I will go with you to Zhenchan Temple,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��No.�� Hua Jieyu refused when she heard Ye Futian��s words.


    ��Jieyu, I will go alone. There is still one last chance. If you are with me, I will be too worried,�� Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu via voice transmission. His tone was very solemn. Previously, he had wanted to let Hua Jieyu leave while they were on the road. But at that time, the ending was unknown, and they thought they might have a chance to escape Six Desires Heaven together.


    However, now that he had been intercepted by someone at the Lord-level, he couldn��t leave.


    However, Ye Futian still had hopes that Hua Jieyu could get away. If he went to Zhenchan Temple by himself, he might still have a chance to fight for his life.


    Lord Blubber glanced at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, then said with a smile, ��Come out of the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and submit to me, then we will talk.��


    Previously, Ye Futian had plotted against many people. The four Lords, dead or injured, had all paid a heavy price. Now, even though he was always smiling as he dealt with Ye Futian, Lord Blubber was still alert. Although he had completely suppressed the other and currently had the upper hand, he dared not let down his guard.


    He didn��t mind Hua Jieyu leaving, but he needed to be absolutely sure that he had Ye Futian under control before that happens. Only when Ye Futian had completely relinquished the power of the divine body could he be under his control. With Lord Blubber��s own realm, facing a Renhuang of the Eighth-Realm would be like a god facing a mortal. He could easily crush Ye Futian and not worry about him making any more waves.


    Ye Futian didn��t look too great when he heard what the other said. Lord Blubber seemed to intend on controlling him completely and have him surrender the divine body. If that happened, then no matter what happened, Ye Futian would no longer have any advantage and would really be akin to some lowly insect in front of Lord Blubber.


    ��No,�� Ye Futian refused without hesitation. ��If this is the case, and elder reneges, I won��t stand a chance.��


    ��Do you think you have a chance now?�� Lord Blubber asked with a smile. ��If so, let us continue.��


    As soon as his voice fell, a terrifying aura descended once more, and the domain of the Great Path released a terrifying divine light. The Symbol of Wan was shining with radiant divine light, pressing downward, layer by layer, with overwhelming coercion.


    ��If elder insists, then you can be sure I will never go to Zhenchan Temple no matter the cost, even if my life ends here today. And before I die, I will destroy the vitality within the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor,�� Ye Futian said with no uncertainty. ��This way, Zhenchan Temple will have nothing to gain.��


    Lord Blubber raised his eyebrow slightly when he heard Ye Futian��s words. Could Ye Futian really destroy the vitality within the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    Shenjia the Great Emperor had long perished, but the divine body he left behind still contained divine power, which could also be considered its vitality. After Ye Futian had assumed control over the Great Emperor��s body, he was able to urge the divine body and the divine power therein. However, if he were really to destroy the vitality, could that really destroy the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor?


    However, Ye Futian was a cunning character, and everything that happened before proved that. How credible were his words?


    But even if he had doubts, he didn��t quite have the resolve to make a decision right now. What if it was true?


    More importantly, Ye Futian��s life was far more valuable than Hua Jieyu��s.


    He actually didn��t care much about Hua Jieyu. As far as Zhenchan Temple was concerned, she was unimportant. However, the presence of Hua Jieyu would allow them to control Ye Futian better.


    But just at this moment, another terrifying divine light descended from above the firmament. A brilliant beam of light came down directly from outside of the sky, covering the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The power of heavenly might dropped, which changed the look in the eyes of Ye Futian.


    This aura was even mightier than Lord Blubber��s.


    An even stronger character had now arrived.


    Lord Blubber raised his head to look beyond the sky at this moment. The smile in his eyes was replaced by a solemn expression. In the next moment, a group of god-like figures appeared where the divine light was shining. The middle-aged man in the lead had a superior temperament. He was clad in a long golden robe, and he had pitch-black long black hair. Nonetheless, he was surrounded by a detectable air of Buddhism. The golden light was shining in an extremely radiant display around him, and he exuded an unparalleled majesty and authority.


    ��My Lord.�� Lord Blubber nodded to acknowledge the middle-aged man who appeared in the void, making Ye Futian��s heart tremble.


    The Lord of Zhenchan Temple, Saint Zhenchan, had come in person.


    A golden halo seemed to be hovering behind him, giving an irresistible sense of might. He looked like a true heavenly god. The cultivators who came with him were also extraordinary characters, standing quietly behind him and looking down at Ye Futian below.


    Ye Futian couldn��t help but let out a sigh. They must have thought highly of him to dispatch such a group of cultivators to deal with him!

 Chapter 2455 - No Choice

    Ye Futian naturally understood that Saint Zhenchan had come here. Ye Futian could also tell how highly the latter viewed him. He would not stop until he took down Ye Futian.


    When Ye Futian was under the control of Lord Six Desires in the Six Desires Heavenly Palace, Saint Zhenchan had merely sent messengers to ask that Ye Futian be sent over to Zhenchan Temple. Saint Zhenchan��s attitude was overbearing, and he clearly did not treat the Six Desires Heavenly Palace as an equal.


    Now, he had come in person to take Ye Futian back with him. Ye Futian did not know whether or not he should feel honored.


    ��Greetings, Senior Saint Zhenchan,�� Ye Futian greeted as he looked at Saint Zhenchan in the sky. Although Saint Zhenchan was his opponent, he still minded his manners.


    However, Saint Zhenchan was not as friendly as Ye Futian was. He gazed down at the figure below. A cold look flashed past in his domineering gaze as he said, ��I never thought that Lord Initial Zen would perish to you.��


    Saint Zhenchan did not care as to whether Lord Six Desires was dead or alive. However, Lord Initial Zen was considered his junior and was a figure at the level of a Lord. He had fallen to Ye Futian��s scheme and perished. If Ye Futian did not possess so many secrets, Saint Zhenchan would have killed Ye Futian with a single palm strike.


    However, he would not do so. Ye Futian still had value.


    At least for now, he would not kill Ye Futian.


    ��Senior Lord Initial Zen had me against the wall. I had no choice,�� replied Ye Futian.


    Saint Zhenchan naturally ignored Ye Futian��s explanation. He swept a cold and indifferent gaze at Ye Futian and calmly ordered, ��Take him away.��


    As he said this, Lord Blubber��s smile returned. He said to Ye Futian, ��Ye Futian, let��s go.��


    As he said this, two top-tier Renhuangs descended and walked towards Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. Their figures floated in the sky above Ye Futian as they said, ��Your spiritual soul may return to its original body.��


    They said this with a commanding tone. There was no room for negotiation. Although Ye Futian was powerful and could kill existences who had survived the divine tribulation of the Great Path, Saint Zhenchan had come in person. Right now, he did not dare to resist.


    That would be suicidal. Under such circumstances, Ye Futian had no choice but to obey and follow them to Zhenchan Temple.


    For Ye Futian, he was indeed in dire straits. There was nowhere to run now.


    If he obeyed and followed the other party, how would he end up? Hua Jieyu and his fate would be beyond their control. They would be at the mercy of the other party��s whims. Ye Futian had also killed many cultivators from Zhenchan Temple. Would the other party spare him?


    Clearly, this was the path to his doom.


    On the other hand, if he did not follow the other party, how would he deal with the situation at hand?


    Right now, he was in danger of being killed off.


    Right now, at this very moment, it seemed that he had reached the end of the line.


    He raised his head and looked at the Renhuangs in the sky. They had imposing and overbearing manners. When they faced him, these Renhuangs from Zhenchan Temple bore an air of arrogance. It seemed to be their innate temperament. It might also be because they were from Zhenchan Temple that they acted so high and mighty.


    In the sky, various cultivators looked down at them as though they were enjoying a show. Their expressions were cold and indifferent. There was even a look of pity in their eyes, as though they felt sorry for him.


    Lord Blubber was still smiling as though he had been doing so forever.


    Saint Zhenchan did not even look at Ye Futian, instead turning his back to him. It seemed that he was prepared to leave. No one believed that Ye Futian would refuse and resist. They were all waiting for one outcome: for Ye Futian to disarm himself and obediently follow them to Zhenchan Temple.


    Ye Futian suddenly realized that the reason the almighty Saint Zhenchan had come in person, aside from how highly he viewed Ye Futian, was not because he was worried that Lord Blubber could not bring Ye Futian back with him.


    Saint Zhenchan might be worried that Lord Blubber would have his own personal agenda.


    Hence, he had come in person.


    Everything around him seemed to pause. Inside the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, Ye Futian quietly observed all of this as he gradually calmed down.


    From the look in his eyes, he actually seemed to gradually ease up.


    It was as though he would calmly accept any outcome. Since it had come to this, everything else was meaningless.


    ��Saint Zhenchan, ever since I arrived in the Western World, everything I did was because my hand was forced. If I willingly hand over the divine body, would you promise to let us two leave?�� Ye Futian asked. His voice was extremely calm at this moment. With Saint Zhenchan��s standing, in such a situation before the various cultivators, he would not lie to Ye Futian.


    Hence, he asked this final question. It was to give himself an opportunity.


    ��Are you qualified to negotiate with me?�� Saint Zhenchan answered Ye Futian with his back turned towards the latter. His tone was indifferent, without the slightest hint of emotion.


    Ye Futian was not qualified to negotiate with him.


    ��Take him away,�� Saint Zhenchan mumbled. Immediately, the two Renhuangs gazed down at Ye Futian and ordered, ��Make haste.��


    Ye Futian raised his head and swept a glance at them. They were both top-tier Renhuangs and would be considered extraordinary figures wherever they went. They belonged to the group of individuals who stood at the top of the pyramid.


    However, right now, Ye Futian��s eyes were filled with a look of cold disdain. Weren��t they relying on Saint Zhenchan��s power to throw their weight around?


    If it was just these two Renhuangs without the backing of Saint Zhenchan, would they dare act this way to him?


    Even if Ye Futian did not rely on the divine body, killing them both would be child��s play.


    ��Are the two of you even qualified to order me around?�� said Ye Futian. He glanced at the two Renhuangs as ferocious divine light shone from his eyes. Countless runes radiated out from the divine body. In an instant, the two Renhuangs felt themselves descending into the Domain of Path Obliteration. Their expressions changed drastically.


    However, it was already too late. Ye Futian immediately raised his hand and clenched his fist. A gigantic hand directly reached out and subdued the two Renhuangs. Beneath the terrifying gigantic hand, the two of them did not have the strength to free themselves at all.


    ��Presumptuous!�� a cultivator in the air chided angrily. Ye Futian actually dared to resist and attack the Renhuangs who were to lead him away. Was he seeking his own death?


    Under such circumstances, Ye Futian was actually still resisting?


    By following them, there was at least a chance for a different ending for him. However, he was now resisting. Even if he was not concerned about himself, had he not considered the wellbeing of his woman?


    Saint Zhenchan also turned around. He clearly had not imagined that Ye Futian would resist now.


    ��I told you that everything that I have done since I came to Six Desires Heaven was because I was forced to,�� Ye Futian said in a voice as cold as ice. He then clenched his fist. A frightening rumbling sound could be heard. The two Renhuangs let out horrifying screams. They immediately perished to the giant hand and were executed on the spot.


    In an instant, terrifying auras descended and enveloped the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Even the smile on Lord Blubber��s face had disappeared. He appeared somewhat surprised.


    They were surprised why Ye Futian could not read the room and had actually resisted in such a situation. He had even gotten violent and committed murder. Did he wish to be killed?


    Saint Zhenchan��s overbearing gaze turned cold. Ye Futian had actually killed his subordinates right before his eyes.


    Heavenly might descended. At that moment, the space was filled with endless murderous intent. It made others feel as though their spiritual souls were suffocating!

 Chapter 2456 - Destroy

    ��You��re seeking your own death!�� Saint Zhenchan gazed down below as he said this in a voice as cold as ice.


    When he said this, he made a grab at the space down below. Immediately, a gigantic Buddhist palm appeared in the sky. It radiated with divine halos and enshrouded the sun. The entire space was within the palm��s reach.


    This enormous palm tried to grab the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. The body of Shenjia the Great Emperor shone brilliantly as endless runes leaped around it. The runes enveloped Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, forming a protective shroud.


    Rumble!


    The gigantic palm smacked down. The runes transformed into a Star Light Screen, as though the divine body was encircled by stars. However, the screen still could not block the terrifying attack of the palm. Rumbling sounds could be heard as the screen slowly shattered. The gigantic palm grasped the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and lifted it toward where Saint Zhenchan was.


    To the side, Lord Blubber cast a glance at the scene indifferently. He was expressionless. Ye Futian indeed did not know what was good for himself. If he allowed himself to be captured and brought away, he would at least have a chance of survival even though he would suffer severe losses. He could still bet on a chance of negotiating some terms with Saint Zhenchan.


    However, Ye Futian chose to oppose Saint Zhenchan blatantly. He actually killed two Renhuangs in front of everyone. His act was no different from leaving himself no way out. What he did was definitely unwise.


    If this continued, it would most likely not end well for both him and Hua Jieyu.


    Before this, Lord Blubber had believed that Ye Futian was smart. However, right now, he was obviously a bit unwise.


    The divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was grabbed and dragged up. The gigantic palm retracted and appeared below Saint Zhenchan. He lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian, who was grabbed by the gigantic palm. In a cold and indifferent tone, he said, ��Will you come out on your own accord, or do you need me to force you out?��


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the majestic figure. An extremely cold light shot out from the eyes of Shenjia the Great Emperor. It seemed to bear a look of decisiveness.


    ��Jieyu,�� Ye Futian called out to Hua Jieyu as he turned back and looked at her. Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded her head. There was only a calm look on her face that was as beautiful as that of a goddess. There was no sign of the terror of meeting their end on her face. It was obvious that she, like Ye Futian, was already prepared to face anything.


    Since it had come to this, she would let Ye Futian choose what to do.


    Regardless of what he wanted to do or what the outcome would be, she was willing to follow him and bear the consequences together with him, even if the outcome might be death.


    However, they had no choice in this. All of this was because Saint Zhenchan had them against the wall.


    Ye Futian turned back and looked up into the sky. Frightening rumbling sounds could be heard. The defensive light shroud was still shattering in the gigantic palm. However, at the same time, an unparalleled power burst forth from inside the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Beams of divine light shot out from inside the divine body, growing brighter.


    When Saint Zhenchan saw this scene, he coldly snorted. He suddenly clenched his fist forcefully. The defensive light shroud immediately shattered. The fist continued clenching, closing in on the divine body. At that moment, the terrifying divine light that shot out from inside the divine body actually made it difficult for the gigantic hand to continue closing. There were even signs that the hand would be pierced through.


    This made Saint Zhenchan frown. Ye Futian could break through his attack?


    Rumble.


    A terrifying sound could be heard. The divine body seemed to go berserk. As divine light shot out, the divine body was actually growing larger.


    This scene caused Saint Zhenchan and Lord Blubber to reveal strange expressions. Prior to this, they had never heard of the divine body expanding in size before. What was Ye Futian doing?


    Right now, inside the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, Ye Futian��s spiritual soul transformed into an ancient tree and seeped into every part of the divine body. An illusory figure flashed inside the body. The illusory figure was none other than Ye Futian. He revealed a look of agony as he howled with a gruff voice.


    Menacing rumbling sounds could be heard continuously. The world inside the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor expanded frenziedly. Countless years ago, Shenjia the Great Emperor was indestructible after he had proven his Way. After he passed away, he left behind his divine body. The divine body was the flesh of a deity. At the same time, it was also an independent world on its own.


    Outside of the body, the radiating divine light tore apart all existence. The gigantic palm instantly crumbled to dust. Countless runes enveloped the vast space and enshrouded the sun. Both Saint Zhenchan and Lord Blubber were trapped within the runes. Of course, trapped along with them within the runes were all the cultivators from Zhenchan Temple.


    Saint Zhenchan��s brows furrowed. A divine figure appeared in front of him. It looked like the figure of Shenjia the Great Emperor, yet it also somewhat resembled Ye Futian. It was as though two of them had merged into one figure.


    ��What is this?�� mumbled Saint Zhenchan. He had a bad feeling about this. With his level, he actually felt a sense of danger at the moment. This was originally impossible, yet he was indeed experiencing it now.


    Ye Futian actually made him feel a sense of danger.


    ��What do you plan to do?�� asked Lord Blubber as he looked at the silhouette of Ye Futian. His facial expression changed as well. He similarly sensed danger.


    ��I have told you before. Since you don��t believe me, I have no choice but to show you personally,�� Ye Futian answered.


    Lord Blubber suddenly recalled what Ye Futian had said before this. He revealed a shocked expression as he exclaimed, ��Do you plan to destroy the divine body?��


    This was the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. It was the flesh of a deity. A universe was stored within it. If Ye Futian destroyed it, how frightening would the outcome be?


    Lord Blubber naturally understood what a divine body consisted of. The destruction brought forth by the explosion of a divine body would be shocking. No wonder he sensed danger.


    Buzz.


    Menacing divine light of Path Obliteration swept out. This divine light of Path Obliteration was formed from the countless runes. It swept towards all the cultivators present.


    ��Retreat!�� ordered Saint Zhenchan decisively. His figure traversed the space with a single step, retreating far away.


    Right now, it was not the time for contemplating. This was a life-or-death situation even for him.


    ��Destroy����


    The divine figure appeared hideous and contorted. It also seemed to be experiencing extreme pain. To destroy the divine body, Ye Futian had to push it to the point of self-destructing.


    The waves of divine light wiped out everything. Everywhere the light passed, everything was destroyed. All Paths ceased existing. No power of the Great Path could withstand it.


    ��Ah!��


    Screams could be heard. Under the destructive divine light, Renhuangs were immediately torn to shreds. They could not resist at all. In an instant, they were eradicated and disintegrated.


    The destructive divine light expanded outward. The area it enveloped grew larger and larger. The vast space became a Domain of Path Obliteration. The divine light of Path Obliteration swept out again and again. Right now, Ye Futian was also experiencing tremendous pain. In the sky, a painful roar could be heard.


    Rumble.


    A dull thud sounded. The figure of Shenjia the Great Emperor exploded. Right then, divine light radiated out and flooded the space for billions of miles. It became a true Domain of Path Obliteration. All Great Paths were destroyed.


    Within the light, Saint Zhenchan and Lord Blubber unleashed their full might to defend their figures from this destructive storm. They did not aim to fight against this power, only seeking self-preservation.


    At the same time, a beam of light shot out from within the destruction, bringing along the figures of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu as it left the world of destruction. It appeared to be the final ray of life!

 Chapter 2457 - The Darkest Hours

    A few days later, somewhere high above in Six Desires Heaven, countless cultivators had gathered around. Their attention was fixed on the field ahead.


    Golden runes were shining above the firmament, endless and infinite. It seemed as if it was a world of runes. This world covered an extensive area, traversing multiple cities within Six Desires Heaven. It was quite a spectacle.


    The vast majority of the Renhuang in Six Desires Heaven had been attracted to this place and appeared in the surrounding area of this domain world. Their hearts were greatly disturbed as they beheld the sight in front of them.


    No matter what levels of cultivators they were, when they felt that aura, they could feel their hearts tremble. Although all of them were looking from the outside, none of them dared step inside. The aura within was far too terrifying, like an air of extinction. Each and every rune seemed to contain the power that could destroy the Great Path, making that vast expansive realm an absolute space of Path Obliteration. There was no other Great Path that could exist within this space, except for the force of destruction formed by those infinite runes. It was a vacuum for a world.


    ��That��s too scary. Only death awaits anyone who walks inside,�� some top-notch Renhuang mumbled with solemn expressions and extremely uneasy hearts. They couldn��t believe such a strange sight like this was actually happening in Six Desires Heaven.


    And what happened here had spread through gossip, at first. However, as the storm continued and widened, the news was dispersing throughout Six Desires Heaven with incredible speed so that it was known to every cultivator in the entire Six Desires Heaven.


    This terrifying domain of Path Obliteration was formed by the explosion of a divine body. A god-level figure��s physical body had exploded, exposing its internal world to the outside, creating a world of destruction that traversed endless space to form this domain of Path Obliteration.


    ��Has anyone witnessed that battle?�� someone asked.


    ��Do you think it��s possible?�� the person next to him responded. With such destructive power, any witness would surely die upon the destructive power erupting. No one who saw it could live to tell the tale.


    ��That��s true���� The person who asked the question felt a little stupid, but he still felt it was a pity��such an epic battle with no living witness. A single Renhuang took down the entire Zhenchan Temple��


    ��Not too long ago, Zhenchan Temple was searching for any traces of Ye Futian in Six Desires Heaven. Who would have thought that it would cause such horrible consequences and end like this? Now, it seems that whether it was Six Desires Heaven or Zhenchan Temple, they were both plotting to obtain the divine body that was in Ye Futian��s possession,�� someone else whispered.


    ��Well, it��s just that no one expected that Ye Futian could actually cause the divine body to explode. That light of destruction illuminated half of all of Six Desires Heaven, which was indescribably horrible. This time, Zhenchan Temple suffered a heavy loss. It was really a disaster.��


    Everyone was talking about it, and with complicated emotions. No one could have thought that a Renhuang, rumored to have come from Divine Prefecture, would upset Six Desires Heaven like this. Six Desires Heavenly Palace had been destroyed, and the renhuang had killed two out of the four great Lords, with two more wounded. When Zhenchan Temple came to apprehend him, even Saint Zhenchan himself had arrived in person.


    But in the end��


    It was said that almost all the cultivators from Zhenchan Temple were wiped out. Any cultivators below the realm of Saint Zhenchan were completely obliterated. Even the Deputy Lord himself had perished under that attack of total annihilation. Another Lord-level casualty in that utter disaster��


    Only Saint Zhenchan was able to walk out of there alive. No one knew what Saint Zhenchan had experienced in that storm of destruction, but they heard that when some witnesses saw Saint Zhenchan emerge from that world of destruction, he was covered in blood, barely alive. That high and mighty Saint had almost perished in this disaster.


    He was lucky that he got out with his life.


    However, even if one managed to survive this storm, it would be at a great cost. Even an existence such as Saint Zhenchan was covered in blood and near death. It was said that when he finally emerged, he had great difficulty levitating into the sky. One could only imagine the severity of his injuries.


    At present, there were all kinds of rumors circulating in Six Desires Heaven. Some said that Saint Zhenchan��s body was filled with the scars of the Great Path. Some also said that Saint Zhenchan��s Great Path foundation had been utterly destroyed.


    But no matter what, the truth was that Saint Zhenchan had lost the battle wretchedly, and it would probably take him a long time to recover. There was probably no way for him to return to his original state in a short time.


    The news of what happened in Six Desires Heaven even spread to other heavens, especially news that Zhenchan Temple had almost been destroyed. This was not just a notable event in Six Desires Heaven but was also of great interest to the entire Western World.


    Several days later, the divine mountain where Zhenchan Temple was located was surrounded by a golden divine light. It radiated with the Light of Buddha as if it was a place of cultivation for the Great Buddha.


    Zhenchan Temple was the place where Saint Zhenchan cultivated.


    Currently, Zhenchan Temple was in a state of chaos. Saint Zhenchan took many powerful cultivators from Zhenchan Temple with him on his quest, and their Deputy Lord was also out to capture Ye Futian, so now��


    At this moment, an extremely frightening aura came from the void, shrouded the entire Zhenchan Temple. As the divine light lingered, a group of cultivators descended. This was yet another superpower from the Western World. The man in the lead was surrounded by divine light, compelled all the cultivators from Zhenchan Temple to bow down to him in worship.


    The divine consciousnesses of those cultivators swept through and enveloped Zhenchan Temple. It antagonized the cultivators from Zhenchan Temple. This was an absolutely unthinkable offense that would have never happened before. However, though they were deeply hurt now, they dared not express it, neither did they dared to voice their displeasure. They did not yet know whether their Lord, Saint Zhenchan, was dead or alive. If Saint Zhenchan were to meet some unfortunate end, they probably wouldn��t fare any better themselves either.


    ��Is the Saint not back yet?�� the cultivator in the lead asked. His voice reverberated within the entire Temple.


    ��No, not yet,�� someone below answered respectfully.


    ��Mmm,�� the man nodded and continued, ��I have heard what happened at Six Desires Heaven. The Saint may be recuperating at the moment. As for Zhenchan Temple, in order to avoid interference from outsiders, I will stay here for the time being and wait for the Saint to return.��


    ��This���� Everyone who heard this was speechless, but what the man said was indeed the truth. If the Saint had been severely injured, it was possible that he may not return to Zhenchan Temple for the time being. After all, within the many years it took for him to cultivate to this level, he had accrued many enemies. So, there was no telling how many adversaries were lying in wait.


    Normally, no one would dare to do anything out of bounds like this. But if they knew that the Saint had been injured severely, it would give some of them ideas. Therefore, the Saint might not be able to return in the foreseeable future.


    However, the presence of these people here was certainly not due to altruism but rather their desire to take over Zhenchan Temple. If Saint Zhenchan were to return someday, safe and sound, they could say they were here to protect the Temple. But if not, then��


    Despite knowing the truth, no one dared to refute the man. Ultimately, they could only accept it.


    ��Of course.�� All of them nodded but felt extremely humiliated inside. But what else could they do?


    This had to be the greatest humiliation that Zhenchan Temple had ever suffered in a thousand years. These truly were the darkest hours for Zhenchan Temple.


    All because of some youngster!

 Chapter 2458 - Convergence

    At Six Desires Heaven, on an ordinary mountaintop, was an ancient temple.


    At this moment, a man in tattered clothing was walking up the stairs outside the ancient temple with heavy footsteps, and he seemed a little tired. The ancient trees on both sides of the stairs swayed gently, covering the steps full of leaves. That figure, climbing up, seemed a little lonesome.


    As he climbed up, he came to the very top of the staircase, where a monk was sweeping the leaves. When he saw someone came up the stairs, he stopped what he was doing and said to the man while looking at him, ��Sir, this temple is not accepting donations or visitors.��


    The man nodded gently as he clasped his hands in front of him and said to the monk, ��I passed by here because of chance alone. Or perhaps this was destiny. May I stay in this temple for a while?��


    The monk put down his brooms and clasped his hands together in return as he bowed to the visitor and replied, ��We have rules in our temple that we do not accept donations, so naturally, we cannot receive visitors either. I hope you understand, Sir.��


    ��I am neither a pilgrim nor a visitor. Master must be able to see that I have suffered some serious injuries and require a place to rest for a while. I am here because of Buddha��s guidance. May I be so bold as to ask if Master could make an exception and allow me to take refuge at the temple for a while?�� The visitor continued to speak. His voice sounded a little pathetic.


    Who could have imagined that Saint Zhenchan, whose name rang throughout the Western World, would be begging like this just to find a place to quietly cultivate and recuperate for a while.


    ��Sir, please leave.�� The monk who was sweeping remained unconvinced. He continued in his effort to get rid of him.


    Saint Zhenchan raised his head to look at the monk. An authoritative gaze appeared in his eyes. Just that gaze alone was enough to make the monk shudder. It was an innate temperament that was difficult to conceal, even if he had been severely injured.


    But it was only for a moment. All that majesty in his eyes disappeared in the next moment as Saint Zhenchan silently turned around and walked down the steps, still looking a bit lonesome.


    He walked very slowly as if he could not move any faster.


    Someone walked out from the temple, looking at Saint Zhenchan as he was leaving, and asked, ��Who was that?��


    ��I don��t know.�� The sweeping monk shook his head. ��Look like someone with nowhere to go. Perhaps he wanted to con his way inside the temple.��


    ��Mmm.�� The person who came out nodded. ��There are many people like this. You don��t have to be so polite every time.��


    ��Very well.�� That sweeping monk nodded. He still remembered that look in the eyes of Saint Zhenchan from before. It was an extremely complicated look and difficult to decipher. However, he was clearly a cripple who exuded no aura of cultivation, so why did he make him feel differently?


    Saint Zhenchan heard the conversation between the two men, and his emotions were extremely turbulent. He never expected that one day, he would end up in the situation he was in. But as of now, he dared not disclose his identity to just anyone.


    He was once the high and mighty Lord of Zhenchan Temple, but he had his shares of enemies over the years. In addition, many of his cultivators had been killed by Ye Futian on that day, when he caused that destructive power to erupt. If his identity were to be exposed and he was detected by someone with bad intentions, he would die very miserably.


    Right now, he was almost half-disabled. He needed to find a quiet place to recuperate and recover for a period of time. He believed that, in time, with his strength derived from Buddhism, he would be able to get back on his feet, recover from his injuries, and return to his previous state of power.


    At a moment like this, he vowed he would make Ye Futian so miserable one day that the young man would wish for death. And also, that wife of his��.


    He, Zhenchan, had never suffered such humiliation as he did today!


    ��


    Many days later, in the Great Brahma Heaven of the Western World.


    In the void, a goddess-like figure traveled through the air. Her face was gorgeous and stunning. She was otherworldly. But at this moment, she was holding a person between her arms. This man was clad in white with white hair, deeply unconscious. However, his handsome visage could still be seen.


    These two were none other than Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian.


    On that day, Ye Futian caused the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to self-destruct. The resulting terrifying power swept through Six Desires Heaven. The divine body turned into a domain world of annihilation, sitting right above Six Desires Heaven, destroying and slaughtering the cultivators from Zhenchan Temple.


    However, Ye Futian also paid a heavy price in exchange. Even he didn��t know what would happen, so he had planned for the worst possible outcome. He had discussed with Hua Jieyu, and they both agreed that they were willing to face all the consequences. Since they had been forced into this desperate situation, this was all they could do in response. They knew that once they had been taken away, their destiny would no longer be under their own control but would be under the control of the others.


    After Ye Futian��s spiritual soul urged the divine body to explode, he used that last trace of power in the spiritual soul to bring Hua Jieyu out of that realm of annihilation and escaped that corner of the world. Afterward, his spiritual soul returned to his body and fell into a deep slumber.


    In that world of Path Obliteration, Hua Jieyu was almost wiped out as well.


    This time, the two of them were lucky to get out with their lives.


    Hua Jieyu had no expression on her face. She was only concentrating on moving forward. Ahead of her, a group of cultivators was coming towards them. They rode on a Golden-winged Roc and flew towards them with incredible speed. Mo Yunzi, the Golden-winged Roc, was connected with Ye Futian psychically and knew the exact location of Ye Futian, which was how he was able to locate them.


    Seeing their arrival, Hua Jieyu stopped right away. Blind Tie, Chen Yi, and the others stepped forward to check on Ye Futian��s condition.


    ��Teacher.�� Little Ling and the others�� expression was one of slight concern. Ye Futian��s condition seemed to be more serious than they had expected. It had been so many days, and he was still in a coma.


    ��Let��s find a place to stay first,�� said Hua Jieyu.


    ��Mmm.�� Everyone nodded in agreement as they then stepped onto the back of the Golden-winged Roc. The divine bird spread its wings and started shuttling through the void.


    ��Zhenchan Temple had no reason to bully and persecute us like this!�� Fang Cun looked at Ye Futian and said coldly, ��We will have to decimate Zhenchan Temple for good.��


    Hua Jieyu watched them in silence; it seemed that they knew all that had happened.


    As if she heard Hua Jieyu��s thoughts, Hua Qingqing continued, ��Everything that occurred in Six Desires Heaven caused a great disturbance. It may have already spread across the entire Western World. Here at Great Brahma Heaven, we have also heard a lot of chatter about that battle.��


    Hua Jieyu nodded lightly and asked, ��What about Zhenchan?��


    There was some coldness in her voice. If it weren��t for Saint Zhenchan, who had kept pressing without giving them a way out, Ye Futian would never have had to take that drastic step and end up like this.


    ��I don��t know,�� Hua Qingqing said. ��We heard that almost everyone from Zhenchan Temple had been wiped out, but so far, it was impossible to determine whether Saint Zhenchan himself had actually died. Some reports indicated Saint Zhenchan may not yet perish, but he did not return to Zhenchan Temple either. Temporarily, he had gone missing. It is possible that even if he did not fall, he might have been severely injured.��


    Hua Jieyu nodded. Under that devastating attack, even if Saint Zhenchan did not die from it, he would be so gravely injured that he probably used up eight out of his nine lives. His condition could not be much better than Ye Futian��s.


    However, this was not enough. What she really wanted to hear was the news that Saint Zhenchan had died!


    ��We are here.�� It didn��t take long for the group to land on an ancient peak. There, they would conceal their trail and avoid attracting unwanted attention.


    ��Let��s not bother with things from the outside for now, and let him recover and rest. Let��s not go out for a while either,�� Chen Yi proposed, and everyone agreed. Not long after they arrived in the Western World, they had already set off such a violent storm that shocked everybody within!

 Chapter 2459 - Slumber

    After the battle at Six Desires Heaven, nearly all the top figures at Zhenchan Temple had been killed or wounded. For the time being, no one bothered chasing down Ye Futian.


    Previously, Zhenchan Temple wanted to apprehend Ye Futian because of the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and the divine items that were in his possession.


    However, after that battle, everyone witnessed Ye Futian��s resolution. The divine body self-destructed and exploded, turning into an endless domain world of Path Obliteration. The divine body was no more.


    Furthermore, it was pointless to continue plotting for the inheritance that Ye Futian had inherited from the Great Emperors. The determination that Ye Futian displayed made them realize that even if Ye Futian were to be taken, it would be difficult to force him to submit.


    Therefore, continuing to go after Ye Futian would get them nothing.


    However, Saint Zhenchan was a cultivator of Buddhism who held exceptionally high status in the Western World. If Ye Futian were to really fall into the hands of certain people, it was probably something that would not bother him much.


    After all, without the divine body, Ye Futian��s strength would be greatly limited. He would no longer pose a threat to those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    At the same time, this battle also introduced those in the Western World to a cultivator from Divine Prefecture. He was a white-haired genius talent who had also caused an uproar in the Original Realm.


    However, everything happening in the outside world seemed to have nothing to do with Ye Futian at the moment. He had not yet awakened from his deep slumber. Obviously, the trauma he had suffered this time was unprecedented. Even at his current realm and the strength of his spiritual soul could hardly bear the impact he received, so he had been in a deep sleep ever since.


    Time passed little by little. Although the influence of that battle remained, it was not talked about as much as time went on. However, the rush remained the same in Six Desires Heaven, as cultivators in the Western World were constantly going there. They wanted to bear witness to that domain world of Path Obliteration created by the self-destruction of the divine body. It had attracted the interest of everyone, especially those cultivators who were mighty and powerful.


    The divine body self-destructed, forming a domain space of its own. It had actually created an independent space between heaven and earth, which seemed totally incompatible with this place. Furthermore, no one dared to enter it lightly, as their power of the Great Path could be easily wiped out.


    After feeling the power within the domain of Path Obliteration, everyone couldn��t help but think of Saint Zhenchan. In that battle, what kind of terrifying scenario did the cultivators from Zhenchan Temple experienced?


    According to rumors, the Lord of Zhenchan Temple, Saint Zhenchan, did not perish. The news came from Zhenchan Temple, so it should be reliable; there was no better entity to judge the wellbeing of Saint Zhenchan than Zhenchan Temple. However, he had not gone back to the temple either.


    Anyone who felt the aura of destruction in this domain understood that even if Saint Zhenchan survived, he probably did so at a great cost. He would probably not be returning to Zhenchan Temple for the foreseeable future and would do well to conceal his whereabouts.


    In the meantime, many cultivators had gone to Zhenchan Temple and were openly staying there, waiting.


    Saint Zhenchan aside, Ye Futian was no better than the other man at the moment.


    Upon the ancient peak, there was a structure at the edge of the cliff. It was extremely quiet, and a beautiful goddess was sitting there silently. Behind her, a white-haired figure laid without movements or sound, but a breath of life could be detected, flowing upon his body. Even though Ye Futian had fallen into a deep sleep, this life force seemed to automatically nourish his body and spiritual soul. Gradually, signs of life slowly appeared on Ye Futian��s face.


    Hua Jieyu clearly remembered that after the battle, Ye Futian had almost fallen into a deadly slumber. Only a mysterious force maintained his weakened vitality, which was associated with Ye Futian��s superior ability in self-healing. Hua Jieyu also knew a lot about this and knew how tenacious Ye Futian��s life force could be. Therefore, although she was worried, she firmly believed that Ye Futian would eventually get better. He could heal himself��it was only a matter of time.


    ��


    As time passed, in a blink of an eye, it had already been two years since Ye Futian and the others arrived in the Western World.


    Ye Futian had thought that this trip would not have taken them long, but he did not expect that he would still be in a coma two years after they arrived in the Western World, not yet ready to wake up.


    In the courtyard upon the ancient peak, a figure stepped forward. She glanced at the woman in front of her and the figure lying quietly there and whispered, ��His aura of life has already returned to its fullness. How come he has not woken yet?��


    The one who was asking was Hua Qingqing. Hua Jieyu turned her head to glance at Ye Futian. At this time, Ye Futian was completely covered by the aura of life, and there were even currents of the Great Path that surrounded him. His breath of life had been completely restored, but still, he was deep in his slumber.


    Shaking her head gently, Hua Jieyu whispered in a low voice, ��His breath of life is restored, so he should be fine. Perhaps he was still sleeping because his spiritual soul has not yet fully recovered. Ultimately, it was the power of his spiritual soul that he consumed in that battle.��


    ��Maybe it is developing in a better direction,�� Hua Qingqing said softly, and Hua Jieyu nodded. It was possible. Perhaps after such a tremendous consumption of his power, if Ye Futian fully recovered, with his tenacity, he might have gotten stronger. His life spirit had always had an unimaginable resilience that was almost frightening.


    ��How about the young ones? Did they go down the mountain again?�� Hua Jieyu asked. The young ones she was referring to included Fang Cun and Little Ling. After settling down here for a while, the four of them would often go down the mountain and walk around the city. The influence of that battle waned, and almost no one knew about them, at least not in the Great Brahma Heaven where they were at.


    ��Mmm,�� Hua Qingqing nodded. ��They are still so young, and it was understandable that they can��t stay put like us. The trip they took down the mountain was also for the sake of experience. Wasn��t that the original reason for bringing them here?��


    ��Uncle Tie is with them, so nothing will happen. In this city, Uncle Tie��s cultivation is sufficient to keep them safe,�� Hua Qingqing continued. Hua Jieyu nodded in agreement.


    The four youngsters treated her as their masteress��with respect. They saw her as their own elder, which she could clearly feel. Now the group was like family, and she started seeing those four little ones as her own. In fact, all four of them were in the realm of Renhuang, so nothing could really happen to them. Therefore, there was no need to worry about them wandering around.


    ��Qingqing, it��s just that your business is going to be delayed again,�� Hua Jieyu looked at Hua Qingqing and said. This trip to the Western World was meant for Hua Qingqing, but who knew that they would encounter a series of troubles in Six Desires Heaven? They had no choice in any of them.


    Now that two years had passed, they had no idea how long it would take for them to complete the original objective of this trip.


    ��No matter. There was no telling how long my business will take, so it doesn��t matter if it��s not yet completed. As long as I can stay by your side, it is enough,�� Hua Qingqing said with a smile, and her smile seemed to put those around her at ease.


    ��Since he came to the Western World, this thing must be done, of course,�� Hua Jieyu responded. She looked at Ye Futian��s sleeping figure and whispered, ��He should be waking up soon too!��

 Chapter 2460 - All Buddhas Calendar

    Over the past few days, the Great Brahma Heaven had been inordinately lively. It seemed as if it was in anticipation of something celebratory. Lanterns were hung up by everyone in the city, and all of them had a Buddha lamp lit within the lantern, with the word ��Buddha�� engraved on the outside of the lantern!


    Numerous cultivators from the Great Brahma Heaven were also visiting places like temples on this day, and the entire Great Brahma Heaven was filled with a special atmosphere.


    Gradually, there was less and less talk about the battle that happened two years ago in Six Desires Heaven. It was as if another major event was about to occur, which would drown out all the rippling effects of that battle.


    In a tavern in the Great Brahma Heaven, many cultivators came and went, drinking and chatting. A group of four people was sitting somewhere here. These four were very young in age, but their temperaments were extraordinary. It was Ye Futian��s four disciples.


    Fang Cun, Little Ling, Tie Tou, and Duo Yu��the four of them.


    They were very quiet at this time. They didn��t speak much but were more interested in listening. They were fascinated by the things discussed by the people around them.


    ��All Buddhas Fest!��


    Fang Cun��s eyes moved around, finding this new subject somewhat interesting. He didn��t expect that there would be such a festival in the Western World. And according to their understanding, All Buddhas Fest only happened once every hundred years and sometimes lasted for a hundred days. It was in remembrance of the Lord of All Buddhas.


    Once upon a time, the Lord of All Buddhas was enlightened under the Bodhi tree and started spread his faith in the Western World. He was honored as the Lord of All Buddhas. He traveled all over the Western World to spread Buddhism��s teachings and bring light to those living within the world, which contributed to the prosperity of the Western World today.


    To commemorate the Lord of All Buddhas, subsequently, later generations decided on an All Buddhas Fest, held once every hundred years. During All Buddhas Fest, no cultivators in the Western World were allowed to kill or even fight, as blood was forbidden. At the same time, Buddhists would be traveling to all corners of the Western World during these hundred days, preaching and imparting Buddhist doctrines and teaching people to do good.


    In other words, during the hundred days of All Buddhas Fest, the endless Western World would enter into a period of absolute peace and become an ideal world. It was without killing, plundering, or conquest. Otherwise, they would be dealt with by Buddhist justice.


    Moreover, the All Buddhas Fest this time was different from all prior times and would be even grander.


    This year would not only be ushering in the All Buddhas Fest, which was held once every 100 years, but also the 10,000 years on the All Buddhas Calendar. In other words, the end of All Buddhas Fest would be the beginning of the 10,000th year on the All Buddhas Calendar.


    Such scene of prosperity had hardly ever been experienced in anyone��s lifetime.


    Precise because of this, even though the Great Brahma Heaven was not the center of Buddhism, the atmosphere of joy was thick in the air. Everyone was getting ready to welcome the onset of All Buddhas Fest.


    ��All Buddhas Fest is here. What about the thing that master wanted to do?�� Little Ling murmured. All killing was prohibited during All Buddhas Fest, so a recurrence of something like what happened before would be absolutely forbidden. As soon as All Buddhas Fest was here, the master could do what he wanted to do. This was an opportunity.


    ��Mmm.�� Fang Cun thought of it as well. Although they didn��t know exactly what the teacher intended to do, they had some general idea of where they needed to be.


    No doubt, All Buddhas Fest would be a good opportunity.


    But right now, the master was still in a slumber and hadn��t awakened. If he couldn��t make it in time, that could be a problem.


    ��What happens if someone breaks the rules during All Buddhas Fest?�� Duo Yu asked. His voice was tinged with a coldness. Many people next to them looked their way when they heard him and looked at Duo Yu as if he was a total idiot.


    These people seemed to have no idea about the history of Buddhism.


    ��Once upon a time, a Buddha Lord above the Western Heaven violated the commandments. Later, he died in the Parinirvana, otherwise known as the great entrance into perfect rest, as a warning to future generations. That Buddha Lord, at the time, was one of the top ten Buddha Lords in Western Heaven,�� a cultivator next to him said indifferently, which caused Fang Cun and the others to feel a slight concern. Duo Yu nodded slightly on the side, taking it all in.


    ��What if someone was trying to harm me, but I resisted and killed the instigator?�� Duo Yu continued, wanting to clarify the situation. He sensed that this All Buddhas Fest would be an opportunity for his master. If the master did not wake up, they could assist the masteress to do what the master wanted to accomplish.


    And, this matter seemed to have something to do with the masteress and Hua Qingqing.


    ��Not guilty, in that case.�� the person next to him responded. Duo Yu nodded in return, ��Thank you.��


    He didn��t ask anything anymore because now he had some basic understanding of All Buddhas Fest rules.


    ��Your temperaments are extraordinary. Conceivably, you must be from an exceptional clan. At your level of cultivation, you should have known about these things.�� Next to them, a fair-looking man in white played with his cup with a smile and said, ��So, may I ask where are you from?��


    The rest of the people inside the tavern realized this as well. These four people had a superior temperament. They definitely were unusual. But the rules of All Buddhas Fest were indeed common knowledge, known to all Buddhist cultivators; even young people would have heard about it.


    These people didn��t seem to know anything, which was very strange.


    Fang Cun showed alertness in his eyes when he heard the man��s question. He thought that this person was pretty sharp. He smiled and replied, ��The four of us have been following our master to cultivate in solitude since we were kids. It wasn��t until recently that we have been coming out a little more in the world. It was not so strange that we are unfamiliar about some of the things in the world.��


    And he was not lying. Indeed, they had been cultivating in isolation. In Four Corner Village, they didn��t know much about anything. Even the Divine Prefecture was a strange entity to them, never mind the Buddhist Western world.


    ��This is a coincidence then. Previously I was also cultivating with my master away from worldly disturbances and only stepped into the world not long ago myself, precisely because of the arrival of All Buddhas Fest. If you have just come to this world, you should have some understanding of the Fest and not be completely ignorant of it. Moreover, you seem to be very interested in All Buddhas Fest, enough to make inquiries�� Could it be that your clan is also unfamiliar with All Buddhas Fest?�� the man in white continued. His face was fair but with a strangely wicked attraction. He appeared to be about 30 years of age but appeared quite unfathomable.


    Fang Cun and his little group were a little annoyed now; this man��s tone was getting to be a little too aggressive.


    ��What��s it to you?�� Little Ling replied coldly, but Fang Cun asked instead, ��Our elders have not mentioned it to us. Presumably, they knew that we would be asking around and didn��t think it necessary. Is there a problem with that?��


    The man in white smiled as he took a sip of wine. But then he put down the cup and turned to face them, looking at Fang Cun��s table. In an instant, a terrible golden ray gleamed from his eyes, and the Light of Buddha was shining. Those eyes of his seemed to be able to see through everything.


    And this one glance caused the faces of the four youngsters to change suddenly. They sensed currents of the Great Path were flowing all around them, and it was a special kind of Great Path��their own Path of cultivation.


    ��Buddha��s Clairvoyance!��


    The cultivators in the tavern were astounded when they saw the sight before them. The eyes of the man in white seemed to have turned into the eyes of Buddha, capable of seeing through everything. Any cultivator would have nowhere to hide in front of those eyes.


    ��It was him.�� Everyone could think of only one person, and their hearts were uneasy!

 Chapter 2461 - Aggressor

    Zhu Hou was a disciple from the Zhu family��one of the top principalities in Jianan City in the Great Brahma Heaven. Zhu Hou had shown unparalleled talent since he was a child and was sent to the Holy Land of Buddhism to cultivate. He was the only cultivator in Jianan City to be selected by the Buddhist sect. Although he was not often seen in Jianan City, the cultivation world of in Jianan City knew him very well.


    Now, he seemed to have returned; it must be on account of the All Buddhas Fest.


    All Buddhas Fest was the premier grand event in the Buddhist world. It was not surprising for Zhu Hou to come back home at this time.


    Indeed, Zhu Hou had completed his cultivation of the Buddha��s Clairvoyance, which was a most supernatural ability in the World of Buddhism. It enabled its cultivator to see through everything, including the types of cultivation practiced by the others.


    At this moment, Zhu Hou��s Heavenly Eyes fixed on the four cultivators, still surrounded by the Light of Buddha. Fang Cun and the other three stood up at the same time, looking at Zhu Hou, quite displeased. However, Zhu Hou didn��t seem to care. He was still sitting there quietly. It seemed as if he was not aware of any of it.


    ��Natural hidden Ways,�� Zhu Hou muttered to himself, still staring at the four of them. He continued, ��Jianan City is not one of the top cities in the Great Brahma Heaven for cultivation. It was not surprising that the sudden appearance of four cultivators with natural hidden Ways piqued my curiosity. What clan are you from, and what is it exactly? Where are the four of you coming from?��


    Fang Cun and the others were more than stunned. Zhu Hou��s eyes were so sharp and ruthless that he saw the four of them were born with the Way.


    They cultivated in the village and were indeed born with the hidden Way. Later they received tutelage from the teacher himself in cultivation. It was true they were extraordinary, far beyond those common cultivators. It could be said that the conditions of their cultivation were unparalleled, hence Zhu Hou��s realization of just how exceptional they were. Under the Buddha��s Clairvoyance, he could see that they had natural hidden Ways about them.


    ��We have to go now,�� Fang Cun said coldly. As soon as his voice faded, he glanced at the other three and turned around to leave.


    Fang Cun was, by nature, passionate and impulsive. He was prone to mischief in the village when he was younger. Although he was of age now, his personality did not change much. However, now was not the time to do anything stupid, and the last thing he wanted was to provoke someone and cause more trouble for his master.


    The others understood and followed Fang Cun to leave. However, an aura of the Great Path fell directly on them, as several Renhuang intercepted them in different directions and sealed the tavern shut.


    Zhu Hou sat there quietly. He continued to drink his cup of wine. His manner was light and breezy. Fang Cun turned to look at him and said, ��We don��t know each other, so there is no need to act like this.��


    ��But I am interested in the four of you,�� Zhu Hou responded. He stood up and walked toward the four of them. ��The four of you know nothing of All Buddha��s Fest, yet you were born with natural hidden Ways, each with different abilities with independent elements that may not come from the same discipline. I assure you, I am quite curious about the four of you.��


    Outside the tavern, a blind man was working his way in the direction of the tavern from a distance. It was Blind Tie, of course. But at this moment, there was another middle-aged man who emerged in front of him. This middle-aged man exuded a horrific aura as the currents of the Great Path continuously flowed all over his body. He was watching Blind Tie with extreme alarm, but his realm was about the same as his opponent��the pinnacle of Renhuang. He got in front of Blind Tie.


    Obviously, he was the cultivator who was secretly protecting Zhu Hou, just like Blind Tie was keeping Fang Cun and the other three youngsters out of trouble.


    Fang Cun and the others knew that Blind Tie had been intercepted. Clearly, the identity of this man in white was more than meets the eye.


    ��What do you want to do?�� Fang Cun turned his head and asked the man in white.


    ��I don��t want to do anything. It is purely out of curiosity that I want to see who you are and where you come from.�� The man in white stood up, inspecting the four with those Heavenly Eyes. An invisible storm of the Great Path blew up in the tavern. Instantly, everything in the tavern was shattered into nothingness. The cultivators inside evacuated quickly to get out of their way.


    Soon, the only ones left were the man in white and the cultivators behind him, as well as Fang Cun and his companions.


    Fang Cun and the others had a displeased look on their faces. Just for pure curiosity?


    This didn��t make any sense.


    With the onset of All Buddhas Fest, the World of Buddhism would usher in a period of absolute peace. Even those cultivators with longstanding grievances would not be able to act for quite a while. Therefore, right before All Buddhas Fest, the World of Buddhism would often experience a period of chaos, with many people hasten to resolve disputes or to act capriciously. Once All Buddhas Fest arrived, there would be a long period of time for things to settle down.


    As for Zhu Hou, he was beyond certain that these four were no cultivators from Jianan City. It was rare to see four great cultivators who were born with the natural hidden Way. It was natural for him to want to take a closer look.


    When Buddha��s Clairvoyance was released, his eyes suddenly became more petrifying. He seemed to see through everything, and once again, his eyes were directed at the four of them. When these eyes locked onto theirs, Fang Cun and his companions felt a prickly pain in their own eyes, as if the Heavenly Eyes had pierced their eyes, to penetrate their consciousnesses to spy on their cultivation.


    Boom�� The four exploded with the power of the Great Path at the same time. Their bodies levitated into the air with force. Zhu Hou was too audacious, blatantly spying on them without reservation. Naturally, they could not sit here and waiting for him to pick them off.


    ��I saw divine methods. You have the inheritance of the Great Emperor hidden on you!��


    Zhu Hou��s eyes were particularly frightening. Just now, he seemed to have seen some imageries in his mind, and just as he had thought, these four youths had unusual origins.


    At this moment, Zhu Hou��s eyes were growing solemn. His body slowly elevated into the air, and his white robes fluttered as his eyes fixed on the four. Divine light radiated out of those terrifying eyes again, looking at Fang Cun and his companions.


    Boom�� At this time, in the distant space, a great war suddenly erupted; it was Blind Tie who acted. Although he couldn��t see, he couldn��t be more clear about everything that was happening around him. Zhu Hou��s realm was considerable; he was a cultivator in the realm of Middle Renhuang. Fang Cun and the others wouldn��t be able to counter him effectively.


    More importantly, the ability that Zhu Hou cultivate was dangerous and mystifying. He possessed the Buddhist method of Buddha��s Clairvoyance, so he could spy on everything and enter their consciousnesses. If he was allowed to succeed, it would be too detrimental to the four youngsters and may have an unfortunate effect on their future cultivation.


    However, the strength of the cultivator who blocked Blind Tie��s attack was also menacingly tyrannical. He was a cultivator from Zhu Hou��s clan, an expert in many Buddhist methods, with amazing defensive power. He was able to intercept Blind Tie��s attack outright so that Blind Tie was unable to break through his defense to help Fang Cun and the others.


    Zhu Hou did not look over there. He was suspended in midair, continued to regard at the four. A pair of gigantic eyes suddenly appeared in the void, shutting down this corner of the sky immediately, and turning it into a world of Pupil, just as if the world now was the Heavenly Eye itself.


    These gigantic eyes that appeared in the void looked at Fang Cun and his group. Suddenly, the auras of the Great Path upon the four of them were completely exposed. Elusive currents of the Great Path now turned into shadows and were revealed.


    A Miniature World appeared around Fang Cun; Doors of Space appeared around Little Ling. A divine shadow holding a divine hammer stood behind Tie Tou, and a pair of horrific Eyes of Reincarnation appeared behind Duo Yu!

 Chapter 2462 - : Waking Up

    Zhu Hou had a satisfying look in his eyes when he saw the images before him. He said in a low voice, ��It��s truly incredible. Tell me now who��s your master and where you are from.��


    Buzz! Fang Cun��s figure was gone in a flicker. Spatial divine lights appeared in the void, approaching Zhu Hou with all due speed. However, even those spatial lights, nearly invisible, could not escape the Heavenly Eyes, which saw everything with ultra-clarity. Fang Cun��s every movement seemed to be magnified and in slow motion. None of them had escaped Zhu Hou��s awareness.


    Zhu Hou raised his hand, and a massive golden Buddhist Palm Seal blasted out, passing through those spatial divine lights. It landed on Fang Cun with precision. A deafening bang was heard as the attack came through in front of Fang Cun. The palm seal penetrated the protective shield around Fang Cun, seeping inside the Miniature World. It then slammed on Fang Cun directly. The momentum knocked Fun Cun back a few steps.


    The light was shining brightly in the space. Fang Cun returned directly to the place he was before. He made a muffled groan. Blood was dripping from the corners of his mouth, and his face was slightly pale.


    The power of space seemed to be completely futile under the Heavenly Eyes, as nothing could be hidden. More importantly, their opponent had the advantage of a much higher realm, a gap that was impossible to rectify. It was simply inconceivable for Fun Cun to get any closer and injure his opponent under these circumstances.


    As a result, he was repelled readily enough by a single blow.


    Zhu Hou��s gaze fell on Fang Cun, and a hint of excitement flashed across his eyes. ��Those born with the natural hidden Ways are truly full of surprises. The body is the body of the Great Path, indescribably elusive. It was difficult to capture were it not for the Buddha��s Clairvoyance.��


    He was fascinated by the abilities of these people.


    Duo Yu took a step forward. Those eyes of his were extremely frightening. These were the Eyes of Reincarnation. Zhu Hou seemed to detect it quickly though. Under the Buddha��s Clairvoyance, those massive eyes in the void fixed on Duo Yu, looking through the illusions he was creating.


    ��Unfortunately, hallucinations and the Eye of Reincarnation are quite useless here.�� Zhu Hou��s eyes were strange and wicked-looking. If the young man in front of him possessed equal cultivation as him, perhaps the Eye of Reincarnation could be of threat to him, but the gap was simply too great to pose any threat.


    Duo Yu felt a sharp pain in his eyes. As he disengaged the Eye of Reincarnation, he shut both eyes tightly. Little Ling and Tie Tou still attempted to make a move, but Fang Cun held them back with his hand. He looked at Zhu Hou and said, ��Why are you so unrelenting?��


    But Zhu Hou didn��t much care about Fang Cun��s objection nor his inquiry, for that matter. His body was suspended in the sky, surveying the land below, as that pair of Heavenly Eyes still floated in midair. They turned this space into Eye Sorcery Zone.


    ��If you refuse to provide an explanation yourself, you leave me no choice,�� said Zhu Hou. He then stretched out his hand and grabbed at Fang Cun and the other three. A massive and boundless Buddhist Palm Seal smashed down at them, grabbed towards Little Ling first.


    Doors of Space appeared all around Little Ling. She walked into one as her figure disappeared right where she was, but none of this escaped the Heavenly Eyes floating above them. A gigantic palm seal cupped in another direction, and just as Little Ling was walking out of another door of space, she walked right into the palm. It grabbed her and took her high up into the sky.


    ��Little Ling!�� The expression of the other three changed quickly to panic. Tie Tou was on the move first. But then a terrifying divine shadow appeared behind him, holding the Divine Hammer of the Protector and blasting it down, rocking this corner of the sky. A terrifying boom sound came out as the Divine Hammer of the Protector sought to destroy this space and take aim at Zhu Hou.


    ��You have no idea who you are dealing with,�� Zhu Hou remarked with much contempt. Likewise, a boundless and humongous figure also appeared behind him. An ancient Buddha in white, who now raised his hand to blast out a golden palm seal, smashed right on the hammer that was falling on him.


    The rumbling sound of pure trepidation came out as the space was shaking in its aftershocks. The Divine Hammer of the Protector failed to do anything to the giant palm seal from the ancient Buddha in white.


    ��Go!�� Zhu Hou spat forcefully, and suddenly there was a violent roar in the void. Many gigantic palm seals were now blasting out like endless waves of a tsunami. They overwhelmed the void, knocked the hammer back, then slammed right on Tie Tou with decided ferocity. As Tie Tou��s body flew back with fierce backward momentum, he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.


    Fang Cun and Duo Yu also released their expertise in successive attacks, but Zhu Hou took absolutely no notice. With a wave of his hand, thousands of Buddhist Palm Seals blasted out, sheltering the sky and cleared out all the space. In a blink of an eye, all three of them were injured in that powerful attack and forced to retreat.


    Faced with absolute realm advantage, Fang Cun and his companions had no way of asserting the true scope of their strengths. Whether they were born with natural hidden Ways, cultivated in divine methods, or instructed by deities, none made any difference.


    The gap between their realms was irreparable.


    In this Great Path domain, fierce roars of battle cries could be heard as the battles raged on. Blind Tie desperately fought to gain any grounds forward, wanting to break through the defense that was hampering him so that he could render support to those youngsters. His divine consciousness penetrated the Great Path domain formed by the Heavenly Eyes and scanned inside. It was as if he could see everything that was happening.


    ��Yi-Ya!�� At this moment, A long, sustained whistle was heard. It was the sound uttered by some demonic beast. Blind Tie��s divine consciousness went to that side and perceived the golden divine light that broke through the clouds and mist in the sky behind them. It was the Golden-winged Roc, and several figures were riding on the back of the Roc.


    The man in the lead was clad in pure white with white hair, unparallel beyond words.


    Sensing this, Blind Tie retracted much of his aura. Finally, he woke up. Now that he was here, the situation at hand would be resolved in no time.


    The Golden-winged Roc swooped down as a golden light broke through the space, aiming directly at that area of the Great Path. With a loud bang, that area of the Great Path was penetrated through and split wide open, suddenly exposing the battlefield within.


    Zhu Hou muffled a groan as his body was repelled back involuntarily. The expression on his face changed slightly as he looked at the huge divine bird that appeared and the figures that were standing on the back of the divine bird.


    ��Master.�� Fang Cun and Tie Tou��s eyes lit up when they saw the figure on the back of the divine bird. Their master had finally woken up from his slumber and come to their rescue just in time.


    ��Master?�� Zhu Hou looked at the figure on the back of the divine bird, frowning slightly, and a touch of coldness instantly flashed through his eyes. A cultivator walked out from behind him and got in front of Zhu Hou, who still had Little Ling in his clutches. He was worried that the other party would suddenly unleash fatal attacks on Zhu Hou.


    Buzz! A light suddenly lit up on the back of the divine bird, and bright light instantly illuminated all over this space. Many had to close their eyes immediately because the light was so blinding that they could see nothing but the light.


    Under this light, there was a sound that came out, and Zhu Hou��s expression suddenly changed. When the light disappeared, the humongous Palm Seal was shattered and fell from the sky, and the figure that he was holding had been brought back to the back of the divine bird already.


    ��The Method of Light.�� There was slight disbelief in Zhu Hou��s eyes. These cultivators were far too mysterious. The four youngsters were all born with a natural hidden Way, and now there was someone who was an expert at the Method of Light. Who were these people?


    And where did they come from?


    ��Thank you, Uncle Chen.�� Little Ling looked at the people on the Roc and whispered, ��Master, Masteress.��


    As she was speaking, she kept her head bowed slightly as if she had done something wrong. She had caused this trouble for the master.


    ��Little Ling, are you okay?�� Ye Futian said softly, with some indulgence. Little Ling shook her head, and when Ye Futian saw her reaction, he knew what she was worried about.


    ��As long as you are okay.�� Ye Futian smiled and rubbed her head. He then turned his attention to Zhu Hou as his eyes fell on him.


    Zhu Hou��s heart shuddered when he saw those eyes, as he immediately sensed a strong danger lurking!

 Chapter 2463 - The Slaughter

    ��A Middle Renhuang.�� Ye Futian glanced at Zhu Hou and said, ��And you think you are pretty strong, don��t you?��


    A cultivator in the realm of Middle Renhuang bullying four young cultivators with lower realms.


    Zhu Hou looked at Ye Futian and bowed slightly, saying, ��I am Zhu Hou of the Zhu family in Jianan City, a disciple of Buddhism.��


    In the Western World of Buddhism, those who claimed to be disciples of Buddhism were widely believed to be the cultivators of orthodox Buddhism.


    Zhu Hou obviously thought of himself as orthodoxy. He was trying to remind Ye Futian of his status as such and warning him not to act emotionally or lightly. He could feel a sense of danger exuding from Ye Futian, Chen Yi, and the others.


    But Ye Futian seemed not to have heard it. He raised his hand and grabbed across the void. The aura of the Great path whizzed out from those in front of Zhu Hou and rushed towards Ye Futian. However, Chen Yi took a step forward, and suddenly rays of light radiated outward, immediately extinguished their power of the Great Path.


    Boom�� Ye Futian��s giant palm seal slammed down and took hold of Zhu Hou��s body, picking him up. It was exactly what he did to Little Ling before.


    Zhu Hou��s body roared with the power of the Great Path, struggling to get free as he tried to rid of the giant palm seal. However, his power was no match to that of Ye Futian��s. The power gap between them was even greater than the gap between Little Ling and Zhu Hou; there was simply no way for him to break free.


    In the distance, the cultivator of the Ninth Realm, who had tangled up Blind Tie, now tried his best to get himself off the battlefield to support the others. But just at this moment, Blind Tie, holding the Divine Hammer of the Protector and smashing it down. Instantly the earth cracked, and the sky howled, suppressing this corner of the sky entirely, not giving him a chance to extricate himself. It was just as what he had done before. It was a rather appropriate response.


    ��I am a disciple of Buddhism.�� Zhu Hou was struggling as he appealed to Ye Futian once more. All the surrounding figures came forward, and all of them were Renhuang cultivators. One of them said, ��We from the Zhu family of Jianan City. May we ask for your name, Sir?��


    However, Ye Futian didn��t seem to have heard any of those voices. He continued to focus on Zhu Hou and asked, ��Fang Cun, what was he doing to you guys before?��


    ��Master, we were just asking about the All Buddhas Fest when he spied on us using the Buddha��s Clairvoyance. He then claimed that the four of us were unusual when he tried to control our movements, wanting to spy on the secrets of our cultivation,�� Fang Cun replied.


    Ye Futian immediately understood all of it in his heart. He glanced at Zhu Hou; a hint of murderous intent flashed through his eyes. Buddha��s Clairvoyance?


    Spying on the secret of their cultivation?


    For cultivators, the secret of cultivation was not something they would divulge voluntarily. If the others wanted to pry, spy, or possess, the only way was to gain control over the four of them, which would inevitably destroy the four of them as well. Therefore, it could be said that Zhu Hou had never intended to be merciful to these four youngsters��


    For this alone, he ought to die.


    ��Buddha��s Clairvoyance is a secret method not taught in Buddhism. I can see that they are extraordinary, so I inquired about their cultivation, that��s all. There were no other intentions. Why turn such trivial matter into a major contention?�� Zhu Hou was still struggling, but his body did not move an inch.


    ��A trivial matter?�� Ye Futian glanced at Zhu Hou indifferently and said, ��Then I guess killing you is just a trivial matter as well.��


    Zhu Hou was taken aback when he heard Ye Futian��s reply. Then, he felt the hand that gripped him was increasing its pressure, and his face suddenly paled. Would this man dare to kill him?


    ��Sir, he is an orthodox descendant of Buddhism,�� said a cultivator from the Zhu family.


    ��Buddhism is known for doing good deeds in the world. He is not worthy of being an orthodox Buddhist disciple. If Buddha knew all the things he had done here today, I��m sure Buddha would want to take out this garbage himself,�� Ye Futian concluded with indifference. He then applied some more pressure on that outstretched hand of his. An air of death enveloped Zhu Hou now, and his face changed to one of total panic. The face of this handsome man in white was distorted and twisted at the moment. He shouted, ��How dare you?!��


    Bang! As soon as Zhu Hou��s voice faded, another voice was heard. The giant palm seal clenched tight as fresh blood pouring out of it. Horrific Will of the Way permeated Zhu Hou��s body and the spiritual soul was erased.


    Die!


    Didn��t he dare?


    ��Now there is one less of you,�� Ye Futian murmured. Since coming to the Western World of Buddhism, he had felt nothing but malice. Therefore, it could be said that Ye Futian was in a real bad mood. He had just woken from a deep sleep, and the first thing he saw was Zhu Hou bullying his disciples. Ye Futian��s current mood was not difficult to imagine.


    Zhu Hou aside, he had already slaughtered quite a few cultivators who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Even several Lord-level characters had perished because of him. Indeed, garbage like Zhu Hou would not be missed.


    Disciple of Buddhism?


    Even someone like Saint Zhenchan was still status unknown and missing in action, would Ye Futian care about his status as a Buddhist disciple?


    Crush and obliterate was the only answer.


    In the ground below, the cultivators of Jianan City felt their blood ran clod when they witnessed the sight before them. Did he just squish Zhu Hou to death?!


    Zhu Hou, an enchanting genius talent from Jianan City, was squished to death by Ye Futian like some insect.


    Perhaps even Zhu Hou himself would never have dreamed that he would die this way.


    If he could, he would have never provoked Fang Cun and the others. Because of a conflict that he instigated, it led to his own immediate death.


    It was a turn of events that was all too unimaginably cruel.


    The cultivators from the Zhu family were also stunned motionless and watched Ye Futian simply squashed Zhu Hou to death. No one could anticipate that Ye Futian would be so decisive and overbearing as to crush Zhu Hou to death without another word. They didn��t even have the time to react when they saw the end of Zhu Hou.


    Boom, boom�� A horrific atmosphere was released. All the cultivators from the Zhu family were furious when they saw Zhu Hou being slaughtered. Several top Renhuang and many Upper Renhuang released their power of the Great Path at the same time, covering the sky and sheltering the sun as a frightening coercion descended from the firmament.


    ��You killed my son. You must now die!!�� A middle-aged Renhuang in the void roared furiously; it was Zhu Hou��s father, who was a cultivator of peak Renhuang.


    Ye Futian surveyed the crowd, his eyes cold and indifferently. His face, expressionless.


    ��It��s always the father��s fault when the son is undisciplined.�� Ye Futian spat out his verdict in a cold voice when he saw the man coming at him. He then raised his hand to the sky, and instantly, a divine sword penetrated through the space, regardless of the distance.


    The streamer of swordsmanship pierced the Great Path and tore through the void. The body of Zhu Hou��s father, who was in mid-descend, gave a violent tremble. Then, he stopped in the void as a light put a hole through his body. He looked down and saw a sword ray appeared on his own chest. Suddenly, intense fear was written all over his face.


    ��No���� He let out a great howl, and then his body, too, exploded and pulverized into millions of particles, turning into nothingness as he perished.


    Previously, when Zhu Hou was bullying Xiao Ling and the others, no one seemed to bother to step in and stop it. From the perspective of the Zhu family, it must have seemed like a matter of course for no one to interfere.


    That being the case, for them to try to interfere now, they deserve to die.


    Chen Yi took a step forward. In an instant, countless rays of light appeared on his body as absolute light shrouded the boundless space, blinding everyone��s eyes. For a time, this world seemed to have turned into a world of light.


    The light drowned out everything, including those cultivators. Those cultivators from the Zhu family who were attacking them were pierced through and through under the light. Their bodies turned into countless spots of light as their ghostly faces appeared in the void, faces that were frozen with great fear!

 Chapter 2464 - To Western Heaven

    ��Dead!��


    When the light dissipated, all the cultivators who attacked Ye Futian and his people perished and were overwhelmed by the light. It was as if they had all been purified by the light.


    Ye Futian and his people were so terrifyingly powerful that Renhuang simply posed no threat to them. They were in such an invincible position that continuing to fight them was unthinkable.


    The Zhu family had borne the brunt of this catastrophe.


    In this city, the Zhu family was almost standing at the pinnacle of all the familial principalities. As Zhu Hou was also a cultivator of Buddhism and had acquired special Buddhism methods, this gave the Zhu family the semblance of the premier family in Jianan.


    Considering his background, it was not hard to understand that Zhu Hou was accustomed to behaving carelessly and with imprudence. When he saw the four young unusual Renhuang within his reach, it was natural that it piqued his curiosity. And when he realized they were cultivators with natural hidden Ways, his desire to get to the bottom of it was even stronger. He could never foresee the catastrophe caused by the pursuit of his unwise curiosity.


    No one could have known Zhu Hou��s final thoughts before he died. He died so quickly that as soon as his voice faded, he had already been obliterated.


    ��Insolent creatures!�� A voice came from afar, reverberating as if from a giant bell. It fell from the sky like the voice of a heavenly deity. High above the sky, rays of terrifying divine lights spilt as a group of cultivators appeared above the void.


    Everyone raised their heads to look at the sky, and when they saw these exceptional figures, their hearts trembled. This was a cultivator from the Great Brahma Heavenly Palace, the peak power of the Great Brahma Heaven. Zhu Hou was a candidate chosen by the Great Brahma Heavenly Palace to cultivate Buddhism. Therefore his return was accompanied by several cultivators from the Great Brahma Heaven; they could never imagine the manner of death in which Zhu Hou was slaughtered here.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at those cultivators in the void. His expression was one of cold indifference. A scanning by his divine consciousness had already revealed to him the cultivation of these cultivators. No one here had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path; therefore, they posed absolutely no threat.


    Ultimately this was just a city inside of Great Brahma Heaven. Although the Western World was powerful, its overall power was perhaps only comparable to the Divine Prefecture and not much stronger. In the city of Great Brahma Heaven, the most powerful person was probably a peak-level Renhuang. Someone who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path could probably only be found in the main city of Great Brahma Heaven.


    ��Who are you? And why are you slaughtering these people here?!�� The cultivators from Great Brahma Heaven looked down at the ground below, his eyes cold.


    ��You didn��t bother to intervene before, so don��t bother intervening now,�� Ye Futian replied casually. He was not in the least bit perturbed.


    ��Jianan City is part of the territory ruled by our Great Brahma Heavenly Palace. What matters can��t we choose to intervene in within all of Great Brahma Heaven?�� the cultivators in the lead responded coldly and aggressively.


    ��Is that so?�� Ye Futian revealed a hint of contempt and said, ��In that case, do you want to try to intervene?��


    The eyes of the lead cultivator from Great Brahma Heaven sharpened when he regarded Ye Futian; he thought him insufferably arrogant.


    Someone dared to be so impertinent in the Great Brahma Heaven.


    ��White clothing and white hair�� Cultivation is Renhuang of the Eighth-Realm,�� a cultivator from the Great Brahma Heaven whispered, surprising all the others within earshot. Two years ago, a massive storm had erupted in Six Desires Heaven that swept through the Western World; all the top principalities had heard about it.


    Several Lord-level figures had perished then. Saint Zhenchan was still missing to this day. Zhenchan Temple had almost collapsed completely because of it. A world of Path Obliteration had come into being in Six Desires Heaven due to that uproar.


    And the main player of that storm was rumored to be a handsome young man in white with white hair, a Renhuang of the Eighth-Realm.


    And the young man in front of them��


    There was a sudden change in their eyes, as they now assessed Ye Futian seriously and with caution. Gradually, the momentum that they were carrying disappeared without the arrogant dominance that they had before.


    Was it really him?


    And he didn��t die in that conflict?


    If it was really the main player of that conflict, given that he had already slaughtered several Lord-level figures with Saint Zhenchan remained missing because of him, how could a Buddhist disciple like Zhu Hou mean anything to him? Would he care about killing a few more cultivators from Great Brahma Heaven?


    Perhaps there was nothing he wouldn��t dare do.


    Ye Futian heard the whispers from those people and saw in their eyes that they had already recognized who he was. This was no longer a place for him to dawdle.


    ��Anyone who follows us will be summarily executed without exception,�� Ye Futian warned them, then turned around to leave with the Golden-winged Roc underneath him.


    The Golden-winged Roc spread its wings, wide enough to shelter the sky and the sun, taking Ye Futian and the others across the void as they were leaving. In a blink of an eye, they had disappeared into the clouds, and their aura gradually dissipated. No one was chasing after them. After they caught on to Ye Futian��s true identity, these people from Great Brahma Heaven dared not make any reckless moves.


    After all, what Ye Futian did in Six Desires Heaven was too unbelievably shocking.


    ��What��s going on?�� Those who were around him did not yet understand the scope of what had just happened. However, the people of Great Brahma Heaven just watched them leave. No one dared to pursue them on account of Ye Futian��s final warning.


    ��It��s him. Two years ago, he came from Divine Prefecture, caused a great uproar in Six Desires Heaven, and Lord Six Desires died because of him. Saint Zhenchan is still missing to this day,�� someone said. This immediately caused lots of chatter. Was it really him?


    If this was true, then Zhu Hou was really unlucky; his provocation had attracted unwanted attention from a major terminator.


    No wonder he felt those four young people were so extraordinary. They were all disciples of Ye Futian. Was Ye Futian really a genius talent as they had purported?


    However, it was said that he had lost the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, so he would no longer battle with the aid of the divine body. This would inevitably weaken his battle effectiveness considerably. Even so, the people of Great Brahma Heaven were still in shock, and no one dared to challenge him.


    After Ye Futian left, he didn��t think about how others thought of him. Above the void, the Golden-winged Roc soared between the clouds and the mist, traveling with incredible speed. Although there was still not a peep from Saint Zhenchan, and no one chased them, the revelation of his true identity still had its inherent danger. Leaving this place as soon as possible was the wise thing to do.


    It went without saying that he would not be returning to the ancient peak where he resided previously.


    ��Master, I heard them talking in the city before. The All Buddhas Fest is fast approaching, and this holiday will last for a hundred days,�� Fang Cun said to Ye Futian.


    ��And didn��t the master have somethings that needed to be done? The All Buddhas Fest is a good opportunity���� Xiao Ling nodded beside him.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and replied, ��I already know.��


    From the memory of Mo Yunzi, the Golden-winged Roc, he knew that after waking up from this injury, he would come very close to the onset of All Buddhas Fest in the Western World of Buddhism. This, to him, was indeed a great opportunity. During All Buddhas Fest, the Western World would be in a period of absolute peace, which would allow him to do what needed to be done.


    ��To Western Heaven.�� Ye Futian stood on the back of the Golden-winged Roc, his white hair flying in the wind. He gave the order to the Roc beneath him.


    The Golden-winged Roc let out a long cry as if replying to Ye Futian. Then its speed increased as it moved along in the direction of Western Heaven.


    Western Heaven was the supreme land of Buddhism, located at the highest point in the World of Buddhism.


    Ye Futian glanced at Hua Qingqing, who was next to Hua Jieyu. On this trip to Western Heaven, no one knew what was held for any of them. As to Hua Qingqing, what would fate hold for her?


    They had two goals for coming to the Western World. One was for trial, and the other was to send Hua Qingqing to Western Heaven. And now, they were finally heading towards their destination!

 Chapter 2465 - The Monk in White

    As the All Buddhas Fest in the World of Buddhism was fast approaching, cultivators from all sides had embarked to the Western Heaven.


    However, the journey to the Western Heaven was long and arduous. Even the place closest to the Western Heaven had to cross a golden sea of clouds covered by the Light of Buddha first before reaching the Western Heaven. Therefore, it was impossible for anyone not a Renhuang to get there unless they were led by special cultivators.


    At this time, in the golden sea of clouds on the way to the Western Heaven. A Golden-winged Roc was flying through the golden clouds and mist, but not very fast. It was not because the Roc was deliberately slowing down, but that this golden sea of clouds was extremely dense under the Light of Buddha so that even at its realm, traveling forward was a somewhat laborious task for the Roc.


    Ye Futian and the others stood on top of the Roc, admiring this sea of clouds. Above the golden sea of clouds, a peaceful glow exuded a sense of tranquility and comfort. However, under this magnificent beauty before them, as they bathed in this endless Light of Buddha, it was not an easy task to travel through this sea of clouds.


    This Golden-winged Roc was at the peak realm of the Demon Emperor, but it still required some time for the Roc to get through this sea of clouds. More importantly, to break through the clouds and the mists, the support of the realm was required. Anyone below the realm of Upper Renhuang did not have much chance of achieving that.


    Further away, they could see other cultivators on their way as well, just like them, traveling through the sea of clouds and heading toward the Western Heaven.


    The Western Heaven was the true sacred land of Buddhism. When the All Buddhas Fest was near, the Western Heaven would be the place with the most festive atmosphere. It was said that many Buddhas in the Western World had already left their cultivation courts on the mountains and rushed towards the Western Heaven.


    Finally, the day before the start of All Buddhas Fest, Ye Futian and the others traversed the golden sea of clouds, broke through the clouds and mists, and arriving at the World of Western Heaven.


    Without the heaviness of the golden clouds, the Golden-winged Roc could whizz along like golden lightning. It sped up to its heart��s content. It seemed that the Roc had felt quite oppressed when it was unable to exert its full speed previously, and now it had found a release.


    ��It��s spectacular!�� Fang Cun looked down and said, ��Is this the Western Heaven?��


    The place below, at first glance, was full of ancient Buddhist architecture. The entire world was bathed in the Light of Buddha. There was peace and quiet even in the midst of all the hustle and bustle. It gave those who looked upon them a sense of total tranquility.


    ��It��s the Western Heaven,�� the Golden-winged Roc uttered in a human voice, and its golden eyes looked down. This was also the first time that it came to the Western Heaven. It was once the mount of Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan, cultivated in Six Desires Heaven, and had never been to this holy land of Buddhism. The Great Elder of the Demon Cloud Clan came here once by himself but didn��t take the Roc along.


    ��Not only below, but it��s the same in the sky.�� Little Ling looked into the distance of the void. Under the peaceful and auspicious Light of Buddha, many figures were traveling through the air. Many sacred beasts of the Buddhist world were the mounts of Great Buddhas, such as divine elephants, Diting, and more. Many other types of Buddha could be seen as well. They were surrounded by the Light of Buddha, and with what seemed to be halo upon halo of Buddhism around their heads, which was extremely eye-catching.


    Here, it truly felt as if they had stepped into the World of Buddhism, where great mighty Buddhas were everywhere.


    But this was to be expected. With the arrival of the All Buddhas Fest, cultivators who believed in the power of Buddhism would be the majority of the attendees. Furthermore, most of the top forces in the Western World were also Buddhist principalities.


    All of the Western World gathered together in the Western Heaven, which accounted for the grand occasion in front of them.


    In the peaceful Western Heaven, it seemed like a place outside of the world of earthly concerns. It was as if there could be no battles or strife here. All of them were cultivators who were dedicated to the cultivation of Buddhism.


    ��It is rumored that everything is open on the sacred land of the Western Heaven. Whether it was a place to stay or a place of meditation in ancient temples, they are all unattended. Even Buddhist scriptures in many ancient temples could be perused freely and at will, without restriction. Anyone who comes to the Western Heaven can read them if they��d like,�� the Golden-winged Roc continued. Although he was greedy, uninhibited, and power-hungry by nature, he was awed by this Buddhist sacred land and had always yearned for it.


    No matter who came to this land, they would be the same as him.


    Everyone was curious when they heard his words. Chen Yi asked, ��What if someone takes it away or destroys it?��


    ��In the sacred land of Buddhism, everything is in the eyes of the Buddha. No matter what you do on this sacred land, you cannot escape the scrutiny of the Buddha, and you will receive due punishment,�� the Roc continued, his voice tinged with some sense of holiness. Someone as unbridled as he, when he arrived in the sacred land of the Western Heaven, could feel nothing but awe.


    ��Go down and let��s take a walk,�� said Ye Futian. Suddenly, the Golden-winged Roc swooped down and descending to the ground below. He then turned into his human form, and the group of them alighted on the ground.


    The cultivators around them just took a casual glance. It was not surprising to see people at this caliber of cultivation; this land was filled with them everywhere.


    All the top figures of the entire Western World were gathered in this sacred land of Western Heaven.


    Ye Futian and the others walked on this sacred land and watched many cultivators coming and going. There were top cultivators everywhere, and many of them were truly astonishing.


    Ye Futian stopped in front of a building. It seemed to be a tea house, effused with the scents of sandalwood, and the word ��Zen�� was engraved on it.


    ��Let��s go inside and sit,�� Ye Futian said as they approached the tea house. They found a place inside to sit, and immediately some monk came up to them and served them tea.


    After the monk finished pouring tea for them, he bowed to Ye Futian, with his hands clasped together. He then backed away without making a sound.


    Ye Futian nodded in return as an acknowledgment. He looked at Mo Yunzi and asked, ��It seems like it is just as you said: every place in the Buddhist sacred land is open. But who is this monk?��


    Why would a monk be willing to serve tea in a tea house? And this monk��s cultivation was considerable.


    ��It is probably some cultivation,�� replied Mo Yunzi.


    ��Maybe,�� Ye Futian nodded. What Buddhists considered to be cultivational methods were different from others and varied in types, as everywhere was a place for potential cultivation, with all manners of methods. There were ascetic monks who walked around the world day and night, observing the varieties of life as cultivation. There were monks who concentrated on doing good deeds in the world, which was also considered cultivation. Some listened to rain and observed nature deep inside mountains and forests, which was also a cultivation of sorts.


    Ye Futian glanced around inside the tea house. There were cultivators from various places, and their cultivation was all quite high, but most of them were not Buddhist cultivators. They seemed to be talking about the All Buddhas Fest.


    Ye Futian picked up the teacup and took a sip. A refreshing sensation penetrated his body, which had a calming and soothing effect.


    It seemed that this tea was no ordinary tea either.


    Outside the tea house, on the street, a monk dressed in white was walking along the street. He made no sounds when he walked, as he was barefooted, but there was not a trace of dust or dirt on his feet. It was not just his feet, however. His white garment, likewise, was without the slightest trace of dirt.


    This was a monk. He had no hair, and he raised his right hand perpendicular to his chest as he walked. His eyes were closed even as he walked. But it could be seen from his face that he was quite handsome.


    Quite a few people glanced at the monk. This monk exuded a very particular feeling, and he was pleasant to behold.


    The monk stepped into the tea house, still without making the slightest sound. It was not until he was already in front of Ye Futian and the others that Ye Futian and his party noticed the monk��s existence.


    ��Grandmaster, is there something we can do for you?�� Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    ��Layman Ye.�� The monk opened his eyes, and those eyes were as bright as the stars, pure and clear, but at the same time, seemed bottomless.


    ��Do we know each other, Grandmaster?�� Ye Futian was a little taken back and a little surprised. He could not see through this monk��s cultivational realm, and there was no aura whatsoever from his entire body.


    But obviously, this man was no ordinary monk either.


    ��Layman Ye came from the Divine Prefecture and caused quite the stir in Six Desires Heaven. How can a little monk, like myself, not have heard of it?�� the monk smiled and replied, which immediately alarmed Ye Futian.


    He had just gotten here, and he was already made by someone he didn��t know. Was this a coincidence?

 Chapter 2466 - Destiny with Buddhism

    Other cultivators in the teahouse now focused on Ye Futian, and all of them were taken aback. Ye Futian, who had caused an uproar in Six Desires Heaven?


    Anyone who could get to the Western Heaven had to be exceptional. They had all heard about that major disturbance, but they didn��t expect to see him here at the Western Heaven.


    Remember, Ye Futian almost wiped out Zhenchan Temple entirely and single-handedly. Saint Zhenchan was a pillar of Buddhism, and to this day, his whereabouts are unknown. How dare Ye Futian show his face in the Western Heaven?


    Western Heaven was the holy land of Buddhism.


    ��All Buddhas Fest!�� When everyone thought of this, they understood the reason which led Ye Futian here at the beginning of All Buddhas Fest. There would be no killing or strife in the entire Western World during All Buddhas Fest, let alone the Holy Land of the Western Heaven.


    Everything that happened in the holy land of the Western Heaven could not escape the eyes of the Buddha.


    As for this monk in white, who had appeared out of nowhere, he must have some back story. Who could he be?


    Ye Futian was also considering this when he looked at the monk and asked, ��I have just arrived and found a place to stay not long ago. How does the Grandmaster know that I am here? I don��t believe we have met before!��


    ��I am ashamed to admit that my cultivation level is relatively shallow. I only heard of your arrival after you are already here on the sacred land of the Western Heaven. However, my teacher had known for some time now that Layman Ye would come here,�� this monk replied, his hands clasped in front of him, speaking in a calm voice, which put his listeners at ease right away.


    But when Ye Futian heard this, his heart palpitated. They had sensed his coming as soon as he set foot on the sacred soil of the Western Heaven? And his master had known��even before his arrival.


    The superpowers of Buddhism�� thought Mo Yunzi, the Golden-winged Roc, and Ye Futian immediately received the thought. His heart trembled slightly.


    The other cultivators in the teahouse had the same sudden realization as well, and their expressions changed. As they looked at the monk in white, someone said, ��Clairaudience!��


    Clairaudience and Clairvoyance were both part of the six superpowers of Buddhism. Zhu Hou, the cultivator who was killed by Ye Futian in Great Brahma Heaven, was a disciple of the six superpowers of Buddhism. He cultivated in Buddha��s Clairvoyance, hence his ability to discern the cultivations of Fang Cun and the others.


    And the monk in front of him was an expert of Clairaudience, meaning he was able to hear all the movements within the sacred land of the Western Heaven. He stated that his master knew of Ye Futian��s coming to the Western Heaven long before Ye Futian actually set foot to the Western Heaven, which further demonstrated the high level of his realm.


    Could it be that his Clairaudience had been cultivated to the point where he could hear the voices of all sentient beings in the Western World?


    ��This man��s cultivation would be far higher than Zhu Hou��s,�� Mo Yunzi said to Ye Futian via voice transmission. Zhu Hou cultivated in Buddha��s Clairvoyance, but he couldn��t see through even a mere city like Jianan City. The man in front of him claimed that he had already heard Ye Futian when he arrived in Western Heaven. His realm had been easily deduced.


    ��His master would be Tianyin Buddha Lord��the orthodox among Buddhists and one of the topmost Buddha Lords in the World of Buddhism.�� Mo Yunzi continued with voice transmission so that Ye Futian had some basic understanding of who he was dealing with. At this time, many people in the teahouse saluted to the monk in white. ��The Grandmaster must be Tianyin Arhat.��


    ��Arhat!�� Ye Futian heard this and immediately realized the status of the other man must be superior and exceptional. He was one of the Arhats. In the Western World, he must be regarded as a top-ranking figure.


    ��Little monk, I dare not presume.�� The monk in white made a slight bow to everyone in return. Ye Futian spoke up at this time as well, ��Grandmaster, please take a seat.��


    Tianyin Arhat put his hands together in front of him and bowed to Ye Futian, and said, ��Little monk, thank you for your invitation.��


    After that, he sat down, cross-legged, opposite Ye Futian, his visage solemn and authoritative. Ye Futian could even see, albeit faintly, the halo of Buddhism behind him.


    ��What advice would the Grandmaster like to impart on your visit?�� Ye Futian inquired with extreme courtesy. An Arhat came here for the express purpose of finding him. Clearly, it was not by some simple coincidence; there must be a reason for it.


    ��Layman Ye overestimated my visit. After knowing that Layman Ye is here, little monk was determined to come for a visit, no advice nor intent to instruct to speak of.�� The monk responded graciously enough. This was rather baffling to Ye Futian.


    ��Just a visit?�� Ye Futian asked again, a little puzzled.


    ��That��s all.�� Tianyin Arhat responded with a smile. His eyes still hovered on Ye Futian. However, there seemed to be some curiosity in those clear and profound eyes of his.


    ��I don��t understand. Would the Grandmaster please elucidate?�� Ye Futian implored in return deferentially. He was a little curious, too, as to why an Arhat would know of his arrival and took all the trouble to come for a visit in person.


    ��Layman Ye is a person who has a destiny with Buddhism,�� Tianyin Arhat continued with a smile.


    ��What do you mean?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Tianyin Arhat glanced at Hua Qingqing next to Ye Futian, pointing at her. Ye Futian looked a little surprised and asked, ��Did the Grandmaster detect something?��


    Tianyin Arhat shook his head and smiled. ��Little monk can��t see anything. I only know that Layman Ye has a destiny with Buddhism.��


    ��Perhaps.�� Ye Futian just smiled. It seemed that he would get nowhere. Tianyi Arhat was speaking in riddles and circles, so he could not get to the bottom of anything.


    ��It��s not ��perhaps,���� Tianyin Arhat said with a smile, ��The change between heaven and earth originates in the Original Realm. I wonder if Layman Ye has heard of this prophecy?��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian acknowledged. He had heard of it before, of course. He said, ��The turmoil in the Original Realm attracted cultivators from all over the world; only the cultivators of the Western World of Buddhism were absent at the time. Everyone thought that it was because the World of Buddhism didn��t much care about such matters, but clearly, that��s not the case; the Grandmaster already knows of the prophecy.��


    ��Does Layman Ye know where this prophecy first originated?�� Tianyin Arhat asked with a smile.


    Ye Futian looked a little doubtful when he heard those words. His face showed a change as he observed Tianyin Arhat closely and said, ��Could it be����


    Tianyin Arhat nodded slightly, ��Just as Layman Ye suspected, the earliest source of this prophecy is here in this place of Buddhist cultivation.��


    ��Whose prophecy?�� There was some seriousness in Ye Futian��s eyes now, and his heart was a bit perturbed. A prophecy had caused the changes in the Original Realm. The Buddhist Sect did not participate, but this prediction had originated from the World of Buddhism.


    What was the secret hidden behind this new information?


    ��There are numerous cultivation courts upon the mountains in the World of Buddhism, with several transcendent Buddhas in residence. However, there are only one or two of them who would dare to make a bold prediction about changes taking place in the world.�� Tianyin Arhat continued with a smile, ��Does Layman Ye know that several hundreds of years ago, there was another cultivator from Divine Prefecture who had come to the sacred land of the Western Heaven?��


    ��Who?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Layman Ye should be able to guess.�� Tianyin Arhat was still not answering him directly.


    Ye Futian thought about what the other man had said. Since he said that Ye Futian should be able to guess it, then it must be someone well-known with a profound connection with the Buddhist world.


    When his thought turned to this, Ye Futian��s heart trembled a bit as he came to grips with this new epiphany. What Tianyin Arhat revealed today had already caused him several great internal turbulences.


    ��Donghuang the Great!�� Ye Futian said softly. Tianyin Arhat smiled without saying another word, clearly agreeing with his conclusion.


    Once upon a time, Donghuang the Great had come to the World of Buddhism to seek instruction and had forged a deep connection with the World of Buddhism. This was not a secret in Divine Prefecture.


    ��Hundreds of years ago, Donghuang the Great came to the World of Buddhism to seek instruction and cultivated. He even once sought instruction on one of the six superpowers in the World of Buddhism. Who knows what Layman Ye will be able to reap this time around,�� said Tianyin Arhat.


    So, Donghuang the Great had cultivated one of the six supernatural powers?


    The six superpowers of Buddhism were Clairvoyance, Clairaudience, Celerity, Telepathy, Omniscient, and Elimination of Outflows.


    Which one of the six superpowers did Donghuang the Great cultivate?


    ��What did Donghuang the Great cultivate?�� Ye Futian looked at Tianyin Arhat and asked, propelled by an unusually fervent curiosity, wanting to know what Donghuang the Great had cultivated in back when he was seeking Buddhism.


    ��As the Buddha would say, not a word.�� Tianyin Arhat spoke with a smile as he stood up. He clasped his hands together again, facing Ye Futian, and said, ��I wish Layman Ye all the best on this trip. I will take my leave now.��


    After that, he turned around to leave. It seemed as if this was really just a simple, little visit!

 Chapter 2467 - Prying

    As Ye Futian watched the silhouette of Tianyin Arhat leaving, his eyes revealed a curious look.


    Tianyin Arhat had actually come just to have a few words with him. It seemed as though he had no other ulterior motive. Ye Futian had also obtained a lot of information from his conversation with the other party.


    The changes of the world would originate from the Original Realm. This prophecy had actually first come from the Western Heaven��the World of Buddhism that had not joined the conflict in the Original Realm.


    According to the other party, only one or two individuals in the World of Buddhism could make such a prophecy. They should be one of the Buddha Lords who stood at the top of the realm. Which Buddha Lord would it be?


    It would certainly not be difficult to investigate. Ye Futian even suspected that it might be a Buddha Lord who mastered one of the six Buddhist superpowers.


    Donghuang the Great had come to the World of Buddhism centuries ago and had sought the guidance of a Buddha Lord. He had also cultivated one of these six superpowers. As for which one he had cultivated, Ye Futian did not know.


    In the Divine Prefecture, it was only known that Donghuang the Great had come to the World of Buddhism to seek the Path. No one knew what Path he had sought.


    All this provided much food for thought. It was worth pondering on.


    ��Tianyin Arhat��s cultivation is not high, but he can already hear the various voices across the Western Sacred Land. Having cultivated Clairaudience, his master, Tianyin Buddha Lord, must be able to hear across even greater distances. What will happen when Tianyin Arhat reaches the Great Emperor Plane?�� Ye Futian mumbled.


    ��He might be able to hear all the voices in the Western Heaven,�� said Chen Yi in a low voice.


    ��It might be possible,�� Ye Futian nodded his head. Donghuang the Great might be able to do the same. It was just that he did not know which superpower Donghuang the Great had cultivated. Regardless of which one it was, at the Great Emperor Plane, his might would be extraordinary. It would be unparalleled.


    ��From Tianyin Arhat��s tone, I suppose he bears no ill will,�� commented Blind Tie. Although he could not see, his senses were sharp. Tianyin Arhat claimed that his master, Tianyin Buddha Lord, had long known that Ye Futian would come to the Western Sacred Land. Tianyin Arhat paid Ye Futian a welcome visit.


    The other party had even taken Donghuang the Great as an example. He claimed that Donghuang the Great had also come here centuries ago. He wondered what Ye Futian would gain from coming here. If one thought about it, this was a very high evaluation of Ye Futian. Tianyin Arhat held Ye Futian in high esteem, comparing him to Donghuang the Great centuries ago.


    Why did Tianyin Arhat look so highly on Ye Futian? Was this related to the prophecy?


    In Four Corner Village, why had Master viewed Ye Futian highly to the point that he did not mind standing out on Ye Futian��s behalf and allowing Four Corner Village to join the world?


    The more he came in contact with Ye Futian, the more Blind Tie felt that Ye Futian might have come from an extraordinary background. He would have an outstanding life. Perhaps in the future, Ye Futian would come in contact with some secrets of the world.


    ��Are you Ye Futian from the Divine Prefecture?�� someone asked Ye Futian inside the tavern. The crowd had heard Tianyin Arhat and Ye Futian��s conversation before this. Some of their hearts were stirred.


    Tianyin Arhat was an extraordinary figure. Zhu Hou, who was killed by Ye Futian, could not be compared to him. Zhu Hou was just a disciple of a Buddhist sect, yet he already had a high standing in Jianan City as a middle-level Renhuang. On the other hand, Tianyin Arhat was a Buddhist arhat. His cultivation was unparalleled and was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane.


    ��The War of Six Desires Heaven shook the entire World of Buddhism. Brother Ye, do you know whether Saint Zhenchan is alive or dead now?�� someone asked. There were rumors from Zhenchan Temple that Saint Zhenchan had yet to perish. However, after so long, Saint Zhenchan had not made an appearance. This caused many cultivators to be suspicious.


    ��I could barely protect myself in that battle. How would I know how Saint Zhenchan is?�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. He indeed did not know whether Saint Zhenchan was dead or alive.


    ��Brother Ye, you stirred up quite a storm in Six Desires Heaven and even caused Saint Zhenchan to go missing. I fear that your journey here to the Western Sacred Land will not be peaceful,�� someone said. However, Ye Futian himself had probably imagined that there would be a day like this. Hence, he had waited for All Buddhas Fest to come here.


    Otherwise, he would certainly not have dared to act so presumptuously.


    Of course, it might be that Ye Futian believed no one would know about his arrival. However, Ye Futian never imagined that he would be found by Tianyin Arhat just as he set foot in the Western Sacred Land. News of his arrival had also spread. The various cultivators would certainly all know about it soon.


    ��Thank you for the reminder,�� Ye Futian replied. He then got up and said, ��Let��s go.��


    He also realized that many people would certainly come looking for him once news of his arrival got out. It would be difficult for him to have any peace. Although it was All Buddhas Fest, and he was currently in no danger, it did not mean that no one would come to him looking for trouble.


    A group of people got up and walked out of the tavern. They headed outside and then flew up into the sky.


    The cultivators in the tavern watched as Ye Futian left. They then lowered their heads and continued enjoying their tea. The fact that Ye Futian was here was already exposed. It was impossible for him to enjoy peace. In this holy land of Buddhism, there were countless powerful figures. It was impossible for Ye Futian to keep himself hidden.


    Ye Futian��s group rode on the back of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird. They looked down on the scenery of the Western Heaven below. The entire world was bathed in the peaceful and divine Light of Buddha. It was very comfortable, yet Ye Futian was not at ease. It was as though he was being monitored.


    However, when he unleashed his will, he could not sense the presence of people monitoring him. This made Ye Futian realize that the person monitoring him had higher cultivation than he had or was proficient in extraordinary superpowers.


    For instance, they might be proficient in one of the six Buddhist superpowers, Buddha��s Clairvoyance.


    This sensation persisted for a long while. Ye Futian knew that it was impossible for him to enjoy peace. He also sensed that more and more people were monitoring him. It was no longer just an individual.


    ��If you all wish to meet me, show yourselves. Why do you need to monitor me from the shadows?�� Ye Futian proclaimed loudly. His voice reverberated in the space, causing many cultivators down below to look up at him.


    At the same time, the figure of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird dove down. The group of figures landed on the ground, deciding not to continue their journey.


    In the distance, Ye Futian seemed to see a pair of eyes appear on the horizon. The eyes pierced the endless space and looked towards them. This ability was similar to that of Zhu Hou, whom he had killed. It must be the members of Zhu Hou��s force.


    Tianyin Arhat knew that Ye Futian had arrived in the Western Sacred Land. Ye Futian never imagined that the Buddhist cultivation force that Zhu Hou belonged to would manage to find him so quickly as well.


    Besides that, figures appeared far in the distance. Some of them were monks; some weren��t. All of them had extraordinary auras. Their gazes were all turned towards him. Ye Futian did not know who these people were.


    Right then, a figure walked over towards them from afar. This monk was extraordinary. His temperament was similar to that of Tianyin Arhat. He was very young, and it was difficult to get a read on him. His eyes even gave off a faint, enchanting vibe.


    ��Benefactor Ye,�� the monk greeted with his hands together as he bowed towards Ye Futian. He seemed very polite.


    ��Master,�� Ye Futian replied as he returned the gesture.


    The monk asked, ��I have heard much about Benefactor Ye. You are famous in the Divine Prefecture. You obtained a divine body, cultivated divine techniques, and obtained the inheritances of several Great Emperors. I am curious: how many Great Emperors has Benefactor Ye obtained inheritances from?�� Ye Futian felt somewhat strange. As to what was strange, he could not pinpoint it. In his mind, the inheritances of the Great Emperors that he cultivated surfaced naturally. Although he did not verbally reveal them, he naturally would think about them when asked by the other party.


    At that moment, Ye Futian sensed that the other party was smiling. When he saw this smile, Ye Futian felt even stranger. He felt a faint sense of discomfort. It was as though he was being pried on.


    ��This man is a practitioner of Telepathy. He can read the thoughts of others. Layman Ye, do not fall for his trick,�� said a voice from afar. It was a transmitted thought of Tianyin Arhat. He was listening to all that was happening in the Western Sacred Land. He had heard that something was happening over here, so he reminded Ye Futian.


    ��You really enjoy meddling in the affairs of others,�� the strange monk said with a smile. On the other hand, Ye Futian��s expression changed. No wonder he felt as though he was being pried on. It turned out that his thoughts were read by the other party.

 Chapter 2468 - Purge Their Souls?

    Chapter 2468: Purge Their Souls?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��s expression turned cold. When the other party asked him questions, the answers would naturally surface in his mind. He never imagined that his thoughts would be pried on.


    Buddha��s Telepathy could pry into the minds of others. The monk before him had intentionally strung him along to pry into how many Great Emperor inheritances he possessed.


    However, this was no secret in the Divine Prefecture. Many cultivators there knew about this. They also knew about his inheritance from Emperor Ye Qing. Ye Futian might as well not think much about it. After discovering the other party��s ability, he immediately controlled what he was thinking. He merely stared at the other party and said, ��Master, you are an accomplished monk. It seems somewhat despicable of you to pry into the minds of others.��


    .


    Although his tone was calm, he was no longer as polite as before. No one would be comfortable after having their thoughts pried on like this.


    ��I was just curious, so I used Telepathy to take a peek. Benefactor Ye, please pay no heed to it,�� the enchantingly handsome monk said as he smiled and put his hands together. ��I will not mention what I have seen. Benefactor Ye, you need not worry.��


    Ye Futian��s gaze was cold and indifferent. When encountering such a cultivator, who could pry into the minds of others, one had to control their thoughts all the time. This sensation was very uncomfortable. One had to be careful when coming in contact with such people.


    ��I wonder whether Saint Zhenchan is doing well,�� the monk continued. He was still ��curious.��


    This time, Ye Futian controlled himself and did not think of the answer. He merely stared coldly and indifferently at the other party. He had already fallen for this trick once. He naturally would not be strung along by the other party anymore and have his thoughts pried on again.


    Right now, he only had one thought in mind, and that was how to deal with this monk. When he read this thought, the monk placed his palms together, smiled, and said, ��I am the disciple of Tongchan Buddha Lord. Benefactor Ye, I can understand that you are dissatisfied with me. However, in the Western Heaven, your way of thinking is somewhat absurd.��


    This monk was actually Tongchan Arhat. His standing was extremely high and was comparable to that of Tianyin Arhat. Otherwise, he would not have stepped forward to pry into the secrets of Ye Futian��s mind. Right now, many of the people present were major Buddhist figures.


    Ye Futian knew that the other party was speaking the truth. Yet alone in the Western Sacred Land, even elsewhere, it was almost impossible for Ye Futian to do anything to Tongchan Arhat.


    Ye Futian shifted his gaze and looked at the other cultivators around them. Many of them came with ulterior motives. This was especially so for the cultivators in front of him from the same sect as Zhu Hou. They cultivated under Shenyan Buddha Lord.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord was well-versed in Buddhist doctrine. He could observe the entire space and was one of the Buddha Lords of the World of Buddhism. His sect was one of the more powerful ones, and the cultivators under him were also outstanding. Zhu Hou was merely one of the many exceptional cultivators under him, and he already had a high status in the Great Brahma Heaven. However, he was killed in Jianan City by Ye Futian.


    The crowd stared at Ye Futian��s group. Their gazes shone with the golden Light of Buddha, giving off an extraordinary vibe. They stared rudely at Ye Futian and his group. Just like Zhu Hou before, they were monitoring them without any scruples.


    ��Divine techniques, Method of Light���� they mumbled as they looked toward Fang Cun and then at Chen Yi. When their gazes landed on Hua Qingqing, they revealed strange looks and said, ��You are a Buddhist yourself. Why have you joined this person��s side?��


    Hua Qingqing looked at the person who had spoken and said, ��The spirit of Buddhism is not found in cultivation but in the heart.��


    When they heard what Hua Qingqing said, they frowned. Ye Futian also said, ��Back in Jianan City when we encountered Zhu Hou, he acted unscrupulously. When he encountered my disciple, he immediately pried into my disciple��s cultivation. Seeing that he was stronger, he wanted to bully the weak and directly control my disciple. I rushed over in time and killed him. Originally, I thought that he was an outlier among the Buddhist sects. However, I never imagined that there were so many like him. It seems that I have thought too highly of all of you.��


    ��Humph,�� a cold chide could be heard.


    A person said in a cold tone, ��If a disciple of ours breaks his vows, he will naturally be punished according to the laws of the sect. Since when was it your place to kill a disciple of our sect?��


    ��Such an overbearing Buddhist sect,�� mocked Chen Yi. He then said, ��Based on what you say, if a disciple of your sect tries to kill us, we can only bear with it. We cannot defend ourselves and should wait for your sect to settle the issue? However, by the way you handle things, why should we hope for you to settle things? What a joke.��


    The other party was unmoved even after Chen Yi said this. They continued saying coldly, ��After all of you killed Zhu Hou, you involved innocent people and massacred people of other clans. How dare such cruel and bloodthirsty people speak of Buddha!��


    ��If it weren��t All Buddhas Fest now, we would have purged your souls,�� another monk added with a tone as cold as ice. His robe fluttered even though there was no wind blowing. The light that shot out of his eyes was extremely blinding.


    Ye Futian looked at the other party and said, ��I have broadened my horizons by coming to the Western Sacred Land. A while ago, I encountered cultivators from the Dark World. Although the way they acted was cruel and merciless, at least they did not act under the guise of compassion and use Buddha as an excuse. From my point of view, all of you, who practice Buddhism but bring harm to others, are worse than the cultivators from the Dark World.��


    Ye Futian had always treated others politely. However, these people were not being courteous at all and actually claimed they would purge the souls of Ye Futian��s group. If that were the case, he naturally did not need to hold back. He lashed out with his words, not giving the other party any face.


    As expected, as soon as he finished speaking, streaks of golden Light of Buddha shone and enveloped the entire space. Ye Futian could sense a faint murderous intent amidst this Buddhist aura. Even the supposedly peaceful Light of Buddha became eerie at that moment.


    ��What Qingqing said is right. The spirit of Buddhism is not founded on cultivation. Even though all of you cultivate the powers of Buddhism, you��re not worthy of being called Buddhas,�� commented Ye Futian calmly. His body glowed radiantly as he was surrounded by divine light. Pressure similarly emanated from his body to fight against the domineering Light of Buddha.


    ��It is currently All Buddhas Fest. We still need to wait a few days more before we can engage in fights,�� Tongchan Arhat said with a smile. His interruption caused the tension between the two powers to come to a halt.


    ��Buddha is merciful. If today weren��t All Buddhas Fest, I would have purged all of your souls here in Western Heaven. That would have prevented you from continuing to be a scourge to all,�� said a cultivator who was a disciple of Shenyan Buddha Lord. Golden beams shot out from his eyes as he stared at Ye Futian and his group. The Light of Buddha emitted by this cultivator was piercing.


    ��Is that so?�� Chen Yi cast a glance at the other party and unleashed the power of Light. Light beams emitted from Chen Yi��s eyes as he glared at the other party and said, ��If it weren��t All Buddhas Fest today, you would most likely only be able to purge yourself even after you borrow the power of your seniors.��


    The cultivation of these newly arrived cultivators was ordinary. Even the strongest were merely at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. Chen Yi was not afraid of them at all. It was only wishful thinking for them to want to kill Ye Futian��s group with their cultivation level.


    ��Everyone, don��t forget about the ordeal in Six Desires Heaven and Saint Zhenchan,�� Tongchan Arhat spoke again. He seemed to be motivated by a desire to see the world in chaos. Back then, quite a few Lord-level figures had perished in the fight in Six Desires Heaven. Saint Zhenchan was a top figure among the cultivators from the Buddhist sects, yet he had also died in that commotion.


    Right now, even though Ye Futian had lost the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, his own combat ability was surely very powerful as well. If the two parties were to engage in a fight, it was still uncertain as to whose souls would be purged!

 Chapter 2469 - The Great Buddha

    Several Buddhist cultivators under the tutelage of Shenyan Buddha Lord now stepped forward, their eyes radiating the frightening Light of Buddha, aimed toward Ye Futian and the others.


    Ye Futian frowned. These people really wanted to start something?


    Under the examination of Buddha��s Clairvoyance, Fang Cun and the others felt extreme discomfort. Since they had no way to resist, it was as if everything of theirs were being exposed. Furthermore, surreal images appeared behind them. It was a vision enabled by the Great Path��s superpowers.


    Of course, even more cultivators fixed their attention on Ye Futian. The Buddha��s Clairvoyance could detect all truths. When cultivated to its extreme, it was rumored that the life and death of all living beings could be seen. The detection of cultivation method was but only a small trick this superpower was capable of. It was one of the many uses of Buddha��s Clairvoyance.


    However, at the moment, Ye Futian��s entire body dazzled with divine light. It was as if there was a protective layer of light about him, which even the Buddha��s Clairvoyance was unable to invade. Under the surveillance of those heavenly eyes, nothing substantial could be seen. They could only see Ye Futian standing there quietly, surrounded by divine light. He was tremendous and imposing as he stood there. The sense of transcendence was palpable.


    Watching the sight before them, many sneered coldly inside. It seemed that Ye Futian was indeed exceptional. The Buddha��s Clairvoyance was of absolutely no use against him. Ye Futian was like an enigma that couldn��t be understood or captured.


    Ye Futian continued standing there quietly, his eyes frosty cold. His eyes were ever-changing as he looked toward those Buddhist cultivators who were looking back at him. This one look seemed to bring those cultivators into another world, another space.


    ��I come from the Divine Prefecture in awe of Buddhism, observing the commandments of All Buddhas Fest, but what are you all doing?�� Ye Futian chided them, and his voice reverberated through the void. The hearts of those Buddhist cultivators shuddered. Many of them experienced a prickly pain in their third eye. Not only did they fail to see through Ye Futian, but also they were affected by him.


    The cultivators in the far distance were a little shocked when they beheld this scene; this Ye Futian was truly remarkable.


    However, at this time, above the void, there were two figures surrounded by the blazing Light of Buddha. Many monks would bow to salute these two whenever they encountered them. One of them was an old monk, while the other was quite young. They were both under the tutelage of Shenyan Buddha Lord. The old monk was a cultivator who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, while the young man was the first disciple under Shenyan Buddha Lord, known as Shenyan Arhat.


    The two of them looked at Ye Futian at the same time, and a pair of elusive eyes appeared in the void. They were somewhat similar to the Buddha��s Clairvoyance, which was used previously by Zhu Hou. However, their prowess was not comparable, not even close.


    Under the scrutiny of Buddha��s Clairvoyance, Ye Futian felt that even with the power of the Great Path protecting around him, he was completely transparent. It was like nothing could be hidden from the other��s prying gaze. He even wondered whether it was a mistake in coming to the sacred land of Western Heaven. The abilities of these Buddhist cultivators were completely different from those practiced in the Divine Prefecture. These abilities could see into too many secret things.


    As the old monk unleashed the Buddha��s Clairvoyance, his eyes grew unsteady. It was as the images he was perceiving frightened him a little. What he saw was not Ye Futian, who was surrounded simply by the divine light of the Great Path, but a massive towering figure that resembled a deity.


    This figure was a little fuzzy to him, even at his advanced cultivation level; he was unable to discern it completely. He knew that his realm was not high enough, and his Buddha��s Clairvoyance was far from reaching the ultimate peak form. But there was no doubt in his mind that the images he saw were a foreshadowing of sorts.


    At least, Ye Futian would be a super powerful existence in the future, which accounted for the vision that had appeared before them.


    ��You came from the Divine Prefecture and stirred up a storm in Six Desires Heaven. You slaughtered our cultivators of Buddhism. Now you show up here on the sacred land of the Western Heaven. What is your intention?�� the old monk interrogated him with a voice as great as a bell ringing. Each other word shook Ye Futian to his core.


    Ye Futian felt his heart palpitate as his breathing became unsteady. Suddenly, he could clearly sense that the other��s eyes seemed to pry into something more. Something invisible and untraceable moved. The stronger he was, the harder it was to detect his cultivation.


    ��I heard that the sacred land of the Western Heaven is the holy land of Buddhism, but the visit today was rather disappointing. As for why I am here, is there any reason why I��m not allowed on the sacred land of the Western Heaven?�� Ye Futian retorted as he raised his eyes to look at the other. His stance and aura were not any lesser, even when he repudiated a cultivator who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    After all, before this moment, he had killed many cultivators who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    ��The sacred land of Western Heaven is the holy land of Buddhism. Naturally, people are allowed to come and seek Buddha��s enlightenment. However, it is inappropriate for you to come to the holy land of Buddhism after you have slaughtered disciples of Buddhism.�� A powerful Buddhist cultivator in the distant void now spoke up.


    It seemed that many people were aggrieved with Ye Futian in this sacred land of Western Heaven.


    Since Ye Futian stepped into the Western World of Buddhism, everything he did had angered many people. Every one of those Lord-level figures that had died at his hands was considered a powerful force in the World of Buddhism. But because of someone like him who came from the Divine Prefecture, each of them had met their unfortunate death, which curtailed the power in the Buddhist World considerably.


    More importantly, Lord Initial Zen and Saint Zhenchan themselves were Buddhists, cultivators belonging to the orthodoxy of Buddhism.


    ��Why would I slaughter disciples of Buddhism?�� Ye Futian retorted. He understood the displeasure these people had toward him. However, ever since he entered the Western World of Buddhism, he had been trapped in situations he had not created. It could be said that he could not find a peaceful moment.


    Under those circumstances, he had no choice but to struggle and resist. Hence, leading up to everything he encountered afterward.


    ��Humph!��


    Cold disdain sounded in unison, as these Buddhists still seemed unwilling to let bygones be bygones. But at this moment, above the sky in the distance, a peaceful and benevolent Light of Buddha flooded the sky, and a voice spoke.


    ��Amitabha!�� The Sound of Buddha lingered, resounding through heaven and earth. A towering and sacred Buddha statue appeared on the distant horizon, cast with gold. However, this golden Buddha statue was on the move; it was as if it were not a statue but a real person.


    When they saw the appearance of this Buddha statue, numerous Buddhists who were present immediately bowed down to pay their respect, including countless cultivators from the sacred land of the Western Heaven. All of them clasped their hand in front of them to worship him. Many recognized this statue, as it was a Buddha commonly enshrined and worshipped by many in the sacred land of the Western Heaven.


    ��Buddha Lord.��


    ��Greetings to the Buddha Lord.��


    All these voices echoed one after the other, and those cultivators under the tutelage of the Great Buddha were paying their respects with humility. The cultivators from Western Heaven were even more emotional; they were witnessing the manifestation of the Buddha Lord right in front of their eyes.


    Ye Futian��s gaze also fixed in that direction. The golden Buddha statue was shining with infinite Light of Buddha, sheltering all of the Western Heaven. He appeared quite advanced in age. He was clearly a great Buddha who had cultivated for numerous years.


    ��Which Buddha Lord is this now?�� Ye Futian thought. Several Buddha Lords in the Western World of Buddhism were revered and worshiped by the world. The Buddha Lord that appeared now was probably not the Lord of All Buddhas.


    ��Benefactor Ye came all the way from the Divine Prefecture, and this is hardly our way of receiving guests. All Buddhas Fest is a major event in our World of Buddhism, so stop making more troubles for our guests.�� This voice resounded through the void. When all these Buddhist cultivators heard these words, they knew they could not do anything to Ye Futian anymore. They all bowed down deeply to that Buddha Lord.


    ��Ye Futian.�� That Buddha Lord looked at Ye Futian. At this moment, Ye Futian felt so comfortable bathing in the Light of Buddha. He bowed to the Buddha Lord and said, ��Ye Futian greets the Buddha Lord.��


    ��No need for formalities.�� The Buddha Lord said, ��You came from the Divine Prefecture to the Western Heaven. What��s your business?��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��I would like to ask for an audience with the Lord of All Buddhas.��


    Everyone was astounded when they heard Ye Futian��s request. An audience with the Lord of All Buddhas?


    They never thought that Ye Futian would be thinking of doing that. It was no easy task for top Buddhist figures to gain an audience with the Lord of All Buddhas.


    ��Amitabha.�� The Buddha Lord looked at Ye Futian and said, ��It all depends on your own fortune!��


    Having said that, the Buddha statue disappeared. It was as if it had never been there in the first place.


    After he disappeared, Ye Futian looked in that direction and appeared thoughtful. It seemed that not everyone in Buddhism was like the cultivators currently in front of him. This Buddha Lord, for example, was tremendously gracious and forgiving when there was no need for him to be. Since he had manifested and made an appearance, it was obviously not some disingenuous overture.


    ��Which Buddha Lord is this?�� Ye Futian asked. Everyone around him should have known him; just him��a cultivator from the Divine Prefecture��did not.


    ��Wutian Buddha Lord,�� someone said. With a turning of his mind, there was no place that Wutian Buddha Lord could not reach. He was one of the supreme existences in the Buddhist Sect, cultivating Celerity, also known as Teletransportation. Any destination could be reached as quickly as a passing thought!

 Chapter 2470 - Grandmaster Yumu

    Chapter 2470: Grandmaster Yumu


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Wutian Buddha Lord vanished, the expressions of those who were giving Ye Futian a hard time before turned to great displeasure. However, they did not dare to say anything that challenged the command of the Buddha Lord. They could only look at Ye Futian with disdain and said, ��You have slaughtered our cultivators, but now you are asking for an audience with the Lord of All Buddhas. That��s crazy man��s talk.��


    The Lord of All Buddhas had long transcended the world, no longer bound by the five elements of the earth. He was not someone who would receive visitors lightly; not even those Buddha Lords could ask for an audience whenever they liked.


    Now, All Buddhas Fest did pose an opportunity. But they would not agree to Ye Futian asking for an audience with the Lord of All Buddhas.


    Many of them looked at Ye Futian with a cold and indifferent expression. Even if there were a chance for Ye Futian to meet the Lord of All Buddhas, with them around, they would make sure that never happened.


    ��You are lucky that Wutian Buddha Lord made a personal appearance,�� someone commented coldly.. Although they did not dare to make further trouble for Ye Futian, they still seemed quite angry. To them, it was as if Wutian Buddha Lord��s words could not change their minds.


    This piqued Ye Futian��s curiosity. What was the status of Wutian Buddha Lord in the World of Buddhism?


    ��Benefactor Ye, we will see each other again if it is meant to be,�� Tongchan Arhat said to Ye Futian with a smile. Suddenly, alertness was shown in Ye Futian��s eyes. Again, he felt being spied upon and knew that the thoughts he had previously may have been detected by the other.


    This superpower of Telepathy was so incredible that it was easily forgotten by those around it. However, what he was thinking was nothing of great importance, so it didn��t really matter.


    Tongchan Arhat turned to leave. The rest of the cultivators regarded Ye Futian with indifference. There were still many of them who were hostile towards him.


    At this time, a Buddhist cultivator suddenly appeared next to Ye Futian, invisible and soundless; he seemed to have emerged out of thin air. There was no warning prior to his appearance, which greatly alarmed Ye Futian.


    What a strange and uncanny superpower.


    ��Buddha��s Celerity,�� Ye Futian secretly remarked to himself, remembering one of the six superpowers of Buddhism.


    Buddha��s Celerity seemed to be an ultimate application of spatial methods and somewhat superior to the Great Path of Space. Its ability to travel freely anywhere without restriction was formidable. With Buddha��s Celerity, one could easily escape being chased by someone else of a higher realm. When used in tracking others, its success was even more spectacular.


    Wutian Buddha Lord was a Buddha Lord who specialized in Buddha��s Celerity. It seemed that this Buddhist cultivator who had just appeared cultivated the same skill as Wutian Buddha Lord.


    Ye Futian assessed the other man and saw that the man had half of a kasaya hanging on the top half of his body, leaving one of his arms exposed. He looked to be in his mid-thirties, simple and honest. He looked as if he was some kind of ascetic cultivator.


    ��Little monk, I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Benefactor Ye.�� The monk bowed to Ye Futian with his hands clasped in front of him. He appeared extremely courteous. Ye Futian returned his gesture and said, ��Ye Futian greets the Grandmaster. How is the Grandmaster to be addressed?��


    ��Little monk, I am called ��Yumu,���� the monk replied. A strange look flashed across Ye Futian��s eyes. The name ��Yumu�� also implied that great wisdom often lay in what appeared to be foolishness.


    ��Greetings, Grandmaster Yumu,�� Ye Futian saluted him once again. He was very grateful that Wutian Buddha Lord had recently saved him from a tough situation. This Grandmaster Yumu looked to be a cultivator under the tutelage of Wutian Buddha Lord, so Ye Futian was already partial to him, especially since he had been treated so rudely by so many Buddhist cultivators just now.


    ��Benefactor Ye is overly kind.�� Grandmaster Yumu said, ��Little monk, I came here mainly to assist Benefactor Ye in your questions. You are new to the sacred land of Western Heaven. If you have any questions, you can ask me.��


    This Grandmaster Yumu had extraordinary cultivation, yet he consistently referred to himself as ��little monk.��


    Moreover, he was invisible and soundless when he came. Ye Futian barely perceived the slightest aura before his arrival. If this Grandmaster Yumu had chosen to attack him, he would be in an unimaginable bind.


    There were also several others, such as Tongchan Arhat, who were exceptional cultivators themselves. These people may be the top Buddhist enchanting geniuses of their generation, and the methods of Buddhism they cultivated were unusual and peculiar. Even someone like Ye Futian was full of respect and in awe; he dared not underestimate these top figures.


    Therefore, even though Yumu referred to himself as ��little monk,�� Ye Futian was not so stupid as to follow suit. He merely said, ��If that��s the case, then many thanks to Grandmaster Yumu.��


    ��Please.�� Yumu extended his hand and gestured. But Ye Futian responded, ��Grandmaster Yumu, you first.��


    Yumu nodded slightly, then turned to go. He deliberately slowed down to wait for Ye Futian and only moved forward when Ye Futian had caught up to him. When many cultivators saw them leaving, their expressions were still one of cold apathy. However, with intervention from Wutian Buddha Lord, there was not much they could do now but to drop the matter entirely. Therefore, each of them dispersed. Soon, everyone left and disappeared without a trace.


    Ye Futian and his party walked above the sacred land of Western Heaven with Yumu. Ye Futian said, ��Grandmaster Yumu, I was watching those cultivators from before, and they seemed somewhat to disapprove of the Grandmaster.��


    In fact, he had something else he didn��t say. Although the words of Wutian Buddha Lord had stopped the advancement of these foes, it did not seem to be a strong enough deterrent. At least, some of those people were still reluctant and continued to threaten Ye Futian verbally. It was not hard to judge their overall attitude.


    Yumu nodded and said, ��Benefactor Ye came from the Divine Prefecture, so you know that these same situations exist in every Realm. The Divine Prefecture has 18 domains and 18 Domain Chief��s Manors. Even the Great Emperor��s direct principality is under the control of someone different. How could they be expected to be of one single mind?��


    From Yumu��s reply, Ye Futian knew that he thoroughly understood the meaning behind his comment.


    Indeed, no matter which principality, there were inherently different factions, and it was impossible to be of one mind. When he first arrived in the World of Buddhism, he thought that the World of Buddhism was one united body, which, in retrospect, was somewhat a na?ve notion.


    ��Under the Lord of All Buddhas, there are many great Buddhas, and different Buddhas have different cultivational concepts. Under the Lord of All Buddhas, there are Buddhas who guard the World of Buddhism, enforce the laws of the Western World, and take charge of all matters in the World of Buddhism. The head of this branch is Tongchang Buddha Lord. Zhenchan Temple, which Benefactor Ye was in a prior altercation with, and Lord Initial Zen, who perished, all belonged to this branch,�� Yumu explained.


    When Ye Futian heard this explanation, he immediately understood why Tongchan Arhat appeared so unfriendly. It seemed that Buddhist cultivators in this branch all born the meaning of ��Zen�� in their name somewhere.


    ��In addition, there are also preaching Buddhas. This kind of Buddhist cultivation is responsible for the preaching of Buddhist teachings in the World of Buddhist. My master, Wutian Buddha Lord, belongs to this branch.��


    ��There are also Buddhist cultivators who observe those cultivators in the World of Buddhism and listen to the voices within it. Finally, there are also Buddhas of Penance who are devoted to Buddhism and care not for earthly affairs.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly when he heard the explanation from the man. He now had a rough understanding of the order of things and people. ��Thank you, Grandmaster, for your detailed explanation,�� he said.


    ��There is one other thing that I am quite curious about. It was said that hundreds of years ago, Donghuang the Great came here to seek Buddhist instruction, taught by the Lord of All Buddhas himself. Previously, I have also heard that Donghuang the Great had cultivated one of the six superpowers of Buddhism; do you know which superpower he cultivated in?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Was Tianyin Arhat the one who told this to you, Benefactor Ye?�� Yumu asked.


    ��He was.�� Ye Futian nodded. Previously, Tianyin Arhat found him and told him about it, but he didn��t specify which superpower was cultivated by Donghuang the Great.


    ��I��m afraid Benefactor Ye was deceived by Tianyin Arhat,�� Yumu replied.


    Tianyin Arhat lied? Ye Futian found that a little strange.


    ��So, Donghuang the Great never came here to cultivate Buddhism, and the rumors we heard from the outside were false?�� Ye Futian was a little confused.


    Yumu shook his head. ��Of course, it is true. Donghuang the Great did come here to seek Buddhism teachings. However, Tianyin Arhat didn��t know which was cultivated by Donghuang the Great. As far as I know, only the Lord of All Buddhas and Donghuang the Great himself know of this between them. Everything else you heard on the outside was totally hearsay. Not only Tianyin Arhat didn��t know, but even Tianyin Buddha Lord himself does not necessarily know anything more about it.��


    ��I see,�� Ye Futian nodded. Tianyin Arhat had told him that the Buddha had not said even a word. Perhaps even he did not know much more than the basics.


    However, that Tianyin Arhat was a funny character. At least he didn��t mean Ye Futian any harm. When Tongchan Arhat appeared before, he had made sure to reminded Ye Futian to be careful of the other man.


    ��Yumu, you are not me; how do you know that I don��t know?�� Just as the two of them were speaking, a voice suddenly rang through their ears. This completely caught Ye Futian by surprise. He looked up into the distance and wondered, was he eavesdropping on them?


    This Buddha��s Clairaudience was indeed magical. He had been completely unaware of it.


    ��And you��re not me, so how do you know that I don��t know that you don��t know?�� Yumu replied calmly. He didn��t seem to take offense when he responded readily across the way.


    Ye Futian smiled when he heard the conversation between those two.


    ��I can��t win with you. Of course you are right,�� Tianyin Arhat responded, and Ye Futian was a little surprised by his reply. It seemed that Yumu��s combat effectiveness was more than met the eye. When he met Tianyin Arhat before, he had a feeling that the other was exceedingly exceptional.


    Now, Tianyin Arhat claimed he was unable to best Yumu, indicating a noticeable gap in their combat effectiveness.


    However, Wutian Buddha Lord preached Buddhist teachings, and Yumu was the heir of Wutian Buddha Lord. It went without saying that he must be proficient in Buddhist teachings and methods, and his combat effectiveness was understandably powerful.


    ��I have one final question; if I want to see the Lord of All Buddhas, does Grandmaster Yumu have a way in?�� Ye Futian asked. Yumu was silent for a moment, and Tianyin Arhat, who was in the distance, did not speak either.


    Right after that, Yumu commented, ��It��s probably a little hard, especially since you have already offended a lot of people among the Buddhist Sects.��


    ��Indeed, there is probably only one chance to meet the Lord of All Buddhas. All Buddhas Conference of Western Heaven will be held in the last month of All Buddhas Fest, at which time, all the Buddhas of Western Heaven will be there to discuss the Buddhist teachings and methods until the end of the Fest. Since this would be the ten-thousandth year of the All Buddhas calendar, the Lord of All Buddhas will likely make an appearance this time around. However, this conference is strictly a meeting for all the Buddhas in Buddhism to exchange their methods and teachings, and all the major Buddhas will be present. If you attend, you will most certainly stick out like a sore thumb. Furthermore, you have offended many Buddhist cultivators. I don��t think you will even be allowed entry there,�� Yumu continued.


    ��All Buddhas Conference,�� Ye Futian murmured. All the great Buddhas of Western Heaven would gather in one place, and indeed, it might be difficult for him to get in.


    ��How did Donghuang the Great get to meet the Lord of All Buddhas back then?�� Ye Futian asked suddenly.


    When Yumu thought about that, he couldn��t help but show a solemn look on his face. It was as if he was still awed by the memories of it all these years later. He said, ��Donghuang the Great went to All Buddhas Conference to discuss the teachings of Buddhism and outshone all of the Buddhas!��

 Chapter 2471 - Imitating Donghuang

    Ye Futian felt a little disquieted inside when he heard what Yumu said. Since his arrival to the World of Buddhism, the name of Donghuang the Great was often mentioned.


    This legendary figure, a genius of heavenly might, was a youngster compared to the Lord of All Buddhas. However, he had now stepped into the Imperial Realm and ruled over all of the Divine Prefecture.


    Donghuang the Great once visited the World of Buddhism, defeated all the Buddhas who were in attendance, and was favored by the Lord of All Buddhas, who had passed one of the six superpowers of Buddhism onto him.


    What a magnificent sight it must have been, for Yumu to be transported to that time in awe at the mere memory of the event. When he spoke of Donghuang the Great, his eyes were full of longing. It was as if he wanted to be transported back to that era and relive the exceptional undertaking of Donghuang the Great.


    Although Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great were on opposing sides and each had their own stance, Ye Futian greatly admired the capabilities of Donghuang the Great, whose legendary deeds were breathtaking.


    If he was destined to be on the opposing side of Donghuang the Great, what a terrible fate would that be?


    Even his own talent was unparalleled. Ye Futian could vaguely sense a powerful oppressive force when he thought of Donghuang the Great. It was an elusive sense of suffocation. Could someone, such as the Emperor of Divine Prefecture, be truly swayed?


    Forcing himself to abandon these wayward thoughts, Ye Futian returned to reality once again, as he looked at Yumu, saying, ��All the great Buddhas will be attending All Buddhas Conference to discuss teachings and methods of Buddhism. Can outsiders attend as well?��


    All Buddhas Conference, held at Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven, was the grandest of all Buddhist events that would be taking place during the All Buddhas Fest.


    ��There is no hard and fast rule that says you can��t. Hundreds of years ago, Donghuang the Great himself had participated in the All Buddhas Conference to discuss Buddhism. However, Benefactor Ye may encounter greater difficulties in attending the conference this time. After all, many people here are hostile as far as Benefactor Ye is concerned,�� Yumu replied. He seemed to have guessed what Ye Futian was thinking.


    ��I understand.�� Ye Futian nodded. When those cultivators left previously, they had already told him threateningly that he couldn��t meet the Lord of All Buddhas.


    However, without seeing the Lord of All Buddhas, the matter regarding Hua Qingqing could not be resolved, meaning that they would have failed to accomplish the goal of this trip.


    He already had several life and death experiences during this trip to the Western World of Buddhism, which proved valuable. But, he had also suffered heavy losses. The divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor was destroyed, and what was gained by the experience he had was far less than the damages that were caused by the loss of the divine body.


    Now that All Buddhas Conference was upon them, they had to give it a go, no matter what.


    Even if they failed, at least they tried. For him, the rule that no blood could be shed during All Buddhas Fest was significant protection that could be used to his advantage. He believed that no one would dare violate the one cardinal rule of All Buddhas Fest on such a grand occasion, where even the Lord of All Buddhas himself might appear.


    ��I heard that on the sacred land of Western Heaven, there are Buddhist scriptures hidden in ancient temples and the like, and none of them are guarded against outsiders. Those who wish may come and go as they pleased to observe and comprehend these scriptures. Am I right?�� Ye Futian asked Yumu.


    Yumu glanced at him, nodded, and said, ��Yes, Buddhism imparts Buddhist teachings. The sacred land of Western Heaven is the holy land of Buddhism. Naturally, it is the first to make those teachings available to all. These Buddhist scriptures are copied by major ancient temples, so that anyone who comes to the sacred land of Western Heaven to cultivate may have access to them.��


    Of course, those who could come to the sacred land of Western Heaven were themselves extraordinary figures already. They were cultivators of advanced and profound realms.


    These people were all figures in the top echelon of the Western World, and it was very significant for these people to preach Buddhism to them.


    ��Furthermore, besides the secret methods of Buddhism and other rare superpowers, most of the scriptures of Buddhism can be found in the ancient temples of Western Heaven.�� Yumu continued, ��Benefactor Ye meant to follow in the steps of Donghuang the Great, comprehend Buddhist methods, and use them to participate in the All Buddhas Conference, to compete with other Buddhas?��


    ��Does the Grandmaster think it possible?�� Ye Futian did not deny that at the moment, this seemed to be the only route he could take.


    ��It is hard.�� Yumu��s eyes appeared thoughtful. He said, ��Little monk, I know that Benefactor Ye is talented above all others, but time is pressing. Benefactor Ye has never been in contact with Buddhist methods before, and it is only dozens of days away from the All Buddhas Conference. If Benefactor Ye meant to comprehend Buddhism in order to compete in discussion with other Buddhas. It will not be an easy task. And that is putting it mildly.��


    Donghuang the Great had done it once. But, how many Donghuang the Greats were out there in this world?


    For thousands of years, there had been no one who could be compared with Donghuang the Great. Several other Great Emperors were all mighty existences before the time of Donghuang the Great.


    ��No matter how difficult it might be, it doesn��t hurt to try,�� said Ye Futian.


    Yumu nodded and said, ��Benefactor Ye is right on that front, of course.��


    ��Hundreds of years ago, Donghuang the Great defeated all the Buddhas by the method of Buddhism. Today, Layman Ye, who also came from the Divine Prefecture, would like to repeat history. For this, little monk, I am very curious to see. In the days that follow, I would make sure no one will disturb Benefactor Ye��s cultivation in Buddhism.�� Tianyin Arhat��s voice came from the distance as he continued, ��Yumu, guard Benefactor Ye well, and don��t let anyone disturb his cultivation.��


    Yumu pondered for a moment, then nodded. ��Very well!��


    ��I wouldn��t dare trouble the Grandmaster to such extent.�� Ye Futian said, ��The Buddha Lord has already come forward to intervene on my behalf once in person. I��m sure no one will come and make trouble. All Buddhas Conference is coming soon. I��m sure the Grandmaster must have a lot of things to do before that. Please don��t trouble yourselves on my account.��


    Yumu was a disciple of Wutian Buddha Lord, so his title ought to be somewhere close to an Arhat. Even though he had been more than polite and humble in Ye Futian��s presence, he was undoubtedly a great Buddha himself, with lofty status in the Buddhist Sect. To trouble others for his own protection was not something Ye Futian felt he was entitled to, nor did he wish to bother the others unnecessarily.


    ��It��s no trouble. I am taking this opportunity to review some of the Buddhist methods. For, little monk, this is also cultivation,�� Yumu replied.


    ��If the Grandmaster insists, I will have no mind to concentrate on my studying of Buddhism.�� Even if the other man had expressed his willingness, in good conscience, Ye Futian couldn��t very well delay others in what they had to do.


    Seeing that Ye Futian was persistent on this point, Yumu didn��t force the issue. Instead, he said, ��Since Benefactor Ye said so, little monk will not disturb Benefactor Ye��s study of Buddhism. However, if there are unforeseen incidents taking place here, little monk will come and handle them. Right now, when All Buddhas Fest is happening, there should be no one in all of the sacred land of the Western Heaven will disturb Benefactor Ye.��


    Ye Futian nodded and bowed to Yumu with his hands clasped. ��Thank you, Grandmaster.��


    Likewise, Yumu put his hands together and replied, ��Then, little monk will take my leave now.��


    ��Safe travel, Grandmaster,�� Ye Futian responded and saw Yumu stepping forward. However, after just a few steps, the other man��s figure disappeared without a trace; it was as if he had never been there before. Even Ye Futian could feel a fluctuation of power originated from the Great Path of Space.


    Ye Futian was quite amazed by what he saw. Was this Buddha��s Celerity? Indeed, the six superpowers of Buddhism were endlessly wonderous.


    After Yumu left, Chen Yi asked Ye Futian, ��Do you really mean to cultivate in Buddhist methods?��


    ��Is there a problem with that?�� Ye Futian asked Chen Yi instead.


    Chen Yi shook his head, ��It��s just that with only a few dozen days left, will that be enough time?��


    The methods of Buddhism may be different from all the methods they had cultivated before. The more advanced the Buddhist methods, the more difficult it was to cultivate. For Ye Futian to cultivate these methods in a limited period of time was something short of a tall order, with high levels of difficulties, as he had to compete with other Buddhas using Buddhist methods.


    Never mind that those figures of Buddhas or Arhats were enchanting genius talents themselves; even those many disciples of Buddhism were impressive and striking figures. It was equivalent to the top geniuses in Divine Prefecture all gathering together in one place.


    ��The Great Paths are connected, and I am not so slow in my cultivation,�� Ye Futian responded; however, he saw that Chen Yi didn��t quite believe it.


    Of course, even Ye Futian himself knew just how complicated this matter was. After all, he would be facing the topmost group of people in all of the Western World of Buddhism.


    However, the road that Donghuang the Great had walked once, he must now travel on it as well, no matter what.


    ��When you cultivate Buddhist methods, I can be by your side. Perhaps it will be of some help to you,�� Hua Qingqing said, which surprised Chen Yi to no end. Was this possible?


    Chen Yi stole a glance at Hua Jieyu, whose expression did not change one bit. At this time, Chen Yi couldn��t help but admire Ye Futian��s ability.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian nodded, and the admiration in Chen Yi��s eyes turned into worship.


    Ye Futian had no idea of the thoughts that went through Chen Yi��s mind. Hua Qingqing��s words didn��t mean anything else. Only Ye Futian knew how special she was.


    This was the reason why they came to the sacred land of Western Heaven in the first place.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said as he started moving forward.


    ��I��ll pick a place,�� Hua Qingqing said. Ye Futian looked at her and agreed, ��Good.��


    With that said, Hua Qingqing went first, and everyone else followed behind her.


    It didn��t take long for the group of them to come to an ordinary temple. Very few people entered, but Hua Qingqing stepped right into it. Ye Futian accompanied her.


    After entering the temple, they found its library. In the library, there were rows upon rows of bookshelves on which were all the scriptures cast in jade slips. The bookshelves were engraved with words, clearly denoting their categories.


    Hua Qingqing took out a volume from a specific place on the shelf and handed it to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took the scripture and looked at it. This sutra was none other than one of the Buddhist basics, the Heart Sutra!


    Not only that, but the scriptures here all seemed to be basic Buddhist scriptures, not some high-level cultivational method, nor had they seen any scriptures about powerful Buddhist superpowers.


    However, Hua Qingqing brought him here first and handed him a volume of Heart Sutra.


    Ye Futian knew that Hua Qingqing had some prior exposure to Buddhism, although that was when she was in the Lower Worlds.


    ��If you can thoroughly understand the important scriptures here, then when you cultivate methods of Buddhism, you will get twice the result with half the effort,�� Hua Qingqing said to Ye Futian, and Ye Futian agreed. As his divine consciousness pried into the scriptures, all of a sudden, the words floated in his mind. They were the content of the scriptures.


    At the same time, Hua Qingqing, who was beside him, closed her eyes, and there was a mysterious force gushing out of her. Her soft lips seemed to be moving. A strange Sound of Buddha seeped into Ye Futian��s ears, and instantly Ye Futian entered into a state of selflessness. At that moment, it was like he had entered the heart of Buddhism, which was an amazing feeling!

 Chapter 2472 - Cultivation in Buddhism

    Although the Heart Sutra was considered an introductory study of Buddhism, it was also a classic sacred text of Buddhism, full of infinite wisdom and wonder.


    Ye Futian deeply immersed himself in it. The content in the Heart Sutra was not much, and it was a little too obscure and dull for beginners. Once he entered into the space of total fascination, Ye Futian seemed to exist in the space of Buddhism. He sat cross-legged and surrounded by Buddhist runes. Faintly, lingering Sounds of Buddha could be heard, which was transmitted into the ears of those who could hear it, and it was deafening and unmistakable.


    A Buddha lamp was lit next to him, which seemed to also light up the heart for Buddha inside of him. Ye Futian almost felt that he had always been a Buddhist cultivator and was now comprehending Buddhist scriptures.


    As time passed, Ye Futian was surrounded by the Light of Buddha; it was as if he had been covered with a layer of gold all over his body. The white garment on him faintly glowed with a golden radiance.


    Others were also leafing through these Buddhist scriptures next to them, but they were browsing. Even if no cultivation was involved, reading these Buddhist scriptures and meditating on them was beneficial.


    Ye Futian stayed here for about a month before leaving. Soon after, Hua Qingqing took him to other ancient temples to study and comprehend Buddhist scriptures that were there and cultivate Buddhist superpowers. After coming to the sacred land of Western Heaven, Ye Futian was immersed in the cultivation of Buddhism.


    In a blink of an eye, two months passed. Ye Futian had been wandering among the ancient temples during this time. The time he stayed in each location became shorter and shorter. Recently, it seemed that he was simply observing, then leaving right after. It was more like taking a tour of the place rather than cultivating.


    In the meantime, at the sacred land of Western Heaven, the atmosphere of All Buddhas Fest was hitting a high point. The entire Western Heaven was more festive and lively than ever. There were already many people who were talking about the upcoming All Buddhas Conference.


    It was rumored that some great Buddhas had already arrived on the spirit mountains of all the heavens in the World of Buddhism, and they had stepped into the sacred land of Western Heavens. Some even claimed they had seen those figures with their own eyes.


    At this time, in a place of Buddhist cultivation in the Western Heaven, the Light of Buddha surrounds this space, full of peace and joy.


    In one place, there was an eminent monk who was giving a lecture. Many Buddhist cultivators sat and listened quietly, their visage majestic and dignified. The Light of Buddha lingered all around them as if they were preparing for the coming of the All Buddhas Conference.


    When the lecture was over, the phantom of those Buddhas in front gradually disappeared. The Light of Buddha still circulated in the quiet space upon those Buddhist cultivators. After a while, they opened their eyes and recited the Buddha��s name in thanks.


    ��How does everyone feel?�� a cultivator asked with a smile.


    ��Buddha Lord��s preaching was enlightening and refreshing. The benefits are incredible,�� someone replied.


    ��The Buddha Lord has an advanced and profound understanding of Buddhism and has elucidated some of my questions about the scriptures. I feel that my cultivation has improved a few more degrees because of it,�� another jumped in.


    ��Arhat��s cultivation has already reached the pinnacle, and now that your comprehension has improved even more, you must be getting close to crossing the Buddha��s Tribulation. This time at All Buddhas Conference, you will outshine all the others.�� Everyone was talking and praising the man, who was none other than Shenyan Arhat.


    ��What has that Ye Futian been doing? Is he still reading the scriptures?�� Shenyen Arhat asked around. In the sacred land of Western Heaven, Ye Futian��s every move could not be hidden from their eyes. The top-rated Buddha��s Clairvoyance could see through the endless space, and in the land of Western Heaven, they could directly zoom in on Ye Futian��s location and what he was doing.


    Therefore, Ye Futian��s cultivation in Buddhism did not escape their attention.


    Of course, Ye Futian never thought of concealing his whereabouts or what he was doing. He knew that his every move was under the scrutiny of these Buddhist cultivators. Tianyin Arhat, for one, had been watching him from the shadows. He heard everything loud and clear when Ye Futian was chatting with Yumu before.


    ��Well, he has been wandering among the ancient temples of the Western Heaven, and no one has any idea as to his true intentions,�� someone else responded.


    ��If you are speaking of cultivating Buddhism, going into a temple for a day or two then walking out of it is not the way to comprehend Buddhism.�� Some other cultivators gave their two cents with a smile. His smile was tinged with a slight sense of sarcasm; it seemed he was amused by Ye Futian��s lack of self-awareness.


    ��Cultivation of Buddhism must avoid impatience. Although Ye Futian is talented, he has too high of a regard for himself. Perhaps he is eager to achieve success and wants to improve his realm by comprehending and cultivating in Buddhism. However, he is just wasting his time.��


    ��What if he could really comprehend Buddhism, receiving some enlightenment, and cultivated some Buddhism methods? What is his intention?�� someone asked, a little curious.


    ��He wants to follow the example of Donghuang the Great��participate in the All Buddhas Conference and defeat everyone there,�� a Buddhist cultivator replied with a smile, and everyone suddenly burst out laughing. The whole thing looked a little comical. There was a strong sense of mockery.


    ��To defeat all the Buddhas?�� The golden eyes of Shenyan Arhat shot out some terrifying sharp rays. ��If he comes to the All Buddhas Conference and asks to participate, whatever happens after that cannot be blamed on us.��


    Ye Futian had not yet answered for the killings of their disciples, and now he wanted to participate in the All Buddhas Conference to defeat all the Buddhas. If this was not a crazy man��s talk, what else could it be?


    The All Buddhas Conference was a major Buddhist event. What happened hundreds of years ago when Donghuang the Great visited was not known to too many people. Only some ancient Buddhas who had cultivated for many years knew exactly what happened once upon a time. But in their generation, and at this time, they would absolutely not allow a similar occurrence again in the Buddhist Sect.


    After Donghuang the Great became emperor, what happened here was discussed in a positive light in the land of Divine Prefecture and was discussed ad nauseam. However, in the eyes of these Buddhists, their major event was crashed by some outsider, who then defeated all the Buddhas at their methods was certainly not viewed in a positive light. Especially those Buddhist cultivators, who were defeated by Donghuang the Great, must have had a difficult time swallowing their defeats.


    It was said that some great Buddhas had been in retreat ever since. They had been heavily affected by the event that took place hundreds of years ago and had not yet fully recovered from it. They seemed determined not to come out of their retreat until they had proved the Great Path. There was even a great Buddha whose existence ended in Parinirvana because of what took place.


    In any case, this matter, within the Buddhist circle, it was definitely a dishonor.


    Of course, there were some top Buddhas who did not mind it. From their perspective, all beings were equal, and for that, they admired Donghuang the Great. This was because their philosophy in cultivating Buddhism was different from the rest.


    However, Ye Futian didn��t know the things that were happening there. He continued to immerse in his own cultivation of Buddhist teachings and methods.


    Before they knew it, there was only seven-day��s time left before the start of the All Buddhas Conference. Ye Futian stopped his comprehension of Buddhism and did not continue to cultivate in the ancient temple.


    At this moment, Ye Futian and his group were here, on top of a peak in the Western Heaven.


    Next to the cliff, one could survey the vast space of the Western Heaven below. Ye Futian sat with his legs crossed, surrounded by golden light. Now, it was no longer just a simple Light of Buddha. His body seemed to have turned into a golden body. He was radiant all over. It was as if it was the body of an ancient golden Buddha. With this transformation, he was surrounded by many Buddhist runes, while Sounds of Buddha lingered in the air.


    In Ye Futian��s Life Palace, the entire Life Palace was surrounded by golden Light of Buddha, as if it had been transformed into a Buddha��s world. In this world, a massive and boundless Buddha shadow appeared above the firmament, like Dharma. It reflected upon Ye Futian, who was sitting cross-legged.


    Behind Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing stood there quietly, watching him cultivate.


    ��Looks like he doesn��t need my help anymore,�� Hua Qingqing said softly. Ye Futian��s comprehension and subsequent cultivation of Buddhism astounded her!

 Chapter 2473 - Golden Coastal Region

    Ye Futian opened his eyes. The golden Light of Buddha gleamed around him. Faintly, there seemed to be Sounds of Buddha lingering between heaven and earth, solemn and holy.


    ��The cultivation methods of Buddhism were indeed exceptional. It calms one��s body and soul, elevating one��s overall state of mind,�� Ye Futian whispered. Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing walked up behind him. Hua Jieyu smiled and said, ��That��s because all the Buddhist scriptures that Qingqing has been chosen for you are superior, making this effect possible.��


    ��It��s not so.�� Hua Qingqing said softly, ��In Buddhism, there was no such thing as superior or inferior among scriptures, as it is dependent on the person who seeks the enlightenment. However, the Buddhist scriptures I have chosen are in ascending order, which is indeed beneficial to the state of mind. But what truly matters is the cultivator himself.��


    Obviously, Hua Qingqing was complimenting Ye Futian.


    ��Speaking of which, if it were not for your help, Qingqing, I would not have been able to enter into such state of cultivation so quickly. I think not just me, but anyone with you assisting in the cultivation of Buddhism, would be able to accomplish amazing results,�� Ye Futian concluded with a sigh.


    During this period of cultivation, Hua Qingqing��s effect on him was as if she lit up his desire for Buddhism. He was already gifted with extraordinary talent, and because of the existence of his Natal Spirit, it was not difficult for him to cultivate any method of the Great Path. Now, with Hua Qingqing��s help, it seemed that he was naturally suited for Buddhist cultivation. He was in perfect sync with it and was able to enter the state of Buddhist cultivation immediately.


    ��You two can stop praising each other.�� Hua Jieyu smiled softly. ��Although the cultivation of Buddhism is going smoothly, to participate in the All Buddhas Conference, you have to face many top-level great Buddhas in the Western World of Buddhism. Many of them are hostile towards you, including the Arhats.��


    When she spoke of this, Hua Jieyu was not so optimistic anymore. Just as she said, she had absolute confidence in Ye Futian��s cultivation. Although it had not been long since he cultivated Buddhism, he had already had astounding successes.


    Still, it all depended on what kind of opponents he would be facing.


    However, the All Buddhas Conference was a forum for Buddhist cultivation. If Ye Futian intruded into the conference by any other means, it would be seriously out of place and defied the original intent of the All Buddhas Conference. If there were one great Buddha who had experienced the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path among those Buddhist cultivators, Ye Futian would be hard-pressed to contend with that.


    ��I understand,�� Ye Futian nodded. Even though he felt some pressure, Ye Futian was trying to maintain a balanced mindset, which, perhaps, was related to his recent cultivation. He looked at Hua Qingqing and said, ��If we fail this time, we will have to find another way.��


    ��We are just fighting for a chance this time. In fact, everything that happens in the sacred land of the Western Heaven must not be hidden from the Lord of All Buddhas. As long as he wants, everything will be known to him. Even if we fail, if the Lord of All Buddhas wants to receive me, he will. If he doesn��t want to receive me, then he won��t.�� Hua Qingqing seemed extremely at peace as she spoke casually. Although she did not possess a high level of cultivation, her mentality revealed extreme serenity. She was at ease with everything that was happening at the moment.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. Hua Qingqing��s words were quite right. Buddhism had six superpowers and many other fascinating and amazing methods, the wonders of which were infinite. The Lord of All Buddhas cultivated all the methods of Buddhism, so how could he not know all that was happening in the sacred land of Western Heaven?


    At this time, there were footsteps behind them. It was Blind Tie who came over and said to Ye Futian, ��There are only a few days left before the All Buddhas Conference, and the cultivators of the Western Heaven have gathered in one direction. Those Buddhist cultivators have also gone there, preparing to go to the Spirit Mountain of the Western Heaven. Shouldn��t we be getting ready to go as well?��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��It is time to take off.��


    After that, he contacted Mo Yunzi with his mind. Soon, Mo Yunzi arrived with Fang Cun and the others. He turned into his original form. Ye Futian and his group walked onto the back of the Golden-wing Roc. The Roc��s wings spread wide, breaking through the sky, rushing forward.


    At this moment, in the sky above the Western Heaven, there were cultivators everywhere, traveling by air. Many of them were Buddhist cultivators, surrounded by the Light of Buddha.


    Ye Futian looked around to take in the sight. Countless many cultivators were in the air, and all of them were heading in the same direction.


    To the west of the Western Heaven, there was a golden coastal region. This area was said to be endowed with spirit, and only those who cultivated Buddhism may cross. Common cultivators, without exception, had no way to cross this sea.


    Therefore, this coastal region was also known as the Sea of Buddha.


    At this time, countless cultivators gathered in front of this golden coastal region. Their eyes looked far ahead, where the other end of the sea seemed to be connected with the sky. There, one could vaguely see the golden Light of Buddha above the firmament, radiant beyond words, as if it was a World of Buddhism outside of this world.


    Everyone knew that was where Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven was located. Lord of All Buddhas had once cultivated there, and to this day, the Spirit Mountain of the Western Heaven was still considered the cultivation court of the Lord of All Buddhas. Of course, the Lord of All Buddhas had long since transcended the earthly world and was no longer bound by the five elements of heaven and earth. Now, it was most other Buddhas who cultivated at the Spirit Mountain.


    All those Buddhist cultivators clasped their hands in front of them, appearing exceedingly pious. They then stepped into the sea and traveled by Buddhist boats, dazzling with the Light of Buddha, as if on a pilgrimage. Their entire bodies were submerged in the Light of Buddha.


    As time progressed, many figures could be discerned in this golden sea, scattered in different places in the sea, but all were moving in the same direction. The scene was incredibly spectacular.


    Who knows when little monks like us will have the opportunity to participate in the All Buddhas Conference? some Buddhist cultivators with a lower level of cultivation sighed and wondered. His eyes, which focused on the golden sea, were filled with endless yearning. He put his hands together and gestured towards the far distance as if in prayer.


    In the crowd, many cultivators were doing the same thing he was.


    ��That��s a Buddhist cultivator under the tutelage of Tongchan Buddha Lord,�� someone looked in a particular direction.


    ��Tongchan Arhat is also there,�� someone else added, looking at a wickedly handsome Buddhist cultivator. This group of cultivators stepped into the sea and moved forward.


    More and more great Buddhas were coming, but they moved forward in the same way, without any exception.


    This was the only way to reach the Spirit Mountain, as there were no other shortcuts. Even those top Buddha Lords had to cross the sea in order to get there.


    As the time of the All Buddhas Conference drew closer, the number of people in this coastal region gradually decreased. Most of them had already gone to Spirit Mountain in advance, not wanting to miss the grand occasion of the All Buddhas Conference.


    When Ye Futian and the others arrived, there were not so many people who were crossing the sea anymore. They walked to the very front of the coastal region, looking at the Light of Buddha that was sprinkling down from the sky in the distance. The end of the sea seemed to be part of the sky, the ultimate holy land for those who cultivated Buddhism��Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven.


    However, Ye Futian did not set off immediately but was waiting. When all the Buddhist cultivators were gone, he would then cross the sea!

 Chapter 2474 - Buddhas at Spirit Mountain

    As time went by, fewer and fewer people were crossing the golden sea. All Buddhas Fest had entered its last month, and the All Buddhas Conference would be held on the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven.


    With no more Buddhist cultivators to cross over the golden sea, many cultivators held lotuses in their hands and placed them into the golden sea. Suddenly, those lotus blossoms seemed to be effused with a golden glow, drifting towards the center of the sea as if they were transforming into golden lotus flowers.


    Countless others repeated this same action. Soon, those who had released the lotus flowers clasped their hands together in front of them, worshipping the golden sea with their eyes closed. The Sound of Buddha came out of their mouths. These tremendously pious folks seemed to be praying for blessings.


    The Sound of Buddha reverberated throughout heaven and earth as if forming a resonance in this corner of the world. Ye Futian stood in front of the coast. With the Sound of Buddha in his ears, he was compelled to clasp his hands together as well. His expression was one of great solemnity. Nowadays, he considered himself one of the Buddhist cultivators.


    In their own ways, these cultivators of Buddhism seemed to pray for the success of the All Buddhas Conference.


    And something seemed to respond to this Sound of Buddha, which lingered between heaven and earth. At the end of the golden sea, where it bordered the sky, the infinitely dazzling Light of Buddha lit up, then sprinkled over the sea. The light covered this boundless coastal region with an even brighter golden glow.


    Even a Sound of Buddha came from yonder, which created some kind of resonance with the Sound of Buddha on this side. Suddenly, many Buddhist cultivators who were unable to cross the sea sat cross-legged by the sea and cultivated there with their eyes closed.


    The sight in front of them was so spectacular and palpable that Chen Yi, Fang Cun, and the others felt its solemnity and holiness as well. They couldn��t help but bow, with their hands clasped in front of them, to the other end of the sea. Conceivably, this Light of Buddha must be a sign signifying the start of the All Buddhas Conference.


    Long afterward, the Sound of Buddha that lingered between heaven and earth gradually dissipated, but the Light of Buddha remained; it continued to illuminate the world. Gradually, some left, while others still sat by the edge of the sea to cultivate. The coastal region with so many people cultivating was, in fact, strangely quiet.


    ��When are you leaving?�� Chen Yi walked next to Ye Futian and asked.


    Ye Futian glanced into the distance and whispered, ��It��s about time.��


    As he was speaking, he looked at Hua Qingqing beside him and said, ��Qingqing, are you ready?��


    ��Yes,�� Hua Qingqing nodded. Her face was very tranquil, and her beautiful eyes were clear and pure.


    ��Let��s go then,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. His heart was without disturbance. Hua Jieyu stood on the other side and whispered, ��You two be careful.��


    ��I know.�� Ye Futian smiled at Hua Jieyu, knowing that she was still a little nervous.


    Only Hua Qingqing and he would embark on this journey. Hua Jieyu and the others did not cultivate Buddhism; therefore, they could not cross the sea.


    Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing stepped into the golden water, and a Buddha boat appeared at their feet, drifting forward and carried them into the golden sea.


    ��Master,�� Little Ling, Fang Cun, and the others stepped forward and looked towards the departing figure of Ye Futian; they were all a little unsure.


    On this trip, their master was about to go to the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven, where all the Buddhas would be gathering. Among these Buddhas, there was no telling how many strong cultivators there would be. If they wanted to kill Ye Futian, he would have no way of fighting back.


    Ye Futian waved his hand with his back towards them. He then sat cross-legged on the Buddha boat, as a Light of Buddha illuminated upon him. It was as if he had been incarnated into a Buddha himself. Hua Qingqing stood behind him with a small smile on her face as she looked at the far end of the sea. Her garments, likewise, were bathed in the Light of Buddha. With her hands clasped together, her visage was one of solemn majesty; it was like that of a Bodhisattva.


    All the countless people in front of the sea regarded that lonely Buddha boat in front of them with surprise. The sight before them was as perfect as a painting.


    Were these two on their way to the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven?


    The two of them floated on the sea in the Buddha boat, moving forward. The Buddha Sea was like a golden mirror. When Ye Futian looked down at his reflection in the sea, he did not know whether he was traveling in the water or that he was walking in the sky.


    Ye Futian smiled, then closed his eyes, cultivating quietly. He was allowing the Buddha boat to float forward without distraction or worry.


    Hua Qingqing stood there quietly as if she was in charge of the advancement of the boat. Bathed in the Light of Buddha, she appeared sacred and beautiful. The Buddha boat moved forward slowly, and it seemed to be very far away from the other end of the sea. They had no idea when they would ever arrive.


    Day by day, the time went by. In a blink of an eye, more than 20 days had passed. The Buddha boat was still floating in the golden sea, easily losing the passage of time.


    Hua Qingqing and Ye Futian did not exchange one word; they were extremely quiet. The end of Western Heaven is still far away, but they did not feel the least bit of impatience. This was the Buddha Sea, and the Buddha Sea had cognizance of its own. When they were allowed to cross over, they would arrive.


    If the Buddha Sea did not want them to cross, they would not get there no matter how much they forced it. This here was the Buddha��s world.


    As they were still drifting, Ye Futian continued to cultivate quietly and comprehend the Buddhist methods. Hua Qingqing, likewise, stood there quietly, without disturbing Ye Futian��s cultivation. After some time had passed, the All Buddhas Conference had been progressing for more than 20 days at this point, with only the last three days remaining.


    Hua Qingqing realized that they were still on the sea, and the distance to Spirit Mountain at the end of the sea had not changed at all. It was as if they would never reach their destination.


    However, at this moment, there was a sudden surge of the Light of Buddha that rippled over the sea, and the golden surface of the sea was suddenly tossed with waves.


    Then, several figures of Buddha floated up from the golden sea, standing in front of them. Their hands were clasped together in front of them, and the Sound of Buddha came out of their mouths.


    ��Amitabha!��


    Likewise, Hua Qingqing put her hands together and bowed to salute the Buddhas who were present. Finally, Ye Futian stopped cultivating as he opened his eyes, clasping his hands in front of him, and saluted, ��Youngster Ye Futian comes to visit the Spirit Mountain of the Western Heaven.��


    ��You two benefactors are both endowed with roots of wisdom,�� another Buddha said. Then among them, the water mist surged from the golden sea, turning into a golden door, which illuminated another world inside, as if It was the grand view of the Spirit mountain.


    ��Thank you, Grandmaster.�� Ye Futian bowed again to thank them. Then, the Buddha boat continued moving forward and drifting towards the door. Soon, the Buddha boat went through the door and drove inside. In the next moment, it disappeared.


    When they disappeared, the door disappeared immediately as well. All the phantoms of the Buddhas turned into a watery mist and returned to the sea. Everything was as it was before��as if nothing had ever happened.


    However, in another place, when Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing reappeared once again, there was no more Buddha boat under them; they were standing on pure soil now. Looking forward, they saw a sky full of Buddhas as the Light of Buddha shone upon them. From bottom to top, many Buddhas could be seen standing in this space.


    When they beheld the sight before them, Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing were both very solemn. They put their hands together and greeted all the Buddhas in the sky, appearing extremely pious.


    The Buddhas seemed to know that they were coming, and they seemed to be waiting for them. Countless eyes fell on the two of them. Under the brilliance of the Light of Buddha, both Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing felt an invisible sense of pressure. This was not deliberate, however. Whoever faced so many Buddhas in the sky at once would feel the pressure just like they did!

 Chapter 2475 - Dharma of the Alacanatha Battle Form

    Ye Futian looked at all the Buddhas in the sky. Although he felt the pressure distinctly, he would still face it with the utmost tranquility.


    In Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven, all the Buddhas in the sky, from the bottom-up, were organized with an obvious hierarchy. Those Buddhas with stronger cultivation were sitting in higher places. It seemed that there were several layers of heavens.


    This was something that Ye Futian took notice of. Everything in the world had its own order; the same held true for even the Buddhas.


    ��Ye Futian, you had killed disciples of Buddhism. How dare you show your face in Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven?�� There was a voice that came from above, chastising him. A pressure of might now spread towards Ye Futian as many eyes fell on him. Many of them were obviously hostile.


    They never imagined that Ye Futian would dare to come here and step on the ultimate holy land of Western Heaven.


    Ye Futian looked around at the Buddhas. His expression was calm enough. He asked, ��May I ask the Buddhas this? What if someone was trying to take your cultivation, robbing you of your divine items, and threatening your life? What would you do?��


    No one answered him, but they knew why he asked. Everything that happened previously in Six Desires Heaven was because those cultivators had attempted to take the divine body away from him.


    ��I ask the Buddhas humbly: would people who act like this be worthy of being called Buddhas?�� Ye Futian followed up with yet another question.


    On the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven, there was a moment of silence. Then a great Buddha responded, ��Not worthy.��


    ��In that case, I haven��t slain any Buddha. These claims are nothing more than baseless, false accusations.�� Ye Futian clasped his hands together and continued, ��Ye Futian came here today, seeking an audience with the Lord of All Buddhas.��


    As the Buddhas whispered amongst themselves, many Buddhist cultivators glanced at Hua Qingqing, who stood behind Ye Futian. They could discern that there was something extraordinary about her.


    However, for Ye Futian to take her here to see the Lord of All Buddhas was clearly a bit self-aggrandizing on Ye Futian��s part.


    Of course, they also knew that Ye Futian came here this time because he wanted to emulate Donghuang.


    ��Ye Futian, you came from Divine Prefecture and have only been in the Western Heaven for a few months. For what reason do you think you deserve an audience with the Lord of All Buddhas?�� a Buddha asked.


    Some people even jeered in their hearts. This guy had not a clue of his own ability nor its limits.


    ��Buddha says that all beings are equal, and there is no distinction of high and low. I am here sincerely asking for an audience. Why is that forbidden?�� Ye Futian asked in return.


    ��All beings are equal, and there is no distinction between high and low. However, there is a distinction between high and low in Buddhist methods,�� someone replied.


    ��Ye Futian, the All Buddhas Conference is a time when all Buddhists gather to study the methods with each other. We know that you meant to emulate the feat of Donghuang the Great, but you have only cultivated in Buddhist methods for mere months. It��s still a long way away from when you can compete using Buddhist methods. Furthermore, even if you are outstanding in Buddhist methods, it is no guarantee whether the Lord of All Buddhas wishes to grant you an audience. All beings are indeed equal. It is precisely because of this that all beings have no obligation to agree to any demands from the others.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and said, ��I understand it is completely up to the Lord of All Buddhas to decide whether he will receive me or not. Although I have only cultivated Buddhist methods for a short time, I know that the cultivation does not lie in the length of time. I have no intention to follow in the footsteps of Donghuang the Great. I am only here because I desire an audience with the Lord of All Buddhas. Since this is the only opportunity available to me, that is why I am here.��


    As he was speaking, he took a few steps forward and said, ��Therefore, Ye Futian would like to exchange Buddhist methods with the Buddhas who are in attendance. Please advise.��


    He put his hands together once again and bowed to salute them. He appeared to be very respectful. However, he was neither obsequious nor arrogant when facing all these Buddhas in the sky. He was extremely calm and confident.


    Upon the Spirit Mountain, Buddha��s peaceful and benevolent Light covered this space, making it more holy than ever. The Buddhas looked at the man with white hair, and they were a little curious. Hundreds of years ago, another cultivator came from Divine Prefecture to exchange with the Buddhas. What would be the difference between this one and Donghuang the Great from once upon a time?


    ��Since Benefactor Ye wants to have an exchange in Buddhist methods, who is willing to give it a try?�� said a great Buddha at the highest place of Spirit Mountain, clearly granting Ye Futian��s request.


    Ye Futian looked over there and saw that the speaker was none other than Wutian Buddha Lord himself, and he felt a little relieved. His uninvited presence at Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven was truly a bit disrespectful. The worst-case scenario was he being forcibly driven out of Spirit Mountain. If that happened, it would definitely be impossible for him to see the Lord of All Buddhas.


    The words of Wutian Buddha Lord, no doubt, gave him a fighting chance.


    All the Buddhas in the sky fixed their eyes on Ye Futian. They could perceive Ye Futian��s cultivation at the peak of Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm. And they had long heard of Ye Futian��s combat effectiveness. When he was in the Original Realm, they had already heard that Ye Futian was an invincible existence in the Renhuang realm. With the help of the divine body, he could punish even those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Of course, Ye Futian couldn��t leverage the divine body or any other objects at present. He had only the option to fight using Buddhist methods.


    And Ye Futian had only cultivated the Buddhist methods for a few months. It was in this context that the Buddhas had taken Ye Futian��s cultivation into consideration.


    At this moment, a Buddha came forward. His entire body was brilliant and massive; it was as if cast from pure gold. His cultivation was exceptional��Buddhist Path Ninth-Realm, which was equivalent to peak Renhuang.


    ��This is Giant Spirit Buddha,�� Wutian Buddha Lord introduced. Giant Spirit Buddha bowed with his hands together in front of him, and said to Ye Futian, ��Benefactor Ye, pleased to meet you.��


    Ye Futian looked at Giant Spirit Buddha, who was several heads taller than himself. His hands clasped in front of him, and he was surrounded by golden light. He sat down cross-legged and said, ��There is a mention in Buddhist scriptures that as long as the Buddha��s heart is determined and faithful, it cannot be shaken, and that Acalanatha Battle Form could be achieved. Is that correct?��


    ��It seems that Benefactor Ye has indeed paid attention in the cultivation of Buddhist methods,�� praised the Giant Spirit Buddha.


    ��If so, please go ahead.�� When Ye Futian finished speaking, he, who was sitting cross-legged, closed his eyes. His heart was as steady and indestructible a rock. His entire body was shining with golden-divine light, and a humongous Buddha statue appeared now, turning into the Dharma of Acalanatha Battle Form. Both of its hands were held in different positions. It was as if his thoughts had been proven and had turned him into a Buddha.


    This sight truly astonished the many Buddhas on the Spirit Mountain, and the Giant Spirit Buddha was no exception. However, his body began to expand and enlarge. It turned into a Buddha, which was about the same size as the Alacanatha Battle Form, but even more stalwart and full of power.


    The expanded version of Giant Spirit Buddha was holding a Vajra pestle radiated with the Light of Buddha. He picked it up overhead with both his hands and smashed directly towards the Alacanatha Buddha Form. However, Ye Futian remained motionless, his eyes closed. His inaction caused many people to sweat for him.


    When the Vajra pestle blasted down, a violent roar was heard, and the Alacanatha Battle Form shook because of it. But its golden torso did not suffer the slightest crack, and it remained as immovable as a mountain, true to the meaning of indestructibility.


    The Golden Light of Buddha circulated above the Dharma of the Acalanatha Battle Form; it was as if many Buddhist runes were floating around, making him a true incarnation of the Buddha.


    When he saw this, the Giant Spirit Buddha knew that he had lost. He put down the Vajra pestle and put his hands together to bow to Ye Futian. ��Just as Benefactor Ye said, the cultivation of Buddhism does not depend on the length of time spent in cultivation. For you to achieve the Acalanatha Battle Form in just a few months and comprehend the truth therewithin, I dare say Benefactor Ye is indeed predestined with my Lord Buddha. Little monk, I am ashamed that I am not fit to compete.��


    After that, the Giant Spirit Buddha stepped back out of his own volition.


    Ye Futian came to the Spirit Mountain of the Western Heaven to exchange Buddhist methods, and in just one battle, he had demonstrated his attainments in Buddhist methods to all the Buddhas in the Western Heaven!

 Chapter 2476 - Buddhist Spell

    ��Benefactor Ye has already acquired the essence of Alacanatha Battle Form. It seems that he accomplished much in these past few months of cultivation. Nobody should underestimate him,�� a great Buddha commented as he looked at Ye Futian, who was below.


    The Dharma of Alacanatha Battle Form was also known as Alacanatha Battle Form��a very powerful battle form in Buddhism. The cultivation of this battle form was extremely demanding regarding one��s state of mind. No one ever suspected that Ye Futian would fully comprehend and cultivate this technique in such a short period.


    In another direction, many Buddhist cultivators looked at each other. Shenyan Arhat was among these cultivators. Not long ago, they discussed that Ye Futian had only cultivated Buddhism for months and did not stay long in the many places he visited. He would go to some ancient temple for two or three days before moving on to another one. They did not think this was the way for anyone to cultivate Buddhism properly.


    But obviously, they were wrong. They had underestimated Ye Futian��s talent in Buddhism. Not only did he successfully cultivated Buddhist methods, but he had also achieved great things.


    Although the Giant Spirit Buddha was not some major Buddhist figure, he was, after all, an existence in the Ninth-Realm of the Buddhist Path. Nevertheless, he was unable to break apart Ye Futian��s battle form. The gap between the two was glaring. This demonstrated that Ye Futian��s strength was so considerable that unless it were top-level Buddhist cultivators, it would not be easy to repel him.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked at all the Buddhas. He then walked forward with a solemn expression, hands clasped together in front of him. He maintained a grave and dignified demeanor without being the least impertinent. His lips moved slightly, and Sounds of Buddha seemed to come out of his mouth. It was rather difficult to hear what he was saying; only the lingering Sound of Buddha was audible.


    He walked forward as if he intended to get to the highest point on a whim. This was to meet the greatest Buddhas of them all��the Lord of All Buddhas.


    Those great Buddhas felt a sense of d��j�� vu when they beheld this sight. Hundreds of years ago, Donghuang the Great, like him, walked all the way up to the top and had met the Lord of All Buddhas.


    Ye Futian, likewise, was also from the Divine Prefecture.


    Bang! Another great Buddha stepped out at this time. This great Buddha was a Buddhist cultivator under Tianlun Vajra Buddha Lord. He had an amazing aura that gave the onlookers a sense of incredible pressure of aggression. When he was standing in front of Ye Futian, a golden Dharma appeared behind him, as a domain suddenly manifested between heaven and earth with Ye Futian in the middle of it. Hight above the sky, numerous glaring Vajra Buddhas appeared, pressing down with mighty coercion.


    These glaring Vajras were fierce and frightening, with terrifying auras. The Buddha that had walked out also transformed into a Vajra Buddha himself. As he stretched out his golden right arm, suddenly, those glaring Vajras also stretched out their arms, blasting towards Ye Futian at the same time.


    However, a series of ancient, golden words continued to pour out of Ye Futian��s lips, as the Sounds of Buddha lingered. That Buddhist cultivator who walked out had a look of caution on his face. This was a Buddhist spell.


    Did he actually cultivate the Buddhist spell?


    All around Ye Futian, powerful and domineering Vajras holding the Dharma, spewing out mantras as an unparalleled golden Light of Buddha radiated from them. When those many arms blasted down for the kill, they found they could not move him one inch.


    At the same time, with the Sound of Buddha that poured out of Ye Futian��s mouth, many of those Buddha phantoms in the void began to crack, then they shattered. A Buddhist mantra in the form of runes landed on them, causing their golden body to collapse and pulverize.


    Aside from those Buddha phantoms, the Buddhist cultivator that had walked out suffered, too. Countless runes of Buddhist mantra attached themselves to his golden body and erupted in golden divine light. The Light of Buddha was blinding as his golden body exploded. He let out an enraged scream, trying to escape the runes of mantra; however, the runes were endless and infinite, completely shrouding the void.


    Along with those roaring sounds, the golden body shattered, and that Buddhist cultivator was knocked out. He gave a muffled groan as blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. His golden body was broken, and he was injured.


    Ye Futian bowed his head and said nothing. He clasped his hands together in front of them and continued moving forward. When that Buddhist cultivator saw Ye Futian coming, he involuntarily backed away to let Ye Futian walk past him.


    ��Vajra Spell.�� All the Buddhas looked at Ye Futian in amazement. In addition to the Alacanatha Battle form, Ye Futian had also cultivated the Vajra Spell��a Buddhist spell.


    There were many powerful spells in Buddhism that were extremely effective. There were even spells that could transcend the dead and send them into the cycles of reincarnation. The spell Ye Futian used just now was the Vajra spell, which was a particularly domineering type of spell. It was a perfect complement with the Alacanatha Battle Form, and together, they formed a powerful and unstoppable duo. It was no wonder that the Buddhist cultivator had been unable to stop him from advancing.


    It was pure coincidence when Ye Futian first cultivated this spell. He had already cultivated the Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm previously, which was a rhythm technique of Buddhism. It turned out that Vajra Demon-slaying Rhythm was derived from the Vajra Spell, which was also a part of the Spell itself.


    With an existing foundation and an expert in the way of rhythm, Ye Futian��s cultivation of the Vajra Spell was a natural choice. He was able to take control of it quickly, and its power was indeed domineering and tyrannical.


    Afterward, another Buddhist cultivator came out, still someone in the Ninth-Realm, but there was no success. He was crushed by Ye Futian, just like all the others before him. With the Vajra Spell on top of the Alacanatha Battle Form, Ye Futian was solid and unmovable. However, the others could not withstand his attacks; they couldn��t even stop his advancement, as he was still walking forward.


    Seeing that Ye Futian was so impossibly dominant, some Buddhist cultivators stepped forward one after another. Some wanted to stymie Ye Futian��s forward progress, and some wanted to experience Ye Futian��s strength. But all of them, without exception, were not able to stop him.


    On both sides, there was a collection of quite a few wounded cultivators. However, Ye Futian was merciful. He didn��t go overboard and hurt anyone grievously, as all of them were only slightly injured. After all, this was the Spirit Mountain of the Western Heaven, the supreme holy land of the World of Buddhism, the place where the Lord of All Buddhas once cultivated.


    Soon, Ye Futian passed through the lowest layer and stepped up onto the golden sea of clouds. All around him, the auras of these Buddhist cultivators were becoming stronger, as their statuses were also elevated. Just as that great Buddha said before, all beings were equal, and there was no difference among Buddhas. However, there was a distinction between Buddhist methods.


    From the highest point, those Buddha Lords watched Ye Futian making his way up towards them. Some Buddha Lords whispered, ��I didn��t expect that someone from the Divine Prefecture, after having cultivated Buddhism for a few months, could reach this level of achievement. It seems that unless the direct disciples of the Buddha Lords intervene, it will be difficult to stop Benefactor Ye.��


    ��Could it be that the Buddhas cultivated the methods for many years and are still not as good as the few months someone spent in cultivation?�� other great Buddhas looked around the crowd and questioned. This great Buddha was none other than Shenyan Buddha Lord, whose speech was as belligerent. His gaze was frightening. Zhu Hou, who was killed in Jianan City, was a disciple of his.


    Of course, there were many disciples under him, and the death of one was hardly a great matter to him. As someone who was a Buddha Lord, he didn��t need to deal with the nitty-gritty of these matters. Nonetheless, it was his disciple who had died, and now the culprit had come here, crashing through the Spirit Mountain of the Western Heaven. He was certainly unhappy about this turn of events. If this man were allowed to pass through Spirit Mountain, wouldn��t it be a slap in the face for the Buddhas who were here?


    All the buddhas cultivated the same methods, but Buddhism was infinite, and the way it was cultivated by each person was different as well. It was the same with figures such as the Buddha Lords; their ideals and philosophies differed depending on who they were.


    Upon hearing the words of Shenyan Buddha Lord, one of his disciples immediately came forward. He was still a cultivator in the Ninth-Realm with a terrifying aura of cultivation. He stood in front of Ye Futian, opened up his heavenly eyes, and looked at Ye Futian. It was as if he could see through Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his head to glance at the other man and thought, A disciple of Shenyan Buddha Lord? Previously, these people had stopped him in the sacred land of the Western Heaven. If they were not on a killing hiatus because of the All Buddha��s Fest, perhaps they would be seeking revenge for Zhu Hou by now!

 Chapter 2477 - Mahavairocana

    ��Huh?�� The cultivator who came forward was under the tutelage of Shenyan Buddha Lord. He frowned when he used his heavenly eyes to examine Ye Futian. Buddha��s Clairvoyance was one of the six superpowers of Buddhism, infinitely wonderous. Buddha��s Clairvoyance could see through all things and everything. When cultivated to its ultimate state, it could see into someone��s past and future.


    It was true that Ye Futian had released the Dharma, but his realm was higher than that of Ye Futian��s. Using the Buddha��s Clairvoyance, he should be able to detect all of Ye Futian��s weaknesses, unhindered by the Dharma. He would then see through the essence of Ye Futian, thus defeating him using the most effective superpower.


    However, the Buddha��s Clairvoyance revealed nothing but primordial chaos. He was unable to see anything clearly, as if in a state of complete nothingness.


    He even had a suspicious feeling that Ye Futian was like the real Buddha, the purest Buddhist cultivator whose body was cast in gold. Under the blessing of the Dharma, he was solemn and sacred.


    This was usually what happened when he looked into other great Buddhas with Clairvoyance; why did this happen when he looked at Ye Futian?


    ��He��s a little odd.�� Not only him, but his fellow disciples were all looking at Ye Futian at this time, golden Light of Buddhas shining from their eyes. They used the heavenly eyes to pry and spy. However, even as close as they were, their efforts were equally futile as they could not properly comprehend his depth.


    It gave them an illusion that Buddha��s Clairvoyance had absolutely no effect on Ye Futian.


    ��Indeed, perhaps he has divine items or some blessings on him that could resist the prying eyes of Buddha��s Clairvoyance,�� the people next to him suggested. If Buddha��s Clairvoyance was unable to see through Ye Futian, then the only way to deal with Ye Futian was by real combat, which would not be easy, to put it mildly.


    After all, Ye Futian had demonstrated extraordinary combat effectiveness when he fought before, consistently crushing Buddhist cultivators in the Ninth-Realm.


    However, the person who came forward was their fellow disciples, cultivating under the same master��Shenyan Buddha Lord. Even if he couldn��t pry or see through Ye Futian, his cultivation in Buddhist methods ought to be on equal ground for him to compete with Ye Futian.


    That Buddhist cultivator��s expression sobered up quite a bit now. With a thought, this space suddenly transformed into a realm of Buddhism. Behind him, a Tianyan Buddha appeared. At the same time, countless pairs of eyes appeared in the surrounding space. The sight was a little eerie.


    Those many eyes looked in Ye Futian��s direction simultaneously. When Ye Futian looked at those eyes, countless images appeared in his mind, like illusions. Each pair of eyes contained a different phantasmatic image, which directly took Ye Futian into what seemed to be the world of Eye Sorcery.


    Ye Futian found that he seemed to have entered into another world, the space of Eye Sorcery, the world of the Buddhas. Obviously, he knew this was a false illusion, but somehow, he was still taken there regardless of that knowledge.


    However, he did not waver. Sounds of Sanskrit came out of his mouth as the Alacanatha Battle Form released a brilliant Light of Buddha behind him. The Light of Buddha surrounded him and expelled all deceptions. Numerous pairs of heavenly eyes were still suspended in the air, but he stood his ground and did not move.


    All illusions were emptiness.


    Buzz! At the same time, the golden Light of Buddha radiated out of the heavenly eyes which descended upon Ye Futian. Suddenly, Ye Futian felt his body was being restrained. It was difficult for him to move; he couldn��t even lift his feet.


    Buddhist runes continuously flew out of his mouth, flying towards those many pairs of eyes in the void. The Alacanatha Battle Form released an even more brilliant Light of Buddha. Ye Futian remained still.


    That Buddhist cultivator raised his hand, and a golden divine sword appeared in the hand of the Tianyan Buddha who was behind him. This sword was blessed by the Light of Buddha, and it seemed to be able to cut down all falsehoods and immolate all evil spirits.


    At the same time, there seemed to be images of Buddhas that reflected in those heavenly eyes. They made the same movement as the Buddha, who slashed down with the divine sword, heaving it into Ye Futian��s body.


    ��Immobilization technique��Zhuxie Sword.��


    When all the Buddhist cultivators witnessed the sight, they recognized these two powerful Buddhist superpowers. He had leveraged the heavenly eyes to release the Immobilization Technique and Zhuxie Sword to create a combination so powerful that they could break through all the falsehoods and punish the physical body directly. No evil spirits could stop the attacks from the divine sword.


    Ye Futian had spent several months comprehending Buddhism in the ancient temples of the Western Heaven. Although it was impossible for him to cultivate all of Buddhism��s superpowers, he had some basic understanding of many Buddhist methods. He clearly recognized the Immobilization Technique and Zhuxie Sword.


    The combination and complementarity of the two Buddhist superpowers were indeed unparalleled and astounding.


    What would happen when the Alacanatha Battle Form encountered the Zhuxie Sword?


    The Light of Buddha on Ye Futian��s body was dazzling incessantly. The Vajra spell was spat out from him and landed on those pairs of heavenly eyes. However, the Zhuxie Sword had already smashed down and blasted on the battle form. Suddenly, cracks in the Alacanatha Battle Form appeared. At the same time, the body began to fall apart, and the Vajra spell struck many heavenly eyes, destroying them completely.


    The Zhuxie Sword smashed down, and just it was about to make contact with Ye Futian��s body, another blazing Light of Buddha bloomed. The golden light overwhelmed the sky with indescribable radiance. A Buddha rose up, pushing the Zhuxie Sword upward in the opposite direction.


    A golden sun appeared above the firmament. Ye Futian seemed to have incarnated into an ancient Buddha, whose brilliance was shining through the ages. A golden divine flame was burning upon the Buddha��s body. So fervent and strong was it that the Zhuxie Sword began to catch on fire and started burning. Little by little, it was being destroyed.


    ��Mahavairocana!�� All the Buddhas were a little taken aback by what they were seeing. Ye Futian had previously displayed two powerful Buddhist superpowers��the Alacanatha Battle Forms and the Vajra spell. Now, he was unleashing a third Buddhist superpower��the Mahavairocana.


    How did he achieve that?


    The Mahavairocana Buddha was a Dharmakaya. The Mahavairocana was considered one of the strongest Dharmakayas in Buddhism. Even many of the top great Buddhas in Buddhism found it challenging to cultivate. It required total mastery of Buddhist methods in order to comprehend a thing or two about it.


    How could Ye Futian be capable of cultivating the Mahavairocana?


    ��It��s not right����


    ��There is no Mahavairocana cultivation in any of the ancient temples. All that was there were just a few simple introductions. So, how did he cultivate it? Unless he did not just start cultivating Buddhist methods in the past few months, but had started cultivating it a long time ago?�� Some Buddhist cultivators questioned this remarkable event.


    ��Mahavairocana is one of the most powerful dharmakayas of Buddhism. It was never passed on to outsiders. How did he cultivate it? Where did he steal it from?�� someone else questioned in an accusatory tone.


    ��Buddha Lord, this young man��s intention is highly suspect. His cultivation should be abolished,�� someone looked at the great Buddhas high above and suggested.


    Just as they were talking amongst themselves, the Mahavairocana was still expanding, burning the Zhuxie Sword to a crisp, breaking through the immobilization technique and all those pairs of heavenly eyes. A thunderous rumbling sound came out, and the boundless and massive Mahavairocana raised his palm and slammed it forward. When it was unleashed, it was obvious that it was none other than the Palm of Mahavairocana.


    The Buddhist cultivator summoned the Dharmakaya to contend, but the terrifying Palm of Mahavairocana blasted down, shattering everything. There was a loud bang as cracks appeared on the ground. That Buddhist cultivator grunted as if he was about to be crushed. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and his golden body broken into pieces.


    Bang! With a loud boom, the Palm of Mahavairocana smashed the golden body into pieces, leaving a terrible giant palm print on the ground, and it then dissipated and disappeared. However, that Buddhist cultivator was now breathing shallowly as blood came out of the corners of his mouth. He looked extremely weak. He had clearly lost the ability to fight again.


    When they looked at Ye Futian once more, they saw the Light of Buddha shine brightly on the vast space, and the Mahavairocana radiated infinitely rays of light. It was as if Ye Futian had already proved himself as a Buddha.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was like the true Buddha!

 Chapter 2478 - The Threat

    ��Mahavairocana!��


    The Buddhist cultivator who was defeated by Ye Futian just stared at him. He had cultivated Buddhist methods for many years under Shenyan Buddha Lord. He had followed him all these years and had the opportunity to be preached and taught by the Buddha Lord himself.


    However, even so, some of the most profound Buddhist methods were still difficult to cultivate.


    This Mahavairocana was considered a top-level Buddhist method and was known as one of the strongest and most superior dharmakayas in Buddhism. The Mahavairocana Buddha was a Dharmakaya Buddha who once achieved in the cultivation of this Dharma, attained the Dharmakaya, and was incarnated as the Mahavairocana. It was extremely virile in nature and powerful beyond description. Incorruptible by any means, it was capable of overcoming all evil spirits.


    But this superior method that he was unable to cultivate, Ye Futian did. This cultivator from the Divine Prefecture had only been in contact with Buddhism for a few months.


    ��When did you cultivate the Mahavairocana?�� That Buddhist cultivator��s eyes were solemn and grave, and he had quite forgotten about his own injury. The shock in his heart was stronger; it far surpassed the impact that physical injuries had imposed on him.


    Ye Futian did not respond. He put his hands together in front of him, looking at the great Buddha high above the Spirit Mountain, and said, ��The Lord of All Buddhas preached Buddhism throughout the world. The hope is so that everyone in the world would be able to understand the mystery of Buddhism. Therefore, why is my cultivation of the Mahavairocana considered a sin? It ought to be regarded as my destiny with Buddhism.��


    ��Amitabha,�� Wutian Buddha said with his hands together. ��Ye Futian��s words are true enough. Buddhism spreads throughout the world. If he is able to cultivate it, then it is his destiny in Buddhism. Not to mention that his cultivation of it was complete. If anyone accused him of stealing while all the Buddha Lords are still around, this statement would sound a little too farfetched and absurd.��


    All Buddhist superpowers were infinitely wondrous. How could Ye Futian learn of such superior Buddhist methods in secret? If he really did, they should have known easily enough.


    ��Even so, how did he cultivate this Mahavairocana?�� Shenyan Buddha Lord asked. He had always been somewhat hostile towards Ye Futian. Of course, this did not mean that he regarded Ye Futian as an enemy. In his eyes, Ye Futian was but a youngster who had relied on sneaky means to cause the demise of several Lord-level figures. He had used the explosion of the divine body to injure Saint Zhenchan severely. None of these happenings were based on Ye Futian��s own strength.


    As a great Buddha in the World of Buddhism, why would he even care about an insignificant youngster like Ye Futian?


    But he disapproved of the way he behaved.


    ��If I told you that when I was cultivating Buddhism, a Buddha had instructed me in Buddhist methods, thus aiding me in the cultivation of the Mahavairocana, would the Buddha Lord believe me?�� Ye Futian said.


    ��That��s absurd.�� Shenyan Buddha Lord stared at Ye Futian. He asked, ��Which great Buddha taught methods to you?��


    ��As Buddha said, silence is the word,�� Ye Futian responded, which was reciprocated by a cold snort from Shenyan Buddha Lord. Suddenly, a coercion descended on Ye Futian across the space, from top to bottom, oppressing him completely.


    ��Today, I came here humbly seeking Buddhist methods. Does the Buddha Lord wish to come out himself and demonstrate?�� Ye Futian asked. He had only the cultivation of Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm and had not been cultivated in Buddhist methods for long. If a Buddha as respectable as Shenyan Buddha Lord himself were to engage him in battle, then it would very clearly be a case of an unfair fight.


    Under the circumstance, how could they continue to discuss or exchange Buddhist methods? That would be a blatant act of bullying.


    With all the Buddhas gathered at one place here currently, Shenyan Buddha Lord couldn��t very well act as he wanted. Therefore, he simply snorted and said, ��Although you cultivate in Buddhism, it was no more than the form itself. You relied heavily on your own natural talent and cultivated Buddhist superpowers in a hurry. Your cultivation was not rooted in the essence of Buddhism at all. I want to see just how far you can go with this.��


    ��What the Buddha Lord said was true enough. Just because someone had cultivated Buddhist superpowers does not mean that they are Buddhas themselves,�� said another Buddhist cultivator.


    Ye Futian clasped his hands together in front of him and nodded serious, saying, ��What the Buddha Lord said was quite true. I am just a beginner in cultivating Buddhism, and I can feel the depth and profundity of Buddhism. Even a lifetime may not be enough to become a Buddha in the truest sense. To cultivate in Buddhism is to cultivate one��s heart, and I readily admit that I am far from achieving that just yet. In my heart, there is only awe for all Buddhist methods. This world is vast, and countless people had touted themselves as Buddhas. However, how many among them can really truly deserve to be called as such!��


    ��Insolent!�� someone reprimanded from the sky above, which shocked some of the cultivators who heard it.


    Obviously, they had heard the impertinence in Ye Futian��s remark, and he was quite brazen in the way he spoke to them.


    What he was really trying to convey was that in a world as vast as this, with countless people calling themselves Buddhas, how many of them could truly be considered Buddhas?


    In front of him, on this Spirit Mountain of the Western Heaven, there were Buddhas as far as the eyes could see. All of them prided themselves on their status as Buddhas.


    Weren��t they the ones that Ye Futian was referring to?


    Ye Futian raised his head to look at the person who was giving the lecture and replied, ��What I said was consistent with the spirit of the lecture given by the Buddha Lord. What was wrong with that?��


    Shenyan Buddha Lord had claimed that he had merely cultivated superpowers of Buddhism and never really came into contact with the Buddha. What Ye Futian said was simply an extension of what had been said by Shenyan Buddha Lord.


    The great Buddha reprimanding him simply stared at Ye Futian, and he was not the only one. Many other Buddhist cultivators were looking at Ye Futian coldly as well. On this Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven, Ye Futian dared to make such an outrageous statement. It wasn��t just one or two people that he offended, but he was referring to all the Buddhas.


    However, one couldn��t really say that what Ye Futian had said was false. If another Buddhist cultivator were to jump out and accuse him, wouldn��t it be a confession of sorts, saying that they didn��t think they were worthy of the title of Buddha?


    ��We have heard that while you were still in the Divine Prefecture, Benefactor Ye offended various forces there and cultivators from every major world; therefore, you ended up with nowhere to go. Now that we have personally experienced it, truly, seeing is believing,�� a Buddha said with a smile on his face. His true intention was hard to detect.


    ��Ever since I first came to the Western World of Buddhism, I have been plotted against and hunted down to be controlled from the very beginning. Could it be that as soon as I arrived, I had already offended the cultivators of this world?�� Ye Futian responded. ��It is said that there are also Buddhist cultivators among these people; I wonder if this is the reason why all you elders detested me so.��


    ��Benefactor Ye was overly sensitive about my words,�� the Laughing Buddha said with a smile but did not continue to say anything more.


    Ye Futian surveyed the Buddhas around him. Before he came here today, he had already offended some of them. He really didn��t care if he offended a few more. However, he needed to leave before the end of the All Buddhas Fest. Of course, if he could meet with the Lord of All Buddhas, that would be another matter entirely.


    Of course, the most important matter at the moment was still to continue testing their skills in Buddhist methods.


    Ye Futian continued to move forward with the Light of Buddha from the Mahavairocana. He said, ��I have just been exposed recently to Buddhism, and my methods are just average. I want to learn from other Buddhist cultivators who have much higher attainment in Buddhism than myself.��


    When Ye Futian spoke, he glanced in the direction where Shenyan Buddha Lord was; the implication was evident. Since he had suggested Ye Futian��s cultivation in Buddhist methods was lowly and not worthy, Ye Futian meant to goad him into dispatching some accomplished and learned disciples under him for a challenge.


    Many Buddhist cultivators now looked at Shenyan Arhat. Among the disciples under Shenyan Buddha Lord, Shenyan Arhat was the most outstanding. Ye Futian came to Spirit Mountain today and displayed his extraordinary talents. Although he had only been cultivating the Buddhist methods for several months, he had comprehended a variety of superb Buddhist superpowers, including the Mahavairocana.


    In many people��s eyes, Ye Futian wanted to follow in the steps of Donghuang the Great, which was tantamount to some idiotic dream, nothing more than inviting more shame onto himself. Many, including the likes of Shenyan Arhat, believed that they could easily crush Ye Futian and kick him off Spirit Mountain.


    But at this moment, they truly sensed a faint hint of threat. Ye Futian really seemed to possess the strength to contend with all the Buddhas in his presence!

 Chapter 2479 - Sweep

    Shenyan Arhat did not step forward. In the Western Heaven, there were many Buddhas, and Shenyan Buddha Lord was one of the Buddhas who stood at the peak of the realm.


    Shenyan Arhat was the chosen successor of Shenyan Buddha Lord. He represented Shenyan Buddha Lord as his most outstanding disciple. Here on Spirit Mountain, he was also the most prominent Buddha of his generation. He was situated at the top of the upper heavens of Spirit Mountain. His standing was apparent from this.


    Although Ye Futian already posed a threat to his ability, Ye Futian still had to make his way past many Buddhist cultivators to get here. For now, Shenyan Arhat did not need to act.


    However, Ye Futian was not bothered with who would attack him. The Mahavairocana Battle Form still remained. He walked up slowly into the sky. He was not moving fast, but each step he took was stable and firm. It made people feel as though he was as solid and unmovable as a boulder.


    A Buddhist cultivator stepped forward. He was at the peak of the ninth tier of the Buddhist Path. Now, only Buddhist cultivators at this level could contend with Ye Futian in Buddhist doctrine. Right out of the gate, a ninth-tier cultivator came to fight him. Among eighth-tier Buddhist cultivators, only arhat-level figures had the chance of going against Ye Futian.


    ��I wish to experience Benefactor Ye��s Buddhist doctrine firsthand,�� said the monk who emerged. He stood in the sky above Ye Futian and was an older Buddhist cultivator. He had immersed himself in the ninth tier of the Buddhist Path for many years. He had high attainments in terms of Buddhist doctrine. It was just that he had yet to break through the shackles of the Path and experience Buddha��s Tribulation.


    ��Master, please do not hesitate to give me some pointers,�� replied Ye Futian politely as he placed his palms together. As he said this, the unparalleled golden Light of Buddha radiated from the other party��s floating figure. The silhouette of a bodhisattva appeared. It was sitting cross-legged on a golden lotus and reciting mantras.


    Immediately, endless mantras reverberated in the space. It was as though various silhouettes of Buddhas appeared at the same time in the sky. The mantras circled around Ye Futian and echoed throughout the space. In an instant, it enveloped the top of Spirit Mountain.


    It was a Buddhist spell. Ye Futian instantly sensed this. Not only did he sense it, but he was even brought into a different space. Inside the space, he saw the dazzling silhouettes of golden Buddhas. They appeared divine. Before the Buddhas, a mirror with many images appeared.


    The images were, surprisingly, of his life. They were all the things that he had done. Most of them showed massacres.


    For instance, one image was of the death of Lord Six Desires and Great Elder Motian. After they died, the misery faced by their loved ones surfaced. Their fortunes were liquidated, and their fates were miserable.


    Aside from that, all the cultivators killed by Ye Futian across his decades of cultivation also appeared. He even caught a glimpse of the moment they perished as well as the anguish of their loved ones.


    These were all illusions.


    This thought surfaced in Ye Futian��s mind. However, he found it difficult to struggle free from this illusion. He still remained in this space. This was no mere illusion but a fantasy woven by the Buddhist spell. They were real and yet also ethereal. They were all the outcomes of Ye Futian��s actions.


    Behind the images, the Buddhas seemed to be overflowing with compassion and mercy, as though they were advising the viewer to let go of their hatred and resolve. This caused Ye Futian��s heart to turn mellow and caused him to reflect on all he had done. He began to doubt his own actions and challenge his own beliefs.


    Suddenly, an intense sense of realization welled up in Ye Futian��s heart.


    In order to achieve greater cultivation, one must cultivate their own heart. The spell might make him disagree with all that he had done and even deny his former self. If Ye Futian��s state of mind were affected by the corrosion of this spell, then his status would surely affect his comprehension of Buddhist doctrine and his future cultivation.


    This monk harbored ill intentions. Or it should be said that this spell was too terrifying.


    Ye Futian started chanting Vajra Spell. A golden ray enveloped his body like a robe, fortifying his state of mind and allowing him to be able to stare directly at the images.


    ��Ye Futian, you have claimed countless lives throughout your journey. Your sin is great. You shall reap what you sow,�� a voice reverberated in Ye Futian��s mind, causing even his spiritual soul to tremble.


    However, Ye Futian managed to stare calmly at the other party. Not only could Vajra Spell be used as an attack, but it could also serve to fortify one��s state of mind.


    The journey of a cultivator was destined to be established on the dead bodies of countless other cultivators. This was especially true for someone like Ye Futian, who had come all the way here from the Nine States of the Lower Worlds. This Buddhist cultivator before him knew nothing of his struggles, so the Buddhist cultivator was not qualified to assume the role of the merciful one and convict him as a great sinner.


    Was it considered a sin for him to kill Great Elder Motian and Lord Six Desire?


    At that moment, Ye Futian gained the upper hand in his mental war against the Buddhist spell, allowing him to be even more resolute. There were very few things that Ye Futian regretted in his life. He did everything with a clear conscience.


    ��If there is karma, I am willing to accept the karma for all my actions,�� said Ye Futian nonchalantly. The flaming golden Light of Buddha burst forth from his body. The light of Mahavairocana was dazzling. Then, a terrifying Palm of Mahavairocana charged out and immediately shattered the images and reduced them to dust.


    The Palm of Mahavairocana lit up the space. It crashed into the other party��s body. The outcome was the same as before. His opponent was immediately injured and spat out fresh blood.


    Bang. Ye Futian did not stop moving at all and continued to advance. His footsteps were firm, as though his faith was even more resolute at this moment. No one could stop him.


    ��Amitabha!��


    Another Buddha stepped forward. The Light of Buddha radiated, and he unleashed his Buddhist Battle Form, causing the figure of an ancient Buddha to appear. Ye Futian looked up. This time, he did not bother making any small talk. He immediately sent a Palm of Mahavairocana crashing forward and smashing the space. It charged straight towards the Buddhist cultivator and did not give the other party any opportunity to unleash any Buddhist doctrine.


    Since they were comparing their Buddhist doctrine, these Buddhas should first display an ability on par with Ye Futian��s to qualify to have a conversation with him. Otherwise, if they took their sweet time, how long would he need to reach the very top and meet the Lord of All Buddhas?


    Rumble. A loud sound could be heard again. After experiencing the Buddhist spell and doubting himself, he was actually even stronger now. It was as though he had undergone a true metamorphosis and become Mahavairocana. As his palm strike descended, no Buddha could stand in his way.


    The scene before them shocked the various Buddhas. The various Buddhas in the sky stared at the silhouette. Aside from the sound of Ye Futian��s attacks and his footsteps, the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven where various Buddhas gathered actually became eerily quiet as they watched Ye Futian advancing step by step.


    One by one, the Buddhist cultivators fell before Ye Futian. It was as though there was no Buddha who could block Ye Futian��s path.


    Ye Futian managed to conquer many stages with only the Palm of Mahavairocana and Vajra Spell.


    A few hours later, Ye Futian had almost arrived at the peak of Spirit Mountain. Only the last few stages were left. Even the few arhats that he had met were sitting above his current stage. He was close to reaching them.


    These arhats would most likely attack him now.


    The various arhats and Buddha Lords witnessed how Ye Futian made his way towards them step by step. They felt as though they were seeing another Donghuang the Great a few centuries later!

 Chapter 2480 - Space Battle Form

    There were countless Buddhas gathering at Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven. Among them were many ancient Buddhas who had years of experience. They were present when Donghuang the Great visited Spirit Mountain a few centuries ago.


    Even up until now, the scene remained fresh in their memories.


    Ye Futian was somewhat different from Donghuang the Great. The Buddhas who had experienced what happened in the past were well aware of this. In the past, even before Donghuang the Great set foot in the World of Buddhism, he actually had read countless Buddhist scriptures and had cultivated the Buddhist Path.


    Exactly because of his involvement in Buddhism, Donghuang the Great came to Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven with the intention of seeking the Buddhist Path from the Lord of All Buddhas. When Donghuang the Great came to seek pointers from Spirit Mountain, his performance was even more stunning than Ye Futian��s. Not only did he fight and defeat the Buddhas using Buddhist superpowers, but he also debated with them. His comprehension of Buddhist doctrine was on par with that of many senior Buddhas.


    Therefore, Donghuang the Great could be considered a true, unprecedented genius. His abilities were unrivaled. Many senior Buddhas felt ashamed of their shortcomings when faced with him. Not only was Donghuang the Great well-versed in all kinds of Buddhist doctrine, but he also had a profound understanding of them. This caused many Buddhas who were on Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven back then felt disgraced. Because of that, the Buddhas on Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven were divided into two factions based on their opinion of Donghuang the Great. Some of them were resentful of him because he had embarrassed them, while some of them respected and admired him.


    The Buddhas could still remember when the Lord of All Buddhas revealed himself and met Donghuang the Great. The first question Donghuang the Great had for him was: what was his view of the world now that he had proven his Way as Bodhi?


    It was apparent from this that Donghuang the Great already had great ambition back then. In terms of cultivation, Ye Futian now could not compare with Donghuang the Great centuries ago. They weren��t even on the same level.


    However, the various Buddhas felt they were seeing another Donghuang the Great because there was something different about Ye Futian, just like Donghuang the Great. Ye Futian had just come in contact with the Buddhist Path and joined a Buddhist sect for mere months. In such a short span of time, he had comprehended Buddhist doctrine and used Buddhist superpowers to defeat various Buddhas, dominating the battles as he advanced to the top level of Spirit Mountain.


    The various Buddhas saw the image of Donghuang the Great in him.


    Of course, there was also another area where Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great were similar.


    When Donghuang the Great previously came to Spirit Mountain, no one could get a read on him, even when using Buddhist superpowers.


    Now, it was also the same for Ye Futian. Clairvoyance could not pry into everything in his mind. They couldn��t see through to his past or future.


    This made the various Buddhas feel as though these two individuals were men of destiny. They were born extraordinary and were destined for exceptional achievements. That was why Clairvoyance bore no results.


    The various Buddha Lords all wanted to get a read on Ye Futian. However, the result was always the same, just like with Donghuang the Great back then.


    Ye Futian did not know what the various Buddhas were thinking. He continued advancing upwards. Shenyan Buddha Lord was staring at Ye Futian. Ye Futian had actually made his way up here.


    Centuries ago, Donghuang the Great had already done this once before. Now, if they allowed Ye Futian to repeat the feat, the various Buddhas of Western Heaven would be disgraced.


    Right then, Shenyan Arhat stood up. The Light of Buddha circled around him, and immediately the gazes of the various Buddhas turned towards him. Was he finally making his move?


    Right now, unless Shenyan Arhat stepped forward, it was possible that no one could suppress Ye Futian.


    Tongchan Arhat was also present. He was at the same level as the Shenyan Arhat. He looked down below. His enchanting gaze seemed to reveal a faint smile. When Ye Futian first arrived in Western Heaven, the various Buddhist cultivators all knew of his arrival. Tongchan Arhat had personally gone to meet Ye Futian. He never thought that Ye Futian was far more talented than they had imagined. Not only had Ye Futian stirred up a storm in Six Desires Heaven, but he had now single-handedly fought his way up Spirit Mountain. He wanted to imitate Donghuang the Great��s feat and defeat the various Buddhas.


    Now, the arhats had no choice but to meet Ye Futian head-on.


    Shenyan Arhat floated above Ye Futian. His pupils were terrifying as they emitted golden Light of Buddha. Ye Futian��s manner was equally imposing and not at all inferior to his. With the aid of Mahavairocana, Ye Futian managed to defeat all the Buddhist cultivators along the way and had arrived at this stage.


    ��Please give me some pointers,�� Ye Futian said politely. Shenyan Arhat placed his palms together and replied, ��Likewise.��


    Although both sides bore animosity for each other, their conversation sounded amiable. However, once they finished their verbal exchange, the Palm of Mahavairocana immediately charged forward and crushed the space. Intense rumbling could be heard as it lunged towards Shenyan Arhat.


    Shenyan Arhat��s body still floated in midair and had not moved an inch. His Light of Buddha shone brilliantly, and a gigantic illusory figure of Buddha appeared. It then transformed into an enormous ancient golden Buddha.


    At this very instant, it was as though all the powers in the heavens and earth were under the control of Shenyan Arhat. With his body at the center, a gigantic and boundless illusory figure of Buddha appeared on Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven. Even Ye Futian was enveloped within this illusory Buddha. In reality, the entire Spirit Mountain was encompassed within it.


    However, the cultivators could not see the illusory Buddha figure with their naked eyes since they were within it. They could only detect it with their senses. If they leaped up into the high heavens and looked down below, then only could they see the gigantic illusory Buddha figure.


    The Palm of Mahavairocana struck the golden shield around Shenyan Arhat��s body.


    However, this time, unlike before, neither the golden shield shattered, nor was the cultivator hurt.


    This time, the golden body of Shenyan Arhat remained sturdy. No cracks appeared on it. It merely shook. On top of that, the space and the entire Spirit Mountain trembled violently. It was seemingly caused by the gigantic illusory Buddha. The gigantic Buddha was shaking.


    It was a Battle Form!


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, he knew his opponent had similarly coalesced a powerful Battle Form. He raised his head and looked at it. His will scanned the gigantic illusory Buddha that enveloped the space.


    From the looks of it, figures at the arhat level were indeed extraordinary. The previous cultivators could not be compared to them.


    ��It is the Space Battle Form,�� a Buddha commented.


    ��Shenyan Arhat cultivated the Space Battle Form. When in battle, he is one with space. It is his to use and under his absolute control. Although Ye Futian cultivated the Mahavairocana Battle Form, he may be suppressed,�� a Buddha added.


    Shenyan Arhat had cultivated Buddhist superpowers for many years. He had always been comprehending the Space Battle Form and had cultivated it to a high level. His cultivation plane was also higher than that of Ye Futian. It was possible that he could use this Battle Form to suppress Ye Futian��s Mahavairocana Battle Form.


    Right at this moment, Ye Futian suddenly sensed an overbearing pressure acting on him, pinning him to his spot. He could hardly move. It was as though the entire space was pressing against him and locking him to his spot. This sensation was identical to that of the binding technique he experienced before.


    However, the pressure acting on Ye Futian now was even more powerful than that of the binding technique.


    The space seemed to be under Shenyan Arhat��s absolute control. With a mere thought of his opponent, Ye Futian was trapped within the space.


    Rumble. From the Mahavairocana Battle Form, golden Light of Buddha radiated outwards and lit up the space. Terrifying rumbling sounds could be heard. The Mahavairocana Battle Form was shaking, attempting to free itself from the binding technique by expanding. If he were bound to one spot, he would be at the mercy of his opponent.


    ��Humph!�� Ye Futian heard a cold snort. This snort was from Shenyan Arhat. He glanced at the figure who was bound by his binding technique. It wouldn��t be that easy to break free. He would not give Ye Futian the opportunity!

 Chapter 2481 - A Taste of One’s Own Medicine

    The Light of Buddha from Shenyan Arhat��s figure filled the sky. He had a stern expression. He placed his palms together and faced Ye Futian. He closed his eyes, and a Heavenly Eye appeared on his ��third eye.��


    In an instant, within the space that was enveloped by the gigantic Buddha, other Buddhas appeared. Tens of thousands of ancient Buddhas filled the sky. They all remained in the same pose, wielding golden divine swords forged from the Light of Buddha. They were actually wielding the Zhuxie Swords used by the previous Buddhist cultivator who had battled Ye Futian.


    The Immobilization Technique and Zhuxie Sword were previously used against Ye Futian by members of their sect. However, Ye Futian had used the Vajra Spell, as well as the Palm of Mahavairocana to negate these techniques. Now, Shenyan Arhat unleashed these two techniques again. His techniques were clearly more powerful than the previous cultivator.


    He was using the Space Battle Form to power up the Immobilization Technique and relying on the power of the various Buddhas to unleash the might of the Zhuxie Swords. Each Buddha had special Buddhist seals. Their sharp swords were pointed towards Ye Futian. A faint murderous intent emanated from them.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord��s line of Buddhist cultivators originally maintained the order in the World of Buddhism. They were naturally in charge of dealing judgment to perpetrators. There seemed to be more to their Zhuxie Swords than met the eye.


    The various Buddhas charged forward with their Zhuxie Swords enhanced with Buddhist doctrine. The space was immediately shattered, seeming as though it would be ripped apart.


    ��He is unraveling the space,�� someone commented.


    Witnessing the might of the Zhuxie Swords, the expressions of the various Buddhas were stern. Once one cultivated Buddhist doctrine to the utmost limit, it was rumored that one could detach themselves from all things, even space and time.


    Shenyan Arhat cultivated the Space Battle Form and had absolute control over this space. Right now, he directed the Zhuxie Sword, attempting to unravel the space. If this continued, Ye Futian��s body would also disintegrate.


    This technique was extremely overbearing. As Shenyan Arhat attacked and defended, he unleashed four Buddhist superpowers. His ability was indeed extremely powerful.


    The Zhuxie Sword unraveled the space and charged straight towards Ye Futian��s coalesced Battle Form.


    From the Mahavairocana Battle Form, the Light of Buddha radiated outwards. Although Ye Futian was bound, the might of the Battle Form was still very powerful. The Sound of Buddha circled the Battle Form. As Ye Futian chanted the Vajra Spell, countless runes flowed around him. It was as though it enhanced the Mahavairocana Battle Form, making it indestructible.


    Swoosh. The Zhuxie Swords came crashing towards the Mahavairocana Battle Form. The terrifying attack caused cracks to appear on it. It seemed as though it was about to shatter.


    When they saw this scene, the various Buddhas felt a sense of relief. It seemed that although Ye Futian was strong, he still could not withstand the might of Shenyan Arhat, who had similarly cultivated a powerful Battle Form. After all, there was still a gap between their cultivation planes. Even if Ye Futian was defeated, it was to be expected.


    After all, Buddhist doctrine was an ability that he had recently cultivated for several months. If Ye Futian could use all his original abilities in this battle, he might be more powerful.


    In terms of Buddhist doctrine, even though Ye Futian had extraordinary talent, it was still difficult for him to surpass Shenyan Arhat.


    This battle was about to end.


    Shenyan Arhat��s attack was also extremely dangerous. If he was not careful and Ye Futian could not withstand his attack, Ye Futian might be heavily injured or even have his Body of Way crippled.


    It was obvious that Shenyan Arhat bore animosity towards Ye Futian. He would not hold back. If anything actually happened, he would not show mercy.


    More and more cracks appeared on Ye Futian��s Battle Form. The various Buddhas unleashed their Zhuxie Swords at the same time. It was difficult, even for the golden Mahavairocana Battle Form, to withstand such an attack. It began to shatter and break apart. Shenyan Arhat��s eyes were tightly shut, and his palms were together as he unleashed his powerful Buddhist superpowers. He did not look at Ye Futian, but he could sense everything that was happening. The corners of his mouth curled slightly into a smile, which was cold and sinister.


    However, Ye Futian stood there unshaken. His palms were still together as he chanted the Sound of Buddha. The Sound of Buddha circled around him. As the destructive Zhuxie Swords came charging down, the gigantic Mahavairocana Battle Form shattered into countless pieces. Under the besiegement of the Zhuxie Swords, it was decimated.


    The destructive attack was about to strike Ye Futian. The various Buddhas kept staring in his direction. Would Ye Futian��s figure be decimated as well?


    Under the watchful gazes of the various Buddhas, Ye Futian��s body was surrounded by the Light of Buddha. It was as though another Battle Form appeared. Just as the Zhuxie Swords came crashing towards him, Ye Futian��s body seemed to become ethereal. When the attack landed, cracks appeared in the space.


    However, Ye Futian was still there. He did not seem to be in the same space as the destructive power of the Zhuxie Swords but rather in a parallel space.


    ��Huh?�� This bizarre scene caused the various Buddhas to reveal strange expressions. The Zhuxie Sword attack landed but did not touch Ye Futian��s body. Instead, the swords immediately shattered.


    How did Ye Futian pull this off?


    ��It is the Void Battle Form!�� someone exclaimed.


    A Buddha said, ��Who would have thought that he managed to cultivate three Battle Forms.��


    The Acalanatha Battle Form, the Mahavairocana Battle Form, and the Void Battle Form.


    The Void Battle Form was another name for the Space Battle Form. In actuality, they were the same Buddhist technique.


    Shenyan Arhat used the power of the Void Battle Form to deal with Ye Futian. Ye Futian used the same Battle Form to evade. Despite this, both of them unleashed different abilities of the Battle Form.


    This Space Battle Form was a powerful application of the power of the Great Path of Space by the Buddhist sects. Ye Futian was proficient in the Path of Space and had also cultivated the Miniature World. Hence, he had managed to cultivate the Void Battle Form.


    A Buddha lamented, ��Compared to Donghuang the Great of the past, Ye Futian has spent less time cultivating Buddhist doctrine. However, he is also proficient in various Buddhist doctrines. These three Battle Forms are all difficult ones to cultivate, and he has actually mastered them. If he is given more time, he will most likely be as impressive as Donghuang the Great of the past, capable of mastering all kinds of Buddhist doctrines.��


    Just as he was commenting, silhouettes of various Buddhas appeared on the battlefield. Each and every Buddha seemed to be formed with Ye Futian as the original. This was yet another application of the Void Battle Form.


    Before this, Shenyan Arhat used the same technique to unleash the Zhuxie Swords simultaneously. All the divine swords charged out at the same time.


    Ye Futian appeared to be mimicking Shenyan Arhat��s move and the superpower he cultivated. Besides that, Ye Futian was no longer restrained by the spatial power.


    The Buddhas opened their mouths at the same time. Suddenly, raging roars filled the sky. Dragons and elephants could be faintly seen up above. When all the Buddhas shouted at the same time, their voices reverberated in space. The vast space seemed to turn into a sea with churning waves. The dragons and the elephants stirred up gigantic waves and destroyed everything around, forming a terrifying illusion. Shenyan Arhat appeared exceptionally tiny amidst the illusion.


    The Buddhas had been angered; this was their wrathful roar.


    The Buddhas summoned by Shenyan Arhat exploded in the sea and crumbled into dust right away. Even the gigantic illusory figure of Buddha, which enveloped the entire space shook violently. It was on the verge of collapsing. The Battle Form of Shenyan Arhat became unstable as his spiritual soul trembled.


    He had yet to regain his composure from his surprise at Ye Futian cultivating the Void Battle Form when an extremely overbearing Buddhist musical attack technique followed.


    Ye Futian��s attack also did not seem to stop. The various Buddhas in the sky were still forming Buddhist Divine Seals. A majestic and vast power of Buddha pressed down on the space. Right now, Shenyan Arhat felt an intense sense of danger!

 Chapter 2482 - Suppression

    Rumble. Faced with the Wrathful Buddhist Roar, the Buddhas summoned by Shenyan Arhat shattered and were chipped away. The gigantic Battle Form shook as though it would crack into pieces at any given moment. The spiritual soul of Shenyan Arhat trembled as well.


    Aside from the raging roar, scorching suns appeared in the sky. The suns were hot and of utmost Yang, capable of melting everything in the world. At the same time, their power was extremely overbearing.


    ��They are all Mahavairocanas!�� someone exclaimed.


    All the Buddhist cultivators witnessed how the Buddhas summoned by Ye Futian transformed into Mahavairocanas. They unleashed the Palms of Mahavairocana at the same time, intending to crush everything in this part of the space.


    It was the Dual Battle Form!


    The Buddhist cultivators felt their hearts tremble as they stared in the direction where Ye Futian was. It was hard for them to stay calm.


    This Dual Battle Form did not refer to Ye Futian cultivating two Battle Forms, but instead him combining two Battle Forms and unleashing them at the same time.


    Ye Futian initially unleashed the Void Battle Form. Right now, he used the Void Battle Form to summon various Buddhas, and they became Mahavairocanas. The two Battle Forms layered over each other as they attacked together. Their might was astonishing. In the sky above, the Mahavairocanas were no longer bound by space. Palms of Mahavairocana came pressing down at the same time, crashing down towards Shenyan Arhat below. They were overbearing.


    Shenyan Arhat placed his palms together, and the Light of Buddha shone from his figure. The gigantic ancient Buddha that enveloped Spirit Mountain immediately shone with golden light. It seemed to be forming a physical presence. The space within this ancient Buddha seemed to be solidifying. The Palms of Mahavairocana slowed down as they faced resistance.


    At the same time, many arms extended from the ancient Buddha behind Shenyan Arhat. All the arms unleashed Void Palms simultaneously to clash head-on with the incoming Palms of Mahavairocana.


    Terrifying collision sounds reverberated throughout the space. The Light of Buddha burst forth. Without exception, the Void Palms crumbled when faced with the Palms of Mahavairocana. All the Void Palms shattered into pieces as the Palms of Mahavairocana continued to charge forward and head straight towards Shenyan Arhat.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Menacing attacks cleared the space as they crashed towards Shenyan Arhat. However, right at this moment, beams of Light of Buddha shot out into different locations.


    The area where Shenyan Arhat was was reduced to dust under the attack of the Palms of Mahavairocana. The flesh of Shenyan Arhat seemed to have been destroyed by it as well. However, the next moment, many figures of Shenyan Arhat popped up in different locations. They seemed to be his clones.


    Clearly, Shenyan Arhat was not injured by Ye Futian��s attack.


    ��Void Battle Form against Void Battle Form!�� exclaimed the various Buddhas. Their hearts were slightly stirred when they saw this scene. The user of the Void Battle Form seemed omnipresent. Before this, Shenyan Arhat was not able to land an attack on Ye Futian. Now, Ye Futian��s Palms of Mahavairocana similarly could not hit Shenyan Arhat. The two of them seemed to have reached a stalemate.


    It was apparent that Shenyan Arhat was more powerful than the opponents that Ye Futian had encountered before. In the previous battles, once Ye Futian��s powerful Buddhist superpowers were unleashed, he could crush his opponent. However, this time, even as the power of the Dual Battle Form burst forth, he could not take down Shenyan Arhat.


    Both of them were proficient in Buddhist superpowers and had powerful Battle Forms. Hence, such a situation had occurred.


    However, although this battle was short, up to this point, the various Buddhas could tell that Ye Futian��s comprehension of Buddhist doctrine was not inferior to Shenyan Arhat��s own. His combat ability was similarly not weaker than that of the latter. Even with Shenyan Arhat��s cultivation plane being higher than his, Ye Futian could still put up a fight. This made it apparent how outstanding Ye Futian was. This meant that if they were both on the same plane, Shenyan Arhat would have faced a crushing defeat.


    When Ye Futian sensed this, his heart was calm. He placed his palms together as the Sound of Buddha circled around him. The Sound of Buddha reverberated in the entire space. Gradually, a gigantic Buddha also appeared. It seemed to be seizing control of the space from the gigantic Buddha summoned by Shenyan Arhat.


    Besides that, the gigantic Buddha summoned by Ye Futian was accompanied by the Sound of Buddha. The Sound of Buddha contained a terrifying divine power that caused Shenyan Arhat��s Battle Forms to tremble.


    ��This person can cultivate so many Buddhist doctrines simultaneously because his body was originally proficient in various powers of the Great Path such as flame, space, and sound!�� a Buddha exclaimed. The various Buddhas all nodded their heads slightly.


    Someone said, ��He is indeed a rare genius. He is comparable to Donghuang the Great of the past.��


    A senior Buddha refuted, ��It��s too high a praise to compare him with Donghuang the Great. Donghuang the Great had an unparalleled temperament, and he stood head and shoulders above the others of his generation. Aside from Emperor Ye Qing, he was uncontended. The Lord of All Buddhas praised him, and he soon reached the Emperor level after that. He united the Divine Prefecture, and he has been unrivaled for centuries. If we want to pick someone who is on par with Donghuang the Great, the person has to be the Devil Emperor of the Devil World, who has earned his fame preceding Donghuang the Great.��


    Another Buddhist cultivator said, ��I think that Ye Futian is not any weaker than Donghuang the Great of the past. If Donghuang the Great was here, he might not have done any better than Ye Futian. Nevertheless, both of them are top geniuses. Donghuang the Great of the past was also proficient in various law powers. He was also well-versed in Buddhist doctrine. Taking this point into consideration, that famous figure of the Devil World is indeed the only one who is comparable to Donghuang the Great.�� The speaker equated Donghuang the Great with the Devil Emperor.


    The two of them were similar. They were both proficient in various law powers. Back then, the Devil Emperor created various powerful demonic arts. Each and every one of them was overbearing. He defeated all the others of his generation and ended the chaotic era in the Devil World.


    ��Shenyan Arhat will most likely lose,�� someone commented as they looked toward the battlefield. The two gigantic Battle Forms were engaged in battle. However, as Ye Futian unleashed his Battle Form, he was also unleashing the Wrathful Buddhist Roar and the Demon-slaying Cries of Dragons and Elephants. Rumor has it that these two techniques were Buddhist doctrine created by an ancient Buddha when he was suppressing the turmoil in Hell. When cultivated to their extremes, these two techniques would allow the cultivator to dominate Hell.


    Rumble. Terrifying sounds could be heard. The various Buddhas looked up into the sky. They were all enveloped within the two gigantic Buddhas. These two gigantic Buddhas were battling to seize control over the space. Right now, the one summoned by Ye Futian had seized the upper hand and consumed the one summoned by Shenyan Arhat.


    At the same time, on the battlefield, Shenyan Arhat��s various clones were under constant heavy bombardment.


    Shenyan Arhat��s expression had already changed. The sound of intense tremors could be heard. His Battle Form was broken. In the sky above, blinding sunlight burst forth. From the heavens, a gigantic Buddha palm reached down below. It seemed to be the palm of the true Mahavairocana.


    This gigantic Palm of Mahavairocana came bearing down. The remaining clones of Shenyan Arhat turned to dust. Shenyan Arhat��s true body appeared. As he looked at the Palm of Mahavairocana crashing down on him, his expression turned ugly. He raised both his hands, and the Light of Buddha shone from him. He became an ancient Buddha that attempted to hold up the sky.


    Bang! The Palm of Mahavairocana came crashing down and slammed Shenyan Arhat��s figure to the ground. He was pushed underground. The terrifying aftershocks shook Spirit Mountain, sending dust flying into the air.


    On the surface, a gigantic palm print was left behind. The earth in the gigantic palm print appeared scorched. Shenyan Arhat was buried deep within the ground. He kept throwing up fresh blood, and his face was pale!

 Chapter 2483 - The Final Opponent

    Shenyan Arhat was defeated.


    The various Buddhas looked towards the battlefield. Shenyan Arhat was the most talented disciple of Shenyan Buddha Lord. He had devoted himself to studying Buddhist doctrine for many years. In the entire Western Heaven, he was considered one of the most outstanding figures of his generation. Only a few other arhats, as well as the direct disciples of the Lord of All Buddhas, could defeat him.


    Such an existence had actually been defeated by Ye Futian, who had a lower cultivation level. He had even been suppressed in terms of Buddhist superpowers.


    From the looks of it, Ye Futian was truly going to achieve imitating Donghuang the Great and defeating the various Buddhas.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord looked towards him. He had a cold look of disappointment in his eyes. His chosen successor had been defeated. For him, it was naturally an utter disgrace. Back then, his elder brother was among the various Buddhas defeated by Donghuang the Great. Ever since that battle, his elder brother had begun cultivating in seclusion away from the world.


    He was extremely close with his elder brother. The latter had always taken care of him. The incident back then was a great blow to him. He had always considered that battle centuries ago to be the shame of the Buddhist sects.


    Who would have thought that history would repeat itself today? Ye Futian set foot on Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven and sought the Path of Buddhist doctrine. He challenged various Buddhas and defeated the successor of Shenyan Buddha Lord.


    However, Ye Futian came to Spirit Mountain openly with the valid reason of learning Buddhist doctrine from the Buddhas present. Shenyan Buddha Lord had no excuse to target Ye Futian. Moreover, he knew that among the Buddhas present, some of them were kind towards Ye Futian. They admired his talents and looked highly on him.


    Wutian Buddha Lord was one of them. He even assigned his disciple, Yumu, to welcome Ye Futian. Wutian Buddha Lord had a smile on his face throughout Ye Futian��s battles with the Buddhas. He seemed to hold Ye Futian in high regard. One could figure this out based on the way Wutian Buddha Lords spoke about him.


    Furthermore, nothing in Western Heaven could escape the eyes of the Lord of All Buddhas. Occurrences on Spirit Mountain were no exception too.


    How would the Lord of All Buddhas respond after witnessing everything that happened here?


    Would he meet Ye Futian personally?


    When Shenyan Buddha Lord thought of this, he looked somewhere. Seated over there was a Buddha. This Buddha maintained a smile throughout the whole event as he sat on a futon. He quietly observed everything that happened.


    He spoke very little. His eyes became two lines as he smiled gently. He appeared exceptionally warm and made people feel comfortable around him. He was wearing a kasaya, and half of his chest could be seen. Prayer beads were hanging on his neck. As both his hands fingered the beads continuously, the prayer beads turned around his neck.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord put his hands together and bowed towards this Buddha. He said, ��Buddha, may I consult your opinion regarding this youth?��


    Judging from Shenyan Buddha Lord��s speech, one could tell that this Buddha Lord had extraordinary standing. Even Shenyan Buddha Lord was so polite with him by regarding him as ��Buddha�� and consulting his opinion.


    With a smile and wrinkly eyes, this Buddha Lord looked at Shenyan Buddha Lord and said, ��I��m not worthy of the title ��Buddha.�� This youth has come to Spirit Mountain to seek the Buddhist Path. Judging from his performance, he is very outstanding. As for the rest, it depends on whether he can make it to our level and whether the Lord of All Buddhas is willing to meet him.��


    When Shenyan Buddha Lord heard the other party��s reply, he understood that the latter had no intention of saying much.


    This Buddha Lord was no ordinary figure. He was all-knowing and could peek into the past and the future of other people. He knew Ye Futian��s fate. Besides that, he had profound Buddhist doctrine now that he had attained his status as a Buddha. He might even be able to see Ye Futian��s future.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord purposely inquired about Ye Futian to get some information about Ye Futian from this Buddha Lord. However, the other party was unwilling to reveal even a tiny bit of information. He casually steered the conversation in another direction.


    Of course, the Buddha Lord��s response was befitting to his personality.


    It was normal for him to reveal nothing that he knew.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord didn��t pester him either. He looked at Tongchan Buddha Lord and the others. ��The battle a few centuries ago is still fresh in our minds. Today is yet another day of sparring with Buddhist doctrine. Your disciples are all well-versed in Buddhist doctrine. Surely they are better than this disciple of mine. Why don��t they stand out to join the battle? Let this outsider truly experience our Buddhist doctrine.��


    His speech intended to goad the others into action. The hidden meaning behind his speech was clear: if they allowed Ye Futian to reach them today, they would make it seem as though no cultivator in Western Heaven was proficient in Buddhist doctrine.


    The various Buddhas looked ahead. They could see that Ye Futian was still moving upwards. He was bathed in the brilliant Light of Buddha; he seemed unstoppable. In the space below him, Shenyan Arhat remained where he was. It looked as though Ye Futian had advanced by stepping over Shenyan Arhat��s head.


    One could imagine the humiliation Shenyan Arhat was feeling right now. However, Ye Futian paid no heed to it. He did not do this to other Buddhist cultivators, but he purposely shamed Shenyan Arhat. If Shenyan Arhat had emerged victorious instead, he would surely have done much worse to Ye Futian.


    The various Buddhas had mixed feelings when they saw this scene. The battle today would certainly leave a permanent scar in Shenyan Arhat��s heart.


    Ye Futian advanced forward. No one emerged to stop him. He gradually approached the highest place, the highest heaven of Spirit Mountain. It was where the various Buddha Lords were. If Ye Futian actually reached there, it meant that he was truly more capable than various Buddhas.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord frowned. Did all these people really plan to sit back and watch Ye Futian succeed?


    Today, various Buddhas had gathered. Among the younger generation, Shenyan Arhat was not the strongest cultivator. Yumu, for example, was very powerful. Unfortunately, he was a disciple of Wutian Buddha Lord and bore goodwill towards Ye Futian. Naturally, he would not attack him. However, there were many other powerful figures under different Buddha Lords.


    The eyes of Shenyan Buddha Lord narrowed as he watched Ye Futian progressing upwards and slowly approaching them. Could it be that he really needed to let Ye Futian have his way?


    Right at this moment, on the second heaven, a figure emerged and stood in front of Ye Futian. Ye Futian was very close to reaching the top. The peak seemed to be within his reach.


    When Shenyan Buddha Lord saw the challenger emerge, he heaved a sigh of relief.


    At last, someone came forward.


    Besides that, his worries were put to rest when he saw who the challenger was.


    The cultivator who came forward was not a disciple of this generation of Buddha Lords. He had been an arhat for a few generations.


    His cultivation was definitely not any weaker than that of other arhats. In fact, he was much stronger than most of them.


    There was nothing special about his identity. It could even be regarded as ordinary. However, he had maintained this ordinary status for more than 1,000 years. No one knew exactly how long he had been here.


    The crowd only knew that he was once an attendant of the Lord of All Buddhas. Back when the Lord of All Buddhas was still cultivating on Spirit Mountain, this arhat organized scriptures for the Lord and ran errands for him. His duties included taking care of Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven.


    His identity as an attendant was naturally a lot lower when compared to that of other arhats, who were direct disciples of the Buddha Lords. However, no one dared to look down on him. This point was proven based on how high up he was.


    The second heaven was a level where only Buddhas could stand.


    Rumor has it that this arhat was dim-witted. Hence, even though he had been an attendant for the Lord of All Buddhas for many years, he had yet to break through the shackles and undergo the tribulation of the Great Path. This was the reason why he had stayed at the peak of his cultivation plane for such a long time.


    However, on this cultivation plane, no one among the Buddhist sects dared to claim that they could defeat him for sure!

 Chapter 2484 - Humbled

    Chapter 2484: Humbled


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    This monk was known as Bitter Zen. Rumor has it that he began following the Lord of All Buddhas when he was but an acolyte.


    Ye Futian stopped in his tracks. When he saw Bitter Zen emerge, he sensed a faint pressure. Even though there was no powerful aura emanating from Bitter Zen��s figure, his calm and indifferent temperament contained a dangerous will.


    Moreover, Ye Futian himself knew clearly that since his opponent emerged after Shenyan Arhat was defeated, he would certainly be more powerful than him.


    ��I am Bitter Zen. Greetings, Benefactor Ye,�� greeted Bitter Zen as he placed his palms together and bowed at Ye Futian. He was courteous and respectful.


    ��Greetings, Master,�� replied Ye Futian as he returned the gesture.


    .


    ��Master Bitter Zen has followed the Lord of All Buddhas and cultivated under him for many years. He is revered amongst the Buddhist sects. Benefactor Ye, you need to be cautious,�� Wutian Buddha Lord said with a smile from the highest heaven. His introduction for Bitter Zen was different. The latter had been cultivating under the Lord of All Buddhas and was revered.


    Clearly, Bitter Zen was respected even among the Buddha Lord level figures. No one looked down on him at all just because he had been the attendant of the Lord of All Buddhas.


    When Ye Futian heard Wutian Buddha Lord say this, he was surprised. So this monk actually had such a background. He bowed once again and said, ��It is an honor to receive personal instruction from you, Master.��


    ��Wutian Buddha Lord, you speak too highly of me. I am but an attendant of the Lord of All Buddhas. I merely run errands. Benefactor Ye, you have only cultivated Buddhist doctrine for several months since you came from the Divine Prefecture. Just like that, your Buddhist doctrine has surpassed the various Buddhas here. I am extremely impressed. Your comprehension of Buddhist doctrine is deep enough to have obtained the teachings of the Dual Battle Form. Hence, I came forward to seek some pointers from you regarding Buddhist doctrine,�� said Bitter Zen humbly and politely. Both of them appeared exceptionally humble. They did not seem like two people who were about to engage in a huge fight.


    ��Master, after you,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Please, after you.�� After the two of them exchanged pleasantries, a dazzling Light of Buddha radiated from both their figures. Ye Futian��s Mahavairocana Battle Form remained. He seemed to have become Mahavairocana and was blinding to look at. He raised his hand and pointed it forward. A Palm of Mahavairocana charged towards Bitter Zen. This was naturally just an attack to test the waters. With the Palm of Mahavairocana alone, Ye Futian could not even defeat Shenyan Arhat. Bitter Zen would naturally have no issues dealing with it.


    Bitter Zen stood there, not moving an inch. The Light of Buddha circled around him as his mouth moved slightly. No one could hear what he was uttering. However, the Buddhist Voice reverberated throughout the space. Countless Buddhist runes flowed out of Bitter Zen��s mouth. In an instant, a solemn air descended upon the land.


    ��Om Mani Padme Hum!��


    ��Om Mani Padme Hum!��


    ��Om Mani Padme Hum!��


    The Sound of Buddha circled around them. It was as though a Buddha had awakened. It seemed that there was only the Buddha present, and no evil powers could exist here.


    At the same time, Bitter Zen��s figure was changing. His body turned golden and began to expand. Accompanied by the mantra, he became a gigantic true Buddha. He was even bigger than Ye Futian��s Mahavairocana Battle Form.


    It was the Six Syllables of Truth!


    Ye Futian thought to himself as his heart trembled. The Buddhist Six Syllables of Truth appeared simple, yet they were esoteric. Anyone could cultivate them, but only in form. It was impossible to comprehend the meaning of the Six Syllables of Truth. Only the Buddhas who were proficient in Buddhist doctrine and had an extremely deep comprehension could understand its true essence.


    In the entire Western Heaven, the number of Buddhas who successfully cultivated the Six Syllables of Truth could be counted on one hand. They were all top-tier Buddhas, and Bitter Zen was actually one of them.


    Bang! The Palm of Mahavairocana crashed into the gigantic golden figure of Bitter Zen. His golden figure did not budge at all. It was stable and firm. On the other hand, the Palm of Mahavairocana immediately shattered. It was apparent how sturdy the golden body was.


    ��It is the Reality Battle Form!�� someone exclaimed.


    The hearts of the various Buddhas stirred when they witnessed this scene. It was as expected of Bitter Zen, the monk who had followed the Lord of All Buddhas for so many years. He had already cultivated the Reality Battle Form to perfection. By merging the Six Syllables of Truth and the Reality Battle Form, his Buddha figure was indestructible and immovable.


    Ye Futian��s Palm of Mahavairocana was domineering. However, when it struck Bitter Zen��s golden Battle Form, it shattered on its own. It could not move Bitter Zen��s golden figure at all.


    This time, Ye Futian had truly encountered a powerful opponent.


    In the battles before this, the other Buddhist cultivators could not force Ye Futian��s Battle Form to budge. Now, it was his attack, which could not break Bitter Zen��s golden body��s defense. The tables had turned now.


    Ye Futian felt a pressure acting on him; it was to be expected of a master who cultivated under the Lord of All Buddhas. Once his opponent began attacking, Ye Futian could sense the strength of the other party��s Buddhist doctrine. Under the effects of the Six Syllables of Truth, the entire space seemed to be controlled by his opponent and contained powerful Buddhist doctrine.


    The Six Syllables of Truth did not appear to have any power. However, their might was formless. They contained the utmost wisdom and were enhanced by powerful Buddhist doctrine. As the Six Syllables of Truth expanded outwards, the entire Spirit Mountain was lit up with the Light of Buddha. Endless light enveloped the battlefield. Formless might of Buddha was contained within the light. Ye Futian could actually sense the power of the various Buddhas enhancing his opponent��s power.


    At that moment, he could truly sense the terrifying pressure and the might of his opponent.


    Ye Futian had a stern expression. His Void Battle Form appeared, and a gigantic Buddha enveloped the vast space. Figures of many Buddhas appeared in the surrounding space, all of them unleashing a powerful Light of Buddha. Ye Futian attempted to unleash the powerful attack he had used against Shenyan Arhat again.


    However, the Six Syllables of Truth did not yield. The gigantic golden Buddha that Bitter Zen had become had his eyes shut tightly. His palms were together in front of his chest. The Syllables of Truth reverberated throughout the sky. Endless Light of Buddha coalesced above, and silhouettes of gigantic Buddhas appeared.


    What was even more terrifying was that the face of a Buddha seemed to form in the sky. It gazed down upon them. The entire sky had become the silhouette of a Buddha. It was just like how the face of Great Emperor Ziwei had appeared in the starry world back then.


    That was not all. Down below, in three different directions, three powerful Buddhas appeared. They seemed to be the Trikaya, the three bodies of Buddha. Terrifying light emanated from these three figures. They immediately surrounded the gigantic Buddha summoned by Ye Futian.


    Aside from that, around the various Buddhas that Ye Futian had summoned, a sea of other Buddhas appeared. The various Buddhas had all appeared at once and surrounded the ones Ye Futian summoned. In every direction, Ye Futian was outmatched.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked at the scene around him. Under the Light of Buddha, the Sound of Buddha circled around him, solemn and divine. This divine might landed on him without any murderous intent. There was only the unparalleled might of Buddha. It was as though the true Buddha had descended.


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, at first, he was somewhat reluctant. Then, he felt a sense of relief. He looked towards Bitter Zen and placed his palms together. He then bowed slightly at Bitter Zen and said, ��Master, your comprehension of Buddhist doctrine is deep. It is not something I can compare to. I admit my defeat.��


    As Ye Futian said this, he immediately retracted his aura. The Light of Buddha on his body instantly receded. He had no desire to compete. He knew that he was still far inferior to his opponent in terms of attainments in Buddhist doctrine.


    A thousand years of hard work in cultivation was not something he could compete with using just dozens of days of effort!

 Chapter 2485 - The Lord of All Buddhas

    Bitter Zen placed his palms together, and his Light of Buddha retracted. In an instant, the silhouettes of Buddhas in the sky vanished, and everything returned to a calm state. It was as though nothing had happened.


    He bowed towards Ye Futian and said, ��I have spent a millennium on Spirit Mountain and only managed to catch a glimpse of the Path of Buddha. Benefactor Ye, you have merely cultivated Buddhist doctrine for dozens of days and already have such high attainment. I am ashamed of myself.��


    It was not quite fair to compare Ye Futian��s dozens of days of contact with Buddhist doctrine with his own millennia spent on it. They were not even on the same level. However, it was with this background that Ye Futian made his way up here and defeated the various Buddhist cultivators. Although Ye Futian eventually admitted his defeat to Bitter Zen, in reality, he had only lost in terms of the duration spent on Buddhist doctrine.


    Bitter Zen was a monk who had followed the Lord of All Buddhas for more than a millennia. The influence of his surroundings greatly aided him in cultivating the Buddhist Path.


    The various Buddhas watched the two humble men. This outcome was expected. After all, it was Bitter Zen who had stepped forward.


    Ye Futian imitated Donghuang the Great of the past. However, in the end, Ye Futian was not him. When Donghuang the Great came to the Western World, his cultivation was much stronger than that of Ye Futian, and he had also previously comprehended Buddhist doctrine for many years. If they disregarded his other abilities and only looked at his Buddhist doctrine attainment, Donghuang the Great was already a Buddha-level figure back then.


    It was only under such circumstances that Donghuang the Great had managed to defeat all the various Buddhas.


    It was normal for Ye Futian to fail at what the former had achieved. Moreover, the person who got in his way was Bitter Zen. It was already an extraordinary achievement for him to reach this stage and even defeat Shenyan Arhat. If it were any other person, it would have been nearly impossible for them to achieve what he had accomplished.


    ��Master Bitter Zen, you are too courteous. This person has come today to Spirit Mountain to challenge the Buddhist sects. If you did not step forward, he might have thought that no one in our sects could prove a match for him,�� said Shenyan Buddha Lord. When he saw Bitter Zen treating Ye Futian so politely, he felt a sense of dissatisfaction. He swept a glance at Ye Futian and said, ��Buddha is merciful. Today, you came to cause trouble on Spirit Mountain. However, since it is All Buddhas Fest, we will not find fault with you. Descend from the mountain.��


    When he said this, a cold and indifferent look flashed past in his eyes. Under Buddha��s Clairvoyance, even if Ye Futian descended from the mountain, where could he go? Ye Futian would not be able to escape his Heavenly Eye.


    He would settle the score with Ye Futian after All Buddhas Fest had ended. This cultivator from the Divine Prefecture had to remain in Western Heaven.


    Although Ye Futian did not know what Shenyan Buddha Lord was thinking, he could sense the latter��s animosity towards him. It was normal for Ye Futian to be defeated today. When he came here, he never thought that he would be able to defeat the various Buddhas. He had merely given it a try. In the end, he lost to Bitter Zen in the final battle.


    Of course, Ye Futian could accept this outcome. Since he had been defeated, he would need to leave soon. It was best that he left Western Heaven before All Buddhas Fest ended.


    He turned around and glanced towards Hua Qingqing. He revealed an apologetic look. However, Hua Qingqing was smiling and seemingly did not mind.


    ��Wutian Buddha Lord was kind to us. Should we ask him to let you stay here and cultivate the Path of Buddha? That way, you will have a chance to meet the Lord of All Buddhas in the future,�� Ye Futian asked Hua Qingqing over transmitted thoughts. If they left just like that, they wouldn��t have the chance to meet the Lord of All Buddhas.


    If they missed this opportunity, who knows when they could return here?


    ��All that has happened on Spirit Mountain will not escape the eyes of the Lord of All Buddhas. If he is willing to see me, he will naturally do so. If he isn��t, it would be meaningless to stay behind,�� Hua Qingqing replied softly. Ye Futian nodded his head slightly.


    Buddhist superpowers were miraculous. The Lord of All Buddhas was certainly proficient in many Buddhist techniques. Everything that had occurred here would surely be known to him.


    When Ye Futian heard Hua Qingqing��s response, he knew that she was very clear about this, so he did not say anymore. He turned to face the various Buddhas and said, ��Today, I came to seek pointers on the Path of Buddha and have gained much insight. There is no limit to Buddhist doctrine. Many thanks for your guidance. I apologize for having disturbed you all. Farewell.��


    He placed his palms together and the Light of Buddha flowed around his figure as he said this. He bowed towards the various Buddha Lords and prepared to descend the mountain and leave.


    ��Wait a moment,�� a voice called out just as Ye Futian was turning to leave.


    Ye Futian looked towards the person who had spoken. He was a Buddha Lord who was seated at the very top. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Ye Futian with a smile. It was the Buddha Lord who Shenyan Buddha Lord had been very polite to and referred to as Buddha.


    ��Buddha Lord,�� Ye Futian greeted. He bowed when he heard the other party calling him. ��Is there anything else?��


    Shenyan Buddha Lord and the other Buddhas all turned towards the Buddha Lord who had spoken. They were somewhat surprised. This Buddha Lord rarely spoke. Now, he had actually held Ye Futian back. What was he about to do?


    ��Benefactor Ye, you will know in a moment,�� the Buddha Lord said with a smile. He narrowed his eyes and looked up into the sky. Ye Futian felt somewhat curious. Wutian Buddha Lord also smiled and looked up into the sky above Spirit Mountain. This Buddha Lord cultivated Omniscience. If he wanted Ye Futian to wait, he naturally had his reasons for doing so.


    ��Is something above Spirit Mountain?�� asked Ye Futian. He looked up but did not see anything. The mountain was quiet. Everyone was waiting. It seemed that everyone here paid attention to every word and act of the Buddha Lord.


    Just then, rainbow light descended from the sky. The next moment, the light enveloped Spirit Mountain. A gigantic Buddha figure appeared in the heavens above.


    Right now, the entire mountain was bathed in the divine Light of Buddha.


    Seemingly realizing that something had occurred, the various Buddhas on Spirit Mountain all got up and bowed towards the heavens. They had respectful expressions and appeared pious.


    ��Greetings, Lord of All Buddhas.��


    ��Greetings, Lord of All Buddhas!��


    Their voices reverberated throughout Spirit Mountain. The various Buddhas were all bowing. Regardless of their level, all the Buddhas were in the same pose, bowing with their palms together.


    Ye Futian naturally understood who had arrived. Only the Lord of All Buddhas could make all the various Buddhas bow and welcome him simultaneously.


    Ye Futian��s heart stirred. He was somewhat moved. The Lord of All Buddhas had actually come.


    That meant that the Buddha Lord before this had asked him to wait because he knew that the Lord of All Buddhas was coming.


    When he realized this, Ye Futian also bowed and placed his palms together. Hua Qingqing looked up at the sky with her beautiful eyes at the Lord of All Buddhas. Seemingly noticing her gaze, the Buddha in the sky looked towards her and revealed a kind smile. Hua Qingqing immediately felt her heart tremble. She bowed and said, ��Greetings, Lord of All Buddhas.��


    ��I merely came to visit Spirit Mountain. Everyone, you need not be so ceremonious,�� said the Buddha in the sky to the various Buddhas below as he placed his palms together. He appeared very polite. This scene moved Ye Futian. It appeared that the Buddhist sects indeed had different manners compared to other worlds.


    Just as the various Buddhas had said before this, although all life was equal and the Buddhas were no exception, there was a difference in their comprehension of Buddhist doctrine. The Lord of All Buddhas did not have a high and mighty attitude, but his comprehension of Buddhist doctrine was the most profound among the Buddhist sects. Hence, he was the Lord of All Buddhas, and the various Buddhas bowed to him!

 Chapter 2486 - Reincarnation

    Chapter 2486: Reincarnation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As the Buddha light shone, all of the Buddhas shifted to make space for one position, that was the position above and in the middle of them all. No one sat at that position before because it had been reserved for the Lord of All Buddhas all along.


    As the Lord of All Buddhas descended, his figure appeared on that seat. He said to the Buddhas, ��Buddhas, please take your seats.��


    Everyone nodded and sat down one after another. Atop the skies, all of the cultivators had their gazes fixed on the Lord of All Buddhas.


    Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing were still standing there with Bitter Zen.


    At this point, Ye Futian was also examining the Lord of All Buddhas. His entire body shined magnificently; it was clearly no longer a body of a common man but was the Golden Frame. Ye Futian had come face to face with the will of several Great Emperors, Emperor Ye Qing��s remnant soul, and Donghuang the Great��s projection, yet he couldn��t tell whether or not the Lord of All Buddhas that he saw before him was his true form.


    .


    However, this was probably the closest he had ever come to Great Emperor level cultivators. Even if it weren��t his true form, it was, at least, his incarnation.


    ��Buddha Lord,�� Bitter Zen put his palms together and bowed toward the Lord of All Buddhas. He was the apprentice child of the Lord of All Buddhas and was considered close to the Lord.


    ��Bitter Zen, you have followed me in cultivation for so many years, and I considered you to have stepped foot on the Buddhist Path. What do you think about having an exchange with our little friend Ye here regarding the Buddhist doctrine?�� the Lord of All Buddhas smiled and asked. He appeared very amiable. There was no sign of majesty or grandeur typical of the Great Emperors. As the cultivators on the Spirit Mountain bathed under his Buddhist light, they all felt like they were being caressed the spring breeze.


    Perhaps, that was the power of the Great Buddha.


    ��Benefactor Ye is also fated with Buddhism. If he cultivates for just ten years, his understanding of the Buddhist doctrine will surely surpass mine,�� Bitter Zen replied. When he said ten years, Ye Futian didn��t feel that there was anything wrong. Master Bitter Zen��s understanding of the Buddhist doctrine was indeed extraordinary, even if he was really given ten years, he may not be able to surpass him.


    Bitter Zen��s appraisal of Ye Futian was already really high. After all, he had cultivated under the Lord of All Buddhas for a thousand years.


    The buddhas present also understood the significance of Bitter Zen��s evaluation of Ye Futian. The Lord of All Buddhas smiled and nodded, he looked toward Ye Futian and said, ��Ye Futian, you came to the Spirit Mountains this time for her, right?��


    As he spoke, his gaze turned toward Hua Qingqing. A gentle smile continued to be present in his golden iris, along with a sense of sympathy.


    ��Yes, I did come for Hua Qingqing. Master Bitter Zen said that I was fated with Buddhism. Actually, it��s related to her as well. I believe this connection with Buddhism was, in part, bestowed upon me by her,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Indeed.�� The Lord of All Buddhas nodded. A fate connected to Buddhism is a fate connected to the Buddha. Thus, being related to Hua Qingqing was Ye Futian��s fated connection to Buddhism in itself.


    When the Lord of All Buddhas looked toward Hua Qingqing, Buddha light instantly started shining upon her. This light was gentle, and as it illuminated Hua Qingqing, it made her appear even more holy. It even seemed like the light of the Buddha started to emanate from her as her entire body shone magnificently. It was akin to the light of a lamp.


    Her body levitated into the air and came before the Lord of All Buddhas. The lord reached out and placed his hand on her head. Instantly, a cylindrical light screen encircled Hua Qingqing. It was as though she was a female Buddha.


    ��All entities have spirits. In the past, even I didn��t expect that you would awaken intelligence. Ancient Buddha Qingdeng, you��ve accompanied me in cultivation for many years, so I gifted you an opportunity in the cycle of life and death, allowing you to reincarnate. That��s why you have your current life. Now, have you recalled your memories,�� the Lord of All Buddhas said with a smile as he retracted his hand.


    Hua Qingqing put her palms together. A spot of light appeared between her brows. It looked like a lamp and made her appear more holy.


    ��I was originally a lamp before,�� Hua Qingqing muttered, ��Lord Buddha.��


    Obviously, she had recalled her past.


    The lord of All Buddhas smiled and nodded slightly. Hua Qingqing turned and looked toward Ye Futian; her eyes were exceedingly clear and pure. Now that she had recalled her past life, it made sense that she favored the Ancient Buddha Qingdeng because this had been her destiny all along. She was the Ancient Buddha Qingdeng in her past life, she was a lamp before the Buddha, and she had accompanied the Ancient Buddha in his cultivation.


    ��Greetings Great Buddha,�� Bitter Zen bowed and paid his respects to Hua Qingqing. He put his palms together, and his expression was very solemn. He appeared exceptionally respectful.


    ��Greetings Great Buddha.�� Quite a number of Buddhist cultivators bowed to Hua Qingqing, with the exception of a few Buddha Lord level cultivators who had seen an incredible number of years in cultivation.


    While Hua Qingqing was young, it was only her age in her current life. Back when she cultivated alongside the Lord of All Buddhas, she had experienced a nearly indefinite period of time, living for longer than even Bitter Zen. After being by the Lord for such an incredibly long time, she could be truly said to have accompanied the Buddha Lord in cultivation.


    As such, even Bitter Zen honored her by calling her ��Great Buddha.��


    Among the Buddhas present there, most were considered her juniors.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord and others who were hostile toward Ye Futian were all startled. Of course they knew about the Buddhist lamp of the Lord of All Buddhas. But Hua Qingqing, she was the reincarnation of the Lord��s Buddhist lamp?


    Back then, the Qingdeng accompanied the Lord of All Buddhas through his cultivation journey. As eons passed by, Qingdeng listened to countless years of Buddhist sutra and eventually gained intelligence. So, the Lord of All Buddhas used his supreme command of the Buddhist doctrine to help this Buddhist Lamp reincarnate as a human. This story was passed down in the Buddhism world all along, but no one expected that Ye Futian, who came to the Spirit Mountains today to consult about the Buddhist doctrine, had actually come for the Buddhist lamp.


    If that was the case, then they knew that within the World of Buddhism, it would be extremely difficult for them to target Ye Futian.


    Hua Qingqing bowed toward the Buddhas as well and said, ��Greetings, Buddhas.��


    Ye Futian smiled too as he saw this scene. When Hua Jieyu first mentioned this to him, he was in shock and disbelief as well. Hua Qingqing was actually the lamp before the Buddha, so it was no wonder she was able to protect Jieyu and prevent her spiritual soul from being obliterated.


    Now that he was able to send Hua Qingqing back to the Spirit Mountain to return under the Buddha Lord for cultivation, this whole saga had been brought to a satisfactory conclusion.


    ��In that case, I have completed my mission,�� Ye Futian smiled as he said. With the Buddha Lord��s care, of course he wouldn��t have to worry about Hua Qingqing anymore. Even across the entire world, there probably wasn��t a single person capable of hurting her now.


    Hua Qingqing looked toward Ye Futian with a gentle smile. Then, the Buddha Lord spoke, ��Perhaps it��s too early to say that.��


    Ye Futian was a little taken aback by what the Lord of All Buddhas said. He asked, ��Please enlighten me.��


    ��She had reincarnated for cultivation, and so she lives a different life now. She hasn��t concluded all of her fated connections with the mortal world, so she won��t be able to take refuge in Buddhism; the time hasn��t arrived,�� the Lord of All Buddhas said with a smile. Ye Futian was startled. Did he mean to let Hua Qingqing continue to mature in the common world and then cultivate there?


    ��Hua Qingqing, what do you think?�� the Lord of All Buddhas asked her.


    ��I��ll heed the arrangements of the Lord,�� Hua Qingqing answered.


    The Lord of All Buddhas continued, ��I��ve helped you recall your memories from your past life this time. Back then, when you had just awakened your intellect, you had already been following alongside me for many years in cultivation. This is why you are proficient in the Buddhist doctrine and can help Ye Futian with his cultivation. Now that these memories have returned to you, you shall return to the mortal world to continue experiencing and developing. Upon the time your fate with the mortal world had ended, that is the day you will become a Buddha.��


    Hua Qingqing didn��t say anything else. She put her palms together and bowed, agreeing to the Buddha Lord��s words in silence.


    Upon hearing this, Ye Futian also understood that it wasn��t time for Hua Qingqing to return to the Spirit Mountain yet. With that, does that mean that he had made this trip for nothing?


    But through this, he had managed to find the confirmed identity of Hua Qingqing and help her to regain her memories. That alone was worth this journey!

 Chapter 2487 - Cultivation on the Spirit Mountain

    Ye Futian put his palms together and bowed toward the Lord of All Buddas. He said, ��Thank you very much. My visit this time was a little discourteous, so I seek your forgiveness. I��ll now bring Hua Qingqing down the mountain and return.��


    ��No hurry,�� the Lord smiled and replied, ��Ye Futian, the Buddha of Destiny already said that you have been fated with Buddhism. It was an arduous journey to come to the Spirit Mountains and send Hua Qingqing back to restore her memories. Of course, the Buddha will not let you return empty-handed.��


    Ye Futian was a little astounded. Shenyan Buddha Lord��s expression revealed some agitation. Was the Lord of All Buddhas going to do the same thing as he did to Donghuang the Great and pass on the Buddhist Doctrine to Ye Futian?


    A smile spread across Hua Qingqing��s face. Not only did they manage to eliminate the dangers of this trip, but they had even turned mishap into opportunity.


    ��I see, this is the Buddha of Destiny.�� Ye Futian looked at the Lord of All Buddhas, who had his eyes narrowed. He guessed that this Buddha Lord must be an ancient Buddha who had cultivated Omniscience��mysterious and unfathomable. He wondered whether the Buddha Lord could actually get a glimpse of his destiny.


    At his level, even if he couldn��t see everything, he could at least see a fraction of it.


    The Lord of All Buddha��s gaze also landed on the Buddha of Destiny as he asked, ��Great Buddha, which Buddhist superpower do you think is suitable for Ye Futian to practice?��


    ��Besides Hua Qingqing, Benefactor Ye��s fated connection with Buddhism could also be a tinge related to Wutian Buddha Lord.�� The Buddha of Destiny��s eyes narrowed as he smiled. Wutian Buddha Lord previously helped Ye Futian to diffuse some dangers and let his student Yumu stay by Ye Futian��s side.


    ��Indeed,�� the Buddha Lord said. ��If that��s the case, then we shall teach Celerity. Wutian Buddha Lord, what do you think?��


    ��I��ll heed the Buddha Lord��s arrangements,�� Wutian Buddha Lord smiled and said. He did, in fact, have good intentions toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian was someone blessed by the heavens. If Celerity were passed down to him, it would also benefit the promulgating of the Buddhist doctrine.


    ��Ye Futian, are you willing?�� the Lord of All Buddhas looked toward Ye Futian and asked. He wanted to impart Celerity to Ye Futian��one of the six superpowers of Buddhism.


    Celerity was also known as Teletransportation or Willful Travel. Cultivated at the highest level, it would allow the user to appear anywhere in the world at will. This was the ultimate cultivation in space and teleportation. Before this, the Buddha Lord asked the Buddha of Destiny whether there were deeper meanings to this.


    With the powers of the Lord of All Buddhas and the Buddha of Destiny, rather than the glimpse of his future that they could catch, could it be that they were imparting to him Celerity to help him safeguard his life?


    Of course, regardless of the reason, cultivating one of the six Buddhist superpowers was an enormous opportunity in itself.


    ��I am humbled. Throughout this trip to Spirit Mountain, I have already learned a significant number of Buddhist doctrines. Now, the Buddha Lord is willing to impart me one of the six Buddhist superpowers. I��m truly grateful.�� Ye Futian bowed down in gratitude.


    ��Mmm.�� The Lord of All Buddhas nodded. ��As for the teaching of Celerity, we��ll have to trouble Wutian Buddha Lord. Is that alright?��


    Wutian Buddha Lord bowed as well. ��Glad to be of service.��


    ��Thank you very much, Wutian Buddha Lord.�� Ye Futian bowed toward Wutian Buddha Lord as well. This trip to the Buddhist World in the Western Heaven wasn��t a smooth journey. They had encountered many setbacks and hindrances, were chased by cultivators wanting to kill them, and they had seen the destruction of the divine frame. Even at Spirit Mountain of the Western Heaven, there were still many Great Buddhas who were hostile toward him.


    But the end result was still very satisfactory to him. Those like Lord of All Buddhas, Wutian Buddha Lord, Buddha of Destiny, and Master Bitter Zen were all very respectable Buddhist cultivators.


    Of course, Ye Futian wouldn��t dwell on whether the Lord of All Buddhas had some ulterior motives in doing this. The Lord of All Buddhas was a Great Emperor level cultivator. At this level, there was no need to cover up anything toward someone like Ye Futian, so naturally, the Buddha Lord would just do as he wished.


    ��Alright, I have disturbed you, Buddhas. Feel free to continue. I shall now take my leave,�� the Lord of All Buddhas said. As his voice sounded, Buddhist light erupted, and his golden frame gradually turned into a phantom. His body just disappeared into thin air. Before the Buddhas could even react, he had already left.


    But the Buddhas weren��t surprised; it was incredibly rare for the Lord of All Buddhas to show himself. He only appeared on Spirit Mountain because of Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing. Moreover, this wasn��t his true form in the first place.


    After the Lord of All Buddhas left, the Buddhas were all left with different thoughts.


    ��Benefactor Ye and Benefactor Hua should stay on Spirit Mountain and attend the All Buddhas Fest. It��s about to come to an end anyway,�� Tianyin Buddha Lord said with a smile. Several other Buddhas nodded in agreement. Hua Qingqing was the lamp of the Buddha Lord, and since Ye Futian had sent her to the Spirit Mountain, there was nothing wrong with her attending the All Buddhas Fest.


    ��Congratulations to Benefactor Ye,�� Yianyin Arhat said with a smile. Ye Futian nodded and thanked him. Yumu, who was standing on the side, also nodded to Ye Futian to pay respects.


    Ye Futian put his palms together and returned the greeting. Tianyin Arhat then smiled and said, ��Please take a seat, Ye Benefactor.��


    ��Thank you very much.�� Ye Futian wasn��t too reserved and walked to the position beside Tianyin Arhat. Hua Qingqing wanted to follow him, but Wutian Buddha Lord said, ��Great Buddha once accompanied the Lord of All Buddhas in cultivation, so please sit here instead.��


    Hua Qingqing hesitated for a bit. But when she saw Ye Futian nodding at her, she didn��t think too much about it. She went to the highest heaven and sat in the seat beside Wutian Buddha Lord.


    ��Congratulations to Benefactor Ye.�� Tongchan Arhat also looked toward Ye Futian and spoke with a smile on his face. Ye Futian looked at him a little alarmed. He controlled his inner thoughts and didn��t overthink so the others wouldn��t read his thoughts.


    The All Buddhas Fest continued, but everyone now had their own agendas and thoughts, and the atmosphere wasn��t quite there.


    As the ten-thousandth year of the All Buddhas Calendar arrived, Buddhist light that spanned thousands of miles shrouded the entire Spirit Mountain. This day, many Buddhist cultivators set off from Spirit Mountains and headed toward the Western Heaven to promulgate the Buddhist doctrine. The entire Western Heaven was lit up with liveliness on this spectacular occasion.


    On this day, the Great Buddhas also left one after another to return to their own cultivation areas.


    Ye Futian didn��t leave. Atop Spirit Mountain, Ye Futian sat before an ancient temple and cultivated with his eyes closed. Beside him, Hua Qingqing was sitting there as well, and Buddhist light encircled her. There seemed to be Buddhist halos behind her, appearing incredibly divine and holy. The Buddhist light also illuminated Ye Futian��s body. Before them, a Great Buddha sat; it was Wutian Buddha Lord. He was passing his teachings to Ye Futian just now, imparting to him one of the six Buddhist superpowers��Celerity.


    After a while, Ye Futian opened his eyes. He put his palms together toward Wutian Buddha lord and said, ��Thank you, Buddha Lord, for your teachings.��


    ��How are you feeling?�� Wutian Buddha Lord asked.


    ��The Buddhist doctrine has no ending, and Celerity isn��t something that I can learn and understand overnight. I��m afraid I will need to go through a long period of perceptive cultivation. At the same time, I will need to coordinate it with other Buddhist doctrines to stand a chance of mastering it,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��I see you already understand.�� Wutian Buddha Lord smiled and nodded. ��The cultivation of the six Buddhist superpowers does indeed require the reinforcement of other Buddhist doctrines to help comprehension. In this world, perhaps only the Lord of All Buddhas have cultivated Celerity to mastery; even I still have a long way to go.��


    Mastery over Celerity meant transcending the physical limits of this world; that was indeed nearly impossible.


    ��As for time, I suggest you cultivate on the Spirit Mountain for a period of time. Wait until you have reached a certain level in Celerity before leaving,�� Wutian Buddha Lord added.


    ��Thank you very much, Buddha Lord.�� Ye Futian nodded. That was his plan as well!

 Chapter 2488 - Saint Zhenchan Returns

    Chapter 2488: Saint Zhenchan Returns


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Light of Buddha shone on Spirit Mountain. The surroundings were quiet and peaceful. The entire area was veiled, like a sanctuary.


    Dazzling colorful light poured down on one of the peaks of Spirit Mountain. A white-haired figure sat cross-legged with his eyes shut as he cultivated. Behind him were two other silhouettes sitting quietly and cultivating. Both of them were absolute beauties and appeared even more divine under the Light of Buddha.


    One of the women was actually shrouded in halos of the Light of Buddha. She was like a bodhisattva with transcendent beauty. She gave off an immaculate aura. The other woman seemed to be an otherworldly goddess. Their temperaments were completely different.


    .


    These two women were naturally Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing. Since Ye Futian had remained to cultivate on Spirit Mountain, he had gone to Western Heaven to bring over Hua Jieyu and the others. Now, Hua Jieyu, Chen Yi as well as a few junior figures were all cultivating on Spirit Mountain.


    Up until today, they had been cultivating on Spirit Mountain for three years. In the past three years, Hua Jieyu and the others also read Buddhist scriptures. They did not purposely cultivate the Path of Buddha and Buddhist superpowers, but various techniques were related after all. Moreover, Buddhist scriptures were extremely profound. They could be enlightening. Occasionally, some things that they did not comprehend before could suddenly become extremely clear.


    Hence, these three years of cultivation had been extremely beneficial for them.


    Of course, the person who had improved the most was undoubtedly Hua Qingqing. In her previous life, she had been a Buddhist lamp who had accompanied the Lord of All Buddhas in his cultivation. He had recited many Buddhist scriptures to Qingdeng. This caused Qingdeng to gain sentience in her previous life. Now that memories of her previous life had awakened, the various Buddhas crowned her a Buddha. Her cultivation improved by leaps and bounds every day. She even transcended the original cultivation rules and kept leaping past planes.


    In another location, Blind Tie was cultivating under a golden waterfall that seemed to be formed from the flowing Light of Buddha. At that moment, a silhouette suddenly appeared near him. Blind Tie raised his eyebrows, seemingly sensing something. He turned towards the person who had appeared. However, the next moment, he did not sense anything in that direction. It was as though no one had ever been there.


    Were his senses playing tricks on him? Blind Tie thought to himself. He felt somewhat strange. By right, his sense would not be mistaken. Then, what was it?


    In another location, below a pagoda, a few silhouettes were sitting there cultivating. Around them were quite a few Buddhas. These figures were rather young, but their temperaments were astounding. They were Fang Cun and the youths.


    Just then, a silhouette appeared behind them. The four of them did not sense the figure at all. They were still immersed in their own cultivation. Very quickly, the figure vanished again, as though it had never been there.


    On the ancient golden peak, an illusory figure appeared where Ye Futian sat. It was his own illusory figure. Right then, his illusory figure merged back with his original body as he quietly sat there. It was as though he had never left the place and had always been sitting there cultivating.


    In the surrounding space, one could not even detect any changes in the power of the Great Path of Space.


    Hua Qingqing, who was seated behind Ye Futian, cast him a glance. Her gaze revealed a faint smile. Right then, Ye Futian also opened his eyes. He gazed down at the scenery below Spirit Mountain and mumbled, ��As expected, this Celerity superpower is miraculous. I can use it to go about without leaving any traces. Even those with cultivation not weaker than my own have difficulty sensing my presence. If I were to attack them, I would certainly catch them off guard. It is somewhat terrifying to think about it.��


    Hua Qingqing said, ��All six Buddhist superpowers are all miraculous. When you reach a higher cultivation plane, your Celerity will become even more powerful. When that happens, you can go anywhere you want in the world. The heavens and earth will no longer bind you.��


    ��Where did you go just now?�� Hua Jieyu asked curiously. In their eyes, Ye Futian had only disappeared for an instant before returning to his spot. It was as though he had never left. However, they naturally knew that Ye Futian was cultivating Celerity and had gone somewhere in that instant.


    ��I went to many places,�� replied Ye Futian as he turned around and looked at Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing.


    Hua Jieyu��s beautiful eyes revealed a look of surprise. Ye Futian had already gone to many places in that instant?


    Such speed was considered terrifying. Even if one cultivated the Great Path of Space, it was impossible to pull off such a feat.


    Right then, a figure suddenly appeared where they were. It was Yumu.


    Yumu similarly cultivated Celerity and could come and go without a trace. Without any signs of the power of the Great Path of Space, he had immediately appeared here.


    ��Master,�� greeted Ye Futian as he got up and bowed slightly.


    ��Benefactor Ye,�� replied Yumu as he returned the gesture. ��I have something to inform you. Back in Western Heaven, you previously came into conflict with Zhenchan Temple, and Saint Zhenchan went missing after the incident. Not long ago, Saint Zhenchan returned to Zhenchan Temple. He has gotten wind that you are cultivating here on Spirit Mountain and is already on his way over. I believe he will arrive soon.��


    ��So he did not die!�� Ye Futian mumbled. However, this was within expectations. Of course, although he had not killed Saint Zhenchan, he had heavily injured the latter. Saint Zhenchan must have recovered recently for him to have only returned to Zhenchan Temple now.


    Now, Ye Futian had already settled down on Spirit Mountain. Even though he had yet to establish a base here, he had long left Western Heaven.


    Despite that, Saint Zhenchan was actually coming to Spirit Mountain to find him. It was obvious how deep his grudge ran.


    In the battle back then, most of the cultivators of Zhenchan Temple were killed. Only Saint Zhenchan had escaped with severe injuries. Zhenchan Temple was already a shadow of its former self. This resulted in the deep hatred Saint Zhenchan bore against Ye Futian. This score needed to be settled.


    Saint Zhenchan was also originally from a Buddhist sect. It was not strange for him to come to Spirit Mountain.


    ��Of course, Benefactor Ye need not worry. On Spirit Mountain, it is impossible for Saint Zhenchan to do anything to you,�� said Yumu, comforting Ye Futian. Ye Futian naturally also understood this. He was a cultivator whom the Lord of All Buddhas had received. The latter had allowed him to cultivate one of the six Buddhist superpowers on Spirit Mountain. Under such circumstances, if Saint Zhenchan came to Spirit Mountain to kill Ye Futian, how would the Lord of All Buddhas punish him?


    Another figure dashed over. This time, it was Bitter Zen. When he arrived, he placed his palms together and bowed towards Hua Qingqing, saying, ��Greetings, Buddha.��


    The cultivators of Spirit Mountain still maintained absolute respect towards Hua Qingqing. It was so even for Bitter Zen, who had followed the Lord of All Buddhas. Hua Qingqing was the Buddhist lamp accompanying the Lord of All Buddhas in his cultivation for countless eons.


    ��Greetings, Master Bitter Zen,�� responded Hua Qingqing as she returned the gesture. Ye Futian similarly greeted him. Bitter Zen looked towards Ye Futian and said, ��Saint Zhenchan is already making his way across the ocean. He will arrive at Spirit Mountain soon. However, Benefactor Ye may cultivate in peace. On Spirit Mountain, nothing will happen to you.��


    ��Many thanks, Master,�� thanked Ye Futian politely. Master Bitter Zen must have come to put his mind at ease. Even Saint Zhenchan could not do as he pleased on Spirit Mountain!

 Chapter 2489 - Seeking the Buddha

    Many Buddhas suddenly appeared on Spirit Mountain. In Western Heaven, Spirit Mountain was the center for those who sought the Path of Buddha. Each Buddha had their own cultivation courts, and not all of them cultivated on Spirit Mountain.


    However, the cultivation courts of the various Buddhas were connected with Spirit Mountain and could easily access the latter. Of course, this was a privilege granted only to Buddhas of very high standing.


    This time, the various Buddhas came over because they had caught wind of some news. Saint Zhenchan was alive and had returned to Zhenchan Temple. Now, he was heading over to Spirit Mountain to settle the score with Ye Futian.


    Based on the news they received, back during the battle when Saint Zhenchan led his forces to take down Ye Futian, his forces had been destroyed. The cultivators of Zhenchan Temple had all fallen, and only Saint Zhenchan had escaped. However, he was also gravely injured. He had not appeared in public for several years until he recently returned to Zhenchan Temple.


    They speculated that, until now, Saint Zhenchan��s injuries had yet to fully recover. There would certainly still be some lingering ailments.


    However, no one would be able to sit still when such grievances had been committed against them.


    Hence, many Buddhas had come to Spirit Mountain beforehand. They wanted to see how this grudge would end.


    Ye Futian��s group was also waiting there. Not long after, there was a disturbance on Spirit Mountain. Saint Zhenchan had arrived.


    On the ancient golden peak, Ye Futian could sense many powerful auras landing on him. It was apparent that the various Buddhas were watching him. At the same time, far off in the distance, an extremely terrifying aura swept over the area. A powerful resentment appeared over the sacred lands of the divine Spirit Mountain, faintly disrupting the peaceful environment here.


    Spirit Mountain was the sacred land of the World of Buddhism. Ordinary people would not dare to act so presumptuously here. However, Saint Zhenchan was originally from a Buddhist sect. His standing was not low, so he dared to act this way.


    A short while later, Ye Futian and his group saw a silhouette appear before them.


    Saint Zhenchan stood before the ancient golden peak. His gaze instantly locked on to Ye Futian. He had an ice-cold look in his eyes. The murderous intent in his eyes was clear as day.


    However, not far in front of Ye Futian, another figure stood. It was Bitter Zen.


    Next to Ye Futian, Hua Qingqing also stood quietly.


    Now, Hua Qingqing��s position among the Buddhist sects was outstanding. Even Buddha Lord-level figures referred to her as Buddha.


    ��Greetings, Master Bitter Zen,�� Saint Zhenchan greeted Bitter Zen as he nodded his head slightly. Although he was arrogant, he was still very polite towards the Lord of All Buddha��s attendant, not daring to step out of line at the slightest.


    ��Greetings, Saint Zhenchan,�� replied Bitter Zen as he returned the gesture without an ounce of arrogance.


    ��Master Bitter Zen, this man killed many members of Zhenchan Temple a few years ago. Even the Deputy Lord of Zhenchan Temple fell to his hands. Zhenchan Temple suffered severe losses, and I barely made it out with my life,�� said Saint Zhenchan. ��Later on, I heard that this man relied on the name of a Buddhist lamp which reincarnated into a Buddha to cultivate on Spirit Mountain. Hence, I specifically came over here to take a look. I wanted to see how such a man, who stirred up such a huge storm in Six Desires Heaven and slaughtered so many people, could cultivate the Path of Buddha.��


    ��Saint Zhenchan, quell your anger,�� said Bitter Zen as he placed his palms together and bowed towards Saint Zhenchan. ��What occurred back then was all because of cause and effect. Saint Zhenchan, you sowed the seeds yourself, so you also had to reap what you sow. Now that you are here, you can cultivate on Spirit Mountain for a period of time to resolve the hostility in your heart with Buddhist doctrine. That way, you might be able to get rid of your obsession.��


    Bitter Zen continued, ��As for Benefactor Ye, the Lord of All Buddhas has arranged for him to cultivate on Spirit Mountain. It is because this is Benefactor Ye��s fate with Buddha.��


    Bitter Zen directly stated that this was arranged by the Lord of All Buddhas. The latter was the leader of the World of Buddhism. Nothing in Western Heaven could escape his eyes. He naturally knew what had happened back then. Bitter Zen did not need to say more. Saint Zhenchan should be able to read between the lines.


    Saint Zhenchan naturally understood what he meant. Bitter Zen stated that Ye Futian had done no wrong and that he should reflect on his actions while studying Buddhist scriptures.


    He was a Buddhist, but he had always been occupied with establishing his own force. His relationship with the Buddhist sects was not that close. However, his elder brother, Tongchan, was a top Buddha Lord.


    ��Alright. Since the Lord of All Buddhas has arranged it, I will not do anything. However, away from Spirit Mountain, this personal vendetta still stands. I beg the forgiveness of the Lord of All Buddhas in advance,�� declared Saint Zhenchan. His tone was not polite at all. The Buddhist sects were different from sects in other worlds. In other worlds, the underlings were subordinate to the Great Emperor level figures. None of them would dare act so presumptuously to their superiors.


    However, the Lord of All Buddhas was merciful and did not interfere with worldly matters. Everything obeyed the laws of causality and fate. He would not force anything to happen nor interfere with it happening.


    Beyond Spirit Mountain, the Lord of All Buddhas would not meddle in worldly affairs.


    Also, the law enforcers of the World of Buddhism did not look kindly on Ye Futian.


    ��Zhenchan, you overstep your bounds,�� a voice called out. Saint Zhenchan turned around and saw a Buddha appear. It was Tongchan Buddha Lord.


    Tongchan Buddha Lord, Saint Zhenchan, and Lord Initial Zen were all under the same master. Back in the day, they had all cultivated under the same ancient Buddha. However, each of them chose their own cultivation path, and they weren��t that close. Tongchan Buddha Lord was of very high standing. Be it Saint Zhenchan or Lord Initial Zen, neither of them was worthy of his attention.


    Nevertheless, Tongchan Buddha Lord did not have a good impression of Ye Futian either.


    After all, they were still from the same sect. Initial Zen was killed by Ye Futian. Zhenchan had nearly perished as well.


    ��Forgive me, Elder Brother,�� said Saint Zhenchan as he bowed towards Tongchan Buddha Lord. He appeared extremely polite. They did not seem like ordinary brothers.


    Tongchan Buddha Lord cast a glance at him and said, ��I know why you have come. You have yet to recover from your injuries. You wish to head to Vaidurya Pure World, yes?��


    ��Elder brother, please help me,�� Saint Zhenchan replied with a bow. He naturally could not hide this from Tongchan Buddha Lord as the latter could read the minds of others.


    Vaidurya Pure World was an independent world in the World of Buddhism. The master of Vaidurya Pure World was an ancient Buddha, Medicine Buddha Lord.


    Medicine Buddha Lord was revered. Even the Lord of All Buddhas would be very polite towards him. He could be considered a true relic of the World of Buddhism. He rarely appeared in public, not even appearing during All Buddhas Fest. Only a few of his disciples had attended the festival.


    Although Saint Zhenchan��s cultivation was powerful and his position in the World of Buddhism was high, Vaidurya Pure World was still not a place that he could visit as he pleased. He still needed the help of Tongchan Buddha Lord to get there.


    On Spirit Mountain, there was a passageway that led to Vaidurya Pure World.


    ��He has yet to recover from his injuries and wishes to see Medicine Buddha Lord,�� Hua Qingqing told Ye Futian over transmitted thoughts. These past few years, Ye Futian had developed a greater understanding about the top figures in the World of Buddhism. Medicine Buddha Lord was considered a legendary existence, a true ancient Buddha.


    From the looks of it, Saint Zhenchan had yet to recover from his injuries back then. Hence, he wanted to head over to Vaidurya Pure World to seek treatment from Medicine Buddha Lord.


    ��Alright, I will help you. However, whether or not Medicine Buddha Lord is willing to treat you is up to your fate,�� replied Tongchan Buddha Lord in an indifferent tone.


    ��Elder Brother, thank you for your help,�� Saint Zhenchan responded with a bow.


    ��Follow me,�� Tongchan Buddha Lord instructed. Saint Zhenchan stepped forward and followed him. Before he left, he did not forget to turn around and sweep a glance at Ye Futian. Over transmitted thoughts, he said, ��Now that you no longer have the divine body, even if you have cultivated Buddhist doctrine on Spirit Mountain, what can you do? You��d better pray that you��ll make it out of Western Heaven alive!��

 Chapter 2490 - Years Old

    Ye Futian watched as Saint Zhenchan left. His expression was calm. After the other party left, he said, ��It appears that I am not the main reason why Saint Zhenchan came to Spirit Mountain.��


    The various Buddhas also realized this. It turned out that Saint Zhenchan had come to Spirit Mountain to meet Medicine Buddha Lord. It seemed that his injuries were very severe. With his cultivation, it might be that he couldn��t recover from it on his own. Hence, he needed the aid of Medicine Buddha Lord.


    ��Still, you should be careful,�� mumbled Chen Yi as he walked up next to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded his head. Saint Zhenchan��s threat was still ringing in his ears. Saint Zhenchan��s main reason for coming here was to seek treatment; his secondary goal was to deal with Ye Futian.


    As long as he had the opportunity, Saint Zhenchan would naturally not let Ye Futian go.


    The grudge between them was established, and not just in Western Heaven. Most likely, even if Ye Futian returned to the Divine Prefecture, Saint Zhenchan would not let him escape. After all, without the divine body, Ye Futian couldn��t go against Saint Zhenchan.


    ��Spirit Mountain is a place for quiet cultivation. Everyone, please return to your own cultivation courts,�� said Bitter Zen as he walked up before the ancient peak and bowed into the distance with his palms placed together.


    Although there was no one before him, in reality, the various Buddhas were all looking to where he was. He was asking the various Buddhas to leave.


    Very soon, the Buddhas retracted their auras. Seeing that the incident had been resolved so easily, they naturally did not see the need to remain here. All of them left one after another.


    ��Benefactor Ye, you may continue cultivating in peace,�� Bitter Zen said as he turned to face Ye Futian.


    ��Many thanks, Master,�� replied Ye Futian as he bowed back at Bitter Zen. Bitter Zen and Yumu then bid farewell and left.


    Chen Yi walked up beside Ye Futian and asked, ��What do you plan to do now?��


    Ye Futian was marked by Saint Zhenchan. If he remained in Western Heaven, he needed to be on his guard at all times. If he took the opportunity to leave now, he might be able to return to the Divine Prefecture before Saint Zhenchan recovered from his injuries.


    Ye Futian replied, ��Since Saint Zhenchan wants to kill me, he probably won��t let this opportunity slip past him so easily. If I leave, we might be stalked.�� After all, Saint Zhenchan should be well aware that if Ye Futian returned to the Divine Prefecture, it wouldn��t be as easy to kill him there as it was in Western Heaven.


    If Ye Futian were in Saint Zhenchan��s shoes, he would have arranged for Ye Futian to be stalked.


    ��So, you plan to continue cultivating in Western Heaven?�� Chen Yi further inquired.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian as he nodded his head. He would first reach the ninth tier of the Renhuang Plane. Even if he returned to the Divine Prefecture, his main goal would still be to continue cultivating. It was a rare fateful encounter for him to be able to cultivate on Spirit Mountain.


    Aside from cultivating Celerity, his aim was to reach the final tier of the Renhuang Plane. That way, when he returned to the Divine Prefecture, he could do as he pleased and need not be restricted by others.


    ��Alright,�� answered Chen Yi as he nodded his head. Spirit Mountain was indeed very suitable for cultivating.


    After they made their decision, their group continued cultivating here. The peaceful mountain seemed to make them forget the flow of time. In the blink of an eye, Ye Futian welcomed his 100th year of life.


    Before the ancient peak, Ye Futian gazed at the golden Sea of Clouds. Hua Jieyu sat beside him, accompanying him in silence.


    ��It has been 100 years,�� whispered Hua Jieyu with a smile. Both of them were the same age. They were now 100 years old.


    ��100 years passed by in a flash,�� replied Ye Futian as he smiled. He recalled the time when they had met in Qingzhou Academy in the city of Qingzhou. It felt like a dream that had lasted for decades.


    ��Although it passed in a flash, we have also changed greatly since then,�� said Hua Jieyu with a smile. The times they spent during their youth in the city of Qingzhou were so happy. Everything had changed since then.


    They also never imagined that they would spend their 100th year alive on Spirit Mountain, the holy land of Western Heaven.


    ��Although we have changed, in the end, we are still together,�� said Ye Futian in a gentle tone as he hugged Hua Jieyu. Ever since they knew each other, they had been apart longer than they had been together. Fortunately, they were still a couple.


    They would remain together forever.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Hua Jieyu as she nodded her head gently. She leaned into Ye Futian��s embrace and closed her eyes. She did not move, seemingly quietly falling asleep.


    After looking at his lover in his embrace, Ye Futian gazed out to the golden Sea of Clouds. It was as beautiful as a dream.


    During his first 100 years of cultivation, he had pursued the peak of the Renhuang Plane. For the next 100 years, he would aim for the peak of cultivation.


    He also closed his eyes and enjoyed the peace and quiet of the moment.


    In the distance, Hua Qingqing��s beautiful gaze revealed a faint smile as she watched this peaceful scene. She turned around and did not disturb them. She then saw Fang Cun and the others peeping. When they saw Hua Qingqing smiling at them, they quickly scurried away.


    No one disturbed Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu from enjoying their time together. They watched as the two of them enjoyed this peace that was hard to come by. The golden Sea of Clouds shone with the Light of Buddha. The clouds kept shifting. Waves of rainbow light shone down on Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. The scene was like a painting. It was a peaceful sight to behold.


    This scene lasted for a long while. They seemed detached from the world around them. No matter how the golden clouds shifted, they did not move at all. They seemed to have entered a state of meditative consciousness.


    A few days later, Hua Qingqing, Chen Yi, and the others looked at the two of them from afar. Someone asked in a low voice, ��What��s going on?��


    ��They are one with nature. They merge with the heavens and the earth,�� Hua Qingqing explained softly. ��This is what happens when someone enters the state of meditative consciousness. When a cultivator enters into this state, it��s easier for them to achieve enlightenment. Perhaps, this is a fateful encounter for them.��


    ��Hmm.�� Chen Yi nodded in agreement. The changes in the Sea of Clouds intensified as the clouds shifted frenziedly. They could faintly sense an aura of the Great Path flowing in the sky. This caused Chen Yi and Hua Qingqing to reveal a surprised expression.


    This was a sign. Who was about to break through to the next plane?


    Was it Ye Futian? Or was it Hua Jieyu?


    There were howling winds and churning clouds in the sky above Spirit Mountain. A terrifying aura flowed in the air. The golden Light of Buddha dispersed, and dull thundering sounds could be heard. The sacred space was covered with a layer of haze. The aura was menacing, causing people��s hearts to tremble in fear.


    ��It��s a divine tribulation!�� Chen Yi mumbled as a glint of surprise flashed past in his eyes.


    The person who was about to experience a breakthrough was Hua Jieyu.


    If Ye Futian were experiencing a breakthrough, he would advance to the ninth tier of the Renhuang Plane. There would not be any divine tribulation involved.


    Only if Hua Jieyu faced a breakthrough would the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path occur.


    Ye Futian sensed something. He opened his eyes and took a look at the sky. Joy flashed past his eyes. Hua Jieyu, who was in his embrace, similarly opened her eyes. They looked at each other and smiled. Then, she left his arms. Clearly, both of them were well aware of what was going to happen.


    Ye Futian thought to himself. He did not expect Jieyu to be the first of them to experience the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. However, after recalling Hua Jieyu��s experience and fateful encounters, he felt that her advancement was natural. Hua Jieyu had a deeper understanding of the teachings of the Great Emperor compared to him. Back when she returned to his side in the Divine Prefecture, she was already at the peak of the Renhuang Plane.


    Hua Jieyu stepped forward and marched towards the Sea of Clouds.


    ��Be careful,�� reminded Ye Futian softly. He had witnessed how Emperor Xi experienced his divine tribulation. The process was perilous.


    ��Hmm.�� Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded her head. She seemed unworried about it.


    Chen Yi and Hua Qingqing approached them. Blind Tie, Fang Cun, and the rest joined them too. All of them watched as Hua Jieyu walked towards the Sea of Clouds.


    Countless people exhausted their lives wanting to experience the divine tribulation and advance to the next level. Yet, they couldn��t achieve their goal. Who would have thought that Hua Jieyu had actually managed to do so after having an enlightenment?


    ��Why haven��t you broken through to the next plane?�� Chen Yi asked Ye Futian.


    ��Right! Even Masteress is undergoing the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Yet Master has yet to advance to the next plane,�� said Fang Cun with a smile. He was teasing his Master.


    Ye Futian revealed a pondering look. Before this, when he was in the state of meditative consciousness, he felt that he had entered into a miraculous realm. With his current ability, he should be able to break through to the next plane. However, he seemed to encounter some hindrance that prohibited him from doing so. Up until now, he had yet to get to the bottom of this problem!

 Chapter 2491 - Tribulation

    However, right now, Ye Futian was not in the mood to think about breaking through to the next plane. He was somewhat worried.


    Although Hua Jieyu undergoing a tribulation was a good thing, in a sense, doing so was not truly breaking through to the next plane. The current Heavenly Law did not allow Renhuangs with flawless Great Paths to continue advancing. Hence, the Tribulation of Law descended upon them when they attempted to do so. It was extremely dangerous.


    Conversely, when cultivators without flawless Great Paths advanced, that was considered truly breaking through to the next plane. They merged with the Heavenly Law and were even called fake emperors. Yet, in reality, they were far inferior to Great Emperors.


    Great Emperor level figures were existences akin to deities in ancient times. Fake emperors could not compare to them. Ordinary fake emperors would have difficulty defeating even a ninth-tier Renhuang with a flawless Great Path.


    Back when the Original Realm went through the crisis, many ninth-tier Renhuangs descended from the Divine Prefecture. Figures from the Original Realm at the level of Lord Taixuan could not hold a candle to them. The gap between their levels of power was apparent.


    Ye Futian had witnessed Emperor Xi undergoing his tribulation on Turtle Deity Island. Even with Emperor Xi��s ability back then, it was difficult for him to withstand the power of the tribulation, especially the Sword of Law which appeared at the end. Emperor Xi was nearly killed by the Sword of Law. The black turtle of Turtle Deity Island appeared in the nick of time and took the terrifying slash on behalf of Emperor Xi. Only then did he manage to pass the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Of course, Hua Jieyu was different. In Ye Futian��s opinion, Hua Jieyu was not any weaker than Emperor Xi of the past. She was a successor of a Great Emperor. Moreover, she had a deep understanding of the teachings she received. She also improved a lot while cultivating on Spirit Mountain these past few years. Her comprehension of Buddhist doctrine greatly aided her in her cultivation.


    Exactly because of the reasons above, Hua Jieyu had this opportunity to break through the shackles of her current plane.


    Therefore, even though Ye Futian was slightly worried about her, he was not afraid. Deep down, he believed that Hua Jieyu could succeed in this Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. It was just that there was still some risk.


    The two of them were very close; it was normal for Ye Futian to be worried for her.


    More and more menacing phenomena appeared in the sky above Spirit Mountain. The light of catastrophe gathered, churned, and roared. It penetrated the Light of Buddha, which hovered over Spirit Mountain. Great Buddha level figures appeared, followed by the Sound of Buddha reverberating in the heavens and the earth. Then, the Light of Buddha enveloped Spirit Mountain, shielding the entire mountain with a layer of golden shimmer. This caused it not to be harmed by the divine tribulation. Otherwise, Spirit Mountain would be perforated with holes under the power of the divine tribulation.


    Hua Jieyu stood at the center of the storm. Her entire body was shining. She was as divine and beautiful as a goddess. The light of catastrophe that gathered penetrated the space. It was as though the end days had arrived and overshadowed the peaceful divinity of Spirit Mountain. Even though Spirit Mountain was enveloped in defensive power, an intense rumbling could be felt on it now.


    ��It��s unexpected for a cultivator who hasn��t cultivated Buddhist superpowers to undergo a tribulation on Spirit Mountain. This is interesting,�� commented a Great Buddha while smiling.


    ��Right. This is the first time something like this has occurred,�� a Buddha responded.


    At this moment, many divine swords appeared around Hua Jieyu. All the divine swords were wheezing angrily as they surrounded her. They formed an unlimited domain with her in the center.


    The light of catastrophe rained down. The tribulation descended on Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu cast a glance at the sky. She was not afraid at all. She pointed a finger upwards. Immediately, countless divine swords appeared and collided head-on with the tribulation. Most of the light of catastrophe was eliminated. However, even so, there was still a myriad of light of catastrophe that landed on her. The light circulated around her body.


    On the ancient peak, Ye Futian and the others were somewhat nervous. Little Ling held her breath as her crystal-clear eyes stared at the silhouette before her. In her head, she prayed, ��Masteress will surely be alright.��


    ��Rest your worries. There are many Great Buddhas on Spirit Mountain. If something were to happen, they could take the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path head-on,�� Hua Qingqing said softly to Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded in agreement. Even though the tribulation was powerful, it was a form of power after all. True top existences could intervene in the power of the tribulation.


    However, if the situation escalated to that point, Hua Jieyu��s cultivation would be affected too. Ye Futian naturally wouldn��t want to see that happen.


    In the sky above, the light of catastrophe stretched for tens of thousands of miles. The horrifying phenomenon caused people��s hearts to tremble. Even at his current level, Ye Futian still felt somewhat terrified by it. He believed that if this tribulation were targeted at him, he would feel threatened too. One could imagine the intensity of the attack Hua Jieyu was withstanding now.


    The heavens shook, and the power of the tribulation constantly descended. Hua Jieyu��s clothes fluttered about, and her long, jet-black hair danced frenziedly in the wind. Her entire body seemed to become a divine body as she resisted the corrosion of the power of the tribulation.


    As time passed, the power of the tribulation showed no signs of weakening at all.


    Rumble. An even more frightening aura coalesced in the sky. Ye Futian felt that it was somewhat familiar. It was similar to the final attack that Emperor Xi withstood back then.


    The Heavenly Law was delivering its punishment, Ye Futian thought to himself. Last time, Emperor Xi had to withstand the Sword of Law. It was an extremely overbearing and sharp punishment.


    What would Hua Jieyu be facing?


    Each cultivator would experience a different power of law. The Sword of Law was a Tribulation of Law that had extremely overbearing attack power. What kind of power would Hua Jieyu experience?


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky above. Endless light of catastrophe gathered together. A face faintly appeared over where the light gathered. It seemed to be the face of a woman. It was majestic and domineering. It was filled with endless authority.


    An astonishing storm of will appeared in the heavens above. The power of law emanated from this storm. Ye Futian and the others felt an intense threat against their spiritual souls.


    ��It is the Will of the Law. It is a psychic attack of will,�� a Buddha commented as he looked at the face forming in the storm in the sky.


    Another Buddha commented, ��This attack is extremely dangerous. However, for the Will of the Law to appear when she is undergoing the tribulation means that her psychic abilities are extremely powerful. She is impressive.��


    Rumble.


    A dull thud could be heard. At that moment, it was as though the entire world fell silent. On Spirit Mountain, many cultivators felt as though their heads were about to explode. Their wills were collapsing, and their spiritual souls were about to shatter. This was especially so for people with low cultivation, such as Fang Cun and the others. They held their heads in their hands as they felt a pang of pain. This power had not even attacked them yet.


    Ye Futian also sensed a terrifyingly powerful attack. It made his thoughts freeze for a brief moment.


    However, in just a split second, everything seemed to have ended. When he regained his senses, he saw Hua Jieyu��s figure trembling slightly as she stood there. She seemed off balance.


    His figure dashed over and immediately appeared behind Hua Jieyu as he caught her.


    Hua Jieyu looked a little frail as she leaned on Ye Futian. However, she had a smile on her face. She raised her head and looked at Ye Futian, saying, ��This is the first tribulation.��


    Most likely, she would be capable enough to protect Ye Futian after she experienced the second tribulation.


    Many of Ye Futian��s enemies were cultivators who had undergone the first tribulation.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��This is the first tribulation.��


    His eyes glistened with tenderness. He naturally understood why Hua Jieyu trained so hard. She did so because of him.


    Ye Futian himself also had to break through to the next plane as soon as possible!

 Chapter 2492 - Unable to Break Through His Level?

    Atop Spirit Mountain, the tribulation clouds dissipated into the skies. As Buddhist light shrouded the glory of Spirit Mountain, everything returned to normal; it was as if everything before this had not happened at all.


    The Buddhas also left one after another. This incident today was considered rather unusual even for them. There had never been an outsider who came here to overcome the Divine Tribulations of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian brought Hua Jieyu to sit on the Ancient mountain. The power of the Great Path of Life encased her and rejuvenated her vitality, causing her body to regenerate quickly. Hua Jieyu was sitting cross-legged as she stabilized her cultivation levels. Overcoming the Divine Tribulations depleted a great amount of her spiritual energy. Back then, Emperor Xi only managed to withstand this Divine tribulation by sacrificing the life of the Black Tortoise while she powered through it with just her own body.


    Furthermore, in the end, Hua Jieyu was faced with a direct attack on her spiritual power by the Will of the Law, besieging her spiritual soul. It��s not difficult to imagine how terrifying of an attack it was; it was even more dangerous than the Sword of Law.


    As Blind Tie and Chen Yi left quietly, Fang Cun and the others left as well. No one wanted to disturb Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu��s cultivation.


    After seeing Hua Jieyu overcome the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, they all felt that they should work hard too, so as not to hold them back.


    Other than them, the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird was also cultivating earnestly. Although he was once the student of Great Elder Motian, he��d never had the chance to cultivate at Spirit Mountain. This was an opportunity for him, and he was trying his best to seize it, even going to listen to the Great Buddhas on Spirit Mountain teach Buddhist scripture.


    Spirit Mountain was the cultivation ground of the Lord of All Buddhas and the place where various Buddhas sought their paths. Other than the top Great Buddhas from their respective regions, there was a significant number of Great Buddhas who studied under Buddha Elders cultivating at the Spirit Mountain, and they also held Buddhist Scripture lectures. The Golden-winged Great Peng Bird Mo Yunzi frequently listened to these Great Buddhas�� lessons on scripture.


    As time passed, Ye Futian��s group continued to strive and cultivate on the Spirit Mountain, and each of their cultivation levels increased by the day.


    Several years later, Chen Yi had perfected his Great Path, and his powers evolved after reaching the ninth level of the Renhuang Plane. Even Blind Tie could no longer fight him. The two had sparred on the Spirit Mountain, although Blind Tie also received the inheritance of the Imperial Star at the Starry Cultivation Court, he still couldn��t compare to Chen Yi.


    After all, Chen Yi received the inheritance from the Bright Temple. Furthermore, he himself was the Divine Body of Light and was born with extraordinary potential.


    Blind Chen was even willing to die for him to inherit the power of the light.


    Back then, at the Donghua Domain, Chen Yi could already fight against Ye Futian. Now, he was far more powerful than back then, so much so that it would be difficult to even make an accurate comparison.


    On the other hand, for the past few years, Ye Futian felt the most troubled. Somehow, his cultivation was still stuck at the Eighth-Level Renhuang Plane, and he had made no breakthrough. This made him feel rather uncanny, as he couldn��t understand why and couldn��t find any reason.


    At this time, many monks sat before a statue of a Buddha on Spirit Mountain. They were all sitting on Zafus and listening in silence. Below the statue of the Buddha, a Great Buddha was giving a lecture about Buddhist scripture.


    This Great Buddha was a Buddha in Spirit Mountain and had a deep understanding of the Buddhist doctrine. Ye Futian came to know many of the Buddhist cultivators atop the Spirit mountains; he was also sitting below, listening to the lecture.


    After some time, the lecture ended, many Buddhist cultivators started raising questions regarding the scripture, and the Great Buddha helped to clarify their doubts one by one.


    The Buddhas only dispersed when there was no one else asking any more questions. However, Ye Futian sat quietly in his place and didn��t leave.


    ��Benefactor Ye, what��s the matter?�� this Great Buddha smiled and asked Ye Futian. He was the Vajra Buddha Lord of the Spirit Mountain and had the deepest understanding of the Vajra Sutra. He was also extremely well-versed in the Vajra Spell, which Ye Futian learned and cultivated.


    ��I do have something which I wish to seek your advice about, Great Buddha,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Please, tell me,�� Vajra Buddha Lord said with a smile.


    ��Is it true that Buddhist cultivators could forge the Divine Wheel with their Buddha pure bodies?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Yes indeed,�� the Vajra Buddha Lord nodded. ��In fact, some Buddha pure bodies are the Divine Wheel of the Great Paths. There is no difference. The strength of their Buddha pure bodies is the strength of their Divine Wheels.��


    ��The level of their Buddha pure bodies would be the level of their Divine Wheels, and by extension the plane of cultivation of the Buddhist cultivator?�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Em���� Vajra Buddha Lord nodded. He couldn��t quite understand what Ye Futian was trying to ask.


    ��Are there any Buddhist cultivators who have cultivated their Buddha pure bodies to the ninth plane of the Buddhist path, but their actual cultivation planes lagged behind?�� Ye Futian continued asking.


    Vajra Buddha Lord answered, ��No, you are a cultivator yourself, so of course you understand that the level of one��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path is equivalent to his cultivation plane. Having any of one��s Divine Wheel of the Great Path reach the ninth level is the same as reaching the ninth level of the Renhuang plane himself.��


    ��There are no exceptions?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��No exceptions.�� Vajra Buddha lord shook his head.


    ��Thank you, Buddha Lord, for clearing up my queries,�� Ye Futian put his palms together and bowed. He then excused himself to leave the place. He turned and walked a few steps before his figure just disappeared into thin air; it was as if he had teleported somewhere else.


    The next instant, he directly appeared at his cultivation place on the Ancient Peak.


    ��How was it?�� Hua Jieyi walked to him and asked.


    Ye Futian shook his head and said, ��I think the Buddha Lord doesn��t know as well. I guess we��ll have to just wait for a while and see.��


    ��Em,�� Hua Jieyu nodded.


    ��I��ll cultivate first,�� Ye Futian said. Then, he closed his eyes and sat cross-legged while his consciousness sank into the LIfe Palace.


    Inside the Life Palace, it was as though this was an entirely independent world. The World Tree swayed gently as various powers of the Great Path circled it. The sun and moon hung in the sky, and celestial stars shone magnificently; it looked like a real world.


    The projection of Ye Futian��s consciousness sat before the divine tree. With just a thought, powers of the Great Path started to conjure and materialize, turning into a Divine Wheel of the Great Path. Once the Divine Wheel of Divine Elephant appeared, an immense aura of the Great Path started to emanate from it.


    Then the Guqin Divine Wheel appeared as well, while enormous Buddha pure bodies of the Buddhist Path materialized behind him. The auras of all of these Great Paths were tremendously powerful. All of them had reached the ninth level.


    After cultivating on the Spirit Mountains for many years, he completed his Great Paths and continuously augmented his Great Path Divine Wheels. Now, all of these Divine Wheels had entered the ninth level one after another, so he should have entered the Ninth-Level Renhuang Plane as well. Yet, he had not sensed a breakthrough at all and continued to stay at the Eighth-Level.


    Based on the categorization of cultivation planes, as Vajra Buddha lord said, once the Divine Wheel entered the ninth level, then the cultivator himself would enter the ninth level as well. Based on that, of course, he would be considered a Ninth-Level cultivator. However, he didn��t feel that he had broken through the eighth plane. Especially when he released his Great Path aura, Hua Jieyu also felt that he was still at the eighth plane.


    This seemed to run contrary to common sense and wasn��t congruent to the rules of cultivation. The only possible explanation was that these Divine Wheels that have broken through to the ninth level were all derived and forged from the Life Spirits. And these Life Spirits are essentially nothingness in the first place and could only appear by relying on the World Tree.


    Only the World Tree could be truly considered his Natal Spirit. In some sense, it could even be regarded as the only one.


    So, could his cultivation level be related to that?


    Ye Futian closed his eyes, fully focusing on cultivating and perceiving the Great Path. By now, the only Divine Wheel that hadn��t made the breakthrough was the Boundary Wheel, which was derived from the World Tree.


    Perhaps that was the reason why he didn��t sense the opportunity to break through the eighth level.


    However, all of his Great Path powers had reached Ninth-Level strength, and they were all unified as one, so why was he unable to take this final step?


    This was the part that he couldn��t find the answer to!

 Chapter 2493 - A New Path

    Chapter 2493: A New Path


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Inside the life Palace, the projection of Ye Futian��s consciousness stood before the World Tree of his Natal Soul. He seemed to be pondering something.


    Since he started cultivating, nearly everything revolved around his World Tree. By meditating about it, he derived the other sub-Life Souls. This was only possible with the World Tree because this Natal Soul could accommodate any and everything in this world and provide endless energy for him.


    For instance, if he devoured the extreme powers of the Yin or Yang, he could extract them and convert them into his own power. The World Tree absorbed all powers in the world, but it also reciprocated Ye Futian with the purest of Great Path powers.


    Looking back, without the World Tree of his Natal Soul, none of the other things could have existed. This World Tree was a divine tree, and all other Life Souls and Great Path powers were the fruits borne on this divine tree.


    Perhaps that was the reason why even though his other Great Paths were all nearing perfection and had reached the ninth level, he still wasn��t able to actually break through the Eighth-Level. The root cause of all this was because his World Tree hadn��t evolved to perfection yet..


    So, what should he do to take this next step and let the World Tree transform in order to break through the shackles of his cultivation level?


    In Ye Futian��s impression, he had cultivated for many years. Today, he was more than a hundred years old, but this was only the second time that he actually met a bottleneck in his road of cultivation.


    And this time, it could be a crucial hurdle deciding the rest of his fate.


    If he couldn��t step over it, his road of cultivation could stop here.


    Actually, Ye Futian was considered rather lucky. There were so many phenomenal individuals from past to present; every single one of them met all kinds of hindrances and setbacks on their roads of cultivation. On the other hand, Ye Futian��s cultivation journey could definitely be said to be smooth-sailing. Hua Jieyu was able to make the breakthrough in cultivation before him. However, Hua Jieyu was reborn after death and was lucky to be alive. In some sense, she was no longer the Hua Jieyu from before. She was imbued with the attributes of the Empress and fused with countless incarnations before becoming the person she was today.


    But Ye Futian was different, as he was still himself in the purest way possible.


    As the World Tree swayed gently, auras of the Great Paths in various colors flowed around it. Each color seemed to represent a different Great Path power: Gengjin, Yin, Yang, Life, Lightning, etc�� Various Great Paths, all nearing perfection. They circled the World tree and caused the tree to rustle. It was as though that was its eternal state.


    Ye Futian pondered, but after much time, he still couldn��t fully fathom it.


    Several months had passed since he sat down. Atop the Ancient Peak, Ye Futian once again entered the state of meditative consciousness. When he woke up, he appeared extraordinarily tranquil. As the Buddhist light shone on him and the breeze brushed past him, Ye Futian reached out his hand. It was as though he could touch the powers existing throughout the world.


    The higher the cultivation level, the more one could sense that everything in this world could be used.


    Ye Futian pointed toward the sky and started to carve characters into thin air. His strokes were carved directly into the void, clear as they could be. These characters contained the power of the ��Path.��


    Below the Ancient Peak, Blind Tie raised his head slightly to face toward the sky. He could sense the powerful will of the Path.


    From afar, Fang Cun and the others also raised their heads in that direction, and he said, ��Is that character carved by Master? It looks like Master��s cultivation level had already reached the ninth level, but why didn��t he sense the breakthrough?��


    Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing walked to the back of Ye Futian. Ye Futian stared into that character, then, he sighed. With a wave of his hand, the word ��Path�� disappeared from the sky.


    ��Your Path has already reached the ninth level, and it far surpasses normal ninth-level cultivators,�� Hua Qingqing said softly. She had restored the memories from her previous life and was now extraordinary in every sense of the word. Naturally, she could sense that very clearly.


    Ye Futian��s power of the Great Path was already very powerful��it was definitely not at the eighth level.


    When Hua Jieyu heard Ye Futian��s sigh, she had already understood that Ye Futian still couldn��t solve the conundrum. He was trapped within it and couldn��t see through it.


    She walked to the side of Ye Futian. Her pretty eyes looked toward him and smiled gently without saying anything. This smile was the best consolation for Ye Futian.


    ��Jieyu,�� Ye Futian held her hand, ��I still can��t do it.��


    ��With your learning capacity, there��s no way that you can��t make the breakthrough. Since the others and I had done it, of course, you can too. Perhaps you haven��t understood it fully yet because the path you will take is different from everyone else��s. And because of that, this is happening. If your path were as easy as the others, then that would not be you.�� Hua Jieyu��s voice was gentle and tender, perhaps because she also sensed the tinge of frustration in Ye Futian��s heart.


    After all, anyone would be frustrated when faced with such circumstances. Because he was unable to see through it, he couldn��t find the path before him; he couldn��t even understand it.


    He was different from everyone else.


    ��Mm.�� Ye Futian nodded. He actually had the same feeling as well.


    He turned to look at Hua Qingqing and said, ��This is indeed the Path might of a Ninth-Level cultivator, yet I still can��t make the breakthrough. After all, I still have some ways to go in my understanding.��


    ��Back then when the Buddha cultivated the Buddhist doctrine, there were ones which he had spent more than a hundred years studying yet still failed to understand. One day when he woke up from sleep, and he had an epiphany. It was as though the cloudy skies had cleared out, suddenly allowing him to see the sun.�� Hua Qingqing continued, ��Moreover, this happened more than once. The Buddha Elder often studied Buddhist scriptures thousands of times, even copying and dictating them tens of thousands of times, over and over again. Yet, he still couldn��t fully understand it. But one day, he just suddenly got it, and the rest is history.��


    Ye Futian seemed to come to a revelation after hearing what Hua Qingqing said. He smiled helplessly. ��That��s indeed how cultivation is��a build up to one point of completion. Perhaps this is happening because I haven��t had any bottlenecks before this. Of course, the difference between the Buddha Elder and me is that I don��t have too much time.��


    He��s not concerned about being stuck at his current level forever. In the first place, there was no such thing as eternity. If he couldn��t do it in one year, how about ten?


    If he couldn��t do it in ten, how about a hundred?��


    Back then, the Buddha Elder poured his heart and soul into cultivating the Buddhist doctrine. He cared about nothing else, which was why he was known as the Ancient Buddha Qingdeng. Ye Futian respected such a state of mind, but his circumstance was different.


    ��The Great Paths are interconnected, and all laws in the world have something common among them. If you feel frustrated from cultivation, you can try studying Buddhist scripture. Perhaps it will give you a change of pace,�� Hua Qingqing smiled and said. ��There��s no need to cultivate the most powerful Buddhist superpowers; all you need to do is to read the Buddhist scriptures, calm your heart, and focus your mind.��


    Ye Futian looked toward Hua Qingqing. She was definitely different from before. She had become wiser. After all, she was the Buddhist lamp that accompanied the Buddha Elder for years in cultivation, after years of listening to the Buddha Elder��s lessons on scripture, she naturally gained great wisdom. Otherwise, she wouldn��t be able to awaken intellect.


    ��I��ll try it out,�� Ye Futian said as he nodded. Perhaps it would work. At the very least, it could calm his heart. As a matter of fact, over the past few days, his state of mind wasn��t as composed as before.


    ��I��ll accompany you,�� Hua Jieyu said with a smile.


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian nodded. Then, he walked down the Ancient Peak together with Hua Jieyu and off into another direction. Hopefully, reaching scriptures would be useful for him in finding a way to make the breakthrough!

 Chapter 2494 - A Phantom, Or A Dream

    Ye Futian stopped cultivating in retreat and began to comprehend the Buddhist scriptures. In Spirit Mountain, this holy land of Buddhism, he went to the library every day to read and study Buddhist scriptures. Sometimes, he would also listen to the preaching of other great Buddhas.


    He didn��t even obsess about cultivation anymore and didn��t deliberately cling onto the goal of breaking the realm.


    The study of Buddhist scriptures could indeed quiet a person��s mind and allow the person to enter into a wonderful state of mind that was free from any distraction. As Hua Qingqing said, during the Buddha��s cultivation once upon a time, sometimes some Buddhist scriptures that could not be understood for hundreds of years would suddenly become so apparent that enlightenment was obtained in a day.


    Perhaps one day, he would be able to do the same.


    Time flew by, and it had been more than ten years since Ye Futian arrived in the Western World. During this time, many stories had taken place in the land of the Divine Prefecture and the land of the Original Realm, but none of them had anything to do with him. Back then, he was public enemy number one in the Divine Prefecture, with many people wanting to kill him. He had no choice but to seal himself inside Ziwei Segmentum. He could not step outside of it. Afterward, while delivering Hua Qingqing to the Western World, he also came for the trials.


    No matter what happened in the outside world, the Ziwei Segmentum remained the same, becoming a world contained within itself. It had almost cut off all contact with the outside world. This was also a strategy to protect itself in times of turmoil.


    Here, he was devoted to cultivating and aimed to improve himself as quickly as possible. If he could not elevate his cultivation level, there would be no point for him to return, as he would still be unable to move around at will. Also, there would be nothing but dead ends for him��just the same as before.


    Donghuang the Great had personally intervened, and the teacher had negotiated for his safety. Since Donghuang the Great did not personally pursue the matter with him, it was precisely for this reason that the teacher would have no way to interfere in the future. Now, everything was dependent on himself.


    On this day, Ye Futian was reading the scriptures in the library. He was focused and studied in earnest. Not far away, there was a slight rustling noise. Someone was sweeping in the library. Ye Futian didn��t pay any attention to it and continued to immerse himself in his own little world.


    It was not until the monk sweeping in the library walked next to Ye Futian that Ye Futian became aware of his presence. He sat there and looked up with a smile. ��Grandmaster Bitter Zen.��


    This monk was actually a caretaker by the name of Bitter Zen. Ye Futian had discovered over the years that even though he was already a great Buddha himself and respected by all, Bitter Zen was still responsible for the menial tasks on Spirit Mountain.


    ��Benefactor Ye has been hard at work in the study of the Scriptures these past years. Have you found any insights?�� Bitter Zen smiled and inquired, his right hand raised in front of his forehead as a sign of courtesy.


    ��The Buddhist scriptures are extensive and profound. Many concepts are obscure and difficult to understand. Although I have read it, it is difficult to truly comprehend,�� Ye Futian responded with a smile. ��Among them, the most immediate thought is that while Buddhists cultivated in Buddhism, very few of them have mentioned the cultivation of ��the Way.�� Are Buddhist methods and the Great Path one and the same?��


    ��What is the Way?�� Bitter Zen asked.


    ��The sun and the moon shine with no one to light them; the stars follow their own patterns with no one to arrange them; animals self-produce with no one to create them; the wind blows with no one to fan it; water flows with no one to push it; plants grow with no one to tend them�� The Way is rule and order. It is the foundation of all things,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��What Benefactor Ye said is all true. Therefore, people in the world are in constant contact with the Way at all times, and everything is regulated by the Way. If so, why does one need to cultivate?�� Bitter Zen asked.


    Ye Futian��s brows furrowed. He said with a smile, ��The grandmaster��s question has confounded me.��


    ��Is the Way tangible or intangible? The sun, the moon, and the stars are all considered the Way, just like the wind, the fire, the thunder, and the lightning are the Way. However, why do you think a cultivator can create all these phenomena directly?�� Bitter Zen asked again.


    Ye Futian appeared thoughtful for a moment. He then looked at Bitter Zen and asked, ��Grandmaster, please elucidate!��


    ��Amitabha.�� Bitter Zen clasped his hands together and replied, ��How can little monk truly understand the truth of the world? Perhaps this is what they mean by ��form is emptiness and emptiness is form.����


    ��Form itself is emptiness, and emptiness itself is form!�� Ye Futian murmured, and there seemed to be Buddhist scriptures, which had imprinted themselves in his mind, turning into runes of scriptures.


    ��Like a tiny drop of dew or a bubble floating in a stream, like a flash of lightning in a summer cloud, a flickering lamp, an illusion, a phantom, or a dream, so is all conditioned existence to be seen!�� Ye Futian murmured, remembering a saying in the Buddhist scriptures. After Bitter Zen heard this, he bowed to Ye Futian and said, ��It is good.��


    ��From this perspective, Shenjia the Great Emperor has already seen through all things in the world.�� Ye Futian recalled the words he saw when he inherited the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor once upon a time. There was no such thing as the Way in the world.


    Ye Futian got up and put his hands together in a salute to Bitter Zen, saying, ��Thank you, grandmaster, for your direction.��


    ��Little monk didn��t really say anything. It was Benefactor Ye yourself who had come to the conclusion,�� Bitter Zen replied.


    ��I will take my leave now.�� Ye Futian didn��t say anything more and politely bid his goodbye as he turned to leave. Bitter Zen clasped his hands together while watching him depart. In truth, he really did not do anything nor said anything. Everything was designed by fate. If Ye Futian had obtained enlightenment, it was only because he was already very close to it.


    Perhaps, there would be another powerful figure emerging from the Divine Prefecture in the future.


    In this world, since Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing, there had not been anyone else who had proven the Way for many years. Who would be the next?


    Perhaps, this was also the pursuit of every top figure: enter the Imperial Realm, following in the footsteps of Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing.


    After Ye Futian walked out of the library, he disappeared right from where he was and reappeared on the ancient peak. He walked to the edge of the cliff on the peak, looking over the sea of clouds, and closed his eyes.


    In the world of the Life Palace, Ye Futian looked at the radiant scenery in front of him, the sun and the moon in the sky. The stars, also, were shining brightly. Those who had been cultivating with him had completed the world of the Life Palace, as it was gradually becoming ever closer to reality.


    But at this moment, only those few words echoed in his mind.


    There was no such thing as the Way in the world.


    Like a tiny drop of dew, or a bubble floating in a stream; like a flash of lightning in a summer cloud; a flickering lamp, an illusion, a phantom, or a dream�� So is all conditioned existence to be seen��


    What was reality?


    Was all that was in front of him reality?


    Why did they come into being?


    Ye Futian watched all this quietly and fell into deep contemplation. The breeze passed him by, and the sun disappeared as if blown away by the wind, followed by the moon and then the stars�� Everything in this world seemed to be blown away by the wind. In a blink of an eye, everything had turned into emptiness.


    In just a few moments, the whole world seemed to have lost its color, and everything ceased to exist. Or rather, it seemed as if nothing had never existed��it was all nothingness, an illusion.


    The world of the Life Palace seemed to have returned to its origin, and everything was like it was before. In the entire world, only the Ancient Tree of the World was swaying in the gentle breeze. Some branches and leaves were flying on the swaying tree, drifting towards this world of emptiness. Gradually, the aura of the Ancient Tree of the World permeated the entire world of the Life Palace, until it was filled with nothing.


    This aura filled his body through hundreds of meridians, extending throughout all his limbs.


    In the world of the Life Palace, Ye Futian was observing everything. With a thought, the sun, the moon, and the stars came into being instantly. With just his mind, he seemed to have created a world. He smiled, and he moved his mind again. Everything disappeared once more. It seemed to have proven that Buddhist saying.


    The Buddhist Scriptures were indeed all-encompassing. What great wisdom was imparted by the Buddhas who wrote these scriptures!


    Ye Futian finally had a sense of completion at this moment as he suddenly passed through the threshold. At this point, he had finally reached the Ninth-Realm in cultivation.


    The aura of the Ancient Tree flowed to the outside world. At this moment, above the sky, a terrifying atmosphere was breeding. Ye Futian, who was inside the Life Palace, immediately had a look of caution on his face!

 Chapter 2495 - Different Path

    On the ancient peak, Ye Futian opened his eyes and saw the Light of Buddha flowing above the firmament. He could perceive that a horrible aura was currently brewing.


    ��No!�� Ye Futian immediately retracted his aura with a thought. In an instant, there was no aura leaking from him, and he was just like any other ordinary person. No sense of the Way could be perceived from him at all.


    At this moment, Ye Futian seemed to be someone who had no cultivation whatsoever.


    At the same time, that terrifying aura that was brewing above the firmament disappeared as well. It manifested in a flash and dissipated just as quickly; it was as if it had never existed before.


    ��What��s going on?�� There was a voice from above Spirit Mountain, apparently sensed by other cultivators. At this time, a great Buddha asked, and his voice resounded throughout Spirit Mountain.


    ��I don��t know. Just now, there seemed to be an aura of tribulation, but it disappeared in an instant. Why is that?�� a great Buddha replied, somewhat puzzled.


    Why did that aura only appear for an instant?


    Was it tribulation?


    Many great Buddhas released their consciousness and seemed to appear in another place in an instant.


    ��Did any of the Buddhas know what happened?��


    ��Is it someone with powerful Buddhist cultivation here at Spirit Mountain?��


    ��I don��t know, but no one new came,�� another Buddha responded. They had all felt the aura at that instant, but no one paid any attention to Ye Futian. Even if they did, they would never know that the aura was produced on account of him.


    After all, that aura was not from Ye Futian but the sky above.


    ��Perhaps we need to consult the Buddha Lords,�� another Buddha suggested. Perhaps, someone on the level of Buddha Lords would know a little more than they did.


    However, after that suggestion was made, no Buddha Lords on the Spirit Mountain said anything, which puzzled them. Exactly what had happened?


    But no one associated the event with Ye Futian. After all, his cultivation was only Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm.


    Even at Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm, a breakthrough of the realm would only be at the Ninth-Realm, stepping into the realm of Peak Renhuang, and would in no way have any connection with that terrifying aura.


    In fact, at this time, Ye Futian, who was on top of the ancient peak, also had a strange look on his face.


    Was that aura the aura of tribulation?


    The moment he broke through the realm, he clearly perceived it, and it was an aura that was beyond frightening. It was definitely not any lesser than the divine tribulations that Jieyu and Emperor Xi had experienced previously.


    Wouldn��t this mean that he had ushered in the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path when he only had the breakthrough the Eighth-Realm, just as he was entering into the Ninth-Realm?


    If so, this worked against the iron-clad rule in cultivation and did not conform to the rules of cultivation.


    Of course, everything that had ever happened to him was always a little strange. Before, he couldn��t break through no matter what he did. But now, with a simple epiphany, he had attracted the Divine Tribulation.


    When he retracted his aura, he could no longer perceive the Divine Tribulation, for it had disappeared again.


    Cultivators had to go through three tribulations when breaking the shackles of Renhuang. Only after the baptism of all three Divine Tribulations could they prove the supremacy of the Way, thus achieving the realm of the Great Emperor. Only then could they be conferred with the title of deity.


    The existence of tribulation was because the rules of heaven and earth did not allow it; therefore, the appearance of the Divine Tribulation was so that the order of the Great Path would execute those who broke through the realm.


    If this were the case, then the Divine Tribulation he had attracted when he broke through the Ninth-Realm would mean that he was no longer permitted by the Heavenly Path as it currently stood? And that he was going to be sanctioned by the order of the Great Path?


    In other words, he was not allowed to step into the Ninth-Realm as it currently stood. Was it for this reason that he had not been able to break through before?


    What was the reason for all this?


    How did he offend the heavens?


    And there was another very crucial question: if he were to survive this Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, what realm would he be in?


    It seemed that he would be embarking on a completely different path from other cultivators.


    Which path was his path?


    All of this was yet unknown. He had no idea how strong the Divine Tribulation would be or what realm he would be in after surviving the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Perhaps he would only know after he had an exchange with other cultivators.


    ��Shooo���� Ye Futian let out a long breath and glanced at the Light of Buddha above the firmament. A quiet smile appeared in his clear eyes. In any case, he had finally taken this step and passed through the bottleneck. Although he would go on to a different path, he had a feeling that this path would be extraordinary.


    Both Hua Qingqing and Hua Jieyu had arrived. The other Buddhist cultivators on the Spirit Mountain did not make the associations with Ye Futian. Still, Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing had accompanied Ye Futian in his cultivation, and they knew Ye Futian��s situation the best. Therefore, as soon as they sensed that aura, they rushed over immediately.


    Watching Ye Futian standing there, it was as if he was one with the world around him, without any fluctuations of aura on his person. He appeared just like any other ordinary person, yet he was part of the scenery before them; it was completely natural. Then they knew that Ye Futian might have broken through the realm because he was now different again.


    ��You broke through?�� Hua Jieyu asked Ye Futian via voice transmission.


    ��Yes, I did.�� Ye Futian smiled while looking at Hua Jieyu. He responded using voice transmission, not using direct communication. Ye Futian had restrained himself without attracting the Divine Tribulation because he did not want other cultivators on the Spirit Mountain to detect that his cultivation was, in any way, unusual.


    After all, many Buddhist cultivators in Buddhist Sect were hostile towards him. Therefore, it was far better to be a little more cautious to void appearing overly shocking or out of the ordinary.


    He did not know if there were other precedents in the history of attracting the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path while breaking through to the Ninth-Realm from the Eighth. If there were, it might have only been in the legends. If so, he would inevitably attract too much attention again, and the news may even be carried back to the Divine Prefecture.


    Therefore, he did not want to be exposed and temporarily suppressed the thought of surviving the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    ��Was that you?�� Hua Qingqing also asked through voice transmission. He was obviously inquiring about the phenomenon from before.


    ��It was me,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��It seems that it was not too far from what we expected. Your cultivation path is different from all the others,�� Hua Qingqing responded with a smile.


    ��Thanks to your guidance, I have been reading and comprehending Buddhist scriptures in the past few years. Not long ago, I had a conversation with Grandmaster Bitter Zen. Only then did I have an epiphany and finally broke through the shackles. Only, I didn��t expect it to lead to the Divine Tribulation.�� Ye Futian said, ��You have cultivated with the Buddha himself. Have you ever heard of anyone who had an experience like this?��


    ��No.�� Hua Qingqing said, ��Although Buddhist cultivation is somewhat different from the cultivation of the outside world, surviving the tribulation of the Great Path is the same everywhere.��


    ��In fact, there is no difference between the cultivation of Buddhism and the cultivation of the Great Path in the Divine Prefecture,�� Ye Futian responded. ��It��s just using a different method to reach the other side, but the Great Paths are all interconnected. In essence, they are still the same.��


    ��It seems that you have made great progress in comprehending Buddhist Scriptures in these years, and your views on cultivation are different. Nonetheless, the ultimate pursuit is indeed the same,�� Hua Qingqing responded.


    ��We should leave,�� Ye Futian suddenly said, transmitting his voice to both of them at the same time. He had been cultivating in the Western World for more than ten years. Next, he would have to survive the tribulation, so there was no point in staying in Spirit Mountain any longer. He would now need to look for a place to prepare himself.


    In Spirit Mountain, if he exposed the slightest of his aura, he may attract the power of the tribulation. By then, everyone else would know!

 Chapter 2496 - Blowing of the Wind

    Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing both gave a slight nod, but they were a little worried. Ye Futian had been cultivating on Spirit Mountain for all these years, but they had never forgotten that there was still the existence of another threat.


    In the Western World of Buddhism, Saint Zhenchan clearly wanted to kill them. Right now, Saint Zhenchan was with the Medicine Buddha Lord, and no one had any information on his current condition. If they were to leave Spirit Mountain, Saint Zhenchan would definitely have ways of knowing that.


    Never mind that Saint Zhenchan still had his own power base to support him. As far as the Western World of Buddhism was concerned, many others besides Saint Zhenchan held grudges against Ye Futian.


    Faced with such a significant threat, Ye Futian and the others would naturally have to pay close attention.


    After all, that was an existence that had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. In the beginning, Ye Futian could not contend with him even with the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. He had to self-destruct the divine body in order to wound his opponent. Even then, he was unable to kill him, which demonstrated just how powerful beings of that level were.


    ��Jieyu, Qingqing, you guys leave first. I will cultivate on the Spirit Mountain for a while longer. Once you have left the Western World of Buddhism, I will go and meet you guys then,�� Ye Futian said.


    When Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing heard what Ye Futian said, they knew his intention immediately. Hua Jieyu frowned slightly. Hua Qingqing had a unique position, so Zhenchan would not dare to do anything to her. Moreover, if Ye Futian stayed in Spirit Mountain, Saint Zhenchan would definitely not risk doing anything to Hua Qingqing and Hua Jieyu. Neither would those who disapproved of Ye Futian. After all, they still had to consider the Buddha and would not touch the companion who had cultivated with the Lord of All Buddhas.


    Ye Futian planned to go it alone.


    Then, the eyes of Saint Zhenchan would only focus on him.


    ��Saint Zhenchan has strong cultivation. How do you plan to deal with him?�� Hua Jieyu asked. ��I am a cultivator who had survived the Divine Tribulation. I can help you.��


    However, Ye Futian merely shook his head. Those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path and those in the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang were as distinct as existences in two different worlds. It was the same with those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path and those who had only survived the first Divine Tribulation, as they were not on the same level either. The gap between the two was considerable. He had clearly felt this gap while he was battling using the divine body.


    After the peak of Renhunag, one must go through the three tribulations. As divine tribulations, one step was akin to a step into the heavens, and after all three tribulations, one became a deity. Therefore, the gap between these last few realms was the most terrifying. Although Hua Jieyu had survived one Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, she would not be an adequate opponent when facing Saint Zhenchan, so there was no need for her to risk her life by participating.


    ��Don��t forget, I have cultivated Buddha��s Celerity, and I can go anywhere in the world that I wish. I will find a way to get rid of him,�� replied Ye Futian.


    ��But the gap between the realms���� Hua Jieyu frowned. Even though Buddha��s Celerity was one of the six superpowers of Buddhism, the realm gap between Ye Futian and Saint Zhenchan was far too great. It was the kind of gap that couldn��t be bridged with the help of the divine body. Although Ye Futian had now entered the Ninth-Realm, the gap remained a chasm in reality.


    No matter how strong his Buddha��s Celerity was, it would be difficult for him to escape from his opponent��s hands.


    ��Jieyu, on this trip to Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven, don��t you see that I am a person of great fortune, judging by the attitudes of all the other Buddhas? Moreover, Buddha��s Celerity, one of the six superpowers of Buddhism, had been passed on to me by The Buddha himself, which must have its own significance. The Buddhist superpowers allow one to see into the past and the future. Perhaps the Buddha had foreseen some things that will happen in the future. There is no need for you to worry,�� Ye Futian replied to Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu thought about it carefully and found that what Ye Futian said was reasonable enough. From all of Ye Futian��s adventures on Spirit Mountain over the years, one could tell that his fate was definitely extraordinary.


    However, she still felt uneasy.


    ��Go in peace now. I will go and find you again. If it can��t be resolved, I will return to Spirit Mountain directly,�� Ye Futian continued to persuade her, as he also glanced at Hua Qingqing. At the moment, Hua Qingqing said to Hua Jieyu, ��I have been cultivating with the Buddha for many years. The Buddha��s actions have always had deep significance. Nothing would go awry.��


    Hua Jieyu nodded, finally agreeing to Ye Futian��s suggestion. She decided to leave first.


    Afterward, Hua Qingqing did not deliberately bid anybody goodbye. The Buddha was no longer on the Spirit Mountain, but nothing that happened here would escape the Buddha��s all-seeing eyes.


    When their group was about to leave, many great Buddhas appeared, saying loudly and clearly, ��Respectfully sending off the great Buddha.��


    ��Respectfully sending off the great Buddha.�� Many voices were heard at the same time, coming from different directions on Spirit Mountain. Hua Qingqing faced Spirit Mountain, bowed slightly, and said, ��Thanks to all the Buddhas. When I return to Spirit Mountain in the future, I will discuss Buddhism again with all the Buddhas.��


    After that being said, Hua Qingqing turned around, and the group walked onto the back of the Golden-winged Roc. The Roc��s wings shook as it suddenly took off into the air, heading outside of the Spirit Mountain.


    Hua Jieyu, Fang Cun, and the others were standing on the back of Golden-winged Roc and looking at Ye Futian.


    ��Master, be careful,�� Little Ling said through voice transmission. She was still a little worried about Ye Futian.


    But Ye Futian smiled without a care in the world and waved. Now his state of mind was very peaceful; even if he knew that danger was imminent, he was not disturbed.


    All the Buddhas on the Spirit Mountain knew why Hua Qingqing and the others decided to leave first��they were guarding against Zhenchan.


    In the distance, many Buddhist cultivators looked at the ancient peak where Ye Futian was; their expressions revealed their indifference. It was enough as long as they watched him and made sure Ye Futian did not leave. No one cared too much as far as Hua Qingqing and the others were concerned.


    When Ye Futian saw the Golden-winged Roc disappeared into the distance, he continued sitting atop the ancient peak to cultivate, entering into a deep state of meditation as he continued with his cultivation of Buddhist methods. Although he had broken through the realm, the cultivation was helpful to the cultivation of Buddha��s Celerity.


    Now that he had stepped into the Ninth-Realm, his Buddha��s Celebrity was also getting stronger. It was just that he hadn��t yet had a chance to really showcase it, even to this day.


    Outside the library, a plainly-dressed monk was sweeping the fallen leaves with a broom, as if he was blended into this scenery and became one with it. This monk was none other than Bitter Zen.


    When the wind blew, the leaves scattered. Bitter Zen swept them together again and murmured, ��Buddhism should be a land of purity. But if the hearts are not calm, then the wind will not stop blowing.��


    With that, he raised his head and cast a glance into the distance, sighing secretly in his heart.


    ��


    At this time, in another part of the world, which was also on the pure land of Buddhism��the Vaidurya Pure World, where the Medicine Buddha Lord resided.


    In front of a Vaidurya pagoda, a cultivator was sitting cross-legged, cultivating quietly, surrounded by the Light of Buddha.


    However, at this moment, the Buddha beads on his neck moved, and a light seemed to appear; it penetrated directly into his brow chakra. This cultivator received a message instantly as he opened his eyes and a cold ray flashed through them.


    Did they finally decide to depart?


    ��Zhenchan!�� At this moment, a voice came from the ether. When Saint Zhenchan heard this voice, he was immediately solemn. He clasped hands together and said, ��Buddha Lord.��


    ��Since your mind has not been made up, go back.�� That ethereal voice was heard again, which stunned Saint Zhenchan. His eyes focused into the far distance for a moment before he got up and bowed in the direction, saying, ��Thank you, Buddha Lord.��


    He knew that he should leave now!

 Chapter 2497 - Leaving Spirit Mountain

    For several months after Hua Jieyu��s departure, Ye Futian had been cultivating Buddhism with great concentration in Spirit Mountain. His aura was not exposed to the outside. He was quietly comprehending the Buddhist scriptures.


    He seemed to be a natural member of Buddhism. In addition to reading and studying Buddhist scriptures, he also sat in on lectures given by various Buddha Lords, completely integrating into the community of Buddhist cultivation in Spirit Mountain. He even forged good relationships with many of the Buddhist cultivators there. Sometimes they would sit together and exchange Buddhist teachings. In short, he was living a very productive life, not at all like someone who was on the run.


    Saint Zhenchan was also on the Spirit Mountain; he stayed at Spirit Mountain ever since he got back from the Vaidurya Pure World. He was also cultivating on an ancient peak, watching Ye Futian closely. Everyone on Spirit Mountain knew the grudge between these two, so Saint Zhenchan dared not do anything to Ye Futian while they were still on Spirit Mountain. He had not had any exchanges with Ye Futian ever since he returned from Vaidurya Pure World.


    But this was precisely the kind of quietude that was even more terrifying. Anyone else other than Ye Futian would probably have trouble eating and sleeping. But Ye Futian himself didn��t seem to be bothered.


    Both of them appeared to be in some very strange impasse, eerily quiet, and neither was affected by the other in the slightest.


    But everyone on Spirit Mountain knew very well that things were not as harmonious as they appeared.


    On this day, Ye Futian was listening to a Buddha Lord lecturing at his place of cultivation with other Buddhist cultivators. After the lecture, as usual, there were Buddhist cultivators who asked questions, while others gave thanks and bid farewell.


    ��Many thanks to the Buddha Lord.��


    Ye Futian bowed, his hands together, and paid his respect to the Buddha Lord in a seated position. However, as soon as his voice faded, he disappeared from where he was, stunning all the Buddhist cultivators.


    At this juncture, Ye Futian had been cultivating on Spirit Mountain much more than just a day or two. He had been here for a prolonged period of time, and his habits were well-known to other cultivators. Every time he listened to a lecture, he would give thanks, then get up and walk away slowly. Disappearing right off the bat was not a very polite exit.


    Even that Lord Buddha glanced at the place where Ye Futian was sitting just to make sure. When he saw the empty space, he smiled and put his hands together, ��Buddha��s blessings on Benefactor Ye.��


    Obviously, they were all aware that something interesting had happened.


    ��The cultivation of Buddha��s Celerity is truly peculiar. There is no aura, as the disappearance is instantaneous, invisible, undetectable, and completely without warning.�� Some Buddhist cultivators whispered amongst themselves. No matter how they expanded their consciousness, they could no longer find Ye Futian anywhere on the Spirit Mountain.


    Saint Zhenchan, who was cultivating, suddenly opened his eyes. An extremely sharp divine aurora shot out from them as his consciousness spread out and covered the entire Spirit Mountain.


    ��He��s gone?�� Saint Zhenchan got up, the Light of Buddha shone upon him, as he too, disappeared.


    He wanted to see if Ye Futian, who had cultivated Buddha��s Celerity, could escape his clutches so easily.


    Many Buddhist cultivators walked outside and looked into the distance. They wondered if Ye Futian could truly escape from Saint Zhenchan. If not, then there might be nothing but death that awaited him.


    ��


    In the holy land of the Western Heaven, Saint Zhenchan appeared high above the sky and released his consciousness to cover the boundless space. His eyes were terribly frightening as he looked through the Western Heaven. Everything seemed to be within his sight.


    Countless imageries and infinite faces appeared in his mind, but Ye Futian was not one of them.


    The entire Western Heaven was searched and covered, but he still could not find him.


    ��What��s going on?�� Saint Zhenchan frowned. Ye Futian couldn��t have been so fast. Even though Ye Futian had cultivated Buddha��s Celerity, it was not omnipotent because of the constraints imposed by the limitation of his realm.


    No one had been able to completely maximize any of the superpowers in spite of their realms. Ultimately, Ye Futian was just a Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm, at least he was, in the eyes of Saint Zhenchan.


    However, he could not find Ye Futian anywhere in the Western Heaven, which was a little odd.


    ��He��s not in the Western Heaven.�� At this time, a voice was heard in the head of Saint Zhenchan, which caused a shudder in his heart. He nodded slightly to the void, at no one in particular. He knew who it was that told him.


    Except, if Ye Futian was not in the Western Heaven, then where was he hiding?


    ��Still in the Spirit Mountain.�� The voice came again, and Saint Zhenchan��s eyes sharpened, his expression hardened with this knowledge.


    It seemed that Ye Futian was playing him for a fool?


    He came here to look for Ye Futian, but Ye Futian was still on the Spirit Mountain.


    This was deliberately toying with him!


    The Buddhist cultivators on Spirit Mountain had discovered that Ye Futian was still there; he was in the library. The library was a place where all telekinetic powers were blocked out and could not be invaded even by divine consciousness. Ye Futian had appeared directly inside the library using Buddha��s Celerity. Just when there was a lot of chatter on Spirit Mountain, a Buddhist cultivator came out of the library and informed everyone that Ye Futian was there. Even the Buddha Lord, who was lecturing on the scriptures, laughed when he heard that; even he was fooled by Ye Futian.


    After a while, Ye Futian slowly came out of the library, holding a few scriptures. He nodded at Bitter Zen, then walked down the stairs.


    At the bottom of the stairs, Saint Zhenchan was standing there, waiting. He stared at Ye Futian with an extremely chilly look in his eyes.


    Ye Futian looked neither left nor right��as if he hadn��t seen him at all��and continued to move forward.


    ��Do you plan on hiding in Spirit Mountain in the name of cultivation?�� Saint Zhenchan suppressed the anger in his heart and asked indifferently.


    Ye Futian stopped with his back still facing Saint Zhenchan. The two did not look at each other, but Ye Futian said with a smile, ��Spirit Mountain is the Buddhist holy land, contained profound numbers of Buddhist scriptures, with Buddha Lords lecturing and preaching. I plan to cultivate on Spirit Mountain for decades until I have survived two Divine Tribulations. You, are you afraid of that?!��


    Saint Zhenchan��s face was dark and gloomy. If Ye Futian was this determined, not leaving Spirit Mountain and continuing to cultivate here, there was nothing he could do.


    Furthermore, if he really planned on cultivating here until he had survived two Divine Tribulations, by then, would Zhenchan even be able to fight him?


    Ye Futian had forced his way into the Spirit Mountain while he was yet in the Eighth-Realm when he defeated the Arhat. In the end, it was Grandmaster Bitter Zen who intervened and intercepted Ye Futian.


    And at the time of that battle, Ye Futian had only cultivated Buddhism less than a hundred days.


    Ye Futian started moving forward again, saying, ��It was you who wouldn��t let go and brought on everything that happened later. I had to destroy the divine body to protect myself; I only escaped after suffering heavy injuries. Remember, it was you who owed me, not the other way around.��


    He didn��t look at Saint Zhenchan once. The other wanted to kill him; it appeared that Zhenchan was the victim, but what really happened back then?


    Ye Futian was, in fact, the one who was forced into desperation by Saint Zhenchan. An item as precious as the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had to be destroyed because of his determination in hunting Ye Futian. Ye Futian himself almost died.


    Now, Saint Zhenchan was the hunter, and Ye Futian, the prey. This was only because Zhenchan was stronger. If the situation were reversed, then it would be Ye Futian who was hunting Saint Zhenchan instead.


    Saint Zhenchan didn��t bother to say another word. In a flash, he was gone; he had returned to where he was before. Ye Futian��s words had no effect and did not cause him to let down his guard. On the contrary, from this day forward, he kept even closer tabs on Ye Futian.


    His murderous intent was even stronger, and the desire to kill was more fervent than before. He MUST kill Ye Futian at all cost.


    After that, Ye Futian often used Buddha��s Celerity all over Spirit Mountain, appeared in the library from time to time in this manner, so that Zhenchan had to investigate every time. Later, there were several other Buddhist cultivators who were in the habit of reading and studying Buddhist scriptures in the library. Ye Futian understood what was going on, but he didn��t care.


    After a few months, Tianyin Buddha Lord came to Spirit Mountain and saw that Shenyan Buddha Lord was also around and invited him for a game of chess. Shenyan Buddha Lord did not refuse and played chess with Tianyin Buddha Lord. In a blink of an eye, a few days had passed.


    On this day, Ye Futian appeared in the library again. As usual, he was reading the scriptures on the first floor. At this time, Bitter Zen had found those Buddhist cultivators in the library and asked them to help with cleaning up the library. Since these cultivators had gotten to know Bitter Zen rather well, and on account that he had asked for their help personally, they felt they could not refuse. Therefore, they followed Bitter Zen around to clean up the library.


    After they finished cleaning, they discovered that Ye Futian was no longer inside the library, and vaguely sensed something was not quite right. As usual, they instilled a telekinesis force into a jade slip.


    Saint Zhenchan, who was cultivating on Spirit Mountain, received the news in an instant. His divine consciousness covered all of Spirit Mountain, but he could not find any trace of Ye Futian.


    ��When did he leave?�� he asked.


    ��I don��t know. Grandmaster Bitter Zen had asked me to help clean up the library,�� the voice answered. Saint Zhenchan looked exceedingly apathetic. He simply replied, ��Idiot.��


    Every time Ye Futian left the library, the people inside would inform Saint Zhenchan so that he could locate Ye Futian outside the library. It was precisely to prevent losing track of him once he left the library.


    Buddha��s Celerity was an incredible superpower that he had to take measures to guard against. Could Grandmaster Bitter Zen be in cahoots with Ye Futian?


    ��Ye Futian left.�� Saint Zhenchan sent a message to someone else. His figure was gone in a flash. He left Spirit Mountain immediately and headed towards the Western Heaven.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord, who was playing chess with Tianyin Buddha Lord, received a message from Bitter Zen. The chess piece in his hand had not yet been placed, as he looked up at the smiling Tianyin Buddha Lord and understood something.


    ��Shenyan, why haven��t you made your move yet?�� Tianyin Buddha Lord asked.


    ��Just a minute.�� Shenyan Buddha Lord turned his eyes and looked into the distance. His eyes just now had become extremely terrifying.


    But in the next moment, the Light of Buddha shrouded this entire space, as Tianyin Buddha Lord said, ��Shenyan, if you want to play chess, then focus on it. If you are distracted, I am afraid you will lose again.��


    His Heavenly Eyes blocked, Shenyan Buddha Lord now looked at the Tianyin Buddha Lord and asked, ��Why are you helping him?��


    ��Even The Buddha has said that he is a person who is predestined in Buddhism. This matter is between him and Zhenchan. Why do you interject yourself between them?�� Tianyin Buddha Lord said.


    ��Aren��t you interjecting?�� Shenyan Buddha Lord asked rhetorically.


    ��I don��t want you to interject, that��s all. Once they are outside of Spirit Mountain, I don��t care about what goes on between him and Zhenchan,�� Tianyin Buddha Lord continued. As a strange look flashed through Shenyan Buddha Lord��s eyes, he lowered his head and glanced at the chessboard before he made his move. He said, ��Even if I don��t intervene, can he escape from Zhenchan?��


    ��That��s his business. Everything has its own cause and effect. Why should we cling to this?�� Tianyin Buddha Lord said, ��Isn��t it much better to play chess with peace of mind?��


    ��Right.�� Shenyan Buddha Lord didn��t say anything but settled down to play chess in peace without further distraction.


    If Saint Zhenchan, as someone who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, could not take down a latecomer like Ye Futian, then he had truly squandered these many years cultivating in vain.


    Many people on Spirit Mountain felt that Ye Futian had a destiny in Buddhism. His fortune had been great, and many of them wanted to see just how great this fortune of Ye Futian��s might be!

 Chapter 2498 - Mysterious Cultivator in Tribulation

    Chapter 2498: Mysterious Cultivator in Tribulation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In Western Heaven, the telekinetic power of Saint Zhenchan shrouded the entire sacred land of the Western Heaven, but Ye Futian could no longer be found.


    This time was different from last time. Last time he was fooled by Ye Futian, who did not leave Spirit Mountain at all. However, this time Ye Futian may have already left Western Heaven for all he knew. He took advantage of reading Buddhist scriptures inside the library and escaped. Grandmaster Bitter Zen helped him by detaining the Buddhist cultivators who were supposed to be watching him and bought Ye Futian some time to get away from the sacred land of the Western Heaven.


    Did he really find an opportunity to escape?


    Saint Zhenchan had a horrible look on his face. The Light of Buddha radiated upon his body as he disappeared directly from where he was. Its speed was extremely fast, and he reappeared in a very remote location in an instant.


    Western Heaven was a holy land of the Western World, claimed to be the highest heaven in the Western World of Buddhism. In fact, its territory was not so vast.. The center of this World of Buddhism could only be reached after crossing the golden sea of clouds. It was so far away that it could not be reached by anyone who was not powerful, as this was the ultimate holy land.


    But compared to other worlds in the World of Buddhism, the Western Heaven was like an infinite and stalwart ancient city of Buddhism.


    This was the reason why Ye Futian was able to leave the Western Heaven in such a short time.


    At this time, he appeared in other worlds and was walking on the ground. Between thoughts, he disappeared from where he was only to reappear in another city. After another step, he disappeared without a trace again, moving on to yet another city. In some places, some passers-by were stunned when they saw him disappeared into thin air and thought that they were mistaken; some even began to doubt their own cultivation.


    It was impossible for cultivators to see anything by mistake. Still, that disappearing figure clearly had not released any aura, and there was no fluctuation in the power of the Space Great Path.


    But Ye Futian didn��t consider any of that. In each step, he reached a different city. One second he was on the streets of an ancient city, and the next, he might appear in a wasteland. Yet, in another moment, he might find himself at sea again. The sceneries were constantly changing, and even Ye Futian himself had no idea where he was.


    The characteristic of Buddha��s Celerity was that there was no fixed law to abide and one could do exactly as one wished.


    Following Ye Futian, Saint Zhenchan was doing the same thing. His divine consciousness was covering the boundless and infinite space, searching for any trace of Ye Futian. However, because he was a step behind, he never found him, as if the other had disappeared into thin air. Saint Zhenchan was in a foul mood. After waiting and guarding for so long, did he really allow Ye Futian to escape because of such a small oversight?


    ��Where will he go?�� Saint Zhenchan wondered in his heart and considered all the possibilities in his head. Other than tracking him, he must also forecast where Ye Futian was heading to increase the likelihood of finding him.


    ��Leave the Western World of Buddhism, go out of the realm, and return to the Divine Prefecture.�� A thought appeared in Saint Zhenchan��s mind. Then, with the Light of Buddha shining, he continued moving forward.


    He couldn��t believe that Ye Futian��s Celerity would be faster!


    There was such a significant gap in realm between the two of them; even one of the six superpowers of Buddhism could not possibly bridge such a wide gap.


    Saint Zhenchan moved towards a certain direction but could find no trace of Ye Futian along the way. How difficult was it to find someone who one had no idea where he went? Especially when this was someone who��s an expert in Buddha��s Celerity. No doubt, this whole exercise was like looking for a needle in a haystack.


    Ye Futian did not stop for a moment. Though he seemed to be walking, raising a foot on the bluestone street, and when that foot fell, he was on a mountain peak, facing the sun. When he raised his foot again, he was in a snowy field, with a flurry of snow everywhere.


    He passed through many different heavens and countless cities in the Western World of Buddhism.


    On this day, he seemed to have arrived in Six Desires Heaven once again. Walking in Six Desires Heaven now, he didn��t seem to be in such a hurry. After so many days, he reckoned he should have already gotten rid of Saint Zhenchan by now, and the other couldn��t find him.


    Clearly, Ye Futian understood that all of this was only possible with the help of Grandmaster Bitter Zen and the cleverness of Buddha��s Celerity.


    In Six Desires Heaven, a domain of path destruction lay across the sky, covering an endless area. Ye Futian appeared below this domain of path destruction and raised his head to look up. There were many cultivators up there, trying to comprehend the power within this domain of path destruction.


    However, Ye Futian knew that they wouldn��t be able to comprehend anything.


    This was the domain created by the explosion of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s divine body.


    Ye Futian sighed secretly in his heart. That was the divine body, destroyed like this all because of the continued persecution of Saint Zhenchan.


    After a brief reflection, Ye Futian continued to move on. He took a step and disappeared right away.


    Somewhere high above the firmament, Ye Futian��s aura unleashed, and the sky above changed suddenly. A terrifying atmosphere of tribulation gathered and brewing. In the area above Six Desires Heaven, the Great Path roared, and tribulation was gestating.


    After fleeing for so long, Ye Futian finally wanted to respond to the tribulation. He had long had this thought even when he was still on Spirit Mountain, but he had not tried it until now. This was something he had been thinking about for a long time.


    At this time, Ye Futian was wrapped up in the Will of the Great Path, as if he was in nothingness. Countless cultivators in Six Desires Heaven looked up at the sky, and their hearts were greatly horrified.


    Was someone experiencing divine tribulation in Six Desires Heaven?


    After the storm that ripped apart Six Desires Heaven once upon a time, the Palace Lord of the Six Desires Heavenly Palace perished, and there were very few cultivators in Six Desires Heaven who were qualified to experience divine tribulation. Now, was someone about to?


    This aura of tribulation was terrifying.


    Above the firmament, there was a rainbow light of catastrophe from the Great Path, and a powerful will of Rule descended, locking onto Ye Futian physically.


    ��What is this?��


    Ye Futian��s heart palpitated. He had seen divine tribulation twice before, once with Emperor Xi and once with Jieyu. However, the tribulation that he saw at the moment was different from the previous two.


    This was a colorful divine tribulation!


    ��It��s a different elemental order of the Great Path,�� Ye Futian secretly exclaimed in his heart. However, in his perception, this aura was so frightening that he seemed to have been locked in by the heavenly path, and that aura seemed to aim to kill him.


    He had only broken through from the Eighth-Realm to the Ninth-Realm. Why was the power of his divine tribulation so terrifying?


    Ye Futian stepped into the void, disappeared from the place he was before. However, the tribulation above the sky had covered an infinite area. Even if he moved about using Buddha��s Celerity, he could not dodge the lock on his body, and he could not shake the power of the tribulation.


    A divine light descended, like the order of the Great Path, landing it squarely on Ye Futian by locking onto him. Ye Futian��s entire body was as bright as a divine body of the Great Path, but the moment when the light of catastrophe fell, he felt as if his body was penetrated, and all the meridians in his body were shaken; his blood tumbling and roaring within him. With a muffled groan, he vomited a mouthful of blood, and his face turned pale.


    Furthermore, the power of the divine tribulation still remained in his body, raging as if it was another kind of baptism.


    Ye Futian moved a thought, and his aura instantly retracted. Then he disappeared from the place he was.


    The horrific power that was gestating above the sky could find no target to attack suddenly, raging indiscriminately, as if it was alive. After not being able to find a target, it then gradually dissipated.


    When everything in the void was restored again, countless people gathered in this space under the firmament. Among them, many Renhuang level cultivators stared dumbly at all that had happened.


    ��What��s going on?�� Someone asked, puzzled, and didn��t understand what was happening.


    Just now, was that some top cultivator experiencing divine tribulation?


    However, how could there be anyone who experienced the divine tribulation in this manner?


    Everything disappeared before it was completed��


    They had never heard of anything like this before.


    Aside from them, Ye Futian himself couldn��t understand it either. Not only was his realm different from everyone else when he experienced the tribulation, but the manner in which he was experiencing was also exceedingly peculiar.


    Furthermore, the power of divine tribulation terrified him.


    At this time, he had only experienced the tribulation once and was already injured by it. However, his physique was extremely tyrannical, tempered by the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. Even so, he was wounded, and all of his internal organs were severely injured.


    He was sure that the divine tribulations encountered by Emperor Xi and Hua Jieyu were not so powerful as this. His current realm strength would only be that much stronger than Emperor Xi and Hua Jieyu when they had experienced their share of the tribulation. This was enough to demonstrate the awesome power of divine tribulation.


    Although he was injured, he did not dither. Buddha��s Celerity had allowed him to cross the void at will. In this way, no one would know that he was experiencing the divine tribulation, and no one would associate it with him.


    After he got far away from the place where he had experienced the tribulation, Ye Futian found a place to cultivate and recover the trauma caused by the tribulation. He would continue with his journey once he had recovered.


    On this day, in Yemo Heaven, something had occurred, similar to what had happened at Six Desires Heaven. There was a mysterious cultivator experiencing divine tribulation, but still just that one time, and then the mysterious cultivator disappeared without a trace.


    What was even more strange was that the same thing happened in different areas every once in a while, causing growing concern. Countless people were talking and speculating about this mysterious person in tribulation, and surmised that it ought to be the same person in all these instances.


    However, why would anyone experience the divine tribulation in such a weird way?


    Moreover, all at different locations. Could divine tribulation be happening based on chosen time and place?


    What kind of a cultivator was that!


    They could have never known that Ye Futian himself was very puzzled as well. The power of the divine tribulation was too strong, and he could only slowly adjusting and digesting. Otherwise, if he allowed a complete divine tribulation to come down upon him, he was not sure whether he could bear it at all.

 Chapter 2499 - The Encounter

    Chapter 2499: The Encounter


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At this time in Six Desires Heaven, inside the Domain of Path Obliteration, was a person sitting cross-legged. He was clad in all white and with a head of white hair; it was Ye Futian.


    And above the firmament, the incomparable Rainbow Divine Tribulation was gathering, and it was incredibly terrifying. Obviously, it was Ye Futian who had brought on the divine tribulation.


    Ye Futian had been experiencing the tribulation for several months by this time, repeating the tribulation, again and again, adapting to its power. At the same time, he was constantly tempering his own body, making himself stronger each time.


    At this point, he was in a very delicate state. He had already survived most of the tribulation, and more than once. However, he had not completed the divine tribulation in its truest sense.


    This time, he had made the final preparation and was ready to take on the full and complete divine tribulation, as he had now adapted to the strength of the divine tribulation. Although he had not experienced the final Law of the Great Path, this Domain of Path Obliteration ought to weaken the power of the divine tribulation as all Paths were obliterated within this domain.. He intended to use the Domain of Path Obliteration to guard against any unforeseen events.


    Sitting in the middle of the Domain of Path Obliteration, Ye Futian was radiant all over, surrounded by divine light. His temperament had changed somewhat compared to before; the aura on his body was even more potent. Above the firmament, Rainbow Divine Tribulation was converging and covering the entire city, shrouding the infinite area of the Six Desires Heaven.


    What they were seeing before them was enough to send all the cultivators around the Domain of Path Obliteration fleeing, and they dared not approach any closer. The power of destruction and its aftermath were enough to kill them on the periphery and destroy everything in this domain.


    ��This is so powerful. Who is this mysterious cultivator?�� Renhuang, who had avoided this area, now looked beyond the firmament and saw that the power of the Rainbow Divine Tribulation was terrifying. Even when they had gotten far away from the center of the divine tribulation, they could still feel the suppression of its divine might, and there was a terrible sense of oppression.


    The Rainbow Divine Tribulation above the firmament descended and went through the Domain of Path Obliteration. In this domain, the force of the tribulation had indeed been weakened. Then, it fell on Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian was no longer the person he was once. He sat quietly, cross-legged, allowing the divine tribulation to baptize him without wavering in the slightest.


    He had already endured the brunt of the divine tribulation many times, and every time it was a repeat, so now it no longer posed a threat to him. The first time was the most ruthless, causing him to suffer serious injuries. However, his strength had been transformed so much that his power was equivalent to the level after divine tribulation.


    Can all this be endured? the cultivators in the distance thought to themselves. However, they saw the divine tribulation came down again and again, but there was no movement inside the Domain of Path Obliteration. It was as if that mysterious cultivator was calmly welcoming the divine tribulation.


    As time went by, above the firmament, the cloud of tribulation pressing down low in the sky, creating a scene of the apocalypse. There was a terrifying storm gathering in the center of the cloud of tribulation, where there seemed to be a figure appearing.


    ��This is?�� Ye Futian raised his head to look at the heavens through the Domain of Path Obliteration. In the center of that destructive storm in the sky, he saw a figure, like that of a deity.


    When Hua Jieyu was experiencing her tribulation, Ye Futian had also seen a phantom, but it was not as real as the one in front of him. Hua Jieyu was facing the Tribulation of Law, but at this moment, this figure in front of him seemed to be a spirit born out of the divine tribulation. It looked like a real living body, the divine tribulation personified.


    ��This���� Ye Futian had learned about divine tribulations before, but what was this before his eyes?


    It seemed not to belong to any category of law, but Ye Futian did feel a very strong sense of threat. It seemed as if it could take his life.


    The Divine tribulation would not allow him to exist in this world.


    Ye Futian clasped his hands together, and the Light of Buddha was suddenly set ablaze. He was brightly shining through the sky, as his divine body was flowing. The surrounding Domain of Path Obliteration seemed to be affected, as the power of Path Obliteration converged upon his physical form. At the same time, he had cast the Acalanatha Battle Form, the Mahavairocana Battle Form, and the Void Battle Form.


    At this moment, the Buddhas were all around him, and he seemed to have incarnated as a real great Buddha so that the entire Domain of Path Obliteration was shining with the most brilliant Light of Buddha.


    ��It��s a great Buddha!�� the cultivator from afar exclaimed when they saw the Light of Buddha lit up inside the Domain of Path Obliteration.


    ��Well, it is indeed a Buddhist cultivator whose method was profound. He must be a descendant of a top Buddha Lord in Western Heaven. Only the descendants of the top Buddha Lords in the Western Heaven would possess such talents. But this great Buddha is extremely low-key and loathes being revealed in front of the others. He came here to experience the tribulation probably because he wanted to leverage this Domain of Path Obliteration. His tribulation is far too horrific.�� Many cultivators talked amongst themselves; they had all mistaken Ye Futian for some great Buddha from the Western Heaven.


    Above the sky, the figure that appeared looked down. At a glance, he saw the light of catastrophe everywhere, penetrating the space. He pointed to the area below, firmly locking onto Ye Futian��s body. A straightforward light appeared between heaven and earth.


    The Domain of Path Obliteration could not stop the power emitted from this finger as it penetrated through directly. The terrific attack fell on Ye Futian��s defense as all the Buddhas were shattered and pulverized. The battle forms began to crack, then fell apart in pieces.


    This finger ignored everything and hit the final defense that was the Acalanatha Battle Form.


    Boom! Ye Futian��s body was knocked back, and that finger penetrated his body, as well as his divine consciousness, and penetrated the Domain of Path Obliteration.


    Boom! There was another loud bang. Ye Futian was shot down from the Domain of Path Obliteration to the ground instantly; even the ground was punched through. The terrifying light of catastrophe above the firmament fell down with it, and everything below was integrating and collapsing, turning into ruins.


    ��This���� The cultivator in the distance felt a violent tremor in their hearts. Was this world-destroying power really a tribulation that was meant to test the cultivator?


    This was not a test but destruction��a bona fide destruction that would not allow his continued existence.


    ��Will that great Buddha fall under the tribulation?�� Everyone��s heart palpitated as they looked at the ground that was punched through.


    The destructive cloud of tribulation that hovered above the sky gradually dissipated, and the figure disappeared as well. Soon, a light appeared, and everything returned to normal, bathing under the light. Everyone felt the oppression just now had entirely disappeared in an instant.


    Many shadows flickered, looking towards the place where Ye Futian had fallen. At the same time, countless divine consciousness swept over that way and penetrated into the ground.


    ��No one?�� Some cultivators looked quite shocked; there was no one in the ground that was punched through.


    The hearts of many palpitated. Could it be that that mighty great Buddha, who was experiencing the divine tribulation, had perished like this? His soul and spirit dispersed under the divine tribulation. And nothing was left of him?


    Under that frightening power that could destroy the world, such possibility existed.


    ��Did he perish?�� someone whispered.


    ��Probably. Unfortunately, we don��t even know who he was,�� someone added.


    ��The power was great. It must have been a great Buddha. What a pity to perish under the tribulation.��


    Between heaven and earth, there were sighs and exclamations. All these people were feeling sorry for the ��fall�� of a potentially powerful figure.


    Such a great Buddha should not perish here like this.


    They had never heard of, nor had they ever seen a divine tribulation such as this.


    ��


    A month later, many powerful cultivators came to Six Desires Heaven to investigate the matter of the divine tribulation. The cultivators from the Western World of Buddhism were also among those who came to investigate.


    That divine tribulation had caused a great sensation. People at this level must be the existence of genius talents in Buddhism. However, there had not been anyone at this level in the Buddhist Sect who had recently experienced divine tribulation, nor had any of them perish.


    So, who was it exactly?


    Still, no one thought of Ye Futian. After all, his realm was still quite far away from experiencing divine tribulation. No one could have known that he would be ready for the divine tribulation just as he entered the Ninth-Realm.


    In Six Desires Heaven, before the Domain of Path Obliteration, a man appeared, and it was Saint Zhenchan.


    In the beginning, they came to Six Desires Heaven to intercept and kill Ye Futian, and it was here that he was gravely injured by Ye Futian using the divine body. Everyone from Zhenchan Temple had fallen here in this Domain of Path Obliteration, except for him. He also heard that there was a mysterious cultivator not long ago who was experiencing divine tribulation in this Domain of Path Obliteration.


    Vaguely, he felt something was not right, but he didn��t associate the phenomenon with Ye Futian.


    Even if Ye Futian had broken into the Ninth-Realm, he was still a long way away from divine tribulation.


    Then, who was the Buddhist cultivator that was experiencing the tribulation here?


    And it was said that the person failed and fell under the tribulation.


    He glanced coldly at the Domain of Path Obliteration in front of him, and his murderous intent toward Ye Futian was a little stronger. However, until now, he had not found a trace of Ye Futian. Perhaps, he had really left already.


    Even so, he would continue to hunt him down.


    The divine consciousness of Saint Zhenchan covered this boundless space as his gaze swept through the empty space below. At this moment, Saint Zhenchan was stunned with a strange look on his face. In the area that was scanned by his divine consciousness, countless faces appeared. Inside a city, a figure in white was walking quietly on the street, appearing careless and at ease.


    This man in white had a head of silvery-white hair. He was handsome, with a devil-may-care attitude, full of unrestrained spirits.


    It was none other than Ye Futian.


    It was all so effortless. Just as he was searching for Ye Futian everywhere, here he was��right in front of him.


    In a direction far away, Ye Futian also seemed to have sensed something. He raised his head and glanced in the distance. He knew that Saint Zhenchan had arrived.


    There was a smile on Saint Zhenchan��s face, but it was an icy smile. This time, he wanted to see just how Ye Futian would escape.


    As soon as he took a step, Saint Zhenchan disappeared from where he was. However, at the same moment he took that step, Ye Futian had also disappeared!

 Chapter 2500 - : The Colorless Sea

    The two of them were very far apart, but Saint Zhenchan��s divine consciousness had locked onto Ye Futian. However, when he attempted to press down with the might of the Way, Ye Futian disappeared instantly.


    It was far too fast. Buddha��s Celerity was free to move around in an instant. Although Saint Zhenchan��s cultivation was higher than Ye Futian��s, he could not detain Ye Futian with the might of the Way.


    ��Can��t lock onto him.��


    Saint Zhenchan traveled at a speed fast to the extreme. But every time he shortened the distance between them, Ye Futian would disappear so that he could not put a lock on him.


    He was also a cultivator of Buddhism. Even though Ye Futian had cultivated Buddha��s Celerity, why was he so powerful?


    His speed was unable to close the distance between them.


    The two of them entangled in a mad chase, but no cultivators in Six Desires Heavens had discovered that two powerful figures were constantly moving.


    Ye Futian looked indifferent at the moment, merely taking one step at a time in the void, completely unpredictable. Even though he was discovered by Saint Zhenchan, he didn��t seem to panic.


    After surviving the divine tribulation last time, everyone in Six Desires Heaven thought he died under the divine tribulation and that his soul and spirit had been scattered into nothingness. In fact, the terrifying divine tribulation did cause terrible trauma to him, almost costing him his life. When he was pierced through by the tribulation, he disappeared using Buddha��s Celerity and ended up in a barren land in Six Desires Heaven. He passed out for a long time before gradually recovered.


    That time was indeed very critical. He did not expect that the final blow of the divine tribulation would be so horrific, or he would not have so quickly taken on the divine tribulation as he did. If he did not have a superpower like Buddha��s Celerity, he would not have gotten away. It would be a total disaster if he were impacted by the divine tribulation and passed out where he was.


    Many times he had been through the tribulation, he still underestimated the horror of it. However, after the baptism of the divine tribulation, he had now completed his transformation.


    Because of this, Ye Futian did not leave Six Desires Heaven.


    He would have already left if he wanted to go, and Saint Zhenchan would not see him.


    The Light of Buddha that emitted from Saint Zhenchan, who was chasing Ye Futian, was frightening. With a turning of his thought, the divine might of the Great Path descended and blasted on the location where Ye Futian was, but Ye Futian had already disappeared. Saint Zhenchan had no way of knowing where Ye Futian would appear in the next moment.


    He had tried many times to attack, but they were all useless. Buddha��s Celerity gave no reaction time, moving instantly in real-time. But Saint Zhenchan��s attack needed time to set up. Although it only took a moment for the might of Way to descend, that short moment was still no comparison to the speed of Buddha��s Celerity.


    Needless to say, this enraged Saint Zhenchan greatly, but there was not much he could do except continue the chase.


    The two passed through cities and crossed mountain ranges and layers upon layers of heavens, from Six Desires Heaven to Yemo Heaven and then on to Liberty Heaven.


    But Saint Zhenchan was unable to catch him.


    However, he did not give up, still watching Ye Futian intently. It was as if he had vowed not to give up until he had killed Ye Futian. Even if that meant chasing him outside of the Western World of Buddhism, he would persist.


    Ye Futian was amazed that a figure at the level of Saint Zhenchan, could be so ruthless when he wanted to. Anyone else would have lost the patience long ago and gave up, but he was still hot on his trail.


    But Ye Futian didn��t mind the continued pursuit and kept moving forward.


    After having survived the divine tribulation, Ye Futian had no idea what realm he was in right now. He had clearly just broken through into the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang, but he had also survived the divine tribulation.


    So, was he now in the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang or a cultivator who had survived Divine Tribulation of the Great Path?


    Strictly speaking and on account of realm, he had just broken through the Ninth-Realm, so he should belong in the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang. But because he had experienced divine tribulation at this realm, his combat effectiveness would exceed that of the Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm.


    Although he had just broken through the Ninth-Realm not long ago, Ye Futian was confident that he was invincible in the realm of Renhuang. He was confident that he could defeat top genius talents in all the worlds, even someone like Grandmaster Bitter Zen. After all, he survived the divine tribulation at the Ninth-Realm.


    Unless he encountered someone as strange as himself.


    But, perhaps the world did not have another person like this?


    Of course, it may be that he hadn��t seen everything that there was to see. At present, it seemed that he had never heard of something like that.


    The two continued to travel through the void without any intention of stopping. Ye Futian��s silver hair was flying in the wind, as carefree as the clouds and the breeze. They passed through a sea of clouds and entered another world. This caused Saint Zhenchan to show a look of concern.


    Ye Futian continued fleeing and had reached the Colorless Heaven.


    ��How much longer can you run?�� A voice came through the air and landed in Ye Futian��s ears. An ordinary voice could not possibly reach Ye Futian, as the speed they were moving at was faster than the speed of sound.


    But Saint Zhenchan used his divine consciousness to carry the voice and directly transmit it into Ye Futian��s ears.


    ��Saint Zhenchan, you were severely wounded by me years ago, and now you can��t even catch up; you can��t do a thing to me. In a few years, how do you think it will all end?�� Ye Futian responded, which only made Saint Zhenchan looked even colder. He said, ��Do you think you can escape?��


    His realm was far higher than that of Ye Futian. Even though Ye Futian relied on Buddha��s Celerity to maintain the same speed as him, he would inevitably encounter some accidents after a prolonged period of chasing. He didn��t think Ye Futian��s ability to deal with unforeseeable accidents would be better than him. If Ye Futian made a small mistake, he would die so horribly with no place to bury his carcass.


    This time, he would not allow Ye Futian to escape.


    The two of them flickered their way through the Colorless Heaven. In this world, few people traveled. It seemed as if there were very few cultivators here.


    The Colorless Heaven possessed a special status in the Western World of Buddhism; it was one of the several highest heavens. The Western Heaven was the place where The Buddha cultivated and was considered a holy land. The Colorless Heaven was the cultivation heaven used by great Buddhas whenever they were proving the Way. Those Buddhist cultivators whose cultivation was not on par couldn��t get to the Colorless Heaven.


    Therefore, there were not many people who cultivated in the Colorless Heaven.


    But this was in no way hindering the two major cultivators who were engaged in hot pursuit. Ye Futian was moving in front, while Saint Zhenchan was chasing from behind. He dared not relax even just a little. As soon as his divine consciousness drifted off of Ye Futian, there might be a chance that he would be thrown off by Ye Futian.


    This chase seemed to have no end.


    Saint Zhenchan frowned at this moment. Colorless Heaven held a slightly special position in the World of Buddhism. Here, there was some hermit-type of great Buddhas. If they were disturbed and interfered with, it would potentially be a little troublesome. He did not expect Ye Futian to flee to this place.


    At this time, both of them appeared above a boundless coast region. Above this coastal region, there was a sacred Light of Buddha. As this light sprinkled all over the surface of the sea, this coastal region appeared incredibly unusual.


    Saint Zhenchan could clearly perceive the mysterious aura that existed in this coastal region, which was very ancient. The expression on his face changed slightly as if he knew where he was.


    Ye Futian had actually taken him to the sacred place of Buddhism��the Colorless Sea.


    ��It��s your funeral.�� Saint Zhenchan looked into the distance. In the far distance, Ye Futian was also in this Colorless Sea. He didn��t seem to have realized just where he was.


    Was Ye Futian really unaware of the place?


    While he was at Spirit Mountain, he spent many days in the library, reading and studying Buddhist scriptures and ancient volumes to understanding everything about Buddhism. How could he not know what place was the Colorless Sea?

 Chapter 2501 - The Legend

    In the ancient Buddhist text, there was an account of a major event that occurred in the Western World of Buddhism 5,000 years ago.


    Once, there was a talented genius in the Western World of Buddhism who sought the Buddha with all his heart and soul. His piety and his extraordinary understanding of Buddhist doctrines helped sped up his cultivation. He became a respected great Buddha at a young age��only a step away from the Buddha himself. He gave up his physical body to cultivate in the Colorless Realm, and his spirit wandered around all the Worlds of Buddhism in observation of all living beings.


    However, he became mired in the trappings of demonic thoughts and was unable to extricate himself from them. He believed that all beings were ignorant and selfish, and everything they did was to profit themselves. Even the Buddhists around him were seeking laurels of merits under the guise of compassion.


    When he was confronted with the nature of men, his faith disintegrated and eventually collapsed. He lost all hopes in human nature, and he began to doubt even the Buddhist doctrines he believed in once. Perhaps it was because he was too gifted and too young, which led to his ultimate demise. Over time, his heart turned to destruction, and his thoughts turned to evildoings. As a result, he annihilated countless living creatures.


    When all the Buddhist cultivators came to stop him, he did not quit but started a killing spree. For a time, the World of Buddhism was ravaged by a storm of blood and gore.


    Finally, all the Buddhas descended and fought him in the Colorless Sea. In that battle, the Buddhist Sect dispatched one hundred and eight great Buddhas in total to take him down, an awesome group to represent the power of Buddhism.


    None of these one hundred and eight great Buddhas ever left the Colorless Sea. They merged their will into the Colorless Sea and were only then able to seal that peerless talent underneath the Colorless Sea.


    To this day��5,000 years later��the powerful will of these great Buddhas remained within this Colorless Sea. Those in the World of Buddhism claimed that these Buddhas had not died but were merely continuing their cultivation in the Colorless Sea.


    There was such a legend attached to the Colorless Sea, as it held a special place in all of the Colorless Realm. How could Ye Futian not know about the Colorless Sea after his extensive studies of the scriptures?


    As he stepped into the depths of the Colorless Sea, he felt inexplicable coercion came from the Colorless Sea, that even the Buddha��s Celerity was somewhat impeded. He found that he couldn��t go wherever he wanted to as before.


    But he was not the only one who felt the restriction. Even someone as powerful as Saint Zhenchan felt his divine consciousness had been suppressed, and his speed also slowed down involuntarily. However, he was still locked firmly onto Ye Futian, refusing to let him go. He would not stop until Ye Futian was killed.


    At this time, Ye Futian halted and did not proceed to move further forward. His body was floating in the sky above the Colorless Sea.


    After seeing that Ye Futian had stopped, Saint Zhenchan felt it was a little odd. Nonetheless, after a moment, he had also arrived and appeared above Ye Futian.


    He lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian, who was below. A flash of cold murderous intent shone briefly in his eyes as he said, ��It seems that you know you can��t escape in the Colorless Sea.��


    Even the superpower Ye Futian cultivated, like the Buddha��s Celerity, was greatly restricted in the regions surrounding the Colorless Sea, unable to move as he wished.


    ��Of course, I know. Why else would I come to the Colorless Sea?�� Ye Futian looked at Saint Zhenchan and replied.


    His words made Saint Zhenchan frown as he stared at Ye Futian, ��You know about the Colorless Sea?��


    ��Zhenchan, I have been cultivating Buddhism for more than ten years, reading and studying the ancient texts of Buddhist scriptures in the library. What do you think I was doing there?�� Ye Futian said coldly.


    ��Since you knew, why do you come here to seek death, then?�� Saint Zhenchan asked without emotions.


    ��Back in Six Desires Heaven, you were just as over-confident and overbearing as you are now. You wanted to capture me by force, but do you remember what happened?�� Ye Futian said sarcastically. ��If I wanted to leave the Western World of Buddhism, do you think you would have an opportunity to catch a sight of me in Six Desires Heaven?��


    ��So, you did all this on purpose?�� Saint Zhenchan finally understood what Ye Futian was driving at.


    He deliberately appeared in Six Desires Heaven to lure him to the Colorless Sea?


    What was the purpose for Ye Futian to do so?


    With his level of cultivation, Ye Futian dared to lure him to the Colorless Sea for what? Death?


    Saint Zhenchan couldn��t wrap his head around this logic, nor the reason Ye Futian could have for taking him to the Colorless Sea.


    Ye Futian waved his arm at this moment, and suddenly a guqin appeared in front of him. It was ��Yearning,�� left to him by Shenyin the Great.


    With his outstretched hand, Ye Futian started plucking the strings, and the sound of guqin was heard. Suddenly, infinite musical notes jumped around, and just at that moment, waves appeared on the previously tranquil Colorless Sea.


    ��Rhythm?��Saint Zhenchan had a curious look on his face. This guqin appeared to be an exceptional item, possibly a divine item.


    But even so, Ye Futian thought that with the help of a guqin and playing the rhythm, it would be sufficient to contend with him?


    What an idiotic notion!


    The Light of Buddha obscured the sky and the sun, shrouded the boundless space. Ancient Buddhas now appeared above the firmament, and a massive Buddha sat in the sky right on top of the Colorless Sea. Just like before in Six Desires Heaven, he raised his gigantic hand and grabbed towards Ye Futian. The space was sealed close, oppressing the space where Ye Futian was.


    In the past, Ye Futian blew up the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to escape, and it had severely wounded him. Was he going to use a guqin to fight him now?


    The gigantic palm print moved extremely fast, and it came down instantly. A massive loud bang was heard as the surface of the Colorless Sea roiled. However, it missed Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian flickered away with Buddha��s Celerity and disappeared under the palm that slammed down in that brief moment. Even the power that had sealed the space could not block this Buddhist superpower.


    Ye Futian��s figure appeared in another place in the Colorless Sea, floating on the surface of the sea. Saint Zhenchan looked at him with some curiosity.


    ��So�� you are already in the Ninth-Realm!�� Saint Zhenchan stared at Ye Futian and marveled that he could forcibly teleport himself using Buddha��s Celerity. Zhenchan cultivated in Buddhism and had some understanding of the six superpowers of Buddhism. Buddha��s Celerity was very powerful, but it was by no means invincible. If they were to compete by pure brute force, he ought to be able to suppress Buddha��s Celerity completely.


    But how did Ye Futian managed to escape the range of his attack with Buddha��s Celerity?


    It should not have been possible even in the Ninth-Realm.


    More importantly, the Colorless Sea was an unusual location, which ought to have suppressed their true strength, no matter how slightly. Buddha��s Celerity should have been affected as well.


    The sound of guqin continued playing as the notes jumped around and moved in the sky above the Colorless Sea. Saint Zhenchan frowned and wondered as to what kind of guqin music this was. It was able to affect his will and caused some fluctuations.


    With the beating movements of the notes, they fell directly into the Colorless Sea, and suddenly, there was a violent movement in the sea, as a powerful and mighty will began to emerge from it.


    ��What are you doing?��


    Saint Zhenchan stared at Ye Futian with an extremely cold and apathetic expression. Ye Futian was trying to communicate with the will of the ancient Buddhas in the Colorless Sea using the sound of guqin?


    How could Saint Zhenchan not know that there were one hundred and eight great Buddhas inside the Colorless Sea? To suppress that incomparable fiend back then, these Buddhas integrated their collective will into the Colorless Sea and sealed the fiend here. Ye Futian was now attempting to communicate the will of the great Buddhas in the sea using the sound of guqin; was he trying to use the power of these great Buddhas to fight against him?


    This madman�� He was trying to use the Colorless Sea. So, was this the reason why he lured him here?


    However, even if Ye Futian could leverage the will of the great Buddhas in the Colorless Sea, was that enough to contend with him?


    What an idiotic notion.


    However, he was a little worried. If Ye Futian was to fight him by leveraging the will of the great Buddhas in the Colorless Sea, what would happen if he destroyed the will of these ancient Buddhas? Would the great men of Colorless Heaven blame him for such destruction?!

 Chapter 2502 - Killing Zhenchan

    The Colorless Sea roiled, and Saint Zhenchan seemed to be considering something. In the rioting Colorless Sea, an unparalleled Light of Buddha bloomed. Buddhas began emerging from the sea, accompanied by a deafening clattering sound. Once those Buddhas surged out of the sea, they expanded and became even greater, forming a spectacular sight.


    The entire Colorless Sea turned gold in color, and the Light of Buddha was ablaze; it appeared extremely sacred.


    In the vast surrounding area, the phantom of Buddhas shrouded this coastal region. In every position was an ancient Buddha.


    ��The Will of the great Buddha.�� Saint Zhenchan frowned slightly, and his gaze swept coldly at Ye Futian below, who continued playing the guqin. Did Ye Futian really think that he could communicate with the will of the Buddhas in the Colorless Sea with his music and fight against someone like him? This idea was way too naive.


    He was going to show Ye Futian that the gap between realms was an irreparable chasm that could not be offset so simply by the will of the great Buddhas.


    A horrific aura bloomed from Saint Zhenchan. His palm raised, and a giant Buddha phantom suddenly appeared behind him, raising his golden palm along with Zhenchan and slapped it down at the space beneath.


    A massive and boundless Symbol of Wan appeared, covering the sky and the sun, shrouding this corner of the world, directly oppressing Ye Futian with absolutely domineering force.


    Although it was just a random blow, it was enough to kill Ye Futian��at least in Saint Zhenchan��s eyes; Ye Futian could not possibly withstand his blow.


    The infinite and brilliant Light of Buddha emerged from Ye Futian. In the roiling Colorless Sea, the endless Light of Buddha poured into Ye Futian��s body so that he was completely submerged in it. The will of all the Buddhas seemed to resonate with him as their shadows faintly appeared behind him. The aura on him was also becoming extremely terrifying.


    Boom�� The heaven and the earth roared, and the Colorless Sea was violently tossing and turning. A gigantic and boundless ancient Buddha appeared, and it was the Mahavairocana. This Mahavairocana raised his hand without warning and slammed it with unspeakable power towards the Symbol of Wan in the void, and the two collided.


    Boom! A terrifying sound was heard, and the Palm of Mahavairocana was destroyed and shattered. However, at the same time, the huge and boundless Buddhist Symbol of Wan was broken into pieces as well.


    This Symbol of Wan was transformed by the attack from Saint Zhenchan, but it was broken apart by the Palm of Mahavairocana.


    Saint Zhenchan had an alarmed look in his eyes. It was as if he was very surprised but the sight in front of him. He lowered his head and looked at the Colorless Sea below, focused solely on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had disarmed his attack by using the Palm of Mahavairocana?


    Although it was only a simple blow, it was from him, Zhenchan, after all. Saint Zhenchan was one the cream of the crop existence in the Buddhist Sect, who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Even someone as strong as Lord Six Desires, Lord Liberty, and Lord Yemo had to take orders from him. Those were also existences who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, but there was still a considerable gap between them and Zhenchan.


    Although his status was far beneath top giants such as Tongchan, he belonged to the group of people at the top of the pyramid in the Western World of Buddhism, both in status and strength.


    Even an unexpected blow from him contained destructive power that could not be imagined. Even those who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path would find it difficult to face his attack, never mind a cultivator in the Eighth-Realm or just broken through the Ninth-Realm. Even if someone were able to resist it, it was bound to be at a great expense and may cause them grave injuries.


    However, Ye Futian was able to block his attack directly. This violated all the rules of cultivation. How could this be possible?


    Even with the help of the Colorless Sea, it was equally impossible; the gap was simply too great.


    How did Ye Futian make up for the difference?


    There was only one possibility: Ye Futian��s combat effectiveness was more substantial than he was aware of.


    ��This aura���� Saint Zhenchan perceived the tyrannical aura released by Ye Futian. At this moment, Ye Futian no longer bothered to disguise it and released his own aura to the fullest. The aura that erupted from him was not at all like the aura from someone who had just entered into the Ninth-Realm.


    Upon Ye Futian, Saint Zhenchan even felt a slight trace of the aura from someone who had survived the divine tribulation.


    This meant that Ye Futian��s true strength was probably far more than someone who had just entered Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm.


    ��Did you conceal the strength of your cultivation before?�� Saint Zhenchan stared at Ye Futian and asked him; this whole situation was out of order.


    ��I went to Spirit Mountain, where all the Buddhas were present; even the Buddha himself made an appearance. You think I was hiding my cultivation?�� Ye Futian looked at Saint Zhenchan with a sarcastic expression. Did Zhenchan just suggest that he was hiding before the Lord of All Buddhas and the other Buddha Lords?


    How preposterous.


    ��So, you have indeed just recently broken through to the Ninth-Realm, but why do I sense the aura of someone who had survived the divine tribulation?�� Saint Zhenchan stared at Ye Futian because he was truly curious. Could it be that there were still some other secret treasures on Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian didn��t mind dragging this out for a while longer. He stared back at Saint Zhenchan and replied, ��You weren��t wrong.��


    What did that mean?


    Saint Zhenchan��s eyes sharpened. What did Ye Futian mean by that? He wasn��t wrong?


    This was the aura of someone who survived divine tribulation!


    ��Tribulation!�� Saint Zhenchan remembered previous rumors that had occurred in Six Desires Heaven and other places, that a mysterious cultivator experiencing the divine tribulation all over the place had completed the divine tribulation in the Domain of Path Obliteration.


    Was Ye Futian the person who experienced divine tribulation?


    ��It was you surviving the divine tribulation in Six Desires Heaven?�� Saint Zhenchan stared at Ye Futian in disbelief. A Ninth-Realm Renhuang experiencing divine tribulation?


    And was this the reason why Ye Futian��s momentum was so powerful?


    ��Your perception sucks.�� Ye Futian said sarcastically. He didn��t mind telling Saint Zhenchan the truth. Today, only one of them would leave alive.


    There was a terrible rumbling sound that was heard, and the Colorless Sea was still roiling. Under the sound of guqin, the Light of Buddha in the Colorless Sea poured into Ye Futian��s body. He closed his eyes. His entire body was radiant, bathed in the Light of Buddha, and holier than anything else.


    ��Seal!�� A word came out of Ye Futian��s mouth, and suddenly the infinite Light of Buddha gathered in the vast domain, turning into a gigantic Buddha. It enveloped this entire coastal region. It was now turning into an absolute domain space and sealed it shut.


    Within this domain, everything must be isolated, including the will of the Way and divine consciousness. Even if Saint Zhenchan knew the truth, it was impossible for him to spread that news around. This space is an independent and insulated world of its own.


    The Sound of Buddha lingered and resounded through the void. Around the coastal region, all the Buddhas surrounded the sky above. Ye Futian stood on the sea with his hands clasped in front of him and his eyes closed tightly. It was as if he was the master of this sea at this moment.


    Today, he would use the Colorless Sea to kill Zhenchan!

 Chapter 2503 - Go Back Into Reincarnation

    Chapter 2503: Go Back Into Reincarnation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Saint Zhenchan glanced at the surrounding heaven and earth. He detected a peculiar aura inside this absolute sealed space. This was the domain created by Ye Futian, and it had actually blocked out all other kinds of powers.


    At the same time, in this vast domain, every one of the Buddhas was suspended in the air, and the golden Light of Buddha was set ablaze. All these great Buddhas were chanting the Sound of Buddha, which lingered between heaven and earth. They resonated with the guqin played by Ye Futian, turning it into the Vajra Spell.


    Ye Futian stood on the surface of the sea, and a Buddha phantom appeared to surround him. By leveraging the will of all the Buddhas in the Colorless Sea, Ye Futian was able to turn himself into a Buddha, as if he had already proclaimed the Way; his aura was comparable to that of Zhenchan��s.


    Only at this moment did Saint Zhenchan realized just what kind of a monster he was facing.


    This was a genius talent from Divine Prefecture who had experienced the divine tribulation in the Ninth-Realm, and now leveraging the will of all the Buddhas in the Colorless Sea. In fact, Ye Futian was well-known in the Divine Prefecture even before this, and Zhenchan had known quite a lot about him.. This was why he had gone to intercept Ye Futian.


    Still, he seemed to have underestimated this genius talent and the terrifying extent of his ability. Saint Zhenchan could never have imagined that this cultivator, who came to the Western World of Buddhism as a Renhuang in the Eighth-Realm, continued to be a thorn at his side, even without the divine body.


    Saint Zhenchan no longer intended to underestimate his enemy and was sobering up to prepare for the coming battle. He could sense the imminent threat that was permeating from Ye Futian.


    The Light of Buddha lit up all over the Colorless Sea, and a terrible aura was released from Saint Zhenchan. His eyes were terrifying, and a sacred halo appeared behind him. The Light of Buddha that came from the massive ancient Buddha could set the world on fire and blind the eyes of the beholders.


    It was the Mahavairocana.


    Mahavairocana was an extraordinary battle form of Buddhism. However, as Saint Zhenchan was also a cultivator of Buddhism with profound cultivation, he was an expert in all of the Buddhist methods, including Mahavairocana.


    More importantly, when someone��s cultivation was at the level of Saint Zhenchan, his Mahavairocana Battle Form contained defining self-characteristics. The Light of Buddha emitted from it contained terrible destructive power as if it could expiate all the others.


    Rumble�� The Palm of Mahavairocana pressed down, and heaven and earth roared as the Colorless Sea continued to roil. Frantic waves now raged over the once calming surface of the sea.


    At the same time, the heavens were lit up by the flaming Light of Buddha. By borrowing the will of the ancient Buddhas, Ye Futian was protected by the Golden Frame, which also gave way to the Mahavairocana Battle Form. His version of the Mahvairocana Battle Form was immensely virile, containing the incomparable divine light of the sun, which shot out lights of destruction. In the void, all the Buddhas condensed the seals at the same time, which they blasted toward the Mahavairocana from Saint Zhenchan.


    These two massive handprints intersected and collided above the Colorless Sea; the flaming light of Buddha was so fervent that it was simply blinding. That wave of searing air current could dry up the sea, but this sea was no ordinary body of water either; this was the Colorless Sea.


    Even so, the sea was still roaring and howling as the two attacks collided in the void. Both attacks dissipated as soon as they made contact, but none of them had the upper hand.


    This blow made Saint Zhenchan realize that after Ye Futian leveraged the will of the Buddhas in the Colorless Sea, his combat effectiveness was no less than his own.


    The will of the Buddhas in the Colorless Sea was different from ordinary willpowers. This will was more real in a sense. At that time, the Buddhas had merged their collective will into the Colorless Sea to suppressed that demonic fiend, so it was conceivable that this will had to be immensely powerful. Furthermore, it was a will that was imbued with spirit. Now, it was reawakened by Ye Futian��s sound of guqin, and he, alone, controlled these resurrected Buddhas.


    ��Ye Futian, you are disrespectful to Buddhism, and the Buddha will definitely release you!�� Saint Zhenchan looked down at Ye Futian and declared in an icy voice. Those words resounded throughout the nine heavens, attempting to influence Ye Futian��s will.


    ��I use the hands of all the Buddhas here to clean the house of Buddhism, and The Buddha will not guilt me for that.�� Ye Futian responded, ��Once, the Buddhas suppressed the demonic fiend in this place. Saint Zhenchan, even though you are a student of Buddhism, you are bewitched by the evils in your heart. The Colorless Sea is where you will be buried.��


    ��You speak without shame.�� Saint Zhenchan looked down at Ye Futian and said, ��Show me just how strong you can be by borrowing the will of the ancient Buddhas.��


    As his voice faded, the Sound of Buddha came from his mouth. This sound resonated throughout the void, like a Buddhist mantra or spell, making the Colorless Sea tremble. Even the will of all the Buddhas on Ye Futian was affected and seemed to peel away from Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian frowned. Saint Zhenchan seemed to be communicating with the will of the Buddhas using Buddhist spells so that they would not be under Ye Futian��s control and would return to the Colorless Sea. This would, no doubt, directly weaken Ye Futian��s strength so that it would be impossible for Ye Futian to contend against him with his own realm alone.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at Zhenchan. He was indeed an existence who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. However, Ye Futian had been spending all these years inside the library of the Buddhist Sect, and he had not wasted his time there.


    He had cultivated at Spirit Mountain for more than ten years and had comprehended the Buddhist scriptures even before he was able to break through the boundary of the realm. After the efforts of all these years, his methods of Buddhism were no longer what they were when he first arrived in Spirit Mountain.


    How could a few months of cultivation compare to the cultivation of more than a decade?


    At this moment, Ye Futian uttered the Sound of Buddha and put down the guqin. His hands clasped together, and an infinitely solemn Buddhist aura suddenly emitted from him.


    ��Om mani padme hum!��


    ��Om mani padme hum!��


    ��Om mani padme hum!��


    The sound of Buddha lingered in the sky, and the Colorless Sea seemed to be suppressed and was becoming extremely quiet and calm. At the same time, the will of all the Buddhas had been integrated into him and was now stabilized once more. Faces of ancient Buddhas seemed to appear faintly with solemn expressions. Solemn and holy, it was as if they had really been manifested into reality.


    ��Six Syllables of Truth!��


    Saint Zhenchan felt that his spell had been suppressed in the void, and he had a terrible look on his face. The heaven and the earth resonated, and the will of all the Buddhas were one. Above the firmament, the true form of Buddhism was revealed, and all of them were bonafide ancient Buddhas.


    Ye Futian had actually comprehended the Six Syllables of Truth.


    No wonder he dared to come to the Colorless Sea like this. Buddhist cultivators who were able to comprehend the Six Syllables of Truth were all people with superb Buddhist methods. They possessed deep roots in Buddhism and had predestination with the Buddha. Since ancient times, only those who were truly at the great Buddha-level could comprehend and accomplish such cultivation.


    Ye Futian understood the Six Syllables of Truth. In this Colorless Sea, all the Buddhas would think that he was the one true Buddha who had obtained the true teachings of Buddhism. While Zhenchan would stand on the opposite side of them.


    As soon as the Six Syllables of Truth were spoken out loud, veritable Buddhas suddenly revealed themselves in the heavens, and each one of them was like the ancient Buddha in the Colorless Sea who had been revived. They incarnated as a real Buddha sitting in the void, surrounding Zhenchan. At the same time, the one gigantic ancient Buddha began to solidify his presence into being, completely covering this corner of the sky, majestic and boundless.


    Ye Futian��s body was growing larger as well, turning into a Buddha. All this in front of him made Zhenchan trembling in his heart.


    This was the Reality Battle Form. Ye Futian had acquired another battle form in his arsenal.


    Ye Futian had transformed into a Buddha. It was as if he��a cultivator of the Divine Prefecture��was the true heir of Buddhism. He had cultivated supreme Buddha methods, and he intended to use them to release Zhenchan in the here and now.


    ��Zhenchan, return into reincarnation.�� A voice spoke; it seemed like the Sound of Buddha was lingering between heaven and earth. It was like an unshakable truth of the Great Path asking Zhenchan to go back into reincarnation!

 Chapter 2504 - Killing Zhenchan

    Chapter 2504: Killing Zhenchan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Six Syllables of Truth was the supreme mantra of Buddhism. Although it possessed no direct power to attack, it could bless, thus augmenting, all kinds of Buddhist methods. The mantra itself represented the greatest wisdom of Buddhism and was considered the most orthodox of all Buddhist powers.


    When the Six Syllables of Truth appeared, the Colorless Sea seemed to have produced some kind of resonance with Ye Futian. It was as if all the willpower of Buddhism within the Colorless Sea could be used by him. What was more terrifying was that the Buddhas appeared like great Buddhas in their physical forms, releasing tremendously aggressive Buddhist methods.


    At this moment, Saint Zhenchan was alone and on his own, as if he was a public enemy of Buddhism. There was a terrible look on his face now. In all this, he was the cultivators of Buddhism and should be one of their own, while Ye Futian was the true outsider��a visitor from the Divine Prefecture.


    Now, these Buddhas were fighting alongside Ye Futian. With their blessings on him, the Buddhist methods released from Ye Futian seemed to bent on suppressing him.


    .


    Ye Futian had even arrogantly declared to send him back into the cycle of reincarnation. It was as if his words were the absolute truth, the principle of the Great Path. It would send him, Zhenchan, into the wheels of reincarnation.


    The Sound of Buddha lingered as heaven and earth resonated. The sound of Buddha came from all the Buddhas all at once and resounded throughout the Colorless Sea. The terrible Vajra Spell went for Saint Zhenchan, piercing through the shadows of Buddhas that had gathered around Saint Zhenchan.


    They even blasted towards Saint Zhenchan himself with the intention to kill.


    At this moment, what really terrified Saint Zhenchan was that Ye Futian might really have what it takes to send him back into reincarnation.


    Boom! Saint Zhenchan had a solemn expression on his face, and he seemed to be in a grave mood. He clasped his hands together in front of him, and his eyes closed tight. Above his body, the golden Light of Buddha radiated as he transformed into a real Buddha. Behind him, shadows of Buddhas appeared as solidly as if they were real entities.


    Subsequently, these shadowy Buddhas stretched out their arms, more and more, until they covered up the entire sky and blocked out the sun.


    At Saint Zhenchan��s brow chakra, a divine eye seemed to have opened up. It held a mark of Buddhism, which was extremely shocking to behold. That mark turned into something like a sword, carrying with it an unparalleled sharp aura, like that of a peerless warrior.


    In an instant, all the hands that were released by the Buddhas behind Saint Zhenchan were holding a divine sword. These divine swords released an unparalleled sharpness that seemed to slaughter all evil demons in this world.


    The swords had not yet been unleashed before that terrifying sword will came for the kill. Everything in its path was extinguished and silenced. Ye Futian also felt the oppressive power of this technique. This ought to be a potent attack that Saint Zhenchan had derived from the Buddhist superpowers.


    This divine sword was even more terrifying than the Sword of Catastrophe from the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, comparable to the Sword of Law, which was capable of shattering all the power of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian knew that Saint Zhenchan felt his life was being threatened, so he had unleashed his most powerful last resort to end him here in the Colorless Sea.


    In this battle, one of them had to be buried in this place of Buddhist legend.


    ��Mahavairocana!�� The Buddha body transformed by Ye Futian released an unparalleled Light of Buddha as the Vajra Spell swept out. At the same time, all the Buddhas blasted out their supreme handprints, the Palm of Mahavairocana.


    ��Kill!�� Saint Zhenchan uttered. Although he was a Buddhist, at this moment, his murderous intent had shot through the sky. This attack technique was just like his own character, domineering and sharp. This technique was created by him, the eponymous Zhenchan Sword.


    The moment the Zhenchan Sword was released, those many arms moved at the same time as well. The divine swords in their hands slashed out. They collided with the Vajra Spell but were unable to shake it in the slightest. Those arms continued to extend out with the divine swords in their hands, covering all the space, missing no corners, and slaughtered everything in sight.


    The Palms of Mahavairocana collided with the Zhenchan Swords as an apocalyptic light erupted above the Colorless Sea. The Palms of Mahavairocana were broken up and destroyed, but the Zhenchan Swords were constantly breaking apart as well, one after another. However, those arms seemed infinite and endless, continued to slaughter at those Buddhas with Zhenchan Swords in hand.


    Even if these were Buddhas who were resurrected, if they were here to help Ye Futian, Saint Zhenchan would slay all of them.


    What if they were the ancient Buddhas?


    He, Saint Zhenchan, was a great Buddha of the present day, and he was not afraid of the will of some ancient Buddhas from the past.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Those terrifying attacks collided, and the arms holding the Zhenchan Swords stabbed at the shadows of Buddhas, extinguishing them, one by one. The destructive power was far too horrific. It seemed as if a strike by the Zhenchan Sword was enough to cause immediate destruction. No matter what power of the Great Path it was transformed from, they were annihilated equally.


    People who have cultivated to the same level as Saint Zhenchan had their own understanding of the Way, and Zhenchan Sword was an example of such comprehension.


    Having perceived the terrifying attacks from Saint Zhenchan, Ye Futian did not waver in the slightest.


    ��Om mani padme hum!��


    ��Om mani padme hum!��


    The Six Syllables of Truth remained as the Sound of Buddha lingered in the sky above the Colorless Sea. The heavens resonated, as the seal that covered this coastal region personified into shadows of Buddha, like a mural cast from these Buddhas.


    This was no longer just the 108 Buddhas but hundreds and thousands of great Buddhas.


    All of the Buddhas resonated as if listening to the truth preached by The Buddha. Seeing those countless arms continued to extend outward to slay, all the Buddhas also stretched out their arms at the same time.


    ��All Buddhas Return to the Source!��


    Saint Zhenchan raised his head to look into the sky. Under the light of the great sun, All Buddhas Returning to the Source. At this moment, Saint Zhenchan truly felt a sense of desperation. How was Ye Futian able to achieve this phenomenon after only having been in the Spirit Mountain for a little over a decade?


    Even after he had cultivated for this many years, he was unable to achieve a vision such as All Buddhas Returning to the Source. However, Ye Futian did it by leveraging the will of the Buddhas in the Colorless Sea.


    This blow spared nothing, and everything was destroyed in its wake.


    There was a horrific sound of rumbling. When this blow fell, those many arms shattered, and even the Zhenchan Swords could not resist it, as its force directly submerged this space.


    This blow was not the power from Ye Futian, but the power of all the Buddhas; Ye Futian was just the person who set it all into motion. He had urged the phenomenon of All Buddhas Returning to the Source with the Six Syllables of Truth, and as all the Buddhas came down with their joint attack, it was not something that Saint Zhenchan could have resisted.


    Boom! The attack annihilated everything; it blasted on the Colorless Sea. The Colorless Sea tossed and turned violently as if the sea itself had been punched through.


    The tumbling Colorless Sea roared and howled and only gradually calmed down after a few moments. A few rays of Sarira light flew out from the Colorless Sea, trying to escape. Ye Futian��s eyes were cold and indifferent. His finger pointed at those Sarira beads, and suddenly they shattered, one after another. A phantom of Saint Zhenchan seemed to appear now, his face distorted, angry, as well as a tinge of reluctance and desperation.


    Zhenchan��a great Buddha of the World of Buddhism��had fallen into the hands of a youngster from the Divine Prefecture; it was a lamentable ending.


    ��Go,�� Ye Futian said, and the phantom of Saint Zhenchan disappeared, his soul and spirit dissipated into nothingness. At the same time, the aura from his body gradually lessened as the will of the Buddhas returned to the Colorless Sea. There was a pervading sense of weakness.


    But Ye Futian heaved a sigh of relief. In this battle, Zhenchan was killed. Now, there was one less worry for him, as there was one less powerful enemy!

 Chapter 2505 - The Return

    Chapter 2505: The Return


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Colorless Sea returned to its previous state of tranquility. Meanwhile, Ye Futian closed his eyes and rested. However, he suddenly sensed a very powerful negative emotion; it was as if there was an invasion of another will, which did not leave his body.


    What��s going on? Ye Futian wondered. In his perception, he saw a Buddha. This Buddha was solemn and sacred, dazzling with divine light. But it was invading him little by little, intending on occupying his entire consciousness.


    This was not right!


    Ye Futian perceived something unusual and realized this was no time for rest, after all. The Light of Buddha on his body was radiant as he recited the Sound of Buddha until he was covered in nothing but the Light of Buddha, which attempted to purify all evil spirits.


    ��Is that his will?!�� Ye Futian��s heart trembled slightly. He remembered the legend of the Colorless Sea.. He fought in the Colorless Sea and killed Saint Zhenchan by the collective will of all the Buddhas in the Colorless Sea, but this collective will was here for a reason��to suppress that powerful demon who was once a great Buddha. Just as he was borrowing the collective will of the Buddhas in the Colorless Sea, the will of that demon stole its way in as well.


    In his consciousness, the invading Buddha phantom turned dark. It was a pitch-black Buddha whose lotus seat had taken root in his consciousness. At this time, Ye Futian was becoming extremely irritable and negative. He remembered many horrible things from the past, like the time when he first entered the Western World of Buddhism; when he was chased by the Great Elder Motian; when he was hunted by Lord Six Desires; or when he was kept prisoner by Lord Initial Zen and the others.


    There was also the hostility from Saint Zhenchan, Shenyan Arhat, Shenyan Buddha Lord, and so many other similar instances. These memories had all flooded his mind at this point in time. There were even voices in his head, saying, ��Man is evil by nature, and all Buddhas are sanctimonious.��


    Ye Futian��s expression changed slightly as he proceeded to take out the divine guqin, Yearning, once again and played with both hands. At the same time, his lips were constantly moving, and the Six Syllable of Truth reverberated throughout this space. Suddenly, all the Buddhas resonated with him again, and the Colorless Sea was in turmoil once more.


    The sea rolled back, flowing upstream against logic, and shrouded Ye Futian��s body. The will of the Buddha once again resonated with the will of Ye Futian. Under the Six Syllables of Truth, the Sound of Buddha was simply deafening and worked to keep him in a state of alertness. His body was transformed into the body of a Buddha, and at the same time, he visualized an ancient golden Buddha in his mind��s eye, sitting on a golden lotus, facing the Dark Buddha, trying to suppress the other.


    This demon was drawn by him and should be dispelled by him as well. Once before, the will of all the Buddhas had been integrated into the Colorless Sea to suppress this demon, and it should be possible to do the same again today.


    In the sea of consciousness, the two great Buddhas were at an impasse. The only difference was that the Dark Buddha was only one, but across from him, the golden ancient Buddha was surrounded by many other Buddhas. The Sound of Buddha was coming out of them at the same time. This world had been transformed into a world of the Buddhas, suppressing all evil demons.


    Rumble�� Ye Futian��s body trembled slightly. Even though he had stabilized his body and soul with the Buddhist methods, it was difficult to achieve absolute peace. The two wills were fighting and struggling, and he felt a splitting headache, which was more taxing on him than when he was dealing with Saint Zhenchan before.


    Moreover, that invading demon was extremely terrifying and stubborn. He was once a great Buddha who was proficient in Buddhist doctrines. Later, he gave up hope in all things, which paved the way for him to become obsessed with the demonic realm. For this reason, the effect of Buddhism on him was limited. He had never been truly and completely vanquished in all these years.


    Ye Futian even mobilized the imperial will, as his whole body was now as bright as a divine body, while the two wills struggled. He seemed to have suppressed the opponent somewhat but was unable to destroy it.


    At this time, the clouds and mist above the sky parted, as the Light of Buddha was shining down, falling on the surface of the Colorless Sea, shrouded Ye Futian��s body at the same time.


    Over yonder, a beam of light descended, and at the end of that Light of Buddha, a great Buddha with a Golden Frame could be seen. He looked down at Ye Futian.


    The Buddha Lord of Colorless Heaven! Ye Futian secretly exclaimed in his heart. There were several very powerful great Buddhas in the Colorless Heaven, and this should be someone at the level of the Buddha Lords.


    The Light of Buddha shone on Ye Futian as if there was a thought that directly entered into Ye Futian��s consciousness, helping him to fight against that Buddha of the Darkness. The Light of Buddha on these Buddhas became more fervent. Gradually, cracks appeared on that dark shadow of a Buddha.


    However, his eyes remained indifferent and cold as he watched all this. Then, everything shattered and was destroyed, dissipating into nothingness.


    It��s done, Ye Futian thought to himself, as the collective will of the Buddhas left him and dissipated once again. As the Light of the Buddha on his body retracted, he looked up into the firmament, bowed, and said, ��Thank you, Buddha Lord.��


    That Buddha Lord put his hands together and replied, ��Amitabha, Benefactor Ye has a deep connection with Buddhism. If you continue to cultivate in Buddhism, you will be a great Buddha one day.��


    ��Buddha Lord speaks too highly of me. Buddhism is profound, and I have only just scratched the surface. This time I have disturbed you in Colorless Sea and almost caused serious trouble. I beg your forgiveness,�� Ye Futian bowed again and apologized.


    ��Benefactor Ye had no choice in the matter,�� the great Buddha responded.


    ��Thank you, Buddha Lord, for your understanding. I apologize for disturbing Buddha Lord��s cultivation. I will take my leave now,�� Ye Futian said.


    That Buddha Lord put his hands together as Ye Futian bowed to take his leave. Then, his figure flickered as he departed, and the Light of Buddha that was above the firmament also dissipated. The Buddha Lord himself disappeared as well.


    Ye Futian drove hard on the journey using Buddha��s Celerity. It didn��t take long before he came to a place, and he stopped to close his eyes to cultivate. At the same time, he notified Hua Jieyu and the others that their trouble was no more.


    A few days later, Ye Futian, having recuperated, continued to push on his journey with Buddha��s Celerity, moving out of the Western World of Buddhism.


    Everything in the World of Buddhism had now come to an end, so he should be leaving now.


    At the same time, many great Buddhas of the Western World of Buddhism had received news of Saint Zhenchan��s demise. For a time, their hearts were disturbed. However, some great Buddhas seemed to have already foreseen this very ending, and they remained as peaceful as ever.


    Grandmaster Bitter Zen learned of the news while he was sweeping outside the library. He merely raised his head to look into the distance before continuing the task of cleaning up the fallen leaves.


    In comparison, the likes of Shenyan Buddha Lord and the others were more shocked by the news. Ye Futian had managed to hunt down and kill Saint Zhenchan at the Colorless Sea. He had done so by leveraging the collective will of all the Buddhas inside the Colorless Sea. Saint Zhenchan was no more.


    With the death of Saint Zhenchan, Zhenchan Temple was now just something that was part of the past.


    ��


    In the endless void, a Golden-winged Roc was moving forward through the emptiness, with turbulence raging in the space it was traveling through.


    On the back of the Golden-winged Roc, Hua Jieyu looked behind her with her beautiful eyes. It seemed as if she was looking for something.


    At this moment, a figure suddenly appeared in front of her and landed on the back of the Golden-winged Roc. Without the slightest fluctuation of aura, it appeared simply out of thin air. It was Ye Futian. The Golden-winged Roc was controlled by him; it was natural for him to pinpoint its location and meet up with Hua Jieyu and the others.


    ��That��s amazing,�� Chen Yi remarked when he saw Ye Futian appear without warning in front of them. In his experience, no matter what kind of Great Path power was used to travel through the void, there were always some signs which could be perceived ahead of time. However, Ye Futian��s appearance was without the slightest fluctuation in aura. It was as if he had truly appeared out of nowhere.


    ��Buddha��s Celerity is one of the six superpowers of Buddhism; it is indeed amazing,�� Ye Futian responded with a smile.


    ��Master.�� Fang Cun and the others came forward and called him happily. They were very happy when they saw Ye Futian��s safe return, especially comparing this to when he was being chased by Saint Zhenchan.


    ��Everything is fine now,�� Ye Futian smiled and said. He then looked at Hua Jieyu. ��I��ve come back.��


    ��Mmm.�� Hua Jieyu nodded.


    ��Let��s go home.�� Ye Futian smiled, and the group of them nodded in agreement.


    Time to leave and get back to the Ziwei Segmentum!

 Chapter 2506 - Return

    To return to the Ziwei Segmentum from Western Heaven, Ye Futian had to first pass through the Divine Prefecture. He passed by many places and heard many things.


    These past few years, the Ziwei Segmentum had been sealed off from the outside world. Their news of the outside was naturally also cut off, so they did not know of the current changes to the outside world.


    However, on Ye Futian��s way back, he obtained a lot of information.


    The lands of the Original Realm were now open to the various major worlds. It no longer solely belonged to the Divine Prefecture. The various worlds were now part of it. Unless the Divine Prefecture went to war with various worlds, it could only acquiesce in this.


    As time passed, the various major worlds opened up pathways to the Original Realm.


    It was the same for the lands of the Divine Prefecture. Each of the 18 domains had pathways leading to the Original Realm.


    This made Ye Futian emotional. It might be that the Original Realm had returned to how it was in ancient times. It served as the center of the world, and countless forces from various worlds gathered within it.


    As for how the Original Realm was overall, he was unable to find out. After all, the Ziwei Segmentum did not have contact with the outside world, so he could not obtain useful information through his forces there.


    The changes of the world began in the Original Realm!


    Ye Futian recalled this prophecy. In Western Heaven, he learned that this prophecy had originated from the Western Heavenly World and spread throughout the worlds.


    What did the changes of the world refer to exactly?


    Ye Futian and the others made a trip to Four Corner Village first. Back then, he had obtained a treasure from Princess Donghuang that could directly open a pathway from the Original Realm to the Divine Prefecture. However, he would not be able to use it for the trip back. That meant to say that he could leave the Original Realm but not return to it unless he borrowed a passageway opened by Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    However, that was currently impossible for him.


    Fortunately, in Four Corner Village, Master had opened a passageway to the Original Realm for him. That way, Ye Futian had a path between the Original Realm as well as the Divine Prefecture.


    In the Ziwei Segmentum, among the vast starry sky, galaxies shifted, and starlight flowed.


    In the starry cultivation court of Ziwei Imperial Palace, many people raised their heads to the sky. They seemed to have sensed something as they revealed strange expressions.


    ��Yeah!��


    A bolt of black lightning shot up past the clouds. A creature charged up into the starry sky. It was Black Wind Condor.


    When they saw this scene, the various cultivators in the starry cultivation court looked towards Black Wind Condor.


    Before this, they had already heard the news that Ye Futian would return. Now, from Black Wind Condor��s reaction, they understood that Ye Futian was back.


    At that moment, everyone stopped cultivating and quietly waited.


    Not long after, a group of people arrived. They did not enter the starry cultivation court from the passageway in Ziwei Imperial Palace, instead directly appearing here. Ye Futian controlled the will of Great Emperor Ziwei, so he naturally could do so.


    In the starry sky, a Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird dove down with its wings outstretched. Its wings blocked out the sun as it circled around in the starry sky. It then stabilized itself and floated in mid-air.


    On the back of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, a few figures stepped forward. The person who stood in the center had white robes purer than snow. He looked down at the familiar faces below and smiled. His expression was gentle, and there was not a shred of aura emanating from his figure. He seemed like an ordinary person, yet he gave off an extraordinary vibe. Everyone knew that Ye Futian had improved greatly on his journey.


    ��Futian.��


    ��Palace Lord.��


    ��Younger Brother.��


    ��Master.��


    ������


    Many voices called out at the same time. Many titles were mentioned, but they all referred to the same person. They were all calling out to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had been away for more than a decade. It was such a long time.


    Now, he had finally returned.


    ��I am back,�� said Ye Futian as he smiled at the familiar faces approaching him.


    ��Boss, how about you leave this Golden Feather to be educated by Condor sama?�� Black Wind Condor asked Ye Futian. He had not taken his eyes off the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, Mo Yunzi. This golden-feathered bird was a great threat to his own position. Now that Master had returned, he had to seize the initiative and assert his dominance.


    ��Golden Feather?��


    Mo Yunzi��s sharp eyes shot over towards Black Wind Condor like daggers. Was he Condor sama?


    This was the first time Mo Yunzi had heard someone refer to him with such an uncouth name. He was the divine bird, the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird. Even in the World of Buddhism, he had standing and was the mount of Buddhas.


    This black bird dared to call him such a name?


    ��What are you looking at? I, Condor sama, have followed Master for many years. How can you be compared to me? Shouldn��t you be showing your respect to yours truly?�� Black Wind Condor said in an arrogant tone.


    Buzz! Mo Yunzi could not tolerate this any longer. He immediately charged over with his golden claws outstretched. His dignity was still intact even though he was now the mount of Ye Futian. He would not allow Black Wind Condor to walk all over him.


    ��Insubordination,�� chided Black Wind Condor as he dodged. The two demonic beasts took to the skies at extremely high speeds.


    The crowd watched this scene in surprise. Ye Futian had just returned, and these two demonic beasts had actually begun fighting.


    Ye Futian was also stunned. He then revealed a smile. Although these two fellows were fighting now, they were connected to him and knew where to draw the line.


    ��Was your journey successful this time?�� Lord Taixuan asked.


    ��Lord Taixuan,�� greeted Ye Futian politely first. He then looked to the others and said, ��It has been years since we last met. I have missed you all. Seniors, pardon me for not greeting you all individually.��


    The crowd nodded in understanding. It wasn��t that Ye Futian did not wish to follow protocol; there were just too many people. If Ye Futian were to greet them all one by one, he would waste a lot of time. Cultivators did not bother with such formalities anyway.


    ��Our journey this time was very successful,�� replied Ye Futian as he looked at Lord Taixuan. He continued, ��I brought Qingqing to Western Heaven, and we went to Spirit Mountain. Qingqing was the reincarnation of the Buddhist lamp of The Buddha. She had accompanied The Buddha during his cultivation in her past life. She has now recovered her memories as Ancient Buddha Qingdeng.��


    Ye Futian continued, ��Chen Yi went to Great Bright Domain and also obtained his inheritance. As for me, I had many fateful encounters in Western Heaven and cultivated many miraculous Buddhist doctrines. I had the opportunity to come in contact with several high-tier Buddhist doctrines on this trip. I have reaped many benefits from them.��


    Ye Futian summarized the experiences their group had over the past few years for the crowd. However, everyone knew that there was more to what he was telling them. This journey had certainly not been easy.


    Nevertheless, it seemed as though the benefits of this trip were indeed huge.


    ��The cultivation of these young fellows has also improved by a lot. It was well worth the trip,�� Emperor Xi said as he looked at Fang Cun and the others behind Ye Futian. Old Ma and the other cultivators from Four Corner Village also came forward. They revealed smiles as they looked at Little Ling and the others.


    Ye Futian smiled as he looked at the crowd and said, ��First Elder Brother, Second Elder Sister, Third Elder Brother, Dou Zhao, Muyu�� all of you have improved greatly.��


    ��These past few years, we have always been hard at work cultivating in the Ziwei Segmentum. Since we were forced to seal ourselves away in the world of Ziwei, aside from cultivating, there was nothing else we could do. The starry cultivation court also contains the Will of the Great Emperor, so all of us have indeed improved greatly,�� Lord Taixuan said with a smile. ��It is just that we do not know what has happened in the outside world and how the Heavenly Mandate Realm is currently.��


    Lord Taixuan seemed to still long for the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian as he nodded his head. ��After so many years, I also wish to know how it is in the outside world currently. Now that I have returned, we can remove the seal on the Ziwei Segmentum and head out to take a look!��

 Chapter 2507 - New Grudges and Old Vendettas

    Ever since Ye Futian left, the Ziwei Segmentum had permanently been sealed off from the outside world. Everyone inside had been busy cultivating.


    They had been doing so for more than a decade. Although they had significantly improved, they also wanted to go back out into the world.


    After Ye Futian was reunited with everyone, he unlocked the seal of the Ziwei Segmentum, allowing the others to go out and investigate the current changes to the Original Realm.


    However, Ye Futian did not dare to be too careless. Although it had been more than a decade, there were still many people who had their eyes on him and the Ziwei Segmentum. Those who ventured out were required to have top Renhuangs accompany them. Of course, he also knew that he did not need to be overly worried for their safety.


    After all, for the various forces, their target was still him. They would not target the others.


    Aside from that, Ye Futian had a certain level of self-confidence. Having cultivated Celerity, even powerful existences who survived the second stage of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path would have a hard time capturing him.


    Saint Zhenchan was not just an ordinary figure who survived the second stage of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Back then, Lord Six Desires, Lord Liberty, as well as Lord Ye, all obeyed his commands. Yet, even Saint Zhenchan had not managed to capture Ye Futian as he pursued him. He had been lured by Ye Futian to the Colorless Sea and killed.


    From this, Ye Futian understood that he already had means of self-preservation by relying on Celerity.


    Of course, Celerity served more functions than just self-preservation!


    ��


    The people in the Ziwei Segmentum had been stuck inside for far too long. After the seal was unlocked, they all left to see the outside world.


    Ye Futian was not in a hurry to venture out. After returning, he did not rush to cultivate, instead spending time with those close to him, such as his teachers. He had not been able to see them for so many years. Now, he naturally had to make up for it.


    Today, he was in a courtyard in Ziwei Imperial Palace playing chess with Qi Xuangang��his teacher and the previous imperial advisor of Dali. Ye Futian��s Elder Brother Yan Yuan and the girl Feixue were also with them. They watched quietly as the two of them played chess.


    The current Ye Futian was no longer what he once was before. He was no longer the younger brother who had headed over to the Dali Dynasty to train. He now ruled over Ziwei Imperial Palace and was once the ruler of the Original Realm. Although he had yet to reveal his cultivation upon returning this time, the members of Ziwei Imperial Palace speculated that he was already invincible at the Renhuang Plane.


    After all, it was already tricky for Renhuangs to contend with him more than a decade ago, let alone now that he had returned from the World of Buddhism.


    Qi Xuangang looked at the chessboard, and his eyes revealed a smile as he said, ��It seems that you have benefited greatly from this trip to the Western World of Buddhism.��


    ��How could you tell?�� asked Ye Futian.


    Qi Xuangang smiled as he explained, ��The chessboard reflects this. Although you still have a sharpness like before, you have become steadier. You advance and retreat in an orderly fashion. Your disposition is different.�� He seemed to have witnessed Ye Futian��s growth.


    Now, the fate of the Ziwei Segmentum was tied to Ye Futian. He might also still be related to the fate of the Original Realm.


    Qi Xuangang naturally knew that Ye Futian was extraordinary. He was a figure who could rewrite the history of the cultivation world. They were all witnesses to this history.


    ��I comprehended Buddhist scriptures on Spirit Mountain in Western Heaven for many years and had some enlightenment. It might be that I have changed slightly,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile.


    Qi Xuangang advised, ��I heard that Buddhist doctrine is broad and profound. It is a shame that I never had the chance to come in contact with it. It is really fortunate for you to have had such an opportunity. Now, the world is in chaos, and this chaos is not just restricted to one realm. The various worlds are all facing it. You should befriend those who can be befriended. At the same time, continue to strengthen yourself and the powers you govern. Otherwise, alone, it will be difficult for you to handle everything.��


    ��I understand,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head and took this to heart. More than a decade ago, ever since he returned to the Original Realm from the Divine Prefecture, the world had been thrown into chaos.


    In the past, he had even been in the midst of this storm. Now, more than a decade later, he had cut off contact with the outside world and had only made a trip to the World of Buddhism. However, the chaos of the outside world had not changed even after he left. The conflict had continued endlessly.


    When they looked back at this period of time in the future, it might be that it was merely a small portion of the chaos to ensue.


    At that moment, a fiery red silhouette dashed in from the outside. It was a divine phoenix that landed in the courtyard. It was Zi Feng. After they met each other on Eastern Deity Island, she had always been following Ye Futian.


    Now, aside from the various demon clans that followed Ye Futian, he also had a few demonic beasts that followed him personally, such as Little Condor, Zi Feng, and Mo Yunzi.


    When Ye Futian saw Zi Feng appear, he suddenly felt emotional. Now, his cultivation was already at the peak of the Renhuang Plane, and he had even survived a Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. From the looks of it, he needed to pick back up the alchemy techniques that he had inherited from Supreme Deity Donglai on Eastern Deity Island.


    If he concocted pills now, he would certainly be able to concoct the most powerful imperial level elixir. It was just like his teacher Qi Xuangang had said: it was not enough for him to improve alone. In this chaotic world, with the Ziwei Segmentum as his base, if he wanted to vie for power over the Original Realm, he needed to raise the power levels of the members in the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    In order to do so, alchemy would play a critical role. However, to concoct the highest level pills, they needed the prescriptions as well as extremely precious medicinal materials. All of these needed to be gathered.


    Although the memories of Supreme Deity Donglai contained many precious prescriptions, for Ye Futian at his current cultivation level, they were no longer powerful enough.


    ��Mister Qi,�� greeted Zi Feng as she bowed towards Qi Xuangang. Although her cultivation was far superior to Qi Xuangang��s, she still was exceptionally polite to him. After all, he was Ye Futian��s teacher.


    Ye Futian��s teachers did not have high cultivation. However, in the Ziwei Segmentum, they all held high positions. No one dared not to respect them. This was naturally due to Ye Futian��s ability and influence. Of course, this was also because he was very respectful to his teachers. If he did not show them respect, others would naturally follow suit.


    Qi Xuangang nodded as he returned the gesture.


    ��Zi Feng, what news do you have of the outside world?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��From the news we have received from the outside, the various worlds have opened passageways to the Original Realm,�� Zi Feng reported. ��These past few years, cultivators from the various worlds have been pouring into the Original Realm, causing the number of cultivators there to grow exponentially. The various worlds also have many strongholds. Currently, the Original Realm has become a gathering place for the cultivators of the various worlds. Besides that, many relics have emerged. There are even ancient ruined realms floating in the void, and some of them have Emperor��s relics. All of them have been explored. In many places, cities and even whole continents have been established.��


    ��That means to say that there have been many more realms appearing in the Original Realm over the years?�� asked Ye Futian. In the past, the Original Realm had Nine Supreme Regions and was called the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    However, with the changes to the Original Realm, many unknown lands had emerged and were gradually being explored, becoming new realms.


    ��Hmm,�� replied Zi Feng as she nodded her head. ��It is not just that. The top forces of the various worlds have directly established realms in order to develop strongholds and allow more cultivators from their worlds into the Original Realm. They are all frenziedly developing their own powers.��


    ��From the looks of it, the Original Realm is once again becoming the center region of the various worlds,�� lamented Qi Xuangang.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, ��Countless years ago, legend has it that the Original Realm was once the only world. After the collapse of the Heavenly Path and countless eons of changes, our current situation was established. However, it seems that the Original Realm contains infinite mysteries. These mysteries have surfaced over the years. Hence, the various worlds have all gathered in the Original Realm and have constantly competed. It is indeed akin to the center of the universe.��


    ��This chaotic world is both a catastrophe and a fateful encounter. This will certainly be a grand era,�� added Qi Xuangang. ��The Devil Emperor ended the chaos in the Devil World whereas Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing ended the chaos in the Divine Prefecture. Now that the chaos in the Original Realm has spread across the various worlds, who will be the one to determine the rise and fall of each world?��


    Ye Futian nodded his head. At that moment, he frowned slightly. He heard something.


    ��What is it?�� Qi Xuangang asked when he saw Ye Futian��s expression change.


    ��There are some things that I need to settle. Teacher, I will head back first,�� Ye Futian said as he got up.


    ��Go ahead,�� replied Qi Xuangang as he nodded his head. Now, Ye Futian was the ruler of the Ziwei Segmentum. He needed to oversee everything around here. Qi Xuangang naturally understood this.


    Ye Futian��s figure immediately disappeared without any fluctuations of aura as he sat there. When Qi Xuangang and Yan Yuan witnessed this scene, they were stunned. From the looks of it, after returning this time, Ye Futian was even stronger than they had imagined.


    However, no one knew the exact extent of his powers yet.


    Ye Futian directly appeared in one of the squares of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Quite a number of people were here. A few of them were injured.


    These cultivators were one of few groups who left the Ziwei Segmentum. They were mostly cultivators from the Original Realm, including Xiao Dingtian and Xiao Muyu from the Xiao clan, Dou Zhao, and the clan lord of the Dou tribe. All of them were actually injured.


    ��What happened?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��We were ambushed,�� responded Xiao Dingtian.


    ��B*stards!�� cursed Dou Zhao, who had a short temper. ��They were cultivators from the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor. The leader was Ning Hua. He knew that we emerged from the Ziwei Segmentum. He actually planned to kill us all, not giving us any chance of survival.��


    ��Ning Hua!�� A cold look flashed in Ye Futian��s eyes.


    So it was Ning Hua��the vice chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Back when Ye Futian was in the Donghua Domain, Ning Hua hunted him relentlessly. Zong Chan, the disciple of the Millet Emperor, had been killed by him too.


    Ye Futian had always kept this vendetta at heart. Now, Ning Hua actually attacked his alliance again after knowing that they left the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Xiao Dingtian continued, ��Ning Hua is a ninth-tier Renhuang now. His Great Path is flawless, and he is proficient in the Grand Seal Great Path. He is strong. It was difficult for us to withstand his attack even with our combined powers. Fortunately, we received help from Mister Tie, so we were barely able to escape.�� As he said this, he revealed a look of gratitude towards Blind Tie.


    Ye Futian was well aware that Ning Hua was very powerful. Since a long time ago, Ning Hua was crowned the strongest Proud Son of Heaven of the Donghua Domain. There were four famous young cultivators in total. However, Ning Hua stood head and shoulders above the other three youths. He was exceptionally capable and was ranked first among the four of them.


    Xiao Dingtian was naturally not a match for Ning Hua, whose cultivation had reached the ninth-tier of the Renhuang Plane.


    Xiao Dingtian added, ��Ning Hua��s extremely arrogant. He called us vermin who could only hide in the Ziwei Segmentum. He threatened to kill us all without mercy if we dared to step out to the outside world.��


    When Ye Futian heard this, his facial expression turned as cold as ice. Ning Hua always had a high opinion of himself and was extremely presumptuous. Moreover, he bore a strong animosity towards Ye Futian. Ning Hua losing to Ye Futian when they were cultivating in the starry cultivation court was one of the causes which led to Ning Hua��s hatred towards him.


    However, now, things were no longer as they had been. If Ning Hua still wanted to provoke Ye Futian, then Ye Futian would settle both new grudges and old vendettas with him in one shot!

 Chapter 2508 - Walking into the Lion’s Den?

    In Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian met with the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng. One was the master of Zong Chan, and the other was his elder brother. Both of them were close to Zong Chan.


    Now that Ye Futian was heading over to seek revenge, they had to be present.


    ��I will also head over to take a look,�� said Emperor Xi. His group had also come.


    Emperor Xi, Thunder Punishing Skylord, and Emperor Xi��s disciple, Yang Wuqi, were here. In the past, when Ye Futian was chased by Ning Hua, it was Yang Wuqi who had rescued Ye Futian and blocked off Ning Hua.


    During the conflict back then, Emperor Xi��s group had grown closer to Ye Futian. They were also very curious about the starry cultivation court and had been cultivating here all this while. Even when the Ziwei Segmentum was sealed away, they remained here.


    If the Ziwei Segmentum with Ye Futian as its center was considered independent from the various other forces, then Emperor Xi��s group would also be considered part of the Ziwei Segmentum faction.


    In terms of relationship, Emperor Xi and Ye Futian were not very close. He had merely aided Ye Futian at that time and thought highly of him. Emperor Xi himself was a man who was solely focused on cultivation. He had no desire for authority and influence. Hence, he had always been cultivating on Turtle Deity Island before this.


    Afterward, when he was exposed for aiding Ye Futian, he offended the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain, Ning Yuan. He could not remain on Turtle Deity Island any longer. He was also attracted to the miraculous starry cultivation court, which possessed a relic of a Great Emperor. Due to these reasons, he gradually ended up growing close with Ye Futian��s faction.


    Although they were close, they never mentioned that they would join Ye Futian��s group. They were merely borrowing the space for cultivation. However, after cultivating for many years here, it was clearly inappropriate to dust off their sleeves and leave. Moreover, in this current grand era, they wanted to witness how far Ye Futian and the Ziwei Segmentum would go.


    The black turtle had also advised Emperor Xi not to attempt the second stage of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path when it took the blow for him. It would be the end for Emperor Xi. However, Emperor Xi understood that it was impossible for him not to attempt it. If he wanted to take that step, the starry cultivation court might be an opportunity for him. Here, he could comprehend the Will of the Great Emperor at all times.


    Ye Futian glanced at the people around him. The Millet Emperor had a cold and indifferent expression. Li Changsheng also had a stern look on his face. They had been waiting for this day for a very long time.


    They would never forget Zong Chan��s death.


    ��Let��s go.�� After the group gathered, the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird Mo Yunzi served as their mount. He spread his wings and took to the skies, leaving Ziwei Imperial Palace behind in an instant.


    ��Dou Zhao, where is Ning Hua now?�� asked Ye Futian.


    Dou Zhao replied, ��The 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture have all established pathways to the Original Realm. The Donghua Domain has also done the same, and the passageway is controlled by the Domain Chief��s Manor. They established a realm in the Original Realm and called it the Donghua Realm. After more than a decade, it has grown to a considerable scale. This Donghua Realm is directly linked to the Donghua Domain in the Divine Prefecture. For many years, cultivators have continuously descended from the Donghua Domain. Many of these cultivators, including those from the various major forces in the domain, have set up strongholds in the Donghua Realm.��


    Xiao Dingtian added, ��They call it the Donghua Realm, but it is not that impressive. After all, the population is still too small. It is more akin to a city. It is a relic discovered by the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor seized and occupied by them. They developed it afterward. However, the capabilities of the Donghua Domain are limited, and the relic is not very precious. Otherwise, they would not have been able to hold on to it up until now.��


    Someone added, ��That��s right. These past few years, the outside world has been in a frenzy over relics. The conflict has never ended, although war has yet to erupt between the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm. They have been slaughtering, pillaging, and fighting over territory.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head. From the looks of it, the outside world had changed dramatically while the Ziwei Segmentum had been sealed away. For top-level forces, it was not difficult for them to create a city out of thin air.


    As for the pillaging of the resources of the Original Realm, he naturally could imagine that happening.


    The Millet Emperor analyzed, ��The Donghua Realm is connected to the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain. If we attack Ning Hua, Ning Yuan will surely come to assist him. I can hold Ning Yuan back. However, you still have quite a lot of enemies in the Original Realm. Many of them want to kill you. You must settle the score with Ning Hua as soon as possible. If we get encircled, the situation will become very messy. Do you have any plans in mind?��


    In the past, with the help of the Wangshen Watchtower, the Millet Emperor was able to put up a fight with Ning Yuan and found a way to retreat. Even though the Millet Emperor was severely injured in the process, he was able to escape alive. After devoting himself to cultivating for many years, the Millet Emperor now had an even more profound cultivation. He could engage Ning Yuan in a battle for a short period of time with the aid of the Wangshen Watchtower. If Emperor Xi were willing to join the battle, it would be even better.


    Nevertheless, their group should not linger in the Original Realm for very long.


    ��For now, I will kill Ning Hua and spare Ning Yuan,�� Ye Futian said. Ning Yuan was the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor. If Ye Futian killed him, the Donghuang Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture might take his action as a threat to their authority. Their situation would become murky then.


    Currently, Ye Futian��s forces in the Ziwei Segmentum were still not strong enough. They needed to be patient.


    Hence, Ye Futian only planned to kill Ning Hua this time and let Ning Yuan have a taste of the agony of losing his own son. The Millet Emperor placed high importance on Zong Chan, and Zong Chan was supposed to be his successor. Yet, Zong Chan was killed by Ning Hua. Most likely, Ning Yuan had never experienced the pain suffered by the Millet Emperor before.


    Ye Futian would spare Ning Yuan?


    The Millet Emperor was stunned. He cast a surprised look at Ye Futian.


    His question was meant to find out how Ye Futian planned to escape unscathed from Ning Yuan. However, Ye Futian said that he would spare Ning Yuan for now.


    This caused the Millet Emperor to feel somewhat bizarre. Did Ye Futian think that their group already possessed the strength to kill Ning Yuan, the Domain Chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor?


    How much did Ye Futian improve exactly during his trip to Western Heaven recently?


    Which level was Ye Futian��s cultivation at now?


    To the side, Li Changsheng, Emperor Xi, Yang Wuqi, and the others also glanced at Ye Futian. His statement of sparing Ning Yuan caused their imaginations to run wild.


    ��


    The current Void Realm had even more realms than it had before. Many relics hidden in the void space were discovered and developed into cities. The Donghua Realm was one of them. This place was conquered by the Donghua Domain and became the base for their forces in the Original Realm.


    Just as Xiao Dingtian had said, it was more appropriate to consider the Donghua Realm as a city. The outskirts of the realm were still barren. The only city was the one in the center of the realm. Development took place in the areas around the city, slowly expanding outwards. This place might evolve into a true realm in a few years, with cultivators inhabiting every inch of land.


    Of course, the city which was located at the center was already very busy and lively now. After all, top forces from the Donghua Domain and other places gathered and established powerful troops here. Moreover, a lot of top cultivators from various worlds were also here since many fateful encounters were awaiting them in the current Original Realm.


    An ancient aura permeated this continent where a relic stood. However, the city was newly built. In the sky above, a Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird glided past, heading towards the center of the city. Its wings were outstretched, shielding the sun.


    Many cultivators down below raised their heads to look at the bird. They were slightly shocked.


    ��Such a powerful divine bird,�� someone exclaimed.


    ��It��s a ninth-tier Demon Emperor,�� someone pointed out. With a dash, many Renhuangs took to the sky. A ninth-tier Demon Emperor had come. Moreover, it was carrying quite a few cultivators with it.


    Something big was about to happen.


    ��Let��s go and take a look.�� One by one, the local cultivators dashed and tailed the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird from a distance away. They wanted to see what would happen.


    For the cultivators to be able to use a ninth-tier Demon Emperor as a mount, what level would they be at?


    They might have come to the Donghua Realm bearing ill-intentions.


    ��


    The Donghua Palace was the branch set up by the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor in the Original Realm.


    Vice Chief Ning Hua was cultivating in the palace. He had returned from his adventure not long ago. After discovering that the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum had come out to the outside world again, he taught them a lesson. He would have killed some of them if a few experienced cultivators from the other party had not joined forces to push him back.


    As for Ye Futian, he was now the common enemy of all forces of the Divine Prefecture. A while ago, there was news of him visiting the Great Bright Domain and then the World of Buddhism. Ning Hua��s father, Ning Yuan, heard some rumors from the Imperial Palace, claiming that Ye Futian was hunted by other cultivators when he was in the World of Buddhism. The divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had been destroyed.


    Apparently, Ye Futian went to explore Western Heaven after that. There were no detailed updates of his trip there. After all, Western Heaven had no connections with the Divine Prefecture. They could only learn bits and pieces of information regarding Ye Futian through the Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian had indeed gone to a very far place. Now that so many years had passed, he would most likely be back, right?


    Otherwise, it would be unwise for the cultivators to emerge from the Ziwei Segmentum and be active in the outside world again.


    However, since Ye Futian had lost the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and had become the common enemy of the Divine Prefecture, Ning Hua was curious to see how long it would take before Ye Futian could muster his courage to leave the Ziwei Segmentum himself.


    As for Ning Hua, since many other cultivators revealed their talents during the chaos of the Original Realm back then, he was no longer a bright cultivator people looked highly upon in the Original Realm now. Taking Ye Futian as an example, he was almost invincible among the Renhuangs. This caused Ning Hua to feel very stressed. Therefore, he had been training hard to improve himself.


    Currently, Ning Hua��s cultivation was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. He believed that in a few years, he would have the opportunity to undergo the divine tribulation.


    At that moment, a powerful pressure descended outside the Donghua Palace. This caused Ning Hua to frown. At the same time, in the Donghua Palace, cultivators took to the skies one after another. They looked up into the sky and saw a divine Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird floating in mid-air. Its gaze was as sharp as daggers.


    On the back of the divine Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, a very familiar group of figures stood.


    The leader was dressed in white robes and had white hair. Everyone in the Donghua Palace knew who he was.


    During the Donghua Banquet, Ye Futian had astounded everyone in the Donghua Domain.


    After so many years, Ye Futian actually dared to emerge from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Ye Futian gazed down below from the back of the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird and shouted, ��Ning Hua.��


    His voice reverberated throughout the space and shook the Donghua Palace. This caused the hearts of countless people to tremble. Ning Hua appeared.


    At the same time, several beams of spatial light shone in the Donghua Palace. It seemed as though teleportation grand matrices had been activated.


    When Ye Futian��s group saw this scene, they did not do anything to stop it. It could even be said that they did not mind it at all. It was as though they had not seen it. Their gazes were fixed on the figure emerging from the Donghua Palace.


    It was the previous top monstrous figure and the Vice Chief of the Donghua Domain, Ning Hua.


    ��Ye Futian!�� Ning Hua called out as he looked up at the group of figures in the sky. He never thought that Ye Futian would emerge from the Ziwei Segmentum and appear here.


    For a moment, the members of the Donghua Palace, as well as countless people in the surrounding area, all raised their heads and looked up at the gigantic divine bird in the sky. Was Ye Futian here to seek vengeance?


    Spatial light shone. In Donghua Palace, cultivators kept appearing. They were all cultivators from the supreme forces of the Donghua Domain.


    Cultivators from Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow, Taihua Mountain, Nanhua Clan, Desolate God Palace, and other major forces appeared. They all looked towards Ye Futian and were somewhat surprised. It had been many years since the Great Emperor revealed himself, and Ye Futian sealed himself away in the Ziwei Segmentum. However, for Ye Futian, this amount of time was still far from enough.


    For Ye Futian to emerge from the Ziwei Segmentum now was undoubtedly him walking into the lion��s den. Many people had a score to settle with him!

 Chapter 2509 - Ning Hua’s Big Defeat

    In those forces that sided with the Donghua Domain, many people were close to Ye Futian. For example, the Sword Goddess from the Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow was one of them. She even sided with Ye Futian��s camp and fought with him once.


    However, later, it was disclosed that Ye Futian had something to do with Emperor Ye Qing. After being informed of that, the imperial palaces were irritated; Donghuang the Great even took up the matter in person. In such circumstances, the forces in the Divine Prefecture did not have any other option at all, and Ye Futian completely understood that.


    The Divine Palace of Fluttering Snow fixed its relationship with the Domain Chief��s Manor after the passage was opened, so they were also in the Donghua Palace at the moment.


    The Sword Goddess and her disciples��Qin Qing, Jiang Yueli, and Chu Hanxi��were all there. They all set their pretty eyes on Ye Futian. Gazing at the white-haired young man that had returned, they wondered how he had been cultivating all the past years.


    Taihua Skylord and Goddess Taihua from Taihua Mountain were also there. Goddess Taihua threw Ye Futian a complicated look. She had the opportunity to inherit one of the Imperial Stars once, which Ye Futian had offered her. However, she missed it due to her guard against him. And that was because of the relationship between the Domain Chief��s Manor and Ning Hua.


    By then, Ye Futian had returned with such a powerful lineup. Was he going to settle things with Ning Hua?


    ��Ning Hua, you kept chasing me after the Donghua Banquet in the Donghua Domain. The Domain Chief��s Manor killed everyone from Wangshen Watchtower. So many years have passed, and you hurt the practitioners from the Ziwei Segmentum again. Today, you will pay with your life.�� Ye Futian looked down at Ning Hua, filled with pride.


    That scene contrasted sharply with the condescending manner in which Ning Hua had looked down at him when Ye Futian attended the Donghua Banquet. Big shots from various top forces in the Donghua Domain were all sitting in the air back then. As the vice chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain, Ning Hua did not even look at Ye Futian.


    However, people seemed to see Ye Futian��s despise for Ning Hua at the moment. There was contempt in his indifferent tone. He sounded like he had never regarded Ning Hua as a decent opponent.


    ��Do you intend to kill me?�� Ning Hua showed a sarcastic smile. Looking at Ye Futian, he said, ��The divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor is broken. How dare you leave the Ziwei Segmentum! The Great Emperor was merciful enough to let go of you, but now that you are already here, you won��t be able to go back again.��


    Several divine lights containing the formidable force of the Great Path of Space descended into the Donghua Palace as soon as he finished speaking.


    As those divine lights came, Practitioners showed up from thin air in different directions. All of them were powerful. Ye Futian already met some of them before. Although he did not know them well, many of those people were there when that incident happened.


    All of them seemed to be powerful cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Forces from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain were among them too.


    Zhou Muhuang, the vice chief, was one of them.


    ��I guess your scouts already got some information for you. The Domain Chief��s Manor in the Divine Prefecture opened the passage to the Void Realm. But do you know there are space teleportation grand matrixes set up between various Domain Chief��s Manors in the Divine Prefecture?�� Ning Hua asked him in a cold tone.


    The Domain Chief��s Manors of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture did not get along. Even if one of them were in trouble, the others probably would not go to its rescue. That being said, they would certainly send quite a few people in the event that Ye Futian showed up.


    It was the order of the Imperial Palaces to set up those space teleportation grand matrixes. They were established to deal with any world war that could break out in the future so that help could arrive anytime.


    To their surprise, its first use was to deal with Ye Futian.


    That area was immediately filled with powerful energy in which the Donghua Palace was shrouded. All of those powerful cultivators set their eyes on Ye Futian. Some of them had even gone through the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path once.


    After all, the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain was relatively weak among the 18 manors. In contrast, some of them were very powerful.


    ��Ye Futian,�� Zhou Muhuang shouted, ��you shouldn��t have left.��


    Ye Futian threw an indifferent glance at Zhou Muhuang. He responded with a cold look. ��I came here for Ning Hua. It��s none of anyone else��s business. So, you��d better not intervene.��


    Zhou Muhuang frowned at him, and many people put on a shocked look. That guy was still so arrogant. Didn��t he know what he had got himself into?


    How would he resist such a powerful lineup?


    Staring at Ye Futian, Ning Hua was somewhat surprised. He had thought Ye Futian would panic and despair. In fact, many people around Ye Futian had. After all, they had had no idea that the stations of different domains in the Divine Prefecture were connected. However, Ye Futian neither panicked nor despaired. He just remained pushy and arrogant.


    Why was that?


    Boom�� Ning Hua gave off a powerful aura. While he was suspended in the air, the force of the Grand Seal Great Path spread far and wide. It was horrifying. Even that pair of eyes had a powerful force. Gazing at Ye Futian, he said, ��You intend to kill me? Have you achieved any breakthrough all this time?��


    ��Chen Yi.�� Glancing at Ning Hua indifferently, Ye Futian said, ��Kill him.��


    ��Yes.�� Chen Yi nodded. He walked ahead, and Ning Hua was petrified.


    Ye Futian��s indifferent gaze made him realize that this man did not even bother to fight him.


    Ye Futian totally ignored him and sent Chen Yi to deal with him.


    Ye Futian was already very powerful back then. He showed tremendous combat power when he was at the Eighth Level. Ning Hua was not sure about defeating him indeed. However, he could not believe Ye Futian had sent Chen Yi to fight.


    When Ye Futian defeated Chen Yi in the Donghua Banquet, Ning Hua was already the number one genius in the Donghua Domain.


    But Ye Futian despised him to such an extent?


    Boom�� A surprising sealing force broke out. Numerous sealing runes showed up on his body. It was the God Seal Spell.


    Instantly, that Great Path of Space seemed to be closed. The moment Ning Hua, who had achieved the peak Renhuang Plane, gave that force off, the Great Path domain newly erected seemed to block all other forces.


    The Divine Light of the Seals flew out of Ning Hua��s eyes toward Chen Yi, aiming at the latter��s eyes while he was approaching the former. That Divine Light of the Seals could even seal spiritual souls.


    The God Seal Spell could seal everything in the world.


    Countless Seal Spells fell from the sky and turned into the divine lights of the Great Path that flew to Chen Yi, intending to seal all of his forces.


    However, at the same moment, two formidable lights also came from Chen Yi��s eyes. Those were the real light. The Method of Light crashed into the Divine Light of the Seals and blocked the invasion of the sealing force. In the meantime, his body was shining and turned into the Body of Light that looked like a divine body.


    His body floating in the air seemed to be the source of light. The lights from him were bright enough to blind people��s eyes and purify everything in the world. Meeting the Divine Lights of the Seals in the air, they surprisingly turned those runes into nothing.


    ��Is he so strong?�� Those powerful cultivators were looking at the two��s battlefield from far away. That divine light was dazzling. Many Renhuang standing in the distance felt their sights were blocked, although they were not the ones being attacked. They could hardly open their eyes in that light.


    The powerful cultivators from the Donghua Domain were even more nervous. Chen Yi was also from the Donghua Domain. It was from there that he left for the Donghua Banquet with Ye Futian.


    And by then, Chen Yi turned out to be so dreadful. He was on the peak Renhuang Plane. In the fight against Ning Hua, his Path of Light suppressed Ning Hua��s God Seal Spell.


    Even the Practitioners around Ye Futian were shocked by the fact that Chen Yi was already strong enough to defeat Ning Hua. Let alone others.


    As Chen Yi approached Ning Hua floating, numerous beams of light shot at the latter.


    Ning Hua turned pale. His body seemed to transform into the Sealing Body of the Great Path. When lights shone on him, they were immediately sealed. At the same time, a dreadful Divine Light of the Seals flew from him, carrying an aura above his level.


    A rune showed up behind him. It was the Seal Spell. And it was growing bigger and bigger. As if formed by numerous Seal Spells, it turned into a giant Seal.


    Ning Hua made some noises with his mouth. A paramount aura blossomed in him. Then he pointed ahead, and the giant Seal Spell showed up in front of the finger he used to point. As he moved ahead, wherever he passed, the light was sealed right away. He leaped to Chen Yi this way in an irresistible manner.


    He resorted to the will of the Emperor with the super-powerful ancient character. Something unusual must have happened to Ning Hua, too, Ye Futian thought to himself. No wonder Ning Hua was so confident.


    But unfortunately, his opponent was Chen Yi, who had the inheritance of the light.


    Seeing the giant Seal Spell that had blocked the sun moving through countless beams of lights toward him aggressively at a high speed, Chen Yi waved his hands. In an instant, a beam of light that was ten thousand-Zhang-long blossomed, and a divine and inviolable shadow showed up behind him.


    ��The Divine Method of Light, the Way of Light!��


    Ye Futian knew the fight was over as soon as he saw that. Back then, Blind Chen opened his eyes at all costs to exert the Divine Method of Light. However, Chen Yi had got the real inheritance of the light, and he was already able to use the divine method.


    As soon as this method was exerted, everything in the world would be purified by the light. That giant Seal Spell broke into pieces again and again. One after another rune was crushed. Little by little, the giant rune collapsed, falling in front of Chen Yi.


    Ning Hua shouted in shock. He was almost blinded, and he could not open his eyes at all. Blood flowed out of his eyes. The force of light got in contact with him and penetrated him.


    ��You are going too far!�� some powerful cultivator shouted after seeing that. Dreadful energy fell, intending to stop Chen Yi from killing. They had not expected him to be so strong that Ning Hua was completely overwhelmed by him.


    Boom�� When that boom came, dreadful energy exploded. The Millet Emperor was going farther and farther away from Wangshen Watchtower. Wangshen Watchtower fell and overwhelmed the entire area so that no one could intervene.


    Many powerful cultivators turned pale. On the battlefield, Chen Yi had gained complete control over Ning Hua��s life or death. Ning Hua was obviously in agony. It seemed he would die instantly as long as Chen Yi wanted him to.


    There were great pains in Ning Hua��s eyes. He had never imagined he would end up like this. He failed to defeat Chen Yi, not to mention Ye Futian. And Chen Yi even brought his life or death under control and totally overcame him.


    ��How dare you!��


    At this moment, a horrifying aura descended. Boundless space was shrouded in it. The vast world seemed to be sealed. A figure showed up. It was Ning Yuan��the chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain. He had just got here.


    He glanced at where Chen Yi was and gave off formidable energy as soon as he showed up.


    He could not believe Ye Futian had come to attack the Donghua Palace and that he even intended to kill Ning Hua under the nose of so many cultivators. How arrogant was he!


    Gazing at Ye Futian and his companions, he looked like he could not wait to kill them!

 Chapter 2510 - A Devastating Kill

    The dreadful force of the Grand Seal Great Path sealed the sky over there and shrouded the vast area where the Donghua Palace was located. Naturally, Ye Futian and others were also wreathed in the sealing force.


    Next to Ye Futian, Emperor Xi threw him a glance.


    Chen Yi��s strength was shocking indeed. He suppressed Ning Hua with ease and even could decide the latter��s life or death, but the current situation was not favorable for many people. Putting Ning Yuan��s power and bossiness aside, the predatory cultivators from various Domain Chief��s Manors around there were also paying close attention.


    If Ning Hua died, it was hard to say what would happen. It would not be easy for Chen Yi and others to leave there safely.


    ��Let go of him!�� looking at Chen Yi, Ning Yuan shouted in a cold voice. A vague aura of the Grand Seal Great Path moved toward Chen Yi as if it could seal him anytime.


    ��You��d better stay put,�� Chen Yi warned Ning Yuan. He certainly knew what was on Ning Yuan��s mind.


    Ning Yuan kept staring at him. Then, darting a glance at Ye Futian and others, he said in a cold tone, ��If you dare hurt him, none of you will leave here alive. And I will kill every person that comes from the Ziwei Segmentum in the future.��


    Ning Yuan sounded arrogant and confident. Actually, he had every reason to behave like that. He went through his tribulations years ago. Even powerhouses like Emperor Xi could not deal with him with ease. The Millet Emperor fought Ning Yuan with his back to Wangshen Watchtower once, and he ended up badly injured and had to flee.


    However, Ning Yuan did not calculate Ye Futian��s combat power. Neither did he know how good Ye Futian was at the moment.


    But no matter how good he was, how strong could this man who used to be a level-eight Renhuang be?


    Even if he had achieved level nine, what could he do when confronting Ning Yuan?


    Chen Yi looked at where Ye Futian was. He was a little hesitant and seemed to be waiting for the latter��s order.


    But Ye Futian looked pretty calm. He was gazing at Ning Yuan indifferently.


    He could have come here alone this day, and it would be a piece of cake for him to kill Ning Hua.


    However, Ning Hua was the one who killed Zong Chan. The Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng must witness his death with their own eyes.


    And Ning Yuan was behind all that. Ye Futian was sure he had never provoked Ning Yuan. He even attended the Donghua Banquet, trying to find favor in Ning Yuan��s eyes and join the Domain Chief��s Manor, but Ning Yuan pushed him into hell and drove him onto a completely different path.


    He wanted Ning Yuan to feel the despair that he and the Millet Emperor had felt.


    ��Blood will bring blood!�� looking at Ning Yuan, Ye Futian said. His voice made everything seem quieter.


    Blood will bring blood!


    Ye Futian was still going to kill Ning Hua.


    Everyone around Ye Futian realized how determined he was. Emperor Xi took a step forward to stand in front of Ye Futian with the Millet Emperor. They were ready to confront Ning Yuan.


    If Ye Futian decided to kill Ning Hua, Emperor Xi would certainly try his best to cooperate. He had gained a lot from the cultivation at the starry cultivation court these years. It was time for him to take sides.


    Ning Yuan��s look turned extremely cold when he had seen that. He threw Emperor Xi a glance, surprised the latter had teamed up with Ye Futian and got involved in this disturbance.


    ��Do you have the nerve to kill me?�� Ning Hua was not his own man at the moment, but he still did not look like he would lower his head. He darted Ye Futian a cold look.


    Ye Futian was going to kill him outside the Donghua Palace in the presence of various Domain Chief��s Manors of the Divine Prefecture?


    How would Ye Futian get out of there after killing him?


    Ye Futian looked at Ning Hua with pity. He still did not think Ye Futian had the nerve to kill him?


    ��Bring him over,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Okay.�� Chen Yi nodded. Then he took Ning Hua to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian and Ning Hua gazed at one another. He saw Ning Hua��s reluctance to yield in the latter��s eyes. ��If I die, all of you here will die with me together.��


    ��The number one Proud Son of Heaven of the Donghua Domain?�� Glancing at Ning Hua with despise, Ye Futian said, ��Pathetic.��


    He lifted a finger after speaking. A Sword Will was coiling around the tip of his finger, giving off dreadful destructive energy.


    ��How dare you!�� Seeing that, Ning Hua turned pale.


    ��Ye Futian!�� Ning Yuan shouted. The Grand Seal Great Path became even more powerful. Divine lights moved to Ye Futian, and Emperor Xi and the Millet Emperor acted at the same time to keep Ning Yuan away from Ye Futian.


    ��Blood will bring blood.�� Ye Futian moved his finger toward Ning Hua��s brow chakra and touched him without hesitation. In an instant, the Sword Will on his finger pierced through Ning Hua��s brow chakra, and a destructive force destroyed his spiritual soul.


    Ning Hua opened his eyes wide, staring ahead. There was shock and despair in his eyes.


    He could not believe Ye Futian had made a fatal move to kill him there for real.


    How dared he?


    How dared Ye Futian kill him?


    He was the Proud Son of Heaven, the vice chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain. His talent was paramount. He had the Sealing Body of the Great Path. As the number one genius in the Donghua Domain, he would be even stronger than his father and succeed to the domain chief��s position in the Donghua Domain for sure. Actually, he was even more ambitious than that. He wanted to prove his path.


    However, by then, all that ended outside the Donghua Palace, where Ye Futian came to settle accounts with him and killed him. How ironic��


    It was super quiet around. Many Practitioners�� hearts were in their mouths. That was ruthless!


    Ye Futian really did it. He killed the son of Ning Yuan��the chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain��outside the Donghua Palace.


    However, how would he leave after that?


    ��He is crazy.�� The Sword Goddess of the Ice Palace and the forces from the Donghua Domain were all shocked. They could hardly believe Ning Hua had died.


    Ning Hua, who had reached the Ninth-Level, had been at the peak in the Donghua Domain. Even the Sword Goddess was one hundred percent sure that she could defeat him. However, in this fight, Ning Hua suffered a big loss and then died at the hands of Ye Futian. That just did not seem to be real. None of them could believe it.


    ��Ning Hua!��


    Bang! A dreadful aura broke out. Ning Yuan��s eyes became bloodshot and were filled with incomparably strong killing intent. Ye Futian killed Ning Hua under his nose. That was his favorite son, his future successor, who would surpass him one day for sure. He saw the future of the Donghua Domain in Ning Hua, and that would be a brand new era.


    But everything ended there because of Ye Futian.


    The Practitioner Ning Yuan used to contempt and be able to kill with a flick of his fingers or a wave of his hand killed his son Ning Hua.


    Instantly, the force of the Great Path exploded. It was horrifying. An awful sealing storm started in the sky, in the boundless space, approaching this area.


    Boom! A terrifying noise emerged. The Millet Emperor went all out, too. He looked as if he and Wangshen Watchtower had turned into one. A divine stela showed up in the air and covered the whole sky, blocking Ye Futian and others so that Ning Yuan would not find any opportunity to hurt them.


    Emperor Xi acted, too. Xuanwu the Black Turtle appeared in the air and was trying to suppress Ning Yuan so that he would not go ballistic and hurt people.


    ��I, Ning Yuan, will pay a handsome reward to whoever killed the Practitioners from the Ziwei Segmentum and Ye Futian.�� A voice that sounded as cold as ice came through the air. Ning Yuan, intercepted by two strong men at the moment, saw Ye Futian��s mount, the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, retreating. He certainly did not want to see Ye Futian flee.


    Ning Hua was killed here this very day. How could he let Ye Futian and the Practitioners from the Ziwei Segmentum leave here alive?


    As soon as he finished speaking, a dreadful might spread across that area with the Donghua Palace being the center and left the whole area wreathed in a depressive air. The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird felt heavy because many powerful cultivators had exerted the might of the Great Path to suppress them.


    The Practitioners from various domains of the Divine Prefecture always wanted to keep Ye Futian there. Those Domain Chief��s Manors had been informed of the destruction of the divine body. However, Ye Futian still had a lot of secrets, including many inheritances of the Great Emperor. And he certainly had gained a lot from the trip to the World of Buddhism in the Western Heaven, too.


    More than that, if they killed Ye Futian, they could take all the credit in front of Princess Donghuang, couldn��t they?


    Who was Donghuang the Great? He would not bother to handle a young man, but Ye Futian was Emperor Ye Qing��s successor. The Imperial Palace absolutely would not mind them killing him.


    Many people were hostile to Ye Futian, although their reasons might vary. And such a good opportunity came up. Ye Futian left the Ziwei Segmentum. How could they let him leave here without doing anything to stop him?


    Bang! An overwhelming aura descended. Ye Futian and others sensed a paramount might. It was the aura of a strong man on the Tribulation Plane. They saw a middle-aged man take a step toward them somewhere.


    ��Ye Futian, you are going too far. Don��t you think about leaving,�� said a voice. It was exactly from that middle-aged man. He was from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Tianyan Domain. As a top-level cultivator who had gone through the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, his strength was formidable.


    Ye Futian had been at deep enmity with the Tianyan City since the battle back then. The Tianyan City was in a paramount position in the Tianyan Domain. Even the Domain Chief��s Manor had to give it face. It was called the number one weapon-making force in the Divine Prefecture.


    Back then, the Lord of the Tianyan City asked Ye Futian to lend him the divine body in person. Still, Ye Futian refused, so the Lord of the Tianyan City destroyed the Heavenly Mandate Academy singlehandedly.


    Therefore, taking Ye Futian down would make a good impression on Tianyan City as well.


    ��Ye Futian, we were close to each other before, but you have gone too far this time,�� said Zhou Muhuang. He walked ahead, but Ye Futian was smiling coldly to himself. He and Zhou Muhuang used to be close? Seriously?


    Zhou Muhuang wanted to control Ye Futian to control the divine body, but Ye Futian refused to join the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain, and Zhou Muhuang took offense.


    He was definitely kicking Ye Futian when he was down at the moment.


    Ye Futian threw Zhou Muhuang a cold and disdainful look, which intimidated Zhou Muhuang somehow.


    Then Ye Futian just disappeared into thin air.


    Zhou Muhuang had a strong sense of crisis. He wanted to retreat, but he saw a palm thwacking toward him. The Great Path started to flow on his body, and he lifted a hand to parry.


    Bang�� He reacted very fast, only not fast enough. The terrifying palm broke the defense of his Great Path right away and showed up right in front of his head, making his black hair dance like crazy. Staring at the white-haired man in front of him, he felt as if his heart was in his mouth.


    At this moment, Ye Futian��s body was shining and had a divine light flowing on it, giving off a central and overwhelming air.


    In contrast, Zhou Muhuang seemed so fragile. If this palm moved down, his head would explode right away, and he would be killed there just like Ning Hua.


    ��It��s none of your business. You don��t get to intervene!�� Ye Futian��s voice was cold and intimidating, leaving the place in a brief silence.

 Chapter 2511 - Chief Xihai

    ��Powerful!��


    Numerous people gazed at Ye Futian and saw divine lights flowing in his body. They all knew Ye Futian had built the divine body with the flesh of Shenjia the Great Emperor and hence got an extraordinary constitution. By then, the aura of the great way flowing in him was impeccable. It was the level-nine aura.


    ��What a perfect aura of the great way!�� exclaimed the Sword Goddess. She was also a Level-Nine Renhuang and had maintained this level for years. She had seen many powerful men on the level-nine Renhuang Plane. However, she had never seen anyone like Ye Futian, whose aura of the great way was so perfect that it was as if it was made by God.


    The way and the body turned into one. The divine body was unparallel, and his body was exactly the way.


    Zhou Muhuang, the vice chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Shangqing Domain, became famous even earlier than Ning Hua. He achieved the level-nine Renhuang Plane many years ago. Despite that, he was overcome by a single movement while confronting Ye Futian. It was not hard to imagine how huge the gap between them was. They were on two completely different levels.


    Zhou Muhuang��s face was livid with rage. He felt humiliated.


    He had intended to stop Ye Futian and others from leaving, but instead of that, he was suppressed by a single movement. It��s none of your business. You don��t get to intervene! How humiliating!


    Ye Futian was staring at him with that pair of cold eyes right in front of him. Looking into those eyes, Zhou Muhuang was somehow deeply intimidated. He saw indifference and contempt in them as if Ye Futian had never regarded him as a serious enemy.


    Ye Futian was just a talented Renhuang competing for the divine body in the Shangqing Domain. And their meeting back then was totally different from this one. Actually, it was him that looked down on Ye Futian instead.


    ��Whoever intervenes will be my enemy, and I won��t show any mercy,�� said Ye Futian in a cold and disdainful tone. Then he leaped and disappeared into thin air. Without causing any fluctuation in the aura, he moved across the air without being seen.


    An exclaim immediately came. One after another, people started to step back. That was where the powerful cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Tianyan Domain were. Among them, a powerhouse on the Tribulation Plane was standing in the front, intending to attack Ye Futian and others. He paused for a few seconds after seeing Zhou Muhuang suppressed by Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian showed up among the powerhouses of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Tianyan Domain in an instant. A dreadful aura spread from him and shrouded all of the Practitioners there. They all felt so pressured that they could hardly breathe.


    That powerhouse on the Tribulation Plane narrowed his eyes. He turned around to look at the white-haired man among his younger colleagues, surprised at the man��s imperceptible and unpredictable movement. He showed up in another place without causing any fluctuation in the Great Path of Space or being detected.


    That power��


    ��Senior, do you want to try me?�� Ye Futian said to the powerhouse on the Tribulation Plane after turning. He sounded threatening. It was as if as long as that man had the nerve to intervene, he would kill those Practitioners from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Tianyan Domain anytime.


    The powerful men from other Domain Chief��s Manors, who had been ready to act, stopped moving at the sight of that. They were all staring at Ye Futian.


    What Great Path of Space was the one Ye Futian had shown?


    He was even strong enough to drive Zhou Muhuang into a corner with one single strike. With that combat power, he could kill any Practitioner below the Tribulation Plane there. Therefore, whoever wanted to confront him would have to give it a good thought.


    That made the powerhouses from those Domain Chief��s Manors hesitate. At this moment, two apex cultivators were handling Ning Yuan together on the battlefield, but they still could not completely suppress Ning Yuan, who was in a rage.


    The sky was covered with the formidable sealing force. Many people looked up and decided to take a wait-and-see attitude, thinking maybe Ning Yuan could take Ye Futian and others down by himself.


    ��Practitioners from the Donghua Domain, listen to my orders. Kill them. Don��t show any mercy!�� Ning Yuan said in a cold voice. The Domain Chief��s Manor had many powerful cultivators, many of whom were quite old, but they were all somewhat hesitant at the moment.


    They did not think any of them was stronger than Ning Hua, but even Ning Hua was killed by Chen Yi so effortlessly, so how could they fight those people?


    Besides, there was Ye Futian, whose strength was unfathomable. He even defeated Zhou Muhuang with one single strike and held the latter��s life in his hands.


    Not to mention the other top forces from the Donghua Domain. They did not report to Ning Yuan directly. Even if they held a grudge against Ye Futian, they would rather keep their noses clean.


    ��Ning Yuan, you don��t know what situation you are in at all,�� said Ye Futian sarcastically. He showed up in front of the powerhouses of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain as soon as he finished speaking. A blazing True Fire of the Sun flew out of him and turned into a dreadful Solar Divine Sword that flowed down.


    The Practitioners of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain instantly felt suffocated. The force of the Great Path that spread from Ye Futian intimidated them deeply. They realized that man was powerful enough to kill them.


    ��I attended the Donghua Banquet to join the Domain Chief��s Manor and cultivate there, but everyone knows how Ning Yuan treated me. Ning Hua killed my elder brother Zong Chan. Now that I killed Ning Hua, this blood debt has been paid, and I will not hold any other people from the Donghua Domain to account. However, if anyone dares hurt the Practitioners from the Ziwei Segmentum, I will absolutely kill him. I won��t care even if you are hiding in the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain,�� said Ye Futian coldly.


    His speech sent a shiver down the spines of the Practitioners from the Donghua Domain. They suddenly realized without the help from other forces of the Divine Prefecture, the Donghua Domain alone had been inferior to the Ziwei Segmentum since a long time ago.


    Besides the two strong cultivators fighting at the moment, the Ziwei Segmentum also had Renhuang Chen, the vice headmaster of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. Renhuang Chen, always holding the Scepter of the Stars in hand, had killed powerful cultivators as strong as himself before. He was definitely not weaker than Ning Yuan.


    That meant in terms of the top strength, the forces from the Ziwei Segmentum definitely outshone the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain. And there was even less suspense in terms of the strength of Renhuang. After all, who could defeat Ye Futian and Chen Yi, who were right there?


    Moreover, the Ziwei Segmentum had a few more level-nine Renhuang on the Perfect Great Path. The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird that Ye Futian was mounting was also a level-nine Demon Emperor.


    So, had Ning Hua really died for nothing?


    The vice chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Donghua Domain was killed, but no one could do anything about it.


    Right at this moment, an astonishing aura spread over from far away. Even the clouds were disturbed. That aura intimidated many people.


    A Tribulation-level cultivator, many people thought. And it was probably a super powerful cultivator that had gone through the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    The Donghua Palace, a stronghold the Donghua Domain established here, was connected to the strongholds of other Domain Chief��s Manors of the eighteen domains. Could that be the chief of one of those Domain Chief��s Manors?


    A stern face showed up in the sky, giving off an unparallel overbearing air. The might from him shrouded the earth down there. Even the force of the Grand Seal Great Path of Ning Yuan was suppressed.


    ��Chief!��


    Many people saluted the face in the air, bowing to it.


    The newly-arrived powerhouse was apparently a chief.


    It was Chief Xihai, the chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the West Sea Domain, hailed as one of the Two Kings of West Sea.


    Not all chiefs of Domain Chief��s Manors were the same. There could be a huge gap between them. For example, the Donghua Domain and the Shangqing Domain were just average domains. The Great Bright Domain, where Ye Futian had been, was an incomplete domain with only one city left.


    The most powerful Domain Chief��s Manors were those with a long history, for example, those with Ancient Emperors and, in particular, places where the Ancient God Clan was still living.


    Donghuang the Great united the world. To check and balance various forces, he sent powerful enough people to restrict the Ancient God Clan, which was certainly a natural move.


    The West Imperial Palace used to be in its prime in the West Sea. Its leader even claimed the throne. The West Emperor in ancient times could be compared to the Great Emperor. The West Imperial Palace still had the West Emperor��s inheritances these days. Xi Chiyao from the West Imperial Palace fought Ye Futian in that disturbance many years ago. She even thought about going to the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate, but everything changed when Ye Futian��s identity as the descendant of Emperor Ye Qing had been disclosed, and Donghuang the Great had shown up.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor of the West Sea Domain was located in the West Imperial Palace region, so it had to be tough. The West Imperial Palace had been domineering the West Sea for many years, but the Domain Chief��s Manor of the West Sea Domain had been rising quickly in the past few years.


    Chief Xihai was a paramount personage. He was overbearing and pushy, and very powerful, too. He built the Domain Chief��s Manor of the West Sea Domain into an influential force on his own. By then, it had almost become a rival to the West Imperial Palace.


    Chief Xihai was well-known in the Divine Prefecture. He was a big name. And all that could be attributed to his great strength.


    At this moment, Chief Xihai from the Domain Chief��s Manor of the West Sea Domain showed up in the Donghua Palace.


    He did not come in person, looking up at the stern face in the air, many people thought. It was Chief Xihai��s incarnation, one of his fantastic skills. However, the incarnation was also dreadfully powerful. Even though Chief Xihai was not here in person, it was enough to intimidate everyone there.

 Chapter 2512 - The Price You Will Pay

    Above the firmament, Chief Xihai stared at Ye Futian below, his face authoritative and indifferent.


    Ye Futian frowned. Before he got here, he did not expect that all 18 Domain Chief��s Manors in the Void Realm were connected. Even so, he thought he could handle it. But now, even Chief-level characters had arrived.


    ��Chief Xihai, Ye Futian was acting recklessly and completely out of control. He killed my son Ning Hua at the Donghua Palace. I now ask Chief Xihai to apprehend him.�� Ning Yuan couldn��t care less about his dignity at this moment. In title, he was the same as Chief Xihai. Both of them were Chiefs under the command of the Great Emperor, and were existences of equal level. However, he understood that that the two of them, in fact, were not at the same level. After all, strength determined everything.


    There were differences between Chiefs.


    Nonetheless, they held the same status on paper and shouldn��t need to ask the other for help. But now, Ning Yuan didn��t care so much about anything and had asked Chief Xihai to help take down Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian killed his son Ning Hua, and he was wholly determined to avenge his son.


    In any case, Ye Futian could not be allowed to leave today as if nothing had happened. As long as he was in the hands of the cultivators from any of the Domain Chief��s Manors in the Divine Prefecture, no matter who it was, Ye Futian could forget about escaping.


    Once upon a time, Donghuang the Great decided not to intervene because he didn��t wish to bully some youngster. But as an exchange, the teacher of Four Corner Village, likewise, could no longer interfere.


    If Ye Futian returned to the Ziwei Segmentum, it would be difficult to touch him again.


    A powerful pressure of might came down as Chief Xihai stared at Ye Futian indifferently and said, ��Ye Futian, Donghuang the Great had once given you a way out, but instead of being grateful, you dared to go to war with the principalities in the Divine Prefecture and kill indiscriminately. You don��t know good from bad.��


    His voice was authoritative and domineering, as a terrifying coercion dropped down and covered Ye Futian and the others. As he was speaking, he raised his hand and grabbed towards the space below without hesitation.


    This sight caused the hearts of the surrounding cultivators to tremble. Chief Xihai had made his move right away.


    Obviously, he wanted to take Ye Futian down.


    ��Watch out.�� Ye Futian came next to everyone in an instant to sweep them away, turning into a beam of light. But the speed of Chief Xihai��s attack was equally astonishing. Ye Futian barely avoided the giant palm as it was slamming down on them.


    Mo Yunzi, the Golden-winged Roc, was caught by that gigantic hand.


    Mo Yunzi struggled frantically but couldn��t get out of it. When he looked at Ye Futian, he made a long and sustained howl.


    Above the void, Chief Xihai raised Mo Yunzi��s body, and he glanced indifferently at Ye Futian. A strange look flashed through his eyes. Ye Futian was actually able to take these people and had evaded capture��


    ��Elder and I have never had any grievances or quarrels. I asked the elder to be merciful.�� Ye Futian said to the face that appeared in the void. Although the Golden-winged Roc as morphed by Mo Yunzi was humongous in size, he could not get himself out of that giant palm, firmly caught within its grasp.


    His eyes fixed on Ye Futian, as he appeared to be in incredible pain, and he was asking for help with his eyes. Clearly, he was in extreme discomfort at the moment.


    Bang! With a squeeze of Chief Xihai��s hand, that gigantic hand tightened its grasp, and a crunching sound was heard. Mo Yunzi uttered a mournful scream as the body of a divine bird, as if made from pure gold, was crushed. It was so fragile in that gigantic hand; it seemed as if it could not bear its attack. Bright red blood stained that gigantic hand as blood continued to drip from the void.


    This was a terribly tragic scene.


    A divine bird was crushed to death in this manner. It was too brutal.


    He seemed unwilling to die like this. His massive eyes were still open, looking ahead. There was pain and reluctance in his eyes.


    He was the Golden-winged Roc, who had entered the Buddhist holy land of Spirit Mountain to cultivate. He had been enlightened by great Buddhas and had studied many scriptures. In the future, he would have become a great demonic beast who could attain the Way. But, he perished here, in such a cruel manner, tortured and killed.


    His eyes were still staring at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stared back at him as well. He had just spoken, and Chief Xihai immediately crushed Mo Yunzi to death like stepping on an ant without any thought.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt the blood in his body boiling as his heart twitched violently. His eyes couldn��t leave Mo Yunzi, who had died right in front of him.


    Although he and Mo Yunzi didn��t meet each other under the best circumstances, they had been together for more than ten years. Over the years, Mo Yunzi had worked hard with no complaints, and he was very serious about his study while at Spirit Mountain. He had made great progress in his cultivation.


    Therefore, Ye Futian had always regarded this demonic beast as his own partner. But, today, he was tortured and killed right in front of him in such a cruel manner by Chief Xihai.


    These lofty characters were cruel and ruthless. In the pursuit of their own goals, they had no concerns for other living things.


    He and Chief Xihai had no previous entanglements. But the other acted without mercy and crushed his demonic beast to death without another word. If someone else besides Mo Yunzi were captured just then, their fate would be the same��crushed to death just like some insects.


    Above the firmament, Chief Xihai would have no idea of Ye Futian��s feelings, nor did he care. Although he was the Chief in the West Sea Domain, the Domain Chief��s Manor had always been suppressed by the West Imperial Palace. Everyone knew that the West Imperial Palace was the king of the West Sea Domain��its premier principality.


    Compared with the West Imperial Palace, all he lacked was the inheritance at the Imperial level. Ye Futian could make up for that, as there were many inheritances from the Great Emperors on him.


    Taking down Ye Futian had thousands of benefits without any disadvantages. The opportunity had presented itself today. How could he not seize it?


    With a thought, the terrifying coercion continued to press down, pouncing on Ye Futian and the others again. However, under that pressure, Ye Futian still managed to disappear. He did not take anyone else with him this time but disappeared alone and appeared among the crowds in the West Sea Domain.


    Before the arrival of Chief Xihai, many of the cultivators from the West Sea Domain were already here.


    When Ye Futian appeared, an overbearing aura of the Great Path enveloped this whole area. The power of yin froze this space in a second, and all the cultivators shuddered as their bodies were covered with a layer of frost.


    At the same time, Chief Xihai had controlled Li Changsheng and the others.


    His brows furrowed slightly as he swept a glance at Ye Futian. Once again, he had broken through his suppression.


    ��Let them go, and I will stay. After they get back, I will let these people go,�� Ye Futian said as he looked at Chief Xihai.


    ��Very well.�� Chief Xihai was straightforward enough and readily released these people. On the other side, the battle between Ning Yuan and Emperor Xi had stopped as well and did not continue.


    Ning Yuan��s eyes drifted towards Ye Futian, full of murderous intent.


    ��Emperor Xi, you and the others return to Ziwei Segmentum first,�� Ye Futian looked at Emperor Xi and said.


    Emperor Xi frowned as everyone else was also looking at Ye Futian.


    Chief Xihai came in person, and this was a supreme cultivator who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. If Ye Futian stayed, how could he escape such an existence?


    ��You just take care of yourselves and leave. I have my own way of leaving here. You will only hinder me by being here,�� Ye Futian said to Emperor Xi and the others via voice transmission. Only then did Emperor Xi nod. He said to the others, ��Let��s go.��


    As soon as he spoke, he took everyone away with incredible speed.


    Neither Chief Xihai nor Ning Yuan chased after them. Chief Xihai��s goal was to get Ye Futian, while Ning Yuan wanted Ye Futian dead.


    As long as Ye Futian was still around, no one else was important.


    The terrifying coercion enveloped this area, and these two great cultivators stared at Ye Futian with no intention of letting him ever leave.


    Cultivators from all the Domain Chief��s Manors stood around, watching it quietly. This time, how could Ye Futian escape?


    Donghua Domain��s Sword Goddess and several of her disciples were a little worried. This time, Ye Futian was alone, with no one else to help him.


    Even if they wanted to help him, they couldn��t take any action.


    In the face of such absolute strength, there was no point. Their help would only spell their own deaths.


    ��Renhuang Ye, is there anything we can do to help you?�� Qin Qing transmitted her message to Ye Futian. Although she could not participate in this kind of battle, if Ye Futian had other needs for which she could render assistance, perhaps she could be of some help.


    Ye Futian felt a little warmth inside. He didn��t expect that Qin Qing would be willing to be helpful at a time like this. Such kindness was, in itself, very rare.


    ��Thank you so much, Goddess Qin. But the Goddess need not worry about me,�� Ye Futian replied. Qin Qing was a little doubtful when she heard Ye Futian��s reply. Could Ye Futian have another way to escape this catastrophe?


    ��Very well,�� She replied without saying anything more.


    Everyone was waiting quietly. They knew that Ye Futian was waiting for his people to retreat safely, unharmed, and return to Ziwei Segmentum.


    However, did Ye Futian ever consider that if something happened to him, even if the others were to return to Ziwei Segmentum safely, what could they do there?


    Once Ye Futian was no more, the Ziwei Segmentum would most certainly be conquered and divided instantly, then plundered by mighty forces from all sides.


    Even Ning Yuan knew that. He didn��t care about anyone else for now. As long as he could take down Ye Futian, then all the cultivators who followed Ye Futian in the Ziwei Segmentum would die tragically; he would make sure he was there to kill them all himself.


    The death of his son, Ning Hua, must be atoned for with the deaths of all the cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum.


    Time passed by slowly, and Ye Futian was still waiting��waiting for the others to get back. He would not allow any more unforeseen incidents.


    ��Is it time?�� In the void, Chief Xihai lowered his head to look down at Ye Futian below.


    Ye Futian looked up at the other, did not respond to his question, but asked, ��Have you ever thought about the price for your cruelty just now?��


    ��Price?�� Chief Xihai looked down at the white-haired man below.


    Ye Futian was talking to him about the price of things?


    ��I have no idea what you are talking about.�� Chief Xihai had a majestic, authoritative and domineering air. He dismissed Ye Futian��s question outright. At this moment, shouldn��t he be thinking about the fate that was inevitably waiting for him?


    ��When I attended the Donghua banquet, Ning Yuan had the same attitude as you do now, high and lofty as if there was no one but him. But today, Ning Hua��s death was the price he had to pay for his arrogance.�� Ye Futian spoke in a calm voice as if he was speaking of something very trivial.


    ��Today, as the Domain Chief of the West Sea Domain, you came here with aggression and killed my demonic beast without cause. For this, you will pay.��


    He was no longer the person that he was decades ago.


    He had waited for decades to have his revenge on Ning Yuan, but he would not wait so long for the debt incurred today.


    ��Is that so?�� Chief Xihai looked down at Ye Futian with palpable contempt in his voice.


    Ye Futian was threatening to make him pay?


    The divine light of the Great Path surrounded Ye Futian. His entire body was brilliant; it was as if he had turned into a sword.


    In the next moment, a ray of divine light broke through the air, fast to the limit.


    ��Where are you going!�� Ning Yuan shouted, and the force of Seal directly blocked this corner of the sky. Above the firmament, infinite runes of seals appeared, unspeakably horrific. There was no way Ye Futian could escape.


    Boom! With a loud boom, the runes of Seal were shattered immediately as the light pierced through the seal. It also broke through Chief Xihai��s coercion as it went higher above the sky.


    This scene stunned all the cultivators, including Ning Yuan himself.


    The sealed space was forcibly broken by Ye Futian?


    When Ye Futian rushed out of this sealed space, he vanished from everyone��s sight. Many cultivators released their divine consciousnesses, but they could no longer track or lock onto Ye Futian. It was as if in just a moment, he was gone without a trace.


    ��Chief Xihai, you will repent for what you have done today,�� said a voice from the void, which made everyone��s hearts tremble.


    Ye Futian seemed to be stronger than they had imagined, a lot stronger.


    Boom�� A horrific aura moved towards the distance, and even Chief Xihai hesitated for a moment before pursuing after him. Did Ye Futian escape this area just like that?


    Ning Yuan also flickered and disappeared from this space. All three powerful cultivators vanished in a blink of an eye.


    Qin Qing looked at her master, the Sword Goddess, and her beautiful eyes showed immense shock. She had a feeling that Ye Futian would indeed make Chief Xihai pay for what he had done!

 Chapter 2513 - Washed in Blood

    In Donghua Palace, cultivators from all sides were waiting quietly. After a long while, Chief Xihai and Ning Yuan both returned, but they found nothing.


    They had lost track of him. These two top cultivators��Chief-level characters��did not manage to catch up with him and had been dumped by Ye Futian.


    Just by watching the gloomy expressions on the two men, these cultivators already knew the outcome��Ye Futian was gone like the wind.


    After Ye Futian barged his way into Donghua Palace and killed Ning Hua, he left right in front of these two great chiefs.


    ��It is very possible that it is Buddha��s Celerity, one of the six superpowers of Buddhism,�� Chief Xihai said with a sullen face. His tone was extremely cold.


    All the major Domain Chief��s Manors knew that Ye Futian had gone to the Western Heaven, but things that happened there were not so easy to inquire, especially things that happened at Spirit Mountain, which was only known to the Buddhas there. Not many knew about the death of Saint Zhenchan either; only those at Spirit Mountain knew something about it. However, no one knew the exact manner of his death.


    Those cultivators who were as far away as the Divine Prefecture would definitely have no way of knowing.


    ��Chief Xihai, what should we do?�� Ning Yuan got lost even faster. Ye Futian had just left when he had already lost track of him. He couldn��t catch up to Ye Futian at all, and his divine consciousness could not lock onto anything. He was so much slower than Ye Futian.


    This made Ning Yuan felt really helpless. He found that his strength alone might not be enough to kill Ye Futian.


    Therefore, he could only pin his hopes on Chief Xihai.


    ��You are asking me?�� Chief Xihai looked at Ning Yuan. He was in a very foul mood, so he didn��t bother giving Ning Yuan the courtesy and retorted directly. Ning Yuan was stunned and didn��t look particularly pleased. However, he didn��t dare to refute the man either.


    ��Return to West Sea Palace,�� Chief Xihai said, taking his people from the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor with him to leave. He had a terrible feeling about all of this.


    If Ye Futian had really cultivated Buddha��s Celerity, it would complicate the matter greatly. He did not expect that Ye Futian had the ability to escape under his nose.


    While Chief Xihai led his people to leave through the teleportation grand matrix, Ning Yuan looked at everyone and said, ��After you get back, you must inform the chiefs of all the domains that Ye Futian is now a very dangerous man and he will endanger all the domains of the Divine Prefecture.��


    When everyone heard what Ning Yuan had to say, they were not impressed. It was no more Ning Yuan��s own selfish desire to leverage the power of each Domain Chief��s Manor to deal with Ye Futian.


    However, some of these Domain Chief��s Manors had no quarrels with Ye Futian. Unless they coveted the inheritances in Ye Futian��s possession or the Ziwei Segmentum, they would not proactively antagonize him.


    Ning Yuan left with a gloomy face. The news here would soon spread, and all the major forces would know. There would also be many people who would be on the lookout for Ye Futian.


    Wait until Ye Futian was taken down. He swore he would wash Ziwei Segmentum in blood to avenge Ning Hua.


    Qin Qing and the others looked at one another, and they were all a little surprised. Ye Futian actually managed to leave unscathed. It seemed that he would have another adventure waiting for him.


    ��Buddha��s Celerity,�� the Sword Goddess secretly marveled. Did he go to Spirit Mountain?!


    ��


    A few days later, at the West Sea Realm. This was the interface opened up by the West Sea Domain in the Original Realm; it was a little more robust than the Donghua Realm.


    The cultivators in the West Sea Realm were dispatched from the West Sea Domain, including several top principalities. Even the West Imperial Palace, which was part of the Ancient God Clan, was also stationed here at the West Sea Realm. No matter how powerful they were independently, they belonged to the West Sea Domain. Officially, they were in sync with the Domain Chief��s Manor from the West Sea Domain.


    At this moment, in the city of West Sea Realm, a man in white appeared. He seemed to arrive silently, just appeared out of nowhere, strolling quietly inside the city.


    After a while, he walked to a place and stopped. With a thought, he was suddenly surrounded with sword will. His entire body was radiant, like the body of a sword.


    This sight caused the surrounding cultivators to step aside and make way. They looked at the white-haired man and marveled at the strong sword will that was coming from him.


    The white-haired man raised his hand, and suddenly there was a sword diagram that appeared above the firmament, puffing out an extremely terrifying current of swordsmanship. It blocked out the sky and the sun. The sword will circulated above the firmament, and that terrifying aura continued to move further away into the distance.


    ��What was he going to do?�� Many started to retreat as soon as they felt the aggression coming from that sword will; even cultivators in the Renhuang Realm had gotten far away from here. No one knew what this white-haired cultivator intended to do, and they felt it was better to stay as far away from him as possible.


    That flowing sword will pointed to a place in the distance, and in that direction��


    The hearts of many palpitated, looking in the direction where that terrifying sword will was going, which turned out to be the direction of the West Sea Palace.


    He wanted to attack the West Sea Palace?


    Who was this man?


    Above the firmament, the diagram was expanding until it covered up everything in the sky, and the cultivators below felt a faint sense of suffocation. Soon, they could feel the might of that sword for hundreds of miles, and it was still spreading further away.


    Furthermore, above that sword diagram above the firmament, everyone could also sense an extremely tyrannical aura from the Great Path of Space.


    And all this took place in a very short period of time. The white-haired man floated in the air and stood in front of the Sword Diagram of the Void. Then, he slowly extended his arm and pointed ahead. In an instant, the sword diagram released an infinite divine light, as the sword will pierce through the space, ignoring the distance or the space, and headed towards the distance.


    ��


    West Sea Palace was where the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor was stationed in the Original Realm. Many powerful cultivators stayed in the Domain Chief��s Manor. At this time, people in West Sea Palace were cultivating, and some were discussing amongst themselves.


    In front of a hall, a group of cultivators was walking out at this moment. They had just finished discussed where they were going for their next trials. These were all elite cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor, and there were also Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm among them. They were walking and chatting at the same time.


    At this moment, a cultivator frowned slightly, vaguely feeling that something was not right. It was as if danger was approaching.


    ��What aura is that?�� he murmured.


    The others released their perception as well, and then they all frowned. Someone said, ��It��s a sword will, a very strong sword will.��


    ��This sword will seems to be heading this way.�� A Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm spoke up. His eyes looked into the distance, and in the next moment, he saw countless divine swords above the firmament, completely sheltering the sky like golden lightning that came through the space.


    ��Be careful!�� he yelled as his face changed to one of shock. Everyone released the most tyrannical aura of the Great Path to surround themselves.


    The divine swords slammed down, the spatial distance notwithstanding, and landed inside the West Sea Palace.


    ��Watch out.�� A group of cultivators levitated into the air, and the aura of the Great Path burst out from them. But their defense was directly penetrated by the divine swords. The golden divine swords penetrated their bodies without hesitation and shattered them as swords turned into golden light.


    Boom, boom, boom�� All these people were slain one after the other, as buildings pulverized and exploded like mad. There was total chaos inside the West Sea Palace as it was completely submerged by sword will.


    ��Get the Chief, quick!�� someone shouted, but Chief Xihai had already gotten here. He was cultivating before and did not perceive what was happening outside. By the time he did perceive it, he was already one step too late.


    By the time he got here, the sky full of sword will suddenly seemed to stand still. Even if it didn��t stop, its speed had slowed down, losing its powerful lethality. However, at this point, the West Sea Palace was already in a bloody mess, with heavy casualties.


    ��Chief!�� someone wailed, their eyes bloody red as they stared at the incarnation of Chief Xihai in the sky.


    Chief Xihai��s eyes were extremely cold, an overwhelming murderous intent coming from him. His divine consciousness covered the distance and landed where Ye Futian was. He called out coldly, ��Ye Futian!��


    Was this the price Ye Futian was talking about before?


    He had actually come to the West Sea Palace intending to do murders.


    Buzz! A monstrous coercion erupted, and the figure of Chief Xihai disappeared. After a moment, he appeared where he thought Ye Futian was, but Ye Futian was no longer there. His face suddenly revealed extreme shock.


    Ye Futian, at this time, had actually appeared in the West Sea Palace.


    The cultivators in the West Sea Palace also revealed expressions of shock as they stared at the man that appeared in the void.


    Ye Futian pointed his finger downward, and the sword intent of destruction exploded in an instant. Many Renhuang were directly penetrated by the divine sword and died, their eyes still fixed on the man in the void.


    They heard that the Chief had killed Ye Futian��s demonic beast at Donghua Palace a few days ago and then went into hot pursuit of Ye Futian after he somehow managed to escape.


    They didn��t think that Ye Futian would dare to come to West Sea Palace himself and kill the people here just a few days later.


    ��You are insolent!�� a domineering voice resounded throughout the entire West Sea Palace. When Chief Xihai appeared again, Ye Futian disappeared once more. This time, Chief Xihai did not slack in the slightest, and an aura of a terrific Great Path erupted as his divine consciousness locked onto Ye Futian. He was worried that Ye Futian would once again return to West Sea Palace, continuing his killing spree.


    ��Chief Xihai, I told you that you will pay for what you did, and you will repent for it. This�� is just the beginning!��


    An extremely sharp voice spoke, and it fell across the city. Countless people had heard it, and their hearts were beating violently.


    It was Ye Futian. He had come to West Sea Palace for a bloodbath��for revenge!


    The entire West Sea Domain was in an uproar, and there were chatters by countless cultivators. Many cultivators had traveled through the air and came to the space above the West Sea Palace, their attention focused on the place destroyed by the sword will. It was just a ruin now. Many cultivators in the Domain Chief��s Manor were slaughtered, killed right in front of Chief Xihai. It was just as when Chief Xihai killed Ye Futian��s demonic beast in front of him.


    ��Is he so terrifying already?�� some cultivators murmured. Everyone in the Original Realm had heard of the name of Ye Futian; even those who came from the Divine Prefecture must have heard of his deeds.


    A few days ago, Ye Futian reappeared in front of many cultivators and slew Ning Hua in a battle, thus alarming the Domain Chief��s Manor of various domains. However, he left in a hurry, pursue by Chief Xihai, and his demonic beast was killed in the process.


    But who would have thought that in just a few days, Ye Futian would have his revenge by washing the entire West Sea Palace in a bloodbath? What��s more, the Chief of West Sea seemed unable to track him down.


    In another direction, there was a group of cultivators with extraordinary temperaments. One of the elders amongst them was a cultivator of the Tribulation Plane. This group of men was the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace.


    The old man laughed a cold laugh in his heart when he beheld this scene, and said in a low voice, ��This time, the Domain Chief��s Manor in the West Sea Domain has gotten itself in deep trouble.��


    Who was Ye Futian?


    Wasn��t it clear enough from back then? When Ye Futian��s cultivation was yet small and weak, many powerful people had already died at his hands. And now, he had become much stronger. Obviously, he appeared again, this time because he was prepared. Therefore he dared to show up to kill Ning Hua.


    No one imagined that Chief Xihai, who was accustomed to being overbearing and did whatever he wanted, had started an altercation with Ye Futian before he figured out just who Ye Futian really was.


    Now it seemed that this powerful and aggressive Chief Xihai had gotten himself into something he might not be able to finish!

 Chapter 2514 - Collecting the Debt

    The news of the bloodbath that took place in West Sea Palace spread quickly towards the Original Realm. At first, it was the Domain Chief��s Manors of all 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture. Then it spread to other major forces. By now, they all learned that Ye Futian had gone to the World of Buddhism and cultivated the superpower of Buddha��s Celerity, and he had washed the West Imperial Palace in blood.


    In no time, this celebrated figure, who had disappeared for 20 years, was once again in the sight of all Original Realm.


    And his reappearance shook the Original Realm.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor of West Sea Domain in the Original Realm was washed in blood. There were heavy casualties among the cultivators who were inside the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Naturally, Ning Yuan was one of the firsts to get the news. After he heard it, he felt a tremor in his heart. Was Ye Futian already this frightening?


    He suddenly thought that if it wasn��t because Ye Futian had his concerns before, he might have already washed Donghua Palace in blood in a similar fashion. Even Chief Xihai could not take him down, so how could he, Ning Yuan, do it?


    He couldn��t help but feel a little hopeless. Wouldn��t this mean that he didn��t even have the qualification to speak of revenge now?


    If he dared to touch any of Ye Futian��s people, the entire Donghua Palace would probably be terminated.


    This was precisely the effect that Ye Futian wanted to achieve. What happened in Donghua Palace made Ye Futian realize that those top figures did not care about the life and death of the weak. In the future, if the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum want to ever walk freely, then he had to make sure the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Western Sea Domain would be an object lesson to everyone.


    This was to warn the others not to touch any cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Great strength was the best and only deterrent.


    Ye Futian thought of that desperate look in Mo Yunzi��s eyes again, and he felt a pang of heartache. If he had moved just a little slower that time, those who died would not just be Mo Yunzi, but also Li Changsheng and the others. He clearly understood that Chief Xihai, at the time, had no concerns for any of their lives. If that giant hand had caught anyone else, they would all ended the same way, crushed to death!


    Therefore, he would never allow this kind of thing to happen again, and this debt was far from being collected to his satisfaction. As he said to Chief Xihai, this was only the beginning.


    However, it seemed that the Ziwei Segmentum, at least for the time being, could not be unsealed just yet.


    ��


    To the west of the Divine Prefecture, there was a boundless sea, known as the West Sea.


    In the West Sea, there were countless islands of various sizes. Some islands may be as small as a hill, while larger islands may be an entire continent.


    This sea and its endless islands formed one of the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture, the West Sea Domain.


    The two largest islands in the West Sea Domain were called islands, but in fact, they were continents in the sea, vast and boundless.


    These two islands were Canghuan and Yingzhou.


    Canghuan Island was the place of cultivation for West Imperial Palace, and it had a long history. There were countless islands of varying sizes all around Canghuan Island. It was still incredibly prosperous to this day. The closer the areas were to Canghuan Island, the more prosperous they were.


    In the other location, Yingzhou Island was across from it. It was the island where the Domain Chief��s Manor of West Sea Domain was located. It was also surrounded by countless islands. It was once the second-largest island in the West Sea Domain and had an equally long and ancient history.


    In addition, in the boundless West Sea Domain, there were many magical places, such as celestial islands, which were rarely visited or occupied by anyone, adding to their mysteries.


    Even though Yingzhou Island was called an island, it was actually an infinite and vast continent in the sea.


    The Domain Chief��s Manor in the West Sea Domain was not in the center of Yingzhou Island. On the contrary, the Domain Chief��s Manor of the West Sea Domain was located in Yingzhou City, and Yingzhou City was built by the sea, ancient and majestic.


    In the coastal region near Yingzhou City, countless ships were coming and going. These ships were all of them extraordinary, cast by implements. They traveled at a terrifying speed, shuttling through the sea. Of course, there were also cultivators traveling in the sky as well. Standing near the sea in Yingzhou City and looking up, one could see a continuous trail of cultivators in the sky above that never stopped.


    At this time, there was a single boat on the sea far away. This lonesome boat looked very simple, a young man standing on it. The man was extremely handsome, dressed in all white. He was as pure as the falling snow. His long silvery hair was casually draped over his shoulders. There was an indescribable attractiveness about him. Even female cultivators who happened to pass by couldn��t help but gave him a couple of glances.


    The man on the lone boat was none other than Ye Futian. He came from the Original Realm and traveled all this way to Yingzhou City of the West Sea Domain, which was also Chief Xihai��s lair.


    The boat sprinted towards the coast, seemingly at ease, but had already gone ashore in a few moments. Some people were watching Ye Futian, who found that after he walked onto the shore, his figure disappeared right from the spot without even leaving a trace of aura.


    It��s no wonder that he has such an exceptional temperament; it seems that his strength is unfathomable, someone secretly marveled without giving the matter more thought. They then continued on with their own business.


    After Ye Futian entered Yingzhou City, he didn��t worry about doing much of anything else but began to gather information. In order to deal with the enemy, he had to understand them first.


    This was not the West Sea Palace in the Original Realm, and the Domain Chief��s Manor in West Sea Domain was not so easy to break into either. He knew that Chief Xihai in the Original Realm was just an exterior incarnation, so he was able to get rid of him with ease. However, in this Yingzhou City, the one he encountered might be the stronger version of the man himself.


    Of course, Ye Futian didn��t much care about that, even if it was Chief Xihai himself. With his current realm of cultivation, coupled with Buddha��s Celerity, even Saint Zhenchan could not catch up to him at the time. Chief Xihai may be powerful, but conceivably, his realm may not be on the same level as Saint Zhenchan��s.


    Yingzhou Tavern was the largest tavern in all of Yingzhou City. It was the property of the Domain Chief��s Manor, and a descendant from the Domain Chief��s Manor was in charge of the place here.


    Because it was the property of the Domain Chief��s Manor, Yingzhou Tavern was often the gathering place for influential people from all over the West Sea Domain.


    At this time, in the open area on top of Yingzhou Tavern, a group of cultivators was here, discussing cultivation. They had attracted many other cultivators from far away to gather here as well. Looking up, it was evident that the person leading the discussion above was someone special.


    The cultivator who sat at the head of the table, on the high seat, was someone named Qin Luo. He was from the mainline of the Domain Chief��s Manor. Chief Xihai was from the Qin clan and had taken root in the West Sea Domain and strengthened his line for many years.


    Qin Luo��s talent for cultivation was very strong by nature, and he was a junior figure that Chief Xihai greatly valued. He had been cultivating for more than a hundred years and had by now reached Renhaung in the Ninth-Realm. His combat effectiveness was exceptional; he was an extremely well-known figure in Yingzhou City.


    He made his name when he was young, hailed as the ��War God of Yingzhou.�� Now, he was on the verge of Tribulation Plane. The people who came here today were celebrated individuals, which explained Qin Luo��s presence in hosting them in person.


    ��Have you heard of the news from Original Realm?�� said an old man spoke, and everyone nodded.


    ��I heard that Ye Futian has cultivated the superpower of Buddhism, even the exterior incarnation of the Chief had difficulties tracking him down. The Domain Chief��s Manor in the Original Realm was destroyed because of Ye Futian��s sneak attack,�� someone said.


    ��Sneak attack?�� Someone jeered and said, ��This Ye Futian is said to have reached the Ninth-Realm. Some even say that he is now Renhuang invincible. Ning Hua was no competition, after all.��


    ��Renhuang invincible? What arrogance.�� A middle-aged man clad in a robe with Eight Trigrams said sarcastically, ��How many celebrated figures are in a world this vast? Just the West Sea Domain alone had many extraordinary genius talents with awesome combat effectiveness. Everything aside, Qin Luo, after defeating the cultivators from all sides that one time, had now been cultivating for many years and reached the peak of Renhuang Realm. If he were to encounter Ye Futian, it was not impossible that they would have a fight.��


    ��That��s right, if Ye Futian doesn��t run away when he meets our War God of Yingzhou, he will be detained for sure,�� someone else said, clearly intending to flatter. After all, Ning Hua, the Vice Chief of Donghua Domain, and Zhou Muhuang, Vice Chief of Shangqing Domain, which one of them was weak?


    ��This Ye Futian easily crushed Zhou Muhuang and slaughtered other Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm; his strength must be incredible. But he is cruel by nature and thirst for blood, and he has killed many of our people in the Domain Chief��s Manor. If I ever catch sight of him, no matter his strength, I shall try my best to kill him.�� Qin Luo spoke lightly, as if it was an easy thing to do.


    ��This man is unparalleled in the art of escape and will inevitably run. Even the Chief had difficulty capturing and killing him,�� someone else said.


    ��Mmm, but that was the exterior incarnation of the Chief. If he dares to come to Yingzhou, he will die for sure,�� Qin Luo said nonchalantly, and everyone around him nodded in agreement. They toasted to that very sentiment.


    Just as they were talking, suddenly, another person appeared in the tavern. This man was dressed in all white with a head of white hair, handsome and exceptional. His sudden appearance stunned many people.


    The appearance of this man was without the slightest fluctuation in aura. It was as if he had appeared out of thin air.


    But judging from his temperament, he must be extremely extraordinary, and presumably with a high level of realm. Otherwise, they would have perceived his coming.


    No one dared to underestimate him, and Qin Luo was looking at him now as well. He put down his wine cup and asked, ��Qin Luo is my name here at Yingzhou Tavern. May I ask who you are?��


    Ye Futian looked at Qin Luo without the slightest disturbance in those deep-set eyes of his. He replied, ��I am the person you were just threatening to kill. I am here now and I will not be running away.��


    His voice faded, and the hearts of the people in the tavern skipped a beat collectively.


    Ye Futian!


    They were just talking about him, and Qin Luo had declared that he would do his best to destroy Ye Futian if he ever showed up. He had threatened that if Ye Futian was ever here in Yingzhou, he was a dead man.


    The next moment, Ye Futian appeared in front of them in person, standing in front of them just like this.


    Qin Luo��s expression changed in an instant. It was as if he was suddenly facing the greatest enemy in his life. Although his words were flippant enough before, he knew in his heart just how terrifying Ye Futian was. The aura of the Great Path exploded in an instant. A terrifying Great Path of Ice Seal directly covered this entire space, and the tavern turned into ice in a second. Ye Futian��s body seemed to be frozen inside this block of ice as well.


    However, in the ice, Ye Futian turned slightly, raising his arm. He did not move quickly, but the movement was completely fluid, as if he was one with heaven and earth.


    He dropped his finger down and pointed in the direction where Qin Luo was.


    A light appeared in the ice, which penetrated Qin Luo��s brow chakra. Then a loud blast was heard. Qin Luo��s body had been pulverized into nothing instantaneously.


    In the ice, every one of the cultivators were horrified as they beheld this sight. Their expressions changed to one with shock. They felt that their hearts were about to stop beating.


    Was this Ye Futian really so frightening?


    Bang! Ye Futian turned his feet around ever so slightly, and the magnificent Yingzhou Tavern shattered and collapsed. The ice dissipated at the same time.


    In the distance, countless eyes were looking at this side. They saw Ye Futian suspended in the air with exceptional distinction and grace.


    He turned around, and his eyes were fixed on the distance where the Domain Chief��s Manor was located.


    ��Tell Chief Xihai, I��ve come to collect.�� Ye Futian left with this simple message before he disappeared. It was as if he had never been there at all.


    He was here. He came from the Original Realm to the land of the Divine Prefecture, and came directly to Yingzhou City for the kill!

 Chapter 2515 - Facing A Great Enemy

    After Ye Futian killed Qin Luo, he went to several other strongholds of the Domain Chief��s Manor in West Sea Domain. There, not only did he slaughtered many more cultivators who belonged to the Domain Chief��s Manor, but these people were also from the main lineage of Chief Xihai.


    Buddha��s Celerity allowed Ye Futian to appear in different locations within a very short period to assassinate these people. Therefore, the Domain Chief��s Manor did not have enough time to respond properly.


    Yingzhou City, in the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor, a horrifying aura permeated the boundless space, and a frightening divine consciousness covered the entire Yingzhou City. In the Domain Chief��s Manor, Chief Xihai himself stood high above the sky; the aura coming from him was beyond terrifying.


    Although he was in Yingzhou City, his divine consciousness couldn��t watch over everything happening inside the city. He was cultivating in retreat when he was told by the cultivators from Domain Chief��s Manor that Ye Futian was already in Yingzhou for revenge.


    He had actually come to the West Sea Domain from the Original Realm to his lair. This was impertinent and unthinkable.


    Many cultivators appeared in the Domain Chief��s Manor, and all of them had levitated into the sky. They had received the news that Ye Futian had come for them and had already killed many of their colleagues inside the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    At the same time when this horrific aura appeared, Ye Futian had already appeared on the surface of the West Sea. He raised his head and looked into the distance, specifically in the direction of the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor, and sensed the divine consciousness of Chief Xihai. Across the infinite void, the two seemed to be looking at one another.


    A monstrous aura swept in, causing the entire West Sea to rage, rolling and roaring madly.


    Boom! Chief Xihai moved. He disappeared from the Domain Chief��s Manor. At this moment, the vast and endless region of Yingzhou City felt the fury of Chief Xihai. A youngster had chased him from the Original Realm to his home base, hunting down the cultivators inside his house, the Domain Chief��s Manor!


    The moment he moved, Ye Futian readily disappeared from where he was. After a moment, Chief Xihai appeared on the surface of the sea as well, now frozen thousands of miles in radius, as the endless sea had turned into pure ice. Many cultivators on the sea were also sealed shut within the ice, but Ye Futian was no longer in this frozen domain.


    Buzz�� A terrifying storm passed through, shattering the ice. The hearts of all the cultivators trembled fiercely. When they turned their heads and looked further away, they saw that the West Sea kept freezing and spreading into the distance.


    Some people still didn��t know what had happened, but some did know that it was Chief Xihai chasing Ye Futian, wanting to control the other��s movement.


    The cultivators who happened to pass by were all petrified to their bones.


    This time, could Chief Xihai take down Ye Futian?


    It didn��t take long for them to know the answer. A horrible aura came from the sea to the Domain Chief��s Manor. Everyone could perceive an extremely terrifying and furious murderous intent. Obviously, Chief Xihai did not take down Ye Futian!


    Chief Xihai himself was sitting inside the Domain Chief��s Manor, but he could not get a hold of Ye Futian.


    What did this mean?


    It meant that Ye Futian could intercept and kill the cultivators from the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor whenever he wanted, and the Domain Chief��s Manor could do absolutely nothing to him.


    If Chief Xihai had known this would happen, would he still be that thoughtless and cruel and kill Ye Futian��s demonic beast all over again?


    What happened on Yingzhou Island quickly spread throughout the island, even to the surrounding islands, and then to all other parts of the Western Sea Domain.


    The Chief of Western Sea Domain had provoked the wrong person, who was now responsible for the killing spree inside Yingzhou City.


    ��


    Canghuan West Imperial Palace was once a glorious and majestic imperial palace, ancient and magnificent, extending downward, like an ancient imperial city.


    At the top of the staircase, a group of people was walking down the steps. Among them was a woman with extraordinary temperament and stunning beauty. If Ye Futian were here, he would have definitely recognized this woman. She was none other than the goddess of West Imperial Palace, Xi Chiyao��the most powerful heir of the West Emperor.


    Around Xi Chiyao were many great figures from the West Imperial Palace; even powerful existences of the Tribulation Plane were amongst them. This was the core of the Ancient God Clan.


    Xi Chiyao, as the most powerful heir of the West Emperor, had obtained the inheritance of the Ancient Emperor, so her position in the West Imperial Palace was lofty and well-respected. When she went to the Original Realm, she was the center of that delegation.


    Presently, laughter, like a silver bell, came from Xi Chiyao. A look of brilliance flashed through her beautiful eyes as she looked into the distance and whispered, ��If that battle between Ye Futian and I had continued, the one who lost would no doubt be me. This man has been received the inheritances of several Great Emperors, so how could his fame be in vain? I didn��t expect that he would have gone to the Western World of Buddhism and cultivated one of the six superpowers��the Buddha��s Celerity from the Spirit Mountain. I was right about him. It��s a pity that he is the heir of Emperor Ye Qing; otherwise, I could have gotten much closer to him back then.��


    Because of the relationship between Emperor Ye Qing and Donghuang the Great, it was destined that no one dared to get too close to Ye Futian so as not to offend the Imperial Palace. After all, Donghuang the Great was the Master of the Divine Prefecture. Who wouldn��t be cautious?


    ��Chief Xihai would have never thought that in just ten or 20 years, a Level-Eight Renhuang would have grown to this point, that even he could not take him down.�� An old man next to her laughed, ��Chief Qin was accustomed to having his way; it was his habit to do whatever he wanted. Because he wanted to take Ye Futian immediately, he resorted to extreme measures without considering the consequences. Now, he has become a laughingstock everywhere. I am sure he is quite mad about that.��


    Everyone laughed. Besides marveling at Ye Futian��s extraordinary strength, this incident was indeed quite ironic. It was hard for Chief Xihai not to become the butt of the joke in this matter, but it was something that he had instigated himself, now he was unable to resolve it.


    Judging from Ye Futian��s attitude, he clearly didn��t intend to let the matter go so easily, and he would continue to watch the Domain Chief��s Manor in West Sea Domain.


    On the contrary, Chief Xihai could do nothing to him. As for going over to Ye Futian��s home base, the Ziwei Segmentum, for revenge�� Would he dare?


    It was truly Ye Futian��s territory. He could leverage the will of the Great Emperor to move the stars in the heavens.


    If he were to go, he might never be able to come back.


    ��With his personality, how could he let this go? This time, Chief Xihai probably will not be able to finish this his way.�� Xi Chiyao looked quite blas�� as she said this with a laugh. ��Let��s go. Let��s go to Yingzhou and take a look.��


    ��This���� The people around her glanced at each other, then smiled and responded, ��It won��t hurt to go take a look.��


    Chief Xihai was an extremely proud and arrogant individual. Since becoming the Chief of West Sea Domain and as the head of the Domain Chief��s Manor, he was polite enough to the West Imperial Palace on the outside. However, everyone knew that Chief Xihai always intended for the Domain Chief��s Manor to replace the Western Imperial Palace in the West Sea Domain.


    Since Xi Chiyao was interested this time, it wouldn��t hurt for them to go and take a look-see.


    ��Let��s go straight away, then.�� Xi Chiyao was fast on the move. She levitated directly into the void, heading outside of West Imperial Palace, cultivators around her trailing behind.


    ��What do you guys think about Ye Futian?�� Xi Chiyao asked.


    ��Incredibly talented. Perhaps no one can compare with him in the entire Divine Prefecture. However, it��s truly a pity���� an old man said, not finishing his sentence.


    ��What pity is that?�� Xi Chiyao asked.


    ��It��s a pity that he is the heir of Emperor Ye Qing, so he is destined not to be able to fulfill the full potential of his cultivation. Otherwise, with his talents, he would be cultivating in Donghuang Imperial Palace by now. He may even be taken in by the Great Emperor as a personal disciple. I heard that Princess Donghuang had taken a liking to him once,�� the old man next to her said.


    ��It��s quite a pity if you put it like that.�� Xi Chiyao smiled and continued, ��Such a talented cultivator is indeed rare in the world, and he is also incredibly handsome to boot, an ideal Path Companion����


    Everyone next to her was quite stunned by her conclusion. Indeed, the goddess��s thinking was genuinely different from ordinary folks��!


    However, from the perspective of seeking a Path Companion, there was almost no one existing in the West Sea who could be worthy of Xi Chiyao. Ye Futian was a suitable candidate in that aspect. After cultivating to their level, looking for a Path Companion was no longer something that involved love and feelings.


    Especially as the successor of the Ancient God Clan, strength and power were a serious consideration, meaning that even more outstanding progenies may be produced.


    Therefore, from this perspective, Xi Chiyao��s train of thought was understandable and logical.


    And the West Imperial Palace was not alone. Many cultivators on the many islands in the Western Sea Domain were also heading towards Yingzhou Island. They wanted to partake in the excitement and see how this fiasco would end.


    ��


    Along the coast region of Yingzhou Island, more and more cultivators were gathering in this area lately. They were all from other islands, and there were some very powerful figures among them.


    After that day, Chief Xihai did not continue to pursue Ye Futian, clearly realizing that it would do absolutely no good.


    After he returned, he ordered the Domain Chief��s Manor cultivators not to leave Yingzhou City at will, and they must be extremely vigilant and cautious. At the same time, he did not go back into retreat to cultivate but watched all of Yingzhou City closely. He needed to wait for a chance, which would be when Ye Futian slipped.


    As long as Ye Futian made a mistake, he could release his domain to capture Ye Futian, and Ye Futian would never be able to escape with his life.


    Previously he was unable to successfully pursue and kill him because Ye Futian��s speed was faster than the speed of his Great Path Domain. There was almost no time for him to react, so he could not take Ye Futian.


    All he needed was an opportunity. Just once when Ye Futian was careless. Once would be enough.


    On the coast region of Yingzhou Island, a group of cultivators walked casually. One of them had controlled his aura, but his temperament was noticeably extraordinary. In fact, he was a supreme cultivator inside the Domain Chief��s Manor��a peak existence who was recruited by the Chief himself to be part of the Domain Chief��s Manor from the very beginning. He was a cultivator who had survived a Divine Tribulation of the Great Path who had been faithfully serving the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    But at this moment, he strolled along the coast of Yingzhou Island just like any other ordinary person. Around him, there were also many other cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor who didn��t bother to conceal their true identity in search for any traces of Ye Futian.


    They were the bait to lure Ye Futian into revealing himself.


    To deal with this thorn on their side, the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor was treating it with great seriousness and had set up a massive net in Yingzhou City, waiting for Ye Futian to step in. They didn��t know when their prey would enter this net.


    As long as Ye Futian was alive, the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor would never be at ease!

 Chapter 2516 - Locked In

    On the surface, everything in Yingzhou City seemed to be business as usual. Underneath it all, however, there was a current that was brewing. This time the matter was related to the Domain Chief��s Manor. Someone was hunting and killing the direct descendants of the Domain Chief��s Manor, which was considered a significant event.


    For hundreds of years, no one had dared to do anything like this. This was the first time it had happened.


    The Yingzhou coast seemed calm enough, but the water closest to the coastal region had seen an increase of cultivators during this period; many of them were not even native to Yingzhou City. They had come from the outside world purely for the purpose of witnessing the development of this turmoil.


    Could the Domain Chief��s Manor in the West Sea Domain apprehend Ye Futian?


    In this area near the coast, a great ship was floating quietly at sea, not moving in any particular direction. On the deck of this great ship, a beautiful woman stood there quietly, looking at the landscape in the distant shore.


    This woman was Xi Chiyao, the goddess of West Imperial Palace, who had come from Canghuan Island. Her beautiful eyes looked in different directions, and she saw that many ships seemed to be approaching. Some powerful cultivators even looked at her as if trying to recognize who she was.


    After all, in the West Sea Domain, as the goddess of West Imperial Palace, her status needed no further elaboration. She was the true treasured daughter of the domain, whose name was known to everyone. However, there were not many who had actually seen her. Therefore, many people were just guessing and did not actually get close to her.


    ��It seems that it��s not just us who came here. These cultivators just couldn��t stay away and have come to join in for a bit of fun,�� Xi Chiyao said with a smile.


    ��That also depends on what they are here for. The premier enchanting genius has come from the Original Realm, seeking revenge at the Domain Chief��s Manor in the West Sea Domain. Who wouldn��t be curious?�� The old man behind her said with a smile, ��Over here, most of them were speculating about Ye Futian��s strength, which even I am curious about. Just how strong is Ye Futian?��


    ��It was unlikely that he has any suitable opponents in the realm of Renhuang,�� Xi Chiyao said with a smile. She had fought with Ye Futian once before. After so many years, she thought that there would not be too many people left who could compare to her at this level.


    Ye Futian might be a bit stronger.


    ��Well, when Qin Luo made his name, he was given the title of War God of Yingzhou by Yingzhou City. Although it is a bit of exaggeration, it was not hard to see just how glorious Qin Luo��s war record was at the time. His talent was exceptional, and his combat effectiveness extraordinary. But such a figure was destroyed by Ye In Futian with one finger,�� the old man said, slightly surprised. ��Cultivators who had not survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path would have a hard time defeating him.��


    ��Greetings to the elder of West Imperial Palace and the goddess of Imperial Palace.�� At this time, a ship approached them. Someone called out to salute Xi Chiyao, clearly having recognized her.


    ��Mmm.�� The old man nodded almost imperceptibly, appearing a little cold to the touch. Xi Chiyao just gave them a wayward glance and outright ignored him. The man knew that they were reluctant to engage him in conversation and left quietly.


    Anyone else who saw this exchange quickly dispelled any thoughts of approaching them and contented themselves to watch everything from a distance.


    Xi Chiyao, the goddess of West Imperial Palace, was still a faraway figure to them. This was the true overlord of the West Sea Domain and the heir of the Ancient God Clan. Even the most enchanting genius talents and peak Renhuang existence in the West Sea Domain were hard-pressed to come into contact with her. Perhaps only truly excellent Renhuang existences had some opportunity to interact with Xi Chiyao.


    On the coast was a group of people standing there, looking towards the great ships that floated on the sea in the distance. These people were cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor. The man in the lead now shouted, ��The goddess of West Imperial Palace has arrived. Why not come to our Domain Chief��s Manor to take a rest and visit?��


    This voice resounded throughout this area and attracted many peoples�� attention. It seemed as if people in this coastal region somehow missed the fact that he was a cultivator from the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    In this area, there were also many groups dotted all along the coast; all of them were dispatched by the Domain Chief��s Manor. They were here under the pretense of searching for Ye Futian in order to capture him. In fact, no one thought the matter could be quite that simple; there may be some other purposes behind their presence.


    Ye Futian was hunting the cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor in the open. How could the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor be so stupid to show up like this and let Ye Futian kill them? The only possibility was that it was all a setup.


    Ye Futian must have known it as well, hence his absence.


    Many people speculated that since Ye Futian had already sneak-attacked them once and knew that the Domain Chief��s Manor would now be prepared for him, it was possible that he would not be taking such a risk again.


    ��We��ll walk around some so we won��t trouble the Domain Chief��s Manor,�� responded the old man on the ship, and the people from the Domain Chief��s Manor nodded without saying anything more. It was a courtesy invitation, and they knew that the cultivators from West Imperial Palace were probably just here to watch the show.


    Just as they were talking, a figure suddenly appeared on the shore. He was suspended in the air so quietly without any aura. No one knew how or where the man was coming from.


    Many people hadn��t even seen him until they saw the reaction in other people��s eyes. They turned around and looked in that direction, their eyes glued there.


    What a terrifying space technique��invisible and untraceable. He had simply appeared out of nowhere. This kind of superpower was indeed suitable for hunting.


    Xi Chiyao was stunned as well, looking at the white-haired figure that suddenly appeared in the distance. A faint smile appeared in her beautiful eyes. It was no wonder Buddha��s Celerity was one of the six superpowers of Buddhism; it was indeed miraculous.


    Of course, those who had the strongest reaction were the cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor. Their hearts palpitated, and in an instant, it was like they were facing a formidable foe. Ye Futian hadn��t made his move yet, but just with his appearance there, the aura of the Great Path from these cultivators�� bodies roared frantically to cover the space around them. They forged a layer of a defensive light screen. They weren��t so busy for an attack right now but were focused instead on preserving their own lives first.


    ��Ye Futian!�� an icy voice called out. The Domain Chief��s Manor cultivators didn��t expect that he would dare to make an appearance. He was standing there in all his insolent glory; didn��t he ever consider that this could be a trap, laying in waiting, just for him?


    Otherwise, why would they readily appear here just to search for him?


    As soon as their voices faded, Ye Futian turned into a light, fast to the extreme.


    Buzz! That light arrived in a flash. It directly bisected the area where they were. The defensive light screen was shattered when the light ran through it, and the eyes of everyone in that group of people revealed a look of horror. Then, all of their bodies turned into nothingness, disintegrating instantaneously.


    As for Ye Futian, he had already returned to the place far away. It was as if he had never done anything at all. He was merely standing there quietly, and many people��s hearts palpitated, feeling the horror. With just a flash, all these cultivators had died, turning into nothing more than dust and smoke.


    The vast majority of the people did not see the exchange clearly and had no idea what happened at that moment.


    Only some top figures, such as Xi Chiyao and the old man next to her, saw the whole thing clearly. Ye Futian��s physical body had transformed into the Great Path, and his body��the Body of the Great Path��had passed through the space in a flash. Like an indestructible sword carrying the destructive terror of the sword will, it passed through that area and shattered that space. Everyone inside the kill zone was slaughtered without exception.


    But Ye Futian��s expression was one of indifference. Since they had used themselves as bait to lure him in, he would oblige them so they may fulfill their purpose.


    ��Huh?�� At this moment, these cultivators shuddered. Xi Chiyao and other cultivators from West Imperial Palace frowned as they looked up around this space.


    This vast expanse of space suddenly became extremely chilly, and many cultivators on the sea felt a burst of icy coldness. That coldness had directly penetrated their souls.


    In an instant, a watery mist appeared in the entire world. An old man stood quietly on the surface of the sea closest to the coast. His eyes were extremely cold, and a murderous intent surrounded him. The watery mist seemed to be formed by the seawater and penetrated his body.


    ��Ye Futian.�� That figure standing on the sea said, then pointed his finger towards Ye Futian. Suddenly, countless water droplets appeared in the mist, flying towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian merely glanced at the moment, and in the next moment, he disappeared right from where he was; it was as if he was never there.


    ��You can��t leave now!�� He raised his head as he scanned the sky high above. As soon as he said that, the vast space was full of a biting icy coldness.


    ��So cold!�� Many shuddered. Xi Chiyao��s brows knitted together tightly as she looked at the mist in the void. ��It seems that there is an aura,�� she said.


    ��Mmm,�� the old man next to her nodded. ��It��s he who started it; we should have expected it a long time ago. Ye Futian, I am afraid, will encounter some trouble.��


    ��Let��s just watch,�� Xi Chiyao said lightly. In the distance, in the direction of Domain Chief��s Manor, a terrifying aura descended, followed by a voice that said, ��So?��


    ��Chief, I��ve put a mark on him; he can��t leave now.�� The cultivator who responded was standing on the sea, a strong sense of confidence in his eyes. Unless Ye Futian had also survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, he would not be able to destroy the mark that had been placed on him.


    And this mark was enough to get a lock on him.


    ��Go and bring him back. It��s better that he��s alive. But if not, his corpse will do,�� Chief Xihai said coldly.


    ��Chief, rest easy,�� the man replied confidently. As soon as his voice fell, he turned and glanced in a direction further away. Ye Futian was in that direction at this moment.


    The reason why the Chief could not track Ye Futian before was Buddha��s Celerity. Buddha��s Celerity allowed its practitioner to come and go without a trace. There were no rules to speak of; therefore, there was no way to put a lock on it. However, it was different at this moment. He had successfully locked onto Ye Futian. No matter where he went now, there was no way Ye Futian could get rid of his trace.


    In the distance, Ye Futian appeared in the sky above the coastal region, frowning slightly. Suddenly, he could feel several chills inside his body, as if formed by the power of the Great Path and gotten into his body somehow, gave him a distinct sense of coldness.


    Many of those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path possessed some unique abilities of their own. This was something he already knew.


    But, trying to use that to hunt him down?

 Chapter 2517 - Whose World?

    ��Zhong Miao!��


    On the shore of Yingzhou, countless eyes were focused on the old man who was wearing a blue robe. This cultivator had become a well-known figure in the West Sea Domain long ago and was now the number two in charge at the Domain Chief��s Manor of the West Sea Domain. He experienced his first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path many years before, and though it was just the first divine tribulation, he had been immersed in the cultivation in this realm for many years.


    In the entire Western Sea Domain, there were not many who were better him. In some other domains, he might have already been qualified as the existence ruling the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The path as cultivated by Zhong Miao had already given rise to his own unique ability. The watery mist that had just appeared contained his own hidden rules, and therefore, locked onto Ye Futian.


    This time, Ye Futian is in trouble, countless cultivators on the shore of Yingzhou secretly exclaimed. They saw Zhong Miao disappeared, heading in the direction where Ye Futian was.


    Everyone saw that his body seemed to have melted into the West Sea, traveling thousands of miles in the sea in but a blink of an eye.


    ��Even I can��t keep up with Zhong Miao��s speed.�� On the ship on which Xi Chiyao stood, the old man behind her was speaking.


    ��It seems that we won��t see what happens, after all.�� Xi Chiyao felt a little disappointed, unsure whether or not Ye Futian could get rid of Zhong Miao.


    Ye Futian continued traveling forward in the West Sea at a terrifying speed, but he could feel that someone was right on his tail. It was Zhong Miao who was keeping him closely within his sight. The chill in his body was expanding and seemed on the verge of invading his spiritual soul, making him feel very cold.


    Ye Futian marveled to himself. Zhong Miao was indeed a cultivator who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. What he had done was no simple feat.


    However, his expression remained the same as he continued to flee. The chill in his body was raging, eroding the power of the Great Path within his body, corroding his body and soul. This had greatly affected his speed. He was resisting it with the power of the Great Path, wanting to destroy it, but it was useless.


    Gradually, Ye Futian seemed to have slowed down a bit.


    In the distance, a face seemed to reflect in the middle of the West Sea. It was Zhong Miao��s face. He shuttled through the sea with incredible speed as that face seemed to display an icy cold smile. This time, he had to sacrifice a group of people just to lure him in. Now that Ye Futian was here, how could he allow him to escape?


    Ye Futian was too cocky. He knew it was a trap, but still, he had no qualms, showing up on the coast of Yingzhou. He was so full of himself that he clearly didn��t think any of them posed a threat.


    The two of them had traveled an unknown distance, and they were, by now, somewhere very far away from Yingzhou Island, moving deep into the West Sea. There was nothing in the area around them, only the boundless and endless waters.


    How vast was the West Sea? Yingzhou Island was an island comparable in size to a continent, but it was just an island in the West Sea among others, quite inconspicuous in the entire West Sea. It was conceivable how expansive the West Sea really was. It was said that no one had really traveled to every part of the West Sea.


    Ye Futian��s body seemed to be covered with a layer of frost, which slowed him down considerably. The aura that had locked onto him from behind was getting closer and closer, quickly closing the gap as the pursuit was approaching a white-hot stage.


    Finally, Ye Futian stopped running away. He turned around, standing in the void, and looking at the giant waves over the sea behind him.


    Buzz! Giant waves shot through the sky as a man appeared before him; it was Zhong Miao. He stared at Ye Futian, who was covered in icy frost, his expression cold and chilling. Although this youngster was strong, he confounded even the Domain Chief��s Manor with his Buddha��s Celerity and evaded everyone��s oversight. However, he couldn��t escape his eyes after all.


    ��Stop resisting and come with me, and I will let you alive,�� Zhong Miao said as he looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s expression was calm and nonchalant, looking incredibly peaceful. He looked at Zhong Miao and said, ��You are so confident that you can take me with you?��


    Zhong Miao glanced at Ye Futian. In an instant, the vast sky above the sea was filled with a watery mist, as if filled with drops of condensed water. Each and every drop of water contained a terrifying truth of frost, which included chills that could make the soul tremble.


    ��You should have already felt it. Although those who experienced the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path continue to cultivate the power of the Great Path, their comprehension has been transformed into something unique. It is no longer comparable to what they have experienced once as Renhuang. Therefore, although Renhuang stands at the top of the cultivation world, in front of those who had experienced the divine tribulation, Renhuang can be destroyed with a flick of the finger.�� Zhong Miao��s voice was cold and proud as he looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian clearly understood the difference between a cultivator of the Tribulation Plane and Renhuang. But was he just an ordinary Renhuang?


    ��Destroyed by a flick?�� Ye Futian suddenly showed a smile and said, ��Are you sure?��


    As his voice fell, a blazing solar divine light appeared upon him. His entire body was as dazzling as the sun itself. Terrifying solar divine fire enveloped his body as the temperature of this space, previously shrouded by an intense chill, rose sharply all of a sudden.


    At this moment, the truth of frost in Ye Futian��s body melted into nothing and dissipated into a cloud of steaming mist.


    ��What?�� Zhong Miao sensed it instantly. He furrowed his brows, and his expression changed slightly. He stared at Ye Futian and said, ��Can you destroy that trace of truth?��


    Obviously, Ye Futian could destroy it; he wouldn��t be tracked by him.


    But before that, Ye Futian had pretended all along, acting as if he had been eroded by that force and that his own speed had been affected. He finally stopped when Zhong Miao thought he had nowhere to escape. Only at this moment did he discover that Ye Futian could have erased everything from the beginning.


    So, what did all this mean?


    It meant that Ye Futian deliberately lured him here.


    What was the purpose for Ye Futian to do so?


    Did Ye Futian think that he could contend with him?


    A Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm?


    ��Power of the Sun.�� Zhong Miao perceived Ye Futian��s dazzling Divine Body of the Sun, which was impervious to the truth of the frost. This was probably where Ye Futian��s confidence was coming from.


    Zhong Miao didn��t say anything, but both of his hands proceeded to condense the seal. In an instant, the waters turned turbulent as giant waves rushed into the sky. These terrifying gigantic waves sealed this corner of the sky and turned it into a Neptunian prison. Those horrific giant waves rolled towards Ye Futian, accompanied by howling roars.


    Shocking waves hit the shore with forces that could shatter the shoreline. At this moment, Ye Futian could clearly feel the heavy force coming from the sea. A battle form gathered and manifested, and it was the Acalanatha Battle Form, majestic and massive, standing above the sea. Terrifying giant waves swept across and blasted on that body, but the battle form remained motionless, allowing the giant waves to blast upon it without wavering in the slightest.


    Although Ye Futian was a Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm, he had already been tempered by the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. It was a terrifying divine tribulation. As a result, his physical body was extremely tyrannical, not to mention he also had the Acalanatha Battle Form.


    The storm of the sea directly submerged the Acalanatha Battle Form, and became frozen, taking along with it the Acalanatha Battle form and Ye Futian��s body, so both were frozen and sealed within the sea itself.


    An extremely chilled air permeated the frozen space, and even time and space seemed to have stopped as the temperature turned into absolute zero.


    Above the firmament, a giant sword appeared. Zhong Miao pointed at the frozen space, and suddenly, the giant sword blasted with a terrifying sound of waves, making a violent boom.


    ��Apart!�� Zhong Miao spat, and the ice-bound space shattered as if everything inside of it was going to break apart into nothingness.


    However, when everything did break apart, the Acalanatha Battle Form was there still, completely unmoved.


    This puzzled Zhong Miao, and he frowned. Was his defense as strong as this?


    At this moment, the Sound of Buddha lingered, resounding throughout the void. Suddenly, on the surface of the sea, gigantic Buddha phantoms appeared from different directions. They towered into the firmament and sheltered everything in the sky, covering this area.


    Moreover, as the Sound of Buddha lingered, there were more and more Buddha phantoms as if to summon all the Buddhas into the sky.


    Zhong Miao frowned. He stretched out both of his hands as he levitated into the void. Suddenly, a blast of extremely cold air swept through heaven and earth. The sea was frozen instantly as the endless water seemed to a standstill at this moment, turning into a frozen world. All the Buddha phantoms in the sky were frozen in ice as well. Under that extreme chill, even the Great Path was about to stop running, and the lingering Sound of Buddha gradually came to a halt.


    His body was still climbing higher into the sky. Above the firmament, a mirror seemed to appear now, from which Frost Divine Swords were seeping out. Layers of the truth from the Destructive Great Path were contained within these Frost Divine Swords, now diffusing outward.


    ��Go!�� He lowered his head to look at the area below. Suddenly the Frost Divine Swords broke through the air and chased into the forbidden space, slashing at those Buddha phantoms.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Those Buddha phantoms shattered under the divine sword, just like when the ice had been broken before. They turned into pieces, looking particularly fragile.


    There were divine swords that slashed towards Ye Futian himself. All of a sudden, the frozen Acalanatha Battle Form started moving. When those divine swords began to fall, cracks appeared on the Acalanatha Battle Form, and soon after, they gradually began to shatter as well.


    The divine swords continued to hunt after Ye Futian, only to see Ye Futian disappear from the place where he was, and the divine swords swooped down to find nothing at the end of their attack.


    But Zhong Miao didn��t care. He stared at Ye Futian, who had reappeared in another direction, and said, ��You can erase the mark I left on you, and you may be an expert at Buddha��s Celerity. If we were in the world outside, I could indeed do nothing to you. But your arrogance is your undoing. Now, you are in my world!��


    The mirror that was above the sky became extremely cold, and the entire world became silent. It was like a world that hung in total suspense. This was his domain��his world. Even if Ye Futian was an expert in Buddha��s Celerity, he could never get out and would die here for sure.


    He wanted to see just what this arrogant white-haired young man wanted to do with him now that he had lured him here?


    Ye Futian would die of his arrogance and insolence.


    ��Is that so?�� Ye Futian looked at Zhong Miao and said, ��This is the second time you have made a mistake.��


    Zhong Miao frowned now as he looked at Ye Futian, puzzled. He saw only the conceited self-confidence in Ye Futian��s eyes, only to hear him say, ��Look carefully, this is not your world. This is my world!��

 Chapter 2518 - Shocking Yingzhou City

    Ye Futian��s words stunned Zhong Miao. He looked at Ye Futian��s confident gaze that bordered on arrogance. This was his world?


    Across the vast space, a terrifying aura spread outwards. He looked up and discovered that a gigantic Buddha silhouette had appeared outside the World of Ice that he had set up. The face of the Buddha covered the entire world.


    It was another world that directly enveloped the domain of the Great Path that he had set up.


    At his cultivation level, the domain of the Great Path that he set up was like an independent world. The law, which he had comprehended, existed within this world. This law already surpassed the ordinary powers of the Great Path and was based on his comprehension of the Great Path.


    In the World of Ice that Zhong Miao established, his law governed everything. Everything within this world was frozen and still. Time and space were also within his control. All other powers of the Great Path ceased to function in this space.


    Anyone who had lower cultivation than he had had no chance of surviving in this world of his. Their death was inevitable. There was no suspense regarding that.


    Hence, the cultivation world had always acknowledged that even though Renhuangs were powerful, before cultivators who had survived the divine tribulations, they could be eliminated with the flick of a finger.


    Cultivators at the Tribulation Plane had undergone the baptism of the Heavenly Path. They were at a higher level compared to Renhuangs. This was an insurmountable difference. Hence, he had absolute confidence in his own abilities.


    However, everything that was happening right now was subverting his understanding of cultivation.


    How could Ye Futian, a ninth-tier Renhuang, be able to forge another domain of the Great Path outside his own? Ye Futian��s domain even enveloped his world. That meant that the space was not controlled by Zhong Miao��s law.


    Zhong Miao could also clearly sense that a power that was not weaker than his own was coalescing. Ye Futian placed his palms together and actually became an ancient Buddha that was solemn and divine. Endless scorching divine light radiated from his figure.


    At the same time, in the world of the Buddha, countless Buddhas appeared. All the Buddhas became Mahavairocana, radiating with the divine light of Mahavairocana. It was the divine light of the sun. Everywhere the light touched, the World of Ice melted. Zhong Miao��s law was being negated.


    ��It is the Mahavairocana!�� exclaimed Zhong Miao.


    At Zhong Miao��s level, even though he had not been to the World of Buddhism, how could he not know of the Mahavairocana?


    ��This is impossible. You have only been in the World of Buddhism for a relatively short time. How can you forge a domain of the Buddhist Path?�� asked Zhong Miao as he stared at the sky above. It was still possible for Ye Futian to have cultivated Buddhist superpowers.


    ��You are also just a ninth-tier Renhuang. How could you have managed to do all this?�� questioned Zhong Miao.


    Zhong Miao stared at Ye Futian. Everything he was witnessing subverted his understanding of cultivation. It was a massive blow to him.


    ��A crow does not know how a roc can soar in the heavens. It is normal for you not to understand. You also do not need to understand,�� replied Ye Futian as he started at Zhong Miao. ��After you die, I wonder whether Chief Xihai will begin to regret what he has done. If he doesn��t, it does not matter. He will also end up like you sooner or later.��


    The look in Zhong Miao��s eyes was extremely ugly. Ye Futian was comparing him to a crow?


    Zhong Miao had dominated the West Sea Domain for many years and could serve as a chief. Even in the entire West Sea Domain, very few people were more powerful than him.


    However, in Ye Futian��s eyes, Zhong Miao was just an ordinary person not worth mentioning. Ye Futian��s tone was full of condescension.


    Ye Futian had lured him out to hunt him. Before this, Ye Futian had not revealed his true ability to prevent the members of various forces from figuring out his true combat ability.


    In the heavens above, a beam of icy cold light shot out from the mirror of ice. The world seemed to turn pale and enter a state of motionlessness. However, Ye Futian��s Mahavairocana still radiated with divine light. At the same time, divine light of the sun that rained down from even higher in the sky directly negated the effect of the frost. Their laws were clashing against each other.


    ��I told you. This is my world. The laws of your world are useless here,�� declared Ye Futian as he stared at Zhong Miao.


    ��You have undergone a divine tribulation?�� asked Zhong Miao as his gaze was fixed on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian did not answer. In the sky above, the Mahavairocana Battle Forms raised their palms simultaneously. Terrifying rumbling sounds could be heard as they slammed their palms down to the ground. The attack immediately covered the entire domain.


    The Palms of Mahavairocana incinerated everything. The World of Ice disappeared, and the mirror in the sky was shattered. Zhong Miao��s figure was covered in frost. He had not frozen himself, but instead, he had become an icy Body of Way.


    He watched as the various Palms of Mahavairocana came crashing towards him. He raised his arms and sent them slamming outwards. At that moment, his figure grew, and he became an Ice War God. Many arms appeared on his figure and extended outwards in all directions, taking the Palms of Mahavairocana head on.


    Boom. Boom. Boom. Terrifying rumbling sounds could be heard. Zhong Miao��s figure trembled as his true will of ice flowed to his various limbs. This caused the Palms of Mahavairocana crashing towards his arms also to be covered in frost and were even frozen solid.


    Rumble.


    A terrifying sound could be heard. The ice beneath his feet shattered. The gigantic Palms of Mahavairocana still unleashed frightening divine light. The divine fire of the sun circled around them. They attempted to press down on Zhong Miao and kill him, but they were blocked. Zhong Miao, who had become an Ice War God, had forcefully blocked this terrifying blow. It was apparent how powerful he was.


    ��It is impossible for you to have undergone a divine tribulation. This can only be a strange technique,�� said Zhong Miao as ice-cold divine light shot out from his eyes. Having become a gigantic Ice War God, he still had the majesty and imposing manner of a Tribulation cultivator. He said, ��You wish to kill me. Can you pull it off?��


    His figure was now a Body of Way. The law of the Great Path circled around him. This was his law. The Palms of Mahavairocana were all blocked and could not destroy him.


    ��Is it impossible?�� asked Ye Futian as he looked at Zhong Miao.


    The divine light on Ye Futian��s figure grew more and more brilliant. It was even more blinding than the sun.


    ��You know nothing,�� exclaimed Ye Futian.


    The next moment, his figure disappeared and became a beam of divine light that directly pierced the space.


    Zhong Miao seemed to realize something as he unleashed the true will of ice on his body to the utmost limit. With his Ice War God figure as the center, everything around him stopped moving.


    However, the next moment, his eyes narrowed, and his body seemed to tremble.


    He lowered his head slightly to take a look. The center of his War God figure was empty. A hole had appeared there. Ye Futian��s figure appeared on the other side of the hole.


    Ye Futian��s body was no longer an ordinary body of flesh and blood. It was an actual divine body of the Great Path. It had already become a Body of Way.


    The divine tribulation that Ye Futian��s body had withstood was not something other cultivators who had undergone the first stage of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path could compare with. Other people only went through a single Tribulation. On the other hand, Ye Futian had faced Tribulations almost daily during that period.


    Moreover, his figure had already been honed to an extremely powerful level even before he had undergone the divine tribulation. Although his cultivation was only at the ninth-tier of the Renhuang Plane, Ye Futian was confident that with this divine body, he could instantly kill off most existences who had survived the first stage of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path by purely relying on the strength of his body.


    ��A divine body���� said Zhong Miao as his figure trembled. Then, his gigantic divine body shattered bit by bit. His eyes revealed a look of terror and disbelief.


    He, a Tribulation cultivator, was killed by a junior.


    He, Zhong Miao, was actually going to die here.


    ��Chief Xihai will one day accompanying you,�� declared Ye Futian. As he said this, Zhong Miao��s figure shattered and was destroyed. He perished in the West Sea.


    In the sky above, everything dispersed, and the surroundings returned to normal.


    The frozen surface of the ocean flowed as usual. The sea breeze howled as the waves swept in from a distance.


    Ye Futian stood on the surface of the sea and took a deep breath. Although Ye Futian had killed many top cultivators, Zhong Miao was considered the first Tribulation cultivator he had killed with his own ability. This was somewhat significant.


    Now, Ye Futian could already kill powerful Tribulation Plane existences on his own. He could even protect himself against cultivators who had undergone the second stage of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Ye Futian looked away towards Yingzhou Island. His figure then disappeared in a flash.


    ��


    A terrifying aura enveloped the entire West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor. The atmosphere was depressing.


    Soon, news spread out from the Domain Chief��s Manor �C Zhong Miao had fallen.


    The news propagated at an astonishing speed.


    Countless people were awaiting the latest news on the shore of the Yingzhou Sea. Instead of receiving news about Zhong Miao returning to Yingzhou after successfully capturing Ye Futian, they got the news of his death. This piece of news came as a massive shock to everyone from the Domain Chief��s Manor. The cultivators of Yingzhou City were similarly startled by it. Everyone��s hearts trembled in disbelief.


    Zhong Miao was the second-highest figure in the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor, a powerful existence only second to Chief Xihai. Not long ago, he had gone off to pursue Ye Futian. Everyone believed that he would most likely capture Ye Futian. If Ye Futian escaped, it would still be understandable.


    However, in the end, Zhong Miao was killed by Ye Futian.


    Was this true?


    Why did it feel like a dream?


    On the ship that Xi Chiyao was on, after the group of cultivators from West Imperial Palace heard this news, they could not wrap their heads around it for a moment. Xi Chiyao was also stunned. She blinked and then revealed a smile. It indeed was a surprise.


    The person who had died was actually Zhong Miao.


    ��The Domain Chief��s Manor has suffered a great loss this time,�� an elder said to the side. Zhong Miao was the second-highest figure in the Domain Chief��s Manor. All of the people who had been killed before this combined could not compare to him alone. His death had directly weakened the overall strength of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The significance of this incident was also even more extraordinary.


    This meant that the disaster faced by the Domain Chief��s Manor had yet to end. It was far from over.


    No one imagined that there would be such an outcome. If Chief Xihai had known that it would end up like this, he wouldn��t have touched Ye Futian.


    ��The Domain Chief of our West Sea Domain is most likely feeling the pain right now,�� speculated Xi Chiyao. The people beside her nodded their heads in agreement. This time, how would the Domain Chief��s Manor deal with the threat that Ye Futian posed?


    Right now, on the shore of the Yingzhou Sea, the cultivators from the Domain Chief��s Manor were all retreating. This made those who were still doubtful of the news realize that it was true. Zhong Miao had fallen. After he had left to pursue Ye Futian, he was killed instead.


    For Yingzhou Island, this was earth-shaking news.


    In the Domain Chief��s Manor, Chief Xihai was seated. The aura on his body was terrifying. Before him, many members of the Domain Chief��s Manor were gathered. No one dared to make a sound.


    At this moment, Chief Xihai recalled how he had treated Ye Futian. Did he regret it?

 Chapter 2519 - Seeking Aid

    Of course, Chief Xihai would not regret it. He was merely enraged and had an intense murderous intent.


    Now, the members of Yingzhou City were all pondering the same question��how did Ye Futian kill Zhong Miao? Did he rely on his ability, or did he join forces with other people to hunt down Zhong Miao?


    Up until Zhong Miao��s death, he did not believe that Ye Futian had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Zhong Miao instead believed that he had cultivated special techniques. No one from the outside world had fought against Ye Futian, so they knew even less about him. However, one thing was known by everyone��during the storm of conflict, Ye Futian was indeed a Level-Eight Renhuang.


    Over the years, as powerful as Ye Futian was, he would only be at the ninth-tier.


    This was the ironclad rule of the cultivation world. A Level-Nine cultivator couldn��t defeat a Tribulation cultivator. There were no exceptions. Even the figures with heaven-defying talent could not do so. This was a natural divide that could not be crossed.


    Tribulation cultivators could suppress Renhuangs in terms of the domain of the Great Path and law.


    So, how did Ye Futian manage to defeat Zhong Miao?


    When Zhong Miao went over to hunt Ye Futian down, had the latter already laid out his trap in the West Sea and joined forces with the top cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum to kill Zhong Miao?


    In the Ziwei Segmentum, there seemed only to be two Tribulation cultivators. Even if they joined forces, would Zhong Miao actually fail to escape?


    Ye Futian could have also relied on a divine item instead of joining forces with others. Everyone remembered that Ye Futian relied on the combat ability of the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor back in the day. They also knew that Ye Futian inherited the teachings of many Great Emperors.


    It might also be that Ye Futian still had powerful trump cards that allowed him to emerge victorious despite the odds and kill Zhong Miao. The possibility of this being the case seemed greater.


    On the ship that the cultivators of West Imperial Palace were on, they naturally could hear the discussion of the crowd on the shore of the Yingzhou Sea. Xi Chiyao said, ��Which possibility do you all believe is more likely?��


    ��Ye Futian should have relied on special methods. This person has many inheritances and is mysterious and unfathomable. It is normal for him to possess a trump card. If that is the case, he should have intentionally lured Zhong Miao after him and then killed him off afterward,�� said an elder on the side. This was also the answer that most people believed.


    ��Could it possibly be that he did it with his own strength,�� said Xi Chiyao, but she stopped halfway. It seemed rather farfetched. Although she acknowledged Ye Futian��s talents and abilities, the possibility of this being the case was too low.


    As expected, the people beside her all shook their heads. The elder continued, ��It is highly unlikely.��


    Xi Chiyao nodded her head and did not say any more. She was just curious as to what had happened in the battle exactly.


    Unfortunately, she had not been able to witness it herself.


    ��The members of the Domain Chief��s Manor have all retreated. For a long time, they will most likely not dare to show themselves again,�� someone reported. This caused Xi Chiyao to reveal a smile. The overlord of the West Sea Domain and the cultivators of the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor were hiding in their base and did not dare to come out?


    It was so ironic.


    At the start, Chief Xihai��s aggressive attitude was overbearing and authoritative. However, he had most likely become a laughing stock for the others now.


    ��Look over there,�� exclaimed someone who was standing on the shore of the Yingzhou Sea. Everyone looked into the distance and saw a silhouette with white hair floating on the sea. He advanced towards them. He looked suave and had an extraordinary temperament. He was none other than Ye Futian.


    He had come again!


    Everyone felt their hearts tremble in fear when they saw his face. After killing Zhong Miao, Ye Futian had once again approached the shore of the Yingzhou Sea. From the looks of it, he would not spare the cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    To be put into such a tight spot by a junior, the cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor would certainly feel aggrieved. This kind of situation had never happened before.


    ��Renhuang Ye.�� Right at this moment, a crisp voice called out. Ye Futian, who was standing on the water, turned around and saw the figure standing on the deck.


    It was Xi Chiyao. Before this, he had noticed her presence. However, they were barely acquaintances. Besides that, he had become the common enemy of everyone in the Divine Prefecture after being targeted by the Imperial Palace. In Ye Futian��s opinion, all the forces of the Divine Prefecture would surely distance themselves from him because of this reason. Therefore, he was somewhat surprised to hear Xi Chiyao greeting him.


    ��Goddess Chiyao,�� Ye Futian greeted Xi Chiyao, nodding slightly.


    ��It��s been a long time since we last met. Why don��t you come on board so that we can chat?�� invited Xi Chiyao. All the cultivators on the shore of the Yingzhou Sea were shocked when they witnessed this scene. Everyone knew that Ye Futian was the successor of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Putting that fact aside, Ye Futian was now the mortal enemy of the Domain Chief��s Manor. Xi Chiyao was a Goddess of West Imperial Palace. In a sense, she represented West Imperial Palace. She was practically giving the Domain Chief��s Manor a slap in the face for her to invite Ye Futian onboard for a gathering now.


    Everyone in the West Sea Domain knew that there was actually some competition between West Imperial Palace and the Domain Chief��s Manor. However, the situation was a little different this time after all, since Ye Futian had just killed the second-in-command of the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Ye Futian was also taken aback. However, since the other party extended an invitation, he would not reject her. With a flash, he landed on the deck of the ship where Xi Chiyao was.


    Xi Chiyao beamed with joy; her smile was mesmerizing.


    ��Are you not worried that West Imperial Palace might harm you?�� teased Xi Chiyao. There were Tribulation level cultivators on her ship. If they launched a sneak attack and encircled Ye Futian in their domains of the Great Path, how did he plan to deal with that?


    Did Ye Futian act so boldly because he was very confident with his skills and was not afraid of them at all? Or did he have blind faith in her?


    ��I believe that Goddess Chiyao will not take the risk and allow West Imperial Palace to become the second Domain Chief��s Manor,�� replied Ye Futian nonchalantly. He spoke with a confident tone. It was as though if West Imperial Palace really attacked him, they would surely face the same fate as the Domain Chief��s Manor.


    The cultivators of West Imperial Palace were somewhat displeased when they heard this. However, they did nothing about it. They realized that Ye Futian was so ruthless towards the Domain Chief��s Manor for another reason. He wanted to use the incident as a deterrent to warn the various forces of the Divine Prefecture. All of them should act cautiously and should not attack him recklessly. Otherwise, they would end up like the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Xi Chiyao did not take Ye Futian��s words to heart. She smiled and said, ��Since you said so, does it mean that you are confident that with your ability, you can put up a fight with cultivators who are at the Tribulation Plane?��


    Ye Futian did not respond to this question. He lured Zhong Miao away from the city before killing him. He did so because he did not want the people from the outside world to know more about his ability. He was well aware that the crowd would have all sorts of speculation, but they would never know the truth. He would keep them guessing. The outcome was more than enough to speak for itself.


    Xi Chiyao��s gaze was locked onto Ye Futian��s eyes. She couldn��t see the answer she wanted from his gaze.


    ��Rumor has it that Renhuang Ye has been to Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven for training, and you have mastered Celerity,�� Xi Chiyao continued to pry. ��Surely, you had obtained quite a few faithful encounters when you were on Spirit Mountain, right?�� Her tone was full of curiosity.


    ��Goddess Chiyao is certainly interested in me,�� Ye Futian teased.


    ��Right now, everyone in the West Sea Domain is interested in you,�� Xi Chiyao responded.


    ��I met The Buddha when I was on Spirit Mountain,�� Ye Futian revealed. ��The Buddha allowed me to cultivate on the mountain. So, I spent more than a decade memorizing the Buddhist Sutra by heart. I have been enlightened, and it was helpful in improving my own cultivation.��


    A glint of surprise flashed in Xi Chiyao��s eyes. She did not expect Ye Futian to share this information with her.


    ��Renhuang Ye has indeed obtained a great fateful encounter,�� Xi Chiyao said with a smile. ��I thought that you would never satisfy my curiosity.��


    ��I have a favor to ask from Goddess Chiyao,�� Ye Futian said. Xi Chiyao��s eyes twinkled. Now she knew why Ye Futian told her the truth. So it turned out that he had a favor to ask from her.


    ��Renhuang Ye, what��s the favor?�� Xi Chiyao inquired with a smile.


    Ye Futian said, ��The West Sea is vast. I heard that there are many celestial mountains in the West Sea Domain. May I know where I can find top-tier elixir recipes and herbs?��


    In reality, he came to the West Sea Domain for two goals. The first goal was to deal with the Domain Chief��s Manor. The second goal was to seek ways to improve his alchemy.


    In terms of alchemy, the West Sea Domain was ranked first among the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture.


    Xi Chiyao was shocked when she heard Ye Futian��s request. Was he actually seeking elixir recipes?


    What did he plan to do?


    ��Who wants to concoct pills?�� Xi Chiyao did not reply to his question right away; instead, she probed eagerly. Even though Ye Futian had inherited alchemy techniques, he seldom revealed it in public. Not many people knew about this particular ability of his. His talents and his combat ability outshone his alchemy skill.


    ��I am the one who wants to concoct pills,�� Ye Futian responded.


    Xi Chiyao gave Ye Futian a good look and said, ��Renhuang Ye is indeed impressive.��


    ��Currently, the Divine Prefecture no longer has any top-tier Alchemy grandmaster. Tianyan City is famous for their armory skill, but nowhere is famous for their alchemy,�� Xi Chiyao said. ��Renhuang Ye has been to Spirit Mountain. There is a Great Buddha in Western Heaven who is also a top-tier Alchemy grandmaster. His name is Medicine Buddha Lord. Why would Renhuang Ye miss this opportunity to learn from him?��


    Ye Futian explained, ��I cultivated on Spirit Mountain only because the Buddhist sects had graced me with such an opportunity. Besides that, Medicine Buddha Lord never revealed himself throughout my stay there. I had no reason to seek his guidance, nor did I have the opportunity to do so.�� Xi Chiyao nodded understandingly. What he said was indeed true. Medicine Buddha Lord had an extraordinary standing in the Western Heaven. He was not someone others could easily approach for guidance.


    ��Compared to other domains, the West Sea Domain is rather famous in alchemy. Several Deity Islands in this domain have given birth to many powerful Alchemy masters,�� Xi Chiyao told Ye Futian. ��If we were to pinpoint a place in the domain that is most renowned for alchemy, it would be Mount Jiuyi. It is an island as well as a celestial mountain. Anyway, what kind of elixir recipes and herbs are you looking for?��


    ��Recipes and herbs that are suitable for cultivators at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. Or even more powerful ones,�� responded Ye Futian.


    ��It might be easy to obtain recipes and herbs that are suitable for cultivators at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. However, it isn��t easy to get anything more powerful than that. Alchemists who can concoct such pills are even rarer,�� Xi Chiyao said. ��But I will ask my men to pay attention to any relevant information. If we find anything, I will let you know.��


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��Goddess Chiyao, thank you in advance for your help.��


    ��During the battle in the Original Realm, I once agreed to follow and cultivate with you. Now, if you don��t mind, I��m willing to accompany you while you explore the West Sea Domain. I can be your tour guide too,�� Xi Chiyao offered. However, Ye Futian shook his head and rejected her, saying, ��Thank you for your offer, but I��m sure you are aware of my current situation. It��s better for me to travel alone. I��ll stay here for some time. If you have any news, you can find me anytime.��


    Ye Futian asked for Xi Chiyao��s help because of her identity as the Goddess of West Imperial Palace. She had her fingers on the pulse of happenings in the West Sea Domain. Right now, Ye Futian desperately needed to concoct more pills.


    Just as his teacher, Qi Xuangang, had said, Ye Futian alone was not enough to ensure the sovereignty of the Ziwei Segmentum. He needed to build everyone in the Ziwei Segmentum up as soon as possible.

 Chapter 2520 - : The Attitudes of the Various Parties

    Ye Futian seemed to have no intention of leaving Yingzhou City. In the following days, cultivators who resided in the city could often see him appearing on the shore of the Yingzhou Sea. Usually, he would stand on the water.


    Chief Xihai did not go after Ye Futian. It wasn��t very sensible for the Chief to do so anyway. He was a top figure and the Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor. His subordinate had been brutally murdered, yet he could not do anything to avenge him. If Chief Xihai came after Ye Futian every time he appeared but failed to kill him again and again, it would be a very humiliating experience.


    Chief Xihai would most likely not attack Ye Futian again until he was certain that he could win against Ye Futian.


    However, Chief Xihai had to pay the price for this decision. All the cultivators from the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor had retreated back to the areas around the manor. They were only active around those areas and dared not move too far away.


    It was because Ye Futian could appear at any minute and hunt them down.


    A bizarre occurrence had thus taken place in the West Sea Domain. Alone, Ye Futian managed to seal off the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor. How ironic was that?


    At the same time, the news of this incident traveled far and wide, shocking all 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture.


    The Donghua Domain naturally also caught wind of this news.


    Ning Yuan had returned to the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor. He had been paying close attention to Ye Futian��s movements. When he found out about what had happened in the West Sea Domain, he had a hard time believing that the news was real.


    Ye Futian had killed Zhong Miao, the second-in-command of the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor.


    Zhong Miao was a cultivator who was at the same level as Ning Yuan himself.


    What did this imply?


    It implied that Ye Futian was also capable of killing him.


    Ye Futian could have received aid from others or used a divine item to enhance his ability. Yet, regardless of how Ye Futian did it, he succeeded in killing Zhong Miao. Considering this incident from another perspective, if Ning Yuan kept targeting Ye Futian, the latter could similarly get rid of him, the Chief of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor.


    However, before this, Ye Futian had only killed Ning Hua and had not planned to attack him at all. Only now did Ning Yuan understand that Ye Futian spared him out of consideration for Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Otherwise, Ye Futian would certainly have found a way to eliminate him before this.


    Crack! Ning Yuan clenched both his fists tightly. He suddenly realized that he was pathetic. It was ironic how he had gone hunting Ye Futian before this.


    Ye Futian was not afraid of him at all.


    Ye Futian chose not to attack him merely because the former did not want to offend Donghuang Imperial Palace. If Ye Futian did not have that concern in mind, Ning Hua would not have been the only one who perished that day.


    ��He must die.�� Intense murderous intent filled Ning Yuan��s eyes. His heart would never be at peace until Ye Futian was killed.


    Ye Futian left him alone now because the former was concerned about Donghuang Imperial Palace. It did not mean that Ye Futian had no intention of attacking him. If Ye Futian had the chance, he would surely kill Ning Yuan.


    Ye Futian being alive was a major threat to Ning Yuan.


    ��


    The Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor similarly received news about what had happened in the West Sea Domain. Everyone in the manor was stunned when they heard the news.


    The Chief of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor and his son, Zhou Muhuang, were especially appalled by the news.


    The Chief warned Zhou Muhuang, saying, ��Muhuang, try not to provoke Ye Futian from now on. If you can��t kill him, then you should do your best to stay away and not enrage him.��


    ��Understood.�� Zhou Muhuang nodded in agreement. Right now, he could only stomach the grudges between him and Ye Futian. He had to do so. The power of the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor was relatively weak. They could no longer afford to offend a figure such as Ye Futian now. The West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor was far more powerful than they were, and yet they ended up in such a pathetic state. The cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor did not even dare to leave their base. If Zhou Muhuang remained stubborn, he would die a horrible death. He would most likely end up like his descendants and die before he even realized it.


    The Nanhai Family was also part of the Shangqing Domain. Their clan leader gathered the cultivators of the clan to discuss affairs.


    Not long ago, the Nanhai Family received news from the West Sea Domain. This news shocked the clan leader.


    Ye Futian had killed the cultivators of the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor. A Tribulation Plane cultivator had ventured to hunt him down but had instead been killed and perished. No one knew how he was killed by Ye Futian. Aside from that, many top-tier Renhuangs had died at the hands of Ye Futian. Top-tier Renhuangs seemed so fragile in his presence.


    On the other hand, this news was earth-shaking for the Nanhai Family. Ye Futian and the Nanhai Family had some vendetta with each other, and their grudges ran deep. It also involved the Muyun clan of Four Corner Village.


    If Ye Futian were to come over and settle the score with them, how would they end up?


    The entire Nanhai Family combined could not hold a candle to Ye Futian.


    The clan leader of the Nanhai Family directly ordered, ��From today onwards, all cultivators from the Nanhai Family are forbidden from getting into any conflicts with Ye Futian or the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    ��Yes, sir,�� replied everyone while nodding their heads in resignation. From this point onwards, Ye Futian was the only one who was allowed to initiate any trouble.


    The clan leader of the Nanhai Family continued, ��Muyun Long, you and your clan should make a trip back to Four Corner Village and beg for Master��s forgiveness. If there��s a chance, continue to cultivate under Master��s guidance.�� His order caused Muyun Long to be stupefied for a moment before returning to normal again.


    When Muyun Long heard the order, his face turned as pale as a sheet. He had to return to Four Corner Village and beg for Master��s forgiveness?


    He certainly wanted Master to accept him again. He had tried to ask for Master��s forgiveness before, but his efforts were in vain. Now that the clan leader of the Nanhai Family brought up this issue again, Muyun Long was well aware of what the other party implied. They had been abandoned. In the future, if Ye Futian came to seek revenge, the Muyun clan would be the first group to be forsaken.


    ��Muyun Lan, you have once cultivated under Master. You and Muyun Shu should make a trip back to the village as well,�� the head of the Nanhai Family continued to advise the Muyun clan to return to the village and restore their relationships with Master.


    As for what would happen in the future, they could only play by ear.


    ��When I left the village, I decided that I would never return,�� Muyun Lan declared calmly. ��If the Nanhai Family thinks that you will get into trouble because of us, I can leave right now.��


    Muyun Lan was also a Proud Son of Heaven. He had his ego. Ye Futian��s achievement in the West Sea Domain had successfully terrorized the clan leader of the Nanhai Family.


    ��


    The cultivators of the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture each had different attitudes when they received the news about what had happened in the West Sea Domain. Nevertheless, all of them became very aware of Ye Futian��s growth. Ye Futian was shining brightly like a rising star.


    The various parties figured that if they wanted to attack Ye Futian, they had to do so as soon as possible. The longer they waited, the more difficult it would be for them to kill him. Of course, the current Ye Futian was also not someone they could take on as they pleased.


    On the shore of the Yingzhou Sea, a ship plowed through the waves and arrived where Ye Futian was. Xi Chiyao, who was on the deck, shouted, ��Renhuang Ye.��


    ��Goddess Chiyao,�� Ye Futian greeted her while nodding.


    ��Renhuang Ye is indeed the chosen one. I have good news for you,�� Xi Chiyao said while smiling. Ye Futian paused for a moment. Good news?


    Recently, he had only inquired about one matter from Xi Chiyao.


    It was about the elixir.


    ��Goddess, please share the news with me,�� Ye Futian said politely.


    ��There��s a clue pointing to Jiuyi Celestial Mountain. Renhuang Ye might be able to find what you need there,�� Xi Chiyao said.


    ��Will I find elixir recipes or herbs there?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Neither. It��s a clue,�� explained Xi Chiyao as she looked at Ye Futian. ��However, rumor has it that this clue is related to a manuscript with ancient elixir recipes in it. It was left behind by a mighty Alchemy grandmaster from ancient times. It might contain everything that you seek.��

 Chapter 2521 - The Jiuyi Celestial Mountain

    ��What clue?�� asked Ye Futian. The cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor were holing up at the moment, so he had already reached his goal.


    After this incident, those from the Divine Prefecture that wanted to handle him or other Practitioners from the Ziwei Segmentum would have to consider whether they could bear his revenge before acting.


    So, the next goal was to refine extraordinary elixirs.


    Elixirs were an exterior help, but the best of them were not used to enhance one��s cultivation level but to help people get enlightened, like the ones containing the powerful force of the Great Path of Life that he had refined to shape the root.


    Elixirs could be classified into many categories. The best Alchemy Masters should know what the best ones were.


    Due to the limitation of the cultivation level of Supreme Deity Donglai, the elixir recipes that used to suit him did not suit him anymore. He needed something stronger. That was why he had asked Xi Chiyao for help.


    And Xi Chiyao did not disappoint him. She brought him good news very soon.


    ��The Deity Map,�� Xi Chiyao said. ��There is no top Alchemy Master in the Divine Prefecture for now, but the West Sea Domain remains the most powerful domain in terms of alchemy. There are many masters. And many Deity Islands have a strong alchemy atmosphere. Do you know why?��


    Ye Futian shook his head. As far as he knew, the West Sea Domain was powerful among the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture in terms of alchemy, which was exactly the second reason that he came here. However, he did not really know why that was.


    ��It��s a legend. It��s already impossible to tell whether it��s true or false, but it could be partly true even if it��s not completely true. You might as well just hear it out.�� Xi Chiyao went on, ��It was the Age of the Gods before the collapse of the Heavenly Path. There were many Great Emperors. Significant changes happened to the Heavenly Law later. The gods fell, and the Heavenly Path collapsed. The old world expanded and evolved into the current world. However, the gods didn��t fall completely or die out after the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Instead, their will remains everywhere in the world. For example, the inheritance of Shenyin the Great that you got earlier is one of them.��


    Ye Futian was listening to her quietly. Shenyin the Great traveled through the void for countless days and years on a black turtle, and his soul was sealed in a guqin called Yearning.


    Actually, he did have assumed that the gods from ancient times might still exist in the world, only in a different form.


    It had been proved in this Original Realm.


    ��Legend has it that there was an alchemist who was a Great Emperor in that era. He was incarnated as an elixir committed to an ancient Practitioner��s care and imparted his alchemy to the latter. That Practitioner survived the turbulent days partly thanks to the help of the will of the Great Emperor. Many years later, when he had achieved a very high cultivation level, he started an alchemy school and stayed on an ancient celestial mountain to cultivate.��


    ��However, people cast their covetous eyes on him because of his alchemy skills. Countless Practitioners from that era sieged him, intending to kill him. And he lost his life that way. It��s said many of his treasures were looted, but his disciples also took many out of there, which were later possessed by civilians.��


    ��The celestial mountain in the legend is in the West Sea Domain nowadays. That��s the reason that many gorgeous elixir recipes appeared in the West Sea Domain. And there is also a Deity Map. It��s said to be the key to finding the celestial mountain.��


    Xi Chiyao looked at Ye Futian quietly after finishing her story. Ye Futian seemed to be digesting what he had heard. He looked at Xi Chiyao after a while of silence. ��So, that Deity Map probably has shown up on the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain?��


    ��Yep. There are always rumors like that, and many alchemists have been looking for the Deity Map. Alchemists are different from Practitioners. What they quest is extraordinary elixirs, and many of them are hermits that are not interested in starting any school or sect. Of course, the quest for stronger elixirs is to enhance their cultivation level, too. The higher their cultivation level is, the better elixirs they will be able to refine. The two are complementary.��


    Xi Chiyao responded, ��But we have got definite news that the Deity Map probably have appeared. That��s why I said Renhuang Ye was the Man of Destiny.��


    ��It might just be a coincidence,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. In fact, he had realized that strange things kept happening to him, too, and such a coincidence was absolutely not a new thing for him. It happened in the past, too.


    He called himself the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path, but could he harbor a destiny for real? Was he born to be an emperor?


    He could explain none of those.


    ��So, the appearance of the Deity Map can start another bloody war, can��t it?�� asked Ye Futian. The Deity Map had to do with the legendary celestial mountain, and the inheritances of the Great Emperor might be there. Putting Alchemy Masters aside, even other forces would compete for them because if they got those inheritances, their family would never lack top Alchemy Masters in the future.


    They could either use mature Alchemy Masters or cultivate new ones by themselves.


    ��I am afraid that will be inevitable. I��m one of the first that have got the news. Renhuang Ye, you can bring the date of your trip forward. In that way, you might be able to beat the other forces to it.�� Xi Chiyao added, ��If you need anything, the West Imperial Palace can offer you some help.��


    Ye Futian was quite surprised at Xi Chiyao��s offer. Looking at her in surprise, he said, ��The Deity Map will help to find treasures and the celestial mountain in the West Sea Domain. If the West Imperial Palace gets it, you will attract many Alchemy Masters from the West Sea Domain to your force, and they will be useful for you. So, why did the West Imperial Palace come to tell me about the news instead of trying to find it yourselves?��


    It was such a precious thing that even top forces would not want to miss it. Besides, the West Imperial Palace was so powerful in the West Sea Domain. The closer you are to the thing you want, the easier you will get it. Odds were that they would find the Deity Map.


    ��We might be able to get the Deity Map, but it��s hard to find top Alchemy Masters. However, in my opinion, Renhuang Ye will probably become one of them. Therefore, if Renhuang Ye finds the Deity Map and the celestial mountain with the help of the West Imperial Palace, I hope we can share the benefits and work together,�� said Xi Chiyao in a low voice. The ship��s surroundings were sealed by some powerful cultivators so that no one could hear their conversation.


    Gazing at Xi Chiyao, Ye Futian said, ��Isn��t the West Imperial Palace afraid to offend the Donghuang Imperial Palace by allying with me?��


    He was hailed as the successor of Emperor Ye Qing. No one in the Divine Prefecture had the nerve to be close to him.


    Because no one wanted to offend the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    ��We are. That��s why it will be a secret alliance,�� Xi Chiyao said with a smile. ��Most of the time, Renhuang Ye will still need to work hard yourself. The West Imperial Palace will offer you the help in our power.��


    ��Goddess Chiyao, do you trust me so much?�� staring at her, Ye Futian asked.


    ��Judging from Renhuang Ye��s past, I totally trust you,�� responded Xi Chiyao. The trust they were talking about had many levels of meaning.


    ��Thank you.�� Ye Futian threw Xi Chiyao a significant look.


    ��When will you depart, Renhuang Ye?�� asked Xi Chiyao.


    ��Now,�� answered Ye Futian.


    ��Okay.�� Xi Chiyao nodded. ��Renhuang Ye, you are fast enough. I don��t think you��ll need me to lead the way. This is the sea map of the West Sea Domain. The main islands in there are all marked on the map. You��ll find it very helpful. Of course, there are also some special islands that few people know or haven��t been discovered yet. Those islands are certainly not marked.��


    Taking the jade slip Xi Chiyao handed him, Ye Futian said, ��Thank you, Goddess Chiyao.��


    ��Safe trip, Renhuang Ye. The West Imperial Palace has acted, too. Some of us already arrived at the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain, and I will also go there,�� said Xi Chiyao.


    ��Okay. I��ll see you on the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain then,�� said Ye Futian.


    Xi Chiyao nodded. Then she saw Ye Futian disappear from the ship without leaving any trace behind.


    Seeing him disappear, Xi Chiyao smiled. And her pretty eyes seemed to sparkle. However, the old man next to her frowned. He said, ��He was just here, but we still can��t capture any trace of his aura, just like before. He would be a pain in the neck if he were our enemy.��


    ��Well, it��s Chief Xihai who has the pain in his neck now,�� said Xi Chiyao with a smile.


    The old man shook his head, hoping Ye Futian would not be their enemy because such an enemy would even get the West Imperial Palace into trouble.


    ��


    The Jiuyi Celestial Mountain was a mountain, but it was also an island built on a mountain.


    Mount Jiuyi was called the Jiuyi Mountains at the beginning. Then a big city was built on the endless mountain range. Looked down from the sky, the mountains were like countless divine dragons twisting their bodies.


    The city built on the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain was super prosperous. More than that, it was in chaos, too. It used to be a barren area without any original inhabitants, and all of the Practitioners living there were outsiders.


    Some gorgeous Alchemy Masters came here to trade initially, and they would come back here at intervals. That brought more Alchemy Masters here little by little.


    Since Alchemy Masters were living here, there were certainly elixirs and other precious things. Therefore, Practitioners from everywhere were attracted here to seek treasures.


    As time went by, the barren Jiuyi Mountains developed into the current Jiuyi Celestial Mountain and gave birth to a prosperous city. The entire West Sea Domain knew about this Deity Island, and people would come here to trade and seek treasures.


    That was how the city became prosperous and chaotic.


    Murders and robberies were frequent.


    And some forces and Alchemy Masters started to base themselves here.


    In the past few days, more people were visiting the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain than usual. They flew across the air over the sea and into the air over the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain. Rumor had it that the Deity Map had been seen here, so powerful cultivators from various islands in the West Sea Domain were drawn here.


    In the crowd that had arrived at the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain, there was an unspeakably handsome white-haired man in white with his hands behind his back. He looked down. By glancing over with his divine consciousness, he found the Practitioners on the celestial mountain were all very strong.


    Those weaker ones probably would not come here because it would be useless even if they came.


    He looked into the distance. Xi Chiyao told him that this celestial mountain was full of Alchemy Masters. If he could recruit some of them, it would be doubtless a good thing for developing the Ziwei Segmentum. Besides, he probably could ask Goddess Donglai to convene the Alchemy Masters on the Eastern Deity Island if such an opportunity came up.


    Although average elixirs were not good enough for him, elixirs of all grades would be necessary for the growth of the Ziwei Segmentum, and he could give them to other Alchemy Masters.

 Chapter 2522 - A Trade

    Ye Futian was flying over the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain toward the deep part of its.


    Many Practitioners around him came from different parts of the West Sea Domain, the Outer Realms. They were all here for the Deity Map.


    At this moment, a man flew toward Ye Futian, which made him frown, but he did nothing to stop the man. It was a Renhuang, but not strong enough to post him any threat. However, if that man did anything unusual, Ye Futian would just eliminate him without showing any mercy.


    That Renhuang approached Ye Futian very soon. After bowing at Ye Futian, who did not stop flying, the man said via voice transmission, ��Renhuang Ye, I am a Practitioner from the West Imperial Palace.��


    Ye Futian stopped right away. He looked back at the man. The West Imperial Palace was an overbearing force in the West Sea Domain, so they must have deployed their people around the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain. That was how they located him not long after he arrived.


    Of course, he did not try to hide his identity or trace, either. It was just normal for him to be found when the West Imperial Palace had especially arranged someone to wait for him.


    ��Yes?�� Ye Futian answered via voice transmission, too. Xi Chiyao told him their contact with him would not be noticeable. Since that man had chosen to speak to him via voice transmission, he certainly did not mind doing the same.


    That Renhuang started to fly ahead again, and so did Ye Futian. The two were flying together, one after the other, like two unrelated strangers.


    ��The Goddess told me to report to Renhuang Ye about the information the West Imperial Palace has collected,�� said the man. He went on, ��There is a force headquartered on the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain for a long time. About 20 percent of the treasure trades here are under their control. That force is called the Breeze Pavilion, and its Pavilion head, Li Qingfeng, is one of the best Alchemy Masters in the West Sea Domain. The Breeze Pavilion was the first to release the news about the Deity Map. They did that only because the map got stolen, but we can��t exclude the possibility that it��s a trick. As for the thief, it��s said to be another legendary man from the West Sea Domain called Daoist Monk Mu or Thief Mu. He is skilled at the Art of Disguise. He can change how he looks and restrict and alter his aura. A total wizard in the West Sea Domain. His cultivation level is unfathomable, but his speed is even more impressive.


    ��After the theft of the Deity Map, Li Qingfeng, the head of the Breeze Pavilion, sealed the Jiuyi City. It is the central region and the most popular trade center of Jiuyi Mountain. It is located at the peak of the celestial mountain. People are only allowed to go into the city but not allowed to leave. There will be a strict body search for anyone that wants to leave. No well-respected Practitioners will put up with that. However, it is exactly because of Li Qingfeng��s strict rules that the Deity Map might still be in the Jiuyi City.��


    Ye Futian nodded. No wonder the news had leaked. Usually, no one would have disclosed such a secret if they had got the Deity Map. They would keep the map to themselves and study it in private instead.


    Ye Futian was surprised that the map had been stolen, so the news was probably true. The pieces of information he had got added up.


    ��Li Qingfeng used his Great Path domain to seal the Jiuyi City?�� asked Ye Futian out of curiosity.


    ��That��s right,�� responded the man via voice transmission. ��Li Qingfeng is getting anxious now. Due to the particularity of the Practitioners on the Jiuyi Celestial Mountain, locking the city down is already the strictest measure he can take. It��s impossible to search everyone��s body. That would offend too many people and harm his interests. However, he hasn��t found the Deity Map yet, and using the Great Path domain to seal the city is consuming him greatly. Besides, more and more foreign powerful cultivators are coming. Li Qingfeng started to panic. The situation is getting out of his control. Once the powerhouses from those top forces meddle in, he will totally lose his grip on the situation.��


    Ye Futian certainly understood Li Qingfeng would lose control of the situation if forces like the West Imperial Palace intervened.


    However, although the West Imperial Palace had arrived, it did not change the situation. Instead, they did not mind Li Qingfeng keeping the city sealed. After all, they did not want the Deity Map to be taken out of the city, either.


    ��Is there any chance that Daoist Monk Mu already left, I mean, before Li Qingfeng locked the city down?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Li Qingfeng should know this better than anyone else. Now that he insists on the lockdown, I suppose he must be sure of what he is doing,�� answered that man.


    ��I see,�� Ye Futian responded with a nod, keeping flying ahead. It did not seem easy to get the Deity Map. Once the seal was broken, the map would be taken away from Jiuyi Mountain anytime, and it would be even harder to find it.


    ��Renhuang Ye, people from the West Imperial Palace will contact you anytime to offer you some help after you go into the Jiuyi City,�� said the man.


    ��Great,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��See you, senior.�� The man cupped his hands. Then he left in a flash, and Ye Futian kept going head at a higher speed. He knew clearly where his destination was.


    He arrived at the peak of Jiuyi Celestial Mountain very soon. It was a city built on the winding mountain range. However, there was a dreadful Sword Realm deployed outside there. The Sword Realm covered a large area and had infinite Sword Will flowing in it. The murderous intent in there was formidable. Mere sensing of the power of the Sword Realm would make Renhuang cultivators�� hearts beat fast.


    It was such a Sword Realm that sealed Jiuyi City.


    Entrance only. No exit.


    However, it required some powers to go inside. The Sword Realm actually kept most away from the city.


    Ye Futian accelerated and penetrated the Sword Realm to enter the city with ease. It was thanks to Li Qingfeng since he let Ye Futian pass. Foreign Practitioners would not be able to enter otherwise. Ye Futian undoubtedly detected a divine consciousness focused on him while going through the Sword Realm.


    That divine consciousness was certainly of Li Qingfeng. He was monitoring Jiuyi City and everyone that came and left.


    In this way, he would know as soon as anything came up.


    That divine consciousness only lingered on Ye Futian for a second. It was retracted right away since there was nothing unusual.


    Ye Futian flew in a specific direction after going into Jiuyi City. It was the highest point of the city, and that was where the Breeze Pavilion was located.


    Ye Futian did not look for the Deity Map immediately after his arrival. He was new here. There was no way that he could find Daoist Monk Mu. Besides, he did not have any clue. If anyone could find Daoist Monk Mu, it must be Li Qingfeng.


    Walking on the winding trail carefreely, he was taking his time. He saw many stalls on the two sides of the trail, all belonging to the Practitioners doing business in Jiuyi City.


    Jiuyi City was sealed, but the hustle and bustle of Jiuyi City was not affected. People trapped in the city were living in the same old way as usual. Treasure trading certainly would not stop.


    The trail led to the Breeze Pavilion on the top of the mountain. It was a busy trail crowded with people, and people were the only thing Ye Futian saw at first glance. Many stalls had extraordinary goods.


    Ye Futian wondered whether or not he could find any treasures there.


    Walking casually on the trail, he found many goods were related to elixirs. They were either elixirs or ingredients to make elixirs or elixir recipes. And the businessmen here had specific requirements for the goods they wanted. Many of them would specify what they exactly wanted to trade.


    That was how trades of precious treasures went. They all wanted the particular things they were in need of.


    However, few of the treasures were to Ye Futian��s liking.


    He came to a place where many Practitioners were around a stall. So, he also took a look.


    The stall belonged to an old man that looked like a sage. He had a white beard, white hair, rosy cheeks, and bright eyes and was in a good mood. It was a powerful Practitioner on the Level-Nine Renhuang Plane.


    The old man had been in Jiuyi City for months. Many people knew him, and he had a lot of good stuff. He always got a lot of attention every time he showed up here to trade. Occasionally, he would also take some treasures to the Breeze Pavilion to trade. Even Li Qingfeng knew him.


    That was how his stall drew the attention of many powerful people every time he showed up.


    There was a folded parchment on his stall at the moment. The people around there were in a heated discussion.


    ��A top alchemy method?�� Ye Futian heard them speak in low voices.


    ��Exactly. The best of the best. It really took me some effort to get it. Are you interested, young friend?�� the old man said with a smile after hearing Ye Futian��s murmur. He darted a glance at Ye Futian, who was standing at the periphery of the crowd, and then looked away, waiting quietly.


    Ye Futian had inherited the alchemy method of Supreme Deity Donglai, but it would be even better if he had other complementary ones for his reference.


    ��Mister, what do you want to trade it for?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Alchemy method is also a sort of method. I want the best sorcery or superpower. Average ones won��t do,�� answered the old man with a smile. Many people looked disappointed. Many people offered to trade their superpowers with the old man, but he just declined all of them.


    ��Is this the whole alchemy method?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Of course not,�� the old man responded. ��It��s only a part of it. You can take a look, and then you will know how precious it is.��


    Ye Futian nodded and walked up to the old man. The old man squatted and unfolded the parchment. Ye Futian got a little excited after taking a look at it. Although it was only part of the alchemy method, he had a hunch that it was more powerful than the one he inherited from Supreme Deity Donglai. He did not find it weird that no one had managed to get it yet.


    ��Senior, are you sure the alchemy method is complete?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Of course.�� The old man nodded. ��I have been here for a long time. I can��t be lying to you.��


    ��Great.�� Ye Futian nodded. He said something to the old man via voice transmission. Then he asked, ��What do you think?��


    A trace of surprise flashed across the old man��s eyes. He answered, ��I think okay.��


    ��I will transmit it to you via my divine consciousness.�� As soon as Ye Futian finished speaking, a divine light flew to the brow chakra of the old man. The old man did not refuse. He accepted it in silence.


    Soon, Ye Futian retracted the light, and the old man gave him a storage ring. ��It has what you need in it.��


    ��Thank you, mister,�� said Ye Futian, taking the storage ring.


    The old man smiled. Then he said to Ye Futian via voice transmission, ��Young friend, please be careful. Many people are staring. Don��t take the thing out of the ring rashly.��


    ��Thank you for the warning. I understand,�� responded Ye Futian. He checked out the storage ring with his divine consciousness and saw the complete alchemy method.


    There was another thing in the storage ring. It looked like an old reel. He checked it out with his divine consciousness and found it had an image, which seemed to be a map.


    ��A map!�� Ye Futian��s pupils shrank slightly. Was that supposed to be a gift?

 Chapter 2523 - The Setup

    This compelled a strange look on Ye Futian��s face. This map�� Could it be?


    The pavilion master of Breeze Pavilion imposed a lockdown on Jiuyi City to find the Deity Map. Now, this old man secretly added a map when they were trading with no apparent reason. It was hard for Ye Futian not to connect the two together.


    Moreover, his last few words were also full of suggestions.


    ��You, my friend, are being watched by many people, so you must be careful. Don��t take out the contents inside lightly.��


    Was he alluding to the alchemy technique or that map?


    Ye Futian saw that the old man took out another treasure to continue transacting. He paid no more attention to him. So Ye Futian, too, turned and left quietly, not wanting to attract any more attention. However, many people were still staring at him, not because of the map but because of the alchemy technique itself.


    The alchemy technique was already an extraordinary treasure, and it was quite understandable that it would be coveted by others. Furthermore, he had used the treasure to impress the old man, indirectly revealing to the others that he possessed considerable wealth, so it was natural that he would be noticed.


    But Ye Futian didn��t care much about that. There were not many who could touch him now. Even in this sealed sword domain, no one could stop him if he didn��t want to be stopped.


    Ye Futian did not leave this area, however. He continued to walk on the mountainous path. He paid close attention to see if there were any other treasures. He found many medicinal materials for refining pills and made trades accordingly. If he were to refine the pills later on, he would have considerable needs for these medicinal materials, so he needed to start preparing right now.


    Walking all this way, Ye Futian had reaped quite a lot. He finally left this area when he reached the Breeze Pavilion on top of the mountain.


    Jiuyi City was built on a mountain. Below Jiuyi City, the area was mountainous with many cultivators who cultivated in these mountains. Of course, even in those winding mountain ranges, there were buildings or cavern residences.


    Ye Futian found an unoccupied area and created a cavern residence. He entered the cavern residence after setting it up, then set up a force of seal outside of it, which was a common practice among the cultivators.


    Inside the cavern, Ye Futian took out the map. This ancient map looked particularly lackluster. Ye Futian��s divine consciousness invaded the map, and suddenly a bright light came from it. Countless lines began to appear. A clear pattern now emerged that looked like a picture of landscape.


    The map depicted a body of water, and there were many islands denoted in this body of water. It was so simple that it was hard to decipher the meaning behind it.


    Ye Futian took out a jade slip and invaded it with his divine consciousness. Suddenly a large map appeared, and it was a map of the West Sea Domain given to him by Xi Chiyao. He wanted to find the area that resembled the area depicted in the smaller map. If the map was that of some other island in the West Sea Domain, he should find the same place on this larger map, determining the location indicated on the smaller map.


    Ye Futian��s divine consciousness continued to scan the larger map, and found many similar locations. However, after close examination and comparison, he found that there were still some differences. As long as there were some deviations that could not be fully reconciled, there was the possibility that it was not the same location he seek.


    The West Sea Domain was a massive territory with countless islands, it was not surprising that there were so many areas that looked similar.


    After a long time comparing the two maps, Ye Futian still hadn��t located the place.


    If this is the Deity Map, it must have a long history. This map was drawn many years ago, and some islands in the Western Sea Domain may have gone through some changes since then. Some islands may have even disappeared for whatever reason. If this is the case, it would be impossible to find it on the map, Ye Futian thought. If this was really the case, it would create some trouble in accurately identifying the location depicted on the map.


    More importantly, why would the old man give him the Deity Map?


    He had thought it would be very difficult to get the Deity Map here, but if what he had in his possession was indeed the map, then this was all too easy.


    Just as he was putting the Deity Map away, Ye Futian noticed something strange. He turned his eyes and thought about for a moment. He understood everything.


    ��So this was why.�� Ye Futian proceed to smile coldly when he realized what was happening. It seemed that Jiuyi City would soon face an unavoidable great battle.


    Ye Futian took out the alchemy technique, and closed his eyes to begin cultivating, staying inside the cavern residence. He planned to cultivate this alchemy technique first, then try to refine some medicine. Anyway, there was nothing else for him to do at the moment.


    Moreover, after detecting the abnormality just now, he could basically ascertain that this map was the Deity Map. There might have been some deception involved. He had no plan to leave just yet and would stay in Jiuyi City to wait and see.


    While Ye Futian was cultivating, more and more cultivators had arrived in Jiuyi City. In addition to the cultivators already in the West Sea Domain, top figures from other domains were crossing the endless space to get to Jiuyi Celestial Mountain in the West Sea Domain. They were all here in search of the Deity Map.


    If it was just the inheritance of one Great Emperor, there were quite a few of those already in the Original Realm, so perhaps it would not be so attractive to these cultivators. However, this ancient Great Emperor may be a Great Emperor in alchemy. Today��s Divine Prefecture was in need of alchemical refining technique, so the inheritance of a Great Emperor in alchemy was invaluable; there was no one who would want to miss it.


    Therefore, in addition to the islands in the West Sea Domain, people from other places outside the domain had arrived as well.


    On this day, Ye Futian was still cultivating in his cavern residence when the cavern residence suddenly shook violently. It continued to shake with loud booming sounds; it was as if a terrifying earthquake was taking place.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes, as the divine flame in front of him had gone out. He looked up and saw that the cavern residence was in the process of collapsing. He knew instantly that a war had erupted outside, but this was all within his expectations.


    Boom��There was a terrifying sound that was heard, and the cavern residence started disintegrating. Divine light flowed around Ye Futian��s body, forming a light screen to protect him. His figure flashed and appeared outside, right before the mountain, where the cavern residence was built. It was reduced shattered to a pile of rubble .


    And at this moment, there was a horrific sword will outside. Above the firmament, a brilliant sword was flowing about, descending in one direction, highly terrifying. From where the sword was aiming was also an astonishing aura from below. It seemed as if two top-level cultivators were battling.


    Beneath the sword screen, a man stood above the void. All around him, radiant sword lights fell from the sword domain above; it was Li Qingfeng��the pavilion master of Breeze Pavilion.


    And the cultivator below, with white beard and white hair, was precisely the old man who had previously traded with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was not surprised in the least since he had already suspected it.


    The cultivators of West Imperial Palace had told him before that Daoist Monk Mu was an expert at disguise; his ability to impersonate and camouflage was second to none. Therefore, he must have arrived in Jiuyi City before stealing the Deity Map. He must have had been trading there ever since and forged a good relationship with the Breeze Pavilion as a trader so that even Li Qingfeng knew of him.


    Later, he stole the Deity Map and continued to trading there in disguise as if everything was business as usual. It was indeed difficult to suspect him, as these methods he employed were very clever. His camouflage was so flawless that he was able to fool Li Qingfeng.


    ��The cultivation of Daoist Monk Mu should not be at the same as that of Li Qingfeng.�� Ye Futian raised his head to look at the battlefield yonder. It was extremely terrifying, with devastating sword light everywhere that threatened to destroy Jiuyi city and raze it to the ground.


    ��You are in a leisurely mood,�� said a voice. Ye Futian turned his attention to a group of three cultivators who were now next to him. All three of them had perceivably strong auras, and Ye Futian recognized them as those who had latched onto him a few days ago while he was trading with Daoist Monk Mu. However, these people had not make their move until now.


    But at the moment, with a great war going on, the true identity of Daoist Monk Mu was exposed, and all of Jiuyi City was in chaos. They had finally decided to take action.


    Things such as committing murders to stealing treasures were commonplace. They occurred every day in all parts of the cultivation world.


    But Ye Futian didn��t really care about these people��s existence. He glanced at them, and continued to focus his attention on the battlefield, ignoring them. ��Go away now, and I won��t see this as a challenge,�� he said.


    The three of them frowned and stared at the white-haired young man before them. They saw him looking into the distance with his hands casually folded behind his back, completely ignoring them.


    The eldest of the three frowned slightly. He had a head of white hair and was clad in white clothing. He was handsome beyond description.


    He suddenly remembered a piece of information that had been passed on to Jiuyi Celestial Mountain not too long ago and was instantly alarmed. Without any hesitation, he turned around to leave, saying, ��I won��t tread these muddy waters. The two of you can fight for it if you want.��


    Having said that, he quickly left this place and moved far away from here. When he reached a mountain peak quite a ways away, he turned and looked at where Ye Futian was, feeling rather fortunate. He hoped it was not the man that everyone was talking about


    The other two cultivators frowned, not understanding why the man suddenly gave up.


    Could it be that he was awed by the other man��s temperament?


    The temperament of this man was indeed extremely exceptional.


    Ye Futian��s body levitated and headed towards the direction of the battlefield. One of the other two cultivators couldn��t wait any longer and acted.


    A tyrannical aura of the Great Path erupted, and the Divine Wheel of the Great Path appeared in the void. It was a golden disc. It seemed as if there were countless halos circulating around, giving birth to terrifying golden spears.


    Buzz! Layers of divine light circulated, as the golden wheel radiated downward, and long spears inside the divine wheel shot out, covering the entire sky until the area was submerged. They were attacking Ye Futian in an extremely domineering manner.


    The other man didn��t do anything. It seemed as if he was merely observing from the sidelines.


    Ye Futian raised his arm and pointed to the sky. With this one gesture, a horrific sword will penetrated the void directly, slaughtering towards the golden disc.


    Bang, bang, bang�� There were explosions as the disc was pierced through. It had been shattered and destroyed.


    His divine wheel destroyed, the cultivator who unleashed the attack let out a muffled groan. His face turned pale as he spat up a mouthful of blood. He looked at Ye Futian in horror, back-peddling now, attempting to leave.


    Ye Futian pointed his finger at him, the sword light flashed and was gone, penetrating through the man��s body.


    With Ye Futian��s current cultivation, no ordinary Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm could block his attack. The man was obliterated just like that.


    When the other man witness this, his face suddenly changed, his body moving backward, wanting to leave the battlefield immediately.


    ��Too late.�� Ye Futian faced the man and pointed with his finger again. A terrible light appeared in the void, penetrating through the space, passing through the other man��s body. Without any hesitation or doubt, it was death for both of them.


    The man who had fled into the distance could only feel a tremendous horror as his body was covered in a cold sweat. Sure enough, it was him. Because of the turmoil in Jiuyi City, the city was locked down, and it was difficult for any news from the outside to come in. He was lucky to come by this piece of information from Yingzhou City before the lockdown, which accounted for his wise decision not getting himself involved. Otherwise, in the situation of three against one, he would definitely have made a move as well.


    He was lucky he escaped with his life.


    At this moment, Ye Futian glanced at him from the distance, and he could only feel a terrifying fright within him; it was as if his heart was about to come out of his chest. He turned around and flee immediately, not daring to waste any more time. He had no wish to continue spying, waiting to see what would happen.


    If Ye Futian wanted to kill him, he had no doubt he would not be able to leave and would lose his life.


    But Ye Futian didn��t kill him. His eyes turned back as he, once again, looked towards the battlefield.


    With a flash, he was standing on an ancient peak from where he was watching that major battle. Because of the explosion of this battle, no one had paid any attention to what had just happened to him. The attention of all of Jiuyi City was focused on Li Qingfeng and Daoist Monk Mu.


    Judging from the development, Li Qingfeng had already suppressed the Daoist Monk Mu. There was not much doubt as to the outcome. However, now Jiuyi City was being watched closely by all the forces in the Western Sea Domain, even people from outside the domain had arrived. Technically speaking, this battle had not much significance, even if Li Qingfeng was about to recover the Deity Map from the Daoist Monk Mu, he couldn��t possibly keep it, even if he was a cultivator of the Tribulation Plane.


    Compared to that, the approach of Daoist Monk Mu was much smarter. But the premise was that he would not die by Li Qingfeng��s hands first.


    Of course, Daoist Monk Mu��s luck didn��t seem to be the greatest since he had met Ye Futian, so he was doomed to fail as well!

 Chapter 2524 - Doomed to Fail

    Everyone in Jiuyi City was watching this battle. The outcome was just as Ye Futian had predicted��Daoist Monk Mu was firmly suppressed by Li Qingfeng.


    Until the sword will passed through the body of Daoist Monk Mu, the sword domain that sealed up Jiuyi City shrank and turned into a sword-shaped beam of light surrounding Daoist Monk Mu. The areas around him turned to ruin. Only the place where Daoist Monk Mu was standing was left alone, leaving just that one piece on the mountain range.


    ��The seal is lifted.�� All the cultivators looked up at the sky. The seal on Jiuyi City had been released because the result of the battle had been determined. Daoist Monk Mu was now under Li Qingfeng��s control.


    Li Qingfeng stood above the void, looking down at Daoist Monk Mu. His eyes were like a sword as he said, ��Give me back my thing.��


    The Daoist Monk Mu smiled as he waved his palm. All the treasures on his body flew out, heading towards Li Qingfeng. He said, ��Check it for yourself.��


    Li Qingfeng swung his long sleeves and rolled the items in toward him. His divine consciousness then invaded and scanned all of the items. After a while, he had looked at all the treasures in his storage, and there were indeed many valuable things, but he didn��t find what he was looking for. Suddenly his face changed as he stared at Daoist Monk Mu and said, ��Where are you hiding it?��


    ��Pavilion master Qingfeng, these treasures are all of my possessions.�� Daoist Monk Mu said, ��As for the thing you are looking for, it is not with me.��


    Li Qingfeng stomped in the void when he heard the reply. Suddenly the sword will flowed, and the sword-shaped rays of light swept across the space, causing a terrible aura of destruction to appear in the space below. He warned, ��Don��t try my patience.��


    From the firmament downward, a strong murderous intent permeated. It seemed as if he would immediately slay Daoist Monk Mu if he failed to produce a satisfactory answer.


    ��If the pavilion master wants to kill me, all I can do is to fight to the death. But even if you kill me, the thing is no longer with me.�� Daoist Monk Mu��s expression remained calm. Few people would act impulsively when they had cultivated to their level, so he trusted that Li Qingfeng would know how to weigh the pros and cons in this matter.


    Li Qingfeng frowned. Then, those sword-like eyes suddenly looked up towards the firmament, looking at that unlocked seal of the sword domain. His face changed.


    ��I��ve been tricked!�� Li Qingfeng suddenly seemed to have realized something, and a terrible look appeared in his eyes. He had sealed Jiuyi City for a long time to find Daoist Monk Mu. Now that he had found and controlled him, he did not continue to put Jiuyi City under the seal. However, he did not expect that Daoist Monk Mu would be so sly as to use him as bait.


    ��Who took it out for you?�� Li Qingfeng looked down at Daoist Monk Mu below; his voice was extremely chilly. Although it hadn��t been long since the seal was unlocked, it was enough time for many people to leave Jiuyi City. Now, it was almost an impossible task to track anyone down because they couldn��t determine who it was.


    And just now, no one noticed who had left Jiuyi City.


    Daoist Monk Mu showed a smile when he heard Li Qingfeng��s words. He knew that the other understood what had just taken place. If so, his goal had been accomplished.


    ��Pavilion master, you have seen the current situation today. The West Sea Domain aside, forces from abroad have already arrived. Even if I give you back the Deity Map, do you think you can hold on to it?�� Daoist Monk Mu did not say it out loud but communicated to Li Qingfeng via voice transmission.


    Although Li Qingfeng was very unhappy, he had to admit that what Daoist Monk Mu said was the truth.


    Even if Daoist Monk Mu returned the Deity Map to him at this time, it would be difficult for him to hold on to it. Now, unlike before, in Jiuyi City, countless eyes were fixed on the Deity Map.


    However, Li Qingfeng did not respond; he was waiting for Daoist Monk Mu to continue.


    Sure enough, he heard Daoist Monk Mu continue to say to him via voice transmission, ��How about working together?��


    ��How?�� Li Qingfeng asked.


    ��The Deity Map is within sight of various forces. If we join hands, I will go and get the Deity Map back, we can solve the mystery of Deity Map together and find the ancient imperial celestial mountain,�� Daoist Monk Mu said via voice transmission.


    ��If I let you go now, what if you leave after you get the Deity Map and decide to go and find the celestial mountain by yourself?�� Li Qingfeng responded coldly. He clearly did not trust Daoist Monk Mu all that much.


    ��It has been a long time since the Deity Map was in possession of the pavilion master. Naturally, you know that the mystery of the Deity Map is not as simple as it seems and cannot be solved easily. I would need the help of the pavilion master to do that. More importantly, all of my treasures were now in the hands of the pavilion master, and this is also to demonstrate my sincerity. These are all of my belongings, and the pavilion master must be able to see that they were very valuable items,�� Daoist Monk Mu continued.


    Li Qingfeng stared at him. These simple words from Daoist Monk Mu made him feel that the other man had been preparing for this for a long time. Moreover, his desire for the Deity Map was extremely strong. He had even taken all the treasures in his possession, along with his life as a wager, to bet on the map.


    But this was completely understandable. Daoist Monk Mu was not just a thief in the West Sea Domain��he was also a top alchemy master at the same time. Because he was an expert at alchemy, speed, and concealment, his combat effectiveness was a bit deficient.


    ��Aren��t you afraid that after you find the celestial mountain that I will do something to you?�� Li Qingfeng said.


    ��I am an alchemy master,�� Daoist Monk Mu replied simply. Li Qingfeng seemed to be more satisfied with this answer. After pondering for a moment, he merely said, ��Very well.��


    As soon as he said that, the horrific aura of Swordsmanship disappeared. However, Li Qingfeng stared at Daoist Monk Mu and said loudly, ��I will let you go for the time being today, but if you don��t return the thing you stole from me, I will not let this go.��


    ��Thank you, pavilion master,�� Daoist Monk Mu said as the two seemed to have reached some kind of agreement. This scene puzzled everyone around them. The last dialogue between the two was more like act-playing. Perhaps they had been communicating through voice transmission. How did they reach an agreement that convinced Li Qingfeng to let Daoist Monk Mu off the hook?


    Perhaps only the two of them would ever know the details.


    But now, where was the Deity Map?


    Probably not on Daoist Monk Mu himself.


    ��I will take my leave now,�� Daoist Monk Mu said again. As soon as he said that, he turned into a gust of wind and disappeared somewhere between heaven and earth. It all happened at an alarming speed.


    ��Pavilion master.�� Many cultivators from the Breeze Pavilion looked at Li Qingfeng with a questioning look. Why did he let Daoist Monk Mu go?


    Li Qingfeng turned and walked down from the void. He did not bother to explain.


    The reason for letting the man go was actually simple enough. Whether he let him go or not, he had not much chance now. He did not fully believe in the words of Daoist Monk Mu, but even if he did not believe it, he did not have another choice. If he killed Daoist Monk Mu, the rest of the cultivators would only keep even closer tabs on him.


    The moment the news of Deity Map became public knowledge, as that ancient Celestial mountain may have already been out of his reach.


    Therefore, Li Qingfeng chose to let the man go.


    Let him go, and there may still be a chance. Kill him, and there would definitely be no chance.


    ��Is it over just like this?�� The surrounding cultivators looked at all of this. It seemed that there were still no conclusive results as far as the Deity Map was concerned.


    Ye Futian watched all this quietly. When he saw Daoist Monk Mu leave, he knew that what he had in his hand must be the Deity Map.


    He turned around and walked forward to leave. It did not take him long before he was out of Jiuyi City.


    Ye Futian did not stop but continued to head out, leaving Jiuyi Celestial Mountain and entering the vast sea.


    Just as Ye Futian was walking into the coastal region, he suddenly felt a ray of divine consciousness fell on him, swept directly at him without the slightest disguise.


    Here he comes, Ye Futian secretly remarked. A cold smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. He then sped up to continue his forward movement.


    That divine consciousness locked onto him, chasing after him with incredible speed.


    ��Are we racing?�� Ye Futian unleashed Buddha��s Celerity at the moment, and his figure disappeared from right where he was.


    In the distance, someone was tracking Ye Futian with a terrifying method. This man was dressed in shabby clothing appeared to be extremely sloppy and grubby. However, his method was frightening as he stepped into the void, leaving countless shadows between heaven and earth.


    But very soon, he stopped, hovering over the sea. His face suddenly had a terrible look on it. He lost track of him!


    His heart throbbed. He had set the whole thing up perfectly. Did something happen at the last minute? he wondered.


    How could he have lost track of him?


    ��Were you looking for me, sir?��


    Ye Futian appeared in front of the old man.


    The old man raised his head to look at the handsome face right in front of him, and his eyes revealed some confusion. The other, after dodged him, had unexpectedly come back on his own.


    ��How did you do it?�� The old man asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian took out a storage ring and looked at the old man, saying, ��Sir, you first disguised your identity by setting up a stand as a trader in Jiuyi City to get close to Breeze Pavilion so they would be familiar with you. After that, you stole the Deity Map but continued with your previously assumed identity of the trader, thinking that no one would have suspected you. However, you didn��t expect Li Qingfeng to lock down the entire city. And with the arrival of cultivators from all sides, you knew that even if you stayed, you would not be able to take the Deity Map with you. Therefore, by way of transaction, you deposited the Deity Map into the storage ring and left a mark to keep track of it so that it might be retrieved at a later date.��


    ��So, you came here to find me,�� Ye Futian said slowly. Although the old man in front of him looked different from before, how could Ye Futian not recognize him as that Daoist Monk Mu, who had the bones of an immortal?


    ��So, does this mean you will return the thing to me?�� Daoist Monk Mu fixed his eyes on Ye Futian and asked. He felt something was awry.


    He was convinced that there was no flaw in his setup. In his estimation, he should be able to take the Deity Map and have it finally return to his possession.


    However, the Ye Futian that he encountered during the trade did not seem to be a simpleton. Not only did he dodge his track, but he had also pieced everything together correctly.


    Ye Futian��s divine consciousness infiltrated the storage ring. The next moment, Daoist Monk Mu found that the mark he made had disappeared; it had been erased by Ye Futian.


    The eyes of Daoist Monk Mu sharpened. Ye Futian knew of the existence of the mark and was able to erase it, but he did not do that. He was waiting for him. What did it mean?


    ��Sir, there is no reason to take back a thing that was given,�� Ye Futian said lightly. Daoist Monk Mu��s plan was indeed superb. He was using someone from the outside to even the odds. If it weren��t Ye Futian that he encountered, most likely, the Deity Map would finally be returned to him.


    However, Daoist Monk Mu seemed to be out of luck. The person he met was Ye Futian; therefore, he was destined to be disappointed. Did he really expect to get the Deity Map back from Ye Futian?


    Obviously, it��s an impossibility.


    ��What if I insist on taking it back?�� Daoist Monk Mu��s tone changed. He had paid a lot for this Deity Map, but now, he may have inadvertently given it away!

 Chapter 2525 - Conquer

    Must he take it back?


    Ye Futian looked at Daoist Monk Mu and said with a smile, ��You may certainly give it a try, sir.��


    ��Very good.�� Daoist Monk Mu nodded. As soon he finished speaking, this area of the sea was suddenly enveloped by flames, turning it into a domain of fire.


    This was a domain of blue and green fire. All around Daoist Monk Mu, these bluish-green flames turned into a lotus of the same color. Above the lotus, strands of ethereal aura of the divine flames shrouded this boundless space and swooped towards Ye Futian.


    ��This is forged by my life spirit; my comprehension of the flaming Great Path is integrated into it. It is called the fire of creation. This being the green lotus of creation, possessing the power of creation that could continue procreating. Although it is not yet a mature enough technique, the power it possesses is considerable. If you have really cultivated to the Ninth-Realm, you will be incinerated as soon as you touch it. It��s not too late for you to return the Deity Map to me now. I can still let you live,�� Daoist Monk Mu said.


    Ye Futian felt the fire of the green lotus of creation and knew that it was the fire of tribulation. After having survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, he integrated his own comprehension of the flaming Great Path and forged this fire of creation. Indeed, it had the potential to be stronger in the future, but it required an opportunity, as well as the baptisms of other divine flames between heaven and earth.


    ��Sir, rather than using it to kill, this fire may be more suitable for alchemy.�� Ye Futian said, ��How about I make a wager with you?��


    Daoist Monk Mu looked a little surprised as he stared at Ye Futian. This young man looked calm and confidant, with absolutely no change in his expression when facing the domain of fire. It seemed as if he was not afraid of it at all.


    ��What are you wagering?�� Daoist Monk Mu asked as his eyes fixed on Ye Futian.


    ��I will bathe in your fire. If I can��t bear it, I will return the Deity Map to you. In addition, I will gift you the Shadow and Solar True Fire,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��The Shadow and Solar True Fire?�� Daoist Monk Mu stared at Ye Futian. ��Who are you?��


    ��Let��s talk about the stakes at hand for now. So, how about it?�� Ye Futian did not respond directly.


    ��To bathe in the green lotus with flesh without resorting to external forces or other treasures to resist?�� Daoist Monk Mu mused as he looked at Ye Futian. These words were too preposterous. Could someone in the Ninth-Realm really make such a wager?


    ��Yes,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Very well,�� Daoist Monk Mu agreed with a nod.


    ��You are not asking what will happen if I win.��


    ��If you win, then I am clearly not capable enough and will be at your mercy anyway. What else can I do?�� Daoist Monk Mu replied. Ye Futian smiled because this was indeed the case. If he could bath in the lotus of creation, then the outcome of this battle couldn��t have been clearer. What other conditions could there be?


    ��Please go ahead,�� Ye Futian said.


    Daoist Monk Mu stared at Ye Futian. This arrogant white-haired young man�� The green lotus of creation under him flew out towards Ye Futian. It settled beneath Ye Futian, and the lotus bloomed around Ye Futian until it wrapped his entire body within. Suddenly, the divine flames from the lotus of creation enveloped Ye Futian��s body, trying to swallow him.


    Ye Futian, just as he had said, stood there without moving. He was bathing in the fire from the lotus of creation, his body radiant beyond description. The divine light flowed upon him like a divine body of the Great Path��immortal and indestructible.


    The divine fire invaded and penetrated his body, but Ye Futian��s expression remained unchanged as he stood there unscathed. The flowing divine light of the Great Path actually seemed to swallow up strands of divine fire so that the divine flames from the lotus of creation surged into his body as if tempering and nourishing him instead.


    There was a change in the eyes of Daoist Monk Mu. He looked at the white-haired young man in front of him and saw that even his head of white hair seemed to have transformed into the Great Path, impervious to the divine flames. This kind of ability shocked him to his core because even Li Qingfeng��the pavilion master of the Breeze Pavilion��would absolutely dare not do the same, as he would no doubt be burned to death. In their battle, he used only his powerful Swordsmanship to suppress Daoist Monk Mu.


    But this white-haired young man dared to stand there like this!


    Moreover, in his perception, the opponent��s cultivation was only in the Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm, so how did he do it?


    Daoist Monk Mu thought his setup was meticulous and well-calculated. To find the Deity Map, he was willing to take tremendous risks. If Li Qingfeng was not so sensible, he might have already slaughtered him. He concealed the Deity Map while trading and had left a mark on the trader in order to retrieve it after the storm had passed over.


    However, it seemed that he had picked the one cultivator he should not have been trading with.


    ��What do you think?�� Ye Futian smiled and asked Daoist Monk Mu.


    Daoist Monk Mu stared at the handsome man before him, and the flames on his body grew stronger as the lotus of creation was still expanding. The monstrous divine flames submerged Ye Futian��s body, burying him inside the fire; it was as if all this was refining Ye Futian��s body.


    But even so, the fire still could not touch Ye Futian��s body. His body of flesh and blood was like a divine body, impervious to the flames of the Great Path.


    At this moment, Daoist Monk Mu understood that the strength of this youngster had far surpassed himself. He could sit directly in the flames of the Great Path as if nothing was happening. How could Daoist Monk Mu even continue to fight this battle?


    The reason why Ye Futian dared to make this wager was due to none other than his confidence in the divine body. His physical body was cast by the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor through his own comprehension. He had been baptized numerous times by the divine tribulation. This body of his was one of his strongest methods. He has also been bathed in the flames of rules, with the Shadow and Solar True Fire still inside his body, so he was pretty confident he could take on the power of this flaming Great Path with his body.


    He could even devour the fire of the lotus of creation.


    Daoist Monk Mu looked deeply at Ye Futian and knew that he had lost. And he had lost miserably and completely.


    Buzz! In just a flash, Daoist Monk Mu disappeared from where he was without a trace. He had chosen to escape!


    The fire surrounding Ye Futian thinned out into just wisps of divine fire, then dissipated altogether with the disappearance of Daoist Monk Mu.


    Obviously, Daoist Monk Mu did not want to fulfill his part of the bargain. So, if he could leave, he would.


    But Ye Futian merely revealed a cold smile as his figure flashed, disappearing from where he was. He reappeared directly behind Daoist Monk Mu, not too far away.


    When Daoist Monk Mu sensed the presence behind him, his face changed slightly. He took a step forward, moving like flowing water, leaving countless afterimages in the void. He was like a gray stream flowing between heaven and earth.


    Ye Futian��s body disappeared from where he was again. Daoist Monk Mu had very powerful methods and was an expert at speed. His ability to escape and camouflage was second to none.


    Unfortunately, his opponent was Ye Futian, who had cultivated Buddha��s Celerity.


    The two of them shuttled continuously upon the sea with extreme speed. Daoist Monk Mu fled for some time. He found that he could not get rid of Ye Futian. At this time, however, a figure in white directly blocked in front of him, and Daoist Monk Mu changed his location immediately. Nonetheless, Ye Futian appeared in front of him once again.


    After the same thing repeated several consecutive times, Daoist Monk Mu finally stopped and did not run away again. He looked at the white-haired young man in front of him and said, ��I didn��t expect that I would fall into the hands of a youngster. Who are you?��


    ��Ye Futian, from the Original Realm!�� Ye Futian responded.


    Daoist Monk Mu was stunned. Clearly, he had heard of this name before. When he was in Jiuyi City, he heard that Ye Futian had slaughtered Zhong Miao. But because he was not concentrated on anything but the Deity Map at the time, he didn��t pay too much attention, or else he would have guessed Ye Futian��s true identity a long time ago.


    ��It��s well-deserved,�� Daoist Monk Mu said with a smile. ��What do you want in return?��


    ��Your cultivation is exceptional, and I especially appreciate the fact that you are a grandmaster of alchemy. I would like to invite you to join me at Ziwei Segmentum in the Original Realm. What do you think?�� Ye Futian said.


    Daoist Monk Mu was taken aback, looking at Ye Futian. He thought he truly deserved the reputation of being the number one genius talent in the Original Realm.


    ��You want me to follow you obey your order?�� Daoist Monk Mu asked.


    ��I did not say that, but if you want to see this way, I have nothing else to add,�� responded Ye Futian.


    ��I have been as free as the clouds all these years and have been cultivating on my own for countless years. I have traveled all over the West Sea and am accustomed to moving about freely. I don��t much like to be constrained by others. If I wanted to join other forces, I would have done it a long time ago and am not waiting until now. I am afraid I cannot comply with what you are asking of me,�� replied Daoist Monk Mu.


    ��Fine,�� Ye Futian said. As soon as his voice fell, this area of the sea was covered by a terrifying aura of the Great Path that directly overpowered and sealed the area shut. A murderous intent flashed across Ye Futian��s eyes as a terrible coercion pressed down on this space, shrouding Daoist Monk Mu completely.


    At this moment, an extremely powerful murderous intent emerged from this handsome white-haired young man.


    ��What do you want?�� Daoist Monk Mu fixed his eyes on Ye Futian.


    ��You used me to hide the Deity Map, and if my cultivation were weaker, perhaps my life would be forfeited. Now, you are the only one who knows that I have the Deity Map, and you ask me what I want to do.�� Ye Futian continued, ��What��s more, when I hunted and killed Zhong Miao, it was so that my true strength could be concealed. Until this day, no one knows the strength I really possess. But now you know, so, what do you think I am going to do?��


    Suddenly, Daoist Monk Mu didn��t feel so well, and his face had a terrible look on it. No matter how he looked at it, Ye Futian had to get rid of him based on these two points. It was completely understandable, too. If he were standing in Ye Futian��s shoes, he would do the same, and that was to silence him!


    As soon as his voice faded, a horrific murderous intent swept out. Divine swords lined up in the sky, all pointing at Daoist Monk Mu.


    Daoist Monk Mu looked up and felt this terrifying coercion. His heart was beating fast.


    He obviously knew that Ye Futian was not joking.


    ��I can refine some pills for you,�� Daoist Monk Mu quickly replied.


    ��Refining pills?�� Ye Futian laughed coldly. The divine light of the sun and moon appeared above the firmament, as the Shadow/Solar power descended on this space at the same time. He said, ��I am also an alchemist myself. Why else would I bother looking for the Deity Map? I wanted to recruit you into the Ziwei Segmentum not because you are indispensable but because I need to spend more time on cultivation instead of alchemy. I thought I could work with you to improve your alchemical abilities after we find the celestial mountain and let you be the one responsible for matters in alchemy. I thought it was a win-win proposition, but you thought it was because I need some pills?��


    His voice resounded throughout the void. Daoist Monk Mu��s heart trembled. Even his mind was destabilized, and his will shook because of Ye Futian��s words.


    Daoist Monk Mu had lived for a long time, but he had never seen such a terrifying individual. Although Li Qingfeng was powerful, he was nothing like Ye Futian. Work with Li Qingfeng or Ye Futian? Which one of them was stronger?


    Ye Futian did not just frighten him but also appealed to his greed with the promise of searching for the celestial mountain, improving his alchemical strength, and entrusting him with alchemical matters.


    Therefore, he did not have the slightest doubt as to what Ye Futian said. From a logical standpoint, it was a flawless argument. Ye Futian could have easily killed him already, and he didn��t because he had value to be used.


    Boom! The divine swords fell down, and the murderous intent shot to the sky. Ye Futian had a sharp murderous intent in his eyes as well. It seemed as if he was ready to deliver the final blow. Daoist Monk Mu��s heart palpitated as he said, ��I submit.��


    Buzz�� The divine sword slammed down, causing Daoist Monk Mu��s expression to change to shock. The aura of the Great Path exploded on his body as the lotus of creation flew towards the divine swords, blocking their attack. However, he stared at Ye Futian in fright. If he was determined to kill him, why talk to him at all?


    ��You agreed to my wager, but you broke your promise and evaded me. Now you reluctantly agree under the threat of death. How can I trust you?�� Ye Futian said as the divine swords continued to fall down, aiming squarely at Daoist Monk Mu.


    At this moment, Daoist Monk Mu finally realized that Ye Futian was so aggressive because he was truly moved to kill. If he failed to give this man a satisfactory answer, he would most certainly die on the West Sea today.


    ��I hereby swear that I am willing to follow you,�� Daoist Monk Mu said loudly. ��If you still don��t believe me, you can look inside my memories and learn of my secrets. Then, you will know the true from the false.��


    When Ye Futian heard him, his divine consciousness stopped its downward motion, but the murderous intent on his body was still potent.


    He floated forward, stopped in front of Daoist Monk Mu. He said coldly, ��Loosen up your consciousness.��


    With that, his divine consciousness pierced into Daoist Monk Mu��s brow chakra, and suddenly, Daoist Monk Mu��s memory was revealed to him.


    After a while, Ye Futian retracted his divine consciousness and withdrew from the memory of Daoist Monk Mu. He sneered inside. As expected, under the threat of death and temptation, there was always an opportunity to bargain.


    It turned out that Daoist Monk Mu still had family somewhere, but no one knew of them. He had hidden it deep inside.


    The divine swords dissipated, as well as the murderous intent. Over the West Sea, the sea breeze passed through as the sun shone on the sparkling surface of the sea. Everything returned to normal, and the sun was warm and peaceful.


    ��If you had agreed sooner, it would have saved us a lot of trouble,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. ��Let��s wish us both a happy and successful partnership.��


    Daoist Monk Mu looked at Ye Futian��s handsome visage, with a smile on his face like a spring breeze, but he felt a chill in his heart. He was, in fact, a little afraid of Ye Futian. The young man in front of him was more terrifying than many older guys he had seen; none of them were even close to this man.


    This time, he lost fair and square, but now he had no more thoughts of disloyalty.


    ��I don��t dare to call it a partnership, but I should try my best to assist Renhuang Ye.�� Daoist Monk Mu knew his place well. Although the person in front of him was younger, he was more than just a little bit stronger than Daoist Monk Mu. Since he had agreed to stand down, it was only natural for him to recognize their positions in relation to one another and behave accordingly.


    Ye Futian looked deeply at Daoist Monk Mu and didn��t mind it. He smiled and said, ��Please forgive me if I offended you, but I had to do it. I don��t have much choice in the cultivation world, as a wrong step was a matter of life and death. Now that we are working together, we will join hands to find the ancient imperial celestial mountain, and I will help you to become a top alchemy grandmaster.��


    ��I understand.�� Daoist Monk Mu nodded and replied!

 Chapter 2526 - Ye Futian’s Ambition

    On this trip to the West Sea Domain, not only was he able to use the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor as an example to deter the other principalities, but also now he had procured the Deity Map. He had also successfully recruited an alchemist of the Tribulation Plane.


    This was a trip full of rewards.


    However, Ye Futian was still not contented.


    Now with the Deity Map in hand, if he could find the ancient imperial celestial mountain, he would have the opportunity to create the most powerful alchemy basecamp in all of the Divine Prefecture, making Ziwei Segmentum a holy land for alchemy. As a result, the Ziwei Segmentum was bound to usher in another great transformation.


    Of course, even if he did not find the ancient imperial celestial mountain, Ye Futian would form a team of alchemists to help him in the efforts of refining elixirs of all sorts, thus expanding the power of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Now that chaos abounds, the Ziwei Segmentum, in all its uniqueness, must strive to be even stronger in the face of all the powers of the world.


    ��You have been cultivating alchemy for many years. You must know a lot about the alchemy world. I want to assemble a team of alchemists. Can you help me?�� Ye Futian said to Daoist Monk Mu.


    ��I should do my best. It��s just that alchemists are pretty arrogant by nature. If it is not for a compelling-enough reason, they will not be easily recruited. However, if you can find the ancient imperial celestial mountain, it would be a great incentive to powerful alchemists and would easily attract a powerful group of alchemists to serve you,�� Daoist Monk Mu said.


    Ye Futian nodded, recognizing that the man was telling the truth.


    If Daoist Monk Mu hadn��t tried to take advantage of Ye Futian, he would not be faced with the backlash and forced to submit to Ye Futian in the end. If it weren��t by force, perhaps Daoist Monk Mu would much rather die than surrender.


    ��Aside from that, I will also need some medicinal materials for refining pills, so I will need to trouble you with the matter of procuring them.�� Ye Futian continued, ��Also, previously in Jiuyi City, did you and the pavilion master of Breeze Pavilion reach some kind of agreement?��


    He knew very well that the pavilion master of Breeze Pavilion did not let Daoist Monk Mu go so easily for no reason. The two had communicated through voice transmission, and they must have reached a tacit agreement. Just now, when he rifled through Daoist Monk Mu��s memory, he had seen something to that effect, although he did not specifically look for it. After all, Daoist Monk Mu��s memory was massive, so Ye Futian simply amplified some useful memory for extraction, those that could be used to make Daoist Monk Mu comply.


    ��Mmm.�� Daoist Monk Mu nodded. ��I did reach a consensus with Li Qingfeng before. He let me go, and I will find the Deity Map, then work together to solve the mystery of the Deity Map, and find the ancient imperial celestial mountain.��


    He didn��t dare to lie. Ye Futian had rifled through his memories, and he had no idea which ones Ye Futian looked at and which ones he didn��t. He had no idea if Ye Futian was testing him.


    Ye Futian didn��t doubt his words. He had seen the memories, and so it was certain that Daoist Monk Mu would not dare to betray him.


    ��What��s the mystery of the Deity Map?�� Ye Futian asked. ��Before, when I invaded it with my divine consciousness, what I saw was just a map. However, I can��t seem to find the same exact place anywhere in the Western Sea Domain. I wondered if it was because some islands had disappeared from the changes over time. Besides that, what else is there?��


    ��Yes, there is.�� Daoist Monk Mu nodded. ��I have been tracking the Deity Map for many years, and my elders told me that my ancestors were the survivors who once escaped the ancient imperial celestial mountain, so I was from the alchemical branch of the ancient celestial mountain. I have been looking for the whereabouts of the Deity Map all these years until I traced it to the Breeze Pavilion.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. He knew about this when he looked into Daoist Monk Mu��s memory, carefully discerning the identity of Daoist Monk Mu. Although the specifics could no longer be ascertained, it was true that this man had a deep obsession with alchemy. He also had a strong desire to seek the Deity Map and the ancient imperial celestial mountain.


    Daoist Monk Mu waved his hand, and this part of the sea was immediately sealed off. He said to Ye Futian, ��Renhuang Ye, please take out the Deity Map for a demonstration.��


    Ye Futian nodded as he stretched out his hand and waved. Suddenly, the Deity Map was suspended in the air.


    The divine consciousness of Daoist Monk Mu directly invaded inside the Deity Map, as a splendid picture immediately appeared in the air. In an area above the sea, many celestial mountains emerged.


    A ray of light shot out of Daoist Monk Mu��s eyes, and the Deity Map suddenly zoomed in. After a while, it seemed to have turned into an unusual treasure, covering the sky and the sun, much like an implement or a magical artifact.


    This surprised Ye Futian. He was a little hasty when he examined the Deity Map before and had not had the time to study it carefully.


    Was this Deity Map this unusual?


    Buzz! At this moment, a flame of the Great Path appeared beneath the Deity Map; it was the green lotus of creation. However, even such a terrible divine fire could not inflict any signs of damage to the Deity Map to indicate that it was burned.


    On the contrary, the flames spread and flowed on the Deity Map, gradually spreading to the entire map.


    Boom�� The violent sound roared from the divine fire, as the flame of the Great Path burning on the Deity Map. The map turned into something else with the help of the divine fire. Under the illumination of the divine fire, and as its light shone on the sea, a mountain-shaped fire appeared in the middle, as an endless flame of the Great Path gathered there, turning into a mountain.


    Ye Futian was quite surprised when he witnessed this sight. His heart palpitated slightly faster as his eyes beheld the magnificent spectacle in front of him. It was truly incredible.


    It seemed that what he had thought of the Deity Map before was far too simplistic.


    ��Deity Map may not be just a map, but it may be the key to unlock the ancient imperial celestial mountain,�� Daoist Monk Mu remarked to Ye Futian.


    ��So you had no plan to go back and work with the pavilion master of the Breeze Pavilion?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Depending on the situation. If I can��t solve it by myself, I might. But if I can do it alone, why should I ask him for help? Although the treasures that I surrendered to him are very precious indeed, they are not worth mentioning compared to the ancient imperial celestial mountain,�� said Daoist Monk Mu.


    Ye Futian looked deeply at the other man. This Daoist Monk Mu was extremely cunning and ambitious. Although his strength was lacking, he was an expert at alchemy and concealment, which made up for the lack. He was definitely a powerful character. If it wasn��t that he ran into Ye Futian by mistake, Daoist Monk Mu had good odds in solving this mystery.


    It was a pity that this old guy ran into him.


    However, the more capable he found Daoist Monk Mu to be, the happier Ye Futian was. This meant that he would be making greater contributions to the Ziwei Segmentum.


    This kind of old monster was no gentle creature; he was a crafty trickster.


    ��Meaning, the map is still a map, but the Deity Map itself may also be the key. No wonder the pavilion master of the Breeze Pavilion went through the trouble of shutting down the whole city to search and retrieve it. If it is just a map, duplicates can easily be made,�� Ye Futian whispered. If so, Li Qingfeng could act much more quietly without turning it into such a big deal so that everyone knew about it now.


    He didn��t have a choice. Losing the Deity Map meant that he could not unlock the secrets of the ancient imperial celestial mountain.


    ��Precisely,�� said Daoist Mu. Then the flames of the Great Path and his divine consciousness dissipated as the Deity Map returned to how it looked before, floating in the air. Daoist Monk Mu looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Renhuang Ye, you can put it away now.��


    ��Although there were some conflicts between us before, now that you are one of us, you don��t have to be so formal. You can call me by my name.�� Ye Futian waved his hand to put away the Deity Map, addressing Daoist Monk Mu at the same time.


    Daoist Monk Mu thought about it for a moment, then said, ��Renhuang Ye is the lord of Ziwei Segmentum, the palace lord of its imperial palace. Now that I have joined Ziwei Segmentum and become a member, I will address you as Palace Lord Ye.��


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian didn��t say anything more and merely nodded. He said, ��You are an expert in disguise and concealment. Follow me to Jiuyi Celestial Mountain again.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord.�� Daoist Monk Mu didn��t ask any questions but followed the order readily enough. He seemed to hit the ground running.


    The truth was that he had tried resisting before. But, as he was defeated soundly and agreed to submit, the only thing left for him to do was to put down his pride and do what he was supposed to do.


    ��Let��s go.�� Ye Futian did not bother correcting him as the two returned to Jiuyi Celestial Mountain.


    ��


    At Jiuyi Celestial Mountain, Ye Futian and Daoist Monk Mu did not arrive at the same time. They were moving separately.


    At this time, Ye Futian appeared in Jiuyi City, but Daoist Monk Mu had changed his identity. Ye Futian had instructed him to collect medicinal materials for alchemy on Ye Futian��s behalf and befriend some alchemists.


    With Daoist Monk Mu��s ability, this was not a challenge. He knew that Ye Futian was preparing to form an army of alchemists. Once he found the ancient imperial celestial mountain, he would have the opportunity to make the Ziwei Segmentum the premier holy land for alchemy.


    Ye Futian had something else to do. He was standing on an ancient peak, and a middle-aged Renhuang was standing not far away from him. He said, ��Renhuang Ye is looking for us?��


    ��How long before Goddess Chiyao gets here?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Xi Chiyao should be arriving soon.


    ��Soon. The goddess has already entered Jiuyi Celestial Mountain, and it will not take her long to come to Jiuyi City,�� the other man responded via voice transmission.


    ��Very well, I��ll wait for her here,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��I understand.�� The man nodded, then turned to leave. Ye Futian proceeded to sit cross-legged and started to cultivate.


    After a while, a group of people came, and the person in the lead was beautiful beyond description. It was Xi Chiyao��the goddess of West Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes, then got up. Xi Chiyao smiled brightly and said through voice transmission, ��You got it?��


    Ye Futian glanced at Xi Chiyao but did not deny it. Instead, he asked via voice transmission, ��How did you know?��


    ��Daoist Monk Mu has traded with you before. This man is pretty clever. He probably wanted to use you to move the item outside undetected by others. Li Qingfeng was fooled by it, and he almost succeeded. Too bad he met you.�� Xi Chiyao smiled. ��How is Daoist Monk Mu now?��


    Although Xi Chiyao was not there, she seemed to have witnessed everything with her own eyes and put the pieces together correctly. This future heir of the West Imperial Palace clearly had more than just talent.


    ��He decided to join the Ziwei Segmentum,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��My compliments,�� said Xi Chiyao. ��It seems that Renhuang Ye wants to gather a group of alchemy masters. If you ever find the ancient imperial celestial mountain����


    ��That��s where I need Goddess Chiyao��s help,�� Ye Futian said bluntly. ��There are some deficiencies in the Deity Map, and I��m guessing it��s probably because of some historical or geographical changes. I need every map of the West Sea Domain from each generation. The more detailed, the better.��


    The West Imperial Palace was regarded as one of the oldest principalities in the West Sea Domain. If anyone could come up with every version of the map depicting the West Sea Domain over the years, the West Imperial Palace would definitely be one of them. These items should be kept in their archives.


    Xi Chiyao looked at Ye Futian with those beautiful eyes of hers and nodded earnestly. ��I will try my best. If Renhuang Ye believes in me, why not go to the West Imperial Palace in person, and we can solve the secret of the Deity Map together?��

 Chapter 2527 - Made Public

    Ye Futian was somewhat hesitant. He looked into Xi Chiyao��s eyes. She had a calm expression, and her smile was comforting.


    The West Imperial Palace was the overlord of the West Sea Domain. Its history spanned for decades, and its teachings were unfathomable. Ye Futian speculated that the West Imperial Palace was stronger than the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor. Moreover, its ability most likely far surpassed that of the West Domain Chief��s Manor. Chief Xihai aimed to weaken West Imperial Palace��s status, but in reality, his goal would probably remain a dream.


    The current Ancient God Clan would not simply reveal all their trump cards to others.


    If Ye Futian entered West Imperial Palace and the latter planned to harm him, he would most likely not be able to escape even with his proficiency in Celerity. He had faith in Xi Chiyao, but he did not trust the cultivators in the West Imperial Palace entirely.


    Even if Xi Chiyao did not have any ill-intention towards him, what would happen if other elders in West Imperial Palace had different ideas?


    The consequences might be fatal.


    After all, the West Imperial Palace was still part of the forces of the Divine Prefecture. Besides that, Ye Futian carried the teachings of a few Great Emperors with him. He couldn��t be sure that everyone in the West Imperial Palace had no intention of harming him.


    Ye Futian said, ��I appreciate Goddess Chiyao��s offer, but I will politely decline. Naturally, I have faith in you. That��s why I��m willing to send a copy of the Deity Map to the West Imperial Palace. You can bring the copy back to the palace and use it to locate the ancient imperial celestial mountain. I still have other matters to attend to in Jiuyi City, so I will not follow you back to the palace.��


    Now, his safety was not just about himself; it affected the entire Ziwei Segmentum. If anything happened to him, the Ziwei Segmentum would be crushed. All his loved ones and friends would face annihilation. This was something he would not accept.


    Hence, his safety was his priority all the time.


    Xi Chiyao was clever, so she naturally understood Ye Futian��s way of thinking. She could also understand where he was coming from. She smiled and said, ��Alright, I will also accompany Renhuang Ye and remain in Jiuyi City. If you need any assistance, I may be able to lend a hand. I will order the Deity Map to be sent to the West Imperial Palace. Once they figure out the location of the ancient imperial celestial mountain, we will then head over there together.��


    ��Many thanks, Goddess Chiyao,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Since we are allies, this is not just your affair. It is also the affair of the West Imperial Palace,�� replied Xi Chiyao with a smile. Ye Futian did not elaborate further. He said, ��I will make a copy of the Deity Map. Goddess Chiyao, please wait a moment.��


    ��Alright,�� replied Xi Chiyao as she nodded.


    Ye Futian��s figure immediately disappeared from where he stood. The Deity Map itself was a key. It did not matter even if he handed over the copy of the Deity Map to West Imperial Palace. Since both sides had become allies, this should be done. He also needed to rely on West Imperial Palace to locate the ancient imperial celestial mountain.


    Xi Chiyao waited quietly as she stood on the mountain peak. Behind her, an elder said, ��It seems that he still does not trust you.��


    ��If you were in his shoes, could you trust me?�� Xi Chiyao responded with a smile. ��The cultivation world is full of intrigue and deceit. The hearts of men are unpredictable. He has the teachings of so many Great Emperors. Countless people in the Divine Prefecture wish to get him with whatever means necessary. The fate of the Ziwei Segmentum rests on his shoulders. How can he possibly put himself at risk?��


    The elder nodded his head and said, ��What you say is also true. With his talent, the inheritances and treasures he possesses, as well as the Deity Map now, even I would covet what he has. It is normal for him not to be trusting of others.��


    ��All men are greedy,�� Xi Chiyao said. ��I am also the same. However, rather than coveting his present, I am more interested in his future. Rather than take all he has from him, why not be friends and help him grow?��


    The elder nodded in agreement. Such foresight was something ordinary people did not have. There was naturally a reason why Xi Chiyao was chosen as an heir of the Ancient God Clan.


    Not long after, Ye Futian returned. He made a copy of the Deity Map by carving it on a jade slip. He passed it to Xi Chiyao and said, ��Goddess Chiyao, you��d better send it to West Imperial Palace with haste. I am worried that there will be changes to the current situation if we wait too long.��


    ��Alright,�� responded Xi Chiyao as she nodded her head. She handed it over to a person behind her. Then, a few of them immediately took to the skies and left.


    ��Renhuang Ye, why don��t we walk around and see whether we can find anything good?�� Xi Chiyao invited Ye Futian.


    ��Sure,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded. The two of them walked together and headed over towards the trade market in Jiuyi City.


    For the next few days, Ye Futian searched for things he needed in Jiuyi City. They were primarily for alchemy purposes. As for other treasures, he mostly had no interest in them. After all, having the teachings of several Great Emperors, few techniques could catch his eye. They would also not appear in Jiuyi City.


    Actually, Jiuyi City was not as peaceful as it appeared to be on the surface. Many cultivators from the West Sea Domain and other regions keenly observed Jiuyi City and the Breeze Pavilion. The Breeze Pavilion had been under a lot of pressure recently.


    At the moment, many cultivators were gathered at a gazebo in the Breeze Pavilion. Li Qingfeng was there, and the rest of the cultivators present all had strong auras. They were mysterious.


    ��Pavilion Master, when do you plan to hand the thing over to us?�� said one of them. His tone was unfriendly and threatening.


    The others also unleashed their might to pressure Li Qingfeng.


    Li Qingfeng had an indifferent expression. After pondering for a moment, he said, ��Give me three days. I will give everyone what you want in three days.��


    ��Alright. If that��s the case, we��ll wait for another three days.�� After saying this, the speaker left the gazebo. With a flash, the others also disappeared. They moved swiftly, and one could not trace where they went.


    Li Qingfeng stood in the gazebo with a cold look on his face. He gazed into the distance. Several cultivators entered the gazebo and bowed towards him.


    ��Do you have any news from him?�� Li Qingfeng asked.


    ��Pavilion Master, we have not received any word from him,�� replied one of them.


    Li Qingfeng��s expression turned even uglier. For the past few days, he had been waiting for updates from Daoist Monk Mu. However, he had not heard from Daoist Monk Mu again after letting the other party go last time. It was as though Daoist Monk Mu had gone missing.


    A few days had passed. There should have been enough time for Daoist Monk Mu to come and meet Li Qingfeng after retrieving the Deity Map. Yet, he had not done so. Clearly, Daoist Monk Mu intended to pocket the Deity Map without sharing it with anyone.


    ��We��ll wait a while longer,�� snorted Li Qingfeng. His facial expression was ugly beyond comparison. If Daoist Monk Mu planned to decipher the secret of the Deity Map alone, then Li Qingfeng would make sure that no one could obtain it in the end.


    ��


    Three days later, shocking news spread from Jiuyi City �C a duplicate of the Deity Map would be auctioned off by the Breeze Pavilion. At the same time, rumors were saying that the real Deity Map had been stolen by Daoist Monk Mu.


    As soon as this news got out, the entire Jiuyi City was shaken. This was the first time the Breeze Pavilion openly admitted to the existence of the Deity Map. Moreover, they were going to reveal it to the public. Since Daoist Monk Mu stole the real Deity Map, they only had a copy now that recorded the location of the celestial mountain.


    Countless cultivators rushed over to Jiuyi City. Almost all of the more powerful Alchemy Masters of the West Sea Domain had gathered here. It was a grand occasion.


    The existence of the Deity Map was related to Great Emperor level alchemy teachings. One could imagine how attractive this was for Alchemy Masters. In the present day, there were almost no top-tier Alchemy grandmasters in the Divine Prefecture anymore.


    Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao received this news very quickly. However, this was not a surprise for Ye Futian. He had quickly sought out Xi Chiyao and copied the Deity Map for her to send back to West Imperial Palace because he was worried that such an incident would occur.


    Aside from the Deity Map itself being the key to opening the celestial mountain, it was also a map. If he could copy this map, Li Qingfeng could certainly do so as well. If Li Qingfeng was under pressure and could not find Daoist Monk Mu, it was possible that he would reveal the map to the public.


    Now, things played out the way Ye Futian expected.


    Fortunately, the accurate Deity Map was still in his possession.


    ��Should we head over to the Breeze Pavilion and take a look?�� Xi Chiyao asked Ye Futian. Right now, the Deity Map was about to be auctioned off. All the cultivators in Jiuyi City seemed to be rushing towards the Breeze Pavilion. Looking over there from where they stood, they could see crowds of people swarming the streets. At a glance, the streets from here to the Breeze Pavilion were filled with cultivators. There were also many incredible Renhuangs in the sky.


    ��It is meaningless,�� Ye Futian commented. ��Since Li Qingfeng decided to make it public, he certainly plans to maximize the benefits he can obtain from it. Most likely, more than one copy of the Deity Map will be auctioned off.��


    ��Indeed,�� said Xi Chiyao as she nodded. His auctioning off one copy was no different from him exposing the map to the public. There was no way that anyone could keep it a secret. Auctioning off multiple copies would lead to the same result. If that was the case, why wouldn��t he maximize his profits?


    ��For the top forces in the shadows, they certainly did not need to obtain the Deity Map through the auctions. Li Qingfeng might use them to decipher the location on the Deity Map together,�� Ye Futian continued. ��Hence, we need to make haste.��


    Xi Chiyao nodded her head slightly and said, ��I have sent word back and asked them to pick up the pace. On West Imperial Palace��s side, they have found many maps of the West Sea Domain from different eras. They had already locked on a few targets, so the results should soon be out.��


    ��Alright, I hope that we can make it before everyone else,�� said Ye Futian as he nodded his head slightly. Although he held the real Deity Map and possessed the key to opening the ancient imperial celestial mountain, the cultivators from various forces would all make their way over if the location was made public. Once he opened it, the various cultivators would swoop in to snatch the treasures from him. He might end up delivering the spoils into the hands of others.


    Just as Ye Futian speculated, while a copy of the Deity Map was being auctioned in the Breeze Pavilion, at the same time in a courtyard of the Breeze Pavilion, many cultivators from the top forces were here. They had all obtained a copy of the Deity Map.


    Li Qingfeng looked at them and said, ��Everyone, once Daoist Monk Mu knows about this, he will certainly attempt to decipher the map as soon as possible. Until now, the forces of West Imperial Palace have not come looking for me yet. I suspect that Daoist Monk Mu might have sought the aid of West Imperial Palace. If that is the case, it might not be long before they decipher the location on the Deity Map. At such a critical junction, I hope that all of you will put aside your agendas, work together and use our various resources to decipher the map��s secrets. Only then can we find the location of the ancient imperial celestial mountain before Daoist Monk Mu and head over to keep watch. That way, no matter who Daoist Monk Mu is working with, he can only dream about keeping the secret of the ancient imperial celestial mountain to himself.��


    ��If you knew that it would end up like this, what have you been doing all this while?�� someone asked coldly.


    ��Now is not the time to complain. What Li Qingfeng said is right. Let��s work together. Since West Imperial Palace did not come, I also speculate that Daoist Monk Mu might have joined forces with them,�� said an elder. West Imperial Palace was the overlord of the West Sea Domain; they had more favorable resources and support. The rest of them had to unite!

 Chapter 2528 - Celestial Mountain Under the Sea

    Xi Chiyao quickly caught wind of what Li Qingfeng did in Jiuyi City.


    Even though Jiuyi City was not under the jurisdiction of West Imperial Palace, the palace had spies in the city.


    Xi Chiyao happened to be with Ye Futian right now, so she shared the news with him immediately.


    Xi Chiyao said, ��Things played out as you predicted. While copies of the Deity Maps were being auctioned off at high prices, Li Qingfeng revealed another copy of the map directly to all the top forces internally. They planned to join forces to decipher the location of the ancient imperial celestial mountain. If those forces work together, they might decipher the map faster than West Imperial Palace.��


    Ye Futian was not surprised by this news. If he were Li Qingfeng, he would also choose to do so after failing to get any reply from Daoist Monk Mu.


    Ye Futian replied, ��I have to trouble the cultivators of West Imperial Palace to work harder. Li Qingfeng and the others do not have the real Deity Map, but if they identify the location, things will become much harder for us. There will be a battle over the treasures. If we can decipher the location before them, then we can seize the teachings right away.��


    ��I have urged my men a few times. They should be reaching a breakthrough soon,�� Xi Chiyao said.


    Ye Futian nodded and said no more.


    In the following days, the entire Jiuyi City was filled with all kinds of news about the Deity Map. Moreover, many duplicates of the Deity Map were circulated and made known to the public. The forces who got the copies of the Deity Map via auction knew that with their power alone, it was impossible for them to seize the treasures hidden in the ancient imperial celestial mountain. Therefore, they traded their copies of the Deity Map with others in secret and created a commotion. Their goal was to fish for any available profit in troubled waters.


    As a result, copies of the Deity Map became readily available in Jiuyi City. The copies were spread around quickly, and in the end, almost everyone had a copy of the map.


    However, even though many people had the map, ordinary forces couldn��t decipher the exact location of the ancient imperial celestial mountain. The two key forces competing were West Imperial Palace and Li Qingfeng and his allies.


    The latter was formed from many forces; the former was the overlord of the West Sea Domain.


    Although they were not in direct conflict, the race was on behind the scenes. They were competing to see who could decipher the Deity Map first.


    Today, on the mountain peak, Xi Chiyao suddenly opened her eyes. She looked at Ye Futian, who was sitting cross-legged nearby and cultivating quietly.


    ��Renhuang Ye,�� Xi Chiyao yelled over transmitted thoughts. Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked at her. He understood what she wanted to say with just a glance.


    Ye Futian immediately got up, and the two of them took to the skies. They set off without any hesitation. Then, silhouettes flew up one after another and followed them.


    After their group left, cultivators kept traversing the sky from different directions around Jiuyi City and pursuing them at extremely high speeds.


    The people in front were cultivators of West Imperial Palace. The people behind were from the top forces who arrived in Jiuyi City. It was obvious that before this, some forces already had their eyes on Xi Chiyao.


    ��Renhuang Ye, I��ll share the location with you. You head there first,�� Xi Chiyao told Ye Futian through transmitted thoughts. ��There are people tailing us. You can get rid of them with your speed. Many of my cultivators are making their way over from West Imperial Palace. They might reach there before you. Please meet up with them after you arrive.��


    ��I��ll bring Goddess Chiyao along with me,�� Ye Futian said. With a flash, he came up beside Xi Chiyao. He grabbed her arm and said, ��Bringing you along will slow down my Celerity by a little. But we should still be fast enough to get rid of these people. The only downside is we will ditch your men here as well.��


    ��That��s fine,�� Xi Chiyao replied. As soon as she gave consent, their bodies disappeared from their original spots right away.


    Not long after Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao left Jiuyi City, in the Breeze Pavilion, Li Qingfeng and the others stood up from their seats frantically. Their eyes glittered with excitement as they stared at a point on the map.


    ��We have deciphered it,�� announced Li Qingfeng.


    The reason why Li Qingfeng and the top forces could decipher the location so fast was not because their alliances had better resources than West Imperial Palace. Instead, it was because Li Qingfeng had been studying the Deity Map even before it was made known to others. He had already made great progress in searching for the exact location corresponding to the mark labeled on the map.


    If the Deity Map had not been stolen, Li Qingfeng would have deciphered the location sooner or later. However, things had escalated to where they were now. Therefore, with Li Qingfeng��s expertise and the aid of the various top forces, their alliance could unravel the secret so quickly.


    ��Let��s go.��


    One by one, the cultivators took to the sky and traversed across space. Their speed was astonishing. Like shadows flashing past, they disappeared in an instant.


    Countless people in Jiuyi City noticed that silhouettes took to the sky and left the Breeze Pavilion. The cultivators transformed into beams of flowing light.


    ��Such fast speed,�� exclaimed someone.


    ��Who are they? And where are they heading?�� someone asked.


    ��Could it be related to the Deity Map?��


    The crowd in Jiuyi City felt their hearts tremble in excitement. Had the secret of the Deity Map been deciphered?


    Li Qingfeng might have found the location labeled on the Deity Map. That might be why he took to the sky and left in a hurry.


    On the side of a mountain path, Daoist Monk Mu raised his head and glanced in the direction where Li Qingfeng and his allies had headed. Then, he packed up his stall and moved up the mountain path.


    At the same time, he took out an item. His will seeped into it, and he recorded a message in the item. It was a treasure used for communication. Daoist Monk Mu utilized it to keep in touch with Ye Futian. He told Ye Futian what had happened here and asked him to be on his guard.


    Daoist Monk Mu stole the Deity Map and searched for the ancient imperial celestial mountain for years. Unfortunately, he would most likely miss out on the adventure this time.


    However, he was fine with it. Currently, Ye Futian was working with West Imperial Palace. It would be sufficient as long as Ye Futian could achieve his goal. After that, Ye Futian would surely help Daoist Monk Mu to improve his alchemy skill.


    Right now, Daoist Monk Mu also had his own mission to carry out.


    Step by step, he advanced upwards, following the mountain path. His speed was not fast. It took a while before he arrived at the Breeze Pavilion.


    The Breeze Pavilion was very lively at the moment. Everyone broke into chatter. Many people looked far into the distance. They were still immersed in awe after the Pavilion Master left. They hoped that he would succeed.


    However, it was rather difficult.


    Voices of discussion rose from all around. Daoist Monk Mu quietly listened to all of this. He then looked up at the sky and mumbled, ��It is almost time.��


    Li Qingfeng��s group had already left for some time. They couldn��t rush back. It would cause Li Qingfeng despair if he had to return and waste the time his group had already spent on the road. They were now heading over to intercept the other groups from seizing the treasures of the ancient imperial celestial mountain.


    Rumble. A terrifying pressure enveloped the Breeze Pavilion. Daoist Monk Mu walked step by step towards the pavilion. In an instant, the various cultivators in the pavilion felt their hearts tremble. They retracted their gazes and looked towards the figure who was slowly walking towards them.


    It was Daoist Monk Mu!


    ��Li Qingfeng took everything I owned. I can only seek the Breeze Pavilion for reimbursement. Apologies for the offense,�� said Daoist Monk Mu.


    This time, he was taking things by force!


    How could he let such an opportunity slip past him? This time, he would pillage the Breeze Pavilion clean.


    ��


    In a corner of the vast and endless West Sea, there were many islands. All the islands were barren and had no signs of humans ever landing on them. The Worldly Spiritual Qi in this area seemed to be missing and was extremely thin. It was extremely unsuitable for cultivation. Even demonic beasts of the sea did not want to make their homes around this area.


    At that moment, a group of people arrived in this region. Their spiritual wills enveloped the domain, but they still could not detect anything out of the ordinary.


    These early birds were cultivators from West Imperial Palace. They opened up the final map and then glanced around at the surrounding region. The celestial mountain should be in this part of the sea. There was no error with their deduction. It was just that this region appeared too normal and appeared to be just a little corner of the endless West Sea. Few people would venture to this location.


    At that moment, another two silhouettes suddenly descended upon the area. This caused the crowd��s expressions to turn slightly stern. However, when they made out who had arrived, they retracted their auras.


    ��Chiyao,�� someone called out. The two people who had arrived were Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao.


    Ye Futian glanced around at the surroundings. His spiritual will enveloped this part of the sea. A strange look flashed past in his eyes as he said, ��This area actually appears so normal. The Worldly Spiritual Qi in this area is extremely thin, and there are no traces of humans around. No wonder no one noticed this place.��


    Was this the location marked on the Deity Map?


    He glanced at Xi Chiyao. She nodded slightly at him. Ye Futian did not say anymore. He took out the true Deity Map, and his spiritual will seeped into it. The Deity Map instantly emitted a bright light, and a projection of a region of the sea appeared.


    Ye Futian shifted his thoughts, and the Deity Map immediately expanded frenziedly. It blocked out the sun and covered this part of the sea.


    Xi Chiyao looked up at the projection of the sea shown on the Deity Map as her heart trembled slightly. This projection actually matched the region of the sea before their eyes. The only difference was that the islands on the map were like enchanted islands, but they appeared extremely ordinary in reality.


    Buzz. Beneath the Deity Map, Flames of the Way emerged. In an instant, the Deity Map was lit by a frightening divine halo of flame. It was as though the map was made of flame. Beams of divine light shone down and pointed towards the surrounding islands. The light covered the sea directly.


    Ye Futian��s group quietly watched as this miraculous scene played out. The sea was boiling. The divine flames released from the Deity Map landed on the surrounding islands and set them ablaze. Even some islands that had been lost to the passage of time also appeared as islands of flame.


    A frightening sizzling sound could be heard as the seawater boiled. This part of the sea evaporated. Beneath the dried-up sea, countless patterns of flame lit up and resonated with the Deity Map in the sky. As the patterns appeared, a seal was unlocked in this part of the sea with unfathomable depth. An intense rumble could be heard, and the sea parted in the middle.


    Deity Mist appeared. An extremely thick Worldly Spiritual Qi spread outwards, emanating from the bottom of the sea.


    A celestial mountain appeared at the bottom of the dried-up sea, causing the surrounding sea to roar violently.


    No wonder the Worldly Spiritual Qi here was so thin; it had been completely consumed. Ye Futian thought to himself when he saw this scene. Their hearts were beating fast. A celestial mountain was sealed within this part of the sea. How powerful was the person who managed to do this?


    As the Deity Mist spread out, the celestial mountain emerged from the sea. It grew larger, as though what had appeared before was merely the tip of the celestial mountain.


    Ye Futian and the others retreated upwards. The mountain continued to rise. From under the sea, a celestial mountain rose up!

 Chapter 2529 - The Deity Island and the Divine Matrix

    There was a boundless Deity Mist. The celestial mountain rose from the sea, showed up above the sea, and transformed into a Deity Island.


    It was a giant Deity Island. With their bodies suspended over it, Ye Futian and others could feel the vast Worldly Spiritual Qi enveloping the celestial mountain, which they were breathing greedily.


    They took a step forward one after another, ready to go onto the celestial mountain to find the relics of the Ancient Emperor.


    ��Hold up.�� A voice came, leaving them dumbstruck. They looked back at Xi Chiyao.


    ��Chiyao, now that the celestial mountain showed up, we should hurry up,�� said an old man.


    ��Everyone, stay at the periphery of the celestial mountain. Deploy the Raindrop Divine Matrix to isolate the mountain from the outside world,�� said Xi Chiyao. Her order puzzled the Practitioners from the West Imperial Palace. They all looked at her with confused faces.


    At such a timing, everyone wanted to go onto the celestial mountain to find the relics of the Ancient Emperor. It was a fantastic opportunity. If they stayed here to deploy the Raindrop Divine Matrix, who would go onto the celestial mountain?


    ��I��ve got news from Jiuyi City. Many people set off from the Breeze Pavilion. They should have decoded the address, too, and will find this place very soon. Renhuang Ye is good at decoding relics. He and I will go and look for the deity��s traces. You stay here to deploy the Raindrop Divine Matrix. Don��t let anyone disturb us,�� added Xi Chiyao.


    Many people remained perplexed. They were all Practitioners from the West Imperial Palace, and Xi Chiyao was the Goddess of the West Imperial Palace. However, she was going to send Ye Futian to decode the relics. Although she would go with him, everyone knew she was not a rival for Ye Futian. They were not even comparable in terms of strength, so it meant the relics on the celestial mountain were basically Ye Futian��s.


    Why was she helping an outsider?


    The inheritance of the Elixir Emperor could be on the celestial mountain. It was exactly what the Divine Prefecture needed. If the West Imperial Palace could get it, they would grow more powerful. She should not give up such a great opportunity to a stranger, no matter what reason she had.


    And they would deploy a formation to help Ye Futian?


    That did not make any sense.


    ��Chiyao, I��m afraid I disagree. We will go to look for the relics right now,�� said an awe-inspiring middle-aged man in the tone of a senior. It was Xi Chiyao��s uncle. Xi Chiyao was the Goddess, but her position in the family hierarchy was not high. Many seniors had come with her this time.


    ��I am not discussing with you, uncle. As the Goddess, I order you to deploy the Raindrop Divine Matrix.�� An unusual light showed up in Xi Chiyao��s eyes, which looked the same as the West Emperor��s eyes. She glanced over the powerhouses of the West Imperial Palace.


    ��He is the enemy of the Divine Prefecture. How dare you collaborate with him so brazenly���� Xi Chiyao��s uncle was still very reluctant to follow her order.


    ��Start now! Otherwise, all of you will be punished according to the rules of the clan after we go back to the imperial palace,�� shouted Xi Chiyao, pushy and awe-inspiring. She did not even let her uncle finish speaking. That gentle and pretty woman always wearing a smile on her face was iron-willed, tough, awe-inspiring, and bossy at the moment. She did not allow any questions for her order.


    ��Do as she ordered,�� said the old man behind Xi Chiyao.


    ��Fine!�� responded Xi Chiyao��s uncle, gnashing his teeth. The others also nodded and started to work. Some of them trusted Xi Chiyao, but many people were following her order reluctantly. She was the most powerful heir to the West Emperor, the Goddess chosen by the West Imperial Palace. Even seniors would have to fulfill her order.


    The Lord of the West Imperial Palace once announced that Xi Chiyao could order anyone in the clan except him, that anyone that refused to follow her order would be regarded as a traitor of the West Imperial Palace. All of his powers would be removed according to the rules of the clan. No one knew why that old man trusted and spoiled Xi Chiyao so much despite her young age.


    When all that had been done, Xi Chiyao said to Ye Futian, ��Come on. Let��s go onto the celestial mountain.��


    Ye Futian had been watching the whole time. It all happened in a very short while. Xi Chiyao��s brief but powerful speech showed him the other side of hers and left him in shock, too. The successor that the Ancient God Clan had chosen was quite sophisticated. He could hardly believe it was the same gentle and pretty woman he knew that had acted so toughly.


    ��He was right. That move will offend many forces,�� said Ye Futian. He was the common enemy of the Divine Prefecture. Xi Chiyao had made it clear that she would not help him explicitly. However, what she did contradicted what she said. She told the Practitioners of the West Imperial Palace to deploy the Raindrop Divine Matrix to help him.


    ��We don��t have much time. Other forces are already on their way. We have to be quick,�� Xi Chiyao said. ��And I am not just helping you. Don��t forget we are allies. I have a share, too.��


    Ye Futian looked at Xi Chiyao, who was next to him. She was smiling with her eyes as gentle as water. It was the old her again.


    ��Stop thinking about those people. What��s urgent now is find the Ancient Emperor��s relics on the celestial mountain and take them away as quickly as we can,�� added Xi Chiyao. Ye Futian gave her a nod. He looked at the Celestial mountain below them while releasing his divine consciousness to shroud the Deity Island.


    The Breeze Pavilion was surprisingly fast. So, they had to make it quick indeed��find what he wanted as fast as he could and then leave. As long as he could get what he wanted, there would be no more concerns because no one was fast enough to catch up with him.


    And he would go as far as he could.


    The celestial mountain was covered with verdant ancient trees full of the energy of life. Despite having most of it in the sea, it was still giving off a strong vibe full of life and being nourished by the Worldly Spiritual Qi.


    ��These herbs and trees all have a soul. They are celestial herbs and trees, very precious,�� said Ye Futian in a low voice, looking at the plants on the Deity Island. They were all precious medicinal materials rarely seen in the Outer Realms; they were the real treasures.


    However, they were everywhere on the celestial mountain.


    The Deity Island was a treasure trove itself.


    ��Nine Spirits Herbs, Trees of Life, Celestial Vines���� Looking down, Xi Chiyao glanced over with her divine consciousness and recognized many rare herbs and trees. An exotic light flashed across her pretty eyes. If she could take some of those away, she would own a treasure trove full of resources she could use to refine elixirs.


    ��Don��t touch anything yet. We still need to find the relics of the Ancient Emperor first.�� Ye Futian restrained his greediness. It was not time yet. If they touched anything here and failed to find the relics. As a result, they would regret it a lot.


    ��Have you found anything?�� asked Xi Chiyao. Her divine consciousness covered every inch of the celestial mountain, but she found nothing. There was nothing special.


    ��No.�� Ye Futian shook his head. Just like Xi Chiyao, his divine consciousness shrouded the whole celestial mountain, but he only saw the precious plants over the mountain.


    ��There are only plenty of precious spirit herbs and trees on the legendary Deity Island, but no inheritance of the Ancient Emperor?�� An assumption entered his mind. Everything here is precious and priceless, but if that was all, he would still feel disappointed.


    He wanted more than that.


    Both of them were searching using their divine consciousness. Xi Chiyao frowned. ��There are always many rumors about this Deity Island, but maybe it��s just where the successors to the Great Emperor planted medicinal herbs? Maybe there is no inheritance at all.��


    Next to her, Ye Futian suddenly put on a bizarre look. His eyes seemed to be able to look beyond the emptiness and see the truth.


    He seemed to detect something. Xi Chiyao looked down, and her eyes changed, too. They looked like the eyes of the West Emperor.


    However, she detected nothing. She still did not see anything special.


    ��Elixirs!�� Ye Futian said one word. Xi Chiyao looked at him.


    Looking at the celestial mountain down there, Ye Futian said, ��The herbs and trees on the celestial mountain are all nourished by elixirs. Top Alchemy Masters used to cultivate on this island. They refined elixirs and used them to nourish the medicinal herbs here. Some of the medicinal herbs were even transformed from their elixirs.��


    ��Reverse nurturing?!�� said Xi Chiyao in a low voice.


    ��I heard that some elixirs should go through ordeals called elixir tribulation after being refined. Such elixirs have a soul. Some special elixirs can be used to cultivate precious herbs, thus giving them the tribulation attribute. In this way, more high-grade elixirs will be refined.��


    ��Soul!�� Ye Futian repeated the word. He was still looking down and checking out every inch of the mountain.


    Then he closed his eyes and entered a serene status, reciting the Buddhist Sutra to himself.


    A divine light shrouded Ye Futian��s body like the Light of Buddha. Xi Chiyao put on a shocked look. Standing next to Ye Futian, she also felt a serenity at the bottom of her heart, as if she would be plunged into that status as well.


    At that moment, Ye Futian did not seem to exist. The celestial mountain was the only thing in his world. He was feeling every tree, every herb, and every leaf on it. He was communicating with their souls.


    Buzz! Ye Futian suddenly disappeared, which struck Xi Chiyao dumb. She looked down and saw him show up somewhere on the Deity Island and stand there in silence.


    It was an opening where he was standing. There were only a few herbs in front of him. However, those unremarkable herbs were growing on the celestial mountain with other celestial herbs and divine trees.


    And around them, there were no other plants.


    Xi Chiyao landed there, too. She darted an odd look at Ye Futian and those herbs.


    Those herbs would doubtless be neglected on the celestial mountain because they had nothing special. Visitors of the mountain could even step on them unintentionally, but somehow, Ye Futian chose here to land and was staring at them.


    She did not know why, but she stood there quietly without posing any questions. Ye Futian was stronger than she was. He must have his reason to do that. She would not have come here with him in the first place if she did not trust him.


    ��


    At this moment, beyond the Deity Island, a big group of powerful cultivators with dreadful auras flew across the air over the sea. Those were exactly the powerhouses from Jiuyi City.


    ��We came too late?�� Looking ahead, they supposed it was not late after all.


    ��The Raindrop Divine Matrix. It��s the West Imperial Palace indeed.�� Some of them saw a rain curtain instead of the Deity Island in front of them. That area was full of raindrops, and none of them had the nerve to rush into that world.


    The falling raindrops had extremely edgy energy in them as if they were the sharpest blades in the world.


    It was the Raindrop Divine Matrix deployed by the West Imperial Palace!

 Chapter 2530 - Looted and Left

    The Raindrop Divine Matrix was an important killing formation of the West Imperial Palace. It was very powerful. Those powerhouses were all hesitating after arrival. They did not have the nerve to rush in recklessly.


    ��The celestial mountain of the Ancient Emperor is an inheritance from ancient times. Does the West Imperial Palace intend to have it to all yourselves by locking this place down?�� said one of the powerful cultivators in a reproaching tone. His voice carried across the sea.


    However, there was no response from the Raindrop Divine Matrix.


    The rain kept falling. It was the rain of killing.


    The West Sea Domain was the territory of the West Imperial Palace. Even though there was a Domain Chief��s Manor, the West Imperial Palace remained the most powerful force. The historical and cultural heritage of the Ancient God Clan was not something the Domain Chief��s Manor could compete with.


    Bang�� They knew talking would not help. Exerting the powerful force of the Great Path of Destruction, they launched attacks against the Raindrop Divine Matrix. However, the attacks of the Great Path were frustrated and cracked as soon as they got into the Raindrop Divine Matrix.


    ��Who is here leading the West Imperial Palace?�� An intimidating voice spoke at this moment. A formidable thrusting thunder struck across the air and turned into a divine light of Thunder Punishment with the dreadful force of the divine retribution.


    It was suddenly very dark everywhere. Over the sea, a destructive disaster seemed to be about to occur.


    Many powerhouses looked up at the sky. It was a strong cultivator from the Yuanshi Palace of the Yuanshi Domain, a force of the Ancient God Clan that came to visit the West Sea Domain.


    Several forces of the Ancient God Clan showed up one after another in different directions. They surrounded the Raindrop Divine Matrix with a dreadful might powerful enough to destroy the world.


    Except for the Donghuang Imperial Palace, the Ancient God Clan was the most powerful force in the Divine Prefecture. Forces as powerful as they were might be more eager for top alchemy methods and elixirs than for some inheritances of the Great Emperor. After all, the Ancient God Clan already had the most suitable Emperor-level inheritances for themselves. And the Way of Alchemy might make them go farther and become the number one force below the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    There were no top alchemy forces in the Divine Prefecture at the moment, but there were top forging forces.


    The Tianyan City located in the Tianyan Domain was also a force of the Ancient God Clan. They were in an unshakable paramount position in the Divine Prefecture. The Lord of the Tianyan City was a very pushy and bossy man. He once had the Heavenly Mandate Academy razed by lifting a hand of his.


    By then, the legendary inheritance of the Elixir Emperor from ancient times had shown up. Of course, he would compete for it.


    Again, no response came from the Raindrop Divine Matrix.


    ��Well, we won��t show any mercy then.�� A cold voice came from the sky again. The force of Divine Retribution descended into the Divine Matrix. The other powerhouses also acted, launching attacks against the Raindrop Divine Matrix deployed by their peers from the West Imperial Palace, to whom they were overwhelmingly superior in number.


    ��


    Above the celestial mountain, rich Worldly Spiritual Qi shrouded the entire island.


    Despite the countless celestial herbs and divine trees there, Ye Futian was sitting cross-legged in front of a few leaves of grass. Xi Chiyao was standing behind, not far away from him. She did not want to disturb him.


    Ye Futian proved his ability to decode relics a long time ago. He could be said to be a relic killer. And she was inferior to him in all aspects. Therefore, Xi Chiyao certainly did not think she could find out the secret of the celestial mountain before he did.


    She knew what she could achieve and what she could not. She knew herself well, and she also knew Ye Futian well. So, she decided to be simply an onlooker, and she ordered her men to deploy the Divine Matrix so that no one would disturb Ye Futian. That would win him some time. He had a good chance to disclose the mystery of the celestial mountain before powerful cultivators from the Outer Realms intruded into here.


    With his eyes closed, Ye Futian was in ultimate serenity. He was one hundred percent focused. He perceived the stirring of the grass in a gentle breeze. Those leaves of grass seemed very fragile; it was as if they were just some weeds.


    However, Ye Futian had sensed earlier that those grass leaves were the ones with the most powerful soul on the celestial mountain. If he had not been so sensitive or entered the state of meditative consciousness through the Buddhist doctrine, he would not have even perceived the soul.


    Besides, there were no other plants around the grasses, as if this was their territory and nothing had the nerve to compete against them. They were like kings in solitude.


    That made Ye Futian wonder: is it really just grass?


    In a state in which he totally forgot himself, Ye Futian was feeling the grass, trying to connect to the soul. However, except for a mysterious feeling, he had no finding at all. The grass leaves were stirring quietly in the breeze as if they were just growing here like other plants, and there was nothing unusual.


    He used his perception, the divine consciousness, and eyes, but he still could not detect anything unusual.


    However, Ye Futian did not believe he had made a mistake. The more so, the more extraordinary those grass leaves could be.


    Ye Futian did not give up. An aura of the great way spread from his body and toward the grass, trying to merge with them.


    But it still did not work.


    Ye Futian could sense the existence of that soul, but he vaguely felt it had not been completely awake yet, that it was still in sleep, and he was supposed to wake it up.


    The branches and leaves of an ancient tree showed up on the ground and extended to the grass. Ye Futian seemed to have transformed into a tree, and he was growing with it.


    Soon, the tree took root. Its new branches and leaves surrounded the grass as if they had turned into one. The aura of life and the Will of the Great Way kept flowing into them to nourish them and help them grow.


    The ancient tree of the world could hold anything in the world. He wanted to try whether that could work.


    ��What a wonderful aura.��


    Xi Chiyao sensed the aura in Ye Futian. The force of the Great Way was incredibly flawless.


    In the Outer Realms, the Raindrop Divine Matrix was shaken. The battle in the air seemed to have affected it. Xi Chiyao frowned. It seemed the enemy was attacking fiercely. She looked up at the sky, thinking it would not take long for the enemy to crack the Raindrop Divine Matrix.


    Ye Futian would not be able to stay in such a state if he was disturbed. Then all of the efforts they had made would be wasted.


    ��Stall them,�� said Xi Chiyao to the air, looking up. She knew the powerful cultivators of the West Imperial Palace could hear her and would try to buy Ye Futian more time.


    Those grass leaves were wreathed in some celestial lights soon. They seemed to be growing. Green luminous dots blossomed, and the grass leaves were growing taller and bigger.


    ��That��s a powerful soul.�� Even Xi Chiyao perceived it at the moment. The growing grass leaves seemed psychic. They had a powerful soul.


    And Ye Futian was trying to wake the soul up.


    Could the herb even have intelligence?


    The Light of Buddha was shining vaguely on Ye Futian, who was reciting the Buddhist Sutra. The Sanskrit recital lingered in the air. The sound of it made Xi Chiyao feel like everything was growing as if the earth was waking up, and everything was full of life.


    The grass leaves kept stirring. As they grew taller, it seemed easier for the wind to break them, but that was not the case. Lights sparkled. Xi Chiyao sensed that soul had grown more powerful.


    The lights were even gathering, and it seemed to be a human that they were turning into.


    ��Oh, right����


    Xi Chiyao was stirred. She realized Ye Futian had found the right thing indeed. Those grass leaves were turning into a human.


    What did that mean?


    ��Legend has it that the Ancient Emperor transformed into an elixir after his collapse and was taken away by his inheritor.�� Xi Chiyao heard a voice in her mind.


    Could that be��


    She looked at Ye Futian with her pretty eyes and saw him staying still. The human shadow was taking shape. It looked like a celestial being that was pleasing to the eyes. A mere glance at him would give people a comfortable feeling.


    The shadow showed up on the grass, seemingly looking at Ye Futian.


    ��Senior, nice to meet you. My name is Ye Futian,�� said Ye Futian with his eyes open, bowing to the shadow.


    ��What a surprise. Someone woke up the wisp of will I left in the world,�� murmured the shadow. Then he asked, ��What year is it?��


    ��Ten thousandth year and a bit of the Divine Prefecture Calendar,�� answered Ye Futian. He supposed the shadow knew nothing about the calendar.


    ��The Divine Prefecture Calendar�� Where is the Divine Prefecture���� said the shadow in a low voice. It let out a sigh. ��Ten thousandth year and a bit of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, I suppose my successor is already dead.��


    Ye Futian did not say anything. He would not know, but he supposed it was true. If the legend was actually what happened, that the celestial mountain had been looted, no treasures would be left.


    Maybe the only thing that survived was a medicine garden, which was the whole mountain, and the later generations sealed it up here.


    However, Ye Futian woke up the wisp of will of the Ancient Emperor this day.


    ��Are you also an Alchemy Master?�� the shadow asked Ye Futian.


    ��Yep.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Well, now that you woke me up, you must have something extraordinary.�� The voice came from the shadow again. Then it turned into numerous luminous dots and flew to Ye Futian and then into his brow chakra.


    Xi Chiyao was quite emotional to see all that. The ancient imperial celestial mountain was nothing similar to the one she had imagined. There were no divine treasures, no treasure troves or valuable elixir recipes or gorgeous alchemy methods. The only thing here was grass. However, in those grass leaves remained the wisp of will of the Ancient Emperor. If it were not Ye Futian here, would it have been woken up?


    Soon, the luminous dots disappeared. Those grasses withered quickly. Even the rare herbs over the whole celestial mountain started to wither.


    Boom�� The shaking continued in the air. The Raindrop Divine Matrix was on the verge of collapsing.


    ��Collect the Spirit Herbs,�� said Xi Chiyao. Ye Futian got to his feet and shifted his consciousness. Dreadful blares instantly came. The entire celestial mountain was shaking. Countless herbs and trees were sent into the air. He leaped into the air and waved his sleeve, where those herbs and trees all instantly flew into.


    Xi Chiyao was doing the same. They were like two bandits looting the place greedily.


    Finally, a blare came. The Raindrop Divine Matrix was destroyed. Those powerful cultivators charged down and saw Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao looting like crazy.


    ��Get going.�� A voice came. They certainly would not miss such an opportunity. They started to loot, too. However, Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao had plundered more than half of the mountain before they started.


    ��Take him down,�� said someone, staring at Ye Futian.


    ��Goddess Chiyao, see you,�� said Ye Futian. Then he disappeared.


    No one had the nerve to attack Xi Chiyao in the West Sea Domain, but he should not linger here longer. He had got what he wanted, and he had better leave immediately before anything else came up.


    ��He is gone!��


    Seeing Ye Futian disappear, those cultivators put on a terrible look.


    ��B*stard,�� cursed in anger someone from the West Imperial Palace. Ye Futian left?


    So, they were doing everything for his sake?


    Many people even looked at Xi Chiyao unhappily, as it was her order.

 Chapter 2531 - Recruitment

    Xi Chiyao didn��t seem to mind, however. She knew a little about some of Ye Futian��s past and knew of Ye Futian��s character. He was not an ungrateful person.


    Therefore, Xi Chiyao didn��t think she needed to say anything. As long as she did it, there was no need to mention it, and Ye Futian would not forget what she had done for him.


    Moreover, Ye Futian��s choice to leave just now was the best choice in itself because there was not much sense in staying.


    However, the people in West Imperial Palace were not very happy with him. It seemed to them that Ye Futian had gotten all the benefits with no repercussions.


    The island had been plundered by all the cultivators. It didn��t take long for Celestial Mountain to be stripped entirely completely; not even a tree was left, nor any plants, which was quite astounding.


    Afterward, they came to Xi Chiyao and surrounded her. Some cultivator from the Ancient God Clan asked her, ��Xi Chiyao, what did you get?��


    Xi Chiyao glanced at the man and responded, ��I got no more than you.��


    ��You had helped Ye Futian, so he should be returning to the West Imperial Palace, right?�� Some cultivators guessed. Xi Chiyao and Ye Futian had worked together; therefore, the West Imperial Palace must have played a significant role. Otherwise, why would the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace arrange the Raindrop Divine Matrix?


    ��Why are you asking me where he��s going?�� Xi Chiyao asked with a smile. Upon hearing her words, a coldness came out from these people, and a pressure of might fell on her. Although the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace were unhappy with Xi Chiyao��s decision, they came forward at this moment and scolded, ��Insolent creatures!��


    Xi Chiyao��s face turned icy as well. Her eyes became wickedly enchanting and indifferent. A faint chill was released from her. She said coldly, ��Don��t forget, everyone, the place where you are standing now is the West Sea Domain.��


    And the West Sea Domain was the territory of the West Imperial Palace. Even if it was other Ancient God Clan, would they dare to challenge the goddess of West Imperial Place in the West Sea Domain?


    The expressions on these cultivators spoke volumes. They had come this time purely based on rumors, and the top-level cultivators were not with them. In this West Sea Domain, if the top figures of the West Imperial Palace were to rush over as reinforcements, none of them would end up well.


    ��We will make it public that the West Imperial Palace and Ye Futian have teamed up. If West Imperial Palace wants to become a public enemy in the Divine Prefecture, we will make it a reality,�� someone threatened coldly. It was not a total exaggeration to speak of Ye Futian as a public enemy in the Divine Prefecture. Everyone knew that Ye Futian was the successor of Emperor Ye Qing, who was the enemy of Donghuang Imperial Palace. This made him a natural enemy of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Let��s go!�� These people flickered away and withdrew from this area. After a while, they had all disappeared. Although they made some gains, the biggest gain was reaped by Ye Futian. He might have swept away an imperial-level treasure and had now fled away.


    ��The West Imperial Palace didn��t get anything out of this; we had just given it all away for nothing. Furthermore, we have offended all the major forces in the Divine Prefecture and possibly caused the displeasure of Donghuang Imperial Palace. Is this the result that the goddess wanted?�� Xi Chiyao��s uncle remarked coldly.


    After the outsiders had left, he no longer maintained any formalities as he had before. He didn��t even address her as Chiyao but called her ��goddess�� instead. Obviously, he was still sore from before, when Xi Chiyao overruled him with her title and status.


    ��My uncle is worrying too much. The relationship between the principalities of the Divine Prefecture has never been particularly friendly anyway. There was no offense to speak of. Donghuang Imperial Palace has never really interfered much in affairs among these principalities anyways. As for giving everything away,�� Xi Chiyao smiled, ��I��m afraid I don��t much agree with that sentiment either.��


    ��Humph.�� The other man didn��t buy it and snorted coldly. He said, ��I will report the situation to the palace lord after returning to the West Imperial Palace.��


    ��Uncle, you are free to do whatever you wish.�� Xi Chiyao smiled gently as if she didn��t care about anything that had taken place here.


    ��Let��s go,�� another person said, and the group nodded. They then left through the air and proceeded to make their way back to the West Imperial Palace.


    In this area of the sea, only a barren island was left. There was nothing that remained to suggest anything celestial about the place. After being looted, it was nothing but a deserted island now.


    The news that Ye Futian had obtained the relic from the ancient Imperial celestial mountain quickly spread in the West Sea Domain and rocked the entire West Sea Domain.


    Not long ago, Ye Futian had caused an uproar in Yingzhou City, whose attacks on the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor had severely limited the mobility of its cultivators. The Domain Chief��s Manor did not even participate in this event, which suggested the magnitude of their fear as caused by Ye Futian.


    What happened in Yingzhou City had made Ye Futian famous. However, afterward, Ye Futian had gotten hold of the Deity Map and swept away the relic, which caught everyone by surprise. What was the role that Daoist Monk Mu played in all this?


    Soon, there were all kinds of speculations circulating in the West Sea Domain. After stealing the Deity Map, some said that Daoist Monk Mu went to the West Imperial Palace and offered to work with them. Then, the West Imperial Palace found Ye Futian to work for them, and together they joined forces to take away the relic.


    Now, had Ye Futian gone to West Imperial Palace to share the loot?


    The relationship between Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao, the goddess of West Imperial Palace, must be very good.


    But Ye Futian did not go to the West Imperial Palace. At this time, he was on top of Jiuyi Celestial Mountain, where Ye Futian stood quietly on a peak, his white hair flying in the wind.


    At this time, a figure flickered and appeared behind Ye Futian, calling out, ��Palace Lord.��


    The person who came was Daoist Monk Mu.


    Daoist Monk Mu looked at Ye Futian, many different emotions flitting through his eyes. Word in Jiuyi City claimed that Ye Futian had obtained the relics of the ancient emperor.


    ��Does the Palace Lord really have it?�� Daoist Monk Mu asked Ye Futian in slight disbelief.


    Ye Futian turned his head to look at Taoist Mu and nodded.


    ��Whew���� Daoist Monk Mu took a deep breath. The divine treasure had been obtained by Ye Futian, which was also what he dreamed of. If he were to work on his own, it would probably be an incredibly difficult task. But Ye Futian had done it, just like that.


    ��Does it belong to the Western Imperial Palace, or?�� Daoist Monk Mu asked again. He shouldn��t have asked anymore, but his strong desire to know compelled him to pose the question. This was very important, but it was especially important to him.


    ��Xi Chiyao has helped a lot. Without her help, it would be difficult to get it so quickly. We are in a cooperative relationship. This time, we obtained the divine treasure, so we will not cheat West Imperial Palace of what is theirs in the future,�� Ye Futian responded. Daoist Monk Mu understood immediately.


    It was completely different from the rumors circulating on the outside world. It was not the West Imperial Palace in the lead, but it was cooperation between Ye Futian and Goddess Xi Chiyao. Xi Chiyao helped Ye Futian obtain the divine treasure.


    This also meant that Ye Futian was the dominant lead and the divine treasure belonged to him��not the West Imperial Palace.


    ��How are the matters here that needed to be handled?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��It��s all been handled,�� Daoist Monk Mu responded.


    ��Go and pick up your family?�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Yes,�� Daoist Monk Mu nodded. Without saying anything further, the two disappeared above the mountain together, leaving Jiuyi City.


    After picking up Daoist Monk Mu��s family members on this trip, they returned to the Ziwei Segmentum to begin the next step��alchemy.


    ��


    In the Ziwei Segmentum, at Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian returned with Daoist Monk Mu and his family.


    The deputy palace lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, Renhuang Chen, came out to greet them. He came to Ye Futian and said, ��The palace lord has returned.��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded, ��How is everything?��


    ��Everything is good.�� Renhuang Chen said, ��After the incident at Donghua Palace, everyone is a little worried about Palace Lord being outside alone. But they will be relieved to know that you have returned safely.��


    At Donghua Palace, Chief Xihai had slain Mo Yunzi as a show of force. As a result, Ye Futian asked the others to leave while he stayed behind by himself.


    ��The West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor has paid the price. From now on, no one will dare to touch us when we are out and about,�� Ye Futian said confidently. ��However, now the world is embroiled in chaos, and the Original Realm is a mess. If we want to open up the Ziwei Segmentum, we will need to be much stronger. This hope has to be carried by you, Renhuang Chen.��


    ��Me?�� Renhuang Chen was a little stunned at first but then understood what Ye Futian meant. He said with a smile, ��Although I have been through the first divine tribulation many years ago, the second divine tribulation seems to elude me; I am afraid it will be a little difficult.��


    In the Ziwei Segmentum, his realm was the highest. Ye Futian said that the hope was on him; it was naturally meant to encourage him, hoping that he would become the first cultivator here to survive the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    ��Renhuang Chen is now in charge of the Ziwei Scepter, and there is the starry cultivation court. I will draw the Imperial Star to resonate with Renhuang Chen, so you can use this to comprehend and cultivate. Renhuang Chen must have confidence in this as well,�� said Ye Futian.


    Renhuang Chen showed a strange look when he heard Ye Futian��s words, but he nodded soberly. ��Palace Lord is right, of course. I am getting on in age, and it kills my ambition. The Ziwei Segmentum was also far too comfortable before Palace Lord appeared.��


    ��This is Daoist Monk Mu and his family. He��s an alchemist of the Tribulation Plane.�� Ye Futian introduced Daoist Monk Mu Renhuang Chen, who was a little impressed. He nodded slightly to Daoist Monk Mu, who also nodded back in acknowledgment.


    ��There are still some things to be done. I need to trouble you to accompany Daoist Monk Mu,�� Ye Futian said again. He needed to get some people to come here, and Daoist Monk Mu would also assemble a team of alchemists for him.


    ��Of course,�� Renhuang Chen agreed readily.


    ��Let��s go to the cultivation court first,�� Ye Futian said, then moving forward in that direction. The group came to the starry cultivation court, and many people came to greet him.


    ��You are back.�� Hua Jieyu came up to him.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian stepped forward and took her hand. He then looked around the crowd and said, ��I may have to retreat for some time. You don��t need to be concerned about me; just go on with your cultivation.��


    Everyone laughed when they heard what he said. He had just gotten back, and now he wanted to go into retreat right away. All they could do was smile and shake their heads as they walked away.


    ��Come with me,�� Ye Futian said to Daoist Monk Mu. He walked with Hua Jieyu while Daoist Monk Mu followed behind. They came to a place in the starry sky, and Ye Futian faced Daoist Monk Mu. ��You cultivated the lotus of creation. I will teach you a cultivation method of the flaming Great Path. Do not resist me.��


    ��Yes.�� Daoist Monk Mu looked serious as he nodded, opening up his consciousness. A divine light shot out of Ye Futian. It directly burrowed into Daoist Monk Mu��s brow chakra as he passed the method to him.


    After a while, Daoist Monk Mu opened his eyes, his heart beating quickly, and a brilliance flashed through his eyes.


    This was the divine method passed down by the Great Emperor.


    Ye Futian passed this on to him at this moment because, obviously, he didn��t fully trust Daoist Monk Mu until he came here with his family just now. Finally, Ye Futian felt comfortable enough to treat him as one of his own, but Daoist Monk Mu could understand it. After all, the way they got to know each other was kind of irregular.


    ��Thank you, Palace Lord.�� Daoist Monk Mu bowed down to thank him. Ye Futian had passed divine method to him. His action spoke volumes as to the kind of person he was.


    ��No need to be formal. You and Renhuang Chen have some hard work ahead of you, and this matter must be done flawlessly.�� Ye Futian said, ��If you encounter someone powerful that you want to recruit, you may teach parts of the divine method when necessary.��


    ��Understood.�� Daoist Monk Mu nodded, then turned to leave. He would work hard to recruit an alchemy team worthy of Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2532 - Sub-divine Elixir

    Next, Ye Futian began to cultivate in retreat.


    West Sea Celestial Mountain did not have divine treasure or any other artifacts, but it did have a trace of will left by the ancient emperor, which was discovered and awakened by Ye Futian. This trace of will had bestowed the inheritance to Ye Futian.


    In Ye Futian��s view, this was more precious than divine treasure.


    In the inheritance from the will of the ancient emperor, there were cultivation techniques, alchemical methods, extremely precious alchemical recipes, and the ancient emperor��s own alchemical experience. These were divine treasures in their truest sense. The inheritance from a Great Emperor of alchemy�� In Ye Futian��s view, this inheritance was way more valuable than the inheritance from many other Great Emperors. It was no wonder that it had fallen into the hands of a top alchemy master.


    The divine method that Ye Futian passed on to Daoist Monk Mu before was a set of divine flame cultivation methods, which could swallow and assimilate other Flames of the Way in order to continuously strengthen oneself. This technique was called the Divine Flames of Creation. In ancient times, it was the premier divine flame cultivation method.


    It was understandable that Daoist Monk Mu became quite emotional after having received this divine method. Ye Futian was not worried about the recruitment; he knew Daoist Monk Mu would complete this mission beautifully.


    Moreover, on this trip, Daoist Monk Mu may also go collect some other Flames of the Way to improve his strength.


    However, Ye Futian himself did not intend to cultivate this divine method. His main energy needed to be spent on alchemy.


    At the Starry Cultivation Court, Ye Futian began a period of retreat for the sake of cultivation.


    For the time being, all affairs on the outside had come to an end. He had made a name for himself on his trip to the West Sea Domain. What happened at Yingzhou City served as a deterrent so no forces in the Divine Prefecture would dare move on them recklessly. Furthermore, Daoist Monk Mu and Renhuang Chen��two Tribulation Plane cultivators traveling together��should be successful in their mission as long as they did not encounter giant-level figures from those top principalities.


    In addition, other cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace were working hard to improve their strength.


    ��


    Time passed, day after day, and several months passed by in a blink of an eye. Soon, Renhaung Chen and Daoist Monk Mu returned.


    Not only did they come back, but they also brought back a group of alchemy masters. Back in the day when Ye Futian inherited the alchemy from the Supreme Deity Donglai on Eastern Deity Island, he met many alchemy masters; they were now also arriving here with Goddess Donglai and the Alchemy Emperor.


    Renhaung Chen did not disturb Ye Futian when he saw that Ye Futian was in retreat. He understood what Ye Futian wanted to do, so he set up an Alchemy Pavilion in Ziwei Imperial Palace and appointed Daoist Monk Mu as the pavilion master. As Ziwei Imperial Palace continued to grow in strength, he planned to propose some structural revisions to Ye Futian and appoint other major cultivators to take up different positions within the organization.


    On this day, above the starry cultivation court, an extremely hot current manifested. Many people looked up in the sky and could see divine flames burning. A furnace of the Great Path seemed to be inside the divine flames, and Ye Futian could be seen practicing alchemy there.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had been practicing alchemy for quite some time already, but no one knew how much progress he had made by this time.


    Above the firmament, aside from the radiant divine flames, a potent and strong fragrance of an elixir now wafted through the air. It diffused and filled the entire starry sky.


    At this moment, an extremely oppressing aura came from above, causing all the cultivators of the starry cultivation court to look up and pay attention.


    ��What is happening?�� Everyone��s eyes sharpened as they focused on the sky above. A powerful aura came from outside the firmament, penetrating through the starry sky. Dark clouds overtaken the starry sky, make this space incredibly oppressive.


    ��This���� The hearts of many powerful cultivators were beating quickly, especially Renhaung Chen and Daoist Monk Mu. They stared at the sky. This was the aura of tribulation.


    ��Elixir Tribulation!�� Daoist Monk Mu murmured, and his eyes were filled with shock. He, who was already a cultivator of the Tribulation Plane, could not conceal the shock he felt inside.


    Just like there were tribulations for cultivators, there were also Elixir Tribulations in alchemy.


    But what astonished him was whether Ye Futian was able to refine elixir at this level?


    The elixir that attracted the heavenly tribulation of the Great Path was known as the Sub-divine Elixir.


    He had been practicing alchemy for many years. Not only had he never been able to achieve it himself, but he had never even seen anything like it before. But today, he was finally seeing it.


    Just what kind of monstrous existence was Ye Futian?


    ��Master, what is that?�� In another direction, Yang Wuqi asked his teacher, Emperor Xi, somewhat amazed in his heart. Next to him, the Millet Emperor and Li Changsheng were both also present as well. They all looked up yonder as they experienced the aura of the tribulation.


    ��Elixir Tribulation. Ye Futian has refined Sub-divine elixir,�� Emperor Xi said. Even as knowledgeable as he was, it was the first time he saw the Elixir Tribulation with his own eyes.


    The things that Ye Futian was capable of were simply too stunning.


    Wasn��t this going against the laws of nature?


    As the world was undergoing drastic changes at the moment, such an enchanting figure as he would probably become a major player in this troubled world, one of the major players.


    The changes of heaven and earth originating in the Original Realm were no vain predicament.


    Nowadays, the Original Realm was already rewriting the history of the world.


    Hua Jieyu, Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu, and the others all looked up at what was happening before them. Ye Futian��s return this time would mean another metamorphosis for the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The coercion became greater and stronger as the aura of tribulation descended. A terrible rumbling sound was heard, and a light of tribulation came from outside the sky, directly blasting above Ye Futian. There, a bright and brilliant pill was welcoming the light of tribulation, and it exploded with an incredibly splendid divine brilliance.


    Boom�� The tribulation descended, baptizing and impacting the pill, but did not blast it into pieces.


    ��The tribulation of alchemy is a little different from the tribulation of the cultivators,�� Emperor Xi murmured to himself. But this was to be expected. It was alchemy, after all.


    Boom! Elixir Tribulation descended successively, blasting on that pill again and again. Everyone counted to themselves each time the blast came down, and their hearts throbbed with each descendant of the Elixir Tribulation.


    Finally, the Elixir Tribulation gradually dissipated after ten consecutive light of tribulation. The divine light that illuminated from the pill was even more radiant and dazzling.


    ��Success.�� Ye Futian raised his head to look at the pill. After working so hard for so many days, he had finally produced the first Sub-divine Elixir.


    Wisps of aura shrouded the pill as Ye Futian swept it towards him. He reached out and grabbed it, a big smile on his face.


    Shenyuan Pill, Grade Ten.


    In the ancient emperor��s inheritance, Shenyuan Pill was a legendary elixir. Shenyuan Pill was said to have a total of 12 grades. Shenyuan Pill of Grade 12 was an elixir at the Imperial Level already. Grade Ten and Grade 11 were at the level of Sub-divine elixirs.


    According to legend, there was even a Grade 13 Shenyuan Pill. But even the ancient emperor would not know whether this was true or not.


    However, these concerns were still a little distant from Ye Futian at the moment, as he had no time to think that far ahead. It was a rare feat to be able to produce Shenyuan Pill of the Tenth Grade.


    Only one��that��s not enough to share. And a Shenyuan Pill alone may not necessarily be enough, Ye Futian thought as he put away the pill. Fortunately, he had collected enough medicinal plants on the celestial island this time. Any one of those medicinal plants traded in the outside world would be a rare treasure, invaluable and priceless.


    But to refine the elixir of the topmost quality, only the most precious medicinal plants could be used.


    At a time like this, he couldn��t afford to be stingy.


    Ye Futian continued to work on the pills and elixirs, so everyone went about doing their own things again. However, it was hard to calm themselves down for a long time afterward.


    At the same time, some hopes and expectations sparked within them.


    However, this shock seemed to have just begun. In the next few months, as they cultivated under constant tribulation, they frequently encountered Elixir Tribulations. Gradually, they got accustomed to seeing them.


    They knew that Ye Futian was massively producing a large amount of Sub-divine elixirs.


    Because of the preciousness of these medicinal plants, Ye Futian couldn��t afford to waste any of them. He didn��t dare to risk producing the elixirs in batches, so he was forced to refine one pill at a time. However, regarding anything below the grade of the Sub-divine Elixir, Ye Futian was able to produce en masse.


    He treated the times he spent producing these elixirs as times for rest. At the same time, he also did it to help his family and friends who were still in the Renhuang realm.


    In the future, the pills they take would be handed over to Daoist Monk Mu to produce.


    Of course, besides using them on the cultivators belonging to Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian also needed to prepare some other elixirs for another use.


    Finally, on this day, Ye Futian stopped alchemy.


    Afterward, he summoned Renhaung Chen, Daoist Monk Mu, Emperor Xi, and other cultivators.


    ��Elder, I will give some prescriptions to you because I will need to trouble you to makes some of these elixirs in the future.�� Ye Futian smiled at Daoist Monk Mu.


    ��No problem. No need for Palace Lord to be so formal. Old Mu will do it in the future,�� Daoist Monk Mu said.


    ��Palace Lord, I had a suggestion in mind before, but I did not want to bother you during your cultivation. Ziwei Imperial Palace will only become stronger in the future, and some things should get started now. Daoist Monk Mu is a Tribulation Plane cultivator, and I had taken the liberty to set up the Alchemy Pavilion, naming him the pavilion master. In addition, I propose Daoist Monk Mu be named the deputy palace master, and Emperor Xi as well,�� Renhuang Chen said.


    At present, there were four Tribulation Plane cultivators inside Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Hua Jieyu needed no mentioning for the time being. She was the wife of the palace lord and did not need to be appointed to any other positions.


    In addition, Renhuang Chen, Daoist Monk Mu, and Emperor Xi were all Tribulation Plane cultivators. Emperor Xi had been cultivating here for many years, and Daoist Monk Mu had been recently recruited by Ye Futian. They would both serve as deputy palace masters, uniting everyone��old and new.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��It is true, but before that, first use the elixir to improve your cultivation to see if there is a chance for a breakthrough.��


    With that said, he took out two pills and handed them over to Renhuang Chen. ��Both of these pills are Sub-divine elixirs and are to be taken at the same time. I will summon the divine glory of the Imperial Star again to see if there is an opportunity to be had.��


    ��Very well,�� Renhuang Chen nodded with a grave expression. He appeared particularly serious.


    Ye Futian handed the same two pills to Daoist Monk Mu and Emperor Xi as well, saying, ��You can take it now, or you can take it when your realm is deeper, and the chances might be greater.��


    ��I need to cultivate for a few more years and see. After all, my realm still has a lot to be desired,�� Daoist Monk Mu said.


    Emperor Xi solemnly put them away, and he didn��t need anyone to tell him just how precious these two Sub-divine Elixirs were. His decision to stay in the Ziwei Segmentum seemed to be the right one. In the future, perhaps he would have the opportunity to move upward in realm.


    ��I won��t say anything so mundane as ��thank you,�� Emperor Xi told Ye Futian. This was something that he could only be repaid down the road later.


    ��Emperor Xi had taken risks on my account, staying behind in the Ziwei Segementum to maneuver between life and death. This kind of favor cannot be simply repaid by two little pills. Right now, my ability is limited, but in the future, I will be able to produce stronger elixir to help everyone��s cultivation,�� said Ye Futian. He was not humble. He had offended Donhuang Imperial Palace, which qualified him as a public enemy of all of the Divine Prefecture. Emperor Xi��s staying behind had put him at a huge risk.


    No matter where he was, a character like him could enjoy a high position and cultivate at will if he wanted to, just like he did before on Turtle Deity Island. Carefree and without a care in the world!

 Chapter 2533 - Uncle Xia and Palace Lord Ye

    After Ye Futian distributed the elixirs to the three of them, he then headed towards the starry sky with Renhuang Chen.


    They came under the starry sky. Renhuang Chen sat cross-legged with the starry scepter placed across his lap. He closed his eyes and started to cultivate.


    Ye Futian raised his head. Suddenly, above the firmament, imperial stars sprinkled down all of their divine brilliance as they landed on Renhuang Chen. This was not communicated by Renhuang Chen himself but was summoned by Ye Futian so that Renhuang Chen may better perceive the divine glory of the imperials stars.


    At the same time, a phantom appeared in the starry sky; it turned out to be the face of Ziwei the Great. An infinite imperial majesty descended like the divine might.


    This divine might also descended on Renhuang Chen as if the divine power of the entire starry sky was shrouding him. At the same time, Renhuang Chen felt a powerful oppressive force from the imperial majesty, which was precisely Ye Futian��s purpose��to allow Renhuang Chen to perceive the imperial majesty clearly.


    Renhuang Chen bathed in the divine glory. Even his robe was now rendered in tremendous brilliance as the divine light flowed all around him. Ye Futian took a look at him before he turned to leave. At the same time, Renhuang Chen tossed a pill into his mouth.


    This was all that Ye Futian could do. Renhuang Chen must rely on himself to comprehend everything else that came after. He had remained in the first stage of divine tribulation for many years, and there was great depth in his realm. However, he had never been able to find the aura of the second divine tribulation. Ye Futian hoped this starry sky world and the two elixirs could help him achieve that.


    In the Starry Cultivation Court, many were focusing on Renhuang Chen. Everyone knew that Ye Futian had placed his hopes on him. Under the current circumstances, they were facing nothing but giant-level principalities, but in Ziwei Segementum, they lacked giant-level cultivators.


    Renhuang Chen was the cultivator closest to impacting the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Later, Ye Futian gathered a group of cultivators to his side again. These cultivators were not the ones who had experienced the divine tribulations, but they were other important figures in the organization. There were cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace and some of his old allies like his big brother, third senior brother, Dou Zhao, Xiao Muyu, and some others. Among them were elders such as Lord Taixuan, Sky River Great Elder, Emperor Nan, and Xiao Dingtian.


    Ye Futian had been cultivating alchemy in retreat. He was then preoccupied with the production of the elixirs and produced the first batch of elixirs. He personally refined the first batch of elixirs and distributed them to everyone. But after this, he planned to hand over the production of the elixirs to Daoist Monk Mu and the others, unless it was some special potion.


    Elixirs below the grade of Sub-divine Elixir were relatively simple for Ye Futian, so he spent most of his time refining Sub-divine elixir. Many of these elixirs were refined in batches, but for Renhuang level cultivators, it was extremely precious nonetheless. Some of these elixirs had been long-lost, and their recipes came from the inheritance of the Elixir Emperor.


    Ye Futian distributed the elixirs to everyone. Many cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace already had strong cultivation themselves, and many of them were in peak Renhuang realm. Now that they had obtained elixirs of such high grade, all of them were elated.


    These people, as well as Blind Tie, Old Ma, and the others, had a great chance to elevate themselves to the Tribulation Plane.


    Ziwei Segmentum, as it were, was not as strong as it could be. However, the rest of the cultivators all had great potentials, especially this upcoming generation of cultivators, such as Gu Dongliu, Ye Wuchen, Fang Huan, Dou Zhao. Many of them had followed Ye Futian and grew along with him for a long time. Although they had not yet reached peak level in their own cultivation, their foundation was solid enough. In addition, they cultivated while bathing under the imperial stars in the starry cultivation court. Several of Ye Futian��s disciples, like Fang Cun and the others, all possessed unlimited potential with natural bodies of the Great Path.


    Now, with the help of the elixirs, as long as Ziwei Segmentum was given proper time to develop, they would not be weaker than any other principalities��except for those truly magnificent, Great Emperor-level forces.


    Finally, Ye Futian received Lord Taixuan, Sky River Great Elder, Xiao Dingtian, and the clan chief of the Dou clan��basically the older generation that came out of the Original Realm��and took out quite a lot of elixirs to give to them. ��My lord and grandmaster,�� he said, ��your cultivation is somewhat different. The path you walked on is different also, perhaps a bit more difficult than the rest. Even amongst false emperors, there is a distinction between weak and strong. We can only work with this imperfect heavenly path the best we can.��


    Lord Taixuan and the others nodded. They knew that their foundations were a little shakier than the others, and they were quite sorry for this as well.


    With an imperfect Great Path, they could not go as far as the others, and their combat effectiveness was also not as great. Although they broke through the realm of Renhuang, it was difficult for them to fight against Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm, because their Great Path was flawed.


    The so-called false emperors were those destined never to become true emperors in this life.


    ��The elixir here is capable of building up the physical body and spiritual soul but will do nothing to the perception of the Great Path.�� Ye Futian continued, ��I heard that there are actually three realms in the realm of the false emperor, corresponding to the three tribulations. The only difference being that its combat effectiveness was considerably lesser. However, it is said that after the collapse of the heavenly path, there were cultivators who had cultivated to the top level of this realm, integrated with this imperfect Path, and their combat effectiveness was no lesser than those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.��


    Lord Taixuan and the others nodded, knowing that Ye Futian was trying to comfort them. In fact, they knew that it was too difficult to elevate in the realm they were in. Most of the cultivators who could reach the peak were cultivators with perfect Great Path.


    Moreover, when it came to combat, in their current state, they were not as effective as peak Renhuang with a perfect Great Path. Even Ye Futian had said that if they cultivated to the extent that they could, they would only ever be at the level comparable to the existence of those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    It was the same as saying that their combat effectiveness was one whole level lower than their realm.


    However, it was a rare opportunity to have a chance to continue to elevate themselves. If they were to rely on their cultivation, it would be a difficult task, but Ye Futian��s elixirs and this cultivating court should improve their chances.


    ��I��m visiting several other teachers.�� Ye Futian said goodbye with a smile. He would never forget to share anything good with his teachers.


    Qi Xuangang, Douzhan, and Hua Fengliu were a little bit lower in their cultivation and had all relocated to the Ziwei Imperial Palace as well. Although they may not be able to raise their cultivation to the top level, especially Hua Fengliu and Douzhan, at least Ye Futian would not allow their cultivation to be too poorly, even if it was to delay their aging process.


    Of course, there were many other elders from the Nine States to think of, including Zhuge Qingfeng and the others. However, the making of these elixirs would be handed over to the alchemists assembled by Daoist Monk Mu in the future.


    Having visited several of his teachers, Ye Futian came to another palace within the complex of Ziwei Imperial Palace. The person residing here was someone who had been kind to him before��Emperor Xia.


    After chaos erupted in the Original Realm, and before leaving the Original Realm, Ye Futian brought all his family and friends to the Ziwei Segmentum. Because he worried about Emperor Xia��s safety in the turbulent realm, he took him to the Ziwei Segmentum and arranged a palace for Emperor Xia, his family, and associates in the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    After all, Emperor Xia used to be the lord of an entire realm.


    This particular palace was very spacious, with many other halls attached to it. In addition to Emperor Xia, Yaya and Sword Master Lihen were cultivating here as well. They were Emperor Xia��s subordinates from before, but now they were acquaintances and old friends. Staying together meant that they could keep each other company.


    They would often go to the Ziwei Segmentum to walk around and experience its people and culture. Ziwei Segmentum, as an independent body, was much larger than Emperor Xia��s Realm.


    At this time, Emperor Xia was playing chess with Swordmaster of Lihen in the courtyard in front of the main hall. Seeing Ye Futian��s arrival, Emperor Xia merely glanced at him and ignored his presence altogether. The Swordmaster of Lihen smiled at Ye Futian and nodded to acknowledge him. ��Futian.��


    ��Swordmaster,�� Ye Futian responded with a smile, then looked at Emperor Xia and addressed him, ��Uncle Xia.��


    ��I don��t deserve to be addressed like that.�� Emperor Xia looked neither right nor left as he put down the chess piece in his hand; e never once looked at Ye Futian.


    ��Ahem���� Swordmaster of Lihen was a little embarrassed and said, ��I think I am losing this game. Emperor Xia, I have some issues regarding cultivation that I need to look at, so I��m going to take my leave now.��


    ��No, it��s not over yet. Keep going,�� Emperor Xia replied quite demandingly. Although he could no longer defeat the Swordmaster of Lihen nowadays, he was once the liege of the swordmaster, and as such, he still held the upper hand in the relationship.


    Swordmaster of Lihen smiled sheepishly and kept his head low as he continued with the game.


    How could he not know the good and the bad between Emperor Xia and Ye Futian?


    He was no fool. Many years ago, when he was still in Emperor Xia��s Realm, he thought that some things would come to fruition, but in the end, they didn��t pan out as expected.


    Ye Futian could do nothing about it either, so he said, ��Uncle Xia, I just refined some elixirs and am here to give them to you.��


    ��I have no need for them. Palace Lord Ye better not interrupt me playing chess.�� Emperor Xia still did not look at Ye Futian. He replied coldly with an unfriendly tone.


    Unable to do anything, Ye Futian looked at Swordmaster of Lihen for help.


    ��Give them to me,�� Swordmaster of Lihen took the initiative to speak at this time. ��I recently encountered some problems in cultivation, and these elixirs might help.��


    ��Yes, of course.�� Ye Futian nodded. He proceeded to give three portions to Swordmaster of Lihen. Both of them understood for whom they were intended.


    ��Uncle Xia, where is Qingyuan? I have some elixirs to give her also,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��She��s cultivating in retreat and is not receiving guests. Palace Lord Yet better come again another day,�� Emperor Xia replied.


    ��I will leave after I have delivered the elixirs to her.�� Ye Futian had no temper at all when facing Emperor Xia. After all, Emperor Xia was an elder who had done him favors before. Back then, in the Nine States, if it weren��t for Emperor Xia, he would have perished a long time ago.


    ��Just set it down,�� Emperor Xia replied as if he was upset.


    Ye Futian smiled awkwardly. But at this moment, he saw a beautiful figure coming at him. ��I just happen to need some elixirs for cultivation,�� said a voice.


    Xia Qingyuan walked to Ye Futian and took the elixirs from him. She said with a smile, ��Thank you.��


    ��Useless,�� Emperor Xia muttered. Xia Qingyuan had always been his favorite, but at the moment, he wished she could be a little more strict.


    But Xia Qingyuan didn��t care.


    Ye Futian gave a wry smile when he heard her say, ��thank you.�� What these two words represented was a sense of distance. If it were before, Xia Qingyuan would have never said thank you to him.


    ��If there is nothing else, I will go cultivate now.�� Xia Qingyuan looked at Ye Futian with those beautiful eyes of hers, and there was nothing unusual in them.


    She was just overly polite.


    And politeness created a sense of distance.


    ��Yes, go.�� Ye Futian wanted to say something else but wasn��t sure what to say, so he could only give her a nod.


    ��Mmm,�� Xia Qingyuan nodded lightly, then turned to leave.


    Emperor Xia looked at her departing figure and sighed secretly in his heart. Then, with even more displeasure, he looked at Ye Futian and said, ��In the future, Palace Lord Ye should refrain from coming here to disrupt my chess game.��


    ��I��ll visit Uncle Xia again when I have time.�� Ye Futian didn��t take offense. He was indeed the one who wronged her, so how could he be mad?

 Chapter 2534 - : Successive Breakthroughs

    After Ye Futian distributed the elixirs to everyone, all cultivators in the Ziwei Imperial Palace began a period of retreat and cultivation without any distractions, focusing solely on improving their strength.


    The elixirs that Ye Futian produced were exceptional, far better than the elixirs made by ordinary alchemy grandmasters. This was because of his enlightened path. His Great Path was flawless, and the elixirs produced by such Great Path would naturally be extraordinary as well.


    After that, a group of alchemists led by Daoist Monk Mu, who served as the pavilion master, began to assemble in the alchemy pavilion, which was established by Ye Futian, in the Ziwei Imperial Palace. The Alchemy Emperor and Goddess Donglai both assisted the monk as deputy pavilion masters of the alchemy pavilion. The two of them worked together to assist Daoist Monk Mu. The Alchemy Emperor was responsible for matters relating to alchemy, while Goddess Donglai handled issues outside of alchemy.


    The two had known Ye Futian for a very long time and from very early on. One of them was half a disciple of Supreme Deity Donglai, and the other was the daughter of Supreme Deity Donglai. Both of them had quarrels with Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor. Ye Futian had inherited Supreme Deity Donglai��s inheritance and held a grudge against Donghua Domain Chief��s Mansor, so it was natural that they would assist him with all they had.


    Furthermore, this place held great attraction to them, as it was the best place for them to cultivate.


    Ye Futian trusted Goddess Donglai implicitly and made her responsible for some of the most precious medicinal materials to be distributed. At the same time, he taught many alchemical methods, as well as divine flame cultivation methods, to the Alchemy Emperor, which were all from the Elixir Emperor, so that he could pass them on to the alchemists in the alchemy pavilion.


    After finishing all this, Ye Futian left the alchemy pavilion and was ready to be a hands-off boss. In the future, except for matters relating to special elixirs, all other alchemical matters were now handed over to Daoist Monk Mu and the others.


    Nowadays, in the alchemy pavilion, besides Daoist Monk Mu and the Alchemy Emperor, Daoist Monk Mu had also summoned a number of very powerful alchemy grandmasters. Still, they had not made any contributions just yet. Ye Futian was generous to them by teaching them cultivation methods and the art of alchemy. The position of deputy palace lord had to be held by someone he trusted.


    Afterward, Ye Futian gave more thought to the proposal of Renhuang Chen. The Ziwei Segmentum was still sealed, but sooner or later, they had to open up to go to the outside world. Now that his own strength was enough to deter principalities from all sides, at least no one dared to touch anyone from Ziwei Imperial Palace. Once Renhuang Chen made a breakthrough, Ziwei Imperial Palace would be regarded as a top principality.


    With the expansion and strengthening of Ziwei Imperial Palace, the cultivators of the Imperial Palace needed clearly defined roles, which he must consider in advance.


    About a month after Ye Futian distributed the elixirs, a horrible tribulation might appeared above the firmament in the starry cultivation court. It woke up all the cultivators with its shocking force. They looked up at the sky, their hearts palpitating.


    Who was about to experience the tribulation?


    This was on the verge of a breakthrough.


    Ye Futian was also there. He looked up to the sky like everyone else, with a slight disturbance in his heart. Then he saw an old man in a starry robe, sitting cross-legged, with a terrifying aura all around him. The divine light of the Great Path flowed, and the vast heaven and earth were shrouded by a might of the Way.


    ��Murong Elder.�� Ye Futian smiled. He didn��t expect that the first person to make a breakthrough would be Murong Elder.


    Murong Elder was known as Murong Yu. In the Ziwei Imperial Palace, apart from Renhuang Chen, his cultivation was the deepest. He had stayed at the peak of Renhuang for many years, so it was not surprising for him to make a breakthrough now.


    ��Master, it seems that the elixir is working,�� Fang Cun said.


    ��Not necessarily. The elixir is only used to assist in cultivation, so there is no direct causal effect. Any elixir that can directly help break through the realm has its disadvantages. Therefore, the elixir that I produced does not directly help break through the realm. In the inheritance of the ancient emperor, the same is true. Top-notch elixirs work to improve the foundation,�� Ye Futian explained.


    ��Renhuang Chen had said before that Murong Elder is a cultivator, same as him from the older generation. His realm was already elevated with great depth, and he might have made a breakthrough based on his own cultivation. The fact that this happened right after him taking the elixir is just icing on the cake.��


    Fang Cun shrugged and said, ��Master denied the effectiveness of the elixir, and all this was to prevent me from being too superstitious and relying on the elixir or other external forces to improve myself. Cultivation is still dependent on me.��


    Ye Futian glanced at the guy next to him, then smiled, and said, ��As long as you know.��


    Since he was a child, Fang Cun had been very spiritual, and this spirituality had been there all along. He cultivated very fast, and his ability to comprehend was excellent. He understood his intention right away with just a little push.


    ��Watch it carefully. One day, you will also come to this point,�� Ye Futian said to Fang Cun as he looked up at the sky.


    ��Me?�� Fang Cun had an odd look on his face. He didn��t think that the master had even broken the shackles of Renhuang and experienced tribulation.


    However, he dared not say this out loud. Although Ye Futian had not broken the shackles of Renhuang, he knew that his master was fully capable of slaying cultivators in the Tribulation Plane, as he had already done exactly that.


    ��I know, in the future, when Master becomes the emperor, us disciples will be your four guardians,�� Fang Cun said with a smile.


    ��I can��t wait to see it.�� Ye Futian glanced at him.


    Murong Yu survived the tribulation, and all the cultivators in the starry cultivation court were watching. The Divine Tribulation of the Great Path was terrifying, and the power of the divine tribulation amazed everyone. The starry sky was vast and endless, but every cultivator at every location could feel that power of heaven.


    Murong Yu successfully survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Although he suffered a slight injury while undergoing the divine tribulation, it didn��t bother him much.


    There is another cultivator who survived the divine tribulation, many people thought. The strength of Ziwei Imperial Palace was only growing.


    ��Congratulations to Murong Elder.��


    ��Murong Elder has survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, breaking through the shackles of Renhuang. It is indeed a happy event.�� Those who had always been at Ziwei Imperial Palace took the lead in congratulating him. After all, their relationship was a little closer, but then all the others gave their praise as well.


    ��Congratulations, Elder.�� Ye Futian also smiled and gave his congratulations. However, Murong Yu didn��t dare to feel proud. He looked down in the direction where Ye Futian was and saluted. ��Many thanks to the palace lord for granting me the divine elixir so that I have the opportunity to make a breakthrough.��


    ��Eder speaks too seriously. Even without the elixir, it will only be a matter of time before you break through the realm. The elixir only speeds up the process a little bit,�� Ye Futian replied modestly.


    After Murong Yu survived the tribulation, Ye Futian had a thought in his mind. This meant that the appointments of positions would be a lot easier.


    Just as they were speaking, a heavenly might suddenly appeared above the sky. This time, the heavenly might was even stronger, suffocating everyone.


    ��What��s happening?�� Many people looked up in the sky, and even Murong Yu showed a look of surprise.


    Could it be that the tribulation hadn��t come yet?


    However, he didn��t seem to feel anything.


    ��No, that��s not right. It��s not my tribulation.�� Murong Yu��s expression suddenly changed. He was a little stunned.


    Others realized as well at this juncture that this was not Murong Yu��s tribulation, after all.


    Someone else was experiencing the tribulation again.


    This��


    The heavenly might above the firmament was getting stronger��much stronger than when Murong Yu was experiencing his tribulation previously. Ye Futian��s attention was drawn toward that direction.


    In the starry sky, Renhuang Chen sat cross-legged, alone, somewhere. The divine light from the imperial stars descended on Renhuang Chen. He bathed in the divine glory, and his whole body was radiant and extremely brilliant. That heavenly might was pressing toward him.


    The original cultivators from the Ziwei Imperial Palace were all pleasantly surprised that the deputy palace lord was about to break through also.


    Today, two top figures from the Ziwei Imperial Palace had successive breakthroughs.


    Moreover, if the deputy palace lord broke through the realm, it would be the second tribulation, and he would leap into the topmost existence here.


    After all three tribulations, one was considered a deity.


    Rumble�� The descending divine might was becoming more and more terrifying, containing supreme coercion. Renhuang Chen opened his eyes, and sharp lights shot out from them. He picked up the starry scepter in front of him, and suddenly, above the starry sky, the infinite divine light of the stars flowed and fell on the scepter. It seemed as if it was the ruler of the starry sky.


    ��They are successively experiencing the divine tribulations.�� Lord Taixuan and others looked at the sky above them, a little envious. It seemed that they would never have the opportunity to experience the divine tribulation.


    ��The elixir that Futian made is truly astonishing,�� Sky River Great Elder said. Although Ye Futian himself was humble, these two top figures successively experiencing divine tribulations and breaking through the realms was not a mere coincidence. Even though their realm was ripe for such an occurrence, the elixir��s effect was also indispensable.


    Otherwise, why did both of them break through the realm right after they had taken the elixir?


    ��That��s the Sub-divine elixir. In the entire Divine Prefecture, few forces can obtain this level of elixir. Moreover, the grade of the elixir refined by Futian cannot be compared with those of other alchemy masters.��


    Everyone nodded in agreement. The Divine Prefecture lacked a top alchemy master, and the Sub-divine elixirs refined by Ye Futian were almost at the pinnacle of all elixirs available in the Divine Prefecture.


    ��After Renhuang Chen��s breakthrough, the power of the Ziwei Segmentum will be comparable to the top forces in the Divine Prefecture; it may even stand head and shoulder above most top principalities.��


    Renhuang Chen possessed the starry scepter and was already capable of slaying the cultivators who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. After his breakthrough, his combat effectiveness would only be that much stronger. This was the peak.


    In the next phase, Ye Futian��s strength was a mystery to them. Then, there were still Hua Jieyu, Emperor Xi, Daoist Monk Mu, and Murong Yu, who had just had the breakthrough as well. How could many forces in the Divine Prefecture claim to be its match?


    Perhaps only several most powerful Domain Chief��s Manors and the Ancient God Clan from the Divine Prefecture could match such an impressive roster.


    The terrifying light of tribulation descended one after another, causing everyone��s heart to tremble nonstop. Bathing under the Imperial Stars and using the starry scepter, Renhuang Chen was able to bear all that was dealt by the powerful divine tribulation.


    When the divine tribulation dissipated, a giant was born in Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��Congratulations to the deputy palace lord for the breakthrough.��


    All these voices were heard at the same time, echoing in the starry sky. For the Ziwei Segmentum, this breakthrough was exciting and encouraging.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were full of smiles. He floated in midair, looking at the figure that was bathed in starlight in the sky, and said, ��Congratulations, Lord Chen.��


    This voice resounded throughout the starry sky, and all the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were amazed.


    Now that their deputy palace lord broke through the realm and successfully survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, he��s worthy of the appellation of ��Lord.��


    ��Congratulations to Lord Chen.�� A chorus of voices spoke, one after another, resonating in the starry sky.


    ��From this day forward, Lord Chen is the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Daoist Monk Mu, Emperor Xi, and Murong Yu are appointed as deputy palace lords of Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� Ye Futian continued.

 Chapter 2535 - Start of the Four Palaces

    Looking up at Ye Futian, who was bathing in star lights, they felt motivated by his speech.


    The Ziwei Imperial Palace was turning into a domineering force.


    Ye Futian looked at those powerful cultivators before he finished his speech. Then he added, ��Besides, four palaces will be established under the leadership of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. Ziwei Palace, Heavenly Mandate Palace, and Wangshen Palace will be founded in addition to the Alchemy Pavilion, which already exists. Daoist Monk Mu will be in charge of the Alchemy Palace and aided by Alchemy Emperor and Goddess Donglai. Murong Yu will be in charge of the Ziwei Palace, aided by the elders of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. Emperor Xi will be in charge of the Wangshen Palace, aided by the Millet Emperor, Li Changsheng, and the Thunder Punishing Skylord.��


    Lord Chen was titled the Supreme Elder. Each of the three powerful cultivators on the Tribulation Plane would lead a palace. So, what about the Heavenly Mandate?


    The names of the four palaces were quite suggestive. It was not hard to infer what they meant. The Heavenly Mandate was supposed to refer to the force that had been following Ye Futian. So, who would be in charge of that force?


    Would it be Ye Futian himself?


    ��The Heavenly Mandate Palace will be led by Hua Jieyu. Hua Qingqing and Zhuge Mingyue will be her assistants,�� added Ye Futian. That appointment made everyone relieved. The wife of the palace lord was doubtless the perfect candidate to take over such a position. It was satisfying for everyone, and Ye Futian��s followers would be happy to listen to her orders, too.


    Besides, Hua Jieyu was on the Tribulation Plane herself, and Hua Qingqing made fast progress. Rumor had it that she was reincarnated from a Buddhist lamp. Since she had realized the Way by then, she was already a powerful person. Zhuge Mingyue��s situation was different from both of theirs. Her cultivation level was not noteworthy, but her appointment was absolutely not because of her cultivation level. Instead, she got chosen for her wisdom. She would help Hua Jieyu manage things well. Moreover, due to her unusual relationship with Ye Futian and her special position, Ye Futian��s followers were not weird that she got appointed.


    Ye Futian put the person closest to him, whom he valued the most, in the Heavenly Mandate Palace to lead it with the wife and the second eldest sister of the palace lord. Who would oppose that?


    In fact, Gu Dongliu could do the same job. However, Zhuge Mingyue and Gu Dongliu were almost like the same person. If Zhuge Mingyue focused on management, Gu Dongliu would cultivate more concentratedly to improve his strength.


    ��At last, Uncle Tie, Old Ma, Fang Gai, and Chen Yi will form the Four Great Protectors of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, and they will report to me,�� went on Ye Futian. That was the arrangement for the Four Corner Village. The four powerful Renhuang would take care of his things in person.


    ��Enlightened Master, what about us?�� asked Little Ling. Ye Futian seemed to have forgotten about the younger ones.


    ��You will report to me, too, and you��ll be called the Four Junior Protectors,�� said Ye Futian, laughing. The others laughed, too. In fact, after so many years, those four young men were already quite strong.


    However, it was not time for them to make their debut in the world yet. They still had a long way to go, and that day would finally come.


    Seeing all that, Lord Chen showed a smile. The Ziwei Imperial Palace had been growing since Ye Futian had taken it over, despite the various ordeals they had gone through. By then, they were already powerful enough to compete against world powers except for Emperor-level forces.


    This arrangement was kind of perfect.


    Among the four newly established palaces, the Alchemy Palace was an alchemy force that would have a big influence. The Ziwei Palace was the original force of the Ziwei Imperial Palace with a grand lineup. The Wangshen Palace was obviously named after Wangshen Watchtower. However, Ye Futian made Emperor Xi instead of the Millet Emperor lead it. And the latter and Li Changsheng would work as Emperor Xi��s assistants. The members of this force were all from the Divine Prefecture. Despite the few people they had compared to the other three palaces, many of them were elites. Besides, the Wangshen Palace would go on growing. At last, the Heavenly Mandate Palace led by Hua Jieyu used to be a force of the Original Realm. Its members were Ye Futian��s earliest followers.


    With all of them, plus Four Corner Village, the Four Great Protectors, including Chen Yi, Ye Futian, and Lord Chen, this force had already taken shape.


    ��Now that there are plenty of powerful cultivators in the Ziwei Segmentum, it will be the Ziwei Palace��s job to recruit more top cultivators and talented people to cultivate,�� said Ye Futian to Murong Yu.


    ��I see, Lord,�� responded Murong Yu with a nod. He had never called anyone lord before.


    He did not get full of himself after his strength improvement following the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path he had taken. Instead, he was showing more respect to Ye Futian. He knew although he had realized this breakthrough with his effort, the Sub-divine elixir Ye Futian had given him had been of great help.


    Besides that, he sincerely felt Ye Futian would have a dreadfully promising future, and he saw a bright one of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, too. Therefore, he was looking forward to such it with a humble heart.


    ��The Wangshen Palace is short of staff at the moment. But if any Practitioners from the Outer Realms surrender to us, I will make them join it first. Emperor Xi, you can also recruit people by yourself,�� said Ye Futian to Emperor Xi. The Wangshen Palace was short of staff, but they had two outstanding people, namely, Emperor Xi and the Millet Emperor, who had Wangshen Watchtower on his back. The latter��s combat power was as great as that of a strong cultivator on the Tribulation Plane.


    ��I see, Lord.�� Emperor Xi nodded with a smile. He addressed Ye Futian as lord, too. He had just been dawdling in the Ziwei Imperial Palace, but from that moment on, he would need to work seriously. Since he got appointed as the lord of the palace, he naturally became Ye Futian��s subordinate, no matter who he had been.


    Ye Futian nodded. Looking around at the powerful cultivators there, he said, ��I will count on you, guys. The work can be hard. I hope we can stand at the top of the world of cultivation together someday to look down at the other influential people.��


    Ye Futian��s modest language left some cultivators of the older generation very motivated. They felt as if they were still not too old yet.


    Looking at the influential people in the future, would they be able to stand on the top of the world of cultivation to do that?


    At least, Ye Futian had an excellent chance of achieving that.


    ��Next, you will put the four palaces in good order. The Alchemy Palace will allocate elixirs based on the quantity of the elixirs refined. Daoist Monk Mu will decide all of the details. If you want to refine elixirs, you can collect materials by yourselves and entrust the Alchemy Palace to refine for you. I will stay out of all this in the future,�� said Ye Futian with a big smile. The establishment of the four palaces served the purpose of management. There were quite many cultivators in the Ziwei Imperial Palace. The Alchemy Palace could not provide them with endless elixirs.


    To avoid internal problems, he had to make everything clear beforehand and make rules about it.


    He told Old Ma, Blind Tie, and the other two to report to him and tilted them the ��Four Great Protectors.�� By doing that, he gave them the power to enforce laws in the future if anything of that type came up. Of course, if the Ziwei Imperial Palace kept growing, he certainly would have to establish new organizations again.


    This was just an initial arrangement of the four palaces. Changes would be incorporated as time went by. In Ye Futian��s plan, the Heavenly Mandate Palace would eventually be led by his third eldest brother Gu Dongliu. Gu Dongliu was not powerful enough to convince people for the time being, so Jieyu would stay in charge on his behalf. When Gu Dongliu achieved the Tribulation Plane, it would be time for him to take over the palace.


    ��I will manage everything well, Lord.�� Daoist Monk Mu nodded with a serious look. He knew what Ye Futian meant, and he certainly would do everything he could to bring things under control to avoid internal problems in the palace.


    Ye Futian looked around at the crowd. So, what needed to be done had been done.


    ��Okay. Now go and get busy. There is somewhere I need to go,�� said Ye Futian, looking at those people. Since the Ziwei Imperial Palace was already in order, he was going to pay the West Imperial Palace a visit.


    Last time, he got away and left Xi Chiyao behind as soon as he got the inheritance of the celestial mountain.


    But that thing had always been on his mind. He even set some of the refined elixirs aside to gift the West Imperial Palace.


    Xi Chiyao invited him over last time, but he did not take a risk to go. However, it was different this time. He really thought he should go.


    First of all, he needed to give the elixirs to them as a thank you gift.


    Secondly, although the Ziwei Imperial Palace was powerful at the moment, it was still inferior to the Ancient God Clan, given the latter��s long history. Besides, there were also a few people below the Imperial Realm that were almost invincible. Fang Ru, whom he met earlier, was a good example. He was so dreadful that he dealt with the Battle Matrix of the Rocks alone.


    Moreover, Ye Futian was known as the common enemy of the Divine Prefecture, so he really could use some friends.


    The West Imperial Palace could be his future ally.


    And since he would go with elixirs this time, he was sure the West Imperial Palace would not hurt him.


    Who would hurt a top Alchemy Master that could refine Sub-divine elixirs?


    More than that, this top Alchemy Palace would gift them more Sub-divine elixirs in the future.


    Even if the West Imperial Palace did have some bad intentions, they absolutely would not kill the goose that lays the golden egg.


    ��I will go with you, Lord,�� said Blind Tie.


    ��Well, it��s okay. It��s not for anything serious. I��m going there to give them a gift, and I��ll return once that is done. You can work on your strength at the same time. The lockdown will be lifted in the Ziwei Segmentum very soon,�� said Ye Futian. The others nodded. The Ziwei Segmentum had been in lockdown for years. Was Ye Futian finally going to lift it?


    Well, the right timing would come soon anyway.


    ��Okay.�� Blind Tie nodded.


    ��See you.�� Ye Futian disappeared into thin air as soon as he finished speaking. The Ziwei Imperial Palace could function smoothly without him since he had arranged everything well.


    ��


    Canghuan Island was a very ancient island in the West Sea. It was where the West Imperial Palace, which had been existing since ancient times, was located.


    The West Imperial Palace was in a coastal city called the West Imperial City on Canghuan Island. It was the most powerful and prosperous city in the West Sea Domain.


    Of course, as a force of the Ancient God Clan, the interior of the West Imperial Palace was magnificent enough to be called a city.


    According to some people, the entire West Imperial City was actually fortification for the West Imperial Palace and was under its rule.


    It was not very peaceful lately in the West Imperial Palace. Rumor had it that several elders were not very happy with the Goddess Xi Chiyao and would depose her because they thought she was helping the outsiders and could not be responsible for the future West Imperial Palace.


    The rumor could be dated back to several months ago when Xi Chiyao used the power of the West Imperial Palace to disclose the location marked on the Deity Map. She even located the Ancient imperial celestial mountain. However, she ordered the Practitioners of the West Imperial Palace to protect an outsider, as a result of which, that outsider took away the divine treasure of the Ancient Emperor.


    Many big shots held her accountable for that after her return. They petitioned the palace lord to replace her.


    Although the palace lord had not agreed, as an aftermath of that, the West Imperial Palace had been in chaos lately. Factional fights had been quite intense. Some people wanted to help other big shots to become the new successor.


    However, Xi Chiyao had never responded to such accusations. She had been cultivating in seclusion, ignoring the chaos in the outside world, as if she was not worried about her position at all!

 Chapter 2536 - Out of Spite

    Situated in the West Imperial City on Canghuan Island, the magnificent West Imperial Palace looked like an ancient big city.


    At this moment, there was a white-haired figure suspended in the air outside this ancient imperial palace. A look was drawn to him, an odd look.


    Who is that?


    How dare he! He was flying so close to the West Imperial Palace, standing in the air outside it!


    The West Imperial City was under complete control of the West Imperial Palace. That man would end up in tragedy if the West Imperial Palace interpreted his intention in a wrong way.


    The gate of the West Imperial Palace was one hundred Zhang tall. Situated there, it looked like Heaven��s Gate.


    A team of guards, all of whom were Renhuang with great strength, were at the gate. They also noticed Ye Futian��s presence at this moment. They looked up and threw him a cold and overwhelming glance.


    Even though they knew Ye Futian could be very strong, this was the West Imperial Palace.


    ��Who is there?�� said a cold voice. It had the might of thunder in it. The air shook. Thunderbolts seemed to be approaching Ye Futian, carrying from the gate of the West Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian looked down and moved down but remained suspended in the air. He stopped when the roof of the palace was at his eye level.


    ��Ye Futian is here to see Xi Chiyao.��


    Ye Futian was standing there in white with his hands behind his back. He spoke in a very calm tone, giving an elegant and confident vibe. Actually, standing outside the West Imperial Palace, he did not seem to be at a disadvantage at all. Instead, he appeared as mighty as the palace itself.


    ��Ye Futian!��


    The guarding Renhuang��s pupils shrank. That was a familiar name to them. In fact, it was right because of that name that it had been a little chaotic in the West Imperial Palace lately. Even the top management was involved. And they had also heard about the disturbance Ye Futian had caused in the West Sea Domain.


    They did not expect to see him in the West Imperial Palace.


    The guards dropped that cold and proud attitude after hearing Ye Futian��s name. Everything depended on strength in the world of cultivation. Even the Domain Chief��s Manor of the West Sea Domain could not do anything to the man standing in front of them. They could do nothing to stop him from killing. He had every reason to feel proud of himself.


    ��I will go and report,�� said the head of the guards with a serious look.


    Then he walked into the West Imperial Palace at a fast pace. Soon, from the palace��s ground floor, the message was relayed upwards until it reached the palace complex situated in the highest part of the West Imperial Palace.


    It reached the top management of the West Imperial Palace very soon. That was all because of Ye Futian��s arrival. It was not hard to see how famous he was at the moment.


    From the highest part of the West Imperial Palace, one after another man flew out of the palace complex shrouded in clouds and fog to the gate of the West Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian remained suspended in the air at the gate of the West Imperial Palace. He was waiting with his hands behind the back and a calm look. He looked kind of cool.


    He came here to gift them something this day. Besides, the Ziwei Imperial Palace had grown into a force comparable to an overlord, and he came here in person as the palace lord. Even though it was the Ancient God Clan that he was facing, he did not need to behave like he was inferior to them.


    He was quite annoyed by some of the opinions he heard upon his arrival in the West Imperial City. Since many people from the West Imperial Palace were hostile to him, he did not need to treat them in a friendly manner at all. The only person he was grateful to was Xi Chiyao��the Goddess of the West Imperial Palace.


    A powerful cultivator flew down along a ladder. He shouted at the gate of the West Imperial Palace, ��Let him pass.��


    The guards outside the gate made way for Ye Futian immediately.


    And Ye Futian floated through the gate and into the West Imperial Palace right away.


    Some powerful cultivators showed up in front of him. At the same time, he detected many divine consciousnesses glancing at him back and forth from the upper part of the West Imperial Palace. That made him frown.


    It was not a polite gesture at all.


    Suspended in the air, Ye Futian looked at the powerful cultivators in front of him. The leader was an old man on the peak Renhuang Plane. Those people were obviously not the core of the West Imperial Palace.


    At this moment, a few more people with dreadful auras walked over across the sky over the West Imperial Palace. Many Practitioners of the palace bowed at them to salute them right away.


    The West Imperial Palace was founded and run by the Ancient God Clan. They had tons of cultivators as well as a very hierarchical structure after so many years�� development. The top management seldomly showed up in the lower part.


    ��Renhuang Ye, are you here to the West Imperial Palace to return us the Ancient Emperor��s inheritance he left on the celestial mountain?�� asked loud the leader of the group that had walked down. With an edgy aura, the old man was on the Tribulation Plane. Those around him were on the peak Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian darted him a glance with an indifferent look. He said, ��Xi Chiyao, the Goddess of the West Imperial Palace, helped me a lot on the ancient imperial celestial mountain. I came here to keep an appointment. As to the return you were talking about�� I��m sorry, but I am not following.��


    He and Xi Chiyao got the inheritance from the ancient imperial celestial mountain together. According to their agreement, Xi Chiyao had a share of it, and he would definitely give her share to her. But the return just did not make any sense.


    Since when did the inheritance belong to the West Imperial Palace?


    ��The West Imperial Palace decoded the Deity Map. The West Imperial Palace was also the first to find and seal the ancient imperial celestial mountain. The inheritance of the Ancient Emperor would not have fallen into your hands if Xi Chiyao had not been up to something. It certainly belongs to the West Imperial Palace.��


    A man floated down from the sky. A few more people with powerful strength behind him were approaching. All of them had a high cultivation level.


    Ye Futian saw some acquaintances, including Xi Chiyao��s uncle. He met them once outside the ancient imperial celestial mountain.


    With a dreadful aura, they seemed to intend to seal the space.


    Ye Futian came to the West Imperial Palace in person, which was a big surprise for them. They certainly would not let go of him.


    ��Looks it��s not very peaceful in the West Imperial Palace,�� thought Ye Futian. But it was kind of normal. Forces of the Ancient God Clan like this, which had been there for tens of thousands of years, usually had a lot of factions, and those factions could not be of one mind.


    Xi Chiyao reached the summit as the Goddess because her talent outshone the others. However, many factions must be unhappy with that. After all, only one person could succeed to the throne of the West Imperial Palace.


    And that incident happened to give them an excuse. Since he came here, they certainly would not miss the opportunity.


    Ye Futian glanced over at those powerful cultivators. Looking into the West Imperial Palace, he said in a loud voice, ��Where is Goddess Chiyao?��


    His voice carried very far and high.


    ��How dare you!�� said a voice. A powerful young cultivator landed on the ground. This youngster with an overwhelming aura used to be Xi Chiyao��s competitor. His name was Xi Chifeng. He was a talented cultivator on the peak Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian looked at Xi Chifeng. He had been giving off a peaceful vibe until this moment when divine lights of the Great Way started to flow in him. His look turned demonic and threatening. Glancing at Xi Chifeng, he suddenly shouted, ��I am here to see Xi Chiyao. You don��t get to speak. Get lost!��


    ��Lost, lost, lost����


    His voice carried in the West Imperial Palace and echoed. Many people were almost deafened, feeling like their heads would explode. Xi Chifeng felt his Blood Force was boiling, and his guts were shaking. Even his spiritual soul was shocked. He snuffled and was forced to retreat, as pale as a ghost.


    That sight quieted the crowd down. Many people were shocked at Ye Futian��s strength and arrogance.


    He was running amuck in the West Imperial Palace. It was hard to believe.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Powerful auras exploded. The cultivators there all released a dreadful path might to suppress Ye Futian. The might was imposed on him, who looked extremely cold at the moment.


    ��Huh, nice speech. You are going too far!�� said a senior indifferently.


    ��No one is allowed to behave like that in the West Imperial Palace,�� said someone else. It suddenly turned dark there.


    ��Yeah?�� The aura from Ye Futian was formidable. The divine lights of the Great Way were flowing around to resist that might. He took a step forward. The air was shaking. The Great Way was roaring and grumbling, leaving those powerful cultivators on the Tribulation Plane in shock.


    What a powerful aura. Did Ye Futian really have a combat force comparable to that of the Tribulation Plane?


    ��I am Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. I came to the West Imperial Palace for a visit. But you are completely impolite. Who is he? How dare he speak to me in that tone?�� Ye Futian��s voice echoed in the air. He sounded overwhelming. He added in a cold voice, ��Now that the West Imperial Palace received me like this, I am leaving.��


    ��Wait a second, Renhuang Ye.�� A voice came from the air. More powerful auras were approaching. A group of powerful people arrived. And Xi Chiyao was among them.


    She was surrounded by many powerful men, all of whom were her supporters.


    They walked over at a fast pace. The two groups of people seemed to hate each other. Without paying attention to the others, Xi Chiyao said to Ye Futian, ��Renhuang Ye, please come into the West Imperial Palace.��


    ��I don��t think so,�� said Ye Futian. He waved his hand to take some elixirs out and give them to Xi Chiyao.


    Xi Chiyao took them with a serious look. He already got them done?


    ��I refined those elixirs. They all have great grades. Many of them are Sub-divine elixirs, which are very helpful for cultivators on the Tribulation Plane. Goddess Chiyao, they are yours now,�� said Ye Futian. His words made the pupils of all of the powerful cultivators there shrink.


    Sub-divine elixirs!


    The legendary Sub-divine elixirs were very helpful for cultivators on the Tribulation Plane. They might even help those cultivators level up. It was extremely hard to find even one Sub-divine elixir in the Divine Prefecture. They were just rare.


    But Ye Futian came here to give Sub-divine elixirs to Xi Chiyao!


    There was an unusual light in the eyes of those next to Xi Chiyao. They all wished they could take a look at the elixirs in person. Those elixirs were priceless for the West Imperial Palace.


    However, Xi Chiyao did not even look at them. She just took them. Since Ye Futian came here in person to give them to her, they could not be fake.


    ��I am leaving. See you,�� said Ye Futian. Then he turned to leave.


    ��Renhuang Ye, please be the bigger man here,�� said Xi Chiyao.


    ��So many people are acting out of spite in the West Imperial Palace. This is not a place for me to stay. I��ll see you someday in the future,�� said Ye Futian in a plain voice.


    ��Wait a second, Renhuang Ye.�� Another voice came from the sky. It was not loud, but the entire West Imperial Palace could hear it.


    ��Renhuang Ye, I apologize on behalf of the West Imperial Palace for the lack of rules here.�� Then the voice came again. What followed was a cold order, ��All of you, apologize to Renhuang Ye!��


    It sounded so overwhelming that it was impossible to disobey. It was the Lord of the West Imperial Palace that had spoken!

 Chapter 2537 - Returning the Favor

    Ye Futian paused in his tracks, the faces of the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace��all of whom had vicious intentions toward him��started to turn ugly.


    ��Palace Lord, this guy plundered the Ancient Emperor inheritance belonging to us West Imperial Palace�� Someone still didn��t want to give up and tried to explain something.


    ��Shut up��


    A divine might descended from the skies and landed directly on the person who spoke, making his face turn pale. The others who wanted to say something also instantly shut their mouth. All of them had a difficult expression in their eyes.


    When the Palace Lord was angered, who dared to go against him?


    Atop the West Imperial Palace, an apparition appeared there with unparalleled majesty and might. That was the Palace Lord of the West Imperial Palace.


    ��We have been very ill-mannered. May Renhuang Ye please forgive us.�� They had to compromise and lower their heads to apologize to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian glanced at them as his face remained calm and composed. He didn��t think highly of these people at all, so what if they were cultivators from the Ancient Clan?


    ��No big deal,�� Ye Futian said impassively and looked toward Xi Chiyao. ��Goddess Chiyao, I hope that the elixirs that I make in the future don��t land in the hands of these people.��


    Although he said that it wasn��t a big deal, of course, he wasn��t that forgiving. Since these people thought that the AncientEmperor��ss inheritance belonged to them and wanted to seize it from him, these Sub-divine and Peak-imperial level elixirs would have nothing to do with them.


    ��Alright,�� Xi Chiyao immediately agreed, as this was what she wanted to do as well. But if she had to do it herself, it would be a little more complicated. But now that Ye Futian personally said so she couldn��t go against his will, could she?


    After all, these pills were made by Ye Futian.


    The muscles on these cultivators�� faces started to stiffen up and turn really ugly. All they wanted previously was to deal with Ye Futian and seize the AncientEmperor��ss inheritance. But now, they found out that it seemed impossible. Only now did they realize that the things that Ye Futian handed over to Xi Chiyao were Sub-divine Elixirs, which was enough to let even top cultivators like them go one step further.


    In the future, if they couldn��t get it��


    As that thought crossed their minds, their expressions turned even more ugly. They glanced at Xi Chiyao, who was standing at the side. A thought suddenly surfaced in their minds.


    Just now, Xi Chiyao was lagging one step behind them��did she do that on purpose?


    She knew that the West Imperial Palacewouldn��tt lay their hands on Ye Futian, or one could even say that they are incapable of doing so. At the same time, Ye Futian definitely wouldn��t let her down. Could that be why she came a little later, just so there would be a conflict between Ye Futian and them?


    Ye Futian also glanced at XI Chiyao. Clearly, he was suspecting the same thing. For the past period, Xi Chiyao was likely facing significant pressure within her family. Her family faction tried to quash her because she helped him back then and even wanted to seize her position as the goddess. She could use this opportunity to get revenge on them.


    In fact, this in itself was a tacit form of competition.


    ��I hope Renhuang Ye will not take offense to this.�� Xi Chiyao saw the meaning in YeFutian��s gaze and secretly transmitted her voice to him. Ye Futian immediately understood that Xi Chiyao did it on purpose. She came a little late precisely because she wanted the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace to start a conflict with him.


    ��No worries.�� Ye Futian didn��t get angry. After all, this whole thing happened because she helped him. For the past few days, when his arrival was delayed, Xi Chiyao faced much pressure from her family, so naturally, he couldn��t blame Xi Chiyao for it. After all, she was going through this ordeal for his sake.


    ��I knew Renhuang Yewouldn��tt let me down,�� Xi Chiyao transmitted her voice again, sounding very gentle.


    ��Chiyao, hurry up and invite Renhuang Ye to take a seat up here,�� the Lord of the West Imperial Palace said. Xi Chiyao looked toward Ye Futian with a smile as she shifted to the side and gestured with her hand. ��Renhuang Ye, please.��


    Ye Futian nodded and didn��t try to be overly polite with her. He stepped forward straight away, right past the West Imperial Palace cultivators.


    Xi Chiyao followed him as well and left the rest of the cultivators to standing where they were. They all realized that this was part of XiChiyao��ss scheme, and this time, their faction was wholly and utterly lost.


    So those pills really had nothing to do with them.


    After calming down, they also realized why the Palace Lord had an attitude like that. Ye Futian was only a peak-Renhuang level cultivator, yet he could bring a Sub-divine level Elixirs. What did that mean?


    That meant that Ye Futian could even provide pills that would be beneficial to the Palace Lord��s cultivation in the future. Who could remain unmoved by that?


    Even if they managed to seize the inheritance of the Ancient Lord, it would still be challenging to find an Alchemy Master of this level.


    Furthermore, the inheritance had already been taken by Ye Futian. They might not be able to get it even if they contended for it now. If they were the Palace Lord, what would they choose?


    Xi Chiyao brought Ye Futian and walked upwards. The buildings in the West Imperial Palace were unique, going from down to up with a sky stairwell in the middle. Palace clusters were located beside both sides of the sky stairwell. Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao went up diagonally along the sky stairwell; it was as though they were ascending above the clouds.


    At its peak and the end of the sky stairwell was another cluster of palaces; there weren��t any more stairs. This was the area where the core members of the West Imperial Palace cultivated.


    Ye Futian looked on both sides. It was as though he saw many palaces levitating atop the skies. They looked like the palaces of god. Straight ahead of him and high up above, there was a divine and holy-looking imperial palace unmatched by all the other palaces. That was the core of the entire West Imperial Palace. It looked as if it was atop the nine heavens.


    Below Ye Futian, there were already mists and clouds floating, which showed how high they were.


    A palace atop the skies, Ye Futian thought. This was the first time he had visited an Ancient God Clan organization. It was ancient but grandiose and majestic. It looked like the place where the gods cultivated, as depicted in the legends.


    ��It��s right in front there. That��s the Imperial Palace, and the Palace Lord is there,�� Xi Chiyao looked toward the divine palace before them and said. On the divine palace, which looked as though it stood atop the Nine Heavens, where the clouds blurred the view, a figure stood there, marvelously majestic. That was the Lord of the West Imperial Palace. He was also awaiting YeFutian��s arrival, a smile on his face.


    ��Greetings to the Palace Lord from Ye.�� Ye Futian nodded slightly. He didn��t bow down to him. At this point, he was not just Ye Futian��he was also the Palace Lord of the Ziwei Segmentum Imperial Palace. Wherever he went, he couldn��t bring shame upon this position.


    The only reason why he nodded to greet the Palace Lord was that he was considered a junior, and the other person was the Palace Lord of an Imperial Palace. This was respect.


    ��Renhuang Ye,�� the Lord of the West Imperial Palace greeted him with a smile. He then said, ��Chiyao has always praised Renhuang Ye in front of me. She thinks very highly of you. You are the Renhuang that was able to shake up the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor on his own. In the entirety of the Divine Prefecture, it��s unlikely to find a second person like Renhuang Ye.��


    ��That��s high praise, Palace Lord,�� Ye Futian said. ��It��s just that I��m a bit more well-versed in Celerity; it��s not actual power.��


    ��You are being humble. Zhong Miao is the second strongest in the Domain Chief��ss Manor,�� the Palace Lord said with a smile. ��Anyway, other things aside, the elixirs this time were made by Renhuang Ye as well, right?��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. The West Imperial Palace Lord looked at him. When Ye Futian brought over the Sub-divine level elixirs, he had already reassessed his value. This man was a treasure himself!


    Just now, when the cultivators wanted to attack him, the aura that Ye Futian had unleashed was no weaker than a Tribulation Levelcultivator��ss.


    Everyone was speculating that Ye Futian relied on some external force, but was the truth really so?


    It really might not be.


    Sub-divine level elixirs weren��t something that could be created by a mere ninth-level Renhuang.


    The Lord of the West Imperial Palace looked toward Xi Chiyao and said, ��Chiyao, let me see the elixirs.��


    ��Yes.�� Xi Chiyao nodded and took the elixirs Ye Futian had gifted them and handed them over to the Lord of the West Imperial Palace.


    The sight of the pill was like a pebble that sent a slight rippled through the Lord of the West ImperialPalace��ss heart. He raised his head to look at Ye Futian and said, ��These are high-grade elixirs, very high grade. Even within the same level, it trumps over the pills made by the other Alchemy masters. Renhuang Ye��s path is just too perfect.��


    Ye Futian didn��t say much. He came over to gift the elixirs partly because he wanted to befriend the Lord of the Imperial Palace. With an organization akin to that of an Ancient God Clan, of course, they wouldn��t just talk about friendship. After all, benefits always came first.


    Because of that, he intentionally showed some of his capabilities.


    ��Chiyao, later on, bring Renhuang Ye to the Divine Arms Pavillion and choose a few Sub-divine Arms. Since Renhuang Ye had gifted us these elixirs, the West Imperial Palacecan��tt let him suffer a loss,�� the West Imperial Palace Lord said.


    Sub-divine Arms corresponded to the Sub-divine elixirs. They were weapons used to overcome the divine tribulation, and the only weapon superior in grade to them were actual Imperial Arms.


    Only Ancient God clans dared to let him choose a few Sub-divine Arms so casually. Usually, the top cultivation force wouldn��t even be able to take out a few of those. Such was the collection of an Ancient God Clan, accumulated over countless years.


    Something that Ye Futian understood, of course, the Lord of the West Imperial Palace understood as well. As long as he didn��t let Ye Futian leave suffering a loss, Ye Futian would continuously supply elixirs for the West Imperial Palace, which was what they lacked.


    Although Sub-divine Arms were also extremely rare and precious, they owned quite a number. Furthermore, there was Tianyan City in the Divine Prefecture, which allowed them to trade for these weapons with other valuable items or even materials to forge them.


    But Sub-divine Elixirs were in short supply in the Divine Prefecture.


    Now that Ye Futian was capable of crafting elixirs of this level, in the future, there would likely be several organizations in the Divine Prefecture that would want to trade. So naturally, he, too, paid more attention to it.


    ��I��ve already made a promise to Goddess Chiyao in the first place. How can I ask for something in return now.�� Ye Futian shook his head and said, ��Goddess Chiyao and the West Imperial Palace helped me quite a bit in getting the inheritance of the Ancient Emperor.��


    ��We can put that aside. Besides, these Sub-divine Arms aren��t repayment for the elixir. It��s simply because Renhuang Ye is now the Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, and you have many powerful cultivators under you. I��m sure that you need some weapons and arms for them.�� The Lord of the West Imperial Palace continued, ��Moreover, I also hope to strengthen the bond between Renhuang Ye and the West Imperial Palace.��


    Both of them were smart people. An alliance where they could mutually benefit each other to improve would naturally be more stable. Both of them could provide value for the other party.


    ��Since the Lord says so, it would be rather unreasonable to continue refusing. So thank you very much.�� Ye Futian nodded and didn��t continue turning him down. Just as the Lord of the West Imperial Palace had said, the Siwei Segmentum today lacked top-tier weapons and arms.


    Although there wouldn��t be a lack of them in the future, it would obviously be a good thing if they could get some to improve their forces right now.


    ��Chiyao, bring Renhuang Ye over,�� the West Imperial Palace Lord said.


    ��Yes.�� Xi Chiyao nodded and said to Ye Futian, ��Renhuang Ye, please.��


    Ye Futian nodded toward the Lord of the West Imperial Palace, then followed behind Xi Chiyao toward the Divine Arms Pavillion. After the two of them left, an elder beside the Lord of the West Imperial Palace said, ��Lord, YeFutian��s identity is quite special. Are we allying with him?��


    After all, Ye Futian��s identity was a little sensitive.


    ��If it weren��t for his special identity, we probably wouldn��t even get the chance,�� the Lord of the West Imperial Palace said. He clearly didn��t mind it. If it were not for Ye Futian��s special identity, the Donghuang Imperial would likely just take him in straight away!

 Chapter 2538 - Bad News

    Divine Arms Pavilion, West Imperial Palace. Xi Chiyao brought Ye Futian into the pavilion.


    Inside the Divine Arms Pavilion was a vast, fantasy-like space. Various powerful divine weapons levitated in the air. Some were confined inside by matrices, floating at different positions inside the pavilion.


    All of the ritual implements inside the Divine Arms Pavilion of the West Imperial Palace weren��t ordinary.


    Ye Futian looked ahead. The inside of the Divine Arms Pavilion was very deep, and he couldn��t tell how many ritual implements there were.


    ��As expected of an Ancient God Clan,�� Ye Futian said softly. These ritual implements had been accumulated by an Ancient God Clan over countless years, s their numbers were indubitably immense. Of course, the higher the grade of the weapon, the scarcer they were in quantity.


    The Ziwei Imperial Palace had also collected many divine arms. However, because the Ziwei Segmentum was an isolated world all along and had no master armorer organizations, they still lacked relatively powerful divine weapons. They only had enough for the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. Of course, the most powerful divine arm was the Scepter of the Stars held by Lord Chen. That was said to be the divine weapon once used by Ziwei the Great and controlled by the former Ziwei Imperial Palace. After he was slain by Ye Futian, he gave it to Lord Chen, who was still Renhuang Chen back at the time.


    ��Please choose, Renhuang Ye, no need to hold back,�� Xi Chiyao said with a smile.


    ��Goddess Chiyao isn��t afraid of me being consumed by greed and seizing the entirety of the Divine Arms Pavilion?�� Ye Futian smiled and asked.


    ��No problem,�� Xi Chiyao replied, ��The fact that Renhuang Ye is willing to come to the Imperial Palace to gift us the elixir is telling of your character. If Renhuang Ye really swept out the entire Divine Arms Pavilion, I believe you won��t give us the short end of the stick in the future. The Palace Lord must have seen through this, which is why he let Renhuang Ye come here.��


    ��The Palace Lord is indeed a bold person.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��If he wasn��t bold, how would he choose me as the heir so early on and bestow upon me such extraordinary status and power to the point that seeing me is equivalent to seeing himself. This is precisely the reason why many within the family were dissatisfied with me and became envious. They wanted to use this opportunity to drag me down from the position of Goddess. It��s rather amusing.��


    As she spoke, Xi Chiyao looked like she didn��t mind or even take those people seriously at all. This was despite how many of them are her elders and core members of the West Imperial Palace who could make critical decisions for the Palace.


    ��So even if I didn��t appear, they��re still just clowns in your eyes?�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��I��ll just watch them perform,�� Xi Chiyao said calmly. There was strong confidence in her eyes. What was the core reason that she could even get on the position as the Goddess?


    Without subverting that, how could they possibly shake up her status as the Goddess?


    She knew full well that no matter what she did, the Palace Lord would stand on her side.


    Ye Futian laughed a little and didn��t ask much to probe into the inner matters of the West Imperial Palace. He waved his hand, took over a ritual implement, and just kept it straight away. He really wasn��t holding back.


    Afterward, Ye Futian continued walking forward into the deep parts of the Divine Arms Pavilion. As he waved his palm, he took one after another divine weapon and ritual implements. The casualness in his actions made it seem as if this wasn��t the Divine Arms Pavilion of the West Imperial Palace. Instead, it belonged to his Ziwei Imperial Palace��


    Xi Chiyao blinked. Was this guy seriously being so casual?


    ��Feeling a heartache?�� Ye Futian looked at the change in Xi Chiyao��s expression and asked with a smile.


    ��Of course not. It��s just that I was looking at Renhuang Ye��s movements, and they looked too natural,�� Xi Chiyao said as if she was holding back laughter. ��However, the ritual implements that Renhuang Ye had taken are not the best. Although you��ve taken quite a few, ritual implements of such grades aren��t considered that precious, so the West Imperial Palace wouldn��t mind. Renhuang Ye, don��t you think that you��re making a loss?��


    Ye Futian looked toward Xi Chiyao, and a smirk appeared on his face, clearly carrying some other meaning. ��No hurry!�� he said.


    ������ Xi Chiyao was startled. Looking at Ye Futian��s strange smile, she felt like she was inviting a robber into her own house.


    Then Ye Futian laughed and walked forward to continue his collecting. He was really not trying to be reserved with the West Imperial Palace.


    As Xi Chiyao looked at Ye Futian going crazy looting the pavilion, even she started to feel a bit of heartache. This guy just casually reeled in tens of powerful divine weapons.


    ��This amount of ritual implements isn��t considered a lot for the West Imperial Palace. This Divine Arms Pavilion is a great treasure trove. None of the weapons that I took are Sub-divine level. Most of the cultivators at the Ziwei Imperial Palace today are still at the Renhuang Plane. We only have a few tribulation phase cultivators and not many peak-level Renhuangs. So I think having suitable weapons is the most important,�� Ye Futian said. Although weapons are external to the cultivator, they do raise the combat prowess of cultivators. It would be helpful to the overall strength of the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Xi Chiyao nodded; she understood what Ye Futian meant.


    As they went deeper, the divine arms started to become more sparse. In such an ample space, only one or two divine arms would appear at one time. Among them, a very powerful aura seeped out from a few of the weapons.


    Here, Sub-divine level ritual implements started to show up.


    ��Sub-divine Arms. I��ll need some of those too,�� Ye Futian said. He brought many Sub-divine Elixirs and specially made a batch for Xi Chiyao. He had promised this and wouldn��t let Xi Chiyao get a bad bargain.


    Since the Lord of the West Imperial Palace promised to let him choose the divine arms, he won��t be reserved about it. In the future, he would continue to send elixirs over when he got the chance. This was a mutually beneficial exchange where both sides could get the items they lacked, making up for each other��s weaknesses.


    Furthermore, since they were an alliance, he hoped that the West Imperial Palace could become more powerful.


    As he interacted more deeply with Xi Chiyao, Ye Futian felt that this person was pretty decent. As long as she remained in the position of the Goddess, his relationship with the West Imperial Palace wouldn��t go wrong.


    Ye Futian took several Sub-divine Arms. He could even feel the traces of spiritual existence in them. They felt like weapons that had their spirits awakened and went through the baptism of the Arms Tribulation.


    Xi Chiyao just followed silently. She didn��t say a single word when Ye Futian took the Sub-divine Weapons. One could see Xi Chiyao��s intelligence from this alone.


    After quite a while, Ye Futian stopped, and Xi Chiyao simply kept quiet and looked at him.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said, then walked toward the exit.


    ��You��re not going to take more?�� Xi Chiyao asked with a smile.


    ��That��s enough,�� Ye Futian said as he walked. The two left the Divine Arms Pavilion and returned to where the Lord of the West Imperial Palace was.


    ��My friend Ye, you��re done picking?�� the Lord of the West Imperial Palace asked with a smile. Previously, he called him Renhuang Ye. Now, the way he addressed him had changed.


    ��Done, I��ve taken quite a bit. I hope Palace Lord wouldn��t be unhappy about it,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Since I let Chiyao bring you to the Divine Arms Pavilion, of course I wouldn��t mind,�� the Palace Lord said. ��I��ll order people to prepare a banquet. Let��s have a drink together.��


    ��No need for the trouble,�� Ye Futian shook his head, ��I��ve taken so much of the good stuff, so I gotta hurry and go now, in case Palace Lord changes his mind.��


    The West Imperial Palace Lord laughed as well after hearing his banter. He nodded and said, ��Alright, then I won��t hold you back. Chiyao, send our friend off. If you need anything in the future, just let Chiyao know.��


    ��Thank you very much,�� Ye Futian nodded to bid farewell before leaving. Xi Chiyao sent him off until they exited the West Imperial Palace.


    ��How much did he take?�� the West Imperial Palace Lord asked Xi Chiyao; he was smiling.


    ��Not a small number,�� Xi Chiyao replied. ��At least a lot more than I expected.��


    ��Clever,�� the Palace Lord said with a smile.


    ��How so?�� Xi Chiyao asked.


    ��The more he takes, the deeper our relationship,�� the Palace Lord said as he laughed out loud. Then he turned and left, leaving Xi Chiyao to ponder the meaning of what he said.


    The more he took, the deeper their relationship?


    ��


    After Ye Futian returned to the Ziwei Segmentum, he went to the Ziwei Imperial Palace and distributed the ritual implements.


    At the Starry Cultivation Court, everyone gathered to receive their ritual implements; they were all a little excited.


    Previously, Ye Futian crafted divine elixirs. Now, he brought over powerful divine arms and ritual implements. There were even some people who got Sub-divine arms. Furthermore, it seemed that Ye Futian had taken these divine arms in a targeted manner. The weapons correspond to specific cultivators. When the cultivators received the divine arms, many felt like it was custom-made for them.


    Clearly, Ye Futian��s trip this time was rather bountiful.


    After distributing the Divine Arms, Ye Futian said to them, ��We can now release the seal of the Ziwei segmentum. But, we must continue to focus on cultivation and become more powerful.


    ��Em.�� Everyone nodded. They all appeared rather happy.


    The Ziwei Segmentum had been sealed by Ye Futian for many years. Today, it was finally getting released. This had a special meaning to them.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look up into the celestial sky. Instantly, a great divine might appeared in the skies as countless stars shone magnificently. It was as though a light screen was vanishing. After the seal of the Ziwei Segmentum was released, they could start contacting the outside world.


    After doing all this, Ye Futian looked toward the crowd and said, ��In the future, there will be more and more powerful cultivators coming to our Ziwei Segmentum. When that happens, we can take them into the Imperial Palace if the opportunity arises.��


    ��Em,�� the cultivators nodded. If the Ziwei Imperial Palace were to continue growing, other than the forces they already had, they must continue to expand.


    ��Go cultivate.�� After Ye Futian spoke, everyone dispersed and immersed themselves in cultivation, all working towards becoming more powerful.


    For the past few days, because of the elixirs, many of them broke through their original cultivation level, which was a spectacular surprise. Changes were happening every day in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian continued cultivating. The seal was lifted, but that doesn��t mean that he had to go out.


    However, just as he was immersing himself in cultivation, Xi Chiyao sent over bad news.


    After Ye Futian went to the West Imperial Palace to gift the divine elixirs, the news was leaked out. Many voices were hostile toward the West Imperial Palace that sprung up, saying that the West Imperial Palace was colluding with Ye Futian, seizing the inheritance of the Elixir Emperor of the Ancient Era to make divine elixirs. Ye Futian provided these elixirs for the West Imperial Palace while the Palace delivered resources to him, allying.


    But the West Imperial Palace was an Ancient God Clan. Even though there were such voices, no one dared to besiege them so easily. As long as the Donghuang Imperial Palace didn��t voice out, who dared to say anything?


    However, there was another piece of news that was detrimental for Ye Futian.


    Some people in the Divine Prefecture wanted to start a great alliance targeted at the Ziwei Segmentum. Some said that several great forces of the Divine Prefecture wanted to lock down the entire Ziwei Segmentum from the outside and turn it into a dead region!

 Chapter 2539 - The Ziwei Sets Off to Battle

    When Ye Futian received this news, his heart turned cold.


    Many years ago, the powers of the Divine Prefecture had already done this once before. These forces had descended upon the Heavenly Mandate Realm and forced him out, resulting in him sealing himself inside the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Now, was there going to be a repeat of the Divine Prefecture powers�� besiegement?


    Not to mention, this time, it seemed to be even more ruthless, as they were aiming to seal the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    No ordinary powers dared to be this arrogant; only those apex powers of the prefecture dared to declare something like seal an entire Segmentum.


    Just imagine how much power it would require.


    Ye Futian asked Xi Chiyao to help him gather more information regarding this, specifically which powers were involved, while he continued to cultivate in the Ziwei Segmentum Imperial Palace. He didn��t even tell the others in order to let the cultivators of the Imperial Palace strengthen themselves in peace.


    Time continued to pass. Inside the Starry Cultivation Court, Ye Futian sat in a cross-legged stance. Just then, he opened his eyes, and with a swing of his palm, a mirror appeared before him. On the other end of the mirror was a pretty figure; it was Xi Chiyao.


    ��Renhuang Ye,�� Xi Chiyao called out.


    ��Goddess Chiyao, how��s the situation out there?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��It��s really not looking good,�� Xi Chiyao replied. ��There are gradually more powers entering the alliance. They are preparing to hold a meeting specifically for the attack on Ziwei Segmentum. Now, they��ve already sent people to Tianyan City to convince the Lord of the Tianyan City to invite out the Imperial Arm and lay waste to the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    ��Imperial Arm!��


    Coldness appeared in Ye Futian��s eyes. Even Imperial Arms were separated into different levels. He had already found some ordinary ��Imperial Arms,�� but these actually only contained a slither of the Will of the Great Emperor. True Imperial Arms were mighty divine-level weapons that contained the powers of the Great Emperors.


    Weapons like the Scepter of the Stars actually couldn��t even be considered a complete Imperial Arm. It only contained a slither of Ziwei the Great��s will. To forge an Imperial Arm, the first requirement was to have a Divine Item.


    Divine Items themselves were already extremely rare. For instance, Wangshen Watchtower, in the hands of the Millet Emperor, was a complete Divine Item.


    With the Wangshen Watchtower, the Millet Emperor could even battle the Lord of the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor Ning Yuan, which was a testament to its potency.


    Yet, such Divine Items were just materials to forge an Imperial Arm.


    Besides that, forging an Imperial Arm would also require a Great Emperor level Armorer Emperor to utilize the Divine Martial. Today, such beings no longer existed.


    Tianyan City was the number one sanctuary of armorers, yet the greatest armorer was the top-tier Blacksmith Grandmaster, the Lord of the Tianyan City.


    But the ancestor of the Lord of the Tianyan City was an Armorer Emperor.


    Tianyan City owns a complete Imperial Arm.


    The various powers wanted to ask the Lord of the Tianyan City to invite the Imperial Arm to attack the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��Will the Lord of the Tianyan City agree?�� Ye Futian asked; his eyes had turned cold. These Ancient God Clans have terrifyingly deep backgrounds and collections. There was a supreme Imperial Arm hidden inside the Tianyan City. If they really drew the Imperial Arm, could the Imperial Segmentum survive it?


    ��Very difficult. It��s not that easy to invite out the Imperial Arm,�� Xi Chiyao replied. ��The Imperial Arms contains the powerful might and will of the Great Emperor and have its own will. Even the Lord of the Tianyan City can��t command it. They have to ��invite�� it to battle. Unless Tianyan City is met with a true existential disaster, usually, the Imperial Arm won��t emerge.��


    Ye Futian nodded and felt slightly more relieved.


    ��But we still can��t let down our guard. Tianyan City doesn��t have a good impression of the Ziwei Segmentum. Back then, they tried to seize the divine frame and were rejected by you. That resulted in the furious Tianyan City Lord lashing out and destroying the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Even if they don��t invite out the Imperial Arm, they could still convince the Lord of the Tianyan City to bring other powerful divine arms for an attack on the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    ��Em.�� Ye Futian nodded and asked, ��Who was the one who started this?��


    ��I��m not sure about the details, but it should be launched jointly by several of the great powers. And they were supported by other powers as well. The earliest one to start this is likely those powers then went to the Celestial Mountain to contend for the inheritance. Chief Xihai also responded and called upon various Domain Chief Manors to join forces and wipe out the Ziwei Segmentum. The Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor also responded in secret,�� Xi Chiyao replied. ��There are even more participating powers. There are those Ancient God Clans that fought you back then, as well as those Overlord level powers, like the Sun God Mountain, Holy Land of Taichu, and other overlords of the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��Understood.�� Ye Futian nodded slightly before asking, ��On the West Imperial Palace��s side, is there a lot of pressure?��


    ��It��s alright,�� Xi Chiyao said. ��Perhaps you are not completely clear of the background of an Ancient God Clan. They won��t dare to provoke us so easily. Also, if you choose an opponent, it��s best to stay away from the Ancient God Clan first. Right now, you are not yet capable of shaking up an Ancient God Clan, and you could suffer severe backlash.��


    Upon hearing what Xi Chiyao said, a surprised emotion appeared on Ye Futian��s face. It seemed that Xi Chiyao was hinting something to him. Ancient God Clans could be even more powerful than he imagined, and they had some mysterious secrets that not many knew about.


    As such, she was advising him not to engage in battle with the Ancient God Clan rashly.


    Tianyan City had the Imperial Arm, and the other Ancient God Clans definitely had their own aces as well. It probably won��t be easy to rock their foundation.


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Thank you for your help.��


    ��No worries,�� Xi Chiyao smiled. The two of them nodded at each other. Then Ye Futian reached out and waved his hand to keep the mirror. His brows were locked together.


    The various powers of the Divine Prefecture hadn��t given up on killing him!


    Now, it seemed that the situation was even more urgent.


    If it were just sealing the Segmentum, it wouldn��t be that big a deal. The worst that could happen was the Ziwei Segmentum cultivating in solitude for an extended number of years. However, if they used other means to storm the Ziwei Segmentum or some special methods of obliteration, then things wouldn��t be alright.


    Just then, a figure arrived with a flash. It was Lord Chen. He came to Ye Futian��s side and said, ��Palace Lord, there are some malicious voices from the outside.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and said, ��I��ve already heard about it.��


    ��Palace Lord, what do you plan to do?�� Lord Chen asked.


    ��Lord Chen, any thoughts?�� Ye Futian raised his head and asked as he looked toward Lord Chen.


    ��We can��t just sit and wait for our demise,�� Lord Chen replied. ��Now, the Ziwei Segmentum is no longer weak, and it��s time to go out there.��


    Lord Chen had made the breakthrough, and his power was augmented by the Scepter of Stars, so now he wanted to test his prowess in battle. It just so happened that the various powers of the Divine Prefecture were planning something malicious, which was why he had such thoughts.


    Ye Futian looked toward Lord Chen, and he didn��t expect a fighting spirit to emerge in Lord Chen.


    ��Just now, Xi Chiyao advised me not to touch the Ancient God Clans. So, who can we target?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Other than the Ancient God Clans, just choose a power that wants to touch us and destroy them as a warning to the others,�� Lord Chen��s voice was calm, but one could sense a domineering might from it. The Ziwei Imperial Palace was the lord of a celestial segmentum, yet now they ran into problems everywhere. Naturally, he felt furious inside as well.


    At least, they should let the outside world know that the Ziwei Segmentum wasn��t a power that they could push around as and when they liked.


    ��Also, our target can��t be too weak. If we are going to strike out, we��ll strike out at one of the more powerful organizations. Otherwise, it wouldn��t serve as a warning and deterrence to the others,�� Lord Chen continued. Ye Futian nodded in agreement upon hearing him.


    After hearing Lord Chen��s opinion, he already had an organization in mind. Moreover, this organization had long had a grudge with the Ziwei Imperial Palace and was very powerful in the Divine Prefecture, even known as a holy land for cultivation. In their domain, it had supreme status.


    After a moment of silence, Ye Futian said, ��Lord Chen, summon the chiefs of the Ziwei, Wangshen, and Heavenly Mandate Palaces to come to the Ziwei Imperial Palace for a conference.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord.�� Lord Chen bowed toward Ye Futian, then turned and walked into the celestial skies. His expression was solemn, and one could even see serious killing intent within.


    It��s been a long time since he had gone out.


    Since that year, he was sealed inside the Ziwei Imperial Palace. As the lord of the segmentum, Lord Chen pretty much had nothing to do on normal days and had no enemies. All he did was to cultivate to pass his time. But now, he had made a breakthrough in his cultivation level, and there were powerful enemies externally; it allowed him to feel his blood pumping up once again.


    ��


    Outside the main palace of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, a group of powerful cultivators was standing there. They could feel that something was going to happen, and all had solemn expressions on their faces.


    The Supreme Elder Lord Chen, Ziwei Palace Lord Mu Rongyu, Wangshen Palace Lord Emperor Xi, Heavenly Mandate Palace Lord Hua Jieyu were all there. The other apex cultivators were also gathered here. Only Daoist Monk Mu wasn��t here. Ye Futian told them not to worry about it and focus on crafting elixirs, which was the utmost priority for Daoist Monk Mu.


    The external battles will be their job for now.


    ��Many years ago, various powers of the Divine Prefecture led their troops to descend upon the Heavenly Mandate and obliterated the Heavenly Mandate Academy, chasing us out and forcing us to seal ourselves inside the Ziwei Segmentum for many years. Now, the Ziwei Segmentum no longer participates in the conflicts of the outside world, yet the powers of the Divine Prefecture still don��t want to let us go. They want to join forces once again, form a powerful alliance and wipe out the Ziwei Segmentum,�� Ye Futian said. ��But the Ziwei Imperial Palace today isn��t the same as the Ziwei Imperial Palace back then. Regardless of whether they will be able to ally. At the very least, we must let those who want to destroy us learn the meaning of a price to pay.��


    The cultivators all felt a strong emotion well up inside them as their blood started pumping. Today, will the Ziwei Imperial Palace be heading out for conquest?


    This was the first time ever. It had never happened before.


    Especially some of the cultivators from Heavenly Mandate. For so many years, they had passively tolerated being the target of oppression and suppression. Until today, they had become strong enough, yet they still faced the same pressure. The various apex powers of the Divine Prefecture just wouldn��t let them go.


    There were even Ancient God Clans that wanted to attack them.


    All of this was only because the Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace was too bright. It was as though this world didn��t allow someone of this caliber to exist, and so it conjured up all sorts of ways to wipe out Ye Futian. Or perhaps, it was alarmed by his growth.


    Now, they were finally striking out.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said before taking the first step. Everyone made way for him and let Ye Futian walk through the middle. Then the cultivators followed his lead and walked toward the direction of a tunnel.


    The Ziwei Imperial Palace set off for battle against the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2540 - Attack

    Divine Prefecture, Taichu Domain This was one of the more powerful domains of the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture.


    Inside the Taichu Domain, although there were no Ancient God Clan level powers, there was the holy land of cultivation��the Holy Land of Taichu.


    The Holy Land of Taichu was a place where knowledge of the Great Paths was passed down. Through its countless years of history, a large number of phenomenal individuals had emerged from there, and it had groomed generations of powerful cultivators. Today, many of the apex cultivators of the Taichu Domain came from the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Within the Taichu Domain, even the Domain Chief��s Manor had to respect the Holy Land of Taichu.


    The Holy Land of Taichu was located at the core land of the Taichu Domain, occupying an extraordinary segment of the land, where the soil was fertile for thousands of miles. Inside the Holy Land of Taichu, there were many cultivation courts. Each cultivation court was extremely powerful, and if they were put outside, they would all be top-tier organizations.


    At this time, inside the Holy Land of Taichu, it was extremely quiet inside a cultivation court where divine mists blurred the view. A figure was sitting atop the stone platform inside the mist, deep in cultivation with his eyes closed.


    Ye Futian had seen this person before. He had attacked Ye Futian before. He was the ruler of the Holy Land of Taichu��Taichu Saint Emperor. He had overcome the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path years ago and had become extremely powerful. Back then, even with Shenjia the Great��s divine frame, Ye Futian was still nearly killed by him. If it weren��t for the Master intervening, he would likely not be able to escape from that battle.


    As the Taichu Saint Emperor sat there, it seemed as though he had merged into one with the world, becoming a part of the world. Not a slither of aura could be sensed from him. But just then, his eyebrows moved slightly, then he opened his eyes, and an extremely sharp gaze shot out from his iris.


    What��s going on? Taichu Saint Emperor wondered. He felt somewhat uneasy; it was as though something was about to happen.


    Of course, he wouldn��t doubt his feelings. When a cultivator reaches his stage, his senses toward the outside world would become extremely sensitive. Even if it was something that hadn��t even happened yet, it was still possible for him to feel something.


    Of course, they wouldn��t know why this would happen, but they would have a faint feeling that something was about to happen.


    But the Holy Land of Taichu was teaching cultivation inside the Taichu Domain. What could possibly happen?


    Speaking of all the major events happening at the time, there was nothing other than the various top powers of the Divine Prefecture joining forces to target the Ziwei Segmentum. But this was a crisis for the Ziwei Segmentum, so it had nothing to do with him.


    So why did his senses tell him that something wasn��t right?


    The Taichu Saint Emperor��s divine consciousness swept across a nearly boundless area, shrouding all of the cultivation courts of the vast Holy Land of Taichu. All of the cultivators inside the Holy Land were cultivating quietly, and there was nothing abnormal. Nothing had happened.


    His divine consciousness continued to sweep and expand toward the city afar, but he still didn��t find anything.


    He frowned a little and gave up on continuing his search. He closed his eyes and returned to cultivation. If something were going to happen, then by force of nature, it would happen. All he needed to do was to wait quietly.


    Inside the Holy Land of Taichu, there were countless cultivators, all in different cultivation courts. The cultivators were all practicing their own paths, forming a great thriving scene. No one had any idea what was awaiting the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Some time later, somewhere far away outside the Holy Land of Taichu. A group of powerful cultivators arrived from high up above the air. Their speeds were all astonishing, and all of them concealed their auras, yet everyone who passed by could still feel that these people were different from ordinary crowds. They had to be extraordinary individuals and could be up to something.


    ��They seem to be going in the direction of the Holy Land of Taichu,�� someone said silently inside.


    ��Are they cultivators from one of the cultivation courts inside the Holy Land of Taichu?��


    ��Doesn��t seem like it.�� Many people were discussing, but Ye Futian and the others continued to advance.


    They were extremely low-key for this trip. They first appeared at Four Corners Village using the tunnel set by the Master. This impressive team of cultivators traveled across vast lands silently, coming from the Shangqing Domain to the Taichu Domain and the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Although the Ziwei Imperial Palace was now a force to be reckoned with, it still wasn��t possible for them to wage war against the entire Divine Prefecture. However, if the powers of the Divine Prefecture wanted to ally to besiege the Ziwei Imperial Palace, they would have to prepare to pay the price for it.


    The group of powerful cultivators was extremely fast in their advance. It wasn��t long before they appeared up in the air right outside of the Holy Land of Taichu.


    At this moment, waves of powerful auras descended upon the Holy Land of Taichu, suppressing the skies in this area.


    Hum! Just then, from deep inside the Holy Land of Taichu, the Taichu Saint Emperor suddenly opened up his eyes, and an unbridled, dangerously sharp intent could be seen. A terrifying aura surged out from him and shrouded the vast space. Instantly, a surge of divine might descended upon the land as it seemed as though his eyes crossed space and looked right outside of the Holy Land of Taichu. There were actually Ziwei Segmentum cultivators who arrived at the Holy Land of Taichu.


    The meaning of this was clear without needing explanation.


    ��Ye Futian, how dare you lead the Ziwei Imperial Palace to invade the Holy Land of Taichu?�� The voice of Taichu Saint Emperor echoed through the air, shaking up the nine heavens and resonating throughout the Holy Land.


    At this point, countless cultivators at the Holy Land of Taichu were shaken to their cores. One after another, powerful cultivators rose into the air and looked outside.


    Boom! An incredibly heavy might landed down and engulfed the entire Holy Land of Taichu. Taichu Saint Emperor raised his head and looked over. He saw a figure with the Robe of the Stars appearing high up in the air. His aura was shockingly impressive; it was actually on par with him. That was a cultivator who had overcome the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path��the Supreme Elder of the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Lord Chen stood above the Taichu Saint Emperor with the scepter in his hand, and his gaze focused on him. Within an instant, the divine might of the great paths from the two cultivators collided into each other up in the void, causing terrifying tremors in the void and even booming noises.


    ��He��s strong,�� the Taichu Saint Emperor could feel the pressure. His gaze was locked on the air above him while his body was still sitting there. But his figure appeared astonishingly tall and enormous, as though it was a god.


    This Supreme Elder of the Ziwei Imperial Palace actually managed to make the breakthrough and overcome the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Outside of the Holy Land, Ye Futian appeared high up in the air. He announced loudly, ��The Holy Land of Taichu was supposed to be a holy land of knowledge where the great paths are taught. Yet, it had repeatedly committed acts of invasion and pillage, abusing its power and bullying others. Now it��s planning to collude with the powers of the Divine Prefecture to lay waste to the Ziwei Segmentum. It has failed the name of the holy land and doesn��t deserve to be passing on the teachings of the great paths. Today, the Holy Land of Taichu shall have its name removed from the Taichu Domain. At this point, all cultivators inside the Holy Land of Taichu, I will not go after those who leave spontaneously.��


    When his voice echoed in the air above the Holy Land of Taichu, every single cultivator inside the Holy Land was absolutely shocked.


    The Holy Land of Taichu was the number one holy land of great path teachings. It was extremely powerful, had supreme status inside the Taichu Domain, and was worshiped and revered by the world��s people.


    Yet today, someone dared to invade the Holy Land of Taichu and claim to eliminate its name from the world.


    ��How dare you!��


    ��Big words!��


    Various voices sounded from different locations around the Holy Land of Taichu. Afterward, one after another, powerful auras arrived. Inside the Holy Land of Taichu, at various locations, astoundingly powerful auras appeared simultaneously.


    Ye Futian didn��t mind it. He stepped forward and advanced, leading the cultivators in a direct attack into the Holy Land of Taichu.


    ��Invading the Holy Land of Taichu, kill without mercy,�� a domineering voice sounded. Many powerful auras erupted at the same time. One after another, powerful cultivators rose into the air. Many of whom were peak Renhuang level individuals.


    Boom! Two figures stepped forward��Blind Tie and Millet Emperor. Their auras were terrifying, and their mights pressured upon the world. A divine projection appeared up above the skies as though it was a god. It was holding a sky hammer and slammed straight into toward the Renhuang who was charging over. Instantly, a terrifying divine might swept out, and that Renhuang was sent flying out with a boom.


    The Millet Emperor summoned the Gate of World Suppression, forcing down upon the battlefield and suppressing the crowd of Renhuang cultivators with its might; it was unparalleled domination.


    Boom, boom, boom�� It was just one stroke, yet many of the Renhuang cultivators were severely wounded.


    Boooooom! A terrifying aura swept across the battlefield and roared like the heavenly river. Ye Futian continued walking forward. He saw an old acquaintance; it was the Purple Robe War Emperor��a formidable cultivator. There were also several other powerful Renhuangs beside him. As he dealt out a punch containing the might of the divine gods, an extremely vigorous surge of power swept through the battlefield like the roaring rivers, attempting to shatter everything in its path.


    From another direction, the will of swords swarmed the skies and struck toward them from afar. These sword wills converged together and turned into a river of swords, slashing in from afar with killing intentions, obliterating the space they passed through. This was the Sky River Divine sword that came from the Taichu Sparring Grounds inside the Holy Land of Taichu. Many powerful cultivators attacked at once, dealing out a shockingly powerful attack with explosive force.


    A terrifying sky hammer suddenly appeared in the hand of Blind Tie. He straight away wielded it, then stepped forward and dashed into the frighteningly powerful waves. The sky hammer in his hand smashed downward, causing the void to tremor violently. He continued to charge forward, raising the sky hammer and smashing it toward the Purple Robe War Emperor.


    At the same time, Chen Yi, who was standing beside Ye Futian, moved as well. As he saw the Sword Will swarming the skies striking toward them, his body turned into a beam of light and dashed right into it. Endless Sword Will of Light erupted, purifying everything in the world. It dashed right into the river of swords and pierced through it, slashing toward the other end of the sword river.


    Ye Futian and the others�� footsteps didn��t even pause, and they continued to advance. Huge booming noises erupted in the skies as the void tremored and roared.


    High up in the air, many divine cauldrons levitated there. Each of these divine cauldrons was enormous. A cultivator in golden robes sat atop a cauldron and watched as Ye Futian walked over. His aura was extremely terrifying, and it was a Tribulation phase cultivator, one of the three strongest individuals in the entire Holy Land of Taichu.


    Hum! Those treasure cauldrons spun and smashed down to suppress them, almost crushing space itself. Wherever it passed through, everything was crushed into fragments. Even the Great Paths were the same, nearly being shattered. No Great Path power could withstand the crushing power of the divine cauldron.


    Endless divine cauldrons appeared above Ye Futian and the others, crushing down toward them in an attempt to completely crush and destroy them.


    Hum! The Lord of the Ziwei Palace, Murong Yu, walked out from behind Ye Futian. An extremely magnificent Starry Brilliance shot out from his eyes, instantly transforming the world around them into the starry dimension. Countless celestial stars revolved and appeared in the segmentum before him, circling the stars and striking toward the divine cauldrons. The scene was extremely magnificent.


    Their attacks collided in the void. The Tribulation plane cultivator from the Holy Land of Taichu stared at Murong Yu, who was below. Other than Lord Chen, who had gone ahead to battle the Saint Emperor, there was another Tribulation Plane cultivator beside Ye Futian.


    And it seemed that he wasn��t the only one.


    It looked like it would truly be a crisis for the Holy Land of Taichu this time!

 Chapter 2541 - Dismantle

    From the depths of the Holy Land of Taichu, another horrific aura permeated. An extreme icy aura covered the boundless space, quickly lowering the temperature of the entire Holy Land of Taichu. At the same time, a terrifying roar was heard. In that direction, glacial divine swords surged with an extremely terrifying impact, moving toward where Ye Futian was.


    Obviously, the other man knew that Ye Futian was the leader of this battle, as he led his people here to the Holy Land of Taichu to destroy them.


    Without Ye Futian, today��s battle would not have occurred. Therefore, he wanted to kill Ye Futian directly.


    Buzz! A powerful aura erupted behind Ye Futian as Emperor Xi stepped forward. A massive phantom of Xuanwu, the Black Turtle, appeared above the firmament. It blocked out everything in the sky, bearing the weight of `that terrifying attack.


    Emperor Xi moved forward, preparing to slay the opponent, and locked onto him.


    Not many of them came this time, but they were all top combatants; all of them were at least peak Renhuang level cultivators. Cultivators with lower cultivation would only be a burden in a battle like this and unable to do much good.


    In different directions, terrible battles were breaking out. The entire Holy Land of Taichu was exploding frantically. Loud booming sounds blasted in everyone��s mind continuously. The devastating storm of the Great Path made them feel suffocated and desperate.


    It was simply madness!


    They never thought that someone would lead a legion to attack the Holy Land of Taichu. But they saw it today. Not only did they come, but they were also extremely powerful and aggressive.


    Everyone raised their head to look at the white-haired man, who continued to move forward. This man was the legendary figure from Original Realm��Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian continued moving forward, and the devastating storm of the Great Path around him seemed not to have the slightest impact on him. He led his people inside the Holy Land of Taichu, glanced at the battlefield, and said, ��Anyone who participates in the fight will be killed.��


    A cold light flashed across his eyes. Once, the forces of the Divine Prefecture formed an alliance against the Ziwei Segmentum, and the Holy Land of Taichu was one of them. Regardless of any other grievances of the past, just for this offense alone, they must destroy the Holy Land of Taichu. If they didn��t, those same people would invade and attack the Ziwei Segmentum in the future.


    His divine consciousness covered the entire Holy Land of Taichu, and many of its cultivation courts. Except for Taichu Saint Emperor, who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, two others had survived the first divine tribulation. They were now fighting with Murong Yu and Emperor Xi.


    In the past, there was another one, Swordmaster of Taichu Sparring Grounds, who had been slain by him using the divine body of the Shenjia the Great Emperor, so that there was one less peak character in the Holy Land of Taichu.


    In addition to the three great cultivators in the Tribulation Plane, there were seven or eight more Renhuang with a perfect Great Path in the Holy Land of Taichu. This was considered a very powerful lineup because this was, after all, the Holy Land of Taichu Domain.


    But this kind of lineup was not enough to contend with the opponents facing them.


    Ye Futian didn��t make any moves himself. He wanted to monitor the entire battlefield to ensure that the cultivators on his side would not suffer any injuries. Although their side was currently at an advantage, they should not take their enemies lightly.


    ��Form the matrix,�� said a voice in the distance. Those cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu gathered in panic and began to form the matrix. In the Taichu Sparring Grounds, countless swordsmen now levitated into the sky at the same time, suspended high above the sky. All of their bodies were filled with a frightening sword will.


    The sword will flowed and circulated, attracting the divine light of the Great Path between heaven and earth. Sword aurora appeared with extreme radiance. It seemed as if they could split open this world.


    Above the firmament, a phantom, like that of a sword god, appeared. Then, millions of divine swords were unleashed toward Ye Futian and his people, like a sword light of total destruction.


    Hua Jieyu took a step forward, straddling the space, floating beneath the sword matrix. She lifted her beautiful eyes and glanced at the sword matrix, and a dull sound was heard between heaven and earth. A suffocating pressure of might soon followed as time and space seemed to come to a stop. The speed of those swords falling suddenly slowed; it seemed as if they were about to stop.


    Boom! Hua Jieyu took another step, and all the divine swords in the sky were still. At this moment, Chen Yi moved. The cleansing divine light bloomed to turn his body into a light, rushing towards those swordsmen.


    At this time, those swordsmen felt a sting in their spiritual energy, as if their bodies were not under their own control, nor could they control their own swords. Their expressions quickly changed to one with shock, and they attempted to gather their sword will for a final attack, but the light was faster than they were.


    Puh-puh, puh�� The sword of light shuttled past, and everyone was pierced through their throat. From the sky above, those swordsmen who were inside the matrix fell to their deaths at the same time.


    When the cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu beheld this scene, their hearts trembled violently as they watched all these people perish in front of their eyes.


    Ye Futian and the others continued moving forward. Countless cauldrons were floating high above the sky, containing terrible power. When these cauldrons were spinning, the golden divine light threatened to shatter the space. Its force was beyond horrific.


    ��Kill.�� Although these cultivators had seen the sorry ending of those swordsmen, they did not back down. Tens of thousands of cauldrons covered this corner of the sky, and slamming down for the kill at the same time with extremely aggressive force.


    This time, Ye Futian walked forward and stepped into the space below those destructive cauldrons. He stood in the center of that destructive divine light.


    Rays of divine light spilled down and blasted on him. The cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu showed a coldness in their eyes, but they were shocked to find that Ye Futian freely bathed in the divine light of destruction. He not only did not move but was allowing that divine light to wash over his flesh.


    This sight made them feel a little hopeless. Was Ye Futian really just a Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm?


    How could his physical body be this strong?


    The divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor had been destroyed, and all he had now was his own physical body. Still, it was terrifying.


    ��Kill.�� Their expressions were chilling as hundreds and thousands of divine cauldrons spun, and countless rays of divine lightning struck down for the kill. At the same time, those cauldrons also blasted down, trying to overpower Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s aura of the Great Path enveloped this space. He raised his head and looked up. In an instant, all these cauldrons stopped and remained still, and the divine light dimmed.


    Above the sky, this scene was incredibly spectacular.


    Those cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu stared at the cauldrons, trying to urge them again, but found that they couldn��t.


    They looked down at Ye Futian, who was standing under those countless cauldrons. A little desperate now, they wondered, ��How can he be so strong?��


    Ye Futian looked at those people with pity. They were all cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu, and they really didn��t do anything wrong. However, this was the cruel reality in the world of cultivation. If the situation was reversed, and these cultivators invaded the Ziwei Segmentum, they would become the ones slaughtering those inside the Ziwei Segmentum. The scenario would be completely different.


    Boom�� At this time, the Millet Emperor descended with Wangshen Watchtower on his back and blasted directly into the crowd. In an instant, many cultivators fell from above, and many of them were killed on the spot.


    All that was happening in front of their eyes was like a dream; the cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu perished one after the other.


    ��


    At this time, outside the Holy Land of Taichu, countless people had rushed here to observed the battlefield within.


    They saw the entire Holy Land of Taichu seemed to be shrouded in the light of the apocalypse. All of the Holy Land was filled with a suffocating destructive force. Many people stood high above the sky and watched. They saw many cultivators of the Holy Land perish. The Holy Land of Taichu was in the process of being destroyed.


    This day was like the end days for the Holy Land.


    Would the Holy Land of Taichu be destroyed in this battle?


    No one ever imagined that such a day was possible. They had heard of Ye Futian��s name before, of course. He was the legendary premier genius talent in the Original Realm, a peerless enchanting figure who was the heir of Emperor Ye Qing. He was later forced to retreat to the Ziwei Segmentum, locked himself in there, and cut off all interaction with the outside world.


    But in the impressions of many people, he was an extremely talented youngster.


    Who could have imagined that on this day, he would lead the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace to come to Taichu for the express purpose of destroying the Holy Land of Taichu?


    ��Taichu Saint Emperor will not be defeated, Right? He will definitely save the Holy Land of Taichu,�� someone whispered, placing their hopes on Taichu Saint Emperor.


    ��Well, Taichu Saint Emperor will definitely be able to beat back these invaders,�� some cultivators agreed.


    In the Taichu Domain, the Holy Land of Taichu was believed in by many people, much like the Heavenly Mandate Academy in the Heavenly Mandate Realm back then. Now that they saw Ye Futian was leading a strike team to invade them, naturally, they hoped that Taichu Saint Emperor could stop them.


    Just as Ye Futian thought, the struggle in the cultivation world was cruel, and there was no absolute right or wrong. If these people knew how the Holy Land of Taichu had dispatched those people into the Original Realm back then and how they had dealt with the Heavenly Mandate Academy, what would they think?


    ��


    On the battlefield, Ye Futian and the others kept moving forward, and they had reached deep inside the Holy Land of Taichu. The land underneath them lay in total ruin, littered with the bodies of many cultivators; they were all cultivators at the Renhuang level. But Ye Futian and the others did not kill indiscriminately��only those who resisted and lashed out against them were slain.


    Even so, bodies were everywhere. There were many cultivators in the Holy Land of Taichu with a lot of powerful ones. When they gathered into the matrix, hundreds of men moved to attack all at once.


    However, although the Holy Land of Taichu was powerful, it was still beaten by this group of invaders, as they drove deep into the heart of the Holy Land, and no one was able to stop them.


    Right now, there are really only three key areas on the battlefield that were of concern. The battlefield of the Tribulation Plane cultivators, especially the one occupied by Taichu Saint Emperor and Lord Chen, was the most critical. The two of them were already fighting at a high altitude and not affecting anyone else.


    ��Jieyu, Millet Emperor, go help Emperor Xi and Deputy Lord Murong,�� Ye Futian said, as Hua Jieyu and the Millet Emperor nodded. Both of them possessed combat effectiveness at the Tribulation Plane. Four against two��they would naturally have the absolute upper hand.


    As for Ye Futian, he was still moving forward. He looked at the battlefield ahead with Taichu Saint Emperor and Lord Chen. He wanted to help Lord Chen and keep Taichu Saint Emperor here, for he could not allow the man to leave here alive.


    In the crowd ahead, there were some of Ye Futian��s ��old friends,�� Renhuang cultivators who had gone to the Heavenly Mandate Realm on behalf of the Holy Land of Taichu to take over the Heavenly Mandate Realm as their own. When they saw Ye Futian at this moment, it was like a dream.


    Once, they looked upon Ye Futian with carelessness. They only wanted to control him to control the Heavenly Mandate Academy, and they thought that Ye Futian didn��t know what was good for him.


    However, in just a few years, Ye Futian was actually able to invade inside the Divine Prefecture and attack the Holy Land of Taichu. All of this was so surreal.


    Ye Futian seemed to have noticed some of their gazes and cast a glance at them. Then his finger pointed down in the air, and the infinite sword will came down and slew them across the space. Sizzling sounds continued as those people perished one after another!

 Chapter 2542 - Slay the Tribulation Plane Cultivators

    After a round of sweeping attacks, the battle matrix of the Holy Land of Taichu was completely dismantled, and many powerful Renhuang fell one by one as they were being killed off. Now, the only ones who could pose a threat were the remaining three Tribulation Plane cultivators.


    ��Chen Yi, keep an eye down below. If anyone makes a move, kill them without mercy,�� Ye Futian ordered Chen Yi, who was next to him. Chen Yi, who had inherited from the Bright Temple, was close to invincible in the realm of Renhuang; even Ning Hua was not his equal.


    Although there were many top geniuses in the Renahung Realm at the Holy Land of Taichu, it was impossible for any one of them to touch Chen Yi.


    Chen Yi��s origin may have been extraordinary. Blind Chen said that he possessed Illumining Body of the Great Path, and was born to inherit the Light, which he did. As the Child of Light, there were not many in the Divine Prefecture who could beat him.


    In the Holy Land of Taichu, there was no one in the realm of Renhuang who could contend with him.


    As for the remaining three cultivators in the Tribulation Plane, Ye Futian decided to go and help Lord Chen with Taichu Saint Emperor. This man��s life and death were of the utmost importance because he was the master of the Holy Land of Taichu. If he escaped, it would pose a significant threat to them down the road. As for the other two battles, four against two was more than enough to ensure their victories. Even those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path still needed to hone their combat skills in actual battle. This would be a very good opportunity to do exactly that.


    Furthermore, it was difficult for them to participate in the fight between those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path and might even endanger themselves.


    Therefore, Ye Futian��s decision was the most appropriate.


    Hua Jieyu proceeded to assist Murong Yu and walked to the cultivator who was an expert at the suppressive power of the cauldron. The Millet Emperor, carrying Wangshen Watchtower behind him, had gone to join forces with Emperor Xi to deal with the cultivator who brandished the true will of ice and the Glacier Divine Sword. Chen Yi and the rest were tasked with keeping an eye on those whose realms were below the Tribulation Plane.


    Above, there were three great battles taking place in three separate areas.


    Hua Jieyu entered Murong Yu��s battle. Their opponent was one of the major figures of the Holy Land of Taichu, Lord Yuding.


    ��Lord�� was not an indication of the realm, but a title. Some had been conferred the title of Lord while still in the realm of Renhuang, and some had been made Lord after having survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. However, in the Western World, Lords were generally referred to as those who had survived the second Buddha��s Tribulation.


    Lord Yuding was a cultivator who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. He was an expert in attack with extremely powerful and awesome combat effectiveness. He was also the master of Tianyu Cultivation Court.


    At this time, the space where he was in seemed to have turned into a divine domain. Hundreds of thousands of divine cauldrons appeared in this space, infinite and without end. One glace upward revealed that the heavens seemed to be full of them.


    Lord Yuding��s life spirit was a cauldron. To further strengthen his life spirit, he had refined a cauldron that was completely in sync with his life spirit and merged it with his life spirit. With this, his offensive power was greatly magnified. Even Murong Yu, who was holding a treasure, did not have the slightest advantage over him.


    Lord Yuding was unfazed when he saw Hua Jieyu��s entrance into the battle, and his expression remained as calm as ever. As his hands stretched out, suddenly above the firmament, horrible golden divine lights rained down from those golden divine cauldrons. They turned into countless golden lightning, containing incomparable destructive power, and blasting towards Murong Yu and Hua Jieyu. One more cultivator of the Tribulation Plane made no difference to him; he believed he could still deal with both of them.


    The group that came from Ziwei Segmentum may be strong, but they would pay a hefty price for initiating this invasion.


    ��Be careful.�� Murong Yu cautioned Hua Jieyu via voice transmission, ��This man��s offensive power is extremely domineering, and his destructive force is astounding. With this many cauldrons suspending from the sky, heaven has a suffocating Path of suppression, which is pressing down on this world.��


    ��Yes.�� Hua Jieyu nodded. ��I will restrain him, so you can focus on breaking down his defenses and counterattack.��


    Hua Jieyu specialized in assisting in combat situations, and she was an expert in restraining opponents. Especially in melees, she alone could restrain multiple powerful cultivators all at once.


    For her to face someone like Lord Yuding with Murong Yu, as two cultivators in the Tribulation Plane, they felt it was not a problem at all.


    ��No problem,�� Murong Yu replied. Just when they were communicating through voice transmissions, the golden lightning that bloomed from the divine cauldrons was already upon them, trying to split open the space.


    A starry light screen appeared around Murong Yu as if it was transformed into a starry body of the Great Path. With him as the center, starry divine light circulated as if creating a world of its own. Terrifying lightning continued to smash down, but it only succeeded in causing some fissures on the body without really breaking it.


    Ziwei Segmentum was once the world sealed by Ziwei the Great, and most of the cultivators who stood at the peak were the descendants of Ziwei and had inherited similar abilities as Ziwei the Great. Murong Yu was no exception.


    With a thought, centering on the starry divine body, a starry sky appeared in this vast space. As if everything was now moving in a starry world, countless divine cauldrons suspended in the sky, surrounded by stars. Both contending forces tried to overpower one another.


    Golden lightning struck down on Hua Jieyu��s side. However, they suddenly stopped just when they came right above her head. The golden lightning contained incomparable destructive power but was blocked by an invisible barrier, making it difficult for them to land on their target. It was as if they were under the absolute control that Hua Jieyu had over this space.


    Buzz! A horrible power of telekinesis radiated outward and spread to this corner of the world. Hua Jieyu��s black hair was dancing in the wind, and those deep black eyes of hers were shining with frightening divine light. Her majesty was imposing; it was as if she was possessed by the spirit of an empress. A wisp of imperial might could be felt as it diffused from her.


    These three top cultivators were all existences who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Their worlds seemed to overlap at this juncture, to see who could suppress the other.


    The world of the divine cauldron, the starry world, and the world of telekinesis.


    Lord Yuding��s hands began to condense the seal. Suddenly in this world, eighteen thousand cauldrons moved simultaneously, spinning madly. As they were spinning, the golden lightning flooded this corner of the sky, threatening to destroy the entire world.


    Boom�� Accompanied by the endless golden lightning as they slammed down, those 18 thousand cauldrons also smacked toward Murong Yu and Hua Jieyu below. An extraordinary will of the Way was born between heaven and earth as if there was an invisible divine cauldron presided in this space that tried to wipe out all existence.


    Stars burst and shattered. Those gigantic stars were directly smothered and extinguished, turning into dust and disappeared in smoke. The starry light screen around Murong Yu also cracked. This destructive force was way too terrifying; it was the true realization of a major attack.


    Hua Jieyu��s long hair flew in the wind, and it seemed that she was also under tremendous pressure. The transcendent will of the Way that was contained in the divine cauldrons seemed to overpower even that invisible power of telekinesis currently moving between heaven and earth. This was a power of total extinction that could exterminate all existence.


    ��Do it,�� Hua Jieyu transmitted her command to Murong Yu. And as soon as her voice fell, an unparalleled power appeared in this space world. Behind Hua Jieyu, a divine phantom manifested. It was a phantom of her, but it was extremely sacred and majestic, releasing the divine glory of the Great Emperor��s brilliance.


    At the same time, the world of this Great Path suddenly fell into a state of absolute stasis. As if this destructive space suddenly stopped moving, and the Great Path stopped circulating. The golden lightning stopped its destruction, and all 18 thousand cauldrons stopped spinning.


    It was just an instant, but it seemed like an eternity.


    Only Murong Yu did not stop. This power seemed to have bypassed him and did not affect him in the least; its precision was meticulous.


    Murong Yu also received Hua Jieyu��s voice transmission. His body moved and disappeared from where he was in a single step. With unmatched strength, he descended in front of Lord Yuding.


    A horrific rumbling sound came out, and Murong Yu at this moment seemed to have been blessed by more than his power, but also the powers from all the stars in the heavens. They were all at his back, and the entire world of space was trembling because of him.


    His fist blasted at Lord Yuding, who was right in front of him. When Lord Yuding was constrained, an extremely dazzling divine aurora shot out from his eyes, and a violent booming sound came out from his body. It broke all kinds of imprisonments as if his body had turned into a cauldron as well, with divine light flowing all around it. He stared at Murong Yu, who was coming at him fast. He knew it was already too late for him to avoid the blow.


    Clang�� The terrifying fist blasted on him as a metal-like sound was heard upon that horrible impact. The power of that one punch contained the power of all the stars in the heavens, and it was incredibly heavy. This blow caused all the surrounding cauldrons to rupture and shatter. Lord Yuding��s body also made a shattering sound as that cauldron split open. The fist aurora rushed into his body, pulverizing all of his internal organs, and his heart was pierced.


    Puh! He spit up blood. The body of Lord Yuding was the body of the cauldron. As the divine cauldron broke apart, so did his physical body. His eyes dimmed. He was a powerful man of his generation in Taichu Domain, whose status was unparalleled. But today, he was killed here, like this. His heart was full of disbelief until the end.


    Indeed, the Holy Land of preaching should have never been involved in the strife of the outside world. Once it did, it was no longer pure and neutral; therefore, fighting and conflict were unavoidable.


    Now, because of a decision that no one cared about at the time, it was paid with the destruction of the entire Holy Land of Taichu today. What a lamentable ending this was.


    At this point, countless divine swords came in for the final kill, penetrating his body as well as his spiritual soul. The one who attacked this time was Hua Jieyu. She was high above the sky. Her eyes swept indifferently towards Lord Yuding in front of her. There was neither mercy nor pity, and she made sure he would be no more trouble to them in the future.


    She was no longer the Hua Jieyu she was once. After experiencing life and death in the Nine States, she knew the cruel reality of the cultivation world.


    For Ye Futian��s sake, anyone who might threaten him should be killed off. She would never leave them alive to create problems for Ye Futian in the future. That would amount to nothing more than the benevolence of the ignorant.


    Murong Yu glanced at Hua Jieyu, and there was a slight disturbance in his heart. At that moment, even he hesitated for a second, but not Hua Jieyu. She slew the other immediately, which confirmed what Murong Yu had always known. As the palace lord��s wife who had cultivated to the terrifying existence of the Tribulation Plane, there was no longer any bit of womanly tenderness or indecision within her. She had dealt the fatal blow that caused the final dispersion of Lord Yuding��s spirit and soul.


    This was undoubtedly the right decision. It had already gotten to this stage. How could they possibly leave Lord Yuding alive? Especially when the other was a cultivator of the Tribulation Plane who would pose a considerable threat.


    As Lord Yuding fell, the Great Path in this space dissipated. After everything disappeared, another battle was about to end. Emperor Xi and the Millet Emperor joined forces and were able to suppress their opponent fully. Victory was but a matter of time, and without doubt.


    Hua Jieyu took a step forward and headed there. If the two of them could not end that opponent of theirs, she would, with no hesitation!

 Chapter 2543 - Why So Confident?

    It didn��t take long for the other battle to be over as well. With the joint efforts of Emperor Xi and the Millet Emperor, they finished off another Tribulation Plane cultivator in the Holy Land of Taichu.


    At this point, the Holy Land of Taichu had lost two more existences in the Tribulation Plane.


    The Holy Land of Taichu used to have four great Tribulation Plane cultivators, but one was killed by Ye Futian. Today, they had lost two more, and only Taichu Saint Emperor was left. The once prosperous Holy Land of Taichu seemed doom to destruction. What they saw now stirred up great emotions in those who were still alive in the Holy Land of Taichu, as well as the outsiders who were watching.


    Could all this be real?


    Would the preaching holy land of Taichu Domain perish on this day?


    Now, there was only one battle remaining, the ultimate battlefield where Taichu Saint Emperor was fighting at the moment. This battlefield was high above the sky, shrouded by the domain of the Great Path. It was a battle taking place within bounds, so those on the outside could only feel its supremely terrifying fluctuation but could not see anything that happened inside and had no idea the details of the actual fighting.


    It seemed that Taichu Saint Emperor was trying to protect the Holy Land of Taichu from being destroyed by the battle; therefore, he chose to engage the battle high up above the sky.


    This ultimate battle was also the most critical battle. As long as Taichu Saint Emperor could manage to kill his opponents, the situation could still be reversed if he could eliminate all those who invaded.


    Could Taichu Saint Emperor save the entire Holy Land of Taichu?


    Countless cultivators in the Holy Land of Taichu were hoping for exactly that, and the same with those who were outside of the Holy Land of Taichu.


    This was their last hope.


    High above the sky, inside the bounds, there were more than just the two of them at this moment. In addition to Taichu Saint Emperor and Lord Chen, there was also a third person standing within the bounds of the battlefield with them. He was standing in the area behind Lord Chen as if he was a mere spectator, as his long white robe fluttered in the wind. Who else could this be but Ye Futian?


    Two top cultivators, both of whom had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, were fighting here, and he dared to enter the bounds of such a battle and observe it.


    Inside of the battlefield was shrouded by an invisible aura containing a mighty destructive power. This aura was somewhat tumultuous, akin to the aura when the universe was first created and gave out a sense of supreme transcendence.


    Behind Taichu Saint Emperor, a gigantic pattern of the Yin Yang Eight Trigrams appeared. This pattern rotated slowly as countless divine lights began shooting out from it.


    Lord Chen��s expression was quite solemn, holding the starry scepter in his hands. In this tumultuous atmosphere, stars populated the sky. The starry divine light fell on Lord Chen and became one with him so that the starlight became ever more brilliant and illuminated this space of chaos.


    Taichu Saint Emperor was indeed very strong. He had cultivated for more years than anyone could remember. Thousands of years ago, his talent was considered outstanding but not top-notch. However, by chance, he had gotten an excellent opportunity to cultivate the True Will of Taichu, thus creating the Holy Land of Taichu. He became Taichu Saint Emperor, who preached in Taichu Domain and was well-respected by all.


    Later, as his cultivation deepened, along with the increase of his strength, his ambitions grew greater, wanting to preach to the entire world. He wanted to impact that last and final realm to seek a breakthrough to the realm to prove the methods of the Great Emperor. Therefore, when the gate to the Original Realm opened, he dispatched a group of people to preach in the Original Realm and took that first step forward.


    Later, in subsequent conflicts with the Original Realm, the Holy Land of Taichu was repeatedly frustrated. When the Swordmaster of Taichu was slain, Taichu Saint Emperor was forced to travel to the Lower Worlds and handle the matter personally. Still, he was driven out by the teacher from Four Corner Village unexpectedly. This series of events gave him an even stronger desire to ascend to the Imperial Realm.


    However, before this day could arrive, Ye Futian had already grown to this level of strength, leading the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace to attack here. He wanted to destroy the Holy Land of Taichu and kill Taichu Saint Emperor on his territory.


    Taichu Saint Emperor looked at the two of them with a decidedly chilling gaze. Then, with a wave of his hand, the Yin Yang Eight Trigrams behind him started to absorb the essence of heaven and earth. Instantly, that Yin Yang Eight Trigrams rotated and expanded until they merged into this space. The whole world they were in seemed to be transformed into this pattern of the Yin Yang Eight Trigrams.


    In this realm, countless smaller patterns of the Yin Yang Eight Trigrams appeared, from which an aura of destruction permeated.


    ��After you die, I will destroy Ziwei!�� Taichu Saint Emperor announced as he looked at Ye Futian and Lord Chen. As soon as he said that, his palms pressed downward, and countless thunder shot out from those Yin Yang Eight Trigrams with all the power of divine retribution to destroy all existence.


    This force had surpassed the ordinary Great Path of Thunder. It was like the primordial force when the world was first created, with the True Will of Taichu hidden within the thunder. Many stars began to show cracks, then exploded. Lord Chen had a grave expression on his face as he extended his scepter. Suddenly an unparalleled Imperial glory dazzled and shrouded the stars in the heavens, making them immortal so that despite the blasting from the thunder, they were unmoved.


    Taichu Saint Emperor��s expression remained unchanged. Divine swords manifested from these Yin Yang Eight Trigrams, as if they were the Divine Swords of Taichu, with awesome power. Millions of them now dropped down at the same time, intending to immolate this corner of the sky.


    Ye Futian appeared next to Lord Chen. This kind of devastating attack was extremely threatening.


    Countless divine swords flooded this entire world, and those Taichu Divine Swords pierced on the stars, causing cracks to appear on them, demonstrating just how terrifying was their attack.


    At this moment, all the stars in the heavens now lit up with the starry divine light at the same time. These infinite starry divine light shone upon Lord Chen and turned into the Immortal Stars. He proceeded to walk forward in the direction of the Taichu Saint Emperor.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Those divine swords kept blasting on those stars but failed to break through those Immortal Stars. Taichu Saint Emperor��s expression was cold and domineering as all the divine light from the heavens now gathered upon him. Both of his fists blasted forward, his fist aurora penetrated heaven and earth, punching through the void like the fists of the gods.


    More violent roaring sounds were heard and made it impossible for Lord Chen to move forward. Cracks began to show on the Immortal Stars, but Lord Chen still held on to the scepter. All the stars in the heavens revolved around him as the center, and as he waved the scepter in his hand, suddenly, all the stars blasted in the direction of Taichu Saint Emperor.


    The attacks of the two collided directly, and the resulting force was astounding. The Great Path boomed and roared as if the entire world they were in was on the verge of collapse and destruction; the sight was beyond horrifying.


    Ye Futian was protected by the Immortal Stars, still being guarded by Lord Chen. He did not directly participate in the battle, as if he was just watching this earth-shattering battle on the sideline.


    Infinite stars attacked without ceasing but could not shake Taichu Saint Emperor, whose infinite divine sword and divine fist possessed extremely terrifying power.


    Boom! A boundless heavy force manifested as heaven and earth suddenly became leaden. Infinite starry divine light gathered together as the scepter in Lord Chen��s hand seemed to merge into the starlight and turned into a Starry Divine Sword.


    Emperor Chen looked on with a chilling expression on his face. Taichu divine light that was projected from the Yin Yang Eight Trigrams above the sky gathered together, as infinite thunder, lightning, and sword will gathered to turn into a real Thunder Sword of Tribulation. This was a purple divine sword that contained the True Will of Taichu, which illuminated the entire space. It was full of unparalleled destructive power.


    In the midst of the turbulent waves of destruction, the Starry Divine Sword and the Purple divine Sword met and collided. In an instant, the entire space seemed to be torn apart, as the infinite Great Path of divine might flowed into both of their bodies, then surged into the swords they weld, as they swung their weapons at each other for the kill.


    Ye Futian, as he watched the battle, was forced to acknowledge the fact that Taichu Saint Emperor, who had dominated the Taichu Domain for countless years, was indeed much stronger than Lord Chen. If it weren��t for Lord Chen��s use of the scepter, he might have been overpowered already.


    Moreover, Taichu Saint Emperor was extremely confident in his own attack that he did not resort to divine arms. Perhaps in his realm, other than imperial arms, any other divine implement no longer had any significance to him. His Taichu Force alone was more powerful than any divine arms or weaponry of any kind.


    Even the eyes of Taichu Saint Emperor had turned into a purple color as the divine light shot at his opponent. Lord Chen��s eyes collided with his opponent��s as if both of them were releasing their utmost strength in the hopes of destroying the other.


    Psst, psst�� A sharp sound came out, and the two divine swords collided and shattered at the same time, but both men were still moving towards each other. Terrible, destructive power raged within their bodies, but neither took a step back.


    Buzz! The starry divine light around Lord Chen turned into a star and continued to rush forward. Taichu Saint Emperor morphed into a god of war. While his body was expanding, both of his fists blasted out at the same time and banged on that massive star.


    The terrifying power swept everything in its vicinity. Ye Futian appeared in the distance but still did not take action, merely watching the battle. He thought that this battle was an excellent trial for Lord Chen because the confrontations between top cultivators were very rare. He had never witnessed a battle of this caliber.


    The two of them attacked and collided again and again, and their aura became unsteady and shallow as both of them were subjected to powerful attacks. Gradually, they started taking on injuries.


    But neither gave up and still engaged in the crazy and violent battle, wanting to obliterate the other.


    Finally, another attack came down as countless stars crushing the void to blast towards Taichu Saint Emperor again. At the same time, the infinite Thunder Divine Sword came down to slay Lord Chen. They did not use the weapon on each other but used themselves to attack their opponent.


    Rumble�� Both Taichu Saint Emperor and Lord Chen suffered violent attacks from the other. When the dust settled, it was obvious that both of their auras were fairly shallow, as they had weakened considerably, and both suffered severe injuries.


    Continuing to fight would only spell doom to them both.


    ��It��s time for this to be over,�� Ye Futian said to himself. He looked at Taichu Saint Emperor and asked, ��Do you have any last words?��


    Taichu Saint Emperor had been dominating Taichu Domain for many years. The death of such a remarkable character would be mourned, even by his opponents. Before he died, Ye Futian wondered if there was anything he wanted to say.


    ��Last words?��


    Taichu Saint Emperor glanced at Ye Futian and said coldly, ��Where did you get that kind of confidence?��


    As soon as he spoke, Taichu Divine Swords slammed down toward Ye Futian. If it had not been for Lord Chen��s protection, he would have already attacked Ye Futian.


    However, just when the attack came down, there were wisps of powerful aura that surrounded Ye Futian. With him as the center, this space seemed to be under his absolute control, and the space seemed to enter into a state of stasis. Taichu Divine Swords were not able to slam down on him.


    What he saw stunned Taichu Saint Emperor, and he, too, felt the transformation of Ye Futian��s aura. It carried the momentum of a cultivator in the Tribulation Plane and was even stronger than cultivators who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    ��He did kill Zhong Miao under his power without resorting to outside objects or forces.�� Taichu Saint Emperor remembered this, and his heart trembled. Ye Futian��s strength was enough to slay someone who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path!

 Chapter 2544 - Requiem of the Holy Land

    ��So that��s why!�� Taichu Saint Emperor stared at Ye Futian. Everyone had greatly underestimated Ye Futian��s strength. The people in the Divine Prefecture only thought that he had great potential, cultivated Buddha��s Celerity, and could escape cultivators who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    However, all of them had underestimated Ye Futian��s actual combat effectiveness. He was able to kill Zhong Miao with his own strength alone, which meant that his combat effectiveness might have already surpassed that of a cultivator who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    There was no way to compensate for the gap between cultivators in the Tribulation Plane and Renhuang. So, how did Ye Futian do it?


    The look in Taichu Saint Emperor��s eyes changed, but then a cold light flashed across. Even so, what could he do now?


    Even if Ye Futian was a peerless genius talent, here today, he would be slaughtered.


    Even if he could slay Zhong Miao on his own, but it was him now that Ye Futian was facing.


    ��Kill!��


    As soon as the word was said, the horrific power of Taichu enveloped the boundless space. The divine swords continued to fall, aiming squarely at Ye Futian, intending to kill him on the spot.


    But at the same time, just as he was making his move, Lord Chen attacked again, as if not allowing him the slightest chance to breathe. On the other side, Ye Futian put his hands together, and a golden light gleamed. The Sound of Buddha from the heavens lingered as his body turned into a Golden Frame. However, a golden divine sword, which contained unparalleled power, appeared.


    The golden divine sword slew towards the sky above. A roar was heard as it collided with the Taichu Divine Swords that came down. It was able to demolish the Taichu Divine Swords and dissipate together with it.


    Taichu Saint Emperor looked at what just took place. Although his physical condition was not the greatest at the moment, as he was wounded, he was a giant who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. His attack power was still unparalleled, and Ye Futian was able to block his attack?


    He didn��t have time to maul it over, however. Lord Chen��s attacks persisted so that Taichu Saint Emperor could not be distracted to deal with Ye Futian. His divine consciousness moved slightly, and suddenly, countless swords of Taichu fell down in this space, not only aiming at Lord Chen but also at Ye Futian.


    In this world, the Sound of Buddha lingered, resounding throughout this space. Buddhas now appeared all over the sky as they surrounded Ye Futian, with him as the center, there was now a realm of Buddhism. As soon as the hands of the Buddhas moved to gesture the sword technique, the sword of Buddha was unleashed and collided with the Taichu swords. The purpose was not to attack but to defend.


    Although Ye Futian��s realm was still some ways away, he had no problem protecting himself when his opponent was constrained by Lord Chen. The Taichu swords could not break apart the Buddhist domain that he created.


    At the same time, Ye Futian was suspended in midair. His eyes never left the battlefield, as if he was waiting for an opportunity.


    The divine light was lingering in the space where Ye Futian was, and the Great Path was one with him and seemed to achieve some kind of resonance with the divine light, which in turn, resonated with his divine body.


    An incomparable divine light bloomed from him as if he was surrounded by infinite runes, coupled with an incomparable aura of Swordsmanship and rule. This did not seem to belong to any kind of Way, just pure and undeniable power.


    When Ye Futian broke the shackles and entered the Ninth-Realm, he realized some fundamental principles about cultivation.


    What was known as the Way and rules were nothing more than manmade notions. When one��s power was strong enough to a certain extent, it was itself the rules and the Way.


    There was no such thing as the Way in the world.


    Any cultivator who wished to pursue the ultimate must formulate their own rules and their own Way.


    Buzz! The divine light was dazzling and blinding, as the heavens resonated. Ye Futian��s divine body seemed to have turned into a sword body, like that of an invincible and indestructible sword.


    At this moment, Taichu Saint Emperor felt a strong sense of danger and faintly felt that something was very wrong; it was just like that ominous premonition he had when he was cultivating before.


    Boom�� But how could Lord Chen let go of such a great opportunity? He collided with Taichu Saint Emperor again, which shook the earth. Even the realm they were in was trembling violently as if it was about to collapse. Clearly, he had also felt the dazzling divine light released from Ye Futian and that incomparable power.


    Almost at the same instant, Ye Futian was on the move. The brilliant sword light was a little blinding and disappeared in a flash. Taichu Saint Emperor shouted as if he had sensed that Ye Futian would unleash this blow. Taichu Divine Swords were released madly, attempting to block this blow from Ye Futian.


    However, that light penetrated right through, and all the Taichu Divine Swords could not stop this sword of Path Obliteration. When the divine sword passed through, the void seemed to be standing still.


    Buzz! The sword made contact with Taichu Saint Emperor but failed to penetrate his body. The destructive force raged inside his body like mad, and Taichu Saint Emperor let out a great roar.


    ��Get away!�� The roar shook heaven and earth, and the void seemed to explode because of it. Lord Chen��s Starry Divine Sword continued forward, and with a loud bang, the body of Taichu Saint Emperor was rocked violently, as if all his internal organs were about to be shattered.


    The sword that had stuck into his body went a bit further. Behind this sword, many of the swords of Taichu were annihilated and turned into dust.


    Puh! Another sword pierced his body. Lord Chen��s Starry Divine Sword made its way inside Taichu Saint Emperor. Seeing the two swords stuck into him, Taichu Saint Emperor lowered his head, and suddenly a sense of sadness washed over him. Both of his hands stretched out as he grabbed onto the two swords at the same time and raised his head to look in front of him.


    ��I have presided over a domain, and I never expected I would be falling here, like this, today.�� He sighed and looked up into the sky. ��Too bad, I won��t be seeing what the Imperial Realm is like.��


    As soon as his voice fell, the sword light that was formed by Ye Futian pierced through, and a figure appeared there; it was Ye Futian. By this time, the body of Taichu Saint Emperor was shattering with madness, and he was almost gone.


    ��I��ll see it for you.�� Ye Futian, whose back was facing Taichu Saint Emperor, now turned to speak to him.


    Taichu Saint Emperor laughed when he heard this, ignoring the physical pain he was enduring. He turned his head to looked at Ye Futian with some difficulty and said, ��I don��t know if it��s for good or ill that Donghuang the Great did not kill you. Perhaps the Great Emperor was too lonely and wanted to see the birth of another Great Emperor in the Divine Prefecture. Ye Futian, the future will be yours.��


    ��I know,�� Ye Futian responded as he looked at Taichu Saint Emperor.


    When Taichu Saint Emperor heard those confident and arrogant words, he kept smiling. Then his body exploded as his physical body collapsed. He did not resist anymore, and the phantom of his spiritual soul disappeared little by little.


    ��After I die, let the other cultivators in the Holy Land of Taichu live. With your talent, you don��t need to worry about them.�� Taichu Saint Emperor��s voice trailed off in the void as if this was his last will and testament.


    After today, Taichu would be no more.


    ��Very well,�� Ye Futian agreed. As soon as he said that, the phantom of Taichu Saint Emperor nodded slightly, then disappeared into smoke, and everything turned to dust.


    This was the end of the giant who had presided over Taichu Domain, one of the topmost cultivators of the Divine Prefecture��Taichu Saint Emperor.


    ��


    In the Holy Land of Taichu and the outside world, countless people were still looking at the battlefield that was high above the sky. At this moment, they saw that the realm was disappearing, and the aura of the Great Path was dissipating as well.


    Many became nervous and unsure as their eyes glued to the place high in the sky; was this great battle finally over?


    Had Taichu Saint Emperor been able to vanquish his opponents?


    Two blurry figures appeared, and soon they saw the two men clearly. One of them, with his white garment and his white hair, stood majestically in the void. The other, holding a scepter, was mighty authoritative.


    At this moment, countless eyes froze, and the vast space fell into a dead silence.


    There were no signs of Taichu Saint Emperor, only Ye Futian and Lord Chen.


    The cultivators from the Holy Land of Taichu had held on to that last glimmer of hope, but at this moment, there was only endless despair in their eyes, true desperation.


    Saint Emperor had fallen.


    The strongest man in all of the Holy Land of Taichu, the master of Taichu, had perished in this battle.


    From this day forward, the Holy Land of Taichu would be something that only existed in history.


    Likewise, in the outside world, countless many sighed and mourned.


    A holy land with thousands of years of history that had not crumbled even in times of extreme chaos, and had been preaching in Taichu Domain all this time, would disappear on this day? Ye Futian led a powerful group of people here and destroyed it.


    High above the sky, Ye Futian surveyed the space below. He saw the hatred in their eyes, as well as the despair and various other emotions. But none of this affected Ye Futian.


    This was the case in the world of cultivation. Once upon a time, Heavenly Mandate Academy was in a similarly desperate position. At the time, the Holy Land of Taichu, as far as Heavenly Mandate Academy was concerned, was an insurmountable foe. They wanted to takeover Heavenly Mandate Academy and had participated in the battle that aimed to destroy him. These were all part of that indelible history.


    Therefore, was the Holy Land of Taichu innocent? Of course not.


    But the Holy Land of Taichu was the holy land of preaching in Taichu Domain. He came with his people to destroy it, so it was natural that he would be hated by some.


    He didn��t explain anything; he didn��t even want to say anything more. Other cultivators gathered and returned to Ye Futian��s side. All three great cultivators in the Tribulation Plane were killed. No one in the Holy Land of Taichu would resist them now.


    With the death of Taichu Saint Emperor, everything was over.


    ��Palace Lord, do you want to���� Murong Yu looked at Ye Futian, then glanced at the cultivators below, causing countless people to tremble. Their lives and deaths were now in the hands of the others.


    Would Ye Futian slaughter those cultivators in the Holy Land of Taichu?


    One order from him, and everyone in the Holy Land of Taichu would lose their lives.


    ��Let��s go back,�� said Ye Futian. He then turned around to leave this place, with other cultivators in tow. Murong Yu understood what he meant, and looked down at the space below before he, too, turned to leave with the rest.


    Many of them breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a little fortunate. Watching those disappearing figures in the distance and the Holy Land of Taichu that was left in ruins, they were filled with great emotions.


    This was the end of an era!

 Chapter 2545 - Making A Complaint

    Taichu Domain, Domain Chief��s Manor.


    In front of a great hall, Domain Chief of Taichu stood there. In front and below him, a group of men was also standing there, bowing to salute him.


    ��What��s is it?�� The Domain Chief of Taichu asked. As the Domain Chief��s Manor in Taichu Domain, its strength was frightening indeed, and the Chief was no different. He was an extremely powerful man who was disturbed during his cultivation, but he was not angry.


    He knew that if they had to disturb him during his cultivation, something serious must have happened.


    ��Chief, we just got the news that the Holy Land of Taichu has been destroyed,�� a man bowed and said. Even as the Chief of Taichu Domain, his heart skipped a beat, and a terrifying divine ray came out of his eyes.


    The Holy Land of Taichu, annihilated?


    ��What happened?�� He looked squarely forward, and an invisible aura permeated from him. As the Chief of Taichu Domain, he knew the strength of the Holy Land of Taichu better than anyone; how could it actually be destroyed by someone?


    For a while, even he couldn��t quite believe it and didn��t react fast enough.


    ��Ye Futian led the cultivators from Ziwei Segmentum and went to the Holy Land of Taichu for the express purpose of annihilating it. All three great cultivators in the Tribulation Plane in the Holy Land of Taichu were slain. Taichu Saint Emperor was also killed by the Supreme Elder of the Ziwei Imperial Palace.�� The man responded, and it was a reply that made the Chief��s heart trembled violently.


    Ye Futian, Ziwei Imperial Palace!


    Did Ziwei Imperial Palace, under Ye Futian��s rule, now possessed the terrifying power to destroy the Holy Land of Taichu?


    As far as he knew, the Supreme Elder of the Ziwei Imperial Palace was a cultivator who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Since he was able to kill Taichu Saint Emperor, he must have had a breakthrough in realm.


    First, Ye Futian and the West Imperial Palace joined forces to excavate the inheritance of the ancient emperor. Then he started making the elixirs according to the inheritance. After that, the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Imperial Palace had a breakthrough, paving the way for Ye Futian and those from the imperial palace to destroy Taichu.


    It seemed that he had produced some extraordinary elixirs. It was very likely that it was on the level of the Sub-divine elixirs.


    ��Now, there are forces in the Divine Prefecture who wanted to ally to vanquish and destroy the Ziwei Segmentum. It seems that it will not be easy,�� the Domain Chief of Taichu said in a low voice after he got over the initial shock.


    Previously, Ye Futian single-handedly plowed through the Domain Chief��s Manor in the West Sea Domain, and his assassinations of those within the Manor had completely overpowered Chief Xihai. Now, he simply led his cultivators into Taichu and annihilated it.


    Ye Futian was using the Holy Land of Taichu to instill fear in everyone else in the Divine Prefecture.


    The reason why he didn��t choose the Domain Chief��s Manor was probably due to some considerations regarding Donghuang Imperial Palace. After all, the Domain Chief��s Manor was directly under the command of the Imperial Palace.


    Otherwise, how could the likes of Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor continue to live to this day?


    ��Divine Prefecture is going to be an exciting place to be,�� he muttered to himself, then turned to leave. First was the chaos in the Original Realm, then Ye Futian��s campaigns of aggressions inside the Divine Prefecture. This storm was just intensifying, and no one knew what the future held.


    But the prelude of a new era seemed to have started already, and it would most likely involve multiple worlds.


    Who would become the main players in these troubled times?


    Because Taichu Domain Chief��s Manor was located in Taichung Domain, it was the first to receive news. Soon, the news spread to all domains within the Divine Prefecture. Every top principality gradually learned of the destruction of the Holy Land of Taichu and the fall of Taichu Saint Emperor. For a while, everyone was shocked beyond belief.


    At the same time, many principalities were greatly alarmed. Those that wanted to form an alliance to crusade against the Ziwei Segmentum were worried, especially those forces that had a history of long-standing grudges with Ye Futian feared that Ye Futian would target them next.


    After all, in the land of Divine Prefecture, there were not many forces who could claim to be much stronger than the Holy Land of Taichu. If Ye Futian could take his people and destroy Taichu, it meant that he could probably destroy most of the forces in the Divine Prefecture.


    ��


    After Ye Futian destroyed the Holy Land of Taichu, he returned to the Ziwei Segmentum. Although everyone knew that the passage connecting the Divine Prefecture and Ziwei Segmentum was located on the Four Corner Continent, no one dared to go there and try anything unseemly.


    In Four Corner Village on the Four Corner Continent was a mysterious existence. This existence may be an ancient emperor-level figure, so who was bold enough to provoke him?


    After Ye Futian and the others returned to the Ziwei Segmentum, they were very satisfied with the outcome of the battle. After they slew the three Tribulation Plane cultivators in the Holy Land of Taichu, it effectively no longer existed. This battle also served as a deterrent to a certain degree, enough to make those forces that wanted to make a move on the Ziwei Segmentum think twice.


    In the Starry Cultivation Court, Ye Futian was counting the relics left behind by Taichu Saint Emperor and found many precious items, especially one of the crystals. When his divine consciousness invaded into it, he seemed to have entered a tumultuous world of space. Strands of invisible air currents flowed about; it was as if it was the beginning, when heaven and earth were first created.


    What was even more astounding was that a group of words appeared in this invisible air current as a sound came into his ears.


    ��The way of heaven is to take from what has in excess to make good what is deficient,�� the voice said, and it was precisely what was written by those words. They turned into a voice and floated into his mind.


    ��Taichu. The Beginning,�� Ye Futian murmured. This was the True Will of Taichung, and it was a part of an inheritance.


    According to legends in the Divine Prefecture, Taichu Saint Emperor was not a stunning figure of genius talent years ago. Yet, he managed to stand at the top of the Divine Prefecture and became a giant figurehead. It seemed that it had something to do with this item and that he did not achieve his comprehension by himself but with the assistance of a treasure.


    Ye Futian continued to feel within the atmosphere and didn��t come out until after quite some time. He watched the purple crystal floating in front of him, and a strange brilliance flashed across his eyes. This was probably the greatest gain of the trip.


    ��The way of heaven is to take from what has in excess to make good what is deficient!�� Ye Futian muttered to himself.


    Taichu meant ��The Beginning.�� He did not expect that he would obtain this unexpected gift after slaying Taichu Saint Emperor. This could be considered a significant gain.


    The heavenly path was imperfect. What would happen if one was to cultivate Taichu, The Beginning?


    When his thought turned to this, Ye Futian immediately summoned many cultivators like Lord Taixuan, Sky River Great Elder, Emperor Nan, Xiao Dingtian, and other cultivators who once reigned in the Original Realm. Currently, these people belonged to Heavenly Mandate Palace. Although they were not the strongest, they were Ye Futian��s Day Ones. After all, they had been through everything with Ye Futian from the Original Realm until today. After so many battles of life and death, emotionally, they surpassed the cultivators from Four Corner Village in importance.


    However, Ye Futian was not concerned about emotions but cultivation.


    Ye Futian looked at Lord Taixuan, who was once the College Chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy and the head of this particular group. He looked solemnly at Lord Taixuan and said, ��This purple crystal is extraordinary and is a divine object, obtained by me after the slaying of Taichu Saint Emperor. Take it and cultivate with it, and everyone present here may use it to cultivate as well, but do not pass it to the outside.��


    To pass on an item like this to the outside may cause the covetousness of the outsiders. Even within Ziwei Imperial Palace itself, some people might become askew in their perception of things.


    ��Understood,�� Lord Taixuan nodded and felt the importance in which Ye Futian held this item. He knew that this item must be extraordinarily precious so that Ye Futian was so serious.


    ��The cultivation of this method can be supplemented by medicinal elixirs. Perhaps there is an opportunity to reshape your cultivation, so try it first,�� Ye Futian said. Everyone was quite surprised when they heard it��reshaping the cultivation?


    After the arrangements were made, Ye Futian summoned the others to distribute all the treasures he had received, and all of it was rewarded to the cultivators from the three halls. He did not keep anything for himself, and none of his protectors like Chen Yi or Blind Tie received anything from the lot.


    But these protectors were his closest confidants and were considered those in his innermost circle, so they wouldn��t care about things like that.


    After the distribution, Ye Futian sat cross-legged and took out a mirror. Then, he saw a beautiful image appeared in the mirror.


    ��You actually destroyed the Holy Land of Taichu?�� Xi Chiyao��s beautiful eyes were full of amazement. She was extremely shocked after she received the news. Ye Futian had led people to destroy the Holy Land of Taichu so quickly. This was not indicative of his growth alone. Still, the entire Ziwei Imperial Palace was also rapidly growing stronger and could deter major principalities within the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Why do you ask if you already knew?�� Ye Futian asked instead.


    Xi Chiyao smiled and staring at Ye Futian through the mirror, ��You have given the Divine Prefecture a really big surprise. Now, I am afraid many people won��t have a good night��s sleep because of it. I heard that the Chief of Donghua Domain left the Domain Chief��s Manor immediately after he got the news and was joined by Chief Xihai and the others as they embarked to Donghuang Imperial Palace.��


    ��Go to the Imperial Palace?�� Ye Futian looked surprised.


    ��Mmm,�� Xi Chiyao nodded, ��You had just destroyed a giant-level principality in the Divine Prefecture. I think you have to go to the Imperial Palace to inform them? If the Imperial Palace gave the word, then they would be no holding back in acting against Ziwei Segmentum. Even just a warning from the Imperial Palace would be enough for you to behave yourself. After all, the Chief of Donghua Domain doesn��t want to end up like Taichu Saint Emperor.��


    Ye Futian looked unconvinced. Would this work?


    The top figure in the world of cultivation��the Chief of Domain Chief��s Palace��had actually gone to Donghuang Imperial Palace to make a complaint!


    However, from this, Ye Futian could see the fear that some people and some principalities had towards him. After the Holy Land of Taichu was destroyed. Presumably, these principalities must have felt threatened; hence, they visited Donghuang Imperial Palace to make a complaint about him.


    ��In addition, now that you caused this ruckus, the alliance will no longer be on the outside but in the dark. So, you may find that the threats seem to have weakened on the outside, but the tides are actually moving where you can��t see them, and that��s even more dangerous. You have to be really careful,�� Xi Chiyao reminded him.


    The total destruction of the Holy Land of Taichu was a warning to everyone. They would not dare to form an alliance on the surface because they were concerned about Ye Futian��s retribution. However, underneath, things might be even more frightening. Given the opportunity, these people would definitely not let them live.


    ��Be especially careful with Tianyan City. As far as I know, some principalities had been wanting to push Tianyan City forward as a leader. Ziwei Segmentum may be strong, but it would not be able to shake Tianyan City, which won��t end up like the Holy Land of Taichu. Once Tianyan City agrees to take action against Ziwei Segmentum, things would become very thorny,�� said Xi Chiyao.


    ��All right,�� Ye Futian nodded with a grave expression on his face. The moment he became known as the heir of Emperor Ye Qing, he instantly became the common enemy of the Divine Prefecture, with an unknown number of people wanting to move and destroy him. Even in Ziwei Segmentum, this danger was ever-present, and he dared not discount any possibilities or threats.


    Ye Futian knew that what he should focus on the most right now was to cultivate even harder and break through to the Tribulations Plane as soon as possible. He needed to become an existence that transcended Renhuang. If he could break through the Ninth-Realm, he was sure he would be able to deal with the vast majority of cultivators in the Divine Prefecture, including those giant figures whose names awed the world.


    However, such goals in cultivation could not be achieved overnight. It hadn��t been long since he had his breakthrough. He still needed time!

 Chapter 2546 - Grand Occasion in Tianyan City?

    Ye Futian was cultivating in the Starry Cultivation Court when Old Ma came to him.


    ��Uncle Ma, what��s up?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Cultivators from the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm have come to the Ziwei Imperial Palace, asking to see you,�� Old Ma replied to Ye Futian.


    In the land of the Original Realm, the cultivators of all the major worlds had always been there, not just those forces from the Divine Prefecture. For a while before this, when Ye Futian was fighting with the powers in the Divine Prefecture, the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm were watching quietly on the side.


    But now, they were here as well.


    By now, the Ziwei Segmentum had been opened up, so it was not surprising that the others could come here.


    Moreover, the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm dared to send emissaries here, which was a bold move. After all, the grievances between them were deep and well-publicized. In the Ziwei Segmentum, it was not difficult if Ye Futian wanted to do away with them.


    ��Little junior brother.�� At this time, someone else was here; it was Zhuge Mingyue.


    Zhuge Mingyue��s cultivation was not high, but now she was the deputy Lord of Tianyu Palace, managing many things. Even in Ziwei Imperial Palace, there were things that she was busy handling.


    ��I know that you had deep conflicts with the Dark Court in the past, and you are determined to destroy those who were involved back then. But we are in an extremely precarious situation now, and I think it would be good for you to receive them.�� Zhuge Mingyue said to Ye Futian, ��Even if they are our enemies, you can use them. Now, we are facing pressures from the Divine Prefecture, it might be uncomfortable to entreat with the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm, but it Donghuang Imperial Palace will take notice.��


    Old Ma nodded and said, ��That��s right. The great forces of Divine Prefecture, Dark Court, and Empty Divine Realm are destined to stand opposite each other. Ziwei Segmentum is unique because we do not belong to any one of these forces in the Original Realm. Under this circumstance, if we make too many enemies or angered any force, we might be wiped out.��


    Ziwei Segmentum may be powerful, but those god-level forces could destroy them without a second thought; it was just a question of whether or not they wanted to go through the trouble.


    ��Back then, you had dealt with two god-level forces on behalf of the Divine Prefecture and created even more frictions between you and the Dark World. Despite that, they still wanted to win you over only because the enemy of my enemy is my friend. You are the heir of Emperor Ye Qing, the sworn enemy of Donghuang the Great, and that��s why they are willing to let go of their previous grievances.�� Zhuge Mingyue continued to persuade Ye Futian. ��Under this condition, you are already a public enemy of all of Divine Prefecture. If you further alienate the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm, never mind all these other principalities in the Divine Prefecture, just these two powers alone could annihilate Ziwei Segmentum if they were antagonized.��


    ��On the other hand, if you care to deal with the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realms diplomatically, we don��t form an alliance, but neither do we refuse them. It might be enough to keep Donghuang Imperial Palace at bay. If the Imperial Palace wants to make a move on us, it must consider first whether it would propel us to join either the Dark Court or the Empty Divine Realm.��


    Zhuge Mingyue was someone who knew Ye Futian best. He despised evil and dishonesty more than anything in the world, and there was no room for any wrongdoings or injustice in his eyes. However, her careful analysis of their current situation facing the Ziwei Segmentum was convincing. Though Ziwei Segmentum seemed to be booming, in reality, dangers were lurking all around, and they stood to lose everything with the slightest indiscretion and carelessness.


    After all, Ziwei Imperial Palace did not belong to any forces among the many god-level forces, so it was really trying to survive between the cracks.


    That was why she had been reasoning with Ye Futian, worried that he would act impulsively.


    Ye Futian understood what Zhuge Mingyue was saying. It seemed that his second senior sister had been thinking a lot about the current situation as it stood. Now that they were on the right track and became stronger with each step, one wrong step could send them to the abyss that awaited them.


    Ye Futian understood as well that if those imperial-level forces really wanted to move against Ziwei Segmentum, there was no existence that they could not destroy.


    ��Little junior brother, you need time, Ziwei Segmentum needs time, and Yu Sheng also needs time.�� Zhuge Mingyue said, ��If it puts you in an uncomfortable position, I can ask the Supreme Elder and other lords to meet with them.��


    For them, time was the most precious currency.


    Their potential was not inconsiderable. In the distant Devil World, Yu Sheng was also working hard on becoming greater and stronger.


    ��I��ll go,�� Ye Futian said. Ziwei Segmentum was not his alone. As the king of Ziwei Segmentum, he needed to be responsible to everyone within it.


    ��Prepare a banquet to entertain the emissaries from the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm,�� Ye Futian said. He tried to suppress the disgust he felt. If it were before, he would only want to kill these people from the Dark Court. However, now he was willing to compromise and deal with them.


    ��Very good, I will arrange it now,�� Zhuge Mingyue said with a small smile, then turned to leave.


    Ye Futian took a deep breath and looked at the many cultivators in the starry sky. All these familiar faces meant serious responsibilities and a long way to go, and he still needed to work harder for their sake.


    ��


    Those who came to the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm this time were all very distinguished individuals. At the Ziwei Imperial Palace banquet, Ye Futian hosted a feast to welcome the cultivators from these two major principalities.


    ��We heard that Renhuang Ye had returned from the Western World and slayed the cultivators of the Tribulation Plane in the Western Sea Domain Chief��s Manor, as well as the breakthrough in realm by the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Many congratulations to Palace Lord Ye,�� the cultivator from the Dark Court said with a smile.


    ��You are too polite,�� Ye Futian replied. ��I don��t know what we can do for you all for you to take this trip here?��


    ��We want to work with Renhuang Ye,�� a cultivator from Dark Court said without beating around the bush.


    ��Work together, how?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Renhuang Ye is a descendant of Emperor Ye Qing, whose longstanding grievances with Divine Prefecture needs no more description. And now, all the forces in Divine Prefecture regard Renhuang Ye as a thorn in their sides, and some have even declared Renhuang Ye as a public enemy of Divine Prefecture. As we speak, conspiracy abound in Divine Prefecture, aiming to bring down Ziwei and kill Renhuang Ye. I��m sure Renhuang Ye knew all of this already,�� the man continued bluntly.


    More important, he said that Ye Futian was a descendant of Emperor Ye Qing, not his heir.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��With such a background, the forces in Divine Prefecture would definitely not let up on Renhuang Ye. And then there is Donghuang the Great. Although he agreed not to take action against you personally, it does not mean that the other cultivators in the Imperial Palace won��t either. Ziwei Imperial Palace is in a place of isolation; its eradication is just a matter of time.�� The man now employed a more threatening tone without the slightest pretense.


    ��So?�� Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    ��So, will Renhuang Ye consider joining forces with us to form an alliance and expel these powers of the Divine Prefecture from the Original Realm, slaughter them all, and carve up the Original Realm,�� the cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm said in a low voice, with a palpable sense of serious aggression and ambition. They intended to start a war of extermination in the Original Realm, expel Divine Prefecture, and become the new rulers of the Original Realm.


    ��Ziwei Imperial Palace is not as powerful as the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realms in size or influence. The slightest carelessness will cause a disaster of extinction for us. This is a major decision that should not be made lightly.�� Ye Futian spoke nonchalantly, but inside, he laughed coldly at the suggestion.


    If the Divine Prefecture was expelled and destroyed, then Ziwei Segmentum was probably the next on the list. At that time, if they were to ask Ziwei Segmentum to submit, was he to agree or not?


    If he were to refuse, they would be destroyed outright.


    ��Right now, Divine Prefecture is already in discussion about the destruction of Ziwei Segmentum. Is Renhuang Ye aware of it?�� the man pressed.


    ��I heard of something like that, but the Ziwei Segmentum is still able to contend with some forces in the Divine Prefecture. If they really want to destroy Ziwei Segmentum, we will make them pay for it.�� Ye Futian��s voice was cold, and he did that deliberately. He figured these two principalities would at least be willing to sit on the sideline and watch such a fight taking place.


    ��Very well, since Renhuang Ye is so confident, we won��t say much more. In the future, if Renhuang Ye needs any help, just let us know, and we will be here as reinforcements.�� The other man said with a smile, ��As for some of our previous grievances����


    ��No need to mention it,�� Ye Futian interrupted.


    ��That��s the best,�� the other man nodded with a smile.


    It seemed as if both parties had forgotten their previous grievances. As to what they were really thinking of inside, it was anyone��s guess.


    Perhaps, each couldn��t wait to swallow the other.


    In this banquet, the two parties interacted with pretense and diplomacy, but each was secretly hatching its own plan. Ye Futian personally sent them off when they parted ways, waving goodbyes to the cultivators from the two major forces as if they had been allies for ages. Only they knew exactly what they were thinking inside their hearts.


    Outside the Ziwei Segmentum, the cultivators of the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm wore an icy look on their faces as they traveled in the air, saying, ��I didn��t expect that Ye Futian would be able to let go of the grievances of the past. It seems that these years had changed him greatly.��


    ��Everyone has to grow up, and Ye Futian is no different. This time he was cooperating with our visit, and it was a show for all of Divine Prefecture and Donghuang Imperial Palace. This way, Donghuang Imperial Palace shouldn��t be interfering anymore and will probably just let him fight it out with the other forces in the Divine Prefecture to see who��s the last man standing. We will show our hands when a winner eventually emerges,�� the cultivator from the Dark Court said coldly.


    If Ye Futian were really willing to surrender, perhaps they would let Ye Futian live. But they knew very well that Ye Futian was born with an arrogant nature, and even when he tried to pretend, it was not convincing, so how could he really be willing to surrender?


    Sooner or later, he would be theirs.


    When Ye Futian and the others returned to Ziwei Imperial Palace, Zhuge Mingyue asked, ��How was it?��


    ��They were all tricksters,�� Ye Futian said indifferently. ��Not a word out of them was true.��


    ��It��s all an act, using each other.�� Zhuge Mingyue said, ��Too bad we are trying to survive in the cracks, and you had to endure all this.��


    ��Senior Sister, what are you talking about? It is what I should have done, and there was no suffering to speak of.�� Ye Futian continued, ��They all wanted to destroy Ziwei, but they don��t think now is the right time. I feel the same way, and it��s just that my strength is not up to par yet.��


    ��Thank you,�� Zhuge Mingyue said with a smile while looking at that handsome face. There was a softness in her beautiful eyes. She had always treated this little junior brother as one of her own. When Ye Futian first entered the Cottage, he was only 18 years old, just like her little brother.


    However, there was too much on his shoulders at the moment.


    ��


    In the 10,100th years of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, Tianyan City held the DivPrefecture��sre��s Armorer Competition and invited all the forces in Divine Prefecture to observe the ceremony. This Armorer Competition was held once a century and was a grand event in Tianyan City. It was an extremely important occasion every time it was held.


    Tianyan City had convened the cultivators from all sides to attend. For a time, responders from Divine Prefecture gathered here. Many giant-level principalities responded to Tianyan City and directly dispatched cultivators to set off for Tianyan City to watch the Armorer Competition.


    Among them, there were several major Domain Chief��s Manors.


    In the past, these Domain Chief��s Manors had never participated, but this time, they had embarked on the journey to attend.


    The meaning behind this phenomenon was intriguing. Was it really the Armorer Competition they wished to participate or was it a pretext for them to all meet in Tianyan City together?

 Chapter 2547 - Tianyan City

    Tianyan City was organizing the Armorer Competition. Just as the news that the various cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were coming to Tianyan City got out, Ye Futian received this news from Xi Chiyao.


    Xi Chiyao told Ye Futian through the mirror, ��The Armorer Competition is a long-standing tradition of Tianyan City. However, this time it is somewhat different. A few Domain Chief��s Manor will be in attendance. On the surface, it will appear to be a grand occasion for armorers. Yet, they might be meeting in secret to discuss how to deal with the Ziwei Segmentum. This is the best opportunity to convince Tianyan City to use imperial arms for the various forces.��


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian as he nodded. He also realized this. However, the various forces were all participating in the Armorer Competition. This was the tradition of Tianyan City. Some forces who bore no ill will towards the Ziwei Segmentum would also send members to participate in the event. He couldn��t just attack all the forces who participated in the event.


    ��I heard that the cultivators of the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm have already paid a visit to the Ziwei Segmentum?�� Xi Chiyao asked.


    ��Goddess Chiyao, you are certainly well-informed,�� said Ye Futian.


    Xi Chiyao smiled and replied, ��It is not that I am well-informed. The two major forces did not try to keep it a secret at all. The various forces of the Divine Prefecture, including Donghuang Imperial Palace, all know about this. They clearly did so deliberately. I am sure you understand their motives for doing so. You should still be wary of these two major forces.��


    ��I know,�� said Ye Futian as he nodded his head. He naturally knew this. These two major forces certainly hoped to force him to be at absolute odds with Donghuang Imperial Palace and the forces of the Divine Prefecture. That way, he would join or even rely on them and be under their control.


    The last time they visited him, both forces bore their own sinister agendas.


    ��How do you plan to handle the matters in Tianyan City?�� Xi Chiyao asked. ��If the forces in Tianyan City agree to use imperial arms, it will pose a certain level of threat towards the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    ��This is not something I can control,�� replied Ye Futian. ��However, I should at least make my stand clear to them. It seems like the eradication of the Holy Land of Taichu was not a strong enough deterrent to stop everyone in the Divine Prefecture from targeting me. In that case, I��ll play by ear. I��ll cross that bridge when I come to it.��


    Xi Chiyao said, ��Hmm. West Imperial Palace will also head towards Tianyan City. If there��s any news, I��ll share it with you at once.��


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��I might make a trip there too.��


    ��You want to come to Tianyan City?�� Xi Chiyao revealed a worried expression as she said, ��Even though you��re proficient in Celerity, it��s still quite risky since Tianyan City will be filled with cultivators then. It will be dangerous, especially because there are imperial arms in the city.��


    If Ye Futian were captured by the others, everything they had achieved so far would be in vain.


    ��My arrival will not threaten the safety of Tianyan City. They can��t use imperial arms on a small fry like me,�� Ye Futian said. ��If I go, I��ll act cautiously.��


    ��Alright,�� Xi Chiyao nodded and said. ��If you need anything, just let me know.��


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded, and the two of them ended their conversation.


    Under the starry sky, Ye Futian had a cold look in his eyes. The Ziwei Segmentum was an independent body; it was indeed the weakest among all the major forces in the world.


    If he compared the Ziwei Segmentum with the various forces of the Divine Prefecture alone, he had nothing to fear. However, Donghuang Imperial Palace was backing the Divine Prefecture. The Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm were also all major worlds. Only the Ziwei Segmentum was a small world that had been sealed away from the outside world for many years.


    If Great Emperor Ziwei was alive, then the Ziwei Segmentum could also stand on the same level as the other worlds. Unfortunately, Great Emperor Ziwei was no longer around, and Master had reached an understanding with Donghuang the Great.


    Now, the Ziwei Segmentum could only rely on him to grow.


    ��


    In Tianyan City of the Divine Prefecture.


    Tianyan City was the largest city in the Tianyan Domain. There was no dispute there.


    Tianyan Domain was a domain of armorers. Back when Tianyan the Great was still alive, Tianyan City was glorious. Although it had been many years, the current Tianyan City was still the undisputed number one armorer holy land in the Divine Prefecture. It had always been a place where cultivators flocked to, even top-level cultivators.


    It was already a place where cultivators gathered on a normal day, let alone during the Armorer Competition held once a century.


    This entire year of the Divine Prefecture Calendar was unique to the Divine Prefecture. The Year 10100 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar coincided with the Tianyan City Armorer Fest. For a time, it attracted the attention of the world. The entire Divine Prefecture had its sights on Tianyan City.


    Many taverns in Tianyan City were fully booked. The main streets were also crowded with people. The trade areas for divine arms and ritual implements were even more overcrowded. Some people jokingly said that one could easily hit a high-level Renhuang if they cast a stone into the crowd.


    There were countless continents in the Divine Prefecture and numerous cultivators. Aside from the superpowers at the top, there were many more top-level forces beneath them. This time, many of these forces had come.


    During the Armorer Fest every century, Tianyan City would not just organize the Armorer Competition. They would also bring out many top-level ritual implements and even some Sub-divine Arms for trading. Hence, each time the Armorer Fest came around, it would stir up the Divine Prefecture. Cultivators would gather from far and wide, and even giant-level figures would personally come here.


    ��Rumor has it that cultivators from other worlds will make their way into Tianyan City,�� someone commented on the streets as they discussed this grand occasion.


    ��Cultivators from other worlds?�� someone asked.


    ��Hmm,�� responded the person who had spoken first. ��The cultivators of the Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Human Realm might all appear. However, the conflict between the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm with the Divine Prefecture has always run deep. If they came, they should have done so in secret. They would not reveal their identities.��


    ��Would they be so daring? If they were exposed, wouldn��t they be slaughtered by the forces of the Divine Prefecture?��


    ��It wouldn��t be that easy. The forces of the Divine Prefecture wouldn��t dare to simply attack the cultivators from the Dark Court and Empty Mountain. They might have come to obtain some incredible Sub-divine Arms. Of course, I still wish for members of Donghuang Imperial Palace to be here the most.��


    ��Would Donghuang the Great also send people over?��


    ��He will,�� replied the other party as he nodded his head. ��A hundred years ago, in the Year 10,000 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, he sent a Divine General over to congratulate Tianyan City for organizing the Armorer Fest. There shouldn��t be an exception this time. Rumor also has it that Princess Donghuang has already grown up and is a peerless beauty. I wonder whether we will have the chance to meet her. I am looking forward to that happening.��


    ��Princess Donghuang,�� exclaimed the person beside him as he was similarly fascinated. Princess Donghuang was a Proud Daughter of Heaven and the only daughter of Donghuang the Great. What status she had. Donghuang the Great ruled over the Divine Prefecture and had only one offspring.


    Princess Donghuang was showered with his affections. However, rumor has it that Princess Donghuang was very independent. Aside from her peerless beauty, she also had extraordinary talent and was one of the top cultivators.


    In Tianyan City, such conversation was everywhere. Everyone was looking forward to this grand occasion. Countless prominent figures, monstrous existences, as well as giant-level figures who were renowned far and wide had arrived.


    Of course, they were also looking forward to the divine arms that Tianyan City would present.


    Tianyan City had always been generous during the Armorer Fest that happened once a century. It would naturally not be an exception this time.


    ��


    The City Lord Office was the ruling force of Tianyan City. It was also an inheritance of the Wang family��one of the Ancient God Clans. Wang Clan was renowned for their blacksmith skills. They had trained and produced many Blacksmith masters. These Blacksmith masters had families of their own and became the rulers of various clans in Tianyan City.


    Gradually, the influences of the Wang family spanned the entire city. They became the rulers of Tianyan City. The manor of the Wang family also became the City Lord Office.


    At the moment, cultivators gradually arrived at the City Lord Office. The cultivators from the Wang family came out to greet the guests personally.


    However, Lord of Tianyan City did not come out personally. Only a few people in the entire Divine Prefecture were worthy of him greeting them personally at the door.


    In the hall of the City Lord Office, Lord of Tianyan City sat at a raised seat while listening to the reports of cultivators below. They were updating him on the identities of the cultivators who had come.


    ��Is there any news from the Imperial Palace?�� Lord of Tianyan City asked. His biggest concern was clearly still Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    ��A century ago, the Imperial Palace sent a Divine General over to join the fest. It should be the same this time around. There will most likely be news soon,�� someone replied. Lord of Tianyan City nodded in agreement. The Armorer Fest took place once every century. The Wang family placed great importance on it. It was both a major event in Tianyan City and an ancient ritual.


    Right at the moment, someone walked in from outside. The person said, ��Clan Leader, the Imperial Palace has sent their reply.��


    ��What did they say?�� Lord of Tianyan City inquired.


    ��After receiving the invitation, the Imperial Palace said they will send a representative over to join the fest and congratulate us,�� the person replied.


    ��Do you know who will come as the representative?�� The gaze of Lord of Tianyan City was piercing. He seemed to be rather excited.


    The person said, ��I don��t know the details. However, according to my speculation, it will most likely be Spear Emperor Du You, one of the Divine Generals.��


    Another person commented, ��Spear Emperor Du You is a direct disciple of the Great Emperor. He survived the divine tribulation ten years ago. Currently, his ability is ranked among the top of the Nine Divine Generals. He is quite a prestigious guest to have for our fest.��


    ��I heard that Spear Emperor Du You has always been by Princess Donghuang��s side?�� Lord of Tianyan City asked.


    ��He is the direct disciple of the Great Emperor. It��s normal for him to have some thoughts about her,�� someone answered.


    ��Princess Donghuang has been cultivating for nearly a century and has become a top figure. She is also the only daughter of the Great Emperor. Countless people in the Divine Prefecture have their eyes on her. If she can come to our fest this time,�� the Lord of Tianyan City mumbled. His tone carried a hint of excitement.


    The people who stood below all nodded. Their gazes shifted to look at the person who stood beside Lord of Tianyan City. This person had an extraordinary temperament, yet he stood quietly on a side and had not commented.


    As mentioned by the underlings, currently, countless great men in the Divine Prefecture had their eyes on Princess Donghuang.


    Regardless of how extraordinary Princess Donghuang was, she was a woman after all. Everyone in the Divine Prefecture desired to become the son-in-law of Donghuang the Great.


    If they could win her heart, they might even be able to join Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Unfortunately, Princess Donghuang seemed only to be interested in cultivation!

 Chapter 2548 - Thirteenth Flight

    Many cultivators entered Tianyan City every day over the past few days.


    Right now, among the vast crowd, there was a tall, slender figure who wore a silver mask. His eyes were shining bright like stars, yet no aura radiated from him. He appeared to be an ordinary person.


    However, true cultivators understood that for a person to retract their aura to the point that it couldn��t even be detected, they were undoubtedly top-level cultivators who had cultivated special techniques. Their abilities were definitely super powerful. The more a person like this could not be seen through, the more frightening they actually were.


    This person was Ye Futian, who had come from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Tianyan City was having such a grand occasion. He wouldn��t miss out on the fun.


    However, he naturally couldn��t just waltz into Tianyan City as Ye Futian. He would immediately be targeted if he did so. Right now, his silver hair was gone and was jet black. He wore a silver mask and silver robes. The robes were smooth like a mirror. It was apparent at a glance that these robes were no ordinary robes.


    His attire could be said to be very overt. A silver mask and silver robes, in addition to no aura being emitted, would instead draw the attention of others more easily. Others would guess that he was no ordinary figure.


    This was also the effect that Ye Futian desired. The more overt he was on the surface, the more he would not draw attention. The more one intentionally tried to hide something, the more likely it would cause suspicion. This was what Daoist Monk Mu taught him. Before Daoist Monk Mu stole the Deity Map, he had openly set up a stall right next to the Breeze Pavilion to trade elixirs and other treasures. He even had dealings with the Breeze Pavilion Pavilion Leader Li Qingfeng, and they got to know each other. He was anything but low profile.


    When the Deity Map was stolen, the Breeze Pavilion sealed off Jiuyi City to search for hidden cultivators. However, they never suspected that it was Daoist Monk Mu who had been doing business right under their noses. This was a proper use of human psychology.


    Moreover, so many people had come to Tianyan City now, including monstrous figures, mysterious cultivators, and even hermits. There were countless people like these, and Ye Futian was but one among them. Even if he were overt, he would not draw too much attention.


    Rumor has it that even the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, Spear Emperor Du You, had come to offer congratulations and observe the ceremonies. Ye Futian was insignificant compared to him.


    As Ye Futian entered Tianyan City, he sensed a sharp, lively aura sweep over him. There was an air of prosperity around him. Tianyan City was like a divine arm erected in the middle of the continent. It gave off an ethereal, sharp vibe. The entire city seemed to be alive with color. It was a golden city of divine arms.


    This was the number one holy land for armorers in the Divine Prefecture.


    Now, Ye Futian was setting up alchemy in the Ziwei Segmentum. He wanted Ziwei Imperial Palace to become the world��s most powerful holy land for alchemy. However, from the looks of it now, the difference between Ziwei Imperial Palace��s alchemy faculties and Tianyan City��s armories was like the difference between heaven and earth. They could not even be compared.


    Ye Futian quietly walked around in Tianyan City, feeling the current atmosphere in the city. In the streets, most people were discussing the Armorer Fest. Rumor has it that cultivators from many top forces had already arrived and established themselves in Tianyan City.


    Among these forces was the Ancient God Clan.


    Ye Futian came to a stall and traded a map of Tianyan City.


    Although Tianyan City was just a city, it was the main city of the Tianyan Domain. It was vast, had a huge population with many top forces. Of course, the most prestigious were still the various armories.


    This being Ye Futian��s first time here, he naturally needed to explore the city first.


    After Ye Futian obtained his map, he first checked out the main armorer forces of Tianyan City. He then found a place known as Silver Spear Flight, also called Thirteenth Flight.


    Silver Spear Flight was one of the armorer forces of Tianyan City. It had a long history. Rumor has it that the founder was a figure who followed Tianyan the Great. The silver spear of the founder was renowned. Silver Spear Flight would later become the name of this force. They specialized in forging silver spears and were the holy land for spears.


    Of course, Silver Spear Flight was under the jurisdiction of Wang Clan, the City Lord Office.


    For the occasion of the Armorer Competition, the various armorer forces of Tianyan City brought out their treasures to be exchanged. Silver Spear Flight was naturally no exception.


    Right now, in Silver Spear Flight, many cultivators were gathered.


    Within Silver Spear Flight, there was a gigantic open space. Many cultivators were gathered there. Before the open space was Thirteenth Flight. All the figures who were seated in it were members of Silver Spear Flight as well as cultivators from the top forces of Tianyan City.


    Right now, the tiered tower was filled with people. They sat at the edge of the tower while chatting and sipping tea. Their gazes were focused on the empty space before the tower. Cultivators from all around were gathered at the center of the empty space. There were cultivators from Thirteenth Flight. In their midst, there was a row of long silver spears. Each silver spear was an imperial rank ritual implement.


    Ye Futian was also among the crowd. He had come here for a long spear.


    Coincidentally, his attire matched a silver spear very well. If he had a silver spear, he would look extremely heroic, as though he was reborn and was a completely different person from before. He would immediately become a powerful Spear Emperor.


    Hence, Ye Futian had come here to the holy land of spears.


    Ye Futian looked towards the row of long spears ahead. Their number just happened to coincide with Thirteenth Flight. There were a total of 13 long spears. They were smooth, and each spear was silver. They appeared to all be the same, yet if one sensed carefully, they could detect that each of the 13 spears emanated different auras.


    Of the 13 spears, 12 of them served as foils, Ye Futian thought himself. He stared at the long spear in the center.


    A Sub-divine Arm!


    Tianyan City was the holy land of armorers. As a mere subsidiary force of the City Lord Office, Thirteenth Flight could already bring out ritual implements such as Sub-divine Arms to trade. One could imagine how much armament they had stashed away. However, this Sub-divine Arm should correspond to the first stage Divine Tribulation of the Great Path in terms of cultivation. It was considered a One-tribulation Sub-divine Arm.


    Tianyan City should be able to forge Two-tribulation Sub-divine Arms.


    However, this Sub-divine Arm was not Ye Futian��s target. Obtaining a Sub-divine Arm would require a ludicrously high price. He might need to offer up a treasure of equal worth. If he did so, he might expose his identity. He merely needed an imperial-level divine arm.


    ��Huh?�� Right then, Ye Futian revealed a strange expression. He saw a person standing to the side of the empty space before Thirteenth Flight. Just then, another person came forward and actually challenged the other party. A loud discussion erupted around them.


    When Ye Futian overheard the discussions, he revealed a look of surprise. From the looks of it, winning a battle was the way one could obtain the Sub-divine Arm.


    Before this, he was worried that this Sub-divine Arm would be traded. In that case, he would need to use Sub-divine elixirs or top-level martial arts techniques to trade for it. However, his guess was wrong.


    The cultivators of Thirteenth Flight had taken out a Sub-divine Arm just because they wanted to contend spear techniques with other forces. It was not just for this Sub-divine Arm; it was the same for other ritual implements. Whoever wanted any of the ritual implements could claim it out loud. They would face different cultivators from Silver Spear Flight. All those who emerged as winners would have another battle three days before the Armorer Competition to determine the final victors. The final winners could claim the divine arms.


    The cultivators who participated in the battles were all Renhuangs.


    This caused Ye Futian to be somewhat emotional. As expected of the holy land of armorers, they were generous with their rewards. They were actually using a Sub-divine Arm to liven up the atmosphere of the fest. No wonder many cultivators had gathered in front of Thirteenth Flight.


    Moreover, similar situations took place in different parts of Tianyan City, spicing up the mood of the fest.


    Was Thirteenth Flight organizing these battles just for the sake of witnessing spear techniques? Ye Futian thought of another possibility. In order to obtain the ritual implements, the challengers needed to defeat the cultivators of Thirteenth Flight. It meant that the latter had to face round after round of battles, with their opponents being the monstrous figures from various parts of the world.


    From the looks of it, Thirteenth Flight organized this event not just to liven up the mood but also to train the spear techniques of their own members.


    There were very few chances for various cultivators to gather together. It only occurred once every century.


    Furthermore, there were many cultivators with top-level spear techniques.


    Ye Futian did not participate in the event. Instead, he silently observed the battles to the side. The challengers gradually emerged. Ye Futian noticed that for different spears that the challengers targeted, different cultivators of Thirteenth Flight would come out from different levels of the tiered tower to accept their challenges.


    When a challenger aimed for the Sub-divine Arm, their opponent would be someone from the highest level of the tiered tower. He was most likely the strongest cultivator in Thirteenth Flight.


    The challengers were very powerful too; they were all cultivators from the top forces. However, few of them emerged victorious.


    After all, they had to defeat their opponents using purely spear techniques. They couldn��t even rely on the domain of the Great Path. It was because Thirteenth Flight wanted to experience only their spear techniques.


    Of course, it was acceptable if a challenger had great power of the Great Path, and they infused it into their spear techniques during battle.


    Right at this moment, yet another top figure failed in their challenge. This spurred the audience into discussion.


    Someone said, ��In terms of spear techniques, the cultivators of Thirteenth Flight have reached the highest level. There are few cultivators who can defeat Thirteenth Flight Spear Techniques.��


    Another person commented, ��The cultivator who has the best spear techniques is most likely Spear Emperor Du You, the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great. Rumor has it that he will come this time. Unfortunately, he has undergone the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Otherwise, if he were here, this Sub-divine Arm would surely be his.��


    ��Will the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great appreciate this Sub-divine Arm?�� mocked someone to the side. His words caused the other party to nod in agreement. Indeed, the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great would not lack good divine arms.


    Spear Emperor Du You? Ye Futian revealed a surprised expression when he overheard the conversation. He had seen him before. In the past, Spear Emperor Du You followed Princess Donghuang and appeared in the Original Realm. He even fought with the king of the Dark Court.


    So many years later, Spear Emperor Du You had already undergone the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    However, this progress was normal. It was impossible for the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great to be anything less than talented.


    He would certainly be a super powerful cultivator.


    Now, Ye Futian had a better understanding of the cultivation world. He knew that the Nine Divine Generals of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace and the king of the Dark Court were not the strongest existences. Before the chaos of the Original Realm began, the Devil World had sent over Old Demon Tuntian and Demon Sage.


    There was also Fang Ru from Donghuang Imperial Palace. He was not one of the Nine Divine Generals.


    Ye Futian speculated that the Nine Divine Generals ranked among the top in Donghuang Imperial Palace. At the very least, the best general would be someone who had undergone the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Above them were some other top figures. These top figures were the actual strongest existences in the Imperial Palace. They were under the direct command of the Great Emperor and were the bona fide core figures.


    When Ye Futian thought of this, he strode forward and walked toward the battle ring. He would first acquire this silver spear Sub-divine Arm!

 Chapter 2549 - Gossips

    Ye Futian walked forward as the cultivator from the 13th Flight looked at him and nodded with a smile.


    With his finger, Ye Futian pointed to the silver spear Sub-divine arms in the middle and suddenly attracted the attention of many people. Those who dared to challenge the Sub-divine arms were all notable figures themselves.


    ��Who is this?�� People were whispering in the crowd.


    ��Silver garments with silver mask, with exceptional bearing. Who is this incredible figure, and where is he from?��


    ��How shall we address you?�� a cultivator from the 13th Flight inquired.


    ��Silver spear, Changkong.�� Ye Futian used an alias so that no one would have heard of him.


    On the 13th Flight in front, from the 13th floor, a figure drifted down and landed on the open battlefield. Ye Futian walked toward the battlefield until he came opposite the man. Around him, silver light screens appeared, directly sealing up the space they were in.


    The battlefield was extensive, but for people at their level, it was pretty small. However, the exchange with the 13th Flight was to learn about spear techniques, using attack against attack. Therefore, the contest of spear techniques alone would not require too much space.


    ��From the 13th Flight, Silver spear, Wen Yang is my name. Pleased to meet you.�� The cultivator who stood opposite of Ye Futian was a middle-aged man, holding a long silver spear. He exuded a sharp and unstoppable aura, as if he was himself, a spear, standing there without fear.


    Both of them call themselves silver spears. So whose spear was stronger?


    Ye Futian stretched out a hand, and suddenly the power of the Great Path gathered in his hand and formed into a long silver spear. He held the spear as he looked at Wen Yang and said, ��Pleased to meet you as well.��


    As soon his voice faded away, Ye Futian��s body seemed to become extremely sharp. It merged into one with the silver spear so that the spear was the man, and the man was the spear. The silver garments he wore fluttered in the wind as if he was a transcendental being, not of this world.


    In just an instant, Wen Yang seemed to realize that he had encountered a powerful opponent. His expression became extremely grave.


    Waves of terrifying fluctuations came from the spear held in his hand. He walked forward and unleashed a strike into the void, which caused the void to oscillate, and a powerful shock wave was felt.


    However, Wen Yang did not attack directly. Instead, he unleashed another strike, one after the other, in endless successions. With each strike, the shock wave increased in strength, as its power seemed to multiply exponentially, becoming stronger as one layer piled onto the previous one continuously.


    ��13th Flight Spear Techniques.�� When everyone saw what Wen Yang had unleashed was the ultimate technique, they were astounded. Moreover, Wen Yang seemed to be exercising extreme caution, as he was not dishing out any tentative attacks. One strike after another, he was continuously increasing the power of his spear techniques.


    The true prowess of the 13th Flight Spear Techniques lay in the later strikes��the more strikes that were unleashed, the more terrifying the power. It was said that even the creator of this spear technique had ever only reached the level of the twelfth strike. In his lifetime, he had only used the 13th strike once, and once that strike was launched, heaven and earth wailed as gods and demons wept. He perished after using that ultimate 13th strike, a shocking blow before his death.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly, feeling those powerful shock waves that were blasting at him, one after another. A massive wave of destruction was oppressing this closed-up space, suffocating it and destroying the Great Path. In this enclosed space, this kind of spear technique was indeed powerful.


    More importantly, the power of the spear techniques was still multiplying and increasing in strength.


    It was a pity that the opponent Wen Yang encountered was him. In cultivation of offensive technique, super powers were helpful, but in the face of absolute brute strength, it was completely meaningless.


    Ye Futian raised his hand and unleashed his spear.


    The man and the spear were as one, as if they were one body, like a light and lightning; it was gone in a flash.


    Bang, bang, bang�� Some dull thuds were heard, and those shock waves were directly expelled by that ray of light, front and center. In an instant, a long silver spear pointed right at Wen Yang��s brow chakra.


    Just one strike!


    In the face of absolute comprehension and absolute power, super powers of any kind had no real meaning at all. The Great Paths and all methods were interconnected. Ye Futian��s simple spear strike was the Great Path in its most simple and purest; the man and the spear were one with the Great Path. Even if the power that hid within the spear was not used, it was not something that Wen Yang could contend with under his own power. The gap between the two was just too great.


    Behind Ye Futian, the waves formed by the blasting of the shock waves continued, even impacting the surrounding seals, causing those seals to vibrate violently. It only dissipated after a few moments, but the sealing light screens also disappeared with it.


    Wen Yang��s gaze froze, fixed on that silvery mask right in front of him.


    One move!


    As the top Renhuang cultivator of the 13th Flight, he could not even withstand a strike unleashed by this spear technique. In this strike, he felt an absolute gap in power and that his comprehension of cultivation was not on the same level as his opponent.


    Many cultivators at the 13th Flight stood up and looked down. Their eyes sharpened as those eyes were filled with a sense of shock. Those who came to challenge more often than not ended in defeats and not victories. Very few people could beat the 13th Flight Spear Techniques, and certainly not with just a single blow.


    The spear strike may be simple, but it seemed to contain the simplicity of the Great Path, a move that was based on the return to the basics.


    ��What a stunning strike,�� an elder praised.


    ��Thank you for your indulgence.�� The silver spear in Ye Futian��s hand turned back to the Great Path and dissipated.


    ��Your spear techniques are impressive. My compliments.�� Wen Yang put away his spear and bowed slightly to Ye Futian. Indeed, amazing individuals from all sides had gathered at such a grand occasion in Tianyan City. He had never heard of the person in front of him, but he was so incredible.


    For the first time, Wen Yang felt that his 13th Flight Spear Techniques was flamboyant and flashy without substance.


    Of course, it was not a matter of weakness with the 13th Flight Spear Techniques, but that it had met someone much stronger.


    ��Mr. Changkong, would you like to come upstairs for a discussion?�� Wen Yang invited politely. He was not angry because he was defeated by a single strike. Why else would the 13th Flight use a Sub-divine arms as a prize to attract the opportunities of experiencing as many spear techniques as possible from all sides?


    It was none other than to see those top-level spear techniques, so as to improve their own spear techniques, to learn and to perceive. For this purpose, they were more than willing to see these many kinds of great spear techniques. However, Ye Futian��s spear techniques had far surpassed all that he knew, and the realm of his comprehension fell short of its greatness.


    ��No, thank you. I��m accustomed to moving about on my own. When the time comes, I will come to fetch the silver spear,�� Ye Futian said, speaking as if that divine arms already had his name on it. Everyone around him could feel his confidence behind that arrogance.


    ��May I ask where does Mr. Changkong cultivate?�� an elder from the 13th Flight asked curiously while looking at Ye Futian.


    ��This spear technique was comprehended on my own,�� responded Ye Futian.


    ��Comprehend it on your own!�� the old man marveled in a low voice. ��My compliments. Your spear techniques are rare and unique. I heard that the spear of the Spear Emperor, the direct disciple of the Great Emperor himself, was also a peerless spear technique. However, I have not had the good fortune to see it. It��s a pity now that the divine general Du You had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. I would not have the good fortune of ever seeing his techniques.��


    ��The Spear Emperor, Du You.�� Ye Futian muttered, ��Is he very strong?��


    The old man was stunned for a second, then smiled and continued, ��Emperor Donghuang��s personal disciple is undoubtedly very strong. With the spear techniques alone, there were not many in the Divine Prefecture who could be his equal. It was said that when Du You the Spear Emperor unleashes his spear, no spears in the world could be considered spears.��


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��I would like to see it myself if ever I have the opportunity; so long.��


    After that, he turned around and left.


    Aloof and indifferent.


    Watching his departing figure, many felt shockingly surprised. Not only did this man have outstanding spear techniques, but he was also unapproachable and full of himself, proclaiming that he wanted to experience the spears of the Spear Emperor himself if given the opportunity?


    Everyone could see that he was very powerful from the blow he just dealt, but who was the Spear Emperor?


    The Spear Emperor, as the direct disciple of Emperor Donghuang himself, would probably not take him seriously at all.


    ��What are the odds that this man could take away the Sub-divine arms?�� Someone asked the old man from the 13th Flight.


    ��Although there are a lot of enchanting geniuses who are in attendance, and there are many top-notch figures among them, the strike we just saw was truly amazing. In my estimation, I think he has a 50 percent chance to take away the Sub-divine arms.�� The old man continued, ��Silver Spear Changkong, take note of this name. In this grand event, many will become famous, and he will be one of them.��


    Ye Futian didn��t really care about what others thought of him. If they wanted to talk about fame, how many had a more well-known name than ��Ye Futian�� in the Divine Prefecture today?


    The reason why he wanted to obtain the spear was because it was a Sub-divine arms that could be gotten without paying a price, so why not do it? And second, he could better camouflage himself with the identity of Silver Spear Changkong, who was a spear purist and an arrogant spear emperor.


    Naturally, this spear strike caused some chatter in the 13th Flight, and it was not a big deal in today��s Tianyan City. Right now, countless unparalleled figures had arrived in Tianyan City.


    After Ye Futian left the 13th Flight, he came to a tavern in Tianyan City to drink. In the tavern, one could often hear gossips of all kinds.


    He settled in the corner of the tavern, leaning against the window, so he could see the people coming and going. On the street, as in the tavern, people next to him were talking about this grand event taking place in Tianyan City, as if it was the only topic worth talking about in Tianyan City right now.


    ��I heard that Princess Donghuang will be coming in person this time.�� Some people in the tavern were chatting. This tavern was not large in size as those larger taverns were already at capacity. Therefore, the cultivation level of the cultivators who had gathered here was not that great, and the news that spread here was more gossipy.


    ��A hundred years ago, a divine general came to observe the ceremony. Will the princess come this time in person?��


    ��Well, Princess Donghuang has long been of age, and her cultivation had been successful as well. She has been busy cultivating all this time, and it was time for her to choose a Path Companion. It is said that Tianyan City has a great opportunity in that regard.��


    ��Why Tianyan City?��


    ��Think about this��even though Donghuang the Great ruled the Divine Prefecture, many Ancient God Clan were not directly under his command, and he lacked top-notch principality that focuses on Armorer. If Tianyan City can be recruited, it will undoubtedly beef up the Imperial Palace even more and make it stronger. Therefore, Tianyan City is a likely candidate.��


    ��Is it Wang Mian in Tianyan City?�� someone asked.


    ��Wang Mian?�� The speaker looked sarcastic and said, ��As soon as you said that, we know you are totally out of the loop. When Wang Mian went to the land of the Original Realm in the Lower Worlds, he was met with defeats. An extraordinary figure like Princess Donghuang would not be considering him.��


    ��He lost in the battle with Ye Futian?��


    ��That��s right. At the time, several top figures from the Ancient God Clan teamed up and were defeated soundly by Ye Futian, and his wife Wang Mian was also a participant in that battle.�� The man speaking before continued, ��Many people thought that Wang Mian might be the future city lord of Tianyan City, but in fact, Wang Mian has always been the number two. The true heir to Tianyan City focused solely on cultivation and maintained a really low profile, and even outsiders had no real idea just how strong he is. According to my sources, he has already survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, and he can produce Sub-divine arms. In this Armorer Competition, Tianyan City invited all the principalities of Divine Prefecture here was aimed for him to make a name for himself, so he may be known throughout the world by winning the first place in the Armorer Competition.��


    ��The Wangs of the City Lord��s office in Tianyan City have always been pretty conspicuous, and they had been secretly grooming such a character?�� someone asked curiously.


    ��This is the true genius of Tianyan City. Those from the Ancient God Clan, who doesn��t have a secret ace or two up their sleeves? Wang Mian is just someone for the outside world to see. The one behind the scene represents the true core of Tianyan City, who will announce his presence with incredible notoriety. The target in his sight may be Princess Donghuang,�� the man said mysteriously.


    Ye Futian listened quietly as he picked up the wine cup to drink, but he was actually a little contemptuous inside.


    Princess Donghuang needed to be married off in an alliance?


    For someone at his level, hearing these kinds of juvenile talks was like hearing a joke. Beneath the Great Emperor, everyone was akin to insects unless Tianyan the Great himself could be reborn!

 Chapter 2550 - Fight for the Sub-Divine Arms

    Ye Futian stayed quietly in Tianyan City for a few days. Over the past few days, he had acquired a lot of information. The cultivators from all sides had also arrived in Tianyan City one after the other, making this ancient city of armorers even more lively.


    In a blink of an eye, there were only three days left before the start of the Armorer Competition.


    This was also the day agreed upon by the 13th Flight.


    Ye Futian came to the 13th Flight to fetch the Sub-divine arms.


    At this time, in front of the 13th Flight, many powerful cultivators had gathered. In this increasingly boisterous Tianyan City, forces from all sides had arrived. This time, the 13th Flight used the Sub-divine arms as a point of attraction, how could anyone not be attracted by that? Even many top forces had come for precisely just that.


    Even for these top forces, the Sub-divine arms was quite a piece of precious implement, each of which was highly valued. It was a pity that most of these principalities were no expert at spear techniques, or else they would have been directly involved in the competition.


    Upon the 13th Flight in front, there were many cultivators already standing on each floor. On the highest floor��the 13th��in addition to their own cultivators, the Wangs from Tianyan City��s City Lord��s Office had also sent in their own cultivators.


    The cultivators from the Wangs at the City Lord��s Office were led by a middle-aged man. Just by simply standing there, he made everyone feel tense. This man��s name was Wang Teng, an elder of the Wang family. He held a high status within the family and had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. The man in silver beside him was Wen Donglai��the master of the 13th Flight.


    Wang Teng from the City Lord��s Office personally came because he heard that there were several powerful figures who had made their appearances at the 13th Flight. All of their spear techniques were shockingly powerful, and it might be an exhilarating battle.


    ��Silver Spear Changkong is here.�� Wen Donglai pointed to Ye Futian, who was in the crowd below and introduced him to Wang Teng. Wang Teng nodded slightly to acknowledge him. Silver Spear Changkong was one of the powerful figures mentioned to him by the 13th Flight.


    He defeated Wen Yang with a single strike. Many people in the 13th Flight thought that he had a 50 percent chance of taking the Sub-divine arms.


    But now, this possibility was reduced by 20 percent.


    Because after Silver Spear Changkong, several other extremely powerful characters had emerged. One of them was a cultivator from the Ancient God Clan, who also came to join in on the fun at the event.


    Ye Futian seemed to notice that someone was paying attention to him. He raised his head and looked up at the top of the 13th Flight. He saw Wen Donglai nodding slightly at him as if saying ��hello.�� Wang Teng was also looking at him.


    Obviously, these people remembered him.


    Ye Futian didn��t mind and didn��t respond. Those eyes under the silver mask were as calm as still water. He looked down at the open battlefield ahead. The battle had already begun, but now it was the battle for the other 12 divine arms.


    The Sub-divine arms would naturally be the finale.


    At the same time, he was listening to the people talking around him. It seemed that after him, some other powerful individuals had come to compete for the Sub-divine arms, which he didn��t pay much attention to before. After all, this was not a difficult task for him. If he wanted to take the Sub-divine arms, who in Renhuang Realm could stop him?


    A Sub-divine arm, to him, was as easy as reaching out and taking it. There was no need to pay attention to what was happening here.


    ��What a proud man,�� Wang Teng said in a low voice when he saw Ye Futian��s expression on the 13th Flight. Wen Donglai was a cultivator in the Tribulation Plane, the master of the 13th Flight. He took the initiative to greet Ye Futian and was ignored. This was a blatant demonstration of Ye Futian��s arrogance.


    ��Extraordinary people sometimes have unusual characters.�� Wen Donglai didn��t take offense and dismissed it with a smile. At this time, he looked up in the distance and said, ��He��s here.��


    Many people raised their heads to look over there, only to see a group of cultivators coming at them. Everyone in this group possessed an extraordinary temperament.


    Ancient God Clan from Yuanshi Domain cultivated in Yuanshi Palace and inherited from Yuanshi the Great.


    This time, an stunning cultivator from Yuanshi Palace, Pei Yao, would be fighting for the Sub-divine arms.


    Pei Yao��s cultivation was in the Ninth-Realm, the peak of Renhuang, with extraordinary combat effectiveness. In the previous battle, he had defeated someone from the 13th Flight with a single strike.


    The master of the 13th Flight, Wen Donglai, put his hands together to greet the visitors personally and said, ��Please come up, friends.��


    The cultivators from Yuanshi Palace did not hesitate as they landed on the 13th Flight.


    ��Has it started yet?�� the cultivators from Yuanshi Palace asked.


    ��Soon. After the battle for the other divine arms is over, it will be the battle for the Sub-divine arms.�� Wen Donglai acted with great geniality and a smile. ��Pei Yao��s God-Punishing Spear has a great chance to take away the Sub-divine arms.��


    ��Yuanshi Palace, as part of the Ancient God Clan, should not have competed with the others for the Sub-divine arms. However, to add to the excitement of the event here at Tianyan City, we will be joining in on the fun. Pei Yao happens to be an expert at spear techniques. We beg your pardon in advance if he manages to take away the prize,�� an elder from Yuanshi Palace said.


    Listening to his tone, it was as if the Sub-divine arms was already theirs for the taking, and the whole thing couldn��t be any easier.


    In fact, the genius talents from the Ancient God Clan were indeed the most likely winner when it came to the competition for the Sub-divine arms. Under normal circumstances, they would probably not encounter any opponents stronger than them, so their confidence was to be expected.


    Moreover, Pei Yao��s God-Punishing Spear possessed astonishing destructive power.


    ��It��s something meant to add to the excitement of the spear techniques exhibited by all sides. There is no pardon to speak of; that��s too serious,�� Wen Donglai said with a smile. Yuanshi Palace was full of confidence, but in his opinion, it was not so easy for Pei Yao to take away the Sub-divine arms as he still had to face two opponents.


    Just as they were speaking, another powerful aura descended in the distant sky, followed by several figures who walked through the void and came to this side. The man in the middle wore a black robe and exuded dangerous energy.


    As soon as they appeared, they had the attention of Wen Donglai and the others.


    The identities of these men were mysterious, and that strike did not give away much. Wen Donglai even suspected that these people might not be cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, but cultivators from the Dark Court.


    However, they didn��t have any solid evidence to prove their suspicion. These people went about the competition according to the rules, so there was nothing much to which they could object. After all, everyone in the city was watching.


    The man in black who was here to compete for the Sub-divine arms was Nie Jiu. He was using a long black spear with an astounding power of demolition. In Wen Donglai��s view, its prowess was no less than that of Pei Yao��s God-Punishing Spear. Therefore, these two men were the most likely candidates who may take away the Sub-divine arms. Compared to the two of them, Silver Spear Changkong��s power paled a little in comparison.


    These two men, one was from Ancient God Clan, but the other, was very likely from the Dark World.


    There were still several other people who were in the running to compete for the Sub-divine arms, but Wen Donglai thought that it was basically a battle among these three men to fight for the prize. Although the others were very powerful as well, there was still a gap between them and these three. Pei Yao and Nie Jiu each had about a 40 percent chance, and Silver Spear Changkong had about 20 percent.


    After they arrived, they stood there quietly, without saying a word, just waiting quietly. Their eyes focused on the battlefield ahead; they were in no hurry.


    Pei Yao seemed to perceive a slight sense of threat, as he looked at Nie Jiu across the sky. When their eyes met, invisible turbulence fluctuated and collided in the void.


    Both of them had perceived the other��s existence.


    Only Ye Futian was the exception. The aura on his body was retracted so much that his existence almost could not be detected.


    Finally, as time crawled, 12 of the 13 spears had been taken away, leaving only the spear in the middle that was standing alone by itself.


    Wen Donglai took a step forward and waved his hand. Someone else stepped forward to move the Sub-divine arms aside. He looked at the cultivators and said, ��No need for more talk. You are all here, so please, whoever this spear belongs to is up to you all to decide.��


    As he finished speaking, people gradually walked forward, Pei Yao and Nie Jiu stepped onto that huge open space. Ye Futian, too, moved and walked forward.


    ��12 men!��


    Of all those who came to compete for the Sub-divine arms, only 12 had defeated the top cultivators from the 13th Flight. In terms of spear techniques, the 13th Flight spear techniques dominated the battlefield.


    ��No one��s life shall be harmed. The last man standing with the winning spear technique will walk away with the Sub-divine arms.�� As soon as Wen Donglai made the announcement, a light screen exploded from the surrounding matrix, sequestering the huge open space in the middle.


    All 12 cultivators were inside.


    A silver long spear appeared in Ye Futian��s hand, as the power of the Great Path converged upon it. Then, he closed his eyes, and under the silver mask, his eyes closed just like that. He stood there motionlessly as if he didn��t even want to participate in this melee.


    In addition, Pei Yao was also standing alone in one direction, extremely cold and unapproachable.


    A black spear appeared in Nie Jiu��s hand, puffing out a terrifying aura of destruction.


    ��You guys decide the outcome yourselves.�� Pei Yao spoke as if he wouldn��t even bother to participate.


    There was no lack of top figures among the rest of the cultivators. The aura of the Great Path permeated and seeped into the long spears in their hands. Then, they made their moves one after another.


    For an instant, shadows of spears flew about, as fast as lightning.


    Many of them unleashed their most lethal strike right off the bat.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly with his eyes closed, as a flash of silver shot at him with incredible speed, just like lightning.


    Bang! A sound was heard as the spear of the other was being blocked. Somehow, the silver spear in Ye Futian��s hand was raised; it was almost undetectable. It collided with the other��s spear. Then, the assailant��s long spear broke into little pieces as he felt a chill in his throat, right where Ye Futian��s spear was pointing.


    ��Not bad.�� Wang Teng let out a compliment when he saw Ye Futian��s counterattack. It was so fast, and its technique was so flawlessly fierce.


    One strike was enough to kill the man.


    Ye Futian put away his spear as his opponent bowed and withdrew, sweat dripping down his forehead.


    ��Amazing.�� The people on the outside also saw this incredible display. In other areas, the winners quickly emerged. In such a narrow space, victory or defeat was only a matter of seconds. After someone won, all anyone saw was Nie Jiu��s spear, like a black shadow, pierce his opponent��s arm. He then threw the other out.


    On the battlefield, only three people remained in just an instant, which was exactly what everyone had anticipated before the battle. These three people ought to be the strongest three out of the lot.


    ��You two, see which of you can contend with me, ��Pei Yao of Yuanshi Palace said as he looked at Ye Futian and Nie Jiu.


    Nie Jiu glanced at him, then smiled contemptuously. He then looked down at Ye Futian and said, ��Forfeit.��


    He wanted to see how powerful the God-Punishing Spear from Yuanshi Palace was.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at the two men in the sky above. He raised the silver spear in his hand, and then he moved.


    In an instant, he had turned into a silver shadow!


    Suddenly, Nie Jiu felt a strong sense of danger, and his black long spear was on the move. In an instant, countless destructive spear shadows appeared in the void, and every spear shadow contained an astonishing aura of destruction, burying this void. They stabbed straight at Ye Futian. It was as if he couldn��t care so much about restraining the attack at this moment, ready to slay his opponent.


    However, he wasn��t able to do that, after all. The silver light flashed and was gone, but the long black spear in his hand exploded and shattered as the silver light directly pierced his arm. Although it was only a prick, bright red blood began to seep from his arm.


    Nie Jiu was stunned. He then saw Ye Futian��s spear shake as it slapped him out of the battlefield. He turned around and looked at the last man remaining��Pei Yao of Yuanshi Palace.


    Pei Yao looked at Ye Futian with shock and surprise. Clearly, he hadn��t realized what happened just now with that spear strike. But he wasn��t the only one. Wen Donglai, Wang Teng, and the others did not have time to react before Ye Futian��s silver spear was on the move again.


    That stunning strike carried a gleam of silver light with it and headed toward Pei Yao like silver lightning.


    Boom�� An astonishing aura descended as if the seal would be shattered. A phantom appeared, like a divine soldier. It dealt a blow of Divine Retribution and carried that world-destroying might to slay that silver light.


    The stream of light flashed and disappeared, and the light of Divine Retribution was penetrated completely. It was as the silver spear fell at Pei Yao��s throat. There was still no hesitation when Pei Yao��s spear was destroyed.


    The battle ended in an instant.


    Before any of the spectators had a chance to react, and while all the cultivators out there were still so stunned they were speechless, the battle was over.


    On those faces, there were surprise and shock. All of their eyes were fixed on the battlefield.


    Wen Donglai, Wang Teng, and the cultivator from Yuanshi Palace looked at everything that happened in front of them, full of amazement. They wondered, Was that it? Was it over already?


    What had happened?


    Ye Futian ignored the expressions on everyone��s face as he put the silver spear away. He walked next to that divine arms and stretched out his hand out to hold it. He looked up in the direction of Wen Donglai and asked, ��Can I take it now?��

 Chapter 2551 - Invitation

    Once Wen Donglai came to his senses, he looked at Ye Futian with a keen look in his eyes.


    Each of those men had been defeated by just one blow!


    No matter which one it was, whether Pei Yao of the Ancient God Clan or Nie Jiu, who may have come from the Dark World, each submitted after just one strike. What spear techniques could do that?


    Or rather, Ye Futian��s spear techniques were no longer just purely as spear techniques, but an absolute suppression based on the comprehension of the Great Path. The result would be the same, whether he replaced the weapon with a sword, a blade, or a halberd.


    ��Of course,�� Wen Donglai responded. Ye Futian vanquished each enemy with a single strike, achieving final victory in the shortest amount of time. The divine arms would belong to him this time.


    ��Thank you.�� Ye Futian took hold of the long spear and proceeded to leave. Many bystanders were very surprised by his behavior. They thought that he was cold and standoffish. They had no idea who he was or where he came from, but his strength was indisputable.


    ��One moment, if you please.�� A voice called out to Ye Futian, and he stopped as he turned around to look. Those eyes under the silver mask were haughty and frosty. The man who called out to him was Wang Teng of the Wang Clan from the City Lord��s Office.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly, waiting for the other man to speak.


    ��Silver Spear Changkong.�� Wang Teng said with a smile, ��I am Wang Teng of the City Lord��s Office. I have never heard of your name before, but you shouldn��t be such an unknown character, judging from your cultivation. May I ask where you are from?��


    ��Wang Teng of the City Lord��s Office, a cultivator in the Tribulation Plane.�� Ye Futian maintained a look of calm on the outside, but his mind was beginning to turn. The significance of the once-a-century Tianyan City Armorer Competition had long surpassed the competition itself. In the name of this event, the City Lord��s Office was able to call on all the enchanting figures from everywhere, whether it was those who participated in the top Armorer Competition or other competitions. They were all powerful cultivators beyond description.


    Furthermore, the City Lord��s Office in Tianyan City had been able to absorb powerful individuals based on their reputation as the number one power in the armory. Of course, it was far from enough for an Ancient God Clan to simply rely solely on their name in armor-making. Strength was the only and true foundation. Because of this, the principalities within Tianyan City had been striving for growth for many years. In addition to their direct line of descendants, there were many other visiting elders and guests. Among all the Ancient God Clans in Divine Prefecture, the Wangs of Tianyan City was definitely one of the topmost powers.


    Ye Futian was quite clear about all of this while he was making inquiries in Tianyan City.


    Wang Teng belonged to the main line of the Wang family, who ruled the City Lord��s Office. He absolutely had the authority to recruit anyone he saw fit to join the City Lord��s Office. In Tianyan City, as in the Ancient God Clan of the West Imperial Palace, the various factions within the City Lord��s Office had a competitive relationship.


    ��A casual cultivator, that��s all. The whole world is my home,�� Ye Futian replied. His voice sounded low and hoarse.


    ��A casual cultivator? ��Wang Teng was stunned. ��To defeat the cultivator from the Ancient God Clan with one strike is definitely not something that can be accomplished by anyone who cultivates on his own.��


    Ye Futian��s eyes were cold, and he frowned beneath the mask. He said, ��If elder has nothing else, I��ll bid my goodbye.��


    With that, he turned to leave. Wang Teng knew that everyone has his own secrets, which he would not be so nosey as to probe, especially with such a powerful character as the one in front of him. He continued, ��Your combat effectiveness is extraordinary, and this silver spear was made by master Wen himself. Its strength needs no further description. It is now suitable only for you. However, as your cultivation becomes stronger, you may need a stronger divine arm in the future after you survive the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.��


    Ye Futian stopped his forward footsteps. ��What exactly do elder want to say?��


    ��Nothing, just want to invite you to be a guest at the City Lord��s Office to watch the Armorer Competition there.�� Wang Teng did not state his purpose out in the open, but it was pretty obvious, and Ye Futian would have guessed it right away.


    The people around him understood everything very well. It seemed that Wang Teng wanted to recruit Ye Futian into the City Lord��s Office.


    A man with such extraordinary combat effectiveness was indeed someone worth recruiting. The invitation to participate in the ceremony as a guest was a tried and true pretext.


    ��Don��t worry. Rest assured, if you ever want to leave, you can leave any time. The rules of the City Lord��s Office are known to everyone in Tianyan City,�� Wang Teng continued. After all, Ye Futian was not the only person to be invited. If the City Lord��s Office in Tianyan City had ever detained the others without their consent, their reputation would have been tarnished a long time ago.


    Furthermore, during an important occasion, such as the Armorer Competition, that took place only once every hundred years.


    Ye Futian pondered for a moment. He believed what Wang Teng said and that the City Lord��s Office would not force such things on others.


    The problem was that there was a certain risk linked to him going to the City Lord��s Office. If his true identity were to be found out, it would be very dangerous for him.


    The advantage was that if he could get into the City Lord��s Office, it might be possible for him to gather more information from the inside, such as which forces wanted to ally with Tianyan City against Ziwei Segmentum. This way, he could form a more specific strategy for the future.


    Therefore, he was a little hesitant.


    However, from Wang Teng��s perspective, it seemed like Ye Futian was hesitating about whether to be part of the City Lord��s Office or not. He had no idea what Ye Futian was really thinking of was entirely something else.


    ��Fine.��


    Ye Futian nodded. After hesitating, he agreed. He believed that the chances were extremely slim for him to be exposed. Right now, countless many genius talents had come to Tianyan City for this major event, and he was but one of many. He did not deliberately befriend the City Lord��s Office, so no one could link him with Ye Futian.


    Then, the only thing that could expose him was if there was a flaw in his disguise. As long as he was careful, there shouldn��t be anything that could give him away.


    Furthermore, if Wang Teng wanted to recruit him, he would have to trust him. Wang Teng couldn��t do anything to him before the recruitment was successful. He was pretty certain they would treat him very well instead.


    Therefore, Ye Futian decided to go to the City Lord��s Office.


    ��The City Lord��s Office indeed cherishes talents and recruits talents from all over the world.�� Some cultivators from Yuanshi Palace next to him spoke, and their tone was not so friendly. After all, among the cultivators who were beaten by Ye Futian just now, there was that one extraordinary figure from Yuanshi Palace��Pei Yao.


    Then, Ye Futian was recruited by Wang Teng in return. Of course, Yuanshi Palace was not too happy about that.


    ��At this grand event, Tianyan City Lord��s Office invites people from all over the world to the office complex to observe the competition. Silver Spear Changkong has outstanding spear techniques, with incredible strength, and he definitely qualifies to be there at the competition.�� Wang Teng smiled and said, ��Don��t be a stranger. Let��s go together to the City Lord��s Office and sit down for some drinks?��


    ��No need. We haven��t had a chance to look around in Tianyan City, so we will not be bothering you for the time being. We will wait until it is the time of the event,�� the cultivators from Yuanshi Palace replied.


    ��Might as well.�� Wang Teng nodded. ��There are still three more days, and Tianyan City is quite vibrant at the moment. It��s worth taking a look around.��


    ��So long,�� the other man replied, and many people gave Ye Futian a look before leaving. In this case, even though they were defeated by Ye Futian with a single strike, it was not appropriate for Yuanshi Palace to take it out on Ye Futian. As the Ancient God Clan, Yuanshi Palace could not afford to shame themselves with any unbefitting behaviors.


    Watching them leave, Wang Teng said to Wen Donglai, ��Brother Wen, I will be leaving now.��


    ��Very well.�� Wen Donglai nodded.


    ��Please.�� Wang Teng gestured to Ye Futian, and Ye Futian levitated into the air and said, ��Elder, you first, please.��


    Seeing the change in Ye Futian��s attitude, Wang Teng smiled now and said, ��Let��s go together.��


    After that, the group of them left together. Wen Donglai, watching them depart, thought that Wang Teng had successfully recruited someone marvelous.


    ��


    Tianyan City, City Lord��s Office, was like a city of gold, extremely magnificence.


    There were so many golden halls erected that the entire complex appeared to be golden at first glance. Ye Futian didn��t invade anywhere inside with his divine consciousness, so as not to offend some people. But even just observing with his eyes, he could see many places of armor-making. In the inner hall of the armory, there was an open courtyard. When they first entered the City Lord��s Office via air, they saw many people busy making armor and weaponry, and they could hear the sound of metal clashing intermittently.


    ��In the City Lord��s Office, normally the disciples in the complex do not have their own independent armoring palace. They can either make their armors in a public armoring palace, or they can do so out in the open. More important disciples have better places to making armors. Those who are at the core have their own palace that is equipped with an armoring palace,�� Wang Teng explained when he saw that Ye Futian was very interested in everything inside the City Lord��s Office.


    Ye Futian nodded. This was to be expected. Every principality had its hierarchy.


    ��The elder said that the City Lord��s Office has even stronger divine arms. The silver spear I obtained is already a divine arm of the first tribulation. How many people in the City Lord��s Office can make divine arms of the second tribulation?�� Ye Futian asked in a straightforward manner without beating around the bush, quite in line with the personality he demonstrated.


    ��It��s not so easy to make divine arms of the second Tribulation? There is only a handful of those in the entire City Lord��s Office who could make divine arms in the second tribulation.�� Wang Teng smiled and did not respond to Ye Futian��s question directly. He continued, ��But, the City Lord��s Office has been collecting divine arms made by generations of top cultivators. In the City Lord��s Office, there is no shortage of divine arms of the second tribulation. The Wang family of Tianyan City has been here for countless generations. It��s not difficult for the City Lord��s Office to take out a divine arm of the second Tribulation.��


    When he was saying that, he looked at Ye Futian as if he was suggesting something.


    ��Understood.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��This time, many top principalities in the Divine Prefecture will probably come to the Armorer Competition.��


    ��Naturally,�� Wang Teng said with a proud voice, ��this is a fest for our Tianyan City that happens only once in every century. It is one of the biggest events in the Divine Prefecture, and few other feasts can surpass it unless it was something hosted by Donghuang Imperial Palace. Otherwise, all over the land of the Divine Prefecture, not many forces influence Tianyan City.��


    Although his tone was proud, he was also speaking the truth. The status of Tianyan City in Divine Prefecture was without a doubt. It was, after all, the first holy land for the armory in the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded and did not continue to pursue an answer. He was now inside the City Lord��s Office. In time, he would know what principalities came to the City Lord��s Office in the next few days.


    ��This time, Princess Donghuang will come in person as well,�� Wang Teng said.


    ��Will the Princess come here in person?�� Ye Futian asked. ��I heard some rumors from the outside before, but it was only that Donghuang the Great��s personal disciple��Spear Emperor Du You��will be here.��


    ��Uh-huh.�� Wang Teng nodded, ��The Princess is confirmed to come to Tianyan City in person. The City Lord��s Office wants to gift divine arms to the Princess, and the Imperial Palace accepted it.��


    ��So, that��s it.�� Ye Futian finally understood. Tianyan City wanted to invite the Princess to attend this great event but had no way of asking her directly, so they made a present of invaluable divine arms as the price for the Princess to attend.


    They made a gift of divine arms to the Princess, but it was as if the Princess had done Tianyan City a favor by coming, which spoke volumes of their respect for her!

 Chapter 2552 - Probing

    Chapter 2552: Probing


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Wang Teng placed Ye Futian in a stand-alone side hall next to the palace where he resided. With Wang Teng��s status, he was already at the top of the City Lord��s Office. He was the master of an entire branch. He had his own complex of palaces that were under his direct jurisdiction.


    Ye Futian was invited by him to come to the City Lord��s Office. If Ye Futian later agreed to enter the City Lord��s Office and become a visiting cultivator, he would be considered part of his team.


    The place assigned to Ye Futian to stay was very spacious, with its independent cultivation court and maids waiting on him every day as long to help him with daily tasks. This was considered a very generous treatment. Ye Futian was definitely the topmost Renhuang here aside from those cultivators in the Tribulation Plane; he had defeated Pei Yao with just a single strike.


    Such an enchanting genius talent ought to be recruited at all cost. If Ye Futian could be used by him, thought Want Teng, it would be most excellent.


    After making all the arrangements for Ye Futian, Wang Teng left and told Ye Futian to ask him if he needed anything.


    This massive palace seemed quite deserted, as there was only Ye Futian and the two maids.


    The cultivation of these two maids was not weak either, and they were good-looking with attractive figures. As a top power of the Ancient God Clan, even their servants were of a superior level to most.


    Ye Futian looked at the two and saw the two maids bowed as they asked him, ��Sir, do you need anything?��


    ��No, I will cultivate for a while, and you can go about your own business for now. Just don��t disturb me while I cultivate,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Yes,�� The two maids bowed again, then made themselves scarce without saying anything more. They were clearly aware that Wang Teng��s guests would be no ordinary folks, and all they needed to do was wait for his orders.


    After the two left, Ye Futian came to the cultivation court in the main hall. He checked his surroundings with divine consciousness first before he set up a seal to ensure his privacy. He then took out a mirror in which Xi Chiyao appeared.


    ��Have you arrived in Tianyan City?�� In the mirror, Xi Chiyao looked at Ye Futian and asked. He mentioned before that he would be coming to Tianyan City.


    ��Yes, I��m here now.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��I��m also in Tianyan City, and I haven��t heard anything about you. It��s because you used an alias, didn��t you?�� Xi Chiyao asked. Ye Futian was a sensitive subject. If he came in person, it would no doubt cause a great sensation, and everyone in Tianyan City would definitely know.


    ��I��m at the City Lord��s Office,�� Ye Futian replied.


    When Xi Chiyao heard Ye Futian��s reply, curiosity appeared in her beautiful eyes. City Lord��s Office?


    ��You are too daring.�� Xi Chiyao looked at Ye Futian with a smile. She asked curiously, ��How did you manage to get in?��


    ��13th Flight,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��You are Silver Spear Changkong?�� Xi Chiyao��s beautiful eyes were full of surprise. She laughed and said, ��I was just amazed how such a powerful character popped up in Tianyan City from nowhere and defeated Pei Yao of Yuanshi Palace with a single blow. But it was you!��


    Obviously, Xi Chiyao had heard about the happenings at the 13th Flight, but she didn��t make the connection with Ye Futian. After all, not every powerful person that emerged would have something to do with Ye Futian.


    ��It was me.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Do you have any news?��


    ��Nothing useful. However, more principalities are coming this time than I thought. The Princess and Spear Emperor Du You ought to be here to represent Donghuang Imperial Palace. Perhaps this is also one of the reasons,�� Xi Chiyao said.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Any suggestions?��


    Although Xi Chiyao was a woman, she was incredibly bright. Ye Futian knew that from all his interactions with her, so he wanted Xi Chiyao��s opinion for reference.


    Hearing Ye Futian��s words, Xi Chiyao appeared thoughtful. ��Ask Wang Teng to let you observe the process of armor-making and see who arrived at the City Lord��s Office. At the same time, see if you have a chance to figure out the stance of the City Lord��s Office and whether or not they are inclined to attack the Ziwei Segmentum. If the Wang family has no such intentions, you can remain silent and stay in the shadows, watching quietly. If you think the Wang family might agree to attack Ziwei Segmentum, then it means a battle was all but certain.��


    ��If it is the latter, with an inevitable battle looming, then you must be the first one to make a move. Find out who will be involved and strike first to destroy them. Then, if you have the opportunity, derail the Armorer Competition in Tianyan City. If they have already decided to form an alliance, then the Armorer Competition this time is some kind of an announcement and must be suppressed. However, it is not easy, and it will expose your true identity, which is extremely dangerous for you.��


    Ye Futian nodded. It was indeed very crucial to find out where Tianyan City stood on the matter. If the City Lord��s Office had no intention to invade Ziwei Segmentum for the time being, he could afford to wait and deal with Tianyan City later. On the other hand, if the other was harboring thoughts of malice, then war was unavoidable. If he could suppress them and lower their morale, it would be ideal, but he would need to take action to achieve that goal personally. Xi Chiyao understood this, which was why she said it would run the risk of him being exposed and bring danger upon him.


    ��Understood,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Well, be careful. If there is any news, I will let you know,�� Xi Chiyao said.


    ��Thank you,�� Ye Futian replied, then put away the mirror and lifted the seal. Ye Futian sat there with his eyes closed, deep in thought.


    How powerful would imperial arms be? Could it shake up the entire Ziwei Segmentum?


    In the City Lord��s Office, there were complete imperial arms. Complete imperial arms meant that imperial-level divine arms were infused with the will of the Great Emperor. So, what could something like that be described? The guqin Yearning that he possessed had just a wisp of the Great Emperor��s soul, but the guqin itself was not imperial-level; it was just something that had been used by the Great Emperor.


    Only the physical body of the Shenjia the Great Emperor could be regarded as a divine object comparable to imperial arms. However, the physical body of Shenjia the Great Emperor lacks the will of Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    A complete imperial arm was the equivalent of the existence of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s will kept within the physical body of Shenjia the Great Emperor. How powerful would the eruption of such destructive force be? Ye Futian didn��t even dare to think about it.


    Many years ago, he was able to use the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to slay cultivators in the Tribulation Plane. If he could now urge the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor, not many who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path would be able to fight him.


    Therefore, Ye Futian was still very cautious.


    Ye Futian didn��t think much on the matter and settled down to cultivate.


    In the morning of the next day, Wang Teng came to the side hall on his own to seek out Ye Futian.


    ��Changkong, are you finding everything to your liking here?�� Wang Teng asked with a smile. His bearing was extraordinary.


    ��Very suitable for cultivation,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��The armorer competition is about to begin, so it has been quite busy these days as I have to receive cultivators from all over the world. That��s why I did not have the time to come see you yesterday. I have some time today, so how about I take you for a tour around the City Lord��s Office?�� Wang Teng said.


    ��Very good,�� Ye Futian nodded. He was going to propose that when Wang Teng suggested it, which saved him some trouble in asking.


    ��Please,�� Wang Teng said. Then a group of them walked outside. Many cultivators on the side were looking at Ye Futian. With someone of Wang Teng��s position, status, and cultivation, to treat Ye Futian in this manner, he obviously attached great importance to Ye Futian. This was Wang Teng himself displaying his stance.


    To value Ye Futian so much was probably because of the two impressive strikes he dealt at the 13th Flight.


    The Wangs of City Lord��s Office in Tianyan City was the first dynastic family of armory in Divine Prefecture. City Lord��s Office in Tianyan City was the most powerful place of armor-making in Divine Prefecture. If Wang Teng were giving Ye Futian a tour of the City Lord��s Office, it would naturally be visiting the areas of armor-making.


    They came to an armoring palace in the City Lord��s Office. It was scorching hot and full of flaming aurae, like a furnace in the ground, and the entire palace was blazing red.


    ��The temperature alone is terrifying.�� Ye Futian stood inside and thought that if any Renhuang with weaker cultivation were here, he would be incinerated.


    Many people were busily working; some were casting while some were tempering, and some were carving matrixes. The sound of metal clashing was heard continuously. Many cultivators bared their upper bodies and were covered in sweat.


    ��Don��t think that they are just making weapons. For the armorers, it is actually cultivation of sorts.�� Wang Teng said, ��This is the largest armoring palace in the City Lord��s Office. It can hold 108 armorers making armors at the same time every day. The Great Path Flames underground was arranged by the City Lord himself.��


    When they came to the second floor, they could see the entire process of the armor-making below. Besides them, there were other cultivators.


    Wang Teng greeted many people. Some looked at Ye Futian, smiled, and asked, ��Silver Spear Changkong?��


    ��Yes,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��We have heard of the battle at the 13th Flight, but unfortunately, we didn��t witness those amazing spear techniques,�� one person said with a smile; they were also a member of the Wang family.


    ��Defeated Pei Yao with one strike?�� another person asked, their eyes focused on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian realized that this man was someone he actually knew��Jiang Qingfeng, the cultivator from the Ancient God Clan of Jiang, who had fought him once. At this moment, his eyes seemed to fill with intent to battle.


    Ye Futian was not interested, but he stood there, locking eyes with the other man, as traces of fighting will permeated from him as if to answer his challenge.


    Wang Teng watched quietly as this was taking place. He gave a smile and said, ��Let��s go and visit some other places.��


    Only then did Ye Futian retract his aura and leave with Wang Teng.


    When they walked out of the armoring palace, Ye Futian asked, ��Who was that man?��


    ��Jiang Qingfeng of the Ancient God Clan of Jiang from the Taishang Domain, really strong. My guess is that he wanted to try it out with you.�� Wang Teng smiled and said, ��I saw that you have a pretty strong fighting will yourself; could Jiang Qingfeng be a threat?��


    ��He couldn��t,�� Ye Futian said with cold arrogance. Wang Teng laughed and said, ��You are bold enough.��


    ��Which top forces in the Divine Prefecture have arrived in the City Lord��s Office?�� Ye Futian asked opportunistically. He exhibited his fighting will to pave the way to ask this question so it would not appear out of place.


    ��Many have come.�� Wang Teng said, ��You have seen the Haotian Clan from Nantian Domain, Infinite Mountains from Boundless Domain, Celestial Worthy Mountain, and the Ancient God Clan of Jiang from Taishang Domain. There are also some other principalities, such as the Shen Clan and the Sun God Mountain. Even the Domain Chief��s Manors from Western Sea Domain and Donghua Domain have arrived.��


    Ye Futian listened quietly but laughed coldly inside. Among these principalities, many had grievances with him in the past, such as the Shen Clan, Celestial Worthy Mountain, Sun God Mountain, Domain Chief��s Manors from West Sea Domain, and Donghua Domain. These forces must be the ones that most wanted to see him dead, which accounted for their proactive stance.


    ��What about other forces? Why are these the only forces that are here?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Many forces have settled in Tianyan City outside the City Lord��s Office. These forces came directly to the City Lord��s Office to discuss some other matters,�� Wang Teng replied.


    ��Discussing the Armorer Competition?�� Ye Futian asked deliberately.


    ��No..�� Wang Teng smiled and shook his head. ��You will know in a couple more days!��

 Chapter 2553 - The Armorer Competition

    Ye Futian followed Wang Teng touring inside the City Lord��s Office for a few hours before returning to the hall where he was staying. During this time, Wang Teng had been showing off the cultivational resources of the City Lord��s Office, enticing him to join him as his subordinate.


    Wang Teng had no idea that the man in front of him had a lot of history with the Wang family and would never agree to enter the City Lord��s Office to cultivate.


    In these few hours, although Ye Futian did not get a definite answer, he had acquired a lot of information and had a vague idea of the stance employed by the City Lord��s Office.


    Taking advantage of the feast, the Wang family was very likely to use it as an opportunity to attack the Ziwei Segmentum to enhance the reputation of Tianyan City in the land of the Divine Prefecture.


    This probability was so high that he was forced to prepare for the worst-case scenario in advance.


    Ye Futian took out the mirror, and suddenly a figure appeared on the other side of it. This time it was not Xi Chiyao, but Lord Chen.


    ��Palace Lord,�� Lord Chen called out.


    ��Lord Chen, go to the Divine Prefecture, the land of the Shen Clan, and wait for further instructions; in addition, dispatch the lords of the three places of Ziwei, Heavenly Mandate, and Wangshen to Fusang Domain, where Sun God Mountain is located. Tell them to await instructions. Then, they are to destroy the Shen Clan and the Sun God Mountain and bring their most core and key commanders back to the Ziwei Segementum. They have to be alive, and this must be done quickly once it��s underway.�� Ye Futian said, ��Before any of you receive my instructions, do nothing, and you must be careful.��


    ��Very well,�� Lord Chen nodded. He did not ask any more questions but simply took the orders.


    ��Let��s get them going then,�� Ye Futian said. He then put away the mirror. He knew from Wang Teng that the people in charge of these two top powers were now inside the City Lord��s Office, and these two principalities had a long history with him. Their deep-seated dislike of each other was from a long time ago.


    According to Wang Teng, these two major principalities clearly wanted to form some kind of alliance. If so, once the City Lord��s Office announced its intent to move against the Ziwei Segementum, he would order his people on the two fronts to make their moves, taking advantage of the absence of their commanders.


    As for the other principalities, Ye Futian had no way of dealing with them for the time being. Ziwei Segmentum did not have such pervasive strength yet, and could only handle two forces at the same time.


    After making arrangements for everything here, Ye Futian continued to cultivate quietly and did not leave again.


    On the outside, as the armorer competition was about to begin, Tianyan City was becoming busier and livelier as people continued to pour in from everywhere. There was an unknown number of cultivators that had populated this ancient city.


    All of this seems to have nothing to do with Ye Futian. He stayed in the City Lord��s Office, cultivating quietly, and Wang Teng did not disturb him either. He had much preparation to make and many guests to receive now that powerful cultivators had begun to arrive inside the walls of the City Lord��s Office.


    Two days passed in a blink of an eye.


    ��


    In the year 10,100 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, Tianyan City ushered in their centennial feast by holding the armorer competition at Tianyan City.


    On this day, the entire Tianyan city was near the boiling point. Tens of thousands of people gathered not on the streets in the town but at the nine locations of armor-making as designated by the City Lord��s Office.


    And inside the City Lord��s Office, friends and guests gathered for the feast. Many of them were notable figures of the world, top cultivators within the Divine Prefectures, giant-level existence were all here in one place.


    The Armorer Competition at Tianyan City was indeed one of the grandest feasts in the Divine Prefecture. Unless it was Donghuang the Great personally hosting a feast to gather the powers of the Divine Prefecture, there was not much that could surpass the grand scale of the Armorer Competition in Tianyan City.


    More than half of the giant principalities in the Divine Prefecture have arrived. All the powers in the Divine Prefecture were willing to give Tianyan City this honor.


    There were no buildings here in the giant martial arts field inside the City Lord��s Office but a vast open space. At this moment, around this vast open space, there was also a sea of people, with throngs of cultivators.


    To the north, with its back against a high platform, there were many stairs. At the top of the stairs, many top figures from Tianyan City were sitting upon it; this was the highest seat.


    On both the east and the west side, there were long stretches of stands for cultivators who came from all sides. Of course, only the top forces were invited to observe the ceremony inside the City Lord��s Office. In addition, there were the direct forces under the command of the City Lord��s Office and some other guests they had invited.


    And the place in the middle, as surrounded by the three sides, was another huge open space. Inside, there were nine high platforms erected, and they were all prepared for armor-making.


    To the south, there was a straight road leading out of the City Lord��s Office.


    In the surrounding areas, there were many cultivators from the City Lord��s Office to work as crowd control and maintain orders. The sight in front of everyone was a grand and sumptuous occasion, a grand feast that was even more spectacular and impressive than any feast in ordinary palaces.


    Almost all of the top cultivators in the Divine Prefecture had gathered here.


    At this time, from a palace above the stairs on the north side, a group of people came towards this side. The person in the lead was clad in a golden robe, very authoritative. Those that were around him were also top cultivators.


    ��Greetings to the City Lord.�� On the left and right, many cultivators bowed to salute the man, and they were all cultivators from the City Lord��s Office. The man who was making the appearance was the City Lord of Tianyan. His eyes seemed to be golden, and his entire body seemed full of endless energy, with vigorous spirits.


    As he walked forward, everyone made way for him until he came to the main high seat, and he surveyed all those who were around.


    Many people stood up and said, ��Greetings to the City Lord.��


    The City Lord of Tianyan City put his hands together to the crowd and said, ��Everyone has come from afar to participate in the festivities here at our Tianyan City. The Wang family is very grateful for your presence. Please, take a seat.��


    The cultivators from various forces sat down as commanded.


    Suddenly, nine mirrors appeared in the sky above the City Lord��s Office, placed in different directions. Each of the nine mirrors aimed directly below, right on top of the nine platforms. Instantly, images appeared in those mirrors that reflected what was happening from those nine high platforms. That was the mirror image of the nine major armor-making areas in Tianyan City, each was full of people, and everyone was extremely excited, and it was all reflected here by the mirrors.


    At the same time, there seemed to be a strange aura that appeared in the sky above Tianyan City. Above the firmament, a mirror screen appeared as if hanging from the sky, in the middle of the void.


    This mirror was suspended in the sky above Tianyan City. Anyone standing below it could immediately see everything that was happening inside the City Lord��s Office when they looked in that mirror. In that magnificent projection, they could see all the giant figures who were in attendance.


    Whether it was in the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan city or outside on the nine major armorer competition platforms in the city, both inside and outside the City Lord��s Office could be seen clearly, so all could witness this grand event together.


    In Tianyan City, the crowds were extremely ebullient as countless people talked and discussed those sitting on the high platform inside the City Lord��s Office, who they were, where they came from, how many giants had arrived, and who was who in the cultivation world.


    The cultivators from the West Imperial Palace also arrived and were sitting inside the City Lord��s Office because they were invited. The Palace Lord of the West Imperial Palace and Xi Chiyao were present. Looking at the grand scene in front of them, Xi Chiyao��s beautiful eyes looked towards the main high seats as if she was searching for something. Or someone


    Ye Futian, who was invited by Wang Teng into the City Lord��s Office, would he be here?


    Sure enough, she found a man among the mighty throngs of cultivators within the City Lord��s Office.


    There were not many cultivators from the main branch of the City Lord��s Office who were sitting at the main seats. Obviously, Wang Teng had a place. He took a group of people to sit in one direction while Ye Futian was sitting behind Wang Teng, extremely inconspicuous. If no one looked carefully, they would not be able to find him at all.


    At this moment, he was wearing a silver mask, with his aura retracted. There was no sense of his existence that could be detected. But Xi Chiyao had already inquired about Silver Spear Changkong before, so she recognized him immediately.


    However, Xi Chiyao only took a quick look before redirecting her attention so as not to make others noticed what she was looking at and cause unnecessary trouble to Ye Futian.


    ��Congratulations to Tianyan City for holding the Armorer Competition.�� Outside, there were other top forces still coming, and the mirror screen above the sky was projected high above the sky.


    ��Who are these people?�� someone asked.


    ��The Domain Chief��s Manor from Taichu Domain; they have just arrived,�� someone replied.


    ��There are quite a few Domain Chief��s Manors that have come to attend.�� Many were astounded by the sheer number of people they saw.


    ��I beg your pardon. We are a little late.�� Another voice was heard as groups of cultivators poured into the City Lord��s Office, and those from the main branch of the Wang family in the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan greeted him personally.


    ��Chief Taishang is here as well. Hurry up and usher him in,�� Tianyan City Lord said loudly, surprising many people. Even the Chief of Taishang Domain Chief��s Manor had come in person; this chief was known to be a mighty man.


    None of them had ever attended the armorer competition.


    It seemed that it was all because representatives from the Imperial Palace might also be attending the feast.


    Distinguished guests continued to descend, and all of them were well-known figures. Tianyan City was boiling over because of the sheer excitement of it all.


    At this moment, divine light descended from the firmament, blinding everyone��s eyes. Along with the descendants of the divine light, a group of people appeared above the City Lord��s Office, making countless people tremble.


    Who dared to appear above Tianyan City��s City Lord��s Office like this? They could already guess it. Besides Donghuang Imperial Palace, who else dared to make such a bold entrance?


    Indeed, in the sky above the City Lord��s Office, a beautiful figure wearing a phoenix robe was there, surrounded by a dazzling light. Who else could it be other than Princess Donghuang? The man next to her had superb comportment; it was as if he was a heavenly divine spear himself. This was none other than the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, the divine general of the Imperial Palace, Spear Emperor himself, Du You.


    At this moment, all the cultivators in the City Lord��s Office stood up and bowed slightly to the void. ��Greetings to Your Royal Highness,�� they said.


    ��Tianyan City is incredibly honored by Her Royal Highness�� presence here,�� Tianyan City Lord said with a smile. Princess Donghuang looked down below and nodded slightly to everyone, ��Today is the Tianyan City Armorer Competition; we are here at the City Lord��s invitation to take a look. Everyone, please, as you were.��


    ��Princess, please take a seat,�� Tianyan City Lord said as he pointed next to him. There was a row of seats on equal setting with him, specially prepared for the guests from the Imperial Palace.


    After all, today was the feast of Tianyan City. As part of the Ancient God Clan, the Tianyan City Lord was held in extremely high esteem in the Divine Prefecture in both status and position. He was not under the command of Donghuang the Great, so he didn��t need to display the subservience as a subordinate. As long as he paid enough respect to the representatives from the Imperial Palace, it would suffice.


    Princess Donghuang nodded slightly, then her group of people moved towards the space below and settled on the seats prepared for them. Princess Donghuang sat in the middle, with Du You on one side and several other strong cultivators on the other side. All of them were surrounding her.


    Behind the crowds, Ye Futian observed all this quietly. This kind of show of force was almost the same as the alliance that had gathered to encircle and suppress the Heavenly Mandate!

 Chapter 2554 - The Ignoration from Du You

    After the arrival of Princess Donghuang, the Lord of Tianyan City��s smile became even bigger. This Armorer Fest was the grandest one in the past thousand years.


    ��Your Highness, you look even more noble now. Every time I see Your Highness, I can��t help but be pleasantly surprised,�� said someone sitting on the side with a smile. The tone he used to speak to Princess Donghuang suggested he must be in an unusual position, too.


    It was the chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Taishangi Doman, a senior who once followed Donghuang the Great. Donghuang the Great established Domain Chief��s Manors after unifying the world, and this chief from the Taishang Doman used to be an extraordinarily powerful cultivator under Donghuang the Great.


    Even the Lord of Tianyan City had to show respect to him if they met. This was his first time to take part in the Armorer Fest held in Tianyan City.


    Looking at Chief Taishang, Princess Donghuang said, ��Master, now that we are acquainted, we don��t have to stand on ceremony. You can just call me Diyuan.��


    ��Your Highness, I��m flattered that you recognized me, but I won��t allow myself to behave rudely to you,�� said Chief Taishang with a smile. Diyuan was Princess Donghuang��s name.


    Her full name was Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Diyuan!�� Ye Futian was surprised. Donghuang Diyuan.


    He had been ignorant of the name of Princess Donghuang, which seemed a little strange to him when he heard it. He wondered why Donghuang the Great had named the princess ��Diyuan.��


    Xia Qingyuan also had the character ��Yuan�� in her name.


    Not only Ye Futian, actually, few people knew Princess Donghuang��s name. After all, people all over the Land of the Divine Prefecture had to address her as Your Highness. As spacious as the land was, Donghuang the Great was the only person that could call her by her name.


    Therefore, except for some aged people and those in key positions in the imperial palace, Donghuang Diyuan��s name was almost unknown.


    ��Your Highness, almost everyone is here. Shall we start now?�� the Lord of Tianyan City asked Princess Donghuang.


    ��I am just an onlooker. The Armorer Fest is the fest of Tianyan City. I wouldn��t meddle. Lord, you are the only person who gets to make decisions here. Please pretend I am not here,�� said Princess Donghuang in a plain tone.


    ��Okay.�� The Lord of Tianyan City nodded. Then, looking at the crowd, he said in a loud voice, ��Her Highness came here in person for the Armorer Fest. And so many friends came from all over the Land of the Divine Prefecture to offer congratulations and watch the competition. This is the grandest fest ever held in Tianyan City. Therefore, everyone, hopefully, you will satisfy my expectation in the upcoming Armorer Competition.��


    ��There will be ten rounds in this Armorer Competition. In the first nine, Renhuang from level one to level nine will be forging weapons in nine courts. The best armorers on each level in each court will go to the City Lord Office for the tenth round, which is the final of the Armorer Competition.��


    ��You will get a prize as long as you get to the City Lord Office. Or you can choose to join the City Lord Office and cultivate and forge weapons there. In that case, you will have the best cultivation experience and enjoy the best weapon forging environment.��


    ��In the tenth round, everyone that goes to the City Lord Office will forge weapons at the same time. Only the best performers on each level will be chosen for the final competition. Of course, besides the nine levels, we also have cultivators on the Tribulation Plane. They have a free pass to the final in the City Lord Office.��


    The crowd was quite thrilled by the speech of the Lord of Tianyan City. The notable Armorer Competition, which was held only once every 100 years, would take place soon. As to the rules, they already knew them well.


    Only a few people, including Ye Futian, had not been very clear about the rules. That being said, thanks to the City Lord��s explanation, he already learned that nine competition courts had been set up in Tianyan City, and the best Armorers from each court would gather in the City Lord Office.


    Then they would compete against each other in the City Lord Office despite their different levels. Those on lower levels certainly would not defeat those on higher levels, but even so, their great skills would be seen.


    ��Now, I declare the start of the first round,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City. Sound waves were transmitted across the air and vibrating on the mirror screen in the sky. Then they carried across the whole city.


    Numerous Practitioners were immediately motivated and excited. They looked up at the mirror screen in the sky while those in the nine competition courts were gazing at the vast central open space in each court.


    There was staff from the City Lord Office managing the nine courts, too. They would judge whose newly forged weapons were the most powerful and decide who was the winner to go to the City Lord Office.


    At this moment, many master armorers walked out of the crowd to the center of the nine courts. The first round was for armorers on the level-one Renhuang Plane.


    All of the nine courts were wide enough to hold many Practitioners, so they could forge weapons at the same time. Besides, armorers who had the nerve to take part in the Armorer Competition were extraordinary because average ones would not want to show their incompetence in public. And there were not many gorgeous armorers in the first place. As a result, those nine courts were more than enough to hold all practitioners interested in the Armorer Competition.


    Due to the mirror screen in the air, the interior and exterior of the City Lord Office seemed to have merged into one, and even the entire Tianyan City seemed to be one. People in the city could see not only the situation of the nine courts but also that of the City Lord Office.


    In the City Lord Office, many top-level people were looking at the nine platforms that corresponded respectively to the nine courts. They did not need to lift their heads. The images on the nine platforms were even clearer. They could see everyone forging weapons sitting in the City Lord Office.


    Of course, those overlords could cover the nine courts with their divine consciousnesses.


    ��It��s starting.��


    The armorers that had gone to the center of the courts had already started. They were preparing their own Armory Zones, in which things necessary for the forging had shown up, including all kinds of devices, treasures such as the Black Iron of the Great Path and meteorites, and all sorts of powerful Flames of the Way. Those things could all be seen on the screen.


    Even laypeople would be thrilled at the sight of the grand occasion.


    Ye Futian, standing behind the powerful cultivators in the City Lord Office and watching the competition quietly, was also stirred. His ambition was to turn the Ziwei Segmentum into the number one alchemy force, but what he saw made him realize he had a long way to go to achieve that.


    And the Alchemy Palace of the Ziwei Segmentum had a long way to go. Such a goal would not be fulfilled overnight unless he refined some top elixirs to enhance the influence of alchemy. However, given the weapon forging strength of Tianyan City, they were not a rival at all. They would need a lot of time to catch up.


    However, the Ziwei Imperial Palace was governing countless Practitioners, among whom there must be some talented alchemists with the potential to be a master. He figured he should really tell Daoist Monk Mu to find as many of them as possible. When the occasion arose, he could also hold a fest like this to recruit talented people into the Alchemy Palace of the Ziwei Imperial Palace so that no talent would be wasted.


    It was a question of environment, and Tianyan City had the best environment for armorers. He would make the Ziwei Segmentum the best environment for alchemists. As the first step, he would tell Daoist Monk Mu to go in that direction after this event was over.


    That Daoist monk schemed against him, so he had to make the man work harder than others.


    The Lord of Tianyan City glanced at the nine courts with a smile. In his eyes, the tenth round, which would occur in the City Lord Office, was the most noteworthy. The other rounds were just a start.


    ��I heard Du You, the Spear Emperor, had proved his path and gone through his tribulation. It��s really my pleasure to see the direct disciple of the Great Emperor here today,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City to Du You, the Spear Emperor. He was just chitchatting.


    ��It��s my pleasure, too, City Lord.�� Du You looked very calm. He seemed a little aloof. Although the person he was speaking to was the Lord of Tianyan City, a top overlord in the Divine Prefecture, Du You, as the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, did not have to feel inferior.


    Besides, he had met all sorts of people.


    ��Have you found any suitable weapon for yourself after the breakthrough? You know, the 13th Flight of Tianyan City makes really good spears.�� The Lord of Tianyan City looked at the rear of the crowd while speaking. Wen Donglai from the 13th Flight was here, too. He reported to the City Lord Office, so it was natural that he watched the competition in the crowd there.


    ��Wen Donglai, do you have any divine weapon that the Spear Emperor deserves?�� asked the Lord of Tianyan City.


    ��Yes, I do. If the Spear Emperor wants, I can also make a new one based on his needs,�� said Wen Donglai.


    ��It��s okay. I am not short of divine arms. But thank you all the same, City Lord,�� responded Du You in a plain voice. As the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, he was not short of divine arms indeed. However, Donghuang the Great had never allowed him to use divine arms in a battle. Instead, he kept telling Du You not to use any of them because that was the only way to master the purest powerful spear methods.


    ��Well, of course.�� The Lord of Tianyan City said with a smile, ��The imperial palace is surely not short of divine arms.��


    ��Wang Teng, it��s said there was a gorgeous spearman in the competition hosted by Donglai a few days ago. Did you invite him here?�� asked Wang Teng, the Lord of Tianyan City.


    ��Yes, father.�� Wang Teng nodded. Looking back at Ye Futian, he said, ��Changkong uses a silver spear. His spear skill is so fantastic that he defeated all opponents with one blow. He won the divine weapon with ease.��


    ��Nice to meet you, City Lord.�� Seeing the Lord of Tianyan City look at him, Ye Futian nodded to salute him.


    ��Well.�� The Lord of Tianyan City also saluted him with a slight nod. ��Mr. Du is the direct disciple of the Great Emperor. His spear skill is outstanding. I don��t think he has any rival in the Divine Prefecture. It��s a rare opportunity that he is in Tianyan City. You can ask for Mr. Du��s instruction when the occasion arises so that you can improve your skill.��


    ��Practicing spear?�� Du You looked back at Ye Futian. He saw a silver mask and the penetrating look behind the mask. However, without taking Ye Futian seriously, he retracted his look after a quick glance.


    He certainly did not need to take Ye Futian seriously. That was just a man with a good combat force who wanted to join the City Lord Office. Fighting him would be against the way of spear.


    Ye Futian noticed the ignoration in Du You��s look. As a disciple of Donghuang the Great, Du You certainly would not care about a Practitioner from the Outer Realms.

 Chapter 2555 - Behind the Competition

    The Lord of Tianyan City seemed to have courted a rebuff. He darted Du You a glance, thinking the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great was really proud, but with a good reason.


    After all, Du You did not need to curry favor with anyone across the Land of the Divine Prefecture.


    The Practitioners of Tianyan City were more or less pissed off, but they did not show it.


    ��Nowadays, young heroes keep coming forth in large numbers. We have found several great talents in the first round of the Armorer Competition.�� Seeing Du You not responding to him, the Lord of Tianyan City looked at the nine platforms, where the nine competition courts were displayed.


    ��Yeah, it��s much better than 100 years ago,�� replied someone from the City Lord Office.


    ��The Divine Prefecture was still a chaotic world 400 years ago. The Great Emperor united the world and imparted the Way to the Divine Prefecture. After hundreds of years of recovery and the impartation of the Way, and the cultivation of various top forces, the young generation has benefitted a lot, and outstanding people keep showing up. They will certainly surpass the old generation,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City, subtly complimenting Donghuang the Great.


    But he also told the truth.


    The Divine Prefecture was left in chaos after those turbulent days. Too many powerful people died in the war. However, after the recovery in the past hundreds of years, another period of great prosperity was coming.


    Some great geniuses got killed in those turbulent days before they could reach their heyday. Many extraordinary people were destined to be unable to reach their peak.


    At this point, the Divine Prefecture was growing and becoming more and more powerful.


    ��I agree, City Lord. I bet there are many great talents in the City Lord Office of Tianyan City,�� said a man with a smile.


    ��Yeah, quite a few excellent young people have shown up in the past few years. You will see them in the Armorer Competition. Please don��t hesitate to instruct them if you have anything to say about their performance,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City with a smile.


    ��The City Lord Office is so skilled in making weapons. You really can be our master in this regard. I��m afraid we don��t get to comment on anything.�� Shaking his head, a man said, ��But I��m quite glad to see how grand this event is. With so much enthusiasm about weapon-making in Tianyan City, the Divine Prefecture will never be short of good armorers. That��s certainly not a concern for you. Tianyan City has contributed substantially to the weapon-making in the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��I��m flattered.�� The Lord of Tianyan City said, ��Besides me, everyone here is responsible for imparting the Way on behalf of the Divine Prefecture, too, and many outstanding people have been cultivated this way. They are the future of the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��We family forces might think more for ourselves, but the holy lands aiming to impart the Way in the Divine Prefecture are doubtless selfless. However, some people are trying to harm and destroy such forces now,�� said a man out of the blue, charging some subtle tension into the air.


    That sounded a casual comment, but he was obviously implying something.


    Ye Futian looked at that man in the crowd. He was from the Haotian Clan living in the Nantian Domain. It was a force of the Ancient God Clan.


    With a long history, the Ancient God Clan was not afraid of Ye Futian; thus, the man had made that comment in the Armorer Competition.


    So, Xi Chiyao was right. He was afraid those forces were using the Armorer Fest to deal with the Ziwei Segmentum. However, on the other hand, should he feel honored that various forces from the Divine Prefecture were taking the Ziwei Segmentum so seriously?


    ��I feel sorry for the Holy Land of Taichu, too.�� The Lord of Tianyan City said, ��Your Highness, the Holy Land of Taichu was eliminated. And the Taichu Saint Emperor died. It��s a big loss for the Divine Prefecture.��


    Donghuang Diyuan remained very calm. Some forces went to the imperial palace to ask for their help when the Holy Land of Taichu had just been eliminated. They wanted the imperial palace to eliminate the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��My father has a history with Four Corner Village, and he also has a promise to keep. Since he promised the Original Realm in the old days, it was inappropriate for him to meddle in. Besides, the Holy Land of Taichu and some forces of the Divine Prefecture discussed eliminating the Ziwei Segmentum befoe, plus the old grievances, it��s kind of a problem between the forces of the Divine Prefecture and Ye Futian. It��s also an ordeal for the forces of the Divine Prefecture,�� said Donghuang Diyuan in a plain tone.


    The forces of the Divine Prefecture wanted to subdue Ye Futian, but they got threatened by him instead. Therefore, they wanted help from the imperial palace.


    It was not out of good intention that those people wanted to kill Ye Futian. They simply wanted to loot.


    As to those extensive talks, they should not be taken seriously at all.


    Ye Futian��s identity had not got exposed yet when forces like the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm were fighting him, and he was regarded as a member of the Original Realm, which also belonged to the Divine Prefecture.


    However, what did those forces of the Divine Prefecture do?


    They intended to destroy the Heavenly Realm and rob the treasures of the nine regions, and they wanted to eliminate the Lost Clan, too.


    Did they do those things to impart the Way?


    Of course not. Those were just out of some selfish motives.


    The same happened when they wanted to eliminate the Ziwei Segmentum. Since it was out of selfish motives, they were in no position to drag the imperial palace into the fight with the justice talk.


    Princess Donghuang��s speech was quite thought-provoking. The word of Donghuang the Great was his bond. Since he promised he would never attack Ye Futian, he would not mind seeing the latter grow stronger, unless Ye Futian violated the rules of the Divine Prefecture, such as killing a lot of people, fighting the Domain Chief��s Manors of the Divine Prefecture, and declaring war on the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Enlightened Master said he would not meddle in the grudge between Ye Futian and the forces of the Divine Prefecture. It��s your problem, so don��t expect the imperial palace to solve it for you. Of course, if Ye Futian violates any rule of the Divine Prefecture, the imperial palace will certainly do something about it, and I will take his life away, too,�� said Du You in a cold voice. He seemed to be the odd man out there.


    The forces of the Divine Prefecture obviously all had their own plans. They were not affiliated with the imperial palace. Neither were they governed by the imperial palace directly. Therefore, they were all making their own calculations.


    Du You��s speech was not as friendly as Donghuang Diyuan��s. He even sounded a little harsh without giving face to any of the forces. Obviously, he was quite pissed off because those forces seemed to be asking for the imperial palace��s help, but it was actually a threat.


    Although he disliked Ye Futian, too, it did not mean he would be nice to those forces.


    ��That��s right, Your Highness. Ye Futian went too far by eliminating the Holy Land of Taichu. Crime doesn��t pay. He will be punished.�� The Lord of Tianyan City said in a plain voice, ��Let��s forget about this for now. It��s such a buzzkill. We will go back to it after the Armorer Competition.��


    ��Exactly. Let��s enjoy the fest now,�� echoed someone, looking back at the nine weapon-making courts on the platforms.


    Ye Futian heard everything. He was very quiet; it was as if all that had nothing to do with him. But his guess was kind of proved. It was exactly as Xi Chiyao thought��they would take advantage of the occasion of the Armorer Competition to talk about how to deal with the Ziwei Segmentum.


    So, Lord Chen and Jieyu should get prepared.


    That being said, everyone��s attention was still on the Armorer Competition. This fest aroused unbelievable enthusiasm in them.


    The first round of competition ended very soon. A winner was selected in each of the nine courts. Although it was impossible to be one hundred percent fair, it was quite fair already. Indeed, the second-best armorer from some court who got eliminated could be better than the best one from a different court. Such ��unfairness�� was inevitable.


    But in the end, the nine best armorers would go to the City Lord Office to have another round of competition. Not until then would there be a champion.


    Certainly, if any of those who had got eliminated were a really great armorer, the City Lord Office would notice and recruit him into it as well.


    The Armorer Competition went on. The winners of the nine courts were called into the City Lord Office and received by the City Lord. Some whose cultivation level was relatively lower were quite excited to see so many big shots in the City Lord Office.


    Those were the strongest ones in the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2556 - Something Unusual

    Chapter 2556: Something Unusual


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As the Armorer Competition continued, the cultivation of the participating armorers stepping onto the high platform was getting stronger, as well as the level of the divine arms and implements they produced.


    The mood of the entire Tianyan City continued to elevate. Even the top figures within the City Lord��s Office were becoming somewhat interested.


    One round of armoring took considerable time. Some were slow in forging and took a longer time. However, except for the tenth and the last round, the first nine rounds of forging were time-limited. Since they were in a competition, it was impossible to allow them unlimited time to forge endlessly.


    Tianyan City itself was the most powerful place for armor-making. Naturally, they would know how best to set the time limit.


    At night, in Tianyan City Lord��s Office, some implements had ascended into the sky, like the sun that illuminated the entire Tianyan City as if it was daytime. So bright it was that it was impossible to distinguish day from night.


    No one was surprised by this situation, however. For forces like Tianyan City, those top cultivators were more than capable of controlling the rotation of the sun and the moon, and there was nothing strange about any of that.


    ��What does the City Lord think about these master armorers�� abilities compared to the master armorers from the City Lord��s Office? In the tenth and final round of the competition, will the City Lord��s Office be able to win them all?�� someone below asked casually.


    ��Naturally, it��s not possible.�� The City Lord of Tianyan said, ��The Armorer Competition attracts top armorers from all parts of the Divine Prefecture every time, and many of the armorers from the outside are also extremely powerful. Although all of the armorers in the City Lord��s Office are top level, there has never been a complete victory in the past.��


    What they meant by total victory was referring to the competitions in various realms and to defeat everyone who was from outside of Tianyan City.


    Total victory was not so easy to achieve, however.


    ��Look, this person��s level of armoring is truly extraordinary,�� the City Lord of Tianyan said as he pointed his finger to a platform somewhere and landed on an image. Suddenly many people looked yonder and saw that in one of the nine major armoring arenas, there was an armorer who was different from all the others, and his level seemed to be superior to those around him.


    ��This person��s level is no less than the armorers from within our City Lord��s Office. This is the fifth round of armor, and four more rounds are remaining; there should be some more powerful people making themselves known later,�� City Lord of Tianyan continued.


    Everyone nodded as someone asked, ��Does the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan know of these powerful armorers?��


    ��I know quite a lot of them,�� Wang Teng replied. ��However, it is impossible for me to know all of the master armorers out there.��


    ��That��s true.�� The person who asked the question acquiesced and continued to watch the Armorer Competition.


    Round after round, the Armorer Competition continued. By the seventh round, figures in the realm of Upper Renhuang had begun joining in. The divine arms forged by them were implements of the Upper Renhuang level, and it was not something anyone would want to miss.


    In this round of competition, there were some powerful characters that the City Lord��s Office had been paying attention to already. After all, they were within the category of top armorers and watched closely by the City Lord��s Office as potential recruits. If everything went well, the City Lord��s Office would pay a large sum to attract them to become their armorers, as this was the primary purpose of the Armorer Competition.


    The people from the City Lord��s Office were paying attention to several arenas at once, of which there were several people they focused on.


    However, as the forging continued, they noticed that in addition to the people they were watching, some other notable figures had emerged at this time. Their forging capabilities were operated on a very high level, and they stood out in each of their respective arenas.


    More importantly, they didn��t seem to know any of these people.


    Many people from Tianyan City Lord��s Office whispered.


    They found that they had no knowledge of these new talents.


    The City Lord of Tianyan did not pay much attention to things like these normally, as they were tended to by some others in the City Lord��s Office. But he was astute enough that when he heard their whispers, he knew what happened immediately, that several strange and powerful armorers had made their presence known.


    It seemed that they were not fully prepared for such a surprise.


    People from all forces in the Divine Prefecture were scrutinizing those nine platforms and talking incessantly about what they saw. Although they did not know much about armoring, they understood the general gist just by observing. The few men unknown to the City Lord��s Office were also the ones followed closely by people from the Divine Prefecture. They had even made inquiries to the cultivators from the City Lord��s Office, who could only say that there were many talents in the Divine Prefecture and that they had never heard of these top armorers before.


    This kind of answer took many people by surprise.


    Unsurprisingly, those that they thought would perform well had forged very powerful divine arms, and they each became the champion in their own respective arena of competition. They would be invited into the City Lord��s Office.


    After the seventh round of competition, Tianyan City was totally on fire. The eagerness in the atmosphere reached a new height.


    Under the attention of all eyes from the public, the eighth round of the Armorer Competition continued, and countless people were waiting intently.


    At this moment, in the vastness of Tianyan City, with countless cultivators, it suddenly became a little quieter. Without the noise from before, the entire Tianyan City began to quiet down. Even those who were chatting lowered their voices as they dared not disturb the others.


    Everyone, whether they were in the nine major armoring arenas or looking up at the sky, was appreciating the excitement of this eighth round equally.


    The stronger the armorer, the more abundant the time was given. This was because they needed longer preparation time and for the actual forging. In return, the implements that they produced were way more powerful.


    As soon as the eighth round of the Armorer Competition began, the people in the City Lord��s Office zoomed in on the few people they were interested in. Those few, as expected, displayed incredible talents in their respective armoring arenas and did not disappoint. It was expected that they would be recruited into the City Lord��s Office and did not waste the efforts of arranging these people in different areas of competition.


    However, as the competition continued, their expressions became quite interesting. As the seventh round, several seemingly powerful figures emerged, and still, they were not previously known by anyone from the City Lord��s Office.


    But as the process of armoring continued, they became more and more aware that the level of armoring by these people was incredibly high, and they were extremely steady when they forged. Although they were not wowing anyone in decidedly astounding fashion, every step of forging was done perfectly without any signs of mishap. Naturally, everyone could tell just at what level these armorers were operating.


    ��This time, are there really so many powerful master armorers coming to Tianyan City to participate in this Armorer Competition?�� an old man asked. He appeared a little surprised. Previously, in the seventh round of the competition, there were already a few powerful figures whom they did not recognize.


    At this moment, they had appeared again in this eighth round, so how could they not be surprised?


    Moreover, their forging ability was definitely no less than the few people they were paying attention to. Their level was comparable to the top master armorers in Tianyan City Lord��s Office.


    More importantly, they had a feeling that this may not be their peak performance. At this moment, they were seeking to perform without fault, so they could make it to the next round and hopefully entering the City Lord��s Office to forge armors. If they exerted their full strength, they might perform even better than expected in the tenth round of the competition.


    ��There are not many top master armorers. Even in the entire Divine Prefecture, there are not many of them. Especially those top master armorers who also possessed an extremely high level of forging are even rarer.�� City Lord Tianyan said as if it had a meaning other than what he said, which cast a pall of mystery on everyone who heard him.


    However, was this just a coincidence? Or rather, there were many hidden master armorers in the Divine Prefecture.


    The Divine Prefecture was massive, and there were many powerful cultivators within. However, armorers at this level would not be completely unknown.


    In the City Lord��s Office, many people felt a subtle change in the atmosphere. Xi Chiyao looked at the images displayed on the nine high platforms, and a smile appeared at one corner of her mouth. In this case, things were going to be much more enjoyable!


    By the eighth round, the number of people participating in the Armorer Competition was far less than before. The number of participants in each round was steadily decreasing, but the time for each round of competition was constantly increasing.


    As time went by, finally, an extraordinary Renhuang implement came into being. It roared in the sky above the arena, brilliantly dazzling. Finally, some people began to produce implements successfully.


    Gradually, more people succeeded in making their implements. As expected, in addition to the few people that the City Lord��s Office was keeping tabs on, a few other unknown figures had also come to the fore. They became the champions in their arena, which meant that they would be coming to the City Lord��s Office as armorers.


    After this round of competition had ended, the atmosphere inside the City Lord��s Office finally began to change. From the joy at the beginning to the doubts that dogged them now, there was a shadow lurking somewhere, unclear and confusing.


    However, the City Lord of Tianyan appeared calm and nonchalant, as if he did not care much about it. He said with a smile, ��Excellent! If the eighth round is already this exciting, I don��t know what kind of performance to expect from these masters in the ninth round.��


    ��Surely, it won��t be disappointing,�� Xi Chiyao whispered with a smile, her eyes focused on the platform. Her words seemed to be full of suggestions.


    Ye Futian sat quietly in the crowd without saying a word. Those eyes under the silver mask were looking at the nine raised platforms. Obviously, he felt something unusual as well.


    However, no one could say exactly what was happening.


    Next was the ninth round of armor forging, which was also the last round before the final battle in the Armorer Competition. No one knew if similar circumstances would repeat themselves then.


    Ye Futian could see that the Armorer Competition this time had slightly exceeded the City Lord��s expectations. In their minds, they had a general idea about how the Armorer Competition would proceed, which should not have veered too far off course. But the current situation as it stood was clearly not within their expectation.


    In other words, things were far from how they had expected them to go.


    Deviation of this sort should not be underestimated. Deviations beyond their expectations often meant that something might happen which was outside of their control.


    This was a once-in-a-hundred-year grand occasion in Tianyan City, in which cultivators in the Divine Prefecture were invited, even those from Donghuang Imperial Palace. Her Royal Highness, Princess Donghuang, had attended in person. Obviously, the City Lord��s Office did not want anything unexpected to happen.


    Of course, they weren��t too worried. After all, with the strength of the Tianyan City Lord��s Office, they still believed that the situation was under their control. Even if there were some unforeseen surprises, it was nothing they couldn��t handle.


    ��The ninth round, let it begin!�� the City Lord of Tianyan proclaimed; even he was a little curious. What would happen in the ninth round of the Armor Competition that was coming up next?


    They could only wait and see!

 Chapter 2557 - Unexpected Outcome

    Meng Yan was a well-known master armorer whose cultivation was in the Nine-Realm of Renhuang. He was capable of forging top-level Renhuang implements.


    It had been many years since he made his name in the Tianyan Realm. The City Lord��s Office of Tianyan had been trying to recruit him and extended their invitations many times before to no avail. What he had always wanted to prove was that even without the resources of the City Lord��s Office, he could still become a master-level armorer, even to the point of defeating armorers at the same level from the City Lord��s Office.


    Armorers were proud sorts by nature, and Meng Yan was more so than the others. It was not that he was unwilling to enter the City Lord��s Office, but he wanted first to prove to himself that his armor-making was not done relying on the resources of the City Lord��s Office. He wanted to prove that he could defeat the masters from the City Lord��s Office by himself.


    He had been waiting for this opportunity, and now, this day was finally here.


    He would only go to the City Lord��s Office with the glory of having beaten their top armorers. Then, he would use the resources of the City Lord��s Office to continue improving himself, break through the shackles, and impact higher realms.


    At this time, Meng Yan stood in one of the nine major armoring arenas and began forging. To him, this had great significance.


    This was the ninth round of the competition. After this round, he would enter the City Lord��s Office and compete with top master armorers.


    Meng Yan looked to be about 40 years or so, with a chiseled face. His expression was calm and steady as he began arranging the area of forging. In his area, the temperature was extremely high, as blazing flames of the Great Path flowed within this space.


    Soon after, Meng Yan took out the materials he had prepared and began to get the fire ready to purify these materials.


    These materials were carefully chosen by him, and they were no common goods. Even so, impurities still had to be removed so the purification process would yield the most valuable parts of the materials.


    A burning red hammer appeared in his hand, and a scorching divine fire was flowing on the hammer as he began to pound on the materials to make his implement.


    Next to him, everyone else had started their forging as well. For a time, the sounds of metal pounding were the only sound to be heard.


    Armor forging was a process that was all about returning to the basics. No matter how strong a person��s cultivation might be or how powerful the implement would be, the initial steps were all about repeated pounding, which was the simplest and the most important.


    Not many participated in the ninth round of the competition, but they were a master-level figure, an elite master armorer. Tianyan City was holding its breath, watching intently at the last round of competition before the finale.


    Time passed little by little. In the quiet of Tianyan City, only the sounds of iron pounding seemed to be heard.


    The top figures in the City Lord��s Office stopped chatting mindlessly at this time. Instead, they focused upon the nine major arenas. The cultivators from the City Lord��s Office paid more attention to Meng Yan. Of course, they knew Meng Yan��s strength and his extraordinary ability in armor-making. If he could be further fostered in the City Lord��s Office, he would definitely forge sub-divine arms in the future. Ultimately, these were the kind of people they needed to recruit and someone who would definitely be a part of the City Lord��s Office.


    Therefore, they were looking forward to Meng Yan��s performance.


    Ye Futian was also paying attention. He had seen Blind Tie struck iron before, who was operating on a very high level, not necessarily any less than any of the participants here. However, ever since following him, Bind Tie had set aside armor-making. Ye Futian was thinking that once Uncle Tie had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, he might pick up armor-making again and forge Sub-divine arms.


    ��Every step that Meng Yan took so far was a sure bet. The intensity of purification, the timing, and the heat control are all perfect. He should be able to create top-notch implement, and no idea what kind of surprise he may give us,�� some top-level characters whispered, who seemed to favor Meng Yan above the others.


    ��In the ninth round of the competition, Meng Yan will probably seek predictability above everything else. As long as he doesn��t make mistakes, there will be no problem, so it was unlikely that he will be making implement that is too challenging,�� someone else commented, and everyone nodded in agreement. Since he had been advancing steadily, it was natural for him to wait until he could enter the City Lord��s Office first, then challenge the more difficult implement in the final showdown.


    ��Look at that man.�� Someone pointed to the armoring arena where Meng Yan was and said, ��The man behind Meng Yan seems to be pretty awesome.��


    Quite a few people noticed that behind Meng Yan, in an inconspicuous corner, there was a armorer in black. His technique of armor-making was noticeably extraordinary and superb.


    ��He is formidable.�� Many people in the City Lord��s Office were good at armor-making. After they saw the man��s technique, they knew he was exceptional.


    However, as for his specific level, in reality, that still needed time to be observed and determined.


    Following purification, it was melding of the materials and shaping. All the purified materials were combined in a certain proportion, then forged into the shape of the desired implement. This process was equally important as the other steps.


    The material ratio, temperature, and requirements needed to be extremely precise. The more powerful the implement, the higher the requirements. The slight neglect may lead to a considerable discrepancy in the strength of the implement, so mistakes had to be avoided at all costs. Otherwise, all the efforts expanded might have been for naught, which may directly cause the failure of the forging so that the end product was nothing more than a piece of useless junk.


    Time went on by little by little. Along with the process of fusion and shaping, everyone could see the kind of implements that these armorers wanted to forge.


    ��Meng Yan is forging a sword. As expected, he is playing safe,�� the man in the City Lord��s Office said.


    ��Who is the person behind Meng Yan?�� Many people in the City Lord��s Office shook their heads. Obviously, it was yet another powerful master armorer they didn��t know.


    ��His level may not be below Meng Yan��s,�� someone said. Judging from current circumstances, he was not at all outshined by Meng Yan. No matter which step of the armor-making, he had completed them equally perfectly.


    ��The key is still hinged on the vessel patterns and the process of fusion,�� someone continued. ��However, the implement he is making seems to be a cauldron��a black cauldron.��


    Even that flames of the Great Path seemed to be pitch-black in color as if it were a dark flame. That cauldron had an extraordinary feel to it. Once it was completed, it might be exceptional in every way.


    ��Meng Yan may not know,�� someone said.


    The armorer needed to devote himself to the process of forging without being distracted so as not to make any mistakes. With Meng Yan��s experience, he was unlikely to make such mistakes. He was completely immersed in his world with the forging, without being affected by the interference from the outside world.


    He had great confidence in his armor-making ability. As long as he could complete every step without issue, the implement he created would undoubtedly be the strongest in this arena. His goal was actually to be the strongest in all nine arenas; he intended to beat out the top master armorer from the City Lord��s Office among all the masters in the tenth round.


    This kind of intense self-confidence prevented Meng Yan from paying any attention to other people��s progress. He focused solely on completing his project step by step. And each step was perfect.


    But even as impeccable as this, some people were still concerned for him because a competitor was performing equally perfectly.


    Some of the top figures in the City Lord��s Office were paying special attention to the progress of these two at this moment; some even felt an unexplainable sense of nervousness.


    Slowly, some began to make engravings on the implements, incorporating the Great Path and imbuing the spirit.


    As time went on, some had finished their implements. However, the first to finish was not necessarily the most powerful. After all, the point of armor-making was on the quality of the implement itself.


    Gradually, these implements were completed one after another.


    At this time, Meng Yan exhaled a breath, long and deep. Then with a wave of his palm, a brilliant divine light suddenly rushed into the sky, as if it had pierced through the firmament. A divine sword flew up and chimed in the void. The divine glory that bloomed from it awed the world and made countless others sighed with wonder.


    All the people in the entire Tianyan City seemed to be attracted by this sword light.


    ��What a powerful sword!�� someone exclaimed. ��The rank of this item must be incredibly high.��


    ��No wonder Meng Yan is who he is. In the realm of Renhuang, he may be the strongest armorer in forging, no less superior than any of the master armorers from the City Lord��s Office,�� someone else said.


    When Meng Yan saw the sword he forged, a rare smile appeared on his face as well. He seemed to have strong confidence in the implement he had made.


    He looked in other directions and found that after he finished forging, the other armorers had basically finished their implements as well. Sure enough, no one else��s implements had a higher rank than the divine sword he forged. There was only one person who was not done yet.


    Meng Yan didn��t realize that in the City Lord��s Office and Tianyan City, some people who were experts at armoring, as well as those with great cultivation, had a rather solemn expression on their faces.


    ��Huh?�� Meng Yan, too, seemed to feel that something was not quite right. The next moment, a horrific aura permeated.


    Then, a black cauldron rose into the sky. Numerous black and terrifying dragons seemed to be carved upon this cauldron, their mouth opened wide to show their fangs, swallowing everything. The space suddenly dimmed as those black dragons seemed to come alive, swallowing the aura between heavens and earth and absorbing the essence of the sun and the moon.


    In an instant, the arena darkened, and the eyes of many sharpened as they stared at that cauldron.


    ��This���� The hearts of many cultivators palpitated, not understanding what was going on or why this implement would release such a terrifying aura.


    In the same arena, the brilliance released by many implements was suppressed and became obscured, except for the divine light released by the divine sword. It illuminated an area and seemed to be competing with the cauldron.


    It was clear to the people in Tianyan City that everyone else was now out of the game; only these two implements were qualified to compete for the first place.


    The eyes of the cultivators in City Lord��s Office who presided over this arena also sharpened slightly. They stepped into the void, staring at these two implements, and their hearts were extremely uneasy. Of course, they knew Meng Yan and knew that Meng Yan was the master armorer coveted by City Lord��s Office. Everyone was anticipating that he would eventually become part of the City Lord��s Office.


    But now, that was not necessarily the case anymore��


    ��Judge,�� the armorer clad in black, who had made the cauldron, said lightly. As soon as his voice fell, the light from the cauldron became more brazen, swallowing all other light. The light of the divine sword seemed on the verge of being suppressed as its chiming continued. Horrific divine light was puffed out from it, but it was still being overpowered.


    It seemed to have encountered a trace of suppression.


    Meng Yan��s expression changed. He sought to perform consistently, but others had forged implements that could restrain other divine arms.


    ��Master Meng Yan,�� the host said to Meng Yan as he raised his head and looked at the speaker. The man continued, ��This divine sword is extraordinary. Master Meng Yan��s standard is the same as always; on behalf of the City Lord��s Office, I welcome Master Meng Yan. However, in this armor-making showdown, Master Meng Yan��s divine sword is just a little lesser than the competitor��s.��


    As soon as this was said, the surrounding areas became extraordinarily quiet.


    Meng Yan had unexpectedly lost.


    Even Meng Yan himself was stunned. He looked at the two imperial arms in the void. Indeed, he had lost. It was not that he could not bear to lose, but it all felt a little surreal. He lost even before getting into the City Lord��s Office so that he was disqualified to participate in the final round inside the City Lord��s Office.


    This may be normal for the others, but it seemed to be a great irony for him.


    He had a strong desire for survival, which accounted for his reluctance to enter the City Lord��s Office to cultivate before. He wanted to prove himself first before becoming the most dazzling person in the Armorer Competition. But at this moment, he was reduced to being a side note to the others; what a joke.


    ��I lost!�� Meng Yan murmured. Although he couldn��t accept the reality of being defeat in his heart, the fact was right before his eyes, and he had to accept it.


    After saying this, he turned around and left, appear a little lost; his departing figure was full of bleakness. When the cultivators in the City Lord��s Office witnessed this scene, they felt equally complicated in their hearts. They thought that they might have missed a great master armorer.


    It was possible that Meng Yan might not enter the City Lord��s Office after all.


    No one could have anticipated such an event, but this surreal reality was in front of them.


    Except, who exactly was the winner?

 Chapter 2558 - Gathering at the City Lord’s Office

    The City Lord��s Office was very quiet at the moment, and many top cultivators were focusing at the arena on that side.


    If what happened in the previous two rounds were coincidences, with so many unknown master armorers exhibiting their strengths, could a powerful master, a total unknown, defeating Meng Yan in this round be just another coincidence?


    Such a person would definitely be very well-known. All forces would be vying for a top master armorer in the peak Renhuang level. Even if he continued to cultivate on his own, he would be highly coveted by every principality.


    But it was precisely such a person known to no one from the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City. They had never seen him nor heard of him.


    Was that even possible?


    Such probability was very unlikely.


    ��It all started from Upper Renhuang,�� someone spoke up, and everyone nodded. This anomaly really started from the seventh round of the competition, which was also the realm of Upper Renhuang. Then, the same thing happened again in the eighth and the ninth rounds.


    ��Meng Yan��s armor-making ability is not necessarily weaker than him, but he was overly confident. But he has reasons to be confident, except he did not expect a similarly powerful person would appear,�� someone from the City Lord��s Office said. Besides Meng Yan, none of them had expected this.


    After all, Meng Yan��s level in armoring was truly at the peak level of the Renhuang realm.


    Who would have thought that someone else would appear to compete with him? Someone who was equally strong as him?


    Meng Yan sought the safe route and didn��t expect his opponent to forge a powerful implement of divine arms. In turn, Meng Yan��s divine arms were suppressed, so he lost.


    Many nodded, agreeing with this observation. Indeed, Meng Yan��s forging ability was not necessarily lesser than that of the other, but still�� it was truly a pity!


    Such an awesome master armorer was eliminated thusly.


    ��Go and see where Master Meng Yan has gone, and invite him to come to the City Lord��s Office as a guest,�� a top figure inside the City Lord��s Office said. Immediately, someone took his order, along with several powerful people. They were all dispatched to look for Meng Yan.


    Meng Yan was proud by nature. This failure meant that he didn��t even have the right to enter the City Lord��s Office to make armors. Then, he might leave straight away, never showing himself in Tianyan City again, which meant never entering the City Lord��s Office to cultivate armoring.


    Judging from Meng Yan��s character, it was most likely that he would work privately on his cultivation in armor-making. It would not be until the day he could produce Sub-divine arms that he might emerge again.


    Those master armorers who had already arrived at the City Lord��s Office gathered together. They had seen that amazing showdown just now, and they were a little sorry for Meng Yan. If he came to the City Lord��s Office, he would have the same excellent performance in the City Lord��s Office.


    But now, he left with a sense of loss, a reputation of failure.


    ��Nine rounds of Armorer Competition are officially over. Next, we will wait for the competitors to enter the City Lord��s Office for the tenth and final round of the competition.�� At this time, the City Lord of Tianyan said, ��The decisive battle of the tenth round will see all the master armorers forging their weapons together. At the same time, from each realm, the City Lord��s Office will select a powerful armorer to participate in the competition. In addition, those of the Tribulation Plane who can produce Sub-divine arms are not required to have participated in previous competitions. They can go right ahead and participate in the tenth round of the Armorer Competition.��


    There are not many master armorers who were in the Tribulation Plane and capable of making Sub-divine arms. There were not many such existences in the entire Divine Prefecture. The kind of existences that could produce sub-divine arms certainly did not need to go through the prequalifying competitions.


    They were the topmost master armorers in the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Finally, they are coming.�� Many people were somewhat expectant. The tenth round of the competition would be held in the City Lord��s Office, and it was also the final showdown. All the most powerful masters armorers in different realms were gathering together and forging at the same time.


    Moreover, if they could emerge victoriously this time, gaining entrance into the City Lord��s Office aside, there would also be many rewards. Even if they did not choose to go with the City Lord��s Office, they had the option to enter other top forces and received support in their future cultivation by these major forces.


    No matter which realm it was, no one would want to miss a master armorer with superb potential.


    Therefore, the armor-making this time was even more important for people in the lower realms because it had a bearing on their future.


    As for the high-level armorers, they had already achieved fame and were respected by everyone, everywhere. No matter where they went, they were the center of attention. Of course, they also needed those giant-level forces to provide them with better resources to help them in their cultivation.


    Only when their realm of cultivation had been elevated could their ability be upgraded.


    Whether it was armor-making or alchemy, just with the talent for both was far from enough. The realm of cultivation was the foundation. Without cultivation, even the endowment of natural talent in armor-making and alchemy was meaningless because there was no way it could be realized.


    Ye Futian was watching everything happening in the crowd. The City Lord of Tianyan and other cultivators from the City Lord��s Office were calm and at ease. They did not exhibit the slightest alarm. However, they must have guessed it already, that there was probably a mysterious hidden force that was participating in the competition this time.


    The master armorers this time had shattered all of their expectations, with high probabilities that things may go in a direction they could not predict. In other words, they were no longer in control of the direction in which the competition might proceed. Even though they were the host of this competition, they could not change the rules now and bar them from participating in this round of the competition!


    In that case, Tianyan City would be discredited, and this centennial feast would become the butt of all jokes, to be ridiculed by everyone.


    Of course, as far as Ye Futian was concerned, he didn��t mind for the situation to evolve in this direction. Behind this feast at the Armorer Competition, there were plans targeting the Ziwei Segmentum. But now, with someone here to disrupt everything, he was happy enough to watch it all unveil.


    He even hoped that the situation would get a little more chaotic.


    Now, perhaps everyone was speculating who the actual principalities in the dark were.


    Ye Futian was also guessing.


    Who had such an incredible connection to mobilize a group of top master armorers to participate in the Armorer Competition?


    In the land of the Divine Prefecture, there was only one principality that may have this ability, and that was the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan.


    But the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan was the host of the feast. Therefore, the mysterious power in the dark may not be a power from the Divine Prefecture.


    So, who else could it be?


    The answer was right in front of them.


    Dark Court, Empty Divine Mountain.


    Only these two forces could mobilize top masters to come here to participate in the Armorer Competition. This also meant that the cultivators of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm had arrived on the land of the Divine Prefecture.


    Princess Donghuang and the cultivators from the Imperial Palace guessed as much. At this moment, the divine aurora in their eyes retracted inward. Who had come from these two major worlds?


    In other words, they were all here.


    Now, would they be so bold as to come directly onto the territory of the Divine Prefecture? That would be truly arrogant!


    However, without a ruse, one could not arrest and depose any of the powerful master armorers out there.


    Perhaps there were really some amazing unknown figures among them?


    This Armorer Competition seemed to be getting more and more exciting by the minute.


    All of Tianyan City was extremely looking forward to the tenth round of the competition.


    Many top figures in the City Lord��s Office were chatting while they waited. It didn��t take long before they saw people coming over in the direction from the south. They were the winners who emerged from the ninth round of the Armorer Competition.


    The land to the south was empty before, but gradually it was filled with more people who arrived later, and they were all people from the Armorer Competition, now reconvened there.


    When the winner from the ninth round of the Armorer Competition arrived, the inside and outside of the City Lord��s Office began to quiet down.


    The attention of many drifted toward the man in black, who was also the master armorer who defeated Meng Yan. Where exactly did he come from?


    But the other man��s expression was calm as he looked straight ahead, without showing the slightest sign of concern. The others were the same, standing quietly among the crowd. They were just cultivators who came to participate in the Armorer Competition.


    ��You guys get out there too.�� The City Lord of Tianyan said, and immediately, nine figures walked out behind him at the same time.


    Each of the nine persons corresponded to a realm, representing the highest level of armorers within the City Lord��s Office.


    They came to the opposite side of these people, separated by the nine raised platforms. This Armorer Competition was also a point of contact between the master armorers of the City Lord��s Office and the masters from the outside.


    At this grand event every hundred years, generally half of the winners were from the City Lord��s Office.


    ��Next, master armorers in the Tribulation Plane, both inside and outside the City Lord��s Office, may come directly into the City Lord��s Office by air.�� The City Lord of Tianyan announced loudly, and his voice could be heard throughout Tianyan City. He gave the greatest respect to masters armorers at this level by allowing them to enter the City Lord��s Office from the sky.


    Soon after, three figures walked out from both sides; all three were masters at the level of Tribulation Plane. Such figures were extremely rare, but because it was the largest armoring event in all of Divine Prefecture, they were here as well.


    Outside, high above the sky, two figures appeared there, then landed on the ground. They came over and bowed slightly to the City Lord of Tianyan, saying, ��Greetings to City Lord Wang.��


    ��The grandmasters had come from afar, and it has been a long journey.�� The City Lord of Tianyan continued, ��If there is anyone else, please come forward.��


    A while after his voice faded, another person appeared in the sky above the City Lord��s Office; the temperament of this man was also incredibly transcendent. When he appeared, the cultivators from the City Lord��s Office inquired about his identity, but no one recognized the man.


    They knew the five people who appeared, but no one knew this master armorer.


    There was a degree of seriousness now in the City Lord of Tianyan��s eyes as he looked at the man, only to see him landed and saluted in the direction of the City Lord of Tianyan. ��Armorer Mu Yan greets the City Lord.��


    ��Mu Yan!��


    No one had heard of this name before.


    ��Where does the grandmaster come from?�� the City Lord of Tianyan asked.


    ��I came to participate in the Armorer Competition; it doesn��t matter where I��m from.�� Mu Yan responded. The City Lord of Tianyan looked at him, but it was impossible to question him further. He turned to look at a young man in the back and said, ��You too, go out.��


    ��Yes.�� The man nodded, then stepped forward. At this moment, in Tianyan City, countless people��s eyes looked at him through the mirror image in the sky. This, then, was that extremely enchanting figure, long hidden by the City Lord��s Office. It was not until recently that Tianyan City became aware of his existence!

 Chapter 2559 - The Tenth Round

    Wang Xiao�� His name only became known recently. People who were already familiar with the Tianyan City Lord��s Manor might have heard of him. However, there were way too many outstanding and bright individuals in Tianyan City, so Wang Xiao��s presence wasn��t very noteworthy.


    But some time ago, a piece of news came out of nowhere. Apparently, Wang Xiao was the heir of the Tianyan City and inheritor of Tianyan the Great. He was the number one prodigy of the City Lord��s Manor.


    Without people even noticing, he had already entered the Tribulation Plane and was able to forge extraordinary Sub-divine Arms. He was far more outstanding than Wang Mian��the previously rumored heir of the Tianyan City.


    Wang Mian could only possibly be his aide.


    There was no sign of arrogance in Wang Xiao��s temperament. On the contrary, he appeared very amiable. He seemed to be just over 30 and wore a golden robe. He exuded an aura of wisdom and elegance, which made people feel that he was the heir of Tianyan City.


    ��Wang Xiao��the most outstanding Armorer of the younger generation of Tianyan City and the most outstanding cultivator. He perfectly received the inheritance of Tianyan the Great. When I retire, he will be the next Lord of Tianyan City. I hope everyone here will help him out a bit,�� Tianyan City Lord announced. Not only did his voice land in the ears of the people inside the City Lord��s Manor, but it also echoed through the entire Tianyan City.


    The Tianyan City Lord had formally announced Wang Xiao��s status to the world and unveiled his existence. Moreover, he had directly appointed him the head of Tianyan City and claimed that he had perfectly received the inheritance of Tianyan the Great.


    Clearly, Tianyan City intentionally chose this day to reveal this news to the world on this grand occasion to create momentum for Wang Xiao.


    With that, everyone throughout the land of the Divine Prefecture learned Wang Xiao��s name.


    This was also a sign of his complete faith in Wang Xiao. He had formally appointed him the city heir before the tenth and final round of the Armorer Competition. This meant that the Lord of the Tianyan City thought that he would surely forge the most powerful weapon or ritual implement in the competition. There would be no accidents, regardless of who his opponents were.


    All of the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture looked firmly at Wang Xiao. They understood that this person would become extremely important in the Divine Prefecture. He was already a Tribulation Phase cultivator now. If it weren��t for the deliberate concealment before this, he would have long made a name for himself.


    ��Being able to reach such a level of cultivation at such a young age and cultivate Sub-divine arms, the old City Lord has really hidden him well,�� a cultivator said with a smile.


    ��Wang Xiao focused all of his attention on being an armorer, and he spent most of his time inside the City Lord��s Office, rarely contacting outsiders. That��s why he was unknown until now. But today, everyone would know him. Wang Xiao��s gifts in armoring are far greater than mine back then, and he will surely surpass me in the future,�� the Tianyan City Lord said with a smile.


    ��If so, we��re all getting quite excited,�� that person smiled as he replied. This tenth round of ultimate armoring would surely be magnificent.


    ��Go,�� the Tianyan City Lord said. Immediately, Wang Xiao also walked forward. The old City Lord looked at them and said, ��All ninth-level cultivators will take the tall platforms. Tribulation Plane cultivators will execute the armoring in the air.��


    There were a total of seven Tribulation Phase cultivators, and they would be executing the armoring in the air.


    While the other ninth-level cultivators each occupied one platform.


    As his voice sounded, various cultivators immediately walked to the platforms corresponding to their cultivation level. At the same time, the seven Tribulation Phase cultivators levitated in the air and stood at seven different positions. One would have to raise his head to see them, but that made the competition even grander.


    Armoring in mid-air, only the Tribulation Plane cultivators received such treatment.


    On the nine tall platforms, there were ten cultivators. In the air, there were seven people. That made a total of 97 people.


    ��Announce the prize for the Armorer Competition this time,�� the Tianyan City Lord said.


    Immediately, an elder stood up from beside him and walked forward. He announced loudly, ��For this armorer competition, regardless of cultivation level, if a contender can clinch top three, he can choose to enter the City Lord��s Office and receive powerful resources. Even if he is unwilling to do so, he can still go to the City Lord��s Office to choose a batch of materials for armoring. Furthermore, they will also receive a powerful armoring method. Lastly, the ritual implements forged by the top armorer of each cultivation level will be bought by the Tianyan City Lord��s Office at three times the usual price. In other words, whichever grade ritual implement you forge, you can exchange it for three ritual implements of the same level. On top of that, we will be giving out a divine weapon that is one grade higher.��


    Everyone started to feel a little excited. This was certainly a grand prize, to say the least. The higher the cultivation level of the armorer, the greater his rewards when he obtained first place.


    For example, if a ninth-level Renhuang plan cultivator got first place, he would receive three peak-renhuang level ritual implements and a one-tribulation sub-divine arm.


    While a Tribulation level cultivator would already forge a sub-divine weapon, that meant that he would receive three one-tribulation sub-divine arms and one two-tribulation sub-divine arms. And that��s just the weaponry rewards, and there were still the armoring resources and methods.


    These were all extremely precious to armorers.


    Furthermore, they could also choose to enter the Tianyan City Lord��s Office. Even if they didn��t do that, they could enter any other top powers as they wished. As long as one could demonstrate his worth in this round of the Armorer Competition, their future paths would be bright and smooth.


    But that wasn��t easy, especially if they were aiming for first place. It would be even more difficult.


    ��There is no time limit for armoring this time. Everyone will have two chances for failure. If you fail two times consecutively, you��re out,�� the elder continued.


    No time limit, and giving the competitors freedom to forge what they want. Even if they failed, they got a second chance.


    Such lax rules allowed them to unleash their full potential and competencies in armory.


    Of course, these rules are mainly set for the Tribulation Plane cultivators.


    Individuals who had overcome the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path could require a very long time to forge sub-divine arms. It might not even be just one or two days, which was why this round of armory had no time limit.


    ��Seal the Armory Zone. Let��s begin,�� the elder said. Instantly, magnificent lights shone and isolated the Armory Zone from outside of the City Lord��s Office. This was to prevent disturbances from the outside when the competitors were forging their weapons. This would ensure the best armoring conditions, as well as intentional jeopardy to those with malicious intent, although the chances of that happening were very slim.


    When the sealing ring of light lit up and gleamed, all of the cultivators up at the nine tall platforms and the seven positions in the air started to move their hands instantly in preparation.


    At this moment, the entire Tianyan City became very quiet. Countless people raised their heads to look toward the Sky Mirror Screen in the void. There, the armoring in the City Lord��s Office was being projected. The best armorers have gathered together for this final showdown.


    The armorers that attracted the most attention were, of course, the seven cultivators forging their arms in the air, especially Wang Xiao, who had been the focus of the entire city since he was announced as the future heir of Tianyan City. Just how strong was this armorer who was capable of forging a sub-divine arm?


    Some people were also paying attention to the ninth-level master armorer who had defeated Master Meng Yan. Could he clinch first place among the ninth-level Renhuangs, defeat the extraordinary genius armorer from the City Lord��s Office, and obtain the sub-divine arm as his prize?


    Everyone held their breaths in suspense and anticipation over this grand showdown!

 Chapter 2560 - : The Unique Thing About Wang Xiao?

    Inside Tianyan City, where all was quiet, countless people looked up toward the sky.


    There, various powerful cultivators had already formed their Armory Zones and started to strike the armoring materials.


    Inside the City Lord��s Office was a notable Armoring Palace, where the Path Fire resided. If there were ready-made materials like the molded rough shapes of arms, they could be used to complete the armoring. However, a qualified armorer must be able to complete armoring on his own. And to do so, he must forge the Armory Zone and have a Path Fire. These were the foundations, which was why armoring could not be separated from cultivation.


    Cultivation level was the foundation of everything else.


    If the armorer��s level wasn��t high enough, and his Path Fire wasn��t strong enough, he wouldn��t even be able to smelt the higher-tier armoring materials, let alone execute the armoring.


    Wang Xiao of the City Lord��s Office. He��d been sharpening his sword for a hundred years, and this sword has to be extremely sharp, right? many people in Tianyan City thought. It had been 100 years since the previous Armorer Competition. Wang Xiao was probably old enough to remember things back then and could have witnessed the previous Armorer Competition.


    A hundred years later, he appeared in the eyes of the world directly as the heir of Tianyan City and the inheritor of Tianyan the Great. One could imagine that he would demonstrate incredible strength and capabilities in the competition this time.


    ��Look, a bizarre phenomenon is happening inside all of the Armory Zones.�� Someone looked in Wang Xiao��s direction. His Armory Zone looked like an armoring palace, where the Path Fire burned, and there was an enormous armoring furnace. Phantasms appeared behind him. These were fire phantasms that looked like his battle form. The actions of the phantasm fused into one with him and started to strike at the armoring material inside the flames.


    Within that space, a bizarre phenomenon arose, as though there was a divine palace of fire standing atop the celestial skies.


    ��That is the bizarre phenomenon that will only occur when a Tianyan City Wang Clan individual reaches the top in terms of armoring abilities. I didn��t think that Wang Xiao would already be able to do it,�� someone exclaimed. Everyone was waiting in anticipation to see what kind of divine weapon Wang Xiao would be able to forge.


    ��The City Lord claimed that Wang Xiao had perfectly received the inheritance of Tianyan the Great. Legend had it that when Tianyan the Great executed armoring in the Ancient Era, a divine armoring palace would appear in the skies. And when the god himself tempered the divine arm, the people of an entire land could hear and see it until the divine arm emerged,�� someone mumbled softly as waves of astonishment swept through them.


    Wang Xiao had the potential to stand atop the world. He had already shown potential akin to that of the Ancient Great Emperor. No wonder the Tianyan City Lord created momentum for him like that, directly announcing that he would be taking over his position in the future. That was absolute faith in Wang Xiao��s ability.


    ��Mu Yan is really strong as well,�� Someone looked in another direction. In the seven armoring areas in the air, there were seven Tribulation Plane cultivators, respectively. They pretty much attracted the attention of the vast majority of the people in Tianyan City.


    Mu Yan��s Armory Zone was similarly extraordinary. It looked like an armoring altar, giving people an uncanny feeling. But at that same time, it felt really powerful. At one glance, his armoring technique looked extremely frightening.


    Besides him, the other five Tribulation plane cultivators all had a remarkable performance. There were the top armoring masters from various areas of the Divine Prefecture; all of them could forge Sub-divine arms. They were all household names in their regions. The reason why they even entered this competition was because of the Armorer Competition of Tianyan City was the most influential armoring fest in the entire land of the Divine Prefecture.


    On top of this, they had the opportunity to obtain a Two-tribulation Sub-divine Arm.


    Most of the cultivators inside City Lord��s Office also raised their heads to look toward the seven Armory Zones in the ski. Xi Chiyao had her gaze fixed on Wang Xiao. There was a very serious expression in her eyes, and she could sense that Wang Xiao was really powerful.


    None of the descendants of the Ancient God Clans were mediocre, not to mention how the Lord of the Tianyan City was being so solemn and serious.


    Furthermore, one particular statement of the Lord of the Tianyan City made her a little worried.


    He said that Wang Xiao had perfectly received the inheritance of Tianyan the Great. That would mean that he was above the Lord of Tianyan City.


    Xi Chiyao was also an heir of an Ancient God Clan, so naturally, she knew a bit more about Ancient God Clans. If Wang Xiao was already able to��


    Hopefully, things haven��t reached that stage yet, Xi Chiyao thought to herself. But based on the Tianyan City Lord��s attitude and how he had introduced Wang Xiao at this juncture, as well as invited various powers to the Divine Prefecture and even the princess here, Xi Chiyao had a bad feeling.


    The possibility of that happening wasn��t small.


    If that were the case, Ziwei Segmentum would be in a bit of danger.


    ��It seemed that Wang Xiao had already locked in first place for the Armorer Competition this time,�� one of the Divine Prefecture Cultivators said. ��The bizarre phenomenon appearing in his Armory Zone indicates that Wang Xiao��s armoring had already reached an incredibly high level. I��m afraid it won��t be easy for the outsiders to get those four Sub-divine Arms.��


    The greatest armorer would, of course, emerge from the Tribulation Plane cultivators. The first place would bring away four Sub-divine Arms. But based on the look of the situation now, Wang Xiao would be doing it himself.


    ��It feels like I��m looking at the performance of the Ancient Armorer Great Emperor,�� a cultivator from an organization affiliated to the City Lord��s Office said. There was a bit of fawning in that comment, but it worked on the City Lord��s Office cultivators.


    The Lord of the Tianyan City said, ��Hopefully, he��ll be able to reach that step. Quite a few powers from the Divine Prefecture came this time. I know full well that you all have some objectives. After the competition has concluded, everyone can talk about it. Perhaps, Wang Xiao would be able to solve the problem for you.��


    The cultivators were all startled for a moment. Wang Xiao?


    He could do it!


    Xi Chiyao��s heart quivered. Did she, unfortunately, guess it right?


    Based on the hints shown inside Tianyan City, it was probably pretty close to the truth. Her guess was probably correct. In that case, she was starting to get a little worried for Ye Futian.


    She didn��t think that the Tianyan City Lord also had such intentions in introducing Wang Xiao this time.


    In such turbulent times, Tianyan City was planning to let Wang Xiao stabilize the current situation through shock and awe, to become the star of this chaotic period.


    No wonder there were rumors out there saying that Tianyan City was even eyeing the Donghuang Imperial Palace since the princess didn��t have a Path Companion for cultivation yet.


    If Wang Xiao was this outstanding, he indeed qualified to contend for the position. Of course, he had only just qualified for it.


    If Donghuang the Great wanted to pick a son-in-law, throughout the entire land of the Divine Prefecture, who could be compatible?


    ��No wonder the City Lord was so confident,�� someone said with a smile, ��If that��s the case, then we shall watch on in anticipation.��


    Previously, Master Meng Yan was defeated by a mysterious armorer in black robes, while mysterious yet powerful armorers appeared for three consecutive rounds since the seventh round. However, the Lord of the Tianyan City was a little surprised; it seemed like the situation was getting out of hand. But contrary to expectations, he had absolute confidence because of Wang Xiao��s existence.


    As long as Wang Xiao was the brightest armorer of this competition, everyone else wasn��t that important. Even if they lost in the ninth-level Renhuang division, they could make up for it. Wang Xiao��s brilliance would cover everything else and make people overlook the failure of others.


    Naturally, Ye Futian also heard what the Lord of the Tianyan City said. This statement seemed to be hinting at the trouble that he had brought to the powers of the Divine Prefecture.


    As he had expected, he and Xi Chiyao had guessed correctly, Tianyan City was still going to intervene in the end.


    He looked toward where Wang Xiao was.


    Could he solve it!


    As time passed, some of the divine arms were forged. The first to complete was an armorer from the lower ranking Renhuang ��division.�� Then, cultivators started to complete forging their divine arms one after another. Of course, some of them failed.


    Every armorer was given two chances this time, with no time limit. If they failed, they could try again. All of them wanted to forge a perfect ritual implement to win the Armorer Competition.


    The forging duration this time was longer for every single armorer. The first to finish was the first level Renhuangs. The staff from the City Lord��s Office showed the divine arm to everyone, and unleashed the power of the divine arm. Afterward, they announced the results. The winner was an armorer from the City Lord��s Office.


    The first victory was claimed by the City Lord��s office.


    While the results of the first showdown were being revealed, the seven great armorers in the air had just completed the smelting of the armoring materials, which was indicative of the difference in their levels.


    Indubitably, the seven most powerful armorers in the air would be the slowest, there was no telling how long they would take to complete the forging.


    But the audience cultivators weren��t in a hurry. This was already the final round, and the Armorer Competition was only held once every 100 years. It was such a grand fest that the people of Tianyan City were even unwilling for it to end so quickly. Every step taken by the top master armorers was like art to the audience, especially those interested in armoring; it was greatly attractive to them.


    There was no more day or night in the city; everyone��s attention was fixed on armoring, they forgot the time.


    One after another, the cultivators completed forging their weapons, all eight arenas concluded the competition and the winner had emerged.


    Of which, about half of the first-place winners were armorers from the City Lod��s Office. But, there was also a strange phenomenon. The first place of the seventh, eighth and ninth level Renhuang divisions wasn��t won by the armorer from the City Lord��s office. Instead, it was won by the mysterious cultivators from before.


    Furthermore, the ninth-level Renhuang division was also hazardous. The armorer who defeated Men Yan was also threatening the position of the armorer from the City Lord��s Office.


    Where did these people come from? Why are they so strong?


    But even then, through the ultimate showdown this time, one could see the dominating advantage that the City Lord��s Office has over the world of armory. If the mysterious cultivator didn��t appear, they could probably clinch even more number ones.


    The number one holy land of armory in the Divine Prefecture. They had the best armoring methods and the best armoring resources, so naturally, the armorers that they groomed were also the best.


    At the ninth level Renhuang division, the armorer in black robes was still forging his weapon. This time, he was also more serious. Compared to the clash with Meng Yang, he was even more serious. He had spent nearly three times the time, yet he still wasn��t done.


    Finally, the ritual implementation emerged. It was once again a Precious Cauldron. This seemed to be the thing he was best at forging. The quality of it this time was even better than before.


    ��He��s suppressing his opponent!�� When the audience saw this ritual implement emerge, they knew that he was going to win. The ninth level Renhuang from the City Lord��s Office was named Wang yu, he had also reached a high level of mastery in armory.


    But this time, he was going to lose.


    After all, previously, Meng Yan was already said to have the ability to win champion among the Renhuang plan armorers. Black robe armorer had defeated him to reach here, so it wouldn��t be a surprise if he won.


    As expected, the black robe armorer defeated Wang Yu and clinched a significant victory.


    This was the first place of the ninth level Renhuang division, and he would be receiving three peak-Renhuang divine arms, as well as a One Tribulation Sub-divine Arm.


    Unexpectedly, the City Lord��s Office lost in all of the key competitions in the seventh, eighth, and ninth level upper-rank Renhuang divisions and couldn��t defend the championship title. This made cultivators from the City Lord��s office lose quite a bit of face, but all they could do was swallow this defeat.


    This was the Armorer Competition. In front of the people of the Divine Prefecture, both victory and defeat were clear cut without contention. What could they do?


    Not only that, they had to announce the results joyfully, and then give out the precious prizes.


    Now, all that was left was the most important showdown between the seven powerful Tribulation Plane armorers. Even those who had already completed forging their weapons raised their heads to look toward the seven Armory Zones in the air, appreciating the sight of this ultimate armoring showdown.


    These seven Tribulation plane armorers had only just completed half of the steps in forging their weapons. Yet all of the seven Armory Zones had already turned into dominions of fire. Even their forging processes were pleasing to the eye of the audience.

 Chapter 2561 - Becoming Famous in a Day

    Tianyan City was quiet. The final battle of forging armor had been going on in the City Lord Office for many days.


    At this moment, a terrifying aura descended from the sky. Clouds of Catastrophe actually appeared.


    It was an Arms Tribulation!


    The cultivators in Tianyan City felt their hearts tremble violently. Even though they had long expected this moment, they were still excited to personally witness the Arms Tribulation. One of the seven Tribulation level cultivators had successfully forged a Sub-divine Arm.


    The final product was a thunder blade. It caused the Clouds of Catastrophe to contain terrifying lightning. As loud thunder rang, the light of catastrophe struck down and blasted frenziedly on the thunder blade.


    The armorer stood quietly as he watched his thunder blade get struck by lightning. After the tribulation was over, the might of the catastrophe lingered on the thunder blade. It gave off a bone-chilling vibe.


    ��He did it!�� exclaimed the cultivators in Tianyan City. A Sub-divine Arm had been successfully forged after undergoing the tribulation.


    However, there was no joy on the face of the armorer. He wielded the thunder blade, and an overbearing might emanated from his weapon, but he still shook his head as he glanced in another direction. Clearly, he was still unsatisfied with his product.


    Divine arms at the same level were categorized differently based on their qualities. Otherwise, there was no way to tell who was better at forging.


    Even though he had succeeded in forging a powerful Sub-divine Arm, he still felt that he had not surpassed himself. He was not strong enough. It was definitely impossible for him to claim the first prize. He might not even be one of the top three armorers.


    There were only seven Tribulation level cultivators. There was almost a 50 percent chance of being ranked in the top three. Not getting into the top three meant failure for them.


    Half a day passed. Clouds of Catastrophe once again gathered in the sky. Another armorer had forged a divine arm.


    Over the next few days, more and more Sub-divine Arms were forged. The Arms Tribulation appeared in Tianyan City five times consecutively. Their appearances caused the crowd to forget about the passing of time. They were in awe of the abilities of the top armorers. The divine arms that they forged experienced the Arms Tribulation without fail.


    Only two armorers were left contending. The crowd looked at the sky. In the Armory Zone, only two spots were left occupied. One of them was Mu Yan, the mysterious cultivator, while the other cultivator was Wang Xiao, the cultivator of the City Lord Office.


    The two of them were recognized as the strongest participants, yet their efficiency in forging was the lowest. They spent the longest time. Prior to this, two armorers failed once. They had to forge two times before they succeeded in getting their weapons. Nevertheless, the time they used was still shorter than that of Mu Yan and Wang Xiao. One could imagine how long Mu Yan and Wang Xiao had taken in forging their weapons.


    However, they should be nearing the end soon. The crowd could already see the rough shape of Mu Yan��s divine arm. He was forging a spear. The spear shone brilliantly, radiating golden light. Besides that, this spear was longer and thicker than ordinary spears. It looked like a divine spear that would be used by a deity. The product had yet to be completed, but the crowd could already sense the power contained within it.


    Spears were not a type of weapon renowned for their strength. However, the crowd could feel the powerful impact exerted by this spear. From the looks of it, it might be even stronger in other aspects. When completed, it would certainly be a powerful ritual implement with astonishing attack power.


    The divine arm that Wang Xiao was forging was a hammer. Similarly, it shone brilliantly with golden light. However, it also sparkled with flame. It was eye-catching.


    In the City Lord Office, a cultivator from the Divine Prefecture commented, ��This hammer that Wang Xiao is forging uses ten times the materials required to forge an ordinary hammer. But its size is the same as that of other hammers. After he refined it, he beat it repeatedly until it reached the size of an ordinary hammer. Moreover, the raw materials he used are extraordinary, to begin with. All of them are quite weighty. I can��t imagine how heavy this hammer will be after it is completed.�� Up until this point, the crowd could already figure out what the two armorers were trying to accomplish.


    ��This Mu Yan is also extraordinary. He also used a few times more materials than ordinary to forge his spear. The spear is longer, seemingly suitable for a giant to use. It is full of power. Could it be that both of them intend to win the competition with strength?�� someone else said.


    The crowd continued to enjoy the process of the two of them forging their weapons. They would know who was stronger sooner or later. Right now, they just needed to wait quietly.


    Both divine arms were not rare weapons. Hammers and spears were both rather ordinary weapons among divine arms. Clearly, both of them intended to win the competition through other aspects. And it could only be through the might of the weapon.


    Sometimes, it was not necessarily a good thing to go after complicated designs. It was equally impressive for experts to go back to the basics and aim for perfection in simple designs.


    Time continued to trickle past. Tianyan City became even quieter. Everyone could sense that the final two divine arms would soon be completed. All of them held their breaths as they stared at the sky.


    Finally, an unparalleled divine light shone down, blinding everyone present. The golden spear soared into the sky. The color of the sky changed as terrifying Clouds of Catastrophe churned and roared. The might it brought forth was far stronger than that of all the previous tribulations.


    After the Clouds of Catastrophe dissipated, the spear radiated with dazzling divine light. The other five armorers knew that they had been defeated. The might emanated by the spear was obviously far stronger than that of their divine arms. They could clearly sense the difference. It meant that there was a huge difference between the quality of the spear and that of their divine arms.


    ��This Mu Yan is good,�� someone said.


    ��He merged strength, space, killing intent, and Ways of different attributes into the spear. This spear is bestowed with extremely strong destructive power,�� someone analyzed. The space around the spear seemed to be on the verge of being torn apart. This spear had yet to be used by anyone. It could make others feel threatened with its divine light halo alone. Even the Tribulation level cultivators felt threatened by it.


    ��Is he a cultivator from the Empty Divine Realm?�� some top figures from the Divine Prefecture speculated. Was Mu Yan an armorer from the Empty Divine Realm?


    Nobody from the Divine Prefecture had ever heard of his name. Armorers differed from cultivators who focused purely on cultivation; it was hard for the former to be completely detached from the world. Hence, the possibility of Mu Yan being a cultivator who trained in seclusion was very low.


    It was more likely that he was from other worlds. He intended to dominate Tianyan City and acquire the divine arms through his performance in this Armorer Fest.


    However, would he be able to accomplish his goal?


    What kind of hammer did Wang Xiao have to make to defeat Mu Yan?


    Countless gazes landed on Wang Xiao. He was the only one remaining in this final battle of forging.


    Besides that, Wang Xiao��s product was close to completion.


    Right at this moment, the hammer floated in the Armory Zone. Wang Xiao had a serious expression as his entire body was covered in flame. A beam of light actually appeared from his glabella. Then, he pointed a finger at the hammer. An illusory figure of a deity immediately took shape behind him. The illusory figure actually charged towards the hammer and merged with it.


    Instantly, a 10,000 Zhang divine halo radiated from the hammer. Frightening might swept past the surroundings as thunderous sounds rang. The Armory Zone shook and disintegrated under the divine light. In the sky, the menacing light of catastrophe descended as the Arms Tribulation started.


    Everyone in Tianyan City felt their hearts quiver violently. Even top figures from the Divine Prefecture revealed surprised expressions as they looked at the figure in the sky.


    He was bestowing a spirit into the weapon!


    The audience could see that a beam of divine light surged continually into the hammer from Wang Xiao. Many phantasms of deities appeared in the surroundings and seeped into the hammer. When the light of catastrophe struck the hammer, it glowed even brighter and was not at all affected by the light.


    ��Wang Xiao can actually directly bestow a spirit into a ritual implement. From the looks of it, there��s no suspense in the result of this competition,�� a top cultivator from the Divine Prefecture said. Many people nodded in agreement. Wang Xiao was certain to claim the title of this Armorer Competition.


    Other top armorers also revealed bizarre expressions. Wang Xiao could directly bestow a spirit into a weapon. They couldn��t help but admit defeat.


    Mu Yan��s eyes narrowed slightly when he saw this scene. His gaze was fixed on what was happening. Even though his facial expression did not change, his emotions were perturbed. He took a glance at his divine arm. He felt that he was not any weaker than Wang Xiao, but he had a feeling he might lose.


    Finally, the Arms Tribulation was over, and the divine arm was successfully completed.


    The hammer floated high in the sky, emitting a dazzling halo. It seemed sentient as it unleashed pressure to suppress other divine arms. It seemed to be provoking other weapons.


    The golden spear responded to the hammer. Both weapons emanated terrifying divine lights. However, the hammer appeared smarter. It suppressed its opponent directly. The golden spear emanated menacing destructive light, causing the surrounding space to warp. Unfortunately, when faced with the hammer, the warped Great Path of Space was shattered. This caused the spear to retreat.


    This scene made it clear to everyone that the competition for number one was over.


    The winner of the Armorer Competition this time around had emerged.


    The winner was Wang Xiao from the City Lord Office!


    All the cultivators of Tianyan City revealed big smiles as they heaved a sigh of relief. Before this, during the competition among the high-level Renhuangs, they were completely suppressed by the outsiders. Therefore, they were determined to win this round. Otherwise, they would lose all face.


    ��Let��s announce the result,�� declared the Lord of Tianyan City. Immediately, cultivators from the City Lord Office emerged with the divine arms made. There was no need for a demonstration of the divine arms; all the cultivators could sense the difference in the strength of the divine arms.


    The names of the winners were announced one by one. It started with Level-One Renhuangs up until the Tribulation level cultivators.


    ��The final winner of the Armorer Competition this time around is Wang Xiao!�� When this announcement was made, everyone in the entire Tianyan City could hear it. The city burst into cheers. The handsome figure of Wang Xiao stood quietly in the sky. He remained indifferent as he was showered by applause. It was as though he didn��t care about this outcome at all. Or perhaps, in his opinion, him becoming the final winner was a certainty. Hence, nothing was surprising about the result.


    Wang Xiao was undoubtedly the best armorer. He had forged the strongest divine arm in this Armorer Competition.


    At this moment, Wang Xiao became the center of attention of everyone in Tianyan City. Many people adored him. He had won over the hearts of countless people in a day.


    In the future, Wang Xiao��s name would become even more renowned in the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Congratulations.��


    ��City Lord, congratulations. The City Lord Office has produced such an outstanding figure.��


    Congratulations and praises could be heard everywhere. They were all from top figures of the Divine Prefecture. The Lord of Tianyan City laughed heartily, which was hard to come by. He announced, ��As I have mentioned before, everyone who is ranked in the Armorer Competition will receive a reward. After this, someone will guide all the winners to choose their prizes in the City Lord Office.��


    ��City Lord, many thanks,�� many people thanked him while bowing slightly.


    ��Thank you too for gracing the competition. The Armorer Competition was lively because of your presence,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City. ��During this Armorer Competition, the City Lord Office also prepared a divine arm for the Princess. Wang Xiao was the head armorer.��


    Many people revealed strange expressions when they heard his words. Wang Xiao was in charge of manufacturing a divine arm for Princess Donghuang?


    Even though Wang Xiao��s ability was verified through the competition, shouldn��t the City Lord be in charge of manufacturing a weapon for the Princess since it was a project of the City Lord Office?


    If the City Lord and Wang Xiao collaborated in forging the divine arm, had the former purposely mentioned Wang Xiao and willingly assumed the supporting role?


    However, what the Lord of Tianyan City said next dispelled the doubts of the crowd. His words also caused everyone to be shocked.


    He said, ��Wang Xiao has perfectly inherited the teachings of Tianyan the Great. Currently, he is the only one in the City Lord Office who can communicate with the imperial arms. He can bestow imperial spirits into the divine arms.��

 Chapter 2562 - Wang Xiao, the Top Figure of the Divine Prefecture

    Wang Xiao inherited the teachings of Tianyan the Great. Besides that, he could communicate with imperial arms and bestow imperial spirits into divine arms!


    The City Lord��s words caused even the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture to feel their hearts tremble. Even though the giant-level figures had speculated about this, they were still slightly shocked when they heard the verification from the City Lord. Their gazes were all fixed on Wang Xiao.


    He was the only one who could communicate with imperial arms in Tianyan City. Even the Lord of Tianyan City did not have this ability. This meant that Wang Xiao had received recognition from Tianyan the Great himself.


    From today on, Wang Xiao officially joined the stage of the Divine Prefecture. With his ability to summon imperial arms, he would become the next leading figure in the Divine Prefecture. Even now, he was considered unrivaled.


    Once he summoned imperial arms, nobody beneath the Great Emperor level stood a chance against him.


    The crowd had a better understanding of his exceptional performance during the Armorer Competition.


    Countless people in Tianyan City cheered excitedly. Prior to this, many people snorted decisively when they heard the rumor of Wang Xiao intending to become the son-in-law of Donghuang the Great. They felt that it was unrealistic. However, right now, they had a vague feeling that the rumor might not be completely unfounded.


    Wang Xiao was actually really outstanding.


    He was the top figure in the Divine Prefecture who could communicate with imperial arms.


    ��Everyone, please follow me to pick your rewards.�� The Lord of Tianyan City ordered someone to lead the winners to claim their prizes. The various cultivators would be led into the City Lord Office to pick their prizes. The City Lord didn��t say anything even though some cultivators had mysterious backgrounds among the winners. Regardless of where they came from, as long as the cultivators joined the Armorer Competition and were ranked, the City Lord Office had to recognize and reward their talents.


    ��Many thanks, City Lord,�� the winners said while nodding. Then, they followed the guide and went into the office.


    Wang Xiao didn��t follow them. He was the successor of the City Lord Office. In the future, he would own the entire office. There was no point in him picking any of his divine arms as a reward.


    After the cultivators left, someone from the Divine Prefecture looked at Wang Xiao and the Lord of Tianyan City and said, ��Not long ago, a few major incidents took place in the Divine Prefecture. Firstly, Ye Futian committed a massacre in the West Sea Domain. He killed many cultivators in Yingzhou City. Then, he eradicated a holy land of cultivation. He has been breeding enmity with various forces in the Divine Prefecture since long ago. If we wait and allow his forces to grow bigger, he might pose a threat to the various forces of the Divine Prefecture. Now that the various cultivators of the Divine Prefecture have gathered here for the Tianyan City Armorer Fest, shouldn��t we discuss how to deal with this threat to the Divine Prefecture?��


    It had finally begun, thought Ye Futian, who was among the crowd. As expected, they had come because of him. As the Armorer Competition came to a close, they were about to cause trouble for him.


    ��That��s right. We should use this opportunity to discuss how to conquer the Ziwei Segmentum together,�� said Chief Xihai, who was also present. ��Ye Futian��s identity is special, and he is full of schemes. In the future, he might attempt to overthrow the Divine Prefecture. The Great Emperor was merciful and did not want to attack a junior for old time��s sake. He allowed Ye Futian to develop and forbid the Imperial Palace from interfering as well. However, we cannot allow Ye Futian to develop any longer. The Domain Chief��s Manor of both the Donghua Domain and the West Sea Domain were massacred by Ye Futian. A holy land of cultivation was also destroyed. Ye Futian cannot be left alive.��


    ��The forces of the Divine Prefecture have gathered here in Tianyan City. Today, with this opportunity, City Lord, please rally the forces of the Divine Prefecture to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum,�� said Ning Yuan, the Donghua Domain Chief. His tone sounded somewhat humble. However, before the Lord of Tianyan City, a Domain Chief like him did not amount to anything.


    As long as Ye Futian remained alive, it was as though a sword was hanging over Ning Yuan��s head. He naturally could not be at ease. He worried that Ye Futian would destroy the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor in the future.


    His son, Ning Hua, was also killed by Ye Futian. How could he forget this grudge?


    However, right now, even Chief Xihai was no match for Ye Futian. It was even less likely for Ning Yuan to be able to defeat him. Feeling hopeless, Ning Yuan could only shamelessly ask Tianyan City for help.


    ��You speak too highly of us,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City. ��Many of you here are top figures from the Divine Prefecture. Tianyan City is not qualified to lead everyone.��


    He continued, ��However, I have also heard of what happened in the Divine Prefecture. The forces from the Ziwei Segmentum hunger for the blood of the cultivators in the Divine Prefecture. They have lost their humanity, and their acts are considered despicable by all.��


    A cultivator from Sun God Mountain said, ��Exactly. Ye Futian is only a Level Nine Renhuang, yet he has cultivated Celerity and can go anywhere without leaving a trace. It is difficult to capture him. The Ziwei Segmentum is protected by the remnant will of Great Emperor Ziwei. When Ye Futian utilizes this power, it��s difficult for us to do anything to him. Therefore, we need cultivators from Tianyan City to summon the imperial arms to kill this treacherous person. Wang Xiao has shown great talent during this Armorer Competition. Since he can communicate with the imperial arms, we plead that the Young City Lord will kill this person on behalf of everyone in the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��Young City Lord, please accept our plea,�� Ning Yuan seconded. Many other people looked at Wang Xiao.


    ��Young City Lord, you��re a genius who can wield imperial arms. You should shoulder this important responsibility,�� another top figure added. Just now, the Lord of Tianyan City had mentioned that Wang Xiao could perhaps solve the problems faced by the Divine Prefecture. His words practically implied that Wang Xiao would accept their request.


    Right now, the top figures were merely complying with the City Lord��s wish. Since the City Lord wanted to make Wang Xiao��s name renowned far and wide, the top figures didn��t mind showering Wang Xiao with plenty of praises and hyping up the situation before he finally agreed to their request.


    When the City Lord saw this scene, he had a faint smile on his face. Everything was progressing as he expected.


    Wang Xiao had gained his fame overnight. Next, he would become the leader of the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. He would pave his way to success with Ye Futian��s death and the conquest of the Ziwei Segmentum. Finally, he would become the number one cultivator among the next generation and rule over the Divine Prefecture.


    The City Lord looked towards Wang Xiao, seemingly awaiting his response.


    At this moment, a cultivator from the City Lord Office came forth with a box in his hands. Inside the box was a glamorous robe, flaming red in color. The robe appeared to be sewn from phoenix feathers. It glowed with golden divine light and was dazzling to behold.


    The cultivator walked up to Wang Xiao. The latter took the box, turned around, and walked towards where Princess Donghuang was. Holding the box with both his hands, he offered it up to Donghuang Diyuan and said, ��Princess, this is the gift that the City Lord Office has prepared for you. May you kindly accept it.��


    ��Thank you.�� Donghuang Diyuan didn��t reject it; instead, she accepted it right away. She didn��t check it either. As the only daughter of Donghuang the Great, she did not lack in any divine arms.


    Wang Xiao asked, ��Princess, Ye Futian, and the members of the Ziwei Segmentum are causing trouble in the Divine Prefecture. Donghuang the Great is merciful, and the Imperial Palace doesn��t plan to get involved in this. Can the Tianyan City Lord Office be in charge of hunting him down?��


    ��I have said it before. All the forces in the Divine Prefecture are to settle your grudges with Ye Futian on your own. The Imperial Palace will not be involved,�� Donghuang Diyuan responded.


    ��Understood.�� Wang Xiao nodded. He then turned around and walked towards the crowd. Everyone had their eyes on him. Wang Xiao��s expression was calm. He scanned across the cultivators present and said, ��I thank everyone who came to observe the fest in Tianyan City. Since everyone hopes to collaborate with the Tianyan City Lord Office in attacking Ziwei, I will oblige to your request. I��m willing to join forces with everyone present to attack the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    His voice reverberated across the sky above the City Lord Office. All the cultivators in Tianyan City could hear him.


    On this day, Wang Xiao pledged to rally the various cultivators of the Divine Prefecture and conquer the Ziwei Segmentum.


    This was originally a job for the Lord of Tianyan City. However, Wang Xiao had taken over this great responsibility and now stood on the stage of the Divine Prefecture. It was his time to shine in glory.


    For the past few decades, the most eye-catching junior in the Divine Prefecture was undisputedly Ye Futian from the Original Realm. He was renowned all over and was peerless in the Divine Prefecture. He had many glorious deeds.


    However, today, Wang Xiao of Tianyan City was made known worldwide and became famous overnight in the Armorer Fest. Next, he would make his name be known all across the Divine Prefecture through this glorious conquest. By stepping over the corpse of the previous most eye-catching monstrous figure, he would become the most outstanding figure in the Divine Prefecture.


    Could Wang Xiao pull it off?


    Ye Futian was among the crowd in the City Lord Office. Beneath his mask, his gaze was fixed on Wang Xiao. Right now, Wang Xiao appeared heroic and peerless. Wang Xiao wanted to lead the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to conquer the Ziwei Segmentum and kill him.


    Wang Xiao could communicate with imperial arms.


    As expected, it was the worst possible outcome.


    At that moment, the armorers who had headed into the City Lord Office returned. Wang Xiao glanced over the crowd and looked towards Mu Yan and the other armorers. He said, ��Masters, your talents in forging are extraordinary. May I ask where you all are from?��


    ��Does it matter?�� Mu Yan asked. His tone was cold and indifferent.


    ��It does not,�� Wang Xiao continued. ��It is just that your talents in forging are extraordinary, and I did not know your names before this. Hence, I was curious. Aside from that, all of you seem to come from extraordinary backgrounds. You do not seem like cultivators from the Divine Prefecture.��


    Mu Yan and the others frowned. Wang Xiao smiled and said, ��Countless talented figures have gathered in Tianyan City, and we have become the center of everyone��s attention. The Armorer Fest has come to an end now. Yet, I am still in high spirits. Everyone knows that the basis of forging is still cultivation. I want to use this opportunity to ask for a few pointers from you regarding cultivation. What do you think?��


    Right now, Wang Xiao seemed to have retracted his previous gentle demeanor. He now seemed sharp and overbearing.


    ��Tianyan City feels as though it has lost face over forging techniques, so you now wish to deal with us?�� mocked Mu Yan.


    ��Sir, aren��t you belittling Tianyan City too much? We are merely asking to spar and will stop before getting serious. It is not just for those present here. All cultivators who are present in Tianyan City may participate,�� Wang Xiao declared loudly.


    ��Who will act as a guarantor?�� asked Mu Yan in a stern voice.


    ��As Lord of Tianyan City, I guarantee that we will not trouble anyone,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City.


    ��I do not believe you,�� replied Mu Yan directly. This caused the expression of the Lord of Tianyan City to turn cold and indifferent. Mu Yan actually dared to question him.


    ��I will guarantee it,�� said Donghuang Diyuan, who was sitting to the side right then. ��Regardless of who you are and where you are from, you may reveal your identities. I will not question it. No deaths will occur during this grand occasion in Tianyan City.��


    ��What if I were a member of the Ziwei Segmentum?�� Mu Yan suddenly asked with a smile. Before this, these people had been planning to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��Even if you were Ye Futian himself, my word still stands,�� said Donghuang Diyuan. ��I keep my word. I believe it is the same for you, City Lord.��


    ��Of course,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City as he nodded his head.


    ��Hahahaha���� Loud laughter could be heard. It came from outside the City Lord Office. In Tianyan City, a few terrifying auras descended. Mighty pressure came down and enveloped the city. Then, in the sky above the City Lord Office, many powerful auras suddenly appeared. There were even quite a few terrifying auras at the second Tribulation Plane.


    ��It is the members of the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm,�� said Donghuang Diyuan as she looked outside. From the looks of it, those two major worlds wanted to take part and had come to the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2563 - The Unrivaled?

    In the City Lord Office, the various cultivators had stern expressions as they watched the approaching figures.


    As expected, these two major forces had arrived long ago. They had snuck their way into the City Lord Office with the cover of this fest in Tianyan City.


    The lineup of this crowd was very powerful. The leader was already a prominent figure many years ago. The top cultivators of the Divine Prefecture naturally all recognized him.


    ��It is Dark Saint Hua Yunting,�� someone said.


    ��There is also Evil Sage Mo Qingge,�� another noted.


    When the Taishang Domain Chief saw these two figures, his expression turned serious. Many giant-level figures from the Divine Prefecture got up and appeared exceptionally stern.


    It was apparent that these two leaders that had arrived in the Divine Prefecture made even the giant-level figures from the Divine Prefecture feel pressured and shocked.


    Dark Saint Hua Yunting was from the royalty of the Dark Court. His standing was unparalleled. He was one of the most powerful figures under the ruler of the Dark Court, the existence that stood as the Dark Court��s true core. In the war more than four centuries ago, countless powerful figures perished in his hands. The giant-level figures from the Divine Prefecture had a deep impression of him.


    Evil Sage Mo Qingge was the same. Although he was given the title of Evil Sage, he had a graceful bearing and was extremely refined. He appeared like a gentleman. Only his eyes made others fearful of him. His hands were stained with the blood of countless victims, yet his white robes were immaculate.


    Now, in this chaotic era, the various worlds were no longer peaceful. Figures like these had been in seclusion for centuries. However, they had now come to the Divine Prefecture. The significance of this did not need to be elaborated upon. In this chaotic era, the major worlds were already making preparations for war.


    Now, the cultivators of two major worlds had arrived. They must have wanted to see what the current power of the Divine Prefecture was like.


    Ye Futian looked at the two figures. Had the strongest figures of the Dark World and the Evil Emperor Realm arrived in the Divine Prefecture?


    These two figures were known as Dark Saint and Evil Sage. Their abilities and standing were unquestionable.


    ��How do you wish to test your cultivation?�� asked Dark Saint Hua Yunting. His gaze swept over the crowd, stopping over Wang Xiao��s figure for a brief moment. Right then, Wang Xiao stood there as though he was the sole protagonist. A formless aura emanated from him. From the City Lord Office, divine light pierced the heavens. A vast divine might pressed down on Tianyan City. Everyone in Tianyan City could feel the heavenly might.


    ��It is the emperor��s might!�� someone exclaimed.


    The cultivators of Tianyan City felt their hearts tremble. Wang Xiao was communicating with imperial arms.


    Even when facing two giant-level figures who stood at the top of two major worlds, Wang Xiao was unshaken. He showed no signs of fear and faced them head-on.


    The Lord of Tianyan City was used to seeing this scene. At the same time, he felt relieved. Before this, he had always prevented Wang Xiao from showing himself to the world. He was worried that accidents would happen. Now, who in the world dared to touch Wang Xiao?


    Who could touch him?


    Wang Xiao could make imperial arms appear with a mere thought. So what if he was against Dark Saint and Evil Sage? If anyone dared to act recklessly, they would die in Tianyan City.


    His grandson, Wang Xiao, was without equal below the Great Emperor. He did not fear any cultivator.


    Moreover, Tianyan City was their territory. Whoever came had to come crawling.


    Hua Yunting and Mo Qingge also cast a deep glance in the direction of the City Lord Office. Both of them had sensed the emperor��s might. They never imagined that such a monstrous figure would actually appear in the Wang family of the Ancient God Clan of Tianyan City. He was a major threat.


    However, aside from Wang Xiao, nothing else during the fest in Tianyan City set off any alarms. Everything had appeared normal, so they had not thought much about it.


    ��You can��t compete with me in forging, so why don��t we try martial arts?�� asked Wang Xiao as he looked the other party in the eye. His tone was cold, indifferent, and arrogant.


    ��If it were forging, only you could win,�� Hua Yunting said casually. ��Since you wish to try, my men will naturally oblige. We also wish to see the level of cultivation of the current prominent figures of the Divine Prefecture.��


    When they heard the conversation between them, all the cultivators in Tianyan City felt their hearts tremble. They never imagined that aside from the Armorer Competition, they would also witness a battle between the top figures of a few major worlds during this fest.


    This was no longer just a competition between the Proud Sons of Heaven of the Divine Prefecture. It was a contest between the Divine Prefecture and two god-level forces of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm.


    Buzz. A figure charged up into the clouds and gazed down from high above. The cultivator was none other than Wang Yu from the City Lord Office, who was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. Golden flame enveloped his body as his divine light shone brilliantly. His aura loomed over the vast space.


    Wang Yu lowered his head and glanced at the black-robed armorer who defeated him. The latter was the same person who eliminated Master Meng Yan. Wang Yu said, ��I shall experience your cultivation myself.��


    The black-robed armorer glanced at him, then he took to the sky and similarly appeared in the space above the City Lord Office.


    This black-robed armorer was a prestigious blacksmith in the Dark World. He was assigned to come and join the Armorer Competition this time, and he successfully defeated Meng Yan and Wang Yu.


    At the same time, in the corner of Tianyan City, Meng Yan was also observing the scene in the sky. He sighed. His failure to advance in the competition did not seem so bad now that he knew that he had lost to a cultivator from the Dark World. The other party came prepared. On the other hand, he was overconfident, thinking that he would surely be able to join the City Lord Office. He was eliminated because of this.


    How strong were the combat abilities of these armorers? Countless cultivators in Tianyan City wondered. All of them fixed their gazes on the sky excitedly.


    Wang Yu attacked right away. Moreover, he attacked using the divine arm he forged. It was the same with Meng Yan. They competed with each other in the Armorer Competition. Now, it was fair for them to use the weapons they manufactured themselves in battle.


    A destructive battle instantly erupted in the sky. Wang Yu��s attack was overbearing. He kept charging forward and suppressed his opponent again and again. He seized the absolute advantage in the battle.


    Even though the black-robed armorer had won in the Armorer Competition, it seemed like his combat ability was weaker than that of Wang Yu, the cultivators of Tianyan City thought to themselves. Wang Yu was also a talented figure in the Wang family of the Ancient God Clan. He did not forsake his cultivation even though he specialized in forging. On the other hand, the black-robed armorer was invited by the Dark Court to join this event. He had exceptional forging skills. His combat ability was rather strong too, but it paled slightly in comparison to his forging skills.


    The divine arm that Wang Yu forged was a solar spear. When the spear struck, a flaring sun appeared behind the cultivator. The sunlight was blinding and contained very powerful attack power. In the end, the black-robed armorer was forced to retreat under the relentless attacks of Wang Yu. His facial expression was a little ugly after he lost the match.


    Wang Yu kept his promise and did not deliver any fatal blows to him. The black-robed armorer was reluctant to admit defeat and seemingly wanted to continue the battle. However, Hua Yunting ordered, ��Stand down.��


    The black-robed armorer turned around. He bowed and complied, saying, ��Yes, sir.��


    Then, he left directly. The authority of the Dark Saint was perfectly demonstrated through this scene.


    ��You, go and try,�� ordered Hua Yunting towards a cultivator who stood behind him. A person emerged from the line. He was a youth in black robes. His aura was menacing. Unlike the other person, who was a guest armorer, this youth was a bona fide member from the Dark Court.


    ��The battle between cultivators should, of course, involve cultivators. Wang Yu, stand down too,�� Wang Xiao ordered. Wang Yu retreated upon hearing the instruction.


    Wang Xiao turned around and looked at a person. A cultivator came forth.


    He was Wang Mian from Tianyan City.


    In the past, Wang Mian was acknowledged as the successor of Tianyan City. His combat ability was undoubtedly top-notch. Before Wang Xiao made a name for himself, Wang Mian was crowned the top monstrous figure of Tianyan City.


    The two cultivators went up into the high heavens. Wang Mian��s will shifted. Immediately, divine walls appeared and sealed off the space, forming a domain of the Great Path.


    Buzz. The figure of the black-robed cultivator flashed, and a black hole appeared. It was terrifying as it intended to swallow everything around them. A dark spear materialized directly in front of Wang Mian. A divine wall surfaced. This divine wall was carved with countless runes and ancient characters. The black hole tried to engulf the divine wall while the spear stabbed into it. Both attacks could not penetrate through the defense of the divine wall.


    Everyone in the City Lord Office was confident about Wang Mian��s ability. They would not doubt his strength. Wang Mian had been defeated before, but that was because his opponent was Ye Futian.


    The Lord of Tianyan City stared intently at the battlefield. His expression was indifferent. The cultivators from the two major worlds barged into Tianyan City, but things would not go as they wished. All of them would instead be defeated. Today was destined to be the day when Wang Xiao made his name renowned throughout the entire Divine Prefecture. From today onwards, everyone would know his name.


    As expected, this battle also ended without any suspense. Even though the foe was powerful, Wang Mian still managed to defeat him quickly.


    After the other party retreated, the City Lord Office fell silent. Even the arrival of the cultivators from the two major worlds could not pose a threat to the Wang family of Tianyan City.


    Perhaps, the cultivators from the two major worlds had come this time to check things out in the current Divine Prefecture. They had no intention to battle. Hence, their top figures were not in this lineup. After all, the battles took place because Wang Xiao asked for it.


    There were still others who were eager to challenge the cultivators of Tianyan City. However, they were stopped by Hua Yunting and Mo Qingge.


    They were in the territory of the Divine Prefecture, after all.


    Right at this moment, a figure emerged from the crowd in the City Lord Office. He strode towards the center.


    ��Master Changkong,�� said Wang Teng as he revealed a strange look. As he called out, the silver-masked figure still stepped forward and walked towards the center of the crowd.


    The person who had walked out��Silver Spear Changkong��was naturally Ye Futian.


    Today, Tianyan City rallied the various forces of the Divine Prefecture and were planning to summon imperial arms to deal with the Ziwei Segmentum. Since he was coincidentally here, how could he not do anything about it?


    Wang Xiao was the successor of Tianyan the Great and the heir of Tianyan City. He was glorious and without equal in the Divine Prefecture.


    He wanted to summon imperial arms to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum and kill Ye Futian.


    The various forces of the Divine Prefecture answered his call.


    Huh? Many people looked towards Ye Futian��s figure. What was he planning to do?


    Xi Chiyao was also looking at Ye Futian. A smile appeared on her face. As expected, this fellow could not take it any longer!

 Chapter 2564 - Who Could Claim to Be Unrivaled?

    Ye Futian walked over to the Armory Zone. There were still a few armorers here, and they all turned their gazes towards him.


    Even Dark Saint Hua Yunting and Evil Sage Mo Qingge also looked towards Ye Futian. For a cultivator from the City Lord Office to emerge right then, what was he planning to do?


    ��Silver Spear Changkong,�� someone exclaimed. Many people in Tianyan City recognized Ye Futian when they saw him emerge. The master of 13th Flight, Wen Donglai, looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��Master Changkong, do you also wish to challenge the cultivators from the two major worlds?��


    Ye Futian looked at Wen Donglai. He then shook his head and said, ��I wish to experience the abilities of the various forces of the Divine Prefecture.��


    Huh? Many people frowned. Wen Donglai asked, ��Changkong, what are you doing?��


    Wang Teng also looked at Ye Futian incredulously as he asked, ��Master Changkong, what is the meaning of this?��


    Ye Futian retrieved the long spear from behind him and said, ��Isn��t it obvious?��


    Hua Yunting, as well as Mo Qingge, revealed looks of intrigue. They seemed somewhat interested. They thought that this person had emerged to challenge their members. It turned out that he was challenging the members of the Divine Prefecture.


    Wen Donglai continued, ��Master Changkong is proficient in the spear. The spear techniques that you displayed in the 13th Flight were astounding. You defeated two experts with a single spear. If you wish to experience the spear techniques of other cultivators, we can arrange for that some other time.�� Ye Futian��s appearance now was untimely.


    ��Since he wishes to experience their abilities, let him do as he wishes,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City right then. His tone was indifferent. Wen Donglai immediately did not say anymore. He merely swept a cold look at Ye Futian. Ye Futian had taken a ritual implement of 13th Flight, and yet he actually wanted to cause trouble?


    ��I wish to experience Master Changkong��s spear techniques,�� said a figure as he emerged. It was Wang Yu who had previously defeated the black-robed armorer. Tianyan City belonged to the Ancient God Clan. The armorer forces of the Ancient God Clan had countless incredible techniques hidden away in the City Lord Office. The cultivators of the City Lord Office were proficient in all sorts of techniques.


    Wang Yu was proficient in spear techniques. The might of his Solar Divine Spear was astonishing.


    Ye Futian swept a glance at Wang Yu. A cold light flashed past in his eyes beneath his mask as he said, ��You won��t do.��


    Wang Yu frowned. His cultivation was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane, and his forging skills were extraordinary. His combat ability was similarly powerful, not inferior to his forging ability at the slightest. This person actually dared to act so presumptuously towards him.


    Rumble. A terrifying current of scorching heat swept over the space. Behind him, a sun appeared. The divine light of the sun shone down, and a long flaming spear emerged. With a step, his figure appeared above Ye Futian. His domain of the Great Path immediately enveloped Ye Futian within it.


    Buzz. Wang Yu did not say anything and did not even head up high into the sky to initiate combat. He stabbed out into space with his spear. This spear merged with the divine light of the sun behind him, becoming a Solar Spear. A beam of flaming red light pierced the space and shot downwards. It had extremely astonishing destructive power. Cultivators from the City Lord Office stepped forward and set up illusory shrouds of light of the Great Path around them, preventing the power of the Great Path from affecting the surroundings.


    Ye Futian raised his head slightly. Beneath his mask, he had an extremely cold look in his eyes as he swept a glance at Wang Yu.


    He raised his arm, and his spear stabbed outwards as fast as lightning.


    Buzz. The Solar Spear was directly split down the middle and destroyed. Wang Yu��s figure froze in the air. A long spear was pointed straight at his throat. A terrifying chill emanated from it. With a mere shift of Ye Futian��s will, the long spear would immediately pierce through his throat.


    Again, Ye Futian defeated his opponent with just a single stab of his spear.


    Many gazes in the City Lord Office were frozen as they watched this spear. The two spears were not even on the same level. There was a fundamental gap of power between them.


    Wang Yu was far inferior.


    Ye Futian��s long spear swept out horizontally, sending Wang Yu��s figure flying from the shockwaves. Another cultivator stepped forward. It was Wang Mian. As he stepped out, a frightening aura emanated from his figure. The divine light of the Great Path circled him as pressure descended and enveloped Ye Futian.


    ��You also won��t do. Stand down,�� said Ye Futian in an indifferent tone. He completely ignored Wang Mian, who was previously considered the most monstrous figure in Tianyan City.


    However, his indisputable tone was inexplicably convincing. It was as though his words did not need to be suspected at all.


    It was so even for a cultivator as powerful as Wang Mian. Somehow, from Ye Futian��s extremely indifferent voice, he actually also sensed that the mysterious cultivator before him might possibly be stronger than him.


    ��Who are you?�� asked Wang Mian as he stared at Ye Futian.


    In the Divine Prefecture, he could easily count the number of Level Nine Renhuangs who could defeat him.


    It was even rarer to find someone in the Divine Prefecture who dared to speak to him with such a tone.


    Unless the other party was not someone from the Divine Prefecture��


    Wen Donglai narrowed his gaze as he glared at Hua Yunting and Mo Qingge.


    ��Are you a cultivator from the Dark World or the Evil Emperor Realm?�� questioned Wang Teng coldly as he stood up and took a step forward. A powerful might burst forth from his body, and he charged towards Ye Futian.


    Clearly, Ye Futian was thought to be a spy from one of the two major worlds.


    Hua Yunting and Mo Qingge both looked at Ye Futian. Of course, they were aware that Ye Futian was not one of them.


    If so, who was he?


    This person was actually challenging the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture in such a situation.


    ��Have their men been hiding in the midst of the crowd of the Divine Prefecture?�� An arrogant voice sounded. The speaker was actually Spear Emperor Du You, who stood beside Donghuang Diyuan.


    His gaze was as sharp as a blade as he scanned Ye Futian. Spear Will flashed in his eyes and struck Ye Futian��s face. At the same time, he chided, ��Stop acting secretive. Take off your mask.��


    His Spear Will directly flashed across space and arrived at where Ye Futian was. As a divine general of Donghuang Imperial Palace, even though Spear Emperor Du You himself did not place much importance on the forces in the Divine Prefecture, he would not tolerate having spies from the other two major worlds infiltrating into their midst.


    However, he merely unleashed his Spear Will. His body remained sitting. With his identity, a Level Ning Renhuang was not worthy of being his opponent.


    Right at this moment, Ye Futian��s spear stabbed out as fast as lightning.


    Bang. The sound of a large collision could be heard. Du You��s Spear Will did not manage to land on Ye Futian��s mask. Instead, it had been negated.


    This scene caused everyone in the City Lord Office to reveal astonished expressions. Silver Spear Changkong could actually block off Du You��s Spear Will.


    ��Presumptuous!�� rebuked Spear Emperor Du You.


    He remained in his seat, but a terrifying aura descended, pressing down on the Armory Zone where Ye Futian was standing. The pressure caused the furnaces to crumble into dust one by one. The furnaces used to forge weapons for Renhuangs were extremely sturdy. Yet, they were fragile in the presence of Du You��s might and disintegrated right away.


    The space was on the verge of being destroyed. The shocking Spear Will pounced towards Ye Futian. This was the True Will of the Great Path unleashed by a Tribulation level cultivator.


    Rumble. A menacing aura gushed forth from Ye Futian��s body. The divine light of the Great Path flowed around him. His aura was surprisingly not any weaker than Du You��s Spear Will. Even when faced with the destructive Spear Will, he remained calm and composed. He was not at all affected by his opponent��s will.


    His cultivation was undoubtedly at the Level Nine Renhuang Plane, but the aura he unleashed was comparable to that of a Tribulation Plane cultivator.


    Spear Emperor Du You��s Spear Will did not affect him.


    Pressured by the overwhelming Spear Will, Ye Futian��s gaze turned ice cold beneath the mask. He glanced at Spear Emperor Du You and provoked, ��Do you wish to fight me yourself?��


    All the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were appalled by his words.


    He wanted Spear Emperor Du You to fight him?


    A Level Nine Renhuang was actually bold enough to challenge Spear Emperor Du You to a match?


    Was he insane?


    Had the Dark World or the Empty Divine Realm produced such a monstrous existence?


    Was this person their triumph card all along?


    ��Who are you?�� Spear Emperor Du You stood up. He didn��t continue sitting in his seat comfortably. A Level Nine Renhuang could actually take his Spear Will head-on. This was supposedly something impossible. Yet, it had really happened.


    All the giant-level figures in the Divine Prefecture felt their hearts tremble violently.


    ��Who are you?�� In the sky above, Wang Xiao lowered his head and looked at Ye Futian. His gaze was frightening as he exerted his might on his opponent.


    ��Who am I?�� mumbled Ye Futian. His body slowly rose into the sky, shouldering the terrifying Spear Will as he moved up. He floated towards the high heavens, forming disturbing currents of the Great Path around him.


    Everything that was happening was projected onto the screen hanging high in the sky of Tianyan City. The entire city seemed exceptionally quiet now.


    It looked like yet another extraordinary figure had debuted after Wang Xiao.


    Was he from the Dark World? Or was he from the Empty Divine Realm?


    Suddenly, Evil Sage Mo Qingge burst into laughter. This caused many cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to shift their attention towards him.


    Before this, Mo Qingge had remained silent and had not spoken much. However, there was a smile on his charming and refined face now. His gaze was fixed on Ye Futian.


    ��You indeed live up to your fame,�� praised Mo Qingge with a smile.


    Then, he looked at the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture and mocked, ��You lot intend to join forces to attack someone. Yet, when the person is standing right in front of you, none of you recognize him. It is laughable.��


    He continued, ��Little friend Ye, you are undoubtedly the top figure of the Original Realm.��


    Mo Qingge��s words threw the audience into a great shock. Even the giant-level figures were in a state of trepidation. They raised their heads and stared at the silhouette with a silver mask in the sky.


    By now, they had all realized who this silver-masked cultivator was.


    None of them had figured out his identity, but Evil Sage Mo Qingge did.


    Ye Futian put his hand on the mask and slowly took it off. At this moment, everyone in Tianyan City had their attention fixed on him. Their eyes traced his movements.


    A handsome face appeared, and along with it, a head of silver hair.


    ��Who is he?�� someone asked.


    ��He is Ye Futian,�� someone else answered.


    ��He is the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace��Ye Futian.��


    In Tianyan City, countless figures were busy discussing. Today, Wang Xiao had displayed his heroics, and the Lord of Tianyan City called him The Unrivaled. No one among the next generation of the Divine Prefecture was a match for him.


    However, right then, the figure who shook the Divine Prefecture terrorized two Domain Chief��s Manors single-handedly and led the Ziwei Imperial Palace to destroy the Holy Land of Taichu had also appeared here.


    After Ye Futian took off his mask, he raised the long spear in his hand.


    His spear was pointed at Wang Xiao.


    ��You, The Unrivaled?�� mocked Ye Futian. Tianyan City fell silent!

 Chapter 2565 - Who Is the Side Character

    Wang Xiao was the Unrivaled?


    Before this, Wang Xiao held the title of the number one armorer. The Lord of Tianyan City saw him as being unrivaled and peerless. He wanted him to lead the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum, where Ye Futian was.


    However, right now, Ye Futian was standing right in front of Wang Xiao. Ye Futian��s long spear was pointed right at his figure.


    In the silent Tianyan City, the hearts of countless people were throbbing. Was Ye Futian that powerful?


    Ye Futian had actually pointed his spear at Spear Emperor Du You and then at Wang Xiao. He was so overpowering.


    The most crucial detail was that Ye Futian was merely a Level Nine Renhuang. How did he manage to become so powerful?


    Even the frightening and extremely sharp Spear Will that shot out from Spear Emperor Du You��s eyes had been easily negated by Ye Futian. The latter had even challenged the former to a fight.


    With Ye Futian��s identity, he was naturally no fool. His provocation implied that he had the combat ability of the Tribulation Plane.


    A Level Nine Renhuang had Tribulation Plane combat ability.


    It was not just Du You; the various cultivators of the Divine Prefecture all realized this. Before this, there had been records of Ye Futian killing Tribulation Plane cultivators. The second-in-command of West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor, Zhong Miao, had been hunted down by Ye Futian.


    Back then, many people believed that Ye Futian had relied on external help.


    From the looks of it now, though, was that truly the case?


    If he had relied on external help, would he dare to point his spear at Wang Xiao? Would he dare to challenge Du You to a fight?


    Zhong Miao was killed by Ye Futian with his own actual ability!


    A Level Nine Renhuang had killed a Tribulation Plane cultivator.


    ��I never imagined that I would see two peerless figures today. That being said, Renhuang Ye and Young City Lord are somewhat similar. Young City Lord can forge Sub-divine Arms and is the champion of the Armorer Competition today. As for Renhuang Ye, he can concoct Sub-divine elixirs. It seems that no one else at the Renhuang Plane can do so.��


    At that moment, Xi Chiyao said this with a faint smile. This caused the various cultivators�� hearts to tremble again.


    They had heard about this before. This was no secret. They had even used this as an excuse to attack West Imperial Palace. It was precisely because of this that Xi Chiyao did not hide anything in this situation.


    The sub-divine elixirs were personally concocted by Ye Futian.


    Had anyone else in the world at the Renhuang Plane managed to pull off such a feat?


    At least in the Divine Prefecture, no one had managed to do so.


    Wang Xiao had claimed first place in the Armorer Competition, but the other armorers of the same plane had all forged Sub-divine Arms. What about Ye Futian? If there was an Alchemy Competition, others of the same plane were not even qualified to contend with him.


    Wang Xiao could communicate with imperial arms, but that was because he was born in the Ancient God Clan and inherited the teachings of Tianyan the Great. Yet, before this, Ye Futian was known as the relic killer and had claimed the inheritances of multiple Great Emperors. Could the same be said for Wang Xiao?


    Who was the true unrivaled between the two of them?


    Everyone in Tianyan City knew that the Lord of Tianyan City wanted to use this opportunity today to let Wang Xiao��s name be known far and wide. He wanted Wang Xiao to become a protagonist of this chaotic world and lead the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to annihilate the Ziwei Segmentum and kill Ye Futian. By stepping over Ye Futian, Wang Xiao would get the highest level of fame.


    However, right now, Ye Futian had instead appeared here.


    Wang Xiao also looked at Ye Futian. This was the first time both of them met each other. Before this, when he was still practicing his forging, he had heard of Ye Futian��s name many times. The members of the City Lord Office had often brought it up, especially recently. After Ye Futian destroyed the Holy Land of Taichu, even more people mentioned him.


    Wang Xiao had always imagined Ye Futian to be a peerless monstrous figure. However, that did not affect him much. The City Lord told him that after he won first place in the Armorer Competition, he needed to summon imperial arms and lead the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Wang Xiao thought to himself that killing a peerless prominent figure to boost his fame would undoubtedly be a feat to be proud of. He would do so.


    Today, he finally encountered Ye Futian, the person he would destroy in the future.


    Right now, the other party��s spear was pointed at him.


    ��It is such a pity that I cannot kill you today. Otherwise, you wouldn��t make it out of Tianyan City alive,�� said Wang Xiao in a calm voice. His calm tone contained an intense level of self-confidence. All of the cultivators in the City Lord Office could sense it clearly.


    The Lord of Tianyan City and Princess Donghuang had both promised that there would be no bloodshed today. They claimed that it would be the same even if Ye Futian himself were to appear.


    The Lord of Tianyan City and Princess Donghuang had high standing, and the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture had all borne witness to their promise. Since they had said so, no one would dare defy them. Wang Xiao would also oblige and not kill Ye Futian.


    That was why Wang Xiao said that it was a pity.


    Even if a Level Nine Renhuang had exceptional talent and was peerless, what could he do?


    If it weren��t for the promise prior, Wang Xiao would have killed Ye Futian here in the City Lord Office before the cultivators of Tianyan City.


    ��With such talent, if you submit to the Divine Prefecture and beg the princess for forgiveness, you might have a chance to have a future,�� Wang Xiao continued as he looked at Ye Futian. He spoke casually, as though he had not taken Ye Futian��s challenge to heart.


    Even if Ye Futian pointed his spear at him, what could the former do?


    Ye Futian��s fury was pointless.


    Even if Ye Futian was peerless, there was still a difference in their cultivation planes. Moreover, Wang Xiao could command imperial arms.


    ��That won��t be necessary,�� replied Ye Futian.


    Wang Xiao looked at the white-haired figure before him and revealed a smile as he said, ��The future of the Divine Prefecture doesn��t belong to you.��


    Wang Xiao continued, ��In this chaotic world, many peerless figures will appear like comets streaking across the night sky. Even if your talent is exceptional, you are fated only to be a side character. Do you understand?��


    As he said this, he slowly rose into the sky. At the same time, a terrifying aura emanated from his figure. The temperature in the sky rose exponentially. Both inside and outside the City Lord Office, countless people felt a scorching current of air.


    ��In this chaotic world, Ye Futian, you can only be a side character.��


    ��Do you understand?��


    Wang Xiao��s words reverberated throughout Tianyan City. The hearts of countless people in Tianyan City were full of emotion. Just now, when Ye Futian appeared, many people faintly felt as though his sharp aura had overshadowed Wang Xiao.


    However, once Wang Xiao said these words, the people in Tianyan City truly realized that Wang Xiao was still Wang Xiao. During this Armorer Competition, he became known to the world and became famous overnight.


    Most likely, no one could stop him from gaining fame in the Divine Prefecture.


    Not even Ye Futian could stop him.


    Wang Xiao was the heir of Tianyan the Great. His combat ability was no weaker than his forging skills. How could he be compared to people like Zhong Miao?


    How could Ye Futian possibly transcend cultivation planes and defeat him?


    Countless cultivators felt their blood boil as their faces revealed excited looks. This was the true fest in Tianyan City. The Armorer Competition seemed dull in comparison to this moment. Two peerless figures were about to do battle. Between the two of them, who would become the future top figure of the Divine Prefecture?


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at Wang Xiao. Then, he similarly flew up high into the sky. His white robes fluttered as his silver hair danced in the wind.


    The successor of Tianyan City, the heir of Tianyan the Great and the champion of the Armorer Competition was certainly qualified to have such confidence in himself.


    Ye Futian rose into the sky and stood opposite Wang Xiao. He replied, ��As long as I am around, your era will never come!��


    Rumble.


    In Tianyan City, the silent crowd broke out into a feverish rage. Their conversation reverberated throughout Tianyan City. The blood of the cultivators was boiling.


    Wang Xiao claimed that in this chaotic age, Ye Futian could only be a side character.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian stated that with him around, Wang Xiao��s age would never come.


    These two figures had such peerless, majestic spirits. The battle today would certainly go down in the annals of Tianyan City��s history. It would even be remembered in the entire Divine Prefecture.


    Even the giant-level figures of the Divine Prefecture, as well as Dark Saint Hua Yunting and Evil Sage Mo Qingge, were full of anticipation. They had seen more powerful battles before and had participated in even more frightening battlefields. Nevertheless, it had been many years since they felt so excited.


    Today, two peerless juniors made them feel this way.


    They were all old. The future would belong to figures like Ye Futian and Wang Xiao.


    ��Do you wish to use ritual implements?�� asked Wang Xiao as he got straight to the point. Would they be battling with ritual implements?


    ��It is up to you,�� replied Ye Futian.


    ��The ritual implement I forged is more powerful, so I will have an advantage. You are also not a cultivator who specializes in spear techniques. Since that is the case, we won��t use ritual implements,�� said Wang Xiao as he kept the ritual implement he forged away. Given that he already held an advantage in cultivation, he did not want to take advantage of Ye Futian any further.


    Ye Futian similarly put away his silver spear.


    Rumble.


    Instantly, even more terrifying hot currents circulated the space and enveloped the vast sky. Abnormal phenomena took place as a divine hall of armory appeared out of thin air. A deity wielding a war hammer showed up and stood behind Wang Xiao.


    At this moment, Wang Xiao seemed like a true descendant of a deity, the heir of a Great Emperor.


    On Ye Futian��s figure, golden light shone, and the scorching Light of Buddha actually appeared. In the sky above, the Sound of Buddha circled him. Behind Ye Futian, a Mahavairocana appeared. The Battle Form seemed to be gigantic, like the Buddha himself. Its light shone into the high heavens.


    ��This power is at the Tribulation Plane,�� someone commented.


    The cultivators in the City Lord Office noticed this when they sensed the aura emanating from Ye Futian��s figure. It was indeed aura at the Tribulation Plane. He also possessed the powerful Buddhist Mahavairocana Battle Form. It seemed that Ye Futian had many fateful encounters in the Western World.


    The deity behind Wang Xiao wielded a divine hammer. It lifted the scorching golden divine hammer high in the sky. It was huge. In that instant, countless bolts of lightning struck down like heavenly tribulation. They contained unparalleled destructive power and seemed to split the space apart as they struck down towards Ye Futian.


    Even the lightning leaping around the divine hammer alone already contained astonishing destructive power.


    Under the shocking gazes of the cultivators, the menacing golden lightning struck Ye Futian and his Battle Form. All of them thought Ye Futian would block the attack, but he didn��t. Instead, he received it head-on.


    Kacha. The space shattered and broke into pieces. Lightning traversed across the space. Ye Futian was overwhelmed by the terrifying light. Countless people felt their hearts race as they witnessed this scene.


    However, standing at the center of the destructive lightning, Ye Futian remained still, and his body appeared divine-like. He was firmly fixed on his spot as he was showered by the destructive divine light. He was unperturbed by the attack. It could not harm him at all.


    He had undergone many Divine Tribulations of the Great Path. His flesh had been baptized and was invincible. The shockwave did not affect his flesh. He received Wang Xiao��s attack head-on since he was not at all afraid of it. Enduring this level of attack was merely a workout for his body.


    ��The Unrivaled, is your attack so weak?�� mocked Ye Futian as his eyes turned golden!

 Chapter 2566 - The Sky Tremoring Hammer

    Ye Futian��s arrogant words made everyone from the Divine Prefecture stare at him, specifically his body. Many years ago, Ye Futian had used the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor to comprehend. As a result, it cast an incredibly strong physique, which almost unraveled the divine body itself.


    Now, after so many years, this body had become even stronger to the point that it could directly withstand the destructive Great Path power exerted by a cultivator in the Tribulation Plane.


    Although it was just a destruction fluctuation before the attack, it was enough to demonstrate the strength of Ye Futian��s physical body.


    ��Just physical body alone, the strength of Ye Futian��s body has surpassed most of the cultivators who had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path,�� the Chief from Taishang Domain commented as he looked at the battlefield. His words were casual and did not indicate his position, merely an objective evaluation of Ye Futian��s physical strength.


    ��Indeed.�� Many cultivators from the Divine Prefecture around him nodded. Few cultivators in the Tribulation Plane could take it to the point where they were confident enough to offer no resistance whatsoever.


    But Wang Xiao was not about to wax lyrical on such details. Divine light shot out from his eyes as he descended from the sky. Under the phantom of the deity, the vast and boundless space, including the entire office of the Lord of the Tianyan City, seemed to be covered by the domain of his Great Path.


    He stretched out his hand, and immediately, countless lightning blasted down from him. Terrible lightning also flashed out of his eyes.


    ��Is it weak?�� Wang Xiao swept toward Ye Futian as he said, ��Feel it carefully now.��


    When the voice fell, his palm slammed toward the space below. That was the moment when the deity above the sky lifted his hammer and smashed it down as well, blasting above the void.


    Doink! A dull sound came from the firmament. Everyone in Tianyan City felt their heart beating violently at this moment. Even their footsteps seemed a little unsteady as a wave of destruction rolled toward them.


    The space above the City Lord��s Office seemed to be pulverizing directly by this blow. That terrifying force crashed into Ye Futian, ignoring the distance in the space, and it was a power that could extinguish all living things.


    Bang! Even the Mahavairocana Battle Form behind Ye Futian had visible cracks on it. His body was slammed down from the sky as that terrifying shock wave rushed into his body. If it were any other cultivators, this blow alone was enough to shatter their internal organs.


    But divine light circulated in that divine body still, unbroken.


    ��Sky Tremoring Hammer.��


    Many cultivators from the Divine Prefecture trembled. This was a superior attacking technique. It was rumored that when Tianyan the Great was making the armors, he swung his hammer to smash the implement, again and again, year after year. In the end, he comprehended a set of divine methods based on the concept of returning to the basics, and Sky Tremoring Hammer was created.


    That simple action was the action that had been repeated for many years but contained the comprehension of Tianyan the Great. One strike from the hammer could break the Great Path and smash the sky. This divine method was the Sky Tremoring Hammer��the most powerful offensive technique in the Divine Prefecture.


    This Sky Tremoring Hammer may seem simple, but it was, in fact, extremely difficult to comprehend. Tianyan City had throngs of cultivators, as well as many members from the mainline of the City Lord��s Office. Still, very few of them dared to specialize in cultivating the Sky Tremoring Hammer, as it was an extremely time-consuming method.


    The caveat was that one might spend all his time on it but not achieve any result. Failure was highly likely, and many were unable to achieve great results in the end. Some were able to obtain the form but not its essence.


    However, Wang Xiao, the most outstanding heir of Tianyan the Great, as well as the most outstanding armorer in the City Lord��s Office in Tianyan City, had once spent a century forging a single sword. In countless armor-makings, he had accomplished the cultivation of the Sky Tremoring Hammer.


    The power of this powerful divine method contained terrifying power. Although Tianyan the Great was the Great Emperor of armoring, the combat effectiveness of the Sky Tremoring Hammer was no less powerful than the offensive techniques of any other Great Emperors in ancient times; it was extremely domineering.


    ��Ye Futian��s defense is not to be taken lightly,�� the cultivator from the Divine Prefecture said again. The confrontation and collision between these two peerless figures demonstrated extremely strong offensive and defensive forces in just one single exchange.


    The power of the Sky Tremoring Hammer failed to destroy Ye Futian��s physical body.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was standing there, looking past the sky. In his perception, this world had already turned into the other��s domain of the Great Path, as if there were waves of invisible fluctuations that swept down from above as if it was the will of the Sky Tremoring Hammer. Just the invisible shock wave alone gave everyone a strong sense of oppression.


    When the Sky Tremoring Hammer blasted down, this shock wave overlapped thousands of times over and formed an unparalleled wave of destruction, shattering all the existence within this space.


    ��How was that?�� Wang Xiao said in a clearly audible voice as he looked down at Ye Futian. He stood there, like a god descending into the world, unable to be denied.


    ��Can it be a little stronger?�� Ye Futian asked as he raised his head to look at Wang Xiao in the sky. Wang Xiao��s eyes sharpened immediately. He stared at him and said, ��In that case, I will have to oblige.��


    The invisible shock wave remained but was getting stronger. The power of the previous blow had not completely dissipated before that deity above the sky raised his Divine Hammer again and smashed it down.


    Boom! A dull sound came out between heaven and earth. In the area above the City Lord��s Office, the City Lord of Tianyan City had set up an area to block off the office complex. However, terrifying shock waves still rushed down and impacted that layer of the defensive light screen.


    Inside Tianyan City, the hearts of countless cultivators trembled fiercely once more. Those cultivators who were closer to the City Lord��s Office even let out a muffled groan, their faces pale. They were watching from the outside, and they were affected unexpectedly.


    The battlefield was high above the sky, so one could imagine just how fearsome was this attacking power.


    This time, Ye Futian did not ignore Wang Xiao��s attack. The divine light on his body dazzled, protecting his body, with the Great Path surrounding him. The starry light screen was shining when the wave of the Sky Tremoring Hammer blasted down. Everything seemed to be shattered. Ye Futian��s body trembled and was sent flying down to the ground again, and he was falling at a rapid speed.


    When he stopped, Tianyan City was completely silent. Countless eyes were glued on Ye Futian.


    After two successive attacks, how was he doing?


    The power of the Sky Tremoring Hammer seemed to be increasing. The power of the second attack was obviously quite a bit more terrifying.


    ��It��s still too weak.�� Ye Futian raised his head and looked up into the sky. An indifferent voice came out of his mouth, and his eyes were full of contempt.


    This made Wang Xiao��s eyes became even colder, and murderous intent flashed across his eyes. Ye Futian��s provocation had finally enraged him.


    The Sky Tremoring Hammer was too weak?


    ��It��s fighting words you speak,�� Wang Xiao declared loudly. The Divine Hammer above the firmament fell again, and the attack was even fiercer this time. Those invisible light screens seemed to have turned into physical barriers. Layers of heavy golden divine light crushed the sky and swept down again, like halos of shocking lights that obscured the sky and the sun, smashing all existence.


    Boom! In Tianyan City, many buildings exploded and shattered, disappearing in an instant. Some cultivators near the City Lord��s Office spat out mouthfuls of blood as they retreated rapidly. Not only them but also everyone in the entire Tianyan City seemed to feel that terrible power of attack.


    Ye Futian��s body was plunged from the sky again, but this time, Wang Xiao did not stop but blasted down once again, as the shock waves of destruction continued to sweep downward. Above the firmament, a massive and boundless golden Divine Hammer and layers of golden light screens blasted down continuously. Even some of the giant figures from the Divine Prefecture who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path could feel the pressure.


    This attack was at a level that was enough to make them take notice.


    ��At its most domineering form, the Sky Tremoring Hammer could sweep down 108,000 halos all at the same time, which can shock and kill 108,000 times!��


    Boom! As Wang Xiao��s voice fell, no sound seemed to be heard above the firmament. Only the shock waves of destruction remained. What would it look like when 108,000 halos of light smashed down at the same time?


    Ye Futian clasped his hands together; his body was radiant all over. The Light of Buddha lingered, and true words were spoken. The Six Syllables of Truth seemed to penetrate that shock wave, resounding between heaven and earth. With him as the center, a whole realm��the domain of Buddha��had been formed.


    All the Buddhas were present, surrounded by battle forms. There was also an incredible giant Buddha overhead above this space. Hundreds and thousands of Buddhist shadows were resisting 108,000 shocking halos of light.


    When the Sky Tremoring Hammer fell, heaven and earth lost their voice and became deadly silent.


    The greatest sound transcends the limitation of sounds!


    In Tianyan City, countless buildings were wiped out in an instant. Many cultivators vomited blood and fell to the ground. They were, unfortunately, collateral damage, and their suffering was great.


    In the area where Ye Futian was, all the Buddhist battle forms were annihilated, turning into ruins as they dispersed in the wind. The shock wave continued to move down. The Buddhist shadows that surrounded Ye Futian were shattered and blasted into the space below, landing upon the light screen set up by the City Lord of Tianyan. A violent roar was heard as the light screen trembled continuously. It seemed as if it was being destabilized.


    Boom! A burst of sound resounded throughout Tianyan City, and the shock wave of destruction was finally waning. The power of this Sky Tremoring Hammer was simply unparalleled.


    Ye Futian stood there quietly as if there had been no sound. A wisp of invisible wind blew through and caressed his silver hair.


    Countless eyes fell on him. Would Ye Futian be annihilated by such a terrifying blow?


    If he were killed, that would be a violation of the rules of the contest.


    This blow was simply beyond terrifying.


    But Ye Futian stood there without moving, like a statue. Wang Xiao looked down at him, unsure of the exact situation that Ye Futian was in at the moment.


    ��That��s all?��


    Suddenly, a voice came out, and that figure moved again. He slowly raised his head, his eyes shining with a sharpness that aimed toward Wang Xiao, who was high above the sky. Wang Xiao��s eyes sharpened immediately.


    Was this blow still unable to shake Ye Futian?


    The cultivators from the Divine Prefecture and Tianyan City were shocked to the core. Didn��t such a powerful attack hurt him?


    ��This attack is actually good for tempering the flesh.�� Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the man in the void. His body floated upward with incredible speed, clearly without being affected in the slightest.


    Was he using the attack of the Sky Tremoring Hammer to temper his physical body?


    Was he mad?


    Perhaps Ye Futian was just saying it. No matter what a genius talent he was, he would not dare to be so conceited.


    ��Then, let us continue.�� Wang Xiao spoke again, and the shock wave of destruction swept down once again.


    But Ye Futian merely smiled sarcastically as his figure continued its upward trend. At the same time, rays of divine light gleamed upon his body; it was as if they had turned into countless halos, moving in the sky with him.


    ��You��ve been attacking for long enough. Now, it is my turn!�� Ye Futian stretched out his hand. Suddenly, a spear appeared in it.


    His cultivation did not concentrate on spear techniques, but at this moment, what had appeared in his hand was a spear.


    ��Let��s see if you can take this shot from me!��

 Chapter 2567 - No, You Can’t

    ��You, The Unraveled, can you take this shot from me!��


    This voice resounded throughout Tianyan City, and those who heard it trembled in their souls.


    Indeed, Ye Futian had been purely on the defensive before this moment, and Wang Xiao was the one doing all the attacks. However, even with the astonishing power of the Sky Tremoring Hammer, he was not able to really hurt Ye Futian. Such powerful attacking technique only managed to slam him down a couple of times, demonstrating the terrifying defensive power that Ye Futian possessed.


    However, it was true he had not launched any attacks yet!


    Will his attack be as frightening as his defense?


    Could Wang Xiao take the shot from him?


    He was simply too arrogant. Wang Xiao had demonstrated his peerless talent at the Armoring feast this time, but Ye Futian asked if he could take a shot from him!


    How powerful was this strike going to be?


    Wang Xiao surveyed the land below, and his eyes were ice-cold. Those eyes seemed to be surrounded by golden flames. An endless scorching current swept out to smelt everything in this world; the domain of the Great Path seemed to have been transformed into a domain of golden flames.


    At the same time, the celestial figure above the firmament lifted a boundless giant divine hammer. Rounds of shock waves swept down to the space beneath the sky, overlapping again and again. What terrifying power would 108 thousand shock waves hold?


    Wang Xiao was a cultivator of the Tribulation Plane. Every attack of his contained the terrifying power of divine tribulation of the Great Path. One shock wave was terrifying enough, let alone 108 thousand waves. In this realm, he was absolutely someone who stood at the top of his kind. In the entire Divine Prefecture, it was difficult to find anyone to compete with him in this realm.


    The City Lord of Tianyan City was an incredible and astute man himself, and he could not possibly fail to understand this, or else he would not have held Wang Xiao in such high esteem, conferred the title of The Unraveled upon him. He even had thoughts of linking Wang Xiao with the treasured daughter of Donghuang the Great.


    It was precisely because of Wang Xiao��s excellence that he had such an idea.


    Buzz! With Ye Futian as the center, a trace of invisible Great Path rippled outward and diffused. There was an incomparable halo that covered him, and the light screen grew larger. It was the Light of Buddha.


    Surrounded by the infinite Buddhist runes, Buddhas now appeared in the heavens. At this time, these Buddhas were simultaneously chanting the Sounds of Buddha and uttering the Six Syllables of Truth. Suddenly, a mighty and sacred power of Buddhism permeated the space, propelling the light screen to expand outward.


    Boom! A dull thud was heard. Above the firmament, the Sky Tremoring Hammer was the first to blast down. In turn, the infinite shock wave seemed to morph into countless divine hammers, smashing down towards the space below. At the same time, in the center of the 108 thousand shock waves, a smashing divine hammer appeared, splitting the space wide open. It was as if the void was punched through, and all that force was rushing toward Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his left hand almost at the same moment; it was as if the Buddha had raised his own hand and slammed it forward. Suddenly, the Buddhas in the heavens raised their hands at the same time as massive Buddhist handprints slammed out, colliding with those countless divine hammers blasting down from the sky. A fervently blazing Light of Buddha continued to spread upward, colliding with the descending shock waves.


    Dull sounds came out, and high above the sky, a halo of destruction swept out towards the surroundings, and the atmosphere was extremely suppressed.


    Ye Futian��s body disappeared; it was as if it had been turned into a light, a spear.


    That light went up against the momentum as the will of the spear rushed straight into the sky. In the ascending process, not only did the long spear move unhindered without the slightest resistance, but waves of fluctuations also appeared around the spear, overlapping together, condensing into a perfect spear strike.


    The two rays of light clashed together as the divine hammer in the center collided with the spear. The former was domineering and carried a terrifying power, while the latter was sharp with equally overwhelming power.


    Boom! Many people felt as if their eardrums had ruptured. An invisible wave of destruction covered the entire Tianyan City. An unknown many innocent cultivators must have been hit yet again by this wave of immolation. Those closest to the City Lord��s Office were all cultivators in the Renhuang Realm, but the shock still made them bleed from their orifices even though the battlefield was high in the sky, a long distance away from them.


    However, as hard as the hits might be, those eyes were still fastened on that space high above, as all of them looked up; they didn��t want to miss this incomparable strike.


    How would this attack end?


    They saw a ray of light that split the sky open. Above the arch of heaven, a golden vortex seemed to have appeared. In the vortex, there were terrifying fluctuations that rushed higher into the sky. In the middle of that vortex, a sharp divine spear that had opened the sky was looming.


    The scene in front of them was shocking; the silence was particularly prominent in Tianyan City right now. There were only the dull crashing sounds and the boundless depressive aura.


    Even the sky had been split open?


    A light appeared in that space that had been torn apart. Their eyes followed the light and looked up and saw what was at the end of that golden vortex. When they made out what was happening there, their hearts involuntarily skipped a beat.


    Boom, boom, boom, boom��


    Below, at the end, a dull but terrifying sound wave swept out, as if there were ripples that had not totally quieted down, but the battle was effectively over.


    After a while, when everything finally settled down, those layers of golden light screens were still there, as remnants of the will of the spear left in the sky, turning into a golden divine light, as if it would not easily dissipate.


    ��One strike!��


    The eyes of all the cultivators were frozen, and the entire Tianyan City was in complete silence at this moment, even inside the City Lord��s Office.


    Above the firmament, Ye Futian stood there like a god, and the long spear in his hand was no longer pointing at Wang Xiao��s phantom but his throat. If he had advanced another inch, he could take Wang Xiao��s life.


    Could he have taken a shot from Ye Futian?


    Wang Xiao, the Young City Lord of Tianyan City, as the champion in this Armorer Competition, had enjoyed all the glory on this day. He had the supreme support of the City Lord of Tianyan City himself, promoting him and naming him as the future lord of Tianyan City so that he could lead the cultivators from Divine Prefecture to eradicate Ye Futian and vanquish Ziwei.


    However, at this moment, another well-known genius talent appeared. His name had shaken all of the Divine Prefecture even before Wang Xiao. He was now the biggest player in all the lands of the Divine Prefecture, whose name was known to everyone. He led his team to invade and destroy the Holy Land of Taichu and slayed Taichu Saint Emperor.


    Today, these two peerless characters finally met and collided with one another.


    And Wang Xiao was defeated!


    In this world, who was the truly Unraveled other than the Great Emperors?


    They thought Wang Xiao was. But if that was true, what about Ye Futian?


    He was only a Renhuang of the Ninth-Realm, and he had defeated Wang Xiao with a single strike of his spear.


    The City Lord of Tianyan had a steely look on his face, and other cultivators from the City Lord��s Office had a terrible look on their faces as well.


    The strongest man they could present, Wang Xiao, a world-renowned figure upon whom they had bestowed their highest hopes, was now defeated unequivocally by Ye Futian.


    When all the cultivators in the Divine Prefecture witnessed this sight, they had their thoughts on the matter. For some, their desire to kill Ye Futian had become even greater.


    As long as Ye Futian was alive, they would never have a day of peace. Especially now that he had gone undercover in the City Lord��s Office in the guise of Changkong, he had learned who wanted him dead, so he would, without a doubt, retaliate in the future.


    Above the firmament, Wang Xiao��s eyes glued there as if frozen. He watched the man in front of him as if he still couldn��t accept the fact that he was defeated. He had lost to Ye Futian in the Ninth-Realm.


    How did he do it? How did he manage to have such powerful attacking power?


    But Ye Futian regarded him with the utmost tranquility, so nonchalant and casual. It was as if what he had just done was something completely trivial, nothing special. It was not enough to elevate his heartbeat at all.


    Or perhaps, Ye Futian didn��t see him as a true opponent from the beginning.


    He had wanted to step on Ye Futian and all of Ziwei Segmentum to make his moniker, The Unraveled, a reality in the Divine Prefecture. But before he could even begin, he was beaten on his own turf. After taking first place in the Armorer Competition, he lost so miserably.


    ��You can��t!�� said Ye Futian, resounding in the sky above Tianyan City.


    The Young City Lord of Tianyan City, the heir of Tianyan the Great, Wang Xiao, the champion in the Armorer Competition, was unable!

 Chapter 2568 - Imperial Arms;Vanquish Ziwei

    ��Impressive!��


    In the dead silence inside the City Lord��s Office, no one dared to say anything. The first one to comment was the Dark Saint, Hua Yunting.


    Hua Yunting looked at the two men in the void, smiled, and said, ��Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm, able to make Sub-divine elixirs and slay the cultivators of Tribulation Plane, now defeating the heir of Tianyan City with a single strike. In the land of the Divine Prefecture, could there be another?��


    Who should be the one named ��Unraveled?��


    Clearly, Wang Xiao was not the one.


    The City Lord of Tianyan wanted to create momentum for Wang Xiao��s ascend and make him famous worldwide. With Wang Xiao��s talents in armoring and cultivation, he did do exactly just that. He achieved fame in a day, and from this day hence, no one in the Divine Prefecture would not know of the name of Wang Xiao.


    Obviously, if Ye Futian had never come, this would undoubtedly be the perfect campaign. Tianyan City would have created a mythical figure.


    However, things in the world were often curious and unpredictable. On this day, Ye Futian appeared, and Tianyan City intended to use him as a stepping stone for Wang Xiao. In the end, although Wang Xiao��s name would be known throughout the world after today, the world would always think of him as more than just the champion of the Armor Competition or the heir of Tianyan the Great.


    On this day, these two brilliant talents battled on top of Tianyan City. The successor of Tianyan the Great, Wang Xiao, as outstanding as he was, was defeated by Ye Futian with a single strike Ye Futian, using Wang Xiao, proved to the people of the Divine Prefecture that he was the one and only Unraveled existence.


    Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, the heir of Ziwei the Great, Shenyin the Great, and Emperor Ye Qing. He was the number one genius talent in the Void World. Who else could ravel his supremacy in all of the Divine Prefecture,?


    The top principalities of the Divine Prefecture aside, even the Ancient God Clan, who among them could compare?


    Wang Xiao was such an example.


    It could be said that Wang Xiao wanted to use Ye Futian to achieve his own fame, but in the end, it was exactly the opposite. Through him, Ye Futian proved himself once again to the world.


    ��Looking back at Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing, these two outstanding figures seemed to have foreshadowed Princess Donghuang and the heir of Emperor Ye Qing here today, whose presence echoed the two emperors back then.�� Hua Yunting continued to speak, but his words were frowned upon by many cultivators.


    Likewise, Ye Futian raised his eyebrow slightly. Hua Yunting mentioned Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing in the same sentence. It was obvious he was deliberately provoking his audience.


    Although everyone knew this, it sounded different when they said it out loud.


    Ye Futian had proved himself as the Unraveled, stepping on Wang Xiao, and stole his thunder in every way. But Hua Yunting mentioned that he was the heir of Emperor Ye Qing now like this could only mean that the person corresponding to him was Princess Donghuang.


    His motive was suspect!


    However, from the standpoint of Hua Yunting, this was totally within expectation. Ye Futian had displayed such enchanting talent, and it was natural that he hoped Ye Futian would be the sworn enemy of the Divine Prefecture, and he wouldn��t mind adding more fuel to that fire. Perhaps this was the only way for Ye Futian to work together with them.


    Sure enough, next to the City Lord of Tianyan, the beautiful Princess Donghuang looked at Ye Futian as well. Next to her, Du You��s eyes were as sharp as a spear when he said coldly, ��He is not worthy!��


    Hua Yunting actually proposed to link Ye Futian with Princess Donghuang.


    Clearly, Du You would not agree to that.


    In the land of the Divine Prefecture, no one was worthy of Princess Donghuang.


    ��Ye Futian, have you already sided with the Dark Court and colluded with them?�� the clan leader of the Shen Clan spoke loudly as if fanning the fire. Everything that happened today was taken in by Ye Futian, and the grievances between Ye Futian and the Shen Clan couldn��t be more clear to him.


    In the future, when Ye Futian managed to prove the supremacy of the Great Path, the Shen Clan would undoubtedly follow in the footsteps of the Holy Land of Taichu.


    Now, they must do all they could to get rid of Ye Futian.


    ��Ye Futian first sneaked into the City Lord��s Office so that the cultivators from the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm could follow on his heel, working perfectly together inside and out. Now, look what a great job he did in representing the Dark World to challenge the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture,�� Chief Xihai of the West Sea Domain declared loudly.


    They seemed to zoom in on Ye Futian directly, declared that this heir of Emperor Ye Qing had already taken the side of the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm, and joined forces with these two major worlds to stand against the Divine Prefecture.


    ��I heard that some cultivators from the Dark World had visited Ziwei Segmentum before, and Ye Futian had personally received them,�� Ning Yuan, the Chief of the Donghua Domain, said. They all wanted to put Ye Futian in a compromising position.


    All these voices were heard by Ye Futian, and his heart was cold, as it was filled with murderous intent.


    All these forces wanted to get rid of him and charge him with some unfounded or imagined crimes. They wanted to say that he was colluding with the Dark Court and Empty Divine Mountain and declaring war with all of the Divine Prefecture.


    Although he did have the idea of exploiting the balance between these two major worlds and the Divine Prefecture, using it as an opportunity to buy himself some time to grow and develop his power quietly, he had never had the thoughts of joining them. Especially the Dark World. He and the Dark World had equally deep grievances. How could he possibly join them?


    But it did not matter whether it was true or not. The key was how would the Imperial Palace and the Divine Prefecture perceived the matter.


    The feast at Tianyan City today, in itself, had a purpose behind it. It was for Tianyan City to lead the powers of the Divine Prefecture to destroy Ziwei Segmentum.


    He was now the true public enemy of the Divine Prefecture.


    Hua Yunting looked on with a smile, not saying anything. It was as if this was exactly what he wished to see. As long as Ye Futian was forced into a desperate situation, he could side with them and fight against the Divine Prefecture together.


    At this moment, everyone felt an unparalleled pressure of might that permeated the City Lord��s Office, shrouding the entire Tianyan city.


    This was the Imperial Might!


    For a time, the cultivators inside the City Lord��s Office quieted down, and traces of divine light fell directly upon Wang Xiao. A phantom of a deity appeared behind him, and Ye Futian frowned slightly. Wang Xiao faced the spear that was pointed at him and took a step.


    Boom��


    An overwhelming pressure of Might swept out as Ye Futian was knocked backward. Wang Xiao��s eyes became terrifying, and his body was bathed in a sacred and incomparable radiance; it was as if he was possessed by the gods.


    ��Tianyan the Great.��


    Ye Futian put down the long spear in his hand as he glanced at Wang Xiao. Clearly, this was not Wang Xiao��s power; he was unable to do something like this just yet.


    The City Lord of Tianyan had said that Wang Xiao was the heir of Tianyan the Great and could communicate with the imperial arms. Although he had inherited the will of several Great Emperors, he was not clear as to what form the ancient Great Emperors of the Ancient God Clan existed.


    But one thing was certain. The Ancient God Clan was able to pass down from generation to generation and was known to possess the power of the gods. Then, it was definitely not just as simple as a wisp of the will of the emperor; it might be similar to the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Therefore, when Wang Xiao was standing inside this City Lord��s Office, he seemed to have transformed with just a thought; it was as if he had awakened the Great Emperor.


    A horrible pressure of Might fell on Ye Futian as Wang Xiao��s eyes were glued on him. Everyone was silent for a while. Some cultivators from the Divine Prefecture who were enemies with Ye Futian even hoped that Wang Xiao would chop Ye Futian into pieces. Even if that was a violation of what was promised, it had nothing to do with them.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced towards Wang Xiao. He was frowning slightly, his body surrounded by the divine light of the Great Path.


    ��You��ve already been defeated. There��s no need to act this, right? Or does the City Lord��s Office lack sportsmanship, and the Divine Prefecture too proud to admit defeat?�� A cold voice spoke. Accompanied with this voice was an even a strong pressure of Might. Faintly, it tended to oppose the emperor��s might.


    Many look at the person who spoke, and it was the Evil Sage, Mo Qingge, who rarely said anything.


    Wang Xiao was still staring at Ye Futian but did not make a move. Ye Futian glanced at him indifferently. His figure appeared high above the sky as he moved about at will. That pressure of Might didn��t seem to be able to constrain him at all.


    ��I can defeat Wang Xiao today, and I can defeat all the powers of the Divine Prefecture in another day,�� Ye Futian shouted. ��Whoever wants to act against Ziwei, the Holy Land of Taichu is your warning.��


    As soon as his voice faded, Ye Futian��s figure disappeared right from where he was, leaving this place of strife behind, without a trace.


    But his voice resounded throughout the entire Tianyan City, lingering endlessly.


    If he could defeat Wang Xiao today, he could defeat all the powers of the Divine Prefecture in the future. It was an incredibly arrogant claim, but it was the truth.


    He was only in the Ninth-Realm. If he ever survived the first Divine Tribulation, how strong would his combat power be?


    If he ever survived the second divine tribulation, who could compete with him in the land of the Divine Prefecture?


    ��If you collude with the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm, I will kill you for sure.�� In the City Lord��s Office, a voice pierced through heaven and earth, extremely sharp, and it was the voice of the Spear Emperor, Du You. This voice was highly penetrating and reverberated between heaven and earth, issuing a warning to Ye Futian.


    ��You can��t do it either!�� In the void, a response came; it was Ye Futian��s voice.


    Wang Xiao couldn��t.


    And in his opinion, a direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, the Spear Emperor, Du You, couldn��t either!


    When the voice faded, there was completely no sign of life after that. Mo Qingge and Hua Yunting smiled when they saw this and said, ��Today, we have witnessed a feat that was well worth the trip. We will be on our way now.��


    Once that was said, the cultivators from the two worlds withdrew and did not continue to battle.


    In the City Lord��s Office, only the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture remained.


    Wang Xiao continued to remain high in the sky. It was as if he still hadn��t fully recovered from the battle.


    At this time, in space below, the clan leader of the Shen Clan and the master of the Sun God Mountain each took out a communication treasure at the same time. Then, all of a sudden, both of them stood up, and their face wore a look of great shock.


    Boom�� A horrific aura spread from them as they raised their heads and shouted into the sky above, ��Ye Futian!��


    However, no one responded.


    ��Ye Futian dispatched the cultivators from Ziwei Segmentum to ambush the Shen Clan.��


    ��And the Sun God Mountain.��


    The news from both of these men caused everyone��s hearts to skip a beat. Ye Futian had taken action way faster than they had imagined, which meant that Ye Futian must have already set everything up before coming here. Once they expressed their intent to attack Ziwei Segmentum, he took action immediately.


    The City Lord of Tianyan looked at the two men, then raised his head and shouted, ��Wang Xiao.��


    Wang Xiao bowed his head to look at the City Lord of Tianyan.


    ��Today��s battle was not a battle to be ashamed of. You are the heir of the Great Emperor, the most outstanding figure of our family. This defeat will not stain your reputation; it was just a fight,�� the City Lord of Tianyan said loudly. He continued, ��What��s more, you haven��t exerted all of your strength in this battle; otherwise, Ye Futian will undoubtedly die.��


    ��Wang Xiao, you are the only person in Tianyan City who can communicate with the imperial arms. Even if you were defeated, you are still The Raveled, as under the Great Emperor, none could ravel your presence. Now, take the imperial arms and raze Ziwei, slay Ye Futian, to redeem yourself of this defeat!��


    His voice resounded throughout the entire Tianyan City, making everyone��s hearts beat violently.


    What a decisive and ruthless City Lord of Tianyan!

 Chapter 2569 - Catastrophe of Ziwei

    After Wang Xiao was defeated, the City Lord of Tianyan, fearing that he would be severely discouraged, tasked him to use the imperial arms to overpower Ziwei and slay Ye Futian to redeem himself.


    Wang Xiao could communicate with the imperial arms, he said, and that Wang Xiao was still The Unraveled under the Great Emperors. He used this to encourage and inspire Wang Xiao.


    The entire City Lord��s Office was totally depressed. This centennial feast of Tianyan City was perfect until Ye Futian showed up. Everything was going in the direction expected by the City Lord of Tianyan.


    However, after Ye Futian showed up, everything went sideways, big time.


    Now, they hoped that by razing Ziwei to the ground, Ye Futian��s blood would be enough to make up for the damage he caused at the feast of Tianyan City.


    Many cultivators in the Divine Prefecture looked at the City Lord of Tianyan. This decision was made so quickly that it came somewhat unexpected in its sheer cruelty. No wonder he was the one in command of the Ancient God Clan.


    At this moment, the City Lord of Tianyan surveyed the crowd and said, ��As you have said before, Ye Futian is now a concern for everyone in the Divine Prefecture and must be killed. If not, he will be a great threat to the Divine Prefecture in the future. And who knows how many Holy Lands of Taichu are in the making? Even now, he had already ambushed the Shen Clan and the Sun God Mountain, and who knows how many casualties this has incurred.��


    ��Tianyan City will fulfill our previous promises. Wang Xiao, as the heir of Tianyan the Great, is the only person who can communicate with the imperial arms. He will bring the imperial arms and lead the cultivators of Tianyan City to vanquish Ziwei. If any forces in the Divine Prefecture wish to join us in the effort of razing Ziwei to the ground, please mobilize your people immediately. We will be gathering in Tianyan City before embarking to Ziwei Segmentum.��


    The City Lord of Tianyan��s voice shook the void, and his indifferent voice echoed in the entire Tianyan City, rife with an intense murderous intent.


    Wang Xiao would lead Tianyan City, with the imperial arms, to go on an expedition to destroy Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��If we go to destroy Ziwei, will Ye Futian lead his people to continue these ambushes, just like he did today?�� someone asked.


    ��No, Ziwei Segmentum is his lair right now. There, he can urge the will of Ziwei the Great. Now that he knows of our attacks, Ye Futian will not easily leave the Ziwei Segmentum. Otherwise, it would be as if he has completely given up Ziwei Segmentum, and then what would become of the cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum?�� The City Lord of Tianyan continued, ��Unless he rebels and decides to side with the Dark World or the Evil Emperor Realm.��


    ��Un-huh.�� All the cultivators nodded.


    In the Ziwei Segmentum, Ye Futian was able to use the will of Ziwei the Great to kill those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, which they had already known. With such a powerful defensive force, Ye Futian would not be willing to leave the Ziwei Segmentum.


    If it was not to join the two other principalities, leaving the Ziwei Segmentum was akin to suicide. Principalities in the Divine Prefecture wanted to destroy them. Ye Futian himself aside, what about the other? How would they escape?


    As for Four Corner Village, the teacher and Donghuang the Great had reached a compromise. As long as the teacher would not intervene, Donghuang the Great and the Imperial Palace would not interfere either. However, if the teacher from the Four Corner Village wanted to meddle, he would have difficulty explaining it to Donghuang the Great.


    There was no need to worry about all of these, however. Now, it depended on whether Wang Xiao, with the help of the imperial arms, would overpower Ye Futian, who had the will of Ziwei the Great. As long as he could, then Ziwei Segmentum would be destroyed.


    Perhaps the Ziwei Segmentum had the power to destroy one principality in the Divine Prefecture, such as the Holy Land of Taichu. But with a conglomerate of the forces within the Divine Prefecture, the power of Ziwei Segmentum was far from enough to overcome them all.


    There was only death in their future.


    Xi Chiyao frowned slightly. This time the feast at Tianyan City was meant to create the momentum for Wang Xiao to destroy Ziwei. Ye Futian may have suppressed this momentum, but it did not dampen the City Lord��s determination.


    The outcome had not changed.


    Under this condition, it was hard for her to help Ye Futian.


    ��The Ziwei Segmentum must be destroyed,�� said a cultivator from Haotian can in Nantian Domain spoke at this time.


    ��If that��s the case, we will have to look to Tianyan City in leading the effort,�� Yuanshi Palace of Yuanshi Domain added.


    Successively, one after the other followed to express similar sentiments. It was the Ancient God Clan first who wanted to destroy Ziwei.


    With the participation of several major Ancient God Clans, some other major forces immediately pledged their allegiance in joining the army of this operation of suppression.


    Xi Chiyao sat there quietly and watched all this taking place. She understood that these Ancient God Clans were so proactive in the elimination of Ye Futian was not only because of their grievances. In truth, their grievances with Ye Futian were not as deep as imagined. It was just that one time and could be resolved if they wanted to.


    The motivation to destroy Ziwei, grievances aside, was because Ye Futian��s growth would make the Ziwei Segmentum, which he ruled, become a significant threat to the rest of the Ancient God Clans. Then, there was also the matter of the many divine treasures that Ye Futian possessed.


    The cultivation world was operated on survival of the fittest, and acts of plunder were common. They wouldn��t mind suffocating a peerless genius talent before his time.


    Furthermore, unlike the Shen Clan and the Sun God Mountain, they were not afraid of Ye Futian��s ambush and revenge. It was relatively simple to kill Ye Futian before he had completely developed all his potentials, as there was not much threat. If they waited until Ye Futian survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, it would be conceivably much more difficult.


    ��How about the West Imperial Palace and the other forces? Don��t you want to participate?�� It was the clan leader of Haotian Clan. His eyes fell on the Palace Lord of West Imperial Palace. He asked, ��Now that Ziwei Segmentum is a common enemy of the Divine Prefecture, all forces of the Divine Prefecture ought to join hands in their punishment. As one of the Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture, does the West Imperial Palace really intend to side with Ye Futian against everyone?��


    ��And all the Domain Chief��s Manors and other principalities of the Divine Prefecture as well. The Great Emperor is merciful and agreed not to get involved, but all of you, don��t you want to help the Imperial Palace in getting rid of this thorn?��


    Now that these forces decided to participate themselves, it seemed that they loathed seeing anyone else watching from the sidelines, intending to strongarm the entire Divine Prefecture. This way, Ye Futian and Ziwei Segmentum would be facing all of the Divine Prefecture, thus reducing any threat from him.


    Even if they couldn��t take him, with Ye Futian being the public enemy of the entire Divine Prefecture, could the Imperial Palace still stand by and do nothing?


    A look of annoyance flashed through Xi Chiyao��s beautiful eyes. This Haotian Clan was a little too nosy.


    The Palace Lord of the West Imperial Palace glanced at him, only to hear Chief Xihai of the West Sea Domain interrupted at this time, ��I heard that Ye Futian personally went to the West Imperial Palace to deliver elixir and was received by the Palace Lord personally. Are the two parties now in an alliance? ��


    ��Just for mutual benefits, nothing more.�� The Palace Lord of West Imperial Palace looked nonchalant as he continued, ��Would any of you refuse the offering of Sub-divine elixir?��


    ��Xi Chiyao had consented to the cooperation with Ye Futian, which made the mutual benefits possible later, but there is no alliance. However, because of this relationship, it is inconvenient for West Imperial Palace to do anything at the moment. We can only wish all of you the best in your endeavor. ��


    Naturally, the Palace Lord of the West Imperial Palace knew what to say and what not to say. Ye Futian was being ostracized by the entire Divine Prefecture, so he couldn��t very well divulge the fact that they were in an alliance. But if it was just mutual benefits, who in Divine Prefecture could do anything about that?


    ��Now that things are coming to an end, West Imperial Palace must be leaving. Thank you for the invitation. We are all very impressed.�� The Palace Lord of West Imperial Palace put his hands together in respect for the City Lord of Tianyan. He then looked at Princess Donghuang, ��Your Royal Highness, we will take our leave presently.��


    Having said that, the Palace Lord of West Imperial Palace left with the cultivators from West Imperial Palace, not willing to jump into this muddy water with the rest of them.


    Xi Chiyao left with them, but she was a little worried. The alliance among all the significant forces in the Divine Prefecture to initiate the subjugation of the Ziwei Segmentum would be extremely dangerous this time.


    This was the first time anything of this kind had ever happened since Donghuang the Great had unified the Divine Prefecture.


    Right after she left, Xi Chiyao immediately notified Ye Futian regarding this latest development.


    Although he knew in advance that this might be the outcome of the Armor Competition at Tianyan City, Ye Futian still had a heavy feeling after its confirmation. Next, Ziwei Segmentum would be besieged by all of the Divine Prefecture.


    However, he would have no thoughts of compromise. Things as they were, he would have to face them head-on.


    It was not as if he had never experienced this kind of crisis. If he were to survive this major catastrophe, in the future, he would make each and every one of these forces in the Divine Prefecture pay, especially Tianyan City.


    Ye Futian hurried back to Ziwei Segmentum. At the same time, all the major forces in the Divine Prefecture began to mobilize their forces to meet at Tianyan City. The stage seemed to be set for an impending great battle that would surely shake all of the Divine Prefecture. The cultivators of Tianyan City were all trembling in their hearts, facing the unknown of this predicament.


    They could have never expected that the once-a-century Armor Competition in Tianyan City would evolve from a celebration to the dire situation they found themselves in.


    ��


    After Ye Futian returned to Ziwei Imperial Palace, he waited quietly.


    Lord Chen and Hua Jieyu also returned one after another and brought with them many cultivators. They were primarily important figures from the Shen Clan and the Sun God Mountain. However, most of the key figures in these two forces had gone to Tianyan City, thus escaped the invasion and were not captured.


    Ye Futian looked at the group of cultivators in front of him with a cold expression and said, ��Imprison them. If the Shen Clan and the Sun God Mountain behave themselves, they will be imprisoned here in Ziwei Segmentum. If the two forces attack, they will be the first ones to die.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord.��


    At this time, Ye Futian was filled with murderous intent. How could he be peaceful when the forces of the Divine Prefecture had launched an attack on him?


    ��What��s the situation over there?�� Lord Chen asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian frowned slightly and said, ��The situation is not good. We must prepare for war. Ziwei Segmentum will face its greatest catastrophe in history.��


    Lord Chen looked solemnly at Ye Futian. From Ye Futian��s tone, he could tell the seriousness of the matter.


    ��This time, all the principalities in the Divine Prefecture, including all the Ancient God Clans, will ally for the sole purpose of attacking Ziwei Segmentum. They are already gathering their forces in Tianyan City,�� said Ye Futian. Not long before he left, Xi Chiyao had informed him of this news!

 Chapter 2570 - One Man’s Battle

    In Tianyan City, the feast had concluded, but no one left the city.


    As countless cultivators looked up into the sky, they saw in the area close to the City Lord��s Office that cultivators had descended successively from the sky. They came down with brilliant divine light and gathered in the City Lord��s Office.


    Outside the City Lord��s Office, where the most crowd gathered, there was a sea of people with no end in sight. They all rushed to get a look inside the City Lord��s Office and saw that formation of camps had appeared in the sky above the City Lord��s Office. Each camp represented a peak force from the Divine Prefecture.


    All the principalities in the Divine Prefecture had converged to Tianyan City with the greatest speed. They did not intend to give the Ziwei Segmentum any time for preparation. They did not want to repeat the Holy Land of Taichu��s mistakes and wanted to flatten the Ziwei Segmentum as soon as possible.


    Princess Donghuang, Du You, and other cultivators from the Imperial Palace did not leave, however. They sat there, watching everything that took place in front of them. Not even when the powers of the Divine Prefecture were dealing with the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm had acted this quickly.


    The City Lord of Tianyan city did not sit down but stood there, waiting for the arrival of cultivators from all sides. This battle was unavoidable, and Ziwei Segmentum must be destroyed, just like Ye Futian must be destroyed as well. He would be the stepping stone for Wang Xiao, who was on his way to becoming an emperor. Slaying Ye Futian would dispel the remaining dark clouds over Wang Xiao��s head.


    Watching the arrival of all the major forces, the City Lord of Tianyan was also looking solemn at this moment, and there was a slight disturbance in his heart. He cast a glance at Wang Xiao. Though he was defeated in the last battle, it would not affect his future. He, who was able to control the imperial arms, would be invincible under the Great Emperor.


    Gradually, all the participating forces from Divine Prefecture completed their assembly and gathered inside the City Lord��s Office. The entire Tianyan City was incredibly quiet. This would be the greatest war since the unification of the Divine Prefecture.


    Unfortunately, they would not be witnessing it.


    ��Everyone is here. Let��s get ready to depart.�� The City Lord of Tianyan surveyed the crowd, then said to Princess Donghuang next to him, ��The Great Emperor is merciful and agreed not to act against Ziwei. But today, Wang Xiao will lead the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to flatten the Ziwei Segmentum, ridding them of the Imperial Palace.��


    His words had put Wang Xiao at an extremely high level by letting him be the head of all the powers of the Divine Prefecture. Furthermore, in the presence of so many top figures from the Divine Prefecture, he did not feel any impropriety in the slightest.


    As the most powerful man under the Great Emperor, his grandson, Wang Xiao, was definitely qualified.


    Princess Donghuang glanced in the direction where Wang Xiao was and said, ��If so, you have my best wish to Tianyan City and all the forces of the Divine Prefecture to take down Ye Futian. However, there are countless living creatures within the Ziwei Segmentum, and they are innocent cultivators. As all of you go forth to conquer, refrain from killing indiscriminately, lest you hurt the innocents.��


    ��Your Royal Highness, rest assured, this time we will only slaughter the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and take down the Ziwei Segmentum. No innocent people will be harmed,�� The City Lord of Tianyan said. Then, he looked at Wang Xiao and said, ��Wang Xiao, remember well the words of the Princess.��


    ��Yes,�� Wang Xiao nodded.


    ��Go and fetch the imperial arms so you can be on your way,�� the City Lord of Tianyan said. Immediately Wang Xiao left, heading deeper into the City Lord��s Office. Inside the City Lord��s Office, there was a passage to the Original Realm.


    After a moment, the cultivators of Tianyan City saw an imperial glory and shot into the firmament in the direction of the City Lord��s Office. It was as if the sky had been pierced through. At the same time, an incomparable imperial might shrouded Tianyan City.


    After another moment, the imperial glory disappeared. A brilliant spatial divine light appeared inside the City Lord��s Office. All those powerful formations disappeared from the City Lord��s Office to conquer the Original Realm.


    ��


    In the Ziwei Segmentum and inside the Ziwei Imperial Palace, everyone was busy with their assignments. Many cultivators had been sent away, temporarily leaving Ziwei Segmentum. Those below the realm of Upper Renhuang had been sent away to other parts of the Ziwei Segmentum. In case they lost, these people may still have a chance at survival.


    Of course, all the key players of Ziwei Imperial Palace were still there. They planned to live and die with the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian was standing together with Hua Jieyu, inspecting Ziwei Imperial Palace. He looked at Zhuge Mingyue and said, ��Second senior sister, how is the arrangement of everything?��


    ��Don��t worry. Everything has been arranged,�� Zhuge Mingyue said with a smile. It seemed as if she did not feel any stress at all; she seemed quite at ease.


    The other cultivators were there as well. They looked at Ye Futian with trust in their eyes.


    Ye Futian felt the gaze from everyone, and there was a hint of guilty in his heart. He said with a smile, ��Everyone has been through a hard time following me.��


    There were not many peaceful days all along this journey.


    ��The cultivation world has always been like this. It��s the same everywhere. If not you, there would have been other calamities.�� Lord Taixuan said, ��When I was cultivating in Taixuan Mountain, I was also attacked. Then, I watched you endure these catastrophes because you have been growing. In the process of growth, there are many dangers and hardships.��


    ��That��s right, every day of my life is a bonus after being saved from so many situations like this. They are nothing new and certainly nothing to worry about,�� the Sky River Great Elder also piped up nonchalantly. They had been through so many dangers with their lives hanging by a thread that nothing was very significant.


    They were not afraid of death. They just wanted to go out in a blaze of glory, following Ye Futian to go to the higher highs.


    Ye Futian smiled and nodded. He then looked at Lord Chen and Murong Yu and said, ��Ziwei Imperial Palace does not belong to me. If it is really sacked, you can choose to surrender. There is no need to consider in regards to me. It is better to be alive than dead.��


    Those cultivators who were part of the Ziwei Imperial Palace before him did not have as deep a relationship with him as others. He would not force anyone else to die if he were defeated this time.


    ��The Palace Lord is the heir chosen by Ziwei the Great, and we are all descendants of Ziwei. We have followed the Palace Lord because the Palace Lord has inherited the will of the Great Emperor. Now that the forces of Divine Prefecture have come for the kill, there is absolutely no reason for us to surrender. Any suggestion of that is an insult to us,�� Lord Chen said. His tone was not so friendly anymore.


    Back then, Ye Futian had slew the original Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace so that the Ziwei Imperial Palace would surrender to him. Still, they didn��t submit because of fear alone. It was essential to note that Ye Futian had already inherited the will of Ziwei the Great at that time. Hence, their submission to the manifestation of the Great Emperor was understandable.


    After all, the entire Ziwei Segmentum worshipped Ziwei the Great, and that was their belief.


    But this time was different. Ye Futian would use the will of the Great Emperor to fight this battle. If he lost, the emperor��s will would be broken, and Ziwei would be destroyed. How could they possibly submit in that case?


    ��Although we are not a noble brood, we have chosen to stay, and we will follow the Palace Lord and live and die with the Imperial Palace,�� Murong Yu also said.


    Ye Futian looked at those faces, and warmth filled his heart. He proceeded, ��As the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, I cannot guarantee anything else, but in this battle if the forces of Divine Prefecture want to invade the Ziwei Segmentum and raze Ziwei Imperial Palace to the ground, they will have to step over my dead body first.��


    ��Although Tianyan City came with the imperial arms, the Palace Lord can use the will of the Great Emperor to unite the heavens. Surely this battle will be won, and the people of the Divine Prefecture will not be able to sack Ziwei,�� Lord Chen said.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, ��I have never felt the power of the imperial arms, so this battle is a battle of the unknown. Right now, I��m just planning for the worst-case scenario.��


    With his current realm of strength, using the will of Ziwei the Great, he was also an invincible existence under the Great Emperor. In the Ziwei Segmentum, he could slay even those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    But this time, he would be facing the imperial arms.


    With a wave of Ye Futian��s hand, a treasure mirror appeared. A divine consciousness entered into it, and the mirror flickered with light inside. An image appeared. In the boundless space outside the Ziwei Segmentum, there was a place where the divine light was shining radiantly, and a mighty group of cultivators was heading towards the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��They are here.�� Ye Futian said, ��I��m going.��


    After that, he levitated into the air and headed higher up into the sky.


    ��May the Palace Lord return in victory.�� Lord Chen raised his head and looked at the departing figure of Ye Futian, bowing.


    ��May the Palace Lord return in victory.�� One after another, voices resounded throughout Ziwei Imperial Palace. Inside the Imperial Palace, all the cultivators bowed, wishing Ye Futian a triumphant return.


    They knew that Ye Futian would either win or die in this battle. There was no third choice.


    With Ye Futian��s personality, defeat meant death because he would not want to live to see the people from Divine Prefecture sack Ziwei Segmentum.


    This was not a war between the Divine Prefecture and Ziwei Segmentum, but a war between the forces of the Divine Prefecture and Ye Futian.


    Today��s Ziwei Segmentum, in front of such a mighty army of Divine Prefecture, could not withstand a prolonged battle. As soon as the army entered Ziwei Segmentum, Ziwei Imperial Palace would be razed to the ground in a short time.


    This was a war for Ye Futian alone!


    In the boundless starry sky, standing outside the Ziwei Segmentum, the entire Ziwei Segmentum seems to be shrouded by an endless light screen. All the stars in the Segmentum were linked as one, emitting infinite starlight that was continuously circulating.


    At this time, rays of light dazzled, descending in one area and turning into formations. Each of these formations was extremely powerful, with a terrifying aura of the Great Path permeating from them. The men of each formation stood in the boundless space, their eyes on the Segmentum before them. It was a spectacular sight.


    Starlight flowed in the periphery of the Segmentum, circulating it as if to pave the sky with stars.


    At this moment, their eyes were focused in one direction. In that direction, amid the flowing starlight, a gigantic elusive figure manifested. A very familiar figure in white garments and with white hair; it was was none other than Ye Futian.


    At this moment, Ye Futian��s will had been merged with Ziwei Segmentum already and turned into a part of this endless starry sky.


    Just as Lord Chen and the others had anticipated, this war was a war for Ye Futian alone!

 Chapter 2571 - Imperial Arm

    Below the starry sky, a figure dressed in white sat in a cross-legged stance. In the boundless universe, he appeared especially tiny. His eyes were shut tight, and his spiritual soul had merged into one with the starry sky. He had forgotten about himself. This was Ye Futian��s true self, but his consciousness was not inside of his true form.


    Above the celestial skies, the enormous phantasm appeared in the vast starry space; it looked like the projection of Ye Futian in the starry skies. This was a manifestation of his consciousness. The eyes of the projection looked toward the Divine Prefecture cultivators who came to attack.


    He stood before the powerful cultivators of the Divine Prefecture alone, on his own. He intercepted them outside of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The Divine Prefecture cultivators paused in their tracks. The aura from each of the camps was extremely terrifying. Their gazes were fixed on the phantom figure before them. Indeed, as the rumors had it, Ye Futian could utilize the will of Ziwei the Great to fuse his spiritual soul into the starry skies and control the trillions of celestial stars.


    At this moment, Ye Futian represented the will of Ziwei the Great and guarded this place.


    In the middle of the various Divine Prefecture factions were the cultivators from Tianyan City. Of which, the leading figure wasn��t the Lord of the Tianyan City, and it was his heir, Wang Xiao, who had been defeated by Ye Futian.


    The Divine Prefecture crusade this time was led by Wang Xiao for an assault on the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Wang Xiao looked in front of him as well, and he stared at Ye Futian��s phantom figure. His gaze was ice-cold, while murderous intent burned inside his eyes.


    ��Young City Lord, please break open this defense of the Ziwei Segmentum. As long as we shatter the will of Ziwei the Great, we can directly charge into Ziwei and wipe out the Imperial Palace,�� the Chief of the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor said. He had an intense hatred for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian killed a significant number of people from his West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor. Although he was the Chief of the Domain Chief��s Manor under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Palace, he joined this war against the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The various cultivators all looked toward Wang Xiao. The only one capable of breaking through this defense and destroying the will of Ziwei the Great was Wang Xiao. Although the Lord of the Tianyan City was arrogant to say that Wang Xiao was invisible amongst cultivators below the Great Emperor, in some sense, he was right. With the Imperial Arm, very few people in the Divine Prefecture could hold their own against Wang Xiao.


    His own power level was, of course, out of the question since he had been defeated by Ye Futian not long ago.


    ��Alright,�� Wang Xiao nodded and walked forward. It stepped on the void and stood in the middle of the boundless starry skies. With a turn of his mind, a ray of light appeared above him in the vast starry skies.


    As the light rained downward, it illuminated the vast space. That was the imperial glory, supremely divine and holy, and even the apex overlords didn��t dare to look into it directly.


    Wang Xiao went up into the air and moved in that direction. He stood in the boundless starry skies. Before him was a Divine Hammer. The one who was holding the Divine Hammer was a supreme, holy phantasm. The phantasm was extremely oppressive and had an unparalleled aura of might and majesty. It was almost as though it contained vitality and looked down upon all beings in the world.


    ��Tianyan the Great!��


    The hearts of the cultivators quivered. This Divine Hammer was one of the Imperial Arms forged personally by Tianyan the Great. It was the divine attacking arm of Tianyan the Great, a divine weapon known as the Sky Tremor. This was the Imperial Arm that Tianyan the Great explicitly forged to be compatible with the Divine Technique: Sky Tremoring Hammer, which he had created.


    In the boundless void, waves of tremoring pulses swept out from above the Sky Tremor, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture all felt a suffocating aura. The waves of terrifying tremors continued to expand while growing stronger. It covered a nearly endless area, perhaps even the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    Boom�� Dull thumps could be heard in the skies. As waves after waves of the tremoring pulses swept across the air and landed on the light screen outside the Ziwei Segmentum, rigorous booming sounds erupted from the impact. Moreover, it was as though those tremoring pulses were endless, impacting the light screen over and over.


    ��Retreat.�� The Divine Prefecture Cultivators flew into the air and went even higher to evade those tremoring pulses. They looked down toward the Segmentum. The tremoring pulses of the Sky Tremor seemed to transform into tangible attacks. As it tremored down on the light screen one round after another, it was as though it had no end.


    ��Legend has it that every attack of the Sky Tremor contained hundreds of millions of tremoring pulses, containing enough power to obliterate anything in this world,�� a powerful cultivator from the Divine Prefecture said as he looked in Wang Xiao��s direction. It was as though Wang Xiao��s body had fused into one with the phantasm of Tainyan the Great. When he reached out his hand, he gripped onto the Sky Tremor together with the arm of the phantasm.


    Ye Futian��s phantasm naturally felt this overwhelming pressure as well. With a turn of his mind, the celestial stars in the skies outside of the Ziwei Segmentum started to revolve and rotate. It was as if the entire segmentum transformed into one complete star with trillions of stars merging into one to protect the Ziwei Segmentum from obliteration.


    Hum! As the divine light rained down from the celestial skies, it blinded the eyes of those who looked toward it. Wang Xiao raised his hand. The phantasm of Tianyan the Great raised the Sky Tremor and slammed it down. At this instant, trillions of tremoring pulses swept downward, shrouding the vast celestial skies. Within the vicinity of these tremoring pulses, it was as though no living being could exist. Regardless of who stood below, he would be shattered and killed by the tremoring pulses.


    Boom�� A dull, heavy thud echoed through the celestial skies. It was as though space itself was being crushed and shattered, giving rise to an endless array of dark cracks in space. At the same time, the waves of tremoring pulses attacked against the outside of the body of the star. The tremoring even seeped in indirectly, trying to shatter the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    At this moment, inside one of the cultivation stars inside the Ziwei Segmentum, all of the cultivators suddenly heard the terrifying noises coming from atop the celestial skies. It rumbled their eardrums, causing the ground to shake and tremor as though there was an earthquake. Buildings collapsed while the wild roars of the demonic beasts could be heard.


    At this moment, every single person inside the Ziwei Segmentum felt this tremoring pulse attack coming from outside of the Segmentum. Regardless of cultivation level, a shocked expression spread across all of their faces. They raised their heads to look toward the sky while the ground was quaking.


    What in the world is happening?


    No one knew. Only the people of the Ziwei Imperial Palace knew what happened. At this moment, the Imperial Palace was tremoring as well. They raised their heads to look toward the outer skies, and waves of shock went through their hearts. It was such a terrifying attack that impacted the entire segmentum. Just how frighteningly powerful was it?


    If it weren��t for Ye Futian with the will of Ziwei the Great controlling the celestial stars, these tremors would be able to obliterate countless lives from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��This is the attacking power of an Imperial Arm?�� The hearts of the cultivators quivered. Being able to cover the entire segmentum�� That was such shocking power.


    Just how terrifyingly powerful could the Great Emperors be?


    In the eyes of a Great Emperor, all cultivators below the Great Emperor level were likely no different from ants. Regardless of how powerful a Tribulation Plane cultivator was, there was no way he could even conceive an attack this terrifyingly powerful.


    And Ye Futian, what kind of pressure was he under now?


    Boom��


    Another sky-shaking noise echoed through the air. People in the entire segment could hear this extremely horrifying noise.


    Outside of the Ziwei Segmentum and outside of the tremoring pulses from the attacks of the Sky Tremor. A ray of divine light shot down from the Sky Tremor, colliding in one direction to form a terrifying pillar of light attempting to pierce through the defense. Around the light pillar were ominous cracks in space, even tearing open tunnels connecting to the Original Realm and the Divine Prefecture. On the other end of the space cracks, Divine Prefecture cultivators sensed the situation and were all equally shocked, not knowing what was happening.


    ��He didn��t break through!�� The Divine Prefecture cultivators saw that below them, the Ziwei Segmentum defensive light screen was not broken under the attack of the Imperial Arm! However, cracks appeared on the flowing starry light screen, and they were expanding.


    The truly terrifying thing was that the tremoring pulses still hadn��t dissipated; it was as though there was no limit of end to them.


    Finally, as the cracks spread through the light screen, the outer starry light screen was torn apart, and as the cracks continued to grow, the defensive light screen was also breaking.


    Ye Futian witnessed all of this happening. He looked toward Wang Xiao and the Sky Tremor above him, the power of an Imperial Arm, as expected; it was truly as terrifying as it could get.


    But it wasn��t unmatchable.


    With a turn of his mind, the divine lights from the stars of the celestial skies converged together. The phantasm of Ziwei the Great manifested behind Ye Futian��s figure, and then it fused together with his apparition. Ye Futian raised his head and looked toward the phantasms of Wang Xiao and Tianyan the Great high up in the skies. This was no longer a battle between Wang Xiao and him; it was a battle between the wills of two Great Emperors.


    The Sky Tremor was once again raised, then slammed down. Trillions of tremoring pulses swept out, attempting to shatter the entire Ziwei.


    In the Ancient Era, Ziwei the Great was the apex Great Emperor. His powers should be above that of Tianyan the Great. However, the Imperial Arm left by Tianyan the Great contained the attacking will of Tianyan the Great himself, while the Ziwei Segmentum did not; instead, it required Ye Futian��s control.


    Hum! A starry divine light erupted to transform into a Starry Divine Sword, colliding directly with the light ray from the Sky Tremor that was slamming down. High up above the sky, two light pillars of golden and purple colors appeared, tearing apart the space around them. It was as though the entire world was collapsing. It was extremely terrifying.


    At the same time, the stars of the celestial skies revolved and once again blocked those terrifying tremoring pulses. But when the trillions of tremoring pulses swept downwards, many stars exploded and were shattered, allowing the terrifying tremoring pulses to invade the Ziwei Segmentum. Ye Futian could sense that inside the Ziwei segmentum, countless living beings were affected. Many people were even injured due to these terrifying tremoring pulses.


    Ancient Great Emperors were able to obliterate an entire world on their own. That was certainly not fiction.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked in the direction which Wang Xiao was in. The attacks of the Imperial Arm were so powerful. He couldn��t just allow him to strike over and over again. Otherwise, even if he managed to fend against his attacks, the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum wouldn��t be able to bear it!

 Chapter 2572 - Confrontation

    The overlords of the Divine Prefecture stood atop the skies, separating into different formations. Just then, the Lord of the Tianyan City lowered his head to look below him and said, ��The Star Defence Light Screen had already been broken through, we can charge in and enter the Ziwei Segmentum, dismantling the enemy from inside, and leave the straight-on attack for Wang Xiao.��


    Although their power wasn��t as terrifying as Wang Xiao with the Imperial Arm, many of them were still apex cultivators who had overcome the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Even across the entire Divine Prefecture, they��re still considered top-tier cultivators. Even on such a terrifying battlefield, they were qualified to participate.


    ��All right.�� Several of them nodded. Then, the top forces of the Divine Prefecture went downward. The divine lights of the great paths circled them, transforming into rays of light and bolting down. They went straight for the inside of the shattered Star Light Screen, attempting to charge straight into the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Yet just as they charged downward and were about to enter between the countless stars and into the Ziwei Segmentum, a face appeared atop every single celestial star surrounding the Segmentum. They were all Ye Futian��s face.


    At this moment, it was as though countless faces were staring at them, which evoked an uncanny feeling in them.


    Hum! As the starlight flowed and spun, the celestial stars revolved in a specific orbit, slamming toward them in the revolution. Immediately, terrifying noises were emitted, and all of them felt a suffocating divine might.


    ��Careful,�� the Lord of the Tianyan City yelled. All of the cultivators unleashed the most powerful might of their great paths. Then, the celestial stars collided with them.


    The Tianyan City Lord dealt one thrust of his spear, striking onto the huge star, causing cracks to appear before it shattered. At the same time, the other cultivators also launched their attacks against the stars and caused them to shatter one after another.


    But it was as though they had sunken into a dominion of stars and were engulfed by the revolving stars of the skies. Countless stars smashed down onto them endlessly. One after another, each attack forced them into passive defense.


    The Tianyan City Lord frowned. This was still just a slither of Ye Futian��s consciousness dealing with them. Ye Futian��s main consciousness was fending against Wang Xiao. But even then, it was still so astonishingly powerful, which was a testament to his powerful control over the stars of these skies.


    The entire Ziwei Segmentum was under his control. Just like the rumors said, Ye Futian was the King of Ziwei. Here, he was God.


    Wang Xiao saw this too. He wielded the Sky Tremor and slammed toward there. The tremoring pulses swept out, causing enormous noises to echo the skies. Many of the stars were crushed and obliterated, which finally allowed the cultivators to dash out. But they didn��t dare to continue going deeper. Instead, they returned to the celestial skies.


    The auras of the Tianyan City Lord and the other cultivators fluctuated, and the auras of their great paths were also unstable. Although it was just a short while just now, it was extremely dangerous. And that tremoring pulse just now impacted them as well. If they weren��t Tribulation Plane cultivators and were instead just Renhuangs, these tremoring pulses alone would be enough to kill them.


    However, the thought of charging into the Ziwei Segmentum was extinguished. It seemed to be extremely difficult. Unless Wang Xiao completely tore open the defense, they wouldn��t be able to enter.


    ��Wang Xiao, it��s all yours,�� the Tianyan City Lord roared to Wang Xiao. Wang Xiao was invincible below the Great Emperor level. This battle belonged to him. As long as he could crack open Ziwei and eliminate Ye Futian, so what if Tianyan City lost?


    No one cared about the process; they would only see the outcome.


    ��Okay.�� Wang Xiao nodded. At this moment, it was as though the Great Emperor had descended upon the world. It was as if he was the real Tianyan the Great, wielding the Sky Tremor and looking down on the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The only acceptable outcome for him is victory. Otherwise, he wouldn��t be able to wipe out the humiliation of Tianyan City.


    One after another, wave of terrifying pulses came sweeping down the Sky Tremor. Deep thumping sounds echoed out continuously. One pulse after another, endlessly tremoring onto the Ziwei Segmentum. Wang Xiao stared at Ye Futian��s apparition and said, ��This battle between you and me is a clash of fate. I answered to the will of Tianyan the Great and gained the approval of the Great Emperor. I was granted the Imperial Arm. Today, here, I will wipe out Ziwei.��


    His voice rumbled through the boundless celestial skies and echoed through the vast world.


    Yet a cold humph could be heard as though containing some disdain and contempt. Then, Ye Futian said, ��Does this power of the Imperial Arm belong to you? You��re simply relying on the acknowledgment of the Imperial Arm. Even the attacks belong to the Imperial Arm and not you. Without the Imperial arm, who are you? Just one spear thrust�� How dare you claim to be invincible below the Great Emperors? Who are you to proclaim a clash of fate!


    ��All of your glory was bestowed by the Lord of the Tianyan City. A person who can��t even bear one thrust of a spear, do you think you have unparalleled talent?��


    Ye Futian��s voice echoed through the celestial skies, which made Wang Xiao��s face turn ugly. He was always groomed as the heir of Tianyan City. Just as Ye Futian said, all of his values were imbued in him by his grandfather, the Lord of Tianyan City.


    He was born extraordinary, destined for greatness. This had reached the peak after receiving the inheritance of Tianyan the Great. It wasn��t just his grandfather; everyone thought so too, even himself.


    The path that he was going to walk was the path of a Great Emperor.


    ��He wants to affect your state of mind,�� the Tianyan City Lord said loudly. ��Wang Xiao, the world only sees results, not process. You��ve inherited the Imperial Arm, and now you��re unparalleled below the Great Emperor. With this battle, you��ll trample Ziwei and then obliterate Ye Futian. Then, you will be number one in this world below the Great Emperors.��


    Ye Futian sneered inside. The Tianyan City Lord had always imbued this concept into him, Wang Xiao, the greatest below the Great Emperors.


    In fact, Wang Xiao had been under that perception all along, and it had never wavered. Until that thrust of a spear at the Tianyan City Lord��s Office, that was when he wavered.


    That strike made him feel defeated. It made him see someone that was more outstanding than him. When reality is presented right in front of him, how could he not become doubtful?


    But now, he needed to forget all of this and put away the doubts toward himself.


    ��To walk the path of the Great Emperor, one must be willing to move forward no matter what.�� Wang Xiao��s gaze suddenly became incredibly firm. He looked down toward Ye Futian��s phantasm and said, ��Anyone who stands before me shall perish.��


    As his voice sounded, the Sky Tremor once again slammed down. Tremoring pulses of obliteration swept across everything. It was almost as though this entire space of the Original Realm would be destroyed as a dark hurricane formed. At the same time, the light pillar pierced through the boundless celestial skies and shot toward Ye Futian; it was unstoppable.


    As the divine lights of the celestial stars flowed and turned, the projection of Ziwei the Great manifested. Infinite starlight merged in a sword, a killing sword that contained the aura of the Great Emperor. It collided with the light pillar and once again intercepted it. Wang Xiao��s attack couldn��t penetrate it one bit to impact the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��As long as I��m here, Ziwei will be too.�� Ye Futian��s voice sounded unassailable. But he too was pondering. Although he could fend off Wang Xiao��s attacks, it wouldn��t work if he had to keep doing that. I needed some other way to threaten him to stop.


    He fused into the will of Ziwei the Great to control the Ziwei Segmentum. He commanded the power of the stars of the skies, and that was the path of Ziwei the Great. However, that power wasn��t entirely his.


    As he thought about this, the revolving stars of the skies in the boundless celestial space erupted even more magnificent divine lights. Ye Futian��s face appeared atop all of the stars, and it was as though his consciousness had completely fused into the celestial stars.


    Hum, hum, hum�� Rays of starlight lit up and shone. The celestial stars all started to deal out terrifying sword wills of the stars at the same time. These sword wills contained the unparalleled might of the Great Emperor. It was almost as if they were the sword wills of the Great Emperor himself.


    As the celestial stars revolved, an endless array of divine swords appeared in different positions, but they all pointed in the same direction. That was where Wang Xiao was.


    ��Hmm?�� Wang Xiao frowned. What was Ye Futian trying to do?


    His spiritual soul was fused into the boundless celestial skies in a decentralized state. Yet now, he wanted to perfectly control the orbits of the celestial stars; this would cause a significant burden on this spiritual soul and cause his powers to be scattered and unfocused.


    Ye Futian seemed to want to gamble with him.


    Under the celestial skies, a white-haired figure sat in a cross-legged stance. His eyes were shut tight as the starlight of trillions of stars spilled onto him as though connecting with his body. At this moment, it was almost as though Ye Futian no longer belonged to himself. Inside his mind, he was no longer himself as an individual. Instead, he was the world of the stars of the celestial skies.


    Wang Xiao wielded the Sky Tremor and continued to sweep across the area using the tremoring pulses. Yet, when the pulses landed on the celestial stars of the skies, it was completely dissolved. It was as though the pulses were pierced through by countless divine swords and could no longer continue invading below the skies.


    The celestial skies sank into an eerie silence. Wang Xiao didn��t continue attacking. Ye Futian didn��t continue attacking either.


    ��This strike could break through the barrier of the Segmentum and enter the inside of the Ziwei Segmentum. The light pillar of the Sky Tremor will pierce through the entire Ziwei Segmentum, and countless cultivators will lose their lives as a result. And all of this will be your fault,�� Wang Xiao thundered.


    Ye Futian��s apparition disappeared. Ziwei the Great��s will seemed to have fused into the boundless celestial skies as well and no longer existed in any particular location. So, no power could block the bolting light pillar of the Sky Tremor, and it would pierce through the Ziwei Segmentum directly. It could even pierce through the Land of the Stars inside the Segmentum where the cultivators resided.


    ��After this strike, perhaps, you will die alongside them,�� Ye Futian replied. His voice was ice-cold; it was as though he would do it no matter what, even at the expense of countless lives.


    At this point, he had no choice. He had to sacrifice. If all he did was brace and block, it could only lead to obliteration. When that happened, it would all be out of his control!

 Chapter 2573 - Internal Conflicts

    In the silence of the starry battlefield, Wang Xiao hesitated. He looked at the divine starry light of the heavens and saw that every one of those lights was pointing at him. Every starry divine light contained incomparable sword will. It was as if as soon as he attacked, these swords in the heavens would converge upon him at the same time.


    The shockwaves from the Sky Tremoring Hammer swept down again and again, but when each shockwave landed in front of the Starry Swords, it was neutralized by the sword will. It seemed that even with the imperial arms, it was not an easy task to invade Ziwei Segmentum.


    Wang Xiao thought of the words spoken by the City Lord of Tianyan. With the imperial arms in hand, he was The Unraveled. As such, how could he even contemplate retreat? If he couldn��t manage to get inside Ziwei today and slaughter Ye Futian, that, compounded with the defeat suffered at the City Lord��s Office, he would no longer have the audacity to call himself The Unraveled. He would be forever cowering in the shadow of Ye Futian.


    When he thought of this, Wang Xiao raised his arm, bathing in imperial glory. As if he had made a decision, he held the Sky Tremoring Hammer high above his head, looking down at the stars in the heavens below. He spoke loudly.


    ��Under the Great Emperor, I am invincible!��


    The moment his voice fell, the divine light descended from the sky, piercing the boundless space. The shockwaves of destruction swept out, and its intensity had multiplied with the help of the imperial arms. Billions of shockwaves descended at the same time with an explosive force. The beam of light went directly towards the space below, attempting to penetrate the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Above the stars in the heavens, Ye Futian��s phantoms were lit up at the same time. It was as if he had transformed everything. Infinite starlight bloomed at the same time, transformed into the Starry Divine Swords. There was also a terrifying spatial divine light that appeared, ignoring space and distance.


    The Starry Divine Swords in the heavens pointed to one direction alone, Wang Xiao��s direction.


    At this moment, the endless starry sky was illuminated, blinding everyone. At the same time, there was an ultimate destructive power that was lurking.


    At the periphery of the Ziwei Segmentum, the beam of light directly pierced the light screen of the Segmentum. The ruinous beam of light penetrated heaven and earth, tearing through the space, making its way down into Ziwei Segmentum.


    At this moment, in Ziwei Segmentum, on different starry continents, many cultivators had seen the pillar of light. This pillar of destruction was like a pillar from the gods, illuminating the world, carrying with it the power that could destroy the world. Wherever the light went, everything was gone like smoke and dust, and no one could stop it.


    ��This���� When the cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum saw the scene in front of them, they were greatly shocked.


    ��What is happening?��


    The hearts of so many trembled. An earthquake had occurred on the starry continent where they were located. Now, a pillar of apocalyptic light appeared and penetrated the heavens. Wherever the light passed through, all living beings were destroyed indiscriminately.


    ��It��s the end!��


    Some, when they saw the sight in front of them, felt a little hopeless and silently prayed that this beam of light that had pierced the Segmentum would not pass through the starry continent where they were.


    Within Ziwei Segmentum, the cultivators on one of the continents seemed to be right under this beam of light. In an instant, they felt the aura of desperation. Many of them even wept as if they had seen the end of days.


    When such a beam of light fell, they would not have the slightest chance of survival.


    Before they had time to think too much, the beam of light descended upon them, but they were not destroyed. Because of the way the spaces were staggered, it looked as if the beam of light was coming towards them, but there was still a certain distance between the two. The beam of light landed quite far away from the continent where they were. Nonetheless, the aftershocks of destruction swept towards them, causing the continent to vibrate violently. Near the edge of the continent, many people perished in those spatial cracks.


    But even more people��s lives were saved, fortunately.


    Who was it that launched this devastating attack?


    Cultivators on the continent looked at that ruinous beam of light passing by from a distance. The space had collapsed, unable to block the incomparable light. Everyone trembled in their hearts. Even those powerful cultivators shook in their boots, weak in their knees. This was more than just fear.


    How much damage would be caused by this beam of light?


    At the same time, outside of the Ziwei Segmentum, there was a terrifying scene being played out as well.


    When that beam of light slammed into Ziwei Segmentum, the light of countless divine swords directly swept toward Wang Xiao. The Starry Divine Swords ignored the distance between them and seemed to be released by Ye Futian to rush through that terrible shockwave. It descended in just an instant and did not allow Wang Xiao to attack with the Sky Tremoring Hammer.


    ��Wang Xiao!��


    The City Lord of Tianyan and many other cultivators were repelled by the sword light and appeared in different directions. He looked at where Wang Xiao was and shouted, only to see countless horrific black fissures had appeared in that area, along with an infinite destructive sword will.


    The eyes of the City Lord of Tianyan glued on that side, and he couldn��t help but feel a sense of trepidation. An attack of such intensity, even with the help of the imperial arms, would not be easy for Wang Xiao.


    Upon the dissipation of this destructive attack, Wang Xiao appeared, and the Imperial glory that he was bathed in before had dimmed considerably. The Imperial arms held in his hands seemed a little unsteady, and there was blood all over his body as if he had been injured severely. In a quick glance, he looked like a recognizable man covered in blood.


    Moreover, Wang Xiao��s breath was very shallow, as if he had suffered a serious injury. If it weren��t for the imperial arms, that blow would have killed him long ago, and it would have been impossible for him to block it.


    Wang Xiao glanced down at the space below. He couldn��t see Ye Futian anywhere, as Ye Futian��s actual physical presence was not here. Wang Xiao had no way to attack any specific target because Ye Futian seemed to have immersed himself into the galaxy in the heavens, and there were countless phantoms of Ye Futian.


    Wang Xiao was pretty certain that such attacks by Ye Futian must have cost him a lot, as it had to impose a tremendous physical load on him, but Wang Xiao could not be sure of Ye Futian��s actual condition.


    On the contrary, he was in a place of visibility while Ye Futian, as the master of the Ziwei Segmentum, was in the shadows.


    ��Do you want to continue?�� said an icy voice, containing an unmistakable murderous intent. Many stars had already shattered and collapsed, but of all the rest of the stars that remained, there were still countless phantoms of Ye Futian that were above them, as if he was everywhere, and he could unleash another attack just like the one before.


    As long as Wang Xiao was bold enough to continue attacking Ziwei Segmentum, he would blast out another devastating blow again.


    Wang Xiao had a terrible look on his face. Was he unable to achieve his objective, after all?


    He was not sure if the whole things were to repeat itself again, that he would be able to block the attack.


    A repetition of the same attack was likely to kill him here and now.


    ��You are The Unraveled under the Great Emperor?�� Ye Futian��s voice spread across the endless starry sky as he said, ��If so, let us do it again here so I can really see what exactly The Unraveled is.��


    His voice was filled with a potent murderous intent. Wang Xiao��s attack had penetrated the Segmentum, and many cultivators lost their lives under that one attack.


    Princess Donghuang had specifically told Wang Xiao not to kill indiscriminately. However, Wang Xiao failed to follow this command. To make his way into the Ziwei Segmentum, he had killed many innocent cultivators in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��If you can��t sack Ziwei today, I will most definitely destroy Tianyan City one day.�� A voice full of murderous intent resounded through the void as if provoking Wang Xiao to make his move.


    The cultivators of various major camps from the Divine Prefecture stood in different directions, their eyes fixed on the stars in the heavens, looking humiliated.


    If Ziwei could not be defeated today, they would face certain danger in the future. Especially those forces that did not belong to any of the Ancient God Clan. This kind of danger may descend upon them at any time, and unlike the Ancient God Clans, they wouldn��t be able to stop the ambush from Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Wang Xiao was hesitating, and he struggled in his heart. It was true that Ye Futian was provoking him to take action, but did he want to continue?


    How long could either one of them sustain this kind of exchange, whether it be Ye Futian or Ziwei Segmentum?


    ��If we don��t destroy Ziwei today, there will be no more chance in the future.�� A cultivator from the Divine Prefecture was heard speaking. ��City Lord, make a decision right now, and we will ensure Wang Xiao��s safety.��


    They came with the City Lord of Tianyan this time and brought imperial arms with them, intending to flatten Ziwei. If they return without success, a sharp sword would forever hang above all of their heads.


    Of course, they didn��t think they should withdraw!


    However, the City Lord of Tianyan did not think like them. This was Wang Xiao they were talking about. He was the most powerful genius talent of the Wang family in Tianyan City, the only one who could communicate with the imperial arms. If something were to happen to Wang Xiao, what would their future be?


    He had such high hopes for Wang Xiao. Ye Futian and his antics did not mean that Wang Xiao was weak or incapable.


    ��City Lord, if he��s allowed to continue today, he will threaten all of the Divine Prefecture in the future.��


    ��City Lord, we have allied to come here, and today we must sack Ziwei, or else it would all be for naught; we will be the laughingstock of all of the Divine Prefecture.��


    All these voices rang one after another as cultivators of the Divine Prefecture attempt to persuade the City Lord of Tianyan to permit Wang Xiao to continue, in the hopes of vanquishing Ziwei and slaying Ye Futian.


    The City Lord of Tianyan was agitated by all these chatter, as his eyes, now sharper than ever, assessing the battlefield. However, some cultivators appealed directly to Wang Xiao, ��Wang Xiao, as you command the imperial arms, you are invincible under the Great Emperor. He has nowhere to go now, and his words are as good as that of a dead man. If you continue the attack, he will surely die.��


    This person who spoke was a cultivator from Haotian Clan, part of the Ancient God Clan.


    ��Shut up!�� The City Lord of Tianyan scolded the speaker and cut him off. The clan leader of Haotian Clan looked askance at the City Lord.


    Even though they all belonged to the Ancient God Clans, they were, in fact, always secretly vying for power. By goading Wang Xiao to make a move, the Haotian Clan would be in a position to profit no matter the result. Actually, it was best that both sides lose: Ziwei sacked and Wang Xiao dead.


    The City Lord of Tianyan was a scheming old fox and knew very well the motivations behind the other��s rhetoric, which accounted for his blunt reproach.


    ��What does the City Lord mean by this?�� The clan leader of Haotian Clan pressed coldly, ��Before our departure, even the City Lord has said that the goal for the alliance is to rid of Ziwei and Ye Futian, and that is why Wang Xiao, invincible under the Great Emperor, brought the imperial arms with him, isn��t that so?��


    This remark silenced the City Lord of Tianyan, and he had no good answer. Other cultivators were looking at him too and gave the City Lord of Tianyan a slight pressure. He silently cursed these bastards inside, but this was the situation in front of him.


    ��Invincible under the Great Emperor?�� A burst of sarcastic laughter came out, and he said, ��Are you still deceiving yourselves? Without the imperial arms, killing him is as easy as killing an ant. Such a character dared to claim that he was invincible under the Great Emperor? How shameless.��


    Were all the cultivators in the Divine Prefecture already turning on each other?


    If so, it couldn��t be better. These principalities of Divine Prefecture had all hatched their plan, and a true alliance was impossible. They would crumble at the slightest sign of infighting and be defeated!

 Chapter 2574 - Heaven Tempering Enumeration

    Chapter 2574: Heaven Tempering Enumeration


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Wang Xiao��s eyes focused on the Ziwei Segmentum below. In those eyes, divine flames seemed to linger as he raised his arms slightly. It seemed as if he couldn��t hold back the urge to continue the fight. But at that very same moment, the stars in the sky lit up brightly as the radiant sword light permeated the heavens.


    This would be a battle that neither would win. Wang Xiao wanted to get inside the Ziwei Segmentum, and he may be killed by Ye Futian in the process.


    Perhaps Wang Xiao could break through their defense and invade the Ziwei Segmentum to conquer it, but at what price? No one had the answer.


    ��Wang Xiao.��


    Just as everyone from the Divine Prefecture persuaded Wang Xiao to take action, the City Lord of Tianyan called out to him. Immediately Wang Xiao��s arm stopped in the air, and he looked in the direction of the City Lord of Tianyan.


    The City Lord of Tianyan said, loud and clear, ��With the will of the Great Emperor, Ziwei will be imprisoned. If Ye Futian is too stubborn to repent, let the Ziwei Segmentum live and die as it chooses.��


    Wang Xiao understood what the City Lord of Tianyan meant. The Wang family of Tianyan City was directly descended from Tianyan the Great. Among the Ancient God Clan of Wang, they had more than just one imperial arm.


    Previously, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture wanted Tianyan City to take action, bring the imperial arms, and imprison Ziwei Segmentum because they knew that the City Lord��s Office was in possession of terrifying imperial arms that could imprison everything.


    However, if they were imprisoned, they wouldn��t be able to take down Ye Futian, and they probably wouldn��t be able to get the divine treasures he possessed. Moreover, it may cause the entire Ziwei Segmentum to weaken and its eventual destruction. Doing so may very well attract criticisms from all sides because even Princess Donghuang had cautioned them not to take such extreme actions.


    ��Imprison Ziwei!��


    When these top forces from the Divine Prefecture heard the words of the City Lord of Tianyan, they immediately knew what it was that he wanted Wang Xiao to do. Many people couldn��t help but feel a little disappointed. Of course, they were hoping for an all-out invasion of Ziwei Segmentum.


    They wanted to step into Ziwei, capture Ye Futian, seize the divine treasures, rule Ziwei Segmentum, and control the starry cultivation court.


    But if Ziwei were to be imprisoned, everything would be a pipe dream, and none of the things they wanted would be realized.


    Of course, then there was the question of how the City Lord of Tianyan would want to accomplish this?


    In the case of imprisonment, they would need to leave imperial arms here at Ziwei Segmentum and wouldn��t take it away. Otherwise, how could they imprison an entire Segmentum if the imperial arms were absent?


    Would Tianyan City be willing to relinquish imperial arms for that?


    But things had gotten to this point, and it had to end somehow. They couldn��t let Ye Futian and the Ziwei Segmentum off the hook and return home with their tails between their legs. None of the forces from the Divine Prefecture could accept this ending, but especially not Tianyan City. They could not possibly take an ending in which they failed to break through the defense of Ziwei Segmentum and returned in defeat.


    Therefore, something had to be done.


    ��Imprisonment!�� Wang Xiao��s countenance did not look so great when he heard the words of his grandfather, the City Lord of Tianyan. The suggestion of imprisonment implied that the attack this time was a total failure, and he could not overpower Ye Futian. Even with the imperial arms, he was unable to sack Ziwei Segmentum.


    However, they may not be able to get inside Ziwei. Still, they couldn��t leave just like that either, letting both Ziwei Segmentum and Ye Futian go free, so imprisonment was the only other alternative.


    He needed to leave imperial arms behind and use them to shut down the Ziwei Segmentum. This was not the outcome that Wang Xiao anticipated, but he didn��t seem to have a better choice at the moment.


    The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture stood quietly in the boundless void and did not speak. The situation was such that it was meaningless for them to say anything more. Tianyan City would have to decide on its own, but this alliance was a failure.


    All the great forces in the Divine Prefecture, including the Ancient God Clans, banded together to come for the kill, but they could not take a step into Ziwei.


    ��Very well,�� Wang Xiao responded. As soon as his voice faded, he gave a wave of his hand, and suddenly, a second imperial arm appeared in the endless starry sky.


    These imperial arms hovered in the boundless void and were expanding rapidly. It was a picture scroll, and the scroll was covered with golden divine flames devouring the Great Path.


    Wang Xiao raised his head and looked at the scroll in the void. A divine light between his brows fell on the picture scroll. His expression was solemn as he said, ��Disciple Wang Xiao asks my ancestor to reveal his spirit to temper this corner of the sky.��


    Upon him, the divine light penetrated the picture scroll, and suddenly little spots of light lit up the scroll, becoming more and more radiant until a holy phantom appeared. The phantom turned into a face, and it was the face of Tianyan the Great.


    An incomparable aura enveloped the boundless space between heaven and earth. In an instant, the entire atmosphere was saturated with that aura. Then, the picture scroll seemed to replicate itself, converting that infinite starry sky into a part of it.


    This horrific scene continued to spread, extending into the direction of Ziwei Segmentum. When Ye Futian perceived this, he was not particularly pleased; another imperial arm was at work.


    ��Ye Futian, you still have a chance to repent. Otherwise, once the Heaven Tempering Enumeration is unleashed, Ziwei will no longer exist.�� Wang Xiao��svoice was cold as ice, ringing through the space.


    This imperial arms was the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, capable of tempering a world, and was once the treasure of Tianyan the Great in refining divine arms.


    The starlight circulated, and the starry light screen continued to move and flow, providing cover for the Ziwei Segmentum, shrouding the entire Ziwei Segmentum within so that it would not be corroded by that divine flames from the outside.


    The Heaven Tempering Enumeration continued to expand along with the starry light screen, getting larger until it gradually covered all of the Ziwei Segmentum. If it weren��t for the defense that was already set up, Heaven Tempering Enumeration would be able to gain a foothold inside the Segmentum and incinerate it.


    Buzz! Once the Heaven Tempering Enumeration was in place, the phantom of the Great Emperor disappeared as well. However, that Heaven Tempering Enumeration, which shrouded the Ziwei Segmentum, had already begun tempering all existence within this world, including the power of the Great Path, which had been refined.


    Divine flames rained down from the Heaven Tempering Enumeration and fell on the starry light screen. The golden divine flames covered the light screen, wanting to worm their way in, but could not burn through it immediately.


    ��Ye Futian, under the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, how long do you think the Ziwei Segmentum can persist?�� Wang Xiao continued, ��If you stand down, I can let the cultivators of Ziwei Segmentum go, including your family.�� He wanted Ye Futian to bow his head and admit defeat. It was only Ye Futian that he wanted. He couldn��t care less about everyone else.


    Under the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, the entire world became blazing hot. If it weren��t for the starry light screen, the whole Segmentum would already be burnt up.


    ��Such a ruthless resolve?�� Ye Futian was cold to the core. He said, ��One day, even if you kneel down to beg for mercy, I will not spare any of the cultivators from the Wang family in the City Lord��sOffice of Tianyan City.��


    Countless people had already perished from the previous blow, and there was no telling how many more might follow them under the attack of the Heaven Tempering Enumeration at this moment.


    For as long as he lived, one of his goals would be to immolate the entire City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City, and he would be sure to achieve it.


    ��Because of you and you alone, Ziwei is where it is today,�� Wang Xiao said in an icy voice.


    ��I will protect Ziwei,�� Ye Futian replied. Wang Xiao gave a cold snort as he waved his hand. Instantly, the Heaven Tempering Enumeration closed, and the two worlds seemed to be separated outside of the Ziwei Segmentum and inside of Ziwei Segmentum.


    Outside of the imprisoned Ziwei Segementum, Wang Xiao��sexpression was steely. He did not feel any elation as his eyes were glued on the space below. He could no longer see any signs of Ye Futian. Although he successfully did as he was had been told, he did not feel victorious.


    He did not defeat Ye Futian��not then, and not now.


    ��That��s it. Is it imprisoned now?�� Some top cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were speechless as they witnessed the sight before them. It was as if they were utterly superfluous.


    This war ended like this.


    Under the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, Ye Futian��sdefense would not last long. Sooner or later, it would be incinerated. Then, Ziwei Segmentum would follow. Once the Great Path was refined, everything would no longer exist. This vast world of Ziwei would turn into a world of flames before it was completely consumed.


    ��It��s over,�� the City Lord of Tianyan proclaimed, his eyes surveyed the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. He continued, ��Everyone has worked hard on this quest. Under the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, Ziwei Segmentum will be turned into a realm of hellfire.


    All the Great Paths will cease to exist, and with time, it will disappear forever.��


    ��Then, wouldn��t that mean Ye Futian will also perish with it? That would be a shame.�� Some cultivators from the Divine Prefecture spoke up. Although they were enemies with Ye Futian, they felt conflicted inside. They found it a pity that Ye Futian would fall like this into a realm of fire.


    ��He doesn��t know what is good for him, so this is the only way it can be. ��The City Lord of Tianyan said loudly, ��Under the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, the world will change and will never be the same as it was. The Ziwei Segmentum may very well cease to exist.��


    Was Ziwei Segmentum to be nothing but a wasteland?


    ��Everyone, please go back. Business here is over. Now, we just need to wait to witness its final demise,�� the City Lord of Tianyan said to all the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture, but they seemed reluctant to leave. They stood in the boundless starry sky, taking everything in.


    ��I��ll be here to ascertain their demise,�� Wang Xiao said to the City Lord of Tianyan. He would wait here instead of returning to Tianyan City.


    He wanted to witness the destruction of Ye Futian and see all of this come to an end. Or else, that shadow in his heart would never be dispelled!

 Chapter 2575 - Indestructible

    Within the Ziwei Segmentum, everyone raised their heads to look at the sky above. No matter on which continent they were cultivating, they were witnessing this extremely shocking sight.


    The heaven had turned flaming gold in color, with a terrifying pattern of flames, as if it intended to temper the entire world.


    Someone wanted to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum!


    In Ziwei Imperial Palace, Lord Chen and the others looked up into the sky. They knew that it was extremely far away from them, but they could see it clearly because the entire world was covered by it. The destructive divine light also covered the Ziwei Segmentum so that no matter where they were, it was omnipresent.


    What was the outcome of this battle?


    The vibration seemed to have stopped, and the Ziwei Segmentum did not continue to oscillate. This could only mean that the previous battle had ended. However, what was this in front of them right now?


    There were many living creatures on the countless number of cultivation continents in the Ziwei Segmentum, not just powerful cultivators. Many of them did not understand everything that was happening in their world. However, after today, they would know what this world was really like, and how shocking was the real world.


    The place where they lived and cultivated was just a corner of the world, as inconspicuous as a grain of sand in the desert.


    For the endless living beings that existed in the entire Ziwei Segmentum, this day was earth-shaking. At the same time, aside from the shock they felt, there was also a disquiet. The golden divine flames filled the sky, and the entire world was wrapped in it. Was this a force that could bring about the end of days?


    Would Ziwei Segmentum be obliterated?


    And would their place of cultivation be no more?


    Many people started to pray, bowing to the void. They prayed in their hearts that they would receive the protection of Ziwei the Great. In Ziwei Segmentum, everyone believed in Ziwei; Ziwei the Great was their one and only God.


    ��Look yonder!��


    Someone looked up into the sky. After the terrifying golden divine flames had shut down their world, these flames seemed to want to swallow the entire world whole. However, at this time, beneath the golden divine flames, an extremely bright starry light screen lit up. Likewise, this starry light screen also covered the entire world, preventing the invasion of the golden divine flames.


    ��Someone is protecting us.�� The people of Ziwei Segmentum continued worshipping toward the sky.


    ��Is it Ziwei the Great revealing himself??��


    Their belief in Ziwei came from the bottom of their hearts. After all, the entire Ziwei Segmentum was a world created by Ziwei the Great.


    ��It��s Futian.�� In Ziwei Imperial Palace, Lord Taixuan was not surprised when he saw the scene above the sky. The cultivators in the imperial palace fixated on the sight above them; they were more worried than shocked.


    ��I��ll go take a look,�� said Lord Chen as his body levitated into the air, heading higher up into the sky.


    Now, the battle seemed to be over. The next step would be to resist that golden divine flames. He wanted to see what was happening there and how Ye Futian was doing.


    ��I��m going too.�� Many people left by air at the same time, heading towards the sky.


    This battle belonged to Ye Futian alone. He alone had resisted the army from Divine Prefecture and blocked the attack of the imperial arms. And they could do nothing to help him except watch the battle inside the safety of Ziwei Imperial Palace. They were so uncomfortable it felt as if their hearts were on fire.


    Hua Jieyu was also among those who went into the air. Those eyes that stared into the firmament were filled with worries and concerns.


    ��


    High above in the starry sky, Lord Chen and the others found signs of Ye Futian.


    Here was a starry sky surrounded by billions of stars, circulating between heaven and earth, as if operated by a unique rhythm of its own. Ye Futian appeared in this starry sky as he sat cross-legged with eyes closed. His entire person seemed to have entered a state of chaos and semi-consciousness. Stars and divine light surrounded him, but that body seemed a little elusive.


    What was even more astounding was that millions of starry divine light bloomed from Ye Futian, as if they were reaching and connecting to the stars in heaven, thus forming a starry defense. It was a coherent starry light screen functioning like a massive umbrella in the starry sky, which blocked the golden divine flames from entering in.


    Lord Chen and the others saw that destructive golden flames, which were agitated with madness as they swallowed up the power of the Great Path. It wanted to purify all the auras in the world, to burn and refine them. This was the imperial arms, Heaven Tempering Enumeration.


    Terrifying golden divine flames invaded, interwoven with the starry light screen. It seemed to be eating away the light of the starry Great Path slowly, swallowing and refining the Great Path of the stars.


    Many stars surrounding the sky were covered bit by bit by the golden divine flames as if they could be refined and become part of the divine flames at any time.


    ��He is greatly weakened,�� Lord Chen said as he looked at Ye Futian. Hua Jieyu wanted to step forward but stopped herself. No matter how much she wanted to, she had to restrain herself. She was worried that if she touched Ye Futian, there would be unimaginable consequences.


    Ye Futian, at this moment, had fallen into a state of selflessness. He no longer belonged to himself but this starry world.


    But at this moment, there was an extremely vibrant aura of life that bloomed from him. As the divine glory gleamed, it seemed that a tree of life appeared upon him, which merged as one with him so that his aura of life could not be extinguished.


    ��He is still fighting it!�� Hua Jieyu��s beautiful eyes were a little red. Then they saw wisps of aura spreading towards the heavens from Ye Futian. Those ancient branches and leaves spread towards the firmament as if to populate this starry sky.


    As that aura spread, all the stars in heaven seemed to become one. With Ye Futian as the center, as if he was the root of this divine tree, the stars in heaven became the branches and leaves of the sacred tree, a starry divine tree seemed to have come into being.


    ��This���� There was an expression of disbelief on Lord Chen��s face, as well as the others, as they watched the incomparable divine light shrouded this corner of the world. All of them looked at Ye Futian and heard Lord Chen say, ��Let��s leave here and not disturb him.��


    ��I��ll stay here with him,�� Hua Jieyu said.


    ��That��s fine.�� Lord Chen nodded and led the others away, with only Hua Jieyu remaining.


    The miracles in the starry sky continued to evolve. The outer limits of the entire world were enveloped by the starry divine light. It was impossible to see everything inside of it, but Hua Jieyu was standing inside. Vaguely, it could be seen that she was standing underneath this incredibly shocking starry divine tree.


    Ye Futian had turned into a divine tree, and all the stars in the heavens were growing on this divine tree.


    At this moment, those golden divine flames on the periphery roared as they were unable to invade anywhere because they were being isolated. There seemed to be two layers of seals: the Heaven Tempering Enumeration imprisoned Ziwei Segmentum, as the starry divine tree imprisoned the Heaven Tempering Enumeration in turn, isolating it from everything else.


    Hua Jieyu sat cross-legged, not far from Ye Futian. She looked at him and believed that he would create miracles. Perhaps to him, this was just another kind of cultivation, and Ye Futian would come through this trial just fine.


    The vision above the firmament was something that the people of the Ziwei Segmentum could neither forget nor ignore; all of them wanted to know what had happened. Afterward, Ziwei Imperial Palace announced to the world that the forces from Divine Prefecture had banded together for the express purpose of attacking Ziwei with the aid of the imperial arms. They wanted to rob Ziwei of the divine treasures left by Ziwei the Great and control the Ziwei Segmentum.


    At this time of unprecedented crisis, the heir of Ziwei the Great, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian, used his power to fight against the imperial arms, intercepted the cultivators from Divine Prefecture single-handedly. With his body of flesh and blood, aided by the will of Ziwei the Great, he was able to block that tempering imperial arms outside of Ziwei Segmentum, saving Ziwei from destruction.


    The Ziwei Segmentum disbursed this news to all the stars and the forces that were at the level of the overlords until it had spread to all corners of Ziwei Segmentum. They assured everyone that there was no need to panic. Instantly, Ye Futian��s name became the stuff of legends in Ziwei Segmentum.


    Ye Futian, the heir of Ziwei the Great, was also the spokesperson of Ziwei the Great in this world. Countless cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum bowed down and worshipped him.


    At the same time, this incident incensed everyone inside Ziwei Segmentum. The trend to cultivate in the entire Ziwei Segmentum had reached its peak instantaneously. Countless aspiring talents had gone to ask permission to be admitted into Ziwei Imperial Palace to cultivate, preparing to fight against the Divine Prefecture one day.


    Taking this opportunity, the Ziwei Imperial Palace announced to all of Ziwei Segementum that it would have the largest recruitment of cultivators in its history. Those who were the most outstanding in the entire Ziwei Segmentum would be trained inside Ziwei Imperial Palace as part of its plan to strike back in the future.


    For a time, this news rocked all of Ziwei Segmentum, making way for a grand occasion that had never been seen before. Ziwei Segmentum was a world in isolation, never involved itself in the strife and confrontations of the outside world. The invasion by the Divine Prefecture ultimately ignited the desire for cultivation within the Ziwei Segmentum.


    At the same time, the people inside Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian��s old comrades, also began to cultivate in earnest.


    No one had any ideas if Ye Futian could survive this catastrophe and emerge safe and sound. They had no idea how this would end, but they did know they had to work hard to continuously elevate their cultivation realm.


    In this battle of invasion incited by the Divine Prefecture, Ye Futian made good of his promise. The only way the people of Divine Prefecture could get inside of Ziwei Segmentum was to step over his dead body. He used his own body to block the threats outside, ensuring the safety of Ziwei Segmentum.


    When the feast in Ziwei Segmentum was about to begin, countless cultivators gathered at Ziwei Imperial Palace. Lord Chen presided in the upper main seat as the host of the feast, but there was an empty space next to him, right in the center, which he did not occupy. There was one person who had not returned.


    Three years later, outside of the starry sky, Wang Xiao was still there; he had not left. He said he wanted to witness the end of everything and confirm the outcome, so he was still here. He wanted to witness the moment when Heaven Tempering Enumeration melted down the Ziwei Segmentum and Ye Futian��s death.


    But after three years, none of this had happened yet. The destructive power of Heaven Tempering Enumeration seemed to be cut off on the outside, and had not been able to invade the interior of Ziwei Segmentum.


    Heaven Tempering Enumeration was an imperial arm that had covered the entire world, but so far, it had not been able to temper the Ziwei Segmentum. He could even perceive that the divine flames within the Heaven Tempering Enumeration were still locking horns with those endless stars. The two intertwined, but one had not been able to swallow nor destroy the other.


    This meant that Ye Futian had been battling with him for three years now, and he had persevered. Not only did he not perish, but he also was still resisting the attacks of the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, protecting Ziwei Segementum from the fate of extinction.


    At this time, Wang Xiao opened his eyes and looked at the space below. Could Ye Futian really stave the attack of the Heaven Tempering Enumeration forever?

 Chapter 2576 - When to Return?

    Wang Xiao took out a jade slip and saw an elusive face appear in it. At the same time, a voice asked him, ��Wang Xiao, what��s happening there?��


    This voice was, not surprisingly, the voice of the City Lord of Tianyan.


    Three years had passed since that battle. Of course, cultivators of the Divine Prefecture could not have continued to stay there. They were long gone.


    Only Wang Xiao, with his stubborn obsession, had wanted to wait for a definitive ending, and that was to witness Ye Futian��s destruction. But three years later, he was still waiting.


    ��Nothing has changed,�� Wang Xiao responded.


    ��Come back.�� The City Lord of Tianyan said, ��The Heaven Tempering Enumeration shut down the Ziwei Segmentum. Sooner or later, it will melt down that Segmentum. He may resist it for a time, but he can��t stop it forever. Right now, great changes are taking place in the Divine Prefecture. It��s been three years, and it��s time for you to let go and come back. No matter what happened three years ago, you should always remember that you are invincible under the Great Emperor!��


    ��Invincible?�� Wang Xiao murmured. He had said that back then, but Ye Futian��s sarcastic voice could still be heard in his head. Was he truly invincible under the Gret Emperor?


    At least, in the Ziwei Segmentum here, there was one person he couldn��t defeat. It was just that now he was trapped by the Heaven Tempering Enumeration and would eventually perish because of it.


    After a moment of silence, Wang Xiao took a deep breath and said, ��Fine.��


    When his voice faded, he got up and put the jade slip away. He looked down at the place that was sealed off by the Heaven Tempering Enumeration and said, ��Ye Futian, you are unparalleled in talent and endowed with a genius rarely seen in the world; I have to admit that I am not as good as you. However, you are born at the wrong time, and your life is doomed to a tragic end. You will eventually perish under this Heaven Tempering Enumeration and turn into nothing more than dust and smoke.


    ��Three years ago, you defeated me, but now in the land of the Divine Prefecture, I am still The Unraveled under the Great Emperor. Although I did use the imperial arms, the ability to summon imperial arms was, in itself, a part of my strength. Under the Great Emperor, I, Wang Xiao, am still an existence of The Unraveled. Unfortunately, you won��t be seeing me on my path of ascension as the Great Emperor.��


    After that, there was a strong determination in his eyes as he turned, leaving this place behind.


    No matter what happened three years ago, the fact remained. He recognized Ye Futian��s talent and admitted that he was not better than Ye Futian. However, he firmly believed that he, Wang Xiao, was unparalleled under the Great Emperor. This was a belief, and for a cultivator like him, this kind of belief was indispensable.


    If he didn��t have this belief to hold on to, how would he embark on the road to become a Great Emperor himself? He was sure he would be able to achieve this goal.


    Thus, Wang Xiao left. The boundless space was totally silent. The divine light from the Heaven Tempering Enumeration dazzled in the endless void, continued to seal the Ziwei Segmentum.


    At this time, within the bounds of the Ziwei Segmentum, the war of attrition between the Heaven Tempering Enumeration and the billions of stars had never ceased. The Heaven Tempering Enumeration wanted to melt down the stars in the heavens but could not do it. A figure sat cross-legged in the center of these billions of stars, bathed in infinite starlight, like a child born of the starry sky. Even his figure looked a little surreal and elusive. It was as if it did not exist.


    Next to that ethereal and elusive figure, a gorgeous woman was sitting quietly there, cultivating. She was like Jiutian Goddess, who had been accompanying him always, and never left his side.


    At this time, some people came from the sky, and several powerful cultivators had arrived; it was Lord Chen and the others, with Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, Xia Qingyuan in tow. They were here to see Ye Futian.


    Unless they are cultivating in retreat, they would come here every year. But everything seemed to be the same as three years ago, and no change had taken place.


    ��It��s still the same,�� Lord Taixuan whispered. There didn��t seem to be any significant changes.


    ��It��s beautiful here.�� Next to them, Zhuge Mingyue looked at this starry sky world with a smile in his bright eyes. He looked in the direction where Ye Futian was and said, ��Little junior brother, I know you can hear me. Your cultivation here must be progressing. Ziwei Imperial Palace has been doing well over the past three years and is on the right track. More and more talented figures have poured into the Ziwei Imperial Palace to become disciples of the palace. There are even many Renhuang with endless potential. The senior members of Ziwei Imperial Palace are also working hard to improve their cultivation. Lord Taixuan and the others are cultivating the power of Taichu and have made great progress. The three little guys are all striving towards the peak of Renhuang. Your third senior brother is almost there as well; Taoist Monk Mu��s alchemical skill is improving daily, and e��s now very handy in refining the Sub-divine elixirs.


    ��The Ziwei Segmentum, as well as Ziwei Imperial Palace, are getting stronger than ever. Now, we are just waiting for you to return, to break this imprisonment, and lead Ziwei Segmentum to a higher high.��


    No one responded. But above the sky, the starlight sprinkled down. Zhuge Mingyue stretched out her hand as if she could see those starlight falling into the palm of her hand. When she saw this beautiful sight, Zhuge Mingyue smiled brilliantly and said, ��Little junior brother, is that you responding? In this starry sky world, this is the form in which you existed, right?��


    Next to Zhuge Mingyue, Gu Dongliu looked at the elusive figure of Ye Futian in front. He did not speak, but he also believed that his little junior brother, who had created numerous miracles many times over, would definitely return to them. He had never doubted that because he was the predestined one chosen by their Master.


    They would be going to Donghuang Imperial Palace together to pick up their Master.


    ��Let��s go,�� Lord Chen said. They still had a lot of things that needed to be done. They had to cultivate and improve themselves continuously.


    Everyone nodded. Zhuge Mingyue looked over there and said, ��Little junior brother has Jieyu here to keep him company, so I guess he will not be lonely.��


    Lord Chen looked over there and said, ��Palace Lord, Ziwei Imperial Palace, and even the entire Ziwei Segmentum, will be waiting for you. Now, we won��t disturb your cultivation.��


    Having said that, he bowed slightly in the direction yonder before all the cultivators turned to leave.


    They accepted that Ye Futian was cultivating here.


    After everyone left, the place returned to its previous quietude again. Ye Futian was like an ancient starry tree, erected underneath billions of stars, yet blended harmoniously with it, the two as one. Hua Jieyu seemed to be sitting under this tree, bathed in the starlight and cultivating quietly.


    This scene was as beautiful as a picture.


    Time flew, and in a blink of an eye, ten years had passed since the great battle took place outside the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Ten years was not a long time in the long history of the cultivation world, and it could even be said to be a pretty brief period of time. In the cultivation world, many cultivators were able to break through a realm in ten years, so it was considered a very short time.


    But for Ziwei Segmentum, these ten years were a long and endless ten years. Over the past ten years, the Ziwei Segmentum had undergone a lot of changes.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace had changed the most. The most obvious change was that all the cultivators in the Ziwei Imperial Palace were constantly getting stronger, and their cultivation was improving.


    The look of the entire Ziwei Imperial Palace had been completely transformed. Except for the top-level figures, anyone under the realm of Tribulation Plane was no longer who they were once upon a time.


    In that gloriously radiant starry sky, a few more figures arrived at this time. It was four young people, all of them endowed with extraordinary temperament, and each one of them gave out a sense of being very unusual.


    ��Master, Masteress.�� The four of them came not far in front of Ye Futian and bowed slightly to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu, who was beside him.


    Ye Futian didn��t respond, and Hua Jieyu seemed to have also entered into a certain state of concentration, immersed in a world of her cultivation, so they did not hear the voices of the four.


    ��Hush!�� Fang Cun, who was at the front, sensed something, made a gesture to silence the others, and shook his head. He whispered, ��The Masteress has been with the Master here. She seems to have entered into a special state of cultivation as well.��


    ��Well, let��s not disturb the Masteress,�� Little Ling nodded. The four of them were not youngsters anymore, and their cultivation had reached a very high level. After all, they were born with the Path, with the natural body of the Great Path, who were also enlightened by the teacher, so their cultivation had always been smooth sailing.


    ��Master, we are here to tell you some good news. Not long ago, I have entered the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang. Now, I am at the top of Renhuang Realm. If I go further, I will be experiencing the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.�� Fang Cun whispered to the figure in front of him and continued, ��Little Ling and the other three are already in the Eighth-Realm of Renhuang. Although Duo Yu was late in starting his cultivation, his level was not lower than Little Ling or Tie Tou. I believe it won��t take more than a few years for all of them to be like me, reaching the top level of Renhuang.��


    Obviously, they were here to give the good news to Ye Futian.


    All four of them were born inside the village, so they were different from the people outside. 30 years ago, before they went with Ye Futian to the Western Heavenly World, they had already entered the realm of Renhuang. Now, more than thirty years had passed.


    For so many years, they had never stopped working on themselves, whether it was at Spirit Mountain back then or in the Ziwei Segmentum right now. Therefore, they had made rapid progress.


    ��There is also another good news. Lord Taixuan and the others have been cultivating the power of Taichu, and they have seen its effect already. The Path of Taichu gave them the opportunity to transform again.�� Fang Cun continued, ��Previously, I had considered taking some elixirs to help me breakthrough the realm, but that old fellow Taoist Monk Mu wouldn��t do it; he only gave me some useless pills. He said he would save the good ones for when I am ready to experience the Tribulation Plane. Fortunately, my talent is outstanding and I broke through the realm by myself, so I haven��t dishonored my master.��


    ��Master, don��t listen to his nonsense. The elixirs given by elder Taoist Monk Mu are all good, and he has been watching over us. Other elders, such as Lord Chen, have also been taking care of us and instructing us in our cultivation, and that accounts for our rapid progress. When I enter the Ninth Realm of Renhuang, I will come again to give you the good news.��


    As she was speaking, she looked at Tie Tou next to her and said, ��It��s your turn; what do you want to say to the Master?��


    Tie Tou scratched his head. Although he was not a young kid anymore, he appeared a little na?ve as always. He looked in front and said, ��Master, I will work hard to cultivate and follow you to the Divine Prefecture in the future to seek our revenge.��


    After speaking, they looked at Duo Yu behind them and saw that he did not speak. Instead, he knelt and bowed in the direction of Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. The three of them didn��t say anything more, as they understood Duo Yu��s quiet personality very well.


    Looking forward again, Little Ling continued, ��Master, when can you come back? Little Ling misses you so much!��


    As she was speaking, her eyes became moist and full of tears.


    It had been ten years, and the Master still hadn��t returned; were they really not worried at all?


    Actually, they were all terrified. They were scared that the Master would never come back.


    ��Don��t be weak.�� Fang Cun whispered, ��Master, don��t worry, I will take care of the three of them and wait for your return.��


    With that, he bowed down in front of them. Little Ling wiped her eyes and bowed down as well. She stared in front for a long time, reluctant to leave.


    ��Let��s not bother the Master and the Masteress in their cultivation.�� Fang Cun said, pulling Little Ling up so the four of them could leave here together.


    After they left, from Ye Futian��s body, those divine lights leading to the heavens were like leaves on branches, swaying as if they were in the wind, and sprinkled the starlight all around. When Fung Cun and the others were leaving, the starlight seemed to be following close behind!

 Chapter 2577 - Divine Prefecture Calendar Year 100128

    In the year 10,0128 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, a full 28 years had passed since the battle took place in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Over the past 28 years, the forces from the Divine Prefecture had gradually forgotten about the war that took place in the Ziwei Segmentum. Time could fade away many things, especially under the circumstance in which the Ziwei Segmentum was sealed. With the Heaven Tempering Enumeration in place, those in the Divine Prefecture had the impression that it was only a matter of time before the Ziwei Segmentum became a world of hellfire, and it was no longer worth their time to give the issue any more attention.


    On the other hand, all the principalities in the Divine Prefecture had experienced one major event after another, so who else would give any more thoughts to Ziwei Segmentum?


    Even Tianyan City slowly forgot about it. Perhaps only Wang Xiao would still remember it from time to time. He thought that Ye Futian was probably using his own life as the cost to block the destructive power of the Heaven Tempering Enumeration. In a few more years, everything would be destroyed by flames.


    At that time, he would be able to retrieve the Heaven Tempering Enumeration.


    Just as everyone had gradually forgotten about the Ziwei Segmentum, the starry sky inside the Ziwei Segmentum had undergone some subtle changes.


    At this time, in the forbidden starry sky, there were many cultivators there, including Lord Chen and the others, who were there watching the changes happening in front of them.


    Just as before, Lord Chen and the others would come here from time to time. Two years ago, they discovered that this starry sky world was a little different from before.


    Lord Chen and his party stood in the starry sky, looking at the sky full of stars. More and more, Ye Futian resembled a starry divine tree, and all the stars in the heavens were like the fruits upon the tree. At the moment, the sky full of stars was swallowing up the destructive fire from the Heaven Tempering Enumeration and bringing it back into the stars.


    In addition, the stars in the heavens seemed to be in harmony with the aura of all the Great Paths of the world, making the light of the stars even brighter. Faintly, it seemed to overpower the destructive divine glory released from the Heaven Tempering Enumeration.


    At the same time, the sky full of starlight even began to flow backward, nourishing Ye Futian��s divine body, making him radiant all over, like a bona fide starry divine body. In his elusive body of flesh and blood, the starry sky world could vaguely be seen.


    ��The Palace Lord must still be there, and he is cultivating and getting stronger.�� Lord Chen looked solemn as he stared at Ye Futian��s figure in the starry sky in front of him. The world of heavens was infinitely radiant, like a world of galaxy. This galaxy was dominated by the starry divine tree, and even he was shocked by such wondrous sight.


    ��Mmm.�� Murong Yu nodded. ��This place here is very suitable for us to cultivate. The Palace Lord is indeed a genius, the true talent from the heavens. Within the Divine Prefecture, who can compare with him?��


    ��Is it possible that this battle was a blessing in disguise for the Palace Lord?��


    After waiting for a full twenty-eight years, many people had been disappointed, scared, and even became hopeless at times. They came here often to visit Ye Futian because they were worried that it would be the last time and that they would never see him again.


    However, two years ago, this worry gradually subsided as they regained their confidence.


    Especially recently when this situation had become more obvious. Ye Futian must have retained his consciousness. He had never disappeared, and he had always been there, guarding the Ziwei Segmentum. More importantly, in the process of keeping them safe, he was looking for a way to bring the standoff to an end. Now, Ye Futian seemed to have found a solution, as he was seeking a way to break through the Heaven Tempering Enumeration.


    Perhaps, there was a real chance that it could be done.


    ��Is the Master coming back?�� Little Ling murmured behind him. A strong hope surged in their hearts. They had waited for this day for too long; it had been 28 years.


    Even when he went to cultivate at the Western Heavenly World of Buddhism, it had not been as long as this.


    ��Maybe he can come back at any time. Now, we have to wait patiently.�� Lord Chen said, ��What is strange is that the Palace Lord��s wife seems to be the same as the Palace Lord; her telekinesis power has integrated into the stars in the heavens. We have no idea what she was going through with the Palace Lord.��


    ��Maybe they are cultivating together,�� said Murong Yu.


    Now, everyone began to look forward to the return of the Palace Lord.


    28 years ago, the Palace Lord was able to defeat Wang Xiao with a single strike. At the level of the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, it was almost impossible for him to find an opponent worthy of him. How strong would the Palace Lord be if he had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path?


    ��Go back for now. Let��s not disturb the Palace Lord��s cultivation for the time being,�� Lord Chen said. Right now, they were actually feeling quite relieved that they no longer had to worry about Ye Futian��s safety.


    ��Very well.�� Everyone nodded as they withdrew one after the other.


    Now, they just needed to wait patiently for Ye Futian��s return.


    After the crowd left, the stars in the heavens, as usual, were devouring that Heaven Tempering divine fire day after day. It was as if they would never stop.


    As time went on, day by day, the stars in the heavens released the starry divine light, like the leaves on willow branches, spreading towards the boundless space, permeating into every corner. They had even begun reaching inside the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, penetrating it, constantly eroding the imperial arms.


    The imperial arms were imbued with spirit, and the Heaven Tempering Enumeration seemed to be fighting back as an even more violent heaven tempering divine fire was burning, attempting to immolate the power of the stars. However, that power of the Great Path was like an indelible and immortal path that could not be tempered. It continued its Infiltration and fought against the divine fire, even reversing its tempering and swallowing the fire instead.


    Buzz! Gradually, a dazzling divine light burst out above the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, flooding the boundless space. At this moment, inside Ziwei Segmentum, all the cultivators looked up at the sky as if they, too, felt a supreme heavenly might of destruction. It was as if the Imperial arms were enraged.


    At the same time, Wang Xiao had sensed it as well in the Divine Prefecture, as if the Heaven Tempering Enumeration was extremely angered.


    Boom�� above the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, it seemed as if there was a shower of meteors trying to burn up the stars in the sky, and the sea of fire enveloped the entire periphery of the Ziwei Segmentum, terrifying to the extreme. All the cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum were horrified, their faces full of shock. Many people could feel the fear that came from the depths of their souls.


    What exactly was happening?


    The imperial arms were so angry. It was as if imperial might was about to descend.


    The entire Ziwei world seemed to be refined and immolated. Above the firmament, in the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, there appeared an awesome figure; it was Tianyan the Great, with extremely dominance. His might was enough to shock the heavens. It was as if the Great Emperor��s will had been awakened. This was the spirit of the imperial arms, and now, it was mad.


    Because a power tried to eat away the imperial arms and eat away at him.


    ��No���� Inside Ziwei Imperial Palace, Lord Chen and the others looked up in the sky, as the expressions on their faces changed. The starry sky world seemed to have changed as it had urged the will of Tianyan the Great so that the Great Emperor had manifested and sent divine flames to destroy the world.


    Could Ye Futian bear it?


    They no longer had the kind of calmness they had before. At this moment, their hearts were in their throats.


    At the same time, all the stars in the starry sky world were even more dazzling. Ye Futian had morphed into the starry divine tree, as incomparably brilliant divine light permeated from him. Suddenly, his eyes opened, and the stars in the heavens were as one body, and he had incarnated as the ruler of this starry sky.


    Buzz! Accompanied with the falling starlight, a massive and boundless phantom appeared to cover Ye Futian��s figure, as if what was growing on this divine tree of stars was the figure of Ziwei the Great.


    The moment this figure appeared, everyone in Ziwei Segmentum saw it; all of them were inexplicably excited by this sight.


    ��Ziwei descended in the world, the Great Emperor is showing himself!�� Some worshipped the sky above. The will of Ziwei the Great seemed to have been completely awakened at this moment.


    Above the firmament, the two Great Emperors faced each other. This seemed to have been turned into a battle between the Great Emperors.


    Ziwei the Great bathed in starlight as the radiance of all the stars in the heavens merged into him. Suddenly, a supreme murderous might spread out and rushed straight into the sky. That murderous intent was terrifying to the extreme, for it was the murderous intent of emperors and kings. Instantly, the cultivators in the entire Ziwei Segmentum were trembling. Their spiritual souls were suppressed as countless demonic beasts prostrated on the ground, daring not to raise their heads.


    Above the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, an incomparable divine light of destruction appeared and converged on the phantom of Tianyan the Great. The two Great Emperors had a confrontation.


    Buzz! The destructive heaven tempering divine light came from the top, and the beam of light penetrated the heavens. At the same time, on the body of Ziwei the Great, a Ziwei divine sword with unparalleled murderous aura went up against the momentum. This purple divine sword turned into a ruinous purple light beam as the golden flames and the white and purple divine light collided in the void. A storm of destruction swept out, and the entire Ziwei Segmentum shuddered.


    The purple divine light directly pierced the beam of light that was flaming gold in color, then penetrated the phantom of Tianyan the Great, through and through. It continued upward and broke open the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, leaving a gaping hole in it; the Imperial arms were destroyed.


    The blinding divine light caused everyone inside Ziwei Segmentum to close their eyes, and they dared not take even a peek. After a long while, they finally opened their eyes and looked towards the firmament. As that terrible light of destruction gradually dissipated, everything was turning back to normal. Up above the boundless sky, the shadow that had hovered over them for the past twenty-eight years was gone. That crisis of imminent destruction that hung above everyone��s heads disappeared just like that.


    Inside Ziwei Imperial Palace, everyone raised their heads to look into the sky. When they saw the firmament had returned to normal, there was an incredibly brilliant smile in everyone��s eyes. The shadow that had been buried in everyone��s hearts for the past twenty-eight year was finally gone.


    Ye Futian had managed to awaken the will of Ziwei the Great. The Great Emperor had manifested himself to destroy Tianyan and destroy the imperial arms.


    They had won!


    ��Let��s go!�� Lord Chen and the others levitated into the sky and headed higher up into the sky. After some time, they came to the place above the firmament, where the residual of that destructive power remained.


    Their eyes looked around as if searching for something.


    At this moment, two figures drifted down from high above the sky. The man wore a white garment. He had a head of white hair, and he was handsome beyond words. The woman with an ethereal visage looked like the Jiutian Goddess herself. They stood hand in hand and appeared in front of everyone.


    Moreover, their temperament seemed to have become somewhat different yet again.


    At this time, Ye Futian��s closed eyes finally opened. The starry divine light dazzled and blinded everyone��s eyes. Lord Chen watched these two returning and revealed a bright smile. They had not been able to laugh with such relief for a very long time.


    There were also Gu Dongliu, Zhuge Mingyue, Xiao Muyu, Dou Zhao, Chen Yi, Fang Cun, Blind Tie, and everyone smiled brightly.


    After 28 years, they were finally back!

 Chapter 2578 - The Second Tribulation

    Ye Futian looked toward the others; they could even see the smile in his eyes gleaming like the stars.


    28 years ago, the divine prefecture alliance charged in with Tianyan City. They came with the Imperial Arm in an attempt to wipe out the Ziwei Segmentum, which was the great tribulation that the Ziwei Segmentum had met.


    Now, 28 years had passed. They had overcome this tribulation. They did it.


    Today, they could finally be considered to have won this war.


    From today onward, the people who should panic weren��t the Ziwei Segmentum anymore, and it was the powers of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Welcome back, Palace Lord,�� Lord Chen bowed and greeted Ye Futian.


    ��Welcome back, Palace Lord.��


    ������


    The cultivators bowed and greeted Ye Futian one after another. Even the powerful cultivators previously from the Ziwei Segmentum Imperial Palace revered and submitted themselves to Ye Futian now. Just moments ago, they saw the manifestation of Ziwei the Great.


    Ye Futian was the true heir of Ziwei the Great. He fought the Divine Prefecture all alone with his power and saved the Ziwei Segmneutm. He had awoken the will of the Great Emperor and obliterated the Imperial Arm.


    At this moment, countless cultivators were cheering in the Ziwei Segmentum. They bowed and prayed to the celestial skies. Ziwei the Great had manifested himself and descended upon this world to resolve the crisis. He had destroyed the menace that hovered above their heads. It was a threat that lasted for 28 whole years.


    Now, it had finally dissipated.


    ��Thank you for your hard work through all these years,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. For 28 years, his consciousness had fused into the celestial skies, and his spiritual soul had also fused into the stars above. His life no longer just belonged to him.


    He actually saw everything inside the Ziwei Segmentum. As for everyone who arrived here, every word that they spoke, he heard all of it; he couldn��t respond to them.


    But he saw all of it with his own eyes.


    ��Don��t worry about it, Palace Lord. You��ve stopped the Imperial Arm all by yourself to protect the Ziwei Segmentum. How can we be considered the ones who put in the hard work?�� Lord Chen said.


    ��For 28 years, I borrowed the will of the Great Emperor to block the Imperial Arm, but all of you were also working hard for the development of the Imperial Palace. Throughout the years, the Imperial Palace was continuously getting stronger. I saw it all.�� Ye Futian smiled at all of the familiar faces. Many of their cultivation levels had become stronger, and it wasn��t by a small margin.


    Without looking at the others, his four students from the Four Corner Village were all peak-renhuang plane today, no exceptions. And their cultivation levels were probably extremely stable, allowing them to try breaking through to the plane above Renhuang.


    The others were all similar, everyone had improved.


    Compared to 28 years ago, this could be considered a metamorphosis. The overall strength and power of the Ziwei Imperial Palace were not even on the same level as it was before. Now, he was the only lagging behind.


    ��Palace Lord, please return to the Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� Lord Chen said. He wanted to invite Ye Futian back to Ziwei. Inside the Imperial Palace, there were still many others waiting for Ye Futian.


    ��No hurry,�� Ye Futian said, which caused a slightly astounded expression to appear on Lord Chen��s face. He asked curiously, ��Anything else that the Palace Lord wants to do?��


    ��Well, actually not really,�� Ye Futian shook his head, ��It��s just that none of you could communicate with me for the past 28 years. But actually, I have never stopped cultivating for the past 28 years, including the past few years. The awakening of the will of the Great Emperor this time is the result of my efforts in recent years. Now, I need to cultivate alone for some time to better see the changes that occurred within me.��


    Lord Chen and the others�� eyes all gleamed with excitement. Ye Futian��s words were a pleasant surprise to them.


    He didn��t waste the past 28 years either; he had been cultivating and improving himself as well. Since Ye Futian had asked to cultivate alone, that must mean that he had some sort of epiphany.


    Could it be��


    How powerful would Ye Futian be if he went one step further?


    They were all looking forward to it.


    ��You guys go back to the Imperial Palace first,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Yes, Palace Lord. We��ll prepare the banquet at the Imperial Palace and wait for you to come back and celebrate your return.�� Lord Chen smiled. Now that they had overcome the crisis, everyone felt rather happy and relaxed.


    ��Alright,�� Ye Futian nodded. Lord Chen immediately brought the others with him and left the place.


    ��Master, please come back earlier to see us,�� Little Ling called out to him. She was really looking forward to meeting her master and talking to him, but she didn��t expect that Ye Futian would immediately get busy with cultivation. They had no other choice but to leave with Lord Chen and the others.


    Soon, everyone left the place, except for Hua Jieyu, who still accompanied Ye Futian.


    ��Let��s go.�� The two exchanged glances then launched into the air. They actually went toward the outside of the Ziwei Segmentum, entering the boundless void above it.


    Inside the boundless void, Ye Futian sat in a cross-legged stance and started to view himself internally. Inside his Life Palace, the World Tree stood stall. There was only one tree in the entire world, but possessing this tree was like possessing everything in existence. It evolved into the sun, the moon, the stars, the wind, the water, and lightning, all inside the Life Palace.


    With a turn of his mind, it was as though the entirety of Ye Futian��s being had turned into a divine tree. His body was the trunk of the divine tree. In this boundless void, the stars of the skies appeared. These celestial entities were like the fruits borne by the divine tree.


    The divine tree morphed into his path. It formed its own space and was capable of forming its own dominion.


    Furthermore, the power of this path was clearly stronger than before. Throughout these years, he had devoured the powers of the celestial stars and the power of the Great Path inside the Heaven Tempering Enumeration. He kept strengthening himself and had never stopped cultivating.


    A terrifying aura started to appear in the world around him. In the vast, boundless void, it seemed that it had suddenly been visited by waves of obliterating power.


    An expression of astonishment appeared on Ye Futian��s face. He raised his head and looked at the sky and earth around him.


    Tribulation!


    He didn��t break through his plane, but he had to overcome another tribulation.


    Hua Jieyu��s pretty eyes looked toward Ye Futian, but she wasn��t puzzled. She knew that since the first time Ye Futian overcame the tribulation back then, he had entered a different path from the rest. He was different from the other cultivators.


    He had always been at the Renhuang Plane and had never broken through it.


    That was the case back when he first overcame the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. After he had overcome the tribulation, he was somehow still peak-renhuang level.


    Now, he actually instigated the second tribulation, and he still didn��t show any sign of breaking through his current plane. He was still a Renhuang, but he was becoming more and more perfect and certainly stronger.


    Booooom�� Terrifying lights of the tribulation converged and arrived. Ye Futian stood that with divine lights circling his body, preparing himself to deal with another Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. His tribulation was different from the other powerful cultivators.


    However, it was time for another round of tempering of his Divine Body of the Great Path.


    ��


    Rewind to the time before Ye Futian faced another Divine Tribulation fo the Great Path��back when he broke open the seal of the Ziwei Segmentum and destroyed the Imperial Arm.


    Divine Prefecture, at a palace inside the Tianyan City Lord��s Office. Wang Xiao, who was in the middle of cultivation, let out a muffled groan as his face turned pale. He seemed to have sensed something. He raised his head to look up above the sky. It was as though his gaze had pierced through the vast space, and he saw the obliteration of the Imperial Arm.


    A terrifying pulsating aura erupted from him, and then his figure directly appeared in the air above the Tianyan City Lord��s office. His face was as pale as a sheet of paper.


    ��How could this happen!�� Blood seeped out from the corner of Wang Xiao��s mouth as an expression of utter disbelief appeared in his eyes!

 Chapter 2579 - The Divine Prefecture and Ziwei

    ��Wang Xiao!��


    Up in the air above the Tianyan City Lord��s Office, the Tianyan City Lord and several other cultivators appeared. They were all very solemn, saddened about the strange thing that was happening to Wang Xiao.


    Throughout these years, Wang Xiao had been improving exceptionally quickly. He was continuously getting stronger. He hadn��t let down Tianyan City. In the future, he would be the most incredible cultivator of Tianyan City. With the Imperial Arm in his hand, he would be unparalleled in this world. No one below the Great Emperors could stand up to him.


    As such, they were all naturally very concerned about Wang Xiao��s condition.


    The Tianyan City Lord appeared as soon as he could and asked about Wang Xiao.


    When they saw Wang Xiao��s pale face and the blood that was seeping out from the corner of his mouth, they were all very nervous. Wasn��t he cultivating normally? What could have happened to cause the situation now? It was as though Wang Xiao had experienced some drastic change. Was it a problem regarding his cultivation? Or did it have something to do with his mental state?


    They didn��t know.


    Their gazes all looked toward Wang Xiao. Wang Xiao raised his head and looked toward the sky. After a long pause in silence, he slowly turned back and looked toward the cultivators from Tianyan City and said, ��The Imperial Arm was destroyed. The seal of the Ziwei Segmentum has been broken!��


    The hearts of the Tianyan City Lord and the cultivators trembled. The Imperial Arm was destroyed!


    That was the divine Imperial Arm forged by Tianyan the Great himself. Furthermore, it contained the spirit of the Great Emperor. How could it be destroyed?


    Who was even capable of such a thing?


    ��He had awoken the will of Ziwei the Great,�� Wang Xiao continued. His face was even more pale and lifeless than before. He looked toward the starry sky. Inside the Original Realm, there was one being that was almost undefeatable to him.


    He was born an extraordinary being. He was destined to be the main character of the Divine Prefecture. From the first time he had shown himself, he had made his name known worldwide.


    He became renowned throughout the world within a single day of fame.


    He was the heir of Tianyan the Great, the only person that could communicate with the Imperial Arm, the greatest armorer. All of these titles were concentrated on him alone; it was as glorious as it could get. As the future Lord of the Tianyan City, with such unparalleled talent, he should have been untouchable in the Divine Prefecture.


    But he appeared. From the day he appeared 28 years ago, his shadow had completely covered Wang Xiao��s greatness.


    Even the Imperial Arm couldn��t seal and contain him. Now, the seal was broken, and he had broken out of the cage. When they meet once again on the battlefield, what could he do?


    Who was the one who was born at the wrong time?


    The face of the Tianyan City Lord also turned ugly. Even that couldn��t kill him and wipe out the Ziweri Segmentum?


    Now, the beast had broken out of the cage!


    The expressions of all of the Divine Prefecture cultivators turned a little stiff. For some reason, as an Ancient God Clan, the greatest holy land of armoring in the Divine Prefecture, they felt nervous because of a young cultivator that was only at peak-renhuang plane.


    Perhaps it was because he was too outstanding and had brought too much shock to them. Even Wang Xiao couldn��t suppress him. In the future, he would surely become one of their greatest foes.


    ��Things have already reached this point; no need to think too much of it. It would help if you continued to focus on cultivation. You still control the Imperial arm. In the future, when you meet him outside, he will not be able to utilize the power of the Ziwei Segmentum. You can still take him down with ease.�� The Tianyan City Lord was indeed an individual who stood at the top of the Divine Prefecture; he regained his senses rather quickly.


    Regardless of what it was, they could not induce panic in themselves.


    ��Yes, the Tianyan City does not fear anyone. If he dares to come to Tianyan City again, we��ll kill him straight away,�� an older generation cultivator who was standing at the side said as well, in hopes that Wang Xiao would stabilize his mental state. Wang Xiao was essential to Tianyan City.


    Especially during such times where the turbulence in the world was getting more prominent, clashes and conflicts between the worlds were becoming more and more heated. The war could begin at any time.


    In such uncertain times, Wang Xiao��s growth and development were pivotal; the future of Tianyan City was on his shoulders.


    Tianyan City lord turned and faced the direction of the City Lord��s Office and announced, ��Immediately summon the core members of the clan back here. Come back to the clan, do not exit Tianyan City.��


    ��Yes, Lord!�� The cultivators took his orders. Back then, Ye Futian went on a killing spree in the West Sea Domain, many of the cultivators from the West Sea Domain Chief��s Manor were killed. Of course, they knew about that. Although Tianyan City wasn��t afraid of Ye Futian, they also didn��t dare to let down their guard. They wouldn��t give him the chance to hunt down the cultivators of Tianyan City.


    If Ye Futian dared to come to Tianyan City, then they would kill him here.


    ��Also, notify the powers of the divine prefecture,�� the Tianyan City Lord continued. Back then, Tianyan City wasn��t the only power that tried to get rid of Ye Futian. Today, as the seal of the Ziwei Segmentum was released, the various powers of the DIvine Prefecture would naturally need to devise ways to obliterate the Ziwei Segmentum again.


    Many of the Ancient God Clan had participated back then.


    Even if Ye Futain��s gifts and talents were beyond the limits of the world, how could he possibly fend against Ancient God Clans?


    As the Tianyan City Lord thought about this, he felt calmer. The reason why he was so shocked before this was likely because it had happened too suddenly. He had thought that the Imperial Arm was destroyed. But now that he was able to re-organize his thoughts, although it was indeed heartache that the Imperial Arm was destroyed, they should still move forward.


    Ye Futian alone wouldn��t be able to make that much of a difference.


    The cultivators of Tianyan City all managed to recover from the panic and become busy again, going back to their work. At the same time, they notified the various powers of the Divine Prefecture.


    Those powers that had participated in the besiegement back then were all shocked when they received the news. They all felt somewhat anxious. Especially those powers that weren��t Ancient God Clans, like the West Sea Domain and the Donghua Domain Chief��s Manor. They could be described as completely defenseless before the power of the Ziwei Segmentum today.


    But the Ziwei Segmentum was sealed and isolated for 28 years, so they probably didn��t grow much, right?


    ��


    Ye Futian overcame the tribulation in the boundless space outside of the Ziwei Segmentum. The tribulation lasted for a whole month, and only after that did he return to the Imperial Palace inside the Ziwei Segmentum.


    After he returned, the Ziwei Imperial Palace organized a banquet with the core members of the Ziwei Segmentum present to welcome Ye Futian��s return.


    Breaking the Seal, destroying the Imperial Arm, and Ye Futian return��these were all incredible things that were worth celebrating and drinking for.


    On the banquet in the Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian sat at the central seat, while the Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Palace and the spouse of the Imperial Palace Lord, Hua Jieyu, sat beside him. The first seat to his left was occupied by Lord Chen, while to the right were the other three palace lords��Emperor Xi, Murong yu, Daoist Monk Mu. Then followed the Deputy Palace Lords. Everyone was here to celebrate the occasion.


    Behind Ye Futian were the four young cultivators. Fang Cun and the others stood there, serving their master. Although their cultivation levels were all very high, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu were sitting right there, as students, they had to serve them.


    ��Come, let��s first toast to the Palace Lord and his partner. The return of the Palace Lord this time was the greatest surprise to the Ziwei Semgneutm,�� Lord Chen said as he raised his glass. Immediately, all of the cultivators raised their glasses and toasted to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu raised their glasses as well. He looked toward the Ziwei Segmentum cultivators and said, ��After seeing all of you, I can tell that no one has stopped working hard for the past 28 years. Thank you to everyone here!��


    Then, he drank all of the wine in his glass. Everyone else also followed and did and same before putting down their glasses.


    Murong Yu joked, ��Palace Lord, there��s one thing that you don��t know. Daoist Monk Mu, it��s impossible to invite this guy to anything usually, and he wouldn��t spare any respect for anyone here. But this time, when he heard that the Palace Lord was returning, he was the first to rush over.��


    He was the Lord of the Ziwei Palace, while Daoist Monk Mu was the Lord of the Alchemy Palace.


    Everyone started laughing. Daoist Monk Mu is almost like a king in the Ziwei Imperial Palace. Everyone respected him and treated him like their own ancestor. All because of the fear that if he got annoyed with any of them, the quantity and quality of the pills and elixirs he made for them would be at stake.


    ��Aren��t you guys aware of why the hell you��re even looking for me usually?�� Daoist Monk Mu sneered. He still didn��t bother to spare Murong Yu any respect.


    ��Damn, seriously, the Palace Lord is here, and you��re still giving that attitude,�� Murong Yu pointed at him and said.


    ��Back then, I became indebted to the grace of the Palace Lord, so I decided to heed the orders of the Ziwei Imperial Palace and take charge of the Alchemy Palace. Of course, I��ll fulfill my responsibilities toward the palace lord and give my all to the job,�� Daoist Monk Mu said. He was still very grateful toward Ye Futian.


    ��Yeah, I know you��re loyal,�� Murong Yu rebutted him. ��The reason we want the elixirs is that we want to grow and develop ourselves. We want to become stronger so that one day we can charge back into the Divine Prefecture and seek vengeance for the past 28 years.


    As he spoke, he looked toward Ye Futian. He continued, ��Palace Lord, the forces of the Ziwei Imperial Palace have increased rather significantly. Now that the palace lord is back, when will you lead the Imperial Palace to attack the Divine Prefecture? We shall wipe out one of two of their organizations and make them pay for what they did 28 years ago.��


    Everyone paused when they heard Murong Yu and looked toward Ye Futian. For 28 years, all of them had a raging fire suppressed in their hearts. Now that the seal was shattered and the Imperial Arm was destroyed, everyone wanted to vent this great fury and strike the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian raised his glass and drank all of the wine inside. He then looked around at all of the cultivators present. Over the past 28 years, they had significantly improved.


    ��No hurry.�� Ye Futian��s gaze was razor-sharp. ��28 years have passed, so why hurry now? Although the Imperial Palace has indeed grown significantly, we still lack apex powers. We need more Tribulation Plane cultivators. This time, I��ll be cultivating in isolation for a while first. Do the same thing as back then, make a batch of Sub-divine Elixirs to increase the power levels of the Imperial Palace cultivators again before we make other arrangements.��


    Right now, his cultivation level was still the same as before, peak-Renhuang level, no change.


    Even the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace didn��t know that he had overcome the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, let alone the people of the Divine Prefecture.


    At this point, they need to accumulate their powers and make the Ziwei Imperial Palace even more powerful. Then they would give the Divine Prefecture an enormous surprise. He didn��t want to face the same situation as 28 years ago, where they were besieged by the Divine Prefecture, powerless against them.


    At the very least, he wanted more Tribulation Plane Cultivators present in the Ziwei Segmentum. Many of them were almost there. They were on the verge of breaking through; all they needed was one step forward.


    As for revenge, why rush it now? They had managed to make it through 28 whole years. What was so difficult about waiting just a while more?


    ��Okay.�� Everyone nodded. When they heard that Ye Futian would make Sub-divine elixirs again, they were happy to hear it.


    After 28 years, imagine the level of the Sub-divine elixirs that Ye Futian could make!

 Chapter 2580 - They Are Used to It

    After the banquet, Ye Futian and other key figures visited the rest of the residents in Ziwei Imperial Palace. Now, many new cultivators in the Palace were impressed with Ye Futian and admired him a lot.


    Ye Futian was now a legend in the Ziwei Segmentum and the spokesperson of Ziwei the Great.


    Afterward, he paid a visit to his elders and family. Then, after discussing with Taoist Monk Mu, he was ready to start another round of alchemy again.


    Just when Ye Futian was about to start, suddenly, his mind moved slightly, and he took out the treasure mirror. On the other side, Xi Chiyao��s face appeared.


    Xi Chiyao had a smile on her face that made her seem even more beautiful than before. Her temperament was even more outstanding.


    ��When I heard the news that you had breached the Imperial arms, I called on you immediately. 28 years, I finally got in touch with you again.�� Xi Chiyao smiled softly. It was as if she was seeing a long-lost friend with much joy in her heart.


    ��Has the West Imperial Palace already gotten the news?�� Ye Futian asked. Only Tianyan City should have known the news of him breaching the imperial arms.


    This meant that Tianyan City had already allowed the news to spread.


    ��Such a big happy event. How could Tianyan City not share it with other forces in the Divine Prefecture?�� Xi Chiyao teased and continued, ��However, you are too secretive. If it were not because I got the news from Tianyan City, would you plan to keep this news a secret from me?��


    ��I just got out, and I was too busy cultivating. I also have a lot of things to deal with at Ziwei Imperial Palace. Now I plan to make some elixirs in retreat, so I didn��t think to contact you.�� Ye Futian said, ��I saw some changes within you. Did you have a breakthrough?��


    ��Look at you,�� Xi Chiyao replied in awe. ��You could even see something like that. Yes, I did break through the shackles of Renhuang and went one level higher. However, I am afraid that there is still quite a gap compared to you. You are continuing to make elixirs. Is it because you had another breakthrough in your cultivation?��


    ��Fortunately.�� Ye Futian said, ��Speaking of alchemy, can you use the resources of the West Imperial Palace to help me collect some alchemical materials? The rarer, the better.��


    ��No problem, I��ll do it now. When I have all of them, I will send them to the Ziwei Segmentum,�� Xi Chiyao responded readily enough without any hesitation.


    ��Thanks.�� Ye Futian nodded, and the two ended their conversation. Although the two were not close friends, they worked well together and trusted each other. Ye Futian asked Xi Chiyao to find alchemical materials, and she agreed right away. She knew that Ye Futian would not forget the West Imperial Palace��s favor.


    Then, Ye Futian began to make the elixirs in retreat. Although he was still in the realm of the Renhuang, he had experienced the divine tribulation twice already while in the Renhuang realm, and he had no idea if he could produce Sub-divine Elixirs of the second tribulation. When he returned to the Ziwei Segmentum after having survived the tribulation the first time, he could produce the Sub-divine Elixirs of the first tribulation.


    He didn��t lack any alchemical materials for the time being; he had gathered as much as he could back then on Elixir Emperor��s Island and obtained many precious medicinal materials, which had yet been used up. He wanted Xi Chiyao to help him to collect these materials, so he had some in reserve.


    After all, there were more and more cultivators in the Ziwei Segmentum, and there were not enough elixirs to give to everyone. The Alchemy Palace, on the other hand, also required a lot of alchemical materials. If they go to the Divine Prefecture to collect them, it would potentially be a thorny situation. It was much easier to work with West Imperial Palace on the collection of materials. After he produced the elixirs, part of them would be sent over to West Imperial Palace. This way, it was a win-win for both sides. This mutual relationship could ensure their continued cooperation.


    The secret to getting people to agree to help was never letting them get the short end of the stick. As long as both parties could benefit, the relationship would have no reason not to continue. In the cultivation world, feelings were a thing fragile, to begin with. Not to mention that his relationship with the West Imperial Palace was not at the level where feelings would be a factor.


    The others in Ziwei Imperial Palace were also cultivating peacefully. After Ye Futian broke through the imprisonment of the imperial arms and returned to them, these cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace seemed to be hopeful once again. They were more motivated to cultivate, as their Palace Lord was personally working on producing those elixirs that were highly anticipated.


    This time, Ye Futian first produced a large batch of top Renhuang elixirs. To him, this level of elixirs was far too easy for him, and its mass production did not require too much of his energy.


    However, the Renhuang elixirs that he produced were absolutely unparalleled in all of the Divine Prefecture, and their quality was perfection itself. For cultivators in the Renhuang Realm, it had a massive effect and could help them lay the most solid foundation for leveling up.


    After the batches were done, Ye Futian had Blind Tie and Old Ma distribute the elixirs, prioritizing top cultivators in the Renhuang Realm, making preparations for the impact to experiencing the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    After that, he continued to make higher-level elixirs, like the Sub-divine Elixirs.


    For a long time after that, elixir tribulations were frequent occurrences and a common sight in the Starry Cultivation Court. But because of the experience they had many years ago, the cultivators inside Ziwei Imperial Palace were quite accustomed to it. However, they would be surprised if there had been no elixir tribulations when Ye Futian was practicing alchemy.


    Undeniably, the elixir tribulation this time was clearly much stronger than the last time.


    A few months later, Ye Futian finished the production of elixirs and distributed all that he had made. Lord Chen and the four lords were the firsts to receive the Sub-divine Elixirs, then those who were tittering in the peak of Renhuang for too many years were also given the Sub-divine Elixirs from Ye Futian. At the same time, they had sought advice from Lord Chen and several other lords who had experienced the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Blind Tie was the first one to pass over the hurdle of Renhuang and experience the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    In his time, Blind Tie himself was a genius talent from Four Square Village. After some plotting from the others, he was blinded, and the teacher had him stay in the village as a blacksmith. Many thought that he had given up cultivation, but in truth, he was learning to return to the basics and what was truly important. Later on, he received the inheritance of the imperial star, and Blind Tie��s cultivation went one step further.


    Now, decades later, he finally stepped into the Tribulation Plane.


    His tribulation was an incredibly strong one, but Blind Tie was an incomparable figure himself. Not only was he not destroyed by the divine tribulation, but he successfully completed the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Now some of the protectors around Ye Futian were also existences in the Tribulation Plane.


    The second cultivator who survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path was Emperor Xi��s disciple��Yang Wuqi. This was rather surprising to Ye Futian. However, after some consideration, it appeared quite logical. Yang Wuqi��s talents were outstanding, but he maintained an extremely low profile and kept quiet while he followed Emperor Xi. Nevertheless, his mindset was extraordinary.


    After surviving the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, Yang Wuqi was on the same level as his master, Emperor Xi, and this delighted Emperor Xi to no end. As a result, Wangshen Palace now had two cultivators in the Tribulation Plane, which increased its strength considerably.


    After another six months, Xi Chiyao took a group of cultivators from West Imperial Palace to visit Ziwei Segmentum. They were led into the Starry Cultivation Court to see Ye Futian.


    ��You are behaving yourself?�� Xi Chiyao looked at Ye Futian and said with a playful smile. It had been more than half a year since Ye Futian broke the imprisonment and destroyed the imperial arms. However, he did not make any moves but stayed quietly inside the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��What else do you expect?�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��I thought you would go to the Divine Prefecture.�� Xi Chiyao smiled, ��This is unlike you.��


    ��I��m in no hurry,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��True.�� Xi Chiyao nodded. ��Presently, the forces headed by the Ancient God Clans in Tianyan City have already begun their preparations the moment you broke out the imprisonment, so they will be ready for you anytime. If you go to the Divine Prefecture now, there are still some dangers for you. If these Ancient God Clans mean to do you harm. You should cultivate here for some time to come.��


    She saw that Ye Futian��s realm had not changed; it was still in the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang. Although his combat effectiveness was extraordinary, and he was also an expert in Buddhist superpower, he had some extremely powerful enemies. If he left the Ziwei Segmentum now, there was a certain risk waiting for him on the outside.


    But in Ziwei Segmentum, unless a force as powerful as the Donghuang Imperial Palace were to mobilize, no other principalities would be able to invade it.


    Therefore, Xi Chiyao agreed with Ye Futian��s decision. She thought it best for him to cultivate for several years before leaving here, or, at the very least, until he had passed the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    ��Un-huh.�� Ye Futian didn��t bother to explain anything but asked, ��Are you here to deliver the medicinal materials?��


    ��Wow, you get to the point quickly.�� Xi Chiyao gave Ye Futian a look, but she still took out the things in the storage and handed them over to Ye Futian. ��West Imperial Palace spent half a year��s effort to gather these. It��s quite a collection, so don��t spend them all at once.��


    Ye Futian checked the items with his divine consciousness, then nodded slightly to acknowledge her statement. He simply said, ��Thank you.��


    As he was speaking, his divine consciousness went inside his own storage ring, and took a considerable amount of pills and elixirs, and put them inside a separate storage ring. He handed it to Xi Chiyao, ��This is for the West Imperial Palace, but there is a condition: these cannot be distributed to those who raised their hands against me last time.��


    ��You hold grudges forever.�� Xi Chiyao laughed and said, ��Don��t worry. What happened last time will never be repeated again in West Imperial Palace. Once was enough for that kind of situation.��


    When the two were talking, a horrific aura suddenly descended above the sky. The eyes of Xi Chiyao and other cultivators from the West Imperial Palace sharpened slightly as they looked towards that side.


    Soon after, they saw a figure levitated into the air and heading higher into the sky; Ye Futian also glanced yonder. Once he knew who it was, he didn��t care too much about it anymore and redirected his gaze.


    Likewise, the cultivators in the Starry Cultivation Court just glanced to see who it was, with a slightly envious look on their faces, and continued to cultivate without paying too much attention.


    Above the firmament, that radiant figure was experiencing the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path alone, with no one even watching him. This strange sight piqued Xi Chiyao��s curiosity; the reactions of these people didn��t seem normal to her.


    ��This is Divine Tribulation!�� Xi Chiyao said to Ye Futian.


    ��Un-huh,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    Seeing his nonchalant expression, Xi Chiyao felt even more curious and asked, ��Did none of the people at the Ziwei Imperial Palace care about that?��


    ��They got used to it,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Got used to it?�� Xi Chiyao stared at Ye Futian incredulously with her beautiful eyes. These people got accustomed to seeing Divine Tribulations?


    As the Goddess of West Imperial Palace, the entire West Imperial Palace attached great importance to her when she was experiencing the divine tribulation, and all the cultivators in the entire Palace were observing her at the time. She cultivated many years before she experienced the divine tribulation, and the whole clan witnessed it.


    But now, someone was experiencing divine tribulation at Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    No one cared!


    ��You are tough.�� Xi Chiyao said, ��It seems that the elixirs are effective. Let��s see what good elixir you have made this time.��


    As soon as she said that, Xi Chiyao checked the elixirs that Ye Futian gave her with great anticipation. Ye Futian didn��t mind it, merely turning his head to look higher into the sky.


    Soon, Xi Chiyao��s body stiffened, and her heart trembled violently. Her beautiful eyes fixed on Ye Futian.


    ��Chiyao, what is it?�� The cultivator from Western Imperial Palace asked.


    Xi Chiyao didn��t seem to have heard them. After a while, she looked at the people from West Imperial Palace and took out an elixir, ��Second Tribulation, Sub-divine Elixir!��


    When they heard what Xi Chiyao said, the eyes of all the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace were frozen as well!

 Chapter 2581 - The Plan

    Sub-divine Elixirs of the Second Tribulation!


    Technically, elixirs of this level could only be produced by a cultivator who had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, but this was just in theory. In reality, not all alchemy masters of this realm necessarily had the ability to produce the Sub-divine Elixir of the Second Divine Tribulation.


    But at this moment, Xi Chiyao had the Elixir of the Second Divine Tribulation in her possession, which Ye Futian had just given her; how could she not be shocked?


    There were only two top alchemy masters in Ziwei Segmentum��Ye Futian and Taoist Monk Mu. However, the cultivation of Taoist Monk Mu was only at the first level of the Tribulation Plane.


    So, who made these Sub-divine Elixirs of the Second Tribulation?


    Xi Chiyao��s beautiful eyes fell on Ye Futian. ��Did you make them?��


    ��After the medicinal materials from the goddess are made into elixirs, I will have someone deliver some of them to the West Imperial Palace. Or the West Imperial Palace can also send someone here to fetch it.�� Ye Futian did not respond to her question directly, but his words made all the cultivators from the West Imperial Palace tremble in their hearts.


    Was this evasion some silent acquiescence?


    So, the cultivators in the Ziwei Segmentum were immune to sights of the Divine Tribulations of the Great Path? Was it something they grew accustomed to?


    Obviously, someone had already survived divine tribulation before that, which accounted for their nonchalance.


    ��When I fought with you many years ago, I had planned to stay in the Heavenly Mandate Academy to cultivate. But for so many years, it had never become a reality. Now, what do you think about me staying in Ziwei Imperial Palace to cultivate?�� Xi Chiyao asked with a smile as she looked at Ye Futian. She was not joking. This was a real desire that she had.


    The cultivation environment of Ziwei Segmentum was pretty good, and there were also elixirs to help with the cultivation. More importantly, she wanted to see what was going on inside the Ziwei Imperial Palace now.


    Since the Ziwei Segmentum was freed from its imprisonment and the news got back to the Divine Prefecture, all the forces in the Divine Prefecture had made preparations. However, there had been no movement in the Ziwei Segmentum for such a long time that they assumed it was because Ziwei Imperial Palace itself was still weak and that they did not dare go to the divine mountain for revenge. Right now, all these forces figured Ye Futian and his people would temporarily stay put inside the Ziwei Segmentum and continue to strengthen themselves. Ye Futian, too, was cautious and did not dare to take any additional risks.


    How could the cultivators from top principalities in the Divine Prefecture know that the current situation in Ziwei Imperial Palace was so prosperous? They were mass-producing existences of Tribulation Plane.


    Was Ye Futian planning to create a camp of cultivators in the Tribulation Plane?


    ��If the goddess desires to do so, of course, you can,�� Ye Futian responded. He didn��t mind Xi Chiyao cultivating here at all. Now that Ziwei Segmentum was enemy with all of the Divine Prefecture, West Imperial Palace was a rare ally and could provide them with lots of help.


    ��Of course I want to, but I am afraid I��m going to have to trouble you from time to time,�� said Xi Chiyao with a smile. She was serious about staying. She turned to the cultivators from West Imperial Palace and said, ��You guys take the elixirs back and let them know that I will be cultivating here for some years.��


    ��Very well,�� These people nodded, not at all worried if something would happen to Xi Chiyao while she was in Ziwei Segmentum. Even in the outside world, not many could touch Xi Chiyao in her current realm of cultivation.


    The cultivators from the West Imperial Palace left, and Xi Chiyao stayed behind. Ye Futian turned to look at the cultivator experiencing the tribulation and saw it was Chen Yi. He who had inherited the relic of light for nearly 50 years was finally beginning to experience the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Chen Yi��s tribulation was an incredibly terrifying Tribulation of Light. Although everyone was getting used to seeing tribulations, especially after they had so many experiences in elixir tribulations, there were still many who paid close attention to Chen Yi��s tribulation as this particular tribulation descended; they could see that his was very powerful.


    Every cultivator would encounter a different kind of divine tribulation, as they were not all the same.


    However, Ye Futian was most eager to witness the birth of cultivators in the Second Divine Tribulation, but he recognized that it would be a little difficult in the short run.


    Prior to this, the only cultivators in the First Tribulation Realm were Hua Jieyu, Taoist Monk Mu, Murong Yu, and Emperor Xi. Taoist Monk Mu was the one who had stayed in this realm the longest, followed by Emperor Xi. But their realm was not yet deep enough.


    After Chen Yi survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, he continued to cultivate in seclusion. There were two in the Tribulation Plane among the four great protectors around Ye Futian��Blind Tie and Chen Yi.


    The qualities of the cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace were getting more powerful by the day, and now their strength was almost comparable to that of the Ancient God Clans.


    The Ancient God Clans possessed the inheritance of the Great Emperor, but in Ziwei Segmentum, the will of Ziwei the Great remained. The combat effectiveness of all the peak cultivators, aside from those who had survived the First Divine Tribulation, also included the Supreme Elder Lord Chen in the uppermost level, then Ye Futian himself.


    This kind of makeup was enough to collide head-on with the Ancient God Clans.


    But Ye Futian had no intention to stop there. He was not yet satisfied. The enemies of Ziwei Segmentum were not just one Ancient God Clan, but all six of them within the Divine Prefecture, as well as some other top forces in the Divine Prefecture.


    Therefore, they needed to be stronger.


    ��It seems that alchemy is far better than armor-making.�� Xi Chiyao whispered. Those top alchemy masters were tremendously awesome.


    ��You can��t think it��s as simple as all that,�� Ye Futian replied. ��In Ziwei Imperial Palace, the people who have experienced the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path are all of the cultivators with extraordinary cultivation already. Even if they relied solely on themselves, they could pass over this hurdle on their own. The aid from the elixir was to make their foundation more stable and shorten the time it took. That��s why we are seeing a series of tribulations in a short period of time.��


    Blind Tie, Yang Wuqi, and Chen Yi were all very strong in their own right.


    ��The elixirs are produced by you, so whatever you say is right.�� Xi Chiyao didn��t refute him but looked at Ye Futian with a smile. As a cultivator in the Tribulation Plane who was also the Goddess of West Imperial Palace, she looked like a little girl. There was some hero worship in those beautiful eyes of hers, which was rather deceptive.


    A character like her had a majestic authority all of her own, for she was an unattainable goddess to most.


    ��Goddess, cultivate as you please. I will have to get back to practice alchemy.�� Ye Futian deliberately avoided Xi Chiyao��s gaze. His figure flickered as he left.


    Watching Ye Futian��s departing figure, Xi Chiyao chuckled. Was it possible for this guy to feel embarrassed?


    Now, that was something really interesting!


    After Chen Yi, there was another person who experienced the divine tribulation, and it was Hua Qingqing. To the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace, she had always been shrouded in mystery. She was sisters with the palace lord��s wife, Hua Jieyu, and she was not often out and about. Most of the time, she spent it with Hua Fengliu and Nandou Wenyin, but her cultivation was astounding to the point of being fearsome. The seniors within Ziwei Imperial Palace knew that Hua Qingqing had accompanied The Buddha in cultivation. In the Western Heavenly World, she was respected by the Buddha Lords as a Great Buddha herself.


    After Hua Qingqing, there was another cultivator who survived the divine tribulation, and by this time, it was already three years after Ziwei Imperial Palace broke out of its imprisonment. This time, the person who survived the tribulation was a pleasant surprise to Ye Futian, and he was the one person that Ye Futian looked forward to the most so far.


    Gu Dongliu finally ushered in his Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    In the past three years, five cultivators had survived the divine tribulation. Most of them had something to do with the Great Emperors or figures on that level. Blind Tie had been instructed by the teacher and later on inherited an imperial star. Gu Dongliu had inherited from the Demon Monarch and also inherited an imperial star at some point. Chen Yi inherited the Light, and Hua Qingqing had accompanied The Buddha in his cultivation. Only Yang Wuqi was totally unexpected by everyone. For Ziwei Imperial Palace, it was a pleasant surprise, but it also demonstrated that this quiet man, who was not fond of showing off and kept an extremely low profile, was, in fact, incredibly talented.


    After Gu Dongliu survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, the number of people in the Tribulation Plane inside Ziwei Imperial Palace had reached double digits.


    Gu Dongliu��s tribulation had attracted many people to watch. People in Ziwei Imperial Palace knew that the Palace Lord had a special affection for this third senior brother of his, just like his second senior sister and the elder brother. As far as they knew, the Palace Lord had been cared for by these several senior brothers and sisters of his when he was young. They were very protective of him, and they had a deep affection for one another.


    This kind of feeling may not be something they could understand now, but the people in the imperial palace were a little envious. They would really like to see what Ye Futian was like as a young kid, but few people had that privileged experience.


    Gu Dongliu stood above the starry sky as the last light of tribulation fell, his whole body radiant and sacred. His entire temperament had transformed. The aura that permeated from his body was already the aura of a powerful cultivator of the Tribulation Plane.


    He stood there quietly, and no one disturbed him. Ye Futian was standing with a lot of other people, such as their elder brother and second senior sister.


    ��If our master sees this today, he will be very happy,�� their elder brother, Sword Saint, said with a smile. His eyes were full of happiness. He had seen these junior brothers in their growth.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Definitely.��


    ��Elder brother, after you experienced the divine tribulation, when we see our master one day, he will be so pleased to know he has three such outstanding disciples,�� Zhuge Mingyue said with a small smile. For many years, the Sword Saint��s cultivation was not inconsiderable, as he was already in the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang. Although he was blessed with less natural talent, Ye Futian had guided him step by step and reshaped his talent with elixirs. He had received the best elixirs from the first batch back then, so he had been doing very well indeed.


    Not only him, but others like Ye Wuchen, Swordmaster of Lihen, Dou Zhao, and Xiao Muyu, none of them was weak in their cultivation. Without exception, they were either in Upper Renhuang or in the realm of peak Renhuang.


    If the Divine Prefecture was not a constant threat, a few people from this group was enough to sweep through and lord over the Nine Supreme Regions of the Original Realm.


    ��I��m still not there yet.�� Sword Saint said, ��If Yu Sheng is here, Futian and Yu Sheng would make a peerless duo. Then, with the cultivators from Ziwei Segmentum, they could probably vanquish the forces below imperial level sooner rather than later.��


    ��I am rather looking forward to what you have assessed. No one knows what is the situation with Yu Sheng��s cultivation in the Devil World,�� Zhuge Mingyue murmured. They had never worried about Yu Sheng. When the time was right, Yu Sheng would come to Ye Futian��s side once again.


    In this world, Yu Sheng and Hua Jieyu were the closest people to Ye Futian; the disciples from the Cottage could only be seconds after the two of them.


    ��Yu Sheng?�� Ye Futian thought of his brother and said with a smile, ��How could he be falling behind? The whole Devil World must have heard of Yu Sheng��s name by now.��


    ��What plans do you have next? Continue to cultivate in retreat to improve your strength?�� Zhuge Mingyue asked.


    ��No.�� Ye Futian shook his head, ��It��s been so many years already, and it��s time to go out for a while.��


    ��What is your first step?�� asked Hua Jieyu.


    ��The first step would be sweeping through the Original Realm!�� Ye Futian said. The land of the Original Realm was once ruled by him as he was known as the king of the Original Realm. It was the involvement of other major worlds that caused the chaos and disorder in the Original Realm.


    After so many years, the Original Realm was in need of reorganization!

 Chapter 2582 - Deity Ye

    Chapter 2582: Deity Ye


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The resources in the former Void Realm��a part of the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms��had been thoroughly looted. Everything had been turned inside out.


    The Dark World, the Empty Divine Realm, and forces from the Divine Prefecture had not spared the lands of the Nine Realms.


    Once the lands of the Nine Realms had been plundered, in the following few decades, all the major worlds began to shift their focus on the new continents and relics that emerged in the Original Realm. Gradually, they started moving outward so that the lands of the Nine Realms nowadays lived in the shadow of their former glory, now a barren wasteland.


    Ever since the Heavenly Mandate Academy was destroyed by the City Lord of Tianyan, and Heavenly Mandate was relocated to Ziwei Segmentum, the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the Heavenly Mandate City began their inescapable decline. There were not many powerful cultivators in Heavenly Mandate City today, and the resources for cultivation were particularly lacking. Even if there were young people with outstanding talents, they would not get the nurturing they needed to develop their full potentials.


    The former site of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had long been nothing but ruins. People often came here to mourn and commemorate the glorious days of Heavenly Mandate. Back then, the Heavenly Mandate Academy ruled over the Nine Realms, and Ye Futian was known as the king of the Original Realm. How mighty the Heavenly Mandate Academy was once, and who could have predicted that it would have become what it was now?


    Even today, people often came to the ruins of what was left of the Heavenly Mandate Academy and look at the ruins while remembering the past.


    At this time, in the ruins, a group of people appeared. It seemed as if they were busy working on something in that location.


    Next to the ruins, there were some crowds scattered here and there. In one of them, there were an old man and a boy. The old man looked more than 50 years of age, while the young boy was about fifteen or sixteen, still looking a little childish.


    ��Grandson, this is the place I wanted to show you,�� the old man touched the boy��s head and said with a smile.


    ��Grandpa, isn��t this the ruin? Why are we here?�� The boy raised his head. His innocent eyes were filled with some confusion and curiosity.


    ��Yes, it is a ruin here now, but before you were born, when I was still a boy, this was the most glorious holy land in the world.�� The old man looked at the ruins and spoke emotionally. He seemed to be remembering those glorious days.


    How they missed the Heavenly Mandate Academy of yore!


    ��The most glorious holy land in the world!�� The boy was a little puzzled. The Heavenly Mandate Realm he knew was a chaotic world. He had no idea what the Heavenly Mandate Realm was like at all before he was born. After all, when the Heavenly Mandate Academy was most prosperous was some 50 or 60 years ago.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy and the Heavenly Mandate Realm existed only in history.


    ��Looking back, he founded the Heavenly Mandate Academy to preach to the world and brought the most glorious era to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. But those hateful foreign forces invaded us, which led to the destruction of Heavenly Mandate, so he had no choice but to leave. Now, no one knows if he��s alive or dead.�� The old man looked at the ruins, and he was full of intense emotions. Once, he was also a member of the academy, although he was just the most ordinary disciple on the peripheral.


    However, he was proud because he was part of something great. No matter when or where, he could always stand tall and tell others that he was a disciple of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    ��You mean, Diety Ye?!�� the boy thought of a name and whispered.


    ��That��s right. He is the Deity Ye that you guys talked about.�� The old man said with a smile, ��In the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he is, indeed, a deity.��


    A different kind of light lit up on the boy��s face. Among the younger generations of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, that legendary figure had been turned into a myth referred to by many as ��Deity Ye.��


    ��Grandpa, how is Deity Ye now?�� the boy asked.


    ��Deity Ye went to a place far away, and even Grandpa has no idea what happened to him.�� The old man looked up into the sky. He had witnessed with his own eyes that battle once upon a time when all the powers from the Upper Worlds of the Divine Prefecture had encircled and suppressed them. Even Donghuang Imperial Palace��a ruling principality in the Divine Prefecture��had stood on the opposite side so that there was nothing much that Ye Futian could do.


    A legend of their time was forced to leave Heavenly Mandate.


    ��Will he come back?�� the boy asked.


    ��Probably not. Not anymore.�� The old man sighed silently in his heart.


    ��Elder, who is the one that you call Deity Ye?�� a voice asked. The old man looked to his side and saw several young people approaching. Their temperament was superb. The old man could tell with a simple glance that these four young people were unusual.


    ��Deity Ye is the title given to the former College Chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ye Futian. It was created by some youngsters in the later generations of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.�� The old man asked, ��And you are?��


    ��Is that so?�� The young man in the lead displayed a gentle smile and said, ��Perhaps, Deity Ye will come back.��


    Before he spoke, a group of people in front had actually started rebuilding the structures. This sight caused the old man to frown. He walked up to look at them and asked, ��What are you doing?��


    This was the old site of Heavenly Mandate Academy, and someone wanted to build other structures here?


    ��Sir, please be patient,�� the young man next to him said. The old man looked at him again and continued, ��I know you are no ordinary common folk, but this place is the site of the Heavenly Mandate Academy founded by Deity Ye; it has great significance to the people of Heavenly Mandate Realm. If you want to build a mansion, you can find some other place to do that. If you are building here, I��m afraid it will anger the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm.��


    ��Is that so?�� The young man asked with a smile. ��Deity Ye held such a lofty position in Heavenly Mandate Realm?��


    ��Without question,�� the old man��s eyes were solemn.


    ��Then, there was even more reason to rebuild here.�� The young man said with a smile, looking in front of him. The old man��s expression was getting unfriendly as he said, ��Do you insist on choosing this site?��


    ��Elder,�� the young man turned his attention to the old man and said, ��Don��t you get it? Your deity is coming back!��


    The young man��s words made the old man tremble all over. His face turned red. It seemed as if he was extremely excited, as he looked at the man in the eye and asked, ��Don��t�� toy with me. Are you serious?��


    ��What they are building is the Heavenly Mandate Academy.�� The young man pointed to the front and said. It turned out that he was Ye Futian��s disciple��Fang Cun.


    Naturally, the other three were Little Ling, Tie Tou, and Duo Yu.


    The old man clenched his fists, and his expression was quite emotional, and he couldn��t speak for some time. He took his grandson by the hand and started running with all his might.


    The Deity of the Heavenly Mandate Realm was returning soon!


    Construction of buildings by cultivators in the Renhuang Realm was extremely expedient, not to mention there were multiple Renhuang working on it at the same time. Tall buildings and magnanimous halls soon rose from the ground. In one day, new and magnificent structures appeared on the old site of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The building stretched for hundreds of miles.


    Soon, people from the Heavenly Mandate City were gathering in the location of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Everything they were seeing in front of them was simply like a dream.


    Today, there were even rumors that Ye Futian would be returning.


    However, many people didn��t quite believe it.


    People from the older generations knew what happened back then. How could he return after he had made enemies with so many top forces in the Upper Worlds?


    The legendary story of Ye Futian and Heavenly Mandate Academy seemed to be fairytales from another time; even the memory of it was a little blurred now. But that era was the most glorious age in the history of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    ��Those people are very strong in their cultivation. Who are they exactly?�� Someone looked at the cultivators busy working on those newly-built structures and noticed they were all Renhuang cultivators.


    ��Just observe. We will figure it out soon enough.�� Many of the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate City stopped outside to watch. In the following days, the buildings were getting more magnificent and impressive and far surpassed the original size of the previous Heavenly Mandate Academy. However, none of those cultivators seemed to be finishing any time soon.


    There were even peak Renhuang who seemed to be working on a spatial teleportation matrix.


    Gradually, the cultivators outside of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had gotten wind of this news as well and rushed over to see for themselves. This included those forces in other realms that had also received the same information.


    Half a month later, even more cultivators appeared outside the old site of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    At this time, not far from the old site of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, a group of cultivators appeared in the sky above. This group of people had an incredibly powerful aura as their eyes looked forward and their brows furrowed.


    The person in the lead was Jian Ao��the former College Chief of Tianshen Academy.


    Back then, when Ye Futian unified the Nine Realms, Jian Ao and the others submitted to him in defeat. However, when Heavenly Mandate Academy was in peril and forced to leave, Jian Ao told Princess Donghuang that they were forced into submission and not out of their own free will; they had betrayed Heavenly Mandate Academy in the end.


    Later, they returned to the Central Emperor Realm, and the group of cultivators who had rebelled allied their own and gradually rebuilt their forces in the Central Emperor Realm. After the forces of the Divine Prefecture had finally finished their plundering and pillaging of the Nine Realms, they shifted their attention elsewhere. Jian Ao and the others became powerful forces in the Central Emperor Realm once more.


    But recently, they had gotten the news that someone was rebuilding the Heavenly Mandate Academy, so they came to see it for themselves.


    ��Go and find out from which principalities they are from.�� Jian Ao spoke to the person next to him, and immediately the cultivators from Tianshen Academy went forward until he came to the outside of the reconstructed Heavenly Mandate Academy. The aura of Upper Renhuang was released from him as he asked, loud and clear, ��What are you building?��


    However, no one paid any attention to him, as every one of these cultivators was preoccupied with their own business. Their blatant disregard for him caused the man to frown.


    ��If there��s nothing else, please stay out of the way,�� a cultivator inside said lightly as he glanced at the other man; he completely paid him no mind.


    At the same time, in the reconstructed academy, a spatial divine light suddenly pierced through the sky. It was the spatial teleportation grand matrix.


    The spatial divine light seemed to have opened up a channel between the firmament and the Lower Worlds, as a divine light appeared to form a pillar of light in the space.


    ��This���� The hearts of the cultivators in Heavenly Mandate City were palpitating. What a terrifying teleportation grand matrix! And just who was to be teleported?


    Buzz! The divine light descended, and a group of mighty cultivators appeared in the sky above. As soon as these people appeared, everyone who was watching from the outside held their breath collectively. What powerful auras were from these Renhuang cultivators, and many of them were in peak Renhuang no less.


    In the distance, Jian Ao saw the appearance of those cultivators, and his heart suddenly twitched. He saw many familiar faces. Some of them were once latecomers who were junior to him.


    Dou Zhao from the Dou tribe, Xiao Muyu from the Xiao clan, Yuan Hong from the Yuanyang clan��all ghosts of the past from the Nine Realms.


    More importantly, their auras had become extremely horrific.


    The divine light was still descending, as another group of cultivators appeared, with familiar faces as well. Gu Dongliu was among this group with an even stronger aura.


    A terrifying divine might came pressing down and shrouded the boundless space. Seeing those faces, the cultivators on the outside were instantly electrified.


    Was it really them who came back?


    At this time, an extremely brilliant divine light fell from the sky, as a figure with a white garment and white hair appeared in the sky above. As soon as he appeared, many older cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm froze. Burning tears filled their eyes.


    He came back.


    This legendary man of Heavenly Mandate Realm was back.


    Jian Ao and the others, however, turned terribly pale. Their bodies felt a deep and involuntary fear. It was as their hearts were beating violently in their chests.


    They turned around, wanting to escape. The aura of the Great Path of Space


    fluctuated, and they wished they had not come here.


    However, they discovered that several people were blocking their way, and the same powerful spatial light screen had already cordoned off this space, blocking Jian Ao��s way out.


    At the same time, a supreme pressure came down above the firmament, directly enveloping Jian Ao and the others. Frankly, Jian Ao had goosebumps all over his body, and he felt suffocated.


    This aura was truly terrifying.

 Chapter 2583 - Expedition

    Ye Futian��s figure descended over the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Everyone in Heavenly Mandate City was thrilled. Ever since Ye Futian and the others left back then, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had become history. The Heavenly Mandate Realm had also been destroyed. In the several decades that followed, the realm was in a constant decline.


    It was not just the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path of the Original Realm were picked clean. Anywhere with resources was plundered by the cultivators of the various worlds.


    The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path were no longer the center of the Original Realm but had become old abandoned lands.


    They never imagined that the once ruler of the Original Realm would return.


    Ye Futian unleashed his spiritual will and enveloped the vast space. Jian Ao and the others were even more terrified. However, they did not dare to move as their expressions turned pale.


    How was it that Ye Futian dared to return?


    ��Decades ago, the Heavenly Mandate Academy taught the Way in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and ruled over the lands of the Nine Realms. However, it was invaded by outsiders. Today, I wish to rebuild the Heavenly Mandate Academy,�� declared Ye Futian in a loud voice as he glanced around at the crowd. ��Although Donghuang Imperial Palace was previously displeased with me, I still agree with the way Donghuang the Great teaches the Way. Regardless of his stance, I am still willing to uphold the will of Donghuang the Great now and in the future and teach the Way in the Original Realm. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was previously the cultivation court for people from all walks of life in the Original Realm. Now it has been devastated. Yet, from this day forth, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will once again rule over the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Any cultivator who cultivates in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path must obey the will of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.��


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy had returned to rule over the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    All the cultivators in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were astonished. Ye Futian had such lofty ambition. Currently, the Original Realm was in chaos. Although the cultivators from the top forces of the various worlds were not currently in the Nine Realms, some of their remaining forces were still here. The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had long been taken over. Could Ye Futian seize control again?


    How would he make the cultivators from the other worlds yield and submit?


    ��Ye Futian,�� someone called out. As expected, a person dressed in black robes emerged. Although the person��s aura was not very strong, he had an eerie vibe. He was a cultivator of the Dark World. Back in the day, he had followed the forces of the Dark World during their invasion. Now, he acted as though he owned the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    The person stood there and asked loudly, ��The 3,000 Realms of the Great Path has long been a chaotic place. It does not belong to any person or force. Even Donghuang the Great has no right to rule over it. It is also the same for the entire Original Realm. How do you plan to rule the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path?��


    Ye Futian wanted to rule over the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path? He surely had huge ambitions if he wanted to reinstate order here.


    Ye Futian swept a glance at the other party and did not respond. He said, ��Currently, the Original Realm has changed drastically and is chaotic and lawless. As a member of the Original Realm, I am willing to restore order to the Original Realm, not just the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.��


    He used this opportunity to let the world know that the Ziwei Segmentum would restore order to the Original Realm, not just the Heavenly Mandate Realm or the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    They would do so for the entire Original Realm.


    ��Preposterous,�� another cultivator from the Dark World said. ��You actually dare to claim that you will achieve something that even Donghuang Imperial Palace has failed to do.��


    ��Even if I do not manage to do so, I will strive to achieve it,�� Ye Futian replied.


    Just then, beside Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu glanced at that person. With just a glance, that person felt as though her eyes had pierced directly into his soul. Terrifying will invaded his mind, and many pictures appeared within his head.


    ��You have killed innocent people in the Original Realm. You deserve death,�� said Hua Jieyu. As she said this, the figure of the cultivator from the Dark World immediately exploded, and he perished.


    For a moment, the surrounding space became exceptionally quiet. The cultivators from the Dark World were all silenced.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were admiring that beautiful figure. She was very beautiful, yet very cold.


    ��The position of College Chief of the Heavenly Mandate Academy will be held by Gu Dongliu, the Lord of the Ziwei Segmentum Heavenly Mandate Palace. He will oversee order in the Heavenly Mandate Realm as well as the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path,�� continued Ye Futian. It was as though he had not seen Hua Jieyu��s actions.


    After his Third Older Brother broke through to the Tribulation Plane, Ye Futian allowed Hua Jieyu to step down. Gu Dongliu replaced her as Lord of the Heavenly Mandate Palace. With Second Older Sister as his support, they would be together as husband and wife.


    As for Hua Jieyu, she would no longer need to hold any positions. With her status, she did not need any positions.


    Ye Futian continued, ��When the Heavenly Mandate Academy is rebuilt, the academy will accept disciples from the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Next, the Heavenly Mandate Academy will establish teleportation grand matrices linking it with the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. The realms will be linked together and become one, allowing for easy access between all realms.�� All the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were emotional when they heard this.


    The Heavenly Mandate Academy would teach the Way, and the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path would become one.


    One could foresee the trend of martial arts starting up again in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    ��Third Older Brother, I will leave the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path to you,�� Ye Futian said to Gu Dongliu.


    Gu Dongliu nodded his head as his figure floated in the air. He swept a gaze towards Jian Ao and the others. A terrifying aura pressed down across the space, causing Jian Ao��s group to shudder.


    ��Jian Ao, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had once spared your lives. Yet, when we were faced with a crisis, your lot immediately betrayed us. You deserve death,�� declared Gu Dongliu. Jian Ao��s expression changed drastically. A terrifying aura pressed down on him, making it hard for him to remain standing. He wanted to flee, but he discovered that he could not move at all.


    How could Gu Dongliu be this powerful? Jian Ao��s group thought to themselves as their hearts beat wildly. What level was Gu Dongliu��s ability at?


    With Jian Ao��s cultivation, he once stood at the peak of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Yet, before the pressure Gu Dongliu exerted, it was as though Jian Ao could not resist at all.


    After several decades, had Gu Dongliu already become so powerful?


    Other junior figures, such as Xiao Muyu and Dou Zhao, all had frightening auras. None of them were inferior to Jian Ao. Could it be that Jian Ao had truly made the wrong move?


    Back then, he had always wanted to return to the Divine Prefecture. He wanted to pave the way for his junior, Jian Qingzhu. However, he realized that in the Original Realm, all those who followed Ye Futian were already so powerful. If he had stayed with Ye Futian back then, how would he be now?


    He did not manage to think much. Gu Dongliu��s palm struck down on where he stood. Immediately, the place where he stood was swept over by swords. His body could not move at all. Beams of sword light directly penetrated his figure.


    He revealed a look of absolute terror. With great difficulty, he lowered his head and inspected himself. He was not the only one who had been pierced through the heart by tens of thousands of swords. In the area around where he stood, the cultivators of the Original Realm who had followed him in betraying Ye Futian all met the same fate.


    ��Die!�� uttered Gu Dongliu.


    As he said this, the various cultivators were immediately massacred by Sword Will and were reduced to dust, which dissipated.


    The once College Chief of Tianshen Academy and a figure who stood at the top of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had perished just like that. He had been immediately killed off.


    When the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm saw this scene, all of them felt their hearts throbbing. They were naturally aware of who Jian Ao was. He was a super cultivator, renowned in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path for many years. A top figure like him had actually been easily killed off by Gu Dongliu.


    How powerful was Gu Dongliu now?


    On that note, how powerful was Ye Futian currently?


    Before this, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm had all been wondering about this. Back during the war, Ye Futian and the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had been forced to abandon the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Now that they had returned, were they powerful enough? Did they have the confidence to deal with the various cultivators of the Divine Prefecture?


    After Gu Dongliu killed Jian Ao, he said, ��The members of the Heavenly Mandate Palace will hold the fort in the Heavenly Mandate Academy as we restore order in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.��


    ��Yes, Lord,�� replied the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Palace as they bowed slightly. Back when the four palaces were established, the Heavenly Mandate Palace mainly consisted of the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, such as Lord Taixuan, Emperor Nan, and other members. Such a force was already very powerful.


    ��Lord Chen, you will remain in the Heavenly Mandate Realm to hold the fort until the Heavenly Mandate Academy establishes the matrices,�� Ye Futian instructed Lord Chen. Lord Chen nodded and replied, ��Rest assured, Palace Lord. I will hold the fort here with Dongliu.��


    ��I will leave it to you,�� said Ye Futian. He then looked at the people around him and said, ��Lord Murong and Lord Mu will watch over the Ziwei Segmentum while Third Older Brother and Lord Chen hold the fort here. Senior Emperor Xi, Uncle Tie, and Chen Yi, please follow me.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord,�� they answered as they nodded their heads and received their orders. They naturally knew where Ye Futian was leading them.


    They would leave the rebuilding of the Heavenly Mandate Realm to Gu Dongliu and the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Palace. As for them, they naturally had a score to settle with the other forces from the war.


    First were the six major Ancient God Clans. They needed to sever the connection between the six major Ancient God Clans and the Original Realm and deprive them of everything they had here.


    ��Palace Lord, be careful,�� Lord Chen cautioned Ye Futian. No one knew how powerful Ye Futian was now. After sealing himself away for 28 years, followed by concocting pills for another three years, Ye Futian��s cultivation was a mystery. He was still a Level Nine Renhuang, yet he could concoct Two-tribulation Sub-divine elixirs.


    However, the enemies Ye Futian needed to face were the Ancient God Clans. The Ancient God Clans also had a passageway to the Original Realm. They could not predict what level of opponent they would encounter. Lord Chen was naturally somewhat worried.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian with a nod. He then said, ��Let��s head out.��


    As he said this, Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, Blind Tie, Chen Yi, Emperor Xi, and Yang Wuqi headed up into the sky. Their group of six would be heading deep into the Original Realm to the continents that had been established.


    Six beams of flowing light instantly vanished before the eyes of the crowd. All the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm were looking up at the sky. Astonishment welled up inside of them. Ye Futian had just returned, but he was actually leaving again immediately.


    From their conversation, it seemed as though he was heading out into the starry sky to restore order to the Original Realm and eliminate powerful enemies.


    ��God Ye!�� a youth mumbled.


    Then, more and more voices could be heard reverberating throughout the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Ye Futian was merely stopping by the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. His expedition would lead him to the vast starry sky!

 Chapter 2584 - Revenge

    The various major forces of the Divine Prefecture descended upon the Original Realm several decades ago. Starting from the Nine Realms, they began expanding outward. All of them already possessed their own territory.


    As the strongest forces of the Divine Prefecture, the Ancient God Clans had naturally done the same.


    As one of the most powerful Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture, Tianyan City naturally did the same. They had established a huge territory in the Original Realm.


    This region was called the Minor Tianyan Segmentum by Tianyan City.


    It went without saying that, as the top Armory Zone of the Divine Prefecture, Tianyan City was extremely exceptional in some aspects. This Minor Tianyan Segmentum once floated deep in the Original Realm. It was surrounded by chaotic currents with extremely destructive power.


    However, the cultivators of Tianyan City discovered that there were starry mineral deposits in this segmentum. Further within this region, hidden within the chaotic currents, they found a relic. With the terrifying power of Tianyan City, they walled off the area and immediately conquered and restructured it, forming the current Minor Tianyan Segmentum.


    For the past few decades, Tianyan City had spent an extremely large amount of resources to restructure the Minor Tianyan Segmentum. They made this once desolate land into a prosperous region.


    In order to prevent the Minor Tianyan Segmentum from being infiltrated by outside forces, Tianyan City had set up a powerful matrix outside of the Minor Tianyan Segmentum that isolated the space from the outside world. Only the core cultivators of Tianyan City could open this matrix and come and go freely.


    Besides that, there were countless cultivators on the main planet, Tianyan Planet, of the Minor Tianyan Segmentum. They were all cultivators who had migrated over from Tianyan City. Most of them were craftsmen. Some were even proficient in forging.


    Over the past few decades, they had already transformed Tianyan Planet into a city of gold. Golden divine light enveloped the entire Tianyan Planet. Of course, the surface area of the planet was not very big. It was even smaller than a small city of the Divine Prefecture.


    However, there were also a few ancient stars around that contained mineral deposits. These deposits had formed naturally and could replenish themselves infinitely. Hence, the members of Tianyan City firmly controlled this area and mined these deposits. They used the minerals they mined in the construction of Tianyan Planet as well as transported them to Tianyan City via the spatial passageway.


    Tianyan City placed great importance in the Minor Tianyan Segmentum. These mineral deposits were rare forging materials and were extremely precious. While other forces were busy fighting over the inheritances of ancient Great Emperors, Tianyan City had their eyes fixed on this place.


    Right now, many cultivators were busy on Tianyan Planet.


    At the same time, outside of the Minor Tianyan Segmentum, a group of figures appeared. The leader was Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian and his group looked ahead. They could faintly see a light screen. A gigantic matrix enveloped the entire Minor Tianyan Segmentum, hiding it from the eyes of outsiders. The segmentum was hidden within the matrix. On top of that, the surrounding currents were turbulent. Hence, the segmentum was difficult to locate.


    ��It has been an arduous journey getting to this point!�� Emperor Xi exclaimed. It took them quite some time to locate this place, even with the hints from West Imperial Palace. Without the hints, it would have been even more difficult for them to reach here.


    Tianyan City did a good job in hiding this segmentum. The deeper they hid it, the more it showed that they placed great importance on this segmentum. The Tianyan City Lord Office was ambitious to claim this area as their own. They wanted to have absolute control over it and did not want others to set foot on it.


    However, this segmentum would belong to Ye Futian and his group from now on.


    ��The matrix is powerful. Let me break through it,�� Blind Tie offered. Then, he took a step forward, and immediately, a gigantic phantasm of a god appeared in the sky. It wielded a divine hammer and looked imposing.


    The phantasm of the god slammed the divine hammer downwards and hit the light screen. The matrix shook violently as cracks appeared on it. However, it was not destroyed.


    Blind Tie did not cease attacking. The god-like figure once again slammed its hammer down.


    When Blind Tie delivered the first blow, the entire Tianyan Planet shook for a moment. This caused everyone on the planet to look at the sky as their hearts raced.


    What happened? someone wondered.


    It seemed like somebody was attacking the defense matrix of the Minor Tianyan Segmentum from outside.


    Rumble. Yet another loud sound thundered. Everyone felt their hearts tremble.


    Someone was invading the Minor Tianyan Segmentum! Clearly, they realized what was happening. Figures rose to the sky one by one. A terrifying aura was unleashed from a palace on Tianyan Planet. It was an aura unique to a Tribulation Plane cultivator.


    The cultivator strode forward as he looked at the sky. Yet another intense rumbling sound could be heard. The matrix was shattered into pieces. A few silhouettes appeared in high heavens.


    The spiritual soul of the Tribulation Plane cultivator on Tianyan Planet swept out. His will covered the vast space in an instant and headed upwards.


    Once he stepped forward, his figure appeared above Tianyan Planet. He waved his hand, and a terrifying aura was immediately unleashed. Golden divine light illuminated the vast space. In the sky, a pattern appeared. It was akin to a matrix and could smelt all existences.


    This was the Minor Heaven Tempering Enumeration. In the past, Tianyan the Great invented the Heaven Tempering Divine Method and created an imperial arm called Heaven Tempering Enumeration. His descendants in Tianyan City imitated his creation and made this Minor Heaven Tempering Enumeration. It was a Two-tribulation Sub-divine Arm with appalling might.


    However, as the Minor Heaven Tempering Enumeration loomed over the space, a figure directly disregarded the long distance and appeared on the ground of Tianyan Planet. He went straight to the core region of the planet. There, a beam of spatial divine light pierced through the heavens and connected the planet with another place.


    This was the passageway that connected Tianyan Planet to Tianyan City.


    Ye Futian cast a glance at the passageway. Immediately, the space twisted and collapsed. The passageway distorted as a terrifying spatial storm was stirred up. Ye Futian waved his hand, and the passageway was severed right away.


    His first step was to cut off the connection between Tianyan City and this place.


    The cultivator, who was in midair, turned around quickly. His facial expression turned extremely ugly when he saw that the passageway had been destroyed. He glared at the silhouette with white robes and white hair as he roared, ��Ye Futian!��


    How could he possibly not recognize Ye Futian? In the Divine Prefecture, only very few people were unaware of his existence.


    He turned around and looked at the sky. Five cultivators were standing there. Without exception, all of them were Tribulation Plane cultivators like himself.


    His face turned pale. How could this lineup be so powerful?


    Was the Ziwei Segmentum already capable enough to come up with such a frightening lineup?


    Rumble. The Minor Heaven Tempering Enumeration expanded and blocked off the sun. It enveloped the vast space, shielding Tianyan Planet within it. The divine light of Heaven Tempering poured down on the five cultivators. At the same time, the cultivator of Tianyan Planet charged towards the high heavens as divine light surged from his body into the Minor Heaven Tempering Enumeration.


    A menacing swirl appeared in the sky, intending to swallow everything around it.


    Rumble.


    ��No!�� Cries of agony could be heard.


    The might of Minor Heaven Tempering Enumeration was too domineering. Many cultivators on Tianyan Planet could not withstand its power and melted right away. They screamed as they died. This technique would actually smelt even the allies of the user.


    Buzz. Ye Futian appeared directly beneath the Minor Heaven Tempering Enumeration. Destructive swirling storm and light of catastrophe wrapped around his body, intending to smelt him. However, Ye Futian��s flesh was indestructible and remained unaffected.


    This caused the facial expression of the Tianyan City Tribulation Plane cultivator to turn even uglier. He was in despair. Ye Futian was even more terrifying than the five Tribulation Plane cultivators.


    He had no hope to win at all in this battle. Moreover, the passageway to Tianyan City had been ruined. He had no means to call for reinforcements. Only death awaited him.


    ��


    In the Tianyan City Lord Office of the Divine Prefecture, figures rose to the sky one by one.


    The entire City Lord Office had been thrown into chaos. At a core region of the City Lord Office, a spatial frenzy storm rampaged. The spatial passageway leading to the Original Realm had been destroyed, causing time and space to warp and go berserk.


    Rumble. A shocking aura swept across the sky and loomed over the City Lord Office. It even covered the entire Tianyan City.


    The Lord of Tianyan City floated up into the sky above the City Lord Office. All the cultivators had their gazes fixed on him as their hearts quavered. They were aware that their stronghold in the Original Realm had been attacked.


    However, who was the invader?


    ��City Lord, what has happened?�� a cultivator in the City Lord Office asked quizzically. They had yet to fully comprehend what was going on.


    ��Wang Yu has fallen,�� announced the Lord of Tianyan City. His words put the cultivators in great dismay.


    Wang Yu was the younger sibling of the Lord of Tianyan City. He had high standing and powerful cultivation. He was assigned to go to the Original Realm and hold the fort on Tianyan Planet while contributing mineral deposits to Tianyan City. Wang Yu��s position and ability were indisputable.


    However, the Lord of Tianyan City had just declared that this younger sibling of his had fallen.


    Wang Yu had fallen in the Original Realm. He was murdered.


    ��Who did it?�� someone asked. Who dared to act so presumptuously?


    Did someone from the Dark World or the Empty Divine Realm do it?


    ��He was killed by Ye Futian from the Ziwei Segmentum!�� said the Lord of Tianyan City. His tone was as cold as ice, and his murderous intent filled the sky.


    This familiar name caused the City Lord Office of Tianyan City to fall into a short period of silence.


    It was Ye Futian from the Ziwei Segmentum!

 Chapter 2585 - Kill Order

    In the Divine Prefecture, a storm that involved the six major Ancient God Clans erupted.


    Ye Futian led five Tribulation Plane cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum and they consecutively invaded the bases of the six major Ancient God Clans in the Original Realm. Ye Futian and his group plundered the possessions of the Ancient God Clans in the Original Realm and slaughtered the cultivators who held the forts.


    They were domineering and ruthless.


    By the time this news became known to the masses, the bases of the sixth major Ancient God Clans had been destroyed. Only later did this news spread across the Divine Prefecture and cause an uproar among the cultivators.


    While all the cultivators were in shock, a question surfaced in their minds. Why was it that only after the bases of the six major Ancient God Clans of the Original Realm were destroyed did news of this happening slowly spread? The news did not spread immediately; instead, it was delayed by a few days.


    It was only after the fact that the Divine Prefecture suddenly realized that all six major Ancient God Clans had been attacked.


    Something suspicious was happening behind the scenes.


    The six major Ancient God Clans would certainly be able to communicate between themselves and send messages to each other. After the first Ancient God Clan in Tianyan City was attacked, they could have immediately informed the other Ancient God Clans as well as the forces of the Divine Prefecture. However, they had not done so.


    Hence, the other Ancient God Clans were also unprepared and were immediately ambushed and destroyed. Their connections between the Divine Prefecture and the Original Realm were severed and out of reach for them now.


    Otherwise, if the armies of the Ancient God Clans were to retaliate, Ye Futian��s group would not have dared to act recklessly. They would have invited destruction upon themselves by attacking the Ancient God Clans.


    However, all of this had not transpired. Ye Futian had very smoothly destroyed the bases of the six major Ancient God Clans. All of the Ancient God Clans suffered heavy losses.


    The Ancient God Clans all had their own agendas. Once their base in the Original Realm was destroyed, they hoped that the other Ancient God Clans would suffer the same fate as them. When that happened, the various forces would be antagonistic towards Ye Futian.


    In the Tianyan City Lord Office in the Divine Prefecture, before a golden throne in a palace, there were many cultivators. Wang Xiao was also there. All those present were core members of the Wang family.


    ��How did it go?�� asked the Lord of Tianyan City.


    A person down below said, ��The news has already spread, and the Divine Prefecture already knows. Of the six major Ancient God Clans who participated in the siege of the Ziwei Segmentum back then, none of them were spared.��


    ��Hmm,�� responded the Lord of Tianyan City as he nodded slightly. It was as he expected. When he received word that the Minor Tianyan Segmentum had been attacked, he was very surprised. His younger brother had also been killed. One could imagine the fury he felt inside.


    However, after he calmed down, the Lord of Tianyan City did not spread this news. He instead kept it under wraps. After Ye Futian destroyed the imperial arms seal and destroyed the imperial arms, his cultivation might have become even stronger than before, making him even more dangerous.


    Ye Futian had to die!


    He could not just rely on Tianyan City to kill Ye Futian. Other forces had to play their role too. Hence, he had to reel in the other Ancient God Clans.


    The deeper the hatred the other Ancient God Clans felt and the greater the losses they suffered, the greater effort they would commit to killing Ye Futian


    ��Won��t we offend the other Ancient God Clans by doing so?�� asked a cultivator. He was somewhat worried as they were the first to be attacked.


    ��Those who were attacked after us also did not inform the other forces,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City nonchalantly. ��In the battle back then, we went in the hardest and also suffered the greatest losses. How did they kick us when we were down? They actually claimed that we had not gone all out. They wished that the members of our Tianyan City had fought to the death and perished along with the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    Back then, the various forces had hoped that Wang Xiao would take down the Ziwei Segmentum at all costs.


    ��Our Tianyan City lost an imperial arm and was then attacked. How could we just let the other forces remain safe and sound?�� he continued.


    His tone was indifferent, seemingly containing resentment.


    ��Wouldn��t we miss the opportunity to kill Ye Futian?�� asked an elder. He was an elder of the same generation as the Lord of Tianyan City. Otherwise, he would not have dared to question the latter now.


    ��We won��t,�� answered the Lord of Tianyan City, not minding the questioning. ��More than 30 years have passed. Ye Futian wouldn��t come seeking his death so easily. He has cultivated the Buddhist superpower Celerity. It won��t be easy to kill him. If we had informed the other forces and set up an ambush, he might not have attacked the other bases.��


    ��That is true. With Ye Futian having cultivated Celerity, taking him down will be very difficult unless he barges into one of the core regions of the Ancient God Clans,�� the elder said as he nodded. ��However, what should we do next?��


    ��We wait,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City. ��We do not need to do anything. Back then, we took the lead to attack the Ziwei Segmentum while the other forces watched from the sidelines. Now, it��s their turn to take the initiative.��


    He had been brooding over previous events.


    He seemed to have forgotten that Tianyan City had organized the Armorer Competition and shocked the Divine Prefecture. He had allowed Wang Xiao to bear imperial arms and head to the Ziwei Segmentum to kill Ye Futian. He had done so because he wanted Wang Xiao��s name to be known all over the Divine Prefecture and for him to become The Unrivaled.


    However, things didn��t go as planned, and it did not end well. His resentment over the outcome back then made him say these words today.


    ��Will the other forces take action?�� someone asked skeptically.


    ��It does not matter. This time, if no one makes a move, neither will we,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City. ��We only need to wait.��


    As he said this, his will suddenly shifted. With a wave of his hand, an illusory image appeared before him. It was the image of a figure.


    ��Someone��s here,�� the Lord said. The cultivators of Tianyan City narrowed their eyes when they saw the scene. From the looks of it, other Ancient God Clans had gotten impatient and had come to meet them.


    ��Lord Hua,�� greeted the Lord of Tianyan City. It turned out that the person who arrived was the Lord of the Haotian Clan. The cultivators of Tianyan City heard rumors that the Haotian Clan had suffered severe losses this time. Their loss was even greater than that of Tianyan City.


    The Haotian Clan was most probably enraged by this incident.


    ��City Lord, what are your thoughts on the current situation in the Original Realm?�� asked the Lord of Haotian Clan. He appeared calm and did not seem out of the ordinary.


    The Lord of Tianyan City answered coldly, ��Ye Futian went on a massacre in the Original Realm and wishes to occupy the realm by driving out the forces of the Divine Prefecture. He is cruel and ambitious.�� It seemed that he loathed Ye Futian. In his words, Ye Futian was an evil villain who wanted to occupy the Original Realm by any means necessary.


    ��You and I are of the same mind,�� replied the Lord of Haotian Clan.


    ��Clan Lord, what are your thoughts on this matter?�� asked the Lord of Tianyan City. He had speculated that the person who would act first would be the Lord of Haotian Clan. It was as he had expected.


    After Ye Futian��s attack, aside from the foothold of the Haotian Clan in the Original Realm being destroyed and them suffering heavy losses, they also lost an extremely crucial figure. He was a descendant of the Haotian Clan and one whom the Lord of Haotian Clan had valued highly. The former was born from one of his concubines in his later years. The Lord had high hopes in this youngest child of his, hence he had allowed him to come to train in the Original Realm.


    This youngest child had exceptional talent and ability. Yet, he was killed in the Original Realm. He had perished when Ye Futian and his group attacked their base.


    This blood debt had to be repaid with Ye Futian��s death.


    An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth!


    The Lord of Haotian Clan coldly declared, ��I am inviting all the forces in the Divine Prefecture, including you, the other Ancient God Clans and top forces, to issue a Kill Order to hunt down all the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum. What do you think?�� The murderous intent in his speech filled the sky!

 Chapter 2586 - Contempt

    ��A kill order!��


    When the cultivators in Tianyan City heard these words, they realized just how strong the murderous intent from the clan lord of Haotian Clan was. It seemed that the death of his youngest son had a tremendous effect on him.


    Ever since Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture, the Divine Prefecture was operating according to its own rules and order.


    A massacre on a grand scale would be inhumane and against all reasons of logic.


    But now, the Haotian Clan��as part of the Ancient God Clan��wanted to issue a kill order against the entire Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��Specifically, how do you want to put this in motion?�� the City Lord of Tianyan asked. He had kept his silence until now because he was waiting for the other forces to act first. Now that the clan lord of Haotian Clan took the initiative to come to him, seeking an alliance in taking down Ye Futian, he was naturally more than agreeable.


    ��Ye Futian led the entire Ziwei Segmentum to attack the principalities in the Divine Prefecture simultaneously. I found out that he has already dispatched cultivators into the former Heavenly Mandate Realm, intending to regain control of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and even the entire Original Realm. The man��s ambition knows no end.�� The clan lord of Haotian Clan continued coldly, ��Such an evil force should not exist in the world and ought to be rooted out.��


    ��He wants to push the Divine Prefecture to the side, then we will summon all the forces in the Divine Prefecture to slaughter Ziwei in return.�� The clan lord of Haotian Clan continued, ��I, and all of you, will each provide our strongest support to execute the killing order. We will summon the cultivators from all sides in the Divine Prefecture to go to the Original Realm, hunt down, and terminate the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum. Every one of them who comes out will be killed. He wants to occupy the land of the Original Realm. Let us promise that the land of the Original Realm will no longer have a place for Ziwei Segmentum.��


    This proposition of massacre did not just involve themselves, but also required the participation of all the forces in the entire Divine Prefecture. He meant to make Ye Futian and Ziwei Segmentum the enemies of the world.


    Admittedly, this plan hatched by the clan lord of Haotian Clan was incredibly ruthless. He was mobilizing countless cultivators in the Divine Prefecture to launch a massacre against the Ziwei Segmentum through the kill order.


    Although they could not get inside the Ziwei Segmentum, each person that came out of the Segmentum would be killed. The cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum were dispersed in many different territories, such as the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path or at their camps within the Original Realm. They could all be killed and slaughtered in those places.


    ��If you want to execute the kill order and put the people of the Divine Prefecture at risk, I am afraid it won��t be that easy; you might need to give them some incentives,�� the City Lord of Tianyan replied.


    ��The six Ancient God Clans, in cooperation with some of the top forces in the Divine Prefecture, will give out different levels of rewards to those who carry out the kill order. I believe with the leadership of the Ancient God Clans and the top powers of the Divine Prefecture, the entire land of the Divine Prefecture will be willing to get involved.�� The clan lord of Haotian Clan spoke in an extremely icy voice. From beginning to end, the murderous intent from him had not dissipated one bit.


    ��Very well then,�� the City Lord of Tianyan spat as sharpness flashed across his eyes. Obviously, he was in support of the kill order as issued by the clan lord of Haotian Clan.


    If their plan succeeded, the cultivators of all parties in the Divine Prefecture would be actively executing the kill order. From then on, the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum would no longer dare to move about at will, as each person who came out would have a target on their backs. This would make their foolish dreams of occupying the entire Original Realm a totally impossibility.


    Moreover, the cultivators of Ziwei Segmentum would always live in fear, not knowing who would be the next, or who would be the ones to kill them. As soon as they left Ziwei Segmentum, it was certain that they would be hunted. Even if they stayed within the Ziwei Segmentum, there was no guarantee that they could evade death.


    When the kill order became a reality, it would undoubtedly be another major disaster for the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��What does the clan lord plan to do next?�� the City Lord of Tianyan asked. The kill order was difficult to implement because not everyone would dare to act on it, especially now that Ye Futian was on a roll with great momentum, having destroyed the basecamps of the six Ancient God Clans and unified the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.


    Who would be crazy enough to touch Ye Futian and Ziwei Segmentum?


    ��Haotian Clan will summon the cultivators from all sides of the Divine Prefecture to gather together and announce the kill order officially. Therefore, I will require the cooperation of the City Lord and the others to generate the momentum for this event. Once all the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture receive the kill order to carry it out, there is no need for us to keep tabs on them in the future, I will have others in Divine Prefecture monitor their progress. Ye Futian and the people of the Ziwei Segmentum will be trapped inside Ziwei Segmentum.�� The clan lord of Haotian Clan continued, ��In addition, the call this time is also to find a solution to deal with Ziwei Segmentum once and for all, and how we can sack Ziwei Segmentum and bring Ye Futian to justice.��


    ��Fine.�� The City Lord of Tianyan City nodded and said, ��I will fully cooperate. As long as Haotian Clan let me know when in advance, Tianyan City will be there.��


    ��Mmm.�� The clan lord of Haotian Clan nodded slightly. Then he disappeared immediately, as he went to rally the other forces of the Ancient God Clans.


    ��


    Once the news came out that all six Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture would push forward the killing order together for the sole purpose of destroying Ziwei Segmentum, it caused great shockwaves across the Divine Prefecture in a very short amount of time.


    Ye Futian had boldly led the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum for a coordinated attack on all six Ancient God Clans. That was something so unimaginably arrogant on his part.


    For this, each of the six Ancient God Clans paid a heavy price.


    Therefore, they not only wanted revenge for themselves, they also wanted Ye Futian dead. So, they would implement a blanket kill order to get the entire Divine Prefecture involved in the hunt to eliminate all the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    It was, indeed, something crazy and inconceivable. The six Ancient God Clans were all peak-level principalities, but they now employed a strategy on such a massive scale just for one person. They even went as far as to leverage the power of the entire Divine Prefecture.


    It was very clear to everyone just what a great threat Ye Futian and the Ziwei Segmentum had become.


    For a time, the entire Divine Prefecture was boiling over because of the news. Countless cultivators set off toward the continent where Haotian Clan was located, as if there was yet another feast of terror after the alchemy competition.


    This time, it was to kill, as a way to deal with Ye Futian and the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��


    When Ye Futian received the news, he was in Ziwei Imperial Palace. They were busy moving the resources that they had plundered inside Ziwei Segmentum.


    He got the news from Xi Chiyao first.


    Xi Chiyao was cultivating in the Ziwei Segmentum but kept close touch with the West Imperial Palace. After receiving the news, West Imperial Palace immediately informed her.


    ��A kill order?��


    In Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian seemed to be a bit contemptuous when he heard Xi Chiyao��s words. It was as if he did not even feel anything about the kill order that had created major shockwaves in the Divine Prefecture.


    Seeing Ye Futian��s indifferent expression, Xi Chiyao asked, ��The Haotian Clan is the one that initiated the kill order. If it is implemented in the Divine Prefecture, it is impossible for Ziwei Imperial Palace to expand into the Original Realm, and it will be limited only inside the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    Didn��t Ye Futian understand that? How could he have such disdain?


    ��Do you know why I first moved in to take down the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and have my senior brother take over, before I started the attack on the six Ancient God Clans?�� Ye Futian looked at Xi Chiyao and asked her pointedly.


    Xi Chiyao was stunned for a moment as she looked at him, and a strange brilliance flashed across her beautiful eyes. Obviously, she understood what was unsaid by Ye Futian.


    ��Do you want them to come to you in the Original Realm?�� Xi Chiyao said.


    ��Of course.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Compared to me going to the Ancient God Clans, it is much better for them to come to the Original Realm, which will make it a lot easier to deal with them.��


    ��But,�� Ye Futian��s eyes swept to the place higher above the sky, ��I don��t care if the Haotian Clan gave out the kill order, but if it is implemented, it will be detrimental to cultivators in the Ziwei Segmentum. It seems that I needed to personally take a trip there!��


    ��You want to get back to the Divine Prefecture again?�� Xi Chiyao stared at Ye Futian in disbelief. After so many years, and long after the Armorer Competition, Ye Futian would once again, step into the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2587 - Tempting Rewards

    Haotian Clan in the Nantian Domain was the absolute dominant force in that region; so indomitable were they that even the Domain Chief��s Mansion could not hold them down.


    For as long as anyone could remember, the Divine Prefecture was nicknamed ��South Vast Heaven.��


    As a principality that belonged to the Ancient God Clans, the Haotian Clan had countless years of history, passing down since the time of Haotian the Great, who was once an awesome ancient emperor of his time. As part of the Ancient God Clans, this meant that it had received the very powerful and indestructible will of the emperor even to this day, passing down from generation to generation.


    The will of Haotian the Great was inside Haotian Clan.


    And now, in Haotian City, where Haotian Clan was located in the Nantian Domain, several cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had gathered here.


    The Haotian Clan had united with the other five Ancient God Clans and invited outstanding cultivators from all over the world to gather here to initiate the kill order; this had caused a great sensation in the Divine Prefecture. For a time, numerous cultivators from the Divine Prefecture rushed here to join in on the action. Some wanted to see just how tempting the kill order was as issued by the alliance of all six Ancient God Clans. They wanted to see for themselves whether it was worth it for them to be used by these forces to assassinate cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    For the kill order to become a reality, there must be sufficient rewards to tempt them. After all, the strength of the Ziwei Segmentum was considerable, and Ye Futian��s potential was terrifying.


    However, since the Haotian Clan had gathered the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, they must have been quite sure about their chances to succeed.


    All of them were curious just how much these six Ancient God Clans were willing to pay for this endeavor.


    Inside Haotian City, every major tavern and inn was booked. In a tavern, many cultivators were discussing the kill order that would be officially issued the next day.


    ��I heard that all the Ancient God Clans have arrived. For the six Ancient God Clans to ally to issue a kill order, this is probably the first time something like this happened since Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture?�� someone commented.


    ��Uh-huh.�� Someone nodded. ��In fact, the battle before was already the ultimate battle that ever took place in the Divine Prefecture��s countless years of history. Even though imperial arms were used, they failed to destroy Ziwei. In Ziwei Segmentum, Ye Futian was its absolute king. He can use the will of Ziwei the Great, and he did just that to destroy the Heaven Tempering Enumeration, the imperial arms from Tianyan City, three years ago.��


    ��No wonder the six Ancient God Clans have allied. This time the six Ancient God Clans have suffered hefty losses. Haotian Clan had obtained a relic of the Great Emperor in the land of the Original Realm, but it was taken away before it was fully excavated. The clan lord��s youngest son was killed in the process, so there was little wonder that Haotian Clan was so angry that they now wished to exterminate the Ziwei Segmentum completely, hence the issuance of the kill order.��


    ��It��s just that the six Ancient God Clans and the top principalities of the Divine Prefecture formed an alliance, and Wang Xiao even took the imperial arms there, but none of them were able to kill Ye Futian or to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum. Now just because they are about to issue a kill order, do they think that these cultivators in the Divine Prefecture will be able to get inside the Ziwei Segmentum? Isn��t it just as futile as before?��


    ��You don��t understand so much, do you? Let��s talk about the first point. The Original Realm is vast and boundless, and the Ziwei Segmentum is located inside the Original Realm. This is their home base, and they have geographical advantages. Now, Ye Futian wants to expand with the Ziwei Segmentum as the center and control the entire Original Realm. Ye Futian himself is an expert of Buddhist superpower, the Buddha��s Celerity, which allows him to come and go without a trace. If he were to become even stronger in the future, the six Ancient God Clans would not have any advantages in the land of the Original Realm, so they want to use all the cultivators in the Divine Prefecture to pressure Ziwei Segmentum.��


    ��The second point��do you think there are no top cultivators in the Divine Prefecture? What��s the year right now on the Divine Prefecture Calendar? It��s more than ten thousand years! How many cultivators had been born during the past ten thousand years, and how many cultivators had been hidden from the world? It is said that in these years of chaos in the Original Realm, there have been many powerful figures that came out of hiding to fight for the relics. I think the Ancient God Clans must understand this more than we do. As long as the temptation was great enough, these extraordinary cultivators will come out of the woodwork and take action.��


    ��Of course, the third point is also extremely crucial. Once the kill order is successfully implemented, the Ziwei Segmentum will truly become public enemy number one of the Divine Prefecture. It is a war between the Divine Prefecture and the Ziwei Segmentum, a battle for the Original Realm. But more forces might get involved in the end, and even the imperial palace might����


    ��I didn��t think so deeply. If the kill order is implemented, with so many cultivators from the Divine Prefecture enticed to hunt and kill the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum, it will no doubt cause a battle between the two realms, pushing the Divine Prefecture and Ziwei Segmentum to an absolute standoff. Moreover, it will make people feel that Ziwei Segmentum represents the Original Realm. Therefore����


    The cultivators discussed and chatted enthusiastically. In this scenario, the situation that was waiting for Ziwei Segmentum would be a very bleak one. Even if it could not be breached for the moment, once the opposition was formed, the Ziwei Segmentum would be destroyed sooner or later, as it was all related to how things stood in general.


    Unless the Divine Prefecture could tolerate the advent of another Great Emperor, using the Ziwei Segmentum as his base and center, ruling the Original Realm from there.


    ��Ye Futian is indeed a bit too brazen,�� someone said. ��He dared to attack the six Ancient God Clans and uprooted all the strongholds of the six Ancient God Clans in the Original Realm. It��s like he wanted to unify the Original Realm and expel the Divine Prefecture. It was too much.��


    ��If you have Ye Futian��s strength, you��ll be more brazen than him,�� someone teased.


    Everyone nodded and agreed this was quite true. Now Ye Futian was like the sun in the sky, with no one in the world who did not know of him. The Armorer Competition in Tianyan City was meant to propel Wang Xiao into fame as the first person under the Great Emperor. Still, it was also an effort stymied by Ye Futian.


    No one knew who else could hold down someone like him.


    ��No one knows how the confrontation between the six Ancient God Clans and the Ziwei Segmentum would end this time,�� someone said.


    ��We can only wait and see.��


    These cultivators were all looking forward to it with heightened anticipations.


    Tomorrow, they could see whether the kill order would be implemented.


    Haotian City, this ancient city that had been through numerous years of challenges and strife, had a glorious past but had never been so lively since the unification of the Divine Prefecture.


    In anticipation of countless people, Haotian City finally ushered in the day when the kill order was officially implemented.


    On this day, golden sunlight sprinkled down from the sky above Haotian City. The weather, like the mood inside the city, was extremely warm and vibrant.


    In the city, countless people whispered as if waiting for something incredible.


    Finally, a sound rang throughout the entire city. It was the sound of a bell that was like a bell from the gods, resounding in the hearts of everyone who heard it. At this moment, on this boundless land, those countless cultivators in Haotian City quieted down as they looked up to the sky above.


    Suddenly, there was an extremely brilliant golden divine light that appeared above the sky. With the convergence of that divine light, a boundless and massive figure appeared above the firmament, as if it was the figure of Haotian.


    ��It��s the clan lord of Haotian Clan!�� Someone recognized the figure and that gigantic face, and it belonged to the most powerful man in Nantian Domain. The clan lord of Haotian Clan appeared directly above the sky, so that the whole city could see him.


    Behind that Haotian-like figure were also many elusive figures standing in the sky like divine generals; they were the top figures from Haotian Clan.


    Then, there was another divine light blooming, and in five other places, figures began to appear one after another, projected onto the firmament. In one of the places, golden light filled the sky, and it was the cultivators from the Vajra Realm.


    In another direction, a majestic figure, incomparable, and terrifying aura, was the City Lord of Tianyan City with the cultivators from Tianyan City trailing behind him.


    Many people looked at the one person next to the City Lord of Tianyan, Wang Xiao, who was praised by the City Lord of Tianyan himself as the ��first man under the Great Emperor.��


    In the other three directions, there were Infinite Mountains, the Ancient God Clan from the Boundless Domain.


    The Ancient God Clan of Jiang from Taishang Domain.


    Yuanshi Palace from Yuanshi domain.


    All these major forces had arrived in person, with many cultivators gathered besides. At this moment, the six Ancient God Clans appeared in the sky above Haotian City at the same time, as if they were the spokesperson of the Vast Heaven.


    In each of the major direction of Haotian City, on top of many buildings, cultivators from all sides were sitting there. They were top forces from the Divine Prefecture, and they were now inside Haotian City.


    At this moment, above the sky, the clan lord of Haotian Clan spoke with gusto. ��Today, we invite the cultivators from all over the Divine Prefecture to come to Haotian City, and I think you know why. The land of the Original Realm has long been ruled by Divine Prefecture as a vassal of the Divine Prefecture. Ye Futian, who, as a cultivator of the Divine Prefecture, abused the benevolence of the Great Emperor, who was merciful enough not to punish him for what he did. After he fortified himself, he wreaked havoc in the land of the Original Realm. Now, he slaughtered at will and on a massive scale. First, he led his hordes of cultivators to commit a massacre in the former Nine Realms, forcibly occupying it. Then, he proceeded to attack the major strongholds of the Divine Prefecture in the Original Realm, killing indiscriminately, and intending to expel everyone from the Original Realm and occupying the Original Realm by force.��


    He spoke with a booming voice that resounded throughout the void. He depicted Ye Futian as some great demon lord of the world, who had done all the wicked deeds and slaughtered indiscriminately.


    The clan lord of Haotian Clan paused for a moment and then continued to speak loudly, ��Therefore, we are here today, in conjunction with other Ancient God Clans, to initiate a kill order to execute the cultivators from Ziwei Segmentum. In Ziwei Segmentum, there is the Starry Cultivation Court, a holy land for cultivation. I promise that anyone who had made a kill of the cultivators of Ziwei Segmentum, regardless of realms, may enter the Starry Cultivation Court to cultivate and bath in the imperial glory as soon as Ziwei is sacked.��


    The heart of those cultivators from Haotian City skipped a beat; this was too easy. Anyone, as long as they had made a kill, no matter who or what realm the person was, would have the opportunity to experience the will of the Great Emperor in the future.


    However, there were still some questions, of course. All these promises had to wait for the actual demise of the Ziwei Segmentum, and everyone knew it was easier said than done. More importantly, Ye Futian was the heir of Ziwei the Great. If Ziwei was sacked, no one knew whether the Great Emperor��s will would still remain.


    ��Furthermore, in the future, when the six Ancient God Clans regained our territories in the Original Realm, all of you can come at any time and cultivate within.��


    ��Those who executed Renhuang will be granted entry to all the relics unconditionally. Even the excavated relics of the Great Emperor would be made available to you in cultivation.��


    ��In addition to all of the offers I just mentioned, those who slaughtered cultivators in the Tribulation Plane may choose to enter any of the six Ancient God Clans to cultivate and experience the will of the Great Emperor for themselves. There will also be rewards of the Sub-divine arms, along with a top cultivation method of your choice as each of the six Ancient God Clans will make one set of their top-notch methods available for your choosing.��


    ��For anyone who killed Ye Futian, the six Ancient God Clan would be made available to you without any restrictions.��


    The clan lord of Haotian Clan spoke loudly, his voice resounding through the void, causing countless cultivators to tremble in their hearts and souls. No matter who it was, these conditions were extremely tempting.


    Even those who were existences in the Tribulation Plane were quite enticed.


    There was a high probability that this kill order would be successfully implemented. Many cultivators would be willing to take the risk and participate in the hunt for the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The Ziwei Segmentum would be in peril once more!

 Chapter 2588 - One Man

    When the reward was suitable, there was no lack of brave men willing to risk their lives, especially when the compensation was so generous that it was a major temptation.


    All anyone had to do was kill a Renhuang in exchange for the opportunity to cultivate imperial-level relics. If it was too difficult to capture the entire Ziwei Segmentum, it should not be as difficult to regain the territories that the six Ancient God Clans had lost in the Original Realm.


    As for the rewards laid out for slaying cultivators of the Tribulation Plane, it was even more enticing. The opportunity to experience the will of the Great Emperor, the gift of the Sub-divine arms, and top cultivation method from the Ancient God Clans. This kind of temptation would entice even those cultivators of the Tribulation Plane from the outside.


    The assassination of Ye Futian�� This was not something that ordinary people could even remotely think of. Even among those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, few dared to entertain that possibility. The West Sea Domain Chief��s Mansion had wanted to kill Ye Futian for a very long time. The same with many top forces in the Divine Prefecture, including the six Ancient God Clans; who among them didn��t want to see Ye Futian dead?


    However, as of now, Ye Futian was still alive and well, and he was getting stronger as they spoke. He had destroyed the imperial arms, broke through the imprisonment, and annihilated the territories of the Ancient God Clans.


    The people of the entire Haotian City couldn��t stop talking about this. Above the sky, the clan lord of Haotian Clan surveyed the crowd, and his phantom, like a god in heaven, was extremely mighty and authoritative. He continued, ��This time, it��s a war between us Divine Prefecture and Ziwei Segmentum. Ye Futian wanted to expel the Divine Prefecture and slaughter the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture so that he could occupy all of the Original Realm by force. In that case, we will let the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum disappear from the world forever. The kill order is issued today, which will be permanently effective. After the new channel is opened, whoever is willing may band together to go to the Original Realm and annihilate Ziwei.��


    The kill order was officially promulgated and implemented on the land of the Divine Prefecture.


    As for the actual number of people who might participate, no one knew.


    And the key was, from this moment forward, no one would know if any cultivators that came to the Original Realm from the Divine Prefecture would be the ones to carry out the kill order and hunt the cultivators in the Ziwei Segmentum. From this moment on, they had to guard against all the cultivators that were from the Divine Prefecture.


    Anyone could deal a fatal blow to them at any time.


    According to the clan lord of the Haotian Clan, from this moment forward, the order would be permanently in effect.


    If the Ziwei Segmentum ever wanted to befriend any other forces in the Divine Prefecture, it must always be on guard.


    This was a bit of a ruthless trick, as it would compel the Ziwei Segmentum to be on the opposing side of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Ye Futian had led the Ziwei Segmentum to slaughter at will. As a member of the Divine Prefecture, we must stand up against this abuse and destroy the Ziwei Segmentum for good, punishing Ye Futian for what he has done.�� At this moment, on top of a tavern, a cultivator announced loudly, his voice sent a shockwave through the void.


    It was a cultivator from Celestial Worthy Mountain, one of the top principalities in the Divine Prefecture. They were part of the group that had participated in the battle to destroy Ziwei Segmentum back then. They had long held a grudge against Ye Futian, and there was no better time than this for them to stand up and accept the kill order and use this opportunity to punish those who cultivated in Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��As the Domain Chief of the West Sea Domain Chief��s Mansion, I, too, have the responsibility to come forward and destroy Ziwei,�� Domain Chief of the West Sea Domain also announced loudly.


    After that, cultivators from all sides expressed their stances successively, accepting the kill order and clearly stating that they would destroy Ziwei and kill Ye Futian. Moreover, these were all peak forces whose position had always been aligned with that of the six Ancient God Clans.


    But as each of these cultivators made clear their intention, Haotian City became a little eerie, as all sides were responding to its call to arms.


    ��Destroy Ziwei, kill Ye Futian.��


    A voice sounded inside Haotian City.


    ��Destroy Ziwei, kill Ye Futian.��


    ������ Those voices were heard one after another, resounding through heavens and earth, echoing in the space, as if the entire Haotian City was responding to the kill order, to destroy Ziwei and to kill Ye Futian!


    This terrifying sound drowned out the whispers of the crowd and everything else. In this vast ancient city, it seemed that only this sound existed with its monstrous, murderous intent.


    Obviously, this was not a spontaneous response from the cultivators within Haotian City. This was someone intentionally driving the crowd to a crescendo and creating a sense of frenzy.


    At this moment, in another direction, many people seemed to be affected by this frenzy. They seemed quite excited, as they were shouting the slogans, destroy Ziwei, and kill Ye Futian.


    The kill order was issued, and Ziwei Segmentum would face the onslaught of countless cultivators from the Divine Prefecture.


    Ziwei ought to be obliterated.


    At this time, a cultivator who was deeply affected by this frenzy, levitated slightly into the air as he continued shouting, ��Destroy Ziwei, kill Ye����


    Before he could finish his words, a light flashed across his throat, almost to the point where it was unimaginable, and it was gone in a flash. He wanted to finish his sentence but found that he could no longer make an audible sound. As if he suddenly realized what had just happened, his eyes were filled with extreme terror. Trembling, he put his hands to his throat, and as he lowered his head to look, he saw that it was covered with his blood.


    ��No���� He managed to let out a fearful low growl, but it was so hoarse that it was drowned out in this lively atmosphere.


    At the same time, in other directions, traces of sword intent passed by, like rays of light. Many were still shouting in excitement as the sword intent passed through their throats directly.


    ��Look there!�� At this moment, someone made a horrific sound somewhere as he looked at a cultivator not far away. He saw the other man was holding his throat with both of his hands, but bright red blood spurted out and was impossible to stop its wild flow. His head began to slant to one side as his throat was cut clean through by the sword intent.


    ��What��s going on!�� The cultivators in that direction suddenly felt cold all over, and their souls shuddered. Soon, the same thing happened in other places in Haotian City, and not only in that one direction anymore.


    ��Be careful. Someone is attacking us,�� warned a roar, effectively suppressed all the excitement inside Haotian City and those noises of jubilations. In an instant, Haotian City was silenced.


    As these cultivators released their divine consciousness, they saw many people clutching their throats and falling in pools of blood.


    Moreover, it did not just appear in one place but was happening in many places all at once, and some places were far apart in the distance. It seemed that many cultivators had launched the attacks at the same time.


    ��Who is it? Show yourselves!�� Above the firmament, a cold admonishment was heard, and the figure that looked like Haotian had his eyes fixed on Haotian City. As his majestic gaze passed over, his terrifying divine consciousness covered the entire city.


    However, no culprit was found, as if no one was there.


    But he did see that in those different directions, some were very far from each other; they were all being subjected to these deadly attacks as men were slaughtered. In this case, how could they not find even one culprit?


    Could it be that all the attackers were experts at concealing their auras?


    All the leaders from the six Ancient God Clans were here in the sky above Haotian City. Haotian Clan had summoned the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture here, but it was right at this moment that someone was hunting and killing them here; how humiliating was that?


    Auras of horror shrouded the entire Haotian City, and the divine consciousness from those cultivators swept over everyone inside. They were checking one by one, and they were sure they would find out who it was.


    ��No need to look further.��


    At this moment, in the void, there was a voice that came. It sounded as if it was close, but it also seemed to come from afar from nothingness. Even divine consciousnesses could not lock onto the source of the sound. As soon as their divine consciousness followed the voice, they found that there was no one at the other end at all.


    But this voice could be heard by everyone in the entire Haotian City.


    ��Ye Futian!�� Wang Xiao��s eyes suddenly sharpened; this was Ye Futian��s voice. His sworn enemy appeared again after more than 30 years, even though this was not how Ye Futian viewed him.


    But for him, Ye Futian was his sworn enemy.


    ��Ye Futian!��


    The people in Haotian City suddenly quieted down. Even just a few moments ago, they were still clamoring to obliterate Ziwei and hunting down Ye Futian. Still, when Ye Futian really appeared in person, they fell into a deep and embarrassing silence.


    On the day when the Haotian Clan issued the kill order, Ye Futian dared to appear in person; how preposterously arrogant and confident was this?


    Did he kill that man just now?


    How did he do that?


    ��Buddha��s Celerity!�� Some cultivators remembered that Ye Futian was an expert at Buddhist superpowers. This meant that Ye Futian could change his position in an instant without any warnings. He could appear in different places to kill almost instantly but gone without a trace because he had already been teleported away with Buddha��s Celerity.


    This was far too preposterous. Just as the six Ancient God Clans jointly issued the kill order, Ye Futian descended in Haotian City to slaughter them instead.


    ��Fifty years ago, I cultivated in the Original Realm and obtained the inheritance of Ziwei the Great as well as several other Great Emperors. The forces of the Divine Prefecture coveted the inheritance and joined forces to invade Heavenly Mandate Academy. Don��t you remember how high-handed was the City Lord of Tianyan? Just because I won��t surrender the divine body, he annihilated Heavenly Mandate Academy in one strike, treating human lives like garbage. Since when did the lives of those cultivators in the Original Realm been valued by the haughty Ancient God Clans?��


    ��Thirty years ago, in the Armorer Competition at Tianyan City, the forces of the Divine Prefecture were called once again to bear imperial arms to destroy Ziwei. Under the attack of the imperial arms, the power of destruction penetrated Ziwei Segmentum, and countless people lost their lives again. At that time, who amongst the Divine Prefecture cared about these lost lives?��


    That voice was icy as it resounded through Haotian City. Every time the voice came, it sounded as if it was from a different position, totally unpredictable.


    ��Now, just because I took my revenge, destroying the strongholds of the six Ancient God Clans in the Original Realm, you dared label me and what I did as the indiscriminate killing of innocents; what a joke. Now, you even issued a kill order.��


    Ye Futian��s voice was dripping with extreme sarcasm.


    When the voice fell, a group of people on top of the tavern noticed a strong sense of threat all of a sudden. Their expression changed drastically as the aura of the Great Path exploded from them.


    However, in the next moment, their bodies froze right where they were, unable to move as if they were constrained by space. In the next moment, the sword will burst forth, and the space was ripped to pieces.


    Blood spattered, and those cultivators were instantly crushed and killed. They were cultivators from a major principality, and some of them were peak Renhuang. They, too, had threatened to kill Ye Futian and destroy Ziwei just moments ago, but in an instant, none of them were left alive.


    ��This����


    In front of everyone, Ye Futian had started a massacre of his own.


    Boom! The six powerful clan lords, including the clan lord of Haotian Clan, released a monstrous coercion at the same time, covering the boundless void that extended to the entire city.


    ��Since you are already here, why bother hiding?�� The clan lord of Haotian said coldly.


    As soon as his voice fell, a figure suddenly appeared in the sky above Haotian City, as if emerging out of thin air. The man was clad in white garments that were whiter than snow. He bore an incredible presence.


    It was Ye Futian.


    ��Your kill order: destroy Ziwei, kill Ye Futian!�� He said this indifferently as his eyes swept across all the cultivators below. He continued, ��I am right here. Whoever wants to destroy Ziwei, and kill me, stand up and come forward!��

 Chapter 2589 - Killing Against Killing

    Haotian City was unusually quiet at this moment. Only Ye Futian��s voice echoed in the sky above the ancient city.


    On this day, the Divine Prefecture gathered here, as the six Ancient God Clans jointly issued a kill order to destroy Ziwei and kill Ye Futian.


    However, at this moment, Ye Futian was standing above Haotian City.


    One man alone to face down the six Ancient God Clans and all the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Renhuang in the Ninth-Realm!�� The City Lord of Tianyan stared at Ye Futian, as did Wang Xiao behind him, his eyes fixed squarely on Ye Futian.


    His cultivation was in the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang and it had not changed. The City Lord of Tianyan was a bit more relieved when he realized this. In the past thirty years, Ye Futian had been trapped by the imperial arms and had not had a breakthrough in his cultivation. If he had stepped into the Tribulation Plane already, it would be that much harder to deal with him.


    However, if Ye Futian dared to come to Haotian City, presumably he had some plan because he was so confident.


    ��Seal the city!�� The City Lord of Tianyan commanded. As soon as his voice fell, a terrifying aura bloomed from him, which soon covered Haotian City. Above the firmament, a divine matrix appeared, and it was the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix.


    Tianyan the Great had used this divine matrix as the foundation in the creation of the Heavenly Tempering Enumeration.


    Not just him alone, but other cultivators were also taking action. The peak giants of all six Ancient God Clans had released their greatest abilities. Above the firmament, the boundless space seemed to be shrouded by a supreme will. The entire sky turned into a gigantic face, like Haotian��s will, overpowering the whole city.


    ��Since you are here, don��t leave,�� the Clan lord of Haotian Clan said coldly. While he was speaking, the face representing Haotian��s will above the sky also spoke at the same time. The entire Haotian City could hear what was said clearly.


    The clan lord of Haotian Clan��s youngest son had perished at the hands of Ye Futian, and that was why he gathered the six Ancient God Clans to issue a joint kill order. But, Ye Futian was bold enough to appear in Haotian City on this very day and start a killing spree of his own.


    How could they allow Ye Futian to leave here alive?


    ��Why would I leave?�� Ye Futian looked at the clan lord of Haotian Clan and replied.


    Above the firmament, a supreme divine might now gathered. Everyone could see that Haotian divine shadow raising his hand and slamming it in the direction where Ye Futian was; it seemed to contain Haotian��s supreme will. At this moment, the cultivators in the entire city felt a tremor from the depths of their souls, and it was difficult for any of them to move.


    As if they were being pressured with no room to breathe.


    The city seemed to be frozen solid.


    ��Authority of heaven!�� Countless people trembled in their hearts; this was the real authority of heaven, Haotian��s will.


    A radiant divine aurora burst from that great handprint, which contained the might of heaven. The moment the handprint disappeared from the firmament, everyone inside Haotian City trembled in their souls, as if it was an apocalyptic attack that they had encountered.


    Boom�� There was a loud noise, and there was no way to see where the handprint fell. The divine light exploded in an instant, and the next moment, a massive handprint left its mark somewhere else in Haotian City, like a huge sinkhole. In that area, all the buildings had crumbled, and the cultivators who once stood there had turned into dust. No one saw how they died before they disappeared forever, as all traces of them were erased; no one knew who they even were.


    All of them��dead!


    The cultivators who were near the deep pit, survived by pure chance, shuddered uncontrollably. Those people were all dead. Many cultivators had gathered inside Haotian City. The blow just now must have slain a lot of cultivators.


    The clan lord of Haotian Clan watched what happened with an extremely terrible look on his face. His eyes fixed forward, as he saw that Ye Futian was still standing where he was, as if he had never moved a muscle.


    Ye Futian did not block the blow, choosing to disappear instead. The authority of heaven did not oppress him and could not lock onto him. After the attack landed, he returned to where he was, his comings and goings were completely untraceable and unpredictable.


    It was precisely because Ye Futian did not block this attack that the attack was allowed to land where it did. Not only did it not kill Ye Futian, it killed those unlucky cultivators inside Haotian City instead.


    ��Because you tried to save yourself that so many cultivators died because of you,�� the clan lord of Haotian Clan said coldly. His voice was full of indifference and rage as if it was Ye Futian who had killed those people.


    However, it was he who killed those men.


    Naturally, the clan lord of Haotian Clan understood that, but what could he do about it now? Today, it was him who invited these people of the Divine Prefecture here so he could make the kill order official. Now, he had killed these cultivators from the Divine Prefecture by mistake, so even if he knew it was his fault, what of it?


    How could he admit it?


    If he were to admit wrongdoing, then how would he account for the doings of the Haotian Clan?


    Because even if everyone was here to witness it, and the fact was right in front of them, he would still say that it was Ye Futian who killed these men.


    The cultivators in Haotian City said nothing when they heard his words, maintaining their dead silence. Ye Futian was a little bit astonished. Looking at the others, he said, ��I can hardly believe there are actually such shameless people in the world like you. Did the Haotian Clan survived these countless years purely non the power of such outrageous shamelessness?��


    Today, all those who were here were for the sole purpose of the kill order. Should he even care about the lives of these people?


    If the clan lord of Haotian Clan didn��t care, why should he?


    The expressions of those giant figures from the six Ancient God Clans did not look very good. Ye Futian showed up here as if he was holding the cultivators of the entire Haotian City hostage. With his Buddha��s Celerity, unless an attack on a massive scale was carried out to destroy this entire area, there was almost no other way Ye Futian could be killed.


    If he choose to attack this way, he would endanger the entire Haotian City.


    In Haotian City, a lot more people were going to die. The intensity of the kind of attack that could kill Ye Futian was not likely to be survivable by people inside Haotian City.


    No one dared to go ahead with a plan like that.


    But, at this moment, a powerful aura of the Great Path appeared in the area surrounding Ye Futian, attempting to superimpose his surroundings with this domain of the Great Path. However, nothing inside the entire Haotian City could escape Ye Futian��s sharp perception. A sarcastic amusement appeared in his eyes as his body disappeared directly from where he was standing.


    In the next moment, he appeared in a place beneath Haotian City. Here, there were cultivators from a major principality in Nantian Domain��a part of the Divine Prefecture. Just now, they had chanted the threats of destroying Ziwei.


    They saw Ye Futian suddenly appeared in front of them, and their expressions changed to one with horror. In the next moment, they felt it was difficult for them to move, as the entire space was absolutely frozen. All around them, the divine splendor of the space was shining, along with an extreme sense of coldness.


    ��Destroy Ziwei, kill Ye Futian!�� Ye Futian spat. In the next moment, the space where all these cultivators were in front of him was shattered. Blood spurted everywhere as this group of cultivators was obliterated by a thought, dead, nothing remaining.


    Everyone around them only felt an unspeakable horror as they paled. After Ye Futian had slaughtered these people, he disappeared again and reappeared somewhere else. It was impossible to lock on his location.


    After the second tribulation, Ye Futian��s Buddha��s Celerity was approaching perfection, and he could do whatever he wished. How could he possibly be locked down by anyone?


    Above the sky, Ye Futian stood there, surveying the crowd. Then he said coldly, ��When I cultivated in the Original Realm, I had not offended anyone. But, disasters came from the heavens nonetheless, as the powers of the Divine Prefecture coveted the divine treasures and tried to assassinate me many times. Now, they even issued a kill order. This being the case, anyone who agreed to the kill order, let me tell you this: no matter where you are, I will end you. If you dare to harm my people in the Ziwei Segmentum for your own gain and are willing to harm the innocent to get it, don��t blame me for my ruthlessness and destroy you and your clan!��


    ��From today on, only killing can stop killing!�� Ye Futian��s icy voice resounded through the space and gave everyone chills.


    Today, Haotian Clan had issued a kill order which was without restrictions, and took effect immediately. People from Ziwei Segmentum would be killed indiscriminately.


    Therefore, he could only employ the most ruthless means in return to ward off these cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. To stop killing by killing, so that no one would be so bold as to risk responding to the kill order.


    Just as Ye Futian��s voice faded, the terrifying spatial divine light descended right away, flooding that space in an instant, tearing up that space into pieces, as if everyone in this space was condemned to die.


    However, Ye Futian��s figure appeared in another area, still beneath Haotian City. With a wave of his hand, he claimed the lives of some more people��another group of cultivators who had clamored to destroy Ziwei not too long ago.


    It seemed that for whoever dared touch him, he would retaliate immediately and unequivocally.


    The person who made a move before was the clan lord of the Ancient God Clan of Jiang. His face had a terrible look as he witnessed this scene. Ye Futian��s keen perception was terrifying beyond imagination. As soon as his will arrived, his attack followed instantly, but Ye Futian had somehow managed to evade it immediately. This kind of precision attacks could not touch him at all to even hurt him, so their only choice was to sequester a large area to trap him within.


    For instance, they had sealed off the entire Haotian City at this moment, and they could launched a destructive attack on the entire Haotian City.


    But who would dare to do this?


    Ye Futian��s figure, once again, appeared in the void, facing them as he said, ��You still won��t unseal Haotian City? Those who threatened to destroy Ziwei and kill me, remember that your faces are all imprinted in my mind. As long as I am inside Haotian City, I will slowly settle these accounts with you. Since you all claimed that I killed indiscriminately and you wanted to punish me for it, your wish is granted. Let��s see how the six Ancient God Clans want to handle this.��


    The cultivators in Haotian City trembled when they heard Ye Futian��s declaration, especially the cultivators who responded to the killing order with much enthusiasm before; they were now sorely afraid.


    Today, Ye Futian would stop killing by killing. In this sealed off ancient city, he would massacre anyone who had threatened to destroy Ziwei and kill Ye Futian.


    And Haotian City was sealed off by the six Ancient God Clans. Ye Futian couldn��t get out, but neither could anyone else. However, within the sealed city, no one was able to do anything to Ye Futian.


    No one could have imagined that this was the situation they were facing. He came alone to face the peak giants of the six Ancient God Clans, as well as countless cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. He had launched a killing spree inside Haotian City, yet no one could stop him.


    The clan lord of Haotian Clan and the other five cultivators looked pretty bad, and they were hesitating. If they were to release the seal, he could escape at any time with Ye Futian��s ability. It would almost be impossible for them to find a similar opportunity to kill Ye Futian.


    Today, Ye Futian came to slaughter them, but it was also the best chance to kill him. Would all six Ancient God Clans relent on the imprisonment and let Ye Futian leave?


    Everyone in Haotian City was watching this!

 Chapter 2590 - Massacre

    If they removed the seal, Ye Futian could leave the place at any time. The six major Ancient God Clans would not be able to keep him around.


    If they refused to remove the seal, the lives of the cultivators who responded to the Kill Order to eradicate Ziwei and hunt Ye Futian would be at the latter��s mercy.


    Ye Futian had put the six major Ancient God Clans in a predicament.


    How would they resolve the situation?


    None of the six major cultivators retracted their domain or removed the seal they placed on Haotian City.


    All of them did not wish to let Ye Futian go.


    The core figures of all six major Ancient God Clans were backing them up now. They would not face any danger. The people who were truly at risk now were the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture and those insignificant figures. How could their lives weigh more than the life of Ye Futian?


    Too many people had gathered here today in Haotian City. These people had all gathered here by Haotian Clan, and the impact of losing them was too great. Otherwise, if it were just any random group of people, they would not need to consider the impact at all. If they could sacrifice the lives of these people in exchange for the death of Ye Futian, they wouldn��t hesitate to make that exchange at all!


    Seeing that the six major Ancient God Clans were unmoved, a look of mockery flashed in Ye Futian��s eyes. These cultivators claimed that they upheld righteousness and accused him of killing the innocent. Their hypocrisy was laughable. He merely needed to put up a little test to reveal their true nature.


    Ye Futian extended his hand, and a silver spear appeared. It was the Sub-divine Arm he won when he was at Thirteenth Flight of Tianyan City. He raised his arm and pointed the spear toward the cultivators of the Haotian Clan. His voice was as cold as ice as he said, ��The Haotian Clan gathered the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture here. The cultivators responded to your call. Yet, is this how you treat them?��


    The Haotian Clan��s refusal to remove the seal meant that they would ignore the lives of the cultivators who responded to their call.


    ��If you still do not remove the seal, I shall begin my massacre,�� threatened Ye Futian as he pointed his spear forward. A menacing and destructive light shone. It was as though he would attack the others the very next second.


    With Ye Futian��s powerful ability, how many people in this ancient city could withstand a blow from him?


    The cultivators needed to have at least undergone a Divine Tribulation of the Great Path to survive a blow from Ye Futian. No one whose cultivation was below the Tribulation Plane could survive his attack. They would surely die.


    Even the cultivators who had undergone the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path were equally at risk.


    To their knowledge, even Wang Xiao��the Unrivaled and the successor of Tianyan City��failed to take a blow from Ye Futian.


    Seeing that the other party had no intention to respond, Ye Futian sneered, and his body disappeared from his spot. He appeared in another area. The crowd only managed to catch a glimpse of a moving light before his spear slashed across the space. Instantly, Spear Will penetrated through all the cultivators in that area. Their bodies were disintegrated, and they died tragically on the spot.


    These cultivators were people who responded to the Kill Order.


    After killing them all, Ye Futian returned to the sky and stood back in his original position. He pointed the long spear in his hand at the six giant-level figures ahead and asked, ��Are you going to remove the seal?��


    The six giant-level figures still did not respond. They seemed to be having a discussion via transmitted thoughts over how they would proceed.


    However, they could not find a solution. They could not remove the seal. If they did so, they would lose this opportunity to kill Ye Futian. However, if they did not remove the seal, the situation in Haotian City would remain unsolved. They could only watch as Ye Futian massacred the people here, and they would not be able to save anyone.


    Ye Futian��s figure disappeared once again and appeared in another location. Same as before, with one swipe of his spear, all the cultivators in an area dropped dead. It was indeed as he had said. He remembered all the cultivators in Haotian City who had claimed to want to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum and kill him.


    Their faces had already been carved into his memory.


    Haotian City was as silent as a tomb as Ye Futian carried out his threat.


    He would stop the killing by killing!


    Today, in Haotian City, the six major Ancient God Clans issued a Kill Order. Ye Futian descended with a spear and began a massacre. Whoever answered the call would be killed!


    ��Various Seniors, please remove the seal and allow us to leave,�� someone cried out loudly from within Haotian City right then, pleading with the six major Ancient God Clan cultivators.


    ��Various Seniors, please remove the seal,�� others cried out.


    Once someone started pleading, others continued to chime in. Very soon, within Haotian City, countless cultivators were begging the six major Ancient God Clans to remove the seal.


    The people who had spoken up were naturally the cultivators who had answered the Kill Order prior.


    They regretted having done so now.


    Not even in their dreams had they imagined that Ye Futian would actually dare to begin a killing spree with just a spear right in front of the six major Ancient God Clans and that no one would be able to stop him.


    Now, their lives were all in danger. If they had known that they would face such a situation, they would not have answered the Kill Order, effectively seeking their own deaths.


    ��In order to escape, you are actually willing to massacre innocent people. Are you holding us hostage with the lives of the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture?�� said the Lord of Haotian Clan as he stared at Ye Futian with a cold look in his eyes. It seemed that he had no intention of removing the seal and letting Ye Futian escape.


    In reality, among the six major Ancient God Clans, the Haotian Clan was facing the greatest pressure. After all, this was their territory, and the Lord of Haotian Clan was the one who had invited all the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture over.


    Aside from that, Haotian City was originally under the rule of their Haotian Clan. Countless industries here were theirs. There were also many powerful cultivators here who belonged to the vassal forces of the Haotian Clan.


    Hence, his Haotian Clan bore the greatest burden here.


    Just now, when they were communicating amongst themselves over transmitted thoughts, the other five Ancient God Clans were unanimously against removing the seal. Even if he wanted to remove the seal, it was pointless. As long as the other five Ancient God Clans did not agree to do so, the result would remain the same.


    He could only twist the facts. He knew how ridiculous his words sounded. However, his tone was extremely stern and serious.


    It was as though all the blame was on Ye Futian. Even if they did not remove the seal to let Ye Futian out and resulted in the other cultivators being killed, all of this was Ye Futian��s fault and had nothing to do with him.


    Now, he could only stick to this claim stubbornly.


    The Lord of Tianyan City coldly smiled inside. Of course, he would not agree to remove the seal. He only wanted Ye Futian to die. As for the lives of the cultivators in Haotian City, how were they his concern?


    His Tianyan City was not the one who invited them over. It was the Haotian Clan!


    Issuing the Kill Order was also the Haotian Clan��s suggestion. This was also why the Lord of Tianyan City had not taken the initiative and had instead waited patiently.


    When Ye Futian heard the Lord of Haotian Clan��s ridiculous words, he did not respond. He disappeared once again. This time, he appeared in yet another location in Haotian City. Frightening flashes shone from his spear continuously as he massacred the people. Each flash appeared sporadically.


    Cultivators perished one after another. No one could withstand a strike from Ye Futian��s spear. Everywhere it passed, the cultivators there were killed instantly and perished in Haotian City.


    As the death count piled up, the six major Ancient God Clans did not do anything. Terror began to spread across Haotian City. The people who answered the call clearly felt that their deaths were approaching.


    None of them knew whether the next person to die would be them.


    Ye Futian stood in midair. Right now, he was like a god of death dressed in white robes. The silver spear that he wielded was dripping with fresh blood. Below where Ye Futian stood were people trembling from head to toe uncontrollably as their eyes were filled with terror.


    Just now, they had also answered the Kill Order.


    Right now, Ye Futian was above them. Did that mean that they would be next?


    If Ye Futian attacked, they would certainly die.


    ��We merely came to join in the fun. We had no intention of answering the Kill Order. Renhuang Ye, please forgive us!�� said the crowd as they lowered their heads. They bowed towards Ye Futian in the sky, wanting to plead for their lives.


    They were afraid.


    Buzz. Ye Futian��s figure disappeared instantly. When he appeared again, many people looked down below. They discovered that those who had begged for their lives had already been killed.


    They had died instantly!


    Ye Futian did not give them any chance of survival at all.


    What use was there in apologizing and admitting their wrongs now? Wouldn��t everyone be able to act presumptuously and recklessly if issues could be resolved so easily?


    Due to benefits, these people were willing to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum and kill Ye Futian. Now that their lives were in danger, they suddenly had no intention of answering the summons?


    Today, he would kill as many cultivators of the Divine Prefecture as he needed to instill terror in everyone��s hearts.


    ��Seniors, are you really going to watch and do nothing?�� questioned someone with bloodshot eyes. Enraged, the crowd glared at the cultivators of the six major Ancient God Clans. The latter witnessed Ye Futian killing the rest of the cultivators, yet they did nothing to help.


    The cultivators of the six major Ancient God Clans saw the others being killed one by one. Up until this point, they were still pondering their next course of action. They could only watch as this massacre unfolded before their eyes.


    More and more voices sounded, urging the six major Ancient God Clans to remove the seal.


    The Lord of Haotian Clan announced coldly, ��The Kill Order has been issued and is in force. Since Ye Futian is here today, the conditions outlined in the Kill Order hold true for anyone who can kill him. The conditions similarly hold true for anyone who can kill the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    He emphasized once again that the Kill Order had officially begun.


    Regardless of what happened today, it would not affect the Kill Order. Of course, this required Ye Futian to be able to leave this place alive first.


    This time, they certainly would not let Ye Futian leave here alive. As long as Ye Futian died, everything would be over.


    ��These are the high and mighty Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture,�� Ye Futian mocked loudly. His voice reverberated across the land. With a shift of his will, tens of thousands of arms immediately appeared behind him. Each hand contained frightening Sword Will.


    A destructive, murderous aura enveloped the entire ancient city!


    What is he planning to do? the various cultivators thought as they watched Ye Futian in astonishment. The ones who answered the call were trembling even more. Was Ye Futian about to begin a frenzied massacre?

 Chapter 2591 - The Fallen Old God

    A Thousand Armed Buddha!


    The various cultivators stared at Ye Futian. Not only did he transform into a Thousand Armed Buddha, but frightening Sword Will could also be sensed emanating from every single one of his arms. The Sword Will loomed over the entire Haotian City.


    A terrifying aura descended as 1000 arms blocked out the sun. Right at the same time when the aura pressed down, 10,000 blades of light materialized in the sky. All the blades of light were carefully calibrated. They ignored the long distance and shot out in different directions precisely.


    These divine blades of light that could negate distance were undoubtedly the Boundless Swords.


    The sound of swords penetrating through flesh could be heard continuously from various locations in Haotian City. Sword Will rampaged while screams of agony filled the sky. In an instant, more than 10,000 people were penetrated by Sword Will and were killed on the spot.


    However, at the same time, astonishing auras were unleashed at a few different locations. These powerful auras each covered an area, blocking off the Sword Will that was imbued with killing intent.


    Every single aura in each area was extremely shocking. The terrifying auras of the Great Path permeated the space, causing the cultivators�� hearts in Haotian City to tremble violently.


    The auras belonged to Tribulation Plane cultivators. A few of them had finally intervened.


    Most of these Tribulation Plane cultivators who stepped up were the heads of the vassal forces of the Haotian Clan.


    One by one, figures dashed towards different parts of the city from the spot where the cultivators of the six major Ancient God Clans were. The cultivators appeared in various spots of the city. Even the six giant-level figures spread out and did not gather together.


    Soon, the six giant-level figures stood guard in six different locations in Haotian City. Four of them stood at the four cardinal directions while two of them guarded the sky and the ground. It seemed like they intended to cut off all the routes which Ye Futian could use to escape.


    In the center, cultivators who had undergone the first stage of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path filled the gap.


    This��


    The crowd in Haotian City was amazed when they saw this scene. Clearly, the cultivators did not move randomly on their own. Their organized movements were the result of the discussion among the six major Ancient God Clans. Before this, they had been communicating through transmitted thoughts. They were certainly discussing how to handle Ye Futian.


    Clearly, they had reached a conclusion. The cultivators of the six major Ancient God Clans joined forces and spread out in different areas of the city. They divided the city into different sections.


    ��Everyone, set up your domains of the Great Path. Make sure to cover the entire city. We will keep him where he is,�� the Lord of the Haotian Clan instructed coldly. Obviously, they did not choose to remove the seal they placed on the city. Instead, they divided the city into sections and planned to carry out a human wave attack. Regardless of where Ye Futian went, he would enter into one of the cultivators�� Great Path domains. Each cultivator only needed to hold him back for a moment. After that, they would come closer and further limit Ye Futian��s mobility. By repeating these two steps several times, the cultivators would eventually be able to push Ye Futian into a tight spot where he could no longer retaliate.


    Their strategy did not guarantee the lives of the other cultivators. However, to kill Ye Futian, they would rather sacrifice a group of cultivators from the Divine Prefecture.


    This time, they would not let Ye Futian escape again.


    The crowd in Haotian City was shocked. Ye Futian alone had actually forced all the Tribulation Plane cultivators from the six major Ancient God Clan to be mobilized to besiege him.


    Even though Ye Futian was only a Level Nine Renhuang, his combat ability was astonishing. He could defeat cultivators who had undergone the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Moreover, he was proficient in the Buddhist superpower Celerity; other cultivators could not capture his movements at all. The giant-level figures of all six major Ancient God Clans were around, but Ye Futian avoided facing them head-on with his swift movements.


    It seemed like the strategy that the Lord of the Haotian Clan employed now was the only technique that could defeat Ye Futian.


    In different directions, terrifying auras were unleashed. Different domains of the Great Path were set up to cover different areas. The cultivators were truly dividing Haotian City up into sections.


    The Lord of the Haotian Clan cast a cold glance at Ye Futian and said, ��Today, you will not leave here even if you have wings.��


    As soon as he said this, a frightening attack blasted down on where Ye Futian was. However, similar to just now, Ye Futian disappeared from his spot without a trace.


    He appeared once again on top of a building in Haotian City.


    ��You have no way to run to,�� a cold voice rang. The domain of the Great Path of a Tribulation Plane cultivator immediately materialized. It transformed into an enclosed space. It was a Dominion.


    ��He��s over there!�� someone said. The Lord of the Haotian Clan and the other five giant-level figures instantly looked towards where Ye Futian appeared. They also expanded their domains of the Great Path towards that area with the intention of trapping Ye Futian there. They would seize every single opportunity to seal Ye Futian in place, cutting off any possible escape route.


    ��No���� right at this moment, in another area, a Tribulation Plane cultivator shouted. The silhouette of Ye Futian also appeared in front of him.


    ��He��s here,�� yet another person said.


    Ye Futian could be seen in all the domains of the Great Path set up by the top figures.


    The hearts of the cultivators raced frenziedly. They knew that only one of the many Ye Futians was real. The others were just his exterior incarnations.


    However, his exterior incarnations were actually so realistic to the point of being able to fool all of them.


    Ye Futian was proficient in hiding his aura. When he retracted his aura, he left no sound nor presence. It was as though he was part of the world. His cultivation could not be sensed at all. It was precisely because of this that his original body and exterior incarnations could not be differentiated by their aura.


    In one location, an exterior incarnation of Ye Futian also appeared before a Tribulation Plane cultivator from Celestial Worthy Mountain, a top force of the Divine Prefecture. The latter��s expression immediately turned very serious. Extremely terrifying aura burst forth from his figure. Within his Great Path domain, divine mountains appeared all around him.


    Ye Futian took out his spear as he glanced at the cultivator. Then, with a flash, his spear stabbed forward. The spear penetrated through space, causing a menacing and destructive light to spark.


    Rumble. Rumble. Rumble. The ancient divine mountains, which were capable of suppressing everything, were erected before Ye Futian. The Tribulation Plane cultivator himself also transformed and became part of the divine mountains. The mountains emitted a blinding light that shot towards Ye Futian. The surroundings became exceptionally heavy.


    Clearly, the cultivator was aware that he was not capable of attacking Ye Futian head-on. Therefore, he chose to remain on the defensive. Unfortunately, the real Ye Futian had appeared in his domain.


    However, it was sufficient as long as he could block Ye Futian��s attack and bind the latter in this spot momentarily.


    Many thoughts flashed past in his mind. However, the long spear still struck down instantly like before. It crashed into the side of the divine mountain. The divine mountain was immediately shattered. The astonishing divine light directly pierced through the mountain.


    Terrifying rumbling sounds could be heard. When the other cultivators noticed the situation over here, they saw the divine mountain, which the top figure of Celestial Worthy Mountain had become, collapse. His spiritual soul appeared and revealed a terrified expression. The next moment, he immediately disintegrated, his spiritual soul dissipating.


    When the leader of Celestial Worthy Mountain saw this scene, his expression instantly turned pale. The cultivator who had perished was the second-in-command of Celestial Worthy Mountain. He had been pierced through by a spear just like that and perished on the battlefield.


    In the sky above, many external incarnations of Ye Futian appeared. With a cold voice, Ye Futian said, ��Do all of you await death so anxiously?��


    The wills of the top cultivators attempted to lock onto Ye Futian��s position, but they could not catch him at all.


    ��Be careful!�� a voice cried out. In another location, a terrifying aura once again burst forth. Another beam of brilliant divine light flashed, and a Tribulation Plane cultivator in Haotian City was killed.


    Could the One Tribulation Plane cultivators actually stop Ye Futian?


    This strategy was completely useless.


    It seemed that they could only stop Ye Futian if the six giant-level figures from the Ancient God Clans joined forces with the other Second Tribulation Plane existences and spread out across Haotian City.


    ��Let us each occupy a part of the city,�� said the Lord of the Haotian Clan. The six giant-level figures prepared first to split up Haotian City and see where Ye Futian would appear.


    One Tribulation Plane cultivators were useless against Ye Futian.


    However, at this moment, the Lord of the Haotian Clan��s expression changed drastically. He slowly turned around to take a look. Behind him was the base of the Haotian Clan.


    Their base was situated on the east side of Haotian City. It was like a heavenly palace that reached up into the heavens. It was a majestic sight to behold.


    Right now, a white-haired figure was standing on top of one of the palaces of the Haotian Clan.


    Ye Futian had infiltrated the base of the Haotian Clan.


    If the six giant-level figures had split up across Haotian City, regardless of where Ye Futian appeared, they might have been able to sacrifice a group of people cruelly.


    However, what if Ye Futian appeared in the base of the Haotian Clan?


    A terrifying aura that emanated from Ye Futian��s body covered the area. All the palaces within this region were enveloped by his aura. Destructive pressure emanated from his figure. All the cultivators within that region felt their bodies tremble. It was as though they were watching a god of death descending.


    Rumble. A towering Divine Tree sprouted and enveloped the vast space. The vines of the Divine Tree spread outwards towards the cultivators within the domain.


    Auras burst forth from some who tried to resist. The Divine Tree immediately released Sword Will and killed them off.


    ��Anyone who dares resist will be killed without mercy!�� said a cold voice that enveloped all the cultivators. This caused the members of the Haotian Clan within the domain to all give up resisting. They allowed the vines of the ancient tree to wrap around them. In an instant, many cultivators were directly restrained by Ye Futian.


    At the same time, within the base of the Haotian Clan, a terrifying aura burst forth. It was as though the will of Haotian, a true Great Emperor, had awakened. It enveloped the entire base. Of course, Ye Futian was also enveloped within it.


    The heavenly might descended, and countless people in Haotian City felt their hearts tremble. This was indeed the will of Haotian.


    Who would have imagined that Ye Futian would dare to infiltrate the Haotian Clan base? They had similarly not anticipated that he would appear in Haotian City today when they issued the Kill Order.


    Ye Futian glanced up and saw an illusory face appear in the sky above. The heavenly might pressed down on his figure. It was the might of a god.


    ��Drop your weapon!�� someone demanded. An unquestionable voice could be heard coming from the sky. It was an order. No one would dare to defy this order from the god-like voice.


    At the same time, this voice was followed by astonishing might. Ye Futian also felt extreme pressure acting on him.


    So, the voice wanted him to drop his weapon?


    Rumble. An even more powerful heavenly might descended. This was the might of a god. The cold voice once again ordered, ��You still won��t kneel and worship when facing a god?��


    ��A god!�� someone exclaimed.


    All cultivators in Haotian City felt their hearts tremble. In the Haotian Clan, was there truly a god?


    Gods still walked the earth!


    Many cultivators from the Haotian Clan bowed and worshipped in the direction of the voice. The heavenly might weighed down on them.


    Ye Futian frowned slightly. He was similarly moved. He also felt the unparalleled heavenly might. It seemed to come from a god.


    Was there a living Great Emperor among the Haotian Clan?


    It was impossible. Even if he existed, he only existed in this world in another form. Otherwise, the Haotian Clan would not have just remained as one of the Ancient God Clans.


    When Ye Futian thought of this, his eyes revealed a rebellious look.


    Rustling sounds could be heard. The Divine Tree extended up into the sky along with the cultivators of the Haotian Clan wrapped in its vines. The heavenly might first pressed down on them.


    ��Worship you?�� mocked Ye Futian as he raised his head. His rebellious eyes looked towards the face in the sky. He coldly replied, ��A fallen old god like you should pay your respects to the new god of the future!��

 Chapter 2592 - Full Retreat

    A mere will wanted him to worship it?


    Ye Futian had encountered many Great Emperors and obtained quite a few of their inheritances.


    The Haotian Clan was his mortal enemy. A Will of the Great Emperor from the camp of his mortal enemy wanted him to bow to it? He couldn��t do so.


    A fallen old god like him should pay his respects to the new god of the future!


    Haotian the Great was a fallen old god. As for the new god, Ye Futian was naturally referring to himself.


    He spoke with such arrogance. Could he reach the Imperial Realm in the future?


    ��A b*stard runs his mouth,�� said the voice.


    In the sky above, the face was extremely authoritative. The might of a Great Emperor descended. It was terrifying. Ye Futian also felt this might, but he guarded his mind and soul. He did not allow himself to be shaken. It was just pressure.


    ��You are merely playing tricks,�� mocked Ye Futian.


    As he said this, there was a rustling sound. The branches of the Divine Tree swayed. Then, several cultivators were immediately killed by the Sword Will unleashed by the branches and leaves of the Divine Tree. Their souls dissipated.


    ��You are already buried in your grave. Why bother coming out? Return to your grave,�� Ye Futian said in a cold tone.


    When they heard Ye Futian��s arrogant words, all the cultivators of the Haotian Clan were furious. Their faces revealed intense murderous looks.


    Ye Futian dared to show Haotian the Great disrespect.


    The figure of the Lord of the Haotian Clan appeared high in the sky. He seemed to become one with the will of Haotian the Great. He represented the will of Haotian. He lowered his head and looked down upon Ye Futian��s figure. His absolute pressure pressed down on Ye Futian, intending to crush the latter under its weight.


    ��Don��t try to act high and mighty before me,�� Ye Futian coldly chided as he cast a glance at the other party. As he said this, the rustling sound could be heard once again. More cultivators from the Haotian Clan perished. They were killed on the spot and their souls dissipated.


    ��Even if you are a god, I will not yield,�� declared Ye Futian.


    He looked towards the Lord of the Haotian Clan and said, ��Since the six major Ancient God Clans do not mind sacrificing the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture in Haotian City, then it wouldn��t matter if some cultivators from the Haotian Clan are sacrificed to kill me, right? I might as well kill them immediately!��


    Ye Futian wanted to see what choice the Haotian Clan would make.


    Would they remove the seal and let him leave? Or would they still attack him full force? The cultivators caught by the vines of the Divine Tree were all core figures of the Haotian Clan. If they attempted to kill Ye Futian by force, these cultivators would perish.


    Right then, next to the Lord of the Haotian Clan, many astonishing auras radiated. They enveloped the space where Ye Futian stood. It was the Lord of Tianyan City and the other cultivators. They had been lying in wait.


    Just as they had previously hoped that Wang Xiao would destroy the Ziwei Segmentum at all cost, now, they naturally also hoped that the Haotian Clan would go all out to kill Ye Futian.


    Since the members who would die with Ye Futian were not their own members, they naturally did not mind.


    They even set up multiple sealed domains to envelop the base of the Haotian Clan and seal off all of Ye Futian��s escape routes. They did not want him to leave here alive.


    ��Everyone, please do not act rashly,�� said the Lord of the Haotian Clan. He naturally understood their intentions as he gave this warning. At the same time, the heavenly might not only pressed down on Ye Futian but also enveloped everyone around, including the five giant-level figures. It was a silent warning for them not to act rashly.


    The eyes of the other five giant-level figures shone, but they did not act recklessly. After all, this was the territory of the Haotian Clan. The will of Haotian the Great had awakened, so they naturally had their reservations.


    If they actually attacked, the other party might turn on them.


    Now, the situation was even more of a dilemma.


    ��Clan Lord.��


    ��Grandfather.��


    ��Great-grandfather!��


    Among the branches of the Divine Tree, the people captured by Ye Futian cried out. Those who could live in the Haotian Clan base were all core members. Many of them were direct descendants of the Clan Lord. Ye Futian captured many of them in one go. Many of his captives were of the main bloodline with the family name Hua. They were the descendants of the Lord of the Haotian Clan.


    They were all begging the Lord of the Haotian Clan to save them.


    ��If I remove the seal, will you let them go?�� asked the Lord of the Haotian Clan. Clearly, faced with the deaths of those of his bloodline, he could not harden his heart. After all, the cultivators of the clan were his descendants. They shared the same bloodline. He was not willing to exchange their lives for Ye Futian��s life.


    ��Clan Lord Hua,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City. His tone was somewhat indifferent. At the very beginning, he was not like this.


    The Lord of the Haotian Clan continued, ��The Kill Order has already been issued. Let��s just assume he never appeared here today. After today, the Haotian Clan will naturally kill him at all costs and destroy the Ziwei Segmentum. For today, everyone, please give me face, and let��s stop here.�� He could act cold and merciless towards cultivators from the outside, but he could not do the same to his own clan. If it were just a few of them, he might have been willing to make the exchange. However, too many of them were in Ye Futian��s grasp.


    The Lord of the Haotian Clan was well aware that it was worth it to sacrifice the cultivators in exchange for Ye Futian��s life. However, he could not bear to sacrifice his own clan members.


    Hence, he finally decided to give in.


    The heavenly might imbued in the will of Haotian dissipated after his speech. The Lord of the Haotian Clan removed his seal and looked at the other five giant-level figures.


    The Lord of Tianyan City and the other giant-level figures looked at him and said, ��The Haotian Clan was the one who gathered the members of the Divine Prefecture here today to discuss the grand plan of killing Ye Futian. Since Clan Lord wants to let Ye Futian go, what more can we say?��


    As he said this, he removed his seal.


    When the other giant-level figures saw this scene, they also followed suit.


    Ye Futian suddenly revealed a smile. At the same time, terrifying killing intent was unleashed from the branches of the Divine Tree. The Haotian Clan was showered in blood while Ye Futian disappeared from his original spot.


    Rumble. A menacing aura directly sealed off the entire Haotian City. The majestic face of Haotian once again appeared in the sky as an overbearing will descended, pressing down on the city. It was the will of Haotian.


    The Lord of the Haotian Clan had his gaze fixed on the ground. In the area where the cultivators of the Haotian Clan were, gore and blood filled the scene. Countless cultivators had been killed on the spot by Ye Futian. He didn��t spare them. Instead, he massacred all of them.


    ��Ye Futian!�� the Lord of the Haotian Clan roared furiously at the sky.


    ��After you agreed to let me go, the will of Haotian still enveloped the Haotian City. Since you didn��t plan to keep your promise, don��t blame me for being ruthless. All of them died because of you.�� A voice sounded from outside the city. It seemed like the will of Haotian had not managed to enclose Ye Futian in it. With a flash, Ye Futian had left the encirclement of the will and had disappeared without a trace.


    Gradually, Ye Futian��s aura dissipated.


    ��He has left!�� someone said.


    Countless cultivators in Haotian City looked up into the sky. The six major Ancient God Clans issued a Kill Order today. Ye Futian had come alone. He then began a massacre, even slaughtering his way into the base of the Haotian Clan. After that, he just left.


    ��Now we��ve done it. The tiger has returned to the mountain,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City nonchalantly. His voice carried a mocking tone.


    People were killed, but Ye Futian had been let go just like that.


    This time, the Haotian Clan suffered immense losses and had been completely humiliated!

 Chapter 2593 - As If In No Mans Land

    Of all the 18 domains in Divine Prefecture, Nantian Domain and Boundless Domain were next to each other, so the distance between the two was considerably less.


    Although there were other massive continents in between the two, which would be impossible for ordinary cultivators to cross in their entire lifetimes, Ye Futian was an exception. With his current cultivation realm coupled with Buddha��s Celerity, it did not take long for him to cross this region.


    Nowadays, in the land of the Divine Prefecture, it was almost impossible to find anyone else who could compare to him in terms of speed.


    Infinite Mountain was known as the divine mountain of Boundless Domain.


    With Infinite Mountain as the center, in a radius of about 100,000 miles, it was full of cities built in the mountain. Many top forces had chosen this mountain as the location of their home base.


    In this area of thousands of miles around Infinite Mountain, it was populated with all the forces affiliated with Infinite Mountain. That entire area was surrounded by an ethereal aura, like some sacred place among celestial mountains.


    At this time, in the outer region of the Infinite Mountain, a man with a head of white hair appeared. His temperament was extraordinary, and he appeared silently without any sound. He was standing in the void, as his attention focused on the divine mountain in front of him.


    Infinite Mountain was said to be the highest mountain in all of Divine Prefecture.


    In the area below, some were surprised when they saw Ye Futian. This man had incredible temperament, but no aura was released from his body. He appeared without any signs or sounds, and no one knew exactly when he had arrived here.


    Naturally, it was not that they thought the man had no cultivation but that his cultivation was unfathomable.


    Who was this man, and why was he going to the Infinite Mountain?


    A young man leaped into the air and put his hands together to make a gesture of salute to Ye Futian.��Sir, may I ask what your purpose for coming to this area of the Infinite Mountain is?��


    ��Who are you?�� Ye Futian asked instead.


    ��Third-generation disciple of Infinite Mountain��Lin Qin,�� the young man replied. Although his tone was unremarkable, there seemed to be a sense of tremendous pride that emanated from deep inside of him. A disciple of the third generation of Infinite Mountain meant that he must have been a core disciple of Infinite Mountain.


    But Ye Futian just looked at him, which caused Lin Qin to frown a bit. Faintly, he had a feeling that Ye Futian was looking at him rather strangely.


    ��Lin Qin, get back here. That is Ye Futian,�� someone in the distance called out. It was a middle-aged man whose face had changed as he shouted out to Lin Qin.


    Lin Qin��s gaze suddenly froze, and his face paled instantly. At Infinite Mountain, he was a third-generation disciple, which meant that he was an outstanding genius talent himself. He was proud by nature, but no matter how outstanding he was, when he heard the name Ye Futian, he understood the weight of it.


    The man in front of him was one of the most sensational figures in all of the Divine Prefecture in the past 100 years. Most recently, in the land of the Divine Prefecture, who had not heard YeFutian��s name? His reputation had surpassed all the genius talents of his time.


    ��What can we do for the elder at Infinite Mountain.�� Lin Qin��s voice was noticeably shaken because he knew who he was facing. How could he not be nervous? He knew very well that the top cultivators of Infinite Mountain had gone to Haotian City to issue the kill order against Ye Futian and the Ziwei Segmentum.


    However, Ye Futian had made his way here.


    ��Not long ago, Infinite Mountain had issued a kill order in conjunction with other Ancient God Clans to target the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum. It was killing without mercy, intending to destroy Ziwei and to kill me. Tell me, what do you think I am here for?��Ye Futian replied as he looked at Lin Qin. However, he didn��t release the aura of the Great Path. His nonchalant words were enough to make Lin Qin tense up as if everything had been suppressed to the extreme.


    Infinite Mountain, in conjunction with other Ancient God Clans, had issued a kill order to slaughter the people of Ziwei Segmentum without mercy; it was meant to terminate any cultivators from Ziwei Segmentum.


    So how would they respond to Ye Futian now that he had appeared in Infinite Mountain?


    ��Once the killing order is in effect, the six Ancient God Clans will no doubt take the lead themselves. To prevent any of you from going over to Ziwei Segmentum and killing my cultivators in Ziwei, the only way was for all of you to be dead?�� Ye Futian said coldly. As soon as his voice fell, a terrifying sword will suddenly surrounded Lin Qin.


    ��No..�� Lin Qin��s face changed when he felt that aura of destruction. In the next moment, his body was pulverized under that sword will. He turned into nothing more than a puff of dust and smoke.


    Ye Futian looked up in the direction of Infinite Mountain and continued walking toward it. Someone was heard shouting out, ��Ye Futian is here. The Infinite Matrix, quick!��


    This voice resounded throughout the void, but as soon as the voice faded away, his body, too, was shattered into nothingness, annihilated under the will of the sword.


    Ye Futian continued forward, and there were many Renhuang cultivators below, but no one dared to do anything. Every one of them stood there, just watching Ye Futian walk by, and no one dared to make a move.


    It was true that Ye Futian was young. But, in the Divine Prefecture, he was already an existence on a mythical scale. He may be the enemy, but the people of Infinite Mountain knew just how terrifying his strength was.


    Sword will shrouded the boundless space, covering the surrounding mountainous area. Those Renhuang who stood in all directions felt that they, too, were enveloped by a sword will. Then, the destructive sword will raged, as screams were heard nonstop. some people perished successively, one after another, under that sword will.


    Wherever he went, all the Renhuangs were slain. Ye Futian did not kill anyone below the realm of Renhuang as they did not pose any threat to the Ziwei Segmentum. He was not a bloodthirsty and cold-blooded killer, but he was no fool either. How could he spare the lives of these Renhuang when the six Ancient God Clans were bent on destroying Ziwei?


    In the land below, many trembled violently, and fear was written all over their faces.


    This was truly a disaster. Wherever Ye Futian passed through, no Renhuang was left alive. It was as if the grim reaper himself had descended.


    In the distance, a terrible divine light lit up within Infinite Mountain that towered into the sky. A horrific aura bloomed as an unparalleled aura suddenly swept out. Above the sky, an overwhelming sword will suddenly appeared, infinite and without end, difficult to quantify.


    This sky full of sword will shrouded above Ye Futian. Above the divine mountain, a figure appeared, suspended in midair, magnificent and exceptional. The aura from his body was astonishing; he was a cultivator in the Tribulation Plane.


    ��It��s the Great Protector!�� someone exclaimed. All the cultivators of Infinite MouIt��s felt a sense of hope. The Great Protector of Infinite Mountain was cultivating here, and he should be able to stop YeFutian��ss advance.


    The Great Protector had made his name since time immemorial and had been a cultivator in the Tribulation Plane for centuries; his strength was unfathomable. It was said that he was now focusing on the second tribulation. He was once a genius talent of the world, and only because he wanted to focus his efforts on the second tribulation that he had been cultivating ceaselessly inside Infinite Mountain. His strength today, more likely than not, was much more powerful than it once was.


    The Great Protector of Infinite Mountain looked very young and handsome with a chiseled visage. He was the Great Protector of Infinite Mountain, and he was also the lead disciple of the Mountain Master himself.


    Above the firmament, the Infinite Sword that sheltered the sky and the sun created an Infinite Sword Domain. A gigantic supreme sword matrix suspended above Ye Futian, as a massive sword aura slew toward him, drowning him in what seemed to be a river of swords. It seemed endless as it submerged this corner of the sky with an extremely horrific momentum.


    Could this blow affect Ye Futian?


    The river of swords fell down, and a skyful of sword will slammed down for the kill. But Ye Futian merely stood there quietly, bathing in the sword rain. The infinite sword will landed on him, but he seemed to have no response as he continued to make his way forward.


    Everyone paled as they beheld this sight. Was his physical body terrifying to this degree?


    The Great Protector of Infinite Mountain frowned as well. His figure flashed and descended high above the sky with extremely dominant force. He held the Infinite Sword Matrix in the sky with a single hand, then pointed down below. Suddenly, countless divine swords fell directly through the space, as it to tear the space apart into countless pieces.


    All the cultivators of Infinite Mountain clenched their fists when they saw the magnitude of this sight. Could Ye Futian possibly withstand such a powerful attack?


    Ye Futian stretched out his hand, holding the silver spear as he turned into a light and disappeared. He rushed straight into the sky and let the spear do what it was meant to do best. Suddenly the falling swords were broken into pieces, and all anyone could see was just a light that sailed across the sky. In the next moment, everything stopped.


    The spear pierced through the head of the Great Protector of Infinite Mountain. When they saw this horrific and tragic sight, everyone at Infinite Mountain was frozen with terror. Some people with weaker cultivation even started wailing painfully��it was the sound of pure desperation.


    The Great Protector of Infinite Mountain was someone of special significance to Infinite Mountain and the object of many people��s adoration and pursuit. However, he was slain by a single blow and died a horrific death. None of those who witnessed his end could accept this cruel reality.


    Was Ye Futian really just a cultivator in the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang?


    Once he pulled out the spear, Ye Futian continued moving forward. Everywhere he passed was filled with overwhelming sword will, and people continued to perish in his path. At this moment, he had turned into a grim reaper as he marched into Infinite Mountain.


    ��Activate the Infinite Matrix!�� A booming voice came from the direction of Infinite Mountain, resounding between heaven and earth.


    Suddenly, divine mountains appeared to fully surround this area. As they revolved around it, they sealed this area in front to block Ye Futian out and protect the Infinite Mountain and the cultivators inside.


    Furthermore, this protective Infinite Matrix was transparent, and everything inside could be seen. When those cultivators saw that Ye Futian was being blocked outside, they were quite relieved. In despair, they seemed to see a ray of hope again, but when they thought of those who died, they felt that desperate sadness again.


    Ye Futian stood outside, watching the surrounding divine mountains. Divine light circulated, and the divine mountains seemed to be extremely heavy, exuding a sense of power that was shocking.


    He raised his arm and pointed the spear forward as it puffed out a terrifying brilliance.


    ��What does he want to do?�� In the Infinite Matrix, all the cultivators could see YeFutian��s movements; did he want to breach the matrix by force?


    They knew something about the strength of the Infinite Matrix. How could a person in the Renhuang Realm possibly breach it?


    They held Ye Futian in their focus and saw Ye Futian was surrounded by divine light, which continued to spread outward. Waves upon waves of divine light swept out like waves of terror, and the divine light that emitted from the spear became ever more terrifying.


    Finally, Ye Futian moved. His body turned into a beam of light as he attacked the matrix.


    The spear fell and hit on a point as a dull thud was heard. With that point as the center, cracks appeared in the matrix, and as those cracks widened, they continued to enlarge and spread.


    Boom�� Accompanied by a loud bang, the matrix collapsed and shattered, as everyone inside was exposed in front of Ye Futian.


    At this moment, the place was completely silent without a sound. Countless eyes fell on Ye Futian, watching that peerless and indomitable figure descending onto the earth as if he was some god in heaven.


    One single strike had broken through the matrix!


    Today, Ye Futian came marching into the Infinite Mountain of the Ancient God Clans in the Divine Prefecture, as if stepping into no man��s land!

 Chapter 2594 - Extermination

    Ye Futian, dressed in all white, was holding a long spear. He stood in front of the divine mountain and surveyed the cultivators below.


    A horrific aura permeated from him, and the divine light swept out. In front of Infinite Mountain, all the cultivators were trembling as they watched this graceful yet terrifying figure before them.


    Buzz! As the spear hovered in the air. Above the firmament, infinite spear shadows appeared. They were boundless and massive, suppressing this space.


    Below, all the cultivators had released their auras of the Great Path to the maximum.


    ��Kill!�� An icy voice came from Ye Futian. In the instant the spear fell, countless shadows of the spear pierced through heaven and earth. They fell on the ground beneath. For a time, that powerful destruction sheared those ancient peaks to the ground. As all the structures collapsed and were pulverized, those cultivators perished in despair.


    With one blow, every one of the cultivators below was wiped out, an unknown number of people had perished.


    At this time, in the direction of Infinite Mountain, the divine mountain was shining brightly. All those figures levitated into the air, suspended in the areas surrounding Infinite Mountain. Among them, there were even a few detectable traces of cultivators in the Tribulation Plane. Someone with a head of white hair came out from the divine mountain. The man was extremely advanced in age. Clearly, he was some ancient elder who did not make it a habit of getting out of the mountains lightly.


    But now, Infinite Mountain was invaded by Ye Futian, who was alone with a spear in hand, and all of them had had a rude awakening.


    ��You seek your death.�� A cold voice came from divine mountain. Suddenly, terrifying divine lights radiated, and another terrifying sword matrix appeared in the sky above Ye Futian.


    There was a terrifying radiance in the sword matrix as if countless divine mountains had descended where Ye Futian was. They had sealed off the surrounding area, and in the middle of the sword matrix, supreme force seemed to be gestating into the Infinite Divine Swords.


    These top figures flickered and appeared in different positions of the sword matrix as they jointly manned the Infinite Sword Matrix together.


    ��Kill!�� Their eyes were full of strong murderous intent. Suddenly, a massive and gigantic divine sword capable of piercing the world came down with a slam toward Ye Futian.


    Then came the second sword, followed by the third. These divine swords were gigantic and massive, born from the divine matrix, capable of piercing through this world. Inside this divine matrix, no matter where Ye Futian was, he could not avoid bearing the brunt of its destructive attacks.


    Ye Futian felt this supreme attacking power, and an absolute field appeared around him. He was surrounded by the starry divine light; it was as if the stars in the heavens were moving according to their rhythm. When the divine swords slammed down, they collided with the stars in heaven and produced a violent and loud bang.


    He raised his head to look at the divine matrix. The six Ancient God Clans had issued a killing order, and the two sides were now locked in a deadly vendetta that would not stop until either one of them was annihilated; this was the reason for his coming. More importantly, he wanted to instill fear in the hearts of all the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture so that no one would dare to ever accept the killing order. Whatever he had done in Haotian City was not enough.


    However, he, too, thought that he could destroy the Ancient God Clans, and at the very least, he could test the true might of the Ancient God Clans.


    In Haotian City, he could retreat successfully while besieged and suppressed by the six Ancient God Clans because of Buddha��s Celerity. Otherwise, he would not take the risk to venture deep inside Haotian Clan.


    But today, it was an opportunity to test Infinite Mountain and its true strength.


    He was holding the spear as his body soared into the sky. Those surrounding stars in the sky had blocked those terrific attacks for him.


    Boom�� The long spear in his hand blasted on the divine matrix, causing cracks to appear on the matrix so that it collapsed and was pulverized. Those cultivators from Infinite Mountain were all knocked back as they let out a muffled groan.


    But at the same time, a terrifying aura came down; it was an infinite and gigantic handprint covering a corner of the sky. It directly slammed down on the spear which Ye Futian had just blasted down.


    With a loud boom, Ye Futian��s body was slammed into the ground. In the area below, a boundless divine seal appeared, covering a massive expanse. If anyone were in the area below, they would probably fell under this gigantic handprint as well. However, those cultivators from before had already been slain by Ye Futian.


    Bang! Ye Futian broke through the ground and reappeared above the sky. He looked at a figure that was sitting cross-legged on top of Infinite Divine Mountain. The white hair on this man was flying frantically as his long robe was also puffed up by the wild wind. His aura was simply terrifying. He was extremely ancient, an old monster-level figure who belonged to the Infinite Mountain.


    ��Cultivator of the Second Tribulation!�� Ye Futian glanced over and saw that it was this old man who had just struck.


    As expected, there were old monsters hidden within the Ancient God Clans, and there were more than one cultivator in the Second Tribulation Plane.


    ��I have been cultivating in retreat for many years, and I do not know what kind of grievances you have with the Infinite Mountain or why you resorted to such ruthless tactics as to slaughter even low-level cultivators,�� the old man said, his eyes closed. His voice echoed like a giant bell, reverberating in the void. In the areas around Infinite Mountain, many cultivators were watching him incredulously; even the majority of Infinite Mountain did not know of his existence.


    ��That, sir, you will have to ask the people of Infinite Mountain,�� Ye Futian replied. As soon as his voice fell, his figure disappeared right away as a series of terrifying and destructive sword matrixes appeared where he was. If Ye Futian were a little careless just now, he would have fallen right into the trap.


    This old guy was plenty sneaky.


    ��No matter what the grudge is about, you have killed so many cultivators here at Infinite Mountain, you leave me no choice but to kill you,�� the old man said coldly. As soon as his voice fell, a supreme coercion erupted from him immediately.


    At this moment, on that divine mountain, an unparalleled divine light suddenly lit up as well.


    It seemed that the man and the divine mountain had become one.


    Boom, boom, boom�� In the vast expanse of land, centered around Infinite Mountain, many divine mountains had appeared. Their projection on the ground below sealed up the vast area. A terrifying power emerged now in this area, pressing down so hard that even the cultivators from Infinite Mountain felt they were about to crawl on the ground.


    They all felt that supreme divine might, and when they looked up at the divine mountain, they all had an extremely pious expression.


    Buzz! A divine light descended and directly penetrated Ye Futian��s body, instantly destroying it and turning it into nothingness.


    The old man suddenly opened his eyes and stared in that direction; his brows furrowed slightly.


    It was not his actual physical form.


    He had been deceived.


    He raised his head and looked outside. Outside the area that was covered by the divine mountains, a figure in white stood there, which shocked the old man to no end. How inconceivably fast speed he was. He had escaped the divine mountains in an instant.


    ��I have disturbed the elder with my visit today. I will visit another time when I have the chance.�� Outside, Ye Futian was heard saying, ��However, the cultivators of Infinite Mountain should be careful when they going out in the future. If they leave this area, they may not be as lucky as they were today.��


    After he finished, his figure disappeared without a trace.


    On top of Infinite Mountain, the white-haired elder sat there, his brows knitted tightly. He said coldly, ��How did we make enemies with such an impossible figure?��


    The brief contact just now made him keenly aware that Ye Futian��s existence was a tremendous disaster for Infinite Mountain. If they could not get rid of him, Infinite Mountain would be in infinite danger!


    The cultivator of Infinite Mountain told him the reason, and the white-haired elder showed a look of worry. If so, things seemed a little more troublesome than he thought.


    After a long while, a group of men descended on the top of the divine mountain. On Infinite Mountain, many people bowed and saluted as they greeted him, ��Mountain Master.��


    The Mountain Master of Infinite Mountain had a coldness in his eyes as he surveyed the grounds below and saw nothing but ruins. He had received the news while still on the road that Ye Futian had come to Infinite Mountain. How brazen of him to come here to commit this slaughter!


    With Buddha��s Celerity, Ye Futian was able to do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted.


    ��Uncle-Master!�� the Mountain Master of Infinite Mountain called out to the white-haired elder. It turned out that this old man was his Uncle-Master, a respected existence of an old monster level, whose seniority far surpassed his.


    The white-haired elder looked at the Mountain Master. ��I just fought with him and wasn��t able to detain him. The moment the power of the divine mountains exploded, he realized it was fast and made his getaway successfully, leaving behind just a decoy that even I couldn��t detect the veracity of.��


    The Mountain Master of Infinite Mountain had a terrible look on his face. Even with the help of the divine mountains, his Uncle-Master had failed to detain the enemy, and Ye Futian had escaped.


    Many cultivators of Infinite Mountain had perished in vain.


    ��Is the grievance so deep? Is there any possibility of reconciliation?�� the white-haired elder asked.


    The Mountain Master of Infinite Mountain shook his head. ��As far as I know, reconciliation is unlikely based on his character. We are now already standing on the opposite side of life and death. It will only end when one of us is destroyed.��


    ��Try to find a way and kill him quickly. He cannot be allowed to live much longer.�� The old man heard his words and said, ��Be careful, this man��s cultivation may be in the Ninth-Realm of Renhuang, but I suspect that his combat effectiveness might be at the level of a cultivation in the Second Tribulation Plane.��


    ��Second Tribulation Plane?�� the Mountain Master of Infinite Mountain asked incredulously. In Haotian City, Ye Futian had only demonstrated the ability to immolate cultivators in the First Tribulation Plane, but he had never fought those in the Second Tribulation Plane because he had always avoided them.


    They had believed that Ye Futian didn��t dare to confront them head-on, and only Buddha��s Celerity was what allowed him to make his getaway.


    But now, his Uncle-Master assessed that Ye Futian might have the combat effectiveness of the Second Tribulation.


    ��Mmm.�� The old man nodded. ��He broke through the Grand Guardian Matrix on the outside, and the Infinite Matrix set up by our cultivators was also breached by him. This kind of combat effectiveness had to be at the level of the Second Tribulation Plane.��


    ��Uncle-Master, is it possible when he only has the cultivation of the peak Renhuang Realm?�� the Mountain Master said with a somber expression.


    ��It is possible for him to camouflage his aura, or perhaps he concealed the fact that he has survived the divine tribulation by special means,�� the white-haired elder said. He also thought of another possibility, but it was just a fleeting thought, so he did not dwell on it. After all, that kind of possibility could be ruled out right away, as it was highly unlikely.


    ��So, could it be true that he really did survive the divine tribulation?�� The Mountain Master of Infinite Mountain looked far into the distance and began to recognize that possibility. If it was really the power of the Second Tribulation Plane that he had, then Ye Futian might have already survived the First Divine Tribulation. By virtue of his own incredible talent, he could exert a combat effectiveness that was much higher than his actual realm.


    However, Ye Futian had not demonstrated his true ability before. Was it to lure them to falsely underestimate his ability?


    It seemed that they had to be very careful from now on.


    In Boundless Domain, besides the divine mountain that was the Infinite Mountain, there was also another principality. It was the Celestial Worthy Mountain, which was also the number two divine mountain in Boundless Domain, and its strength was terrifying as well.


    However, on this day, in the tens of thousands of miles radius within the Celestial Worthy Mountain, many people were in great shock today, as they had rushed to the place where the Celestial Worthy Mountain was and looked in front of them.


    Over there, the divine mountain was cut in half and fell broken right where they were. All the magnificent buildings on the Celestial Worthy Mountain were destroyed and collapsed in heaps. They had been turned into ruins, and the once holy land had been razed into nothing.


    Not long ago, the mountainous area of Celestial Worthy Mountain suffered a disaster. A white-haired cultivator, all by himself with just a spear, had eliminated Celestial Worthy Mountain single-handedly.


    Above the firmament, a powerful aura descended, and several figures descended from the heavens. As they watched the scene in front of them, they could only feel their blood boiling.


    They had gone to Haotian City, not expecting that upon their return, their mountain would be destroyed, and even the Grand Guardian Matrix could not save Celestial Worthy Mountain from destruction.


    ��Ye Futian!�� The Lord of Celestial Worthy Mountain emitted a monstrous, murderous intent, which covered this boundless space. He vowed that he would not stop until Ye Futian was dead for good!


    In Boundless Domain, two major divine mountains were attacked. Infinite Mountain suffered heavy losses with many casualties, and the news of Celestial Worthy Mountain��s total destruction made the entire land of Divine Prefecture tremble!

 Chapter 2595 - The Second Attack

    What happened in Haotian Clan and Infinite Mountain made the entire Divine Prefecture tremble. In the land of the Divine Prefecture, the six Ancient God Clans were forced to such desperation by Ye Futian alone.


    He had gone to the Haotian Clan alone and caused great chaos deep within, slaying many of the cultivators who had responded to the kill order. In addition, he had also slaughtered some of the direct disciples and several cultivators in the Tribulation Plane in Haotian Clan. Then there was Infinite Mountain, which also suffered tragic losses. Their Great Protector was killed by Ye Futian, and there were heavy casualties among its disciples.


    As for Celestial Worthy Mountain, its foundation was not enough to withstand such an overwhelming disaster. It was destroyed almost entirely, with only the few people who went to Haotian City left alive.


    With these bloody testimonies before them, how many others dared to accept the kill order?


    Those who cultivated by themselves without clan affiliation may be interested in giving it a shot without too many concerns, but there was still an inherent danger.


    After the war erupted, the six Ancient God Clans felt a deep uneasiness. Ye Futian was able to threaten the existence of the Ancient God Clans directly. At the very least, Ye Futian��s presence meant that the cultivators of the Ancient God Clans could no longer come and go as they pleased, and they could not venture outside as before. Doing so would be a matter of life or death.


    Afterward, the six Ancient God Clans recalled all their members back to their bases and prepared to defend themselves at a moment��s notice. At the same time, the six Ancient God Clans discussed countermeasures remotely and finally reached an agreement.


    They could no longer allow Ye Futian any opportunities to attack them.


    Upon Ye Futian��s return to Ziwei Segmentum, just as he was walking, he suddenly felt something in his mind, and a treasure mirror appeared in front of him; Xi Chiyao appeared on the other side of the mirror.


    ��You are not back yet?�� Xi Chiyao asked. Right now, Xi Chiyao was at Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��Almost there; I��m already in Ziwei Segmentum,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��I have received news that the six Ancient God Clans are getting ready to reopen the space passage and plan to come to the Original Realm once again. This time, they may very well stay for the long haul by stationing in the periphery to lay siege on Ziwei Segmentum,�� Xi Chiyao said.


    The six Ancient God Clans would finally declare total war on Ye Futian. They realized that as long as Ye Futian was alive, all six Ancient God Clans would never have a day of peace.


    ��I know. I��ll be there soon,�� said Ye Futian. His mind moved as he traversed across the void. Not long after that, Ye Futian appeared in Ziwei Imperial Palace and found Xi Chiyao.


    ��You are finally back.�� Xi Chiyao stepped forward. ��You have done it this time and directly threatened the foundation of the six Ancient God Clans. I��m afraid they won��t let the matter rest so easily this time.��


    ��Even if I didn��t go this time, they would have initiated the kill order regardless, so what difference does it make?�� Ye Futian responded, ��If they want to come, we will be here waiting for them.��


    After that, his figure flickered as he came to the temple inside Ziwei Imperial Palace and called out, ��Everyone, listen up.��


    As soon as his voice fell, several figures emerged right away. It was Murong Yu and the others; they were the key people inside Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��Palace Lord,�� they called out.


    ��Recall all the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Abandon the lands we have previously seized, but have them bring back all useful items,�� Ye Futian ordered directly.


    ��Yes, Palace Lord.�� Everyone nodded and took the order.


    ��Palace Lord, what else do you need us to do?�� Murong Yu asked.


    ��Nothing.�� Ye Futian shook his head, ��The six Ancient God Clans will attack the Ziwei Segmentum for the second time, and I��m sure this time, they still won��t have the results they want. In the future, there may be a third time. I am hoping that when they finally attack the third time, Ziwei Segmentum will be capable of keeping them here forever.��


    ��We will work hard to elevate our cultivation.�� Murong Yu and the others bowed. Again, they had to rely solely just on the Palace Lord. Although they were now in the Tribulation Plane, it was difficult for them to participate in a battle of this caliber.


    The six Ancient God Clans were tremendously powerful. If they were to participate in the battle, there was a great possibility that they would perish.


    ��Go and make the arrangements,�� said Ye Futian, as he proceeded to contact Lord Chen.


    Lord Chen and Ye Futian��s third senior brother, Gu Dongliu, stayed behind in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    When the six Ancient God Clans descended again, they would no doubt try to seize their lost territories and might very well attack Heavenly Mandate. If they couldn��t sack Ziwei Segmentum, it was only natural that they retaliate against the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    They didn��t know who would be dispatched to attack Heavenly Mandate.


    After that, Ziwei Segmentum started all the hustle and bustle, as they recalled all their cultivators. At the same time, the supreme grand matrix of space connected to the Heavenly Mandate Academy was activated to transport the cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Academy back to Ziwei Segmentum.


    In Ziwei Segmentum, there was also a Heavenly Mandate Academy, which corresponded to its counterpart.


    ��Goddess Chiyao, I need a favor,�� Ye Futian said to Xi Chiyao.


    ��Go ahead,�� Xi Chiyao nodded.


    ��Please have the West Imperial Palace spread the words to the Divine Prefecture, and let them know that I am personally issuing this warning to the six Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture. If someone were to destroy other interfaces such as the Heavenly Mandate or the Original Realm and harm those innocent people within, it��s a promise that I will make all the cities of the six Ancient God Clans the cities of the dead,�� Ye Futian said.


    After the previous battle, the six Ancient God Clans in the Divine Prefecture should know that Ye Futian could do just that.


    He may not be able to infiltrate into the interiors of the Ancient God Clans, but the cities occupied by the Ancient God Clans were well within his ability to destroy, and he could make them cities full of the dead. The veracity of his resolve aside, as soon as the words were out, if the six Ancient God Clans had attacked Heavenly Mandate Realm and if Ye Futian was still alive, he believed all the cultivators who resided in those cities would probably get the hell out on their own to avoid impending disaster.


    Based on the previous battle in Haotian City, he believed that he had this kind of power to deter these people.


    ��That��s not a problem,�� Xi Chiyao nodded. Spreading news like this was simple enough and something that could be easily done by West Imperial Palace.


    Especially now, when the land of the Divine Prefecture was still shaken by everything that had happened in Haotian City, coupled with such strong warning from Ye Futian, this news would naturally take over the land of the Divine Prefecture with great sensation.


    Ye Futian did not believe that the six Ancient God Clans would risk public opinion of the world and slaughter those interfaces such as the Heavenly Mandate Realm and the others. The previous kill order had already caused deep distrust in many cultivators who were present at the time. They responded to the kill order, but the six Ancient God Clans did not protect their lives, keeping them inside the city while Ye Futian hunted them down at will.


    Nowadays, it was impossible for the six Ancient God Clans to vent their anger by just killing some innocent people inside of Heavenly Mandate, which would only cause their cities to be retaliated in return, on top of lowering the morale of their people. Unless they could kill Ye Futian in the process, which would be another matter entirely.


    As the Ziwei Imperial Palace began to get busy, so did the six Ancient God Clans. They were now reorganizing the infrastructure of the Ancient God Clans. After recalling their cultivators who were stationed outside, the top figures began to create a passageway.


    Once again, the united forces of all six Ancient God Clans had opened the passageway to the land of the Original Realm. At the same time, the Lord of Celestial Worthy Mountain, as well as several other top forces, had made great sacrifices for the goal of killing Ye Futian. No matter what the cost might be, they had to get rid of Ye Futian.


    As long as Ye Futian was left to exist, their principalities would most likely end up like the Celestial Worthy Mountain, completely annihilated. The standoff at hand would only allow one side to remain.


    The six Ancient God Clans went to the Original Realm again with their troops. The first thing they did was to visit the territories that were once seized in the Original Realm. However, they found to their surprise, that those places were already emptied with no one there. The cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum had all been recalled as well.


    All of them were in a terrible mood. They had been extremely passive in the war between the six Ancient God Clans and the Ziwei Segmentum, yet none of them dared to try to get inside Ziwei Segmentum. There, Ye Futian was its absolute master, and once they got in, it was very possible that they would never be able to come back out alive.


    The truth was that Tianyan City had thought of sending Wang Xiao to the Ziwei Segmentum with the imperial arms, but the City Lord of Tianyan was reluctant to run that risk. Although Wang Xiao was extremely powerful with the imperial arms, if some unforeseen situations were to occur, and Wang Xiao perished in the Ziwei Segmentum, it was not a price that Tianyan City could endure.


    Therefore, Tianyan City would not risk it.


    After all, the land of the Original Realm was still Ye Futian��s old stomping ground, and it was extremely unfavorable for them. If they were to pressure Ziwei Segmentum, the only solution was to prepare for a long and drawn-out blockade to wait out Ziwei Segmentum.


    For the moment, the six Ancient God Clans could not think of a better solution.


    As far as Tianyan City was concerned, there was another scenario, and that was when Wang Xiao broke through his realm. As long as Wang Xiao had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, who else in this world could stop Wang Xiao with the prowess of the imperial arms in hand?


    Even Ye Futian, who relied on the will of Ziwei the Great, would die without question.


    This battle, for the six Ancient God Clans, may be a long and protracted one. They had never been pressed to this kind of desperation!

 Chapter 2596 - Pitiful Wang Xiao

    Outside Ziwei Segmentum, the six Ancient God Clans stopped while they were still far from Ziwei Segmentum. They did not want to get too close.


    Ye Futian controlled the will of Ziwei the Great, and the destructive power that he wielded was incredibly terrifying. They might not be able to bear it if they got too close.


    The six Ancient God Clans had arrived with six great military camps and other top powers of the Divine Prefecture trailing behind, yet, they were not optimistic about this expedition. Ye Futian had directed everyone to stay inside, and there was nothing they could do about Ye Futian.


    ��Wang Xiao.�� The City Lord of Tianyan looked at Wang Xiao next to him and said, ��Try again to see if you can break through the defenses of Ziwei Segmentum.��


    If there was still no way to break down the defense of Ziwei Segmentum this time, they planned to seal off Ziwei Segmentum and camp around the Segmentum temporarily. Then, they will build a grand teleportation matrix to their home base so that they could impose long-term imprisonment on Ziwei Segmentum. This would give them some time to think of other ways to deal with Ye Futian.


    At any rate, they dared not allow Ye Futian to roam around and wreak further havoc outside. Or else, the cultivators of the six Ancient God Clans would forever be in danger.


    The expedition this time was really out of their hands. When they saw what happened at Infinite Mountain and Celestial Worthy Mountain, they felt they had no choice.


    ��Fine,�� Wang Xiao nodded and walked towards the space below. His expression was particularly grim.


    The opponent he would be facing was someone fated to be his mortal enemy, the one who, until this day, he had not been able to overcome.


    As soon as he entered the consciousness of the world, he was already at the pinnacle, hailed as The Unraveled, known across the globe. But above him, there was another man, a hurdle that he had not been able to cross even to this day.


    It was probably still impossible for him to break into Ziwei Segmentum.


    When Wang Xiao arrived above Ziwei Segmentum, he waved his hand, and suddenly a terrifying divine light exploded, and that was when the Sky Tremoring appeared.


    In an instant, a terrifying shockwave radiated outward until it spread to the endless starry sky, blasting down towards Ziwei Segmentum.


    Rumble�� A dull sound came out, and the shockwaves from the Sky Tremoring spread above Ziwei Segmentum, causing a dull sound to reverberate on the surface of the Segmentum. The starry light screen surrounded the entire Segmentum so that even as the shockwaves blasted on the screen, they flowed like waves upon the starry light screen and did not cause the slightest damage to Ziwei Segmentum.


    Obviously, Ye Futian was prepared.


    Wang Xiao looked down, and Ye Futian was already there.


    A god-like figure appeared, as an imperial will swept out. Above the endless starry sky, a gigantic face appeared, like some deity. Wang Xiao raised the Sky Tremoring, and traces of shockwaves came rushing out, madly blasting away at Ziwei Segmentum below.


    Soon, the Sky Tremoring itself blasted down, and an apocalyptic divine light penetrated the space, shooting towards the Ziwei Segmentum below as if it could penetrate it. This beam of light was far too terrifying and could be seen even from thousands of miles away as if it was right in front of them as it shredded through the space with madness.


    This was a terrifying force that could directly destroy a continent or even a cultivating planetary.


    Boom! A violent collision emerged, and the entire Ziwei Segmentum was covered by the starry light screen. An extremely brilliant starry divine light circulated. When the beam of light blasted down, the starry light screen seemed to be caving in, and a terrifying crack appeared.


    However, it was not breached.


    At the point where the pillar of destructive light had landed, a huge dent was formed on the surface; it seemed as if it was about to be broken. However, the flowing starry brilliance soon repaired it, as if it had somehow transferred that destructive attack elsewhere.


    It was still intact!


    This time, Wang Xiao attacked with the imperial arms but failed to break through the outer defenses of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Above the boundless sky, the cultivators of the six powerful Ancient God Clans saw this and their hearts palpitated.


    This ending seemed to be far worse than they had expected.


    That last time, Wang Xiao��s attack had at least directly pierced through the external defenses and penetrated the interior of Ziwei Segmentum, traversing through the Segmentum. It was Ye Futian��s attack that had posed a threat to Wang Xiao so that he could not capture the Ziwei Segmentum in the end.


    But now, the destructive attack of the imperial arms did not even break the external defense.


    What was happening?


    Likewise, Wang Xiao��s face was extremely terrible to look at. Although he was mentally prepared and knew that the probability was not in his favor, the situation in front of him was still hard to accept. This meant that his progress over the years was not nearly as advanced as that of Ye Futian, as it mainly relied on external forces. Compared to the previous battle, his performance was even worse this time.


    ��It seems that a few years ago, it was no fluke that Ye Futian was able to destroy the imperial arms and break out of the imprisonment. In the 28 years, he had used the will of Ziwei to harness an even greater power.�� The cultivators from all six Ancient God Clans had realized this.


    ��Wang Xiao, come back.�� The City Lord of Tianyan seemed to become aware of something as he shouted out at Wang Xiao below. Before his voice could be heard, the Ziwei Segmentum lit up with an extremely brilliant divine light.


    Several starry divine swords emerged. Above Ziwei Segmentum, the stars circulated as countless starry divine swords shot out at the same time. The light of countless divine swords penetrated heaven and earth, slamming towards Wang Xiao.


    Wang Xiao yelled, and the Sky Tremor in his hand blasted down with rage as billions of shockwaves swept out, destroying everything in its path.


    In the boundless space, the two forces collided, and the light of the divine sword was drowned by the attack of the Sky Tremor. However, the infinite divine sword had not completely been annihilated. It was as there were still some that continued their trajectory towards Wang Xiao.


    Wang Xiao, too, felt a serious threat. His body was protected by the divine light as the Sky Tremoring swung down again, albeit a little rushed. At the same time, the light of the divine sword also descended, blasting on the space where he was.


    In an instant, that space seemed to have been destroyed, as that terrifying dark crack swallowed everything, including Wang Xiao��s body. The imagery of destruction was extremely shocking.


    ��Wang Xiao!��


    High above the distant altitude, the face of the City Lord of Tianyan changed to one with shock. When Wang Xiao��s defense was disarmed the first time, he realized that Ye Futian could deploy stronger defenses with the will of Ziwei the Great. If so, it could only mean that he was able to launch an even more powerful attack.


    So, in that instant, he thought of warning Wang Xiao, but it was too late. Wang Xiao was already under that destructive attack.


    He stared at Wang Xiao, who had been swallowed by the darkness, and his heart was beating violently. Other top figures from the Divine Prefecture were the same, as their hearts beat wildly in their chests. At this moment, they had no disagreements because they didn��t want Wang Xiao to perish like that.


    After all, they now shared a common enemy, and this enemy was extremely powerful and had already threatened the Ancient God Clans.


    Boom�� There was a great loud bang, and a horrible crack stretched until a short distance in front of them. A figure emerged from the crack, and it was Wang Xiao. He was pale in the face at this moment as his blood soaked the clothing he was wearing. As soon as he came out, he coughed up a few mouthfuls of blood, and his breath was unsteady and shallow.


    He stabilized himself, then proceeded to sit cross-legged, went directly into a state of meditation, and proceeded to cultivate, attempting to recover from his injury.


    ��This!�� The faces of the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were frozen. Wang Xiao took the imperial arms to attack, and with just one blow, he was injured gravely.


    ��Ziwei the Great has left a trace of his will in Ziwei Segmentum, and Ye Futian is able to use it to exert even greater strength,�� the clan lord of Haotian Clan said in an extremely cold voice. This was not good news.


    Back then, they were able to pose a threat to the Ziwei Segmentum, and Wang Xiao was able to send a light of destruction that had penetrated through the Ziwei Segmentum.


    But now��


    The cultivators from the six Ancient God Clans looked down at the Segmentum and felt a collective sense of helplessness. It was almost impossible for them to break down its defense by simple force. For the present, they could only form a blockade outside of Ziwei Segmentum for the long haul, which would buy them some time to figure out how to crack that impossibly powerful defense.


    ��It seems that a long-term blockade was the only way,�� the City Lord of Tianyan said, and the others nodded in agreement. They had used an imperial arms the last time to imprison the Ziwei Segmentum, attempting to refine it. But now, it required a seal to be manually placed.


    A manual seal meant that they would have to be physically restrained as well.


    However, there was no other choice but to keep Ye Futian within the bounds of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��Let��s disperse around the Ziwei Segmentum and build our camps,�� the City Lord of Tianyan said. All six Ancient God Clans were ready to surround the Ziwei Segmentum, build the Sky Castle��a base to be connected with their stations back in the Original Realm. They were prepared to impose a prolonged blockade on Ziwei Segmentum until they could find a solution to invade inside Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��Very well.�� These cultivators nodded, then each dispersed to go to their chosen locations.


    At the same time, in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, above the Heavenly Mandate Academy, suddenly several terrifying pressures descended, and the entire Heavenly Mandate City could feel that horrific heavenly might.


    Above the firmament, a group of men appeared, whose cultivation was terrifying.


    Who are they? the people in Heavenly Mandate City wondered as they looked up at the sky.


    ��Not long ago, the cultivators of Heavenly Mandate Academy were evacuated; it may have something to do with that.��


    People in Heavenly Mandate City chatted. Those figures that descended on Heavenly Mandate were like a group of deities, coercive and terrifying.


    The men in the lead were giant-level figures, the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain, the clan lord of the Mo Clan in the Divine Prefecture, and several other cultivators in the First Tribulation Plane. All of them had participated in the battle thirty years ago.


    If they did not kill Ye Futian, they would never have a day of peace.


    This time, each of them had their own assigned duties. This group was in charge of the Heavenly Mandate Realm, while the others were responsible for attacking the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain was almost alone in the world now. He had no one to worry about, as his clan was destroyed, and his only wish was to annihilate Ye Futian and kill everyone in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The Mo Clan was another major superpower in the Divine Prefecture, whose heritage was ancient. Many years ago, some of their people had come to the Divine Prefecture to suppress Futian and participated in several earlier attempts to assassinate Ye Futian. Over 30 years ago, they were also a part the army of suppression that lay siege to Ziwei.


    Among these forces, the Shen Clan and the Sun God Mountain both had hostages held in Ziwei Segmentum. Hence, these two forces dared not act as boldly as the others. But Celestial Worthy Mountain, like the Mo Clan, had no such concerns due to its total destruction. The Mo Clan, on the other hand, wanted to nip this growing ill in the bud.


    Therefore, these two giant principalities had joined hands in this attack on Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    They lowered their heads to look at the Heavenly Mandate Academy below and found that there were still cultivators there.


    ��Destroy Heavenly Mandate City,�� the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain said coldly. Ye Futian had destroyed Celestial Worthy Mountain without mercy. He didn��t care about the threat spreading in the Divine Prefecture, the one that came directly from Ye Futian. He no longer cared for anything; Celestial Worthy Mountain had been razed and was no more.


    ��No,�� but the clan lord of Mo flatly refused. Ye Futian was not dead yet, and he didn��t dare to do something irretrievable like this!

 Chapter 2597 - Can He Be Killed?

    The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain and the clan lord of Mo were of somewhat differing opinions regarding their tactics. But in the end, both agreed to destroy the Heavenly Mandate Academy first.


    Divine lights descended one after another as they looked in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain had an icy look in his eyes, filled with astonishing murderous intent. A rumbling sound of terror came out as he suddenly stomped and sent a force to the space below. Immediately, cracks appeared in the space. It then began to collapse and shatter. That terrifying heavenly might swept overwhelmingly in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    It was as if he wanted to flatten the Heavenly Mandate Academy with a one-foot stomp.


    Bang! There was a loud sound as the terrifying attack landed, but it did not flatten the Heavenly Mandate Academy as expected. A brilliant starry light screen was protecting the Heavenly Mandate Academy. That vast and endlessly magnificent academy seemed to have turned into an independent starry world of its own, guarded by the starry divine light and was unbroken.


    ��Matrix!��


    The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain stared at the space below and was amazed that the Heavenly Mandate Academy was still capable of such a powerful matrix. Who was manning it?


    A figure appeared in the middle of the matrix, and it was the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Segmentum, Lord Chen.


    He was holding the Scepter of the Stars as he manned the matrix. He had successfully blocked this terrifying blow and kept the Heavenly Mandate Academy from imminent destruction.


    Both of these giant figureheads frowned. They were not able to break down that matrix.


    The aura from the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain was even more frightening now. The vast sky above the Heavenly Mandate City was suppressed by terrifying coercion. He turned the palm of his hand to face the sky, and suddenly a terrifying divine seal appeared above the firmament, sheltering the sky and the sun.


    There were countless patterns on this divine seal as it shone with a golden divine light. It was extraordinarily brilliant and incredibly heavy. The entire Heavenly Mandate City, at this moment, felt a suffocating coercion that was so ponderous, as if a divine mountain was right on top of them.


    All the demonic beasts in Heavenly Mandate City prostrated on the ground, bowing their heads under that heavenly might.


    ��Be careful.�� Outside of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, many cultivators saw this divine seal covering the sky, as well as the surrounding area. Everyone fled madly to try to get away from this space. The Mo clan lord did not say anything when he saw this scene. The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain came with unprecedented rage, and his murderous intent was fervent; there was no way for him to stop his killing at a time like this.


    And, it was absolutely within the capability of the Celestial Worthy Seal to unleash this level of attack.


    Faced with this kind of destruction above the sky, in the direction of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, the starry divine light became even more dazzling and sacred. Lord Chen raised the Scepter of the Stars in his hand towards the sky, and the divine light immediately gathered and turned into a Ziwei divine sword, puffing out unparalleled starry divine splendor.


    The rumbling sound of horror came out, and the Celestial Worthy Seal above the firmament was attacking with apocalyptic force, descending with the heavenly might, which covered this corner of the sky. The cultivators in the distance had a look of despair on their faces. That divine seal above their heads had already covered the entire firmament, and they were all underneath the seal. They appeared so extremely small compared to the seal that they were as insignificant as some sad insects.


    Boom! A loud bang was heard as this world became extremely suppressed. An aura of destruction swept out, tearing the space apart, as a series of dark and terrifying fissures appeared. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was the center of this destructive storm that covered a vast expanse of space. Many people screamed as they were sucked into the fissures by the storm. Those with stronger cultivation managed to hold on, more or less. After all, this was just the aftermath of an attack; the actual attack had been blocked mostly by Lord Chen and did not fall directly onto them.


    Otherwise, with a single blow, all of them would be dead right then and there.


    Even so, this horrific aftermath of the collision between the two attacks still flattened the boundless space, causing many innocent people to perish needlessly.


    In this devastating attack, the surrounding area of the Heavenly Mandate Academy was covered by a storm. Within that storm, a brilliant divine light suddenly fell from the firmament, dazzling and blinding, like the break of dawn.


    All the cultivators in Heavenly Mandate City saw that light descending from the sky as if it was coming from outside the firmament.


    Naturally, both of them recognized this light, which was the divine light of space, the one that linked between Ziwei Segmentum and the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    Someone was coming from Ziwei Segmentum and descending from the sky.


    The cultivators from the Celestial Worthy Mountain and the Mo Clan had seen this scene as well. They stared at the light and were puzzled. They had guessed that this divine light of space was coming down from Ziwei Segmentum, but at this moment, shouldn��t the Ziwei Segmentum be under siege by the alliance of the six Ancient God Clans?


    Why would anyone be so bold as to come to Heavenly Mandate Realm at this time? To seek their death?


    When the devastating storm finally dissipated, a figure appeared there. The man was clad in white with a head of white hair, magnificent and exceptional. Who else could this be but Ye Futian?


    After repelling Wang Xiao, he learned that this side was under attack, so he came directly from Ziwei Segmentum. This was also why he had evacuated all the ordinary disciples from Heavenly Mandate Academy previously with only Lord Chen remaining.


    He had even gone so far as to disguise his true strength until now. The sweeping of the Original Realm also had a purpose in itself; it was to lure those from the Divine Prefecture to attack.


    Now that they were in the land of the Original Realm, they were in his wheelhouse.


    And the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain and the clan lord of Mo were now in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    ��Ye Futian!�� The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain and the clan lord of Mo looked extremely cold when they saw Ye Futian��s appearance. The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain, especially, whose murderous intent was ablaze and became even more terrifying, had vowed to kill Ye Futian.


    Now, he dared to come from Ziwei and appear here.


    The will of Ziwei the Great was not at Heavenly Mandate Academy, and without it, what was Ye Futian going to use to protect himself?


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm also saw Ye Futian appear in the sky above the academy, and all of them started to worship. For the Heavenly Mandate Realm, Ye Futian was the god of Heavenly Mandate, reverently referred to by many as Deity Ye.


    These two top giants descended in Heavenly Mandate and killed many innocent people in one blow.


    Now, Ye Futian was here.


    Many cultivators were red in the eyes with their fists tightly clenched.


    Deity Ye would wash them in blood and avenge the innocent lives that were lost.


    Boom! The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain released his domain as soon as he could. In an instant, in the vast expanse of space, divine mountains appeared. The surrounding area was blocked off by mountain cliffs, and every mountain cliff was covered in runes of destruction.


    Boundless Domain had two superpowers, namely, the Infinite Mountain and the Celestial Worthy Mountain. They were both named after the two divine mountains in Boundless Domain. It was said that Celestial Worthy Mountain was actually inherited from Wuliang the Great but had later split off and set up its sect and became known today as the Celestial Worthy Mountain.


    However, the specifics back in ancient times were impossible to verify now. Still, it was indisputable that the two major forces bore similarities in certain aspects, such as their offensive techniques.


    The boundless realm shrouded half of Heavenly Mandate City, with countless cultivators trapped within it. One look up at the surrounding divine mountains that reach far into the firmament. The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain could stand high above the sky, overlooking Ye Futian below. He said coldly, ��You are an expert at Buddha��s Celerity, and we can��t do anything about you out there, but now you dare enter the realm of this Great Path.��


    ��Today, the legend of the Original Realm will end here.��


    ��Is that what you think?�� Ye Futian looked at the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain while moving ever higher into the sky. At the same time, the aura of the Great Path, likewise, was permeating from him and proceeded to cover the boundless space. It seemed as if he was setting up his own field of the Great Path, separating the battlefield from the rest of the Heavenly Mandate City in the void, to prevent others from being affected by the battle.


    Clan lord of Mo also released a terrifying aura, but Lord Chen walked out of the Heavenly Mandate Academy just in time, as if there was some unsaid mutual understanding. He walked until he came directly opposite of the clan lord of Mo as if he had absolute trust in Ye Futian��s strength. The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain, a supreme cultivator of the Second Tribulation Plane, was now for Ye Futian to contend.


    There were several cultivators of the First Tribulation Plane in the sky above, whose sole attention was fixed on the battlefield.


    This time, Ye Futian did not use Buddha��s Celerity but fought with his own power. Could it be that he already could fight head-on with cultivators in the Second Tribulation Plane?


    Rumble��


    A dull thud came out as an utmost pressure spread throughout this entire area. On the walls of those sacred mountains, runes flowed. In an instant, as if heaven and earth were collapsing, those mountains fell in the direction of Ye Futian, with a force that contained unimaginable power to immolate.


    Ye Futian did not move, however. He was standing there quietly as those ancient mountains fell with the terrifying power of the Path and blasted on Ye Futian. Curiously, the mountains themselves pulverized as soon as they touched him. Not only was Ye Futian uninjured, but the divine mountains themselves collapsed as if they had impacted on an even stronger divine item.


    ��Deity Ye!��


    The people of Heavenly Mandate City looked at the sky, and each one of them clenched their fists, looking extremely moved.


    That was a giant-level figure who blasted down a divine mountain that landed on Deity Ye. Yet, it was not able to move Deity Ye��s Divine Body of the Great Path.


    How domineering was this divine body?


    The Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain gave a cold snort. He raised his hand towards the sky, and suddenly the divine light flooded the space as the Celestial Worthy Seal began to form with incredible dominance. It moved with monstrous power of might that could silence this corner of the sky; his eyes were icy, and his murderous intent was as strong as ever.


    Boom!


    The Celestial Worthy Seal blasted down and submerged this corner of the sky. All existence within this space was suppressed, and the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm felt its unstoppable power. This divine seal��s blast was as mighty and as unforgiving as if an entire heaven had come slamming down.


    A heavy and domineering destructive power of the Great Path was aiming directly at Ye Futian for the kill.


    Ye Futian moved his mind slightly, and suddenly the vast world was filled with monstrous sword will. It was as if the whole world had been transformed into swordsmanship that would shatter everything in its path. Ye Futian��s body, too, had turned into swordsmanship with overwhelming sword will. When he saw the Celestial Worthy Seal blasting down, he stepped forward with a finger pointing towards the sky. In that instant, the Great Path was one with him, as the power of the Great Path in the vast space converged and turned into a divine sword of destruction. The radiant destructive light penetrated the firmament and blasted towards the seal.


    The dazzling sword light made it difficult for anyone to open their eyes. After the divine sword landed, all anyone could see was that the boundless and overbearing seal that fell from the sky had pulverized and shattered under the sword. After it had been split, it then broke into pieces and disintegrated. The Celestial Worthy Seal that had covered this corner of the sky was broken up by a single sword strike.


    This sight made the hearts of everyone in this space domain beat wildly, including the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain and the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture who were in the void, including the clan lord of Mo Clan, who was close by.


    They all seemed to feel an unusual aura.


    Ye Futian had shattered the Celestial Worthy Seal with a strike of his sword; what did it mean?


    It could only mean that Ye Futian��s combat effectiveness had far surpassed the peak of the First Tribulation Plane; he was now at the level of the Second Tribulation Plane.


    That white-haired figure stood high above the sky. His eyes, as sharp as a sword, shot a look at the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain. He said indifferently, ��You want to kill me? Do you think you could kill me?!��

 Chapter 2598 - Fall of a Giant

    The Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain stared at Ye Futian. How could a Level-Nine Renhuang possess such combat ability?


    He was well aware of how much destructive power his Celestial Worthy Seal possessed. It contained his comprehension of the Great Path and his will. However, from Ye Futian��s attack, he similarly sensed the power of the Great Path unique to Ye Futian.


    Even though Ye Futian demonstrated swordsmanship, his swords destroyed the Great Path. It was as though his swords were destined to eradicate all the other Great Paths.


    Ye Futian did not seem to belong in the Renhuang Plane. Only cultivators who had undergone the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path could start their own Way and possess their own will of the Great Path. Yet, Ye Futian had already had it.


    So, exactly what plane was Ye Futian currently at?


    ��Have you undergone the Divine Tribulation?�� questioned the Mountain Master as he stared at Ye Futian. This possibility appeared to be the only logical reason. Otherwise, he could not explain why Ye Futian would possess such frightening combat ability.


    Cultivators who were at the Renhuang Plane could not possibly have such combat abilities.


    ��What do you think?�� Ye Futian did not respond to the question directly. In reality, he had undergone two Divine Tribulations. Nevertheless, the Divine Tribulations that he experienced were different from those the others experienced.


    Since Ye Futian, a Level-Nine Renhuang, had already gone through two Divine Tribulations, logically speaking, the Divine Tribulations that he experienced should be easier than that of others. However, in reality, the might of the tribulations that he experienced was not any weaker. He was baptized twice by the Divine Tribulations of the Great Path. Both his flesh and his bones were regenerated. He had a divine body and a strong physique, to begin with. Therefore, he could often take attacks from cultivators who had been through two Divine Tribulations of the Great Path head-on because of these two reasons.


    Moreover, Ye Futian��s divine body was already a Body of the Great Path. His flesh was woven from the Way. In terms of flesh, there were most likely very few people in the world who were stronger than Ye Futian.


    When the Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain heard Ye Futian speaking with a nonchalant tone, he was certain that the latter had undergone the Divine Tribulation.


    Ye Futian used some special tricks to hide his cultivation, causing it to remain at the Renhuang Plane. He had fooled everyone in the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Even when you invaded the Divine Prefecture, you did not reveal your true ability. Have you been waiting for this day to come?�� the Mountain Master questioned. Back when Ye Futian infiltrated Haotian City of the Divine Prefecture, he utilized Celerity to avoid head-on battles. All the targets that he killed were One-tribulation cultivators. He did not battle with any Two-tribulation cultivators directly.


    It could be said that Ye Futian had been hiding his true combat ability.


    ��I have too many powerful enemies in the Divine Prefecture. If I don��t kill off a few, it would be a poor showing in this great battle against the forces of the Divine Prefecture. How will I be able to leave all of you in shock and awe?�� said Ye Futian as he looked at the Mountain Master. ��Unfortunately, you will become a sacrifice in this battle.��


    When the Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain heard Ye Futian��s words, he first fell silent. Then, his face revealed a smile. His smile grew wider and wider, and then he began laughing loudly. In the heavens above, the space shook violently. Terrifying pressure enveloped the vast space, suppressing the entire Heavenly Mandate City.


    Even though the city was protected by Ye Futian��s domain, the laughter still caused the members of Heavenly Mandate City to have goosebumps. They felt a searing pain in their head; it was as though they were about to explode. They covered their ears with their hands as they looked up at the indomitable figure in the sky.


    The Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain seemed enraged by Ye Futian��s arrogance.


    ��I dominated the Boundless Domain and have ruled over Celestial Worthy Mountain for many years. In the Divine Prefecture, few dare to claim that they can best me. Now, a junior of the Original Realm actually sees me as his prey. It is ridiculous,�� roared Celestial Worthy Mountain Master. His voice rolled over them like huge waves, shaking the space. It was as though the heavens were collapsing and the earth was splitting apart.


    The Great Path seemed to collapse all around them. Terrifying cracks in space consumed the power of the Great Path. Divine mountains came crashing down. It appeared as though the entire world was on the brink of destruction.


    The roaring laughter persisted, becoming sound waves of the Great Path. They shattered everything and even destroyed spiritual souls.


    Divine mountains came crashing down on Ye Futian. Yet, they still could not touch his divine body. However, his opponent did not just attack his flesh; he also attacked Ye Futian��s spiritual soul, causing their surroundings to become ethereal.


    Celestial Worthy Mountain stood out in the Divine Prefecture and was the second divine holy land in the Boundless Domain where the Ancient God Clan Infinite Mountains resided. Celestial Worthy Mountain Master definitely lived up to his name. His ability was indisputable. He was a true giant-level figure.


    Right then, the other party��s figure also disappeared. The cultivators of Heavenly Mandate City saw the figure of Celestial Worthy Mountain Master merge with his Great Path domain. He became a part of the divine mountain that enveloped the space. In the sky above, his face appeared.


    Maniacal laughter could be heard coming from all directions. The attack of the sound wave annihilated everything. Even the Mo Clan Leader and Lord Chen, who were engaged in a different fight, were affected by the laughter.


    ��Ye Futian, you claim that I can��t kill you. Now, I wish to ask: how do you intend to kill me?�� A domineering voice descended along with the sound wave attack, blasting on Ye Futian continuously.


    At this moment, the Mountain Master was the absolute ruler of this part of the sky. His existence was indisputable. This was his domain and his world.


    Ye Futian raised his head and cast a glance at the other party. Dazzling divine light radiated from his eyes. Suddenly, the surroundings were lit with the blazing Light of Buddha. Ye Futian transformed into a buddha. It was his Acalanatha Battle Form. He formed a Buddhist seal with his hands. The Sound of Buddha reverberated in space as tens of thousands of Buddhist runes danced in the air. An absolute domain was formed around him. Regardless of physical attacks or spiritual soul attacks, they were all blocked outside his absolute domain.


    ��A buddha!�� someone exclaimed.


    This was the first time the cultivators from Heavenly Mandate City witnessed Ye Futian in battle since he returned. The Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain transformed into a deity. On the other hand, Ye Futian transformed into a buddha. He recited the Vajra Spell, and his body was immovable like a mountain. The dual attack from the other party could not affect him at the slightest.


    ��Today, you must die here!�� The buddha spoke of his determination to kill the Mountain Master. His voice was not loud, but his tone was certain and bore an air of superiority. His confidence bordered on arrogance.


    Ye Futian, who had undergone two Divine Tribulations of the Great Path, had absolute confidence that he would be able to kill the Mountain Master.


    ��Is that so? We shall wait and see.�� As soon as the Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain said this, his domain of the Great Path in the sky shone with brilliant light. A Celestial Worthy Seal was coalesced. It floated in midair and enveloped the entire domain. Its attack range covered every single corner of the space.


    This attack enshrouded the entire area, covering the sun and the sky. It charged downwards directly. Rune lights flowed around the Celestial Worthy Seal. Each streak of rune light contained overbearing might that could eradicate all of existence.


    The Mountain Master shifted his will, and the attack charged forth. Ye Futian could block his Great Path Soundwave attack, but could he block this overbearing attack of the Celestial Worthy Seal?


    The cultivators of Heavenly Mandate City felt as though the sky had been flooded with runes. All of them were in great terror as their bodies trembled. Some weaker cultivators felt weak in their knees.


    A battle of this level was too terrifying. Ye Futian and the Mountain Master could easily destroy a realm with their attacks.


    However, Ye Futian had also reached such a cultivation plane.


    Could Deity Ye, whom the Heavenly Mandate Realm placed their faith in, block his opponent��s attack?


    If he couldn��t, Heavenly Mandate City would most likely be destroyed.


    Some cultivators thought that since Deity Ye chose to face his opponent head-on, he would certainly be confident that he could kill the other party. They held fast to their faith as they looked at the battlefield in the sky.


    The Light of Buddha glowed brilliantly. 1000 buddhas took form and appeared beside Ye Futian. All of them recited Buddhist chants at the same time while they sent out Palms of Mahavairocana. Concurrently, a majestic and divine ancient buddha showed up. The Palms of Mahavairocana, unleashed by the 1000 buddhas, gathered and combined into a gigantic Palm of Mahavairocana. The palm charged towards the sky, colliding with the descending Celestial Worthy Seal.


    The heavens and earth seemed to be collapsing.


    Cracks actually appeared on the Celestial Worthy Seal. It was shattered from the shockwaves. The Palm of Mahavairocana continued to push upwards. It was extremely domineering.


    In the divine mountain domain of the Great Path, divine light shone, and another Celestial Worthy Seal descended, suppressing the world. It crashed onto the Palm of Mahavairocana, followed by a third and fourth seal. It was as though within the divine mountain domain, Celestial Worthy Seals could be sent out endlessly until everything within the domain was destroyed.


    The Sound of Buddha circled as Ye Futian recited the Six Syllables of Truth. The power of Buddha immediately grew stronger. 1000 buddhas appeared in different locations. At the same time, they extended their arms and sent out Palms of Mahavairocana, which blocked off the endless waves of Celestial Worthy Seals.


    At the same time, Ye Futian��s true figure emerged from the figure of the buddha. Scorching light surged out from his body.


    Ye Futian extended his hands, and divine light circled him. Within the Great Path domain, countless divine swords appeared. These divine swords hummed as they radiated blinding divine halos. Path-destroying power emanated from each sword. They were gigantic and gave off a sense of power. They also contained destructive will that could tear the space apart.


    ��Avici!��


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky, and countless divine swords shot out simultaneously, ignoring the distance between him and his opponent.


    Bang.


    A divine sword slashed on a falling Celestial Worthy Seal. It was then followed by a second sword and then a third�� Countless divine swords sliced through the Celestial Worthy Seals.


    At the same time, Ye Futian himself seemed to have transformed into a sword. He was indestructible and could pierce through all things. He was the embodiment of swordsmanship.


    Or it could be said that, currently, he was a divine sword.


    Buzz.


    A beam of light flashed as a divine sword traversed across space and penetrated through a Celestial Worthy Seal. Then, it struck the divine mountain domain, which was high in the sky. The sword stabbed into the region where the face of the Mountain Master was, causing a dull thud to sound in the Great Path domain.


    It was then followed by a second sword and then a third�� Innumerable swords followed suit and struck on different parts of the divine mountain domain.


    The divine mountain domain was riddled with divine swords. Beams of destructive divine light radiated, causing fissures to appear on the divine mountain domain. Brilliant light shone through the cracks.


    The face of the Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain appeared on the wall of the domain. He revealed a terrified expression. He was no longer bearing an air of authority like he was before; instead, he was in a panic now.


    Rumble.


    Rumble.


    The cracks on the divine mountain domain propagated continuously, and the domain started crumbling. Countless fissures were illuminated at the same time. Then, an exceptionally dazzling divine light burst forth. The domain was completely crushed; it appeared as though the sky was shattered.


    Soon, the space above Heavenly Mandate City regained its peace. Clouds drifted idly in the sky. The cultivators could no longer sense the might pressuring down on them. The silhouette of the Mountain Master could not be found either.


    Ye Futian alone remained standing in midair. With his white hair and white robes, he appeared glorious.


    The Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain had perished!


    A cultivator who had undergone two Divine Tribulations of the Great Path had died at the hands of Ye Futian.


    The hearts of the other cultivators from the Divine Prefecture trembled violently. They couldn��t help but escape. They dashed in different directions. However, beams of divine light instantly descended upon them despite their distance from Ye Futian. The divine lights sliced through them, causing them to pause in their tracks.


    After revealing his true ability, Ye Futian could kill One-tribulation cultivators with a flick of his wrist!

 Chapter 2599 - The Disappearance of Two Major Forces of the Divine Prefecture

    After the Lord of Mo clan perished, the space above Heavenly Mandate City returned to its tranquility. The terrifying aura that pressured down on everyone dissipated. It was as though nothing had happened.


    Only the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate City knew that an intense battle had occurred here just now.


    Ye Futian first killed the Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain. Then, he annihilated the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. Finally, he joined forces with Lord Chen to kill the Lord of Mo clan.


    All the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture who invaded the Heavenly Mandate Realm had been eradicated in this battle. Two giant-level figures had also perished here.


    Not even mentioning the Heavenly Mandate Realm, even in the Divine Prefecture, it had been too long since two giant-level figures had perished on the same day.


    However, such a scene had occurred in the Heavenly Mandate Realm today.


    In Heavenly Mandate City, everyone raised their heads to adore the silhouette of the white-haired youth. His temperament was unparalleled. Some senior members in the realm had been through other battles in the past. This was certainly not the first time cultivators from the Divine Prefecture invaded the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They had encircled the realm once before this.


    Other than that, the Heavenly Mandate Realm had also experienced being attacked by the Shen clan, Holy Land of Taichu, and top forces from the Nine Realms.


    This piece of land had suffered many hardships. It had gone through a few reconstructions after being destroyed several times. Forces from almost all sides had invaded this realm before. Nevertheless, the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which had been attacked countless times, still remained standing now.


    This feeling was inexplicable.


    Some former members of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were in their middle age or even old age now. They were overwhelmed with emotions as they looked at the charismatic figure in the sky. Amidst the silence, they whispered, ��May the Heavenly Mandate Realm prosper.��


    ��May the Heavenly Mandate Realm prosper,�� many people followed suit and said this in a low voice. Some of them were so touched that they knelt on the floor and prostrated before Ye Futian.


    They earnestly hoped that the Heavenly Mandate Realm would not go through any more hardship after this.


    Today, Deity Ye had slain two giant-level figures in the Heavenly Mandate Realm and killed several Tribulation Plane cultivators. From today onwards, how many people from the Divine Prefecture would dare attack this realm?


    Lord Chen finished plundering the spoils from these cultivators. An intense wave of emotion welled up inside him. Before this, no one knew about Ye Futian��s ability. Although Lord Chen speculated that Ye Futian could do battle with a giant-level figure, he never imagined that Ye Futian would be able to kill a Two-tribulation existence.


    He lowered his head and glanced down at the countless worshipping figures in Heavenly Mandate City. He then looked up at the white-haired youth who was standing proudly in the sky.


    Although Ye Futian already had a glorious battle record, today, he would be renowned just from this battle.


    The significance of this battle was different compared to those that came before. This was a battle that would truly make a name for Ye Futian. He had killed a Two-tribulation cultivator. From this day forth, he would walk the path to the top. He was one step below the level of a Great Emperor.


    Killing and battling were two different things.


    As the heir of Great Emperor Ziwei, he would lead the Ziwei Segmentum towards a new glorious future. He would also establish a new golden age for the Original Realm.


    Without the involvement of the Great Emperors, in the future, the Original Realm would become another independent superpower apart from the Divine Prefecture, the Empty Divine Realm, as well as the Dark World. Of course, only when Ye Futian truly claimed the title of emperor would the Ziwei Segmentum be qualified to be an Emperor-level force like the Divine Prefecture and the other forces.


    Would this day be far off?


    The changes of the world would begin from the Original Realm.


    Would this prophecy come true through Ye Futian?


    All the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture, including Wang Xiao from Tianyan City, wanted to be a hero of this chaotic world. They wanted to be the protagonist who brought about change in this era. However, there was only one main character.


    Who would this era belong to?


    ��


    The Mo clan from the Divine Prefecture was a glorious clan with ancient history. They had countless cultivators.


    In the main palace of the Mo clan, a group of elders was looking at the shattered crystal before them with astonished looks. Intense terror welled up inside of them as their hearts trembled uncontrollably. They did not believe what they had witnessed.


    ��Clan Lord is dead,�� said a voice with some difficulty.


    It was not just the Clan Lord. All the cultivators the Clan Lord had brought had perished.


    It was over for the Mo clan. They were no longer a superpower.


    Right now, the other cultivators of the Mo clan still did not know about this. They were still busy with their own cultivation.


    Dong.


    Right then, a bell rang. It seemed to be the death knell of the end days.


    All the cultivators of the Mo clan looked up towards the palace that towered into the clouds. Their hearts trembled violently. What had happened?


    Dong. Dong. Dong.


    The bell continued to ring. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked towards the direction of the bell.


    The bell rang nine times consecutively. This was the death knell of destruction.


    What had happened exactly?


    In the sky above the palace, a group of elders appeared. They were all cultivators from the older generation of the Mo clan. They looked towards the lands of their clan.


    The space was silent. No one spoke. Even the children did not make noise.


    ��Clan Lord has died,�� an elder said.


    This news came as a shock. The hearts of all the cultivators of the entire Mo clan were trembling.


    The Clan Lord had perished.


    What exactly had happened?


    The Clan Lord and the six major Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture had headed out towards the Original Realm to participate in the battle to kill Ye Futian and destroy the Ziwei Segmentum. The Clan Lord had perished now. What did this mean?


    ��This is impossible���� said a cultivator. Some of them did not dare to believe that this was true. They doubted the elder��s words.


    An elder said in a loud voice, ��Clan Lord and Celestial Worthy Mountain Master headed over to attack the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They were ambushed by Ye Futian. Before Clan Lord perished, an elder sent back a message: Ye Futian can already kill Two-tribulation cultivators. They will most likely perish in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The elder ordered us to disband the clan if they and Clan Lord perished.�� This was truly a bolt out of the blue. Everyone went numb from the shock as they stood with blank expressions where they were.


    The Clan Lord and the elders had gone over to the Heavenly Mandate Realm to kill Ye Futian, yet they had instead been ambushed and slain!


    The Mo clan would be disbanded.


    ��I object,�� someone roared. It was hard to accept this immediately. A top-level clan which was known all over the Divine Prefecture would be disbanded just like that?


    The elder who stood in the sky above the palace swept a glance at the other party and continued, ��Clan Lord was killed. This means that Ye Futian��s abilities are already unfathomable. If we attempt to seek revenge, the clan will be destroyed. For our safety, we can only disband. The elder sent back this message to ensure the safety of the Mo clan.��


    The elder continued, ��Back then, invading the Original Realm to get at Ye Futian was the most fatal mistake our clan has made. We have also continued to make mistakes and did not manage to kill him in time to prevent future trouble. Since that is the case, the Mo clan will pay the price for all the wrongs we have committed.�� The elder��s voice contained an intense sadness.


    From this day forth, the Mo clan would be history in the Divine Prefecture.


    As he said this, many people in the Mo clan fell to their knees. They felt an endless wave of sadness.


    ��


    Celestial Worthy Mountain was the divine mountain of the Boundless Domain. However, it had been torn apart. Only an old man with white hair remained standing at the top of the mountain.


    The old man was guarding the Jade Scrolls of Life that belonged to the last few cultivators of Celestial Worthy Mountain. When he saw that the jade scrolls shattered into pieces one by one, he knelt on the ground and broke into tears. He wept and wailed, ��Celestial Worthy Mountain has been eradicated.��


    From this day forth, the name of Celestial Worthy Mountain was removed from the Divine Prefecture. It was truly gone. It was but history now.


    There was no hope of them being revived.


    The old man sat on the ground with his eyes shut. Snow gently fell on top of the mountain. The breathing of the old man slowly came to a halt as he lost his vital signs. Time seemed to have stopped here.


    Celestial Worthy Mountain of the Divine Prefecture was history.


    ��


    The news of two major forces being annihilated spread in the Divine Prefecture. Everyone was shocked by the news.


    The name of Ye Futian once again reverberated throughout the Divine Prefecture. This white-haired youth appeared to be a legend that could not be defeated.


    So, it seemed like he could already kill cultivators who had undergone two Divine Tribulations of the Great Path?


    The alliance of the six major Ancient God Clans, stationed outside of the Ziwei Segmentum in the Original Realm, also received news of what happened. They were taken aback by what they heard and were at a loss for words.


    Ye Futian had killed the Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain and the Lord of Mo clan. Just when they were encircling the Ziwei Segmentum, he slaughtered two giant-level figures.


    The news interrupted all their plans and shattered their confidence.


    All their plans stopped abruptly. They did not continue building the Sky Castle. The Clan Lords of the six major Ancient God Clans were stronger than the two giant-level figures who had fallen. Besides that, they came prepared this time. However, the tables had turned the moment Ye Futian possessed the ability to kill a giant-level figure.


    They were no longer safe here.


    The Lord of Tianyan City remained silent after he heard the news. Wang Xiao, who was still injured, had also caught wind of the news. When Wang Xiao found out that Ye Futian could already kill giant-level figures, he remained as quiet as the dead.


    He, Wang Xiao, was The Unrivaled?


    Ye Futian was once again a step ahead of him. All of them were under the impression that Wang Xiao would be able to eradicate the Ziwei Segmentum with the help of imperial arms after he had undergone two Divine Tribulations of the Great Path. However, right now, they lost that confidence. Ye Futian had already killed Two-tribulation existences. Even if Wang Xiao could break through to the next plane, what advantage would he have to enable him to penetrate through the defense of the Ziwei Segmentum?


    Wang Xiao stood with his hands behind his back. He went into a daze as he looked at the deep and vast space before him.


    He came from an extraordinary background and obtained the inheritance of a Great Emperor. He could communicate with imperial arms and had matchless talent. However, in this era, he encountered Ye Futian.


    Back then, with Wang Xiao��s cultivation level, he had lost to Ye Futian. Even if he broke through to the next Plane, could he defeat the current Ye Futian?


    Wang Xiao was not confident that he could do so. He was no longer the person he was before. Rather, his confidence had been shattered time and time again by Ye Futian.


    Was Wang Xiao The Unrivaled?


    Hearing it now, even he felt that it was a mockery.


    Before his eyes was a person that he would never be able to surpass.


    The Lord of Tianyan City walked up behind Wang Xiao. He looked at Wang Xiao��s lonely silhouette and secretly sighed. Now, he did not know what to say.


    Tianyan City had such a monstrous figure with exceptional talent. Why had he encountered Ye Futian?


    The Lord of Tianyan City only had one thought in mind. He had to kill Ye Futian.


    As long as Ye Futian was dead, Wang Xiao would still be unrivaled.


    In the distance, figures traversed across space and approached them. The arriving cultivators were members of other Ancient God Clans. After they received the news, they rushed here immediately to meet up with the cultivators of Tianyan City. Ye Futian had killed cultivators who had undergone two Divine Tribulations of the Great Path. This meant that their plan could not be executed at all. It was once again a complete failure.


    They could not handle the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Just then, down below, an illusory figure appeared. It was the figure of Ye Futian, and he was walking towards them. This caused the various cultivators to reveal strange looks. Their gazes were all fixed on the figure walking towards them!

 Chapter 2600 - Banishment

    ��An exterior incarnation!�� someone said.


    The cultivators of the Ancient God Clans looked towards Ye Futian. There was no aura on this figure. It appeared both real and ethereal, like it might dissipate into nothing at any moment.


    Although Ye Futian killed two giant-level figures, the heads of six major Ancient God Clans were here. Their abilities were more powerful than Celestial Worthy Mountain Master and Mo Clan Lord. Moreover, Wang Xiao, who wielded imperial arms, was with them. Ye Futian would certainly not take the risk to come here in person. If he did so, he would just be handing them an opportunity to kill him.


    The illusory figure stopped before them. Although it was just an incarnation, it seemed real.


    The cultivators of the six major Ancient God Clans stared at the figure. None of them said anything. Wang Xiao was also staring at the figure.


    Why had Ye Futian��s exterior incarnation come here?


    ��To the six major Ancient God Clans and all the other forces, leave the Original Realm immediately. Also, without my permission, never step foot in the Original Realm again,�� said Ye Futian as he looked at the cultivators of the six major Ancient God Clans.


    He was facing the heads of the six major Ancient God Clans. In the Divine Prefecture, the six of them were existences who stood at the peak.


    However, right now, Ye Futian��s exterior incarnation was talking to them with a commanding tone. He wanted them to leave the Original Realm, and they were not allowed to enter the realm again without his permission.


    He was so domineering.


    The expressions of the giant-level figures of the six major Ancient God Clans were ugly. When had they ever been threatened in such a manner?


    ��Are you here to negotiate?�� asked the Lord of Tianyan City with a voice as cold as ice as he stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stated, ��This is not a negotiation. I merely came to inform all of you. From this day forth, if any of you step into the Original Realm and are discovered by me, I will ensure that your Ancient God Clans will not have peace. Your disciples will not dare to take a step out of your bases.�� His tone was indifferent, but it contained an unquestionable threat.


    His words were domineering, and the six major Ancient God Clans depressingly realized that he could actually pull it off.


    With Ye Futian��s current cultivation and ability, even though he could not slaughter his way into the bases of the Ancient God Clans, he could restrict their cultivators from coming out. He could also hunt them down one by one.


    ��Also, if another member of the Ziwei Segmentum perishes due to the Kill Order or is killed by one of your members, I will pay you back a hundredfold,�� continued Ye Futian. ��Starting from now, get lost. Leave the Original Realm and do not appear in my sight again.��


    Ye Futian wanted the cultivators of the six major Ancient God Clans to get out of the Original Realm.


    They were not to appear in his sight again.


    The conversation now was an utter humiliation to the six major Ancient God Clans. No one had ever dared to talk to them like this.


    However, today, Ye Futian from the Original Realm had directly issued them an order. He wanted them to leave the realm. Otherwise, he would ensure that their Ancient God Clans would never have peace.


    They were furious. Terrifying pressure swept out from their figures and landed on Ye Futian��s exterior incarnation. However, his incarnation did not seem affected by their auras at all. He continued, ��Keep in mind that I am only giving you one day. After one day, I will carry out what I said. You will bear the consequences of your actions.��


    As he said this, his exterior incarnation became a ball of light of the Great Path and disappeared without a trace. It was as though it had never appeared and no one had said anything.


    However, everything that had happened was already seared into the cultivators�� minds of the six major Ancient God Clans.


    This was a disgrace!


    This was utter humiliation!


    Their Ancient God Clan reigned high and mighty. The Domain Chief��s Manor showed them face, and even the Imperial Palace had to be courteous towards them.


    However, today, they had experienced an unprecedented humiliation.


    Ye Futian wanted them to get lost from the Original Realm.


    Otherwise, they would bear the consequences of their actions.


    Ye Futian also only gave them one day to do so.


    Standing high above them with his arrogant attitude, he gave them a direct order.


    Cold wills emanated from the six giant-level figures. Their wills enveloped the vast space. The pressure was terrifying.


    Since when have they ever suffered such humiliation?


    Yet, that is precisely what happened here today.


    Most crucially, they were pondering Ye Futian��s words and contemplating whether or not they would retreat. This was an even greater humiliation.


    Ye Futian��s threat was also a truce. That meant that as long as they retreated from the Original Realm, both sides would have a ceasefire and not involve themselves in each other��s business.


    However, if they did not retreat, that meant that they would continue to attempt to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum and kill its cultivators. Ye Futian would similarly begin his massacre and slaughter everyone.


    Now that Ye Futian was giving them a choice, would they retreat?


    After feeling enraged, they calmed down. For figures at their level, their emotional states would not be affected for very long. Their main concern was still cost and benefit.


    ��What do all of you think?�� asked the Lord of Tianyan City. How could he have imagined that the current head of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, which he had destroyed with a wave of his hand, could already pose a threat to him?


    Before this, they believed that Ye Futian��s cultivation was only sufficient to kill One-tribulation cultivators. They had wanted to seal off the Ziwei Segmentum and find a way inside.


    However, now that Ye Futian could kill Two-tribulation cultivators, could they seal off the Ziwei Segmentum?


    If they stood guard in the six main directions, Ye Futian might ambush them at any given moment. Aside from the six giant-level figures, who else could stop Ye Futian?


    ��It is indeed pointless to remain here,�� said the Jian Clan Ancient Royal Family Head. ��We should leave first. We can discuss how to kill Ye Futian later.��


    ��Agreed,�� added the Vajra Region Lord. ��There is still plenty of time. When we find the chance, we can kill him then.��


    As long as they killed Ye Futian, everything would end.


    Infinite Mountains Master quietly watched all of this. Before this, his uncle-master had told him that Ye Futian might possess Two-tribulation combat ability. As expected, it was as his uncle-master had speculated.


    This war was growing troublesome.


    It seemed as though they were in a stalemate.


    ��If that is the case, then let��s retreat,�� said the Lord of the Haotian Clan. Before this, they had issued the Kill Order and rallied the forces of the entire Divine Prefecture to destroy the Ziwei Segmentum and kill Ye Futian.


    However, now that they were outside of the Ziwei Segmentum, they were retreating.


    The six major Ancient God Clans very quickly came into agreement to leave the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Wang Xiao quietly watched from the side all this while. Was this the turning point of the war?


    The Ziwei Segmentum led by Ye Futian no longer feared the Ancient God Clans.


    The six major Ancient God Clans retreated from this place. Very quickly, all of them disappeared from the starry sky. It was as though no one had ever appeared in this silent space. It felt like nothing had happened at all.


    After the various cultivators retreated, they summoned back their members in the Original Realm and returned to the Divine Prefecture together.


    They had all decided to give up the Original Realm.


    As Ancient God Clans, even if they gave up the Original Realm, it was not a significant loss to them.


    ��


    Ye Futian immediately knew when the six major Ancient God Clans retreated from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    With a beam of swirling starlight, a group of cultivators led by Ye Futian appeared on the outskirts of the Ziwei Segmentum. Lord Chen, Xi Chiyao, and the others were also present.


    Lord Chen said, ��Palace Lord, you killed two giant-level figures in this battle and destroyed two peak forces of the Divine Prefecture. You have shocked the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture and threatened the six major Ancient God Clans to the point that they left. Are you planning to have some rest and recuperate after this?��


    Ye Futian nodded his head and said, ��After this battle, the Kill Order will no longer pose a threat to us. No one from the Divine Prefecture will dare to mess with the Ziwei Segmentum easily.��


    It was time for the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum to head out again into the world. There was no point in them continuing to stay in the segmentum and be at a war of attrition with the six major Ancient God Clans.


    Lord Chen understood Ye Futian��s intention. He nodded his head slightly and said, ��I will prepare our men to once again head to the bases of the six major Ancient God Clans in the Original Realm and claim all of them as our own. In this battle, it was not just the various cultivators of the Divine Prefecture who were astonished. In the Original Realm, there is probably no one who dares to contend with us anymore.��


    Ye Futian��s first goal after coming out of seclusion was to reclaim the lands of the Original Realm.


    ��I will leave it to you, Lord Chen,�� said Ye Futian. Then, Lord Chen and the others left.


    After the various cultivators left, Hua Jieyu and Xi Chiyao still remained.


    Xi Chiyao looked at Hua Jieyu with her beautiful gaze. Ye Futian looked at her and said, ��Goddess Chiyao, do you have something you wish to say?��


    ��Hmm,�� responded Xi Chiyao as she nodded her head. ��You did not wish to continue this war of attrition with the six major Ancient God Clans because you believed in your own abilities. Given time, you can destroy the Ancient God Clans in the future. Hence, you merely banished them.��


    Ye Futian did not say anything. Instead, he just looked at her. Xi Chiyao seemed to want to tell him something.


    ��I just want to give you a reminder,�� said Xi Chiyao. ��Before this, I have told you that the Ancient God Clans have rich inheritances. There is more to them than you can imagine. It is the same this time. The Ancient God Clans have had inheritances of Great Emperors for countless years. They have more than just a simple will of a Great Emperor. Whatever you can think up, they can also do the same. You must be careful in the future.��


    Xi Chiyao was born into an Ancient God Clan, so she was naturally most familiar with them. She was also the goddess of West Imperial Palace and an heir to a Great Emperor. She would certainly know more about these matters than others.


    ��I will,�� answered Ye Futian seriously as he nodded. He took Xi Chiyao��s words to heart.


    Before this, he attacked the Infinite Mountains as a test. On top of Infinite Mountain, he encountered an elder who used the will of the divine mountain to unleash extremely powerful might. Aside from that, he did not know what else was there within the divine mountain.


    In Haotian City, he had felt the will of Haotian. The Great Emperor had even spoken to him, and he had mocked the fallen old god. Nevertheless, had the old god truly fallen?


    There was most likely more to them than met the eye.


    Regardless, the Ziwei Segmentum had won a great victory this time.


    ��


    The six major Ancient God Clans, as well as the forces of the Divine Prefecture, had given up on the Original Realm. They were banished and returned to the Divine Prefecture. Two giant-level forces were also destroyed. News of this got out very quickly. One could imagine how shocking this news was.


    Ye Futian was truly like the sun in the sky. Everyone in the Divine Prefecture knew his name. Even youths were talking about him.


    As for the forces of the Divine Prefecture, they thought that the current Original Realm and Ziwei Segmentum were already comparable to an Ancient God Clan.


    The Ziwei Segmentum had two giant-level figures �C Ye Futian and Lord Chen. They also had the inheritance of Great Emperor Ziwei as well as various powerful cultivators. Their lineup was already no weaker than that of an Ancient God Clan.


    A new giant-level force was born in the Original Realm. They wanted to dominate the realm.


    In this chaotic world, could the Ziwei Segmentum maintain its grasp on the Original Realm?

 Chapter 2601 - Yu Sheng’s Identity

    After Ye Futian banished the six major Ancient God Clans, the forces of Ziwei Imperial Palace began to expand across the Original Realm. They occupied the bases of the six major Ancient God Clans and constructed teleportation grand matrices. They taught the Way in the Heavenly Mandate Realm as well as the original Nine Supreme Imperial Realms. On the other side, the Ziwei Segmentum began selecting monstrous cultivators.


    The core members of Ziwei Imperial Palace began busying themselves with work. Ye Futian concocted another batch of elixirs and then continued to cultivate.


    The forces of the Divine Prefecture would not dare to offend the Ziwei Segmentum in the near future.


    In the year 10,133 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, a piece of news spread across the Divine Prefecture and shocked the populace.


    The Devil World was sending their troops to the Divine Prefecture and wanted to wage war against them.


    For the Divine Prefecture, this news was like a bolt out of the blue. Ever since the chaotic war back then, after Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture, there had not been any large-scale wars. The Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm had provoked them many times, but those weren��t considered large-scale wars.


    However, the Devil World was now waging war against the Divine Prefecture first.


    A dropped stone raised a thousand ripples. If the Devil World invaded the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm would be ready to move. They would gather their armies and wait to conquer the Divine Prefecture.


    It seemed that a chaotic war of the worlds was about to unfold.


    As expected, the Devil World was extremely domineering and intended to invade the territories of the Divine Prefecture directly.


    What vendetta did they have against the Divine Prefecture?


    The Devil World chose the lands of the Divine Prefecture as their battleground, so the Original Realm was peaceful. The cultivators of various forces based in the Original Realm were summoned back to the Divine Prefecture. After all, an incident of this magnitude would lead to a clash between the various major worlds.


    The cultivators of the various major worlds naturally returned to their bases to prepare to face this cataclysmic war.


    The Ziwei Segmentum was far removed from the various major worlds. Due to their conflict with the Divine Prefecture, both the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm wanted to use them. Hence, no one had attacked the Ziwei Segmentum and the Original Realm. This secretly made Ye Futian feel lucky.


    The Divine Prefecture had invited such turmoil while the Ziwei Segmentum could develop in peace.


    In the main city of the Ziwei Segmentum, in a tavern not far from Ziwei Imperial Palace, a black-robed figure was drinking wine. Although he had not intentionally unleashed his aura, the people around him could still sense how powerful he was. He was certainly an extremely frightening figure.


    He had been very quiet and had not disturbed anyone else, merely drinking wine alone.


    Right then, several people walked up the stairs of the tavern, came to the table opposite his own, and sat down. These people were rather young, but their temperaments were extraordinary. One could tell that they weren��t ordinary figures at a glance.


    The leading youth glanced at the black-robed figure and said, ��From your temperament, you don��t seem like an ordinary figure. May I have the honor of having a drink with you?��


    The black-robed man still kept his head down. He did not look at the other party as he replied, ��When it comes to wine, I have never turned down anyone.��


    ��Excellent then,�� replied the youth. As he said this, he waved his hand, and a wine jar flew towards the black-robed figure like a golden bolt of lightning. It was terrifying. Even the space surrounding the wine jar seemed to split apart.


    However, the black-robed figure extended his hand slightly and calmly received the wine jar. He then poured himself some wine and drank a cup, saying, ��Many thanks.��


    Outsiders could not make out anything from this casual exchange. However, the youth frowned slightly and asked, ��May I ask who you are?��


    The youth was Fang Cun, Ye Futian��s disciple. He was now responsible for many affairs in Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    For such a cultivator to appear in the city, Fang Cun was naturally on high alert. He had come over to see who had arrived. At the very least, he wanted to identify the other party��s background and determine whether they came with good or bad intentions.


    The black-robed figure raised his head and looked at Fang Cun with unfathomable jet-black eyes. He then exclaimed, ��As expected of his disciple. You are indeed extraordinary.��


    ��You know my master?�� asked Fang Cun.


    ��I wish to meet him,�� said the black-robed figure. Fang Cun frowned. Next to him, Duo Yu said, ��Master does not meet with just anyone. If you wish to meet with him, you must first announce yourself.��


    ��I am Mei Ting from the Devil World,�� replied the black-robed figure.


    Fang Cun and the others fell silent. They naturally had heard of this name before.


    Right now, the Devil World was at war with the Divine Prefecture. Why had Mei Ting, a general of the Devil World, appeared in Ziwei City looking for Ye Futian? What was his intention for coming here?


    ��I will inform Master now,�� said Fang Cun after deliberating in silence for a while. He then informed Ye Futian.


    Not long after, Ye Futian appeared in the tavern. The cultivators in the tavern all stood up and looked at Ye Futian with looks of admiration.


    Ye Futian was already a legendary figure in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Ye Futian��s gaze landed on Mei Ting. He stepped forward, came to Mei Ting��s table, and sat down. He said, ��I haven��t seen you in a long while, sir. What wisdom do you have to bestow upon me this time?��


    ��I believe you have heard about the incident with the Divine Prefecture,�� said Mei Ting. As he said this, a boundary formed around the two of them, isolating their conversation from the outside world. Clearly, he did not wish for their conversation to be overheard by others.


    Ye Futian nodded and said, ��That is why I am curious as to why you, a general of the Devil World, have appeared here.��


    ��The army of the Devil World invaded this time with not just the Divine Prefecture as their goal. The Original Realm is also within their sights,�� said Mei Ting. ��The Devil Emperor ordered for the invasion of the Original Realm. Do you know who he appointed as the commander of the army?��


    Ye Futian��s gaze narrowed as he stared at Mei Ting. He had a bad premonition.


    He only knew a few people from the Devil World.


    For Mei Ting to pose the question in such a manner, Ye Futian must have known the person who had been appointed, and he must have some relation with that person.


    ��Yu Sheng!�� Ye Futian exclaimed as he stared at Mei Ting.


    ��Yes,�� replied Mei Ting as he looked Ye Futian in the eye. ��The Devil Emperor ordered Yu Sheng to lead a large army from the Devil World to invade the Original Realm. Yu Sheng has a history with you. After he conquers the Original Realm, the Devil Emperor wants you to be subordinate to the Devil World and serve him.��


    Ye Futian initially believed that he had been lucky and that the Devil World had chosen the Divine Prefecture as their battleground, ignoring the Original Realm.


    He never imagined that the Devil World not only planned to invade the Divine Prefecture; at the same time, they were also eyeing the Original Realm.


    Moreover, the Devil Emperor appointed Yu Sheng as the commander in charge of invading the Original Realm.


    ��Did he reject the order?�� Ye Futian asked.


    The armies of the Devil World did not come. Therefore, Yu Sheng clearly had rejected the Devil Emperor��s order.


    ��That��s right.�� Mei Ting nodded and said, ��Not only did he refuse to obey the order, but he also publicly went against the Devil Emperor.��


    Yu Sheng knew that Ye Futian was in the Original Realm and was the ruler of the Ziwei Segmentum. The former naturally didn��t want the troops of the Devil World to invade the place. He wanted to stop the plan.


    Hence, he disobeyed the Devil Emperor��s order.


    Ye Futian��s expression turned ugly. He was worried about Yu Sheng. At this point, few people could affect Ye Futian��s mood. Yu Sheng was one of those few people.


    Ye Futian didn��t know much about the characteristics of the Devil Emperor, but the latter would surely be a domineering figure. He was the legendary figure who united the Devil World in the past. He had defeated all the demons in the Devil World and had never lost a battle. Would such an overbearing figure tolerate disobedience?


    ��How is he now?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Do you know Yu Sheng��s identity?�� Mei Ting responded with another question.


    Ye Futian shook his head. The true identity of Godfather remained a mystery to him even now.


    ��He is the nephew of the Devil Emperor!�� Mei Ting revealed to Ye Futian. Ye Futian��s heart trembled violently upon hearing the news.


    Was Yu Sheng the nephew of the Devil Emperor?


    Then, wouldn��t it mean that Godfather was the brother of the Devil Emperor?


    Ye Futian never imagined that Godfather and the Devil Emperor were siblings.


    ��The Devil Emperor does not have any children,�� Mei Ting continued. His line seemed to hint at something.


    The Devil Emperor did not have any children; he only had direct disciples. In that case, Yu Sheng was the only person related to the Devil Emperor by blood. Moreover, Yu Sheng possessed frightening talent in Demonic Arts.


    Based on Yu Sheng��s former position in the Devil World, Ye Futian could tell that the Devil Emperor emphasized him.


    From the looks of it, the Devil Emperor might be training Yu Sheng as his successor.


    However, Mei Ting mentioned Yu Sheng��s identity when Ye Futian asked about his current wellbeing. What did Mei Ting mean by that?


    ��The Devil Emperor has been betrayed once, so���� Mei Ting said, ��Now, Yu Sheng has been imprisoned by him.��


    Ye Futian��s heart skipped a beat. His face turned pale. He understood what Mei Ting meant now.


    The Devil Emperor had been betrayed once. Was the betrayer Godfather?


    If that was the case, what would the Devil Emperor think now that Yu Sheng, whom he had devoted his time training, had disobeyed his order?


    Would he tolerate yet another betrayal?


    Currently, Yu Sheng was imprisoned.


    ��Now, the Devil Emperor might demand more of Yu Sheng than just leading troops into the Original Realm. Yu Sheng has disobeyed him because of you,�� Mei Ting explained as he looked at Ye Futian. He sighed and continued, ��You have a better understanding of Yu Sheng than I do. With his personality, do you think he will agree to the Devil Emperor��s demands?��


    ��He won��t.�� Ye Futian was clear about Yu Sheng��s answer. If the Devil Emperor ordered Yu Sheng to attack Ye Futian, would Yu Sheng compromise and agree to obey?


    He would never do so.


    ��I am not supposed to be here today, but I came because I want to let you know about this matter. Farewell,�� Mei Ting said. Then, he waved his hand, removed the boundary, and disappeared from the tavern right away.


    After Mei Ting left, Ye Futian remained sitting and was in a daze. He looked pale.


    ��Master.�� Worried, Fang Cun and the others approached him.


    They had been with Ye Futian for many years and had never seen him with such a dejected expression. What had happened?


    What matter did Mei Ting and Master discuss when they were in the sealed space just now?


    ��Master, is something wrong?�� Little Ling couldn��t help but ask too.


    ��Nothing. I am heading back first. You don��t have to worry about me,�� Ye Futian replied. Then, he disappeared without a trace. This caused the others in the tavern to reveal shocked expressions.


    ��What happened?�� Tie Tou mumbled. Fang Cun stared at the spot where Ye Futian had been and said, ��Since Master did not tell us, it probably means that we can��t help him with it. Let��s hope that everything is fine!��

 Chapter 2602 - Submission

    In the sleeping quarters of Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian sat alone, seemingly deep in contemplation.


    Hua Jieyu came to his side and sat down quietly behind him, not disturbing him. She could tell that Ye Futian had something on his mind, so she merely sat there silently and kept him company.


    The news that Mei Ting brought made Ye Futian restless.


    First of all, he had to determine the truth of the news that the latter had brought.


    He speculated that the news should be true. There was no need for Mei Ting to lie to him. If this was a scheme by the Devil World against Ye Futian, it was unnecessary. If the Devil Emperor wanted to deal with him, it would be child��s play for the former to do so.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had witnessed Yu Sheng��s position in the Devil World before. If no harm had come to Yu Sheng, it was even more unlikely for Mei Ting to use Yu Sheng as an excuse to trick Ye Futian.


    He hoped that the news was fake, yet he had to fundamentally eliminate this possibility.


    If so, the next question he needed to ponder was what he would do about it?


    What Mei Ting said was true. With Yu Sheng��s character, he couldn��t compromise with the Devil Emperor. Ye Futian did not know what sort of person the latter was for now, but the master who ruled over the Devil World would certainly be extremely imposing. The demonic techniques that he cultivated would also be extremely domineering. One could imagine the character of such a person.


    Would the Devil Emperor tolerate Yu Sheng not compromising?


    ��Fool!�� chided Ye Futian in a low voice. He seemed to have come to a decision. He let out a long breath and then turned to look at Hua Jieyu. He saw her smiling sweetly at him. She extended her hand and pushed the white hair in front of his head away. Her eyes shone with gentleness.


    Ye Futian sensed the tenderness in her actions and felt greatly comforted. He asked softly, ��Jieyu, how long have we known each other?��


    ��It has been 137 years since we first met, and this is our 133rd year together,�� Hua Jieyu replied gently. It was now Year 10,133 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. They decided to become a couple during the firework celebration, which marked the arrival of Year 10,000 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar.


    ��It has been more than 100 years.�� Ye Futian stared at the beauty in front of him, smiled, and said, ��At that time, Yu Sheng and I were both still youths. You were the top beauty of Qingzhou Academy. When you fell in love with me, most likely everyone in the academy thought that you had gone blind.��


    ��They were certainly the blind ones,�� Hua Jieyu responded with a sweet smile.


    Ye Futian shook his head. He cupped her face in his hands, declaring, ��The luckiest things I have encountered in life are meeting you and becoming brothers with Yu Sheng.��


    Hua Jieyu��s eyes glistened with joy. However, she asked softly, ��Did something happen to Yu Sheng?��


    Ye Futian was momentarily stunned. Then, he smiled and said, ��I can��t hide anything from you.��


    ��Aside from Yu Sheng, there��s no one else who can make you so emotional,�� Hua Jieyu explained with a smile. ��Are you planning to go to the Devil World?��


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian did not dare to look Hua Jieyu in the eyes as he replied.


    ��Go ahead,�� Hua Jieyu said directly.


    Ye Futian was stupefied. He looked at Hua Jieyu with puzzlement.


    They were talking about the Devil World now. Moreover, Yu Sheng was imprisoned by the Devil Emperor.


    One could imagine how perilous his trip would be.


    ��We��re talking about Yu Sheng. Why would I stop you?�� said Hua Jieyu while staring into Ye Futian��s eyes. Her gaze was cheerful as before. She assured him, saying, ��Don��t worry. I will not go with you. I will wait for your return in Ziwei Imperial Palace.��


    She knew very well what Ye Futian was thinking.


    As she had said, they were talking about Yu Sheng. What could stop Ye Futian from rescuing him? How could she stop him?


    If she were the one in danger, Ye Futian would do the same for her. Would Yu Sheng stop him? No. He would join Ye Futian in the rescue.


    However, she knew that Ye Futian would not agree to let her tag along. Hence, she would wait patiently for his return here.


    Ye Futian��s heart felt warm as he stared at her beautiful face. Hua Jieyu was most likely the person who understood him best in the world.


    ��


    In the Taishang Domain of the Divine Prefecture.


    The Taishang Domain was a powerful region in the Divine Prefecture. In terms of ability, Taishang Domain Chief ranked in the top three among the 18 Domain Chiefs. Moreover, there were two giant forces in the domain. One of them was the Jiang Ancient God Clan.


    The other giant force was the Shen clan.


    The surname of the Shen clan members was ��Shen.�� Their ancestors were deity-level figures and Great Emperors. Unfortunately, their ancestor��s inheritances were not passed down. In spite of that, their abilities were formidable.


    Currently, the Shen clan only minded their own business. Before this, they had been attacked once by Ye Futian. Even up until now, there were still many Shen clan cultivators who were trapped in the Ziwei Segmentum. As a result, the Shen clan did not even dare to participate in the series of wars against the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Up until today, the Shen clan was still worried whether or not Ye Futian would choose to settle the score with them.


    Shen clan lord had been training in seclusion with the intention of becoming stronger. He needed to advance half a step more before he could rest his worries of being defeated.


    On this day, the Shen clan lord was training in the clan.


    All of a sudden, terrifying ripples of the Great Path were stirred up around him. Shen clan lord opened his eyes, and his will scanned the surroundings. Then, a silhouette suddenly appeared in front of him. The visitor had white hair and was dressed in white robes. His temperament was extraordinary.


    Shen clan lord��s expression turned ugly when he saw the visitor. He had finally come here after all.


    The visitor was none other than Ye Futian.


    ��From the looks of it, it��s inevitable for us to fight,�� Shen clan lord said as he looked at Ye Futian. This figure before him had killed two giant-level figures from Celestial Worthy Mountain and Mo clan. His ability went without saying. However, Shen clan lord felt that his own ability would not be weaker than that of the two deceased cultivators.


    Nevertheless, he still did not have much confidence. Being able to put up a fight and kill the opponent were two very different concepts. The difference between the two was huge.


    ��It depends on you whether or not we will fight,�� Ye Futian said calmly with his hands behind his back.


    Shen clan lord frowned and asked, ��What do you mean?��


    Ye Futian said, ��The incident in the past resulted in my vendetta against Shen clan of the Lower Worlds. Even though you joined in later on, I do not have a strong reason to annihilate you. I can give you a choice.��


    ��Please speak your mind.�� Shen clan lord could naturally feel Ye Futian��s arrogant attitude. Even though the former was annoyed, he did not dare to speak up against the latter because he was weaker.


    Many things went without saying for Ye Futian to be able to show up in front of him without a sound or trace. If Ye Futian attacked them, the territory of the Shen clan would be reduced to flat ground immediately.


    ��From today onwards, Shen clan will obey my commands,�� Ye Futian proposed with a domineering tone. He wanted a giant-level force to submit to him and work under his command.


    Otherwise, why would he spare them?


    The Shen clan lord��s expression was ugly. The Shen clan was the descendent of Gods. They had a rich heritage and were one of the overlords. They were one of the forces which stood at the peak among all forces of the Divine Prefecture.


    Now, Ye Futian demanded them to submit to him.


    ��This is your way of humiliating Shen clan,�� Shen clan lord said coldly.


    ��If you can��t swallow this humiliation, then do you accept being annihilated?�� Ye Futian said as he stared into the eyes of the other party. ��It is a simple choice.��


    Would the Shen clan choose submission or destruction?


    ��You have killed two top figures, but you might not necessarily be able to defeat me,�� said Shen clan lord.


    ��Prior to our fight, Celestial Worthy Mountain Master also thought the same thing. In the end, he died,�� Ye Futian stated. Shen clan lord��s expression turned exceptionally ugly.


    ��Moreover, even if you want to push your luck and take a chance, how about the other members of Shen clan?�� Ye Futian continued to pressure the Shen clan lord.


    The gaze of Shen clan lord was deadly fixed on Ye Futian. The former was struggling fiercely internally.


    This was indeed a very simple choice to make. However, such a simple choice would decide the fate of all the Shen clan members.


    Would the Shen clan choose to live at the mercy of Ye Futian? Or would they choose to die with dignity?


    Or perhaps, could they pretend to agree to Ye Futian��s request? They would endure the humiliation and kill him when the chance arose in the future.


    Ye Futian silently stared at Shen clan lord. His deep and dark gaze caused the latter to feel that all his thoughts were exposed in front of Ye Futian. Even though Ye Futian was still young, both his abilities and his schemes were terrifying.


    ��Have you decided? I don��t have much time to waste here,�� Ye Futian urged.


    The muscles on the Shen clan lord��s face twitched as he held his fists tightly. He clenched his teeth and said, ��I agree. From this moment forth, the Shen clan will submit to your rule. However, if you order Shen clan to go die, I will not do it.��


    ��Since you agree, you are my subordinates. It��s impossible for me to command you to go to your deaths,�� Ye Futian assured him. ��From today onwards, Shen clan is under Ziwei Imperial Palace. However, do not reveal this news to others for now. Just carry out your day-to-day business as usual.��


    ��Yes, sir,�� Shen clan lord responded while lowering his head. It was as though he had accepted his new position.


    Ye Futian continued to order, ��Give me all the teachings of Shen clan. Besides that, I will lead a group of Shen clan core members to cultivate in Ziwei Imperial Palace.�� Shen clan lord��s expression turned stiff upon hearing his order.


    This b*stard.


    Right after he yielded to Ye Futian, the latter immediately asked for the teachings of the Shen clan from him. Shen clan��s teachings were the foundation of their clan. Furthermore, Ye Futian wanted to hold the core members of the Shen clan hostage in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��Palace Lord, you ordered someone to come and take away a group of cultivators last time. Those Shen clan members are still in the Ziwei Segmentum now,�� Shen clan lord said.


    ��I know. But it was quite rushed last time. This time, I will examine whether or not there are still talented core members among you. I will bring them to the Ziwei Segmentum for better training,�� Ye Futian replied. Shen clan lord was fuming inside, but he still nodded his head and said, ��Alright.��


    ��Clan Lord, go and prepare what I said,�� Ye Futian concluded nonchalantly.


    Before he left for the Devil World, he needed to set up a hidden chess piece in the Divine Prefecture in case of emergencies. Of course, it would be best if he didn��t need to use them.


    However, if any changes were to arise, this hidden chess piece would at least be somewhat useful.


    Shen clan lord was very cooperative in making sure that Ye Futian��s request was met. After that, Ye Futian left with the group of selected Shen clan members. However, he didn��t go back to the Ziwei Segmentum with them. Instead, he entrusted Blind Tie to lead them back. He had come to the Shen clan with Blind Tie.


    Ye Futian himself went to the North Cliff Region, the border of the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture.


    The North Cliff Region was far removed from the other places. It was situated at the far north of the Divine Prefecture. However, currently, the troops of the Divine Prefecture were gathered there. Countless cultivators headed to the region too.


    The troops of the Devil World invaded the Divine Prefecture through the North Cliff Region.


    Currently, the entire North Cliff Region was already thrown into war.


    Ye Futian made his way north. Along his journey, he saw the troops making their way towards the battlefield. Many cultivators were enlisted too. However, he ignored them and pressed on with Celerity. He moved across the battlefield and moved further up north.


    Ye Futian arrived at a sky river. The water was black in color and was accompanied by terrifying storms. It looked like the river was hanging from the sky.


    This was the Black River, the border which separated the Divine Prefecture and the Devil World. After one crossed the Black River, they would arrive at the gates, which would lead them to the Devil World.


    In the past, Ye Futian had no idea about this.


    After he had a better understanding of the worlds, only then did he know that the Devil World and the Divine Prefecture were neighboring lands. The lands of the two major worlds were connected!

 Chapter 2603 - Devil World

    On the edge of the Black River stood an enormous border marker. The stele was already broken, but one could still vaguely recognize the giant word imprinted on it, ��Cliff.��


    Before it was broken, the stele was carved with the words ��North Cliff.��


    This was the dividing line between the Devil World and the Divine Prefecture and the end of the North Cliff Region.


    But now, after the stele, atop the Black River, massive troops of the Devil World were appearing; they had traversed over from the other end to invade the Divine Prefecture.


    What was the grudge between the Divine Prefecture and the Devil World?


    The Empty Divine Realm and the Dark World had been provoking the Divine Prefecture previously. Unexpectedly, now, the Devil World was waging war against the Divine Prefecture.


    However, the Human Realm and the World of Buddhism seemed to have a decent relationship with the Divine prefecture.


    ��Who��s there!�� Just then, a yell could be heard. The voice was extremely cold and exuded a freezing aura. Ye Futian looked toward the Black River and saw a pair of demonic eyes glaring at him as though penetrating through space.


    Ye Futian levitated into the air and appeared atop the Black River. His pure-white clothes formed a stark contrast against the Black River.


    With a thought, he disappeared from where he was standing.


    A terrifying dark storm raged atop the Black River. Ye Futian��s figure traversed across the Black River, and he saw the grand Devil World Army.


    ��Someone has invaded.�� A figure came from the Black River. He unleashed his terrifying aura but wasn��t able to capture Ye Futian.


    As Ye Futian continued forward, he was rather surprised by the vastness of the Black River. With his speed, he could travel across an extremely vast area with just a thought. Yet he was still above the darkness, where the sky was dark, and it seemed as though the eyes of darkness atop the celestial skies were devouring everything in its sight.


    Before him was the end of the Black River, which looked like the end of the world. He could see the Devil World troops marching toward the Divine Prefecture one after another.


    The Devil World had clearly used its true powers in this war. They weren��t just testing things out like they were with the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm.


    Finally, Ye Futian arrived at the end of the darkness. There were terrifying whirlpools on the dark skies. Before him, the celestial worlds turned into a soundlessly large Devil Gate. As the Devil Gate opened, there were troops coming here successively through the door from the other side.


    ��Who��s there!�� One after another divine consciousness swept toward Ye Futian; there were several sharp, domineering auras among them.


    Ye Futian completely ignored them and continued to move forward. As he willed it, he appeared directly in front of that Devil Gate and stepped into it.


    A terrifying aura of space was floating in the air. His body was devoured by the Devil Gate. Moments later, he appeared in another world.


    Many terrifying auras engulfed him as several voices could be heard.


    ��Someone is invading.�� Ye Futian disappeared again. Several powerful auras were chasing after him, but they soon lost him and failed to track him down.


    Behind the Devil Gate, many powerful cultivators assembled. The leading few all had terrifying auras; they were all Tribulation Plane cultivators. They stared at the figure that was disappearing into the distance. Someone said, ��This person��s movements are unparalleled. Who in the Divine Prefecture is capable of such movements?��


    The cultivators shook their heads; no one knew who it was.


    ��There��s none in the Divine Prefecture, but there��s one in the Original Realm,�� a middle-aged cultivator with a slim physique said, looking into the distance. The pupils of the other cultivators constricted upon hearing him. Although they were inside the Devil World, Ye Futian��s name was bright as the sun in the sky. He was renowned throughout the Divine Prefecture and the Original Realm. Even the top figures of the Devil World had heard of him.


    Furthermore, a massive incident happened at the Devil Imperial Palace recently; it was also related to him.


    ��Why did he come to the Devil World?�� someone asked impassively.


    ��Perhaps, it��s because of ��him.�� We need to notify the Devil Imperial Palace.��


    ��If we want to capture this person, I��m afraid we will need the Demon Sage to do it personally.�� As they spoke, they notified the Devil Imperial Palace that Ye Futian had arrived. Afterward, they walked out of the Devil Gate and headed toward the Divine Prefecture. They didn��t bother paying any more attention to Ye Futian, as other people would deal with him.


    ��


    Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the Devil World. He stood in the void and raised his head to look toward the sky.


    There was no sun in the Devil World. The sky was dark as the night in the world outside.


    Furthermore, this sky gave people a formless sense of pressure. Ye Futian��s senses were sharp, which allowed him to feel this pressure that the world was exerting more. It was as though this pressure was omnipresent.


    Were the people of the Devil World enduring this divine might all the time?


    This was a world that was entirely different from the Divine Prefecture. Compared to the Divine Prefecture, the living conditions of the Devil World seemed to be significantly worse.


    According to legends, the Devil World had nine skies, ten continents, four oceans, and eight wildernesses.


    Ye Futian flew downward and reached the ground. He wanted to find a map and head straight for the Devil City.


    After landing on the ground, the gazes of the demonic cultivators around all swept toward him. All of them felt a little ominous. Ye Futian��s aura did not fit in with the cultivators of the Devil World at all.


    ��Mister!�� Ye Futian tried to ask someone a question, but that person just glanced at him coldly and walked away straight away. He didn��t even pause.


    Ye Futian was rejected several times in succession.


    He frowned and roughly understood why. Then, his body turned into a whirlpool and started to absorb the demonic currents in the world around him. Soon, the demonic aura flowed through him. At the same time, he changed into a black outfit. With a flash, his figure appeared in front of someone else.


    Afterward, things went a lot more smoothly. Before long, Ye Futian had obtained the rough map of the Devil World.


    Ye Futian didn��t stay there after getting the map. Instead, he set off straight away for the Demonic City of the Devil World. He desperately wanted to find information about Yu Sheng; he didn��t know what had happened to him.


    Ye Futian traversed the Devil World alone. He traveled across the nine skies and ten continents. On his way, he found out that the cultivation environment in the Devil World was even harsher than he had imagined. There were even powers of obliteration smiting down from atop the skies occasionally. Yet the cultivators of the Devil World seemed to have gotten used to it. Even really skillful cultivators could use it to their advantage to temper and improve their demonic arts. Ye Futian had never seen such incredible phenomena before.


    Previously, Ye Futian had gone to the Western World before. The World of Buddhism was also rather different from the Divine Prefecture. But apart from the thriving of Buddhism and how fantastic Buddhist methods were, the cultivation environment for normal people and the general environment of the world was still somewhat similar to the Divine Prefecture.


    On the other hand, the Devil World was greatly different. There was no daylight in the world, and it remained in darkness permanently. Even the faint light coming from atop the celestial skies seemed to be born from the aura of obliteration high up above.


    He also discovered a peculiar phenomenon. The population of the Devil World wasn��t as dense as the Divine Prefecture; however, the average power level of the Devil World cultivators was far greater than that of the Divine Prefecture.


    The Divine Prefecture was home to many powerful cultivators, but there were exponentially more weaklings there. The pyramid of power was rather clear.


    The overall power level of the Devil World was several levels higher. This would be caused by the harsh environment of the Devil World. The weaker cultivators couldn��t even survive in the environment of the Devil World. Those who managed to survive the process of natural selection were all very adaptable cultivators, which allowed them to reach a much higher level of cultivation.


    ��


    The Demonic City��the central city of the Devil World.


    Ye Futian thought that the cultivation environment here might be better than in other places. However, when he arrived, he found out that the cultivation environment of the Demonic City might be the worst across the entire Devil World.


    Far away atop the celestial skies, he could vaguely see a palace that connected to the skies. That was the Devil Imperial Palace, also known as the Demon God Palace.


    There was a terrifying storm of obliteration there. Even from such a great distance, Ye Futian could feel the terrifying aura that could suppress the entire world.


    Ye Futian had never thought that the Devil Imperial Palace would be situated below a turbulent storm of obliteration that seemed like it could destroy the world. The Demon God Palace seemed like it was shrouded by that power of obliteration and was constantly enduring the world-destroying power.


    ��What kind of world is this?�� Ye Futian wondered. The things that he saw right before his eyes contradicted his understanding of the world.


    As the main city of the Devil World, the Demonic City wasn��t as bustling as he had imagined. In the Divine Prefecture, the more powerful a place, the more bustling and lively it would be. But the Demonic City was different from the main cities of the Divine Prefecture. There weren��t that many cultivators here.


    However, their cultivation levels were even more powerful. Ye Futian could see demonic emperor-level cultivators nearly everywhere.


    As Ye Futian continued to walk forward, his divine consciousness covered a boundless, vast space. Instantly, many sounds in the Demonic City were funneled into his eardrums.


    With a turn of his mind, Ye Futian appeared below one of the demonic buildings. He raised his head and looked at the building and then walked up and found a place to sit down.


    The Devil World army is nearly reaching the North Cliff Region of the Divine Prefecture,�� said a voice from upstairs. They were talking about the war between the Devil World and the Divine Prefecture.


    ��The Demon Sage is personally leading the Devil World troops on the conquer. The Divine Prefecture cultivators are merely a mob. How will they be able to fend off our army? I wonder if the Devil Emperor will facilitate the charge this time to take down the Divine Prefecture,�� another person said.


    Ye Futian realized that when he mentioned the words ��Devil Emperor,�� there was a powerful sense of reverence in his eyes; it was a genuine emotion that came from his heart.


    ��There are countless powerful cultivators throughout the 18 domains and regions of the Divine Prefecture. Below Donghuang the Great, there are the Imperial Palace cultivators and the 18 Domain Chief��s Manors. I��m afraid it won��t be that easy either to take down the Divine Prefecture,�� Ye Futian said. He seemed to want to participate in the conversation intentionally to acquire more information.


    ��The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture live in such a luxurious environment! How will they be able to stop our Devil World army? The 18 domains wouldn��t stand a chance against our attacks,�� one of the demonic cultivators said. His voice was domineering, and he seemed to be full of confidence regarding the Devil World army��s strength.


    ��Donghuang the Great is also an unparalleled being in his era. He had harmonized the land of the Divine Prefecture and invigorated the cultivation of power and strength. There are countless cultivators in the Divine Prefecture and a great number of powerful ones. You shouldn��t underestimate the enemy,�� Ye Futian said impassively.


    ��Donghuang the Great��s reign only lasted for several hundred years. How could he compare to the Devil Emperor? Back in those days, the Devil Emperor��s might dominated the entire world. He commanded the nine skies and ten continents, four oceans, and eight wildernesses. He sits at the Devil Imperial Palace, atop the Devil Abyss. He alone endured the demonic tribulations of the skies and propped up the nine skies and ten continents of the Devil World. Such might�� How could Donghuang the Great even compare to him?�� The demonic cultivator��s voice turned cold as he heard Ye Futian. He stared at him and said, ��Who are you, trying to exaggerate the powers of the enemy?��


    As he spoke, a faint threatening aura was unleashed, and his gaze toward Ye Futian turned a little menacing.


    Ye Futian realized that all of the people in the building were looking toward the Devil Imperial Palace. Their gazes converged onto the storm of obliteration atop the sky as they bowed in that direction. There was great piety in their eyes.


    The Devil Emperor was a god here!

 Chapter 2604 - Seeking an Audience with the Devil Emperor

    Ye Futian was somewhat surprised at the respect the cultivators of the Devil World showed the Devil Emperor. In his imagination, the Devil Emperor suppressed the Devil World with his unparalleled domineering ability. Here, where the strongest was king, the demonic cultivators should be terrified of the Devil Emperor.


    However, when he looked at the demonic cultivators present, they showed the Devil Emperor admiration and respect that stemmed from their very cores.


    ��It is not that I wish to be a wet blanket. The Divine Prefecture is vast and endless and has countless top cultivators. If the members of the Devil World act careless and underestimate their opponent, we will only stand to lose out,�� Ye Futian said indifferently. ��Leaving aside the other forces, the disciples of Donghuang the Great are all extraordinary people with exceptional talent. I have heard that Donghuang the Great��s only daughter, Donghuang Diyuan, is also a proud daughter of heaven and is peerless among her generation. It will most likely be difficult to find someone in the Devil World who can contend with her.��


    ��All the direct disciples of the Devil Emperor have peerless demonic might. As for Donghuang Diyuan, the Devil World has claimed that they want to capture her and bring her to the Devil Imperial Palace,�� a demonic cultivator said indifferently. ��As for peerless figures����


    Ye Futian��s expression twitched slightly. He continued testing them, saying, ��There is one person whom I feel is missing out.��


    When he said this, the others fell silent. They clearly knew who Ye Futian was referring to.


    One person stood up and walked to the edge of the Demon Tower. He looked towards the Devil Imperial Palace and said, ��He will figure it out.��


    ��How is he now?�� asked Ye Futian. This was what he truly wanted to know.


    ��He is imprisoned beneath the Devil Abyss on the Demon Slaying Platform,�� said a voice. Ye Futian turned to look toward the stairs of the Demon Tower. A silhouette approached him. It was an elder who appeared to be in his fifties. His messy hair ran down over his loose, long robe. He seemed very unconcerned with his appearance. Ye Futian could not sense the aura of a cultivator from him.


    However, the more Ye Futian looked, the more he felt that this elder was extraordinary.


    Ye Futian could also do the same. If he wanted to hide his aura, others would be unable to detect it.


    The elder walked up to Ye Futian��s table. He walked up to the seat across from Ye Futian and then immediately sat down, not seeking Ye Futian��s permission to do so.


    From downstairs, the server in the Demon Tower brought up a bowl of noodles and placed it in front of the elder.


    The elder began eating on his own, seemingly out of place with everything here.


    Ye Futian observed the elder who was eating the noodles. The latter always had his head down, and his movements were neither fast nor slow. The noodles seemed exceptionally tasty, and he appeared like an ordinary person enjoying them very much.


    After a short while, the elder finished up the noodles. Only then did he look up at Ye Futian, who was sitting across from him, and said, ��Do you know about the Devil Abyss and the Demon Slaying Platform?��


    Ye Futian stared at the elder. He was uncertain about the background of the other party. Why had this elder immediately sat across from him? Could it be that he could tell that Ye Futian was not a cultivator of the Devil World?


    ��Elder, please shed some light on the matter,�� said Ye Futian.


    The surrounding people revealed strange looks as they stared at Ye Futian. There was actually someone who did not know about the Devil Abyss and the Demon Slaying Platform.


    ��All of you, tell him about them,�� said the elder. He was clearly talking to the others up here.


    Someone said, ��Legend tells that in the ancient world, the Devil Abyss was the second cruelest prison after the Heavenly Path. The collapse of the Heavenly Path formed the Devil World. However, the Devil Abyss still spanned above the lands of the Devil World. It is always creating destructive energy, even causing destructive catastrophes to descend. The cultivators of the Devil World have always been living under the harsh conditions of the Devil Abyss.��


    Someone to the side added, ��After the Devil Emperor unified the Devil World, he placed the Devil Imperial Palace at a spot closest to the storm of the Devil Abyss, pacifying it. With his own power, he withstood the various demonic catastrophes and protected the lands of the Devil World, allowing the cultivators here to be spared from disaster. The Devil Emperor also studied demonic methods, created many incredible demonic techniques, and passed them on to the members of the Devil World to cultivate����


    ��You��ve gone off-topic,�� said the elder indifferently. The person speaking seemed to have gone off the rails and was reciting the achievements of the Devil Emperor.


    ��The Demon Slaying Platform is beneath the Devil Abyss,�� said the elder as he looked at Ye Futian. ��The Devil Abyss sends down demonic catastrophes, which land on the Demon Slaying Platform. The cultivators who are imprisoned on the Demon Slaying Platform will face demonic catastrophes until they die.��


    ��No demonic cultivator imprisoned on the Demon Slaying Platform has ever made it out alive. However, not just anyone is qualified to be on the Demon Slaying Platform. Only those who have committed severe crimes end up there. The last time the Demon Slaying Platform was opened was more than 400 years ago,�� someone added.


    Ye Futian��s expression turned somewhat pale.


    Yu Sheng was imprisoned on the Demon Slaying Platform beneath the Devil Abyss. He would face endless demonic catastrophes until he died.


    ��Although he is imprisoned there, as long as he yields, he will be released. However, he would rather betray the Devil World than yield. In your opinion, is he doing the right thing?�� the elder asked as he looked at Ye Futian.


    ��Why did he not yield?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��He received an order to invade the Original Realm. He has a brother there. For his brother, he has forsaken his own identity,�� said the elder.


    ��To his brother, he is naturally not wrong for standing for his brother and valuing their friendship. From the perspective of the Devil World, he disobeyed the command of the Devil Emperor, so he is naturally at fault,�� replied Ye Futian.


    ��He cultivated in the Devil Imperial Palace and will inherit the Devil World in the future and rule over these lands. He shoulders a heavy mission. For the sake of his brother, should he give up his duty to the world? Is it right for him to lay down his life?�� the elder continued asking as he stared at Ye Futian.


    ��He is at fault,�� answered Ye Futian as he locked eyes with the elder.


    ��What choice do you think he should have made?�� the elder asked as he looked Ye Futian in the eye.


    ��He should have invaded the Original Realm,�� replied Ye Futian.


    The elder stared at Ye Futian. After a brief moment of silence, he stood up and said, ��Everyone knew what choice he should have made. Why didn��t he?��


    As he mumbled, he turned around and walked down the stairs, disappearing from Ye Futian��s sight.


    Ye Futian stared at the silhouette of the elder disappearing. Then, he gazed into the distance where the Devil Imperial Palace was.


    Everyone knew what to choose. Why did Yu Sheng not know?


    Yu Sheng was not ignorant. It was just that he prioritized his brotherhood with Ye Futian.


    Even if Yu Sheng had to turn his back against the whole world, he would still not betray Ye Futian.


    With a flash, Ye Futian disappeared from his original spot. The cultivators who were in the Demon Tower revealed shocked expressions when they saw the disappearing figure. Their wills swept out and scanned the surroundings, but they could no longer track Ye Futian��s whereabouts.


    ��He is so fast,�� someone commented. ��Who is this person? His cultivation is unfathomable.��


    ��He actually did not know about the Devil Abyss and the Demon Slaying Platform,�� someone said.


    ��Who was the elder? His background must be extraordinary. Although there was no aura emanating from him, I actually felt a formless pressure when he spoke,�� someone said. They all revealed pondering looks and strange expressions.


    These two figures were both somewhat strange. The crowd could not get a good read on them.


    What was the meaning behind their conversation?


    They could not understand. It sounded like rambling but also seemed to have a deeper, hidden meaning.


    Did the two of them know each other?


    ��


    Very few people visited the Devil Imperial Palace. A terrifying might pressured down on the space surrounding the palace. One could sense the terror of the domineering might even when they stood outside of the palace.


    The cultivators of the Devil World only dared to observe and worship the palace from a distance.


    However, right now, a figure appeared outside of the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian stood quietly as he gazed at the towering Demon God Palace. When he looked at the palace from a distance, he thought it was one with the ground. However, now that he was already at the base, he realized that the palace was still very high up and far away from him. He had to make his way vertically up until he reached the heavens before he could arrive at the Demon God Palace.


    Even though he was standing at the base of the Devil Imperial Palace, he could already sense a formless might. He could not imagine how terrifying the pressure would be as he ascended to the top.


    The cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace had to withstand this might all the time.


    After the Devil Emperor unified the Devil World, he single-handedly suppressed the Devil Abyss. Then, he controlled the entire Devil World and developed all the lands.


    A troop of Devil Generals appeared in front of the Heaven��s Gate of the Devil Imperial Palace. They stood on both sides of the gates, protecting the palace from any intruders. They looked down on Ye Futian with cold expressions. They exerted terrifying auras directly on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his head. His gaze seemed to penetrate the vast space. He loudly declared, ��Ye Futian from the Original Realm seeks an audience with the Devil Emperor!��


    ��Ye Futian from the Original Realm seeks an audience with the Devil Emperor!��


    His voice reverberated up into the sky. It immediately pierced through the heavens and could be heard throughout the palace.


    In the distance, many figures looked over towards his direction. They were extremely astonished. Someone had actually come to the Devil Imperial Palace seeking an audience with the Devil Emperor!


    In the Devil Imperial Palace, various cultivators similarly appeared and looked down at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s name was known to the members of the Devil Imperial Palace. Due to his existence, Yu Sheng had refused to invade the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian had actually come to the Devil Imperial Palace in the Devil World, seeking an audience with the Devil Emperor.


    This person actually had the gall to do so.


    There was no response from the Devil Imperial Palace. The Devil Emperor would not quickly respond to this.


    Below the Devil Imperial Palace, it was as quiet as a grave. Ye Futian stood alone down below, appearing very lonely.


    Before him was the Devil Imperial Palace of the Devil World. It was one of the most terrifying places in the world. After the Devil Emperor unified the Devil World, Ye Futian was the first person from the outside world who came here and declared that he wanted to seek an audience with the Devil Emperor.


    ��Ye Futian from the Original Realm seeks an audience with the Devil Emperor!�� Ye Futian shouted once again when he saw that nobody from the Devil Imperial Palace gave him any response.


    His voice reverberated throughout the heavens and echoed in space. The echo of his voice reached even the sky.


    In the Devil Imperial Palace, a demonic cultivator with disheveled hair stood on the Demon Slaying Platform, which was right underneath the Devil Abyss. His body was locked down by the Heavenly Demon Clasp. His clothes were in tatters, and he was covered in wounds.


    However, when he heard the voice from down below, his body shook violently. His jet-black eyes beneath his disheveled head of hair suddenly opened, revealing an astonishing demonic light!

 Chapter 2605 - To the Devil Imperial Palace

    More and more cultivators appeared inside the Devil Imperial Palace, but still, no one responded.


    And, he had to consider whether or not the Devil Emperor was someone that could be seen by him whenever he wanted.


    Ye Futian stood in the void as he raised his head to look at the towering Devil Imperial Palace before him. Then, he took a step forward and walked higher into the sky.


    In the world of the Devil Gate, strength was everything. If the Devil Emperor were not going to receive him, he would have to be creative in finding a way to see him.


    Boom! Before that Devil Gate, the powers of those cultivators on either side were full of horrific demonic prowess, as overbearing demonic shadows appeared, pressing in on Ye Futian��s location.


    Bang! Ye Futian took a sudden and violent step into the sky. When his footstep fell, the divine light of the Great Path swept out. It contained a terrifying power. Those demonic cultivators blocking in front of the Devil Gate were knocked back. However, they weren��t Injured but merely gave way to his advance.


    He came to the Devil Imperial Palace in hopes of an audience with the Devil Emperor. Still, he was not so arrogant to think that he could penetrate the Devil Imperial Palace so easily. Obviously, he was not here to hurt anyone. His purpose was only to ask for an audience.


    Yu Sheng had angered the Devil Emperor, and there was nothing Ye Futian could do to save Yu Sheng. The only way to save Yu Sheng was either for the Devil Emperor to change his mind or for Yu Sheng to compromise.


    After he repelled the cultivators who guarded the Devil Gate, Ye Futian continued to walk high in the sky. He did not attempt to cross using Buddha��s Celerity. This was the Devil Imperial Palace, and using such a method would not work. He could only hope to win their respect with his true strength.


    The Devil Imperial Palace towered high in the sky. Its true height was obscured. As he made his way up, he had to cross one chasm after the other. The lower area alone was populated by mighty hordes of demonic cultivators, much like a demonic army serving as the first line of defense. They appeared above Ye Futian, and none of them was weak in their cultivation; they were all in the realm of demonic emperors.


    And these were just the cultivators at the feet of the Devil Imperial Palace.


    In the void, the demonic might had overwhelmed this corner of the world. A terrifying aura came swooping down on Ye Futian as many demonic soldiers launched their attacks simultaneously at him. However, Ye Futian was wrapped up in the divine light, and as those attacks landed on his body, they did not affect him at all. His entire person was submerged by the power of the attack, but he didn��t move an inch.


    As he continued upward, all the attacks were shattered. Ye Futian twitched his mind slightly, and the vast space immediately solidified. All the demonic cultivators now felt it was difficult to move their bodies. It was as if they were frozen and that the space they were in was a prison.


    Ye Futian continued to walk up, passing through this mighty army of the Demon Emperor. A terrifying divine might swept out, and everyone was pushed back.


    ��Ye Futian asks to speak with the Demon Emperor.�� A sound rolled in the sky as Ye Futian looked up. The sky was dark and heavy. Cultivators appeared in different locations throughout the Devil Imperial Palace. The higher he went, the more terrifying the cultivators seemed to become.


    Of course, with his realm today, even in the Devil Imperial Palace, there were not many who could really deter him.


    After all, he was now able to single-handedly kill someone like the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain, who was a cultivator of the Second Tribulation Plane.


    As Ye Futian continued to move upward into the sky, 72 demon emperors appeared in front of him. Even Ye Futian had felt that monstrous aura from them along with a strong oppressive force.


    These 72 demonic emperors seemed to form a terrifying battle matrix, as the figure of an incomparable demon appeared above Ye Futian. He made a trampling motion directly towards Ye Futian, and a horrific roar violently rocked the space.


    However, the divine light surrounded Ye Futian as his figure turned into a flash of light. He raised his hand and attacked with a single finger. His body morphed into a sword as he continued his forward movement and penetrated the giant foot stomping down on him. The sword continued to penetrate through the body of the demonic shadow and pierced it in an instant, reappearing in the sky above.


    ��How strong!�� In the distance, the cultivators outside the Devil Imperial Palace looked up at the situation above, and they were extremely shocked.


    Ye Futian of the Original Realm had come this far, wanting to penetrate the Devil Imperial Palace, all for a chance to see the Devil Emperor.


    This was far too insane.


    The group who attempted the interception just now seemed to be from the 72 Tiangang division within the Devil Imperial Palace, which had several incredibly powerful existences. Nevertheless, they were unable to stop Ye Futian in the least because his strength had crushed them.


    ��Ye Futian asks for an audience with the Devil Emperor.��


    That voice was heard again. It was extremely dreadful and made many cultivators�� hearts beat wildly. It was as if he would not stop until the Devil Emperor received him in person.


    Above the Devil Imperial Palace, many people retreated and did not bother intercepting Ye Futian, who was continuing upward. They knew that unless they were Tribulation Plane cultivators, it was useless to try to stop him��there was simply no way for them to stop Ye Futian from advancing.


    Ye Futian made his way up, passing by many cultivators.


    Now that the Devil World was declaring war on the Divine Prefecture, many cultivators had been called out of the Devil Imperial Palace and went to the front to participate in the war. There were not many left behind to guard the Devil Imperial Palace. After all, who would dare to attack the Devil Imperial Palace?


    Even so, many powerful existences remained.


    At this time, above Ye Futian, there were two great cultivators of the Tribulation Plane.


    ��Imperial Devil General and Crazy Devil General.��


    In the distance on the outside, two powerful demonic cultivators hovered high in the sky, exuding tremendous auras. Everyone��s heart was beating wildly. These two great devil generals ranked second and fifth, respectively, and both were in the First Tribulation Plane. Imperial Devil General, especially, was already on his way to the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Even if it was such a peak force like the Devil Imperial Palace, there were not many cultivators in the Tribulation Plane, including the Imperial Palace in Divine Prefecture.


    Those who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path were already standing at the top of the pyramid. As for those who had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, they were considered giants in all of the worlds. Even when they established their own principalities outside, they would be regarded as giant-level forces.


    There were hundreds of millions of living souls in the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture, but there were very few who had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. On the record, there was only one such person in all of the Ancient God Clans.


    In the Devil World, cultivators of Tribulation Plane, or the Devil Generals, or a personal disciple of the Devil Emperor himself, or some even more noble characters inside the Devil Imperial Palace, were typically existences who were not out and about in the world, like the old demon who had been protecting Yu Sheng.


    The real power within those deity-level principalities, in fact, lay with those little-known existences who were well-hidden.


    Therefore, as far as all the major worlds were concerned, Ye Futian��s current strength was already at the very top.


    Boom�� A series of terrifying black lightning emerged like terrifying demonic tribulation. It carried with it a supremely destructive power. The Crazy Devil General stood above Ye Futian, some madness in his eyes as he bathed in the light of the demonic tribulation. His appearance was frightening beyond words.


    Around the Imperial Devil General, horrific demonic shadows appeared, as if all the demons of this world were under his command with an extremely domineering force.


    An overpowering divine light bloomed from Ye Futian��s body as he swept towards the two great devil generals. Those who once stood high and mighty above the world now appeared common in his eyes. How could the cultivators in the First Tribulation Plane do anything to stop him?


    Boom! Hundreds of thousands of demonic tribulations swept down, blasting on Ye Futian��s divine body. However, as Ye Futian was bathing in it, he was unmoved. Instead, his body bounding towards the sky above, as a shocking and audible booming was heard from him. His momentum was most audacious as he launched a fist at the Crazy Devil General.


    There was a terrible loud noise, and this punch seemed to have all the power that could destroy the Great Path. The demonic tribulation danced wildly, and the Crazy Devil General flew back.


    Soon, Ye Futian turned around as he dealt another punch at the Imperial Devil General; it was overpowering and direct.


    The fist will pierced through the void and shattered all the demons who were summoned. As they lay in a pile of dust, the Imperial Devil General suffered a similar fate. He was knocked back by a punch that he simply could not have stopped.


    After he repelled the two great Devil Generals, Ye Futian continued upward. He looked up at the sky above the Devil Imperial Palace and said again, ��Ye Futian asks for an audience with the Devil Emperor.��


    He was now at the highest point of the Devil Imperial Palace, and many characters with extraordinary temperaments were right in front of him. Their cultivation levels were different. There were Upper Demonic Emperors as well as Demonic Emperors of Tribulation Plane, but they were all young. They were the disciples of the Devil Emperor.


    ��Stay back,�� said a voice from above the sky, asking them to stand down.


    Everyone in the Devil Imperial Palace understood that unless someone at the giant-level were to make a move, no one else could stop Ye Futian.


    No doubt, the Devil Imperial Palace had other ways to prevent Ye Futian from going any further��they could even directly kill him off��but Ye Futian had gotten inside the Devil Imperial Palace with his own strength, so how could the Devil Imperial Palace use other less honorable means?


    A figure appeared in front of Ye Futian, and it was none other than the one who had spoken before and made the others stop.


    It was a woman clad in a flaming red garment with flaming red lips. Her long hair was flying wildly in the wind. She appeared quite enchanting to those who beheld her presence.


    ��Second Protector!��


    When the cultivators inside the Devil Imperial Palace saw the woman��s appearance, their hearts palpitated. Above the Nine Devil Generals in the Devil Imperial Palace, there were also Four Great Protectors under the direct command of the Devil Emperor. The Eight Devil Generals defended on the outside, while the Four Great Protectors ensure the safety within. Although there was no obvious difference in their ranks, the fact remained that the status of the Four Great Protectors was a bit higher.


    Their cultivation was also much greater.


    Among them, the First Protector and the Second Protector had both survived the Second Tribulation of the Great Path.


    As for the Eight Great Devil Generals, only the first Devil General was a cultivator who had survived the Second Tribulation of the Great Path.


    In the Devil Imperial Palace, the Three Great Demon Sages, the Four Great Protectors, and the Eight Great Devil Generals were the cultivators of the highest level known in the entire Devil Imperial Palace.


    Normally, the Four Great Protectors did not leave the Devil Imperial Palace .


    The woman who appeared before them was the Second Protector of the Devil Imperial Palace. Her cultivation level was monstrous, and she had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    The female protector in red stood in the sky above Ye Futian, and there was an indistinct aura that may or may not have been released from her, releasing an invisible coercion. Even someone as strong as Ye Futian could still feel a trace of pressure from her.


    This woman was stronger than the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain and the clan lord of Mo whom he had slain. This was the top cultivator of the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Normally, she was probably a rare existence, and not many from the outside world would have even known about her.


    But at this moment, she was standing right in front of him!

 Chapter 2606 - Blood Raiment

    The female Protector in red was known as ��Blood Raiment.�� It was a name that she had given herself after she had achieved success in her cultivation. As for her actual name, no one knew what it was.


    Blood Raiment was the Second Protector of the Devil Imperial Palace, someone who had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. From the perspective of those in the Divine Prefecture, she was a figure on the level of a great demon.


    Her eyes seemed to have turned into the color of blood. She glanced at Ye Futian, then turned to head higher into the sky.


    Ye Futian followed her up. But because it was straight up, horizontally speaking, his position was now much further away from the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Soon, Blood Raiment stopped. The two of them stood high above the sky, with all the demonic cultivators in the direction of Devil Imperial Palace looking at them intently.


    Could the Second Protector of the Devil Imperial Palace stop Ye Futian?


    Blood Raiment lowered her head again and looked at Ye Futian. This was the second time she looked at him, and her eyes had turned the color of blood. In the next moment, a bloody divine light expanded in Ye Futian��s eyes, changing the world he was seeing.


    This was a world awash in the color of blood. It was no longer as dark as the world outside but an extremely vivid color of bloody red.


    Above the firmament, the bloody cloud of tribulation roiled, giving birth to a bloody divine matrix that was terrifying to the extreme.


    Buzz! Moments later, countless bloody divine tribulations fell in this world, flooding the domain space.


    This bloody divine tribulation was even more terrifying than the power of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Ye Futian stood amid the domain, his body surrounded by the protection of the divine light. Although his physical body was incomparable and resembled a divine body, he did not dare to be careless before the actual engagement. At this moment, he was facing a supreme cultivator of the Devil World.


    Boom! As the bloody divine tribulation descended, Ye Futian felt that the blood inside his body, too, was roaring madly; it was as if it was about to rush out of his body and explode.


    At the same time, his spiritual soul was also under attack in an extremely domineering fashion like never before.


    Upon Ye Futian��s body, the Light of Buddha was blazing fervently while the Sound of Buddha lingered. Ancient Buddhist runes floated all around him as he was incarnated as a Buddha. A massive Buddhist battle form appeared, chanting the Six Syllables of Truth.


    It was believed that Buddhism had a certain restraining effect on the power of the demonic way. He had many Buddhist abilities at his disposal. Naturally, he would want to test this hypothesis.


    A series of spells were uttered from his mouth, turning into powerful golden Buddhist lightning, colliding with the bloody divine tribulation that crashed down. The two then collapsed and shattered together. Ye Futian��s battle form was gigantic but motionless, which had a particular effect in shocking the demonic method into submission.


    Blood Raiment looked down at Ye Futian. She hadn��t said a word since the beginning, but at this moment, a slight sense of disturbance was beginning to take hold of her heart. Ye Futian��s cultivation appeared to be only at the realm of Renhuang, but he could explode combat effective at the level of Tribulation Plane during battle. In contrast, his overall realm remained at Renhuang.


    This was an incredibly uncanny phenomenon, but she realized that this man��s power of the Great Path was not any weaker than hers.


    The look in Blood Raiment��s eyes grew serious as her eyes released the bloody light of tribulation and looked towards Ye Futian. The Devil Emperor himself had created a variety of demonic methods, passing them on to the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace. She was once a personal disciple whom the Devil Emperor himself had valued very much. She had followed the Devil Emperor in cultivation for many years and was later named the Great Protector, receiving the true heritage of the Devil Emperor.


    The bloody divine light flooded the entire world, and the terrifying, bloody divine light melted those golden runes, which also submerged Ye Futian within. The bloody divine light had swallowed everything and swept towards his gigantic Buddhist battle form.


    ��Blood refinement!�� Ye Futian��s heart trembled slightly. The Buddhist runes he released had been refined to nothing by the bloody divine light, as they were being incorporated into that bloody domain. This kind of blood refining technique was truly frightening indeed.


    Both of them controlled the scope of the battle to some extent. If they were on the battlefield, a horrific existence such as Blood Raiment would be able to cover a space ten of thousands of miles in radius and refine this whole world into a world of blood. She would be able to kill countless cultivators with a single thought. The existence of the Second Tribulation Plane had unimaginable destructive power on the battlefield.


    The Buddhist battle form, as transformed by Ye Futian, seemed to be on the verge of being refined under that bloody divine light as well.


    Blood Raiment stared at Ye Futian. This was her domain world. At their level of cultivation, the domain world was no longer limited to just the power of the Great Path that they had acquired. Still, their comprehension had also been incorporated into it.


    A terrible bloody aurora shot out from Blood Raiment��s eyes. In the next moment, in that bloody domain world, a terrifying, bloody divine light appeared inside the bloody storm, which instantly shattered the Buddhist battle form. As it disintegrated, it was being eroded and swallowed up little by little.


    Ye Futian had sensed all that was happening as he clasped his hands together, and the Light of Buddha lingered around him. Suddenly a tremendously sacred aura permeated. With the divine light still protecting him and surrounding the Buddhist battle form, that broken battle form began to repair itself and return to its previous state; that destructive, bloody divine Light was unable to continue refining it.


    This battle form seemed to be in a domain of its own, and it was a domain that belonged to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and clasped his hands again, incarnating as a Buddha. The Sound of Buddha was uttered from his mouth, and suddenly, the battle form expanded continuously. The Light of Buddha was getting stronger, and the area that he occupied in this space continued to increase.


    ��What?�� Blood Raiment stared at the sight in front of her. Was this Ye Futian��s counterattack?


    It turned out he was able to suppress her blood refining domain.


    Thousand Buddha hands appeared around that ever-increasing battle form, and each arm made the sign of the Buddha. Suddenly, Buddhist swords appeared, cutting through the demonic power like a punishment, containing incomparable sacred brilliance.


    Along with the astonishing blooming Light of Buddha, those many arms reached towards the sky above in unison. While those Buddhist swords slashed outward, breaking open the blood-colored space, they were also aiming towards Blood Raiment, who was above.


    Hundreds and thousands of sacred Buddhist swords descended in an instant, severing all demonic forces with their unspeakable power of terror.


    Those many Buddhist swords swung directly at Blood Raiment, but she made no evasive moves. However, when those Buddhist divine swords came down on her, her body directly turned into a bloody light, as if she had been slain.


    But Ye Futian knew very well that no harm had been suffered by the other party.


    This was the art of blood transformation.


    Sure enough, in another direction, a human form emerged from that bloody light, then turned into the figure of Blood Raiment, who had suffered no harm whatsoever. The attack just now did not touch her nor damage her in the slightest.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he understood that as long as he could not dominate this domain world, he would never be able to defeat Blood Raiment or her art of blood transformation. Until this domain world was destroyed, Blood Raiment could always integrate back into this bloody world at any time. He would never have the upper hand in defeating his opponent unless he could control her domain world.


    In the sky above, the endless bloody light turned into a bloody divine matrix and gave birth to a terrifying, bloody divine halberd. There seemed to be a bloody storm of destruction hovering as Blood Raiment stretched out her hand, suddenly holding one end of the bloody halberd and slowly pulling it out. A destructive might swept out, and that bloody halberd seemed to be an extremely powerful sub-divine arm. In fact, it was conceived by nothing other than the realm of the Great Path.


    The moment Blood Raiment held the bloody divine halberd in her hand, she became extremely overbearing, as if she had transformed into an incredibly dominant empress.


    Buzz! Blood Raiment disappeared right from where she was as countless bloody divine tribulations descended, smashing on the Buddhist battle form. At the same time, Blood Raiment��s bloody halberd also came at him, and the bloody light of destruction penetrated this corner of the sky.


    Boom�� Cracks began to appear in the Buddhist battle form itself. The breath and blood tossed and roared inside of Ye Futian as his body was knocked back. The attack of Blood Raiment��just by power alone��was shocking enough.


    The Devil Emperor had created his own Super Demonic Form, and the cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace had derived various other types of powerful demonic forms from it. Blood Raiment was a disciple of the Devil Emperor, so it was no surprise that she had received a lot of his power. Just her physique and strength had surpassed some of her equals.


    The Buddhist battle form collapsed and shattered with a loud bang, revealing Ye Futian��s true form as he retreated to reappear in another location. His body was surrounded by the divine light so that he was not corroded by the bloody power; his eyes continued to fasten on Blood Raiment.


    It took a great deal of strength to shatter his Buddhist battle form; she deserved her reputation as a supreme cultivator of the Devil Imperial Palace.


    ��Although the elder��s cultivation was monstrous, you can��t keep me from making my way up.�� Ye Futian looked at Blood Raiment and continued, ��I��m hoping the elder will let me pass and seek an audience with the Devil Emperor.��


    ��Presumptuous creature.�� The bloody halberd in Blood Raiment��s hand pointed at Ye Futian as she spoke coldly. Did he really think she was unable to stop him from moving forward?


    Ye Futian was just too arrogant.


    However, she had felt Ye Futian��s strength in this battle.


    Ye Futian glanced at Blood Raiment, then a divine light of the Great Path spread towards the surroundings above his body. With him in the center, his domain world was expanding.


    Blood Raiment frowned as the sea of blood roared, swallowing and refining everything, and went towards Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian��s domain space directly swallowed up the sea of blood and ingested it into his domain. Blood Raiment��s expression suddenly changed.


    Soon, that domain space swallowed everything, including the entire bloody domain. At this moment, the domain world of the two seemed to become one, and no one couldn��t tell whose domain was under whose control. It was something that only the two of them could feel.


    Blood Raiment stared at Ye Futian in disbelief. She could hardly believe that the other had gained control so late in the exchange, and his domain of the Great Path had overwhelmed and superimposed her domain world. This was the suppression of domain space. She was a cultivator of the Second Tribulation Plane, and it was simply unimaginable that she was being suppressed by someone who was only in the Renhuang Realm.


    Ye Futian��s thought moved, and the whole world seemed to slow down. The rules were affected while Blood Raiment could perceive that her blood refining space was being suppressed and that everything was grinding to a halt.


    The Sound of Buddha lingered in Ye Futian��s mouth. Suddenly, an infinite and massive ancient Buddha appeared between heaven and earth, blocking out the sun in the sky, sheltering the entire domain world. A face of the Buddha appeared in the domain.


    Ye Futian��s hands made a sign of Buddha as he continued to utter the Sound of Buddha, which turned into a terrible Vajra mantra. At the same time, the ancient Buddha who dominated this entire domain space was reciting the Sound of Buddha, same as Ye Futian. Blood Raiment suddenly looked terrible. The Sound of Buddha had made her irritable.


    ��Enough!�� The bloody light dissipated as she retracted her own domain space.


    Obviously, she realized that she had been defeated. When her domain was suppressed, she was soundly beaten.


    ��Thank you for your concession,�� Ye Futian said as he continued to move higher into the sky above the Devil Imperial Palace. He said loudly, ��Ye Futian asks for an audience with the Devil Emperor!��


    His figure was moving higher and higher, heading toward the peak of the Devil Imperial Palace.


    The Second Protector��Blood Raiment��had been beaten. In all of the Devil Imperial Palace, who could stop Ye Futian now?

 Chapter 2607 - The Devil Emperor

    As Ye Futian continued toward the sky above the Devil Imperial Palace, the terrifying coercion above the sky became more and more frightening, suppressing his body and soul.


    The suppression was making him extremely uncomfortable. The people in the Devil Imperial Palace had long been accustomed to this particular type of suppression, but it was the first time for him at the Devil Imperial Palace. Fortunately, both his physical body and spiritual soul were powerful enough that he was not affected too much.


    Just as Ye Futian continued to walk up, a figure in black appeared above him. This man��s eyes were terrifying. At first glance, Ye Futian could feel that monstrous demonic might. It was as if the entire world had transformed into the power of the demonic way.


    He stopped involuntarily as he raised his head to look up at the figure above the firmament.


    ��Demon Sage!�� Below the Devil Imperial Palace, many people bowed and worshipped, looking with reverence at the man who had appeared.


    The three Great Demon Sages in the Devil Imperial Palace were known to be incredibly tyrannical. Their strength was above that of the Protectors, and they were in fact, the Devil Emperor��s right-hand men. Besides the Devil Emperor, the three Great Demon Sages were the highest commanders of the Devil World. Despite the fact that there were hidden cultivators of supreme prowess, these cultivators were not usually in control of the daily affairs in the Devil World.


    The Demon Sage who appeared looked down to scrutinize Ye Futian��s presence. His eyes were as overpowering as his stalwart physique; it was as if he possessed infinite power.


    ��Earth Demon Sage!�� This Demon Sage in black ranked last among all three of the Great Demon Sages and was named the Earth Demon Sage. However, even as the weakest Demon Sage of the three, his strength was considerably horrific.


    The Earth Demon Sage was once a disciple of the Devil Emperor as well. He had followed the Devil Emperor in many conquests over the years, and there was blood on his hands. The Devil Emperor had always favored and valued this particular disciple of his, keeping him close by his side in cultivation.


    Even with other foreign conquests, he had always dispatched the other Demon Sages and kept Earth Demon Sage by his side.


    Just standing there, it was enough for Ye Futian to feel a great sense of pressure.


    At this moment, the Earth Demon Sage violently stomped towards the space below, and a monstrous divine power immediately blasted down and slammed on Ye Futian. Accompanied by a loud boom, Ye Futian was knocked down by the shockwaves.


    ��What a powerful force.�� Ye Futian stopped his downward momentum and looked up at the Earth Demon Sage in the void. This force was filled with unimaginable aggression.


    The divine light of the Great Path circulated around his body, and Ye Futian��s physical body was comparable to that of a divine body, emitting extreme brilliance Once again, he resumed his course towards the sky above.


    Bang! The Earth Demon Sage stomped again in the void, and as his footstep landed, it was as if he had stepped directly on Ye Futian. Ye Futian felt as if there was a great piece of earth lying right on top of him, hindering his movement so that he was unable to take another step forward.


    Ye Futian raised his arm and blasted a punch toward the void. The divine light radiated as that punch shattered the void, blasting above that invisible power, and causing a dull and violent thud above the firmament. Even the space shuddered violently.


    Buzz! After Ye Futian repelled that force, his figure flashed away. He disappeared directly from where he was and reappeared in front of the Earth Demon Sage. He raised his hand to attack with one finger. As soon as this finger fell, the Sword Will menaced in the space to tear everything apart.


    The Earth Demon Sage stared at him without wavering and raised his hand to launch a counterstrike that blocked the attack from that one finger. The two were now engaged in close-quarter combat.


    In an instant, the terrifying storm of devastating sword qi covered the body of the Earth Demon Sage as the incomparable sword will attacked his body; it was the kind of attack sufficient to destroy powerful existence such as the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain. However, this terrifying attack landed on his opponent��s body but did not manage to move the Earth Demon Sage one bit.


    That unparalleled strength even repelled Ye Futian and forced him back.


    The cultivators inside the Devil Imperial Palace watched everything calmly. This was the Earth Demon Sage. Did Ye Futian think he could break through his defense?


    Although the Earth Demon Sage ranked last among all three of the Great Demon Sages, he was extremely powerful in his own right. By physical strength alone, even the other two Demon Sages may not be able to best him.


    The Devil Emperor had unprecedented talent and had created many demonic methods by himself. Because he taught in accordance with the aptitudes of his disciples, he tailored his teachings based on the talent specific to each demonic cultivator differently. The Earth Demon Sage was a disciple that the Devil Emperor favored very much, and had spent a lot of time cultivating him carefully. The Devil Emperor had guided him to create an indestructible demonic body. Under the Great Emperor, not many could shatter this demonic body of his.


    Ye Futian wanted to walk over the Earth Demon Sage, it was easier said than done.


    At this time, Ye Futian clearly felt the physical force wielded by the Earth Demon Sage as well, and it was the strongest physical body he had encountered so far. Of course, his strength was also unquestionable. After all, there were not many giant figureheads who had fought against him.


    An even stronger aura exploded from Ye Futian as the divine light circulated inside his body. A destructive power permeated from him, destroying everything.


    For a moment, Ye Futian was standing in the void like some descendant of the gods, as his light showered all over this world.


    The Earth Demon Sage looked down and didn��t seem any different. He stomped again violently, rocking the void. But at this same moment, a wave of supreme heavenly might came over the Devil Imperial Palace, which surprised the Earth Demon Sage. He then retracted his aura and became subdued immediately.


    ��Let him through!�� After the heavenly might fell, a voice was heard in a commanding tone. Suddenly, everyone in the Devil Imperial Palace became extremely pious, as they began to bow in worship.


    This was the voice of the Devil Emperor.


    The Earth Demon Sage looked very respectful, and stepped aside, like a well-behaved disciple. The domineering spirit that he had exhibited just now was nowhere to be found.


    ��Bring him here,�� the voice commanded once again.


    ��Yes, Master,�� the Earth Demon Sage replied and glanced at Ye Futian with his pitch-black eyes, then turned to walk away.


    Ye Futian took a deep breath, then followed Earth Demon Sage moving forward. They continued to move diagonally, all the way upward.


    As they made their way up, there was already a patch of dark demonic cloud tossing about. However, this demonic cloud was not too heavy, and they had not yet arrived at the Demon God Palace that was towering into the clouds. It seemed closer than it actually was.


    They shuttled inside the Devil Imperial Palace, passing through many places until they entered the sky above that was surrounded by demonic clouds. It was then that they saw a Demon God Palace above the demonic clouds. And above the Demon God Palace, that devastating Devil Abyss hovered. The coercion from it made Ye Futian feel difficult to breathe.


    A series of pitch-black lightning and devastating storms gestated continuously and fell upon the Demon God Palace. It was hard to imagine that the Devil Emperor could be cultivating in such a harsh environment. It seemed to confirm what the outsiders had always believed, that the Devil Emperor had suppressed the Devil Abyss under his own power and took charge of the entire Devil World.


    The Earth Demon Sage and Ye Futian landed on the ground as if they were stepping on demonic clouds. In front of them, there were stone pillars that traversed into the firmament, extremely dark with demonic light lingering about them. There was also a vast cultivation court that was behind the Demon God Palace along with many buildings.


    That was where the Devil Emperor preached and taught his disciples.


    The Earth Demon Sage stood at the bottom of the stairs, bowing and saluting.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he, too, bowed. ��Ye Futian of the Original Realm greets the Demon Emperor.��


    A wave of demonic might descended, like a real heavenly might, and Ye Futian found it difficult to move his body. No matter how strong his cultivation was, at this moment, the Devil Emperor who was standing in front of him was an existence at the top of the world.


    In front of characters like this, he was no more than an insect.


    ��You come from the Original Realm and trespass on the land of the Devil Imperial Palace. You are very reckless. Aren��t you afraid of dying?�� An authoritative voice came from inside the Demon God Palace. Ye Futian had, in fact, risked his own life by coming to the Devil Imperial Palace. If the Devil Emperor changed his mind, he may very well perish here.


    ��Your Majesty the Devil Emperor is known throughout the world. Would he, who had unified the Devil Realm and held up the nine heavens, kill me so needlessly? Furthermore, I came to the Devil Imperial Palace to present a gift,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��What kind of gift?�� the Devil Emperor asked.


    ��The Original Realm,�� Ye Futian replied. ��If Your Majesty wants the Original Realm, I am willing to work with the Devil World to unify the Original Realm and yield its main control to the Devil World.��


    As soon as his voice fell, there was a moment of silence in the Demon God Palace. It seemed that Ye Futian��s words had surprised everyone.


    ��Why?�� After a moment of silence, the voice piped up again, sounded a little puzzled.


    ��After I came to the Devil World, I discovered that all the cultivators of the Devil World were extremely respectful of Your Majesty. Your Majesty had suppressed the Devil Abyss on behalf of everyone in the Devil World. If your Majesty were to rule the Original Realm, the land of the Original Realm would also belong to Your Majesty, which no doubt, Your Majesty will treat all beings in the Original Realm the same way.��


    ��Previously when I took over the Original Realm and expel the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, I was hoping to spare the people of the Original Realm from the disturbance of the chaotic world, so that they can cultivate freely, and promote the culture of martial arts. Even if the Devil World rules the Original Realm, the same end could be achieved for the Original Realm, and its chaotic situation could be resolved,�� Ye Futian responded.


    There was another silence.


    Then, the doors to the Demon God Palace opened, and on that deep throne inside Demon God Palace, a figure that seemed to be sitting there was slowly moving toward him.


    A monstrous demonic might enveloped his body. Ye Futian bowed his head and did not look around. In his perception, that demonic shadow was massive and tremendous, a real demon god. He felt his breathing quicken. When the other man walked outside, the demonic might that was pressing down on him was getting stronger as well.


    ��What did he teach you?�� A cold and domineering voice came from inside, which compelled Ye Futian��s heart to beat wildly.


    ��Who?�� Ye Futian said.


    ��You know who!�� the Devil Emperor continued. Suddenly, Ye Futian knew who the Devil Emperor was referring to.


    His foster father.


    Only his foster father was the link between him and the Devil Emperor.


    ��My foster father didn��t teach me anything,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��I can see that you did not cultivate in demonic methods, so he can��t really teach you anything.�� The Devil Emperor had walked out of the Demon God Palace and stood in front of the hall. Ye Futian raised his head slightly to look at the Devil Emperor. He took a deep breath and his heart was greatly shocked.


    The man in front of him was dressed simply, and his appearance was not outstanding in any way. However, just by standing there, he was like the ruler of heaven and earth, and that everyone in the world could only look up in worship, and dared not look at him directly; this was the powerful presence of the Devil Emperor.


    Ye Futian had never seen anyone with such a powerful presence. He did not release any aura outward, but one could feel the oppression tangibly. This was the oppression from the demon god.


    Moreover, he had seen the Devil Emperor once. At the time, he was an old man who was sitting opposite him and eating noodles on the Demon Tower. There was nothing detectable from him as if he was some common person without cultivation.


    But at this moment, he was the most aggressive and domineering demon lord in the world.


    ��Did he ever tell you who you really are?�� the Devil Emperor asked, staring at Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2608 - Death of Emperor Ye Qing

    Ye Futian raised his head, looking at the Devil Emperor in astonishment. He asked, ��No. Will Your Majesty tell me?��


    He had always wanted to know who he really was.


    The Devil Emperor looked at Ye Futian with those deep eyes of his, and he whispered, ��It is said that the ignorant have no fear.��


    ��I heard that he asked Yu Sheng to follow you, addressing you as the young master and he as your manservant. I am a little curious about your true identity.�� The Devil Emperor assessed Ye Futian. This was the reason why he had gone to the Demon Tower previously to see Ye Futian for himself. He wanted to know just what kind of person Ye Futian was, and if he was worthy of his assistance.


    What exactly was his relationship with Emperor Ye Qing?


    Was he really a descendant of Emperor Ye Qing?!


    Could this be true?


    Except for Ye Futian and Yu Sheng, the Devil Emperor was probably the one other person who knew the most about the situation. He knew his younger brother better than anyone. He knew how Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had been raised and educated. These were things that no one else knew just yet.


    The doubts inside Ye Futian��s heart grew. Even the Devil Emperor had no idea of his origin?


    Who was he?


    ��Do you know why Emperor Ye Qing died?�� The Devil Emperor continued to press him. His eyes never left Ye Futian.


    ��All I know was that the two emperors fought, and Emperor Ye Qing perished because of Donghuang the Great,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��You don��t know anything, yet you are in such a rush to come to the Devil World to die?�� As the Devil Emperor��s voice fell, a monstrous demonic might pressed down on Ye Futian. He let out a muffled groan, and his legs trembled. There were goosebumps all over his body. He found it difficult for him to remain standing.


    The Great Path roared in his body as he was surrounded by divine light, resisting this terrifying sense of oppression. In the sky above him, there was an extreme degree of demonic might that was beyond his ability to endure.


    Was there something else behind Emperor Ye Qing��s death?


    Why would the Devil Emperor say that he didn��t know anything and that he was coming to the Devil World simply to die?!


    ��Like him, the only things your two have are courage and stupidity,�� the Devil Emperor continued, and the terrifying demonic might continue to suppress Ye Futian. He took a step forward, and Ye Futian could feel his body trembling more severely. It was as if he was about to burst. He could feel a trace of murderous intent from the Devil Emperor.


    At this time, the Devil Emperor raised his brows slightly. Although he was in front of the Demon God Palace, he saw the dark figure on the Demon Slaying Platform under the Devil Abyss. That dark figure was on his knees, facing him as if bowing his head in repentance.


    Boom! There was a raging flame burning on the Devil Emperor. At this moment, the demonic clouds above his head were tossing and roaring, and even the Devil Abyss above the firmament was howling. A coercion of destruction sheltered the entire Devil Imperial Palace.


    At this moment, the many cultivators inside the Devil Imperial Palace lowered their heads. They had all felt the Devil Emperor��s rage, and none of them dared to breathe too hard.


    Who was it that angered the Devil Emperor to this degree?


    ��You betrayed the Devil World without a second thought. And now, for one man, you are willing to bend your knees and beg!�� A cold angry voice washed over the Demon Slaying Platform, resounding in Yu Sheng��s ears. However, Yu Sheng continued kneeling, his hair scattered upon his shoulders. He did not speak, merely enduring the anger of the Devil Emperor and that terrifying demonic might.


    In front of the Demon God Palace, Ye Futian also heard the angry voice of the Devil Emperor. His face suddenly turned pale. He bowed to the Devil Emperor and said, ��Your Majesty please be merciful.��


    ��You can��t even protect yourself! What right do you have to intercede on his behalf?�� The Devil Emperor merely glanced at Ye Futian with a terrifying might. He took another step forward again, and Ye Futian��s legs could hardly hold him up, but he pleaded, ��Your Majesty asked Yu Sheng to attack the Original Realm, but I voluntarily surrendered the control of the Original Realm. Why does your Majesty still insist?��


    ��What if I want to destroy the Original Realm? Are you then still willing to hand it over?!�� the Devil said coldly, and Ye Futian��s face suddenly paled. He was caught by this unexpected rebuke.


    ��If the Original Realm is under the control of Your Majesty, they are the people of the Devil World, so why would Your Majesty want to destroy it?�� Ye Futian couldn��t help but ask. He was puzzled.


    ��Only the people of the Devil World are my people. What does the death of beings from other worlds have anything to do with me? Why do I need them to be my people?�� the Devil Emperor questioned Ye Futian relentlessly. Ye Futian was speechless. Indeed, he had nothing for a comeback.


    The Devil Emperor was the commander of the Devil World; he was the god of the Devil World, but did he really need more people? Just as he said, what did he need more people for?


    If there was no need, then why should he be responsible for people from the outside worlds?


    He was the god of the Devil World, and he only ever cared about all those who resided in the Devil World and their well-being.


    ��You don��t understand anything!�� The Devil Emperor stared at Ye Futian. ��How he failed to educate these two idiots!��


    ��Your Majesty the Devil Emperor carries the Devil Abyss on behalf of every living being in the Devil World and suffered the demonic tribulations from the heavens. I don��t believe Your Majesty is a merciless killer who will slaughter all beings and let them burn.�� Ye Futian was quiet for a moment before he spoke again to the Devil Emperor.


    The Devil Emperor looked at Ye Futian in the eyes as he mocked, ��This line of thought is very similar to his. You are both idealists.��


    After that, he turned away and looked into the distance. He said, ��That��s enough of you!��


    He looked cold and seemed to be enraged at this moment. As the god of the Devil World, there was not be many who could make him angry.


    However, Yu Sheng could affect his emotions and pushed his buttons. This was a testament of the importance that the Devil Emperor had attached to Yu Sheng from the depth of his heart, and it was different from how he treated everyone else.


    ��Very well. Since you are begging because of him, let him keep you company,�� the Devil Emperor said indifferently. Then, he turned his head and glanced at Ye Futian, saying, ��Take him to the Demon Slaying Platform.��


    ��Yes, Master.�� The Earth Demon Sage bowed to acknowledge the order. The Devil Emperor then turned to walk towards the Demon God Palace. ��You came to the Devil World for the express purpose of saving him. If so, on account of your brotherhood, I will let you go to the Demon Slaying Platform together. If you are still alive after 49 days, I will allow you to live.��


    As the voice faded, the door to the Demon God Palace closed, and the figure disappeared from Ye Futian��s view. His eyes had a changing expression as he bowed in the direction of the Demon God Palace and said, ��Thank you, Your Majesty.��


    The Earth Demon Sage walked to Ye Futian, his eyes were indifferent. He looked at him and said, ��Thank him? Save yourself first!��


    As he spoke, he turned around and ordered, ��Come with me.��


    Ye Futian followed behind the Earth Demon Sage. They walked away from this area, and head towards the rear of the Demon God Palace. In that vast area, the demonic clouds rolled and roared, and a destructive demonic might was brewing.


    The demonic clouds here were extremely terrifying.


    They continued forward. In the place surrounded by the demonic cloud, there was a platform hanging high in the sky, surrounded by stone pillars that reached deep into the firmament. Looking up along those stone pillars, a hole could be seen that was in the sky, where the heaven was torn apart. In there, an incomparable destructive power was brewing. It was as if an apocalyptic tribulation was hidden within it. That flowing destructive power descended along the stone pillars and fell upon the Demon Slaying Platform.


    That was a corner of the Devil Abyss. This destructive force was pouring out of the Devil Abyss.


    On the Demon Slaying Platform, there was a black shadow being imprisoned on the stone pillar. Like a madman, his long hair was unkempt. As he raised his head at this moment and looked at Ye Futian, he asked, ��Why are you here?!��


    This was the Devil World. Ye Futian didn��t understand the Devil World. He had more chance of dying than living by coming here.


    But Ye Futian merely smiled and said, ��You are suffering. How can I not be here?��


    Yu Sheng clenched his fists tightly and made a crunching sound. The Earth Demon Sage said, ��Get up there.��


    Ye Futian glanced in the front, and he could clearly feel the destructive power on the Demon Slaying Platform. But he continued walking forward without hesitation.


    ��I know I was wrong. I am willing to lead the troops to the Original Realm!�� Yu Sheng raised his head and looked in the distance, roaring at the void. He knew that the Devil Emperor could hear him.


    Only he knew just how dangerous the Demon Slaying Platform was. If Ye Futian got on the Demon Slaying Platform, only death awaited him.


    There was no response.


    Yu Sheng��s eyes were fiery red, burning with anger.


    ��If you know of today, you wouldn��t bother to disobey the Master in the first place. Yu Sheng, you know very well how the Master treated you, and you are such a disappointment,�� the Earth Demon Sage said in an indifferent voice. Yu Sheng bowed his head as if he couldn��t muster the energy to retort.


    Ye Futian walked towards the Demon Slaying Platform. In an instant, the demonic clouds under his feet wrapped his body up and spread to his body. The light of tribulation turned into terrible chains and imprisoned Ye Futian��s hands and legs. Like Yu Sheng, he was also imprisoned on the Demon Slaying Platform.


    A frightening power engulfed Ye Futian��s body in an instant, sending a shudder through his body. He didn��t use this destructive power for the time being, but he could feel that the trembling in his soul.


    In an instant, the Great Path in his body roared and the divine light was shining. He turned into a divine body, blocking that invading destructive power. Even so, he was suffering an extreme discomfort, and this was just when he first stepped onto the Demon Slaying Platform. The real horror of it was unimaginable.


    ��This is the power of the Devil Abyss,�� Yu Sheng said to Ye Futian. ��There are endless demonic tribulations contained within it. The power of the Devil Abyss is sufficient to destroy the entire Devil World.��


    ��It doesn��t matter. We have been through a lot over the years, and this Devil Abyss cannot possible deter you and me.�� Ye Futian laughed loudly. He appeared not to have a care in the world. Although he was under great duress, he still maintained an extremely resilient will.


    ��Mmm!�� Yu Sheng nodded his head emphatically. As matters had evolved to this stage, there was no choice but to defeat the Devil Abyss.


    ��Why is the Devil Emperor acting like this?�� Ye Futian asked Yu Sheng. He didn��t understand how the whole thing went south so quickly. He knew it was a risk coming to the Devil Imperial Palace, and he had already planned for the worst-case scenario. However, he was here to make an alliance with the Devil World, and he was willing to hand over the control of the Original Realm. He thought that there was a great chance for success.


    But the Devil Emperor didn��t bother to pay attention to him at all. He even wanted to kill him.


    ��The Devil World was a prison in ancient times. All living beings in the Devil World always endured the harshest environment because of the Devil Abyss. He has always wanted to break out of this prison.�� Yu Sheng said, ��The death of Emperor Ye Qing was not just because of Donghuang the Great. The two emperors of Divine Prefecture wanted to stand side by side, but the other worlds disagreed. It was the same with the Devil World. There could only be one emperor between the two of them!��


    Ye Futian was shocked to the core. No wonder the Devil Emperor said that he didn��t understand anything.


    Then, this meant that Donghuang the Great had no choice but to go against Emperor Ye Qing. The rulers of the other worlds, in truth, were the indirect murderers!

 Chapter 2609 - Capturing Donghuang Diyuan?

    There were such grudges involved behind the death of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Speaking of which, if Ye Futian was the descendent of Emperor Ye Qing, or if he was related to Emperor Ye Qing, wouldn��t it make him the enemy of the Devil Emperor?


    Hence, the Devil Emperor said that Ye Futian had come here seeking his death.


    Ye Futian said, ��Before this, both the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm intended to ally with me. They wished to support me in standing up against the Divine Prefecture. If that��s the case, the Devil Emperor could do the same. After all, the murderer who was directly involved was Donghuang the Great.�� Ye Futian was still somewhat skeptical of the whole story as he said this.


    Yu Sheng explained, ��The Devil World is covered by the Devil Abyss and has been suffering because of it for countless years. 400 years ago, when the worlds were in chaos, the troops of the Devil World invaded the Outer Realms. However, they were stopped by Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. Aside from these two Emperors, most likely Human Ancestor and The Buddha did not agree to the invasion by the Devil World as well. The Devil World is both a prison and a seal. None of them wished for the population of the Devil World to escape from here. In the end, the turmoil ended with the death of Emperor Ye Qing. The Devil World also stopped invading the Outer Realms. Until recently����


    Ye Futian frowned as he listened to Yu Sheng��s explanation. The grudges among the few top figures were even more complicated than he had imagined. All the forces were involved in it.


    Human Ancestors from the Human Realm and The Buddha from the World of Buddhism were also involved.


    Even though the Devil Emperor had heaven-defying abilities, he could not fight against the will of the majority. The Devil World acknowledged Donghuang the Great��s ruling over the Divine Prefecture and ceased attacking. This might be a balance achieved through the agreement of all the major worlds.


    Ye Futian was certain that in the past, the Empty Divine Realm and the Dark World had their stance on this issue as well. They would not have observed idly.


    Only those top figures knew exactly what happened then.


    Nevertheless, one thing was certain: Emperor Ye Qing died in exchange for 400 years of peace. The worlds were no longer in chaos, and the war ended.


    The peace lasted until a prophecy was made known from the World of Buddhism. The changes of the worlds would begin with the Original Realm. Then, huge changes occurred to the Original Realm, and chaos once again surfaced. All the major worlds were eager to extend their influences. The forces from the Empty Divine Realm and the Dark World appeared in the Divine Prefecture.


    The Devil Emperor also gave the order to invade the Divine Prefecture.


    Just as the Devil Emperor said, he invaded the Divine Prefecture and the Original Realm not just to rule over more people.


    ��The Devil Emperor wishes to invade the Divine Prefecture to be freed from the Devil Abyss?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Yes,�� Yu Sheng nodded. ��The Devil World only joined the fight due to the preceding conflict between the Empty Divine Realm and the Dark World against the Divine Prefecture. In terms of their attitudes towards the Devil World, The Buddha, Human Ancestor as well as Donghuang the Great are the same. Hence, the Devil World suffered many years of suppression. It might be due to this that the Divine Prefecture could not have two Emperors.��


    ��That means that between the two Emperors, one of them had to die. Back then, Human Ancestor and The Buddha might have had a different opinion with the Divine Prefecture,�� said Ye Futian as he thought of this. In the past, if Human Ancestor and The Buddha had sided with the Divine Prefecture, there would have been four Great Emperors.


    ��They must have done so to preserve the balance of power,�� said Yu Sheng. ��For the Devil Emperor, his lifelong goal is to break free from the prison of the Devil Abyss and allow the Devil World to descend upon the other worlds.��


    ��With such harsh environments in the Devil World, why haven��t the cultivators of the Devil World moved to other worlds to cultivate?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��The faith of the cultivators of the Devil World is stronger than that of the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture as well as the other worlds. I believe that the faith of the people here is the strongest among all the worlds. When the Devil World declared war on the other worlds, everyone here participated. With a single command, billions of demonic sects across the lands became warriors of the Devil World,�� explained Yu Sheng.


    He had been cultivating in the Devil World for the past decades and came to know more and more about the place. An intense sense of belonging also grew inside of him.


    The Devil World was different from the Divine Prefecture.


    Hence, he had never thought of betraying the Devil World. If it weren��t for the existence of Ye Futian, he would have certainly joined the war. Even for Ye Futian��s sake, he had no intention of deceiving the Devil Emperor, instead choosing to come clean. He would rather be imprisoned here and withstand the catastrophes of the Devil Abyss.


    Ye Futian��s heart wavered. The lifelong ambition of the Devil Emperor was to break out of this prison and free the members of the Devil World from their plight. Ye Futian had also seen the adoration the members of the Devil World had for the Devil Emperor. All of them had strong faith.


    At the same time, for the people here, the Devil Emperor held up the Devil Abyss with his power.


    Ye Futian had previously ventured to the western World of Buddhism. Although the latter was slightly different from the Divine Prefecture, and their faith in Buddha was more zealous, the faith of the members of the Devil World was even stronger.


    The Divine Prefecture was the place that lacked faith the most.


    Although all the members of the Divine Prefecture admired Donghuang the Great and made martial arts prosper, the top forces all had their own agendas. The more powerful the cultivator or the force, the more they lacked respect and faith.


    ��What exactly is the Devil Abyss?�� Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at the sky. A destructive storm gathered above. It was akin to the eye of the Devil Abyss, staring down on them.


    ��According to legends, it is the catastrophe of the Heavenly Path. It was used to punish heinous sinners during ancient times. The entire Devil Abyss was a prison for sinners who offended the Heavenly Path.�� Yu Sheng raised his head, glanced at the sky, and continued, ��The power of the Devil Abyss that we experience now is but an insignificant fraction of its former might. He has been bearing the most terrifying power of the Devil Abyss alone.��


    ��Sinners. Prison,�� Ye Futian mumbled. So, this Devil Abyss was the prison of the Heavenly Path from ancient times, and it could produce catastrophes of the Heavenly Path?


    If that were the case, ordinary people would be reduced to dust if they encountered the catastrophe.


    Even Ye Futian and Yu Sheng suffered great pain. As the two of them were talking, the destructive power flooded their bodies. Since they were both locked in place by the clasp, they could only endure the invasion of the power. The power intended to corrode both their flesh and their spiritual souls.


    ��49 days. Can we make it through?�� Ye Futian asked as he looked at Yu Sheng.


    ��Right now, the power of the Devil Abyss is still relatively weak. Every day, the Devil Abyss will send down a catastrophe from 11:00 P.M. to 1:00 A.M.. 49 days means 49 catastrophes. Together they form a Catastrophe of Samsara.�� Yu Sheng spoke with a low voice. He seemed to lack confidence.


    Even Yu Sheng, who was so powerful, did not think he could survive this Catastrophe of Samsara.


    ��So what?�� Ye Futian said as he stared at Yu Sheng, ��We have been through many life-and-death situations. We walked through the cycle of reincarnation. Now, we stand at the peak of the cultivation world. We are only a step away from reaching the highest level. Even if the catastrophe of the Heavenly Path can destroy everyone, it will not destroy you and me. Don��t you forget about Godfather��s words.��


    Yu Sheng raised his head and looked at Ye Futian. Their eyes met, and they said in unison, ��Born to be Emperors!��


    Existences who were born to be Emperors were destined to be able to withstand all tribulations. Even the Devil Abyss could not do anything to them.


    As they said this, divine light flowed over Ye Futian��s body. The Light of Buddha burned brightly and was unmovable.


    ��


    Before the Demon God Palace, a jet-black figure appeared. He appeared ethereal and did not seem to be the figure��s true body.


    This illusory figure bowed in the direction of the Demon God Palace. Then, the doors opened. The illusory figure walked in and headed straight towards the God Seat.


    The God Seat appeared somewhat blurry. This place was the seat of the highest authority in the Devil World. The most powerful existence and the most authoritative figure of the Devil World was seated here. He sat high and mighty as he was worshipped by the members of the Devil World.


    The illusory figure kept approaching. He could already see the God Seat. To everyone��s surprise, an ordinary elder was seated on the God Seat instead of the peerless, domineering Devil Emperor like what one would imagine. The elder was crouched over, and his aura appeared somewhat feeble. He was even coughing.


    The elder on the God Seat seemed frail and ordinary. He did not resemble a peerless demon.


    ��Your Highness,�� greeted the illusory figure as he bowed. Even though the elder appeared this way, the figure was still pious and respectful. He did not dare to dally.


    ��How are things?�� asked the elder.


    ��Half of the North Cliff Region has been conquered. The Divine Prefecture has sent their armies to provide aid. Donghuang Diyuan is personally supervising the battle. She intends to intercept the advance of our armies,�� the illusory figure reported.


    ��The daughter of Donghuang the Great!�� exclaimed the old man as he raised his head and stared into the distance. Suddenly, his gaze turned sharp, and he ordered, ��Here��s a mission for you. Capture the daughter of Donghuang the Great and bring her to the Devil Imperial Palace. Sacrifice anything if needed.��


    ��Yes, Your Highness,�� said the illusory figure as he bowed.


    ��Dismissed.�� The Devil Emperor��s voice turned weak again.


    ��Your Highness���� Worried, the illusory figure looked at the Devil Emperor.


    ��I��m fine.�� The Devil Emperor waved his hand and said, ��The power of the Devil Abyss is growing stronger and stronger. The prophecy from the World of Buddhism is right. Huge changes are about to happen!��

 Chapter 2610 - The Punishment of the Heavenly Path?

    On the Demon Slaying Platform, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were both locked in place by the clasps. From the Devil Abyss above, destructive currents continuously flowed down along the stone pillar and drizzled on them. Even the currents alone were difficult to deal with. Both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng turned serious as they were withstanding it.


    Yu Sheng was garbed in Demonic Armor while Ye Futian was surrounded by divine light. The Light of Buddha shone brilliantly and relentlessly canceled out the power surging into Ye Futian��s body.


    Ye Futian could sense many different colors mixed in the power which was charging into his body. There was crimson destructive power, purple light of catastrophe, and dark corrosive power. It was as though all forms of destructive power in the world surged into his body at the same time. Not only could the power destroy and corrode his flesh, but it could also cause significant damage to his spiritual soul.


    The Light of Buddha contained strong purifying power. At the same time, the aura of The World Tree circulated in his body. The inside of his body seemed to transform into a tree with a rich aura of life. This aura even overflowed towards Yu Sheng��s body.


    ��There��s no need to help me,�� Yu Sheng said. ��I can handle this.��


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian did not insist on helping Yu Sheng. He retracted the aura and focused on withstanding the catastrophe.


    Yu Sheng had been in the Devil World for so many years, and he received personal guidance from the Devil Emperor. Surely, he would have many formidable tricks up his sleeve.


    The Devil Emperor trained Yu Sheng, intending to make him the successor of the Devil World. Since the former wanted Yu Sheng to lead the troops of the Devil World, he would surely give his all when teaching him. Therefore, Yu Sheng��s ability went without saying.


    ��This power is but a foretaste. The catastrophe that will descend from 11:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. contains the destructive powers combined from all the previous attacks. It will pose a threat to us. Be careful,�� Yu Sheng warned. He raised his head to look at the sky and said, ��It��s coming soon.��


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded as he got ready to face the catastrophe.


    In the sky, a terrifying power was brewing deep within the Devil Abyss. It was like a pair of eyes. Its might was shocking. Crimson Clouds of Catastrophe, purple Thunder Raid, and dark demonic light�� They coalesced as they were produced, forming an unparalleled might above the heads of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian sensed everything quietly. This power seemed to be the most rudimentary catastrophe of the Heavenly Path. Ye Futian felt that the aura emanating from it was somewhat familiar. It was similar to a type of power.


    However, he could not pinpoint exactly which part was familiar to him.


    This catastrophe was more menacing than the divine tribulations that he had experienced before. Naturally, its aura was also stronger than that of the divine tribulations he witnessed others going through.


    The catastrophes that he experienced were unique, to begin with.


    ��The punishment of the Heavenly Path!�� exclaimed Ye Futian internally. The Devil Abyss was a prison designed by the Heavenly Path for heinous sinners. Therefore, the catastrophes of the Devil Abyss were the punishments for the sinners.


    What exactly was the Heavenly Path?


    Did the Heavenly Path have its own conscience during ancient times?


    If that was the case, why did it collapse?


    For Ye Futian, all these were still mysteries that were out of his reach currently.


    However, he was slowly coming in contact with some truths of the world.


    For example, he had already figured out the identity of Godfather, the background of Yu Sheng, and the cause of Emperor Ye Qing��s death. He could already come in contact with things that happened in the past. When his cultivation reached a certain state, he would naturally get the answers he sought. If he became an Emperor, all the secrets in the world would become known to him.


    Horrifying light of destruction descended from the eyes of the Devil Abyss. It actually transformed into crimson swords of catastrophe. Then, they charged downwards, heading straight towards Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    Rumble.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Futian��s bodies were unparalleled. Their divine body and demonic figure roared and rumbled. Frightening crimson swords of destruction shot straight down and pierced through them. It seemed as though no power on Earth could withstand its might.


    Sizzle. Destructive power rampaged in their bodies. Ye Futian felt a destructive divine sword stab through his body. It was destroying all the power within him. Assuming that his body had become the Divine Tree and his limbs were the branches, the swords of destruction were frenziedly destroying the ancient tree and branches, shattering them into pieces.


    Ye Futian felt his bones and muscles tearing apart. His limbs were attacked by the destructive power, and his organs were also destroyed.


    The terrifying power caused Ye Futian to instantly collapse and feel weak. His body lost strength, but he was tied up in chains. He could not even collapse to the ground.


    ��Huff���� Ye Futian exhaled a long breath. He felt extreme pain. What was even more frightening was that the destructive power from before continued to eat away at him after the attack. It seemed to want to completely consume him, not leaving behind even a scrap.


    The punishment of the Heavenly Path!


    A thought surfaced in Ye Futian��s mind. This power was too terrifying. Even a person as strong as him was already reduced to this, yet alone others.


    If the Devil Emperor had not suppressed the Devil Abyss, what would the Devil World be like?


    What sort of pain would the members of the Devil World need to suffer?


    Was the Devil Abyss of the Devil World really just a prison of the Heavenly Path that had remained until now?


    The catastrophe dissipated. The power of life circulated in Ye Futian��s body and repaired his injured parts. After he regained a bit of energy, he raised his head to look over towards Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng was not better off than him. Yu Sheng was also suffering from agonizing pain. His body drooped from the clasp lifelessly. If the clasp were not holding him in place, he would be flat on his stomach.


    ��Are you alright?�� asked Ye Futian. His voice sounded hoarse, as though he was out of breath.


    ��I��m fine,�� replied Yu Sheng with his head down.


    ��Okay.�� Ye Futian did not say anymore. He closed his eyes and began to heal his injuries quietly. His recovery ability had always been very powerful. He hoped that before 11 p.m. tomorrow, his body would be back in peak condition.


    On the Demon Slaying Platform, it was exceptionally quiet. Only the Devil Abyss in the sky was still constantly generating destructive energy.


    After a long while, Ye Futian was gradually able to withstand the corrosion of the destructive power. He had also recovered much of his strength. Once again, he raised his head and looked at Yu Sheng. Ye Futian appeared somewhat pathetic, and his hair was disheveled. However, he revealed a smile and said, ��This catastrophe is more useful than the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path in tempering the body and spirit.��


    ��You sure are daring to imagine such things,�� Yu Sheng replied with his head lowered. His hair covered his face.


    ��Why wouldn��t I dare to do so?�� asked Ye Futian. ��What doesn��t kill us makes us stronger. It is the same for the Devil Abyss.��


    ��Hmm.�� Yu Sheng clenched his fists tightly, causing the chains to clank. What didn��t kill them would only make them stronger.


    His Demon Form would be refined once again by these 49 catastrophes.


    In the distance, a figure stood in the space above the Demon God Palace. His eyes pierced through space and looked in the direction of the Demon Slaying Platform. Everything that happened on the platform was under his surveillance.


    ��This is only the beginning!�� the silhouette said in a low voice.


    There were 49 catastrophes. This was merely the first. He wanted to see how many catastrophes they could withstand and whether they would manage to survive all of them.


    If they could truly withstand 49 catastrophes, they would indeed become more powerful.


    Could they pull it off?


    The days slowly passed. On the Demon Slaying Platform, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng experienced life-or-death struggles every day!

 Chapter 2611 - A Respectable Opponent

    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had been suffering on the Demon Slaying Platform for a whole month.


    On the Demon Slaying Platform, they looked exhausted, their clothes in tatters. Ye Futian became like Yu Sheng �C his hair was disheveled, his face was pale, and his body was covered in injuries.


    Even though Ye Futian had rapid recovery speed, the power of the Devil Abyss invaded him constantly, causing him not to have a chance to recover fully. As days passed, both his flesh and his spiritual soul became more and more tired. The reason they could still hang on was that both he and Yu Sheng were monstrous existences with powerful abilities. If others were here instead, they would most likely have already died on this platform.


    Nobody had ever left the Demon Slaying Platform alive.


    Just when the two of them were being tormented on the platform, a shocking occurrence took place in the Devil Imperial Palace, causing all the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace to be very excited.


    When the troops of the Devil World were fighting against the troops of the Divine Prefecture, Demon Sage captured Donghuan Diyuan, the princess of the Divine Prefecture and the only daughter of Donghuang the Great.


    Moreover, he brought her to the Devil World.


    Everyone in the Devil Imperial Palace was thrilled by this incident.


    Right then, in front of the Demon God Palace, the silhouette of Donghuang Diyuan appeared. Behind her, there stood several other cultivators who were all devil overlords. Among them, there was Demon Sage, a Protector, and a Devil General, who was also the top general at that.


    It was apparent how much importance was placed on Donghuang Diyuan. Capturing her this time was no easy feat.


    The gates of the Demon God Palace opened, and a voice called out from inside, ��Enter.��


    Donghuang Diyuan glanced inside. The look in her eyes appeared exceptionally calm, not showing any signs of panic due to her capture. Donghuang Diyuan stepped forward. Her red dress fluttered in the wind with peerless elegance.


    The few demonic cultivators did not follow her. Instead, they waited outside.


    Donghuang Diyuan entered the Demon God Palace. Her gaze turned towards the elder on the divine throne. She bowed and said, ��Greetings, Devil Emperor. I am Donghuang Diyuan.��


    ��As expected of the daughter of Donghuang. You actually show no fear after seeing me,�� commented the Devil Emperor as he looked at Donghuang Diyuan. However, he did not release any pressure. As the dignified Devil Emperor, he naturally did not need to bully the daughter of Donghuang.


    ��Are you not afraid of me?�� he asked.


    Donghuang Diyuan replied, ��I have heard Father mentioning Your Highness many times. Your Highness is an unparalleled figure. Father once said that among all the Emperors, he respects you the most. Hence, I have always respected Your Highness instead of being afraid of you.��


    The old man scoffed, ��I did not expect the daughter of Donghuang to flatter me. But do you think that I will let you go because of your sweet words?��


    Donghuang Diyuan said, ��Even though I am just a junior, I am the princess of the Divine Prefecture. I will not resort to lies. Father has indeed told me about you before. Human Ancestor has been a benevolent Great Emperor since ancient times. The Buddha is a merciful Great Emperor who has compassion towards all living beings. Father dislikes the Evil Emperor because he is temperamental. Father also looks down on the leader of the Dark Court. As for Your Highness, you draw a clear line between your likes and dislikes, and you stay true to your heart. Father respects you the most.��


    ��I draw a clear line between my likes and dislikes, and I stay true to my heart?�� The Devil Emperor burst into laughter as he repeated her words. ��Donghuang��s opinion about me is interesting. When the troops of the Devil World invade the Divine Prefecture, the demons will descend upon the world, and the catastrophes of the Devil Abyss will sweep over all the lands. I wonder: will Donghuang still respect me then?��


    Donghuang Diyuan replied, ��Father said that both Your Highness and him have beliefs that you want to protect. There is no right or wrong; there is only success or failure.��


    The old man��s gaze was fixed on Donghuang Diyuan, seemingly wanting to see through her. He smiled and continued, ��Why didn��t Donghuang show up when my men captured you?��


    According to their agreement, by right, the Great Emperors would not be involved in the war between the two troops. However, the person that Demon Sage had captured was Donghuang Diyuan. She was the only daughter of Donghuang the Great, after all.


    If Donghuang the Great had intervened, it would be impossible for Demon Sage to bring Donghuang Diyuan to the Demon God Palace.


    Donghuang Diyuan said, ��Your Highness, I admire you, to begin with. There��s nothing wrong with me coming here to pay you a visit. Moreover, Father knows that you will not harm me.��


    The Devil Emperor mocked, ��You are rather confident. Prior to you, another person thought the same about me. He is currently on the Demon Slaying Platform beneath the Devil Abyss.��


    ��Who is he?�� asked Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Let me show you,�� said the elder as he got up. With a shift of his will, both of them immediately disappeared from the Demon God Palace and appeared in the sky above the Demon Slaying Platform. Up ahead, the destructive power of the Devil Abyss kept flowing down non-stop. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were chained on the Demon Slaying Platform. They were exhausted, but they were still trying hard to recover.


    ��Do you recognize these two figures?�� the Devil Emperor asked Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��I do,�� she replied.


    ��Do they have any connections to you?�� the Devil Emperor continued asking.


    ��It is all in the past. Father has put it all behind him,�� said Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Doesn��t Donghuang feel guilty?�� the Devil Emperor asked as he looked at her. He was somewhat curious.


    ��Legitimacy belongs to the victors. When we were in the Original Realm last time, Father had promised not to touch him for old time��s sake,�� replied Donghuang Diyuan. Her expression was calm as usual, not revealing any emotion.


    ��That means that he is the orphan of Emperor Ye Qing?�� asked the Devil Emperor as he looked Donghuang Diyuan in the eye.


    ��Your Highness, you already know the answer. Why bother asking me?�� replied Donghuang Diyuan.


    The Devil Emperor smiled. He turned his gaze towards Ye Futian.


    He still had his doubts.


    Back when Donghuang the Great killed Emperor Ye Qing, he had been very thorough. Countless people and demonic beasts lost their lives. That storm was still fresh in the memories of the members of the various worlds. How could Emperor Ye Qing have possibly left behind an orphan? Had his brother taken the child away?


    Then, where was his brother now?


    ��I placed them on the Demon Slaying Platform to withstand the Catastrophe of Samsara. They seem to be at their limits now. However, there are still around 20 days left. Since Donghuang was so merciful to them and could not bring himself to kill them, why don��t I resolve this future trouble for Donghuang?�� asked the Devil Emperor.


    ��I am not qualified to interfere in Your Highness�� affairs,�� replied Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Speaking of which, I don��t really want to kill him. If the two of them become Emperors in the future, they will certainly head over to Donghuang Imperial Palace to seek out your father and settle the grudge. I wonder what will happen then.��


    ��Your Highness, do you think that Father is concerned about these two juniors?�� Donghuang Diyuan retorted as she looked at the Devil Emperor.


    The Devil Emperor grinned when he heard her words. He admitted, ��Even I have to admire Donghuang for his ability. I wonder whether he has improved after more than 400 years of training.��


    As he said this, he turned to Donghuang Diyuan and challenged, ��If I attacked you, Donghuang would most likely come to the Devil Imperial Palace to meet me personally, right?��


    The Devil Emperor was certain about this.


    Donghuang was rather confident. He actually did not make any move after his only daughter was captured. Was he so sure that the Devil Emperor would not harm Donghuang Diyuan?


    Of course, the Devil Emperor was well-aware that if he really attacked her, Donghuang the Great would definitely directly descend upon the Devil Imperial Palace from the Divine Prefecture.


    Seeing that Donghuang Diyuan refused to answer his question, the Devil Emperor ordered, ��You will stay here and watch whether the two of them will perish under the catastrophes.��


    After he issued the order, he vanished and left Donghuang Diyuan behind.


    The Devil Emperor disappeared from the sky and returned to his throne in the Demon God Palace. He gazed into the distance. His eyes were menacing as he was immersed in his thoughts.


    In the past, the two Emperors in the Divine Prefecture turned against each other, and Donghuang the Great killed Emperor Ye Qing and the subordinates of the latter. Countless people, including many top cultivators, died tragically. The forces of the Divine Prefecture were significantly weakened following the death of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Then, Donghuang the Great wiped out everything that was related to Emperor Ye Qing. Nobody in the Divine Prefecture dared to mention the latter��s name. It was as though he had never existed.


    This shocking event was witnessed by everyone, including the few Great Emperors from other major worlds.


    After Emperor Ye Qing died, the few parties came to a consensus, and peace was restored.


    Despite that, the Devil Emperor still had his doubts.


    After all, Donghuang was not an ordinary figure. Donghuang Diyuan claimed that her father had great respect for him. That being said, among all the remaining Great Emperors, the person that the Devil Emperor respected the most was actually Donghuang as well. Donghuang was unfathomable!

 Chapter 2612 - How to Choose?

    Chapter 2612: How to Choose?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    On the Demon Slaying Platform, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had already experienced 48 catastrophes. Today was the day of the final catastrophe.


    After today, the Devil Emperor promised to let them go free.


    Right now, on the Demon Slaying Platform, both of them were on the verge of collapsing. They appeared extremely frail. Yu Sheng��s Demonic Armor was in tatters, and the aura on Ye Futian��s body was weak. Their bodies were perforated.


    Nearby in the sky above, Donghuang Diyuan quietly watched the two of them.


    These past few days, Donghuang Diyuan had always been here. The Devil Emperor left her here to watch them, so she naturally remained here and did not leave.


    After seeing their miserable state these past few days, she was visibly moved.


    Each day, these two teetered on the brink of life and death. Yet, they had always managed to survive until the end. Even now, they were still holding on for dear life.


    She had seen many prominent figures. She had also encountered many top-level monstrous figures. However, she could not help but acknowledge that if anyone else were in their predicament, they would have perished without fail.


    ��This is the final catastrophe,�� said Ye Futian with his head lowered. His hair was disheveled, and it covered his face. His voice sounded weak and feeble.


    ��Hmm,�� Yu Sheng replied. Both of them had been through many life-and-death situations. After they made it through this final catastrophe, they would be able to survive.


    ��Hang in there,�� Ye Futian whispered.


    ��Okay.�� Yu Sheng nodded. After briefly conversing, the two did not continue talking. It was as silent as a grave on the Demon Slaying Platform.


    The destructive power continued to trickle down into their bodies. Both Yu Sheng and Ye Futian did not resist it. Or it could be said that they had no energy left to withstand it. They allowed the destructive power to invade and rampage their bodies, corroding their flesh and spiritual souls.


    Time passed slowly. In the sky, terrifying crimson light gathered in the eye of the Devil Abyss. Donghuang Diyuan looked in that direction. Even though she was standing away from the Demon Slaying Platform, she was still shocked by the destructive power brewing within the abyss.


    The destructive power that gathered seemed capable of eradicating all existences.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng felt it too. Their bodies squirmed. Divine light and demonic light surrounded them. Both of them mustered up all their strength for this moment. They stood straight up while looking at the sky. Ye Futian chanted the Six Syllables of Truth.


    Immediately, a gigantic Buddha appeared on the Demon Slaying Platform and enveloped the entire space, shielding both of them within it.


    ��You don��t have to worry about me,�� said Yu Sheng. He did not want Ye Futian to waste his energy protecting him.


    ��Shut up. Stay focused,�� Ye Futian chided.


    Then, he looked at the sky and didn��t say more. Yu Sheng stared at him and noticed his determined gaze. He understood that there was no use for him to say anything.


    Ye Futian was resolved to protect both of them this time.


    The Light of Buddha coalesced while the Buddha that Ye Futian summoned protected the space they were in. The golden Buddha was akin to an eternal and indestructible Buddha.


    Many runes surfaced on the body of the Buddha. As the Light of Buddha surrounded it, it transformed into a Thousand Armed Buddha. The arms of the Buddha were ready to send out sword seals.


    Donghuang Diyuan narrowed her eyes in shock when she saw this scene. Her gaze was fixed on Ye Futian. He actually planned to attack the Devil Abyss. He was a lunatic.


    ��He has guts,�� exclaimed the Devil Emperor as he stood in the sky above the Demon God Palace and observed the happenings on the Demon Slaying Platform. He admired Ye Futian��s gallantry. It was a waste that Ye Futian had not become a demonic cultivator.


    Rumble. Yu Sheng��s dark long hair danced in the wind. They seemed to become the sharpest blades in the world as they were covered by demonic light.


    Boom. Boom. Boom. Demons suddenly descended around Yu Sheng and Ye Futian. It was the Heavenly Demon Godly Advent. Yu Sheng himself seemed to have transformed into a domineering demon. He raised his head and looked straight ahead. He wanted to see for himself exactly how powerful this 49th catastrophe was.


    Buzz!


    Starlight shone all around them. The Constitution of Stars materialized and stood guard all around the Demon Slaying Platform.


    Then, Sword Qi weaved to form a razor-sharp shield of swordsmanship.


    They had set up many layers of defenses to withstand this final catastrophe.


    In the sky, streaks of crimson destructive divine light charged downwards. The next moment, harmful light of catastrophe poured down like the wrath of god. The attack no longer came down one by one; instead, 49 streaks of lightning blasted down simultaneously, destroying everything in their way.


    ��Kill!�� Ye Futian bellowed.


    All the arms of the Buddha waved, and the divine swords slashed upwards. At the same time, their palms sent out seals that charged towards the Devil Abyss above.


    Almost concurrently, destructive divine light rained down, and the catastrophe befell them. Crimson light of catastrophe flooded the space completely. In the middle of the 49 streaks of lightning, a crimson light pillar descended and tore everything apart.


    Instantly, the Demon Slaying Platform was buried in the crimson destructive light of catastrophe. Everything turned to dust and void. It was as though nothing could withstand this ultimate attack.


    In the distance, Donghuang Diyuan��s heart quivered as she observed the scene. If she was put on the platform, could she survive this destructive attack?


    She watched as the light of catastrophe overwhelmed everything on the Demon Slaying Platform, and terrifying storms rampaged all around it.


    After a long while, everything dissipated.


    Donghuang Diyuan saw the bodies of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng lying on the platform lifelessly. Even their chains were shattered. They lay on the platform quietly with wounds all over their bodies. Blood oozed out from their injuries. It was a tragic scene to behold. Even their auras could not be detected.


    Were they dead? Donghuang Diyuan wondered as she looked at them. Her eyes twitched, but she still remained motionless on her spot.


    ��I have helped Donghuang to eliminate his opponents. What do you think?�� a voice asked Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Father has never thought of these two juniors as his opponents,�� Donghuang Diyuan responded. ��However, this is Your Highness�� decision. I am not qualified to comment on it.��


    The Devil Emperor did not say anything. Right at this moment, a hint of aura appeared on the Demon Slaying Platform. Life aura could be faintly sensed circulating in Ye Futian��s body. On top of that, there seemed to be strands of life current flowing between his body and Yu Sheng��s. The two of them were tightly connected through the current, causing the life aura to rejuvenate in Yu Sheng��s body.


    Were they still alive?


    Donghuang Diyuan looked towards the platform. This strand of life aura was like candlelight in the dark. It was a strand of hope. Gradually, the life aura rejuvenated inside of Ye Futian��s body. At the same time, Yu Sheng��s heartbeat was resuscitated. Donghuang Diyuan felt as though she could hear the intense thumping sound of his heart beating.


    Thump. Thump.


    The sound of his heartbeat intensified. The life auras of demons, especially powerful demons like Yu Sheng, were indomitable.


    When Donghuang Diyuan saw this scene, she asked, ��Your Highness, you promised to let them go if they were still alive after 49 catastrophes. Now, what do you plan to do with them?��


    ��They are lucky,�� the Devil Emperor said. ��Since I have made a promise to them, I will surely keep my word. However, if they continue to stay on the Demon Slaying Platform, their survival is not certain. I will leave them to you.��


    The Devil Emperor was curious. What would Donghuang Diyuan choose to do with the two of them?

 Chapter 2613 - The True Body of Devil Emperor

    Above the Demon God Palace, the Devil Emperor looked in the direction of the Demon Slaying Platform.


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were on the verge of death as Donghuang Diyuan stood outside. The Devil Emperor handed control over to Donghuang Diyuan so that she could decide on the fate of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    The Devil Emperor did so because he wanted to see what choice would Donghuang Diyuan make.


    If Ye Futian was really descended from Emperor Ye Qing, then, Donghuang Diyuan, Ye Futian, and Yu Sheng were inextricably linked even before their births. They had grown up together and had been good friends since childhood.


    But now they were sworn enemies.


    However, the Devil Emperor still had some doubts, so he wanted to see for himself.


    There, Donghuang Diyuan glanced at the two of them, then turned to leave as she said, ��I have already made it clear that I will not be interfering in any matters concerning the Devil Imperial Palace, so everything is left to Your Majesty to decide.��


    With that, she left the Demon Slaying Platform, ignoring the suffering of Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    The two were left lying there to die. They were unable to struggle against the force that befell them even though they had since recovered a breath of life. They appeared to be greatly weakened, and there was no telling whether or not they would be able to survive their ordeal. After all, they were still on the Demon Slaying Platform, and that force of destruction was constantly attacking them.


    The Devil Emperor glanced at the location that had just been vacated by Donghuang Diyuan. If she wanted to, saving Ye Futian and Yu Sheng would be as easy as a simple raise of her hand. However, Donghuang Diyuan did not do that.


    Was Donghuang Diyuan also desirous of the demise of these two enemy descendants?


    ��Bring both of them out. After they have recovered, bring them to see me,�� said a voice from the Demon God Palace as he disappeared.


    ��Yes, Master.�� After hearing his words, someone took the order and went to the Demon Slaying Platform to bring Yu Sheng and Ye Futian out of the Demon Slaying Platform.


    The Devil Emperor had said that if the two of them could last 49 days, they would be released.


    Now, 49 days had already gone by.


    ��


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng fell into a deep coma and had forgotten about the passage of time.


    No one knew how long it had been, but Ye Futian was the first to wake up from the coma. When he woke up, he was wrapped in a cocoon of life, which was incredibly persistent, rendering his body immortal and indestructible.


    He turned sideways to look at Yu Sheng, who was next to him, and saw his heart was beating vibrantly; it seemed as he had almost fully recovered from all of his injuries as well. The vitality of the great demon was extremely stubborn. Once they had left the Demon Slaying Platform, it was unlikely for them to die given their realms as long as there was still a trace of breath within them.


    Strands of the divine light of life showered upon Yu Sheng and penetrated his body. Gradually, Yu Sheng��s heartbeat grew more fierce. Finally, a pair of pitch-dark eyes suddenly opened, emitting a terrifying demonic light.


    After that, Yu Sheng sat up abruptly and looked at Ye Futian next to him.


    Their eyes met, and there was a moment of initial silence. Then, they were all smiles. It was as if it was the smile for having survived such a major disaster and trial.


    They had survived. They had managed to live despite the Demon Slaying Platform.


    They were still alive after this great trial!


    ��Yu Sheng, where are we?�� Ye Futian asked. He found himself in a palace inside the Devil Imperial Palace. This palace was extremely spacious, and they were presently inside the cultivation court of this palace.


    ��This is my cultivation court, and this is the palace where I live,�� Yu Sheng explained. He then got up and walked outside. After these two woke up from their coma, they seemed to have completely recovered.


    When he arrived in the courtyard outside the palace, Yu Sheng suddenly stopped. He heard footsteps and that meant someone was here.


    By nature, Yu Sheng loathed being disturbed. His manner was cold and aggressive, so much so that he was close to unreasonable.


    Therefore, in the palace where he resided, there was no other person besides himself; there were not even maids who were assigned here.


    But at this moment, there was someone here in the courtyard.


    However, when they saw this intruder, both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were stunned. Ye Futian, especially, looked rather awkward.


    The person in front of them was covered with a phoenix robe, and though the tail of the phoenix hung behind her on the ground, it remained pristine. With her tall and slender physique, she appeared extremely elegant and noble.


    Moreover, she had an indescribably beautiful face. Her face and temperament seemed to blend perfectly and complemented each other. This was definitely a woman who would grab anyone��s heart with just one glance. Her face and temperament alone were enough to leave a permanent imprint on any beholder��s heart.


    ��Donghuang Diyuan!��


    It was not the first time that Ye Futian had seen Princess Donghuang, but he had never seen her at such a close distance.


    When he was young, Donghuang Diyuan was a goddess in the heavens, high above him and out of reach. She was a deity, and he was a mere mortal who could only look up to her.


    Even after he had achieved something of himself in cultivation, Donghuang Diyuan, as the only daughter of Donghuang the Great, was still unattainable. Every time she appeared, she had always been high in the sky. Divine light showered around her and the mortals of the world could only bath in her divine glory.


    But at this moment, Donghuang Diyuan, like any other lady of a noble family, simply stood quietly in the courtyard.


    This was the first time that Ye Futian was so close to Donghuang Diyuan, the noblest princess in all of the Divine Prefecture. She was destined to be the proud daughter of heaven.


    ��His Majesty the Devil Emperor placed me here,�� Donghuang Diyuan said lightly as if she was not aware that anything was out of place.


    ��Why is the princess here in the Devil World?�� Ye Futian asked without knowing that Donghuang Diyuan had been captured.


    From his perspective, the status of Donghuang Diyuan was unquestionable, and capture was an inconceivable improbability.


    ��I want to come to the Devil World to have a look, so here I am,�� Donghuang Diyuan responded. Clearly, she would not divulge the fact that she had been captured.


    Ye Futian knew that she was not telling him the truth, but he did not press on. At this time, the Earth Demon Sage appeared in the sky outside, looking at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. ��Come with me,�� she said.


    ��Very well.�� Yu Sheng nodded and was the first one to step forward to meet him. Although he had almost perished on the Demon Slaying Platform, he didn��t seem to harbor any hostility toward the Devil Emperor.


    The two of them left with the Earth Demon Sage, leaving Donghuang Diyuan there by herself.


    After a moment, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng appeared outside the Demon God Palace.


    ��Come in.�� In the Demon God Palace, an old and hoarse voice called to them. The door was open, so Yu Sheng and Ye Futian walked straight inside.


    Inside the Demon God Palace, both of them felt a sense of great solemnity, and where they were heading seemed a little obscure. They kept moving forward until they came to a place not too far from the divine throne.


    ��Your Majesty.��


    ��Greetings, Your Majesty,�� Yu Sheng and Ye Futian both said as they bowed to pay their respect.


    ��You don��t hate me?�� the Devil Emperor asked. His voice sounded ancient and weak as if there was no power behind it.


    This caused the curious look on both Yu Sheng��s and Ye Futian��s faces. They looked up at the divine throne and saw that instead of the majestic Devil Emperor as they had expected to see, there was an ordinary old man there.


    What they saw in front of them shocked Ye Futian to no end. Was this the Devil Emperor he knew?


    Yu Sheng shook his head. Obviously, the question that was posed just now was not meant for Ye Futian.


    ��What is happening to Your Majesty?�� Yu Sheng asked with some concern. He had never seen the Devil Emperor like this before.


    ��It��s nothing. You have never seen the truth for all this time. Today, I will take you to see it.�� As soon as the Devil Emperor��s voice fell, Yu Sheng and Ye Futian felt that the world in front of them was changing. They appeared in another space.


    An unimaginably terrifying force of destruction enveloped the two of them, as Ye Futian��s heart was beating violently. They stood upon a terrifying blood-red cloud of tribulation and above them was the real tribulation of doomsday. Infinite destructive power was flowing, covering the entire sky and extending into the distance.


    ��This is the Devil Abyss!�� Likewise, Yu Sheng was shocked to his core, as he raised his head to look at the image in front of him. He could have never imagined such a horrific scene was hovering above the Devil Imperial Palace.


    However, what was even more shocking to both of them was that above this devastating sky, there was a boundless and massive figure. This figure was a true deity that was as stalwart as the heavens.


    In other words, heaven was transformed by his physical body, which kept the destructive power in the sky at bay.


    ��The Devil Emperor!�� Ye Futian watched the phantom that blended with the sky, and the imagery in front of him was akin to when Ziwei the Great himself had integrated into the stars in heaven and countless stars formed the face of Ziwei. But what he was seeing before him now was more shocking than that.


    Because the Devil Emperor, who had morphed into the heavens, was overpowering the Devil Abyss with his own body of flesh and blood.


    The tribulation of destruction was endless and infinite, constantly bombarding that figure. It was as if he was suffering those apocalyptic tribulations all the time.


    Only then did Ye Futian understand what the people of the Devil World had told him. The Devil Emperor had suppressed the Devil Abyss with his own power and held up the nine heavens.


    Was that the reason why he was so weak?

 Chapter 2614 - The Wicked Thoughts of the Devil Emperor

    The elderly figure of the Devil Emperor appeared in front of the two of them, standing under that storm of destruction. It was impossible to distinguish the real Devil Emperor between that demon shadow in Heaven and the weak old man in front of them!


    Or rather, they were both the Devil Emperor in some ways.


    ��Did you see it?�� The Devil Emperor looked at Yu Sheng poignantly while pointing to the sky and saying, ��This is your destiny.��


    Yu Sheng was speechless as he stared at the imagery of total destruction up in the sky, while Ye Futian��s heart palpitated and his face paled.


    Would this be a glimpse into Yu Sheng��s future?


    Ye Futian looked at the Devil Emperor but saw that the Devil Emperor was looking at him as well at this time. He sneered, ��Are you thinking that as long as Yu Sheng leaves the Devil World, he will be spared of all this and that I will have to continue to carry the Devil Abyss?!��


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharped before he looked at the Devil Emperor and replied, ��Everyone is only looking out for themselves.��


    Although the Devil Emperor had suffered for many years, if Ye Futian were to choose between him and Yu Sheng, Ye Futian would choose the Devil Emperor to bear the burden without any hesitation; this was not a hard decision to make.


    ��That��s right. People are selfish.�� The Devil Emperor nodded and continued, ��So, while they enjoy the Pure Land, they have sealed the Devil World under the Devil Abyss forever and locked us in this prison. Each of the worlds, be it the world of Buddhism, the Divine Prefecture, or the Human Realm, each has its own version of heaven except the Devil World. What do we have?��


    ��Why do they insist on hindering the Devil World like this? Why let the Devil World bear all this? Who gave them the right to make that decision?��


    Ye Futian was silent because he couldn��t refute it. If the Devil Emperor wanted to step out of the Devil World with his demonic cultivators, he was certain that none of the worlds in Buddhism, the Divine Prefecture, or the Human Realm would agree to it.


    Therefore, they were trapped in this prison, enduring the ravages of the tribulations from the Devil Abyss forever.


    ��As for him,�� the Devil Emperor looked at Yu Sheng and continued, ��You wanted him to achieve the Imperial Realm, and yet leave the Devil World; do you think it possible? The world will not allow the birth of another Devil Emperor. If a new Devil Emperor were to be born, then it is inevitable that the other must perish.��


    ��Yet, the destiny of the Devil World must be borne by someone.��


    Ye Futian��s heart trembled. He finally understood what the Devil Emperor was saying.


    There was a system of checks and balances between the great emperors of this world. Just as the Divine Prefecture did not allow the co-existence of the two emperors in the past, the Devil World, likewise, will not allow the co-existence of two Devil Emperors.


    ��If he wants to inherit the position of the Devil Emperor, then he must shoulder the responsibility of the Devil World. It is his mission and responsibility to protect the Devil World,�� the Devil Emperor continued.


    ��If there is the need, I will do it,�� Yu Sheng said while raising his head to look into the sky. His eyes were full of determination.


    The Devil Emperor glanced at Yu Sheng and Ye Futian. This exchange had made him aware of one thing, and that was never to ask Yu Sheng to choose between the Devil World or Ye Futian. Otherwise, he would choose to sacrifice himself.


    ��I��m getting old, and the future of the Devil World is yours.�� The Devil Emperor spoke to Yu Sheng, then looked at Ye Futian. ��I don��t expect you to do anything for the Devil World, but I hope you won��t be there to stop us.��


    ��I can leave the land of the Original Realm alone,�� said the Devil Emperor. ��In the previous era, there was yet another great emperor who was one of the strongest in the world. Many thought that he might even be the greatest of them all; he was the closest person to the heavenly path.��


    ��Heaven Realm, Heavenly Emperor!�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Yes, the Heavenly Emperor,�� the Devil Emperor nodded. Ye Futian was a little puzzled: if the Heavenly Emperor was hailed as the most powerful emperor, why did he perish?


    ��They will not allow the existence of two emperors, but the Original Realm may still have a place for a great emperor, especially one who could stand up against Donghuang the Great,�� the Devil Emperor continued. Ye Futian thought that Dark Court and Empty Divine Realm wanted to support him so they could challenge the Divine Prefecture.


    But did that mean they would allow him to step onto the throne?


    Maybe not necessarily.


    Donghuang the Great had an established relationship with the Buddha of the World of Buddhism, and the Divine Prefecture and the Western Heaven of Buddha also enjoyed a good relationship while maintaining a workable one with the Human Realm at the same time. It was possible that they could be in the same camp, but judging from the death of Emperor Ye Qing, this camp, in some respects, might be more tenuous than not.


    Empty Divine Realm and the Dark Court seemed to be in cahoots together.


    While the Devil World was independent from everyone else, doing whatever it wished.


    Donghuang the Great did say that he would not care if a great emperor emerged from the Original Realm, who did not lean towards any one side of any camp. He had expressed this stance way back while still at the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Currently, the Empty Divine Realm and the Dark Court did not appear to be hostile toward him, but there was no telling about that in the future.


    Now, even the Devil Emperor seemed to be accepting him.


    In addition, he also had a relationship with Buddhism, as he had gone to the Western Heaven of Buddhism to seek instruction.


    At present, it seemed that the resistance facing him was not as great.


    ��What are your thoughts about that little princess of Donghuang?�� The Devil Emperor suddenly asked, looking at Yu Sheng and Ye Futian both.


    ��I don��t have much contact with her, but Donghuang Diyuan is the only daughter of Donghuang the Great, so she must be very outstanding,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��I don��t know anything about her,�� Yu Sheng said plainly and directly.


    ��Daughter of Donghuang must not lack in talents. In addition to her talents, her beauty is also peerless. If I were you, as her peer, I would definitely not back off.�� The Devil Emperor said it so nonchalantly, it gave Ye Futian a rather strange feeling.


    Just what was the Devil Emperor implying?


    ��Then, a descendant may be produced who has the gift of becoming a great emperor.�� The Devil Emperor continued, ��There is nothing concerning you here now. You may go back.��


    Yu Sheng nodded, and Ye Futian, too, saluted slightly. ��Thank you, Your Majesty.��


    After that, the Devil Emperor waved his hand, and suddenly a storm swept towards the two of them. They disappeared directly from the place where they were and reappeared in front of the Demon God Palace.


    After they left, the Devil Emperor looked down at the space below. His gaze penetrated the space and fell on Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. His dark eyes were profound and unfathomable. His younger brother had kept the two of them all these years, raised them to be such exceptional characters, and had meant for Yu Sheng to assist Ye Futian.


    What was he trying to do?


    Let them become emperors and join hands with him to slay Donghuang?


    That didn��t seem to be the case.


    Back then, he was thoroughly impressed by the fervor of Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing, so he decided to follow them. But later, the two emperors turned against each other, ending with the death of Emperor Ye Qing. It was understandable for him to seek revenge, but what exactly happened back then, and were there still any secrets that were not revealed?


    He was curious to find out.


    ��


    After Ye Futian and Yu Sheng left the Demon God Palace, they returned to the palace where Yu Sheng resided and found that Donghuang Diyuan was still there. Seeing the return of these two, Donghuang Diyuan appeared rather calm as she glanced at the two of them.


    ��It seems that His Majesty the Devil Emperor had decided to let the two of you live,�� Donghuang Diyuan commented.


    ��Is the princess disappointed?�� Ye Futian asked. He was remembering the parting comment of the Devil Emperor, and his expression was a little awkward.


    Was the Devil Emperor harboring some dishonorable intent?


    It was a little unseemly for him actually to have thoughts like that.


    Except Donghuang the Great probably would not be sitting by idly without killing him.


    ��In the past few years, you have stirred up the Divine Prefecture quite a bit. In your hands, the Divine Prefecture has lost a lot of people, and it is quite enough.�� Donghuang Diyuan��s voice was indifferent, coated with haughtiness. Those beautiful eyes of hers assessed Ye Futian judiciously. Every move that she made had done nothing but to accentuate her noble status!

 Chapter 2615 - So, You Think You Are Very Strong?

    For the Holy Land of Taichu and the Celestial Worthy Mountain, both of these two major principalities had suffered the fate of extinction. The Sun God Mountain and the Shen Clan, too, were attacked, while the clan lord of Mo perished at the hands of Ye Futian.


    In the battle at Tianyan City, Ye Futian had slaughtered many people as well.


    The power of the six Ancient God Clans in the Original Realm had been greatly reduced. Ye Futian��s existence, indeed, had worried many authorities in the Divine Prefecture, and many cultivators had died at his hands.


    However, should all these faults be attributed to Ye Futian?


    Would Ye Futian think that he had done anything wrong?


    If these people didn��t die, it would be the Heavenly Mandate Academy, Ziwei Segmentum, and himself that would have been destroyed.


    ��Wang Xiao of Tianyan City, with the help of the imperial arms, tried to sack Ziwei Segmentum, and many innocent people had perished because of it. Did Your Royal Highness ever say a word on behalf of those innocent people in Ziwei Segmentum?�� Ye Futian looked at Donghuang Diyuan. His tone was slightly cool as he continued, ��Heavenly Mandate City has been destroyed many times, and the same thing happened to the Nine Realms that preceded the Original Realm. How many people have died through no fault of their own? Has Your Royal Highness ever chastised the savage acts committed by the people of the Divine Prefecture?


    ��The Original Realm once belonged to the Divine Prefecture, but the Divine Prefecture had allowed the Nine Realms to be ravaged. They were incapable of stopping the invasion of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm. And I, as someone who was born in the Original Realm, have sentiment for the Original Realm that you cannot possibly understand. The Divine Prefecture cannot protect the Original Realm, so I can only do all I can possibly do. If the force of the Divine Prefecture intends to wreak havoc in the Original Realm, I will destroy them with certainty.�� Ye Futian continued, ��Years ago, the princess was kind to me and lent me an item to save my life. However, it was a reward for what I had done in the battle against the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm. In truth, I owe you nothing.��


    ��My father, on account of the past, spared you because the teacher had spoken on your behalf. However, it is not intended for you to cause chaos however you please.�� Donghuang Diyuan did not seem to have heard a word that Ye Futian had said but continued to speak her thoughts: ��You are now in charge of Ziwei Segmentum, protected by Ziwei so that the others could not invade. You ought to mind your own business and cultivate within your bounds.��


    Ye Futian frowned. Was Donghuang Diyuan lecturing him?


    ��I am addressing you as ��princess�� because of our history. The land of the Original Realm is no longer under the rule of the Divine Prefecture, and I am not your subordinate. What I have done is not for you to comment on,�� Ye Futian replied indifferently. He thought he was giving her a way out, but Donghuang Diyuan didn��t seem to take the hint at all.


    Her attitude was haughty, arrogant, and high-handed as if he was hers to command.


    Donghuang Diyuan fixed her eyes on Ye Futian when she heard Ye Futian��s insolent retort. A breathtaking majesty surged from those unbelievably beautiful eyes, making those who beheld it to surrender involuntarily. She was the only princess in all of the Divine Prefecture, and a naturally powerful aura emerged from her. Ye Futian had seen it once when he was still a youth. Even if she was surrounded by all the divine generals of Divine Prefecture, she was the absolute undeniable center of attention.


    At this moment, it was the first time Ye Futian was in such close contact with her and experienced that reality, which was becoming more and more evident. It was a majestic power that was meant to make everyone bow down at her feet, for she could only be revered.


    However, Ye Futian was not someone who had not seen much of the world. He had his fair share of interactions with many great emperors. Moreover, he was now the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace��the ruler of Ziwei Segmentum. He had killed many top cultivators himself, so how could he be easily unnerved by Donghuang Diyuan?


    He stared right into the eyes of the other. His deep-set eyes were as bright as the stars. He and Donghuang Diyuan stared at one another. There was an invisible coercion that effused from him. His momentum was no less than hers.


    The two sets of eyes challenged each other. Suddenly, Ye Futian heard the long cry of the most radiant phoenix divine bird and felt it rushed directly into his eyes. The phoenix divine bird was bathed in an extremely brilliant divine flames capable of incinerating one��s will and spiritual soul.


    At the same time, the phoenix robe that was draped upon the body of Donghuang Diyuan seemed to be caught on fire, turning into golden feathers. An incredibly fiery and terrifying current swept out, and everything seemed to be on the verge of turning into dust and smoke.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt a strong sense of threat. A Buddha statue appeared in his mind, guarding and protecting his will from imminent destruction.


    Buzz�� An incomparably fiery current swept over, and it was the phoenix bathing in the divine flame. It did not appear to be an ordinary phoenix as each feather on its wing was a divine feather, burning with golden divine flames. Its eyes were even more domineering, like a king among all phoenixes, noble and untouchable.


    Along with that sustained cry, the terrifying claws of the phoenix suddenly slammed down and blasted on the Buddha statue. The Buddha statue collapsed and shattered under that sudden attack of the divine flame and its terrifying force. Ye Futian��s mind suffered a violent and abrupt blow.


    Bang! Ye Futian slid backward and smashed a stone table somewhere. Between his and Donghuang Diyuan��s eyes, an extremely bright golden light did not dissipate.


    ��Do you think you are powerful?�� Even Donghuang Diyuan��s eyes had released brilliant divine flames. She was bathed fully in the power of the divine might. At this moment, she was dazzling��a proud empress blooming with incomparable divine might, more arrogant and haughtier than ever.


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened slightly as he looked up at the figure. It was then that he seemed to have realized something.


    The woman who was standing in front of him was not some weakling with a pretty face. If she were underestimated simply because of her looks, then someone would be paying a great price as he did just now.


    The daughter of Donghuang the Great was the only princess in the Divine Prefecture, who had inherited from Donghuang the Great. The extent of Donghuang Diyuan��s strength could not really be imagined.


    Donghuang the Great must have devoted every resource available in training her.


    The likes of Wang Xiao, because of their unparalleled talents, such as in armoring, had some right to ask for the hand of Donghuang Diyuan. Still, this was nothing more than an idiotic dream. They seemed to only focus on her identity as Donghuang Diyuan but never considered just how powerful she really was.


    Perhaps it was because of Donghuang Diyuan��s identity as a woman, or perhaps she had never truly revealed her full strength in front of the outside world that there was no need to consider such things.


    ��The Second Tribulation!�� Ye Futian was a little surprised at the strength of Donghuang Diyuan. She was so strong, so who in the Devil World had captured her?


    Yu Sheng took a step toward Donghuang Diyuan, and an overbearing demonic might bloomed from him.


    ��Yu Sheng!�� Ye Futian called out to him. Yu Sheng stopped immediately as he looked at Ye Futian behind him.


    At this moment, divine light was lingering upon Ye Futian��s body as a violent roar of the Great Path emerged from within him. For a while, a brilliant divine light continued to erupt from him.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was surrounded by a powerful intent of battle.


    He had previously slaughtered existences who had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. When he was trespassing into the Devil Imperial Palace, he had also defeated several cultivators at this level. It was not until the appearance of the Earth Demon Sage that he really felt the sense of coercion.


    Now, from Donghuang Diyuan, he felt a strong sense of pressure.


    What kind of talent did this princess from the Divine Prefecture possess? Just how strong was she? Ye Futian was very curious.


    And he was not the only one that was curious. At this moment, the Demon Emperor was standing over the Demon God Palace as he was looking this way. The exchange between these two was of great interest to him!

 Chapter 2616 - Donghuang Diyuan

    Donghuang Diyuan glanced at Ye Futian, then raised her head as she soared upward, heading higher into the sky.


    This was not the Donghuang Imperial Palace, and she would not want to destroy any of it unnecessarily.


    Ye Futian saw the movements of Donghuang��s Diyuan, so he, too, followed her higher into the sky.


    The two continued going up until they came to the area just below the Devil Abyss. Above the firmament, a pitch-black dark aura of destruction circulated. But under that ominous dark clouds, there were two figures surrounded by dazzling divine light.


    Buzz! A blazing wild wind blew, and Donghuang Diyuan seemed to bathe in the shadow of a divine phoenix. The divine phoenix was akin to the Demon Monarch in the days of yore, incomparably noble. Even the divine wings that appeared behind Donghuang Diyuan were covered in brilliant golden feathers, shining with the dazzling brilliance of divine glory.


    In an instant, the dark clouds of tribulation overhead were illuminated, and a red glow appeared in the pitch-black sky. Many demonic cultivators in the Devil Imperial Palace looked up in the sky and had a look of shock on their faces. When they saw that gigantic divine phoenix, there was a disturbance in all of their hearts.


    This imagery was too incredible. Who was there?


    Many figures levitated into the sky, standing on top of many demonic halls, looking up at the sky. There were also great demons heading higher into the sky, but they felt an intense pressure of might as they went further up. Whoever was able to reach this far above the sky must be someone of great cultivation. Who could be fighting over there?


    ��It��s the divine phoenix!�� Ye Futian looked at Donghuang Diyuan and felt pressure coming from the phoenix��s phantom. He could feel a strong sense of coercion.


    This feeling of oppression seemed quite familiar. Once, he had a similar feeling when he was facing the corpse of the Peacock Demon Monarch.


    That was the aura of the Demon Monarch.


    What was happening in front of him seemed to remind him once again that the one standing in front of him was the only daughter of Donghuang the Great. Along the way in his cultivation, he had obtained the inheritance of several great emperors. Would someone like Donghuang Diyuan have any fewer opportunities than him?


    Donghuang the Great must have given her all the very best.


    Just from this aura alone, he knew that Donghuang Diyuan must have received the power of the DemonMonarch��ss divine phoenix.


    Ye Futian had primarily been invincible on the path of cultivation, but self-reflection was sometimes necessary. He seemed to have been a little overconfident, so he had overlooked what Donghuang Diyuan was capable of. Before the battle, he did not recognize Donghuang Diyuan��s true strength.


    But at this moment, there was no denying it. His eyes were grave and solemn, and he became quite serious.


    ��You have comprehended the divine body from the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor��a physique that is powerful and unparalleled, so let me experience its power for myself!�� Donghuang Diyuan was extremely arrogant and exuded a noble temperament that she was born with. The world only saw her nobility, status, and that unparalleled beauty but forgot all about her talent and strength.


    When Wang Xiao had thoughts about courting Donghuang Diyuan, Spear Emperor Du You was dismissive of him. As the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, Du You would know just how good and powerful Donghuang Diyuan was; however, she had never shown the world any of it.


    Even before this moment, Ye Futian hadn��t known her true strength and realm.


    ��Have it your way.�� Behind Ye Futian, a phantom of the peacock demon god appeared, domineering to the extreme. An aggressive and unparalleled divine light flowed from him. His figure flashed then turned into an astonishing streak of lightning, rushing towards Donghuang Diyuan.


    Since his realization of the divine body, he had not used the way of the physical body on any opponent. He had since survived several tribulations so that this physical body was now many times stronger.


    Donghuang Diyuan knew very well that his physical body was massively powerful, but she wanted to compete with him in physical strength.


    A streamer of light sailed across that turned out to be Ye Futian. He came down in front of Donghuang Diyuan in a blink of an eye. He unleashed a strike with his fist without any fancy frills, except fist aurora that was meant to shatter everything in its path. The divine light lingered and covered the fist. That punch had enough force to make heaven and earth tremble.


    It seemed that with this blow alone, he could punch through the delicate body of Donghuang Diyuan.


    A radiant golden figure rushed toward Ye Futian, and a punch was also unleashed. Two massive phantoms appeared in the void, and it was the phantoms of the divine phoenix and the Peacock Demon God.


    Bang! Above the firmament, the silence that covered the area was deafening as a most brilliant light swept out, sheltering the entire sky above the Devil Imperial Palace. Even in the capital outside the Devil Imperial Palace had gathered countless bystanders to witness the scene unfolding before them. The sky was stained a different color, and even from far away, the gigantic divine phoenix and the peacock could be seen.


    Top figures were fighting in the sky above the Devil Imperial Palace.


    The two streamers of light collided time and again, which seemed to shatter even the clouds of tribulation in the sky. There was a terrible divine light of destruction that shot down from the firmament as the halo of collision radiated outward. Muffled sounds of collisions were heard continuously, which drove the heart of everyone in the Devil Imperial Palace to beat wildly.


    It was a frightening great battle.


    This kind of fight was only possible with characters on the level of the Demon Sage.


    Finally, as a divine light swept out, the two finally separated.


    Ye Futian was carrying the phantom of the Peacock Demon God on his back, as the divine light of the Great Path circling his body endlessly. He stared at the peerless figure opposite of him. He did not expect that in their physical confrontation, he had not been able to suppress her.


    The Princess��s beautiful eyes, likewise, were fixed upon Ye Futian as well. It was hard to imagine that her delicate body was capable of unleashing such terrifying energy. Only she knew how she managed to cultivate such a powerful physique. Her cultivation environment was not something that Ye Futian could have ever dreamed of. No matter how many wonderful chances Ye Futian had encountered, they could never be compared with what was made available to her.


    From an early age, Donghuang the Great had been tempering her in the best of conditions. No matter the time or realm, the most suitable resource for cultivation had always been at her disposal.


    What she experienced was different from all the other worlds. No one was competing with her for cultivational resources because everything belonged to her and her alone.


    Moreover, only she knew how much effort her father had poured into her.


    Ye Futian had once comprehended the body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and possessed the inheritance of the Peacock Demon Monarch.


    But she had bathed in the true sacred blood of the DemonMonarch��s phoenix, refined by the sacred blood, and it had integrated as part of her body.


    This was just one part of it. She had also endured the tribulation of the divine flames with her flesh and blood. And now, her divine body was sharper and more deadly than any divine arms.


    She had never wasted any bit of strength on her journey in cultivation. She had enjoyed nothing but the cream of the crop in resources and the most powerful cultivational methods.


    ��Not bad.�� Donghuang Diyuan��s phoenix robe fluttered as her eyes drifted once again to Ye Futian. She said, ��I heard that you are also an expert in swordsmanship; show me how far along is your sword.��


    Buzz! As soon as Donghuang Diyuan��s voice fell, rays of divine light swept out. Above the firmament, a terrifying domain of the Great Path seemed to manifest. Above Ye Futian, endless brilliant golden runes appear. They were filled with an aura that was incredibly horrific and sharp.


    Those radiant golden runes gathered together and turned into a divine sword as the sword light flooded the space. In an instant, it had enveloped the area below and swallowed up YeFutian��s body within that sword domain.


    Under this sword intent, the entire space seemed to be on the verge of destruction, as invisible sword shadows rained down and flowed freely in this sword domain.


    Ye Futian looked up and wondered if Donghuang Diyuan meant to challenge all the areas in which he was an expert?

 Chapter 2617 - Differences in Status?

    Chapter 2617: Differences in Status?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Sword Will above the firmament was getting stronger, and the light of the demonic tribulation was overwhelmed by that most destructive Sword Will. What was even more terrifying was that the aura of the Great Path and those clouds of tribulations between heavens and earth were also converging into that divine light.


    Buzz! Divine swords were suspended above the sword domain, and each divine sword released an apocalyptic divine light; it seemed as if they were the most powerful swords of punishment in the world. The area around Ye Futian was surrounded by the divine light emitted from those swords.


    This terrifying sword light continued to descend, aiming in the direction of the Devil Imperial Palace below. The Earth Demon Sage emerged from the Devil Imperial Palace to guard it from above, creating a massive and powerful shield that blocked the light from those falling divine swords.


    The dark eyes of the Earth Demon Sage fixed at the sky above him. He had felt a force of punishment. It seemed as if it was a punishment from heaven itself.


    This was even more apparent to Ye Futian. This sword domain had turned into a penalizing prison, and the area in which it covered would be nothing be total destruction.


    ��Tianxing Divine Sword,�� the Devil Emperor murmured when he saw the scene unfolding. He didn��t think that he would be able to witness the Tianxing Divine Sword in action again. Watching it being wielded by Donghuang Diyuan reminded him of too many things.


    Donghuang the Great had been the undisputed number one figure for the past thousand years. He achieved fame out of nowhere and ascended to the throne simply by his incredible and unbelievable talents. The most terrifying thing about Donghuang the Great was that there was nothing that he was incapable of. He had cultivated all sorts of methods throughout the world and had cultivated each of them to a great degree. He was the true epitome of genius talent.


    Tianxing Divine Sword was a technique for punishment. It was meant to impose sword punishment in a specific area of the world and spare no one within that sword domain.


    This technique first came from the wife of Donghuang the Great.


    1


    Ye Futian felt the power of destruction, and his expression was solemn. The divine light in this space had extinguished all other existences. Everything was destroyed within the sword domain; the flesh, the spiritual soul, and everything else had turned into nothingness. This destruction was invisible, and even the will that exuded from Ye Futian was destroyed as well.


    More importantly, the divine brilliance contained within the Tianxing Divine Sword was the true imperial will. It was obvious that Donghuang Diyuan had the inheritance from more than just one great emperor.


    With a thought, a starry field suddenly appeared around him, surrounded by all the stars in the heavens. With Ye Futian��s body as the center, an independent space of the starry field was formed.


    Donghuang Diyuan��s eyes glanced over the starry domain, and divine light bloomed. Tianxing Divine Swords fell all of a sudden as they flew towards the starry field.


    Bang, bang, bang! The terrifying sounds of collision were heard. When Tianxing Divine Swords came in for the kill, the stars began to crack upon impact, then shattered. The divine swords rushed in among the stars, and even the terrifying stars of the Great Path were collapsing. The imagery of destruction was akin to the end of the world.


    But when all the divine swords entered deep within, their power was weakened considerably. Divine swords around Ye Futian attacked without hesitation and blocked off the incoming Tianxing Divine Swords.


    Donghuang Diyuan stood below the runes of the Tianxing Divine Swords that were hanging in the sky, and her body bloomed with radiant divine glory. The divine swords were endless as they continued to rain down like a blanket of destruction.


    The sky above the Devil Imperial Palace was full of shocking explosions as the cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace watched on, their hearts beating violently.


    Donghuang Diyuan stretched out her hand and made a gesture to press down to the area below. Suddenly, an infinitely gigantic Tianxing divine sword blasted downward.


    It came down in an instant, broke through every defense, and destroyed all Great Paths. All the divine swords in the vicinity went with it to become one, and the entire sword domain was filled with incomparable destructive power.


    Boom! This sword directly went for the space above Ye Futian, but was blocked by a brilliant starry light screen. Immediately after, however, the starry light screen was torn apart little by little as the divine sword continued its way down. But from the inside, a starry divine sword appeared, as the starry light from the heavens gathered together. An awful rumbling sound was heard as the starry divine sword emerged from the firmament above and blasted down at that Tianxing Divine Sword.


    At the time when Ye Futian slew the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain, once his divine sword was unleashed, there was no stopping him. But the Mountain Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain was obviously not Donghuang Diyuan, and the combat effectiveness of Donghuang Diyuan far surpassed the other, on more levels than one.


    Indeed, no matter the realm, there was always a gap between different cultivators.


    Ye Futian raised his head to take a look at Donghuang Diyuan, his body turned into the divine body of the Great Path as divine light lingered. All his methods had now unified into one. His whole body was radiant like a divine sword, sharp to the extreme.


    Buzz! A stream of light sailed through the void and penetrated everything. None of the Tianxing swords that rained down was able to block this extremely brilliant streamer of light.


    Donghuang Diyuan exercised extremely quick reflex as she reacted. The phantom of the divine phoenix appeared, sheltering the sky and obscuring the sun. With a long cry, her body turned into a fiery red ancestral phoenix, dominant beyond words. She smashed down with both of her hands, colliding with the incoming streamers of swordsmanship.


    Bang! A loud sound came out, and the body of Donghuang Diyuan was repelled backward by the attacks from the light streamers. However, the light streamers were unable to penetrate her hand.


    There was another violent and long cry, and the surrounding area turned into the domain of the phoenix, a world of flames. The terrifying phoenix divine flames covered that streamer divine sword in an instant, wanting to incinerate it into nothing.


    The two figures separated, and the streamer of light retreated. A divine flame seemed to have ignited his body, and the power of Yin surged from inside his body. Even so, the divine flame was not yet extinguished. It did not dissipate until the power of Yin grew much stronger.


    Ye Futian had also received phoenix��s Wutong divine flame, but it was not as powerful as the other��s phoenix divine flame.


    Donghuang Diyuan bathed in the phoenix divine flame, haughtier than ever. What she inherited was the power of the ancestral phoenix Devil Monarch, and she had refined her body with the blood of the phoenix��s divine blood and inherited the immortal fire of the phoenix. This divine flame of the Devil Monarch had been immortal since time immemorial. It even possessed the power of Nirvana and was definitely no weaker than Ye Futian��s Divine Fire of the Sun.


    Ye Futian sighed in his heart. Naturally, Donghuang the Great had given all his best resources to his only daughter.


    Her starting point was the goal that most people in the world could only hope for.


    ��It seems that the power of Yin that you inherited once upon a time was effective in extinguishing my ancestral phoenix divine flame,�� Donghuang Diyuan said with a proud look in her eyes. She knew that Ye Futian had obtained the power of Yin, but in her position, she was loathing to fight over it with Ye Futian.


    ��Thanks to you, Your Royal Highness,�� Ye Futian responded coldly. Regarding the opportunities back then, if it were not because of Donghuang Diyuan, he would never have participated in the war, and he would not have gone to the center of the earth to obtain the power of Yin.


    ��You don��t need to thank me. The opportunity that you have gotten by risking your life is something I already had since birth.�� Donghuang Diyuan responded nonchalantly, still so cold, arrogant, and above everyone else.


    Ye Futian couldn��t help but twitch inside his heart, and his eyes remained icy cold. What she said was true enough. He had used his own life time and time again, risking hardships and danger to exchange all those opportunities in cultivation. However, these were all things that Donghuang Diyuan already had at birth.


    And all this could have been his at birth as well.


    But he was deprived of them all!

 Chapter 2618 - Fateful Duel

    Ye Futian was straight-backed as he looked at Donghuang Diyuan, bathing in divine glory like the imperial ruler of the world.


    Both of them had the wills of the great emperors on them, and it was more than the inheritance of just one great emperor. Because he was facing was Donghuang Diyuan, Ye Futian did not have any advantage.


    Donghuang Diyuan was right when she said that the resources he had fought for with his life were things Donghuang Diyuan was entitled to by birth. However, in those trials between life and death, the willpower that he had forged was not something that Donghuang Diyuan could claim to possess.


    Buzz! The streamer of swordsmanship circled him, and his whole body was radiant. All the will in his body seemed to have turned into swordsmanship, flowing upon the divine body. An extremely sharp aura bloomed as if there was nothing in the world that it could not break.


    ��Boundless!��


    With a thought, Ye Futian disappeared directly. At this moment, Donghuang Diyuan also released an equally unparalleled divine glory. Her divine body seemed to be engraved with divine marks within, as well as the marks of the Great Path; the terrifying divine light circulated on the surface of that invincible body of the phoenix. Her palms slammed forward, and the countless marks of the Great Path gathered to form the Tianxing Divine Sword, which bloomed with the divine body of the ancestral phoenix and blasted forward.


    The divine light bloomed, accompanied by a loud bang, sweeping across the vast space. The dark clouds of tribulation shook the sky and were pierced by the divine glory of the sword qi. However, Ye Futian had disappeared right after that blow of attack, and he was completely invisible.


    At this time, Donghuang Diyuan closed her eyes as her will enveloped the boundless space. She raised her hand once again to strike out to the left; her speed was incredible. When she raised her hand and attacked, an incomparable divine light of swordsmanship descended, and it was yet another extremely violent collision.


    There was only a collision, and no one was seen except for that divine light of destruction. There were no signs of Ye Futian.


    The Buddha��s Celerity was invisible, untraceable, and unpredictable.


    In the area below, all the cultivators inside the Devil Imperial Palace were looking up at the shocking battle in the firmament. This battle was a rare sight even for the cultivators in the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Even the Earth Demon Sage��one of the three great Demon Sages��was looking rather grave at the moment. His attention had been focused on the battlefield, and he could not catch the slightest glimpse of Ye Futian, but apparently, Donghuang Diyuan did. He thought if he was in Donghuang Diyuan��s position, could he be as invincible as she under such violent attacks?


    This was probably a little difficult. These two were no weaker than him, but he was one of the three great Demon Sages in the Devil World.


    Ye Futian��s attacks were getting faster and faster, and all the Earth Demon Sage could see were just rays of light and a storm of destruction that was making the sky tremble. The clouds of tribulation were dancing wildly, and in just a short moment, Ye Futian had launched an unknown number of attacks. They were like countless bolts of lightning that struck one after the other.


    But the scary thing was that Donghuang Diyuan was able to withstand them all.


    Another violent sound of collision was heard. Then, the divine light was shining as Ye Futian��s figure reappeared. He stood in front of Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��How did you do it?�� Ye Futian asked Donghuang Diyuan.


    Donghuang Diyuan had detected his Buddha��s Celerity, and there was nowhere for him to hide. All his attacks were being blocked.


    Donghuang Diyuan opened her eyes and looked at Ye Futian. ��Hundreds of years ago, long before you went to the Western Heaven of Buddhism, someone in the Divine Prefecture had already gone to the Spirit Mountain. You are not the only one who is an expert in the ways of Buddhism.��


    When those words were spoken, the Light of Buddha lingered all around her, and she was akin to a female Buddha. Her entire body was radiant and sacred.


    ��Donghuang the Great!�� Of course, Ye Futian knew who Donghuang Diyuan was referring to. While he was cultivating in Spirit Mountain, he had heard that Donghuang the Great was already proficient in Buddhism before he even entered the Western Heaven of Buddhism. Therefore, he was able to defeat all the Buddhas at the battle in Spirit Mountain.


    The Buddhas at Spirit Mountain had told him that had Donghuang the Great focused on cultivating Buddhism, and he would have been a mighty Buddha that was not possible to find in a thousand years.


    Like him, Donghuang the Great was well-versed in all things.


    So, was it another kind of superpower?


    Those who could recognize Buddha��s Celerity possessed extremely advanced Buddhist techniques. Donghuang the Great once had cultivated one of the six superpowers himself. It might have been another of the six Buddhist superpowers. Of course, it may also be some other Buddhist techniques that required a great sense of comprehension. After all, Donghuang Diyuan had been standing there without moving, and she might be sensing and predicting where the attack would come from. Methods of Buddhism were infinite and curious, and it was not impossible that such an ability existed.


    When he saw the Light of Buddha blooming from Donghuang Diyuan, Ye Futian clasped his hands together. Suddenly, his whole body burned bright with the Light of Buddha. It seemed that Donghuang Diyuan intended to see all of his various abilities. In that case, he, too, would like to see just how strong Donghuang Diyuan was in these various fields.


    As the Light of Buddha covered the sky, and auspicious clouds shrouded the space. The pitch-black clouds of tribulation were dispelled. Between heaven and earth, gigantic figures of Buddha appeared. At the same time, a massive shadow of Buddha appeared above the firmament formed by the Light of Buddha.


    Like him, Donghuang Diyuan had clasped her hands together as well. A look of holiness and peace replaced the previous look of dominant arrogance and cold indifference. There was a little more tranquility about her as her body was surrounded by many massive golden lotus flowers. She trod lightly into the void, and with every step she took, a lotus flower appeared. This was a very profound vision of Buddhist methods known as Lotus in Every Step.


    At the same time, high above the sky, a massive phantom of Guanyin Buddha appeared, vying with the giant Buddha summoned by Ye Futian.


    A terrifying aura of attack came into being, and the Light of Buddha on Ye Futian soared into the sky. The Buddhas in heaven blasted the seal of Mahavairocana simultaneously, launching their attacks downward to destroy everything as they fired towards Donghuang Diyuan.


    The Guanyin Buddha behind Donghuang Diyuan had a thousand arms, and all of them made the gesture of the seal of Buddha. Immediately, a sacred Buddhist divine sword appeared in each of those thousand hands, blasting at the seal of Mahavairocana.


    This was the divine sword of cleansing, which collided with the seal blasting down, and a sacred Light of Buddha erupted. Soon after, it was purified as it dissipated and disappeared into nothing.


    Ye Futian did not stop, and the Buddhas in all the heavens continued to resonate. Above the firmament, that gigantic and massive ancient Buddha had condensed into a tangible existence. The Light of Buddha illuminated the space as the Six Syllables of Truth continued to pour out of Ye Futian��s mouth, and the power of Buddhism began to increase by leaps and bounds.


    The power of all the Buddhas in the sky converged upon the ancient Buddha, and a mighty Buddha��s prestige rained down. The massive ancient Buddha stretched out his arm and pressed down his hand to oppress the space below. The Light of Buddha filled the heavens, and it was a golden Buddha��s handprint. Endless Buddhist seals in the Symbol of Wan were engraved on that massive and boundless handprint. Suddenly. The gigantic and incomparable Buddhist seal turned into a giant Symbol of Wan.


    Donghuang Diyuan and Ye Futian had similar reactions. Numerous Buddhist lotuses grew upward, reaching into the sky. Among those lotus flowers, a most brilliant Buddhist glory was released, gathered upon the statue of Guanyin. Thousands of hands were making the signs of the seals simultaneously, converging into the divine sword of cleansing.


    At this time, the right arm of the Guanyin Buddha stretched out, the thumb and forefinger in a circle while the other three fingers pointed to the sky. The divine sword of cleansing gathered, as the Light of Buddha shining in the sky, colliding with the Symbol of Wan. A horrific Light of Buddha swept through the space as the clouds of tribulation above the firmament were cleared away and turned into clouds of sacred auspice, giving out an incredible glow.


    The two attacks seemed to stand still for a while, then collapsed and pulverized at the same time. The horrific storm repelled Ye Futian as well as Donghuang Diyuan, and even the Light of Buddha was forcibly dispersed by its power.


    The Devil Emperor above the Demon God Palace watched this battle with demonic light shining in his eyes. This was indeed a fateful duel. The descendants nurtured by Donghuang the Great were this outstanding!

 Chapter 2619 - The World’s No.1 All-Rounder

    ��They are too powerful!�� exclaimed the cultivators.


    The battle between the two of them covered a huge area. Inside and outside the Devil Imperial Palace, countless cultivators witnessed the huge battle in the sky.


    On the battlefield, colorful lights filled the sky and appeared extremely divine. The destructive currents beneath the Devil Abyss were scattered by the shockwaves.


    Right now, the various demonic cultivators already knew who were battling each other.


    One side was the only daughter of Donghuang the Great, Donghuang Diyuan.


    The other was Ye Futian��the current most famous monstrous figure in the Divine Prefecture and the top Proud Son of Heaven of the Original Realm, who led the Ziwei Segmentum against the six major Ancient God Clans.


    These two figures were now battling in the sky above the Devil Imperial Palace.


    The members of the Devil Imperial Palace knew that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were brothers. The former had come to the Devil World for Yu Sheng. On the other hand, Donghuang Diyuan was captured and brought here. Who was so mighty to be able to bring the powerful Princess Donghuang to the Devil World?


    It was the first Demon Sage!


    Rumor has it that the first Demon Sage��s cultivation was deep and unfathomable. He had long been in a state of transformation and was already an existence akin to a demigod. He was rarely seen in public. It was difficult even for the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace to catch a glimpse of him.


    However, aside from the several super existences in the Devil Imperial Palace, Donghuang Diyuan and Ye Futian��s combat ability were already at the level of the Demon Sage too. No wonder even the Blood Raiment of the guardian of the Devil Imperial Palace could not stop Ye Futian.


    Who would win this fight?


    From the looks of it now, they seemed to be on equal footing. The members of the Devil Imperial Palace could not help but sigh. This Proud Son of Heaven of the Original Realm was indeed as the rumors had said. He actually could go toe-to-toe with the daughter of Donghuang the Great.


    After the Symbol of Wan and the divine sword of cleansing collided in the heavens above, both sides did not continue to attack. There was a brief moment of silence.


    Up until now, both of them had failed to gain the upper hand.


    Both sides were very powerful in all aspects.


    However, was this their limit? Only they knew for sure.


    ��What other abilities do you possess?�� asked Donghuang Diyuan as she looked at Ye Futian.


    ��I still have many. I fear you won��t be able to handle them,�� replied Ye Futian indifferently.


    ��Outrageous,�� said Donghuang Diyuan as she swept a glance at Ye Futian. ��Do you know who is the most all-rounded cultivator currently in the world?��


    Was it Donghuang the Great? Ye Futian thought to himself. However, he did not answer her directly. He had also heard that Donghuang the Great��s talents were all-rounded.


    ��It is my father,�� said Donghuang Diyuan. ��Even His Highness, the Devil Emperor, cannot deny this. No matter what sort of ability you use, I will be able to match it with a corresponding ability.��


    Before this, she had already proved that she possessed indestructible flesh, skillful swordsmanship, and Buddhist techniques and that she was also one of the most proficient in the world. She could be considered an existence whose combat ability was cultivated to the utmost limit. Even Ye Futian had to acknowledge this.


    This was the first time he had encountered such an incredible person. She could match him in almost every aspect.


    He did not use his will to attack. When they first began to clash, the Divine Phoenix will that surged into his mind made him realize that Donghuang Diyuan was similarly powerful in this area.


    Donghuang the Great would not have allowed Donghuang Diyuan to have an obvious weakness. Her spiritual will and soul were certainly tempered with training.


    ��She is truly proud,�� exclaimed the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace. However, the only daughter of Donghuang the Great was an existence whose talent and beauty were all top tier. It was difficult for anyone to be a match for her, so she certainly was qualified to be proud.


    Ye Futian was from the same generation as she was. For him to be able to fight with her to this extent was already very commendable.


    Everyone said that Ye Futian was the descendent of Emperor Ye Qing, but the latter had died long ago after all. Ye Futian did not receive any training from the Great Emperor; instead, he acquired his skills throughout his adventures.


    So she was the world��s No.1 all-rounder? Ye Futian thought. Donghuang Diyuan seemed to be hinting that Donghuang the Great used to be the world��s No.1 all-rounder, and now she had taken over this title.


    Ye Futian looked at Donghuang Diyuan. A formless aura rippled outwards from his body. Music rang in the sky. The formless music waves enveloped the vast space. It was as though countless guqin strings of the Great Path vibrated in the heavens and the earth at the same time.


    The guqin strings were everywhere.


    At the same time, a myriad of brilliant illusory figures split out from Ye Futian��s body. They actually looked exactly like him and seemed to be formed from his spiritual soul. His spiritual soul transformed into phantasms of the Great Path and appeared in their surroundings along with the formless ripples.


    The entire space turned into Ye Futian��s Dominion of Music. The phantasms of the Great Path stood at different locations in the dominion.


    The Light of Buddha shone and veiled all the phantasms in divine light. Then, terrifying sound waves, which shook the surroundings, swept out as Ye Futian chanted. He was chanting the Vajra Spell.


    As his lips moved, the surrounding phantasms turned into Buddhas, and they joined in the chant as well. The horrifying Vajra Spell was unleashed and charged in the direction of Donghuang Diyuan.


    Donghuang Diyuan swept a glance at the surroundings. Then, she sat cross-legged directly where she was, and with a wave of her hand, a fiery red guqin appeared in front of her. She placed her dainty hands on the guqin, and as her slender fingers caressed the strings, melody flowed, and imperial glory permeated the space. A divine halo shrouded her.


    Ye Futian felt somewhat emotional as he heard her play a familiar song.


    She was playing the Ukiyo Song composed by Donghuang the Great. All techniques in the world paled into insignificance before the Ukiyo Song.


    In the past, the Ukiyo Song that Ye Futian obtained was actually flawed. Hence, he had never played it. More often, he played the Song of the Lost Divine and the Divine Requiem.


    However, the Ukiyo Song that Donghuang Diyuan was playing now was a complete version.


    Divine imperial glory circled Donghuang Diyuan as she sat in the sky, adorned with her fiery red robes. She was fully immersed in the artistic conception of the song. The Vajra Spell was domineering and indestructible as it blasted towards Donghuang Diyuan.


    However, all techniques in the world paled into insignificance before the Ukiyo Song. The song would destroy all techniques and Great Paths.


    The Vajra Spell failed to penetrate through her musical storm.


    All the phantasms of the Great Path returned to Ye Futian��s body. Then, he also sat cross-legged with a guqin appearing in front of him. He put both his hands on the strings and played a song.


    This time, he played the Song of the Lost Divine, which was also a Divine Melody.


    As the Song of the Lost Divine was played, Great Path flowed against the current.


    Musical storms enveloped the vast space as their songs were played. In the sky above, the power of the Great Path in the heavens and the earth flowed frenziedly. The terrifying musical storms fought to be in control of the space. However, as they twisted and twined together, neither could suppress each other.


    Their music could not invade the other party��s dominion.


    When Ye Futian was playing, sharp swords charged out along with the melody. The swords carried the power to disrupt other��s Great Paths as they traversed across space. However, the swords were crushed into dust when they entered Donghuang Diyuan��s dominion. No Great Path or attack could come close to her.


    Was it difficult for them to decide who was better, even with music? The cultivators were shocked. This was a battle between two Divine Melodies.


    Right at this moment, Ye Futian��s hand swept across the guqin, and the melody changed. This time, there was no more powerful attack. Instead, the listeners were drawn into an endless picture. As soon as the melody sounded, the cultivators in the Devil Imperial Palace actually felt a pang of sadness.


    The world grieved when the Divine Requiem was played.


    The eyes of Donghuang Diyuan, who was sitting cross-legged, twitched slightly!

 Chapter 2620 - A Weak Point

    In the sky, the musical storms enveloped the vast space. There was a will that nullified all the techniques in the world, as well as a will that permeated with extreme sorrow.


    The melody reached the Devil Imperial Palace, and even the cultivators there felt an inexplicable sadness well up inside of them.


    The Divine Requiem was a Divine Melody that affected the emotions of the listeners. It could cause the listeners to dwell uncontrollably in extreme grief. It was not a melody that attacked its opponents upfront. Its attack was elusive. The opponents could not even defend against it directly. They could only rely on their strong will to not be affected by the melody.


    Right now, the storm of the Ukiyo Song surged towards Ye Futian, intending to forcefully stop him from playing the Divine Requiem. There was even a streak of fiery red attacks in the midst of the storm. The musical storm transformed into a phantasm of the Divine Phoenix and pounced towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s figure disappeared from his spot and reappeared in another location. However, the melody continued uninterrupted.


    Was she affected by the music? Ye Futian noticed Donghuang Diyuan squirming a little. This was something that had never happened before. He shifted his will, and immediately, many illusory figures of himself appeared all around. The illusory figures played the same song in different locations simultaneously.


    The melody filled every corner of the heavens and the earth. The will of the Divine Requiem intensified.


    Donghuang Diyuan��s attacks suddenly turned frantic. The attacks of the melody burst forth and slashed towards different directions. Concurrently, the storm directly crushed all the musical notes that came near to her.


    Buzz! A figure appeared near Donghuang Diyuan. It was the actual Ye Futian. He no longer needed to play the song as his phantasms continued playing the tune for him. He took a step forward. His figure was shrouded by a terrifying Sword Will that flowed against the current of the Great Path. His body shone brilliantly as he activated his sword body.


    With a step forward, Ye Futian entered into Donghuang Diyuan��s musical storm.


    An extremely horrifying Sword Will burst forth from his divine body, forming a reverse current of swordsmanship all around him. Then, the current plowed towards Donghuang Diyuan.


    She naturally did not dare to belittle his attack. A dazzling phantasm of the Divine Phoenix appeared above her and encircled her. She continued to play her song without stopping. Her menacing musical storm swept towards Ye Futian to shackle and destroy his Great Path.


    The two powers clashed together violently. Terrifying rumbling sounds could be heard. Destructive storms covered Ye Futian��s figure, yet his divine body remained. Terrifying currents of swordsmanship circled and formed a domain around him as he continued to advance towards Donghuang Diyuan.


    The musical storm obliterated his defenses and invaded his body, attempting to destroy his divine body and his body of flesh. However, Ye Futian��s flesh was extraordinary. Divine light flowed over the surface of his body, rendering him indestructible.


    His divine body was attacking, but the Rhythmic Sorcery did not end. The various cultivators looked up into the sky. Ye Futian��s phantasm was playing the Divine Requiem while his divine body was attacking and attempting to subdue Donghuang Diyuan.


    Would this work?


    Right now, Ye Futian was withstanding extremely menacing pressure in the musical storm. Every step he took was very difficult. However, his figure was similarly cloaked in monstrous, murderous swordsmanship. Against him, Donghuang Diyuan did not dare to relax at all.


    At the same time, the will of the Divine Requiem invaded. Donghuang Diyuan��s hands played faster and faster. One could sense her haste from the Ukiyo Song.


    Bang!


    Ye Futian took a step forward, allowing the astonishing musical storm to sweep over his body.


    Sonorous sounds of the guqin swept out. The storm was intense. Ye Futian stared at Donghuang Diyuan��s figure as he stopped in his tracks. On his body, vast Sword Will flowed. Right now, he was already close to her. If it wasn��t for her musical storm getting in his way, he could kill her in an instant.


    A powerful attack coalesced, and Sword Will flowed over him. Ye Futian��s divine body became a sword and traversed the space, causing the power of the Great Path to surge backward. Even the musical storm could not destroy him. In front of him, the gigantic phantasm of the Divine Phoenix behind Donghuang Diyuan took form. It was as though the ancient phoenix had resurrected. Its gaze was frightening, and its body was cloaked in astonishing destructive power. The fiery-red divine flames were accompanied by the sounds of the guqin as they swept towards Ye Futian.


    A light shroud of Sword Will appeared around Ye Futian, blocking off all attacks.


    His body did not continue to move. Instead, he kept staring ahead. He was still posing a threat to her, and he could unleash an astonishing attack at any given moment. However, the cost was that he also had to withstand this terrifying attack from her.


    Ye Futian��s gaze was fixed on Donghuang Diyuan. She continued playing with her head lowered so he could not see her eyes. However, he could sense her music.


    A musician��s current emotion was reflected in their music. With Ye Futian��s extraordinary attainment in music, he could tell her current status based on her song. He knew that she was perturbed by the Divine Requiem.


    Time and space seemed to halt in the sky; only the musical storms continued rampaging the space. Both Divine Melodies were proficient in different territories, but Ye Futian could utilize his phantasms to intensify the tune. Judging from this point, he seemed to be better than Donghuang Diyuan in this aspect.


    Donghuang Diyuan had been playing with her head lowered. An intense sorrow glistened in her eyes. As she continued playing, there was actually a tint of sadness mixed in the tune of the Ukiyo Song. Right at this moment, a shocking aura pierced through the music and swept towards her. She sensed the aura.


    Suddenly, she raised her head and looked at Ye Futian. Her gaze turned resolute. Then, she continued playing the Divine Melody with her head lowered.


    Ye Futian moved forward in a flash, and he pointed a finger at her. It turned into a divine sword that penetrated through the musical storm and charged towards Donghuang Diyuan.


    Her Divine Phoenix let out a long cry and pounced towards Ye Futian, accompanied by terrifying musical notes. It collided with Ye Futian��s divine body, resulting in a destructive storm breaking loose. Ye Futian was pushed back by the power of the storm. He then stood in midair.


    After that, the Divine Requiem also gradually stopped. All his phantasms returned to his body.


    When Donghuang Diyuan saw this scene, she also stopped playing, and her guqin vanished. She stood up and looked at Ye Futian.


    ��You have lost,�� Ye Futian announced as he stared at her.


    ��Is it so?�� Donghuang Diyuan cast a glance at him.


    ��Your weak point has been exposed,�� Ye Futian said. ��Even though it only lasted for a split second, you still showed it.��


    Donghuang Diyuan frowned. She did not deny it.


    ��You��re the noble princess of the Divine Prefecture. You are born with everything others desire. You enjoy high status and are adored by all,�� Ye Futian mocked as he looked at her. ��Everything about you is so perfect. There��s not even a speck of shortcoming.��


    ��However, why would you, the only daughter of Donghuang the Great and the noblest woman in the world, feel sad when listening to the Divine Requiem?�� Ye Futian��s gaze was piercing as he stared at Donghuang Diyuan intently.


    He did not expect that the weakness of Donghuang Diyuan would be revealed by the Divine Requiem.


    Ye Futian naturally understood what this meant.


    ��You��re so full of yourself,�� Donghuang Diyuan chided coldly. Her tone was emotionless. She did not admit it.


    Ye Futian expounded, ��The Divine Requiem will awaken the sadness hidden in the listeners�� hearts. Someone who has never been through grief will not be affected much by the song. On a similar note, the greater the sorrow one has experienced, the more obvious their weakness will be when listening to the Divine Requiem. The despair hidden deep within their souls will be awakened and magnified. Given your cultivation and your will, you are surely a very strong cultivator. But you are still affected by the Divine Requiem. This can only mean one thing.��


    Ye Futian stared at Donghuang Diyuan and continued, ��The high and mighty princess of the Divine Prefecture is not as tough as you make yourself to be. You also have an intense sorrow deep inside your heart. What have you experienced?��


    As he had said, the will of Donghuang Diyuan was certainly very strong. However, she was perturbed by the Divine Requiem and showed her weakness. It was surely because she had experienced something very sad.


    Given her identity, why would she have such a tragic experience?


    She was born high and mighty. Her starting point in life was already a goal countless people would never achieve in their lives. She was adored by many.


    What else could make her so grievous?


    ��Nonsense.�� Donghuang Diyuan��s gaze was cold as she said, ��My experiences are not something that you can understand.��


    ��Is that so?�� Ye Futian smiled mockingly. From the looks of it, nobody was special in the world. Even Donghuang Diyuan, who stood at the peak, was no different from commoners. Her arrogance might be a fa?ade that she put on.


    Smiling, Ye Futian said, ��Sadness is a collective experience among all humans. Everyone needs to let their emotions out. Since Princess said I know nothing about your experiences, why don��t you tell me about them? Perhaps I can relieve you from your grief.��


    ��Presumptuous!�� said Donghuang Diyuan as a terrifying aura emanated from her and surged towards Ye Futian. Her gaze was extremely cold.


    Ye Futian actually dared to speak such frivolous words.


    ��Presumptuous?�� Ye Futian smiled as he said, ��Your words are much presumptuous than mine. We are in the Devil Imperial Palace now, not Donghuang Imperial Palace. You should tone down your arrogance.��


    Ye Futian teased, ��My cultivation is indeed not worth mentioning. However, as the princess of the Divine Prefecture who has access to the best training resources, your cultivation is no different from mine. It is lackluster.��


    Judging from their performances in the battle, none of them had a significant advantage. They couldn��t directly suppress each other in any aspect. They were both top existences who were proficient in all aspects. Both their combat abilities were astonishing.


    However, just a moment ago, Donghuang Diyuan revealed a weak point. Her emotions were perturbed by the Divine Requiem, and she showed her sorrow.


    Buzz. A scorching gale was stirred up. Donghuang Diyuan seemed to be enraged by Ye Futian.


    Divine light flowed around Ye Futian. He looked straight into Donghuang Diyuan��s eyes and declared, ��If we were in an actual battle, I would remain undefeated due to Celerity. I would not be able to do much to you, but the person who would lose in the end would certainly be you.��


    Donghuang Diyuan could predict his attacks even when he was using Celerity. However, what could she do to him if he didn��t attack?


    If they could only restrict each other, who would win in the long run?


    ��You would die if we were in an actual battle,�� Donghuang Diyuan retorted.


    ��Fascinating,�� Right at this moment, a voice was transmitted to them from afar. The speaker was none other than the Devil Emperor. He was in the Demon God Palace. His voice rang beside them, ��The two of you go way back. In the past, Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing were comrades and were the two Emperors of the Divine Prefecture. Now, your encounter with each other might be destiny. Stop trying to decide on a winner here. If you want to defeat each other, go and do so in a secluded place.��

 Chapter 2621 - Still Lacking?

    Chapter 2621: Still Lacking?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    When the members of the Devil Imperial Palace heard the Devil Emperor��s words, they were shocked. Their god, who they held in high regard, was actually making a joke?


    However, existences such as Donghuang Diyuan and Ye Futian were indeed strong enough to catch the Devil Emperor��s eye. They were the most outstanding figures of the next generation.


    Ye Futian did not find this strange. Before this, the Devil Emperor had already revealed such sinister ideas. Ye Futian did not know what the Devil Emperor��s thought process was like. He wanted Ye Futian and Donghuang Diyuan to get a room. If that happened, what would Donghuang the Great��s stance be?


    Ye Futian did not dare to do so. Now, regardless of what reason Donghuang the Great had, he had promised publicly not to touch Ye Futian. However, if Ye Futian slept with Donghuang Diyuan, it was hard to say whether Donghuang the Great would slaughter him in a fit of rage��


    ��What His Highness says is true. Princess, what do you say?�� said Ye Futian. His lips uttered words contrary to what he was thinking. He looked at Donghuang Diyuan and smiled as he said this.


    This woman was cold, arrogant, and noble. She spoke without tact and was extremely rude. He did not mind teasing her a little.


    Donghuang Diyuan saw that Ye Futian actually dared to respond to the words of the Devil Emperor. She swept an extremely cold glance at Ye Futian, even spewing out murderous aura. She stared at Ye Futian and said, ��Although my father promised not to kill you, don��t think for a second that you need not worry. In the future, you��d best not get caught by me.��


    As she said this, she immediately turned around and flew down. She had no intention of continuing to fight. After their battle, both sides understood that it was very difficult for either side to completely defeat the other. They were equal in almost every aspect.


    Of course, they had not truly gone all out and used their strongest skills. If this was a real battlefield, no one knew what the outcome would be.


    ��Princess, why don��t you share your sorrows with me? I might be able to comfort you,�� said Ye Futian casually, ignoring Donghuang Diyuan��s threats. Since her words were sharp, he wanted to see whose words would be more damaging to the other.


    The light of the golden divine flame flowed over Donghuang Diyuan��s body. She did not turn around and continued heading down, returning to the palace.


    Ye Futian��s expression was indifferent. He similarly headed towards the palace. Weren��t they staying under the same roof?


    This was still the Devil Imperial Palace. The Devil Emperor arranged Donghuang Diyuan to be grouped with Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. Donghuang Diyuan naturally would not wander about on her own. Although she knew the Devil Emperor would not touch her, she was also aware of her current status. She was a captive of the Devil Imperial Palace, not a guest.


    After she returned to the palace, Donghuang Diyuan walked over to a secluded corner. She then sat down cross-legged, closed her eyes, and began to cultivate.


    After Ye Futian landed, he came to Yu Sheng��s side. He then glanced at Donghuang Diyuan was.


    Ye Futian had gained a lot of insights from this battle. He learned Donghuang Diyuan��s true combat ability. At the same time, he had a better understanding of his own ability. In terms of combat ability, he was most likely at Two Tribulation Plane. This would put him among the very top figures.


    However, he was not invincible. There were many other strong cultivators in this plane. An example would be the person who captured Donghuang Diyuan.


    Fang Ru, whom Ye Futian met in the past, was also a super cultivator who was akin to a demigod.


    All the Great Emperor level forces surely did not lack cultivators who were at the same level as him.


    The leaders of the top forces like Celestial Worthy Mountain Master were not a match for Ye Futian. However, the abilities of those giant-level figures from the Ancient God Clans still remained a mystery to him. For them to be able to command the Ancient God Clans, their abilities would surely not be any weaker than that of Ye Futian. He wondered whether their abilities were on par with Fang Ru��s.


    He would need to test them out before he could tell for sure.


    ��Yu Sheng,�� Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng and said, ��We have successfully endured all the catastrophes. His Highness will most likely stop targeting us now. It��s time for us to train.��


    After they experienced 49 catastrophes on the Demon Slaying Platform, their flesh and spiritual souls were refined, and they had grown more powerful. They should train harder now to fortify their cultivation.


    ��Hmm.�� Yu Sheng nodded in agreement. They were lucky to be able to survive the catastrophes. After this experience, he had a deeper understanding of Demonic Power.


    Ye Futian patted Yu Sheng on the shoulder. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he held his tongue.


    The things that the Devil Emperor had shown them and the conversation he had with them still had a great impact on Ye Futian.


    Cultivators in the world sought to reach the pinnacle of martial arts. They trained frenziedly and attempted to prove their Way at the highest level, not knowing that even if they managed to reach that step with exceptional talent, they would still have to undergo another tribulation. The last tribulation would be to get the recognition of all the Great Emperors alive today.


    There were currently six Great Emperors in the world. Their relationships with each other were complex and formed a delicate balance.


    The birth of a new Emperor might disrupt the world��s balance. Only by preserving this delicate equilibrium of power could one remain on their throne securely.


    Ye Futian had a vendetta with Donghuang the Great. Being born in the Original Realm, the Devil Emperor claimed that Ye Futian might become an Emperor. However, it was merely a possibility. After all, Ye Futian��s identity was still a very sensitive issue.


    Yu Sheng was similarly a dangerous individual due to him being one with the Devil Emperor.


    It was certainly the same for Donghuang Diyuan. There was the prior example of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Although all the cultivators of the various major Imperial Palaces sought the path of the Emperor, if they truly managed to reach the Imperial Realm, they would most likely be in danger. Even so, the path of the Great Emperor was still the life goal of all cultivators. Countless cultivators attempted to seek this path.


    On the contrary, cultivators who were not with the major Imperial Palaces, such as those from the Ancient God Clans or other top forces, were safe even if they became Great Emperors. They would not offset the balance; hence, their existences as Great Emperors were fine.


    After all, if a Great Emperor really emerged from the Ancient God Clans, they would surely not be of one mind with Donghuang the Great. Instead, they would form their own world and no longer obey Donghuang the Great��s command.


    The other Great Emperors would most likely go against Yu Sheng if he became a Great Emperor. Only one could exist between Yu Sheng and the Devil Emperor. Judging from what the Devil Emperor said before, he would most likely hand over the throne to Yu Sheng.


    However, in return, Yu Sheng needed to be responsible for the welfare of the entire Devil World and withstand the catastrophes of the Devil Abyss.


    Obviously, Ye Futian did not wish to see Yu Sheng shoulder the catastrophes of the Devil Abyss and suffer from endless pain. Nevertheless, it was too early to consider all these now.


    In the next few days, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng cultivated quietly in the Devil Imperial Palace. Donghuang Diyuan also cultivated under the same roof as them, but she spoke very little. She was immersed in her meditation. She seemed to be well aware of her identity as a hostage.


    On this day, divine light suddenly lit up the sky above the Devil Imperial Palace. Dazzling light illuminated the entire palace.


    In the heavens above, divine light shone down, causing the cultivators in the palace to all look up in awe. Who had come to pay a visit?


    The Devil Emperor appeared above the Demon God Palace. With his hands behind his back, he raised his head and looked at the sky. His black robes fluttered in the wind, and he appeared domineering. His figure emanated the aura of a ruler of the heavens and the earth.


    A silhouette showed up in front of the Devil Emperor. Sensing his arrival, both Ye Futian and Yu Sheng shifted their attention towards the sky. Their hearts trembled. Donghuang Diyuan also paused her cultivation. She stood up and looked in the direction of the visitor.


    ��Donghuang the Great is here!�� Ye Futian exclaimed. This was his second time encountering the king of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��It��s been many years since we last met. Devil Emperor, how are you doing?�� greeted Donghuang the Great as he stood in the sky and looked at the figure on top of the Demon God Palace. His voice was calm, as though he was greeting an old friend.


    ��Donghuang, what brings you to my Devil Imperial Palace?�� the Devil Emperor asked deliberately.


    ��My daughter has stayed here for quite a while. Thank you for taking care of her. But I think it��s time for me to bring her back so that she doesn��t disturb your cultivation,�� Donghuang the Great responded. He was obviously here to bring his daughter back.


    ��She is a prisoner of war. I did not mistreat her out of my respect for you. But do you think you can leave this place with her by just uttering a few words?�� the Devil Emperor questioned.


    ��I owe you a favor. In the future, when the opportunity arises, I��ll return the favor,�� Donghuang the Great said.


    At their level, they would not act recklessly even though they were opponents. If they killed the other party��s descendent, they would have gone too far, and it would have triggered a massacre.


    Hence, both the Great Emperors were very cautious not to act hastily.


    ��How will you return the favor?�� the Devil Emperor said.


    ��Devil Emperor, feel free to state your request if you have one,�� Donghuang the Great said.


    ��I have not decided on one now. I will inform you when I have made up my mind,�� the Devil Emperor replied.


    ��Alright.�� Donghuang the Great nodded.


    ��You may bring your daughter back,�� the Devil Emperor said right away. He accepted Donghuang the Great��s promise readily, not worrying that the latter would go against his own word.


    Even though they were enemies, they were very familiar with each other. They also trusted each other.


    ��Many thanks.�� Donghuang the Great nodded. Then, he looked towards Donghuang Diyuan. She rose to the sky and came to where Donghuang the Great was.


    ��Father,�� Donghuang Diyuan greeted.


    ��Let��s go home,�� Donghuang the Great said. Donghuang Diyuan nodded in agreement. Before she left, she turned around and cast a glance at the palace. At this moment, Ye Futian, who was in the Devil Imperial Palace, could clearly sense that she was looking at him.


    From the looks of it, this woman was the type that would keep score in a relationship.


    Donghuang the Great and Donghuang Diyuan disappeared in the blink of an eye and left the Devil Imperial Palace.


    After they left, the Devil Emperor appeared in the palace where Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were. He cast an indifferent glance at them and said, ��Even after spending so much time together, you did not manage to win the maiden��s heart. It seems like you guys are still lacking.��


    ������ Stupefied, Ye Futian stared at the Devil Emperor. He felt that he had been insulted.


    The Devil Emperor said to Ye Futian, ��Since she has left, you should leave too. The troops of the Devil World will not touch the Original Realm!��

 Chapter 2622 - Donghuang the Great’s Initial Resolution

    Upon hearing the Devil Emperor��s promise, Ye Futian bowed and said, ��Many thanks, Your Highness. The Ziwei Segmentum is not the only force in the Original Realm currently. Forces from the various worlds are there too. However, the Ziwei Segmentum is the largest force that is in charge of the realm. I can��t say the same for the other forces, but the forces of the Ziwei Segmentum will surely not become enemies with the Devil World.��


    The two parties would not interfere in each other��s business.


    As for allying with the Devil World to invade the Divine Prefecture together, Ye Futian dared not bring up this suggestion since the Ziwei Segmentum had yet to build up the necessary strength.


    The Devil Emperor commanded the entire Devil World. The cultivators of the Devil World were far fewer in number than the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. However, everyone in the Devil World was willing to join the war upon receiving the command of the Devil Emperor. In terms of unity, the Divine Prefecture was no match for the Devil World.


    Moreover, many top-level demonic cultivators had emerged over the years.


    Before this, the Ziwei Segmentum was sealed away, and the cultivators who resided inside the segmentum were complacent with their achievements. They were also restricted in terms of their cultivation. The Ziwei Segmentum was the last region protected by the Great Emperor Ziwei, and the cultivators had been improving since Ye Futian became their Palace Lord. However, they were still far behind the other major worlds.


    The local forces of the Original Realm were even weaker. What would happen if Ye Futian commanded them to fight a war against the troops of the Divine Prefecture?


    It would be no different from sending them to die.


    If a world war were to erupt among the various major worlds, the forces of the Ziwei Segmentum would seize the opportunity to cultivate and improve their abilities. This would be the best outcome.


    ��Hmm.�� The Devil Emperor did not say anything else. Ye Futian was uncertain of the former��s attitude towards this matter.


    ��Your Highness, I still have one thing which I wish to ask you,�� Ye Futian probed.


    ��What is it?�� the Devil Emperor asked.


    ��My godfather����


    ��Do not mention him in front of me!�� A terrifying pressure descended on Ye Futian instantaneously and stopped him from speaking. Ye Futian was curious to find out what happened in the past. The Devil Emperor was a heroic figure who had exceptional cultivation and charisma. This was proven based on the attitude of the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace and the Devil World towards him. He single-handedly sustained the lives of everyone here.


    Under such circumstances, why would Ye Futian��s godfather betray the Devil World and choose to join the Divine Prefecture?


    What else happened after that?


    Seeing the Devil Emperor��s reaction, Ye Futian knew that he couldn��t get answers from the former. Ye Futian��s godfather seemed to be a taboo for the Devil Emperor. His name could not even be mentioned in front of the latter.


    ��Leave,�� ordered the Devil Emperor. Ye Futian was evicted.


    ��Yes, sir.�� Ye Futian nodded helplessly. He cast a glance at Yu Sheng.


    Yu Sheng said, ��I will see him out. Then, I will go join the battle against the troops of the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��You don��t need to go. After witnessing Donghuang Diyuan��s ability, I think your cultivation needs to be fortified. For the time being, you will stay out of the war,�� the Devil Emperor rejected Yu Sheng��s idea right away. ��You will train in seclusion with me for a period of time. I want you to be the commander of the troops of the Devil World in the future.��


    The Devil Emperor continued, ��You should know that in the Devil World is not powerful enough; they are unqualified to command the armies of the Devil World with authority.��


    Due to being trapped under the Devil Abyss, the cultivators of the Devil World lived under harsh conditions, and they held great power in higher regard than cultivators of other worlds. They respected power and not status.


    Yu Sheng fell silent for a moment and then nodded his head.


    He had already accepted his calling. He would bear the heavy burden of the Devil World.


    Ye Futian watched all of this without saying anything. He felt emotional inside. Back when Godfather was raising Yu Sheng and him, was he planning for such a day?


    As for what the Devil Emperor did to Yu Sheng, did he allow Yu Sheng to build his own beliefs?


    It was very hard for one to change their beliefs.


    In that case, would Yu Sheng be going against Godfather��s expectations?


    Even Ye Futian could not tell for sure. Most likely, only his godfather would know the answer.


    Even though Ye Futian had discovered his godfather��s identity, everything about the latter remained a mystery to him. In fact, the past of his godfather appeared even more mysterious now.


    What exactly did his godfather experience in the past?


    ��I will take my leave now,�� Ye Futian said while bowing. Then, he nodded at Yu Sheng, turned around, and left.


    The Devil Emperor turned his back against Ye Futian and did not watch as he left. He was wondering what the future would hold for Yu Sheng and Ye Futian. Exactly what plan did that person have in mind when he raised Yu Sheng and Ye Futian together?


    Ye Futian was not the only one speculating about what happened in the past. The Devil Emperor was guessing too.


    His younger brother was not simple. However, due to the difference in their beliefs, the two of them did not get along. In the end, his younger brother betrayed the Devil World and sought another path.


    ��


    Ye Futian left the Devil World. At the border of the Devil World and the Divine Prefecture, he saw the troops of the Devil World surging into the Divine Prefecture. A lot of demonic cultivators rushed to the gates of the Devil World daily. There were also troops stationed at the Black River.


    Many lands in the North Cliff Region had been conquered by the troops of the Devil World.


    Clearly, the Devil Emperor was serious with his ambition this time. His troops started a war and would invade the Divine Prefecture little by little.


    Their first step would be seizing control of the North Cliff Region, which was part of the 18 Domains of the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian traversed across the sky above the North Cliff Region. Along his way, he witnessed many lands being rampaged by the demonic cultivators. Many locals who lived in the North Cliff Region had migrated and left the place. Many people perished in the process too.


    Ye Futian witnessed many demonic cultivators killing the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture and looting their treasures.


    As he observed, he wondered: who was right and who was wrong?


    Or rather, what was right and what was wrong?


    Was the Devil Emperor at fault? The residents of the Devil World suffered from the horrible environment of their world, and their lands were treated as prisons for sinners. Naturally, they bore intense grudges, and this resulted in them killing the other cultivators. The Devil Emperor did everything for the good of the Devil World.


    However, were Donghuang the Great and the other cultivators at fault for stopping the troops of the Devil World from invading their lands?


    If the troops of the Devil World seized control of the entire Divine Prefecture, the demons would descend upon the world, and the power of the Devil Abyss would corrode all the lands. How would things be then? How many people would die because of that?


    Each of them had their stance. All of them had beliefs that they wanted to protect.


    Even though Ye Futian felt compelled to interfere in the battle, he resisted the urge. He was very powerful currently, but he was still lacking if he wanted to intervene in global affairs. Only the Great Emperors were qualified to decide the fate of all living beings.


    Ye Futian��s power was insignificant. He was not capable of making any difference.


    Now, he could only do all he could to protect the Ziwei Segmentum as well as the forces of the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian came to Four Corner Village in the Shangqing Domain with complicated feelings.


    Four Corner Village had already revealed itself to the world and was now very prosperous. Countless cultivators came from everywhere to Four Corner Continent. They wanted to seek the Path in Four Corner Village and ask Master for guidance. However, Master was someone who did not involve himself with the world. No one managed to see him.


    Yet, Ye Futian could directly meet with Master. Now, he came to Master. He bowed before him and greeted, ��Master.��


    ��What is on your mind?�� asked Master. His figure still felt somewhat ethereal, as though he was not real but merely an illusion.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian as he nodded his head. ��I just came back from a trip to the Devil World, and now I have some doubts on my mind.��


    ��Let��s hear them,�� said Master.


    ��Alright,�� said Ye Futian as he told Master all that had transpired in the Devil World. Ye Futian had absolute trust in Master and did not hide anything from him, including the matters regarding his godfather. Moreover, Ye Futian��s identity was no longer a secret.


    After he finished, Ye Futian said, ��Master, you have met Donghuang the Great before. What sort of person is he?��


    Donghuang the Great had previously come to Four Corner Village to seek the Path. Back then, he had yet to become an Emperor.


    ��He is an idealist and is heroic,�� said Master as he looked at Ye Futian.


    ��What ideals does he aspire to?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��He wishes for martial arts to prosper and for all lives to be equal. He hopes that all may possess the most optimum environment for cultivation. That way, everyone can become powerful cultivators and seek the path to immortality. He desires no conflict and no loss of life,�� replied Master.


    ��So, Donghuang the Great wishes for everyone in the world to attain the Path. He won��t mind even if others break through to the Imperial Realm?�� Ye Futian summarized.


    ��That is most likely his ideal. At least it was,�� Master said.


    Ye Futian wondered, ��Back then, Donghuang the Great had yet to become a Great Emperor. He had also yet to unite the Divine Prefecture and become its ruler. After he became the co-ruler of the Divine Prefecture together with Emperor Ye Qing, he was worshipped by the crowd. Since his identity has changed and the things that he needs to take into consideration have also changed, did he desert his ideal and forget his initial resolution?��


    Judging from Donghuang the Great��s response towards Emperor Ye Qing, the two of them surely had a complicated past. Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing were both Great Emperors of the Divine Prefecture, and their heroic tales were praised by many. They were legends. However, Donghuang the Great later betrayed Emperor Ye Qing and removed his name from the annals of history, making him a taboo. Ye Futian was still brooding on this.


    ��I don��t know,�� Master replied while shaking his head.


    ��Did his actions demonstrate this possibility?�� Ye Futian continued to push for an answer.


    ��Yes, but it can be a ��no�� too,�� Master said. ��I will not speculate what I do not know.��


    Ye Futian nodded in agreement. What Master said was definitely right. Prejudice and subjective opinion were often mixed in one��s guesses.


    Ye Futian sighed and said, ��Currently, the world is undergoing huge changes. What beliefs should I hold on to? What actions should I take?��


    Master advised, ��If you have any doubts, go and seek the truth. However, what you choose in the end still depends on you. As you have said, everyone has their own stance and beliefs that they hold on to. It is the same for you. No matter what decision you make, as long as your conscience is clear and you do not regret it, then it��s good.��


    Ye Futian fell silent. He then nodded and bowed, saying, ��Many thanks, Master!��

 Chapter 2623 - Ziwei Moving Forward

    Meanwhile, in the Ziwei Segmentum, Ye Futian had returned to Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    The war between the Devil World and the Divine Prefecture had attracted the attention of the seven realms, including the Original Realm, so that the world no longer paid as much attention to the Original Realm. In addition, the truce they had made with the six Ancient God Clans had ensured that all was peaceful and quiet during the time Ye Futian was away in the Devil World.


    The cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace were cultivating assiduously to better themselves.


    As soon as they learned that Ye Futian had returned, his four major disciples rushed over, and Fang Cun was the first to arrive.


    ��Master, Masteress.�� At the palace where Ye Futian resided and cultivated, Fang Cun and the others came to pay their respect to Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.


    Ye Futian took a look at the four of them, then smiled as he focused on Fang Cun and said, ��Are you here to show off to your Master?��


    ��Hehe.�� Fang Cun wanted to show off, but now that Ye Futian had put him on the spot, he was a little embarrassed. He said with a smile, ��No, I just want to come and report to the Master.��


    ��Mmm.�� Ye Futian nodded, ��It��s very good for you to be able to pass the test of the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path so quickly.��


    It turned out that it was Fang Cun who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path and came here as soon as he knew that Ye Futian had returned, so he could show his master all that he had achieved.


    ��It��s all because of Master��s teachings.�� Fang Cun smiled, ��Master had asked Uncle Tie to bring some cultivational methods from the Shen Clan when he was at the Divine Prefecture, which helped me a lot in the breakthrough this time. Later, I asked the Supreme Elder to take me to the Shen Clan to cultivate their inherited method. It was indeed very powerful and was very suitable for me. It must have been inherited from someone at the level of the great emperor.��


    ��You are pretty bold.�� Ye Futian looked at him and said, ��You actually troubled the Supreme Elder to do your bidding.��


    He knew the boy had always been pretty tenacious, but because it was his direct disciple, Lord Chen would not likely refuse his requests.


    ��Master, Fang Cun harassed the Supreme Elder multiple times already. The Supreme Elder wanted to wait for Master��s return first, but he gave in and took him there,�� Little Ling said.


    Fang Cun scratched his head before he glared at Little Ling and mumbled, ��The spinster is busy telling on me.��


    ��In front of the Master, I am always a kid,�� Little Ling shot back.


    Watching the two quarrel, Ye Futian could only smile and shake his head.


    ��Show me, then,�� Ye Futian said. Before he went to the Devil World, he had taken Blind Tie to the Shen Clan in the Divine Prefecture and brought back some of their core cultivational methods and some of the direct descendants of the Shen Clan as a way of keeping the Shen Clan under control.


    The Shen Clan was originally rumored to be the descendants of a great emperor, but, unlike the Ancient God Clan, the great emperor no longer existed to reign. But the method that he passed down as inheritance was incredibly powerful. It was indeed inherited from the great emperor since ancient times.


    ��Yes, Master.�� Fang Cun��s figure flashed and reappeared in the void. Suddenly a sacred divine glory bloomed from him that shrouded the boundless space, causing all the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace to turn their attention that way.


    Behind Fang Cun, a most sacred phantom seemed to emerge, like a deity.


    Under the powerful divine glory, it seemed that all methods would be turned into dust and smoke.


    ��Tianshen Divine Halo,�� Fang Cun said in a low voice. At this moment, he was beaming with brilliant light, and he was looking quite invincible. Then, a terrifying storm of spatial destruction seemed to be on the verge of being unleashed. However, he took one quick look at Ye Futian before retracting it again and did not dare release it fully.


    ��Master, there is also Tianshen Cleave��a major attack technique that can directly cleave spiritual souls. It was not any less than the divine technique from our village.��


    Ye Futian nodded as he watched Fang Cun retract his aura. He said, ��You know how to take from other��s strengths to shore up your own shortcomings and comprehend other divine methods to improve yourself. This is, no doubt, a good thing. There are too many methods of cultivation in the world stronger than ours. So, if by chance you have the good fortune to encounter some of them and they prove useful, you should always cultivate them and integrate them into your own comprehension.��


    As he was speaking, he looked at the other three again. ��Fang Cun is but a few years older than you, and he has already gone through the trial of the tribulation. You three must work harder so as not to waste the natural way that you were born with, and also the teacher��s guidance to you.��


    ��Yes, Master.�� The three of them nodded simultaneously.


    ��You may go now.�� Ye Futian dismissed them with a smile, and so the four bid their goodbyes and left.


    Watching them leave, Ye Futian smiled and mused, ��They are already top Renhuang cultivators, and one of them even entered the Tribulation Plane. Yet, they still behave like children.��


    ��When you were away, they were not like this at all. They are only like this when they are in front of you,�� Hua Jieyu said with a smile. They behaved like children in front of Ye Futian because Ye Futian was the master who watched them grow up. In front of him, they had always retained a bit of childishness.


    But to the outside world, they were extremely impressive figures themselves.


    ��That��s true,�� Ye Futian nodded. But the truth was he was very pleased having watched these four progress to this point.


    Everything was moving positively, and he hoped to buy the Ziwei Segmentum some more time.


    ��Palace Lord, Murong Yu has something to report.�� Fang Cun and the others were Ye Futian��s students, so they could afford to be a little more casual. However, Murong Yu, as a subordinate of Ye Futian��s, must observe the proper protocols.


    ��Please come in,�� Ye Futian said as a man walking in from outside, and it was Murong Yu.


    ��Sit,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��No, I��m just here to make a report, and I won��t be staying long,�� said Murong Yu. ��According to outside sources, there are now more channels in the land of the Original Realm. And more cultivators from the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm are arriving in the Original Realm daily. It is as if they are getting ready for the potential entry of an army. It may have something to do with the war that erupted in the Divine Prefecture. In addition, there is also news from Wangshen Palace that there are signs of cultivators appearing in the land of the Divine Prefecture from the Human Realm and the World of Buddhism.��


    ��Are the effects of the war growing?�� Ye Futian whispered.


    ��It seems to be the case for the moment. Once the Devil World and the Divine Prefecture are at war, the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm may participate in the fight against the Divine Prefecture, while the Human Realm and the World of Buddhism may end up in the same camp with the Divine Prefecture,�� Murong Yu said. ��However, it��s not clear for the time being whatever the future might hold; our people are watching the outside world closely.��


    ��Very well,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Let��s see what happens next and not take any action for now.��


    ��Understood,�� Murong Yu nodded.


    After Murong Yu left, Ye Futian said, ��I��m going out.��


    ��I��ll come with you,�� Hua Jieyu said.


    Ye Futian nodded, and the two left together. They went around the Ziwei Imperial Palace and visited some of the elders.


    In the Starry Cultivation Court, everyone continued to work diligently.


    Everyone was focusing on their cultivation.


    ��How is Heavenly Mandate Academy?�� Ye Futian asked Hua Jieyu.


    ��Everything is fine. There is nothing serious going on right now. The third senior brother had asked Chen Yi to look after Heavenly Mandate Academy and be in charge for now,�� Hua Jieyu said.


    ��The third senior brother isn��t there?�� Ye Futian asked curiously.


    ��The third senior brother went to the secret zone in the Original Realm that was first discovered by the Haotian Clan. There is the divine seal left by the great emperor. The third senior brother is over there comprehending, and according to the second senior sister, he had made considerable progress. It has been very beneficial to his cultivation,�� said Hua Jieyu.


    Ye Futian nodded with a smile on his face. The sites of relics discovered and occupied by the six Ancient Shen Clans, such as the Haotian Clan, were now affiliated cultivation sites for Ziwei Segmentum!

 Chapter 2624 - Personal Matters?

    Chapter 2624: Personal Matters?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Naturally, Ye Futian was pleased to see everyone in Ziwei Imperial Palace working so diligently to improve themselves. When the third senior brother was in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, he had gotten the inheritance of the demon gods. Later, in the Starry Cultivating Court, he received the inheritance of an imperial star. Now with the comprehension of the divine seal from a great emperor, he would have possessed the inheritance from three great emperors.


    His strength had not been truly tested after the breakthrough, but it would be understandably strong. They could only wait and see.


    ��I have something else to tell you,�� Hua Jieyu said with a smile.


    ��What other happy news?�� Ye Futian asked with a smile on his face.


    ��Uncle Tie thought that while he��s serving as one of the Great Protector, he can open up the fifth palace in Ziwei Emperor Palace��an Armoring Palace��and oversee its operations. It is being built right now in the imperial palace as we speak. This happened while you were away at the Devil World, and the Supreme Elder made the decision that was seconded by everyone. But in the end, we decided to wait for you when you come back,�� said Hua Jieyu.


    ��This is a good idea. How could I say no? You can make the decision on my behalf.�� Ye Futian smiled and added, ��Don��t forget, you are the Mistress of the Palace.��


    ��In your absence, it is more appropriate for the Supreme Elder to decide on the affairs inside Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� Hua Jieyu replied with much sensibility.


    Ye Futian took her hand with a warm smile on his face and said, ��Let��s go visit Uncle Tie. The first time I saw Uncle Tie, I thought he was an ordinary blacksmith. It turned out that he was a hidden gem.��


    The first time he saw Blind Tie was in the Four Square Village, forging in the blacksmith shop there.


    Now, inside Ziwei Imperial Palace, an area was being allocated to build an Armoring Palace, which had already reached a certain scale.


    Ye Futian came to the main hall of a massive Armoring Palace and found Blind Tie, who was forging inside. At the moment, he was pounding on some materials, and a rhythmic clinking sound could be heard constantly. His movements were the same as before, solid as a mountain. Every move of repeated percussion was full of violent beauty.


    At this time, Blind Tie stopped and turned to face Ye Futian. The temperature inside was extremely high, and the blazing sacred fire of the Great Path was burning under the furnace.


    ��Palace Lord!�� Blind Tie called out.


    ��Uncle Tie, I have not asked you this before, but how is your armor-making?�� Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    ��It��s alright,�� Blind Tie nodded.��When I got back to the village after I lost my eyesight, the teacher told me to forge simple items, and everything that was used inside the village was made by At that time, I was already cultivating in armoring. When I returned from the Shen Clan, I passed by the village and asked the teacher for some advice. The teacher gave me some armoring techniques to practice, and I was a quick study. Not too long ago, I had managed to forge divine arms of the First Tribulation.


    ��As for the armoring equipment, there was plenty in the former territory occupied by Tianyan City. They belong to us now. The Armoring Palace has just begun, and I haven��t recruited many people. Later on, I plan to conduct recruitment on a grander scale at the Ziwei Segmentum that will complete the Armoring Palace,�� Blind Tie told Ye Futian of his plan.


    ��I will fully support UncleTie��s idea,�� Ye Futian said.��But, will this delay your cultivation?��


    ��When the teacher told me to forge iron tools, it was actually a way to help me settle down. To me, this is a kind of cultivation in itself, and I will only progress further if I continue,�� Blind Tie replied.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��If this is the case, Uncle Tie does not need to serve as the Great Protector in the future but will instead take on the duties as the lord of the Armoring Palace. What do you think?��


    ��Palace Lord, may I do both?�� Blind Tie asked. He still wanted to serve as Ye Futian��s protector but concentrated on armoring and forging most of the time. However, whenever Ye Futian needed him, he wanted to be there as his protector.


    Obviously, Ye Futian understood that Blind Tie was not coveting the position and its prestige. He glanced at Blind Tie and nodded, ��Fine; we will do as you wish. Lord of the Armoring Palace while serving as the Great Protector as well. I will give them the order to recruit armoring cultivators at Ziwei Imperial Palace.��


    ��Thank you, Palace Lord.�� Blind Tie nodded.


    ��Uncle Tie, please continue. I��m going elsewhere,�� Ye Futian said goodbye and left.


    After they left, Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu,�� When Uncle Tie and Daoist Monk Mu both get stronger, and their level of armoring and alchemy have improved, the strength of Ziwei Imperial Palace will also be magnified, far surpassing anything from the Ancient God Clans.��


    ��Mmm.�� Hua Jieyu smiled and nodded. ��With you in Ziwei Imperial Palace, the Ancient God Clans already cannot compete with us. Ziwei ImperialPalace��s potential targets are also not the Ancient God Clans.��


    Just as Ye Futian was looking at Hua Jieyu, who was beside him, Hua Jieyu, too, was looking at him. She said with a smile, ��Now that Ziwei Imperial Palace is moving on the right track, when will you finish handling your business?��


    ��My business?�� Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu with some confusion. ��What business do I have?��


    ��You have been busy with cultivation, fighting, and external affairs, and you have not paid too much attention to those around you. Emperor Xia has been kind to us in the past, and although he is now in the Ziwei Imperial Palace, he is not happy. I think you know the reason,�� Hua Jieyu continued.


    Ye Futian was taken aback, and his expression was not as relaxed as it was moments ago. He said gently, ��Jieyu.��


    He did not expect Hua Jieyu to start on this topic.


    ��After all, she was the one who had accompanied you all these years,�� Hua Jieyu looked into Ye Futian��s eyes as she continued.


    ��But, what about you?�� Ye Futian looked at Hua Jieyu. Hua Jieyu had also given her everything for him.


    ��If I don��t care, I don��t think she would either,�� Hua Jieyu said with a smile.


    ��How would you know?�� Ye Futian gave her a side-eyed look.


    ��You idiot. If she cared, she would not have stayed in Ziwei Imperial Palace to cultivate endlessly.�� Hua Jieyu sighed. ��She was just waiting for you.��


    Ye Futian could only stare in front of him, as he had no answer to give.


    ��For someone on the verge of becoming an emperor, no one would care,�� Hua Jieyu continued.


    ��But could you really not care?�� Ye Futian looked into Hua Jieyu��s eyes and saw those beautiful eyes staring right back at him without any evasiveness.


    Ye Futian sighed silently in his heart as his thoughts drifted back to that innocent maiden once upon a time. Could she really not care? He didn��t think anyone could.


    ��On the road to becoming a great emperor, you may fail many, but some should not be overlooked,�� Hua Jieyu said with a smile.


    ��Then I��ll talk about it after I have become an emperor.�� Ye Futian knocked on her head playfully and did not continue the topic. However, his heart was disturbed slightly by this talk. How could he not understand how much she had already done for him?


    1


    Afterward, Ye Futian went to the former territory of Haotian Clan to check on GuDong��ss cultivation. The imprint of the divine seal was left there by a great emperor, so he stayed there for a while to comprehend it as well. He found this divine seal to be extremely profound as it contained the will of the great emperor.


    As for Gu Dongliu, he had already sunk deep into the cultivation of the divine seal and entered into a world completely of his own.


    Ye Futian, likewise, spent some time here to comprehend as well. Then, he left to return to Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Under the endless starry sky, Ye Futian sat cross-legged in the Starry Cultivation Court and closed his eyes in cultivation. He had begun yet another cultivation in retreat.


    In the battle between the Devil World and the Donghuang Diyuan, he realized that his combat effectiveness was still not strong enough.. He needed an even more powerful offensive power. In the future, the opponents he was to face would be stronger existences than Donghuang Diyuan!

 Chapter 2625 - Terrorizing

    Chapter 2625: Terrorizing


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In Ziwei Imperial Palace, everyone was working on their projects. Some were cultivating, some were making armor, and some were focusing on alchemy.


    Time passed by without anyone being consciously aware of it. Upon the land of the Divine Prefecture, more and more people were now getting involved in the war. One by one, the Empty Divine Realm, the Dark World, the Human Realm, and the World of Buddhism began to make their way in the arena of war and caught up in the storm of war.


    Today��s North Cliff Region was a war zone. Those who could, migrated and left. In contrast, some who were less able could only survive in all the war and chaos. After all, there were countless cultivators in each of the eighteen regions in the Divine Prefecture, and not everyone could leave. Not to mention escape meant traveling across many continents and many regions.


    The outside world was at war, and only the Original Realm continued to develop. Ye Futian was quietly cultivating in the Starry Cultivation Court.


    He appeared quite calm on the outside, but the world of his life palace inside, there was something extremely interesting going on.


    Now the world of Ye Futian��s life palace was like a projection of the real world. He stood above the void as countless golden lightning burst out from his body. It was radiant to the extreme, with a tremendously sharp aura blooming from him; his body was like the sword itself.


    In that gigantic domain of the golden lightning, divine swords appeared. Each divine sword was shining with countless sword seals so that those divine swords contained an incomparable aura of sharpness.


    Boom�� In the chaotic space, that golden lightning seemed to contain powerful spatial destructive power. This imagery was somewhat similar to the scene when Donghuang Diyuan released the Tianxing Divine Sword.


    It was right after he fought Donghuang Diyuan that he had some inward comprehension. He wanted to realize more powerful swordsmanship to counter Tianxing Divine Sword.


    All the swordsmanship that he had comprehended previously were Dust, Fleeting, with Boundless Sword being the epitome of his comprehension of the two previous swordsmanships in totality. After he inherited the power of Ziwei the Great, he cultivated the Starry Divine Sword.


    These two swordsmanships followed different paths; Boundless was unhindered by time and space, with a force that could slash through everything, accomplished in a turning of the mind. The Starry Divine Sword, on the other hand, was dominant and forceful, for it was the sword of kings and emperors. It dominated all, slaughtered all. Its power was infinite.


    These days, Ye Futian had been comprehending these two kinds of swordsmanship to integrate the two into one coherent swordsmanship.


    Just like the imagery in front of him.


    In the destructive domain of the golden lightning, every divine sword contained an unparalleled aura of slaughter, which was bred in the space of destruction. However, at this moment, Ye Futian reached out with his hand, and immediately an infinite power gathered in front of him, as the most brilliant imperial glory was shining.


    There, a gigantic golden divine sword appeared. This divine sword guided all the other divine swords in this area as if they were all under its command. It was the king of swords, and in this sword, there was the imperial glory.


    Buzz! Along with a turning of Ye Futian��s thought, the gigantic golden divine sword turned ever so slightly, as the brilliant divine glory of swordsmanship came down for the kill. Instantly inside the domain, countless divine swords fell and broke through the atmosphere effortlessly.


    At the same time, Ye Futian pressed his hand forward, and immediately, that gigantic golden divine sword penetrated the space and disappeared. However, it left a golden trace wherever it had passed through in the space.


    Boom�� In the distance, the divine sword appeared instantly, extinguishing the way and the method, unhindered by time or space. All the stars in the sky had collapsed and pulverized.


    When he saw that brilliant sword light, Ye Futian displayed a look of satisfaction. After so long, he had finally perfected this sword.


    It was a sword that integrated with the Starry swordsmanship of Ziwei the Great, a sword that was further evolved from the foundation of Boundless Sword. Once this sword was unleashed, it should be able to suppress Donghuang Diyuan��s Tianxing Divine Sword.


    The sword wielded by Donghuang Diyuan was named Tianxing, whose meaning was the sword that executed punishment from heaven.


    Then, what should be the name of his sword?


    For the moment, Ye Futian had put it aside to continue his cultivation in other abilities. He was now well-versed in Buddha��s Celerity and could come and go as he pleased without a trace. He could attack at close range in a matter of milliseconds, and his physical body was invincible. Just physical attacks alone were enough to instill fear in his opponents. He wanted to perfect his ability in close-quarter combat, thus making himself even more powerful.


    Ye Futian was an expert at many offensive techniques. In the World of Buddhism, he had cultivated many powerful superpowers, which could all be integrated and transformed into his own kind of power.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and entered into a state of selflessness. He was completely immersed in a cultivational state. Cultivation of the superpowers was also the attainment of a state of perfection. He recalled the seal that he was comprehending before with the third senior brother Gu Dongliu. Under the attack of the Great Emperor��s divine seal, a domain of the divine seal seemed to appear, and the attack by the seal gave rise to the illusion that one was being trapped within its domain of attacks; this was an incredibly powerful move.


    This type of attack by the divine seal was similar to the Symbol of Wan that he cultivated in Buddhism. However, the Symbol of Wan was a seal that was even more overpowering, aggressive, and much stronger. The attack of the divine seal had integrated within it the abilities of other methods, but as a result, not as pure as the Symbol of Wan.


    Any attempts to comprehend offensive techniques based on the basis of these powerful seals was going to be difficult, very difficult.


    After all, this was already the top-notch fighting method, or else it would be impossible for him to clash head-on with Donghuang Diyuan. The fighting method, as cultivated by Donghuang Diyuan, likewise, was also the topmost of all divine methods.


    Ye Futian immersed in his cultivation and comprehension. In a blink of an eye, a year passed. During this year, everyone was making progress. The Armoring Hall in Ziwei Imperial Palace was finished, and a group of master armorers had been summoned from Ziwei Segmentum to the Armoring Palace.


    Today, the Ziwei Segmentum was considered a principality with the status of overlord in the land of the Original Realm. It had occupied the secret zones of many places in addition to its own cultivational resources from Ziwei Imperial Palace. Given time, they would no doubt grow stronger still.


    Ye Futian stopped cultivating and found the Supreme Elder, Lord Chen, instead.


    ��Is the Palace Lord looking for me for something?�� Lord Chen asked Ye Futian.


    ��Lord Chen, I have made some progress in my cultivation recently and comprehended some new ways of combat, but there is no one who could spar with me to try it out. I have no idea how powerful it may or may not be. May I ask your help to spar with me?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Sure! Any study with the Palace Lord will definitely help me in my own cultivation.�� Lord Chen would not refuse him, of course, and agreed readily.


    ��Okay, let��s head up, then.�� Ye Futian and Lord Chen moved towards the sky high above and came to the Starry Cultivation Court, under the blanket of the starry sky. The two stood opposite each other, and both of them released a powerful aura. They were surrounded by divine light, and it dazzled and gleamed.


    ��What are the Palace Lord and the Supreme Elder intend to do?�� Many people raised their heads to look at the sky above.


    ��Is the Palace Lord going to have an exchange with the Supreme Elder?�� Some people guessed and grew excited. Immediately, everyone stopped what they were doing and looked into the firmament.


    ��Watch out,�� Ye Futian said to Lord Chen.


    ��I know.�� Lord Chen knew just how powerful Ye Futian was and that he couldn��t possibly be a contender. After all, Ye Futian had slain existences that were at the same level as he. Nonetheless, he had some confidence in his own power and that it was possible for him to spar with him a little.


    Buzz!


    Ye Futian disappeared directly from the spot. He appeared in front of Lord Chen the next moment, raising his hand and slamming it down. When the strike fell, Ye Futian seemed to have turned into a golden Buddha whose palm strikes were unbelievably overwhelming. What was even more terrifying was that when the Buddhist palm strike blasted out, it was accompanied by the Sound of Buddha.


    Bang!


    With a loud boom, Lord Chen raised his hand to block it, but that powerful force sent him flying.


    Before he had time to grasp the situation fully, Ye Futian appeared in front of him again, still blasting him with those Buddhist palm strikes. As soon as those strikes came through, his entire person seemed to be caught up in the attack, and he felt trapped within its domain. As the Sound of Buddha lingered, the horrific power of Yin emerged again at this moment that could freeze and solidify his spiritual soul.


    Boom! There was another loud boom, and Lord Chen felt very unwell all of a sudden. The aura of the Great Path exploded fiercely from his body as the divine light gleamed. He turned into the starry body, and his long robe fluttered in the wind.


    In the space below, everyone saw an endless trail of Ye Futian��s palm strikes, blasting down again and again. Lord Chen was forced to change his positions continuously under that series of attacks.


    ��This����


    Their hearts trembled slightly. It was so sad for Lord Chen, who was beaten to the degree that he had not the strength to fight back.


    The Palace Lord deserved his reputation; he was simply too powerful.


    ��Stop!�� A voice was heard from above the firmament. Ye Futian was about to retract the giant palm print that had fallen and looked at Lord Chen when he saw Lord Chen glared at him and said, ��I��m not sparring anymore.��


    ��Don��t say that,�� Ye Futian said. ��How about you gather your strength first, and I will wait to attack when you are ready?��


    ��Fine.�� Lord Chen nodded, and suddenly the stars in heaven released an endless starry divine light as he bathed in it. His long robe fluttered, unleashing a terrifying and awesome divine glory of the Great Path.


    At this moment, Ye Futian��s lips moved slightly, and the Sound of Buddha immediately surrounded him. Figures of Buddha appeared between heaven and earth in the vast space, and a massive Buddha appeared. Its presence covered the sky and sheltered the sun, completely shrouding this world.


    All the Buddhas resonated with one another and extended their hands at the same time. In each hand, there was a giant Buddhist handprint that was the same as the one Ye Futian used in his previous attack. In addition, the Sound of Buddha that lingered between heaven and earth could also suppress all existence.


    Lord Chen felt this power and was about to speak.


    ��Stop���� Lord Chen stretched out his hands and retracted his aura, signaling Ye Futian to stop.


    Ye Futian was stunned as he looked at Lord Chen.


    ��Stop, stop���� Lord Chen said, ��I��m not sparring anymore.��


    ��Uh!�� Ye Futian said with some confusion and shock, ��Don��t you want to even try?��


    ��Nope, I don��t.�� Lord Chen simply shook his head.


    Doesn��t he care about his dignity? Ye Futian wondered.


    Ye Futian thought that it was kind of a shame. He was not taking it seriously, and he hadn��t even exerted half of his power. Now, he had no way of testing his true power.


    ��All right.�� Ye Futian reluctantly retracted his aura and came to Lord Chen��s side in a flash, helping him to tidy up his garment for him.


    ��Don��t trouble yourself, Palace Lord.�� Lord Chen��s mustache trembled slightly. He didn��t think Ye Futian was totally innocent in his kindness. He felt that he better not be fooled by this sudden gesture of kindness.


    ��Lord Chen, as the Supreme Elder, you deserve it.�� Ye Futian tidied up his collar and said, ��I am currently comprehending some methods. In the future, I may have to consult Lord Chen often and seek your opinion on how powerful they are.��


    ��Palace Lord, I have something else to tend to, so I will take my leave now.�� The corner of Lord Chen��s mouth twitched a little, and he was gone in a flash. He had slipped away even before Ye Futian had a chance to respond.


    ��Don��t go!�� Ye Futian shouted, sounding a little bit at a loss.


    Down below, many people started laughing out loud. Then, they all went back to work on their own projects.


    Their Palace Lord was too much!


    That was equivalent to terrorizing his fellow men!

 Chapter 2626 - A Powerful Ally

    Chapter 2626: A Powerful Ally


    A beam of Divine Light of Space suddenly lit up in the Heavenly Mandate Academy. A silhouette appeared in the spatial matrix. The person was none other than Ye Futian.


    Behind him were his four disciples.


    Some of the members gathered around the matrix. When they saw Ye Futian, they immediately bowed and greeted him, ��Palace Lord.��


    Currently, the Heavenly Mandate Academy was under the jurisdiction of Ziwei Imperial Palace, where Ye Futian was the Palace Lord. Everyone was well aware of this.


    Ye Futian nodded in response. Chen Yi also came close to them.


    ��Everyone, please go on with your own business. I��m here to settle some matters,�� said Ye Futian to the crowd. The members were somewhat reluctant to leave. Right now, Ye Futian was crowned Deity Ye in the Heavenly Mandate Realm. He was not someone they could meet whenever they wished.


    Ye Futian was more like a legend in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.


    ��What matters do you have here?�� Chen Yi asked. He stood in place of Gu Dongliu as the person in charge of the realm. Everything seemed fine to him.


    ��It��s not related to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. I am going on a trip. Please join me,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��All right.�� Chen Yi nodded. Then, he followed Ye Futian out. The other four disciples joined them too.


    ��Where is Palace Lord going?�� someone asked curiously.


    ��I don��t know. But I suppose that no place in the current Heavenly Mandate Realm is worthy of him visiting,�� someone replied.


    There was another vast continent beside the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The cultivators who resided on this continent kept in touch with people from the Original Realm. In the past, the force that governed this continent formed an alliance with the Heavenly Mandate Realm by chance, and they moved their continent here. Time passed, and things had changed, but they had not thought of migrating to another location.


    This was the Shenyi Continent.


    The Lost Clan resided here.


    Now, the Lost Clan had freed themselves from the nightmare of wandering in the void space endlessly. They were living at a much more relaxing pace now. Even though there was turmoil in the Original Realm, the Lost Clan was never affected. It was because they were an ancient power, to begin with. Besides that, they were also compelling.


    In the past, the Lost Clan once faced the invasion of giant-level forces from various worlds.


    In terms of combat ability, if the Ancient God Clans did not rely on the will of the Great Emperors in battle, the Lost Clan would have triumphed over all of them.


    There were quite a few giant-level figures among the Lost Clan.


    Ye Futian had once again come to the Shenyi Continent to meet the Lost Clan.


    The cultivators of the Lost Clan all knew Ye Futian. When they saw his arrival, they all looked at him. Soon, a familiar figure appeared in front of Ye Futian and his group. The person was none other than Sikong Nan, the Chief Elder of the Lost Clan.


    ��Senior Sikong,�� greeted Ye Futian while bowing.


    ��Deity Ye, you��re being too polite,�� Sikong Nan responded with a smile.


    ��What kind of title is that?�� Ye Futian laughed while shaking his head.


    ��Are you not aware of this title? Now, everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Realm addresses you like this.�� Sikong Nan stared at Ye Futian. Obviously, he knew that Ye Futian was the god of the Heavenly Mandate Realm now.


    Ye Futian smiled and continued, ��Senior Sikong, you seem to have known that I would come to pay you a visit?��


    Sikong Nan was not at all surprised when he saw Ye Futian.


    ��Right now, you are the ruler of the Original Realm. Isn��t it expected that you will visit the Lost Clan?�� Sikong Nan responded. The two parties were allies, to begin with.


    Sikong Nan offered, ��Come. I have asked my men to prepare a feast. Let��s continue our conversation over at the banquet table.��


    ��Sure.�� Ye Futian nodded in agreement.


    Sikong Nan led the way, and they arrived at the place where the banquet was. Ye Futian and his group were guided to their seats. A few cultivators from the Lost Clan joined their company too.


    ��I never imagined that after so many years, the Shenyi Continent has never migrated elsewhere,�� Ye Futian told Sikong Nan as they sat down. The Lost Clan was situated on a floating landmass. They had absolute control over the Shenyi Continent and could choose to migrate far away at any given time.


    Yet the Lost Clan had not done so. They had stayed beside the Heavenly Mandate Realm all this while.


    ��Although the Original Realm is a land of conflict, it is similarly away from the conflict. It is quite nice here,�� replied Sikong Nan. After the storm back then, no one dared to target the Lost Clan.


    The Lost Clan also kept a low profile. Even though their ability was very powerful, they never placed themselves under the spotlight or fought for fateful encounters with other top forces. Therefore, they were able to keep themselves safe.


    ��Do you have any thoughts about the future of the clan?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, you want us to join Ziwei Imperial Palace, right?�� Sikong Nan asked with a smile.


    ��Not join us, but form an alliance with us, just like before,�� Ye Futian coaxed. ��The Lost Clan has not encountered any trouble all these years, but you have experienced firsthand the storm in the past. Now, war has erupted among the few major worlds. No one knows when the Original Realm will be caught up in it too. Or perhaps one day, one of the emperor-level forces might remember the Lost Clan and intend to annex you. After all, the current Original Realm is no longer under the jurisdiction of the Divine Prefecture.��


    Ye Futian��s prediction was harsh, but it was the truth.


    ��The Divine Prefecture invited us to migrate there too, but we turned them down,�� Sikong Nan said. In the past, to save the Lost Clan from the besiegement of all the various forces, Donghuang Diyuan had personally visited the Lost Clan and announced that the latter was under the jurisdiction of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��In the past, the Original Realm was under the Divine Prefecture. However, things have changed now. If you join the Divine Prefecture, you will most likely lose control over a lot of things,�� Ye Futian said. ��Now, the Ziwei Segmentum has built up a little heritage, and the Original Realm is no longer under the control of the Divine Prefecture. Senior, can you please consider allying with us again? Firstly, our alliance will allow us to take care of each other. We will be able to improve together. Secondly, after the Shenyi Continent is migrated into the Ziwei Segmentum, no forces from the Outer Realms will be able to pose a threat to you.��


    ��Palace Lord Ye, are you trying to make the Lost Clan pledge allegiance to you?�� Sikong Nan questioned.


    ��I��m not asking you to pledge allegiance to me; I am proposing a collaboration here. We will be allies,�� Ye Futian emphasized. ��Our collaboration went well last time, but it��s a pity that we stopped being allies due to what happened after. Now, everything has settled down. The Divine Prefecture and the other forces initiated the world war. However, the Original Realm is still peaceful, and you will find great development opportunities here. It��s a win-win situation for the Lost Clan and the Ziwei Segmentum to ally. You��re concerned that I will annex the Lost Clan, but I have never thought of such a thing. After so many years, I��m sure that Chief Elder is well-aware of my personality.��


    Ye Futian continued, ��If Chief Elder is worried, you don��t have to move the continent into the Ziwei Segmentum. We can keep things the same and visit each other through the space teleportation grand matrix. In the future, if trouble arises, only then do you need to move the continent into the segmentum. That will hopefully spare you from some future trouble.��


    Sikong Nan nodded and replied, ��I naturally trust Deity Ye and am willing to ally with the Ziwei Segmentum. However, the Lost Clan has pledged our loyalty to Princess Donghuang of the Divine Prefecture. If we allied with you now, wouldn��t we be betraying the princess? If the Divine Prefecture wants to settle the score with us, we will be in trouble.��


    Ye Futian responded confidently, ��You were forced to do so in the past. It was never your intention to pledge your loyalty to her. Back then, the Original Realm was under the Divine Prefecture. Therefore, it was an acquiescence that all the forces in the Original Realm would be under the Divine Prefecture. It did not mean that the Lost Clan was under the subjugation of the Imperial Palace. There are many powerful forces in the Divine Prefecture that are not under the command of the Imperial Palace. Now, even the Original Realm is no longer obeying the command of the Divine Prefecture. Since the Lost Clan is in the Original Realm, naturally, you are also no longer under the command of the Divine Prefecture. In principle, you are an independent force. It��s your freedom to ally with whoever you fancy anyway. To say the least, even if the Imperial Palace is unhappy with our alliance, Donghuang the Great will never attack us personally. Without him being involved, with the collaboration of the Ziwei Segmentum and the Lost Clan, nobody is a match for us when we are in the segmentum.��


    Sikong Nan had also heard of Ye Futian��s glorious battle record. As long as the Great Emperor stayed out of the war, nobody could invade the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The Shenyi Continent would indeed be very safe if they formed an alliance with the Ziwei Segmentum. It would be safer than them staying alone here.


    ��The world has changed greatly. Various emperor-level forces are engaged in war now. The Original Realm is temporarily safe and is not involved in any dispute, but no one knows what the future holds,�� Ye Futian pressed on. ��Aside from being safe, the Ziwei Segmentum also has the best environment for cultivation. Moreover, we have seized control of the bases of the six major Ancient God Clans in the Original Realms. All those bases own secret zones for cultivation too. We are willing to provide all of that to the Lost Clan for cultivation so that you will be further strengthened.��


    Ye Futian introduced, ��Here are my disciples and the Protector of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Two of them have undergone the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. The other three disciples are currently at the peak of the Renhuang Plane, and they are good in combat too. Many other cultivators are equally powerful as them in Ziwei Imperial Palace.��


    Sikong Nan praised, ��Regardless of you or your men, all of you have improved at an astonishing speed.��


    ��By now, Senior Sikong should understand my purpose here today. I am inviting the Lost Clan to ally with us. After all, we were allies in the past. It was just that we were forced to break up. I have also cultivated the teachings of the Lost Clan, so I have a deep sense of connection with you,�� Ye Futian said convincingly. ��I have said all I wanted to say so that I will stop here. I will let Senior decide on your own. It��s alright, even if the Lost Clan rejects my offer. We are still friends. I will take my leave now.��


    As Ye Futian said this, he stood up and bid Sikong Nan farewell.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, please allow me to first discuss this matter with the others,�� Sikong Nan said. ��I can��t make this decision alone.��


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian nodded. Then, he sat down while Sikong Nan left the banquet.


    After a moment, Sikong Nan returned to the banquet. A few elders accompanied him. They all looked at Ye Futian as Sikong Nan announced, ��The Shenyi Continent has decided to migrate into the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    Ye Futian was quite thrilled when he heard this announcement. However, on the surface, he calmly smiled and appeared nonchalant. He nodded and responded, ��The Ziwei Segmentum is honored to be able to continue being an ally of the Lost Clan.��


    ��Palace Lord Ye, you spoke too humbly. There are many things we will need to rely on you for in the future,�� Sikong Nan said.


    ��Alright. I will settle everything on the Ziwei Segmentum��s side,�� Ye Futian said while nodding. He was extremely excited. He was certainly in ecstasy to be able to dupe such a powerful ancient clan into the Ziwei Segmentum.


    With the Lost Clan around, even if Ye Futian were not in the Ziwei Segmentum in the future, Ziwei Imperial Palace would be safe in most instances!

 Chapter 2627 - A Major Figure from the Dark Court

    Ye Futian ruled over the Ziwei Segmentum. When the Shenyi Continent migrated into the segmentum, the Lost Clan was practically in his hands.


    The intention of Ye Futian inviting the Lost Clan to join the segmentum was because he wanted to fortify the power of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    However, he would not mistreat the Lost Clan. The Shenyi Continent would be placed directly beside the main planet in the Ziwei Segmentum. Besides that, Ye Futian would build a teleportation grand matrix that connected the Lost Clan and Ziwei Imperial Palace. Moreover, the cultivators of the Lost Clan could utilize all the resources available in Ziwei Imperial Palace for their cultivation.


    If he wanted the Lost Clan to take action in the future, he naturally had to gain their trust.


    Ye Futian also allowed Lord Chen and Sikong Nan to meet and get to know each other. In the future, they could directly liaise with each other on matters of both parties.


    After arranging all this, Ye Futian continued cultivating. He was used to being a hands-off manager.


    ��


    Just like that, several more years passed.


    These past few years, countless people had died in the war between the six realms. They had been in a prolonged stalemate. All sides did not dare to act too aggressively, all of them holding back.


    Donghuang Imperial Palace rallied the various cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to join the war. However, many forces had not responded. The more powerful the force, the more likely they did not react and acted perfunctorily. The difference between the situation in the Divine Prefecture and the Devil World was very drastic.


    As a force of the Ancient God Clans, Tianyan City was similarly perfunctory. They had set a group of members to participate in the war effort, but very few of their core cultivators were among those sent.


    As for the absolute heir of Tianyan City, he had not gone out at all, let alone join the war.


    Right now, in the City Lord Office of Tianyan City, there was a unique space. This was a domain of divine fire. Inside this space, it was an independent world. Wang Xiao of Tianyan City was bathing in fire and cultivating.


    He forged an Armory Zone in the space and was forging divine arms. Terrifying scorching currents consumed his figure, causing his entire person to be bathed with flame. His figure was constantly being tempered. What was even more frightening was that an illusory face seemed to appear in the entire spatial domain. It seemed to be observing his every action.


    Sizzle. As Wang Xiao forged away, the scorching divine fire poured over his figure, imprinting in his body. Gradually, Wang Xiao��s body seemed to be formed from golden divine flames. It was as though he was clad in golden armor. He appeared extremely dazzling.


    ��Ah!�� yelled Wang Xiao.


    Wang Xiao let out a deep roar. He seemed to be in excruciating pain. His muscles were twitching all over his body.


    ��If you want to defeat him, a mere Body of Way is insufficient. You need to forge a divine body to stand a chance,�� said the illusory figure. It seemed to be spurring Wang Xiao on.


    Wang Xiao ground his teeth as he continued to withstand the pain. The pain gradually numbed his nerves. The terrifying divine fire poured down over his body. His body became more and more frightening. The entire region was a domain of divine fire. There was an external force protecting him. It seemed to come from the illusory figure.


    ��


    In Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian was cultivating in seclusion. Just then, someone came calling for him.


    Ye Futian stopped cultivating and looked at the person who had come. It was Old Ma.


    ��Palace Lord,�� greeted Old Ma as he bowed slightly.


    ��Old Ma, there is no need for formalities between us,�� said Ye Futian. ��What has happened?��


    ��Someone is looking for you,�� replied Old Ma.


    ��Who?�� asked Ye Futian, somewhat curious. Normal matters were naturally handled by Lord Chen and the others. They would not disturb Ye Futian��s cultivation.


    If the person had come looking for him, that meant that the former was not just any ordinary person.


    ��It is someone from the Dark Court,�� answered Old Ma. Ye Futian revealed a strange expression. Why was a cultivator of the Dark Court looking for him?


    ��The person who has come is very, very powerful. Even Lord Chen is not confident that he can defeat them,�� continued Old Ma. Ye Futian nodded his head as his expression turned serious.


    It seemed that a major figure of the Dark Court had come.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said.


    Regardless of how formidable a cultivator might be, they could not possibly act recklessly as long as they were in the Ziwei Segmentum. This was a world under the absolute control of Ye Futian.


    The two of them left where they were and moved towards Ziwei City. Ye Futian did not bring others with him except Old Ma.


    After the group from the Dark Court arrived in the segmentum, they occupied a palace. When Ye Futian reached the place, he saw several cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace around. Lord Chen and Fang Cun were present too. Clearly, all of them were worried that the cultivators from the Dark Court would act rashly.


    ��Palace Lord,�� the crowd greeted Ye Futian as they bowed slightly.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��All of you, wait for me here.��


    After he gave this order, he went into the palace alone with Old Ma. He stopped in front of a courtyard. Quite many cultivators from the Dark Court were gathered here. Two of them had unfathomable cultivation. Ye Futian glanced at the crowd and said, ��What business does the Dark Court have with us?��


    ��Someone wants to meet you,�� a cultivator from the Dark Court replied.


    ��And who would that be?�� Ye Futian inquired.


    ��All of you, stand down,�� a voice commanded.


    ��Understood.�� The cultivators from the Dark Court nodded their heads obediently. They bowed in the direction of the room before leaving. Even the two top figures also nodded and left the place.


    Ye Futian was the only one left in the courtyard.


    Creak. The door opened. Ye Futian peeked inside and saw a slender figure draped in a cloak walk out. The person��s head was slightly lowered, and the cloak veiled their face. This person appeared mysterious. The person seemed to be a maiden since she had a slim figure. Even though her legs were long, they were slender.


    She stopped not far away from Ye Futian. She raised her head slightly and stared at him with her jet-black eyes. After that, she removed her cloak and revealed her cold but beautiful face. Her eyes shone as brilliantly as the Cold Moon in the dark night, sending a chill down others�� spines. One could faintly sense danger as they locked eyes with her.


    As Ye Futian looked at her face, he felt somewhat familiar, but he couldn��t pinpoint who she was.


    Right at this moment, the maiden suddenly smiled at Ye Futian. Her smile was like a beam of sunshine in the dark world. It was warm and gave people hope.


    ��Elder Brother!�� she called gently. She seemed somewhat shy.


    Her greeting instantly pulled Ye Futian down memory lane.


    When the chaos in the Original Realm first began, the Dark World invaded the Hidden Land Realm. The Gate of Hell opened as the troops of the Dark World descended.


    Ye Futian found a girl in the Dark World. She was hunted by many parties and was always hiding. She did not have any cultivation, yet she could cause the death of Renhuangs. She claimed herself to be cursed. She was born to bring calamity to those around her. Whoever was close to her would be doomed.


    Despite that, Ye Futian still brought her back to the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Unfortunately, not long after, the Dark Court invaded the Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Lord of the Underworld personally led a troop of the Dark Army to invade the realm and forced Ye Futian to hand the girl over to him. At that time, the passageway that connected all the worlds had yet to be activated, so the scale of the invasion back then paled into insignificance with that of today. However, the Heavenly Mandate Academy back then was similarly much weaker and could not withstand the besiegement.


    In the end, the girl chose to leave with the Dark Court.


    Their encounter was so long ago that Ye Futian had slowly forgotten about it.


    Ye Futian once named the girl Ye Qingyao!

 Chapter 2628 - Heading to Join the War?

    Ye Futian revealed a dazzling smile as he looked at the somewhat familiar face before him. He said, ��You are all grown up. I nearly did not recognize you.��


    As he said this, he extended his hand to caress Ye Qingyao��s head like he used to. Ye Qingyao��s body wanted to move out of the way out of habit. However, she turned stiff and did not do so. Her gaze was somewhat excited.


    For so many years, let alone touching her head, very few people even dared to approach her.


    She wondered, ��If the members of the Dark Court witnessed this scene, what sort of expressions would they have?��


    ��Qingyao, have you been well all these years?�� asked Ye Futian caringly. In his mind, Ye Qingyao was still that self-abased little girl that believed she would bring bad luck to those around her.


    Back when Qingyao was taken away to the Dark World, Ye Futian was very sad. He did not know what future was in store for her. However, now that he saw that she held such a high position in the Dark Court, he felt more at ease.


    Now that he thought about it, he had given her, her name. She had even taken up his surname.


    Ye Qingyao shook her head and softly said, ��I have always been doing well.��


    Regardless of what position she held now in the Dark World, when she saw the familiar face before her, she was instantly brought back to the turning point of her fate.


    Before, she was merely an orphan whom no one bothered about. Everyone either bullied her or avoided her. Some even wanted to capture her.


    Her life was dark and gray, without a shred of hope.


    Although Ye Futian had not known her for very long, he was the most important person in her life. He had given her hope and was a beam of light in her life.


    She would never forget the time when the army of the Dark World invaded. Haze loomed over Heavenly Mandate City. For her, Ye Futian did not hesitate to wage war against the Dark Army. No one could imagine how moved she was back then. She always believed that the Elder Brother who gave her a name also gave her a new life. From that day forth, no one could take Ye Futian��s place in her heart.


    For countless years, this emotion gave her the strength to move forward. She always held on to her unwavering belief. Although they had not met for decades, in a way, Ye Futian had always been beside her as she grew up.


    No one could understand this feeling that she felt, just like no one could understand the despair and helplessness of that innocent little girl in the past.


    ��If she knew that it was you, Yaya would definitely be pleased,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��How is she now?�� asked Ye Qingyao caringly. Yaya similarly held a place in her heart. Back then, Ye Futian and Yaya had brought her out of her despair together.


    ��She is doing very well. She is cultivating in seclusion in Ziwei Imperial Palace. Wait a moment while I go and bring her to see you,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��I will go with you, Elder Brother,�� said Ye Qingyao with a gentle smile. The members of the Dark Court had never seen this side of her before.


    ��All right,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head. ��I can show you around Ziwei Imperial Palace while we are at it.��


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Qingyao nodded. The two of them headed out of the palace. As they left the courtyard, silhouettes with very powerful cultivation silently appeared. They were the cultivators from the Dark Court. They all followed her.


    ��All of you, wait here,�� ordered Ye Qingyao coldly as she stepped into the courtyard. Her cloak veiled her face. Even Ye Futian, who was beside her, felt a chill run down his spine when he heard her command.


    Ye Futian knew that Qingyao was no longer the girl of misfortune from the past.


    He had mixed feelings about her. Back then, Qingyao was brought away by the Dark Court. Now, she held a high position there. From the looks of it, her standing in the Dark Court might be higher than what he imagined.


    Unfortunately, Ye Futian did not fancy the Dark World. He even felt repulsion toward them.


    However, did Qingyao have a choice to decide her fate?


    She did not!


    Would Ye Futian project his dislike of the Dark Court on Ye Qingyao? Certainly, he was not in the position to do so. Ye Qingyao��s childhood was a tragedy. She was forcefully taken away by the Dark Court. She could not decide her fate at all.


    ��Understood.�� Nobody from the Dark Court disobeyed Ye Qingyao��s command. All of them stayed put where they were. They also seemed not to be worried about her safety.


    The higher-ups in the Dark Court also vaguely knew about the relationship between Ye Qingyao and Ye Futian. Moreover, even without this relationship, if Ye Futian dared to touch Ye Qingyao, the Ziwei Segmentum would be reduced to ashes.


    On the other hand, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were very confused about what was happening.


    Why would their Palace Lord bring this major figure of the Dark Court away?


    ��Follow them,�� someone said. With a flash, they went up into the sky and followed Ye Futian. Their pursuit led them back to Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    In Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian and Ye Qingyao came to one of Emperor Xia��s palaces.


    Yaya was cultivating here. When she saw Ye Futian��s arrival, she stopped her training and came close to him. She stared curiously at Ye Qingyao, who stood beside Ye Futian.


    ��Yaya, come and see who has come to visit you,�� Ye Futian said with a smile while Ye Qingyao removed her cloak. Similar to Ye Futian, Yaya did not recognize Ye Qingyao at first glance. After all, Ye Qingyao was still very young when they parted ways. Both her looks and her temperament had undergone tremendous changes since then.


    ��Elder Sister,�� Ye Qingyao greeted.


    ��Are you�� Qingyao?�� Yaya asked somewhat dubiously.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded with a smile. Instantly, Yaya beamed with joy. She approached Ye Qingyao and held her hands, exclaiming, ��You are all grown up now.��


    ��Yaya, are you aware of how many years have passed?�� Ye Futian teased. What did she mean by Ye Qingyao having grown up?


    ��Elder Sister is still the same. Time has no effect on you,�� Ye Qingyao said as she stared at the familiar face before her.


    Yaya still felt somewhat surreal. She asked, ��Were you cultivating in the Dark World?��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Qingyao nodded.


    ��I have been worrying about you all these years. Now that I have seen you safe and sound, I can rest my worries,�� Yaya said with a smile. She could finally lift a weight off her mind.


    Ye Qingyao felt warm inside. There was actually someone in this world who still remembered her.


    ��Qingyao, do you have other matters you need to attend to during your trip to the Original Realm this time?�� asked Ye Futian. Ye Qingyao made her appearance for the first time after so many years. She would most likely have some serious business to attend to.


    ��I have always wanted to visit Elder Brother. But I was not allowed to leave the Dark Court until recently,�� Ye Qingyao explained. ��This time, I am heading to the Divine Prefecture.��


    As she mentioned the purpose of her trip, a glint of dark aura flashed in her jet-black eyes. Ye Futian acutely sensed a terrifying Death Will from her. However, it disappeared in an instant. This caused his heart to tremble.


    Such a menacing Death Will. Qingyao was actually heading to the Divine Prefecture to join the war.


    Unbeknownst to him, Ye Qingyao was actually thinking about something else. She had heard rumors of many forces in the Divine Prefecture mistreating Ye Futian. They even attempted to kill him numerous times!

 Chapter 2629 - The Reaper and the Favored Son of Tianyan

    Ye Futian felt some conflict in his heart; he didn��t expect Qingyao to participate in the war. Yu Sheng, too, would inevitably participate in the war on behalf of the Devil World in the future.


    His relationships with all these other realms were a little complicated. The Divine Prefecture, naturally, needed no more explanation; he had always belonged under the rule of the Divine Prefecture. As to the World of Buddhism, it was a place where he had gone to seek instruction and received a lot of teaching in return. At one point, he had even preached Buddhism, and Hua Qingqing had once accompanied The Buddha in cultivation as well. As far as the Devil World was concerned, Yu Sheng��s relationship with him needed no more description, and now, Ye Qingyao held a high position of power in the Dark World.


    These relationships were now kind of a mess.


    Ye Futian didn��t try to persuade anyone. Just as the Devil Emperor had said, everyone had their position to consider; he could not possibly control any of this. All he could do was tell Ye Qingyao, ��Qingyao, if you are going to the Divine Prefecture to participate in the war, you must watch your back.��


    The battle of the six realms would be unimaginably dangerous.


    ��I know,�� Ye Qingyao nodded.


    The three of them chatted a while longer before Ye Qingyao left. Soon after, someone below sent the news that Ye Qingyao had left Ziewei Segmentum with the cultivators from the Dark Court, presumably heading towards the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Old Ma.�� In Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian summoned Old Ma.


    Old Ma came over and waited on his orders.


    ��On my behalf, tell everyone to monitor the movements of the battlefield of the six realms in the Divine Prefecture and make reports regularly,�� Ye Futian said. Before, he had been concentrating on cultivation and the development of Ziwei Segmentum��s prowess. However, as the war intensified, more and more cultivators were getting involved.


    Ye Futian was now starting to pay close attention to this battle of the six realms.


    ��Very well,�� Old Ma nodded, then left to prepare to send envoys to the North Cliff Region into the Divine Prefecture.


    After Old Ma left, and Ye Futian continued to cultivate with his eyes closed. A few months later, a major event took place in Ziwei Segmentum. It was a major event that got everyone extremely excited.


    Aside from Ye Futian, and after the Supreme Elder, Lord Chen, Ziwei Segmentum had produced yet another giant figure who had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    More importantly, this person was none other than the lady of the palace, Hua Jieyu.


    Decades had passed, and Hua Jieyu had finally taken this extremely critical step. Nowadays, Ye Futian had the combat power of three major giants.


    Ye Futian, Lord Chen, and Hua Jieyu.


    They had quite a few cultivators in the First Tribulation Plane already, such as Emperor Xi, Murong Yu, Taoist Monk Mu, Blind Tie, Gu Dongliu, Hua Qingqing, Chen Yi, Yang Wuqi, and Fang Cun.


    Such a terrific group of people, no matter where they were, had to be first-rate. Aside from the inheritance of the great emperors, this cast might even be stronger than any Ancient God Clans in the Divine Prefecture.


    Furthermore, now that Shenyi Continent was also part of the Ziwei Segmentum, there were many top cultivators.


    If they were to be lumped together, the strength of the Ziwei Segmentum would indeed be even more astounding.


    Naturally, everyone in the Ziwei Segmentum rejoiced after Hua Jieyu had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, but none of them were more pleased than Ye Futian.


    The two of them, husband and wife, were now both giants. Ziwei��s strength was getting more spectacular.


    But at this time, news came from the Divine Prefecture of the Upper Worlds that the battle of the six realms had grown more fierce.


    A mysterious cultivator had emerged out of the Dark Court, known as The Reaper. Every time she appeared, she was hidden in a cloak, and no one had been able to see her true physical form or her face. But wherever she passed, living things died. If anyone so much as to stare her into her eyes, they would be eroded by death until they succumbed completely.


    Any place that The Reaper had appeared, the Great Path dried up, and the spiritual energy between heaven and earth was exhausted. Everything turned into death and silence without the slightest hint of life. On the battlefield, unknown numbers of cultivators had died in her hands.


    She had passed through some continents in the North Cliff Region, and wherever she passed, no life could exist. For a while, the people from the North Cliff Region fled frantically. Even those who couldn��t really escape tried and risked everything to run away.


    They had no choice.


    Staying behind was a dead end for them.


    After Ye Futian had gotten the news, a shadow loomed over him.


    Obviously, he knew who this mysterious Reaper was��Ye Qingyao.


    He would have never expected that Ye Qingyao would achieve fame so quickly, almost as soon as she stepped into the battlefield, and in such a dramatic way, no less, to be known as The Reaper.


    Once upon a time, she was just a sad little girl, abandoned by the world with no one to count on.


    Ye Futian knew that Ye Qingyao had changed. She was no longer the same Ye Qingyao that she once was, but he didn��t expect the change to be so terribly drastic.


    The Reaper had sent shockwaves through the Divine Prefecture. Soon after, the top cultivators of the three realms, the Divine Prefecture, the World of Buddhism, and the Human Realm, began their mission to hunt down the Reaper. At the same time, Donghuang Imperial Palace officially ordered all the top forces in Divine Prefecture to join the war. Anyone who could kill the Reaper from the Dark Court would receive a handsome reward and the opportunity to cultivate at the imperial palace, receiving instructions from Donghuang the Great himself.


    Some principalities responded while some others chose to stonewall.


    But at this time, a group of cultivators came from Tianyan City and officially stepped onto the battlefield. After they stepped into the battlefield, they bulldozed over many cultivators from the three major worlds who had invaded the Divine Prefecture with deadly force. They were undefeated wherever they went, and the deterrent power of one Ancient God Clan seemed to be even greater than Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    And this was all because of one person.


    The favored son of Tianyan City, the heir of Tianyan the Great, Wang Xiao.


    For the first time since the several defeats that he suffered at the hands of Ye Futian, Wang Xiao appeared in front of the world once again and shocked them with his outstanding performance.


    The Wang Xiao who appeared this time was more terrifying than ever and was way too frightening. One could say that he had completely transformed and become another person. Even the City Lord of Tianyan himself, if participating in the battle, would not be scarier than Wang Xiao.


    Wang Xiao, as he appeared in front of the world, bathed in the armor of golden flames, holding Sky Tremoring, descended on the battlefield like a true deity. He was above everything, and no one could stop him. In this world, there were very few who could claim the ability to totally harness imperial arms.


    Wang Xiao, in addition to his own terrifying strength, could control imperial arms.


    For a time, the name of Wang Xiao from Tianyan City once again resounded throughout the world, suppressing even the fame of The Reaper. It was as if he wanted to end the battle of the six realms all by himself.


    The news reached Ziwei Imperial Palace and into the ears of Ye Futian.


    Qingyao had become The Reaper.


    Wang Xiao, once again, exhibiting his unparalleled majesty to the world was something Ye Futian had not expected.


    However, even though he quite despised Wang Xiao from their encounters before, it was a fact that Wang Xiao could control the imperial arms. If it weren��t for the protection of Ziwei the Great, Wang Xiao, as aided by imperial arms, was enough to sack Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��I am taking a trip to the outside,�� Ye Futian��s said to Hua Jieyu.


    ��Where to?�� Hua Jieyu asked.


    ��The Divine Prefecture,�� Ye Futian said. ��I want to go to the North Cliff Region to take a look.��


    ��I��ll go with you. Now that my cultivation has elevated, I won��t hold you back,�� said Hua Jieyu.


    ��No.�� Ye Futian shook his head instead and pinched Hua Jieyu��s cheek. He said with a smile, ��That is a battlefield there. What will you do there? It��s easier for me to come and go without a trace by myself.��


    ��As you wish,�� Hua Jieyu didn��t argue with him. If Ye Futian didn��t want her to go, then she wouldn��t go!

 Chapter 2630 - The Battlefield

    In the North Cliff Region, the battle of the six realms covered an area of several continents.


    The coalition forces, headed by the Devil World and supplemented by the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm, had very nearly captured all of the Northern Cliff Region. Nowadays, the Northern Cliff Region in the Divine Prefecture was in a fallen state.


    Right this moment, the army, as led by the Devil World, was stationed on a continent at the edge of the Northern Cliff Region. On the bordering continent, there was an army led by the Divine Prefecture, aided by the Human Realm and the World of Buddhism.


    At this moment, above a continent somewhere, Ye Futian appeared. He looked down and surveyed the vast landmass beneath him. There were unknown numbers of cultivators as far as the eyes could see. Powerful cultivators were stationed everywhere.


    The exact number of cultivators in the six realms was unknown. During times of peace, they were everywhere. But now, they had gathered together at the time of war and formed a massive group with unimaginable prowess.


    During Ye Futian��s travel in the sky above, he had passed through some continents and saw they were greatly devastated. Some continents were completely destroyed by acts of war. In many places, corpses littered everywhere. Many cultivators had perished.


    At any given time in history, a war at this scale would inevitably have such a result, with considerable loss of lives and dire consequences.


    Ye Futian continued moving forward. The further he went, the closer he was to the heart of the battlefield, and the cultivation of the army was greater. In fact, a war on this scale was more about competing with the forces on the top. If top-level cultivators could secure an absolute advantage, then the matter of winning could more easily be determined.


    Cultivators below the realm of Renhuang weren��t actually very useful. Therefore, the armies were mostly made up of Renhuang cultivators. Under the command of Donghuang Imperial Palace, there were several legions of Renhuang that dominated the army. In truth, their existence had always been in preparation for war.


    Although the Divine Prefecture had been quiet for hundreds of years, war was never very far from their minds.


    When the two sides first began to clash, they both exercised reservations. Those cultivators above the realm of Renhuang would not indiscriminately kill those in the Renhuang realm; it was a battle of equals. Top figures would only engage other top figures, while the army of Renhuang would only fight with Renhuang cultivators.


    But as the battle grew more fierce, the situation on the battlefield began to change. Today��s war had gotten more radicalized. Both sides had begun to carry out large-scale slaughters, and the top figures were beginning their sweeps.


    In the several engagements previously, many cultivators had already perished.


    Most of those who perished were by the hands of The Reaper from the Dark Court and Wang Xiao from Tianyan City. Their killing sprees were simply a materialization of madness.


    With a single thought, The Reaper could turn an infinite space into the dead zone. A single blow from Wang Xiao��s imperial arms could penetrate an entire continent. It was inconceivable just how destructive their powers were.


    Ye Futian moved along the battlefield at an extremely fast speed. He saw many places in a state of destruction, and some continents were even broken into pieces. In the heat of the battle, even the continents had collapsed.


    As he continued to move forward and came to the forefront of this continent, he could see that the cultivation of the cultivators there were much stronger and surmised that they ought to be the cultivators at the core of the battle. At this moment, both sides seemed to be at a truce and in the process of regrouping.


    After all, no one could endure endless battles.


    A series of divine consciousness swept over Ye Futian, and many powerful figures appeared in the ground below.


    ��Who is it?!�� Someone��s voice rang in Ye Futian��s ears, just as Ye Futian��s divine consciousness swept toward the other as well without too much scruple. In today��s world, there were not many who could surpass him in ability. Even if they could defeat him head-on, they may not be able to keep up with him in guerrilla tactics.


    His divine consciousness also swept toward the others. In one territory, there were many top cultivators there, and even some who possessed terrifying auras. Every one of them had extraordinary temperament with equally extraordinary origin.


    Buzz! Several people appeared high in the sky, directly blocking Ye Futian��s path forward. Each of these people had a powerful aura and stared at Ye Futian as they asked him, ��Which side are you from?��


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. There were not many who did not recognize him.


    These people did not seem to be from the Divine Prefecture.


    Ignoring the question, Ye Futian took a step forward and disappeared from where he was. The other��s face suddenly changed, revealing a look of surprise. Did he just leave like that?


    ��It��s Ye Futian.�� A middle-aged man with extraordinary temperament said, ��I didn��t think he would come to the battlefield.��


    ��The first man of the Original Realm?�� a young man asked. Obviously, they knew of Ye Futian. Now, in the land of the six realms, of all the top-level figures, there were few, if any, who did not know who Ye Futian was.


    ��Yes, it is unexpected for him to be here at the battlefield. But, what is he doing here on the battlefield?�� the person who just spoke asked with curiosity.


    ��Because of the battle of the six realms, the Original Realm is temporarily out of the play. Why does he bother coming over here instead of cultivating there in peace?�� the young man smiled and replied. Now that no one had the time to pay attention to the Original Realm, shouldn��t Ye Futian seize this opportunity and focus on improving his strength?


    ��It has nothing to do with us. If Wang Xiao knew that he was here, he would want to kill him. However, Ye Futian cultivates Buddha��s Celerity; it is not a sure thing whether he can be caught or not.��


    Just as Ye Futian suspected, these people were not cultivators from the Divine Prefecture but powerful cultivators from the Human Realm. They may not have recognized Ye Futian at first, but given time, they all caught on.


    Ye Futian��s figure appeared in another space as he continued moving forward above the battlefield. But, at this moment, he faintly felt that someone was spying on him, and his brows knitted together slightly. Then a voice was heard saying, ��Benefactor Ye, it��s been a long time.��


    As his divine consciousness made the scan, Ye Futian looked in a direction quite a ways away and saw a group of cultivators somewhere far from him. Yonder, there was a sacred light of auspices as the Light of Buddha gleamed. Among them, there were several acquaintances Ye Futian recognized.


    The person who spoke, surprisingly, was Tongchan Arhat. Not far from him, Shenyan Arhat was also present. His eyes turned into a golden color, and the Light of Buddha was shining and penetrating through the space as he directed his gaze at Ye Futian.


    By now, the cultivation of these two Arhats was very profound as well, as they had both survived the First Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. They were now considered existences at the level of the Great Buddhas.


    In another direction, there were a few more terrifying Buddha Lords. Among them, there were Tongchan Buddha Lord and Shenyan Buddha Lord.


    At that time, Ye Futian had come into contact with many Buddha Lords in the Western World of Buddhism and had gotten to know their personalities very well. It was not surprising that these two Buddha Lords would come here to join the fight. Compared to these two Buddha Lords, Wutian Buddha Lord and Tianyin Buddha Lord were more in line with Buddhist philosophy and were more friendly towards him.


    ��Greetings to the Buddha Lords,�� Ye Futian said across the air but did not salute them. He merely put his hands together, which was regarded as a sign of respect to Buddhism. He never had a good feeling about these two Buddhas. Especially when he left Spirit Mountain, chased by Zhenchan, he highly suspected these two Buddha Lords were involved in it as well. Shenyan Buddha Lord, in particular, had even spied on his comings and goings with his divine dyes and helped Saint Zhenchan to hunt him.


    Nevertheless, he would not be so foolish as to start fighting with them now. After all, he did have a relationship with the World of Buddhism. The Lord of All Buddhas, as well as several other Buddha Lords, had been kind to him and taught him Buddhist methods.


    This war that had ensnared the six realms had reached so many cultivators at the top. Except for the principalities of the Divine Prefecture, the World of Buddhism and the Human Realm had dispatched their high-level cultivators here. Of course, there were also the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm to consider!

 Chapter 2631 - Mighty

    Chapter 2631: Mighty


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Is Benefactor Ye here to render aid to the Divine Prefecture? To destroy the allied forces of the Devil World, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm?�� Tongchan Arhat clasped his hands together and asked Ye Futian.


    His temperament was outstanding as he wore a smile on his face. Overall, he gave people a feeling of being incredibly friendly. However, Ye Futian knew Tongchan Arhat to be a very scheming individual, and what he specialized in was the cultivation of telepathy. Still, Ye Futian was a little curious. Now his strength was much greater than that of Tongchan Arhat, and he wondered if the telepathy of the other would be effective on him.


    He smiled as he looked at Tongchan Arhat. A thought surfaced in his mind. As he was observing the look on Tongchan Arhat��s face, he saw that the expression of the other remained unchanged, and he could not fathom what he was thinking. Ye Futian then put the thought in his mind aside.


    After all, in addition to Tongchan Arhat, Tongchan Buddha Lord was also here. This kind of individual with a superpower would be no weaker than him. Perhaps he would be able to see what was on his mind.


    When facing Tongchan Buddha Lord and Tongchan Arhat, he would do well to watch himself when he dealt with them.


    ��I cultivated in the Original Realm, and I don��t belong to any of the six realms. I stand alone and do not join with any other forces, so I am in no position to intervene in the battle of the six realms,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Benefactor Ye was once from the Divine Prefecture, and the Original Realm was part of the Divine Prefecture. Not to mention you had spent considerable time at the World of Buddhism. The Devil World, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm have now invaded the Divine Prefecture and disrupted the lives of every living being. Benefactor Ye is someone who has a destination with Buddhism and has extraordinary strength. You ought to help defeat the evil and defend what is right,�� Tongchan Arhat proclaimed loudly, persuading Ye Futian to take action.


    ��I am of average aptitude, and my cultivation is shallow. I do not have such high aspirations as the Arhat. The matter of eliminating the evils of the world and defending the righteousness is better served by the Arhat and the other Buddhas Lords.�� Ye Futian responded with a smile, calm and easy as if they were chatting casually.


    What was right and what was evil?


    Although the Devil World was the invading force, hadn��t Divine Prefecture forces invaded the Original Realm and attacked Ziwei once upon a time?


    At that time, who had stepped forward to fight against evil and defend righteousness?


    The good and evil in the world could not be so easily judged by a single word. He couldn��t preside over the battle of the six realms because he could not intervene. The Devil World and The Reaper from the Dark Court were inextricably linked to him as well.


    ��Is that so?�� a cold, sarcastic voice said. The tone was not as friendly as Tongchan Arhat. The man who spoke at this moment was none other than Tongchan Buddha Lord. He looked at Ye Futian and said, ��I heard that you had gone to the Devil World to cultivate, and Yu Sheng��your good friend and brother��is now a giant in the Devil World, the heir of the Devil Emperor. Later, the Dark Court had paid you a visit in Ziwei Segmentum; it was said that The Reaper was also present.��


    ��These are all true, aren��t they?�� Tongchan Buddha Lord stared at Ye Futian with terrifying eyes. A golden Light of Buddha flowed inside of them as if he wanted to see through everything. At the same time, there was a mysterious and unfathomable power that shrouded Ye Futian.


    Clearly, he wanted to see into Ye Futian��s thoughts.


    Ye Futian fixed his attention on Tongchan Buddha Lord with a smile on his face. His expression did not change because of what the other had said, but at the moment when the other asked the question, he did move a thought in his mind.


    Although he covered it up quickly and didn��t think about it anymore, the other could still spy some of it.


    At least this was for real.


    ��Just as I thought!�� Tongchan Buddha Lord stared at Ye Futian across the air, ��It seems that Benefactor Ye not only not intends to stand on the side of the Divine Prefecture to help eliminate these invaders, but you also want to help the Devil World and the Dark World to invade The Divine Prefecture?��


    Honestly, Ye Futian felt quite indifferent inside. He thought that the other knew what had happened in the Devil World and the Ziwei Segmentum. Although this was not some big secret, and they were easy enough to uncover. This, at least, proved that the others had spies hidden somewhere.


    Whether it was the Devil World or the Ziwei Segmentum, spies were watching their every move.


    It seemed that he was still too naive.


    Over the years, the Ziwei Segmentum had gathered cultivators from everywhere to enter Ziwei Imperial Palace to cultivate and strengthen the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    There was a large number of people that were recruited. Though it was not so easy to become part of the core group at Ziwei Imperial Palace, it was not so difficult to enter the Ziwei Imperial Palace to cultivate. To dispatch one or two spies inside would not be a difficult task for any of these principalities.


    Therefore, he assumed that the Devil World and the Ziwei Segmentum might have already been compromised.


    ��I have something I want to ask the Buddha Lord,�� Ye Futian asked. Tongchan Buddha Lord looked at him and said, ��Please.��


    ��The Buddha Lord is an expert in telepathy and can spy on the thoughts of others at will. However, only the Buddha Lord himself knows what he had detected in the thoughts of others.�� Ye Futian smiled and continued, ��This means that the Buddha Lord is free to say whatever he pleases, with no one the wiser?��


    ��How dare you!�� some Buddhist cultivator lashed out at him. He clasped his hands together, as the Light of Buddha was shining all around him. A powerful oppressive force permeated and went straight for Ye Futian.


    A sharp aura flashed through the eyes of Tongchan Buddha Lord, directed pointing at Ye Futian.


    ��Who is the Buddha Lord that the likes of you dared to question him?�� A Buddhist cultivator took a step forward, and his body was shining with the brilliance of Vajra. Waves of domineering Light of Buddha pressured Ye Futian in the void.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he merely glanced at the one who spoke, a coldness in his heart. Then, he took a step forward.


    With just one step, infinite golden light swept out, as well as a terrifying power of Buddhism that swooped down. The Sound of Buddha lingered between heaven and earth as a monstrous Light of Buddha was released, drowning this corner of the sky. The Sound of Buddha that contained within the Light of Buddha sounded like a powerful spell.


    Bang�� Under this terrifying pressure, the cultivator who took a step further was knocked back immediately. He raised his head to glare at Ye Futian in the void, and his expression was not pleasant.


    ��With such lowly cultivation, aren��t you ashamed to parade like this in front of me?�� Ye Futian chided loudly, like the Sound of Buddha from the Great Path, resounding throughout the void. It was like a lion��s roar or a glaring Vajra. This loud boom deafened the eardrums of the other, and his body seemed on the verge of being shattered. The Light of Buddha upon him was dispelled by that shock, and he stumbled a few steps backward.


    His expression changed rapidly to one of shock. However, at this moment, the Light of Buddha was shining on Tongchan Buddha Lord, covering the surrounding area and protecting that cultivator within it.


    ��Your cultivation is lowly, and yet you are here mouthing off instead of working on your cultivation. Which Great Buddha taught you that?�� Ye Futian��s eyes were full of contempt as they swept towards that Buddhist cultivator. The man had nothing to say. At this time, the aura in his body was still quite unsteady. Furthermore, Ye Futian had suppressed him with a powerful Buddhist method, and he had no answer to that.


    ��I have cultivated Buddhism on the Spirit Mountain for decades and received many blessings of Buddhism. I have spent a lot of time studying the wonders of Buddhism with my being, and I still find it wanting. Now a mere Buddha Lord comes here and refuses to be questioned, how arrogant is that!�� Ye Futian said coldly, ��It was based on my relationship with Buddhism that I address you as the Buddha Lord, strictly out of respect given to Buddhism. Otherwise, since when do you think it��s your business to give me advice on what I should or should not do?��


    Ye Futian��s speech was aggressive and unrelenting, a complete reversal from the humility he exhibited before. It seemed that at this time, these Buddhist cultivators finally realized that the young man who had gone to Spirit Mountain once upon a time to seek the way was now the world-renowned lord and master of Ziwei Segmentum!

 Chapter 2632 - Tongchan’s Malice

    His trip to the Devil World and his meeting with Qingyao were all private matters. As the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian felt how he chose to conduct his business was of no concern to Tongchan Buddha Lord.


    Those Buddhist cultivators could only stare at Ye Futian. This was the cultivator who had once defeated all the Buddhas. He had demonstrated superb talents while he was cultivating on the Spirit Mountain. He even received instructions from some Buddha Lords who had passed on to him Buddha��s Celerity, one of the six superpowers of Buddhism.


    Later, they heard that Ye Futian had become invincible in the land of the Divine Prefecture by virtue of Buddha��s Celerity, as no one could track or follow him.


    Buddha��s Celerity had become a trademark of Ye Futian��s and formed the basis he capitalized amply and freely.


    ��You cultivated methods of Buddhism and returned to the Original Realm, reigning over Ziwei Segementum and lord over a territory you called your own; it seems that you have quite forgotten where you have gotten your ability and your roots.�� Next to him, Shenyan Buddha Lord commented nonchalantly, ��With the status you enjoyed today, no wonder you are so puffed up.��


    In the eyes of Shenyan Buddha Lord, Ye Futian��s achievement today and his ability to preserve himself was completely contributed to the methods of Buddhism he had cultivated. He even believed that everything Ye Futian had was based on his foundation in Buddhism. Without Buddha��s Celerity, he had no way to establish himself.


    ��Puffed up?��


    Oh, so they thought that he was full of himself.


    ��You speak as if the Spirit Mountain of Buddhism was your personal property, forgetting that you, too, are but one of the many cultivators who have gone to the mountain to seek the truth,�� Ye Futian jeered with some sarcasm, then proceeded to ignore Shenyan Buddha Lord completely. Everyone was entitled to their view, and once they decided what that view was, it was not something that could be easily persuaded by others; this was especially true for people like Shenyan Buddha Lord. Since this was his view, there was no need for Ye Futian to argue further with him.


    Having said that, he turned around and was ready to leave.


    ��Wait!�� Another indifferent voice spoke, stopping Ye Futian in his tracks. He then saw Tongchan Buddha Lord clasped his hands together, who continued, ��What kind of agreement have you reached with the Devil World and the Dark Court?��


    His voice couldn��t be more indifferent or certain, as if he had already determined that this was the case. That Ye Futian and the cultivators of these two major worlds had reached some kind of consensus and were ready to join forces to fight against the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Once again, it��s none of your business to interfere with what I choose to do.�� Ye Futian did not respond to them directly, or rather, he was too tired to respond to them, which accounted for his blunt reply.


    When he finished, all Ye Futian wanted to do was to turn around and leave, not wanting to engage Tongchan any longer.


    He knew that back then, out of the several Buddha Lords, Tongchan Buddha Lord had always prejudiced against him. He had killed two powerful peers of Tongchan��s, and both of them were close to him. Saint Zhenchan and Lord Initial Zen also perished because of him.


    These people were all peers in the same generation.


    Today, every one of these people had fallen. Yet, not only did Ye Futian continue on without any mishaps, but he was getting even more powerful in the land of the Original Realm. Not even the joint forces of the six Ancient God Clans were able to take him down.


    With a history like this, one could only imagine the feelings that Tongchan Buddha Lord harbored for him.


    ��Preposterous!�� Tongchan Buddha Lord clasped his hands together, and the Sound of Buddha lingered, resounding between heaven and earth. The sky above Ye Futian was overwhelmed by the Sound of Buddha instantly. A terrifying aura descended and turned into a Great Path domain of Buddhism, which wrapped Ye Futian up within it.


    Ye Futian didn��t immediately strike back. He assessed the surrounding situation, and his face wore a chilly expression as he looked at his opponent. Tongchan Buddha Lord had directly declared war against him.


    A supreme giant Buddha appeared, sheltering the sky and obscuring the sun. It had turned this corner of the sky into a realm of Buddhism, to trapped Ye Futian in it.


    And Ye Futian did not evade this time with Buddha��s Celerity but allowed the realm of the Great Path to appear and trap him within. This imagery further convinced those Buddhist cultivators of Ye Futian��s hubris and that he was indeed very puffed up.


    ��In the past, I did not think teaching you Buddhist methods was a good idea, but the other Buddhas were generous and merciful to allow you to cultivate, and now look what a madman you have become. The Buddhas passed the scriptures on to you and allowed you to cultivate on Spirit Mountain, even The Buddha himself had vouched for you that you were predestined with Buddhism, but none of this is meant for you to be in cahoots with the Devil World and the Dark World,�� Tongchan Buddha Lord said as he glared at Ye Futian, his voice was solemn with the Sound of Buddha lingering in the background. His whole body was protected by Vajra energy as if he had transformed into an ancient Buddha��a Buddha in reality.


    ��If you are colluding with the Devil World and the Dark World, then, as a member of Buddhism, I have an obligation to clean up wayward disciples and make up for the mistakes made by Buddhism in the past.�� The voice of Tongchan Buddha Lord��s words resounded throughout the space, and this horrific scene attracted cultivators in the distance. People continued to make their way over to this site, including the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, who had just received the news.


    ��What a justice fighter you fancied yourself to be,�� Ye Futian looked at Tongchan Buddha Lord and said sarcastically. ��Rats like you are not worthy of calling themselves ��Buddha��.��


    When his voice faded, the Light of Buddha, likewise, flared up brilliantly upon his body. Above the firmament, the Light of Buddha flowed freely, as if gathering to form yet another giant Buddha. Suddenly, two gigantic Buddhas, each occupying a place, confronted each other without reservation, as both of them released infinite divine splendor.


    Buzz! With a turn of his mind, Tongchan Buddha Lord levitated as the Light of Buddha circulated behind him, and massive and incomparable Symbols of Wan appeared. Above the firmament, the hand of the giant Buddha struck Ye Futian, and it was a strike that contained countless Symbols of Wan. These symbols rotated and intertwined into a massive divine seal in the Symbol of Wan and slammed towards Ye Futian.


    ��Symbol of Wan!��


    The Symbol of Wan was one of the strongest Buddhist seals, aggressive and dominant. Its power differed based on each cultivator��s own understanding.


    Ye Futian cast a glance in front of him. He clasped his hands together in like manner, just as the giant Buddha raised his hand to blast out the Symbol of Wan. The two were facing one another without the least bit of hesitation.


    Two huge Symbols of Wan collided together. For a while, the space seemed to be collapsing as a terrifying power swept across this corner of the sky; even the realm of Buddhism was shattered. The extremely dazzling Light of Buddha turned into a terrible storm that ravaged the space. Even the cultivators from faraway places were forced to look this way because they thought that the cultivators from the Devil World had invaded again.


    Ye Futian and Tongchan Buddha Lord stood in the middle of the storm, and each failed to overpower the other. In this one Symbol of Wan, they each had integrated their own comprehension, and it turned out that they were evenly matched. While exercising similar Buddhist methods, total victory was only possible unless they had an absolute advantage in strength.


    ��I have cultivated Buddhism for decades and far surpassed your cultivation for a thousand years. In front of me, how dare you call yourself a Buddha?�� Ye Futian looked at Tongchan Buddha Lord, and his words were cutting. Tongchan Buddha Lord had already indicted him on charges of colluding with the Devil World and the Dark World and against the allied forces of the Divine Prefecture. Now, he attacked in the name of eliminating the evil to defend righteousness.


    Under such circumstances, did he still need to maintain a semblance of courtesy with the others?


    As the storm dissipated, many cultivators appeared in the area around the two of them. Among them, there were many top figures from the Divine Prefecture.


    This war was driven mainly by the invasion of the Devil World into the Divine Prefecture; therefore, the cultivators from both the Divine Prefecture and the Devil World were in the majority, with the most powerful casts. The other four realms were here for support originally, but as the war heated up, they, too, had gradually increased their forces.


    ��Ye Futian!��


    How could the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture not recognize who he was?


    The cultivators from Tianyan City had also arrived. Wang Xiao immediately zoomed in on Ye Futian��s whereabouts. In those golden eyes of his, monstrous fighting will suddenly burst out in an instant.


    How dare Ye Futian appear in the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2633 - Your Blood Will Pave the Way

    Ye Futian��s attention also drifted towards Wang Xiao. After all these years, Wang Xiao��s cultivation became more frightening than ever, as he had already survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Although many years had passed since the contest at Alchemy City, it was rare for Wang Xiao to break through after all these years. Moreover, the person he was at present was very different from who he once was. His entire body was radiant; it was as if he was draped in an armor of golden flames.


    Wang Xiao was much stronger than before and was no longer the same person that he was.


    What has he been through? Ye Futian wondered, a little surprised. How did Wang Xiao manage to achieve such a massive change?


    Back then, Wang Xiao could not contend with him at all. However, today��s Wang Xiao seemed to have caught up with him.


    Behind Wang Xiao was the City Lord of Tianyan. His eyes were cold, and the murderous intent upon him was fierce than ever as he stared at Ye Futian.


    Once upon a time, because Ye Futian��s power was enough to slaughter cultivators in the Second Tribulation Plane, they had no choice but to retreat from the Original Realm. The six Ancient God Clans had failed in their joint efforts, and their defeat was a tremendous humiliation. However, today��s Wang Xiao was no longer the Wang Xiao of yesteryear.


    He had even arranged so that after this war, he would pass the position of the City Lord of Tianyan to Wang Xiao, and he would work behind the scene and manage everything for Wang Xiao.


    It was Tianyan City��s greatest desire to give rise to a great emperor. By then, Tianyan City may become a force of its own and be able to stand alone. They would no longer be ruled by the Divine Prefecture, and they may even be able to go and sack the land of the Original Realm.


    Just because Donghuang the Great didn��t make a move, it didn��t mean that they wouldn��t.


    Naturally, the premise of all this was because Tianyan City had Wang Xiao, who had the quality of becoming the next great emperor!


    ��Ye Futian, you colluded with the Devil World and the Dark Court, and you fought against the Buddha Lord from the World of Buddhism, who passed its methods to you. You are indeed an ingrate,�� The City Lord of Tianyan admonished in a cold tone. How could he miss this rare opportunity to add more fuels to the fire? He would seize any opportunity to make Ye Futian a bigger target, to alienate him from everyone else.


    ��He was once a cultivator from the Divine Prefecture, but now, not only has he betrayed the Divine Prefecture and lord over a domain of his own, he has even chased away cultivators of the Divine Prefecture from the land of the Original Realm. Before, everyone thought it was because of some deep-seated grievances he had with the Divine Prefecture, but now it seems that it is because he has colluded with the Devil World and the Dark World,�� another person added. Clearly, Ye Futian had offended many forces in the Divine Prefecture.


    Furthermore, He was getting too much attention, and many cultivators were aching to see some mishaps befall Ye Futian.


    ��Our lord The Buddha was compassionate and taught him the way of Buddhism, but it is not meant for him to cause evil in this world; this is a sin, unfortunately, committed by Buddhism.�� A Great Buddha clasped his hands together, and the Light of Buddha gleamed upon him. This was also someone in the same camp as Tongchan Buddha Lord and was not so friendly to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stood there, dumbfounded. He was just passing through and came to check on the battlefield. He didn��t expect that he would become a target of public hatred and that there were quite a lot of people who meant to do him harm.


    He glanced at the City Lord of Tianyan, and there was a hint of contempt in his eyes. It was as if he loathed to lower himself to that level.


    ��It seems that Tianyan City has forgotten what happened in the past,�� Ye Futian said sarcastically. He continued, ��As for my relationship with the World of Buddhism, I have already explained it very clearly. In my cultivation of Buddhism, I have always respected its teaching; this is why I treated these people in front of me with courtesy. However, some of them, under the pretense of Buddhism, seek revenge on every little transgression without tolerance. Whenever they open their mouths, it is to condemn the others, which is contrary to the teachings of Buddhism. I don��t think they are fit to be called Buddhas. If they don��t focus their energies on cultivating Buddhism and concentrate on self-examination, I am afraid these are the ones who will fall into the evil way and create disasters for millenniums to come.��


    ��Preposterous!�� Shenyan Buddha Lord lashed out coldly.


    More and more cultivators began to gather around, and Shenyan Buddha Lord said, ��This man is so insolent and arrogant, and disrespectful to boot. Now that he has colluded with the Devil World and the Dark World, shall we detain him here?��


    All the cultivators stared at Ye Futian. There were many top personalities in their presence today who were all powerful giants in their own right.


    With so many powerful existences, it was not impossible to detain Ye Futian.


    Moreover, Shenyan Buddha Lord was an expert in divine eyes; even if Ye Futian wanted to escape by Buddha��s Celerity, it would not be an easy task.


    ��As it should be.�� The City Lord of Tianyan was the first to respond. ��If we allow him to leave, he will certainly go to the Devil World and the Dark World and join hands with them. Given his ability, it will be yet another catastrophe waiting to happen.��


    Although Tianyan City did not really think that Ye Futian would ally with the Devil World, it did not mind so much to charge him with this imaginary crime. This way, Ye Futian would be forced to stand on the opposite side, and Donghuang Imperial Palace would certainly cease to accommodate him and Ziwei Segmentum.


    At that time, the imperial palace would have no choice but to make a move against him.


    ��Take me down?�� Ye Futian looked at those cultivators, then fixed his attention solely on the City Lord of Tianyan. ��It seems that you have forgotten the lesson of yesteryears. Are you forfeiting Tianyan City?��


    The expression on City Lord of Tianyan��s face changed slightly, and it wasn��t a pretty look.


    Ye Futian simply looked at the others with a cold contempt before moving on to Shenyan Buddha Lord. ��I am blessed by Buddhism, and I will not be at odds with the Buddhist sect. But if you insist on having it out with me regarding our personal grievances, I don��t mind going there with you. However, don��t drag the others in this muddy water with you. I have no intention of getting involved in this war, nor am I interested in influencing the outcomes on the battlefield.��


    When he finished speaking, he continued to levitate into the sky and appeared above the firmament. He lowered his head to survey all the cultivators beneath and said, ��Those who want to kill me may come up and try it themselves, but don��t instigate. There is even less need to use the war as an excuse. I have led the people in Ziwei to cultivate in the Original Realm, and we do not have an interest in this war one way or the other. You have continued to try to force me to choose a side. Why is that?��


    Wang Xiao��s body soared into the air and went higher into the sky. There was plenty of fight will in his eyes as a terrifying aura swept out from his body, aiming towards Ye Futian.


    Wang Xiao had cast a divine body of his own and was invincible on the battlefield. Now that he had the chance to meet Ye Futian again on the battlefield, naturally, he would take this chance to engage him again.


    ��You couldn��t do it back then, and it��s the same now. If you don��t use the imperial arms, you are no match for me.�� Ye Futian gave Wang Xiao a sideway glance and spoke coldly with some contempt.


    In today��s situation, he didn��t want to fight, but these people wouldn��t give up. If so, he was curious to see who would really come and fight him.


    ��Really?�� Wang Xiao��s eyes fixed on Ye Futian. ��But this time, it��s different.��


    After being defeated by Ye Futian several times, Wang Xiao had now regarded Ye Futian as his sworn enemy, the greatest enemy of his life. His biggest goal was to slay Ye Futian and use his blood to pave his way to becoming a great emperor himself. Ye Futian, undoubtedly, would be the greatest obstacle on this journey.


    He had refined his body by the power of Tianyan the Great and cast a divine body of his own, unparallelled to all. His body was invincible, and even without the imperial arms, under the great emperor, there were not many in the world who could beat him.


    ��It��s not different.�� Ye Futian said nonchalantly, ��A loser will never be able to reverse his predicament.��


    Wouldn��t he? Wang Xiao thought.


    The divine body of Wang Xiao dazzled, and the light illuminated the sky with blinding radiance, as a terrifying aura enshroud the boundless space. He stared at Ye Futian and said aggressively, ��I will use your blood to pave my way to my kingdom as a great emperor.��


    Ye Futian��s eyes were still indifferent when he heard Wang Xiao��s words. He knew that Wang Xiao had deemed him an opponent that he must defeat in this lifetime no matter what, and the two were enemies forever.


    However, for Ye Futian, perhaps only Donghuang Diyuan had the qualifications to be his true contender and to be considered a sworn enemy.


    Wang Xiao was not worthy.


    ��On the contrary, I have never regarded you as a serious opponent. On the path to becoming a great emperor, you are not even a stumbling block to me. Your presence is entirely superfluous.�� Ye Futian spoke indifferently, and his calm tone was full of contempt. His attitude only made Wang Xiao more obstinate.


    If he didn��t defeat Ye Futian, he was afraid that he would never become a great emperor in this lifetime. Ye Futian had already become Wang Xiao��s biggest mental block.


    When the City Lord of Tianyan heard Ye Futian��s words, his face sunk, and he became incredibly gloomy. Ye Futian��s arrogant words were a deliberate attempt to undermine Wang Xiao psychologically, to cast a shadow of doubt in Wang Xiao��s psyche.


    In this battle, he hoped Wang Xiao could wash away the shame of the past once and for all.


    Over the years, especially with the great emperor��s help in his cultivation, Wang Xiao had completely transformed. Only he knew how much progress Wang Xiao had made and what his true strength was like; he was almost catching up to the City Lord himself.


    Precisely because of this, he had wanted to hand over the position of the City Lord to Wang Xiao and let him rule Tianyan City. He would shoulder the mission of Tianyan City, pursue the path of supremacy, and restore the glory of Tianyan City as in the days of yore.


    How could this world refuse the birth of a great emperor in armoring?


    Bang! Wang Xiao stepped forward as the divine light erupted from him; even the space was shaken when he moved. A terrifying aura of the Great Path swept out and pounced on Ye Futian. The ensuing burning and domineering storm made Ye Futian realize that Wang Xiao was indeed no longer what he was once. Compared to before, he was much stronger than he was in the past.


    What had Wang Xiao experienced?


    ��You had comprehended the physical body of Shenjia the Great Emperor and made a powerful body for yourself. Now, I, too, have cast a divine body. So let��s see how strong is your body of the Great Path,�� Wang Xiao said proudly. Above his divine body, a horrific aura exploded under the unwavering attention of so many cultivators around them.


    Wang Xiao��s physical body did give them an overwhelming sense of strength.


    ��As you wish.�� Ye Futian responded casually. As soon as his voice fell, the divine light of the Great Path circled all around him, and it was blindingly brilliant.


    Buzz! Wang Xiao disappeared. His divine body with its golden armor arrived instantly in front of Ye Futian, as his fist dealt a blow at the same time. A terrifying stream of hot air swallowed up this space and overwhelmed Ye Futian, zooming in for the kill.


    That blow caused a golden streamer of flame to appear in the void.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were frightening. When he saw the incoming attack, he raised his hand threw out a palm print. On this great palm print, there was a Symbol of Wan with horrific Light of Buddha circling around it. When it slammed down, it seemed to cover the entire sky, accompanied by a power of Yin that froze the space.


    The two attacks collided, and an aura of horror burst into this space. A storm of destruction materialized around them, but neither backed away from this confrontation. The strength of their physique was unimaginably powerful.


    When Ye Futian��s great palm print landed on the opponent��s attack, it seemed to have a blast on an indestructible divine arms. Wang Xiao��s body appeared to be more than just pure flesh, but an extension of a divine arms.


    His body had been tempered, just like how a divine arm was made.


    Was this why Wang Xiao dared to proclaim that he had already cast a divine body of his own?


    But, what price did Wang Xiao have to pay for a divine body cast in this way?

 Chapter 2634 - You Don’t Qualify

    The road of cultivation could not be accomplished overnight. Wang Xiao managed to complete this journey in a great leap, which far surpassed the leap what his natural ability could achieve.


    He cast a divine body that was comparable to divine arms. It was not difficult to imagine that Wang Xiao must have paid a great price for it.


    Even so, Ye Futian��s divine body was not to be underestimated. Even if Wang Xiao was as powerful as he was now, Ye Futian had no qualm facing his attacks head-on again and again, as palm strikes and fist blows continued to collide. Those cultivators watching the battlefield saw that these two had collided numerous times in just a short period.


    Every time they collided, there was a violent outburst of sound, and an astonishing storm was forming. At this time, the vast space was filled with a suffocating pressure, as if the space was about to collapse. Especially in the center of the battlefield, that aura of destruction was even more frightening.


    ��The Symbol of Wan!��


    Cultivators from the Buddhist sect watched Ye Futian��s attacks closely and saw that this palm strike was derived from the Symbol of Wan. Every attack contained the monstrous power of Buddhism, which suppressed all evil demons. What was more terrifying was that this Symbol of Wan seemed to have undergone a transformation through Ye Futian, who had incorporated his abilities within. When the palm strikes blasted out, the Sound of Buddha lingered like the Buddhist mantras of truth, which further enhanced its boundless prowess of Buddhism.


    In addition, with every release of the Symbol of Wan, they could feel a terrifying chill that was enough to freeze this space, their spiritual souls, and invade Wang Xiao��s body.


    Look! That space seems to be on the verge of being frozen and solidified. If it weren��t for the golden divine flames contained in Wang Xiao��s divine body, he probably would have been shut down by now, some cultivators marveled as they watched what took place on the battlefield.


    Ye Futian had indeed grown stronger. Though the collisions between the two did not spread to a wide radius on account that these two had controlled their power with immaculate precision, everyone watching could feel the true prowess behind their attacks.


    The one who looked the worst was the City Lord of Tianyan. He knew very well the terrifying power Wang Xiao possessed in close-quarter combat, so much so that even he was reluctant to engage him directly. But still, Wang Xiao was suppressed completely.


    At this time, another violent, loud bang was heard, and Wang Xiao��s body was repelled by this attack. His eye never left Ye Futian, who was ahead.


    Although he was suppressed, his body was now indestructible and invincible. His body and spiritual soul had been transformed so that even if they were invaded by the power of the Great Path contained in Ye Futian��s palm strike, he remained unharmed.


    This was the reason why he dared to fight with Ye Futian without the imperial arms, and the City Lord of Tianyan did not stop him.


    Now, Wang Xiao was an existence that could not be killed.


    Boom! A terrifying storm erupted from Wang Xiao, and a terrifying vision appeared behind him. It was a divine matrix, born from the Divine Wheel of the Great Path, which refined the way between heaven and earth. This divine matrix directly merged into Wang Xiao��s body, and in an instant, his body transformed into a matrix, refining this corner of the world. His entire body was filled with unparalleled power.


    He clenched both of his fists and continued to stare at Ye Futian��s figure just ahead.


    Buzz! A powerful and menacing wave of the Great Path swept out as Wang Xiao stepped into the void. He disappeared right from where he was. He turned into terrific lightning that blasted towards Ye Futian.


    When both of his fists blasted out, a series of horrific shock waves were unleashed that seemed to shatter the bodies and spiritual souls of anyone around it. Its supreme force only accentuated Wang Xiao��s status. He descended to the earth like a deity that could not be denied.


    But at almost the same moment, Ye Futian made his move as well. The surrounding world turned into the domain of Buddhism. Behind him, a humongous image of Buddha appeared, which resonated with all the surrounding Buddhas. At the same time, a great palm strike slammed down as the giant Buddha in the sky above Ye Futian also blasted out a boundless Symbol of Wan.


    The Symbol of Wan, once unleashed, covered the sky and the sun completely. When it slammed forward, there appeared a space that seemed to be hidden within. Wang Xiao felt that he had somehow fallen into that space inside the Symbol of Wan. In this world, all he could see were endless runes in the shape of the symbol, and every one of these runes had now turned into a most aggressive attack.


    Clang! With a loud sound, both of Wang Xiao��s fists dealt heavy attacks, which smashed countless Symbols of Wan. However, that one massive and boundless Symbol of Wan descended directly in front of Wang Xiao. His fists slammed onto it, but he was unable to shatter it. Instead, he was the one being blasted down below.


    Everyone looked up into the sky, and their hearts trembled. Wang Xiao seemed to be mired in this, as he was suppressed and slammed down.


    ��Back off.�� All these cultivators couldn��t move fast enough as they vacated the space below the battlefield one after another.


    Boom�� A great sound came out that was enough to shake the sky. The Symbol of Wan blasted on the ground, and the ground opened up with infinite cracks. These cracks continued to spread outward into the distance. When this terrifying attack dissipated, a gigantic Symbol of Wan was etched on the ground.


    From inside, a figure walked out, and it was Wang Xiao. He continued to levitate into the air until he came to the place opposite Ye Futian. His eyes were icy, and his breath was shallow, but he was not seriously injured.


    With such violent attacks upon his body, he emerged without any damage.


    What kind of body is this? Ye Futian couldn��t help but wonder. Indeed, Wang Xiao was different. He must have experienced something truly extraordinary, or else this state would not be possible.


    Even Donghuang Diyuan, if she were to be hit by the attack of the Symbol of Wan, could not possibly bear it quite as well as Wang Xiao.


    ��The divine body I cast is indestructible and invincible,�� Wang Xiao said as he fixed his eyes on Ye Futian. His tone was cold as his eyes emitted golden flames. He possessed such an immortal divine body and was bound to walk over Ye Futian��s dead body sooner or later.


    Between heaven and earth, the Buddhas resonated, and the Buddhist mantra of the Great Path resounded through the void. Ye Futian stared back at Wang Xiao and unleashed yet another palm strike. Suddenly, all the Symbols of Wan slammed down to the space below again.


    Bang! An overbearing Buddhist seal smashed down without any hesitation, and once again, blasted Wang Xiao to the ground. The Buddhist seal created yet another giant crater on the ground.


    When all the cultivators saw how the battle had evolved, they felt quite disturbed as well. Ye Futian��s attack was too aggressive and domineering. Wang Xiao may be a natural-born talent who had transformed with the divine body, but he was crushed by Ye Futian all the same. He was not his equal at all.


    However, this divine body was terrifying enough in itself. Even those extremely tyrannical attacks from Ye Futian could not demolish him; it was indeed a divine body of immortality.


    ��Wang Xiao!�� The City Lord of Tianyan had a terrible look on his face as he witnessed what had transpired. Had Ye Futian grown this powerful already? His attack was overbearing to the point of crushing Wang Xiao��s attacks.


    At this point, Ye Futian frowned as well. He stared at Wang Xiao below and wondered, Could he really not kill him?


    What exactly did Wang Xiao experience?


    At this time, heaven and earth changed drastically, as a terrifying domain of the Great Path appeared. The City Lord of Tianyan appeared somewhere to imprison this area inside the Great Path domain. It seemed that he did not want Ye Futian to leave.


    He was not the only one. In fact, many cultivators were standing in all directions, and these were giants from everywhere. Many of them harbored a great hostility towards him and wanted to detain him more than anything.


    ��Wang Xiao, take the imperial arms and end him now,�� said the City Lord of Tianyan. He knew that Wang Xiao had a mental block where Ye Futian was concerned, so he hoped that Wang Xiao would kill Ye Futian himself.


    His original intention was for Wang Xiao to kill Ye Futian and lay all his demons to rest. This way, hopefully, Wang Xiao��s mental barrier could be removed, and he could then step over Ye Futian��s dead body as he marched on the path to become a Great Emperor.


    But he discovered that even after Wang Xiao��s transformation, he was still no match to Ye Futian.


    Wang Xiao regarded Ye Futian as his mortal enemy, but in Ye Futian��s eyes, Wang Xiao didn��t even exist. The repeated blows would perhaps become a nightmare from which Wang Xiao could never wake.


    Now, he just wanted Wang Xiao to use the imperial arms and kill Ye Futian right here in order to nip any potential future troubles.


    ��Take the imperial arms and end Ye Futian?�� Wang Xiao looked at the figure in the sky above. This was not what he wanted.


    However, with his strength, it seemed that the cultivator in front of him would be a forever hurdle that he could never step over. Even after being baptized by a great emperor, the result was still the same. How could it be?


    He made every effort and paid a huge price, but the outcome remained the same, and nothing had really changed.


    He just couldn��t defeat Ye Futian!


    So, he was destined not to be able to defeat Ye Futian with his power except to rely on the imperial arms?


    Wang Xiao just couldn��t let that slide. If he couldn��t get rid of Ye Futian, how could he get rid of the barrier inside his mind, and how would he even begin to step onto the road of becoming a great emperor?


    If he couldn��t be truly invincible in the world and have the monopoly of the title The Unraveled, what would qualify him to become a great emperor?


    Ye Futian looked at Wang Xiao below. He knew that it was not likely for him to kill Wang Xiao. The surrounding area was lined with cultivators, and Ye Futian couldn��t be more clear on what they were thinking. He surveyed the area below and said indifferently, ��Even if you had achieved this physical body by a special method, your essence has not changed. You will not surpass me in this lifetime. Every day that I lived and breathed is a day that you will be underneath me. As long as I am around, you��ll never come out on top. The so-called Unraveled is but a joke. You are not qualified to be on your way to become the Great Emperor.��


    ��Kill him!�� the City Lord of Tianyan said loudly when they saw that Ye Futian was still waging psychological warfare on Wang Xiao��s fragile state of mind. He just wanted Wang Xiao to use the imperial arms and kill Ye Futian once and for all.


    At this moment, a terrifying aura came from the distance, causing everyone to look yonder. They frowned slightly.


    It seemed that someone from the other side had arrived!

 Chapter 2635 - What’s the Choice?

    Above the firmament, dark clouds that came from a distance away filled the sky. Although everyone could feel the terrifying aura in the distance, it was still quite far away. It was only because of the great cultivation that this aura could be perceived.


    ��Invade,�� said a voice that came from afar, and the cultivators frowned when they heard it. These people had an impeccable sense of timing.


    ��Prepare for war.��


    Many cultivators moved forward, heading to the front of the battlefield. At the same time, the cultivators in the Divine Prefecture began to arrange a supreme grand matrix. Instantly, the light from the matrix shot into the sky with a terrifying aura.


    ��Shenyan Buddha Lord.�� A peak cultivator from the Divine Prefecture looked at the Divine Eyes and saw that Shenyan Buddha Lord had opened his third eye to scrutinize the other side. He then proceeded to comment, ��They do not seem to be here to start a war; the great army did not follow them.��


    ��Mmm,�� The man nodded, and cultivators from all sides dispersed, spreading in the void, taking up different positions. The atmosphere of the Great Path shrouded even the areas that were quite remote.


    The cultivators in the distance did not get any closer as terrifying dark clouds continued to gather this way. However, above the firmament, the divine light bloomed with an extreme brilliance that shrouded the boundless void. It blocked the invading dark clouds on one side, which formed a divide above the firmament.


    Although the cultivators on the side of the Divine Prefecture were scattered, Ye Futian was still among them. The domain of the Great Path from the City Lord of Tianyan had covered the area where he and Wang Xiao were in. However, their attention, at this moment, was on the area in the distance.


    Did the Devil World choose this point in time to go to war?


    ��Devil World, come forward and receive Palace Lord Ye.�� A voice came from a distance away that resounded throughout the camp that represented the Divine Prefecture. Everyone in the army from the Divine Prefecture could hear him loud and clear.


    ��You guys are not very nice. So many top figures are ganging up on one person.�� The man who spoke was the Dark Saint Hua Yunting of the Dark Court. His voice was not overly loud, but it was strong and powerful.


    ��Ye Futian, on this trip, have you now truly witnessed the hypocrisy of the Divine Prefecture, the World of Buddhism, and the Human Realm?�� Mo Qingge, the Evil Sage of the Empty Divine Realm, also piped up. Both he and Hua Yunting had met Ye Futian before, at the Alchemy Contest in Tianyan City.


    ��These three realms of the Divine Prefecture claimed to be righteous, which is a ridiculous notion.�� Words of jeer were heard from the other side successively, as the atmosphere of terror continued to permeate, slowly drifted to this side.


    It seemed that they were here to take Ye Futian away.


    Among those from the Dark Court, there was someone who was covered up in a cloak; this, no doubt, was Ye Qingyao. However, she did not speak but kept her cloak on, looking extremely mysterious.


    But the eyes under the cloak seemed to drift toward Ye Futian.


    ��Ye Futian joined the side of the Devil World which invaded the Divine Land. I fear that in the future, he will lead cultivators from the Original Realm to kill on the lands of the Divine Prefecture. Let��s take this opportunity to eradicate him and put an end to him right here,�� the City Lord of Tianyan proclaimed loudly. The actions of the three major realms of the Devil World seemed to further confirm that Ye Futian was already in alliance with them.


    Under the circumstance, how could the City Lord of Tianyan forfeit this excellent opportunity to get rid of Ye Futian and kill him here?


    ��Wang Xiao, do it. Do it for the Divine Prefecture and get rid of Ye Futian; this is the right thing to do,�� he exhorted. In this case, killing Ye Futian was good for the Divine Prefecture. As long as Ye Futain was dead, no one could dispute the charge of him colluding with the Devil World.


    ��Kill me?�� Ye Futian looked quite sarcastic when he heard these shameless words coming from the City Lord of Tianyan. He replied with much contempt, ��Even if we are in the domain of the Great Path, do you think that he will be able to kill me with the imperial arms and that his power is enough? All of you that are on the outside, who among you want to join in? Are you all planning on being buried with these fools?��


    Considering his cultivation level today, if Wang Xiao wanted to kill him, he definitely needed to use the imperial arms, and not just with the ordinary power that he could muster. Wang Xiao must be able to explode with an incredibly terrifying force in order to kill Ye Futian. However, if this level of power were to erupt, Ye Futian was sure he would not be the only one who dies.


    ��Many of you who are present today have had grievances with me in the past. Now, I��m giving you a chance, but no one wants to take it. Instead, you want to kill me with the imperial arms. In addition, you have added ridiculous and imaginary charges on my account as a way to seek personal vengeance. This is just ludicrous.�� Ye Futian continued sarcastically, ��It seems that Tianyan City has been nothing better to do lately.��


    Hearing Ye Futian��s words, the City Lord of Tianyan wanted to kill him more than ever. Murderous intent grew evermore fierce in his heart. At the same time, Wang Xiao raised his head to stare at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s continued existence was indeed a great threat to Tianyan City.


    Buzz! A terrifying aura effused as a monstrous shockwave swept out. Where Wang Xiao was standing, imperial glory was shining and surrounding him. The Sky Tremoring appeared in his hand, aggressive to the extreme. Just from him holding it in his hand, one could feel its unparalleled power.


    Undulations upon undulations of shockwaves swept in Ye Futian��s direction. Ye Futian was showered in an extremely dazzling golden brilliance. His entire body dazzled as if he was clad in armor. Runes of the Great Path circled him as a divine shadow appeared, with him in the center.


    These terrifying shockwaves blasted on Ye Futian, but he stood there steadily. Even if Wang Xiao��s cultivation had transformed, and the power that was erupting with the imperial arms made him more powerful than ever. Still, it was only the power from the imperial arms. How could he ever dream of possibly affecting Ye Futian?


    Clearly, Wang Xiao knew how terrifying was Ye Futian��s physical body. He had already cast a divine body of his own, but he still couldn��t gain the slightest advantage in direct confrontation with Ye Futian. HIs opponent also possessed a divine body that was akin to divine arms, overwhelming and forceful.


    A terrifying aura came out of Wang Xiao��s hands. With the Sky Tremoring in hand, he focused his attention solely on Ye Futian. With a step of his feet, he went for Ye Futian with extremely fast speed. He wanted to get close enough for the attack so he could attack Ye Futian without with more accuracy, thus limiting the damage to the outside world as much as possible.


    At the same time when Wang Xiao made his move, the top cultivators from the Devil World also moved as well. The Reaper, who was shrouded in the black cloak, was the fastest of them all as she stepped directly into this space. The moment she descended, the whole world turned into a domain of death. All living things was drying up and withered quickly, replaced instead by the aura of death.


    In the area below the Divine Prefecture, the great army was deploying a grand matrix of defensive. They did not participate in the conflict but focused on passive defense. They were not qualified to participate in war at this level.


    ��Stop her.�� Several top cultivators from the Divine Prefecture moved forward. But besides Ye Qingyao, several very tyrannical existences materialized. Among them, Hua Yunting the Dark Saint was also there. His eyes scanned the area in front of him, and a black storm of destruction formed between heaven and earth.


    The Dark Saint, like the Demon Sage of the Devil World, was someone who stood at the very top.


    In the chaotic war hundreds of years ago, all the major worlds had lost many cultivators, and a large number of top figures had fallen and were forgotten in the long river of history. The major worlds also suffered considerable losses even as they began to cultivate another generation of cultivators.


    However, the likes of the Demon Sage and the Dark Saint were powerful existences that had lived for many years. They had survived the great wars in the past because they were standing at the peak of the imperial-level forces. Their strength was clearly beyond ordinary imagination.


    The rest of the cultivators also moved forward and became entangled in this confrontation. As for the three major groups from the Devil World, they obviously knew that Ye Futian did not form any alliance with them.


    However, since the Divine Prefecture threatened Ye Futian and wanted to force him to choose a side, they didn��t mind taking advantage of the situation that could cause a total and complete break between Ye Futian and the Divine Prefecture. This way, Ziwei Segmentum would have to get involved in the war.


    Naturally, they were just fine with that outcome.


    On the battlefield where Ye Futian was, Wang Xiao held the Sky Tremoring and headed towards Ye Futian. The Sky Tremoring slammed down and blasted right on Ye Futian��s body. However, Ye Futian disappeared right away, just as that terrifying shockwave swept forward. Having missed its intended target, that force slammed into the Great Path Domain, causing a muffled groan from the City Lord of Tianyan.


    ��What you were thinking was no more than idiotic dreams.�� Behind Wang Xiao, a voice was heard, and it was Ye Futian.


    With Buddha��s Celerity at his disposal, he didn��t really want to confront Wang Xiao head-on. But was it possible for Wang Xiao to do the same?


    To kill him, there was only one way. In this area that was covered in the domain, different levels of attacks were not possible, and the attack must be powerful enough to destroy everything. To be able to kill him, ordinary attacks were far from sufficient.


    Then, the attack must be strong enough to wipe out everything around the target. At least, the City Lord of Tianyan would be buried with him.


    Boom! An aura of mighty destruction swept out, and a terrifying vision between heaven and earth appeared behind Wang Xiao. An otherworldly phantom appeared; it was like Tianyan the Great himself had descended into the world. He held the Sky Tremoring in one hand. He appeared more dominant and overbearing than ever. He regarded Ye Futian with tremendous contempt. It was as if the great emperor had been resurrected.


    Terrifying shockwaves swept out, pressing towards Ye Futian. The Sky Tremoring gathered as traces of terrifying and destructive divine light enveloped Ye Futian��s body, locking onto him.


    Ye Futian stood on the edge of the Great Path domain, surrounded by divine light. He simply allowed those terrifying shockwaves to impact his divine body. He stood there absolutely still. His eyes stared at Wang Xiao, not showing the slightest hint of fear.


    He was curious to see if Wang Xiao dared to deal a fatal blow on him?


    ��Wang Xiao, kill him!��


    The City Lord of Tianyan was heard loud and clear, but Ye Futian��s figure changed positions constantly. He reappeared in the same position as the City Lord of Tianyan, in the sky above, behind Wang Xiao.


    Would Wang Xiao kill him?


    ��Do it! I will use the imperial arms for protection,�� the City Lord of Tianyan urged loudly. Even under this kind of condition, he was still inciting Wang Xiao to make a fatal strike.


    Boom! Destructive lightning exploded as the Sky Tremoring moved forward. A mighty apocalyptic power of destruction seemed to swoop in Ye Futian��s direction!

 Chapter 2636 - As You Wish

    Wang Xiao actually attacked!


    Many eyes were focused on this site and saw that god-like phantom behind Wang Xiao brought down the Sky Tremoring as it burst forward. The strike covered the entire area, and there was nowhere to avoid it. However, as long as Ye Futian was given the slightest chance, he could escape.


    At this moment, many people stopped fighting, and their eyes were fixed on the exchanges that took place on the battlefield where Wang Xiao and Ye Futian were.


    If Wang Xiao took the divine arms and attacked regardless of the consequences, then not only would he kill Ye Futian, but he would destroy everything in this area.


    The Sky Tremoring fell, and the shockwaves of destruction swept forth. There were no corners where these waves did not reach. The storm of destruction drowned out everything, including Ye Futian. At the same time, its aftershocks moved towards that terrifying Great Path domain.


    However, at the moment when the attack of the Sky Tremoring landed, the City Lord of Tianyan City moved away, attempting to sidestep the attack with his powerful skills. However, he seemed to be a tad bit slower. The moment he withdrew the domain and tried to leave, the terrifying shockwaves from the Sky Tremoring arrived, sweeping over everything.


    But at this moment, in the direction where Ye Futian was, everyone saw many doors of space overlapping on top of each other, shattered by the mad aftershocks. But even before all the doors of space were pulverized, the Great Path domain had already disappeared.


    Boom�� The destructive attacks of the Sky Tremoring fell, and in the boundless space ahead, the destructive power of the shock had destroyed many cultivators. Many cultivators from the Divine Prefecture below were killed on the spot and perished.


    This was because Wang Xiao had exercised tremendous restraint and did not exert all of his power. Otherwise, everyone would have died.


    On the battlefield, everyone released their most powerful force to resist the storm. As the storm of destruction swept past them, there were a lot fewer people remaining on the battlefield, as many were killed by their own people.


    But where was Ye Futian?


    Did he perish?


    The top figures from the Divine Prefecture were shrouded in the divine light of the Great Path. The picture of what they saw just now was still fresh in their minds. With those countless and overlapping spatial gates, it was possible that Ye Futian escaped.


    Finally, the storm subsided as everything returned to normal.


    Cough�� A sound attracted everyone��s attention. As they looked in the direction where the City Lord of Tianyan was located. The City Lord of Tianyan coughed and spat out some blood. Obviously, he had been wounded by the blow. He was the closest to the battlefield as he was arranging the Great Path domain. Although he didn��t refute until the last possible moment, he was still a little too late. The shockwaves of destruction had managed to wound him, after all.


    The breaths from the other cultivators were also kind of shallow. Wang Xiao himself was now extremely powerful by himself. Coupled with the power erupted from the imperial arms, its combined prowess was unimaginable.


    ��He��s dead.�� At this moment, a voice spoke, and the person who was speaking was Shenyan Buddha Lord. His eyes were fixed in a certain direction, somewhere in the void. His divine eyes detected something: a figure with white hair.


    This figure appeared directly in the sky above Wang Xiao in a flash. Who else could it be other than Ye Futian? His gaze swept towards Wang Xiao and the City Lord of Tianyan. He said, ��I have already reminded you that if you want to kill me, you have to use everything you have. But don��t exert all your power, trying to preserve yourselves at this critical moment. How can you expect to achieve anything?��


    His words were dripping with sarcasm. Naturally, he meant to mock Wang Xiao and the City Lord of Tianyan.


    Especially the City Lord of Tianyan. Just now, he had sworn up and down to kill Ye Futian no matter what and urged Wang Xiao to take immediate action, no matter the cost. He even said that Wang Xiao should do it regardless of anyone else. But in the end, at the last minute, he did not dare to fight all out and withdrew the Great Path domain himself.


    The City Lord of Tianyan looked sullen. Just now, it was indeed the best opportunity to kill Ye Futian, but this rare opportunity was squandered.


    However, as long as the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were willing to join in, it was still possible!


    ��You colluded with the Devil World to invade the Divine Prefecture. Even if you escaped, do you really think you can survive?�� the City Lord of Tianyan spoke with menace. His tone was cold to the core.


    Finally, Ye Futian grew tired of having to explain himself constantly. If they wanted to find him guilty, there was literally no lack of crimes to be added to his account. The others wanted to make the collision with the Devil World a reality, so it didn��t matter whether he had such intention or not.


    ��Fine,�� Ye Futian spat, which stunned the City Lord of Tianyan.


    Did he just say ��fine��?


    ��Today, I was just passing through and wanted to check out the situation on the battlefield; that is all. Unfortunately, I��m being charged with some imaginary crimes, detained, and attacked for no reason.�� Ye Futian looked at the City Lord of Tianyan and continued, ��Since you keep repeating the same thing, then let it be as you wish.��


    Having said that, he raised his head to look at all the cultivators in the vast space and continued, ��You must have seen everything that took place just now. The City Lord of Tianyan is relentless in trying to get me killed, as he continued to incite the others by smearing my name. In that case, I hope none of you will be foolish enough to interfere this grudge between me and Tianyan City.��


    He then looked towards the cultivators from the Devil World and the other two realms and said, ��The Lord of Tianyan City insists that I have colluded with you. In that case, I will no longer hold back. I am going to slay Wang Xiao here and now. What say you lend me a helping hand?��


    Since the City Lord of Tianyan had insisted that he colluded with the Devil World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Dark World, Ye Futian had no choice but to oblige the City Lord of Tianyan and show him what such an alliance would actually look like.


    More importantly, this ��collusion�� was formed for the express purpose of killing Wang Xiao.


    ��Very well,�� Ye Qingyao, who wore the dark cloak, said on behalf of the Dark World first.


    ��I am willing to help Palace Lord Ye,�� Hua Yunting the Dark Saint said.


    ��No problem.��


    The cultivators from all three sides had agreed to Ye Futian��s proposal to join forces and kill Wang Xiao.


    Wang Xiao, aided by the imperial arms, had killed many of them. His power was greatly feared. Only existences that were almost at the level of deity were able to deter him even somewhat.


    For a long time, they had been thinking of ways to get rid of Wang Xiao.


    Now, Ye Futian proposed for them to join hands in getting rid of Wang Xiao.


    How could they refuse such an excellent opportunity?


    Their original intention in coming here was to incite a total breakup between Ye Futian and the Divine Prefecture. Now that Ye Futian took the initiative, it was far better than they had anticipated.


    If Ye Futian were to lead the principalities in the Original Realm to attack the Divine Prefecture, wouldn��t it be a very interesting outcome?


    Upon hearing Ye Futian, the City Lord of Tianyan became very gloomy.


    Ye Futian, in collusion with the cultivators from the Devil World, wanted to kill Wang Xiao, who was the heir of Tianyan City.


    At this moment, Ye Futian looked down at the City Lord of Tianyan, whose expression was somber, and said, ��Now all is just as you wished. Are you satisfied now?��


    Satisfied?


    The City Lord of Tianyan was unhappy, to say the least. They wanted to join forces to kill Wang Xiao?


    ��You want to kill him, but can you kill him?!�� the City Lord of Tianyan sneered coldly. Ye Futian wanted to join forces with the Devil World to kill Wang Xiao. Could they do it?


    Even without the imperial arms, Wang Xiao��s body was an immortal body. Ye Futian��s violent attacks did not cause much damage to Wang Xiao. How would he kill him now?


    Ye Futian looked at the City Lord Tianyan. Still so arrogant. He couldn��t kill Wang Xiao?


    Wang Xiao was not invincible on the battlefield. Otherwise, the war would have been over long ago. If someone could control Wang Xiao, who was holding the imperial arms, could he really not be killed?

 Chapter 2637 - Unparalleled Method

    Chapter 2637: Unparalleled Method


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Above the firmament, a terrible storm of death appeared. The crowd saw a figure floating in midair; it was The Reaper from the Dark Court.


    Her body floated above as her cloak moved with the wind. The whole world turned into the color of darkness as the clouds of death hovered over the boundless space. The area covered by the clouds was vast, and the entire battlefield seemed to be entirely shrouded.


    Above the firmament, the face of death seemed to have appeared, and the sight was unspeakably terrifying. For a time, the whole world turned into darkness, and all the auras that flowed within were eroded by the will of death. Even the air they breathed seemed to be polluted by the breath of death.


    Many of them couldn��t help but stare at the cloaked figure in the void. She seemed to represent the god of death, who was the spokesperson of Death in this world.


    Everything was about to wither and decay. Even the defensive matrix below was being eroded by the force of death and gradually became blackened.


    Wang Xiao raised his head to look yonder. The Sky Tremoring in his hand was filled with terrifying imperial might. In any of the previous battles, if the Reaper were to come forward, his imperial arms would be the mightiest deterrent.


    ��Spread out,�� said Wang Xiao. Immediately, many cultivators moved away from Ye Qingyao. Everyone moved to different positions, covering an extensive area, and they were not alone. Even the cultivators from the opposing alliance were also dispersed, not standing with Ye Qingyao.


    Instead, they had each chosen principality from the Divine Prefecture to stick to. This way, the imperial arms could not attack all of them at will.


    However, next to Ye Qingyao, there were two other great cultivators, both from the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm, who were responsible for ensuring Ye Qingyao��s safety.


    The auras from both of them were super terrifying, and they were no youngsters. Even with a brief glance, one could tell they were existences from an older generation, who had lived for many years. The cultivator from Empty Divine Realm suddenly moved his thought, and wisps of fluctuation rippled through the space. In the surrounding area, many spatial doors now manifested. At the same time, somewhere very far away, corresponding spatial doors also appeared. This utilization of space was extremely awesome.


    The entire space domain was filled with a suffocating coercion of the Great Path. Everyone present was a top cultivator. Before, they had not had such a large-scale confrontation. They didn��t expect the appearance of Ye Futian would trigger such a major collision resulting in a total showdown.


    Buzz! Ye Futian disappeared from where he was, completely without a trace. Shenyan Buddha Lord looked in the sky above with terrifying eyes. Ye Futian changed his position constantly, but under the Divine Eyes, there seemed nowhere for Ye Futian to hide, for he was always there in Shenyan��s sight.


    However, Shenyan Buddha Lord could see that Ye Futian was constantly changing up his positions. Even if the Divine Eyes could lock onto his whereabouts, it was impossible to keep up with him physically. Each of the Six Buddhist Superpowers had its own advantage, and the Divine Eyes could not keep up with Buddha��s Celerity.


    Of all the superpowers, the Buddha��s Celerity was the most powerful.


    ��He is constantly moving,�� said Shenyan Buddha Lord. The City Lord of Tianyan stood behind Wang Xiao, and he had been watching Ye Futian as well, as a powerful aura effused from him. Clearly, he knew that today��s Ye Futian could not be underestimated; his combat effectiveness was already at the top level and must be treated with the greatest caution.


    In the other position, another terrifying aura manifested. Standing in the sky above Wang Xiao, a demonic cultivator with a horrific aura stood there. He was middle-aged in appearance, and his eyes were pitch-black. He stood there like an unparalleled demon king.


    Seeing his appearance, the City Lord of Tianyan didn��t look pleased.


    This man was a demonic figure who had lived for thousands of years. Long before today, he had already been a powerful figure in the Devil World whose hands were stained with blood.


    He was the head of the three great Demon Sages of the Devil World, the highest commander under the Devil Emperor, who ruled over the great army of the Devil World. He was a peer of the Devil Emperor, who was eventually recruited by the Devil Emperor himself.


    This premier Demon Sage had a very simple name, Yan Guiyi.


    In Yan Guiyi��s hand, there was a blood-red halberd. This divine halberd was quite a bit longer than the ordinary halberds. A bloody divine light lingered as a bloody divine aurora puffed from it. It was an extremely terrifying sight. It was as if a bloody divine tribulation was upon them.


    These divine arms were semi-imperial, which was also made by a great emperor with extremely frightening power. The only difference was that it did not contain the will of the great emperor, so it was not considered a true imperial arm. It was a divine arm left behind on the ancient battlefield in the Devil World.


    Previously on the battlefield, Yan Guiyi used these imperial arms to confront Wang Xiao head-on, and he proved that he could go toe-to-toe with Wang Xiao.


    A horrific aura permeated from it, even the City Lord of Tianyan was taken aback by this force, and he knew that even he was no match to Yan Guiyi. He stood there like a god from heaven who could not be denied.


    Wang Xiao looked solemn as well. This time, the pressure he was facing was greater than ever. These people were actually cooperating with Ye Futian in a joint effort to hunt him down.


    At this time, a figure appeared in the sky in front of Wang Xiao; Ye Futian had seen this man before. It was Fang Ru from the Divine Prefecture, a near-deity existence. However, even him, when facing the premier Demon Sage of the Devil World with imperial arms in hand, his expression was quite grave.


    He had experienced first-hand the terrifying combat power of this premier Demon Sage, Yan Guiyi. With the imperial arms in hand, even he was hard-pressed to contend with him head-on.


    ��I��ll hold him up so you can deal with The Reaper.�� Fang Ru released his Great Path domain and shrouded Yan Guiyi within. Both were near-deity existences, and both stood at the very top on this battlefield.


    ��Very well,�� Wang Xiao nodded. A supremely terrifying aura permeated from the imperial arms in his hand. Undulations upon undulations of shockwaves went toward Ye Qingyao, only to see rounds and rounds of spatial light screens appearing in front of Ye Qingyao that turned into a force of defense.


    Bang! Wang Xiao stepped into the void and continued forward. Then, his Sky Tremoring blasted forward as if the god in heaven had descended into the world and brought down the imperial arms to attack. An apocalyptic force swept out as billions of shockwaves rolled forward, flattening all existence.


    Before, when Wang Xiao took the imperial arms to slaughter, one strike from it was enough to affect an entire continent; its power was immeasurable.


    But here was the main battlefield of the Divine Prefecture, and Wang Xiao did not dare to attack so boldly, so he restrained himself a bit. However, those billions of shockwaves were terrifying to the extreme and continue to head higher into the sky. Everything before him was about to be wiped out and turned into dust.


    Others were not within the range of these shockwaves, as they were at the rear of the attack. Even so, they could still feel that horrific power.


    In front of Ye Qingyao, those spatial light screens were pulverized and destroyed. But, almost at the same time, Ye Qingyao and the others stepped into a spatial door and vanished. Just as they disappeared, the spatial door they had just entered was shattered. Everything was gone as the Great Path collapsed, and all the paths no longer existed.


    There was a reason why Wang Xiao was praised by the City Lord of Tianyan as The Unraveled under the great emperors, and it was by virtue of his excellent command over genuine imperial arms.


    But at this moment, Wang Xiao suddenly detected a dangerous aura. He turned around and raised his hand to blast out the Sky Tremoring. However, a figure was gone in a flash, just as the Sky Tremoring swung out.


    Bang! With a loud bang, the domain immediately around the City Lord of Tianyan was destroyed, and he was knocked into flying out by the Sky Tremoring. He left out a muffled groan.


    This blow did not hit Ye Futian as intended but landed on the City Lord of Tianyan instead.


    ��Be careful, City Lord!�� A voice came out just as the City Lord of Tianyan raised his hand to the sky and blasted into the sky above with unparalleled power and dominance. As the helmsman of the Ancient God Clan, the City Lord of Tianyan possessed incredible power.


    Bang! A loud noise came out, and the City Lord of Tianyan��s palm print shattered and collapsed. A frightening blow blasted down and slammed his body downward, but the murderous intent had not yet subsided. However, at this time, someone else appeared in front of the City Lord of Tianyan. The gigantic palm print blasted into the sky, and it was a giant palm print of Buddhism.


    However, when the giant palm print blasted into an empty space, that figure had already vanished. And Wang Xiao, once again, sensed the danger descending. The Sky Tremoring blasted forward, and this time, Wang Xiao did not dare to use so much force.


    Buzz! The Sky Tremoring failed again without hitting anyone.


    ��Arrange the boundary!�� the City Lord of Tianyan shouted, and the expression on his face was extremely terrible. Ye Futian was using his superpower to avoid a total confrontation. He was invisible and untraceable. And as he had no chance to escape, Ye Futian was taking any opportunity to attack, leaving them in a mess of confusion and in a passive state.


    ��Shenyan, this is a personal matter between me and them. If you intervene, then you, too, will be my enemy.�� Ye Futian spoke loud and clear. ��You involved yourself in private vendetta in this battle. You do not represent the Buddhist sect, you only represent yourself.��


    Ye Futian, naturally, would not want to make enemies with the Buddhist sect. After all, Buddhism had done him the favor of passing down valuable methods to him.


    ��Insolent creature.�� Shenyan Buddha Lord raised his head and looked into the void. His divine eyes still tried to lock onto Ye Futian��s position, but Ye Futian didn��t stay in one position for long. He was constantly moving and appearing in different locations precisely to avoid his detection.


    Would this youngster, who once cultivated Buddhism, become a scourge to them?


    Once upon a time, it was he who killed Saint Zhenchan.


    ��The same goes for the rest of you. Whoever blocks my way to kill anyone from Tianyan City and involves themselves in personal matters between me and Tianyan City will become my enemy,�� Ye Futian continued. The City Lord and Tianyan and Wang Xiao had repeatedly tried to kill him.. Now, he must settle with Tianyan City once and for all.

 Chapter 2638 - Together

    ��Insolent creature!��


    Many cultivators looked at Ye Futian and thought his statement was too bold and arrogant. Whoever helped the people of Tianyan City would be acting against him��


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian��s current combat effectiveness had indeed reached peak level, which was incredibly frightening. Aided by Buddha��s Celerity, he was practically in a position of invincibility.


    Wang Xiao, with imperial arms, had absolute unparalleled combat power. But while the imperial arms may be useful against other people on this battlefield, Ye Futian was another story altogether. Wang Xiao dared not act recklessly because his attacks easily affected the others, while Ye Futian evaded them with ease.


    Boom! A tremendously violent aura permeated Wang Xiao��s body as the Great Path protected him. Undulations of terrifying fluctuations of the Great Path spread out from him, washing over everything. At the same time, his body levitated into the air, heading higher into the sky, wanting to escape from the battlefield, which restricted him.


    He couldn��t stay here any longer. Here, he could not fully exert the superiority of the imperial arms or its advantage.


    Wang Xiao was extremely fast, moving in the direction of the great army from the Devil World. Obviously, he wanted to re-start the battle on the continent where the coalition forces from the Devil World were stationed. This way, if he were to explode with the full force of the imperial arms, it would only be the cultivators of the Devil World who were destroyed.


    Before this, neither side had completely let loose in the fighting, or else more people would have died on both sides. But now, with the Reaper upon them, cultivators from all three realms of the Devil World were fighting and killing on the battlefield of the Divine Prefecture with no care. Wang Xiao wanted to make the others pay for their reckless slaughter.


    Of course, there was another important reason. In fact, the City Lord of Tianyan had instructed Wang Xiao specifically not to be too ruthless on the battlefield in order to avoid a total impasse. After all, they were not yet an imperial-level principality, nor were they directly under the rule of Donghuang the Great. If they killed with too much abandon, they would face future backlash.


    Furthermore, he knew the reality at the upper level of the world. The several Great Emperors who were now in control might be reluctant to allow the existence of two great emperors who were completely on the united front, which would disrupt the balance of the world.


    In the future, if Wang Xiao became a Great Emperor himself, he would most definitely break away from the Divine Prefecture and establish himself somewhere else instead of being ruled under Donghuang the Great. Emperor Ye Qing��s death was a lesson from the past and a warning.


    Meanwhile, Ye Futian was still somewhere in the void, unpredictable and untraceable. It seemed as if his existence could not be detected. Nonetheless, Shenyan Buddha Lord continued to attempt to locate Ye Futian and lock onto his position. He found that Ye Futian did not leave to chase Wang Xiao but remained in this area.


    ��He didn��t leave,�� Shenyan Buddha Lord said to the others. Suddenly, he looked down at the City Lord of Tianyan and said, ��Be careful.��


    Boom�� An astonishing sword-light of destruction fell down and aimed right at the City Lord of Tianyan. But at this moment, there was the Sound of Buddha lingering, resounding through heaven and earth, surrounding the City Lord of Tianyan. A gigantic Buddha appeared, and as the horrible sword light fell, the figure of Buddha collapsed.


    Ye Futian lowered his head to glance at the land under the sky and saw that the City Lord of Tianyan had sustained some injuries. By taking advantage of his speed, it should have been a great opportunity to kill the City Lord of Tianyan, but at the last minute, Tongchan Buddha Lord��s intervention disrupted everything.


    Naturally, Tongchan did not do so out of the kindness of his heart, nor was it compassion that drove him. The reason why he helped the City Lord of Tianyan may only be because Ye Futian and the City Lord of Tianyan were enemies and that the two were on absolute opposing sides.


    Ye Futian disappeared and left.


    ��Much thanks to you, Buddha Lord,�� the City Lord of Tianyan said to Tongchan Buddha Lord. Although he felt that he was strong enough on his own to face Ye Futian��s attack, Tongchan��s help was still a form of kindness to him.


    ��No need for the City Lord to thank me. This child had cultivated the six superpowers of Buddhism, and it was somewhat difficult to deal with. Buddhism has a certain responsibility to resolve the trouble this time around,�� Tongchan Buddha Lord said, surrounded by the Light of Buddha. It seemed as if he was a truly compassionate being and that Ye Futian was a sinner that the Buddhist sect was responsible for, resulting in the collective guilt he expressed on behalf of the Buddhist sect.


    Wang Xiao continued moving forward, but at this moment, he suddenly sensed something dangerous. His brows furrowed tightly, and his face had a terrible look on it. Behind him, a phantom of a heavenly deity appeared as the shocking power of Sky Tremoring expanded outward. Even if he was being ambushed, he was sure he could block the sneak attack.


    The Sky Tremoring was held tightly in his hand, and a terrifying aura effused from the hammer itself.


    At this moment, a figure appeared behind him.


    In the void, a terrifying and massive palm print suddenly struck, directly passing through the shockwaves to get to him. At this point in time, Wang Xiao turned around and smashed the hammer down all in one go. It was as if he had been anticipating this exact scenario.


    The imperial might flattened everything, and everywhere it passed through seemed to be destroyed as they collapsed. The scene was horrific to behold. Numerous shockwaves swept out and erased everything in front of him.


    However, Ye Futian still could not be seen anywhere.


    It seemed that what had attacked Wang Xiao just now was literally something that didn��t exist.


    Suddenly, many phantoms of Ye Futian appeared all around Wang Xiao. Each figure was surrounded by the Light of Buddha as if each one of them had reincarnated as a Buddha. The Sound of Buddha reverberated between heaven and earth with traces of horrific Buddhist seals blasting down toward Wang Xiao in the area below.


    ��Break it for me!�� The Sky Tremoring in Wang Xiao��s hand smashed hard toward the void, and the storm of destruction swept through once again. This time, all the phantoms in every direction were wiped out and destroyed, turning into nothingness.


    Clearly, it was still useless to do so. Wang Xiao, as aided by the imperial arms, was extremely powerful and had far surpassed the level of the Second Tribulation Plane. Even someone at the near-deity existence was still unable to compete head-on with him.


    If it weren��t for Ye Futian��s incomparable method, he couldn��t face Wang Xiao with the imperial arms, let alone hunt him down.


    After having destroyed these many phantoms, Wang Xiao continued forward. Although Ye Futian was incomparable in his movement, he could not get close to Wang Xiao. More importantly, he had to make sure at all times that he was not being hit by Wang Xiao��s imperial arms.


    When Wang Xiao was moving forward, despite Ye Futian��s figure continuously appearing in front of him, Wang Xiao did not stop for a moment. The Sky Tremoring attacked again and again, but it failed to find its target again and again. Each blast dealt frightening destruction. If anyone were to stay in this area, they would be immolated by the momentum.


    Ye Futian couldn��t find a way to get close right away, but Wang Xiao was in the same boat. At this time, he was full of hostility, and all he wanted to do was destroy everything. He decided to start his fatal sweep somewhere.


    Finally, they came to the continent where the great army of the Devil World was stationed. At this moment, Wang Xiao had nothing to fear anymore. He stood above the void, the shadow of the emperor appeared, as billions of shockwaves spread outward, reaching for the distance. That massive and mighty phantom of god in heaven raised the Heaven-shaking Divine Hammer, facing the continent where the cultivators from Devil World had congregated.


    As soon as this Sky Tremoring unleashed, the great army of the Devil World would be wiped out. If so, Tianyan City would have made enemies with all three major realms.


    However, now that all three major realms had joined forces with Ye Futian to take his life, how could he afford to be anything but?


    Since it was destined that he was unable to defeat Ye Futian head-on, then he would slaughter these people to break the stalemate.


    At this moment, a door of space appeared, and a figure appeared in front of Wang Xiao, blocking his way.


    It was Mo Qingge, the Evil Sage from Empty Divine Realm.


    Wang Xiao glanced at him. As the Evil Sage of the Empty Divine Realm, Mo Qingge��s strength was incredible. He was one of the most powerful existences in the Empty Divine Realm.


    But even so, Wang Xiao couldn��t care less. With the Sky Tremoring in his hand, he was not afraid of anyone. Even if it was the Premier Demon Sage Yan Guiyi, he was still up for the fight.


    Buzz! A horrible imperial might permeated the Sky Tremoring in his hand. Mo Qingge saw this, and his palms slammed forward. Immediately, numerous doors of spaces seemed to go on without end as they overlapped each other and continued forward, heading straight towards Wang Xiao.


    The Sky Tremoring in Wang Xiao��s hand moved in front of him and smashed down hard. Terrifying shockwaves rushed into the doors of space. But all anyone could see was that the attack had been distorted as the shockwaves were deflected. Instead, they swept towards other directions along the doors of space without hitting Mo Qingge.


    An incomparably powerful aura spread out from Mo Qingge, shrouding this infinite space. Even Ye Futian, who was in the distance, was also covered within, just like Wang Xiao.


    ��Domain world!�� Ye Futian exclaimed when he beheld the sight. Everything in the world was changing, as if they were no longer in the original space they were in before but came to a totally different space.


    Mo Qingge��s strength was incredible and touched upon that near-deity domain.


    With this level of existence, his offensive power may not be as topnotch as Wang Xiao, who carried the imperial arms with him. However, his use of domains and his comprehension regarding the Path was something with which Wang Xiao could not hope to compare.


    ��If you want to slay someone in the Second Tribulation Plane who was aided by the imperial arms all by yourself, it��s quite impossible,�� said Mo Qingge. ��I will lend you a hand; whether you can kill him or not depends on your strength.��


    Obviously, Ye Futian understood that. He did not think he could kill Wang Xiao, who possessed the imperial arms, by himself. He needed someone to distract Wang Xiao for him so that he had the chance to deal the fatal blow.


    The three major realms of the Devil World were cooperating with him in the launch of this battle, and Wang Xiao was their ultimate target.


    At the moment on the battlefield, the situation couldn��t be more obvious. All the cultivators were occupied, except Wang Xiao and Mo Qingge. Without Ye Futian, Mo Qingge might be in an unfavorable position. No matter what domain he reached, he still did not have the same kind of massive destructive power that Wang Xiao was capable of.


    However, now with the addition of Ye Futian, there were some variables in play.


    Although Ye Futian could not stop Wang Xiao, his Buddha��s Celerity could evade Wang Xiao forever and tangle him up endlessly. Now, with Mo Qingge, the Evil Sage, no one could know what that battle would actually look like.


    ��Very good!�� Ye Futian nodded, not refusing his offer.


    ��Even the two of you, what can you do?!�� Wang Xiao responded with coldness. Would two powerful cultivators enough to kill him. Just because they wanted to?

 Chapter 2639 - Severed Arm

    Chapter 2639: Severed Arm


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A complete imperial arm that possessed the will of the great emperor was already a rarity in this world, but even more rare was a person who was in complete control of it.


    At present, besides Donghuang the Great, Wang Xiao seemed to be the only person in the Divine Prefecture who was in possession of complete imperial arms and could control it.


    This is because the Wang Clan of Tianyan City was the heir of Tianyan the Great, and Tianyan the Great was the Great Emperor in armoring. He had not completely disappeared, which was why this opportunity fell on Wang Xiao. Because of this, the City Lord of Tianyan spared nothing in training up Wang Xiao to push him to the uppermost position because he had high hopes for him.


    Mo Qingge, the Evil Sage of Empty Divine realm, was an expert in powerful space Great Path, who had already attained the realm of near-deity. Only after taking that step was he willing to come here to confront Wang Xiao like this. Anyone else who was not so good at the ability of space Great Path would not dare to do so.


    After all, under the prowess of any frontal attack, among the Devil World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Dark World, only the Premiere Demon Sage, Yan Guiyi alone was able to face Wang Xiao with the imperial arms.


    However, Fang Ru was no schmuck. As an existence of near-deity from the Divine Prefecture, he was able to keep Yan Guiyi occupied.


    At this moment, this vast space seemed distorted, as the entire space was shuttling and moving somewhere, and it was the same around Wang Xiao. He knew that Mo Qingge was taking him away from the battlefield here. The space he was in right now was Mo Qingge��s Great Path domain and not the space they were in originally.


    However, Wang Xiao didn��t mind it. By staying away from this area, he could use the imperial arms to attack without reservation.


    The Sky Tremoring in his hand released waves upon waves of astonishing fluctuations that spread towards the surrounding heaven and earth. It covered all the areas, and nothing was left out from any of the six sides. Previously on the battlefield, he had not dared to attack with his full strength.


    But right now, there were no such concerns.


    ��Let me see if you are fast than the attack of the Sky Tremoring is wider,�� Wang Xiao challenged. Under the attack of the Sky Tremoring, an unknown vast radius was covered within, which penetrated the boundless space. He was curious to see just how those two intended to hide from that.


    The imperial phantom appeared as the divine might overwhelmed this space. Wang Xiao seemed to have integrated with the god in heaven as he raised the Sky Tremoring, unleashing extremely terrifying shockwaves upon shockwaves; they seemed infinite and endless. His body whirled around slightly as the divine hammer was sent out in the rotation.


    The attack this time was not targeted in any one direction but aimed at all directions, forming a spherical shockwave that started rolling towards all positions. A dull thud came out of the space, and even cracks begin to appear and create a terrifying scene. It was as if the space was terribly unstable, collapsing as it was being destroyed and shattered.


    In two different positions, a similar scene repeated itself. Mo Qingge and Ye Futian backed up at the same time, and doors of space appeared behind them. Each door of space was far from the other. And after passing through the doors, again and again, they managed to retreat to somewhere far away.


    But even so, the shockwave of destruction pursued them, and wherever it passed, all life perished. Occasionally, some random cultivators were touched by the shockwaves. They happened to pass through the void, unaware. Their bodies were immediately shattered and vaporized; they didn��t even know how they had met their end.


    In the area below, there was a continent of the Divine Prefecture. When the attack came down, countless cultivators on the continent were wiped out. The whole continent shuddered violently and was broken open by the shock. In a flash, numerous cultivators perished just like that.


    This was because the distance was extremely far away, and the offensive power had weakened a little. Otherwise, the result might have been much worse.


    Ye Futian had already retreated to a remote area. He glanced at the continent below and saw that tragic outcome. There was a disturbance in his heart; the destructive power of the Imperial arms was too terrifying. One attack from Wang Xiao had resulted in numerous casualties.


    Moreover, Mo Qingge the Evil Sage probably had already thought of it a long time ago, but why would he care? The continent under attack was the Divine Prefecture, and those who were killed were cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, killed by Wang Xiao no less. He must have felt it had nothing to do with him.


    Where Wang Xiao was, he stood there without moving. Those horrific fluctuations had already dissipated, but he didn��t know what happened to Mo Qingge and Ye Futian. Was such a massive attack enough to overpower both of them?


    Could they have escaped it?


    ��Huh?�� At this moment, Wang Xiao��s brows were knit tightly together. He felt the onslaught of danger, and he couldn��t help but clench the Sky Tremoring in his hand.


    He couldn��t detect either of them, neither could he lock onto them with his divine consciousness.


    Regardless of his awesome offensive power, his opponents were unpredictable, and they were equally untraceable. This was an incredibly uncomfortable feeling.


    It was impossible for him to keep attacking nonstop with the imperial arms. This kind of large-scale attack was not just exhausting to him, but if he couldn��t actually hit any of them, then continued attacks would just be an exercise in futility. The others could always come back after he wore himself out.


    ��Evil Sage of the Empty Divine Realm and the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Two top figures of the world but acting in a cowardly manner?�� Wang Xiao said coldly.


    ��Put away the imperial arms, and you can pick either one of us at your pleasure,�� a voice replied; it was Mo Qingge.


    Leveraging the imperial arms was the real cheat. How terrifying was the increase of combat effectiveness with the aid of complete imperial arms?


    Without the imperial arms, Wang Xiao, at most, could only be considered as a peak cultivator on the battlefield, but not a peak-level giant. However, with the imperial arms by his side, he lorded above all.


    ��Mo Qingge is here,�� Wang Xiao secretly noted to himself. He spoke first because he wanted to fish them out. Now, he was certain that Mo Qingge was in the surrounding area, hiding somewhere in the space. Ye Futian, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found.


    Buzz! At this moment, Wang Xiao felt that the area he was in had solidified, and everything was on the verge of coming to a complete still. The terrifying divine light of space shrouded his entire body. At the same time, the unparalleled divine glory of space rained down from the firmament as every ray of divine light in the space turned into a sharp blade that could kill everything. It came straight down at him.


    Just ahead of him, Mo Qingge��s figure appeared, and behind him, doors of space appeared once again. Before they had even collided, he was already planning his way out. After all, Wang Xiao had the imperial arms, so he better have a way to retreat, just in case.


    Seeing the endless divine glory descending, the Sky Tremoring in Wang Xiao��s hand blasted into the void, and a storm of destruction suddenly washed over everything. It shattered the sealed space and destroyed everything in front of them. But almost at the same instant, Mo Qingge��s finger pointed forward.


    The finger continued to magnify in Wang Xiao��s eyes. It seemed as if it was a strike from the heavenly gods. Before the attack had even landed, he could feel its incredibly destructive power.


    ��You are asking for it!�� Wang Xiao secretly remarked. Mo Qingge dared to attack close to him, and this attack was not some elusive attack made up of smoke and mirrors but a bona fide attack. If that was the case, Mo Qingge must withstand his counterattack. Even if he had arranged a way out, he was taking a tremendous risk.


    Without any hesitation, the Sky Tremoring blasted forward towards that finger, as Wang Xiao dared not take Mo Qingge��s attack lightly. The hammer fell and turned into a stormy shockwave that flattened everything before him. If Mo Qingge was as bold as this, then let him pay the price.


    ��Kill!�� The Sky Tremoring lashed out with a supreme and overbearing power to attack, intending to kill with one blow.


    The instant his attack fell, he suddenly sensed an extremely dangerous aura behind him. But at this moment, Wang Xiao couldn��t care less. A thought flashed through his mind.


    His immortal divine body was enough to hold off Ye Futian��s attacks, not to mention the increased defense from the imperial arms. The divine glory of the great emperor was protecting him, and it was impossible for Ye Futian to kill him. Wang Xiao needed to get rid of one of them and then deal with the other.


    This blow would be a great opportunity to kill Mo Qingge.


    Just as he thought, when the Sky Tremoring fell, that finger shattered and pulverized. In a head-on collision, Mo Qingge could not be outperformed by Wang Xiao. The terrific shockwaves swept past in a flash, and everything was gone.


    Mo Qingge��s body turned into an afterimage and withdrew. It was as if he had been knocked back into that door of space.


    When he passed through a door of space, it was washed over by the shockwave and promptly destroyed in the next instant.


    One after the other, those doors of space lit up all at the same time, then extinguished at the same time. The sight was extremely breathtaking. In that instant, it seemed that everything had disappeared into nothing and returned to quietude. If Mo Qingge had been hit by the imperial arms when he passed through each door of space, the strength of it would have seriously injured him if not kill him outright.


    Boom�� At this moment, Wang Xiao shuddered involuntarily as a terrifying divine sword came for him from behind, destroying his defensive power. It managed to impact the divine body, and countless ruinous lights from the runes lit up to submerge that divine body. Divine swords fell down all at once, covering the sky and the sun so that even the phantom of the great emperor was drowned by that divine sword.


    Those terrifying divine swords pierced Wang Xiao��s back, head, arms, legs, and waist. There was no part of him that was spared.


    ��Ah!�� A hoarse roar sounded, and Wang Xiao fell. But his arm holding the Sky Tremoring lit up with a most brilliant light.


    But almost at the same instant, Wang Xiao was entirely submerged and buried as the divine sound of the Great Path lingered in his ears, shattering his converging consciousness. At the same time, the divine power of Yin invaded, and everything was quieted and stilled. Wang Xiao had no chance to rest at all, having been blasted by a series of attacks time and time again.


    They were not only aimed toward Wang Xiao��s physical body but also his spiritual soul and consciousness.


    Under the icy seal of the divine power of Yin, all the powers of the Great Path were inevitably weakened as they were corroded by the power of Yin. If they were not sufficient, they would directly turn into dust. Wang Xiao��s divine body was like a divine arm that was not corroded but frozen. Furthermore, the power of the invading power of Yin weakened his defenses.


    A brilliant divine light illuminated as another brilliant sword light slashed down, cutting through the space. A loud noise boomed. Wang Xiao��s arm, which was holding the Sky Tremoring, was chopped off. The severed arm fell towards the space below, but the divine light on the Sky Tremoring was still as brilliant as ever.


    Powerful fluctuations diffused from the Sky Tremoring as if it was still trying to establish a connection with Wang Xiao. However, the space altered as the stars shifted. Ye Futian took Wang Xiao, and both disappeared.


    He knew that these imperial arms belonged to Tianyan City and had a will of its own; it was not so easy to handle. If he wanted to kill Wang Xiao, he must first cut off his connection with the imperial arms.


    Just when Ye Futian was leaving, Mo Qingge appeared. He was staring at that severed arm and the imperial arms, and there were traces of blood on his body. His breath was shallow, indicating that he had been injured. It was Ye Futian who had spoken to him via voice transmission just now, asking for a chance to attack, and Mo Qingge chose to believe him.


    Ye Futian, he had done it!

 Chapter 2640 - The Death of Wang Xiao

    Chapter 2640: The Death of Wang Xiao


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian brought Wang Xiao��s body into another space. Right now, Wang Xiao no longer had his divine arm with him, so he was no match for Ye Futian at all. He couldn��t resist Ye Futian��s attack and was frozen by the power of Yin.


    In the sky, even though Wang Xiao was frozen, his eyes remained wide open. However, his thoughts slowed down. He stared at Ye Futian with a gaze of despair.


    Had he failed to kill Ye Futian?


    Before this, Wang Xiao focused all his attention on attacking Mo Qingge, intending to kill him first before targeting Ye Futian. Wang Xiao took Ye Futian��s attack head-on. He thought that he would withstand Ye Futian��s strike since he had forged an indestructible Divine Body.


    Unfortunately, Wang Xiao��s judgment was clearly wrong. He underestimated Ye Futian��s ability. Due to his carelessness, his arm was chopped off by Ye Futian. He lost his imperial arm along with his arm. Currently, there was still a weak will connecting him and the imperial arm. In the distance, a menacing divine light permeated the space.


    From where Mo Qingge was, he intended to confine the imperial arm with his power of the Great Path of Space. However, the imperial arm tore his spatial power apart and traversed across space directly. In fact, Mo Qingge was hit by the powerful shockwaves created when the imperial arm discharged. He could only watch as the imperial arm left him.


    Ye Futian naturally sensed the menacing aura emanated by the incoming imperial arm. He did not expect that, even in his current frozen state, Wang Xiao could actually still keep in contact with his imperial arm.


    Rumble. Ye Futian blasted yet another terrifying palm strike towards Wang Xiao. The latter, who was already feeble due to the previous attacks, could not possibly withstand such a palm strike.


    The scariest part was that Ye Futian was still attacking. Countless blades of light gathered in space. One by one, divine swords materialized and covered the entire region as Ye Futian��s gaze was fixed on Wang Xiao.


    Was Wang Xiao indestructible?


    Today, Ye Futian would see for himself whether The Unrivaled would perish in his hands.


    ��Kill!�� uttered Ye Futian.


    The swords plummeted as soon as he gave the command. Terrifying divine swords stabbed into Wang Xiao��s body. The swords penetrated his body and continued slicing downwards.


    Boom! Loud explosions could be heard. Wang Xiao��s body was pierced and directly pushed underground. His body was completely torn to shreds. Even then, Ye Futian still had no intention of letting him go. One by one, divine swords slashed down and destroyed his spiritual soul.


    Wang Xiao had a connection with his imperial arm. Ye Futian did want to give Wang Xiao a chance to survive. He wanted to ensure that Wang Xiao was thoroughly dead.


    Wang Xiao was The Unrivaled of Tianyan City?


    If he did not wield an imperial arm, he was no match for Ye Futian. Be it back then or now, killing him would be a piece of cake if he did not have the imperial arm with him.


    Divine light flowed around Ye Futian��s body. He lowered his head to look at the disappearing figure. Wang Xiao��s spiritual soul had been reduced to dust. In the past, Wang Xiao invaded the Ziwei Segmentum with the aid of his imperial arm. Countless cultivators perished in his hands. Just now, he also killed many cultivators from the Divine Prefecture as he fought.


    Now, Ye Futian had finally avenged the dead.


    Wang Xiao, the heir of Tianyan City and the successor of Tianyan the Great, had been killed.


    A terrifying aura permeated the sky. It came from Sky Tremor, the imperial arm. A shocking aura rippled in the space. The aura was the might of the imperial arm itself. Ye Futian swept a glance at it. The will of the Great Emperor lived in the imperial arm; therefore, Ye Futian had no intention of seizing it for his own use.


    It was too risky. He would most likely be killed by the imperial arm before he could seize control of it.


    Another figure approached Ye Futian. The person was Mo Qingge. He was stunned for a moment when he saw the scene here. Then, he glanced at Ye Futian.


    Wang Xiao had indeed been killed.


    Ye Futian had successfully slaughtered Wang Xiao.


    He delivered his promise. Ye Futian paid the price by enduring a strike, then he killed Wang Xiao and ended the battle.


    ��Even though Wang Xiao is dead, we will most likely not be able to bring this imperial arm with us,�� Mo Qingge commented as he looked at the floating imperial arm, which was dazzling with imperial glory.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded in agreement. He did not expect to snatch it anyway. His gaze shifted towards Mo Qingge as he said, ��Senior, thank you for helping me. Without your intervention just now, I wouldn��t have had the chance to kill Wang Xiao today.��


    Ye Futian had some grudges with the Evil Emperor Realm, but he and Mo Qingge could be considered having worked together in the battle just now. Both of them should receive credit for Wang Xiao��s death.


    ��You don��t have to be so polite. He was my enemy anyway. Besides, you are the one who delivered the fatal blow to him,�� Mo Qingge said nonchalantly. ��Now that Wang Xiao is dead, the alliances in the Divine Prefecture will surely label you as their enemy. You might as well take the chance to join our side. You should lead the forces in the Ziwei Segmentum to invade the Divine Prefecture too. In the future, we can occupy the Divine Prefecture together.��


    Tianyan City did all this while actually pushing Ye Futian to the Evil Emperor��s side.


    Even if Ye Futian chose to remain neutral, he already had deep grudges with many forces in the Divine Prefecture. Moreover, in this battle which involved both parties, Ye Futian killed Wang Xiao, the strongest cultivator from the other party. What would the alliances of the Divine Prefecture think about his action?


    There was no turning back for Ye Futian now.


    ��For now, I still do not wish to be involved in the war. I killed Wang Xiao solely because I had a personal grudge against him and Tianyan City,�� Ye Futian responded. Even though he managed to slaughter Wang Xiao, he was still very aware of his current situation. He was not qualified to be involved in this war.


    What outcome would arise for a non-Emperor-level force to be involved in an Emperor-level war?


    The former would undoubtedly be seeking their own deaths.


    Mo Qingge glanced at Ye Futian. Ye Futian was very aware of his situation.


    ��I am afraid that you won��t get to choose,�� said Mo Qingge nonchalantly. He then turned around and left the place. He did not even glance again at the imperial arm which remained there.


    It was the same for Ye Futian. He turned and left, disappearing from the place.


    ��


    Right then, on the battlefield of the Divine Prefecture, at the moment of Wang Xiao��s death, the Lord of Tianyan City roared out angrily. His face was frighteningly pale.


    ��Wang Xiao!�� he cried out as he looked far into the distance. His heart was trembling.


    Wang Xiao was dead!


    He stood there with a look of despair in his eyes. How was this possible? How could Wang Xiao, who was wielding an imperial arm, have died?


    He was The Unrivaled; the heir was chosen by the ancestor. Several years ago, the ancestor was still passing on his teachings to him and reforging his physique. He even merged his consciousness with Wang Xiao��s own consciousness. Tianyan the Great ��existed�� within Wang Xiao��s body.


    How could Wang Xiao die under such circumstances? How could he have died?


    ��Wang Xiao has fallen,�� exclaimed the crowd internally. Around the battlefield, many cultivators were looking in this direction. From the Lord of Tianyan City��s reaction, they knew that Wang Xiao had been killed.


    This news was undoubtedly astonishing. Wang Xiao wielded the imperial arm Sky Tremor and was peerless. The threat he posed was too frightening, and no one could stop him. Countless people had fallen to his imperial arm. Only Yan Guiyi could take his attack head-on.


    However, an existence such as him wielding an imperial arm had actually been slain. One could imagine how shocked the various cultivators were.


    Had Ye Futian killed Wang Xiao?


    Right then, two silhouettes appeared in the sky. One of them was Mo Qingge. The other was Ye Futian.


    Mo Qingge and Ye Futian had arrived, and Wang Xiao had perished in battle. Had the victor been decided in this battle?


    However, Mo Qingge and Ye Futian did not know that, after they left, the extremely dazzling and terrifying imperial arm fell to the earth and stabbed into the ground. Fresh blood flowed over the ground and surged into it!

 Chapter 2641 - Rebirth

    In the silent space, golden flame and blood tainted the land. Fresh blood continued to gush into Sky Tremor in the ground and merged with it.


    The flowing blood actually shimmered with a life aura. It wrapped around Sky Tremor. Then, the flesh, which had been disintegrated, reformed and took the shape of a human. The silhouette of a human appeared.


    A storm stirred up in the surroundings. The aura of the Great Path circulated and merged into the human form. Gradually, the illusory figure materialized, and a person was formed.


    The person had a handsome face. His looks resembled Wang Xiao��s. However, there seemed to be something different about him. The gaze of this person was more piercing than that of Wang Xiao. He seemed to be looking down on everything.


    It was as though Wang Xiao had come back to life.


    A terrifying aura flowed around his body. Shocking storms of the Great Path appeared around him and surged into his body frenziedly. With a flash, he shot up to the high heavens. Astonishing storms stirred up in the vast space.


    The entire sky was covered in storms. The wind howled, and the clouds churned. Everything was gushing into his body.


    ��Huff.�� Wang Xiao took a deep breath. He then revealed a smile. His smiling face was completely different from the dispirited Wang Xiao before this.


    The old Wang Xiao had always felt frustrated since he couldn��t defeat Ye Futian. Even though he tried hard to suppress his emotions, it still showed on his face.


    However, one could no longer detect that bitterness in the sparkling eyes of this current Wang Xiao. His gaze gave off a domineering vibe.


    He gazed into the distance as he wondered: what should he do next?


    It seemed like he needed to think carefully about it.


    ��Wang Xiao,�� he uttered. ��He was a fool.��


    ��That��s not right!�� he added. Then, he twitched his lips mockingly. He was now Wang Xiao.


    When he thought of this, he adjusted his overbearing aura to the level of Wang Xiao��s aura before this. After that, with a dash, he charged in the direction where the battlefield was.


    The cultivators on the battlefield were unaware of all that had happened. When the Lord of Tianyan City saw Ye Futian and Mo Qingge returning, he glared at them with bloodshot eyes. Had the two of them joined forces to kill Wang Xiao?


    Wang Xiao shouldered the fate of Tianyan City. A long time ago, he received the recognition of Tianyan the Great and inherited the latter��s teachings. During the Armorer Competition, the City Lord did his best to promote Wang Xiao before everyone. He invited everyone to come and join the feast. Wang Xiao indeed gained his fame during the event.


    After that, because of Ye Futian, Wang Xiao was greatly traumatized. A few years ago, Tianyan the Great trained him with a special technique, intending to make him a new Emperor.


    In fact, to assist Wang Xiao to achieve the Emperor level, Tianyan the Great ceased existing in other forms and instead merged with the former.


    Tianyan City risked all they had for the sake of Wang Xiao��s success. In this chaotic era, the Wang family of Tianyan City was determined to give rise to the birth of a Great Emperor. With the help of Tianyan the Great, they had a high chance of succeeding in their mission.


    But now, Wang Xiao was killed.


    Wang Xiao��s death was significant. It symbolized the discontinuation of the teachings of Tianyan the Great.


    Everything that Tianyan the Great had bestowed on Wang Xiao would be gone with the wind along with his death. What did it mean for the Wang family?


    It meant that from now on, the Wang family of Tianyan City would no longer be one of the Ancient God Clans since the teachings of the Great Emperor had died along with Wang Xiao.


    For Wang Xiao, the Wang family had risked their status as an Ancient God Clan. How could he die just like that?


    ��Wang Xiao has been killed. You are the next,�� declared Ye Futian as stared at the Lord of Tianyan City. His expression was cold. Both the City Lord and Wang Xiao were determined to eliminate him. Now, he had finally killed Wang Xiao.


    If the Lord of Tianyan City could not rely on imperial arms, he was not even a threat to Ye Futian. Ye Futian would not be defeated with the help of Celerity.


    A terrifying aura burst forth from the Lord of Tianyan City. The divine flame burned frenziedly and covered this part of the sky. The flame set the sky ablaze.


    Rumble.


    Powerful Sword Will flowed in the heavens and the earth. Divine swords materialized in the sky. Each and every sword was carved with golden runes and emanated a terrorizing aura. They sliced the space. When the tips of the swords were pointed downwards, the space was on the verge of being cut up into pieces.


    ��Kill!��


    The divine swords plummeted as soon as Ye Futian commanded them to. All of them charged towards the Lord of Tianyan City.


    Rumble. A terrifying aura appeared behind the Lord of Tianyan City as the region transformed into the Heaven Tempering Divine Domain. Golden spears appeared and traversed across space, colliding with the divine swords. Both attacks were equally domineering.


    The City Lord was the master of Tianyan City and the commander of an Ancient God Clan. He had been assuming a supporting role and was outshined by Wang Xiao, who wielded the imperial arm, but in reality, his combat ability was stronger than that of Wang Xiao. He was one of the figures who truly stood at the peak of the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian stood in the high heavens and looked down on the Lord of Tianyan City. He extended his palm forward and pressed down. The sun was instantly veiled by a divine sword. A gigantic divine sword loaded with overbearing God��s might was coalesced. Along with its appearance was the rumbling sound of thunder. The attack of the City Lord did not stand a chance before this divine sword.


    The gigantic divine sword was like the king of all swords. It resonated with the sky, causing a destructive storm to start brewing. The sword was filled with intense killing intent.


    Ye Futian pointed his finger downward. The sword thrust downwards in a flash, disregarding the long distance.


    Bang.


    A dazzling divine light sparkled, and the divine sword charged towards the Lord of Tianyan City. However, it was crushed and turned to dust. Ye Futian��s attack was forcefully blocked by another attack. At the same time, Ye Futian sensed danger, and he disappeared from his original spot instantly.


    In the area where the Lord of Tianyan City was, the terrifying attack continued to shoot up to the high heavens after destroying Ye Futian��s divine sword. It turned into a beam of destructive light. The space was permeated with the aura of an Emperor.


    Another figure appeared in front of the Lord of Tianyan City. He was none other than Wang Xiao.


    ��Wang Xiao!�� exclaimed the City Lord.


    His eyes were wide open as he stared at the figure before him. Wang Xiao had returned with the imperial arm.


    Wang Xiao was actually still alive, and he came back here.


    How was this possible?


    The City Lord was linked to Wang Xiao. Prior to this, he clearly sensed that Wang Xiao was dead. It was impossible for the City Lord to sense this wrongly.


    Wang Xiao had been killed.


    However, right now, he indeed appeared alive and well before everyone.


    Cultivators, especially high-level cultivators like Wang Xiao, indeed had very tenacious vitality.


    However, could someone still come back to life after their spiritual soul had been destroyed?


    Even the Lord of Tianyan City could not believe what he saw. Yet, Wang Xiao truly existed in the flesh before them.


    Ye Futian once again appeared in space. With a bizarre expression, he stared at Wang Xiao, who was wielding the imperial arm.


    Just now, Ye Futian had purposely added on a few attacks to ensure that Wang Xiao was truly dead. Both his flesh and his spiritual soul were destroyed to the point beyond repair.


    But, how could he still be alive now?


    ��The will of the ancestor is with me. On top of that, I have an indestructible body, to begin with. This time, I have to thank the ancestor for guiding me to overcome my fear of death to find a way out of that impasse,�� Wang Xiao said the Lord of Tianyan City.


    A glint of light flashed in the eyes of the City Lord. So, Wang Xiao managed to survive because he overcame his fear of death and found a way out of the impasse?


    The City Lord believed Wang Xiao��s words right away. After all, Wang Xiao was standing alive and well right in front of him now. Moreover, the will of Tianyan the Great was indeed with Wang Xiao. It was normal to assume that the power of the ancestor had aided him in rebirth.


    Both Mo Qingge and Ye Futian knitted their brows together tightly. Their gazes were fixed on Wang Xiao. Had the power of the ancestor helped Wang Xiao to come back to life?


    Both of them clearly sensed that there was something different about Wang Xiao��s temperament.


    Ye Futian��s gaze turned sharp. The Light of Buddha flowed around him. His gaze was seemingly able to see through Wang Xiao as he stared at the latter.


    Sensing his gaze, Wang Xiao swept a glance at Ye Futian. Wang Xiao��s eyes were terrifying. His gaze pierced through Ye Futian��s eyes, causing him to feel acute pain.


    He was not Wang Xiao!


    A voice rang in Ye Futian��s mind. He kept a calm expression. Even though he was shocked, he did not show his emotion.


    Wang Xiao had died and had not come back to life. This Wang Xiao before their eyes was not the same person as before.


    If this Wang Xiao was not the real Wang Xiao, who was he?


    Ye Futian thought of a possibility. Immediately, his face turned pale as his heart quivered.


    Wang Xiao inherited the teachings and the will of Tianyan the Great. The weapon he used to wield was that of Tianyan the Great too. Everything he had was given to him by the Great Emperor. Even Wang Xiao��s divine body, which Ye Futian assumed that he had paid a great price in order to forge, was most likely something he achieved with the help of Tianyan the Great.


    Back during the Armorer Competition, the City Lord revealed Wang Xiao��s talent in front of everyone and elected him as the successor of Tianyan City.


    However, in reality, Wang Xiao had always been the candidate chosen by Tianyan the Great himself.


    Therefore, who would this current Wang Xiao be?


    The answer was as clear as day.


    This person was Tianyan the Great himself!


    Ye Futian was shocked and perturbed. Tianyan the Great was reborn in the current world with the flesh of Wang Xiao. In fact, he might have been plotting this since the day he chose Wang Xiao as his successor. He nourished himself with Wang Xiao��s body and gradually snatched away everything that belonged to the latter.


    Wang Xiao was but a tool that Tianyan the Great used to pave his way to rebirth.


    Ye Futian stared straight ahead and kept a poker face. He did not tell anyone about his speculation. If this current Wang Xiao was truly Tianyan the Great, he would undoubtedly be much more frightening than before. He would most likely be able to kill Ye Futian. However, he had not done so. Clearly, he also did not wish to expose his true identity.


    Tianyan the Great had only been reborn in the flesh; he had yet to recover his abilities as a Great Emperor. Therefore, he wanted to hide his identity by pretending to be Wang Xiao for now!

 Chapter 2642 - Precaution

    Chapter 2642: Precaution


    In the vast space, battles everywhere stopped.


    In the battle, the members of the Divine Prefecture came to deal with Ye Futian. After that, Ye Futian wanted to kill Wang Xiao; hence the chaotic battle ensued.


    Prior to this, Ye Futian had already killed Wang Xiao.


    However, Wang Xiao seemed to have an immortal body and had come back to life.


    Suddenly, the vast space fell silent momentarily. Ye Futian stared at Wang Xiao without saying anything. Wang Xiao also stared back at him. Both of them had different thoughts in their minds.


    Ye Futian was somewhat hesitant, not daring to expose Wang Xiao��s identity. He was being wary. The person before him was no longer the Wang Xiao he knew before. He was also not the Wang Xiao that the Lord of Tianyan City knew. He was the reincarnation of a Great Emperor that had descended upon the world. He was an Emperor.


    Even though the Great Emperor borrowed Wang Xiao��s body, the imperial arm was forged by him. How terrifying would he be in battle wielding an imperial arm?


    Wang Xiao could not kill Ye Futian while wielding an imperial arm. However, Tianyan the Great would undoubtedly be able to.


    Hence, he did not dare to expose Tianyan the Great��s identity. He did not know what consequences it would bring if he did so. Therefore, he naturally would not bet his life on it.


    On the other hand, Tianyan the Great was similarly wary of Ye Futian. On this point, the two of them were in tacit agreement.


    After all, he was a Great Emperor from the distant past. If he was reborn into this era, how would the other Great Emperors think?


    At least for now, him borrowing a body to be reborn meant that Tianyan the Great was not at his peak. He did not dare to claim that he would survive in the hands of the current Great Emperors.


    The person who was most confused was Mo Qingge. Many thoughts also surfaced in his mind. Had Wang Xiao truly forged an immortal body by borrowing the power of Tianyan the Great?


    Could he be killed?


    It might be so.


    Ye Futian looked at Mo Qingge. Mo Qingge had hunted Wang Xiao together with him. They had joined forces to take him down and had personally witnessed his death. They were the only two people who knew how Wang Xiao had died. After his body was destroyed, Ye Futian had also destroyed his spiritual soul.


    Wang Xiao should already have perished and dissipated into nothingness. Even though Mo Qingge had not killed Wang Xiao, he was still a witness.


    Could Mo Qingge figure the truth out?


    Ye Futian was not sure about this.


    Buzz. In Wang Xiao��s hand, Sky Tremor unleashed powerful shockwaves that swept towards where Ye Futian stood. Wang Xiao took a step forward and said, ��Many thanks for creating a new divine body for me. However, I, Wang Xiao, have an immortal divine body. I am The Unrivaled. Even if you want to kill me, can you pull it off?��


    As he challenged Ye Futian, more and more terrifying shockwaves gushed towards the latter. Sky Tremor also moved forward. Ye Futian observed Wang Xiao carefully. The current Wang Xiao seemed to be mimicking the way the real Wang Xiao spoke. Even his words sounded familiar. He did so in order not to arouse suspicion. He wanted everyone to believe that he was still the old Wang Xiao, but with a renewed divine body that was immortal.


    His action had indeed gained the trust of the others around. After hearing his words, even the Lord of Tianyan City dispelled any doubts he had. It didn��t matter how Wang Xiao was resuscitated. More importantly, the Great Emperor had indeed aided him in forging a perfect divine body that was indestructible.


    Not only was Wang Xiao��s flesh imperishable, but his spiritual soul was also everlasting.


    Wang Xiao was The Unrivaled. He was destined to be extraordinary. He would surely become the next Great Emperor and lead the members of Tianyan City into a new era.


    Ye Futian activated Celerity and directly disappeared from his original spot with a flash, preventing Wang Xiao from attacking him. Wang Xiao stared as he disappeared and refrained from attacking him with Sky Tremor. After all, they were still in the Divine Prefecture. It was not suitable for him to kill Ye Futian here with the imperial arm.


    Wang Xiao did not go after Ye Futian. Neither did he demonstrate any stronger abilities. He was Wang Xiao now. At least for now, he could not unleash more powerful abilities other than what he had previously displayed. Otherwise, he would be drawing suspicion onto himself.


    Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the area where the cultivators of the Devil World and the Dark Court were. Near him was Death God Ye Qingyao. Ye Futian said, ��Let��s retreat.��


    ��Retreat?�� asked Ye Qingyao, somewhat dissatisfied.


    Just a while ago, these people had wanted to settle a score with Ye Futian. They were all her enemies. She wanted all of them dead.


    Wang Xiao had not been completely killed off either. How could they just retreat?


    Mo Qingge��s figure also retreated to their side. He looked at Ye Futian and then complied with what the latter said. Mo Qingge said, ��That will be all for today.��


    Yan Guiyi from the Devil World retreated here too. The cultivators from both forces returned to their respective locations.


    They ceased fighting and prepared to retreat.


    If Wang Xiao truly had an immortal divine body, there was indeed no need to continue battling. They couldn��t kill him, and the imperial arm he wielded was also extremely powerful.


    ��Retreat,�� Yan Guiyi commanded. The various cultivators retreated. The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture did not pursue them, instead merely watching them as they left. Wang Xiao similarly did not attack.


    Setting aside the fact that he wanted to keep his ability hidden, even if he didn��t need to hide it, he could not just go on a massacre.


    If he killed too many people now, he would make enemies before he reclaimed his title as the Great Emperor. It would be troublesome.


    Although it was not in his nature to do so, he had already waited so many years for this day. He did not mind waiting for a little while longer.


    Now, stability was his priority.


    The cultivators of the Devil World retreated. Ye Futian also left with them. The Lord of Tianyan City stared in the direction that Ye Futian left. He said, ��This is irrefutable proof that Ye Futian colluded with the forces of the Devil World and formed an alliance with them. He might prove a nuisance in the future. Is the Imperial Palace considering dealing with the Ziwei Segmentum?��


    The battle that occurred before this caused him to have lingering fears.


    Wang Xiao had died once, and Ye Futian, who had returned, wanted to kill him again.


    The City Lord��s combat ability would not necessarily be inferior to Ye Futian. However, in terms of agility, he was no match for the latter. If they were to fight alone, he would be worn out and Ye Futian would be at an absolute advantage.


    This threat needed to be eliminated as soon as possible to prevent trouble in the future that could threaten Tianyan City.


    ��The previous battle has already confirmed all this. What more needs to be said?�� someone answered. Among the lineup of the Divine Prefecture, Fang Ru was the strongest member. When he heard the words of the Lord of Tianyan City, he naturally understood the other party��s intentions.


    However, it was still within reason.


    Fang Ru replied, ��I will report this to the Imperial Palace and let His Highness know about this. He will decide whether anything is to be done to the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    He had witnessed today��s incident very clearly. Although there was reason to suspect that Ye Futian had allied with the Devil World, he had always stressed that this matter was between him and Tianyan City. Obviously, Ye Futian did not wish to be swept into this conflict and be forced to choose a side.


    As for him leaving with the members of the Devil World, that was utter nonsense. Many people from the Divine Prefecture wished to kill him. If he did not leave with the cultivators of the Devil World, would he even be able to leave at all?


    He couldn��t stay here anyway.


    Only the Great Emperor could decide on this matter.


    ��Alright,�� said the Lord of Tianyan City as he nodded his head. Since Fang Ru had already said so, he did not need to continue.


    ��


    On the other side, Ye Futian��s group left the battlefield.


    ��It is somewhat unfortunate that Wang Xiao is still alive,�� a cultivator commented. On the battlefield, Wang Xiao��s combat ability while wielding an imperial arm was considered at the top of the pyramid. Only Yan Guiyi could withstand him head-on.


    If Yan Guiyi killed Wang Xiao, Yan Guiyi would be unmatched. Fang Ru could only stall the former, not withstand him.


    Moreover, they had the Death God with them. Together, the Death God and Yan Guiyi could massacre everyone unchallenged.


    Many people glanced at Ye Futian. It seemed that this top figure of the Original Realm also had times when he failed. He claimed to have slain Wang Xiao. However, in the end, he did not manage to succeed in doing so.


    Of course, they understood that this was not Ye Futian��s fault. The current Wang Xiao was too resilient.


    However, how could they have known that the true Wang Xiao had already been killed by Ye Futian?


    Ye Futian did not bother to explain. Even if Wang Xiao were not here, he would keep the secret. He did not dare to reveal it.


    He was worried that once he revealed the secret, Tianyan the Great would have no more scruples and would rampage and massacre everyone.


    ��However, we have gained Palace Lord Ye as an aid. We still hold the advantage,�� another cultivator said, as though Ye Futian was already on their side.


    Ye Futian raised his eyebrows slightly as he contemplated on some matters.


    ��Ye Futian,�� a voice called out right then. Ye Futian shifted his gaze and looked towards the speaker. Standing beside him, the person gave him a vague sense of pressure. Very few people could make him feel this away now.


    The person who had appeared was the strongest figure on their side. It was the top Demon Sage of the Devil World, Yan Guiyi.


    ��Demon Sage,�� greeted Ye Futian as he nodded his head slightly.


    Yan Guiyi said, ��I have also heard of the incident in the Devil World. After that battle, Donghuang Diyuan left this place. To be able to fight the only daughter of Donghuang the Great to a draw, you might have a chance of pursuing the path of the Emperor.�� He seemed to hold Ye Futian in high regard.


    The cultivators of the Devil World admired ability. Yan Guiyi had heard that Ye Futian was very powerful before this. Now, he had witnessed it himself.


    Although Ye Futian did not manage to kill Wang Xiao, he still proved how powerful he was.


    ��Demon Sage, you speak too highly of me,�� replied Ye Futian.


    ��The members of the Divine Prefecture wish to kill you. Now, you and the Ziwei Segmentum most likely do not have many options. Even if you do not attack them, they will certainly attack you,�� Yan Guiyi said. ��Would you consider forging an alliance and attacking the Divine Prefecture together?��


    Ye Futian and Yu Sheng had always been on very good terms. It was inevitable that they would become allies in the future.


    Ye Futian said, ��Demon Sage, although many people from the Divine Prefecture want to kill me, they are only a small number after all. The Ziwei Segmentum is not yet powerful enough to be able to fight against Emperor-level forces. Demon Sage, I hope you won��t mind.��


    ��Besides that, I still have other pressing matters to attend to. I will make a move first. Everyone, many thanks for lending me your aid,�� Ye Futian said as he saluted with his fists. He was planning to make a trip back to the village.


    Now, Wang Xiao was Tianyan the Great. He had to take some precautions.


    ��Alright,�� replied Yan Guiyi, not forcing it. He continued, ��Be on your way.��


    ��Many thanks,�� responded Ye Futian as he saluted with his fists again. He then looked at Ye Qingyao and nodded his head at her. He then left immediately, leaving in a hurry!

 Chapter 2643 - Reappearance

    In Four Corner Village on Four Corner Continent in the Shangqing Domain


    Ye Futian once again appeared in the village to see Master.


    If he had encountered cultivators below the level of a Great Emperor, he naturally would not disturb Master. However, an ancient Great Emperor had now appeared. He felt troubled by this, so he could only come and pay Master a visit.


    In the courtyard in the village, Ye Futian came to seek Master��s counsel. The latter��s ethereal figure appeared before him and quietly listened as Ye Futian explained his predicament. There was no change at all to Master��s face. For him, who had transcended worldly matters, it seemed that all this came as no surprise.


    At least he was not surprised by what had transpired.


    Master explained, ��For Tianyan the Great to be reborn by borrowing Wang Xiao��s body, he needed to first merge with the latter��s body and spiritual soul, so your guess should be correct. Tianyan the Great chose Wang Xiao as his successor, but he might have had this goal in mind from the very beginning. He lured them step by step and forged a divine body over several years. Wang Xiao��s body and spiritual soul should be thoroughly merged with Tianyan the Great. However, the latter had always kept his agenda hidden. Even if you had not been involved, Wang Xiao would be consumed sooner or later and become a vessel for Tianyan the Great to be reborn into this world. Hence, it can be said that it was not you who drew him out, but rather you merely accelerated the process.��


    ��That should be it,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded. ��However, if it weren��t for me, Wang Xiao might not have walked this path. Tianyan the Great would have needed to face more obstacles to achieve his goal.��


    Ye Futian continued, ��Nevertheless, now that he is reborn into the world and is now wielding his previous imperial arm if he wishes to attack the Ziwei Segmentum, I fear that I won��t be able to stand against him even with the will of Great Emperor Ziwei.�� He was somewhat worried about this; hence, he had come to discuss things with Master.


    After all, Master was also previously a Great Emperor.


    Master analyzed, ��First of all, that will not happen so soon. As you said, he is cautious of the current Great Emperors of the world, so he does not dare to expose himself. Second, if he wishes to completely merge with Wang Xiao��s figure, he will still need some time. The current him is not Tianyan the Great from his heyday. I believe he still needs to cultivate in seclusion for a period of time. Moreover, none of the Ancient God Clans are as simple as you think, even those that you have attacked.��


    Ye Futian quietly listened. Xi Chiyao had warned him about this before as well. The Ancient God Clans weren��t as simple as he thought they were.


    Tianyan the Great being reborn into the world was further proof of this. Great Emperors in the Ancient God Clans existed in different forms. All of them truly existed in this world and had another chance to be reborn. They were not merely wills.


    Otherwise, there would not be a case like Wang Xiao��s.


    That meant that similar situations could happen in the other Ancient God Clans. Great Emperors existed in special forms in the Ancient God Clans and have always passed down their teachings.


    Master continued, ��Besides that, the Ziwei Segmentum won��t be so easily destroyed. Haven��t you fought back Wang Xiao before?��


    ��The situation this time is somewhat different. Wang Xiao is no longer himself,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Master as he nodded his head slightly. ��Do not overthink things. I will keep an eye on the Ziwei Segmentum.��


    ��Many thanks, Master,�� said Ye Futian as he got up and bowed to him.


    Master nodded his head slightly and accepted his bow. He then gestured to Ye Futian to sit down.


    ��Every time I face a problem, I end up coming to trouble you,�� lamented Ye Futian as he shook his head with a bitter smile. As he said this, he felt somewhat embarrassed. Master had actually done so much for him, yet he could not do anything for the former. He felt ashamed.


    ��It is of no consequence. For us to have met, it was fated to be. We will follow wherever destiny leads us,�� said Master with a smile. ��Be on your way.��


    ��Alright,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head and bowed once again. He then left the place and returned to the Ziwei Segmentum.


    After Ye Futian left, Master gazed into the distance. An ethereal aura still emanated from his figure, yet his eyes were wavering.


    The Original Realm had undergone a drastic change, and Tianyan the Great was reborn again into the world. The era was about to change.


    This era would become an iconic one for future generations. He wondered how events would play out.


    After Ye Futian returned to the Ziwei Segmentum, he once again went into seclusion to cultivate. Tianyan the Great��s rebirth made him feel pressured. Wang Xiao was no threat to him, and he also did not fear the Ancient God Clans. However, he had to be cautious of Tianyan the Great.


    As Ye Futian was cultivating, some incidents occurred in the Original Realm that disrupted his cultivation. Old Ma came looking for him.


    ��What has happened?�� asked Ye Futian.


    Old Ma reported, ��Recently a group of mysterious cultivators have appeared in the Original Realm. They sought out available relics and relied on them to cultivate. Occasionally, they even resorted to plundering the relics. Now, they have invaded territories that we control. Not long ago, they invaded the previous base of the Haotian Clan. No one could stop them. However, the other party also acted within reason. They did not kill, and their goal was only to plunder cultivation resources. It seems like they did not wish to make enemies of us.�� It was also because of this that he could report this to Ye Futian in a rather calm manner.


    If the other party had committed murder, things would be different.


    ��Mysterious cultivators?��


    Ye Futian frowned slightly. He had encountered cultivators from all Six Realms. No one would act in such a manner. If they were his enemies, they would not have held back.


    If so, which force outside the top forces of the Six Realms dared to touch the lands under the Ziwei Segmentum?


    ��Was the Supreme Elder around?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��He was, but he still could not hold them back,�� replied Old Ma. This caused Ye Futian to reveal a strange look. Lord Chen was already very powerful, and yet he actually could not keep the enemy at bay?


    ��I will go take a look,�� said Ye Futian as he got up.


    Both of them headed over to the space teleportation grand matrix in Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    After a short while, the teleportation grand matrix activated, and brilliant spatial divine light lit up. Both their figures immediately disappeared and reappeared in the previous base of the Haotian Clan. The base was an ancient relic with a starry sky.


    Ye Futian headed in one direction at extremely high speeds. He immediately appeared before a mountain that reached towards the sky. This place had an extremely ancient aura and a very powerful will of the Great Path. A faint emperor��s might emanated from this place.


    Up ahead, there were many figures. Lord Chen and Ye Futian��s Third Brother Gu Dongliu were all present. They were looking up ahead. There, a group of cultivators had claimed the palace where Gu Dongliu and the others were supposed to be. They stood before the divine wall and observed the divine seals on it.


    The other party consisted of three individuals. The person in the middle was rather young. He kept staring at the divine seals while the other two stood to his left and right. All three of them had powerful auras. They naturally sensed Ye Futian��s arrival, but none of them looked at him.


    It was as though Ye Futian did not exist.


    Ye Futian looked at the youth. His heart wavered. He recognized the other party, or rather they had met each other once before.


    Aside from the Original Realm, there were seven realms in the world. In the past, he had only come across six of them.


    There was another realm that had long fallen into oblivion and was forgotten by the world.


    It was the Heavenly Emperor Realm!

 Chapter 2644 - The Heavenly Kings of the Heaven Realm

    The Heavenly Emperor Realm, also known as the Heaven Realm, ruled over the forces of the Heaven Court. They were once very powerful, and the Heavenly Emperor was also once considered the strongest person in the world.


    However, this all ended following the death of the Heavenly Emperor.


    After the Heavenly Emperor perished, the Heaven Realm collapsed. Rumor said that the realm was currently a desolate wasteland. It was gradually forgotten by the people of the world and was even overlooked by the lands of the Six Realms. They seemed not to give it enough attention.


    The people of the world had especially forgotten about the existence of the Heaven Realm. Only the members of the top forces still had their eyes on the Heaven Realm and knew of its existence.


    Aside from that, after the fall of the Heavenly Emperor, the members of the Heaven Realm rarely made an appearance outside of their realm. Even the current leader of the Heaven Realm was shrouded in mystery.


    In the cultivation world, there were rumors of the Heaven Realm. Some said that after the Heavenly Emperor perished, a new Emperor was born in the Heaven Realm. He did not use the title of Heavenly Emperor. He never showed himself and cultivated alone in seclusion. It was as though he did not exist. Some voices claimed that there was no Emperor in the Heaven Realm.


    However, Ye Futian recalled what the Devil Emperor said to him. Regardless of whether there existed a Great Emperor in the Heaven Realm, he seemed to be ignored. Or rather, it should be said that the ones who controlled the world now were the six Great Emperors.


    Hence, the people of the world only recognized these six Great Emperor figures.


    In terms of Emperors, Master should also be considered an existence at the Imperial Realm.


    In the Ancient God Clans, the Great Emperors also existed in different forms. However, they all seemed to be overlooked by the world.


    In the world today, the ones who stood at the peak were these six Great Emperors.


    Of course, Ye Futian did not know the overall situation. He knew very little about the Heaven Realm. He had only met the youth before him once at the geo center of the Shadow Realm. This was the only reason why he knew of the existence of the latter.


    ��Sir, it doesn��t seem appropriate for you to infiltrate a base of Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� Ye Futian said as he looked at the other party.


    Only when they heard Ye Futian speaking did the men on both sides of the youth turn around slowly. They cast a glance at Ye Futian. The youth was still facing away from Ye Futian and did not look at the latter. However, his voice could be heard.


    ��Wasn��t this previously the base of the Haotian Clan?�� he asked plainly. ��Since your Ziwei Imperial Palace has forcefully made it their base, what��s so inappropriate about me appearing here?��


    Ye Futian had no comeback to this. The reality was indeed such. Everything in the Original Realm did not have an owner and was seized by all the forces from one another. This place was also claimed by him from the hands of the Haotian Clan. Since the other party could infiltrate this place, what was stopping him?


    ��You have a point,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded his head. He stepped forward and walked towards the three cultivators from the Heaven Realm.


    The two men beside the youth turned around. Both of them walked over towards Ye Futian, one from the left and one from the right. Their auras were extremely terrifying. When they unleashed their might, Ye Futian realized that they were actually existences at the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Only Emperor-level forces had such lineups.


    Even though the Heaven Realm had deteriorated, the ancient Heaven Court was one of the most powerful forces in the world. It was once glorious without equal. Even now, Ye Futian was not surprised that several cultivators of this level had appeared here.


    He glanced at the youth who had not moved. The other party was still standing there and had not even turned around to look at him. The former was constantly staring at the divine wall.


    With two Protectors who were so terrifying, one could imagine the status the other party had in the Heaven Realm. He was most likely the successor of the realm.


    In the chaotic era of the Original Realm, the Six Realms waged war against each other. Even the Heaven Realm had emerged to join the fight.


    ��


    The two cultivators who stepped forward also had extraordinary temperaments. The person on the left had his hair tied up. Golden divine halos flowed over his body. The frightening golden divine halos were like a pagoda. At the same time, a powerful destructive light of catastrophe flowed over him.


    The person to the right had hair up to his shoulders, unrestrained. He had a deep gaze, and Ye Futian could sense a chill emanating from him.


    Ye Futian waved his hand, and the people behind him immediately retreated backward away from this region. Even if people at Ye Futian��s level controlled their strength in battle, the shockwaves from their bouts were still very powerful. Lord Chen gathered the various cultivators together and protected them behind him to prevent them from being harmed by the aftershocks of the battle.


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were all looking ahead. Was their Palace Lord about to fight both figures at the same time?


    Nevertheless, they had absolute faith in Ye Futian��s ability. Ye Futian was their faith and their totem.


    Rumble.


    A terrifying scene suddenly appeared in the space. With a mere thought, the space appeared as though doomsday had arrived. A bone-chilling aura enveloped the vast space. Ice, frost, and a chilly will gathered in the heavens and the earth, causing people to tremble from head to toe. In the distance, cultivators were shivering from the cold. The divine light of the Great Path appeared on Lord Chen��s figure and formed a Star Light Screen. It enveloped everyone and made them feel better.


    Such terrifying power of cold and ice. Even their spiritual souls were about to be frozen! various people secretly thought to themselves. They looked up ahead. Aside from the extreme chill, there was a menacing light of catastrophe that flashed like lightning in the frost-covered space. A rumbling sound could be heard coming from the sky.


    Buzz.


    Golden divine halos rained down. In the destructive storm, extremely dazzling divine light shot out.


    Ye Futian felt the might of these two figures. He frowned slightly. These two were far more powerful than the Master of Celestial Worthy Mountain. They were not much weaker than the Lord of Tianyan City, the leader of one of the Ancient God Clans.


    They had not only survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. At this level, they were considered among the top.


    The space seemed to be frozen solid. Even spiritual souls were frozen. Everything slowed down. However, the destructive golden lightning that contained terrifying and threatening power did not stop flashing.


    Right then, a guqin of ice appeared in the hands of the powerful existence on the right. Even the strings of the guqin had a cold shine to them and seemed to be covered with white frost. It gave off an extremely cold vibe. This person was proficient in the Way of Rhythm.


    The strings of his guqin vibrated, and the sound of the guqin immediately reverberated in the space. Ye Futian felt a chill down his spine. The sound of guqin was already in harmony with the heavens and the earth. It was extremely cold. It was as though they were dropped into an ice cellar and submerged into the chill.


    Ye Futian felt his flesh and his spiritual soul freeze. He was severely affected. This ability was terrifying.


    What was even more frightening was that there was still another powerful figure. Unparalleled golden divine light shone down. A pagoda of divine light appeared above Ye Futian��s head. It was a gigantic divine pagoda with 99 stories. As it spun, destructive divine light pressed down and eradicated everything. In an instant, it shot towards Ye Futian.


    Buzz. Ye Futian��s figure flickered, and he attempted to leave this place. However, he saw the gigantic illusion of the divine pagoda appear in the vast space and envelope this part of the sky.


    Ye Futian was already inside the pagoda. He could not get out.


    ��A Dominion!�� exclaimed Ye Futian.


    He looked towards the two cultivators standing across from him. These two were no ordinary figures.


    If there were cultivators from Emperor-level forces here, they would know that the two men that Ye Futian was facing in battle were two of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Heaven Realm. One could imagine how powerful they were.


    In the Heaven Court, the Four Heavenly Kings were under the direct command of the Heavenly Emperor. Only he could order them around.


    When the members of Ziwei Imperial Palace witnessed such a horrifying scene of destruction, they felt somewhat worried for their Palace Lord. How could these two cultivators be so powerful?


    What was the identity of that youth?


    Buzz!


    The destructive light of catastrophe charged down towards Ye Futian and struck his body. However, he was protected by flowing divine light. His Divine Body of the Great Path was domineering, and the light of catastrophe did not affect him.


    Moreover, the divine light contained the Divine Fire of the Sun, which helped to expel the cold aura in Ye Futian��s body. Ye Futian��s gaze was piercing as he looked forward. Ancient buddhas appeared in his mind. Since the other party intended to shake his will with the melody, their attacks would probably not stop here.


    Divine light poured down on Ye Futian as more terrifying attacks descended. The 99-story pagoda spun downwards. Contained within it was a golden halo that seemed capable of eradicating all existences. The pagoda engulfed Ye Futian in an instant. Then, it began to shrink as the light of destruction swept towards him frenziedly.


    This menacing power intended to destroy both the flesh and the spiritual soul of Ye Futian. It was overbearing.


    ��Humph,�� the cultivator who unleashed the pagoda coldly snorted.


    Immediately, the pagoda overwhelmed this part of the sky. Ye Futian��s body was trapped within it as well.


    Right at this moment, intense rumbling sounds could be heard coming from the pagoda. The sound caused the 99-story pagoda to shake continuously. Shocking sounds of wheezing could be heard coming from the pagoda, as though there was a terrifying power attacking it from the inside.


    This caused the Heavenly King from the Heaven Realm to frown. He was well-aware of how powerful the pagoda, which stemmed from his Divine Wheel, was. Even if a cultivator on the same plane as him were trapped in it, they would face the fate of being crushed to death. Both their flesh and their spiritual souls would be turned to pulp. He had encountered countless opponents, yet very few could survive this pagoda.


    Bang. Bang. Bang!


    Vigorous rumbling sounds continued as the pagoda shook violently. One could imagine how intense the collisions in the pagoda were.


    In the pagoda, ancient buddhas appeared all around Ye Futian. They sent out gigantic palm strikes frenziedly. The palm strikes struck the inner walls of the pagoda. Even though the destructive power that rampaged in it could not destroy Ye Futian��s flesh and spiritual soul, it still threatened him. Nevertheless, the power of this attack was far from being able to kill Ye Futian.


    It was almost time. As Ye Futian thought to himself, he shifted his will, and a divine sword appeared. He pointed his finger in one direction, and the sword charged straight towards it. With a loud bang, cracks appeared on the pagoda.


    ��Shatter!��


    Ye Futian sent out yet another sword. As more and more swords stabbed into the walls, cracks propagated in the pagoda, and the slits grew larger. The spinning pagoda continued to unleash destructive light towards Ye Futian, but it could no longer hold its shape.


    With a loud boom, the pagoda disintegrated into pieces. Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the sky as his gaze was fixed on the two Heavenly Kings.


    ��Your abilities are remarkable,�� Ye Futian commented calmly. No wonder the three of them were so at ease while invading the Ziwei Segmentum��s territory. They did so openly and had no intention of retreating.


    The Heaven Realm had fallen, but the surviving members of the realm were most likely stronger than even the Ancient God Clans. The abilities of these two cultivators were akin to that of the top-tier cultivators in the Ancient God Clans. Besides that, the youth had yet to show his ability up until now.


    Ye Futian had a vague feeling that this successor of the Heaven Realm was surely very powerful. Otherwise, the two top figures would not be under his command!

 Chapter 2645 - All Heaven Buddha’s Seal

    Ye Futian raised his head as his figure flickered, moving higher into the sky. Both great cultivators glanced at him, then followed him.


    All three cultivators appeared together in the void except for the young man. He continued with what he was doing previously, comprehending and cultivating in front of the divine wall. It seemed as if all that fighting on the outside had nothing to do with him.


    Clang! Above the firmament, a loud noise was heard. Although they had reached higher in the sky, they were still within the coverage of the domain, and they had not yet got out of it. There was an intrusion of a rhythmic storm that contained an extreme chill. Ye Futian��s divine body was constantly struck by ice and frost.


    At the same time, another round of terrifying pagodas spun down and hovered over Ye Futian. The golden light of destruction overwhelmed that corner of the sky and enveloped Ye Futian��s entire body.


    ��Still not quitting?�� Ye Futian raised his hand as he glanced at the space above. His entire body was radiant beyond description as countless divine swords converged together. Terrifying runes were inscribed on those divine swords, sheltering the sky and the sun. Ye Futian raised his hand and pointed to the sky. Suddenly, the divine swords broke through the sky and savaged this entire space.


    When Ye Futian comprehended this divine method, he had intended to use it as a method to be used to counter Donghuang Diyuan, and this was most apparent in the naming of this swordsmanship. The sword that Donghuang Diyuan was known for was called the ��Tianxing Divine Sword,�� and Ye Futian named his swordsmanship ��Tianzhu.��


    When hundreds and thousands of swords were launched, all the divine swords resonated, aiming at the 99 layers of pagoda. Immediately, the pagoda collapsed and shattered frantically. Terrible explosive sounds came from the sky above while the Great Path was crumbling, and the golden divine pagoda was pulverized.


    Ye Futian glanced at the two cultivators as he clasped his hands together. With a thought, the boundless space turned into the Great Path realm of Buddhism. Above the firmament, Buddhas filled the heavens while chanting the Sound of Buddha. Their chanting lingered between heaven and earth that turned into Buddhist mantras, contending with the sound of guqin played by the cultivator who was an expert in rhythm.


    Ye Futian was illuminated by a golden light, and divine flames enveloped his body. His divine body was impervious to any means, and it seemed that no Great Path could destabilize him.


    His actual physical body seemed to have incarnated as a Buddha. He had incredible prowess.


    ��The two of you come from the Heaven Realm, and you must not be some unknown figures there. How shall I address you?�� Ye Futian asked loudly. The Sound of Buddha lingered and resounded through the void. Only then did the cultivators from the Ziwei Imperial Palace realize that these cultivators were from the Heaven Realm.


    The Heaven Realm, according to legend, had long been weakened and had faded into history.


    ��Pagoda King of the Heaven Court,�� the cultivator who controlled the pagoda proclaimed.


    ��Melody King of the Heaven Court,�� the other person responded coldly in like manner, identifying himself readily.


    Two great Heavenly Kings!


    Ye Futian assessed the two men and saw that they were great figures from the Heaven Court, and both were at the top level. No wonder they had such considerable combat strengths. If they were at the level of the Mountain Master of the Celestial Worthy Mountain, his current prowess could rid someone like that easily enough.


    Back then, he was a lot less powerful.


    ��It turns out that we are in the presence of the Heavenly Kings. No wonder there is a battle of this scale.�� Ye Futian said loudly, ��It��s just that this is the territory that belonged to the Ziwei Imperial Palace. As the Palace Lord of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, I must ask the two of you to leave.��


    As soon as he said that, Buddhas populated in the sky above, and the Light of Buddha was blazing, illuminating the space of this realm. It was so radiant that every Buddha had released the light of the Great Path, which was blinding to anyone who tried to look at it.


    ��This technique is based on the techniques of Buddhism and my comprehension. Its combat effectiveness is superb and unparalleled. You two Heavenly Kings, be careful,�� Ye Futian said loudly, looking at these two powerful men.


    The two great cultivators raised their heads to look at the brilliant figure above the sky. Ye Futian��s divine body was bright, shrouded by the Light of Buddha, akin to an ancient Buddha cast in gold. A mighty Divine Might came from outside the heavens and overpowered this space. It was as if this terrifying power of the Great Path was coming from somewhere else.


    All these Buddhas appeared to stand high above the sky. They blasted down boundless and massive Buddhist palm strikes at the same time. Each palm strike contained incomparable power as they slammed straight down, aiming at these two Heavenly Kings. These domineering Buddhist palm strikes seemed to go on without end.


    The Pagoda King and Melody King both looked serious now. Ye Futian��s power was somewhat unexpected. Although they had heard of Ye Futian and his accomplishments before, they had not paid too much attention. He may be someone extraordinary, but they were no ordinary folks either.


    The four Heavenly Kings from the Heaven Court in Heaven Realm plus another great existence beside them.


    Although he rarely made appearances in the outside world and had never become part of the world outside in the truest sense, the people in the Heaven Realm knew just how powerful this future Heavenly Emperor of theirs was. All the cultivators in the Heaven Realm believed that in the future, he was bound to be the one tasked with the mission of revitalizing the whole Heaven Realm; he would become the Heavenly Emperor one day.


    The reason why they were seldom seen in the outside world was that they wanted to keep a low profile. In the midst of today��s chaotic situation, they finally decided to come to check things out, taking this opportunity to comprehend the power of the ancient emperors at all the major sites of relics.


    Therefore, even though Ye Futian was the king of the Original Realm and possessed extraordinary talent, they had never thought much about him before.


    Even that proud son on the outside world, who had taken the world by surprise, dared to call himself ��The Unraveled.��


    This was all because their young master had not made his existence known to the rest of the world.


    Otherwise, as soon as he made his presence known, he would no doubt dominate the peer of his generation, and no one could compete with him. Those so-called genius talents would only serve as his stepping stones.


    However, at this juncture in the battle, Ye Futian��s strength could be clearly perceived, and even they had to pay attention to it. It seemed that his title as premiere genius talent of the Original Realm had some substance, after all.


    The rhythm storm as created by Melody King was becoming more urgent, as the surrounding world was frozen shut in ice. Those massive Buddhist handprints close to them were covered with white frost; it was as if they were slowed by the impending freeze. At the same time, the storm of music turned into a terrible, sharp blade, causing the collapse of those Buddhist palm strikes.


    The Pagoda King attacked forcefully, waving his hands in the front. Suddenly, the pagoda suppressed heaven and earth. This time, the pagoda was slashing towards the sky above, exerting all of its forces. A destructive storm slaughtered against the momentum, blocking the force attacking him.


    The Great Path roared, and heaven and earth seemed to be on the verge of collapsing. The Buddhas above the sky resonated with one another, and the great palm that fell seemed infinite. Even though they continued to collapse and shatter, there were still more of them slamming into the space below, which seemed endless.


    And with this terrifying attack, the entire domain became extremely heavy. An extreme chill permeated everything. It was the chill that was generated by the palm strike, which froze heaven and earth. The two Heavenly Kings gradually felt the chill.


    ��The power of Yin.�� Melody King frowned. He had felt a chill. He himself was also an expert at the way of ice. He could freeze the body and spiritual soul of the others. However, at this moment, he felt the invasion of this kind of power.


    Above the firmament, a gigantic Buddha appeared. He came from beyond the sky and traveled towards the ground below. Ye Futian was actually positioned between the hands and chest of the giant Buddha, thus traveling down as well.


    ��The All Heaven Buddha��s Seal!��


    As soon as Ye Futian��s words fell, his palms slammed towards the area below. Suddenly, the giant Buddha was making the same motion as he did. Boundless and massive palm strikes blasted out downwards and covered this corner of the world. It seemed as if everything was buried underneath those great palm strikes.


    At the same time, all the Buddhas resonated I��m unison as they blasted out great palm strikes at the same time. It was as if they had formed some connection. They enhanced the attack with even more power and overpowered this corner of the sky completely.


    This was the All Heaven Buddha��s Seal. The great attack had been comprehended by him, and his power was infinite.


    The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace watched this scene, their hearts pounding. The giant Buddha descended like The Buddha himself had descended into the world, lording over everything. The power of this attack was unimaginable.


    Even Lord Chen��s heart palpitated when he saw this scene. The attack was so great that he could see the leaps and bounds that Ye Futian had made in his cultivations over the years.


    If the Millet Emperor were here, he would definitely find this attack familiar. This attack seemed to contain the power from the Gate of World Suppression, which was extremely powerful.


    The two Heavenly Kings from the Heaven Realm looked even more grave as their eyes were fixed on the attack that pressed down upon them. Accompanied by those violent roars, their defenses were collapsing continuously, and they could not hold off that terrifying attack any longer. The divine light of the Great Path was released frantically as they gathered their greatest strength, attempting to block the All Heaven Buddha��s Seal.


    However, this overbearing attack continued. It seemed as if no power in the world could stop it. A loud booming sound was heard, and the two men were blasted towards the space below. The Great Path of the void pulverized, and everything was shattered.


    Bang! Above the ground, two figures were blasted down into the ground. Down there was a boundless and massive palm that razed an entire ancient mountain range to the ground. The earth was shaking violently. It was as if an earthquake had erupted; there were even fissures on the ground.


    After a long time, the horrible aura finally dissipated. Two figures emerged from the ground. There was dust all over their bodies. Their breath was shallow, and some coughing could be heard. Blood pooled at the corners of their mouths. Clearly, they were both injured.


    A palm print had wounded the two existences at the heavenly king-level in the Heaven Realm.


    The Pagoda King and Melody King both looked up at Ye Futian and thought that this man��s cultivation was indeed terrifying. He was already standing at the top level of this realm. They had cultivated for many years to become the Heavenly Kings of the Heaven Realm, so they had a clear understanding of their own strength. At their realm, they were definitely at the top. However, today, they had been defeated by someone who was their junior.


    Truly, there was no lack of talented people in each generation, and the new always replaced the old.


    The era that belonged to the older generation was no more. Before, it was Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing who had dominated the world back then. Who would the next era belong to?


    But, no matter who, this being in the Heaven Realm was still an invincible existence that could suppress everything and everyone as it stood right now.


    The young man drew his gaze back from the divine wall at this time, raising his head slightly. He glanced at Ye Futian. His expression was indifferent, not showing the slightest hint of annoyance. In his eyes, there was simply a sense of ultimate confidence.


    Ye Futian seemed to have felt his gaze as he bowed his head to look below. The eyes of the two connected, and this was the second time they made contact. Last time, Ye Futian was not yet able to contend with his opponent. After all, the other had sneaked into the center of the earth and entered into the center of the shadow storm by himself.


    After so many years, the two of them had reached the same level.


    ��Let��s go!�� The young man retracted his gaze after having looked at Ye Futian. It was as if he didn��t care about their loss, nor did he have any thoughts of fighting Ye Futian in retaliation!

 Chapter 2646 - The Same Ability

    Were they going to leave just like this?


    Ye Futian looked at them and asked, ��You don��t plan on continuing to cultivate here?��


    ��We��ve seen everything already. There is no need,�� the other man responded as he stepped into the void, getting ready to leave.


    Above the firmament, an extremely terrifying coercion hovered in the area just in front of them, directly enshrouding their opponents within.


    These two heavenly king guardians and the heir of the heavens must have been some of the most enchanting figures in the world. And their status may be equivalent to that of Donghuang Diyuan in the Divine Prefecture. Ye Futian was rather curious to see how strong they actually were!


    Having perceived this power, the other man turned around to face Ye Futian and saw him step forward. The divine might bloomed in full force, and all the Buddhas in the heavens appeared once again as if to repeat the attack that took place just moments ago.


    All the Buddhas resonated in an unparallel and overbearing manner. Both the Pagoda King and Melody King looked very solemn as they fixed their eyes on Ye Futian. Meanwhile, the young man was facing forward as an invisible sword intent erupted from him, tearing through the space.


    All the Buddhas in the heavens raised their hands simultaneously as the Sound of Buddha continued to linger, resounding through the void. Another giant Buddha appeared. Its might was pressing down from above, and it was the All Heaven Buddha��s Seal. The two heavenly kings could not stop this attack before, and there was no telling if the heir of the Heaven Realm would do any better.


    Countless giant palm prints fell down, aiming at the opponent. At the same time, with his body as the center, an incomparable sword intent manifested around the other man. Numerous brilliant golden divine swords appeared between heaven and earth, cutting through the void.


    The divine sword was gathered together by countless runes, like a punishment from heaven. It was extremely horrific. It shot out madly toward those giant palm prints and collided with them. They crashed and shattered. It was a most terrifying scene to behold.


    There was a strange look in Ye Futian��s eyes, accompanied by the palm of All Heaven Buddha��s Seal. He looked at the other, rather shocked. A radiant divine sword converged and collided with the great palm print of the All Heaven Buddha��s Seal.


    Within that Great Path domain, all the great paths were now collapsing as a terrifying storm ravaged the space. Palm prints and swordsmanship clashed, turning into currents of destruction, then gradually dissipated.


    The young man gave one look at Ye Futian and said, ��Not bad.��


    After that, he turned to leave. The two heavenly kings also gave a look at Ye Futian, then went with the young man as well.


    Ye Futian did not pursue them this time but frowned. There was an uncertain look on his face, and a disturbance took hold of his heart.


    He had seen this young man��s attack before; it had been unleashed by Donghuang Diyuan.


    His own swordsmanship, Tianzhu, was inspired by the swordsmanship used by Donghuang Diyuan.


    Heaven Punishing Divine Sword!


    Now he found out the heir of the Heaven Realm possessed the same abilities as Donghuang Diyuan, and it was the divine method that must have been passed on to Donghuang Diyuan by Donghuang the Great.


    So, why would the heir of Heaven Realm inherit the divine method of Donghuang the Great?


    What was the relationship between the Heaven Realm and Donghuang the Great?


    This caused Ye Futian to fall into deep contemplation. Could there be some connection behind all this?


    If there was some connection, wouldn��t that suggest a relationship between Donghuang the Great and the Heaven Realm?


    Of course, there was another possibility. If Donghuang the Great, by chance, had cultivated a method that originated from the Heaven Realm and passed it on to Donghuang Diyuan, then it could explain why Donghuang Diyuan and the heir of the Heaven Realm were experts in the Heaven Punishment Divine Sword.


    After the others left, Lord Chen and Gu Dongliu walked next to Ye Futian. Together, they looked at those departing figures in the distance.


    ��These men are very powerful, especially that young man who was able to take the blow from the Palace Lord,�� Lord Chen commented. Before Ye Futian arrived, he had a brief exchange with them. He was simply unable to face three such giants, so he did not force the fight.


    Were they from Heaven Realm?


    ��His strength is no less than mine,�� Ye Futian replied. The blow he dealt just now was equally matched, and he had a feeling that the other man could be stronger. The young man��s strength was not less than Donghuang Diyuan��s; it certainly would not be any less than Ye Futian��s.


    ��It seems that in these troubled times, more and more magnificent figures will begin to show themselves. This world is very big, and I am afraid that there are top figures whom we have not yet been made aware of,�� Ye Futian whispered.


    ��This man came from the Heaven Realm, and the fact that the heavenly kings acted as his protectors all but confirms his status. The Heaven Realm may be in decline, but in the seven realms of the world, the Heavenly Emperor was once a man of might. It is not surprising that there is such an existence.�� Gu Dong Liu said next to him, ��However, this level of existence is rare in the world, and there were very few of them. There is no need for junior brother to belittle yourself. Any cultivator who can fight against you is probably a genius talent who is already standing at the very top of this world.��


    ��How many mighty figures are there from times immemorial until now? The world has been peaceful for hundreds of years. In the battles that took place hundreds of years ago, many have fallen, but what about those top cultivators who survived? All of them are blessed with long lives, and they will not die of old age. They may be cultivating in the shadows as we speak.�� Ye Futian continued, ��I have a feeling that in troubling times, those influential figures will reappear in the world once again.��


    Now that, Tianyan the Great had returned to them using Wang Xiao��s body. With the heir of the Heaven Realm and heavenly kings who just made their presence known one after the other, this was a sure sign.


    The top figures of the world would emerge one after another.


    Before, in that war in the Divine Prefecture, he had seen many powerful people.


    ��Even so, junior brother, you will still be at the top. Only in an era when all the stars are shining can you create an unparalleled legend.�� Naturally, Gu Dongliu trusted Ye Futian and believed that he would climb to the top of the world eventually.


    ��It��s the same with you, third senior brother. We will all reach the top together,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. This was the collective wish of the disciples from the Cottage.


    In the future, they would have to take a trip to Donghuang Imperial Palace and discuss with Mr. Du how to change this world of cultivation.


    ��Let��s go back,�� Ye Futian said. Although the cultivators from the Heaven Realm were discourteous, they did not hurt anyone, as they exercised great restraint. Otherwise, with the strength of all three cultivators from the Heaven Realm, the cultivators stationed here would be easily obliterated.


    Moreover, they had only comprehended for a bit before leaving on their initiative, without any intention of taking anything with them. They really only just wanted to come here to comprehend the relics of the great emperors and use them for cultivating. They were only here for cultivation.


    The young man was extremely proud, probably because he wanted to visit the relics of the great emperors. Back then, he had gone deep into the center of the Shadow Realm and felt the power of the Yin firsthand.


    The time since that event spanned several decades. Over the years, he must have traveled to many places and comprehended many extraordinary relics.


    Would Heaven Realm be a friend or foe in the future?


    Or rather, there was no such thing as friend or foe, to begin with. Take the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm, for example: were they friend or foe?


    The Divine Prefecture��friend or a foe?


    Depending on the time, their role would certainly change as well.


    Between him and a certain principality in the Dark World, there was still some unfinished business.


    Even the Divine Prefecture and Ye Futian had not always been enemies either.


    No one knew what the future held.


    Ye Futian left to return to the Ziwei Imperial Palace to cultivate, focusing on continuing to improve his own strength.


    Only by becoming a Great Emperor could he possibly be qualified to determine the way of the world. Today, in the eyes of the six existing Great Emperors, he remained someone hardly worthy of their attention.


    ��


    In the Divine Prefecture, after the battle with Ye Futian, both sides had entered into a truce, and a period of considerable peace ensued.


    It was said that Donghuang the Great had dispatched envoys to negotiate with the three Realms of the Devil World.


    This war had taken place in the North Cliff Region of the Divine Prefecture. Thus, the North Cliff Region had suffered the most, having lost countless innocent lives.


    The cultivators of Tianyan City left the battlefield as well and returned to Tianyan City.


    At this moment, somewhere inside the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City, Wang Xiao was sitting cross-legged, cultivating in a terrifying divine matrix. Divine flames surrounded his body, tempering it.


    At this moment, Wang Xiao suddenly opened his eyes, and a terrifying pair of eyes penetrated everything he gazed at in front of him. Over there, a cultivator appeared, and it was none other than the City Lord of Tianyan.


    The City Lord of Tianyan felt a sting in his eyes. From Wang Xiao��s eyes, he felt a most overbearing look of contempt, which made his heart tremble to no end.


    ��You felt it too?�� Wang Xiao asked. He could sense the presence of the other, as he had looked in on him several times already. That, and based on some of their previous conversations, he knew that the other had put two and two together.


    ��You are not Wang Xiao,�� the City Lord of Tianyan said. His heart was beating wildly. Even a top figure like himself was feeling a little nervous at this moment.


    He knew Wang Xiao too well. He had raised Wang Xiao, and he was familiar with Wang Xiao��s every movement. Even if the other had deliberately put up a show in front of him, he couldn��t be fooled. Some things couldn��t be disguised, such as that unmistakable haughtiness that seeped right from his core.


    That was something Wang Xiao did not have.


    Wang Xiao sat there, staring at the City Lord of Tianyan. ��You can��t guess who I am?��


    When he spoke, a terrifying imperial might came down and enveloped the great hall so that the City Lord of Tianyan felt suffocated. Meanwhile, his heart was beating so hard it almost jumped out of his chest.


    ��Or, should I say that you are unhappy because it��s me?��


    ��I dare not.�� The City Lord of Tianyan bowed most respectfully in response. Under that mighty pressure, he had no choice but to prostrate and kneel on the ground, saying, ��Greetings to our most high ancestor.��


    His voice trembled slightly. His attitude was respectful and extremely pious.


    Although he was a bit sad because of Wang Xiao��s death, a trace of hatred lingered. After all, that was his beloved grandchild.


    But soon, another overwhelming emotion was emerging. Their ancestor Tianyan the Great had been reborn and returned to them once again.


    For Tianyan City, Tianyan the Great was far more important than Wang Xiao.


    All his high hopes for Wang Xiao were nothing more than for him to become a great emperor one day himself and lead Tianyan City to glory.


    Now that the Great Emperor had returned, Tianyan City��s former glory would be restored soon enough.


    Furthermore, everything that Tianyan the Great could give to the family was far beyond what Wang Xiao ever could. One day, when the Great Emperor had restored his peak strength, perhaps he could even dominate and rule the seven realms.


    How could he not be emotional?


    ��Get up.�� Tianyan the Great remarked nonchalantly, ��You are one of us, part of the Wang family. You don��t need to grovel like this. To everyone else, I am still Wang Xiao, and you, the City Lord of Tianyan.��


    ��I understand,�� the City Lord of Tianyan nodded.


    ��Mmm,�� Tianyan the Great nodded, but the City Lord of Tianyan was still standing in place, which prompted him to ask, ��Is there something else?��


    ��Sir, regarding Ye Futian and the Ziwei Segmentum���� Even with the return of the Great Emperor, he was still thinking of Ye Futian. His hatred for Ye Futian was plain enough.


    ��I will deal with him,�� Tianyan the Great responded lightly. Currently, it was not convenient for him to venture out. After cultivating for another period of time, he could then announce to the outside that his realm had been elevated and that his strength had greatly improved.


    At that time, there was nothing to stop the destruction of the Ziwei Segmentum!

 Chapter 2647 - Glory of Yore

    A tremendous piece of news came from the land of the Divine Prefecture��Donghuang Imperial Palace and the Devil World were in the middle of a peace talk to stop the war.


    For this reason, the Divine Prefecture was willing to give up the North Cliff Region and leave it to the people of the Devil World as a place of cultivation. The Divine Prefecture would forfeit it without further interference and withdraw their troops.


    At the same time, the cultivators of the North Cliff Region may freely choose to move away or stay. During this process, the people from the Devil World may not do anything to the cultivators in the North Cliff Region.


    Donghuang Imperial Palace had obtained the truce at the expense of ceding one of the 18 regions of the Divine Prefecture, the North Cliff Region.


    This decision had caused a great uproar in the Divine Prefecture, and it was the source of much contention.


    Already, some people in the Divine Prefecture had begun to question the judgment of Donghuang the Great. Hundreds of years ago, Donghuang the Great came out of nowhere and ruled the land of the Divine Prefecture with his outstanding talent. Now, hundreds of years later, Donghuang the Great had decided to give up the territory of the North Cliff Region.


    Was this really the Great Emperor that they once knew?


    Could this mean that, even without Emperor Ye Qing, Donghuang the Great was equally cautious about the Devil Emperor?


    Many other rumors were also circulating on the land of the Divine Prefecture, undermining the authority of Donghuang the Great.


    Of course, some claimed that the North Cliff Region had already been occupied by the three major legions of the Devil World. The place had turned into a battlefield, and any more fighting would be pointless; it would only bring more deaths and suffering, perpetuating the great disasters to other continents in the North Cliff Region.


    This was the true reason why Donghuang the Great had to set aside his pride and hand over the North Cliff Region��to allow the cultivators in the North Cliff Region a chance to extricate themselves.


    However, no one knew for sure the actual thought process that went through Donghuang the Great��s head.


    It was just that the Divine Prefecture had already lost its right to govern, and now with the North Cliff Region fallen into the hands of the Devil World, it seemed that over the years, the Divine Prefecture had made one concession after another. Was this still the same Divine Prefecture that they used to know?


    Was Donghuang the Great the same great emperor as he once was?


    Other than that, there was another ponderous news the came out of the Divine Prefecture.


    Rumor had it that Wang Xiao of Tianyan City was no longer Wang Xiao.


    This news came out of the North Cliff Region, and the Evil Sage of the Empty Divine Realm was the one who first made such a claim. He had seen Wang Xiao��s demise with his own eyes, whose soul and spirit were scattered at his time of death.


    However, Tianyan City did not make any response regarding this rumor.


    In light of such shocking news, cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had made subsequent inquiries to Tianyan City. All of them were from top principalities and included people from the Ancient God Clans. They were most interested in the veracity of this claim.


    If it weren��t Wang Xiao, then who could it be?


    With the passage of time and the continued silence of Tianyan City, the suspicion grew stronger. Many cultivators from the Divine Prefecture finally decided to set off for Tianyan City to see Wang Xiao and determine the fact for themselves.


    On a certain day, Wang Xiao finally made a public appearance and announced that he was the reincarnation of Tianyan the Great.


    For a time, this explosive news caused great commotion in the Divine Prefecture, and the world was in shock.


    Tianyan the Great, the Great Emperor of armoring in ancient times, had returned.


    At the time, all the cultivators who were present were stunned, including the top figures. Without exception, they were speechless and unsure as to what to say. This news was too sensational: the Great Emperor of Tianyan City was reborn through Wang Xiao and had appeared once again in the world.


    What would this mean to the Divine Prefecture?


    Would the six Great Emperors in the world pay any attention to it?


    However, there was not a peep from any of the six emperors. Even Donghuang Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture was unusually quiet. Although Donghuang the Great dispatched an envoy from the Imperial Palace to Tianyan City to ask, it was so casual that it seemed as if they didn��t really grasp the gravity of a great emperor��s return.


    This kind of nonchalance also made countless people wonder just exactly what was Donghuang the Great thinking?


    If Tianyan the Great had recuperated his peak strength, would he compete with Donghuang the Great for the right to control the Divine Prefecture?


    The Ancient God Clans were never under the direct jurisdiction of the imperial palace; they were no more than one of the principalities that happened to located in the Divine Prefecture. Moreover, their heritage far preceded the establishment of Donghuang Imperial Palace, as they had been commanding the lands of the Divine Prefecture countless years ago as a much older entity than Donghuang the Great himself.


    No one would expect Tianyan the Great to surrender under the power of Donghuang the Great. This was the Great Emperor of armoring from the ancient days. If he had returned fully to his former glory, how could he succumb to any others?


    After that, the Human Realm also dispatched an emissary to Tianyan City to congratulate the return of Tianyan the Great. The return of a great emperor from ancient times was viewed as a blessing to the cultivation world.


    It seemed that everything was moving in a positive direction.


    Tianyan the Great did not make any response whatsoever. He was an old monster who had lived for a great many years. He was someone from the ancient days who was now coming back through reincarnation. This, in itself, was a very sensitive issue. Especially now that they were in a time of chaos, he knew very well that if he got too close to any one side, it might make him a target to other forces.


    The presence of a great emperor would disrupt the balance of the world. He wanted to wait until his cultivation had been fully restored to its peak level, as it was the only way to preserve the existing balance without affecting those great ruling emperors in the present world. Or, he could wait until the situation became clearer when he was very confident that picking a side would not translate into total obliteration of him or his people.


    Therefore, Tianyan the Great announced that Ye Futian of Ziwei Imperial Palace was instrumental in the slaughters in Tianyan City, which killed numerous cultivators inside the city. For that, he needed to be brought to justice.


    In addition, he also announced that Ziwei Imperial Palace was not worthy of occupying a territory, lording over the Original Realm. Instead, Tianyan City would take over Ziwei Imperial Palace and replace it.


    After the news came out, the Divine Prefecture was in mayhem again and was shaken to its core.


    Tianyan the Great had decided to attack Ziwei Segmentum, not only because of the confrontations that happened with the Ziwei Segmentum but there were other deeper implications. For example, he could move Tianyan City into Ziwei Segmentum in the future and take over the control of it, thus ruling over all of the Original Realm.


    This way, he would neither belong to the Divine Prefecture nor compete with Donghuang Imperial Palace for control over the Divine Prefecture.


    He coveted the Original Realm.


    For this reason, many principalities actually responded to his call of arms, including all the Ancient God Clans, who were supportive of Tianyan the Great. They were willing to follow him to the Ziwei Segmentum to destroy Ziwei and get rid of Ye Futian.


    As if they had, once again, forgotten what happened once upon a time.


    After all, this time, it was the return of Tianyan the Great, and Ye Futian would die without question.


    Finally, the end was upon Ziwei and Ye Futian.


    People in the Divine Prefecture were quite sorry to hear this news. Ye Futian��s strength was widely witnessed and proven. It was said that he was the one who killed Wang Xiao while Wang Xiao was wielding the imperial arms on the battlefield. Furthermore, he suppressed the City Lord of Tianyan, demonstrating how powerful he was. Truly, he could be said to be a world-famous genius talent.


    Given time, Ye Futian could very well embark on the road to become a great emperor himself. However, the return of an ancient emperor would cut off his path to becoming an emperor, not to mention this ancient emperor meant to do away with Ye Futian. This time, Ye Futian might not be able to escape.


    Naturally, Ye Futian received the news quickly in Ziwei Imperial Palace. How could such important news concerning him be overlooked?


    Many had contacted him as soon as they got wind of the words, and Xi Chiyao was also there, who informed him right away.


    As the news spread through Ziwei Imperial Palace, many cultivators felt a sense of hopelessness, like the dark clouds were hovering over their heads again. It had not been an easy journey for Ziwei Segmentum, as they had been through so many catastrophes and disasters, under siege time and time again.


    Now that a Great Emperor had been resurrected, his first order of business was to destroy them. This made them feel unjustifiably persecuted.


    This time, would they be heading to ruins?


    Who could block the might of a Great Emperor?


    Even though Tianyan the Great hadn��t fully recuperated all his strength as the Great Emperor, he was once an ancient emperor who was armed with imperial arms. It was probably impossible to stop him, no matter what.


    Ye Futian had heard the chatters on the outside and thought that whatever was destined would come sooner rather than later. He had hoped it would be later, but the truth was exposed before schedule. The Evil Sage, Mo Qingge, guessed correctly. Now that the identity of Tianyan the Great had been revealed, there was no incentive for him to hide the truth from anyone anymore. So, now he decided to act proactively by seeking the destruction of Ziwei Segmentum and him.


    As he stepped forward, Ye Futian came to the main hall in Ziwei Imperial Palace, where many cultivators had already gathered. Their attention turned to Ye Futian once they saw him approach.


    ��Palace Lord,�� Lord Chen called out.


    ��They are on their way here,�� said Ye Futian. The clan lord of the Shen Clan had also joined the army dispatched from Tianyan City. The Shen Clan was under his control, so he was very keen on what was happening. No movements from the other side could escape his sight.


    Although everyone was puzzled, they didn��t ask anything further. Ye Futian would have his own way of dealing with things.


    ��I knew already when I was in the North Cliff Region, that why I chose to leave. After that, I went back to the village to talk to the teacher. The teacher said that he would keep an eye on this side.�� Ye Futian tried to calm everyone down and continued, ��However, I am not very sure of the situation regarding the teacher, and Tianyan the Great has truly been reborn and returned, so the outcome of this battle is unknown. If Tianyan the Great cannot be blocked, all of you should leave immediately through the teleportation grand matrix and give up Ziwei Imperial Palace.��


    ��We will live and die with Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� Lord Chen and the others said.


    ��There is no need to do that; save yourselves.�� Ye Futian gave a wave with his hand. He didn��t like a useless sacrifice. Although it was noble in sentiment, it had no real substance. If the outcome was destined, he hoped to save as many of them as possible.


    Now, it all depended on whether or not he could stop the onslaught.


    ��Lord Chen, you are the Supreme Elder; you are responsible for making sure this happens.�� Ye Futian looked at Lord Chen and added, ��This is an order.��


    Lord Chen looked at Ye Futian, then nodded and acquiesced, ��Yes, Palace Lord.��


    Seeing that everyone��s heads were hung, Ye Futian smiled and said, ��Don��t be so pessimistic. I��ve experienced this kind of thing many times before, and every time I survived. It��s the same this time. I am not so easily taken.��


    He shrugged as he spoke, looking unconcerned and carefree. Many looked at his relaxed pose, but their hearts remained heavy.


    The opponent this time was more terrifying than any he faced before; the resurrected Great Emperor of yore.


    ��They have departed already and entered the land of the Original Realm as we speak. I am heading over there now. Lord Chen, remember my order,�� Ye Futian said, then his figure flashed and disappeared from where he was.


    Everyone in the Ziwei Imperial Palace raised their heads to watch that departing figure in the sky, and their hearts were unspeakably heavy.


    It didn��t take long for a brilliant starry light screen to light up in Ziwei Segmentum, which covered the entire expanse of the Segmentum. In the land of the Original Realm, a mighty army appeared, and its soldiers meant to overpower Ziwei.


    This time, the one who led the troops was Tianyan the Great himself!

 Chapter 2648 - Return From Despair

    The Ziwei Segmentum was once again enveloped by starlight. Ye Futian stood beneath the vast starlight and seemingly became one with the Ziwei Segmentum.


    From the Outer Realms, a mighty army had arrived. They were none other than the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture.


    Wang Xiao, now Tianyan the Great, appeared in front of the army. He was surrounded by divine light, and his God��s might was overbearing. His eyes flashed with golden divine light as he looked down at everything around him. Behind him were cultivators from the few major Ancient God Clans. All of them were under his command now.


    This time, they would surely eradicate the Ziwei Segmentum.


    The cultivators arrived at the outer region of the Ziwei Segmentum. After a few years, they came again. In the past, their armies were defeated here, and they were forced to retreat. Ye Futian shocked everyone in the Divine Prefecture with his ever-growing ability. His status back then had already posed a threat to the Ancient God Clans.


    Now, Tianyan the Great had returned. He would take care of their worries. They would plunder everything in the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Tianyan the Great stopped outside the segmentum. He lowered his head and looked down. His figure was surrounded by God��s might, and he was peerless. He took a step forward, and his figure grew larger, transforming into a 100-Zhang-tall god. Sky Tremor, which he wielded, similarly grew larger, and it emanated shocking God��s might. The power demonstrated by Sky Tremor now was not at all on the same level as that when the real Wang Xiao wielded it before.


    Tianyan the Great, who had transformed into a god, lowered his head and looked over the Ziwei Segmentum. Terrifying flames burned in his gigantic eyes. It was as though two beams of frightening light were directly emitted on the light screen protecting the segmentum. The light screen was on the verge of being penetrated with just his gaze.


    The cultivators who stood behind Tianyan the Great felt their hearts tremble in fear. The might of an actual emperor was beyond their imagination.


    No wonder the gap to becoming a Great Emperor was so tough that countless cultivators failed to break through it. If they did, they would become a god, an immortal existence.


    Even though the current Tianyan the Great paled into insignificance compared to his former self, he was still a Great Emperor who managed to return to the world with the flesh of Wang Xiao. His ability was powerful, and it was not something other cultivators could fathom. Even near-deity figures were like ants before him.


    Only real Great Emperors could suppress him now.


    In the Ziwei Segmentum, Ye Futian also saw the figure of Tianyan the Great. The 100-Zhang-tall figure of the god was extremely majestic, like a deity whose order was irresistible. He looked down on the segmentum with a gaze of disdain. The divine light emanating from the eyes of Tianyan the Great was enough to kill Ye Futian.


    This scene caused Ye Futian to feel somewhat helpless. Could the Ziwei Segmentum resist the other party?


    ��Why do you put yourself through such a futile struggle? I come from the ancient age, and I have no intention of committing a massacre here,�� Tianyan the Great said plainly. ��You should remove the seal voluntarily and embrace your death. That will spare everyone in the Ziwei Segmentum.�� His tone was scornful.


    Tianyan the Great suggested that Ye Futian should give up resisting. The latter should remove the seal and willingly be killed.


    Clearly, Tianyan the Great had set his mind on killing Ye Futian. He did not lie to the latter either. He was too prideful even to bother deceiving Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was but an ant to him. Even with Ye Futian��s extraordinary talent, he was but an ant when faced with the Great Emperor. He did not amount to anything.


    Ye Futian��s emotions were stirred. Tianyan the Great asked him to embrace his death?


    Such was the mentality of a Great Emperor. The other Great Emperors most likely also shared a similar way of thinking. They wouldn��t take all the Proud Sons of Heaven seriously. For the Great Emperors, those talented youths were but ants.


    However, Ye Futian would never accept his death willingly without trying to resist first!


    Ye Futian shut his eyes tightly. His body turned ethereal as he transformed into an illusory figure. A terrifying aura permeated the starry sky of the Ziwei Segmentum as countless stars lit up at the same time. Ye Futian��s illusory figures appeared on every single star. A menacing aura burst forth.


    In the heavens above, Tianyan the Great, who had transformed into a god, stared at the scene below with a cold expression. He scanned the Ziwei Segmentum with a look of disdain as he scoffed, ��You are but a mayfly attempting to topple a tree. You are seeking your death.��


    As he said this, he raised his Sky Tremor, and a shocking wave gushed forth. The shock waves materialized into Tremoring Pulses that swept towards Ye Futian.


    Tianyan the Great swung Sky Tremor downwards. The sky beneath his feet shattered, and everything in the way of the attack turned into dust. Myriads of Tremoring Pulses blasted the protective shield of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    A shocking sound reverberated in space as the entire Ziwei Segmentum shook. All the cultivators in the segmentum were appalled. They frantically looked up to the sky. Were they under yet another attack?


    The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace also felt their hearts tremble violently. Their bodies were shivering as the ground vibrated. Fortunately, the buildings were very stable. Otherwise, they would have collapsed due to the shock.


    ��Palace Lord,�� the cultivators mumbled as they raised their heads and stared at the sky. With a flash, Hua Jieyu charged towards where Ye Futian was. Her eyes glistened with tears.


    Despite many years having passed and many things having changed, the other party still refused to let Ye Futian off the hook.


    The Great Emperor had come with his imperial arm and intended to eradicate all of them.


    The protective shield around the Ziwei Segmentum was shattering. It was as though the sky was collapsing, and everything was on the verge of being reduced to nothingness. The attack of Tianyan the Great could not be stopped at all.


    This time, Tianyan the Great bestowed genuine despair on the cultivators of the segmentum.


    ��Milady,�� shouted Lord Chen. He had promised Ye Futian that he would escort Hua Jieyu away from here. However, she was also a Two Tribulation level cultivator now. Lord Chen couldn��t stop her. She had traveled a long distance and was charging up towards the sky in an instant.


    ��Let her be,�� said Gu Dongliu to the side. If the Ziwei Segmentum was truly destroyed and his Little Brother was killed, Hua Jieyu would not choose to live either.


    Not long ago, the couple had made a promise to reach the peak of the world of cultivation together. No one had expected that doomsday would befall the Ziwei Segmentum in the blink of an eye. No one could stop Tianyan the Great at all.


    An aura of despair loomed over Ziwei Imperial Palace. Aside from hopelessness, everyone felt enraged as they raised their heads to observe the battle in the sky.


    ��Master,�� exclaimed Little Ling and the others as they took to the sky.


    ��Stay put.�� Lord Chen immediately forged a Starry Domain and sealed off the space. He would not allow the youngsters to die in vain.


    ��Let us go,�� shouted Fang Cun as he turned around and glared at Lord Chen. Lord Chen stared at him silently, but he did not do as they wished.


    They were the kindling of hope.


    Many people in Ziwei Imperial Palace got teary-eyed as they observed the event. Were things truly going to end like this?


    This was such a sudden destruction. They were not ready for it at all.


    In the heavens above, the god looked down. Ye Futian��s aura was unstable, and there was blood oozing out from the corner of his mouth. The protective shield forged with the stars in the Ziwei Segmentum was shattered. It could not withstand even a hit and was directly smashed into pieces by the imperial arm of Tianyan the Great.


    Tianyan the Great had personally come. He was on a totally different level than Wang Xiao.


    The members of the Ancient God Clans, who were behind Tianyan the Great, observed everything from high above. They were delighted. Without the protective barrier of Ziwei, Ye Futian had no chance of survival.


    Today, the Ziwei Segmentum was doomed to be destroyed. Ye Futian was destined to die here too.


    Finally, everything was about to come to an end.


    However, Tianyan the Great was not in a hurry to kill Ye Futian. As he stood high and mighty like a god, he looked down at the figure of the latter. Tianyan the Great appeared majestic and superior. He was God.


    He had heard rumors about Ye Futian owning many imperial-level items. He might not have a use for those items, but they would surely come in handy for the Wang family.


    ��Come and embrace your death,�� ordered Tianyan the Great as he looked down on Ye Futian. He said, ��This is your last chance. You should be honored to be killed by me personally.��


    So he would die in the hands of Tianyan the Great?


    Ye Futian felt powerless and despair. He closed his eyes and communicated with the will of Great Emperor Ziwei. He seemed to no longer be himself. His spiritual soul merged with the stars, and he unleashed his power of the Great Path to his maximum. He resonated with the stars and became one with them.


    Ye Futian was no longer himself. Instead, he was part of the starry sky.


    A gigantic phantasm appeared. It was none other than the illusory figure of Great Emperor Ziwei.


    He was dissatisfied!


    ��Humph!��


    Tianyan the Great looked down with a look of condescension. Even now, the other party did not know their strength and was stubbornly persisting.


    ��Since you are so ignorant about your current situation, I will send you to your death,�� said Tianyan the Great. ��Be destroyed together with this starry sky.��


    As he said this, a beam of light that was even more brilliant than before shone in the vast space. A destructive Tremoring Pulse swept down. He raised Sky Tremor in his hand once more. The god lifted his divine hammer, intending to destroy Ziwei.


    Ye Futian made a wish, ��Years ago, the will of the Great Emperor awakened and helped me break the seal on the imperial arm and destroyed the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix. Now, will the Great Emperor awaken to protect the Ziwei Segmentum from being destroyed?�� A consciousness enveloped the various stars. The next moment, the destructive Tremoring Pulses from Sky Tremor, as well as the world-destroying divine light, came crashing down. It was even more terrifying than the previous attack.


    Unparalleled destructive power rained down. Everyone in Ziwei Imperial Palace fell into despair.


    Right then, an even more dazzling divine halo lit up in the starry sky. It was as though all the stars were shining.


    ��Alright!�� answered a voice from the void.


    Then, there was a terrifying sound. The Tremoring Pulses that could destroy everything crashed onto the defenses of the Ziwei Segmentum. This time, it did not shatter the defensive light shroud. The destructive God��s might slammed down as though it was about to destroy the entire segmentum. However, it was blocked. Many cracks appeared on the light shroud, but the destructive divine light could not penetrate it. It merely kept attacking as its might gradually faded. Finally, the divine light was shattered and dissipated on the surface of the light shroud.


    Huh?


    Tianyan the Great and the various cultivators were stunned at this scene. The light shroud wasn��t destroyed?


    Whose voice was that just now?


    Amidst the destructive attacks, they heard a voice utter a single word. Who was this voice responding to?


    They were not the only ones who heard it. At this moment, all living beings in the Ziwei Segmentum heard this word.


    Ye Futian naturally also heard it.


    The various stars shone brighter and brighter. Their light was scorching. An unparalleled God��s might emanated from the various stars in the sky. In the heavens above, an illusory figure appeared in the vast starry sky. It was an ethereal and domineering figure of a god.


    His long hair fluttered in the wind. It was as though his entire figure was formed from the stars.


    ��It is the Great Emperor!��


    ��The Great Emperor has returned.��


    ��Great Emperor Ziwei has returned.��


    When the entire Ziwei Segmentum saw this dazzling and miraculous scene, many members actually could not help but kneel on the ground. Tears of joy flowed down their faces. They had thought that the Ziwei Segmentum would once again face another fatal catastrophe.


    They never imagined that after Tianyan the Great was reborn, the Ziwei Segmentum would be in peril. The former wanted to destroy them.


    However, at this very moment, Great Emperor Ziwei had returned.


    It was Great Emperor Ziwei! Everyone in Ziwei Imperial Palace felt their hearts throbbing as they gazed in awe at the scene in the sky above.


    Great Emperor Ziwei had returned!

 Chapter 2649 - A Tragic Great Emperor

    Ye Futian��s heart was similarly throbbing. His consciousness also formed a phantasm. He looked towards the god figure and shouted, ��Great Emperor!��


    He never imagined that Great Emperor Ziwei would hear his summons and descend upon the world in this moment of despair.


    They were saved from the valley of despair!


    Great Emperor Ziwei��s ethereal face looked towards Ye Futian as he said, ��You inherited the will of Ziwei and my teachings. Shouldn��t you be calling me Master?��


    Ye Futian had inherited the will of Ziwei and was now the faith of the members of the Ziwei Segmentum. The stars in the sky were his to command. He could also rely on the will of Ziwei. Indeed, he could be considered a disciple of Great Emperor Ziwei. Although this was the first time the two of them had met each other, it was within reason for Ye Futian to call him Master.


    ��Master!�� Ye Futian called out as he bowed.


    Great Emperor Ziwei��s ethereal face revealed a smile, and he seemed reassured. He said, ��After having perished for so many years, I am relieved to be able to take in a disciple after my will awakened.��


    Clearly, Great Emperor Ziwei greatly approved of Ye Futian; otherwise, he would not have taken him in as a disciple now.


    His voice could be heard across the entire Ziwei Segmentum. All the cultivators present could hear him clearly. He was Great Emperor Ziwei, the master of the Ziwei Segmentum. This was his world. How could the cultivators of Ziwei not recognize his voice and will?


    ��From this day forth, Ye Futian will inherit the will of Ziwei and become the master of the Ziwei Segmentum,�� declared Great Emperor Ziwei. All the cultivators in the segmentum felt their hearts tremble. Great Emperor Ziwei had returned to recognize Ye Futian as his successor officially. He declared that Ye Futian would inherit the segmentum.


    The members of the Ziwei Segmentum had long acknowledged Ye Futian and viewed him as their faith before this. However, he had seized Ziwei Imperial Palace by force back then, so his claim over it was debatable.


    However, from now on, he was officially the master of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��Master!�� Ye Futian cried out. He had a bad premonition. His summoning the will of Great Emperor Ziwei this time might cause it to dissipate after. The latter��s words sounded more like a final will to put affairs in order.


    Great Emperor Ziwei seemed to know what Ye Futian was thinking. Right now, their minds were linked. Their wills were both merged with the various stars in the sky. The former continued saying, ��I have perished for many years and should not exist in this world. However, because I was concerned about the Ziwei Segmentum, I sealed some of my will in the various stars. I am aware of everything you have done in the past. Several years ago, you awakened my will, which allowed me to have the opportunity to reappear in the world. I should be thanking you.��


    When Ye Futian heard Great Emperor Ziwei��s words, his guess was proven correct. The latter��s return would be followed by his disappearance forever.


    ��Lend me your body!�� said Great Emperor Ziwei.


    As he said this, endless starlight surged into Ye Futian��s body. Ye Futian, whose eyes were closed all this while, felt his body suddenly tremble. Starlight shone, and the various stars in the sky resonated with his body.


    Suddenly, he opened his eyes. Within them, starlight shot out towards the heavens. The light was dazzling as it swept towards Wang Xiao, controlled by Tianyan the Great.


    Tianyan the Great had relied on Wang Xiao��s body to be reborn into this world.


    Great Emperor Ziwei now relied on Ye Futian��s body to return.


    Both were similar but were fundamentally different.


    However, it seemed like they had returned to square one. The battle between Tianyan the Great and Great Emperor Ziwei was like the battle between Wang Xiao and Ye Futian back then.


    It was as though they had returned to the past in a dream. This scene seemed familiar.


    Tianyan the Great kept staring down below. His expression was serious, and he no longer had his previous overbearing aura. His arrogant attitude had disappeared.


    No matter how monstrous Ye Futian was, he was still an ant in the eyes of Tianyan the Great. Now, the person who appeared before him was Great Emperor Ziwei. The latter was previously one of the most powerful Great Emperors who had several Great Emperors under his command.


    During the Age of Emperors, Great Emperor Ziwei��s name was renowned far and wide.


    Tianyan the Great returned using Wang Xiao��s body and wanted to seize the Ziwei Segmentum. However, he never imagined that Great Emperor Ziwei would similarly be awakened by Ye Futian and use the latter to return.


    Behind him, the various cultivators saw all of this, and their hearts were throbbing.


    They had initially come to be spectators, wanting to witness the destruction of the Ziwei Segmentum and the death of Ye Futian with their own eyes. Yet, they never imagined that they would witness such a grand scene. Great Emperor Ziwei had also appeared.


    The look in the eyes of the Lord of Tianyan City was extremely ugly. How could this have happened?


    He was somewhat uneasy. Great Emperor Ziwei had returned. Could Tianyan the Great defeat him?


    It surely would not be a problem, the Lord of Tianyan City reassured himself mentally. Tianyan the Great had recovered and was more powerful. He also wielded the imperial arm that he once forged. He was definitely at an absolute advantage.


    Even if Great Emperor Ziwei had returned, what could the latter do?


    The end result would not change.


    Just as he contemplated all these things, unparalleled starlight shone down below in the Ziwei Segmentum. The stars shone brilliantly. The various stars around the Ziwei Segmentum lit up at the same time, radiating with dazzling divine halos. It was blinding to behold.


    This light pierced out into the distance and illuminated the vast sky. An extreme power emanated from below. This was the true authority of heaven. They were far apart, yet under this might, it was as though there was no distance between them. Everyone could sense the intense pressure from the will.


    Some people were already moving backward. The cultivators of the Ancient God Clans and the other cultivators from the Divine Prefecture were retreating. They did not dare stick their noses in a battle between two Great Emperors. They would die horrible deaths.


    Rumble.


    A strange sound could be heard in the heavens above. It was as though the heavens and earth were collapsing. Tianyan the Great stepped forward. His deity-like figure lifted up Sky Tremor and myriads of Tremoring Pulses frenziedly swept down. They struck the heavens and made countless cracks appear in the space. It was as though the sky was being smashed into pieces.


    He knew that closing the distance was meaningless in a battle at their level. Their target would always be in their attack range no matter where they went.


    They could only fight.


    He was also a Great Emperor who had returned from the ancient age. He wouldn��t walk away from a fight!


    Today, he would wield his imperial arms, kill Ziwei and seize the segmentum. He would replace the latter.


    Starlight enveloped Ye Futian��s figure as the silhouette of Great Emperor Ziwei formed around him, merging with Ye Futian��s figure. He also appeared like a deity. An unparalleled aura emanated from his figure. Countless stars resonated with him. As Ziwei, he controlled the stars in the sky and was their master.


    Buzz.


    A beam of divine light shot out and pierced the space. Peerless emperor might descended. At this moment, Great Emperor Ziwei was like the ruler of the heavens and the earth. An extremely murderous aura penetrated the space. This was ultimate murderous intent. It was the murderous intent of a Great Emperor.


    Ye Futian��s figure shot out straight ahead like a bolt of lightning. As he pointed his finger forwards, the figure of Great Emperor Ziwei around him did the same. Endless starlight of the Great Path gathered to form a divine sword that pierced the heavens.


    Tianyan the Great��s body grew even larger as he became a towering god. Sky Tremor similarly expanded as it came crashing down on Great Emperor Ziwei��s attack. The two world-destroying attacks collided. The surrounding space collapsed and was destroyed. They tore apart the space and appeared in the chaotic flow of space. It seemed as though they were no longer in their initial space. In the endless storm of chaotic currents, divine swords shot out and frenziedly shattered the Tremoring Pulses.


    Terrifying dull thuds could be heard. Circular shockwaves swept out. Everything around them was disintegrated.


    The shockwaves caused the entire Ziwei Segmentum to tremble. Countless cracks appeared on the light shroud as it then gradually dissipated. However, at the same time, the terrifying divine sword kept advancing. Sky Tremor could not block this attack either. The divine sword that penetrated the heavens and the earth outshone Sky Tremor, causing the latter��s light to slowly dim. Simultaneously, the light of the divine sword shot towards the figure of Tianyan the Great. His body shifted, attempting to escape. However, under the Divine Sword of Annihilation, the empty space was obliterated.


    Buzz.


    The light of the divine sword pierced through the deity-like figure. An illusory figure appeared. It was Tianyan the Great himself. His eyes revealed a look of astonishment as well as an intense dissatisfaction. His body was dissipating slowly now.


    Endless starlight transformed into intense killing intent and pinned everything in place. Even the illusory figure of Tianyan the Great could not escape.


    ��No���� Tianyan the Great mumbled. He had waited for countless years before he could finally make a comeback.


    Why would fate treat him in such a manner?


    He encountered Great Emperor Ziwei.


    Yet another wave of countless starlight penetrated through him. Tianyan the Great was completely turned to dust. Only a hint of his aura lingered in these turbulent currents.


    The currents flowed aimlessly and flooded the space. No one knew where the currents would end up.


    In the space outside of the Ziwei Segmentum, a storm of turbulent currents stirred up. Everyone moved away frantically. Even though the battle was not directed at them, they might still die if they were careless and got caught up in the aftermath.


    After a long while, the storm finally dissipated. The space stabilized. Many cultivators emerged, appearing somewhat disheveled.


    The Lord of Tianyan City stood there, stunned. He looked into the void. Tianyan the Great had disappeared. Everything had disappeared.


    He felt his heart clench as his face revealed a look of pain.


    With the return of the Great Emperor, Tianyan City was on its way to glory. However, they never imagined that this beautiful dream would end so soon. They were about to face a nightmare now.


    What did the death of Tianyan the Great signify?


    Now, in Tianyan City, the will of the Great Emperor no longer existed. Of the two imperial arms, one was destroyed. Now, Sky Tremor appeared down below in the Ziwei Segmentum, in the hands of Ye Futian.


    Could Tianyan City, which had been passing down the teachings of a Great Emperor for countless years, still be called an Ancient God Clan?


    From this day forth, Tianyan City might lose its title as an Ancient God Clan.


    What would they face next?


    The various cultivators did not ponder about these things. They had yet to wrap their heads around the destruction of Tianyan the Great. What they had witnessed astonished them.


    Today, Great Emperor Ziwei returned for one battle and killed off Tianyan the Great, who had been reborn.


    When Tianyan the Great declared he had been reborn, this news shook the world. However, before he could truly act, he was killed and disappeared!

 Chapter 2650 - Fear of Tianyan City

    Tianyan the Great, a Great Emperor of armoring in ancient times, was famous throughout the world in his time.


    After so many decades, he returned again, using Wang Xiao��s body, and was in this world. Today was his first battle, in its true sense, after his rebirth. However, in this epic first battle, he was met by Ziwei the Great, who had returned and died by his hand in battle.


    His fate was lamented by many; it was sad and shocking. However, wasn��t he also the one who sought his own end?


    He could have chosen anyone as a target, but he picked Ziwei Segmentum. Perhaps even he did not anticipate that Ziwei would be woken up like that and came back to put an end to him.


    Tianyan the Great was not the same as Ziwei the Great. Tianyan the Great had been reincarnated in the truest sense of the word to reappear in peak physical form. But Ziwei the Great was different. If he had a choice, Tianyan the Great would have never wanted to die alongside Ziwei the Great.


    Unfortunately, once a step was taken, there was no turning back.


    In the void, the cultivators from the Ancient God Clans finally woke up from their shock, and then just as quickly, all of them quietly exited. Now that Tianyan the Great had been killed, the situation was completely reversed. They dared not linger needlessly for fear that Ziwei the Great might obliterate them as well in a raging rampage.


    Of course, it was best for them to slip away at this time.


    The storm of destruction was still flowing about, and those cultivators quickly evacuated from different locations. They were running pretty fast.


    ��Withdraw.�� The City Lord of Tianyan was mourning, but this was not the time for regret. The most urgent matter was to get out of here as soon as possible.


    They were moving fast, as their group tried to get out as quickly as they could. This time, it was more miserable and embarrassing than the last time.


    Ye Futian did not chase them down. Ziwei the Great was using his own body to urge all the power from the stars in heaven for that explosive and apocalyptic strike, ending the life of Tianyan the Great. All that effort was burning through the will of Ziwei, or else they would not have been able to kill a reincarnated Great Emperor, much less Tianyan the Great, as aided by the imperial arms.


    He could sense that the will of Ziwei among the stars was gradually dissipating, and he was filled with an inexplicable sense of sadness. Ye Futian��s eyes opened to watch that elusive figure above the firmament. At this moment, Ziwei the Great was becoming more blurry by the second.


    ��Teacher,�� Ye Futian called out in a low voice. His voice was deep and tinged with sadness. In his hand, he held the imperial arms, the Sky Tremoring, but it was no longer in its complete form because the will of Tianyan the Great that had been inside the imperial arms was destroyed. Naturally, Ziwei the Great had to destroy it, or else he would not have been able to capture the Sky Tremoring.


    Even in its incomplete form, it was considered an imperial arms. Even if he could not exert all of its strength, carrying imperial arms would still increase his power considerably.


    Obviously, Ziwei the Great had deliberately seized it to leave these imperial arms to Ye Futian.


    ��I was already an existence in the void. It is only a trace of my will that has been integrated into the stars in heaven that guarded Ziwei. To have another chance to return for a final battle and see the future, I am more than satisfied. Futian, thank you for waking me up so that I can see for myself how Ziwei looks like today,�� Ziwei the Great said with a smile that gradually disappeared; it seemed very gentle indeed.


    After waking up in the hereafter and having accepted a disciple as his successor, he was more than content; it was far better than being sealed among the stars in heaven.


    More importantly, this disciple of his was not some simple character.


    In the future, the name of Ziwei would not be forgotten.


    ��The disciple is incompetent,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��How can you be incompetent when you can contend with a much older generation than your age?�� Ziwei the Great asked. ��More importantly, this time, you are facing a Great Emperor who had been reincarnated. This is not because you were incompetent. On the contrary, it highlighted the height of your ability. However, in the future, you must continue to cultivate so that you can enter the imperial realm as soon as possible. By then, even if you encounter those from the olden days, they will not be able to challenge you.��


    ��I understand.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Take care of Ziwei.�� Ziwei the Great nodded and left him with those final words. Then, his elusive figure transformed into endless starlight and dissipated between heaven and earth. At this moment, Ye Futian could perceive that the will of Ziwei had disappeared among all the stars in heaven.


    Ye Futian was a bit sad inside. Although Ziwei the Great didn��t seem to mind because he had perished a long time ago, he still existed in some form in the world. Now, he was utterly and totally gone.


    He bowed deeply to all the stars in heaven. Although he was his teacher for only one day, it was like they had known each other for a very long time.


    Tianyan the Great schemed and plotted a walk-in so he could be reincarnated, but Ziwei the Great had always been guarding his people.


    At some point in time, Hua Jieyu came to Ye Futian��s side and bowed to the stars as well. Behind him, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace had arrived, and together, they bowed and paid their respects. The gratitude was coming directly from their hearts.


    Ziwei the Great, as the lord of all the stars in heaven, had honored the name of Ziwei.


    At this moment, countless cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum had sensed everything that had happened. They stopped spontaneously and bowed to the sky above, respectfully bidding farewell to Ziwei the Great.


    Today, when Ziwei Segmentum was in its most desperate hours, Ziwei the Great returned for the showdown, slew Tianyan, and saved Ziwei Segmentum from destruction.


    He had passed his mantle on to Ye Futian, allowing Ye Futian to fully inherit his legacy, guarding Ziwei from now on.


    In the void, there was a silence. Everyone raised their heads, and their eyes fell on Ye Futian. After today, the will of Ziwei the Great was no more, and Ziwei Segmentum had lost its former protector. Ye Futian would be the one shouldering this enormous task.


    He clutched the imperial arms, Sky Tremoring, tightly in his hand. A strong murderous intent was emitted from his body as he looked up into the sky.


    Tianyan the Great and the City Lord of Tianyan came to destroy Ziwei and kill him. Tianyan the Great had been slain, and Tianyan City had lost its ultimate protector. Now, he wanted to escape?


    Could he escape?


    Even if he could get away from here, how would Tianyan City escape?


    Ye Futian turned around and headed toward the area below, with Hua Jieyu following behind him. Cultivators from all sides were walking along with them to return together in the direction of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    No one spoke, and no one asked about anything. But the murderous intent upon Ye Futian was unmistakably felt by everyone. This murderous intent was being released without the slightest disguise.


    Ye Futian was not the only one. Murderous intents effused from the other cultivators as well. Obviously, all of them harbored a strong intention to kill.


    This time, although they suffered no casualties, their protector and Great Emperor had disappeared forever.


    This bloody debt must be repaid with blood.


    Above the temple inside Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian stood high above, all the powerful cultivators standing in front of him, waiting for his orders.


    ��The Supreme Elder of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, the five lords over the five halls of Heavenly Mandate, Wangshen, Ziwei, Alchemy, and Armoring as well as the Four Great Protectors, listen,�� Ye Futian proclaimed with authority. ��All those who have survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Tribulation, come with me to Tianyan City.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord!�� Everyone bowed and obeyed.


    In the distance, the Lost Clan was keeping watch.


    ��I am entrusting the cultivators of the Lost Clan to protect Ziwei Imperial Palace on my behalf,�� Ye Futian shouted.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, feel free to do what you need to do. The Lost Clan is here to watch your back,�� Elder Sikong replied.


    ��Thank you.�� Ye Futian nodded. Then, he headed to the passageway leading to Four Corner Village in the Divine Prefecture, accompanied by a brilliant divine light. Terrifying power of space tore through the void and penetrated the boundless space.


    Ye Futian and his entourage of mighty cultivators disappeared from Ziwei Imperial Palace as they made their way to the Divine Prefecture to seek their revenge.


    ��


    In Tianyan City, the City Lord of Tianyan returned with all the cultivators a step ahead.


    People in the City Lord��s Office and other cultivators inside Tianyan City were confused when they learned that they had returned so soon. Hadn��t they attacked Ziwei Segmentum not so long ago?


    Could it be that they had already accomplished their mission so soon?


    No one knew that the first order of business with the City Lord of Tianyan was to gather all the available resources inside the City Lord��s Office, such as powerful implements, which were all divine arms of the Second Tribulation. They handed them over to the other cultivators inside the City Lord��s Office.


    At the same time, he summoned all the top cultivators in Tianyan City and asked them to come to the City Lord��s Office for a meeting.


    Such ponderous news instantly detonated inside Tianyan City.


    Soon, the news came out that during this trip to the Ziwei Segmentum, Tianyan the Great, who was reincarnated through Wang Xiao��s body, was killed. Ziwei the Great had returned to slay Tianyan the Great.


    Tianyan City had lost the protection of the Great Emperor forever, and the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City would no longer have the will of the Great Emperor.


    The ramification of this turn of events was not hard to imagine. Tianyan City��s prestige fell among the Ancient God Clans.


    But this was not the most severe impact they were facing. Based on the armoring strength of Tianyan City, it may still stand at the top of the Divine Prefecture because no one would want to destroy an armoring clan; its value was far too great to ignore.


    Ultimately, the greatest danger stemmed from Ziwei Segmentum��s Ye Futian.


    Back then, when Haotian Clan issued the kill order, Ye Futian had gone to stir up the pot. Now, without the protection from the Great Emperor, what could Tianyan City use to resist Ye Futian, who was an expert at Buddha��s Celerity?


    Just Ye Futian alone was capable of turning Tianyan City upside down.


    What would happen next?


    In the City Lord��s Office, the City Lord of Tianyan began to request help from other Ancient God Clans, trying to fight against Ziwei Segmentum. All the Ancient God Clans had verbally agreed to Tianyan City��s request, but so far, none of them had sent forth any troops.


    Today��s Tianyan City was a land of extreme danger. No one was willing to risk their own lives. They planned to wait and see, for the time being, to see what Ye Futian would do next.


    Outside the main hall of the City Lord��s Office, someone spoke to the City Lord of Tianyan and asked, ��City Lord, should we give up Tianyan City?��


    When those words were heard, everyone looked quite embarrassed. Tianyan City, whose name was known throughout the land of the Divine Prefecture, was scared like a little mouse right now. They were even considering giving up Tianyan City.


    The City Lord of Tianyan shot an icy look at the person who spoke as he responded, ��Don��t you forget the honor of Tianyan City.��


    Tianyan City had stood at the peak for numerous years; it had a glorious past. No matter in which era, Tianyan City, as the number one power for armoring, held a prestigious status. Back then, when they hosted the Armorer Competitions in the Divine Prefecture, all the top forces in the Divine Prefecture had gathered to observe the ceremony. Even Donghuang Imperial Palace had dispatched emissaries to participate, and Princess Donghuang Diyuan appeared in person.


    Now, should they abandon Tianyan City and flee?


    How shameful would it be?


    Furthermore, even if they leave, where could they go? Could they really stay hidden forever?


    ��Since when did the disciples of Wang become such cowards?�� An icy voice came from an ancient palace, attracting the attention of all the cultivators. They saw an elderly figure walking out, exuding a terrifying aura that was even more powerful than that of City Lord of Tianyan.

 Chapter 2651 - Desperation

    Chapter 2651: Desperation


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The elder who spoke was the old City Lord of Tianyan, and he was an old monster-level existence. When he first made his name, Donghuang the Great might not have been born yet.


    After he had handed Tianyan City over to the younger generations, he had been devoting himself to cultivation, trying to break the shackles and enter the imperial realm. However, that step proved too challenging to reach, so he had some ideas about alternative methods. It was a road that had never been taken by anyone else before, so he had been randomly moving about, not knowing whether it would be successful or how many years it might take.


    However, he had never expected that one day, Tianyan City would face a great catastrophe that would require his intervention to help Tianyan City to survive.


    ��Wang Zhan!�� the old City Lord of Tianyan called out to him. Wang Zhan was the name of the current City Lord of Tianyan.


    ��Get the Grand Matrix of Tianyan ready. Even if the old ancestor is no longer, we will kill as many as we can. I haven��t had to do this myself for a very long time.�� The old City Lord��s eyes were full of terrible light, and murderous intent was burning within them.


    ��Yes.�� Wang Zhan took the order and then made all the arrangements.


    The cultivators of Tianyan City had received the news, and cultivators from all sides began to gather in Tianyan City. For a time, an invisible pressure shrouded Tianyan City, making it extremely tense.


    This situation was similar to when the six Ancient God Clans had descended upon Ziwei Segmentum. Only now had the situation had reversed; it was Tianyan City that was facing this tremendous crisis.


    No one had imagined that Tianyan City, once flourishing and prosperous, would have a day like this.


    Time passed little by little, and Tianyan City began to put various countermeasures in place.


    Finally, in the sky above Tianyan City, a group of cultivators descended with horrific coercion as they passed over Tianyan City.


    ��They are here!��


    Within the bounds of Tianyan City, countless cultivators raised their heads to look at the group that had appeared in the sky. Their hearts were beating wildly. Ye Futian and the others had arrived, coming for Tianyan City.


    There were not many of them who came, but everyone was an existence that had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    The man in the lead was Ye Futian.


    They were moving extremely fast, and it did not take long before they appeared in the sky above the City Lord��s Office. The City Lord��s Office was so vast that it was akin to a massive and magnificent golden city, showing a metallic luster under the sun.


    Wang Zhan, the City Lord of Tianyan, looked up at the sky above and saw Ye Futian and the others standing above the City Lord��s Office. A strong murderous intent swept over the city as everyone who stood in the void was full of murder.


    Feeling the aura from them, Wang Zhan��s eyes sharpened. He saw that Ye Futian was flanked on both sides by the Supreme Elder of Ziwei Segmentum, Lord Chen, and Ye Futian��s wife, Hua Jieyu. They were both cultivators who had survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Coupled with Ye Futian��s terrifying strength, there were three peak-level cultivators with the Ziwei Segmentum.


    In addition, some more powerful cultivators had survived the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, like Daoist Monk Mu, Murong Yu, Emperor Xi, Blind Tie, Gu Dongliu, Yang Wuqi, Fang Cun, as well as the mysterious Hua Qingqing, and the Millet Emperor with Wangshen Watchtower in tow.


    Such a powerful group of cultivators instilled great fear in the cultivators�� hearts from the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City, and all of them trembled with fear.


    The makeup of the group in front of them was not something that any one Ancient God Clan could contend with by itself. Even with all the forces summoned by Tianyan City remained something beyond their reach.


    Could there still be any hope for Tianyan City?


    Outside the City Lord��s Office, the hearts of the cultivators from Tianyan City were beating fiercely. This group was too incredible to be believed. Who would have thought that once upon a time Lord Chen was the only cultivator in Ziwei Segmentum who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path? He had been the one person who was able to do anything. Within a hundred years, the Ziwei Segmentum, which was unsealed and inherited by Ye Futian, had become such a powerful force. What fantastic growth this was!


    This was the first time that the Ziwei Segmentum had mobilized so many of its top cultivators. And their first battle was to take place in Tianyan City.


    ��Launch the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix!�� the City Lord gave an icy command, and suddenly, golden divine lights shot out from the City Lord��s Office, heading higher into the sky. Countless divine lights converged and intersected above the firmament like pillars that passed beyond the sky.


    Soon, a boundless and massive divine pattern formed above the firmament, covering the entire Tianyan City Lord��s Office. It was the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix��a most terrifying divine matrix. Inside the City Lord��s Office, all the divine lights were gathering towards the sky as if to temper everything in the world.


    Buzz! The old City Lord��s figure flashed and reappeared high above the sky. His Great Path domain and the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix had merged into one. His whole body was radiant and surrounded by divine light, as it continued to expand until he resembled a mighty god from heaven who could not be denied.


    ��Since you came here to die, don��t bother going back,�� the old City Lord of Tianyan said loudly and clearly so that everyone inside and outside the City Lord��s Office could hear his unmistakably overbearing voice.


    The divine light from the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix had integrated with his body and his Great Path so that one could not be without the other. He was a part of the divine matrix and could directly control it.


    For many years, he had been searching for ways to break through the shackles to become a great emperor. He tried for many years, and in the end, he embarked on the path that used tempering methods to temper himself and made himself a sharp weapon of divine arms. This was where Tianyan the Great had pointed him to, and he had been following his instructions.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at the ancestor of Tianyan City. His expression couldn��t be colder, and the murderous intent remained fervent.


    ��Up!�� the old City Lord spat. And suddenly, from the hidden armory of the City Lord��s Office inside Tianyan City, implements flew out and merged directly into the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix, absorbing the light from the matrix itself. It puffed out an incomparable aura. The entire City Lord��s Office was shrouded in that aura of destruction.


    This kind of strength had pleasantly surprised all the cultivators in the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City enough to wipe out their previous worries and anxiety.


    Their old City Lord was in possession of such terrifying power to control the divine matrix and incorporate other divine arms. What power was this exactly?


    He must have already been at the Second Tribulation Plane. At this level of existence, no one could survive the divine matrix he urged.


    ��You don��t walk the path to heaven but insist on knocking on hell��s door.�� The old City Lord of Tianyan looked down below. His voice was more dominant than ever. ��Even if Tianyan City no longer has a Great Emperor, Tianyan City remains, and it is not something that the likes of you may covet.��


    When his voice fell, the divine arms puffed out incomparable light of the world that aimed directly at Ye Futian and his party.


    Ye Futian held the imperial arms, and it was not missed by the cultivators from Tianyan City; this was an imperial arm that belonged to them initially. However, without the will of the great emperor, Ye Futian couldn��t exert the full power of the imperial arms, and the increase in his power was greatly limited.


    At this moment, wisps of aura poured into the imperial arms. In an instant, the Sky Tremoring released an unparalleled divine glory and emitted an astonishing aura. He raised his head to look at the old City Lord above the firmament and stepped up into the sky. A might figure materialized, a supernatural vision almost like a deity.


    At the same time, an immensely heavy force permeated from the Sky Tremoring in his hand. Ye Futian was not well-versed in the ways of the Sky Tremoring, but he was an expert at the Divine Hammer of the Protector, one of the seven divine methods from Four Corner Village.


    Bang! Ye Futian stepped forward again, and with just a single step, the void vibrated. At the same time, his figure disappeared from where he was.


    When he reappeared again, he was right in front of the old City Lord. Sky Tremoring, the imperial arms blasted down like a god in heaven had unleashed the divine hammer. Its might suppressed this corner of the sky, and heaven and earth were awed into silence.


    The old City Lord��s face quickly changed to one with immense shock. He willed the divine arms inside the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix to slaughter forward with madness. However, like a celestial god descending on earth, Ye Futian shattered every attack simply with the Sky Tremoring as it slammed on the stalwart body of the old City Lord, right onto his chest.


    In an instant, countless destructive shockwaves blasted on him, and the old City Lord��s body exploded and pulverized. His soul and spirit scattered, disappeared in an instant, and died tragically on the spot.


    Before he died, he had not even had a chance to let a scream before he was killed.


    All the cultivators from the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City were stunned as they stared blankly at everything happening in front of them.


    Did he die just like that?


    Their old City Lord, who was invincible and mighty, who had claimed to keep Ye Futian and the others here forever, had died?


    That was it?


    They had gone from the uncertainty to hope, now, to despair once again.


    The old City Lord was killed with one blow. What else could the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City use to contend with Ye Futian?


    ��Kill!�� the City Lord of Tianyan commanded, a horrible look on his face. As soon as his voice fell, the attack from the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix was unleashed, but Ye Futian merely gave it a look before his figure flashed. The Sky Tremoring sent another strike directly at the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix. In an instant, cracks appeared on the divine matrix before it collapsed and shattered.


    Outside the City Lord��s Office, when all the cultivators saw that the divine matrix in front of them had been neutralized, they trembled.


    Where was the old City Lord of Tianyan?


    Ye Futian lowered his head to survey the area below, and the murderous intent was still strong in his cold eyes. The eyes of the City Lord of Tianyan showed hopelessness and a true sense of desperation.


    Ye Futian was holding their imperial arms, the Sky Tremoring, from Tianyan City, which they knew to be unstoppable. Whether it was the old City Lord or the Heaven Tempering Divine Matrix, both were crushed by a single blow.


    Was this the end of Tianyan City?


    ��I can give you anything you want.�� The City Lord of Tianyan looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Although Tianyan City has gone to Ziwei Segmentum several times before, it has never been breached.��


    When these words were spoken, everyone understood that he had given up, knowing that he could never win. He wanted to compromise and submit to Ye Futian.


    ��Kneel down!�� Ye Futian looked down below and said coldly to the City Lord of Tianyan. With this command, the face of the City Lord of Tianyan turned unsightly.


    Asking him to kneel down?


    Inside and outside the City Lord��s Office, the hearts of all the cultivators palpitated.


    Ye Futian was asking the City Lord of Tianyan to kneel.


    The clan lord of the Ancient God Clans, the City Lord of Tianyan City, was humiliated!

 Chapter 2652 - The Death of the First Man in Armoring

    Kneel!


    How could someone with the status of the City Lord of Tianyan kneel before him?


    Wang Zhan raised his head to look at Ye Futian, who was in the void, and there was anger in his eyes. He said coldly, ��I am in charge of the premier armoring principality in the Divine Prefecture. Ye Futian, you are too bold.��


    Ye Futian didn��t bother to respond. He merely glanced at the Tianyan City Lord��s Office below as a mighty figure, like a deity, appeared while raising the Sky Tremoring in his hand.


    The expression on the City Lord of Tianyan changed in a flash. A random roar came out, and the hammer blasted down, right inside the bounds of City Lord��s Office, located behind the City Lord of Tianyan.


    Bang��


    In an instant, many ancient halls inside the vast complex were razed to the ground. Many cultivators in the City Lord��s Office screamed most piteously; some even wailed. Under the terrifying shockwaves, an unknown number of people were cut down on the spot as they were being slaughtered.


    Boom! A monstrous rage erupted from the City Lord of Tianyan. Beside him, many other top figures released the aura of their Great Path as well. Their eyes, too, were full of anger, glowing with a bloody light.


    ��Do you remember that when you left the Heavenly Mandate Realm, you razed the Heavenly Mandate Academy to the ground with one palm strike before you left?�� Ye Futian surveyed the City Lord of Tianyan City below as he remarked coldly, ��Everything you have ��given�� to the Heavenly Mandate Academy, I am returning to you.��


    The City Lord of Tianyan City turned his head to glance back. Other than anger and desperation, there was visible pain in his eyes.


    He remembered the time when he had gone to Heavenly Mandate Academy and asked Ye Futian to use the divine body. Because his request was rejected, he smashed Heavenly Mandate Academy with a strike of his hand. At the time, he would have never imagined that Ye Futian would stand above Tianyan City one day, doing the same thing to the City Lord��s Office in Tianyan.


    At that time, he saw Ye Futian as no more than an insect, and he gave the matter no further thought whatsoever. The destruction of Heavenly Mandate Academy was such a miniscule distraction, and it was barely a thing in the eye of someone who was in charge of the foremost holy land of armoring in the Divine Prefecture.


    Did he have regrets?


    What use did he have of regrets? If he knew what would happen today and that everything he did on that day would lead to the annihilation of Tianyan City, he would have never done it.


    ��Kneel.�� Ye Futian lowered his head to look down. He continued to press the City Lord of Tianyan.


    Crunch! The City Lord of Tianyan clenched his fists, and a horrific aura permeated from him. But even if he was angry, what could he do?


    Today, they were truly heading towards an untenable situation.


    It��s finished! those watching from afar thought to themselves. Everything felt a little unreal to them at this moment. Once, Tianyan City was so prosperous and powerful that everyone thought it would be an eternal holy land that would never perish. After all, It was the premier armoring principality in the Divine Prefecture. How could it ever be destroyed?


    However, right now, Tianyan City Lord��s Office was about to meet its end.


    At this moment, a divine light descended from the sky above, as terrifying auras effused from it. Many people raised their heads to look up there.


    Who was coming?


    Could reinforcements be forthcoming?


    The City Lord of Tianyan also looked yonder and saw that many cultivators had appeared in the sky above, along with those descending divine lights.


    ��Someone from the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��Chief from Domain Chief��s Manor.��


    Among those cultivators who had just arrived, there were cultivators from Donghuang Imperial Palace and the cultivators from Domain Chief��s Manor of Tianyan Domain. The Chief of Domain Chief��s Manor was also among the new arrivals.


    The City Lord of Tianyan had asked them for help before this.


    If it weren��t because he was out of options, the City Lord of Tianyan would not have done any of this. He knew that it was dangerous this time, so he had done everything he could do in advance.


    The question was: could Donghuang Imperial Palace and the Domain Chief��s Manor save the City Lord��s Office from the brink of destruction?


    ��Ye Futian,�� a voice called out. Above the firmament, a cultivator came forth, his body dazzled with divine light and a sharp aura; it was none other than Du You, the Spear Emperor.


    ��This is none of your business!�� Before Du You could say anything more, he was forcibly cut off by Ye Futian. Ye Futian didn��t even bother to look at him. He merely continued, ��This is a private matter between the Ziwei Segmentum and Tianyan City.��


    Du You did not look happy about it, but even he had to admit that this man, once his junior, had grown in leaps and bounds, to a point where he could no longer catch up. Ye Futian had made such impressive improvements, with even more terrifying combat effectiveness. Every time he saw him, Ye Futian had made a great leap in cultivation.


    ��Tianyan City is a principality of the Divine Prefecture, after all. Ye Futian, while in the Divine Prefecture, leave a way out for yourself.�� The Chief of Tianyan Domain Chief��s Manor felt compelled to remind him of this. Not too long ago, Tianyan City had participated in the battle with the Devil World, and Wang Xiao was their star combatant.


    Therefore, Tianyan City had asked them for help. And they could not justify not lending a helping hand in return.


    ��Very well!�� Ye Futian glanced at the Chief of Tianyan Domain Chief��s Manor and replied. The Sky Tremoring in his hand was dazzled with divine light as traces of horrific shockwaves pervaded. He said, ��If anyone thinks they can save Tianyan City Lord��s Office, you may freely make your move.��


    Having said that, he continued to stare at the City Lord of Tianyan, who was below, and said, ��People of Ziwei Imperial Palace, here is your order��kill at will!��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord!�� All of them took the order and moved at the same time towards the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan. Every cultivator was filled with the terrifying aura of the Tribulation Plane.


    Inside the City Lord��s Office in Tianyan City, traces of powerful aura erupted. They had no choice now but to fight.


    The terrifying aura of the Great Path exploded successively as the top cultivators from Tianyan City marched towards the sky toward the oncoming battle.


    ��Humph!�� Lord Chen gave a cold snort and pointed the starry scepter in his hand forward. Suddenly, extremely heavy coercion fell upon the entire City Lord��s Office. A dull sound came from the space, and many felt that they had encountered a power of suppression that simply wouldn��t budge.


    Chen Yi��s body turned into a ray of light, and it was gone in a flash. That ray of light passed through one body after another. In an instant, several cultivators were pierced by the light as their bodies gradually turned into light and disappeared.


    Hua Jieyu moved her mind slightly, and suddenly many felt their bodies were becoming still. Her eyes were cold, infused with murderous intent. Everything that Tianyan City had done to Ye Futian was unforgivable.


    Blind Tie, Fang Cun, and other cultivators went down one after another like tigers that had torn into a flock of sheep. With such an absolute gap in strength, there was no way the cultivators from the City Lord��s Office could stop them. The fight was completely one-sided.


    More frightening was that soon, cultivators in the first Tribulation Plane began falling.


    Ye Futian stood there without moving as if he was just observing the situation. He stood there like a deity, holding the Imperial arms, the Sky Tremoring. Wang Zhan, the City Lord of Tianyan, clearly did not dare to move, as the coercion was hovering right above him.


    As soon as he made a move, it was possible that Ye Futian would retaliate.


    The cultivators from Donghuang Imperial Palace and Tianyan Domain Chief��s Manor, likewise, were watching all that was happening in front of them, and they were not pleased. Ye Futian had ignored them and had gone ahead to clean up Tianyan City Lord��s Office.


    If someone could save the City Lord��s Office, all they needed to do was take direct action. This meant that as soon as they attacked, Ye Futian would join the fight. It didn��t matter to him one way or the other.


    Today, in Tianyan City, the destruction of Tianyan City Lord��s Office seemed to be a foregone conclusion.


    All the cultivators in the area below the City Lord��s Office were feeling quite desperate. They couldn��t see a way out in front of them, only a dead end.


    ��Lord,�� someone called out to him as if still pinning their hopes on the City Lord of Tianyan.


    But what could Wang Zhan do at this moment? He hated the fact that there was nothing he could do.


    Even emissaries from the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture hadn��t been such effective deterrents.


    ��Do you have to exterminate us all?!�� the City Lord of Tianyan looked up at Ye Futian and asked. Although he did not turn his head, everyone��s death surfaced in his mind. Those top cultivators who were the hopes of Tianyan were being finished off one by one.


    ��Kneel!�� Ye Futian lowered his head and looked at the City Lord of Tianyan below. He still had just that one word. That cold and ruthless voice made the City Lord of Tianyan feel cold all over.


    He couldn��t get the answer he wanted; Ye Futian wanted him to submit.


    A feeling of grief and anger surged in his heart, but the people in Tianyan City were still dying, being cut down. It was as if the longer he resisted kneeling, the slaughter would not stop.


    However, what if he did kneel?


    Would Ye Futian then, spare Tianyan City Lord��s Office?


    ��Everything that had happened over the years was my doing. If I kneel, can you let them go?�� the City Lord of Tianyan asked. After all, he did not want the Wang Clan of Tianyan City to end on his watch.


    As for him, he did not think he would come out of this ordeal alive. Judging from Ye Futian��s action, it was impossible that he would be spared.


    Still, Ye Futian continued to stare him down and made no response. He couldn��t get a response from Ye Futian, let alone any promises.


    Wang Zhan realized that he was not in any position to negotiate terms.


    The fate of the entire Tianyan City Lord��s Office was in Ye Futian��s hands. What conditions could they talk about? What could he use to bargain?


    Boom! An astonishing aura erupted from the City Lord of Tianyan, but in the next moment, he knelt on the ground.


    ��Lord!�� For a time, many voices called out to him, and their eyes were fixed on Wang Zhan.


    Inside and outside the City Lord��s Office, countless eyes were fastened on him.


    The Ancient God Clans clan leader, the first man of armoring in all of Divine Prefecture, the City Lord of Tianyan, Wang Zhan, had bent his knees!


    High above the sky, the Chief of Tianyan Domain Chief��s Manor was shocked to his core when he saw what was happening before him. Even though his relationship with Wang Zhan was not particularly chummy, Wang Zhan was a remarkable giant of his generation��a pillar of the Divine Prefecture. Now he was forced to prostrate on the ground against his will, in total and complete humiliation.


    ��That is enough,�� the Chief of Tianyan Domain Chief��s Manor looked at Ye Futian and said.


    ��Let it go,�� Du You also said.


    Ye Futian looked up at them with indifferent eyes. They were still tinged with an undeniable iciness.


    ��Where were you when the Heavenly Mandate Academy was being destroyed? Where were you when Ziwei Segmentum was invaded, and its continents were being broken apart?�� Ye Futian looked at them and said nonchalantly, ��Now, in front of me, you want to act like you are some compassionate being? The City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City is the number one armoring principality in the Divine Prefecture, so the lives of their cultivators are more precious than the others?��


    ��Don��t forget, I, Ye Futian, am the former College Chief of Heavenly Mandate Academy, the overseer of Ziwei Segmentum. Those who had fallen were the ones under my protection.��


    He spoke coldly to the representatives from the Imperial Palace and the Chief of the Tianyan Domain Chief��s Manor. He raised the Sky Tremoring in his hand as his figure flashed and disappeared directly.


    Boom! A loud bang was heard as the Sky Tremoring blasted on top of the City Lord of Tianyan City. Wang Zhan, kneeling, looked up and saw the incoming attack with indescribable despair in his eyes. Then, his body burst into pieces. He knelt there and was crushed to death.


    Wang Zhan, the City Lord of Tianyan, the first man in Armoring in all of the Divine Prefecture, had met his end!

 Chapter 2653 - Desolation

    The City Lord of Tianyan died on his knees!


    There was a dead silence inside the City Lord��s Office. All the fighting had ceased as everyone looked at the place where Wang Zhan had perished. There were cracks on the ground, causing the entire City Lord��s Office to split.


    The faces of everyone in the Wang family were full of despair. Even the people from the Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture could not stop Ye Futian��s slaughter, and no one tried to save them.


    Tianyan City Lord��s Office was left to be slaughtered by the others, without any ability to fight back. Once upon a time, Tianyan City was a flourishing principality that was respected. Anyone from the City Lord��s Office, especially the descendants of the Wang family, was proud and confidant. Wherever they went, they were held in high esteem and admired.


    Who would have thought that a day like this would be possible?


    All because of a cultivator from the Original Realm. Who was the one responsible for this calamity?!


    The cultivators outside the City Lord��s Office were speechless as well. They were witnessing the demise of the City Lord��s Office. The fact remained that the entire Tianyan City was controlled by the City Lord��s Office. The destruction of the City Lord��s Office at this moment was incredibly poignant in its sorrow.


    This also meant that the glory of Tianyan City had disappeared forever.


    From now on, Tianyan City would no longer be the main city of Tianyan Domain and would never return to its former glory.


    The cultivators from the Imperial Palace and the Tianyan Domain Chief��s Manor lowered their heads to look there, coming to the same conclusion in their hearts. No one could have dissuaded Ye Futian from destroying Tianyan City, and no one could stop him. If they had insisted, Ye Futian would probably have no qualms combatting them with the imperial arms. No one here would dare to claim they could counter Ye Futian��s attack with the imperial arms. After all, his strength was already at the peak, and only someone at Fang Ru��s level could even attempt a try.


    Even if there was anger, they could only watch everything happening in front of them. Unfortunately, the Great Emperor had promised not to raise his hand against Ye Futian, or else he could never have acted with such impunity.


    After Ye Futian had executed Wang Zhan, the City Lord of Tianyan, he looked at the cultivators in front of him as he levitated in the sky, surveying the vast City Lord��s Office. He said, ��Uncle Tie, direct the others to collect all the valuable divine arms, armoring methods, and materials in Tianyan City.��


    ��Yes,�� Blind Tie acknowledged. He took several people with him as their divine consciousness moved through the City Lord��s Office and began plundering.


    ��Whoever makes a move will be killed without mercy!�� Ye Futian announced as he glanced at the crowd beneath him. The cultivators inside Tianyan City Lord��s Office had no other choice but to watch everything happening in front of their eyes.


    It��s over! the cultivators outside Tianyan City Lord��s Office secretly exclaimed to themselves. All the treasures and possessions accumulated over the years by Tianyan City Lord��s Office would be all for naught, plundered now by Ye Futian. Indeed, he could not let go of these treasures.


    Previously, some of them still harbored the slightest hope that perhaps they would have a chance to partake in the treasure, but they seemed to be grossly overestimated the situation. Ye Futian wanted to take all of them himself.


    Roars came out one after another, as many buildings were being crushed. The treasure trove inside the City Lord��s Office was excavated. As the premier holy land for armoring in the Divine Prefecture, its resources were rich and bountiful. Now that Ye Futian had established the Armoring Palace in Ziwei Imperial Palace, how could he possibly ignore the resources available in Tianyan City?


    Du You and the others watched all this happen, with extremely terrible expressions on their faces. Tianyan City, as the holy land for armoring in the Divine Prefecture, was part of the Divine Prefecture��s territory. Ye Futian��s act of pillaging seemed to want to clean everything out and take them away.


    ��Ye Futian, you are looting openly here in front of the people from Divine Prefecture; it is unseemly.�� The Chief of the Tianyan Domain Chief��s Manor remarked in a low voice that he disapproved of what Ye Futian was doing.


    Ye Futian glanced at him coldly and said, ��How did the City Lord of Tianyan deal with me in the past, and why did Tianyan City fight against Ziwei so many times? Don��t tell me you have no idea what was the reason behind that.��


    The City Lord of Tianyan wanted to rob him of everything he had��his inherited resources from the Great Emperors and his divine body.


    Now, he was merely treating the opponent in like manner. The winner was the king over the losers. He had achieved what the City Lord of Tianyan could not.


    The Chief of Tianyan Domain had no response. He knew what Ye Futian was saying was true. The motivation behind the repeated attacks geared toward Ye Futian from the Ancient God Clans and other forces was for the resources he possessed. Now, they were tasting the bitter fruits of revenge, which caused the fall of the entire Tianyan City.


    Now, no matter what Ye Futian wanted to do, no one had the right to judge him. All of this was exactly what Tianyan Domain had wanted to do to him.


    More importantly, who could stop Ye Futian even if they disagreed with him?


    After a while, Blind Tie and the others finished collecting and returned to Ye Futian��s side. He said, ��Palace Lord, it has been mostly cleaned up.��


    ��Good,�� Ye Futian nodded. Then he continued to give orders, ��Those cultivators from Tianyan City Lord��s Office who are above the realm of Renhuang, follow me to Ziwei Segmentum. Those who are below the realm of Renhuang will be spared; I advise you not to squander this opportunity.��


    Coercion shrouded the entire Tianyan City. Some of the cultivators in Tianyan City were in total despair, but others were hopeful. At least, Ye Futian had spared those below the realm of Renhuang and seemed to have no plans to kill them. But, what about those above the realm of Renhuang?


    What did Ye Futian want with them in Ziwei Segmentum?


    Of course, they would not be there as guests. When they went to Ziwei Segmentum, they would undoubtedly become Ye Futian��s captives, and their lives were held in the hands of the others. However, could they afford to say no?


    Their lives were held in the hands of other people, and Ye Futian had already been more than gracious, sparing the lives of their descendants and progenies. If they antagonized Ye Futian further, they might put their lives at risk.


    ��I don��t have a lot of time.�� Seeing that no one had responded, Ye Futian continued in an icy tone, causing the cultivators in Tianyan City Lord��s Office to shudder. Then a group of them levitated into the air, all of them were Renhuang level cultivators.


    ��We��ll go with you,�� an old man said. It seemed as if he was the leader of the remaining survivors; his cultivation was at the peak of Renhuang.


    In the preceding battle, cultivators above the realm of Renhuang had already been killed; there were not many of them, to begin with. Once they were targeted by the people from Ziwei Segmentum, there was no way they could survive. Cultivators at that level posed a certain level of threat and could not be spared. Even kept as prisoners, it would be a concern and run a much more significant risk of something going awry in the future.


    With the current power of Ziwei Segmentum, cultivators in the Renhuang Realm were much easier to control. Now the cultivators of the Tribulation Plane in Ziwei Segmentum had formed an amazing group, with even more people at the peak of Renhuang. Many people had stuck at that level.


    Therefore, when brought to Ziwei Segmentum, cultivators at this level could be easily controlled.


    Lord Chen and Blind Tie lead the way forward, and their aura of the Great Path shrouded those Renhuang, controlling them.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said. Then, people left, taking away all the Renhuang in Tianyan City Lord��s Office.


    Countless people in Tianyan City witnessed all this and watched them leave. After a while, the group disappeared from sight.


    Looking back, everyone saw that the Tianyan City Lord��s Office was now in ruins, and they couldn��t help but lament its fate.


    Here, it used to be the most glorious place in all of Tianyan City. For a while, it was so prosperous that it had even overwhelmed the Domain Chief��s Manor in Tianyan Domain.


    In the last Armorer Competition, Tianyan City invited everyone from the Divine Prefecture to observe the ceremony. The Imperial Palace had dispatched emissaries, Donghuang Diyuan arrived in person, and Wang Xiao��s name was known all over the world. At that time, the prestige of Tianyan City had reached its epitome. But it was also on that day that Ye Futian appeared and fought against Wang Xiao.


    It was as if that day was a turning point. From that moment forward, Tianyan City went from its peak to its decline.


    Today, the City Lord of Tianyan and the old City Lord were both slain, and all of their Tribulation Plane cultivators had fallen. Even their Renhuang had been taken away, and everything in Tianyan City Lord��s Office was plundered. Tianyan City Lord��s Office had no value to speak of anymore.


    Some were weeping quietly inside the City Lord��s Office, while some roared in anger. Either way, all anyone could feel was a deep sense of sadness.


    ��City Lord��s Office in Tianyan City is one of the principalities in the Divine Prefecture. The Imperial Palace and the Domain Chief��s Manor are both here. Why don��t you stop him?�� Even at this moment, some fearless young man raised his head to look at the cultivators looming high above the sky. He questioned them in an accusatory tone.


    His eyes were glowing with a bloody light; he was so enraged by anger that he had lost his ability to reason.


    The cultivators of the Imperial Palace and the Domain Chief��s Manor merely lowered their heads and regarded him with pity. They chose not to engage him in his accusations.


    ��It is Tianyan City��s imperial arms that had done the damage; how can we have stopped it?�� one of the men said lightly, and it shut everyone up in the area below. It seemed that it finally dawned on them that it was their imperial arms, the Sky Tremoring, that had spelled their doom��


    If it weren��t for the Sky Tremoring, they would probably still have the power to fight and not be in this miserable predicament.


    So, was all this the fault of their ancestor, Tianyan the Great?


    How sad!


    The Imperial Palace and the Domain Chief��s Manor cultivators also began to go, leaving the desolate City Lord��s Office behind. After they left, the cultivators outside the City Lord��s Office were tempted to venture inside themselves. Some cultivators entered into the City Lord��s Office, wanting to see if there were any other treasures left to be had.


    Items that Ziwei Segmentum didn��t think worthy didn��t mean that they weren��t valuable to others.


    This City Lord��s Office was full of treasures.


    ��What are you guys doing?�� The people inside the City Lord��s Office asked them coldly. At this time, were these men prepared to rob them at their most desperate hours?


    No one paid any heed to their protest, however. Those who would come in here were those who had ideas of their own. Now that Tianyan City was finished, who would care about those who were left behind?


    It was extremely sad to behold.


    Cultivators from the Wang family of the City Lord��s Office watched everything that happened with murderous intent in their eyes. These people were even more hateful than Ye Futian. Tianyan City Lord��s Office was once the ruling principality in Tianyan City, the city��s pride, and the entire Tianyan City was under the command of the City Lord��s Office.


    Now that the City Lord��s Office had been eradicated, these people were so heartless as to participate in the looting! How cruel was this reality?

 Chapter 2654 - Slaves

    The destruction of Tianyan City Lord��s Office shocked the entire Divine Prefecture, and the news quickly spread all over the land. The Ancient God Clans were the first to receive the news. Even after they withdrew from the Ziwei Segmentum, they had been keeping close tabs there. They had a feeling that Ye Futian would start with Tianyan City first.


    After the death of Tianyan the Great, Tianyan City became the only Ancient God Clan without the protection of a Great Emperor��s will. How could Ye Futian miss such an excellent opportunity to take them down?


    Sure enough, they soon receive the news that Tianyan City Lord��s Office was destroyed and Wang Zhan��the City Lord of Tianyan��killed. He had died on his knees. This news greatly alarmed the other Ancient God Clans, becoming even more vigilant. After all, there was a precedent in front of them. If Ye Futian were that strong, sooner or later, he would come to destroy them, just as he did with Tianyan City.


    In addition, after some forces, such as the Domain Chief Manors of both the West Sea Domain and the Donghua Domain, learned of the news, they were greatly troubled. Chief Xihai and Ning Yuan, the Domain Chief of Donghua, knew very well that if it were not because they were directly under the command of Donghuang Imperial Palace, which Ye Futian still heeded, he would have already started in on them.


    Now, there was a sharp sword hanging above all of their heads. This sword may fall at any given time, and they would not have a moment��s peace.


    They heard that when Ye Futian destroyed the Tianyan City Lord��s Office, the people from the Imperial Palace were present but did nothing to stop it. Ye Futian had the imperial arms��the Sky Tremoring��in his possession, so people from the Imperial Palace just watched the City Lord��s Office be destroyed.


    An Ancient God Clan such as Tianyan City was a principality in the land of the Divine Prefecture, the premier armoring force in the Divine Prefecture, and the most powerful force in the Tianyan Domain. Yet it disappeared just like that and became part of the past. It was said that after Ye Futian and the others left, the City Lord��s Office was raided by other cultivators inside Tianyan City. Many cultivators Ye Futian spared were brutally murdered by the people of Tianyan City and met a miserable end.


    The horrific nature and cruelty of men were played out so vividly in Tianyan City.


    They were all believers when things were going well. But in times of need, they chose to pick up the swords and join in the slaughter.


    Many lamented and grieved.


    After this battle, no one did not know of Ye Futian��s name in the land of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��


    All the cultivators at Ziwei Imperial Palace were eagerly waiting for the return of Ye Futian and the others. When they learned of the destruction of Tianyan City Lord��s Office, the people of Ziwei Imperial Palace were extremely excited. The principalities of Tianyan City had moved against them more than once, and twice they had used imperial arms on Ziwei.


    Now they were finally destroyed, and justice had been served.


    In the Imperial Palace, they watched those cultivators from Tianyan City Lord��s Office who had been taken prisoner. Each of them wore cold expressions, and fierce murderous intent raged about them. Those from the Tianyan City Lord��s Office only felt tremendously sorry for themselves. Now, they had indeed fallen into the lion��s den, and there was probably no hope for them, ever.


    ��Uncle Tie, give Lord Chen the divine arms and implements that we have taken from the City Lord��s Office in Tianyan City and have him distribute them among the five palaces and the protectors. Each protector may take a few suitable pieces; the rest can be divided equally among the five palaces as their cultivation resources. The lords of each palace will be in charge of them and may allocate them as they see fit.��


    Ye Futian continued to speak to Blind Tie, ��Also, the resources for armoring that we have taken will be handed over to the Armoring Palace to be at your disposal, including all the armoring methods and materials. I suggest that we build an armory inside Ziwei Imperial Palace and store these items and all the implements and divine arms that we will be making in the future. What do you think?��


    ��Good.�� Blind Tie nodded. Everyone else agreed. Now, they had taken all the resources of Tianyan City, including the method of armoring and various other resources. In the future, the level of armoring in Ziwei Imperial Palace will undoubtedly continue to improve. Conceivably, more and more divine arms and implements would be made, hence the need to build an armory.


    Everything else aside, just the divine arms they had looted this time from Tianyan City Lord��s Office were incredible; they had pretty much transported their entire treasure trove here. However, Ye Futian did not hide them somewhere else. Instead, he wanted them to be divided equally among the five palaces.


    This was the first time they had gone out to seek the destruction of an Ancient God Clan. They couldn��t keep all the treasures and lock them inside the imperial palace. If he wanted to use this event to strengthen his people as a whole and ensure their loyalty to the Ziwei Imperial Palace, he had to do more than talk. At the very least, Ziwei Imperial Palace had to prove its value to the others, or else they had no reason to risk their lives for Ziwei.


    The five palaces each needed their resources. Previously they had the pills he produced, and now they had divine arms at their disposal. Not only did all these items significantly improve their strengths, but they made cultivators from each palace feel that they were part of the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    They shared woes as well as fortune. If any gains were to be had, all of them would partake and benefit together.


    The fact remained that the Ziwei Segmentum was still facing specific threats in the foreseeable future. Although the threat of Tianyan City was eliminated this time and they had obtained the imperial arms, they had paid a great price for their victory. The Ziwei Segmentum had lost Ziwei the Great.


    No one knew what would happen in the future. Therefore, Ye Futian wanted to do the best he could to expand and secure the power of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��In addition, the cultivation in the art of armoring would require Uncle Tie��s attention. In addition to yourself, you will need to select and train up some more outstanding armorers. Those selected from the Ziwei Segmentum can be trained carefully, but,�� Ye Futian paused for a moment before he continued, ��Ziwei Segmentum is connected to the outside world. Therefore, even the people from Ziwei Segmentum cannot be fully trusted. If they are to be trained as part of the core group, they have to be evaluated strictly beforehand and their backgrounds thoroughly checked.��


    Last time, what happened on the battlefield reminded him that he needed to be wary of any spies that might have been implanted inside Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��I understand.�� Naturally, Blind Tie understood the implications.


    ��I can find someone to help you.�� Ye Futian smiled as he thought of an ideal candidate, whose cultivation today was considerably more advanced. Feixue��the daughter of his teacher Qi Xuangang. Feixue possessed terrific abilities.


    Blind Tie nodded.


    ��As for them,�� Ye Futian looked at the Renhuang cultivators who were brought from Tianyan City, ��starting today, all of them will be under the direct command of the Armoring Palace. Those who are good at armoring will be assigned to armoring; those who are not good at armoring will be assigned to assist the building of the armory and all the preparations. In addition, find out what each of them is good at; these are the things worth knowing. I am afraid these matters must be entrusted to Uncle Tie. You will have your work cut out for you shortly.��


    ��Of course,�� Blind Tie nodded. These things were what he had dreamed of. He couldn��t be more pleased about how things had turned out.


    He was now in charge of the Armoring Palace, and Tianyan City Lord��s Office��the target of their retaliation this time��was the number one principality of armoring in the Divine Prefecture. Everything they had taken was related to armoring. Thus it fell naturally under his management in the Ziwei Palace. He could tell that the other lords were quite envious of his good fortune this time.


    How come they were not so lucky to have these kinds of resources showered upon them?


    The Armoring Palace was the latest addition. However, no one expected that the first Ancient God Clan to be annihilated would be a force in armoring.


    This time the Armoring Palace would go through a significant transformation. In the future, its potential was immeasurable. Conceivably, it would continue to grow even more prosperously than the Alchemy Palace.


    ��If you need more manpower, you may have your pick from the Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� Ye Futian continued.


    ��Understood,�� Blind Tie replied before proceeding to take the prisoners away. At the same time, Lord Chen arranged for a lot of people to come help. After all, this time, they had brought over a lot of Renhuang, so they needed to establish reasonable control over them first.


    Although Ye Futian didn��t kill them, he could squeeze all they are worth out of them and have them make divine arms and other implements for the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Afterward, Lord Chen and the others were tasked with cleaning up and distributing the rest of the implements. Although for most cultivators, the power from any implements was limited in the face of absolute power, implements could be used to increase one��s combat effectiveness when the opponents were of the same realm.


    After Ye Futian left them, he planned to retreat again, to make another batch of pills. He wanted to produce another set that would improve the strength of the cultivators who were at the upper-level of the Ziwei Imperial Palace. He felt that time was becoming ever more pressing and that chaos was looming. He must elevate the power of the Ziwei Imperial Palace to the highest possible level.


    Now, just having the imperial arms was far from enough.


    ��


    While Ye Futian and the others were busy working, Haotian Clan of the Divine Prefecture had not been sitting by idly.


    Inside a great hall, the clan lord of the Haotian Clan was sitting cross-legged, surrounded by a dreamy divine light of the Great Path. In front of him, there were elusive phantoms. They were none other than the rulers of several other Ancient God Clans.


    They were meeting and conversing in a peculiar way.


    Tianyan City��s destruction meant that there were only five remaining Ancient God Clan, and all of them could feel the danger hovering above them. Now, it was either for them to destroy Ziwei, or Ziwei would destroy them in return. Clearly, this was an urgent matter that needed to be discussed.


    The point was that Ziwei was not so easy to destroy anymore. Doing so might even bring severe catastrophes upon themselves.


    Everything else aside, just the abilities that Ye Futian derived from the imperial arms and Buddha��s Celerity alone were enough for him to break into any one of their Ancient God Clans. Ye Futian��s ability to come and go as he pleased was enough to cause endless disasters for them.


    Now, they must find a foolproof way to get rid of Ye Futian, once and for all. But so far, they had not been able to come up with any solution!

 Chapter 2655 - Earth Shattering

    Ye Futian did not seek revenge on the other Ancient God Clans for the time being. It was not that they were incapable of annihilating these clans. But now was a time like none other. Ziwei had just lost its protection. Sure he could go to the others�� territories to do whatever he wanted, but they could do the same with the Ziwei Segmentum.


    If it were only the Ziwei Imperial Palace, they retaliated against, that would not have been a problem. But if the six Ancient God Clans decided to attack the Ziwei Segmentum, he would not be able to defend it.


    Therefore, he chose not to make a move for the time being but go into retreat to produce more elixirs and cultivate.


    Today, Ziwei Imperial Palace had a better cultivation environment than any of the Ancient God Clans. Although the will of Ziwei was no more, several imperial stars remained. In addition, there were other Great Emperors upon the territories they were occupying, with high-level elixirs and various cultivation methods that they had obtained. The cultivation methods they had gotten from Taichu Holy Land, the Shen Clan, and Tianyan City were extremely outstanding in cultivation.


    With time, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace continued to grow in strength. Among them, several others continued to experience the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Fang Cun��s father, Fang Huan, had only experienced the tribulation after Fang Cun had done it first. He was once a marvelous existence himself from Four Corner Village, a natural talent with the natural body of the Great Path.


    After Fang Huan, Duo Yu, and Tie Tou both crossed the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Four Corner Village became the place from which the most cultivators had survived the divine tribulations. This had something to do with the characteristics of the village itself. In the past, Four Corner Village, which wanted nothing to do with the world, had given birth to some cultivators who were born with the natural body of the Great Path. With instructions from the teacher and the ideal cultivation conditions provided by the Ziwei Imperial Palace, they could pass through the Divine Tribulation of Great Path one after another.


    Although there were some inherent dangers in the process of the divine tribulation, when these cultivators went through it, they were actually in much stronger condition than Emperor Xi back then. Furthermore, they had powerful weapons, such as the divine arms, so the divine tribulations could not have harmed any of them.


    In addition, Ye Futian��s friends and brothers in the land of the Nine Realms had also stepped onto the peak of Renhuang. The senior brother, Sword Saint, his good friends and brothers like Ye Wuchen, Dou Zhao, Long Chen, disciple Xiao Muyu, and even Feixue had advanced very quickly. After Ye Futian passed on the cultivation method of the Shen Clan to Feixue, she improved even more. After all, the blood of the Shen Clan flowed through her body. The only difference was that she was from the branch of the Shen Clan in the Original Realm.


    But inside Feixue��s body, there was something extraordinary.


    Ye Futian��s demonic beast companion Little Condor and Zi Feng were in love with each other. Although the poor Little Condor had learned all of Ye Futian��s abilities, he still couldn��t beat Zi Feng in a fight. This was all determined by their natural given talent.


    Lord Taixuan and the others who also cultivated in the method of the Taichu reshaped the path of their cultivations, which was then supplemented by elixirs. Now they had also made breakthroughs in their progress.


    The strength of Ziwei Imperial Palace was constantly multiplying.


    However, the number of cultivators in the Second Tribulation Plane had not increased. After all, this realm was more challenging and would take longer. There was no way of telling who would step into that realm first.


    In Ziwei Imperial Palace, Xi Chiyao led a few men and found Ye Futian. She gave Ye Futian a storage ring, and Ye Futian smiled when he checked it, saying, ��Thank you very much.��


    ��It��s not for nothing; you don��t need to demur,�� Xi Chiyao said without a care. Xi Chiyao, who was already in the Tribulation Plane, had an extraordinary temperament. She was noble and proud. It was as if she had descended from an empress.


    Ye Futian smiled. Over the years, his relationship with West Imperial Palace had been working very well. West Imperial Palace collected precious alchemical materials for him from various places in the Divine Prefecture, and he returned the favor by giving them the elixirs he produced. They each had proven their value to the other, so their relationship had been going strong.


    Xi Chiyao herself spent most of her time cultivating inside Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Naturally, Ye Futian understood that this was a win-win situation. Some of the elixirs he gave to West Imperial Palace were top-notch, including elixirs in the Second Tribulation Plane. Although Ye Futian was still at the realm of peak Renhuang, his status was not the same as any other. He was a Renhuang who had survived two divine tribulations, and the sub-divine elixirs that he produced were incredibly pure. However, he didn��t understand the reason behind this strange phenomenon. He figured it must have something to do with his Life Spirit, which was aligned with the most primitive path.


    Therefore, the elixirs that he produced were very effective.


    Over the years, of all the Ancient God Clans in the Divine Prefecture, aside from Tianyan City, the rest of the Ancient God Clans had been getting weaker all along. Only the West Imperial Palace had been secretly expanding its power. He had provided several batches of elixirs to them, but the West Imperial Palace had never revealed anything on the outside, concentrating on strengthening themselves in secret.


    Although Ye Futian had never asked, he knew that West Imperial Palace must have made significant progress by now.


    ��Ziwei Imperial Palace is now adding armoring to alchemy. In the future, you will probably not just be the strongest principality in alchemy but also the premier force in armoring. If you are interested, we can be partners in armoring. West Imperial Palace can provide you with armoring materials, and you can provide us divine arms,�� Xi Chiyao proposed with a smile.


    Ye Futian smiled and looked at her. ��The armoring level of the Armoring Palace is still quite limited, and Uncle Tie has not yet reached the realm he needs to be at. The resources seized from Tianyan City are enough for us for many years to come. Even if the West Imperial Palace provides us with materials, we will not use them right now. If the needs arise in the future, I will ask you.��


    ��It��s a pity, then. We want to deepen our partnership with Ziwei Imperial Palace, but Palace Lord Ye has refused us mercilessly,�� Xi Chiyao joked.


    Ye Futian smiled and shook his head. ��Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace have always been very friendly. Why would Goddess Chiyao think it needs more?��


    ��Of course. More the better.�� Xi Chiyao��s beautiful eyes were now directed at Ye Futian. ��If the old man can have his way, he would rather unite Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace in marriage.��


    Those around Xi Chiyao were stunned when they heard these words. What did she mean by that?


    If Ziwei Imperial Palace were to join West Imperial Palace in marriage, who else could it be but the two of them?


    Ye Futian was stunned as well. He didn��t know quite how to continue the conversation for a while. Xi Chiyao smiled and proceeded, ��Of course, I thought not; that would make it too easy for you.��


    The cultivators behind Xi Chiyao looked at each other, and an old man whispered, ��If the goddess disagrees, why bother telling others?��


    However, he immediately lowered his head and kept quiet after he said it. Indeed, his remark stunned Xi Chiyao momentarily. She slowly turned around and focused her attention on the old man who spoke. Her face was a little red.


    ��You talk too much,�� Xi Chiyao said with temper in her voice. As the goddess, she still needed to keep her dignity.


    ��I am sorry I spoke too fast!�� The old man explained, ��What I meant was that if the goddess doesn��t agree with the idea, there is no need to say it out loud.��


    ������ Xi Chiyao stared at him. She could almost shoot fireballs from her eyes. Was this old b*stard deliberately trying to annoy her?


    If it were not because he was an elder, Xi Chiyao would have already stabbed the old man with her sword.


    ��An alliance through marriage is not impossible,�� Ye Futian piped up. Xi Chiyao, stunned by this unexpected response, turned around and looked at Ye Futian intently with those beautiful eyes of hers. Ye Futian smiled and continued, ��Now, there are many excellent young men at Ziwei Imperial Palace. My disciples, such as Fang Cun, Duo Yu, and Tie Tou, have all survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. If there is someone that Goddess Chiyao or other outstanding ladies from the West Imperial Palace are interested in, I don��t oppose them getting to know each other better.��


    Xi Chiyao was surprised as she stared at Ye Futian for a moment longer, then turned around to leave.


    Several people behind her also looked at Ye Futian with resentment.


    ��Stupid donkey.�� An old man couldn��t hold himself back, ��Either he was dumb, or he was rude.��


    Ye Futian watched them leave and had a look of innocuous confusion on his face. Did he say something wrong?


    ��Master.�� At this moment, a few people came running over this way, and it was his four little disciples.


    Of course, Fang Cun and the others were no longer ��little�� anymore. Out of the four junior protectors of Ziwei Imperial Palace, three had already survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. They were even stronger than the four original great protectors.


    ��You are back,�� Ye Futian commented. After Duo Yu and Tie Tou had both survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, Ye Futian urged them to return to the Village to visit the teacher and give him the news themselves as a sign of respect. The four agreed because the teacher was also their master.


    ��You were gone for a long time; were you studying with the teacher?�� Ye Futian asked curiously.


    Little Ling pinched her mouth and replied, ��The three of them have no minds to study anything, as you know. After they visited the teacher, they slipped away from the Village. Master, guess where they went?��


    ��Where?�� Ye Futian showed a look of curiosity.


    ��Master, guess,�� Little Ling said. In front of Ye Futian, she was still acting like a little girl.


    Ye Futian laughed as he looked at them. There were only so many places they could go in the Shangqing Domain.


    ��Domain Chief��s Manor or Nanhai Family?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Right on.�� Little Ling replied. ��The Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor had summoned all of the major forces to gather at the Domain Chief��s Manor, and these three crashed their party.��


    ��Just simply going to their ��party��?�� Ye Futian pressed teasingly.


    ��Master, it��s a bit more than that. We made some contributions.�� Fang Cun scratched his head, not quite forthcoming.


    ��Tie Tou, you tell me.�� Ye Futian looked at Tie Tou.


    ��We beat up some people and broke some of their stuff.�� Tie Tou hesitated.


    When Ye Futian heard him, he already had a picture in his mind.


    ��The Chief of Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor has been disrespectful to the master, and had several exchanges with the master in confrontations. If it weren��t because of Donghuang Imperial Palace, we would have definitely not spare them of their lives. The same goes for the Nanhai Family, as well as the Muyun family that married into them. Consider their betrayal of the village, we have been more than merciful not cleaning up all these trash,�� Duo Yu added coldly, feeling completely justified.


    Ye Futian glanced at Duo Yu and thought that he had always been the least talkative of the four of them. But Ye Futian knew that this had something to do with his childhood. He grew up without parents and was raised by the village. He had always had low self-esteem and was not the most outspoken. If it weren��t because of Ye Futian who selected him, Duo Yu was fated to live an ordinary life.


    Among the four disciples, Duo Yu might be the one who was most grateful to him, and cared the most about everything that happened to Ye Futian. As a result, he must have hated the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor and the Nanhai Family with a passion.


    ��What was done is done.�� Ye Futian didn��t blame them. He understood the impetus behind his disciples�� motivations. They were just trying to avenge him.


    ��I knew Master would not punish us,�� Fang Cun said with a smile. He was rewarded with a glare from Ye Futian. This guy was the biggest troublemaker of them all.


    Boom�� Just as they were talking, the ground suddenly shook, and the buildings inside Ziwei Imperial Palace were shaking. It was as if a violent earthquake had just occurred. Ye Futian had a suspicious look on his face as his divine consciousness covered the boundless space. But he detected nothing unusual.


    He raised his head to look above the firmament. Was there someone here again?


    His eyes seemed to penetrate the endless void, looking at a place very far away. In the place beyond the heavens, an extremely brilliant divine light seemed to imprint into his eyes.


    What was that outside the Ziwei Segmentum?

 Chapter 2656 - Shocks to the Seven Realms

    A shock from outside the heavens!


    At this moment, everyone in the Ziwei Segmentum could feel this rumble, and their hearts trembled along with it. Were they under attack again?


    By now, there had been a dark cloud hovered over them psychologically.


    However, they soon discovered that it was not an attack after all. They saw the glow above the firmament, which was endlessly radiant. It was terribly far away, and yet they could perceive it. One could imagine just how far and wide this glow��s coverage was and how brilliant the light was.


    Otherwise, they would not have been able to see something so far away.


    What is happening? countless people wondered.


    Ye Futian didn��t know what was happening either. Inside the Ziwei Imperial Palace, many people levitated into the sky as they looked higher into the heavens. All of them appeared surprised.


    ��Palace Lord!��


    ��Master!�� many people called out to Ye Futian.


    ��Come with me to take a look,�� Ye Futian said, and a group of people moved along with him, heading outside the heavens. They were moving fast and shuttled through the void. It didn��t take them long before they were outside of the bounds of the Ziwei Segmentum. The glow had diffused and Illuminated the boundless space, lighting up the space of void outside the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Ye Futian felt a peculiar aura. It seemed as if the space in the void was no longer a void and that the divine light, which continued to spread, seemed intent on illuminating and shrouding over the entire Original Realm.


    ��This���� Ye Futian felt something unusual. It seemed these strange visions were displayed. The Original Realm may be facing some drastic changes that have yet to come.


    Exactly what kind of power could have such an effect on the Original Realm?


    The Original Realm was a broken world resulting from the collapse of the Heavenly Path. It had an endless number of empty spaces. But now, this power seemed to be restoring the Original Realm. What kind of power was capable of such a terrifying effect?


    Ye Futian walked towards the divine light. That area seemed to be expanding towards the Original Realm. The divine light, likewise, was growing as well.


    ��What a strong will of the Great Path!�� Lord Chen exclaimed. That extremely pure atmosphere of the Great Path astonishing even him.


    After a long time, they finally got a clue. The place where the divine light was spreading outward seemed to be a vast expanse of barren land with absolutely no signs of life, a veritable desert.


    In that desert landscape, there was an incomparable will of the Great Path that continued to spread outward, and it seemed to be a different will of the Great Path.


    That barren land was like the land from prehistorical times, primordial and greatly transmuted. Many magnificent buildings were resurrected in that barren land, including some impressive statues. What he saw in front of him greatly impacted Ye Futian��s senses.


    ��What place is this?�� the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace couldn��t help but marvel.


    ��Like a world from before our time,�� someone whispered.


    Many people agreed that the ancient aura seemed to be from long ago.


    ��The tombs of the gods!�� Ye Futian murmured as it finally dawned on him what it was. No wonder he thought that it felt familiar.


    Once upon a time, he had seen it, just that one time.


    That was over a hundred years ago when they were in the Nine Realms. Donghuang Imperial Palace had ordered Empty Imperial Palace to open up the God��s relic so that the premier figures from the Nine Realms may enter. At the time, many people, including Xia Qingyuan, Ye Wuchen, and he had gone inside. There were many opportunities within, which Yaya and Xia Qingyuan had both obtained.


    Finally, when he received the inheritance of the great emperor, his vision seemed to have penetrated the space and saw the tombs of the gods.


    Presumably, it was everything that he was seeing before him.


    God��s Relic, also known as the tombs of the gods, whose entrance seemed to be controlled by Donghuang the Great, was located in the Original Realm.


    Now, the tombs of the gods had reappeared in the world.


    ��The tombs of the gods!�� The cultivators trembled when they heard Ye Futian��s words. Many of them had also heard of such a place before.


    According to legends, when the Heavenly Path collapsed in ancient times, a battle had erupted among all the gods; it was known as the dusk of the gods.


    In that battle, the Heavenly Path collapsed, and the gods perished. Countless years later, the world of today was formed.


    These tombs of the gods were the battleground where the gods fought in ancient times. Was this the place that all the gods were buried?


    ��In ancient times, the eruption of the battles among the gods caused the collapse of the Heavenly Path. The Original Realm was what was left of the former world and became known as the tombs of the gods. However, who was it that sealed off the tombs of the gods?�� someone whispered with much curiosity.


    What was the reason for the battlefield of the gods to be sealed by itself after the Heavenly Path had collapsed, and why was it not a broken world?


    Or rather, had this ancient battlefield been formed all by itself?


    Of course, it was next to impossible to find an honest answer to any of these speculations. However, the appearance of the tombs of the gods had already given them the shock of their lives.


    ��It is possible that this was a well-preserved ancient world,�� Ye Futian whispered. They continued to move in that direction, feeling the atmosphere of the Great Path that spread towards the Original Realm. He guessed that this place might be leftover from ancient times. What was known as the tombs of the gods was the battleground of the gods once upon a time, a primordial world.


    The tombs of the gods and the fall of the gods were just a way of indicating the event��s occurrence.


    ��No wonder its aura of the Great Path was so pure��much purer than the aura of the Great Path in today��s world. If one can cultivate and prove the way here, their Divine Wheel of the Great Path has to be perfect,�� some Renhuang remarked, and Ye Futian nodded in agreement. Back then, when the people from the Nine Realms had entered the God��s relic, it was because they wanted to use the God��s relic to enhance their Renhuang realm, casting the perfect Divine Wheel of the Great Path.


    The Great Path aura is spreading over the entire Original Realm. Perhaps it will shroud the Original Realm again, and the sight of the ancient world may reappear once again in Original Realm? someone wondered. If so, the Original Realm might become THE major world of them all.


    All the major worlds would be coming to compete for a piece of the Original Realm.


    Of course, none of these were the main concerns at the moment. The Original Realm aside, just the reappearance of the tombs of the gods was enough to set the whole world abuzz. An unknown number of cultivators would indeed show up here soon.


    Perhaps, it would be another impending storm of blood and violence.


    At this time, Ye Futian and the others were approaching that area, but many other cultivators were also moving in that direction from different areas inside the Original Realm.


    The appearance of the tomb of the gods had covered the boundless space with endless divine light, which the entire Ziwei Segmentum could see. It was the same at other places as well. Everyone who was cultivating in the Original Realm was rushing toward the direction where the tombs of the gods were located.


    At this time, in the Donghuang Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture, Donghuang the Great opened his eyes and said, ��Let it be known that in the land of the Original Realm, the tombs of the gods have been opened, and tell the eighteen Domain Chief��s Manors to inform cultivators everywhere. At the same time, open up the passageways to the Original Realm so that all the cultivators may go there.��


    This voice resounded throughout Donghuang Imperial Palace, and the vast domain of the imperial palace was trembling because of it. Many people, including top cultivators inside the imperial palace, had come out of their place of cultivation and looked in the direction where the voice was coming from.


    ��You too, go,�� said Donghuang the Great. Everything that happened inside the imperial palace did not escape his attention.


    ��Yes, Your Majesty.�� One voice after another was heard replying as the cultivators of Donghuang Imperial Palace set out on their journey. At the same time, the news quickly traveled to all eighteen Domain Chief��s Manors, then moved on to inform the entire Divine Prefecture.


    And it was not just limited to the Divine Prefecture, but also the other worlds.


    The reappearance of the tombs of the gods had electrified all seven realms!

 Chapter 2657 - All Arrived

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the land of the Original Realm, in the space of the void, a series of stunning light beams appeared in different directions, illuminating the surrounding area.


    Afterward, cultivators came out of those spatial light beams one after another. Those beams were passageways from the other worlds to the Original Realm.


    Numerous mighty cultivators came walking out of these passageways. It was as if great legions of the army had descended upon this place.


    Observing beneath any of these channels, one could see that these channels were no longer closed, as people were pouring out of them continuously��an endless stream of people that had never stopped.


    And it was not just one passageway. Many of them had appeared in the Original Realm.


    Furthermore, these kinds of channels continued to increase in number, with more and more of them appearing with each passing moment.


    Cultivators from all the worlds were coming here.


    Any cultivator who was at the level of Renhuang and above would want to come to take a look-see. As the news spread, those below the realm of Renhuang were also itching to go to the Original Realm, but it was not yet their turn. Or rather, even if they had arrived in the Original Realm, they would not be able to compete for anything.


    On the way to the tombs of the gods, Ye Futian and the others saw that in different directions in the distance, aside from the divine light that continued to spread, splendid spatial passageways were appearing in the Original Realm. These passageways seemed to spread all over the Original Realm and multiply.


    ��They are all here,�� someone next to him commented. Their hearts became greatly unsettled. No one expected that these people would come here so quickly. Before they had a chance, cultivators from the other worlds had already opened up the channels and descended in the Original Realm.


    ��It��s probably an order from the Great Emperor himself,�� Ye Futian said. Without the Great Emperor��s order, cultivators in various worlds would not have reacted so quickly and opened up many spatial channels. Only the order from the Great Emperor and the concerted efforts from all parties could make this possible.


    It seemed that the news here had attracted the attention of all the worlds.


    Finally, they were getting close to the tombs of the gods. The tombs of the gods were not a place of burial, nor was it an entire continent. Much like the Divine Prefecture, it was a barren world formed by a chain of many continental plates��an ancient battleground.


    They could feel a primordial sensation when they stood on this barren land. The Great Path��s aura was vastly different from the ones in the world today.


    Will the Great Path aura of this world cover the entire Original Realm and integrate with the Original Realm? Ye Futian wondered. If this were the case, the Original Realm would become the absolute center and the true main world. It would be the place where people would rush to cultivate once more.


    At that time, the top principalities of the world would likely migrate here, vying for the control of the Original Realm.


    Once again, Ye Futian recalled the Buddhist prophecy that changes between heaven and earth would originate in the Original Realm.


    This prophecy seemed to have far-reaching implications, and its meaning was extraordinary. Could it be that everything that was happening now had been prophesied already?


    ��If this is the ancient battlefield where the gods have fallen, then there may be many other relics from the great emperors on this ancient land that s remain. I don��t know if there is any will of the great emperors that existed on this ancient battlefield,�� Lord Chen whispered. Everyone was greatly impacted by all of the events that were happening in front of them.


    ��The great emperors were incorruptible existences, and even a trace of the will left behind can survive in the world. You can see that just by watching the Ancient God Clans and Ziwei the Great. Therefore, there must be many other wills of the Great Emperors that remained in the tombs of the gods.�� Ye Futian replied, ��However, watch yourselves. Where the ancient imperial battles took place is not a place to trifle with.��


    He had entered inside God��s relic before. After Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture, he would open the door once every 50 years to allow other top figures in the Original Realm to enter it. However, later when the changes took place in the Original Realm, and with the invasion of all the major worlds, the situation in the Original Realm was thrown into disarray. The God��s relic had never been reopened since.


    Until today, when the tombs of the gods reemerged.


    However, in God��s relic, Ye Futian inherited a trace of the will from the Great Emperor and some of the items left behind by the Great Emperors. However, knowing what they know now, it seemed that the relic may have only been a corner on the outskirt of the tombs of the gods.


    The world that appeared in front of them now was the tombs of the gods at their fullest.


    Donghuang the Great, perhaps, had never really opened the door of God��s relic.


    But now, how did the tombs of the gods reappear in the world?


    At this very moment, Ye Futian��s attention was drawn to one direction and saw that a cultivator was passing by. Their appearance was untidy. His messy hair was draped over his shoulders. This cultivator wore ragged clothes. He looked shabby and unkempt. He did not look like some powerful person, yet Ye Futian felt a trace of threat from him.


    This cultivator was very powerful.


    The aura that this man inadvertently revealed was terrifying.


    Lord Chen and others had very keen perceptions, so they were well aware of it. When they looked at that man, all of them detected a sense of threat.


    At this moment, the cultivator turned his attention towards them until he was solely focused on them. Then his eyes zoomed directly on Ye Futian until they locked eyes. Ye Futian saw that the eyes under the messy long hair were extremely profound, dark as night, and unfathomable. However, he could faintly perceive an infinitely majestic aura, which created a sense of coercion in the surrounding areas, demonstrating how dangerous this man was.


    The man did not provoke anyone but disappeared from he was in a flash. He was moving into the distance. He had come here for the tombs of the gods as well.


    ��This man��s cultivation was very strong,�� Lord Chen said in a low voice. ��And it seems that he was not someone from any of the top principalities in the Divine Prefecture. He might be coming from some other world.��


    His outward appearance was so shoddy; it was unlikely that he was an overseer of any top principality.


    ��Could be some old monster who had been avoiding the world and cultivated in retreat,�� Ye Futian said. The world was full of wonders and surprises, and it was not easy for them to die at their level of cultivation. Only a super combat situation could cause the demise of many cultivators.


    But there were bound to be many old monster-level existences who had been hidden away from the world, who rarely made an appearance. Perhaps they had already seen through the mundane things of the world and devoted themselves to cultivating instead.


    Now that the tombs of the gods had reemerged, the world with on fire with this momentous news, and all were attracted to come here. Soon, all types of people, powerful or sinister, would appear.


    Buzz, buzz, buzz! At this moment, a brilliant divine light descended from the sky above, and spatial passageways appeared successively in different places, paving brilliant golden spatial pathways.


    Above that, a group of people walked out one after another and came down the spatial channel. Everyone��s aura was terrifying and incredibly powerful.


    ��Imperial-level principalities.�� Ye Futian watched and knew immediately that this was an Imperial-level force. This explained their ability to directly open the spatial channel so accurately that their cultivators were descending right on top of the tomb of the gods.


    ��Cultivators from the Human Realm!�� Ye Futian looked at those people. Among them were a few that he had seen on the battlefield. They were the cultivators in the Human Realm under the direct rule of the Human Ancestor.


    In another direction, the same thing happened again in the next moment. Brilliant lights of the space opened up the world, and another large group of cultivators arrived. The person in the lead was majestic and extraordinary, whose visage was like that of the Jiutian Goddess. She was none other than Donghuang Diyuan, the daughter of Donghuang the Great. She had led a large number of cultivators from the Imperial Palace here.


    Previously, those who came were from the passageways opened up by various principalities in the Divine Prefecture. Those appearing now were from the channels directly opened by the imperial-level forces.


    In the distance, a terrifying roar was heard that shook the firmament. An incredibly horrific dark light descended and shrouded the space in a dark storm. There, dark passageways appeared, from which came large groups of cultivators. The cultivators from the Dark Court had arrived.


    Then, in the other direction, the passage from the Empty Divine Realm also opened up and descended.


    In yet another position, the blazing light of Buddha was shining, and the Sound of Buddha lingered in the sky. Ancient Buddhas descended and walked out from inside and came to the place above the tombs of the gods.


    ��Only the Devil World is missing,�� Ye Futian whispered. Although the locations where each of the worlds had appeared were far apart, their movement was visible. Even in faraway places, they could still see the spatial channels opening up in different areas.


    Another astonishing voice came out, and a terrible demonic cloud tumbled and roared. Ye Futian looked at a place, and there, demonic might permeated. A demonic ladder appeared, as the great army from the Devil World poured out of it. This time, Yu Sheng would probably show up as well.


    ��All six realms are here.�� Everyone was stunned. This time, it was a much stronger representation than the one at the North Cliff Region in Divine Prefecture. In that battle, many top figures had been absent. The principalities from all sides did not dispatch their best men, but held a few of them back just in case.


    But this time was different. Even without the order from the Great Emperor, these top figures would be coming by themselves, because this time it was the tombs of the gods that was opened. It was the ancient gods of yore, and no longer just the relics from a certain great emperor.


    Boom, boom, boom! The firmament shook and the void quivered. Ye Futian and the others raised their heads to looked in a direction. There, a golden passageway appeared as incomparable golden divine light paved the way, which spread in a downward fashion, descended into the Original Realm. It was such a radiant sight that ushered in powerful cultivators. However, though they had the least number of cultivators among all others, their entrance was no less majestic than any others.


    ��Heaven Realm is here as well,�� a cultivator from the Divine Prefecture commented. The golden passageway signified that it was the cultivators from the Heaven Realm who had descended. They had also opened up the passageway to come to the land of the Original Realm.


    ��Seven Realms!�� When Ye Futian beheld this scene, his heart was quite uneasy. Not long ago, the war at the Divine Prefecture had just subsided. He didn��t expect that the cultivators of all Seven Realms would come out so soon again.


    For several millenniums, this had never happened before!

 Chapter 2658 - All the Emperors

    Ye Futian and his people stood atop the ancient continent. With the cultivators from seven realms descending, no one knew what the future would hold for the Original Realm.


    The armies from the seven realms came down through the passageways, vast and mighty. This time these groups consisted of the topmost cultivators from everywhere. It was simply impossible to imagine just how many powerful cultivators were gathering in one place on this land.


    As they became aware of each other��s presence, many cultivators began scanning different directions, checking people out.


    After a very long time, these seven legions of the army from outside the heavens stepped out of the passageways one after another. Still, those radiant and bright spatial passages did not disappear. In a direction, an even more terrifying coercion pervaded��the passageway of the Dark Court.


    Yonder, an elusive face appeared. It was highly majestic and authoritative, from which an imperial might permeated.


    Afterward, in several other significant directions, astonishing coercions appeared successively. The appearance of the tombs of the gods had enticed imperial-level forces to come here. This channel must be the one opened up by the Great Emperors themselves, suggesting that they had also arrived.


    ��Since you are all here, show yourselves,�� said the elusive face above the passageway of the Dark Court. His voice resounded through the space and high above the countless people below. All the cultivators who had set foot on this ancient continent looked up when they heard him.


    Would the Great Emperors themselves participate?


    If the Great Emperors were to participate, then all they could do was stay on the sidelines and watch.


    A terrifying demonic might pervaded the space on the side of where the passageway from the Devil World was located. Likewise, an elusive visage also appeared, and the Lord of the Dark Court inquired, ��Devil Emperor, you are here as well.��


    ��I��m here to take a look,�� the Devil Emperor responded. Their voices were hollow. It seemed as if they had come from absolutely nowhere.


    ��Does everyone else want to join in?�� the phantom of Donghuang the Great appeared and asked, loud and clear.


    When the Great Emperors dialogued amongst themselves, everyone else could only look up and observe from the side.


    ��Amitabha.�� At this moment, the Light of Buddha was illuminating in the direction of the passageway from the Buddha Realm. A golden Buddha phantom appeared, and it was none other than The Buddha himself who had descended.


    In terms of seniority, Donghuang the Great was the most junior. Amongst all the emperors who were present, he was the youngest. However, he had once sought the teachings of Buddhism, and The Buddha was his teacher. Therefore, Donghuang the Great had a different sentiment towards The Buddha than all Great Emperors.


    Now, even though he was an emperor, he still maintained the proper etiquette.


    The Buddha clasped his hands together and saluted Donghuang the Great.


    ��The Buddha will come with us?�� the Evil Emperor said in a casual voice with a faint sense of wickedness from the side of the Empty Divine Realm. The Lord of All Buddhas had many shapes and forms. Today, what was here was nothing more than a figment of many��not his true form.


    The Buddha also put his hands together and bowed to the Evil Emperor, saying, ��We entered here together many years ago. Now that the ancient relic has reappeared in the world let��s not participate, but leave this opportunity to the younger generation instead.��


    This voice made the hearts of everyone in the space below tremble. As it turned out, all the emperors had already been to the tombs of the gods together many years ago.


    ��I agree with The Buddha,�� Donghuang the Great seconded this sentiment. ��This opportunity should be left to the cultivators of the world.��


    ��How come the Human Ancestor is not here?�� the Evil Emperor asked, looking in the other direction. The Great Emperor of the Human Realm had not yet appeared.


    ��I didn��t think someone would be thinking about me,�� said a voice from outside the passageway of the Human Realm. A figure seemed to manifest at the other end of the spatial passage. He was somewhere very remote, elusive, and unreal. ��The opinions of The Buddha and Donghuang were also the same as mine. This opportunity should be left to the world. Perhaps other great emperors might yet emerge from the world, and we will not be so lonely as we are today.��


    ��Does the Human Ancestor think so?�� There was some suspicion in the Evil Emperor��s questioning voice. It was as if he didn��t entirely trust the honesty of this Great Emperor of the Human Realm.


    The existence of one more Great Emperor in the world would be one more threat to the status of the few that were present. Perhaps, not many of them would be willing to see more Great Emperors come into being.


    ��Of course, it is the long-cherished wish of the Human Realm that the cultivators of the world will become stronger, as they were in the age of the ancient gods,�� the Human Ancestor responded with an outstanding demeanor that was also motivated by awesome righteousness.


    Human Ancestor, as the emperor of the Human Realm, was the oldest among all the emperors today. He had lived and cultivated for a countless number of years. Donghuang the Great was the youngest and the least experienced.


    ��The change of heaven and earth originated in the Original Realm. This prophecy first came from the Buddhist Realm, isn��t it?�� The Devil Emperor spoke, pointing to the prophecy on everyone��s mind. He continued, ��Can I ask The Buddha to clarify this prophecy? Does it refer to the situation we are seeing today?��


    ��Yes and no.�� The Buddha did not appear hostile but responded in a very kind manner. ��The change of heaven and earth in the Original Realm refers to all the changes that occurred in the Original Realm. Now that the tombs of the gods have appeared, naturally, it is part of it. Everything is part of fate.��


    ��How will become of the tombs of the gods? What is the endgame of the changes between heaven and earth? Has The Buddha foresee it?�� the Evil Emperor asked. He seemed to be a little curious. He did not believe in these prophecies from the Buddhists, but it did not mean that he didn��t want an explanation or know what the others had to say about it.


    ��Amitabha.�� The Buddha put his hands together. He chanted the Buddha��s name, saying, ��All things rise and fall according to their karma.��


    ��You bald donkey! Why can��t you say something we understand? Who can understand this stupid riddle?�� the Devil Emperor cursed under his breath and did not bother to be polite.


    The Buddha smiled without saying another word, still clasping his hands together.


    The six Great Emperors chatted together casually like old friends, and the people of the world listened quietly. Many people were quite shaken by it.


    The Great Emperors had been to the tombs of the gods, so they did not intend to interfere this time.


    The change between heaven and earth originated in the Original Realm. This prophecy first came from the Buddhist Realm and was not some frivolous rumor. It was a prophecy acknowledged by the Lord of All Buddhas.


    ��Everything rises and falls according to their karma!��


    What did that mean exactly?


    Ye Futian was also meditating on the meaning of this saying, but he couldn��t quite grasp its significance. What would happen to the future of the Original Realm?


    As of now, no one knew for sure.


    ��Since none of you objected, then let��s agree that we will not interfere with anything that happened here,�� proposed Donghuang the Great. The tomb of the gods appeared, and one could only imagine the kind of chaos that would ensue.


    Even the war at the North Cliff Region in the Divine Prefecture could not be compared to this. And it would be even more chaotic and out of order than the previous war because the cultivators from the same world, or even from the same principality, when faced with the temptation of items left behind by the Great Emperors, would fight against one another and resort to using lethal forces.


    ��Since you don��t have any objections, we don��t either,�� the Evil Emperor replied, as everyone acquiesced. Soon, all the phantoms disappeared from the passageways; it was as if they had never been there in the first place.


    When they disappeared, those spatial passages leading from other worlds to the Divine Prefecture were also closed up. All the cultivators from various imperial-level forces were already sent to this land that reemerged from ancient times.


    None of the emperors would have a hand in whatever happens next.


    This was good news for all the cultivators. If the Great Emperors were to interfere, there would be nothing left for them. However, it may also be interpreted as bad news. If the Great Emperors decided not to interfere, no one knew how many people would perish. Perhaps they would be the ones to fall.


    ��They are gone,�� Ye Futian whispered. In different directions, the seven heavenly armies descended from the firmament, and they had already come onto this ancient continent, appearing in different positions. Cultivators from other places were rushed over, coming from different locations.


    Of course, this ancient continent was growing and expanding, vast and endless. Even if all the cultivators from major worlds were here, everyone could be easily accommodated.


    ��No Great Emperor from Heaven Realm has appeared.�� Ye Futian noticed that Heaven Realm did not have a Great Emperor who appeared to represent it, and the other six Great Emperors did not express any surprise. It seemed as if they all knew what was going on.


    What was going on with the Heaven Realm?


    Was there even a Great Emperor in the Heaven Realm of today?


    However, this was not the time to think about those things; the Heaven Realm was none of his concern. Of course, these were his thoughts at the moment.


    He levitated into the sky and glanced over this continent. He thought that if he could gain a foothold on this ancient continent, then he could forge a space matrix on this continent, which would then led to the Ziwei Segmentum. This way, cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum could easily come here to cultivate.


    ��Let��s go!�� Ye Futian commanded as he moved forward. The other cultivators followed suit and walked into the void.


    On this vast and endless barren wasteland, except for that extremely pure aura of the Great Path, there was only desolation. The whole world was dark yellow in hue, exuding a sense of bleakness.


    They continued forward. Although they were not moving with an incredibly fast speed, they continued to traverse through the space. There was nothing but endless ruins, mountain ranges that were split open, broken earth with dried-up cities, all of which were buried upon this ancient continent.


    Moreover, there were many passageways that had appeared above the firmament, as well as the passageways everywhere outside. However, up until now, they had only seen one other passerby at the very beginning and no one else. This demonstrated the vastness of this continent.


    ��Something is approaching!��


    Someone pointed ahead. In the distance, there was a terrifying aura that approached them, entwined with the storm, coming at them with a frightening momentum.


    Ye Futian��s eyes penetrated the space and looked beyond. He saw that there was a massive thing inside the storm.


    ��I��ll go and see.�� Blind Tie moved forward, leading the way ahead. The storm was getting closer and closer, and Blind Tie accelerated his speed. A massive hammer appeared in his hand; it was a sub-divine arm of the second order.


    Buzz! A gigantic divine condor appeared in the storm, and that golden condor zoomed in on Blind Tie.


    Blind Tie picked up the divines arms and blasted downward. Heaven and earth shook violently, colliding with the golden condor. Blind Tie was knocked back and passed Ye Futian and the others.


    The golden divine condor stopped. His wings spread wide to cover the sky and shelter the sun as the wild wind was blowing hard. There was a terrible aura from his eyes. He held a look of terrible contempt. It was as if he was a proud emperor looking at some tiny insects.


    Ye Futian��s eyes swept toward those arrogant eyes. He thought that a great demon, born from the tombs of the gods, perhaps tinged with the will of the great emperor, accounted for his arrogant posture!

 Chapter 2659 - The Abyss

    In addition to that arrogance, Ye Futian also detected a fierce and violent aura from the opponent��s eyes. It seemed as if he had neither soul nor spirit.


    Ye Futian��s Spiritual Will penetrated through the opponent��s eyes, and a terrible spiritual storm was unleashed towards his opponent. Indeed, he sensed that the soul of the condor was tumultuous, and he could feel an intense lust for blood and brutality from the beast.


    Buzz! As the violent wind blew past them, the condor made a shrill sound and dove towards Ye Futian. His sharp claws slashed down like golden sharp blades that were indestructible. Its immense form greatly oppressed those in the surrounding areas.


    The divine light of the Great Path circled Ye Futian. His figure disappeared from where he was in a flash, then collided with the beast.


    The head-on collision between man and beast was without any fancy moves. Sounds of explosions caused a violent storm around the two, and even the space seemed to be splitting open. Ye Futian��s body of the Great Path was a frightful sight as he unleashed one attack after another, blasting his opponent ceaselessly. However, the condor did not appear to know the meaning of pain, as it continued to slaughter forward.


    However, with Ye Futian��s violent attacks, his opponent��s speed slowed down more. His body gradually became frozen, eroded by the power of Yin. The cold currents of Yin invaded the opponent��s massive torso, weakening the opponent��s body by making it more fragile.


    Finally, Ye Futian blasted a punch onto his opponent��s body; it was like a slash from a sharp sword. Thus, he was able to shatter the condor��s body into bits and pieces, pulverized into nothing.


    In the back, cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace trembled in their hearts when they saw this scene. Such a wild demonic beast was destroyed by Ye Futian, which could only demonstrate the horrific attack power that he was capable of.


    ��What kind of demonic beast was that? It was crazed,�� Lord Chen stepped forward and said in a low voice. He knew just how powerful Ye Futian was. It was quite impressive that this condor could directly engage with Ye Futian like that.


    ��A malefactor conceived in the tombs of the gods can no longer be treated as anything ordinary. That condor has to be a malefactor formed in a chaotic environment. Although he was covered with the aura of the great emperor, it was a confusing mess without reason,�� Ye Futian explained.


    ��However, this also confirms a point. Now that the tombs of the gods have appeared, it is of great benefit for cultivators to cultivate on this ancient land. The expansion of this world will affect the entire Original Realm, strengthening the power of those who cultivate. However, the differentiation will also be more pronounced.��


    ��Mmm.�� Lord Chen nodded. ��The appearance of the tombs of the gods will lead to subsequent battles, which may cause this ancient continent to be divided up. The stronger cultivators will eventually control the best cultivation environment.��


    ��For the Ziwei Segmentum, this is also a huge opportunity for us,�� Ye Futian said. This opportunity was unprecedented; an opportunity brought on by the significant changes between heaven and earth; Ziwei Segmentum needed to get a hold of it.


    The appearance of the tombs of the gods would directly affect the strengths and weaknesses in each world.


    The Great Emperors had promised not to interfere, so only the mortals were left to fight amongst themselves.


    ��Let��s go.�� Ye Futian and his party continued to move forward. It didn��t take long before they came across yet another demonic beast flying through the sky. This demonic beast was equally frightening, formed in a rather peculiar way. It could not be qualified as any specific type of demonic beast. It had a horse��s head with the wings of a condor, which was something that simply did not exist in the world. Perhaps it was something that had been created under special circumstances.


    ��This space seems to have bred a lot of strange alien species. Stay alert and stay together,�� Ye Futian reminded everyone. These alien species had amazing strength. If they encountered the same alien species as the condor previously, it could be very dangerous for them.


    Everyone nodded. They were alarmed by what had just happened.


    No one knew what was on this barren wasteland, so it was best that they did not rush.


    ��What was that sound?��


    Ye Futian stopped, but his divine consciousness continued to reach into the distance. Faintly, he could sense a sound coming this way, and the other cultivators also listened intently. One after another, they heard some kind of sound.


    Ye Futian continued to walk towards where the sound was coming from. As they moved forward, that sound became clearer and clearer. It was not the voice of someone speaking, but an extraordinary sound. It was as if it was coming from a primordial time.


    One could even say that this sound was rather annoying, but they were heading in that direction to find out.


    After a while, they came upon a place, and the ground in front of them had cracked open, and an abyss had formed. This abyss was vast with no bottom in sight. The sound seemed to be coming from within.


    Ye Futian and the others slowed down, and their divine consciousness spread inside, but soon they found themselves blocked. Their divine consciousness was not able to enter inside the abyss. As they approached, a dangerous aura descended upon them, and Ye Futian shuddered. He was becoming terribly alarmed. His keen perception was telling him that this abyss was incredibly dangerous.


    ��None of you move,�� Ye Futian said, telling everyone to stop.


    Everyone nodded and stopped right where they were. Ye Futian walked forward alone and came to the edge of the abyss and looked inside of it. In the depth of that endless abyss, the sound continued to be heard, and there was a mysterious aura. Although their divine consciousness had been blocked from the outside, Ye Futian could faintly see the ruins of palaces down below. It seemed as if the relics from ancient times had been buried there.


    That uncanny sound was a bit scary, like the wailing of some ancient ghosts from the past.


    There was no doubt in his mind that this was a relic of a Great Emperor. It was able to block off his divine consciousness at his realm so that he could not spy inside; even the atmosphere here alone was enough for him to feel the danger lurking within. What else could it be other than the residual power of an imperial force?


    Ahead, Ye Futian saw the old man with messy hair and ragged clothing; he was the mysterious cultivator they had encountered before. He stood above the abyss, surveying the area below with those profound eyes of his. His attention was fixed upon it. However, just like Ye Futian, he was being extremely cautious and did not make any sudden moves.


    Clearly, he also felt its danger.


    The old man glanced in the direction where Ye Futian was. A cold light flashed through those darkened eyes. He said coldly, �� You go down and take a look.��


    Obviously, he preferred to have Ye Futian go down first to see what would happen so that he could observe from the rear.


    Ye Futian glanced at the other man and sensed that the old man��s aura was terrifying. He was, no doubt, a mighty cultivator himself. Only, he intended to use Ye Futian to check out the unknown danger.


    ��If you would like to get down there, be my guest,�� Ye Futian responded, standing there quietly without moving. A touch of cold arrogance flashed across his eyes.


    A terrifying aura permeated from the old man, heading directly towards Ye Futian. A mighty coercion of the Great Path roared as he stared at Ye Futian. ��I��ll say it again, get down there.��


    Ye Futian looked at the other man, and a coldness flashed across his eyes as he replied, ��You don��t seem to get it, and that��s too bad. If you haven��t gone out much recently, you really should so you can see how things are done in the outside world and not act so clueless.��


    Nowadays, even in the Divine Prefecture, not many people dared to speak to him like this.


    Beneath the Great Emperors, perhaps only near-deity existences could overpower Ye Futian. Not to mention he also had divine arms at his disposal.


    At this moment, this old man dared to threaten him so rudely and order him to go down there?


    The old man��s deep-set eyes fixed on Ye Futian, and an overwhelming might shrouded this space. It seemed as if it was now turning into a terrifying domain. Above Ye Futian, a god-like figure appeared, gigantic and boundless, covering this entire domain.


    A large destructive palm print descended from the void and slapped towards Ye Futian. This large palm print covered this corner of the sky. There was a terrifying blue light upon the palm print, capable of shattering everything in its path. Sounds of thunder could be heard faintly as they seemed to explode inside Ye Futian��s ears.


    Ye Futian��s figure remained as still as a giant Buddha appeared. Likewise, he raised his hand and blasted out an astonishing great palm print, colliding with his opponent��s attack. A storm swept through this space, and the power of destruction came down directly from the void, aiming towards the abyss below, blasting upon the relic inside the abyss.


    Bang! With the sounds of explosion, the two palm prints collapsed one after the other. The old man wanted to continue the attack, but at this very moment, his face changed to one with great shock, and he could feel his soul trembling. There was a great sense of fear in his eyes as he propelled himself straight into the firmament, trying to escape.


    Ye Futian also detected an astonishing aura. The powerful threat propelled him to disappear in a flash. At the same moment that he vanished, a shadow, almost unseen by the naked eyes, swooped down in an instant.


    It was a massive hand that stretched out from the abyss, grabbing directly towards the sky, and caught the old man��s body.


    ��No���� The aura of the Great Path erupted frantically upon the old man, and he tried hard to break free. However, the gigantic hand retracted immediately and disappeared in a second. All of this was accomplished almost with just a single thought.


    Ye Futian stood high in the sky and looked down into the abyss. There, that uncanny voice remained, accompanied by shrill screams. This sight made him feel a chill all over his body, and he found that he was actually a little afraid.


    Suppose they went to explore the abyss without forethought, what might have happened?


    It was something simply unimaginable.


    As for that giant hand, what was it?


    That great big hand was gone in a flash, so fast was it that it was almost impossible to detect with the naked eye before the old man was taken away. It happened too quickly.


    ��What happened?�� Behind him, Lord Chen and the others asked. They had not seen anything clearly before the old man was taken away. It was as if he had being caught in the abyss.


    Ye Futian turned around and looked at the others, repeating his previous commands. ��In this tombs of the gods, no one is to act without authorization. Follow me closely. This is an order.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord!�� Lord Chen bowed and nodded. So did everyone else.


    Ye Futian was so vigilant. Clearly, something had alarmed him!

 Chapter 2660 - Broken Sword

    When Ye Futian saw that everyone was taking the situation seriously, he looked towards the abyss once again and decided, ��We will go around!��


    Having said that, he started walking in another direction, unwilling to take any risk.


    In reality, he could have tried to clear the way with the imperial arms and attack the abyss. However, he hesitated to take this route because he was unsure. The gigantic hand that stretched out from the abyss was far too terrifying. If something unpredictable were to happen, they might all die here.


    As his cultivation increased, the responsibilities he shouldered became greater as well. Ye Futian learned to cherish his life and the lives of others more. He would not take unnecessary risks lightly.


    Secondly, he was in awe of the tombs of the gods and respected the legacy left behind by the emperors of yore. He would inherit it if he could, but even if he couldn��t, he did not want to ruin it.


    Their group took a detour instead of crossing over the abyss. They would rather take a long way around rather than take the risk. The creepy sounds from the abyss still tried to attract their attention, like the beckoning of Death itself. If they were giving in to its calling, they could very well be taken into the abyss, never to be seen again.


    They changed the direction they were moving, and after walking for a long distance, they came onto another area. Ye Futian��s divine consciousness scanned over a vast area, and they were looking for any relics of the great emperors as they moved forward.


    The tombs of the gods may be the battleground where the gods once battled. If so, the relics here would be unprecedented.


    ��Sword Will!�� said Ye Futian. He could sense a trace of Sword Will before he moved in another direction. Other cultivators followed closely behind and trailing Ye Futian.


    Other cultivators followed closely behind and trailing Ye Futian.


    Before long, several mountain peaks appeared on this barren wasteland. This area was covered in an extremely strong Sword Will as if it were a Sword Realm. Anyone who approached this side could feel this powerful sword coercion. It was as if they had stepped into the realm of the swords.


    Many of these mountain peaks had been split apart, but they were not destroyed. Looking closely, one could discover that there were sword marks in the middle of the peaks, which were clean. The mountain was opened up but not destroyed, only that astonishing Sword Will remained.


    On the highest mountain peak, there was a broken sword, which had been covered with a thick layer of dust. After countless years of wind and frost, it remained like some plain old broken sword. But Ye Futian perceived that this was the source of the Sword Realm.


    ��The Sword Will seems to be eternal and immortal; it has not dissipated for many years,�� Ye Futian whispered. Clearly, the Sword Will of the Great Emperor was incorruptible.


    They continued to approach this mountainous area, with Ye Futian walking at the very front, and he could feel intense pressure on his body. The cultivators behind him were not as relaxed as Ye Futian. Both Lord Chen and Hua Jieyu were faring relatively well, but the others found it extremely difficult to advance with each step.


    ��The great emperor probably left behind this broken sword, so the Sword Will here is also the Sword Will left behind by the great emperor. You can comprehend and cultivate to see if any of you have a chance to obtain this broken sword.�� Ye Futian said, ��However, don��t force it. If you can��t bear the Sword Will inside, just leave it.��


    This time, many of them had come here, and the appearance of the tombs of the gods attracted all the core cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum. Not just the cultivators of the Tribulation Plane, but also many peak Renhuang figures.


    Here, they could use it for cultivating.


    ��Yes.�� Everyone nodded, then some people began to comprehend right where they were. Others, however, continued to move forward until they were close to the broken sword.


    Ye Futian also continued to move closer. As he got to the proximity of the broken sword, his Sword Will became stronger and stronger. This Sword Will was extremely pure, the purest Sword Will that Ye Futian had ever experienced thus far. It seemed as if it was the swordsmanship itself.


    This extremely pure swordsmanship seemed to possess the power to destroy everything and all Great Paths. Although the sword was broken, the Sword Will remained.


    Ye Futian stood there, his eyes closed, comprehending with a quiet heart. They had come to the tombs of the gods earlier than everyone else. Only a few other imperial-level forces had arrived at about the same time. Other top principalities from the other worlds had traveled from other spatial channels so that they did not meet many other cultivators on their way over.


    However, watching what was happening on this ancient continent, even a broken sword indicated the relic site. If possible, he hoped to seize the opportunity this time to allow all the core figures from the Ziwei Imperial Palace to be baptized by the will of the Great Emperor. In the future, they would all have the chance to move forward.


    The reality was that many people were still subjected to the limitations of their talents. If they were baptized by the emperor��s will, it was possible that some transformations may occur.


    With his eyes closed, Ye Futian comprehended in peace. Soon, he felt a horrific Sword Will that was all-encompassing; even the pressure he was under had increased. It was as if the stronger his perception of Sword Will, the pressure increased accordingly and became even more powerful.


    At this moment, Ye Futian suddenly had a feeling that the broken sword had a life of its own. In his perception, at the top of the mountain, it was no longer just a broken sword that remained but a man sitting quietly as if he was an eternal existence.


    In that powerful and pure Sword Will, Ye Futian felt a power summoning him. As if that sword was waiting for someone to wake it up.


    ��Sword Spirit?��


    Ye Futian��s heart trembled. This sword may have already created its own Sword Spirit, taking the form of the master of the sword and becoming a body of spirit. If this was the case, then this sword could recreate the Sword Spirit within its cultivator.


    However, to find out would mean taking a great risk.


    Ye Futian��s cultivation today was quite considerable, having perfected many powers of the Great Path. He did want to take unnecessary risks. Even if he had incorporated the Sword Spirit as a part of him, it would not do much more than the Life Spirit that he had already possessed.


    However, the Will of this swordsmanship could be used for comprehension, making his own Sword Will even purer.


    Of course, many people behind him were experts of swordsmanship as well, so it would be better if they could cultivate here for some time. The tombs of the gods must have many opportunities, and what he needed to do was take everything that was within his grasp.


    Gu Dongliu, Ye Wuchen, Swordmaster of Lihen, and Yaya were all cultivators of swordsmanship. Except for Gu Dongliu, who had survived the divine tribulation, the other three were already in the peak Renhuang Realm. Now that they had the opportunity to comprehend and cultivate here, it was something not to be missed.


    Even for those who did not cultivate specifically in swordsmanship, the comprehension of the Sword Will from the great emperor could only be beneficial without any downsides.


    In a quiet space, this group of people cultivated peacefully. No sound was heard as the powerful Sword Will enveloped everyone. Time passed without anyone being aware of it. While they were growing here, cultivators from all over the world began to set foot on this ancient land in endless waves.


    This time, the worlds�� cultivators had come from those opened channels.


    However, this was not necessarily the best timing for them. As the number of people on this continent increased, some alien beasts began a violent rampage. Before they had ever seen anything, many cultivators had already perished under the ravage of these alien beasts.


    But there were also super-powerful existences that could contend with alien beasts and even kill them. They were all top figures from each world.


    Finally, other people showed up here, also wanting to experience the Sword Will. Some people came forward, also wishing to comprehend the Sword Will.


    However, at this time, Blind Tie, Fang Cun, and his father Duo Yu, and a few others sauntered to different positions and shut down this space immediately. As the protectors of Ziwei Imperial Palace, they had to step up at times like this.


    These cultivators from the other worlds had never seen Ye Futian or any of his people before, but they could detect a sense of threat from their auras, so they did not dare to act thoughtlessly.


    But as the number of people that gathered had increased, someone piped up, ��In the land of the relic, anyone who comes here may cultivate. What is the meaning of this?��


    ��This place has already been claimed by us. You can go somewhere else,�� Fang Cun said.


    ��Humph.�� Someone snorted coldly. It was a cultivator from the Dark World. A terrifying sense of death emerged from him and surged in the direction of Fang Cun and the others. His pupils were like death, looking straight ahead and turning that area into his domain.


    But at this moment, someone was standing in front of him, and another pair of terrifying eyes were fixed upon him. Those were Duo Yu��s eyes��the Eye of Reincarnation.


    In an instant, many illusions appeared in the opponent��s mind, and a spear implement manifested in Duo Yu��s hand. His figure flashed and disappeared from where he was, and the spear pierced straight towards the other, fast as lightning.


    When this strike manifested, countless shadows of spears and countless illusions appeared in front of the man��s eyes, as he sunk deep within them and became entrapped. That was the effect from the Eye of Reincarnation, as well as the Spear of Reincarnation.


    ��Puh���� A crisp and clear sound came out as the spear implement penetrated directly through his body. A terrifying existence from the Dark World had no time to release his own great power before he was killed on the spot.


    ��Awesome,�� Fang Cun let out a pleased cry. They rarely fought against other people. Last time they caused some ruckus in the Shangqing Domain Chief��s Manor, but they weren��t fighting anyone. Among Ye Futian��s four disciples from Four Corner village, Duo Yu��s cultivation was the most pure.


    This one blow was enough to demonstrate their unparalleled combat effectiveness. Lord Chen and the others couldn��t help but exclaimed and marveled at this display of force.


    The rest of the cultivators were deterred by this strike, and no one dared to step forward.


    ��Whoever dares to enter the territory claimed by Ziwei Segmentum would be killed without exception,�� Fang Cun said coldly, and the hearts of all the cultivators trembled. Although none of them had seen them before, how could they not have heard of the Ziwei Segmentum?


    These people turned around and left without another word, and soon, everyone was gone. This demonstrated just how powerful of a deterrent the Ziwei Segmentum was.


    Fang Cun and the others turned their heads and saw someone walking towards the broken sword on the top of the mountain. His was walking with a slow but determined pace, heading towards him one step at a time.


    ��Wuchen.�� Ye Futian looked at the man, and saw that it was Ye Wuchen. He stepped in the void. Step by step, he was moving towards the broken sword on the top of the mountain, never stopping.


    Gu Dongliu and the Swordmaster of Lihen also walked a few steps forward, a worried look on their faces.


    ��Let him try it,�� Ye Futian said in a low voice. He watched Ye Wuchen, who had already walked in front of the broken sword. His every step was taken with extreme difficulty, and everyone was looking at him.


    Ye Wuchen stretched out his hand and grabbed hold of the broken sword. In an instant, a horrific Sword Will raged upon his body. He let out a scream, but the Sword Will inside him resonated with the broken sword. At the same time, His Sword Spirit appeared, as if a phantom of his person was there, like the soul that was separated from the body, and went towards the broken sword.


    Watching him, Ye Futian��s expression was rather harsh. He didn��t expect that this crazy b*stard would actually respond to the broken sword��s call!

 Chapter 2661 - Integration, Breakthrough

    ��He��s nuts!��


    Lord Chen and the others trembled when they saw Ye Wuchen��s action. This guy was a little too crazy. He had actually responded to the call of the Sword Spirit with his spiritual soul and became one with it. The slightest carelessness could result in the soul being annihilated. If that happened, nothing would be able to save him.


    Hua Jieyu walked over next to Ye Futian and held his hand, and she looked a little nervous. Ye Wuchen was one of the people who had the best relationship with Ye Futian; they had known each other for the longest. Although they did not see each other much recently, their feelings remained strong. For this reason, she was so concerned about Ye Wuchen��s safety.


    Anyone could see that Ye Wuchen was fighting desperately.


    Now that the Ziwei Segmentum had such an ideal environment for cultivation, coupled with top-notch elixirs that could improve their physicality, why would Ye Wuchen fight like this to risk his own life?


    Only Ye Futian understood why Ye Wuchen would do something like this��he had always been this way. Because he was low born, in the land of the Nine States in the Lower Worlds, he could have never imagined that what he achieved today was possible. Therefore, he had to be better than everyone else to level the playing field. Consequently, he fought with his life, time and again, to seize the opportunity of cultivation. His disposition was quite suitable for cultivation, but his natural-born talent had limited him.


    Of course, this was also because he and those around him were far too outstanding. If they had not known each other back then, Ye Wuchen would have moved up on his own, but he would probably never get to his current level of cultivation.


    At this moment, he was holding the broken sword in his hand and was motionless. The Sword Will flowed inside his body and resonated with it. An elusive figure loomed above the broken sword, and it was Ye Wuchen. That was the spiritual soul separated from his body that resonated with the broken sword, wanting to merge one with it.


    When Ye Futian saw the extreme pain in his spiritual soul, he knew what kind of pain Ye Wuchen was suffering at the moment. This was the pain that came from the depth of the soul. The baptism of the spiritual soul by the sword was a perilous ordeal.


    Fang Cun and the others had sealed off the surrounding space so that no one could come inside and disturb Ye Wuchen.


    The Sword Will was flowing inside this space, and Ye Wuchen��s spiritual soul was alternating. Sometimes it seemed elusive, while other times, it seemed more solid. It was as if it might disappear at any moment and vanish in a puff of smoke.


    By now, everyone had stopped cultivating, opting to watch Ye Wuchen instead. Yaya and the swordmaster of Lihen were pretty well shaken up as well. They were both cultivators of swordsmanship, just like Ye Wuchen. Back then, the Swordmaster of Lihen was very impressed by Ye Wuchen and had even lent him a sword.


    Times had changed, and now their cultivation level was the same. However, Ye Wuchen��s character was tougher.


    But such determination was reserved strictly to himself.


    Buzz! A terrifying glow surged above the broken sword, and the Sword Will swept out. The defensive force of the Great Path appeared in front of everyone, but their eyes were still fixed on the distance. Ye Wuchen��s spiritual soul was full of Sword Will, bright and radiant. Even Ye Futian��s spiritual soul felt like it was about to disintegrate.


    However, in the next moment, the Sword Spirit that was about to disintegrate directly turned into countless rays of swordsmanship, which merged with the broken sword. At this moment, the broken sword screamed as if it contained a life of its own. A thunderous and terrifying booming sounded, and the mountains were being torn apart like the scabbard of the broken sword.


    Now, the broken sword was freed from its sheath, suspended in the air, releasing infinite rays of sword light.


    Everything around them seemed to be shattered. Under that extreme Sword Will, a powerful defense of the Great Path was released from Ye Futian. It shrouded all the cultivators behind him as those mountain peaks were pulverized and turned into dust.


    Ye Wuchen stood there like a statue. At this moment, the broken sword directly entered into the center of Ye Wuchen��s brow chakra. Ye Wuchen opened his eyes in the next moment, and a horrific Sword Will shot out from his eyes, much like the sword aurora.


    Afterward, he sat down, cross-legged. The mountain peak was broken as he sat on a suspended boulder, cultivating peacefully, comprehending the swordsmanship.


    ��He did it!�� Ye Futian looked pleasantly surprised. Ye Wuchen had merged with the broken sword and integrated with the Sword Spirit. Now, his Sword Spirit was even more powerful than before.


    Others also looked pleased, and many of them let out cries of joy. No one had any ideas how much improvement Ye Wuchen would achieve.


    At this time, they saw Ye Wuchen throw a couple of pills into his mouth. It was the elixir made by Ye Futian. It seemed that at this critical moment, Ye Wuchen took two Sub-divine elixirs.


    For a moment, a momentous aura surged inside of him as the Sword Will flowed all about him. Suddenly, with him as the center, a powerful sword domain formed. Its aura was incredible and astonishing.


    As he cultivated, an astonishing storm of sword qi took shape around him. Countless auras of the Great Path poured into his body, and they had turned into Sword Will.


    Above the sky, a terrifying aura was conceived, that seemed to possess the power to destroy all things.


    ��Tribulation!��


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened as he looked up into the sky. The aura of destruction above the firmament was getting stronger. It seemed that it was nurturing a terrible tribulation. The power of this tribulation was even greater than most of the others when they experienced their own divine tribulations. Perhaps it was because of the opportunity that he had just encountered, so the power of tribulation was even more frightening because of it.


    ��Get back!�� Ye Futian said. Everyone backed away with great urgency.


    Soon, the destructive light of tribulation descended, causing this space to shudder violently.


    On this ancient continent, many cultivators in the distance were currently looking at the sky above this area. Could it be? Was someone experiencing divine tribulation right now?


    This was probably the first person going through the divine tribulation at the tombs of the gods.


    Some people with powerful cultivation were also rushing over. Could it be that someone had gotten a significant opportunity that could help them break the shackles even more quickly?


    This opportunity must be the inheritance of the imperial level.


    Gradually, more cultivators were gathering in this area, and cultivators from all the worlds arrived in the land of the tombs of the gods. Ye Wuchen��s tribulation had caused a great sensation that had not gone unnoticed.


    Ye Futian scanned the surroundings and found some very powerful characters among them; even the least of them were in the Upper Renhuang Realm. This time, the most powerful people of the seven realms had converged here.


    As the light of tribulation continued to fall, and an even more horrific aura manifested. Above the firmament, a Sword of Catastrophe appeared. The Sword of Catastrophe that was conceived by the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path possessed a terrifying aura that could destroy everything.


    Ye Wuchen looked up at that Sword of Catastrophe. He stood up, and his robe fluttered in the wind as he drifted higher up into the sky.


    Buzz! The ruinous Sword of Catastrophe turned into a light of destruction, falling from the sky above just like white lightning.


    Ye Wuchen didn��t make any evasive moves. Instead, the Sword Will on his body roared, and a sword burst out of nowhere, colliding with the Sword of Catastrophe head-on, not just passively defending himself.


    Bang! Two horrific swords clashed to form a ruinous sword domain, tearing through the space. It was as if everything in the void was about to be wiped out, and even the divine light of destruction had overwhelmed Ye Wuchen��s figure.


    Everyone stared and saw the divine light only dissipated after quite a long time. Someone stood inside, surrounded by divine light. The Sword Will flowed upon his body with an unmatched temperament. It was none other than Ye Wuchen.


    At this moment, the aura on his body was already the aura of the Tribulation Plane. After the divine tribulation, he remained uninjured, still full of vitality.


    Previously, the baptism of the Sword Spirit was a dark moment in which he almost lost his life. But, after he succeeded, his state reached its peak.


    ��The aura of the Great Emperor!��


    All around them, the cultivators directed their gazes toward Ye Wuchen because they could perceive that the Sword Will on him also contained the will of the Great Emperor. Did he receive the divine sword of the emperor? So, he could break through the shackles and elevate his realm.


    High above the sky, divine consciousness, one after another, came and landed on Ye Wuchen unceremoniously. At the tombs of the gods, there was no courtesy or etiquette to speak of. They knew very well that cultivators of all the worlds were gathering here.


    On this ancient barren land, there would be only pillaging, killing, and inheriting. This would be the most ruthless and chaotic situation.


    In the distance, a frightening divine eye penetrated through the space and landed on this side as well. Ye Futian frowned as he raised his eyes to look there. His eyes, too, pierced the void and searched in the distance.


    ��Shenyan Buddha Lord!��


    A cold spark flashed across Ye Futian��s eyes. Shenyan Buddha Lord was physically in a far away place, yet he was also spying on them. Presumably, he had seen the divine tribulation of the Great Path that took place here.


    At this time, an incomparably tyrannical aura of spatial Great Path suddenly appeared in front of Ye Wuchen. A door of space appeared out of nowhere, and a gigantic handprint grabbed Ye Wuchen.


    An undeniable Sword Will surged from Ye Wuchen, and a most radiant and brilliant divine sword manifested, directly blasting at the gigantic handprint that was grabbing for him. The sword found its target and collided with it, a violent roaring sound was heard, and the spatial handprint was pulverized.


    ��Kill!�� Ye Wuchen��s eyes looked ahead, and the divine sword passed directly through the gate of space and zoomed in on the opponent. He wanted to physically get there to battle in person, but he restrained himself when he remembered what Ye Futian said to him. Although he had broken through the realm and obtained the broken sword, the person that he was fighting was an existence of the Second Tribulation Plane. He may not be able to fight against him.


    The spatial gate was closed, but the divine sword had already targeted another area. Ye Wuchen sensed that the divine sword had been blocked by the other.


    In the next moment, a horrible darkness shrouded the boundless space, turning this area into the domain of darkness. This was the absolute darkness, without the slightest trace of light. Even the divine consciousness of the cultivators were greatly restricted.


    This was the power of the Dark Great Path.


    A blast of horrific auras erupted at the same time, and many started to move on Ye Wuchen��s position, even the person who began the strike might have been restricted. Of course, the most dangerous was still that cultivator who had unleashed the domain of darkness.


    Ye Wuchen detected a strong sense of danger. With a turn of his mind, the divine sword was plunged directly in front of him. Suddenly, a terrifying sword domain was created around him. No one was allowed to get near him, and the attacks of the Great Path, likewise, were broken as well.


    But the light seemed to have betrayed his location.


    Many cultivators started to strike without a second thought, but it was precisely at this moment that a blinding light appeared. Somewhere, light had illuminated this entire space, and it was the Way of Light, which caused light to appear.


    Ye Futian glanced at the surrounding area, and saw those cultivators who had moved against Ye Wuchen. Then, he said coldly, ��You are asking for your own death!��


    These people knew that they were cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum, yet they still thought about stealing from Ye Wuchen. Did they think the Ziwei Segmentum could be provoked with impunity?!

 Chapter 2662 - The Guardian Divine Beast

    ��Leave none alive,�� Ye Futian declared in a cold tone.


    As he said this, his divine consciousness enveloped the vast space. It even pierced through the darkness that had surrounded the area around them.


    In an instant, he locked onto a cultivator who was a powerful existence from the Dark World and was at the Two Tribulation Plane.


    The cultivator��s body seemed to penetrate the darkness, attempting to merge with it directly.


    Sky Tremor appeared in Ye Futian��s hand. A terrifying Tremoring Pulse swept out. He swept a cold glance over in the direction of the cultivator as his figure disappeared with a flash. A huge rumbling sound could be heard as Sky Tremor in Ye Futian��s hand smashed down. It did not have a target, nor did it need one.


    An extremely ferocious aura swept out. A dull thud could be heard. A part of the sky immediately shattered.


    Bang. The silhouette that merged into the darkness appeared and coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood. His face was pale, and his aura was extremely weak, as though he was on the brink of death.


    ��Have mercy,�� said the person in a low voice. However, Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the sky above him as he said this. The former seemed to appear instantaneously. Sky Tremor immediately came crashing down. The person had a look of despair. The next moment, his figure disappeared instantly, disintegrating beneath the imperial arm and dying tragically on the spot.


    In other locations, Lord Chen and the others also attacked. Chen Yi was the fastest. He became a beam of light that swept across the space. A Tribulation Plane cultivator was soon pierced by the light and disappeared into a mass of sparks.


    Hua Jieyu, Gu Dongliu, Fang Cun, Duo Yu, and others had powerful combat abilities. Ordinary members of top forces would be no match for them.


    In terms of combat ability, the cultivators among the upper echelons of Ziwei Imperial Palace were on par with the members of emperor-level forces. Their cultivation resources were not inferior to those of the latter.


    How many forces could compare with Ziwei Imperial Palace in terms of resources in the Seven Realms?


    They had ritual implements, elixirs, emperor-level teachings, and top-level martial arts techniques. They were not lacking in any department. Only emperor-level forces could compare. Even the Ancient God Clans were not on the same level as them.


    Everyone present was an extraordinary cultivator. However, in a very short amount of time, the cultivators who attacked just now were killed off one by one. This caused the hearts of the remaining members to tremble. They frenziedly retreated backward, attempting to escape this place.


    Although they had heard of the Ziwei Segmentum, they still tempted fate. They coveted emperor-level ritual implements. After all, Ye Wuchen most likely obtained one. Yet, who would have thought that these people were so terrifying?


    Ye Futian was incredibly terrifying. While wielding Sky Tremor, he was unstoppable. With a swing of the hammer, a giant-level figure from the Dark World was sent flying out of the darkness. Ye Futian did not use too much force to keep his swing as stealthy as possible. Hence, he had swung a second time. Otherwise, the other party would have undoubtedly died after his first swing.


    After killing the cultivators who emerged from the darkness, the frightening pair of Divine Eyes disappeared into the space. Clearly, Shenyan Buddha Lord was no longer observing this place. Currently, it was not wise to offend Ye Futian. Even the former did not dare to do so casually.


    With his Divine Eyes, he could investigate many relics and see more things than others did. In this tomb of the gods, he would undoubtedly reap more significant benefits, so there was no urgency.


    One by one, the powerful divine consciousnesses also retreated. They were cautious of Ye Futian. After catching a glimpse, they immediately decided to retract their consciousnesses.


    Ye Futian sensed all of this. He did not pay them to heed.


    He had a vendetta against Shenyan Buddha Lord. Nevertheless, the Buddhist forces had been kind to him. He would not touch Shenyan Buddha Lord for now. However, if the latter were to come and bother him, he would not hold back.


    Ye Futian could let Shenyan Buddha Lord and those observing go, but he would kill the cultivators who attacked Ye Wuchen just now.


    He also knew that this ancient continent was full of plundering and massacres. He would not show an ounce of mercy to his enemies.


    Taking a step forward, he walked towards Ye Wuchen. He then glanced up ahead. A terrifying spatial Tremoring Pulse appeared. Shaking Doors of Space seemed and immediately linked over to a distant space.


    He also knew how to do this.


    Just now, when the other party utilized the Doors of Space to send out long-range attacks, Ye Futian also used Telekinesis to pinpoint their location. Did the other party plan to escape after attacking him? He wouldn��t just let them do so.


    The Doors of Space connected the two spaces. At the other end of the doors, a cultivator suddenly turned around to check what had happened. Through the doors, Ye Futian and the cultivator could see each other.


    The facial expression of the cultivator turned extremely ugly immediately.


    There were many people on the cultivator��s side. An entire faction was there.


    Ye Futian lifted Sky Tremor in his hand. The person��s facial expression changed drastically. The next moment, Sky Tremor smashed the Doors of Space. A terrifying Tremoring Pulse immediately penetrated the Doors of Space and crashed to the other side.


    This was Sky Tremor. After destroying the Tianyan City Lord Office, everything owned by the former belonged to Ziwei Imperial Palace. That naturally included the Divine Technique��Sky Tremoring Hammer.


    The Divine Technique Sky Tremoring Hammer was initially created for Sky Tremor. The art complemented the imperial arm.


    On the other side of the Doors of Space, everyone had surprised looks. They wanted to escape with the power of Space, but Sky Tremor��s attack descended upon them and shattered the space directly. Terrifying rumbling sounds could be heard. All of them were killed by the shockwaves and perished.


    The Doors of Space that opened were similarly turned to dust.


    Many people witnessed this scene. They all felt shivers down their spines. This fellow was too terrifying. In the future, if they ever came across a cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace, it was best to avoid them. They were too dangerous.


    Even Lord Chen and the others were speechless. This was ruthless. If they were Ye Futian��s enemies, this was practically a nightmare. As expected, those who attacked Ye Wuchen had sought their own deaths.


    The battlefield was very quickly cleared out. All those who had wanted to pillage and plunder were killed off. None of them escaped. All of them had been killed off without exception.


    ��How do you feel?�� Ye Futian put Sky Tremor away and initiated a conversation with Ye Wuchen, who had just broken through to the next plane. It was as though the massacre had never happened.


    Ye Futian and Ye Wuchen had experienced many hardships since the beginning of their journey from the Nine States. Now, Ye Wuchen had finally broken through the shackles of the Renhuang Plane and had come to this stage too. Ye Futian was naturally very happy for his friend.


    ��There is no end to the profundity of swordsmanship,�� Ye Wuchen replied as he looked at Ye Futian. From the looks of it, he was not satisfied with his achievement of breaking through to the next plane. Instead, he felt that he was still weak after experiencing the profundity of swordsmanship through the Sword Will left behind by the Great Emperor.


    The day he could eliminate the Sword Will contained in the sword was perhaps the day he mastered swordsmanship.


    ��In that case, seek the end of swordsmanship,�� Ye Futian advised. ��Perhaps one day, you will be the definition of the end of swordsmanship.��


    ��I still have a long way to go,�� Ye Wuchen said.


    ��Paths are made by walking,�� Ye Futian responded. He hoped that one day, he and all his friends would be the ones who stood at the end of the path and the absolute pinnacle.


    The group once again embarked on their journey and continued their exploration. The surroundings were less barren. This ancient continent might have regained a bit of liveliness due to the arrival of various cultivators.


    However, the bleak ambience remained. Ye Futian could sense that wars were happening in different locations.


    ��The commotion over there seems to be the loudest,�� Lord Chen said as he pointed in a direction. Ye Futian nodded in agreement and said, ��Let��s go and take a look.��


    The group accelerated in that direction. A moment later, they were shocked by the scene before them. In different corners of the space, powerful cultivators stood guard. There were many other people around. They were observing the scene with serious expressions. Their eyes were fixed on the creature in front of them.


    A terrifying gale stirred, and the dust danced in the wind. There was a gigantic creature flapping its wings in the sky. A casual movement from the beast was enough to cause a menacing storm.


    The beast seemed to be a divine roc from ancient times. Its eyes were huge, and it emanated a savage aura. It faced all the cultivators head-on and fought against various cultivators alone. It would not step away and be determined to protect the palace behind it.


    A dilapidated divine palace was behind the gigantic beast half-buried in the sand. It was covered by sand, but one could still faintly make out its silhouette. It was majestic and appeared timeless in this ancient land.


    ��This beast is different from other beasts we have encountered before. It has sentience and consciousness,�� said Gu Dongliu in a low voice. Ye Futian and the rest nodded in agreement. For such a terrifying and sentient demonic creature to stand guard here, there was surely something extraordinary hidden in the palace. No wonder so many cultivators had gathered here and intended to explore the place.


    However, up until this moment, nobody had broken through the defense of this ancient beast. All of them were forced to stop here. Many cultivators had even perished!

 Chapter 2663 - Ancient Divine Roc

    Buzz. Right then, a terrifying aura appeared in the sky above. Many people looked up and saw that an astonishing matrix appeared above the divine roc. Countless beams of destructive divine light rained down. They were like turquoise death lights of catastrophe from the underworld.


    At the center of the matrix, there stood an extremely powerful cultivator. Turquoise light emanated from his gaze, and it appeared very bizarre.


    ��Step aside,�� he said in an icy tone as he looked down below. As he said this, the divine tribulation of the underworld rained down and crashed onto the gigantic figure of the divine roc. To protect the relic behind it, the divine roc could not evade, nor did it attempt to do so.


    The cold divine tribulation of the underworld rampaged over its figure, attempting to erode its flesh. Yet, the divine roc��s defenses were peerless. Even such a powerful destructive attack could not penetrate its body. Its body seemed to have reached the pinnacle of cultivation.


    With a long screech, the divine roc spread its wings. As its wings unfolded, huge, fierce waves swept up, causing the vast region to be engulfed in storms. Its wings slashed up into the air. Each of its dark feathers glistened with a cold light. They were as sharp as menacing divine arms. They directly slashed towards the matrix.


    In an instant, the matrix that contained destructive power was torn apart. At the same time, countless blades slashed towards the cultivator, attempting to overwhelm him.


    The cultivator evaded the attack at a blistering speed as he headed higher up. However, the sky suddenly turned dark. The divine roc��s gigantic wings blocked the sun as they swept towards the cultivator.


    His face changed drastically as his figure quickly dodged. However, he was still swept away by the wings. He was sent flying outwards. His figure was torn to shreds, and blood splattered everywhere as he let out a pitiful cry. The scene was horrifying.


    It was so powerful! The hearts of the various cultivators throbbed as they witnessed this scene. The defense of its flesh was peerless, and its attacks were highly terrifying.


    The attacks of the various cultivators could barely harm it. However, a single attack from the divine roc could cost them their lives.


    The person who attacked was a Two Tribulation Plane cultivator. Yet, he still ended up in such a sorry state. He was dismembered and was crippled. Recovering from such injuries would most likely be no easy feat. Within this land of relics, his survivability was already questionable.


    Even more cultivators gathered over here. Many of them were top figures from various forces. They stood in different locations. Someone stared at the divine roc and said, ��Roc, you are the guardian of the relic. After countless years, the place has now opened. Why don��t you go your own way and allow the people to inherit the teachings? That way, the relic will have an heir.��


    Since it was difficult to seize the relic by force, someone tried to convince the divine roc to step aside. However, the divine roc was intelligent. It swept a fierce gaze at the person who had spoken. It had an air of contempt and seemed dismissive. It appeared haughty, as though it looked down on the cultivators here today.


    Its body was similarly tainted with the aura of a Great Emperor. It had been here in the tomb of the gods for countless eons. This point was indisputable. Monsters who could survive here would have some aura on them.


    ��Now, the world has changed. The cultivators of the world are united. Even if you are powerful, you cannot stand guard here forever. Things are bound to happen. Why bother going through all that?�� someone else spoke, trying to coerce the divine roc.


    The divine roc still gave the other party a condescending look. At that moment, its mouth opened, and it spoke human speech. It said, ��Countless years have passed, and now the cultivation world has deteriorated to such a state. Cultivators are trying to win teachings with words. After the End of the Gods, their previous glory has never been reached again.��


    Its voice sounded ancient. This was the first time the divine roc opened its mouth, and its words were laced in condescension. The ancient world where the various Emperors competed to outshine one another during the Age of the Gods was the actual grand world.


    Countless eons had passed, and the cultivators of today did not have the ability to seize the teachings. Instead, they wanted to try and persuade the divine roc with words. Hence, it felt that this was a mockery to it.


    When the various cultivators heard the words of the divine roc, their hearts trembled. It turned out that the divine roc not only retained its intelligence, it even possessed its memories of experiencing the glory of the Age of the Gods.


    ��Whoever defeats or kills me will naturally be able to obtain the relic,�� declared the divine roc as it looked towards the various cultivators. An overbearing aura emanated from its gaze.


    They could either defeat it or kill it. Either way was acceptable.


    After such a long time, it had grown lonely. If it weren��t for the fact it was tasked with guarding this relic, it would have long joined its master.


    Bang. Right then, a terrifying demonic phantasm appeared. Demonic might roared and churned over its body as it stepped out towards the divine roc. With every step he took, the space trembled violently. Many people even felt their blood churning inside of them.


    Suddenly, his figure sped up and became a menacing bolt of dark lightning that dashed straight towards the divine roc. A punch came crashing out. As the fist will burst forth, a menacing demonic phantasm appeared. It sent out an oppressive force that penetrated the space.


    The divine roc swept an indifferent glance at the demonic apparition as its sharp talons slashed forward. Its jet-black talons were not only sharp, but they were also heavy. They blocked out the sky and seemed to directly shear the space apart.


    The gigantic divine roc and the demonic phantasm collided with each other. The sound of a horrifying collision could be heard. The demonic phantasm was instantly shattered. The demonic fist also crumbled. However, the talons continued to slash forward, landing on the other party��s figure.


    The demonic cultivator immediately became a beam of crimson light that whisked away and disappeared from its original spot. The terrifying talons were unable to rip his figure apart. Many people looked behind them. The demonic cultivator��s blood was churning. The injuries he suffered were not minor.


    ��Power. This is absolute power,�� many people exclaimed. This ancient divine roc had no weaknesses. Its defense and attack were unrivaled. How could they battle against it?


    Even if the various cultivators joined forces, it would be difficult to harm the latter.


    Ye Futian stepped forward and came up to the divine roc right then. The latter glanced down at him. It still did not seem to pay him any heed.


    ��Senior, could you give me this relic?�� asked Ye Futian. The divine roc looked at him in disdain. However, right then, Sky Tremor in Ye Futian��s hand emanated the emperor��s might. This caused the hearts of the surrounding cultivators to tremble as they stared at the imperial arm in his hand.


    The divine roc similarly glanced at the imperial arm. It looked at Ye Futian with a cold and arrogant gaze in its huge eyes. It said, ��Are you threatening me with an imperial arm? If you believe this is a shortcut, you are mistaken.��


    When Ye Futian heard the other party��s words, he revealed a strange look. Could it be that the divine roc could even handle him while he wielded an imperial arm?


    Terrifying Tremoring Pulses emanated outwards as he lifted up Sky Tremor. At the same time, behind the divine roc, divine light suddenly emanated from the ancient relic and enveloped the body of the divine roc.


    In an instant, the powerful divine roc seemed to be clad in the armor of a Great Emperor. Divine light circled it. The light seemed to contain the might and pressure of a Great Emperor.


    Thump. Thump. Thump. The crowd felt their hearts throbbing non-stop. The might was suffocating. Even the eyes of the divine roc contained the divine light of a Great Emperor. It swept a gaze at Ye Futian. The pressure it exerted was terrifying.


    ��I am just joking with you, Senior,�� Ye Futian said with a smile as he shrugged. Then, he put Sky Tremor away. The surrounding people were shocked. He could do that?


    Was he joking?


    The divine roc gave Ye Futian a cold stare and did not pay him further heed. The divine light on its body immediately receded and vanished very quickly. It did not seem to mind Ye Futian. Regardless of whether one relied on an imperial arm, it was fine as long as they could defeat it.


    Buzz. Before the divine roc could react, Ye Futian��s figure disappeared. Its eyes were opened wide as it stared ahead. However, a voice came from above it.


    ��Apologies in advance,�� the voice said.


    As these words were uttered, a terrifying fist will landed on the back of the divine roc. This absolute power immediately penetrated the powerful defenses of the divine roc. It caused its innards to shake violently, and its gigantic body was pushed down.


    Almost at the same instance, its wings swept out. However, Ye Futian was no longer where he was.


    When Ye Futian appeared again, he was diagonally above the divine roc. He looked down at the divine roc and said, ��Senior, I am proficient in divine techniques. I am undefeatable in battle. You are at somewhat of a disadvantage against me. Why don��t you just let me in?��


    The divine roc stabilized itself as it looked up at Ye Futian. There was a look of rage in its gigantic eyes. It was actually being toyed with by him. Just now, he had also taken out his imperial arm to tease it. Was Ye Futian trying to scare it off?


    Ye Futian��s attacks also could harm it. He was more powerful than the other people around here. Hence, aside from rage, the divine roc was also somewhat excited.


    ��Is that so?�� challenged the divine roc arrogantly. As it said this, its feathers seemed to become barbs. They were like countless sharp blades. At the same time, jet-black light enveloped its body. An astonishing hurricane appeared, causing the space to tremble violently.


    Buzz. Ferocious winds swept past. Many people could not stabilize themselves. Cultivators with insufficiently powerful cultivation were even swept up by the storm. The gigantic divine roc immediately disappeared from its spot. It became a jet-black beam of flowing light that directly charged towards Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian��s figure also disappeared and appeared elsewhere.


    ��Senior, you are very fast,�� praised Ye Futian. With such a gigantic figure, the divine roc actually had such terrifyingly fast movements.


    The surrounding cultivators were also astonished. The roc was considered peerless in terms of speed. This roc was a divine roc from ancient times and its figure was gigantic. Nevertheless, this did not hinder its terrifying speed!

 Chapter 2664 - The New Replaces The Old

    In the sky above, the divine roc fixed its gaze on Ye Futian as it said, ��Your movement techniques are mysterious. You are not only relying on speed. However, if you plan to continue dodging my attacks using your movement techniques, perish your thoughts of entering the relic.��


    With a flash, it returned to its original spot. This caused the cultivators who had their eyes fixed on the relic after it left to feel threatened.


    Its gigantic body stood guard in front of the dilapidated relic. It seemed like no one could set their foot in the relic as long as the beast was there.


    Ye Futian drifted towards the relic and appeared in front of the divine roc once again. He said, ��My movement techniques are part of my abilities as well, aren��t they?��


    ��If it weren��t for the fact that I��m restricted in terms of the distance I can travel, you would be no match for me when it comes to movement techniques,�� the divine roc said arrogantly as it swept a glance at Ye Futian. During its heyday, it was unrivaled among the peers of the same plane in terms of its speed.


    Ye Futian smiled and replied, ��Since Senior is also aware that you are restricted here, why don��t you put down your burden and allow me to inherit the teachings in the relic? After that, you can follow me, and we can cultivate together. Isn��t that a win-win situation for both of us?��


    The divine roc was stunned as it stared at Ye Futian. Then, a menacing aura burst forth from its body.


    ��Follow you? You speak so presumptuously,�� admonished the divine roc with its croaky voice. It glared at Ye Futian as it said, ��It looks like my temper has mellowed as I aged. A youth actually dares to act so brazenly in front of me.��


    As the divine roc said this, it opened its mouth with its head facing upwards and sucked in a mouthful of air. A terrifying gale was immediately stirred up as the vast space warped. The currents of the Great Path surged into its mouth frenziedly. The storm seemed capable of engulfing all the powers of the Great Path.


    The surrounding cultivators had a hard time maintaining their balance. Some Renhuangs were directly sent flying by the gale and were swept towards the mouth of the divine roc.


    One by one, the Renhuangs were swallowed by the enormous divine roc before they could even react.


    ��Be careful!�� someone exclaimed. The facial expressions of many cultivators changed drastically. Let alone Renhuangs; even Tribulation Plane cultivators could not withstand the gale. Some cultivators who had undergone Two Divine Tribulations of the Great Path could not withstand the Power of Devouring and were swept towards the divine roc.


    At the location where the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were, Lord Chen responded to this menacing gale right away. He enveloped all the cultivators with his powerful Celestial Way, preventing the Power of Devouring from sucking them away.


    However, the storm grew more and more menacing. The Power of Devouring forbade the existence of all the other powers of the Great Path in this vast space. Everything would eventually be consumed by it.


    Ye Futian faced the strongest Power of Devouring. It was because the divine roc unleashed this terrifying power with him as the target, to begin with. However, he remained standing steadfast amidst the raging storm. He was not shaken. His gaze was fixed on the divine roc before him.


    Nevertheless, he similarly felt a terrifying might pressing down on him. This overwhelming storm restricted his powers of the Great Path.


    Buzz.


    Right now, instead of retreating, Ye Futian charged towards the divine roc. Riding on the current of the gale, he shot himself straight into the mouth of the divine roc. At the same time, the divine light of the Great Path flowed over his body, transforming it into an awe-inspiring divine body. An unparalleled Sword Will moved around him. At this moment, it was as though he had turned into a divine sword that moved along with the current.


    One by one, divine swords materialized amidst the howling storm. Each and every sword contained shocking divine light and was ready to penetrate the body of divine roc.


    The divine roc narrowed its eyes. It exhaled and vomited out all the cultivators whom it had swallowed. Furthermore, the gale switched directions and pushed Ye Futian back to his original spot. The divine roc stared at the Sword Will, which continued to flow around Ye Futian. Obviously, the divine roc was cautious and did not dare swallow Ye Futian whole.


    Ye Futian suggested, ��Senior, since you think I am dodging all your attacks with my movement techniques, why don��t we face each other head-on?��


    ��We can as long as you are bold enough to try,�� the divine roc responded.


    Ye Futian put his hands together, and the Light of Buddha spread far and wide, enveloping the vast space. In the heavens above, silhouettes of Buddhas appeared and covered the entire domain. Above Ye Futian��s figure, a gigantic ancient Buddha enveloped him.


    The massive ancient Buddha��s silhouette rose into the air and turned around. It was as though it was lying down in the sky, facing the divine roc beneath it.


    An extremely powerful pressure swept down. The Light of Buddha descended, and the Buddhist Voice circled the ancient Buddha. The Six Syllables of Truth reverberated throughout the space. The ancient Buddha��s silhouette grew larger until it was as large as the divine roc. It blocked out the sun and covered the sky.


    Right then, Ye Futian extended his hand and slammed his palm down. The huge Buddha also did the same. The gigantic palm slammed down. In the surrounding space, the various Buddhas sent out giant Buddhist Palms simultaneously.


    For a moment, the heavens resonated, and the tens of thousands of Buddhas acted as one.


    ��All Heaven Buddha��s Seal!�� Ye Futian cried out.


    The domineering attack technique came crashing down. It contained unparalleled power. It slammed down on the figure of the divine roc down below.


    The divine roc also felt the power of this attack. Jet-black divine light flowed over its entire body. It shot up diagonally into the sky as it extended its sharp talons. Its talons were astonishingly powerful as destructive jet-black divine light flowed over them. They could tear apart all existence. A mere glance at them was enough to send shivers down one��s spine.


    As the sharp talons extended outwards, countless jet-black bolts of lightning appeared in their surroundings. They shot up into the sky and struck the descending giant Buddhist Palms.


    Bang.


    There was a loud bang, and the heavens and the earth shook. The surrounding space seemed to crack apart. Fissures appeared on the ground below. At the center of the collision, and even more, the astonishing storm had been swept up.


    Neither the gigantic ancient Buddha nor the divine roc gave way. They went head-on against each other, ignoring the surrounding storms. Both Buddha and demonic beast were clashing against each other.


    Right then, Ye Futian opened his eyes and glanced at his opponent. He released an Eye Spell in an instant, and his will burst forth. An unparalleled spiritual storm invaded the divine roc��s mind.


    The divine roc narrowed its gaze. In its mind, a powerful will emerged. When the frightening spiritual storm invaded its mind, a divine roc phantasm seemed to emerge from ancient times. Along with the Great Emperor, they defended their will.


    Ye Futian��s phantasm appeared in the divine roc��s mind. Divine light of the Great Path circled his phantasm. It was as though he had become a Great Emperor. Emperor��s might emanated from his figure. The Spiritual Will was menacing. It seemed to become countless divine swords. Each divine sword was forged from Spiritual Will and continued to invade the will of the divine roc. They attempted to destroy the other party��s will.


    At the same time, an icy chill invaded its consciousness. The power of Yin was affecting the will of the divine roc.


    In the void, the divine roc formed a spiritual world. Countless divine roc phantasms appeared in the space and traversed the void. They charged out with unparalleled movement techniques, speed, and extremely powerful attacks. In this scene, they appeared as the figure of the divine roc during its youth.


    Both man and demonic beast were clashing with their Spiritual Wills.


    Countless divine swords appeared. Each divine sword was very sharp. They were actually Tianzhu divine swords. They shot down at the same time towards the divine roc.


    At the same time, the divine roc moved with extreme speed and nimble movements as it frantically charged forward. Countless divine roc phantasms actually clashed head-on with the Tianzhu divine swords.


    Right then, a voice called out. It contained an intense sorrow. At the same time, the power of Yin continued to invade and affect the will of the divine roc. The endless waves of attacks caused even the will of the divine roc to falter somewhat.


    Right then, Ye Futian spoke.


    ��Senior, you are from the ancient Age of the Gods. You will certainly consider today��s cultivators not to be up to par. However, times are always changing. The cultivators of the new age can also recreate the glory of the Age of the Gods. Why do you still cling on to the past?�� asked Ye Futian. ��Why don��t you start afresh?��


    He could naturally tell that the divine roc was clinging to the past. The cultivators of the outside world could not catch its eye. It was extremely proud and bore a condescending air.


    ��Your ability is indeed impressive. However, you are still far from being able to control me,�� replied the ancient silhouette that appeared in Ye Futian��s mind. Both of them were conversing with their wills.


    ��Although I am proficient in such techniques, I have no intention of doing so. Senior, you are from an ancient age, so I will naturally respect you. Hence, I will not attempt to control you. However, if Senior insists on standing in my way, I will do whatever is within my power to make you yield,�� continued Ye Futian. ��Now, the various relics of the gods have reappeared in the world. A world of war has begun. It is fate for me to have come here. Can I have your blessing?��


    As he transmitted his thoughts, his attacks did not cease. Terrifying will attacks kept raining down. They seemed to be endless.


    In the outside world, the surrounding cultivators saw that both man and demonic beast had come to a standstill. They all revealed strange expressions. What was going on?


    Terrifying divine light of the Great Path still flowed over their bodies. They seemed to be clashing but everything had come to a standstill.


    ��They are having a clash of wills,�� someone said.


    ��That is correct. Such a battle is even more dangerous,�� commented another.


    The gazes of the crowd were all directed towards them. Someone wanted to come forward and seize the opportunity to strike them. However, Lord Chen, Hua Jieyu and the others dashed forward. They stood between the crowd and the battlefield, forbidding anyone else from interfering.


    This caused those cultivators to frown. However, just then, the two colossal figures were sent flying backwards at the same time. The silhouette of the Buddha collapsed and the divine roc was knocked back to its original spot. Ye Futian remained floating in the sky as he looked down below. The aura of the Great Path on his figure had been retracted.


    Had a victor been determined? The surrounding people immediately stopped as they looked at the man and the demonic beast!


    What was the end result of this exchange?

 Chapter 2665 - The Demon Monarch?

    Chapter 2665: The Demon Monarch?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The gigantic eyes of the divine roc stared at Ye Futian. During their brief exchange just now, it sensed many things.


    Furthermore, what Ye Futian said was true. The relics of the gods had been activated. It symbolized the beginning of a world of war. Could this be a cycle of the Heavenly Path?


    ��You may enter,�� its croaky voice sounded.


    The divine roc stepped aside. This caused the hearts of the surrounding cultivators to tremble.


    The divine roc had yielded, allowing Ye Futian to enter the relic.


    Did this mean that Ye Futian had received its recognition?


    ��Senior, many thanks,�� Ye Futian said. He turned around and cast a glance at Lord Chen and the others, saying, ��They are all my good friends.��


    ��All of you may enter together,�� the divine roc said. It understood Ye Futian��s intention of mentioning them. Its gaze landed on a few figures in the group. Some of them were similar to it. They were monstrous beasts that had taken the human form.


    Ye Futian bowed slightly. Then, he led his group past the divine roc and headed towards the ancient relic guarded by the beast.


    The relic was buried underneath the sand. It gave off an ancient vibe; it seemed to have undergone countless vicissitudes. This dilapidated and old divine palace had existed in the tomb of the gods for numerous years, yet the harsh weather had not eroded it. Ye Futian and his group headed towards the door of the divine palace and pushed it open.


    The door was extremely heavy. Ye Futian exerted a considerable force to push it open. An ancient aura emanated from within the divine palace and permeated the space. The group took a deep breath before entering the palace. They advanced vigilantly.


    Even though the divine roc, guarding the divine palace, permitted them to enter, they could not put their guard down entirely. Anything could happen in the tomb of the gods.


    The divine consciousnesses of many cultivators followed Ye Futian and his group, but they were blocked off outside the palace. The facial expressions of the cultivators changed when they saw Ye Futian��s group disappearing into the palace. Right then, an enormous figure appeared before them. It was none other than the divine roc. It once again stood guard in front of the ancient relic.


    ��All of you may leave,�� said the divine roc as it scanned the crowd with its huge eyes. This relic had found its owner now.


    All the cultivators stared at the divine roc. They were dying to explore the palace, but the battles before this made it clear that they could not make it past the divine roc. It was meaningless for them to continue fighting the beast. Even if they could defeat it, they would still not stand a chance against Ye Futian, who wielded Sky Tremor.


    From the looks of it, they could only give up on this relic.


    Some of them left the place without any hesitation. There were so many relics in the tomb of the gods. Since this place would never belong to them, they might as well be decisive and search for other fateful encounters in other places.


    One by one, the figures took to the sky and left. Soon, all the cultivators who had gathered here disappeared, giving up on this spot. After they left, other cultivators came over. However, without exception, none of them could break through the defenses of the divine roc. Most of them received a good beating from the beast. Some of them even perished here.


    ��


    Ye Futian and the others entered the ancient palace. There was another space within the main palace. It seemed to be an independent world. However, the space was littered with ruins that emanated extremely powerful auras. Some even derived terrifying Demonic Qi.


    ��This is a world of a Demon God,�� said Ye Futian in a low voice. He was somewhat shocked. The palace guarded by the divine roc belonged to a Demon God. The master of this place was most likely a Demon Monarch.


    ��There are so many corpses,�� someone commented. They looked at the corpses of the demonic beasts on the ground. They were like statues. All of them had lost their life aura.


    The war that erupted during the ancient age was too frightening. How did the divine roc manage to survive? Ye Futian secretly thought to himself. It was extremely fortunate to have stayed in this world of destruction.


    This was the tomb of the gods on an ancient continent. During the time known as the End of the Gods, Great Emperors perished, and the Heavenly Path collapsed. The cultivators of that age met their end.


    ��Look, up ahead!�� someone said.


    Up ahead, a tremendous pressure enveloped this independent world. Ye Futian��s group advanced. A Demon God Mountain appeared in this world. Many demonic beast statues were erected there.


    However, at the peak of the Demon God Mountain, there was no sign of a Demon Monarch nor statues of demonic beasts.


    At the very top, there was a blade of green grass.


    The blade of green grass seemed to be the only living thing in this world. The pressure was emanating from this blade of grass. From the looks of it, when the divine roc borrowed the emperor��s might from within the palace, it borrowed the power of this blade of grass. It emanated unparalleled emperor��s strength.


    The grass was very small. It swayed in the breeze. It seemed as though it would die if trampled on. However, an astonishing aura emanated from this exact blade of grass. It was as though it was an Emperor among plants. It stood proud and regal on the peak of the mountain, receiving the worship of the people of the world.


    ��This is the Demon Monarch?��


    Behind Ye Futian, the rest of his group revealed strange looks. Had a blade of grass cultivated and became a Great Emperor?


    The prosperity and glory of the ancient Age of the Gods was already beyond their ability to imagine.


    However, in this shattered world, only this blade of grass was alive. Ye Futian even suspected that the divine roc might have survived due to this blade of grass. It had a vital life force.


    It remained eternal and immortal, standing erect in this ancient world, waiting for the right person to appear.


    ��It might be that the Demon Monarch transformed into this,�� someone chimed in, not believing that a blade of grass could cultivate and become a Great Emperor. All living things had souls, and even ritual implements and divine arms could gain sentience. Plants and trees originally had souls, but the cultivators still found it hard to believe that a mere blade of grass cultivated until it became a Great Emperor and ruled over all demons.


    ��The aura flowing out of this blade of grass is that of the Lord of All Demons. These dead demonic beasts appeared here in their original form. If so, it should be the same for the Demon Monarch. His original body might truly be that of a blade of grass,�� said Ye Futian.


    He had a strange look in his eyes as he looked at the blade of grass. Suddenly, the world before his eyes seemed to change, and he saw an astonishing scene play out.


    In the illusory scene, this blade of grass was not so small. Instead, it had grown extraordinarily long and waved around as it willed. It was as though it was the sharpest blade in the world that could cleave the heavens and the earth.


    He also faintly saw a human-shaped figure. He was majestic and ruled over all demons. He stood at the peak of the Demon God Mountain. With a flash, his figure could traverse great distances. His movement techniques were peerless like that of the divine roc. It seemed that he had cultivated potent demonic techniques.


    Ye Futian was somewhat emotional as he experienced the illusory scene. After a long while, he came back to reality. He said to everyone, ��This should be it. This blade of grass was born when the Great Emperor perished. A hint of life aura is most likely dwelling in it, allowing it to exist here for so long. If any of you can inherit this grass, you will inherit the teachings of a Great Emperor.��


    Ye Futian himself had the highest chance of succeeding in inheriting the teachings. After all, he was crowned the Relic Reaper. Very few people could defeat him in terms of seizing an inheritance.


    However, he already owned many teachings. Now, it was naturally time for him to consider the welfare of his companions.


    The future of Ziwei Imperial Palace lay in everyone��s hands, not his alone.


    When the group heard Ye Futian��s words, they understood his intention. He paved the way for them by defeating the divine roc, the guardian demonic beast of this place. However, he did not plan to inherit the teachings here. Instead, he would allow them to comprehend it. Ye Futian��s charity was admirable.


    After all, who would complain that they possessed too many teachings of the Great Emperors?


    The group took up Ye Futian��s offer right away. All of them sat cross-legged as they fixed their gazes on the blade of grass at the peak of the mountain. They cultivated quietly.


    Ye Futian gave them the opportunity. Everyone had an equal chance of succeeding. They had to comprehend the teachings themselves. Whoever succeeded in learning it first would receive the instructions of the Great Emperor. No one had to fight for it. Under such a culture of cultivation in Ziwei Imperial Palace, there was no infighting among the cultivators.


    Everyone was engrossed in meditation. To the side, Ye Futian observed this ruined space. He felt somewhat uneasy. They had encountered relics of the Great Emperors twice consecutively. There were indeed more relics awaiting them after this one.


    It was difficult for him to imagine how prosperous the Age of the Gods was as a modern cultivator.


    How would the world change with the appearance of the tomb of the gods this time?


    This was a tremendously fateful encounter. Similarly, it was a crisis for many cultivators. However, after this incident, the cultivation world would indeed face a revival.


    The changes of the heavens and the earth began with the Original Realm. Ye Futian wondered how much benefit Ziwei Imperial Palace could reap during this great fateful encounter!

 Chapter 2666 - Undying Great Emperor

    Chapter 2666: Undying Great Emperor


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    For a month, the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace remained cultivating here as they comprehended the blade of grass.


    In this period, many people from the outside world came and were sent packing by the divine roc. However, the divine roc encountered a mighty opponent and was suppressed right now.


    A terrifying aura came from the outside. Ye Futian also sensed it. He walked out of the palace and saw the divine roc being suppressed. It came crashing to the ground and then leaped up into the air. Its gigantic eyes were staring at the silhouette facing it.


    ��Senior, why didn��t you borrow the emperor��s might from the palace?�� Ye Futian asked the divine roc.


    ��All of you were comprehending and cultivating. I was worried that I would disturb you if I did so,�� replied the divine roc.


    Ye Futian did not say anymore. He looked at the figure standing across from them. Only one person was standing there. His aura was frightening, and the divine light of the Great Path circled him. He was one with the heavens and the earth. It seemed that he was not just at the Two Tribulation Plane and had already contacted the next level. His power of the Great Path was highly astonishing.


    Ye Futian stepped forward as he took out the imperial arm, Sky Tremor, and held it in his hand. The other party swept a glance at the imperial arm and did not seem too concerned with it. Without the Will of the Great Emperor, the might of the imperial arm had been weakened drastically. Without sufficient cultivation, one could not bring out its true power.


    Hence, the other party did not fear the presence of the imperial arm.


    ��I am Ye Futian, Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Could you show me some face and leave?�� Ye Futian asked the man. For now, he did not know who this person was. Was he a cultivator from an emperor-level force in the Seven Realms, or was he a hermit?


    The figure glanced at Ye Futian. He was sizing Ye Futian up. Ye Futian sensed that the other party seemed more interested in him than the imperial arm he wielded.


    Clearly, the other party recognized him.


    Currently, among the top figures of the Seven Realms, there were very few cultivators who had not heard of Ye Futian��s name.


    The other party did not respond. Instead, he stared at Ye Futian. A moment later, he left with a flash. His voice sounded from the sky, saying, ��Alright.��


    ��Senior, many thanks,�� said Ye Futian as he looked at the leaving silhouette in the sky. Since the other party gave him face, he would be polite with the former by calling him ��senior.��


    The divine roc glanced at Ye Futian and asked, ��Are you very famous?��


    ��You could say that,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��How famous are you?�� the divine roc asked curiously, striking up a casual conversation. Before this, the two of them also had other conversations.


    ��There are not many cultivators who are more famous than me,�� Ye Futian responded.


    The divine roc glared at him. This fellow knew nothing about being humble. However, based on their brief exchange before this, the divine roc knew that Ye Futian was not simple. Otherwise, it would not have let him enter the relic.


    The divine roc said, ��The person who appeared just now could break through my defenses. Your luck is not bad. You came earlier. But you gave up the opportunity to inherit the teachings.��


    It seemed like the divine roc was slightly dissatisfied with Ye Futian��s decision.


    Ye Futian explained, ��Senior, didn��t I explain this to you before? They are on par with me. They are all top figures. If one of them manages to inherit the Will of the Great Emperor, then it means that the person has received the recognition of the Great Emperor. That person is surely the most suitable candidate.��


    The divine roc retorted, ��Why didn��t you try it yourself then? You can borrow the will for meditation as well.��


    ��If I try, I am worried that the Great Emperor will choose me right away,�� Ye Futian said nonchalantly as he shrugged his shoulders. The divine roc glared at him, then it shifted its gaze away and let out a long sigh. This fellow was so annoying!


    ��I shouldn��t have let you pass,�� the divine roc mumbled depressingly.


    Ye Futian beamed. Right now, an overbearing aura emanated from within the divine palace. The divine light overwhelmed the entire palace and expanded outwards. A divine emperor��s might permeated the space.


    Ye Futian was stunned. He turned around, and his gaze penetrated through the walls. Then, he smiled as he said to the divine roc, ��From the looks of it, it��s too late for Senior to regret your decision now. As I have said before, they will not let you down.��


    The divine roc also observed the palace intently. It similarly sensed a powerful Demonic Qi permeating the space. Terrifying rumbling sounds could be heard. The entire ancient space was shaking, seemingly on the verge of collapsing.


    With a dash, Ye Futian entered the palace. The gigantic divine roc shrunk its body and went through the door as well.


    Inside the palace, all the carcasses of the demonic beasts turned to dust. The space was collapsing.


    The blade of grass floated above the head of a cultivator. It emanated a terrifying aura. The chosen cultivator was Gu Dongliu.


    The blade of grass radiated with dazzling divine light. It was the same for Gu Dongliu��s body. The two formed a resonance. Then, the crowd witnessed the blade of grass seeping into the glabella of Gu Dongliu. It left a green mark on his forehead.


    ��Third Brother has comprehended the teachings.�� Ye Futian was a little surprised. However, this turn of the event seemed logical. Third Brother had received the teachings of a Demon God before this. When they were in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, the Laws of Origin of the Demon Realm surged into his body. On top of inheriting the Will of the Demon God, Gu Dongliu also inherited an Imperial Star.


    Now, it seemed logical for him to resonate with this blade of grass.


    Third Brother now owned the teachings of a few Great Emperors as well. Ye Futian hoped to break through to the next plane as soon as possible. After Gu Dongliu had undergone the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, he could also stand at the peak of cultivation.


    Demonic divine light circled Gu Dongliu��s body. His body was dazzling. The surrounding cultivators were a little envious of him. Before this, Gu Dongliu was not the only one who could comprehend the teachings hidden in the blade of grass. Zi Feng, Long Chen, Jun, and many other cultivators also comprehended part of the teachings. However, in the end, the blade of grass chose Gu Dongliu. Obviously, it meant that he was the best candidate.


    ��Who is he?�� the divine roc asked Ye Futian. It could sense that Gu Dongliu was also extraordinary, but his cultivation plane was slightly lower than that of Ye Futian.


    ��He��s my Third Brother,�� Ye Futian introduced. ��Senior, don��t worry. After my Third Brother inherits the Will of the Great Emperor, he will not bring any shame to the name of the Great Emperor.��


    ��Great.�� The divine roc nodded and said, ��I will leave things to your Third Brother then.��


    ��Senior, you can follow me. Since Third Brother has now inherited the Will of the Great Emperor, won��t you consider cultivating together with him?�� suggested Ye Futian. He wanted to recruit a powerful companion for Gu Dongliu.


    The ability of the divine roc was naturally indisputable.


    However, the divine roc shook its head and said, ��My mission is complete. I should disappear now.��


    ��Disappear?�� exclaimed Ye Futian as he revealed a strange look. Then, he sensed the aura of the divine roc weakening. It was weakening at a rapid rate. The independent space was also collapsing. Huge boulders kept falling.


    ��Senior,�� said Ye Futian as his heart trembled. ��What is going on?��


    A powerful life aura surged out from his figure and flowed into the divine roc. He attempted to stop the divine roc from growing weaker.


    ��It is pointless. I only managed to survive by being the companion of the Great Emperor. Now that the Great Emperor has found someone to inherit his teachings, I should be on my way,�� replied the divine roc. Its figure was gradually turning to stone as its life aura rapidly withered.


    Right then, Gu Dongliu turned around and bowed towards the divine roc. He said, ��Many thanks, Senior.��


    The aura of the divine roc grew weaker as it looked at Gu Dongliu and said, ��A blade of green grass can break the heavens. I hope you can pass down his will.��


    As it said this, the divine roc completely lost its life force and became a statue. Then, it gradually disintegrated and disappeared.


    Ye Futian could only watch as this scene played out. He could not do anything to stop it.


    ��It only survived due to the Will of the Great Emperor and remained guarding this place. It had already perished in ancient times,�� Gu Dongliu told Ye Futian. Ye Futian nodded. So that was the reason. The divine roc was connected to the blade of grass; therefore, it could use the powerful Will of the Great Emperor. When Gu Dongliu inherited the blade of green grass, it completed its mission and disappeared from the world.


    The independent space completely collapsed, leaving behind a pile of rubble. Ye Futian and the others appeared outside. He looked at Gu Dongliu and said, ��A blade of green grass can break the heavens. This Great Emperor must have had an extraordinary will in ancient times.��


    Gu Dongliu nodded his head. He could sense the power of the Will of the Great Emperor.


    ��Who is this Great Emperor?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��He was called Undying Great Emperor,�� answered Gu Dongliu.


    Undying Great Emperor!


    Ye Futian was slightly shocked. An existence known as Undying Great Emperor had eventually perished. Although he had survived on this ancient battlefield by becoming a blade of grass, he was still considered dead. For a Great Emperor to have such a title, it was definitely not simply given.


    ��Let��s go. We will continue finding other fateful encounters,�� said Ye Futian. The rest of the group nodded in agreement. They were full of anticipation.


    They had not been here for very long and Ye Wuchen as well as Gu Dongliu had both obtained fateful encounters with Great Emperors. On this ancient continent, they would all have opportunities.


    However, there were countless other cultivators on this continent now. Their group also needed to make haste. Otherwise, the opportunities would be seized by other cultivators.


    They did not know that, during the time they had spent cultivating, many other cultivators had discovered extraordinary places on the continent, such as the abyss their group had previously encountered.


    These places were full of danger and mystery. Many people entered these places but never made it back out alive!

 Chapter 2667 - The Death of Ning Yuan

    Ye Futian��s group continued on their journey to find fateful encounters. They passed by many relics that others had already plundered. They also saw many battles, but they did not participate in any of them.


    Now, battles to plunder cultivation resources were erupting everywhere across the entire ancient barren continent.


    The cultivation resources on this ancient continent were all previously unimaginable. Before this, no one managed to come in contact with such resources. Now, they would put their lives on the line to obtain them, even if there was only a sliver of a chance.


    Right then, another battle erupted elsewhere. Ye Futian initially wanted to ignore it and leave, but he saw some familiar figures. He couldn��t help but reveal a strange expression. He never imagined that there would be such a coincidence.


    The Millet Emperor also looked over in the direction of the battle. He narrowed his gaze slightly as a cold look appeared in his eyes.


    They saw the Donghua Domain Chief, Ning Yuan, and the cultivators of the various forces of the Donghua Domain over there.


    They had also entered the tomb of the gods. However, right now, they were in big trouble. They were fighting against other cultivators. These people were top forces from the Dark World, and they were already suppressing Ning Yuan��s group.


    ��Let��s go take a look,�� Ye Futian said indifferently. They then headed in that direction and observed the battle from a closer distance. Although both sides were fighting, their spiritual wills enveloped the surrounding space. They also noticed the arrival of Ye Futian��s group. The latter stood in the sky with terrifying auras and cultivation planes, causing the cultivators of the Dark World to be cautious.


    Ning Yuan��s expression was very ugly. They were already facing danger here. He never imagined that they would also encounter Ye Futian.


    Back then, Ning Hua was killed, and Ning Yuan always planned to take revenge. However, his cultivation talent was limited, and it was difficult for him to improve further. Hence, he had come to the tomb of the gods to seek opportunities. However, they had encountered the cultivators of the Dark World and were fighting over cultivation resources here.


    ��Palace Lord Ye,�� a clear voice called out. Ye Futian looked over toward the battlefield. It was Qin Qing. The Sword Goddess from Ice Temple was already injured. She was struggling together with a few female disciples. The cultivators of the Dark World facing them revealed evil looks. They seemed to be intentionally suppressing the members of the Ice Temple and were not anxious to kill them. They wanted them alive.


    ��Sir, please mind your own business,�� a cultivator said as he looked over at Ye Futian��s group. He sensed that latter had powerful auras. He was somewhat wary.


    ��They are my friends,�� Ye Futian said as he pointed to the Ice Temple members.


    The other party frowned, but they did not stop attacking. Duo Yu stepped forward with his long spear in his hand. He released a destructive aura, and with a flash of his figure, he immediately disappeared from his original spot. A cultivator from the Dark World attempted to block his path. The Spear of Reincarnation descended and instantly brought the cultivator into an illusion. With a swoosh, the spear stabbed into his throat.


    The other cultivators who were attacking Qin Qing and the others instantly stopped. They had ugly expressions on their faces. Duo Yu��s eyes were bizarre. His Eye of Samsara swept toward the crowd. No one dared to look him in the eye.


    ��My master will not repeat his words,�� said Duo Yu.


    His tone was somewhat cold and cruel, causing these cultivators to be extremely cautious. They then stepped down and asked, ��Are the others your friends as well?��


    ��Those over there are,�� replied Ye Futian as he pointed in the direction of a group of cultivators from the Luotian Continent of the Donghua Domain. He had a good relationship with Jiang Jiuming back then.


    From the Donghua Domain, Emperor Xi from Turtle Deity Island in the Divine Ocean Continent, the Millet Emperor from the Wangshen Watchtower, and Goddess Donglai from Eastern Deity Island and the other cultivators were now in Ziwei Imperial Palace. Among the other forces of the domain, aside from Ice Temple, only Jiang Jiuming had any relations with Ye Futian.


    As for the other forces, not much needed to be said about Domain Chief��s Manor. Back then, they had tried to kill Ye Futian together with the Yan clan from the Yanyun Continent and Ling Xiao Palace.


    ��Let them go.�� The cultivator from the Dark World waved his hand and immediately let Jiang Jiuming and the others go. Jiang Jiuming��s group bowed slightly toward Ye Futian and said, ��Many thanks, Palace Lord Ye.��


    Ye Futian��s current identity was already not something they could compare with anymore.


    Even one of Ye Futian��s disciples stepping out was enough to shock the crowd, let alone Ye Futian himself.


    ��Be on your way,�� replied Ye Futian as he nodded. Then, Jiang Jiuming and the others saluted with their fists and left.


    Sword Goddess from Ice Temple, Qin Qing, and the others came over to Ye Futian. They saluted with their fists and said, ��Many thanks, Palace Lord Ye.��


    ��We are all old friends. Senior, you need not be polite,�� replied Ye Futian as he bowed back. Back then, a group of Ice Temple members once cultivated in Ziwei Imperial Palace. It was only because the Donghuang Imperial Palace later broke ties with Ye Futian over the issue of Emperor Ye Qing that it was inconvenient for both parties to maintain relations.


    Qin Qing, Jiang Yueli, and Chu Hanxi, these three goddesses from Ice Temple, also close with Ye Futian.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, please lend me a hand,�� a voice called out. The person asking for help was Taihua Mountain Lord. He and Goddess Taihua were engaged in a fierce battle and were at the short end of the stick.


    Ye Futian took a glance at them and ignored their pleas for help. Taihua Mountain Lord, Taihua Skylord, treated him poorly in the past. The former allied with the Domain Chief��s Manor to attack him. Ye Futian had once allowed Goddess Taihua to inherit an Imperial Star. However, the other party was wary of him, so he allowed another Goddess.


    Since Ice Temple and another faction left the battlefield, the cultivators who were attacking them before this joined their comrades in fighting against the cultivators of the Domain Chief��s Manor. The Domain Chief��s Manor was at an even greater disadvantage now.


    ��Your force belongs to the Donghua Domain. Do you plan to stay out of this just like that?�� Ning Yuan barked. He naturally did not expect Ye Futian to assist him. Ye Futian was already being courteous by not killing him. Ning Yuan��s question was directed at Sword Goddess.


    Sword Goddess looked at Ning Yuan and announced, ��The world is in chaos now. Many things have changed. Ice Temple is not affiliated with any faction, to begin with. It��s just that our cultivation base has always been in the Divine Prefecture. I have decided. Ice Temple will move our base to the Ziwei Segmentum from now on.��


    ��Traitors!�� Ning Yuan cursed. He unleashed his Grand Seal Great Path to its maximum limit, but the enemy still besieged him.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, are you willing to take us in?�� Sword Goddess asked Ye Futian. Qin Qing and the others revealed joyful expressions. They were certainly supportive of this decision.


    ��Senior is willing to join the Ziwei Segmentum for cultivation. Of course, I welcome all of you. Ziwei Imperial Palace will prepare a spot for Ice Temple,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. He naturally wouldn��t mind having cultivators join his alliance.


    ��From now on, we are the subordinates of Palace Lord Ye,�� Qin Qing said with a grin as she looked at Ye Futian.


    Upon hearing Qin Qing��s joke, Ye Futian teased, ��In that case, Goddess Qin has to obey whatever I say in the future.�� Qin Qing felt slightly embarrassed after hearing his words. Her reaction caused Ye Futian, Jiang Yueli, and the others to burst out in laughter.


    At the back, Little Condor mumbled, ��There he goes again.�� However, he didn��t dare to say it out loud. He was afraid of being beaten up by Ye Futian.


    Bang.


    Right now, both Ning Yuan and Taihua Skylord faced a difficult situation on the battlefield. Their lives would end here. Goddess Taihua was injured as well. All her guqin strings snapped.


    ��It��s a shame that I can��t kill him with my own hands,�� Li Changsheng said. Both the Millet Emperor and he wanted to slay Ning Yuan with their own hands to avenge their Junior Brother. However, Donghuang the Great might catch wind of whatever they did here. Therefore, they held back from attacking Ning Yuan so that Donghuang Imperial Palace would not use this as an excuse to target them.


    It was rather satisfying to watch Ning Yuan being tortured to death.


    Attacks landed on Ning Yuan one after another. He spat out mouthfuls of blood, and his situation was complicated. To the side, Ye Futian and his group watched all this quietly. Finally, a spear stabbed into Ning Yuan��s head, and the Great Path of Death surged into his body like a flood. The power of death corroded his vitality. Ning Yuan screamed in agony and struggled. Yet another spear of darkness stabbed into his body and pinned him on his spot. He died tragically.


    Ye Futian and the others put on indifferent expressions to witness Ning Yuan dying in battle. On the other side, Taihua Skylord fought alone and was similarly hopeless.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, I am willing to give you Divine Melody Taihua in exchange for your aid,�� Taihua Skylord cried.


    ��I am not lacking in Divine Melodies,�� Ye Futian rejected him emotionlessly. He was already proficient in three Divine Melodies.


    Taihua Skylord��s face turned as pale as a sheet. Yet another heavy blow landed on him. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and his aura turned weak. Seeing that his own daughter, Goddess Taihua, was still struggling in an arduous fight, Taihua Skylord was overwhelmed with despair. He looked at Ye Futian and said, ��Palace Lord Ye, whatever happened in the past was all my own doing. My daughter was not involved. She was merely executing my commands. I will take responsibility for my own mistakes. My daughter will give you Divine Melody Taihua. I hope you will save her.��


    As he said this, a jet-black long spear pierced through his heart.


    ��Father!�� Goddess Taihua wailed with a pale expression. Right at this moment, a palm slammed down on her, but it did not kill her directly.


    ��Deal,�� Ye Futian responded when he saw that Taihua Skylord was still staring at him. It seemed as though if Ye Futian did not agree to his request, Taihua Skylord would never die in peace.


    Upon hearing Ye Futian��s response, Taihua Skylord actually felt exceptionally peaceful. He was very confident that his daughter would not die since Ye Futian had promised him so. If he had placed as much trust in Ye Futian in the past as he did now, he might not have ended up like this.


    ��Let her go,�� Ye Futian told the cultivator who was grabbing on to Goddess Taihua. The cultivator frowned. His facial expression was ugly. A few figures from Ye Futian��s group stepped forward while unleashing terrifying might. The cultivator felt threatened by it, so he could only let Goddess Taihua go.


    ��Let��s go.�� The cultivators who killed Ning Yuan and Taihua Skylord left one after another. The body of Taihua Skylord had been reduced to ashes. Goddess Taihua moved towards the spot where her father perished. With both her hands, she scooped the ashes and stared blankly at the vast space. Tears flowed down her cheeks.


    Ye Futian waited for a moment. Then, he said, ��Let��s go.��


    Goddess Taihua remained at her spot. She said coldly, ��I will give you Divine Melody Taihua, but I will not follow you.��


    Ye Futian frowned upon hearing her words. He said, ��I saved you not because I pitied you, but because your father begged me to. You are free to do as you wish. I don��t plan to bring you along anyway.��


    As he said this, he left with his group to continue their journey. The others cast a cold glance at Goddess Taihua. Even though she looked a little pitiful, she did not know what was good for herself. Taihua Skylord and Ye Futian had grudges to begin with. What made Goddess Taihua think that Ye Futian would save his own enemy?


    In the past, Taihua Skylord sided with Ning Yuan. Ye Futian had no reason to save the former.


    If Taihua Skylord��s dying words hadn��t made Ye Futian sympathetic, he would not have acted. He never imagined that Goddess Taihua actually bore a grudge against him. Since that was the case, then he would leave her to meet her own end. In the tomb of the gods, her cultivation was insufficient to survive!

 Chapter 2668 - The Eight Legions

    Ye Futian��s group left. In the end, Goddess Taihua came to terms with herself and chose to follow them. She remembered her father��s dying words. Through transmitted thoughts, he advised her to follow Ye Futian to stay alive.


    Before her father passed away, he regretted his own decision to choose to side with Ning Yuan in the past. He ignored Ye Futian��s signs of goodwill, hoping that his daughter would end up with Ning Hua. If he had chosen differently, Goddess Taihua would have had the chance to befriend Ye Futian and inherit an Imperial Star. He would not have died so tragically as well.


    Her father did not blame Ye Futian for what happened. After all, he was the one who made the wrong decision. There was no one to blame. However, Goddess Taihua could not accept the reality right away since Ye Futian could save her father, but he chose to watch as the latter was killed.


    Ye Futian only needed to utter a word, and her father would be spared.


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace took no notice of Goddess Taihua, who followed them. She was free to do as she pleased.


    Ye Futian walked at the front of the line. Sword Goddess, Qin Qing, and the others were with him. Ye Futian asked, ��Senior, how did you end up in a conflict with cultivators from the Dark World?��


    ��Ning Yuan wanted to snatch a treasure from a relic. The two parties engaged in a conflict, and we ended up being hunted by them,�� Sword Goddess explained. Ye Futian nodded. He was well aware of how difficult this continent was currently.


    Ye Futian asked, ��I was cultivating before this. Senior, do you know any major incident that took place on this ancient continent?��


    Sword Goddess replied, ��We didn��t travel through many places either. Cultivators from various worlds are crazy about seizing the relics. Wars have erupted everywhere. I am not sure what kind of major incident Palace Lord Ye is referring to. However, some rumors have been spreading around.��


    ��What kind of rumors?�� Ye Futian asked curiously.


    ��All the imperial-level forces are searching for the relic left behind by the Eight Legions,�� Sword Goddess said.


    ��The Eight Legions?�� Ye Futian revealed a strange expression. This term was also found in the World of Buddhism. However, what kind of Eight Legions was Sword Goddess referring to?


    Sword Goddess explained, ��During ancient times, the Eight Legions existed beneath the Heavenly Path and were in charge of maintaining the order of the Heavenly Path. They were the most powerful beings in the world. During the Age of the Gods, more and more gods and a wave of astonishing Great Emperors appeared. Hence, the War of the Heavenly Path erupted, which ultimately resulted in its collapse and the various gods perishing. Of course, these are just stories that I heard in this relic. As for what exactly transpired during the ancient age, most likely, the emperor-level forces know a thing or two about. As for who truly has all the information regarding events back then, most likely only the Great Emperors themselves know.��


    When Ye Futian heard Sword Goddess�� explanation, his heart trembled. Beneath the Heavenly Path, there were the Eight Legions.


    These Eight Legions maintained the order of the Heavenly Path. They should be the strongest powers beneath the Heavenly Path. That meant the latter was sentient and was not ethereal. If so, who represented the Heavenly Path? Was the Heavenly Path a person?


    What did the collapse of the Heavenly Path symbolize?


    Was heaven an ethereal existence?


    Shenjia the Great Emperor of ancient times once said that there was initially no path in the world. He desired to destroy all paths in order to fight with the Heavenly Path.


    During ancient times, there were also Great Emperor Ziwei, Great Emperor Shenyin, and other outstanding Great Emperors. All of them belonged to the same era. During their heyday, what kind of glory did they achieve?


    With so many exceptional figures gathered, it was only logical for the War of the Heavenly Path to erupt. The Eight Legions were claimed to be in charge of maintaining the order of the world under the command of the Heavenly Path. If they really existed, the eruption of the War of the Gods was to be expected.


    Those domineering Great Emperors couldn��t pledge their allegiance to the Heavenly Path.


    Were the corpses of the Eight Legions also buried in this ancient continent?


    From the looks of it, the tomb of the gods contained more than just the teachings of the Great Emperors. There was more to its reappearance than met the eye.


    In the distance, a shocking light of destruction flashed. Ye Futian and the others looked in that direction. Menacing light of catastrophe descended from the sky. There seemed to be a divine matrix, and its power was directed at the space below. Ye Futian and his group were far away from the matrix, yet they could still clearly sense the destruction.


    ��It��s Yuanshi Palace,�� said Ye Futian as he frowned. The matrix seemed to be set up by the cultivators of Yuanshi Palace from the Yuanshi Domain, one of the Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture. They were proficient in this kind of power.


    The cultivators of Yuanshi Palace had most likely discovered a relic and were involved in a battle with another party. Their attacks emitted terrifying destructive might.


    ��Let��s go and have a look,�� Ye Futian said. His figure moved swiftly, and he dashed towards that direction with an admirable speed.


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace followed him. Out of the six major Ancient God Clans who attacked the Ziwei Segmentum, Tianyan City Lord Office had been eradicated. The other five major Ancient God Clans were still alive and well. This time, most likely, all of them had come to this ancient continent.


    If they really came across each other, Ye Futian would not be merciful towards them.


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace shared the same sentiment. They bore killing intent towards the five major Ancient God Clans.


    Not long after, Ye Futian��s group came to the battlefield. The cultivators of Yuanshi Palace had already cleared out the place and killed off the cultivators who contended with them over the relic. They left no one alive. Only ruins remained in this place. As for the treasures in the relic, they had already been taken away.


    The cultivators of Yuanshi Palace also saw Ye Futian��s group arrive. As the two opposing sides met, the space fell quiet. Both sides stared at each other, their bodies emanating terrifying killing intent.


    Yuanshi Palace Lord stared at Ye Futian. His gaze contained a stern look as his eyes emanated menacing God-Punishing power. In an instant, an unparalleled domain of the Great Path covered the space and enveloped Ye Futian��s group within it.


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace also looked curiously at the other party. Yuanshi Palace Lord dared to attack first?


    They should be aware of how Tianyan City Lord Office was destroyed better than anyone else. Against Ye Futian, he actually dared to initiate the battle?


    Rumble.


    Loud thunder could be heard as the heavens changed color. In the heavens above, the domain of the Great Path became a God-Punishing Sword Matrix. Countless beams of God-Punishing light shot out from the matrix and plummeted down, covering this part of the sky. Ye Futian and his group were surrounded by the light.


    Swoosh. Swoosh.


    Sharp and frightening sounds could be heard. The God-Punishing light contained the might to destroy everything on Earth. It was intimidating. Every beam of light glowed with astonishing destructive power as they descended. Various cultivators unleashed their powers of the Great Path to withstand the incoming beams. However, their abilities of the Great Path were shredded into pieces by the God-Punishing light without exception.


    ��The will of the Great Emperor!�� exclaimed Ye Futian as he narrowed his eyes. His gaze was fixed on the other party. Sky Tremor appeared in his hand, and terrifying Tremoring Pulses swept out, enveloping all the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Tremoring Pulses continued to expand outwards and collided with the God-Punishing power. The two forces were wrestling with each other in the air.


    Yuanshi Palace Lord stood beneath the God-Punishing Sword Matrix and was bathed in dazzling God-Punishing light. He appeared like a god who governed all the God-Punishing power in the world. He was domineering as he looked down on everything below.


    Currently, he appeared half human and half god.


    ��This is not your power, right?�� Ye Futian said as he raised his head to look at Yuanshi Palace Lord. The latter was definitely not this powerful. Now, Ye Futian could clearly sense the existence of an imperial might. It merged with Yuanshi Palace Lord.


    The will of Yuanshi the Great had reappeared in the world.


    ��It doesn��t matter as long as it��s sufficient to kill you,�� Yuanshi Palace Lord retorted coldly. As he said this, the God-Punishing power plummeted and slashed towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised Sky Tremor and swung it upwards. Shocking waves of Tremoring Pulse propagated upwards and collided with the God-Punishing power. In midair, the two powers clashed, causing destructive shockwaves to sweep out and cover the vast space.


    In the distance, the other cultivators were frightened. They gathered their forces together to withstand the intense Tremoring Pulses.


    The God-Punishing power could go toe-to-toe with Tremoring Pulses of the imperial arm. Ye Futian thought to himself as he raised his head to observe the terrifying collision. He knew that the God-Punishing power contained more than just the power of Yuanshi Palace Lord. The Great Emperors of the Ancient God Clans all existed in the world in unique forms. They were more than just ordinary wills of the Great Emperors. This speculation had been proven many times.


    What happened to Tianyan the Great further demonstrated this point.


    Now, the tomb of the gods had resurfaced and all the Great Emperors of the Ancient God Clans could not wait any longer. They might make their appearance sooner than expected as they could come back with the help of the tomb of the gods.


    Yuanshi Palace Lord knitted his brows together upon seeing that his attack had been blocked. From the looks of it, Ye Futian wielding an imperial arm was not weaker than him.


    ��Retreat,�� a voice commanded. Yuanshi Palace Lord narrowed his eyes as he swept a glance at Ye Futian. He understood the Great Emperor��s intention of leaving now.


    Yuanshi the Great intended to come back with the help of the tomb of the gods. Naturally, he would not put himself at risk now. Ye Futian wielded the imperial arm and posed a threat to him. It was best for them to avoid clashing with Ye Futian currently.


    Yuanshi Palace Lord needed to focus on the big picture now. It would be much easier to slay Ye Futian after the Great Emperor had returned.


    When Yuanshi Palace Lord thought of all this, he led his group to leave the place. Ye Futian watched as they left, but he did not go after them. He was responsible for protecting the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace. From their brief exchange just now, he sensed that the ability of the other party was on par with his. If he waged war on them, the outcome was unpredictable.


    ��Is Yuanshi Palace attempting the route taken by Tianyan City?�� Lord Chen questioned as his brow furrowed. Obviously, they had sensed the abnormality as well.


    ��Most likely Yuanshi Palace is not the only force doing so,�� Ye Futian replied. Since Yuanshi the Great could merge his power with the current Palace Lord, most likely other Ancient God Clans could do the same as well. It seemed like Ye Futian had quite a few strong opponents in this ancient relic. He could not let his guard down.


    Gu Dongliu analyzed, ��The tomb of the gods has surfaced and the relics of the Great Emperors have opened. Even the legendary Eight Legions might make their appearance again. The Great Emperors of the Ancient God Clans will not let such a golden opportunity slip past them. Moreover, they know more about this ancient continent than we do.��


    The Great Emperors naturally knew more than they did.


    ��However, he hasn��t done what Tianyan the Great did and borrowed Yuanshi Palace Lord��s body to be reborn,�� said Ye Futian. If it reached that point, Ye Futian could not do anything about him!

 Chapter 2669 - Supreme Swordlord

    Ye Futian and the others continued on their journey. This ancient continent had prospered. Cultivators had migrated here from all over the world. Even if they were unable to seize the treasures, they could still cultivate here.


    However, it was not easy to resist the temptation of searching for the treasures after one set foot on this ancient continent.


    Ye Futian��s group traversed the sky, and their divine consciousness covered a vast space. They had no idea what kind of fateful encounters other top figures had been involved with. They also did not know whether these others had found the highest-level relics, such as the relics of the Eight Legions who had served under the Heavenly Path.


    They saw many cultivators engaging in battles, but they stayed away from the battlefields. They continued to advance until they sensed shocking Sword Will shooting up into the heavens in the distance. They could faintly make out the silhouettes of swords in the sky.


    ��Let��s go and have a look,�� Ye Futian said.


    His group rushed in that direction, and soon they arrived at a spot.


    There were three gigantic swords on the ground. Each sword was 100 Zhang tall. They were not broken swords. Instead, they were full-fledged swords that were stabbed into the ground. Terrifying Sword Realms formed around each of them. There were projections of the swords in the sky. Sword Realms formed even around their silhouettes.


    Many swordsmen had gathered in this area. Clearly, all of them had come here after sensing the Sword Will. Quite a number of powerful swordsmen were among the crowd.


    There were three swords.


    Ye Futian and the others felt rather excited. The teachings hidden in these three swords were most likely more complete than the teachings Ye Wuchen had obtained from the broken sword.


    The Sword Will being given off by these three gigantic swords was even more astonishing and powerful.


    Many swordsmen stayed in these regions enveloped by the Sword Realms. Some of them cultivated while standing and staring at the three divine swords. Some sat cross-legged while comprehending the Sword Will. However, none of them tried to pull out the swords. It was because whoever attempted that perished under the Sword Will.


    The swords of the Great Emperors could not be pulled out so easily.


    Ye Futian said, ��These are not imperial arms. Instead, they are formed from powerful Sword Wills. The Wills materialize into divine swords and are erected here.�� For countless years, the Sword Wills remained intact, and the divine swords stood here like real divine arms.


    From the look of it, they would have to stay here for a while, Ye Futian thought to himself. It was impossible to ignore these three divine swords. There were quite a few swordsmen in their group. It was worth it for them to spend some time here. If any of them could resonate with the Sword Wills, it would naturally be the best outcome.


    Before the three giant swords, there were already many people. All of them were swordsmen. Each of them had a Sword Realm around them as they occupied a spot. This caused those who had come later to not have any room to occupy, and thus they had to wait at the very back.


    However, some incredible figures would directly advance forward and pay the rest no heed.


    Ye Futian��s group was naturally like this. Their group passed right through the crowd and advanced. They wanted to comprehend the Sword Will at the spot closest to the divine swords.


    BUZZ.


    Right then, they sensed many Sword Wills directly enveloping their bodies. It seemed that if they continued advancing, someone might attack them at any moment. More than one person or sword would do so.


    The people behind them did not act rashly. The swordsmen here seemed to have already arranged themselves according to their cultivation planes. Whoever was more powerful naturally had a better spot. Those who were weak were not qualified to sit in the front and would also not manage to get through.


    Their group kept advancing toward the three divine swords ahead of them. Suddenly, a sense of danger descended upon them.


    Someone had attacked.


    Up ahead, someone drew their sword. In an instant, astonishing Sword Will swept out. The Sword Will disappeared with a flash and was extremely quick. It immediately slashed toward Ye Futian��s figure faster than the eye could see.


    SWOOSH.


    The dazzling Sword Flash slashed down, but it only managed to slice a small part of Ye Futian��s white robe.


    ��Stop,�� someone said. The Sword Flash dispersed, as though it had merely been testing Ye Futian. It did not seek to kill.


    Ye Futian glanced at the cultivator who had attacked. He was a middle-aged swordsman. He didn��t even turn around. However, his sword attack had been very impressive. It had been as fast as lightning.


    Ye Futian did not retaliate, but Chen Yi, who was standing beside him, responded. He similarly sent out a strike that was as swift as lightning. Sword Will burst forth from the figure of the middle-aged swordsman. Chen Yi��s blade of light flashed and a cut was left on the face of the swordsman. The latter paused in his tracks stiffly. Then he turned around to look at Ye Futian and the others.


    ��Please let us through,�� said Ye Futian.


    His group continued to move forward as the swordsman stepped aside. When they reached the front, there were a few cultivators standing there. The cultivator who was standing nearest to the swords had an extraordinary temperament. He stood there quietly like a statue. He seemed to have become one with the Sword Realms around him. His unwavering gaze was fixed on the three gigantic swords in front of him.


    Right at this moment, beams of light shot out from his eyes as he uttered coldly, ��It��s too noisy. All of you, leave.��


    His voice sounded like he was commanding the rest of them. From the look of it, his meditation had been disturbed, and hence he had ordered all the others to leave this space.


    Everyone around the cultivator narrowed their eyes. There were quite a few very powerful swordsmen standing to the side of this cultivator. However, they also frowned when they heard his command. Judging from their gazes, they were extremely wary of him.


    ��I do not wish to repeat myself,�� the other party said again. The few swordsmen retreated instantly, moving farther away from him. Behind them, the other swordsmen also stepped back one by one. All of them moved farther away, but they were all still in the same region.


    ��Move farther back,�� ordered the cultivator with his back facing the rest of the swordsmen. The expressions of the swordsmen turned ugly, but they did not dare to voice their dissatisfaction. They could only retreat farther away.


    Soon, aside from Ye Futian and his group, there were no other cultivators in the surrounding region. The swordsman was the closest to the divine swords. The space around him was empty, demonstrating his ability as a powerful deterrence.


    Ye Futian looked at the other party. This person did not wish to be disturbed. Hence, he had given this order for the others to step back. He wanted to occupy this space alone.


    Only he could cultivate here.


    The cultivators who had left the region looked toward Ye Futian��s group. The latter were actually still standing there and had not moved. Were they seeking their deaths?


    They knew how terrifying this swordsman was.


    BUZZ.


    A vast Sword Will enveloped Ye Futian��s group. The terrifying Sword Will contained an intense threatening will. This caused Ye Futian to frown. He said to the members behind him, ��All of you, stand back.��


    Lord Chen and the others naturally sensed the threat. They obeyed Ye Futian��s command and speedily retreated. This cultivator was very strong. Even an existence like Lord Chen felt an extremely powerful threat coming from this cultivator.


    ��I am Ye Futian from Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��If you don��t step back, you will die,�� said the other party in a cold tone even before Ye Futian finished speaking. His stance was unquestionable.


    Everyone knew the name of Ye Futian from Ziwei Imperial Palace. However, the other party did not pay Ye Futian any heed when he heard the latter��s name. He ignored who he was completely. He only wanted Ye Futian to leave; otherwise, Ye Futian would die.


    Ye Futian did not say anything more. He wielded the imperial arm, Sky Tremor. At the same time, he looked at the three divine swords. In an instant, he sensed three distinct Sword Wills.


    Each of these divine swords seemed to represent a different Sword Will.


    ��A Great Emperor mastered three Sword Wills!�� mumbled Ye Futian. He seemed to be ignoring the other party��s words and did not retreat.


    BUZZ.


    Suddenly, a sword emerged from the person��s body. As the sword was drawn, a formless destructive will enveloped the vast space. The surrounding powers of the Great Path seemed to have been annihilated by this Sword Will.


    At the same time, on Ye Futian��s figure, Sky Tremor emanated a terrifying Tremoring Pulse. He had faced Fang Ru, who was also a powerful being, before. This swordsman was probably on the same level as Fang Ru and had already advanced to the next plane.


    His Sword Will was already different from the Sword Wills of the cultivators whom Ye Futian had met before. It had undergone a change in quality and seemed to be uniquely his own.


    However, Ye Futian��s own combat ability was similarly top tier now. He also had an imperial arm. He could kill ordinary Two Tribulation Plane cultivators with a single strike. They were no match for him at all. If he wielded an imperial arm, only demigods could pose a threat to him.


    The Sword Will burned brightly. However, the next moment, the sword disappeared. Ye Futian sensed a powerful threat and his figure immediately disappeared as well.


    BANG.


    The sword hit the ground and disappeared into it, leaving behind an extremely deep mark.


    Ye Futian appeared in the space above the other party. With a dull thud, he struck the space with his imperial arm. As he swung Sky Tremor, countless Tremoring Pulses gushed forth and eradicated everything in this part of the sky.


    The swordsman pointed a finger upward. Immediately, countless divine swords flew upward and forged a Sword Realm. The Sword Realm formed from divine swords collided head-on with the plummeting Tremoring Pulses. The former was actually not any weaker than the latter. A suffocating aura erupted on the battlefield.


    He actually dared to start a fight immediately, thought the crowd, as they looked at Ye Futian. This prominent figure from the Divine Prefecture seemed to have offended the wrong person today. They did not know how this battle would end.


    They naturally knew Ye Futian��s name and knew of his power. He had killed the Lord of Tianyan City and Wang Xiao, destroyed the Tianyan City Lord Office, as well as massacred the six major Ancient God Clans alone to the point that they feared him.


    Such achievements were unparalleled in the Divine Prefecture. There had not been a prominent figure with such glorious achievements in several centuries.


    However, the swordsman facing him right now had also been a legendary figure many years ago. He had not come out of the mountains for many years. If the tomb of the gods had not opened, he would most likely have remained in seclusion.


    He was a legendary swordsman in the Divine Prefecture. He was known as the first Sword Celestial of the Divine Prefecture. He was Supreme Swordlord!

 Chapter 2670 - One Slash

    Chapter 2670: One Slash


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Supreme Swordlord had originally been a member of the Taishang Domain. He was a legendary figure in the Divine Prefecture and an old monstrous existence.


    Such a figure of legend normally would not have crossed paths with Ye Futian at all, and wouldn��t have had any confrontations with him. If the tomb of the gods had not appeared, they would not have encountered each other. However, now that the ancient continent had appeared, the cultivators of the various worlds all came here. Hence, Supreme Swordlord and Ye Futian had the chance to appear in the same location.


    Supreme Swordlord had already been the first Sword Celestial in the Divine Prefecture centuries ago. Now, several centuries later, his power was already beyond the comprehension of ordinary people. With a mere sentence, even Two Tribulation Plane cultivators had obediently retreated. They did not dare to defy him.


    Only Ye Futian did not retreat.


    Although Ye Futian had destroyed an Ancient God Clan before, that was because the Will of the Great Emperor of Tianyan City had been eradicated by Great Emperor Ziwei. Even with the Will of the Great Emperor, an existence like Supreme Swordlord could destroy an Ancient God Clan single-handedly.


    Figures at this level no longer cared about the things mere mortals cared about. They were already half a step ahead and had seen the view from the highest cultivation plane. They would not be bothered with mundane traditions and power. They only sought one goal and that was the highest plane.


    They essentially did not pay heed to the grudges of the world. Normally, these figures would not be seen. The appearance of the tomb of the gods caused them to have hopes of taking a step to the next level. Hence, they emerged again in the world.


    His title as Supreme Swordlord meant he stood at the very top.


    He swept a glance at Ye Futian in the sky. He pointed his finger at the sky again and a unique swordsmanship immediately ripped apart the Tremoring Pulses bursting forth from Sky Tremor. It penetrated and tore them apart as it charged toward Ye Futian��s figure.


    The imperial arm was still just a weapon in the end. Without the activation of the Great Emperor��s own will, Ye Futian��s cultivation was unable to unleash the true might of the imperial arm. His Way was still just his alone and he could only activate a sliver of will in the imperial arm.


    As for Supreme Swordlord, he had already moved on to the next level. Ye Futian had killed the Lord of Tianyan City and Wang Xiao. However, before a demigod, things would not play out the same way they had before. No matter how powerful the cultivations of the Lord of Tianyan City and Wang Xiao had been, they had remained at the Two Tribulation Plane and had not transcended. Hence, against Ye Futian wielding an imperial arm, they essentially were fated to be killed instantly and could not put up a fight.


    Ye Futian sensed the penetrating power of the Sword Will. Even the power unleashed by Sky Tremor was unable to completely block it. His figure flashed, and he disappeared from where he stood, appearing in a different location.


    The Sword Will shot up to the high heavens and left behind astonishing streaks in the sky.


    Supreme Swordlord shifted his gaze to look at Ye Futian, who had appeared in another location. Even he was impressed by Ye Futian��s swift movements. He moved without leaving a trace, as expected of Buddhist Celerity. No wonder it was listed as one of the Six Superpowers in Buddhist sects. It was miraculous.


    Ye Futian was similarly sizing up Supreme Swordlord. Based on their brief exchange just now, Ye Futian had more or less figured out how terrifying this near-deity-level figure was. In the past, when he was fighting with Fang Ru, he had actually borrowed an external force. He used both the power of the Ziwei Segmentum and the Will of the Great Emperor in battle, yet he still could not defeat Fang Ru.


    This time, he relied on the imperial arm to put up a fight with Supreme Swordlord. Ye Futian wondered who was stronger, Supreme Swordlord or Fang Ru.


    ��You appear as though you are only at the Renhuang Plane, but your combat ability far exceeds that of a Renhuang. Why is that?�� Supreme Swordlord asked Ye Futian. He was rather curious. Ye Futian��s cultivation plane was at the peak of the Renhuang Plane.


    This was a fact known by all the cultivators. However, other people assumed that Ye Futian had long broken through the shackles of the plane and had hidden his actual cultivation plane with a special technique. After all, many cultivators who were his subordinates at Ziwei Imperial Palace had undergone tribulations. With Ye Futian��s talents, it was illogical for him to have remained stagnant at the Renhuang Plane.


    ��I have my ways of hiding my cultivation plane,�� Ye Futian replied. Of course, he would not speak the truth. He merely told the other party what all the other cultivators had speculated about.


    Supreme Swordlord felt strange. He actually could not see through Ye Futian��s trick of hiding his own cultivation?


    ��Even with the help of the imperial arm, you are no match for me. If you hadn��t dodged my attack just now, you wouldn��t even be able to take one slash from me,�� Supreme Swordlord commented coldly. He appeared like a sword as he stood perfectly straight there. His cold tone contained an unparalleled confidence.


    ��Why don��t I make a bet with you, Senior?�� suggested Ye Futian.


    ��A bet?�� repeated Supreme Swordlord.


    ��I will not evade or dodge. I will receive your attack. If I can receive your slash, you will let me have this relic,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��What if you cannot take my attack?�� inquired Supreme Swordlord.


    ��If I fail, I will naturally perish from your attack. What else do I need to bet?�� said Ye Futian as he looked at Supreme Swordlord.


    ��I have never made a bet with anyone in my entire life. However, since you suggested it, I will give you a chance. If you dare to evade this slash, your friends will not leave this place alive,�� said Supreme Swordlord.


    Since Ye Futian himself offered the bet, he would oblige. He wanted to see how brave Ye Futian was. Would he dodge or not?


    If Ye Futian dodged the slash with Celerity, he would have gone against his word, and Supreme Swordlord naturally would not hold back.


    ��All right,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��You��d better be ready,�� said Supreme Swordlord as he looked at Ye Futian in the sky above him. ��In reality, even if you possess Celerity, it is still impossible for you to avoid facing me head-on. However, since you have some courage, I will entertain your request.��


    His sleeve moved, and he extended a finger. The vast space immediately became a terrifying Sword Realm. Even the cultivators who had retreated far away could sense how terrifying this Sword Will was.


    Supreme Swordlord extended his hand and the space became a world of the sword.


    The crowd looked toward Supreme Swordlord. He stood there like a supreme sword god. This part of the sky was enveloped in Sword Will. The next moment, everyone felt a suffocating sensation. This sensation was as though the Sword Will had already enveloped the space before the sword was even drawn. There was anticipation as well as terror. It seemed that once the sword was drawn, everything would be annihilated.


    Ye Futian��s Natal Spirit was swaying inside his body. The will of the Great Path stored in his Life Spirit flowed all around his body before surging into a Sky Tremor. Immediately, a solemn will burst forth. The divine light emanated by Sky Tremor at this moment was extremely alarming. The Tremoring Pulses were also far more powerful now. A portentous aura loomed over the space.


    Supreme Swordlord raised his finger and pointed at the sky. A divine sword materialized in space and directly penetrated through the heavens and the earth. It was as though both space and time had melted away. Only this sword remained.


    His title Supreme symbolized his vast encompassment. His sword could annihilate all existences in the heavens and the earth.


    Ye Futian��s imperial arm struck down the exact moment when Supreme Swordlord raised his finger. Countless Tremoring Pulses swept out and an unparalleled divine light traversed across space, colliding with the divine sword.


    For a brief moment, the entire world stopped. Silence overwhelmed the vast space. Then, a light of destruction erupted. All the other cultivators unleashed their strongest defense techniques. However, even so, many cultivators who had not undergone tribulations were severely injured. Some even perished on the spot. Many Tribulation-level cultivators were also injured.


    Shocking Sword Will appeared all around the three divine swords, shielding them from the destruction.


    The entire sky turned dim for a moment.


    Everything between the two of them turned to ashes. When the commotion died down, Ye Futian stood unscathed in the sky.


    Supreme Swordlord stared at Ye Futian. He did not say anything. This space appeared exceptionally silent.


    Not only did Ye Futian not dodge it, he received the attack head-on.


    ��Youths nowadays are impressive!�� Supreme Swordlord exclaimed after keeping quiet for a moment. As he said this, he left the space with his sword. His silhouette soon became one with his sword.


    Since he had lost, he would keep his word and give the relic to Ye Futian.


    This scene caused the hearts of the surrounding cultivators to tremble. Supreme Swordlord was truly incredible. He had actually handed over a relic left behind by a Great Emperor like he said he would. He had admitted defeat because of a bet.


    In reality, even if he had not admitted his defeat, what could Ye Futian have done about it?


    As expected, such verve was not something they had anything to compare to. Supreme Swordlord might believe that he could find other relics elsewhere.


    Ye Futian put his imperial arm away and his figure landed on the ground before the three divine swords. He looked toward Lord Chen and the others. The group walked over immediately.


    In the distance, the other cultivators who were observing also came forward. Since Supreme Swordlord had left, they naturally also wanted to come forward to comprehend and cultivate.


    ��Since the rest of you have already retreated, you need not come back,�� Ye Futian said as he turned around to take a look. Then, his arm made an arc and drew an illusory line in space. He said, ��The rest of you, if you want to continue your meditation, you can only do so outside of this region.��


    He was already giving them some respect by not immediately chasing them away and instead drawing out a region in which they could cultivate.


    The various cultivators looked down and stopped in their tracks. No one dared to advance. Ye Futian was still the person who had made Supreme Swordlord leave in defeat. They naturally did not dare to defy him.


    ��Better start cultivating,�� Ye Futian told the cultivators beside him. He too looked at the three divine swords. He wanted to see whether he could comprehend anything.


    ��This time, I will not participate,�� said Gu Dongliu as he took the initiative and went to the side to cultivate. He had already obtained the teachings of a Great Emperor. Hence, he stepped down on his own accord and gave the opportunity to the others.


    Ye Wuchen also wanted to step down. However, he heard Ye Futian say, ��Wuchen, you cultivate swordsmanship. These three divine swords are somewhat unique. Why don��t you try comprehending them?��


    ��All right,�� replied Ye Wuchen as he nodded his head and did not say anything more.

 Chapter 2671 - Three Great Emperors

    Chapter 2671: Three Great Emperors


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian also comprehended the three swords together with the others. Before this, even Supreme Swordlord had not been enlightened after comprehending here. Ye Futian faintly sensed that these three swords might contain extraordinary swordsmanship.


    Usually, the teachings of Sword Emperors could be contained within one sword. Since this Great Emperor had left behind three divine swords, there was naturally a reason for this.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged and faced the three swords. The others followed suit. All of them were comprehending the swords. To the side, Gu Dongliu cultivated quietly. He continued to comprehend the teachings he had acquired prior to this. He had just inherited the will of Undying Great Emperor and still needed some time to digest what he had learned. There was no need for him to learn new swordsmanship now.


    As for the others, they could only comprehend from a distance and were not qualified to approach the swords.


    Other people came afterward and saw this scene. After asking around, they understood the situation. They did not dare to approach either. After all, although a relic was involved, their lives were more important. If they lost their lives, what use was a relic?


    Time passed. Ye Futian was completely immersed in comprehending swordsmanship. He entered into the world of the Sword Wills.


    These three swords contained three different Sword Wills. They were all distinct, and he needed to comprehend them separately.


    However, Ye Futian did not seek to completely understand any one of them now. Instead, he first differentiated the three Sword Wills.


    He discovered that the sword on the left contained an indestructible will. This sword was compatible with Ye Wuchen.


    The sword in the middle was the most complicated one. It was a sword matrix. The sword matrix transformed into a Sword Realm and could lure cultivators into it. Cultivators would enter into the world of the sword when they came in contact with the Sword Realm.


    The sword on the right sent shivers straight to the very core of Ye Futian��s spiritual soul. The aura emanated by this sword was unique. It was not as sharp, but it was equally dangerous as the other two. It could slice the spiritual souls of the cultivators.


    After Ye Futian comprehended the three Sword Wills, he opened his eyes and looked at the three swords. He had a strange look.


    Before this, he had believed that these three swords might be three Sword Wills that a Great Emperor had been proficient in. However, now he felt that each Sword Will was unique and was extremely powerful. They each represented a pinnacle of swordsmanship.


    Could it be that the three swords represented the swordsmanship of three Great Emperors?


    If that was the case, then it might be that it was not one person who left behind these three swords. They might be formed from the wills of three Great Emperors.


    As he thought of this, Ye Futian glanced behind him. Before this, he had allowed the group to cultivate on their own. However, after sensing the Sword Wills of the three swords, he suddenly had an idea. They might as well give his idea a try.


    ��Wuchen, you comprehend the sword on the left. Yaya, you comprehend the sword in the middle. Swordmaster of Lihen, you comprehend the sword on the right,�� Ye Futian said to the three of them.


    Each of them corresponded to one of the three swords. The swordsmanship that they were proficient in coincidentally matched the three Sword Wills.


    ��All right.�� The three of them nodded in agreement. In reality, after they had experienced the Sword Wills themselves, they had had the same thoughts as Ye Futian. They had realized that there was one sword out of the three that was most suitable for them.


    The three of them entered into meditation. Ye Futian continued to comprehend the Sword Wills and was ready to lend them a hand.


    Right at this moment, the Light of Buddha shone and enveloped the three of them. The light was akin to a lamp in the darkness, and the Buddhist light of wisdom. There was a Buddhist Voice reverberating in space, but the voice did not disturb the cultivators. Instead, it helped them to enter into a meditative state.


    Ye Futian took a glance at the cultivator who had unleashed the Light of Buddha. She was none other than Hua Qingqing. With her eyes closed, she chanted and her Buddhist Voice susurrated. Her elegant silhouette appeared like a Buddhist lamp, leading them to the gates of wisdom.


    Ye Futian was glad, but he was not surprised by her action. As the Buddhist lamp who had been cultivating beside The Buddha, it was natural for Hua Qingqing to have great wisdom. The Buddhist sects had unique ways of enlightening their cultivators. It was not strange for Hua Qingqing to possess some special techniques that could aid the others in cultivation.


    When the others saw this scene, they understood that they were most likely just bystanders. These three swords already had owners. However, the rest did not have any objections about this. After all, they knew about the relationship between Ye Wuchen and the other two with Ye Futian. Aside from this relationship, these three were indeed compatible with the three Sword Wills.


    Ye Futian also continued to comprehend the three Sword Wills. Time passed slowly. The space was exceptionally quiet. No one disturbed them. Later on, Lord Chen, Chen Yi, and the others ended up standing guard behind them, preventing others from disturbing them.


    Their cultivation did not go as smoothly as Ye Futian had imagined. He stopped cultivating occasionally and shared his findings with Ye Wuchen and the other two. Even so, several months passed before Ye Wuchen began to resonate with the sword.


    Then, with the help of Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing, Yaya and the Swordmaster of Lihen also began to resonate with their swords and entered into the world of the sword.


    However, they still had not been acknowledged by the three swords and could not receive the teachings of the Great Emperors.


    Right then, a dazzling scene appeared. Sword light circled around the three swords as the Sword Wills flowed down from the swords. They landed on the figures of Ye Wuchen, Yaya, and the Swordmaster of Lihen. This caused their figures to glow brilliantly. Sword Wills flowed around them, and they seemed to become one with the swords.


    The Light of Buddha enveloped the three of them. They still had their eyes shut tightly as they focused on comprehending. They wanted to advance further.


    However, they remained like this for a long time. The Sword Wills on their bodies grew more powerful, but they felt as though they were still one step away from success.


    Right then, Ye Futian opened his eyes and stared at the three swords ahead. His eyes lit up as he said, ��I get it now.��


    ��The three swords are three Sword Wills respectively. They were left behind by three Great Emperors. However, these three Great Emperors might have already been in sync and merged the three swords into a complete sword matrix,�� said Ye Futian. ��Try to sync your thoughts and merge your swordsmanship into one.��


    The three of them did not say anything, but they did as Ye Futian said.


    The three Sword Wills became interwoven. Sword light circled around them, and they began to surrender everything to each other.


    Ye Futian did not continue to comprehend and cultivate, instead watching them from the side. This process lasted for a long while until the three Sword Wills merged together and were inseparable. Sword Realms enveloped the three figures and immediately the three swords shot out dazzling divine halos that similarly interweaved with each other.


    Right at this moment, an extremely dazzling scene appeared in the minds of the three cultivators. They seemed to see the incarnations of the three ancient Great Emperors appear in their minds. Then, the Sword Wills of the three swords frenziedly surged into their bodies. The swords themselves became ethereal and gradually merged with them.


    When the sword light completely entered their bodies, the three of them remained sitting there. Sword Wills circled around their figures. The three swords before them had already disappeared.


    They succeeded, the others thought.


    The hearts of the crowd were trembling. Hua Qingqing also retracted her Light of Buddha. The surrounding cultivators looked at the three of them, somewhat envious of them. What had they obtained?


    The three of them were still immersed in their own cultivations. Clearly, all this could not be digested quickly.


    Ye Futian and the others waited patiently. Many cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace were envious of the three. The three of them had received the teachings of the Great Emperors together.


    As time passed, more and more relics and teachings of the Great Emperors would be seized by other forces. There were fewer and fewer opportunities left. The cultivators wondered whether they too would have a chance to receive something.


    The group waited for a few more days. One day, a terrifying aura loomed over the sky. It was actually a divine tribulation.


    Whose tribulation was this, everyone wondered in awe. Prior to this, Ye Wuchen had undergone a Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. So who would receive this tribulation? Was it Yaya or the Swordmaster of Lihen?


    Many cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were seniors to Ye Wuchen and the other two. However, the juniors had had more fateful encounters and, thus, they would undergo the tribulation first.


    Ye Wuchen, Yaya, and the Swordmaster of Lihen rose to the sky at the same time and occupied different spots. A menacing Sword Realm appeared in the sky.


    The three of them were becoming one!


    The crowd all looked up at the sky. An awe-inspiring sword matrix diagram appeared around Yaya and covered the vast space. Ye Wuchen and the Swordmaster of Lihen each stood at a corner of the sword matrix and wielded a sword.


    ��It is a double divine tribulation for two people,�� someone said.


    In the heavens above, Clouds of Catastrophe churned and the scene was appalling. It was actually a double tribulation. Both Yaya and the Swordmaster of Lihen would undergo the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path together, right here, right now.


    The light of catastrophe descended and struck the Sword Realm, but it was negated right away.


    The three of them had just inherited the Sword Wills of three Great Emperors. They were not afraid of the divine tribulation.


    As Ye Futian had expected, the light of catastrophe charged down continuously, but the three of them remained unperturbed. Yaya and the Swordmaster of Lihen easily passed the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    Now, Yaya and the Swordmaster of Lihen had also reached the Tribulation Plane.


    Their three figures floated down. They looked at Ye Futian with looks of astonishment.


    ��It is a sword matrix formed by three Great Emperors,�� said Yaya as she looked at Ye Futian.


    The Swordmaster of Lihen added, ��The three Great Emperors are all Sword Emperors. They are all from the same sect and are of one mind. They are called the Three Sword Emperors and they created an ancient supersword matrix: the Deicide Sword Matrix.��


    The name of the sword matrix was the Deicide Sword Matrix.


    ��The three swords each have their own names. I have inherited Spirit Slayer,�� stated Ye Wuchen.


    ��Mine is Spirit Separator,�� exclaimed the Swordmaster of Lihen.


    ��Mine��s Spirit Slicer,�� said Yaya.


    The Three Sword Emperors each passed down one form of swordsmanship: Spirit Slayer, Spirit Separator, and Spirit Slicer. When the three swordsmanships became one, they formed the Deicide Sword Matrix.


    When Ye Futian heard these words, he revealed a look of joy. They had obtained the teachings of three Great Emperors in one attempt, and their swordsmanship could be combined to become a supersword matrix. He naturally was happy. One could imagine how terrifying the Deicide Sword Matrix formed by three Sword Emperors was. They were most likely top-level existences even among Great Emperors.


    Otherwise, they would not dare give the sword matrix such a domineering name.

 Chapter 2672 - House Karura

    Chapter 2672: House Karura


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Three Sword Emperors��three Great Emperors who joined forces to battle in the primordial times�� They perished here but left the Sword Will in this place. Now that you have inherited it, in the future, you may strive to revive the Deicide Sword Matrix once again and unveil it to the rest of the world,�� Ye Futian spoke with high hopes for the three of them.


    It had not been easy for Wuchen, Yaya, and the Swordmaster of Lihen on their journey of cultivation up until now. Constrained by their natural talents, it was even more difficult to change what they had been born with. They had received an opportunity when they entered God��s relic that first time, and now they had received such a great opportunity in the tomb of the gods that they had experienced the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    How could Ye Futian not be pleasantly surprised when his old friends had elevated their cultivation to such a degree?


    He and everyone else could feel that the reemergence of the tomb of the gods, along with the prophecy that changes between heaven and earth would start in the Original Realm, meant that a mighty new era was about to begin. The impact that the tomb of the gods had on the world would definitely not be simple or limited to the inheritance of some Great Emperors.


    In the future, there may be other Great Emperors who might be coming into being, and Ye Futian naturally hoped that it would be someone close to him.


    ��We can only do our best to live up to the inheritance of the Great Emperor,�� the Swordmaster of Lihen replied. He had a myriad of feelings regarding what he had achieved today. Of course, all of this could never have taken place without Ye Futian. If it were not for Ye Futian��s help, it would have been d*mn near impossible to change his own natural given talent.


    Just the elixir��s effects in reshaping his foundation had been something astonishing. For those Renhuang cultivators in the outer world, how many of them could have been this fortunate to lay hands on divine elixirs?


    Only those of them who were Ye Futian��s old friends could have benefitted.


    ��Congratulations,�� Lord Chen walked forward and said with a smile. ��Although it is only the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, the will of the Great Emperor inherited in the tomb of the gods is an extraordinary feat. The three divine swords are formed by the Sword Will left by the Great Emperor. Anyone who has not inherited the will of the Great Emperor will not be able to contend with you in this realm.��


    It was impossible to say that they were not envious, because many of them were. The Sword Goddess from the Ice Temple and her apprentices, as well as Goddess Taihua, had seen for themselves that there were so many cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace who were now in the Tribulation Plane. Then, there were those who had subsequently inherited the will of the Great Emperor. It was not hard to imagine how they might be feeling at a moment like this.


    They all knew Ye Futian from before. In Donghua Domain, he had been treated with contempt by Ning Yuan, the Domain Chief of Donghua Domain. At that time, Ning Hua was the number one genius talent in Donghua. He had been without challengers and had wanted Ye Futian dead.


    Now, Ning Hua aside, who was Ning Yuan compared to the likes of them?


    When Ning Yuan died, they didn��t feel much at all, because they were no longer at the same level.


    In Ziwei Imperial Palace alone, there were more than a dozen cultivators of the Tribulation Plane.


    This was an indication that they were moving toward becoming an imperial-level principality.


    ��The Supreme Elder too will have a chance in the future,�� Ye Futian said. ��In this tomb of the gods, there are many opportunities, but we cannot be too complacent. If we can inherit the imperial will, then other top figures can do the same. During these days while we cultivated, who knows how many other cultivators have gotten the opportunities and inherited the will of the Great Emperor.��


    Everyone nodded in agreement. The strength of the cultivational world would usher in another great transformation.


    ��Let us depart from here. We have been cultivating here long enough, perhaps many other things have happened in the tomb of the gods already,�� said Ye Futian. During the past few months, undoubtedly they must have missed a lot, but Ye Futian was mentally prepared for that. It was simply impossible for them to take all the opportunities for themselves.


    As long as he could elevate and improve the cultivation of the people around him, so that they could obtain imperial-level opportunities, then it was well worth the effort.


    ��


    On this ancient expanse of land, there were too many strange and amazing places.


    In one area, it was full of an ancient atmosphere. On the periphery of this area, there was a door. This door was in the form of a statue, the statue of a gigantic and massive demon god, made with pure gold.


    This statue was that of the golden-winged roc. The massive divine bird had turned into an ancient gateway, but there was nothing in the surrounding area. Perhaps it was once a world of its own, but right now at a glance, there was only endless barrenness as far as the eyes could see.


    On the yellow earth, there were the footprints of many cultivators. In the far distance, ancient mountain ranges of the primordial era could be seen.


    But many people stopped just right outside of the statue with hesitation, not quite daring to go on.


    They saw that in the distance, on that ancient earth, there were a few scattered corpses. Actually, they were no longer anything as recognizable as corpses, but rather sorry bloody messes served as a warning to the living.


    The area inside was fraught with danger. Even standing in the periphery, one could feel an aura of danger that was coming from the inside.


    It was said that there were many cannibalistic giant monsters residing within, as well as terrifying flying beasts, and some of those were the golden-winged rocs.


    Out of those who dared to set foot inside, many had died. In the past few months, this area had become known as a forbidden land of incredible danger.


    But even so, there were still those who were willing to take the risk.


    At this time, there were those who could no longer hold back and decided to step inside, all of them gaining entry from the ground instead of by way of the air. It was said that by way of the air was the more dangerous route because it posed a bigger target, and much easier for them to be spotted by those flying death traps.


    ��Who knows what happened to those top figures who had gone in earlier?�� Someone, somewhere, murmured. Although they hesitated to go in, they knew that before them, there had already been many extremely powerful people who had entered. There were no traces of them now, for they must have already gone deep into the relic.


    ��Let��s move.��


    Someone got impatient, and proceeded to step into it, moving forward step by step.


    This was something that had been replayed time and again during the past few months. As for why people kept on doing this was naturally not because of its inherent danger. Rumors had it that this may have been a territory that once belonged to one of the Eight Legions from God��s relic.


    The House Karura, one of the Eight Legions, was said to be the royal clan of the golden-winged roc bird, with the blood of the golden-winged roc flowing through their veins.


    According to legend, in primordial times, the House Karura hunted demons for sustenance, so they were the natural enemy of the demons.


    ��Karura!��


    At this time, outside of the statue relic, someone with a terrifying divine glow in his eyes was staring inside with a fervent desire.


    Behind him, there was another group of cultivators who followed him, and these people were from the Ancient God Clans, the most powerful force in the Vajra Domain. They were cultivators from the Vajra Domain.


    The lead cultivator��s eyes glowed with a divine aurora that did not seem to be his own. His fervent eyes stared inside and finally had found a place of extraordinary relics. Here was the House Karura of the Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path.


    In the age of the ancient gods, the House Karura was powerful and terrifying, feeding on the demons and tasked by the Heavenly Path to keep the demon clan in line. They had imprisoned the demon clan in the Devil Abyss and acted as their jailers.


    For the cultivators of the demon clan, their resentment of the House Karura was more than words could express. The two were truly sworn enemies.


    In the battle of the End of the Gods, the Devil World fought their way out of the Devil Abyss, and an outstanding man emerged in the form of the Devil Emperor, who ruled over the demon clan and declared war on the Heavenly Path by slaughtering the House Karura.


    The extent of the horror of that battle was simply incomprehensible today.


    Now, he might have found the original battlefield.


    ��Get inside.�� A group of cultivators flickered their way into it and ventured deeper inside this ancient ruin.


    There may have been more than one Great Emperor who had perished there.


    Any one house under the powerful Eight Legions of the Heavenly Path would not only have just one Great Emperor.


    Once upon a time, there were many Great Emperors under the command of Ziwei the Great.


    Even though this area was extremely dangerous, people were still flocking to it, as there was a constant stream of cultivators who were going inside, as if this dangerous place had an inexplicable attraction for them.


    The more dangerous it was, the stronger the attraction.


    A few days later, Ye Futian and the others also arrived. During the past few days of traveling, they had gone through much and heard much.


    Rumor had it that someone had found the ruins of the Eight Legions, and this might be one of them: the ruins of the small world that was once ruled by the House Karura.


    Ye Futian stood outside looking at the statue. After countless years, Ye Futian could perceive the domineering will on the statue. As one of the Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path, how powerful was the House Karura in the days of yore?


    This was something that perhaps no one could ever know in present days.


    ��Be careful, the aura inside is very dangerous,�� Ye Futian cautioned everyone. After cultivating to a certain level, his perception was a little sharper, and he could detect the existence of danger before anyone else.


    Everyone nodded as they ventured inside. They made their way forward on the yellow sands and saw a corpse on the ground. The body had been mutilated as if it had been feasted upon by some demonic beast and left in this sorry state, which was gruesome to behold.


    But this did not deter them from progressing further, as the group continued to make their way deeper inside.


    The area was open and vast and may have been a world in ancient times. After all, it was one of the Eight Legions and would have had its own territory to rule.


    At this moment, there was a sharp shrill that came from above. Ye Futian and the others looked up and saw that there was a golden-winged roc that hovered above. However, the golden divine light on his body was a little dim and the look in his eyes was a little off. Overall, its feel was closer to the divine condor they had encountered when they had first entered the relic and not some bona fide ancient monster that had survived until this day.


    After all, like the divine condor before, it had survived because of special circumstances, such as having been sheltered by the green grass that was transformed by the Undying Great Emperor after his death.


    ��Be careful,�� Ye Futian said. Immediately afterward, the golden-winged roc swooped down from high above, as if targeting these human cultivators as prey.. Without showing any trace of restraint, it went straight for Ye Futian and the rest.

 Chapter 2673 - Demonic Shadow

    Chen Yi took the lead. A brilliant light sailed across the sky and directly pierced through the golden roc that was swooping down on them. Instantly, the body of the roc was shattered into nothingness and transformed into numerous spots of light that soon dissipated.


    His movements were as fast as always, The speed of light was indescribably frightening.


    ��This bird was not very powerful, nor was it wise,�� Chen Yi commented when he returned to his position.


    ��His eyes were not right, as if it had been corrupted. It may be that the undead in this relic have given rise to a chaotic will, corrupting the demonic beasts here before resuscitating them,�� Hua Qingqing said. Everyone nodded and thought that it must be as she said.


    This battlefield must have seen some really cruel battles, and there were imperial-level existences that had met their ends here. Though they had perished and their wills had been disintegrated, it was possible that not all of them were completely destroyed, thus a chaotic will was born.


    The group continued forging forward. On the way, they encountered many similar situations and saw many corpses that belonged to the cultivators who had entered the relic and had been killed here. Perhaps they died at the hands of those golden rocs.


    However, the scattered dead spirits of the Karura could not block their way of course. The group traveled onward, crossing this land at an incredible speed. The extent of this relic was unknown, and many had entered a long time ago. No one knew what kind of situation they were facing or where they were exactly.


    ��Watch yourselves,�� Ye Futian said. In front of him, he noticed a very dangerous aura.


    ��A strong demonic aura and death,�� someone else had felt it as well.


    As they moved forward, they saw a vast mountain range ahead. In this mountainous area, many demonic beasts could be seen, with various great monsters among them. These must be the group of demonic beasts that were ruled by the rocs. In addition, there were some powerful birds circling and hovering above.


    Ye Futian glanced to both sides of himself and saw that this vast mountain range was not only broad but high and if they wanted to keep moving forward, the only way was to traverse it, as there was no other way around it.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian said without hesitation, as he headed directly toward the mountains ahead. In this vast and endless mountainous land, their group appeared very small and insignificant.


    The aura of desolation and death permeated everything, and many demonic beasts were looking at them. In their eyes, there was a hint of a bloodthirsty desire, as if they had no souls at all, but were guided by their own thirst for blood.


    ��We can use it for trials,�� someone piped up, as a group of men rushed forward and jumped in to join the melee.


    Chen Yi��s speed was the fastest. He turned into a shadow of light that rushed forward. Lights lit up wherever he passed, and demonic beasts continued to be blasted into pieces.


    Next were Ye Wuchen, Yaya, and the Swordmaster of Lihen. They had inherited the Sword Will of the Three Sword Emperors not long ago, and naturally they wanted to test their newfound powers. Now that there was this group of monsters for them to slay, how could they miss such a great opportunity?


    Ye Wuchen��s sword was fast and domineering, extremely fierce. Wherever his sword passed, all the bodies of these demonic beasts shattered. Yaya carried the sword matrix with her, as countless divine light from the sword matrix sprinkled down, covering an entire area. The Swordmaster of Lihen��s sword was meant for separation. When his sword fell, the heads of those beasts separated from their bodies, and their remaining will was pulverized directly.


    As all the cultivators attacked, Ye Futian stayed behind them, as the will of the Great Path shrouded the surrounding area, and he said, ��You just keeping going forward, I will guard your rear.��


    Everyone nodded. With Ye Futian shoring up the rear, they were able to concentrate on forward attacks with confidence.


    Everyone moved deep inside the mountain range. The strength of the monsters that came at them differed, so they had to choose their opponents accordingly.


    Lord Chen and Hua Jieyu guarded their flanks, with Gu Dongliu and Chen Yi out in front.


    Hua Qingqing��s aura was astonishing as well. The Light of Buddha was blazing, and when the demonic beasts wanted to attack her, they were enveloped by the Light of Buddha instead. Their hostility dissipated, and they fell to the land below quietly, as if they had been ushered into the afterlife. This ability made her work the easiest among all the cultivators.


    Long Chen, Jun, Little Condor, and Zifeng were the most emotional. They were also demonic beasts themselves. They saw so many great monsters here, and many of them were at the level of divine beasts. They were far stronger than they had been while they were alive.


    It was unimaginable how terrifying the House Karura was in that era.


    Their group ventured deeper into the mountains and drove toward the other side of the range. At this time, a swift golden roc came down in front of Qin Qing. In mere seconds, its sharp claws were about to tear her body apart, while Qin Qing��s face instantly changed into a look of shock.


    But at this precise moment, a shape suddenly materialized and pointed with his finger. Instantly, the body of the roc was destroyed and shattered, and it was Ye Futian who had appeared.


    ��Thank you, Lord Ye,�� Qin Qing nodded at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian acknowledged her with a slight nod, as his body returned to its original position, and he continued to protect everyone from behind. When someone was in trouble, he would appear immediately to intervene.


    In the process of going deep into the mountains, they had met other cultivators as well, but they were not in any specific place. They could perceive each other��s existence, as they were all going for the other side.


    But there were no corpses here. Even if there were, they would soon become food for the hordes of monsters.


    At this moment, Ye Futian was gone in a flash and reappeared in another position. Somewhere on the mountains, upon a boulder, there was a set of armor that encased a mummified skeleton, the remains of a human cultivator.


    Ye Futian��s turned his thoughts to it, and the dust dispersed immediately. A demonic coercion effused from the armor, which indicated that it was demonic armor.


    ��It��s a demon��s corpse.��


    Blind Tie came up behind Ye Futian and detected the demonic armor as well and said, ��This armor is subdivine arms, with considerable rank. The owner of this armor would have been someone with extraordinary cultivation.��


    MMMM. Ye Futian nodded, ��This is the first demonic item I��ve encountered, but there are more corpses that belonged to other demons. It is possible that the demon clan attacked, and most of the bodies of the demonic cultivators have been devoured.��


    ��It is possible that this place was not yet the center of House Karura,�� said Blind Tie. Ye Futian nodded as his figure flickered back to where he had been before. They continued to move forward and, on the way, they encountered several other demonic items, which, no doubt, had been left behind by demonic cultivators.


    The mountain range on this side was extensive, and it took them several days before they finally came out of it. As they continued forward, Ye Futian looked ahead. It seemed that they were on a relatively high terrain, and they could vaguely see the shapes of buildings in the distance.


    In this tomb of the gods, very few buildings could be seen.


    Finally, they came to the end of this area. At this time, they were standing on high ground as they looked to the land below. This seemed to be an ancient royal city of Karura, albeit in a state of great dilapidation. This was an abandoned city from primordial times.


    ��Is this the center of the small world ruled by Karura?�� someone whispered. ��In the distance, what is that building? Is it the divine residence of the Karura?��


    ��Many cultivators have already arrived.�� Ye Futian surveyed the boundless plains in front of them. At a glance, he could see many cultivators who were already inside. At the same time, he could also feel wisps of extraordinary auras.


    ��Imperial battles have erupted in this city before, and there may be a lot of traces left behind by the Great Emperors,�� Ye Futian added. ��Be careful. The people in there seem to be exercising great caution.��


    Everyone nodded. High in the sky, there was not one person that could be seen traveling in the air.


    ��There is a strong demonic will,�� Hua Qingqing said in a low voice, her beautiful eyes focused in front.


    ��I feel it too,�� Ye Futian nodded. This city was tainted with an extremely powerful demonic will. The war that had erupted here once upon a time must have been of an unimaginable scale.


    ��Down,�� Ye Futian said, as his body leaped forward and swooped down, landing in this ancient Karura city. Everyone else followed him closely and saw Ye Futian running ahead. Although he did not levitate in the air, his speed was incredible. Everyone followed closely behind as they traveled forward.


    As they continued to venture deeper into the area, they suddenly detected a sense of danger. An extremely gigantic figure suddenly appeared in front of them, and it was none other than the Karura divine bird. This massive bird sheltered the sky and the sun as it swooped down with terrifying speed.


    Ye Futian��s figure flashed like a blast of lightning as he sensed that dangerous aura. He unleashed the Sky Tremoring without another thought and slammed it forward, colliding with that massive body.


    BANG!


    A loud bang was heard as the void shook violently. A terrifying storm swept out and repelled Ye Futian backward. Likewise, the Karura was also pushed high into the sky, but its body was not blasted into pieces. Its flesh did not know the meaning of pain, and its icy eyes looked down at Ye Futian in the area below.


    ��What kind of body is this?�� Ye Futian��s heart was palpitating. Was it really so terrifying?


    What level of existence was this Karura before it died?


    Those bloodthirsty eyes surveyed the area below. Ye Futian took a step forward with a terrifying aura. They had just come in and already they had encountered such a fierce beast. This city was probably fraught with unseen challenges.


    BUZZ! A terrifying bloodthirsty aura descended, and that massive body swooped down again, aiming to slaughter Ye Futian and the others.


    PUH!


    At this moment, the body of that behemoth suddenly stopped in mid-air, as if a most horrific force had imposed restrictions upon it, abruptly putting a stop to that terrifying moving speed.


    Ye Futian raised his head to look up into the sky, his heart was beating wildly. The body that his imperial arms, the Sky Tremoring, had failed to smash was now impaled by a giant demonic blade. More important, it was just a section of the demonic blade, as the blade had been broken into pieces, but a section of it had pierced directly through the gigantic body of the Karura, nailing it in the void.


    ��This����


    Behind Ye Futian, the eyes of all the cultivators sharpened. Who was it that made the move?


    With a loud bang, the Karura��s body fell to the ground, but it did not die. Or rather, it was dead already, so there was no such thing as dying again.


    A shadow appeared silently, and a massive arm fell directly on the head of the Karura and forcibly tore off its head. It was done with such tremendous violence that Ye Futian and others watched, trembling with fear.


    In front of them stood a terrifying demonic shadow.. What��s more terrifying was that this demon shadow had no head!

 Chapter 2674 - Demonic Cave

    Chapter 2674: Demonic Cave


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and the others were right under the demonic shadow, and they dared not breathe too hard.


    A devil emperor!


    This demonic shadow must be that of a devil emperor.


    However, there was no head, as it had been sheared off.


    However, even without his head, he still seemed to have his own will and had smashed the Karura with a single blow. It was as if he still recognized who his mortal enemy was after all those years.


    A horrific coercion shrouded this space, and a dead silence pervaded. Just one of the hands from this demonic shadow was enough to wipe out all of them easily.


    At this time, the demonic shadow moved, turning slowly to face them. Even without a head, they still felt like he was staring at them. Immediately, everyone felt suffocated. It was as if their breathing was about to stop, and they dared not move an inch.


    Traces of horrific demonic might lingered, passing over them. Ye Futian��s heart was beating wildly; he hoped they wouldn��t be so unlucky.


    At this moment, the demonic shadow turned around and proceeded to leave this place. Ye Futian and the others still did not make a move; not until the demonic shadow had gone far enough away from them did they let out a sigh of relief.


    ��It��s an imperial corpse, one that can move,�� Lord Chen whispered. None of them would have survived the demonic shadow decided to move against them.


    ��We have to be more careful. The center of the House Karura will probably be more dangerous,�� Ye Futian reminded everyone as they nodded their heads. They could fight against the cultivators from the outside world, but facing this kind of ancient demon god, they wouldn��t even know how they died.


    He thought of the great hand that reached out from the abyss before and wondered if a great emperor was also lying beneath them.


    Ye Futian regarded this city of ruin with awe and respect.


    ��He avoided us and didn��t engage us, but he unleashed a fatal strike against that Karura.�� Chen Yi continued, ��Is this a conscious act or just mere instinct?��


    Everyone else was in deep thoughts about this question as well. The great emperor had his own independent sensibility. Or was his slaying of his mortal enemy��the Karura��a reflex?


    ��Even if there is some kind of consciousness, it must be vague and chaotic. It is possible that it is the same as those demonic beasts we have encountered in this world. They have probably forgotten who they were and only remember that their mortal enemy is the Karura.�� Ye Futian continued, ��Otherwise, if there is still a discernible consciousness, then with the means available to the great emperors, he would have been able to return in his completed form rather than just a headless corpse.��


    Everyone nodded, agreeing with Ye Futian��s assessment. Great emperors were immortal existences; their life spans were as eternal as heaven and earth. Even if his head was chopped off, he could still respawn and regenerate; but that devil emperor did not have a head. It was just a headless corpse.


    ��If it��s just instinct, then his instinct is to kill the Karura. Since he didn��t try to engage us before, he shouldn��t do that now either,�� Lord Chen analyzed. ��Where did he go now?��


    Ye Futian looked at Lord Chen and knew what he meant by that. He wanted to follow and see what was going on.


    ��Everyone follow me and watch yourselves,�� said Ye Futian. He then led the people forward. When they first got here, they were way more cautious now than before. What had happened just now had a significant impact on them.


    Walking in this ancient and desolate royal city of the House Karura, they had seen other cultivators on their way, whose cultivation was very strong indeed. Those who could stay alive and get here were either cultivators in the Tribulation Plane, or they had come along with clans or sects.


    ��The atmosphere ahead is even more terrifying,�� Ye Futian whispered. Everyone nodded because they had felt it too.


    The ground ahead was of the color of blood. It looked as if it had been soaked in fresh blood. An oppressive and terrifying aura appeared in this area, which was also where the headless demonic corpse had returned.


    There were many corpses and skeletons on the ground, including those of cultivators and giant monsters. There were even many bones from the Karura, which were gigantic.


    ��This is the main battleground.��


    Everyone secretly marveled when they saw what was before them. There was a wild atmosphere everywhere, and this wild atmosphere invaded in their direction, turning into rays of bloody light, wanting to penetrate their will.


    ��Watch out!�� Ye Futian said to them. ��Those demonic things before may have been corrupted by the chaotic will here. Don��t be affected by it.��


    He deliberately allowed some wisps of this aura to invade his own will. Sure enough, the invading will was full of violence and bloodthirsty intentions, wanting to influence him, even occupying his consciousness. Those whose cultivation was weaker and weak-willed would be easily affected if they were not careful.


    Moreover, this invading will was invisible. There was no way to evade it except to guard their spirits with tremendous vigilance.


    The Light of Buddha was shining, as sounds of Buddha lingered between heaven and earth, penetrating everyone��s ears. The Light of Buddha dazzled upon Hua Qingqing, yielding an extremely sacredness. Like a Buddha lamp illuminating this area, it was protecting everyone within its bounds. Those invading will that entered this domain were eaten up slowly until the Buddha light until it completely dissipated and disappeared.


    The techniques of Buddhism were meant to restrain the power of demons and evil spirits. In this space, the techniques of Buddhism would be far more effective.


    ��What is this place?�� Ye Futian looked in one direction and saw that it was completely corrupted by the aura of the demonic path. The earth there was a color of blood, and it was a domain of dead silence. In that domain, there were many horrific auras. It seemed as if the ghosts of demonic cultivators were drifting about.


    A terrifying suffocation permeated the entire domain. Many cultivators who arrived took a detour and did not dare to approach.


    ��He is inside.�� Lord Chen saw a figure inside, and it was the headless devil emperor. He was in there, and it seemed as if he was bound to this demonic domain. But just now, he was able to get out.


    ��There are treasures inside,�� Ye Futian stared yonder and commented.


    His perception was powerful, so he could detect that there were imperial-level treasures inside. That entire domain may be the demonic domain formed by the demise of some great emperor.


    ��It��s too dangerous.�� Lord Chen said, ��Forget it, we don��t need this opportunity that badly.��


    Ye Futian glanced into the distance. It was true that he didn��t need it, but someone else needed it.


    This was where the demonic clan battled the Karura, and a lot of top figures from the demonic world probably arrived, but they were not in the same area as them.


    The demonic clan would probably reap many gains.


    However, his older senior brother��s cultivation had remained at a bottleneck.


    Ye Futian��s adoptive father had taught his older senior brother the demonic blade and asked him to cultivate demonic techniques. This cultivation alone took many years. It was not until later that he realized that his older senior brother had suffered a lot to develop this demonic method. Indeed, he had paid a heavy price for it.


    But his older senior brother later encountered a bottleneck in his cultivation; even with the aid of the elixirs, he was unable to break the shackles.


    Now, Gu Dongliu, their third senior brother, had progressed considerably in his cultivation. The older senior brother couldn��t be lagging too far behind. He needed to catch up.


    Therefore, when Ye Futian saw the territory of this devil emperor, he thought of helping his older senior brother obtain this opportunity.


    ��This headless devil emperor should not be malicious. Otherwise, we would not have survived. I will go in and take a look, and you guys wait for me here,�� Ye Futian said to everyone. It looked like that he wanted to take the risk again.


    Hua Jieyu touched his hand and said, ��I��ll go with you.��


    Ye Futian shook his head. ��Don��t worry. If there is danger, I will use Buddha��s Celerity to get away immediately.��


    He had weighed the pros and cons. For himself, he thought he should be relatively safe. The only variable would be the headless imperial corpse. But even if that headless imperial corpse had bad intentions, he could rely on Buddha��s Celerity, and it would be possible for him to escape. After all, it was not a real great emperor, just a divine body.


    ��Mmm,�� Hua Jieyu could only nod in agreement.


    ��I��m going in first,�� Ye Futian said before entering into that domain. In an instant, traces of frightening demonic will surrounded him. It was as if he had completely immersed himself inside the domain world of the demonic gods, which was separated from the outside world.


    This was the demonic cave��the real world of demons.


    In the surrounding area, demonic shadows manifested, their eyes fixed on Ye Futian, with the cold spirits of blood thirst. It seemed that these demonic shadows were not solid forms but were transformed by will alone.


    The Light of Buddha bloomed upon Ye Futian with radiant brilliance. Suddenly, under the illumination from the Light of Buddha, many demonic shadows withdrew.. It was as if they were afraid of the power of Buddhism.

 Chapter 2675 - A Strange Sight

    Chapter 2675: A Strange Sight


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Someone was here!��


    Ye Futian looked at the few dead bodies strewn on the ground. They were bloody and indiscernible. It was hard to tell what was what. Other cultivators had come before and perished here.


    This made Ye Futian even more vigilant. He saw terrifying demonic shadows converging, harboring horrific demonic will. Some demonic shadows rushed at the Light of Buddha and swooped down on Ye Futian.


    Is this the chaotic will created by the fallen demons? Ye Futian wondered. As derived from Buddhism, his strength was so powerful that even the cultivators in the Second Tribulation Plane could not get close to him. All of these cultivators would be purified by the Light of Buddha, and that was the reason why all the demonic shadows that came for him retreated.


    Any demonic will that was able to pounce on him suggested that the will of the devil emperor had already tainted it.


    Ye Futian clasped his hands together, releasing the Light of Buddha to the extreme, purifying all the power of evil spirits in this world. Faintly, a will of the Great Emperor was shining upon him as he allowed those evil phantoms to come at him without backing away but continued pushing forward.


    The demonic phantoms looked menacing as they opened their mouth and clawing at his body. Even the terrifying demonic will tried to invade Ye Futian��s consciousness but was blocked outside.


    Ye Futian watched numerous demons moving forward in this demonic cave, and the sight was incredibly creepy. However, he didn��t show the slightest sign of fear. Under the Light of Buddha, the holy soil was right beneath his feet.


    He saw many demonic soldiers on the ground, still in possession of their residual wills as a terrifying, bloody demonic light was released. Back then, many demonic cultivators were buried here.


    Then, Ye Futian saw the treasure he was talking about. He could perceive it while he was outside, but he couldn��t see it. It was not until he entered did he know what that treasure was.


    A demonic blade was sticking out of the ground, surrounded by a frightening, bloody demonic light. Even more alarming was that the demonic blade was impaled on a skull. It was a giant skull that belonged to a Karura, whose body was even more massive behind the head; it was almost like a small mountain. However, its body was in a pile of bits and pieces. Still, a terrible aura pervaded.


    But there was another equally shocking sight. Under the gigantic claws of the Karura, there was another skull that belonged to a demon. It was simply impossible to imagine how bloody and horrific the battle was. The two combatants had destroyed each other by ripping off their heads, and they both died in this place.


    Even now, a terrible bloody demonic light circled the demonic blade, and the surrounding space was stained with blood, forming a great domain of its own.


    Imperial arms! Ye Futian secretly marveled, and his heart palpitated. He saw that not far away from the demonic blade was a figure standing there quietly; it was the headless devil emperor. At this moment, Ye Futian realized that the skull may have belonged to the headless devil emperor.


    Once upon a time, he was locked in combat with a Karura, and both battled to the death. They had each chopped off the other��s head and perished here. After their deaths, the demonic way suppressed and restricted the Karura��s will, but the devil emperor��s own will did not completely disperse. It possibly became the source of that chaotic will. Therefore, his headless corpse was able to wander outside, even appear in the outside world, and kill any Karura around.


    Even though he had perished for countless years, he still remembered who his mortal enemy was and used the same method to chop off the Karura��s head.


    Ye Futian was a little hesitant. That demonic blade was some demonic imperial arms. But could he take it?


    Many cultivators died here, and he was not the first to come. Even if he could stop the corrosion of the demonic will, would the headless devil emperor try to kill him?


    After all, that demonic blade was impaled on the head of a Karura.


    Ye Futian continued to move forward and saw something extremely shocking ahead. In reality, he was still a distance away from it. He was walking very slowly and moving forward tentatively, approaching the area where the demonic blade was.


    He discovered that there were several corpses at the place next to the demonic blade, where the demonic will was ravaging. It was as if they died while trying to reach the demonic blade.


    Were they killed by the demonic blade or by the headless devil emperor?


    Ye Futian glanced at the headless devil emperor and saw that he did not make any move, as if completely ignoring his existence. Even so, just by standing there, he exuded a strong threat so that Ye Futian dared not move recklessly.


    More importantly, the demonic will here was getting more terrifying.


    He was somewhat hesitant. He was not the first person to come here, but those who wanted to take the demonic blade forcibly had died. So far, no one was able to take it away. So, could he take the demonic blade with him?


    It was an imperial arms comparable to the Sky Tremoring. If he could take it, no doubt, the strength of the Ziwei Imperial Palace would be significantly enhanced.


    Ye Futian hesitated for another moment before determination took hold in his eyes. Tentatively, he walked a few steps further and saw the headless devil emperor still did not move. He guessed that those bodies might not have been killed by the headless devil emperor, after all. They might have encountered some fatal crisis while trying to take the demonic blade and were subsequently obliterated.


    When he walked next to the demonic blade, Ye Futian was under terrifying pressure; it seemed as if the demonic will around him was about to swallow him up. However, he could not go back now since he had already made it this far. However, Ye Futian was mentally prepared to escape. If and when real danger arose, he would choose his own safety first.


    Before he attempted the demonic blade, Ye Futian looked at the headless devil emperor again and saw that there was still no movement from him. Finally, he put his hand on the demonic blade, trying to pull it out.


    However, at this instant, the bloody demonic light flowed along his arm and crawl into his body.


    Boom! An incomparable force that seemed to be able to swallow everything swallowed his entire person. Or, in other words, swallowed his will.


    He stood there holding the demonic blade but felt he had entered the world of the demonic blade. In this other world, he saw a terrifying battlefield, surrounded by countless great monsters in the sky. The great army of the House Karura obscured the sky and the sun as demonic cultivators came to attack. The battle had gone on for days, as the blood spilled had stained this world red.


    Buzz! At this time, a horrific Karura rushed towards his will in a threatening manner that was beyond description. At this moment, the head of the Karura that had been chopped off by the demonic blade lit up with a ray of light.


    ��This is bad!��


    Ye Futian was alarmed. He wanted to escape, but when he tried to move his mind, he found that his body was frozen in place. It was as if he was nailed to the ground. His entire will was shut off by the demonic blade, and his Buddha��s Celerity was useless.


    This demonic blade seemed to seal off a corner of the world, while it also sealed off the will of the Karura Demon Monarch. Countless demonic wills moved toward Ye Futian��s will, wanting to swallow his will and merge with him. However, Ye Futian��s will seemed to morph into a phantom of the Buddha, resisting the invasion of the demonic will.


    Boom! The will of the Karura Demon Monarch swooped down, and Ye Futian felt as if his head was about to explode and that his will was on the verge of being smashed to pieces.


    This was obviously something that Ye Futian did not expect. In addition to the demonic will, there was also the will of the Karura, which still existed in the world after all these years. Although it had long been corroded, it remained in its most violent and bloodthirsty form.


    Vaguely, Ye Futian realized that this was probably how those demonic corpses on the outside were created��they had been corrupted by this incredibly chaotic will.


    He perceived an unbridled and bloodthirsty Karura will��contemptuous, domineering, and invincible. It was the will of the Demon Monarch while he was alive.


    There was not much for Ye Futian to consider; all he could do now was fight. He released the will of the Demon Peacock Emperor to try to counter the will of the Karura. However, after repeated attacks, he could no longer hold the will at bay; the will of the Karura was far too wild to be tamed.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Under these repeated blasts, Ye Futian felt as if his will was about to collapse and shatter. If so, he would, no doubt, perish here like the rest.


    At this moment, Ye Futian moved his thoughts slightly to activate his spiritual soul. Wisps of the Great Path flowed into the demonic blade, attempting to use the demonic will inside the demonic blade to erase the Karura.


    When this will poured madly into the demonic blade, the demonic blade lit up with an extremely brilliant demonic light, illuminating this corner of the sky. A horrible rumbling sound came out as blood-red lightning appeared all around it.


    Inside the demonic blade, the bloodthirsty will of the Karura withdrew suddenly after having sensed this aura. The wild and unbridled will of the Karura Demon Monarch seemed to draw back in fear��even in awe��and did not dare to contend with it.


    ��What��s going on?�� Ye Futian felt a little frightened when he sensed this. The attack just now almost wiped him out. Yet, at this moment, that insane attack suddenly pulled back, and even the demonic will in the demonic blade had quieted. At this time, there was no other will that continued to attack him. This strange turn of events stunned Ye Futian.


    What was happening?

 Chapter 2676 - Integration and Obliteration

    Chapter 2676: Integration and Obliteration


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The aura of the Great Path in Ye Futian crazily poured into the demonic blade while his will did the same as well.


    Gradually, many demonic wills retreated. As his power continued to penetrate that forbidden elusive space, he saw many demons pull back or be knocked away until a clear sinister phantom revealed itself there.


    In another direction, another figure also appeared. The chaotic will seemed to have disappeared, replaced by two sober conscious wills. However, they were clearly weaker.


    ��This���� Ye Futian was shocked to his core. Were these the will of the Devil Emperor and the will of the Karura Demon Monarch?


    Did their remaining traces of will vanish because of his intervention?


    ��Who are you?!�� Two voices sounded in Ye Futian��s head at the same time.


    ��I am Ye Futian, a latecomer,�� Ye Futian replied.


    The phantom of the Devil Emperor stared at Ye Futian and asked, ��What year is this?��


    ��More than 10,000 years according to the Divine Prefecture Calendar. Elder is a cultivator from the primordial Age of the Gods.�� Ye Futian responded, ��However, we have no way to verify just how long it has been since your time.��


    ��The Age of the Gods!�� The other muttered to himself, ��What happened to that era?��


    ��All the gods have fallen, and the Heavenly Path collapsed,�� Ye Futian responded. They had already fallen at that time, so they might have had no idea what happened later.


    ��In today��s world, six Great Emperors ruled the six great realms,�� Ye Futian continued.


    The demon phantom was silent. So, there were only six Great Emperors in existence now.


    The world they were in was known as the Age of the Gods. However, the gods perished, and the Heavenly Path collapsed.


    They seemed to have won, for the Heavenly Path did collapse. But what was the outcome?


    ��What is the world like after the collapse of the Heavenly Path? Is the Demon Clan still in existence?�� the Devil Emperor asked.


    ��After the Heavenly Path collapsed, the Original Realm expanded. The world experienced an apocalyptic catastrophe which gave rise to a new world. However, these are just what we know from the ancient annals and legends. There is no way for us to verify their veracity today. All we know is that the world has changed, and the Heavenly Path was no more. The path of cultivation is no longer perfect, and great emperors are rare existences.�� Ye Futian added, ��As for the Demon Clan, the Devil World remains today, guarding the Devil Abyss.��


    ��The Heavenly Path collapsed, but the prison for the Demon Clan is still there.�� He sighed and could find no words. Why did they do everything they did back then?


    Who was right, and who was wrong?


    The Heavenly Path collapsed, but the world was also destroyed. Were they the redeemers or the sinners?


    The Devil Emperor looked at Ye Futian. He seemed to be somewhat curious about him. His regained consciousness seemed to be a little greater than the Demon Monarch��s.


    ��You have the aura of the Demon Clan upon you,�� the other said to Ye Futian.


    ��I have been to the Devil World, and my body has experienced the tribulations of the Devil Abyss,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��So, you have a close relationship with the Devil World?�� the Devil Emperor asked.


    ��The heir to the Devil World is my best friend, and we grew up together,�� Ye Futian responded. Although he didn��t know what he did to sober up their wills, he did know that he should be in the good graces of someone like the Devil Emperor.


    ��Where is he now?�� the other queried.


    ��He is in the outside world, probably looking for opportunities elsewhere. If you need me to, I can go and find him for you,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��There is no time,�� the other man responded. ��Years ago, I fell, and the remaining will should have dissipated then. But, because of the existence of this blade, I was able to retain a trace of my will. After all these years, this trace of will had long been merged with the will of the demonic blade and became chaotic and confused. Now that you have awakened me, it should be the end of my time here.��


    ��My senior brother cultivates the Demonic Path,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Tell him to come,�� the other said to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian nodded, then notified the Little Condor. The Little Condor didn��t take long to bring his senior brother, the Sword Saint, here.


    The Little Condor and Ye Futian shared the same mind, so he was aware of the intention of this request. He and the Sword Saint walked in front of the demonic blade and then allowed their wills to pour into it.


    ��Revered elders.�� After the Sword Saint arrived, he was immediately shocked as well. In here, besides Ye Futian, there were two other wills from the Demon Monarchs, and they had both woken up.


    Boom! A horrific demonic will invaded the will of the Sword Saint, and his entire person was instantly under a frightful attack. His will was released to the extreme, but those demonic wills flooded in, wanting to consume him completely.


    He had experienced this exact feeling once before. When the mysterious cultivator who guarded Ye Futian passed the demonic blade to him, it was this same exact feeling.


    ��It��s a pity that it is a little too weak, but the will itself is strong enough,�� a voice remarked. Then a terrifying demonic will merged into the will of the Sword Saint. At this moment, the Sword Saint was under terrible coercion, and his body trembled violently.


    Above the demonic blade, wisps of demonic light poured into his body, so that an astonishing demonic will flowed upon him.


    ��The will of the elder is quite compatible with my demonic beast; how about helping him as well?�� Ye Futian looked at the Karura Demon Monarch��s will and proposed.


    ��Sure.�� The other looked at Ye Futian and nodded readily. Then, his will proceeded to merge with the will of the Little Condor.


    Ye Futian perceived all these quietly, feeling that everything was going a little too smoothly. He was surprised that this Demon Monarch was so cooperative.


    But just as the thought flashed across his mind, a miserable cry came out. Ye Futian could clearly feel that the Little Condor��s will was being invaded and attacked. This was not to merge but to swallow and replace.


    ��Ungrateful beast!�� Ye Futian cursed under his breath. This Demon Monarch��s will was clearly in awe of him just moments ago, but suddenly he attacked the Little Condor. Its temperament was dangerously unpredictable.


    Ye Futian��s will instantly swooped out. He and the Little Condor were connected through their minds and shared one conjoined will. His will now seemed to have turned into the divine tree, covering the phantom of the opponent��s will. This force of will seemed capable of suppressing the other.


    Boom! The Great Paths of Shadow and Solar erupted simultaneously. At the same time, the powerful demonic will in the demonic blade also surged forward to assist, as the Sword Saint had completed the integration of the wills and came to aid him. With three forces encircling and suppressing him, the phantom of the Demon Monarch appeared to be in extreme pain and became more and more elusive.


    ��You are nothing but a wisp of will that about to dissipate, but you did not appreciate the opportunity I gave you to remain in this world. You tried to betray us, you ungrateful animal.�� Ye Futian��s voice was extremely cold as he continued to beat down the last remaining will of the other.


    That remaining trace of will was fighting madly, but the Sword Saint had already controlled the will of the demonic blade. Their opponent was sealed in here, and it was difficult for him to fight back.


    ��I submit,�� the other responded.


    ��Too late.�� Ye Futian��s voice was ice-cold. ��It is your honor to be able to integrate as one with my mount. Since you were deceitful first and eschewed this opportunity, then prepare to be destroyed forever.��


    This will from the Demon Monarch was unpredictable. If he were really to be integrated with the will of the Little Condor, who knows what latent dangers might be lurking? It was better just to wipe him out now.


    As soon as Ye Futian��s voice faded, several forces rushed fiercely at the same time and obliterated the opponent. The phantom shattered and dissipated.. They completely disappeared!

 Chapter 2677 - Predators Watching

    Chapter 2677: Predators Watching


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and the Little Condor withdrew their collective will and opened their eyes as Ye Futian left the demonic blade.


    Behind them, other cultivators arrived, looking at the Sword Saint. They saw the Sword Saint holding the demonic blade in his hands, his eyes closed tightly. As the demonic light cleansed his body and the surrounding area, terrible demonic will rushed into the demonic blade. However, with the inheritance of the Devil Emperor��s will, the Sword Saint��s will no longer wavered. It stood steadfast as it allowed the demonic blade to consume the strength of the incoming demonic will.


    A terrible vortex appeared in the space as the elusive demonic shadows poured into it. At this moment, the chaotic wills seemed to merge into one, devouring everything.


    Buzz! Upon the demonic blade, an extremely horrific bloody demonic light shot into the sky; its demonic might was overwhelming. It turned into a frightening light beam that pierced the sky. It was a terrifying sight to behold.


    Ye Futian and the others looked up. They saw that the sky above this world had changed color. The demonic might was tossing and roaring.


    Further away, other cultivators turned their attention to this side as well, and all of them revealed a look of great surprise.


    They wondered what had happened at the location of the headless demonic corpse. Previously, no one could take the demonic blade, but now they saw a change taking place at that exact location. Could it be that someone else had managed to take the demonic blade?


    In the distance, many cultivators rushed over when they saw the vision above the firmament. They were moving in fast.


    The Sword Saint was still immersed in that state of absorption, as he had not been able to digest everything given to him so quickly. His cultivation lacked a bit, to begin with. Even though the Devil Emperor had actively merged with him, he needed time to absorb this power.


    ��Imperial corpse.�� Ye Futian glanced at the Karura��s massive body, then walked over to eliminate some of its chaotic will. He put the imperial corpse away. Although it might not be of any use, for the time being, there may be a use for it somewhere down the road.


    The Imperial corpse, such as the one left by the Karura Demon Monarch, was extremely terrifying in the flesh. It was the body of a great emperor, so the entire body was full of treasures. However, it was not yet possible for them to use it at the moment. Even if they had a mind to refine it into some divine arms, they currently could not do that, so everything would have to wait until later.


    He looked at the corpse of the Devil Emperor again. At this moment, the demonic corpse was standing there quietly, not showing any sign of life. Ye Futian walked towards him and said, ��Revered elder, if I ever get a chance, I will send you back to the Devil World to be laid to rest properly.��


    With that said, he put away this demonic corpse as well. At the last minute, the will of the Devil Emperor chose to actively assist him, for which Ye Futian was immensely grateful. More importantly, he had already passed on his will to his elder senior brother, so Ye Futian could not leave him out here, unburied.


    On the Contrary, the Karura Demon Monarch had been in awe of his aura yet suddenly attacked him. It had proven that he was an unpredictable creature, and Ye Futian felt no allegiance to such a miserable thing.


    ��What a waste; a missed opportunity from a great emperor,�� Little Condor said with much rumination. He had been following Ye Futian in cultivation for a long time and possessed the same comprehension as Ye Futian in cultivation. However, to survive the tribulation was another matter entirely. He had been stuck at the same place for what seemed to be forever, limited by his own natural given talent. After all, he was nothing more than an ordinary demonic beast, to begin with, and it was already something of a miracle for him to get to this level of cultivation. Many of the other minor demons from the past had to bow down before him now when they saw him.


    He was so close to this opportunity of the great emperor, yet it was derailed by that miserable creature who not only did not take advantage of it but wanted to swallow him up instead. The Little Condor couldn��t help but feel particularly upset by this turn of events.


    ��No, that��s not right. Not taking this opportunity with me was the loss of that stupid creature.�� Realizing that his logic hurt him, the Little Condor determined that ultimately it was not a pity for him.


    It was the Karura Demon Monarch himself who didn��t know what was good for him and had thus missed such a great opportunity.


    ��Don��t worry. The world is changing now, and various kinds of God��s relics have been revealed; I��m certain there will be many other opportunities in the future,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��I��m not in a hurry.�� Little Condor swaggered back and didn��t appear to care at all!


    The other cultivators behind them were very hopeful when they heard this. The world had been going through some drastic changes, and the relics of the gods had made their appearance. They wondered if they would have opportunities of their own?


    First, it was Ye Wuchen, Gu Dongliu, then Swordmaster of Lihen, Yaya, and now it was Sword Saint��s turn. Many people had already gotten their own opportunities, so the rest were looking forward to their turns.


    But just at this moment, everyone felt other cultivators approaching. Many of them frowned as they expanded their divine consciousnesses.


    After the Sword Saint inherited the Devil Emperor��s will, the danger in this demonic cave was lifted, clearly visible to other cultivators in the area. Many divine consciousnesses were sweeping over this area, even probing the location of the Sword Saint.


    Yonder, there was the existence of imperial arms.


    Ye Futian frowned. The divine light of the Great Path shrouded over the area where the Sword Saint was, preventing him from being disturbed by the others. The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace also stepped forward to guard his flanks, to prevent anyone from affecting the Sword Saint while inheriting the demonic blade.


    An imperial arms were of great significance to Ziwei Imperial Palace and may directly change the combat capability of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��Ziwei Imperial Palace is currently occupying this space for cultivation. I��m afraid you all would need to move to some other locations,�� Ye Futian announced loudly, letting everyone know who they were. He was doing this as a warning. Hopefully, some of them would leave on their own and avoid further confrontation.


    However, the name of Ziwei Imperial Palace did not always have its intended effect. At least, that was not the case here.


    Anyone who made it this far was not a simple ordinary character; all of them were cultivators from top principalities. At this time, Ye Futian saw cultivators from the Ancient God Clan of the Vajra Region and superpowers from the other worlds.


    ��I didn��t expect that you would have a demon cultivator in your group. It seems that you have indeed colluded with the Devil World and sank into the Demonic Path,�� the Vajra Region Lord proclaimed sanctimoniously. He was surrounded by divine light, and his appearance was solemn and dignified. That radiant golden divine light shrouded the boundless space and cast a golden hue over this entire area.


    ��What��s wrong with demonic cultivators?�� a voice challenged immediately. There was a demon standing there with a terrific aura; their demonic might was astounding to anyone near him. However, Ye Futian did not recall having seen this man before. He hadn��t seen the man at the Devil Imperial Palace nor on the battlefield at the Northern Cliff Region. It was possible that he was not a cultivator from the Devil Imperial Palace but a giant in the Devil World.


    There were some extraordinary figures from each realm, but not all of them had joined the imperial palaces in each realm. For example, the Ancient God Clans in the Divine Prefecture had superior cultivators such as the Supreme Swordlord on their roster. Still, they weren��t all necessarily under the command of Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    ��Beigong Old Demon!�� When the Vajra Region Lord looked at the person who spoke, he realized he recognized the man. Beigong Old Demon was an extremely well-known character in the Devil World. During the most chaotic years, countless people had perished because of him.


    In the Devil World, Bei Gong Old Demon was one of the few people who stood at the top, someone who was on the Demigod List.


    In the days after the settlement of the world, it was divided into seven realms, which several Great Emperors ruled.


    After the Great Emperors, there were those known as Benshen��entities who were on the edge of being a great emperor. Someone had once calculated the number of this kind of supreme existence and found that there were only a very few in each world.


    These individuals were then included on the Demigod List by some people, meaning that they were peak existences with power just below that of the Great Emperors.


    Those at this level were rarely seen in the cultivation world. One reason was that they were extremely few in number, and there were only a few in each world. Secondly, all of them were busy with their cultivation, so the outside world did not have any chance to see them.


    More importantly, many on the Demigod List were supreme cultivators in different imperial palaces; their statuses were lofty and revered. Normally, they were not in the habit of being out and about.


    Beigong Old Demon was a supreme cultivator on the Demigod List.


    At the moment, the imperial arms, the Sky Tremoring, had already appeared in Ye Futian��s hand. Although this man was a demonic cultivator, it was not a guarantee that he would go easy on Ye Futian. After all, aside from his relationship with Yu Sheng, Ye Futian did not have much to do with the Devil World.


    Furthermore, this Beigong Old Demon may have nothing to do with the Devil Imperial Palace. With an imperial arms in front of him, how could he resist the temptation?


    In addition to the Vajra Region Lord and Beigong Old Demon, there were other incredibly powerful existences in other directions. Among them, there was a middle-aged man standing somewhere quietly, exuding an aura that was extremely terrifying to make sure that Ye Futian was aware of the threat.


    He had been standing there quietly without speaking, merely staring at the demonic blade in front of him.


    Naturally, everyone present knew of Ye Futian��s name and reputation, so there was no grabbing and fighting just yet.


    ��You must have been here before already. Since you didn��t get it, then it means you are not destined to have it. Now that the demonic blade has chosen us, it belongs to Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� Ye Futian said boldly as he looked at everyone present. ��If any of you want to forcibly take it from us, you will leave us no choice but to defend ourselves. Think carefully before you make a move. Whether you succeed or not, once you make a move against us, you��ll be our mortal enemy, and you must always watch your back in the future.��


    He did not conceal the threat in his words. With the imperial arms in hand, his combat effectiveness was also at its peak. Those who wanted to attack him before, need only to refer back to the destruction of Tianyan City, which plenty of people had witnessed.


    At the time, the City Lord��s Office of Tianyan City was clearly not an entity that Ye Futian could hope to compete. Yet, it was still destroyed by him in the end.


    If they were to offend Ye Futian now, there would be considerable risk in doing so.


    After all, he had already proven the extent of his strength.


    ��Killing you would mean everything would be solved,�� the Vajra Region Lord said loudly.. There was a faint trace of imperial might that exuded from him with an incredible dominance. The Vajra Region appeared before them, accompanied by golden divine light, which directly sealed off this vast space!

 Chapter 2678 - West Imperial Palace Lord

    Chapter 2678: West Imperial Palace Lord


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian stared at the other party. He naturally sensed the presence of the Will of the Great Emperor. From the looks of it, the six Ancient God Clans had sent out all their trump cards this time. The Wills of the Great Emperors passed down within the Ancient God Clans had all followed them to this ancient continent to obtain fateful encounters.


    ��You still have to kill me first,�� replied Ye Futian. Terrifying Tremoring Pulses emanated from Sky Tremor and rained down on the other party.


    Clang! There was a loud sound of metal colliding. The body of the Vajra Region Lord turned golden. It was the divine body of the Vajra Indestructible Form. This body seemed to be forged of pure gold and was unshakable.


    At the same time, Ye Futian sensed a mighty Divine Force circulating within the body of the Vajra Region Lord. This was the unique technique cultivated by the cultivators of the Vajra Region, the Divine Force of the Vajra Region.


    What surprised Ye Futian even more was that the level of the Divine Force of the Vajra Region cultivated by the other party had already surpassed that of the Vajra Divine Child. It already had the aura of the ancient Emperor of the Vajra Region.


    Had the will of the Great Emperor of the Vajra Region become the Divine Force that merged with the Vajra Region Lord? Was the former trying to merge with the latter? Ye Futian thought to himself. If that were the case, the ability of the Vajra Region Lord would be very frightening.


    The Divine Force of the Vajra Region was a powerful and domineering attack, to begin with. If the Will of the Great Emperor transformed into a Divine Force, it would indeed become a godly power.


    It was hard to imagine how mighty it would be.


    In the heavens above, a terrifying pressure enveloped the space. Everyone felt a suffocating pressure. The dominion of the Vajra Region pressed down, the Divine Force of the Vajra Region was the only force circulating within it.


    The Vajra Region Lord stood in midair. He lifted his hand and pointed a finger at Ye Futian. The Divine Force of the Vajra Region immediately merged into the finger. An indestructible slash shot straight out. It penetrated the space directly as it charged towards Ye Futian.


    When this finger charged forward, a golden slash appeared in the sky. It was terrifying.


    Ye Futian raised Sky Tremor towards the other party and swung it out casually. It collided with the domineering finger and let out a terrifying collision sound. The finger penetrated the Tremoring Pulse and continued advancing towards Ye Futian. It kept charging towards Ye Futian until it was close to him before it was shattered by the power of the Tremoring Pulse and disappeared without a trace.


    It was so powerful! The crowd thought as their hearts leapt from witnessing the scene. The power of this finger was terrifying. It directly pierced the Tremoring Pulse that erupted from the imperial arm. It seemed to be the finger of a Great Emperor.


    With the Divine Force of the Great Emperor, the current Vajra Region Lord seemed to have transcended the attack power of the Two Tribulation Plane, reaching another level. Even the two super cultivators observing the battle also revealed surprised looks. Right now, the Vajra Region Lord was very dangerous. His ability did not pale in comparison to the existences on the Demigod List.


    Ye Futian also realized that the other party was powerful. He stared at the other party, standing ready. At the same time, his Life Spirit aura frenziedly surged into the imperial arm. The next moment, Sky Tremor was filled with Path Obliterating divine might. It also overflowed with vast domineering pressure.


    ��All of you, get behind me,�� ordered Ye Futian. The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace immediately retreated behind him. This battle was perilous. Even the aftershocks of their attacks had enough power to destroy the crowd.


    The other cultivators of the Vajra Region similarly stood behind the Vajra Region Lord. They did not dare to act recklessly.


    A divine might emanated outwards. In the heavens above, terrifying golden divine light flowed within the dominion of the Vajra Region. The figure of the Vajra Region Lord rose into the sky. All the cultivators behind him followed suit, remaining behind him.


    Terrifying rumbling could be heard. He raised his hand and pointed a finger downwards. In an instant, countless slashes of the Vajra Region shot out. They appeared to be flowing lights that could destroy the world. They frenziedly rained down. The instant the attack erupted, it seemed as though the heavens were about to be extinguished.


    Ye Futian raised Sky Tremor and swung it towards the sky. In an instant, the heavens and earth split apart, and thousands of Tremoring Pulses swept out. They shattered everything around.


    When the two attacks clashed, the Demon Cave shook violently. It even felt as though an earthquake had hit the entire city. The Vajra Region Lord seemed to have become one with the dominion of the Vajra Region. It was as though an ancient god of the Vajra Region had appeared. Thousands of slashes rained down and clashed with the Tremoring Pulses. In that instant, everyone felt that it was hard to breathe.


    ��Be careful,�� someone said. The expression of the surrounding cultivators changed. They released their auras of the Great Path. They all hid behind the most vital members among them. Some cultivators retreated frantically. They were worried that the Tremoring Pulses would destroy them.


    Bang. There was a loud bang. The Great Path seemed to collapse and explode. Ye Futian wielded Sky Tremor and swung it outwards again. A screen formed in front of him and the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace. At the same time, the Vajra Region Lord also did the same. A gigantic Vajra Region divine seal formed a barrier and blocked off the destructive storm. They actually had to shield their members from their attacks. It seemed strange, but it had happened before the eyes of the crowd.


    The destructive storm swept out. This formless storm destroyed all the residue demonic will in the Demon Cave, reducing it into dust. Many cultivators drawn to this place by the imperial arm were injured by the shockwaves and coughed up fresh blood. Even those who were far away were also affected by the aftershocks of the attacks.


    These were merely the aftershocks. If these attacks were direct hits, they could not imagine the damage one would sustain. They might be killed instantly.


    After the storm passed, Ye Futian stared at the Vajra Region Lord. Both sides seemed to be pulling their punches. Otherwise, the blast range would be even more terrifyingly large. However, it would be harder to fight unrestrained this way, given that they would have concerns for the safety of their members.


    However, from this exchange, the Vajra Region Lord figured out that the combat ability of Ye Futian wielding an imperial arm was not weaker than his own. Even with his true godly power of the Vajra Region, wanting to destroy Ye Futian was still not an easy feat.


    Now, the members of Ziwei Imperial Palace might obtain their second imperial arm. If that truly happened, it would undoubtedly be extremely disadvantageous for the members of the Vajra Region.


    ��Are the two of you just going to watch?�� the Vajra Region Lord asked as he looked at Beigong Old Demon and the middle-aged man. These two figures were demigods. If they also attacked to snatch the demonic imperial arm, how could Ye Futian stand against them alone?


    Once they fought, it would undoubtedly involve everyone from Ziwei Imperial Palace. This was undoubtedly the result the Vajra Region Lord wanted to see.


    ��Palace Lord Ye,�� called out a voice. Just then, a group of figures headed over here. The voice instantly attracted the attention of many cultivators. Ye Futian also looked at the person who had spoken. The cultivators of the West Imperial Palace had arrived, and their leader was actually Xi Chiyao.


    Huh?


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. Xi Chiyao had been cultivating in Ziwei Imperial Palace most of the time. He was naturally very close to her. It had not been long since they last met. However, he felt as though Xi Chiyao��s temperament had changed.


    It was not just her temperament. Her cultivation had also changed. She had already survived her second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Her speed of cultivation was somewhat frightening. Even with his Sub-divine elixir, it was still too fast.


    Ye Futian also sensed a special aura from Xi Chiyao. It was not as simple as her cultivation having changed.


    This time, the various Ancient God Clans brought their trump cards to the relics of the gods. It should also be the same for the West Imperial Palace. Could it be that the Will of the West Emperor of the West Imperial Palace was in Xi Chiyao��s body?


    The Vajra Region Lord frowned. He naturally knew that the West Imperial Palace and Ziwei Imperial Palace were close. They seemed to be in an alliance. Now that the West Imperial Palace cultivators had appeared, it was not good news for him.


    ��Does West Imperial Palace wish to interfere?�� the Vajra Region Lord asked Xi Chiyao as he looked at her.


    ��Interfere?�� repeated Xi Chiyao as she looked back at the Vajra Region Lord. ��West Imperial Palace has always been good friends with Palace Lord Ye. If the Vajra Region wishes to make enemies of Palace Lord Ye, the stance of West Imperial Palace naturally does not need to be elaborated.��


    ��Is West Imperial Palace now ruled by a junior brat?�� said the Vajra Region Lord with a vigorous and powerful voice. He looked at the cultivator standing behind Xi Chiyao. It was the original West Imperial Palace Lord. However, he had let Xi Chiyao deal with the situation.


    ��The position of Palace Lord has already been passed on to Xi Chiyao. Now, she is West Imperial Palace Lord, so she naturally controls the troops,�� said the original West Imperial Palace Lord. This caused the Vajra Region Lord to reveal a strange look.


    The position of West Imperial Palace Lord had been passed down to Xi Chiyao?


    Even Ye Futian glanced over here with a curious look. Over transmitted thoughts, Xi Chiyao said to him, ��The relics of the gods appeared. Before we left, I inherited the position of Palace Lord.��


    Ye Futian secretly nodded his head. From the looks of it, Xi Chiyao had completely inherited the Will of the West Emperor. Hence, she had officially accepted the position of Palace Lord.


    ��A mere junior brat is most likely unworthy of this position,�� mocked the Vajra Region Lord with a powerful voice. Divine might of the Great Path emanated from him and pressed down on Xi Chiyao.


    Right then, Xi Chiyao extended her hand. In her hands, there appeared an extremely slender sword.


    Once this sword appeared, rain immediately poured down in the surroundings. A frightening divine might was emanating from the divine sword. It appeared to be the might of a Great Emperor.


    ��Raindrop Divine Sword!�� exclaimed the Vajra Region Lord as he stared at the divine sword.


    This sword was not a complete imperial arm as it was not forged by a Great Emperor. However, it used to be the sword of the West Emperor. The sword also possessed its own soul. It might be that the Will of the West Emperor was contained within it. Even though it was not a divine sword, with the Will of the Great Emperor within it, this sword could be considered a pseudo-imperial arm.


    Right then, the Vajra Region Lord naturally understood what West Imperial Palace��s trump card was. From the looks of it, it was the same as their own. Their Great Emperor had also appeared in the world. Xi Chiyao inherited the position of West Imperial Palace Lord. She came wielding Raindrop Divine Sword. If they were to begin fighting, he would not necessarily be able to gain an upper hand.


    Just then, a beam of menacing demonic light pierced the clouds. The crowd looked in the direction of the demonic saber. Sword Saint opened his eyes and pulled the demonic saber out. A terrifying Saber Will emanated outwards. He had inherited the demonic saber.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace��s second imperial arm had appeared.


    When Beigong Old Demon saw this scene, he turned and left. The other cultivators also frantically turned to leave. They knew that there was no hope for them, so they did not waste anymore time here. They would not take the risk and start a fight.


    The expression of the Vajra Region Lord was ugly. However, it seemed that the only choice now was to retreat.


    He waved his hand and immediately retreated with the cultivators of the Vajra Region!

 Chapter 2679 - Infighting?

    Chapter 2679: Infighting?


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After the crowd left, Ye Futian looked at Xi Chiyao and said, ��Thanks.��


    ��Palace Lord Ye, aren��t you acting too distant?�� replied Xi Chiyao with a faint smile.


    ��Congratulations, Palace Lord Chiyao,�� Ye Futian also replied with a smile. It hadn��t been long since they last parted ways. He never imagined that Xi Chiyao had reached the Two Tribulation Plane and inherited the position of West Imperial Palace Lord.


    ��Palace Lord Ye deserves some credit for this,�� said Xi Chiyao. She was clearly referring to the Sub-divine elixir that Ye Futian had concocted. Of course, aside from that, there was also the factor of the West Imperial Palace��s teachings.


    Ye Futian commented, ��However, now that the world has undergone a huge change, Palace Lord Chiyao��s cultivation has metamorphosed at the right time. You can now face the current situation. The relics of the various gods have appeared in the world now. This is a brand-new era for the cultivation world.��


    Xi Chiyao added, ��I also feel that way. The relics of the various gods have appeared in the world now, and the cultivation world will welcome a transformation. There will most likely be more and more Tribulation Plane cultivators in the future. As for Renhuangs with flawless Great Paths, they will be found everywhere. It will no longer be only achievable by monstrous figures in top forces.��


    Ye Futian nodded in agreement. No one knew what would happen to the cultivation world in the future.


    Ye Futian looked back at Sword Saint. Sword Saint��s temperament seemed to change, more closely resembling a demonic cultivator��s. He asked, ��Elder Brother, how does it feel?��


    ��I will probably need a very long time to digest the teachings of the Devil Emperor completely,�� replied Sword Saint.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian as he nodded his head. His Third Brother Gu Dongliu was also beside Sword Saint. Now, his two Elder Brothers were advancing to the pinnacle of the cultivation world. He naturally was happy.


    Rumble.


    Just then, the ground trembled violently. In the heavens above, the clouds changed color. Everyone was slightly surprised as they looked out into the distance. At the end of Karura Imperial City, demonic light consumed the sky, and a terrifying demonic whirlpool formed. On the other side, an endless dazzling spatial divine light shone.


    ��Such a terrifying aura,�� Xi Chiyao said as she also looked over in that direction. She sensed the powerful will of the emperor. It was unparalleled.


    ��Hmm, it should be a battle between two top figures,�� said Ye Futian as he nodded. He had felt such a terrifying battle aura before from Tianyan the Great possessing Wang Xiao��s body.


    The two storms drew closer to each other in an instant. Although Ye Futian and the others were far away from the battlefield, the destructive divine light still swept over them. In the distant heavens, two gigantic figures could faintly be seen. They were like deities.


    One was the figure of a demon, while the other was a shining God of Space.


    ��A battle seems to have erupted between the Devil World and the Empty Divine Realm,�� the original West Imperial Palace Lord said.


    Ye Futian also looked at the demon-like silhouette. He had met this person before. He was the number one Demon Sage of the Devil World, Yan Guiyi.


    Yan Guiyi wielded a scarlet halberd and battled in his demon form. It was apparent how powerful the cultivator he faced was. His opponent should be a compelling figure from the Empty Divine Realm.


    ��They should be Yan Guiyi from the Devil World and Dugu Wuxie, the head disciple of the Evil Emperor of the Empty Divine Realm and the leader of Empty Mountain,�� continued the original West Imperial Palace Lord. ��Both of them are figures which rank close to the top of the Demigod List. They have a powerful combat ability, and they both seem to be wielding imperial arms in this battle. They should be battling over a significant relic; otherwise, the two of them would not resort to battling head-on.��


    ��It most likely involves a clash between the Devil World and the Empty Divine Realm,�� Xi Chiyao also added. This battle between the two of them had essentially escalated to a fight between the Devil World and the Empty Divine Realm.


    Ye Futian looked over in their direction. The Devil World and the Empty Divine Realm were allies when they invaded the Divine Prefecture. They had stood on the same front. However, once they entered the tomb of the gods, as expected, this alliance did not last, and a large-scale battle erupted.


    ��Yan Guiyi is ranked higher up on the Demigod List than Dugu Wuxie. He should have the upper hand,�� explained the original West Imperial Palace Lord.


    ��Let��s go take a look,�� said Ye Futian. Their group advanced very quickly. The others also followed behind them.


    The destructive storm still shook the ancient barren city. Terrifying auras swept out. It was as though divine light was about to annihilate the world in the heavens above. It was extremely terrifying. Many people realized that there was a significant relic over there for two super cultivators to have begun battling.


    When Ye Futian��s group approached the battlefield, the fighting ceased. However, the two figures still stood across each other in the sky. Their auras were still terrifying and enveloped the vast space. Down below, the lineup of cultivators from the Devil World and the Empty Divine Realm was menacing.


    Be it the Devil World or the Empty Divine Realm; both sides had sent their strongest lineups to the tomb of the gods. This time, they were doing this for their forces and their cultivation.


    Yu Sheng was also present. He was standing on the ground below. There stood many top-level cultivators beside Yu Sheng. The Devil World had indeed sent out their finest members.


    ��Dugu, this was originally the battlefield of the ancestors of the Devil World. Why is the Empty Divine Realm contending for it?�� questioned Yan Guiyi as he pointed the scarlet halberd in his hand towards Dugu Wuxie. The latter also stared back at him. This was not just the battlefield of the ancestors of the Devil World. It belonged to House Karura, one of the Eight Legions.


    House Karura was proficient in movement techniques involving speed. Their achievements in the domain of the Great Path of Space were astonishing. Their attack and defense were both fantastic. For the cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm, the teachings of House Karura were undoubtedly a huge temptation. Hence, when they found the relic of House Karura, they came into conflict with the Devil World.


    ��Under the Heavenly Path are the Eight Legions. Since there is a relic of the ancestors of the Devil World here, it naturally belongs to the Devil World. If you want fateful encounters, find the lands of the other Eight Legions. There might be places suitable for you,�� Yu Sheng also said down below. ��If you want to fight, then the Devil World does not mind fighting with the Empty Divine Realm.��


    ��Presumptuous,�� said a cultivator of the Empty Divine Realm who stared at Yu Sheng. Ye Futian had seen many of these cultivators before. He had met Shi Xie, the direct disciple of the Evil Emperor many years ago, and Evil Sage Mo Qingge. They were staring at Yu Sheng. This Devil Emperor paid a lot of attention to the next generation of cultivators and developed them in Devil Imperial Palace, giving them extraordinary status. The cultivators who followed Yu Sheng here were also top-level cultivators of the Devil World.


    The combat ability of the Devil World was extremely domineering. If they truly fought, they would do so at all cost. This was the relic of the ancestors of the Devil World. It indeed should be under them.


    ��The inheritance of the ancestors of the Devil World belongs to you. The teachings of House Karura belong to us,�� said Dugu Wuxie as he stared at Yan Guiyi.


    ��That won��t do,�� Yan Guiyi immediately rejected. ��House Karura was originally the sworn enemy of the Devil World. Everything that belongs to them similarly belongs to the Devil World now. This is not up for discussion. If you do not leave now, the other relics of the Eight Legions will most likely be plundered by other forces.��


    Continuing to delay here was detrimental for both parties.


    From the attitudes of Yan Guiyi and the members of the Devil World, Dugu Wuxie knew that the Devil World would not relent and would not hand the relic over. If his side wanted to take it, they could only do so by fighting them all. The members of the Devil World would not give them a second option.


    ��We will remember this,�� said Dugu Wuxie. He then retracted his aura and ordered, ��Retreat.��


    As he said this, one by one, the silhouettes left with flashes, becoming countless beams of spatial divine light. They disappeared without a trace very quickly. It was as though nothing had happened just now.


    After the members of the Empty Divine Realm retreated, this place naturally belonged to the Devil World. Yan Guiyi pointed his scarlet halberd to the sky. Beams of crimson demonic light immediately shot up into the heavens and enveloped the vast space, forming a terrifying demonic domain.


    ��This domain is under the control of the Devil World. Cultivators from other worlds, leave now. No one aside cultivators from the Devil World shall be allowed to step foot in here,�� Yan Guiyi declared loudly. His voice reverberated in space. Devil Imperial Palace ruled this domain. This place where House Karura was would belong to the Devil World. Only the cultivators of the Devil World could step foot in here to cultivate in the domain.


    Many cultivators were disappointed. If that were the case, they would not have the chance to cultivate and seek fateful encounters here. They could only go somewhere else.


    ��A demonic imperial arm,�� a demonic cultivator said as he looked at Sword Saint. Sword Saint had a demonic imperial arm. This should also belong to Devil Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian glanced at the demonic cultivator and ignored him. His gaze landed on Yu Sheng��s figure and he greeted, ��Yu Sheng.��


    Yu Sheng came up to Ye Futian��s group and said, ��The ancestors of the Devil World once battled House Karura here. Many of their corpses will most likely be here.��


    ��Hmm,�� Ye Futian nodded his head. The six Great Emperors previously came to the tomb of the gods. Even the Devil Emperor might have come here. Various Great Emperor level forces might be leading the cultivators of their Imperial Palaces in finding relics even though they themselves were not taking part.


    ��For the Devil World to rule over this domain is a blessing for the cultivators of the Devil World,�� said Ye Futian. He looked ahead at the temple of House Karura. An extremely astonishing aura emanated from up ahead. There was also a peerless divine arm that descended from the heavens and stabbed into the ground. That region was enveloped in a menacing aura and it was hard to make out what was within it.


    ��You can cultivate here. We will seek fateful encounters elsewhere,�� said Ye Futian. Yan Guiyi had already declared that this place belonged to the cultivators of the Devil World. Although Ye Futian��s relationship with Yu Sheng was special, Yu Sheng did not represent the Devil World. Yu Sheng had yet to succeed the Devil Emperor. He could not speak on behalf of the entire Devil World.


    Ye Futian naturally did not wish to trouble Yu Sheng; hence he took the initiative and offered to leave.


    ��Leave the demonic saber behind,�� a demonic cultivator said. His cultivation was extraordinary. However, Yu Sheng swept a cold glance at him. His gaze was overbearing. Yet the other party did not evade. He said, ��What��s this? Are you helping an outsider?��


    Ye Futian frowned. From the looks of it, Yu Sheng��s position in the Devil Imperial Palace had rubbed quite a number of people the wrong way. His cultivation had yet to reach the point where he was only second to the Devil Emperor, so he could not suppress everyone. Some extraordinary people had yet to accept him.


    ��Silence,�� chided Yu Sheng. His tone was cold and domineering. He then looked at Ye Futian and said, ��You can stay and see whether House Karura has any suitable relics for yourselves.��


    It was not appropriate for Ye Futian��s group to take the items of the ancestors of the Devil World; however, if there were suitable relics among the items of House Karura, Yu Sheng would allow them to take them.


    ��What is the meaning of this?�� the demonic cultivator from before said indifferently. ��Devil Imperial Palace was ready to fight with the Empty Divine Realm to take everything here. Now, you are just going to hand it over to someone else?��


    When Yu Sheng heard the other party��s words, he turned around and a vast demonic might swept out. After coming out of seclusion, he had yet to battle anyone!

 Chapter 2680 - Divine Ruler

    Bang. Yu Sheng stepped forward. His demonic might filled the skies and was extremely terrifying. He stared at the demonic cultivator who was speaking. He said, ��Are you telling me how to do things?��


    The demonic cultivator was also not an ordinary figure. He was one of the direct disciples of the Devil Emperor and had powerful cultivation. However, when he sensed the terrifying demonic might Yu Sheng emanated, he actually felt afraid. Yu Sheng��s eyes kept staring at him. The next moment, the demonic cultivator felt as though the silhouette before him was that of a demon god. He felt like he wanted to surrender.


    ��Let it go,�� said Blood Raiment as she walked out, attempting to become a mediator.


    However, Yu Sheng did not look at her and kept advancing. His overbearing pressure enveloped the other party as he said, ��In Devil Imperial Palace, ability speaks for everything. Since you question my decision, then defeat me.��


    As Yu Sheng said this, he charged forward. The other party immediately sensed a peerless demonic figure appear. Yu Sheng seemed to become a demon god that forced the demons to submit to him. When he punched out, the space trembled violently. The surrounding cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace frantically made way for him.


    The demonic cultivator took out a demonic saber and slashed out. However, his slash shattered under the punch of the demon god. The domineering demonic punch landed directly on the other party. There was a loud rumble, and the demonic cultivator��s internal organs seemed to be crushed as he was sent flying out. He then fell to the ground.


    When the surrounding cultivators saw this scene, many of them were shocked. Yu Sheng��s ability was already considered top tier in Devil Imperial Palace. Very few people could defeat him. The speed of his growth was astonishing.


    The attitude of the Devil Emperor towards Yu Sheng already faintly hinted that he intended to hand the Devil World over to the latter. Their trip here to the tomb of the gods was a mission. It was most likely a trial.


    Many demonic cultivators had objections regarding Yu Sheng��s attitude towards Ye Futian. He had shown partiality for the latter. However, Ye Futian had also been a guest in Devil Imperial Palace, and the Devil Emperor had met with him. Hence, they had not said anything.


    ��Seeing that you have cultivated in Devil Imperial Palace, I will spare you this time. If you wish to question me again, you��d better be able to defeat me,�� warned Yu Sheng as he swept a glance at the heavily injured demonic cultivator.


    ��Do not forget our goal for this trip. Go inside,�� said Yan Guiyi. Yu Sheng did not say anything. Yan Guiyi headed over towards the temple of House Karura ahead, and the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace followed behind him.


    ��Let��s go in and take a look around,�� Yu Sheng said to Ye Futian and his group.


    ��You can go about your own business. We will have a look around ourselves,�� Ye Futian told Yu Sheng. ��The teachings of the ancestors of the Devil World are what is most important.��


    Yu Sheng��s expression was serious. He then nodded his head and followed the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace into the temple.


    ��Let��s go take a look,�� said Ye Futian. His group advanced. The towering temple of House Karura was majestic. Divine walls were erected all around. The space inside was very large. Even though they were shattered and only a few dilapidated walls remained, their glory in their heyday could still be faintly felt.


    These divine walls were not forged from ordinary material. Even after such a frightening divine war back then, they were not destroyed and were left as ruins. Their hardness was apparent.


    ��They are so tall,�� Fang Cun said in a low voice to the side. These divine walls were exceptionally tall. Most of them were shattered. They most likely used to be part of glorious demon castles. The terrain grew higher and higher. A terrifying aura emanated from high above up ahead. Spiritual will could not invade that space.


    ��Look at the divine wall,�� someone said. Up ahead, patterns were carved on the divine wall. They appeared lifelike, as though the patterns were moving. There were many Karura figures among the carvings. It should be the will left behind by a top cultivator of House Karura from ancient times.


    Lord Chen speculated, ��This place should be the core region of the temple. The outer areas are most likely already ruins, so we did not see them.��


    Ye Futian looked at the divine wall. In his mind, it was as though the divine wall came alive. The Karura figures carved on the wall moved. In his mind, the divine wall unleashed dazzling divine halos.


    ��It is the will left behind by a Demon Monarch. It contains the divine techniques of House Karura. This place is indeed the core region and should be the holy land of cultivation,�� said Ye Futian as he agreed with Lord Chen��s speculation.


    ��Unfortunately, it is incomplete,�� added Lord Chen as he nodded his head and looked at the surrounding region. Most of the divine walls were shattered. There should have been complete divine walls carved with a complete set of House Karura divine techniques. However, because so many had been destroyed, it was unclear how much of it could be comprehended.


    The cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace kept advancing further into the temple. Clearly, their goal was not the relics of House Karura. For them, this was secondary. The relics left behind by the ancestors of the Devil World were more important to them.


    They could already sense a very powerful Demonic Will up ahead.


    ��All of you can cultivate here for a while,�� said Ye Futian. Little Condor, Jun, and the others could comprehend the divine techniques on the divine wall.


    Back then, Jun had descended from Demon God Mountain. He was from Sky Demon Court, and his original body was that of a Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird. The cultivation techniques here were naturally suitable for him.


    Ye Futian continued forward. Demonic might enveloped the space. After entering this space, Demonic Will and Demonic Qi circled them and were extremely frightening. This power even immediately cut off auras of the Great Path and spiritual will. Upon entering this place, everyone sensed an astonishing Demonic Will.


    ��What divine arm is that?�� asked Ye Futian as he looked ahead. A divine arm descended from the heavens and stabbed into the ground. It seemed like a divine ruler that pinned the ground below. Powerful law of the Great Path was carved into it.


    There was a strange shift in Ye Futian��s Life Spirit right then. This did not happen often. However, he discovered that it was caused by the appearance of a divine item each time it occurred.


    This made Ye Futian grow more and more curious. How did he get this Life Spirit?


    Who gave birth to him?


    ��That is���� someone said.


    They could only see clearly once they got inside. The divine ruler from the sky that was stabbed into the ground had pinned down a terrifying godly figure. It was the figure of a demon god. The divine ruler forged a region of absolute law power, seemingly sealing away the demon god figure.


    However, even so, from the demon god figure, terrifying Demonic Will was still emanating. After countless years, this Demonic Will had yet to dissipate. One could imagine how powerful and menacing it was.


    Before the body of the demon god, there was a body that was torn to shreds. It was gigantic, but its feathers had been torn out, and its bones were smashed. It was apparent that the battle back then was tragic. Even so, the gigantic corpse similarly emanated powerful Demonic Qi. The bones of the corpse seemed to be marked with divine runes of the Great Path. For even the corpse to contain runes meant that the body had been cultivated to its extreme limit.


    On both corpses, powerful wills of the Great Emperors emanated as though they belonged to two unyielding gods.


    Was this the Demonic Lord and the king of House Karura of the Eight Legions? Ye Futian thought to himself. Had they both died here together?


    This divine ruler did not seem to be the item of Demon Monarch Karura. It most likely belonged to an outside force. Other powerful cultivators had attacked them. In this ancient battle, the Demonic Lord might have suppressed the king of House Karura.


    Ye Futian also sensed that the might of the divine ruler far exceeded what he was sensing now.


    He wanted to take a look at it. However, if he truly coveted this treasure, the members of Devil Imperial Palace would most likely attack him. Although Yu Sheng would help Ye Futian, the latter would not make it difficult for the former.


    Now that Yu Sheng had yet to possess absolute authority in Devil Imperial Palace, Ye Futian naturally knew how to behave to not cause trouble for Yu Sheng.


    Ye Futian looked around to see if there was other good stuff. In the surrounding region, there were many corpses. They were all intact corpses that most likely belonged to super cultivators.


    He saw another gigantic Karura corpse. Ye Futian walked over towards it and stood before it. His consciousness invaded it. He immediately sensed the same divine runes of the Great Emperor on this corpse.


    ��Could it be that this is a cultivation technique that they were born with? Or rather, is it part of their physique?�� asked Ye Futian. Was this the extraordinary divine body of Karura royalty?


    This corpse was more complete and had not been destroyed. The Demonic Lord must have killed him to deal with the king of Karura.


    His consciousness dived into the corpse. This time, he felt the sensation he had felt back when he was comprehending the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor. However, what was different was that the divine body of Shenjia the Great Emperor carried a powerful attacking will, whereas this corpse didn��t.


    Anticipation welled up in Ye Futian as he comprehended the divine runes of the Great Emperor on the corpse. The cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace also noticed his actions. However, they ignored him. Their attention was on the Demonic Lord and the king of Karura.


    ��Yu Sheng,�� Ye Futian called out to Yu Sheng after cultivating for a while. Yu Sheng turned to look at him. Ye Futian threw a few elixirs towards him. Yu Sheng revealed an incredulous look. Why was Ye Futian giving him elixirs?


    ��This imperial corpse has caught my eye. However, Devil Imperial Palace has taken this area. I will not take it for free. There are enough Sub-divine elixirs here for all the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace below the Tribulation Plane,�� said Ye Futian. The value of the imperial corpse was naturally higher. However, for the demonic cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace, these elixirs were more valuable than the imperial corpse. After all, they had no tangible use for the latter.


    ��Alright,�� said Yu Sheng. He understood Ye Futian��s intention. He immediately accepted the elixirs and threw them over to Yan Guiyi. He said, ��Demon Sage, you can distribute them.��


    Yan Guiyi took out the elixirs. When he scanned the rank of the elixirs, he revealed a strange look. He looked surprised at Ye Futian and said, ��These are all Sub-divine elixirs of the highest rank. This is worth an imperial corpse.��


    He knew that Ye Futian was not taking advantage of them.


    When they heard Yan Guiyi��s words, the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace were stunned. Before this, they were somewhat disdainful towards Ye Futian��s offerings. However, once Yan Guiyi put it that way, these elixirs were indeed priceless.


    Ye Futian nodded his head slightly and did not say more. He continued to comprehend the imperial corpse.. After comprehending for a while just now, he decided that he wanted it and hence had taken out the elixirs!

 Chapter 2681 - Ancient Heaven Court

    Chapter 2681: Ancient Heaven Court


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many days passed. The cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace kept comprehending the body of the Demonic Lord. At the same time, many demonic cultivators from the outside also came here.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian kept comprehending the Karura imperial corpse. However, just as he was about to understand it completely, he stopped and chose to let Little Condor comprehend it.


    His will was linked with Little Condor. Little Condor could also sense what he had comprehended. Hence, not long after Little Condor began learning, he managed to resonate with the Karura imperial corpse. The corpse immediately lit up with the dazzling divine light of the Great Path.


    Inside the imperial corpse, countless divine runes of the Great Emperor lit up. Little Condor��s will merged with it, and he could sense the will of the Karura Great Emperor. This imperial corpse was carved with divine runes of the Great Emperor and contained the will of the emperor. It was the remains of a Great Emperor, yet it did not possess its own consciousness. When Little Condor began comprehending it, he immediately merged with it.


    Right then, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace also came here and looked at the gigantic Karura imperial corpse. Divine light flowed over it, and an extremely powerful aura emanated from it. Then, they suddenly sensed a menacing aura. The Karura imperial corpse seemed to move. It opened its eyes and a marvelous divine light radiated from them. This caused the hearts of the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace to leap.


    Had the imperial corpse come back to life?


    The hearts of the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace kept throbbing. Even the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace were also looking at the imperial corpse. The gigantic body slowly moved. It spread its wings and blocked out the sky as it took to the air.


    This scene caused the hearts of the various cultivators to beat even more intensely.


    Had the Great Emperor been revived?


    Just then, the massive mouth of the imperial corpse moved. It opened its mouth and said, ��I never imagined that Condor sama would see such a day!��


    ������


    Once these words were uttered, the crowd felt as though the mood was ruined. The tension built instantly dissipated. This fellow was actually Little Condor. Had he gained control of the imperial corpse?


    However, many people then showed looks of admiration. An ordinary demonic beast like Little Condor could now control an imperial corpse because he followed Ye Futian. Who wouldn��t be envious?


    ��Zi Feng, isn��t Condor sama majestic?�� asked the Karura imperial corpse as it looked at the phoenix. Zi Feng felt her heart shudder slightly. Right now, the Karura imperial corpse was naturally domineering. However, when she recalled that the corpse was possessed by that nagging fellow, a bizarre feeling welled up inside her.


    Bang.


    Before Little Condor acted pompously, the imperial corpse fell to the ground as its divine light dimmed. This caused the crowd to stare wide-eyed.


    Was that it?


    Was he toying with them?


    Little Condor, who was sitting across from the divine corpse, opened his eyes. He shook his head and said in a dismal tone, ��I still haven��t gotten used to it. I will get better in the future.��


    The crowd smacked their lips in annoyance. With Little Condor��s current cultivation plane, it was most likely not easy for him to want to control the imperial corpse. It took a lot out of him. Ye Futian was most aware of this point. Back when he wanted to completely control the corpse of Shenjia the Great Emperor, he did not have an easy time, especially when he activated the power of Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body. It took a terrifying toll on him. Little Condor��s reaction was very average.


    ��You are indeed very majestic!�� mocked Zi Feng sarcastically.


    Little Condor ignored her mockery. In the past, he would have certainly rebutted. However, this time, he merely glanced at Zi Feng and smiled sinisterly. This phoenix most likely did not know what he had obtained. She actually still dared to act presumptuously before Condor sama. After Condor sama cultivated for a while, he would definitely ride on her back majestically. Who asked her to act so arrogantly in his presence?


    ��Boss, Master!�� cried out Little Condor as he thought of something. He ran up to Ye Futian��s side and rubbed his head against Ye Futian��s body. The people around them had goosebumps when they saw this scene. This bird was extremely shameless.


    ��Roll off!�� said Ye Futian as he leaped to the side. He knew what this fellow was thinking.


    Little Condor did not mind. He rolled around on the ground and then got up and said, ��I will definitely obey all your orders.��


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were practically speechless when they saw this scene!


    There was such a shameless demonic beast in the world!


    When Ye Futian saw this, he did not know whether to laugh or cry. This fellow was indeed despicable.


    Little Condor got up and saw the despising looks of the crowd and felt disdain for them. Did they look down on Condor sama? Condor sama did not care. These fellows acted righteously, but if they weren��t beside Ye Futian, they would be like the top cultivators of the outside world. If they were given a divine corpse of a Great Emperor and aided in comprehending and controlling it, let alone roll, they would even call Ye Futian grandfather!


    They did not understand.


    Condor sama was the Master��s true favorite!


    Master left the best for Condor sama.


    Ye Futian was somewhat speechless when he sensed how Little Condor thought so highly of himself. This fellow was truly theatrical.


    ��Little Condor is linked with my will. Hence, he can directly sense my comprehension, and it makes it more convenient for him to control the imperial corpse,�� Ye Futian told the crowd. The crowd naturally understood. Ye Futian was mainly concerned that the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird would have objections. After all, he had also been following Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian did not need to explain. Everyone had grown more powerful after following him. Even if he picked favorites, that was human nature. After all, Little Condor was originally his mount that he had absolute control over.


    ��Let��s go. We have lost a lot of time. We should head over to other places,�� said Ye Futian. The crowd nodded their heads. Little Condor put the imperial corpse away, and then the group of cultivators left this place.


    Yu Sheng was not around. Ye Futian also did not want to disturb his cultivation. The members of Devil Imperial Palace also did not mind that they were leaving.


    Ye Futian��s group walked out of the region. They discovered that many cultivators of the Devil World had arrived in the region and were seeking the relics of the Demon clan from the past in this part of the world.


    When Emperor Xi saw this scene, he said, ��This region is now controlled by Devil Imperial Palace. It will most likely become the base of the Devil World on this ancient continent. If they completely conquer this region, the Devil World will use this place as their headquarters.��


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian as he nodded his head. ��It might be possible. Before I came here, I considered whether we could find a relic to establish ourselves in. Then, we can bring the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace over to cultivate. It is a similar line of thought. The other worlds will certainly also do the same. They will occupy a space and make it their base. They will completely rule over the region without allowing other forces to enter. This small world contains the relics of a Demonic Lord and one of the Eight Legions, House Karura. The ancestors of the Devil World were once here with House Karura. Them controlling this place is undoubtedly most appropriate.��


    Before this, he encountered cultivators on the Demigod List here. However, after Devil Imperial Palace took over the region, they left. They knew their own strength. After all, even the forces of the Empty Divine Realm had backed down, let alone the other cultivators.


    The crowd nodded. Now, it had been proven that below the Heavenly Path were the Eight Legions. The gods started the war of the Heavenly Path, which resulted in the End of the Gods and the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Ye Futian thought about the divine ruler. Was it formed from the law of the Heavenly Path?


    Since one of the Eight Legions, House Karura, had been found, that meant the other legions would also show up. He did not know whether they had already been found.


    Their group traversed the world of the relic. They did not know how the outside world was all this time they had been here.


    Outside, more and more cultivators were coming to the ancient continent. Cultivators from various worlds surged in. When Ye Futian and the others first arrived in the tomb of the gods, it was almost impossible to find traces of cultivators. Now, they were everywhere.


    ��


    Just as Ye Futian imagined, after the tomb of the gods was opened, the various Great Emperor level forces sought out the lands of the Eight Legions first.


    Even in the current world, the major ruling forces were inextricably linked to the Eight Legions. However, these connections were all different. Some were similar to the Devil World and House Karura being sworn enemies, while others resembled the Eight Legions.


    For instance, the current Dark Court was similar to House Asura.


    House Deva, which was rumored to be the leader of the Eight Legions in ancient times, was ruled by the Heavenly Emperor.


    Later on, another similar power was born �C the Heaven Realm!


    However, something seemed to have happened to the Heaven Realm in the current age.


    Right now, many cultivators had gathered in a region high up in the tomb of the gods.


    The group of cultivators at the very front were the cultivators from the Heaven Realm. The mysterious youth that Ye Futian had previously encountered was here. Behind him, there were the Four Heavenly Kings of the Heaven Realm. Aside from the latter, there were also other cultivators with profound cultivation.


    They all stood in one location and looked up into the sky. Over there, there was a sky stairwell that led up into the heavens. On the stairwell, there were palace watchtowers as well as many towering stone pillars. However, right then, the stone pillars cracked in half and the palace watchtowers collapsed.


    Even then, divine light still descended from the heavens together with an aura.


    They had found the Ancient Heaven Court, which was the location of the leader of the Eight Legions, House Deva!

 Chapter 2682 - Mahoraga

    Chapter 2682: Mahoraga


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace traversed across the relic continent. This time, the cultivators of West Imperial Palace led by Xi Chiyao also traveled with them.


    Along the way, they saw many cultivators. As for the relics, there were fewer of them. Ye Futian��s group had already plundered quite a few of the relics. They also gained a few emperor-level teachings. As for how many cultivators were here, aside from the emperor-level forces, there were also superpowers like the Ancient God Clans. There were cultivators from every world, as well as super cultivators who had been in seclusion.


    With so many people here, the relics left behind since the Age of the Gods were naturally divided up and plundered.


    As their group advanced, Xi Chiyao rushed over from another direction.


    ��How are things?�� asked Ye Futian. Just now, Xi Chiyao had gone to gather intelligence. There were changes to the relic continent each day. They had lost a lot of time in the relic of House Karura. Many things must have occurred in the outside world.


    Xi Chiyao reported, ��News that the Devil Imperial Palace has found and occupied the relic of House Karura has already gotten out. It is not just the Devil Imperial Palace who has managed to do so. The emperor-level forces have managed to find the relics of the Eight Legions one after another. A number that have been confirmed. The Dark Court has found the relic of House Asura, whereas the Divine Prefecture found the relic of House Naga. Rumor has it that the cultivators of the Heaven Realm have discovered the relic of House Deva. It is also about to be opened.��


    She had come across a lot of useful information.


    She continued, ��A huge mountain range has also appeared in the north. Many corpses with terrifying auras have been discovered there. Many cultivators are gradually heading over to that region. It is rumored that the relic of House Mahoraga of the Eight Legions might be located there.�� Xi Chiyao looked at Ye Futian and said, ��For now, I have heard that no emperor-level force has headed over there yet. Should we head there ourselves?��


    Beneath the Heavenly Path were the Eight Legions. However, even including the Heavenly Emperor Realm, there were only seven emperor-level forces. Even if each force occupied one relic of the Eight Legions, there would still be one leftover.


    If so, which force was most likely to occupy the last relic?


    It was possible for the Ziwei Segmentum, which was the leader of the Original Realm. Although the West Imperial Palace was an Ancient God Clan, it was impossible for them to want to occupy a relic of one of the Eight Legions in such a chaotic situation. However, they might still have a chance to find the teachings of a Great Emperor.


    ��Let��s go,�� said Ye Futian. The relic of House Karura had left him in awe with the many corpses of Great Emperors they found there. The relic of House Mahoraga, which was also one of the Eight Legions, would not disappoint.


    Ye Futian was aware that although the power of Ziwei Imperial Palace was constantly growing now, they still had a long way to go to be on par with the emperor-level forces. This time, the various emperor-level forces had sent out almost all of their cultivators.


    His ego had not bloated to the point that he believed that Ziwei Imperial Palace could contend with emperor-level forces in their current condition.


    ��Alright,�� said Xi Chiyao. ��Then, let��s head over there immediately.��


    The group continued on their way. As they were traveling, Ye Futian asked Xi Chiyao, ��Goddess Chiyao, what do you know about the Eight Legions?��


    The West Imperial Palace was an Ancient God Clan. He wondered whether they knew some ancient secrets.


    After all, the West Imperial Palace still had the will of a Great Emperor.


    ��They are legends from the Age of the Gods,�� said Xi Chiyao. ��Legends tell that beneath the Heavenly Path were the Eight Legions. They maintained the order of the world. Beneath the Heavenly Path, the cultivation world was extremely prosperous. Large numbers of super cultivators emerged. Hence, that age was known as the Age of the Gods.��


    She continued, ��The Eight Legions were led by House Deva, which resided in the Central Heaven Court. The Eight Legions each had their own duties. House Naga ruled over the demonic clans. House Asura ruled over the underworld and controlled life, death, and reincarnation. Legends say that they dared to contend with House Deva. The other legions also had their own responsibilities. They represented the Heavenly Path in the world. Rumor has it that the Heavenly Emperor Realm is connected to House Deva from ancient times.��


    ��So, the cultivators of the Heaven Realm discovering the location of House Deva is also due to this connection?�� Ye Futian mumbled. ��Back then, how did the Heavenly Emperor Realm fall into decline? What secrets lie behind all this? Do the forces of the Heaven Realm now have the ability to control the relic of the strongest House Deva?��


    ��I am not so familiar with the current ability of the Heaven Realm. They have kept an extremely low profile. Normally, it is difficult to even catch a glimpse of them. They rarely appear in other worlds and cultivate on their own,�� said Xi Chiyao.


    Ye Futian also felt that the Heaven Realm was extremely mysterious. The heir of the Heavenly Emperor Realm was extremely talented, and his ability was also very frightening. When they had fought, the other party used Donghuang Diyuan��s ability, Heaven Punishing Divine Sword.


    Xi Chiyao said in a low voice, ��However, I have heard some elders mention some secrets from back then. The ruler of the Heaven Realm had peerless talent and ability. Even the Devil Emperor, the Evil Emperor, and the other Great Emperors from back then avoided getting into a fight with him. However, unbeknownst why, he suddenly disappeared without a trace. Most likely, only the emperor-level forces know why. It seems that the various major emperor-level forces are secretive about these issues.�� Her beautiful gaze revealed a pondering look. She seemed to also be curious about what happened back then.


    ��I have heard that Donghuang the Great was also involved in this,�� commented Xi Chiyao, though she sounded uncertain.


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. He recalled the ability of the heir of the Heaven Realm. What Xi Chiyao said might be true.


    Donghuang the Great was truly a legendary figure. There seemed to be stories of him everywhere. Be it from Master of Four Corner Village or in the World of Buddhism, his traces could be found everywhere.


    Ye Futian was actually very curious about what sort of person Donghuang the Great was.


    ��From the looks of it, the Heaven Realm has such a deep background and has cultivated away from the world. They have not come in contact with the outside world and kept themselves hidden. After so many years, the power of the Heaven Court of the Heaven Realm might not be weaker than the other emperor-level forces,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��It is possible,�� said Xi Chiyao. ��The last Heavenly Emperor was also a domineering figure.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head. The ability of the current, low-profile Heaven Realm would most likely be revealed in the near future.


    Ye Futian said, ��This time, the relics of the gods have appeared, and the relics of the Eight Legions have been found one after another. If the Heaven Realm has truly discovered and occupied the relic of House Deva, the other emperor-level forces will not allow them to do so easily. A huge battle will certainly erupt.��


    House Deva was the leader of the Eight Legions. Its relic would undoubtedly be a main target of contention for the emperor-level forces. Even if the emperor-level forces had already found a relic of the Eight Legions, who wouldn��t want more emperor-level teachings?


    Of course, it was better to have more.


    ��That��s right. Even though the relics of the Eight Legions have surfaced one after another, there are bound to be battles in the future,�� Xi Chiyao acknowledged Ye Futian��s words. In reality, it was difficult for her idea of Ziwei Imperial Palace occupying a relic to come to fruition. It depended on their luck and fate.


    This continent of the gods would not just be here for a day or two. It was now permanently part of the Original Realm.


    They kept traveling north. However, it still took them a long time to reach the mountain range.


    Before they arrived, Ye Futian��s group slowed down. They glanced ahead far into the distance. There seemed to be divine mountains bordering the sky in the heavens above. Countless mountains towered into the sky. It appeared to be a mountain range from ancient times.


    Although they were still far away, Ye Futian��s group already sensed a mysterious aura. There was also a formless pressure as well as an old will.


    In the surrounding space, many people traversed the skies and came to this place. There were also many cultivators below who surged over to this ancient mountain range one after another.


    In reality, before them, many cultivators had already ended up perishing in the mountain range and now lay there forever.


    ��We have arrived,�� said Xi Chiyao. Although it was her first time here, she naturally sensed that the place that they were looking for was up ahead.


    ��Mahoraga,�� mumbled Ye Futian. The Eight Legions maintained the world order beneath the Heavenly Path during ancient times. People of the present were far too old and seemed alien. Of course, they also garnered respect.


    ��Rumor has it that among the Eight Legions, House Mahoraga was proficient in battle. This house had no taboos and acted recklessly. However, their combat ability was indeed powerful. Some people called them demon gods while others called them spirits,�� said Xi Chiyao. As they spoke, they approached the divine mountain range. There were only countless cultivators here. There were no relics in sight. They must have been plundered clean by the cultivators these past few days. They probably would only find fateful encounters by going deep into the divine mountains.


    Ye Futian stopped when they reached the outskirts of the divine mountains. He looked at the ancient mountains ahead. The mysterious pressure was growing more intense. It seemed to be everywhere.


    ��Be careful,�� Ye Futian warned in a low voice. ��I sense that these endless mountains seem to possess wills. If this is the base of House Mahoraga, it is possible these are the wills left behind by the ancestors of House Mahoraga that have merged with the mountains.��


    The crowd nodded with serious expressions. This was where the relic of House Mahoraga, one of the Eight Legions, was located. It might be the only relic of the Eight Legions they could contend for. The other locations were already beyond their grasp.


    ��Come, let��s go,�� said Ye Futian. Their group entered into the divine mountain region, heading deep inside.


    The group slowed down and were much more cautious now than before. Within these divine mountains, corpses could be seen from time to time. They must have been cultivators who had come seeking fateful encounters.


    ��It is so unpleasant. My heart rate has increased,�� said Lord Chen to the side. The others also nodded their heads.. Everyone felt an unpleasant aura. Where was this mysterious pressure coming from?

 Chapter 2683 - A Mountain of Corpses

    Chapter 2683: A Mountain of Corpses


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Even though Ye Futian and his group felt an unpleasant aura looming over them, they still entered the mountains.


    The barren mountains appeared exceptionally desolate even with the arrival of the cultivators from the outside worlds. Everyone felt a chill down their spine.


    Ye Futian and his group could clearly sense danger lurking around. None of the cultivators dared to traverse across the mountains in the sky. Instead, everyone trekked through the mountains as they progressed deeper into it.


    ��Beware,�� Ye Futian warned. His gaze was fixed on the ground. There seemed to be some movements coming from underground. In the distance, another group of cultivators was advancing slowly. Suddenly, a powerful aura of the Great Path erupted. At the same time, the ground split open, and a bloody mouth attacked the cultivators.


    Terrifying auras of the Great Path burst forth frenziedly from the cultivators, yet they stood no chance against the engulfment of the bloody mouth. When the mouth was wide open, it could chomp down on a hill. It directly swallowed the cultivators along with their powers of the Great Path. Even the destructive power of the Great Path could not stop the mouth from crushing the cultivators.


    The surrounding cultivators dispersed frantically. Ye Futian narrowed his eyes in surprise when he saw the scene. The beast was a giant python. However, this enormous python was slightly different from other demonic pythons. It was more savage, and its head was gold in color.


    ��Rumor has it that Mahoraga had always had a demonic python around his neck. It is a Demon Monarch and a god of pythons,�� Xi Chiyao explained in a low voice to the side. When they looked at their surroundings, they noticed that numerous gigantic pythons had appeared. The scales on their bodies were akin to that of real dragons as they shimmered with a menacing demonic light. Their gazes were ferocious, and their eyes glistened with bizarre looks. They were the embodiment of savagery as they stared intently at the cultivators.


    ��These demonic pythons are not sentient. They are most likely controlled by the chaotic wills dwelling in the mountains. Or rather, these mountains contain a certain will that can affect these beasts,�� Ye Futian speculated. ��Therefore, these beasts do not feel pain. Just now, even though it was attacked, it still swallowed the group of cultivators alive.��


    It was too dangerous for Renhuangs to come here.


    ��With so many powerful demons around, cultivators cannot possibly enter into the depths of the mountains unless they are top figures,�� Xi Chiyao mumbled. Countless outsiders intended to seize the inheritances in the largest relic, but they would fail unless they had profound cultivation. At the very least, the relics left behind by the Eight Legions would never be claimed by commoners. The ambitions of the majority of the cultivators would forever remain as wishful thinking.


    Many Renhuangs from Ziwei Imperial Palace naturally understood this too. If it weren��t for the presence of Ye Futian, the other cultivators like Little Condor, Ye Wuchen, and Yaya would never stand a chance to receive the teachings of the Great Emperors.


    ��The few of you, clear the way,�� Ye Futian commanded as he looked at the few people behind him.


    ��Hmm.�� They nodded. Sword Saint, Ye Wuchen, and a few others moved forward. They had not tried out their abilities since they received the teachings of the Great Emperors. Now, these gigantic pythons served as the best practice targets for them.


    Sword Saint took the lead. He acquired a demonic imperial arm before this. With the demonic blade in his hand, he moved swiftly as mighty Demonic Will surrounded his body. Even though he could only activate part of the power hidden in the imperial arm, he still emanated an outstanding temperament with the support of the overbearing Demonic Will.


    A massive demonic python pounced towards Sword Saint with its mouth wide open. It had no sentience at all. Sword Saint slashed down. The demonic light traversed across space and sliced the python��s body in half. Terrifying will of destruction tore the body of the beast apart.


    Ye Wuchen, Yaya, and the Swordmaster of Lihen moved simultaneously. They charged in three different directions. The sword matrix they had inherited was formidable and formed when three came together as one. However, they were still very powerful even when they acted separately. It was because they had each inherited teachings from an independent Great Emperor.


    Ye Wuchen��s sword was sharp and overbearing. Yaya��s sword tore everything into shreds. The sword of the Swordmaster of Lihen directly sliced through the beasts�� will. With the three of them clearing the way in front, all the demonic pythons were crushed.


    ��Let��s go.�� Ye Futian and the others followed behind them and advanced. With Sword Saint and the others clearing the path, the group progressed smoothly. They moved deeper into the mountains. Some other cultivators recognized Ye Futian and followed behind his group. They could ensure their safety by walking behind them.


    Ye Futian did not pay them any heed either. These people would not pose a threat to him. If they were strong enough to threaten him, they wouldn��t have followed behind his group.


    The troop pushed on into the mountains and killed several demonic pythons along the way. They continued their journey until they reached a unique region in the mountains.


    There were several extraordinarily powerful wills existing in the surrounding mountains. An example was a Sword Will left behind by a Great Emperor who sliced a mountain in half. Besides that, there was an enormous palm seared onto the ground, which resulted in a big hole.


    There were also countless broken divine arms littered on the ground. The arms all contained threatening auras.


    Moreover, Ye Futian discovered that the surrounding region had encountered large-scale destruction. Nothing was spared. This caused a massive open plain to appear in front of them. From the looks of it, the surrounding mountains had been flattened during battle. Surprisingly, many extraordinary cultivators paused their journey and stayed here.


    ��What is that?�� someone asked. The group looked ahead and saw a mountain. However, a terrifying aura emanated from it. They felt goosebumps all over their bodies just by glancing at the mountain.


    Xi Chiyao��s facial expression turned extremely ugly as her heart raced. The mountain was formed from piled-up corpses. The scene was startling and unpalatable.


    Was this place once hell?


    The corpses of the cultivators were piled up and became a mountain.


    An intense perilous aura derived from the mountain of corpses and permeated the space.


    Surprisingly, there were many cultivators meditating in the region. There seemed to be wills of the Great Emperors lingering here. Ye Futian expanded his divine consciousness and enveloped the vast space. He discovered quite a few relics left behind by the Great Emperors around the area. Calling them relics was a stretch. The Great Emperors had merely perished and remained here.


    ��House Mahoraga was indeed bloodthirsty and ruthless. They killed so many people,�� Xi Chiyao commented.


    The original West Imperial Palace Lord advised, ��You can��t jump to that conclusion. The cultivators from the outside world invaded their area and intended to eradicate them. The Eight Legions only exist in the annals of history now. Therefore, it��s unwise for us to comment about the War of the Heavenly Path. However, Chiyao, if someone wants to annihilate West Imperial Palace, what would you do?�� When Xi Chiyao put herself in that situation, she could understand the intention behind their massacre. It was just that this horrifying scene greatly impacted her.


    The corpses piled up to form a mountain. Such a scene had actually appeared so vividly before her eyes.


    The original Palace Lord continued, ��The combat ability of House Mahoraga was indeed formidable. There are so many corpses here. Furthermore, it seems that quite a few Great Emperors have perished here.��


    ��Let��s go have a look,�� Ye Futian suggested. He wondered whether there was anything worth comprehending among the relics left behind by these Great Emperors.


    This area had certainly been surrounded by many troops in the past. House Mahoraga seemed to have slain quite a number of Great Emperors.


    ��All of you, have a look around. I will check out the front,�� Ye Futian said. He moved to the front alone. However, Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing followed him. The rest of them moved in different directions. They were still in the same region where they could take care of each other, so there should not be any danger.


    Step by step, Ye Futian approached the mountain of corpses. A menacing perilous aura immediately rushed towards him. Anyone who approached the mountain would be corrupted by the perilous aura.. Moreover, this mountain of corpses prevented the cultivators from advancing. The core region of House Mahoraga might lie behind the mountain!

 Chapter 2684 - The Emperors Ruins

    Chapter 2684: The Emperors Ruins


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A murderous aura was invading their minds. At once, Ye Futian saw countless spirits rushing toward them with killing intent. Immediately, he expanded his mind into the domain of the murderous aura and noticed that it was formed under a specific condition. It slowly took its form as masses of corpses piled up.


    Ye Futian caught sight of horrifying figures within this domain that belonged to the deceased cultivators. However, they were no longer themselves, but a fright of resentful spirits glided toward Ye Futian and the others frantically with murderous intent.


    Ye Futian put his hands together, and his entire body was coated with the light of Buddha. It was covering every part of his body with a golden gleam, banishing all evil.


    Bang! Those terrifying spirits thudded against the golden Light of Buddha, creating cracks all over. Ye Futian was astounded and thought, ��The will of these resentful spirits hidden here is a little overpowering!��


    Ye Futian��s Light of Buddha covered three people��Hua Jieyu, Hua Qingqing, and himself. The relentless attacks were directed at the light, causing the cracks to become bigger.


    Right before it was broken into pieces, Ye Futian uttered the Buddhist mantra with the Sound of Buddha, turning them into runes and embedding them into the light. The Acalanatha Battle Form manifested at the center and covered the cracks.


    However, the shockwave-like impacts gradually became more powerful. When they closed in on the mountain of undead, a silhouette of a demon could be seen with pythons surrounding it. At first sight, Ye Futian realized it was the Mahoraga.


    A concentrated will of evil spirits manifested around the Mahoraga and traveled in Ye Futian��s direction as they turned into demonic figures.


    Crack! Fissures appeared on every visible part of the Acalanatha Battle Form, and it was finally reduced to ruins. Ye Futian was stunned by the sight of it. At his current cultivation level, almost no one could make him budge once he activated his Acalanatha Battle Form. Even a second-level Tribulation Plane cultivator��s repertoire of offensive skills would prove to be futile in the face of his defenses. Yet these wills broke through it like it was a piece of paper.


    Furthermore, the most terrifying of them all had not even moved from its spot.


    Emitting the Light of Buddha on their bodies, the Sound of Buddha manifested as runes and turned into a Buddhist Lamp around Ye Futian and Hua Qingqing. It assimilated into the Light of Buddha Ye Futian released. Simultaneously, Hua Jieyu discharged the light on her body and incorporated it into their Buddhist Power.


    A demonic glint flashed across the Mahoraga��s eyes before it rushed toward them. The Light of Buddha shattered immediately after a loud bang was heard. A dreadful force flew in Ye Futian��s direction, consuming everything in its path and intending to devour their minds.


    Wasting no time, Ye Futian took out his Sky Tremor and hammered at the evil force that was hot on their tails while bringing the other two out of that domain.


    The entire fabric of space was vibrating following a loud boom. Then, the three of them appeared at a faraway location, which was out of the domain. They were still trembling as they stared at the mountain of the undead. Even though they could no longer see the ghastly sight, the quake that contained the Power of the Great Path, caused by the Sky Tremor, could still be felt.


    Not even the attacks of the imperial arm could destroy the mountain of the undead. So it came as no surprise that the notorious mountain would stand in the path of travelers all this time.


    ��Ye Futian.�� Xi Chiyao came up to Ye Futian and said, ��Please be careful. Many people had been devoured and died there.��


    Xi Chiyao knew how formidable the mountain of the undead was after she inquired about it.


    ��Yeah. This mountain of the undead has turned evil. I initially thought of purging it with Buddhist Power. But it looks like we have to make our way through this place by force now,�� Ye Futian declared while striding forward with the imperial arm in his hand. At that time, he suddenly became the center of attention because all of them had launched attacks at the mountain of the undead earlier, but it wouldn��t move an inch.


    Ye Futian leaped into the sky and moved forward, launching the terrific Tremoring Pulse toward the mountain of the undead. But it was blocked by a mighty force at the moment of contact. It went without saying that this mountain was reigned by the Will of the once glorious Great Emperor��Mahoraga the Great.


    Hum! Turning the Force of the Great Path inside his body into the Buddhist Power, Ye Futian infused it into his Sky Tremor. At once, the Light of Buddha radiated on the Tremoring Pulse around his weapon.


    When the Sound of Buddha was being reverberated, a silhouette of Buddha manifested in the atmosphere all of a sudden, causing many powerful cultivators all around to turn and look at Ye Futian. Then, he could be seen lifting his Sky Tremor and charging toward the mountain of the undead.


    A destructive storm swept across everything before his eyes. Countless will of evil spirits burst out when the attack hit the mountain of the undead, filling up the entire domain with resentful spirits. However, the Tremoring Pulse covered with the Light of Buddha purged everything in its path. All the remnants were wiped off from the face of the planet.


    A powerful will manifested and turned into a gigantic phantom of Mahoraga. However, it did not escape the fate of being exterminated.


    Bang! Everything within sight disappeared into thin air following an ear-shattering blast. The colossal mountain of the undead was reduced to nothing and ruin. The powerful Tremoring Pulse opened up a path, blowing everything to bits as it moved further into the horizon, making echoes in the process.


    ��It has opened!�� Numerous cultivators came closer as they witnessed Ye Futian annihilating the mountain of the undead and opening a path toward the front.


    Was that the land belonged to the Mahoraga Tribe? What would be hidden inside?


    ��The Tremoring Pulse of Sky Tremor has vanished completely.�� Ye Futian felt multiple powerful auras coming from a distant location as he stared at the sight before him. He could feel their presence strongly, although they were far away.


    ��Follow me!�� Ye Futian piped. With that, all the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace gathered together and moved forward hastily.


    The remaining people also rushed toward them from various directions and headed inside, including some extremely powerful cultivators. All of them had tried to open the path before Ye Futian did but failed. Even some of their high damage offenses could not make the mountain of the undead budge an inch. Yet, Ye Futian was able to crush it completely. His success was ascribed to the might of the imperial army and the fact that he infused the Buddhist Power into his weapon.


    Various mysterious and powerful auras suffocated their senses as they went deeper toward the location. Ye Futian immediately pierced through the void with his gaze to observe the things hidden inside only to be appalled by a disgusting sight, which caused him to tremble involuntarily.


    In House Karura��s case, the Demon clan was the one who declared war on them. Yet, things were different here. There was a high chance that a deadly war had broken out due to a myriad of Great Emperors�� invasions to this place to eradicate the Mahoraga Tribe.


    These Great Emperors were not as powerful as the likes of the Demonic Lord, yet the number of their forces might be higher than that of the Demon clan.


    The atmosphere there was terrifying and overwhelming. A frightening pressure above the heavens spanned across the entire domain, exuding a tremendous aura at every corner.


    A golden halberd was lying in a conspicuous place. It was stuck onto the ground, turning its surroundings into golden color, making the earth seem like it was made of pure gold. The void, too, was painted in gold. A golden halo could be seen above the halberd, though the ominous dark cloud overshadowed the divine golden light. It was a peculiar sight to behold.


    It was without a doubt an imperial arm as it gave out a menacing aura. Besides, there was a likelihood that a will was sealed inside.


    In another location, a jet-black spear was emanating an unparalleled aura. There was a deadly airflow surrounding it, creating a threatening domain in the process. Simultaneously, a devastating ray of light was shone upward.


    A figure could be seen sitting in a lotus position unscathed somewhere within earshot. Its body formed a pernicious Great Path domain all around. Nevertheless, it had long since died��an ancient relic from a forgotten time.


    A stone��s throw away, a lotus could be seen growing out of the ground, which had a strong life force. However, its will was suppressed by the immense pressure of this domain.


    Staring at the sight before his eyes, Ye Futian trembled with astonishment. Apart from him, the Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace cultivators were taken aback as their hearts palpitated like mad when they drank in the scenery before them.


    This place was the ruins of the fallen emperors where a great war once burst out. Many Great Emperors died in battle, and their bodies were buried here forever.


    The rest of the people who arrived after them were shell-shocked when they laid their eyes on the sight before them. They had shortness of breath as their heartbeat began to palpitate abnormally, causing them to slow their pace down.


    This was madness!


    To think such a great number of Great Emperors would be inhumed here! How terrifying was the war in the ancient days? How powerful was the strength of the Mahoraga Tribe that they could take out this many Great Emperors and leave their corpses here?

 Chapter 2685 - Awakening

    Chapter 2685: Awakening


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Standing on the ruins, Ye Futian did not hurry to enter meditation mode, as he could somewhat feel the power of an unknown origin within the realm. It gave him goosebumps.


    Lifting his head, he stared at the dark sky that was overwhelmed with suffocating pressure. The presence of destructive power was everywhere. Ruins of the Great Emperors dispersed over the land within his sight. Intimidating auras could be felt from every location of the ruins.


    He tried to appraise the unknown power after unleashing his perception to its maximum range and output, yet it remained undetectable as if it was hidden further inside.


    While he was detecting his surrounding, all the other cultivators were rushing toward the ruins of the emperors, attempting to unlock and inherit the treasures of the late emperors.


    Seeing that the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace could not hold back their excitement, Ye Futian said, ��Go ahead.��


    ��Yes, my Lord.�� They immediately scurried in different directions. Since everyone��s cultivating journey was different, they headed to ruins that could benefit them. However, Hua Jieyu did not move from the spot. Standing beside Ye Futian, she asked, ��Can you sense it?��


    ��I��m not sure,�� Ye Futian responded. ��There is an unknown power within these ruins. This place may not be as simple as it seems.��


    Taking a step forward from behind, Hua Qingqing shifted her gaze toward the sky and whispered, ��I can feel it too. This power seems to have an evil origin.��


    Nodding, Ye Futian remained silent for a while. Checking his surrounding, he uttered, ��Let��s us begin our meditation.��


    Many cultivators had already commenced their meditation, hoping to inherit something from the perished Great Emperors. So, the trio had to pick up their paces.


    Ye Futian strolled in a direction that did not lead to imperial arms but toward the lotus.


    Standing before the lotus, Ye Futian could feel an abundant life force from it. The flower was in full bloom. The Divine Light of Life emanated from it radiated its surroundings, piercing its illumination across the infinite space inconspicuously. The entire domain was under the Will of Lotus��s influence.


    This lotus is suitable for Qingyuan, Ye Futian thought to himself. Xia Qingyuan did not join the expedition team this time. But she had stumbled across a lotus during her first time visiting the Ruins of the Gods back then��one that a Great Emperor once meditated on.


    In fact, there was a likelihood that this lotus was a byproduct of a Great Emperor. If Xia Qingyuan could merge herself with this flower, her cultivation level would, without a doubt, grow to the next level. For that reason, he wanted to bring the whole plant back with him.


    After expanding his perception ability to its maximum output, Ye Futian infused the aura of the Great Way into the lotus to create a resonance with it. Closing his eyes, he tried to enter the dimension of the lotus.


    The power of the World Tree from his body was surrounding the lotus and gradually seeped into the flower. Soon, a connection was formed between him and the lotus, and it only grew stronger as time passed.


    After witnessing the happening, most of the cultivators nearby left Ye Futian alone and did not attempt to compete against him for the flower. After all, he was the one who opened up this path. Everyone knew the extend of his strength, so it would be pointless to fight with him.


    Besides, there were numerous ruins of the Great Emperors in this place. Hence, they had no reason to stay there.


    However, the fight in the other locations was intense. Some people were meditating; meanwhile, the rest were trying to plunder the imperial arms through violence. Battles were happening everywhere as the pillage began.


    Letting no distraction affects him, Ye Futian focused on his perception silently as his connection with the lotus intensified. Soon, all his senses drifted into the world of the lotus. In there, the divine light of the lotus dazzled. Countless rays of the light of life dispersed across the atmosphere, covering the boundless space. At once, he noticed the span of its domain had reached the imperial arms and all the other ruins of the Great Emperors. Moreover, they were connected.


    Ye Futian caught sight of numerous lights. Each of them represented a location of the Great Emperor��s ruin. None of them were scattered arbitrarily. Instead, they were placed in a specific manner to form a macroscale divine matrix.


    Ye Futian��s heart skipped a beat. He had been bothered by an ominous feeling when he stepped into this domain. Witnessing this did nothing but aggravate his sense of imminent danger.


    At that moment, the other cultivators were fighting against each other to loot the treasures left at the ruins of the Great Emperors. Their clashes further weakened the already unstable divine matrix, cracking it in the process.


    Suddenly, an incorporeal silhouette appeared within the range of Ye Futian��s perception. It was an empress with a majestic temperament��a bonafide goddess who also happened to be the owner of the lotus.


    ��Do not destroy the matrix!�� Ye Futian heard a voice speaking into his mind via telepathy. It belonged to the goddess who left a fragment of her consciousness there until that moment.


    However, battles had already broken out in many locations outside. Some of them even tried to pull the imperial arms out forcibly.


    Ye Futian��s expression immediately turned sullen. After moving his consciousness out of the lotus��s dimension, he glanced through the entire battlefield and shouted, ��Stop fighting!��


    His voice was like a clap of roaring thunder, deafening the ears of many cultivators. Still, most of them did not stop exchanging blows. But it was only natural. Who would stop at this point when they were so close to getting their hands on an imperial arm?


    The stronger cultivators particularly paid no heed to Ye Futian��s warning. They continued to destroy everything there without a care in the world.


    Just then, Ye Futian lifted his head to stare at the sky as he felt the suffocating pressure take a turn for the worse.


    Crack! Crack! Crack! The sinistrous noises sounded like disembodied shackles broken into pieces. They came from all the imperial arms that were connected to the firmament. Earlier on, Ye Futian saw pillars of divine lights pierce through the heavens. But all of them began to fall apart.


    Nevertheless, those cultivators, who were battling with each other for the ruins of Great Emperors, did not feel anything out of place. They did not notice any changes at all.


    There was an unseen aura enveloping the space beneath the sky. Ye Futian could sense an overwhelming presence above the clouds vividly. Everything within the atmosphere was slowly devoured by it.


    ��Attention, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace! Get back right now!�� Ye Futian commanded loudly.


    Although he could not stop the others, he had authority over Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace cultivators. The Ziwei Imperial Palace group returned upon his order immediately. Xi Chiyao also reiterated when she the instruction. At once, the West Imperial Palace bunch retreated to where he was.


    ��What happened?�� Xi Chiyao asked.


    Ye Futian raised his head to peer at the sky and responded, ��There is an unknown force awakening currently. The ruins in this area have formed a divine matrix. These two powers kept the opposite in check by sealing one another. But after our arrival, we��ve been destroying the divine matrix and broke their precarious balance.��


    Right after he spoke, the imperial arms and the ground of the ruins were gleaming with the Divine Light of the Great Emperors. It was only at that moment that the remaining cultivators sensed something amiss. The fact that Ye Futian had ordered his subordinates to retreat only added to their suspicion.


    They knew Ye Futian was being serious, or else he would not have asked the Ziwei Imperial Palace��s cultivators to withdraw themselves from the looting of the ruins�� treasures.


    The force of nature and the aura of the Great Way rushed into the heavens frantically from the land beneath it. The dark sky began to swallow up the force of nature under it like a bottomless pit. Everyone finally regained their senses and raised their heads, and shifted their gazes toward the presence above the sky. At that moment, their hearts were palpitating violently.


    Not only were the people inside the domain affected, but the cultivators outside, who had just stepped into the mountain range, also noticed a mysterious and powerful force��s awakening. They were rooted to the spot when they saw innumerable pythons manifested from nowhere with blood-curdling looks in their eyes.


    They took in the sight of a terrifying scene as they turned their eyes at a distant spot. A colossal silhouette was gradually becoming conspicuous above the firmament.


    The suction force at where Ye Futian and the rest stood on grew stronger as time passed. They could make out a fuzzy godly figure amid the eerie storm. The gigantic silhouette had a human head and a body like a snake. It was imposing and almighty like the God of All Demons��a fearsome sight to behold.


    ��It is still not completely awakened,�� Ye Futian murmured, ��Let��s retreat.��


    After speaking, he immediately led the group out of that place. However, the violent vortex of wind expanded rapidly at that moment. As the suction intensity increased, shrieks of cultivators could be heard at random. Their bodies would be pulled into the turbulent whirlwind. Some of their spiritual souls were even sucked out of their physical forms.


    Ye Futian illuminated the Light of Buddha on his body, covering all the cultivators around him. Nevertheless, he could still feel the terrifying suction force as it gradually grew stronger each second.


    An enormous silhouette of a Demon God appeared in the sky above their heads. Its size was so towering that it covered the entire mountain as though no one could escape from its grasp.


    ��It��s the Mahoraga!��


    Everyone beat a hasty retreat when they caught sight of it. Their hearts were beating like crazy when they realized that figure was one of the Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path��the legendary Mahoraga. It was slowly regaining consciousness while devouring all the intruding cultivators in his territory.


    They could not believe that its will was still as petrifying as depicted in the legends, even after so many years had passed.


    Numerous figures were pulled into the void of the vortex one after another from the ground. Cultivators below the Tribulation Plane could not withstand suction force. Some of their souls were pulled out of their bodies forcibly and were devoured by it. The whole place was in total chaos.


    Powerful cultivators launched some of the most potent attacks in their arsenals from various locations. Their offenses were spread across the vast area and hit the massive silhouette formed by the will of Mahoraga.


    ��We can��t make it out in time.�� Ye Futian came to a halt as he felt the force getting stronger. Then he said, ��Little Condor, protect everyone.��


    ��Okay.�� Little Condor nodded with a stern look. Following that, he manifested the divine body of Karura and merged his mind into it. Next, the gigantic Karura opened its wings and covered everyone under them so that no one would be affected by the suction force.


    With that, Ye Futian carried his imperial arm in his hand and flew into the sky toward the center of the cyclone.

 Chapter 2686 - Fusion

    Chapter 2686: Fusion


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The menacing cyclone pulled Ye Futian into the sky. He caught sight of a few top-notch cultivators at several locations of this violent tempest. Some of them were Near-Deity Levels. Naturally, only cultivators above this tier could hold a candle to the Will of a Great Emperor.


    That Will was left behind by the Mahoraga and was merged with this pocket dimension. Its will could be felt from any area within the mountain range. Not only was it not destroyed, but it even had signs of awakening.


    Whoosh! Ye Futian noticed a destructive divine light beamed into the vortex of air as if it was trying to tear a hole in the cyclone. He could recognize the person who did that. It was none other than the Supreme Swordlord, who attempted to split open the violent storm, creating an opening.


    The Sky Tremor in Ye Futian��s hand was coated with the Light of Buddha. After he flew into the sky, his Imperial Arm forced itself through the center of the cyclone, causing pandemonium everywhere. The violent storm in the sky dispersed a little as a result.


    Nevertheless, the intimidating Will the felt earlier did not disappear. Following its awakening, the range of the vortex expanded ceaselessly, trapping Ye Futian and the others inside in the process.


    ��Aim the attacks there!�� the Supreme Swordlord piped up. Right then, he aimed his flying slash at the gigantic figure formed by the Will of the Mahoraga. However, the colossal being opened its eyes in the next moment. The look of its stare was brimmed with an overwhelming amount of will unlike anyone had ever felt before. As it moved its body down a little, a Python God opened its bloodied mouth, devoured the sword, and attempted to ingurgitate the Supreme Swordlord.


    Nonetheless, the latter��s Taishang Swordsmanship unleashed an exceptional divine light, breaking through the massive body of the Python God, and he successfully made his escape. To his surprise, the Mahoraga stretched its hand and caused another Python God to constrict him.


    Next, the Mahoraga opened its mouth, consuming the Supreme Swordlord. The latter��s spiritual soul was forced out of its physical form at the mercy of the former��s suction force. Even so, the latter transmuted his spiritual soul into the form of a divine sword. The Sword Spirit flew upward, aiming its attack at the Mahoraga. A Near-Deity Level individual was not someone to be trifled with.


    Wham! Ye Futian launched an attack as well. Kicking off the air, he shot himself toward Mahoraga��s figure. Lifting the Sky Tremor in his hand, he projected a Tremoring Pulse toward his opponent. Simultaneously, a divine light could be seen flying toward Mahoraga��s silhouette.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt an overwhelming Sword Will nearby. To his astonishment, the person who fired the attack against the enemy was none other than Xi Chiyao, who was holding a divine sword in her hand. The divine light radiated on her body, causing the air around her to change as if she had become an empress.


    As she unsheathed her sword, the will of the emperor began to fill up the atmosphere as though it was the birth of the Divine Sword of the Great Emperor. Unleashing her sword technique, Raindrop Divine Sword, with her weapon, rain began to pour down from the sky. Countless raindrops turned into needle-like threads and pierced through Mahoraga��s body.


    Under the combined attacks of three powerful cultivators, the figure formed by the Mahoraga dispersed before it could complete its full form. Yet, the Will of the Mahorage did not fade away. Everyone could still feel its powerful presence from different locations of the pocket dimension as if it was omnipresence. In next to no time, the sky turned into a face, pulling many cultivators up into the heavens. After being consumed by the monstrous countenance, their spiritual souls disappeared along with their wills as if the Mahoraga had assimilated them to his Will.


    After picking up a sense of imminent danger, Ye Futian��s face drained colors. Raising his head to stare at the sky, he saw Mahoraga��s face that spanned across the entire atmosphere. The celestial countenance looked down at every living being beneath the firmament. It was nearly impossible to even launch an attack at it.


    The Supreme Swordlord, Xi Chiyao, and the likes felt like someone was watching them. The Will of the Mahoraga continued to awake, and they could not do anything to stop it.


    Following that, the suction force intensified and plunged the whole pocket dimension into a chaotic superstorm. No one could escape its fierce onslaught. Ye Futian remained on the same spot as he witnessed the spiritual souls of numerous cultivators being consumed by the towering apparition of the Mahoraga.


    At once, he felt a strong pulling force on his body, trying to suck him into the sky. He was stupefied by the fact that he could hardly get himself out of that place with Celerity.


    Just then, Ye Futian felt an overpowering pulling force, trying to swallow his spiritual soul and will. Everything in his body was sucked out of it, including the aura of the Great Way inside of him.


    Gripping his Imperial Arm, the Sky Tremor, he covered it with the Light of Buddha that illuminated his surrounding. He could not stop the intimidating will from its advances. Soon, he found himself trapped in the Realm of the Will, where Mahoraga��s face appeared inside, trying to assimilate his will to its.


    Still, he was not the only exception. The other cultivators were met with the same fate, resisting the invasion with all their might��beams of divine lights illuminated from various locations. The Supreme Swordlord turned his will into the Great Path. Xi Chiyao merged her will with the Raindrop Divine Sword, annihilating the will that attempted to consume her. Many other cultivators were trying their level best to resist as well.


    In Ye Futian��s hand, the Sky Tremor lit up a blazing light as he moved his will into it. The World Tree inside his body transformed into Buddhist Power and flowed into his weapon.


    The Light of Buddha around the Sky Tremor instantly gave off a brilliant light brighter than ever, launching several powerful Tremoring Pulses. After the World Tree��s energy flowed into the Sky Tremor, a phantasm of a gleaming divine tree manifested around the weapon. As the Light of Buddha covered the divine tree, it looked similar to that of the Bodhi Divine Tree.


    The destructive Tremoring Pulses were destroying everything on their paths. At that moment, Ye Futian noticed the Will of the Mahoraga retreated as if it was afraid of his attacks. It was the first time the Mahoraga ever tried to evacuate.


    A similar incident had happened before during their expedition in the Demonic Domain. The Will of the Karura retreated as it was frightened by the power of the World Tree.


    Then, a thought suddenly crossed Ye Futian��s mind. Perhaps, the Mahoraga did not fear the Buddhist Power but the power of the World Tree itself. Since a similar thing had played out with the Karura, my assumption could be right on its money. The Mahoraga and the Karura were the Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path. As the king of the Mahoraga Tribe, why would it be afraid of the Buddhist Power?


    A divine light gleamed around Ye Futian after his contemplation. The Will of the World Tree transformed into an invisible air current and spread across the entire sky at great speed.


    This force assimilated the Will of the Mahoraga to its own when it clashed against the latter. It was not devoured but assimilated. Ye Futian was confounded upon the realization that the Mahoraga was not the one who led the assimilation but the Will of the World Tree.


    The epiphany moment had blown Ye Futian��s mind away, and he thought. Is the World Tree��s power more significant than the Eight Regions so that the latter is afraid of it?


    Earlier on, the awakened Will of the Mahoraga would consume every being in this realm, including the wills of the cultivators. It would then assimilate its wills into its own to strengthen itself. Yet, it yielded in the presence of the Will of the World Tree.


    What was the reason behind it?


    However, Ye Futian did not let his guard down. After all, the unpleasant experience was still fresh in his mind. The Karura retaliated at its final moment, trying to consume his will. Would the Will of the Mahoraga do the same?


    Still, he did not have the luxury of choice at that time.


    The Will of the World Tree continued to expand its influence and assimilated the Will of the Mahoraga to its in the sky. Noticing that the World Tree led the assimilation, he did not hinder the process and let it do its thing.


    Following that, his will began to increase, taking over the gigantic phantasm in the sky. Soon, he could perceive everything beneath the heavens vividly. He could even see the outside of the mountain ranges. At that point, he was seeing things with the eyes of the Mahoraga.


    The assimilation went on without interruption. Before long, the phantom of the Mahoraga began to materialize in the sky. But the violent storm had dissipated. Closing his eyes, Ye Futian elevated the senses of his will. Shortly, he noticed the presence of a silhouette of a god. It was a figure of a colossal god with a Python God surrounding it.


    ��It��s the Mahoraga!�� Ye Futian knew that the being was the Mahoraga of the Eight Legions. It was not conscious. It was merely a will it left behind in the world, similar to the case of Great Emperor Ziwei. It merged its Will with this pocket dimension and continued to devour every cultivator who infiltrated its territory even after so many years had passed.


    Ye Futian��s will had successfully assimilated into the Mahoraga��s without any reprisal and resistance. At that instant, there was a shock in the boundless sky. Everyone felt an unknown force slowly awakening.


    The figure of the Mahoraga opened its eye suddenly as if it had fully awakened. Even Xi Chiyao was horrified by the fact and was despaired.


    Should the Mahoraga fully awakened, who could hold themselves against it?


    They would be utterly eradicated.


    ��Get out of here!�� a sacred and majestic voice echoed through the sky. With that, the suction force disappeared completely, though the immense pressure remained. Everyone turned to look at the sky and saw a sinister silhouette above their heads. The figure looked like it could consume them all if it opened its mouth.


    A great many cultivators fled that place for their lives frantically with their hearts palpitated like mad, for fear that it would regret letting them off the hook.


    The Mahoraga of the Eight Legions has awakened! Everyone had the same thought in their minds. They were startled beyond speech. Would the Great Emperor from ancient times be revived after its awakening?


    If it did, how scary would that be?


    Even a powerful cultivator like the Supreme Swordlord heaved a deep sigh and left after raising his head to peer at the monstrous figure above the sky. He could only give up and escape from this place since the narrow escape from death was still fresh in his mind.. It was unfortunate because countless treasures were left behind at the ruins of the Great Emperors.

 Chapter 2687 - Occupy

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The members of Ziwei Imperial Palace did not leave. They were still waiting for Ye Futian.


    If Ye Futian did not return, how could they leave?


    They raised their heads and stared at the heavens. All of them had ugly expressions.


    ��It will be fine,�� Little Condor said to the crowd in a low voice. He put away the Karura imperial corpse. Only he knew Ye Futian��s current condition.


    The crowd looked at Little Condor. Their hearts were put at ease. Since Little Condor said it would be fine, it would naturally be fine. Yet, why hadn��t Ye Futian returned?


    ��All of you just wait,�� Condor Sama said mysteriously. His expression looked somewhat despicable. This caused the crowd to be even more curious. What exactly had happened?


    Xi Chiyao also returned. The members of the West Imperial Palace gathered together. Her beautiful gaze turned to the sky. Her expression was pale, overflowing with an intense look of concern.


    Ye Futian had yet to return. Could it be that he was in trouble?


    ��Palace Lord, we should retreat,�� said the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace as they gathered around Xi Chiyao. Now, the pressure in the heavens above was still terrifying. Mahoraga gave them a chance to retreat. They should naturally do so with haste; otherwise, if Mahoraga changed his mind, their lives would end here today.


    ��All of you, retreat first,�� Xi Chiyao said to the crowd. She wanted the other cultivators of the West Imperial Palace to leave.


    ��Palace Lord,�� the original West Imperial Palace Lord called out to Xi Chiyao. He looked at her and advised, ��We should go.��


    ��All of you, retreat immediately,�� ordered Xi Chiyao. She had no intention of leaving. The members of Ziwei Imperial Palace also remained here.


    The expressions of the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace were unpleasant. Xi Chiyao was the hope of the West Imperial Palace.


    The original West Imperial Palace Lord seemed to understand something. After all, for a Proud Daughter of Heaven like Xi Chiyao, very few people could catch her eye. Ye Futian was undoubtedly one of those people.


    The cultivators here quickly retreated, leaving only the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the West Imperial Palace. Ye Futian, who controlled the will of Mahoraga now, naturally saw all this. Everything below was within his sight.


    ��All of you, get inside,�� a voice rang in the ears of the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the West Imperial Palace. Everyone was stunned.


    ��Let��s go,�� said Little Condor as he led the way. He followed the route from where they came and headed towards the core region of House Mahoraga. There were still many relics of the Great Emperors waiting to be uncovered.


    The members of Ziwei Imperial Palace followed behind. They did not understand what was going on.


    Could it be��


    ��You all should also come along,�� Little Condor said to Xi Chiyao and the others. Xi Chiyao revealed a strange look and asked, ��How is Palace Lord Ye?��


    ��You will know once you come along,�� said Little Condor. He did not elaborate further and continued ahead. The cultivators of the West Imperial Palace had various expressions as they looked at each other. They then saw Xi Chiyao following the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and advancing.


    Was the voice just now directed at them?


    Had Mahoraga spoken to them?


    When Xi Chiyao saw the reactions of the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace, she knew that Ye Futian was fine. Otherwise, the former would not be so calm, especially that demonic beast mount of Ye Futian. It was proud and arrogant, like a general returning from war. There was not a hint of sadness from it.


    She looked up into the sky. She thought of a possibility. Her beautiful eyes revealed a strange look. It couldn��t have happened, could it?


    Not long after, they returned to the place where the relic was. In the skies above, the terrifying will gradually dissipated. The gigantic silhouette of Mahoraga also disappeared without a trace, seemingly dissolving into the void. Then, the crowd looked up and saw a figure descending from the heavens, which slowly floated down. It was Ye Futian.


    This��


    The crowd felt their hearts throbbing intensely. After the will of Mahoraga disappeared, Ye Futian had returned. Could it be that their guesses were accurate?


    ��What is going on?�� asked Lord Chen. He looked at Ye Futian in anticipation. If it were as he had speculated, then Ziwei Imperial Palace would have complete control over this region and occupy the relics of Great Emperors here.


    This place had many relics of Great Emperors, not just one.


    These relics of the Great Emperors contained the wills of the Great Emperors. They had once worked together to seal off the will of Mahoraga.


    ��In the future, this region will be the base of Ziwei Imperial Palace on this ancient continent,�� Ye Futian declared. Although he did not state it outright, the results were already obvious. The crowd could definitely figure it out.


    The cultivators of the West Imperial Palace were also extremely astonished. Did Ye Futian now control the will of Mahoraga?


    This Proud Son of Heaven had always displayed such shocking talent. Now, he stood at the pinnacle of the cultivation world. Even after coming to the relics of the gods, he still performed so exceptionally. Mahoraga wanted to consume everything in this land but was controlled by Ye Futian instead.


    How did the latter manage to pull off this feat?


    This meant that without Ye Futian��s permission, others would be unable to come here.


    The cultivators of the West Imperial Palace understood that Xi Chiyao��s choice was the right one. They had this opportunity because they followed Ye Futian. As expected, Ye Futian now controlled the territories of House Mahoraga, one of the Eight Legions. All the relics here belonged to them.


    Since Ye Futian allowed them to stay, they could cultivate here with the members of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��We can connect the Ziwei Segmentum with this place. In the future, the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum can come to the ancient continent to cultivate,�� said Lord Chen. He was looking forward to that future.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian as he nodded his head. Once the situation over here had settled, the various cultivators would undoubtedly want to come to the ancient continent to cultivate. When that time came, Ziwei Imperial Palace would naturally also open up a spatial passageway to allow the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum to come here and cultivate.


    However, it was still too early for this. This ancient continent would not become stable any time soon. The relics of the Eight Legions appearing in the world one after another might be the beginning of things to come.


    ��Start cultivating,�� said Ye Futian. The crowd nodded and immediately went in different directions.


    ��I want that golden halberd,�� said Fang Cun. As he said this, his figure dashed over towards a golden halberd stabbed into the ground. Ye Futian looked over in his direction. Fang Cun had a good eye. His ability was indeed compatible with the golden halberd. He could unleash powerful might with it.


    This fellow also did not back down during critical moments. He insisted on wanting the golden halberd specifically. After all, although there were many relics of the Great Emperors here, wishing to obtain an imperial arm and the teachings of the Great Emperors was not easy. It was naturally not the time to be meek or humble.


    ��It depends on your ability. If you can comprehend it first, it will belong to you. If others managed to do so before you, you��d better reflect on yourself,�� said Ye Futian as he looked at Fang Cun. Although Fang Cun was his disciple, everyone in Ziwei Imperial Palace was close to him. He naturally would not play favorites. He would not allow others to ask for imperial arms directly.


    ��Don��t worry, Master. It will definitely be mine,�� said Fang Cun, not even turning his head. He was already in front of the golden halberd.


    On the other hand, Duo Yu walked over to the destructive spear. The spear was more suitable for him. The other cultivators also found relics compatible with their cultivation and prepared to comprehend.


    Ye Futian once again came to the green lotus. His will merged into the green lotus. He once again saw the silhouette of the female Great Emperor.


    ��Senior, everything is fine outside now,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Hmm. Do you wish to merge with my will?�� the female Great Emperor asked Ye Futian.


    ��I have a good friend whose abilities are similar to yours. I wish to let her inherit your will,�� replied Ye Futian. He was naturally referring to Xia Qingyuan.


    ��Alright. I have been in slumber for many years. Now that you have awakened me, I do not have much time left,�� said the female Great Emperor. Her silhouette then dissipated and became ethereal again. The green lotus floated upwards. Ye Futian extended his hand, and the green lotus landed in his palm. It had an extremely rich Life Spirit aura.


    An aura of the Great Path emanated from Ye Futian��s body and enveloped the green lotus. The green lotus then disappeared, being absorbed into the world of Ye Futian��s Life Palace.


    Anyone could obtain the teachings of the Great Emperors around here, but he set aside this green lotus for Xia Qingyuan..

 Chapter 2688 - Divine Eyes Spying

    Outside the mountain range where the relic of Mahoraga was located, many cultivators were gathered. They had all been chased out. Until now, their hearts had yet to calm down. Everything that happened just now was too terrifying. Mahoraga had awakened and consumed everything in the space. In an instant, countless cultivators lost their lives.


    Among them, many clans suffered heavy losses.


    ��It has disappeared,�� someone said. When the will of Mahoraga dissipated, they could sense that the terrifying will had also disappeared. Could it be that Mahoraga had once again entered hibernation?


    Before this, why hadn��t Mahoraga consumed them all?


    ��Is the will of Mahoraga sentient?�� someone speculated in a low voice.


    ��If it is sentient, why did it choose to let us go?�� another person asked. The crowd was curious. They did not understand why Mahoraga had let them go so quickly.


    It seemed out of the ordinary.


    ��Huh?�� Supreme Swordlord was looking around. He discovered that Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao, whom he had fought side-by-side, had not come out. Like him, they had submerged into the will of Mahoraga and fought against it. However, they shouldn��t have perished to it.


    ��What about the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace?�� someone asked. They discovered that the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace had disappeared, and they had not seen them. The crowd felt that this was strange.


    ��Before this, I saw that the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the West Imperial Palace were fine. They should be waiting for Ye Futian and Xi Chiyao, but why haven��t they come out yet?��


    The whereabouts of Ye Futian and the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace attracted the crowd��s attention. After all, the path was initially opened up by Ye Futian. Now, he did not make it out. It would naturally draw suspicion.


    Supreme Swordlord��s eyes sparkled as his gaze pierced the space, and he peered inside. Then, his figure flashed and became a beam of sword light. He entered the mountain range again. He wanted to see why Ye Futian and the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace had yet to come out.


    Huh? The other cultivators revealed strange expressions when they saw this scene. After Supreme Swordlord went in, the other cultivators hesitated to move.


    Should they go in and take a look?


    Not long after Supreme Swordlord entered the mountain range, the terrifying will of Mahoraga awakened once again. The mountains contained a frightening aura, causing the hearts of the people outside to leap. Their previous thoughts were quashed. Would Supreme Swordlord make it out alive?


    Right now, Supreme Swordlord stood within the mountain range. His figure was like a sharp sword. He raised his head to look at the illusory figure of Mahoraga.


    A gigantic illusory figure of Mahoraga coalesced in the sky and appeared directly above Supreme Swordlord. The illusory figure stared intently at him.


    Supreme Swordlord showed no sign of fear. His gaze was piercing as he stared at the large silhouette above him. The surroundings emanated a suffocating vibe.


    ��Little Friend Ye?�� Supreme Swordlord said in a low voice. His tone was somewhat doubtful as he felt the illusory figure out.


    He speculated on the disappearance of the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the West Imperial Palace. He hypothesized that Ye Futian had seized control of the will of Mahoraga, and thus, he had control over this region.


    The enormous face of Mahoraga stared at Supreme Swordlord. Then, a white-haired figure emerged from the illusory figure and said, ��Senior, you have a keen eye.��


    When Supreme Swordlord saw Ye Futian appear, he was rather shocked. He exclaimed, ��Incredible. I did not expect you to have really taken control over the will of Mahoraga. I��m impressed.��


    ��Senior, please enter,�� Ye Futian said. Then, the illusory figure dissipated and the terrifying will looming over the sky also disappeared.


    Supreme Swordlord took a glance inside of the relic and entered the region.


    Outside the region, the other cultivators anticipated the return of Supreme Swordlord, yet he did not return even after a long time. Even after the terrifying will dissipated, Supreme Swordlord did not come back. This caused them to reveal shocked expressions.


    Could it be that Supreme Swordlord had angered Mahoraga and was consumed by the latter?


    No one dared to act recklessly. Even though they were full of doubts, they couldn��t help but ponder upon the worst-case scenario. If the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and Supreme Swordlord were truly swallowed by Mahoraga because their intrusion angered him, the rest of them out here would die too if they entered the region.


    They could only wait outside.


    On the other hand, Supreme Swordlord advanced into the relic and saw Ye Futian.


    Before this, the two of them fought over the teachings of the Three Sword Emperors. Ye Futian successfully received a slash from Supreme Swordlord. The latter kept his promise and gave up on the teachings of the Three Sword Emperors. Therefore, Ye Futian had a good opinion of Supreme Swordlord. Even when faced with the temptation of the relic of a Great Emperor, Supreme Swordlord still kept his promise. It was not a simple feat. After all, if Supreme Swordlord went against his word and was dead set on acquiring the teachings, Ye Futian and his group might have difficulty defeating him.


    ��Senior,�� greeted Ye Futian with a smile.


    ��You surprised me,�� Supreme Swordlord said as he approached Ye Futian. ��I sensed the will of Mahoraga before. It was hard to be defeated, yet you have actually swallowed it up. Even though I have heard of your name before, I didn��t pay much attention to you. Now, from the looks of it, your talents are boundless. Coincidentally, the world is going through some major changes now. You might have a chance to become a Great Emperor.��


    ��Senior, you speak too highly of me,�� Ye Futian replied. ��There are plenty of inheritances here. I��m sure you will find something suitable for you. As you said, the world is going through some major changes now. With the appearance of this ancient continent, the will of the Gods will find their successors. I hope you will also be able to inherit the will of a Great Emperor and break through the final step.��


    ��Why did you let me in?�� Supreme Swordlord asked. His entering here meant that he would at least occupy an Emperor-level inheritance.


    Ye Futian had control over the will of Mahoraga. If Ye Futian chose to target Supreme Swordlord, the latter would most likely not be able to set foot in this region.


    ��We get along quite well. I admire your demeanor. I naturally also hope to make more friends during this chaotic time,�� Ye Futian said. He did not mind flattering Supreme Swordlord.


    ��You��re good with words,�� Supreme Swordlord said while nodding. ��Since you said so, I will be friends with you. I am much older than you, so it��s acceptable for me to address you as ��Little Friend Ye,�� right?��


    ��Of course,�� Ye Futian agreed with a smile. ��Senior, help yourself to this place.��


    ��Hmm.�� Supreme Swordlord nodded and said, ��Cultivators like us, who are not from the emperor-level forces, always lose out. Rumor has it that the seven emperor-level forces have all found themselves a relic of the Eight Legions. Their abilities will certainly grow stronger. It��s rather fortunate for Little Friend Ye to be able to snatch this relic of Mahoraga, which is one of the relics of the Eight Legions. You should make use of every second to cultivate.��


    ��Senior, what you say is true.�� Ye Futian nodded in agreement. ��The changes to the heavens and the earth are approaching. We are indeed short on time.��


    ��Let��s cultivate,�� said Supreme Swordlord as he moved towards a direction. Ye Futian looked into the distance in the direction where the former headed.


    Currently, this place was occupied by the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace, the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace, and Supreme Swordlord. Their lineup was rather strong too. This lineup was still not on par with that of other emperor-level forces, but with the help of the will of Mahoraga, Ye Futian was confident that they could remain in control of this region. That was unless the emperor-level forces chose to invade them.


    ��


    It was exceptionally quiet on the outskirts of the relic of Mahoraga. No cultivator dared to set foot in the region. They could only move to other spots in search of opportunities. There were still other places that were suitable for them to cultivate. One by one, the seven emperor-level forces each found a relic of the Eight Legions. They allowed cultivators of other troops to cultivate within the relics. The core regions of each relic were under the absolute control of the emperor-level forces, but some inheritances of the Great Emperors were still available in the outer regions.


    Besides that, there were still many unoccupied relics in various parts of this ancient continent.


    Time trickled past. The relics of the Eight Legions had all been identified. As expected by the crowd, they were carved up by the emperor-level forces.


    The force of the Heaven Realm located the relic of House Deva. It was the ruins of the Ancient Heaven Court, and the scene was shocking to behold. Quite a number of cultivators intended to cultivate there, but they were blocked and defeated by the cultivators of the Heaven Realm. Many cultivators were even killed.


    The Devil World ruled over the relic of House Karura. The relic of the Demonic Lord was there.


    The Dark Court found the relic of House Asura.


    The Human Realm occupied the relic of Music God Gandharva.


    The Divine Prefecture discovered the relic of House Naga.


    The Empty Divine Realm located the relic of House Yaksa.


    The World of Buddhism came across the relic of House Kinnara.


    Finally, the relic of Mahoraga was the only spot that was not seized by any emperor-level forces. Rumor has it that no force managed to rule over it up until now because the will of Mahoraga had awakened.


    Unbeknownst to the crowd, this last relic of the Eight Legions was actually occupied by Ziwei Imperial Palace now.


    Since all the top-level forces had each claimed a relic, they were busy comprehending the teachings stored in their relics at the moment and, hence, they did not have time to invade other relics. However, as time passed, more and more cultivators from the cultivation world arrived and spread across this ancient continent. All the relics gradually found their successors or were taken by force.


    However, the emperor-level forces did not engage in conflict against each other. After all, they still needed time to digest the teachings that they found in their own relics before they had the leisure to invade other places.


    This kind of serenity lasted for a year. After the relics of the Eight Legions had been discovered, a delicate balance had actually formed among the emperor-level forces. Nevertheless, there were still terrifying battles happening regularly all over the ancient continent. There was never truly peace.


    On this day, a powerful cultivator approached the relic of Mahoraga. This cultivator was bathed in the Light of Buddha and his cultivation was profound. He was none other than Shenyan Buddha Lord, one of the Buddha Lords from the Western Heaven of the World of Buddhism.


    He stood outside of the relic and divine lights shot out from his pupils. In the sky above, a pair of eyes appeared too. The gaze of the eyes was petrifying as it penetrated through the vast space and probed deep inside the relic.. Shenyan Buddha Lord was determined to find out what was hidden inside this relic!

 Chapter 2689 - Repent and You Shall Be Saved?

    Ye Futian was cultivating inside the relic. He had become one with the will of the relic. Seemingly sensing something, he opened his eyes and gazed into the distance. He then noticed a pair of eyes.


    They were a pair of Divine Eyes. They were bright and looked down on everything from the sky above. They penetrated through space and directly stared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian similarly stared at the Divine Eyes. Both parties recognized each other.


    ��Ye Futian!�� exclaimed a voice. The speaker was clearly surprised by what he saw.


    ��Shenyan Buddha Lord,�� mumbled Ye Futian as he narrowed his eyes. He stared at the Divine Eyes intently. From the looks of it, Shenyan Buddha Lord��s cultivation had improved. His eyes seemed to have transformed into real Divine Eyes. They could penetrate through the seal of the will of the Great Path and see the scene inside the relic, regardless of the distance.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord did not retract his gaze. His Divine Eyes scanned the surroundings, intending to make out the internal structure of the relic.


    Ye Futian��s heart turned cold. Due to his close relationship with the Buddhist sects, he had no intention of attacking Shenyan Buddha Lord. However, the latter had always been finding fault with him. The appearance of these Divine Eyes now most likely meant that he would cause trouble for Ye Futian again.


    Outside the region of the relic, Shenyan Buddha Lord retracted his gaze, and the Divine Eyes in the sky disappeared. He turned around and looked at the crowd. Many of them asked him, ��Buddha Lord, how is it inside?��


    ��Ye Futian is cultivating inside the relic together with Ziwei Imperial Palace and the West Imperial Palace cultivators. He has lied to all of us,�� reported Shenyan Buddha Lord. ��Ye Futian and Ziwei Imperial Palace have occupied the relic of House Mahoraga, one of the Eight Legions.��


    ��Ye Futian!�� muttered the crowd as they narrowed their eyes in surprise. They never imagined that not only were Ye Futian and the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace still alive, but they had also occupied the relic of Mahoraga and had cultivated inside for so long.


    There were multiple inheritances inside the relic.


    ��Something has been fishy since the beginning. We have had our suspicions, but we did not expect that he has really been lying to us,�� someone said coldly. ��We must tell everyone about this.��


    Even though they had found out the truth, no one dared to enter the relic recklessly. After all, since Ye Futian had seized control of the relic, it meant that he had merged with the will of Mahoraga.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord swept a glance at the relic. Ye Futian and the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace had occupied the relic of Mahoraga for a year. The other seven relics of the Eight Legions were all under control of Emperor-level forces.


    Who did Ye Futian and the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace think they were? They dared to take over one of the relics of the Eight Legions without sharing it with the others.


    Now, Shenyan Buddha Lord only needed to wait and see as Ye Futian and Ziwei Imperial Palace became the common enemy of everyone.


    The news spread quickly in the ancient continent. Soon, various forces knew that Ye Futian and his group had occupied the relic of Mahoraga. Many cultivators made their way over here.


    At the same time, in the relic, Ye Futian stopped cultivating. His gaze was indifferent as he announced, ��We will most likely face trouble.��


    After the various forces caught wind of the news, they would most likely rush over here.


    ��We will declare war on them if they intrude,�� an arrogant voice sounded. The speaker was none other than Supreme Swordlord. Sword Will surrounded him, and his aura was terrifying. As a near-deity, Supreme Swordlord hardly ever found anyone who could be a match for him. He stood at the pinnacle of the cultivation world.


    He had acquired an imperial arm in the relic. He naturally feared no one and was not afraid to put up a fight.


    ��Swordlord, there are more than one or two forces in this ancient continent currently,�� Ye Futian explained. ��Furthermore, the seven major Emperor-level forces are here too.��


    ��That��s true. While we were improving, they were not idle either,�� Supreme Swordlord said. ��Little Friend Ye, you now control the will of Mahoraga. How��s your current combat ability?��


    A year ago, when the will of Mahoraga was awakened, all the cultivators had a hard time withstanding it. They were nearly swallowed by the will. Since Ye Futian had merged with the will of Mahoraga, he would surely be mighty.


    Ye Futian replied, ��I have not tested it out, but I should be able to put up a fight with you even if you wield the imperial arm.�� Supreme Swordlord was already a near-deity. With the aid of the imperial arm, he would most likely have the strongest combat ability among all who were under the Great Emperor Plane.


    The combat ability of a near-deity carrying an imperial arm was equivalent to that of Yan Guiyi of the Devil World back then. They were on par with Wang Xiao, who wielded the imperial arm that was completed with the will of Tianyan the Great.


    ��Hmm.�� Supreme Swordlord nodded. Even though Ye Futian said so, his exact combat ability remained uncertain.


    At the moment, they could only cross the bridge when they came to it. They would decide on their course of action depending on the cultivators who came.


    ��


    More and more cultivators gathered outside the relic of Mahoraga. They had come from different relics. They stayed put for now and waited for more people to assemble.


    They did not dare to act recklessly since Ye Futian had seized control of the relic and had inherited the will of Mahoraga.


    As time passed, the number of cultivators increased. Most of them were cultivators from the Divine Prefecture. For instance, all the Ancient God Clans from the Divine Prefecture were here. They had grudges with Ye Futian, to begin with; they would certainly not let go of this golden opportunity to crusade against Ye Futian with the others.


    The Ancient God Clans had reaped quite some benefits during their trip here. They cultivated in the relic of Naga, which Donghuang Imperial Palace controlled. They had secured as many teachings as possible. After they received news about Ye Futian, they immediately left the relic of Naga and rushed over here.


    On top of them, cultivators from various worlds were also here. All of them had their gazes fixed on the relic.


    Haotian Clan Lord said, ��According to rumors, Mahoraga was the War God among the Eight Legions. His combat ability was heaven-defying, and he killed many Great Emperors. There are most likely many teachings of the Great Emperors left inside this relic. I suppose the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace have reaped great benefits this time around. Aside from the Emperor-level forces, most likely no other force can stand on par with them.�� His gaze was dead set on the relic as he said this.


    ��Ziwei Imperial Palace originated from the Original Realm. It has only been a few decades since they gained their fame, and they intend to be on par with the Emperor-level forces now. For them to occupy a relic alone, they sure are ambitious,�� seconded Vajra Region Lord as he instigated the crowd.


    The cultivators present naturally understood their intention of saying such things. However, they also thought that what they said was logical. They indeed felt that Ziwei Imperial Palace was unworthy to claim a relic independently. Only the Emperor-level forces were allowed to claim one of the relics of the Eight Legions each. This last relic of the Eight Legions should have been accessible to everyone.


    As they spoke, a menacing aura emanated from within the relic. In the distance, a terrifying aura of the Great Path churned and roared. A gigantic figure appeared on the horizon. It was undoubtedly the figure of Mahoraga. His enormous body stood tall in the sky and looked down on everyone. He mocked, ��Since all of you are dissatisfied, why don��t you invade the relic and snatch the place from me?��


    His voice was domineering and provocative. The person who was controlling the will of Mahoraga now was naturally Ye Futian. He stared at the crowd. No one dared to raise any objections when the Emperor-level forces occupied the relics of the Eight Legions. Yet they had all come here to snatch the relic he seized?


    The space actually fell silent after Ye Futian challenged them. Snatching the relic from him?


    Who would dare enter the region?


    ��Ye Futian, the relics on the ancient continent are all public property. Every cultivator has the right to cultivate in them. You pocketed this relic on your own and hoarded many teachings of the Great Emperors. This is certainly not right. Now, you should hand the relic over to us and allow all the cultivators to comprehend within it. This is the right way. You should not breed greater mistakes,�� Tongchan Buddha Lord said, his palms together. The Light of Buddha circled his body. He spoke nobly for the good of all mankind. He requested Ye Futian to open up the relic and allow everyone to cultivate in it.


    ��Repent, and you shall be saved,�� the Buddhist cultivators who stood to the side of Tongchan Buddha Lord chanted. They acted as though Ye Futian had committed a grievous sin and needed salvation.


    ��Why would The Buddha allow such a hypocrite to exist in his sect?�� Supreme Swordlord��s voice penetrated through space and was as sharp as a sword. His voice reverberated as he said, ��Since you said that the relics in the ancient continent belong to the public, why don��t you ask the Buddhist sects to hand over the relics they occupied? The Divine Prefecture, the Devil World, and the other Emperor-level forces should open up their relics too and allow everyone to cultivate in them.��


    Tongchan Buddha Lord explained, ��The Great Emperors maintain the order of the world with the help of the Emperor-level forces. They should not be treated the same. Ye Futian is merely a junior. He is not qualified to seize control of an entire relic.�� His voice was thunderous and could be heard by everyone throughout the space. Even though what he said was fallacy, all the cultivators outside the relic agreed with him.


    There was no absolute right or wrong regarding the matters in the world. Of course, the cultivators would side with whichever side benefited them.


    ��What you say is true. The relics on the ancient continent belong to the public. Ye Futian seized control of this relic with his own ability. So, what��s wrong with him cultivating here?�� Supreme Swordlord continued, ��If you want to snatch the place from us, come right in. Stop running your mouth.��


    Ye Futian declared loudly, ��I once cultivated in the World of Buddhism and have close relationships with the Buddhist sects. I am indebted to them and hence, I do not wish to have grudges with you. However, a few of you have always targeted me. This is not your first time trying to bring me down. Since that��s the case, whatever happens between us is strictly our own personal affairs and is not related to the Buddhist sects. I believe that the Buddhist sects are full of mercy and are unlike scums like you. You bring shame to the World of Buddhism.�� His voice echoed in the region..

 Chapter 2690 - Invasion, Clash

    The Buddhist cultivators were again led by Shenyan Buddha Lord and Tongchan Buddha Lord. These two Buddha Lords had never got along with Ye Futian.


    Now, the two Buddha Lords had caught a glimpse of the door to the God Level. In the relic, their cultivation had undergone a metamorphosis and advanced to the Near-Deity Plane.


    ��Before this, I have heard that you practiced the Demonic Arts. From the looks of it, the rumors were indeed true. The Buddha is merciful and is willing to give you a chance to turn over a new leaf. However, since you remain stubborn, I have no choice but to exorcise you with Buddhist doctrine,�� said Tongchan Buddha Lord as the peerless Light of Buddha emanated from his figure.


    ��If that is the case, what are you waiting for? Come in,�� said Ye Futian as he invited the various cultivators into the relic.


    Now, the various cultivators had gathered outside of the relic. However, they were all hesitating and did not advance. Cultivators from different worlds had now gathered here. Were they going in or not?


    ��Everyone, shall we slay this evil demon together?�� Tongchan Buddha Lord asked as he looked at the surrounding crowd. As he spoke, the Light of Buddha circled him. He appeared like an ancient Buddha with boundless merit.


    ��Alright,�� responded many people as they nodded in agreement. They saw Ye Futian as an evil demon.


    ��If that is the case, let��s go,�� said Tongchan Buddha Lord. A group of cultivators immediately entered the mountain range. Tongchan Buddha Lord and Shenyan Buddha Lord��s group led the way. Aside from them, there were also the leaders of a few Ancient God Clans. They had similarly reaped great benefits from the relics. They had also brought along the Will of the Emperors of the Ancient God Clans here. They did not fear Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian controlled the will of Mahoraga. However, they similarly contained the Will of the Great Emperors within them. The latter were also sentient and had consciousnesses.


    In this battle, they had to take down Ye Futian and resolve this scourge that had been plaguing them. After they killed Ye Futian, the Ziwei Segmentum could also be quickly annihilated. In reality, now that the relics of the gods had appeared, their obsession over the Ziwei Segmentum had waned.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian had to die.


    The cultivators who entered the relic first had terrifying auras. The will of the Great Path burst forth as their bodies floated in the air and advanced. They stood in different locations. Each person emanated a terrifying aura.


    Behind them, a large army charged in. Among them were the cultivators from the top forces of the various worlds. Since people were leading the way, they naturally would not mind cheering them on. Now, with such a powerful lineup, it should be enough to take down Ye Futian, right?


    In the heavens above, terrifying storms gathered. A demonic cloud churned and roared. It merged into a gigantic face. It was the face of Mahoraga. However, unlike before, this storm did not consume the cultivators. It did not do anything, allowing the various cultivators to continue advancing into the mountain range.


    The cultivators who were swarming in were not fast. Although they had confidence in their victory this time, they were still giving it their all. They did not dare to act carelessly and remained cautious at all times.


    Just then, powerful wills appeared in the mountains. They seemed to merge with the storms in the heavens above. At the same time, many demonic pythons appeared. They swarmed towards the cultivators who stepped into the relic from different directions. These demonic pythons lacked sentience and seemed to only respond to the summons of the will in the sky. More and more of them gathered frantically. It was as though all the demonic pythons in the mountain range had appeared in this region.


    In an instant, terrifying Demonic Qi swept over this world.


    At the same time, a terrifying will descended from the heavens. The will of Mahoraga burst forth. In an instant, this area was covered by the will. The entire relic became a domain. It appeared that the will wanted to seal off this area.


    ��Humph!�� Shenyan Buddha Lord coldly snorted. His Divine Eyes were extremely frightening. They pierced the space and immediately shot out at the figure behind the storm. He saw where Mahoraga was located. A frighteningly sharp Buddhist sword shot out of his eyes and pierced the heavens as it sparkled with the Light of Buddha.


    Before this, Ye Futian used Buddhist Power to withstand the will of Mahoraga. Now, a Buddha Lord was facing off with Ye Futian using the same power.


    Roar. There was a loud roar. In the sky above, the figure of a gigantic python god appeared. It opened its bloodstained mouth and immediately consumed the light of the divine sword. It floated above the crowd. Right then, everyone felt as though they could touch the terrifying figure just by reaching out their hands.


    In an instant, the destructive storm enveloped the entire domain. Countless cultivators felt their hearts leap. Many of them had just arrived and had not experienced the terror of Mahoraga before this. They had merely heard rumors that this place contained the awakened will of Mahoraga and did not dare enter. They also came into this relic when they knew that Ye Futian controlled the region. However, their hearts could not stop beating heavily upon feeling this terrifying power.


    It seemed even more powerful than they had imagined.


    Tongchan Buddha Lord put his hands together, and immediately the Light of Buddha burned brightly. On his figure, the terrifying Light of Buddha radiated. He raised his hand and struck out at the figure of the python god. His palm contained Buddhist divine fire that could purify all demonic powers.


    The python god came charging down. However, the palm strike grew larger and larger as it circled in the sky. It quickly covered this part of the sky like a gigantic Symbol of Wan. It collided with the figure of the python god. In the instant that it struck, countless rings of light appeared in the palm of this hand. They immediately enveloped the python god. They were actually from a Demon-slaying Ring.


    ��An imperial arm!�� said someone as their hearts leaped when they felt the power.


    Tongchan Buddha Lord seemed to become an ancient golden Buddha. Golden Light of Buddha circled him, and he transformed into the Vajra Battle Form. This was initially the ability that Vajra Buddha Lord was most proficient in. Buddhist doctrine was interrelated. Tongchan Buddha Lord��s comprehension of Buddhist doctrine was also very profound. The ritual implement in his hand was an imperial arm��the Vajra Demon-slaying Ring. He had obtained it on this relic continent.


    The Vajra Demon-slaying Ring became countless rings of light that enveloped the gigantic python god. They covered its entire body, attempting to restrain it.


    ��Attack,�� said the other top cultivators as they attacked. With unparalleled power, they charged towards the figure of Mahoraga in the sky. For a moment, absolute destructive power shattered the sky and destroyed everything. It was extremely terrifying.


    Rumble. Rumble. Rumble. The terrifying attack landed, attempting to kill Mahoraga. However, when their attacks landed, they discovered that the silhouette of Mahoraga became ethereal. He did not seem to be real at all. He was originally formed from will, so he naturally did not have an actual body.


    The cultivators frowned. Then, a devouring storm swept up the cultivators below them. Some people screamed. Those with weaker cultivation could not withstand this storm. The space became extremely chaotic.


    At the same time, within this chaotic storm, silhouettes appeared there. The cultivators who appeared had astonishing auras.. A number of them even wielded divine arms!

 Chapter 2691 - A Sea of Cultivators

    Chapter 2691: A Sea of Cultivators


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The various top cultivators charged towards Mahoraga in the sky; they knew he was the most crucial target. Ye Futian could only control this region because he had merged with the will of Mahoraga. Only by killing him could they break through to the relic.


    If they attacked, it also gave Ye Futian no time to handle the other cultivators below.


    Right then, a consuming power enveloped all the invaders in the storm. They revealed cautious looks as they all sensed danger. Aside from the consuming power, many cultivators appeared around them. They were the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the West Imperial Palace.


    Just then, the Vajra Divine Child appeared in a different location. The aura he emanated was frightening. His body seemed to be forged from gold and was extremely oppressive. However, he suddenly sensed an extremely dangerous aura. He immediately shifted his gaze and looked in one direction. A terrifying aura of the Great Path burst forth from his body. An ancient golden Vajra god appeared behind him. At the same time, he smacked his palms together and formed a gigantic divine seal of the Vajra Region.


    A beam of dazzling golden divine light shot across the space. The light descended and immediately pierced the divine seal of the Vajra Region. A loud clang followed as the divine seal was directly shattered and destroyed. The unparalleled golden divine light continued. In an instant, it pierced his golden divine body.


    Bang! Sounds of metal clashing could be heard. The Vajra Divine Child lowered his head to take a look at his flesh. He discovered that his flesh was torn apart. Countless cracks appeared on his golden body. The weapon that hit him was a golden halberd, which was an imperial arm. The divine light it radiated was blinding.


    The cultivator who attacked him was Fang Cun. With an imperial arm in his hand, he charged towards the Vajra Divine Child. Clearly, over the last year, Fang Cun had successfully resonated with the golden halberd and inherited its will.


    ��No���� cried the Vajra Divine Child before his body exploded into pieces and turned into endless golden divine light. Both his flesh and his soul perished instantly.


    The Vajra Region was one of the Ancient God Clans. The Vajra Divine Child��s current cultivation was at the Tribulation Plane. He was extremely powerful. He had also obtained some fateful encounters in one of the relics. However, he was instantly reduced to dust by a single attack.


    A Divine Child from an Ancient God Clan had died tragically before everyone��s eyes.


    The other cultivators from the Vajra Region attacked Fang Cun all at once. Fang Cun pointed his golden halberd forward, and immediately, images of divine halberds pierced through the space and penetrated every one of them. The cultivators faced the same fate as the Vajra Divine Child as their bodies disintegrated.


    Fang Cun had undergone the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path and had inherited the Will of an Emperor. On top of that, he now wielded the golden halberd, which was an imperial arm. The cultivators from the Ancient God Clans were no match for him.


    Right at this moment, an unparalleled pressure loomed over Fang Cun. He raised his head and saw a Vajra Region divine seal hovering above him, covering this part of the sky. Fang Cun raised his golden halberd and charged upwards. However, with a loud thud, the Vajra Region divine seal descended and directly crushed Fang Cun. Spatial divine light shone, and he disappeared from his original spot right away, reappearing in another location.


    Fang Cun looked up and saw the cultivator who had attacked him. The latter was an elder from the Vajra Region. His aura was rich and terrifying. He was a near-deity. He was not the current Vajra Region Lord; instead, he was the previous Vajra Region Lord. He had not come out from seclusion for many years. He had been cultivating silently in the Vajra Region and paid no heed to worldly affairs.


    He had been in seclusion until the relic of the gods surfaced. Everyone came here. He also came here in search of fateful encounters. Finally, he managed to break through the bottleneck, which had been troubling him for 1,000 years, in this continent. His cultivation had now advanced to the Near-Deity Plane.


    Sensing the terrifying aura from the elder, Fang Cun��s aura fluctuated. His gaze was fixed on the other party. He was well-aware of how powerful this elder was. Even with the imperial arm, Fang Cun would most likely not be able to defeat him.


    ��You deserve death,�� said the elder as he stared at Fang Cun amidst the storm. An overwhelming might descended. The elder pointed a finger forward. This attack contained the Divine Force of the Vajra Region, which was indestructible and irresistible. If Fang Cun were hit by this attack, a hole would form on his body.


    Fang Cun attempted to retreat, but he discovered that he was confined in this space by a menacing force. As he watched the attack plowing towards him, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him. Xi Chiyao slashed out with her sword. Her Raindrop Divine Sword caused rain droplets to fly out, colliding with the elder��s attack. The elder��s attack disintegrated upon being struck by the raindrops.


    ��West Imperial Palace, you are seeking death,�� the old monster from the Vajra Region warned coldly.


    Xi Chiyao wielded a divine sword, and her pupils were frightening. Her gaze was akin to the gaze of the West Emperor as she glared at the other party. The West Imperial Palace and Ziwei Imperial Palace had always been allies. The former chose to side with Ziwei Imperial Palace during this chaotic age. Xi Chiyao was uncertain of what the future held, but at the very least, she would take responsibility for her own choice.


    ��I did not expect to meet Senior from the Vajra Region here. Allow me to get a few pointers from you,�� said the original West Imperial Palace Lord as he moved forward. His aura intensified as he approached his opponent. In an instant, the divine light of the Great Path moved around him, and a domain materialized in their surrounding region. This caused the old monster from the Vajra Region to narrow his eyes.


    ��You have actually advanced to the next plane. Since that��s the case, why did you pass down Raindrop Divine Sword to her?�� questioned the old monster indifferently. He had cultivated for many years before he could break through the next plane. The original West Imperial Palace Lord was his junior, yet he had already broken through the shackles of the plane and was at the Near-Deity Plane as well. All the other leaders of the Ancient God Clans had yet to break through to the next plane. The original West Imperial Palace Lord was the only one who had succeeded in doing so so far.


    The original West Imperial Palace Lord was a famous legendary figure when he was young. However, after he took up the mantle of Palace Lord, he seldom appeared in public. He had been devoted to his cultivation all these years. In reality, he had broken through to the Near-Deity Plane even before he came to the relic, but he kept his ability a secret. He let Xi Chiyao be the leader of their group instead.


    As for passing down Raindrop Divine Sword to Xi Chiyao, the Great Emperor decided to do so. Nevertheless, the original West Imperial Palace Lord did not need to step down from his position. He did so in order to build Xi Chiyao up.


    Speaking of his resignation, it was related to him breaking through to the next plane. With the help of the pills concocted by Ye Futian, the original West Imperial Palace Lord was able to seize the critical moment to break through the shackles of the plane. This incident made him understand that the West Imperial Palace could go further if they collaborated with Ye Futian. Since Xi Chiyao had a good relationship with Ye Futian, the original West Imperial Palace Lord stepped down and allowed Xi Chiyao to take the lead. He would assume the role of her advisor instead.


    Shifting the focus away from the old monster and the original West Imperial Palace Lord, war erupted everywhere in the surrounding regions. The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the West Imperial Palace launched a sneak attack on their opponent amidst the storm and managed to slaughter quite a number of cultivators.


    Right now, Shenyan Buddha Lord, who had been floating in the heavens, glowed with 1000-Zhang Light of Buddha. A pair of frightening Divine Eyes appeared in the sky. The Divine Eyes shot out menacing divine halos towards the relic. Everything became as clear as day instantaneously. The positions of the cultivators, who had been hiding in the dark, were exposed.


    Within the storm, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace and the West Imperial Palace were visible.


    ��Everyone, let��s finish them off first,�� Shenyan Buddha Lord said. With the Divine Eyes, there was nowhere for their opponents to hide even in the storm. Both sides were within the terrible storm. It was just that the people from the outside had to withstand the terrifying consuming power, whereas the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace did not.


    Just then, an extreme pressure descended. In the heavens above, a gigantic figure of Mahoraga once again coalesced. Right now, Mahoraga was actually wielding the imperial arm, Sky Tremor. Sky Tremor kept growing larger until it blocked out the sky. Terrifying divine halos flowed within it.


    Mahoraga lifted Sky Tremor and came crashing towards Shenyan Buddha Lord��s direction.


    In an instant, the entire space shook violently. Countless Tremoring Pulses swept out and destroyed everything in their path. Almost everything down below was turned to dust.


    A beam of divine light immediately charged towards Shenyan Buddha Lord. He felt his body become unbelievably heavy. Unparalleled divine halos shot out of his pupils. A Buddhist divine sword appeared from within his body. It could kill all demons and was also an imperial arm. Clearly, the members of the Western Heaven had also reaped huge benefits in the relics.


    Both Shenyan Buddha Lord and Tongchan Buddha Lord brought along imperial arms. They also achieved breakthroughs in their cultivation.


    Rumble. A terrifying storm swept out. The attacks clashed. The divine sword was sent flying backwards and Shenyan Buddha Lord��s figure plummeted down at a rapid pace. With a loud rumble, his entire person crashed down into the ground. A huge, deep hole appeared. In the heavens above, the pair of Divine Eyes also disappeared. They were shattered by the Tremoring Pulses.


    ��Everyone, let��s join forces,�� said Tongchan Buddha Lord. He, along with other cultivators, floated into the sky and astonishing aura burst forth from their figures. A single attack from Ye Futian had sent Shenyan Buddha Lord flying. It was apparent that with the power of Mahoraga, the former was more powerful than the Buddha Lords.. It was essentially impossible for them to stand against him individually, yet alone kill him. They could only do so by joining forces!

 Chapter 2692 - The Ruination of Shenyan

    Chapter 2692: The Ruination of Shenyan


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Vajra Region Lord, isolate this domain,�� someone roared. The Vajra Region Lord nodded in agreement. The divine power of the Vajra Region bloomed upon his body. In an instant, the divine power of the Vajra Region morphed into a terrifying Vajra Region, trying to shut down this space.


    However, this space was controlled by the will of the Mahoraga, whose power swallowed others kinds of powers; even the divine power of the Vajra Region was devoured by it. At the same time, the Mahoraga above the sky held the Sky Tremoring in his hand, and the hammer blasted out again. With a loud boom, the Great Path collapsed, and the boundaries could not take form.


    ��You guys stay back,�� the Mahoraga let out a command. The storm immediately swept away the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace and those from the West Imperial Palace. They knew Ye Futian was in control of this force, so they did not resist and allowed the storms to sweep them away into the distance. Only the Supreme Swordlord, Xi Chiyao, and the original Palace Lord of the West Imperial Palace remained. These three were top-level cultivators, so they were in no danger, being on the battlefield.


    An even more astounding devouring storm swept out, and the cultivators�� hearts in the area below palpitated. They all felt something was awry; this devouring force seemed to have increased in strength again.


    The entire firmament had turned into a massive and boundless divine shadow of the Mahoraga. Storms of whirlpools appeared, and those storms swallowed up the power of the Great Paths, the wills, and the spiritual souls.


    ��Be careful!�� When they felt this terrifying power, those top giants had a serious look on their faces. This devouring power had become stronger than before.


    Buzz! A potent aura erupted, and countless divine swords appeared around the Mountain Master of Infinite Mountain. Each divine sword burst out with a shattering divine light, and the sword light increased and soared wildly, covering all directions.


    He raised his hand and pointed, and the light of the divine sword that contained the will of the great emperor suddenly burst out from thin air. Billions of divine swords aimed at whatever place, not missing any corner as they continued to do their deadly work.


    In an instant, countless divine swords shot out and pierced into that vortex of the storm in the firmament.


    At the same time, the Palace Lord of Yuanshi Palace levitated into the sky, and a divine matrix appeared above him. In this divine matrix, countless terrifying god-punishing forces appeared, turning into an apocalyptic light beam that moved towards the firmament, attempting to penetrate this corner of the sky.


    There were also top cultivators from other principalities who had made their moves as well, and every one of them was a veritable peak existence who had inherited the will of the great emperor. They aimed their attack at the heavens above. The will of the Mahoraga, as controlled by Ye Futian, was everywhere. They had no choice but to break up this corner of the sky forcefully.


    The divine eye of Shenyan Buddha Lord scanned the sky above, trying to lock onto Ye Futian��s position. However, under the divine eye, he found that Ye Futian was everywhere. This sky was full of his presence.


    Accompanied by the joint attacks of all the cultivators, the apocalyptic divine light pushed above the firmament. Any one of those attacks, when unleashed in the outside world, would be unimaginably horrific; they were the topmost offensive techniques under the imperial level. At this very moment, it was all to assassinate one person and one person only.


    These devastating attacks pierced the devouring storm above the firmament. The explosion of those attacks almost nailed shut the entire heavens, intending on obliterating Ye Futian by force.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Under the horrific slaughtering light, the gigantic phantom of the Mahoraga seemed to be pierced through. The storm of destruction tore up everything as it tried to tear this will into pieces and destroy it.


    Those cultivators raised their heads to stare above the firmament. Besieged by such tyrannical attacks, how could anyone survive?


    ��Shouldn��t he be destroyed by now?�� The Light of Buddha from the Shenyan Buddha Lord and Tongchan Buddha Lord continued to pour into the slaughtering attacks. However, at this moment, the sky that was pierced through was still filled with the tyrannical will of devouring. It was able to swallow up their divine attacks, as well as the divine powers that drove them.


    The Mahoraga was not a living existence, to begin with, and it had no physical form. All these attacks managed to obliterate the will of the Mahoraga, which was the only way it could be killed.


    But that devouring will was still there. Clearly, it had not yet been obliterated.


    The storm of destruction was still gathering, and the devouring power remained. The boundless gigantic shadow above the sky lifted the Sky Tremoring, and the hammer increased in size. The shock wave of destruction swept out and carried an unparalleled power that was extremely overbearing.


    The Mahoraga��s gaze was fixed on a figure, which was the Shenyan Buddha Lord. In those violent eyes, there was a trace of fervent murderous intent somewhere deep within.


    Boom�� The dull and overbearing attack dropped down, and the Sky Tremoring blasted from the sky. In an instant, the destructive attacks that penetrated the storm were pulverized and annihilated under that forceful shockwave.


    The expressions of those top cultivators changed to one of great shock, as they, once again, released their strongest attack yet and slammed toward the Sky Tremoring that was blasting down from the sky. Two powerful attacks violently collided in the void for a while, setting off a storm that would destroy everything. If it weren��t for the inherent stability of this world, the space would already be torn into pieces. But even so, the storm of destruction swept out towards the boundless space in the distance, even to the outside world. Those cultivating outside in the relic trembled with fear as they sensed this force. Even the cultivators who were a great distance away looked up, their hearts beating wildly.


    What a horrific ripple effect from the battle.


    In the battlefield of the relic, devastating attacks swept downward, and the attacks from those giant-level cultivators were suppressed. They had released their powers to the extreme, resisting the attack of that shockwave, so the surrounding area had formed an incomparably powerful domain of the Great Path.


    A muffled sound was heard as the shockwave arrived to flatten everything in its path.


    Among the cultivators, one person suffered the most severe blow. Shenyan Buddha Lord was at the center of the storm as a light beam of terrifying shockwave blasted down on him. A Buddhist divine sword appeared where a divine light shot out from his eyes. The sword merged into this divine light and collided with the descending light beam.


    But even so, his body continued its downward momentum, and that divine sword of Buddhism was also suppressed in a downward fashion. He wanted to escape from the battlefield but found that the surrounding space was extremely heavy, covered by that shockwave. There was nowhere for him to hide. If it weren��t for protection from this Buddhist divine sword, he would have already been torn apart by the shockwave.


    A great roar was heard, and the eyes of the Shenyan Buddha Lord seemed to no longer belong to him. They came out of his body, shot out two divine lights, then merged with the divine sword.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Around him, the void vibrated, and everything was on the verge of being pulverized into dust and smoke.


    ��Ahhhh!�� A chilling scream sounded as the destructive light beam swept down. The next moment, Shenyan Buddha Lord blasted into the space below and sank deep into the earth. The ground around him was exploding and shattering with madness, turning to dust in no time.


    The heart of everyone was beating wildly. Their eyes were looking over there, and their expressions were extremely horrified. All of them had joined forces to deal with an apocalyptic attack, and Ye Futian was able to directly engage them by controlling the will of the Mahoraga. More importantly, he had unleashed a most devastating attack against the Shenyan Buddha Lord alone.


    At this moment, a figure stood up from the dust, blood oozing out of his eyes, flowing down on his face. It was shocking to behold the blood that had covered his entire face.


    ��Shenyan Buddha Lord!��


    Everyone��s heart trembled. Tongchan Buddha Lord, especially, looked particularly livid. The eyes of the Shenyan Buddha Lord had been blinded by the blast.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord was known for his cultivation of Buddha��s Clairvoyance��one of the six magical powers of Buddhism. His eyes had undergone numerous changes and were known as the divine eyes, hence his title.


    But now, this pair of divine eyes had been blinded by Ye Futian. Could he still be considered Shenyan Buddha Lord?


    ��Master.�� Shenyan Arhat and other Buddhist cultivators had gathered around Shenyan Buddha Lord. There was great hatred in their eyes as they looked up at the gigantic figure of the Mahoraga above the sky.


    Ye Futian did not continue to attack. The joint attack on him just now had taken a great deal out of him, and his state at the moment was not the most optimal. Nonetheless, it was enough to deter the cultivators in the space below.


    The giant face of the Mahoraga looked over the cultivators with a sense of indifference. The devouring storm remained; did these Buddhist cultivators hate him to this degree?


    It was the Shenyan Buddha Lord and Tongchan Buddha Lord who aimed to kill him and had put him in dangerous and near-death situations many times before. He already told them that this was a private grudge between them and that he would no longer spare them.


    With this strike, Shenyan Buddha was ruined.


    ��Amitabha,�� said a voice. Suddenly, the Light of Buddha filled the sky, and from the outside world, several ancient golden Buddhas appeared. When they descended to this space, it was revealed that they were the Great Buddhas from the Western World of Buddhism. Ye Futian had seen several Buddha Lords among them.


    Ye Futian��s figure was then revealed above the firmament, as he bowed to the Buddhas. ��Ye Futian greets the Buddha Lords.��


    ��Benefactor Ye.�� Several Buddha Lords clasped their hands together in return, and did not exhibit any signs of unfriendliness. Then, they looked at Shenyan Buddha Lord as they put their hands together, chanting the Sound of the Buddha. At this time, Tongchan Buddha Lord said, ��Ye Futian had killed many people in the realm of Buddhism, and now he has blinded Shenyan. It is obvious that he has fallen into the demonic way, what do all the Buddha Lords think we should do with him?��


    Ye Futian was very strong, but as long as these Buddha Lords were willing to take action, Ye Futian would not be able to escape, and he would die.


    However, at this moment, the outside world began to bloom with divine light, as many cultivators had arrived. Ye Futian looked at those cultivators who came from the outside and found that they were led by the cultivators from the Human Realm. Their eyes swept over the battlefield, then at Ye Futian, who was in the void.


    They had also heard that Ye Futian gained control of the relic of the Mahoraga��one of the Eight Legions��and it was the only one outside the imperial-level forces. He had even integrated with the will of the Mahoraga.


    Watching what had transpiring before them, everyone thought that it would probably be difficult for Ye Futian to keep all that he had gained.

 Chapter 2693 - Backup

    Chapter 2693: Backup


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Tongchan.�� A voice spoke, and it was Wutian Buddha Lord. He put his hands together and looked at Tongchan Buddha Lord intently. ��You have an obsession in your heart.��


    ��What does Wutian Buddha Lord mean by that?�� the Buddha of Tongchan frowned and responded coldly.


    ��Benefactor Ye did nothing to offend anyone. When he cultivated Buddhism with us, he had always cultivated most seriously, which accounted for his high achievements in Buddhism. He has never disrespected Buddhism for any reason. As for your junior brothers, their downfalls were caused by their greed. They coveted the things that Ye Futian possessed, and their demise was a direct result of that and can��t be attributed to anyone else. So, why can��t you finally let it go?��


    When Wutain Buddha Lord spoke, the Light of Buddha dazzled, and echoes lingered between heaven and earth. This gave everyone a feeling of particular spiritual clarity, free from external influences, so the truth appeared exceptionally lucid.


    ��More than once, you and Shenyan have provoked Benefactor Ye. We haven��t overlooked this. Now that you have suffered the repercussions, we can only say that you reaped what you sow. Now is the time to put down those obsessions.�� When Wutian Buddha Lord finished speaking, he chanted the Buddha��s name. His expression was solemn.


    ��You are the same as us from the Buddhist sect. Now, does Wutian Buddha Lord speak for others instead of taking what happened to Shenyan Buddha Lord seriously?�� Tongchan Buddha Lord responded coldly. Shenyan Buddha Lord��s blinded and bloody face appeared a little twisted as he faced Wutian Buddha Lord��s direction. It seemed to be filled with hatred, and it was obvious that he was displeased with the words spoken by Wutian Buddha Lord.


    ��Amitabha!�� At this moment, a voice was heard from afar. Many cultivators raised their heads and looked yonder. They saw an ancient Buddha appear above the sky, with a majestic and dignified appearance. The immense Light of Buddha surrounded him, illuminating the void. When they saw his appearance, many Buddhist cultivators bowed slightly to salute and pay their respect.


    This Great Buddha was a true enlightened Buddhist monk in the Buddhist sect. He had cultivated for many years, far longer than even the Lord of All Buddhas. His cultivation was deep and unfathomable. Many years ago, he was already said to be at the level of near-deity. Nowadays, it was anyone��s guess just how tyrannical his power might be.


    This Buddha Lord was the Buddha of Destiny. In legends, he was the one who knew the fates of all living beings; he was a transcendent entity.


    ��Tongchan and Shenyan, your hearts in Buddhism are covered in dust, and you will only drift further away from Buddhism. If your obsession does not dissipate, it will be difficult for either one of you to become a Buddha. Let it go,�� said a voice with all the powers derived from his cultivation, which somehow seemed to get the truth through those who heard him. The two Buddha Lords, Tongchan and Shenyan, trembled in their hearts. Although they couldn��t let go just like that, they knew better to defy the Buddha of Destiny.


    The Buddha of Destiny was able to glimpse into fate. Since he had persuaded each of them, perhaps they had made the wrong choice.


    ��Thank you for the Great Buddha��s advice.�� Tongchan Buddha Lord bowed to the Buddha of Destiny with his hands clasped together. Soon after, the Light of Buddha in the distant sky dissipated, and the Buddha of Destiny disappeared.


    Tongchan Buddha Lord glanced at the figure in the void and sighed silently in his heart. If they couldn��t participate by making a move, he would like to see how Ye Futian planned to resolve this situation. All the cultivators were here and cultivators from other imperial-level forces. Would they allow Ye Futian to control the relic of one of the Eight Legions?


    Shenyan Buddha Lord did not leave either. He was particularly reluctant now that his divine eyes had been blinded by Ye Futian. Naturally, he wanted to see what would become of this conflict.


    ��Thank you, Great Buddhas.�� In the void, Ye Futian bowed to the representatives of the Buddhist sect. He had stressed before that it was a personal grievance between him and Shenyan Buddha Lord and Tongchan Buddha Lord. Not everyone in Buddhism was like these two. However, many were Buddhist monks who had attained enlightenment. While he cultivated on the Spirit Mountain, he learned a lot from many Great Buddhas, and he was grateful to them.


    Clearly, the sect of Buddhism did not plan to interfere in the situation here. After they expressed their stance, the space was silenced for a moment.


    At this time, the cultivators from the Human Realm, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm had arrived.


    ��This place is one of the Eight Legions. Since Ye Futian has already integrated with Mahoraga��s will from one of the Eight Legions, it is not inappropriate for him to rule over this territory,�� another voice spoke as if to support Ye Futian��s claim.


    Ye Futian looked down at the man who spoke and saw that he was a top cultivator from the Human Realm. But he wasn��t done speaking, as he continued. ��Ye Futian is in charge of the relic, but there are many relics left over by great emperors who were slain by the Mahoraga, which the Ziwei Imperial Palace should not hoard for its own use. Let all the cultivators in the world comprehend and cultivate here, and let their own personal fortune determine whether or not they may comprehend the relics of the great emperors.��


    His words made Ye Futian frown. The first half of his statement sounded like he was speaking for Ye Futian.


    Everyone looked at the man from the Human Realm that spoke. This was something that most people would agree to. However, if so, they would not continue hunting Ye Futian, which disappointed the cultivators from the Ancient God Clans. They would prefer that those imperial-level forces had made a break with Ye Futian so that a battle would be inevitable.


    The man who spoke up just now had an extraordinary temperament, and his body was radiant with flowing divine light. His was handsome, and there was a righteousness about him.


    The identity of this man was extraordinary. He was the eldest disciple of the Human Ancestor from the Human Realm and his chief disciple��Di Hao.


    Di Hao was well-known in the Human Realm. He had displayed his amazing talent since he was young, and his path had always been smooth. He was the proud son among his peers who was eventually selected by the Human Ancestor as a disciple to cultivate under his tutelage. Among all the great disciples of the Human Ancestor, he was still the one with the most dazzling talent.


    It was said that his birth itself was something remarkable. He was born into the Ancient God Clan in the Human Realm, which traced back to an exceptional great emperor in ancient times. The imperial clan, in the Human Realm, held a much loftier status than the Ancient God Clans in the Divine Prefecture.


    Such a man was born to be looked up to by the world. He had always been a legend in the eyes of the others, worshipped and admired by countless many, who saw him as an example for them to live up to.


    But now, Di Hao��s cultivation had reached its peak, as an existence of near-deity. His rank on the Demigod List was usually near the top. He was one of the most powerful people globally, just after the Great Emperors.


    Di Hao��s words, obviously, had a certain influence.


    He was generous enough at my expense, Ye Futian thought to himself, huffing coldly in his heart. He had already obtained the relic, and now, Di Hao wanted to be the spokesperson of all the gawking bystanders. Although they recognized his control over the relic, he demanded Ye Futian to surrender the inheritances of the great emperors inside the relic and release it to the world for cultivation purposes.


    If so, what was the point of controlling anything?


    ��Since this site is under my control, it is up to me to decide who can cultivate here,�� Ye Futian stated lightly, without being angry. ��When all the major imperial-level forces take control of any relic, that��s how they manage it, isn��t it?��


    He was in control of the relic; why should he allow everyone in the world to cultivate there?


    He wasn��t that generous or tolerant.


    More importantly, many of them were his enemies.


    Di Hao glanced at Ye Futian and wondered. He actually fancied himself on par with the imperial-level forces?


    He must have overestimated himself and his influence.


    On this ancient continent, besides the imperial-level forces, who else was qualified to control the relic of one of the Eight Legions?


    ��No one is guilty other than what they have in their possession; it is for your own good. After all, before our arrival, all these cultivators had wanted to get in by force. There is no need to fight and run the risk of decimating both sides. Wouldn��t it be much better to let everyone cultivate here? Not to mention that you are already in control of the will of the Mahoraga, so why covet more?�� Di Hao continued with a lot of self-righteousness. It seemed as if he was considering what was best for Ye Futian.


    ��Covet?�� Ye Futian looked at him with astonishment. ��I obtained it, so where does ��covet�� figure into this conversation? By your logic, all the major imperial-level forces should also allow cultivators of the world to cultivate on their territories?��


    The Human Realm was also in control of a relic. Had they ever allowed the world to enter it to cultivate at will?


    Did he come here now to persuade him to let go of his control of the relic?


    ��Very well.�� Di Hao nodded without saying much. ��In that case, I hope you can keep it.��


    ��You don��t need to worry about that,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, there is no problem for us to go in and take a look, is it?�� from the Dark Court, another top cultivator asked.


    ��I��m sorry, this place is now occupied by the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace, temporarily off limit to outsiders. After I have had some time to considered the matter, I will decide whether to let certain people to enter within,�� Ye Futian replied, rejecting the request from the Dark Court.


    If one force was allowed to enter, then other forces would wanted to the same treatment. If so, what would be the point of them being in control?


    Soon, the imperial-level forces would wiggle in and occupy the inside.


    He��s asking for it, the cultivators from the Ancient God Clans remarked secretly. He dared to refuse two imperial-level forces in a row?


    This was nothing short of Ye Futian digging his own grave.


    ��What if we insist on entering and cultivating?�� another cultivator from the Dark Court continued to press. The surrounding space suddenly became a little oppressed. The tension was thick in the air. It was as if a fight might break out at any moment.


    ��Just try it!�� said an icy voice, and everyone turned their attention in its direction. They saw a cloaked figure leading other cultivators from the Dark Court to this side. It was none other than Ye Qingyao��the Reaper.


    Ye Qingyao walked in front of that cultivator from the Dark Court and said, ��Cultivators from the Dark Court may not step in here.��


    That cultivator from the Dark Court frowned. He was a cultivator on the throne of the Dark Court, but Ye Qingyao��s current status in the Dark Court was unmatched by anyone.


    ��Whoever dares to make a move would be an enemy of the Devil World.�� From a distance, Yu Sheng arrived with a group of cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace. The demonic might was tossing and tumbling upon him in an extremely terrifying fashion.


    At this moment, the two imperial-level forces��the Devil World and the Dark Court��actually chose to stand on the same side as Ye Futian.


    No one could have anticipated this turn of events. The Reaper and Yu Sheng both held lofty status within the Dark Court and the Devil Imperial Palace, respectively. Now, they both stepped forward to protect Ye Futian. With these two imperial-level forces behind him, and Buddhist sect refraining from taking action, who else could attempt to make a move on this relic?


    It seemed that Ziwei Imperial Palace, as led by Ye Futian, would assume control as the eighth principality and reign supreme as one of the Eight Legions!

 Chapter 2694 - Entrust

    Chapter 2694: Entrust


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    These imperial-level forces were not a unified front. For example, the Buddha Lords dispatched before had held different positions. Tongchan Buddha Lord and Shenyan Buddha Lord aimed to destroy Ye Futian, but the few Buddha Lords who appeared later clearly thought differently. They were friendly to Ye Futian and didn��t avenge Shenyan Buddha Lord.


    The same was true with the Dark Court and the Devil Imperial Palace. Previously, some cultivators from the Dark Court expressed their interest in entering the relic, but Ye Qingyao, the Reaper from the Dark Court, did not allow it. Likewise, Yu Sheng represented a group of people within the Devil World. Apparently, he had not yet completely conquered all the cultivators from Devil Imperial Palace.


    Even so, it was enough. Under such a display of unity, it was obviously impossible for anyone to continue challenging Ziwei Imperial Palace��s cultivators and rob them of this relic.


    ��Get out of this relic.�� The demonic might tossed and roared upon Yu Sheng as he coldly told everyone to buzz off. These cultivators did not look pleased. However, there was no way for the Devil World and the Dark World cultivators to participate at this juncture. The Empty Divine Realm would be reluctant to break with them here, and the Buddhist sect had chosen not to intervene.


    Donghuang Imperial Palace from the Divine Prefecture and the cultivators from the Heavenly Realm were not here. Obviously, this battle could not continue.


    ��Ye Futian, you are in cahoots with the Devil World and the Dark World. You��d better watch yourself,�� Di Hao from the Human Realm said, and with that, he left. Soon after, other invading cultivators went with him and withdrew altogether.


    Tongchan Buddha Lord and Shenyan Buddha Lord were particularly reluctant, especially Shenyan Buddha. Both of his eyes were blinded, but there was nothing he could do to get back at Ye Futian. They could not take the relic, and Ye Futian remained safe and sound. What he was feeling right now was not the best, to say the least.


    This time, the cultivators from all sides had suffered some loss, but they didn��t gain anything. Even Vajra Divine Child was killed here.


    This account could only be settled later.


    That was only if Ye Futian never left. As soon as he left this relic, he would no longer have the Mahoraga��s will. Then, they would very much like to see how he planned to survive out there.


    ��Yu Sheng, Qing Yao.�� Ye Futian descended as the will of the Mahoraga dissipated. He looked at Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao. He thought that the timing of their reinforcement couldn��t be more perfect. If these imperial-level forces really intended to target him, he might be having a hard time holding them off. After all, the will of Mahoraga was not invincible.


    ��All Eight Legions have been revealed. Because they dared not move on other relics, for the time being; they can only come here.�� Yu Sheng had an invisible demonic power about him that was immensely menacing. His dark eyes looked into the distance as he continued, ��If there is a next time, we will slaughter them all. Whosoever dares to come will pay dearly for their indiscretion.��


    ��Ziwei Imperial Palace does not belong to an imperial-level power, but it alone controls the relic of Mahoraga, which is one of the Eight Legions. Naturally, it became a target. It was not surprising why they came; it was Shenyan who instigated this dispute. Now that his divine eyes have been destroyed, it was a sort of karma.�� Ye Futian seemed rather casual about the whole affair. It was as if everything that had happened was within his expectation. The fact that they had controlled the relics was something that Shenyan discovered and used for his own purpose. The mess that ensued was inevitable.


    ��How is your cultivation going?�� Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao and inquired. The Devil Imperial Palace had retained control over the Karura relic, as well as the inheritance of the Demonic Lord.


    On the other hand, the Dark Court found the relic of the Asura tribe. The Dark Court itself was very compatible with the Asura, and the two may even be traced back to the same line of ancestry. These two should be the most ideal for one another.


    ��I haven��t fully comprehended it yet,�� Ye Qingyao whispered, still shrouded in the cloak. After hearing the news, she had rushed over. Sure enough, they saw that Ye Futian and the others had been besieged by various major forces.


    ��Qingyao, you have to concentrate on cultivation when you get back and ignore everything else from the outside world,�� Ye Futian looked at Ye Qingyao and said to her. He knew that Ye Qingyao was extraordinary and was valued greatly by the Lord of the Dark Court. However, if someone else inherited the will of King Ashura, it would undermine Ye Qingyao��s position in the Dark Court considerably.


    ��I know.�� Ye Qingyao nodded, like a well-behaved little girl. Her voice was crystal clear without a bit of the coldness as when she dealt with the others.


    ��I have encountered some troubles, and I came to see if you could take a look,�� Yu Sheng said to Ye Futian, which surprised him. Asking him to take a look? At what?


    He glanced at the cultivators around Yu Sheng and saw that they were all exceptional cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace. Yan Guiyi��the Demon Sage��was with him as well. This group of people should be the ones in agreement with Yu Sheng, so they came together.


    ��Will other cultivators in the Devil Imperial Palace agree to that?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��That��s not a problem,�� Yan Guiyi responded.


    ��Alright then.�� Ye Futian nodded and agreed. This was a good thing for him, so he had no reason to refuse it. He may have an opportunity to comprehend the power of the relic over there.


    ��How about we get going now?�� Yan Guiyi proposed. ��With the previous battle, I��m sure people from the outside will not dare to make trouble here again.��


    ��Very well,�� Ye Futian nodded, then proceeded to have a discussion with everyone. He stationed the Little Condor outside so that if there were any movements, he would be able to rush back immediately.


    ��In that case, let��s go,�� Yan Guiyi said, and Ye Futian nodded. Then, all the cultivators parted ways. Ye Qingyao left with the people from the Dark Court, and Ye Futian followed the cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace, and the rest of them returned to continue cultivation.


    ��


    In the city of Karura��s relic, Ye Futian came to the place where he left before��the shrine where the House Karura was located.


    An extremely terrifying aura exuded from this shrine, shrouding the boundless space. When Ye Futian followed the cultivators from Devil Imperial Palace and approached the Demonic Lord and King Karura��s divine body, a sense of terror enveloped them. A pressure was coming toward them, making Ye Futian feel a little short of breath.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at these two figures. His heart palpitated. The mysterious aura around them had been broken, and there were still many corpses in the area. Many cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace were cultivating here and had reaped a lot from it.


    ��What do you want me to do?�� Ye Futian asked. Yu Sheng and Yan Guiyi were on either side of him.


    Around them, many people were moving towards Ye Futian, and all of them were cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace. Many of them looked cold and were not so friendly. Obviously, many of them frowned upon the fact that an outsider was invited here for the sole purpose of comprehension; this was not something that they wanted to see.


    However, Yu Sheng, Yan Guiyi, and many other demonic cultivators had decided, so they could only allow Ye Futian to give the thing a try.


    ��There!�� Yan Guiyi pointed in front of him. On top of the Demonic Lord, a divine ruler fell straight from the firmament and penetrated the void between heaven and earth. It was buried deep into the body of the Demonic Lord to imprison him here. It formed an extremely overbearing power in this area that sealed off everything.


    Needless to say, Ye Futian was aware of everything. As soon as he got here, there was something moving inside his body, and his spiritual soul was becoming active. He did not doubt that the aura from this divine ruler had caused the activity in his spiritual soul.


    ��This divine ruler has sealed off the area around the Demonic Lord. Can you remove it?�� Yan Guiyi asked. ��All of us have tried but to no avail. Yu Sheng recommended you come and give it a shot.��


    Ye Futian understood now why Yan Guiyi was trying to find him��to remove the divine ruler and release the will of the Demonic Lord.


    Although Yu Sheng recommended him, the cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace did not think he could do it. However, they had tried and failed, so there was not much for them to do except allow him to have a shot. After all, Ye Futian was extremely well-known for his ability in comprehension, and he alone had inherited from several great emperors.


    ��I can try it,�� Ye Futian began to speak, ��but if in the process I end up being able to communicate with the will of the imperial arms and gain control of it, what should I do?��


    Yu Sheng didn��t speak; his attitude was evident. But the key depended on the rest of the people in the Devil Imperial Palace.


    This divine ruler was not an ordinary object, as it possessed the ability to suppress the power of the Demonic Lord, so the magnitude of its power was simply unimaginable. If it were really released by him, would the Devil Imperial Palace be willing to give up such a treasure?


    ��How about we make a gift of King Karura��s corpse to you?�� Yan Guiyi pointed to the corpse of King Karura next to him. Although this corpse was also a treasure, it was not particularly useful to demonic cultivators. But that divine ruler, on the other hand, might be a great treasure that they still hoped to retain.


    Ye Futian shook his head. ��If I could communicate with the divine ruler, I am afraid that I would not be willing to part with it then. Moreover, if other cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace intend to control the divine ruler, they may also harbor ill will towards me. The risk for me is quite high.��


    Yan Guiyi glanced at the figure of the Demonic Lord in front of him and said, ��If you can comprehend it, you may take it away.��


    Their goal was still the Demonic Lord.


    ��I can believe the words of the Demon Sage, but what about the others?�� Ye Futian asked. There were a lot of cultivators in the Devil Imperial Palace, and all of them had the power to pose a threat to him.


    ��Are Yu Sheng��s and my guarantee insufficient for you?�� Yan Guiyi replied as he looked at Ye Futian. Ye Futian glanced at Yu Sheng, who was next to him and saw him nod. Obviously, Yu Sheng approved of this sentiment. As long as Yan Guiyi was in agreement, there should not be any surprise.


    ��Very well. In that case, I agree, but I can��t guarantee that I can do it.�� Ye Futian said, ��I need other people to leave. I only need Yu Sheng to stay behind so as not to disturb to my work.��


    Yan Guiyi glanced at Ye Futian and thought that this guy might still hold some selfish intentions.


    ��Fine.�� He nodded, turned around, and waved to the people around him. Suddenly the cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace moved, leaving it to just Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    ��What do you think?�� Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian and asked. This divine ruler was something that had eluded them all. The cultivators from Devil Imperial Palace had tried it, and they had all failed.


    ��I will only know after trying,�� Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng and said with a smile. ��However, I am hopeful.��


    Whatever could entice a movement in his spiritual soul indicated that there must be some kind of connection. Therefore, the odds were in his favor!

 Chapter 2695 - The Ruler of Heavenly Path

    ��Yu Sheng, help me seal off this area,�� said Ye Futian. His request was for two reasons, and one was that he didn��t want to be disturbed by the others. The other was that he didn��t want to be ogled by the others. Only then could he comprehend in peace.


    ��All right.�� Yu Sheng nodded, and the demonic might tossed and rolled upon his body. The demonic will suddenly turned into a demonic wall, which sealed off this space.


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged before the body of the demonic god, which was still impaled by the divine ruler. He closed his eyes and released his comprehension. Wisps of Great Path auras diffused outward, surrounding the divine ruler, quietly perceiving the power contained within the divine ruler.


    Ye Futian seemed to be separated from the real world at this moment. In his world of comprehension, only the divine ruler remained.


    In the spatial world of this comprehension, the divine ruler fell from the firmament, reaching beyond the firmament and descending deep into the earth, traversing between heaven and the earth. Thus, it suppressed gods and demons, imprisoning the Demonic Lord here.


    Ye Futian��s consciousness seemed to transform into an elusive figure, standing beneath the divine ruler, looking up at it. A supreme rule of the Great Path effused, and it was as if it was the ruler of the Heavenly Path.


    This divine ruler does not seem to belong to any specific will of the Great Path but embodies the rules of the Heavenly Path itself, thought Ye Futian. By using the rules of the Heavenly Path to suppress the Demonic Lord, this fact demonstrated the horrific power of the Demonic Lord; it was just as he had suspected.


    Then, this attack may have been unleashed by the Heavenly Path.


    Branches and leaves diffused out of Ye Futian��s body, and the ancient tree of the world reached towards the divine ruler. Suddenly, Ye Futian seemed to turn into a divine tree that moved as its endless branches and leaves crazily swept towards the divine ruler, nibbling away the aura of rules contained within the divine ruler. There were even branches and leaves merging directly into the divine ruler.


    What exactly is this ancient tree of the world?! Ye Futian wondered. When he first arrived, his spiritual soul had some response, and he felt that the ancient tree of the world might connect with this divine ruler.


    Sure enough, when the spiritual soul was released, it seemed to belong to a power similar to the divine ruler. The two actually began to blend with one another.


    Could it be that the ancient tree of the world itself was a tree born from the rules of Heavenly Path? Therefore, it was at the same level of power as the divine ruler.


    If so, who was it that gave him this spiritual soul?


    Ye Futian had asked himself this question more than once, but he still had not found the answer. Now, he was gradually learning the truth about this world, but the mystery of his birth continued to elude him.


    The ancient tree of the World grew madly, infinite, and without end, climbing up and following the divine ruler all the way to the firmament, where it melded with it. Even Yu Sheng, watching on the side, was quite moved by what he saw.


    Now that they were no longer the teenagers of yesteryears, he was quite aware of just what kind of divine item this divine ruler was. The divine ruler that could imprison a Demonic Lord, but answered to Ye Futian��s spiritual soul; what could this mean?


    When he was young, the old man had asked him to assist Ye Futian. It seemed that he was the only one who knew how special Ye Futian was.


    The radiant divine light reached above the sky as Yu Sheng released a horrific demonic will that covered the sky from top to bottom. It was meant to block the view from the outside world.


    This was not the first time that Ye Futian tried to swallow a divine item. Many years ago, he had swallowed the power of Yin, but his realm today was not what it was in the days of yore. Even so, it was not easy for him to swallow the divine ruler.


    The will of the ancient tree of the world madly integrated into it, little by little, trying to become one with it. Above the divine ruler, there was the will of a wonderous will of the Great Path rule that was extremely obscure. He couldn��t comprehend it right away, so he could only bring the divine ruler into the world of his Life Palace.


    Time went by bit by bit. In the vast space, the will of the ancient tree of the world reached the sky and merged into the divine ruler. As frightening rumbling sounds came out, the ground was trembling, and the Great Path of the firmament was shaking as well. Outside, everyone looked up at the demonic clouds that hovered in the sky above them. This was Yu Sheng��s doing, and many demonic cultivators were not pleased about it.


    But at this moment, they sensed a terrifying change taking place beyond those demonic clouds.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were still closed tightly, as his powerful will swallowed the divine ruler. The divine ruler that had traversed between heaven and earth began to tremble violently and then disappeared altogether.


    In the next moment, in the world of Ye Futian��s Life Palace, the ancient tree of the world sheltered the sky, but a might divine ruler was above the ancient tree, releasing an unparalleled power from the outside.


    The moment the divine ruler disappeared, an indescribable terrifying demonic will erupted as if there was no power to suppress it any longer. For a time, the demonic clouds tossed and roared, as a supreme demonic will filled the boundless space, directly tossed aside the demonic might that Yu Sheng released.


    The cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace rushed over, and when they saw the divine ruler had disappeared, their hearts were beating wildly.


    Ye Futian actually succeeded. Yu Sheng invited him here, and he had managed to remove the divine ruler.


    But at this moment, they were paying more attention to this demonic will. Above the silent body of the demon god, there was an incomparable will of the demonic path that pervaded at this moment. It was as if the demon god had been resurrected. For a time, all the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace were trembling inside.


    Although the divine ruler was mighty, it still could not destroy the will of the Demonic Lord but merely suppress it. Now it had disappeared to release the will of the Demonic Lord, which shocked all the cultivators from Devil Imperial Palaces beyond words. This was the demon god from the ancient era, the ancestor of the Devil World. In ancient times, he had led the Devil World in the battle of the Heavenly Path and destroyed the House Karura.


    If it weren��t for the divine ruler, King Karura would not be able to overpower the Demonic Lord, and he would not have died from being torn apart.


    An incredibly strong demonic will shrouded this space. It was as if everyone was in another world. The Demon Sage Yan Guiyi looked at Ye Futian and said, ��You can leave now.��


    Ye Futian had managed to take away the divine ruler, which made him extremely wary of Ye Futian. Previously, he thought they could just let him try, but once Ye Futian had done it, he thought it best to have him leave. If he continued to stay here and ended up inheriting the will of the Demonic Lord, it would be a terrible embarrassment to the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Therefore, his priority was to ask Ye Futian to leave.


    Moreover, Ye Futian had already gotten what he wanted, and now the divine ruler belonged to him. This was undoubtedly a massive gain for Ye Futian. It was the divine ruler that had suppressed the Demonic Lord. Although they couldn��t comprehend it, they could imagine the great power harbored within the divine ruler.


    Ye Futian looked at Yan Guiyi and understood the other man��s concern. Even if Yan Guiyi didn��t say anything, he would never covet the will of the Demonic Lord.


    The Will of the Demonic Lord belonged to Yu Sheng, and he would be the one to obtain it.


    When he turned around, Ye Futian dashed directly out from this demonic might and came to the void in the distance. At this time, the shrine of the House Karura was completely covered by the demonic will. Ye Futian looked and saw that amid the demonic aura, there seemed to be a towering and sacred shadow of a demonic being that had manifested. Above the firmament, the demonic clouds were tossing and turning.


    Without the suppression of the divine ruler, the demonic aura in this place had been completely revived. Demonic light was shining in the surrounding space, which was an incredibly shocking sight to behold.


    It��s all yours, Ye Futian thought, then disappeared directly from where he was. Ziwei Imperial Palace still needed his supervision to ensure its safety, and there may not yet be any results here in the near future. More importantly, there were probably many from the Devil Imperial Palace who were hostile toward him. He had taken the divine ruler, so how could the people from the Devil Imperial Palace have no objection?


    However, it was the condition they promised, and now, they had no time to worry about him.


    When Ye Futian returned to the site of the Mahoraga relic, he saw that the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace were in cultivation. When Ye Futian came back, many of them were a little curious about what the cultivators of the Devil World wanted from him.


    However, Ye Futian did not communicate with anyone but found a place to cultivate in retreat.


    His action piqued everyone��s curiosity even more. Ye Futian must have gained something or would not be so eager to cultivate in retreat.


    At this time, Ye Futian closed his eyes, and his consciousness entered the world of his Life Palace. At the moment, it closely resembled the real world on the outside. His consciousness turned into an elusive shadow, looking at the ancient tree of the world and the divine ruler. He wondered what the connection between the two was?


    This divine ruler did not seem to have the power of any Great Path attributed to it, but why was it able to contain the will of the Demonic Lord? The moment the divine ruler was taken away by him, the will of the Demonic Lord exploded forth, clearly it had been suppressed by the divine ruler until then.


    Is the divine ruler a real manifestation of the power from Heavenly Path? Ye Futian thought to himself. Ruler represented rules. Was the ruler of Heavenly Path something that was transformed by the will of Heavenly Path, to present the rules of Heavenly Path?


    After putting away the divine ruler, he realized that the divine ruler was not an imperial arms at all. It was not a weapon that had been forged, but it was very likely born from the Heavenly Path, much like the power of Yin.


    In reality, Ye Futian had seen this kind of divine items before. The Millet Emperor had in his possession, Wangshen Watchtower, which came from time immemorial, but it was an incomplete object. As something that may be part of a whole, it was far less powerful than this divine ruler, which was in its complete form.


    Ruler rules.


    Could the ruler of Heavenly Path meant the rules of Heavenly Path!


    Ye Futian comprehended quietly and entered into a world of selflessness!

 Chapter 2696 - A Gift of Imperial Arms

    Chapter 2696: A Gift of Imperial Arms


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    It turned out that Ye Futian��s cultivation took five whole years.


    Five years was long enough for many things to happen; yet, for top-level cultivators, it didn��t seem to be long enough. Once one��s cultivation reached a certain level, a retreat may last for decades. An opportunity or even an epiphany might take years to fully integrate into one��s cultivation.


    For example, on this ancient continent these days, many cultivators continued to comprehend the ancient relics left behind by the great emperors.


    The relics of the gods were enough to keep the cultivators of the world busy for many years.


    Nonetheless, many people had broken through their realms on this ancient continent in the past five years. Even many had broken the shackles of Renhuang and survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    The reason for this incredible phenomenon, in addition to the qualities of the relics themselves, was also because of the nature of this world; this world was vastly different from the world they were from.


    All signs indicated that the cultivation world would be ushering in another era of prosperity. No one knew if this meant that some great emperors would emerge during this time.


    Ye Futian woke up from the retreat and his cultivation on this day. Traces of Great Path rules circulated about his body as he opened his eyes. He could feel that his temperament seemed to have undergone some subtle changes.


    ��You have cultivated a long time this time around,�� Hua Jieyu whispered to Ye Futian just as he was waking up.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��It��s been a long time. How is everyone��s progress in cultivation?��


    ��They have made great progress. Taoist Monk Mu and Uncle Tie have moved into the Second Tribulation Realm. In addition, more people survived the first divine tribulation; you can see for yourself,�� Hua Jieyu said with a smile.


    ��Uncle Tie has broken through his realm again!�� Ye Futian was a little surprised. Before he knew him, Taoist Mu had already been a cultivator in the First Tribulation Plane and had stayed in that realm for many years. Blind Tie was different. Ever since he reached the peak Renhuang Realm, his speed in cultivation was a bit astounding.


    ��Well, maybe it is because Uncle Tie��s cultivation was purer. In this relic, he has inherited the will of a great emperor, so he was elevating much faster,�� Hua Jieyu offered.


    Ye Futian nodded. Then he stood up and said, ��Let��s go see them.��


    The space here was incredibly vast, and many places held some kind of Great Path relics. Many cultivators were comprehending the wills hidden within these relics and making breakthroughs in their cultivations; they were making rapid progress.


    Taoist Monk Mu and Blind Tie were cultivating were not too far apart. When they saw Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu coming over, they stopped cultivating. They looked at Ye Futian. Taoist Monk Mu bowed and called out, ��Palace Lord! My lady!��


    By now, the respect that Taoist Monk Mu had for Ye Futian was genuine. Since becoming part of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, he had witnessed the rapid expansion of Ziwei Imperial Palace. It was so fast that it was something he didn��t dare to imagine before.


    More importantly, since he started following Ziwei Imperial Palace in his cultivation, he was now in the Second Tribulation Plane. This was the realm he had dreamed about and hoped for, and it was finally a reality. In the future, he could start producing elixirs of the Second Tribulation grade.


    ��Congratulations,�� Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu both said with a smile. They nodded to Taoist Monk Mu and Blind Tie, who were coming over. As he looked at the two of them, Ye Futian smiled. ��The Lords of the Armoring Palace and the Alchemy Palace of Ziwei had both made a breakthrough in realm. This is definitely great and welcomed news.��


    In the future, the alchemical and armoring abilities of Ziwei Imperial Palace would increase immensely.


    ��In the future, there is no need for the Palace Lord to toil over alchemy. Give me whatever I can help produce, and I can take the burden off your shoulders,�� said Taoist Monk Mu. He wanted to take some of the duties off of Ye Futian, and producing these elixirs in accordance with Ye Futian��s specifications would be practice for him to improve his alchemy.


    ��Well, this has always been my dream! That in the future, I don��t need to worry about Ziwei Imperial Palace,�� Ye Futian smiled and replied. His biggest dream was that he would no longer need to worry about anything.


    ��Uncle Tie, I heard from Jieyu that you inherited a trace of the will from a great emperor; what is it?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Blind Tie��s mind moved slightly, and traces of the Great Path divine light began to flow upon him. On his forehead, an extremely oppressive rune appeared. At this moment, Blind Tie was like a god from heaven, and his body was full of incomparable power.


    ��How overwhelming.�� Ye Futian was overjoyed when he saw Blind Tie at this moment. He continued, ��It is power-elemental, which is perfect, and it complements Uncle Tie wonderfully.��


    ��Mmm,�� Blind Tie man nodded to Ye Futian. ��But I heard that everyone in the outside world is improving continuously as well; many of them have made a breakthrough in their realms. I��m afraid that my cultivation level is still not enough.��


    What he meant by not enough was clearly relative.


    Ziwei Imperial Palace of today was not what it was in the past; it was now standing at an even higher plane. Like other imperial-level forces, they controlled one of the relics left behind by the Eight Legions.


    Ye Futian smiled, and then with a thought, the imperial arm, the Sky Tremoring, suddenly appeared in his hands. He lifted the imperial arms with both hands and offered it to Blind Tie. ��Uncle Tie, you have also cultivated the Divine Hammer of the Protector, as well as the Divine Technique of the Sky Tremoring Hammer. This imperial arm will also suit you. From now on, it is yours.��


    Although Blind Tie could not see it, he could sense everything. His body trembled slightly, and it was obvious from his expression that he was moved. However, he flatly refused, ��No, this is your imperial arm.��


    He did not want to take it. This was an imperial arm that Ye Futian could use to unleash the most powerful attacks, which would be much more robust in Ye Futian��s hands than his.


    Next to them, Taoist Monk Mu was trembling in his heart as well. Ye Futian wanted to gift an imperial arm to Blind Tie. This kind of generosity��


    That was an imperial arm that belonged to Ye Futian, one that he had taken from the Wang Clan of Tianyan City. Now, he was going to give it to Blind Tie.


    ��Uncle Tie, the imperial arms would be no less powerful in your hands than in mine. The effect will be comparable. Now that I have obtained some other divine item, the power I derive from it will not be weaker than that of the imperial arms. This imperial arm can no longer give me more power, so that is why I��m giving it to you.�� Ye Futian continued, ��Don��t think this is a gift to you alone; I am expecting Uncle Tie to protect me.��


    Blind Tie felt extreme turmoil inside. Ever since Ye Futian stepped into the village, he was the one who had been leading him forward. He owed Ye Futian for everything he had today.


    ��Later, when Tie Tou reached a higher realm, Uncle Tie can leave the imperial arms to him,�� Ye Futian said when he saw that Blind Tie was still hesitating. Blind Tie faced Ye Futian and thought that Tie Tou was Ye Futian��s disciple. For Tie Tou to be the ultimate recipient of the imperial arms sounded more reasonable and acceptable to him.


    When Blind Tie heard the suggestion that the imperial arm may be given to someone else, later on, he found the notion much more acceptable in that context.


    ��Alright.�� After hesitating for a while longer, Blind Tie solemnly nodded his head. Then he reached out and took the Sky Tremoring. His heart was full of all kinds of emotions.


    Both of them, father and son, owed Ye Futian so much. To them, Ye Futian had given them a second chance.


    Taoist Monk Mu sighed when watching the scene playing out in front of him. He also desired to have an imperial arm of his own, but there was nothing more to give since Ye Futian no longer had one. Furthermore, many others were waiting at Ziwei Imperial Palace. Because these imperial arms were most suitable for Blind Tie, Ye Futian made a gift of it to him.


    ��Boss.�� At this moment, brilliant golden lightning sailed across the void. The black feathers on the Little Condor��s body were covered by a golden light, gilding him in radiance. He had also survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, and his aura was astonishing. As an ordinary demonic beast, he had now completed his transformation.


    Also with him was Jun and his party. Jun��s original form was a golden-winged Roc. They were following the Little Condor in comprehending the divine runes inside the body of the Karura and had made significant progress.


    ��I heard rumors on the outside that the Divine Prefecture is going to war with the Heaven Realm. Do you want to go out and take a look around?�� the Little Condor said with some excitement. He had been cultivating in a location closer to the outside, monitoring the movements of the outside world. He would go out for a stroll from time to time, so he knew quite a bit of news from the outside world.


    A spark flashed through Ye Futian��s eyes. The Divine Prefecture and the Heaven Realm were not necessarily at war yet. It was just that the Heaven Realm discovered and occupied a significant territory, the site that once belonged to the Old Heaven Court. For many years, cultivators from all the worlds had been comprehending and cultivating among the relics they had discovered.


    But now, five years had passed. Perhaps they were no longer satisfied with the territories they had discovered.


    At the moment, the strength of the Heaven Realm may be the weakest of all seven imperial-level forces, but they occupied the Old Heaven Court ruins. Therefore, it seemed quite reasonable for them to move against Heaven Realm. However, if one was to really consider it, the Heaven Realm had an inherent relationship with the Old Heaven Court, more than anyone else.


    According to legends, the name of the Heaven Realm was derived from the Deva. And now, a Heaven Court also existed in the Heaven Realm.


    However, this would not prevent the other major forces from coveting the Old Heaven Court.


    It seemed that now, the Divine Prefecture finally couldn��t hold back any longer and was ready to make a move against the Heaven Realm.


    ��Let��s go take a look,�� Ye Futian proposed. He was curious about the Heaven Realm, and equally curious about the mysterious heir of the Heaven Realm, which far exceeded his curiosity about the Old Heaven Court.


    He had a feeling that the Heaven Realm had long been a very influential force in the past, one that even influenced the structure of the world as they knew it. However, something must have happened that led to its ultimate decline.


    ��I am also interested in going over there,�� the Supreme Swordlord piped up as he walked over. He was rather curious about the confrontation between the Divine Prefecture and the Heaven Realm.


    ��Those who want to go may travel with me, and those who don��t want to go should continue to cultivate here,�� Ye Futian commanded. There were many who wanted to join him as they began gathering around him. Ye Futian led these people and proceeded to head out.


    The group was traveling fast as they traversed through the void. Among the relics on the outside world, there were cultivators everywhere; it was no longer how it was five years ago. There were also far fewer battles taking place, so the place was considerably peaceful. However, there was a serious battle looming, one that was about to take place at the old site of the Heaven Court.


    The Divine Prefecture and the Heaven Realm.


    ��How much does the elder know about the Heaven Realm?�� Ye Futian asked the Supreme Swordlord.. The Supreme Swordlord was an elder who had cultivated for many years, and his cultivation was powerful; he should have some ideas about what has transpired many years ago.

 Chapter 2697 - The Secrets of the Heaven Realm

    Chapter 2697: The Secrets of the Heaven Realm


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Heaven Realm!�� The Supreme Swordlord was somewhat moved. He whispered, ��The ancient and mysterious Heaven Realm has been in decline ever since the fall of the last Heavenly Emperor. In fact, in the times of the Heavenly Emperor, there was another person in the Heaven Realm that was not named as the Heavenly Emperor.


    When Ye Futian heard these words from Supreme Swordlord, a strange look appeared on his face. According to what he said, the next person in charge of the Heaven Realm after the Heavenly Emperor should also be someone of peerless glory.


    ��The world knows very little about the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor now, but back then, there was a saying that widely circulated at the top of the cultivation world.�� Supreme Swordlord seemed to have been plunged into memories, remembering that peerless figure who sailed across the sky like a meteor.


    ��What is it ?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Daughter of the emperor, unparalleled for all ages. Without her, the world is less colorful,�� Supreme Swordlord recited the saying as Ye Futian scrutinized the expression on his face. From the Supreme Swordlord��s words, one could see that he was quite taken by that master of the Heaven Realm. There was even a sense of reverence in his expression.


    Daughter of the emperor, unparalleled for all ages.


    Without her, the world would be less colorful. This was certainly high praise.


    ��Is she still around?�� Ye Futian asked. In the seven realms of the world, were there seven Great Emperors or just the six?


    If such a character remained, what would she be like?


    ��I believe she is still around,�� Supreme Swordlord replied. ��If she is no longer in the world, it would be much too lonely in high places. That saying is, of course, not without exaggeration, but it is true that in the last thousand years, she and Donghuang the Great truly embodied our time.��


    ��Donghuang the Great!�� Ye Futian murmured. Did the Supreme Swordlord have such a high opinion of Donghuang the Great as well?


    ��Now that her heir and the daughter of Donghuang the Great are about to compete with each other, I am most certainly looking forward to it. What kind of outcome will result when the two collide?�� Supreme Swordlord asked Ye Futian. Ye Futian realized that this was why the Supreme Swordlord came along with them.


    He wanted to watch the heirs of two peerless characters exchange with one another.


    The heir of Heaven Realm and the heir of the Divine Prefecture.


    So now Ye Futian was looking forward to it as well. Only now did he realize that there were a lot of stories about the Heaven Realm. At that time, because of the decline of the Heaven Realm, many things about it were forgotten by the cultivation world. Of course, there were also other reasons. Because the Heaven Realm was isolated from other realms, such as the Divine Prefecture. So except for those at the very top, how many others could know of the situation in other realms?


    No wonder the heir from the Heaven Realm was so outstanding. It turned out that his origin was equally extraordinary, and the history of the Heaven Realm had once been glorious.


    This was why the Heaven Realm was able to locate the ruins of the Old Heaven Court and occupy the site.


    The group of people continued on their way, heading towards their destination. They shuttled through the void quickly.


    ��


    At this time, in the location where the Old Heaven Court used to be, countless cultivators had already gathered; they had come from every which side on this ancient continent.


    The news had spread before this gathering that Donghuang Imperial Palace from the Divine Prefecture intended to compete for the relic of the Old Heaven Court. And now, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture had arrived and entered the ruins.


    In the outer perimeters of the ruins, there was nothing left in the periphery, as they had gleaned a long time ago. In front of the place where the cultivators gathered, a ladder reached beyond the sky. There were ancient palaces and temples at the other end of the ladder, but all were dilapidated in appearance. There were also stone pillars that seemed to support this corner of the sky, which formed a magnificent picture.


    The ruins of the Old Heaven Court were just above. They had been occupied by the cultivators from the Heaven Realm. For those who were standing below and looking up at the Old Heaven Court��s ruins, they could still vaguely sense an ancient aura and a sacred coercion that fell straight from the sky.


    ��Old Heaven Court!��


    All the cultivators were moved in their hearts. Before that, many of them only dared to look from a distance and not get so close to it. Although the Heaven Realm kept a low profile, it did not mean that they were weaker than anyone else.


    Now, with Donghuang Imperial Palace clearing the way, these cultivators felt much more encouraged to venture below these ruins and look up to this sacred place.


    Deva was the leader of the Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path and the strongest among the eight. Therefore, as one of the Eight Legions, Deva was of particular interest to those in the know. It was precisely for this reason that Donghuang Imperial Palace was here again to contend for the land that contained the relics of Deva��the Old Heaven Court.


    Out in the front, a group of people stood quietly as they raised their heads to look at the ladder that extended beyond the sky. Though this group was quiet. No one dared to underestimate them. The aura that inadvertently permeated from them was top-level, and just by standing there, they had formed an invisible domain. As they did not speak, the space was steeped in silence.


    The person in the lead was of unparalleled grace, whose radiant beauty was beyond compare, just like that of the Jiutian Goddess. This was none other than the only begotten daughter of Donghuang the Great��Donghuang Diyuan.


    The cultivators from the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture had arrived, and Donghuang Diyuan had personally led them here. Among those behind them were also major figures from the Divine Prefecture. It was as if they were there to support and cheer for Donghuang Diyuan.


    Of course, it was not just the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture either. In the distance, many people were standing in the void, looking down below.


    With so many cultivators that had already gathered, the status of those who were standing in the void could easily be guessed.


    These were the cultivators who belonged to imperial-level forces that had come to watch the battle when they received the news.


    Of course, it was anyone��s guess if they merely intended to watch the battle from the sidelines.


    If the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture coveted the ruins of the Old Heaven Court, would the other forces feel any differently?


    Ye Futian and the others also rushed over, but they slowed down though they were still very far away. Then, they moved forward slowly until they arrived above this area. Their presence attracted a lot of attention as well. After all, Ye Futian was a controversial figure, and he was very well-known in this ancient world.


    As cultivators from many directions looked at Ye Futian, he was looking in the direction of the ladder in front of him. He thought it was indeed a relic left by Deva. It was such an astounding place.


    During these years, when he was in retreat, the strength of the cultivators from Heaven Realm must have risen to a higher level.


    ��They are coming!�� A group of cultivators now stepped down from the ladder, walking down from the heavens. The scene was as if the gods had descended.


    Ye Futian watched this scene and found it like a painting, stunning beyond description.


    Once again, he had seen the mysterious cultivator, the heir of the Heavenly Emperor Realm. He could sense that the other��s temperament seemed to have undergone yet another change. These past few years, he had occupied the ruins of the Old Heaven Court and must have inherited the power of some great existences�� wills. How could he not have improved by leaps and bounds?


    Ye Futian was more curious about the level of strength he had been able to reach in his cultivation.


    And Donghuang Diyuan: what level of strength had she been able to reach in her cultivation?


    He wondered whether they would see the true strengths of these two in today��s confrontation.


    As those cultivators came down the ladder, Donghuang Diyuan looked up at them and asked, ��The people from the Heaven Realm have been cultivating here for quite some time. Now, do you mind vacating the relics of the Old Heaven Court? The Divine Prefecture is quite interested in this location, and we would like to cultivate in the Old Heaven Court. Could Heaven Realm relinquish this space to us?��


    Above the ladder, the divine light sprinkled down, and the cultivators from the Heaven Realm stood in the sky above. Then looked down at Donghuang Diyuan and her party below, and the coercion they exuded was no less than those from the Divine Prefecture.


    The young man who was in the lead��the heir of the Heaven Realm��looked at Donghuang Diyuan and asked, ��Will the Divine Prefecture be willing to use the relic of Naga to make an exchange?��


    He asked directly, without frills. Donghuang Diyuan wanted the relic of the Old Heaven Court; would she be willing to exchange for it with the relic of Naga?


    ��Yes.�� Donghuang Diyuan responded succinctly, which shocked the cultivators who were surrounding them. It seemed that the cultivators from Donghuang Imperial Palace had almost finished their cultivation at the relic of Naga. They now set their eyes on the Old Heaven Court.


    Donghuang Diyuan was willing to trade it for the relic of Naga.


    ��If Princess Diyuan feels that the relic from the Old Heaven Court is more precious than Naga, then know that is also the opinion of the Heaven Realm. I��m afraid Princess Diyuan will be disappointed.�� The young man in the void appeared polite and responded accordingly. His question was not an expression of his intention to trade but to drive the point that the Old Heaven Court relic was far more valuable.


    There was no problem with this train of thought. However, if Donghuang Imperial Palace intend to take the relic of the Old Heaven Court by force, could the Heaven Realm be able to hold them off?


    ��The relic of the Old Heaven Court will definitely be mine,�� Donghuang Diyuan raised her head and said to the cultivators of the Heaven Realm above the ladder. Her eyes were extremely determined and she was confident that she would prevail.


    This surprised many people. The princess of the Divine Prefecture seemed to be unusually interested in the Old Heaven Court.


    The cultivators from other imperial-level forces watched everything quietly. They made note of what Donghuang Diyuan said, and some core figures knew the reasons behind it. They looked up at the ladder, and each of them had their own opinion.


    Not just Donghuang Imperial Palace, but they, too, wanted to go up the ladder and see what was left in the ruins of the Old Heaven Court.


    ��So, Princess Diyuan wants to fight?�� The young man lowered his head to look at Donghuang Diyuan, who was below.


    Donghuang Diyuan did not respond, but there was a powerful fighting will emerging from her, and she was not alone. All the cultivators from Donghuang Imperial Palace exuded a terrifying aura, which soared into the firmament. It roared as it continued up the ladder. The fighting will expressed by them was simply astounding.


    Could the Heaven Realm stop Donghuang Imperial Palace?


    Many cultivators retreated carefully. When they felt that terrifying aura, they understood that if this confrontation turned into a war, the destructive power would be unimaginable.. Even the surrounding areas would be greatly affected. It would be better for anyone whose cultivation was not on that level to stay behind, thereby using stronger cultivators at the front to act as a buffer!

 Chapter 2698 - Black and White Almighty

    Chapter 2698: Black and White Almighty


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    At that moment, yet more cultivators stepped out from within the crowd.


    ��Cultivators from the Human Realm.�� The multitude turned to look at the group of them. At the front was Di Hao, one of the greatest of his generation from the Human Realm.


    He raised his head and looked toward the cultivators gathered on the sky stairwell. He stated, ��Heaven Court and Donghuang Imperial Palace shared a deep bond in the past. It is regretful if we have to clash with each other now. Heaven Realm occupies the Old Heaven Court Relics, the Divine Prefecture occupies the Naga Relics, while our Human Realm occupies the Yueshen Relics. If the Heaven Realm is willing to openly share the use of the Old Heaven Court Relics, the Divine Prefecture and Human Realm will do the same for our respective Relics so that all can cultivate at all three places. What do you think?��


    The multitude were taken by surprise when they heard this speech. The Human Realm wanted to be a part of this also.


    It seemed that they, too, attached high importance to the Old Heaven Court Relics.


    Furthermore, Di Hao said that the Heaven Court and Donghuang Imperial Palace shared a deep bond. Was there more to this than meets the eye?


    ��We��re not interested.�� This was the reply from the heir of the Heaven Realm.


    Di Hao looked up at the other party. ��Ji Wudao, do we have to face off in war?��


    ��You people don��t cultivate on your own relics but come to invade ours instead. And yet you still ask me this question?�� Ji Wudao��s gaze swept across Di Hao and then rested upon Donghuang Diyuan. ��Princess Diyuan, I have no wish to clash with you, but the Old Heaven Court Relics belong only to the Heaven Realm.��


    Ye Futian��s expression betrayed surprise when he heard Ji Wudao��s words. What was the relationship between Ji Wudao and Donghuang Diyuan?


    In the past, they had both used the same ability, which was the Heaven Punishing Divine Sword.


    Where did they cultivate the ability from?


    ��Ji Wudao, since you insist, then let��s see if the cultivators of the Heaven Realm can hold on to this sky stairwell.�� Di Hao��s tone was calm, but one could still sense the commanding stance behind it.


    The surrounding crowd was stirred. Were they about to witness a battle of the greatest from the realms?


    ��Do I take on you guys one by one, or all at once?��


    While looking down upon the cultivators, Ji Wudao��s indifferent reply caused a shudder within them.


    Currently, the Heaven Realm was weak in power and was thought to be so incapacitated that it was no longer on par with the other greats at the Emperor-level.


    Yet here, the heir of the Heaven Realm just threw down a challenge to take them all on at once.


    Was the Heaven Realm really that powerful?


    Or was it just for show?


    Those from the Human Realm were considerably ignorant concerning this heir of the Heaven Realm as he had been exceedingly secretive as a recluse. Coupled with the low profile maintained by the Heaven Realm these days, not many from the other realms knew much about Ji Wudao.


    They had not even so much as heard of his name until now. Only those ranked at Emperor-level knew of his existence from long ago.


    This person had extraordinary talents, and as the only heir of the Heaven Realm, was born with a gift hardly seen.


    However, the extent of his powers remained to be seen and would probably only be revealed in combat.


    After hearing Ji Wudao��s outrageous statements, immediately, nine strongmen stepped out from behind Donghuang Diyuan. They were the Nine Divine Generals of the Divine Prefecture Imperial Palace, causing a rush of excitement among the multitude.


    When Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture and knighted the Nine Divine Generals, they were already skilled and full of potential. However, they had yet to reach their full potential until now, and the aura they radiated now as a two-tribulation survivor was frightening.


    Amongst them, the Spear Emperor Du You had made his breakthrough while in the relics and overcame the Second Great Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    The Nine Divine Generals had all passed through two tribulations, and their demeanor had all the markings of those ranked at Emperor-level.


    Not only that, there were still many other strong warriors at the side of Donghuang Diyuan.


    The Nine Divine Generals were not the strongest combatants in Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Behind Ji Wudao, on the sky stairwell, nine strongmen also stepped out in response. They headed toward the front and were suspended from a high altitude; their auras were blinding as a dazzling divine light shone upon them from the heavens. All nine of them were top-notch cultivators, and like the Nine Divine Generals from Donghuang Imperial Palace, had also been through two tribulations. Their demeanors reflected how menacing they were.


    ��The Nine Great Lords of the Heaven Realm have also come through two great tribulations.�� Even though many were unaware of them, the cultivators at Emperor-level had a pretty good grasp of the extent of the strength of the Heaven Court.


    The Four Heavenly Kings of the Heaven Court had passed through two tribulations much earlier and influential beyond measure.


    Below the Four Heavenly Kings were the Nine Great Lords. They were slightly weaker than the Four Heavenly Kings, but after training in the relics, they also passed through the two tribulations. The appearance of the divine relics had a significant impact on the cultivators. Many of them reached metamorphosis and broke through shackles after training in the relics.


    As the nine of them walked out, nine colors of divine lights appeared simultaneously above the Void, resulting in a dazzling sight. Among them, the person in the middle was the most mesmerizing. He was bathed in divine sunlight, which shone from the top of the sky stairwell above the heavens through to the entities below; it was as if he was the Sun God.


    He was Lord Taiyang��the leader of the Nine Great Lords.


    At his side was a beautiful maiden, who was of a remarkable disposition and had an aura in stark opposition to Lord Taiyang��s. She was Lady Taiyin, Lord Taiyang��s wife. As the yin to Lord Taiyang��s yang, the entangling of their sharply contrasting auras had a substantial impact on people.


    The Nine Great Lords were undoubtedly comparable to the Nine Divine Generals.


    Just then, Spear Emperor Du You took a step forward, with Golden Spear in his hands. He projected frightening divine light and had shades of the Will of the Emperor encircling above his spear. Although he was one of the lowest-ranked within the Nine Divine Generals and had only made his breakthrough not too long ago, as a direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, and having mastered the Will of the Great Emperor, he was most definitely mighty. He would not have been the first to step out otherwise.


    Among the Nine Great Lords too, a warrior also stepped out. He was burly and monstrous, twice the size of Spear Emperor Du You. He stood out from ordinary people, and it felt like he emitted a significant surge of power just with his presence in the Void. It made people feel oppressed.


    He was Lord Xuanwu, one of the Nine Great Lords. Just standing there made people feel like he was undefeatable.


    Spear Emperor Du You started moving toward the sky stairwell. His aura intensified with each step he took, and the atmosphere quickly became tense. A sudden flash of divine light struck the skies, and a divine shadow appeared behind him. It was as if the Great Emperor had descended.


    Boom! Above the Void, a frightening roar sounded, and suddenly, the heads of the people were covered by the gigantic and imposing figure of the Black Tortoise Divine Beast.


    At the same time, a rush of torrent gushed downwards, and the Suspended Sea appeared within the Void. The sea roared monstrously and attempted to drown Du You in its waters, but he carried on walking steadily step by step.


    However, to the crowd watching his figure, it looked like he had been affected.


    Crash! A flash of golden divine light surged through the Void, brilliantly bright and moving at a rapid speed. Yet, within the Suspended Sea, its speed seemed to have been hampered, and Du You��s movement slowed. The Black Tortoise Divine Beast struck the space below it, and a humongous Black Tortoise Seal appeared and exploded directly above the Golden Spear.


    Bang! The Golden Spear hit the Black Tortoise Seal, and at the spot where they connected, harsh divine light appeared on top of the Seal. Following that, a fissure cut through the Seal accompanied by a loud bang, and the Seal was broken into pieces. Du You, however, also got enveloped and shaken by the menacing waves.


    Lord Xuanwu held his ground. The Black Tortoise Divine Beast above the skies contained the Will of the Great Emperor within it, guarding the sky stairwell. It was like nobody could come close with it there.


    Du You did not appear to hold any advantage in this match.


    The warriors from the Divine Prefecture watched the battle going on inside the Void. With the Nine Great Lords protecting the area, it would be nearly impossible for the Nine Divine Generals of Donghuang Imperial Palace to take it by force. The Nine Great Lords were just as strong as the Nine Divine Generals.


    ��Princess Diyuan, I��ll go.�� Fang Ru, who was standing adjacent to Donghuang Diyuan, volunteered. As one of the most vital figures in the Divine Prefecture Donghuang Imperial Palace, and ranked on the Demigod List. He was already on the near-deity plane even before entering the Relics. If they wanted to take over the Old Heaven Court, they would need someone of his caliber.


    Donghuang Diyuan nodded slightly while still fixing her gaze upon the scene in front of her. Fang Ru took a step and said, ��The rest, step back.��


    In obedience to his words, the Nine Divine Generals took a few steps back, and Fang Ru walked out alone.


    Upon seeing him, the Nine Great Lords also consciously stepped back. They were naturally no match for someone on the Demigod List, and someone else would take their place.


    Just at that moment, two shadowy figures landed on the sky stairwell, and moved toward Ji Wudao.


    Of the two figures, one had white hair and beard, and an ephemeral aura. He was elderly and celestial-like. The other was dressed in black, and middle-aged. His aura felt chilling to the bones.


    Their appearance caused even Fang Ru��s expression to turn grave. He knew he could not afford any slip ups.


    All the strongest cultivators from the Heaven Realm and Heaven Court were gathered here, and being the best of the best, Fang Ru naturally recognized his current opponent. They too were on the Demigod List and were very old cultivators. They had previously assisted the former monarch of the Heaven Realm.


    They dated back even to the time of the Heavenly Emperor.


    The two of them were very important veteran figures in the Heaven Court, and were the Guardian Lords of the Heaven Court, Great Skylords Black and White Almighty.


    Great Skylords Black and White Almighty were both of a much higher seniority than Fang Ru, and this time, they were here!

 Chapter 2699 - The Almighty Divine Sword

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The Great Skylords Black and White Almighty from Heaven Court in the Heaven Realm were the guardians of the Heavenly Emperor. Rumor had it that they had been to the fabled Boundless Sea before, which was said to be at the very ends of the heavens.


    After the fall of the Heavenly Emperor, they remained as aides to the princess. Over the years, their names had been heard of less and less with the gradual disappearance of the Heaven Realm. It became nearly impossible for those outside the Heaven Realm to meet them, but it no less diminished how unimaginably powerful they were.


    It was even possible that the current cultivators did not know a single thing about them.


    ��Both the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty are here. It will not be easy for Divine Prefecture��s Donghuang Imperial Palace to seize the Old Heaven Court Relics,�� Supreme Swordlord uttered in a low voice from within the crowd of onlookers. Ye Futian looked ahead of him and was moved as well.


    At this moment, those who were considered strong warriors from the seven realms were all here.


    Before this, he had seen the Four Heavenly Kings from Heaven Court, and now he could add the Nine Great Lords and Great Skylords Black and White Almighty to the list.


    All the strongest from the Heaven Realm should have made their appearance already, while for the Divine Prefecture, there were still some that had not. They were all beside Xia Qingyuan, and there was quite a number they had not met before.


    It was anyone��s guess how this battle over the Old Heaven Court Relics would turn out.


    Fang Ru looked toward Black Almighty and greeted, ��I have heard of you, sir, for a long time. I��m glad to finally have the chance to meet you in person.��


    Fang Ru himself had been in cultivation for numerous years, but compared to the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, he was still considered amateurish. Both of them had been famous much earlier on.


    ��Let��s start,�� Black Almighty stated coldly without a shred of emotion.


    Fang Ru nodded, and a dazzling divine light surrounded him all at once. With his body as the focal point, the great divine light turned into a dazzling image of picturesque mountains and rivers. It was dazzling and like a small world on its own.


    This strange phenomenon also produced an astounding aura that attracted the Will of the Great Way to flow into the small world from all quarters of heaven and earth. Bolts of divine light flashed and shot through the clouds, blanketing the entire vast space.


    Black Almighty looked down upon the lower skies below him, and using his will, caused a frightening black Storm of Destruction to appear above the skies. In an instant, the heavens and earth turned dark, and the skies looked as if they had been torn into two from the center. The darkness spread out to all corners and fully enveloped Black Almighty in it as its extent grew larger. A potent strand of Will of Destruction permeated from within the darkness and left the cultivators below feeling extremely oppressed.


    Black Almighty flew up toward the sky dome. The torn sky seemed to stay permanently above his head. The area permeated by the Will of Destruction was increasing, and it felt as if it was going to swallow everything up. The reason for Black Almighty going up to the upper skies was probably also to prevent the battle from affecting the surroundings.


    Fang Ru too flew up toward the clouds, and they both transformed into two bolts of light. The onlookers raised their heads to look up at the upper skies above and saw two very different types of powers. The might of both powers greatly surpassed the understanding of many of the cultivators.


    Furthermore, they did not use imperial arms but fought using their innate abilities.


    Crash! The flashes of divine light within the picturesque small world shot toward the sky and transformed into numerous rays of light. The light rays tried to pierce through the darkened sky dome, but Black Almighty��s gaze never wavered. With a lowering of his head and a look, numerous catastrophic lights of destruction started to rain upon the darkened world and collided with the divine lights shooting upward.


    Immediately the two beams of light started clashing above the skies, both clear and distinct. Every collision of the lights produced horrific and destructive energy that spread out to the surrounding areas. Even though the distance was far, the cultivators in the lower skies could still feel that energy, and many of their hearts started to race.


    The picturesque world of mountains and rivers intensely absorbed the Will of the Great Way from the heavens and earth. Fang Ru stretched out his hand and pointed his index finger. At once, an extremely dazzling divine light appeared within its tip.


    ��Qiankun Finger!��


    The onlookers raised their heads to the upper skies and saw Fang Ru aiming Qiankun Finger at the sky. A beam of unbelievably bright divine light burst forth from the picturesque world and penetrated the void, heading to the opposite side.


    Simultaneously, the darkened world of destruction above Black Almighty��s head brought forth a black divine sword. At the back of the sword was a horrifying black whirlpool. The patch of sky there seemed to have been torn apart.


    Almighty Divine Sword! Supreme Swordlord thought to himself. He wondered how his Supreme Swordsmanship would fare in a match-up.


    Almighty Divine Sword was the zenith of the Great Way, and it was also known as Black Almighty Divine Sword. It contained immeasurable destructive powers, and his Supreme Swordsmanship was the same.


    There was probably no force within the Great Way that could compete with it, and it was as if it were an apocalyptic divine sword.


    Almighty Divine Sword and Qiankun Finger clashed head to head above the skies, and at that instance, the Storm of Destruction swept through and destroyed all the powers of the Great Way in the upper skies. That area seemed to be on the verge of vanishing, and the Storm of Destruction swept into the lower skies, prompting all the cultivators to release divine lights.


    The Storm caused the weaker cultivators to be tossed out and even completely leveled the area below the sky stairwell. It was beyond terrifying.


    One could only imagine the magnitude of destruction they would have caused if they had been battling it out in the lower skies instead.


    Boom! Another suffocating storm was induced, and an even more horrifying aura burst out above the skies. Within that dark aura, countless Almighty Divine Swords were brought forth, and all of them came executing down at the same time. A shocked Fang Ru stretched out both hands and frantically pointed Qiankun Finger toward the top of the Void.


    In the lower skies, all the cultivators continued looking up at the battle in the skies above, even if they were within the Storm of Destruction. The picturesque world on Fang Ru seemed to have been closed up, but the Almighty Divine Swords continued their assault and caused the small world to collapse. Fang Ru��s body fell from the Void. The Black Almighty Divine Sword still did not cease attacking, and at last, many cracks surfaced within the picturesque world, and it crumbled into pieces accompanied by a terrifying sound. Fang Ru let out a groan, and his body was tossed back to the lower skies.


    ��One of the strongest cultivators of the Divine Prefecture, Fang Ru, has been defeated.�� The multitudes�� heartbeat quickened. Fang Ru��s body landed on the ground, and blood seeped out from the corner of his mouth. Above him, Black Almighty stopped his assault, but the dark Storm of Destruction remained in place with numerous Swords suspended in the air. It was as if they were preparing to launch an attack anytime an order came again.


    The cultivators could see that this was not a close fight, nor was it a debatable defeat. Fang Ru had been overpowered in this direct face-off; there was a wide gap between Black Almighty��s powers and his.


    Ye Futian also became anxious after witnessing the battle. He had fought against Fang Ru before. He had to use the Will of Ziwei during the battle against this person who was on the Demigod List.


    The Fang Ru at that time could be said to be invisible, yet today, here he was, overpowered and easily defeated.


    ��The Almighty Divine Swordsmanship lives up to its name. I, Fang Ru, humbly concede defeat,�� Fang Ru said to Supreme Lord Black Almighty, who was in the Void. He was defeated, and one should admit it when one was beaten.


    Black Almighty made no reply, and his jet-black eyes scanned through the cultivators in the skies below.


    The Old Heaven Court belonged only to the Heaven Realm, and no one else ought to lay a finger on it.


    The strongmen from the Heaven Realm standing on the sky stairwell were very quiet and did not display any traces of joy at having won this round of battle. Their calmness was somewhat unnerving.


    The Heaven Realm had been keeping a low profile and quietly enduring things all these years, but the appearance of the divine relics meant that they had to come out to get what belonged to them.


    In this present day, the world once again witnessed the real power of the Heaven Realm.


    A long time ago, the Heavenly Emperor had ruled the Heaven Realm, and no one had dared to go against them. Now, the name of Heaven Realm was gradually forgotten by people.


    The battle had allowed the cultivators to witness the power of the Heaven Realm and regain their place in the world. From now on, no one dared to underestimate the Heaven Realm.


    Who could go up against the two Guardian Lords of the Heaven Realm, Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, and Donghuang Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture?


    Many looked to the side of Donghuang Diyuan. Fang Ru was not the strongest in Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    However, before any strongmen could step out from Donghuang Diyuan��s side, a cultivator had already stepped out from the crowd on the other side.


    The cultivators turned to look at the person who stepped out and were immediately astonished.


    He was Di Hao from the Human Realm, the eldest disciple of the human��s ancestor.


    There was not one person who did not know Di Hao in the Human Realm. He was of extraordinary birth, having been born to an Ancient Divine Clan. He was also the descendent of an exceedingly powerful great emperor and the first disciple of the Human Realm. As one of the first few names on the Demigod List, people were looking forward to see how strong he was.


    Did Di Hao��s stepping out mean he wanted a go against Black Almighty?


    ��Great Skylord lives up to his name, and is worthy of being the Guardian Lords of the Heaven Realm. I, Di Hao, would like to have a chance to experience the Great Skylord��s strength personally.�� Di Hao looked toward Black Almighty in the Void.. ��Please grant me the chance!��

 Chapter 2700 - Remarkable Characters

    Chapter 2700: Remarkable Characters


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The aura of destruction had yet to dissipate from around Black Almighty, and the Black Storm still enveloped the sky. The Will of Destruction circled, and the Almighty Divine Swords danced around. Every shard of air felt like a Black Sword of Destruction, and probably even those who had gone through the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path would turn into ashes if struck by the sword.


    For a demigod like Black Almighty, the Way they wielded was an independent power within the Great Way and belonged to them only.


    Yet Di Hao seemed to not be in the least daunted. Divine light encircled his person, and he headed toward the clouds. He landed on the upper skies and stood facing Black Almighty. Feeling the terrifying aura, he used his will, and immediately an immensely dazzling scene appeared around him. It was a small world, and it was shining brightly.


    Numerous divine lights were striking the clouds above his head, and right there, multicolored rays of sunlight descended, giving rise to a vivid, strange vision. In that strange vision was a gigantic figure of a god. This god, however, had a humanlike aura, as if he came from the human world.


    ��The Divine Human!��


    The multitude felt their hearts racing upon seeing this scene. The strange vision was the Divine Human. The most remarkable ability to be mastered in the Human Realm was summoning the Divine Human.


    Di Hao��s hands formed a seal, and divine lights from the Great Way surrounded him. His aura was not in any way inferior to the Great Skylord Black Almighty, proving his prowess. After all, he was the first disciple of the Human Realm, along with the ancestor, who was a symbol of the Human Realm. One would imagine that he would be very powerful.


    Judging by this strange vision alone, his prowess should be greater than that of Fang Ru.


    The Great Skylord Black Almighty looked at Di Hao and sensed a threat from him. It was possible that Di Hao might be as strong as him.


    The terrifying Black Storm desired to engulf the sky dome and headed for the region above Di Hao, only to see the divine light around him glowing at its brightest. The strange vision covered the entire region above him, and the two different colored beams of divine light intersected and clashed above the sky dome as if drawing a clear and distinct battle line down the middle.


    Great Skylord Black Almighty stretched a finger outward, and at once, Black Almighty Divine Sword moved into action and flooded the Void, heading toward Di Hao.


    Di Hao��s pupils sparkled, and he formed another divine seal with his hands. Immediately, a brilliant divine light burst out from within the Divine Human, and a gap opened from above the skies. From above the sky came falling countless divine swords as if they were the Sword of Mankind created at the command of the Divine Human.


    The countless divine swords and Black Almighty Divine Sword collided, and two destructive storms converged within the Void. In contrast to when Fang Ru was battling Black Almighty, this time around, Di Hao��s Sword of Mankind did not suffer even the slightest bit. Both parties seemed to be evenly matched in strength.


    From the lower sky region, the onlookers could only see two swords of different colors clashing furiously with each other, forming a river of swords of destruction.


    Great Skylord Black Almighty waved his hands, and countless Almighty Divine Swords immediately came together as a petrifying storm. They then fused into a gargantuan Black Divine Sword. He pointed toward Di Hao, and the gargantuan black sword came down from the sky dome, cut across the river of swords, and headed straight toward Di Hao. It turned everything it touched to ash.


    Di Hao��s physical body merged as one with the Divine Human. It was as if he had become a god. A divine light shone on the Divine Human��s body. Heaven and earth were one, and Di Hao was the Way itself, able to control the Way of Mankind. He put his palms face-up and, with a push, blasted out Seal of Mankind. It was humongous and clashed against the Black Divine Sword.


    The numerous runes on the divine Seal started glowing. The murderous aura emanating from the Black Divine Sword of Destruction was bent on destroying everything and kept breaking the Divine Seal, but its powers were weakening as well.


    Bang! The Divine Seal dissolved into nothingness with a loud crash, but so did the Black Sword.


    ��Di Hao has become so strong,�� Supreme Swordlord uttered in amazement. He would not battle efficiently against either of these two men. He, the Supreme Swordlord, would possibly lose.


    Ye Futian had also been observing the ongoing fight. Not many attacks had been carried out within the battle, but one attack alone contained enough power to destroy heaven and earth. It was beyond terrifying.


    ��What technique is that?�� Ye Futian asked Supreme Swordlord while looking toward Di Hao. The figure of the Divine Human was astounding.


    ��The Divine Human,�� answered Supreme Swordlord. ��It is an unparalleled superpower created by the ancestor. Only the strongest cultivators can master it, and they will become one with the Great Path of Mankind, turning into a human god. It��s as if the divine itself was summoned, and every attack from then on will be imbued with the power of the divine. The cultivators in the Human Realm termed it the Way of Mankind, which implies its status as the strongest superpower among humanity.��


    Ye Futian nodded in understanding. ��Is the Great Skylord White Almighty even more powerful than Black Almighty?��


    Of the two, the Great Skylord Black Almighty came out first to battle, instead of the Great Skylord White Almighty, who had not made an appearance yet. This somehow led Ye Futian to feel that White Almighty might be stronger than the Great Skylord Black Almighty.


    ��Yes.�� Supreme Swordlord nodded in agreement. ��Legend has it that both these persons had been to the Boundless Sea located at the ends of the world before. There, they cultivated the Way of the Almighty. Great Skylord White Almighty cultivated the ��Creation�� pathway from the Way of the Almighty, while Great Skylord Black Almighty cultivated the ��Destruction�� pathway. Although ��Creation�� is not stronger than ��Destruction,�� Great Skylord White Almighty��s prowess, nevertheless, is above that of Great Skylord Black Almighty.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly after hearing what Supreme Swordlord said. Only the strongest like them could influence how the battle turned out now.


    Not even those who had passed through tribulations could. After all, it had reached the stage where those ranked at emperor-level were fighting each other directly.


    ��But that person standing behind Donghuang Diyuan is compelling as well, very more so than Fang Ru,�� Supreme Swordlord started to explain. ��He was conferred the title of ��Number One,�� to the extent that people say that after Donghuang the Great, he is the best.�� He looked to the back of Donghuang Diyuan, where a cultivator was standing.


    Ye Futian followed suit and discovered that the cultivator was an elderly man. He was watching the battle quietly and wore a calm expression. It seemed as if he was not significantly bothered by what was happening in front of him.


    It was the first time Ye Futian had met him. He was likely one of those final boss characters in Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Would he take part in the battle?


    If that were the case, then over at the Heaven Realm, White Almighty would have to join in too. He could not help wondering how a battle on that level would be like.


    However, before Ye Futian had a chance to see him in battle, someone surprising stepped out from Donghuang Imperial Palace��s side.


    It was none other than Donghuang Diyuan herself.


    It was not only Ye Futian, but all who were present were shocked by Donghuang Diyuan. Did she intend to go into battle herself?


    Not many had seen the only daughter of Donghuang the Great in battle before. Only once in the Devil World, Ye Futian had gone up against her in battle.


    Perhaps they will be able to see her in battle today.


    After Donghuang Diyuan stepped out, she looked upon someone on the sky stairwell. That person was Ji Wudao��the sole heir of the Heaven Realm.


    Everyone understood that if Donghuang Diyuan were to go out to battle, her opponent would be Ji Wudao and only Ji Wudao. Both of them were heirs, one of the Divine Prefecture and the other of the Heaven Realm. Both were of noble statuses and were remarkable characters.


    Even though they might not be as strong as the Great Skylord Black Almighty and Di Hao, their battle seemed to have been anticipated. Was not a battle of heirs of their caliber more enticing than that of the Great Skylord Black Almighty and Di Hao?


    Ye Futian was also quite surprised. He never thought that Donghuang Diyuan would participate in the battle.


    He had fought with Donghuang DIyuan before at the Devil Imperial Palace in Devil World. They both tied then, and Donghuang Diyuan was not inferior to him.


    He had also fought Ji Wudao before. Ji Wudao was a mystery and hard to read. They had only fought one round, and the other party had brought out Heaven Punishing Divine Sword. It was hard to tell his depth of skill.


    Many years had passed since then, and the cultivators had all inherited Relics from the tombs of the gods. They would have gotten much stronger, just as Ye Futian had. While he had mastered the Divine Ruler, both Donghuang Diyuan and Ji Wudao had control of a Relic each and would have gotten great gains from there.


    Moreover, the Relic that Ji Wudao had control over was the Old Heaven Court, ranked first among the Eight Legions. Who knows what he had gained from there?


    A battle now would reveal their current prowess.


    Ye Futian found himself anticipating this battle. From the first day he stepped into the world of cultivation, he had made his way up bit by bit, and the opponents he faced now were all top-notch, remarkable characters. At present, Donghuang Diyuan, Ji Wudao, Di Hao, and the likes would probably be his strongest opponents on the cultivation journey. If he managed to surpass them, he would be on his way to becoming one of the Great Emperors.


    These people were like him, as they all had the hope of making it to the Imperial Realm. With the heirs from each realm, the most outstanding cultivators, and the appearance of the divine Relics, how many would be able to conquer the Way and reign supreme?


    They just had to wait and see!

 Chapter 2701 - Heir of the Heavenly Emperor

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As Donghuang Diyuan stepped out, Ji Wudao moved forward on the sky stairwell and looked at Princess Donghuang.


    All the cultivators had their eyes on them and eagerly awaited the battle, especially those ranked at the emperor level. They knew Donghuang Diyuan would want to come here to fight with Ji Wudao for the possession of the Old Heaven Court Relics.


    ��I don��t wish to battle you, Princess Donghuang, but the Old Heaven Court Relics belong only to me,�� Ji Wudao said to Donghuang Diyuan. His demeanor was calm, but when it came to the Old Heaven Court Relics, he definitely was not going to give in.


    Here was the Heaven Court, and it rightfully belonged to them.


    Donghuang Diyuan made no reply. An impressive aura emanated from within her. It surrounded Donghuang Diyuan and gave rise to a dazzling picture. Behind her, right and left, was an impressive dragon and a fiery-red divine phoenix.


    The dragon and divine phoenix both looked aged, as if they had been living for countless years and, as a result, contained the essence of life within them. They were the real deal.


    A venerable aura suffused from within Donghuang Diyuan, the dragon, and the phoenix, causing the place to feel suffocating. Many of the cultivators�� hearts raced wildly as they stared at the figures of the dragon and phoenix behind Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Ancestral Dragon.�� This dragon contained the Will of the Dragon God and was the Emperor of Naga��the Lord of All Dragons.


    Donghuang Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture got possession of the Naga Relics, and with it, Donghuang Diyuan inherited the Will of the Ancestral Dragon. The cultivators thought to themselves. That Dragon God was the Dragon Lord that ruled over Naga during ancient times. The Ancestral Dragon��


    The scales covering the body of the Ancestral Dragon shimmered in seven colors of divine light. Its venerable and terrifying aura spoke of it as a victorious king.


    As for the phoenix on the other side of Donghuang Diyuan, it was the Ancestral Phoenix.


    Before entering the Relics, Donghuang Diyuan had already inherited the Will of the Ancestral Phoenix. In Donghuang the Great��s desire to train up his only daughter, he had bathed his daughter in the Ancestral Phoenix��s blood before. There was a divine seal carved inside her body.


    She was one with the Ancestral Phoenix.


    Now, she had gone to the Naga Relics and received the Will of the Ancestral Dragon also, thereby inheriting the soul of the Ancestral Dragon.


    With both the Dragon and Phoenix combining with her, the aura she emitted was enough to scare people. With the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix circling her, ordinary cultivators most likely would not have the courage to battle against her. In contrast, cultivators at the same level would feel suffocated just by her intimidating presence.


    Despite that, there was not a shred of demonic aura within Donghuang Diyuan. On the contrary, a saintly divine light glowed instead, and lotus flowers bloomed from beneath her feet. In the glow of the divine light, Donghuang Diyuan looked ethereal and stunning.


    ��It is the Buddhist Power.��


    Donghuang Diyuan and Donghuang the Great cultivated a wide range of skills and seemed to be jacks-of-all-trades. Despite receiving the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix, the divine light coming from her was the Light of Buddha. Behind her was a shining ring; it was as if she was the Goddess Guanyin.


    Different kinds of powers actually came together as one in her. They assimilated perfectly into her body and became hers.


    ��Donghuang Diyuan is approaching the demigod level,�� Supreme Swordlevel muttered. ��It has already taken shape. Just a bit more, and she will become near-deity. Her talent is amazing. I guess it��s expected of the daughter of Donghuang the Great.��


    Ye Futian looked at Donghuang Diyuan on the other side. Unbelievable. Was she already approaching the demigod level?


    If Donghuang Diyuan attained the demigod level, she probably would not be inferior to the seniors currently at the level.


    Of course, being able to rank on the demigod level in the first place showed that the senior cultivators were not idlers. They were already pursuing a higher plane, and there were practically no weaklings. They were all forging their paths and ways.


    Throughout all these happenings, however, Ji Wudao only watched quietly. He still had not emanated any aura and did not seem at all surprised by the events nor showed a shred of fear.


    Many cultivators looked toward Ji Wudao, looking forward to finding out how strong this mysterious heir of the Heaven Realm was.


    Crash! Donghuang Diyuan moved her will. At once, the shadowy figures of the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix appeared in the skies. They were humongous and covered the entirety of the sky. Within this phenomenon, countless divine swords appeared, and every sword contained the Power of Divine Punishment.


    ��Tianxing [1] Divine Sword!��


    Everyone knew that this was the mighty Tianxing Divine Sword, alluding to punishment from heaven and its domineering nature.


    What was more, this Tianxing Divine Sword presently contained the powers of the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix. Accordingly, the sword transformed into two different swords, one in the shape of a dragon and the other in the shape of a phoenix. They possessed terrifying powers and gave off scorching hot divine flames.


    Bang!!! A terrifying sound preceded the opening of the heavens, and through that opening, immeasurable beams of divine light descended into divine swords.


    ��How come both of their powers are the same?!�� The people felt surprised upon sensing the aura that was released. The sword that Ji Wudao was using seemed to be the Tianxing Divine Sword.


    Very few people knew that both Ji Wudao and Donghuang Diyuan were well-versed with the Tianxing Divine Sword.


    An even more terrifying aura was in the making, and two colors of divine light��a black and white one��as if symbolizing opposite types of powers, appeared above the sky.


    ��Black and White Almighty!��


    The cultivators�� hearts raced when they saw this scene. That was the Way of the Almighty��the amalgamation of Black and White Almighty��s Divine Swords and the Tianxing Divine Sword. The Tianxing Divine Sword, above the sky, turned black and white.


    White Almighty represented creation, and the divine swords above the sky were multiplying by the minute until they fully covered the entirety of the sky. Black Almighty Divine Sword represented destruction, and both of these extreme powers combined in an individual gave rise to an aura that sent tremors into the cultivators�� hearts.


    Donghuang Diyuan fused the powers of the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix into her Tianxing Divine Sword, while Ji Wudao fused the Way of the Almighty into his Tianxing Divine Sword. The Black Almighty Divine Sword belonging to Great Skylord Black Almighty was already frightening enough. If both he and Ji Wudao were on the same level, Ji Wudao��s divine sword might be even more frightening.


    Both divine swords were taken out at the same time. The swords infused with the powers of the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix and the Way of the Almighty clashed against each other, releasing a terrifying destructive storm that destroyed everything within its area. Yet, both stood immovable at their spot, as if such a destructive blow was just a warm-up to them.


    Crash! Another Divine Sword appeared. It was the fusion of the dragon and the phoenix, and it directly broke open the Void and cut through the storm toward the opposite side, exerting its dominance. A black and white divine sword met it head-on, and the two swords�� destructive divine light broke out as they clashed.


    ��The attacking power of the Dragon-Phoenix Divine Sword is greater, but the infusion of the Way of the Black and White Almighty allows the divine sword to wield both destructive and creative powers, resulting in it having continuous powers. Even though it is only one sword, it contains the wills of many swords, allowing it to counter the attacks from the Dragon-Phoenix Sword.�� Supreme Swordlord stared intently at the upper skies. Although the two currently in battle were his juniors, their attainments were unparalleled.


    What was even scarier was that these were only one of the powers they had.


    Both of them were already knocking on the door of the demigod level and could enter at any time.


    Just then, Donghuang Diyuan took a few steps to the front toward the sky stairwell. Lotus flowers bloomed beneath her feet as she walked, and behind her, an image of the Goddess Guanyin appeared. It was enormous and reached the dome of the sky. Energy radiated from it.


    At the back of the Goddess Guanyin were numerous arms.


    The Thousand Arms Guanyin, the cultivators thought to themselves. Donghuang Diyuan seemed to be one with the Thousand Arms Guanyin. Her body was suspended in midair, and divine lotuses appeared at her feet. She stretched out a palm and aimed an attack at Ji Wudao. All at once, thousands of hands came out from the Goddess Guanyin and blasted out the Seal of Thousand Arms.


    A loud and violent blast sounded out, and many dragon shadows appeared as the Seal moved toward its target, as if it were the Seal of a Dragon, and was domineering to the extreme. Many people were amazed. Donghuang Diyuan was a peerless beauty and had the appearance of a saint in battle, yet she was also extremely domineering. Not to mention her being a girl, how many people on earth could compare?


    Tens of millions of Dragon Seals attacked in full force as if tens of millions of Divine Dragons were whistling by. It broke through the storm of Swords of Destruction and headed toward the figure standing on the sky stairwell.


    Presently, Ji Wudao moved forward out of the sky stairwell and into the heavens. A beam of divine light descended, and immediately, a domain appeared around him. Within the domain appeared a strange vision of many ancient gods. They were the Divine Generals and Heavenly Army of the Heaven Court during ancient times.


    At the same time, a Supreme Divine Shadow appeared behind Ji Wudao. It was utterly dazzling and as if the Heavenly Emperor had descended on to earth.


    Ji Wudao raised his hand and blasted out a divine seal, which rapidly grew large enough to cover the sky and the area in front of him. Within this divine seal were numerous moving lines. They were stunning to look at and came together one by one to form an ancient character��the word for ��emperor.��


    ��The Seal of the Heavenly Emperor!��


    Many cultivators at the emperor-level were unsettled. Ji Wudao had cultivated the Seal of the Heavenly Emperor!


    Many years ago, the Heavenly Emperor had released the Seal of the Heavenly Emperor to suppress all the divine powers in the world, and was the most powerful out of all the divine seals. Currently, Ji Wudao was using it, and although it probably would not reach the level of the Heavenly Emperor, one could still see it taking shape. The ��emperor�� character on the divine seal unleashed a dazzling brilliance that blinded everything else.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Numerous Seals of the Ancestral Dragon attacked the Seal of the Heavenly Emperor, only to break into pieces upon contact. The character of ��emperor�� remained in place, and the Seal was as good as ever.


    Within the Void, Ji Wudao looked toward Donghuang Diyuan and said, ��Princess Diyuan, I said before that I do not want to defeat you in battle. Please withdraw!��


    [1] Tianxing means ��punishment from heaven��

 Chapter 2702 - Unparalleled

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Madness!��


    The cultivators looked up at Ji Wudao. What did it mean when he said he did not want to defeat Donghuang Diyuan?


    It was as if he was saying that he would defeat Donghuang Diyuan in battle as long as he was willing.


    Did the heir of the Heavenly Emperor of the Heaven Realm possess such heaven-defying abilities?


    Donghuang Diyuan��s expression did not change; she would not be swayed by his words. The Seal of Thousand Arms continued its ferocious onslaught on the Seal of the Heavenly Emperor until tens of millions of arms descended simultaneously. Immediately, a crack appeared on the ��emperor�� character on the seal, as well as on the giant scroll of the word ��emperor.��


    Suddenly, the Void shook violently, and with a loud bang, both the Seal of the Heavenly Emperor and Seal of Thousand Arms broke into pieces.


    The two looked at each other. Both these heirs of emperor figures had remarkable dispositions. Donghuang Diyuan had the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix on both sides, guarding her, while Ji Wudao was like the reincarnation of the Heavenly Emperor.


    Just then, a saintly Light of Buddha surrounded Donghuang Diyuan. The light was soft and gentle and held no murderous intent. It headed toward Ji Wudao, who showed surprise upon receiving it. A faint mark that glowed with divine line seemed to appear between his eyebrows.


    ��The Buddhist Six Superpowers,�� Ji Wudao remarked to himself. He then looked at Donghuang Diyuan and said, ��Whatever Princess Diyuan desires to see, please go ahead.��


    Within the Light of the Buddha, countless scenes appeared in front of Donghuang Diyuan. The scenes were showing the life story of Ji Wudao.


    She stared ahead of her, and countless images appeared within her eyes. She learned about Ji Wudao��s cultivation journey, where he had started as an ordinary person without any extraordinary talent in the Heaven Realm and made his way up from the bottom. He had been through numerous life-threatening crises and close fights. The images were brutal and violent as if he had walked out from a battlefield with skeletons all around his feet.


    He underwent exceptionally harsh trials during selections in the Heaven Realm. He killed all his opponents and became the heir of the Heaven Realm. At that time, he had already developed unparalleled talent then and was a new being.


    Through scene after scene, Donghuang Diyuan watched Ji Wudao train in the Divine Prefecture, in the forbidden places in the Demon Realm, in the Buddhist realm anonymously, and even in the Empty Divine Realm, the Human Realm, Dark World, and Original Realm. It was as if he had left his footprints on every single place on earth.


    ��Has Princess Diyuan found it yet?�� Ji Wudao asked while looking at Donghuang Diyuan. His pupils were bright, and divine light flowed around his body. He was one with heaven and earth and seemed to be a perfect and flawless person without any weak points.


    Yet, in the experiences he had gone through, Ji Wudao most certainly could not be said to be a perfect person; one might even say he was cruel and bloodthirsty. He went through many life-and-death situations and made it out safely each time. He was exceptionally clever and knew when to endure things to survive. Although he had been to all the fantastic realms, no one from those realms had ever heard of his name, and very few remembered him.


    Furthermore, he seemed to have guessed what Donghuang Diyuan wanted to find from him.


    Donghuang Diyuan stared fixedly at Ji Wudao. The things she had seen seemed to be only what Ji Wudao allowed her to see. It was missing the most important item that she was looking for.


    How did Ji Wudao achieve his metamorphosis and become who he was today?


    Looking at the experiences, he had gone through, although they were fraught with danger, it was not enough to cause a metamorphosis. There was still something crucial missing, for example, the most acceptable inheritance or something else!


    Donghuang Diyuan was not able to find these things or any weak points; it was as if he was impeccable.


    Boom! Donghuang Diyuan moved her will, and suddenly, the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix that were above the sky started to move as if they had been resurrected as the actual Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix. An otherworldly divine power descended and enveloped the entire space.


    Right then, all who were present felt an overwhelming sense of pressure coming upon and looked up to see the two divine beasts in the upper skies circling over the heads of Donghuang Diyuan and Ji Wudao. At the same time, a great rush of power was released from Donghuang Diyuan.


    Donghuang Diyuan soared up to stand in between the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix. At that moment, she looked like a goddess, high and mighty.


    ��She is drawing on the powers of the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix.�� The cultivators�� hearts raced again. Donghuang Diyuan had always been blessed by the Ancestral Phoenix and was even regarded as a representation of the Divine Phoenix. After inheriting the Naga Relics, she was also blessed by the Ancestral Dragon and inherited the dragon��s spirit.


    With the powers of the Dragon and the Phoenix regenerating in her body, Donghuang Diyuan had surpassed her original level.


    If Ji Wudao did not have some other tricks up his sleeve, he would indeed be defeated.


    The current Donghuang Diyuan was at the demigod level.


    ��Why must you be so persistent, Your Highness?�� Ji Wudao asked Donghuang Diyuan. ��I��m agreeable if you insist on having the Heaven Relics. Come and cultivate with me in the Heavenly Imperial Palace, and in the future, you and I will be the rulers of the Heaven Court.�� His words shocked the cultivators in the lower skies.


    How could Ji Wudao make this kind of request?


    Donghuang Diyuan scanned the lower skies but did not say a thing. The Ancestral Dragon roared, and all at once, the sky trembled. The Dragon��s roar caused shocks to pass through many of the cultivators in the lower skies, and they felt as if they were going to disintegrate. Quite a few cultivators groaned and spat out blood. There was some blood in the corners of their mouths. Their faces were ghastly pale.


    This roar was not even directed at them but Ji Wudao.


    Even so, they could not handle the blow.


    As for Ji Wudao, a dazzling divine splendor lit up his body, and he floated up to the upper skies on the sky stairwell. A supremely powerful force descended upon the Old Heaven Court, and divine light shrouded Ji Wudao��s body. A saintly light appeared above the sky.


    Ji Wudao was bathed in the divine light. It was as if the Ruler of the Old Heaven Court had descended upon earth himself.


    ��The Old Heaven Court!��


    Numerous people raised their heads to look at the sky, where above the sky stairwell, a court had appeared. It was possibly the Old Heaven Court Relics.


    Countless years ago, the leader of Deva, which was the first of the Eight Legions, had ruled over the Old Heaven Court. Was he given the title of Heavenly Emperor as well?


    The ruler of the Old Heaven Court could be the leader of the Eight Legions and the first of the Heavenly Path.


    Had Ji Wudao inherited the Will of the Old Heaven Court?


    The Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix glided down, and in a flash, shadowy figures of the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix dashed toward Ji Wudao. Unimaginable power was contained in the Ancestral Dragon while the Ancestral Phoenix was bathed in a divine flame that set fire to the Void and burned everything to ashes as it charged at Ji Wudao.


    At the sight of such a terrifying strike, even the demigods could not stop their hearts racing.


    ��The power of this strike is on my level already,�� remarked Supreme Swordlord as he arched his head to see the battle taking place above the skies. The attack of Donghuang Diyuan, boosted by the powers drawn from the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix, had already reached the demigod level.


    She was already just outside the perimeter, with just one more step needed to become a demigod. With the addition of the powers of the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix, one could only imagine how terrifying that strike was.


    Would Ji Wudao be able to withstand it?


    Ji Wudao was bathed in the divine light from the Old Heaven Court, and an impressive power permeated from within his body. At his back, the figure of the Heavenly Emperor seemed to have solidified. Standing in front of the Heavenly Emperor, he raised his arms, and suddenly, a divine light sprinkled down from above the skies. A divine sword appeared in Ji Wudao��s hands, and the figure behind him also held a divine sword with both hands.


    With the appearance of the divine sword, many of the cultivators�� swords started to clatter loudly, desiring to bow their heads.


    The sword of Supreme Swordlord also showed the same reaction, and he was stunned as he realized his swordsmanship was inferior.


    ��The Sword of the Heavenly Emperor!��


    Supreme Swordlord looked up at the sky. The divine sword was more than just a sword��it contained the Will of Heaven and was the Sword of the Heavenly Emperor. Its high status meant that everything in the world had to listen to its commands.


    Sure enough, on the divine sword was written the word ��emperor.�� It glistened with divine light and exuded such a mighty power that made all beings grovel.


    Donghuang Diyuan had inherited the Will of the Ancestral Dragon, but Ji Wudao had inherited the Will of the Old Heaven Court. People could not help but be amazed. Before this, no one had heard of the heir of the Heaven Realm, Ji Wudao before. Who knew that he would be so impressive and remarkable?


    ��This place is under the Old Heaven Court, and Ji Wudao directly drawing power from the Old Heaven Court puts him at an advantage. I think Donghuang Diyuan is going to lose,�� Supreme Swordlord said with his eyes on the battle. The divine sword in Ji Wudao��s hand clashed with the Ancestral Dragon and Divine Phoenix, causing the sky to be on the verge of collapse. As divine light shone down, many of the cultivators in the lower skies simultaneously released a shield of defense.


    The humongous Ancestral Dragon and Divine Phoenix were still clashing with the Heavenly Emperor Sword, with divine light bursting out at every contact. However, they both subsequently got split open. They were no match for the power of the Heavenly Emperor Sword.


    Right then, an intimidating aura burst out from behind Donghuang Diyuan. A top warrior from the Divine Prefecture had stepped out, and he was bursting with incredible might and power.


    At the same time, White Almighty on the sky stairwell grunted and also stepped out. He landed on the battlefield beside Ji Wudao. They both were keen to protect their young masters.


    Donghuang Diyuan was the only daughter of Donghuang the Great. Her background alone ensured that she would be of a high status. With her talents, her high status in Donghuang Imperial Palace went without saying.


    Ji Wudao, on the other hand, earned the support of those in the Heavenly Imperial Palace through his efforts. All the strongmen in the Heaven Realm willingly listened to and assisted him, including the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty. It was obvious that Wu Jidao was alluring.


    The terrifying sounds of the clashes caused the sky to crumble and the ground to shatter, causing the cultivators�� hearts to beat furiously. They had hardly made sense of what was happening when strongmen started stepping out from different quarters in the direction of the sky stairwell. Many of their pupils were constricted as they stared at the site of the battle. It turned out that those who stepped out were all emperor-level cultivators.


    These emperor-level cultivators had been patiently watching the battle but were now not able to control themselves any longer.. They marched toward the sky stairwell. Evidently, they, too, strongly desired the Old Heaven Court Relics!

 Chapter 2703 - Gate to the Heaven Court

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The sudden turn of events stunned many cultivators. This was originally a battle between the Donghuang Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture and the Heaven Court of the Heaven Realm. However, now the situation had evolved so that all the top figures from all the principalities were making their moves simultaneously. They meant to shake those from the Heaven Realm and take over the Old Heaven Court.


    The strength of the Heaven Court from Heaven Realm consisted of powerful players: Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, Four Heavenly Kings, Nine Star Lords, with all of their cultivators trailing behind them. And this was in addition to Ji Wudao, who was able to leverage the will of the Old Heaven Court. This was a team whose strength was considered frightening.


    However, the Heaven Court was powerful in strength but weaker in their size. Among the seven realms, the Heaven Realm was the smallest, but it occupied the relics of Deva, which was the head of the Eight Legions. Therefore, it was no wonder that the cultivators from all sides had decided to attack them.


    There were principalities from the Divine Prefecture and cultivators from the Human Realm, the Empty Divine Realm, and even the Dark World and the Devil World. However, for these last two significant realms, their topmost figures were not present. Of these two realms, one was in control of the Karura ruins, which had unlocked the inheritance of the Demonic Lord. The other was in charge of the ruins of Ashura, which was the most complementary to them according to their nature.


    In this context, they would focus more on their cultivations. As long as they could be in complete control of the wills of the Demonic Lord and the Ashura, they could care less about the Old Heaven Court. Just as the cultivators of Heaven Realm had stated before, the Old Heaven Court was indeed the most compatible with them.


    Even if the Deva was the head of the Eight Legions, and its strength may be the strongest, the fit was the most crucial consideration above all. Ji Wudao was suitable for inheriting the will of the Old Heaven Court, but it may not be the case for the cultivators from the Dark Court.


    In addition, even though the cultivators from the Buddhist Realm had arrived, they did not choose to interfere. Many Buddhist cultivators were watching in the crowd, witnessing everything happening in front of them.


    Even so, it was terrifying enough with all the cultivators from every side joining the fight. For a moment, that horrific aura enveloped this corner of the sky and slammed towards the sky stairwell.


    Ye Futian, Supreme Swordlord, and the others looked at the battlefield above the sky, and they paid particular attention to the place where Ji Wudao was.


    In the battle, Donghuang Diyuan was as good as defeated. This proud daughter of Donghuang Imperial Palace, and the future of the Divine Prefecture, had lost to Ji Wudao. However, since this was Ji Wudao��s territory, and he could leverage the will of the Heavenly Emperor within the Old Heaven Court, it was not surprising that he was able to defeat Donghuang Diyuan.


    But even if these factors were discounted, and just based on the combat effectiveness of these two people alone, Ji Wudao was not any weaker than Donghuang Diyuan. From the previous collisions between the two, it was obvious that Ji Wudao was very strong, and perhaps he had not yet completely released all of his strength.


    ��I didn��t expect that the heir of the Heaven Realm would have such a shocking capability that he overpowered the princess of the Divine Prefecture. Moreover, I heard that he did not have an extraordinary background behind him. I wonder what kind of opportunity he had received? In the future, this man will be at the forefront of the road to becoming a great emperor,�� said the Supreme Swordlord in a low voice.


    Today, this battle was enough to make Ji Wudao��s name known to the world. Before, he had loathed to show himself off to the outside world, but this battle with Donghuang Diyuan was enough for his name to resound throughout all the realms.


    In this generation, how many of them in this world could fight like this with Donghuang Diyuan?


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded in agreement. Ji Wudao��s strength was stronger than he had expected. To become a great emperor, he would be a most powerful competitor.


    More importantly, both he and Donghuang Diyuan must have already been pursuing the path of the great emperor by now. Both of them had already stepped into the near-deity state.


    Here was the starting point of the road to becoming a great emperor.


    But in the end, it was still an unknown which one of them could prove the way of the great emperor in this world.


    In addition to Ji Wudao and Donghuang Diyuan, there was also Di Hao from the Human Realm, Yu Sheng from the Devil World, Yan Guiyi, Ye Qingyao from the Dark Court, as well as the top cultivators from Buddhism and Dugu Wuxie of the Empty Divine Realm. These were all the people who had an equal likelihood to embark on that envious path.


    Of course, then there was also Ye Futian himself!


    Aside from that, no one knew how the Ancient God Clans from the Divine Prefecture would react, or for that matter, the principalities ruled by the other Great Emperors in the other worlds. Currently, the will of the Great Emperor of the Ancient God Clan in the Divine Prefecture had already entered this site along with its cultivators; would it be revived in the same manner as Tianyan the Great?


    Significant changes were occurring between heaven and earth, and everything was possible.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were still fixed on the sky above. Previously, Ji Wudao had asked all these cultivators whether they wished to come up one by one or all together. Now, these cultivators from all sides had taken action just as he wanted; how was he planning to counter their attacks?


    Above the sky, Ji Wudao��s figure soared upward and appeared atop the sky stairwell. Just below the Old Heaven Court, a most radiant divine light descended from the Old Heaven Court downward. In an instant, an incomparable will of horror descended and shrouded this infinite space.


    Suddenly, this vast and endless domain was inundated by that terrifying will. Those top cultivators also raised their heads to follow his figure; their eyes betrayed the slight hint of the disturbance they felt.


    Had Ji Wudao completely inherited the will of the Old Heaven Court?


    What did he receive inside the Old Heaven Court?


    Could it be that he had already inherited from the master of the Old Heaven Court?


    ��Come back,�� Ji Wudao commanded loudly. Suddenly, all the cultivators from the Heaven Realm began to float towards the top of the sky stairwell, including the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, who were also extricating themselves from the battle. In short, everyone was retreating in the direction of the Old Heaven Court above the sky stairwell.


    The other cultivators wanted to give chase, but they could sense a powerful force appearing above them. Instantly, they had a solemn look on their faces, and none of them dared to make a rash move.


    Above the sky, the incomparably sacred divine figure of the Heavenly Emperor appeared, with the divine sword in hand. He followed along with Ji Wudao��s every movement, and an even more powerful sword came slashing down. Immediately, heaven and earth seemed to be split open by the sword. As the sword descended from the sky, everything in its path seemed to be immolated.


    Those cultivators who took action were releasing their most terrifying power to resist, surrounding themselves with the divine light of the Great Path. There were natural visions that forged an absolute domain, from which an attack was launched directly at the Heavenly Sword that was slashing towards them.


    The extremely terrifying divine light of destruction exploded in the void, and the sword chopped down with an apocalyptic divine light that was blinding and stinging to the eyes.


    The hearts of the cultivators below palpitated, and some even quickly dodged and retreated to the rear, wanting to vacate this area as quickly as possible. The same was true with cultivators who were even watching from very far away. This Heavenly Sword could cover a massive area when it came down, and most of them regretted being too close to the actual battle.


    The Supreme Swordlord waved both of his hands, and a divine sword appeared to point to the sky above as the Taishang Swordsmanship erupted with all its might. When the Heavenly Sword came smashing down, it was unable to shake the defense built by the Supreme Swordlord. However, that was because they were not at the center of the battle, and they were barely touched by the aftershocks of the attack on the periphery.


    The sword light illuminated a radius of hundreds of thousands of miles as it swept down. When the divine sword fell, the space was left in a total mess. Tons of ditches appeared on the ground as if the earth itself had cracked open, and all of them filled with the terrifying sword will of the emperor.


    Cultivators from all sides were broken up as they retreated to different locations. Those whose cultivations were not strong enough and had no one to protect them were wiped out under the sword. They were pretty unfortunate to perish like this while watching the battle on the sideline.


    Of course, those who came here to watch the fight might have harbored some mal intentions of their own.


    The cultivators from the Heaven Realm stood at the top of the sky stairwell. Ji Wudao stood in the middle of them, showering in divine light, as he looked down at the cultivators below. He declared loudly, ��If any one of you insist on robbing the relics controlled by the Heaven Realm, I won��t be merciful next time.��


    When they saw his godlike figure, the cultivators below trembled in their hearts. In their eyes, Ji Wudao looked like someone invincible.


    However, in the void, neither Donghuang Diyuan nor anyone else retreated. The aura of the Great Path from them remained as dominant as ever. At the same time, brilliant divine light gleamed and bloomed, and immediately, wisps of imperial will pervaded between heaven and earth.


    Those top cultivators had resorted to the imperial arms, and none of them was of the mind to withdraw.


    Ji Wudao might be powerful, but he must have not completely integrated with the Old Heaven Court, which meant that it was possible for him to be overpowered.


    The Old Heaven Court was determined to win.


    When Ye Futian saw what was being played out before him, he immediately realized that as powerful as Ji Wudao��s attack was, it did not exert an absolute advantage that deterred everyone who was present. His challengers felt that they would have a definite advantage with the imperial arms in hand.


    These people were extremely keen to the perception of strength. If no one choose to give up, it would be difficult for Heaven Realm to defend their claim of the Old Heaven Court. It would be similar to the time when Ye Futian leveraged the will of the Mahoraga and was still unable to deter the invasions from every side, if it were not for Yu Sheng and Qingyao who lend him a helping hand just when he needed them the most.


    Consider how fierce the struggle was for the relic of the Mahoraga, the extent of the confrontation over the Old Heaven Court was not surprising.


    ��It will be difficult for the people of Heaven Realm to defend their claim,�� Ye Futian said. Before, Ji Wudao wanted to put a stop to all the cultivators who were here, but his strength fell short. After all, he was not yet in the realm of near-deity, but he was facing several superior cultivators who were on the Demigod List, and they have the aid of imperial arms. With such an advantage, why would they voluntarily back down?


    ��If the Heaven Realm can��t be defended, what should we do?�� Next to him, Supreme Swordlord asked Ye Futian, wondering what his thought was on the situation.


    ��Ji Wudao had once gone to cultivate in the territory controlled by Ziwei Segmentum, and he said then that as long as he could, he would want go to the Old Heaven Court and take a look there,�� Ye Futian replied casually. There was no rules or regulations to speak of in today��s world of cultivation.


    Strength was always the first factor. No one would give up the opportunity to cultivate in any relics. If they could have broken into Mahoraga where he was located, no one would hold themselves back to show him any courtesy on this ancient continent!


    Above the firmament, everyone slaughtered their way upward into the sky, and the cultivators from the Heaven Realm were retreating, as they have already reached the top of the stairwell, as if they were standing directly under the Heaven Court.


    At this time, other cultivators in the sky also moved their way upwards, which included all the principalities of each world. Someone cleared the way and drove in. Naturally, they didn��t mind adding fuel to the fire; which one of them didn��t want to have a chance at the relic of the Old Heaven Court?


    ��Huh?��


    At this moment, many people were stunned. They discovered that those cultivators from the Heaven Realm had actually stepped into the Heavenly Palace. That group of cultivators above the firmament had disappeared directly from where they were.


    As cultivators from other sides revealed a look of surprise, they moved higher into the sky as well, one after another. First among them was the cultivators from the imperial-level forces, including Donghuang Diyuan.


    When they came to the top of the sky stairwell, they saw many magnificent and impressive structures. All that dilapidated palaces and shrines, or the broken pillars that they had seen before, were nothing more than places occupied by the guardians of the Old Heaven Court.


    Here was just an entrance, with a door in front. This was the entrance to the Old Heaven Court, the gate to the Heavenly Palace.


    The sight in front of them was so spectacular, that the cultivators who went up behind them couldn��t help but have their hearts beating wildly. Here, was the gate to the Old Heaven Court, the site of the first of the Eight Legions, the Deva.


    ��Princess Diyuan, please,�� Di Hao said to Donghuang Diyuan, making a gesture inviting her to enter. Immediately, Donghuang Diyuan stepped through and entered inside the Old Heaven Court!

 Chapter 2704 - One Ruler to Break the Dominion

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and his party appeared in front of the gate of the Heavenly Palace. Their attention was focused on those cultivators who continued to walk into it. Ye Futian noted to himself that cultivators everywhere were equally fervent for the powerful relics that might elevate their cultivations.


    However, with all the Great Emperor-level forces present, would any of these cultivators have any chance of getting anything?


    For them, a crisis was far more promising than an opportunity. Even so, these cultivators were still coming, if only for a remote possibility that they might obtain the relics. The reality was that only those near-deity existences had some chance of achieving that. Even those cultivators in the Second Tribulation Plane had a slight chance without the help of imperial arms.


    Even if there were relics, they were unable to compete with any of these major powers. Even if, by chance, they obtained something, it was very possible that they would be hunted down and robbed of it later.


    Of course, Ye Futian himself was still planning on going in.


    Without thinking too much about it, Ye Futian stepped over the gate to the Heavenly Palace and walked into the land that the Deva once ruled in ancient days.


    As soon as Ye Futian and the others passed through the gate to the Heavenly Palace and entered inside, they were shocked by the sight in front of them.


    This place was like a small world, and so far, it was the most well-preserved site among all the relics on this ancient continent. In this small world, although the buildings everywhere had collapsed, the magnificent ruins of the Heavenly Court were vaguely visible.


    The small world was actually quite expansive. At a glance, there were clusters of buildings everywhere, all of which were ancient relics. Each cluster of buildings was majestic, located in different locations, and each had its own characteristics.


    Those might be the places of cultivation for the divine generals in the Heavenly Court. After countless years, they became relics, but they were still permeated with an extremely terrifying aura.


    The master of the Old Heaven Court��s strength must have been one of the strongest in the ancient times, which accounted for his control over the Deva.


    Such figures must have many great emperors under his command.


    After all, that was the age of the emperors.


    Deva was the leader of the Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path, dominated over the entire world.


    In the distance, many cultivators were moving in one direction. When Ye Futian and the others raised their heads to look where they were going, they saw that there was a heavenly palace at the edge of the sky, elusive and ethereal. That ought to be the real Heavenly Palace, where the lord of Deva, the Heavenly Emperor, had once resided in ancient times.


    Ye Futian continued moving forward. After entering this place, all the cultivators flickered their way in different directions. In many other places, they had sensed the existence of the relics from the great emperors.


    ��The relics here should be even more than that of the Mahoraga Tribe,�� Supreme Swordlord said softly.


    ��As the head of the Eight Legion, this is to be expected at the site where the Deva resided,�� Ye Futian responded, agreeing with the assessment of the Supreme Swordlord. They could already feel that there were several sites of the relics that contained the will of the Great Emperor.


    ��No wonder these various forces have to fight for it,�� Supreme Swordlord said. After having cultivated in their respective relics for several years, they now saw new opportunities ushered in by the attacks of the Divine Prefecture led by Donghuang Diyuan. Together, they stood a better chance of invading inside the Old Heaven Court.


    They didn��t want to let go of the relics at the Old Heaven Court. In the eyes of several Great Emperor-level forces, the relics of the Mahoraga that Ye Futian controlled were nothing compared to the relics at the Old Heaven Court.


    Now, just as they wished, they had made their way here.


    At this moment, wisps of terrific aura fell on Ye Futian and the others, making Ye Futian and his group of people frown. Then, from different directions, many other cultivators came to surround them; their murderous intent was sky-high.


    ��Those pesky suckers,�� the Supreme Swordlord said with his brows knitted. It was those people again��the cultivators of the Ancient God Clans from the Divine Prefecture. They were not in a hurry to plunder the relics here. On the contrary, they wanted to take this opportunity to confront Ye Futian.


    Obviously, they had been keeping tabs on Ye Futian, tracking his every movement.


    The Vajra Region Lord stood at the forefront, surrounded by golden divine light, which covered the boundless space. On the Mahoraga��s relics site, the Vajra Divine Child was killed by Fang Cun. With a new blood feud added onto old grudges, the Vajra Region hated the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace with a passion, and they couldn��t wait to slaughter all of them immediately.


    ��How dare you come out of the Mahoraga Tribe?�� the Vajra Region Lord said with a horrific murderous intent upon him. Before, by the time they got to the Mahoraga Tribe, they couldn��t do anything because Ye Futian was naturally compatible with the will of the Mahoraga. Then, when Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao showed up, they had no choice but to retreat, having sustained considerable loss. In the end, they could not cause any damages to Ye Futian and the others.


    But now, Ye Futian had walked out of the relics of the Mahoraga and came here.


    Without the will of the Mahoraga, how would he contend against them?


    There would only be death for him.


    Several Ancient God Clans had possessed the wills of the Great Emperors. Therefore, even if their opponent had the support of someone like Supreme Swordlord and Xi Chiyao, it was not enough to deter them.


    ��I am not interested in playing with you people just now. You guys should focus on cultivating some more and improving your strength. That way, maybe you get to live for a few more years,�� Ye Futian looked at them and said. His words caused these cultivators to frown; how dare he be so arrogant?


    What did Ye Futian have to use to contend with them?


    ��After we killed you, the relics of the Mahoraga will be unguarded. At that time, we can slaughter all the cultivators inside and control the relics of the Mahoraga, which will be just as good as the relics from this Old Heaven Court,�� the Vajra Region Lord said. Above the firmament, a terrifying Vajra Dominion appeared, covering the sky and obstructing the sun, sealed off this corner of the sky. The unparalleled divine power of the Vajra Region fell and bathed the Vajra Region Lord under the divine power of the Vajra Region as if the ancient god of the Vajra Region had descended.


    After a few years of not seeing him, it seemed that the strength of the Vajra Region Lord had magnified again.


    Likewise, other cultivators from the Ancient God Clans were releasing a terrifying aura, which enveloped this area to prevent Ye Futian from escaping. Everyone knew that Ye Futian was good at Buddha��s Celerity which allowed him to evade capture easily. To deal with Ye Futian, the first thing they had to do was to seal off the space they were in.


    ��Swordlord, make sure everyone is safe,�� Ye Futian said to Supreme Swordlord.


    ��No problem.�� Supreme Swordlord held the imperial arms, the divine sword, and forged a sword domain to protect all their cultivators within it. Ye Futian walked a few steps forward, glanced at the Vajra Region Lord, then raised his head to focus on the dominion above the sky.


    Above this dominion, the divine power of the Vajra Region was circulating endlessly. The golden divine light was shining with a radiance that seemed indestructible.


    This was the true divine power of the Vajra Region, containing the divine power of the Great Emperor��s will, stronger than anything and utterly indestructible.


    Everyone was looking at Ye Futian with a strange look. What did he want to do by stepping out alone at a time like this?


    Did he want to tempt death?


    Everyone thought that it would be Supreme Swordlord who would act first.


    But at this moment, they could feel that there were rays of the Great Path divine light that flowed about on Ye Futian. At the same time, he stretched out his hand. When the Great Path divine light poured into his palm, suddenly a ruler appeared in the palm of Ye Futian��s hand.


    ��What is that?��


    The cultivators stared at the divine ruler in Ye Futian��s hand. This was not an imperial arms but a peculiar power of the Great Path. However, the aura contained in it made them feel a little apprehensive.


    Would Ye Futian deal out some other amazing feat again?


    Buzz! Just as they were pondering on the matter, Ye Futian��s body moved as he soared upward and appeared in a place upon high in just an instant. With his arm facing up, the ruler in his hand unleashed at the dominion forged by the divine power of the Vajra Region and fell on that sealed area.


    ��You are nothing but an ant trying to shake the tree!�� The Vajra Region Lord gave a great yell, and there was strong sarcasm in the words he spoke as if he was dismissive of what Ye Futian was doing.


    How could he be so arrogant as to imagine that he could break down the Vajra Dominion cast by the divine power of the Vajra Region by using a ruler?


    Pssst! A crystalline sound was heard at this moment as the ruler stabbed directly in the middle of the Vajra Dominion. The divine power of the Vajra Region was flowing endlessly. Still, at this moment, when the divine power of the Vajra Region encountered that ruler, it was avoiding it madly and retreated whichever way it could.


    It seemed that the divine power of the Vajra Region had been suppressed completely.


    ��Break!�� Ye Futian spat. Suddenly a light rule exploded from the divine ruler. In an instant, a glow swept across the void, as the Vajra Dominion shattered and collapsed in an instant, completely and utterly destroyed.


    The Great Path Domain that had been forged by the divine power of the Vajra Region, was broken in an instant.


    When the Vajra Region Lord saw what was happening in front of him, his heart was greatly horrified and he was unable to move his eyes. How could this be possible? And how did Ye Futian manage to do it?


    The eyes of the other cultivators were frozen in that direction as well. They stared at the ruler that was in Ye Futian��s hand, and wondered what kind of divine item was that?


    This ruler was actually able to penetrated and split through the Vajra Dominion.


    Aside from this ruler, they also discovered that a streamer of the Great Path was flowing freely about Ye Futian, as if the will of the Great Path upon him was self-contained and complemented with the divine ruler perfectly.


    What they saw before them was so similar to the divine light that circulated around Donghuang Diyuan and Ji Wudao before.


    Ye Futian, too, was one foot in the realm of near-deity!

 Chapter 2705 - Dialogues with the Old Gods

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��What kind of power is this?�� The cultivators from the Ancient God Clans wondered as they stared at Ye Futian. The force exerted from that mere ruler was so great that the divine power of the Vajra Region was unquestionably suppressed, and its dominion was forcibly breached.


    Did Ye Futian inherit from yet another Great Emperor?!


    Obviously, this was a power begotten from some other relics again, as Ye Futian did not previously have this ability. After a few years, he, too, had become stronger.


    Ye Futian ignored everyone��s speculation. He appeared above the cultivators from the Vajra Region. With a thought, he opened the gate of heaven. Above the firmament, the will of terrifying Great Path rules circulated as if this whole world had turned into the same path commanded by Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was in charge of the Great Path rules in this space.


    The sky opened up with extreme radiance. The Great Path rules descended from the sky and attracted the attention of all the cultivators who were in the distance. Their hearts palpitated when they witnessed this magnificent and strange sight before them.


    ��That��s Ye Futian!��


    Many cultivators recognized Ye Futian, and they couldn��t help but trembled when they saw what was happening right now. Not too long ago, they had witnessed an awe-inspiring battle between some peak cultivators. The battle between Donghuang Diyuan and Ji Wudao, especially, was a battle of great significance. It was a battle between the heir of the Heaven Realm and the heir of the Divine Prefecture.


    They were the top existences who had a chance to step onto the road to become a Great Emperor in the future.


    After the battle, the world finally realized that the heir of the Heaven Realm was terrifying to such a degree that many of them forgot that for a long time before this, whether it was in the Divine Prefecture or the land of the Original Realm, there was another striking figure named Ye Futian.


    Compared to Di Hao and Donghuang Diyuan, it seemed that Ye Futian, who was a genius talent that almost defied nature, had been eclipsed by both. It appeared that he had lost his luster in front of these two and could only stand below to watch them battle.


    However, at this moment in time, they saw Ye Futian taking action again. This proud son who had led the Ziwei Imperial Palace to seize the relics of the Moharaga��one of the sites of the Eight Legions��had increased in strength after several more years spent in cultivation. It seemed that he had already touched the realm of near-deity.


    This also meant that Ye Futian would be officially embarking on the road to becoming a Great Emperor himself. But he, like the others, was only at the starting point of this long journey.


    As the sky opened, an ultimate divine ruler appeared above it. Ye Futian was bathing in divine light, akin to a god from heaven. That divine ruler suspended in front of him, and the divine glory emitted from it seemed capable of destroying everything.


    The cultivators of several Ancient God Clans had sensed the horror that came from this divine ruler. They did not feel any aura of the Great Path with specific attributes, but that divine ruler itself seemed to represent the Great Path rules and could incarnate into any kind of Great Path power it wished.


    The expression in the eyes of the Vajra Region Lord was somber as he stared at the sky above. He did not expect Ye Futian to become stronger after not seeing him for all these years. Ye Futian had cultivated to such a degree that with the descendants of the divine ruler, the Vajra Region Lord felt a great sense of danger.


    Clang! A loud sound was heard, and the Vajra Region Lord clasped his hands together. In an instant, golden light shrouded the boundless space with a radius of thousands of miles. Even those cultivators in the distance could detect a golden light that was illuminating in all directions.


    Moreover, there was the divine power of the Vajra Realm in this golden divine light.


    Behind the Vajra Region Lord, there was a massive and gigantic figure; it was as if the ancient god of the Vajra Region was surrounded by miles of golden light. This ancient god of the Vajra Region was brilliant throughout, cast by gold. When the divine power circulated upon it, it seemed to be an immortal body that was indestructible.


    On the torso of this ancient god of the Vajra Realm, everyone could faintly sense a wisp of the great emperor��s aura that was contained within that flowing divine power.


    Ye Futian stretched out his hands. Suddenly a dazzling divine light flowed out of his body and poured into the divine ruler. Above the sky, the Great Path fell down upon them, and a terrifying storm of the Great Path began blowing.


    ��Kill!�� Ye Futian��s eyes were sharper than ever as he scanned the area below. He raised his hand and pointed at the Vajra Region Lord. Suddenly, an unparalleled beam of light broke through the void and fell straight down; the divine light tore through everything in its path.


    Clang! Another mighty sound was heard, and the divine light of the Great Path circulating on the Vajra ancient god was horrific beyond words. A massive and incomparably gigantic Vajra Divine Seal slammed at the divine ruler that was blasting down. For a time, it seemed that everything had gone topsy-turvy, and everything had been smashed.


    The divine ruler and the boundless Vajra Divine Seal collided in the void, and another loud noise came out, bursting in everyone��s eardrums. Under the Vajra divine power, the divine seal had runes of the Great Path running inside of it and erupted with an unparalleled divine brilliance.


    Even so, under the attack of that terrifying power, golden light spots splashed out, and the divine ruler penetrated through little by little until finally piercing through the massive Vajra Divine Seal.


    Between the hands of that gigantic Vajra ancient god, countless phantasmic divine seals flew out, blasting at the divine ruler again and again. Eventually, it was able to stop the momentum of the divine ruler.


    Such an intense attack made all the bystanders tremble with fear. Even those who were watching the battle from a distance were equally shocked.


    Had Ye Futian��s attack become so tyrannical?


    The Vajra Region Lord, as the one in charge of the Vajra Region, which was part of the Ancient God Clans, had been suppressed by Ye Futian even though he had leveraged the will of the Great Emperor.


    The cultivators from other Ancient God Clans did not jump in. They were wary of the divine ruler from before and were shocked by Ye Futian��s display of strength. For now, they chose to wait and see.


    ��Be careful.�� the Vajra Region Lord suddenly cautioned them. Ye Futian��s figure disappeared from the void without any warning.


    His Vajra divine power erupted again, covering all the cultivators from the Vajra Region behind him, but it was too late. By the time Ye Futian returned to where he was, several cultivators from the Vajra Region had already fallen. Their bodies were pierced by the light of the ruler, which killed them instantaneously.


    ��You seem to have forgotten the lessons in the past; this is a warning to you all,�� said Ye Futian. He stood above the void, bathing in the divine light from above the firmament as he surveyed those below. ��If I were to kill without restrain, how many of you can stop me?��


    In addition to a few top-level characters, how many from the Ancient Gold Clans could stop his massacre?


    Moreover, the Vajra Dominion could not contain Ye Futian, so who else could restrict his Buddha��s Celerity?


    None of them could have done it. Once upon a time, all major Ancient God Clans had joined forces to challenge Ziwei Segmentum. However, it was precisely because of the Buddha��s Celerity and the will of Ziwei the Great that they had no choice but to give up.


    But now, they seemed to have forgotten everything that had happened before.


    In other words, they thought that as long as they could pose a restriction, they might be able to put an end to Ye Futian.


    Not long ago, they had even threatened to kill Ye Futian first, then proceed to the relics of the Mahoraga and kill the rest of them.


    But in a blink of an eye, Ye Futian woke them up from their foolish dreams.


    The auras of several top figures from the Ancient God Clans were released, and there was imperial glory that flowed about them. However, at this moment, a voice sounded in the mind of the Vajra Region Lord, ��Leave.��


    The eyes of the Vajra Region Lord sharpened; it seemed that the ancestors had some concerns.


    Could Ye Futian really pose a threat to them?


    Ye Futian showed a thoughtful look at this time as he scrutinized the Vajra Region Lord more closely. Just at that moment, he keenly sensed an aura, but it was not the aura of the Vajra Region Lord himself. He thought perhaps it was the will of the Great Emperor.


    However, these other entities probably had not fully recovered, so there was no way they could use Vajra Region Lord��s full strength. If they were to stage a walk-in like Tianyan the Great, who tried to leverage Wang Xiao��s power, it would have been frightening beyond belief.


    Obviously, these Great Emperors of the Ancient God Clans had not yet reached this step. They wanted to be revived by the power of the relics, which meant they did not want to take any risks.


    Once upon a time, the ancestors of the Haotian Clan had spoken of something like this.


    ��The old gods!�� Ye Futian said, his eyes fixed on the Vajra Region Lord.


    In the main body of the Vajra Region Lord, an aura pervaded, and Ye Futian felt that someone was looking at him.


    ��What kind of power did you use before?�� The Vajra Region Lord spat the question out, but Ye Futian knew it was not the Vajra Region Lord who spoke. It was the old gods that were inside of him.


    They had noticed the special power of the divine ruler. The divine ruler contained the power of the Heavenly Path, and that was the reason why it was able to suppress the of the Vajra divine power.


    ��Fallen old gods who tried to reappear in the world, when your divine power is restored, I will still overpower you!�� Ye Futian said as he looked intently at the Vajra Region Lord, without responding to his questions. The Vajra Region Lord merely stared back at Ye Futian.


    Once, Ye Futian had said the same thing to the ancestor of the Haotian Clan, but would the fallen old gods be so easily threatened?


    ��Now that the great world is open, and the gods reappeared in the world, the day I return will be the day of your death,�� the Vajra Region Lord said to Ye Futian; his tone was extremely aggressive. Since they had foregone all the niceties, there was no need to pretend.


    ��Then, I will wait for that day.�� Ye Futian��s eyes swept over the man, then he walked away and left this place.


    They both knew that if they were to fight with their lives now, there was no telling who lives or who dies. Therefore, until then, they would continue to cultivate!

 Chapter 2706 - Gods’ Statues

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the Old Heaven Court ruins, the cultivators from all the worlds were going inside to explore.


    Many had discovered the relics of the Great Emperors and came here to comprehend and cultivate. Some people had only noticed the battle that involved Ye Futian, and they didn��t pay much attention to it. After all, they were not here to watch him fight.


    ��Look there.�� Ye Futian��s eyes moved all the way to the left to an area full of destroyed buildings. Over there was a terrifying divine flame that filled the sky, coloring the sky red. Even though it was so far away, the heat from it could be felt distinctively.


    ��It should be the cultivation court of a Great Emperor,�� said Taoist Monk Mu, who focused on the place, somewhat intrigued.


    ��The Old Heaven Court under the rule of the Deva must have many top cultivators, and there would also be some Great Emperors among them. It may be a place for the Great Emperors to cultivate,�� Ye Futian concurred.


    ��I��m going there to cultivate,�� Taoist Monk Mu said. Since he cultivates in the art of flames, this was perfect for him.


    ��The Ancient God Clans���� Before Ye Futian had a chance to finish speaking, he heard Taoist Monk Mu say, ��It��s fine since they didn��t dare to mess with us in the previous battle. And did the Palace Lord forget about my special ability?��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly because he did remember. Taoist Monk Mu was best at disguising; his ability to conceal was clever and masterful.


    ��Be careful,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Palace Lord, rest assured, if I encounter any danger, I will extricate myself immediately,�� replied Taoist Monk Mu. He separated from the crowd and moved into the distance.


    The rest of the cultivators continued with Ye Futian. This was a small world, and it was very expansive inside. Ye Futian moved straight ahead, aiming at that elusive Heavenly Palace. Before them, the cultivators of the imperial-level forces had already gone there, as did the cultivators of the Heaven Realm who was in control of the relics of the Old Heaven Court.


    Over there was the core of the Old Heaven Court, and no one knew what was in it.


    Buzz! Just as they were making haste, an incomparably divine light swept ahead of them, covering the boundless space. Ye Futian and the others looked ahead very carefully and saw that the divine light spilled down above the elusive Heavenly Palace and covered the entire world.


    ��The master of the Old Heaven Court.��


    Ye Futian looked there and saw a divine phantom appear between heaven and earth. An unparalleled divine glory was released from the divine phantom above, illuminating this corner of the world.


    The divine phantom ought to be that of the master of the Old Heaven Court, the one who was once the head of the Eight Legions.


    It seemed that Ji Wudao had indeed inherited the will of the Old Heaven Court. However, he was restricted when he was outside the gate of the Heaven Court, so he came inside here to draw upon the will from the emperor of the Old Heaven Court and was able to release an exceptional divine might.


    What was more terrifying was that there were several rays of light that lit up under the divine phantom; each ray was extremely brilliant; it seemed as if each one represented an ancient deity.


    ��Over there���� Supreme Swordlord stared ahead. His heart palpitated. Aside from them, everyone else who entered the Old Heaven Court looked in front with great shock.


    What were they seeing?


    The magnificence of the gods?


    When the relics of the gods appeared, countless cultivators had set foot onto this ancient continent. However, the scene in front of them was still the first time that anyone had seen anything like it, and it was simply too marvelous for words.


    Even the cultivators of the imperial-level forces had never seen such an exceptional sight. They had never seen something even close to this in any of the other territories in the Eight Legions.


    The gods had appeared together.


    Finally, as Ye Futian and the others approached closer, they could see what was ahead.


    There was another sky stairwell there, but it was more like a divine stairwell that led to the Heavenly Palace.


    There were statues in different positions on this sky stairwell, and all these statues were perfectly preserved. At this time, several of the statues lit up with divine light, which contained the will of the Great Emperor.


    ��The gods from heaven!��


    Below, many cultivators had arrived, including the cultivators of the imperial-level forces. They moved forward in the void, but their speed gradually slowed until they eventually stopped. All they did was stare at the shocking scene ahead of them.


    Above the sky stairwell were the statues of the gods in heaven.


    Those statues that lit up with the divine light and released the will of the Great Emperor were the ones that had resonated with the cultivators. They had been awakened.


    ��The gods under the throne of the Old Heaven Court Emperor!��


    Ye Futian and the others arrived as well. Their pace slowed, and their eyes fixed on the shocking scene in front of them. All of them felt that strong impact by what they had seen.


    No one could know or verify how powerful the Heavenly Emperor of the Old Heaven Court was. However, as the first man of the Eight Legions, the Heavenly Emperor might very well be the first person under the Heavenly Path.


    How powerful would such an existence be?


    Under his command, there were many heavenly deities.


    More importantly, the characteristics of these gods seemed to be particularly obvious. There were the god of the sun, the god of the moon, the god of thunder, the god of rain�� These gods all served under the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, and they were the gods in charge of the world.


    Usually, they would not have been here, but in the other realms with their own cultivators. Unless the Heavenly Emperor summoned them, they would not show up at the Heaven Court.


    How terrifying was the battle of the gods in the days of yore?


    The Heavenly Emperor had summoned the gods here to join him in war.


    However, judging from the situation, this was not the battlefield. Although there were some invaders, the place was not completely destroyed. The Heavenly Emperor should have led all the gods for the attack, but they had left a trace of their will here.


    Perhaps they had already realized that this might be a war of apocalyptic scale.


    The Heaven Realm of the later generations seems to be in harmony with the Old Heaven Court in ancient times. Why is this so, and how are the two connected?�� Ye Futian wondered. Could it be that the Heavenly Emperor did not completely perish in the battle of yesteryear?


    But he continued to exist in another form and was revived in later generations. Had he created the Heaven Realm?


    And the nine Star Lords of today in the Heaven Realm seemed to echo the gods of the Old Heaven Court.


    Could it be that they were really of the same heritage?


    There were also the Dark Court and the Asura, which were said to have some connection with each other as well.


    Because of this, the cultivators in the Heaven Realm worked so well with the power inherited from the Old Heaven Court.


    At this moment, Ji Wudao was standing on the sky stairwell. Behind him, the divine phantom of the Heavenly Emperor stood between heaven and earth so that Ji Wudao appeared like a son of heaven.


    It seemed that Ji Wudao had indeed inherited the will of the Heavenly Emperor, or else he would be unable to leverage the power here when he was outside of the Old Heaven Court.


    Now that they were here, this power was getting stronger.


    Furthermore, he was not the only one here. There were also other top figures in the Heaven Realm, and several of them were able to communicate with the gods�� will.


    Donghuang Diyuan and the others stood in different positions below, letting out a terrifying aura. Some of them had imperial arms in hand that emitted divine might while moving in the direction of the sky stairwell.


    The gods�� inheritance!


    ��As I said, Old Heaven Court belongs to the Heaven Realm. Before, I was being generous. If you continue to act so aggressively, don��t blame me for being ruthless,�� Ji Wudao said, and his words caught Ye Futian��s attention.


    Was Ji Wudao being generous before?


    And it wasn��t because he didn��t dare slaughter the lot of them?


    In any case, the Heaven Realm was small in size. Even if all the Great Emperors had reached an agreement not to intervene in the affairs that occurred at this place, Ji Wudao would not dare to kill the top figures of those imperial-level forces or even their heirs.


    Not just him, but those imperial-level forces would also restrain themselves in their confrontations with one another.


    ��I��m afraid the Heaven Realm can��t claim the inheritance of the gods in the Old Heaven Court as their own,�� said Dugu Wuxie as he was holding the imperial arms and looked up at the figure high above the sky.


    Likewise, Ji Wudao looked down at Dugu Wuxie, who was below and said, ��There are Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path, and the Heavenly Realm controls but one of them, and each of you also controls a place of your own, even the Ziwei Segmentum controls the relics of the Mahoraga. Inside those relics, there are also many inheritances of Great Emperors; why don��t you guys go rob them instead?��


    In the distance, Ye Futian frowned when he heard this. He raised his head to glance at Ji Wudao. He saw that the other man��s gaze also passed over him. Was this a deliberate attempt to use him as a distraction?


    However, all the cultivators were here for the sake of the Old Heaven Court, and no matter how much Ji Wudao wanted to distract them, it was probably unlikely.


    These principalities would not let this go quickly, especially now that they had seen the statues of the gods.. They would not give up the Heaven Court. Of course, this was if Ji Wudao could suppress everyone!

 Chapter 2707 - Making an Example?

    One after another, divine light emanated from the statues in the void. The will of the Great Emperor was strong. Each statue represented the existence of a god under the throne of the Heavenly Emperor.


    Ye Futian looked over there, laughing to himself. Did they think he was so easy to bully?


    ��Deva, the head of the Eight Legions, and the Heavenly Emperor of the Old Heaven Court was not something that the Mahoraga Tribe could hope to compare with. Although I am in control of the will of the Mahoraga, I have gained nothing so far. This place is different. The statues of all the gods are perfect and intact, unlike the relics of the Mahoraga, which are all broken remains, and many of them have lost their heritage.��


    Ye Futian continued, ��Look at these statues of the gods; they are all preserved by the ancient gods with their own wills so that they remained intact. Not to mention, there is also the will of the master from the Old Heaven Court. What abilities have you inherited?��


    Since Ji Wudao wanted to use him as a diversion, there was no reason for him to hold back out of sheer politeness.


    In the land of the seven realms, the Heaven Realm was the smallest, but even the Heaven Realm considered itself far stronger than the Ziwei Segmentum. After all, they were an imperial-level force with a profound history, and their lineup was terrifying.


    Now, all the cultivators from the Heaven Realm could fight with the wills from the statues of the gods. Compared to defeating all these cultivators from the Heaven Realm, it was far simpler to kill the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace who were here and not in their respective relics. As long as Ye Futian was killed off, the land of the Mahoraga relics would have no master and could then be plundered at will.


    Ji Wudao��s eyes swept to Ye Futian again. Before he could speak, a statue beneath Ji Wudao lit up with the divine glory of the Great Emperor, which instantly attracted everyone��s attention. All eyes were now looking towards that direction and saw that the statue was extremely majestic, giving everyone a sense of aggressive dominance. Ye Futian recognized the cultivator who was standing in front of the statue.


    They had even fought one another once upon a time.


    It was the Pagoda King��one of the Four Heavenly Kings��whose cultivation was most powerful.


    The instant the divine light erupted, the light of the pagoda swept out from the statue and began merging with him.


    ��This god complements his abilities!�� The cultivators stared at the statue as the will of the Great Emperor surrounded the body of the Pagoda King. Suddenly, there was a terrifying will of the gods that enveloped the boundless space.


    Boom! As a glow illuminated outward, everyone sensed a powerful coercion. They looked up and saw a pagoda had appeared, accompanied by a terrifying storm of a hurricane, which gave rise to the pagoda. The pagoda was becoming larger as it expanded with golden divine light that shrouded the sky and the sun. It was suspended above everyone, pressing down upon them with all its might.


    Likewise, Ye Futian looked up into the firmament and found that he and the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace were underneath the pagoda.


    This was a direct attack meant for him, wanting to make an example of him to deter cultivators from other imperial-level forces so that they would not dare to act prematurely.


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace knew the intention behind the action. Behind Ye Futian, Blind Tie levitated into the air. He held the imperial arms��the Sky Tremor��as an unparalleled figure appeared behind him like a god. Wisps of terrifyingly shocking aura swept out from the hammer itself.


    Boom! Above the sky came a violent roar like thunder from heaven, shaking everyone��s spiritual soul. That gigantic pagoda suddenly moved down as the shadow of the pagoda cast down to suppress everything below and move in on Ye Futian and the others.


    The terrifying pagoda seemed to swallow up Ye Futian and the others in just an instant. But Blind Tie faced it head-on as the Sky Tremor in his hand blasted towards the firmament. A destructive divine light penetrated the sky outright and pierced through the divine light that shot out from the pagoda.


    Below, a devastating storm raged. However, the group of cultivators from Ziwei Segementum stood there, motionless, unaffected by the storm.


    Clang! A loud boom came out, and the terrifying imperial arms slammed on the pagoda, blasting the pagoda high into the sky. But it was not broken. A horrific aura poured ceaselessly into the pagoda, fed by those godly statues positioned on the sky stairwell.


    Buzz! The pagoda was spinning faster and faster, and all 99 levels of the pagoda seemed to have doubled. They slammed down again for the kill. The pagoda turned into a solid entity this time and flew down to imprison Ye Futian and the others.


    The giant pagoda descended exceptionally rapidly, and the sky above Ye Futian and the others darkened. Blind Tie surged into the sky, waving the Sky Tremor in his hand. His body merged with the phantom behind him, creating an unbelievable vision. The Sky Tremor expanded as if it was an imperial arm held by a god from heaven, domineering and threatening.


    Without any additional frills, the Sky Tremor slammed at the pagoda above in the sky as golden radiance burst, blocking the downward movement of the pagoda. When the hammer blasted on the pagoda once again, the earth seemed to be split open, and an unparalleled divine light erupted above the firmament. The vast expanse of the small world was violently shaken.


    However, the cultivators who stood around remained as solidly rooted into the earth as ever. Those who came were top figures so that they could handle the storm created by the battle calmly. Above the sky stairwell, rays of divine light permeated.


    ��The Pagoda King was unable to run past Blind Tie, even with the will of the gods.�� Everyone was surprised when they saw the outcome of the clash. Ye Futian had given the imperial arms he obtained from Tianyan City to Blind Tie.


    So now, what kind of imperial arms would Ye Futian use for himself?


    Naturally, everyone believed that Ye Futian must have obtained an even better imperial arms among the relics of the Mahoraga, and that was the reason he gave the Sky Tremor to Blind Tie.


    The cultivators from the Heaven Realm frowned as they stood upon the sky stairwell. They understood that the original intention for the Pagoda King was to intimidate the cultivators from all sides. However, he was blocked by a cultivator from Ziwei Imperial Palace, and his attack couldn��t even get close to Ye Futian.


    Buzz! At this moment, an even more terrifying aura came from the top of the sky stairwell. In an instant, the sky above was split open, as a storm of destruction was born. Even the pagoda was being covered by it.


    ��Black Almighty is making his move.�� Everyone stared at the area above the sky stairwell. How powerful was the Black Almighty? Previously, he had defeated Fang Ru and battled Di Hao. His combat effectiveness was considerably more horrific.


    At this moment, the statue behind him also lit up. He, who had cultivated to this realm, seemed to be merged with the will inside the statue. His figure was gone in a flash, and he then reappeared high in the sky. He was below the dark brewing storm, looking down at the cultivators.


    The Almighty Divine Swordsmanship was terrifying already in itself, and it contained the power to destroy everything. Not to mention that there were also the wills of the gods from the Old Heaven Court. Every divine light ray from the Almighty Divine Swordsmanship seemed capable of immolating a top existence.


    The cultivators from every major force looked solemn, and they dared not take the situation lightly. If the Black Almighty were to deal them a fatal blow suddenly, it would pose a great danger to them, so they had to be vigilant at all times.


    Behind Ye Futian, someone stepped into the void and came above those from Ziwei Imperial Palace. Above his body, an unparalleled sword will swayed upwards; it was the Taishang Swordsmanship.


    The person who walked out was none other than the Supreme Swordlord himself.


    A divine sword was suspended in front of the Supreme Swordlord as the sword mudra formed by his hands sailed over the divine sword. Suddenly, the terrifying Supreme Sword Will went up against the force, just like the will of the most supreme swordsmanship.


    Before this, he was just a spectator. When he watched the battle between Black Almighty, Fang Ru, and Di Hao, he wondered what would happen if he were to make a move?


    If his Taishang Swordsmanship fought the Almighty Divine Swordsmanship, what would be the outcome?


    Now, this seemed to be a chance for him to find out.


    However, the Black Almighty was resorting to the power of the gods, and he was leveraging the divine power of the imperial arms. However, as far as swordsmanship was concerned, it was still the Almighty Divine Swordsmanship versus the Taishang Swordsmanship.


    Both of them were compelling figures, near-deity existences, and they were now fighting with the power of the Great Emperors. It was inconceivable just how frightening this battle would be. If they hadn��t controlled the ripples from this battle, the wills of these two terrifying swordsmanship were enough to topple this corner of the world.


    The Almighty Divine Sword and the Supreme Divine Sword collided in the void, and an unparalleled aura of destruction pervaded. It was as if everything was about to be shattered.


    Nonetheless, the Almighty Divine Sword was unable to break through the defense and unable to invade inside the place where the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace were located.


    The two significant cultivators had taken action, but the issue was not solved. Their efforts to make an example out of the Ziwei Imperial Palace seemed to have backfired this time..

 Chapter 2708 - What Will You Use to Fight?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Boom! A loud bang was heard as a massive figure came down from the sky stairwell. A statue of a deity behind this person lit up now, and suddenly a ponderous will of the Great Path erupted in an overbearing manner.


    ��Gaia Star Lord!��


    This man was the Gaia Star Lord, one of the nine Star Lords. His strength was incredibly domineering, and he, too, had resonated with a statue of the deity. More importantly, everyone saw that he was not the only one in front of the statue, as there was also another cultivator. Both men were comprehending the same statue at the same time.


    Clearly, that statue of the deity was fitting for the cultivation of both men.


    The strength of the Gaia Star Lord was not considered top-notch; he was only one of the nine Star Lords. Even so, he was a cultivator in the Second Tribulation Plane, and he had the power of the gods attached to him at the moment, which augmented his combat effectiveness to a great degree. Thus, he stepped forward, clearing a path to attack.


    Buzz! A divine light exploded forth, and Fang Cun was seen walking forward. The divine arm��the golden halberd��was in his hand, bursting with a dazzling divine glory from the Great Emperor. The Gaia Star Lord��s eyes sharpened at the sight. Although his realm was higher than that of Fang Cun, who could ignore the might of the divine arms?


    Bang! With a loud bang, an indescribable heavy pressure swept forward, and Fang Cun gave a cold huff. A golden divine aurora shot from his eyes as the golden halberd in his hand lanced forward, colliding with the Mark of the Earth that was blasted down by his opponent.


    A glow lit up this corner of the sky, and it was obvious that the divine seal contained horrific power. Nonetheless, the seal was penetrated by the imperial arms. Then, the Gaia Star Lord gave a great shout, and many Marks of the Earth seemed to overlap one on top of the other and multiplied into many divine seals.


    Fang Cun��s expression remained unchanged, and an even more dazzling divine glory erupted from his person. In front of him, countless golden divine halberds condensed and formed at the same time and slammed forward. The divine glory of the gods cut through the void and split open the souls.


    ��Break for me!�� Fang Cun shouted, and those multiple Marks of the Earth collapsed and shattered, repelling the Gaia Star Lord back to his original position. Behind him, an invisible force held him steady and gave him support.


    ��Master���� The Gaia Star Lord couldn��t help but feel as if he had been beaten. As one of the nine Star Lords from the Heaven Realm, he had not just lost but lost to a youngster.


    That young cultivator seemed to be one of Ye Futian��s disciples.


    As one of the nine Star Lords from the Heaven Realm, his defeat by one of Ye Futian��s disciples would damage his reputation significantly in the Heaven Realm.


    Even though Fang Cun had the help of the imperial arms, his realm was lower. On the other hand, the Gaia Star Lord had leveraged the gods�� will and therefore had no excuses for his defeat.


    The master of the Gaia Star Lord was the Supreme Heavenly King, who ranked first among all four Heavenly Kings. His offensive power was incredibly aggressive, and his strength was unparalleled. Even the Pagoda King was no comparison to him when they had a showdown, which demonstrated just how tyrannical was the power wielded by the Supreme Heavenly King.


    At this moment, he took a step forward which caused the Gaia Star Lord to step back. Suddenly, all the cultivators felt an irresistible coercion in the boundless void. The moment the might of the Supreme Heavenly King bloomed, many thought that they could no longer stand steady upon their own legs. The pressure they were experiencing was enough to suffocate them.


    As the head of the Four Heavenly Kings, his status was only second to that of the Black and White Almighties, as he had already proven the realm of near-deity. Although there was a considerable gap between him and the two Almighty beings, anyone in the realm of near-deity was standing at the pinnacle of the cultivation world.


    The minute he walked out, the Ziwei Imperial Palace was under incredible pressure. After all, who could stop the Supreme Heavenly King?


    The Supreme Swordlord had already fought. Would Xi Chiyao from West Imperial Palace fight him with her imperial arms?


    The other major forces were in no hurry to intervene in this battle; they were not in a rush.


    Initially, the gathering of these principalities was to lay siege and suppress the cultivators from the Heaven Realm so that they could fight for the Old Heaven Court. But now, it had evolved into a battle between the Heaven Realm and the Ziwei Imperial Palace, all because of something Ji Wudao said that instigated this new storm of contention.


    Perhaps the cultivators from the Heaven Realm thought that this battle could be won easily and that they could use the Ziwei Imperial Palace to set an example for the others. However, they were unable to vanquish those from Ziwei Imperial Palace until now.


    However, the two strongest people in the Heaven Realm had made their moves. If the White Almighty were to step in, there would be no doubts whatsoever about the outcome of this battle. Moreover, there was still Ji Wudao, who had inherited the will of the ancient Heavenly Emperor. If he was to jump in, who could stop him?


    If that happened, perhaps all the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum would be wiped out. Even the Supreme Swordlord was hard-pressed to resist that kind of coercion.


    However, the Heaven Realm was not just facing the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace. In their opinion, the Ziwei Imperial Palace was the weakest among all the forces, and other imperial-level forces were lying in wait. Therefore, the Heaven Realm did not dispatch its most powerful aces just yet.


    But they didn��t expect that they would have so much difficulty taking down the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    They had thought it would not take much time to deal with Ziwei Imperial Palace, which was why they decided to use it as a way to enhance their own reputation. But the whole thing had backfired, and now they were stuck in this deadlock.


    Could Xi Chiyao stop the Supreme Heavenly King?


    Everyone knew that Xi Chiyao of the West Imperial Palace was part of the Ancient God Clans, and she carried with her the consciousness of the Great Emperor. In addition, she also had the Raindrop Divine Sword in her possession, which could unleash a powerful force that was no less than those top figures.


    Ye Futian cast a glance her way, saw that next to him, Xi Chiyao took a step forward, wanting to go out and fight.


    Currently, in the camp of Ziwei Imperial Palace, no one else could counter near-deity existences. In proving the realm of the Supreme Heavenly King, she was the only one who could contend with him, so it was natural for her to want to get into the fray.


    However, someone��s hand reached out and stopped her.


    Xi Chiyao looked and saw that Ye Futian still had his eyes on the front but whispered to her, ��I��ll go.��


    Since these cultivators wanted to go against him so badly and intended to use Ziwei Imperial Palace to make their own names, he had no choice but to take a stand himself.


    Ye Futian moved forward and came out from the camp of Ziwei Imperial Palace, and Xi Chiyao watched Ye Futian from behind. She did not doubt Ye Futian��s strength, but in her estimation, Ye Futian should be the last one to step out. That was why she wanted to step out herself and take this fight.


    However, Ye Futian had come out on his own.


    Above the vast void, the battlefield was filled with an astonishing aura, as the entire small world was shrouded by this horrific atmosphere. Many cultivators from different directions were heading this way.


    Ye Futian, too, had stepped forward.


    In the outside world, the confrontations between those top figures were simply shocking. The halo above this legendary figure from the Divine Prefecture seemed to have dimmed compared to Ji Wudao, Donghuang Diyuan, and all the other notable figures.


    But now, Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, seemed reluctant to stay on the sidelines any longer. In the face of near-deity existences, he was ballsy enough to step forward.


    The near-deity aura of Supreme Heavenly King pressed down and shrouded Ye Futian. The cultivators in the surrounding area felt a haze hovered above Ye Futian.


    Donghuang Diyuan and the others looked at him as well. Ye Futian wanted to fight a near-deity?


    Supreme Heavenly King looked at Ye Futian, who was below. Just now, Ye Futian��s disciple had defeated his disciple.


    ��What can you use to fight?�� The Supreme Heavenly King questioned him as he stood in the sky above. When he spoke, it felt as if the might of heaven had descended and landed upon Ye Futian. At this moment, Ye Futian seemed to be facing a god. To everyone around them, Ye Futian seemed remarkably insignificant.


    In front of a near-deity, one would naturally appear small and inconsequential.


    Even Ji Wudao and Donghuang Diyuan would not be able to shake an existence of this caliber without resorting to the power of their inheritance. Ji Wudao had inherited the power of the Heavenly Emperor, and Donghuang Diyuan had inherited the Power of the Ancestral Dragon.


    What about Ye Futian?


    As Supreme Heavenly King said, what did Ye Futian have to fight with a near-deity existence like him?!

 Chapter 2709 - Fighting Against Near-Deity Cultivators

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Raising his head, Ye Futian stared at Supreme Heavenly King, who walked out from the sky stairwell.


    What would Ye Futian fight him with?


    ��You will know once you have a taste of my attacks,�� Ye Futian replied.


    Supreme Heavenly King glared at Ye Futian as he took a step forward. At once, a godly might was unleashed from his form, and a bizarre phenomenon took place in the sky. An isolated dimension was formed above the latter��s head. A pantheon of gods was looking at the ground condescendingly from a high altitude, releasing the pressure of their might.


    Every figure of the gods was diffusing an intimidating aura. Echoes of their voices were heard throughout the void as if they were roaring. Many cultivators on the ground felt feeble as they took in the scenery before their eyes. They could feel their hearts pounding frantically in their chests as they thought the might of the gods suppressing them, causing them to feel hopeless and have the urge to prostrate themselves to worship the deities in the sky.


    The entourage of gods was surrounding the paramount of the Four Heavenly Kings in Heaven Realm, Supreme Heavenly King.


    Ye Futian seemed minuscule within the Supreme Domain. Although alone, the Divine Light of the Great Path flowed around him, with his body as the center. It formed a rule unconstrained by any suppressions of the Great Paths in the world. Thus, he would not fall on his knees and worship the Gods.


    Raising his head, Ye Futian looked into the void where the overwhelming Supreme Domain extended its influence. He was rooted to the spot and would not incline his body even if the sky were to fall on him.


    ��Hmm?��


    The cultivators at the scene were staring at Ye Futian, who stood unwaveringly in the face of Supreme Heavenly King, a Near-Deity Plane cultivator. A hint of astonishment flashed across their eyes when they noticed the Great Path Domain became a separate entity around Ye Futian��s body as if it was the Path of his own.


    Ye Futian was on his way to become a Near-Deity Plane cultivator, and he had arrived before the threshold of the next tier.


    A deep, rumbling sound came from above Ye Futian��s head, whereby a humongous countenance that belonged to a God could be seen in the void. Up there, the phantoms of the Gods gathered in a place and directed the Gods�� Might at the enormous face. They would then let out a low-pitched roar toward Ye Futian and turn it into the Authority of Heaven.


    Within seconds, a storm hit the entire vast atmosphere of the domain. Upon seeing that, countless cultivators unleashed the Force of the Great Path to defend themselves from the Authority of Heaven. Even so, a great many of them could not hold their own against the violent storm. Hence, the kind of pressure Ye Futian, who stood at the center of the Storm of the Great Path, was facing was unimaginable.


    He stood firmly on the same spot. The Divine Light circulated his entire body without being affected by the surrounding in the slightest.


    Clash!


    A loud boom filled the air��one sounded like a thunderclap. It impaired the hearing of numerous cultivators, whose spiritual souls were also shaken tremendously. The next moment, a massive palm could be seen falling from the firmament, directed at where Ye Futian stood. It looked like a Giant Palm of Tianshen that attempted to annihilate everything on the ground underneath the sky.


    Before the enormous palm reached the land, a loud rumble could be heard from above everyone��s head ceaselessly. Meanwhile, cracks began to appear on the ground as the terrifying noise caused by the repercussion of the falling palm was heard. The force of the fast-approaching palm was terrifyingly immense.


    Supreme Heavenly King��the paramount of the Four Heavenly Kings��was known for his domineering demeanor and peerless strength. One of his disciples was even named Gaia Star Lord in Heaven Realm. Knowing just this, one could imagine how mighty he was.


    Could Ye Futian parry such a powerful attack?


    Ye Futian��s form seemed even smaller in the face of the imminent Supreme Great Palm of Tianshen. It wasn��t easy to make out his silhouette as he was covered by the palm. The Divine Light gleaming around his body helped the others to notice he was still standing.


    Could he escape from the Giant Palm��s span with his Celerity?


    Whoosh! At that moment, a magnificent Storm of Rule Power blew around Ye Futian. Immediately, a significant number of cultivators turned to look at him. The onlookers saw a breathtaking Divine Ruler in the middle of the gale.


    The Divine Ruler was launched toward the menacing palm falling from the sky. Before they knew it, everyone caught sight of the Giant Palm being pierced through, and ruptures formed throughout the visible parts of it. Shortly after, the entire Supreme Great Palm shattered as a loud explosion was heard.


    The intimidating aura disappeared as the storm slowly dissipated. Many cultivators gaped at Ye Futian in bewilderment. Their hearts were pounding like mad as they took in the sight of his silhouette.


    The Supreme Great Palm of Tianshen was smashed to smithereens by a ruler.


    Not only did Ye Futian not flee from the spot with his Celerity, but he even launched a counter-attack. The Divine Light everyone saw earlier was emitted from the ruler in his hand.


    He had successfully crushed an attack by Near-Deity Plane cultivators. The power he exhibited earlier was comparable to that of Donghuang Diyuan, who borrowed the Power of the Ancestral Dragon.


    ��Is that an Imperial Arm?�� Everyone set their eyes on the weapon in Ye Futian��s hand. There was a distinct aura around the Divine Ruler. However, it was not an Imperial Arm.


    It��s a Divine Item. Countless cultivators thought to themselves. After scrutinizing, they concluded that it was indeed a Divine Item��one left behind by a God. Although it was not an Imperial Arm, it was still reasonably powerful.


    ��Hmm?��


    One of the cultivators, who entered the Shrine of the Karura before, furrowed their brows.


    ��Back when I went to the Ruins of the Karura for cultivation, I had heard of the body of the Demonic Lord being sealed by the Divine Ruler,�� a cultivator announced, staring at the ruler in Ye Futian��s hand. Upon hearing that, numerous people��s hearts skipped a beat. Still, plenty of cultivators were informed about the fact, especially those at the Emperor-level. These individuals got to know after exchanging information regarding their respective ruins.


    To think that the Divine Ruler that sealed the Demonic Lord would be in Ye Futian��s possession!


    ��This was something that happened many years ago. At that time, a group of Devil World��s cultivators, who were heading toward brought him to the Mahoraga Tribe, brought him to the Ruin of the Demonic Lord. After that, the Divine Ruler was nowhere to be found. The Devil Imperial Palace��s cultivators also began their closed-door training.�� At once, someone turned their eyes to a Demonic Cultivator, who was also among the crowd.


    ��Shouldn��t the Demonic Cultivators be well versed about this?�� a person asked. Even the Emperor-level cultivators were very much interested in this topic. So they were focusing on the crowd as well.


    How powerful would the Divine Ruler be if it could seal even the likes of the Devil Emperor?


    ��This is good stuff,�� Supreme Heavenly King peered at Ye Futian and commented. If the Divine Ruler could seal the Demonic Lord as rumored, it was indeed worthy of the former��s time to take a good look at it.


    Initially, they only launched the attack at Ye Futian to intimidate him. Its purpose was to shift the other cultivators�� focus from them so that the former would head toward the Ruins of the Mahoraga. Yet, it never crossed their minds that Ye Futian was carrying the Divine Ruler that once sealed the Demonic Lord with him.


    If that were the bona fide Divine Ruler, things would get interesting.


    ��Hand it over!�� Supreme Heavenly King commanded and lifted his hand. In a flash, the Giant Palm of Tianshen could be seen descending from the sky toward the location where Ye Futian stood, attempting to seize to Divine Ruler from him forcefully.


    After enlarging the Divine Ruler, Ye Futian turned to look at the sky as he swung the weapon in his hand toward the Giant Palm that was fast approaching. And as expected, the Giant Palm was broken into pieces upon impact. It could not handle the attack by the Divine Ruler at all. Almost none of the Forces of the Great Path could be unscathed after being hit by it.


    ��What a unique Force of the Great Path,�� someone commented while staring at the Divine Ruler that filled with unparalleled energy.


    Thump!


    A spine-chilling aura filled the atmosphere of the domain following the booming noise. After lifting their heads, everyone saw Supreme Heavenly King chanting runes to form a spell. Simultaneously, the Might of the Gods gradually became more overwhelming in the sky. Without delay, the Gods could be seen levitating at 36 different locations and remained there.


    ��Let��s get out of here.�� Most of the crowds retreated, attempting to flee from this blood-curdling domain. However, they realized that they could not leave the domain the 36 Gods had covered with their power. The onlookers could only unleash the Forces of the Great Path to defend themselves as they were left without a choice.


    As Xi Chiyao swung her Raindrop Divine Sword, rain fell in the area where the Ziwei Imperial Palace group stood, covering the entire space like the aftermath of an attack.


    After creating a resonance, the Gods in the sky effused a Supreme God��s Might, turning it into a domain that isolated the entire space within from the outside. On the other hand, Supreme Heavenly King remained high up, lowering his head to gaze at Ye Futian condescendingly. He did not stop incanting the runes. The Divine Sound he produced was brimmed with God��s Might, which was unbearable to the ears.


    Ye Futian tossed the Divine Ruler in his hand upward, and it hovered above his head. All of a sudden, a terrifying domain manifested with his body as the pivot. It began discharging Divine Light, and countless silhouettes of the ruler sprung up around him. It looked like the number of rulers increased.


    Swoosh! The Divine Ruler emitted a brilliant Divine Light that beamed straight into the sky. Soon, it covered the entire domain within.


    Upon seeing that, the Gods unleashed the Supreme Great Palm that caused the whole atmosphere to tremble and directed it at Ye Futian.


    ��Go!��


    As Ye Futian spoke, the Divine Rulers around him broke the dimension barrier and disappeared into thin air.

 Chapter 2710 - The Power of the Divine Ruler

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A radiant Divine Light beamed across the space, and a violent roar followed it. The Light of the Divine Ruler penetrated through the Giant Palm released by a God. It was as if an unstoppable blade had cut through the latter like a knife through butter.


    The Giant Palm of Tianshen was pierced completely by the Divine Ruler, with countless cultivators witnessing the happening. When the Divine Light illuminated, every resistance was futile. Not even the Supreme Great Palm could escape the fate from being shattered.


    The Divine Ruler levitated in the sky after the Giant Palm was disintegrated. It encircled Ye Futian as he was in midair. While the enlarged Divine Ruler remained at a high altitude, the remaining still in the void resonated with it as the central point.


    ��What an unbelievable power!�� The hearts of the onlookers palpitated like crazy as they gaped at the Divine Ruler. To think that he could crush an attack by a Near-Deity Cultivator in full force! At that time, the remaining Divine Rulers in the void were brimmed with Sword Will. It happened because the Power of the Divine Ruler assumed the form of swordsmanship.


    Bang! At that moment, the Divine Ruler above Ye Futian��s head pointed at the void. As the result of the resonance, the remaining ones directed themselves at the center of the sky. Lifting his head, Ye Futian looked into the heavens. In the blink of an eye, he leaped upward and shot himself above the clouds.


    With that, multiple rays of the Light of the Divine Ruler broke the dimension barrier and fired at the domain created by the phantoms of the Gods.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Countless Divine Rulers gleamed with Divine Light as they penetrated the domain. Shortly after, the enlarged Divine Ruler also drilled through the domain and showed up there. It went on until all of them successfully infiltrated the domain.


    Ye Futian hovered beside the Divine Ruler and reached a high altitude. When he lowered his head to stare at Supreme Heavenly King, he looked like an invincible and almighty divine being.


    It was a spectacular sight to behold.


    It was comparable to the fight between Donghuang Diyuan and Ji Wudao. At that moment, the manner of Ye Futian as he fought against a Near-Deity Plane Cultivator could hold a candle to Donghuang Diyuan and other similar. If one were to nitpick that the former was using the Power of the Divine Ruler, they had to consider the fact that the latter did borrow the Power of the Ancestral Dragon as well.


    Besides, the fight was not even over yet. Was Ye Futian planning to bring down Supreme Heavenly King, a Near-Deity Cultivator?


    Supreme Heavenly King raised his head to look at Ye Futian. As it stood, the former did not expect the fight to be this difficult. Indeed, it had never crossed his mind that the latter could take his all-out attack, let alone breaking his domain and getting out of it.


    This fight had gone out of hand. Not only did he not intimidate anyone, but it seemed like he only helped to show the night of Ziwei Imperial Palace cultivators.


    If they could not wipe the floor with the Ziwei Imperial Palace bunch, they would have a hard time securing the Ruins of Old Heaven Court for themselves.


    Suddenly, a beaming Divine Light brightened up the entire sky. The Divine Rulers above Ye Futian��s head were gleaming with rays that reached every part of the atmosphere. At once, countless Divine Rulers circled his body and covered the entire firmament, turning into the Divine Ruler Domain.


    Clang! Endless Divine Rulers moved toward the head of Supreme Heavenly King. As the Divine Light shone, he was overshadowed by it. A faint pressure could be felt from it, though it was unlike the overwhelming one that he released earlier. Yet, it was enough to make him feel threatened.


    ��What kind of Will is that?�� Supreme Heavenly King murmured, his brows knitted together. Apart from him, the other cultivators were wondering in bewilderment as to what sort of power Ye Futian wielded.


    ��Attack!��


    After Ye Futian spoke, the Light of Divine Ruler filled the entire atmosphere from the sky and formed an isolated domain. Supreme Heavenly King felt a fast-approaching destructive force that disregarded distance when all the Divine Rulers fell from the heavens.


    ��Mmm?�� Pagoda King and Melody King, who were standing on the sky stairwell, frowned with uneasiness when they took in the sight of it. After all, it was not something unfamiliar to them. They had firsthand experience of how powerful the attack of Ye Futian��s swordsmanship, Tianzhu, was.


    Yet, at the moment, the Divine Swordsmanship Attack was radiating the Light of the Divine Ruler.


    As expected, the sight before their eyes was the Divine Swordsmanship Attack created by Ye Futian, Tianzhu.


    They noticed numerous swords within the Light of the Divine Ruler. Both the sword and ruler gradually merged into one without any rejection. Immediately after, all of them fell from the sky at a breakneck speed, disregarding the distance in between.


    Boom! A domain manifested around Supreme Heavenly King; it had a divine feel to it. The God��s Might within the domain was terrifying. Soon, many Gods appeared inside it and waited for their orders. When the Divine Light of the Great Path glinted, a spear came into existence in Supreme Heavenly King��s hand. It was overflowing with Divine Power.


    Endless Divine Rulers penetrated his domain from the sky. Upon seeing that, he raised the domineering spear in his hand toward the void. Immediately, the Supreme God��s Might filled the air. The pantheon of Gods each held a spear in their hands and charged upward. As they did, many terrifyingly destructive Divine Lights shot toward the sky and caused a violent bang in the atmosphere.


    The spears broke the barrier into the void and clashed head-on with the Divine Ruler. The two different wills dissipated upon collision.


    Bang! A petrifying sound shook the entire atmosphere. Supreme Heavenly King transfigured into a God and carried the spear to break the barrier of space and time. The violent storm stirred by his action caused a crack in the fabric of space itself as if the sky would be torn open. The strength of his attack was unimaginable.


    How powerful would the attack of a Near-Deity Cultivator be after being charged up?


    Cultivators of his tier would rarely exercise close-quarter combat. However, Supreme Heavenly King was unparalleled in strength and had invincible Divine Power.


    Rumble�� A line began appearing in the sky as an exceptional Divine Light of the Great Path shone and rested on Ye Futian. He instantly stretched his hand out and grabbed an enlarged Divine Ruler.


    The brilliant light flowed from his body and merged with the Divine Ruler, turning it into an accurate Imperial Arm.


    Countless light shone on Ye Futian��s body, transforming his form into something new. It was no longer a physical vessel made of flesh and blood but the Great Path itself.


    After a Light of the Divine Ruler flashed, his silhouette disappeared from everyone��s eyes as he flew downward.


    Two inimitable lights collided with each other and disintegrated all things surrounding them. The sight of it was comparable to doomsday. Even the Force of the Great Path was utterly destroyed, leaving the two of them covered in the Divine Light. The aftermath of their collision stirred up a Great Path superstorm that obliterated everything on its path.


    Still, the onlookers continued to set their eyes above the sky where the clash occurred��the fight between Ye Futian and a Near-Deity Cultivator.


    With a Near-Deity cultivation level, Supreme Heavenly King did not borrow the Power of the Great Emperor. But of course, he would not do so. After all, his opponent was a junior cultivator whose cultivation level was slightly lower than his.


    Should he win the fight by using the Will of the Great Emperor, he would lose his dignity.


    Clang! Frightening sound of clashing could be heard in the storm. It was the sound of the Divine Ruler and Supreme Overlord Spear hitting against each other. The people on the sidelines noticed a crack on the domineering spear after the strike against the Divine Light of the Divine Ruler. Simultaneously, they heard a crisp sound from the Overlord Spear.


    The spear might be breaking!

 Chapter 2711 - The Rising of Ziwei

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    A turquoise beam of light lit up as the Divine Ruler came down from the sky. As the clicking sound went on, everyone��s attention remained on the spot where it originated. The Divine Ruler did not slow down when the spear Supreme Heavenly King created was split open in half. Eventually, the spear crumbled slowly and was reduced to nothingness.


    ��He broke the spear!��


    The onlookers�� hearts skipped a beat at the sight of a Near-Deity Cultivator��s spear being destroyed. And it belonged to Supreme Heavenly King, who was unrivaled in strength and matchless in his Might, to top it all off. As the paramount of Heaven Realm��s Four Heavenly Kings, he was known for his authoritative Divine Power. Additionally, he had powerful disciples like Gaia Star Lord and so on.


    Yet, no one had expected that Ye Futian could crush Supreme Heavenly King��s attack in a head-on battle. Not only did the Divine Ruler not remain there, but it continued to shoot downward.


    The Divine Ruler annihilated everything on its path. Nothing could remain��not even the law power. A silhouette of a sword could be seen within the Divine Ruler. The sight was created by Ye Futian��s Heaven Slaying Swordsmanship.


    Supreme Heavenly King pushed his palm upward, which resonated with the Gods, creating a Divine domain covering a vast space and suppressing the atmosphere. Nevertheless, the Divine Ruler continued to destroy everything along its way. Even the Divine domain suffered the same fate.


    The intimidating Light of the Divine Ruler traversed the void, pushing Supreme Heavenly King backward. It continued to shoot downward until it hit the ground and formed a massive pit. As a result, the entire area was turned into a complete wasteland.


    ��He repelled a Near-Deity Cultivator!�� Everyone��s eyes were set on the fight as they witnessed Supreme Heavenly King being forced back by Ye Futian. Although the former was not defeated, it still did not change that he was driven back.


    Everyone could hardly believe the sight of Ye Futian warding off a Near-Deity Cultivator in a direct confrontation.


    In other words, Ye Futian already had the strength to defeat a Near-Deity Cultivator. Needless to say, his combat ability had reached the same tier as well. So, he could finally be compared with Donghuang Diyuan and Ji Wudao.


    ��What a splendid fight,�� the crowd murmured. At the same time, many lamented that the manifestation of the Ruins of the Gods was the beginning of a new era where great individuals would emerge one after another, making history.


    Ji Wudao, Donghuang Diyuan, Di Hao, Ye Futian, and the likes would replace the current Six Great Emperors as prominent figures in the future. Still, who could become the next Great Emperor following Donghuang the Great?


    After hundreds of years, the manifestation of the Ruins of the Gods undoubtedly kicked off another new era. It would be an era of the emergence of a new emperor.


    The crowds could see Ji Wudao, Donghuang Diyuan, and Ye Futian becoming the big guns of a brand new era.


    Furthermore, several big names still did not show up yet.


    The remnants of Devil World, the Reapers of the Dark Court, and the likes would also be formidable forces.


    The entire space became dead silent after Supreme Heavenly King was being fended off. Countless onlookers looked into the void where a white-haired figure could be seen. Then, they recalled that Ziwei Imperial Palace had never once suffered defeat up until this point.


    The battle between the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty and Supreme Swordlord ended. The cultivators of Heaven Realm retreated to the sky stairwell and lowered their heads to stare at Ye Futian and the others.


    Was he trying to display the might of Ziwei Imperial Palace?


    The onslaught by Heaven Realm��s cultivators showed everyone the strength of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Previously, everyone knew Heaven Realm was a powerful force, though small in number. Yet, the onlookers witnessed that apart from Heaven Realm, the strength of Ziwei Imperial Palace was in a class of its own as well.


    Even though Ziwei Imperial Palace made its name in Original Realm by beating back the Ancient God Clan of Divine Prefecture several times, people generally still regarded it as a force of the Ancient God Clan level or slightly better. No one had ever thought of it as a force comparable to the Emperor-level forces.


    Ye Futian made everyone realize a fact through this battle. Although they did not have a Great Emperor among their ranks, Ziwei Imperial Palace, under his leadership, could hold a candle to the other Emperor-level forces after being transformed and trained in the Ruins of the Gods.


    The might of Ye Futian, the affiliation with Supreme Swordlord, the alliance with West Imperial Palace, and the forces Ziwei Imperial Palace cultivated, like Four Corner Village and the former Ziwei Imperial Palace, were the assets that formed a rising superpower.


    All of them had underestimated Ziwei Imperial palace.


    It was not an accident that a force not at Emperor-level like them could seize the Ruins of the Mahoraga.


    They were indeed the strongest out there other than the Emperor-level forces.


    Besides, the Lost Clan, guarding Ziwei Segmentum, still had not shown up.


    But they would come to this place one day.


    Thus, the strength of Ziwei Imperial Palace would only continue to increase.


    This was the beginning of a great and brand new era. The forces that remained mediocre would be eliminated by natural selection. Still, the rate of Ziwei Imperial Palace��s growth was way beyond everyone��s expectations. Before they even realized its threat, it had already emerged as a mighty force.


    ��The Four Heavenly Kings of Heaven Realm is nothing impressive,�� Ye Futian uttered as he stared at Supreme Heavenly King. His silver hair was ruffled by the wind while standing in the void. The Divine Light that shone around his body only further enhanced his greatness.


    Ye Futian had the right to say that because he had just beaten back Supreme Heavenly King. That was to say, none of the Four Heavenly Kings could rival him.


    If anyone could take him down, it would only be the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty and the successor of Heaven Realm, Ji Wudao.


    Initially, Ye Futian did not plan to put himself under the spotlight. He was following the crowd and see if they could try their luck in the Ruins of the Old Heaven Court. Yet, the forces of Heaven Realm started a fight and even set their eyes on his group, attempting to use his people to intimidate others by attacking them.


    In that case, they would have no choice but to face the challenge.


    The Heaven Realm Cultivators faced a dilemma at this moment. They would defeat Ziwei Imperial Palace��s forces. After all, they had the statues of Tianshen behind them. So, they could lend the power from the statues. Besides, they did not even send out their strongest forces, White Almighty and Ji Wudao, yet.


    However, their opponents were not just the Ziwei Imperial Palace bunch. Their objective was to intimidate everyone. But if they could win the battle against Ziwei Imperial Palace by relying on White Mighty and Ji Wudao, things would only get ugly should the other powerful cultivators join in the fight.


    What could Heaven Realm fight them with if that happened?


    All the other forces were eyeing these two forces while watching the fight. They were waiting to see how the battle would play out.


    Naturally, Supreme Heavenly King realized that as well. Dragging the fight would put them at a disadvantage. At that very moment, the assignment was no longer just winning or losing but to safeguard the ruins from the other forces.


    At once, Supreme Heavenly King returned to the sky stairwell and came to a halt before the statue of Tianshen. Upon his arrival, the statue emitted a Divine Light and surrounded him.


    The sight of it caused the onlookers�� pupils to shrink in stupefaction.


    Supreme Heavenly King wanted to use the Power of Tianshen to defeat Ye Futian.


    He had lost his interest to continue the battle.. At this point, he wanted to crush Ziwei Imperial Palace, making it vanish into thin air with absolute power.

 Chapter 2712 - Who Is Controlling the Gods

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    How powerful would they be if a Near-Deity Cultivator borrowed the Power of the Statue of Tianshen?


    Black Almighty Great Skylord drew power from it when he fought with Supreme Swordlord. Even a top-tier cultivator like the latter needed an Imperial Arm to hold his ground against the former.


    Now that Supreme Heavenly King wanted to extract the Power of the Statue of Tianshen to fight Ye Futian, how could he contend?


    An overpowering pressure filled the entire vast space. The Statue of Tianshen was gleaming with Divine Light. In the next moment, a phantom of an Ancient Tianshen with a height of approximately over 300 meters manifested. It brimmed with overwhelming Divine Power.


    That Ancient Tianshen was the one Gaia Star Lord had communicated with. Both master and disciple communed with and drew power from the same statue. This being must be a symbol of strength to the Gods.


    An intimidating force suppressed all the cultivators at the scene. Supreme Heavenly King��s already frightening Might only further intensified after drawing power from the Statue of Tianshen.


    If nothing went south, there would be no suspense for the result of this battle.


    When the onlookers turned to look at Ye Futian, they noticed that he vanished into thin air out of the blue. Everyone was frowning with discomposure as they searched for his whereabouts.


    Soon, their pupils shrunk as they set their eyes on a location. Their hearts skipped a beat when they saw where Ye Futian was.


    Did he have a screw loose?


    Ye Futian stood upright on the sky stairwell.


    Not only did he not retreat, but he even climbed up the sky stairwell. He moved closer toward his opponent in the presence of the Power of Tianshen.


    Was he out of his mind?


    On second thought, Ye Futian seemed to understand that he would have no place to escape if Supreme Heavenly King were to crush him with the Power of Tianshen. Should that be the case, he might as well face it like a man.


    However, the onlookers were proved wrong about Ye Futian when they saw his body glinting with Divine Light. Several rays of turquoise light covered the whole atmosphere, including the Statue of Tianshen. When the light touched the statue, it penetrated the latter.


    ��What is he trying to do?��


    Everyone laid their eyes on Ye Futian, who was on the sky stairwell. Even the Heaven Realm Cultivators were staring at him. However, the Gods gazed at him in disdain, assuming he was only a worm looking for his death.


    ��Are you tired of living?�� Supreme Heavenly King emanated his God��s Might as he glared at the approaching Ye Futian. How dare he gets so near to me?


    As he unleashed his Might, an authentic Divine Power was released from the Statue of Tianshen at the same time. Ye Futian felt the pressure instantly from where he stood. He knew that escaping from the reach of God��s Might was impossible.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian had never planned to flee from there. In the next moment, he expanded his aura until it reached the Statue of Tianshen. Meanwhile, his Divine Consciousness went into the statue as well. There was no hesitation or fear in his eyes as he looked forward at the scene.


    Raising his head, Ye Futian peered at the phantom of Tianshen while the latter lowered its eyes to look at the lower plane. Their gazes were met.


    Rumble! Everyone was stunned when they heard the eerie noise. Many were baffled when they noticed the Statue of Tianshen behind Supreme Heavenly King trembled precariously.


    Supreme Heavenly King furrowed his brows as he sensed something amiss. Soon, colors slowly drained from his face.


    What in the world was happening?


    He felt his connection with the statue was gradually becoming weaker.


    He realized that Ye Futian was not paying attention to him when he turned to gape at the latter, who did not remove his gaze from the phantom of Tianshen in the void. While everyone was glancing at him in bafflement, Ye Futian, his eyes remaining on the Statue of Tianshen, announced, ��Ancient Tianshen of Old Heaven Court, prudently consider who should be the one to inherit your Divine Power!��


    Roar! A spine-chilling Divine Power emanated from the Statue of Tianshen and the tremor further intensified. The hearts of the crowd were pounding like crazy at the sight of it.


    Was Ye Futian attempting to seize control of the statue?


    Still, wasn��t Ye Futian one step behind? Before his arrival, Supreme Heavenly King had already communicated with the Will of the Statue, awakening it to draw the Divine Power of Tianshen from it.


    Was Ye Futian going to subjugate it the first thing after he came?


    Was his aptitude in this area that impressive?


    Ye Futian discharged a mighty Divine Power around him, though the overwhelming God��s Might remained. He stood upright without a single wavering. With his eyes laying on the phantom of Tianshen, the Force of Great Path seeped through the statue from his body.


    He could commune with the Divine Ruler with his power. Both the Divine Ruler and the Demonic Blade could sense the force within him.


    Therefore, it should come as no surprise that the Statue of Tianshen could do the same.


    The Power of the Spirit merged with the Light of the Divine Ruler and flooded into the statue. Immediately, he sensed the Will of Tianshen and noticed that the Ancient Tianshen had sealed itself within the Power of the Statue. Upon sensing the Will, Ye Futian caught sight of a gigantic Tianshen, who stood tall under the sky, possessing peerless strength while holding a battleax.


    Although the Wills remained in the statues, they did not leave any Imperial Arm. Perhaps, the Ancient Tianshen had brought the Imperial Arms to the battlefield then. These were the remains as they might have gone to the war knowing they would never return.


    Ye Futian��s Divine Power awakened the power within the statue and assimilated it with his. Eventually, Supreme Heavenly King felt like he was expelled from the statue as he slowly lost his connection with it.


    Boom! The Statue of Tianshen stopped quivering after the deep boom was heard.


    Supreme Heavenly King��s hearts palpitated violently. He no longer had his dignified look but stared at Ye Futian in disbelief.


    How did Ye Futian do it?


    Ye Futian paid him no heed but looked at the Statue of Tianshen behind him and declared, ��Ancient Tianshen, I hereby announce that I will inherit your Divine Power!��


    The statue resonated with Ye Futian right after he spoke. A Divine Light suddenly covered both of them. Shortly after, the Divine Power within Ye Futian was stirred up and circulated inside him frantically. A mountainous phantom of Tianshen materialized while the multitude of cultivators looked in astonishment. It appeared to be more massive and gallant than before as if it was resurrected.


    Ji Wudao, who remained at the same spot in the sky, could not help but draw in a cold breath. Naturally, he was observing Ye Futian��s actions and was greatly confounded.


    Bang! A deafening sound could be heard when Ye Futian struck his palm forward. Immediately, the enormous phantom of Tianshen released a colossal Divine Seal and directed it at Supreme Heavenly King.


    They were only a stone��s throw away from one another. Supreme Heavenly King still did not recover from his dazed state. So, he raised his hand to guard himself reflexively, and a violent clash could be heard.. Supreme Heavenly King, a Near-Deity Cultivator, was hurled back to a great distance by the overwhelming Divine Power.

 Chapter 2713 - Gathering of Prominent Figures

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The events occurring before the eyes of the crowd were like a dream. The Supreme Heavenly King wanted to use the power of Tianshen to defeat Ye Futian. It appeared as though this battle was reaching its inevitable conclusion, in which the Near-Deity Plane Supreme Heavenly King would crush Ye Futian.


    However, the outcome turned out that the Supreme Heavenly King lost to Ye Futian. The power of Tianshen that he relied on was instead stolen by the latter.


    Right now, Ye Futian stood there, bathed in Tianshen Divine Halos on the sky stairwell. He was shining with brilliant light.


    The Supreme Heavenly King coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood. His face was pale, but the damage he felt internally was even more intense. The impact of this battle on him was immense. It was not merely as simple as a defeat for him. He had communicated with the ancient will of Tianshen in the golem, and it was compatible with the power he cultivated.


    However, how did the battle end like this?


    He did not understand. How did he lose? What went wrong?


    How did Ye Futian seize the power of Tianshen in the golem?


    He was not the only one who did not understand. The cultivators present were also baffled. They looked over where Ye Futian stood in astonishment. How did he manage to pull it off?


    Rumble. A terrifying pressure descended on Ye Futian��s figure. In the sky above him, the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty released intense pressure. It was not just the two of them. At the top of the sky stairwell, Ji Wudao similarly had a gaze as sharp as daggers as he looked down at Ye Futian��s silhouette.


    ��How did you do that?�� asked Ji Wudao loudly. His voice shook the space like the voice of the Heavenly Emperor. It reverberated throughout the area. The entire independent world trembled due to his voice. It contained truly unparalleled power.


    This was the Heavenly Emperor, Ji Wudao. He controlled the power of the Heavenly Emperor of the Old Heaven Court. He appeared to be the successor of the heavens.


    Even though Ye Futian now had the power of the ancient Tianshen in the golem, he still felt an overbearing pressure acting on him right now. He raised his head and glanced at the silhouette in the sky. Ji Wudao��s cultivation was far more profound than the Supreme Heavenly King��s. The might of the Heavenly Emperor was unfathomable.


    Moreover, Ji Wudao could better utilize this power than the Supreme Heavenly King.


    ��Since you can do it, why can��t I?�� retorted Ye Futian as he raised his chin.


    Ji Wudao glared at Ye Futian. He was not satisfied with this answer. The teachings of the Heaven Court were compatible with that of House Deva. The current Heaven Court was the rightful successor of the ancient House Deva, which was the head of the Eight Legions that served under the Heavenly Path. In other words, the members of the Heaven Court were the successors of the Heavenly Path.


    The members of the Heaven Court were supposed to stand head and shoulders above all the other cultivators. They represented the peak of the cultivation world. Ji Wudao did everything to reclaim the glory that belonged to the Heaven Court. Under his leadership, the Heaven Court would once again stand at the peak of the world and rule over all living beings. They would be in charge of maintaining worldly order.


    Be it Donghuang Diyuan, Di Hao, or Ye Futian, they all had to make way for the Heaven Court to regain its reign.


    Nobody could stop Ji Wudao. He was determined to finish what she had not been able to complete. This was his calling.


    He was also sure that he could achieve his goal.


    Ji Wudao looked at the white-haired figure beneath him. Even though he had seen Ye Futian a few times, it seemed like he had always underestimated the latter. Now, this Proud Son of Heaven from the Original Realm was powerful enough to pose a threat to the Heaven Court.


    Buzz. Right now, a divine halo lit up at the end of the sky stairwell. A domineering divine light enveloped the vast space. The divine light propagated and shielded the sun. In an instant, the entire region of the Old Heaven Court was covered by the light. Sensing the overbearing pressure, even the cultivators far away in other places looked up at the sky.


    A god seemed to have descended upon the region.


    The phantasm of the old Heavenly Emperor appeared, and it was blinding. As the divine light rained down, a shocking scene played out in the sky. A scroll painting unfolded in the heavens. The past was reenacted in the scroll; the heavens collapsed, and the ground split open. Endless divine light poured down from the cracks in the sky. The reenactment was a scene from the War of the Gods.


    In the painting, the Heavenly Emperor summoned all the Tianshens back to the Old Heaven Court. All of them gathered at the sky stairwell. Awe-inspiring Tianshen passageways were activated, and each passageway led to a different part of the world. The Heavenly Emperor pointed his sword forward, and all the Tianshens moved under his command. All of them left behind a golem before they embarked on war through the Tianshen passageways.


    The reenactment was not very clear as it was formed from will. As the scene played out, divine light rained down, and immediately, all the golems on the sky stairwell were illuminated. The golems came to life and transformed into ancient Tianshens.


    The sky stairwell glowed as the ancient Tianshens returned. Even the golem that Ye Futian had resonated with shone with menacing divine halos. Affected by the will of the Heavenly Emperor, it struggled to break free from Ye Futian��s control.


    ��He��s so strong!�� exclaimed the crowd as they looked up at the silhouette of Ji Wudao.


    All these phenomena were triggered by Ji Wudao.


    Right now, Ji Wudao was like the descendant of the Heavenly Emperor.


    He was originally the heir of the Heaven Realm. If the current Heaven Realm was considered to have inherited the lineage of the ancient House Deva, then Ji Wudao could indeed be considered the successor of the Old Heaven Court.


    Ji Wudao looked down at Ye Futian. The sword of the Heavenly Emperor in his hand radiated with divine halos. The might of Tianshen burst forth simultaneously, attempting to kill Ye Futian right there.


    Bang. A ferocious power burst forth from Ye Futian��s figure as he struggled free from the pressure. At the same time, he unleashed Celerity, and his figure disappeared from its original position and appeared in another location. Divine light immediately pierced the spot where he stood moments ago.


    If the attack had landed, Ye Futian would undoubtedly have perished.


    ��The attack is so powerful,�� commented the crowd as they looked at Ji Wudao. At this moment, he appeared invincible. Had he completely inherited the will of the Heavenly Emperor?


    The divine light covered the vast space as the phantasm of the Heavenly Emperor appeared in the sky and looked down on everyone.


    Were the cultivators present here really capable of defeating Ji Wudao?


    He was unrivaled in this region. Who could stand against him?


    Right at this moment, a terrifying aura permeated the space. The divine light in the heavens seemed to retract. This scene caused many people to look out into the distance. Then, they saw a demonic cloud churn and roar frenziedly as it headed their way.


    The demonic cloud appeared to contain powerful demonic might. It was like the will of a demon god and was terrifying.


    ��Did someone from Devil Imperial Palace communicate with the will of the Demonic Lord?�� Many people secretly thought to themselves. Before this, the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace had been comprehending the will of the Demonic Lord in the relic of House Karura. The various cultivators all vaguely knew about this. The top figures of Devil Imperial Palace had been in seclusion for several years and had not been seen.


    However, now demonic might churned and roared as it surged over. What did the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace coming out of seclusion signify?


    High in the sky, the terrifying demonic cloud roared. It formed a gigantic silhouette as though the Demonic Lord had come in person. Beneath the demonic figure, a group of cultivators appeared. They were the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace. They stood high in the sky, unafraid of the divine might as they stared ahead.


    Back during the War of the Gods, the forces of the Demonic Lord were originally one of the most powerful forces that attacked the Heavenly Path. It was difficult for the people of today to imagine how powerful the ability of the Demonic Lord was. He actually dared to defy the Heavenly Path. He killed the king of House Karura and destroyed the Shrine of the Karura. His ability was undoubtedly superior to all the cultivators of House Karura. He might even rival the Heavenly Emperor.


    Aside from the Demonic Lord, who else had the most powerful combat ability back then?


    Some of the figures from back then were not in the relic but instead had perished in the outside world and lost their lives completely. An example was Shenjia the Great Emperor. Back then, he had wanted to battle the Heavenly Path. He proclaimed that there were originally no Paths in the world and wished to fight against the heavens.


    The current cultivation world could not imagine how frightening the War of the Gods was back in the day.


    ��Yu Sheng!�� Ye Futian cried out as he saw someone in the churning demonic cloud. Yu Sheng was surprisingly standing in the cloud. His temperament seemed to have undergone a considerable change. His entire body was jet black. The demonic aura that circled his body was like demonic armor. His jet-black eyes stirred up fear in the hearts of those who gazed into them. He was extremely domineering.


    ��Did Yu Sheng inherit the will of the Demonic Lord?�� Ye Futian secretly thought. There were so many cultivators in Devil Imperial Palace. Aside from Yu Sheng, there were the top Demon Sage, Yan Guiyi, and the other cultivators. There were many top-tier demonic cultivators who had cultivated in the relic. Now that they had come out of seclusion, that meant someone had naturally succeeded in inheriting the will and teachings of the Demonic Lord.


    The various cultivators also looked at the members of Devil Imperial Palace who had arrived.. This relic of Old Heaven Court had become a gathering of prominent figures. The cultivators from various forces had all gathered here!

 Chapter 2714 - Disrespecting the Tianshens

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ji Wudao looked at Yu Sheng. He sensed a dangerous aura emanating from Yu Sheng��s body.


    Ji Wudao inherited the teachings of the Heavenly Emperor. From the looks of it, Yu Sheng had also inherited the teachings of the Demonic Lord.


    Yu Sheng glanced at Ye Futian and nodded slightly. The latter immediately understood the meaning behind his gesture and revealed a smile.


    The two of them had been brothers for years. Even though Yu Sheng did not say it out loud, Ye Futian knew what he was trying to convey. Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng because he was curious whether the latter had seized control of the will of the Demonic Lord. Yu Sheng nodded in response, indicating that he had succeeded in doing so.


    With this achievement, Yu Sheng would most likely not face any more opposition in commanding Devil Imperial Palace and even the entire Devil World.


    The members of the Devil World advocated strength and prioritized one��s cultivation over their lineage. With the teachings of the Demonic Lord and the support from the Devil Emperor, who would dare defy Yu Sheng?


    In terms of his status in Devil Imperial Palace, Yu Sheng would be second only to the Devil Emperor. Even though his ability might not be on par with the Devil Emperor yet, he would catch up to him sooner or later.


    From now on, Yu Sheng��s status as the heir of the Devil Emperor was set in stone. There would no longer be any changes to it.


    Ye Futian firmly believed that Yu Sheng, who had inherited the will of the Demonic Lord, would become an admirable Devil Emperor in the future.


    ��Everyone, are you still reluctant to leave?�� Right at this moment, a voice sounded. Everyone shifted their gazes away from Yu Sheng and looked at the person who had spoken. He was none other than Ji Wudao, who stood at the sky stairwell.


    The cultivators did not respond to his question; instead, they unleashed even stronger auras. One by one, the top cultivators took to the sky with imperial arms in their hands. They intended to go to war with Ji Wudao directly.


    They were determined to snatch the teachings of the Old Heaven Court.


    The current Heaven Realm was not qualified to make them retreat.


    Seeing the crowd��s reaction, Ji Wudao understood that it was meaningless to say more. Unparalleled divine light shone, and the Heavenly Emperor��s figure unleashed peerless divine might. At the same time, the divine light from the golems of Tianshen grew even brighter as their might covered the space.


    Ji Wudao raised both his hands, and a divine sword appeared in them. It was the Sword of the Heavenly Emperor.


    This sword was destined to rule over the fates of all living things. Everything in the world would succumb to it. Terrifying divine halos directly shot up into the clouds and pierced the heavens. The sword��s shadow blocked out the sky and covered this part of the world.


    All of the cultivators had serious expressions. Even the near-deity cultivators were extremely stern. They unleashed the power of the Great Path to the utmost limit. The imperial arms in their hands emitted divine halos that shone for miles as they prepared to withstand the attack from Ji Wudao��s Sword of the Heavenly Emperor.


    Just then, the terrifying demonic cloud churned and roared. Silhouettes of demons seemed to appear in the space. Demonic generals stood guard all around them. From Yu Sheng��s figure, an unparalleled aura emanated. It was the will of the Demonic Lord.


    Right now, it was as though he had become the Demonic Lord and was domineering. Behind him, a gigantic silhouette of a demon appeared. It was the phantasm formed from the will of the Demonic Lord. It gazed down at the world and looked straight at the Heavenly Emperor.


    Demonic might burst forth from the figures of the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace. All of it surged towards Yu Sheng. The demonic might on their bodies filled the skies as they merged with the phantasm of the demons, resonating with it as well as Yu Sheng��s figure.


    Divine phenomena appeared in the sky. Tens of thousands of demonic phantasms appeared amongst the phenomena. The demons in the space all rallied to Yu Sheng��s call, and their demonic will was his to use.


    This scene was astonishing. Cultivators as powerful as Yan Guiyi were now lending their demonic might to Yu Sheng. At this moment, Yu Sheng��s figure was merged with the phantasm of the Demonic Lord. It was as though the latter was reborn into the world while all living beings prostrated before him.


    ��This is����


    The scene was too shocking as the heavens and the earth were thrown into chaos. The awe-inspiring bizarre phenomena caused the hearts of the crowd to tremble violently.


    Rumor has it that the Demonic Lord unified the demons during ancient times. Demons from all around the world pledged allegiance to him. He had unparalleled demonic might that allowed him to command all of them. Some top figures wondered: was the scene they were experiencing now a demonstration of the Demonic Lord��s extraordinary might?


    The two powers clashed head-on. They were actually on par with each other. Both forces were extremely menacing.


    The heir of the Heavenly Emperor and the heir of the Demonic Lord were in confrontation.


    Countless people focused their attention on the two of them. At the moment, it was as clear as day to everyone that Yu Sheng had inherited the will of the Demonic Lord. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for him to possess such power.


    In the heavens above, clouds of catastrophe churned. The clouds were charged up with an overbearing, destructive demonic will. The will was akin to the divine power of calamity. It was also similar to the power of the Devil Abyss. This horrifying power gathered and materialized into a demonic blade. It was the blade used by the Demonic Lord.


    The Sword of the Heavenly Emperor was facing off with the blade of the Demonic Lord.


    The hearts of the cultivators leapt. This was an epoch-making duel. The crowd wondered whether the Heavenly Emperor and the Demonic Lord confronted each other before ancient times. Who won and who lost?


    Sensing the domineering aura emanating by Yu Sheng, Ji Wudao understood that the former had successfully inherited the power of the Demonic Lord. Moreover, Yu Sheng was not any weaker than him. From the looks of it, Yu Sheng was also a man with great luck, and he would make a worthy opponent for him.


    When Ji Wudao thought of this, he struck the Sword of the Heavenly Emperor without hesitation. His slash was aimed at Yu Sheng.


    The slash tore the independent world apart, cleaving it in half. Brilliant light dazzled.


    Everyone around sensed an irresistible divine might pressing down on them. However, Yu Sheng showed no sign of fear. He made a slash with the blade of the Demonic Lord, and the sky changed color. His slash similarly split the sky. Demonic clouds churned and roared while the blade��s will shot up into the high heavens. The two weapons glided across space and collided with each other.


    When the sword and the blade touched, the independent world disintegrated completely. Everything in the heavens and the earth lost its color as catastrophic will swept out and annihilated all existences.


    ��Be careful!�� someone shouted.


    The surrounding cultivators unleashed their strongest power to withstand the storm. Ye Futian did so too. Green divine light shone from his body and enveloped the surrounding region. All the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace were shielded inside the light sphere.


    The terrifying storm flooded everything. Many people couldn��t even look into the eye of the storm clearly. Their divine consciousnesses could not penetrate through the storm as well.


    Scary rumbling sounds could be heard. It was as though something had exploded.


    ��Everyone, we shall meet again in the future!��


    Amidst the chaos, a calm voice sounded from the eye of the storm. The voice belonged to Ji Wudao, who stood at the top of the sky stairwell.


    The hearts of many cultivators leapt when they heard his words. Was Ji Wudao retreating?


    So, he decided to give up on the relics of the Old Heaven Court in the end?


    The storm continued to rampage. The crowd could faintly see a group of people leaving the sky stairwell. At the same time, they witnessed a shocking scene. One by one, the golems collapsed and were destroyed.


    Rumble.


    Bang! Bang!


    Intense rumbling sounds could be heard continuously, causing the crowd��s hearts to race. When the storm gradually calmed down, the cultivators of the Heaven Realm had already traversed high into the sky. Divine light poured down, and they left this place without hesitation.


    The crowd heard the sounds of golems falling into pieces and rolling down the sky stairwell. All the golems were crushed; none of them survived the storm.


    Only the sky stairwell remained standing. Nobody knew what it was made out of.


    All the cultivators were stunned as they stared at the broken pieces of golems tumbling down the sky stairwell. They were at a loss for words.


    The cultivators of the Heaven Realm had destroyed all the golems before they left. The wills contained in the golems had certainly been eradicated as well. However, who was capable of wrecking all of them?


    Only one person was capable of doing so. He was none other than Ji Wudao.


    As many cultivators raised their heads to glare at the leaving silhouettes, they shared the same thought.


    Ji Wudao disrespected the Tianshens!


    Even though the Tianshens were their ancestors from the Old Heaven Court, which was the predecessor of the Heaven Realm, Ji Wudao had no reverence for them at all. If he had even the slightest respect for them, he would not have committed such an atrocious act by destroying all the golems.


    In Ji Wudao��s eyes, the Heaven Realm did not have any ancestors at all. Since they could not seize control of this place, they would demolish everything without mercy!

 Chapter 2715 - : A Strange Woman

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��They have all been destroyed!�� someone exclaimed.


    The crowd stared at the divine statues tumbling down from the sky stairwell. Their hearts trembled. They felt that it was such a shame.


    These were the Tianshen golems. They had been destroyed just like that. The wills of the Tianshens also disappeared without a trace.


    How did Ji Wudao manage to destroy all of the wills of the Tianshens in the golems?


    Aside from Ji Wudao, the will of the Demonic Lord that Yu Sheng obtained was also so powerful. He could go toe to toe with Ji Wudao. Borrowing the power of the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace, an unparalleled demonic might burst forth from him. Now, another prominent figure had emerged.


    However, the crowd did not have time to ponder about this. Their figures flashed as they traversed the sky and frantically rushed towards the sky stairwell. They wanted to see whether the shattered Tianshen golems still contained the wills of the Tianshens.


    The cultivators from various forces dashed onto the sky stairwell. They flipped over the shattered golems and scanned them with their spiritual wills. They inspected each golem one by one thoroughly. Alas, they discovered that these golems had already returned to being the simplest of statues. Hence, they were shattered, and the wills of the Tianshens no longer resided in them.


    Ye Futian��s group came to the sky stairwell as well. However, he did not inspect the statues. His spiritual will merely swept across them. The various golems on the sky stairwell had all been destroyed by Ji Wudao. As for how he managed to do so, even Ye Futian could not tell.


    Buzz. Silhouettes dashed up high into the sky towards the peak of the sky stairwell.


    At the top was a dilapidated Heavenly Palace. There were originally also Tianshen golems up here. Now, they were shattered into pieces as well. A divine statue of the Heavenly Emperor used to be erected in the center of the palace. However, the statue of the Heavenly Emperor, the ruler of the Old Heaven Court, was also destroyed. There was not even a trace of rubble left behind. It had been completely wiped off the face of the planet.


    ��Ji Wudao sure is decisive,�� someone commented. The Heavenly Emperor was the ruler of the Old Heaven Court and the leader of House Deva. He was one of the most powerful figures in the ancient era. The current Heaven Realm could be considered his descendants. Yet, Ji Wudao destroyed the former��s statue just as he claimed he would.


    It might be that Ji Wudao had already inherited the will of the Heavenly Emperor. Even if he had inherited the latter��s will and was his heir, Ji Wudao did not hesitate at all when destroying the divine statue. His decisiveness was apparent from the way he did things.


    Ji Wudao rarely appeared in the world. Based on what he did here, he was not as agreeable as he appeared.


    The ancient Heavenly Palace was in ruins and appeared somewhat dilapidated. There was once a divine aura in this place, but now even that gradually dissipated into nothingness. It was saddening to witness, and the crowd felt that it was such a waste.


    ��There is some writing here!�� someone cried out in astonishment. Many people looked over where that person was. There was a gigantic pillar where he stood. This divine pillar that towered into the sky was originally a stone pillar that supported the Heavenly Palace. Now, it was broken but was not completely destroyed.


    On top of the gigantic broken stone pillar, someone discovered some writing. There was a line of casually written words.


    There was even a hint of grace in the casualness of the writing.


    This caused many people to reveal strange expressions. When they saw the words, their hearts throbbed.


    ��They seem to be left behind by a woman,�� someone said in a low voice. The calligraphy of the woman bore a sense of elegance in its beauty. The words themselves seemed to be authoritative. Who left behind these writings?


    Ye Futian also came over and looked at the stone pillar and saw the writing on it �C


    ��Today, I was blessed to be able to pay homage to the various gods of the Old Heaven Court and bear witness to their splendor. I also inherited the gods�� will to spread their teachings around the world. This place will remain for the future generations to look up to for many millennia to come.��


    Ye Futian thought to himself, Who was she? She had such a great vision.


    He was actually impressed. He could not help but have respect for such an ambitious person.


    This person had visited this place and carved some words here. She intended to follow the wills of the Tianshens and pass down their teachings to the world.


    She reserved this place for future generations to pass down the teachings.


    Her words also served as a reminder to all the cultivators who visited the place after her. They were free to inherit the wills of the Tianshens, but they should not destroy or occupy the place. Instead, the cultivators should allow future generations to come here to inherit the wills of the Tianshens.


    How many people were there in the world who possessed such great ambition?


    ��These words are most likely left behind by her,�� Supreme Swordlord said in a low voice. He was as shocked as the others. As the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor, she had certainly visited this place before. However, she had not pocketed everything for herself. Instead, she had left everything intact so that they could be passed down to the generations to come.


    The blood of the emperor flowed in her veins, and she was unrivaled. Without her presence, the world lost most of its colors.


    Ye Futian looked at Supreme Swordlord. He faintly knew who the person the latter mentioned was. These words seemed to be left behind by a woman. In that case, Supreme Swordlord must be referring to the daughter of the emperor of the Heaven Realm. Admiration welled up inside of Ye Futian.


    He did not know whether such a prominent figure still existed in the world. He wondered whether he would have the opportunity to meet her and witness her glory.


    ��Ji Wudao is most likely her descendent. She was so ambitious, and she desired to let this relic be passed down to future generations. However, Ji Wudao eradicated this place,�� Supreme Swordlord analyzed while frowning. What was Ji Wudao thinking exactly? How much of her tutelage did he receive and preserve?


    Not far away from Ye Futian, Donghuang Diyuan stood there and stared at the writing on the stone pillar. Her gaze was fixated on it for a long while.


    ��It seems like her descendent has disobeyed her,�� Di Hao from the Human Realm commented from the side. He was similarly guessing the person��s identity who left behind these words.


    Ji Wudao was most likely her successor. However, he did not inherit her will. She had such a great vision for the generations to come, yet Ji Wudao destroyed all the golems of the Tianshens. He ruined everything here completely, committing an act that was the polar opposite of what she had wished. He defied her vision.


    ��Or perhaps, she was the one who had changed,�� Donghuang Diyuan mumbled. Di Hao was stunned by her words and took a glance at her. Then, he watched as Donghuang Diyuan turned around and left the stone pillar. He seemed to be deep in thought as he gazed at her leaving figure.


    ��From the looks of it, nothing is left here,�� Di Hao concluded as he retracted his gaze from Donghuang Diyuan. He then looked at Ye Futian and Yu Sheng and said, ��Congratulations to the both of you.��


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. He turned around to face Di Hao. The two of them were not close. When Di Hao went to the ruins of Mahoraga before this, he was up to no good.


    Di Hao complimented, ��The Divine Ruler can slay all demons. Now that the Divine Ruler and the will of the Demonic Lord have each found their successors, there are two more extraordinary figures in this world.�� He spoke with a sincere tone, as though he was pleased about their achievements. There was even divine light moving around him. He gave off a righteous vibe, causing the people around him to feel very comfortable.


    Was this head disciple from the Human Realm genuine with his compliments?


    ��Many thanks,�� Ye Futian replied calmly. His voice was emotionless and sounded rather stiff. Di Hao did not seem to mind it either. However, quite a lot of cultivators around them looked in their direction.


    Yu Sheng received the teachings of the Demonic Lord while Ye Futian inherited the Divine Ruler. Both of them had extraordinary fateful encounters. They were now at the pinnacle of the cultivation world.


    Moreover, the two of them were allies. The other forces would not dare to simply target them now.


    Even though some of them coveted the Divine Ruler, they needed to reconsider whether it was worth it for them to attack Ye Futian now that they had seen Yu Sheng��s ability.. Just now, everyone witnessed how powerful Yu Sheng��s strike was. Aside from Ji Wudao, who else in this ancient continent could withstand it?

 Chapter 2716 - Divine Stones

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��There��re writings here, too!�� a voice cried out in the distance.


    This caused the cultivators to reveal surprised looks. They looked in the direction of the ruins of the Heavenly Palace.


    The place where the Heavenly Palace once stood was now a dilapidated ruin. Only broken pillars and crumbled walls remained there. Gigantic rubble was piled up everywhere. The ancient Heavenly Palace seemed to be forever buried underneath this mess.


    However, someone turned over a boulder and noticed that there were writings on it.


    Quite a few people were exploring the ruins over there. They discovered that there were indeed many boulders that had writings on them. However, the writings were not left behind by visitors before them. Instead, they were more like writings that were originally carved on the walls of the Heavenly Palace.


    ��There are some here, too,�� a cultivator reported from another direction.


    A cultivator speculated, ��Could they be part of the carvings that were originally on the walls of the Heavenly Palace?��


    ��Could they be scriptures or martial arts methods?�� another person guessed. After all, where they were now was the Old Heaven Court from ancient times. Even though both the buildings and the golems were destroyed, there might still be something left here, right?


    All the top figures moved towards the boulders and investigated them. They scanned the writings with their divine consciousnesses. However, they did not discover any abnormalities. They merely seemed to be ordinary words.


    Bang! A loud thud could be heard. Di Hao took a step forward, and immediately, a terrifying power of the Great Path enveloped the entire ruins. Everything in the ruins rose into the sky. The stone fragments and the broken walls floated in midair, taking up all the space.


    There were way too many fragments around. Now, they were all floating due to the powerful spatial will unleashed by Di Hao. Because of that, everyone could quickly identify all the stones that had writings on them.


    Beams of Divine Light of Space were shot out by various cultivators. The fragments that did not have writing on them were shot by the divine light and turned to dust. Only the stones that had writings on them were left floating.


    If there was anything valuable here, they had most likely been pocketed by Ji Wudao and the cultivators from the Heaven Realm. However, since the cultivators had suspicions about the stones, it was still worth checking them out. They did not have high hopes of making any discoveries. Nevertheless, it was relatively effortless for them to have a closer look at the stones.


    The crowd looked up at the floating rocks. The runes carved on them were all jumbled up. Many of them were most likely already destroyed. Even if there were anything left behind, it would be incomplete. It would be difficult to find anything.


    ��Everyone, have you discovered anything?�� Di Hao asked the cultivators from various forces. His temperament was extraordinary. He appeared not to mind sharing the relic with everyone as they investigated the mystery behind these writings together.


    The various cultivators stared over here. Someone said, ��Even if there were mysterious manuscripts and secret techniques left behind by the Old Heaven Court, they most likely have also been lost. It is impossible to reconstruct them.��


    Many people nodded in agreement. They could not find anything either. Even though they had eliminated all the stones without words on them, they still could not find anything out of the ordinary.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Di Hao as he nodded his head. However, just then, someone from the crowd suddenly attacked. Countless beams of the divine light of the Great Path immediately shot over towards the floating stones. Loud rumbling could be heard, and many boulders were shattered into dust.


    Di Hao turned to look at the person and was just about to speak when the scene before him astonished him. It was not just him; many others also narrowed their gazes as they stared at the many floating rocks in the sky.


    Many of them were undamaged!


    The power of the Great Path failed to destroy them.


    ��What is this?�� exclaimed the crowd.


    The various cultivators stared at the remaining rocks floating in the sky. They discovered that the remaining rocks all had one character on them. The characters did not seem to be related, yet the power of the Great Path had not eliminated them. What did this mean?


    It meant that these stones were not ordinary.


    Di Hao��s will shifted, and beams of divine light immediately shot out again and struck these stones. Yet, the same scene appeared. Even though the stones were sent flying outwards, they were not shattered. They were extremely sturdy. Just from their hardness, it was apparent that they were not ordinary stones.


    Di Hao was at the Near-Deity Level. Even an attack from him could not shatter these stones. That meant that they could withstand the attacks of near-deities.


    However, why was it that their spiritual wills could not sense any aura coming from these rocks? This resulted in them being overlooked and buried together in the rubble of these ruins. Thus, no one was able to find them.


    For a moment, everyone was staring at the floating stones. The vast space suddenly fell silent. Many people were floating in the air while many stood at the top of the sky stairwell as they stared ahead. The atmosphere seemed somewhat delicate.


    ��These rocks seem to contain some mystery,�� Di Hao said in the quiet space. However, his gaze was still directed ahead. He naturally sensed that the atmosphere was off.


    If these rocks weren��t ordinary, they might be treasures left hidden in the Old Heaven Court. Although the various cultivators did not know what these rocks were now, they would certainly want to fight over them.


    Seeing that no one in the crowd spoke up, Di Hao continued saying, ��Everyone, we came here together. Since we all came across these rocks, why don��t we retrieve the rocks from where we stand to prevent a bloodbath? Whoever manages to get their hands on them gets to keep them. How about it?��


    The crowd revealed strange expressions. If they all tried retrieving the rocks from where they stood, it was uncertain who would be able to get their hands on them.


    However, Di Hao��s power of the Great Path already enveloped these rocks. All he needed to do was shift his will, and he could directly claim them with his power of the Great Path. The crowd speculated that he had already seized the initiative. Thus he made such a suggestion.


    ��I agree,�� seconded Dugu Wuxie, who was from the Empty Divine Realm. He had mastered the Path of Space and was extremely powerful. If they were to snatch the rocks with the spatial power of the Great Path, he was confident that he could seize a lot of them.


    ��Is there any difference?�� Donghuang Diyuan retorted coldly. Even if they agreed to collect the rocks from where they were standing now, the cultivators would likely still attack each other to get more. It was impossible for them to have peace.


    At this moment, cultivators from various forces, especially the Emperor-level forces, had all unleashed their wills of the Great Path to envelop some rocks. They would not miss out on such an excellent chance to loot some treasures.


    At this critical moment, if anyone were to shift their wills first, they would most likely be able to pocket these rocks right away.


    However, no one dared to hoard all the rocks. They were not capable of doing so.


    Strands of wills circled the rocks. The wills intensified, and different auras of the Great Path contended with each other in space. As a result, turbulence of the Great Path formed, and the rocks kept vibrating.


    Rumble. Finally, someone took the first step to loot the rocks. Divine Light of Space wrapped around the rocks, and they disappeared in an instant. The hunt had begun.


    Terrifying auras burst forth from various directions. Some cultivators used gigantic palms to grab the rocks from across the space, while some cultivators rushed forward to pick up whatever they could.


    Brilliant green divine light shone from Ye Futian��s body. The light enveloped many rocks. He shifted his will, and immediately, the rocks disappeared from where they were. No power of the Great Path could stop him from absorbing the rocks into his Life Palace.


    However, Ye Futian was not greedy. He roughly claimed one-third of the rocks, still leaving many for the other cultivators!

 Chapter 2717 - The Mystery of the Divine Stones

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio| Editor Nyoi-Bo Studio


    In the blink of an eye, the divine stones floating in mid-air had been swept


    clean. All of them had been pocketed by various cultivators. Some cultivators


    released the power of the Great Path to stop the others from snatching them,


    but to no avail.


    There are none left? exclaimed someone. Before many cultivators could react


    to the situation, they discovered that the divine stones had all been taken. All


    of them had disappeared without a trace.


    Moreover, most of them could not make out who had looted the most divine


    stones. They only caught a glimpse of the whole process. The moment the


    divine lights lit up, the divine stones were carved up by various parties.


    Whoever had better control over the power of space most likely seized the most


    significant portion of the divine stones.


    Dugu Wuxie seized quite a few. It was the same for Di Hao and Donghuang


    Diyuan. However, all this was not surprising. There was another person who


    managed to snatch many divine stones.


    It was Ye Futian!


    The gazes of many of the cultivators landed on Ye Futian. Even the giant-level


    figures of the top forces were looking at him. In that instant, an emerald-green


    divine light shone. They saw the divine stones being enveloped by the divine


    light. They ignored all resistance by the other powers of the Great Path and


    disappeared from where they were.


    Without a doubt, they had been seized by Ye Futian.


    With the power of the Divine Ruler, it seemed that anything was possible.


    Little Friend Ye, you have taken quite a few, no? Di Hao asked Ye Futian as he


    looked at the latter.


    Ye Futian raised his head and took a glance at Di Hao. He frowned and said,


    You took several stones too. The people who are on the ball get what they


    deserve. Could it be that you have a problem with that?


    Di Hao represented the forces of the Human Realm on their trip here.


    Currently, in this vast continent of ruins, Ye Futian led the cultivators of Ziwei


    Segmentum while Yu Sheng ruled over the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace.


    They were not inferior to the forces of the Human Realm at all If all of them


    were to go to war, the forces of the Human Realm would instead be at a


    disadvantage.


    On top of that, there was Ye Qingyao, the Reaper of the Dark Court. She already


    had a clear stance on who she would side with.


    ��of course, it is as you say-the people who are on the ball get what they


    deserve. I am merely impressed,�� Di Hao replied with a smile. He glanced at Ye


    Futian and Yu Sheng. He was well aware that he couldn��t attack Ye Futian on


    this ancient continent.


    Putting aside Ye Futian��s subordinates and his allies, even he had extraordinary


    abilities.


    ��Since that��s the case, farewell, Ye Futian said. He took a last look at the ruin.


    This Old Heaven Court had nothing valuable left now. Ji Wudao destroyed most


    of it while the rest of them snatched whatever remained.


    The Old Heaven Court had genuinely turned into a ruin. There might still be


    teachings and treasures left in other relics. However, in this region where the


    Heavenly Palace was located, the only things left were wreckage.


    ��Let��s go,�� commanded Yu Sheng. He also left with the cultivators of Devil


    Imperial Palace. In the blink of an eye, the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace


    and Devil Imperial Palace had both disappeared from this region.


    The surrounding cultivators watched as they left. Some of them were tempted


    to attack Ye Futian, but none dared to put their thoughts into action.


    Currently, it was too difficult to want to attack Ye Futian.


    A minor miscalculation in their actions would put them in a life-and-death


    crisis.


    After Ye Futian and Yu Sheng left, the other Emperor-level forces gradually


    dispersed. Their mission this time could be considered a failure. The Old


    Heaven Court had been destroyed by Ji Wudao. All the golems of the Tianshens


    had crumbled into pieces.


    Their only spoils were the divine stones. However, nobody knew what secrets


    were hidden in these stones for now. The value of the stones had yet to be


    determined.


    Various forces were eager to retun to their bases and decipher the mystery of


    the divine stones.


    Ye Futian and his allies returned to the relic of Mahoraga. Yu Sheng followed


    them here too. He then ordered the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace to leave


    first. His relationship with Ye Futian went without saying. However, Yu Sheng


    knew that many cultivators in Devil Imperial Palace had qualms with Ye Futian


    since he took away the Divine Ruler.


    Nevertheless, the current Yu Sheng could suppress the cultivators of Devil


    Imperial Palace to prevent his members from getting into a quarrel with Ye


    Futian.


    At the core region of the relic of Mahoraga, the cultivators, who did not go to


    the Old Heaven Court with Ye Futian, were still training hard. They immersed


    themselves in their meditation and were not perturbed by anything around


    them


    Ye Futian��s group came to one spot. He then waved his hand, and many divine


    stones immediately appeared simultaneously, floating in the space. On these


    divine stones, there were no traces of the aura of the Great Path. They seemed


    to be ordinary rocks. No wonder Ji Wudao had not discovered them.


    Otherwise, he would have certainly claimed them all as his own before he left.


    He wouldn��t have gone any for others.


    Even Near-Deity Level cultivators could not break open the divine stones.


    Ye Futian pondered for a while and then pointed towards a divine stone.


    Terrifying attacks landed on it, sending it flying outwards. Yet, it was still


    unscathed. Ye Futian did not know what sort of divine item it was.


    ��What secrets do these characters contain? said Yu Sheng as he stared at the


    iivine stones floating in mid-air. The similarity between these divine stones


    was that each had one character carved on it. However, each character was


    different


    ��Xing (walk), ��Yu Sheng read out the character engraved on one of the divine


    stones as he stared atit.


    ��Zang-treasure.��


    Jian-sword.��


    ��Shou-hand��


    ��Kong-space.��


    Each character was different, with no duplicates.


    Ye Futian also stared at the characters on the divine stones. His divine


    consciousness enveloped them. An emerald-green aura flowed over the various


    divine stones. He used his most powerful sensory ability to comprehend the


    mystery behind them.


    However, he still could not sense the presence of any aura within them.


    Could it be that these divine stones were merely very durable?


    Could it be that they had no other uses?


    However, if that was the case, why were characters engraved on them?


    ��Xing,��mumbled Ye Futian as he looked at one of the characters.


    The power of the Great Path in his body surged towards the divine stone.


    Emerald-green divine halos wrapped around it.


    Screech. The emerald-green divine halo became a mighty power of law. It


    merged into the character xing, tracing over it. Then, the crowd saw the left


    side of the character light up and radiate brilliant divine halos.


    ��It responded,�� exclaimed the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace as they


    narrowed their eyes. Of course, Ye Futian noticed the changes too. His will


    controlled his power of the Great Path to continue tracing over the right side of


    the character. Soon, both sides of the character lit up.


    Under the emerald-green divine halo, the character xing�� suddenly radiated


    with unparalleled divine light that expanded outwards. There was an extremely


    astonishing will emanating from the divine stone. This drew the undivided


    attention of all of the cultivators.


    What secrets were contained within this character?


    Ye Futian had directly opened up the character��s secrets with brute force.


    At the instant the character ��xing lit up, countless ��xing characters flew out


    from the divine stone. They blocked out the sky, and their light covered the


    space. The character left the stone and expanded frenziedly. It became gigantic


    and covered the sky.


    After it grew many times larger, to their astonishment, the crowd discovered


    that an illusory figure had appeared at the center of the gigantic xing��


    A person seemed to be sitting cross-legged and cultivating!

 Chapter 2718 - Unraveled

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The divine halos emanating from the character ��xing�� widened and flooded Ye


    Futian. He was immersed in the space encompassed by the character and came


    face-to-face with the illusory figure.


    The illusory figure kept moving, anda miraculous will burst forth. Many other


    illusory figures were formed in the surrounding space.


    ��This is..�� exclaimed someone. The surrounding cultivators felt their hearts


    tremble violently. All of them had their eyes fixed on the shocking scene before


    them. The divine stone remained floating in the sky. After the character ��xing��


    had been activated, the divine stone emitted a divine light which enveloped Ye


    Futian��s body. It was as though a domain was sealed in the stone, and the


    character was the key to unsealing it.


    This looks like a divine technique,�� someone commented.


    ��Hmm. This might be the way the old Heaven Court recorded their divine


    methods. Instead of carving them on the walls, they sealed the methods in the


    divine stones. One would need to unseal the stones with their power of the


    Great Path before they could comprehend the methods,�� analyzed Supreme


    Swordlord. ��In that case, does it mean that each divine stone here represents a


    unique divine technique of the Old Heaven Court?


    House Deva was the head of the Eight Legions. Under the command of the


    ancient Heavenly Emperor, the Old Heaven Court had countless Tianshens.


    They never lacked divine techniques. Surely, they possessed many unusual


    divine methods. There were innumerable divine stones in the ruins, but it was


    nothing shocking considering that these were the divine treasures of the Old


    Heaven Court.


    ��We have more than 100 divine stones here,�� someone stated.


    This amount might mean nothing to the members of the Old Heaven Court, but


    was astounding for thoOse who were present here. If all 100 divine stones here


    contained divine methods in them, it meant that Ye Futian��s group was now in


    possession of more than 100 divine techniques from ancient times.


    This was undoubtedly sensational news.


    The divine treasures of the Old Heaven Court were hidden in some rubble. Who


    would have thought of that? If the cultivators from the Heaven Realm learned


    of this, they would most likely rue their loss of the golden opportunity. The


    rubble was right under their noses, yet they didn��t even take a look at it.


    ��It��s a divine technique,�� announced Ye Futian as he turned around to look at


    the crowd.


    His eyes gleamed with excitement as well. If 10o divine stones corresponded


    with 100 divine methods, the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum would never


    lack divine techniques from now on. Everyone would have access to top-tier


    methods.


    They had pills that could aid them in improving their bodies and talents. The


    relics of the Great Emperors which they had seized would allow them to


    continue experiencing transformation. Now, they had divine techniques which


    they would cultivate. The members of the Ziwei Segmentum were indeed


    blessed to have so many cultivation resources. The resources they had were on


    par with that of Emperor-level forces. The Ziwei Segmentum was even better


    in some aspects.


    The only difference between the Ziwei Segmentum and Emperor-level forces


    was that the former did not have a Great Emperor who could contend with the


    six Great Emperors in the world currently.


    Aside from Ziwei Imperial Palace, Ye Futian intended to slowly build up the


    other forces in the Ziwei Segmentum. Over time, those forces would surely


    become as powerful as the top forces in other worlds.


    of course, due to the recent major changes, everything would be different in


    the future. More and more extraordinary cultivators would emerge.


    ��This divine technique is a remarkable movement method. That��s why the


    divine stone in which it is stored has the character ��xing�� engraved,�� Ye Futian


    said in a low voice. In that case, the character carved on each divine stone was


    more than just the key to activate it. It was als0 a label.


    The character symbolized the type of divine technique that was stored in the


    stone.


    ��Jian!


    Supreme Swordlord looked towards the divine stone with the character ��Jian��


    carved onto it. If Ye Futian��s explanation was valid, then the technique sealed


    inside this character was the swordsmanship created by the Tianshens. A sense


    of anticipation welled up inside him. Even though he had reached perfection in


    his Taishang Swordsmanship, there were still other top-tier swordsmanships


    in the world that were worth comprehending. Even if he chose not to cultivate


    the swordsmanship hidden in the stone, he could still apply its strength in


    perfecting his technique.


    ��Swordlord, please have a try,�� Ye Futian said upon noticing the gaze of


    Supreme Swordlord. The latter nodded. The next moment, the will of Taishang


    Swordsmanship gushed towards the targeted divine stone. The intense might


    of Taishang Swordsmanship pressed onto the divine stone, causing a faint


    glow to light upon the character.


    When the crowd saw this scene, they thought, Supreme Swordlord��s cultivation


    is more vital than that of Palace Lord, yet he could not unravel the mystery of


    the divine stone as smo0othly as the latter. This was perhaps due to the


    difference in their wills of the Great Path. Ye Futian had merged the power of


    the Divine Ruler in his will. Therefore, he could easily activate a divine stone.


    Supreme Swordlord continued to push more of his will into the divine stone.


    The character grew brighter and brighter, and gradually, an unparalleled


    divine halo of swordsmanship burst forth from it. After that, a domineering


    divine halo of swordsmanship poured out from the stone. The light emanated a


    sharp will, causing many cultivators among the crowd to retreat


    uncontrollably and disperse. Supreme Swordlord was the only one who


    remained in his original spot. His gaze was fixed on the character as he


    immersed himself in this extraordinary Sword Will.


    ��He opened it!�� someone exclaimed.


    It is true. Each divine stone contains a divine technique,�� someone else added.


    The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace felt their hearts throbbing. Of course,


    it was the same for the cultivators of the West Imperial Palace. Before this,


    their speculation was enough to make them very excited. Now, the scene


    before them had proven without a doubt that their guesses were correct


    The divine stones contained divine techniques.


    There were more than 100 divine techniques here.


    Ye Futian was also somewhat excited. He said to the others, ��All of you, give it a


    try. See whether you can unlock the divine stones.��


    The crowd nodded their heads and began to try out the divine stones. Yet, no


    one managed to succeed after this.


    Even ��Two Tribulation Plane cultivators could not immediately unlock the


    divine stones.


    The divine stone, with the character ��xing�� carved on it, dimmed in Ye Futian��s


    hand. It appeared that without him providing his power of the Great Path, the


    stone would reseal itself. He did not pay it heed as he looked at the others.It


    was not the time for him to cultivate now anyways.


    When he saw that no one managed to unravel the mystery behind the divine


    stones, Ye Futian frowned slightly. It seemed that these divine stones would


    not be figured out so easily. It was just that his power was unique, and the


    ability of Supreme Swordlord was extraordinary. Their Great Paths were also


    compatible with the powers within the divine stones. Hence, they had managed


    to unlock them.


    Things weren��t as simple for the others.


    ��Goddess Chiyao,�� Ye Futian called out to Xi Chiyao. Xi Chiyao shifted her gaze


    towards him. Ye Futian pointed at a divine stone and said, ��Try that one.��


    Xi Chiyao looked at it. The character ��yu�� was carved on it.


    ��Alright!�� replied Xi Chiyao as she nodded. She understood Ye Futian��s


    intention. He must have guessed that to unlock the divine stones, the


    characters on them needed to be compatible with one��s cultivation.


    The divine power of Raindrop Divine Sword surged into her fingers as Xi


    Chiyao pointed at the divine stone. Immediately, raindrops shot towards it and


    traced out the character. Gradually, the character lit up with a faint glow.


    ��That��s it,�� said Xi Chiyao as a look of excitement flashed past in her eyes. Not


    long after, she unraveled the mystery of this divine stone and appeared within


    its domain. The entire world became a world of rain. She saw the Rain God of


    the past. She felt emotional. This power was very compatible with her


    cultivation.


    When Ye Futian saw this scene, he understood something. From the looks of it,


    they needed to fulfill two important conditions to unlock the secrets of the


    divine stones. They needed to have a powerful enough Great Path, and their


    Great Path had to be compatible with the divine stones.


    Only then could they unlock the divine stones and peer into the divine


    techniques contained within them.


    Among those present here, Ye Futian, Supreme Swordlord, and Xi Chiyao were


    the only three who managed to unlock a divine stone so far.


    Speaking of which, the majority of the members of the other forces, which had


    seized the divine stones, would not be able to activate the stones either. Only


    very few top figures could decipher the mysteries of the divine stones.


    Ye Futian wondered, ��Can my power unlock all the divine stones?�� He looked


    towards another divine stone. Emerald-green divine light shone from his body.


    Divine power surged out from his Life Palace and rushed into the stone.


    A moment later, changes occurred to the stone as it radiated divine halos.


    ��I can!�� Ye Futian said to himself. Then, he attempted to open other divine


    stones. As the characters on the divine stones lit up one by one, the crowd


    noticed that Ye Futian could activate all of them. His power of the Great Path


    seemed to be compatible with everything.


    This meant that they had access to all 100 divine stones here. They could


    cultivate the divine techniques sealed in every stone unhindered.


    However, they would need to trouble Ye Futian in the process. They required


    his help to unseal the divine stones.


    Ye Futian stopped trying. He sank deep into his thoughts as he stared at the


    divine stones. It would take him a long time to sort through the contents of all


    the divine stones before he could match each stone with a suitable cultivator


    However, this was not a sustainable solution. The others would still need to


    depend on themselves to activate the divine stones in order to cultivate the


    techniques anytime they wanted.


    Aside from this, Ye Futian thought of another thing. These divine stones were


    very valuable!

 Chapter 2719 - A Deal With Donghuang Diyuan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor:


    Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The forces under Donghuang Imperial Palace occupied the ruins of House Naga. Rumor has it that among the Eight Legions, House Naga, which the Ancestral Dragon ruled, was also mighty. The Ancestral Dragon was crowned the king of all the demon clans. It was similarly a giant-level figure in ancient


    times. It used to stand at the peak of the cultivation world.


    The ruins of House Naga were vast and were surrounded by ancient mountains. The palaces of House Naga could be found among the mountains. Even though they were in a state of dilapidation now, one could still faintly make out how majestic they were in ancient times.


    Countless skeletons of dragons were left on this land. The skeletons were gigantic and were of different races.


    House Naga, ruled by the Ancestral Dragon, consisted of cultivators from all the dragon clans. The house was made up of various dragons, such as Purple Gold Dragons, Crimson Dragons, and Fiery Dragons. Every type of dragon was a leading force on its own. One could imagine how prosperous House


    Naga used to be.


    At that moment, a figure appeared before a mountain in the territory of the ruins of House Naga. The figure, with white hair and white robes, was none other than Ye Futian.


    Many cultivators from Donghuang Imperial Palace stared at Ye Futian. They revealed bewildered looks as they wondered what business Ye Futian had here.


    Right now, Ye Futian was no longer the small fry he used to be. People would pay attention to him wherever he went. No one dared to look down on him. In the past, he could unleash extraordinary power in the Ziwei Segmentum with the help of the will of Great Emperor Ziwei. However, he couldn��t do


    much and was a nobody once he left the segmentum. His cultivation level back then was even lower than that of Lord Chen.


    But now, very few cultivators in the Seven Realms would claim to be stronger than Ye Futian.


    A group of cultivators approached him. The group leader was actually Du You, one of the direct disciples of Donghuang the Great. Du You first came in contact with Ye Futian when the former was still at the peak of the Renhuang Plane. Ye Futian was but a slightly talented cultivator from the Lower


    Worlds. Du You didn��t even take a serious look at him.


    They had met a few times after that. Du You could sense Ye Futian��s improvement every time they met. Now, the latter had surpassed him. This caused Du You to have mixed feelings and feel awkward around Ye Futian. However, such was the way of the cultivation world. As the direct disciple of


    Donghuang the Great, Du You used to be the one who led the race.


    However, Ye Futian had surpassed him now, and their difference would only grow bigger in the future.


    ��What business do you have here?�� Du You asked coldly. His voice bore a hint of animosity. Even though Ye Futian was more powerful than him now, it did not mean that he had to be courteous with the former. Both of them were on opposing sides. If it weren��t because of Donghuang the Great��s


    extraordinary temperament, Ye Futian would have perished long ago.


    Of course, there was another reason why Du You could not stand Ye Futian. The latter��s identity as the heir of Emperor Ye Qing had surpassed his own as the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great. Du You felt humiliated inside.


    ��Lam looking for Donghuang Diyuan,.�� replied Ye Futian. He naturally knew that Du You could not stand him. However, he did not pay the latter heed. There were few people from Donghuang Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture whom he bothered about. Ye Futian had come to find Donghuang Diyuan.


    Du You was already unqualified to talk to him directly.


    ��What business do you have with her?�� Du You continued asking, ignoring Ye Futian��s statement. His tone was blunt and indifferent.


    Ye Futian glanced at him and said, ��You can��t call the shots.��


    ��When Du You saw the look Ye Futian gave him, his expression became ugly. A cold light was released from his pupils. They seemed to contain Spear Will.


    Was Ye Futian ridiculing him?


    With his status, there were very few instances when he could not call the shots.


    However, Ye Futian had come looking for Donghuang Diyuan. The matter might indeed be something that he could not make the decision. With Ye Futian��s current status, he would naturally not come over for ordinary matters. It might be related to the relics or the teachings of the Great Emperors.


    Du You still stared at Ye Futian, not intending to send word of the latter��s arrival. Ye Futian shifted his gaze and ignored him. He shouted out loud, ��Donghuang Diyuan!��


    His voice reverberated throughout the relic, shaking the space. Du You��s facial expression immediately tuned cold. His Spear Will became ferocious. Ye Futian did not look at him. Instead, he said in a cold and indifferent tone, ��You are no match for me.��


    This humiliating statement caused Du You��s face to turn very ugly. However, he had no comeback for what Ye Futian said.


    ��There were only a handful of people in Donghuang Imperial Palace who were a match for Ye Futian. At the very least, Du You was not one of them.


    In the distance, a brilliant divine light shone. Then, a group of figures appeared in the sky. Donghuang Diyuan stood at the very front. Her beauty was unparalleled. She stared at Ye Futian with her beautiful eyes. Her expression was emotionless, and she did not speak.


    ��Princess Donghuang, why don��t we make a deal?�� suggested Ye Futian.


    ��What sort of deal?�� asked Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��believe that you managed to get your hands on several divine stones. I also believe that you have managed to comprehend the mystery behind them,�� said Ye Futian. Donghuang Diyuan remained silent and did not respond. It was the same as acknowledging his words. Donghuang Imperial Palace had


    indeed comprehended the mystery of the divine stones. However, they had not unlocked many of them so far.


    ��Each divine stone contains a divine technique of the Old Heaven Court. They are priceless and can be passed down for generations for cultivation,�� Ye Futian said as he looked at Donghuang Diyuan. ��I do not need to elaborate on how valuable a divine stone is. You also understand this, Princess


    Donghuang. I came here today to make a deal with you. I wish to trade the divine stones for something.��


    Donghuang Diyuan still did not respond. She merely looked down at Ye Futian.


    Seeing that she did not respond, Ye Futian thought to himself that she was truly an ice queen. He then continued, ��I want the skeleton of a Dragon God with its will intact.��


    ��You are greedy,�� Donghuang Diyuan said as she glanced at Ye Futian. ��The corpse of a Dragon God is the body of a Demon Monarch from ancient times. On top of that, you want its will intact. How many divine stones are you offering in exchange?��


    ��How about three?�� offered Ye Futian.


    ��That is not enough,�� replied Donghuang Diyuan in a cold tone.


    ��How many do you want?�� bargained Ye Futian. He wanted the corpse of a Dragon God and its will primarily to aid the demons of Demon God Mountain in their cultivation. The Divine Dragons especially needed it.


    Before this, he had obtained the skeleton of Demon Monarch Karura to help the cultivators of Sky Demon Court in their cultivation. Now, if he could get his hands on another Dragon God skeleton, it would be even better.


    Even the other cultivators would benefit if they successfully comprehended the will of a Dragon God.


    He had checked through the divine stones he possessed before. Some of them with similar divine techniques could be used as bargaining chips.


    ��30 divine stones,�� Donghuang Diyuan said as she stared at Ye Futian. Hadn��t Ye Futian obtained quite a number of them?


    ��Donghuang Diyuan, what you ask for is practically daylight robbery. Where is your sincerity?�� Ye Futian mocked with a smile. Behind Donghuang Diyuan were many top figures. Formless pressure emanated from them. However, they could not affect the current Ye Futian. Even the might of the


    Near-Deity Level cultivators did not affect him.


    30 divine stones meant 30 types of divine techniques. This was equivalent to the heritage possessed by an Emperor-level force. Even if Donghuang Diyuan could not unlock the divine stones, Donghuang the Great would undoubtedly be able to do so.


    This woman was truly greedy.


    ��Toffer you one Purple Gold Dragon God corpse plus dragon blood from a Crimson Dragon God that serves to baptize and train one��s body,�� said Donghuang Diyuan as she continued to lay out her bargaining chips. This actually drew Ye Futian��s attention.


    The corpse of a Purple Gold Dragon God and dragon blood.


    From the looks of it, Donghuang Imperial Palace had reaped considerable benefits in the relic of House Naga.


    ��10 divine stones,�� said Ye Futian as he stared at Donghuang Diyuan.


    The two fated enemies were now bargaining.


    Donghuang Diyuan continued, ��Dragon blood can be used to baptize and train the body. The strength of the flesh of the members of House Naga in ancient times is unimaginable by current day standards. This is the blood of a Dragon God and a Crimson Dragon. Its blood can be reused over and over again.


    You��d better think carefully.��


    ��The divine techniques in the divine stones can also be passed down for generations,�� Ye Futian retorted. ��20 divine stones is the most I can stomach. If Princess Donghuang does not agree, then just pretend that I was never here.��


    ��Be on your way then,�� said Donghuang Diyuan indifferently. She then immediately turned around and prepared to leave. Ye Futian was stunned.


    Did this woman need to act so cold and arrogant?


    ��Deal,�� said Ye Futian, accepting Donghuang Diyuan��s offer. Currently, in terms of value, the 30 divine stones were worth more. However, if he could use the corpse of the Dragon God and the dragon blood to concoct elixirs and baptize generations to come, Ye Futian believed that this deal was still worth


    it.


    These 30 divine stones could be replaced. They were not that important.


    ��Most importantly, what she offered was what he needed most. Hence, Ye Futian agreed.


    It was certainly the same for Donghuang Diyuan. She had a greater need for the divine stones. Hence, she had offered the corpse of the Purple Gold Dragon God as well as the dragon blood. She wanted to establish a higher price so that Ye Futian would need to exchange even more divine stones.


    Donghuang Imperial Palace needed more divine stones.


    Donghuang Diyuan turned around and gave Ye Futian a look. They had reached an agreement.


    This deal was sealed very smoothly. Both sides were top figures of the cultivation world. They did not need to cheat to get what they wanted. Ye Futian left, taking with him the dragon corpse and the dragon blood.


    He still had a lot to do after this!

 Chapter 2720 - Fetching People Over

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor:Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After Ye Futian returned to the Ruins of the Mahoraga, he called a meeting of all the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace.


    ��They gathered together and looked toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian had become the leader of this group of people. Those from Ziwei Imperial Palace naturally followed his orders, while the Head of the West Imperial Palace, Xi Chiyao, was also willing to work with him. The alliance decided on Ye Futian as


    their leader.


    Ye Futian looked at the gathered crowd and announced, ��My purpose for calling all of you is here is to discuss a matter. The Gods�� Continent has appeared, and divine relics have been excavated one after another. This continent has also been expanding, and its antiquated essence has spread to all corners


    of the Original Realm. Hence, in the future, this place will no longer be just historical remains, but the first and greatest continent in the Original Realm.��


    The people nodded upon hearing Ye Futian��s words. These few years, they had all been busy fighting over possession of the relics and with cultivation. They had not thought much in detail about other things, but clearly, Ye Futian had already taken all these things into consideration.


    The land of the Original Realm, the former Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path, was no longer regarded as significant. Later on, the Original Realm changed, and many ancient lost continents appeared. They were then occupied by different forces, with the strongest among them being Ziwei


    Segmentum.


    But now, with the appearance of this divine continent from the past, from now on, this continent would become the main piece of land of the Original Realm. Not only from the Original Realm, but also cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, the Demon Realm, and all the other seven realms, would also


    gather here on this continent, which would make it the continent that had the most significant number of relics, the strongest cultivators, and the most powerful.


    Looking at its current state, it was just historical remains, but in the future, with all the powerful forces making their bases here, this ancient lost continent would no longer be barren. It would be the center of the entire world.


    ��Currently, we are the occupants of this historical land, so of course, we will turn this area into our fortress,�� Ye Futian continued. ��I intend to build a place here similar to Ziwei Imperial Palace and then create a linkway between here and Ziwei Segmentum. What do you think?��


    ��We are agreeable, and not only us, but all the great forces will also naturally want to be part of this,�� Xi Chiyao was the first to respond. This was a divine continent from ancient times they were talking about, and there should be no doubts that it should become the center of the Original Realm.


    The other cultivators, too, nodded their heads one by one in approval. The remaining cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace have not been here to enjoy the resources yet, and they ought to be brought over in the future.


    ��Since everyone agrees, we shall start work immediately,�� Ye Futian announced. ��We will also construct the space teleportation grand matrix at the same time and link here and Ziwei Segmentum together. However, West Imperial Palace is in Divine Prefecture, so we will need to think of another method.��


    As West Imperial Palace was in Divine Prefecture, unlike with Ziwei Segmentum, it was not possible to link up with it through the space teleportation grand matrix.


    ��In that case, what should this place be called in the future?�� Supreme Swordlord asked, smiling, It would be developed with the combined forces of Ziwei Imperial Palace and West Imperial Palace and would be considered an alliance. People from both sides would all relocate here to cultivate.


    Besides that, regarding Ziwei Imperial Palace, the cultivators from the Lost Clan also had to be here, and by then, it would be the alliance of three great powers instead.


    ��How about Futian Palace?�� Xi Chiyao laughingly suggested.


    Ye Futian shook his head in disagreement. This name certainly did not sound nice.


    ��Ziwei Imperial Palace, West Imperial Palace, Lost Clan, Old Continent, Mahoraga Tribe.�� Ye Futian thought to himself. He was also thinking but likewise could not come up with anything good at that moment.


    ��Let��s have it built first before deciding on a name.�� Ye Futian grinned. ��Who do you think is suitable to take charge of this project?��


    ��can do it.�� Xi Chiyao readily volunteered herself.


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian nodded at Xi Chiyao. ��Thanks for taking up the responsibility, Goddess Chiyao.��


    ��It��s what I should do as part of my duty. Moreover, you still have so many other matters to attend to,�� Xi Chiyao replied with a smile.


    Ye Futian nodded and looked toward the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace. ��Everyone from Ziwei Imperial Palace also needs to follow Goddess Chiyao��s instructions. This place will become the most significant cultivation training base in the future, and we will need to consider its defense capabilities.


    ��We might need help from Matrix Palace. Within the divine stones exists a matrix spell and contains a divine matrix. As it��s a sword matrix, I would also like to invite Swordlord to study it with me.��


    ��Yes, your highness.�� The cultivators all nodded in obedience. They naturally would not go against Ye Futian��s wishes, being from Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��No problem.�� Supreme Swordlord nodded as well. His cultivation here had brought him much gain. While the imperial arms were already a great treasure that increased his powers, he could also learn from the relics of the Great Emperor, and now, he could even learn new swordsmanship and divine


    technique. Even without these, studying the swordsmanship divine matrix alone also had its benefits.


    ��Wuchen, Yaya, Swordmaster, you guys also come with me.�� Ye Futian said to the three swordsmen.


    The trio nodded in agreement, and after that, both sides parted ways to commence their respective work. Ye Futian��s side started studying the sword matrix, while Xi Chiyao��s side started constructing the cultivation training base. Those who had no duties assigned continued cultivating,


    Everybody got busy with their own matters.


    Outside the realm, the cultivators from other worlds worked hard on their cultivations. Currently, rumors were going around that a few of the Emperor-level cultivators had acquired many divine stones when they were previously at the Old Heaven Court. These divine stones contained divine techniques


    from the Old Heaven Court, and all the big shots were now trying to study and decipher them.


    It was also rumored that Ye Futian had acquired the most stones.


    Furthermore, he had also acquired the Divine Ruler that had suppressed the Demonic Lord.


    These rumors led to many people keeping their eyes on the Ruins of the Mahoraga, where the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace were presently at. However, unlike in the past, no one dared to enter the Ruins of the Mahoraga casually and risk going up against Ye Futian.


    As time passed little by little, the divine light released from the divine continents had spread to cover the entire boundless space, including even Ziwei Segmentum. It was as if Ziwei Segmentum was also part of the upper skies over the divine continents. The other lost continents discovered in the Original


    Realm were also shrouded within the divine light.


    All these greatly influenced the Original Realm, and everyone knew it. This piece of land had become something completely different.


    At present, all the cultivators in Ziwei Segmentum were working hard on their cultivations. They had sensed the changes in the world. As more and more powerful cultivators appeared in the world, so it was too at Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Within the Imperial Palace, many people were cultivating. They would look up at the continent within the skies occasionally. It was as if it was the Milky Way, running through the whole Original Realm from top to bottom.


    Buzz! Just then, a beam of divine light suddenly appeared within Ziwei Imperial Palace. It had come from the skies, landing within the palace, and it was dazzling. Following that, a group of cultivators stepped out from within the divine light, and at their head was Ye Futian.


    ��His highness has returned.�� The cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace all lifted their heads simultaneously and looked toward the side. The message echoed through the palace, and all the strongmen came out. The cultivators stopped their cultivations and fixed their eyes upon the figure of Ye Futian.


    ��Greetings, your highness.��


    A voice cried out, and more followed in unison until the whole palace was filled with them. Ye Futian had long been the totem of Ziwei Imperial Palace, especially more so because he was from Heavenly Mandate Academy. To them, Ye Futian was a legend.


    ��You all have waited long,�� Ye Futian started speaking. The divine light around him was shining ever so brightly, causing everyone to guess that Ye Futian had undergone a metamorphosis. They wondered exactly how high was the current cultivation level of their Palace Lord.


    ��The space teleportation grand matrix has been built, and now, I can bring all of you over to the divine relics to cultivate. Those who wish to go, please get ready, and we will set off soon after.�� All at once, everyone became excited after hearing what Ye Futian said.


    Would they soon be getting the opportunity to go to the divine relics to cultivate?


    What was it like over there?


    All these years, they had been full of imagination, but as Ye Futian had not returned, they did not dare to act recklessly but remained to guard the palace. Although one needed to have the luck to go to the divine relics, they were also fraught with danger, and preparations had to be made before they could


    go over. They had absolute trust in Ye Futian.


    ��Yes, your highness.�� The cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace answered in unison. Ye Futian��s body flashed, and he vanished from where he was standing. He visited the Lost Clan and then the elders in the Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian arrived at the area where Emperor Xia was cultivating. Emperor Xia was currently engaged in a game of chess with the former imperial advisor of Dali, Qi Xuangang. They were once rivals, with Qi Xuangang being the subordinate of Emperor Li, but now, they had become good friends.


    ��They had already seen Ye Futian��s arriving much earlier on but did not display any signs of noticing. Even when Ye Futian approached them, Emperor Xia continued to ignore him.


    ��Master, Mr. Xia!�� Ye Futian resorted to shouting.


    ��You��re back.�� Qi Xuangang smiled in reply.


    ��Yep.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Everything is in place, and I would like to take you there to have a look. Many divine relics have appeared in the Gods�� Continent, and one can faintly imagine how things would have been like in the Yuangu era.��


    ��Sure, I would like to go.�� Qi Xuangang nodded approvingly.


    Naturally, Emperor Xia desired to go, although he did not say a word. For a cultivator, going to the Gods�� Continent was a dream they all had.


    ��Qingyuan.�� Ye Futian saw Xia Qingyuan walking towards them. He took out a lotus flower and handed it to her. He explained, ��This lotus contains the Will of the Great Emperor, suitable for you to cultivate with. You can communicate with the Will of the elders in the lotus.��


    As he finished talking, a brilliant divine light flew toward Xia Qingyuan. She stretched out her hand and caught the lotus flower that landed on her palm.


    ��Thank you,�� Xia Qingyuan uttered in a low voice.


    ��Master, Mr. Xia, you two get ready as well, and we will depart in a bit. I will go visit the other elders.�� Ye Futian did not stay long and soon left to notify the others.


    Even though everyone already knew about this matter, it was still basic courtesy to inform the elders about it in person!

 Chapter 2721 - Ye Imperial Palace

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor:Nyoi-Bo Studio


    There was now a palace complex constructed within the vast expanses of the mountainous Ruins of the Mahoraga, and the palaces acted as a link between the mountains.


    In the core region of the Ruins was a divine door, while the Imperial Palace above it was even more magnificent. Looking at how spectacular and grand it was, it was akin to a divine palace. After all, it had been built for the important people. Ziwei Imperial Palace had five grand palaces, while West


    Imperial Palace and the Lost Clan also had core powers, so they needed a large territory.


    Therefore, Xi Chiyao made full use of every bit of land available in the bid to turn the region into a palace complex.


    She had certainly done a great job as it was well planned. The original Lord of West Imperial Palace brought many cultivators from the palace over to help out. Xi Chiyao had even neglected her own cultivation in those days as she spent most of her time working to turn the ruins into something grand


    enough to be compared to the Imperial Palaces.


    Xi Chiyao viewed the areas containing the Relics of the Great Emperor as core areas and had them fenced.


    ��When Ye Futian brought cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace to the area, it was not yet fully completed, but they were still stunned by the scale of the construction. Of course, they were aware that this place was newly constructed, and the continent was once a barren land. However, Ye Futian had plans


    to turn this area into the second Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Furthermore, the fact that Ye Futian had already constructed an imperial palace here and brought them over meant that they had already taken a firm hold of this continent.


    Just how strong Ye Futian was now?


    ��Come, I��ll bring you guys to see the relics of the Great Emperor,�� Ye Futian offered. This group of people who came with him consisted of those of importance in Ziwei Imperial Palace and those who were close to him. There would be more coming subsequently. There was no rush as the linkway was


    already up and running.


    ��Sure.�� Everyone nodded their heads in anticipation. Even Emperor Xia, who had always given the cold shoulder to Ye Futian, also moved his legs forward obediently, although he still could not be bothered to interact with Ye Futian.


    No one did not desire to see and study the relics of the Great Emperor for themselves.


    Moreover, there were relics of the Great Emperor, but there was also the Gods�� Continent, the former battlefield of the gods in the past. And according to Ye Futian��s ��bragging,�� this place also formally belonged to the Mahoraga Tribe, which was one of the Heavenly Path��s Eight Legions.


    ��Inever thought that I would be able to see the relics of the Gods�� Continent during this lifetime.�� Lord Taixuan was immensely moved. Previously at the Nine Realms, he had also been an impressive character, but later on, as things kept changing in the Original Realm, eventually, he was no longer able to


    keep up with the pace.


    Although he was still mighty, he was no longer considered significant when judged against the standards of the present Original Realm. Of course, if he were among normal humans in the world, he would still be regarded as exceptionally strong. Now though, he was with Ye Futian, and Ye Futian��s friends


    and foes were all exceptional characters.


    Lord Taixuan, along with his companions, all felt themselves to be old guards and unable to compete with the leading cultivators from the newer generations any longer.


    It had been previously impossible for them to have a chance to come to the God��s Continent and see the relics for themselves, so Ye Futian bringing them here now was like looking at a changing-of-the-guards.


    The other cultivators from the former Nine Realms all gently nodded their heads. They, too, felt the same way as Lord Taixuan. They had been cultivating Taichu��s power at Ziwei Imperial Palace and underwent a metamorphosis that gave them extraordinary prowess.


    Now being here, perhaps they would have the chance to improve even further and be of some use in the future despite their old age.


    Above that palace, high in the skies, was a divine sword that controlled all the other swords.


    Buzz! Just then, the lights went out, and the dangling swords suddenly vanished into thin air. The divine sword, too, disappeared into the darkness, leaving no traces behind.


    A few shadowy figures appeared in that area. They consisted of Ye Futian, Supreme Swordlord, Ye Wuchen, and others. They went down to the crowd of people.


    The formation of swords had been completed and would form the defense of the palace complex. As such, even if Ye Futian were not around if and when anyone wanted to break in, they would not be able to get past the sword formation. It could even kill the person who tried to break in.


    ��I��s done!�� Ye Futian announced as he landed on the sky stairwell. Everyone smiled. Xi Chiyao grinned. ��Using the divine sword as part of the formation, where we are, we should be the first to finish building the palace.��


    ��Yup.�� Ye Futian nodded while looking at Xi Chiyao. ��It��s all thanks to you.��


    ��Everyone helped.�� Xi Chiyao smiled. ��It��s time to name this place.��


    ��Name, huh?�� Ye Futian��s head ached a little. Looking at the three highest-placed palaces, he knew that the highest one was for him and the important people in Ziwei Imperial Palace, while the lower two at the right and left sides were for West Imperial Palace and the Lost Clan.


    ��Twant to name this palace as Ye Imperial Palace, but it might not be the right time to do so yet.�� Xi Chiyao had this dream.


    The cultivators were stunned. Ye Imperial Palace!


    ��How about we temporarily name it such for now and only announce it to the world in the future,�� Supreme Swordlord suggested.


    ��That��s fine.�� Everyone nodded their heads and looked at the handsome face of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian stood there and looked one by one at the faces staring at him. He could see the anticipation in each person��s eyes.


    They hoped that he would become the Emperor of Ye Imperial Palace one day.


    Thus, it would be appropriate to name this palace Ye Imperial Palace. It was the hopes of everyone there.


    Seeing what they hoped for, Ye Futian answered, ��Okay, let��s name it this way for now, but we��ll not announce it to the outside world. If I don��t manage to become an Emperor, it would be too embarrassing.��


    Everyone laughed at Ye Futian��s words.


    Within the laughter, there seem to lay their hopes for the future!

 Chapter 2722 - After Ten Years

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ten years had passed since the Gods�� Continent first appeared, and the once-barren land had been completely transformed.


    The passageway that linked other realms to this continent had also been opened for the same length of time, and cultivators from each realm had made their way over in troves. The enlargement of the continent also made it possible for countless more cultivators to be there.


    At that time, Emperor-level cultivators had occupied the Ruins where the Heavenly Path Eight Legions had been previously and divided their respective territories using the Ruins as the center. For example, the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture used the Naga Ruins (1] as the center point of their


    cultivation, while those from Devil World used the Ruins of the Karura.


    Not only that, but the cultivators had also built imperial palaces within their respective regions. Many tall, imposing palaces stood on this ancient continent.


    In addition, when the strongest forces from every realm occupied any ruins, they also started to construct their bases, resulting in the once-barren continent turning into a flourishing and vibrant area now. In particular, where the Eight Legions were situated, one could see numerous city walls and


    moats; they were impressive in appearance and a stark contrast to how the place had been before.


    The cultivators who came to the Gods�� Continent were all pioneers, just that. This time around, the pioneers were all-powerful cultivators from every realm, and they could transform this piece of land in the fastest time possible.


    The cultivators in the land were also undergoing continual transformations. It was not rare to see clouds of tribulation rolling above the skies in recent years. Previously, it was extremely rare to see cultivators passing through tribulations, but on this continent, it happened frequently. Some passed the


    first tribulation, others the second, but no one gave the third.


    The divine tribulations came in threes, and passing all three would make one a god on the Emperor-level. Yet even with all the changes taking place in the world today, it was still difficult to pass all three.


    Of course, with cultivators from every realm training together on the same land, fights over the relics would still occur, and there would be clashes. Especially when cultivators from different realms clashed, a chain reaction would often occur, causing massive disturbances.


    Fights and battles were happening all the time on this ancient continent. Conflicts of all kinds were never-ending, and some ended up victorious while others were thoroughly defeated. The survival of the fittest was constantly showcased.


    In addition, even till now, there were still highly mysterious relics on this land that had yet had their mysteries cracked, attracting many cultivators to head there to probe. Alas, many extremely powerful cultivators ended up dying in those relics.


    The especially dangerous relics were even termed ��Forbidden Zone of the Gods�� by the cultivators of the land.


    No one knew what events had occurred before in those forbidden areas, but it was inevitable that there had to be beings on the Emperor level there in other forms. Otherwise, there was no reason they would be so dangerous as to cause many top-level cultivators to lose their lives there.


    Ye Imperial Palace, which was previously the Ruins of the Mahoraga, had evolved into an impressive palace complex. Meanwhile, cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace came over continuously to train in this palace complex that encircled mountains, and many also went outside to explore.


    ��What��s more, Ye Futian and company had also opened another linkway that linked to Ziwei Segmentum, allowing those from Ziwei Segmentum to come to this land to cultivate also. However, as they were not part of Ziwei Imperial Palace, they were not allowed to use the cultivation resources from Ye


    Imperial Palace. Ye Futian only allowed them to visit the ancient continent like other cultivators from the other realms.


    As for how far they could progress or how they would turn out, Ye Futian was not responsible for that. It was up to that person��s destiny.


    At the summit of Ye Imperial Palace, which was at the top of the sky stairwell at the edge of the palace complex, there was a Will of the Solemn. If you stood on the sky stairwell and lifted your head to look, you would involuntarily feel awed as if it was an actual imperial palace.


    The divine sword and sword formation hidden within the sky also gave people a sense of pressure, looking majestic and divine.


    Following the steps of the sky stairwell to the top, one would find the magnificent and imposing Imperial Palace there, while behind the palace, there was a massive training ground. In there, there sat a white-haired cultivator. Around his body, a jade-green divine light spun round and round. His whole


    figure shone brightly and seemed as if the light and physical body were adjoined as one. The surrounding earthly will seemed to have been affected by him and fluctuated according to the divine light��s movements.


    Just by sitting there motionless, it felt as if he was the ruler of the world.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes at that moment, and a jade-green divine light glinted and penetrated the vast area. He looked up above the skies. He was still unable to get past this stage. It seemed as if he had encountered a bottleneck.


    He felt that the current him had cultivated until the highest level of a certain plane and was now at the doorstep of the demigod-level. Yet, he was unable to take the step into the door. Perhaps he still lacked understanding.


    Besides, Ye Futian knew that his journey of cultivation had been different from the others�� in some ways. Ever since he had achieved the pinnacle in the Renhuang plane, he had started to walk along a different path. How the third and final tribulation would be, he did not either.


    His current cultivation level was still at the pinnacle in the Renhuang place. It differed from the powerful cultivators who had passed through tribulations, yet he had also passed through two.


    ��How can I take the step in?�� Ye Futian murmured to himself. He was able to be at the doorstep of the demigod-level with the powers of the Divine Ruler and was also able to spar with near-deities. He vaguely felt that, if he were able to take that step, he would be able to be at the pinnacle of the demigod


    level.


    Once there, save those at the Emperor-level, there probably would not be anyone left who could compete against him anymore. Probably only Ji Wudao, Donghuang Diyuan, and those others at the demigod-level, or those comparable to the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, would qualify to go up


    against him.


    He stood up and turned his head, only to see Hua Jieyu sitting against the wall, cultivating. A large beam of divine light surrounded her, and it was as if that place had become something special. Her aura was also out of the ordinary.


    There was a divine stone floating in front of Hua Jieyu. It was among the hundred over stones that Ye Futian had gotten, and it was one of the more special ones. Due to its uniqueness, a lot of time was spent activating this stone.


    On seeing Hu Jieyu engrossed in her cultivation, Ye Futian decided not to disturb her but turned around. With a move of his will, his body vanished from where he had been and appeared again outside the Heavenly Palace.


    Ye Futian looked down at the lower skies. Divine consciousness enveloped the entire palace complex, and the activities of the cultivators all appeared in his sight.


    These days, he practiced alchemy, activated the divine stones to aid other cultivators in learning divine techniques, was cleansed by the dragon��s blood, and let others bathe in the dragon��s blood. This was paired with an elixir, and they would perform closed-door cultivation afterward. It did not matter


    whether they were from Ziwei Imperial Palace, West Imperial Palace, or the Lost Clan; all the cultivators underwent a complete transformation.


    The important people in Ziwei Imperial Palace improved especially quickly. In recent years, that had been quite a few that had passed through tribulations and became powerful cultivators.


    Just then, there was a flash at the sky stairwell below. It was Old Ma. He moved toward Ye Futian and bowed. ��Your Highness.��


    Although they once had a close relationship, in the current Ziwei Imperial Palace, everyone highly respected Ye Futian. Despite being a junior, he had done so much for everyone that no one took his age into account anymore.


    ��You don��t have to stand on ceremony, Uncle Ma,�� Ye Futian repled. Old Ma was still the protector of Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��How are things like in the outside world?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Ever since the chaos that had taken place then, he had not gone outside to court any more trouble after he had obtained the divine stones. They had already gotten plenty and were not greedy. What��s more, the best inheritances had all been snatched up by those at the Emperor-level, and there was no way


    he would incite a fight against them.


    ��It��s a changing situation. Every day is different,�� Old Ma answered, ��but the divine relics on the Gods�� Continent have been more or less completely plundered. They have either been taken control of or inherited, except a few secret places known as the Forbidden Zone of the Gods. As they likely contain


    extraordinary inheritances, many people desire to decipher them.��


    ��Ah, I see.�� Ye Futian nodded and looked toward the distance. After not being able to get past the cultivation bottleneck these few years, perhaps it was time to go out and have a look around!


    [1] Also known as ��Naga Relics..��

 Chapter 2723 - Turning Into a Demon

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��Tm going outside to have a look,�� Ye Futian remarked to Old Ma. Old Ma nodded, and Ye Futian��s figure disappeared immediately from the sky stairwell.


    Old Ma looked toward where Ye Futian had disappeared and was overcame with emotion. He still remembered the day Ye Futian first came into the village. At that time, he was just a genius junior. Now, however, he had become one of the top cultivators globally and was the leader of an extremely strong


    force. Aside from those at the Emperor-level, there was likely no one that could compete with him any longer.


    1


    Even those of the Ancient God Clan were powerless against him now.


    Moreover, Ye Futian��s demeanor had undergone a complete transformation; it was completely different from his past. He could just about visualize the current Ye Futian becoming an Emperor. He already had the airs of one.7


    comment


    Ye Futian reappeared on the outskirts of the palace complex. The former Ruins of the Mahoraga had now been transformed into Ye Imperial Palace, and the outskirts were also the property of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Many cultivators had arrived here from Ziwei Segmentum and constructed many buildings,


    which made the area look like an outer city when viewed from afar.


    This was probably also the current portrayal of the entire Gods�� Continent. Here was only tiny corner.


    Ye Futian disappeared again in a flash. He traversed in the high skies, gazing down upon the land. The many constructions in sight showed that this ancient continent was no longer barren.


    He looked up at the upper skies. His sharp eyes pierced through the boundless space, beyond the clouds, and into the outer regions. He could see that the Void had been filled with the essence originating from this old continent, and continents were floating in the midst. Ye Futian knew what that meant.


    Following the expansion of the Gods�� Continent, the divine light had also been spreading out to cover the other continents in the Original Realm. As such, those continents that were part of the Original Realm had become the outer sections of the Gods�� Continent. This was also the case for Ziwei Segmentum


    and the former Three Thousand Realms of the Great Path.


    In the future, the Original Realm would likely become similar in structure to the Divine Prefecture, having countless continents all within the same dimension, with the Gods�� Continent as its hub.


    The Divine Prefecture was also an amalgamation of many continents, but unlike the Original Realm, it did not have a continent like the Gods�� Continent as its hub.


    Ye Futian quickly passed through the skies above the Gods�� Continent and switched from looking at the upper skies to the land below.


    ��You behave sneakily despite being a Buddhist cultivator and are a disgrace to Buddhism.�� Just then, Ye Futian spat out words that shook the Void. His voice rang out throughout the boundless space, causing tremors within the Void.


    Below, numerous cultivators lifted their heads to see a white-haired figure.


    ��It��s Ye Futian!��


    Somebody recognized him. Even those who had never met him in person had all heard of him. With such a special aura, outstanding appearance, and an iconic head of long silver hair, the figure above could only be Ye Futian.


    Who was he talking to?


    Who were the Buddhist cultivators?


    At the top of the skies was a golden Buddhist light, and in the distance, a pair of frightening eyes appeared within the Void. They pierced through the Void, looking toward Ye Futian. The cultivators below could see nothing of the newcomer but those eyes. It made their hearts race.


    ��That was an unnerving pair of eyes. Did they belong to Shenyan Buddha Lord?


    But had his eyes not been stabbed and blinded by Ye Futian when he had trespassed into the Ruins of the Mahoraga?


    Ye Futian sensed the other party and frowned. It seemed like Shenyan Buddha Lord had made tremendous progress, turning misfortune into a blessing after being stabbed blind. His eyes had become even more astonishing and powerful.


    Just then, those eyes in the Void released a terrifying golden light that pierced directly through the Void like a razor-sharp blade and headed for Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned and disappeared from the area. Two beams of divine light cut through where he had been standing before, causing a hole to appear, but Ye Futian was somewhere else.


    Buzz!


    Many eyes lit up simultaneously and headed toward Ye Futian. All at once, ten million beams of golden divine light pierced through the Void and moved to attack Ye Futian.


    The area was flooded with innumerable divine lights.


    ��Oh my����


    The cultivators were unnerved as they witnessed this scene. They had not thought that just an Eye Spell alone could be that terrifying.


    Those beams of divine light coming out from the eyes were enough to kill even the strongest cultivators.


    Ye Futian kept vanishing from the spot, but the Eye Spell lights seemed to be bent on sealing up the Void. They came at Ye Futian furiously, and a gigantic Divine Eye appeared above him at once. It resembled the eyes of Tianshen, and the cultivators below were all taken aback when they saw it.


    ��Hurry up and leave!�� Ye Futian shouted to the cultivators, and it was only then that they reacted and fled the area in a hurry. Just as Ye Futian finished speaking, the eyes in the skies again released countless beams of divine light that covered the sky. They were akin to sharp blades and headed straight for Ye


    Futian.


    At the same time, Shenyan Buddha Lord��s figure also appeared in the upper skies, revealing himself.


    He now possessed a strong aura, and his powers had become more stable than when he had first passed through the second tribulation. He had sought Medicine Buddha Lord for help with his injured eyes. Although they did not fully recover, the Divine Eye technique he had been practicing developed further.


    It replaced his physical eyes, and he became much more powerful, and now, he did not need his physical eyes anymore as his divine eyes were everywhere.


    Ye Futian saw the deadly lights coming at him but did not dodge this time. A Buddhist light blazed around him, and he transformed into an indestructible golden body. A jade-green divine light encircled the golden body, blending with it in harmony.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Horrifying attacks continued raining down. The divine lights coming out from the Divine Eye were like razor-sharp blades that could cut through anything, They struck the golden body, creating loud noises in the process. A crack appeared on the body, but it remained in one piece,


    shielding Ye Futian��s body.


    However, some people below were not as lucky. Although the battle had taken place in the high skies and were far from the ground, the divine light was so terrifying that it pierced straight through the Void and into the lower skies. Those hit by the light immediately disintegrated into pieces, leaving not a


    single bone behind. They did not even have time to cry out.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and looked below and then looked toward Shenyan Buddha Lord again. A golden dazzling light encircled his body, and he coldly stated, ��Buddha Lord, indeed?��


    ��Lonce cultivated at Western Heaven and could be considered a semi-disciple of Buddha. I will eradicate this Buddhist scum on behalf of the other Buddhists today,�� Ye Futian said aloud, his voice shaking the Void. As he finished speaking, two beams of divine light that contained the Will of the Great


    Emperor shot out of Shenyan Buddha Lord��s eyes and unto Ye Futian��s golden body.


    Inan instant, the golden body broke into pieces, but Ye Futian also vanished at the same time. The two beams of divine light continued to strike and raze everything within the area to the ground.


    Yet more people died, and those who were fortunate to escape were terrified. They used their divine wills to look into the battle in the high skies as they fled, and they felt their hearts go cold.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord was already a demigod and incredibly powerful. He also seemed to have the help of imperial arms. Would Ye Futian be able to cope?


    The cultivators were hoping Ye Futian would be the victor and get rid of Shenyan Buddha Lord. This Buddha Lord had no qualms about taking innocent lives in his bid to kill Ye Futian and had incurred the wrath and enmity of the people.


    Ye Futian reappeared at another place and looked at Shenyan Buddha Lord. When he had been stabbed blind, even the Buddha of Destiny had urged him to let go of his obsession. Yet it seemed that his obsession had only grown deeper, and he was now too bent on having his revenge for letting go.


    There is only a thin line between being a Buddha and being a demon, and Shenyan Buddha Lord had turned into a half-demon.


    His eyes were still blind, but a pair of divine eyes had replaced them. They were intimidating, and in there was a Buddhist divine sword. It was an imperial arm taken away by Shenyan Buddha Lord when he invaded the Ruins of the Mahoraga.


    The jade-green divine light glowed, and divine light kept gushing out of Ye Futian. They converged in front of Ye Futian and wrapped his entire body in them. Ye Futian morphed into a silhouette of a god. He held the Divine Ruler in his hands and looked up at Shenyan Buddha Lord in the Void.


    Judging by his expression, it was obvious he meant business!

 Chapter 2724 - yes of the War God

    yes of the War God


    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Shenyan Buddha Lord looked down upon Ye Futian��s silhouette. The eyes above the skies glared with murderous intent.


    A divine light glowed, and divine eyes began to envelop the area. The area subsequently converted into a Domain and within the Domain appeared countless buddhas that saturated the entire Domain. The Light of Buddha emerged from between the buddhas, bearing down on the cultivators below. The


    cultivators looking up at the Domain all felt the need to bow down on the ground and convey their reverence.


    ��Ye Futian, today I will let you see what a real Buddhist technique is,�� Shenyan Buddha Lord exclaimed, and his voice shook the Void. He lowered his eyes, and at once, the Light of Buddha emerged simultaneously from the bodies of the buddhas. Inside the Domain, Buddhist Divine Swords shot out from the


    countless buddhas�� pupils. They shuttled across the Void, undeterred by the spatial distance. They destroyed everything in their path.


    The eyes were like swords that penetrated heaven and the earth with the emperor��s will.


    Buzz! Ye Futian��s figure flickered and disappeared from where he was standing. The divine swords also vanished instantaneously. They were quick as could be and were not deterred at all by the spatial distance. This was a Buddhist Sword Method, the Sword of Kasyapa. The sword resembled a beam of light,


    and its prowess was unparalleled.


    It seemed that Ye Futian had vanished into thin air to the watching crowd, but in actuality, he was using Teletransportation to move about. However, the Divine Eyes above the skies was also one of the Buddhist Six Superpowers like Teletransportation and could track Ye Futian��s every movement. The swords


    formed a matrix that could lock everything under surveillance, working together with the Buddhist Divine Sword technique.


    The cultivators below saw the skies turn into a domain of swords of light that engulfed the entire area such that no matter where you moved, you were in danger of being stabbed by the swords with the potential to die.


    Just then, from a certain corner, a light shone brightly from the Divine Ruler, and a jade-green divine light came sweeping out. The cultivators looked over to that corner and were surprised to see Ye Futian appearing in the high skies. He was heading straight for Shenyan Buddha Lord, undeterred by the


    onslaught of the Buddhist Divine Swords.


    ��The Divine Ruler headed straight up into the skies, and Ye Futian appeared to have fused with the Divine Ruler. A divine light surrounded him as he aimed straight at Shenyan Buddha Lord. The Heaven Slaying Divine Sword was contained within the Divine Ruler, and numerous divine swords materialized to


    take on the Swords of Kasyapa.


    ��Hmph!�� Shenyan Buddha Lord let out a snort, exerting his dominance. The Buddhist Divine Swords continued their assault and were met by the Heaven Slaying Divine Swords. The swords clashed, and a brilliant divine light lit up in the skies. A resultant storm came sweeping out and turned everything it


    touched into dust, including the Wills of the swords.


    ��The jade-green divine light was repelled, and Ye Futian returned to his original form. The Divine Ruler in his hands remained the same and was still battling the imperial arm. It was shocking that it did not break.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord stared at Ye Futian below and was equally shocked. The Divine Ruler that Ye Futian had obtained from the Ruins of the Karura was indeed an extraordinary divine object. It remained sturdy despite going up against the Buddhist Divine Swords. He also felt that this Divine Ruler was no


    ordinary divine arm [1] if it could withstand the hits from both the Buddhist Divine Swords and the Sword of Kasyapa without breaking apart.


    Ye Futian likely could sense the current level of Shenyan Buddha Lord��s prowess after that hit. As a demigod, he was undoubtedly remarkably strong, but if it were just this, Ye Futian would have no problems finishing him off using the Divine Ruler. However, the addition of the imperial arm made killing him


    much harder.


    One wondered just how oppressive the combat power of a demigod with an imperial arm would be.


    ��You fake Buddhist disciple, today will be the day you die.�� The Divine Eyes above the skies were still staring down at Ye Futian and Shenyan Buddha Lord��s words resonated within the Void. The divine swords beneath the Divine Eyes let out a brilliant glow that inundated the entire area, encapsulating the


    Domain within.


    His previous attacks had all just been to sound Ye Futian out. Even though he hated Ye Futian to the core, he also knew that Ye Futian was mighty. He had waited a long time for Ye Futian to emerge and was not letting this chance to kill him go.


    Ye Futian had to die today.


    Ye Futian looked up toward the high skies and stretched out his palms. At once, a jade-green divine light emanated from his body and rushed straight to the clouds, engulfing all parts of the sky in its glow.


    ��What��s this?��


    The cultivators stared at the place where Ye Futian was at. The jade-green divine light had obscured the skies and was glowing intensely. The Divine Ruler was also continually expanding and had now grown into a giant ruler that touched the sky. It appeared that Ye Futian had only been using the tip of the


    iceberg of the Divine Ruler��s powers up till then and was now releasing it in full.


    Ye Futian��s expression was solemn, and his entire being was shrouded in divine light as if he had assimilated into the Force of the Great Path and become one with it. Many people could sense his prowess and were stunned that he was still on the Renhuang Plane.


    Ye Futian��s Renhuang Plane was completely different from the others; his level was created purely by Mother Nature. With the coming together of the Great Paths of heaven and earth and their fusion, he became the Path itself.


    The Divine Ruler was not an imperial arm but was created through the Heavenly Rule. After it had suppressed the Demonic Lord, it had been swallowed by Ye Futian��s Life Spirit and incorporated into his Life Spirit. The amount of power that Ye Futian had used was indeed only a small portion of the Divine


    Ruler��s power.


    Now, however, he was facing a demigod who possessed an imperial arm. His current level would not be good enough to defeat Shenyan Buddha Lord.


    Alongside the glow from the Divine Ruler, it encompassed the entire vast region and became Ye Futian��s Domain of the Great Path.


    This here was his Path.


    Above his head, the jade-green divine light emanating from the Divine Ruler whirled around frantically and tured into an enormous vortex. It obscured the skies and also Ye Futian in the upper skies. The disc vortex devoured every bit of its surroundings, even the Force of the Path and the Worldly Spiritual


    Qi.


    Only that humongous Divine Ruler could stand firmly within the spinning disc.


    ��Is that a divine matrix? The cultivators below were blown away as they witnessed the dazzling scene above. It was formidable and daunting. Ye Futian raised his hand to summon the Divine Ruler and the disc. A menacing devouring power and divine light were springing out from within them.


    Above the skies, the Buddhist Divine Swords broke through the Void and tore it into pieces along with the Sword of the Kasyapa that was released by the divine arms. They sliced everything in their bid to get to Ye Futian, but upon reaching him, they were shockingly devoured right away into the vortex above


    Ye Futian.


    Within the vortex, there seemed to be unlimited space that made everything devoured by it vanish without a trace.


    ��What kind of divine technique is this?�� The cultivators were astonished. The divine swords had all been devoured into nothingness. It rejected nothing, and as long as the divine matrix was present, nothing could overcome the vortex.


    This technique had been learned by Ye Futian when he activated one of the divine stones and incorporated his powers into it. The word ��Nothingness�� was inscribed on the stone, and it had contained an extremely formidable divine technique. After Ye Futian had finished his cultivation, he could comprehend


    and master it thoroughly. He then used the Divine Ruler��s powers to enhance it, resulting in what everybody was looking at now.


    A horrific murderous storm appeared above the skies, and the Swords of the Kasyapa attacked savagely. However, they were swallowed up.


    Then, Ye Futian raised his hands toward the Void and pushed the air forward. The storm immediately moved toward the upper skies and devoured the attacking power of the sword techniques. Nothing could escape it.


    The Divine Eyes stared at the lower skies below. He was surprised that the Divine Ruler could be so powerful. His divine swords�� attack power was tremendously strong, and even they got devoured up, unable to break the storm apart. This meant that their attacking power was not yet good enough.


    ��The Divine Eye showed its true form. The buddhas in the Domain started reciting the Sound of Buddha together, and the Light of Buddha swamped the heavens. The Halo of Mahavairocana appeared behind the buddhas and fused into the divine swords. At once, the Halo of Mahavairocana appeared above the


    Buddhist Divine Swords, ready to bum everything in the world.


    ��Kill!�� Shenyan Buddha Lord commanded.


    Immediately, the Buddhist Divine Swords started raining down. With the Halo of Mahavairocana above, it looked like the Sun was falling down. The scene of the Sun falling together with the Divine Swords was terrifying, to say the least.


    Boom! An earth-shattering explosion was heard, and the Divine Swords dove into the vortex. The Halo of Mahavairocana burst, and the vortex started to implode. The divine lights of destruction flooded the dome of the sky, but the enormous Divine Ruler and the Divine Swords clashed together with a loud


    bang, as if the heavens and earth had shattered. If here was not the Gods�� Continent but any other place in the Original Realm, it was likely that the whole area would be smashed into pieces already.


    Even so, the divine lights of destruction still shrouded the entire area, causing even the heavens to light up.


    This time, Ye Futian did not retreat. The Divine Ruler met the Buddhist Divine Swords head on. It did not seem to be losing out in the slightest, and even forced the Buddhist Divine Swords back into the high skies, while it continued standing where it was.


    ��What power! Though this Divine Ruler isn��t an imperial arm, it isn��t in any way inferior to them and is a supremely divine item. It��s even more valuable than the imperial arms, just that its powers have yet to be fully discovered!�� Someone in the lower skies uttered in admiration.


    ��The Divine Ruler was able to suppress the Demonic Lord after all. Of course it isn��t some ordinary thing.��


    ��But how much of the Divine Ruler��s power would Ye Futian actually be able to unleash?


    As they were speaking, Ye Futian��s body was magnifying until it became the same size as the Divine Ruler�� He had transformed into an unrivaled god!

 Chapter 2725 - Heavy Attack

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    As Ye Futian��s figure expanded, that emerald green divine light soared upward and shrouded the sky. The divine light sheltered the sky and covered this entire area.


    Ye Futian��s body was now hundreds of feet tall, which complemented the massive size of the divine ruler. Like a god descending into the world, he appeared invincible.


    The divine light circled him and turned into stars. When the stars began to move, they revolved around his body and formed an absolute defense. This was the ability of Ziwei the Great. In the past, Ye Futian had been using this defensive ability very effectively.


    Now, Ye Futian had nearly transformed into the path itself. When the emerald green divine light shrouded this area, those flowing stars seemed to be one with him, turning into an absolute defense.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord fixed his eyes at the area below, but he seemed less confident now. His realm was indeed higher than Ye Futian��s, and he was already in the realm of near-deity. He had already comprehended the power of the Great Path that belonged only to him, which was one of a kind. Those


    whose cultivation was below this realm were simply no comparison, as they would be destroyed and immolated.


    However, Ye Futian seemed to be an exception. His realm was far inferior to his, yet the will of the Great Path formed by that green divine light integrated so perfectly with Ye Futian that it was almost as powerful as his near-deity realm.


    Above the sky, an unparalleled divine light bloomed out of the divine eyes. The divine sword that held his hand suddenly chimed loudly as countless phantoms of the divine sword manifested. This Buddhist divine sword seemed to transcend all kinds of powers.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord was not an expert in swordsmanship, but the imperial arms he obtained were a Buddhist divine sword, so it was natural for him to launch an attack with this to unleash its most potent power. If he had tried to kill Ye Futian by using other Buddhist methods without the might of the


    imperial arms, it would be pretty impossible, as he was no competition to Ye Futian in swordsmanship.


    He thought that aided by the imperial arms and with his realm, even if the two didn��t fit with him so well, it was more than enough to kill Ye Futian. However, he could have never expected it to be such a difficult task.


    Ye Futian was far more powerful than he had imagined, especially the power of that divine ruler, which was second to none.


    His divine eyes could not detect any weaknesses.


    ��Kill!�� Under the divine eyes in the sky, the divine sword slashed down again, ignoring the distance in space, and arrived instantly. Every strike seemed to hit the weakest point in the starry defense; this was the true power of the divine eyes.


    Bang bang bang�� The violent sounds continued to be heard, enough to shatter heaven and earth. Cracks began to appear on the starry defense light screen. As each new crack appeared, another sword strike struck, not wasting the slightest chance to expand these cracks as rapidly as possible. It seemed


    that any subtle changes could not escape the scrutiny of the divine eyes.


    Buzz! Just as the cracks continued to expand, Ye Futian moved. The towering god-like figure held the divine ruler in hand and attacked the sky above. Suddenly, the phantom of a gigantic divine sword manifested from the divine ruler.


    The divine sword slew the heavens as the exalted ruler turned into swordsmanship. The sword that could slay the heavens could slay everything.


    Terrifying sounds of rumble came out, and the starry defense collapsed and pulverized. The Heaven Slaying Divine Sword sailed through the void, aiming directly at Shenyan Buddha Lord, who was above the firmament. The attack covered the boundless space, and a more terrifying collision than before


    erupted. The Heaven Slaying Divine Sword and Shenyan Buddha Lord��s imperial arms slammed into each other, and the firmament shuddered violently. Countless Sword Wills surged madly in the direction of Shenyan Buddha Lord.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord opened his divine eyes and captured the trace of every sword. A massive Buddha appeared behind him with countless arms that blasted terrifying gigantic handprints into the area below.


    At the same time, that unparalleled power continued to shatter the shadows that surrounded Shenyan Buddha Lord. The two of them climbed higher and higher into the firmament.


    Ye Futian stared at the other like a god as the Sound of Buddha continued to pour out of his mouth. Suddenly, many Buddhas filled the sky above, and their bodies lit up with the extremely radiant Light of Buddha. The ancient words of mantra appeared on the bodies of the Buddhas as they raised their


    hands simultaneously, blasting at Shenyan Buddha Lord, who was above. It was the All Heaven Buddha��s Seal.


    The expression on Shenyan Buddha Lord��s face changed suddenly. In like manner, images of Buddhas also appeared around him, with the Sound of Buddha lingering and resounding throughout the void. Suddenly, giant handprints of Buddhism slammed out to collide with the All Heaven Buddha��s Seal.


    Above the firmament, an unparalleled ancient Buddha manifested. His presence covered the entire sky above as if it was the Lord of All Buddhas. Countless green divine lights flowed into the Buddha, and in the next moment, a boundless and massive Buddhist seal overwhelmed heaven and the earth. It


    struck at Shenyan Buddha Lord so that Shenyan Buddha Lord was pinned between two powerful attacks with nowhere to turn.


    Buzz! At this moment, a kasaya flew out from the body of Shenyan Buddha Lord. The kasaya expanded madly until it covered the sky and sheltered the sun. The kasaya surrounded him as countless Light of Buddha lit up above it, like ancient Buddhist seals. Thousands of runes floated in front of him,


    flying around the body of Shenyan Buddha Lord as if they were some precious Buddhist treasures.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord recited the Sound of Buddha, which resonated with the kasaya. Immediately, the supreme Buddhist runes upon the kasaya turned into a divine seal and flew out, colliding with the gigantic handprint that blasted down from the sky.


    Ye Futian watched everything calmly. For Shenyan Buddha Lord to become one of the Buddha Lords in the Western World of Buddhism, his strength was unquestionable. However, as long as he could restrict the power from his opponent��s imperial arms, the outcome of this battle was quite predictable.


    In the past few years, Ye Futian had not been idle.


    Golden runes continued to fly out of his mouth as they were branded onto the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword. The green divine light surrounded the divine sword with a horrific might. Ye Futian raised his hand and pointed at the divine sword. Suddenly, the divine sword continued forward, colliding with


    the imperial arms wielded by the other man as if burning up the last bit of power from the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword.


    At the same time, Ye Futian��s body disappeared from where he was and reappeared next to Shenyan Buddha Lord and moved up along with him. The green divine light dazzled as that massive and gigantic divine ruler converged in front of him. Shenyan, at the moment, was not looking so great.


    The divine ruler was not an imperial arms but a power that ruled the Great Path, which could be used in different places. Currently, Ye Futian seemed to have integrated with the power of the divine ruler perfectly.


    Boom, boom, boom�� A terrifying sound was heard. Above the sky, massive and boundless divine rulers flew over, and every divine ruler seemed to contain supreme power, the power of the rules from the Heavenly Path.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord sensed something was amiss. He wanted to strike with the divine sword but found that the power of the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword was still there, suppressing his imperial arms with the last bit of its strength.


    ��Shenyan, today, I will send you to the afterlife on behalf of the Buddhist sect.�� As soon as Ye Futian finished speaking, an unparalleled power suddenly exploded. Many unstoppable divine rulers came down on top of Shenyan Buddha Lord.


    Every divine ruler contained the power of absolute suppression as if to suppress everything in this world.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord let out a roar as he was attacked front and back; he was stretched to his absolute limit.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Humongous divine rulers rained down one after another, suppressing even those brilliant runes on the Buddhist kasaya. Shenyan Buddha lord let out a muffled groan as his face paled. Some divine rulers had breached his defense, shattering the buddha phantoms that had


    surrounded him.


    Bang! With a loud bang, a divine ruler smacked right on the body of Shenyan Buddha Lord, as a mouthful of blood came out of him; he was white as a sheet.


    He clasped both hands as the boundless Light of Buddha bloomed so that the divine ruler was unable to penetrate his body or break through the physical defenses of his body. He incamated as a golden Buddha, immortal and indestructible.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! The divine rulers slammed down repeatedly so that the runes on the golden body began to crack. Until finally, the golden body itself was split open, and blood came pouring out of his mouth.


    ��It��s time for you to get on your way!�� Ye Futian said as he moved forward, carrying the divine ruler with him. The divine ruler brought the utmost supreme divine light to smash through all defenses, as it blasted on Shenyan Buddha Lord. Then, like a sharp sword, it penetrated through his body, which ran


    through the golden form. This sight was somewhat similar to when the divine ruler was used to suppress the Demonic Lord.


    The golden body was now completely pulverized, and Shenyan Buddha Lord turned back to his own physical form. He looked down at the divine ruler that had gone into his body, and there was a look of shock and fear in his eyes. Could he be killed just like this?


    Today, he came here to slay Ye Futian. After waiting for such a long time, the day finally came when Ye Futian was out of the ruins so he could be killed. However, Shenyan wondered, did his action end up burying himself instead?


    ��Get on your way.��


    Ye Futian repeated what he said before. The divine light upon the divine ruler erupted, and the golden body shattered instantly. Shenyan Buddha Lord��s body exploded into tiny pieces, which then turned to dust, disappeared entirely without a trace.


    Shenyan Buddha Lord had fallen!


    Everyone who was watching the battle above the sky was in total shock. Although a great distance separated them, the battle was far too brilliant to be ignored. They all saw with their own eyes how Shenyan Buddha Lord was killed, and their hearts were beating wildly.


    Ye Futian had slain the Shenyan Buddha Lord. How brutal was this kind of strength?


    A near-deity existence with imperial arms was killed by Ye Futian just like this. One could only imagine the impact this had on the other cultivators.


    Ye Futian retracted his aura and glanced at that Buddhist divine sword. Then, he looked into the distance and said, ��Shenyan had demons in his heart and acted aggressively. He had tried to take my life several times before and left me no choice but to kill him. This sword belongs to Buddhism and ought to


    be returned to its rightful owner.��


    With a wave of his hand, the divine sword instantly flew into the distance. In that direction, a Buddhist divine light lit up like a beacon, putting away the Buddhist divine sword. Obviously, Buddhist cultivators were there.


    Before, when he was battling with Shenyan Buddha Lord, there were cultivators from the Buddhist sect who were observing the battle. However, they didn��t show themselves but merely let the two fight. Clearly, the Buddhist sect was also of the opinion that this was a personal grievance between the two.


    ��Amitabha.�� A voice was heard but didn��t say much more than that. Ye Futian bowed slightly and replied, ��I will take my leave now.��


    Immediately after that, Ye Futian disappeared and left this place.. Watching his disappearing figure, the people below were left in turmoil for a very long time!

 Chapter 2726 - Forbidden Zone of the Gods

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian��the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace��had not been seen in public for several years. It was said that the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace had built a city on top of the ruins of the Mahoraga. Because of all the cultivation resources that Ye Futian had obtained before, they concentrated


    on cultivation ever since.


    It had been quite a few years since Ye Futian made his presence known in the involvement of a glorious battle. He had immolated a cultivator in the near-deity realm, the Shenyan Buddha Lord, from the Western World of Buddhism, who was aided by imperial arms that were at his disposal.


    Although Shenyan Buddha Lord had not been in the near-deity realm for too long, and the imperial arms he had were not as compatible with his abilities, there was no doubt that the combat effectiveness exploded by such combination ought to be considered frightening. Ye Futian did not win by trickery,


    however. He killed Shenyan Buddha Lord fair and square by engaging him head-on.


    This number one genius talent from the Original Realm was still one of the most dazzling characters in this era of significant changes; he was no less than the heirs of those imperial-level forces.


    The news spread out, but it didn��t cause much fanfare. It was not because the battle was not brilliant enough, but because more people focused on their cultivation. The God��s Continent had not quite settled down after the significant changes that took place, and its cultivational environment was different


    from that of the other realms.


    Any major events that happened in any realm would instantly spread to the rest of the continents, But here, none of the cultivators spent much time noticing anyone else.


    More importantly, on the Gods�� Continent of today, some shocking happenstances would occur from time to time.


    ��When Ye Futian walked upon this continent, he visited many places. When he came upon a canyon, he saw that there were many people above the canyon who were cultivating there. They had even built clusters of buildings, and many people were coming every day to cultivate here.


    At this time, Ye Futian had also arrived in this place. As he walked, he found himself among an endless stream of cultivators coming and going, but most were heading in the same direction.


    Ye Futian was heading there as well. He came to a cliff where many cultivators were standing on it. Even the boulders upon the cliff were occupied by various cultivators.


    He stood on the edge of the cliff as his eyes surveyed the canyon below. He saw that the environment below seemed very picturesque, with flowing springs and green shades provided by trees. An intense spiritual atmosphere pervaded from below as if it was a place of cultivation for the immortals.


    However, this was the Forbidden Zone of the Gods on the Gods�� Continent.


    According to legend, there was the presence of the gods in the small world in the canyon.


    However, most cultivators would only dare to walk around on the periphery. For those who had gone in, no one had returned, hence the name of the Forbidden Zone.


    ��Who knows who would obtain the divine treasures in this Forbidden Zone,�� someone commented.


    ��Nowadays, there are fewer and fewer God��s relics on the Gods�� Continent, and many are already taken. The remaining Forbidden Zones are hard to come by, and the chances are getting slimmer by the day,�� the cultivators next to him commented. Although they were here, most people did not dare to go.


    in. All they dared to do was stand outside and watch.


    ��[heard that a mysterious cultivator appeared on the continent and took over a lot of the ruins. He was ruthless, and his strength was mighty powerful. He was able to directly swallow the inheritance of the ruins, and many top figures had fallen into his hands.��


    ��[heard that as well. This person��s cultivation has reached the top, and the ones he targeted were also from the top principalities of all the worlds. This demonstrated just how powerful his strength is. Who knows if he isn��t some old monster who had been alive for many years.��


    Everyone was talking about it, and all of them had their own opinions on the matter.


    The appearance of this Gods�� Continent was the talk of all the worlds back then. The changes that occurred were why all the worlds had opened up their passages to come here. Everyone imagined that they would profit from these changes between heaven and earth, thus ushering in some transformations.


    However, today, ten years later, they found that everything was but a dream. They didn��t get anything, and everything they had imagined was just an illusion. On the other hand, the gap between them and those top figures became a great chasm.


    The strong would only get stronger!


    ��The changes between heaven and earth had created a group of genius talents who were destined to dominate this world, but they were not part of it.


    Of course, they may feel a sense of loss, but the changes were beneficial to them in reality. This continent now traversed the land of the Original Realm and was ideal for cultivation. Many people may not even plan to go back to where they were.


    This place may become the center of all the worlds.


    ��Donghuang Diyuan has been inside for a few days now; who knows if she can get to the divine treasure or not.�� At this time, another person piped up, and what he said surprised Ye Futian.


    Donghuang Diyuan had gone inside the Forbidden Zone of the Gods?


    ��Donghuang Diyuan is indeed the daughter of Donghuang the Great. With such a noble status as hers, she dared to enter the Forbidden Zone of the Gods by herself. Few men can match this kind of courage.


    ��She is daring because of her incredible ability. But it is true that Donghuang Diyuan��s noble status does set her aside from all the others. As a princess, there was no need for her to undertake such a great risk. After all, she has plenty of relics at her disposal. Even if the Naga relics were not so suitable for


    Donghuang Diyuan��s cultivation, she had obtained the Power of the Ancestral Dragon nonetheless.��


    The people next to him chatted amongst themselves, which surprised Ye Futian a little. Not only did Donghuang Diyuan enter into God��s relic, but she did so alone.


    However, he had been cultivating on his own for all these years to reach the realm he was today. Conceivably, Donghuang Diyuan must have also continued progressing with her cultivation. Today, with her strength and various resources, she must have already climbed to the top of the cultivation world.


    Even in Donghuang Imperial Palace, there were probably not many who could stand shoulder to should with her. Indeed, she was powerful enough to no longer need anyone to protect her.


    ��Perhaps Donghuang Diyuan thinks that this Forbidden Zone is possible for her to break into. After all, besides her, there was another group of people who had ventured into it as well. In the past few years, they must have gotten some information about the Forbidden Zone,�� someone continued. Knowing


    Donghuang Diyuan, she probably wouldn��t act recklessly without having some idea that she would prevail.


    Even if it was the Forbidden Zone of the Gods, everyone still believed that Donghuang Diyhuan could emerge victorious, having the opportunity to inherit the divine treasure. After all, Donghuang Diyuan��s talent, strength, and background made her the most likely candidate to succeed.


    At this moment, everyone saw another figure walking towards the canyon, heading directly into the depths of the canyon. All of a sudden, everyone��s attention focused there with great interest.


    Someone else wanted to trespass into the Forbidden Zone?


    ��Who was this man?


    ��Ye Futian.�� Someone recognized him and watched the white-haired man heading towards the area below.


    ��Ye Futian is here as well.��


    ��The hearts of many palpitated. Ye Futian��s reputation nowadays was known throughout the Gods�� Continent. Even if these people had never seen him before, there was almost no one who had never heard of Ye Futian��s name.


    It was said that years ago, in the battle at the Old Heaven Court, Ye Futian shocked the world with his performance, as he led the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace to face off with the cultivators from the Heaven Realm. Not only did he not yield, but he got on the sky stairwell under his power and


    snatched the energy from the statues of the gods, defeating the Supreme Heavenly King, the head of the Four Heavenly Kings.


    In this generation, Ye Futian��s name was more than qualified to be put next to Ji Wudao, Donghuang Diyuan, and others.


    Under the gazes of everyone, Ye Futian came to the bottom of the canyon. The environment was excellent; a river flowed through the rocks, and ancient trees on both sides were also lush and thriving.


    In front of him, there was a small pathway. Inside, Ye Futian could faintly perceive a mysterious atmosphere.


    There was a tributary of the river next to the path. As he proceeded further, the rocks on both sides became more significant. When he went further inside, Ye Futian found that the boulders which formed the mountain cliff seemed to be of one entirety.


    Ye Futian pointed his finger at the cliff, but nothing happened; not even a trace had appeared.


    Just as I thought, Ye Futian marveled. If this boulder could be split open, perhaps those top figures had already done so from the outside to get to this relic. None of them were able to do it. If someone like him could not even leave a trace on this cliff, then it was a testament to just how impenetrable this


    cliff was.


    Perhaps only the gods of ancient times could have accomplished something like this.


    ��Is this the cave residence for a deity?�� Ye Futian wondered to himself as he continued to walk along the path. Gradually, the path was cut off by the river and could only be continued through the waterway.


    Ye Futian did not want to get through by supernatural means. This was the cultivation place of a deity, and he dared not to be too disrespectful.


    A small boat formed in front of him, and Ye Futian stepped onto the boat, moving along with the river. As he continued to venture deep within, he could feel that mysterious atmosphere was intensifying. He looked up at the mountain wall on top and the two sides around him and felt an invisible force


    permeated all around him. Although it was not strong, he could feel a faint resistance. There was some kind of a light in front of him, as if somewhere deep inside, someone could sense anyone who ventured into this place.


    Finally, Ye Futian saw an arched doorway blocked off by a curtain of a waterfall. Ye Futian��s small boat passed through the archway and the curtain of a waterfall. Ye Futian felt as if he had passed through the gate of time and space, and suddenly, he had entered into another space and time.


    Everything suddenly opened up. When Ye Futian saw the landscape before him, he new that he had come to a small world.


    This Forbidden Zone of the Gods was a deity��s small world of cultivation!

 Chapter 2727 - The Living Dead

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian looked behind him and saw the archway had disappeared. There was no way out.


    He frowned slightly and took a deep breath. No wonder this place was known as the Forbidden Zone of the Gods.


    Concentrating and refocusing his thoughts, Ye Futian looked at this small world and found it was quite beautiful, like a place where immortals hermits cultivated. He was probably correct in assuming that this was a cultivation place for deities. A mysterious atmosphere permeated the entire small world,


    which could not be fully construed.


    He looked at the road ahead and could vaguely make out several dead bodies.


    As he moved forward, Ye Futian walked to a corpse and saw the corpse was well-preserved. There was a terrifying aura of the Great Path on the body, something like a fighting will. This was, in fact, not the dead man��s aura but the aura of what killed him.


    This cultivator may have been killed by a will, so his body was not damaged, as he was obliterated without a fight.


    Ye Futian heightened his alertness as he surrounded himself with wisps of Great Path aura, preparing to continue forward. However, at this moment, he suddenly felt an aura of extreme danger.


    Buzz! He disappeared immediately from the spot, using the Buddha��s Celerity. A most powerful will descended instantly, ignoring his evasive movements and locked onto him. The Buddha��s Celerity seemed to have lost its effect.


    Ye Futian continued to evade and dodge with Buddha��s Celerity. At the same time, the divine light of the Great Path flowed upon his body, protecting him, and a strong will erupted.


    Bang! A loud boom was heard, and Ye Futian felt a terrifying will rushed into his body regardless of everything he was trying to do. His body fell from the void as he was blasted to the ground. His spiritual soul was shaken, and he was in a semi-unconscious state as if he was on the verge of blacking out.


    ��What happened?��


    A thought appeared in Ye Futian��s mind as the aura of the Great Path shrouded him. In an instant, a terrifying will descended.


    Instantly, Ye Futian retracted the will of the Great Path upon him, and the will dissipated immediately. Nothing appeared, nor were there any more attacks.


    ��This����


    Ye Futian��s heart was beating wildly as he remained lying on the ground, staring at the sky above the ruins in a daze. That horrid will was coming from above as if it had integrated into this small world.


    ��Tt can track auras,�� a voice sounded in Ye Futian��s head. If he had reacted any slower just now, the second attack would have fallen right on top of him. This small world did not allow the existence of other auras. As soon as any other wills of the Great Path were detected, it would attract powerful attacks.


    Fortunately, he realized it just in time. Or else, he would have been bombarded to death by this will.


    Was this how those other cultivators died?


    Probably some people hadn��t even had time to react before they were killed; they didn��t even know what came over them.


    With his cultivation realm and willpower, a single blow that could render him powerless like this was enough to demonstrate how terrifying the attack was. If another cultivator in the Second Tribulation Plane were hit by this blow, he would lose half of his life even if he managed to survive. It was more


    likely for someone to be killed by a blow like that.


    More importantly, some people couldn��t react at all after being attacked the first time, so even if they didn��t die from the first blow, they would instinctively release the power of the Great Path to resist. Then, what awaited them would be the second round of attack.


    ��Forbidden Zone!��


    Ye Futian laid there and didn��t get up. He had been taught a lesson as soon as he came in.


    It seemed that the Forbidden Zone of the Gods was not so easy to get through. Here, the existence of other Great Paths was forbidden. Any other auras would be immolated summarily.


    The will of the Great Path flowed inside Ye Futian��s body and did not disperse outside of him. He was repairing his own injury, and after a while, he finally stood up and looked in front of him.


    After taking another deep breath, Ye Futian walked forward without any fluctuation in the aura of his Great Path.


    The crisis that occurred moments ago made him realize that all other paths from the outside were forbidden in this small world.


    Were the Heavenly Gods so aggressive and unforgiving?


    Ye Futian walked forward, and he was doing so very slowly. He did not dare to be careless, and he was in no hurry.


    As he moved forward, he found that the scenery in this small world was stunning, refined, and peaceful, and it was an excellent place for cultivation in solitude. With no one to disturb, this was a most suitable place to cultivate in retreat.


    Moreover, as Ye Futian kept moving forward, he did not encounter other dangers. His journey had been very smooth. It seemed that as long as he did not release the aura of the Great Path, there would be no danger for him.


    Ye Futian��s pace quickened as he continued forward in this small world. Along the way, there were more corpses. If these people were able to make it this far, it was possible that they may have seen the mystery of this space. Their deaths, most likely, were the results of them trying to seize the items they


    found in this small world. As battles between cultivators ensued, things might have gotten out of hand.


    There are many things in here that were unusual and contained a wisp of the will of the Great Emperor, filled with extraordinary auras. Ye Futian had sensed it when he was moving forward, but he did not try to take any of them. Right now, everything was unknown, so he had to be highly cautious; he


    wanted to see what secrets were held in this small world.


    ��More bodies.��


    At this moment, the will in front of him was getting more robust, and there were more and more bodies strewn about on the ground. So much so that Ye Futian had to slow down again. He could sense the danger all around him.


    ��Someone��s there.��


    Ye Futian looked at a place and saw an old man who looked extremely dirty behind a giant boulder, who had retracted his aura. He remained motionless like a non-presence. If Ye Futian hadn��t seen the man, he would not have even sensed his presence.


    As if he had detected Ye Futian��s presence, the old man opened his eyes, and a cold light came through those eyes as he said via voice transmission, ��Leave.��


    Ye Futian didn��t quite understand. He frowned as he looked at the old man and responded by voice transmission as well, ��Sir, what was up ahead?��


    This old man was deliberately using voice transmission to communicate with him. It seemed that he was trying to avoid something.


    ��Go away.�� The old man seemed a little exasperated as he stared at Ye Futian with eyes that seemed to want to swallow him. Ye Futian frowned, still puzzled by his reaction. Then, a strong sense of danger descended upon them. His eyes sharpened as he looked ahead and saw that a highly terrifying aura


    was approaching them.


    In an instant, Ye Futian became a little nervous, and his expression was extremely grave. In this small world, he realized, auras could not be released. Otherwise, the attack from the will of the Great Emperor would descend and slay anyone who released the atmosphere. However, why was there such a


    powerful aura ahead of them?


    The old man hiding there also felt it, and he didn��t look pleased. He got up quickly and moved away at an incredible speed, trying to flee here as soon as possible. He did not release his aura, but the method he employed was still excellent.


    Buzz! An afterimage chased after him rapidly; it was a figure in white. Ye Futian didn��t even have a chance to discern what that white shadow was before he heard a violent booming sound coming from ahead of him.


    Bang! With a loud sound, the white afterimage collided with the old man. Immediately, the old man��s body was knocked into flying, slamming into the stone wall next to him. A massive amount of blood was coming out of his mouth.


    And that white afterimage stopped and came into Ye Futian��s field of vision.


    ��The ancients?��


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened. This was a woman clad in nothing but white, and she was immaculate. She had a fantastic will upon her, the same as the will that was attacking him before.


    This woman��s visage was beautiful beyond words as if it was perfectly carved. She did not appear to belong to the human world but an immortal goddess who walked out of a painting. Although her eyes seemed to be that of a normal person, they seemed to be missing something, like a spark of life.


    From her, Ye Futian could not feel any signs of life.


    ��The living dead!��


    Ye Futian��s eyes sharpened at this realization�� Obviously, the woman who appeared in front of him was an ancient who belonged in this small world, not someone who entered it!

 Chapter 2728 - Chance Encounter

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    The woman in white glanced at Ye Futian, then looked away, turning her attention back to the old man.


    Her body turned into a phantom and disappeared directly.


    ��B*stard!�� the old man cursed angrily. He turned his body into many afterimages. Spatial divine light circulated as he attempted to escape with the light., His method was exceptional.


    However, the woman in white also tuned into a phantom. By the time Ye Futian looked over on that side, he could see that many afterimages had populated the space. A powerful aura of the Great Path erupted from the old man as if he could no longer afford to care much about anything.


    But the moment his aura was released outwardly, a terrifying will surged between heaven and earth, blasting upon him directly from nowhere. At the same time, the woman in white was already in front of him, and her two hands slammed into the body of the old man.


    Bang! The old man��s body gave a violent shudder. This terrifying will directly impacted his spiritual soul, shattering it instantly into pieces. His lifeless body fell from the sky. He was already a corpse by then.


    Ye Futian witnessed alll this and saw how the old man was killed, feeling a little guilty inside. He may not have been the one who attracted the woman. It seemed that she was already chasing after the old man. But still, it had something to do with him being on the scene.


    Of course, this kind of guilt was nothing more than a passing thought. After all, his situation at the moment was not much better!


    The woman in white slowly turned around, and those dead eyes fell on Ye Futian. An invisible will fluctuated, covering this entire space as if it had also locked onto Ye Futian. This woman was a member of the living dead, so her eyes could not possibly see anyone or anything, Since she was not living,


    perhaps her actions were just the result of instinctual perception.


    Buzz! The woman in white turned into an afterimage once again and disappeared. That terrifying will came at Ye Futian, and it was a mighty fighting will. Ye Futian tensed up. With a thought, he disappeared right from where he was.


    Boom�� A terrifying blow slammed somewhere in the void, and the space shuddered violently, but it failed to make contact with Ye Futian as he appeared somewhere else. This was the advantage of the Buddha��s Celerity��he could move at will with a single turning of his mind without resorting to the


    power of the Great Path, so it could not be locked down by the terrifying will that pervaded this world.


    ��Not a heavenly god!�� Ye Futian sense that the woman in white was likely not a heavenly god when she was alive. If she had been one of the ancient deities, she would be much stronger than this, and he would have no chance of escaping her attacks.


    Even so, the woman in white seemed to be transformed by the fighting will itself. Ye Futian didn��t have time to think too much about it, as the next wave of attack was upon him again. His figure flickered and was gone in an instant, disappearing from this space and reappearing someplace very distant.


    However, Ye Futian discovered, to his dismay, that he did not throw off his opponent or her attacks. The terrifying fighting will become a divine battle seal and blasted at him. He moved and flickered continuously, but the attacks were not deterred by the spatial distance between them, as if it would not


    cease until it had eliminated its target.


    Ye Futian knew that he couldn��t evade it, so he gathered all the power within him to one of his arms. Suddenly the arm became brilliant, glowing with the divine light inside. Then, it blasted forward at the divine battle seal.


    Boom! This terrifying attack flattened everything. At the moment of the attack, Ye Futian used Buddha��s Celerity to change his position. Even then, a terrifying fighting will still swept over him, which caused him to groan. His face paled as all of his internal organs were trembling from the impact of the


    aftershock, and his spiritual soul was shaking.


    Although she was not a deity, the fighting will contained in the attacks was the will left by the heavenly gods. Unlike the will, they had inherited or comprehended the world outside. This opponent, for example, seemed to be a manifestation of this supreme will.


    That��s why the attacks were so overpowering, enough to hurt him with just a single blow, even when he had evaded using Buddha��s Celerity. If he had sustained the full impact of this blow, he would be in much worse shape.


    Ye Futian retracted his aura and continued to evade the woman using Buddha��s Celerity. Eventually, the woman in white lost track of him. Clearly, just by sensing his existence with her will had its own limitations. After all, she was not an actual cultivator but just a zombie.


    Otherwise, he would really be dead meat in here.


    However, there seemed to be no danger in this small world other than the woman. Ye Futian wondered what kind of existence that woman in white was.


    He changed his position and continued moving forward without seeing any signs of other cultivators. With his previous experience, Ye Futian knew very well that anyone who had entered here was either killed. Or, if they were still alive, they would keep an extremely low profile to keep themselves


    hidden.


    Ultimately, no other cultivators had the ability of Buddha��s Celerity. If they encountered the woman in white, chances were that they would die in her hands.


    Ye Futian��s divine consciousness expanded in the hopes of finding some other cultivator to inquire about the situation at hand. However, he dared not spread his divine consciousness too widely, fearing that the woman in white would perceive it somehow.


    ��Huh?�� At this moment, Ye Futian had a strange look on his face. He looked ahead and saw that there was a stone forest next to a river. The stone forest was very expansive, and inside, Ye Futian sensed a familiar presence.


    In the stone forest, a woman was sitting cross-legged. At this moment, her beautiful eyes suddenly opened, and she raised one eyebrow. Coldness flashed across her eyes.


    This woman was wonderful, clad in a phoenix robe, trailing behind her on the ground. Her long black hair fell behind her freely. She raised her head slightly and saw the figure in white that appeared on a boulder in the stone forest.


    ��Do you know that it is extremely dangerous to release divine consciousness in this place?�� The woman��s voice was cold as she stared at Ye Futian, walking towards her.


    Ye Futian didn��t answer but kept looking at her instead, so much so that the woman��s brows knit tightly together. A sharp look came out of those beautiful eyes of hers. However, she kept her aura of the Great Path under control as not to let it seep outside. Clearly, she was well aware of the rules that


    governed this small world.


    ��Is Princess Donghuang injured?�� Ye Futian asked. The woman in front of him was none other than Donghuang Diyuan, who ventured into this Forbidden Zone of the Gods by herself. She seemed to be in hiding here, to recover from her wounds. Perhaps, she had a previous encounter with that woman in


    white.


    Donghuang Diyuan made no response, so Ye Futian continued, ��Princess Donghuang has been in this Forbidden Zone of the Gods for a while. Do you know what place is this, and what is the deal with that woman in white?��


    He did not know if Donghuang Diyuan had any information.


    ��Do I now you?�� Donghuang Diyuan replied.


    Ye Futian gave Donghuang Diyuan a look, then smiled. ��Indeed, we don��t know each other well. But on the other hand, we have a long history of grievances.��


    As he was speaking, he jumped in front of Donghuang Diyuan, and there was a look of mischief in his eyes.


    This princess of the Divine Prefecture was truly cold and arrogant to the core.


    ��So, do you want to settle our old scores here?�� Donghuang Diyuan raised her head and looked at Ye Futian, who was in front of her. There was not the slightest sign of panic as she asked, ��Do you think you can?��


    Ye Futian stared at her in disbelief when he heard those fighting words from Donghuang Diyuan.. Was she trying to pick a fight with him?

 Chapter 2729 - Head to Head

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian walked towards Donghuang Diyuan with a sense of playfulness in his eyes. He said, half-jokingly, ��We won��t know whether I can or not until we try it, right?��


    Donghuang Diyuan didn��t look pleased as she regarded him coldly. She stood up with the most extraordinary manner, with her phoenix robe fluttered behind her with unparalleled elegance.


    ��If we start a fight here, both of us will surely die,�� Donghuang Diyuan said as she looked at him intently. If the two of them were to battle, they would release enough of their powers of the Great Pat, which would then attract the Great Emperor��s will in this world to attack them. If that happened, neither


    one of them could escape it.


    ��Why would I be willingly moving against a precious beauty such as Princess Donghuang?�� Ye Futian walked forward, getting closer and closer to Donghuang Diyuan.


    Donghuang Diyuan focused on him as a force began circulating within her body.


    Soon after, Ye Futian raised his hand to grab directly at her, but it was only using his physical power without resorting to the power of the Great Path. Ye Futian knew very well that under the rules of this world, releasing the power of the Great Path was equivalent to seeking his death.


    Donghuang Diyuan raised her hand, and a terrifying force surged from her palm, But she, too, was controlling the aura of the Great Path to avoid it from leaking out.


    The hands of the two collided, which resulted in a violent boom. This shock caused cracks to appear on the giant boulders that surrounded the stone forest.


    What terrifying prowess! Ye Futian thought as he stared at Donghuang Diyuan. He had experienced the physical prowess of Donghuang Diyuan when they battled at the Devil Imperial Palace. She had inherited from the divine phoenix and had been bathed by the blood of the divine phoenix, thus


    inheriting its power. Later, in the ruins of the Naga, she received the power of the ancestral dragon. When her hands slammed out, although there was no explosion from the Great Path, a faint chime of the dragon could be heard. It was an extremely dominant attack.


    Of course, Ye Futian��s physical body was equally tyrannical, quite comparable with that of Donghuang Diyuan.


    Ye Futian��s hands kept moving, and whenever he pulled back one hand, another punch was dealt out. Donghuang Diyuan may be a woman, but she did not shy away from colliding with him head-on.


    Again and again, the violent booms stirred up a great commotion within this stone forest. Although no aura leaked out, every strike made contact and formed a terrifying aura around the area, as dust and rocks were flying.


    Ye Futian sped up his attacks; the blood in his body was roiling, as if the aura of the Great Path roared inside, struggling to break through the limit of his physical body. In the eyes of Donghuang Diyuan, there seemed to be the burning shadows of the ancestral dragon and the divine phoenix. They were


    also desperately trying to suppress the power of the Great Path from erupting.


    Accompanied by the strikes exchanged between the two, an invisible storm formed around them. Ye Futian��s white clothing fluttered as Donghuang Diyuan��s phoenix robe, and long hair danced in the wind. Even if there was no powerful explosion of the Great Paths, the scope of this storm was expanding


    continuously as they battled.


    Bang! A great explosion was heard, and the two figures separated. The surrounding stone forest had been turned into dust, and everything was destroyed.


    The two stood opposite one another, the blood inside their bodies tumbled and roiled. Donghuang Diyuan��s face appeared quite rosy; it looked like it had been dipped in blood.


    ��The princess��s face is so gorgeous and alluring; it is really quite fascinating,�� Ye Futian commented as he looked at Donghuang Diyuan; he was being sincere. Donghuang Diyuan was a rare beauty of the world, and an icy beauty at that��cold, beautiful, and extremely dignified. At the moment, her face was


    colored with a lovely blush, quite unlike how she appeared in the past. Her current state was utterly captivating.


    Of course, he was not bold enough to have any serious thoughts about her. Their grievances aside, Donghuang Diyuan��s position and strength alone were not something he was taking lightly.


    However, having been ��insulted�� by Donghuang Diyuan and horsing around with her was not something to which he was adverse.


    Donghuang Diyuan stared at Ye Futian as if she could eat him. No one had ever spoken so disrespectfully to her like this insolent b*stard in front of her.


    ��Who was she? The only princess in all of Divine Prefecture, the daughter of Donghuang the Great.


    Never mind joking with her. Normally, who would be so bold as to stare at her unscrupulously like this?


    But today, Ye Futian��s eyes were scrutinizing her heedlessly.


    Boom! An even stronger aura exploded from Donghuang Diyuan, and her face became even redder. In her body, the power of the dragon was gradually awakening, and the blood of the divine phoenix was roaring; it was a mighty powerful combination. Even if no aura of the Great Path had been released,


    Ye Futian could feel a fantastic momentum. The peerless beauty in front of him was more like a war beast in human form, pouncing upon him fiercely.


    Ye Futian was not afraid at all, however. He stepped forward without hesitation, and a violent sound was heard from the ground. The physical body he had created was extremely terrifying, and he was not afraid of anyone, even if the opponent he was facing was Donghuang Diyuan.


    The two slammed into each other again, without fancy frills, and every strike made contact and collided and increasing speed. In the end, only countless shadows of fists could be seen intersecting and colliding.


    Accompanied by the violent confrontations between the two, horrific noises were heard in the surrounding space, caused by the commotions they stirred up. At the same time, the blood inside their bodies was also boiling and howling, bearing extremely horrific pressure. However, neither one of them


    intended to stop. Or rather, neither of them could stop at this juncture, so they did not bother to try.


    Ye Futian felt his arms were bearing a great deal of force as if they were burning up. The force rushed inside his body and wreaked havoc amongst his internal organs, maybe trying to smash them. However, Ye Futian��s ability to regenerate was remarkable as the life source inside his Life Palace extended


    into his four limbs and penetrated his skeleton. As soon as he was injured, his body began to self-repair immediately, and this cycle was repeated over and over again. Therefore, Ye Futian��s aura was long and sustained, continuing without end. Not only did his offensives not weaken as time went by, but


    they were also getting more intense.


    Donghuang Diyuan��s face was getting ruddier as if blood could drip from her cheeks. Similarly, the blood and breath inside of her were also tumbling and roaring without ceasing. Although she was like a war beast in human form with domineering combat effectiveness, her ability to regenerate was not as


    superior as Ye Futian��s. The continuous head-on collisions had taken a lot out of her, and she was beginning to feel that her arms were getting sore and weak as time went on. In addition, she had been injured already before their confrontations. However, even though her body was burning up, she had no


    intention of stopping. She continued her mad collisions with Ye Futian.


    Under such violent confrontations, blood began oozing from the corners of Donghuang Diyuan��s mouth. She had not yet fully recovered from her previous injuries, and now her face was turning from red to pale. Her beauty was now mixed in with a little desperation, and it was hard for her opponent to


    deal her any more forceful blows.


    Bang! Another explosion was heard as Ye Futian repelled Donghuang Diyuan further back. He stood there with the breath in his body roaring and tumbling. He took a deep breath to steady himself, but his eyes never drifted from Donghuang Diyuan.


    Likewise, Donghuang Diyuan stared back at him. She raised her hand to wipe away the blood from the corners of her mouth. That cold arrogance, however, did not diminish in the slightest.


    ��Princess Donghuang, can you continue?�� Ye Futian asked as he looked at Donghuang Diyuan, using her words on her.


    As he was speaking, he continued moving forward, getting closer to Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��If you take one step further, I will release the aura of the Great Path, and you and I will both die,�� Donghuang Diyuan threatened as she looked at Ye Futian intently.


    Ye Futian stopped in his track. He looked at her and asked, ��What is this place? What is here? Who is that woman in white?��


    ��Can��t you tell it��s the small world of the Great Emperor in ancient times?�� Donghuang Diyuan said coldly. ��This small world is full of the Great Emperor��s will. That woman in white may not have been an ancient Great Emperor, but her identity must be a little special. I guess she might be a descendant of


    the Great Emperor who perished in the battle of the gods. Perhaps the Great Emperor was reluctant to let her go completely and sealed this small world here with his immortal will. The woman was thus reborn along with this will and turned into an immortal existence. Maybe one day, she could develop a


    consciousness again because of this will.��


    She didn��t hide anything. The two fought against each other, and no matter what happened to her before, she had been defeated in the end. In this case, she must face her defeat honorably.


    ��Does the princess know which ancient Great Emperor it was? If that woman was born out of the Great Emperor��s will, does this mean she has been nurtured by the Great Emperor��s will in this sealed small world until she can become self-aware?�� Ye Futian asked.


    This was all a setup by an ancient Great Emperor to enable the woman in white to be reborn!

 Chapter 2730 - The Crisis Facing Donghuang Diyuan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    ��I don��t know about that!�� Donghuang Diyuan shook her head. ��In ancient times, it was the era of the emperors, and there were many Great Emperors. However, there is not much information left after the battle of the gods, and there are no records in this small world about anything. But what is certain is that the woman in white is very close to becoming self-aware. As far as I know, she had been in a deep slumber before we came here to disturb her. Still, every day, she continues to sleep for some time to absorb the will of this small world.��


    ��So, can we move while she is sleeping to find the secrets of how to crack open this world?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��There are no secrets.�� Donghuang Diyuan glanced at Ye Futian with some contempt. ��This is a sealed Forbidden Zone of the Gods.��


    ��If Princess Donghuang was to encounter a life-or-death situation, I am sure Donghuang the Great would come here to intervene in person,�� said Ye Futian. What was the Forbidden Zone of Gods to someone like Donghuang the Great?


    Donghuang the Great was a god himself in the world they knew. If his only daughter were to encounter a life-or-death situation, how could he possibly not intervene? This was also why Ye Futian could never attack Donghuang Diyuan without reservation. He did not dare overstep his boundary.


    Just as they were speaking, Ye Futian frowned, and his expression changed drastically. ��Uh-oh.��


    He turned around and focused intently on a direction in the distance and saw a figure in white appear. Like a ghost, it floated in the air without sound and approached with an invisible will locked onto both Ye Futian and Donghuang Diyuan.


    Donghuang Diyuan glanced at Ye Futian and thought that if it weren��t for their previous battle, perhaps they would not have attracted the other party��s attention.


    Buzz! The woman��s figure disappeared immediately, and terrifying fighting will swept over Ye Futian like a tsunami. The woman who seemed to have walked out of a painting had erupted a horrific aura upon her.


    Ye Futian��s figure disappeared from the spot in an instant, and the terrifying fighting will turned into a boundless and domineering fist aurora. At the same time, despite the distance between them, that fighting will was upon Ye Futian again, blasting him.


    As before, Ye Futian��s only choice was to confront the onslaught head-on and used Buddha��s Celerity to evade at the moment of collision. With a loud boom, Ye Futian��s figure had already disappeared from this space and reappeared somewhere very far away. His breath was unsteady.


    Ye Futian glanced into the distance. He could escape the opponent��s attack with Buddha��s Celerity, but what would happen to Donghuang Diyuan?


    The injury that she sustained before must result from being attacked by the woman in white.


    At this time, the woman in white saw that Ye Futian had disappeared, so she floated towards Donghuang Diyuan��s position again. A terrifying fighting will now shrouded Donghuang Diyuan��s whole.


    Buzz! Another phantom appeared, approaching with incredible speed. That terrifying attack smashed directly at Donghuang Diyuan, but she avoided it by turning slightly to the side with exceptional precision. She evaded that blow, but that violent fighting will still swept over her. All she could do was to raise her arms and blast out an attack of her own.


    Bang! A violent crash came down, and Donghuang Diyuan��s body flew back. The monstrous fighting will rushed into her body, impacting her internal organs. Blood came out of the corners of her mouth, as she had not yet recovered from her previous injuries. Even in her desperate state, she used the momentum of that force to retreat like a flash of lightning.


    Her movement was supremely intricate, and her speed was fast. However, if she wanted to move even faster, she would need to release the aura of the Great Path, and there was no way for her to do the same as Ye Futian. She could not move in space at will without releasing the aura of the Great Path as he did with Buddha��s Celerity.


    However, in that instant, she seemed to have predicted the opponent��s next move and avoided the frontal attack with precision and accuracy. Otherwise, it would have been much worse than that.


    The woman in white approached her like a ghost, raising her slender hands once again, slamming them towards Donghuang Diyuan. Donghuang Diyuan dodged again, but this time, the range of her opponent��s attack covered the entire domain, and the great handprint of god shrouded the entire void. Just as Donghuang Diyuan had said before, this woman of the living dead was very close to becoming self-aware, and she was learning at a rapid rate.


    Bang! Another horrific loud noise was heard. This time, Donghuang Diyuan was attacked in the front, and her body was knocked back again. She spat out a mouthful of blood, and her face became ashen. She stared at the woman in white in front of her with those beautiful eyes of hers. There was no panic or fear on her face, but just that icy arrogance.


    Roar�� A loud boom came out, but it was the dragon��s chiming, and it was earth-shattering. As the Great Path erupted, a terrifying aura surged upward from Donghuang Diyuan. It was no longer held back but was ultimately released.


    The Ancestral Dragon and the divine phoenix appeared, guarding her flanks. Inside of Donghunag Diyuan, the soul of the Ancestral Dragon seemed to have awakened. A boundless and massive sacred Ancestral Dragon shrouded her body, releasing an unparalleled aura. It was the aura of a demon god.


    The Ancestral Dragon was the lord of Naga, the most powerful demon god of the Dragon Clan, and was considered one of the most powerful demon monarchs in ancient times. One could only imagine how terrifying this aura was from such a terrifying existence. The will that erupted was the will of the Ancestral Dragon.


    At this moment, a suffocating coercion came down from the sky above, blasting down on Donghuang Diyuan. But that Ancestral Dragon roared up into the sky unyieldingly, fighting against that terrifying will.


    The entire small world seemed to light up as an unparalleled monstrous will moved towards Donghuang Diyuan below. This was the will of the gods. In this world, no other powers of the Great Path were permitted.


    When Ye Futian felt this terrifying will, he looked up into the sky. He knew that Donghuang Diyuan had released her power, but facing the woman in white, she might not be able to escape if she did not release her power. Rather than just using her physical strength to fight, it might be better to wager everything for a shot.


    On the battlefield, a terrifying storm overwhelmed heaven and earth as the will of the small world descended, suppressing the will of the Ancestral Dragon directly. It was not that the Ancestral Dragon was not as mighty as the Great Emperor who ruled this world, but Donghuang Diyuan had merely inherited the will of the Ancestral Dragon. The Great Emperor left the will of this space in this world to deal specifically with outsiders.


    Boom�� A horrific will pressed down as Donghuang Diyuan continued to fall. It seemed as if she was on the verge of being overpowered. Even so, her eyes were fixed in front of her as the massive wings of the divine phoenix spread out behind her. Terrifying divine flames flowed across the void, zooming in on the woman in white for the kill.


    The woman in white faced Donghuang Diyuan, and her empty eyes reflected the reverse image of Donghuang Diyuan. She slowly extended one hand, and suddenly, the fighting will between heaven and earth gathered into her palm, and a terrifying long spear emerged.


    Her body turned into a streamer of light and charged towards Donghuang Diyuan. Whether it was the person or the spear, both seemed to be transformed by the God of War��s will and morphed into one.


    The Dragon God��s sharp claws smashed down and collided with the spear dealt by the God of War. The space trembled violently, but the spear penetrated the Dragon God��s sharp claws, pulverizing them. Instantly, it slammed into Donghuang Diyuan and her defense of the Great Path.


    With a loud bang, the defense collapsed and shattered. Donghuang Diyuan��s body was repelled back as the will of terror fell upon her as well. Her body flew out in a flash of light directly from the sky. She landed hard on the ground.


    Boom, Boom, Boom�� The terrifying will continued incessantly, slaughtering madly and indiscriminately. Even the shadow of the dragon upon Donghuang Diyuan was about to collapse.


    If the power of that will were allowed to keep attacking in this small world, Donghuang Diyuan would, no doubt, perish here..

 Chapter 2731 - Do You Dare

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    After returning, Ye Futian turned to look at Donghuang Diyuan, who looked miserable. Then he thought, This place is truly terrifying. Even someone like Donghuang Diyuan was put in such a pathetic state. Should I not have Celerity, I would have ended up like her.


    Still, Donghuang the Great would certainly come to her rescue if Donghuang Diyuan was in mortal danger.


    ��How long do you plan to keep emanating your aura?�� Ye Futian piped at Donghuang Diyuan, standing close to her. Since he had blocked the woman in white��s sight, she shifted her attention to him.


    Upon seeing that, Donghuang Diyuan withdrew the Will of the Great Path. At once, the overwhelming will within the small world dissipated completely.


    Lifting her head slowly, she stared at Ye Futian with a complicated look. But he did not know what she was thinking.


    Suddenly, the woman in white materialized the intimidating spear forged by a Fighting Will. She pointed it at Ye Futian, whose blood immediately ran cold at the sight of it. This woman of the living dead could mimic the cultivators who entered this place!


    Whoosh! The woman in white disappeared from the spot, following the manifestation of a phantasm. Instantly, Ye Futian felt a powerful and overbearing Fighting Will charging at him.


    In the blink of an eye, Ye Futian vanished from where he stood after activating Celerity. Apart from him, Donghuang Diyuan was nowhere to be found as well.


    Soon, Donghuang Diyuan could be seen at a faraway location; she had been thrown there. Seeing that she was unprepared, she landed on the ground in a rather ungraceful manner. Ye Futian unleashed a powerful Aura of the Great Path at another place within the small world. Grabbing the Divine Ruler in


    his hand, he hurled it at the fast-approaching Spear Will.


    Bam! Ye Futian was sent flying by the impact after a loud bang. Meanwhile, the ghastly Fighting Will collided with him in the sky, causing him to fall.


    Even so, he still retained control of his body. Right when the Aura of the Great Path dispersed, his body hit the ground and created a deep pit. But within a split second, he vanished from the spot. Not even his shadow could be seen.


    Swoosh! The woman in white appeared out of nowhere and lowered her head to stare at the massive pit, only to realize that Ye Futian was no longer there. Needless to say, she continued to learn and improve herself to the point of being capable of tracking him. His Celerity could traverse a great distance,


    yet she could still follow him. It could only mean that she was a fast learner.


    The living dead was growing incredibly quickly.


    The silhouette of Ye Futian could be seen at where Donghuang Diyuan stood. At that moment, he felt a quiver inside his body as blood oozed from the corner of his mouth.


    ��Let��s go,�� Ye Futian uttered, slowly approaching Donghuang Diyuan, who glared at him coldly.


    Ye Futian was stunned by the sight of her ungratefulness.


    He did not expect her to scowl at him after getting her away from danger by making himself a decoy.


    That was unbelievable.


    ��The living dead might have become sentient. It will catch up to us soon. You will be stuck here if you don��t leave now,�� Ye Futian stated impassively, intending to threaten her. After speaking, he moved forward to carry Donghuang Diyuan��s body and vanished from the scene speedily.


    ��As expected, the woman in white arrived there shortly after they left. She was still holding the spear that exuded a tremendous Fighting Will in her hand. A while later, she turned her hollow eyes toward where Donghuang Diyuan had been. It seemed as if she could see.


    Ye Futian had already left that area and arrived at a place behind a hill in the small world at that moment. Donghuang Diyuan lowered her head and saw his arm wrapped around her waist. At once, she turned to stare at him.


    To her surprise, Ye Futian was looking at her as well. They were within a hair��s width of touching each other.


    ��How long do you plan to keep holding me?�� Donghuang Diyuan asked in an icy tone.


    ��Well, Princess Donghuang has a nice figure,�� Ye Futian replied flippantly with a smile on his face. He let go of her ��reluctantly.�� Not only was she ungrateful, but she even behaved in such a contemptuous manner.


    Boom! An intangible aura emanated from Donghuang Diyuan. She could hardly contain it.


    ��What? You wanna fight me?�� Ye Futian stared at Donghuang Diyuan and went on, ��If you sustain more injuries, you will not have the strength to resist.��


    Donghuang Diyuan shot him a cold look and responded, ��Just how much do you like to play me for a fool? Even if I could not move at all, you would not dare to touch me.��


    Her speech remained aloof and arrogant. Ye Futian furrowed his brows, set his eyes on her, and questioned, ��What makes you think I wouldn��t dare?��


    ��After speaking, he drew nearer to Donghuang Diyuan, who peered at him indifferently without retreating.


    ��I dare you,�� Donghuang Diyuan declared.


    ��would gladly do that since Your Highness is so proactive about it.�� Ye Futian moved closer to Donghuang Diyuan and wrapped his arms around her. The latter was dumbfounded for a while before unleashing a terrifying power from within. A disembodied hum of a dragon could be heard.


    Simultaneously, Ye Futian released a power comparable to hers. Pushing her against the cliff, he stared at her and moved his head closer.


    ��Don��t you dare!�� Donghuang Diyuan piped.


    ��Are you going to complain to Donghuang the Great later that I toyed with you today?�� Ye Futian insinuated sarcastically. Right then, he slowly moved his head closer to Donghuang Diyuan, who turned her face away from him. Next, he put his lips close to her ear and whispered, ��Well, your personality


    really turns me off.��


    With that, Ye Futian released her and shot her a frosty look.


    She had always been a supercilious woman who treated others condescendingly. She was the same as she had been in the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Therefore, Ye Futian revealed to her that he was unafraid. He did not do so because he couldn��t be bothered.


    This was a humiliation to her. Although Donghuang Diyuan had always been set free, she did not remove her gaze from Ye Futian. She was staring at him with a complicated look. As the daughter of Donghuang the Great, she was constantly surrounded by the reverence and admiration of others. No one


    had ever dishonored her.


    However, she did not harbor any hatred toward him this time. Instead, a hint of sorrow could be seen in her beautiful eyes. Ye Futian felt that something was out of place when he looked at her. He could barely understand what was up with her.


    When they were fighting each other in the Devil Imperial Palace, sadness was written all over Donghuang Diyuan��s face right after Divine Requiem was played. He found an opening because of that. What kind of emotion could a princess of gentle birth like her be hiding?


    Everyone thought that she was born with a silver spoon. The person that she was currently was ascribed to her family background and innate gifts..

 Chapter 2732 - Coalition

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian sauntered forward, preparing to leave.


    ��Hold on,�� a voice was heard from behind him. So, he came to a halt but did not turn around. Then, he asked while facing his back to her, ��What��s the matter, Your Highness?��


    ��We are trapped in this small world now. If we don��t look for a way to break out of this place, we will never leave here. Furthermore, the living dead is becoming sentient now. Hence, it will only continue to become stronger,�� Donghuang Diyuan explained.


    Ye Futian turned around to look at Donghuang Diyuan, only to find her regaining her composure. Her eyes were calm as they stared at him. Even her arrogance earlier had dissipated completely.


    ��So?�� Ye Futian asked. Donghuang Diyuan��s words sounded fishy to him.


    ��Let��s form a coalition,�� Donghuang Diyuan uttered.


    Ye Futian could not help but frown at Donghuang Diyuan��s words. He could not believe that she proposed to work with him.


    The snobbish Princess Donghuang had always been acting dismissively toward him. She had been treating him in a condescending manner. Donghuang Diyuan was all high and mighty before him, even after he became a powerful cultivator.


    Yet, someone like her offered to ally with him.


    Did he somehow subdue the haughty Donghuang Diyuan earlier?


    Ye Futian knitted his brows in confusion while looking at Donghuang Diyuan as the thought crossed his mind. Could it be that the high-born princess, who no one dared to defy, had a bizarre fetish?


    Otherwise, there was no better way to explain what just happened.


    Or perhaps, she would acknowledge someone who could overpower her.


    Ye Futian had a complicated look on his face as the thought came to mind.


    Donghuang Diyuan noticed his expression as well. Although she was confused, she did not know what he was thinking about. Or else, she might unleash the Aura of the Great Path to fight Ye Futian with all her strength if she came to know about it.


    ����Tve told you that the woman in white would fall into a deep sleep to absorb the Will of this world. Now, she has become stronger after all the absorption. Moreover, the duration of her sleep is becoming shorter. We don��t have much time left,�� Donghuang Diyuan stated without giving much thought as to


    what Ye Futian had in his mind. She only wanted to focus on dealing with the woman in white.


    It was as if they were no longer enemies. There was no tension in the atmosphere like before.


    ��Do you have a way to get us out of here?�� Ye Futian questioned.


    ��Ido. We can try it out,�� Donghuang Diyuan responded.


    ��What should we do?�� Ye Futian peered at Donghuang Diyuan, who came earlier than him. He reckoned that she should know more about the woman in white and this realm since she had witnessed the living dead��s sleep and awakening.


    ��The place where she slept has a powerful Divine Level Matrix. That Divine Matrix is the reason she could assimilate the inexhaustible Will in this realm with her. She would draw in the Will of this small world whenever she slept. It would help if you took its place,�� Donghuang Diyuan answered while


    looking at Ye Futian.


    ��Me? You want me to take its place?�� Ye Futian gazed at Donghuang Diyuan in bafflement.


    ��That��s right,�� Donghuang Diyuan nodded and continued, ��The Matrix will be activated when she sleeps. At that time, I will show up to interrupt her and lure her away. Then, you will enter the Divine Matrix to assimilate the Will of this realm.��


    Ye Futian frowned in suspicion and shot Donghuang Diyuan a dubious look upon hearing that.


    ��Why would Princess Donghuang give up such a good thing? Why don��t you let me be the one to keep her busy while you enter the Matrix to assimilate the Will of this realm instead?�� Ye Futian suggested.


    This small world was left behind by an Ancient Great Emperor. Besides, the Divine Matrix had assimilated the Will of this realm with the woman in white. So why would she let him take the living dead��s place?


    If anything went wrong, he would lose his life there. If the Will of this realm had even a bit of consciousness left, he would die horribly.


    ��You��ve inherited several Wills of the Ancient Great Emperors. So I believe that you must be gifted in this area. The linchpin of this small world is the Will left behind by a Great Emperor. The Divine Matrix is the core of this realm. I have faith that you can do it again,�� Donghuang Diyuan said while staring


    at Ye Futian as if she thought highly of him.


    Ye Futian glanced at Donghuang Diyuan skeptically and taunted, ��Since when did Princess Donghuang start to have a high opinion of me?��


    ��You know the strength of the woman in white. Unleashing the Force of the Great Path to lure it out is extremely dangerous as well. You��re not the only one risking their lives. Besides, you would gain a great benefit if you succeeded.�� Donghuang Diyuan added, ��Who knows if you can actually inherit yet


    another Will of the Great Emperor? Furthermore, the Will of this realm is pretty complete and powerful. So, what do you say?��


    ��It never crossed my mind that Princess Donghuang could be so talkative,�� Ye Futian remarked. It was something unusual after all.


    ��Well, then. Let��s continue to linger in this small world,�� Donghuang Diyuan responded and closed her eyes to continue her cultivation.


    Ye Futian turned to look at Donghuang Diyuan and replied, ��I agree to work with you.��


    He had no choice since there was no better option. Donghuang Diyuan could rely on Donghuang the Great to escape. Although he could use Celerity to avoid being trailed by the enemy, there was no telling how long this method would work.


    ��What if Donghuang the Great showed up and brought Donghuang Diyuan out of here safely and left him behind? No one could tell what might happen afterward.


    Besides, what Donghuang Diyuan said earlier actually made sense. Even though it was dangerous, he could gain a lot from it if he succeeded. He had no qualms about living up to the name of Relic Reaper once more.


    At that moment, Ye Futian could not help but wonder if Donghuang Diyuan had been putting up an act all this while.


    ��You��ve sustained a lot of injuries. It��d be risky for you to fight in this state. So why don��t you allow me to heal you first?�� Ye Futian said while moving forward.


    ��How do you plan to do it without releasing the Will of the Great Path?�� Donghuang Diyuan asked.


    Ye Futian put on a smile as he looked at Donghuang Diyuan. Naturally, she understood what he was playing at after seeing his expression. So she immediately declined, ��I don��t need it. I can recover by myself.��


    ��Okay,�� Ye Futian said and remained taciturn. Then he found himself a tranquil corner to sit and rest while waiting for Donghuang Diyuan to recover.


    Despite not having any powerful Force of the Great Path of Life, Donghuang Diyuan had the inheritance of Ancestral Dragon and Divine Phoenix. Hence, her toughness and recovery speed was exceptional. Ye Futian did not interrupt her but sat at the spot while enjoying the serenity of that place.


    A few moments later, Ye Futian turned to glance at Donghuang Diyuan. Although she did not emanate the Aura of the Great Path, a layer of Divine Light covered her entire body, further intensified her sanctitude. The light that reflected on her impeccable countenance had only added to her beauty.


    ��Hmm?�� Ye Futian did not keep his gaze on her but lifted his head to look into the sky. He was met with the sight of a spine-chilling Will that flowed in a certain direction. At once, the entire atmosphere was filled with overwhelming pressure.


    ��It has begun,�� Ye Futian murmured. He surmised that the woman in white must have fallen into a deep sleep again.


    At that time, Donghuang Diyuan opened her eyes and looked at Ye Futian�� She declared, ��Let��s go!��

 Chapter 2733 - Ambushed by the Adversary

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Deep within the ground of the ruins was a mountain that remained intact. This small world was built with superlative craftsmanship.


    There was a Divine Matrix on top of the mountain. At that time, Divine Light was radiating from it, manifesting light runes all over the place. At once, the overwhelming Will of this realm flowed into the Divine Matrix. The woman in white closed her eyes in deep slumber in the middle of it. She remained


    still on the spot like a sculpture.


    The woman in white must be the descendant of the Great Emperor, who passed away during the great war. The Great Emperor must have wished to resurrect their daughter. Therefore, they nourished her with their Will, hoping that she would become sentient one day. Although she might become a


    totally different person after her resurrection, it could not change the fact that she was resurrected. So, that might very well be the wish of the Great Emperor.


    Ye Futian peered at the center of the Divine Matrix, where an overbearing Will gathered. The woman in white was sleeping in there quietly while letting it seep into her body. She was not a living cultivator. So she had been revitalized by the Will of the Great Emperor for countless years. Unlike Ye Futian,


    she would not devour it forcefully. However, she would be unrivaled in strength after being born this way. After all, she was already more than just a cultivator, in a way.


    ��When the day she finally became sentient arrived, no one could hold a candle to her apart from Great Emperors.


    ��Let��s begin,�� Donghuang Diyuan uttered. Next, she moved toward the void and walked in the woman in white��s direction, which was the Divine Matrix.


    Boom! Donghuang Diyuan raised her hand and hurled a punch that contained Fist Will with pure strength. She did not unleash the Force of the Great Path. Her attack was launched toward the woman in white inside the Divine Matrix. Yet, the Fist Will was blocked by the Fighting Will around the Divine


    Matrix upon impact. It did not reach the woman in white, who was still in her slumber.


    ��It��s not strong enough.�� After furrowing her brows, Donghuang Diyuan released the Will of the Great Path without hesitation. At that moment, the power of Ancestral Dragon and Divine Phoenix exploded from within her. The cry of the dragon and phoenix caused the void to tremble. Pure-blooded


    Dragon and Divine Phoenix flew toward the sky and surrounded her. After lifting her hand, Tianxing Divine Sword blasted off and turned into a gust.


    In that instant, the silhouette of the Divine Phoenix carried the Divine Sword and launched toward its target.


    Covering in the Flame of Divine Phoenix, Tianxing Divine Sword launched toward the Divine Matrix, penetrated the Light Screen of the Will, and aimed at its target in the center. Suddenly, a sonorous could be heard when a massive Phantom of Phoenix manifested. It flew toward the middle where the


    woman in white had been.


    At that moment, the woman in white opened her eyes. Her soulless eyes had become vibrant. Lifting her hand, she launched an attack with a tremendous power that traversed space itself. Immediately, the Divine Sword shattered as the Phantom of Divine Phoenix broke into pieces.


    After that, the Will of this realm charged toward Donghuang Diyuan, who unleashed her strongest defense to fend off the attack while setting her eyes forward.


    With that, the woman in white strode toward Donghuang Diyuan and stretched her palm forward. Instantly, she formed a Divine Sword with the Fighting Will, attempting to imitate the latter.


    Whoosh! Donghuang Diyuan retreated backward. Although the woman in white had become sentient, she hoped the latter would not be too intelligent.


    A powerful Fighting Will locked onto Donghuang Diyuan��s form. In the next moment, the woman in white moved forward, getting closer to the direction the former fled.


    After that, Ye Futian looked at the Divine Matrix and noticed the Divine Light around it remained illuminated. A while later, it gradually came to a halt. So, he saw the opportunity to move. Ina flash, his silhouette could be seen in the middle of the Divine Matrix.


    Swoosh! Ye Futian felt a terrifying Will flood into his body��one that the Gods left behind. He was instantly drowned by it as it tried to invade his Will frantically, trying to devour him.


    Bang! At that time, the Will of the World Tree emanated from Ye Futian��s body, consuming the power of the Will in this realm. The Will of the World Tree and the Will of Tianshen intertwined with one another, creating an invisible force that filled the atmosphere.


    He began to experience what happened during the power struggle with the Will of the Mahoraga. He could feel an unparalleled power in the form of a powerful Will engulfing him after he drew the Power of the World Tree into this small world. The former inundated him with its powerful Will, attempting


    to swallow his Will.


    The intense Will assaulted Ye Futian because he was not the woman in white. Hence, he could not yoke together with this Will. The woman in white was born in this small world; thus, she could match up with it perfectly.


    However, he used the Power of the World Tree to merge his Will with this small world, just like what he did before. At once, he could see the entire landscape within the small world through the Divine Matrix.


    The first person he saw was Donghuang Diyuan, who was in imminent danger since the woman in white had been launching deadly attacks at her.


    ��Mm?�� Ye Futian squeezed his brows together all of a sudden when he noticed another cultivator within the realms.


    It was Ji Wudao!


    Ye Futian could not believe his eyes. The successor of the Heavenly Emperor was inside the small world as well.


    On top of that, Ji Wudao was heading toward him.


    Swoosh! A silhouette could be seen rushing toward him. It was Ji Wudao who infiltrated the Divine Matrix and dashed in his direction at high speed.


    Without a doubt, Ji Wudao has arrived earlier and had been lying in wait to ambush him.


    After Ji Wudao raised his hand, an enormous palm appeared inside the Divine Matrix from nowhere. It immediately tured into a frightening vortex that engulfed the force of nature.


    Ye Futian felt a tremendous suction force pulling his body, causing the power inside his body to leak out involuntarily. It felt as if that suction force could consume everything in its path. It was a terrifying sight to behold.


    In fact, Ye Futian felt as though the Power of the Will that assimilated with his was about to be swallowed up by the vortex.


    With a thought, Ye Futian summoned a Divine Sword. Then he hurled it at Ji Wudao with a force so tremendous that it broke through the barrier of space. Still, the latter did not retract his palm. Instead, the powerful vortex sucked the entire Divine Sword into it like a bottomless abyss.


    Ye Futian��s heart skipped a beat at the sight of it. With a thought, he unleashed a Great Palm and launched it toward Ji Wudao violently. It was so colossal that it covered a vast area.


    Boom! A deafening bang sounded when the Great Palm smashed to smithereens. Ji Wudao could be seen entering the Divine Matrix as a blood-curdling power flowed around his body. Right away, the forces of nature flooded into his body as if it were a black hole capable of engulfing everything within its


    vicinity.


    At that moment, Ye Futian suddenly recounted something he heard before entering God��s relic.


    Rumor had it that a mysterious and powerful cultivator emerged out of the blue and plundered many ruins. He was ruthless yet highly formidable. He could consume the inheritance of the ruins forcefully and caused numerous strong individuals to lose their lives in his hand.


    This person had reached the highest possible cultivation level. Therefore, the people he targeted were powerful cultivators from all the known realms. The fact only added to his great power. Many had surmised that he might be an old monstrous cultivator who had been living a long life.


    After putting two and two together, Ye Futian had an epiphany about who that mysterious figure might be..

 Chapter 2734 - Kingpin

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ji Wudao, heir of the Heaven Realm, successor of the Old Heaven Court, with peerless magnificence.


    He had inherited the will of the Heavenly Emperor and was second to none in the world. In the fight against Donghuang Diyuan, he had suppressed her without question and garnered the attention of everyone with his excellent talent.


    But Ye Futian was a little surprised. He didn��t expect Ji Wudao to have this other side as a top predator who could devour the power of relics. He vaguely understood now how those statues of the gods were destroyed in the Old Heaven Court.


    Ji Wudao may be stronger than he imagined. No wonder he had gone to the center of the earth to devour the power of Yin.


    He had been in deep hiding. In the past, although everyone knew that he was strong, they had no idea just how strong he was.


    Boom! Ji Wudao��s power exploded, and the phantom of a divine beast appeared between heaven and earth as if it was a divine beast born out of chaos. It was rumored that in ancient times, this divine beast from the chaos could devour an entire corner of the world; it was a truly terrifying supreme divine


    beast.


    Two separate wills erupted. In the void of this small world, the phantom of the chaotic divine beast appeared, which was manifested by Ji Wudao��s will; it was madly devouring the will of this world.


    This chaotic divine beast wanted to devour even Ye Futian��s will, which was extremely frightening. In that nothingness, a boundless and massive divine shadow appeared upon the body of the chaotic divine beast. It was the phantom of a demon god. It was formed in the shape of Ji Wudao, but it had a


    powerful demonic aura, like the true incarnation of a demon god.


    At another place in the void, the will of terror gathered and vaguely transformed into a gigantic and boundless divine ruler. The ruler was permeated with the will of the supreme rules of the Great Path as if it was transformed by the will of the Heavenly Path.


    Boom! The chaotic demon god that had devoured all the power of the world wanted to engulf everything else next. He even wanted to swallow the divine ruler that had appeared along with everything else. He was extremely overbearing, and he feared nothing.


    The divine ruler increased in size, and a terrifying will pervaded from the divine ruler. It then turned into a light, slaughtering at the chaotic demonic beast.


    A horrific tornado engulfed the divine ruler within its vortex. The chaotic divine beast��s mouth was wide open. When that great mouth opened up, it was bigger than the divine beast itself, swallowing a side of the sky in an instant, and the boundless divine ruler disappeared into that gigantic mouth as


    well.


    After the divine ruler rushed into his mouth, the chaotic divine beast closed its mouth, but then his massive body began vibrating violently.


    Bang. He spat out something vehemently and unexpectedly, and the divine ruler emerged again, causing his massive body to shake vigorously. He was not able to completely swallow the divine ruler, which had nearly pulverized his innards.


    He stared at the divine ruler. His gigantic mouth was still open, swallowing up the terrifying fighting will between heaven and earth. The phantom of the demon god stared at the divine ruler, looking a little stunned.


    At this moment on the outside, Ji Wudao also regarded Ye Futian with surprise. The two were colliding fiercely, engaging in close-quarter combat. As their physical bodies brutally collided, the space where the divine matrix occupied was convulsing furiously.


    ��What kind of divine ruler was that?�� Ji Wudao asked Ye Futian when the two were blasting at each other. This was the first time he encountered a situation where he could not do what he wanted, like devouring the will of the divine ruler.


    He had never failed before. Even the will of the ancient Great Emperor had been swallowed up and being used by him. When he fought Donghuang Diyuan, he had just revealed part of his ability. In this world, in the land of the seven realms, no one had more expertise than him.


    He kept quiet for many years, improving himself silently and constantly getting stronger. It wasn��t until now, when the world had undergone such major changes, and with the emergence of the Heaven Realm that he had no choice but to appear in front of the world, demonstrating his unparalleled talent.


    The world had significantly changed, and the path to emperorship had appeared.


    ��When he became a Great Emperor, he would send the rest of the six Great Emperors to their deaths.


    ��Whether it was the Human Ancestor who had dominated the past and the present, the Devil Emperor who had ruled the world, or Donghuang the Great who was one in a million�� They all had to die!


    Everyone in this world had failed her!


    Ji Wudao was getting stronger as he fought. And a monstrous will came rolling off of his body as if he had transformed into the Heavenly Emperor himself. His eyes seemed boundless and dominant. It was as if he was the lord of heaven and earth, looking over all that was in the world. His attacks were


    equally domineering, Every strike he dealt was one with heaven and earth. They may seem like ordinary attacks, but the power within was incredible.


    ��What?�� At this moment, Ji Wudao frowned. He sensed that Donghuang Diyuan was in dire danger on a battlefield somewhere else. Under the frantic attacks by the woman in white, Donghuang Diyuan, who was already injured, could not hold on much longer.


    Buzz! Ji Wudao��s figure was gone in a flash as he disappeared directly from where he was. Then, the terrifying aura of the Great Path roared out from him without any pretense. An imperial might emerged first, then a frightening shadow of a deity appeared behind him as if a Great Emperor had descended


    into this world. A most mighty sword swung out to silence the world.


    The sword of the Heavenly Emperor unleashed as if to break open the sky. The woman in white, who was about to attack Donghuang Diyuan, suddenly turned around. The divine sword that was forming from the will in her palm collided with the sword of the Heavenly Emperor. When the two mighty


    swords made contact in the void, both of them pulverized and shattered into pieces.


    Naturally, Ye Futian saw everything. The surprised look on his face clearly showed that he was caught off guard because of his astonishment. During his fight with Ye Futian, Ji Wudao shifted his focus and diverted his attention to saving Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��What kind of person was Ji Wudao? Based on Ye Futian��s limited understanding of Ji Wudao, he knew this man was definitely a top character of the world, standing at the peak of all existences. Furthermore, judging from everything he had done before, he could be considered a kingpin.


    Such a person would not be easily bewitched by the beauty of Donghuang Diyuan. To a person of this caliber, beautiful women were no more than mortal flesh and would not sway him much, if at all.


    However, he took the initiative to save Donghuang Diyuan in her hours of desperation, even if that meant giving up the fight with Ye Futian here.


    This meant that Ji Wudao and Donghuang Diyuan had some kind of an existing relationship with one another. Considering that they were both experts of Tianxing Divine Sword, perhaps there was some kind of connection between them.


    At this time, the woman in white was floating in the void, and the brilliance in her eyes was intensified even more. She looked up at the sky and stretched out her hands. Suddenly, the will of this world flowed towards her madly as she bathed in that will; the woman in white was now more terrifying than


    ever.


    ��When she took a step forward, it was not to entangle herself with Donghuang Diyuan or Ji Wudao. Instead, like a bolt of lightning, she descended amid the divine matrix where Ye Futian was.


    The woman in white, bathed in the will of the gods, had an aura that was terrifying to the extreme at the moment; it was far stronger than what it was before. She raised her hands and slammed them into Ye Futian. Likewise, a supremely powerful aura of the Great Path erupted from Ye Futian as he


    directly took on the blow. With a loud boom, Ye Futian disappeared from the spot and reappeared somewhere else, his blood tumbling and roiling within his body.


    Then, he saw the woman in white walking directly into the divine matrix. She closed her eyes.


    The next moment, the divine light of the divine matrix shrouded the entire small world, and the will of the gods in this small world instantly flowed into and merged with her body. Even though Ye Futian and the others had released their powers of the Great Path, they were not being attacked again.


    This small world was trembling violently now. It was as if it was on the verge of total collapse.


    They knew that the woman in white was about to complete the final step!

 Chapter 2735 - Deafeated?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian and Ji Wudao didn��t make another move, and Donghuang Diyuan stood there as well. No will continued to attack them.


    They raised their heads to look at this small world. Infinite will madly poured into the body of the woman in white, becoming a part of her. This small world was trembling severely, accompanied by roaring booming sounds. The small world was beginning to fall apart.


    Countless cracks appeared on the stone walls around the small world, as lights were coming out from the cracks, causing the cracks to enlarge continuously. Booming�� The small world began to disintegrate, and pieces of the boulders pulverized and shattered, being destroyed in utter madness.


    The bodies of Ye Futian and the others were shuddering as this small world was falling apart. Everything seemed to be on the verge of total destruction, without any exception.


    However, the woman in white remained motionless, quietly suspended amid the divine matrix. She bathed in the divine glory of the gods, looking peerlessly splendid.


    ��Failed,�� said Donghuang Diyuan. Ye Futian was not able to capture the gods�� will in the other��s stead. She did not know if he was interrupted by Ji Wudao. If Ji Wudao had not appeared, would Ye Futian have been successful?


    However, although they failed, this side of the world was disintegrating, which meant that they should be able to get out now. But what would this woman in white do? Would she continue to attack them?


    The collapse of the small world continued. Ye Futian stared at the woman in white, and no one knew what he was thinking at the moment.


    At this time, outside the Forbidden Zone of the Gods, they saw that the mountains opposite the canyon were caving in and shattering. A violent earthquake was erupting below. The area they were in was shaking furiously, and they couldn��t help the shocked looks on their faces.


    ��What was happening?�� Voices questioned one another, and everyone guessed what was to take place.


    ��It��s inside the Forbidden Zone of the Gods,�� someone said. ��Could it be that someone succeeded?��


    Countless conjectures surfaced in everyone��s mind, and everyone was watching. The princess of the Divine Prefecture, Donghuang Diyuan, had entered inside. Ye Futian, the Palace Lord of Ziwei Imperial Palace, went in as well. They were the most outstanding genius talents of this world, Perhaps there


    was a real chance for them to successfully crack the secrets of the Forbidden Zone and obtain the inheritance of the gods.


    Just as they were guessing, the space on that side exploded and pulverized with madness. Afterward, they saw several figures soaring into the sky and appearing high above the firmament. Everyone��s eyes sharpened when they saw who these people were. All of them had released an incomparably


    overwhelming aura of the Great Path.


    ��Donghuang Diyuan.��


    ��Ye Futian.��


    ��Ji Wudao, as well. When did he enter the Forbidden Zone?�� someone remarked as they looked at the other figure, which was Ji Wudao, the heir of the Heaven Realm. He was also a peerless figure in his own right, a genius talent who ruled at the top of the world.


    He was there as well, and the cultivators on the outside didn��t seem to know when he had gotten inside.


    ��That is����


    Everyone was looking in a specific direction, and a figure in white was standing opposite the three top genius talents. She was like a fairy that had walked out of a painting, She was not of this world. Her temperament was second to none.


    ��Who is she?�� The hearts of all the cultivators palpitated and sensed that the aura on her body was terrifying beyond words. Donghuang Diyuan and the other two stared at her with extreme vigilance. These three top-level enchanting geniuses were wary of the woman in white.


    Could she be one of the ancients? An ancient god from inside the Forbidden Zone?


    The powerful will that permeated from her was akin to the will of the gods themselves, which instigated the changes in their surroundings. That pressure of might fell upon these cultivators and made them feel as if extreme coercion were forcing them into worship.


    ��Princess, take care,�� Ji Wudao said to Donghuang Diyuan before he was gone in a flash. After he felt that terrifying will exude from the woman in white, he knew that it was impossible to achieve what he came to do. He could only look for other opportunities in the future.


    Ye Futian glanced at Ji Wudao, who was leaving, and thought that this was a decisive man, someone who could indeed achieve incredible feats in the world. He might become Ye Futian��s most powerful opponent in the future, a contender on the road to emperorship.


    ��What��s the relationship between the princess and the Heaven Realm?�� Ye Futian asked Donghuang Diyuan. He was a little curious, and he was almost certain that there must be some kind of relationship between the Heaven Realm and Donghuang Diyuan. Otherwise, Ji Wudao would not treat Donghuang


    Diyuan the way he did.


    Donghuang Diyuan didn��t respond; she didn��t even look at him. It seemed like she had reverted to her previous cold and arrogant attitude.


    At this time, the woman in white opened her beautiful eyes as she looked at the two of them. The fighting will upon her was monstrous, shrouding the boundless space. Its force of oppression was so great that those cultivators who were around felt nearly suffocated.


    Her eyes were clearer and brighter, revealing an evident brilliance. Clearly, the plan of the ancient gods was coming to pass and proven to be successful. The woman in white was showing signs of intelligence, and today, after countless years, she had been reborn.


    Her eyes fixed on Donghuang Diyuan, and a hint of coldness flashed through her eyes. At this moment, Donghuang Diyuan felt a coldness all over her body as she sensed the murderous intent from the woman in white.


    However, at this moment, Ye Futian took a step forward and appeared in front of the woman in white, blocking Donghuang Diyuan. Many were stunned when they saw this. Ye Futian and Donghuang Diyuan were known to be sworn enemies, so why did he help her to block this attack?


    ��Go away!�� Donghuang Diyuan said coldly as the phantoms of the Ancestral Dragon, and the divine phoenix rose upward until a terrifying aura erupted from her.


    ��Princess is truly cold to the core, without any regard for our previous history. Have you forgotten everything that happened before in the ruins?�� Ye Futian asked her. These words surprised those who heard them in the distance.


    Did something happen between Ye Futian and Donghuang Diyuan in the Forbidden Zone?


    These two were the descendants of Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing, respectively. Did they have some kind of forbidden romance?


    That shouldn��t be the case, however. Cultivators like them were usually determined and unwavering, unlikely to be affected by simple emotions, such as love. This was likely Ye Futian��s deliberate effort to taunt Princess Donghuang. He was very bold.


    Sure enough, a wisp of murderous intent emerged from Donghuang Diyuan, and it was tyrannical to the extreme. She raised her hand as the true dragon pounced from it and slammed down upon Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned his back to Donghuang Diyuan, and the divine light was flowing upon him. A divine sword appeared behind him, its sharp edge directly pierced through the palm of the true dragon. Ye Futian said, ��Indeed, women have been the more ruthless species since the beginning of times.��


    ��How dare he!�� When others heard Ye Futian��s taunting, they couldn��t help but fear for him. This was the princess of the Divine Prefecture, and he dared speak to her in such a flippant manner.


    However, it was obvious that Ye Futian��s strength was powerful to the point for him to stand shoulder to shoulder with Donghuang Diyuan.


    At this time, an even stronger aura pervaded, attracting the attention of all the cultivators. They saw the woman in white move, and Donghuang Diyuan and Ye Futian did not want to continue the fighting.


    The woman in white took a step forward and appeared in front of Ye Futian in an instant, but Ye Futian didn��t dodge or evade. He stood where he was as a fierce will of the Great Emperor swept over him, which made his white hair dance madly in the air and his clothing flutter. It was as if he was about to


    be swallowed up by that horrific will.


    But under the shocking gazes of all the bystanders, Ye Futian remained standing there motionlessly, his eye fixed intently on the woman in white.


    Even Donghuang Diyuan, who was standing behind Ye Futian, couldn��t help but shudder in her heart. She stared straight in front of her and wondered, This Ye Futian, was he crazy?


    If the woman in white were to deal a fatal blow suddenly, wouldn��t Ye Futian be seeking his own death?


    However, she was stunned to find that the woman in white did not attack but merely stood in front of Ye Futian. That violent will was still being released fiercely, but she did not attack Ye Futian.


    ��There was a hint of uncertainties in the woman��s beautiful eyes. Right now, her consciousness was a little confused, and she was struggling.


    The white-haired man in front of her felt so familiar. It was as if they had known each other for many years. That familiarity was coming from her soul, imprinted in her consciousness.


    She even had a feeling that this white-haired man was part of her and existed in her mind.


    ��Who are you?�� For the first time, the woman in white spoke; her tone was a little unnatural, even a little stiff. Her beautiful eyes were fastened on Ye Futian.


    ��Tam you,�� Ye Futian said to the woman in white. What he said caused Donghuang Diyuan��s eyes to sharpen.


    Ye Futian didn��t fail?

 Chapter 2736 - Taken

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Iam you?


    A strange look flashed through Donghuang Diyuan��s beautiful eyes when she heard Ye Futian��s words. She now remembered one of Ye Futian��s other monikers: the Relic Reaper.


    Inside the relics of the Mahoraga at the Ruins of the Gods, Ye Futian had gained control over the will of the Mahoraga and merged as one with it so that Ye Futian could incarnate as the Mahoraga while in the relic.


    This suggested that Ye Futian could integrate with the wills of the Great Emperors.


    Therefore��previously, they had planned for Ye Futian to take the place of the woman in white in the divine matrix and inherit the will of the Great Emperor. Still, the appearance of Ji Wudao interrupted their plan. Even so, Ye Futian did not seem to have failed. Was it during that process that Ye Futian


    was able to fuse his own will with the will of the Great Emperor?


    Because Ye Futian had done it before, Donghuang Diyuan had no reason to doubt that he was capable of such means. However, did this mean that in the will inherited by the woman, there was also the will from Ye Futian within?


    But even Ye Futian did not fully integrate with the will of the Great Emperor. All he managed to do was achieve part of it, hence the situation in front of them and why the woman in white sensed a kinship with Ye Futian.


    There was basically nothing wrong with Donghuang Diyuan��s estimation. The woman in white was initially conceived from the will of the Great Emperor. At this point, she who had appeared in the outside world was different from all the rest of the cultivators. She was a special existence.


    ��When she heard what Ye Futian said, she did not feel them strange but looked rather thoughtful instead. Her intelligence had just been formed, and everything was unknown to her. In her previous battle with Donghuang Diyuan, she was learning from it.


    Now that Ye Futian told the woman that he was her, it did not really shock Donghuang Diyuan too much.


    However, everyone other than Donghuang Diyuan looked at this with stunned expressions. In this quiet space, everything seemed a little creepy. Exactly what had happened?


    What happened in the Forbidden Zone of the Gods between the woman in white, Donghuang Diyuan, Ye Futian, and Ji Wudao?


    What did Ye Futian mean by what he said?


    Obviously, Ye Futian and the woman in white were not the same people. She could not possibly be another incarnation of Ye Futian himself. If that were the case, she would have been a man and not a woman.


    But no one knew that even Ye Futian himself did not have absolute certainty at this point. He had only attempted by merging part of his will into the will of the Great Emperor. He had no idea how much impact he was able to achieve.


    But now, it seemed that he was indeed able to affect the woman in white considerably.


    ��You and I are one. In the future, you follow me. Wherever I am, you will be there also,�� Ye Futian said to her. The woman in white did not seem to understand that concept very well, so she did not respond immediately. She regarded Ye Futian with those beautiful eyes. Only after a while did she nod lightly


    in agreement.


    Success! Ye Futian exclaimed in his heart. If he could control the woman in white, she would be another powerful weapon in his arsenal. She was born from the will of the Great Emperor, and her combat effectiveness would far surpass his own.


    Donghuang Diyuan��s expression was even more surprised. She didn��t expect that Ye Futian would succeed in some other way. He did not seize the inheritance of the Great Emperor��s will by taking the other��s place, but he controlled the woman in white.


    Ye Futian turned around to look at Donghuang Diyuan and said, ��Thank you, Princess, for everything on this trip.��


    He did not mean it as a sarcastic comment. He was truly grateful to Donghuang Diyuan. No matter her motivation, the final outcome was in his favor and allowed him to control the woman in white. He had reaped a lot on this trip.


    Donghuang Diyuan cast a glance at Ye Futian before she turned around and walked away without making any response. She then walked into the void and left. Watching her departing figure, Ye Futian had a feeling that he was more and more unable to see through Donghuang Diyuan.


    Before, Ye Futian did not have a favorable impression of Donghuang Diyuan. But this time in the ruins, he seemed to have seen another side to Donghuang Diyuan. Perhaps the person she presented to the outside was not her real self.


    The cultivators in the distance could not help but wonder about many things when they saw Donghuang Diyuan��s departure. What happened in the ruins? And why did Ye Futian thank Donghuang Diyuan��his sworn enemy. And why was there not the slightest bit of tension between them?


    Everything aside, if they were talking about combat effectiveness, between Ye Futian and Donghuang Diyuan today, who was stronger and who was weaker?


    Ye Futian glanced at the woman in white next to him. Although he was able to control her temporarily, it was no guarantee of her stability. He would still need to observe her for some time to be sure. If there was an unforeseeable event, he may not be able to keep her under control.


    In today��s Ye Imperial Palace, there was the divine matrix. If something were to happen, she could be subdued by the matrix.


    It seemed that he had to get back there first.


    ��Let��s go,�� said Ye Futian. Then he flickered away as the woman in white followed close behind, traveling with him.


    Everyone watched the two of them leave. By the time they looked at the area below, the Forbidden Zone of the Gods had disappeared and turned into nothing but dust.


    ��Theard that Ye Futian had a reputation as the Relic Reaper many years ago in the Original Realm. I just didn��t expect that even the Forbidden Zone of the Gods could not stop him. Judging from the situation, he must have discovered the secrets of the relics,�� someone said. Ye Futian of the Original Realm


    was known for cracking open the codes of any ruins. Whenever the inheritance of the Great Emperor befell him, he had never had any trouble inheriting it.


    ��Who knows who the woman in white is,�� someone commented, watching the figures disappearing into the distance.


    Ye Futian accelerated his speed as he moved forward, and the woman in white followed suit in order to catch up with him, Later on, even when Ye Futian was traveling with Buddha��s Celerity, the woman in white had no trouble keeping up with him, and her speed did not lag at all, demonstrating her


    prowess.


    Moreover, the two were different now; they could sense each other��s existence and location.


    Ye Futian returned to Ye Imperial Palace with the woman in white as they made their way back.


    Inside Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian walked in the front, the woman in white followed behind.


    ��Palace Lord.��


    ��Palace Lord.�� Seeing Ye Futian��s return, many people bowed and paid their respect when they saw them. They looked at the woman behind Ye Futian with some curiosity. The Palace Lord went out and brought back such an exceptional woman. Her appearance and temperament were simply extraordinary.


    Ye Futian nodded to acknowledge everyone. As he continued to walk forward, he was moving all the way towards the higher parts of the Heavenly Imperial Palace.


    ��When he got to the sky stairwell, many familiar figures began to emerge one after another. They all had different expressions when they saw that Ye Futian had returned with the woman in white.


    ��Palace Lord, who is this?�� Lord Chen asked with curiosity.


    Ye Futian turned his head, but it was not easy for him to make the introduction. He looked at the woman in white and said, ��How about I give you a name?��


    The woman in white looked at Ye Futian, then nodded her head lightly. She was like a newborn baby who had no understanding of anything.


    ��Uh���� The people around them displayed a strange look. The Palace Lord was unbelievable�� After he took a trip to the outside, not only did he kidnap such an extraordinary woman to bring back, but he was going to give her a name?

 Chapter 2737 - Nurture

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Everyone looked at Ye Futian with some envy. The Palace Lord was the Palace Lord for a reason. This woman was unusual, and her appearance was second to none. It seemed that the Palace Lord might be having a new addition in his household.


    Ye Futian would not know anything these guys were thinking. He looked at the woman in white, thought for a moment, and said, ��You descended from the Great Emperor and were born from the small world. Let��s call you Ling Long (1]!��


    ��Ling Long,�� the woman in white muttered, then nodded slightly to acknowledge it. She did not have any opposing opinion, feeling that the name Ye Futian gave her was very comforting,


    Ye Futian��s words explained the origin of the woman in white, which greatly startled everyone around him. She was descended from the Great Emperor and was nurtured and born in the small world?


    If so, this woman indeed had an extraordinary origin.


    ��Don��t gather around here, go cultivate,�� Ye Futian said to everyone, then walked forward and towards the palace that was at the highest point.


    Ye Futian came to the cultivation area behind the palace, where Hua Jieyu was cultivating. When she saw that Ye Futian was back, she stood up as Ye Futian came to her side. He touched her long hair and asked, ��How do you feel? ��


    ��T feel that my cultivation has reached a bottleneck,�� Hua Jieyu said with a smile. The bottleneck she spoke of was the realm of near-deity, which she could not advance for a long time.


    ��There is no hurry. Rest for a while and get yourself balanced,�� Ye Futian said. Hua Jieyu nodded, and at this moment, she tured her attention toward the woman in white, who was behind Ye Futian. She saw Ling Long standing quietly behind Ye Futian, whose beautiful eyes fell on Hua Jieyu as if to assess


    her.


    Seeing this, Hua Jieyu had a strange look on her face, but then she looked at Ye Futian with a smile.


    ��Uh���� Ye Futian also felt a little awkward. This image was accurate. ��Beautiful.


    ��Ling Long, the name I just gave her, is someone I met in the relic of the Gods. She��s a descendant of the Great Emperor, born out of the supreme will and have merged with my will to a certain degree, so I brought her back here,�� Ye Futian explained.


    When Hua Jieyu heard Ye Futian��s words, she looked at Ling Long with great interest. She was born out of the Great Emperor��s will?


    ��Who is she?�� Ling Long looked at Hua Jieyu as well and asked Ye Futian.


    ��Ye Futian didn��t know quite how to answer her. But Hua Jieyu couldn��t help but smile and reply, ��My name is Hua Jieyu, and I am his wife.��


    ��Wife?�� Ling Long didn��t seem to have a good grasp on this concept. Ye Futian explained, ��That means we are together.��


    Ye Futian felt a headache coming on. It seemed that he had to do some ��brainwashing�� on Ling Long.


    ��Don��t resist,�� Ye Futian said. Then the divine light dazzled upon his body, as strands of golden divine light surrounded Ling Long��s body and entered through her brow chakra. Suddenly, countless information began to pour into Ling Long��s mind, so Ling Long closed her eyes and began receiving them


    quietly.


    After a long while, Ye Futian stopped and saw that Ling Long��s eyes were still closed. He took Hua Jieyu��s hand and led her towards the sleeping quarters.


    As soon as the door to the backyard was opened, Ye Futian felt something behind him. He turned around and saw Ling Long was following behind him.


    Ye Futian looked at her and blinked, asking her, ��What are you doing here?��


    ��Tm following you. I��ll be wherever you��ll be,�� Ling Long repeated what Ye Futian said earlier.


    Ye Futian rubbed between his brows and said, ��Just go sit there and digest the memories I gave you earlier, and don��t disturb me without my order.��


    There was some puzzlement in Ling Long��s eyes. Why did he change what he said?


    But still, she obeyed Ye Futian��s command and sat down quietly, acting obediently.


    Next to him, Hua Jieyu watched all this with a brilliant smile. The woman that Ye Futian brought back was behaving much like a child.


    Ye Imperial Palace was extremely quiet, and everyone was busy cultivating to improve their strengths.


    Ye Futian had been guarding Ling Long ever since he brought her back. After all, Ling Long��s strength was too powerful. If there were an accident, her destructive power would be equally terrifying.


    Over the past few days, he had been transmitting all kinds of memories to Ling Long and helping her to acclimate to this world. He had passed the situation of the entire cultivation world into her memory, and Ling Long was digesting them quickly. Her mind had been opened, and she was now an actual


    living being in all sense of the words. Her cultivation was powerful, and her ability to lean was astounding, She was getting to know the world at an extremely rapid speed.


    In addition, Ye Futian would also practice sparring with Ling Long.


    At this time, in the cultivation court located at the very top of Ye Imperial Palace, a terrifying divine matrix lit up. There were terrifying and violent sounds that could be made out vaguely. Even a monstrous fighting will pressed down and broke through the defense of the divine matrix, shrouding the


    entire Ye Imperial Palace. What was more astonishing to those around it was that this will neither belong to Ye Futian nor Hua Jieyu.


    Then, it could only be from the woman in white who was brought back by Ye Futian.


    Was she fighting the Palace Lord?


    Was it a real fight or just a sparring session?


    In the cultivation court, the dull and muffled banging sounds rang out continuously, like thunderous explosions. Hua Jieyu stood on one side as her beautiful eyes looked at the two figures in front of her. Ye Futian and Ling Long were in a head-to-head confrontation, and neither evaded the other in the


    slightest. They directly attacked each other, and their exchanges were extreme. Ye Futian was overwhelmed and submerged by a supremely horrific fighting will. He felt as if he was facing a god from heaven who was invincible. The oppression of his spiritual will was incredibly frightening.


    Bang! With a loud boom, Ye Futian was knocked out into flying, After he landed, he slid backward and only managed to stop himself after a few moments. He stared straight ahead and let out a long breath. He said with a smile,�� Awesome.��


    ��Thaven��t used my full power yet,�� Ling Long said as she looked at Ye Futian without even a little bit of courtesy.


    Ye Futian was taken aback by surprise and said to her, ��Did no one tell you the virtue of humility during your studies these days?��


    ��Mmm,�� Ling Long nodded and replied, ��But for you, it was not necessary.��


    ��That��s harsh,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Shall we continue?�� Ling Long said lightly, her eyes falling on Ye Futian.


    ��Rest,�� Ye Futian said, then stepped forward as he came to Ling Long��s side. ��You must have already digested everything that was passed on to you and learned from it; you must understand the world a little better now.��


    ��Mmm,�� Ling Long nodded.


    ��Next, I want to tell you where you come from and why you are following me,�� Ye Futian said.


    Hearing his words, Ling Long had a strange look on her face as she said, ��You can choose not to tell me.��


    After learning quite a bit on her own, she guessed that she might have been under the control of Ye Futian, hence her being here. Therefore, she didn��t feel the pressing need to know the truth.


    ��No, you have already developed your unique personality, and you have the right to know everything,�� Ye Futian said, ��Don��t resist.��


    As he spoke, the light between his brow chakra began to shine, and suddenly images of many memories converged and entered between Ling Long��s eyebrows. These were precisely the memories of what he had gone through in the Forbidden Zone of the Gods, except for some of the things that happened


    between him and Donghuang Diyuan. Everything about Ling Long was in those memories.


    Ling Long closed her eyes, and it didn��t take long for her to open her eyes again; her beautiful eyes fastened on Ye Futian.


    ��Did you see everything?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Mmm,�� Ling Long nodded.


    ��Ididn��t have any choice before, or else you might have killed me in the Forbidden Zone. In any case, it is indeed my will that was integrated into the will of the Great Emperor so that you have a part of my will, and you were affected by me. But now that you have an independent self-awareness, I will not


    hide it from you,�� Ye Futian said. ��Now, you will have to choose your path and give yourself a name.��


    Ling Long looked at Ye Futian, then looked up at the divine matrix in the void, and said, ��If what I want to do is not in line with your will, will you use the divine matrix to get rid of me?��


    ��If [had that kind of thoughts, I wouldn��t have allowed you to lear any of this. I brought you here to prevent you from being out of control. After all, your strength is far too strong, and the threat is too great. Even now, if you want to do something to me here, I will have no choice but to activate the


    divine matrix to deal with you,�� Ye Futian continued, ��But you can leave. And whatever you want to do in the future is your choice.��


    ��Hypocrite,�� Ling Long said as she stared at Ye Futian.


    ��Huh?�� Ye Futian was stunned. Who was she calling a hypocrite?


    He thought he was being honest. At first, he did want to control Ling Long, but then he discovered that Ling Long was not a puppet but a real individual. She would lean by herself, and sooner or later, she would understand everything.


    ��You know my being contains part of your will, which means that I, standing here now, have part of your personality. And yet you pretended to ask me to leave. What is that if not hypocrisy?�� Ling Long looked at Ye Futian and questioned him pointedly.


    Ye Futian was stupefied for a moment. He looked at the woman and thought her learning ability was just a little too astounding.


    Ling Long looked at Ye Futian calmly and continued, ��Ling Long sounds like a good name. I think I��ll use it for now!��


    [1] Ling Long also has the meaning of being delicate and well-formed.

 Chapter 2738 - Conflict

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ling Long decided to stay. Just as she said, she had retained part of Ye Futian��s personality, and this connection was not something that could be separated.


    After familiarizing herself with the world of cultivation, Ye Futian began introducing divine methods into her cultivation. Previously, whenever Ling Long attacked, she was limited to using only the will itself. After cultivating the divine methods, she could only be stronger than ever before.


    Many times, Hua Jieyu would accompany Ling Long in cultivating together so that Ye Futian had some time to take care of his own cultivation and training,


    Ye Futian didn��t expect to return so soon this time, so he concentrated on his cultivation. He and Hua Jieyu had both encountered a bottleneck and could not overcome it. However, Ye Futian did not waste time. If he couldn��t make any breakthrough in the realm, he would focus on comprehending divine


    methods and practice sparring with Ling Long. He was constantly improving in strength.


    Before anyone knew it, several years had passed.


    In the past few years, many people in Ye Imperial Palace managed to break through their realm of cultivation and advance one step further. The same was true of the outside world. This continent of relics seemed to bring something brand new every day, and changes were happening all the time. After a


    few years, who knew how many cultivators had appeared in this place.


    At the same time, some subtle changes had been gradually taking place on this continent of the gods. Over the years, cultivators everywhere had been stationed in the ruins occupied by the imperial palace and began settling down on this continent of ruins. However, as this continent of gods was a new


    world, people from each world began to covet the areas already occupied by the other worlds as more ruins were being excavated. There were endless battles of pillaging that started to occur regularly.


    Moreover, this kind of battle was originally small-scale battles scattered among various forces. But with time, there had been collisions between the forces from different realms. After all, before this continent of ruins appeared, there had already been a large-scale war in the Divine Prefecture.


    Opposing attitudes had, in fact, already been established. But the appearance of the relics of the gods attracted the attention of all the worlds, and everyone focused on exploring the God��s relics and the excavation of the ruins instead.


    However, more than a decade had passed, and most of the ruins had been occupied by top principalities. The entire continent of the ruins had morphed from a state of chaos to a state of relative peace. But now, another kind of chaos was beginning to emerge again.


    On this day, Ye Futian did not cultivate. He came to the territory occupied by the Devil World.


    He traveled through the void and looked at the demonic halls built below. The architectural style of their severity and color were similar to those in the capital of the Devil World. Even the sky in this region was obscured, as the demonic will had colored the sky.


    This vast and endless area had become another Devil World.


    Some demonic cultivators seemed to sense something as they raised their heads to look in Ye Futian��s direction, some even released their demonic thoughts to scan the area, but they were all repelled by Ye Futian��s aura. Some people recognized him and wondered what Ye Futian was doing here.


    Ye Futian walked forward and came to the former city of the Karura Ruins. The place had changed a lot now; it was completely different from before. The former city of the Karura Ruins had turned into a demonic city, even the Shrine of the Karura in the distance had tured into a majestic Demonic


    Palace, towering into the sky. The pitch-black demonic clouds tossed and turned above the firmament as if being nurtured by the terrifying light of tribulation, utterly frightening.


    An even stronger demonic thought swept over him, but once it detected that it was Ye Futian, no one stopped him. After all, no one didn��t know the relationship between Ye Futian and Yu Sheng. The cultivators of the Devil World had no likes or dislikes to speak of regarding this first man of the Original


    Realm.


    But the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace were polarized on Ye Futian. Some people approved of him and Yu Sheng, but then some thought that as Ye Futian was not a demonic cultivator, Yu Sheng was getting too close to him for comfort. They were worried that Yu Sheng might even be willing to


    sacrifice the interests of the Devil World for Ye Futian��s sake.


    That nature-defying divine ruler was taken away by Ye Futian, for instance.


    Although it was taken by Ye Futian, in their opinion, it should have belonged to the Devil World all the same.


    Ye Futian saw a familiar face at this time, the guardian of the Devil World, Blood Raiment. When she saw Ye Futian, Blood Raiment immediately zoomed in on him.


    ��Tm looking for Yu Sheng,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    ��Wait a minute.�� Blood Raiment glanced at Ye Futian, then walked in the direction of the demonic hall. After a while, Ye Futian felt a demonic thought directing his movement. With a sudden flicker of his figure, he appeared instantly in front of a demonic hall.


    Ye Futian looked at Yu Sheng, assessing the aura exuded from him, and said, ��Still no breakthrough, like me?��


    ��Almost,�� Yu Sheng said, ��but I encountered a bottleneck.��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��It is quite a hurdle to step into the near-deity realm. And, certainly, it is not easy. Here are some elixirs; take them.��


    In Ye Futian��s current state, the elixirs he produced were even more excellent, and their grade had surpassed any ordinary elixirs in the Second Tribulation Realm. They were somewhere between the Second Divine Tribulation and near-deity realm, with even purer quality. He gave them to Yu Sheng,


    hoping that it would benefit Yu Sheng��s cultivation.


    Naturally, Yu Sheng would not feign politeness with Ye Futian, so he reached out and took them. He knew how just outstanding these elixirs refined by Ye Futian were, and that they would help him greatly in his cultivation.


    ��Ididn��t think that a hundred years would have gone by so quickly. The dreams that had when we were boys are getting closer now, and the truth is only a step away from being fully revealed, so why hasn��t he appeared yet?�� Ye Futian raised his head to look into the distance and said, ��Why did he choose


    to take us into hiding in the Lower Worlds and cultivate there? He was the younger brother of the Devil Emperor by blood. Who am I?��


    Most of the world would just treat him as the son of Emperor Ye Qing. Except�� Was it really as everyone else thought?


    Then there was also the excellence of the Spirit to consider. Everything gave him a feeling that his adoptive father and some other people behind the scenes were setting something up, using him as the center of it all.


    ��It will not be much longer now,�� Yu Sheng said. They had cultivated to this point, they could already see the Great Emperorship from where they were.


    Then, the truth must not be too far away either. As for he who had been hidden for so long, he must be getting closer to reveal himself.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly. What was waiting for them down the road?


    The two of them stood together without speaking. Only time would tell where these two would end up in the future.


    At this time, Ye Futian frowned. A voice appeared in his mind; the Little Condor was sending him a message.


    Yu Sheng turned to look at Ye Futian, apparently realizing a change had taken place within him.


    ��Something happened over there. There was a conflict between the cultivators of the Dark World, Fang Cun, and the others,�� Ye Futian said. ��I need to go back.��


    After that, Ye Futian��s figure disappeared from where he was. He was using Buddha��s Celerity to make his way back as quickly as possible. Obviously, the matter at hand was more urgent.


    Seeing this, Yu Sheng��s eyes sharpened, then he took a great step outside.


    In the Dark World, Ye Qingyao��the Reaper��held a very lofty position. Yu Sheng knew very well the relationship between Ye Futian and Ye Qingyao. So now, why was there a conflict between the Dark World and the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace?


    Prior to this, in the land of the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World, the Devil World, and the Empty Divine Realm had fought with Ye Futian. Although Yu Sheng was not present at the time, he had heard of it.


    At this time, somewhere else in the God��s relic, many cultivators appeared in this area, and a mighty group of cultivators gathered around the outer periphery, looking at a specific place. There, an amazing aura of the Great Path had erupted, and a horrific battle took place there not too long ago.


    Furthermore, the battle had a very tragic outcome.


    A very important person had fallen there.


    Fang Cun, Duo Yu, and Tie Tou stood together, with Little Condor and the others. They were all staring in the opposite direction. Over there, the cultivators from the Dark World, with a terrifying aura of the Great Path surrounding this entire region, had locked down this area.


    Both Fang Cun and Duo Yu held imperial arms, which puffed out terrifying divine light.


    On the side where the cultivators from the Dark Court were, there was a corpse lying on the ground, the body was pierced through and through. Several others had fallen and were lying next to that body. Alll of them had been slain by Fang Cun and Duo Yu��s imperial arms.


    In front of the corpse in the middle, there were several cultivators from the Dark Court who were standing there, looking down at the corpse. They looked extremely unhappy.


    The person who died was an important figure in the Dark Court, a direct disciple of the Dark Sovereign, who Fang Cun and Duo Yu killed.


    Hence, the dire situation at hand!

 Chapter 2739 - Old Grudge, New Grievances

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    This space seemed particularly oppressive. The Dark Court and many of the cultivators from the Dark World had Fang Cun and his group surrounded. Among them, there were some powerful beings.


    Infernal King, one of the Seven Kings of Darkness from the Dark Court, was also present. He was a peak existence of the Second Tribulation Plane, and his cultivation was undeniably strong. There were also other peak


    figures on his side, but these cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace were tough to deal with. Their strengths were considerable; otherwise, they would have been taken down already.


    ��What happened?��


    At this time, a voice came from the void in the midst of a terrible atmosphere. It was another person from the Dark World, a giant figure in the Dark World no less��the clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan. He had


    already survived the Second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path many years ago. After the ruins opened up, he came to this side of the world and cultivated in the ruins with the rest of the Dark Court. Now, he had


    stepped into the realm of near-deity.


    ��Senior brother,�� the Infernal King called out. The Infernal King of the Dark Court came from the Infernal Divine Clan, and he was the younger brother of a pillar in the Dark World, the clan leader of the Infernal Divine


    Clan. The Infernal Divine Clan was said to originate from the Infernal Sovereign.


    The Infernal Divine Clan clan leader looked down and knew what had happened immediately. Those pitch-black eyes of his glanced at the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, and a horrific aura erupted in an


    instant. The entire space turned into a world of pure inferno as a destructive storm raged between heaven and earth.


    n the sky above the clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan, a dark Infernal storm appeared. From the void downward, endless destructive light of catastrophe bloomed from this Infernal storm, which shrouded all the


    cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Fang Cun��s golden eyes swept up higher into the sky, and they were cold as ice. His body was suspended in midair as he held the imperial arms, the golden halberd, in his hand. Frightening light was coming out of the


    imperial arms as divine glory erupted from him. The light of catastrophe in the storm was unable to get any close to him and was destroyed in the end.


    Humph! A cold snort was heard. The fight of cultivators in the near-deity realm was horrific. The vast space dimmed as darkness descended. The divine light of destruction enveloped the boundless space as if it had


    turned into a world of an inferno. The dark Infernal spear emerged from that dark storm and carried the power of utmost destruction. It sliced through the void instantly slammed into Fang Cun��s imperial arm. With a


    loud boom, the surrounding space seemed on the verge of destruction as infinite light of catastrophe appeared.


    Bang! The imperial arms in Fang Cun��s hand nearly got blown away. His body was blasted directly into the ground as his body sank deep into the earth. The ground beneath his feet was razed, and the light surrounding


    his body was being pulverized like mad. Even with the imperial arms, it was impossible to contend against true existence in the near-deity realm.


    With a muffled groan, blood spurted out of Fang Cun��s mouth just as he was about to be killed on the spot. However, a massive divine bird appeared at this moment, spreading both its wings and entering into the storm,


    blocking the destruction that fell from the void. It was none other than the Karura divine bird.


    ��Divine Body of the Demon Monarch!�� Everyone stared over there with a look of surprise, and they saw that it was being controlled by the black condor. Greed flashed through the eyes of the cultivators from the Dark


    Court; they thought that these cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace were indeed full of treasures. However, they figured that these people were probably at the core of Ziwei Imperial Palace. The treasures at the Dark


    Court, on the other hand, were not plentiful enough that everyone could have gotten some.


    ��You guys get back,�� the Infernal Divine Clan clan leader said to the cultivators from the Dark World. Suddenly, everyone retreated as they were told. An even more terrifying storm was gathering and turning into a


    domain of Inferno. In this domain, there was only destruction.


    ��You asked for it!�� The Infernal Divine Clan clan leader surveyed the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace in the area below. A terrifying phantom appeared above the sky, like the Master who ruled the Inferno. The


    Infernal Spear in his hand came down with a mighty force, and suddenly, a storm of destruction in the surrounding region pierced the void. In that destructive storm, Infernal Spears came out from everywhere, as if


    everything was about to be destroyed under this attack.


    Buzz! The will of the Little Condor took control over the Karura��s divine body and spread its wings, covering this expanse of the space and protecting everyone below.


    In an instant, horrific attacks fell in a frenzy; every one of them slammed into the gigantic body of the Karura. Below, the Little Condor spat out a mouthful of blood as his will were being impacted severely; there were


    even some faint signs of disintegration.


    ��Little Condor!�� Fang Cun and the others had a look of disbelief on their faces as they looked at the Little Condor and told him, ��Get out of the way.��


    ��It��s alright; I can hold it.�� Blood continued oozing from the corners of Little Condor��s mouth, but he replied rather stubbornly. Fang Cun and the others were disciples of the boss, which meant that they were his


    subordinates. As their elder, how could he not protect them from harm? How was he going to explain that to the boss?


    The clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan surveyed the ground below, his eyes couldn��t be more cold or indifferent; a murderous intent was blazing within him. Behind him, there were many cultivators from the


    Infernal Divine Clan. A young man among them looked on coldly. Once upon a time, he had slaughtered heedlessly in the land of the Nine Realms, and Ye Futian had threatened him.


    ��Kill!�� the clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan commanded. Still, almost simultaneously, a terrifying divine light suddenly came towards this direction from a distance, with extreme brilliance. A mighty and superior


    will shrouded the space, which significantly threatened the cultivators from the Dark World.


    ��It��s Sword Qi!��


    Everyone who felt that terrifying aura trembled immensely in their hearts. In the next moment, the divine sword descended from the sky and slammed directly into the Infernal space. The violent booming sounds were


    constant; the impacts inflicted cracks upon the space, which then shattered and pulverized. The divine sword of destruction now aimed to kill the clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan.


    A terrifying dark spear appeared in his hand as he lanced it out straight away. It collided with the Divine Sword. Suddenly. That shocking sword will dissipated into nothingness, but an even more terrifying aura


    swooped down from the air on its heel.


    Far into the distance, an unparalleled sword light arrived instantly with bad intention. It seemed a top cultivator had turned into a sword; it turned out to be the Supreme Swordlord. He traveled by turning into a sword


    as he unleashed the divine sword in his hand. Instantly, Taishang Swordsmanship erupted; the divine light illuminated from it was blinding.


    The Infernal Spear, as wielded by the clan leader of Infernal Divine Clan, stabbed out and collided with the divine sword. Suddenly, the sword will and the destructive spear flowed wildly in this space. Everything


    around them seemed on the verge of total collapse.


    ��Get back!�� Many cultivators retreated frantically. Other cultivators were penetrated by the raging storm and were killed instantly.


    Bang! The attack repelled the clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan. The Infernal Spear in his hand was exuding an astonishing aura as it turned out to be an imperial arm as well.


    ��As the clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan, aren��t you ashamed of bullying your juniors?�� The Supreme Swordlord��s clothing fluttered in the wind with force, and his eyes swept towards the other like sharp swords.


    The two were giants in the Divine Prefecture and the Dark World, but Supreme Swordlord was already a near-deity and had long been a cultivator ranked on the Demigod List. The clan leader of the Infernal Divine


    Clan had breakthrough his realm while he was in this ruins, so the realm of the Supreme Swordlord was deeper and higher.


    Behind Supreme Swordlord, the cultivators from Ye Imperial Palace had rushed here one after the other. Once they learned that Fang Cun and the others were in trouble, many cultivators in Ye Imperial Palace came to


    give them support as they descended successively.


    Divine body of the Karura disappeared, and the Little Condor was left looking a little tired. He stared at the cultivators from the Dark World and said coldly, ��Today, I will get rid of the trash.��


    ��What��s happening?�� Old Ma asked Fang Cun and the others when he came around. They all knew about the relationship between Ye Futian and Ye Qingyao. Now was not a good time for Ye Imperial Palace to make


    enemies, which meant they should not have a conflict like this with the Dark World.


    ��They wanted to rob our imperial arms and attacked us; Duo Yu and I killed a few people in the process,�� Fang Cun replied, which caused Old Ma to frown. The cultivators from the Dark World were the ones to initiate


    the attack, and it was no less than to capture the imperial arms from them.


    The nature of this attack was malicious and the equivalent of declaring war on Ziwei Imperial Palace. Fang Cun��s reaction was entirely expected, and it was not surprising that he killed those instigators.


    ��Do you know who was the person you killed?�� the Infernal King said coldly. Then he glanced at Supreme Swordlord and the others, pointing to Fang Cun and the others, saying, ��These people must die.��


    In the distance, terrifying auras continued to drift towards them, and the cultivators from the Dark Court had also arrived in the area. Surprisingly, even Hua Yunting��the Dark Saint��was among them.


    ��Saint,�� Many people bowed and saluted him. Hua Yunting��s position in the Dark Court was very prestigious, ranking above the Seven Kings, and equivalent to the Demon Sage of the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Hua Yunting glanced below to look at the corpse on the ground, and he did not look pleased. He had heard the conversation between them just now.


    He recognized that Ziwei Imperial Palace was no ordinary principality. Even as an imperial-level force, the Dark World was not afraid of Ziwei Imperial Palace. However, there was no need to make enemies out of them


    either, especially not when Ye Futian and the Divine Prefecture were sort of on opposite sides, and they could use Ziwei Imperial Palace as their allies.


    Ye Futian��s talent was outstanding, and he had the best chance to prove his way to the imperial realm. In the future, it might even be possible for him to pose a threat to Donghuang the Great, so there was no need to


    make a break with him.


    More importantly, Ye Qingyao and Ye Futian enjoyed an excellent relationship. So, in his opinion, Ye Futian could embark on the road of emperorship, and there was no need to hinder him.


    But now, such a violent conflict had occurred.


    Glancing at the corpse, he thought that this matter would not end well.


    At this time, a figure suddenly appeared in this space without anyone being aware of it, as he just appeared out of the ether.


    ��Ye Futian.�� Many people��s eyes sharpened instantly, as they focused on the white-haired young man who appeared. It seemed that he already knew what happened here, and he arrived here with all due speed using


    Buddha��s Celerity.


    Ye Futian sensed everything that had happened here from the Little Condor. The cultivators from the Dark Court took action against Fang Cun and the others, intending to rob them of the imperial arms, which was


    why Fang Cun raised his hand against the offenders. Although it was a little impulsive of him, the other party was responsible for instigating the attack, therefore, they were in the right to defend themselves by striking


    back.


    ��Ye Futian,�� the Dark Sage said to him, ��What do you want to do about it?��


    This matter was getting to be a little thorny.


    ��Since you have chosen to take action, strength will determine the outcome; what else can be done?�� Ye Futian swept his eyes over the group headed by the clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan and said, ��Are you the


    one who took action?��


    As he was speaking, he glanced at the cultivators from the Infernal Divine Clan. When he saw that young man, he remembered some of the things that happened in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. Back then, the


    Infernal Divine Clan had wreak havoc in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, but because of his background, Ye Futian was unable to do anything about the young man. Ye Futian once promised that he would kill the


    other man if given the chance, but because of the subsequent changes in the world, he never got around to do it.


    Now, unexpectedly, the Infernal Divine Clan had once again provoked him!.

 Chapter 2740 - Extermination of a Clan

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Infernal Divine Clan Leader was an incredible figure and a giant of the Dark World. Even Infernal King of the Dark Court was his junior. He was now at the Near-Deity Plane and had obtained a dark divine arm. His


    abilities were powerful.


    Yet Ye Futian, a junior, dared to talk to him in such a manner. Although he knew that Ye Futian was very powerful, for the latter to act so presumptuously before him, wasn��t he being overconfident?


    ��Swordlord, I will leave this to you,�� Ye Futian said to Supreme Swordlord.


    ��Alright,�� replied the latter as he nodded his head. He admired Ye Futian����s attitude.


    If they did not show their might, others would take them to be pushovers.


    No matter which force it was, if they had made a move to snatch another person��s imperial arm, it was considered a declaration of war. What more needed to be said to those who attempted to kill someone and steal


    their imperial arm?


    There was naturally nothing that needed to be discussed. They would speak with their fists.


    Ye Futian extended his hand, and the Divine Ruler immediately appeared. His entire body shone with brilliant divine light. He was a sight to behold.


    Buzz. Sword Will burst forth from the figure of Supreme Swordlord and enveloped the region below. The cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace were enveloped inside his Sword Will. The cultivators in the distance also


    wisely retreated. They would be in grave danger if they were near a battle of this level.


    Dark Saint Hua Yunting frowned. Matters seemed to have escalated out of control and had become very bad. If the Dark Court began fighting with Ye Futian, it was clearly a lose-lose situation. Neither side would


    benefit from this.


    However, Ye Futian was fully prepared to attack. The situation was already beyond their control.


    In the heavens above, increasingly terrifying destructive will burst forth. The world seemed to become purgatory. In this space, flowing dark currents contained frightening destructive will. They were capable of killing


    anyone who touched them.


    Countless dark currents circled around the body of Infernal Divine Clan Leader. This caused the region where he stood to turn hideous and terrifying. The currents were like countless tentacles. They then immediately


    grabbed out at Ye Futian down below.


    Behind Ye Futian, there suddenly appeared a dazzling Yin Yang Diagram. This diagram instantly expanded. Emerald-green divine light circulated within it. The diagram released the terrifying Power of Yin and Yang


    that shone on the dark currents. In an instant, the constant currents sweeping towards Ye Futian were reduced to dust.


    tumble. A dull thud could be heard. Destructive dark spears traversed across the sky and charged towards Ye Futian. They plummeted straight towards their target like countless beams of destructive light. It was as


    though doomsday had befallen this region.


    Ye Futian extended his arm, and an enormous Wheel of Space appeared. It radiated unparalleled divine halos and engulfed all the incoming spears.


    nfernal Divine Clan Leader revealed an astonished look when he saw this. The Wheel of Space, which could swallow everything, was gigantic. It was akin to a black hole, sucking his attacks into another space and


    causing them to dissipate without a trace.


    Buzz.


    Suddenly, Infernal Divine Clan Leader detected a strong sense of danger. He thrust his spear downwards, and it collided with the Divine Ruler that was charging towards him. The Divine Ruler was as sharp as a sword.


    ts terrifying power sent the Clan Leader flying upwards uncontrollably. Sword Will overwhelmed the space and flooded his body.


    The Clan Leader snorted. His body emanated dark divine light to negate the power of the Sword Will. However, now, Ye Futian��s body disappeared from his sight.


    ��This is bad!��


    The facial expression of the Clan Leader changed drastically as he immediately ordered, ��Retreat!��


    Rumble. There was a dull thud as the domain that enveloped the region was penetrated. Ye Futian��s figure immediately pierced through it. Infernal Divine Clan Leader looked towards Ye Futian, and his expression was


    extremely ugly. The next moment, he saw Ye Futian stabbing out at the various cultivators of the Infernal Divine Clan.


    The cultivators of the Infernal Divine Clan revealed shocked expressions. Ye Futian had broken through the domain of a near-deity cultivator. They released their most powerful auras of the Great Path. Even the youth,


    who had massacred people in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, had a look of terror in his eyes.


    This sword directly pierced across the space. Everywhere the Sword Will passed over, figures fell out of the sky. They perished on the spot.


    When the cultivators in the distance saw the cultivators of the Infernal Divine Clan perish one by one, they were astonished. Ye Futian was exterminating the Infernal Divine Clan.


    The youth was not dead. Ye Futian had spared him, but he was still standing before the youth and staring at him.


    ��Save me,�� the youth pleaded as he looked towards Infernal Divine Clan Leader.


    ��Ye Futian, you attacked the members of my clan?�� said Infernal Divine Clan Leader in a voice as cold as ice. Ye Futian ignored him. He extended his palm and placed it on the other party��s head. The youth showed no


    signs of resistance.


    ��I said that you would pay with your life,�� said Ye Futian as he stared into the youth��s eyes. A terrifying divine fire burst forth from his palm. In an instant, the youth was consumed by the divine flames. They seared


    through his body and burnt his spiritual soul into a crisp.


    The youth let out agonizing screams. His body was slowly disintegrated by the divine flames and was reduced to nothingness.


    Everyone was shocked at Ye Futian��s methods. He had killed off the young clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan so brutally. His methods were ruthless and decisive, showing no signs of mercy.


    Infernal Divine Clan Leader��s facial expression was extremely ugly. Murderous intent filled the sky as terrifying destructive will encapsulated the vast space, turning it into purgatory.


    Ye Futian��s gaze was serene. He did not seem concerned at all. He turned towards Infernal Divine Clan Leader calmly and said, ��Did you not consider that I would do this when you attacked my disciple?��


    Before Ye Futian��s arrival, Infernal Divine Clan Leader attacked Fang Cun and Duo Yu to kill them. If it weren��t because Little Condor protected them with the help of the divine body of Karura, they would most likely


    have perished.


    Since the Clan Leader showed Fang Cun and Duo Yu no mercy, Ye Futian would not hesitate to do the same. Moreover, there were old grudges between Ye Futian and Infernal Divine Clan. He had no reason to spare


    them.


    With a strike, Ye Futian directly eradicated all the cultivators from the Infernal Divine Clan.


    The members of other top forces from the Dark World felt their hearts tremble violently as they witnessed the scene. Ye Futian showed no sign of fear when facing the Dark Court and the Infernal Divine Clan, one of


    the Dark World��s top forces. He had no scruples about massacring the members of the Infernal Divine Clan. This caused the crowd to be fearful of him.


    They had to consider the consequences carefully before they decided to attack Ye Futian. If they couldn��t kill him on the spot, he would certainly take his revenge on them in the future.


    Ye Futian pointed the Divine Ruler at Infernal Divine Clan Leader. A few years ago, Ye Futian was targeted by Shenyan Buddha Lord when he was about to leave Ye Imperial Palace. He then slaughtered the latter in their


    fight. Now, he had no reason to fear Infernal Divine Clan Leader. The latter wielded an imperial arm, but so had Shenyan Buddha Lord back then. He wielded a Buddhist divine sword, yet he still perished.


    Right at this moment, the sky in the distance dimmed. An even more menacing aura permeated the space. Many people looked in that direction. Their hearts palpitated frenziedly.


    The cultivators, who stood at the peak of the Dark Court, had arrived.


    Dark Saint��s heart also throbbed as he looked in the direction where the aura came from. He had an uneasy feeling. He vaguely sensed something.


    The incoming person was crowned the next Divine Saint before Ye Qingyao had joined the Dark Court.


    At the same time, in a different location, Yu Sheng also reached this place.


    There was also a peerless beauty dressed in white. It was unknown when she had also arrived in this region!.

 Chapter 2741 - Lord Shaman

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Ye Futian sized up the people who had arrived. The leading cultivator had an unfathomable aura on him. He stood there, his vibe similar to that of the Dark Lord. An ethereal aura emanated from his figure, giving off a


    very powerful, threatening will.


    Ye Futian had never met this person before. The other party had not participated in the battle in the Old Heaven Court.


    Back when the Devil World was at war with the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World had merely assisted. They did not send their strongest members. Ye Qingyao later joined the battlefield, but this person had not


    appeared before.


    Although Ye Futian had never met him before, he could guess the status of this person in the Dark Court just by looking at his imposing manner as well as the large group of cultivators behind him.


    Ye Futian had come in contact with the top cultivators from the various worlds. Ji Wudao had Great Skylords Black and White Almighty as guardians. Donghuang Diyuan was also accompanied by top-tier cultivators.


    The Empty Divine Realm had Dugu Wuxie, and the Devil World had Yan Guiyi and so on. Before this, he had encountered Dark Saint Hua Yunting from the Dark Court. However, Hua Yunting was not their strongest


    figure. He was still far lacking.


    Rumor has it that the most powerful figure aside from the Dark Lord in the Dark Court was Lord Shaman. He was The Great Shaman and the leader of the Three Dark Sages.


    Legend has it that Lord Shaman was the second disciple of the Dark Lord. He had been a disciple of the Dark Lord for a very long time. Back then, the head disciple was similarly outstanding with extraordinary talent.


    He was peerless, and his status in the Dark Court was exceptional. His personality was kind and compassionate. He guided his younger brothers in their cultivation. However, it was precisely this that cost him his life.


    In the Dark World, kindness was taboo. It went against the Path of Darkness. In the end, this head disciple was killed by his younger brother, Lord Shaman. The latter took everything he owned and inherited his


    position. The Dark Lord had silently acknowledged all that had transpired. Since then, Lord Shaman became the heir of the Dark Court and the leader of the Three Dark Sages.


    The disciples after him neither dared to contend with him nor attack him. Someone had tried to do so before, and the consequences were tragic.


    Currently, Lord Shaman was already a giant-level figure. He was the mightiest person in the Dark Court aside from the Dark Lord. Even Dark Flame Sage and Dark Saint posed no threat to his position. This was the


    status quo until Ye Qingyao appeared in the Dark World. She was known as the Dark Maiden and was later given the title ��the Reaper.�� The Dark Lord treated her as though she was one of his own disciples. He even


    forbade everyone in the Dark Court from harming her. Because of this, Ye Qingyao managed to survive in the Dark World and could keep on growing. If she did not have the special protection of the Dark Lord, she


    wouldn��t have been able to survive at all.


    ��Lord Shaman!�� greeted the cultivators of the Dark Court.


    When they saw Lord Shaman arriving, they all frantically bowed to him and acted very polite. They were very respectful towards him as they all feared him. Even his younger brothers felt the same.


    Lord Shaman was extremely ruthless in his ways. Back then, even his elder brother, who had taken extra good care of him and trained him, had been killed by him. One could imagine what sort of cultivator he was. The


    world did not doubt that he would even kill the Dark Lord and take his place if he was powerful enough.


    The Dark Lord himself was well aware of this fact.


    evertheless, this was originally the law of survival in the Dark World that he had established.


    ��Lord Shaman,�� greeted Infernal Divine Clan Leader.


    ight then, even an extraordinary cultivator like Infernal Divine Clan Leader was bowing towards Lord Shaman.


    The Dark World was different from the Divine Prefecture. The Dark Court��s authority was absolute. For the Dark World forces, they usually did not need to worry about the Dark Court on a day-to-day basis. However,


    no one dared to disobey orders when the latter sent down orders. No one could bear the consequences of doing so.


    Hence, the cultivators of the various forces of the Dark World had profound respect towards the Dark Court.


    Lord Shaman was accustomed to receiving such reverence from the crowd. He swept a glance at the corpse, and it slowly floated upwards.


    ��Bring Younger Brother��s body back to the Dark Court and bury him in the graveyard of the Divine Mountain,�� Lord Shaman commanded.


    ��Yes, sir,�� responded one of the cultivators who stood behind him as he stepped forward to retrieve the body.


    Lord Shaman fixed his gaze on one of the cultivators from the Dark Court. His eyes glistened with terrifying crimson light. His presence was undoubtedly scary.


    ��Lord Shaman,�� the cultivator cried out. He was a Renhuang, but he revealed a look of intense fear when his eyes met with Lord Shaman��s.


    ��You followed Younger Brother. He has perished in battle, yet you are unscathed. Why are you still alive?�� As soon as Lord Shaman said this, his menacing crimson gaze penetrated space and pierced the eyes of the


    Renhuang.


    The Renhuang let out a blood-curdling shriek as blood oozed out from his eyes. Two beams of crimson light shot into his pupils and punctured his brain. It was a frightening scene to behold.


    ��Argh���� The Renhuang covered his eyes with his hands. Blood tainted his fingers red. He looked miserable. His body was shaking uncontrollably, as though he was experiencing the cruelest torture in the world. He felt


    as though his spiritual soul was being torn apart from his body. He could see many gruesome scenes flashing before his eyes as he was drowned in the crimson eyes of Lord Shaman. His past experiences replayed in his


    mind.


    Splat.


    The crimson lights seared two holes through the Renhuang��s brain. The dreadful torture had finally ended for the cultivator from the Dark Court. He collapsed to the ground, and his blood flushed the ground red. The


    surrounding space turned exceptionally quiet.


    Even though the person Lord Shaman killed was just a Renhuang, it still impacted everyone around greatly. The way the Dark Court cultivators handled things was indeed ruthless. Lord Shaman acted so cruelly when


    punishing his own underlings. One could imagine how much more savage he would be when he faced his opponents.


    From the looks of it, things were sure to turn ugly today.


    The first thing this Great Shaman from the Dark Court did upon arrival was torture a member of his court to death. How would he possibly let the cultivators who killed his younger brother leave here alive?


    When Dark Saint Hua Yunting saw this scene, he knew things had taken a turn for the worse. Lord Shaman was putting on a show of force.


    ��Capture everyone who was involved in the murder of Younger Brother,�� ordered Lord Shaman in an indifferent tone. He said this with a commanding voice, leaving no room for misinterpretation.


    ��Yes, Lord Shaman,�� responded several cultivators of the Dark Court behind him as they stepped forward. They were all cultivators who had survived the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. They had come forward to


    arrest those involved.


    He was going to capture all those involved in the death of his younger brother. That included Fang Cun, Duo Yu, and the others.


    Fang Cun raised the golden halberd in his hand and pointed it at Lord Shaman. The golden halberd unleashed astonishing murderous intent. Fighting will circled his figure. Fang Cun was originally an extremely unruly


    person; he would not surrender just like that.


    Duo Yu��s gaze was similarly as cold as ice. He raised the long spear in his hands. His eyes became bizarre and frightening. They were the Eyes of Samsara.


    ��Kill anyone who attacks us without mercy,�� Ye Futian ordered as he looked at Fang Cun and the others.


    ��Yes, Master,�� replied Fang Cun. Supreme Swordlord was also beside him. Sword Will circled his figure and enveloped the space. His aura was extremely astonishing.


    When the cultivators of the Dark Court saw this scene, all of them took a few steps forward. A terrifying dark aura was released. It covered the sky, and in an instant, the sky was dyed black, plunging the world into


    darkness.


    The sky turned dark!.

 Chapter 2742 - Test Out?

    Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio


    Many cultivators were retreating away from the suppressive and terrifying space. They sensed that the battle was about to begin.


    It was not safe for a battle of this magnitude to be within a range of 1000 miles, let alone the surrounding regions. No one knew how far the aftershocks would reach if these two cultivators unleashed their powers


    without holding back.


    However, most top cultivators would hold themselves back slightly when fighting.


    As the crowd retreated, their gazes were still fixed on the battlefield. They were very concerned about this storm.


    This was a battle between the Dark World and the Ziwei Segmentum. Now, Ziwei Imperial Palace had become one of the top forces aside from the Emperor-level forces. It was a superpower that had surpassed the


    Ancient God Clans. It could even be considered the number one force aside from those Emperor-level forces.


    Several years ago, this point had been proven in the Old Heaven Court. The members of Ziwei Imperial Palace had fought against the various cultivators of the Heaven Realm.


    After that battle, the world knew that Ziwei Imperial Palace��s power was only second to that of the Emperor-level forces.


    Even if the Dark Court wanted to take them down, it wouldn��t be an easy feat to pull off.


    Moreover, Ye Futian��s group had the backing of the heir of the Devil Emperor, Yu Sheng. He had received the teachings of the Demonic Lord. Several years ago, he had a short exchange with Ji Wudao in the Old Heaven


    Court. His ability was astonishing.


    With such a background, the Dark Court did not necessarily have the advantage, unless Yu Sheng did not participate in the battle and did not use the will of the Demonic Lord. Most likely, no one from Ziwei Imperial


    Palace could stand against Lord Shaman. The Great Shaman of the Dark Court was the strongest figure of the Dark Court aside from the Dark Lord. He was the leader of the Three Dark Sages. No one knew how


    powerful his abilities were now. However, without a doubt, he would be among the strongest aside from the Great Emperors.


    ��Show no mercy!�� said Lord Shaman as he slowly swept a glance at Ye Futian when he heard the latter speaking. There was a condescending look in his crimson pupils. He then looked at Supreme Swordlord.


    ��Supreme Swordlord, you are a cultivator from the Divine Prefecture. This does not concern you. You have cultivated for so many years. Why get swept into this mess now? I will give you the chance to leave,�� said Lord


    Shaman nonchalantly. His words contained a cold and sinister aura that caused the surrounding people to feel uncomfortable.


    Although Supreme Swordlord had gained fame in the Divine Prefecture many years ago and was a powerful cultivator on the Near-Deity List, he did not have confidence that he could defeat The Great Shaman if pitted


    against the latter.


    ��Then, I should be thanking you,�� Supreme Swordlord replied as he glanced back at Lord Shaman with a faint smile. Who did Lord Shaman think Supreme Swordlord was? Even though Supreme Swordlord was not an


    heir of an Emperor-level force, he was a Near-Deity Level existence who had been renowned for many years. In terms of seniority, he was above Lord Shaman. Now, the other party was speaking to him in sucha


    manner and giving him the chance to leave?


    Supreme Swordlord was old, but his sword was still sharp.


    Lord Shaman naturally understood Supreme Swordlord��s meaning. He did not say anymore. His figure gradually floated up into the sky. His black robes danced in the wind. He extended both his hands, and


    immediately, the dark will in the sky ran amok. It was as though the end of the world had truly come. It was extremely terrifying.


    Furthermore, there were countless streaks of crimson light of catastrophe flashing amidst the dark storm. The appearance of the lights of catastrophe was unpredictable. It was as though the lights were a natural part


    of the storm. Many cultivators felt their spiritual souls trembling even though they were merely standing beneath the aura.


    ��Run!�� They lost interest in witnessing the battle as they swiftly took to their heels. Other cultivators might still consider onlookers while they were engaged in battle. However, this was Lord Shaman from the Dark


    Court. Would he care?


    Rumble. Rumble. Rumble. Terrifying collisions reverberated in space. Many crimson stone pillars suddenly plummeted onto the ground, sealing this vast region off.


    At the same time, a blood-red altar appeared in the sky. The entire domain turned into an altar of sacrifice. The place was enveloped by darkness.


    Lord Shaman stood on the altar like an almighty god as he looked down on Ye Futian. There was contempt in his gaze. He roared, ��Vermin, you are but a chess piece of the various forces. Yet, you dream of defying the


    gods and changing your fate. You do not know your place.��


    His voice could be heard far and wide, and it reverberated in everyone��s eardrums. He was absolutely domineering.


    Many cultivators were astonished. In the eyes of Lord Shaman, Ye Futian was merely an ant?


    The latter was just a chess piece?


    Ye Futian also looked up at the other party. Lord Shaman��s ability was already at the peak of the Near-Deity Plane. He was similar to First Demon Sage Yan Guiyi and Dugu Wuxie. He was among the strongest figures


    aside from the Great Emperors. Once this crimson altar appeared, the other party controlled this domain.


    Was Ye Futian an ant?


    Of course not.


    Was he a chess piece?


    Ina sense, Ye Futian was indeed a chess piece. The Dark World, the Devil World, and the Empty Divine Realm all treated him like one. They used him to check and balance the Divine Prefecture. They didn��t even mind


    letting him grow stronger to the point that he could threaten Donghuang the Great. Back when the Original Realm was being thrown into chaos, these Emperor-level forces from the other worlds had spared Ziwei


    Imperial Palace.


    If they had chosen to eradicate Ziwei Imperial Palace at that time, the latter would most likely not have been able to withstand their attacks and would have perished.


    Therefore, it was not wrong for Lord Shaman to say that Ye Futian was a chess piece.


    However, if that was the case, who was the mastermind behind the scenes?


    Was it the Dark Court and the Empty Divine Realm?


    The real mastermind most likely would not be so easily identified.


    ��If I wanted to take your life, I could do so anytime I want,�� continued Lord Shaman. Even though Ye Futian��s ability now was already exceptional, the latter still made such a statement.


    As he said this, bolts of crimson lightning descended within the dark domain like lights of catastrophe. They were like the power of judgment from heaven that could destroy everything in the world.


    Buzz. Powerful Sword Will burst forth from the divine sword in Supreme Swordlord��s hand. A Sword Realm immediately enveloped the cultivators of Ziwei Imperial Palace around him. If this power came crashing down


    on them, ordinary cultivators would not be able to withstand it. They would perish to the crimson lightning.


    ��Is that so?�� Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at Lord Shaman. Then, he said, ��Today, I shall see for myself how you plan to take my life.��


    Just when everyone thought Ye Futian would dive into battle with Lord Shaman, the former turned around to look at the white-robed lady, who was standing behind him. This caused many people to raise their


    eyebrows in puzzlement.


    ��Do you want to test out the results of your recent training?�� Ye Futian asked Ling Long. Ye Futian believed that she would surely sharpen her skills with Lord Shaaman��the most advanced cultivator in the Dark


    Court��as her opponent.


    After all, in Ye Imperial Palace, Ling Long was unrivaled. Now, Ye Futian had found her an opponent that didn��t seem too shabby.


    ��Alright,�� replied Ling Long as she nodded her head.


    Then, she stepped forward and walked towards where Lord Shaman stood. This caused the various cultivators to reveal strange expressions.


    Not only was Ye Futian not fighting himself, he actually sent out a woman to fight on his behalf?


    This woman dressed in white had an extraordinary temperament. Her appearance was outstanding. No one recognized her, and they had never seen her before. However, even if she was extraordinary, Ye Futian asked


    her to deal with Lord Shaman? Wasn��t that tantamount to suicide?.

 Chapter 2743 - Situation

    Chapter 2743 Situation


    Lord Shaman saw a woman in white charging towards him. His eyes emitted terrifying crimson divine lights. With a wave of his hand, endless crimson Divine Lights of Judgment appeared in the sky and descended towards Ling Long. She would be killed on the spot if she touched any of the divine light.


    Rumble. A shocking fighting will burst forth from Ling Long��s body. The will shot up high into the sky and covered the entire region instantly. At this moment, the white-robed figure before Lord Shaman transformed from a maiden to a war god.


    This aura! thought Lord Shaman.


    His eyes narrowed as his facial expression changed slightly. Endless crimson Divine Lights of Judgment rained down on Ling Long. The fighting will circled around her body. It was as though she was garbed in the armor of a war god. The crimson divine lights actually could not penetrate through her fighting will. Ling Long continued to pounce towards Lord Shaman, who was standing on the altar in the sky. This scene caused the spectating cultivators to narrow their eyes in astonishment. What was going on? How could this maiden be so dominant and powerful?


    As far as they were concerned, Lord Shaman��s cultivation plane was already at the peak of the Near-Deity Level. The Divine Power of the Great Path that he controlled was uniquely his. If a Two-Tribulation cultivator were hit by his crimson divine light, even they would likely perish on the spot.


    However, Lord Shaman��s crimson divine light actually had not managed to break through the defense of the maiden. One could imagine the might of her fighting will.


    Who was this woman dressed in white?


    Ling Long flew higher into the sky, and soon, she approached the altar. She extended her fist and sent out an attack. Her punch appeared ordinary, yet it contained frightening Tianshen fist will.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. The blood-red altar was smashed into pieces in the blink of an eye. It crumbled right away after coming in contact with the aggressive fist will. It was as fragile as glass when faced with the woman��s overwhelming fighting will.


    The fist will even continued charging upwards. It crashed into the crimson domain. A dull rumbling could be heard. The entire domain nearly collapsed instantly.


    Lord Shaman��s figure appeared high in the sky. He had dodged the previous attack. A fighting will enveloped his figure as he stared at his opponent. The fighting will, which circled around the woman dressed in white, seemed to be a Great Emperor.


    Lord Shaman��s will shifted, and an even more terrifying aura immediately burst forth. In the menacing blood-red space, destructive Divine Lights of Judgment flowed all around. In his hand, a crimson scepter appeared. It was a highly mighty imperial arm that emanated powerful will.


    ��This���� The cultivators below felt their hearts thump nonstop. With one attack, the woman in white forced Lord Shaman to take out his imperial arm. Clearly, Lord Shaman brought out his imperial arm because he suspected that he might not be able to withstand the other party��s attacks with his ability alone.


    This woman in white was actually formidable to such an extent.


    ��It is the Scepter of Dark Judgment,�� someone commented. The hearts of the various cultivators trembled violently when they saw the scepter that Lord Shaman was wielding. This imperial arm was a precious treasure of the Dark Court. It had always been the weapon used by The Great Shaman of the Dark Court and was passed down from generation to generation. Since Lord Shaman was the current Great Shaman and the head of the Three Dark Sages, this Scepter of Dark Judgment was naturally under his control.


    He extended his arm and pointed the scepter to the heavens. The color of the sky changed instantaneously. An even more frightening blood-red storm stirred up in the space. When the crowd raised their heads, they could see a menacing vortex swirling above them. This vortex seemed capable of eradicating all living beings. Nothing could survive once they were sucked into it.


    vas


    Many people could feel that even their spiritual souls were quivering in fear. Their hearts beat frenziedly. They continued to retreat backward. They wanted to stay as far away from the storm as possible. No one could predict how terrifying Lord Shaman��s next attack would be. Bang. With a crisp crack, the domain was shattered. It was as though the entire sky had transformed into the Dark Domain. The sky split open, and the crimson divine light that radiated from the Scepter of Dark Judgment shot up into the high heavens. The power it emanated seemed to be summoning an apocalypse. The scene was too shocking to behold.


    Rumble. The sounds of thunder reverberated throughout the space. The next moment, myriads of crimson divine light rained down from the sky, with the momentum to smash the entire world into pieces. A beam of extraordinarily bright crimson divine light stood out amidst the densely packed lights. It coalesced into the shape of a sword as it charged towards Ling Long.


    Ling Long acutely sensed the power exerted by the divine light. Fighting will burst forth frenziedly from her body. She extended her palm, and immediately, countless divine swords surged towards the incoming attack. This technique that she was demonstrating was taught to her by Ye Futian. He guided her to better utilize her power in her attacks.


    Bang. The crimson lights and the divine swords collided in the sky. The sky ruptured as the entire space shook violently. Destructive divine lights rampaged. However, even after making such a ruckus, Lord Shaman��s attack failed to touch Ling Long. After she sent out her palm strike, she leaped into the sky and flew towards Lord Shaman. It seemed like she wanted to engage in close combat with the other party. Many cultivators below were not so lucky. Some of them did not manage to escape in time and were crushed by the destructive blow. Some less competent cultivators were incinerated when the crimson divine lights rained down. Their spiritual souls were reduced to dust, perishing on the spot. They had no means to defend themselves.


    Any cultivators who had yet to reach the Tribulation Plane did not stand a chance once such a high-level attack hit them.


    Ye Futian took a glance at the battle happening in the sky. He was well aware of how capable Ling Long was. Even with the help of an imperial arm, Lord Shaman might not be a match for her. Over the past few years, Ye Futian had verified her ability countless times.


    Therefore, Ye Futian was not worried about the outcome of their battle.


    He shifted his gaze towards where Infernal Divine Clan Leader stood. A moment ago, Ye Futian had slaughtered everyone from his clan. Aside from this clan leader, everyone else was dead.


    Ye Futian would finish what he started. He had no reason to let the Clan Leader escape.


    Divine light circled Ye Futian as his aura locked onto Infernal Divine Clan Leader. The latter also sensed this. He retracted his gaze from the battlefield in the sky. He looked towards Ye Futian as murderous intent circled him.


    He also had not imagined that Ye Futian had such a terrifying existence like the woman dressed in white on his side. She could fight Lord Shaman, who was wielding an imperial arm, unarmed. Her combat ability would rank among the strongest beneath the Great Emperors.


    Such an individual was taking orders from Ye Futian.


    In that case, the situation today would be disadvantageous to them.


    ��The direct disciple of the Dark Lord has been killed. Why aren��t all of you attacking?��. Infernal Divine Clan Leader said as he looked at the cultivators from the Dark Court as well as the various forces of the Dark World. Dark Saint Hua Yunting was also very powerful, and the Dark Court still had many cultivators who could join the battle.


    Dark Saint frowned when he saw that matters had spiraled out of control. As he had predicted, things had indeed gotten out of hand.


    No one knew how this battle would end.


    Buzz. Just as Infernal Divine Clan Leader said this, a sense of danger suddenly loomed over him. Ye Futian��s figure instantly charged forward. Divine light circled around the jade-green Divine Ruler. He charged directly at the Clan Leader. It was as though Ye Futian had become a divine sword that could pierce through all powers of the Great Path and destroy all spiritual souls.


    The power of the Great Path furiously burst forth from his figure. Everywhere the divine light passed over, everything was reduced to dust.


    From Ye Futian��s figure, Infernal Divine Clan Leader sensed certain death!

 Chapter 2744 - Slaying Yet Another Near-Deity

    Chapter 2744 Slaying Yet Another Near-Deity


    Ye Futian��s figure disappeared from where he stood. When he appeared once again, he instantly descended upon Infernal Divine Clan Leader. The Divine Ruler stabbed out like a sharp sword and was extremely domineering. The Clan Leader never imagined that Ye Futian would actually attempt to kill him in close combat. The long spear imperial arm in the former��s hands similarly stabbed forward. The two terrifying powers clashed, and an astonishing storm was swept up. Buzz. Ye Futian��s figure disappeared again. Around Infernal Divine Clan Leader, there suddenly appeared many exterior incarnations of Ye Futian. Dazzling jade-green divine light circled each of them. All of them seemed to possess the power of the Divine Ruler.


    These incarnations also seemed to never stop moving. More and more of them appeared, filling up the space around the Clan Leader.


    ��This is a movement technique,�� said someone down below as they looked up at the battlefield in the sky. Ye Futian not only possessed the Buddhist technique Celerity, but he also cultivated movement techniques. He seemed to have millions of incarnations. No one could tell which was the original.


    The top forces knew that back in the relic of the Old Heaven Court, Ye Futian had obtained many divine stones that contained divine techniques. Had Ye Futian cultivated this technique from them?


    Unbeknownst to them, this movement technique was not anything special. However, when used in conjunction with Celerity, it became very powerful. No one could pinpoint where Ye Futian��s true body was at all.


    Nevertheless, against top cultivators, it was meaningless to merely be proficient in movement techniques.


    Behind Infernal Divine Clan Leader, a frightening gray silhouette of a god appeared. A dark domain enveloped the surrounding area. Dark infernal fire appeared in the entire domain. Fire engulfed the entire sky. Black lotuses blossomed from the flames and consumed the power in the surroundings.


    Terrifying infernal fire attempted to consume the incarnations of Ye Futian. However, the incarnations seemed to surround the area and made the space an absolute domain. The sky was filled with jade-green divine light that blocked out the sun. Ye Futian��s phantasms were everywhere.


    Suddenly, the blinding Light of Buddha pierced through the darkness. His incarnations became ancient golden buddhas. All of them possessed indestructible golden bodies. The Sound of Buddha reverberated across the sky. The power of the Six Syllables of Truth circulated in the area. When the infernal fire descended on the figures of the ancient buddhas, the fire was actually purified and extinguished.


    The infernal lotuses in this domain of space similarly withered. They seemed to be sealed by this domain.


    ��It is a domain!�� exclaimed various cultivators as they looked up at the region.


    Up until moments ago, the incarnations took the form of Ye Futian. Suddenly, they became various buddhas who filled the skies. Even more frighteningly, their figures were slanted and formed a ring above Ye Futian and Infernal Divine Clan Leader. The Light of Buddha shone brightly, and a gigantic Buddha Lord silhouette appeared.


    Bang. Menacing sounds reverberated as all the buddhas unleashed All Heaven Buddha��s Seal at the same time. Their palm strikes coalesced into a single Buddha��s Seal and headed straight towards Infernal Divine Clan Leader.


    Palace Lord has grown stronger, Lord Chen thought as he observed the battle from the ground below. After a few years of cultivation, Ye Futian��s ability had further improved. Even though he had yet to break through the shackles of the plane, he had a more profound understanding of his techniques. Rumble. The Clan Leader raised his imperial arm. Immediately, infernal storms were whipped up in space. Destructive spears materialized from the eyes of the storms and shot out towards different directions. Each of them targeted a different part of the incoming Buddha��s Seal.


    A loud collision echoed in space. The spear hit the Buddha��s Seal. The latter covered the entire sky and countless Symbols of Wan were carved on it. It radiated with the dazzling Light of Buddha. Its momentum pushed Infernal Divine Clan Leader slightly downwards. However, countless cracks appeared on the Buddha��s Seal when the power stored in the imperial arm exploded upon collision. Then, the seal disintegrated.


    The very next second, an intense killing intent permeated the space around the Clan Leader. A divine sword charged directly towards him from the heavens above.


    It was the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword. The awe-inspiring sword slashed its way downwards. Infernal Divine Clan Leader retaliated head on with his spear. This time, the momentum of the enormous divine sword pressed down on the Clan Leader, causing him to slide down uncontrollably.


    ��Get lost!�� barked Infernal Divine Clan Leader as power frenziedly burst forth from his body. He was enveloped by a dark infernal storm. Endless dark currents twirled around the divine sword. The Clan Leader had activated his imperial arm to its utmost limit.


    ��Presumptuous,�� a voice rebuked loudly. The thunderous voice echoed in the mind of the Clan Leader. This Sonic Wave attack blasted his spiritual soul directly as it was laced with the spell power. The Clan Leader stared blankly at the heavens above. Then, he saw a pair of terrifying eyes. The pupils were jade-green in color.


    The power of the Divine Ruler, which Ye Futian devoured a few years ago, seemed to have perfectly merged with his own Great Path. It was now flowing in every single part of his body. Even his eyes contained its power.


    The Clan Leader activated his Eye Sorcery, and his eyes emitted divine lights. Terrifying will burst forth from his jet-black eyes. The Infernal God appeared in the Eye Sorcery Zone forged by the Clan Leader, and it swooped towards Ye Futian along with the dark divine power.


    Ye Futian gathered the power of the Divine Ruler in this very Eye Sorcery Zone of his opponent. The Infernal God then entered into a complete world. Ye Futian was the god of this world and his face formed the sky. He transformed into a Tianshen and appeared directly in the zone. As his Divine Ruler slashed down, its power was akin to the Heavenly Rule Power. It was capable of eradicating all the Paths in the world.


    ��This is bad.��


    Infernal Divine Clan Leader noticed that things had taken a turn for the worse. He frantically swung his imperial arm and destroyed the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword. Clearly, he realized that Ye Futian had transferred the power of the Divine Ruler into countering his Eye Sorcery. However, the Clan Leader did not have an imperial arm in his own Eye Sorcery Zone.


    How did Ye Futian manage to pull this off?


    In the Eye Sorcery Zone of the Clan Leader, the Divine Ruler overcame all resistance and slayed its way downwards. Infernal Divine Clan Leader unleashed a majestic might to withstand against it, but his effort was in vain as the Divine Ruler still penetrated through all things and stabbed into his body.


    He let out a dull groan. His will was severely injured. His eyes were shut tight as his body tumbled backwards.


    Buzz. A beam of dazzling divine light immediately pierced through the sky. Under the watch of countless astonished gazes, Infernal Divine Clan Leader��s body trembled violently in the domain. The phantasm of a Divine Ruler penetrated his figure.


    His will as well as his flesh had been struck and penetrated by the Divine Ruler.


    Ye Futian did not stop there. The crowd saw beams of jade-green divine light constantly flashing as they pierced his opponent��s figure again and again. Finally, a Divine Ruler materialized and stabbed through Infernal Divine Clan Leader, pinning him to the domain.


    A Near-Deity had perished in such a manner. He had been brutally murdered in battle!

 Chapter 2745 - Betraying the Dark Court?

    Chapter 2745 Betraying the Dark Court?


    He killed a demigod!


    The cultivators stared in shock at the scene in front of them. If not many people had been aware when Ye Futian killed Shenyan Buddha Lord, the killing of the clan leader of the Infernal Divine Clan this time around had been witnessed by many powerful parties. The battle between the Dark Court and Ziwei Imperial Palace previously had already attracted many interested parties.


    Ye Futian had effortlessly killed a giant of the Dark Court, the Infernal Divine Clan clan leader, even when he had the help of imperial arms!


    The Dark Court��s Infernal King was also stunned by what he had just seen and stared dumbfoundedly at the corpse that had been pierced to death by the Divine Ruler. His senior had been a powerful, dominating figure in the Dark World and had ruled over the Infernal Divine Clan. He was regarded as a giant in the Dark World, akin to the clan leader of the Ancient God Clan from the Divine Prefecture. After the Gods�� Continent had surfaced, he had achieved demigod status, obtained imperial arms, and was on his way to greater glory. Yet now, he had been killed by Ye Futian, and Ye Futian had stolen his thunder.


    Some had watched Ye Futian kill Shenyan Buddha Lord previously. In comparison to that occasion, Ye Futian had had a much easier time killing the Infernal Divine Clan��s leader today. The difference in abilities between the both of them was substantial. Ye Futian seemed to have perfectly harmonized the power of the Divine Ruler, and his current battle prowess ranked him as one of the strongest cultivators in the world.


    One probably had to be in the ranks of the strongest demigods to defeat Ye Futian, examples being Lord Shaman, Yan Guiyi, Di Hao, and more.


    After Ye Futian had killed Infernal Divine Clan��s leader, he had taken the other��s Infernal Spear. He put it away after glancing at it. He had returned Shenyan Buddha Lord��s Buddhist Divine Sword to the Buddhist sect after killing him, but he naturally would not return the weapon to the Dark Court this time around. This was to be a spoil of the battle.


    Dark Saint looked at the white-haired figure. Even for the Dark Court, the number of people who could go up against Ye Futian could be counted on one hand, while probably only Lord Shaman could be confident of getting the upper hand against him. Dark Flame Sage, and he might not even be able to do either. After all, Infernal Divine Clan��s leader had been a demigod and was more on less on the same level as them.


    However, Lord Shaman, the strongest warrior in the Dark Court after the Great Emperor, did not seem to even have the advantage in his current battle. You could even say he was the underdog; he had been on the losing side ever since the battle started.


    That woman in white had firmly subdued the Great Shaman of Dark Court.


    The battle of the duo moved from the ground to the high skies. Lord Shaman was constantly on the retreat and battered.


    An extremely terrifying scene appeared above the sky. Lord Shaman held the Scepter of Dark Judgment in his hands and aimed it straight up at the sky. A spine-chilling black divine light immediately pierced through the sky and penetrated the area.


    Ever since the appearance of the Gods�� Continent, the essence of the relics had spread to and enveloped the Original Realm, causing the sky over the Original Realm to fortify and become hard to break through by even the strongest cultivators.


    Yet, at this moment, the Scepter of Dark Judgment had just broken the sky, resulting in a horrifying black hole. Black divine light gushed in from the opposite side, causing the entire upper sky to turn dark. The sky was pitch-black against the shocking blood-red light of the Scepter.


    An enormous figure emerged from within the darkness. He looked like a divine being and was Lord Shaman transformed.


    ��He��s borrowing the powers of the gods.�� The cultivators of the Dark Court felt their hearts race. Looking toward the darkness, several altars had appeared there, and the transformed Lord Shaman was in the center of them.


    These altars seemed to have come from the Dark World. Above the sky, what sounded like ancient ritual chanting emerged from the darkness.


    ere nervous


    The cultivators of the Dark Court were nervous as they witnessed all these happenings.


    To think that Lord Shaman had been forced by the woman in white to the extent that he had to summon the Dark Deity through ancient sacrificial rituals.


    This was even the first time they had seen Lord Shaman resort to such means. He had never done so a single time before.


    ��Be careful,�� many people on the ground muttered. They were all on high alert at the frightening vibes they felt from the sky. Although the battle had relocated higher up, those on the ground still trembled in fear.


    Darkness shrouded the entire area, and the people on the ground were becoming anxious. The aura that seeped out was too terrifying as if the Dark Deity himself had come to destroy the whole world.


    ��Kill!�� From above the sky, the chanting voices called out this chilling command, and hundreds of millions of blood-red divine lights descended into the darkness as if the powers of Dark Judgment were hanging from the sky. ��Be careful!�� someone shouted from below. They had all felt an intense, threatening sensation. Ye Futian appeared in the sky above the cultivators. He stretched out his hands, and the intimidating Wheel of Space formed over him. The blood-red divine lights rained down in a flash, and Ye Futian felt that it seemed like even the Wheel of Space was not able to devour the force of their attacks and would be penetrated. The lights had already made a hole in the Wheel of Space and now aim for him.


    Boom! The jade-green divine light in Ye Futian��s body glowed brightly, and energy from the Great Path continued gushing rapidly into the Wheel to intercept the black lights of judgment.


    Other areas, however, were not as fortunate. Except for where the strongest cultivators were, many cultivators had been stabbed by the blood-red judgment lights and died on the spot. They had no chance to retaliate at all.


    Even the cultivators from the Dark Court had to defend themselves against the force of the attacks. They were startled by what was happening. No one knew if it was a good thing that the Dark Court got embroiled in this battle. Things had quite gotten out of hand.


    They looked toward where the attacks of the judgment lights were concentrated and saw the woman in white release a monstrous fighting spirit. She was girded with a war god��s armor, and though the judgment lights fell upon her, they could not get past her defense and were shut out.


    However, the attack had shown itself a threat.


    ��What are you doing?��


    Just then, a few figures emerged from within the darkness and came over to the area. Many people looked over to where the voice came from. Beneath the blood-red divine lights, one could vaguely make out yet more arrivals from the Dark Court, with their leader shockingly being the Reaper. As usual, she was cloaked from head to toe and gave off an intense air of mystery as nobody knew her real appearance.


    ��You arrived just in time. The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace have killed our younger brother and the leader of the Infernal Divine Clan. Go and avenge them,�� Lord Shaman commanded Ye Qingyao and the others who were there as he looked down to the ground.


    Comn


    Death Will emanated from and surrounded Ye Qingyao��s body. It was immensely threatening, but it did not head toward Ye Futian and the rest. Instead, it went to where Lord Shaman


    was.


    ��Stop.��


    Ye Qingyao��s words caused Lord Shaman to frown. He replied, ��You intend to betray the Dark Court for old friends?��

 Chapter 2746 - On Opposing Sides

    Chapter 2746 On Opposing Sides


    Lord Shaman was the Great Shaman of the Dark Court, second in place only to Dark Lord, and was held in high esteem within the Dark Court.


    Everyone considered him the heir of Dark Lord.


    However, he had never become complacent. He was keenly aware that he had slowly but surely arrived at his current position. Even if he had conspired to assassinate his big brother in the past, Dark Lord had not punished him harshly despite being furious.


    After killing his big brother, he had become the first in line behind Dark Lord.


    He knew Dark Lord��s ambitions and held him in high regard as his master. Dark Lord desired to see darkness encapsulate the land and fall on the entire world. He wanted every corner of the world to be living in darkness, without rules, and without order.


    Therefore, the Dark Court itself was also anarchy, not constrained by rules and order. It advocated the survival of the fittest.


    The cultivators in the Dark Court all had unique personalities, and Lord Shaman knew that he and his master were similar types of people. He had been practicing the Dark Arts all along and had always strived to do his best to obtain his master��s approval. This was probably the only dream that he had been passionate about since he was young.


    Yet, he had never achieved it even once.


    He thought the Dark Lord had no favorites. He desired a world of darkness with no standards and order. Then, Ye Qingyao showed up.


    Ye Qingyao was destined to be in the darkness from birth. She was called the new Child of Darkness and belonged here.


    Master Dark Lord had high hopes for her, and Lord Shaman understood why. The Dark Lord knew that Ye Qingyao was a person capable of bringing darkness into the world.


    However, what Lord Shaman could not accept was how differently Master Dark Lord treated Ye Qingyao compared to the others.


    His master had never been concerned about anyone. Still, he would take excellent care of Ye Qingyao, granting her many privileges, to the extent that no one in Dark Court dared to lay a finger on Ye Qingyao.


    Someone once did and faced tragic consequences.


    Due to this apparent preferential treatment, many in the Dark Court felt that Ye Qingyao was the appointed heir of the Dark Lord and the true Child of Darkness. Even if she had been snatched from Ye Futian, the master had not minded in the least, as if he firmly believed that she would eventually bring about darkness to the world.


    Thus, Ye Qingyao��s position was unshakable in the Dark Court. Her status was equal to the Three Dark Sages and superior to the possessor of the Dark Throne and many other top cultivators.


    Of course, Ye Qingyao did not let Dark Lord down. She was definitely born of the dark. In contrast to the other cultivators, she could already endanger the lives of those on the level of the Renhuang Plane without a need to train.


    Some people said that she was the reincarnation of the Reaper.


    There were many rumors about Ye Qingyao in the Dark World. The majority did not even know that she was female but only knew that the cloaked, mysterious Child of Darkness would bring darkness and death into the world.


    Ye Qingyao was given the title of ��Reaper.��


    Lord Shaman was jealous of Ye Qingyao. No one would guess that the leader of the Three Sages, the Great Shaman of the Dark Court, would ever be jealous of anyone as he was so highly ranked.


    Yet all that had happened today was due to his jealousy.


    This was not a coincidence, but orders he had sent out led to the conflict breaking out between the Dark World and Ziwei Imperial Palace. He wanted the people of Dark World to find out where Ye Qingyao��s heart really lay, especially his master.


    She did not belong to the darkness.


    Ye Qingyao exposed a pair of jet-black eyes from under her cloak. She looked up at Lord Shaman. She was known as the Child of Darkness, and she did indeed have an extremely dark side to her.


    However, for her, Ye Futian was the only light.


    If the Dark Court wanted to take down Ye Futian, she would stand on the side of her only light and not belong to the darkness anymore.


    ��You can continue.�� Ye Qingyao��s voice was cold. She actually asked Lord Shaman to continue. She then looked at the surrounding cultivators and stated, ��All those from the Dark World are not allowed to lift a finger.��


    Lord Shaman stared at Ye Qingyao upon hearing her words. Her raspy voice hid an unmistakable command, and the cultivators were perturbed by it. ��As the Great Shaman of the Dark Court, I command all of you. Show no mercy to anyone of Ziwei Imperial Palace. Kill them all,�� Lord Shaman said coldly. His voice rang through the area, and he continued, ��Ye Qingyao, you too, have to obey the Will of Darkness.��


    As he was speaking, he held out the Scepter of Dark Judgment. The blood-red divine light shone down as if he represented the Will of Darkness.


    The cultivators of the Dark World were caught in a dilemma. They never expected such a situation to happen.


    The Great Shaman of the Dark Court, Lord Shaman, had pitted himself against the Reaper.


    If they went by ranking, the Great Shaman would take precedence. Only the Dark Lord ranked above him, and he placed first in the Dark Court.


    As for their skill levels, the same applied.


    Even Dark Flame Sage and Dark Saint, the remaining two of the Three Dark Sages, were no match for him.


    However, his opponent was Ye Qingyao, who everyone in the Dark Court knew was the current favorite of the Dark Lord, and who would possibly become his future heir.


    Not too long ago, Ye Qingyao inherited the Will of Asura. Even if they left out the possibility that she would become the future Dark Lord one day, she was still a challenging opponent that not many would be able to handle. How could they pay the price of angering Ye Qingyao?


    Dark Flame Sage and Dark Saint were also present and felt somewhat awkward. It seemed like Lord Shaman held a rather large grudge against Ye Qingyao. Rifts were inevitable given how both of them were heirs of the Dark Court, and it was up to anyone��s guess how things would turn out in the future.


    Seeing no one move to carry out his order, Lord Shaman felt embarrassed. Numerous blood-red beams of light rained down, and he coldly commanded again, ��Did no one hear what I said?��


    As he finished speaking, lights of judgment fell from the sky, and all at once, many cultivators from the Dark Court and Dark World stepped out. They were naturally afraid of Lord Shaman. They were no strangers to his ways and figured that if they disobeyed him, they might not be able to make it out alive.


    In addition, their death would have been meaningless.


    ��You��ll die if you dare move.�� Ye Qingyao spat out a warning in a chilling voice. As she spoke, a strand of Death Will enclosed the area, and the cultivators who had stepped out sensed a strong aura of death.


    At that moment, they knew that going against Ye Qingyao meant that they would die on the spot upon activation of her Will.


    They froze mid-step, stuck in limbo.


    The surrounding cultivators were also stunned by what they had just seen. Who would have thought that the two giants of the Dark Court would end up being on opposing sides!

 Chapter 2747 - A Stubborn Personality

    Chapter 2747 A Stubborn Personality


    ��Kill them!�� Lord Shaman ordered a second time. A murderous intent enveloped the cultivators from the Dark World. It seemed as if they would be killed immediately if they did not obey his orders.


    ��Poor things.�� The watching cultivators all felt sorry for those from the Dark World. They were stuck having to choose between two impossible choices. One was the Great Shaman, and the other, the Reaper.


    Both were people they could not afford to offend. Both were people capable of killing all of them.


    Die if you do.


    Die if you don��t.


    The options available to them all led to death with zero chance of surviving.


    But truthfully, even if the strongest cultivators of the Dark World agreed to help out in the battle, would they be good enough to kill Ye Futian?


    Seeing how things stood currently, it was a tall order. The Dark World may have more cultivators, but going by overall prowess, Ziwei Imperial Palace did not lose out at all.


    The woman in white could take on Lord Shaman by herself and even forced Lord Shaman to summon the help of a deity to keep up with her.


    Aside from Lord Shaman, who else could take on Ye Futian? The leader of Infernal Divine Clan had been killed not long ago. Perhaps the other two of the Three Dark Sages?


    But would Dark Flame Sage and Dark Saint follow Lord Shaman��s orders?


    Besides, Ziwei Imperial Palace also had Supreme Swordlord on its side.


    And if that was not enough, Yu Sheng from the Devil World was also lying in wait for a prime opportunity. In this battle of the finest, who was stronger?


    In this setting, just what could the cultivators of the Dark World possibly do to kill Ye Futian?


    Yet Lord Shaman had given this order. His objective was not to kill Ye Futian but to drive those from the Dark World to their graves.


    The spine-chilling blood-red light was already shining upon the cultivators of the Dark World. Some moved, causing Ye Qingyao to react, but Ye Futian stopped her. ��Allow me, Qingyao.��


    He could see that Lord Shaman and Ye Qingyao were not on good terms, probably because Ye Qingyao had shaken Lord Shaman��s standing in the Dark Court.


    Yet even before he had lifted a finger, the cultivators who stepped out were blanketed from head to toe in the Death Will. Their rigid bodies dropped straight down to the ground. There was no chance of survival, and they died immediately.


    ��What on earth���� Many of the cultivators turned to look at Ye Qingyao in shock. The Death Will was horrifying, able to kill without a trace. They had not even seen Ye Qingyao lift a finger, and those who walked out were already dead. Their lives were taken.


    Just what kind of ability was this?


    ��The Reaper!�� They recalled Ye Qingyao��s other name. She had been given the name of Reaper, and seeing what just happened, she certainly lived up to her name.


    Ye Futian was surprised too. He had not thought that Ye Qingyao would have reacted so quickly. These people were not a threat to him at all. The reason Lord Shaman had been so adamant on them going up against him was so that Ye Qingyao would be forced to make a move, and in so doing, reveal whose side she was on. She would then be branded as a traitor of the Dark Court.


    Lord Shaman could then use that against her.


    Ye Qingyao��s actions had undoubtedly given Lord Shaman something to hold over her.


    As expected, on seeing Ye Qingyao make a move, Lord Shaman eye��s glowed blood-red as he stared at the cultivators below who had been killed. ��Ye Qingyao, I see you had no qualms betraying the Dark Court for an outsider.��


    Ye Qingyao��s expression beneath her cloak was calm as can be, without any perturbation, but she did not defend herself. She definitely could not have made a move, but she did and killed those people. Lord Shaman wanted to force her to pick a side. She could have decided not to pick one, but she did, letting everyone know where she stood.


    If she had to choose between the Dark Court and Ye Futian, she would have no hesitation at all. This was her volition.


    e


    She intended to tell this to everyone in the Dark World and the Dark Lord.


    This was where her bottom line lay.


    ��Dark Flame Sage, Hua Yunting, what do you guys think?�� Lord Shaman looked toward Dark Flame Sage and Dark Saint, asking.


    ��Let��s leave things as they are for now. We��ll go back and consult Dark Lord,�� Dark Saint Hua Yunting replied. Only the Dark Lord could decide this matter. Although Lord Shaman��s intentions were not pure, Ye Qingyao had also behaved poorly. ��Sure,�� Lord Shaman agreed. ��Ye Qingyao has betrayed the Dark Court. From now on, all current privileges will be taken from her. The punishment will be decided on after we report to Master.��


    If it had been another person, Lord Shaman would have dealt with them on the spot and killed them.


    But as it was Ye Qingyao whom the Dark Lord was extremely protective of, without his orders, no one in the Dark Court dared to lay a finger on her, even Lord Shaman.


    ��Retreat,�� Lord Shaman ordered. At once, the frightening aura dissipated from the area. He turned around and went off, with the others following in suit, bringing the corpses with them.


    In the sky, Ling Long turned around to look at Ye Futian with a questioning look on her face.


    ��Come back here,�� Ye Futian said. Ling Long headed back toward the ground and landed beside Ye Futian.


    ��Elder brother, I��ll go back first,�� Ye Qingyao shouted to Ye Futian. Her clear voice shocked everyone as they realized that the Reaper was a girl, and she was even Ye Futian��s younger sister! She did not hesitate to betray the Dark Court for Ye Futian and kill those cultivators of the Dark World.


    ��Be careful.�� Ye Futian nodded. Ye Qingyao left with the cultivators of the Dark World. There were still many strong warriors by her side. Ye Futian naturally understood Ye Qingyao��s status after witnessing the events. If Lord Shaman could get rid of her quickly, he would not have gone to such extents.


    Dark Flame Sage and Dark Saint were on the fence and sided with no one. Ye Qingyao��s position in the Dark Court was exceptional.


    Just that, today��s happenings might result in a bit of trouble for Ye Qingyao.


    The cultivators were still reeling as the battle came to an end. Ziwei Imperial Palace did not lose out at all during today��s battle. At the same time, the Dark Court suffered a significant loss with the demise of a giant of the Dark World, the leader of Infernal Divine Clan, and the clan��s dissolution.


    On the other hand, the cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace suffered not a single loss.


    Supreme Swordlord put away his Will and came to Ye Futian��s side. ��That lass is thoughtful. She killed them on purpose.��


    ��Yeah.�� Ye Futian nodded. Obviously, he knew that.


    ��This time around, the people who had died were no ordinary people. They included the direct disciple of the Dark Lord and will most likely attract his attention. If you had continued killing, you might incur his rage. She did this so she could protect you. If the Dark Lord wanted to do anything to you, he would have to get past her first, or she would betray the Dark World,�� Supreme Swordlord reasoned. ��She isn��t scared of Lord Shaman but worried that the Dark Lord would take you on personally.��


    ��This lass is still as stubborn as when she was young.�� Ye Futian looked toward the disappearing voices. She probably wanted to let everyone know that if the Dark World desired to have the Reaper, they could not lay a single finger on Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2748 - An Invitation From the Dark Court

    Chapter 2748 An Invitation From the Dark Court


    After the cultivators from the Dark World left, the other cultivators that were around also left.


    Many people were awed. Ziwei Imperial Palace currently had a battle prowess just as strong as the Emperor��s. At least, it was so for the top stratum. Of course, when compared with the whole of the Dark World, the gap was still rather wide. There were still many other powerful figures in the Dark World, and they had made progress in the relics, like the Ancient God Clan from the Divine Prefecture.


    If the Dark Lord commanded all the forces in the Dark World to assemble and attack Ziwei Imperial Palace together, Ziwei Imperial Palace might not withstand the battle. But yet again, the cultivators in Ziwei Imperial Palace had made tremendous progress in a short amount of time. If given a bit more time, how much further would they have improved?


    Once Ye Futian entered the Imperial Realm and became an Emperor, the world would have gained her eighth super power.


    Yet, the path to becoming a Great Emperor was not easily conquered. Ye Futian would probably require many more years before he reaches that stage. From the beginning, many great cultivators had been chasing this dream, yet how many had succeeded?


    Of course, with all the changes that had taken place in the world, the chances of achieving Emperor-level had significantly increased. This world was headed for a revolution.


    From among Lord Shaman, Yan Guiyi, Dugu Wuxie, Di Hao, Ji Wudao, Ye Futian, and others more, who would be the first to reach their goal? Or would it be another more senior cultivator?


    Fang Cun moved beside Ye Futian. He slightly lowered his head. ��Master, I was wrong,�� he admitted.


    ��Do you really think that you are in the wrong?�� Ye Futian questioned Fang Cun.


    Fang Cun raised his head to look at Ye Futian. Upon seeing Ye Futian��s expression, he realized that his master knew him too well. Obviously, he still did not think that he was wrong to have killed his opponent. After all, it was the Dark Court who first started killing. They had also wanted to plunder their imperial arms, and if they did not kill them, they would have been killed.


    Just that, it resulted in an extremely unfortunate consequence and brought trouble unto his master and Ziwei Imperial Palace when he offended the Dark Court.


    ��Many years ago, third brother taught me that there were many ways of reasoning in this world, but no matter how good the reasoning, it was still no match for a fist. Of course, there was nothing wrong with what you all did. If anything, it would be that we of Ziwei Imperial Palace are not as strong as the Dark Court,�� Ye Futian counseled. It was commonplace for people in the cultivation world to use their fighting abilities to settle all matters. If they had not displayed their prowess today, Lord Shaman would not have let them off but carried out a massacre instead.


    ��What��s done is done. Go back and practice more,�� Ye Futian dismissed him.


    ��Yes, master.�� Fang Cun nodded. Indeed he would have to get better. If not, master would have to bear the consequences if he got into trouble in the future.


    The cultivators from Ziwei Imperial Palace had all left and returned to Ye Imperial Palace. They had stirred up quite a bit of disturbance. The current Ziwei Imperial Palace was no longer just an ordinary existence, and their confrontation with the Dark Court must have gained quite a bit of attention. If the Great Emperors were not in the picture, Ziwei Imperial Palace was a force capable of shaking things up within the seven realms.


    The following days went by like normal. For the Dark Court, the betrayal of the ��Reaper�� was enough to get the attention of the Dark Lord.


    Unfortunately, this matter would have to be reported to the Dark Sovereign. The days passed one by one as Ye Futian continued training quietly. He wished to break through the shackle soon. It had been years since he had got stuck and had not been able to make progress for a long time. Of course, this was only in Ye Futian��s mind. Many cultivators had been stuck on this plane even longer than his combined practicing years. There were even more who had not been able to move past this stage their entire lives. Many of the top cultivators had only been able to succeed after the appearance of the divine relics.


    That Ye Futian was able to get near this stage so quickly was due to his inborn talents and the gift of fate and luck. The Divine Ruler he had attained at the Shrine of the Karura had helped him along this path.


    Ye Futian stood on the sky stairwell within Ye imperial Palace while Old Ma told him something


    Ye Futian looked toward the distance, and soon a group of figures slowly approached them. They were cultivators from the Dark Court, and at their head was impressively, the Dark Saint Hua Yunting


    Hua Yunting looked up at the sky stairwell. Standing on the sky stairwell, he was surprised to sense a Solemn Will. He lifted his foot and started to climb up the stairwell. An aura leaked from his body as if it intended to weaken the pressure imposed by the sky stairwell.


    As one of the highest-ranking characters in the Dark World, he could not afford to let himself be seen as weak over here.


    Ye Futian quietly stood at the top and watched Hua Yunting climb up, step by step. He did not move but just watched quietly, although he still exerted an invisible form of pressure. The both of them could be counted as acquaintances, but as the other party was from the Dark Court, Ye Imperial Palace��s authority must be exerted.


    Ye Imperial Palace had ��imperial�� in its name, although he had yet to become an Emperor. Even so, when cultivators below the Emperor-level came here, it was imperative to let them be aware of Ye Imperial Palace��s might, no matter who they were.


    Finally, Hua Yunting reached the top of the sky stairwell but was stopped by Old Ma before he could continue.


    Hua Yunting frowned and looked at Ye Futian.


    ��Please go ahead, Dark Saint.�� Ye Futian gestured him to come over. At once, the invisible pressure vanished. Hua Yunting glanced at Ye Futian and made his way over. He stood opposite Ye Futian and said, ��Lord Shaman reported to the Dark Lord about what happened that day, and Ye Qingyao was summoned back to the Dark Court.��


    ��You probably were able to tell that this issue was started by the Dark Court. I could even say that it was to target Qingyao. The Dark Lord most likely would have realized that too,�� Ye Futian replied. ��This does not matter. The fact of the matter is that Ye Qingyao was willing to betray the Dark Court for you. She purposely openly showed her affiliation, which is a threat to the Dark Lord,�� Hua Yunting countered.


    ��And so?�� Ye Futian looked at the other. ��What did you come find me for?��


    ��The Dark Sovereign ordered me to invite you over to the Dark Court,�� Dark Saint answered, causing Ye Futian to be taken aback. Why would the Dark Sovereign invite him to the Dark Court?


    Old Ma beside him was frowning deeply. He looked at Ye Futian with worry. He obviously felt that Ye Futian should not go with them.


    ��How can I be sure that this was from the Dark Sovereign and not from you guys?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Hua Yunting took out a dark jade slip and handed it over to Ye Futian. Ye Futian infused his consciousness within and was soon able to make out a presence that led to the appearance of an image of the Dark Sovereign. He was standing on the Dark Temple and conveying his order. Hua Yunting definitely would not be able to feign such an authoritative and divine air as that.


    ��This is the order conveyed to me by the Dark Sovereign,�� Hua Yunting started. ��As for whether you wish to follow it or not is up to you. Although we both know each other, if the Dark Sovereign wanted to finish you guys off, there would be no need for him to go to such trouble. We can disregard what happened before, but in the future, we hope that you will not choose to stand on the opposing side of the Dark Court.��


    After he had finished talking, Hua Yunting left. This time, he flew through the sky instead, with the other cultivators from the Dark Court following after him.

 Chapter 2749 - A Tyrant

    Chapter 2749 A Tyrant


    After Hua Yunting left, Old Ma said to Ye Futian, ��You definitely must not go.��


    That was the Dark World. It had no law and order, and once Ye Futian went, his life was no longer in his hands.


    Ye Futian looked at Hua Yunting��s disappearing figure thoughtfully. Why would the Dark Lord invite him over?


    This was different from the time when he went to the Devil World. That time, Yu Sheng was in danger, but the Devil Emperor and Yu Sheng had connections, after all. Besides, although it was still dangerous, he had not formed any enmity with the Devil World yet.


    The Dark World was completely different. He had killed the direct disciple of the Dark Lord and many other cultivators. Ye Qingyao could betray the Dark Court for him. He also wholly lacked knowledge about the Dark Lord. If he decided to proceed, it would be much more dangerous than when he had gone to the Devil World.


    Furthermore, from what he could see, the Devil World still had a system of law and order and was strict on them. The hundred of millions inhabitants of the Devil World had great respect for the Devil Emperor. It might not be the case for the Dark World.


    Just that, if he did not go, what might the Dark Lord do to Ye Qingyao?


    Why would the Dark Lord invite him over? A few figures came flashing past and landed on the sky stairwell. They said to Ye Futian, ��You must not go.��


    Obviously, they all did not wish for Ye Futian to risk his life in the Dark Court.


    In the past, the Dark World had carried out a massive massacre in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path that had resulted in the cultivators of the Original Realm forming a very bad impression of the Dark World. It was cruel and murderous, and the ruler of the Dark World, the Dark Lord, was said to be a cold-blooded tyrant as well. He killed without feelings and made it to his current position by stepping over countless bodies to conquer the Dark World.


    The Dark Lord of the Dark Court had the worst reputation among the six Emperors. He had no regard for any and all life.


    ��Master, this whole thing was caused by me. If you insist on going, please bring me along. I will bear the responsibility.�� Fang Cun stood before Ye Futian and bowed. Ye Futian replied, ��Don��t think so much. You just happened to get caught up with this matter. If it weren��t you, it would be some other from Ziwei Imperial Palace. Luckily it was you. If not, our own might have died instead.��


    Although what happened before was caused by Fang Cun, he was not their target; it would have happened with or without him.


    ��But���� Fang Cun wanted to say more, but Ye Futian waved his hand to dismiss him. ��Go and practice. Don��t make so much fuss for nothing. I will consider it carefully and will not go if I am not confident in my chances.�� Everyone was still somewhat worried after hearing Ye Futian��s words. They understood him; if no one was involved, they knew that he would take every precaution. But this involved Ye Qingyao, and knowing how much Ye Futian cared for the people around him, there was definitely the possibility that he would disregard the risk and go.


    ��Please stay, Swordlord. I need to discuss some issues about cultivation with you. The rest may go,�� Ye Futian urged as he saw that everyone seemed reluctant to leave. They left at once, constantly turning back to look at Ye Futian.


    After they left, Ye Futian guided Swordlord to the cultivation ground at the back of the palace. He asked, ��Swordlord, do you have to know anything about the Dark World?��


    ��Yes.�� Supreme Swordlord nodded slightly. ��I don��t wish for you to go as well. The Dark World is in anarchy. Of course, I��m not worried that you might be in danger if you go to the Dark World. After all, at your current level, except for the Emperors, very few can pose a threat to you. You should be able to move around the realms without much trouble. But the Dark World is a different story in that its lack of law and order was brought forth by its own ruler. Where you are going, the ruler of the Dark World is the Dark Lord, and he has been called the ��Dark Tyrant.��


    ��Tyrant,�� Ye Futian murmured to himself. No wonder everyone wanted to stop him from going.


    However, this tyrant seemed to show favoritism toward Ye Qingyao.


    ��From what I know, Lord Shaman inherited the position of the Great Shaman because he assassinated his senior. He then became the leader of the Three Dark Sages, but the Dark Lord did not pursue matters,�� Supreme Swordlord continued. ��If you plan to go, I��ll say that there are too many uncertainties. Once you enter the Dark Court, things will not be up to you any longer.��


    ��But has Swordlord ever considered that since the Dark Lord is known as a tyrant, he fears nothing? If he wanted me killed, he could just come here and finish me off. He doesn��t need to waste so much time to invite me there,�� Ye Futian reasoned. ��I don��t think it will be too hard for someone like him.��


    ��What you said makes sense too, but the Dark World is his territory, after all. The Dark Lord is somewhat restrained by the other Emperors and cannot just come here and incite matters on a whim. Don��t forget that when God��s Continent first appeared, the six Emperors appeared simultaneously and set the rule that they would not interfere with what happened on this continent. If the Dark Lord came, then the others could follow suit too.�� Supreme Swordlord had his own reasoning as well.


    ��That��s true.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��That makes sense too. I will consider more.��


    ��Yes, please do.�� Supreme Swordlord nodded and bode him farewell.


    After Supreme Swordlord left, Ye Futian sat alone, thinking. Hua Jieyu came by and told him, ��If you intend to go, you must be vigilant at all times.��


    ��I know.�� Ye Futian laughed and nodded his head. It seemed like it was still Hua Jieyu who understood him the most.


    ��Don��t worry about matters here. I will maintain contact with Yu Sheng. If you run into any trouble in the Dark Court, I will let Ye Imperial Palace team up with Yu Sheng to stage war against the Dark Court,�� Hua Jieyu continued. ��But you must ensure that Ling Long listens to me.��


    Ye Futian laughed and nodded again. Ling Long possessed part of his Will, so there would be no problems on this end. Obviously, he did not plan to bring Ling Long along on this trip as there was no reason to. As for everything else, he could handle without Ling Long. Ye Futian made some arrangements in Ye Imperial Palace and also accepted Hua Jieyu��s recommendation that if he ran into any danger in the Dark Court, it would be a good idea to use the cultivators from the Dark Court here as duress.


    If that really happened, the Devil World and the Dark World would become enemies. This would definitely not be a good thing for the Dark World when they were supposed to have shared a common enemy.


    After he had finished making arrangements, Ye Futian left Ye Imperial Palace by himself. He came to where the Dark World was situated, and there remained a beam of light in the sky. It was the link between both places, linking the Dark World to the God��s Continent, not only here, but the other realms as well.


    There were still cultivators walking in and out of the passageway, making their way to the world below. Ye Futian��s figure glowed, and he entered one of the links. However, he was headed up and immediately went into the passage that led to the Dark Ward. Subsequently, his body vanished from the area!

 Chapter 2750 - Lord Yellow Spring

    Chapter 2750 Lord Yellow Spring


    The reality of the Dark World was a little different from what Ye Futian had imagined. He thought the Dark World was like the hell described in legends, shrouded in total darkness. However, the world in front of him was no different from the Divine Prefecture at this moment.


    However, that was not what the Devil World looked like when he entered the Devil World. Terrifying Clouds of Catastrophe shrouded the entire Devil World, which was located under the Devil Abyss.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian was only surprised for a second, as he then moved forward, traveled by air, and headed in a certain direction. At this moment, he had no idea where he was.


    Like the Divine Prefecture, the Dark World was extremely expansive and had many domains. Among them, top cultivators were, without exception, gathered in the most important areas of the Dark World.


    For example, Yellow Spring Sea, Hell Realm, Nether Valley, Infernal Mountain, and places such as those were considered the center of the Dark World.


    And the most core area of the Dark World was in the center, surrounded by these regions. Once crossing over these areas, one may reach Asura City. The end of Asura City was where the Dark Court was located.


    The regional composition of the Dark World was vastly different from that of the Divine Prefecture. The strongest forces were concentrated in a larger area surrounding the Dark Court. Of course, there were also many forbidden zones, some extremely dangerous places, and some extraordinary characters in other parts of the Dark World.


    After Ye Futian familiarized himself with the situation inside, he hurried in the direction of Asura City.


    Although he was inside the Dark World, no one dared to provoke Ye Futian along the way. After all, Ye Futian��s temperament was noticeably exceptional. Although he did not release a strong aura outward, top cultivators would often form an invisible atmosphere around themselves. They deliberately kept it under control; otherwise, cultivators in higher realms would be able to sense this invisible coercion. When a certain realm of cultivation was reached, the perception of the cultivator was highly elevated as well.


    As Ye Futian kept on his way, he finally came to the core of the Dark World and entered the domain of the Yellow Spring Sea.


    The Yellow Spring Sea was not some ordinary body of water. This watery region was the real Yellow Spring that could corrode someone��s body and spiritual soul. Death was imminent with just one touch. Anyone unfortunate enough to fall into the Yellow Spring would die with no body left to be retrieved, and their souls lost forever.


    According to legend, this Yellow Spring Sea formation started when the Great Emperor Yellow Spring perished in primordial times. When he fell, the blood that flowed out from his body turned into what was now known as the Yellow Spring Sea.


    Of course, nowadays, in the Dark World, many cultivators regarded the Yellow Spring Sea as a place of cultivation. They cultivated the power of the Yellow Spring here and turned it into a unique power of the Great Path, the strength of which was immensely horrific.


    Ye Futian was rushing into the space above the Yellow Spring Sea. His perception was powerful enough to keenly perceive the terrible power contained within the body of water below. Even he could not help but admire the amazing sights of the world.


    ��Huh?�� At this moment, a flash appeared in Ye Futian��s eyes, and he looked amid the Yellow Spring Sea and saw a fluctuation of power somewhere in the Yellow Spring; someone seemed to be inside.


    Afterward, the Yellow Spring Sea was in an uproar, and a terrifying cyclone manifested and rolled towards Ye Futian extremely quickly. This area of the ocean rampaged and seemed to want to engulf Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was surrounded by divine light as he shuttled in the storm that savaged this area of the ocean; his speed was as fast as lightning. But at this moment, the power of the Yellow Spring gathered into a gigantic figure, like some deity from the Yellow Spring. This giant of the Yellow Spring overlooked Ye Futian and where he was. Ye Futian appeared to be extremely insignificant in front of him.


    The violent storm in this region tossed and turned as the waves behind him also rushed into the sky, covering this corner of the world, shrouding Ye Futian under this yellow spring, with nowhere to run.


    Then the hands of that gigantic figure stretched out to grab Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was surrounded by divine light, and his body suddenly turned into a golden body, just like the golden body of the Buddha. Radiant Buddhist runes shone upon the golden body so that when the arms reached out from the Yellow Spring to grab at him, they were smashed directly under the golden Buddhist runes and turned into nothingness.


    With a turning of Ye Futian��s mind, countless golden Buddhist runes flew out instantly, and the force of Yellow Spring that came at him was smashed immediately, disappearing into ashes and dust. Even that massive figure that emerged from the Yellow Spring was exploding like crazy and then just vanished.


    All kinds of commotion suddenly stopped on the surface of the sea as an aura escaped into the distance. Ye Futian��s eyes seemed to have turned into a golden color as he glanced over that way. Then, his body was gone in a flash and disappeared as a golden divine light, carrying the golden body and dove into the Yellow Spring Sea.


    Moments later, when Ye Futian reappeared in the sky above the sea, someone was caught up in the golden arm. It was an old man, a cultivator at the peak Renhuang level. He looked at Ye Futian and said in horror, ��Sir, please have mercy.��


    He was indescribably shocked. This cultivator, who had come to the Yellow Spring Sea, was a disciple of Buddhism, and yet he roamed in the center of the Dark World. This was undoubtedly the equivalent of committing suicide.


    The Dark World and the Buddhist world had always been at odds with one another, and their powers were on opposite sides.


    The divine light of Buddhism illuminated the space, directly covering the opponent within its bound. All of a sudden, the old man looked shocked and declared loudly, ��I am the disciple of Lord Yellow Spring. If you kill me, there will be consequences later.��


    Boom! The Buddha��s divine flame continued to burn, and the man screamed immediately. His body incinerated into nothing under the burning flames. Someone who could not tolerate the slightest disagreement and unleashed deadly attacks simply because of it would naturally be undeserving of his consideration and mercy; he would only pay them back tenfold more.


    Instantaneously, his opponent��s body disappeared, and Ye Futian continued on his way. However, before Ye Futian could get too far, the Yellow Spring Sea raged again, and this time, the perimeter of its violence extended even further.


    Ye Futian stopped and looked at the tumbling and roaring sea. Then, a group of cultivators appeared on the sea��s surface, and every one of them was a top Renhuang figure. In the distance, a cultivator of the Tribulation Plane appeared and stood in the void. It was a young man clad in a yellow garment�C he was the eldest disciple of Lord Yellow Spring.


    ��Cultivator of Buddhism.�� The young man stared at Ye Futian, the will of Yellow Spring shot out from his eyes.


    ��Get out of the way!�� Ye Futian walked forward towards where they were without any intention of stopping.


    The other could sense that faint aura emitting from Ye Futian and thought that as a merely Renhuang cultivator, what did Ye Futian have that could warrant such display of arrogance?


    ��You asked for it,�� the other man concluded coldly, the terrifying will of the Yellow Spring blooming from him. Ye Futian continued moving forward, and the young man was about to take action.


    ��Stop!�� A great shout was heard, which shook the Yellow Spring


    ��Get back, all of you!�� An indifferent voice came through the void, and everyone��s expression changed slightly. They turned their heads to look at Lord Yellow Spring, who has arrived, a little puzzled.


    Lord Yellow Spring��s eyes were fixed upon Ye Futian. He thought to himself, This man has actually come to the Dark World.


    ��Get back!�� After Lord Yellow Spring chided coldly again, these cultivators finally backed away and did as they were told. Ye Futian continued walking forward and through the crowd. He only stopped when he reached Lord Yellow Spring. He said, ��Come with me.�� Having said that, he continued to walk forward. Lord Yellow Spring was somewhat stunned by this request, but still, he followed Ye Futian as asked!

 Chapter 2751 - A Place Outside the World

    Chapter 2751 A Place Outside the World


    The people under Lord Yellow Spring��s command were shocked by what they saw at first, and then they broke out in cold sweat. They realized that they had almost died at Yellow Spring


    Their master, Lord Yellow Spring, was treating this man so respectfully. They could only imagine that the other man was definitely someone they couldn��t afford to offend.


    ��That was a close call.�� They trembled in their hearts as they stared at the departing figures. Who was this white-haired young man that even their master had to be so humble in front of?


    Ye Futian continued making his way forward, Lord Yellow Spring trailing behind him. Then Ye Futian, who was in front, suddenly asked, ��How much do you know about the Dark Lord?��


    The surprise on Lord Yellow Spring��s face showed that he was caught by surprise. He replied, ��I dare not make conjectures regarding my Lord.��


    He was silent, with a look of awe and fear in his eyes. Clearly, he didn��t dare say anything.


    This was the Dark World; even if no one was around, it was best not to make unnecessary comments. Or else, the slightest carelessness might attract disaster with fatal consequences.


    ��Speak,�� Ye Futian spat, and his tone was ice cold with an undeniable sense of authority. Lord Yellow Spring��s expression was not very pleased because he did not dare to speak of the Dark Lord at will. However, at this moment, Ye Futian was right next to him. If he continued to hesitate, who knew if Ye Futian would turn on him instead.


    ��The Dark Lord rules the Dark World, which was respected and feared by all. Although I cultivate in Yellow Spring, I have no chance to contact my Lord at all. Even those who cultivate in the Dark Court proper have few opportunities to be in direct contact with my Lord.�� Lord Yellow Spring continued, ��The Dark Lord��s status is most supreme, and within the court, only those who are in the centermost core may be in touch with him.��


    ��Does the Dark Lord care about anyone?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Lord Yellow Spring looked at Ye Futian and wondered what his purpose in asking this question was. Why would he want to know about the person the Dark Lord cared about?


    ��As far as I know, the Dark Lord doesn��t care much about anyone or anything. The only thing he cares about is for darkness to descend across all of the world.�� Lord Yellow Spring added, ��My Lord is the darkness incarnate.��


    Ye Futian was quiet for a moment and thought that this was similar to what Supreme Swordlord had told him. Indeed, this Lord of the Dark World resembled a cold-blooded tyrant who wanted to bring darkness to the world.


    What he represented was the will of darkness.


    ��However, in this area, at the junction of Hell��s Yellow Spring and Infernal Mountain, there is an island, and on that island resides a mistress. According to rumors, she may have some connection to the Dark Lord; perhaps you can go and take a look,�� said Lord Yellow Spring.


    Ye Futian turned his head and stared at Lord Yellow Spring. The icy look that was coming from him seemed to pierce into the other man��s mind. Nevertheless, Lord Yellow Spring did not avoid his eyes but returned the look directly.


    ��Who?�� Ye Futian asked, ��What is her relationship with the Dark Lord?��


    ��You��ll know when you get there. It seems to be a totally different world there.�� Lord Yellow Spring looked at Ye Futian and continued, ��When you get there, you��ll understand that I am not trying to deceive you.��


    Ye Futian saw that the other man pledged in earnest, so he pointed his finger at the other party��s brow chakra, and he looked directly into the other man��s eyes. Lord Yellow Spring was quite stunned, and yet, his eyes were still trained on Ye Futian.


    ��Give me the location,�� said Ye Futian, and divine light shot out between the brows of Lord Yellow Spring and penetrated Ye Futian��s mind. Soon after, Ye Futian put his finger down, and with a turn of his mind, his body disappeared directly from where he was.


    After Ye Futian left, Lord Yellow Spring let out a long and suppressed sigh as he relaxed his body. He watched Ye Futian��s disappearing figure. A cold light flashed across his eyes as if containing a great deal of murderous intent. Since Ye Futian had dared to venture into the Dark World, then he should prepare to die here!


    But just now, Ye Futian reappeared in front of Lord Yellow Spring once again, which took Lord Yellow Spring by total surprise. His expression changed instantly to one of shock. Suddenly, there was much respect and humbleness reflected in his eyes.


    ��As I suspected, it seems that not everything you said can be believed.�� As soon as Ye Futian��s voice fell, he raised his hand and pointed at Lord Yellow Spring. The will upon Lord Yellow Spring erupted like mad, but he was unable to escape the prowess of this one finger. His brow chakra was directly penetrated, and his spiritual soul was shattered. There was a strong sense of fear in his eyes as he stared straight ahead.


    Only then did Ye Futian��s figure finally and truly disappear between heaven and earth.


    In the distance, when the cultivators who lagged behind finally caught up with them, they were there just in time to witness Lord Yellow Spring��s body falling haplessly into the Yellow Spring Sea below. Their hearts palpitated as their hearts filled with fear. How frightening was that man?


    He had slain Lord Yellow Spring with just one finger.


    But in the next moment, they all moved in at the same time, rushing towards Lord Yellow Spring��s body frantically. Those who reacted a little slower sensed something as well, so they, too, ran in the same direction quickly. On the Yellow Spring Sea, war had erupted.


    Ye Futian continued to move forward, crossing the vast and endless Yellow Spring Sea, passing the terrifying abyss of the Hell Realm and saw the black destruction inflicted by Infernal Mountain. Along the way, there were quite a few cultivators who tried to attack him, but the outcome was one and the same��they had all perished by Ye Futian��s hands without exception.


    However, Ye Futian could also see the chaos that permeated this world. Although he did not blatantly broadcast his aura, it was clear that his cultivation realm was at the peak level of Renhuang-no matter how restrained he was. Powerful cultivators could perceive something of his realm, yet they continued to take lethal action against him, and these were compelling individuals. Ye Futian��s experience demonstrated how chaotic it currently was in the Dark World.


    However, even in the Dark World, few could contend with Ye Futian; therefore, everyone who challenged him was now dead.


    At this time, Ye Futian came to another region ��the place where the Yellow Spring Sea and the Hell Realm intersected. The frightening Infernal Mountain could be seen looming in the distance. When standing in the sky above this area and looking at the junction, it was like standing at the entrance to the netherworld.


    He saw that there were several fights that broke out around him, and some were group fights with people continuing to perish as a result.


    a


    In the distance, there was an area suspended above the Yellow Spring Sea. Further ahead, there was what appeared to be a continent hanging about at the entrance to the Hell Realm. Many cultivators who were fighting were approaching that direction. It seemed as if that was the place they wanted to escape to.


    Ye Futian approached as well. After observing it for some time, he discovered that when the cultivators fled to the vicinity of that continent, those who gave chase would stop and dared not follow their prey there.


    It seemed that on that continent was something that made them extremely wary. ��What place is this?�� Ye Futian was somewhat curious. This was the location given to him by Lord Yellow Spring. He had a feeling that Lord Yellow Spring wasn��t lying to him, but the man had harbored some horrid thoughts.


    His figure flickered as he headed towards that continent. The surrounding space was incredibly terrifying, filled with an aura of destruction. Some cultivators watched Ye Futian and saw him heading towards that continent, but no one approached him to do anything. Finally, Ye Futian landed on the continent. When he fell from the sky towards the space below, the destructive currents between heaven and earth seemed to have disappeared. The horrific atmosphere of Infernal Mountain, Hell Realm, and the Yellow Spring Sea could no longer be felt. In this chaotic world, a place seemed to have been created outside of it!

 Chapter 2752 - Miraculous Island

    Chapter 2752 Miraculous Island


    This continent was not huge, but it was located in the most dangerous place in the Dark World, in the middle of all these major regions of terror. It was simply incredible that such a continent could even exist here. It was almost a place born out of a dream.


    After Ye Futian came upon this continent, he found that there was no atmosphere of danger on this land; there wasn��t even anyone who was engaged in fighting. Outside of the continent, the fighting was fierce and terrible, but inside, all the fighting seemed to have ceased.


    ��How was that done?��


    Ye Futian moved towards the area below and landed on the continent. He discovered that the cultivational realms among the cultivators on this continent varied greatly. Some were extremely powerful, and then there were some whose cultivation was quite lowly. But, everyone was working very hard here. ��Sir.�� Ye Futian was walking on the road when he encountered an old man with a young boy. The old man stopped when he heard Ye Futian��s voice. He looked at Ye Futian with a smile and said, ��How can I help you, little friend?��


    ��This is my first time here, and I was a little curious. Previously, when I was on the periphery of this continent, I saw constant fighting, like those people from the outside world delight in fighting and killing. Why is it that once I arrived here, I found that this continent is completely different from the outside? It seems as if I have entered into another world!�� Ye Futian asked curiously.


    The old man smiled and looked at Ye Futian, ��Judging from your temperament, your cultivation should be considerable, probably at the peak Renhuang. Am I correct?��


    Ye Futian nodded; he could sense the old man��s cultivation was very strong as well.


    ��It seems that you are a cultivator from afar,�� the old man said again. ��But it��s rather strange. You have come all this way to Illumination Island, yet you do not know what place this is.�� ��Indeed, I came from afar, but I was in a hurry, so I hadn��t had time to inquire beforehand,�� Ye Futian responded, feeling shocked inside. In the center of the Dark World, there was a place called Illumination Island?


    ��So it is,�� the old man nodded. ��Decades ago, I was just like the cultivators that you have seen on the outside world. After many perils of life and death, I almost died. But at the last moment, I happened upon this island, which saved my life. Since then, I have put aside the disputes and concerns of the outside world, concentrating on cultivating here instead. Illumination Island was named by the people who cultivated on this island. In this chaotic Dark World, this island is probably the only source of light.��


    ��This is indeed an island of miracles. It��s an island surrounded by darkness, but somehow all slaughter and disputes are forbidden. Anyone who comes here is forbidden to kill �� no matter the nature of the grievances, no revenge is allowed here. For many years, this place became many people��s place of refuge. During this process, many ruthless people fled to this island but held on to their true nature. Later, all of them disappeared. Over time, everyone has come to know what kind of place this is.��


    When the old man spoke, a spark of memory flashed through his eyes. Back then, he was someone known for his brutality. But after he escaped here, he began a transformation for the better.


    This world shouldn��t just be about darkness.


    ��Indeed, it��s an island of miracles,�� Ye Futian said. He could see that the old man had extraordinary cultivation, and his state of mind was exceptionally peaceful. It seemed that he was in a state of returning back to nature, which was rare and precious.


    ��Since you are here, you can stay on the island for a few days and experience the difference between this island and the outside world. After I came to the island, I was able to step into a realm that once eluded me,�� the old man explained patiently to Ye Futian. This stemmed from his current state of mind. If it were anyone else, they would probably not even bother to interact with Ye Futian, much less explain everything to him so patiently.


    ��I really want to experience it for myself,�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Since it is an island of miracles, there must be miraculous people on the island. Who is the master of this island?��


    ��There is no master on this island.�� The old man suddenly became serious as he looked at Ye Futian intently. ��However, I know of whom you speak of. I hope you will not disturb her peaceful cultivation. Remember my advice.��


    Having said that, the old man departed. Ye Futian displayed a strange look on his face, sensing the other was unwilling to tell him something. He was treating it as a grave matter. Ye Futian knew instinctively that the old man didn��t want him to disturb the person he was inquiring about.


    However, Ye Futian had made up his mind that he must go and find out.


    He now understood who Lord Yellow Spring was referring to.


    At the core of the Dark World was an island of light. All countless cultivators of the darkness aside, the existence of a path of light itself was already violating the will of darkness and went against the will of the Dark Lord. The meaning behind these two contradictory forces was anyone��s guess.


    It was impossible for the Dark Lord not to know that such a place existed, yet he did nothing about it. One could only say that someone was residing on the island. And that person��s relationship with the Dark Lord was rather special.


    Lord Yellow Spring might not have lied to him about this, but still, his intention was suspicious. Lord Yellow Spring likely might have sent him here to his death. Ye Futian continued moving forward, gathering information on the island. After quite some effort, he finally got the information he needed.


    On this miraculous island, there was a holy place known as the Holy Lake.


    The Holy Lake was surrounded by mountains, constantly veiled by a celestial mist.


    At this moment, on a small boat in the middle of the lake, a woman was quietly cultivating with her eyes closed. It was as if she was distinct from the rest of the world. The whole scene was akin to a beautiful painting.


    The little boat drifted slowly with the water in the lake and came to shore. There were several huts right along the shore, and when the woman returned, several little girls ran out of the huts. These little girls were innocent and playful, and their eyes were full of flawless purity. It was as if the world had not touched them.


    ��Older sister is back!�� The girls rushed forward as the woman stepped ashore. She touched the little girls�� heads and asked gently, ��Did you study very hard?��.


    ��Mmm,�� the girls nodded emphatically. As if they wanted to show off in front of the women, some even began reciting the content of the book as their pure and flawless voices reverberated upon the lake. Everything here was so ethereal and unadulterated that one couldn��t help but feel calmness from within.


    Ye Futian couldn��t bear to disturb and interrupt such a peaceful scene. On the lake, Ye Futian stood quietly on a small boat, watching the scene play out quietly in front of the huts in the distance.


    Over there, the woman said to the girls, ��Go inside and study; I have some other business to take care of.��


    ��Mmm,�� The girls didn��t ask any question but returned to their huts as were told. After they had gone back, an invisible fluctuation enveloped the huts. The woman then turned around, looking at the middle of the lake, and asked, ��Anything else you want?��


    Ye Futian knew that he had been discovered, and it might even be possible that when he first came to this Holy Lake, the other had already detected his presence. He felt that in this world, there was probably no way to escape this woman��s perception.


    The reason why the woman was able to make this island a place outside the world, besides the possibility of her having some relationship with the Dark Lord, was her powerful strength. There was no doubt about this.


    At this time, Ye Futian could not feel any aura from the woman as she appeared just like any ordinary person with no cultivation.


    Ye Futian understood very well that such a person could not possibly be ordinary!

 Chapter 2753 - An Amazing Woman

    Chapter 2753 An Amazing Woman


    Ye Futian cast a scrutinizing eye at the woman. The woman was wearing a white garment that was clean and simple. Her eyes were as clear and ethereal as the water of the lake. One look into her eyes was like bathing under the moonlight in a moon-lit night, and one couldn��t help but feel a sense of tranquility.


    ��I��m just taking a stroll around here. I��m sorry if I inadvertently disturbed the goddess.�� The boat Ye Futian was on approached this side of the shore as he made a slight bow to the woman. Facing a woman like this, he couldn��t have any bad feelings toward her.


    Although her beauty was not the type that would topple a kingdom, it was an ethereal beauty out of this world, pure and flawless, like a goddess not of this world, without the sully of earthly influences.


    ��It doesn��t matter. Would you like to come up and sit down?�� The woman asked politely. Perhaps, she was merely being hospitable and courteous, but Ye Futian did not demur. He nodded and said, ��Then, I will take the goddess��s offer.��


    As he said spoke, the boat under his feet accelerated forward, followed by his figure falling gently on the shore by the lake. He glanced at the surrounding mountains and greenery. Earnestly, he said, ��This is a true paradise, out of this world. The goddess cultivates here because you do not like to be disturbed by outside noise. I��m sorry to have disturbed you.�� ��Not at all. Other people come around here often,�� the woman replied calmly as she was making her way back. The fluctuations above the huts had disappeared, and the woman walked into one of them. Ye Futian did not follow her inside but sat by the lake instead.


    The woman didn��t seem to mind his presence but returned to the hut to give the girls their lessons and teach them cultivation. Sitting where he was, Ye Futian could hear the sound of reading from inside the hut.


    Seeing this, Ye Futian shook his head with a wry smile. He then settled down quietly by the lake, lying down and feeling the tranquility.


    The sun was slightly intoxicating, and Ye Futian immensely enjoyed this moment of rare tranquility. Slowly, he closed his eyes. He fell asleep unknowingly but peacefully.


    At his level of cultivation, he no longer needed to sleep; just simple meditation could help relax and rejuvenate him. However, in this environment, he could fall into a rare state of sleep.


    After a long time, Ye Futian, even in deep sleep, seemed to smell something good. His nose moved slightly, then he opened his eyes and sat up.


    ��Big brother, older sister asked me to come and tell you it��s time to eat.�� At this time, a little girl came to Ye Futian and gave him a smile when she saw Ye Futian getting up. Her voice was crystal clear, full of innocence.


    Ye Futian showed a soft smile in his eyes when he saw the little girl��s innocent smile and asked, ��What��s your name?��


    ��My name is Qiqi. The older sister gave it to me,�� the girl said with a smile.


    ��Qiqi,�� Ye Futian smiled and asked, ��have you always studied here?��


    ��Un-huh,�� the girl nodded, ��I have been here ever since I was a kid, and I have been studying with older sister. Big brother, come quickly, or the fish soup will be cold.��


    As the girl spoke, she stretched out her hand to pull on Ye Futian��s arm. Ye Futian got up with a smile, then took the girl��s hand as they walked back and came to the outside of the hut.


    At the dining table outside the hut, the woman was serving soup to the girls and setting up the bowls and chopsticks. When she saw Ye Futian had arrived, she said in a low voice, ��Let��s eat together.��


    ��Thank you,�� Ye Futian nodded and sat down. The two didn��t talk much; they had only exchanged a couple of sentences until now.


    ��What��s your name, big brother? Why did you come here? Did you encounter danger outside as well?�� Qiqi asked Ye Futian. There was a hint of curiosity in those pure and innocent eyes of hers.


    ��My name is Ye Futian, and it is true that I came here after having encountered a few things on the outside.�� Ye Futian smiled lightly and said, ��Why do you ask? Did everyone who came here have encountered dangers out there?��


    ��In the past, many people came here because they had encountered things that could not be resolved, so they came here to ask my sister for help.�� Qiqi giggled and continued, ��Older sister is awesome, and she can resolve anything. We have all been sent here by the others, looked after by older sister. I must focus on cultivation, and when I grow up, I will help others like my sister.��


    Ye Futian rubbed Qiqi��s head, displaying a bright smile, and said, ��Then you have to eat more so you can grow up faster.��


    ��Okay,�� Qiqi giggled.


    Ye Futian also sat there quietly, drinking the soup. The woman would occasionally talk to the girls, but she did not chat with Ye Futian. She seemed completely unsurprised by Ye Futian��s arrival and did not ask him anything except for that initial question. The rest of the time, she did not even seem to be aware of Ye Futian��s existence.


    wa


    After Ye Futian finished the soup quietly, he returned to the lake alone, watching the calm surface of the lake. He took a deep breath and was ready to leave.


    It was not possible for him to do anything here, and he couldn��t ask any questions, so he could only go.


    But at this moment, he heard footsteps behind him. Ye Futian turned around and saw the woman had walked beside him, and the girls were playing elsewhere.


    ��You are leaving?�� the woman asked.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��So, you are not going to do what you came here to do?�� the woman looked at the lake and asked him calmly. Obviously, she knew the purpose of Ye Futian��s visit. But now, Ye Futian was about to leave without getting what he wanted, which surprised her.


    ��I��m embarrassed to say so,�� Ye Futian said, ��This place outside the world shouldn��t be disturbed by people from the world, so I am taking my leave.��


    The woman didn��t say anything more. Her eyes were still fixed on the lake. She said softly, ��Go. You won��t be in danger on this trip.��


    After speaking, the woman turned around and walked back to the huts.


    Ye Futian turned his head to look at the woman��s departing figure, and there was a look of shock in his eyes.


    She knew the purpose of his coming here?


    And, she knew where he was going.


    Only people in Ye Imperial Palace knew that he had traveled to the Dark World, and he did not tell anyone else before he left. If he thought about it, probably only the Dark Sage had some ideas of his visit.


    So, how could this woman know any of these?


    Could it be that she also possessed the ability to predict the future?


    Or rather, she was originally from the Dark Court and had some connection to the Dark Lord?


    This woman probably had never left this Holy Lake before. After all, she had those girls to take care of, so it was unlikely that she had gone to the Dark Court to cultivate.


    Ye Futian took a deep breath and thought that there were an infinite number of amazing people and things that existed in the world. This woman that he encountered today was such an amazing person. As he put a stop to his curiosity, Ye Futian flickered and disappeared from the shore of the lake.


    It didn��t take long before Ye Futian appeared in the sky above this island of miracles. The terrifying air currents were still circulating between the surrounding heaven and earth. It was as if it was a separate world from that sacred and peaceful island.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and gave the island one last look. When he turned around, his figure flashed and rushed into the endless darkness. For some reason, he believed what the woman told him. Her calming voice contained a power that was extremely convincing.


    On this trip to the Dark Court, nothing would happen to him!

 Chapter 2754 - Received

    Chapter 2754 Received


    Asura City��the absolute center of the Dark World.


    Asura City was surrounded by Infernal Mountain, Hell Realm, and Yellow Spring Sea. The entire firmament was dark and gloomy, as terrifying destructive air currents flowed about, like a real city of destruction.


    Inside Asura city, there were countless top cultivators of the Dark World and numerous horrific forces. The surrounding area was full of tyrannical dark forces. This city was the absolute holy land of the Dark World.


    This place was governed by terrifying laws of darkness.


    In Asura City, life-and-death catastrophe was set upon them as soon as they were born. The will of darkness inside Asura City was everywhere. This aura had integrated into the air they breathed, as it was the spiritual energy between heaven and earth to those who cultivated in the Dark World.


    But, for a newborn, it was a test of life and death. If the baby could not withstand the darkness and adapt to it, it would die prematurely. Only by passing the test of the darkness could its survival be assured. From a human perspective, this kind of test for a newborn was incredibly cruel.


    However, this was the belief held by countless cultivators inside Asura City. They firmly believed that if they could not adapt to the darkness, they would not escape their fate or live until adulthood. They were qualified to have a place here and continued living in the Dark World.


    Of course, a few people chose to leave Asura City before their babies were born. However, this kind of action was frowned upon by the people of Asura City, and these deserters were not qualified to be called citizens of darkness. So, there was no place for them in Asura City.


    Conversely, any babies that could adapt to this dark power at birth and coexist with the darkness would at the very least become a Renhuang when they grew up. This was also why there were so many terrifying cultivators in Asura City��they were born into the darkness.


    The Dark World was the cruelest world of all seven realms. Even the Devil World was nowhere near this extent. The Devil World existed under the Devil Abyss with an equally harsh environment for cultivation. However, it had not subjected newborn babies to a test of life and death right at birth. All they did was continue to drill their descendants in cultivation later on.


    At this time, Ye Futian came to the center of this cold-blooded Dark World, Asura City.


    Standing under the dim and obscure sky, Ye Futian could feel the destructive power hanging above his head. It seemed that Asura City was surrounded by a destructive aura. Cultivators from the other worlds would find this place highly unsuitable.


    Here and the island of miracles were like two separate worlds. It wasn��t easy to imagine that they existed under the same sky. The fact that the Dark Court did not destroy that island of miracles was probably on account of that exceptional woman.


    Ye Futian looked up into the distance. A towering building could be vaguely seen at the end of the darkness. The black temple stabbed into the sky, which could be seen even from a great distance away. No matter where in Asura City, one could look up and behold the place of worship in the Dark World.


    The Dark Court! Ye Futian thought. He had no idea what he would encounter this time on his trip to the Dark Court or how Qing Yao was doing right now.


    Without thinking further, Ye Futian moved in that direction. When he took one more step, his figure disappeared from the spot. When he reappeared again, he was already in another place inside Asura City.


    Now that he had reached his destination, there was no longer a need to delay. He moved forward at full speed with Buddha��s Celerity, rushing full steam to the Dark Court.


    From a distance, the Dark Court seemed to be just a temple that towered into the sky, but that was because the distance was too far away. Once in the vicinity of the Dark Court, one realized just what kind of behemoth the Dark Court really was. Precisely because of this, the entire Asura Field had the vantage point of seeing the Dark Court.


    Ye Futian was standing at the outer periphery of the Dark Court at this time. When he looked at the area ahead, he practically saw another country. The Dark Court had many layers, and each layer was boundless and vast, populated with countless buildings. It was like an interface, and there was no end in sight.


    When he raised his head to look up, he found that the Dark Court was like layers of worlds. Ye Futian was suspended in the air and felt inexplicable coercion shroud his body. Above the firmament, the currents of destruction fell upon him, and there were many cultivators who were looking in his direction.


    Cultivators from the Dark Court stepped out and moved straight in Ye Futian��s direction.


    Ye Futian was soon stopped. Above him, a group of cultivators in jet-black armor appeared. This group of cultivators was all in the realm of Renhuang, acting as guards. Destructive currents flowed upon them, dangerous aura.


    ��Who are you?�� The guard in the lead came forward with the cultivation of peak Renhuang. The black spear in his hand pointed at Ye Futian, and a dark light shot out from his eyes.


    ��Ye Futian came to pay a visit to the Court,�� Ye Futian said in a voice that was loud and clear. The guard��s eyes sharpened. It was obvious that he had heard of his name before.


    At this moment, above the sky, a brilliant divine light sprinkled down from the realm above, and then several figures descended from the sky as if coming for the Lower Worlds, appearing in front of Ye Futian.


    Immediately, the guards bowed in deference.


    The person who arrived was a young man. His temperament was more feminine than masculine. He had a fair face, exuding a sense of great danger. When he fixed his eyes on Ye Futian, Ye Futian felt incredibly uncomfortable.


    wa


    ��Come with me,�� the young man said as if he was already waiting for him, knowing that he would return to the Dark Court.


    Ye Futian didn��t think too much but followed the other party higher into the sky and entered the interior of the Dark Court. They passed through the layers of interfaces and continued going upward until they came to the ninety-ninth layer. There were not many cultivators here, but everyone��s aura was beyond terrifying.


    Finally, Ye Futian was brought before that temple, and it was the temple that was seen high in the sky from a distance.


    There was an open space in front of the temple, and Ye Futian was standing there at the moment, quietly watching and waiting. This trip had gone much smoother than expected, without encountering any trouble. He had not even had to fight before he made his way here.


    At this moment, an extreme pressure descended from the sky, which made even Ye Futian feel a sense of suffocation. He raised his head to look ahead, knowing that this was the will of the Dark Lord.


    The sky became dim and lightless, and the sky above Ye Futian turned into a gigantic black screen. There seemed to be a black shadow that appeared above the temple. This black shadow seemed to have been embedded inside the temple, majestic and domineering. Just a vague shadow itself was enough to contain such supreme coercion.


    ��Ye Futian!�� A majestic voice came from the dark shadow in the temple, echoing between heaven and earth. Just a voice alone made Ye Futian feel like he was compelled to bow his head to worship the shadow.


    ��Ye Futian greets the Dark Lord.�� Ye Futian bowed to pay his respects. He had not expected the Dark Lord to receive him so readily.

 Chapter 2755 - The Will of Darkness

    Chapter 2755 The Will of Darkness


    The gigantic figure above the temple lorded above Ye Futian and continued, ��Ye Futian, your cultivation is extraordinary. And on top of that, you have an unusual relationship with the heir I have chosen. Qingyao is willing to betray the Dark Court for your sake. What do you think should be done?��


    ��Dark Lord, Qingyao has been good to me. I am sure you must know that Qingyao knew me before she joined the Dark Court. She only did what she did because she still remembered our friendship. However, other than that, Qingyao has never had the slightest intention of disobeying the Dark Lord,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��People who cultivated in the Dark Court should have no emotions, except to do the will of the darkness. Her action was already an act of betrayal to the darkness,�� the Dark Lord roared as he released the pressure, giving Ye Futian a feeling of extreme oppression as he was placed under a terrifying coercion.


    He knew that the Dark Lord oppressed his will to make him emotionally unstable.


    ��Furthermore, you have slaughtered many cultivators of the Dark World. If one day you chose to be at war with the Dark World, wouldn��t the heir I have raised by my own hands rebel against her own people?�� the Dark Lord continued to press.


    For a time, Ye Futian was speechless. In some sense, Ye Qingyao��s action had indeed violated a major taboo of the Dark World. Ye Futian and the Dark World had never had a harmonious relationship since a long time ago, and battles had broken out between them several times.


    ��I can��t predict the future, but I can promise you that I won��t put Qingyao in a situation where she is forced to choose between the Dark Court and myself,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��The things of the world are unpredictable. If you do fight with the Dark Court in the future, the situation will be beyond your control, let alone the empty promises you are making now,�� the Dark Lord said with an icy voice. ��What��s more, I have never believed in promises.��


    ��Then, what does the Dark Lord require of me?�� Ye Futian asked directly. Since the Dark Lord had received him in person, he must have some ideas of his own, or else, he would not have bothered talking this long with him. All the Dark Lord had to do was make one move, and all would be finished.


    High above the temple, the eyes of the Dark Lord stared at Ye Futian. A voice was heard saying, ��If you agree to join the Dark Court, I can bestow you with the position of the Great Shaman one day. Then, you may fight side by side with Qingyao, sweeping across the Divine Prefecture together and avenging Emperor Ye Qing at the same time.��


    Ye Futian was a little surprised. The Dark Lord wanted to give him the position of the Great Shaman of the Dark Court?


    The Great Shaman of the Dark Court was the head of the three lords, and the first person under the command of the Dark Lord was now served by Lord Shaman. The Dark Lord had promised Ye Futian this position in the future.


    However, with Ye Futian��s strength today, he would catch up with the Lord Shaman in the future. As long as he was willing to join the Dark Court, then the power held in his hands would also be the power of the Dark Court. This made Ye Futian far more valuable than the Lord Shaman.


    nse now.


    If this was his way of thinking, then everything the Dark Lord said made great sense now. However, when he said this, he had not considered Lord Shaman��s feelings. The Dark Lord was known as a tyrant of the Dark World. Maybe he didn��t really care how the others saw him, and he didn��t need anyone to be grateful to him. Even hating him was nothing to him.


    His will was to let darkness descend onto the world.


    ��I thank the Dark Lord for the offer. It��s just that I��m now in charge of Ziwei Segmentum, and many friends followed me. If I join the Dark Court, it will undoubtedly be seen as a betrayal to everyone else who followed me. I hope the Dark Lord understands my position,�� Ye Futian politely refused. He could not join the Dark Court. ��Qingyao is willing to betray the Dark Court for you, but you can��t join the Dark Court for her?�� the Dark Lords asked him coldly. The Dark Lord was being unreasonable; the two had no connection at all. For Ye Qingyao, he had come to the Dark Court all the same, and in here, his life was out of his control.


    However, he couldn��t refute the Dark Lord outright, so he merely said, ��If the Dark Lord doesn��t trust me, you can let me talk to Qingyao. If one day, the Dark Court and I stand on opposing sides, on the battlefield, Qingyao and I could put our personal relationship aside.��


    ��Wouldn��t it be easier if I just killed either one of you?�� the Dark Lord asked rhetorically.


    ��If the Dark Lord can find the next suitable heir, then it would be understandable to do so,�� Ye Futian replied.


    The pitch-black eyes of the Dark Lord stared at him as he said, ��Very well. Think clearly, then tell me your answer. I will give you a chance.��


    When his voice faded, a terrifying dark storm submerged Ye Futian��s body in an instant. He felt as if he had been caught up in a shower of darkness. In the next moment, he was swept into a separate space by the dark storm. All around him, there was only endless darkness.


    Ye Futian��s expression was not the best. His eyes were terrifying as he tried his best to see through the darkness. At the same time, he released his divine consciousness but found it useless.


    He moved with Buddha��s Celerity but soon discovered that he was still in the darkness, unable to get out at all.


    The Dark Lord had trapped him.


    On top of the Dark Court, in the space surrounded by darkness, there was a dark figure sitting on the throne, high above everything and everyone else. Below, a figure was kneeling on the ground. A cape covered her, but it did not cover her face. It was Ye Qingyao. She had seen everything that happened and knew that Ye Futian had come to the Dark Court.


    ��If I kill him, what will you do?�� the Dark Lord asked Ye Qingyao. ��Then I will ask my Lord to kill me as well,�� Ye Qingyao replied. ��Or else?�� the Dark Lord said coldly. ��I will bring darkness to darkness.�� Ye Qingyao still knelt on the ground without raising her head, but her icy voice sounded extremely determined.


    The Dark Lord said, ��No father, no king, no love, and no morality is the true meaning of darkness. But you still have your weaknesses. If I kill him, you will have fallen completely into darkness, which, perhaps, will be better for you.��


    ��No, I will only bring darkness to darkness and make darkness disappear from the world,�� Ye Qingyao responded.


    ��Very well.�� The Dark Lord looked intently at Ye Qingyao and said, ��Ye Qingyao, I order you to return to God��s Continent right now, cooperate with the Great Shaman, and bring the darkness to the Continent of the Ruins that belonged to the gods. I want darkness to cover every inch of the continent.��


    Today, the cultivators of all the worlds had gathered upon the Continent of the Ruins that belonged to the gods. This place was undoubtedly a perfect battlefield, suitable for starting a war, and preferably, a battle of the world.


    ��Yes, my Lord.�� Ye Qingyao took the order and left without asking any more questions.


    After Ye Qingyao left, the Dark Lord stared at her departing figure for a long time. Everyone in the Dark Court knew that he was partial to Ye Qingyao, yet no one knew why.


    Ye Qingyao��s life had been incredibly miserable and full of suffering. Her heart was cold, and her blood was equally cold. She was destined to belong to the darkness and bring misfortunes to the world.


    He raised his head to look in another direction. Ye Futian was trapped inside that darkness.


    He was thinking, how could he make Ye Futian be part of this darkness as well?


    It would be a pity if such a talented person did not become part of the darkness!

 Chapter 2756 - The Start of the Storm

    Chapter 2756 The Start of the Storm


    Ye Futian was trapped in the Dark World. It was like a prison. No matter what he did, he couldn��t walk out of this dark prison.


    The dark prison wouldn��t affect his descriptions nor would it affect his divine consciousness. The Force of the Great Path and Celerity could all be used as normal, but he just couldn��t get out. It was as if he��d gotten sealed off by true divine power.


    This was a prison that Tianshen had made just for him and the Dark Sovereign had done it personally. No matter how strong Ye Futian was, it was most likely impossible if he wanted to get out. The Dark Sovereign was a true Great Emperor��the ruler of the Dark World.


    They had only imprisoned him and didn��t intend to kill him. After many attempts, Ye Futian also understood that he couldn��t escape, so he gave up and just sat down to cultivate. A huge face appeared in the boundless darkness. It seemed to have been formed from the darkness. A terrifying dark storm swept over. Ye Futian opened his eyes and stared up. He felt an impossibly horrifying dark will. He��d never truly felt such a strong will before.


    He had met the Devil Emperor before, he had met Donghuang the Great before, and he had received inheritances from many Great Emperors. But this time, the Dark Sovereign��s true will was pressing down at him. This kind of situation had never happened before.


    ��Sovereign, what are you doing?�� Ye Futian opened his mouth to ask.


    ��To show you the true world,�� a wispy voice streamed out. The terrifying storm swept directly at Ye Futian and drowned his body. Then the tumultuous will rushed straight into Ye Futian��s mind. The next moment, his entire body shook violently.


    Boom! This will was not meant to destroy his willpower. Instead, it brought him to another world. He seemed to have entered a special state. Countless images and memories flooded instantly into the depths of his mind. It was as if these had always belonged to him.


    After a few moments, the dark will dissipated. Ye Futian��s aura rippled violently over his body and his eyes flew open. A beam of cold light shot out of his eyes.


    ��Phew���� Ye Futian let out a turbid sigh. It had only been a moment, but it was as if he had experienced countless lives, a century in one second. It was countless stories and he was the main character of each story, experiencing it personally. And without exception, each story had been tragic. The evil of humanity was shown fully.


    ��You implanted the memories directly.�� Ye Futian felt his will somewhat being used without his control. He looked up at the dark face in the void. The implanted memories created strong empathy within him. He had experienced it personally, rather than looking on as a bystander, so the impact was huge. He could feel his heart had turned cold after experiencing cycle after cycle and his mind was filled with negative thoughts. ��What you saw is the true world. You probably have experienced much in your own life. Think back on it well.�� The voice came again, trying to influence him. To make someone fall into darkness, you had to first change their mindset and make darkness take over their entirety. Then they would naturally bring darkness to the world.


    ��The true world does not only have one side to it.�� Ye Futian believed that the memories in his mind had all truly happened, but if he was corroded by this will, then he would become cruel, bloodthirsty and not trust anyone.


    The Light of Buddha shone and enveloped over Ye Futian��s body. He closed his eyes as his body shone with golden light. The Buddhist Voice circled around. Ye Futian��s lips moved and when he uttered the Buddhist Voice, it transformed into symbols that filled the darkness.


    ��Hmph!�� There was a cold huff and it shattered the Light of Buddha on Ye Futian��s body. Dark power shrouded his body. Destruction, death and other forces ate away at him and another horrifying intent rushed into Ye Futian��s mind.


    Once again, Ye Futian experienced everything from the past, feeling all the evils of the human world. But when he woke, he reminded himself again. The Light of Buddha wrapped around him and he chanted the ancient scriptures so his willpower would not be destroyed.


    After coming to this stalemate many times, the dark will disappeared. It had given up. Ye Futian had extremely strong will naturally and was able to maintain his reason even when suffering intense attacks and influences. He controlled himself to drive away the darkness with the power of the Buddha.


    Of course, this was not all in vain. Everything that had been implanted into Ye Futian��s mind truly existed. The Buddha��s power could drive away the negative thoughts that were born, but these memories would still continue to affect him. None of this could be erased.


    Time passed day by day. Imprisoned by the darkness, Ye Futian received news from the Ruins of the Gods Continent. There had been conflicts between the various worlds in the Ruins of the Gods Continent before but they had not exploded completely. Now, these conflicts had finally exploded fully.


    And this was all because of the Dark Court.


    He heard that recently, cultivators of the Dark World kept looting and killing, causing wars to erupt all over. Traces of the Dark Court were behind many of these events, so more and more wars erupted and powers of the Dark World and Divine Prefecture entered a full-out war first. War ravaged everywhere.


    At the same time, the Dark Court acted upon the forces of the Donghuang Imperial Palace. They even wanted to conquer the the Naga Ruins.


    The war between these two parties was like a preamble, causing war to sweep across the entire Ruins Continent. Other forces were gradually swept into the storm, starting from the random battles to wars that began gradually between the powers of various worlds. Conflicts continued to erupt between the Devil World, Divine Prefecture, World of Buddhism and Human Realm. It was the same for the Empty Divine Realm.


    This was not even led by the Devil Imperial Palace and Empty Mountain. Before they even decided to get involved in the storm, forces of the Devil World. Empty Divine Realm and other worlds had already started fighting and intensifying. It was not under their control anymore.


    An intense storm was brewing in the Ruins of the Gods Continent.


    Ye Futian also learned that Ye Qingyao had returned to Ruins of the Gods Continent and was in the war. She would lead the strong fighters of the Dark Court to attack the Divine Prefecture, which was headed by Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    ��Sovereign!�� Ye Futian raised his head and yelled into the void. This was the Dark Court and the Dark Sovereign was omnipresent. He knew that the Dark Sovereign may have never come here, but it could also be said that he was always here.


    ��You have imprisoned me for many days. Since you have already come to a decision, how much longer will you keep me here for?�� Ye Futian said loudly. ��I have given them orders before coming to the Dark Court. If I run into danger in the Dark Court, the Ziwei Imperial Palace and Devil World will attack the Dark Court.��


    ��Are you threatening me?�� a cold voice said, bringing along a suffocating weight. ��It is not a threat. It is the truth,�� Ye Futian said. ��If I do not return, and even if the Ziwei Imperial Palace does not say anything, Yu Sheng will still lead the Devil Imperial Palace to attack the Dark Court. At that time, I will have them persuade Qingyao to rebel. The rules of six worlds will be in that battle. It would be difficult for even you, the Sovereign, to interfere, right?��

 Chapter 2757 - War

    Chapter 2757 War


    As Ye Futian finished speaking, an even stronger pressure weighed down. A divine phantom appeared in the air above his head. The horrifying will pressed down on his body, giving him the feeling that the sky was weighing on him.


    Ye Futian was extremely uncomfortable. His body was drenched with sweat. Pushing back against the pressurizing force with his strong intent, he continued to stare up at the sky and said, ��It is the same even if you kill me. Before coming here, I didn��t think that the Sovereign would harm a junior, but I still planned for the worst. If something really happened to me, Ziwei Imperial Palace and Yusheng will view the Dark Court as their nemesis.��


    At present, the six worlds were at a relatively equal state, but if the Ziwei Imperial Palace and Devil Imperial Palace fought against the Dark Court at the same time, then the tides would be turned instantly. It would be impossible for the Dark Sovereign to make darkness fall over the world.


    At that time, Ye Qingyao would rebel against the Dark Court too, so Ye Futian��s threat was useful in a certain way.


    ��Do you think the Divine Prefecture will forgive the Ziwei Imperial Palace? Even without the Donghuang Imperial Palace, the Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture will not let them survive,�� The Dark Sovereign said coldly. He clearly was quite familiar with these things.


    ��The Divine Prefecture and Ziwei Imperial Palace��s rivalry is because of me,�� Ye Futian continued. ��If something happens to me, this rivalry will not exist anymore either. The Ziwei Imperial Palace will choose to join the Devil Imperial Palace or even Donghuang Imperial Palace. They will have a mutual enemy. On the other hand, none of this will happen if I return safely.��


    The Dark Sovereign also understood this. Not only would it not happen, with the rivalry between him and the Divine Prefecture, but it might be pointed at the Divine Prefecture instead. Back then, neither the Dark World nor the Empty Divine Realm had touched Ye Futian. They had even chosen to help him, thus creating an enemy for the Divine Prefecture.


    An enemy��s enemy would be a friend.


    That was why they had let Ye Futian grow powerful freely. Otherwise, all the conflicts from before would be more than enough for them to attack Ye Futian.


    ��What you said is true. In that case, I will give you one month. After one month, I will let you go. If you let people attack the Dark Court in this month, then�� I shall kill you!��


    The dark storm rolled violently and the horrifying will descended upon Ye Futian��s body before retreating. The voice was left echoing through the air. Clearly, the Dark Sovereign had been angered by his threat. Ye Futian actually had the guts to threaten the ruler of the Dark World.


    He was the king of the Dark World. No one could threaten him.


    He wanted to see if Ye Futian dared to try.


    The repressive aura disappeared and the dark storm scattered too. Ye Futian watched this all. The Dark Sovereign had not given him the chance to negotiate at all and instead told him directly how he would take care of this, letting him choose.


    Gamble his life?


    Ye Futian clearly did not dare to do so. The Dark Sovereign had his own reserves, but he would not dare to gamble with his life either.


    Now, all he could do was continue to wait for a month. The Dark Sovereign had already taken a step back since he could give him an exact time. Otherwise, it would not be enough for Ye Futian to die 100 times to threaten a sovereign like this.


    Even though his cultivation was already very powerful, he was still nothing different from an ant before a Great Emperor. He could be squashed to death easily.


    Ye Futian closed his eyes and continued to cultivate quietly. One month��s time was not long for him, but in the stormy Ruins of the Gods Mainland, things could change drastically every day. He did not know how this storm would continue to evolve. He told the Ziwei Imperial Palace to stay put for now and not get involved before he returned, lest the unpredictable happened.


    While Ye Futian was at the Dark Court, news about the Ruins of the Gods Mainland would come every day. The battles continued to expand, involving the entire continent with terrifying speed. Forces and cultivators from every world entered the war, killing and looting wildly. The countless treasures, relics and cultivation resources created had all been stolen and robbed in the recent few years. This was also why the continent had such massive cultivation resources now and an important reason why the war expanded so quickly.


    Cultivators of many large forces even hoped that the emperor-level forces would declare war directly. It would be best if they could destroy the entire world and both sides would suffer horrible losses. Only then would they have a chance. Otherwise, the best cultivation resources were monopolized by the emperor-level forces. They could only receive very few resources. Even if they had any, they were all leftovers. Some precious cultivation resources were also in the hands of top forces below the emperor-level forces.


    Under this situation, they wished for the war to be as destructive as possible. Heroes were born from chaos. They could only find the chance to turn the tides and come up top. Otherwise, if peace continued like before, all the cultivation resources would be split up and squeezed dry. It would have nothing to do with them.


    Personal interest was often the source of all battles and wars.


    This war was not the same as the previous battles in the Divine Prefecture. It was chaotic and without order. The emperor-level forces did not unify the various forces under them. Instead, it was the various forces that started the battles in the first place and then it spread to sweep the emperor-level forces in too.


    With a war at such a grand scale, a large number of strong cultivators would die in the Ruins of the Gods Continent.


    Some wondered if this was a curse from the gods.


    In the Battle of Heavenly Laws that took place before, this had been the main battlefield and it had been so destructive that the gods had fallen. Now, countless years later, this ancient battlefield appeared to the world again and ignited an unprecedentedly horrible battle again. It was like a replay of what had happened years ago.


    Seeing the endless deaths of cultivators, people seemed to witness what the era of the End of the Gods had been like. The multitude of gods had whittled, the various gods had fallen and a split appeared in the cultivation world.


    At this time in the Dark World, Ye Futian received news from the battlefield again.


    It said that Lord Shaman and Ye Qingyao led the Dark Court to a direct battle against the Donghuang Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture. The battle had been horrifying. Ye Qingyao had the divine power that rivaled Donghuang Diyuan and the two had an intense fight. Ye Qingyao had wanted to kill Donghuang Diyuan.


    However, the battle had no result. Both parties had retreated, but it was meaningful. This meant that the direct battle between emperor-level forces had begun now. It was no longer a competition for the relics. It was war.


    Had the Dark Sovereign ordered Qingyao to kill Donghuang Diyuan? Ye Futian thought to himself as he sat there. Even though Donghuang Diyuan was his mortal enemy, he did not seem to carry that much of hatred.


    Of course, he still worried a bit for Ye Qingyao. Whether she lost or won, it might not be a good thing for her. If she really did kill Donghuang Diyuan, she probably would not be able to live either.


    But both sides were emperor-level forces and filled with strong fighters. She would not die so easily.


    Without realizing, the one month was finally up. The Dark Sovereign had promised to let him go at this time!

 Chapter 2758 - The Dark Sovereign’s Belief

    Chapter 2758 The Dark Sovereign��s Belief


    That day, the Dark Sovereign descended once again. The terrible dark storm roared and ravaged, and a dark face appeared in the air above Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian knew that the actual Dark Sovereign had never appeared this entire time. This was still just the materialization of the Dark Sovereign��s will.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the dark face, waiting for the other to speak. ��Do you know how Emperor Ye Qing died back then?�� the Dark Sovereign asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s pupils constricted. He studied the other closely, seeming to care deeply.


    Ever since Donghuang the Great had appeared back then and the Master of the Four Corners Village had stopped Donghuang the Great from hurting Ye Futian, people believed that he was a descendant of Emperor Ye Qing.


    However, he indeed had an extraordinary relationship with Emperor Ye Qing.


    ��Sovereign, please tell me,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Back then, the Twin Great Emperors presided over the Divine Prefecture. When another one was added, the world��s equilibrium was already ruined. The Devil Emperor, Evil Emperor, and I naturally would not let something like this happen. If it were merely this, it still would not be enough to make the Twin Great Emperors turn on each other. Thus, it was not only the wills of the three emperors. The Human Ancestor and The Buddha would not want this to happen either. It was the mutual will of the world that caused the tragedy to occur. In order to protect himself, Donghuang the Great suddenly killed his brother, that had gone through thick and thin with him. Donghuang the Great abandoned his wife and killed his brother to prove his way. He built his status in the Divine Prefecture, becoming one of the top figures known by all in the world. Yet, all his actions from before would not be forgotten either.��


    The Dark Sovereign said coldly, ��The evilness and ingenuity of humanity were expressed perfectly by Donghuang the Great and the other two. The Devil Emperor, Evil Emperor, and I do whatever we want to do but look at Donghuang, the Human Ancestor, and the others. See how they do the most shameless things under the name of justice.


    ��The Human Ancestor calls himself the orthodox of the human world and has an air of justice, but he had forced many people to their deaths back then. Now, he is still allying with Donghuang. How fake is he? How despicable is he?�� There was strong disgust in the Dark Sovereign��s voice. ��With such a horrid matter and ruled by such a pathetic group of people�� What is use is there for them?��


    Ye Futian was extremely shaken up inside after hearing this. Was this the truth of what had happened back then?


    He trained his eyes firmly on the Dark Sovereign��s face. Even if this was not the truth, it was probably very close to the truth. Were the beings that ruled the world really, as the Dark Sovereign said? He could feel the hatred that the Dark Sovereign had towards the world. Everything he saw was dark. Perhaps it was because he had seen too much that he wanted the darkness to fall upon the world as a whole.


    He even wanted everyone to fall into darkness. He wanted to change Ye Futian��s will and make him enter the darkness too. ��So, you hate this turbid world,�� Ye Futian said to the dark shadow.


    ev


    ��You are wrong.�� The Dark Sovereign��s face stared at him. ��All goes in reverse if it becomes too extreme. Nowadays, the world is filled with faux kindness, and thus, it needs darkness. When darkness envelopes the world, that is when true light will appear. And this world will be reshaped.��


    Ye Futian looked at the dark face. This was the ruler of the Dark World. He had such a radical idea and wanted to shroud the entire world in darkness��but it was actually to reshape the world.


    So, was he good or bad?


    ��In other words, you want to bring darkness to the world because your heart is filled with light.�� Ye Futian��s voice carried some hints of irony. This was a practically mad and extreme obsession.


    The Dark Sovereign��s huge face stared at Ye Futian and said solemnly, ��I am the king of darkness. I should create unparalleled achievements, be worshipped by the world, and make the heavens submit under me.��


    Ye Futian looked at that solemn face and felt speechless. It was a radical idea, but the Dark Sovereign was indeed qualified to play this game as the king of darkness. Bringing darkness to the world was not impossible for him.


    Was this madness what had given him success, letting him become the ruler of the Dark World?


    ��Your body exists in the darkness, but there is pity in your heart. When you see the true nature of the world clearly one day, you might understand me then,�� the Dark Sovereign continued to say. ��Go back now. Feel this turbid world closely. You will turn around.��


    With that, the horrifying dark will transform into a shocking windstorm that swept towards Ye Futian��s body. He felt himself entering a black hole. Everything before his eyes was changing. When the windstorm scattered, he realized that he had come out already. He was somewhere far from the Dark Court.


    He glanced in the direction of the Dark Court and took a deep breath to calm his heart. This trip had quite an impact on him. The Dark Sovereign��s words had touched him as well.


    Did all those great emperors have such extreme obsessions?


    The Devil Emperor wanted the demons to ascend upon the world. He was not satisfied with being trapped within the Devil Abyss of the Devil World. That was the humiliation of the Devil World. It was a prison. Why should the Devil World go through all of this?


    The Dark Sovereign wanted to bring darkness to the world, but in his eyes, he was transforming the world and letting it be reborn.


    The king of darkness wanted to accomplish great things, be worshipped by the world, and make the heavens submit under him.


    Then what about the Human Ancestor, The Buddha, the Evil Emperor, and Donghuang the Great? What were their beliefs?


    The Dark Sovereign said that Donghuang the Great had abandoned his wife and killed his brother. And yet, many cultivators of the Divine Prefecture worshipped him greatly. Other than the breakup of the Twin Great Emperors, Donghuang the Great had wanted to make the martial arts flourish so the people could cultivate better.


    What kind of person was Donghuang the Great exactly?


    Perhaps Donghuang Diyuan��s sadness was related to this.


    In addition, there actually was an island of light within the most


    terrifying region of the Dark World. Did the Dark Sovereign allow this miraculous island to exist to prove that when the world was filled with darkness, there would be true light?


    Who exactly was the woman in the Sacred Lake?


    Ye Futian turned around and began walking away from this place.


    Nothing that the Dark Sovereign had done before had affected him as strongly as the last conversation with Ye Futian.


    He could not help but think of some things. He wanted to explore the truest world. What kinds of people were The Buddha, Human Ancestor, and Donghuang the Great really? Great Emperors were already gods.


    After becoming gods, what kinds of beliefs did they hold onto? Like the Dark Sovereign said, could they really be a group of ingenuine people?


    UN


    Or maybe it was because everything the Dark Sovereign saw was dark, so he naturally held some bias.


    If this world really were, as the Dark Sovereign said, then would he himself change?


    Ye Futian thought that he probably would. The memories that the Dark Sovereign had forcefully planted into his mind had made him experience a lot of darkness, but they could not change him. Ye Futian thought that this might be related to his real experiences. It was not that he had not experienced darkness before, but at many of his most important moments, there would always be some dazzling people who helped him feel the light and warmth of the world.


    His teacher, Hua Fengliu, Grandmaster, Third Brother Gu Dongliu, Second Sister Zhuge Mingyue, Big Brother and teacher Mr. Du, Douzhan, Emperor Xia, Dali Imperial Advisor Qi Xuangang, brother Yan Yuan and many, many others�� These people had all played important roles in his growth. Lord Taixuan and the other seniors he had met later all had their own unique personalities, and these all influenced him.


    Thus, one could say he was lucky. This entire path was dangerous, but he had met these people, allowing him to never waver from his true nature.


    Pushing these thoughts away, Ye Futian did not overthink. Right now, he was still only a chess piece on the game board. He could not even see clearly who was playing the game. He would only be qualified to fight with the emperors when he reached the Imperial Realm!

 Chapter 2759 - A Rumor

    Chapter 2759 A Rumor


    The Ruins Continent. After Ye Futian returned to this land through the tunnel from the Dark World, he could see that there was war everywhere below him. It was like a completely different world from when he had left.


    But this was normal. After the war for the relics, they had entered an era of peace. Everyone began cultivating themselves, and countless people had improved, entering new realms. But even more had received nothing. Under this background, war had actually always been brewing


    Now, the Dark Sovereign��s order caused the cultivators of the Dark World to ignite this battlefield, causing the pent-up emotions to burst out from countless cultivators�� hearts.


    Ye Futian sped up and hurried down the road. He already knew when the wars had erupted and ordered the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace not to get involved in the fighting so impulsively. He himself had been trapped in the Dark Court. If they joined the war and an accident happened, it would be very troublesome.


    Plus, the Ye Imperial Court had no Great Emperor. They did not have as much confidence.


    The Dark Sovereign��s words actually did have some truth to it. Similarly, what the Lord Shaman had said before did not sound nice, but it was indeed true. The fact that he could live until now was partially true because the Master had interfered with Donghuang the Great. In addition, the Dark Court and Empty Mountain had allowed him to grow more powerful, letting him become the enemy of the Divine Prefecture.


    Plus, the Human Realm did not have any conflicts with him at the moment. The Buddha of the Western Heaven Buddhists was quite friendly towards him. He could not find out right now if they were ingenuine as the Dark Sovereign had said, but at least for now, he did not feel it.


    Under these circumstances, he was actually surviving between the cracks, but he did not know if this situation was because of the person controlling the chess pieces.


    Ye Futian returned to the Ye Imperial Palace and went straight to the tallest palace. The strong figures of the Ye Imperial Palace had all gone up the steps and gathered towards thereafter they learned that Ye Futian was back. Soon, most of the core figures of the Ye Imperial Palace had arrived, gathering outside the palace.


    Hua Jieyu also came out of the palace and came to Ye Futian��s side. Meanwhile, Ling Long stood quietly behind him. Xi Chiyao walked towards Ye Futian and stopped not too far from him. Smiling, she said, ��You��re quite brave, even daring to go to the Dark Court.�� They had all heard of the Dark Court before. The ruler of the Dark Court was a tyrant who controlled the darkness. Who knew what he would do? Ye Futian��s actions had been too risky.


    ��I��m back safely, am I not?�� Ye Futian joked, not caring too much. He had run into some troubles during this trip, but it was actually quite successful. It was an experience and quite meaningful for him. Whether it was the woman in the Sacred Lake that he��d met in the Island of Miracles or what the Dark Sovereign had said to him, they all affected him to some point.


    ��Weren��t you worried what would happen to the Ye Imperial Palace if that tyrant grew angry and decided to make you stay there forever?�� Xi Chiyao seemed quite unhappy with this. She thought that Ye Futian��s trip had been too stubborn and impulsive.


    Even though she understood that Ye Futian cared deeply for friends, Ye Qingyao was still someone cultivated in the Dark Court. He was unable to change Ye Qingyao��s fate. In the end, it would be decided by the Dark Sovereign. Even if he could change anything, it was understandable in terms of emotions to make the Ye Imperial Palace fall into a crisis for Ye Qingyao. Still, rationally, it should not have been done.


    Of course, she was not actually angry. If Ye Futian had not gone, he wouldn��t be himself. Perhaps this was also why he would have so many excellent people gathered around him, willingly following him. Many of these people had been following him as his seniors since Ye Futian was still weak.


    ��I��ll be more careful in the future.�� Hearing Xi Chiyao��s demand, Ye Futian shook his head with a wry smile.


    On the side, Hua Jieyu watched this scene with a smile.


    ��Ahem!�� The old palace leader of the West Imperial Palace coughed, and Xi Chiyao��s expression instantly turned a bit strange. She said, ��As your ally and ruler of the West Imperial Palace of the Ye Imperial Palace, I must remind Palace Lord Ye to think more of the big picture in the future.��


    The surrounding people all looked at her. Many secretly smiled and glanced at Xi Chiyao and Ye Futian. Was she feeling guilty now?


    They could not help but be impressed by the palace lord. He was truly powerful.


    They heard that. So impressive.


    ��Okay.�� Ye Futian nodded. He looked at everyone and abruptly became serious. ��How is the outside world now?�� he asked.


    This question changed the topic, avoiding the awkward situation from earlier. The group did not focus on the small matter anymore either. After all, the Madame of the palace was still there. It wasn��t their place to worry about this. Even if the palace lord wanted a mistress, it would be the Madame��s problem. Xi Chiyao was also an extraordinary woman and the descendant of a Great Emperor, but they did not think anything was wrong with taking a mistress. After all, that was Ye Futian, their palace lord? What was wrong with a mistress or concubine?


    After the palace lord became an emperor, then she would be the empress and be seen by the world.


    ��The fire of war burns everywhere, and forces from all six worlds are involved,�� the Supreme Swordlord said. ��It��s no longer a unified war. The forces of the six worlds are fighting independently, and there are endless conflicts between imperial palaces. The most intense of it all would be the Dark Court and Donghuang Imperial Palace. A huge battle between them not too long ago and will continue in the future. This battle might ignite all the accumulated conflicts of the six worlds and result in a chaotic war that surpasses what happened more than 400 years ago. This storm is growing stronger and stronger. It looks to be going out of control.��


    Plus, no force of the six worlds even wanted to control the situation.


    Or perhaps, a juncture had appeared in the Ruins Continent��the juncture of war. This place had many opportunities and inheritances left by many Great Emperors. This independent continent was suitable for a battleground.


    This change would affect the setup of the six worlds and may even create some extraordinary people. No one knew if someone like a Great Emperor would arrive. ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Any news from the Heaven Realm?��


    ��No.�� The Supreme Swordlord shook his head. ��I have not heard of the Heaven Realm joining the war. They��d disappeared after leaving the Old Heaven Court and are staying low as before.��


    But Ye Futian frowned. The Heaven Realm was probably hoping to reap the benefits without doing anything. That Ji Wudao was extremely dangerous. He had felt this in the restricted area. This person had swallowed up many relic inheritances, and his potential was honestly terrifying


    ��There��s another news from the outside world,�� the Supreme Swordlord continued.


    ��What news?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��It��s still a small rumor now and can��t be confirmed,�� the Supreme Swordlord said. ��It spread from the strong cultivators of the Human Realm. Apparently, the Human Ancestor of the Human Realm wishes for a marriage alliance with the Divine Prefecture. He might represent his disciple, Di Hao, to propose it to Donghuang the Great.��


    Ye Futian��s pupils constricted. He was not sure what exactly had happened back then, but if this rumor was true, then the intent behind it could not be so simple-especially after connecting it to what the Dark Sovereign had said. The Human Ancestor may have taken part in that matter too.


    Then what was the ulterior motive of this marriage proposal?

 Chapter 2760 - War

    Chapter 2760 War


    The timing of the Human Realm��s marriage proposal was also very sensitive. There were conflicts in the six realms now, and war could start at any second, possibly causing a super war.


    It was clearly not so simple for the Human Realm to propose marriage at this time.


    But would Donghuang the Great agree?


    Donghuang Diyuan was the only princess of the Divine Prefecture and the only child of Donghuang the Great. She would inherit the Divine Prefecture in the future. If Di Hao and Donghuang Diyuan married, who would go with whom?


    Or would the two remain separated, one in the Human Realm and one in the Divine Prefecture?


    Di Hao was also the heir of the Human Realm. However, the Human Ancestor had reigned for too long, and it was questionable if Di Hao could inherit the position. Even if he became a Great Emperor, would the Human Ancestor give him the emperor position and let Di Hao rule the Human Realm?


    The scepter might be passed on, but maybe Di Hao would help the Human Ancestor manage the Human Realm while the Human Ancestor was still the supreme.


    However, forces no longer could only have one Great Emperor. Instead, it was like prehistoric times where some supernatural figures existed and had Great Emperors under them.


    But no matter how you viewed it, Donghuang Diyuan was special. She couldn��t become cultivation partners like the ordinary person and cultivate with them. She was not weaker than a man either. Ye Futian did not know if Donghuang the Great would agree with this marriage.


    Of course, it seemed not to have much to do with him at this point. It was just that if the Human Realm and Divine Prefecture went into a marriage alliance, their relationship would be more unusual, and it would affect the future setup of the cultivation world.


    ��The Human Realm wants to marry Donghuang Diyuan,�� Ye Futian said in a low voice. ��Not simple.��


    ��Indeed,�� the Supreme Swordlord said. ��After the news spread, many people in the Divine Prefecture started feeling unhappy. They were upset about the actions of the Human Realm. Donghuang the Great is the supreme ruler of the Divine Prefecture, and Donghuang Diyuan, as the heir, belongs to the Divine Prefecture. Their cultivators believe that the Human Ancestor��s action is disrespecting Donghuang the Great.��


    ��People of the Divine Prefecture naturally don��t want to see their princess marry an outsider,�� Ye Futian said.


    At this time, more cultivators arrived here from the outside.


    ��Palace Lord.�� Fang Huan walked over and bowed slightly in Ye Futian��s direction from the bottom of the steps. In addition to cultivating, Fang Huan had been responsible for collecting news about the Outer Realms during this time.


    Ye Futian gazed at Fang Huan, only to hear him say, ��There are new changes in the Outer Realms. The Dark Court led the Dark World��s army toward the Naga Relics in the Divine Prefecture. It seems that a largescale war will occur. Fighting has already erupted in their


    path.��


    Hearing Fang Huan��s words, a beam of light shot from Ye Futian��s eyes. He had just returned, and the Dark Court had already led their army to attack. Could this be the Dark Sovereign��s order? He had calculated the time that Ye Futian would return ideally and ordered the Dark Court to strike the Divine Prefecture?


    as


    Did he want to see if Ye Futian would lead the Ziwei Imperial Palace to give aid? Of course, this was only Ye Futian��s guess. But with the Dark Sovereign��s personality, it was indeed possible. He wanted to bring darkness to the world and wanted Ye Futian to be involved, falling into darkness.


    But if one had to describe their relationship, Ye Futian was not very friendly with either the Divine Prefecture or the Dark Court. However, Ye Qingyao was in the Dark Court.


    ��Forces of the other worlds should have heard the commotion too,�� Fang Huan continued to say. ��I��m sure they will have embarked too. This war that the Dark Court has started is even grander in scale than last time. They led all the forces of the Dark World and everywhere that they pass to darkness.��


    ��Does the Dark Court want to start a war of utter destruction?�� Hearing Fang Huan��s words, Fang Gai showed a shocked expression. ��Before the two parties already fought, but both retreated without entangling. Now, it seems that the previous battle had only been a test. This time, they��re serious. What exactly is their goal?��


    ��Their goal is to create chaos in the six realms


    -best if the Ziwei Imperial Palace gets involved too,�� Ye Futian said. After becoming more familiar with the Dark Sovereign, he could understand now that everything he did was only for one goal. He wanted order to collapse, for the six realms to be in a chaotic war, and for the world to fall into darkness.


    Starting this war was imperative. Many years ago, when the Outer Realms and Original Realm were isolated, the Dark World��s power had already begun infiltrating the Hidden Land Realm of the nine realms. The Hidden Land Realm had been turned into the Dark World.


    ��Indeed, the Dark Court has always wanted to bring the world to darkness.�� The Supreme Swordlord nodded on the side. When darkness shrouded the entire world, wouldn��t the Dark Sovereign be unbeatable?


    ��Are we going?�� Fang Gai asked. Ye Futian had just returned from the Dark World, and he claimed that the Dark Court wanted the Ziwei Imperial Palace to get involved in this battle. So, should they go or not?


    ��Of course, we will go.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��Let��s set off.�� ��Yes.�� All the strong figures nodded, accepting the order. Instantly, the mass of strong fighters set off away from the Ye Imperial Palace. Outside of the Ye Imperial Palace was a city that the cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum had established. They built the city surrounding the Ye Imperial Palace to cultivate, and they were not too affected by this storm, other than the ones who purposely went out to fight for relics.


    However, most of the cultivators from the Ziwei Segmentum were careful and kept a low profile. Not many of them had gotten involved in the fighting


    Other forces would not come to pick fights voluntarily either. After all, Ye Futian had a threatening reputation nowadays. He was someone who even dared to declare war on the Dark Court.


    Ye Futian��s group continued, going towards the Divine Prefecture cultivators controlled. When they arrived where the Divine Prefecture cultivators were, they discovered that war had already spread here. Everywhere the Dark Army passed, the world was dusky and dim, and fighting erupted everywhere. It was the fighting between the strong figures of the Dark World and Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian��s group continued forward, passing through the battlefield. This battlefield stretched along the path. A horrible Great Path weighed down and swept through the world, but the strong figures of the Dark Court did not participate. It seemed that the two parties had some tacit understanding that the emperor-level forces would not interfere with the fighting. Otherwise, the deaths would be even more horrible.


    Along the way, there were piles of corpses. No one knew how many strong figures had died on the battleground.


    ��Can��t see the end.�� Old Ma gazed into the distance, but he could not see the end of the battlefield. It was as if the entire world was at war.


    ��The Dark Court is too crazy,�� the Supreme


    forward, they saw the battlefield stretch forward. The army continued to attack the core areas of the Divine Prefecture as if wanting to invade the Naga Relics, where the Donghuang Imperial Palace was located.


    Ye Futian was also shocked when seeing this horrible war. He did not know how many strong figures would die in such a largescale war. Too many high-level figures from the six realms had come to the relics battlefield.


    However, Ye Futian did not participate. He continued forward. As they approached the Naga Relics, he saw the domain leaders of the eighteen domains personally leading the war. He also saw the Ancient God Clans killing madly!

 Chapter 2761 - Hypocritical?

    Chapter 2761 Hypocritical?


    Passing the sky over the battlefield, Ye Futian��s group continued forward, and they saw a terrifying windstorm appear in the distant sky.


    ��War has started already,�� someone said on the side. There was still a long distance, but in the sky, they could already see the war. The aura was terrible, and the sky looked like the end of the world.


    ��It should be Lord Shaman,�� Ye Futian said. This scene was slightly familiar. It had looked like this when Lord Shaman had declared war on them back then.


    ��Yes. It��s Li Daoshou and Lord Shaman battling,�� the Supreme Swordlord said from the side. Li Daoshou was the top figure under Donghuang the Great. He had cultivated for many years��having cultivated for even longer than Donghuang the Great. No one knew why he followed Donghuang the Great, but he had been beside Donghuang the Great long ago. He rarely appeared in public and had a very high status.


    According to rumors, there had been another supernatural figure back then besides Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. He had been shoulder to shoulder with Li Daoshou, but after the war back then, he had betrayed the Donghuang Imperial Palace and had been chased to be killed.


    It was said that he had a very mysterious identity, but not many people knew the truth from back then. However, he seemed to have been a Demonic Cultivator.


    ��I will go first. You all follow me,�� Ye Futian opened his mouth to say. As soon as he spoke, he sped up and hurried forward, traveling with Celerity towards the battlefield.


    The remaining strong figures all hurried to catch up and sped forward.


    When Ye Futian arrived on the battlefield, he discovered that other emperor-level forces had gradually come. They were all in the regions surrounding this area. There was a beam of light in the distant dark windstorm. There, Buddhist cultivators from the Buddhist clan held their hands together and chanted the Sound of Buddha, letting the Buddhist light illuminate the land.


    In another place, the strong figures of the Human Realm were watching the war beside the fighters of the Divine Prefecture. It seemed that they would join in at any time.


    Strong figures of the Devil World and Empty Divine Realm were also there.


    The six emperor-level forces of the six realms had all arrived; the Heaven Realm had not come. Ji Wudao would not appear at such an event so easily. He did not even want to have direct conflicts with the various emperor-level forces. If not for the Ruins of the Old Heaven Court previously, they would not even let people know how strong the Heaven Realm was, nor allow people to see what level of cultivation Ji Wudao had reached.


    Someone like this was usually even more dangerous. He always kept a low profile and hid in the shadows but did many things. He was even cruel, heartless, and cold-blooded, killing many cultivators. Back in the restricted area, he had even wanted to kill Ye Futian.


    A superscale war was happening right now in the atrium battlefield. As the Supreme Swordlord said, Lord Shaman, the Great Shaman of the Dark Court, and Li Daoshou, number one under Donghuang the Great, fighting. The battle scene of both parties was extremely shocking, destroying the sky and earth. Lord Shaman was borrowing divine power, but Li Daoshou was someone at the top of the golden pyramid of strong cultivators, and they were fighting directly.


    This was probably the pinnacle fight below the Great Emperor level.


    At the same time, there were a few large battles nearby too. They were just as horrifying and even attracted more attention, but they were not as destructive as the war between Lord Shaman and Li Daoshou.


    The Dark Flame Sage was also fighting Fang Ru.


    The battlefield with the most attention was that of Reaper Ye Qingyao and Donghuang Diyuan. Even though Reaper Ye Qingyao was still clad in a dark cape, everyone already knew that she was a woman and had an unusual relationship with Ye Futian. She even called Ye Futian her older brother. She was reputed to belong to darkness since birth-the child of darkness. Her existence made many cultivators doubt the core of cultivation because she had surpassed countless barriers directly. Rumors said that as the Dark Reaper, she could kill Renhuang as a child without cultivation abilities.


    After arriving on the battlefield, Ye Futian��s first glance fell upon Ye Qingyao and Donghuang Diyao��s battle. Qingyao had already completed her change. She had inherited Shura��s spiritual energy and could counter the Power of the Ancestral Dragon and Sacred Phoenix.


    Also, Ye Qingyao��s aura was very frightening. Her spiritual energy carried the auras of extreme destruction and death. It would be very troublesome if you were hit by it.


    Someone walked out slowly from Donghuang Diyuan��s side, ready to participate. It was the strongest figure of the Human Realm-Di Hao.


    He was also the one who had been rumored these past few days to ask for marriage from Donghuang the Great.


    Divine light wrapped around Di Hao��s body. He had a righteous aura and was very handsome. Looking at his status, abilities, and manner, he was a qualified candidate for Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��The Dark Sovereign once brought darkness to the world. Now, the cultivators of the Dark Court have found the Asura��s Relic and inherited Asura��s Will of Destruction. Utilized by darkness, this Will of Destruction will bring even more disasters to the world,�� they heard Di Hao say grandly with compassion as if he really was the bringer of justice for the world.


    He turned towards the Buddhist cultivators. Bowing slightly, he said, ��Dear Buddhas, the darkness is wreaking havoc now, sparking conflicts in the world and causing bloodshed. Along the way here, I saw piles of corpses. Buddhas, I ask you to purge their souls and purify the darkness to allow light to return to the continent.��


    ��Amitabha.�� The Buddha of the Buddhist sect put his hands together. Buddhist light shone on his body and illuminated the world, purifying the darkness. The light burned brightly.


    However, the Empty Divine Realm and Devil World cultivators were standing there too. If these realms united, then they clearly would get involved too.


    Di Hao bowed once again, seeming very humble, and turned around. He looked in the direction of Ye Qingyao. Divine light shimmered on his body, and the righteous aura appeared. The brilliant divine light formed the silhouette of a god as if the Divine Human had come to the world.


    Above the sky, the extremely brilliant divine light shone. Di Hao looked up at it. He pointed a finger towards the sky, and a divine sword instantly appeared, flying down from the sky. It was the Sword of Mankind.


    Seeing this, the Dark Saint took a step forward. But when he walked on, the first god of the Divine Prefecture also took a step forward, and their auras were frightening.


    The Sword of Mankind ignored the space and shot down to kill. It contained the power of the Divine Human and cut an arc in the sky, breaking the space. ��Boom!�� The Light of Darkness windstorm erupted from Ye Qingyao��s body. The thousands of arms from Asura��s huge divine phantom behind her grabbed towards the atrium at once, actually reaching for the Sword of Mankind.


    There was a horrifying sound. The Sword of Mankind fell down with the purifying divine light. Supported by the spiritual energy, Asura��s arms kept getting shattered and destroyed by the divine sword. However, the arms were endless and contained terrible divine power. It actually stopped the Sword of Mankind��s advance and swept it into its arms. At the same time, Ye Qingyao retreated, putting distance between her and Donghuang Diyuan.


    Donghuang Diyuan did not attack immediately. She glanced in the direction of Di Hao. Then a horrible aura roared on her body and summoned a true Dragon Phoenix.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he took a step forward and stood before Ye Qingyao. he glanced at Donghuang Diyuan and Di Hao. Justice in the world? Were they hypocrites as the Dark Sovereign had said?

 Chapter 2762 - Standpoint

    Chapter 2762 Standpoint


    Seeing Ye Futian��s appearance, Donghuang Diyuan��s expression was emotionless. She uttered coldly, ��My father allowed you to live because of past relations, and the imperial palace never killed you. I did not think you would reach this point and fall low enough to ally with the darkness. In this case, you should be killed.��


    Her voice filled the empty void. At the same time, she pointed at Ye Futian below, and countless True Dragon Phoenixes howled and rushed down instantly. They covered the sun. The huge figures seemed to want to swallow the sky, making Ye Futian below seem extremely small.


    Back then, Donghuang the Great had indeed let Ye Futian go. Because of the Master of the Four Corners Village, he did not kill Ye Futian. The Donghuang Imperial Palace had also let him become stronger because of this, showing how generous Donghuang the Great was. However, could it be that Donghuang the Great felt guilty inside?


    Divine light shimmered on Ye Futian��s body. He took a step forward, and his eyes were scary. Frightening divine light shot out of his eyes, transforming into the Eye Sorcery Zone. In an instant, a shocking storm of will swept through, enveloping the descending True Dragon Phoenixes.


    Those True Dragon Phoenixes instantly started howling wildly, becoming extraordinarily aggressive and cruel. They howled and struggled intensely in the sky. Ye Futian��s figure was reflected in their huge eyes.


    Many strong figures stared at Ye Futian. A highly frightening storm of spiritual will surged from him, transforming into an invisible force covering the sky. The summoned True Dragon Phoenixes were no longer under Donghuang Diyuan��s control. ��Roar!�� With a huge boom, some people discovered with a shock that some True Dragon Phoenixes actually reversed and went growling towards Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��The Beast Control Ability!��


    The surrounding strong cultivators from various worlds all narrowed their eyes, staring at Ye Futian. This was the Beast Control Ability that Emperor Ye Qing had been skilled at. The Beast Army from before had been established by Emperor Ye Qing��s accomplishments at the beginning of the Divine Prefecture��s rule. However, in that battle, many grand beasts had died in the hands of Donghuang the Great. It had been cruel, but the victors became kings.


    Donghuang Diyuan had summoned these demonic beasts, and they were not true demonic beasts, but they still carried the will of demonic beasts from the Naga Ruins and were controlled by Ye Futian.


    Seeing this, Donghuang Diyuan��s expression faltered slightly. Then she grabbed in the air with a palm, and the beasts attacking her disappeared directly, turning into nothingness. The other demonic beasts quickly dissipated too. The silhouette of the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix loomed behind her, staring at Ye Futian with its frightening demonic eyes. It was as if the Ancestral Dragon and Phoenix came back to life.


    ��Ye Futian, not long ago, you were still fighting against the Dark World. I thought you would stand on the other side of darkness. I did not think you would approach darkness.�� Di Hao stood by Donghuang Diyuan��s side and looked down at Ye Futian. The air of righteousness flowed across him, seemingly representing the justice of the world.


    ��Your rivalry with the Donghuang Imperial Palace is the rivalry from the previous generation. What kind of figure is Donghuang the Great? He does not wish to hold grudges against a junior like you. If you admit you��ve gone astray and return, you might still have the chance to accomplish great things,�� Di Hao continued to say, encouraging Ye Futian to admit he��s gone astray and return to the correct path.


    ��I don��t care about your conflicts with the Dark Court, but you are not allowed to touch her.�� Ye Futian��s eyes glanced at Di Hao. Admit he has gone astray and return? What counted as going astray?


    ��She is the heir of darkness and has now inherited Asura��s divine energy,�� Di Hao replied powerfully. ��She brought darkness to the world and started this battle. She must be killed.��


    ��Brother, do not get involved,�� Ye Qingyao transmitted her voice to Ye Futian. The Dark Sovereign had ordered her to start this battle. She knew that the Dark Sovereign��s goal was to involve every force in this war, including Ye Futian.


    But she hoped that Ye Futian could stay out of this and not be swept into the storm.


    Ye Futian understood this too, of course. But even though he knew this was the Dark Sovereign��s conspiracy, he still could not stay out of it. He could only fall into the Dark Sovereign��s trap.


    He raised his head and looked at Di Hao. ��I said, do not touch her,�� he said.


    Since he was already involved, then what was there to fear?


    ��Amitabha.�� With the sound of the Buddha Voice, the Buddhist light glimmered brilliantly. The cultivators of the Buddhist clan had been standing in the back the entire time, but they also looked towards Ye Futian now and said, ��Benefactor Ye, why do this?��


    The speaker was the Vajra Buddha Lord. His cultivation was powerful and had once taught Ye Futian the Buddhist doctrine.


    ��Greetings to the Great Buddha.�� Seeing that the Vajra Buddha Lord had spoken, ye Futian bowed in greeting and said, ��You must know that Qingyao had experienced the evils of the world in her youth. At that time, no one saved her from the dangers. Later, she was brought to the Dark World, yet no one came out to stop them. Everything now is the result of everything in the past. Now, how can you put all the blame on her? It is just that she is in darkness at present and acts in spite of herself. Not everyone in the world has the right to choose.��


    This world was not only black and white. Did the warriors of justice of the Human Realm have any less blood on their hands? Ye Futian had suffered all of that in the Western Heaven Buddhist Realm. How many horrible Buddhist sects were there?


    ��Indeed, but today��s catastrophe is also truly happening,�� the Vajra Buddha Lord said, putting his hands together.


    At this time, another Great Buddha walked out. This Great Buddha was very tall, and strands of brilliant divine light streamed on his body, making people feel extremely comfortable. However, his eyes were not so friendly. They were very aggressive with hints of coldness. He looked down at Ye Futian like a furious ancient Buddha.


    Ye Futian had not met this Buddha in the Western Heaven before because his cultivation court was not in the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven. He had not cultivated in the Western Heaven either, but he did have some connection to Ye Futian.


    It was the Medicine Buddha Lord. He had once healed Zhenchan��s injuries. After healing, Zhenchan had tried to kill Ye Futian but ended up killed by Ye Futian instead.


    The Medicine Buddha Lord was respected and reputed. He had a very high status in the Buddhist sects and rarely went out of his mountain, always cultivating. This time, he had been asked to come out. Darkness had swept across the Ruins Continent now, and the war was about to erupt, so the Medicine Buddha Lord had been invited here. ��Stubborn.�� Looking at Ye Futian, the Medicine Buddha Lord said, ��You once cultivated at the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven. You studied the Buddhist scriptures for decades and are now successful, but instead of using it to purge the souls and destroy the darkness, you are standing on the side of darkness. If it is karma, as you said, do you mean that it is the Buddhist clans that planted this bad seed?��


    Seeing the Medicine Buddha Lord come out, the other Western Heaven Buddhists that had been friendly towards Ye Futian now put their hands together and started chanting the name of the Buddha. It seemed that the Medicine Buddha Lord was quite unhappy with Ye Futian��s insistence too.


    Of course, he would not know if there were other reasons.


    The Medicine Buddha Lord had healed two Great Buddhas before. One was Zhenchan, while the other was Shenyan Buddha Lord. But after these two Great Buddhas had been healed, Ye Futian quickly killed them. He did not know if the Medicine Buddha Lord held grudges because of this.


    ��As junior, I will not voluntarily become enemies with the Buddhist clans. I only wish to protect the people I care for and hope you will not blame me.�� Ye Futian did not lose his temper. After hearing the Medicine Buddha Lord��s accusations, he bowed slightly and answered politely. After all, the other party was not wrong. He studied in the Western Heaven and was taught the Buddhist principles. He naturally respected the Buddhists!

 Chapter 2763 - Divine Power

    Chapter 2763 Divine Power


    The Medicine Buddha Lord stared at Ye Futian and said, ��The Dark Court declared war. If you turn back now, there is still a chance.��


    ��Great Buddha, please forgive me,�� Ye Futian said, bowing again.


    ��In other words, you insist on your position and will ally with the darkness,�� the Medicine Buddha Lord said coldly, like a furious Buddha.


    ��I repeat, the Dark Court has nothing to do with me, but I was the one who named Ye Qingyao, so I naturally will protect her,�� Ye Futian said. ��If you believe she committed some great sin, then I am willing to bear it for her.��


    ��Bear it how?�� the Medicine Buddha Lord asked.


    ��I will follow the rules of the cultivation world,�� Ye Futian said.


    After he spoke, all the cultivators in the space fell silent. What were the rules of the cultivation world? The strong figures had the right to speak and decide.


    As for what was right or wrong, it was a sham. How many of the people who came here to cultivate were innocent? Whose hands were not dyed with blood after reaching a certain cultivation level?


    What had Ye Futian encountered when he��d gone to the Western Heaven Realm? Had Saint Zhenchan been right or wrong? Had the Shenyan Buddha Lord and Tongchan Buddha Lord been right or wrong? When the six Ancient God Clans had unified with the Divine Prefecture to break into the Original Realm and Ziwei Segmentum, who had represented justice?


    Back when Ye Qingyao had only been a little girl, senior monks from the Buddhist clans had wanted to kill her, believing that she would bring about destruction. She had only been a pitiful person at that time. What wrong had she committed? ��Very well,�� the Medicine Buddha Lord said. ��In that case, you can go with her.��


    ��Ye Futian, you voluntarily stood on the side of darkness this time, declaring war on the Divine Prefecture,�� Donghuang Diyuan said just as coldly. Murderous intent surged from her. ��Father did not want to bother with you back then, but now that you are standing against the Divine Prefecture, the people of the Divine Prefecture will not show any mercy either.��


    Ye Futian glanced at Donghuang Diyuan and said, ��When did the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture ever show any mercy to me? However, my fate with Princess Donghuang back in the restricted area last time is still unforgettable for me.��


    Donghuang Diyuan grew livid as she glared at Ye Futian. Many other cultivators instantly had surprised expressions, and they looked at Donghuang Diyuan and Ye Futian. What had happened with them in the restricted area?


    Boom! A shocking might exploded. The power of the Ancestor Dragon and Phoenix on Donghuang Diyuan was released to a horrifying state. With her body as the center, it seemed that a frightening sword matrix had appeared in the sky. Countless brilliant spiritual swords were formed. She pointed directly at Ye Futian, and the Tianxing Divine Sword zoomed down instantly, breaking through the void. It was much stronger than back then in the Devil Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian took a step forward. He also pointed into the sky, and a similarly frightening and shocking divine sword burst forth. Countless sword intents gathered, and the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword pierced through the sky.


    In an instant, two forces collided in the sky. The Tianxing Divine Sword contained the power of the Ancestor Dragon and Phoenix. It was incredibly domineering. The phantoms of the Ancestor Dragon Phoenix even appeared around the divine sword, as if this was the sword of Dragon Phoenix. It went down against the tide, bursting through everything.


    But the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword that Ye Futian had created showed the emerald Light of the Divine Ruler. It formed the immense divine power of laws and clashed against the Ancestor Dragon Phoenix sword. Destructive light in the sky spread to the surroundings, sweeping through the boundless space. Thankfully, the cultivators in this area were all powerful. Even if they were hit, they could still block the energy of the shockwaves.


    Ye Futian walked forward, took one step, passed right through Sword Qi��s storm, and walked toward Donghuan Diyuan. The aura on Donghuang Diyuan was also becoming more frightening. When she saw Ye Futian walk over, she also stepped forward. Back then, the two had been at the same level when they��d clashed directly. Now, she had inherited the power of the Ancestor Dragon Phoenix, while Ye Futian had inherited the Light of the Divine Ruler��s power. What would the result be like?


    This was their third battle. The first time was in the Devil Imperial Palace; the second was in the restricted area. At that time, she had been hurt and had been more restricted than Ye Futian, so Ye Futian had the upper hand.


    This time, she had recovered to her prime state.


    ��Roar!�� The shocking dragon roar filled the sky, reverberating many people��s eardrums and shaking their spiritual souls. Ye Futian also experienced this intense shaking. It was as if his will would be shattered. It felt like the Ancestor Dragon had come back to life behind Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Dragon soul!��


    Many people were shaken, and they stared at Donghuang Diyuan. She faced Ye Futian with all her might, even releasing the dragon soul power of the Ancestor Dragon that she had inherited in the Naga Ruins. One could imagine how terrifying the power was. Under that force, it seemed that Ye Futian would be killed just by the shocks.


    This was not all. Donghuang Diyuan��s body seemed to be burning too. The power of the Ancestor Phoenix was burning within her, causing Donghuang Diyuan to seem like a phoenix goddess at this moment. The divine silhouette of the phoenix appeared on her, and a phoenix imprint appeared between her brows. She was extremely beautiful.


    Accompanied by the roar, the silhouette of the Ancestor Dragon rushed down towards where Ye Futian was. It seemed to want to swallow Ye Futi��n��s body under that frightening roar.


    Buddhist light shone on Ye Futian��s body. Like the Acalanatha Battle Form, his willpower was indestructible. At the same time, the Power of the Divine Ruler surged wildly from within. The Divine Ruler formed a giant sword before him. There were countless dazzling divine veins on the sword. Every vein contained incredible power.


    The huge sword grew segment by segment, becoming bigger and bigger until it was 300 Zhang long. Many cultivators looked at this divine sword in shock. It was no longer an average divine sword. It seemed to be the Sword of Law formed by the Heavenly Laws.


    The Divine Ruler that Ye Futian had swallowed turned into a sword, so the ruler was the sword, and the sword was the ruler. The form was only external. What it represented was law and order. It could shatter everything.


    This force made everyone feel the scariness of the Divine Ruler once again. What kind of power was this?


    When the Ancestor Dragon rushed down with indomitable divine power, Ye Futian pressed a palm on the huge sword and stabbed through the sky, rushing up.


    The Ancient Dragon��s divine power materialized into a divine dragon, forcing down the sky and crashing against the divine sword.


    Roar! It was another earth-shaking roar. The indomitable divine power could crumble the mountain and rivers, but the huge divine sword stabbed straight into the dragon��s body. There was a loud and horrifying noise, and the sword passed directly through the dragon��s body and kept going forward as if it wanted to break apart the world.


    The divine dragon roared in anger, and its body shook intensely. The loud and horrifying noise spread throughout. The Law was collapsing; everything was about to be destroyed. Boom! With a loud boom, the frightening divine dragon was penetrated through. The huge divine sword kept zooming toward Donghuang Diyuan. Donghuang Diyuan transformed into a divine phoenix and her hands transformed into humongous and sharp fiery-red claws. The divine phoenix claws slammed down directly on the huge incoming sword.


    Even though the divine sword��s might have been significantly reduced, they still contained immense power.


    Boom�� Donghuang Diyuan��s body flew out with another loud sound, forced back by Ye Futian.


    However, Ye Futian did not stop. He continued advancing, and the divine sword remained. He seemed to want to kill Donghuang Diyuan here.


    ��Such a terrifying attack.�� Everyone��s hearts were in terror. They all stared at the battlefield. The divine sword arrived in a flash, going straight for Donghuang Diyuan. At that moment, Donghuang Diyuan��s beautiful eyes looked down, and another gust of divine power surged from her body.


    When this gust of divine power appeared, a formless strength appeared in the surrounding skies and lands. It seemed to want to weaken the powers of all Great Paths in the world.


    Bang! Ye Futian attacked again with the divine sword, crashing into the divine phoenix. That formless strength swept by, and Ye Futian felt that his Will of the Great Path was sealed off.


    Seeing this scene, everything in the surroundings seemed to be frozen. Countless eyes stared in Donghuang Diyuan��s direction. These top figures all knew what that burst of divine power meant. Donghuang the Great was peerless and unparalleled. He rose to the top and ruled the Divine Prefecture with Emperor Ye Qing back then. The two both had unmatchable talent. Emperor Ye Qing had been skilled at controlling the beasts, while Donghuang the Great had special abilities. This power could restrict the techniques of the world. Donghuang the Great continued to become stronger, and after he cultivated it to the point. Hence, it evolved into divine power, it became known as the divine power that was the strongest and most difficult to cultivate in the world.


    Now, had Donghuang Diyuan touched upon it?

 Chapter 2764 - Revelation Divine Power, Three-Ruler Law

    Chapter 2764 Revelation Divine Power, Three-Ruler Law


    This burst of Divine Power was colorless and formless. It transformed into a domain, enveloping Ye Futian��s body directly. It even spread towards the boundless lands. The terrifying spiritual energy storm transformed into the aggressive domain power. Under this domain, every cultivator felt extremely uncomfortable. Their wills were restricted, and the Great Path��s Force within them was similarly restricted.


    This was a kind of invisible constraint. Cultivators who had not gone through Tribulation lost their combat ability directly and could not move. Their bodies were drenched with sweat instantly.


    Ye Futian was the closest to Donghuang Diyuan and felt this intensely. The terrifying divine power pressed down on his will and pressed down on his Path. He had felt this power before. He had once used a similar power before. The power contained in the Ukiyo Song was unreachable in the world.


    However, the Ukiyo Song that he used could not be compared to the current power. This tangible improvement could even be called Divine Power now. She had only touched upon it, but even so, it was already highly horrifying It was unimaginable how horrifying it would be if a Great Emperor had released this Divine Power.


    The top figures of each world stared at Donghuang Diyuan. Everyone understood clearly that Donghuang the Great��s Divine Power was extremely hard to cultivate successfully. Even though Donghuang Diyuan was his child, it was still not easily inherited.


    Now, they finally saw the Divine Power of Donghuang the Great bloom from Donghuang Diyuan. Donghuang Diyuan had completed the first transformation.


    Divine Power-Revelation!


    This was the Divine Power that was unique to Donghuang the Great. No one else could do it. Di Hao of the Human Realm studied Donghuang Diyuan. Had she awoken her Divine Power?


    Then they looked toward Ye Futian. Donghuang Diyuan released her Divine Power, while Ye Futian also displayed the beast control ability that Emperor Ye Qing had been skilled yet. These mortal enemies finally showed the skills of the Twin Emperors in this duel.


    Donghuang Diyuan studied Ye Futian with her pretty eyes. Elegant yet cold, it seemed that she had recovered her original state��the high and mighty princess of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Since you don��t know your place, then I will make it easy for you,�� Donghuang Diyuan said coldly. The Revelation Divine Power exploded, and a horrifying Divine power storm swept towards Ye Futian, causing all of his power to be restricted. On the other hand, Donghuang Diyuan seemed to have gotten even stronger.


    ��Tianxing!�� A Phoenix Divine Sword materialized, and endless sword intent exploded with the Revelation Divine Power. That moment, all of the Force of the Great Path before Ye Futian shattered. The surrounding endless sword intent turned to smoke instantly, becoming dust under the Divine Power.


    The Phoenix Divine Sword blasted onto his divine sword. Under this horrible power, it seemed that no Force of the Great Path could survive.


    ��Bang!�� With a loud bang, the divine sword crumbled into nothing. Ye Futian��s figure also vanished from his spot and appeared in another direction. However, he still felt that he was in the range of the Divine Power. In fact, the Divine power had affected his body. Even his Celerity was restricted by the Divine Power. Donghuang Diyuan��s gaze turned and looked up at Ye Futian in the sky. Her expression was indifferent. Within the Divine Power��s domain, Ye Futian felt that his abilities were heavily restricted, drastically weakening his combat abilities.


    ��Careful, it��s the Revelation Divine Power of Donghuang the Great,�� Supreme Swordlord transmitted his voice to Ye Futian. He was standing below, but even he could feel how frightening the Divine Power was. He cultivated the Supreme Way and had already touched the fringe of Divine Power. If he could reach the Great Emperor Plane, then the Supreme Divine Power might counter the Revelation Divine Power, but it wasn��t certain.


    Now, these momentous figures were truly climbing onto the stage of history.


    Just at this moment, divine emerald light shimmered where Ye Futian was. It exploded viciously even under the restraints of the Revelation Divine Power. The emerald windstorm encircled Ye Futian��s body. The Power of the Divine Ruler within him seemed to have been released fully at this moment, causing a shocking emerald storm to appear around him. It wasn��t restricted by the Revelation Divine Power at all.


    ��This����


    ��So powerful.��


    The strong cultivators�� hearts all shook at this scene. The Power of the Divine Ruler that Ye Futian inherited was also an extreme Divine Power. This force was not restricted by the Revelation Divine Power and burst forth viciously, forming a boundlessly huge divine ruler.


    Shocking divine runes flowed in the Divine Ruler, making the sky and earth extremely heavy.


    Boom! Then Ye Futian released his form, instantly transforming into a giant. Like a deity, he wielded the huge Divine Ruler. Horrifying power burst forth as he stepped towards Donghuang Diyuan. Merely one step shook the void. The space was about to disintegrate.


    Boom! Then Ye Futian swung up the Divine Ruler like a deity. An unsurmountable power seemed to want to shatter the earth, and countless silhouettes of the Divine Ruler appeared in the sky. They bloomed under the restriction of the Divine Power.


    ��What technique or method is this?�� The strong cultivators all stared at Ye Futian. When Ye Futian transformed into a deity wielding the Divine Ruler, the vast group of cultivators felt a supreme divine might. A suffocating pressure appeared in the boundless land too.


    There was the bright chirp of a phoenix, and the Divine Phoenix Void covered the Phoenix Divine Sword. At the same time, countless phoenix silhouettes and the Divine Sword containing the fire of the Divine Phoenix burned towards Ye Futian.


    ��The laws of the world, the Three-Ruler Law.��


    The deity-like figure uttered that and wielded the Divine Ruler in his hands. Tens of thousands of ruler silhouettes covered the sky and sun, sweeping by. They transformed into an absolute law domain. The forces shooting toward Ye Futian disintegrated in that instant, turning into dust. No force could approach him other than the Revelation Divine Power.


    Donghuang Diyuan was some distance away from Ye Futian, but she could still feel how frightening that force was. ��The laws of the world, the Three-Ruler Law?�� All the strong cultivators stared in the direction of Ye Futian. Where had he cultivated and learned this divine technique?


    Boom�� An extremely wild storm swept over, lifting a frightening force. Everyone stared over there. Under this storm, many people started retreating, worried that this attack would reach them. It was as if no force could withstand near Ye Futian.


    The cultivators in the distance also looked over here. It was such an intense duel��the fated battle between the descendants of Emperor Ye Qing and Donghuang the Great. Ye Futian, son of Emperor Ye Qing, was not any weaker than Donghuang Diyuan, daughter of Donghuang the Great, even though Donghuang Diyuan had released the Revelation Divine Power.


    The second ruler was released. Thousands of arms appeared behind Donghuang Diyuan, and she stabbed with the divine sword simultaneously, attacking the thousands of ruler silhouettes that Ye Futian sent down.


    Boom, boom, boom�� The horrible sounds continued. The sky and earth cracked and collapsed. That unsurmountable force overpowered everything. ��The aura is stronger now. The Three-Ruler Law, could the three rulers determine the universe?��


    Everyone stared at Ye Futian. In this case, would the next ruler be the strongest attack, enough to destroy all?


    At this time, even Donghuang Diyuan��s expression was extremely grave. Supported by the Divine Power, she pushed her force to the max!

 Chapter 2765 - Clash of Divine Power

    Chapter 2765 Clash of Divine Power


    When the third ruler slammed down, all the ruler silhouettes in the sky unified, becoming one ruler. The vast domain transformed into the domain of the Three-Ruler Law. All the Force of the Great Path was about to be pulverized. Terrible divine flames, the illusory silhouettes of the True Dragon and Ancient Phoenix, and countless sword silhouettes were all destroyed in that law domain.


    There was a muffled sound. Even though they were far away, the cultivators in surrounding areas could all feel how frightening this ruler��s power was. It was like a blow from a deity.


    Boom! A huge divine phoenix appeared behind Donghuang Diyuan. It was as if a fire burned in her body, undefeatable like a goddess. The Revelation Divine Power swept forth and restricted the strength of the third ruler. However, the muffled boom continued and was unstoppable. The colorless and formless Revelation Divine Power intersected and clashed in the air with the emerald power of the Divine Ruler. There were restrictions, but it could not fend off this destructive blow.


    Donghuang Diyuan felt that she was also inside the Three-Ruler Law��s domain. Even though the mass of ruler silhouettes had transformed into one ruler, she still felt that there were countless ruler silhouettes everywhere. This was the conception of the domain restricting


    her.


    The Ancient Dragon��s soul seemed to have been awakening. The bright dragon roar shook countless people��s eardrums. The Revelation Divine Power swept past, and paired with the dragon roar, the cultivators under the Tribulation Plane directly lost their combat ability. Even cultivators who had passed the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path similarly found it hard to budge. They were firmly restricted, and this was not even a direct attack ��they were only bystanders. One could imagine what kind of force Ye Futian was enduring


    But even so, Ye Futian was still the one with the upper hand. Not only did he not retreat, he even unleashed a shocking attack.


    How horrifying was the power of the Ancient Dragon? It was the strongest of the historical Divine Powers. When unleashed with the Revelation Divine Power, it spurred the Ancient Phoenix Divine Sword, transforming into a true phoenix divine sword. It burned with divine phoenix fire and bore the power of Tianxing. It stabbed forward without obstacles, and the huge divine sword and the incoming divine ruler crashed in the sky.


    That moment, a destructive windstorm swept over. Divine Light of the Great Path shone across everything, lifting a shocking wave.


    Bang, bang�� Many people were sent flying by this storm. Even the shockwaves could sweep them out and make them spit out blood. The top figures of the emperor-level forces released strong domain power to protect the cultivators beside them. When the destructive storm arrived, cracks even appeared in the domains.


    Di Hao and other top figures stood in the storm, steady and upright, but their expressions were still exceptionally grave as they stared at these two strong cultivators. The combat abilities of both Ye Futian and Donghuang Diyuan were extremely shocking. Of course, they weren��t surprised that Donghuang Diyuan could have these abilities. She was the daughter of Donghuang the Great, after all. She had been taught by Donghuang the Great since childhood and inherited his Divine Power, so she naturally had very strong trump cards.


    But even though Ye Futian was the descendant of Emperor Ye Qing, he had never indeed received much guidance or heritages. His cultivation resources were far off from Donghuang Diyuan. He had accomplished all this by himself, step by step, so it was extremely shocking that he could release such terrifying abilities.


    The destructive storm swept through, and the True Phoenix Divine Sword shattered. The Divine Ruler was also crumbling bit by bit, but that horrible storm still swept towards the two. Ye Futian��s godly body took a few steps back. His feet stepped in the sky and steadied himself after a loud boom.


    Meanwhile, Donghuang Diyuan��s body was sent flying. She let out a muffled grunt, and there was blood at the corner of her lips.


    She lifted her head. Her beautiful features seemed a bit pale now, and the divine phoenix imprint between her brows seemed a bit dull. Her pretty eyes looked towards Ye Futian. Ye Futian felt a complicated emotion flash through her eyes at that moment, but it was gone in an instant, and she became indifferent. She stared coldly at him.


    That windstorm finally swept past, and everyone took a deep breath. Their hearts had gone through tremendous ups and downs. When they looked toward the battlefield, their hearts pulsed. This battle had affected them very strongly.


    Ye Futian had forced Donghuang Diyuan back, and it was Donghuang Diyuan who had activated the Revelation Divine Power.


    As expected, ye Futian was now qualified to stand at the pinnacle and compete for the emperor position with the others. Who of these unparalleled figures could step onto the path to the Great Emperor? ��What power is the Divine Ruler that you received?�� Donghuang Diyuan asked Ye Futian, voice frigid.


    ��Princess, if you��re so curious, how about I tell you privately?�� Ye Futian answered with a cold sneer. The power of the Divine Ruler was compatible with his Life Spirit. He had been learning this power continuously these past few years to turn it into his Way. It was not merely a type of power, nor did it belong to any Way. Of course, he would not tell any of this to Donghuang Diyuan. Plus, there were so many strong figures here. It was honestly a bit strange for Donghuang Diyuan to ask that.


    While they were speaking, a shocking aura suddenly spread over. Dazzling light enveloped the land, and many people looked up. They saw Di Hao��s figure appear in the sky, radiating with incredible divine light.


    A righteous air seemed to appear in the sky and land at that moment. The entire world��s power seemed to be resonating with his body.


    Was Di Hao going to attack too?


    A holy figure appeared. Di Hao had transformed into the Divine Human, sovereign of the world. He stood high in the sky as if all the power in the world was his to use. That righteous air was the correct way of the world. He could control all the power in the world as if he was the god of this world.


    The Divine Human, the power of the human world.


    Ye Futian furrowed his brows. This burst of power was pressing down straight at him. He had just battled furiously with Donghuang Diyuan, and now, Di Hao was going to get involved in the fight, just like attacking Ye Qingyao with Donghuang Diyuan previously.


    It seemed that the rumors might be true. The Human Ancestor of the Human Realm might really propose marriage to Donghuang the Great and want a marriage alliance. He kept stepping out to ally with Donghuang Diyuan. Was he trying to imply something?


    Many huge divine swords abruptly appeared in the sky. A muffled air covered the boundless void, and the huge divine swords hovered in the air above the strong cultivators�� heads. They pointed in Ye Futian��s direction.


    ��Ye Futian, since you fell voluntarily to ally with darkness, the Human Realm can only work to rid the darkness,�� Di Hao announced. His voice shook the heavens. Transformed into the Divine Human, he carried natural mightiness. He pointed down with a finger, and there were horrifying booming sounds. The Sword of Mankind shot down, going murderously towards Ye Futian. The Divine Ruler in Ye Futian��s hands pierced through the void and instantly formed a terrifying Divine Ruler Domain. The huge divine sword shot down but couldn��t break into the domain. It was outside the Divine Ruler Domain.


    But Di Hao did not stop. The power of the world kept converging into divine swords, seamless, endless, crazily stabbing towards Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2766 - Avisura’s Divine Sword

    Chapter 2766 Avisura��s Divine Sword


    The Sword of Mankind crashed down, time and time again, in a highly aggressive manner, making Ye Futian��s huge body fall down the sky. A crack appeared in the domain formed by the Divine Ruler.


    At this time, Di Hao stepped forward. Transformed into the Divine Human, he went for the kill with the divine sword in hand. It was named the Sword of Mankind, but it came from the heavens. Like a sword of the skies, it carried unsurmountable strength and stabbed the defenses directly. The crack in the Divine Ruler Domain instantly started growing


    VV


    Bang! With a loud bang, Ye Futian��s godly figure was forced down. Di Hao��s direct attack had shaken him, forcing Ye Futian back, but it had not caused much damage.


    ��Despicable.��


    The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace cursed. Ye Futian had just fought with Donghuang Diyuan and forced the other back, even injuring this Divine Prefecture princess. Then Di Hao attacked directly, engaging Ye Futian in a second round.


    The strong cultivators all gasped inwardly at this scene. These top figures all had such extraordinary abilities when they attacked.


    They were all the heirs of Great Emperors. Ye Futian was as well. Nowadays, all the realms recognized him as the heir of Emperor Ye Qing. Even though he had inherited the heritages of other Great Emperors, he was the ��descendant of Emperor Ye Qing.�� He had inherited Emperor Ye Qing��s abilities, which were different from the others. Donghuang Diyuan, Di Hao, and the others did not have the heritages of only one Great Emperor either.


    Donghuang Diyuan had inherited the Ancient Phoenix long ago and was baptized by the Ancient Phoenix. She had formed the Unparalleled Body and a strong divine soul. Donghuang the Great wanted his daughter to have no weaknesses and be equal in all aspects.


    Even so, she had still lost when fighting Ye Futian with the Revelation Divine Power and had been forced back.


    They were at a place of destiny, and the defeat of this battle held special meaning Fortunately, the gap did not seem very large, and there was still a chance to turn the tides in the future. At their current level of cultivation, whoever took one step forward would transform and leave the others in the dust.


    Boom�� A horrible storm appeared in the atrium. The crowd looked up at the sky to see Di Hao��s Divine Human become one with the skies and earth. He was the world here; the world here was him.


    All the strong figures felt incredible pressure, and it wasn��t easy to breathe. They stood in the space below and seemed incredibly insignificant. Even Ye Futian��s transformed body seemed a bit trivial compared to the Divine Human that had become one with the world.


    The Divine Human��s shadow covered the vast land.


    The Human Ancestor was the most ancient of Great Emperors, and no one knew how many years he had lived for, but he might be the one who��d lived for the longest in the world. He ruled the Human Realm and was named ��Human Ancestor.��


    Borrowing the power of humans, the Human Ancestor believed that a mortal��s body could be equal to the gods. He represented the righteousness of humanity and had indeed done it. He invented the power of the Divine Human and was invincible, reaching the same level as other Divine Powers.


    Right now, Di Hao had transformed into the Divine Human and was much stronger than at the beginning of the battle. He had seen Ye Futian��s battle with Donghuang Diyuan and knew how strong Ye Futian was. Thus, he also unleashed his strongest abilities instead of hiding them.


    As soon as the Divine Power was out, the skies and lands were repressed to the extreme. A supreme force converged and could be hurled down at any moment.


    Countless cultivators looked up at Ye Futian but saw a figure rise behind him.


    This figure was the ��Reaper,�� Ye Qingyao.


    Ye Qingyao��s body appeared in the sky above Ye Futian. Her eyes seemed to have changed. Her dark gray irises no longer had the feeling of life. There appeared to be a battlefield and a deity in her two eyes. It was the Dark God of War looming on the earth.


    Boom�� A frightening storm of death started. Darkness shrouded the land, and a humongous silhouette of the Dark God of War appeared behind Ye Qingyao. Ye Qingyao��s body gradually melded into it. The horrible divine light of destruction fell from the atrium, darkening the sky.


    Strands of Divine Power that could destroy everything were born from it. When they fell onto the earth, the ground instantly cracked apart with frightening fissures.


    ��King Asura!��


    The strong cultivators all stared at Ye Qingyao. Had she inherited the Asura��s Divine Power from King Asura?


    Of the Heavenly Path��s Eight Legions, Asura represented death and destruction in ancient times. Asura��s Divine Power then was the symbol of death and destruction.


    ��Such strong destructive power.�� The strong Buddhists stared at Ye Qingyao��s figure. Murderous intent appeared in the Medicine Buddha Lord��s eyes. This Ye Qingyao inherited King Asura��s power and awakened Asura��s Divine Power. She was known as the Reaper, and as she continued to grow stronger, she would probably bring even greater disasters to the world.


    Ye Futian also turned back to look at Ye Qingyao now. Qingyao��s growth was the most frightening that he��d witnessed, but this was also due to how special Ye Qingyao was. She was known as the Child of Darkness and belonged to the darkness since birth. She was born with the Divine Body of Darkness, so her cultivation speed was practically frightening.


    Now, she had inherited Asura��s strength, too, possessing Asura��s Divine Power.


    The destructive Divine Power circled Asura��s godly silhouette. An extremely scary divine weapon appeared in Ye Qingyao��s hands. This divine weapon was a combined double sword. Bloody divine light flowed through it, giving off an extremely sharp feeling. ��Avi Divine Sword!��


    The Medicine Buddha Lord stared at the divine sword. The Avi Asura Sword was said to be King Asura��s weapon, and Ye Qingyao got a hold of it.


    The Avi Divine Sword gathered horrifying Divine Power. The world was enveloped in destructive intent. Di Hao frowned slightly, and the Divine Human dealt a blow below. The power of the earth converged into a sword��the Sword of Mankind-and shot downwards murderously.


    The godly silhouette of Asura stabbed with the Avi Divine Sword directly and crashed against the Sword of Mankind that contained the Divine Human��s power. The corrosive and destructive power instantly started destroying the Sword of Mankind. The horrible Divine Power kept climbing up as the massive Sword of Mankind broke inch by inch until it was obliterated and turned to dust.


    Di Hao lifted his hand and created a huge divine seal in the lower sky. The Divine Human released the Seal of Mankind and finally fended off the shockwaves from the Avi Divine Sword, but the seal was also extinguished.


    In the sky, Di Hao��s Divine Human figure looked down on Asura��s figure with an extremely grave expression. He stared at the red Avi Divine Sword. It was actually two connected swords. Like a bloody blade, it emanated the frightening Divine Power of Asura. It was as if anything would be destroyed if it was hit by it.


    Boom! Just then, Buddhist light dazzled. The Medicine Buddha Lord walked over, and countless Buddhas followed after him. Their eyes looked at Ye Qingyao, who had transformed into King Asura and held the Avi Divine Sword.


    She had not only inherited Asura��s Divine Power. Now, she had even brought out the Asura Legion��s imperial weapon. This was a disaster to the cultivation world.


    ��What are the bald mules doing?�� an indifferent voice asked. Then the strong figures of the Devil Imperial Palace also walked forth. The devil intent roiled and roared on them. The Devil and Dark Worlds had always been against the Western Heaven World of Buddhism. They could not stand the Buddhist cultivators.


    At present, the two parties had clear standpoints. If the Buddhists of the Western Heaven World of Buddhism attacked, they naturally would not just stand by!

 Chapter 2767 - The Medicine Buddha Lord Attacks

    Chapter 2767 The Medicine Buddha Lord Attacks


    The strong cultivators advanced from all directions. A stalemate situation appeared between the top figures of the six realms and the boundless land became extremely repressive.


    And at this time, the battlefield up above also stopped. The Lord Shaman and Li Daoshou��s figures separated. Their auras hovered on them, but they were still horribly frightening and covered a portion of the sky.


    Great battles were in process everywhere in the distant battlefields.


    The Medicine Buddha Lord looked down the sky, staring at Ye Qingyao, holding the Avi Divine Sword, and Ye Futian. ��If Asura is not destroyed, the universe will be at risk,�� he said. ��Buddhists, please work hard.��


    ��Amitabha.�� All the Buddhists put their hands together in prayer. Buddhist light shone from their bodies, and their expressions were solemn. The Vajra Buddha Lord said to Ye Futian to persuade him, ��Benefactor Ye, why must you be so stubborn? You do not have to be involved in the war of the six realms.��


    ��Thank you, Buddha Lord, for your concern.�� Ye Futian also put his hands together in greeting. ��I naturally am not qualified to join the war of the six realms and do not wish to do so either. But I was unwillingly involved, and I already said the reason so that I won��t mention it again. If you all must attack, you do not need to show mercy.��


    ��Amitabha.�� The Buddhists chanted the Buddha��s name, and Buddhist light illuminated the boundless land. It grew brighter and brighter, enveloping the boundless sky in the Buddhist light. Instantly, the Dark power of death and destruction scattered madly, extinguishing under the Buddhist light as if the Buddhist doctrine would purify it.


    ��Hmph!�� The top figures of the Devil and Dark Worlds also released a frightening aura. Devilish might filled the sky at once, rolling and roaring. The strong cultivators of the Dark World were covered in death and destruction. These forces converged into a chaotic current. This region became extremely violent, as if it would be ignited at a touch.


    ��Give this woman to me to deal with,�� the Medicine Buddha Lord said. As soon as he spoke, he reached his palm out. The precious treasure of the Buddhist clan was released instantly. It was the Cleansing Vaidurya Pagoda-a precious item of the Buddhist clan and the supreme Buddhist item of the Medicine Buddha Lord��s Buddhist cultivation court.


    The Cleansing Vaidurya Pagoda flew out, enlarging instantly. It covered the sky and sun like a boundless divine pagoda that reached the heavens. Incomparable purifying Buddhist light was released from it. When the strands of golden Buddhist light shone, the powers of destruction and death and the Devil Path��s power were all cleansed. They turned to ash and vanished instantly.


    Rounds of aggressively purifying Buddhist light swept out of the pagoda. It was like a supreme ancient Buddha appeared in the skies, shining down with Buddhist light. The cultivators of the Dark World below were in extreme pain. The dark power within them was about to be cleansed and wiped out. They were forced to release their abilities to the


    max.


    Ye Qingyao, transformed into King Asura, held the Avi Divine Sword. The blood-red destructive Divine Power surged toward the upper sky, and her body also went up. She faced this supreme item of the Buddhist clan alone and stabbed toward the pagoda with the Avi Divine Sword in her hand.


    The rounds of pagoda silhouettes sweeping down were directly annihilated under the destructive Divine Power. The frightening Divine Power of Asura penetrated from within and continued up, attacking the pagoda itself.


    Clang! With a huge sound, the frightening Avi Divine Sword stabbed right into the Cleansing Vaidurya Pagoda, making the pagoda shake violently. The destructive Divine Power of Asura flooded the pagoda wildly, about to destroy this supreme Buddhist item.


    But then the Medicine Buddha Lord��s figure appeared above the pagoda. He slammed down at the pagoda with a palm. There was instantly another huge boom and divine light swept across the pagoda, forcing the Avi Divine Sword back.


    ��So powerful.�� Ye Futian stared up into the sky. The Medicine Buddha Lord��s abilities were terrifying. This Great Buddha had a very high status in the Buddhist clan. He had vaguely felt it when cultivating in the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven back then. Even Saint Zhenchan had to ask to meet him. He had a special status and had always been cultivating in the Vaidurya Pure World.


    His cultivation might be at the pinnacle of the Near-Deity Level. The overall level of the Buddhist clan was frighteningly intense. It was not even the entire group this time. There were some Buddhists among the clan who did not wish to take part in conflicts. They focused solely on the Buddha and cultivating the Buddhist doctrine.


    The Medicine Buddha Lord stood high in the sky. The Cleansing Vaidurya Pagoda seemed to become an illusion. It passed right through his body but then seemed to combine into one with him.


    The Medicine Buddha Lord held the mudra and closed his eyes. He seemed solemn. Instantly, the boundless Buddhist doctrine covered the vast sky. The light of the Cleansing Vaidurya Pagoda shone across thousands of miles, covering the extremely vast battlefield. It was like a Buddhist lantern had lit up behind the Medicine Buddha Lord. He chanted Buddhist words, and the boundless Buddhist doctrine covered the entire world. The Buddhist light illuminated the world, and all the intents of death and destruction in the vast sky battlefield were cleansed.


    At the same time, under the Buddhist light, rounds of pagoda silhouettes pressed down on the silhouette of King Asura. The cleansing Buddhist light also shone, illuminating this domain.


    Seeing this scene, Ye Futian��s brows furrowed slightly. He had a bad feeling. Ye Qingyao was already very strong and had inherited Asura��s Divine Power, wielding the emperor��s weapon. However, she was still far from the Medicine Buddha Lord in her understanding of the Way and doctrines. The Medicine Buddha Lord was a supreme figure of the Buddhist clan and had the Cleansing Vaidurya Pagoda to counter the Avi Divine Sword. Under these circumstances, Ye Qingyao might be restrained by the other.


    The Avi Divine Sword released a blood-red light and transformed into a curtain of light. It circled above King Asura��s body.


    The divine light of the pagoda shot down, shaking the blood-red curtain of light. The frightening Cleansing Vaidurya Pagoda was the power of the Buddhist clan. It actually seeped into the curtain of light, eroding Asura��s Divine Power.


    This attack was also endless. Pagoda silhouettes kept sweeping down to attack, causing the blood-red light curtain to be eaten up slowly.


    Clang! There was a huge sound, and the light curtain shattered. The cleansing Vaidurya light invaded, and the pagoda fell down to kill directly. It smashed onto the Avi Divine Sword, forcing Ye Qingyao-transformed into King Asura-back. She let out a muffled grunt.


    Clearly, Ye Qingyao��s abilities had reached this level, but she still lacked a lot of experience.


    The Medicine Buddha Lord��s attacks hadn��t stopped yet. He continued to deal blows downward to Ye Qingyao. He stood in the void with his eyes closed, Buddhist light shining upon the region.


    ��Ling Long,�� Ye Futian called out. Ling Long had been behind Ye Futian the entire time. Now, her figure flashed. Torrents of battle intent surged on her body, formed by the Will of Tianshen. She went straight to the air above Ye Qingyao. The aggressive Will of Tianshen countered the murderous Buddhist power. She raised her arms, and instantly, the pagoda shook violently.


    ��Another one.�� The Medicine Buddha Lord stared at Ling Long, seeming to sense how special Ling Long was. However, they didn��t know what he meant by ��another one.��


    Boom! At that moment, a strong force fell upon Ye Futian. He raised his head and saw Di Hao still staring at him. Was Di Hao still brooding about his fight with Donghuang Diyuan earlier?

 Chapter 2768 - Speaks of Benevolence

    Chapter 2768 Speaks of Benevolence


    A frightening natural phenomenon appeared around Di Hao. He had transformed into the Divine Human and was like the sovereign of the world.


    Supreme might weighed down on Ye Futian. He raised his head to look up at that face and then took a step up to the void.


    ��Since you want to fight so badly, then let us fight without reserve.��


    After Ye Futian spoke, his figure rushed into the sky, charging into the clouds. However, no matter how he flew up, that Divine Human��s silhouette was always above him. It was like it had become one with the heavens above his head, representing the order of this land.


    The power of the Divine Human represented the supreme power of the human world, reaching the level of gods as a mortal human.


    Boom! A horrible aura burst from Ye Futian��s body. The Divine Ruler��s power swept out, and the emerald storm encircled his body. A gust of horrifying aura of the Great Way flared from Ye Futian��s body.


    ��Ye Futian, Donghuang the Great was willing to show you mercy so that I can give you a chance too. The Human Realm represents the order of the human world. If you��re willing to turn back, there might still be a place for you in the world as the descendant of Emperor Ye Qing,�� Di Hao said. His body had the air of righteousness, and he had a benevolent heart. It surprised Ye Futian a bit.


    Of course, he did not know if Di Hao was genuine or not, but he encouraged Ye Futian to turn back in times like this. How could he turn back? Why would he turn back?


    It had been the Divine Prefecture that had been so aggressive ever since he started cultivating in the Ziwei Segmentum. Telling him to turn back?


    ��Even though you started cultivating earlier than me, you��re only one of the heirs of the Human Realm. It��s still unknown if you can step onto the path of the emperor to inherit the position, but you��re encouraging me to turn back. Who are you to make the decision?�� Ye Futian asked calmly. ��Are you able to influence the Human Ancestor or Donghuang the Great?��


    Plus, according to what the Dark Sovereign had said, the Human Ancestor had had a hand in Emperor Ye Qing��s death back then. The world did not allow the Divine Prefecture to have the Twin Emperors. O course, he vaguely felt that this wasn��t the full history. It would probably be a while before the truth of that history could be revealed.


    Di Hao stared at Ye Futian. Naturally, he could not influence the Human Ancestor or Donghuang the Great. He continued saying, ��The Human Ancestor is the ancestor of humanity. He manages the justice of the world. Donghuang the Great has a peerless breadth of spirit. Of course, he would tolerate you. Since he did not kill you in the Divine Prefecture back then, it already shows his attitude. I can��t influence them, but this is still a chance for you. If you continue down this path, you will have no chance of survival.��


    Ye Futian counted as a top figure too and was cream of the crop. It was just that his background was the weakest, so to Di Hao, he would suffer the most if a storm swept through the seven realms. The other heirs would not face the threat of death, but it wasn��t the same for Ye Futian.


    Who could protect him?


    ��Justice of the world?�� Ye Futian was shocked when he heard Di Hao��s words. Since when could the Human Realm represent the justice of the world?


    ��You speak so much of benevolence and morals. Why don��t you have the cultivators of the Human Realm come cultivate in the Devil Abyss or have the people of the Devil Realm move out of the Devil Abyss and into the Human Realm?�� some people below retorted. They did not like Di Hao��s words.


    The Devil Realm had been in the Devil Abyss generation after generation. Who were the ones that stopped them from leaving the Devil Abyss?


    ��The world shall have its order.�� Di Hao glanced at the ground below. The supreme might was still hanging over the lower sky. Ye Futian stood there, unmoved. He reached a hand out and, in an instant, countless divine swords appeared in the surrounding skies and land.


    Every divine sword had extremely beautiful runes that shimmered with outstanding divine light. These divine swords flowed against the tide, releasing incredible sword intent.


    ��Heaven Slay!�� Ye Futian lifted a finger. Instantly, boundless divine swords broke through the air, moving towards that place in the sky and the Divine Human, Di Hao.


    Brilliant divine light shone from the Divine Human. In the sky, countless divine swords also plummeted down, transforming into the Sword of Mankind. It clashed against the rising Heaven Slaying Divine Sword, and a destructive storm of Sword Qi swept over in the sky instantly.


    Amidst it, a huge sword continued going up against the tide. It penetrated the void and shot up murderously, wanting to open up the sky and kill the Divine Human.


    Divine light shimmered on Di Hao��s body. The Divine Human pointed a finger down. Instantly, a huge Sword of Mankind shot down, destroying all existences. It crashed against the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword, and, like the world falling apart, a destructive current flooded the space.


    Before Di Hao could process everything, he felt an even stronger aura descend in the sky. Ye Futian lifted the massive Heaven Slaying Divine Sword as if it was a sword of laws that controlled the order of the world. He kept rising, penetrating the void. Everything in his path was turned to dust; no force could stop him. Even the Sword of Mankind also disintegrated.


    The Divine Ruler Sword shot towards that area, opening up the sky and destroying the Divine Human.


    The Will of the Great Way all started roaring madly. At that moment, Di Hao seemed to have gathered all the strength of humanity onto himself. He represented the Way of the Human Realm, controlling the world order.


    He put his hands under the atrium. A humongous divine sword appeared between his huge hands. The thousand-zhang-long sword had extremely beautiful divine runes on it. The beautiful divine runes represented the order of humanity and ruled over the murderous power of the world. Countless frighting currents flowed down, along with numerous sword silhouettes. But these silhouettes seemed to kill strong figures of the same level.


    The two substantial divine swords crashed again in the sky. In an instant, dazzling divine light stabbed into people��s eyes. The massive Divine Powers flowed through the air. Ye Futian��s body seemed to have become one with the Sword of the Divine Ruler, indistinguishable. He was part of the sword, and the rule power within him flowed out madly. Under the shocked gazes of the strong cultivators, a crack appeared in the tip of the thousand-zhang-long divine sword. Then it started breaking, and the crack grew bigger. The Divine Sword had started falling apart.


    Even though it contained the power of the Divine Human, it was still being destroyed. It couldn��t stop the Sword of the Divine Ruler.


    The Divine Ruler continued climbing. It stabbed through the thousand-zhang-long divine Sword and went for the atrium. This scene made the pupils of the strong cultivators below constrict. However, they accepted it after. Ye Futian had previously used the Power of the Divine Ruler to defeat Donghuang Diyuan. It naturally wasn��t too surprising that he destroyed Di Hao��s Sword of Mankind. The Divine Ruler was a divine item-even a supreme divine item. Ye Futian had already melded it into his body and was able to use it in all sorts of ways, like carrying an emperor weapon.


    The Divine Human retreated up the sky and instantly appeared in the distance. However, the Divine Ruler was like a bolt of lightning. It stabbed into that area, penetrating it. The massive force caused the sky to crack, destroying all the power gathered there.


    It probably was not so easy for Di Hao to defeat Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2769 - Break the Illusion

    Chapter 2769 Break the Illusion


    The Divine Human��s body appeared in the sky. It seemed to be omnipresent. Right then, everyone saw that a guqin had appeared in the hand of Di Hao, who��d transformed into the Divine Human. It was an imperial arm. Divine light flowed across the guqin, emanating the Will of the Great Emperor.


    ��The relic inherited from the Human Realm,�� the strong cultivators thought when they saw this scene. The relic of the Eight Legions that the Human Realm controlled was Gandharva. It was known as the god of music. Di Hao must have inherited that relic��s heritage and had never used its strength before.


    Di Hao was also skilled in the Way of Music. Now that he was using an emperor-level divine instrument, no one knew how mighty he would be.


    The Divine Human played the guqin, and Divine Power instantly entered the guqin. Music notes pulsed out, and a magical curtain of light swept out abruptly. In that instant, many Divine Humans appeared in the atrium, in the vast land. They were all doing the same action-playing the divine instrument.


    Ye Futian stood there and was instantly inside an illusory world. The music brought him to the domain of the illusory world. The Divine Human��s silhouettes were all around him. It seemed to be a sealed world with no exit.


    Paired with the dancing music notes, he saw a silhouette of the Divine Human charge at him with a divine sword. The might was shocking.


    Ye Futian��s body was encircled by emerald divine light, covering his body. Seeing the other party charge, he hacked down with the Divine Ruler. The huge ruler��s silhouette shattered the incoming Divine Human silhouette, emitting a thunderous sound. However, Ye Futian also frowned. That attack had been solid. It wasn��t just an illusion.


    The piercing music kept dancing. The divine notes were not pleasant at all and extremely grating to the ear, making Ye Futian very uncomfortable. It was even affecting his perception. Many Divine Human figures walked over from the vast lands simultaneously, walking towards Ye Futian. Each Divine Human contained the power of the Divine Human. They wielded divine swords and pointed them at Ye Futian.


    The Divine Ruler in Ye Futian��s hands danced. In an instant, Divine Ruler silhouettes appeared and covered the sky, blocking the sun. They circled his body. He released his battle form, and his body also transformed into a god. While the enormous Divine Ruler danced, a strong domain also appeared in the surroundings. He was the true sovereign within this domain.


    The many Divine Human figures attacked with the Divine Ruler. It did not seem to be a Sword of Mankind anymore. Instead, it was here to kill gods and slice apart the sky, wanting to utterly destroy the domain where Ye Futian was.


    Boom! When Ye Futian��s battle form waved the Divine Ruler, the domain was filled with silhouettes of the Divine Ruler. The divine sword arrived and was shattered instantly. This was an absolute rules domain.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Ruler silhouettes filled the sky, sweeping everything in the surroundings. All the Divine Human silhouettes were shattered, but the Divine Human silhouettes seemed endless and infinite. The divine music was still influencing him. The grating noise interfered with him releasing the Will of Great Path. The world that he saw was even becoming chaotic. The hallucination was getting stronger.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was sure that he was no longer seeing the true world anymore. The other had used the divine music to create an absolute illusory domain, completely interfering with his judgment. There were strong attacks simultaneously.


    ��Must find a way to break through this illusory world,�� Ye Futian thought. Buddhist light snaked up his body, steadying his heart and stopping his mindset from being disrupted by the illusion. Divine light also appeared in his eyes. There was even emerald divine light in those eyes, transforming them into divine eyes.


    The divine eyes saw through everything and could see through all illusions in the world to the truth. He could see many illusory scenes fading. Order returned once again to the chaotic world. He could see the figures of Divine Human charging over, but they weren��t fake. Whether illusory or real, the Divine Human��s attacks were tangible.


    Of course, he saw where Di Hao��s true body was. He was standing somewhere in the atrium, playing the guqin. More and more frightening attacks fell down, going towards Ye Futian.


    At that moment, Di Hao seemed to feel something, as if being exposed. He looked down at where Ye Futian was but found that Ye Futian wasn��t looking at him. After scanning the sky above, he continued to brandish the Divine Ruler, fending off the attacks from the surrounding Divine Humans.


    The extremely cacophonous sounds swept through everything, but the Divine Human��s attacks grew stronger and stronger. The Divine Ruler also grew bigger and bigger until it covered the sky and sun.


    Boom! There was another huge boom. Under the Three-Ruler Law, countless Divine Human figures were obliterated. The Divine Ruler created an ancient path that led to the atrium. Transformed into a heavenly god, Ye Futian continued to wield the Divine Ruler, attacking upwards once again.


    The moment this blow was dealt, his figure vanished from the spot. He crossed the space directly and appeared high in the sky. The Three-Ruler Law covered the space, locking a Divine Human in the domain. That Divine Human was transformed from Di Hao��s true self.


    Di Hao��s expression was shocked. He retreated, wanting to leave this space, but discovered that he was already within the Divine Ruler��s domain. This blow had covered the sky and sun, locking the space. The situation was the opposite from previously.


    ��Boom!�� Di Hao��s Divine Power exploded intensely. As if becoming part of the world here, horrible strength rolled off his body. His divine instrument flew forward and danced, divine light shooting out of the strings to kill Ye Futian.


    Countless people looked up in the sky. It was like there were two heavenly gods fighting in this domain. The horrible attack pressed down, making the strong cultivators�� hearts race.


    Di Hao seemed to have been careless. His domain had become ineffective, and his true form had been hit by Ye Futian directly, causing him to face this situation. If he��d attacked face-to-face, this would not have happened.


    as


    se so


    Bang! There was an intense sound from the atrium as if the atrium had exploded. The horrible Qi swept through the heavens. The space around Di Hao seemed to have exploded. He had become one with the world, but the moment that the Divine Ruler attacked, that patch of the world had been destroyed directly.


    ��Careful!��


    Ye Futian sent Di Hao flying with one blow and hadn��t stopped yet, but he still spoke. A shocking force then exploded in Ye Futian��s direction, forming a huge divine print. It dazzled and blocked down Ye Futian��s power of Divine Ruler.


    Even though it broke under the Divine Ruler��s attacks, this blow also stopped Ye Futian for a moment. Di Hao retreated even further away and his aura combined with the world again. He stared in Ye Futian��s direction.


    An elder stood beside him-a top figure of the Human Realm. He looked across to Ye Futian again. This guy was able to activate the Divine Power of the Divine Ruler in his eyes. That was how he��d broken the illusion and found Di Hao��s true form. So unexpected.


    Ye Futian��s gaze swept towards Di Hao. His aura was wavering, and blood seeped from the corner of his lips. He had gotten hurt from that blow, but divine light still circled him. The injury wasn��t too serious!

 Chapter 2770 - Murderous Intent

    Chapter 2770 Murderous Intent


    The elder from the Human Realm stared at Ye Futian. An astonishing pressure emanated from Ye Futian��s figure. He still had no intention of stopping.


    At the same time, a peerless demonic might roared and churned. This caused the elder to narrow his gaze as he detected an intense sense of danger. Demonic might blocked out the sun, and the heavens turned dim. A demonic catastrophe appeared in the sky. Countless bolts of terrifying lightning struck down.


    A peerless demonic phantasm appeared. The skies trembled. The elder looked towards where the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace stood in the distance. Over there, Yu Sheng had transformed into a demon god wielding a demonic saber. He slashed out with the saber, and frighteningly vivid jet-black demonic cracks appeared in the sky. Countless cultivators in the distance raised their heads and saw this slash from the demon god. It slashed across the sky and cleaved the space itself in two.


    The cultivators of the Human Realm were so busy dealing with Ye Futian that they seemed to have forgotten that Devil Imperial Palace was eyeing them from the sidelines.


    After Yu Sheng saw that Di Hao had been defeated and another person had stepped forward, he naturally could not sit idly anymore. He immediately unleashed the Nine Slashes of the Demon God. His strike contained the power of the demon god.


    The elder also had extremely quick reflexes. His will shifted, and the part of the sky before him became a divine wall. Dazzling runes lit up, but the terrifying demonic saber charged down. The destructive, overbearing slash cleaved the wall in two. The wall posed no resistance at all.


    The saber slashed down, but a gigantic silhouette of a Divine Human appeared before Di Hao and the elder. It became one with the heavens and the earth as it placed its palms together and caught the domineering demonic saber midway. Saber Will slashed down on its figure but did not manage to leave its divine body.


    An intense rumbling could be heard in the surrounding space. The whole area seemed to explode. A divine light radiated from Di Hao��s pupils. This Divine Human silhouette was summoned by him. It was one with the heavens and the earth and blocked the slash.


    He was injured by Ye Futian��s attack, though it could be said that his injury resulted from his carelessness.


    After cultivating for eons, he never imagined that a junior would harm him.


    Buzz. A menacing saber slashed down, blocking out the sky. It seemed to cleave the sky and overlapped with the Saber Will of the first slash. The space around the Divine Human kept exploding.


    Bang. Yu Sheng took a step forward. The sky trembled, and the figure of the demon god loomed over the space. Its figure became 100 Zhang tall. When the third slash came down, the slashes overlapped and merged. Finally, following the frenzied explosions and collapse of the Great Path around the Divine Human, the latter gave way. The demonic saber slipped through its palms and slashed down on its figure.


    Di Hao stood behind the Divine Human as divine power surged frenziedly into its figure. When he saw that another slash was coming, he wanted to retreat. A terrifying aura circled him and the elder beside him as he prepared to avoid Yu Sheng��s ferocious attack. The jade-green divine halos formed a domain that covered the sky.


    Ye Futian also walked over towards the two of them. Rumbling could be heard, and the gigantic Divine Ruler in his hand became the huge divine sword, Heaven Slaying Divine Sword. It was unstoppable.


    Di Hao wanted to retreat after attacking?


    Wasn��t that too easy? Ye Futian had not fought side-by-side with Yu Sheng in a very long time. Now that they were already heading towards the highest plane together, they had another opportunity to join forces and face their opponents together.


    Countless divine swords rained down. The Divine Ruler that became the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword was even more unstoppable. This scene caused the cultivators of the Human Realm to feel that things were taking a turn for the worst. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were both top-level fighters. With their combined strength, they could defeat Di Hao and the elder.


    The cultivators of the Human Realm advanced one by one, attempting to intervene in this battle.


    Rumble. A menacing demonic catastrophe descended from the heavens. The cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace suddenly appeared before them. A terrifying domain enveloped the vast space. Yan Guiyi led the way. He pointed his imperial arm in his hand at the cultivators of the Human Realm.


    They were the ones who started the fight, and now they wanted to intervene?


    The cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace did not mind joining the fight. There was another reason for Yan Guiyi to make his move.


    Although Ye Futian and the Divine Prefecture had deep grudges against each other, it was not the case for the Human Realm. As for the World of Buddhism, although Ye Futian had killed Shenyan Buddha Lord, the upper echelons did not mind. Ye Futian had the blessing of buddhas, and there was a Buddha Lord supporting him. Rumor has it that the Buddha Lord had once cultivated with The Buddha.


    Although Medicine Buddha Lord had also fought today, Yan Guiyi did not mind pushing Ye Futian to draw a line in the sand with the other party. Ye Futian should stand completely opposed to the Human Realm. This was also what the Dark Sovereign wanted to do. He ordered Ye Qingyao and the cultivators of the Dark Court to instigate this war. Aside from the war itself, he also wanted to force Ye Futian to pick a side.


    Yan Guiyi also had this idea. It was best if Ye Futian and Ziwei Imperial Palace had no option of backing out. Only then could they indeed be considered to have chosen a side.


    As they blocked the way, the Divine Ruler came crashing down. Di Hao was facing Yu Sheng��s attack. The elder was also a top cultivator of the Human Realm. He summoned an imperial arm, and a gigantic ancient bell immediately appeared. It rang as it headed up into the sky. In an instant, the sound of the bell reverberated throughout the space, becoming a destructive sound wave that swept across the sky. Many people felt their spiritual souls tremble violently when they heard it. It was as though they were gradually being shattered and were beginning to lose consciousness.


    Ye Futian similarly sensed that the ancient bell contained divine power. However, the Divine Ruler that had become the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword still slashed down. It crashed on the ancient bell with a loud clang and sent it flying backward from the shockwave.


    V


    ven


    Dong! Another loud dong could be heard. The other party struck the ancient bell once again with his palm. This caused it to grow even more significant. Endless divine light burst forth and once again charged towards the Divine Ruler.


    Clang. The Divine Ruler that had become the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword was blocked. The other party looked up and swept a glance at Ye Futian. The radiant light that burst forth from this ancient bell imperial arm shot towards the latter.


    Right then, Di Hao saw a pair of frightening eyes. They were the eyes of Ye Futian, and they contained a jade-green light. With just a glance, the eyes brought him into an Eye Sorcery Zone. The elder of the Human Realm sensed that he had entered into another world, the Eye Sorcery Zone of Ye Futian.


    He faintly sensed that he was in danger. The cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace immediately took action and sealed off the reinforcements of the Human Realm. Yu Sheng and Ye Futian attacked together, showing no mercy. Their attacks were extremely overbearing. Yu Sheng��s powerful slash from the demonic saber occupied Di Hao, causing him to be unable to shift his attention elsewhere. As for Ye Futian, Di Hao sensed murderous intent coming from him.


    The Sound of Buddha suddenly circled in the Eye Sorcery Zone. It filled the space. He wanted to affect Ye Futian with the ancient bell. However, the Sound of Buddha was like a spell of the Great Path. It made him very uncomfortable. At the same time, buddhas appeared in the sky. The various buddhas attacked simultaneously, sending out All Heaven Buddha��s Seals.


    The elder put his hands together and did the same action as the Buddhist cultivators. Loud clanging reverberated across the space. Countless ancient bells clashed with the giant All Heaven Buddha��s Seals.


    At the same time, Ye Futian waved the gigantic Divine Ruler that covered the sky.


    When the elder saw the shadow of this ruler, an intense sense of danger welled up inside him!

 Chapter 2771 - If Hell Is Not Emptied, We Are Not Done

    Chapter 2771 If Hell Is Not Emptied, We Are Not Done


    Clang. There was another loud clang as the ancient bell grew to become a humongous golden bell that shrouded the elder��s figure. Dazzling divine light flowed over the imperial arm. It was indestructible.


    The Divine Ruler crashed onto the imperial arm. A loud clang erupted, causing the ancient bell imperial arm to fly downwards. The entire domain was shaken. The ancient bell flew towards the elder. However, the other party shifted together with it. The power of the Great Path in his body became one with the bell, and it securely protected him.


    It is an imperial arm that covers both offense and defense, some people thought when they saw this scene. If that was the case, the elder was undefeatable. Although Ye Futian had powerful combat ability, shattering an imperial arm was far-fetched. It was practically impossible for him to penetrate the elder��s defenses.


    However, Ye Futian coldly snorted. The light of the Divine Ruler surged out and formed a gigantic ring that enveloped the ancient bell. Divine light of the Great Path of Space burst forth from the ring.


    What is he doing? Many people thought as they narrowed their eyes. This ring kept expanding, and then it consumed the ancient bell. The latter sank into the former and was engulfed by it gradually. When it was defending, the ancient bell lost its attack power. It could not destroy the ring or intercept it. It could only be gradually consumed.


    As the ancient bell sank into the ring, the parts of it that sank into the latter vanished. It was as though they were no longer present in this space.


    The expression of the elder within the imperial arm changed slightly. His opponent was consuming his imperial arm with an independent Great Path of Space. By the time he realized this, the spatial ring had already consumed the bell along with him. The ancient bell and the elder inside it both disappeared. Only the ring still remained. It was its own independent space and had swallowed up the other party. Ye Futian waved his hand, and the power of Space instantly surged out. The ring immediately traversed space and disappeared from its original spot. It seemed to have been banished by Ye Futian to a far-off place, bringing along the elder and the imperial arm.


    As a result, what was originally a two-against-two scenario became two-versus-one. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were both present, whereas only Di Hao remained on the Human Realm��s side.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Futian were both powerful combatants. Di Hao was already having a hard time dealing with Yu Sheng alone. If Ye Futian joined in now, what would the outcome be?


    Ye Futian wielded the Divine Ruler and advanced. The will of the Great Path furiously burst forth from his figure. Before this, his battle with Di Hao had been interrupted by the elder and later became a two-on-two battle. Now that one person had been banished by Ye Futian, he would not hold back.


    They appeared to be the scariest of demons as they wielded dark demonic sabers that contained world-destroying might. They unleashed the Nine Slashes of the Heavenly Demon. At the same time, Yu Sheng stood before Di Hao and became the Demonic Lord. His jet-black eyes were terrifying.


    Under such circumstances, Di Hao already had his hands full dealing with Yu Sheng. He could not spare any attention for Ye Futian.


    The expressions of the cultivators of the Human Realm changed when they saw this scene. They wanted to charge over to help, but Yan Guiyi and the others were not ordinary figures. The lineup of Devil Imperial Palace was not weak at all. They held off the cultivators of the Human Realm, preventing them from interfering in Yu Sheng��s battle.


    Bang. With a loud bang, the silhouette of the Divine Human was struck again by the Divine Ruler and shattered. Ye Futian had attacked.


    Many gazes shifted towards where Ye Futian stood. His attacks rained down continuously. The phantasms of the Divine Human were all destroyed.


    High up in the sky, Yu Sheng��s saber and Ye Futian��s Divine Ruler both slashed down.


    Rumble. A dull thud could be heard. Even with the Divine Human unleashing its power to the max, it could not withstand the combined attack of two top prominent figures. Di Hao was swept away and sent flying outwards. With a dull groan, he vomited fresh blood.


    Yu Sheng still did not cease his attacks, sending another saber slashing down. Di Hao became the Divine Human and was gigantic. Divine power surged as he attempted to catch the demonic saber cleaving down on him. However, he also had to withstand a terrifying power.


    He relied on space, and the power of the heavens and the earth became his own. He formed a wall of the Great Path around him. This part of the sky also became part of his own body. It lit up with divine halos.


    The space even seemed to warp as it swept towards Ye Futian��s figure.


    When Ye Futian saw this, he did not stop. He waved the Divine Ruler and formed a domain. He stood within the absolute space and was not affected by external influences. The Divine Ruler slashed down furiously and shattered the distorted space. It then struck the wall of the Great Path and caused the Divine Human phantasm to once again cough up blood. Its face turned pale.


    ulc


    The demonic saber continued cleaving down, splitting the space like chopping up bamboo. Ye Futian��s Divine Ruler also struck out again, sweeping towards the Divine Human. They were determined to shake Di Hao up.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. Endless domineering attacks continued to rain down. The space was exploding frenziedly. The figure of the Divine Human shattered with a loud bang. Di Hao returned to his original form and was sent flying far out into the distance. He kept throwing up fresh blood. He had taken a considerable blow. His injuries were already severe.


    Yu Sheng and Ye Futian still wanted to continue attacking. However, the Light of Buddha radiated, and they saw it envelop Di Hao��s body. His body then disappeared from his original spot.


    They looked in another direction and saw a Buddha Lord with his palms together. Di Hao had been taken away by him.


    ��Wutian Buddha Lord,�� Ye Futian greeted the person and stopped pursuing Di Hao. Wutian Buddha Lord was kind to him in the past. Celerity, which Ye Futian practiced, had the same root as Wutian Buddha Lord. To Ye Futian��s surprise, the other party saved Di Hao.


    ��Amitabha,�� Wutian Buddha Lord chanted while putting his hands together. He said, ��Benefactor Ye, please spare him.��


    Ye Futian similarly put his hands together and said, ��Buddha Lord, I am sure you saw what happened. I did not attack him first, but I was forced to defend myself because of his aggressive attacks.��


    ��This war will surely result in countless deaths in the cultivation world. I hope Benefactor Ye can stop this war,�� Wutian Buddha Lord pleaded. He was full of mercy and had compassion for all living beings.


    Ye Futian replied, ��This war is not something I can stop on my own. Who would listen to me in the Seven Realms?��


    ��Wutian Buddha Lord, the World of Buddhism is well aware of the cause of the war among the Seven Realms. Why is there a war now?�� Yan Guiyi stopped fighting as well. He looked at Wutian Buddha Lord and questioned, ��After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the cultivation world is supposed to belong to everyone. Yet, why is the Devil World trapped underneath the Devil Abyss? For countless years, we have been suffering due to the Devil Abyss!��


    Wutian Buddha Lord responded, ��Suffering is part of living. Benefactor Yan, what you said is not something I can solve. If the heavens and the earth give birth to an almighty figure, that person might be able to deliver you from your agony.��


    Yan Guiyi continued, ��Since that��s the case, wouldn��t it be fairer for each realm to take turns guarding the Devil Abyss? There is a Buddhist saying: if I don��t go to Hell, who will? Could it be that it is just lip service?��


    Wutian Buddha Lord did not respond.


    ��If Hell is not emptied, the Devil World is not done,�� Yan Guiyi said in a voice as cold as ice!

 Chapter 2772 - Buddha of Destiny

    Chapter 2772 Buddha of Destiny


    Rumble. Just as Yan Guiyi finished his sentence, frightening divine light appeared in the heavens. It seemed that a space passage had opened. Beams of unparalleled divine light shone down, forming a unique path.


    Countless people looked up in that direction. A menacing aura emanated from within the passageway. ��Who is it?�� someone asked in a low voice. Ye Futian and the others also looked up in that direction. Astonishing beams of divine light shot out from the space passage and descended upon the land. Then, existences like ancient gods emerged. Each of them had extremely terrifying auras. Divine power surged from their figures. It was as though ancient gods had descended upon the world.


    Di Hao was stunned upon seeing the arriving cultivators. Then, he regained his senses. He revealed a strange look as he thought to himself, They actually came here.


    The other top figures from the Human Realm also narrowed their eyes in surprise as they stared at the arriving cultivators.


    The cultivators looked down from the heavens above and glanced at the top figures present here. Then, they fixed their gazes on Di Hao.


    ��Human Ancestor has assigned us to come to war,�� one of them said. Di Hao nodded slightly. After that, they swept a glance at Ye Futian, Ye Qingyao, and the rest of their group. Immediately, Ye Futian felt a terrifying might pressing down on him.


    Many cultivators were puzzled when they sensed this mighty pressure. They had never known of such terrifying figures existing in the Human Realm.


    On the other hand, the leaders of the top forces vaguely knew of the existence of these mighty figures. However, their hearts couldn��t help but tremble when they finally saw these figures in person. The leaders from the Human Realm were especially in awe since they could recognize a few faces from the arriving group.


    Of course, the top figures from the Emperor-level forces were well-aware of the identity of the arriving group. Since they were part of the Emperor-level forces, they naturally knew some secrets. Nevertheless, such affairs were not widely known even among members of the Emperor-level forces. Even the insiders did not know the details.


    Ye Futian also did not have any inside scoop. His brows were tightly knitted as he withstood the might. His facial expression changed slightly. The auras of each of these cultivators were frightening. All of them were near-deities. Since when did such a domineering group exist?


    Moreover, they seemed to be from the same force �C the Human Realm.


    ��As expected,�� mumbled Supreme Swordlord. He scanned across the stupefied crowd and communicated with Ye Futian via transmitted thoughts, ��Be careful. They are all monstrous figures from the older generation. Although they appear young, they have been cultivating for ages. They have gone into seclusion for many years. That��s why their names no longer ring a bell to the people in the world even though they are still alive. From the looks of it, they have indeed become the hidden triumph cards of the Emperor-level forces. The world has undergone rigorous changes, yet they have actually remained hidden until now.��


    Before this, Ye Futian had heard of similar rumors �C the cultivation world had given birth to countless cultivators. Many of them had perished, and only a few of them had cultivated to the strongest plane. Nevertheless, even though they were rare occurrences, there were still numerous old monstrous figures alive.


    Ye Futian had encountered a few of them before this. These ancient cultivators rarely appeared in public and did not come in contact with anyone. They left right after they seized the relics. Cultivators from the older generation like Supreme Swordlord could not even be considered ancient. There existed cultivators even more senior than them.


    From the looks of it, these Emperor-level forces had kept some mighty cultivators hidden as their trump cards.


    These ancient cultivators were most likely under the direct jurisdiction of Human Ancestor. Obviously, Di Hao was not qualified to command them. Therefore, he was shocked when he saw them.


    ��Does the Human Realm plan to have a showdown?�� Yan Guiyi glanced at the ancient cultivators who had just made their appearance. He showed no sign of fear. His eyes were ablaze with intense battle intent. He wanted to experience firsthand exactly how potent these ancient cultivators were. Were they more robust than the cultivators ranked on the current Near-Deity List?


    Rumble. An ultimate might suddenly loomed over everyone. A terrifying storm churned above the cultivators. A dark phantasm appeared and covered a part of the sky.


    ��It is the Dark Sovereign!�� exclaimed the various cultivators as they looked up into the sky. The powerful pressure swept down. However, no one spoke. Only intense pressure filled the skies.


    Then, terrifying auras appeared one after another. There were a few auras in the sky. Right now, the various cultivators understood that the wills of the Great Emperors had arrived. If they wanted to, they could offer insights into everything that happened here at any given moment.


    ��Amitabha!��


    Just then, a golden beam of the Light of Buddha shone down and illuminated this part of the sky. An ancient buddha made his appearance. He came from another world.


    Unlike other Buddha Lords, who were relatively chubbier, this ancient buddha was small and gaunt. His face looked extremely old, as though he was close to death. However, he emanated a solemn aura. When the various buddhas from the Western World spotted him, they bowed and paid their respects to him. Even the arrogant Medicine Buddha Lord bowed and greeted the arriving Buddha Lord.


    ��Greetings, Buddha Lord,�� the various buddhas said as they placed their palms together politely. This caused the various cultivators to narrow their gazes. They shifted their eyes towards the Buddha Lord. They were astonished at the other party��s status. Who was this Buddha Lord?


    Very few people had seen this Buddha Lord before. Nevertheless, a Buddha Lord greeted by the various buddhas would undoubtedly be of high prestige.


    This small and skinny Buddha Lord similarly bowed back at the various buddhas. From his merciful gaze, one could not tell that he was a powerful Buddha Lord.


    ��He is a Buddha Lord,�� uttered some of the top figures of the other forces as they recognized him. They also greeted him with a bow. Even Donghuang Diyuan greeted the Buddha Lord and bowed. She was extremely polite. Clearly, this Buddha Lord had extraordinary standing. Donghuang Diyuan knew who he was and showed him great respect.


    He is Buddha of Destiny! Ye Futian secretly thought to himself.


    He similarly bowed slightly and greeted the Buddha Lord. Buddha of Destiny was an ancient buddha of the highest level in the World of Buddhism. His status was extraordinary. He was not fond of battles and had never participated in the conflicts of the world. He had devoted his time to comprehending Buddhist techniques. He succeeded in proving his Way and became Buddha of Destiny.


    Buddha of Destiny cultivated one of the six Buddhist Superpowers, Omniscient. Ordinary people could not cultivate this superpower. Even in the World of Buddhism, aside from Buddha of Destiny, no one else had ever successfully cultivated Omniscient.


    That was the case for even The Buddha.


    ��I never imagined that you would appear on the battlefield, Master. What brings you here?�� asked Yan Guiyi. As a demonic cultivator, he was powerful and overbearing. He could not stand the World of Buddhism and even called them jacka*ses. He believed they were hypocritical.


    However, even Yan Guiyi showed some level of respect towards Buddha of Destiny and called him Master.


    ��I came to quell this war,�� said Buddha of Destiny. He lowered his head slightly. He did not have the arrogance of a Buddha Lord and appeared extremely humble.


    ��We are heading towards war among the Six Realms. How do you plan to quell it, Master?�� inquired Yan Guiyi. Everyone understood that the Six Realms, which had been at peace for centuries, were about to be thrown into war. No one could prevent it from happening. It was inevitable.


    ��The heavens and the earth are about to undergo a huge change. It��s unwise to increase the number of deaths unnecessarily,�� Buddha of Destiny declared while putting his hands together.

 Chapter 2773 - Prophecy

    Chapter 2773 Prophecy


    For many years, a prophecy had been circulating around.


    The changes of the world would begin in the Original Realm.


    Now, the world was already beginning to change. The Ruins of the Gods appeared in the world, and the cultivators from various realms surged to the ruins for relics. Countless people went through transformations and improved their cultivation. Many prominent figures surfaced, and the talented young cultivators assumed leadership positions. They slowly rose to the peak of the cultivation world.


    Cultivators like Donghuang Diyuan, Di Hao, Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Ye Qingyao, and Ji Wudao gradually reached their heyday. Moreover, they would surely attain even more glorious achievements in the future.


    However, this was naturally not the end of the changes in the world.


    How would the future unfold?


    Currently, many people had already found out that this prophecy originated from the Western Heaven of the World of Buddhism. Since that was the case, the prophet who made the statement was most likely Buddha of Destiny, who now stood before them.


    Buddha of Destiny cultivated Omniscient. No one knew how proficient he was in this Buddhist superpower, but it was highly likely that he could catch a glimpse of the future.


    His prophecy about the changes to the world had come to pass. Had Buddha of Destiny foreseen even more significant changes occurring?


    Yan Guiyi roared, ��The changes of the world might have been triggered by the War of the Six Realms. It is an inevitable trend and cannot be stopped. The war is also a part of the changes.��


    Buddha of Destiny responded, ��The world will soon welcome even more major changes. Everything will be reformed. This war is not an inevitable trend. The Great Emperors are the mightiest existences in the cultivation world, and they rule over the Six Realms. They view others as their chess pieces. However, all living beings are equal. Since the ending has been decided, why should we sacrifice lives in vain? If war erupts, countless cultivators from the Six Realms will perish. Why should we put ourselves through this agony?��


    After Buddha of Destiny said this, he bowed towards the high heavens and pleaded, ��Great Emperors, please hear my plea. Please cease fighting so that we can avoid a disaster.��


    Even though he looked gaunt, the Light of Buddha shone brightly from his figure. He emanated a golden light, which caused the crowd to revere him.


    Buddha of Destiny rarely appeared in public. After so many years, very few people recognized him. Even if he traveled around, such a scraggy elder would not draw anyone��s attention. However, he had come out from seclusion this time to beg for the compassion of the Great Emperors so that a war could be avoided.


    This war was a war among the Imperial Palaces of the Six Realms. If it continued, it would brew into something larger in scale and expand to other places. Currently, this continent had become a battlefield. If the fighting continued, countless cultivators would lose their lives.


    Buddha of Destiny had great compassion. Hence, he had come out of seclusion and rushed here to plead with the Great Emperors to stop fighting.


    Dazzling, colorful lights covered a spot in the sky. A phantasm appeared from the lights, and the figure actually bowed towards Buddha of Destiny. He seemed to have great respect for the latter. He said politely, ��Since Buddha Lord has spoken, I, Donghuang, will surely oblige. The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture will withdraw from this war.��


    His voice reverberated in the vast space. Everyone ceased fighting and looked up to the sky. Even the Great Emperor had personally come. Therefore, there was no need for them to continue battling.


    The crowd wondered about the identity of the Buddha Lord who had spoken. Even Donghuang the Great bowed to him.


    Was The Buddha of the Western Heaven here?


    ��Many thanks, Your Highness,�� Buddha of Destiny responded as he bowed towards the sky. Donghuang the Great gave the World of Buddhism face by being the first to second Buddha of Destiny��s plea. After all, he used to seek the Way in the World of Buddhism, so he was considered half a Buddhist disciple.


    ��All of you, come back.�� Another voice sounded. Immediately, the few ancient cultivators, who had come from the Human Realm, transformed into beams of light and left the battlefield in a dash. They had come for the war. Their retreat meant that Human Ancestor also supported Buddha of Destiny��s plea.


    Although Human Ancestor did not show himself, his voice could be heard from the heavens. ��This time, Dark Sovereign instigated the War of the Six Realms; therefore, I ordered my men to stop his massacre by killing his members. I have done so to prevent the masses from being killed in vain. Since Buddha of Destiny has spoken, the Human Realm is willing to take a step back. However, if the Dark World still refuses to stop, the Human Realm will purge the darkness to restore order to the world.��


    ��Many thanks, Human Ancestor,�� Buddha of Destiny said as he bowed again towards the sky. Human Ancestor had an extraordinary status because he was the most ancient Great Emperor among the six. He had been very courteous with Buddha of Destiny by commanding his men to stop fighting. The stance of the World of Buddhism went without saying. Buddha of Destiny was a member of the upper echelon in their world. His stance represented that of their world.


    The ��righteous�� sides, including the Human Realm, the Western Heavenly World, and the Divine Prefecture, were all willing to stop the war.


    It was all up to the Devil World, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm.


    ��Where did that jack*ss go? Why are you the only one here?�� Another voice sounded from the sky. Terrifying demonic might accompanied the voice, churning and roaring. Obviously, the will of the Devil Emperor had


    arrived.


    The jack*ss that he mentioned was undoubtedly The Buddha, who was as powerful as the Great Emperors.


    ��To my knowledge, The Buddha is currently cultivating in the Colorless Heaven. Hence, he has not come over this time,�� Buddha of Destiny replied while bowing in the direction where the Devil Emperor��s voice sounded. He was not offended by the way the other party addressed The Buddha. The six Great Emperors were supreme existences on another level compared to the rest of them.


    Buddha of Destiny had no say in their speech or actions.


    ��What is he trying to do? Purge himself?�� the Devil Emperor teased coldly. ��I have a question for you. Since you prophesied that the world is about to change, exactly what kind of changes will it go through? Could it be that there will be new Great Emperors?��


    ��I dare not reveal the secrets of the future,�� Buddha of Destiny responded.


    ��Don��t try to play tricks with me. You don��t dare to reveal the secrets of the future? In that case, who was the one that came up with the prophecy?�� the Devil Emperor chided coldly. ��That jacka*s is not here now. What if I insist that you answer my question?��


    ��Devil Emperor, you are a Great Emperor, yet you bully a���� Medicine Buddha Lord joined the conversation while looking in the direction where the Devil Emperor was.


    ��Shut up. You are not qualified to speak here,�� the Devil Emperor interrupted him. With a domineering tone, he continued to pressure Buddha of Destiny, saying, ��Of course, you can choose not to reveal anything. I won��t attack you. But I will not agree to your request of withdrawing my troops.��


    ��Rumor has it that once a cultivator has cultivated Omniscient to its utmost limit, they can see through the fates of everyone. The superpower itself is full of wonders. Even though I don��t believe in it, I am still somewhat curious. Master, exactly what kind of changes did you foresee?�� Human Ancestor joined the conversation. He sounded interested.


    Everyone knew that Human Ancestor did not believe in fate or destiny. He managed the order of the human world and thought that human will was stronger than destiny. According to legends, Human Ancestor was an ordinary man in the past. During his era, there were way too many talented figures. He was not exceptional, yet he was firmly rooted in his belief. During the age when the gods ruled over the world, he remained steadfast to his belief that the gods were merely very powerful cultivators. He insisted that once humans cultivated to their greatest potential, they could be on par with the gods, even with their mortal flesh.


    Humans were comparable to gods.


    The validity of this legend had yet to be verified. However, one could tell the belief of Human Ancestor based on this tale. He lived out his faith by ruling over the Human Realm and creating the Divine Human.


    Humans could also be gods. The Divine Human was formed from this belief.


    Therefore, Human Ancestor did not believe in the concept of fate preached in the World of Buddhism.


    Buddha of Destiny had a vision about the future, and he prophesied that the world would be changed. However, Human Ancestor did not trust a single word of it.


    ��I want to know too,�� said the Evil Emperor as his face surfaced in the sky. Now that three Great Emperors had expressed their interest in this matter, Buddha of Destiny would most likely be forced to reveal some details even though the former might not have evil intentions to harm him if he chose to remain silent.


    ��Amitabha.�� Buddha of Destiny put his palms together and said, ��Everything in the world will be reformed. The Age of the Gods will come once again.��


    His voice was solemn. As soon as he dropped this information, the crowd went silent. Nobody spoke a word. Everyone, including the six Great Emperors, focused their attention on Buddha of Destiny.


    Everything in the world would be reformed?


    The Age of the Gods would come once again!


    It was the Age of the Gods!


    Would they get the chance to experience a prosperous era like back in ancient times?


    After Buddha of Destiny spoke, his aura actually withered. He became even more feeble, as though his aura was being weakened continuously.


    ��Buddha Lord,�� exclaimed the cultivators of the Western Heavenly World when they saw this scene.


    aw


    However, Buddha of Destiny behaved as though nothing had happened. He was not bothered by the changes at all. He continued to radiate a solemn Light of Buddha.


    ��All things on Earth have their destiny. I pried into the future and revealed a secret, so I will face the consequences,�� Buddha of Destiny said in a low voice.


    ��How will the world be reformed?�� Dark Sovereign��s voice echoed in space. His goal was to reform the order of the world by allowing the world to be consumed by darkness. When it happened, everything would be reformed and this chaotic era would end.


    Now, what Buddha of Destiny prophesied was actually similar to what he imagined. Hence, he was curious to find out what exactly the former envisioned.


    ��Master is already in such a state. Dark Sovereign, I think we should stop asking,�� Donghuang the Great interceded. Dark Sovereign replied nonchalantly, ��Since he has pried into the future, it doesn��t make much difference for him to reveal a bit more.��


    Buddha of Destiny shook his head and said, ��I am ashamed of myself. My power is not strong enough. I could only catch a glimpse of what would happen. As for how the world will be reformed, I have no idea either.��


    ��Do you really have no clue or are you keeping it a secret from us?�� Dark Sovereign continued to pressure Buddha of Destiny.


    ��Dark Sovereign, as the ruler of darkness, you should stop putting Buddha of Destiny in a tough spot,�� Human Ancestor intervened too. He said, ��Even though Buddha of Destiny has predicted the changes of the world, I still firmly believe that fate is illusory. Humans are the existences who have control over all order.��


    Clearly, Human Ancestor had his doubts about Buddha of Destiny��s words.


    ��What Human Ancestor said is true. With you controlling the order of the Human Realm, there will not be any new Great Emperors,�� someone mocked. The speaker was none other than the Devil Emperor. The crowd was perplexed because of his words. What did he mean?


    As long as Human Ancestor oversaw the order of the Human Realm, there would not be any new Great Emperors? What did the Devil Emperor mean by this?


    Human Ancestor was not perturbed by the Devil Emperor��s mocking. Instead, he calmly responded, ��Devil Emperor, you worry too much. Even though I don��t believe in fate, I believe in history repeating itself. Since there was an Age of the Gods in ancient times, I am not surprised if it makes a comeback in the future. On the contrary, I look forward to it. I also think that the Age of the Gods will soon come again.��


    All the cultivators present in this continent were listening to their conversation quietly. They were shocked by the news. The Age of the Gods was something of the ancient past. Since the collapse of the Heavenly Path, there had not been any new Great Emperors. How many people have managed to become Great Emperor since then?


    Becoming a Great Emperor was a common goal pursued by all the cultivators in the world. Even though this goal seemed almost impossible, countless cultivators still tried their best and worked hard towards achieving


    Now, these colossal figures were discussing the Age of the Gods. Buddha of Destiny also prophesied its reenactment. A new era would come, and it would be a glorious one. This was definitely exciting news.


    What role would they play in this new era?

 Chapter 2774 - Fate of the Emperor for Five Centuries

    Chapter 2774 Fate of the Emperor for Five Centuries


    ��I look forward to the coming of the Age of the Gods,�� Donghuang the Great said. ��After cultivating for so many years, I often wonder how prosperous ancient times were.��


    ��Is that so?�� Dark Sovereign said mockingly. ��How did Emperor Ye Qing perish back in the day?��


    Emperor Ye Qing was the taboo of the Divine Prefecture. Others did not dare to discuss this matter, but not Dark Sovereign.


    Donghuang the Great was stunned momentarily. He remained silent and did not say anything


    ��Amitabha.�� Just then, Buddha of Destiny said, ��I wish to offer Your Highness Donghuang another piece of advice.��


    ��Buddha Lord, please advise,�� replied Donghuang the Great as he nodded slightly. He still acted humble and polite, showing Buddha of Destiny great respect.


    Buddha of Destiny said, ��Your Highness Donghuang once cultivated in the World of Buddhism. At that time, you had yet to become a Great Emperor. Therefore, I was able to take a peek into your destiny. I noticed that you have the Fate of the Emperor. However, I discovered something else, which I have never told you before. Now, I want to remind you.��


    Donghuang the Great revealed a strange look. The other Great Emperors also listened to this conversation attentively.


    Buddha of Destiny cultivated Omniscient and could pry into someone��s destiny. However, if the other party were a powerful figure, such as a Great Emperor, he would not be qualified to see into the former��s future. Buddha of Destiny was not that proficient yet.


    Nevertheless, the crowd did not doubt his words when he said he saw a vision related to Donghuang the Great when the latter cultivated in the World of Buddhism. Speaking of which, the World of Buddhism placed high importance on Donghuang the Great in the past. He received personal guidance from The Buddha. Moreover, Buddha of Destiny envisioned him becoming a Great Emperor.


    ��Please speak your mind,�� Donghuang the Great said.


    ��Your Highness Donghuang is peerless in the Divine Prefecture, and you have the Fate of the Emperor. However, it will only last for five centuries.�� As Buddha of Destiny said this, he put his palms together and lowered his head.


    His words shocked countless people. The crowd, especially the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, were greatly shocked. Their hearts trembled frenziedly.


    Donghuang the Great��s Fate as the Emperor would only last for five centuries?


    He would be peerless for five centuries in the Divine Prefecture. Did it mean that his reign over the Divine Prefecture would only last for five centuries?


    This prophecy came like a bolt from the blue for the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. It had been more than 400 years since Donghuang the Great unified the Divine Prefecture. There was not much time left if the deadline was five centuries.


    These decades would pass by in a snap. Therefore, one could imagine how shocking the news was.


    The Age of the Gods would come. Who would terminate Donghuang the Great��s rule over the Divine Prefecture?


    For a moment, the vast space fell into dead silence. No one spoke a word, as though all of them had been stunned.


    Then, Buddha of Destiny continued, ��Of course, this was only what I saw in the past. Even though Omniscient is profound, it is not 100 percent accurate. The fate of a person can be changed. It is the same for destiny. Perhaps, the destiny of Your Highness has changed after you became a Great Emperor. Your Fate of the Emperor might have been prolonged. What I envisioned in the past might have changed.��


    ��If everything in the world is destined, I will go with the flow,�� Donghuang the Great said calmly. As he said this, he cast a glance at Ye Futian. Quite a number of people, especially the few Great Emperors, caught him doing so.


    That Proud Son of Heaven was the descendant of Emperor Ye Qing. He was already on his way to becoming a Great Emperor. Could he achieve his target in the remaining few decades? Would he then end the reign of Donghuang the Great?


    This seemed rather impossible. No matter how heaven-defying Ye Futian��s talents were, for him to become a Great Emperor in decades was far-fetched.


    Furthermore, even if he successfully became a Great Emperor, exactly how would he end Donghuang the Great��s rule over the Divine Prefecture?


    Donghuang the Great had been a Great Emperor for centuries. He had extraordinary talents. Even if Ye Futian caught up in terms of status, he would most likely still not be a match for the former.


    After catching Donghuang the Great glancing at Ye Futian, the other Great Emperors also looked in the direction where Ye Futian stood.


    Would he become a threat to Donghuang the Great?


    Human Ancestor spoke up. ��Donghuang, you don��t have to care too much about this. I never believed in destiny. Besides that, as Buddha of Destiny said, you have proven your Way at the Emperor Plane for more than four centuries now. Your Fate of the Emperor is not something that can be shaken so easily. You should not be troubled by this prophecy that is based on something illusory.��


    ��Hmm,�� responded Donghuang the Great as he nodded his head. ��I will not be affected by this. If such a day does come where the end of my Fate of the Emperor heralds the dawn of the next Age of the Gods, I am willing to play my part.��


    He added, ��However, Buddha Lord, I am still grateful for your reminder.��


    ��Amitabha,�� recited Buddha of Destiny. He then said, ��I thank you, Great Emperors, for granting my wish and avoiding this catastrophe. This can be considered a contribution of mine. Farewell.��


    ��Wait,�� a voice called out right then, interrupting Buddha of Destiny. The Devil Emperor had spoken, saying, ��Since you read that Donghuang had the Fate of the Emperor back then, how many people possess the Fate of the Emperor here today?��.


    Buddha of Destiny lowered his head and replied, ��There will be consequences if I reveal too much of the secrets of the future. I dare not speak so as not to disturb fate.��


    ��Devil Emperor, please leave it as it is,�� implored Donghuang the Great.


    ��If there truly is fate and reincarnation, by right, a few people here today should be in Hell,�� mocked the Devil Emperor.


    ��Amitabha,�� uttered Buddha of Destiny as he bowed. The Light of Buddha shone, and his figure disappeared as he left this place.


    Although Buddha of Destiny had left, the rest of the crowd was still in awe at his prophecy.


    Only around 40 years of Donghuang the Great��s five centuries of Fate of the Emperor remained.


    Would the next Age of the Gods begin in the coming 40 or more years?


    What sort of prosperous era would the future bring if that was the case?


    ��I am looking forward to this. I hope that his prophecy will come true,�� said the Devil Emperor with a smile. ��We are leaving.��


    After he said this, Yan Guiyi, Yu Sheng, and the Devil World��s other cultivators began to leave. The demonic cultivators in the Ruins Continent also gradually left and ceased fighting. ��Oh, by the way, Donghuang, do not forget your promise from before to not touch Ye Futian. The Ziwei Segmentum that he represents is now a superpower in the world. I hope that the Great Emperors here will not stoop so low as to take action yourselves. Otherwise, don��t blame me for finding fault with you,�� the Devil Emperor threatened before he left. Then, the demonic cloud churned and roared as his will disappeared from the space. Before he left, he warned the Great Emperors from acting against Ye Futian.


    ��I second his notion. The Great Emperors should not interfere in the battles here. If anyone breaks this agreement, please pardon us for not showing your forces mercy,�� Dark Sovereign threatened. There were two Great Emperors siding with Ye Futian.


    Their statements seemed to have decided Ye Futian��s stance. He would be on the same side as the Devil World and the Dark World. They stood opposing the Divine Prefecture, the Human Realm, and the World of Buddhism.


    The wills of the six Great Emperors disappeared one by one. The sky returned to normal. The war stirred up in Ruins Continent was quelled by Buddha of Destiny. A calamity had been avoided. However, the conversation among the Great Emperors and Buddha of Destiny had a profound impact on everyone present!

 Chapter 2775 - Reminder

    Chapter 2775 Reminder


    Donghuang the Great had the Fate of the Emperor for a mere 500 years. What would happen 40 years later?


    Who would be the first to cross the Path of the Emperors?


    Many cultivators remained there after the Emperors left. Ye Futian began to contemplate the words he heard earlier. Donghuang the Great turned to stare at him with a complicated expression after hearing Buddha of Destiny��s prophecy. Still, Ye Futian could not see through Donghuang the Great��s mind. Would the latter decide to eliminate the last one day?


    Besides, he understood why Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign threatened Donghuang the Great by saying they would protect him. After all, he was the nemesis of Donghuang the Great. So, it was only natural that they would aid the rise of someone who could threaten the reign of Donghuang the Great. Even though he still hadn��t reached the highest tier of cultivation, Buddha of Destiny��s prophecy might very well be fulfilled in him.


    Nevertheless, taking his life was not an easy task if the Great Emperors did not involve in it personally. With the threatening presence of Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign, Donghuang the Great and Human Ancestor could not dispose of him in person, even if they wanted to do so.


    Ye Futian remained on the same spot. Likewise, Donghuang Diyuan did not leave that place as well. While she was staring at him, the cultivators of Divine Prefecture��s Donghuang Imperial Palace were doing the same also, including Li Daoshou, Fang Ru, and the like.


    The onlookers could feel an intense killing intent through their eyes. Even before the prophecy of Buddha of Destiny, Ye Futian had made himself the common enemy of Divine Prefecture when he injured Donghuang Diyuan. The absolute opposition between him and the Divine Prefecture only further worsened the situation. Furthermore, Buddha of Destiny��s prophecy might be referring to Ye Futian.


    With that in mind, they would want Ye Futian dead. Should Donghuang the Great be generous enough not to finish him off, they would still help the former ease his burden by eradicating the source of the problem. Although the likelihood of Ye Futian dethroning Donghuang the Great was virtually nil, they found it hard to believe that the former could threaten the God who they revered greatly.


    ��Ye Futian, a lot of things have happened between you and Divine Prefecture, yet Donghuang Imperial Palace had never once actually tried to kill you,�� Donghuang Diyuan uttered coldly. ��Now that you��ve made your stand and chose the darkness, Divine Prefecture will not pull its punches anymore from this moment onward.��


    ��Oh, wait a minute. Did you ever pull your punches before?�� Ye Futian asked casually, ��Are you referring to the time in the restricted area?��


    Upon hearing that, Donghuang Diyuan shot Ye Futian a sharp glare and chided, ��From now on, Ye Futian will be the common enemy of the Divine Prefecture! When opportunity presents itself, kill him without mercy!��


    Her voice echoed throughout the atmosphere. The Donghuang Imperial Palace and Divine Prefecture cultivators were glaring at Ye Futian with bloodshot eyes while exuding their killing intent.


    Simultaneously, a powerful Ancient God Clan cultivator, who stood far away, was staring at Ye Futian without hiding their murderous


    aura.


    Ye Futian had finally become the common enemy of Divine Prefecture. So, they wished to witness how he would survive in the years to come. Whether he could stay alive for the next 40 years or not was the question no one could answer.


    After speaking, Donghuang Diyuan led her people and left. Human Realm��s Di Hao and the others glanced at Ye Futian for a while and went away with their subordinates.


    ��Benefactor Ye, your fate is tied to Buddhism. Please do not neglect your studies in Buddhist doctrine,�� Wutian Buddha Lord urged.


    ��I will surely heed your advice, Buddha Lord,�� Ye Futian put his palms together and replied. The Light of Buddha illuminated around his body, proving that he did not forget the teachings of Buddhism. However, Medicine Buddha Lord snorted and left in displeasure. At once, the Buddhist cultivators followed him and departed.


    The Empty Divine Realm cultivators left after the alliance of Divine Prefecture bunch took their leave. Lord Shaman turned to look at Ye Futian. He had schemed to deal with Ye Futian previously, but he tried to eliminate Ye Qingyao. Yet, he noticed that he might be wrong since Dark Sovereign��s faith in Ye Qingyao was more profound than his expectation.


    He had caused Ye Futian to stand at their side. With that, it was even more arduous for him to deal with Ye Futian. Even Dark Sovereign would not allow him to do so.


    ��Let��s go,�� he announced. Following that, he withdrew from the scene with the other cultivators.


    ��Brother.�� Ye Qingyao glanced at Ye Futian, who nodded at her with a smile. Shortly after, she went away from that place as well.


    The cultivators from Devil World did the same, but Yu Sheng approached Ye Futian instead.


    ��What was the meaning of this? What was Buddha of Destiny trying to do?�� Yu Sheng remarked in an upset tone. That prophecy had put Ye Futian in a dire situation because the number of people who wished to kill him increased significantly.


    ��Omniscient!�� Ye Futian stated as he looked into the distance. Buddha of Destiny was the only Great Buddha who had successfully cultivated Omniscient. Therefore, he could peep through destiny and see a glimpse of the future. Who could even read what was in his mind?


    ��Buddha of Destiny cultivated Omniscient and Karma. I believe he knew the karma of his action. Perhaps, he had come to reorient the cause and effect,�� a crisp voice could be heard beside Ye Futian. The voice��s owner was Hua Qingqing. She was the Wick of Buddha Lord. Hence, she might be the one who could best understand the thought of Buddhist monks.


    ��Is our destiny predestined? Or is man the master of their fate?�� Ye Futian asked a question that perhaps was meant for himself.


    Buddhists believed in destiny. Although Donghuang the Great had studied the Buddhist doctrine, did he believe in karma and destiny?


    Human Ancestors, on the other hand, did not believe in those. As the oldest Great Emperor, he had always thought that man was the master of their fate.


    Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign were dubious toward those things. Perhaps they only believed the parts that were convenient to them.


    ��Everything we have experienced determines the fate of the future. And the course of the future is the result of our past. That is what Karma is in Buddhism in a nutshell,�� Hua Qingqing explained in a soft voice, causing Ye Futian to ponder at her words. ��Buddhist doctrine is profound and mysterious. Even now, it is still hard to understand its true meaning,�� Ye Futian sighed. A while later, he added, ��Let��s go.��


    ��Okay.�� The crowd nodded and went back to where they came from.


    Ye Futian led his group back to Ye Imperial Palace after that.


    The war in Ruins Continent had finally subsided. All the cultivators returned to their habitations. Although a temporary truce was called due to the appearance of Buddha of Destiny, there was no telling when the next conflict would break out again in the future.


    The War of the Six Realms was a growing trend. The existence of Ruins Continent had accelerated its development.


    Qi Xuangang asked for Ye Futian the next day after the latter��s return to Ye Imperial Palace.


    Without delay, Ye Futian went to the dwelling of Qi Xuangang. At that time, the latter was playing chess with his first disciple, Yan Yuan, while Feixue was watching their game.


    ��Teacher, Brother,�� Ye Futian greeted.


    The moment Yan Yuan saw Ye Futian, he immediately got up to empty the seat for the latter. But, Ye Futian walked to the sidelines and said, ��Brother, please have a seat. I will stay here and watch.��


    Yan Yuan nodded and remained taciturn. Then he continued to play chess with Qi Xuangang


    ��Futian, do you still remember the time when I was still the Imperial Advisor of Dali while you were in Daxia?�� Qi Xuangang asked.


    ��It��s still fresh in my memory.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��A century has passed in the blink of an eye. Time really flies. I could barely remember the past events,�� Qi Xuangang uttered with a broad smile.


    ��I��ve learned many things from you back then. Those moments will be etched on my memory forever. I swear I��ll never forget them,�� Ye Futian promised as he showed a smile on his face. It might not be a happy moment of his life, but it was still nostalgic in retrospect.


    Although he went undercover to Dali, Qi Xuangang, the Imperial Advisor, still accepted him as a disciple. Even after his cover was blown, Dali��s Imperial Advisor had ordered Yan Yuan to send him back to Daxia personally.


    ��Hmm.�� Qi Xuangang nodded. ��Do you still remember the principle that I had upheld back in Dali?��


    Ye Futian bowed his head and set his eyes on Qi Xuangang with a smile. ��I know what you are trying to tell me, Teacher.��


    ��That��s good. I��m not worried about you. The world out there is a complicated place. Sometimes, you might lose sight of yourself,�� Qi Xuangang remarked.

 Chapter 2776 - Chat

    Chapter 2776 Chat


    Ye Futian understood what Qi Xuangang was trying to imply. After all, he had been walking a different path due to his conflict with Divine Prefecture and Donghuang the Great.


    He seemed to have become the ally of Dark World and Devil World currently.


    Devil World and Dark World emerged themselves in the world as destroyers. They invaded Divine Prefecture to stir up the War of the Six Realms. Although each of them had their reasons, it was an undisputed truth.


    ��Teacher, what is your opinion about the Six Realms and the Six Great Emperors?�� Ye Futian asked. Since they talked about this topic, he became interested in knowing Qi Xuangang��s thoughts on this subject. Although his cultivation level was way higher than his master��s, his foresight might not be as good as his teacher��s.


    ��There is no right and wrong about someone��s standpoint. However, the result of it is a whole new ball game altogether,�� Qi Xuangang explained. ��Devil World and Dark World may have their standing on this subject. Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign have the things they want and need to do. After all, everyone has their responsibility to bear. They have their decisions to make and things to consider. However, Devil World��s invasion in Divine Prefecture did start a war. On the other hand, Dark World��s conduct is worse than the former. I believe you still remember its attack in 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.��


    ��I got it.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��I��ve never once thought that I belong to their side. Hence, I stirred a conflict up with Dark World a while


    ago.��


    His teacher must have worried that he would stand by their side and play a part in perpetuating their evil deeds.


    ��The forces of Divine Prefecture are to be called out as well. The six Ancient God Clans, with Divine Prefecture as their head, had invaded Ziwei Segmentum countless times. Besides, several Buddhist forces were not playing nice with you as well. Their deeds could never be erased completely. I did not know about your conflict with Donghuang the Great. So, I will not ask you to return good for evil. You will repay a favor with kindness; you will get even with someone for the harm caused to you. One should always segregate gratitude and resentment well. Yet, it would help if you never lost your moral compass. Don��t ever lose sight of yourself.


    ��As for the Six Great Emperors, I know a thing or two about them. I cultivated in the land under the governance of Divine Prefecture before, so I��ve heard things about Donghuang Diyuan. I am not sure what happened between Emperor Ye Qing and him in the past. So, I will refrain from further comments. After he ended the upheaval in Divine Prefecture, he wanted to see martial art and cultivation thrive and hoped for the cultivators to assess better cultivation methods. I believe that part is true,�� Qi Xuangang continued, ��Everyone has a different personality. There is almost no one with absolute good or evil personality. Observing someone from a different perspective will lead you to a different conclusion. Of course, these are all the things that I see and understand. The remaining Great Emperors are legends. Speaking of which, how many of them have you met before? What do you think of them?��


    ��Devil Emperor reigns in Devil Abyss. He is a pure demonic cultivator. He has a strong obsession with breaking the shackle of imprisonment by Heavenly Path in Devil World. He wanted to free their bondage and lead Devil World out of Devil Abyss,�� Ye Futian said. ��Dark Sovereign might have a dark past. Thus, he became pessimistic like he is now. He, too, has a powerful fixation. He thinks that the world is full of hypocrites and darkness. So it needs to be reformed. He believes that true light can only exist from absolute darkness.��


    ��I don��t know much about the other three Great Emperors,�� Ye Futian clarified. After all, he did not come in contact much with Lord of All Buddhas, Human Ancestor, and Evil Emperor.


    ��Okay.�� Qi Xuangang bowed his head. ��Those who have reached the pinnacle in cultivation must have extremely firm convictions in their hearts. Their beliefs are so strong that it is unshakeable. They believe that their ideology is the only truth. So do Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign.


    ��Should that be the case, Donghuang the Great, The Buddha, Human Ancestor, Evil Emperor, too, have their beliefs that cannot be shaken.��


    ��Yeah.�� Ye Futian nodded in agreement. What was Donghuang the Great��s belief and conviction?


    What about Human Ancestor? During the conflict, Human Ancestor declared that he did not believe in destiny. Since he was named Human Ancestor, he must have believed in himself only.


    So, what about The Buddha and Evil Emperor?


    ��Futian, have you ever pondered about your belief? What kind of person do you want to be when you become a Great Emperor?�� Qi Xuangang asked. ��Me?�� Ye Futian murmured. He had thought about that in the Dark Court because he overcame the dark memories that Dark Sovereign implanted into his mind. The man knew he could pull it off only because of his experience. Although he had many dark encounters in the past, he had met several people who changed the course of his life.


    Among them, Hua Fengliu, Mr. Du, Sage Douzhan, and Qi Xuangang were the ones who had impacted him the most.


    ��What kind of person do you wish to see me become, teacher?�� Ye Futian asked with a light smile.


    ��With your aptitude, you will surely gain enlightenment to walk the Path of the Great Emperor. I wish that you will not only be admired and feared by the people but also be revered by them and become their faith that will impact many generations to come,�� Qi Xuangang answered.


    ��Teacher, you expect a lot from me,�� Ye Futian remarked while curling the corners of his lips up.


    ��If you are just an average Joe, I will only wish that you will be yourself. But you are different. You can rise to the top and stand above all. When that happens, your Will will affect many people, even the world order. Hence, I ask a lot from you,�� Qi Xuangang responded.


    Devil Emperor, Dark Sovereign, and Donghuang the Great influenced the realms under their reigns with their Wills.


    Dark Sovereign believed in absolute darkness. Hence, Dark World was born. When one stood on the summit, their mindsets and beliefs would influence more than just themselves.


    ��Well, this is my selfish desire, in a way,�� Qi Xuangang uttered, flashing a smile.


    ��No.�� Ye Futian shook his head. ��You will always be my teacher and my pride.��


    Ye Futian would never forget the extraordinary Imperial Advisor of Dali and the saying that went, ��As the heaven��s movement is ever vigorous, so must a wise man ceaselessly strive.��


    ��Likewise,�� Qi Xuangang stated while glancing at Ye Futian in contentment.


    The teacher and disciple duo were equally proud of each other.


    ��Guess I will take my leave now,�� Ye Futian announced while Qi Xuangang nodded.


    ��Brother, Feixue, you should stay with our teacher.�� After speaking, Ye Futian went away. Yan Yuan, Feixue, and Qi Xuangang were all smiles as they looked at his silhouette. Although he did not answer yet, it was not all that important. The three of them had faith in him.


    After that, Qi Xuangang and Yan Yuan went on with their chess game. The former moved one of his chess pieces strenuously.


    ��Will Futian reach that tier within forty years?�� Yan Yuan uttered, ��Even if he successfully dislodged Donghuang the Great, I believe he would not write off all the things the latter did for Divine Prefecture.��


    ��Yeah.�� Qi Xuangang nodded. ��He can differentiate past kindness from old scores; a contribution from a blunder.��

 Chapter 2777 - The Crisis of Political Marriage

    Chapter 2777 The Crisis of Political Marriage


    There was temporary peace in the world after the War of the Six Realms. Although cultivators across the known realms would stir up conflicts from time to time, they did not cause any chaos. After all, they were just a bunch of disunited rabbles without Emperor-level forces turning the tide of war.


    Ye Futian did not drown himself in cultivation during that time. Instead, he invited cultivators from Ziwei Segmentum and Nine Supreme Regions to Ruins Continent by repeatedly opening the portal between realms and leading them to the destination. In doing so, more cultivators had the chance to enter the Ruins Continent for their cultivation.


    Even though they were not powerful enough to fight for the cultivation resources with other stronger individuals, the concentration level of spiritual Qi on the land was incomparable with the other realms. As the spiritual Qi in Gods�� Continent increased and expanded unceasingly, it eventually covered every known region in Original Realm. Even the cultivators in 3,000 Realms of the Great Path had already noticed the changes in this part of the world.


    No one knew what would happen at the end of the line. They were unsure if that change had anything to do with the prophecy of Buddha of Destiny.


    That day, Fang Gai brought a piece of big news to the people in Ye Imperial Palace. Gossips about the information had already been spread even before the War of the Six Realms.


    The Human Realm��s representative, Di Hao, proposed to the princess of Donghuang Imperial Palace, Donghuang Diyuan. The former wanted a political marriage between the Human Realm and the Divine Prefecture. Words spread like wildfire among the cultivators in Ruins Continent and caused an uproar.


    All the Six Realms were shaken to their very core. Rumor had it that all the imperial palaces had set their eyes on this topic, including several Great Emperors.


    According to some scoops, the said Great Emperors had already made their way to Donghuang Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture to see the outcome of the political marriage.


    If that political marriage came to pass, it would bring about a new era.


    Ye Futian was surprised after hearing the news. All the key figures in Ye Imperial Palace gathered for a meeting right after knowing about it. They were all focused on it, although it was somewhat unrelated to some of them. After all, the impact of the story was too significant.


    Ye Futian looked at the ground below from the sky stairwell of Ye Imperial Palace. Many people could be seen rushing in his direction. Immediately, he knew words had already gotten out.


    ��I presume all of you have heard about it?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��That��s right.�� Everyone nodded in unison.


    ��What do you think about this?�� Ye Futian questioned. They had a conflict with the cultivators from the Human Realm and the Divine Prefecture previously. Should the political marriage occur, it would not be a good thing for Ye Futian and Ye Imperial Palace.


    ��The entire cultivation world was taken aback by the prophecy of Buddha of Destiny a while ago. Donghuang the Great��s Fate of the Emperor is only 500 years. If that turns out to be true, he did not have much time left. Human Realm��s marriage proposal is a sensitive topic at this time of day. Human Ancestor is sending a message saying that he is willing to work hand in hand with Donghuang the Great to face uncertainty,�� Emperor Nan remarked.


    ��Yeah.�� Lord Taixuan nodded. ��If Donghuang the Great is wary of the prophecy, forming an alliance with Human Realm through political marriage does more good than harm. Even if something were to happen to him, Donghuang Diyuan would still have a place to belong. Human Realm picks the perfect timing.��


    The Six Realms were divided into two sides previously; each formed their alliance. Yet, a union as such could not hold a candle to one created through political marriage.


    Human Ancestor was sending a message through this.


    ��Do you think Donghuang the Great will agree to this proposal?�� Ye Futian queried. Everyone had a stern expression immediately after hearing that.


    However, they were not the only people who were pondering this question. At that point, every cultivator in Ruins Continent, including the elites in the Six Realms, was doing the same.


    Everyone was waiting for the answer.


    Countless cultivators in Ruins Continent talked about this topic after hearing this news while waiting for the latest update from Divine Prefecture. No matter what the answer might be, it would undoubtedly cause yet another tumult.


    It did not matter if Donghuang the Great agreed to the proposal or not. Either way, it would still change the course of the Six Realms�� future.


    If Donghuang the Great agreed, their alliance would become stronger. But if he declined, their coalition would fall apart.


    Many cultivators were gathered under the gateway from Divine Prefecture to Ruins Continent. They were all waiting to hear the answer. Once the people in Divine Prefecture got the word, they would bring the news to Ruins Continent first.


    All the cultivators engaged in battles declared a ceasefire after getting to know about this. Through this alone, one could imagine how huge the impact of the news was.


    After hearing Ye Futian��s question, Emperor Nan replied, ��I think Donghuang the Great will turn it down.��


    Emperor Nan had always revered Donghuang the Great. Apart from the clash of the Twin Great Emperors, the latter did not have any shortcomings. Although the former was considered the enemy of Divine Prefecture after following Ye Futian, he still thought Donghuang the Great would decline the proposal.


    ��I seconded that,�� Lord Taixuan stated.


    ��He will decline,�� a voice said; it was the former palace lord of West Imperial Palace of Divine Prefecture��s Ancient God Clan.


    ��Human Ancestor plans to restrain Donghuang the Great through this proposal. I tell you, it��s impossible. Donghuang the Great will reject him,�� he added. The tone of his voice was brimmed with confidence. After all, as the helmsman of Ancient God Clan, he understood Donghuang the Great pretty well.


    Many people voiced their opinions. Yet, all of them thought that Donghuang the Great would decline. Ye Futian was taken by surprise upon hearing that. It seemed like Donghuang the Great had impacted many people with his incredible charisma.


    ��Let��s go out and wait for the news,�� Ye Futian uttered. After that, he led his people out of Ye Imperial Palace all the way to Outer Realms to wait for the result from the Divine Prefecture.


    The people over there might have gotten the news, but it would take some time for word to reach here.


    After some time, a clamor was heard from afar while a silhouette could be seen rushing toward them. Meanwhile, someone was heard yelling, ��He rejected!��


    A hint of astonishment flashed across Ye Futian��s eyes. The result was exactly like what the others predicted. Donghuang the Great really declined Human Realm��s political marriage proposal.


    Although they had seen it coming, the news was rather impactful withal.


    ��Donghuang the Great only gave a short answer! The people from Human Realm were not invited into the gate of the Imperial Palace!�� Someone could be heard shouting, ��Donghuang the Great said the exact words from afar!��


    ��It��s inappropriate to adopt Human Ancestor��s disciple into Donghuang Imperial Palace! Please forgive us for not inviting you in!��


    Even though everyone had predicted the outcome, their hearts skipped a beat upon hearing the answer. However, it was not just the people here. Every cultivator in Ruins Continent felt the same after knowing Donghuang the Great��s answer.


    Donghuang the Great presumed the other party would be adopted into his family before asking them for details.


    Heck, he did not even allow the Human Realm��s cultivators to enter his Imperial Palace.


    A proposal for political marriage?


    Donghuang the Great��s attitude toward this was telling the Human Realm cultivators that they were unworthy.


    Ye Futian was confounded. He had never thought that Donghuang the Great would give such an insult answer and did not even try to be courteous at all. It was as if the latter was telling the other party to return to where they had crawled out from.


    It seemed like Dark Sovereign was right all along. The relationship between the Human Realm and the Divine Prefecture was not as good as everyone had imagined.

 Chapter 2778 - The Path of the Emperors?

    Chapter 2778 The Path of the Emperors?


    The people in Divine Prefecture applauded with praise. Human Ancestor wanted Di Hao to marry Donghuang Diyuan. Donghuang the Great presumed that the second-mentioned was to become a live-in son-in-law. But even so, he was not worthy.


    en


    Inside Dark Court, a silhouette could be seen staring into the distance.


    Rumors circulated around the Outer Realms that the Great Emperors had gone to Donghuang Imperial Palace. But the truth was, they did not. However, they were following the news as well. After hearing Donghuang the Great��s reply, Dark Sovereign commented with a smile, ��Donghuang has got a spine.��


    Human Ancestor��s proposal at such a sensitive period was more than just the mere appearance. He must have wished to test the waters. Nevertheless, Donghuang the Great was being uncourteous with his reply. With that, the rift between the two forces would increase significantly.


    He was interested to see how everything would play out.


    The remaining Great Emperors had their thoughts about this after receiving the news.


    Suddenly, the situation in the Six Realms had become precarious and unpredictable. How strong would the so-called alliance be?


    Ye Futian and the others discussed this topic outside Ye Imperial Palace at that time. Supreme Swordlord said, ��Even though we knew that Donghuang the Great would reject the proposal, we had never expected him to answer in such an insulting manner. It looks like he offended Human Ancestor.��


    ��I had asked about your opinions earlier. All of you thought that Donghuang the Great would decline. Human Ancestor is not a fool. If the outcome is one that we can predict, why would he still send his people to propose marriage? I believe the real reason behind this action is more than what meets the eye.�� Ye Futian frowned and continued, ��Why did Human Ancestor do that?��


    ��For one, we cannot rule out the fact that Human Ancestor might have wanted to see Donghuang the Great��s reaction by proposing marriage or testing the water.�� Supreme Swordlord went on, ��Why would Human Ancestor test Donghuang the Great though?��


    ��Well, it��d only make sense if they were not on good terms since day one. They did it despite knowing the other party hated their guts,�� Ye Futian stated.


    ��This might have something to do with the death of Emperor Ye Qing,�� Supreme Swordlord added. ��There were many versions of stories about Emperor Ye Qing��s death back then. The clash of the Twin Great Emperors was started by Donghuang the Great, who coveted power, authority, and the throne. So, he murdered the former and even went as far as to wipe off many of his subordinates. It was a massacre. This is why he had always been a subject of condemnation. No one in Divine Prefecture dared to mention that genocide. It eventually became taboo. 400 years had passed since then. In retrospect, Donghuang might have felt the pressure that came from Outer Realm at that time.��


    ��If that were the case, Human Ancestor might have wanted Emperor Ye Qing to die all along,�� Ye Futian murmured as he recounted something the Dark Sovereign had mentioned before. It was logical if this turned out to be true. Human Ancestor was standing on the same side as Dark Sovereign back then. Only one of the Twin Great Emperor could remain. Hence, the merciless mass murder happened.


    Nonetheless, Donghuang the Great had always carried the guilt with him all the time. Therefore, he did not kill Ye Futian but spared the latter all this while.


    Things made more sense if that were the case.


    However, there was still one thing that Ye Futian could not understand about Donghuang the Great. During the former��s conversation with his teacher, Qi Xuangang, the latter mentioned that people of Donghuang the Great��s caliber would always have a firm and unshakable belief. Individuals like Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign did not hide their thoughts and beliefs. It was pretty apparent.


    What about Donghuang the Great?


    To understand Donghuang the Great, he would need to know what was the belief and goal of the former.


    In all likelihood, Donghuang the Great��s disciples might not even know about it.


    ��We don��t know how this will affect the Six Realms. However, it has nothing to do with us as of now. We should go back,�� Ye Futian announced. He took this news very seriously. Or else he would not have come out. Although it had nothing to do with them currently, he thought that this seemingly insignificant matter would affect the entire Six Realms�� future.


    If Human Ancestor��s purpose was to test Donghuang the Great��s attitude, what would the former do after knowing the result?


    It was a question that no one had to answer to at that time.


    With that, all of them returned to Ye Imperial Palace and put the matter at the back of their minds. After all, it did not affect them much. The most important thing to them was to focus on their cultivation.


    A month later, Old Ma rushed in to report that someone wished to see Ye Futian as he cultivated inside Ye Imperial Palace.


    Standing on the ladder outside the great hall of the Imperial Palace, Ye Futian looked forward and saw a silhouette who did not use the ladder but came flying in the air. Most of the cultivators in Ye Imperial Palace were upset with that figure. However, that person exuded a powerful aura where Divine Light circled their body. They must be a top-tier cultivator.


    A while later, a slender figure in green stood before Ye Futian, shooting him a sharp and condescending look. The former put an arrogant air around him and did not respect the latter.


    After scrutinizing that person, Ye Futian was sure that he had seen this uninvited visitor before.


    After Di Hao was injured during that war, several powerful cultivators of the Human Realm came from Heaven Beyond Heaven to God��s Ruins Continent. Those individuals were ancient beings with some of the highest cultivation levels. This visitor was one of them.


    A cultivator from Human Realm came to Ye Imperial Palace. Was that the aftermath brought by the marriage proposal?


    Ye Futian remained taciturn and stared at the visitor calmly. Then he emanated an unseen aura while Divine Light covered his body. After all, it was insolent to behave like that on the grounds of Ye Imperial Palace.


    After their powerful auras clashed, Ye Futian noticed that the other party had become one entity with heaven and earth. The pressure he exuded was so intimidating that it was comparable to Di Hao��s.


    A turquoise Divine Light circulated around Ye Futian��s body as he took a step forward. Immediately, the whole atmosphere quivered while an Authority of Heaven came pressing down from the sky. He piped up, ��If you are here to look for trouble, I will not hesitate to take you down!��


    After speaking, a stinging aura unleashed. The visitor immediately raised his head to stare and said, ��A Divine Matrix.��


    After that, he set his eyes on Ye Futian and carried on, ��Not bad. However, if you wished to defeat Donghuang the Great and get your revenge, it would be empty talk without becoming a Great Emperor yourself.��


    Ye Futian did not reply but glanced at him quietly.


    ��A Path of the Emperors has been opened now. If you are willing, you may take this Path of the Emperors,�� the visitor remarked.


    What Path of the Emperors?�� Ye Futian asked.


    What was Human Realm playing at?


    ��You are talented. Perhaps you have the aptitude to become a Great Emperor. But without an opportunity to walk on the Path of the Emperors, you shall never hope to reach that tier. Now, there��s a chance before your very eyes. Whether to grab it or not all depends on your choice,�� the visitor went on. ��Ye Futian, will you follow me back to Human Realm and be a disciple of Human Ancestor?��


    ��Huh?�� Ye Futian��s pupils shrunk when he heard that. The expressions of Ye Imperial Palace��s cultivators turned grim as they glared at the man who hovered before the ladder.


    This man wanted Ye Futian to go to Human Realm and be a disciple of Human Ancestor?


    Things went just as they had expected. The repercussions following the marriage proposal had begun to take place. The Human Realm had already started to plot against the Divine Prefecture.

 Chapter 2779 - Formless Pressure

    Chapter 2779 Formless Pressure


    The Human Realm had found him, claiming there was a Path of the Emperors that wanted him to join the Human Ancestor. Clearly, they wanted to help him against Donghuang the Great.


    The marriage proposal had caused the fissures between the two Great Emperor-level forces to expand.


    Perhaps, the Human Ancestor and Donghuang the Great were clearer about their relationship.


    ��I give my thanks to the Human Ancestor for his appreciation. However, I have my own path and will not cultivate under the Human Realm,�� Ye Futian replied calmly. He rejected the other directly. How could he go to the Human Realm?


    The present situation was so complicated. The best solution for him was to act by staying still. He was already trying to survive among the cracks and find a Path of the Emperors. If he took one wrong step, everything would fail.


    ��Your own path?�� After hearing Ye Futian��s words, the other showed some scorn, seeming to find it laughable. He said to Ye Futian, ��The Heavenly Path collapsed after the ancient Age of Gods ended. Why are there only a few Great Emperors?


    ��Are you really na?ve enough to think that you can find the Path of the Emperors by yourself? The Heavenly Path collapsed, and the Path of the Emperors was severed. All of those who became emperors had found special opportunities. This is also why the discovery of the God��s Ruins Continent represents the start of a new age. Countless possibilities have appeared, but from what we see now, the Path of the Emperors is still severed. Now, the Human Ancestor can help you find a Path of the Emperors. You must think carefully.�� The other spoke calmly with an arrogant tone, giving Ye Futian a huge chance. ��If you miss this, you will not have another chance,�� he said.


    Why would the Human Ancestor help him find a Path of the Emperors?


    Ye Futian��s heart quivered at these words. Of course, it wasn��t because he was tempted. Instead, it was because why would the Human Ancestor be able to help him find a Path of the Emperors?


    Did this mean that the Human Ancestor himself controlled some special opportunities?


    ��I would still like to try. The Path of the Emperors is cut off, but there are still six emperors in the world. Why can��t I?�� Ye Futian replied. The other took a deep look at Ye Futian with some hints of mockery.


    He was an ancient figure and had cultivated for countless years. Up to now, he had seen too many extraordinary figures. No one knew how many shining and talented figures had existed in the previous chaotic era, but what were their ends like?


    The best were cultivating in isolation like them and finding their own Path.


    But the longer you lived, the higher your cultivation, the more clearly you understood that the Path of the Emperors had been cut


    off.


    as


    Ye Futian was very young. In this era, he belonged to an extraordinary group and was naturally very confident. After his cultivation reached the peak and some more years passed, he would understand.


    He looked at Ye Futian with a mocking gaze and said, ��One day, you��ll understand what you missed.��


    With that, he turned and started walking, leaving this place, and quickly disappeared from everyone��s line of sight.


    Ye Futian looked at the leaving backside and furrowed his brows slightly. Many cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace came over here. They all looked at the figure disappearing into the distance. ��That man is so crazily proud,�� someone murmured.


    ��He must be a strong elder. He seems young, but he��s definitely an ancient and supreme figure who had cultivated in the Human Realm until coming out in this day and age,�� the Supreme Swordlord said. ��The Human Ancestor sent these people out of the mountains and had tried earlier to test Donghuang, the Great��s attitude with the marriage alliance. What exactly is he planning?��


    What goal did the Human Ancestor have?


    He vaguely felt that there was a deeper meaning to what the Human Ancestor��s actions, but they didn��t know yet.


    ��Plus, since the Human Ancestor could send people to find me, then he might be looking for other top figures in the Divine Prefecture,�� Ye Futian said. ��The Human Realm might be trying to overthrow the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��That is indeed possible.�� The Supreme Swordlord nodded. ��Especially if he uses the Path of the Emperors as bait, how many top figures would be able to resist the temptation? The Donghuang Imperial Palace doesn��t control the forces of the Divine Prefecture directly. Other than the forces they dominate directly, and the manors of the eighteen domains, all the forces and cultivators are free, like how I��m here today.


    ��Also, since the Human Ancestor is an ancient Great Emperor, he must know even more. He has a rich heritage and this in itself is very tempting to many top figures. Many strong cultivators might be persuaded to leave the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��If a conflict erupts between the Human Realm and Divine Prefecture, then won��t the Dark world, Devil Realm, and other forces be there to reap the benefits?�� Ye Futian asked in a low voice. Why was the Human Ancestor doing this? And why would Donghuang the Great act so domineering during the marriage alliance?


    He could say many things to reject the Human Realm, but he chose the most direct way. He did not hide his unhappiness at all and humiliated the one who��d come to propose.


    You had to look at a dog��s master before hitting it. The one Donghuang the Great humiliated was the Human Ancestor in the back. His direct disciple Di Hao had come to propose marriage? He wasn��t even qualified to enter the Donghuang Imperial Palace as an in-law.


    ��Don��t know how Donghuang the Great will deal with this,�� the Supreme Swordlord said. ��If Donghuang the Great and the Human Ancestor turn on each other, then the Dark Court, Devil Realm, and other forces will take advantage of this. It goes without saying. At that time, the Divine Prefecture might be surrounded by enemies. The Dark World and Devil Realm won��t mind taking the Divine Prefecture first. Thus, I don��t understand Donghuang the Great��s intent. Perhaps he has his own plan.��


    Ye Futian nodded. The current situation was becoming harder to understand. How will the Six Realms be in the future? As for the Donghuang the Great��s 500-year Fate of the Emperor, would he be the one to end it in 40 years?


    Or would it be the Human Ancestor��s group?


    If this situation continued worsening, it was indeed possible.


    After a pause, Ye Futian took a deep breath and said, ��We��re getting more and more pressed for time. I vaguely feel that there will be another huge change in the world. We must hurry and cultivate.��


    The Path of the Emperors!


    How could he step into the Great Emperor Plane sooner?


    He could only enter the Emperor Plane to truly contend with the Six Realms. Right now, he was only a chess piece. The six emperors did not truly respect him.


    Everyone nodded, showing that they agreed with Ye Futian��s words. They also had this feeling. Dark currents were flowing through the Six Realms right now, and an intense storm could occur at any time.


    ��Let��s all go cultivate. Those who have gone past the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path must enter the Near-Deity Plane as soon as possible, while those who have gone through the first divine tribulation should go through the second as soon as possible,�� Ye Futian said. He set down the other thoughts for now. For them right now, they could only remain unchanging to respond to the changes. Only cultivation could improve the Ye Imperial Palace��s level.


    ��Yes, Palace Lord.�� All the strong cultivators bowed and left this place, heading to cultivate.


    Ye Futian looked into the distance and took a deep breath. He felt a formless pressure��the pressure from the Outer Realms. With the current situation, any carelessness could be fatal. As a ��chess piece,�� he may be abandoned at any time too.


    Ye Futian was not arrogant enough to think that his relationship with the Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign was very stable!

 Chapter 2780 - The Killing Arrives

    Chapter 2780 The Killing Arrives


    It was Year 10,150 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. The God��s Ruins Continent had gone through the accumulation of time. After cycling through chaos to peace countless times, many extraordinary figures had appeared. The population of the place was great too.


    Cultivators from all the worlds had come here here, taking root and growing stronger. More and more forces were established here.


    In terms of the overall level, this God��s Ruins Continent was stronger than any realm of the Seven Realms. Of course, this continent itself got its power from the forces of the Original Realm that had moved from the Seven Realms.


    There was also an interesting phenomenon in recent years. The cultivators from the Original Realm mostly gathered in the territory covered by the Ye Imperial Palace. They were stationed there, as if seeing the Ye Imperial Palace as the center, agreeing by default that the Ye Imperial Palace represented the forces of the Original Realm.


    �ѧ��


    Of course, most of them had come to the Ruins Continent to cultivate through the space passage created by the Ye Imperial Palace. So they naturally felt closer to the Ye Imperial Palace and viewed it as a place they revered.


    In addition, the disciples that had originally studied at the Heavenly Mandate Academy had gradually matured and strengthened. They held great authority among the Original Realm cultivators in the outside world. It was even more so for the people who had come from the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    As for the forces outside of the Original Realm, they were developing nonstop too. They crossed through their cultivation realm and the Ruins World, improving their abilities while preserving relative peace. No largescale conflicts had erupted in the past few years.


    However, there was still something that caused a commotion. It was the dark undercurrent of the Seven Realms.


    This event was still related to the marriage alliance from a few years back. After the Human Realm had been rejected and humiliated, their relationship with the Divine Prefecture worsened subtly too. Not too long after that event, the Human Realm invited the top figures of the Seven Realms to a sparring session in the Human Realm.


    There had been many guesses about this sparring session. The general public was not familiar with it, but according to rumors, the Human Realm wanted to win over the strongest figures of all the worlds. This naturally included the top figures of the Divine Prefecture.


    Apparently, many strong cultivators had gone, including famous people from the Divine Prefecture, who had gone secretly. As for what exactly happened there, no one knew.


    The Ye Imperial Palace did not participate.


    A strong cultivator of the Human Realm had gone personally to invite Ye Futian to cultivate in the Human Realm and learn from the Human Ancestor, but Ye Futian had rejected him. This meant that he had missed the chance to get close with the Human Realm.


    At this time, a mysterious yet strong aura covered the land within the Ye Imperial Palace. This vast Ye Imperial Palace was like a true emperor-level palace. It was extremely magnificent, and the formless weight that filled the sky above it was like the might of an emperor.


    Many top figures had gathered within the Ye Imperial Palace. Many strong figures had gone through the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, especially since many people had had breakthroughs these past few years.


    After the previous storm, Ye Futian had ordered the strong cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace cultivate in peace and improve themselves. The strong figures of the Ye Imperial Palace all followed Ye Futian��s orders and worked hard on cultivating, trying their best to reach another level before the drastic changes occurred. This way, they could react to the changes.


    With such a cultivation environment, as well as pills, various divine techniques, and other cultivation resources, their abilities had improved quickly.


    Ye Futian sat in the cultivation court at the peak of the Ye Imperial Palace. Divine light circled him. With his body as the core, the green divine light enveloped the boundless world. It reached the sky along the divine wall, passed through the matrix, and extended and enveloped the vast Ye Imperial Palace.


    Right now, the entire Ye Imperial Palace was under the envelopment of his divine consciousness. Naturally, it was also covered by the domain of his Will of the Great Way. It was like his small world.


    Under his divine consciousness, he could see all the cultivators. He could easily see the cultivation statuses of third brother Gu Dongliu, the Supreme Swordlord, Fang Cun, and Xia Qingyuan.


    They all knew this and did not care that Ye Futian was watching them. When they ran into problems with cultivating, they would communicate directly with Ye Futian like this. Fang Cun and the others especially would often speak up directly to ask about cultivation.


    ��Ye.�� Just then, a figure stood up in a cultivation spot of the Ye Imperial Palace and looked up at the sky. His figure was burlesque and filled with aggressive force. He actually called directly to the sky.


    There was a strong wave of Qi in the atrium. It gathered into an illusory face-it was Ye Futian��s face.


    ��What is wrong?�� A voice came out of that illusion. It was Ye Futian��s figure, but his true self was still cultivating in isolation. This illusory figure was only formed by his consciousness.


    ��I just comprehended a shred of Power of the Dragon God from the Dragon God��s corpse. After combining it into my Will of the Fighting God, I can have a breakthrough. Do you want to try?�� Dou Zhao said a bit excitedly. Ye Futian had once exchanged a Dragon God��s corpse with Xia Qingyuan. It was mainly to help the Demon Clan cultivate, especially the Dragon Clan.


    Dou Zhao had comprehended a shred of the Power of the Dragon God too.


    ��Okay,�� the illusion in the sky answered. Dou Zhao��s figure instantly shot into the sky, his body transforming into a giant. Like a god of war, a frightening war rune with divine light appeared between his brows. Countless symbols of the word ��war�� floated in the sky, and an immense will of war burst forth.


    In an instant, the vast land was filled with an extremely chaotic aura. The combat power was shocking.


    In the Ye Imperial Palace, many people in the distance felt this strong will that shot into the clouds and all looked over. They saw the aura of war shoot up, and a War God-like figure rose up, zooming murderously into the sky.


    It was Dou Zhao. He had gone through the first Divine Tribulation of the Great Path countless years ago.


    ��Such a strong aura. The abilities of Dou Zhao are getting scarier nowadays. I must cultivate hard too,�� someone whispered, their heart quivering Nowadays, the abilities of the cultivators in the Ye Imperial palace were getting more and more frightening. If they didn��t work hard in cultivating, they would get left in the dust.


    ��Open!�� Dou Zhao roared. He transformed into the War God, and his will of war continued to be pushed to the max. He rushed into the sky, and battle intent filled the air instantly. The War God was about to shatter the void.


    But just then, the illusory figure in the sky stamped his foot, making the world thunder. It stepped directly onto that War God��s body, and the aggressive War God that had shot into the sky dropped down even faster. It had been stepped on and forced down directly.


    ��Boom!�� There was a huge boom, and some buildings collapsed. Many people��s hearts clenched fiercely. They all mourned for the War God that had disappeared.


    So sad.


    ��He has gotten cocky!�� someone murmured before turning to start cultivating again.


    ��He has indeed gotten cocky,�� someone else said. Dou Zhao could have dueled with anyone, so why did he have to go for Ye Futian?


    Wasn��t he asking for it?


    Did he not know his level after going through the Divine Tribulation of the Great Path?


    ��Little Condor, you can duel with Dou Zhao when you have time,�� Ye Futian��s voice said in the void.


    ��Okay!�� Condor Sama had flown over from somewhere. He transformed into a giant bird and dove straight towards Dou Zhao. Soon, there were some huge booms and pained cries. One could vaguely make out pleas of ��I��m sorry.��


    Ye Futian saw all of this. He opened his eyes now and looked up into the sky. His plane was getting stronger and stronger, but he still had not had any tangible changes. The third divine tribulation still had not come.


    But in reality, his cultivation now was incomparable to how it had been. He could feel that he was much stronger.


    Would he reach the Near-God Plane?


    Ye Futian was even thinking about what kind of plane the Near-God Plane was. It was originally a plane of void. It was known as the path they must cross to become a Great Emperor and the ultimate door they would pass into.


    However, his cultivation was different from the others. He was still stuck at the pinnacle of the Renhuang Plane at present. Even though he had gone through two divine tribulations, he still had not become a tribulation cultivator like the others.


    His tribulations were different from the others.


    This was why Ye Futian was thinking and even doubting a bit.


    ��Dou Zhao is begging for mercy. Won��t you let Little Condor release him?�� Hua Jieyu said with a smile as she walked over.


    ��That guy deserves a beating. Little Condor can spark his bloodthirstiness and give him some motivation,�� Ye Futian said with a laugh. He trolled Dou Zhao purposely for disturbing his cultivation.


    ��He indeed deserves it. You were frustrated about cultivation, and he disturbed you,�� Hua Jieyu said. ��However, you should not be too impatient. Cultivation has no instant success. Instead, it takes time. Once you comprehend enough of a plane, you will naturally break down the walls. It is just that your cultivation is special, so your walls are higher than the others, but your abilities are stronger too.��


    en


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Overthinking without comprehension is indeed meaningless.��


    ��Do what you can to the best of your abilities, and what should come will come naturally at the right time,�� Hua Jieyu continued.


    ��I understand.�� Ye Futian nodded and continued to cultivate. He entered a state of complete focus. The moment he started cultivating, he put away all other thoughts and entered his world to see his true self clearly.


    Time passed unknowingly. Ye Futian was immersed in his own cultivation.


    That day, many people in the territory controlled by the Ye Imperial Palace looked up to the sky. There were strands of shocking aura in the void. They all looked up to the sky and then saw a group of strong cultivators descend from the sky. This group was clearly from different parties, but all the parties�� auras were frightening to the max.


    ��Who are they?�� The hearts of the cultivators were all racing. These auras were exceedingly frightening, especially the few at the front. Like gods, their gazes swept across the ground with disdain, as if they were looking at ants.


    Those gazes made many cultivators feel extremely uncomfortable. In fact, some even sensed danger. Before they could react, a destructive bolt of golden lightning appeared in the sky. It traveled across the high sky, containing the incredible intent of destruction.


    Then one of the strong figures pointed downward with a finger. The destructive golden lightning instantly swept down murderously like it meant to destroy the world. The many people were shocked immediately, and they hurried towards the distance, wanting to escape.


    But that destructive golden lightning seemed to contain Divine Power. Every cultivator it hit was instantly turned to dust. They could not resist at all and died tragically under the golden lightning.


    The ground split apart, and terrifying cracks opened up. The golden lightning continued spreading into the distance as if the ground had broken apart.


    The cultivators in this vast space started fleeing madly. The destructive aura in the sky above their heads was still there, and they all felt a dangerous intent.


    These people had come with the intent of murder.


    ��Run!��


    ��Notify Palace Lord Ye!�� someone yelled. They seemed to want to ask Palace Lord Ye for help, but as soon as he finished speaking, a golden bolt of lightning struck his body. His entire body disappeared under the golden lightning, and his soul was scattered. He did not even have a corpse left.


    The group of cultivators looked at the Ye Imperial Palace in the distance, and their eyes were filled with scorn, along with a murderous aura.


    Notify the Ye Imperial Palace?


    There was no hurry. They had come to destroy the Ye Imperial Palace. Everything would end today.


    The Ye Imperial Palace and Ziwei Segmentum would become history.


    This was not Ye Futian��s era. He never had an era. He was only a talented junior who had fallen before he could fully rise up. So what if he was extremely talented? What could he change?


    They came today, representing the god of


    death.


    Boom��


    Countless huge palmprints fell from the sky. Nothing survived in their paths. Everyone was killed instantly under the attacks of the palmprints, and huge dents from the palms appeared on the ground.


    Everyone was fleeing wildly, but the moment that disaster came, they could only pray. The destructive blows kept raining down as if the reaper had come to this land.


    ��Who is wreaking havoc here?�� Beautiful divine light of the Great Path flowed in from the distance. It was the cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace hurrying over. They were the ones who had joined the Ziwei Imperial Palace before, and now, many of them had reached the pinnacle of the Renhuang Plane. Their hearts trembled after feeling the destructive intent too. These people were extremely frightening, but they must come to stop them. Of course, they had also notified the Ye Imperial Palace.


    As soon as they finished speaking, a destructive divine formation appeared in the sky. Then disparaging sword intent rained down, creating endless stabbing sounds. They did not even have the time to yell out in pain before dying tragically under the attacks. They could not even think of resistance.


    Right now, this place was like hell on earth. No one knew how many cultivators had died in an instant. This cruel and cold-blooded bloodshed had not happened on the Ruins Continent in many years, but it had happened here today.


    en


    Many people felt despair. They could not even flee, but the strong cultivators did not seem to care about their lives. The murder was only done offhandedly.


    They traveled directly across the sky. Everywhere they passed, countless people were turned to dust. Their goal was the Ye Imperial Palace.


    These top figures had come for the Ye Imperial Palace-to destroy the Ye Imperial Palace!

 Chapter 2781 - One Step too Slow

    Chapter 2781 One Step too Slow


    ��Everyone, retreat!�� A voice filled the atrium. No one could resist, so everyone began to do so.


    Clearly, the strong cultivators had realized that these people had come for blood, and they could not be stopped at all. This group of strong cultivators was frighteningly powerful. Anyone who wanted to stop them would be like trying to stop a mountain with a stick. They could not even take one hit, so they could only retreat. It would be enough if they could live on.


    At the same time as that voice, a divine sword appeared in the distance. It carried the Supreme Sword Will and transformed into various boundless and huge swords, coming down at the strong cultivators who had come to kill.


    There were strings of thunderous noises. The huge swords contained supreme might. The Supreme Swordlord��s figure appeared outside the Ye Imperial Palace, coming out with a group of strong cultivators. They all had very uncomfortable expressions. They stared at the incoming strong cultivators in the distance, advancing with destruction.


    They saw countless beams of golden divine light sweeping through the void. They transformed into a golden divine sword. The sword did not contain any sword intent. It was only indestructible Divine Power, but it had transformed into a sword to kill and then formed attacks. It was not a swordsman. But in that instant, all the divine swords were swept away and destroyed. The golden divine sword disintegrated the sword of the Supreme Swordlord, making the Supreme Swordlord��s expression turn ugly. He stared at the group of advancing strong cultivators.


    They had become too strong. Emperor��s might radiated subtly from their bodies, and Divine Power flowed around them. They were unstoppable as they tried to destroy the Ye Imperial Palace.


    The number of strong cultivators who had come out after the Supreme Swordlord also had very uncomfortable expressions. They all saw that the Supreme Swordlord could not stop them either. If this group attacked, they would probably not prevent them.


    ��Retreat. Go in.�� The Supreme Swordlord saw the cold stares shoot over across the sky and instantly made the decision. He ordered the retreat, making everyone return to the Ye Imperial Palace. Being outside was suicide. They were not the group��s match and would only be massacred. This was meaningless death.


    The strong cultivators who had come out all followed the order to retreat and returned to the Ye Imperial Palace.


    Seeing them disappear, the cultivators in the distance did not mind either. Their eyes held some mockery as if staring at their prey.


    They had already reached this place, and those people still wanted to escape?


    They must all die!


    None of the strong cultivators of the Ziwei Imperial Palace should think of surviving. They would all be massacred, and the Ziwei Imperial Palace would be wiped out.


    The group of strong cultivators continued forward. In the sweep of an arm, who knew how many people lost their lives. They killed mindlessly, and everywhere they passed was turned to dust. It was as if people��s lives were just like weeds to them and the cultivators were like ants.


    This also made everyone feel despair. When faced with absolute power, they were indeed like ants. They did not even have the qualifications to resist. They could only watch as the reaper descended, and then they would disappear from the world.


    Plus, the Supreme Swordlord had come out and then retreated. Even they could not stop these people��s bloodshed. The core figures of the Ziwei Segmentum were gathered within the Ye Imperial Palace.


    we


    Right now, the entire Ye Imperial Palace was shaken. The Supreme Swordlord��s roar had woken all the cultivators with shock. Then they learned what had happened in the outside world. Strong enemies had come to invade the Ye Imperial Palace.


    Various figures shot into the sky. Strong auras of the Great Path radiated out, and their eyes were frigid. People had actually come to kill. No one had broken in since the Ye Imperial Palace had been constructed.


    This was the first time, but just this once put them against a huge catastrophe.


    Ye Futian was cultivating in isolation, but such a great matter naturally shocked him awake at once. A frightening Will of the Great Path spread out in the sky above the Ye Imperial Palace. An illusory figure appeared in the sky.


    ��The Vajra Region, Haotian Clan, Jiang Clan, and other Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture have allied and attacked us,�� the Supreme Swordlord announced. His voice spread across the entire Ye Imperial Palace, resonating through this land. ��They have committed massacres in the Outer Realms and are almost here.��


    In cultivation, Ye Futian opened his eyes. His figure flashed, and he appeared in the sky, combining with the illusory figure. His expression did not look good.


    The Ancient God Clans had always been a danger. After the Great Emperor Intent of the Ancient God Clans was awoken, they became extremely threatening. They had always been trying to cultivate faster than the others and get rid of the other.


    Before this, the Ancient God Clans had kept a low cover and never attacked him.


    But today, they had attacked together and were committing so much bloodshed. Ye Futian understood that the other side seemed to be very confident. Then, it was very likely they had taken a critical step and had experienced a transformation. That was why they dared to attack the Ye Imperial Palace so crazily.


    What step had they cultivated to?


    Boom��


    Following a considerable boom, the group of strong cultivators burst into the Ye Imperial Palace. It was indeed the alliance of the few Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture in the past. This allied force had wanted to destroy them more than once. They had attacked the Ziwei Segmentum countless times before, but they all paid heavy prices. Tianyan City had especially been destroyed, the will of the Tianyan the Great had been wiped out, and the divine weapons had been taken.


    But the heritages of the other Ancient God Clans were still there, and they always hid their strongest trump card. They had fought before, but they had never been confident in destroying the other and had always been waiting


    Now, they seemed one step faster than him and had come here to attack directly.


    A storm of the Great Path flowed in the atrium. Ye Futian��s illusory figure seemed to appear in the sky. He stared at the incoming strong cultivators. The lord of the Vajra Realm and countless other top cultivators also looked up into the sky. Their eyes were like divine eyes, containing extremely sharp intents, along with a hint of disdainful air. They were like high and mighty gods who did not care for anything here and were extremely scornful.


    Seeing those eyes, Ye Futian knew that these ancient figures probably had done what Tianyan the Great had done back then. They had controlled the physical bodies that they��d borrowed, step by step.


    Back then, Tianyan the Great had possessed Wang Xiao��s body and finally became one with him. Wang Xiao had disappeared, and Tianyan the Great had been reborn.


    Now, the few rulers of the Ancient God Clans had probably become the shells of the Great Emperors.


    ��Ye Futian!�� the Vajra Realm��s lord yelled. His eyes had turned golden and were extremely sharp. Divine Power seemed to flow in his eyes, and he stared scornfully at Ye Futian��s body. ��It seems that in the end, you are still a bit slow,�� he said. ��After today, this star figure who had risen from the Original Realm will be eradicated from the world.��


    Slow?


    Ye Futian could feel that gust of Divine Power and could feel the strong confidence in the other��s eyes. The Great Emperor had been revived and attacked the Ye Imperial Palace to take his life.


    Several other Great Emperors had come at the same time too. They thought highly of him.


    ��You all were Great Emperors before too. How can you massacre the innocent?�� Ye Futian asked coldly. They were Great Emperors but massacring wildly.


    How could people of the Outer Realms resist the killing of a former Great Emperor?


    ��They are nothing but ants. In that era, not even one of ten cultivators could survive. This is nothing,�� they said coldly. They did not care for the people��s lives at all. To them, the masses were like ants.

 Chapter 2782 - Crisis

    Chapter 2782 Crisis


    ��So, you��ll even possess and devour your own juniors?�� Ye Futian��s eyes were cold. These Great Emperors disrespected the masses.


    ��It is their honor to be able to combine with our consciousnesses,�� the Vajra Realm Lord said coldly. Supported by the Divine Power, his entire aura had changed drastically and was completely different from the original Vajra Realm Lord. It was like Wang Xiao after being possessed by Tianyan the Great.


    At this time, another figure appeared in the sky. It was Xi Chiyao. She was also from an Ancient God Clan and had some similarities. She looked at the group in the lower sky and said coldly, ��Since you all have stepped onto this path, as the Buddha of Destiny said, the Age of Gods will appear. You all will have the chance to recover your emperor position. You��re no longer your original self, so why remain obsessed with the past rivalries?��


    They all gazed at Xi Chiyao. They knew that Xi Chiyao was a bit special too, like them. After all, they had all inherited the forces of the Ancient God Clans.


    ��If he is only an ordinary person, then he is an ant in my eyes. I would not lower myself to make this trip. You also said that I will recover my emperor position in the future. How can I leave such a threat here?��


    They were a bit worried because of how extraordinary Ye Futian was. They worried that Ye Futian would enter the Great Emperor Plane one day, becoming their threat. After all, it was incredibly difficult for them to come back to life. They had gone through a long passage of time for the change in the world to finally come and give them a chance to return to the world and the past.


    They were not like Tianyan the Great.


    ��It seems that the fallen gods of the past have fear in their hearts,�� Ye Futian said coldly, with hints of mockery. These figures who had once been Great Emperors feared him and thus came to kill him.


    ��Say whatever you want. Today, all of this will cease to exist,�� the other party replied indifferently. They were dismissive of Ye Futian��s words.


    ��It should not have been so fast.�� Furrowing her brows, Xi Chiyao said, ��How did you all do it?��


    She was like these people. Naturally, she knew some things.


    ��What methods did you all take to reach this step?�� Xi Chiyao continued to ask.


    Hearing Xi Chiyao��s words, Ye Futian also had a surprised expression. Then he seemed to think of something and asked, ��You all went to the Human Realm?��


    Naturally, he knew about that matter too.


    Of course, he also remembered how the Human Ancestor had sent someone to invite him before. At that time, they had guessed that the Human Realm might convince some top cultivators of the Divine Prefecture to join them.


    Then, these big Ancient God Clans may very well be among them.


    Plus, these Ancient God Clans all had former Great Emperors. The Human Ancestor��s promise would be the most tempting and attractive to them.


    A sharp flash of murderous intent appeared in the eyes of the Vajra Realm Lord. While Divine Power surged, he raised his hands and pointed straight up at Xi Chiyao in the sky. The finger penetrated the skies, and a frightening beam of golden light appeared in the void, going towards Xi Chiyao instantly.


    ��Boom!�� A blur flashed by, and Ye Futian��s figure appeared, taking Xi Chiyao away from her original spot. The frightening Divine Power stabbed into the void, and it was like a hole opened up in the heavens-penetrated by the Divine Power.


    ��Step back,�� Ye Futian said. Xi Chiyao��s situation was the same as the other side before, but she was no longer their match. These people had already been possessed and completed a critical transformation.


    Ye Futian was unclear about how strong they were now, but since they dared to charge into the Ye Imperial Palace, they were very confident they could kill them.


    ��Everyone, step back,�� Ye Futian said. Instantly, many people retreated. They all understood that they would not do much in this battle.


    The vast Ye Imperial Palace became extremely depressed. Even though this place was huge, it did not mean anything for strong cultivators of this level. Their attacks could cover it directly.


    Ye Futian had a thought, and instantly, frightening will of the emperor flooded out. Green divine light shone in the heavens. At the same time, countless runes appeared in the sky above the Ye Imperial Palace. It was like a curtain of light. These runes were all runes of the Sword Way, containing immense swordsmanship Qi.


    At the same time, an emperor-level divine sword hovered at the peak of the Ye Imperial Palace, pulsing with immense sword will.


    Ye Futian��s figure seemed to have become one with the world here. His will became the will of the land. The runes in the heavens transformed into the sharpest divine swords and quickly unified into a huge divine sword.


    Then Ye Futian pointed down the sky. The divine sword instantly stabbed down murderously, carrying the immense will of the sword.


    Poof�� The sharp sound ripped apart the void. The frightening divine sword ignored the distance in the space and pierced down murderously, stabbing toward the Vajra Realm Lord.


    This sword attack was extremely shocking. It broke apart the land like a sword that would destroy the world. It was aggressive and domineering, tearing apart the space. Countless beams of sword will buried that portion of the sky.


    ��Emperor weapon, divine formation!�� The strong cultivators of the Ancient God Clans looked up into the sky. The Great Emperors were all stunned while looking at the incoming sword. As expected, it was correct for them to have not come in the past. If they had attacked here before, they probably would not be able to fend off such a divine sword attack.


    A storm of Divine Power suddenly swept up around the Vajra Realm Lord. In an instant, unsurmountable divine might enveloped the land and sky. With his body as the core, the Vajra Realm��s Divine Power converged into a frightening curtain of light.


    There seemed to be a god behind him. The terrifying storm of Divine Power gathered, and the ancient god of the Vajra Realm pointed forward. It was like a true heavenly god��s point.


    Countless beams of finger light shone forth, and they were all created from the Vajra Realm��s Divine Power. And the pointed finger went straight towards the frighteningly intense incoming divine sword. The Vajra Realm Lord did not avoid it and faced the sword attack squarely.


    For his current state, any being below the Great Emperor Plane were like ants. He did not care. Even if a true Great Emperor released emperor weapons and divine formations, why would he care?


    The two attacks clashed together, and a muffled sound was emitted from the entire Ye Imperial Palace. It was as if the space was being ripped apart as the destructive windstorm swept through the place. The Vajra Realm��s Divine Power was an indestructible and sharp Divine Power. Even when it crashed against the huge sword, it still stabbed through directly. The huge divine sword broke bit by bit from the center and crumbled.


    After the divine sword was destroyed, the Divine Power of the Vajra Realm was still there.


    When the destructive windstorm scattered, Ye Futian��s eyes grew extremely grave. He stared down from the sky. He could mostly get a feel of the other party��s abilities from this attack. It was only one person, but he was already this strong, while there were countless figures of this level on the other side. How could he counter them?


    The Vajra Realm Lord��s eyes held some shades of mockery. They had killed all the way here, sweeping all of the beings, but he actually was not as impatient now. He kind of felt bad about killing a cultivator like Ye Futian, who was qualified to become a Great Emperor!

 Chapter 2783 - Die with Honor?

    Chapter 2783 Die with Honor?


    ��Ye Futian, I can give you a way to survive. Will you choose it?�� the Vajra Realm Lord asked. His voice held penetrative power and the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace felt their eardrums hurt.


    The former Great Emperor had combined with the Vajra Realm Lord, becoming one. He had recovered his Divine Power, and though he still had not recovered to his prime, he was already under the Emperor Plane. Even his voice contained Divine Power.


    The people of the Ye Imperial Palace could feel it. They felt hopeless and looked up at Ye Futian in the sky.


    Perhaps, they would face unprecedented danger today. Would they be able to reverse the tides this time?


    ��A way to survive?�� Ye Futian looked at the other. He understood clearly that there was only one path to resolving this under the circumstances. Everyone under the Great Emperor Plane were ants. He must kowtow under the other��s foot, accept the other��s control and give up everything. This is what the other wanted.


    In reality, they had lost the ability to relieve the situation after the storm that year. One party had to be destroyed.


    However, he seemed to indeed be one step slower. The other had reached the next level one step sooner, even though this might have been because of the Human Ancestor.


    But the process was not necessary. It was the result that was important.


    While the Vajra Realm Lord spoke, a boundless divine formation appeared in the sky. The divine formation contained boundless and infinite Sword Will as if it was the power of divine punishment.


    Ye Futian took a look. It was another reincarnated Great Emperor of the Ancient God Clan preparing to attack.


    He had a thought, and a horrifying spatial storm appeared in the sky. The Rules in this place surged, and countless swallowing spaces appeared in the vast space. In addition, a huge swallowing wheel appeared. It was like a black hole that could swallow up everything in the world.


    Very strong Rules of Space flooded outside of this black hole storm. In the sky, it was as if the Will of the Great Emperor was awakening. This land originally had a Will of the Great Emperor. This had once been where the Mahoraga of the Eight Legions had been located.


    Ye Futian��s eyes changed. His body melted into that space, disappearing into the black hole.


    This windstorm flooded down the sky. The black hole swallowed everything in the world, including the Force of the Great Path, causing many of the Sword Will to disappear after being swept into the black hole.


    ��Interesting.�� The Vajra Realm Lord looked up into the sky. His golden eyes held Divine Power and were extremely sharp. ��The Will of the Mahoraga from the ancient Eight Legions. Unfortunately, this does not exist.��


    As soon as he finished speaking, a frightening Will shot into the heavens, causing that horrifying swallowing storm in the sky to ripple. The other reincarnated Great Emperors also released their Wills. The entire Ye Imperial Palace was enveloped by the Wills of these Great Emperors, making people feel truly suffocating pressure.


    Every Will was of the Great Emperor level. Even though these Great Emperors had not returned to their peak, they had already awoken again and returned. It was the true Will of the Great Emperor. Just as the other had said, if King Mahoraga had come back to life, he would naturally be able to force back their Will. But Mahoraga did not exist anymore while they had indeed returned.


    Boom! The silhouette of the Vajra Realm��s Ancient God raised a hand and pointed at the sky. In an instant, the Divine Power of the Vajra Realm transformed into various sharp blades that penetrated the void. The blades did not fly out of his hand. Instead, it crossed through the void and stabbed into the black hole storm that could swallow everything.


    The various sharp blades came from an Ancient God��s hand and could stab through the spatial storm directly. The black hole storm swallowed it up, but the other end was still in the hand of the Ancient God. Divine Power burst forth, flooding wildly into the black hole storm, wanting to rip the black hole storm apart.


    The black hole storms rolled and thundered as if they were about to collapse. At the same time, the force of divine punishment transformed by the countless divine swords also stabbed into the black hole storm. These Ancient Gods wanted to make the black hole storm collapse forcefully.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Many thunderous sounds shook the sky and land. The windstorms that had appeared above the Ye Imperial Palace were collapsing simultaneously, getting ruined and destroyed.


    Billions of divine swords flew out at once, racing towards Ye Futian.


    Suddenly, a very strong beam of the Sword Will appeared in the sky. Four figures appeared at the same time. The four great swordsmen were the Supreme Swordlord, Ye Wuchen, Yaya, and Swordsmaster of Lihen. Of course, the Supreme Swordlord was the leader, while Ye Wuchen and the other swordsmen were support. They released the Emperor-level Will that they��d comprehended that year and activated the emperor-level divine weapon. With the Supreme Swordlord as the main sword formation leader, a massive divine sword formation appeared above the windstorm.


    The two forces of Sword Will crashed wildly against each other, collapsing in the void and upending the world.


    ��Hmph.�� There was a cold huff, and then a Haotian Great Palm Seal appeared in the sky. It passed through the broken Sword Will directly and slammed into the Supreme Swordlord and the others in the sky.


    me


    They pushed the huge sword to crash against it, but the moment that the Haotian Divine Power was released, it already crushed everything. The Great Palm Seal transformed into the sky, representing the Will of Haotian. It was incomparable.


    Boom! With a massive crash, the emperor-level divine sword fell down and finally caused the Haotian Great Palm Seal to shake. However, the emperor-level divine sword was still sent flying back. The Supreme Swordlord and other strong cultivators were sent flying too. They grunted, and fresh blood trickled out of their mouths. They had not been hit directly. It was the Divine Power contained in the Will of Haotian that had hurt them.


    ��Insects are trying to shake a tree,�� the leader of the Haotian Clan said. He had once been Haotian the Great. One could imagine how incredibly strong he had been before to name himself after Haotian��the vast heavens. He represented the Will of Haotian. The Divine Power that he cultivated was also the Divine Power of Haotian.


    Now, even though he had not returned fully, he could already release his Will and Divine Power at the same time. How could these people counter him with only one emperor-level weapon?


    He could sweep away everything by himself and kill into the Ye Imperial Palace.


    And yet, they had all come together.


    Ye Futian glanced at the Supreme Swordlord and the others. He felt some despair. Naturally, he also thought that these people were already returning. Even though they had not become emperors directly after returning, they were already Near Great Emperors. These Near Great Emperors were not the same as other Near-Deity cultivators.


    Even if the other Near-Deity cultivators had very detailed and strong cultivations, they had not touched the ultimate power yet. But these people had felt it before. They had once been true Great Emperors.


    ��Ye Futian, it is still your honor to die here today,�� the Haotian Clan leader announced, his voice reverberating the sky.


    It was still Ye Futian��s honor to die because he would die in their hands. Countless Great Emperors had allied today to kill Ye Futian.


    ��As the descendant of a Great Emperor and heir of many Great Emperors, you aren��t willing to surrender. Then, today I will bestow upon you an honored death. You may rest in peace,�� the Vajra Realm leader said. His voice was extremely cold and arrogant.


    Bestowing death upon Ye Futian was his honor.


    It was only because they were high and mighty Great Emperors. Merely dying in their hands was an honor, let alone all of them descending together to kill Ye Futian.


    No one else in the Divine Prefecture would have this honor.


    Killing him was his own honor. What kind of arrogance was this? What kind of mockery was this? But these people had once been Great Emperors. Right now, all the strong cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace only felt suffocating pressure.


    The repressive aura shrouded everyone. It was not only Ye Futian today. The group of Great Emperors saw everyone��s lives as nothing. Everything under the Great Emperor Plane were mere ants. If Ye Futian lost, then everyone would die here today. The other party would not let anyone go.


    The Ye Imperial Palace was a whole.


    At this moment, Ye Futian��s body entered the upper sky. His Qi surged wildly within him, flowing towards the outer world. Emerald green divine light from his Life Palace combined with the Will of the world. His own Will incorporated into the world too.


    His cultivation had improved his abilities significantly these past few years. He was incomparable to the past and could not be spoken of in the same way, but even so, he was not facing the controllers of Ancient God Clans anymore. Instead, they were returned Great Emperors.


    Plus, it was not only one.


    Under these circumstances, he would only have a sliver of chance by borrowing the Will of Ancient Great Emperors and fully combine with the Will of Mahoraga that was contained in the relics.


    As if sensing something, the group of strong cultivators looked up into the sky. There was scorn in their eyes. Ye Futian still had not given up and wanted to turn the tides. He was dreaming!


    ��The people are always so delusional. They��re already hopeless, but they still hold onto the fantasy. It��s just the struggle before death. What meaning is there for an ant��s struggle?�� the Haotian Clan leader said loudly. His voice was indifferent and held a lofty feeling. He did not respect Ye Futian at all. He was no longer the controller of the Haotian Clan.


    The strong cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace did not think that the other party was being cocky when they heard this voice. Instead, the voice seemed solemn and grave, as if stating a fact. That was the voice of a Great Emperor, and it was accompanied by a divine might. The masses were ants, while they were the rulers of the world.


    What meaning was there for an ant��s struggle?


    Perhaps it was because Ye Futian was the first person they wanted to kill after returning, or maybe he was the first ��opponent,�� so they were a bit more talkative.


    Even though they did not truly see Ye Futian as an opponent, they still gave Ye Futian some ��respect.�� In their eyes, they had come personally to kill Ye Futian, and several had come together. This was already respect. It was Ye Futian��s honor. He could die with honor.


    ��Die,�� a calm voice said. It was a distant tone, as if announcing the result��the result that had already been determined.


    In the sky, the Haotian Might shrouded the land. A face appeared above his body. It seemed to represent Haotian.


    This face then transformed into a huge figure, like a heavenly deity. It raised a hand and slammed down at the lower sky. Countless Haotian Great Palm Seals abruptly shot down. The ground shattered, and everything was about to be destroyed. The palm seals covered the entire Ye Imperial Palace.


    Everything was about to be destroyed!

 Chapter 2784 - Divine War

    Chapter 2784 Divine War


    The falling Haotian Great Palm Seals contained Haotian Divine Power and were abominable. As soon as the palm seals appeared, the cultivators in the entire Ye Imperial Palace felt a divine might. It was the weight of Haotian. It felt suffocating, and their blood thundered as if their bodies were about to implode. They could not imagine what would happen if they were hit by the Divine Power within the Great Palm Seal.


    They could not withstand the Divine Print of Haotian at all.


    Just then, a brilliant beam of divine light lit up throughout the entire Ye Imperial Palace. The golden divine light swept by, transforming into an incredible sheet of light. At the same time, divine music sounded, filling the sky. A group of figures appeared in the sky above the Ye Imperial Palace. This group of strong cultivators had directly formed a divine formation, using their flesh bodies to create the formation. They stood in different directions of the Ye Imperial Palace, and the silhouette of the War God appeared behind their bodies, looming over the land.


    The cultivators of the Lost Clan!


    The people of the Ye Imperial Palace all looked up to the sky. The newcomers were the strong cultivators of the Lost Clan. Headed by the elders of the Lost Clan, the 360 Lost Clan cultivators formed this super war formation. Most of the people were for aid, while the truly strong cultivators were those at the elder level.


    This time, all the elders had come out. The strong cultivators of the Lost Clan who had not gotten involved with matters seemed incredibly ancient, but they had stepped out this time too. This was not only the matter of the Ziwei Imperial Palace, but it also pertained to the Lost Clan.


    The current Ye Imperial Palace included the Ziwei Imperial Palace, West Imperial Palace, and the Lost Clan. If one flourished, all flourished. If one was ruined, all were ruined.


    Divine light shimmered subtly in that strong war formation. It was supposed by ancient emperor-level weapons, and Divine Power surged. It covered the sky and sun, blocking the sky above the Ye Imperial Palace.


    The Haotian Divine Palm Seals rained down, emitting muffled thunders as if the world was about to break apart. The curtain of divine light cracked immediately and broke apart. But then the ancient figures who��d appeared pushed up the sky.


    Boom, boom, boom�� The thunderous noises continued, streaming out endlessly. The leader of the Haotian Clan stood high in the sky and gazed at the cultivators of the Lost Clan with his divine eyes. It was as expected of an ancient clan. They formed a battle formation with their flesh and did not fear death.


    However, all effort was futile.


    The Lost Clan was only a clan abandoned by the deities. How could they resist a true deity?


    The god-like bodies broke apart one by one, and the ancient god��s silhouette was crumbling. All cultivators of the Lost Clan withstood the immense pressure of Divine Power. Under the reverberations of the Divine Power, many strong Lost Clan cultivators under the formation spat out blood, and their bodies fell down the sky. They could not take it anymore and died on the spot.


    The elders of the Lost Clan were withstanding most of the pressure, but their cultivations were stronger. The Lost Clan cultivators who had not gone through the tribulations yet were still too weak. They could not take it, and deaths kept occurring.


    Plus, as the Haotian Divine Power continued attacking, some of the Lost Clan elders also started spitting out blood. It was like cracks had appeared in their bodies, and they could die on the spot at any time.


    Seeing this situation, the Supreme Swordlord and his group used the Divine Sword to attack. Blind Tie, Fang Cun, and the others all contributed their weapons, attacking up the sky. Xi Chiyao, Gu Dongliu, and all other strong cultivators who could fight, such as those who had inherited emperor weapons, all started attacking.


    Even Xia Qingyuan went up to the sky. Her cultivation was only at the peak of the Renhuang Plane, but she had inherited a Great Emperor��s heritage. She activated the Lotus of Life, causing a sacred lotus to appear in the sky. It kept enlarging, and the flower petals bloomed. She went towards the group in the sky, and the intent of life flowed out continuously.


    Even so, people still kept getting injured and were hurled down from the sky. It was incredibly tragic. At that time, there was a strange commotion in the sky. Ye Futian��s entire body had disappeared, becoming one with the Will of the world. A huge godly silhouette of Mahoraga appeared. There were many pythons hanging from its body.


    The frightening but ancient heavenly deity formed by Mahoraga opened his bloody maw and started devouring the Vajra Realm Lord and other cultivators. His big mouth swallowed everything, covering the entire sky. With one move, it swallowed up that sky, causing all those figures to disappear.


    ��Hmph!�� A cold huff came from within the silhouette of Mahoraga. Then intense divine light burst out of it. The light was brilliant, and Divine Power was suffused in it. There was a horrifying boom that kept shaking the silhouette of Mahoraga.


    Bang! After an intense explosive sound, the godly silhouette collapsed. The group of cultivators appeared in the sky. Those former Great Emperors were there. So what if they had gotten devoured? Divine Power wrapped around them all and could not hurt them.


    But the moment they reappeared, another huge face appeared in the sky. It was still Mahoraga��s face. He let out a huge roar. The angry roar of an ancient god caused the souls of many cultivators to tremble. Some of the enemy cultivators of the Ancient God Clans collapsed directly and died on the spot, getting killed by the reverberations. This roar contained the Will of the Great Emperor.


    This scene made the Great Emperors a bit shocked. Under these circumstances, their people could still get killed directly by Ye Futian. This intensified the murderous intent in their eyes. It was not great for this kind of thing to happen before them, even though they did not care about those people��s lives, despite them being their descendants.


    What they cared about was that even ants could fight back. This upset them greatly.


    At the same time, shocking Divine Power descended. A huge godly silhouette of Mahoraga wielding a Divine Ruler hacked down directly. This ruler covered the sky and sun, and the atrium was instantly filled with ruler silhouettes. Each ruler contained immense power. The sky became very heavy as if the world would collapse if this ruler fell down.


    ��Divine Power.�� The Great Emperors went up higher. Divine Power flooded into a curtain of light, but when the Divine Ruler arrived, the curtain of light was shattered. The ruler silhouettes that filled the sky continued raining down at them, actually making them feel a bit of pressure.


    The ants in their eyes made them feel pressure. This scene made them furrow their brows, and they all raised their hands to attack. The Vajra Realm Divine Print and Haotian Great Palm Seal were sent out.


    When the sky full of ruler silhouettes rained down, the Vajra Realm Divine Print and Haotian Great Palm Seal were shattered too. Attacks from Mahoraga in the sky did not stop. Supported by Divine Power, emerald green divine light filled the boundless sky and land. The Divine Ruler continued to dance, attacking once again. This blow shook the sky. The entire Ye Imperial palace was shaking. This attack was incomparable!

 Chapter 2785 - Hopeless Situation

    Chapter 2785 Hopeless Situation


    ��Hmph!��


    There was a cold humph, and the Mountain Lord of the Infinite Mountains waved his hand. Instantly, infinite divine swords attacked murderously, clashing against the Divine Ruler silhouettes filling the sky. The divine swords seemed endless, and each sword contained immense Sword Will.


    The endless stream of attacks crashed against the Divine Ruler silhouettes filling the sky and blocked the incoming Divine Rulers. Now, the Mountain Lord of the Infinite Mountains was Wuliang the Great. The Divine Power that he had created was the Infinite Divine Power. Everything in the world would begin to change physically once they reached a certain number, while ��infinite�� meant that it was never-ending.


    He could casually lift a finger, and the sword would become an infinite stream of swords. The beam of Sword Will would become infinite sword will without an end. If you wanted to destroy infinity, you needed a strong enough attack to destroy the Infinite Divine Power instantly. If your explosive force weren��t strong enough, you would not get another chance.


    ��He borrowed the Will of Mahoraga, and the Power of the Divine Ruler��s attack is already close to your level. The Divine Power contained in this Divine Ruler is not the ordinary Path. It��s like the most primitive force,�� the leader of the Ancient Jiang Clan said after standing quietly the entire time. Naturally, he was no longer his original self anymore. It was the consciousness of Heavenly Emperor Jiang controlling the body of this cultivator.


    As a former Great Emperor, he could feel how extraordinary Ye Futian��s Divine Power was. Ye Futian��s opportunity was not simple.


    ��Yes, he received this item from House Karura. It��s the divine item to restrain the Demonic Lord and may contain the power of the former Heavenly Path. It might not be himself. He��s quite lucky,�� Yuanshi the Great said. His voice was indifferent, but his eyes shone with a different kind of light.


    Could they receive such a divine item after killing Ye Futian? However, they had five strong figures. There wouldn��t be enough to go around.


    ��Even though it��s not his power, it is already extraordinary that he can combine with the force and use it for himself. If this boy does not die, he will have a chance to step onto the Great Path and Path of the Emperors under the changing circumstances,�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang said. He thought highly of Ye Futian.


    But thinking highly of Ye Futian did not affect his decision to kill him. It was because of Ye Futian��s talent that he must be destroyed. If he stepped onto the Path of the Emperors in the future, he would pose a threat to them.


    If not for their existing rivalries, he would not be willing to kill such a talented figure.


    It was just a pity that he was destined to die. No one could change this result. Since Sixth Emperor would not step in this time, no one would save Ye Futian.


    And Sixth Emperor would probably not interfere.


    As they spoke, another attack fell. The huge body of Mahoraga hefted the Divine Ruler and attacked again. It was extremely aggressive, and this blow was even more powerful and unstoppable.


    When this attack fell, it penetrated Wuliang the Great��s attack instantly. The Infinite Divine Power was broken through.


    This shocked all of the Great Emperors. This Divine Ruler��s attack had a different force from the Great Path. Other than the terrifyingly strong force, it seemed also to have the penetrative abilities of the Great Path of Space. It had penetrated the Infinite Divine Power in an instant. Although Wuliang the Great had been careless, this kind of attack was enough to be intimidating.


    The extremely aggressive attacks kept raining down on them, but a beautiful spatial curtain of light hung over the place where the cultivators stood in the lower sky. The Divine Ruler��s attacks seemed to sink into the void when it hit the curtain. The spatial curtain of light rippled and showed no other reaction. It was Heavenly Emperor Jiang.


    ��It��s time to end,�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang said. He raised a hand and pointed into the sky. Instantly, divine light radiated through the vast sky. Divine Power flooded out, rushing into the clouds.


    Bang! There was a muffled sound in the atrium. In that instant, it was like the entire land was covered by this Divine Power and was instantly shackled. The roaring and surging windstorm fell silent instantly and stopped its commotion.


    The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace all halted and looked up into the sky. They saw countless golden runes appear in the storm that had been surging earlier. All the rune light made from the Divine Power had shackled the space, turning it into a divine formation that sealed it. It contained incredible spatial force.


    The hearts of all the strong cultivators beat quickly. They looked towards Heavenly Emperor Jiang again. He pointed at the sky, and a straight light beam appeared between him and the upper space. Divine Power poured crazily into the air. This was Heavenly Emperor Jiang��s Divine Power. It sealed Mahoraga��s violent intent with the unsurmountable spatial Divine Power.


    Ye Futian��s consciousness was naturally sealed within too. His consciousness had already been combined with the land. This was why he could feel the restrictive Divine Power even more clearly.


    ��Break!�� Haotian the Great sent the Haotian Divine Print against the body of Mahoraga that had been attacking them. Instantly, there was a muffled sound in the void. Mahoraga��s body shattered. However, Mahoraga��s body did not exist, so it did not truly threaten Ye Futian.


    What threatened him was the force in the upper space.


    At this time, the storm in the atrium started roaring again as if it would break free from the restraint. This surprised Heavenly Emperor Jiang. Could it break free from the shackles of his Divine Power? The law within this Divine Ruler was indeed extraordinary.


    But, so what? How could human power change the intent of a heavenly emperor?


    Divine light gathered, and countless beams of Divine Power solidified into a long halberd. Heavenly Emperor Jiang held the divine halberd, and his figure flashed, disappearing from the spot.


    The next moment, the divine halberd formed by Divine Power hacked down on the center of the divine formation. The Divine Power in the formation started to explode madly in an instant. The destructive Divine Power went wild, destroying everything. The storm formed by the Will of Mahoraga was getting destroyed wildly.


    Even though the five Great Emperors had attacked many times since arriving, it was the first time they attacked with their divine weapon like Heavenly Emperor Jiang. This blow split the atrium and ripped the space.


    There was a muffled sound. The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace saw many cracks appear. Fresh blood spattered out of one place. It looked gruesome. Then a figure appeared in that area. It was Ye Futian.


    Seeing this scene, the hearts of the Ye Imperial Palace cultivators dropped. Their pallor was white as paper. After all, Ye Futian was not a Great Emperor. He could only borrow the Will of Mahoraga, while the other party was a true reincarnated Great Emperor and returned for this battle. How strong was he?


    The Ye Imperial Palace had not faced this kind of crisis since its establishment. It could be said to be a fatal catastrophe with no way of turning the tides. Five Great Emperors from ancient times had returned. No one could counter them.


    They had all worked hard on cultivating in the past few years, but they could only study the Will of the Great Emperor to improve themselves. And right now, they were faced with actual Great Emperors!

 Chapter 2786 - Despair

    Chapter 2786 Despair


    ��It��s over!�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang said in a low voice. The divine halberd flew out of his hand, stabbing straight into the sky. The distance had no effect as it went straight toward Ye Futian��s true body.


    Bang! The divine halberd was stopped with a huge bang. A frightening gust of battle will exploded violently. It was the Will of the Great Emperor. A woman clothed in white appeared before Ye Futian. Ling Long had taken out the divine sword that controlled the divine formation and made a frightening thrust. It crashed against the divine halberd, blocking the fatal blow.


    ��A divine body formed by the Will.�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang looked up at Ling Long and naturally sensed that the other was materialized by the pure will of Tianshen. The battle intent wrapped around her body was extremely shocking.


    Just then, endless Sword Will appeared in the sky. The countless divine swords rained down. Ling Long hefted the divine sword and pressed down on the lower sky. A huge sword instantly appeared in the sky. It carried horrifying battle intent as it broke through the sky, ripping the space. It was the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword.


    en


    Why would Heavenly Emperor Jiang care? He reached out his hand, and the divine halberd returned. Then his body went up the sky, stabbing with the divine halberd. A beam of spatial divine light appeared in the sky, ripping the space. A straight space passage appeared in the sky. It crashed against the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword, causing cracks to appear in the divine sword. It broke from the center.


    At the same time, the Tianshen of the Viajra Realm also moved. His eyes glanced at Ye Futian. These people were quite strong. They had already started attacking seriously, but they still had not killed Ye Futian.


    His figure flashed upward, and Divine Power surged. At this time, a sheet of rain fell on him. He paused and saw Xi Chiyao charging over with the Raindrop Divine Sword. As soon as the sword was out, the sky started raining. Countless raindrops fell, and each drop contained Sword Will that could penetrate everything


    The raindrops joined into thread, transforming into continuous Sword Will, and attacked the Great Emperor of the Vajra Realm. However, the other��s eyes had turned golden and carried some hints of scorn. He was dismissive. Raising a hand, the Vajra Realm Divine Power attacked as a pointing finger, crashing directly into the Raindrop Divine Sword.


    At this moment, two extremely sharp Wills were clashing squarely. The Great Emperor of the Vajra Realm felt cracks appear in his finger after the continuous attacks from the Sword Will, getting penetrated bit by bit. However, the strong attack also sent the Raindrop Divine Sword and Xi Chiyao��s body flying out


    ��The Will of the Western Emperor.�� The Great Emperor of the Vajra Realm looked at that divine sword. It contained the Will of the Western Emperor. Just like the five of them, the Western Emperor had been an ancient Great Emperor. His Will was undying and survived in the world in another form. This was why it could have cracked his finger earlier.


    But this was not enough at all.


    His entire body was dazzling. The Vajra Realm Divine Power wrapped around his body, letting the countless raindrops fall on him because it could not damage his defenses at all. It did not pose a threat.


    He took a step forward and directly disappeared from the spot. He pointed, and the Vajra Realm Divine Power started exploding wildly. Countless beams of finger light penetrated the air, destroying everything. Xi Chiyao waved her Raindrop Divine Sword but could not fend off the Great Emperor��s finger.


    There were many poofs, and then Xi Chiyao let out a muffled grunt. Her body was sent flying, and her clothes were red with blood. Her long dress had turned bloody. She could not stop the attacks.


    The Vajra Realm Divine Power was still pointed at her. It was about to penetrate and destroy her entirely, but another woman��s figure appeared beside Xi Chiyao. It was actually Hua Jieyu. The space seemed to freeze where she stood. Her eyes had become extremely demonic, and a frightening Spiritual Will controlled this place. It weakened the Vajra Realm��s force a little.


    The Tianshen of the Vajra Realm looked at her after seeing this scene. Then a horrifying burst of the Will of Tianshen descended. It was like there was an extremely aggressive Will in the void that destroyed her spiritual abilities. The divine finger did not stop. It even sped up to kill the two.


    ��Careful,�� Lord Chen said. His body appeared in that space and starry light flowed about. It was transformed into a sealed spatial world. The Divine Power hit the curtain of starry light, causing Lord Chen to grunt. The number of people was meaningless when faced with absolute strength.


    Haotian the Great huffed coldly. They were gradually losing their patience. He slapped his hand in the air, and the stars were all obliterated. Lord Chen and the others were sent flying out. They spat out fresh blood, and their faces were ghastly. They were all feeling despair. The others were too strong.


    If it was only one or two Great Emperors, they might still be able to struggle. If they all worked together, they could have a chance in a battle. But five Great Emperors had returned, and they were unstoppable.


    Haotian the Great prepared to continue attacking. An extremely sharp and domineering Will spread in the sky. He lifted his head slightly and saw a blind man wielding a divine hammer. He attacked from the heavens, and when the hammer fell, the world let out a muffled sound. It was enough to shatter the void.


    ��You want to die.�� Haotian the Great shot up straightly into the sky. He was feeling impatient. These people kept attacking, making it so that they had not killed Ye Futian yet. He was a bit angered.


    His body shot into the clouds and entered the terrifying shockwaves. However, an absolute domain formed around his body. He was covered in the Divine Power and Will of Haotian and was untouchable.


    The Sky Tremor attacked continuously, and the destructive blows came without a stop. This was a bit of an obstacle for Haotian the Great. The Haotian Divine Power burst from his body, and he raised a hand toward the sky, releasing the Haotian Divine Seal. It covered the sky and sun, going up against the tide. Everything in its path was disintegrated and turned to dust.


    The Sky Tremor��s shockwaves were also shot down. Then the Haotian Divine Print crashed against the Sky Tremor. There was a string of muffled sounds. The Sky Tremor flew out of Blind Tie��s hands and flew up the sky. At the same time, Blind Tie��s body was sent flying out. His internal organs were all shattered. He spat out blood, and his face was colorless.


    ��Father!�� Tie Tou called out, feeling despair. He hated his inabilities.


    The only ones who could make some counterattacks on this battlefield were Ye Futian and Ling Long. However, they were faced with five Great Emperors. This was such a hopeless situation. They did not see any sliver of hope.


    ��Palace Lord, please leave quickly,�� they heard someone yell to Ye Futian. It was Lord Chen��s voice. He was asking Ye Futian to leave.


    Ye Futian was skilled in Celerity and had supernatural abilities. If he wanted to escape, there was a chance that he could make it. However, the enemies were attacking the Ye Imperial Palace, and everyone was in there. Ye Futian would not want to leave under the circumstances. They could only persuade Ye Futian to leave.


    ��Palace Lord!�� The voices rose up in waves. They were actually all pleading to Ye Futian to leave with anticipation. They would not escape from such a hopeless situation, so they would continue fighting even if the entire army were wiped out. They would die here.


    There would only be hope for revenge if Ye Futian left.


    One could see how much despair the people of the Ye Imperial Palace felt for them to ask Ye Futian to flee!

 Chapter 2787 - Can He Escape?

    Chapter 2787 Can He Escape?


    Ye Futian used his mind, and then his body disappeared from the spot. It seemed that he was prepared to escape.


    This kind of decisiveness surprised all of the five Great Emperors. Would Ye Futian really escape without caring for these people��s lives?


    This did not suit Ye Futian��s personality. Otherwise, he could have done this in the Ziwei Segmentum back then. It was clear that Ye Futian wanted to use his escape to make them chase after him and give the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace more opportunities to survive.


    ��Escape? Can you escape?�� they sneered coldly. There were five Great Emperors here, and Ye Futian still wanted to escape?


    So what if he could use Celerity?


    In an instant, Ye Futian��s figure appeared again in the void. The Vajra Realm Divine Power had formed a domain in the atrium that sealed the Ye Imperial Palace. Beautiful divine light lit up in the surrounding skies. This was the Vajra Domain. Celerity could cross any distance, but it could not forcefully open up a domain.


    This territory had been sealed off. If Ye Futian wanted to use Celerity to break free and escape, he would have to destroy the domain.


    With a straight backside, Ye Futian went further up. He transformed into a bolt of lightning. His Divine Body seemed to be advancing as a sword, and it hit the Vajra Domain directly. There was a muffled sound, and the Vajra Domain cracked, but it did not shatter.


    The Vajra Realm Great Emperor glanced at Ye Futian and stepped forward. He ignored Xi Chiyao, who wanted to stop him. She was not his match


    Xi Chiyao looked up at the atrium. Ye Futian was still attacking the Vajra Domain, but then The Vajra Realm Great Emperor arrived. He pointed forward without making any other actions and was about to kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s entire body shone brilliantly. The green divine light wrapped around him. He pushed a divine sword downward to counter the force of the finger. But then the divine sword shattered and broke apart from the center. The Vajra Realm Divine Power was indestructible and unbreachable. It passed through the Divine Sword directly, stabbing Ye Futian��s body.


    That instant, Ye Futian still let out a grunt even though he had formed a Divine Body. The Divine Power penetrated his own Divine Power, rushing into Ye Futian��s body. With a poof, his body disappeared from the spot and reappeared elsewhere, but he still spat out a mouthful of blood.


    ��You are a mortal, and yet you dream of shaking the gods.��


    The Vajra Realm Great Emperor spoke indifferently. His cold voice filled the sky. The voice of a Great Emperor could echo throughout the world, like the Great Path Rules. It caused countless peoples�� hearts to pulse and reverberate in their eardrums.


    A mortal who dreamed of shaking the gods was delusional!


    These words were filled with insufferable arrogance.


    The Vajra Realm Divine Power started flowing through his body. Countless beams of golden divine light circled his body as if he was transforming into a true deity. Even though he had not reached his peak since returning, he was still a returned Great Emperor. How could a mortal be his match?


    No one could stop him. All of those who could fight couldn��t even take a single hit. They could not stop the attacks of the five Great Emperors��even Ling Long, who was the strongest.


    Seeing this scene, the Ye Imperial Palace sank into the emotion of despair. The strong cultivators from the five Ancient God Clans watched everything from the back. Their eyes scanned the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace. This result had already been determined when Ye Futian became their enemy back then. Their gods had returned, and the Ancient God Clans would be revived, returning to the brilliance of the ancient times.


    Ye Futian was their stepping stone, and the first being they would wipe out. The five Ancient God Clans would step over Ye Futian��s corpse to announce their return.


    In the current era, the Six Emperors were already in tacit agreement that the Age of Gods had arrived. Then, there would not be any other concerns.


    In this despair, some of the juniors actually had tears in their eyes. It was their first time being in such a hopeless situation, seeing their ��god�� Ye Futian repressed like this. Five Great Emperors had come for blood. Who could fight them?


    Xi Chiyao looked up at the sky. A terrifying aura rushed out of her body. It was like her body was burning. Strands of light flooded into the Raindrop Divine Sword. Her expression turned painful, and her body quivered. Her body, divine soul, and that Raindrop Divine Sword started resonating and combining with each other.


    An even stronger Sword Will flowed in the Raindrop Divine Sword. Divine light flowed as if Divine Power was extending out of the divine sword.


    Some power was awakening within the Divine Sword.


    ��Oh?�� Yuanshi the Great looked in the direction of Xi Chiyao. They were extremely sensitive and naturally sensed the changes in Xi Chiyao��s body. She was evolving. Her Raindrop Divine Sword was also evolving.


    Xi Chiyao was also from an Ancient God Clan. She had come from the West Imperial Palace and had an ancient god��s heritage. This was a similarity between them.


    Plus, Xi Chiyao was known as the cultivator most suited for the West Emperor��s heritage. This rumor had been learned from years ago. Xi Chiyao had also been set as the Goddess of the West Imperial Palace long ago and would rule the palace in the future.


    Her compatibility for the West Emperor��s heritage surpassed that of any cultivator of the West Imperial Palace in the past. As ancient gods, they naturally understood what this meant.


    Especially now that some force was awakening within Xi Chiyao, they seemed to understand something.


    It seemed that another ancient god was returning. However, Xi Chiyao was quite harsh on herself to reach this step. Did she not care about herself anymore?


    Their juniors were not so obedient.


    When Xi Chiyao looked up at the sky, her eyes had changed. They were different from before. It was as if those were the eyes of the true West Emperor.


    Yuanshi the Great raised a hand, and the Force of Divine Punishment appeared in the sky above Xi Chiyao. But Xi Chiyao moved simultaneously, turning into a blur and vanishing. The Raindrop Divine Sword stabbed through and actually penetrated the incomplete Formation of Divine Punishment.


    Yuanshi the Great looked up, frowning. The next moment, Xi Chiyao attacked the Vajra Domain with the Raindrop Divine Sword. This sword did not look very strong, and there wasn��t any strong shaking. It was like countless raindrops fell down, but a hole appeared in the Vajra Domain. It was penetrated by the raindrops, and then it collapsed.


    In fact, the sword continued rising. It stabbed through the sky above the Ye Imperial palace, forming an opening in the Ye Imperial Palace.


    ��Go!�� Xi Chiyao yelled. Ye Futian released his Celerity, and his body vanished. He was the target of the five Great Emperors, so he had to leave the Ye Imperial Palace. Otherwise, all the other cultivators would be affected.


    ��Go where?�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang looked up at the vanished figure. Using his mind, his body also disappeared from the spottraceless.


    Celerity of the Buddhist clan was one of the strongest divine techniques in the world. It was traceless, but it was not undefeatable. There were no truly undefeatable techniques in the world. Cultivation level was the basis for everything.


    They had not yet recovered their abilities from before, but they were still Great Emperors. How could Ye Futian escape from their hands?


    The five Great Emperors vanished at the same instant!

 Chapter 2788 - A Fatal Attack

    Chapter 2788 A Fatal Attack


    The Five Great Emperors appeared in different locations in the sky outside the Ye Imperial Palace. A curtain of light appeared in the dome of the sky, blocking the sky and covering the vast space.


    Ye Futian��s figure also appeared in the upper space. He was not able to leave. The vast sky and land were locked. The other could cover more distance with a thought than he could move with Celerity. This was the Will of the Great Emperor.


    Various figures rushed into the sky from below. The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace were all traveling towards here too.


    The clouds changed in the sky. A frightening Aura of the Great Way rolled and roiled. Green divine light covered the sky and sun. Ye Futian stared down at the five Great Emperors, sensing the force. The five stood in different directions, and their bodies all had very different feelings, but there were still similarities. The five of them became one unified body, making Ye Futian feel that they had split up the world and this space had become an independent entity.


    Each person was a completely different individual. They were the gods of their own territories.


    The five had once been Great Emperors, so they naturally had the aura of a Great Emperor, and they knew what a Great Emperor meant. This aura was completely natural rather than purposeful.


    Cultivators had to become one with the world while cultivating. The state that the Renhuang pursued was to shine with the sun and moon, have the same longevity as the world, and have their own Will become the Will of the heavens. Their Will represented the Will of the world, represented the Way, and was the ultimate state that the cultivators pursued.


    But now, Ye Futian felt a very different aura. It went against everything he knew about cultivation. They had become unified, and to them, they had cultivated to the extreme and should represent their own world. They were independent and were their absolute selves.


    ��There is no way in the world!�� Ye Futian thought of the words carved by Shenjia the Great Emperor. Was this the ultimate state of cultivation?


    While Ye Futian was pondering, the five Great Emperors did not plan on letting him go. Heavenly Emperor Jiang raised his head and looked up into the sky. The immense Divine Power sealed the sky, causing Ye Futian��s celerity to become ineffective. When he tried to move, he discovered that the sky had been sealed by the Divine Power. Endless runes shimmered with divine light. It was extremely dazzling.


    Ye Futian��s body shone with divine light. The green light wrapped around him, and his battle form appeared. He waved the Divine Ruler, wanting to shatter the void. Explosions kept sounding in the space, but below him, Heavenly King Jiang used his mind, and a divine halberd appeared. It radiated with immense divine light, then vanished from the spot. It shot up murderously, despite the distance.


    Bang! The horrifying penetrative force shattered the space. The brilliant and golden divine halberd hacked through the Divine Ruler silhouettes that filled the sky. It passed right through the Divine Ruler��s attack. The Divine Ruler was not a true divine weapon. It was formed by the Law, but it still was not strong enough. It wasn��t at the level of Heavenly Emperor Jiang��s Divine Power.


    Even though Donghuang the Great, Di Hao, and other strong cultivators had comprehended Divine Power before, it was a completely different matter for the Divine Power from a Tianshen. Even if Donghuang the Great or Di Hao were here, the result would be the same. It was unstoppable.


    Their usage of their Divine Power was utterly unmatchable by Donghuang the Great and the other heirs. This was a difference in state and could not be made up for.


    Ye Futian��s body was sent flying again. He spat out blood, and his aura kept weakening, but he still stood there. This surprised Heavenly Emperor Jiang��s group. He was this strong. They knew how strong their attacks had been. An attack by their current Divine Power was enough to make someone lose their combat ability and destroy the Way in their bodies.


    In the distance, many cultivators looked over. Many of them were cultivators of the Ziwei Segmentum and former Original Realm. They had experienced a massacre earlier. Now that they saw even Ye Futian could not fight back, they couldn��t help but feel depressed.


    Were the few who had attacked already at this strong state? They were like heavenly gods.


    Cultivators from other regions hurried over too. They were extremely shocked when they saw the scene in the sky. The five Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture had come to hunt and kill Ye Futian.


    It had once been the six Ancient God Clans, but Ye Futian had wiped out one Ancient God Clan. Tianyan City and Tianyan the Great had been killed. No wonder the five Ancient God Clans would attack. They were worried that they would follow in the steps of Tianyan the Great. They wouldn��t be assured until Ye Futian was killed.


    Below, Ling Long, Xi Chiyao, and others tried to charge up, but they were stopped. They couldn��t block the attacks. The other four Great Emperors were still there, using Divine Power directly to block their paths. They stood in different locations and looked up at Heavenly Emperor Jiang, prepared to witness Heavenly Emperor Jiang kill Ye Futian.


    Unexpectedly, this hit was not enough. Ye Futian was quite tenacious, as expected of someone who once threatened the Ancient God Clans. But no matter how strong he was, he was still an ant to them now. He would die today.


    ��Tenacious,�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang said. In that instant, Divine Power shrouded the vast world. The boundless void was filled with an extremely sharp aura. Countless divine halberds appeared. Each halberd was made of Divine Power and flared with divine light that could penetrate the sky. The divine halberd before Heavenly Emperor Jiang was especially so. It flared with 10,000 beams of divine light and stabbed towards Ye Futian.


    Oh no! all the cultivators outside the domain thought when they saw this. Many of their hearts trembled. It was as if they were watching the destruction of Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s huge Battle Form materialized in the sky. He hefted the Power of the Divine Ruler. At the same time, countless spatial divine formations appeared in the sky. The huge Wheel of Space seemed able to swallow up all attacks. However, when in contrast to the light of all the divine halberds, everyone felt the aura of death.


    This extraordinary and bright cultivator may very well die in this battle, killed by five Ancient Gods.


    ��No����


    There was a low sound in the lower sky. It was extremely muffled. The person did not scream; the voice was filled with tragedy. It was all women��s voices. Many beautiful faces appeared in the lower sky, and they all looked up with despair. They were not even qualified to participate in the battle.


    Suddenly, it started raining. The raindrops were endless and dropped down as if the sky was crying. At the same time, the divine sword pierced through the sky, shooting murderously towards the atrium. It slammed against the Divine Power barrier, penetrating it.


    But at the same moment, all the divine halberds in the sky pierced through, filling the sky with countless beams of divine light. The beams of golden light cut horizontal arcs in the sky. It was extremely shocking. Even the dome of the sky has been stabbed through.


    Ye Futian was at the center of the attack. Countless eyes were trained on him, witnessing this destructive attack!

 Chapter 2789 - Break the Path

    Chapter 2789 Break the Path


    It was as if time had stopped. Countless eyes were trained on the dome of the sky, staring at the destructive divine light that flooded the sky.


    It was especially so for the strong cultivators from the Ye Imperial Palace. It was as if they could not feel that gust of destructive power. They stared entranced. For them, it was as if everything in the world had stopped moving.


    Bang! The muffled sound filled the world, causing this vast place to shake. This hit shattered the domain. They saw the Battle Form shatter and saw the divine light extinguish. Ye Futian��s figure disappeared.


    It was over!


    The five Great Emperors and strong cultivators of the Ancient God Clans all had a thought-it would be impossible for Ye Futian to still exist after such a hit. Everything below the Great Emperor level would cease to exist. But they continued to stare up at the sky. Would Ye Futian��s Power of Divine Ruler appear after he died?


    Even as Ancient Gods, they still wanted that power.


    The rain continued to fall. The raindrops from the heavens were abnormally sharp and yet contained very heavy emotions of depression. Many people from the Ye Imperial Palace were crying. Their tears fell with the rain. For many people of the Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian was family, a friend, a senior, and their belief.


    Xi Chiyao had already broken through the defenses and arrived where Ye Futian had been, but she did not see Ye Futian��s figure. As the Goddess of the West Imperial Palace, even she was crying now too. A shocking aura flooded from her divine sword. It was swallowing her up, continuously changing her eyes.


    Poof�� There was suddenly a soft sound in the silent space. Somewhere high up in the sky, a figure appeared. It was Ye Futian��s figure.


    His appearance gave a sliver of hope to countless people.


    He did not die! Ye Futian had not fallen. He was still here!


    He actually survived such a world-ending blow.


    However, Ye Futian was in a fragile state right now. Divine light still flowed over his body, but he no longer had the aura of the Great Path. His entire being seemed weak and insubstantial as if he could disappear at any moment. However, the aura of life continued to envelop him. His vitality had not been extinguished.


    Right now, Ye Futian had sunk into absolute weakness. All of the Paths in his body had been destroyed. The Great Path no longer existed.


    At the same time, he had entered an extremely miraculous state. He seemed to have a much clearer perception of the world. Even though his Ways had been destroyed, in his perception, all the power in the world seemed to have been printed into his mind. This included the other party��s Divine Power.


    What was the Path? The Way was the laws that the world operated under. When cultivators studied the power of the Path, they were using the rules of the world.


    Then, what was Divine Power?


    Was it separate from the world and a law in and of itself?


    Perhaps that is so.


    ��Color is emptiness; emptiness is color.��


    ��There is no way in the world.��


    Perhaps the ancients had already pointed out the path, but this path was not easy to step onto.


    This path had stopped countless extraordinary figures.


    All of this ran through Ye Futian��s mind, while it had only been an instant in the outside world. Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others could not help but furrow their brows at seeing that Ye Futian was still alive.


    They believed they��d already shown Ye Futian enough respect. The five Great Emperors had all come to kill Ye Futian. Even if Ye Futian died, it was still an honorable death, but until now, the person they thought could be killed easily, like an ant, was actually still alive.


    It had been so long, but they still had not killed this ant. As Great Emperors, this was not very glorious.


    This Ye Futian was honestly tenacious.


    ��He��s alive!�� Xi Chiyao looked in Ye Futian��s direction, and she had the feeling of surviving from the cracks of danger. A bright smile appeared in her beautiful eyes as if the crisis had already passed.


    However, the five Great Emperors were still there. Ye Futian had only withstood one attack without dying.


    Plus, she could also feel that Ye Futian had entered the Mystery Plane.


    Boom! Her long hair danced wildly, and the falling raindrops intensified. They continued hammering down from the sky. A Great Emperor��s aura radiated from Xi Chiyao. Ye Futian��s figure disappeared in the curtain of rain.


    Xi Chiyao looked towards Ye Futian. There were tears in her eyes, but she was still smiling. She was reluctant, but she also felt closure as if looking at him for the last time.


    Then she closed her eyes, and her entire body became one with the divine sword. When her eyes opened again, they were different. They held some arrogance as if she was looking down at the world.


    Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others all felt the changes in Xi Chiyao��s aura and temperament simultaneously. They knew that this Xi Chiyao was not the same Xi Chiyao as before.


    The founder of the West Imperial Palace��the West Emperor��had returned too.


    ��This idiot,�� Xi Chiyao uttered, but it was unknown who she was talking about.


    The raindrops formed a domain that shrouded this land. There was only unstopping rain within the sheets of rain. There was no Ye Futian.


    Every drop of rain seemed to be formed by Divine Power.


    A curtain of light appeared around Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the Vajra Realm Great Emperor. It covered their bodies, but as the rain kept falling, there were actually dents in the light. Then some places were penetrated.


    Rain could erode rock through time. These raindrops could penetrate the defenses created by Vajra Realm Divine Power.


    ��West Emperor,�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang said, raising his head to look at Xi Chiyao. ��Since you are also a returned man, why must we be enemies? We are all from the Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture. Our heritages carry the countless years, and we awoke to return. You should not interfere with today��s matters.��


    ��This girl is extremely compatible with me,�� Xi Chiyao said. It was clear that she was no longer herself. ��I already discovered this years ago. I was unwilling to return in this way and instead wanted to wait for her to grow stronger. However, she actually chose to use this way to help me today. Then, I naturally have to complete her last wish.��


    ��But can you really do it?�� Heavenly King Jiang said. Clearly, he did not think the West Emperor could stop them just by returning. After all, it was one against five.


    ��It should not take too long.�� The West Emperor could feel that Ye Futian was completely immersed in his world, entering the Mystery Plane. He could also feel the raindrops filling the air. The rain dripped down from his body. Every drop contained extremely pure Divine Power.


    ��My Force of the Great Path has been destroyed. My comprehension of the world seems to have become clearer.�� This was a thought that appeared in Ye Futian��s mind.


    ��There is no way in the world.��


    ��Color is emptiness; emptiness is color.�� These two voices kept echoing in Ye Futian��s mind. He also thought of how when he��d been studying in the Buddhist clan, the Buddha had said that the Lord of All Buddhas had gone to the Colorless Heaven to cultivate.


    ��Ak��?��nanty��yatana, Vij?��n��nanty��yatana!�� The first sky of the Colorless Heaven-to resonate with the boundless skies. The second sky��to make your heart boundless.


    Nothingness!


    The cultivators all pursued to have, but the supreme discipline of Buddhism was to pursue nothingness.


    ��Since the Great Path is blocked, then break the Path!�� This thought appeared in Ye Futian��s mind. Then a tribulation descended, penetrating his body, cutting his Way. Boom�� Pain appeared on Ye Futian��s face. He had cultivated various Ways. Even though Heavenly Emperor Jiang had destroyed the Paths with one blow, there were still remaining Wills of the Path.


    But now, Ye Futian wanted to break his Path.


    The cultivators of the world all pursued the extremes of the Path, wanting more powerful Force of the Great Path. But right now, Ye Futian wished to break his own Path!

 Chapter 2790 - The Third Tribulation

    Chapter 2790 The Third Tribulation


    The destructive attack cut down directly onto his body, penetrating his body and divine soul. Ye Futian��s body trembled, and his pallor was sickly pale. The Will of the Great Way started scattering from his body as he was breaking his Path.


    Breaking your Path needed a resolute mindset. It was so cruel to take a weapon and hurt yourself. Yet breaking your Path was even more terrifying. Hurting the Path within you was not only hurting your flesh body.


    Green divine light flooded out, transforming into the Law of the Divine Ruler as if wanting to return to the force of the outside world instead of his own body. The Law of the Divine Ruler hung in the air. Ye Futian looked up at it and clenched his jaw!


    Poof! With a thought, the Law of the Divine Ruler passed through his body. It was like stabbing into the Demonic Lord��s body. Even more terrifying destructive Wills of the Great Way cut apart the traces of the Great Way within him. The Way in his body was being destroyed bit by bit.


    He had an extremely pained expression. The Natal Spirit created in the Life Palace and the Divine Wheel of the Great Path were all destroyed, collapsing crazily.


    More light of the Divine Ruler gathered and cut down again. It went down on his internal organs, four limbs, and hundreds of bones, wiping all the traces clean.


    The war in the outside world was still happening, but it seemed unrelated to him right now. At the moment, he was going through the most intense pain since birth. It was unimaginable how much pain he had to endure to wipe away all imprints left in his body.


    ��Ptui!�� He spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. His body��s aura weakened rapidly, but he still did not stop his actions.


    There was no hope for today��s battle anyway. Even if he did not break his Path, he would still die, so why not try and see if he could find the way to break through the constraints?


    This kind of pain lasted for a very long time. Ye Futian closed his eyes. He was already so weak that he couldn��t even keep his eyes open. At present, his body hovered in the void powerlessly. He could feel that his current state was like a newborn infant. Everything had gone back to its original state.


    The only thing that remained was the World Tree. The other Wills of the path in the World Tree��s Spirit had been broken off. It seemed to have transformed into just an ancient tree. Strands of aura wrapped around him and fused into his limbs and bones, supporting him so that his vitality didn��t run out.


    Everything in the world seemed to have fallen silent. It was extremely quiet. Ye Futian could not sense any outer objects. Floating quietly in the air, his body did not have any impurities left. They had all been removed as if everything had been reset.


    Humans were in this state when they were first born too. It was also the most original and purest state. However, what was different was that Ye Futian still had his thoughts and his own will.


    He felt that his body was like a leafy tree. He could easily hover in the air, and he was entering the state of ��nothingness.��


    In this nothingness, he suddenly saw the entire world again. The battles in the outside world were imprinted in his mind. He also saw the cultivators watching from a distance and the changes in expression of the Ye Imperial Palace cultivators. Everything was so clear. It was as if he could see all beings.


    Every single thing was imprinted onto his mind, including the fine expressions.


    Rain continued to splatter from the sky. He seemed to see the sky crying.


    From nothing to everything.


    The World Tree had melded into Ye Futian��s body, fusing with his flesh. The Power of the Divine Ruler was combining with his body bit by bit as if it had always been a part of his body. His broken body was reforming, but there were no impurities at all.


    A frightening cloud of tribulation suddenly appeared in the dome of the sky. A suffocating windstorm enveloped this place. It was extremely frightening.


    At that moment, countless people looked up to the sky. Even cultivators who had gone through cultivation could feel fear come from the depths of their souls. This aura frightened them as if it could turn them to dust if it fell upon them.


    ��Tribulation!��


    Someone caused a divine tribulation to come at this time!


    Who had caused this divine tribulation to come?


    They wanted to find that person, but then they saw the frightening aura lock onto one place. Beams of tribulation light penetrated the rain and entered that place, causing the hearts of all cultivators to race.


    Ye Futian would undergo tribulation in that domain of rain.


    ��He��s going to have a breakthrough?��


    Everyone��s expressions were shocked. Ye Futian was going to have a breakthrough in a time like this?


    Plus, Ye Futian��s combat ability had already been powerful. Even though it seemed like he was only in the Renhuang Plane, everyone felt that he��d already gone through the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path.


    There were three divine tribulations. Ye Futian had already gone through the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, so this one must be��


    Or could it be that Ye Futian had only gone through the first tribulation, despite the terrifying combat ability that he displayed before?


    But even so, if Ye Futian successfully underwent this tribulation, his cultivation would naturally evolve and become stronger.


    Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others frowned. What was going on?


    Ye Futian was going to go through tribulation now?


    Their attacks went even wilder, trying to kill Xi Chiyao. They were a bit annoyed earlier. They still saw Ye Futian as an ant who couldn��t change his destiny. He would die without a doubt.


    But seeing this tribulation, they were a bit doubtful. Ye Futian had already displayed super-strong abilities earlier. If he went through another tribulation, how strong would his cultivation be?


    But where did this tribulation come from?


    Xi Chiyao looked up for a glance. Even though she was no longer just Xi Chiyao, Xi Chiyao��s consciousness still had not faded away. When she averted her eyes, she looked down with determined eyes.


    Boom! The Raindrop Divine Sword hovered in the sky. All the sword rain transformed into a sword river. The rainstorm poured, shooting towards Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others. Her goal was not to kill the enemy. It was enough to delay them for some time.


    Whether this was the first or any other number of tribulations, Ye Futian would transform. At that time, even Heavenly Emperor Jiang��s group might not be able to deal with him.


    The aura in the dome of the sky grew even more frightening. The cultivators below started to feel suffocated. They felt the power of strands of supreme law order. It was as if different Tribulations of Law were coming simultaneously. ��What is going on?�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang��s brows knitted tightly while attacking. He was an ancient Great Emperor, but he had never felt this kind of tribulation. It was his first time. The problem for Ye Futian was different from those of the top cultivators in ancient times.


    ��Have you seen this tribulation before?�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang asked the other Great Emperors with his mind. He was a former Great Emperor, but he��d never seen this kind of tribulation before.


    ��No,�� the others replied. Their hearts were all impacted strongly, and they were a bit shocked. What kind of strange tribulation was this?


    ��Such a chaotic tribulation has not even existed before this,�� someone said. The five Great Emperors had not seen this before!

 Chapter 2791 - 1 After Tribulation

    Chapter 2791 After Tribulation


    ��I don��t quite understand the present world after it mutated.�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang looked up to the sky with complex feelings in his eyes.


    The destructive divine light fell, and the various cultivators started escaping from this place. They sensed the danger. Even Heavenly Emperor Jiang��s group felt a threatening feeling. Divine Power circulated in their bodies, forming defensive power.


    Chaotic tribulation light formed above the sky. Billions of beams of tribulation light shot from the sky dome, going toward the same spot. Even the West Emperor avoided it. His body shimmered, and he left that area. Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others did not go towards Ye Futian either.


    The billions of beams of tribulation light rained down simultaneously, hitting Ye Futian��s body. The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace saw this, and their hearts raced powerfully. The tribulation that Ye Futian was undergoing right now was like Armageddon. Could he withstand it?


    Everyone looked up into the sky nervously. The billions of beams of light swallowed up Ye Futian��s body. There was only destructive divine might there. You could not even see where Ye Futian��s body was buried.


    Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others trained their gazes there. Could he survive this kind of tribulation too?


    The power of this tribulation was dangerous even for them.


    ��This world does not allow him to exist. That is why this kind of divine tribulation has occurred,�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang said in a low voice. Ye Futian might have already threatened nature.


    ��What kind of force has he formed to incite such a tribulation?�� Haotian the Great��s brows were knitted slightly. They had gone to the Human Realm before to improve their cultivations a bit. Before this, they could not take that step due to the restrictions of nature.


    Had Ye Futian taken that step before them now?


    However, could Ye Futian survive such a destructive divine tribulation?


    He reached a hand out. Instantly, a gigantic hand appeared in the destructive windstorm above the sky. This hand was formed by the Haotian Divine Power. Its might weighed down on the world and went straight for the destructive windstorm, grabbing its center.


    Poof, poof. Sharp sounds streamed out. The Haotian Divine Seal suffered frightening damages after rushing into the divine tribulation of destruction. However, the divine seal had been constructed of Haotian Divine Power. It continued to advance, going in and going towards the center.


    Boom! The storm made from the billions of beams of tribulation light went wild in the air. When the Haotian Divine Seal entered, it started falling apart, tearing and crumbling. It continuously scattered and was quickly wiped away completely.


    This was only a tentative attack. Seeing this scene, there was surprise in his eyes, and it was the same for the other Great Emperors. Their brows knitted tightly.


    Even the Haotian Divine Seal could not enter the heart of the destructive divine tribulation. One could imagine how much deadly force Ye Futian was bearing. He might die under the divine trial, but if he did not die, then he might threaten them.


    ��You all go back first,�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang said to the strong cultivators of the Jiang Clan below. He waved a hand, and a Door of Space opened instantly. Divine Power surged. The other end of the door seemed to be an extremely faraway place.


    The Jiang Ancient God Clan cultivators flashed forward and entered it, temporarily leaving this place.


    It was unexpected that a change had occurred when the five Great Emperors came to kill Ye Futian today.


    The other Great Emperors also sent away the cultivators of their Ancient God Clans. Even though they did not care for their lives, they were still the descendants. It was best to send them away because no one knew what would happen here.


    They did not continue fighting and killing others. To them, everyone below the Great Emperor level were ants. If Ye Futian were not qualified to become an Emperor, they would not have come to kill Ye Futian. As for the other lives, they did not care at all. All the people they killed had just been convenient along the way.


    Now, they only wanted to know what changes would occur after Ye Futian��s tribulation.


    At this time, strong cultivators arrived gradually from afar. The strong cultivators of the Divine Prefecture had arrived. Donghuang the Great had come personally.


    Yu Sheng also arrived, leading the cultivators of the Devil World. The Human Realm followed.


    Cultivators of all realms arrived one after another, coming to this area. At the same time, another shocking aura descended from the sky. Emperor��s might enveloped this area. It was the Will of the Great Emperor that had arrived.


    Donghuang the Great��s face was the first to appear in the sky. He looked down at Ye Futian and saw the frightening tribulation light fade gradually. Ye Futian��s body appeared in the center. Right now, he did not have any aura of the Great Path on his body, but divine light wrapped around his body. His entire body was dazzling, and his skin was like that of an infant��s. It was like he��d gone through rebirth-all impurities had been removed, and he��d returned to the original state.


    ��Donghuang, were you the one who sent those five?�� a cold voice said. It was the Dark Sovereign who��d spoken. A dark figure appeared above the sky, and divine might descended. His voice held some hints of mockery.


    ��No,�� Donghuang the Great refuted directly. His expression was a bit scornful.


    The Dark Sovereign scoffed coldly. ��Even if you didn��t, you should��ve arrived very early. Five former Great Emperors were working together to kill Ye Futian in the Divine Prefecture while you just watched.��


    ��You know that they were former Great Emperors, so they naturally have their own wills. I��m afraid I can��t dissuade them,�� Donghuang the Great said indifferently. His voice was quite cold and distant. As he spoke, he scanned the five people and seemed to figure out something.


    However, Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others did not mind. Since they dared to expose themselves, they were naturally confident.


    ��Hmph.�� The Dark Sovereign huffed coldly, and his gaze fell upon Ye Futian. ��This divine tribulation has never been seen in all of history. He seems to have broken his Path to demand from the heavens. This kind of courage is difficult to come by, but I��m afraid it will threaten certain people.��


    Donghuang the Great knew what he was implying and did not reply.


    ��Donghuang naturally will not interfere since he promised before. Dark Sovereign, you think too little of the ruler of the Divine Prefecture,�� a voice sounded. It was the Human Ancestor��s voice. He roared, ��The Age of Gods has come. Everything will happen naturally. I believe everyone wishes to witness a great world.�� ��When did the Human Ancestor become so understanding?�� the Dark Sovereign said sarcastically.


    ��I am the Human Ancestor, and I rule the Human Realm. Naturally, I wish humanity can flourish.�� The Human Ancestor was full of righteousness. His voice filled with the world and made people want to salute him.


    However, the Dark Sovereign and others scoffed inside, dismissing the Human Ancestor��s words.


    While they spoke, another figure moved in the lower sky. It was the Vajra Realm Great Emperor. His body flashed, advancing towards Ye Futian. Then he pointed at Ye Futian. The Vajra Divine Power transformed into a destructive finger that stabbed through the world to kill Ye Futian.


    A Great Emperor had descended. He still attacked, wanting to kill Ye Futian.


    The other Great Emperors in the sky did not move. They all looked down. What level would Ye Futian be after the divine tribulation?

 Chapter 2792 - One Step Away?

    Chapter 2792 One Step Away?


    After the Heavenly Path had collapsed, modern cultivation became different from ancient times. The Path of the Emperors was cut off for those born after the Heavenly Path had collapsed.


    However, the Buddha of Destiny had said that the Age of Gods would arrive. Now that the world was changing drastically, would a new Path of the Emperors appear?


    Ye Futian��s divine tribulation was different from everything in the past. Even the Great Emperors present were curious. What kind of cultivation path did Ye Futian open up?


    The frightening Vajra Divine Power transformed into a divine finger that stabbed through the sky. A beam of golden light appeared at the dome of the sky, cutting open the space. It could penetrate all Force of the Great Path and was about to land on Ye Futian instantly.


    But then Ye Futian glanced over. His eyes were different now. It was as if he could see through everything in the world, and the world had become more precise and slower. When one��s perception became stronger, and reaction speed became faster, everything in the world would become slower in comparison. This was the situation for Ye Futian right now.


    ��Divine Power!��


    He thought inside, What is the so-called Divine Power?


    What was the Path? The Path was the laws of all beings. Then what was Divine Power? It was the law one created for themselves.


    He extended a finger and pressed downward. He crashed directly against the destructive finger formed by the Vajra Divine Power.


    A muffled noise sounded throughout the void. Extremely sharp aura swept through the space, transforming into a destructive storm of Divine Power. It ravaged through the sky, but that destructive finger had been stopped. It did not continue forward. Ye Futian had blocked it with the force of one finger, and it had broken apart in the space. That space seemed to have exploded. The scene was shocking


    ��He blocked it!�� All the strong cultivators�� hearts shuddered as they stared at the scene before them. The hearts of the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace were also racing. After the tribulation, Ye Futian could withstand the Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s attack.


    They knew what this meant! It was surviving in a desperate situation!


    The five Great Emperors had come to kill Ye Futian. They forced them into a hopeless situation and almost had killed Ye Futian. But at that time, the divine tribulation had come for Ye Futian. Even most cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace did not know what number of tribulation this was for Ye Futian, nor did they know how exactly his cultivation status was. They only knew that he had always been in the Renhuang Plane.


    But what about now?


    Now, Ye Futian was already the same as Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others. If he had been one with the world before and was a natural being, he was now an independent entity. He was independent of the world and did not fit into the world at all.


    He was himself-his own person.


    as


    After the divine tribulation, he was no longer restricted by the world. He existed outside the laws of this place. His life would be immortal. Even if this world were destroyed, he would still not be ruined.


    The Great Emperors of the five Ancient God Clans narrowed their eyes and stared at the figure in the sky. The five ancient Great Emperors had come for blood today, wanting to kill Ye Futian, whom they saw as an ant. But they could not kill him. Ye Futian was still alive and had blocked a finger of Divine Power.


    He had already surpassed Renhuang and come to their level, entering a complete plane.


    Now, they probably would not be able to handle Ye Futian anymore.


    ��Congratulations,�� a voice said. The Human Ancestor��s face appeared high in the air. His actual body had not come here. This was formed by his consciousness, but the emperors might still enveloped the land. He said to Ye Futian, ��With this step, you broke the Path and demanded from the heavens. You touched the fringe of becoming a deity and forged your law. If you take a step forward, you��ll be in line with the heavens.��


    The strong cultivators were shocked inside after hearing the Human Ancestor��s words. Had Ye Futian gone through three tribulations?


    There were three divine tribulations. After the third tribulation, would you become a Great Emperor?


    But the Human Ancestor said that he had to take another step to be in line with the heavens. Could it be that Ye Futian still lacked one step?


    Or was there another unknown secret to the so-called divine tribulations?


    There were only a handful of Great Emperors in the world. Only they knew the truth of the divine tribulations.


    At this time, Ye Futian still had not figured out his cultivation state. His cultivation had always been different from the others. He had gone through two tribulations already, but his problems differed from the others. After two trials, he��d still been in the Renhuang Plane.


    Now, after the third tribulation, he could feel that he had already surpassed the Renhuang Plane. He had taken the step that he��d always been stuck at before.


    He had even become his own entity now. Different from the outside world, he was separate from it. He was himself. When he pointed his finger, it contained his law, or in other words��the Divine Power of Law. However, it seemed that he still had not reached the Great Emperor Plane.


    It was like he was in between the two.


    He had not experienced the Near-God Plane, but right now, he felt that his cultivation was above the Near-God Plane but below the Great Emperor Plane. He was in a type of complete state, but he could not surpass this completeness.


    As the Human Ancestor said, if he took this step, he may very well become a Great Emperor and be in line with the heavens.


    ��You all have the opportunity to become an emperor. Even though I don��t believe in fortunes, I anticipate the Age of Gods that the Buddha of Destiny had foretold. Let today��s matter end here,�� the Human Ancestor continued to say. He seemed to want to stop today��s conflict and end it here.


    The Dark Sovereign scoffed coldly, sneering inside. He was starting to believe the Buddha of Destiny now. Not much remained of the 500 years of emperor fate for Donghuang the Great. There were only 30 years left, while Ye Futian had had a breakthrough at this time. It seemed to foretell something.


    Would the Human Ancestor and Donghuang the Great allow Ye Futian to take that last step and successfully get onto the Path of the Great Emperor?


    ��End here?��


    Ye Futian looked down at the five Great Emperors. They had come and committed the massacre. Yet now, the Human Ancestor said they all had the chance to become gods and wanted to end things here?


    But Ye Futian guessed that these five Great Emperors may have gone to the Human Realm. That was how they could reach this state before him. In that case, these five people counted as the Human Ancestor��s partners. The Human Ancestor naturally did not want them to continue.


    Before this, Ye Futian had rejected the Human Ancestor��s invitation.


    ��The Human Ancestor��s words are naturally an order.�� Even though Ye Futian��s heart was filled with murderous intent, he still spoke up and accepted the Human Ancestor��s words. The Human Ancestor, Donghuang the Great, and the others were all here today. They probably would not give him the chance.


    Plus, his cultivation state wasn��t stable, and he had not figured it out yet. He could only let them live for now.


    ��You all retreat too and cultivate well,�� the Human Ancestor said to the five people. They all nodded, and then their figures retreated. They gave up on the hunt and left this place.


    ��I am anticipating the Age of Gods,�� the Human Ancestor said, and then his face disappeared. Donghuang the Great glanced at Ye Futian and left as well.


    ��You must be careful after this,�� the Dark Sovereign reminded Ye Futian. The consciousness of the six emperors was left one by one. The cultivators of the other forces also retreated. The storm seemed to have ended just like this, but they all knew that Ye Futian would not let it go just like this. Plus, there were only 30-some years left of Donghuang the Great��s 500-year emperor fate.


    Next, there would be an even more significant storm in the world!

 Chapter 2793 - Aftermath

    Chapter 2793 Aftermath


    After all the strong cultivators left, Ye Futian looked toward somewhere else. It was where Xi Chiyao was.


    He naturally knew who had helped make time for him in the last battle. If Xi Chiyao had not become one with the West Emperor, he would not have survived the tribulation at all.


    In the distance, ��Xi Chiyao�� turned her eyes and looked towards him.


    Ye Futian could sense that Xi Chiyao��s temperament was changing at that moment. Her eyes did not have the arrogance from earlier. She seemed to have returned to the past and had a bright smile.


    ��You��re back?�� Ye Futian whispered to Xi Chiyao.


    ��I came back to bid farewell.�� Xi Chiyao smiled brightly as if she did not mind that she was about to leave. The West Emperor had given her control of their consciousness so she could bid farewell.


    Ye Futian lowered his head slightly, and sadness appeared in his eyes. He and Xi Chiyao first met in a great battle. He had just gotten involved with the Ancient God Clans at that time. Xi Chiyao did not defeat him in that battle and thus grew curious about him. Later, the two clans became allies, and Xi Chiyao was a good friend, though they only talked about their alliance and cultivation.


    However, in this critical battle, in the most hopeless time, it was Xi Chiyao who had sacrificed herself to save him.


    ��Is there no other way?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��If you say that, my ancestor won��t even give me the chance to say goodbye anymore,�� Xi Chiyao said while laughing. There was still a bright smile in her eyes. She and the West Emperor were either-or. She had already decided, so she naturally would give way to the West Emperor.


    ��Don��t be sad. When it was discovered that I was compatible with my ancestor��s consciousness, my fate was already decided. It��s just that today��s matter moved it forward in time,�� Xi Chiyao said, not minding it. ��It��s worth it that it could be helpful in the most critical battle.


    ��Plus, I saved a future Great Emperor, the person who will rule the seven realms someday in the future. Isn��t it worth it?�� Xi Chiyao continued to speak. Countless thoughts appeared in Ye Futian��s mind, but he did not know what to say. He just felt heavy sadness.


    So what if he was a future Great Emperor or would rule the seven realms? She would not be able to see it. The things he lost would not be returned.


    ��I have become one with my ancestor. I will not completely disappear,�� Xi Chiyao said. ��I can continue watching you move forward.��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded and also smiled. He did not want her to be so sad during this farewell.


    ��That day will come. You just wait. At that time, maybe you��ll have a chance to come back for a visit,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��I promise,�� Xi Chiyao said. ��Okay, I must go now. See you in the future.��


    ��See you in the future.�� Ye Futian nodded solemnly. Then Xi Chiyao��s temperament changed gradually and soon became someone else.


    He knew that Xi Chiyao had left. The Goddess of the West Imperial Palace no longer existed in the world. There was only the West Emperor.


    ��She left,�� the West Emperor said.


    Ye Futian already knew this. Looking at the West Emperor, he bowed. ��Thank you, senior, for saving me.��


    ��This was her choice and her last will. No need to thank me,�� the West Emperor said. Of all people, the West Emperor probably understood Xi Chiyao the most. He had felt her thoughts and understood her intents.


    ��No matter what, it was you who acted,�� Ye Futian said. The West Emperor had replaced Xi Chiyao, but could he resent the West Emperor? It was the other who had saved him, and this had been Xi Chiyao��s choice. It was her last will.


    But why would she do that and sacrifice herself?


    Ye Futian��s figure went downward. Many gazes fell upon him. Of the Ye Imperial Palace cultivators, many had suffered significant injuries. It was fortunate that the five Great Emperors�� target was Ye Futian, and they were dismissive towards the rest, so they had not massacred them. Otherwise, it would have been tragic.


    They all looked at Ye Futian. He had survived the desperate situation. Ye Futian had broken through the shackles, and this was great news, but none of them felt happy. They had suffered a catastrophe this time. Countless cultivators in the Outer Realms had died, turning to dust in the hands of the five Great Emperors.


    ��Return to the Ye Imperial Palace. Heal and recover,�� Ye Futian opened his mouth to say.


    ��Yes, Palace Lord,�� everyone responded, bowing. Then Ye Futian��s figure vanished. He left this place alone. The strong cultivators could feel Ye Futian��s sadness, and he blamed himself. However, no one would blame Ye Futian.


    Five Great Emperors had come for blood. What could Ye Futian have done? He still wanted to bring the five Great Emperors away from the Ye Imperial Palace at the last moment. He��d done everything he could.


    Plus, Ye Futian had almost died before he��d broken through the constraints. No one knew what he had experienced, but it was obvious that it wasn��t as simple as what they had seen.


    Ye Futian returned to his cultivation court. He looked up at the Ye Imperial Palace in shambles. Even the sky above the relic had been stabbed through. There were cracks everywhere. Xi Chiyao had constructed this Ye Imperial Palace, and she��d put in so much effort. Seeing the scene before him, he felt even sadder.


    He turned and went before the mountain. Then he sat down and closed his eyes.


    Instead of being sad, he had more important things to do.


    Cultivate. Take revenge.


    First, he had to figure out what his current cultivation state was.


    The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace returned eventually. They all went back to their pavilions to cultivate and recover from their injuries.


    Hua Jieyu��s figure floated to the sky above the Ye Imperial Palace. She glanced at where Ye Futian was but did not bother him. Instead, she said to another place, ��Lord.��


    ��Lady.�� Lord Chen came over and bowed slightly in greeting.


    ��Lord, please arrange the rebuilding of the Ye Imperial Palace,�� Hua Jieyu said.


    ��Yes.�� Lord Chen nodded.


    ��Pavilion Lord Mu.�� Hua Jieyu then looked to Daoist Monk Mu. The Daoist Monk also came over to listen for orders.


    ��Please temporarily take out the pills of the Alchemy Pavilion, especially the healing pills and divide them among those who are inured,�� Hua Jieyu said. ��In addition, please treat the injured.��


    ��Yes, Lady.�� Daoist Monk Mu bowed and left.


    ��Masteress, is there anything we can do?�� Fang Cun and the others asked after walking towards Hua Jieyu.


    ��Yes.�� Hua Jieyu nodded. Her gaze turned elsewhere and fell upon a beautiful figure.


    However, Hua Jieyu did not call her over. Instead, she walked over to the girl. The girl also noticed Hua Jieyu, and her pretty eyes looked over.


    ��Qingyuan.�� Hua Jieyu had come to Xia Qingyuan��s side.


    ��Yes,�� Xia Qingyuan responded.


    ��You are skilled in the Great Path of Life,�� Hua Jieyu said. ��The five Great Emperors had come and committed a massacre outside. There might be many injured people. Let��s go out together to look.��


    ��Okay,�� Xia Qingyuan answered, nodding lightly.


    ��Fang Cun, Little Ling, you lot come with,�� Hua Jieyu instructed.


    ��Yes, Masteress.�� The group nodded.


    ��I��ll go too.�� Hua Qingqing came over. Naturally, Hua Jieyu would not refuse her. The group headed out together.


    Blind Tie, Old Ma, Chen Yi, and the others followed suit. The five Ancient God Clans had already retreated, but they were still afraid and on high alert.


    At the same time, outside the Ye Imperial Palace, Yu Sheng had also ordered the strong cultivators of the Devil World to guard the outer regions. He guarded the sky above the Ye Imperial Palace.


    Meanwhile, Ye Qingyao had come inside the Ye Imperial Palace and looked to Ye Futian.


    There was someone else there. Ling Long quietly guarded in the near distance, but she did not disturb Ye Futian either.


    Ye Futian cultivated quietly and alone in the cultivation court. There was a hint of loneliness!

 Chapter 2794 - Path of the Great Emperor

    Chapter 2794 Path of the Great Emperor


    Cleanup and aftermath work started both inside and outside the Ye Imperial Palace. Many people became busy. In this battle, the Ye Imperial Palace��s damages were limited. The worst of the damage was outside the Ye Imperial Palace. When the five Ancient God Clans had arrived, they had turned beings into dust with just a flick of their finger. Too many people had died. Even if they were lucky not to die, they were still gravely injured.


    These people came from the Ziwei Segmentum and 3,000 Realms of the Great Path. They were all cultivators who believed in Ye Futian.


    The vast sky and land were immersed in sadness and anger.


    At this time, Hua Jieyu, Xia Qingyuan, and the others appeared somewhere. The light of life enveloped the surrounding strong cultivators, and many lotuses of life bloomed. Buddhist light also glowed to heal the injured people here.


    Many of the people recognized Hua Jieyu and asked, ��Lady, were those people from the Ancient God Clan reborn Great Emperors?��


    ��Yes.�� Hua Jieyu nodded.


    Crack! They clenched their fists tightly, and furious flames of hatred jumped out. Before, they had been filled with reverence for Great Emperors. Those were high and mighty existences that they looked up to, but after this time, it was hatred and anger.


    These Great Emperors had butchered them, viewing their lives as weeds. They were all massacred like ants.


    Was this how Great Emperors were?


    ��Lady, the Palace Lord will avenge us, right?�� someone asked. Even if the enemy were Great Emperors, they still believed that Ye Futian would take revenge. They had no hope, so they could only look to Ye Futian.


    ��Yes.�� Hua Jieyu nodded. Her telekinesis covered the vast space. When she discovered the injured, she used the transmission of her voice and had them come to this area to be treated.


    ��Yes.�� The others nodded solemnly. The flames of revenge were burning within them right now. Their Palace Lord must become an emperor in the future and lead them to revenge.


    Everyone was busy. Only Ye Futian-Palace Lord of the Ye Imperial Palace��cultivated in solitude.


    Inside the Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian sat with crossed legs. Strands of divine light circulated in his body, wrapping around him. It did not fit in with the Qi of the world. It was like a different kind of aura.


    He didn��t have any kind of elemental force within his body. His Life Palace was also empty, and the World Tree had become illusory. The Divine Ruler had disappeared, melded into his body, flesh, and spiritual soul. It had become one with him.


    The elemental forces he was skilled insword, water, fire, thunder, space, life, and more��had all disappeared. Breaking off the Path meant breaking all Will of the Paths. It was ridding them completely, going from something to nothing and becoming his most original self.


    Legends said that before the Heavenly Path, the world had been nothingness. It had been a turbid world, and only after that did the world birth life. The laws of the world were then created, which led to the birth of the ��Path.�� Cultivators studied the world, nature, the usage of the world laws and thus controlled the ��Path�� to possess greater power.


    An illusory item suddenly appeared in this world of nothingness. This illusory item gradually grew a face and then a body, arms, and legs. It formed a humanoid shape. It was Ye Futian��s figure that had appeared in this world.


    This figure was not created by Ye Futian��s consciousness. It was more like the consciousness of this world of nothingness had birthed another him. He stood in the void and perceived everything there.


    He was thinking. This void had birthed a strand of Ye Futian��s spirituality as if representing the consciousness of this world of nothingness.


    Ye Futian��s heart was very shocked right now. He thought of the ancient Heavenly Path. There had been Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path that ruled the heavens and managed the laws of the world. The so-called laws of the world were probably the Heavenly Path itself.


    The Heavenly Path was the law.


    Since the Eight Legions were under the Heavenly Path��s rule, the Heavenly Path had its own consciousness.


    This was also why the Heavenly Path collapsed after a group of extraordinary figures were born and wanted to go against nature, attacking the Path. They were unwilling to submit to the Heavenly Path, wanted to be above the Path, and thus went against nature, starting the War of the Gods. Then the Age of the Gods ended.


    Ye Futian fell into deep thought. In the ancient Age of the Gods, there had been Eight Legions below the Heavenly Path. However, it probably had not been only the Eight Legions. There must have been many Great Emperors on the side of the Heavenly Path. The Heavenly Path represented order. Many Great Emperors probably had reached their level due to the Heavenly Path, while those who wanted to attack the Heavenly Path may have taken another path.


    For example, Shenjia the Great had founded his own Path. He��d believed that there was no path in the world, so he created his own law and order. He had billions of runes within his body. Each rune was a law or order. In a way, this was his path. If he carved the word ��sky,�� it would transform into a sky. If he carved the word ��sword,�� then it would become an indestructible way of swordsmanship.


    The Demonic Lord and others were most likely this type as well.


    Then what was the significance of what was happening now?


    It meant that he had also stepped onto this path. However, Ye Futian felt that things were not so simple. He had reached this step by coincidence. It was not because of his comprehension. There was also his life spirit ��the World Tree. Right now, Ye Futian guessed that the World Tree was related to the Heavenly Path. It was a very brave guess.


    But the many things that had happened all pointed to this hypothesis.


    Thus, would another world evolve in his inner body and create another Heavenly Path?


    What kind of Divine Power would then appear in his world?


    While Ye Futian pondered, the shred of consciousness that had been born also seemed to be considering.


    The Divine Power that Donghuang the Great was skilled in was Revelation. The Human Ancestor studied the Force of Mankind, which represented the Way of Mankind. There was also the Vajra Divine Power, Infinite Divine Power, etc. What about him?


    Ye Futian had a feeling that he��d stepped onto a path different from everyone else.


    ��Divine Power!�� Ye Futian murmured.


    Everything in the world had gone from nothing to something, from something to nothing. Now, everything had been destroyed. Only the ancient tree��s aura remained. Meanwhile, only one kind of Divine Power matched with the World Tree life spirit.


    It was creation!


    If the world within his body represented a small Heavenly Path, he would soon create his own order.


    Kaboom! When this thought formed, a huge boom sounded from the world within his body. This world of nothingness shook violently, and the illusory Ye Futian swept his hand across, cutting down on the nothingness. The world of nothingness was abruptly cut into two. The top was the sky; the bottom was the land.


    Strands of vitality were born from the world -one yin and one yang. They grew in the world.


    All of this had evolved naturally, rather than being controlled by Ye Futian��s mind. It was like the natural order born from this world.


    ��From nothing to something!�� Ye Futian quietly observed all of these changes. In the outside world, his body had halos of divine light, and he stood out from the others.


    At that moment, ye Futian seemed to have found the cultivation path for himself.


    Also, Ye Futian felt vaguely that this path might lead straight to the Great Emperor Plane. He had not become an emperor directly before because this world had not been completed!

 Chapter 2795 - A Pair of Eyes

    Chapter 2795 A Pair of Eyes


    Time passed without him realizing. The Ye Imperial Palace had been repaired, and the injured folks from the Outer Realm had recovered.


    But even so, the inside of the Ye Imperial Palace still seemed a bit heavy. The effect of the battle still had not scattered. The five Great Emperors had descended and killed with an undefeatable state. At that moment, everyone��s eyes were taken over by despair. They would not be able to recover in a short time.


    As time passed, the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace were also improving continuously. They cultivated with even more effort, advancing themselves. Many people broke through the constraints of their planes.


    Ye Futian was still cultivating in isolation, and no one disturbed him. Even though Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao had guarded him for a long time, they��d never disturbed his cultivation. That day, Ye Futian had broken through the shackles and blocked the attack from a former Great Emperor. Everyone had witnessed this. It meant that Ye Futian may have entered a new level, so naturally, no one would disturb his cultivation at this time.


    In the cultivation court, divine light flowed across Ye Futian��s body. This divine light was different from the power of the outside world. It belonged to himself.


    And within the world inside his body, the forces of Yin and Yang appeared in the turbid world of nothingness. The sun and moon began to rotate. At night, when the will of Yin was the strongest, even a starry sky would appear.


    Other than that, the wills of the five elements were born too, appearing in this world.


    The growth of this world did not operate under Ye Futian��s will. It seemed to have its own law. However, the birth of everything in this world was also related to Ye Futian��s will. The core of this world was creation.


    After the wills of the five elements were born, this world now had mountain ranges and rivers. Flora also came into existence, and wind would blow across the space. After creating each element, Ye Futian��s aura would also change a bit. The forces born here due to fate were the law of the world; the law of this world was his own power. It was the law of his own Divine Power, like Shenjia the Great who could form a sky or sword with one word.


    Ye Futian had broken off the Path, going from something to nothing. Now, he was cultivating in reverse, going from nothing to something. He had been skilled in the elemental forces of the Great Path. Now, he was creating it in his new world, and they were being born.


    In the snap of a finger, one year passed. During this year, the world inside Ye Futian��s body had taken shape. Yin and Yang combined, the sun and moon rotated, and both life and death appeared.


    The current life palace world had the general shape of a world, but it was still growing and completing itself.


    This day, the will of swordsmanship was born in one area of the world. It also transformed into a part of the world law.


    Thus, Ye Futian stopped his isolated cultivation. He came out without waiting for the world to continue developing.


    He vaguely felt that he could complete some things now.


    He did not want to wait longer.


    When Ye Futian��s figure appeared above the Ye Imperial Palace, Hua Jieyu came over. She could feel that Ye Futian was different from before, but she couldn��t pinpoint how exactly he was different.


    The West Emperor��s figure also appeared in the near distance, and he gazed at Ye Futian. He felt a bit threatened by Ye Futian right now. Even though Ye Futian did not release any aura, his natural sensitivity helped him sense danger.


    ��Jieyu, I��m going out,�� Ye Futian said to Hua Jieyu.


    ��Okay.�� Hua Jieyu nodded. Naturally, she would not stop Ye Futian.


    ��Senior, please help watch over the Ye Imperial Palace,�� Ye Futian said to the West Emperor. Seeing that face, he would think of Xi Chiyao, even though her temperament had changed greatly. ��No problem.�� The West Emperor nodded, agreeing to it.


    Ye Futian bowed his head slightly, and then his figure floated forward. He vanished in a blink, heading out of the Ye Imperial Palace.


    The West Emperor looked at Ye Futian��s backside, and a strange look appeared in his eyes. He had an idea of what Ye Futian was going to do.


    Ye Futian had not cultivated in isolation for too long right now. In fact, one could say this period had been very short. He could have continued to improve himself. But with Ye Futian��s cultivation state right now, he seemed like he could not wait to do something


    Of course, there was only one thing that Ye Futian wanted to do right now: take revenge.


    The God��s Ruins Continent was now connected to all the realms. Naturally, many passages led to the Divine Prefecture. After the world changed drastically, the space seemed to have changed too. He could not use that precious item anymore, but Ye Futian could still use those passageways to easily head towards the Divine Prefecture.


    The Vajra Realm of the Vajra Domain, Divine Prefecture, was a huge territory.


    The present Vajra Realm was now one of the strongest places of the Divine Prefecture. The Vajra Realm��s ancient emperor had returned.


    The cultivators of the Vajra Realm found pride in this.


    At this time, cultivators went to and fro in the Vajra Realm. Many of them had very strong cultivations. They followed after the Vajra Realm Great Emperor and were confident about the future. One day, the Great Emperor would return completely.


    But just then, a group of cultivators walking in the Vajra Realm looked up into the sky. They saw a figure appear high up in the sky. This man had white robes and white hair. He was very handsome and had an indescribable temperament. He stood high in the sky and could attract everyone��s gazes in an instant. It was like he did not belong to this world. He was an independent entity. This kind of temperament shocked them greatly. They had felt this from their ancient emperor��s body.


    ��Who is that?�� Some people had never seen Ye Futian before.


    ��It��s Ye Futian!�� a shocked voice said. Instantly, many people��s expressions changed.


    Ye Futian had come murderously to the Vajra Realm.


    In an instant, strands of strong aura exploded. Vajra Divine Power bloomed from their bodies, but the moment they released their auras of the Great Path, Ye Futian looked down at them.


    The next moment, they saw the most shocking scene since they started cultivating.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were no longer like the eyes of a human. They saw the sun in his left eye and the moon in his right eye.


    Moonlight showered down. Instantly, their bodies were sealed by ice. Their consciousness had not been wiped entirely, and they tried to move, but they discovered that they��d already been sealed. The extreme coldness was the Divine Power of Yin.


    ��No���� Their hearts tremored. The next moment, the Divine Fire of the Sun shot out of Ye Futian��s other eye, shooting right onto the ice statues.


    The next instant, all of the ice statues disappeared from the world without a trace. It was like those cultivators had never come to the world before.


    The hearts of the people in the distance beat frantically. Was this still the power of a human cultivator?


    At that moment, a thought appeared in their minds: Divine Power.


    Ye Futian had created his own Divine Power!

 Chapter 2796 - The Hopeless Vajra Realm

    Chapter 2796 The Hopeless Vajra Realm


    His eyes had turned into the sun and moon, the Yin and Yang!


    The current Ye Futian was like a true heavenly god.


    ��Run!�� Across the vast territory of the Vajra Realm, countless people began fleeing instead of thinking of fighting. Since Ye Futian had already formed his own Divine Power, it meant that he was above them now. Even the former Ye Futian could have killed them as simply as flipping a hand, let alone the current Ye Futian.


    as


    What could they do other than run?


    Probably no one other than the Vajra Realm Great Emperor could handle Ye Futian.


    Seeing the cultivators of the Vajra Realm escape, Ye Futian��s body abruptly became large as a giant god, blocking the sky and sun. His pair of eyes also enlarged, shooting out the light of the sun and moon. It transformed into destructive power, and everything in its path turned to dust.


    Seeing the people in the distance trying to escape, he opened his mouth wide and spat out divine thunder. In an instant, billions of bolts of divine lightning fell. Everything in its path was destroyed. Every cultivator that got hit was instantly killed and torn apart. They could not take a single hit.


    ��Has he already reached enlightenment and become a Great Emperor?�� Everyone was shocked inside. They felt despair and also bottomless panic. Ye Futian��s eyes had turned into the sun and moon, he could spit out divine thunder, and he��d transformed into a giant. The Ye Futian that they saw was a god.


    One could not help but wonder if he had already reached enlightenment and stepped onto the Path of the Emperors.


    Ye Futian did not care about the guesses in their hearts. He stepped into the sky, and instantly, a huge footprint was hurled down. He stepped onto the ground, and all the Vajra Realm buildings collapsed. Many cultivators were stomped to death. The force of his foot was like a divine mountain falling, pressing down on the earth.


    He stepped across the sky, barging his way in, just like how the five Ancient God Clans had invaded the Ye Imperial Palace back then. He swept across, unbeatable. No one could stop him. There was only continuous death.


    The core fighters of the Vajra Realm appeared, and they let out roars.


    ��Get the Great Emperor.��


    ��Is the Great Emperor still cultivating in isolation?��


    The shocked cries sounded in waves and carried fear. Even those who had cultivated to the top and even went through the Divine Tribulations of the Great Path, the cultivators who had once attacked the Ye Imperial Palace with the Vajra Realm Great Emperor, now felt extremely strong terror.


    They could feel that Ye Futian-who had come for revenge this time��was undefeatable for them. He was an unmatchable heavenly god.


    Ye Futian��s huge eyes looked down at the void in the distance. He had not arrived yet, but his eyes could already see into the depths of the Vajra Realm. His eyes shot out the light of the sun and moon. Everything under his line of sight was turned instantly to dust.


    The top figures of the Vajra Realm activated the Force of the Great Path and formed the Vajra Realm Domain. It transformed into a boundless curtain of light that sealed off the space. They tried to stop Ye Futian��s steps.


    But then they saw Ye Futian take a step. His giant foot stepped down on the curtain of light, and countless cracks appeared instantly. The curtain of light crumbled, but the big foot continued to step down. The Vajra Realm cultivators tried to escape.


    Bang! With a huge sound, this foot that looked like a god��s footprint stomped many top figures to death. They died in despair and could not fight back at all.


    ��Where��s the Great Emperor?�� someone yelled. He could not care about being respectful anymore. The Vajra Realm was facing the utmost disaster now. Back then, the Vajra Realm Great Emperor had led the people to the Ye Imperial Palace, and now, they were paying for it. The Great Emperor still had not appeared, and they could only keep dying


    Right then, a beautiful beam of golden divine light shot out of a pagoda in the Vajra Realm. It was extremely brilliant, illuminating the sky. The Vajra Divine Power surged and burst from it. It was extremely sharp.


    ��The Great Emperor is here!��


    The Vajra Realm cultivators finally saw a sliver of hope. At this moment of despair, the Vajra Realm Great Emperor was their last bit of light. Now that the Great Emperor had appeared, it was like grabbing onto their last straw of hope.


    Bang! The frightening Vajra Divine Power transformed into a finger that stabbed through the pagoda. Like an indestructibly sharp blade, it shot towards Ye Futian. This finger was the finger of a heavenly god. Divine Power tore through the sky. Even if Ye Futian got hit, his body would probably shatter, too, right?


    Countless eyes were trained on that finger, hoping that it could kill Ye Futian or at least hurt him.


    The heavenly god that Ye Futian had transformed into stared at the incoming finger. He did not block it. The divine finger formed by the Vajra Divine Power blasted onto his huge body, emitting an incredible sound. It was like metal clashing.


    ��That��s suicide.�� Many people stared at Ye Futian. He didn��t block it.


    But the next moment, their pupils constricted. There were no eyes that weren��t trained on that place, staring at Ye Futian��s godly body.


    That godly body only shook a bit. It did not get penetrated and shattered just as everyone had imagined.


    This scene extinguished the shred of hope they had just had. Despair flooded their hearts again.


    The Vajra Divine Power��s murderous finger could not break through Ye Futian��s body. Had his current body already become a divine form?


    Ye Futian looked down, glancing at the strong cultivators of the Vajra Realm below. With that gaze, the Power of Yin sealed everything. They could feel coldness coming from their souls. Then their bodies froze, their Great Path was sealed off, and they could no longer move.


    ��No���� They raised their heads in despair and looked at Ye Futian. Some even started pleading to him, ��You have already entered the Path. Why commit so much bloodshed?��


    ��It was the Great Emperor who decided last time. We had no other choice.��


    Now that the world had changed, their cultivations had all improved. The Great Emperor had returned too, so they all fantasized that they could continue advancing, especially because the Vajra Realm had reached a new peak after their ancient emperor returned.


    But right at this time, despair descended. Ye Futian had come murderously, transformed into a heavenly god. The so-called Ancient God Clan could not take a single hit. All of their heritage had become so weak before the absolute strength. It was completely meaningless.


    Divine sunlight shot out of Ye Futian��s left eye, landing on them directly. Under the Divine Powers of Yin and Yang, the core figures of the Vajra Realm gradually emptied and finally turned to dust. The ashes scattered in the wind.


    Before this, the five ancient emperors had attacked the Ye Imperial Palace, making the cultivators in and out of the Ye Imperial Palace feel like ants under the Great Emperors. But today, Ye Futian made the strong cultivators of the Vajra Realm feel the same thing.


    Despair, powerlessness�� Facing Ye Futian, they were like ants that could be squashed to death. A single glance could turn them to dust.


    Bang! With a huge sound, the pagoda shattered. The Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s figure appeared. He stood in the distance, and his eyes were frightening as he stared at Ye Futian across the space.


    Failing to kill Ye Futian in the previous battle had left a lasting threat. He had not become a Great Emperor yet, but Ye Futian already had the abilities of a Great Emperor. His eyes had become the sun and moon, he spat out divine thunder, and his flesh body was indestructible. His body was like a true divine form. Every body part was made of Divine Power.


    Ye Futian��s cultivation path was different from his. How did he do it?!

 Chapter 2797 - Battle of the Heavenly Gods

    Chapter 2797 Battle of the Heavenly Gods


    The Vajra Realm Great Emperor did not care that much about the lives of Vajra Realm cultivators. He was a Great Emperor from the ancient times and long stopped having feelings for his current descendants. Furthermore, everything and everyone below the Great Emperor Plane were ants. For him, the cultivators of the Vajra Realm were only ants who were closer to him.


    He had gone to cultivate in isolation after the last battle. Ye Futian��s tribulation had given him a lot of pressure. What surprised him was that Ye Futian had come out after such a short time and was impatient about revenge.


    In his opinion, this was clearly unwise. Delaying your cultivation to take revenge for some ants was so stupid. Plus, Ye Futian��s cultivation was significant now. He already had one step on the Path of the Emperors. He must be so foolish to do something like this.


    If it were him, he would choose to cultivate in isolation for life.


    ��In the distant era, the Heavenly Path controlled the world,�� the Vajra Realm Great Emperor said to Ye Futian. ��Some followed the Heavenly Path; some went against the Heavenly Path and broke it. They created a brilliant Age of Gods together. Unfortunately, the latter who broke the Path wanted to change the heavens. The former also responded. At present, the world had changed drastically, and the Great Emperors�� era has finally come.


    ��In this entirely new age, the gods have returned, and new emperors will rise. The cultivation world might welcome a new golden age and recover the prosperity of ancient times. You��ve already reached this step now. It means you ride above all else and may become one of the stars of the future. Since you��re already at this position, how about you stop now?��


    The Vajra Realm Great Emperor wanted a truce.


    Below him, the countless cultivators of the Vajra Realm looked at their Great Emperor and had an indescribable feeling in their hearts. Shouldn��t the Vajra Realm Great Emperor act like a Great Emperor and kill Ye Futian to avenge the Vajra Realm cultivators?


    Even they could see that the Vajra Realm Great Emperor felt unconfident!


    That was why he was asking for a truce.


    With the Great Emperor��s personality, he would not be asking for peace and truce at this time if he was confident in killing Ye Futian. Ye Futian had killed his way into here.


    ��The high and mighty emperor?�� Ye Futian said mockingly and caused an echo. Even the cultivators of the Vajra Realm could see the truth, so he naturally could see that the lord of the Vajra Realm was intimidated.


    ��You didn��t act like this before.��/ please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    His voice filled the space and produced an echo with the world. At the same time, frightening divine light flowed across his body, forming the Great Path. The divine light of the sun and moon shot directly out of his eyes, going toward the lord of the Vajra Realm.


    Did the possibility for truce exist between them?


    A sheet of light formed by Vajra Divine Power rose around the Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s body. Light from dazzling runes flowed across the light sheet, and Divine Power circulated throughout. It was indestructible.


    He was indeed a bit intimidated by Ye Futian. He had broken his Path and even succeeded.


    In that era, far fewer Great Emperors had gone against the Great Path rather than following it. They had a higher death rate, and they might not be stronger than those who followed the Great Path. However, the supernatural beings who could stand at the peak were usually from that group.


    They broke the Great Path and created their own Path.


    In the current age, the Great Path had collapsed, and the Path of the Emperors was broken, yet Ye Futian had successfully broken his Path.


    His body was now a divine form, his flesh was the Path, his eyes had turned into the sun moon, and he spat out divine thunder. Ye Futian would be extraordinary even in that ancient age.


    The divine light of the sun and moon fell upon the Vajra Realm light curtain. The Powers of Yin and Yang instantly covered that domain. The defensive curtain was getting eaten away at, but the defenses formed by Divine Power did not shatter directly. After all, he was a former Great Emperor.


    Below, the cultivators of the Vajra Realm all looked up at the battle in the sky. This battle would determine their fates.


    Ye Futian opened his mouth, and his divine form spat out divine thunder. It transformed into the force of divine punishment, hitting the curtain of light squarely. A crack appeared in the Vajra Divine Power. The Yin and Yang had already been eating away at the defenses. After the divine thunder landed, the light curtain fell apart instantly.


    The destructive attack continued advancing, going murderously towards the Vajra Realm Great Emperor. But at that time, a frightening beam of divine light shot out of his eyes. In that instant, many divine monuments appeared in the sky. It was like the Vajra Divine Power had formed divine monuments that shielded before him, high up in the sky or across the world. They were everywhere.


    They had not unleashed their strongest abilities in the battle against the Ye Imperial Palace.


    ��Go!�� he uttered in a cold voice. Instantly, the divine monuments everywhere went towards Ye Futian��s body from all directions. They were fast as lightning. The Divine Power monuments were about to transform into a Vajra Realm cell to imprison Ye Futian.


    A muffled sound came from the dome of the sky. Countless people looked up at the sky and gazed at that shocking scene. Every divine monument was humongous. They joined from eight directions, and even the Yin, Yang, and divine thunder couldn��t destroy them in an instant. If the divine monuments closed in, it would form a world prison.


    Ye Futian scanned them with his eyes. Instead of dodging them, he stepped into the sky. The world roared and transformed into a heavenly god; he crashed straight into the divine monument before him.


    Boom! There was a terrifying boom as if the world was splitting apart. The huge divine monument before Ye Futian shattered from Ye Futian��s divine form crashing into it. The divine monuments still came for him from different directions. A huge golden staff appeared in Ye Futian��s hand. It had been formed by the Divine Power in his body.


    Wham! The golden divine staff twirled, and staff silhouettes swept across the sky. Bam, bam, bam�� All of the monuments constructed by Vajra Divine Power were blasted apart. They couldn��t fend off the attack of a divine form.


    But right then, an even more prominent figure of a golden heavenly god appeared before Ye Futian. It was the Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s transformation. Divine light flowed across that huge body, and the Vajra Divine Power was pushed to the max. Supreme might covered the vast land, causing the people below to fall to the ground. Was this a true heavenly god?


    ��Ye Futian, you and I will both become emperors. Must we determine who will die or live today?�� The Vajra Realm Divine Lord��s gaze swept towards Ye Futian. His voice was thick and powerful, echoing throughout the dome of the sky. It was only a voice, but many of the top cultivators below were shaken up. Blood seeped from their eardrums.


    The light formed by the Vajra Divine Power radiated in the sky and also shone on Ye Futian��s body. It emanated a very sharp aura.


    However, he was completely unmoved. His eyes continued shooting at the other like the sun and moon, and his body continued to enlarge. He kept growing, making the hearts of the cultivators below pound heavily.


    ��It��s you who will die!�� Ye Futian uttered coldly. This battle was not to determine who would die or live. It was to make the other die.


    ��Arrogant!�� When the Vajra Realm Great Emperor spoke, countless beams of divine light shot out. The Vajra Divine Power transformed into billions of golden spears that dove towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s eyes shone with divine light. Moonlight showered down, and under the Power of Yin, time and space seemed to come to a standstill. Frost covered the endless golden spears, and their speed slowed down.


    At the same time, Ye Futian attacked again. There was a huge divine sword materializing in his hand!

 Chapter 2798 - Destruction

    Chapter 2798 Destruction


    Ye Futian had transformed into a heavenly god. He held the divine sword, and moonlight showered down. The Divine Power of Yin sealed the vast space. The golden spears formed by the Vajra Divine Power were all covered in frost, and their speed was affected too.


    Ye Futian took a step forward and instantly stabbed the boundless divine sword out. The entire world seemed to fall apart abruptly. The space was about to be torn apart. All of the Vajra Divine Power spears in the divine sword��s path broke apart. Under the Divine Power of Yin, these spears seemed to have weakened a lot.


    The Vajra Realm Great Power used his mind, and golden divine light instantly enveloped the vast space. This area had become the Vajra Realm. Countless beams of golden light shone onto his body. He reached out a huge hand, and the light filling the sky landed on his fingers. The next moment, he pointed, attacking Ye Futian��s incoming divine sword.


    The Tianshen��s Point!


    Countless eyes watched the shocking scene in the dome of the sky. The two huge gods were like gods of war. Even though they hadn��t fully broken into the Emperor Realm, the battle before their eyes were like an actual war between gods.


    With that finger, the world grew colorless. Golden divine light shone through vast land, and the space in its path was destroyed. That finger seemed to want to divide the world into two. The sky was halved. At his peak, the single point of the Vajra Realm Great Emperor could penetrate an entire continent.


    Two extremely frightening attacks zoomed through the sky and then converged. They crashed together. Instantly, the space was almost torn apart. A destructive windstorm swept across the land. This attack was like a competition between their Divine Powers.


    There was a muffled sound. The Tianshen��s Point formed by Vajra Divine Power was crumbling. The Divine Power collapsed, making the observing cultivators�� hearts beat furiously. Was he about to lose?


    The Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s pupils constricted. Ye Futian stood on the world, and his eyes shone with divine light that covered the Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s body. He wanted to seal the heavenly god��s figure with ice. At the same time, his arms continued forward. The divine sword killed its way over and shattered the Tianshen��s Point.


    Countless beams of divine light burst from the Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s body and blocked the Divine Power of Yin. At the same time, he put his hands together. His palms formed a sealed space of Divine Power and snatched the divine sword. But then his arms and palms were invaded by the Divine Power of Yin.


    The Power of Yin could weaken the sturdiest thing in the world. Thus, even Vajra Divine Power was significantly weakened under the Power of Yin. There was a huge boom and the divine sword stabbed through the palm fiercely. It continued forward along the heavenly arm, continuing to shatter it.


    The Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s expression changed drastically. He��d actually lost.


    Boom! Taking a step in the air, his body shot towards the higher altitude, but how could Ye Futian give him that chance? Even though the Divine Power of Yin could not seal him directly, it still affected his speed. At the same time, Ye Futian��s speed increased. That extremely huge divine figure moved like the wind.


    The current Ye Futian himself was created by the Path. He had constructed his own world. He could be the sun, could be the moon, could be thunder and lightning, and could be the wind.


    Poof, poof�� There were sharp noises. The Vajra Realm Great Emperor transformed into the divine light and shot into the air. However, Ye Futian carried the divine sword and charged towards the other, stabbing his arm through. Then he attacked directly onto the heavenly god��s body.


    Bang! There was a low sound, and the divine body shook violently. Then, Yin, Yang, and thunder rained down at once. The Vajra Divine Power could not protect his body, and the divine sword stabbed through it, breaking into it and directly penetrating the huge divine body.


    Paired with the huge sound, the heavenly god��s body broke apart. Just then, countless beams of divine light shot out simultaneously towards different directions. Some divine light even shot towards Ye Futian��s eyes.


    Ye Futian did not hide from it at all. The sun and moon were reflected in his huge eyes, and he spat out lightning. The horrifying Divine Power shrouded the sky, sealing it off. Instantly, the divine light shooting in all directions was blocked too.


    ��You still want to escape?�� His cold voice resounded through the void. His eyes swept across the space. The huge body of the heavenly god was shattering like crazy, disappearing continuously. All of the divine light that tried to escape were blocked and destroyed by the Divine Powers of Yin and


    Yang.


    ��Ye Futian!�� countless voices said. It was the Vajra Realm Great Emperor��s voice that came from different directions. The divine light seemed to contain his consciousness.


    ��You and I both cultivated to this point. Why must you eradicate me? If you need help, I��ll do anything you ask. If you want to improve, I can give you advice too.�� The voice sounded a bit panicked. It was clear that the Vajra Realm Great Emperor was scared. He had survived for countless years and was finally reborn now.


    He had waited for countless years but would die here today?


    ��You��re not qualified.��


    Ye Futian��s baritone voice sounded throughout the sky. His Divine Power continued sweeping across, killing every remnant of consciousness. He didn��t let any shred of aura go and wiped it all out.


    ��Ye Futian���� It was a panicked roar. A silhouette of the Vajra Realm Great Emperor appeared, but Ye Futian did not care. His eyes swept across, and the divine light of the sun burned it directly, not showing any mercy.


    This sweeping lasted for a very long time. Ye Futian did not give the other any chance at all. He destroyed that place completely until everything had turned to dust and not a single crumb of the Vajra Realm Great Emperor was left.


    The other had existed from ancient times until now. How could he give the other a chance to come again?


    The people below kept staring up at the sky, and their hearts pounded furiously. They had witnessed Ye Futian eradicate the Vajra Realm Great Emperor with their own eyes. This terrified them. He was too cruel, going to the extreme and not giving the other a sliver of hope.


    A returned Great Emperor who had not fully recovered to their peak had died here, killed by Ye Futian. The Vajra Realm Great Emperor was the first to live until now and yet get killed.


    After killing the Vajra Realm Great Emperor, Ye Futian��s gaze swept down. Terrifying divine light shot out of his eyes, covering the entire vast Vajra Realm. In an instant, the Vajra Realm turned to dust under the divine fire of the sun. Everything was turned to ask and ceased to exist.


    From now on, the Vajra Realm of the Ancient God Clan had become history. Yet another of the six Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture had turned to dust. And compared to Tianyan City, the Vajra Realm��s destruction was even more complete. It had been reduced to ashes.


    After completing all this, Ye Futian��s figure flashed and disappeared. Countless eyes watched him leave, their hearts were still pounding.


    Was Ye Futian going for the next Ancient God Clan?


    There had been five Ancient God Clans that participated in the battle at the Ye Imperial Palace!

 Chapter 2799 - Prepared Ahead

    Chapter 2799 Prepared Ahead


    The second Ancient God Clan that Ye Futian visited was the Haotian Clan.


    Haotian Clan was located in the Nantian Domain, which was different from the Vajra Region. However, with Ye Futian��s cultivation nowadays, it didn��t take long for him to traverse large expanses of territories.


    As the ancient power of the Ancient God Clans that resided in the Divine Prefecture, Haotian Clan in Nantian Domain had countless years of history and wielded unparalleled influence in Nantian Domain. The main city where the Haotian Clan was located was also known as the premier city in Nantian Domain.


    ��What happened?�� At this time, many people in the city were talking about it. Not long ago, there was a lot of commotion inside the Haotian Clan about gathering the cultivators inside the clan. Then news came out that the cultivators of the Haotian Clan were evacuating.


    ��No idea what��s going on. It looks like they are preparing to face a major enemy, but what kind of enemy can threaten the Haotian Clan?�� someone responded. Currently, the Haotian Clan was under the command of Haotian the Great. Who could instill such fear in them?


    ��Perhaps it��s because of God��s Continent,�� someone said. Everyone knew about God��s Continent by now, and many top cultivators had gone there to cultivate, shuttling between the Divine Prefecture and the God��s Continent.


    They all knew there were too many terrifying cultivators at that place.


    ��I heard that a major war had broken out on the God��s Continent previously, and five of the Ancient God Clans had joined forces to attack Ye Futian and almost managed to kill him too. However, after that war, Ye Futian survived the divine tribulation, and he may have undergone a certain transformation after that. Do you think it might be him?�� asked someone who had heard about that battle.


    ��I��ve also heard about it. That might be the case.�� There was a lot of information going around inside the city, and everything stemmed from the recent changes taking place in Haotian Clan, which attracted many people��s interest.


    Just as all the cultivators in the city were talking and guessing, high above the sky, a figure traveled through the air and came to this main city, heading straight to the place where the Haotian Clan was located.


    ��Huh?�� Some cultivators traveling in the air saw Ye Futian and couldn��t help but show a look of surprise. Many people had shuttled past him from below.


    ��That��s odd.�� Someone turned around and looked that way. Then their eyes sharpened, fixed on that speeding figure.


    ��It��s Ye Futian!�� someone exclaimed. ��He��s here in Haotian City. What is he going to����


    When they thought of the previous changes in Haotian Clan, they all realized something and began turning around and walking the other


    way.


    Soon, a special kind of news began spreading inside Haotian City.


    The changes that took place in the Haotian Clan were because of Ye Futian, who had come to slaughter them.


    This news was quickly causing a great sensation, spreading at lightning speed. Countless cultivators rushed in the direction of the Haotian Clan.


    It seemed that the Haotian Clan of today was indeed very fearful of Ye Futian.


    At the same time the news had spread, Ye Futian had already arrived in Haotian Clan. Looking at the Ancient God Clan that towered into the sky before him, Ye Futian��s eyes were cold and indifferent. He looked at the gigantic Haotian Divine Monument in the area below, and suddenly the monument was shrouded in the power of Yin. It disintegrated into a pile of dust.


    In the distance, the hearts of those outside of the Haotian Clan trembled violently when they beheld this scene. Someone had destroyed the Divine Monument of the Haotian Clan.


    An even more shocking scene appeared in the next moment. Several horrific auras descended upon this space, right inside the Haotian Clan.


    Ye Futian did not seem surprised and acted as he normally would. Many years ago, when he and the six Ancient God Clans had first had their grievances, these six Ancient God Clans had allied and exchanged information.


    He had destroyed the Vajra Region and slain their Great Emperor. How could the other Ancient God Clans not know about such major news?


    Moreover, they knew his target, so they had rushed over here.


    Among the six Ancient God Clans, Tianyan City and the Vajra Region had both been destroyed. Now, there were only four other Ancient God Clans remaining. It was unsurprising that they would join forces, especially now that Ye Futian had killed the Great Emperor of the Vajra Region.


    The four Great Emperors appeared in different positions, and from them, four terrifying auras suppressed this space, shocking the cultivators from the distance of Haotian City to no ends.


    It turned out that the changes inside Haotian Clan were because of Ye Futian. To deal with him, the Great Emperors of the four Ancient God Clans showed up here simultaneously.


    Was today��s Ye Futian so scary?


    These four Great Emperors from the ancient times surged with divine power, and there was no longer the contempt they once had in their eyes when they invaded inside Ye Imperial Palace. There was more of wariness in their eyes now because, after all, one of them had already died by Ye Futian��s hands.


    Ye Futian glanced at the four Great Emperors and did not speak. The powerful divine light surged upon his body as he then held up both of his hands. Suddenly, massive stars appeared and completely covered the sky. The people who were watching the battle from afar looked horrified as the sky above their heads dimmed.


    ��This���� The cultivators from Haotian City were trembling with fear. Then they saw Ye Futian��s hands fell down. In an instant, the stars suspended in the sky above the Haotian Clan fell towards the ground below to bury the Haotian Clan completely, thus sending it into history.


    Haotian the Great��s face changed slightly as he suddenly released a supreme power. Instantly, a divine force manifested to support this corner of the sky.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Terrifying loud sounds were heard as the gigantic and boundless heavenly bodies fell down. However, they were blocked by the divine power of Haotian and hung in midair.


    Ye Futian��s eyes glanced that way, and his eyes turned into the sun and the moon; the Shadow and Solar Divine Powers shot directly at Haotian the Great. Haotian the Great raised both hands abruptly slapped towards the sky above, blasting out the divine seal of Haotian. Suddenly, the stars right above them exploded and shattered. Haotian the Great slammed his palms forward again, turning it into a divine wall, blocking off the invading Shadow and Solar Divine Powers.


    The other three Great Emperors resisted the stars falling from the firmament. They would either try to prop them up or directly attack with divine power to smash them.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes and swept towards the Haotian Clan below. The Divine Fire of the Sun came down, and in just an instant, the vast Haotian Clan below was ignited by the divine flames, which turned into ashes right away. Different places continued to burn, and in just a short moment, the Divine Fire of the Sun had covered the entire Haotian Clan.


    Fortunately, the cultivators of Haotian Clan have already evacuated, many cultivators from Haotian City secretly marveled. The truth was that they could not have stopped Ye Futian. As soon as the Divine Fire of the Sun descended, any cultivators in the vicinity were killed.


    But though its people had left, Haotian Clan was no more, as it was burned to the ground.


    ��Ye Futian!��


    At this moment, a strong voice came from above the sky. It was as if it had penetrated through the void. Then, rays of divine light descended from the sky, like space passages, piercing the void.


    The golden divine light descended, and some people came walking out of the golden passageway. Everyone had an astonishing aura, which was beyond terrifying.


    Many cultivators in Haotian City closed their eyes; the divine light was simply too blinding.


    Ye Futian��s eyes fixed on the other side, watching those cultivators descending. He saw several familiar faces, like the princess of the Divine Prefecture, Donghuang Diyuan.


    Beside him was Li Daoshou, who was known as the strongest person in Donghuang Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture.


    However, this time, none of the people who came out of the golden passageways were weaker than Li Daoshou. These were people who might be the hidden source of power in Donghuang Imperial Palace. Ye Futian didn��t feel that it was anything strange; such a group of cultivators had existed in the Human Realm, so it was not that surprising that the same might be true of the Divine Prefecture.


    Once Donghuang the Great had unified the Divine Prefecture, there would be old monster-level figures who submitted under his command and cultivated under him.


    ��Donghuang Imperial Palace has arrived.��


    The cultivators in Haotian City secretly marveled that Ye Futian��s strength had alarmed even Donghuang Imperial Palace!

 Chapter 2800 - Submit

    Chapter 2800 Submit


    Donghuang Diyuan glanced in Ye Futian��s direction. Not the slightest emotion could be seen in her eyes, except coldness.


    She didn��t speak but merely turned her attention to Haotian the Great and the other three Great Emperors. She said, ��Will the four Ancient God Clans submit to Donghuang Imperial Palace?��


    ��What?�� Everyone in Haotian City looked surprised. What did Donghuang Diyuan mean by this?


    Was she asking the four Great Emperors from the four Ancient God Clans whether they would submit to her, Donghuang Diyuan? Or was she asking if the four Ancient God Clans would obey the orders and the commands of Donghuang Imperial Palace?


    They didn��t understand, but the four Great Emperors understood, and Ye Futian, too, understood.


    He had guessed before that the five Great Emperors of the five Ancient God Clans may have gone to the Human Realm to cultivate, but the Human Ancestor wanted to stage a double-cross. More importantly, the Divine Prefecture had no jurisdiction over them, so that it couldn��t do anything about it. After all, the Ancient God Clans were only residing in the territories belonging to the Divine Prefecture. Still, they were not forces under the command of Donghuang Imperial Palace then.


    Donghuang the Great was not in a position to force them to do anything, or else he would have gone against his own will and became the same as the Dark World.


    However, this time they were threatened by Ye Futian, and it was at a time like this that Donghuang Diyuan asked this crucial question. They could say they would not submit, but Donghuang Diyuan and the forces belonging to Donghuang Imperial Palace could stand by and watch. If they answered yes to the question, from now on, they would be under the rule of Donghuang the Great, who would also command them.


    Above the firmament, the divine light was shining brilliantly. Those extremely splendid spatial passageways were still there, and Donghuang Diyuan was even more magnificent than she was once upon a time.


    One question from her is to ask the four Great Emperors to choose.


    The four Great Emperors did not make a reply. If they agreed, it would be the same as obeying Donghuang Imperial Palace. Then, if any of them dared to be a traitor, Donghuang the Great could intervene to execute them, and they would have nothing to say for themselves, not even the Human Ancestor.


    The operation of this world still followed some basic principles unless someone had the absolute power to break them.


    Ye Futian understood that Donghuang Diyuan had her ideas about things as well.


    His figure grew greater, turning into a god from heaven again. He stretched out his hands as a massive divine rod appeared in it. This rod was golden in color and seemed to be engraved with the brilliance of the stars. Even if it simply fell by itself, it was enough to crush everything under the sky.


    Buzz! Ye Futian��s body moved forward, and that god-like torso was making its way along with a divine rod in his hand, shooting straight towards Haotian the Great.


    Haotian the Great��s gaze sharpened. He saw Ye Futian��s speed increase, and that body of god directly rushed at him as the divine rod came smashing down. That gigantic and massive divine rod danced in Ye Futian��s hand as if it was extremely light and nimble. However, when it blasted out, a sound of the sonic boom could be heard throughout the void, as if the space was exploding and that the heaven and the earth were about to be pulverized.


    The cultivators standing in the faraway Haotian City felt a heavy pressure when they saw the swings of the rod.


    Haotian the Great raised his hand and reached out. Suddenly, a terrifying Haotian divine power was held within his palm. A massive divine imprint blasted out, like a blow from the heaven itself, which was equally ponderous.


    When these two horrific attacks collided, the sky and earth crumbled, and the void was thoroughly shaken. A destructive storm swept out, and numerous cracks appeared upon the Haotian Divine Seal, as it then began to shatter. It was being blasted apart by the gigantic divine rod as the terrifying storm continued to exert its coercion. Haotian the Great was feeling a mighty pressure at this


    moment.


    Ye Futian��s attack was enough to crush his divine power.


    But when Ye Futian attacked Haotian the Great, the other three Great Emperors also took action. Heavenly Emperor Jiang held the golden divine halberd and turned it into a beam of light. The destructive divine halberd broke through the void and descended, attacking Ye Futian��s body of a god. At this time, Ye Futian��s body was humongous, which meant he was also a massive target. When this devastating blow found its target, it would probably pierce through his flesh.


    Wuliang the Great unleashed countless divine swords, as Yuanshi the Great mobilized the power of god punishment somewhere over Ye Futian.


    In an instant, attacks of mass destruction directly submerged that corner of heaven and earth, ready to bury Ye Futian in those destructive attacks.


    Boom! Ye Futian��s body erupted with an incomparable aura. Having morphed into a deity, every hair on his head had stood up and turned into a sharp sword to resist the onslaught of god punishing power. His skin turned into the hardest rock in the world as millions of divine swords and divine halberds landed upon it but failed to break open his body.


    When Ye Futian took that step, his body was no longer a mortal body of flesh and blood. It was a body of a deity, a real divine body.


    Unparalleled rays of light erupted from that body, as the divine power of Yin froze those millions of divine swords and halberds instantly. Ye Futian��s body as a deity danced with the divine rod, accompanied by loud rumbling sounds. Heaven and earth roared, and countless attacks exploded and shattered. The sky was filled with the shadows of the rod strikes as these strikes smashed at the four Great Emperors simultaneously.


    The four Great Emperors released their attacks at the same time to defend themselves. The shadows of the rod covered the entire sky, and each strike contained supreme divine power that was enough to smash the void and shatter the firmament.


    At the same time, the divine glory of Shadow/ Solar sprinkled down and covered the boundless space, but it targeted Haotian the Great in particular. Ye Futian was going to deal with one person at a time and get rid of them one by one.


    ��This is���� The cultivators in Haotian City were shocked when they witnessed this battle. An invincible flesh. Not only did Ye Futian��s eyes turn into the sun and the moon, with thunders, spat out of his mouth, his hair had also turned into sharp swords, and his skin turned into stars and rocks�Cwhat kind of monster was this?


    Aside from the cultivators from Haotian City, even the cultivators from the Donghuang Imperial Palace were trembling in their hearts when they saw Ye Futian at this moment.


    Today��s Ye Futian was far too strong as if he was a god descending upon this world. His power was enough to uproot the mountains, with a peerless dominance of someone who could not be defeated.


    Bang! A loud noise came out, and Haotian the Great was blasted into flying out. With a grunt, he could feel his internal organs were shaking. He raised his head to stare at Ye Futian. When those infinite strikes of the rods came down, he felt as if endless stars had fallen, and that corner of the sky came clapping down, containing an unparalleled power. It was a power that even Haotian divine power could not withstand.


    How could such a monster be created?


    With a flicker of his form, he flew higher into the sky. With a thought, the vast world became his world. His figure disappeared as he merged into this world, turned to part of the vast sky, and became one with it.


    An overwhelming pressure descended and landed squarely on Ye Futian. Ye Futian glanced at this corner of the sky with contempt, as the sun and the moon hovered above, and the divine power of Shadow and Solar shrouded this space. Immediately, the space was covered with frost, yet still burning with the sacred flames, followed by the divine thunders, as one attack after another was unleashed continuously.


    The divine rod in Ye Futian��s hand waved again, ready to attack. However, the vast heaven disappeared at this moment, and Haotian the Great retreated into the distance. He didn��t dare to continue his transformation as the vast heaven, as it was only a matter of time before it was going to be smashed by Ye Futian.


    ��Haotian Clan is willing to submit under the jurisdiction of Donghuang Imperial Palace,�� Haotian the Great raised his head and said to Donghuang Diyuan in the sky. He finally admitted defeat!

 Chapter 2801 - Deep Meaning?

    Chapter 2801 Deep Meaning?


    Haotian the Great had compromised and bowed his head, surrendering himself to Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    As soon as this statement was made, it meant that from this moment forward, the Haotian Clan was under the jurisdiction of Donghuang Imperial Palace, giving Donghuang Imperial Palace the right over Haotian Clan and Haotian the Great.


    The cultivators in Haotian City looked at that god-like figure. They thought they could have never predicted that one battle with Ye Futian would result in Haotian the Great submitting to Donghuang Imperial Palace. Haotian the Great was extremely wary of Ye Futian.


    Did this mean that the Great Emperors who had once attacked Ye Futian in his territory were now no longer able to contend with him?


    That legendary young man had defeated the mighty existences from ancient times. Ye Futian frowned slightly. He understood that Donghuang Diyuan wanted to force the four Great Emperors to surrender, but was it enough to stop him?


    He was a little reluctant, even if this was their territory.


    The sky was full of the waving shadows of the rod, as Ye Futian never ceased to attack. He slaughtered in the direction of Haotian the Great, but at this moment, an extremely radiant divine light descended from the sky. A tyrannical storm of divine power overwhelmed the area where he was. In this storm, all the powers of the Great Path were imprisoned, as if there could not be the existence of any other rules power.


    Ye Futian��s power of Shadow/Solar was being obstructed, and the strikes of the rod were becoming slower. He raised his head to look at Donghuang Diyuan, only to see rays of beaming light falling from her. Those rays of light were from the Revelation Divine Power.


    This time, Donghuang Diyuan seemed to have transformed into an empress, stronger than she ever was before. Obviously, she had not squandered all these years either because she had undergone a great transformation.


    Boom! Ye Futian stepped forcefully forward. Even though the Revelation Divine Power


    was extraordinary, it could not definitively limit Ye Futian in any way. So, he continued to move forward, and the attacks of destruction did not stop. When Donghuang Diyuan saw this, she released the Revelation Divine Power to its extreme.


    At the same time, all around Donghuang Diyuan, divine power surged upon the top cultivators from the Divine Prefecture, and they were descending in Ye Futian��s direction.


    ��Ye Futian, my father didn��t kill you because of the past, but it doesn��t mean that you can act with such insolence in the land of the Divine Prefecture!�� Donghuang Diyuan chided him coldly, and her voice resounded throughout the void. When her voice faded, a top cultivator next to her walked out with imperial arms in hand. It was a boundless and massive God Silencing Bell, from which a terrifying divine power permeated. Especially under the urging of this man��s divine power, the might of the imperial arms was incredibly awesome.


    Boom�� Shocking sounds came out, and the God Silencing Bell shot out rounds after rounds of divine light, and each round of divine light turned into a vast divine bell to smash down upon Ye Futian, wanting to bury him.


    Ye Futian raised his head and glanced at them, then the divine power of Yin was unleashed. Shadows of the bells that descended from the void were blocked by ice, making it difficult to continue its forward momentum. Then, the imperial arms descended, carrying the supreme divine might to aim for the kill. Its power covered a vast space, intending to bury Ye Futian once and for all.


    The divine rod swung by Ye Futian slashed upward into the sky above, and the shadows of the rod filled the sky. The clanging sounds were deafening as the rod in Ye Futian��s hand flew out. It grew continuously and became more extraordinary until it blasted inside the God Silencing Bell.


    Clang�� A terrifying sound came out, and an unparalleled storm of destruction erupted from the God Silencing Bell. The imperial arms were repelled and knocked out. Likewise, the divine rod had also returned to Ye Futian��s hands.


    Under joint attacks, Ye Futian��s attack on Haotian the Great was thwarted.


    ��The three of you make a choice. If you don��t want to surrender, Donghuang Imperial Palace will not force you to. Feel free to make your own decisions,�� Donghuang Diyuan said. Her voice rang throughout the void. She was talking to Yuanshi the Great, Wuliang the Great, and Heavenly Emperor Jiang. Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others stared at Ye Futian. The truth was that he could have left when Ye Futian was battling just now. All he needed to do was open a spatial door with his extraordinary strength, and he could have left, but he didn��t.


    Even if he left, what else could he do? He wouldn��t be able to gain a foothold in the Divine Prefecture, and he would be hunted by Ye Futian forever.


    Or to seek refuge in the Human Realm?


    The Human Ancestor meant to buy their loyalty and make them submit to him, but it wasn��t so easy.


    It was said that Donghuang the Great was a peerless figure in this era. He was also the person who cut through the Path before Ye Futian to become an emperor. In ancient times, Donghuang the Great would be a super cultivator who went against the natural order of the world.


    Therefore, he would like to learn something from Donghuang the Great.


    ��I would be willing to enter Donghuang Imperial Palace,�� Heavenly Emperor Jiang said, and his answer was very decisive. The world was unpredictable. There was no friendship in this world, only self-interest. For them, everything had only one purpose, and that was to prove the way again and set foot on the thrones they had held in years


    past.


    Everything could be sacrificed for this purpose.


    How could the other two not understand Heavenly Emperor Jiang��s thinking? Yuanshi the Great was heard saying, ��I have always admired Donghuang the Great, and I have always wanted to request an audience.��


    ��I am willing as well,�� Wuliang the Great said also. The four Great Emperors expressed their positions one after another. They were Great Emperors returning to the Ancient God Clans. They had allied because their goal was the same, so it helped to keep the same position as allies, which would be suitable for them in the end.


    After all, this was not their era anymore, and they should make the best of it for the time being. Everything else could wait when they reached the Imperial Realm.


    Donghuang Diyuan glanced at the ancient emperors below, and her expression was still icy cold. Then her eyes drifted once again to Ye Futian and said, ��You can go. And if you come back again in the Divine Prefecture, it will not be like this time.��


    Ye Futian stared at the Donghuang Diyuan. Even though numerous cultivators were in front of him, he didn��t think he could be defeated. Nowadays, his defense was nearly invincible, and hardly anyone under the Great Emperors could touch him; even these few ancient emperors could not have done so.


    Nevertheless, this was the Divine Prefecture, the territory of Donghuang the Great.


    Since Donghuang Diyuan had arrived, and Donghuang Imperial Palace got itself involved, this meant that there was not much hope for now.


    This time, he was destined not to be able to kill the remaining Great Emperors.


    The sun and the moon disappeared from his eyes, but Ye Futian looked as calm as could be. With a smile, he looked at Donghuang Diyuan and said, ��The princess is even more beautiful after such a long absence. If there is ever an opportunity, I would like to catch up with the princess alone.��


    He turned around and stepped into the void in a single step.


    Donghuang Diyuan��s beautiful eyes stared at Ye Futian��s departing figure, and no one could fathom what she was thinking. The others, however, could not be certain if there were any deep meanings behind Ye Futian��s parting words.


    ��The Vajra Region has been destroyed, and from now on, if there is no order from Donghuang Imperial Palace, please don��t move around at will.�� Donghuang Diyuan cast a final glance at the few men in the area below before leading her people back to the golden passageway.


    Heavenly Emperor Jiang and the others frowned, showing a look of puzzlement; Donghuang the Great did not plan on summoning them?


    What was the meaning of this?


    They thought Donghuang the Great would ask Donghuang Diyuan to take them to Donghuang Imperial Palace!

 Chapter 2802 - Path of the Emperors?

    Chapter 2802 Path of the Emperors?


    After Ye Futian returned to Ye Imperial Palace, he continued cultivating in retreat. He had only managed to destroy the Vajra Region out of the five Ancient God Clans on this outing. For now, he was unable to extinguish the other four Ancient God Clans like he wanted to. However, once he was able to step onto the Path of Emperors, it would only be a matter of time before he got rid of them.


    The evolution of the world inside his body was far from completion. In addition, the elemental powers that he created were also in their most rudimentary form, which meant that his strength had not yet reached its peak. He could combine the elemental powers to create an even stronger rule power, which the outside world called divine power.


    Still, no one disturbed Ye Futian��s cultivation. Everyone in Ye Imperial Palace knew that Ye Futian was at a crucial point at this very moment.


    Soon after, news spread from the Divine Prefecture to the Continent of Ruins and eventually made its way inside Ye Imperial Palace. The news was that Ye Futian had slayed the Great Emperor of the Vajra Region and destroyed the Vajra Region singlehandedly. He had even gone to Haotian Clan for the express purpose of erasing the Haotian Clan��s base. It was only when he battled the four ancient emperors that Donghuang Imperial Palace intervened, and Ye Futian was forced to back off.


    After the news of this battle came out, countless cultivators on God��s Continent were shocked beyond words. Could Ye Futian already have the ability to kill someone like the ancient emperors?


    Although those great emperors had not yet returned to their former glory, they were, after all, great emperors themselves once. Had Ye Futian crossed the divine realm in that battle and broke the shackles? Had he already embarked on the Path of Emperors?


    There was news from the Divine Prefecture that today��s Ye Futian was akin to a Great Emperor himself. Like a deity, his eyes could be turned into the sun and the moon, and his mouth could spit out thunders. One step of his foot was like a mountain that came down for the kill, and his skin was as indestructible as stars and rocks. His physical body had been enlightened and became a veritable divine body. Even the powerful Great Emperors from ancient times could not sack their defenses.


    After the news spread, there were many more exaggerated rumors. It was said that Ye Futian now had three heads and six arms, and he was already on the Path of the Emperors and would soon become an emperor himself.


    The cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace were a little speechless regarding these rumors that began circling, but they were also full of expectations for Ye Futian. He had gone to kill the Great Emperor of the Vajra Region by himself in the Divine Prefecture. Just where in his cultivation had he progressed to now?


    Everyone was looking forward to when Ye Futian would come out of retreat again.


    How far was he from becoming a Great Emperor?


    No one disturbed Ye Futian��s cultivation, and the people in Ye Imperial Palace were also working very hard. None of them wanted to fall too far behind. One after another, more and more cultivators began to emerge.


    However, Ye Futian was unaware of all the changes that took place in the outside world but continued to immerse himself in his cultivation./ please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    In the inner world of his body, it no longer resembled an inner space but looked more like a real world. In addition to the rising and setting of the sun and the moon, there were also mountains, rivers, and lush vegetation.


    There was only one figure in this world, and it was Ye Futian. This was not Ye Futian himself, but the will born out of this world, representing the will of this space.


    He stood high above the sky, looking at the entire world that was constantly in the process of being created.


    ��When the sun and the moon rotate, there are rotations between life and death,�� Ye Futian muttered to himself. Hence, the living things born in this world began to experience the cycle of life and death and gradually developed their own rules of survival, which allowed life to flourish, as well as to wither and die.


    His body flew high in the void and came to a corner of his own world, which was still relatively barren. Ye Futian looked at all this and then looked at the sky above. This one glance had taken a long time, gone through many rotations of the moon and the sun.


    ��The rotation of the sun and the moon, the alternation of life and death, creation and destruction means that everything in the world had two polarities accompany each other,�� Ye Futian secretly said in his heart. As he observed and comprehended this world. After many days, currents of destruction began manifesting in this empty space. A sea appeared in the area below, which contained various storms of destruction to symbolize death and destruction.


    ��Even the flames are more than just one kind of flame; there is Yang, the most aggressive divine solar fire, and there is also the Yin fire,�� Ye Futian said to himself again. He was bringing all of his perceptions of the world to this space to start a creation that would give birth to the rules power of this world and perfect them.


    After a long time, Ye Futian created many elemental rules. He returned to the void, sat cross-legged, and fell into deep meditation.


    If he was creating the world, what was the meaning of the Heavenly Path back then? What did the Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path represent? They were in charge of the world��s order on behalf of the Heavenly Path. Was the power they controlled given by the Heavenly Path as well?


    With a thought, Ye Futian appeared in the area below, leaning on a tree. This towering tree seemed to be morphed by the ancient tree of the world, and it was a part of this world.


    Ye Futian leaned against the tree and looked up into the sky, watching the sun and the moon rising and setting, and the days passed. Here, it seemed that there was no such concept as time.


    The sun and the moon turn into a day. The time I experienced here is the same as the one on the outside. Since this is the world of my own making, does it mean that I can change the movement of time as well? Ye Futian thought. It was an incredibly bold idea.


    Time itself was no more than an arbitrary construct. Did it exist in absolute terms?


    But if one were to try to make the time different from it, perhaps it would still be rather challenging.


    Ye Futian just sat there like that, day after day, watching the alternation between the sun and the moon.


    There was no time limitation in cultivation, and Ye Futian had cultivated to yet another level. Time passed incredibly fast for him, and the outside world was changing every day. There were more and more cultivators who emerged daily.


    And recently, terribly shocking news had been going around, spreading to every corner of the world. People in Ye Imperial Palace had gotten the news as well. At this moment, many of them had gathered together to discuss whether or not to interrupt Ye Futian��s cultivation.


    ��Let the madam decide,�� Lord Chen proposed as he looked at Hua Jieyu, who was coming over this way. It was better to ask Hua Jieyu to decide.


    ��I��ll go tell him,�� Hua Jieyu responded. This is not a trivial matter; it was best to let Ye Futian know.


    ��Mmm,�� everyone nodded. Then Hua Jieyu came to Ye Futian��s place of cultivation and walked not far from him.


    Behind her, the Little Condor had delivered a message to Ye Futian. Suddenly, Ye Futian opened his eyes, looked towards Hua Jieyu, and smiled softly. ��Jieyu.��


    Hua Jieyu walked over next to Ye Futian and sat down, saying, ��A lot has happened in the outside world these past few years. You have been cultivating without interruption, but there is some news not long ago that may cause many people in the imperial palace to want to go out and investigate for themselves.��


    Ye Futian was stunned for a moment, a little surprised. He was not worried about someone eavesdropping on their conversations.


    ��What��s going on?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��It is rumored that in the Heavenly Emperor Realm, the Path of the Emperors had appeared, and the cultivators from everywhere have rushed over to check it out,�� said Hua Jieyu. Ye Futian understood. Did the Path of the Emperors appear?


    If so, it was expected for the cultivators from Ye Imperial Palace to want to go there themselves.


    Heavenly Emperor Realm, a world in decline, was once a prosperous domain in the past. Now, the Path of the Emperors had shown itself!

 Chapter 2803 - Heaven Realm in Decline

    Two people came to Ye Futian��s mind immediately. One was that extremely enchanted genius talent, the heir of the Heavenly Emperor Realm, Ji Wudao, who seized the ruins of the Old Heaven Court and obtained its inheritance. This man was a bewitching existence.


    In addition, there was another person��the unparalleled existence that Supreme Swordlord��said to be the daughter of the emperor, incomparable from past to present. The world would lose much color without her. She, who was the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor, was also the cultivator who commanded the Heaven Realm in later eras.


    Was she still around?


    There were Seven Realms today, but only six emperors were known. Among them, Heaven Realm��s presence was almost unknown. That legendary unparalleled figure seemed to be a forbidden existence with hardly anyone ever mentioning her.


    Was Ji Wudao a disciple of hers?


    More importantly, Ye Futian had a feeling that this person must have occupied a pivotal position in the past and may have been involved in many secrets.


    Very possibly, she was the key to many things.


    ��The Path of the Emperors has materialized. Naturally, I have to go and take a look,�� Ye Futian said. In the times after the collapse of the Heavenly Path, there was no Path of the Emperor to be found. In order to become a Great Emperor, in addition to having unparalleled talent, one also needed some extraordinary chance. However, Ye Futian still had no idea what kind of opportunity would be.


    But now, the Path of the Emperor��s sudden appearance may be part of the puzzle.


    He was not the only one in Ye Imperial Palace, as there were many other cultivators. For example, the West Emperor who had returned, the cultivators from West Imperial Palace, the cultivators from Lost Clan, as well as the many people around him, all of them would be going through that step in the future. They all wanted to go see, and Ye Futian would not miss it either.


    In fact, now that he had transformed, it was easy for the others to fear him, so he should not be out and about. However, there was an agreement between the six emperors, and under the circumstances, the cultivators from the six realms may be present, which meant that all six emperors may also be there for the occasion. As such, his safety was ensured.


    Under the Great Emperor, many desired to kill him, including those returning emperors of the Ancient God Clans. However, with his current cultivation and strength, very few below the grade of the Great Emperor could actually manage to hurt him.


    Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu got up and walked outside with the Little Condor following closely behind. They came to the front of the great hall, and everyone was waiting for them there already. When they saw Ye Futian, everyone bowed and saluted, calling out, ��Palace Lord.��/ please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    They found that Ye Futian��s temperament had changed again. Currently, Ye Futian already possessed a trace of temperament that could only belong to the Great Emperors. This temperament was hard to quantify or describe, but as soon as he stood before them, he seemed to be the only one in this world.


    They knew then that Ye Futian had already embarked on his Path of the Emperors.


    Even those well-acquainted with Ye Futian, such as Lord Chen, had submitted to Ye Futian once upon a time because they valued Ye Futian��s potential and his position as the heir of Ziwei the Great. They may be polite to each other, but their respect was not coming from the heart.


    1


    But it was different now. Everyone in Ye Imperial Palace had changed their attitude towards Ye Futian. This change was not intentional but an invisible progression.


    All of it was because Ye Futian��s strength had reached another level, and in the future, he was destined to become a Great Emperor himself.


    ��Since the Path of the Emperors has appeared, people who had cultivated to the peak of Renhuang and above, prepare to leave if you want to come, and you can go with me,�� Ye Futian said to everyone. In truth, there was no other preparation that was needed. In other words, they had been ready and could leave at any time.


    When Ye Futian saw everyone was looking in his direction, he understood what they were thinking. He stepped forward and stood in front of the main hall, looking at Ye Imperial Palace down below. He said loudly, ��While I am out, I will seal off Ye Imperial Palace after I leave. Everyone will have to work a little harder during this time and focus on cultivating inside Ye Imperial Palace.��


    ��Palace Lord, we understand.��


    ��Palace Lord, go in peace. We will be fine.�� Voices spoke up one after another, responding to reassure Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian wanted to seal off Ye Imperial Palace for its safety, and they understood this very well.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian��s mind turned slightly. Immediately, divine power spread out from him, extending towards Ye Imperial Palace. In just a moment, his rules divine power had enveloped the entire Ye Imperial Palace, leaving just an opening.


    ��Let��s go.�� Ye Futian took a group of cultivators and left. Once they walked out of Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian sealed the opening behind him, and suddenly, the vast Ye Imperial Palace was like a cocoon, shrouded by the divine light and formed a world of its own. It was so indestructible that even the likes of Haotian the Great would be hard-pressed to get through it.


    ��


    Compared with the other six realms, the Heavenly Emperor Realm did not seem to have a strong presence. However, after the great changes in the world, the Heaven Realm had also opened up a space passage, which could be used directly to commute from the Heavenly Emperor Realm to the Original Realm. Cultivators of the Heavenly Emperor Realm would also follow the space passage to come here to cultivate.


    Of course, compared to the land of the six realms, the Heavenly Emperor Realm did not open up many passages. Nonetheless, a few had been uncovered.


    Ye Futian and the others followed a space passageway and came to the Heaven Realm from the Original Realm.


    They were stunned when they arrived in the Heaven Realm. When they looked up into the sky, Ye Futian was quite surprised to find that above them, there was nothing but a chaotic space.


    There was no firmament above the Heaven Realm.


    What happened in the Heaven Realm back then?


    They moved in one direction with incredible speed, traveling in the air. There was no firmament above the Heaven Realm, but there were landmasses on the ground. These continents were full of ancient atmosphere, and many buildings on the continents were buildings from ancient times.


    They encountered many other continents of ruins that had barely any traces of inhabitants as they moved along.


    ��What happened to the Heaven Realm before?�� Ye Futian whispered. Just looking at everything in front of him, he could feel that many years ago, the Heaven Realm must have experienced a terrifying battle for this to occur.


    As far as he knew, the Heaven Realm was once extremely prosperous. In the era of the Heavenly Emperor, the Heaven Realm was once a supreme realm, surpassing all other realms.


    But for what reason had it become so?


    ��Many cultivators in the Heaven Realm have migrated elsewhere. It is said that they have gone to other realms. For example, cultivators in today��s Heaven Realm were said to be the least among the Seven Realms,�� Supreme Swordlord explained. They had seen a few well-to-do continents on their way and saw many cultivators there. However, compared to the prosperity of the mainland in the Divine Prefecture, there was still quite a gap.


    Even in the Devil World and the Dark World, the number of cultivators was far greater than the Heaven Realm.


    However, they didn��t pay much attention to this. Their purpose this time was not to observe the Heaven Realm but to go where the Path of the Emperors had manifested, which was also the ruins of the former Heavenly Palace.


    After they had inquired about the location, they focused on getting to their destination. On the way, they met many other cultivators who were going in the same direction. Many of them were cultivators from the Heavenly Emperor Realm, but many came from the Ruins Continent from all parts of the world.


    The unveiling of the Path of the Emperors was a shocking news to the entire Seven Realms. The cultivators from the Seven Realms who were on the Ruins Continent rushed over after hearing the news!

 Chapter 2804 - Heavenly Palace, Path of the Emperors

    According to legend, the Heaven Realm was passed down through the Deva in ancient times.


    The Heavenly Palace was located at the highest point of the former Heaven Realm, which had many layers.


    Ye Futian and the others came to where the Heavenly Palace was located. The number of cultivators they had encountered on the way gradually increased, and all of them were moving in the same direction.


    As they went all the way up, they came to a place shrouded in clouds and mists. Looking far ahead, there was a boundless and mass Heaven��s Gate, spanning a distance of a hundred miles. The gate was engraved with runes, appearing majestic and grand, as a sacredness permeated from the Heaven��s Gate itself. However, this gate was not intact, as it had suffered some damages, with many visible cracks.


    There was a sky stairwell under the Heaven��s Gate, which was equally boundless and massive. This was the place that must be passed through before anyone could enter the Heavenly Palace.


    The scene in front of him bore some semblance to the Old Heaven Court Relics, and it seemed that they were indeed of the same heritage.


    Ye Futian looked at that massive Heaven��s Gate from a distance and thought it was the most magnificent gate he had ever beheld. Many people stopped here despite themselves to marvel at the gate when they arrived here.


    ��We��re here.�� The cultivators next to Ye Futian also looked at the door with a sense of disbelief in their hearts. The impact they felt was beyond words.


    Heaven��s Gate!


    ��Let��s go in.�� Ye Futian was moving forward in the air and stepped inside the Heaven��s Gate. Aside from that, many cultivators had gone inside the Heaven��s Gate as well in other directions.


    After the crossing of Heaven��s Gate, everything seemed different. There was no heaven on the outside, but inside, it seemed to be an entirely different and independent world.


    According to legend, there were ninety-nine heavens in the Heavenly Palace. The Heavenly Emperor resided in the highest layer of heaven from where he ruled the Heaven Realm. There were countless able cultivators in these ninety-nine heavens who lived here, and each had its own cultivation court.


    This sky stairwell was the only way to access the heavens. However, even the sky stairwell could not reach the last nine heavens any further unless it was with explicit permission from above.


    However, this sky stairwell was not intact either and had been damaged. It had not been repaired to date, and many places were broken.


    ��Is the Sovereign Princess not here?��


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky stairwell and thought to himself, If the Sovereign Princess is still around, how could she have allowed all these cultivators to come inside the Heavenly Palace so unceremoniously?


    Why would the Path of the Emperors appear inside the Heavenly Palace?


    They continued their way up, and their speed was incredible. When they were moving upward into the sky, Ye Futian��s divine consciousness scanned over many areas of the Heavenly Palace. The land of the Heavenly Palace was incredibly vast; even his divine consciousness could only cover part of the area. He saw many cultivation courts and buildings that dated back to ancient times. They were impressive and splendid, and most of them were pure white and extremely clean-looking, but most of them had suffered some damage.


    ��What kind of battle happened in the Heavenly Palace back then?�� Ye Futian��s heart palpitated. Did the battle of the Great Emperors shatter the Heavenly Palace?


    However, he also saw a lot of cultivators at the Heavenly Palace, who must be people from the Heavenly Imperial Palace of today. These people, led by Ji Wudao, kept a low profile in the outside world. But in the battle at the Old Heaven Court, the Heavenly Imperial Palace demonstrated extraordinary combat effectiveness. Ji Wudao, Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, the Four Heavenly Kings, and the Nine Star Lords were notable figures. More importantly, it was still unknown whether more powerful existences were hidden within this Heavenly Palace.


    Ye Futian and the others passed through layers of heaven, and there seemed to be no end to the Heavenly Palace. They continued upward without encountering any obstacles.


    When they got to the ninetieth layer of heaven, they could feel a heavenly might that came from the sky, as the sky stairwell was also coming to an end.


    But their pace did not slow, as they continued moving through the sky, continued making their way upwards, and passing through, layer after layer. If this were in the era of the Heavenly Emperor, anyone who dared to come through that last nine layers of heaven would be automatically executed and punished by heaven.


    In the last nine heavens, Ye Futian saw many examples of ancient architecture which had been repaired and maintained. These buildings and the cultivation courts were filled with powerful aura, as they were the residences of mighty cultivators in the Heaven Realm today.


    But at this time, there was no one around. Everyone must have reached the very top.


    As they continued upward, the heavenly might was becoming stronger as well. When they finally reached the ninety-ninth heaven, a heavenly palace towering high above them. The heavenly might was coming from above the palace, and the aura that came from it was enough to make Ye Futian��s heart beat wildly.


    Not just Ye Futian, but everyone around him felt it as well. An extremely sharp will flashed through their eyes.


    ��Perfect Will.�� Ye Futian fixed his attention on the sky in front of him; it was the most primitive kind of Will.


    There were cultivators from all over the world in this world, and the top figures of the Seven Realms had arrived at different positions. In addition, there were top cultivators from various worlds, including Haotian the Great, whom Ye Futian intended on killing before, as well as other inheritors of ancient emperors from the other worlds.


    All of them had come under this sky.


    At this time, many cultivators had also noticed Ye Futian��s arrival. After all, Ye Futian was way too dazzling an existence today. Although no Great Emperor was backing him, he was, nonetheless, one of the top existences in the known world, a supreme cultivator who had slain the ancient emperor.


    After the news of the battle came out, it sent shockwaves throughout the Seven Realms, but Ye Futian never emerged again after that. He had been cultivating in retreat ever since, until his presence under the heaven today.


    The cultivators from the Heavenly Imperial Palace stood above the Heavenly Palace, and Ji Wudao was among them. His temperament was extraordinary and had changed quite a bit compared to what it was in the past. He glanced at Ye Futian; almost everyone who should be here was here.


    Ye Futian felt these gazes upon him. He glanced in all directions and saw many people were cultivating. There were divine powers that circulated upon those top figures. Today, just after a few years, everyone was improving and transforming.


    Moreover, this firmament may be able to help them in their cultivation.


    Above the firmament, the sky seemed to be nurturing a terrifying aura of the Great Path. From this sky, Ye Futian could sense a familiar aura that he had experienced many times before��an aura possessed only by some divine items. Take Wangshen Watchtower, for example: Wangshen Watchtower was an immensely powerful divine item, but the hands of the Millet Emperor had truly excavated it.


    There was also the divine ruler, which was also of similar aura.


    ��Heavenly Path!��


    Ye Futian��s eyes were extremely sharp, as he felt the aura of the firmament, and his heart was greatly troubled. After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, some divine items had come to the world, which was left by the Heavenly Path. According to legend, Wangshen Watchtower was the gate to the Heavenly Path.


    However, the Heavenly Path had collapsed, so this could not be the Heavenly Path here in its totality.


    Therefore, only one possibility was that this was part of the Heavenly Path.


    In this corner of the sky in the Heavenly Imperial Palace, there was a part of the Heavenly Path; what could it possibly mean?


    Could it be related to the destructive attacks that Heavenly Realm had suffered back then?


    Many secrets may have a direct connection with the Heavenly Imperial Palace. Ye Futian even had a faint suspicion that perhaps his existence had something to do with the Heavenly Imperial Palace.


    ��Path of the Emperors!�� Ye Futian murmured. The era before the collapse of the Heavenly Path was the era of the gods.


    If this was part of the Heavenly Path, then this here was indeed the Path of the Emperors!

 Chapter 2805 - The Little Heavenly Path

    ��Divine Relic!�� came an exclamation from Ye Futian��s side. The person who spoke was the West Emperor. He looked at the sky in front of him, and even as a former ancient emperor, he still couldn��t hide the shock he felt.


    Ye Futian looked at the West Emperor and asked, ��Is there a chance for people to step on the Path of the Emperors and enter the Imperial Realm?��


    ��Yes, there is,�� the West Emperor nodded emphatically. ��If I just woke up, perhaps I would have thought that the Heavenly Path had not yet collapsed and that we were still in that era. Whoever created this seemed to have transformed it into the Heavenly Path.��


    ��It was manmade?�� Ye Futian asked in astonishment.


    ��If it weren��t manmade, would it be the Heavenly Path itself? That would be impossible.�� The West Emperor shook his head. ��This is definitely a miracle.��


    ��In that era, how did cultivators step onto the Path of Emperors?�� Ye Futian asked. He had a former Great Emperor by his side, but he had been too busy with his cultivation in the past few years and had never had a serious conversation with the West Emperor. Perhaps it was because the Great Emperor had used Xi Chiyao��s physical form, so he was not so willing to face the West Emperor.


    Now, at this point, he needed to understand a few things.


    Why would this Divine Relic have the ability to allow others to step on the Path of the Emperors?


    ��The Path generates heaven, earth, and all other matter. It gave birth to the universe and is responsible for its operation.�� The West Emperor looked solemn as he looked up into the sky. He continued, ��That is, everything in the world is born of the Path, and this Path is referring to the Heavenly Path; the universe is operating with the will of the Heavenly Path.��


    ��In the era before the collapse of the Heavenly Path, cultivators cultivate to comprehend the rules of heaven and earth until they realized the order of the Great Path, achieving divine power. Then, they were baptized by the Divine Tribulation, which ushered in transformation, resonating with the Heavenly Path. Once their pursuit of perfecting the divine power is accomplished, it is time for the Path to transform. The cultivators themselves transformed into a kind of Great Path rules under the witness of the Heavenly Path, casting the Body of Way, producing infinite life force and infinite Will. At this realm, it is known as the Realm of the Great Emperor.��


    After the West Emperor finished speaking, he looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��Do you understand what I just said?��


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded. At his level of cultivation, how could he not understand what the West Emperor meant?


    The Realm of the Great Emperor was forged by one��s divine power, and it was used to control the operation of some Great Path order. Those who could do so were symbolic figures, and no ordinary mortals could be in this realm. Therefore, they were known as heavenly gods.


    ��What about those who defy the Heavenly Path?�� Ye Futian asked again.


    ��Those who defy the Heavenly Path are ruthless individuals,�� the West Emperor continued. ��They want to forge their divine powers by cutting off the Path after stepping onto the Path of the Emperors because they were unwilling to bend under the Heavenly Path. Those who conformed to the Heavenly Path are invincible under the emperors even if they have not entered the imperial realm. And most who go against the Heavenly Path will be wiped out. And if they are lucky enough to survive, they will be disabled. They cut down the Path as a way of cultivation to enter a state of selflessness and limitlessness and then forged their Paths. If they were able to achieve it, they are akin to Little Heavenly Paths.��


    After Ye Futian heard it, he understood it in an instant. For example, he had cultivated and created his world. If he could achieve perfection, he was the Little Heavenly Path that he made. In his world, his will was the will of the Heavenly Path.


    He understood just how ambitious those who went against the Heavenly Path were. They were unwilling to live under the Heavenly Path and wanted to create their Micro Heavenly Paths. They knew it was an unnatural act, so eventually, a battle among the gods erupted, causing the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Nonetheless, those who defy heaven and cut down the Path seemed to have paid a heavy price in the end.


    In the battle of the Heavenly Path, the gods perished, but in some sense, they were successful. They had caused the collapse of the Heavenly Path.


    Ye Futian didn��t know what to think of those people. Their Paths were utterly different from his own, and they were far more ruthless. Ye Futian had a feeling that his discovery of his Path was partly due to luck, not a creation in any meaningful sense. It seemed that there was some power guiding him, including the existence of the ancient tree of the world./ please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    ��Divine Tribulation is a tribulation, but it is also a baptism,�� Ye Futian remarked as he looked up above the firmament.


    ��Yes.�� The West Emperor nodded. ��This was the case in the era before the collapse of the Heavenly Path.��


    ��Therefore, if this piece of heaven was transformed by the Heavenly Path, then all subsequent tribulations were the tribulations from the former Heavenly Path. Therefore, it means that the Path of the Emperors had already been cut off,�� the West Emperor said. Finally, Ye Futian understood what cutting off the Path of the Emperors meant.


    The Path to becoming a Great Emperor was subsumed under the Heavenly Path.


    The Heavenly Path was like the mother of all things. It was in charge of the order of the world and the running of the universe. In the era post-Heavenly Path, all the cultivators lost the source of orders and resorted to relying on treasures left over from the ancient times to create perfect Paths, just like in ancient times.


    Or, under the shadows of the Great Emperors, those Great Emperor characters, in some sense, were spokespeople of the Heavenly Path in the human world. Their Paths were perfect, inheriting the order of the Heavenly Path.


    However, even if a perfect Path was created, becoming an emperor was still impossible.


    The Heavenly Path collapsed, and the Path of the Emperors was cut off.


    But now, the Path of the Emperors appeared in front of him.


    Ye Futian suddenly thought of one thing. He had now created a world. If he stepped into the imperial realm, his Path would be the ��MicroHeavenly Path.�� Could this Micro Heavenly Path shelter other cultivators to help them become emperors?


    He remembered that he once used the ancient tree of the world to protect Long Chen and the others in their cultivation, which allowed them to forge perfect Paths. This meant that his idea was entirely possible.


    The so-called ��Micro Heavenly Path�� was a kind of Heavenly Path. However, in his world, if he was strong enough, his Path was stronger than the Heavenly Path itself. In some sense, his would be the Great Heavenly Path.


    Other than Ye Futian, the people around them listened to the conversation between the two. They were all rather curious by what they heard, and their eyes looked toward the sky. This sky was probably also transformed by the will of the Heavenly Path in this corner of the sky.


    At this moment, they had a feeling that becoming a Great Emperor was no longer so out of reach. Perhaps, there was a chance for them to touch it.


    They were not the only ones with those thoughts. The people who came here before them agreed, cultivating in different locations.


    ��There are a lot of strangers.�� Ye Futian turned his attention to other directions. He saw many cultivators that he had never seen before. He had seen a few people who came to the Haotian Clan with Donghuang Diyuan previously, but there were a few others he had never seen before.


    Of course, every world had some casual cultivators, all of which were on the old monster level.


    If the appearance of God��s Continent before was not enough to attract the attention of some old monsters, then the arrival of the Path of the Emperors was enough to draw out all the old monsters who were cultivating in hiding.


    Would the dawn of the age of gods become a distinction in time?


    The six emperors did not show themselves here. Perhaps, they had reached some agreement, or there were other factors.


    Many people looked at Ye Futian, then withdrew their gazes. This space was very quiet, and there was no fighting. But everyone knew that there was no fighting only because now was not the time.


    Some cultivators looked at Donghuang Diyuan to try to gauge her attitude. However, she said nothing, just continued to cultivate quietly.


    Above the Heavenly Palace, Ji Wudao drew his attention back. When he raised his head to look at the sky again, there was no longer any arrogance in his eyes. There was only respect and piety that came from the heart. It was as if that sky above was the manifestation of his beliefs!

 Chapter 2806 - Resonance

    All the cultivators cultivated quietly. Ye Futian and the others also found a place, and then they sat down cross-legged.


    ��Sir, I have one more question,�� Ye Futian said, looking at the West Emperor.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, please,�� replied West Emperor.


    ��Before the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the Divine Tribulation was both a tribulation and a baptism. What happened after the Heavenly Path collapsed?�� Ye Futian asked. ��Who controls the order of the world, and what is tribulation? I had heard that cultivation was an act against heaven, thus disallowed by today��s heaven.��


    Hearing Ye Futian��s words, the West Emperor looked surprised and said, ��After the Path of the Emperors was cut off, those who forged the perfect Path were indeed not tolerated by the order of the world today. As for the order that operates today, it is still a mystery.��


    ��Is it possible that it is the Micro Heavenly Path that someone realized later on?�� Ye Futian thought of their earlier conversation. The West Emperor glanced at him, a little shocked by Ye Futian��s thinking.


    ��In the battle of the Heavenly Path, there were people who cultivated by defying the natural order who wanted to replace the Heavenly Path. Therefore, in some sense, your guess is not unreasonable. I don��t know what happened between heaven and earth, or what took place in the latter days, but the truth should not be too far away,�� the West Emperor said. After the Age of the Gods began, everything was exposed.


    ��Mmm.�� Ye Futian nodded and didn��t continue to press. Thinking of any of this now was meaningless. What he should be doing instead was cultivating.


    Many of the people around him had gone through the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path, and some were even on the verge of Emperor-To-Be level. Once they reached this level, with the help of the Heavenly Path, they would have the opportunity to resonate with the Heavenly Path and be baptize by the Divine Tribulation to embark on the Path of the Emperors.


    Such an opportunity had to be seized, of course.


    Above the Heavenly Palace, there was a group of cultivators heading towards the area below and descending from the ninety-nine heavens. Now, the people who should be here were almost so, and no one should disturb them here, save for those super strong old monsters. Ordinary cultivators would not come up to the ninety-nine heavens.


    In a quiet space, the cultivators from major camps were standing in different locations to cultivate; they were very far away from each other.


    On a gigantic stone pillar in the Heaven Court were cultivators from the Dark World. At this moment, the aura upon one of them was tossing and roaring, as if compelled by a divine power. This was causing a change up above in the firmament.


    ��Huh?�� Many people turned their attention to that cultivator. That cultivator from the Dark World was an old monster-level figure, not a cultivator from the Dark Court. The divine power that surged on his body seemed to indicate something more.


    Many cultivators in Ye Imperial Palace glanced over there, and they knew in their hearts that those more visible cultivators were not top figures there. Presently, a group of old monsters had emerged to show themselves, one after another.


    They may have been cultivating for countless years, but because of the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the Path of the Emperors had been cut off, so they never had a chance. Now, they finally had the opportunity to step onto the Path of the Emperors.


    ��It is probably another ancient emperor.�� Supreme Swordlord fixed his attention there. ��Just like the ones from the Ancient God Clans in the Divine Prefecture, they have endured this for countless years, waiting for such an opportunity. Now that the order of Heaven appeared here, they wanted this chance to return to the peak.��


    The West Emperor cast a glance that way and said, ��Yes, in that era, there were probably a lot of people like me, waiting to come back.��


    ��When the Heavenly Path collapsed, why did it almost wipe out all of the Great Emperors? What happened?�� asked the Supreme Swordlord.


    There was a hint of fear in West Emperor��s eyes; it seemed as if it came from the depths of his memory. It was an extremely dark time, an age of pure madness.


    He didn��t respond, and Supreme Swordlord didn��t ask any more questions; however, he understood that once the opportunity arose, the ancient emperors of the past would return one after another to try to re-enter the Imperial Realm. Whether they could return to their former peak level was still something waiting to be seen.


    ��Concentrate on cultivating. You have reached the peak level of your current realm and created Taishang Swordsmanship. You are only one step away from attracting the Divine Tribulation. Many heirs of the Great Emperors have already cast their own divine power, but their divine power comes from inheritance, not from their own comprehension. So, their divine powers cannot communicate with the order of Heavenly Path. Their realms are not necessarily deeper than yours,�� the West Emperor said to the Supreme Swordlord. Even though the Supreme Swordlord had been cultivating for a long time, in front of someone like the West Emperor, he was still a junior.


    ��Understood.�� Supreme Swordlord nodded, closing his eyes and cultivating as he was before. The realm of near-deity was a very crucial step in that he had forged his own independent Path. Now with the order of Heavenly Path looming, they were just one step away from being baptized by the Heavenly Path.


    But this one step was probably not as easy as it sounded.


    Ye Futian had entered a state of cultivation. He closed his eyes to improve his perception, and his perception reached beyond the firmament. He was comprehending that particular Heavenly Path.


    At this moment, Ye Futian had a very curious feeling. He sensed a familiar aura, which seemed very similar to his own Path. This also seemed to confirm some speculation on his part that his ancient tree of the world might have something to do with the Heavenly Path.


    There may be some connection between the Micro Heavenly Path that he cast and the Heavenly Path, which accounted for the similarities.


    He immersed in this perception, to feel the order of the Heavenly Path that appeared before him.


    Another thought appeared in Ye Futian��s mind��if the Heavenly Path had a consciousness, what about the Heavenly Path in front of him? Did it also have a consciousness?


    If it existed, whose consciousness was it?


    Ye Futian did not perceive the existence of consciousness, but the familiarity allowed him to keenly capture the power of the order in the Heavenly Path. He felt the order of the five elements, the thunder, and the destruction.


    ��Is it because my own Micro Heavenly Path has bred these divine powers that the resonance allowed me to perceive all this?�� Ye Futian wondered secretly. He thought that this must be the reason.


    If so, then would the reverse hold true? If he could feel other divine powers of orders from this Heavenly Path, would he be able to arouse the resonance of the Micro Heavenly Path inside his body, giving birth to a new divine power of order and making it his own?


    He thought this possibility was very likely.


    When he thought of this, Ye Futian entered a state of selfless cultivation. Now his realm was equivalent to having passed through triple Divine Tribulations. After being baptized by the Divine Tribulations, once he hit the level of perfection, he would officially become an emperor.


    It was just that because of the particularities of his own cultivation, he was somewhat different from everyone else. His skills could not be totally quantified. But once his Micro Heavenly Path entered an equivalent complete state, he had a feeling that he would be stronger than the average Great Emperors.


    In regards to cultivation, time passed by very slowly. Everyone was immersed in their own cultivation, not disturbing each other.


    With the passage of time, the resonance between that previous cultivator and the Heavenly Path was becoming stronger, and the will of the Heavenly Path was falling, resonating with his body. Even the sky had undergone some changes, with divine light coming down. A Divine Tribulation was brewing.


    ��Is he ready to step on the Path of the Emperors?�� someone wondered as he stared at the man. If it was the Divine Tribulation, then he would be the next Emperor-To-Be!

 Chapter 2807 - Times Are Different

    The cultivators from the Dark Court looked at that old monster-level existence and saw that his resonance with the Heavenly Path was becoming stronger. The light of order was already descending from the sky, and then a terrifying aura manifested.


    ��The tribulation is coming!��


    Everyone��s eyes sharpened as they looked up and stared at the sky above. At this moment, Ye Futian sensed that in the order of the Heavenly Path, there was a dark, destructive beginning to form. It echoed with the divine power to turn it into the Divine Tribulation.


    ��The times are indeed different!�� Ye Futian was feeling pretty shocked inside. The era before the collapse of the Heavenly Path and the era after the collapse of the Heavenly Path were different. The tribulations that he had experienced and the divine tribulations as experienced by other cultivators intended on killing them.


    But the tribulation of Heavenly Path was meant to be more like a baptism.


    No wonder all the cultivators of today��s world said that the Path of the Emperors was cut off because it had been cut off. The creation of perfect paths required the aid of divine items, and surviving the tribulation was akin to coming under attack from the divine realm itself. Except for those who cultivated by cutting off the path, surviving the divine tribulation meant nothing because no Path of the Emperors was available to them.


    But this firmament made everything possible. This was part of the Heavenly Path.


    Whose will constructed this piece of heaven?! Ye Futian secretly exclaimed in his heart. He opened his eyes and saw the man soar into the sky until he was beyond it. The divine tribulation descended, and it was equally terrifying. The ninety-nine heavens in the Heavenly Imperial Palace were penetrated by the light of divine tribulation, which completely shrouded this corner of the sky.


    ��In that era, what will happen if one fails to survive the tribulation?�� Ye Futian asked the West Emperor. The tribulation of this era could obliterate those who failed; the tribulation was here for the express purpose of destruction.


    ��Failure to survive the tribulation means to never cross that hurdle. One will always stay at that level, unable to progress any further. The Imperial Realm will only be a dream in this lifetime,�� responded the West Emperor. ��But for those who can successfully reach this step, the rate of success is undoubtedly high, and they will likely step forward and become Great Emperors-To-Be.��


    ��Nothing will happen even if they failed at the attempt; just the inability to get past it.�� Ye Futian was greatly shocked by this revelation. The cultivation environment in ancient times was so different that no one would ever be killed by tribulations.


    ��So, there are people who failed to cross the tribulation but tried to cultivate by cutting down the Path?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Smart guy,�� the West Emperor responded. ��Some will gamble that even if they failed, they are already unparalleled under the emperor and have reached the top of the cultivation world, but there is no hope to reach the Imperial Realm. Nevertheless, this still motivated plenty of cultivators to take the risk and use their cultivation as a wager to cultivate by cutting the Path. In case of failure, the best-case scenario is that they lose their cultivation forever, and the worst is that they will be obliterated by the tribulation from the Heavenly Path.��


    ��I heard some elders said that there are those who will cut the Path after becoming the Great Emperor-To-Be?�� Ye Futian looked at the terrifying scene that unfolded above the sky as the divine light of destruction rained down. However, he was unmoved and continued his dialogue with the West Emperor.


    ��Yes, after stepping on the Path of the Emperors, they have a deeper understanding of their realms, and as Great Emperors-To-Be, their chances for success were greater after they cut down the Path. However, such characters were a bit too cold-blooded,�� said the West Emperor.


    ��They are too ruthless.�� Ye Futian couldn��t imagine someone who had already embarked on the Path of the Emperors and was a Great Emperor-To-Be to cut down the Path for any reason.


    This kind of behavior was indeed insane and unimaginable.


    After becoming the Great Emperor-To-Be, how could anyone be so reluctant to stay under the Heavenly Path as to choose to cut off the Path out of anger?


    Who created such a crazy method of cultivation?


    Boom�� The terrifying divine tribulation resounded throughout heaven and earth, piercing the ninety-nine heavens. The divine power of order surged all around Ye Futian, protecting the cultivators within this area from being affected by the divine tribulation.


    ��Almost,�� Ye Futian glanced at the sky above and said./ please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    ��As Great Emperors themselves once, how can they possibly fail? All they needed is just an opportunity,�� the West Emperor continued. ��Even as Great Emperors-To-Be, they are still not able to contend with you.��


    He was highly confident in Ye Futian��s strength.


    Because Ye Futian was also a Great Emperor-To-Be, he was also obviously a Great Emperor-To-Be who cut down the Path.


    ��Do you have this much confidence in my strength?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��You did it before by slaying the Great Emperor of the Vajra Region and crushing four ancient emperors by yourself. At that time, it was very likely that their realms had already been recovered by the Great Emperors-To-Be,�� the West Emperor replied.


    ��Great Emperors-To-Be?�� Ye Futian showed a look of surprise. Because those several existences from the Ancient God Clans were once Great Emperors, their cultivations were unique, different from everyone else��s. Because of that, he couldn��t really clarify their realms or what they were all about.


    ��Yes,�� the West Emperor nodded, ��look at them.��


    Ye Futian turned his attention toward Haotian the Great and several others. He found that they were cultivating in different locations. At this time, they had achieved a particular resonance with the Heavenly Path, which Ye Futian was well aware of.


    ��They are absorbing the power of order within the Heavenly Path. This is what the Great Emperors-To-Be tried to do when they wanted to reach perfection. Like me, they were Great Emperors from the past, so the changes before becoming Great Emperors-To-Be are not that different; that is not the case with you. The few of them were already Great Emperors-To-Be when they first attacked Ye Imperial Palace. However, we have no idea how they did that. We do know that Ye Imperial Palace had no power to fight back at the time,�� the West Emperor explained slowly. ��However, there are some oddities. For example, the differences before and after they became Great Emperors-To-Be were not so great, yet they seem�� not strong enough.��


    The Human Realm! An idea surfaced in Ye Futian��s mind. Previously, the Human Ancestor of the Human Realm must have invited them to cultivate in the Human Realm.


    In the Human Realm, the Path of the Emperors may have been revealed as well.


    ��Is it possible that it might be the Little Heavenly Path?�� Ye Futian asked. ��Those who have achieved Little Heavenly Path must have crossed the realms in the Little Heavenly Path, baptized by the Divine Tribulation, and become Great Emperors-To-Be, but it is different from the real Heavenly Path.��


    ��That is a possibility!�� When the West Emperor heard what Ye Futian said, his eyes sharpened. Ye Futian��s guess was plausible.


    Then, it stood to reason that they hadn��t expected the Path of the Emperors to appear. Otherwise, they might have waited until today instead of being baptized by the divine tribulation in advance.


    If this was the case, they should be making up for the shortcomings by now and let the Heavenly Path baptize them.


    Ye Futian nodded. He understood most of everything now.


    If the others were Great Emperors-To-Be, his strength was more significant than the others. Could it be that the Great Emperor-To-Be who cultivated by cutting down the Path was just a little bit stronger?


    More importantly, he was far from reaching perfection at that time, nor was he close to it even now. He was making progress every moment. It would be another significant transformation if he achieved perfection, from Great Emperor-to-be to become an actual emperor.


    ��He passed!��


    Just as the West Emperor guessed, that old monster-level character from the Dark World had successfully survived the Divine Tribulation. Under the baptism of the Heavenly Path, his body was radiant all over, resonating with the Heavenly Path as one. However, this temperament would be changed to something different in the outside world.


    In the direction of the Dark Court, many cultivators looked at the man with some envy, only to hear Lord Shaman say, ��Congratulations to the elder for stepping on the Path of the Emperors!��


    This was the first cultivator who had stepped over after the appearance of the Path of the Emperors and became a Great Emperor-To-Be. Someone who had already embarked on the true Path of the Emperors!


    The Great Emperor-To-Be was a Great Emperor; it was just a matter of time!

 Chapter 2808 - Great Opportunity

    ��Congratulations, elder!�� Many people in the Dark World bowed and saluted the cultivator.


    The Great Emperor-To-Be, the future Great Emperor!


    After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the Path of the Emperors was cut off. Today, the six emperors ruled the world to maintain orders. No matter how strong the cultivators in attendance today were, they all revered the Great Emperors. And at this very moment, a future Great Emperor had emerged.


    There was some envy and some jealousy, but at the same time, there was respect as well. Before that, even if the other man were an ancient emperor, no one would care about someone who was once an ancient emperor who could not become a Great Emperor; he would never get enough respect. However, the moment he became the Great Emperor-To-Be, everything changed.


    Most people from the Dark World were filled with respect��except for a few people, such as the heirs of the Great Emperors from the other realms, who were a lot less respectful. From their perspective, the appearance of the Path of the Emperors and the dawn of the age of the gods would usher in their paths to become emperors.


    Compared to them, these ancient Great Emperors just took a shortcut. The old gods of the past would indeed be surpassed by the new.


    That cultivator appeared quite indifferent to all this, nodding calmly. His eyes looked up into the sky, and he didn��t seem to care too much about the others�� attitude.


    Everyone who was beneath the Great Emperors were like mere insects. Stepping onto the Path of the Emperors was the only way to become a deity.


    Anyone and anything that was not deity were not worthy of their gaze.


    He was a Great Emperor many years ago, and in this day and age, he would be a Great Emperor again.


    After the Divine Tribulation, divine power circulated him as he continued to comprehend and cultivate, ignoring everyone else. He was just a Great Emperor-To-Be for now. Only when he finally returned to the realm of the Great Emperor could he be completely at ease, having returned in the truest sense.


    The divine power circled him resonated with the Heavenly Path as he was bathing in the divine glory of the Heavenly Path. He concentrated on cultivating, intending to train his body to reach the perfect Great Path. His divine power was endless.


    When everyone saw this, they didn��t bother him. It was different at the level of the Great Emperor; even his temperament had changed.


    Before, some could still communicate with that other man, but now, they were probably no longer on the same level.


    They must also focus on cultivating to fight for an opportunity, so they might also step onto the Path of the Emperors.


    Time continued to pass. Above the sky, black lotuses suddenly appeared. They were pitch-black and profound; their presence darkened the entire sky. Then, many black lotuses appeared in the boundless world above the Heavenly Palace. In each black lotus was a terrifying power of destructive rules.


    ��What?�� Many people revealed curious expressions as they looked up at the black lotus flowers that appeared between heaven and earth, especially the massive black lotus born in the sky. Everyone could feel a terrifying aura of destruction in just a glance.


    As if that black lotus was synonymous with destruction.


    ��A black lotus birthed by the Heavenly Path?�� Many cultivators were shocked to their core. The black lotus was still growing, continuously pressing downwards, as its destructive divine power grew more frightening.


    Buzz! Voices rose into the air, and most of them were cultivators from the Dark World, including Lord Shaman, the Great Shaman of the Dark Court. They showed up not far away from the black lotus and saw wisps of black destructive current circulated inside it. The divine power of rules seemed to have condensed into an entity that would inflict death on whatever it touched.


    This gigantic black lotus spun in the void, and strands of destructive divine power crept towards the surroundings. There was a cultivator who was a little too close. He stretched out his hand boldly as strands of terrifying suction appeared in his palm. Instantly, the suction swallowed the destructive currents into the palm of his hand.


    But in just an instant, his face changed to an expression of extreme fear.


    ��No���� In the next moment, his body turned into smoke and ashes and disappeared into wisps of black smoke, which dissipated. It was as if this man had never existed. In the meantime, his soul and spirit had dispersed and scattered.


    What everyone saw in front of them made their hearts jump, and many involuntarily retreated. There was an extreme wariness and vigilance in their eyes as they focused their attention in front of them.


    There, wisps of black currents were still circulating, sweeping towards the surroundings. However, the currents that emanated from the black lotus could quickly turn a cultivator in the Tribulation Plane to dust.


    ��Get back, all of you,�� Lord Shaman said. Suddenly, many people evacuated from this area, except those top cultivators, who remained around the black lotus.


    ��This is the purest divine power of destruction, formed by the order of destruction under the Heavenly Path,�� an old man from the Dark Court piped up. This was an old man who the world had never before seen. He stared at the black lotus; there was a hint of greed in his eyes.


    This black lotus was a divine item nurtured by the Heavenly Path.


    Upon obtaining it, it was easier to perceive the divine power and stronger powers of the order from the Heavenly Path. Therefore, it made it possible to resonate with the Heavenly Path and step onto the Path of the Emperors.


    Other cultivators had noticed it as well; their eyes fixed on the black lotus. Even if they were not cultivators from the Dark World, a hint of greed flashed through their eyes.


    The divine items bred by the Heavenly Path had always been the treasures that the world coveted since the beginning of times. Who didn��t want to snatch up such an item?


    Many people stared over there, and some were even moving towards it.


    Lord Shaman turned his head as he glanced at the cultivators from everywhere and said, ��This black lotus of destruction was born from darkness, and it is a divine item that belongs to the Dark World. Since this corner of heaven can produce this black lotus, it will inevitably produce other divine items in the future. If you want to fight for this black lotus, do you think you will be able to keep the other items in the future?��


    Lord Shaman��s words made everyone hesitate for a bit as they looked up into the sky.


    Path of the Emperors appeared in the Heavenly Palace as if there was an incarnation of the Heavenly Path. Would there be more divine items like this in the future?


    It was very possible!


    ��If you don��t fight us for this black lotus now, we won��t fight for the other divine items in the future,�� Lord Shaman continued. When he spoke, strands of divine power surged around him, which was beyond terrifying.


    The aura from everyone began to dissipate. It was not entirely because of what Lord Shaman said; it was mainly because the divine power of destruction was not the divine power they had intended to cultivate and comprehend. In other words, the item didn��t mean so much to them. If they risked themselves for of it, the result was not worth it.


    Ye Futian glanced over there, but he didn��t participate in any of it. He merely sat quietly.


    Afterward, he raised his head and looked at the sky again. He was still contemplating the question before��whether or not consciousness existed in this heaven. If there was consciousness, whose consciousness was it?


    The Heavenly Emperor?!


    Why would he want to produce these divine items if it was the Heavenly Emperor? Was it to help the people in the world become enlightened so that they may ascend onto the Path of the Emperors?


    ��I am beginning to believe the prophecies made by the Buddha of Destiny,�� said Ye Futian in a low voice as the people around him nodded in agreement. Supreme Swordlord said, ��I also feel that the era of the gods is coming. The Path of the Emperors seems to have been revealed as some kind of a sign.��


    Ye Futian turned around and glanced at everyone. ��Concentrate on cultivating, and don��t be distracted by everything on the outside. This world may still contain some great opportunities.��


    ��Yes, Palace Lord.�� Everyone nodded. Since Ye Futian said so, maybe he had detected something.


    When the opportunity arises, one must have the strength to seize it!

 Chapter 2809 - The Revival of the Heaven Realm?

    Ye Futian and the others focused on their cultivation while ignoring the happenings in Outer Realms.


    Cultivators from other realms did not fight for the Black Lotus. Yet, the people of the Dark World had internal struggles. Which powerful cultivators did not want this Dark Divine Item for themselves?


    Some of the more powerful cultivators had ended the lives of many weaker ones during the plunder.


    Eventually, the remaining cultivators of Dark World came to a consensus to encircle the Black Lotus for cultivation. They immediately sealed it in an area and began to grasp the Law of Divine Power of Destruction within it. With that, it formed a power balance as everyone was keeping each other in check. So no one would dare to snatch it for themselves.


    The existence of the Black Lotus caused the cultivators of all realms to revere this land. To think that a Divine Item would manifest in this place! Would another show up in other places?


    ��Could it be related to her?�� Supreme Swordlord mumbled. The Sovereign Princess was an unparalleled being after all.


    This place was Heavenly Palace, the dwelling of a Heavenly Emperor. She was once the daughter of a Heavenly Emperor.


    Could the manifestation of the Heavenly Path in this domain be connected to her?


    All the cultivators were focusing on their cultivation as time passed slowly. Most of the powerful cultivators and mighty figures were paving their Path of the Emperors, especially the group of Ancient Emperors. They were lucky to have survived through the era of the Disintegration of the Heavenly Path in various ways. After waiting for countless years, their hope to return to Imperial Realm had finally come through.


    For endless years, numerous ancient cultivators could not reach the last tier, the Path of the Emperors. During this prolonged time, they had been dreaming of the day when they could finally step on the Path of the Emperors. Now that the opportunity presented itself before them, they would never miss out.


    Ye Futian paid no heed to Outer Realm but focused solely on his cultivation. The resonance between him and the sky was gradually becoming stronger. When a Divine Power rained from the above and rested on him, many people turned their eyes to look at him.


    It looks like the previous one was his third Divine Tribulation. The crowds thought to themselves. As a Great Emperor-To-Be, Ye Futian could sense the Law of the Heavenly Path, creating a resonance and even using it to strengthen his body.


    An invisible aura flowed through Ye Futian��s body, creating a connection between the nearby cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace and himself. At that moment, those people could feel the Divine Power that moved around him.


    At once, Supreme Swordlord, Lord Chen, and the others tried their best to sense it. Although some had already gone through the second Divine Tribulation, they still had not been through the most crucial part. So, Ye Futian let them meditate on the most refined Law of the Heavenly Path to help them reach their enlightenment.


    Three years passed in the blink of an eye. All the powerful cultivators focused on their cultivation, but the time frame was very short for them. After all, many of them were ancient cultivators who had been cultivating for more than ten thousand years. So, this period felt like nothing to them.


    All the corners in the Ninety-Nine Heavens were eerily silent. All of a sudden, a terrifying aura manifested above the sky.


    While innumerable people were staring at the sky, some saw a Divine Mountain above their heads. It was emanating a tremendous Divine Power that felt dense. All the cultivators who were cultivating opened their eyes immediately and looked at the Divine Mountain. A significant number of them stopped their cultivation and prepared to plunder it.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    They did not get their hands on the Black Lotus three years ago. So they would not miss the chance again.


    However, the Divine Mountain continued to expand its size and eventually covered the entire sky. It spanned from the above of the firmament and grew downward. The Divine Power released from it caused many to refrain from moving closer to it.


    Boom! The Divine Mountain did not stop growing in size.


    Several ancient cultivators went to the ground beneath the Divine Mountain. A defeating tremor could be heard as it continued to fall from the sky, causing those ancient cultivators to grunt in affliction. Their backs were bent by it as they spat blood from their mouths. With that, they instantly fled from that place.


    Upon seeing that, the remaining cultivators who coveted it did not dare to act impetuously.


    The boundless Divine Mountain descended to the Ninety-Nine Heavens of Heavenly Emperor Realm. The peak of it seemed to stretch all the way to Heaven Beyond Heaven as if it was boundless.


    The cultivators from the lower layer of the heavens could feel its presence following its penetration through the uppermost layer. It went on until it penetrated the Ninety-Nine Heavens. The multitude was trembling when they felt a peerless Divine Power filling the atmosphere.


    ��It��s a Divine Item!�� The people from the Lower Realm were taken aback after sensing the aura of the Divine Mountain. Their paths to the Ninety-Nine Heavens were blocked as they penetrated the entire Heavens and landed there.


    ��This is the second a Divine Item has fallen from the sky!�� The crowds glanced at the Divine Mountain that pierced through the entire Ninety-Nine Heavens and turned to look at the Destructive Black Lotus. Even though they could not take the Divine Item away, they could do their meditation there.


    ��Was the Will of the Heavenly Path destroyed following the Disintegration of the Heavenly Path?�� many onlookers murmured the question silently. Who could hold such great power? Who could personify the Heavenly Path and materialize Divine Items? This feat was something only the Heavenly Path during ancient times could pull off when it was still ruling the world order. Back then, the Eight Legions under the command of the Heavenly Path were supported by it to rule over the world order in its place.


    ��The Heavenly Emperor Realm might replace the Gods�� Continent to become the second hotspot for cultivators from all over the realms,�� someone muttered. To which everyone agreed.


    The existence of the Heavenly Imperial Palace following the Gods�� Continent seemed to be the foreshadowing of the significant change in the world and the beginning of the Age of the Gods.


    All the powerful cultivators headed to the Gods�� Continent would gather at the Heavenly Imperial Palace.


    The cultivators from every realm had been showing up to the Ninety-Nine Heavens for the last few years.


    Ji Wudao and the others were staring at the lower ground from the Heavenly Palace. They were excited for the new age of the Heavenly Emperor Realm.


    The Heaven Realm would restore its past glory and become the prime of the Seven Realms.


    At that time, there was a change in the sky when a Divine Light illuminated a spot.


    That was a top-tier cultivator of Divine Prefecture, who people hardly ever seen him. He had been cultivating solitarily in Veiled Enigma Mountain of Donghuang Imperial Palace. He was once an Ancient Emperor. But at that moment, things were about to change for him as he prepared to prove his path to be a Great Emperor-To-Be.


    ��Damn! There goes the birth of another Great Emperor-To-Be,�� many cultivators remarked quietly.


    The cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace could not keep their cool after seeing the happening. The world had changed so fast over the years that they could no longer keep up with it. The peak of the Renhuang Plane was once the highest tier. But things changed after the discovery of Gods�� Ruins. For that reason, many cultivators grew stronger. With the continuous emergence of the ancient cultivators and Ancient Emperors, the average Tribulation Plane cultivators had become unimpressive.


    The manifestation of the Heavenly Path in Heavenly Emperor Realm, the descension of Divine Item, and the continuous emergence of Great Emperor-To-Be had turned this era into a chaotic one.


    Nevertheless, they knew that the people they had seen and faced were the top-tier cultivators in this world. The Six Great Emperors were just a level above these powerful individuals.


    Turning their eyes on Ye Futian, they saw him cultivating quietly without any distraction. Apart from helping them with their cultivation, he had to meditate on forming his Micro Heavenly Path. Only after he completed its formation could he truly become a Great Emperor.


    The appearance of the Divine Mountain had expedited the occurrence of multiple events in the Heavenly Emperor Realm. They caught the attention of cultivators from the Seven Realms, who headed toward Heaven Realm after hearing about them. Even the cultivators from Gods�� Continent passed through the space passage to Heaven Realm.


    Suddenly, many cultivators would show up in the Ninety-Nine Heavens of Heavenly Emperor Realm every day. It was exactly like what happened when Gods�� Continent first appeared back then.

 Chapter 2810 - The Heavenly Path Was A Chess Game?

    Many cultivators were cultivating on every layer of all ninety-nine heavens in the Heavenly Imperial Palace. They surrounded the gigantic Divine Mountain and cultivated. Its size was so massive that it spanned across the ninety-nine heavens. Countless cultivators could sense the aura of a Great Emperor from the Divine Power that it emanated.


    They did not know that it was the most primordial aura of the Law of the Heavenly Path. Most of them could not grasp the fullness of it with their current cultivation level. But even if they could only gain enlightenment in a small fraction, it could improve their cultivation significantly.


    Only those who had survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path were qualified to grasp the Divine Power completely.


    Numerous people gathered around the Divine Mountain and had their discussions.


    ��I��ve heard that the strongest individuals in the Seven Realms have gathered in the ninety-nine heavens. Can anyone confirm this gossip?�� someone asked.


    ��It��s true. Apart from the Six Great Emperors, all of the strongest people in the Seven Realms have already made it here. One of my seniors told me that our ancestor had informed him that the Heavenly Path manifested above the ninety-nine heavens. It��s a sign of the return of a Great Emperor.��


    ��Heavenly Path?�� A person��s heart skipped a beat and questioned, ��What is the Heavenly Path?��


    ��Have you not heard of the Disintegration of the Heavenly Path during the Age of the Gods?��


    Similar conversations were held everywhere. The cultivators of the Seven Realms began to hear of this once untold secret. The elites had already known about it since the God��s Ruin first appeared.


    However, the change in the Heavenly Imperial Palace caused the secret of the Heavenly Path and some details about the Battle of the Gods to be leaked.


    ��How many of the elites will become the Great Emperor?��


    ��Buddha of Destiny had prophesied the emergence of the Age of the Gods in the Gods�� Ruins Continent. Is the prophecy really coming true?��


    ��If the Buddha of Destiny could look into the future, then the prophecy might become a reality soon. In that case, won��t it mean that Donghuang the Great has less than 30 years left?��


    Some of the crowds�� hearts skipped a beat upon hearing that. They could not imagine that Donghuang the Great, who had united and reigned Divine Prefecture for the last 400 plus years, would soon relinquish his Fate of the Emperor.


    Could a Great Emperor be toppled?


    Two decades was too short of a time. It would pass in the blink of an eye. Could that person be Ye Futian?


    If it were Ye Futian, he would highly likely become a Great Emperor. Otherwise, how else could an era be ended?


    Ye Futian knew nothing about the people of Outer Realms�� speculations. He was focused on his cultivation at that time. There was a silhouette inside his world. It was formed by the Will of his Micro Heavenly Path. His inner world continued to develop under the influence of the Will. Eventually, several Divine Mountains that spanned across the entire realm materialized. The presence of the Domain of Destruction could be felt all around. While he was grasping the power of the Heavenly Path, he was also perfecting his inner world.


    On the outside, the people around him had been improving in their cultivation a lot. Some of them even survived the second Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. Still, no one reached the tier of Half-Deity Plane.


    Nevertheless, he could feel that West Emperor was about to face his Tribulation. The Divine Power surrounded the latter while rains would fall within the vicinity from time to time. The aura of the Heavenly Path above the sky created a resonance with him. As a former Ancient Emperor, his cultivation level was already sufficient. Therefore, when the Path of the Emperors appeared, ancient cultivators like them would not find it hard to become the Great Emperor.


    After all, they were all once the Great Emperors.


    Many powerful cultivators surrounded the Divine Mountain and cultivated. Like the Destructive Black Lotus, this Divine Mountain was also a Divine Item. They could help the cultivators gain enlightenment on the Power of the Law of the Great Path.


    Even so, no one other than the Ancient Emperors successfully broke through the barrier of the cultivation level. It was not something one could easily attain.


    The cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens ignored the changes of the Lower Worlds. Even though people came from different parts of the realms, they paid no heed to any of the crowds. They solely focused on their cultivation.


    As time passed, there were two more Ancient Emperors who went through their Tribulation and entered the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane. After such a long time, they could finally revert to their peak form. Yet, they did not become impatient, but they cultivated in solitude.


    At that point, Great-Emperor-To-Be Plane was no longer invincible in that world. They had to return to the pinnacle of their strength to regain their true self.


    The death of Vajra Realm Great Emperor had taught them a lesson.


    Although they were ancient people, the people of the current time could hold a candle to them. The restriction in the world had cut off the Path of the Emperors from the latter. Or else, they would not be in their current state where Great Emperors were in decline.


    West Emperor was about to face his Divine Tribulation. The fact of it caused the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace to jump for joy. After all, he was one of them. After he survived the Tribulation and became a Great-Emperor-To-Be, the overall strength of Ye Imperial Palace would further increase.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian did not pay much attention to it, seeing that the level he aimed for was already beyond the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane.


    He did not even go to watch West Emperor��s Tribulation. At the end of the day, that body belonged to Xi Chiyao. Every time he thought of her, he felt sorrowful.


    The cultivators of West Imperial Palace had mixed feelings about it. However, the return of a Great Emperor was good news for them. They would have a Great Emperor among their lineup and become an authentic Emperor-Level force. Hence, their lifelong dream would finally come true.


    Three years passed in a flash. That day, an intimidating Divine Power emanated from above the sky. Everyone lifted their heads to look at the sky while their hearts palpitated like mad.


    ��Will another Divine Item manifest itself again?��


    ��Three years. The gap between the appearance of the Destructive Black Lotus and the Divine Mountain is three years. Now, another three years have passed. Could this be a coincidence or a fixed pattern?�� Upon realizing the unique time each of the Divine Item had appeared, they were taken aback.


    An unparalleled Divine Light beamed downward from the sky. It was brimmed with a peerless Divine Power of Space.


    Following that, the onlookers noticed a Divine Door dropped from the sky with Divine Light encircling it. The door seemed to have existed in another dimension. It was packed with the Divine Power of the Law of Space.


    The door continued to descend and stopped above the ninety-nine heavens. The onlooking cultivators�� hearts skipped a beat upon seeing that. Suddenly, a few silhouettes could be seen rushing toward that massive Divine Door. When they stretched their hands to reach the Divine Door, their hands went through it like it was a void.


    ��I couldn��t touch it.��


    ��This must be a Spatial Divine Item.�� A cultivator of Empty Divine Realm could be seen moving forward. The Door of Space seemed to be in front of them. Yet, they could only see and feel it but not touch it.


    ��I��m afraid only those who had gained enlightenment on the purest form of the Divine Spatial Rule Power could touch the Door of Space and get the Divine Item for themselves,�� the Empty Divine Realm��s cultivator said. ��Why do I get the feeling that this Divine Item is prepared for the Empty Divine Realm?��


    Such a casual remark caused the hearts of the crowd to race rapidly. After setting their eyes on the Destructive Black Lotus, they thought, If this Door of Space is prepared for Empty Divine Realm, the Destructive Black Lotus must be prepared for Dark World.


    What about the Divine Mountain?


    ��Could it be that all of these are not a coincidence but the will of man?�� The hearts of the onlookers pounded like a drum as they glanced at the sky.


    If this were a will of man, it would mean that it was the Will of the Heavenly Path?


    Who was the embodiment of the Heavenly Path?


    They all felt that the Heavenly Path was a chess game where all living things were pawns.

 Chapter 2811 - Mighty

    In ancient times, the Eight Legions under the command of the Heavenly Path ruled the order of the world.


    Would the Heavenly Path edify the Eight Legions this time? Was that why Divine Items had descended from the sky?


    Did the Heavenly Path belong to Heavenly Emperor Realm?


    Could it be that the Will of the Heavenly Emperor did not disappear?


    The world was divided into the Seven Realms at that time. If one were to include Original Realm, it would be eight realms in total. In other words, the Heavenly Path might drop seven or even eight Divine Items from the sky. If they were to manifest once every three years, it would take 18 or 21 years.


    The Destructive Black Lotus undoubtedly belonged to Dark World. Likewise, the Door of Space was clearly a gift to Empty Divine Realm. At that time, the cultivators of Empty Divine Realm moved toward the Door of Space and encircled it. Although they could not get hold of it yet, the Divine Power of the Law of Space that it emanated could help them cultivate.


    Nonetheless, some other cultivators went near it anyways. After all, the cultivators of Empty Divine Realm were not the only ones who cultivated in the Way of Space. Many cultivators from different parts of the world were proficient in the Power of the Great Path of Space.


    ��Greetings. Since each realm will have its Divine Item, we, people of Empty Divine Realm, will claim ownership of the Door of Space. Hence, we will not participate in the scramble for other Divine Items,�� said Dugu Wuxie, a cultivator of Empty Divine Realm. He was surrounded by an entourage of powerful cultivators from Empty Mountain.


    Although these Divine Items were compatible with cultivators from certain realms, they could also help people from all parts of the world gain benefits in their cultivation. Hence, they could not conquer more than one Divine Item for themselves. So, they would miss the chance to claim one of them as their own. The cultivators from other realms most likely would not be willing to tussle with each other. After all, Divine Items that were suitable for them might appear later.


    Many cultivators were ready for action, but no one tried to seize it in the end. Just like how they gave up the Destructive Black Lotus, they could do the same by giving away the Door of Space to the Empty Divine Realm. No matter what, they would take one of the Divine Items for themselves.


    However, who had the ownership over the Divine Mountain?


    Cultivators from all over the world surrounded the Divine Mountain in the ninety-nine heavens and cultivated. No one took it for themselves yet.


    Ye Futian��s silhouette remained in his inner world and watched the changes within it while meditating on the Heavenly Path. He had gained much enlightenment in the past six years. He was the first to sense the Divine Power when the Heavenly Path had dropped the Black Lotus, Divine Mountain, and Door of Space.


    The Black Lotus represented the Law of Destruction; the Divine Mountain represented strength and stability; the Door of Space represented the Law of Space.


    The stars surrounded Ye Futian��s inner world. Feeling slightly fluttery, he stretched his hand in the air, trying to catch something. At once, a star flew in his direction rapidly. It gradually became smaller until it was the size of a speck that hovered around his palm.


    ��A flower could contain an entire world; a leaf could be a miniature bodhi tree,�� Ye Futian murmured. There were many continents in the Original Realm, including the Ziwei Segmentum. It was filled with stars that dispersed across the sky.


    ��The evolution of the stars are endless worlds,�� Ye Futian mumbled.


    Every star in the firmament could hold a world.


    After swaying his palm, the tiny star was launched into the air. Immediately after, the entire atmosphere brimmed with innumerable particles that expanded continuously. In the end, all of them turned into stars while frightening noises could be heard. Each of the stars slowly turned into endless worlds. As a result, Ye Futian��s inner world continued to grow in size as if it had just evolved.


    Every world within the stars seemed to transform into his original world where heaven and earth were formed, including the Power of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements. They continued to perfect the worlds within.


    With that, Ye Futian continued with his cultivation. A complete Law of the Heavenly Path should be all-encompassing and packed with countless Divine Power of the Law. Only then could the world of his Heavenly Path continue to evolve from Micro Heavenly Path into the complete Macro Heavenly Path.


    If he could finish this step, his world would be considered perfect. Then, he could permit the cultivators of the world to meditate inside his world.


    The meditation and evolution were extremely time-consuming, causing Ye Futian to be lost track of time. Another three years had passed without his realization.


    At that time, Ye Futian was muttering something inside his world.


    One turned into two; two split into three; three spawned all things.


    He gained enlightenment on infinity.


    Infinity was boundless and immeasurable.


    There was a change in the sky on the outside. Following the emanation of a petrifying and sharp aura, the Heavenly Path materialized a Divine Sword that descended from the firmament. It seemed to have control over the rules in the world. Falling from the sky, it traversed the ether and the land. It pierced through the entire Ninety-Nine Heavens like the Divine Mountain.


    Sensing the spine-chilling Divine Power the Divine Sword released, all the cultivators raised avaricious smirks on their faces. Many influential individuals moved toward the Divine Sword to use it for their cultivation.


    The cultivators of the Human Realm were the fastest. In no time, they encircled and guarded the skies of the Divine Sword. Next, Di Hao announced loudly, ��We, the cultivators of Human Realm, will claim ownership of this sword!��


    Their speculation might have turned out to be true. The Heavenly Path would give birth to a Divine Item once every three years.


    The crowds coveted the Divine Sword. After all, a myriad of cultivators in the world had been cultivating the Way of the Sword.


    For instance, West Emperor, Supreme Swordlord, Ye Wuchen, and the other people of the Ye Imperial Palace were cultivators of the Way of the Sword.


    Therefore, the thought of getting close to the Divine Sword for cultivation ran through their minds when they caught sight of it.


    At that moment, Ye Futian opened his eyes as he knew the people��s thinking. All those years of letting them meditate on the Power of the Law of the Heavenly Path improved their cultivation significantly. If they could grasp the purest form of the Power of the Law, it could benefit them considerably in their cultivation.


    ��I do not agree!�� Ye Futian piped up. Upon hearing that, a concourse of onlookers turned to look at him. The cultivators of the Human Realm were scowling at him. Di Hao��s glare was especially disdainful.


    ��The Divine Items that had descended from the sky do not belong to anyone! Every cultivator has the right to do their cultivation with them!�� Ye Futian warned with a stern voice that no one would dare to question.


    The words that came out of Ye Futian��s mouth were undoubtedly nonsensical. Although everyone understood his words, it all came down to their strength at the end of the day. The reason the Emperor-level forces thought they could claim ownership over those items was that they had the strength to back them up. After all, each of them represented the Seven Realms.


    Yet, as Ye Futian was the one who said that, it could not be considered nonsense.


    At that point, he already had the power to turn the tide of the situation according to his will.


    ��I don��t care how you people allocate the Divine Items between yourselves, but the cultivators from Ye Imperial Palace shall cultivate at each place whenever they want! No one shall stop them from doing so!�� Ye Futian declared. Most of the people��s pupils shrunk when they heard it. The strongest cultivators in the Seven Realms were gathered in that place. Yet, Ye Futian had the guts to utter such domineering words out of his mouth.


    A question was aroused in the minds of the onlookers as they recalled the event of him finishing off Vajra Realm Great Emperor: what is his current cultivation level?


    ��Go!�� Ye Futian ordered the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace around him, disregarding all the people of the Seven Realms.

 Chapter 2812 - Old God and New Emperor

    The West Emperor, Supreme Swordlord, and the others moved forward. Both the West Emperor and Supreme Swordlord cultivated in the Way of the Sword. So, the two of them walked toward the Divine Sword.


    Following that, Ye Wuchen, Gu Dongliu, and the like approached the Divine Sword.


    On the other hand, Fang Cun and the group headed in the Door of Space��s direction, while Ling Long led many people toward the Divine Mountain.


    The cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace acted according to Ye Futian��s instruction. All of them wanted divine items related to their cultivation.


    To think that they would dare to do his bidding without hesitation just went to display their absolute trust toward him.


    Because of their deep faith in Ye Futian, they did what he had asked without delay��meditating with each divine item they deemed fit.


    On the vast land of the ninety-nine heavens stood many cultivators from every part of the world, who were glaring at the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace.


    Would anyone dare to lay a finger on them?


    If someone were to assault Ye Futian��s subordinates to kill him, would he not be worried that they might be killed?


    Or did he believe that no one dared to do so?


    However, Ye Futian was the one who ended the life of Vajra Realm Great Emperor. Those who wished to lay a finger on the people of Ye Imperial Palace might need to reconsider carefully. Still, no one would dare risk killing one of them.


    At that moment, several cultivators from the direction of the Human Realm��s crowd moved forward. All of them emanated blood-curdling Divine Power from within their bodies, giving off an aura that could hold a candle to the likes of Vajra Realm Great Emperor and the Ancient Emperors of the Ancient God Clan.


    ��So they��ve already survived the third Divine Tribulation and reached the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane?�� Ye Futian remarked with a frown. He did not care much about the Human Realm previously. But it seemed like the powerful cultivators there were more than he had imagined.


    ��Human Ancestor must have formed his Micro Heavenly Path,�� Ye Futian murmured to himself. Back then, the Human Realm extended an invitation to him, asking him to be absorbed into their side. In retrospect, they must have been trying to win over the powerful individuals from different parts of the world since the Human Ancestor had secured a Path of the Emperors.


    The Ancient Emperors of Ancient God Clan from Vajra Realm walked on the Path of the Emperors after they headed to the Human Realm.


    Nevertheless, Ye Futian did not care much about it. He could kill Vajra Realm Great Emperor and held his ground against four Great Emperors-To-Be back then. But his strength had already increased dramatically since then as his inner world continued to evolve.


    His strength would be increased each time he evolved. So, his current might was equal to that of a Great Emperor-To-Be. At the end of his evolution, he would become a true Great Emperor.


    Noticing Ye Futian��s gaze, the cultivators from Human Realm surged their Divine Power like the Gods in ancient times. They were all Ancient Emperors themselves. The aura they emanated and their supercilious air were matchless.


    One of them took a step forward. His Divine Power suppressed the location of Ye Futian from a far distance. However, he did not lay a finger on the people headed toward the Divine Sword. If they could not defeat Ye Futian, they were essentially signing their death warrant.


    If Ye Futian were a pushover, the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace would not survive until that day.


    An intimidating Authority of Heaven filled the entire atmosphere of the ninety-nine heavens. All the cultivators who stood between them retreated from the spot immediately, leaving the sight of a boundless land. It was as if they were the only two people who existed there.


    ��Great Emperors-To-Be. Two of them?�� many cultivators muttered while glancing at the Ancient Emperor from the Human Realm and Ye Futian.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    Back then, they had only heard about the story of Ye Futian killing Vajra Realm Great Emperor and slaying Haotian the Great. Would they be able to witness the battle of Ancient Emperor this time?


    Boom! A loud rumble could be heard. The Will of Devastation filled up the atmosphere. Simultaneously, a purple Light of Destruction was generated between the Ancient Emperor and Ye Futian.


    ��A Thunder Attribute Divine Power,�� Ye Futian mumbled after sensing the power. Innumerable light particles formed rays of purple Light of Destruction. Every particle was brimmed with peerless destructive power.


    This Ancient Emperor must have gained enlightenment on the purest form of the Way of Thunder Source and assimilated it with his own Divine Power.


    Ye Futian could sense immense destructive power within each particle of the rays of Divine Light. Imagine every particle that contained Jiutian Divine Thunder. How terrifying would the explosive force be?


    One of them could easily penetrate the body of a powerful cultivator and disintegrate it completely. However, when the Divine Power touched Ye Futian, the Divine Light could not even pierce through his body��s defense.


    Clang! Clang! Shrill noises could be heard when an apocalyptic purple Divine Light lit up the atmosphere while covering Ye Futian��s body. The fabric of space over there was nearly torn by the Divine Power of Destruction. Yet, he stood in the middle of it without moving an inch.


    His body was no longer just flesh and blood. It had transformed into the Great Path.


    Cultivators on the sidelines could tell how petrifying the Divine Power of the Ancient Tianshen of the Human Realm was. Their blood ran cold even though that power was not directed at them. The destructive light penetrated the land beneath Ye Futian��s feet and traversed the ninety-nine heavens did not improve the situation. Some unfortunate people were instantly reduced to ashes by the light beam. None of them even had the time to react.


    The Divine Power that penetrated the ninety-nine heavens caught the attention of a myriad of crowds. They were aghast at the sight of it. At that time, countless powerful cultivators gathered in that realm and occupied every layer. The onlookers witnessed many people incinerated by the Divine Light beamed from above.


    Was it the battle of the Gods?


    It��s Ye Futian.�� Someone looked past the layers of space to the source of the beam of Divine Light and saw Ye Futian, who stood still at the middle of the attack of the Divine Power, not making a sound.


    ��Old Gods,�� Ye Futian piped up, ��this is no longer your era!��


    He spoke in an indifferent tone. Yet, his voice traveled to the ears of the crowds in the ninety-nine heavens. They were taken aback by his remark, by which he called the Ancient Emperors ��Old Gods,�� and that this was no longer their era. In other words, he was saying they were beings out of time.


    Boom! The Destructive Divine Light became increasingly fearsome. In a flash, the man held a long spear brimming with Divine Power in his hand. The sight of the Destructive Divine Light illuminated the whole atmosphere was terrifying to behold.


    Shooting Ye Futian a glare, he launched the spear downward, and it broke through the void while the Destructive Divine Light lit up the sky.


    Nonetheless, Ye Futian��s reaction speed was exceedingly fast. He was so nimble that the onlookers could not catch up to him. His motions were faster than the speed of thoughts.


    Before anyone could react, they noticed Ye Futian raise his hand high and point toward the long spear.


    A seemingly simple pointing motion caused the entire atmosphere to tremble. Then, Divine Light could be seen firing at the other party��s Divine Light, putting out the latter upon impact and launching toward the destructive spear.


    Bang! Following a loud bang, the massive spear broke into pieces. The powerful attack passed through the destroyed spear and hit the Divine Body of the Ancient Emperor.


    The Ancient Emperor could hear a deep groan as he felt like his Divine Frame was about to shatter. In the next moment, he spat blood out of his mouth.


    The sight of it caused the hearts of the onlookers in the ninety-nine heavens to pound like crazy. They were looking at the happening above the sky intensely.


    A flick of his finger could spill the blood of a God.


    Just how powerful had Ye Futian become?


    He must have reached the tier of Great Emperor-To-Be!


    At that time, they recounted Ye Futian calling the Ancient Emperor ��Old God�� earlier. In other words, he was saying that the era of the ancient times�� Heavenly Path had already passed. Even if the Old Gods returned, it was no longer their time to shine.


    Would Ye Futian and his crazy powerful bunch of cultivators kick start a brand new epoch?

 Chapter 2813 - Ye Futians Thought

    Many Human Realm cultivators turned their eyes to the injured Ancient Tianshen. They were wondering what kind of power was stored within the flick of Ye Futian��s finger.


    ��What kind of Divine Power was that?�� someone asked through telepathy. They were taken aback by the explosive force of the flick of Ye Futian��s finger. They knew the strength of their comrade. Yet, he could not handle the attack.


    ��I��m not sure. The Divine Power within the flick of his finger was substantial and profound, like the Divine Mountain. Some part of it felt like the Divine Power of the Stars. He must have packed the Divine Power of the Stars into that flick,�� the Ancient Tianshen answered, much to the other cultivators�� surprise.


    ��As fellow Great Emperors-To-Be, your cultivation level should technically be the same, even if he were a Path Slayer. We��ve met a handful of the Divine Power of the Stars�� users before. By right, you should have been able to destroy it with your Divine Power. Even if you could not shatter it, you should have ended up like that,�� a person remarked telepathically in confusion.


    Every cultivator in this world gained their Divine Power through enlightenment. But, there were consistent patterns. Many similar abilities could be categorized as a type of Divine Power. The Divine Power of the Stars was one of them. So, it was not a rare ability.


    ��Unless it was the ultimate form of the Divine Power of the Stars,�� someone commented. The pupils of the Human Realm Cultivators shrunk after hearing that.


    The final form of the Divine Power of the Stars�� evolution was the Divine Power of the World.


    If Ye Futian gained the Divine Power of the World through his meditation, his strength among the Great Emperors would be top tier after reaching that plane of cultivation.


    There were ranks between Divine Powers.


    ��We should focus on our cultivation so that we would reach the perfection plane the soonest possible,�� one of them said. Everyone nodded in agreement. To prevent the problems from getting out of hand, they continued with their cultivation. Once they perfected their Great Path, they would become a bona fide Great Emperor. If they could reach that tier before Ye Futian, they could wipe the floor with him even if he gained the Divine Power of the World.


    With that, the cultivators of Human Realm acquiesced that the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace would cultivate around the area of the Divine Sword and gain enlightenment on the Divine Power within it.


    Likewise, no one stopped the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace from entering the other areas of the Divine Items. Although the people of Empty Divine Realm felt a little dissatisfied, they were not overly opposing as they both had common enemies. The cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace who were proficient in the Power of the Great Path of Space got near to the Divine Door of Space and meditated on the Will of the Great Path of the Law of Space.


    At that time, the cultivators around the world thought, Ye Imperial Palace was the only force without a Great Emperor. Yet, its cultivators dare occupy the cultivation resources of all the other forces. This is the only thing none of the other Emperor-level forces can pull off.


    All things considered, it was all due to Ye Futian��s might. As a person who became a Great Emperor-To-Be, no one could hold a candle to him apart from the Six Great Emperors. Although all the strongest individuals in the world, including many Ancient Emperor cultivators, were gathered at that place, only a handful of them could hold their own in a battle with him, except if there were extremely powerful cultivators lurking in the dark.


    Countless cultivators on the ground of the Ninety-Nine Heavens saw the might of the flicker and were stunned by it. Just how powerful had Ye Futian become?


    Back then, the five Great Emperors of the five Ancient God Clans purged countless cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace. At that time, Ye Futian narrowly escaped death. But who would��ve thought that the incident would be the cause of his invincibility currently? If the five Ancient Emperors could foresee this outcome, they would have used other methods to finish him off. They would not have looked at him condescendingly and given him time to take a break and eventually survived the third tribulation.


    Would they finally regret their actions back then?


    The world cultivation once revered the Demigod List. But Near-Deity Cultivators were no longer considered influential in the current world. The discovery of the Ruins of the Gods caused the birth of countless Near-Deity Cultivators. The Great Emperors of ancient times continuously showed up around as well.


    At that point, people must be focused on the Great Emperor-To-Be List and perhaps the Great Emperor List shortly.


    Everyone had the hunch that the prophecy of Buddha of Destiny would come true. The Age of the Gods would take place in no time. The time when the Ruins of the Gods appeared was the catalyst. It was a historic moment.


    ��Will the strength of Ye Futian threaten Donghuang the Great?�� Some of the crowd recounted the remaining duration of Donghuang the Great��s Fate of the Emperor, which only had around 20 years left. Everyone believed that the Age of the Gods would take place.


    But even if Ye Futian became a Great Emperor, could he end Donghuang the Great��s Fate of the Emperor?


    Donghuang the Great had been a Great Emperor for almost 500 years. This talented genius was already an extremely powerful cultivator back then. No one knew the extent of his current strength.


    Many thoughts ran through the minds of the cultivators of Divine Prefecture. Most of them were glaring at Ye Futian hostile looks while scowling at the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace in displeasure.


    A significant number of Divine Prefecture��s cultivators were meditating around the Divine Mountain to gain enlightenment on its power. Donghuang Diyuan was there as well.


    ��How arrogant of him to behave like that when he is just a Great Emperor-To-Be. Did he forget that the existence of the Six Great Emperors?�� someone criticized. The owner of the voice was Du You. He was a powerful Near-Deity Cultivator at that time. As the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, his talent was extraordinary.


    Even though he had reached Near-Deity Plane, he was still no match for Ye Futian.


    ��Things would get ugly if you push your luck too much. He hasn��t even become a Great Emperor. Did he think that he could already stand at the pinnacle of the cultivation world?�� a person from Divine Prefecture retorted. Although they could not handle Ye Futian currently, they did not like his arrogance.


    He was still alive because the Six Great Emperors did not lay a finger on him.


    Ye Futian turned his eyes on Du You, who was talking. With a thought, his and the other people��s faces turned pale, and they immediately fell from the sky as an invisible Divine Power pressed them down. Although they unleashed the Aura of the Great Path from their bodies, they could not stop themselves from descending. Beads of sweat broke out on their foreheads while they plummeted downward.


    ��At the very least, I don��t dare to talk big in front of the Six Great Emperors. You two are more arrogant than I am,�� Ye Futian retorted. At once, both of them felt a quiver in their bodies. Then, they grunted as the color drained from their faces.


    All the cultivators understood Ye Futian��s sarcasm toward the two of them. The difference between their strength and the former was like the gap of the man��s might and the Six Great Emperors. Therefore, Du You and the other person were running their mouths before him was pretty ridiculous.


    ��Zip your lips and focus on your cultivation first before you come and talk to me!�� Ye Futian remarked. With that, he ignored the rest of them and closed his eyes to continue his meditation.


    He knew better than anyone else about his current circumstance. If he took a step forward, he would achieve greater heights. But if he fell back, things might turn ugly for him. So it all came down to the Six Great Emperors�� attitude.


    Devil World, Empty Divine Realm, and Dark World had the intention to help him fight Donghuang the Great. Meanwhile, the Human Ancestor and the Lord of All Buddhas�� thoughts remained unknown. The Six Great Emperors�� attitude would decide his fate.


    Thus, he would not leave Heavenly Emperor Realm if he did not reach the Great Emperor Plane this time. Since the Heavenly Path manifested in this realm, he might as well stay here and meditate on it with his subordinates. His current focus was to perfect his Micro Heavenly Path. So that when he faced Donghuang the Great again, he could stand a chance in the battle with the latter.


    At that moment, he was uncertain about the magnitude of the Six Great Emperors�� power. He could only gauge their strength after becoming a Great Emperor and fighting them.


    Should he become a Great Emperor through Path Slaying Cultivation, his strength would be comparable to that of Donghuang the Great.

 Chapter 2814 - Divine Battleaxe

    Even though the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were furious after hearing Ye Futian��s remarks, they remained calm.


    After all, strength was everything in this world. Ye Futian could suppress them just with his thoughts alone, and they could not even budge an inch. So, they were not qualified to challenge him.


    With that, they continued their meditation to improve their cultivation level. Only after reaching the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane could they stand a chance to regain their dignity.


    Donghuang Diyuan turned to look at Ye Futian, still silent. The Great Emperor-To-Be cultivators behind her were eager for a battle with Ye Futian to see how powerful the latter was��the one who reached their level through Path Slaying Cultivation.


    ��The manifestation of the Heavenly Path will bring about the Age of the Gods. Never had I ever expected to see the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture remain snobbish in the face of the changing of the world,�� a cultivator of Dark Court commented. ��Within this Heavenly Path, a Great Emperor equal in strength and status with the current Six Great Emperors shall be born.��


    The remark indicated that Ye Futian would be equal to the Six Great Emperors if he became a Great Emperor within this Heavenly Path. In other words, he would not pale in comparison to Donghuang the Great of the Divine Prefecture. When that happened, the cultivators under Donghuang the Great��s umbrella would have no right to converse with him.


    While this comment might sound like a compliment that Ye Futian would become a Great Emperor, it had a slight hint of something sinister. It could also remind Ye Futian and Donghuang Imperial Palace people that the former could become a Great Emperor here.


    Ye Futian remained indifferent. Still, he could read the thoughts of Dark World��s cultivators. Although he had connections with the people of the Dark Court, he knew for sure that the others were siding with him for their benefit, apart from Qingyao. They stood on the same side because they had a common enemy. But each of them had their own agenda.


    Both forces of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm must be in a dilemma. On one side, they wanted Ye Futian to deal with Donghuang Imperial Palace. Yet, he would be difficult for them to control if he became too powerful. But at that point, none of them could hold a candle to him.


    After hearing those words, many cultivators of Donghuang Imperial Palace furrowed their brows. Would a Great Emperor be born within this Heavenly Path?


    What would happen if Ye Futian continued his cultivation here and eventually reached the Great Emperor Plane?


    Such an outcome was not easy for them to swallow.


    Countless people lifted their heads and gazed at the sky in contemplation. Although they were unwilling to see it happen, they could do nothing to stop it from playing out.


    Should they lay their fingers on Ye Futian?


    But they knew they could not do that.


    Just a little while ago, a few cultivators of the Human Realm had already tried it.


    Ye Futian paid no heed to all the things that happened and focused solely on his cultivation. As long as he was present, the safety of Ye Imperial Palace��s cultivators was guaranteed. They could enter the areas of every Divine Item for their cultivation.


    Meanwhile, he continued to meditate on his Micro Heavenly Path. The most important thing at the moment was for him to perfect his Micro Heavenly Path.


    The world inside Ye Futian had developed beyond the standard of a normal world. It had become a universe with endless realms and worlds. All the worlds inside the universe were slowly perfecting themselves. Simultaneously, his Micro Heavenly Path governed all the laws and orders of the universe.


    At that time, Ye Futian suddenly recalled the World of Buddhism. That world was situated on top of the Bodhi Tree. And the tree must be the Foundation of the Great Path of the World of Buddhism.


    As the thought crossed his mind, he wondered if The Buddha had already perfected his Micro Heavenly Path.


    Buddhism was a class of its own. So the idea was not too far-fetched. If one proved their path through Bodhi, they could create a Western Heaven World of Buddhism.


    Once he completed his Micro Heavenly Path and reached the Great Emperor Plane, the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace and Ziwei Segmentum could enter his world for meditation. In a nutshell, he would be the embodiment of the Heavenly Path and the world.


    It could all happen with a thought.


    Ye Futian suddenly appeared in the boundless world. With a thought, a chaotic domain manifested within the world and sealed it from the outside. In some places, dimensional turbulence brimmed with Spacetime Ripping Path began to show up.


    Most of the Law of Great Paths had many usages. The Law of the Great Path of Space was one of them. Ye Futian was trying to perfect the Law of Space of his Micro Heavenly Path at that time.


    As time passed, the cultivators outside were slowly improving and transforming while Ye Futian continued his cultivation. Many Ancient Emperor Cultivators showed up one after another continuously. They went through the Divine Tribulation and reached the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane. It was a path that they had once gone through but had to redo.


    Furthermore, they were taken aback by the similarities between the current Heavenly Path and ancient times. They were wondering if this was the rebirth of the ancient Heavenly Path.


    Could it be that Heavenly Imperial Palace collected and kept a small part of the Heavenly Path after its collapse?


    ��It��s about time.�� At that moment, the crowd looked up at the sky and anticipated the event that was about to happen.


    The end of the three-year gap was already around the corner. Three years ago, a Divine Sword had descended from the sky. What would the following Divine Item be this time?


    Countless people were waiting in anticipation. Apart from them, a myriad of people on the ground beneath the ninety-nine heavens was waiting for the manifestation of the next Divine Item as well.


    Ever since the Divine Items penetrated the ninety-nine heavens, they brought forth fortune and favor for everyone. They had helped many people in their cultivation.


    Their only hope was that the next Divine Item would not be monopolized by one of the forces.


    If the Heavenly Path had a will of its own, which of the remaining realms would it unleash the Divine Item for? Many people speculated in their minds. Could it be the Devil World, the Divine Prefecture, or the Heavenly Realm?


    Was the Divine Sword prepared for Human Realm?


    No one knew the will of the Heavenly Path.


    As it went on, an extraordinary aura emanated from the sky above. A terrifying Dark Divine Light beamed as the crowds raised their heads to glance at the firmament. All of them could sense the might of the Authority of Heaven.


    Right then, a black Divine Item appeared before the eyes of the crowds. It was packed with a peerless Will of Darkness while it slowly solidified.


    ��It��s a Divine Battleaxe!�� someone exclaimed as the black Divine Item showed up. A gigantic Divine Battleaxe descended from the sky while unleashing a domineering and sharp aura. Immediately, the people beneath the Divine Battleaxe retreated from the spot.


    The spine-chilling aura caused many cultivators to open their eyes and stare at the massive black Divine Battleaxe that split open the ninety-nine heavens and penetrated through it.


    Even Ye Futian opened his eyes after sensing the aura of the Divine Item. His pupils shrunk as he peered at the black Divine Battleaxe and thought, This one must be prepared for the Devil World.


    Their speculation could very well turn out to be true. Could it be that the Heavenly Path wished to gift each realm a Divine Item?


    Should that be the case, what was the purpose of the Heavenly Path then?


    Did the Heavenly Path intend to govern the rule and order of this world?


    The remnants of Devil Imperial Palace were staring at the black Divine Battleaxe as if it was meant for them.

 Chapter 2815 - The Battle of Great Emperors-To-Be

    Chapter 2815: The Battle of Great Emperors-To-Be


    ��What kind of Power of the Law of the Heavenly Path is this?�� many cultivators murmured as they stared at the scary black battleaxe.


    ��According to ancient legends, the world was chaotic before the manifestation of the Heavenly Path. Within the World of Chaos, the Will of the Heavenly Path was born. Right then, a battleaxe had separated the sky from the earth. And that was the Divine Power of the Law of Creation in ancient times. Could this Divine Battleaxe be manifested from the Divine Power of Creation?�� one of the Ancient Emperor mumbled as he glanced at the black battleaxe in stupefaction.


    All the manifested Divine Items brimmed with extraordinary Divine Power of the Heavenly Path were terrifying. The Divine Sword and the Door of Space were not common objects either.


    To think that the black Divine Battleaxe would have such an exceptional backstory!


    If this was indeed the Divine Power of the Law of Creation, just how powerful would it be if one were to master it?


    ��What is the origin of this Heavenly Path?�� The crowd was taken aback. Their hearts were full of questions no one knew the answers to. It was as if this Heavenly Path was from ancient times.


    However, the Collapse of the Heavenly Path back then was a solid fact. The present Ancient Emperors were witnesses to the event.


    Therefore, no one could explain the origin of this Heavenly Path or who controlled it, including questions like why would it give each realm a Divine Item?


    The Divine Item of Devil World was the almighty Divine Battleaxe of Creation.


    If the people of the Devil World got their hands on it, how big of a threat would the Devil Imperial Palace become?


    The Demonic Lord back then was one of those who had assaulted the Heavenly Path. Hence, no one could understand the happening before their very eyes.


    Although they could not comprehend the situation, it did not prevent them from moving toward the Divine Battleaxe to meditate on the Divine Power of the Law within it.


    If it were the genuine Divine Power of Creation from the ancient Age of Chaos, the power would be incredibly great even if they could only grasp a hint of it.


    Nevertheless, the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace furrowed their brows. Previously, several Emperor-level forces had occupied one of the Divine Items. Even though this Divine Battleaxe was prepared for Devil Imperial Palace, many other cultivators did not give up on it. Instead, they moved toward the location of the Divine Battleaxe.


    Yu Sheng furrowed his brows, moved his gaze around, and declared, ��Most of you have already claimed one of the Divine Items. So now I am claiming this Divine Battleaxe for the Devil Imperial Palace. Only the cultivators of Devil World and Ye Imperial Palace may come and utilize it. Any questions?��


    The people of Devil Imperial Palace were eager to get their hands on the black battleaxe. The Divine Battleaxe��packed with the domineering Divine Power of the Law of Creation��was a gift from the Heavenly Path. Although they could not understand its motive, they wanted to claim the Divine Item first and meditate on it.


    ��That��s not necessarily the case. As Ye Futian said, all of us can meditate on the Divine Items released by the Heavenly Path. All the Divine Items here don��t have an owner. This battleaxe isn��t necessarily a gift from the Heavenly Path to you,�� one of the Divine Prefecture cultivators opposed.


    Obviously, these people coveted the black Divine Battleaxe as well. The Divine Power of the Law of that Door of Space was too specific. It would be pointless to meditate on it if one was not a cultivator of the Divine Power of Space. It was the same for the Destructive Black Lotus.


    Nevertheless, this battleaxe was different. It could very well be the Divine Power of the Law from ancient times. If they could gain enlightenment on it even just a little, it could greatly benefit them.


    Thus, most of them wanted to meditate on the Divine Battleaxe.


    The Heavenly Path had already unleashed five Divine Items for the Seven Realms. If one were to include Original Realm, there would only be three Divine Items left to be manifested.


    Besides, it was unknown if there would be a Divine Item for Buddhism.


    The Buddhists had formed a class of their own as the Path of Buddhism was unique to most cultivators.


    ��You can try!�� Yu Sheng piped up in a domineering tone. Yan Guiyi and other cultivators, including the ancient ones, were standing beside him. They emanated their Demonic Might and filled the atmosphere with their overwhelming aura.


    The Ancient Emperors from the Divine Prefecture and other realms could not hold back their excitement. They unleashed their aura, trying to take their chance in scrambling the Divine Item of the Law birthed together with the Heavenly Path since ancient times. None of them was willing to give up on it.


    At that moment, the Divine Battleaxe was the most tempting among all the Divine Items.


    Even the cultivators of Empty Divine Realm who monopolized the Door of Space, including the cultivators of Human Realm, were looking at the Battleaxe in eagerness.


    ��This Divine Battleaxe should belong to Devil World!�� a voice could be heard making a remark all of a sudden. The faces of those who heard it turned grim as they lowered their heads in the direction of the voice. To their surprise, it was Ye Futian who said it.


    Ye Futian lifted his head to peer at the Divine Battleaxe. Then he shot a glance at the crowds in a condescending look, causing the people to frown at the sight of it.


    How could Ye Futian dare to butt in at this time and declare the owner of the Divine Battleaxe?


    ��Ye Futian, your people have been entering all the areas of the Divine Items for cultivation! And now you��re trying to meddle with who takes the Divine Battleaxe! Don��t think you��re poking your nose into our business a little too much?�� a Human Realm cultivator chided in displeasure.


    ��You lot said that you would not fight for other Divine Items after claiming the Divine Sword for yourselves. So, tell me��what are you doing now?�� Ye Futian replied indifferently. ��Since every realm will receive their Divine Item and you��ve already chosen yours, won��t it make sense for the Devil Imperial Palace to claim the Divine Battleaxe?��


    Right after Ye Futian spoke, a formidable Divine Power exploded from his body and filled up the entire void with his Might. At once, all the cultivators turned to look at him.


    If Ye Futian were to interfere with this matter, it would be troublesome for the cultivators from other realms after considering the Devil Imperial Palace and Ye Futian��s strength combined.


    Several Emperors-To-Be took a step forward as they were unwilling to give it up just yet. They were once the Great Emperors during ancient times. Hence, they were haughty by nature. Now that the Divine Battleaxe was before their eyes, they would never walk away without trying to scramble for it.


    A few cultivators stepped forward simultaneously on several locations as they unleashed their Divine Power that pressurized the ground from the sky. In a blink, the Might of Tianshen descended and covered the place where Ye Futian was.


    Every cultivator at the scene stared at the happening and thought. Is there going to be a battle between Emperors-To-Be?


    Earlier on, Ye Futian had displayed his overpowering strength by inflicting significant damage to an Emperor-To-Be with just a flick of his finger. Despite that, a few Emperors-To-Be fired attacks at Ye Futian to seize their chance to cultivate on it.


    Ye Futian immediately got up and stepped into the void. At once, a blood-curdling Divine Power pressed on his body from the firmament. Yet, it could not break through his defense at all. The area around Ye Futian seemed to turn into his impenetrable domain.


    ��What a powerful defense!�� The pupils of the onlookers shrunk as they watched Ye Futian in action. Both his offense and defense were overwhelmingly strong. Even the combined attacks of the Emperors-To-Be could not take him down.


    ��It��s a battle of Emperors-To-Be!�� The cultivators of Heavenly Realm were gathered at Heavenly Palace, which was above the sky. Ji Wudao looked down from there with an intrigued look.


    According to the prophecy, the Battle of the Emperors-To-Be might be the prologue of the Age of the Gods. Someday in the future, there will be a battle between Great Emperors. This clash might very well be the foreshadowing of the War of the future Great Emperors, so he was looking forward to it.

 Chapter 2816 - Times Had Never Changed

    A huge area in the sky of the ninety-nine heavens was deserted. Three Great Emperors-To-Be could be seen standing at three different locations. When the God��s Might was released, each of them unleashed an overwhelming aura that all the cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens could feel.


    They were all beings who walked on the Path of the Emperors were Emperors-To-Be.


    Ye Futian stood still on the ground beneath the three of them, his white hair flying in the wind. He was emanating a peerless spirit as if he was unbeatable in this world. By himself, he could defeat the myriad of cultivators.


    Many Divine Swords of Devastation emerged in the sky above. All of them were black. They destroyed everything on their path wherever they went.


    Countless Sword Qi currents created with Divine Power of Devastation flowed toward Ye Futian. When they passed through the void, everything turned into a desolate wasteland. When the currents gusted toward him, everything seemed to turn still. Then he raised his head to look at the sky. Immediately, the Divine Power of Yin froze the entire dimension. Following that, the Divine Power of Yang was unleashed. Both the powers of Yin and Yang merged and canceled out the Divine Power of Devastation.


    Swoosh! A gigantic black Divine Sword descended from the firmament and darkened the entire sky, turning the atmosphere dark and bleak. Everything in this dimension would be erased.


    The Will of Desolation descended below the ninety-nine heavens, causing the crowds to flee from it. None of them dared to get near it for fear that it would be the end of them.


    Boom! The Divine Sword of Devastation pierced through the Divine Power of Yin and Yang and went toward Ye Futian��s figure. Lifting his head, he glanced at it and stretched his head to grab it. To everyone��s surprise, the Divine Sword of Devastation did not move his palm at all.


    The onlookers could not help but draw a cold breath at the sight of it as they stared at Ye Futian��s hand. Was the attack of Emperors-To-Be that feeble to him?


    Those individuals were Ancient Emperors. Now that they had started their Path of the Emperors, they must have been very powerful. After all, they already had experience in cultivation a long time ago.


    Ye Futian stood on the spot gallantly like a God. A terrifying booming noise could be heard when he gripped his hand. At once, the Divine Sword of Devastation in his hand was broken in pieces and slowly disappeared into thin air.


    The Emperor-To-Be who saw it felt resigned. Immediately, he made the sky even darker with a thought as he unleashed more Divine Power of Devastation. Right then, an even more petrifying Divine Sword of Devastation descended from the sky, aiming at Ye Futian.


    Initially, the other two Emperors-To-Be were spectating on the sidelines. But after witnessing Ye Futian��s strength, they knew for a fact that he would wipe the floor with them.


    One of them formed numerous massive golden Ancient Bells in the sky with a thought. Ripples of sound waves came from the Ancient Bells and filled the atmosphere with their sound. Countless cultivators�� blood froze upon hearing that. Even the stronger ones could hardly bear with the noise. The sonic blast brimmed with Divine Power of Sound was aimed at Ye Futian��s body. It could quickly destroy the spiritual soul of a cultivator��a domineering power one never wanted to come across.


    The combination of the physical and spiritual soul attacks doubled the offensive force. When facing an attack of this level, most cultivators would be easily overwhelmed. The attacks of two different natures were fatal upon impact.


    Furthermore, the third Emperor-To-Be did not make his move yet. In a flash, he turned himself into a colossal Ancient God and threw his fists out. It was full of intimidating spirit and could break the fabric of space itself. It was an imposing sight to behold.


    The attacks of the three Emperors-To-Be covered the sky. And the location where Ye Futian stood was flooded with the Divine Power of Destruction.


    Following the breaking out of God��s Might, most cultivators in ninety-nine heavens could not bear it anymore and were decimated on the spot. Some of their spiritual souls were destroyed, while others had their physical bodies smashed to smithereens.


    Within the space of the brutal Divine Power, Ye Futian��s silhouette gradually became larger and eventually turning into a God. Raising his head, he looked at the sky, and the Divine Lights of Sun and Moon were shot out of his eyes.


    At the same time, he threw his hand toward the sky. When the palm of God was hurled toward the void, the entire sky exploded. The Divine Sword of Destruction, the intimidating golden Divine Fists, and the Divine Bell, brimming with the Divine Power of Sound, were all shattered.


    It did not matter how oppressive the opponents�� attacks were. In the end, he would still disintegrate them all with his palm.


    The spine-chilling giant palm kept moving up until it reached the three of them. Colors drained from their faces, and they leaped higher into the sky. However, Ye Futian fired the Divine Power of Yin from his eyes to slow them down. They moved in slow motion as if the surrounding space was frozen.


    A mere blink was long enough for the attack to reach them. At once, the frightening Giant Palm of Tianshen hit the three Emperors-To-Be indiscriminately.


    Three blasts shook the atmosphere. It sounded as if the fabric of space and time would be torn open at any time. Following that, the three of them were sent flying and puking up blood. Their bodies were fatally injured, and the sky was filled with their blood.


    ��I��ve already said it before��times have changed! This era does not belong to you anymore!�� Ye Futian declared. His voice resounded through the atmosphere of the ninety-nine heavens. Peering at the sky, he went on, ��The Divine Battleaxe belongs to Devil World! Period! If there��s anyone who wishes to challenge me, I will not go easy on you next time!��


    He had already pulled his punches as he was still wary of the six Great Emperors. Therefore, he would not go too overboard. All in all, the most important for him was to complete his Path of the Emperors and reach the Great Emperor Plane. Only through that could he stand a chance in a fight with the Six Great Emperors.


    At that moment, the ninety-nine heavens turned into dead silence after everyone caught sight of the happening. A few years had passed since the last time Ye Futian displayed his strength, and he became even more powerful. To think that he could injure three Great Emperors-To-Be with a single attack. How could the ancient cultivators hope to stand against him?


    His attack was domineering and indestructible.


    The cultivators beneath the ninety-nine heavens were taken aback by the might of Ye Futian. If he could fatally injure three Emperors-To-Be with one attack, he could be considered unbeatable after ruling out the six Great Emperors.


    Was there anyone who could stand in his way in the ninety-nine heavens?


    With his words alone, the owner of the Divine Battleaxe was declared.


    The remaining Emperors-To-Be were affected by it the most. After all, they had been waiting for the longest time for a chance to make their comeback. Yet, a cultivator with monstrous strength emerged out of nowhere before they could even display their power. This man suppressed all the Ancient Emperors and told them that times had changed and that their era was long over.


    Was the era really changed?


    In retrospect, times had never changed. However, an unbelievably powerful cultivator would appear in every era. During ancient times, a group of individuals defied the world and opposed the heavens with their matchless strength. Now that a Path of the Emperors was discovered in this era, distinguished individuals would appear sooner or later.


    They were just unlucky to meet with one of those mighty figures.

 Chapter 2817 - Meditation

    Apart from the Great Emperors, was there anyone who could defeat Ye Futian?


    Similar thoughts ran through the minds of many onlookers. Ye Futian could injure three Emperors-To-Be with only one attack. So he had the right to be called undefeatable, excluding an attack by the Great Emperors. No one could imagine him being defeated if the opponent was not one of the Great Emperors.


    If the Ancient Emperors who became Emperors-To-Be could not take Ye Futian down, what about the once matchless cultivators with unbelievable strength? Could those individuals get the better of him?


    Perhaps they might need to become an Emperor-To-Be through Path Slaying Cultivation or gain enlightenment on some extraordinary Divine Power of the Law first. Ye Futian��s Divine Power was conspicuously more powerful than the three he easily defeated. His strength was in a different league.


    Devil World had maintained a good rapport with Ye Futian. Devil Imperial Palace has snagged a good bargain this time. Countless people thought to themselves. Devil World might be a powerful force, but the Divine Battleaxe of Creation was not a common item. It might be the Divine Power of the Law during creation days. If one could grasp its power, their strength would be greatly increased. With that in mind, a few people of different realms stepped forward to stop the Devil World from getting their wish granted.


    If it weren��t for Ye Futian��s interference, it would not be easy for Devil World to get this Divine Item. They would need to scramble for it while shedding their blood.


    Now that Ye Futian had displayed his near-omnipotent strength and defeated three Emperors-To-Be without breaking a sweat, who would still dare to fight for it?


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    Suddenly, everyone stopped fighting for the right to meditate on the Divine Battleaxe of Creation. They could only feel its power from afar. But if Devil Imperial Palace set up a barrier around the Divine Item, they would be kept out altogether.


    Many cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace shot Ye Futian a glance. After knowing the latter��s relationship with Yu Sheng, many of them were not particularly fond of him. Many of them had a bad impression of him since they thought he was under the care of Devil Imperial Palace.


    Yet, everything had changed at this point. Ye Futian had won them the ownership of the Divine Item with his overwhelming strength.


    The people of Devil World admired powerful figures. As expected of Yu Sheng��s best friend, Ye Futian, many acknowledged him. What would happen if the two of them formed an alliance in the future? It was something they didn��t dare to imagine.


    Their alliance might be grander than the one between Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing.


    Ye Futian walked toward the Divine Battleaxe of Creation and came to a halt beside Yu Sheng. Then he began sensing the sharp aura overflowing from within. It was the Divine Power of Creation manifested at the birth of the Heavenly Path.


    ��Yu Sheng, this Divine Battleaxe really suits you!�� Ye Futian uttered. Technically, this Divine Battleaxe was not a Divine Arm. It was formed through the Power of the Law of the Heavenly Path, brimmed with the Will of Creation, and took the form of a Divine Battleaxe.


    This weapon was somewhat similar to the Divine Ruler that sealed the Demonic Lord earlier. It was the embodiment of the Law of the Heavenly Path��one capable of sealing even the Demonic Lord from ancient times.


    ��I don��t think it��s that easy,�� Yu Sheng answered while staring at the Divine Battleaxe of Creation.


    Still, this weapon was suitable for him, though there was no saying if he could split open the Devil Abyss after completing the Supreme Demonic Way.


    He had been chosen as the successor to the Devil Emperor, so the secrets of Devil Abyss had been revealed to him. The artifact from ancient times was more complicated than he had imagined. The Devil Abyss was created during the birth of the Heavenly Path.


    ��Give it a try,�� Ye Futian encouraged with a smile. Yu Sheng nodded. With their shoulders next to each other, they meditated on the Divine Power of the Law within the Divine Battleaxe.


    Ye Futian wondered what sort of Divine Power could be born with the Power of the Law of the Heavenly Path.


    Closing his eyes, he hovered his Superconscious around the Divine Battleaxe of Creation and slowly entered the realm of the Will of the Divine Battleaxe. After a while, he came to a world of Chaotic Space. Inside that space, he noticed an enormous Divine Battleaxe that split the space open, creating a frightening-looking crack and separating the sky from the earth.


    He was touched by the realm of the Will. To his surprise, the Divine Power of Creation was formed by merging different kinds of Divine Power of the Law. Together, the domineering Will, the peerless power, and extreme sharpness forged the Divine Power of Creation.


    Perhaps, hardly anyone could replicate this Divine Power, save for anybody like him.


    Soon, the Divine Light started to flow around Ye Futian��s body. Inside his inner world, a silhouette was standing in the boundless space while peering at the countless worlds of this universe. Simultaneously, it also sensed the flow of different types of Divine Power of the Law.


    Several illusions manifested around his body, looking like incorporeal figures. They were all his phantoms. All of them were holding a Divine Battleaxe and separating the sky from the earth. But they were all slightly inferior.


    Some of the Divine Powers were easier to replicate whole the others were harder. For instance, creating the Divine Power of the Five Elements was like child��s play for him since he was born at the creation of this universe.


    He had cultivated many powers in the past and had turned them into parts of the law of his Micro Heavenly Path to run this universe.


    However, specific nonexistent Divine Power of the Law, like the Divine Power of Creation, could not be replicated easily. Usually, these extremely rare and powerful Divine Powers had manifested through coincidence.


    Ye Futian could not get it right even after meditating on it for a long time. In the end, he gave up. The Divine Power of Creation was born at the birth of the Heavenly Path. So, there must be some specific requirements to replicate it.


    Nevertheless, he could recreate other Divine Powers inside his inner world.


    With a thought, his surroundings were suddenly filled with endless phantoms created by him. Those phantoms held a sharp sword in their hands and began cultivating on the Way of the Sword.


    At once, countless sword silhouettes were flying around as sword Qi dominated the entire space.


    Ye Futian��s consciousness turned into innumerable Way of the Sword. Each one was unique to the other.


    Divine Power and Divine Technique were different sides of the same coin. Cultivators usually gain enlightenment on a Divine Power and then create a Divine Technique. In essence, a Divine Technique was a superpower. If one were to reverse the meditation process, would it work?


    Countless phantoms were practicing swords ceaselessly. None of them were practicing the same technique. In other words, Ye Futian could train himself in different sword skills multiple times all at once.


    After training for a long time, those phantoms headed toward the small worlds while holding a Divine Sword in their hands.


    Clang! One of the phantoms thrust the sword forward and caused the world to tremble, creating many cracks in the process. Yet, it did not bunch this world at all. After all, this world was created with the Divine Power of the World.


    In another world, Ye Futian��s phantom thrust the sword forward, creating a hole in that world and penetrating it. The huge opening had many cracks around it. But the result was not too different from the first one.


    The attacks by different Divine Powers would show up at different locations. It went without saying that Ye Futian wanted to find out a Divine Power that could destroy the world created with the Divine Power of the World.


    Once it was demolished, it would mean that the created Divine Power was of a higher level than the Divine Power of the World.


    His experiment went on for a long time. During this period, Ye Futian��s phantoms thrust the swords countless times.

 Chapter 2818 - The Ultimate Evolution

    Countless phantoms of Ye Futian were attacking the small worlds inside the Micro Heavenly Path��s world.


    Everything in this world was created by Ye Futian. So, he could easily destroy them with just a thought. Yet, his purpose was not to erase this world but to create a Divine Power capable of demolishing the small worlds.


    Meanwhile, his original body was sitting in the void. Since he was the master of this Heavenly Path, his will would be the will of the Heavenly Path. Endless images of this place would fill up his mind. A hundred million of them would flood his head every second and assimilate with his Superconscious.


    As time passed, the visions in his mind became innumerable. The countless silhouettes in his mind were constantly improving, and the thrust of the Divine Swords gradually became stronger and scarier.


    Soon, the motions of the phantoms began to overlap with each other. Many of them started to maintain the same attack movement as if they had found some sort of useful lead. Just then, they carried on with the new round of experiment and refining.


    Similar scenes were reoccurring continuously. The sword techniques displayed by the endless phantoms were becoming more concise but stronger. It went on until the sword techniques were reduced to around a dozen of them.


    With the control of his thought, the myriad of phantoms followed the leadership of a dozen of them, whose offensive power was the strongest. The mirage within that domain played a subsidiary role to evolve according to the changes of the sword techniques.


    The small world was quivering more violently than before. Some of the attacks could create cracks in the small worlds, while the rest could cause their collapse.


    The further it went on, the harder it was to improve the sword technique. Hence, the time spent on refining became longer.


    About two years later, all the phantoms finally disappeared into thin air.


    Ye Futian sat in a lotus position while closing his eyes to cultivate. An intimidating Will of the Sword was surrounding his body the entire time. Suddenly, it turned into a storm and traveled across the land. There was only debris left across the areas the storm passed by.


    Although the development on the outside had stopped, a multitude of phantoms was still in the mind of Ye Futian.


    At that moment, he seemed to be submerged in a brilliant Divine Light. As his Divine Power continued to charge up, his aura gradually became stronger. At the same time, a Divine Power could be felt manifesting in the atmosphere.


    After some time, rays of Divine Light covered Ye Futian��s body. Lifting his head, he saw a towering Divine Sword appear in the sky. This sword seemed to be formed with a Divine Power different from his usual ones. For one, it looked like an ancient Divine Sword that every Heavenly Law could not control.


    Boom! Following the descent of the Divine Sword, a ray of light shone and penetrated the boundless space and even the universe. It pierced through the chaotic dimension and instantly erased the worlds in its path.


    It was so powerful that even the Divine Power of Space could not block it. Needless to say, the micro worlds created with the Divine Power of the World were equally feeble. They did not escape their fate from being eradicated.


    That Divine Light spanned across the realm as though it was an eternal Divine Power. None of the dimensional power or small worlds could survive being blasted into nothingness.


    At that time, Ye Futian opened his eyes and looked in that direction.


    He was moved by his accomplishment and sighed. Now that he was steadily building his Micro Heavenly Path, he would one day become a bona side Heavenly Path once he perfected his cultivation. There will be living beings cultivating in this universe in the future. Putting aside the Divine Power outside the scope of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements, could the Divine Power of the Law within his Divine Sword be comparable to the Divine Power of Creation? Would it be revered as the energy source used to create the universe?


    It might really happen.


    What should this Divine Power be called?


    ��This Divine Sword could be considered the ultimate evolution of the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword. Hmm. Perhaps, this power should be called the Heaven Slaying Divine Power,�� Ye Futian mumbled. Heaven Slaying sounded like an equal to Creation.


    Tianzhu was the most basic form of sword technique created with the combination of the Divine Sword and the Divine Power.


    After years of meditation, it finally evolved into the ultimate form, which was also its strongest form. This was the final evolution of Heaven Slaying Divine Sword. Hence, the name of this sword would not be changed. It would remain the same.


    With Heaven Slaying Divine Power as its energy source, Heaven Slaying Divine Sword could wipe a world off the universe. How powerful would this attack become when he completed his Micro Heavenly Path?


    Ye Futian was very much looking forward to it.


    With that, he had an extra stratagem in his arsenal to stand against Donghuang the Great.


    After Ye Futian finished his mediation, he opened his physical eyes and looked at the sky. At that time, everyone in the ninety-nine heavens was still focused on their cultivation to improve themselves. Most people had huge improvements throughout the two-year duration. He did not know how many new Emperors-To-Be were born since he concentrated on his cultivation. Plus, he did not observe the changes of the outside world at all.


    However, things were relatively peaceful in ninety-nine heavens at that moment. There was no sign that a fight had taken place before. After all, no one dared to scramble for the Divine Battleaxe since Ye Futian had intimidated everyone previously. So, it was a no-brainer that no one had the nerve to disturb the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace.


    While the cultivators were occupied by their meditation, many of them were waiting for the manifestation of the next Divine Item.


    Up until that moment, there were a total of five Divine Items, including the Black Lotus, the Divine Mountain, the Door of Space, the Divine Sword, and the Divine Battleaxe of Creation.


    There would be at least two more Divine Items waiting to be manifested in Seven Realms. Since the Heavenly Path had gifted the Divine Battleaxe of Creation suitable for Devil World cultivators, it would not be absurd for a Divine Item ideal for the World of Buddhism to manifest.


    Should that be the case, who was the actual beneficiary of the Divine Mountain?


    Was it Divine Prefecture or Heavenly Realm?


    Or perhaps, Original Realm?


    No one knew the answer to that question. After all, it was the Will of the Heavenly Path.


    There was not much time left.


    The end of another three years was already around the corner. In other words, the cultivators from all over the world had been staying in the ninety-nine heavens for almost 15 years already. Nevertheless, all of them could hardly feel any difference since the people here were the strongest bunch in the world. So, 15 years was pretty short for them.


    Other than their anticipation for the next Divine Item, everyone was curious about one thing.


    Who would be the next individual to join the lineup of the Great Emperors?


    At that moment, there were already a bunch of Emperors-To-Be in the ninety-nine heavens. If one were to look at individual strength alone, Ye Futian would be the undisputed champion among the known Emperors-To-Be. Despite being the strongest, it didn��t mean he would be the first one to reach the Great Emperor Plane.


    At the end of the day, battle strength and cultivation level were two different things altogether. Ye Futian had always been known for his incredible battle prowess. Even in the face of an opponent with a higher cultivation level, he could still defeat them. Most of the Emperors-To-Be here were Ancient Emperors. If one were to compare cultivation experience, they would be the most knowledgeable. They had already known the way to become a Great Emperor. So, they only needed to submerge themselves in the Heavenly Law and wait until they had completed their paths and returned as the Great Emperors.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian was the best cultivator of the current age. As a cultivator who tried to reach the Great Emperor Realm through Path Slaying Cultivation, his journey would be more challenging. And he would take a longer time to complete his path.


    With that in mind, most people excluded Ye Futian from the potential list of individuals who would be the first to become the next Great Emperor.

 Chapter 2819 - The Tree of Enlightenment

    Ye Futian did not know what everyone else thought. He currently had his own training schedule. Even if the Micro Heavenly Path did not come to fruition, he knew that his capabilities remained far above the average Great Emperor-To-Be. Now that he had forged his Heaven Slaying Divine Power, his attacking prowess would have increased. Those Great-Emperors-To-Be would not be his match anymore.


    At the level below the Great Emperor plane, he was indeed already one of the best, with nearly no competitors remaining, and he was continually getting even stronger as he trained.


    He did not know how much his Micro Heavenly Path was capable of evolving, but he had an inkling that if the ��Micro Heavenly Path�� could come to fruition, then he would surely be able to come out at the top ranks of the Great Emperor plane. At that time, he might even be able to engage in a battle with the Six Great Emperors.


    Ye Futian continued his cultivation, and three years finally came to pass again. A mystical and powerful aura once again saturated the skies, and beams of divine light came shining down soon after. The lights were brilliant and dazzling, and many people raised their heads to the sky, feeling at ease as they immersed themselves in the lights.


    ��It��s the Light of Buddha!��


    The cultivators trembled. It was a Buddhist divine item! The lingering traces of suspicion that many cultivators had held on to had at last been dispelled, and they no longer had any doubts in their minds.


    They understood that the Heavenly Path possessed a consciousness of its own and saw that the divine items it had bestowed upon the current Seven Realms suited the respective realms.


    Otherwise, how might a Buddhist divine item suddenly appear?


    ��The Heavenly Path brought forth a Buddhist divine item!�� Even the strongest cultivators were shocked. This was the sixth divine item already.


    They stared at the upper skies, and following the descent of a dazzling Light of Buddha, many of them felt their sixth sense sharpen and could somehow see the world around them more clearly. The Light of Buddha fell onto them and entered their bodies. They felt as if it could help them gain enlightenment.


    That feeling was extraordinarily intriguing. Soon after, they saw a humongous Buddhist divine tree growing from the sky toward the ground.


    Is this the Bodhi Divine Tree? the cultivators wondered to themselves. It was the Buddhist Tree of Enlightenment.


    ��Amitabha.�� Just then, from a certain location, many great Buddhas started chanting the name of Buddha. They joined their palms together and made a bow of respect to the divine tree, showing their devotion.


    ��The Heavenly Path brought forth Bodhi to spread enlightenment,�� a Buddha Lord exclaimed softly. The divine tree kept growing downwards. Like all the other divine items before it, it directly penetrated the ninety-nine heavens and grew between the heavens and the earth.


    Countless cultivators were excited because of this. The people in the ninety-nice heavens had all soaked in the Buddha Light of Enlightenment, and their five senses all got sharper. They also possessed an acute sixth sense. The feeling it gave them was incredible. The divine tree of Enlightenment that contained the Path of Buddhism may not be able to improve their cultivation levels, but it might just help them cultivate better.


    Was this a benevolent act of the Heavenly Path?


    This Heavenly Path had cast down a few divine items that had all gone through the ninety-nice heavens, allowing the people on earth to be enlightened to spread the power of the Law of the Heavenly Path?


    The cultivators in the ninety-nice heavens could feel the Heavenly Path��s goodwill toward them.


    The top-ranked cultivators in the ninety-nice heavens grew even more curious. Now that some of the suspicions they had previously had been cleared, and they were certain of the Heavenly Path��s intentions, they still did not understand the purpose of it all.


    Could it be that the Heavenly Path wanted to have control over the Laws of the Seven Realms again and thus gifted the divine items?


    Ye Futian was also soaked in the light of the Bodhi Divine Tree. He sensed an extraordinary Will.


    ��This divine tree can help with enlightenment training. It contains Buddhist wisdom, and even though it does not help one to become enlightened, it could still help one to understand the Power of the other Great Paths,�� Ye Futian remarked to the people around him. With this divine tree, the cultivators here would cultivate more effectively and increase their chances of becoming a demigod or passing the divine tribulations.


    Everyone nodded their head in agreement. They, too, could sense that this divine tree could enlighten people and was a Tree of Enlightenment.


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky and said in a low voice, ��The fact that the Heavenly Path would bestow such good fortune upon us seems like it wants to help us move into the Gods�� Age, reviving the prosperous age of cultivation in ancient times. Could it be that some consciousness had been left behind by the Old Heavenly Path?


    If so, then should they see the rebellious cultivators who had led the gods to oppose and destroy the Old Heavenly Path as benevolent or evil?


    Was the existence of the Heavenly Path for good or evil?


    Yet, everyone also had the right to pursue excellence and those cultivators, including the Demonic Lord, who had already reached the top, perhaps had no choice but to do so to improve further.


    ��According to the previous arrangement, this divine tree belongs to the Buddhist World. I seek the permission of the Great Buddhas to allow the cultivators from Ye Imperial Palace to borrow it for training,�� Ye Futian bowed and made his request to the Great Buddhas of the Buddhist World.


    Ye Futian had previously asserted that those from Ye Imperial Palace could use everything here to cultivate. Even if he had not made a request, the Buddhists would not stop them. After all, Ye Futian had a reputation, and it was hard to touch him.


    But out of respect for the Buddhists, he had asked for permission from the Great Buddhas.


    ��Please do as you please, Benefactor Ye. The bestowment of Bodhi by the Heavenly Path is for the enlightenment of the people so that they attain cultivation. How then can we monopolize it? Everyone can use it to train,�� a Great Buddha replied in a loud voice. They did not mind the people using it, which surprised the cultivators from the different realms.


    ��Buddha is compassionate.�� Ye Futian joined his palms together.


    ��Thank you, Buddhas.�� Some of the cultivators from the Divine Prefecture also showed their gratitude. The cultivators from the ninety-nine heavens were all filled with appreciation in their hearts. With this, perhaps they would be able to level up and multiply their chances of a breakthrough.


    Due to the generosity of the Buddhists, no contentions broke out over the possession of this divine item. The ninety-nine heavens were as peaceful and quiet as before, and the cultivators from different realms all continued their cultivation peacefully.


    Ye Futian, too was one of them as he strived to perfect his realm. Even he had felt that soaking in the light of the Bodhi Divine Tree had benefitted his cultivating.


    ��That divine mountain ought to belong to the Divine Prefecture then.�� Just then, someone from the outside alleged. They were previously unsure which realm the divine mountain was bestowed unto; however, now each realm had received a fitting divine item, except for the Heaven Realm and the Divine Prefecture.


    It made sense that the divine mountain should belong to be the Divine Prefecture.


    As for the Heaven Realm, since the Heavenly Path was conceived in the Heavenly Palace, their divine item would surely be an extremely extraordinary one if it decided to bestow one upon them.


    ��Yup. I��m quite looking forward to three years later,�� someone uttered. It was possible that it would be the last divine item already. If the Original Realm had a share, too, then it would be the last two items.


    It was worth anticipating what was to come next.


    As Ye Futian cultivated, the people around him all made progress too. Little Condor even made a breakthrough with the help of the light of enlightenment. As Ye Futian and he shared a connection, his level of understanding was already beyond average, to begin with, but now with the aid of the Bodhi Divine Tree, he had undergone another complete transformation.


    At the same time, many were nearing demigod level, and it was only a little way to go before they reached it.


    When all the divine items finally appeared, perhaps Ye Imperial Palace would have produced a few demigods by then!

 Chapter 2820 - The Next Heavenly Emperor

    Ye Futian was immersed in the light of the Bodhi Divine Tree, like all the other cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens; they all trained under the Bodhi Divine Tree.


    Ye Futian started to traverse within his realm. He traveled along the Unlimited Realm, desiring to see the present state of the realm. How far had the realm the Micro Heavenly Path created evolved?


    He found the completion of many rules and laws and saw countless places similar to those outside, like the Land of Destruction and the Dark Abyss.


    After a year, he returned and resumed cultivation and gained enlightenment.


    This day, he sensed the Divine Power of the Law of Space flowing about him and a terrifying devouring power. As time passed, spatial whirlpools appeared around him. These whirlpools seemed to contain a vehement devouring power. Anything that moved around them would be devoured.


    Clearly, he was still perfecting the laws and rules of this Micro Heavenly Path.


    In the ninety-nine heavens, many cultivators were all making progress, even those already at the top. From the appearance of the Gods�� Continent until the introduction of this Micro Heavenly Path, they had all made leaps and bounds in their cultivation.


    18 years felt like they had gone by in a flash.


    To the cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens, it felt like a very short period. They had never been so obsessed with cultivating before.


    And now, the seventh divine item was about to make its entrance. Would it belong to the Heaven Realm?


    There was a high possibility.


    The heirs of the Will of Deva of the Old Heaven Court and Heaven Realm represented Deva, which was the leader of the Eight Legions. If the current Heavenly Path was the remnant of the old Heavenly Path, then it would mean that the Heaven Realm was the most important descendant.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    What was more, this Heavenly Path had appeared above the ninety-nine heavens, which in itself meant something.


    All these seem to be telling the people that if a divine item were to be bestowed upon the Heaven Realm, it would be an exceptional and extraordinary item.


    Every single person was looking forward to it.


    After all, they learned through previous experiences that they would be able to benefit from whatever divine item the Heavenly Path chose to gift. All had a piece in the pie, and they had gained further enlightenment and made significant improvements.


    As they waited, the day finally approached, and changes appeared in the heavens.


    The changes seemed greater than in the past, which was very obviously different.


    Countless rays of light descended from the sky dome and covered the ninety-nine heavens, filling the place with an auspicious air.


    Accompanying these were other beams of light that also shone down and filled the entire sky dome with light as if they contained the consciousness of the Heavenly Law.


    ��What kind of divine item will it be this time?�� The cultivators looked up at the heavens. It was the first time they witnessed a phenomenon like this. Would this divine item surpass the previous six?


    One of the cultivators stretched his hand out under the lights. The Great Emperors-To-Be were astonished.


    They were overwhelmed by such a spectacle in front of them.


    ��Oh?��


    At that moment, as they were watching the sky, an aura emerged in the heavens and was moving about.


    Following that was a second and then a third aura.


    These three auras each morphed into three different airs that caused the divine powers in the heavens to go along with them.


    ��The Innate Nine Qi!��


    The Great Emperors-To-Be from the older days were stunned. Was the Heavenly Path creating the Innate Nine Qi?!


    They knew what the synthesis of the Innate Nine Qi and the Heavenly Law meant.


    ��A Heavenly Emperor!�� the ancient Emperors from the older days let out an exclamation in surprise.


    ��Heavenly Emperor?�� Many people were perplexed as to why the words ��Heavenly Emperor�� came out.


    ��The Heavenly Path desires to instate another Heavenly Emperor,�� one of the ancient Emperors raised his head to the sky and replied softly. His voice was full of shock. The synthesis of the Innate Nine Qi and the Heavenly Law would give rise to the Nine Dragons True Qi.


    And this Nine Dragons True Qi signified the Heavenly Emperor.


    Before the disintegration of the Heavenly Path, the Heavenly Emperor had access to the Nine Dragons True Qi and was the head of the gods and all living beings. He could be regarded as the most powerful after the Heavenly Path and even first in the world.


    Nine Dragons True Qi was created by synthesizing Innate Nine Qi and the Heavenly Law. As the Heavenly Emperor was able to soak the Nine Dragons True Qi, he would not be part of the five elements, and divine powers beneath the Heavenly Path were unable to do him any harm. Even the Yin and Yang elements were utterly useless against him.


    Was this Heavenly Path trying to restore the glories of ancient days?


    They felt that they would probably be an eighth item belonging to the Original Realm.


    Previously it had been the Eight Legions under the rule of the Heavenly Path, and today, it was the Seven Realms. With the addition of the Original Realm, it would be eight of them, similar to the Eight Legions of the past. Of course, this was just wishful thinking on the Heavenly Path. Would the current Seven Realms and the Original Realm still be willing to be under the rule of the Heavenly Path?


    What was more, it was still incomplete and might be the remnant of the previous Heavenly Path.


    Ye Futian opened his eyes as he felt an extraordinary bout of energy. It felt like the Heavenly Law itself. He looked toward the heavens and saw nine rays of divine light transforming into the figure of a dragon. They descended from the sky and shone upon the Heavenly Palace in the Heaven Realm.


    The people knew long ago that the Heavenly Path possessed a consciousness and thus did not find the scene they had just seen unexpected despite being surprised.


    Did the Heavenly Path still desire to let the Heaven Realm be the spokesperson for the world?


    Just then, Ji Wudao stepped forward. He was floating above the Heavenly Palace and immersed in the nine rays of divine light. The ablution of the Heavenly Path imbued him with a terrifying aura that caused many surprised faces.


    They realized that Ji Wudao had become a Great Emperor-To-Be a long time ago.


    Ye Futian looked at Ji Wudao. He already knew before that Ji Wudao was a person who concealed himself well but was extremely powerful. He had met the heirs of all Seven Realms before, and out of them, Ji Wudao felt the most dangerous.


    Who would have thought that he would be a Great Emperor-to-be already? It seems like before the people had arrived, Ji Wudao had already been abluted by the Heavenly Path, which was not surprising given that the Heavenly Path was located in the Heaven Realm.


    Many people in the ninety-nine heavens looked toward Ji Wudao.


    Will the world see the appearance of another Heavenly Emperor?


    At that moment, they vaguely saw the Heavenly Emperor returning.


    ��The world is going to change greatly,�� Supreme Swordlord murmured to himself. ��I never thought it would be him.��


    ��I see Swordlord favors Ji Wudao?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��He inherited the Will of the Heaven Realm and has been abluted by the Heavenly Path. He is destined to be the next Heavenly Emperor. There are many outstanding cultivators in the Seven Realms, and Ji Wudao has always kept a low profile. But now, it seems like he will be the one that can shake things up,�� Supreme Swordlord answered. ��Perhaps, he will be one of your most difficult opponents.��


    ��Yeah.�� Ye Futian nodded. He did not know what the future would be like, but he was not afraid even if Ji Wudao were to become the next Heavenly Emperor. He had become the embodiment of the Micro Heavenly Path!

 Chapter 2821 - Ordaining a Heavenly Empress?

    The cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens were astonished but also somewhat disappointed.


    The Nine Dragon True Qi was specially prepared to ordain a new Heavenly Emperor for the Heaven Realm. Below Ji Wudao, the cultivators of the Heaven Realm that were in the Heavenly Palace were also abluted with the Nine Dragon True Qi. Although they were unable to inherit the position of the Heavenly Emperor, they could still reap the benefits of the ablution.


    Some of the Great Emperors-To-Be looked keen on taking action, while some ancient Emperors had even taken a step forward. They all had eyes on the Nine Dragon True Qi.


    The Nine Dragon True Qi was forged from the synthesis of the Heavenly Law and the Innate Nine Qi, and it was also formed by the Heavenly Path when it first came into being. If one could immerse themselves in it, one would become more adept at cultivating the divine power of the Law of the Heavenly Path. This would be helpful to them becoming Emperors.


    The first cultivator who stepped out was a Great Emperor-To-Be from the Human Realm. He headed toward the Heaven Realm, giving off an imposing god-like vibe as he walked. Divine power swirled around his body as a humongous divine matrix formed behind him. Divine lights shone forth from within the divine matrix, and spears appeared. Each spear was formed by the coagulation of the divine power, and it made one shudder to think how potent they would be in battle.


    ��I would like to get a taste of the Nine Dragon True Qi formed by the Innate Nine Qi as well. Could I?�� that Great Emperor-To-Be asked aloud. His voice boomed through the skies, but he did not dare be too brazen either. He had sensed that Ji Wudao was also a Great Emperor-To-Be, like him.


    And there were more of them in the Heaven Realm as well.


    Ji Wudao glanced at the Great Emperor-To-Be who had spoken. His face was devoid of emotion, but his eyes showed hints of disdain as he replied, ��Get lost!��


    The cultivators were slightly startled upon hearing Ji Wudao��s words. He had always been low-key and restrained until the appearance of the Gods�� Continent and Heaven Realm discovered the Old Heaven Court Relics. It was then that he first showed off his outstanding powers.


    Now, it seemed that he had become arrogant and confident enough to ask an ancient Emperor to get lost.


    The silver robe worn by the ancient Emperor from the Human Realm swayed as a gust of wind blew past. The robe rattled, and it felt like it had become sharp as a knife. The divine glow surrounding him grew brighter, and the divine matrix behind him enlarged to cover the sky. Numerous divine spears were aimed at the Heavenly Palace.


    His eyes turned silver, and upon moving his will, countless silver spears pierced through the sky at once. Dull noises exploded in the heavens, accompanied by numerous silver light beams that charged toward the Heavenly Palace. It was as if he wanted to split the majestic Heavenly Palace apart by just that one strike.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    Ji Wudao remained expressionless as he took a glance at the incoming damage. At once, a golden divine wall that spanned the distance between the heavens and the earth appeared in front of the Heavenly Palace. Numerous runes that were golden in color were carved on it, looking like golden lightning bolts sprawled across the wall, giving it an imposing appearance.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Numerous silver spears smashed against the wall and, to the shock of the watchers, were sucked inside as if they had been devoured and turned into nothing.


    This caused the Great Emperor-To-Be to frown, and the divine matrix behind him continued to grow bigger as more spears formed. The silver spears of light pierced straight through the sky, terrifying the people on the ground with their immense prowess.


    The next moment, hundreds of millions of divine spears simultaneously rushed out, seemingly turning everything in front of it into dust.


    ��Hmph!�� Ji Wudao grunted coldly. He raised his palm in front of him, and with a thrust of his palm, a golden pagoda immediately appeared on top of the golden wall. The pagoda was spinning round and round, and its weight caused the heavens to tremble. Everything seemed to come to a standstill, and even the attacking spears slowed.


    ��It��s the Haotian Pagoda!�� a few of the ancient Emperors exclaimed in shock.


    The old Heavenly Emperor had owned a few top-notch weapons, and the Haotian Pagoda was one of them. The pagoda in front of them now was not a weapon but was instead formed by the coagulation of divine power to be used as an attacking technique. It, however, contained the overbearing presence of the Haotian Pagoda and was capable of overpowering anything.


    The Haotian Pagoda kept growing bigger and flew forward with a frightening rumbling sound. The divine spears broke into pieces as the Pagoda displayed its prowess.


    The color drained slightly from the face of the Great Emperor-To-Be from the Human Realm as he saw this. Subsequently, an extraordinarily large spear appeared within the divine matrix. He held the spear with his hands and transformed into the enormous figure of a god. He then aimed the spear straight at the Haotian Pagoda.


    Clang! Another loud sound erupted, and the spear shook, but the Haotian Pagoda remained spinning. Its divine light enveloped the Great Emperor-To-Be, causing him to experience an unbearable amount of pressure.


    Bang! With another bang, his body was flung out. The figure of the god shook, and the spear in his hands broke. He let out a groan as he fell.


    However, the Haotian Pagoda was also forced back. Even so, divine light was still flowing around it and applying enormous pressure upon him.


    Ji Wudao moved his will and withdrew from the Haotian Pagoda. The divine wall also disappeared. He looked impassively at his opponent and stated, ��Here are the ninety-nine heavens, which is the territory of the Heaven Realm. Letting you soak and train under the Heavenly Path is doing you a great favor. If there��s a next time, I will kill you!��


    Ji Wudao��s domineering stance caused the color to drain from the Great Emperor-To-Be��s face while the other cultivators there were also utterly taken aback.


    Kill him?!


    It seemed that things were different now. Besides Ye Futian, now there was also the heir of the Heavenly Emperor, Ji Wudao.


    He was capable of killing a Great Emperor-To-Be seemingly just by moving his will.


    Would the ancient Emperors compete with the new Emperors of today?


    In the present day, cultivators who were on their way to becoming Emperors like Ye Futian and Ji Wudao were most definitely stronger than the ancient Emperors. Times had changed, and it was even more challenging to achieve Emperor status now, so their still being able to do so was the best proof of that.


    Ji Wudao continued to soak in the Nine Dragon True Qi, and divine power surged around him, causing the Nine Dragon True Qi to enter his body. At the same time, he looked toward where the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were situated and remarked, ��Princess Diyuan can come train with me.��


    All of the cultivators were taken aback by this.


    Ji Wudao had opposed the presence of all other cultivators, but here he was, taking the initiative to invite Princess Donghuang Diyuan of the Divine Prefecture to train with him.


    It was confirmed now that the divine mountain belonged to the Divine Prefecture. The Seven Realms had all received an item of their own.


    In the past, when the Human Realm desired to form a marriage alliance with the Divine Prefecture, they had been turned down by Donghuang the Great. What was Ji Wudao��s intention in doing this?


    Could it be that he was interested in Donghuang Diyuan?


    In the world today, Donghuang Diyuan was indeed the most eye-catching of girls.


    But this did not come as a surprise for those cultivators on the Emperor-level and was as if they had expected this.


    ��No need for that.�� Donghuang Diyuan, however, disagreed and curtly rejected his offer.


    ��When I become the Heavenly Emperor, you will be the Heavenly Empress!�� Ji Wudao continued, startling the cultivators yet again.


    Donghuang Diyuan continued ignoring him and made off in the direction of the divine mountain. The Divine Prefecture had accepted the divine mountain as theirs!

 Chapter 2822 - An Invisible Pressure

    Ji Wudao actually wanted Donghuang Diyuan to be his empress.


    He would be the Heavenly Emperor, and Donghuang Diyuan would be his Heavenly Empress.


    Many people involuntarily turned to look at Di Hao from the Human Realm. He, whose marriage proposal had been rejected by Donghuang the Great before, currently betrayed no emotion on his face, and no one could guess what he was thinking.


    If it were in the past, the heir of the Human Realm would certainly be far superior to Ji Wudao. After all, the Heaven Realm had been in decline, and the Heavenly Imperial Palace was way past its hay day. The cultivators in the Heaven Realm, including Ji Wudao, were also cultivating in secret. How could they have competed with Di Hao?


    However, it was a completely different scenario today. A Heavenly Path had appeared in the ninety-nine heavens of the Heavenly Imperial Palace, and Ji Wudao had become immersed in the Nine Dragon True Qi and was on his way to becoming a Great Emperor, and probably the next Heavenly Emperor as well.


    The Heavenly Emperor still commanded a significant amount of respect in the present age. Before the disintegration of the Heavenly Path, the previous incarnation of the Heavenly Emperor had been the head of the Old Heaven Court and the ruler of Deva, which was the leader of the Eight Legions. Even after the disintegration of the Heavenly Path, the Heavenly Emperor was still a commanding figure.


    The daughter of the Heavenly Emperor��the Sovereign Princess��was a goddess that had charmed the hearts of all the men in the world.


    What a glorious era it had been, and everything that had happened lately made people feel that its glory days were on their way back.


    Ji Wudao was on his way to becoming an Emperor and would inherit the title of Heavenly Emperor in the future, succeeding the throne. Would he be capable of leading the Heaven Realm toward a brand new age?


    As for Di Hao, he was only an heir. As long as the Human Ancestor was around, he would remain a mere heir.


    And evidently, the Human Ancestor might actually be around forever!


    Thus, the current Di Hao could probably no longer compete with Ji Wudao.


    All of these felt like a dream. In the long river of time, many changes had occurred.


    Besides Ji Wudao, Ye Futian was also a classic example. He, who in the past had been reduced to a sorry plight by forces from the Divine Prefecture after his life, was now virtually unbeatable by anyone, save for a select few.


    Just one look from him, and a Great Emperor-To-Be would not dare make a move.


    Aside from him, currently, only Ji Wudao was capable of the same thing.


    After he had threatened to kill, not a single Great Emperor-To-Be had made a move.


    Ji Wudao glanced at the departing Donghuang Diyuan while he continued to soak in the Nine Dragon True Qi. The Nine Dragon True Qi encircled the heavens, and the earth flowed into his body. It was as if it was prepared for him by the Heavenly Path, bestowed only upon him.


    Ji Wudao looked away and shut his eyes. He hovered in the sky and soaked in the divine light. The Nine Dragon True Qi formed by the synthesis of the Heavenly Law and the Innate Nine Qi encircled his body and abluted him. The stunning divine light made people realize that they were currently witnessing the introduction of the Heavenly Emperor.


    ��Is the Nine Dragon True Qi that formidable?�� Although Ye Futian could sense that the Qi was something extraordinary, he was not very knowledgeable about it, resulting in this question posed to the West Emperor standing beside him.


    ��The core divine power that is controlled by the head of the Deva is exclusive to the Heavenly Emperor, and it means the ruler of the heavens,�� the West Emperor replied. ��Legend has it that the Nine Dragon True Qi was created by the Innate Nine Qi that had come about simultaneously as the Heavenly Path. The Innate Nine Qi is also known as the Nine Elements and was the product of the three Qi��Xuan, Yuan, and Shi [1]��present when the world began. These three Qi then produced another three Qi, and the Nine Qi was the result. The Nine Qi is the source of all Paths, and the Nine Dragon True Qi was born from the synthesis of the Heavenly Path and the Nine Qi. This is why the Heavenly Emperor can control all Paths with the power of the Nine Dragon True Qi. He also cannot be harmed by the powers of the Five Elements and Yin and Yang. This means that other Great Emperors can only play a subservient role to a Great Emperor that controls the Nine Dragon True Qi. They would be completely no match for him.��


    Ye Futian listened quietly and nodded his head. He understood the origins of the Nine Dragon True Qi.


    Its origin was indeed exceptional, and the fact that it was personally bestowed upon the heir of the Heaven Realm, Ji Wudao, might mean something.


    But as things stood, Ji Wudao would be an intimidating figure in the future.


    Even the power of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements were helpless against him. Any power that could hurt him had to be supremely remarkable ones that only the best Great Emperors would be endowed with.


    At that level, there would naturally be some phenomenal figures. After the arrival of the Age of the Gods, extremely powerful Great Emperors would appear. This included the current Six Great Emperors, who were all formidable cultivators. For that reason, Ye Futian strived to gain enlightenment on the most extraordinary divine powers and supreme techniques.


    Everyone continued with their cultivation. This three-year wait had turned out to be a disappointment for everyone, but they were able to witness the birth of the next Heavenly Emperor.


    Now, there was only one chance left. Or perhaps, there might not even be any more left.


    Would the Heavenly Path bestow a divine item to the Original Realm?


    No one knew. It would only be revealed after another three years.


    However, compared to three years before, the cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens did not feel as excited. Knowing how strong Ye Futian was, even if the Heavenly Path bestowed an item to the Original Realm, who could take it from him?


    It would probably be strictly guarded by Ye Futian. Although he had let cultivators from Ye Imperial Palace cultivate near the other divine items, if the Original Realm had its own divine item, he probably would not be that generous anymore.


    Ye Futian himself had no high expectations. He had already developed his ��Micro Heavenly Path,�� and even if he were to be given a divine item, it would not make much of a difference to him. He would not mind even if there were nothing. He would keep calm and carry on.


    He had to perfect his Micro Heavenly Path to become a real Heavenly Path, and he could become a Great Emperor.


    Ye Futian continued cultivating, as did the others. Even if the Heavenly Path did not bestow more divine items, the ninety-nine heavens were still a mecca for cultivation. There was the Heavenly Path and the Path of the Emperors.


    Donghuang Diyuan walked to the area where the divine mountain was located. Not only her but also many cultivators from Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    She made her way up the mountain, then closed her eyes and quietly meditated.


    Many people looked at her. First, it was the Human Realm who brought up the prospect of marriage, then it was Ji Wudao who wanted to make her his Empress. If it was other women, they might have felt honored, but she was Donghuang Diyuan��the only daughter of Donghuang the Great. Perhaps she thought that it was more of an insult to her.


    She was probably facing a lot of pressure at present also.


    The 500th year of the Fate of the Emperor of Donghuang the Great was nearing. Did this mean that Ye Futian would also become a Great Emperor soon?


    If Ye Futian did not become an Emperor, no one could disturb the Fate of the Emperor of Donghuang the Great.


    Of course, Donghuang Diyuan was not the only person feeling pressured. Yu Sheng held the fate of the Devil World in his hands; Di Hao had been through many trials and setbacks; Lord Shaman had an upcoming battle with Ye Qingyao; Yan Guiyi and Dugu Wuxie had to compete with the new generation. Some had already surpassed them. There was also the return of many ancient Emperors who would regain their Emperor status. Being on the demigod list just would not cut it anymore.


    For some reason, many people all felt some pressure, whether a lot or little.


    The appearance of the Heavenly Path would lead the cultivation world back to its glory days, just as it had in ancient times, and the start of the Age of the Gods would usher in a time of chaos.


    What sort of stories would unfold in this time of chaos?

 Chapter 2823 - Ye Futians Divine Item

    In the ninety-nine heavens in the Heaven Realm, more and more cultivators were entering the demigod level while soaking in the power of the Heavenly Path.


    Even more had passed through divine tribulations and were cleansed by the Heavenly Path. This ablution of the Heavenly Path was a real ablution that differed from those previously and made the cultivators much stronger. Hence, those who went through tribulations here were considered lucky to have received this rare opportunity.


    Even many had started to take on the challenge to reach the Emperor-To-Be level. They were those that were top-ranking and on the demigod list.


    This present day, Lord Shaman of the Dark Court was soaking in the power of the Black Lotus. Divine power circulated him and was growing stronger by the minute. Above the skies, an incomparable divine might appeared, and Lord Shaman��s aura also became exceedingly frightening, causing many people to turn to look at him.


    Is he about to become a Great Emperor? the cultivators wondered to themselves. Lord Shaman��s cultivation level had been high all this time, and after attaining the Black Lotus, he could finally take the final step to becoming a Great Emperor. The aura he exuded now scared the cultivators in the Dark Court into withdrawal.


    The numerous cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens also drew back. They knew that Lord Shaman would be undergoing his divine tribulation soon and would be on his way to becoming a Great Emperor.


    Many people involuntarily looked toward Ye Qingyao. Lord Shaman and Ye Qingyao seemed to be vying for the spot of ruler of the Dark World. Now, Lord Shaman had become an Emperor-To-Be first and would start his journey to become a Great Emperor. For Ye Qingyao, this was not an ideal situation.


    However, Ye Qingyao did not seem concerned and continued her cultivation as usual.


    The Divine Tribulation of the Heavenly Path came down, and Lord Shaman raised his head to look at the sky. His eyes contained a deep hunger. He was finally on his way to becoming a Great Emperor. Sooner or later, the Dark World would be his.


    After a few months, Li Daoshou of the Divine Prefecture received his Divine Tribulation of the Great Path. As the first ranked in Donghuang Imperial Palace after Donghuang the Great, he also passed his tribulation and started his journey to becoming a Great Emperor.


    On seeing this, the cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens all looked shocked upon hearing this. Previously, only the ancient Emperors had broken through and became an Emperor-To-Be, but they had merely regained the level they had been at before. It was now much more straightforward. Yet now, it was the cultivators of today who would be starting on the Great Emperor��s journey.


    This also meant that the Age of the Gods was about to begin.


    More and more cultivators had become Emperors-To-Be, but Ye Futian took no notice. He continued immersing himself in his cultivation, and it was only almost after three years that he stopped cultivating. Although he did not have high expectations, he still did want to know if the Heavenly Path had prepared a gift for the Original Realm as well.


    Ye Futian examined the sky above the ninety-nine heavens. He reflected that all the cultivators had leveled up in the three years, with a few even becoming Emperors-To-Be. He felt overwhelmed with emotions and muttered to himself, ��The era before the disintegration of the Old Heavenly Path was called the Age of the Gods. If the Old Heavenly Path had not disintegrated, the Age of the Gods would probably have continued until today and certainly flourish to an even greater extent.��


    The West Emperor, who was beside him, understood what he meant. He added, ��Although cultivation is difficult, there are so many sentient beings on earth that it would be impossible to count. Over millions and millions of years, it is not impossible that a group of extraordinary beings could be born. If the Heavenly Path had not disintegrated, there would naturally be cultivators on the way to becoming Great Emperors. At present, Emperors-To-Be are appearing one after another. One group is like me, who were formally ancient Emperors; the other group is made of cultivators from the present age. They were previously already the finest of the bunch, and with the addition of countless years of cultivation, their cultivation level reached the maximum possible. Now with the appearance of the Heavenly Path, the road to becoming a Great Emperor is open. And with the bestowment of the divine items and the Tree of Enlightenment, it is natural that things would be as it is now. It is not as easy as you think it to be.��


    Ye Futian nodded after hearing West Emperor��s words. He was right. After the disintegration of the Heavenly Path, it took many cultivators and many years of accumulation before this group of top-notch cultivators arrived. And now, with this rare opportunity presented to them, it was normal that many cultivators would be able to become Emperors.


    He glanced at the cultivators from Ye Imperial Palace. They, too, had made significant progress, and a few had even become demigods. They were still hard at work, cultivating.


    ��Who do you think will become the first Emperor-To-Be within Ye Imperial Palace?�� the West Emperor asked.


    ��Out of them all, Supreme Swordlord has the highest level of cultivation. Previously he was already a demigod and is only a short distance away from moving up. After that, he obtained a divine sword, so he had the best chance. It would probably be Swordlord. Aside from him, I��m not very clear about the others,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Yes.�� West Emperor nodded. ��Blind Tie��s cultivation is pretty refined. He trains with the divine powers of the Heaven-splitting Divine Axe and the divine mountain. He has found the best-suited cultivation method for himself. He also stands a chance of becoming an Emperor-To-Be in the future, along with a few others who aren��t half bad. The cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace all have great potential. There may even be a few Great Emperors in the future.��


    If there was ever such a day, how glorious would Ye Imperial Palace be?


    Ye Futian would create a new age apart from the Six Great Emperors.


    ��Definitely,�� Ye Futian laughed and replied. When he had leveled up some more, he would become capable of gifting better training opportunities to the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace, just like the Old Heavenly Path had done with the Eight Legions in the past.


    As the two chatted idly, numerous people lifted their heads as finally another divine might appeared in the heavens. Their hearts raced as they waited.


    Sure enough, the Heavenly Path was about to bestow an eighth divine item. What would it be this time?


    A terrifying demonic Qi suddenly appeared in the heavens. It swept through the land, and its frightening air of dominance struck fear into the hearts of many.


    Would this divine item be a Demonic supreme treasure?


    The previous seven divine items included those to do with the Heaven Realm, Devil World, and the Buddhists. Now, the eighth item was to be a Demonic item!


    ��This is no coincidence; it��s for the Original Realm!��


    ��This Heavenly Path has a conscious of its own and knows what��s happening in the world. Therefore the gift for the Original World will be a demonic item.��


    Everyone knew that Ye Futian was the descendent of Emperor Ye Qing, and Emperor Ye Qing once ruled over the demons in the world. He was later exorcized.


    The Heavenly Path bestowing a demonic item now obviously meant it was for Ye Futian, which could also be said for the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian was the representative figure of the Original Realm.


    At that current moment, Ye Futian was also feeling rather shocked. Even though he had not held high expectations for this divine item, he was still surprised upon sensing the demonic power. Did the Heavenly Path have such a thorough understanding of the beings of the world?


    Did the bestowment of the eighth divine item mean that it wished to rule over the world again?


    Finally, the divine item descended from the heavens. It was an enormous Divine Demon Diagram that was so large that it obscured the sky.


    This Divine Demon Diagram seemed to contain another world within it. The Honghuang Realm from ancient times was carved and had the sun, moon, and stars circling it. It included wind, fire, thunderbolts, rivers, mountains, and all tribes. Countless divine lights shone down. It was as if the people were looking at a beautiful and stunning picture of the Demon World.


    From within seeped out a terrifying demonic aura, and different ones at that.


    ��It��s the supreme treasure of the Demon World.�� The cultivators were astonished. Although this item might not be as good as the Heaven-splitting Divine Axe or the Nine Dragon True Qi, it was a supreme treasure and extremely valuable for those cultivating demonic powers.


    Would Ye Futian continue Emperor Ye Qing��s legacy and rule over the demonic clans?


    He indeed seemed to already have many Demons under him, just that he faced constraints due to his current level. The demonic clans had been in decline right after the fall of Emperor Ye Qing. Would this divine diagram bring about a change of fortunes?

 Chapter 2824 - Ten Years Remaining

    In 21 years, eight opportunities had come from the Heavenly Path.


    This time, it was a divine item from the Demon Realm bestowed upon Ye Futian.


    The descendant of Emperor Ye Qing received a divine item from the Demon Realm today. And on this day, there were only the last ten years left of Donghuang the Great��s 500-year reign of the Divine Prefecture.


    What would the fate of the Divine Prefecture be like?


    How would the rivalry between Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great end?


    At the moment, Ye Futian was not thinking about ten years later yet. He saw the huge Divine Demon Diagram floating in the air, and his superconscious seeped into it directly. Instantly, it was as if he��d entered the demonic world inside the diagram. The world recorded in the diagram turned into a realistic world, appearing right before his eyes.


    He could sense a powerful demonic aura. There were dragons, phoenixes, kylins, kunpengs, golden turtles, divine birds, gold-winged rocs, taoties, qiongqis�� All demons existed together in this demonic world. He could feel their existence. Of course, this was not real, but it felt no different from something real.


    He could feel the Divine Power of all sorts of demons in this diagram.


    ��You can come in to cultivate,�� Ye Futian said to the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace. Many of the people of the Ye Imperial Palace cultivated the Demonic Way. However, many had not come here. If the great demons that joined him from Demon God Mountain could have assistance from such a divine item, their cultivations would improve rapidly.


    ��Palace Lord Ye, are we able to study from this divine item to cultivate too?�� other cultivators asked. They were tempted, but they already thought that the Divine Demon Diagram belonged to Ye Futian by default and thus did not dare to be brash.


    Nowadays, no one dared to offend Ye Futian. Even Great Emperor-To-Be��s did not dare to do so.


    ��Since this is a divine item from the Heavenly Path, anyone who wants to use it for cultivation can use it,�� Ye Futian replied. He was extremely generous, which surprised many people.


    However, since Ye Futian agreed, they naturally would not hold back. Many people��s divine consciousnesses entered the Divine Demon Diagram in the void and studied the Divine Power of the Divine Demon.


    ��Third Brother, see if this divine item suits you or not,�� Ye Futian transmitted his voice to Gu Dongliu. Gu Dongliu��s expression changed as he looked at Ye Futian. This guy��


    They were extremely close, so he understood Ye Futian��s underlying message. From what he was saying, was he preparing to gift this Divine Demon Diagram to him?


    The Heavenly Path had sent down this divine item, yet Ye Futian wanted to give it away.


    This guy!


    ��I received a lot of opportunities after the God��s Ruins Continent was discovered,�� Gu Dongliu replied by transmitting his voice. ��This item was a gift from the Heavenly Path here. It��s best if you keep it.��


    ��This item is extraordinary, but it��s not that significant for me. It doesn��t matter whether I have it because it does not affect my abilities. But if it suits you, it might be very beneficial if you use it for cultivation, so why not?�� Ye Futian said. ��Third Brother, since when were you so polite with me? Second Sister wouldn��t be like this.��


    Everyone in the world thought that he was the descendant of Emperor Ye Qing, but only he knew that he was not.


    Even if the Heavenly Path mistakenly gifted him this Divine Demon Diagram, it is not the most compatible for him. Instead, it was better for Third Brother.


    ��Okay, I��ll try it,�� Gu Dongliu said, nodding. Then his divine consciousness stretched towards the Divine Demon Diagram to study the power of the divine demon.


    Ye Futian smiled. Just as he had said, he had his own ��little Heavenly Path�� now. It was true that this divine item was not very meaningful for him. Naturally, making the most out of it would be the best.


    However, he could also study it and cultivate now.


    After his divine consciousness entered the Divine Demon Diagram, he sensed the vast and boundless world. His divine consciousness touched different places in this world, feeling the powers of different divine demons. He also sensed the many divine consciousnesses that were cultivating in here.


    ��Oh?��


    At this time, Ye Futian sensed a familiar divine consciousness. He followed it and found the region where the Divine Power of the pure-blooded dragon was at. Here, he felt the force of the Dragon God and saw the ancient Dragon God.


    His divine consciousness materialized into a silhouette in the world. He looked in one direction and asked, ��Princess, how come you��re in here too?��


    As soon as he spoke, Donghuang Diyuan��s figure appeared in another direction.


    She had received the Power of the Dragon Phoenix, so after she saw the Divine Demon Diagram, she wanted to come in here and study the Dragon Phoenix Divine Power, but she was caught by Ye Futian.


    ��You were the one who said that everyone can cultivate the gift from the Heavenly Path. Is there a problem?�� Donghuang Diyuan asked. ��Plus, aren��t people from your Ye Imperial Palace cultivating in the Divine Mountain?��


    ��What you said is naturally correct. I was just a bit surprised.�� Ye Futian looked at Donghuang Diyuan with something like a half-smile, and his voice was a bit teasing.


    Donghuang Diyuan did not respond and continued cultivating, which surprised Ye Futian.


    This woman had been extremely arrogant before. How come she was more shameless now?


    However, she had rejected Ji Wudao��s invitation before. The Nine Dragons True Qi had descended from the heavenly palace that Ji Wudao had been at, but she��d still been unmoved. After all, Ji Wudao wanted her to become the empress. Donghuang Diyuan naturally would not go there.


    ��Be my guest.�� Ye Futian��s divine consciousness left this place after seeing that Donghuang Diyuan ignored him.


    After a while, Ye Futian��s divine consciousness exited from the Divine Demon Diagram. He looked up into the sky. He could still sense the presence of the Heavenly Path. Eight divine items had descended from the Heavenly Path in the past 21 years.


    Did the eight items correspond with the Eight Legions?


    Did the Heavenly Path want to make the other Eight Legions surrender and have the Seven Realms and the Original Realm submit under the Heavenly Path?


    This was possible.


    Would more divine items descend?


    This was not only Ye Futian��s thought. It was also the thought of all cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens. However, most cultivators believed that this was probably not possible.


    After all, they��d grasped a rhythm in these 21 years. Since the eight divine items corresponded to the Eight Realms, there would be no more divine items naturally.


    In addition, would the emperor��s fate of Donghuang the Great end ten years later?


    Would Ye Futian be able to become emperor in these ten years?


    No one knew.


    Even if Ye Futian became an emperor, would he be able to sway Donghuang the Great?


    Donghuang the Great himself was a prodigy and genius, unmatched in history. He reached enlightenment, became a Great Emperor, and ruled the Divine Prefecture. Countless people worshipped him, and he��d created a new era. In ten more years, he would have ruled the Divine Prefecture for 500 years. He had been an emperor for even longer, while Ye Futian had just become a Great Emperor. Could he engage Donghuang the Great in a battle?


    Perhaps only time could tell.


    Many people were a bit excited for the time to come. 21 years was like the blink of an eye. The last ten years would pass very quickly��in an instant.


    Everyone was waiting to see, awaiting the changes of the world. Would the Buddhist clan��s prediction come true? Would the emperor��s fate of Donghuang the Great end?

 Chapter 2825 - Ambition

    Above the heavenly palace in the ninety-nine heavens, Ji Wudao bathed under the divine light. The Nine Dragons True Qi had already entered his body and seemed to meld into his Path. His entire body grew more dazzling, and he hovered above the heaven palace like the lord of this world.


    He was a Heavenly Emperor and could help the Heavenly Path manage the world order.


    Ji Wudao opened his eyes and gazed at the people cultivating in the ninety-nine heavens. ��More than 20 years have passed,�� he stated. ��The Heavenly Path from the ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm Heavenly Emperor Palace bestowed divine gifts for the world to cultivate with. You all have cultivated for more than 20 years here as well. Now, is it time for you to leave?��


    His voice filled the ninety-nine heavens. Countless people opened their eyes and looked up at Ji Wudao. They saw that, at this moment, Ji Wudao already had the appearance of a Heavenly Emperor. He was unparalleled and high and mighty, looming above all life.


    Ji Wudao had given the order of expulsion, making everyone leave.


    However, the complete Heavenly Path order was here. This was an Emperor Path Opportunity where cultivators could reach enlightenment. Who would want to miss this chance? Who was willing to leave?


    Plus, the divine item from the Heavenly Path was here. Who could bear to leave?


    ��Ji Wudao, this place has the Emperor Path Opportunity. People of all seven realms have gathered here. Plus, a divine item has descended from the Heavenly Path. The Heavenly Path here has a consciousness. Since it��s willing to drop down an opportunity, it��s naturally giving all cultivators a chance. Everyone can cultivate here.�� The voice that spoke up actually belonged to Di Hao of the Human Realm. Divine light wrapped around his body. He was also in the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane.


    Actually, Di Hao and Ji Wudao were the same. He had already entered the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane before coming here. The Human Ancestor should have found a Path of the Emperors in the Human Realm and invited cultivators of every realm there.


    However, this was incomparable to the Heavenly Path here.


    Ji Wudao��s eyes scanned Di Hao, and he said, ��As expected, people are never satisfied. Do not forget where you are standing right now. This is the ninety-nine heavens of my Heaven Realm.��


    ��So what?�� a Great Emperor-To-Be Plane from the Dark World said indifferently. ��Strong cultivators from every realm are gathered here. Is the Heavenly Imperial Palace going to drive us out?��


    Right now, strong cultivators from all the top forces were there. No matter how strong Ji Wudao was, would he be able to force everyone to leave?


    If this led to backlash, it wasn��t certain who would defeat whom.


    Hearing the other��s words, Ji Wudao��s gaze turned toward the Great Emperor-To-Be and suddenly smiled. It looked a little sarcastic.


    His body continued upward, and Ji Wudao was floating above the peak of the heavenly palace, standing at the dome of the sky. Divine light showered down from the dome of the sky, bathing him in the radiance. Like a Heavenly Emperor, he stated loudly, ��Do you know who is the Heavenly Path?��


    When everyone heard Ji Wudao��s words, their pupils constricted. This was a question that they��d been asking.


    Everyone knew that this Heavenly Path had a consciousness, but who exactly was the Heavenly Path?


    Was it the remnants of consciousness from the ancient Heavenly Path or the ancestor of today��s world? Since it appeared here, it was most likely the latter. But in that case, whose side would the Heavenly Path be on?


    Since the Heavenly Path could bestow divine items for them to cultivate with, it naturally could also send down destructive power to kill them all and turn this place into Armageddon.


    ��Who is the Heavenly Path?�� someone asked. Countless people looked up to the sky. Everyone wanted to know the answer.


    Who was in charge of the world order right now?


    Ji Wudao did not answer the question. His eyes looked down, and his gaze penetrated the ninety-nine heavens. At that moment, all cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens could see the supreme figure at the top of the heavens.


    The same thought appeared in their minds��the Heavenly Emperor was about to return. The age that belonged to the Heaven Realm was also about to return.


    ��Of course. Suppose you are willing to cultivate in the Heavenly Imperial Palace and become a member of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. In that case, you can naturally remain in the ninety-nine heavens and study the Heavenly Path,�� Ji Wudao announced, his voice shaking the ninety-nine heavens. ��The Heavenly Imperial Palace has stayed hidden for many years. Now, we are officially recruiting cultivators to join the Heavenly Imperial Palace. However, I must remind everyone. Any cultivators who join the Heavenly Imperial Palace must be governed by our rules and obey the orders of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. Those who only wish to enjoy the cultivation resources but aren��t willing to follow orders, I must remind them, traitors or rebels will be punished by the laws of the Heaven Realm.��


    While Ji Wudao spoke, a line of strong cultivators appeared behind him, hovering in the air. They were all strong cultivators of the Heaven Realm. Other than the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, Four Heavenly Kings, and the Nine Star Lords that the world had already seen before, there were many other strong figures. This included some strong figures with extremely high statuses and Great Emperor-To-Bes. They were above the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty.


    Just as Ji Wudao had said, the Heaven Realm had been a weak force for the past years. They had practically isolated themselves from the world to cultivate and rarely showed themselves in the world. They cared even less about the matters of the seven realms and focused on cultivating.


    This low cover has lasted for a few centuries until today. The Heavenly Path appeared in the Heavenly Imperial Palace, bestowing an opportunity and giving divine items. Ji Wudao entered the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane. He was about to enter the Great Emperor Plane and become a Heavenly Emperor.


    The Heaven Realm was finally coming back to compete with the seven realms to become the domineering lord.


    In much of history, the Heaven Realm had always been the top realm of the world, standing at the peak of the heavens.


    Ji Wudao was determined to recover the glory of the Heaven Realm. He would enter the Great Emperor Plane, become the Heavenly Emperor, lead the Heaven Realm toward a new golden age, and manage the world order for the Heavenly Path.


    The seven realms��including the Original Realm��would have to obey the Heaven Realm��s orders.


    Now, the first thing that the Heavenly Imperial Palace had to do was expand its numbers and attract cultivators of the world to join the Heavenly Imperial Palace. He believed that with the existence of the Heavenly Path, paired with the divine item, countless people would be willing to join the Heavenly Imperial Palace.


    He was not worried about traitors either. He was already a Great Emperor-To Be and would soon step into the position of Heavenly Emperor. Starting the moment of his official enthronement, those who followed him would thrive, those who went against would die, and those who dared to betray him would be killed with no exceptions!


    In the ninety-nine heavens, countless people looked up to Ji Wudao. A new age was about to arrive. Would the start of the Age of Gods be accompanied by the renaissance of the Heaven Realm?


    How could the Age of Gods not have the Heaven Realm��s Heavenly Imperial Palace?


    Ji Wudao��s ambition was finally exposed.


    ��How can we join the Heavenly Imperial Palace?�� an elder asked. After that, many people in the ninety-nine heavens spoke one after another. They all cultivated in different realms, but many people were not directly under the rule of those emperor-level forces. They were able to determine their fate.


    Now, the rise of the Heaven Realm was unstoppable. Since Ji Wudao did not care about the Six Emperors and had the Heavenly Path as his background, people naturally did not mind joining the Heavenly Imperial Palace to cultivate.


    They already saw the future of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. Its rise was imperative.


    Ye Futian also looked up at Ji Wudao. This person was also a genius and an extraordinary talent. He had kept low for many years, hiding his ambition, but today, he could no longer hide it. Perhaps, he did not need to hide it anymore!

 Chapter 2826 - Try

    A line of mighty figures appeared below the heavenly palace. Ji Wudao looked at everyone and continued, ��Those who are willing to cultivate in the Heavenly Imperial Palace, come to the ninety-nine heavens. From now on, I will reorganize the Heavenly Imperial Palace and govern the Heaven Realm.��


    Strong cultivators from all seven realms gazed at Ji Wudao. Many of them shot into the sky. The lower ones moved first, going toward the ninety-nine heavens.


    The top figures did not move for now. They seemed to be calculating things.


    The place right under the Heavenly Path was undoubtedly the most suitable for cultivation. It was the Path of the Emperors.


    If they missed this chance, their chances of becoming an emperor would be much smaller.


    Thinking of this, how could the strong cultivators pass it up?


    However, they also had to consider the consequences. If they joined the Heavenly Imperial Palace, they would have to follow Ji Wudao��s orders. At that time, if chaos erupted in the seven realms and there was war, they would not be able to refuse orders to join the war. You had to pay the corresponding price for any benefits you enjoyed.


    More and more strong cultivators stepped out, gathering toward the space below the heavenly palace. Those were the ones who were willing to cultivate in the Heavenly Imperial Palace. They also had very strong cultivations. The Heavenly Imperial Palace governed the Heaven Realm. They probably did not even want ordinary people. They would have to go through a selection process.


    At this time, some top figures stepped forward too. Those who had gone through tribulation started walking towards that side. They needed to cultivate under the Heavenly Path even more because it contained hope to enter the Great Emperor Plane.


    Everyone saw a large group of strong cultivators swarm toward that region. They felt speechless inside, but this situation was expected too.


    ��It seems that we must leave,�� the Supreme Swordlord whispered. Even though Ye Futian was powerful and might not be any weaker than Ji Wudao, this was Ji Wudao��s territory��below the Heavenly Path. Ji Wudao might borrow strength from the Heavenly Path. In that case, Ye Futian would be at a significant disadvantage if they started fighting.


    They even thought, ��Shouldn��t the Six Emperors be curious that a complete Heavenly Path appeared here?��


    But they had not appeared. Could it also be due to the existence of this Heavenly Path?


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��In that case, let us return. Bring this Divine Demon Diagram away.��


    With that, he looked toward where the Divine Demon Diagram was. Many people were still studying and cultivating it, but Ye Futian said, ��Everyone, this Divine Demon Diagram was given to the Original Realm by the Heavenly Path. I will take it away.��


    Hearing his words, many people felt disappointed. It seemed that they lost their cultivation chance.


    Ye Futian was going to take away the Divine Demon Diagram. The other strong cultivators would take their divine items away from the Heaven Realm.


    There would not be a second holy land of cultivation like this.


    Ye Futian raised a hand and grabbed at the Divine Demon Diagram. A gust of supreme Divine Power enveloped the Divine Demon Diagram, and then millions of beams of divine light shot out from it. It did not seem to be very easy to take it away.


    Using his mind, Ye Futian covered the entire diagram with Divine Power. Then his mind twitched again, and the Divine Demon Diagram vanished from the spot. Ye Futian had put it away in his world.


    When the strong cultivators saw this, they were all stunned. Ye Futian had collected it with one thought.


    It was a pity that they would never perceive the Divine Power of great beasts again.


    The top figures of other emperor-level forces started copying Ye Futian, moving to collect their divine items. Ji Wudao was only driving them away, making them leave the ninety-nine heavens, but did not stop them from taking away the divine items.


    Since the Heavenly Path bestowed these divine items, it naturally belonged to the consciousness of the Heavenly Path. Even Ji Wudao would probably be unable to go against its will.


    The divine items disappeared one by one, collected by the Great Emperor-To-Bes. They were prepared to bring them back to cultivate. Clearly, they were unwilling to clash directly with Ji Wudao under the Heavenly Path. It was already a feat to receive a divine item.


    The people of the Ye Imperial Palace gathered together, getting ready to leave with Ye Futian. After cultivating here for more than 20 years, they had made great gains. Everyone��s levels had improved. Leaving was quite a pity, but the Ye Imperial Palace believed this was not the only Path of the Emperors.


    Ye Futian clearly would enter the Great Emperor Realm. At that time, Ye Futian could create a path for them, so the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace were not worried about the future. This was also why they were calmer.


    ��Yu Sheng, Qingyao, I��m leaving now,�� Ye Futian said to Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao, gazing at the two.


    ��Okay.�� Yu Sheng nodded and did not say anything else.


    ��All right,�� Ye Qingyao also said, nodding in Ye Futian��s direction. Then Ye Futian led the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace to leave first. They departed very calmly. This place did not belong to them, after all. It was the Heaven Realm��s territory.


    After Ye Futian��s group left, the cultivators of other realms gradually left. However, many strong figures also remained. In fact, there were some Great Emperor-To-Bes who were willing to stay. They wanted to continue cultivating under the Heavenly Path, though it was unclear whether it was willingly or had no other choice.


    Could Ji Wudao control them all?


    However, this had nothing to do with Ye Futian for now.


    ��


    After Ye Futian��s group returned to the Ye Imperial Palace in the God��s Ruins Continent, he took out the Divine Demonic Diagram and had it float above the Ye Imperial Palace. All the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace could study from it.


    The demon clan cultivators originally from the Demon God Mountain were extremely excited when they sensed the auras in the Divine Demon Diagram. This was practically a supreme divine item for them��a true treasure.


    ��Third Brother, this Divine Demon Diagram will be under your possession from now on,�� Ye Futian said to Gu Dongliu.


    ��Okay,�� Gu Dongliu said. He accepted it without complaints.


    Ye Futian left and went to the steps of the Ye Imperial Palace. Standing before the great pavilion, he gazed at the entire Ye Imperial Palace.


    ��Little Condor,�� Ye Futian called. Instantly, Little Condor flapped its wings in the distance and appeared before Ye Futian in a flash. ��Boss, what��s up?��


    ��Come with me.�� Ye Futian turned and went to the cultivation court. Little Condor also followed Ye Futian.


    ��Sit.�� Ye Futian pointed somewhere, and Little Condor sat down, looking at Ye Futian with some confusion.


    Then Ye Futian sat down across from him. Training his gaze on Little Condor, he opened up his mind. Little Condor immediately understood what Ye Futian was thinking. There was excitement in his eyes like he was anticipating this very much.


    A gust of Divine Power seeped out of Ye Futian��s body and enveloped Little Condor��s body. Then with the movement of his thoughts, Little Condor��s huge body vanished from the spot.


    There was a boundless void in the world within Ye Futian��s body. Little Condor��s figure appeared in the void. He flapped his wings, and he studied the world with his eyes. Was this Master��s world? It looked like a complete universe.


    Whoosh! Little Condor flapped his wings, creating a gale of wind. He flew forward in the void. The boundless universe felt deep and mysterious to the Little Condor.


    ��Doable.�� A thought appeared in Ye Futian��s mind. He had wondered before if his ��little Heavenly Path�� would be like the Heaven Realm after it was complete.


    But what would it be like if it was incomplete like now?

 Chapter 2827 - Experiment

    Little Condor flew madly but could not fly out of this void. His wings covered the sky and sun, and his vast eyes stared into the bottomless void. ��Master, is this the Heavenly Path that you created? It��s at the same level as the Heaven Realm of the Outer Realms. I can sense the aura of the Path.��


    ��Little Condor, I want to experiment on you. It might have some risks, so it��s okay if you��re unwilling. I��ll find someone else.�� Ye Futian��s voice streamed in. Little Condor��s eyes shone, and he said, ��Master, of course, I��m willing.��


    As he spoke, excitement glimmered in his eyes. ��If I succeed, will I be the first demon god in your universe?��


    This was a universe world and Heavenly Path. He could feel that it was at the same level as the Heavenly Path in the Outer Realms. However, it was still evolving. If it reached the final point, would it become the Heavenly Path itself?


    In that case, as the first demon beast cultivating under this Heavenly Path, would he become the number one pioneering demon? It would be like being the first cultivator since the Heavenly Path opened up in the world.


    How could he pass up this chance and give it to someone else?


    Even though Condor Sama had not read a lot of ancient literature before, he had still heard of many! He wasn��t stupid!


    ��Okay.�� Ye Futian nodded. His universe was still evolving and perfecting gradually. With the addition of his experience in the Heaven Realm, he wanted to put it into practice.


    In the ancient Age of Gods, there had been Eight Legions below the Heavenly Path. They represented the Heavenly Path to govern the world order. These Eight Legions were opportunities bestowed by the Heavenly Path. If you were also extraordinarily talented at cultivating, you could receive the opportunity to manage the world for the Heavenly Path.


    Not long ago, the Heavenly Path in the Heaven Realm also gifted eight divine items. This made him thoughtful. He had even seen the Nine Dragons True Qi descend from the Heavenly Path. Ji Wudao had bathed in it, absorbing the Nine Dragons True Qi to build his Heavenly Emperor Form. Had the former Heavenly Emperor of the Deva had such an opportunity before too?


    All of this made Ye Futian wonder if he could create a batch of top cultivators by developing his own ��little Heavenly Path�� to become the rulers of world law under his Heavenly Path?


    Thus, the first thing he did after returning was to immediately have Little Condor try out his world.


    Little Condor was still flapping his wings and flying in the boundless space. At the same time, the Original Divine Power of the Law in the sky fell upon Little Condor. It passed through Little Condor��s body in an instant. The huge divine bird bathed under the divine light. Little Condor studied the Divine Power of Order while flying, simultaneously absorbing the power he could comprehend.


    ��So comfortable.�� Little Condor was reveling in it. Was this the Divine Power of his master��s Heavenly Law?


    ��Give me more,�� Little Condor said excitedly, looking up.


    Poof, poof��


    Pow!


    There was a huge boom, and Little Condor��s entire body went numb. He couldn��t stop shaking, and many of his extremely sharp feathers fell down too. A burnt smell seemed to come from his body.


    But soon, an extremely comfortable Divine Power enveloped him, healing his injuries. Little Condor almost cried out loud.


    Why was he getting bullied like this!


    He was the number one divine demon of this Heavenly Path. How could he be bullied?


    After a long while, Ye Futian asked, ��How do you feel?��


    ��This Heavenly Path is not much different from the Heavenly Path of the Heaven Realm. Master, I can feel some homology, and I can cultivate here too, but the order of this Heavenly Path is still a bit lacking. It��s not as complete as that Heavenly Path,�� Little Condor said, discussing what he felt.


    ��That is indeed so.�� Ye Futian nodded. The World Tree was probably a divine item from the ancient Heavenly Path, so it connected. The Heavenly Path of the Heaven Realm might even be a remnant of the ancient Heavenly Path.


    At this time, Ye Futian appeared before Little Condor.


    ��Master,�� Little Condor called out. ��This is your Heavenly Path. Is there a way for me to become a deity directly and be the first demon emperor of the Heavenly Path?��


    Ye Futian shot a look at him. This guy had quite the appetite. He actually wanted to become the first demon emperor without cultivating.


    ��Nice fantasy,�� Ye Futian said. ��According to legends, in the ancient times, both divine items and deities were born along with the Heavenly Path. You��re a being from the Outer Realms. Naturally, you have to cultivate by yourself to reach the Path.��


    ��There should still be shortcuts, right?�� Condor Sama looked at Ye Futian with pitiful puppy eyes. If they weren��t close, Ye Futian would get fooled by his acting.


    ��I can try,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Okay.�� Little Condor��s eyes brightened as soon as he heard Ye Futian. He was a bit excited.


    Was Condor Sama about to become a deity? Was the first demon emperor of the Heavenly Path going to be born?


    In the future, Condor Sama wanted to have countless palaces and rule over all the pretty demonesses of the world.


    Ye Futian glared at him, and then he vanished. Strands of auras flowed through the void, like the aura of the Heavenly Path Origin at the creation of this world.


    ��I will baptize your flesh with the Power of the Origin of the Heavenly Law and reshape your divine soul. This way, you can see if you��re a better fit for this Heavenly Path,�� Ye Futian said. ��However, if you reach enlightenment under this Heavenly Path later but it��s incomplete, then your abilities might be a bit restricted in the outside world.��


    If his Heavenly Path could be completed one day, he could replace the outer world. But if he couldn��t, the people who reached enlightenment in the Heavenly Path within his body would still be restricted in the outside world. However, this was not very important. The outside world didn��t have a completed Heavenly Path either.


    Other than the current Heaven Realm.


    Strands of power of Heavenly Law dropped down onto Little Condor��s body. In an instant, Little Bonder bathed in the divine light of the Heavenly Law. The brilliant light covered the vast space. He enjoyed it quietly, letting his physical body and soul go through the baptism without struggling.


    Ye Futian watched all of this happen. When the baptism ended, he planned on using the Divine Power of the Law to baptize Little Condor��s body and soul directly and see if this kind of immersion technique could help him comprehend the cultivation, thus forming his own Divine Power.


    This cultivation technique was even more aggressive than the Heaven Realm��s Heavenly Path sending down divine items. He wanted to quickly create a top figure.


    ��


    In the Ye Imperial Palace, many people started cultivating in isolation after returning. Many others studied the Divine Demon Diagram.


    ��What is the palace lord doing?�� someone asked curiously. Ye Futian was weird this time. He went into isolation as soon as he returned without giving any instructions.


    ��Maybe he had some thoughts while in the Heaven Realm,�� someone else answered. Everyone nodded. This was the only possibility.


    After all, it was getting closer and closer to the time foretold by the Buddha of Destiny. What would happen if that day really came?


    No one knew!


    The cultivators who��d gone to the Heaven Realm had all left, but a frighteningly large number of cultivators remained to cultivate in the Heaven Realm, joining the Heavenly Imperial Palace. Despite not having a Great Emperor, the Heavenly Imperial Palace had become the emperor-level force with the most cultivators in one go!

 Chapter 2828 - Coffins Descend from the Heavens

    After some time in the Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian��s world did not only have Little Condor in it anymore. The core figures of the Ye Imperial Palace all came here to cultivate.


    The experiment on Little Condor had succeeded. Even though the Micro Heavenly Path was not complete yet, it was already like the Heavenly Path. Because Ye Futian was the Heavenly Path, he could bestow some opportunities when people came in to cultivate.


    Everyone sat cross-legged on different starry worlds. The Law of this Heavenly Path challenged their bodies and souls, making them match perfectly with the Power of the Law of this world.


    After the baptism, Ye Futian gave different Divine Power of the Law to other people for them to study.


    For the Supreme Swordlord, the Law of the Sword Way fell upon his body, letting him sense the Divine Power of the Law for the Micro Heavenly Path.


    Lord Chen bathed in the divine light of the stars.


    Daoist Monk Mu bathed in the divine light of the sun.


    Ye Futian gave different kinds of opportunities for all of the cultivators. He would also grow with the people of the Ye Imperial Palace as the Micro Heavenly Path continued to evolve and perfect, becoming more and more suitable for cultivation.


    In this world, Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the empty space. He gazed down below. There was a figure beside him��it was Hua Jieyu.


    ��In the ancient times, the Heavenly Path had the Eight Legions below it,�� Hua Jieyu. ��After your Heavenly Path is completed, the strong figures of the Ye Imperial Palace can take their own roles to rule a portion of the Heavenly Path.��


    ��You thought of that too?�� Ye Futian asked, chuckling. Hua Jieyu��s idea was the same as his. The Heavenly Path would naturally be ruled by his people in the future.


    ��Daoist Monk Mu can govern the sun as the God of the Sun,�� Hua Jieyu spoke calmly. She did not seem to be saying it carelessly. Instead, she was already thinking about the future. ��Lord Chen can govern the stars as the God of the Stars. The people of the Demon God Mountain can be gods of their own demons, but there also needs to be someone in charge to lead the various tribes of demon gods. It can be Third Brother. Qingyuan cultivates the Way of Life. She can be the God of Life. Those of the Four Corners Village can protect the Heavenly Path.��


    ��You are this confident that the Micro Heavenly Path can be completed and replace the Heavenly Path?�� Ye Futian asked with a smile.


    ��Of course.�� Hua Jieyu nodded.


    ��Then you will be the empress of this Heavenly Path,�� Ye Futian said, smiling. Everything that his godfather had wished for back then seemed to be within reach now, but he still had not appeared yet.


    Where was he? What was he planning?


    ��There��s another problem,�� Ye Futian continued saying. ��This Micro Heavenly Path is continuously evolving and improving, and I can feel that my abilities are getting stronger as well, but I don��t know the technique to complete the Micro Heavenly Path. There is no one I can learn from either��even the cultivators who had broken the Path in the past probably cultivated in ways different than mine. I am going down a special path, so I still haven��t found the way to complete the Micro Heavenly Path. It might take a very long time.��


    After entering the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane, becoming a Great Emperor was definite. It just needed time, even if you were immersed under the Heavenly Path.


    But it was different for him. He had his own Micro Heavenly Path. How could he complete himself?


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    He still had not found the answer as of yet.


    ��Since you can create such a situation, you will have a solution,�� Hua Jieyu said. ��The Micro Heavenly Path is complete and similar to all the other realms. Normally, evolution takes a long time. I feel that the final Micro Heavenly Path will be much stronger than the typical Great Emperor. The other Great Emperors won��t be able to compare.��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��I do think the same for this. It won��t be easy to complete it, but once it is complete, it will be above all else��stronger than the average Great Emperor.��


    ��But what I��m worried about is that before my Path is completed, those ancient emperors will have already done it and stepped into the Great Emperor Plane,�� Ye Futian said. After all, those ancient emperors were only repeating the cultivation path again.


    Now, they had already received such an opportunity.


    The time it took for them to enter the Emperor Plane would be much shorter than him. They would reach it before him.


    ��


    What Ye Futian thought indeed became true. Those ancient emperors had already been Great Emperors countless years ago. After entering the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane, becoming a Great Emperor was the natural next step.


    Those from the Ancient God Clans of the divine Prefecture were the first to enter the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane.


    Ye Futian��s cultivation state in the Ye Imperial Palace was disrupted midway through.


    An extremely shocking news came from the outside world. It was also terrible news for the Ye Imperial Palace.


    That day in the Heaven Realm, Ji Wudao had made everyone leave. Only those who joined the Heavenly Imperial Palace could stay to cultivate. But after that, he had an exchange of interest with a group of Great Emperor-To-Bes.


    Many Great Emperor-To-Bes stayed in the ninety-nine heavens to cultivate.


    Haotian the Great was one of them. And while cultivating in the ninety-nine heavens, the Great Path of Haotian the Great��s was completed, and he entered the Emperor Plane.


    Allegedly, the Heavenly Path produced an encouraging sight. The divine light of the Great Emperor enveloped the ninety-nine heavens, and countless cultivators bathed under the radiance.


    A new emperor was born in the world.


    This news swept across the world with terrifying speed, spreading everywhere.


    Nowadays, the Seven Realms and the God��s Ruins Continent discussed this matter.


    Other than the Six Emperors, there was now a seventh Great Emperor. What shocking news this was.


    Haotian the Great was a Great Emperor from ancient times. Though no one knew how strong he had been in the past, his name was extremely domineering. When he became emperor, the world had produced a strange phenomenon. The Heavenly Path had resonated, and the cultivators of the ninety-nine heavens all felt the divine might. They felt the urge to worship him.


    At the same time, everyone thought of something else.


    Earlier in the ninety-nine heavens, Ye Futian had been so domineering, intimidating all of the strong cultivators by himself. Everyone believed that Ye Futian would be enthroned, becoming an unparalleled figure, perhaps have a battle with Donghuang the Great, or even overthrow the position of Donghuang the Great.


    No one expected that the world would be unpredictable and change so quickly.


    Haotian the Great had returned completely, entering the Emperor Plane. How could he let Ye Futian remain?


    This prodigy who had stunned the era was facing a desperate situation again. He may very well die in the hands of Haotian the Great. Perhaps, he may never enter the Great Emperor Realm.


    After Ye Futian heard this news, the Ye Imperial Palace was facing a great enemy. Strong cultivators gradually arrived at the surrounding areas of the Ye Imperial Palace. Some even spied on the movements of the Ye Imperial Palace.


    That day, beams of divine light shot from the dome of the sky outside the Ye Imperial Palace. Countless people looked up, staring at the descending divine light with shock.


    Was the Great Emperor coming?


    The next moment, under the shocked stares of all the strong cultivators, many golden items descended amidst the beams of divine light. They fell towards the Ye Imperial Palace, descending onto the space above the Ye Imperial Palace.


    ��Coffins!��


    Golden coffins descended from the sky, landing in the space above the Ye Imperial Palace and guarding against all directions.


    A catastrophe was imminent!

 Chapter 2829 - A Historical Scene

    Since Haotian the Great became emperor, the news swept across the Gods�� Ruins Continent. Many of the cultivators outside the Ye Imperial Palace had all left for temporary refuge. They were worried they would suffer from a disaster like the alliance by the Ancient God Clans in the past.


    However, many strong cultivators also stayed. They held a deep faith in the Ye Imperial Palace and chose to remain despite facing a life-or-death crisis.


    At this time, countless people looked up to the sky. With the Ye Imperial Palace as the center, a dazzling golden divine light shone down in the vast and boundless region. Huge golden coffins hovered in the air as if they had come to collect the corpses of the Ye Imperial Palace cultivators.


    Haotian the Great had returned, entering the Emperor Plane. He would first sacrifice the most monstrous figure of the current world��Ye Futian��to announce his return.


    The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace all walked out and floated above the Ye Imperial Palace, looking up at the sky.


    Boom�� There was a huge sound, and the sky and land shook. A hole appeared above the dome in the sky, opening up a vast golden passageway. There was a group of might figures at the other end of the golden passageway. They looked down at the lower sky with intense murderous intent.


    These people were indeed strong figures from the Haotian Clan. Haotian the Great of their clan had returned together, so they had prospered in connection.


    The Haotian Clan was an emperor-level force now. Soon, it would gloriously become one of the top forces of the world.


    The long-cherished wish that they had yearned for had finally come true.


    More dazzling divine light showered down from the sky. A peerless figure appeared in the center of the heavenly passageway. He seemed to be in another world, but the cultivators in the lower sky could see him clearly.


    It was a Great Emperor. Haotian the Great had returned.


    Returning as a Great Emperor, his temperament had changed drastically. He was utterly superior and looked down on the world. Merely standing there, he represented the heavens. All beings and lives were below him.


    Seeing the scene before them, the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace and surrounding areas all felt hopeless. The Great Emperor��s might made them feel powerless. The Great Emperor-To-Bes had already been unmatchable in the past, and no one could stop them.


    Let alone a completed Great Emperor.


    All Great Emperors were unparalleled. Even when there had been many Great Emperors in the ancient Age of Gods, those who could become Great Emperors were still those who had reached the peak of the masses. They had already transformed the Path and became the world��s physical incarnate of the Heavenly Path.


    Then they saw the golden coffins shake and drop down from the sky, going straight for the Ye Imperial Palace.


    These golden coffins seemed to be unstoppable, carrying incomparable force.


    Then some figures broke through the sky at the same time. The Supreme Swordlord and his sword were filled with supreme force. He penetrated the sky and stabbed a golden coffin.


    In another direction, Blind Tie hefted the Sky Tremor in his hand and slammed into a golden coffin, shattering the wood.


    Gu Dongliu extended a hand, and it sounded like many demon gods roared simultaneously. Frightening Divine Power started surging, breaking into a coffin.


    Ling Long was more direct. She stepped into the sky directly and destroyed a coffin with one punch.


    In almost an instant, the golden coffins that had descended were all forcefully shattered by the people of the Ye Imperial Palace. The surrounding strong cultivators were all shaken inside. The Ye Imperial Palace was so strong nowadays.


    Plus, the strongest of them��Ye Futian and the West Emperor��had not acted yet.


    But this was also why many people felt even more depressed. They could not imagine what places such a strong Ye Imperial Palace could reach in the future.


    However, the Great Emperor wanted to destroy the Ye Imperial Palace, forbidding it from reaching its peak.


    The coffins shattered, but the Haotian Clan strong cultivators at the top of the sky were still staring down. Endless brilliant light shone down, and a supreme might dropped down. There were terrifying booms, and the Haotian Divine Seal appeared in the sky. It covered the entire sky and sun, coming toward the Gods�� Ruins Continent.


    The sky broke, a huge hole opening up, as the divine seal come down from the heavens. The cultivators of the vast lands looked up and could only see the divine seal. It plummeted with extremely frightening destructive divine light as if it wanted to destroy all beings.


    Countless people��s bodies shook. Some tried madly to escape from this region, but the divine seal covered the entire sky. There was nowhere to go. It was like they could only wait hopelessly for death.


    This was an authentic Haotian Divine Seal. With one blow, it covered the sky and was unstoppable. All beings were about to be shattered under the Haotian Divine Seal.


    Suddenly, it started raining in that area. A figure shot up against the tide, going toward the Haotian Divine Seal that covered the sky. It was the West Emperor attacking. He stabbed with the Raindrop Divine Sword, and it landed directly on the humongous divine seal. Countless raindrops stabbed toward the divine seal, and marks appeared on it. However, divine light shimmered on the divine seal. It was impenetrable. At the same time, supreme divine might fell upon the West Emperor, pushing him down. He returned to the Ye Imperial Palace as a beam of light.


    Kaboom�� The horrifying shaking continued. Brilliant light shone down, and many people sprawled onto the ground. Some people whose cultivations weren��t enough even let out muffled grunts. It felt like their bodies were about to be broken and crushed. The divine seal contained Haotian Divine Power.


    At present, the entire heaven was pressing down. One could imagine how terrifying the might was.


    If this blow fell down, everyone would die, turning to dust.


    A Great Emperor could exterminate countless beings with one thought. This wasn��t an exaggeration.


    ��Is this really it?�� Many people felt despair. They looked at the impeding Haotian Divine Seal. It seemed right above their heads already and was about to fall down.


    Some people even closed their eyes, accepting this reality. A terrible storm had swept over, and the might landed on their bodies. They already saw death.


    Just then, a beam of light appeared in the direction of the Ye Imperial Palace. The light continued up, and all the Ye Imperial Palace cultivators looked up toward the light.


    Bang! There was a terrifying noise, and the heavens shook furiously as if the world was falling apart.


    The hearts of the strong cultivators beat madly. The terrifying Haotian Divine Seal had actually stopped. A tiny figure appeared under the divine seal, but it was indeed the figure that seemed so miniscule that it pushed up the sky, stopping the divine seal.


    Countless beams of light shot out, and the huge Haotian Divine Seal cracked from the center. It broke into countless pieces and, paired with the huge boom and countless beams of light; the Haotian Divine Seal fell apart completely.


    Countless people looked at the white-haired figure in the sky. Their hearts couldn��t stop pounding.


    ��What just happened?��


    Many people had already closed their eyes in despair. A storm had swept past, and the heavens�� might actually disappeared. They saw a figure standing at the top of the sky. He was not very big, but he was like a heavenly god, blocking the sky above the Ye Imperial Palace.


    He looked up at the sky, gaze penetrating the air and staring straight at Haotian the Great outside of this space.


    This scene was still ingrained in countless people��s minds even years later. It was unforgettable.

 Chapter 2830 - Fighting the Emperor

    Ye Futian had blocked the attack of a Great Emperor!


    Countless people looked at the scene above the sky in shock. Their hearts couldn��t stop pounding, especially the cultivators who had closed their eyes at that moment and waited for death hopelessly. Their eyes were filled with shock right now. They had actually missed it.


    They did not see the instant that Ye Futian had appeared and shattered the Haotian Divine Seal.


    They heard that above the ninety-nine heavens, Ye Futian had used one finger to hurt the other Emperors-To-Be. Countless Emperors-To-Be had worked together, but they were all easily defeated by Ye Futian. No one could stop him. It seemed that he had the frightening ability second only to the Great Emperors.


    However, the strongest person under the Great Emperor Plane was still under the Great Emperor Plane.


    Today, it was Haotian the Great who had appeared. He was a returned ancient emperor, a true strong figure of the Emperor Plane who had completed the transformation. This was why all the cultivators had felt such hopelessness.


    No one thought that Ye Futian could defeat an emperor.


    They all thought that Ye Futian was the strongest person under the Emperor Plane, but Great Emperors were still the most supreme being. This was what the cultivators believed all these years. It had long been rooted in their minds.


    The Six Emperors ruled the world, and they were the strongest figures of the world.


    They were emperors. Each of them was a Great Emperor who ruled their own world.


    In everyone��s eyes, the Great Emperor represented supremacy and being without enemies.


    This was also why they had felt true despair when the ancient emperor returned and appeared above the Ye Imperial Palace. They thought they had no chance.


    But now, they vaguely felt that they had survived a narrow miss. Even though Ye Futian had only blocked one attack and it couldn��t prove that he was able to fight with a Great Emperor already, no matter what, when they saw that white-haired figure push up the sky, everyone felt intense emotions.


    Perhaps, miracles really could appear and arrive at the Ye Imperial Palace.


    That white-haired figure was their belief and their totem.


    Perhaps it really would be possible?


    Ye Futian, the god of war!


    Hot blood flowed through everyone��s hearts, transforming into a fierce belief. Everyone��s eyes were trained on Ye Futian��s figure. They were all anticipating the coming of a miracle.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    Dazzling light still showered down from the dome of the heavens. But the cultivators of the Haotian Clan in that space were all frozen, seeming as if they had not processed everything yet.


    Ye Futian had blocked the attack from Haotian the Great and shattered the Haotian Divine Seal?


    They could clearly feel how terrifying the Haotian Divine Seal was, yet Ye Futian had shattered it.


    Was Ye Futian just a Great Emperor-To-Be?


    Had he gotten some opportunity and already entered the Great Emperor Plane?


    ��Not yet!��


    Even though they were extremely far away, they could still feel that Ye Futian had not entered the Great Emperor Plane yet.


    He had countered the attack from Haotian the Great as an Emperor-To-Be.


    Even Haotian the Great himself was a bit surprised. He looked down at the sky, his eyes staring at Ye Futian, and he said, ��Ye Futian, you would be an extraordinary figure even in the past. If you become a Great Emperor, you can go against the heavens and Path, becoming a Great Emperor like the Demonic Lord and Shenjia. Unfortunately, you��ll die in my hands today.��


    The last time when the Emperors-To-Be of the Ancient God Clan had attacked the Ye Imperial Palace to destroy Ye Futian, they had claimed that it would be Ye Futian��s honor to die in their hands.


    Clearly, Haotian the Great did not think so anymore.


    It would be meaningless to become a Great Emperor if Ye Futian was not killed. Ye Futian would enter the Great Emperor Plane one day and would not forgive him.


    Thus, Ye Futian must be killed!


    Boom! A supreme might pushed down. It was the Might of Haotian. All the cultivators in the lower sky felt suffocated. They could not bear the pressure at all.


    Ye Futian��s mind twitched, and instantly, many divine walls appeared in the air. They flew downward, enveloping the vast space.


    The cultivators in the Ye Imperial Palace and vast land saw divine walls appear above their heads. They covered the sky and sun, and even in the distance, the divine walls glistening with divine light covered the entire sky. They sealed the people inside as if creating their own world.


    At the same time, the divine might disappeared. They no longer had to endure the divine might from Haotian the Great.


    Ye Futian had done this so they would not suffer from the fight.


    ��We can��t see anymore!�� some people muttered softly. Even though it was extremely dangerous, many people still wanted to see the fight with their own eyes. But now, they couldn��t see anything. Ye Futian had sealed the space��of course, he was thinking for their own safety.


    ��Can the Palace Lord fight with a Great Emperor?�� someone asked.


    ��Of course,�� one person answered. ��Since the rise of the Ye Imperial Palace, the Emperors-To-Be at the ninety-nine heavens went down with one blow. So what if it��s a Great Emperor this time? He can definitely hold up a fight.��


    The man spoke with a bright voice as if to give himself more confidence, but in reality, most people were still worried. Could Ye Futian put up a fight against Haotian the Great?


    They would not be able to see it now.


    Ye Futian took a step outside, crossing straight through the space and appearing outside of that sky. He came to the area that Haotian the Great was in. The strong cultivators of the Haotian Clan all retreated. They feared Ye Futian. The fear was a shadow from the past.


    They had tried to kill Ye Futian many times and had failed each time. After each time, they had to pay a similar price. Two Ancient God Clans had even been wiped out.


    Haotian the Great glanced at Ye Futian. In an instant, all the cultivators of the Haotian Clan disappeared, vanishing from before Ye Futian, though he did not care.


    The body of Haotian the Great also disappeared. Or maybe it could not be described as ��disappeared.�� Instead, he became one with this patch of sky. The Law here seemed to have changed too. He looked at the sky. It appeared to be unchanged but also to have changed.


    Divine domain of the Great Path! Ye Futian thought. The Great Emperor had already combined the Path and had the divine domain of the Great Path.


    The sky before his eyes now was not the sky from before. It was Haotian the Great��s divine domain of the Great Path.


    Haotian the Great was the sky.


    Above the dome of the sky, a face appeared in the air. It was the face of Haotian the Great. When this face appeared, countless beams of divine light shone down from the sky. The beams of divine light plummeted simultaneously, blazing toward Ye Futian. He had nowhere to hide within Haotian the Great��s divine domain.


    How strong is a Great Emperor!? Ye Futian thought this inside. He had always been wondering what level his Micro Heavenly Path had reached and what did he lack in comparison to a Great Emperor.


    And how strong was a Great Emperor?


    Today, he finally knew.


    Boom, boom, boom��. Beams of divine light blazed down, hitting Ye Futian��s body squarely. Ye Futian did not hide. The horrifying Divine Power caused his body to fall down, but extreme Divine Power flowed across his body, fending off the horrific attack.


    The intense divine light could destroy everything in the world, but it could not shatter Ye Futian��s body.


    His body was no longer a simple body of flesh and blood!

 Chapter 2831 - Combat Ability of Haotian

    The face of Haotian the Great stared at Ye Futian in the lower sky. His huge face was one with the sky. It was like the starry sky that Great Emperor Ziwei had transformed into.


    Now, he had turned into the vast heavens, forming the divine domain of the Great Path. This was his universe world.


    However, his face held cold murderous intent right now. Ye Futian was actually able to block his attacks as an Emperor-To-Be. He��d still gotten blasted down to the lower sky, but Haotian the Great��s attacks didn��t hurt him. It was evident how frightening Ye Futian was.


    How could he still live if Ye Futian became a Great Emperor?


    At that time, there would only be death.


    In the ancient Age of Gods, there were differences between Great Emperors. It was just like the difference between various cultivators of any plane.


    Some people were destined to be extraordinary.


    An even more terrifying might fell upon Ye Futian��s body. This was his divine domain of the Great Path. The Haotian Divine Power was everywhere. Many boundless golden stone pillars appeared at the top of the sky. Each stone pillar was carved with beautiful divine runes, and they glittered.


    The frightening Divine Power surged, and the sky was infused with a suffocating pressure.


    Right then, Ye Futian felt the boundless heaviness. This attack would be even more frightening than the divine light that had plummeted.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    Die! Haotian the Great thought, and the stone pillars were hurled down instantly, rushing straight at Ye Futian. Ignoring the distance between them, they arrived in an instant. Haotian the Great was the sovereign of his divine domain of the Great Path. All of the energy here was under his control. The lives of cultivators who came here would also be under his control.


    That horrible might weighed down. Ye Futian��s body suddenly enlarged, transforming into an immense and boundless heavenly god. Divine light flowed around his body. He raised his head at the upper sky. The Divine Light of Sun and Moon flowed, and the divine power of the sun and moon surged. It blocked the attack for a moment, but it could not stop the stone pillars from dropping. The frightening Divine Power represented the Path of the world here.


    Suddenly, countless arms appeared on Ye Futian��s godlike body. He seemed to have turned into the Thousand-Arm Buddha. The infinite number of arms lifted at the same time. At that moment, the Divine Power in his body roared aggressively and flooded into the arms.


    He cultivated his own Micro Heavenly Path. His strength came from the world within his body instead of being supplied by the outside world.


    Ye Futian faced forward and raised his two arms to the sky. Instantly, the hundreds of thousands of arms made the same movement. They slapped at the sky, and the countless arms pushed out a horrifying divine seal at the same time. It was like thousands of Buddhas at once.


    Boom! There was an earth-shaking sound. The stone pillars that contained Haotian Divine Power blasted down, crashing against the divine seal pushed out by the arms. It produced an extremely frightening shaking sound as if the heavens were about to crack apart.


    The Divine Power contained in Ye Futian��s divine seal was the Divine Power of the World. When it was sent out as the All Heaven Buddha��s Seal, it was like thousands of worlds were blasted out. The Micro Heavenly Path was not complete yet, but the Divine Power it contained was still extremely strong.


    Bang, bang, bang�� The shocking explosive sounds spread, and the surrounding space was about to shatter. The endlessly falling stone pillars shattered with the divine seal, shaking the space within millions of miles. However, there were no other cultivators in this divine domain of the Great Path, so no innocent people were harmed.


    Otherwise, such a terrifying attack was enough to produce a huge disaster.


    Then a golden diagram appeared in the dome of the sky. The diagram contained an immense number of runes, and each rune contained the power of Haotian.


    Boom! The runes fell down in an endless stream. Each rune carried incredible force; it was like a portion of the heavens fell down. The Haotian Power gathered into these falling runes, so how terrifying were they?


    And they were also endless and infinite.


    The face of Haotian the Great was still there. His eyes were cold and indifferent, gleaming murderously. He was the sovereign within the divine domain of the Great Path. He was the heavens.


    This diagram was the strongest divine technique that he had created. The Haotian Diagram contained endless murderous intent and could destroy all beings within a divine domain.


    Ye Futian��s thousands of hands attacked again. Countless divine seals flew out. The divine seals crashed against the Haotian runes and shattered madly, but the sky was filled with Haotian runes. They were endless. If he had to keep attacking using the divine seals from his arms, the result would already be determined. He would lose undoubtedly.


    With one thought, the space before him twisted, and a horrifying space vortex quickly appeared. The shocking space vortex expanded wildly. The frightening falling runes fell straight into it and then disappeared. Intense sounds streamed out of the space vortex.


    More and more runes were swallowed into it, causing the space vortex to shake intensely. Divine Power poured out of Ye Futian��s body. Billions of runes entered the space vortex. That frightening vortex was like a bottomless hole.


    ��World-level Divine Power of the Law.��


    Haotian the Great looked down at Ye Futian. His eyes were icy. Before, Ye Futian had already displayed super-strong combat abilities and different Divine Power of the Law of the Great Path. Today, he felt it even more deeply in the fight with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian studied a different kind of Divine Power of the Law. He had advanced by breaking the Path, breaking off his Path. The Path that he did cultivate was not singular. It seemed to be a complete Micro Heavenly Path at the world level.


    If this was the case, then where was the end to Ye Futian��s cultivation?


    How strong would his final form be?


    If Ye Futian became a Great Emperor, there would be no future for the rest of them. In the ancient Age of Gods, people like Ye Futian were the cultivators who competed with the heavens.


    I cannot let this continue, Haotian the Great thought.


    While the Haotian Diagram continued attacking, the figure of Haotian the Great directly transformed into the Great Path in the dome of the sky. He became one with the sky; the sky transformed into his body. Or rather, his body had transformed into the sky.


    Ye Futian felt the supreme might. He looked up to the heavens. Haotian the Great had already transformed into the sky, and this kind of force was huge. No matter how he enlarged his body, he would still be like an ant before the sky and seem extremely insignificant.


    Above the sky, the humongous Haotian the Great extended his arm and grabbed toward Ye Futian below him. Haotian the Great had transformed into the sky, so his arm was the sky��s arm. It covered the entire space, and there was nowhere to hide when it came down. Every direction was within reach of the palm. Ye Futian wouldn��t be able to escape from this huge handprint even if he used enhanced agility.


    There were huge, frightening booms, and the heavenly handprint grew closer and closer. The sky above Ye Futian��s head was pitch-black, blocked by that heavenly handprint. If he got caught by that huge hand, he would probably be like the size of an ant. He didn��t know if the other could even squeeze him when the hand clenched!

 Chapter 2832 - Unshakable?

    Ye Futian stood there calmly, not trying to dodge. The Haotian Great Palm Seal covered the entire air, coming down at him.


    Frightening Divine Power flowed across Ye Futian��s body. His body seemed to be made out of Divine Power. It released incredible divine light that pierced one��s eyes.


    Under that divine glow, Ye Futian��s body moved. He dove straight at the huge palm that was grabbing at him.


    The Haotian Great Palm Seal contained immense Haotian Divine Power. The might was enough to collapse the sky and land and send Great Emperor-To-Bes sprawling to the ground, unable to resist, but under this extreme Haotian might, Ye Futian actually went up against it. He transformed into a streak of light and rushed directly toward the Haotian Great Palm Seal.


    The Haotian Great Palm Seal landed, blasting onto Ye Futian��s body. However, Ye Futian��s body transformed into light that went into the humongous palm seal. He broke it apart from the middle, stabbing in and going upward until he penetrated it.


    A gaping hole appeared in the Haotian Great Palm Seal. It was a hole, broken by Ye Futian��s Body of Way.


    Right then, Ye Futian��s figure appeared on the Haotian Great Palm Seal, standing on the back of the hand. As the Haotian Great Palm Seal continued to move, his silvery hair danced in the wind, and his white robes flapped.


    Haotian the Great, transformed into the sky, stared at Ye Futian and asked, ��What Divine Power is this?��


    At this point of the battle, he naturally realized that Ye Futian had broken the Path and created many types of Divine Power. These Divine Powers were different from all of the cultivators he��d seen before who��d broken the Path. Ye Futian was the Path itself and could transform his body into the Path at any time.


    Even though he was a Great Emperor-To-Be, his combat ability was already comparable to that of a Great Emperor.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    His Great Emperor-To-Be Plane was still incomplete, but his Divine Power was strong enough to match a Great Emperor��s Divine Power. He naturally understood what this meant. It meant that the level of Ye Futian��s Divine Power was higher than his. He just had a lower plane. How frightening would he be if Ye Futian��s Divine Power was completed one day and his plane caught up?


    It was unimaginable. At least, he would definitely not be Ye Futian��s match. He might be like the extraordinary ancient Great Emperors who had fought against the heavens and Path.


    He did not think that in this life, he could personally witness a junior appear with this talent and even be his enemy!


    Ye Futian did not answer Haotian the Great��s question. He looked up at that huge face. At that moment, he suddenly had confidence.


    They had not truly exchanged blows before, so he was unclear about his own abilities. He only knew that Great Emperors-To-Be were not their match at all. This had already been proved before, especially in the 20-some years cultivating in the ninety-nine heavens. His Micro Heavenly Path had been evolving, and he was getting stronger. He��d even studied super-strong Divine Power.


    It turned out that he could already fight with Great Emperors now.


    He��d always known that his cultivation was special. After breaking the Path, he��d created the Micro Heavenly Path, creating his own world, but he did not think he would be this strong.


    Before him was a Great Emperor returned from the past. He had not recovered to his optimal state, but he had still reached completion, returning as a Great Emperor. He was not at a disadvantage even before such a strong figure. This meant that he could battle with Great Emperors already.


    ��This is all a Great Emperor is?��


    Ye Futian looked up at the sky and uttered with an extremely arrogant voice. His long silver hair fluttered in the wind, and he looked extraordinary. In the span of a thought, an infinite number of divine swords appeared in the air. Every sword was pointed at the dome of the sky and radiated with frightening Divine Power.


    Haotian the Great felt the extremely powerful Divine Power and grew somber. The swords formed by Divine Power circled Ye Futian and increased in number, resonating with Ye Futian��s body.


    ��Go!�� Ye Futian��s mind twitched, and the countless divine swords attacked simultaneously. Every sword was formed by Heaven Slaying Divine Power.


    ��Hmph.�� Haotian the Great huffed coldly. Countless divine seals fell from the dome of the sky. They radiated brilliantly and attacked the incoming divine swords. They were also infinite and blocked all of the divine swords.


    Bang! The first divine sword clashed against a divine seal and emitted a horrifying bang. The entire space shook violently. Under Haotian the Great��s shocked stare, his Haotian Divine Seal actually shattered. The divine sword stabbed through it.


    Yet the frightening swords of Heaven Slaying Divine Power were still charging towards him, about to pierce the sky that he had transformed into.


    Even though Haotian the Great knew that the Divine Power that Ye Futian studied had a higher class than his Haotian Divine Power, he never imagined that his attack would break the Haotian Divine Seal so easily. He was a Great Emperor, and yet his divine seal had collapsed under the attack of a Great Emperor-To-Be.


    There was a muffled sound. The divine seals that filled the air rained down endlessly, almost burying the entire land. The divine swords pierced seal after seal as if they were infinite and could never reach the end.


    Ye Futian still stood on the back of the Great Haotian Palm. The hand waved, and the Divine Power of Space flooded out instantly as if creating a space passageway. Then the divine swords flowed into it. In an instant, the Heaven Slaying Swords appeared at the top of the sky, going for that portion of the sky.


    That portion of the sky had been formed by Haotian the Great. If Ye Futian wanted to defeat Haotian the Great, he had to forcefully break open the sky.


    The divine swords arrived, blasting against the sky. There were many horrifying sounds that shook the heavens. That part of the sky also trembled, but Haotian remained. He did not shatter. This was the Great path divine domain of a Great Emperor. It had been formed by Haotian Divine Power and was incredibly sturdy.


    Even the Heaven Slaying Swords could not break it apart. They only made the sky shake; the space within the divine domain also trembled violently.


    The huge eyes of Haotian the Great continued to stare at Ye Futian. His eyes were countless times bigger than Ye Futian.


    ��This is all a Great Emperor is?�� Haotian the Great stared at Ye Futian. ��But still unshakable by you.��


    Ye Futian looked up at that huge face. An unmatchable storm whipped up around his body. That moment, the Great Path Divine Power in his body exploded fiercely. Ye Futian��s body enlarged instantly. His heigh continued growing��one hundred zhang, ten thousand, and one hundred zhang!


    While his body skyrocketed, his Divine Power also strengthened madly. The Divine Power of his Micro Heavenly Path fused into the godlike body, transforming into every part of this body, entering his limbs, bones, and internal organs. Even his head became extremely sharp, containing heaven-slaying intent.


    Bang! With a huge sound, Ye Futian stepped on that palm, finally shattering the palm seal. At the same time, Ye Futian��s immensely huge body shot straight into the sky. Everything in his path was destroyed. The Haotian Divine Seals and divine light all turned to dust and ashes under the godlike Great Path Body, as if no type of power could stop him right now.


    Was a Great Emperor truly unshakable?

 Chapter 2833 - The Great Emperor Retreats

    Divine technique��Heaven Slay!


    The Heaven Slaying Divine Technique this time exploded with Heaven Slaying Divine Power. Ye Futian had transformed into the Path, and his entire body was made up of different Divine Power. Even though he continued to use the previous name of Heaven Slaying Divine Sword, it was completely different. It was more than a few levels more advanced.


    This was a true Heaven Slaying Divine Technique. It could destroy a portion of the sky.


    In the sky, Haotian the Great had a grave expression. His huge and boundless hand left from the sky, transforming into a huge Haotian Divine Seal. Merely the divine seal��s light contained the power to destroy the world. It repressed and shattered every being in the world. This was the attack from Haotian. A god would block and kill a god.


    The two extremely shocking attacks crossed and crashed in the air. The world instantly cracked, and even the air was about to explode. That destructive storm swept through the entire divine domain of the Great Path. Even more shocking was that the Great palm Seal that represented Haotian shattered. The Heaven Slaying Divine Sword formed by Ye Futian stabbed through the Haotian Divine Seal, causing it to crumble and turn to dust.


    Carrying supreme divine light, the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword continued upward. Instantly, it passed through everything, blasting into the dome of the heavens.


    Thud! The sky produced a frightening sound. Transformed into the sky, the face of Haotian the Great changed. This attack that carried Divine power seemed to have been prepared for him. It could pass through the sky. Ye Futian had created the Heaven Slaying Divine Power after years of experiments in his Micro Heavenly Path. He added many types of Power of the Law and finally produced heaven-slaying strength. If his Micro Heavenly Path were completed, the Heaven Slaying Divine Power would improve, and he would be able to destroy a part of the sky with one thought.


    Right then, it hit the sky formed by Haotian the Great, and cracks appeared in this part of the sky. Frightening divine light appeared from every crack, and some places even showed signs of collapse.


    And right now, Ye Futian��s attack still had not stopped. The Heaven Slaying Divine Sword he had transformed into blasted onto the sky. There were still countless divine swords nearby that kept going up, hitting the places that had cracked. Countless Heaven Slaying Divine Swords stabbed into the sky, wanting to break it apart and penetrate the sky.


    Boom! Countless beams of piercing divine light burst out. A gust of supreme Haotian Divine Power shattered the surrounding divine swords. Ye Futian��s body also had to bear the supreme might. The next moment, Haotian disappeared from this space. The world returned to how it had been before.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    A beam of divine light from Ye Futian��s body shot straight toward the dome of the sky, going towards the outer sky. His figure appeared there, looming in place. He stared above his head. Haotian the Great had appeared there.


    However, Haotian the Great no longer had the arrogant attitude from before. When he looked at Ye Futian, he carried cold murderous intent and a tinge of fear.


    Ye Futian was not a Great Emperor yet, but he was already able to threaten him, almost breaking apart the Haotian and destroying the divine domain of the Great Path.


    He realized that he did not have to wait. The current Ye Futian was already a threat, and it was difficult for Haotian the Great to kill him.


    ��What��s wrong?��


    Cultivators of the Ancient Haotian Clan stared at the two figures in the sky. Ye Futian was not dead?


    Haotian the Great could not kill him?


    What was going on?!


    They were not the only ones. The space passageway was still there. Some cultivators near the Ye Imperial Palace in the Gods�� Ruins Continent had not gotten locked up hurried over from afar. They also looked toward the other end of the passageway. At the top of the vast sky, they saw the white-haired figure standing in the heavens, facing the Great Emperor.


    He looked unaffected.


    At that moment, countless people clenched their fists and had excited expressions. Divine light flowed across Ye Futian��s body. Even though there was a great distance between them, they could still feel his powerful might. He had not gotten killed. His aura was still as before. He hadn��t gotten seriously hurt.


    What did this mean?


    Haotian the Great could not bring down Ye Futian.


    He was already able to fight against a Great Emperor!


    He could be known as a god because of this battle!


    The current Ye Futian could fight with a Great Emperor already.


    This would become the disaster of the Haotian Clan.


    The current Ye Futian could fight a Great Emperor. If Haotian the Great could not kill Ye Futian today, one could imagine what would happen in the future.


    After this, Haotian the Great would be even less of a match. He was already a returned Great Emperor, while Ye Futian could continue advancing. Between the two, Ye Futian would only become stronger as time passed.


    ��Old god!��


    Ye Futian looked up at Haotian the Great and said, ��Your ending is my beginning.��


    That utterance proved everyone��s guesses even more. The strong cultivators of the Haotian Clan had come with extreme confidence to witness the return of their Great Emperor and kill Ye Futian and the Ye Imperial Palace.


    But right now, they felt cold shivers all over and felt fear.


    This was an extreme difference in emotions. After countless years of waiting, they finally welcomed the return of their Great Emperor. The Ancient God Clan had become an emperor-level force, and they hoped to go toward the peak, becoming one of the strongest forces in the world.


    Today, they came to the Ye Imperial Palace to kill Ye Futian. They wanted to use Ye Futian��s blood as a sacrifice to announce the return of Haotian the Great and the rise of the Ancient God Clan.


    But instead, this was the result.


    Haotian the Great could not kill Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian even arrogantly said, ��Your ending is my beginning!��


    Haotian the Great was silent. He did not respond to Ye Futian��s words. He had pushed the Haotian Divine Power to its max in the previous exchange, but he still could not kill Ye Futian. In fact, his Haotian was almost broken apart by Ye Futian. Countless cracks had appeared.


    He was more apparent than anyone about what this meant. If they continued fighting, he would not even have the upper hand, let alone be able to kill Ye Futian.


    ��Go,�� Haotian the Great uttered. Then he waved his hand, sweeping all the strong cultivators of the Haotian Clan, and left this space.


    Instantly, the might in the air dissipated. Haotian the Great and the cultivators of the Haotian Clan had disappeared, leaving this place.


    Ye Futian looked at the disappeared figures, feeling a bit surprised. He did not think Haotian the Great would be decisive and give up directly. Haotian the Great could not kill him this time, which meant that there would be less hope in the future. Killing him would only be harder.


    Going downward, Ye Futian returned to the Ye Imperial Palace. The space vortex had disappeared, and everything returned to normal. Ye Futian waved his hand, and the restrictive forces surrounding the vast territory of the Ye Imperial Palace disappeared. All the strong figures appeared on the ground.


    When they saw Ye Futian��s figure, their hearts pounded in extreme shock.


    He was okay. Ye Futian was alright.


    They had already given up hope earlier, but the skies had cleared. This meant that Ye Futian��s current abilities were already enough to fight with a Great Emperor.


    From now on, who could touch the Ye Imperial Palace?


    They couldn��t help but think of the Buddha of Destiny��s prediction. Perhaps, Ye Futian really would be able to defeat Donghuang the Great when the time was up!

 Chapter 2834 - Studying Time

    ��Palace Lord!�� the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace all called out. Many people had expressions of reverence. Some Ye Imperial Palace disciples in the Renhuang Plane had very fanatic gazes.


    Their palace lord, Ye Futian, was already able to fight with a Great Emperor. This meant that Ye Futian was comparable to Great Emperors.


    The Ye Imperial Palace counted as a true emperor-level force now.


    After Ye Futian landed, Hua Jieyu, Gu Dongliu, and the others surrounded him. Zhuge Mingyu asked, ��Are you alright?��


    ��I��m fine,�� Ye Futian answered, smiling. ��Haotian the Great can��t defeat me anymore, so he retreated. Even if he continued fighting, he wouldn��t be able to succeed. Leaving is the wisest choice.��


    Zhuge Mingyue had a bright smile in her eyes. She seemed very calm, but there were deep emotions within.


    The youngest little brother from the past was now standing at such a height already. He would soon reach the top and stand at the pinnacle of the world.


    ��He didn��t kill you so that he will die in the future. I think he left to wait for the others to reach the Great Emperor Plane,�� Zhuge Mingyue analyzed. ��After all, they��re all Great Emperors from the ancient times and not very far from the Great Emperor Plane. Haotian the Great took the step first, but the others will become Great Emperors too. By then, they will unite and come together, just like last time.��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. He wondered if he should visit the Divine Prefecture and wipe out those Ancient God Clans to avoid future threats.


    ��Let��s return first,�� Ye Futian said. Everyone nodded, and they all returned to the Ye Imperial Palace.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    This time had been dangerous but not damaging. Even Ye Futian did not know what level his actual combat abilities were, let alone them. They did not expect that he could fight against a Great Emperor already. It was naturally a pleasant surprise.


    Even Ye Futian had lost count of how many times the force he led had gone through life-or-death threats all these years. They had been extremely passive during each crisis and had to borrow all types of power in order to survive.


    Now, he had finally reached this step. In the future, it would be rare for others to threaten him.


    Ye Futian��s group returned to the Ye Imperial Palace. Outside, countless cultivators traveled to the Ye Imperial Palace. When they arrived outside the palace, it was like an extremely pious pilgrimage.


    The Original Realm finally had a being comparable to the Great Emperors.


    News of the battle between Haotian the Great and Ye Futian swept through all of the forces, reaching the enormous emperor-level forces with the fastest speed. Those emperor-level forces all stayed silent and did not release any sound, but everyone knew that there must be a shockwave going through all the emperor-level forces now.


    All the realms shook violently from this as well.


    Back then, when the Gods�� Ruins Continent had appeared, the Buddha of Destiny had foretold the coming of the Age of Gods. After that, the portion of Heavenly Path appeared, and Great Emperors really did return.


    But who would have thought that the first Great Emperor who had returned in public would be countered by Ye Futian after going to kill him with an unstoppable force and leave in defeat?


    Everyone knew what this meant. An entirely new era was beginning now.


    This would be the preamble to the start of the Age of Gods. The Seven Realms and Original Realm would usher in a new era��the Great Age of Gods.


    Perhaps, there would even be God Slayer.


    Ye Futian could already force back Haotian the Great. What was next? It was not impossible for him to kill a Great Emperor.


    ��


    In the Devil Imperial Palace of the Devil World, the Devil Emperor heard the report, and his eyes had a deep look. His gaze pierced the void, looking into the distance.


    Ye Futian had not yet become a Great Emperor, but he had fought with one and made Haotian the Great leave in defeat.


    The Micro Heavenly Path that he had created was unordinary. This made him suspect what Ye Futian��s identity really was. Who was the one that he��d raised?


    ��Keep an eye on the Ye Imperial Palace,�� the Devil Emperor ordered coldly.


    ��Yes.�� The person nodded and then retreated.


    The Devil Emperor��s eyes were frightening. The times were changing. What would the future era be like?


    In the Dark Court, the Dark Sovereign also received the news, but he was quite happy. Ye Futian could already fight against Haotian the Great. This meant that he would pose a significant threat to Donghuang the Great.


    At the same time, the Human Realm, Empty Divine Realm, Heaven Realm, and Donghuang Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture all had different reactions.


    However, Ye Futian himself did not know about any of this. The battle made him realize he could fight against a Great Emperor, and he was quite happy, but this happiness only lasted a short while. After that, he continued cultivating in isolation, bringing all the core figures into his Micro Heavenly Path to cultivate.


    He had a sense of urgency. This battle was enough to spread his name across the world, and the Six Emperors would pay more attention to him. This kind of reputation wasn��t necessarily a good thing. He would get more attention.


    In the Seven Realms, it was clear that he did not have any real friends. Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao had not fully grasped control yet. They couldn��t represent the Devil Realm or Dark World.


    Thus, he had to become stronger. He would only be a bit safer if, one day, none of the Six Emperors could threaten to defeat him.


    The Six Emperors had been emperors for many years, and it was all in the era after the Heavenly Path collapsed. Ye Futian guessed that their abilities were above that of Haotian the Great. Thus, he didn��t dare to get careless.


    Under the Micro Heavenly Path, everyone bathed in the divine light of the Law, comprehending and cultivating. They improved speedily.


    Cultivating in Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path was cheating. It was like the Eight Legions in ancient times. The Heavenly Path bestowed the Power of the Law to them directly, letting them rule the law of the world.


    However, this Micro Heavenly Path had been created by Ye Futian himself. He was qualified to cheat. He represented the Heavenly Path.


    Of course, other than that, they still had to feel for themselves. The Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path back then had all been chosen because they possessed the extraordinary talent to be the representatives of the Heavenly Path in the world.


    Right then, Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the vast void. He could see the entire world and, naturally, also saw the cultivation statuses of the Ye Imperial Palace members.


    ��Still too slow,�� Ye Futian murmured. The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace were not untalented. They could be said to be very strong, and all had had great opportunities later. However, their cultivation times were still too short.


    ��Time,�� Ye Futian murmured. Whether it was him or the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace, they all needed time.


    In any world, time was constant, but in a different world, time might be different.


    When he cultivated in the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven, he had seen it recorded in the Buddhist Scriptures that time had been the same when different Buddhas cultivated in a different world. There was also the stance that time was not real��it did not exist and had been made up.


    Time itself was an empty concept.


    Even though people had different sense of time in different situations, he thought about this problem early on. He was the ruler of this Heavenly Path, so could he control the time of this Micro Heavenly Path too?

 Chapter 2835 - Change Time

    Ye Futian sank deep into his own thoughts. Everything in the world was in his mind, operating according to their own law.


    He sensed everything operating while studying the passage of time. The thousands of operations became more apparent; the concept of time seemed to be clearer too.


    In the Buddhist Scriptures, Buddhas cultivated in different worlds and some worlds, one day would pass while one year would have passed in another world.


    His Micro Heavenly Path was a world different from the outside world.


    Time was just a created concept. It reflected the operations of everything in the world and was also law under the Heavenly Path��it was just more abstract.


    In reality, the concept of time had not yet developed in his Micro Heavenly Path. It was still calculated according to the time in the outside world.


    If I changed the operations of all beings in the Micro Heavenly Path, then will this world be different from the outside world? Ye Futian thought. He was entirely in the state of pondering, immersed in it.


    Under his thoughts, some slight changes appeared in how all beings in the world operated. He also focused on the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace. They did not realize this.


    Everything in the world was relative. When you were in a world, and only the laws of one being��s operation changed, you would be able to catch it quickly. But if everything in the world changed simultaneously, it would be like nothing had changed.


    When a man moved, they could easily feel that they were moving. But if the land carried him along as it moved, then he would be still.


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    The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace were all immersed in their cultivation, and no one discovered any changes. Their abilities also kept improving.


    Bathed in the Law of the Micro Heavenly Path, their changes were dramatic. They improved every day, and as time passed, there were gradually more and more Near-Deities in the Ye Imperial Palace. They started studying their own world and even created their own Divine Powers. Of course, this was also under the Micro Heavenly Path, just like the cultivators under the ancient Heavenly Path.


    Even if they followed the Heavenly Path and became Great Emperors, they would still be under the Heavenly Path and unable to break free from it.


    That day, Ye Futian was still studying when he saw Gu Dongliu raise his head in one part of the world. ��Little Brother,�� he called out softly.


    Ye Futian��s figure appeared before him as soon as he finished speaking. Clearly, Gu Dongliu knew that Ye Futian was aware of everything in this world, so he called out directly, and Ye Futian appeared as expected.


    ��Third Brother,�� Ye Futian said with a smile, walking towards Gu Dongliu. ��Did you run into problems in your cultivation?��


    ��Yes.�� Gu Dongliu nodded. ��Little Brother, how is your cultivation? When can the Micro Heavenly Path can be completed?��


    ��Not sure.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��The Great Emperor-To-Bes in the outside world was once Great Emperors, so it��s easy for them to return to the Great Emperor Plane. It��s not too hard for other Great Emperor-To-Bes either, but my cultivation is a bit unique. It seems to be a bit different from everyone, and I still haven��t found the specific way to become emperor. I can only continue to perfect the Micro Heavenly Path until it becomes complete itself.��


    ��Little Brother, you��re already able to fight with Great Emperors as a Great Emperor-To-Be Plane. Of course, your cultivation is different from the others. Otherwise, what��s the point for the rest of us? This is quite expected. Because your cultivation is special, becoming an emperor might differ from the others. It will be harder,�� Gu Dongliu said. ��This Micro Heavenly Path is already very similar to the Heavenly Path World of the Heaven Realm. This is a complete Heavenly Path World. If it becomes perfect, then you can even replace the Heavenly Path. Thus, this road will not be simple. Have you thought about this before?��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��I felt this, which is why I have a sense of urgency.��


    ��In the last battle, you could already fight against Haotian the Great,�� Gu Dongliu said. ��You��ll only become stronger and stronger. You��re already not that different from a Great Emperor. If you��re complete, then it will be rare for you to have an enemy in the world. It��s naturally difficult. Nowadays, I have already figured out my Divine Power, but it was with your help. Even though this can help me cultivate more quickly, I won��t have an advantage if I encounter a Great Emperor in the outside world.��


    ��Brother, what do you mean?�� Ye Futian had a confused expression.


    ��Break the path!�� Gu Dongliu said. ��Even if you reach enlightenment and completion in the future, my limit will still be a Great Emperor under your Heavenly Path and possibly be comparable to Haotian the Great.��


    Gu Dongliu wanted to try his road and figure out his Path.


    ��Even though I was quite successful in breaking my Path, it��s still an extremely dangerous method. You might head towards the point of no return,�� Ye Futian said. ��Cultivating under my Heavenly Path, becoming emperor is only a matter of time. But breaking the path to cultivate might be a dead end. Even if you succeed, there are still dangers. Third Brother, have you thought clearly?��


    ��I know.�� Gu Dongliu nodded.


    ��Okay. In that case, I support you.�� Ye Futian did not discourage him. Gu Dongliu had always had his own opinions and was also proud. Fulfilling his Path and becoming a Great Emperor with Ye Futian��s help was easy, but it was not what he wanted in cultivation.


    Plus, seeing that his little brother had created his own Micro Heavenly Path, he naturally wanted to take a step further as well and forge his own road.


    ��It doesn��t seem to be far from the end of the 500-year emperor fate of Donghuang the Great,�� Gu Dongliu said. ��I don��t know what will be of the foretelling of the Buddha of Destiny. The outside world is probably all waiting right now.��


    ��Let��s go out to see,�� Ye Futian said. With a thought, Gu Dongliu��s body disappeared.


    In the Ye Imperial Palace, all of the strong figures were still busy with their cultivations. Not everyone had entered Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path��only the core figures.


    The two walked to the top of the steps outside the Ye Imperial Palace��s grand pavilion. There were guards there who had very strong cultivators.


    ��Palace Lord, Third Sir.�� The guards bowed in greeting when they saw Ye Futian arrive.


    ��How is the outside world?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��In these countless months, a lot of information about Palace Lord spread through the outside world,�� the guard replied. ��In the Divine Prefecture, the few Ancient God Clans have an even tighter alliance now. It��s said that some of the ancient emperors cultivated together. They��re worried that you will go kill them.��


    ��Countless months?�� Gu Dongliu asked with a surprised expression.


    ��Yes, it has been half a year since Palace Lord defeated Haotian the Great,�� the guard said. Gu Dongliu was stunned at his words. He seemed to realize something and turned to gaze at Ye Futian.


    Had he misperceived the change in time?


    There was only one explanation because it was Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path.


    ��The law of time changed,�� Ye Futian transmitted his voice to Gu Dongliu. Gu Dongliu��s heart trembled. In the time he felt, nearly six years had left. He had indeed been cultivating during all those years.


    Ye Futian was already able to change the time in the Micro Heavenly Path!

 Chapter 2836 - Arrogant Predecessor God

    Ye Futian changed the laws of the world of the Micro Heavenly Path, causing the latter��s time to be different from that of the outside world. It was around ten times faster.


    A day outside was around ten days in the world of the Micro Heavenly Path. Hence, while half a year had passed in the outside world, almost six years had passed inside. For cultivators with high cultivation planes, this was naturally extremely beneficial. If they were just in an independent space that was part of this world, it would be meaningless no matter how they changed the time. However, because the world of the Micro Heavenly Path was not part of their reality, they had more time to cultivate.


    1


    For the members of Ye Imperial Palace, this was undoubtedly very advantageous for them. They could use this time to cultivate.


    It was also possible that they could continue to magnify such a change. For now, it was around ten times. As Ye Futian��s plane grew, he might be able to create an even more significant disparity. If he could one day make a day in the outside world be a year in the world of the Micro Heavenly Path, how terrifying would that be?


    Of course, the benefit of such a time difference was relative. That would not necessarily be a good thing for a mortal with a limited lifespan.


    The outside world would change every day, and the Great Emperor-To-Be figures would gradually reach the Imperial Realm. Their cultivation would match that of ancient times, returning to levels once absent from the world for many years. However, all of this had nothing to do with the members of Ye Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian and Gu Dongliu continued with their cultivation. Gu Dongliu severed his Path and cultivated while Ye Futian comprehended the power of the law of time. The latter wanted to understand how to control the law of the Great Path of Time. He wondered whether he could utilize it as an attack in combat.


    ��


    In the Divine Prefecture, countless cultivators were gathered on a mountain in the Taishang Domain.


    In the distance, terrifying divine tribulations gradually dissipated. On the divine mountain, a peerless figure stood erect.


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    It was an elder. He was dressed in modest clothes. However, right now, an astonishing emperor��s might emanated from his figure.


    Before this, many people did not know that the Taishang Domain had such a powerful existence. The latter had ascended to the Imperial Realm.


    ��Congratulations, Senior, for reaching the Imperial Realm,�� a voice called out. Taishang Domain Chief had come in person to offer his congratulations. He bowed respectfully towards the elder.


    The elder swept a glance at him. His gaze was actually very sharp. He took a deep breath and then looked up at the sky. He closed his eyes and sensed the aura in the surrounding space. He seemed to be indulging in it.


    He had finally returned.


    During the ancient era, he had already proven his Way and was granted the title of Tai��e. He was one of the top ten Sword Gods of the Divine Domain, Tai��e Sword God.


    During the collapse of the Heavenly Path, he had merged into his Sword Spirit and thus, escaped the calamity. After countless decades of waiting, he finally encountered the rejuvenation of the Heavenly Path. The chance for him to prove his Way had come, and he successfully reached the Imperial Realm once again.


    The surrounding cultivators all had their eyes on him. He stood casually on the divine mountain, yet he looked as sharp as a divine sword.


    Right at this moment, the wind howled, and the clouds churned. The sky opened up, and a space passageway appeared. At the other end of it stood an illusory figure. When the crowd saw this figure, they bowed and greeted, ��Greetings, Your Highness.��


    The person was none other than Donghuang the Great, the ruler of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Senior, congratulations for proving your Way and reaching the Imperial Realm,�� Donghuang the Great said with a smile as he stood at the other end of the space passageway. He sounded sincere.


    Tai��e Sword God cast a glance at the passageway with an indifferent gaze. The current world was very different from that of the past. There were merely six Great Emperors dominating the world now. Compared to the glorious situation during the Age of the Gods, the current era could be described as pathetic.


    Donghuang the Great had also known of the existence of Tai��e Sword God. Many years ago, the former had invited the latter to cultivate in Donghuang Imperial Palace. However, Tai��e Sword God turned down his offer. Now, Donghuang the Great extended him the invitation once again, saying, ��I have invited Senior to cultivate in Imperial Palace before this. Now that you have proven your Way at the Imperial Realm, would you join us? We can explore different cultivation methods together. Currently, there are a few cultivators in the palace who will soon prove their Ways.��


    ��Alright,�� Tai��e Sword God agreed to his request decisively. Then, he entered the space passageway. In the blink of an eye, he arrived inside Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Donghuang the Great showed himself and personally welcomed Tai��e Sword God. A few Great Emperors-To-Be came forward to congratulate him too.


    ��Yet another Great Emperor has appeared in the Divine Prefecture. The cultivation world is fortunate to welcome the return of the Age of the Gods,�� Donghuang the Great said, beaming.


    Tai��e Sword God did not respond to that. His facial expression remained indifferent throughout. He looked at Donghuang the Great and said, ��Donghuang Imperial Palace should have gathered many divine items over the years. Your collection should contain many divine techniques and secrets of the cultivation world. Where are they now?��


    Since the Six Great Emperors ruled over the entire world, the best stuff, including the divine items, would undoubtedly be in their collections.


    Tai��e Sword God had just rejoined the Imperial Realm. He needed to strengthen himself so that his power could develop further.


    The surrounding cultivators frowned when they heard his question. They stopped smiling and appeared irritated. Donghuang the Great invited him over. He had just arrived, and he straight up asked about the divine items?


    He seemed to have no respect for all of them here.


    ��The divine techniques are in my Imperial Palace. If you want to cultivate them, you can follow me in,�� Donghuang the Great replied calmly. He was not angered by the other party��s rude behavior. His excellent temperament was well exemplified.


    ��Give all of them to me. Besides that, prepare a separate palace for me. Order your men to find me the finest divine items on Earth,�� Tai��e Sword God commanded. His voice was arrogant, and he spoke as though he was superior to Donghuang the Great.


    During ancient times, he was the most exceptional Sword God. In his opinion, the current Great Emperors could not hold a candle to him.


    Even the well-mannered Donghuang the Great couldn��t help but reveal an annoyed expression when he heard this. He said, ��It is good news to the world that the Age of the Gods is coming. I invited you here to cultivate together and learn from each other. However, what you said has crossed the line.��


    Tai��e Sword God swept a glance at Donghuang the Great. Tai��e Swords seemed to shoot out from his eyes and entered into the eyes of Donghuang the Great. At the same time, the palace was surrounded by endless Sword Will. With a shift of his will, Tai��e Sword God could make the divine swords descend upon the palace and flatten this place.


    ��You are a junior. How dare you disrespect a predecessor god,�� chided Tai��e Sword God with a cold voice.


    Donghuang the Great��s gaze similarly turned as sharp as a sword. He looked at Tai��e Sword God, and an invisible divine power immediately burst forth and enveloped the vast space. The whole world seemed to have come to a halt when his majestic divine power erupted.


    The divine swords floating in midair shook violently. Then, they plummeted to the ground uncontrollably.


    The facial expression of Tai��e Sword God changed drastically. He sensed that he could no longer control his own divine power. Time seemed to have frozen. He was actually suppressed by the divine power of the other party.


    As a Great Emperor from ancient times, he had always looked down on the current Great Emperors. From his point of view, they were merely fortunate cultivators who managed to prove their Way during the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Their Paths were incomplete. They paled into insignificance when compared to the predecessor gods.


    However, at this very moment, the divine power emanated by Donghuang the Great subverted his belief.


    ��From the looks of it, even though the Great Paths during the Age of the Gods were perfect, there were many scumb*gs too,�� Donghuang the Great commented. Then, he pointed his finger forward. His Revelation Divine Power surged forward and pierced through the body of Tai��e Sword God.


    Divine power was stirred up around Tai��e Sword God��s body as he unleashed his power to its limit. Nevertheless, both his divine power and his divine body turned into dust instantly. He was completely wiped off the face of the earth!

 Chapter 2837 - The Power of Time and Space

    The death of Tai��e Sword God did not cause too great a stir. The members of the Divine Prefecture merely knew that a new Great Emperor had been born. He had then been accepted by Donghuang the Great into Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Who would have imagined that Tai��e Sword God would be so arrogant and supercilious? He acted as though he was the true master of the Divine Prefecture. This angered Donghuang the Great, who immediately killed Tai��e Sword God.


    The latter was the first Great Emperor who perished after the world began to change. His death could be considered to be tragic. However, he was only reaping what he sowed. He believed himself to be an ancient Emperor figure and acted very arrogantly, looking down on the current Great Emperors. He misjudged the ability of the recent Great Emperors and was crushed by one of them, unable to put up a fight at all.


    This battle also allowed the members of Donghuang Imperial Palace to witness the ability of Donghuang the Great. Essentially, even they had never seen Donghuang the Great fight. After the chaotic era ended, the Divine Prefecture was unified, and the various worlds returned to a time of peace and order. Ever since then, Donghuang the Great had never needed to fight.


    After many years, this was the only time he had fought. With the flick of his finger, he had slaughtered an ancient Emperor. Compared to five centuries ago, it was apparent that Donghuang the Great��s ability was much more powerful now.


    Nevertheless, the Emperor-level forces had caught wind of the news. They had their spies monitoring the movements of the various forces in secret. It was impossible for them not to hear of such a massive incident in Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Currently, Ye Futian was still cultivating in Ye Imperial Palace.


    Inside the world of the Micro Heavenly Path, the space was vast. Ye Futian wielded a spear materialized from his divine power. Then, he sent out strike after strike. There were 100 million of his duplicates exercising the same technique simultaneously in the same space. All of them comprehended this spear technique at the same time.


    This scene was undoubtedly shocking for any onlooker.


    Like cultivating Heaven Slaying Divine Sword, Ye Futian comprehended the spear technique by stabbing out countless spears in tandem. His strike count reached an astronomical number in a single day.


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    Time flew by. They were unaware of time passing while they were cultivating. In the blink of an eye, a few years had passed in the world of the Micro Heavenly Path. Ye Futian became more skillful in his spear technique. Each time he struck, fewer and fewer spears appeared.


    Finally, one day, only one spear appeared when he attacked.


    When he thrust the spear forward, his body transformed into an illusory figure. It was as though he never truly existed in this space. However, his spear stabbed into one of the stars.


    Dong. A dull thud sounded. Time and space began to warp as a terrifying storm crushed the star into dust. Its debris was sucked into the twisted time and space.


    Ye Futian retreated as he witnessed the star collapsing and being destroyed. When he saw that it was consumed instantly, he could sense his heart beating fast. He was astonished by his own power.


    Since he started cultivating the law of time and space, he aimed to create an even more powerful attack. He intended to merge his comprehension of the law in his divine technique. From the looks of it, he had succeeded in doing so. Although his new attack was still in the testing phase, the might that it unleashed was already very frightening. If he continued perfecting it, it would surely become even stronger.


    If I forge a spear with the divine power of Heaven Slaying and charge it up with the law of time and space before attacking, what kind of might would it unleash? Ye Futian thought to himself. His ability had leveled up after he comprehended the law of time and space. As a result, this world of the Micro Heavenly Path was better constructed. He had improved much compared to when he fought Haotian the Great.


    He was far from perfect, but he improved consistently. It was as though there was no plateau in his cultivation journey, and he could always become stronger.


    However, the law of the Great Path that he created was derived from his own world. He was unsure whether his law was applicable in the outside world when his Micro Heavenly Path reached perfection and became a Major Heavenly Path. He had never altered time or space directly.


    If he reached the level where he could directly alter time or space, he could not imagine how powerful he would be.


    Even now, Ye Futian had a feeling that he could defeat Haotian the Great.


    Ye Futian��s consciousness enveloped this space. He had achieved admirable improvement in these few years. He had a better understanding of the law of time. He was able to catalyze time in this space to a greater extent. Therefore, even though he had spent a few years inside this world, not much time had passed in the real world.


    If he continued cultivating like this, the time difference between the outside world and this space would only grow larger. Due to having extra time inside this place, he kept improving non-stop. In the process of improving, he could widen the time difference even further. This was an endless cycle.


    ��Third Elder Brother has comprehended the Path,�� mumbled Ye Futian as he looked over in the direction of Gu Dongliu with a smile. Gu Dongliu had comprehended his own divine law power. After severing his Path and cultivation, he reforged it and comprehended its law. This was a metamorphosis. Although there was no huge change to his cultivation plane, he had more potential to tap into along this path.


    Lord Chen, Blind Tie, and many others had reached the Near-Deity Plane. They were all pushing to reach the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane.


    In the future, in this world of the Micro Heavenly Path, with his help and the advantage of time, all the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace could cultivate at a rapid pace and chase up to the top cultivators in the outside world. Whether they could walk the Path of the Emperor depended on their comprehension and luck. Ye Futian could help them, but he could not directly create Great Emperors.


    Right then, Ye Futian��s will shifted, and his figure vanished.


    In the cultivation court of Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian opened his eyes. His figure flashed and disappeared from his original spot.


    When he appeared once again, he saw that many cultivators had come.


    ��Palace Lord Ye,�� someone called out to Ye Futian. They were cultivators from the Devil World. Yu Sheng was present, as well as Yan Guiyi and the others. The people here were all cultivators who had reached the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane. There were even two Great Emperor figures from the Devil World among them.


    Their figures emanated menacing auras. By just casually standing there, they gave off terrifying pressure. Ye Futian stood there and could easily sense all this. However, he was already someone who could forge a Micro Heavenly Path. Significant Emperor figures could no longer pose a threat to him.


    The two Devil Emperor Level figures had a look of curiosity in their eyes. Before this, they had heard rumors that even though Ye Futian had yet to reach the Imperial Realm, he had caused Haotian the Great to flee in defeat.


    How exactly had this white-haired youth managed to do so?


    They even wanted to test Ye Futian to see how he fought against a Great Emperor.


    From the looks of it, there are old monstrous ancient emperors in each world, and they have all gradually returned, Ye Futian thought to himself. He was also very curious. During the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the various gods had perished. How did this happen to all of them?


    From the looks of it, they had encountered a great calamity. However, not all of them had died. Many Great Emperors had been waiting for the opportunity to return once again.


    After the world had undergone a huge change, they began to reemerge.


    The Divine Prefecture, the Human Realm, and the Devil World had such figures.


    In another location, there were also cultivators from the Dark World. They similarly had Imperial Realm figures in their midst. Lord Shaman was also among their numbers. Lord Shaman, who had reached the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane, still had a very menacing aura. He was already on the Path of the Emperor and on track to become a Great Emperor in the future.


    ��Yu Sheng,�� Ye Futian shouted. He asked, ��Why have you come to Ye Imperial Palace?��


    The cultivators of the Devil World and the Dark World came together. This was not for Yu Sheng��s personal matters. This was the will of two Emperor-level forces. Yu Sheng had not come looking for Ye Futian alone.


    If so, what were they here for?

 Chapter 2838 - : The Wife of Donghuang

    Yu Sheng looked at Ye Futian and said over transmitted thoughts, ��Devil Emperor wants you to head to the Divine Prefecture and deal with Haotian the Great and the others. In the meantime, he will make a trip to Donghuang Imperial Palace.��


    When Ye Futian heard Yu Sheng��s thoughts, he revealed a strange look.


    What was the Devil Emperor planning?


    Was the Devil Emperor testing Ye Futian? Or was the former using him to kill others, using his hands to deal with a Great Emperor figure of the Divine Prefecture, and paving the way for the former��s battle against Donghuang the Great several years later? After all, it wouldn��t be long until the end of Donghuang the Great��s 500 years of Fate of the Emperor.


    The Dark World would also participate.


    The Devil Emperor would head over to Donghuang Imperial Palace to meet Donghuang the Great. This was done to make it convenient for Ye Futian to act. The Devil Emperor intended for Donghuang the Great to be unable to interfere.


    ��Dark Sovereign knows that Palace Lord Ye has deep grudges with the Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture. Hence, he wanted us to accompany you to the Divine Prefecture to seek revenge,�� Yan Guiyi said as he looked toward Ye Futian. ��Palace Lord Ye, are you confident that you can kill Haotian the Great and the others?��


    Yan Guiyi was the top Demon Sage of the Devil World and had extremely high standing. His abilities were also super powerful. Nevertheless, he had to refer to Ye Futian as Palace Lord Ye now.


    Even though Yan Guiyi had already reached the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane, Ye Futian could defeat Great Emperors.


    Ye Futian glanced at the cultivators of the two major forces. From the looks of it, he did not have a choice.


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    Moreover, they had come to support him in seeking revenge.


    ��I don��t know,�� replied Ye Futian. ��After all, they are Great Emperors. However, if all of you are willing to lend a hand, I believe there won��t be any problems.��


    Yan Guiyi said, ��We are heading over to provide support. Everything else will still depend on Palace Lord Ye. In the meantime, His Highness Devil Emperor will head over to Donghuang Imperial Palace and chat with Donghuang the Great to stall for you.��


    They would not participate in his battles.


    This was a matter between Ye Futian and the major Ancient God Clans of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��All right,�� Ye Futian said as he nodded. ��Since His Highness Devil Emperor is willing to lend me a hand, how can I possibly turn down his kindness? However, I do not know how things will end. If my abilities are lacking, I will still need your help.��


    ��Rest assured, Palace Lord Ye,�� answered Yan Guiyi as he nodded his head. ��Since you have agreed, shall we head out immediately?��


    ��Hmm,�� responded Ye Futian as he nodded his head. He informed the members of Ye Imperial Palace and then immediately left with the cultivators of the two Emperor-level forces.


    Although Ye Futian already planned to seek revenge, being escorted over was not how he imagined it.


    Was the Devil Emperor hoping that Ye Futian would directly wage war against the Divine Prefecture?


    The group left the Ruins Continent and descended upon the Divine Prefecture. They headed straight toward the Haotian Clan in the Nantian Domain. According to their sources, the remnants of the Ancient God Clans were all there. They had gathered together over there to prevent Ye Futian from seeking revenge against them.


    After all, Ye Futian could already put up a fight against Haotian the Great. They had to be cautious.


    While they were going to the Divine Prefecture, Donghuang the Great was cultivating in Donghuang Imperial Palace. A divine palace was erected amidst the churning clouds. The figure of Donghuang the Great could be seen sitting in front of the palace, surrounded by misty clouds.


    He opened his eyes and revealed a profound expression. Then, he laughed softly and said, ��After a few centuries, the Devil Emperor has actually personally come over again. Your visit has caught me by surprise.��


    ��Last time, you came to my Devil Imperial Palace, yet you left without stopping for a visit. I have come today to reciprocate your courtesy.�� A voice sounded, followed by clouds shifting in the sky. An elder appeared. He stood casually with his hands behind his back. He slowly walked toward Donghuang the Great. He seemed like an ordinary old man. No one would have guessed that he was the domineering Devil Emperor who ruled over all corners of the Devil World.


    The Devil Emperor referred to the incident where the Devil World captured Donghuang Diyuan. At that time, Donghuang the Great made a trip to Devil Imperial Palace to bring her back.


    ��Take a seat,�� Donghuang the Great said as he gestured. He sounded very courteous when he invited the Devil Emperor to sit in front of him, as though the two of them were long-lost friends.


    The Devil Emperor did not turn down the offer either. He sat near Donghuang the Great. The latter waved his hand, and a Weiqi board popped up between the two of them. He said, ��Your Highness since you have come, why don��t we have a match?��


    ��All right.�� The Devil Emperor nodded in agreement as he shifted his attention towards the board.


    ��Your Highness is the guest. You may go first,�� Donghuang the Great said as he gestured.


    The Devil Emperor took a white stone and put it on the board. At the same time, he said, ��Donghuang, do you have news of my brother?��


    Donghuang the Great shook his head. As he placed a black stone on the board, he replied, ��Just like you, I have not received any news about him for a long time.��


    ��Is that so?�� The Devil Emperor followed up with another white stone. His tone was laced with suspicion.


    ��It��s absolutely true,�� Donghuang the Great replied. He sounded earnest, seemingly not hiding anything from the other party.


    ��Who set up the Heavenly Path in the Heavenly Emperor Realm?�� The Devil Emperor did not pester Donghuang the Great on the same issue. Instead, he moved on to another issue and asked about the Heavenly Path that pressured the Heaven Realm.


    ��Your Highness, what do you think?�� Donghuang the Great raised his head and glanced at the Devil Emperor. He answered with another question.


    ��If I knew the answer, I wouldn��t have asked,�� the Devil Emperor said with a smile. He sounded casual as he brought up yet another topic, saying, ��In the past, when the Goddess of the Heaven Realm first showed her face to the world, no one could hold a candle to her beauty and ability. Let alone ladies; there were very few men in the world who could put up a fight with her. She was also the dream girl for countless men.��


    Donghuang the Great revealed a brilliant smile. His eyes glistened with gentleness as he mumbled, ��She was the best among all women.��


    The Devil Emperor smiled and continued, ��You are admirable. Such a talented lady actually became your wife. She was also willing to give you a descendent.�� Donghuang the Great��s gaze turned mellow as he commented with a smile, ��She played a big part in helping Ye Qing and me to become Great Emperors.��


    ��As the person with the most outstanding temperament at that time, you were indeed the only person who was a good match for her. Both of you made an admirable couple. Therefore, surely you have a lot of pent-up hatred.�� As the Devil Emperor said this, he did not forget to place a stone on the Weiqi board.


    He looked up at Donghuang the Great, wanting to observe the other party��s expression. However, Donghuang the Great��s expression was normal, seemingly unchanged. He still wore a gentle expression.


    ��These are all things of the past. Why do you bring them up? Could it be that you came over to talk about these matters?�� asked Donghuang the Great. If outsiders heard their conversation, they would truly believe that the two of them were best friends casually having a chat.


    ��


    Just as the two of them were talking in Donghuang Imperial Palace, Ye Futian��s group arrived at the territory of the Haotian Clan in the Nantian Domain.


    Haotian City trembled violently. Back then, Ye Futian had slaughtered his way here before. Later on, Haotian the Great had tried to take revenge when he became a Great Emperor, but he had been unable to destroy Ye Imperial Palace.


    Today, Ye Futian had descended upon the city once again.


    Terrifying pressure enveloped Haotian City. The Haotian Clan naturally felt this pressure. Faced with such pressure, countless cultivators in the city felt like worshipping the powerful cultivator who emanated it.


    Although Ye Futian had yet to become a Great Emperor, his might was comparable to one!

 Chapter 2839 - Battle Against Two Great Emperors

    The cultivators in the Haotian Clan all raised their heads to stare at the figure above. Ye Futian stood in the high heavens like a god.


    Haotian the Great, Heavenly Emperor Jiang, and the others also appeared in the sky. The remaining four major Ancient God Clans had allied. Haotian the Great was the first to attain a breakthrough and reach the Imperial Realm. Therefore, Heavenly Emperor Jiang, Yuanshi the Great, and Wuliang the Great had gathered here, out of the fear that Ye Futian would visit their Ancient God Clans to eradicate them.


    In reality, it had not been long since their last battle. However, he had been cultivating for a long time now due to Ye Futian��s unique law of time. Aside from Haotian the Great, only Yuanshi the Great had become a Great Emperor. The other two were still one step away from proving their Ways. They remained as Great Emperors-To-Be.


    They planned to attack Ye Imperial Palace after all four of them had regained their status as Great Emperors. They would have a better chance of killing Ye Futian then. In their opinion, Ye Futian improved at a faster rate than them, but with the combined power of four Great Emperors, they were confident that they could slay him.


    Unfortunately, they had not expected Ye Futian to be capable of changing the speed of time in his world of the Micro Heavenly Path. Actually, the longer they spent making preparations, the less advantageous they were.


    The cultivators of the Devil World and the Dark World are here too. What are they doing here? thought the cultivators of the Haotian Clan as they looked at Yu Sheng and the others.


    Haotian the Great asked right away, ��This territory is part of the Divine Prefecture. For the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace and the Dark Court to come here, do you plan to trigger a war among the three worlds?��


    Currently, the situation was chaotic everywhere. Even though the various parties had yet to declare war on each other, it was rather provocative for the cultivators of the Devil World and the Dark World to appear here. Haotian the Great naturally had to drag Donghuang Imperial Palace into this mess. Otherwise, the Haotian Clan would not withstand three significant forces on their own.


    ��We��re just here to spectate the fight,�� Lord Shaman from the Dark Court replied. The Dark Court had no intention of joining the battle. Before this, Lord Shaman was greatly shocked when he heard that Ye Futian could force a Great Emperor to retreat. In the past, he had intended to kill Ye Futian.


    Now, Ye Futian had actually surpassed him.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    On the other hand, he still remained at the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane.


    ��You��re here to spectate the fight?�� Haotian the Great mumbled as he relaxed slightly. There were quite a few returning ancient Great Emperors among the lineup of the other party. If they declared war on the Ancient God Clans, the latter would lose miserably. Since they were only here as spectators, Haotian the Great was still confident that he and Yuanshi the Great could take Ye Futian head-on.


    They might even be able to kill him now.


    Haotian the Great did not believe that Ye Futian had improved much in such a short amount of time since they last met.


    In the heavens above, Ye Futian took a step forward. The other cultivators appeared in different spots in the sky, but they stayed clear of the battlefield.


    Ye Futian lowered his head to glance at the Haotian Clan. A glance from him was enough to make the cultivators of the Haotian Clan feel as though a blazing sun had appeared above their heads. The sun shone down on them and radiated the brilliant Divine Power of the Sun. Everywhere the sunlight covered, the space was set ablaze as the temperature rose. Endless currents of divine fire flowed in space. Many cultivators sensed that their spiritual souls would be crushed under the scorching heat. Their souls would be burnt to ashes.


    Bang. Yuanshi the Great��s will shifted, and a terrifying divine matrix instantly appeared above Haotian City. This divine matrix was filled with a destructive aura similar to the Force of Divine Punishment of the Heavenly Path. The Divine Power of the Sun rained down and was negated by the divine matrix. It could not penetrate the latter.


    Ye Futian glanced at Yuanshi the Great. He obviously had noticed that the other party was now a Great Emperor. The current Haotian Clan had two returning Great Emperors. Yet, Ye Futian was not afraid. He could already put up a fight against Haotian the Great back then. After cultivating for several years, his Micro Heavenly Path had evolved, and his various attributes had grown much more powerful than before.


    ��His divine power has grown stronger,�� Haotian the Great told Yuanshi the Great over transmitted thoughts when he detected the might of the Divine Power of the Sun. Its menacing power covered the divine matrix. Although the former was being negated by the latter, it still was threatening.


    The Divine Power of the Sun was not Ye Futian��s strongest divine power. It was a power he could casually unleash from his gaze.


    ��I will trap him, then we can kill him together,�� Haotian the Great continued. His will shifted, and he immediately transformed into the god of Haotian. The vast space became his world as his will enveloped the entire city. All the cultivators were within his domain.


    Beneath the Haotian Divine Domain, Haotian the Great��s figure disappeared. He merged with the vast space and appeared above Ye Futian.


    Yuanshi the Great��s will shifted, and an unparalleled destructive storm immediately surged out from the divine matrix that he forged. Countless beams of divine light shot up into the sky. They shot up towards where Ye Futian was. Each aura contained frightening destructive power.


    Ye Futian��s figure formed a phantasm. It was a Divine Body. Back then, he self-proclaimed it as the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path. Now, he had created the Micro Heavenly Path, making it a true Divine Body of the Heavenly Path. It was immovable. The divine power landed on the Divine Body but could not cause it any harm.


    Yuanshi the Great formed divine seals with his hands. A gigantic silhouette of a Tianshen instantly appeared in the sky and covered his figure. Similar to Ye Futian, this was also his phantasm. When it appeared, the storm also moved with it.


    As the silhouette grew larger, the surrounding storm became even more terrifying. The hearts of all the cultivators of Haotian City were trembling. They stood within the city, feeling like ants. These Great Emperors could turn them all to dust by extending a finger.


    These were Great Emperors!


    They were true Tianshens, existences who stood at the peak.


    Right now, Yuanshi the Great had a significant impact on them. He was like a deity who governed the Divine Punishments of the world and who could judge sinners. The divine matrix contained the power of Divine Punishment.


    The menacing Force of Divine Punishment covered the vast space and directly enveloped Ye Futian. Right now, it was as though Ye Futian was in the eye of a destructive storm. The storm rampaged, and the power of Divine Punishment was constantly brewing.


    ��Die!�� uttered the divine silhouette formed by Yuanshi the Great.


    Murderous intent filled the skies as the destructive storm gathered where Ye Futian was standing. It was as though the Force of Divine Punishment from the Heavenly Path had descended to destroy all of existence.


    Around Ye Futian��s figure, countless beads appeared. The beads then formed spheres that circled him. They coalesced from the Divine Power of the World that he had released from his body. Each bead was an independent space that had coalesced into a sphere and orbited his figure, blocking off the destructive, massacring power.


    The menacing massacring power rampaged towards him and collided with the beads. A sharp screech filled the air. The space seemed to be torn to shreds as destructive bands of light swept out. The spheres were being ripped apart gradually. It appeared that the Divine Power of the World was still insufficient to block the attack of a returning ancient Emperor.


    At the same time, Haotian the Great also struck downwards. A menacing Haotian Mudra came charging down, descending upon Ye Futian��s defenses. The cracks in his defenses immediately expanded.


    Ye Futian stood still as he sensed all this. His hand swept across his surroundings. Time and space seemed to be distorted. The rampaging storm flowed into the warped space and disappeared without a trace!

 Chapter 2840 - Spear

    ��Is this an application of the Divine Force of Space?�� someone thought out loud. All the surrounding cultivators were staring at the battle between Ye Futian and the two Great Emperors.


    Divine power circled him. His defensive power was extremely terrifying. It appeared to be the Divine Power of the World. As for the warped storm that was now unleashing divine light, it seemed to be a powerful application of the Divine Force of Space.


    As the two Great Emperors, Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great, unleashed a combined attack, the absolute defense forged from the Divine Power of the World was shattered. Countless beams of the divine light of the Heavenly Penalty shot towards Ye Futian��s figure. Yet, they were consumed by the storm.


    It was as though a chaotic current of time and space had formed around Ye Futian��s figure. This chaotic current was like a black hole. It was extremely terrifying.


    Yuanshi the Great pointed a finger to the sky. Even more menacing might burst forth from the divine matrix. Endless attacks surged towards Ye Futian, burying the area where he stood. Haotian the Great did not stand by idly. He similarly attacked. Countless Haotian Divine Seals crashed down, attempting to shatter the divine power around Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s figure was buried. The cultivators from the outside world could no longer detect him. They could only see the endless attacks as well as the warped storm that circled Ye Futian��s body.


    The cultivators in Haotian City felt their hearts racing. They did not expect to witness a god-level battle today. This was a war among Great Emperors. Two Great Emperors besieged Ye Futian to kill him. Even though Ye Futian had yet to become a Great Emperor, he was already comparable to one in terms of ability. Therefore, he could be counted as one of them.


    The terrifying destructive might and the endless attacks did not stand a chance when faced with the distorted space and were consumed by the latter. The spatial storm grew larger and covered this part of the sky. The attacks from the two Great Emperors failed to penetrate it.


    What kind of defense is this? thought Yan Guiyi as he observed the fight. He was astonished. As the top Demon Sage in the Devil World, he was arrogant. Nevertheless, he paid close attention to Ye Futian��s development since the latter visited Devil Imperial Palace. Ye Futian��s improvement surpassed Yan Guiyi��s imagination and had reached a shocking stage.


    Ye Futian��s defense alone was sufficient to put the two Great Emperors in a predicament.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    ��His attack will be as powerful as his defense,�� Yu Sheng commented. He seemed to have a lot of confidence in Ye Futian. Ye Fuitan always paid attention to both his defense and offense to cover all grounds. Now, he was focused on withstanding the attacks of the two Great Emperors. Once he found a chance to retaliate, it was hard to say whether Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great would be able to hold out against his attack.


    Very far away from the Nantian Domain where Haotian City was, Donghuang the Great and the Devil Emperor were in Donghuang Imperial Palace, the most revered place in the Divine Prefecture.


    They were still seated in front of the Weiqi board. However, Donghuang the Great had activated a passageway. There was an image inside it. The image was of the battle happening in the Haotian Clan now.


    It seemed like no fight in the Divine Prefecture could go unnoticed if Donghuang the Great truly wanted to find out.


    ��Donghuang, what do you think?�� the Devil Emperor asked as he looked at Donghuang the Great, who sat across from him.


    Donghuang the Great replied, ��He severed his Path in order to attain greater cultivation. He can go toe to toe with two ancient Emperors even though he is only at the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane. He has created many unique divine powers. He is exceptional.��


    ��Can he defeat you?�� the Devil Emperor inquired further.


    As he asked, his gaze was fixed on the side profile of the other party. He was interested to see how Donghuang the Great would respond to him.


    Donghuang the Great observed the battle as he acknowledged, ��He is capable of defeating me.��


    The Devil Emperor narrowed his eyes. Then, he laughed and said, ��Donghuang, you are crowned the top all-rounder in the world. You are unparalleled and are a one-in-a-million genius. You actually acknowledged that someone is better than you and a junior at that.��


    Donghuang the Great responded, ��The heavens and the earth welcome major changes, and the Age of the Gods will soon come again. It��s not surprising that some monstrous figures have risen. I proved my Way and now rule over the Divine Prefecture. However, my achievements are possible only because we live in the current era. During ancient times, there were countless exceptional figures beneath the Heavenly Path. I am nothing compared to them.��


    The Devil Emperor smiled as he looked at the other party. He praised, ��You might not be the strongest in this current world, but you are the only one that I admire.��


    He continued, ��However, as the heir of Emperor Ye Qing, he will seek you out to take revenge. Since you believe he might surpass you, why do you still let him leave? Why don��t you nip this threat in the bud?��


    He was curious as to how Donghuang the Great would respond.


    ��If that is the case, what difference is there between this era and the previous era?�� asked Donghuang the Great as he also revealed a smile. He looked at the Devil Emperor and said, ��If he truly stands before me one day, I wouldn��t mind surrendering the world to him.��


    When the Devil Emperor heard Donghuang the Great��s response, he stared at the former with his jet-black eyes. He seemed to be judging how much of what Donghuang the Great said was true.


    ��In your opinion, who will win this battle?�� the Devil Emperor continued asking.


    Donghuang the Great looked towards the battlefield and said, ��Ye Futian.��


    ��I think so too,�� replied the Devil Emperor with a smile as he also turned to look at the battlefield.


    Right now, on the battlefield, the attacks of the two Great Emperors still could not break through Ye Futian��s defenses. Haotian the Great��s gaze was as cold as ice. In the sky above, a Haotian Great Palm grabbed out at Ye Futian. He was attempting to crush the space with his gigantic palm.


    When Yuanshi the Great saw this scene, he ceased attacking. He watched the Great Palm that blocked out the sky attentively.


    Under the watch of countless gazes, the Great Palm came down and grabbed at where Ye Futian stood.


    When it landed, the warped storm actually crumbled it gradually. The gigantic Great Palm shattered and was frenziedly swept into the storm.


    What kind of divine power is this? wondered the top figures of the Devil World and the Dark World. Their hearts trembled violently as they witnessed this shocking scene unfold before their eyes. The Haotian Great Palm crumbled frenziedly, and the falling pieces were sucked into the storm. The speed of consumption was astonishing. When the great palm entered into the region of the swirling space, the crowd noticed that time flowed differently in that space.


    Nevertheless, the Great Palm still managed to crush the swirling storm as it was sucked into the latter due to its enormous size. The distorted space was similarly collapsing. Both attacks disintegrated.


    Right at this moment, a beam of divine light flashed. A figure appeared amidst the raging storm. He was none other than Ye Futian.


    He transformed into a beam of light. With a spear in his hand, he freed himself from the besiegement and charged forward. His speed was incredulously fast. In an instant, he appeared in front of Yuanshi the Great.


    The spear in Ye Futian��s hand stabbed out. For a figure at his level, he could attack even across vast distances. However, Ye Futian chose to fight in close quarters.


    As the spear stabbed out, Yuanshi the Great saw the tip of the spear warp space and time, just like the defensive power around Ye Futian��s figure. However, this time, it was used to attack instead.


    Yuanshi the Great had already proven his Way and reached the Great Emperor Plane. Yet, against such an attack, his heart seemed to stop beating. The entire world fell silent, and he sensed an absolute threat. This attack could kill him!

 Chapter 2841 - Donghuang Acts

    A blinding divine light dazzled, and Yuanshi the Great transformed himself. His entire person was integrated into the Heavenly Penalty Divine Matrix, which resembled a divine diagram of destruction. The destructive power that erupted from it shrouded the entire Haotian Divine Domain.


    Ye Futian came down with a spear and stabbed it into the divine matrix. In an instant, with the spear��s tip as the center, an unparalleled terrifying hurricane formed. Time and space seemed distorted as an ominous boom was heard. The divine matrix disintegrated and collapsed as it was caught in the hurricane.


    The power of that one point instantly spread all over this space. All the destructive forces around it were sucked inside and torn to shreds. The collapsed divine matrix was still capable of launching unprecedented destructive attacks at Ye Futian. However, Ye Futian was tucked within the distorted storm of time and space, so the attacks could not get close to him.


    All the cultivators watched what took place in front of them in utter shock. All of this happened in a second. That boundless and massive divine matrix was swallowed up in a blink of an eye.


    The cultivators in the Imperial Realm felt the power of that blow and watched intently at the center of the vortex. They felt that the time and space there seemed to be chaotic and completely different from those inside the Haotian Divine Domain. This strike contained the force of time and space.


    What kind of Power of Law had he comprehended?


    Bang! A loud boom was heard as the gigantic divine matrix was shattered. Someone was seen escaping from that space in a bit of humiliated fashion; it turned out to be Yuanshi the Great.


    He returned to his former standing countless years ago as a peak existence by proving his way to the Imperial Realm. But he never expected that he would end up in such an embarrassing state by a youngster.


    ��Akh!�� A Great Emperor had just spat up blood because of a single blow; this was enough to make everyone in the Ancient God Clan tremble. All of them watched that white-haired man in horror. He was already so powerful?


    Likewise, Haotian the Great��s heart was beating wildly. He already felt that he might not shake Ye Futian an inch while the man could still threaten him and Yuanshi the Great with his attacks.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    At this time, Ye Futian��s divine body was blooming with a dazzling divine light as divine power circulated all around him, turning into numerous long spears. Each spear contained incomparably fantastic power.


    Countless spears gathered together and surrounded Ye Futian. His eyes were so cold, as there was a murderous intent within them. With a single thought, the spears broke through the air and attacked Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great at the same time and the place below where the Haotian Clan was located.


    Boom�� Yuanshi the Great could not afford to be careless; he had been injured already. At this moment, he gathered the divine power to transform.


    Infinite divine light surrounded him as if he was the deity in charge of the Heavenly Penalty. The divine power gathered into the Sword of Heavenly Penalty, which was massive and humongous. Now, it lanced forward. Infinite Heavenly Penalty Divine Light roared at the same time and lashed out, colliding with the long spear that came in for the kill. Immediately, there was pure pandemonium between heaven and earth.


    Haotian the Great blasted out the infinite handprints as well, which collided with those long spears. Haotian Handprints crumbled and shattered like mad upon impact. The attacks from Haotian the Great no longer seemed as powerful as Ye Futian��s. It was not until the gigantic Haotian Handprint appeared that it finally blocked the spear attacks.


    However, Haotian Clan was not so lucky. The terrifying long spear directly broke through the defensive power created by the Great Emperor and continued the attacks there. The two Great Emperors-To-Be were not enough anymore, and it was apparent they could not stop the onslaught.


    Haotian the Great��s thought moved slightly, and the entire Haotian Clan was immediately covered by the vast sky. It seemed as if there was a canopy that had fallen, blocking Ye Futian��s spear attacks.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked up. A massive spear appeared before him as he slammed both hands forward. Suddenly, a gigantic long spear ripped through the space and blasted towards the other side.


    As another shocking boom came out, the defense collapsed, and countless destructive lightning struck down. In an instant, the vast and boundless Haotian Clan was attacked; it seemed as if the apocalypse was upon them. It was the fire of anger that came from the gods themselves.


    Bang, bang, bang�� Countless structures vanished into smokes and ashes. Many cultivators from the Haotian Clan didn��t even have a chance to let out their screams before they were immolated. Those who were hit by the divine power vanished instantly, leaving no traces behind.


    This time, the cultivators of the Ancient God Clan had gathered inside the Haotian Clan. This blow inflicted heavy casualties. Ye Futian did not mean to show any mercy.


    Back then, what kind of misery did the Ancient God Clan inflict upon Ye Futian? After repeated joint attacks and suppression, they went to Ye Imperial Palace to destroy it. Therefore, Ye Futian did not have the slightest sympathy for the Ancient God Clan now.


    Those who survived looked up in desperation at the man who hovered above the sky. The Ancient God Clan, two Great Emperors, and the two Great Emperors-To-Be could not take down Ye Futian and were hunted by him instead.


    Once upon a time, Ye Futian was just a genius talent from the Original Realm, someone that the Ancient God Clan had never taken seriously. Many years ago, the City Lord of Tianyan City wiped out the Heavenly Mandate Academy with just a single blow.


    At that time, they looked at Ye Futian as if they were looking at some insect. None of the clan lords from the Ancient God Clan saw Ye Futian as a serious threat.


    But today, when they regarded Ye Futian once again, he was like a god!


    Heavenly Emperor Jiang and Wuliang the Great had not yet completed their enlightenment, and they were incredibly shocked at this moment. They did not expect that as part of the four ancient emperors, they would be oppressed by a youngster to such a degree. Times, indeed, had changed.


    Ye Futian still wanted to continue as he gathered up his divine power. However, at this time, a mighty coercion descended. This divine power directly penetrated the Haotian Divine Domain and invaded this space. Then a voice said, ��Enough.��


    When Ye Futian felt this divine power, he raised his head and looked up into the sky. He saw countless divine lights descending, penetrating the Haotian Divine Domain. The voice was from Donghuang the Great.


    In a very distant place, he saw Donghuang the Great there; it seemed as if he had opened up a passageway.


    The last time he was here, the people from the Divine Prefecture stopped him. This time, he came because of the invitation from the Devil World and the Dark World. The Devil Emperor himself was also coming to Donghuang Imperial Palace. Even so, did Donghuang the Great still intend on stopping them?


    The Devil Emperor was also there.


    Ye Futian saw the Devil Emperor.


    ��Your Majesty, Haotian the Great has repeatedly tried to invade Ye Imperial Palace,�� Ye Futian said as he looked up into the sky.


    He could feel that the divine power from Donghuang the Great was very strong.


    ��Go back,�� Donghuang the Great commanded.


    The divine power from Ye Futian��s body roared wildly. Donghuang the Great gave a cold snort as the divine power from the firmament submerged the space here. At this moment, Ye Futian felt his divine power was unable to separate from his body because everything was being suppressed to the extreme. Under the might of this divine power, his strength was being suppressed irrevocably.


    ��This strong?�� Ye Futian thought to himself as streaks of divine light submerged his body. The hearts of Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great also palpitated. They didn��t know that Donghuang the Great was this strong.


    The Haotian Divine Domain was pierced completely. Although they had proven the way, it seemed that they were not at all on the same level as Donghuang the Great!

 Chapter 2842 - The Estimation of the Devil Emperor

    In Donghuang Imperial Palace, the Devil Emperor stared at Donghuang the Great, who was making his move. His eyes were deep and unfathomable. No one could tell what he was thinking.


    At this time, Donghuang was still sitting opposite of him, but he was facing the position of the passage. Separated by the boundless space, the Revelation Divine Power descended regardless of distance or space. This kind of ability had far exceeded the understanding of ordinary cultivators in Haotian City.


    In the land of the Divine Prefecture, countless cultivators were believers in Donghuang the Great.


    However, they had never seen Donghuang the Great make a move until today. With a single thought, Donghuang the Great had made his divine power descend across the vast and boundless space. This power suppressed Ye Futian, who had defeated Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great. This suppression was so complete that Ye Futian could not fight back.


    Only then did everyone realize how truly terrifying the master of the Divine Prefecture was.


    Ye Futian��s divine power roared fiercely upon him. He raised his head to look at the sky, his body stubbornly moving upward against the momentum despite being under the suppression of the Revelation Divine Power. He seemed unyielding. He wanted to see how powerful Donghuang the Great was.


    Buzz! An even more terrifying divine might pressed downward as endless divine glory sprinkled down from the firmament. Haotian Divine Domain was suppressed to the point of disappearing altogether, as Ye Futian��s body was forced to fall from the sky. His divine power was being suppressed around his body.


    Ye Futian looked at Donghuang the Great across the distance only to hear Donghuang the Great say, ��Until you can come to the imperial palace and stand in front of me, you may not roam and rampage in the Divine Prefecture.��


    When his voice faded, countless paths came rushing down. Ye Futian grunted, and his face paled. He felt his divine body was being suppressed as his body fell from the air again. He had no way to contend with his opponent at all.


    He had cultivated to the current state and created his own Micro Heavenly Path, which was enough to shake the Great Emperors. Among the two Great Emperors, Yuanshi the Great was wounded; Haotian the Great couldn��t do much to him. If he continued the fight, he felt his advantage would only grow.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    But even so, he couldn��t stop the suppression from Donghuang the Great��s divine power.


    Today, the six beings standing at the top of the world were more powerful than he imagined.


    ��Very well, I will be looking forward to that day,�� Ye Futian responded and retracted his divine power. He understood that he was only in the realm of Emperor-To-Be, which accounted for the gap between them. Even if he was able to defeat some Great Emperors with the help of the micro Heavenly Path, Donghuang the Great was beyond the realm of ordinary Great Emperors.


    To be able to fight against Donghuang the Great, he would probably need to wait until his Micro Heavenly Path was perfected.


    Likewise, the Revelation Divine Power also retracted, and everything returned to normal. Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great both stared at Ye Futian. They could have never thought that when they returned to the Imperial Realm, they would be greeted not by glory but humiliation and defeat.


    The suppression of Ye Futian and the strength of Donghuang the Great made their return as ancient emperors seem so small and insignificant. It was as if they were not worth mentioning.


    The times had truly changed. After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the era did not seem to be an era they could understand anymore. Now, a brand new era was coming, but they would no longer be its main players.


    Ye Futian glanced at the cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace and the Dark Court. Both parties had invited him to come here. But now that he had done what he could, the Devil Emperor did not stop Donghuang the Great from moving against him.


    ��Go back,�� the Devil Emperor, who was next to Donghuang the Great, urged as well. The rest of the cultivators nodded as they began leaving.


    Ye Futian glanced at the two figures above the sky and stepped away himself. There were still several years in, and in his world, it was decades.


    After they left, the cultivators in Haotian City looked at the state of the Haotian Clan at this moment. They were dead silent.


    The entire Haotian Clan had been destroyed. Previously, Ye Futian had nearly razed it to the ground with a single blow. The Ancient God Clan had lost many cultivators, and it was a tragic sight. At this moment, the Ancient God Clan was desolate.


    How could those glorious Ancient God Clans in the Divine Prefecture��the top forces that once dominated the land of the Divine Prefecture��end up like this?


    More importantly, this was after the return of the Great Emperors.


    Shouldn��t this be their time of revival?


    Everyone��s heart was heavy. It felt like they were being crushed by a giant boulder, making them feel beyond depressed.


    And that boulder was none other than Ye Futian.


    Donghuang the Great had the power now, yet he did not end Ye Futian. Did he intend to wait until Ye Futian was elevated into the Imperial Realm?


    What would happen if Donghuang the Great was defeated at the 500-year mark? What would happen then?


    That was something no one dared to contemplate.


    If that were the case, the Ancient God Clan would undoubtedly be destroyed.


    In Donghuang Imperial Palace, Donghuang the Great retracted his divine might as the passageway disappeared. He sat there quietly, his attention focused on the chessboard, and then he made his move.


    Everything was business as usual, like nothing had happened moments ago.


    The Devil Emperor held a chess piece in hand as he looked intently at Donghuang the Great. He said with a smile, ��Your divine power has increased again.��


    ��500 years of cultivation�� How can there be no progress?�� Donghuang the Great raised his head and responded, ��You must be the same as well. Under the Devil��s Abyss, bearing the tribulation of the Devil��s Abyss, and baptized by it. The actual level of your strength today was difficult to estimate.��


    Devil��s Abyss was known as the prison of the Heavenly Path, and it was not a simple contraption.


    A smile appeared in those profound eyes of the Devil Emperor as he stared intently on Donghuang the Great. He said, ��Donghuang, you won��t kill Ye Futian now? Do you want to wait until he is an emperor and destroys Donghuang Imperial Palace to stand before you? Do you want to allow him a chance to do all that he wants to do? Is it because you feel guilty about Emperor Ye Qing��s death and you want to make it up to his descendants?��


    ��Your Majesty is overthinking,�� Donghuang the Great said with a smile. ��Of course, there is guilt in my heart, but it��s not what you think.��


    ��If I��m wrong���� The Devil Emperor��s eyes were unfathomable as he stared into the eyes of Donghuang the Great and said, ��Then, that��s even more interesting.��


    ��You lost,�� Donghuang the Great said as he made his last move on the chessboard.


    The Devil Emperor looked down, then got up with a hearty laugh.


    ��Then, I guess I��ll take a look at this game and see who is playing and how it is played.�� With that, the Devil Emperor took a single step, then disappeared from Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    After he left, several people came over and bowed to salute Donghuang the Great. The person in the lead was the Princess of the Divine Prefecture��Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Your Majesty, what is the purpose of this move by the Devil Emperor?�� Li Daoshou, who was next to Donghuang Diyuan, asked curiously. ��Moreover, it seems that it was the will of the Dark Sovereign to goad Ye Futian to come here to the Divine Prefecture, thus intensifying the grievances between the Divine Prefecture and Ye Futian, no?��


    Donghuang the Great looked into the distance. Those tranquil eyes of his were so clear that it was as if he could see through everything in this world.


    ��Perhaps as a test,�� Donghuang the Great responded. Then he looked at Donghuang Diyuan and the rest of the people and said, ��The world has changed drastically with ancient emperors who have returned one after the other. The future has to be a mighty era. In the past, you were all powerful figures standing at the top, but now, you must focus on cultivating harder than ever before and strive to step onto the Path of the Emperors as soon as possible.��


    ��Yes, Your Majesty!�� Several of them bowed to salute him again. They, too, had sensed the pressure.


    Was the remark from Donghuang the Great suggesting that Donghuang Imperial Palace was facing some crisis?

 Chapter 2843 - Broken, Unraveled, Entombed

    After Ye Futian returned to Ye Imperial Palace, he continued cultivating in retreat. His thought was the same as Donghuang the Great. The world was undergoing significant changes, and no one knew what the future held.


    When the age of the gods finally arrived, the only way to remain standing between heaven and earth was by empowering and strengthening oneself.


    If the prediction by the Buddha of Destiny and the rest of the world were true, in a few years, he might have another battle with Donghuang the Great. In his own world, he still had decades to cultivate.


    Therefore, his only goal now was to continuously improve upon his micro Heavenly Path so that he could be a contender against Donghuang the Great.


    Now, his strength was still one level behind Donghuang the Great.


    In Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian altered the time of the micro Heavenly Path so that the gap was getting greater. He came to the space of the void to continue cultivating spear techniques.


    Numerous phantoms appeared, and spears were unleashed at the same time. Each strike contained an extraordinary power, which could easily penetrate a corner of the world.


    The battle with Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great had given him additional inspiration. His spear techniques incorporated different divine powers of the law, and chief among them was the law of time and space. At the moment of attack, the law of time and space that guided his spear techniques differed from the one guiding the outside world. Thus, it formed a confusion that distorted time and space, causing the terrible time and space storm of vortex.


    This strike was comprehended after Ye Futian had executed the move countless times, but Ye Futian felt that it still fell short. This strike could be further improved to render it much stronger, even capable of penetrating any divine domain of the Great Path with just one blow.


    Among the countless shadows, these long spears contained different rules and orders. There was the Divine Power of the World and the Heaven Slaying Divine Power that had both been integrated into the spear for this blow to explode. He was curious to see what kind of power would be born under different circumstances. To continue learning from these experiences to create the strongest attack possible from the divine method.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    The creation of the divine method was complex if based simply on pure comprehension. It had to be perceived continuously, executed, and then perfected.


    Ye Futian was completely immersed in his own cultivation, comprehending it time and again. He felt that the cultivation of these spear techniques could surpass the power of the Heaven Slaying Divine Sword and augmented his own combat effectiveness.


    When the ages of the gods arrived, and there were many more Great Emperors in this world, it would depend on whose rules and order and whose divine method were be the strongest.


    Ye Futian spent a long time cultivating this time, almost ten years, to comprehend this one strike. For him, cultivation was the priority at the moment. Last time, if it weren��t for those cultivators from the Devil World, he wouldn��t have gone out at all because he knew it wouldn��t do much good. However, when he reached the strength he needed to suppress Donghuang the Great, the Ancient God Clans could be destroyed at his pleasure.


    Ye Futian��s figure stood in front of a starry world at this time. With a long spear in hand, his figure flashed and disappeared from where he was. The long spear broke through the air and pierced that world of stars. Instantly, a divine light pierced through the world completely, then continued its mighty momentum further into the distance.


    A hole appeared above that starry world; it had been pierced through.


    ��Broken!��


    Ye Futian returned to where he was, still holding the long spear. Then, he launched another strike. When the strike fell, a violent sound resounded between heaven and earth, accompanied by great commotions. The world disintegrated and shattered in an instant. In this broken-up world, a storm of destruction lurked, raging in that space.


    ��Unravel.��


    Ye Futian appeared tranquil; the spear was still in his hand as he looked at another world in the distance. The divine power that came out of the spear in his hand was beyond astounding. At this moment, Ye Futian was solemn.


    Next, it was the last strike in his ten years of comprehension, and it was also the strongest.


    The unleashing of this strike would result in disaster.


    With a thought, his figure disappeared. In the next moment, the spear made an impact on a starry world right in front of him.


    Bang! Accompanied by a dull thud, a terrifying vortex appeared in the next moment, and dull rumbling sounds were heard. This corner of the world was collapsing at an incredible speed and was then swallowed up by the vortex storm at an equally terrifying pace.


    In an instant, that entire world disappeared; not even a trace was left behind.


    Even that time and space continuum remained distorted. In front of Ye Futian, a terrifying and persistent vortex seemed to have taken shape, still busy engulfing everything.


    ��Entombed!��


    These were the names that Ye Futian gave these three spear techniques. Their attack style was slightly different, but the power was undeniably stronger as it progressed.


    They were Broken, Unraveled, and Entombed!


    Ye Futian was quite pleased. This divine method of attack was created in ten years. If he was to face Haotian the Great again, he was sure he would be able to slay his enemy successfully instead of letting him off the hook like the last time.


    Furthermore, the attack of this divine method will increase along with his divine rule power and become stronger. At the same time, if his comprehension deepened, it would also be another factor to make it stronger.


    He wondered how terrible it would be if his micro Heavenly Path was perfected and Entombed was unleashed? Would it be able to swallow up an entire realm?


    After he cultivated, Ye Futian watched the rest of the world to see how the others had progressed in their cultivation.


    His consciousness was soon attracted to a place as his eyes zoomed in on a certain location. As if he had penetrated the boundless world, he saw Gu Dongliu standing in the void over there, as a boundless and gigantic pattern appeared to surround him. In this boundless and massive pattern, there were demon gods with frightening auras with an unparalleled demonic energy that permeated the space.


    Ye Futian gave the Divine Demon Diagram to Gu Dongliu for cultivation. And now, when he was cultivating, Gu Dongliu had integrated the diagram into his own path, intending on creating his own divine domain.


    Afterward, Ye Futian looked at another place and saw the Supreme Swordlord with his eyes closed, comprehending in cultivation. Hundreds of millions of divine swords surrounded him as he sat cross-legged in the middle of a sword domain; it was as if he had morphed into swordsmanship himself.


    Somewhere else, Blind Tie was forging in the firmament. His whole body was dazzling with radiance, surrounded by divine flames. His form was massive as he held the divine hammer and beat down on the divine item again and again. There were countless phantoms of the divine hammer in the surrounding space. It was as if they were all motioned by the divine power. The sight itself was shocking.


    In the place where Chen Yi was, his body was full of brilliance as he was becoming one with the light. The surrounding world was full of light, which illuminated the infinite space and brought light to this world.


    After that, Ye Futian watched many people cultivating as well, and when his thoughts moved, the divine rule power would descend in this micro Heavenly Path, so that all the cultivators in Ye Imperial Palace could bathe in the divine light of Law and feel the power of this micro Heavenly Path. Thus, their cultivation could progress much faster and find it easier to comprehend.


    Since he was the creator of the micro Heavenly Path, it was natural that he could create the most favorable conditions for cultivation.


    After accomplishing all this, Ye Futian continued to comprehend and cultivate to perfect his own micro Heavenly Path. He was delighted with everything right now. The flow of time was different, and with time, the people of Ye Imperial Palace would no doubt be able to catch up with those cultivators on the outside. Even if the age of the gods were upon them, there would be a place for Ye Imperial Palace!

 Chapter 2844 - Ji Wudaos Strength

    While Ye Futian and the others were cultivating in Ye Imperial Palace, no one else was idle; everyone worked very hard.


    The Heavenly Realm had now recuperated much of its prosperity from former times, especially where the ninety-ninth heaven was located. It was now an extremely popular area with numerous cultivators who gathered here.


    It was more than expected for those cultivators from before to stay behind.


    Above the ninety-ninth heaven, many top figures cultivated here, and their cultivations were fearsome.


    In the Heavenly Palace, Ji Wudao was bathed in the divine light of the Heavenly Path. He sat cross-legged as if there was a divine matrix underneath him that resonated with the Heavenly Path. It purified and tempered his divine body.


    At the moment, Ji Wudao��s entire body dazzled, like a son of the Heavenly Path. The divine light which lingered upon his divine body contained a supreme divine might as if he was high above and compelled those around him to worship him.


    Ji Wudao had already inherited the throne of Heavenly Emperor and reigned as the current Heavenly Emperor.


    Although his cultivation was not yet completed, and he was one step away from becoming the Heavenly Emperor, he was close to reaching that level of perfection. He was so close that many people thought it wouldn��t be long before Ji Wudao stepped onto the throne.


    At this juncture, a cultivator in the ninety-ninth heaven stood up. Just by standing there casually, this man exuded an air of authority that compelled everyone to look up at him as if he was a god.


    This man was indeed a deity, an existence at the level of an ancient emperor. More importantly, he had already recovered his cultivation on the Imperial Realm, and he was ready to leave.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    ��Where do you think you are going?�� It was Ji Wudao. He remained sitting cross-legged above the Heavenly Palace but seemed omnipotent about everything below and detected that this Great Emperor intended on leaving.


    ��I have proved myself again in the Imperial Realm, and my realm is now stabilized. It��s time for me to go out and take a look,�� replied that Great Emperor. His hair was very long, tied behind him. He had a short white beard. There was a celestial aura about the man.


    ��Elder should cultivate with us a while longer; wait until your realm is rock solid before attempting to go out,�� said Ji Wudao.


    His words caught the attention of many cultivators. Back then, Ji Wudao had proclaimed that those who stayed on to cultivate here were considered members of the Imperial Palace and must obey his will. In the past few years, those who grew in the Heavenly Palace were dedicated to self-improvement, so no one had considered leaving. Naturally, there had been no conflict around the subject.


    But many people knew that conflicts of this sort were bound to occur. Those Great Emperors were not submissive figures, especially not to a youngster.


    The main reason they stayed behind to cultivate was that they could not resist the temptation of the Heavenly Path. But if they became emperors, there was no way they would want to be bound in any way.


    The realm of the emperor was at the top of the cultivation world, nearly at the peak, which was high above everything else in the world. They were incredibly proud of their own achievements. Indeed, anyone who could comprehend the Imperial Realm had already surpassed the ordinary state of existence. For them to submit to any other power, it had to be someone compelling for them to submit willingly.


    ��No, the time has come, I will go for a walk,�� as soon as the old man��s voice faded, his figure disappeared. He passed through the ninety-ninth heaven and left for the outside. He had no intention to hang around this place more than he had to, and he was wary of this piece of the Heavenly Path. If the Heavenly Path were conscious in any way, fighting under the Heavenly Path would surely arouse the dissatisfaction of the Heavenly Path, and danger would ensue.


    Therefore, he didn��t want to waste his time arguing and chose to leave right away.


    When they saw the old man leaving, suddenly all the cultivators�� interest above the ninety-ninth Heaven was somewhat piqued. This was the first time someone in the Imperial Realm had broken his promise after stepping into this realm. Many of them had intended on doing the same thing when it was their turn.


    They wanted to see how Ji Wudao would handle people like that?


    Ji Wudao, who was cultivating, opened his eyes and gave the area below a quick glance before he got up and walked off in like manner.


    The figures of both men disappeared simultaneously, leaving the ninety-ninth heaven.


    The old man arrived outside the ninety-ninth heaven, above the Heavenly Imperial City. He continued on his way, eager to leave this place as soon as possible. In the ninety-ninth heaven, that piece of Heavenly Path continued to exist, and he was leery.


    At this moment, a terrifying aura descended, and the old man frowned. He stopped as he turned to look at Ji Wudao, who was chasing after him and said, ��Although you are the future Heavenly Emperor, your Great Path has not yet been completed, and you dared to chase after me?��


    When his voice fell, the colors of the firmament changed, and the sky turned into a massive and boundless Eight Trigrams. The Trigrams circulated, and there seemed to be a pair of yin and yang fishes that swam within it.


    In the area below, countless cultivators looked up into the sky; their hearts trembled with fear.


    In a single turning of the mind, the sky was covered, and the firmament had been transformed into a matrix. The divine light shot out from the Eight Trigrams; it was extremely frightening.


    Buzz! A massively terrifying divine power fell from the Eight Trigrams, and the five elements between heaven and earth seemed to be contained in it as they unleashed towards Ji Wudao. The destructive divine light penetrated the void, intending to slay directly at Ji Wudao.


    But Ji Wudao merely stood there quietly, without making any evasive moves. When the terrifying divine light fell on him, his divine body dazzled, and the Nine Dragons�� true will rose up. It was the power of the law existing in the Heavenly Path. This divine power rushed into the firmament as if to turn into part of the Heavenly Path, rolling towards the Eight Trigrams.


    With the Nine Dragons�� true will protecting him, his body transcended the five elements, impervious to the source of yin nor yang.


    Boom�� The terrifying divine power surged, and the pattern of the Eight Trigrams above the firmament began to twist and deform. It was as if a supreme force had emerged, devouring the Eight Trigrams pattern into it.


    His Great Path Divine Realm was collapsing and being swallowed up. The old man looked up at the heaven and earth surrounding him and saw traces of terrifying divine power besieging his own Great Path Divine Realm, turning it into chaotic space. In this chaotic space, a phantom of Ji Wudao appeared, like the master of this world.


    ��What��s this?�� The old man��s face changed in shock. What kind of existence was Ji Wudao?


    ��There is a price for going back on your promises,�� a voice resounded between heaven and earth. Then he sensed a terrifying aura, which made his Great Path Divine Realm collapse like mad until it was destroyed; even his divine power had been engulfed.


    Buzz! The divine light of the Eight Trigrams radiated, which was transformed by him and bloomed an unparalleled divine light. However, Ji Wudao directly reached out with his hand, as the pattern of the Eight Trigrams shattered again suddenly, rushing towards his hands and was swallowed up whole.


    Bang! Ji Wudao clutched the old man��s head in his giant hand. Immediately after, the divine power in his body was frantically devoured by Ji Wudao; even his spiritual soul was swallowed into Ji Wudao��s body.


    ��What kind of existence are you?!!�� the old man roared as his entire person was being devoured and turned into wisps of currents, all of which were absorbed by Ji Wudao.


    The cultivators below had no idea what had just happened. All they saw was that when everything returned to its previous tranquility, the old man was already gone.


    An existence at the level of a Great Emperor had disappeared just like that out of thin air, immolated by Ji Wudao. This was not a battle between equals but a one-sided suppression.


    Had Ji Wudao become so powerful already?


    ��All hail to the Heavenly Emperor!�� The people in the Heavenly Realm were extremely excited as they bowed to show their obeisance to Ji Wudao, who was above the sky.


    The Heavenly Realm had finally been revived!

 Chapter 2845 - : The Unrest in Heaven Realm

    The news of this battle in the Heaven Realm soon spread. After all, this battle had been witnessed by many.


    Ji Wudao had kept a low profile for many years, and now he had stunned the world. Ever since the battle at the relic of the Old Heaven Court, every time Ji Wudao appeared after that would bring a terrible shock to the world.


    Now, his caliber was close to that of the Heavenly Emperor previously.


    In the Heavenly Imperial Palace, he had been named as the Heavenly Emperor��the current Emperor who was in charge.


    Just as the world thought that he was still a bit away from reaching the Imperial Realm, they didn��t expect that he would be able to slay an ancient emperor with a perfect Great Path. How shocking of a feat it was!


    Ever since the significant changes in the world, there had been several battles, and each battle inevitably subverted the world��s understanding.


    In the battle at the Ye Imperial Palace, Haotian the Great failed to take down Ye Futian. Afterward, in the battle at Haotian Clan, Ye Futian, as a Great-Emperor-To-Be, fought two emperors at the same time and managed to wound one of the two emperors. It wasn��t until Donghuang the Great himself intervened that Ye Futian was stopped.


    It was also the battle at the Haotian Clan that Donghuang the Great took action himself. His actual person was in Donghuang imperial Palace while his divine power crushed Ye Futian. The Great Path Divine Realm of Haotian the Great was ignored by both.


    Then, there was the battle of the Heaven Realm, during which Ji Wudao had cut down some Great Emperor in a blink of an eye. No one had even had the chance to know which emperor he was before Ji Wudao killed him.


    Ji Wudao��s move was also meant to remind those who cultivated in the ninety-ninth heaven. Those cultivators had promised before they were allowed to enter the Heavenly Imperial Palace to cultivate. If they ever intended on breaking that promise and leaving the Heavenly Imperial Palace after they proved the realm of the Great Emperor, they would be killed without exception.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    Ji Wudao deliberately killed his opponent outside the Heavenly Path, obviously to let the world witness his true strength. Conceivably, few people would dare to attempt the same in the future.


    Cultivators from all the worlds truly felt the difference brought on by the great changes between heaven and earth. Perhaps, they were now in a transitional phase, and a new era would follow. Or, in some sense, the moment the Gods�� Ruins Continent revealed itself, a new era had already begun.


    However, after the battle, major news was being passed around, and it was about Ji Wudao��s crime.


    It was said that Ji Wudao had cultivated the extremely ruthless Great Path Divine Method.


    When the Gods�� Ruins Continent appeared, in addition to inheriting the relics of the Old Heavenly Court, Ji Wudao had pillaged and plundered. Many cultivators were secretly killed by Ji Wudao, swallowed up by him to absorb these opponents�� abilities as his own.


    In that battle not long ago, he had even devoured a cultivator who was a Great Emperor.


    The unorthodox method that Ji Wudao cultivated would bring disaster to the world.


    Especially now, he had inherited the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, aided by the Heavenly Path. His goal was to devour all the worlds and use this Heavenly Path to control the land of the Seven Realms.


    Once this news spread, countless other opinions emerged. Everyone thought that this must be the revenge of the Heavenly Path.


    The news of the ancient battle had spread as well. The battle that caused the collapse of the Heavenly Path many years ago was now known to the world. They speculated that this micro Heavenly Path was left over by the Heavenly Path of yesteryears. As the descendant of Deva, Ji Wudao, who had inherited the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, was now ready to take revenge on the world. He planned to regain control of everything and take charge of the order in the Seven Realms.


    Ji Wudao was the spokesperson of the Heavenly Path today, just like the Lord of Deva in ancient times.


    Furthermore, this news was deemed credible by countless other people who believed in these rumors. After all, what they had seen was indeed very similar to the rumors. Otherwise, it was impossible to explain the existence of the Heavenly Path at the ninety-ninth heaven and Ji Wudao.


    Everyone was speculating on how the six Great Emperors of today would deal with this matter?


    Would they directly invade the Heaven Realm?


    It was possible to infer the strength of the six emperors from the strength displayed by Donghuang the Great. Undoubtedly, they must be greater than those returning Great Emperors, so the question was whether their strength ruled higher than Ji Wudao��s?


    However, in the ninety-ninth heaven, Ji Wudao still had the help of a slice of the Heavenly Path, which, as many in the world estimated, was the reason why the six emperors did not show up at the ninety-ninth heaven once upon a time.


    Just as this news had spread to all corners of the world, another shocking news followed on its heel.


    Donghuang the Great and the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor were husband and wife back then. Donghuang Diyuan was the progeny of Donghuang the Great and the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor. This was a top-secret, known only by very few people. Since forever, no know had ever known who was the queen of the Divine Prefecture.


    Now, the world found out that the wife of Donghuang the Great was the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor, and it was rumored that she was an unparalleled figure whose talent surpassed those from the past or present. She might even have reigned above Donghuang the Great himself.


    As soon as this news became public, it immediately caused a great sensation. Everyone thought of two things. Ji Wudao had always had a soft spot for Donghuang Diyuan and gave in to her requests many times before. Even when the two of them fought in the relics of the Old Heaven Court, Ji Wudao did his best to avoid an all-out war. Afterward, in the ninety-ninth heaven, Ji Wudao wanted her to bathe in the Nine Dragons True Qi together, to become the Queen of Heaven Realm.


    Then, there was that time when Di Hao of the Human Realm proposed marriage to Donghuang Diyuan, but it was flatly rejected by Donghuang the Great. It was a rather insulting refusal because he made it very clear that he didn��t think Di Hao was worthy.


    So this was it!


    Donghuang the Great, and a wife who was even more outstanding than himself. This was why Donghuang the Great was so fond of Donghuang Diyuan.


    So, with this relationship, would the Heaven Realm join forces with the Divine Prefecture?


    Ji Wudao was the current Heavenly Emperor, and Donghuang Diyuan was the descendant of the Heavenly Emperor��s daughter. What would happen when the Heaven Realm allied with the Divine Prefecture if they were to be united?


    Ye Futian, who was cultivating in Ye Imperial Palace, also received the news.


    At this time, many cultivators in Ye Imperial Palace came out of Ye Futian��s micro Heavenly Path and listened to the reports of those who came.


    ��Donghuang the Great, the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor.�� Ye Futian raised his head and looked at the sky, remembering what the Supreme Swordlord once said about the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor.


    The daughter of the emperor was unparalleled in the past or present. Without her, the world would be colorless!


    As the truth about the world continued to emerge, many things would eventually surface.


    What about his own origin?


    Perhaps it would soon be revealed.


    How much more was hidden in this world?


    ��There must be someone who deliberately spread the news,�� Fang Gai thought for a moment before he said. These things were secrets, which those at the top should only know, but they were now spreading all over the world. Clearly, somebody was leaking this information.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian nodded and said, ��I��ve noticed something strange about Ji Wudao before, but it was just some speculation, without any substantiation. Apparently, someone has been paying attention to Ji Wudao or paying attention to all the top figures in the world. For his deeds to be exposed and spread quickly, only imperial-level forces could accomplish that.��


    Among the six imperial-level forces, who was the most likely candidate?


    ��Has any of the imperial palaces acted?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��We heard that the Human Realm has sent messengers to every realm, wanting to hold the sword of justice and judge Ji Wudao of the Heaven Realm.��


    ��Sword of justice?�� Ye Futian said with a touch of sarcasm.


    The Human Ancestor was an existence from ancient times who claimed to be in charge of justice in the Human Realm. However, was he truly just?


    ��It seems that the news most likely was released by the Human Realm,�� Ye Futian guessed. ��I��m afraid there will be another unrest coming.��

 Chapter 2846 - The Plot Thickens?

    The Human Realm intended on warring with the Heaven Realm?


    Then, what was the relationship between the Divine Prefecture and the Heaven Realm?


    After all, the relationship with Donghuang the Great should make the Heaven Realm that much closer to the Divine Prefecture. However, the current ruler of the Heaven Realm was Ji Wudao.


    The news that passed around on the outside world was that the Heaven Realm was interested in allying with the Divine Prefecture. However, no one knew if this was true or just a rumor generated by those with ulterior motives.


    Everything was yet to be revealed.


    ��The Human Realm claims to be dealing in the justice of the world, and if they are out there inviting various imperial-level forces to fight against the Heaven Realm, then the Palace Lord��s guess must be correct. The news was spreading to all the realms, and only imperial-level forces had that kind of power required, so there is a high probability that it is the Human Realm behind everything,�� Fang Gai also agreed.


    ��Will all the imperial-level forces respond?�� asked Ye Futian.


    ��Yes,�� next to him, Zhuge Mingyue piped up, ��for there to be a complete micro Heavenly Path remaining, which most people considered to be a remnant of The Heavenly Path. How could the land of the Seven Realms not covet it? Coupled with today��s speculation about the Heavenly Realm, none of these imperial-level forces will mind following the trend. Depending on how the situation develops, there is a high probability that they will respond to the call of the Human Realm.��


    ��I agree with Mingyue,�� Lord Taixuan concurred.


    ��So, the Heaven Realm will face a major catastrophe?�� Ye Futian murmured. ��But since Ji Wudao dared to display his full strength, he must be prepared for them. Perhaps, that piece of the Heavenly Path upon the Ninety-Ninth Heaven gave him the confidence.��


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    ��Ji Wudao has endured in silence for many years, and once broke out of his shell, he did not bother hiding all that he is. He even killed a returning ancient emperor with thundering speed. It must be that he was no longer afraid of imperial-level forces and has the confidence to face them,�� Fung Gai said. ��I guess that under that piece of the Heavenly Path, Ji Wudao��s strength might be even amplified further.��


    They knew that piece of Heavenly Path was a conscious existence. This was not a speculation but a true testament. For more than 20 years, they cultivated in the ninety-ninth heaven and had witnessed it with their own eyes.


    ��Palace Lord,�� a voice called out from beneath the sky stairwell outside. Ye Futian��s attention was drawn to the outside as he asked, ��What is it?��


    ��Palace Lord, an emissary from the Human Realm, has requested an audience with the Palace Lord,�� the man answered. Although he was standing under the sky stairwell, he knew that Ye Futian could hear him clearly.


    ��Show them in,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��Yes, Palace Lord,�� the man retreated to carry out the command as Ye Futian and the others looked into the distance. Fang Cun said, ��These people came real fast. The cultivators from the Human Realm have never been very friendly to us, yet they have the gall to come here.��


    Last time, the Human Realm came here as well.


    ��At this stage of the cultivation, it is already at the pinnacle of the game, directly concerning who will be in charge of the world order. There is no such thing as eternal enemies, just as there is no such thing as eternal friends. It is entirely conceivable for the Human Realm to come here,�� Fang Gai countered.


    Fang Cun nodded thoughtfully. After all, it was his grandfather who was speaking, and Ye Futian ultimately agreed with them. The relationship between the Seven Realms had been very intricate. When the Devil Emperor mentioned the death of Emperor Ye Qing, it was also because of the attitude of the six emperors.


    However, now that the Age of the Gods was upon them, the six emperors were no longer deciding the life and death of just one Great Emperor. The situation they faced now was more complicated than ever; a chaotic age was about to begin.


    Moments later, the cultivators from the Human Realm came right to the base of the sky stairwell. They were not as insolent this time as when they were here last time. They stood respectfully under the sky stairwell and saluted. ��Greetings to Palace Lord Ye.��


    The lead cultivator from the Human Realm was an ancient emperor, but this time he was observing the etiquette to the extreme, which surprised Ye Futian quite a bit. Had they had a change of heart?


    ��What brought you here today?�� Ye Futian asked across from the air.


    ��Palace Lord Ye must have been heard some of the matters taking place in the Heaven Realm. Ji Wudao cultivated unorthodox methods. With the aid of the Heavenly Path, he grew ambitious by the day. In the future, he will be the cause of the great catastrophe, bringing the world to the brink of disaster. Therefore, the Human Realm with the sword of justice invites all forces to demand righteousness from the Heaven Realm by invading together into the Ninety-Ninth heaven. Now, Palace Lord Ye is on the way to becoming a Great Emperor, and Ye Imperial Palace is already an imperial-level force, so we are here to invite you to eradicate this scourge with us.��


    The cultivator from the Human Realm replied loud and clear.


    Ye Futian listened to the other and responded, ��Ye Imperial Palace is just a new force, small and not yet fully established, and I am just a Great Emperor-To-Be. In today��s world, with imperial-level cultivators returning one after another, and you being also someone of a Great Emperor, how can someone with so little power like me be partnered with the Human Realm?��


    They wanted him to get into this mess with them?


    Ye Futian knew that Ji Wudao was extremely talented and had once wanted to devour him when the two fought against one another. However, this did not mean that he was going to get involved. The move made by Donghuang the Great in the Divine Prefecture made Ye Futian realize that his strength was still too weak; he was still several steps behind Donghuang the Great.


    At the moment, Ye Futian surmised that he was not yet fully qualified to stand at the same level as the six emperors. Even if he participated, he would only serve as cannon fodder.


    For him, the important task was cultivation.


    ��Palace Lord Ye need not be overly self-deprecating,�� the cultivators from the Human Realm continued. ��In the battle at the Divine Prefecture, Palace Lord Ye fought against two emperors, and if Donghuang the Great did not interfere, perhaps you would have killed both of them. Such strength has already shocked the world. With Palace Lord Ye��s strength, when you prove the Way in the future, you will undoubtedly become the top existence in the world.��


    ��That��s something only the future can tell,�� Ye Futian said with a smile. ��However, if every realm were to take action, I��m willing to follow behind and cheer for everyone.��


    When the other man heard Ye Futian��s words, he looked up to the top of the sky stairwell. Then, the person in the lead said, ��In that case, don��t miss it when the Six Realms make their move, Palace Lord Ye.��


    ��I definitely won��t,�� Ye Futian responded.


    ��We will bid our farewells now,�� the man said.


    ��Travel safe,�� Ye Futian replied.


    After the cultivators from the Human Realm left Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian was seen frowned slightly. He didn��t quite understand the intention of the Human Realm, and why would they want to invite him?


    ��Since the Human Realm came here, they probably went to the land of the Six Realms as well to see if any of the other forces would agree to their tactics,�� Ye Futian said. Everyone nodded, and all of them were waiting for more news.


    Now, all the realms were connected through the Gods�� Ruins Continent, so the news spread even more rapidly and efficiently. They chose to gather at Gods�� Ruins Continent because it would be convenient to receive news of any potential developments.


    A few days later, information came to Ye Imperial Palace.


    The Human Realm had invited the Six Realms to deal with the Heaven Realm. The Devil World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Dark World were all willing to go; the exception was the World of Buddhism. However, no one thought that was out of the ordinary. The World of Buddhism had always kept their participation to a minimum.


    However, the refusal by the Divine Prefecture was a bit intriguing.


    In Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian and the others were a little surprised when they learned of the refusal of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��What��s the situation in the outside world now?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��All the realms may set off at any time, and at the same time, the Heaven Realm may have already secretly formed an alliance with the Divine Prefecture,�� someone replied.


    Ye Futian frowned slightly. He had a feeling that there was something more than what met the eye behind this incident, and things may not be as simple as they seemed!

 Chapter 2847 - Innate Divine Item

    However, Ye Futian was happy to see the current situation.


    Previously, countless eyes from the Six Realms were trained on the Ye Imperial Palace and on him. Now, Ji Wudao had attracted their gazes. The cultivators of the Seven Realms were all discussing Ji Wudao and even prepared to attack the Heaven Realm.


    In this way, the focus on the Ye Imperial Palace was averted. It was like giving him more time to cultivate.


    And at the moment, time was what he lacked the most. Time in the Micro Heavenly Path flowed at a different speed, so one or two years in the outside world was extremely precious to him.


    This was also why he had rejected the Human World. He believed that even though he could fight a Great Emperor now, he still wasn��t qualified for the ultimate game. Cultivation was still a top priority.


    The cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace continued to cultivate in the Micro Heavenly Path. At the same time, people of the Ye Imperial Palace were ordered to report news at any time, and Fang Gai would decide whether to report it up to him or not.


    Even though there were dramatic changes in the outside world, putting in effort and acting was not easy. It needed time.


    Within Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path, the Heavenly Rule Power was becoming more and more refined. Everything in the world started operating according to its own law and gradually stopped needing Ye Futian to control it. They could continuously refine themselves and become complete.


    At the same time, while the people of the Ye Imperial Palace cultivated in the world, the Law Divine Power that they comprehended would also be fed back to the Micro Heavenly Path, causing the relative Law Order to be created in the Micro Heavenly Path. This self-evolving and creative abilities shocked Ye Futian too.


    Ye Futian had not been cultivating recently. Instead, he observed the operation of the world and discovered an exciting situation. There were all kinds of disorders in the process of the world as a whole, but there was also order within the disorder. It seemed to be following some supreme law, and this law might be the Heavenly Path��s consciousness that had been created.


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    And Ye Futian was the one who could directly influence the Heavenly Path��s consciousness. The Heavenly Path��s consciousness had been born because of him.


    Thus, Ye Futian began considering something else. How could he utilize this discovery and improve the Micro Heavenly Path, so it was even stronger?


    Ye Futian closed his eyes. His mind wandered throughout this Heavenly Path world. That moment, he seemed to enter a state of non-self. He was gone. In his subconscious, he had transformed into the Heavenly Path, becoming one with the Heavenly Path.


    He could see all of the cultivators clearly��he could even feel the flow of every shred of aura on their bodies. He could also feel every strand of the Heavenly Path intent in this world.


    He saw everything in the Heavenly Path, felt all of the Laws, Yin and Yang, the five elements, and more. He saw the space and could even vaguely see time.


    He was even wondering if he could completely control the Law of Time one day and see time directly, then the time before his eyes would be tangible instead of illusory. Then would he be able to directly see the past and future, or even enter a certain moment in the past or future?


    He had read many scriptures of the Buddhist clan��s literature before. There were some about time, and there was even the Buddha of the Past, Buddha of the Future, and Buddha of the Present.


    What exactly was the final point of cultivation?


    Did the different cultivation techniques aim for the same final plane?


    The Great Paths were similar. He had a feeling that the end of cultivation should all be the same, no matter what method they chose. There was a saying among the Buddhists that people were only choosing which way they would reach the other side with.


    Then, what was the end of cultivation?


    The ultimate plane��was it the Heavenly Path?


    Then, what was the Heavenly Path?


    These were a bit difficult to understand. Ye Futian still could not crack it with his current level.


    ��


    The outside world had already been upended.


    Not too long ago, there had been a war in the Heaven Realm. Four realms had allied, and many strong figures of the Emperor Realm had attacked the Heaven Realm. The entire way there had been unobstructed, but they ran into trouble inside the Heaven Imperial City, outside the ninety-nine heavens. They couldn��t even enter the ninety-nine heavens.


    They could not break the ninety-nine defenses and invade until the four Great Emperors had attacked from afar. However, Ji Wudao used the power of the Heavenly Path and directly killed and devoured all of the cultivators who had entered. Countless Great Emperors would lay there forever. When the strong figures retreated, they had almost been wiped out completely. The four Great Emperors even used supreme divine power to forcefully break into the ninety-nine heavens and rescue the people. However, they hesitated outside the ninety-nine heavens and did not enter.


    After camping outside the ninety-nine heavens for a whole month, the great army retreated. In the end, the physical bodies of the four Great Emperors still had not appeared and killed their way into the ninety-nine heavens.


    Instead of fearing Ji Wudao, they feared the Heavenly Path. No one knew how strong the Heavenly Path was. If they entered and something happened, no one knew if they would remain there forever like the fallen Great Emperors.


    This war shocked the Seven Realms. None of the worlds could handle the Heaven Imperial Palace anymore. This war also meant that the Heaven Imperial Palace had finally returned and were unstoppable. Earlier, Ji Wudao dared to aggressively kill a Great Emperor, and he indeed had the strong confidence.


    This war also meant that if they wanted to break into the ninety-nine heavens, they could only accomplish it if the six Great Emperors attacking personally.


    The Human Ancestor officially sent invitations to the other five Great Emperors to attack the ninety-nine heavens together and kill Ji Wudao, lest he wreaked havoc in the world.


    The World of Buddhism still did not participate; Donghuang the Great still refused to join the war.


    The rivalry between the Human Realm and Divine Prefecture was deepening. In fact, they had already allied with the Devil World and others. No one knew how things would develop.


    ��


    Such a great matter had occurred in the outside world, but Ye Futian did not know anything about it. He was still immersed in his own cultivation. After Fang Gai received the information, he still chose not to disturb Ye Futian��s cultivation. He thought the same as Ye Futian��resting and continuously strengthening was the top priority for the Ye Imperial Palace right now.


    As for the changes in the outside world, it was unrelated to them for now. Even if it was related, they weren��t qualified to get involved.


    At the moment, Ye Futian was still immersed in the cultivation state of non-self within the Heavenly Path world.


    Without realizing it, a lot of time seemed to have passed. A beam of light appeared in the world. Cultivators in different parts of the world saw this light. It fell down, penetrating the vast space, crossing through the entire world.


    Everyone��s hearts pounded intensely, and they looked up to the source of the light. It was a sword��a divine sword forged by the Heavenly Rule Power.


    ��This���� The hearts of the Supreme Swordlord and others pulsed. The West Emperor couldn��t help but narrow his eyes and stare at that sword.


    They had all cultivated in the ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm. The scene before their eyes was very familiar.


    ��In legends, some innate supreme divine items would be born when the world was created because of the law and rules. They��re birthed by the world,�� the West Emperor murmured, causing the people beside him to be shaken up inside.


    Was Ye Futian��s world creating innate divine items too?!

 Chapter 2848 - Split

    Huff�� The strong cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace shook inside. They all felt strong anticipation. This must be a divine sword born from somewhere in the world. It was equal to a treasure born from the ancient world.


    Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path was not fully completed yet, but it was already very strong. If it produced divine items, they would be far stronger than ordinary emperor weapons.


    ��This sword seems to contain Heaven Slaying Divine Power. The heavens will be destroyed under this divine sword.�� The West Emperor sensed the pure Divine Power within the sword. This was a divine item produced by the world. It had been created completely from the Heavenly Rule Power and represented the law itself.


    If one could control this divine sword, how strong would they be?


    ��This sword can be called the Heaven Slaying Sword.��


    ��The palace lord is immersed in his own cultivation right now,�� the Supreme Swordlord said. ��He might not even know such a divine item has been produced.��


    ��What is the connection between the Micro Heavenly Path and Futian like? The divine items are produced from the world itself and contain Ye Futian��s consciousness in it,�� the West Emperor murmured. ��There should be a connection. The divine items from the Heavenly Path in the ninety-nine heavens fit the Seven Realms.��


    Everyone nodded. However, they had no way of knowing what the connection was like or if there even was one. Their level wasn��t high enough.


    Even though the West Emperor was an ancient Great Emperor, nowadays, he had a feeling that Ye Futian��s true level wasn��t much lower than him, despite being a Great Emperor-To-Be. His understanding of the Heavenly Path and the ultimate meaning of cultivation would not be below him.


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    He became a Great Emperor because of his rare abilities, but Ye Futian had created the Micro Heavenly Path. Ye Futian��s understanding of the Heavenly Path world was stronger than his.


    Everyone surrounded the divine sword and felt the Heavenly Rule Power in the Heaven Slaying Sword. They perceived it quietly. The swordsmen were even more excited. This was extraordinarily meaningful to them.


    ��Since this world produced such a treasure, then there should be a second and third, right?�� Lord Chen asked softly. Many of the others held slight anticipation. If this world could produce many innate divine items, this would significantly strengthen the Ye Imperial Palace. It could raise the Ye Imperial Palace��s overall combat abilities to another level.


    One year later, brilliant divine light appeared in the sky of the Micro Heavenly Path again. It covered the vast lands, and cultivators in all directions could see it.


    They looked up to the sky. Countless beams of divine light gathered in one direction, consolidating into a divine item. This was a huge divine seal. The light that burst from the divine seal covered the vast space, even piercing their eyes.


    And this divine seal contained immense power.


    When they looked toward the divine seal, they seemed to feel an infinite number of divine seals in the sky above their heads. These divine seals floated above them while giving them immense pressure. At that moment, all the cultivators felt unable to move.


    Of course, this was only a misperception.


    ��The second divine item has been produced,�� all the strong figures thought. They were stunned, feeling waves of emotions inside.


    ��What treasure is this?�� someone asked.


    ��When the seal was produced, it seemed that many worlds were weighing down on us. This seal is a world.��


    ��We can call it the Heaven Seal.�� Someone named the divine item, but of course, the final name would be decided by Ye Futian.


    However, the Heaven Seal did suit it.


    Many people began studying the Divine Power of the Heaven Seal. The divine items produced by this world could help the people sense the Heavenly Rule Power more directly. Plus, Ye Futian would gift these divine items to them.


    However, there weren��t enough to share. Probably only the core figures could receive them.


    Now, they could only hope that the world would produce more divine items.


    After much more time, the Rule Power of the Micro Heavenly Path gathered together and seemed to transform into a divine item. After a long transformation, everyone saw an eternal door appear in the dome of the sky.


    ��What��s this?��


    The hearts of the strong figures pounded incessantly. They could not sense anything. Then Fang Cun took the first step forward and said, ��I��ll go in to check.��


    Tie Tou, Little Ling, and a few others also followed him. Instantly, many people headed toward that divine door glittering with divine light.


    When they arrived outside the eternal door, Fang Cun��s eyes blazed. ��The Heavenly Path produced the eternal door. It contains the power of time and space. We can go in.��


    With that, he started forward and walked into the door. His figure instantly disappeared from that world. Tie Tou and the others followed him in as well. The four of them had become Ye Futian��s students at the same time and did everything together.


    After they entered, they discovered that they had come to a huge illusory world of time and space.


    ��There is not much Rule Power,�� Fang Cun said. ��But I can vaguely feel strong spatial power, but I can��t grasp it.��


    ��It��s not space. It��s time,�� Duo Yu said. ��This door probably isn��t used directly for cultivation. Instead, it changes the flow of time. If you cultivate in here, the flow of time will be different from the outside world.��


    Fang Cun was stunned. Looking at Duo Yu, he said, ��Cultivating one day in our teacher��s world is equal to more than 20 days in the outside world. In this case, this door of time was produced because of the Law of Time and Space. It has the same time as our teacher��s Micro Heavenly Path.��


    ��Yes, it will be a supreme treasure in the outside world,�� Duo Yu said, nodding. One could imagine how precious twenty times more cultivation time was. The stronger the person, the more they needed it.


    ��Let us head out first,�� Fang Cun said. They exited the door of time and told the others outside.


    Hearing this, the other strong figures all walked in. Fang Cun��s group entered with them again too.


    ��No, other than having more time to cultivate, this place also contains the Law of Time. It��s just that regular people can��t perceive it,�� the West Emperor said. ��If it is not produced by the Law of Time, then this door of time would not have appeared.��


    Everyone nodded, agreeing with the West Emperor��s words. The shock that they felt deepened.


    This was the third divine item. They did not know how many more would appear.


    Before, they had waited three years at the ninety-nine heavens to receive one divine item, and it did not even belong to them. Now, that anticipation was back.


    Various divine items came to be in the Micro Heavenly Path. Everyone was immersed in this cultivation state and improved speedily.


    There were drastic changes in the outside world too. The Heaven Realm became stronger and stronger, going towards a renaissance. Conflicts continued between the Human Realm and Divine Prefecture, showing signs of a split. If the Human Realm also stood on the side of the Devil World and Dark World, then it would be a disaster for the Divine Prefecture and Path of Buddhism.


    Many people believed that the Divine Prefecture would be the first world to be destroyed.


    Donghuang the Great��s 500 years of emperor fate may very well be true. However, they no longer thought the person to end Donghuang the Great��s emperor fate would be Ye Futian. Instead, it might be the Devil Emperor, or it might be the Human Ancestor.


    Of course, it could also be them together!

 Chapter 2849 - The Lost One

    Year 101813 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar. There were only two years left of the 500-year emperor fate of Donghuang the Great.


    The situation of the Seven Realms became more and more sensitive. The Human Realm, Devil World, Empty Divine Realm, and Dark World subtly allied against the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture. However, they could not conquer the ninety-nine heavens, so they gave up. As for the cultivators of the Heaven Realm, they had initially come from all the other worlds, so it was meaningless even if they conquered the Heaven Realm.


    Thus, all of the realms placed their target on the Divine Prefecture, and now, all the forces had started to infiltrate the Divine Prefecture. The storm that had slept for 500 years was about to start again.


    Skirmishes erupted often in the Divine Prefecture. Cultivators from all the worlds arrived to take over the eighteen domains of the Divine Prefecture. The Domain Chief��s Manor could not counter them at all. It was relatively quiet near the Divine Imperial Palace. It seemed that the Donghuang Imperial Palace had sensed the danger.


    However, the Heaven Realm��s Heaven Imperial Palace and the Original Realm��s Ye Imperial Palace had been resting and recuperating. The two forces received rare cultivation time.


    The number of cultivators of the Heaven Realm��s ninety-nine heavens kept growing. It was the same for the Ye Imperial Palace. Countless years had passed in the outside world, and decades had passed in the Ye Imperial Palace too. Everyone��s abilities had improved drastically and were nothing like before.


    Ye Futian had also improved immensely. Storms had swept through the outside world these past few years, but Fang Gai still stopped himself from ever disturbing Ye Futian��s cultivation. He allowed Ye Futian and the others to focus on cultivation and prepare to face the chaotic situation of the current world.


    These past few years, Ye Futian only came out once. He gifted a door of time and space, placing it in the sky above the Ye Imperial Palace. All cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace could go in at any time to cultivate. This way, they could also take advantage of more time.


    At the same time, the people of the Ye Imperial Palace all lamented about how strong Ye Futian was now. He had produced a supreme treasure like the door of time and space. They had never heard of a treasure like this before, but the Ye Imperial Palace had it now.


    ��


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    Nowadays, countless people still came to the Gods�� Ruins Continent to cultivate and learn. The law of this world was relatively complete��cultivators from thousands of places in the Original Realm gathered here. Now, the Gods�� Ruins Continent was already a whole world, connecting to the thousands of worlds in the Original Realm.


    At this time, there was a horrifying sound from a specific direction of the Original Realm. All the cultivators below looked up at the sky, but they did not discover anything either.


    Kaboom�� The muffled sounds continued, and the ground shook. They looked down at their feet and saw that the ground was indeed shaking. In fact, the surrounding space was shaking violently too.


    ��What��s going on?��


    They were full of fear. The ground was shaking, and the air was shaking too. Was some super-strong figure coming?


    But they did not discover anything.


    The muffled sounds continued. The frightening booms made their hearts pound violently.


    ��What exactly is happening?!�� No one knew. Everyone stopped cultivating��even those in seclusion could not focus on cultivating anymore. They all looked up at the sky.


    The entire vast space was shaking.


    And the shaking only got stronger and stronger.


    Many people felt like their hearts were about to jump out of their throats. It was extremely repressive, and an absolutely horrifying aura spread out, but they could not feel the direction of its source.


    Boom! It seemed that a hole opened up in the dome of the sky. The sky opened; the space was ripped apart. The turbid space roiled and ravaged, and there was limitless darkness.


    The horrifying aura came from the limitless darkness.


    ��This is���� Many people stared up at the broken sky and felt the aura that seeped out of the darkness. They were too shocked to speak.


    A brilliant beam of golden light shot out of the black hole right then. It was extremely sharp. Golden divine light rained down, landing on the ground from the sky. After that, they heard a dragon roar that filled the space.


    ��Ptui!�� Paired with the bright dragon��s roar, countless cultivators spat out fresh blood. Some people��s hearts could not take the pressure on their hearts, so their hearts exploded directly. They collapsed on the spot and vomited blood until they died.


    Those with weaker cultivations could not bear it at all.


    Kaboom�� With that horrible boom, many people were killed directly by the dragon roar��s reverberations. Others knelt on the ground, unable to stand up. The might from the heavens was suffocating for them.


    But everyone still forcefully lifted their heads to look at the hole in the sky. Next, they saw an extremely mighty dragon head. The huge dragon head came out of the broken black hole and was followed by a humongous body.


    ��Golden Divine Dragon!��


    All the strong cultivators�� hearts pulsed. The Golden Divine Dragon was giant. Its body continued to appear in this world. It was over a thousand meters, but only up to its next had appeared.


    ��Demon emperor! This is a demon emperor!��


    The emperor��s might pressed down on all the cultivators. They could feel that this Golden Divine Dragon was a demon emperor.


    Demon emperor Golden Divine Dragon��s huge body gradually appeared. Golden divine light scattered on the ground. Next, an even more shocking scene appeared. All the cultivators of the Gods�� Ruins Continent saw a middle-aged man dressed in dark clothing standing on the dragon��s back.


    This demon emperor was his ride!


    Finally, the demon emperor Golden Divine Dragon��s body��tens of thousands of meters long��crossed over the black hole. The sky returned to normal, but now, a man and demon were in the sky.


    The dark-robed middle-aged man stood with his hands behind his back. He was merely standing, but he gave off an indomitable might. He gazed around, but no one dared to meet his eyes.


    He seemed to be the master of the world and the sovereign of the ages. He rode above all beings and looked down at the masses.


    The dark-robed man looked down. Instantly, a few people��s bodies floated at the same time. They began to have pained expressions. Then the man��s gaze seemed to pierce them, entering their minds. They floated listlessly in the air. They wanted to struggle, but they could not move at all.


    ��Ah!�� One of them let out a pitiful and pained cry, clutching his head with both hands.


    ��Senior, have mercy!�� someone else yelled, but the dark-robed man��s expression did not waver. He continued his actions.


    Moments later, many images appeared in the dark-robed man��s eyes. Then the few figures dropped down at the same time. They were not breathing anymore.


    The vast space was deathly silent. No one dared to step out. They all stayed absolutely silent.


    Every being was like an ant before a Great Emperor.


    They were no different from ants before a Great Emperor. The man could use one thought to destine them to death. They could not resist at all.


    ��The Seven Realms!�� the dark-robed man muttered. Then he looked up at the sky.


    The Golden Divine Dragon roared and flew up, rushing into the sky and going towards higher altitudes.


    ��


    In the Donghuang Imperial Palace, Donghuang the Great was sitting on his throne with his eyes closed. At this time, he seemed to sense something. He looked down from the sky. His gaze penetrated the vast space and he saw the scene in the Gods�� Ruins Continent.


    The Lost One had embarked on the path of return too!

 Chapter 2850 - He is not Him

    In the Original Realm, a figure sat cross-legged in one of the ruins continents. He was cultivating with his eyes closed.


    Divine light wrapped around his figure. He sat in ruins, and his will enveloped the entire continent. He felt for the aura of this land��s original Heavenly Path.


    The current world was separated into seven realms, but these people standing at the very peak knew that the seven realms were not the former ancient world. Only the Original Realm was formed by the world after the Heavenly Path had collapsed.


    Now, standing in the Original Realm, he could already sense a shred of the original aura.


    Just then, his brows furrowed, and then his eyes flew open. A shocking beam of divine light shot out, piercing the void. It shot toward an extremely faraway place. His eyes were like an indestructible and sharp sword.


    There was a figure standing in the air outside of the continent.


    This person was very handsome and charismatic. His body contained the emperor��s might, and he was extraordinary. He made people feel reverence merely by standing there as if he was born to be noble and peerless.


    ��Ji Wudao!�� That cultivator��s eyes changed slightly. He was an ancient emperor and cultivated in the Human Realm before. After reaching enlightenment and returning, he came to the Original Realm. He wanted to study the shred of aura from the original Heavenly Path.


    However, he actually encountered Ji Wudao here.


    A bad feeling grew in his heart. Clearly, he sensed danger. Ji Wudao did not speak. The Nine Dragons�� true will appeared on his body, and he was instantly surrounded by the divine light of sun and moon. An incomparable natural phenomenon appeared in the sky. Golden flames wove through the clouds, and the illusory figures of various gods appeared in the dome of the sky, looking down.


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    And Ji Wudao himself looked down as a supreme lord of the sky. It was as if he had no opponents.


    The beautiful light shone down from the sky, instantly flooding the continent. The Great Emperor had an uncomfortable expression. Paired with a huge bang, the entire continent shook violently and crumbled under the dazzling light. It was instantly wiped flat.


    A burst of supreme might closed down. The Great Emperor knew that he wasn��t Ji Wudao��s match. Staring at Ji Wudao, he said, ��You are already a heavenly king of this world. Your opponents are the Great Emperors of the Seven Realms. What��s the point of killing me?��


    ��My plane is still lacking a bit. Senior, please aid me in this,�� Ji Wudao said. After he spoke, divine light enveloped the vast space. Ji Wudao extended his hand, and, instantly, unparalleled devouring force bloomed. All of the Divine Power was about to be swallowed up.


    Kaboom�� The frightening quaking sounds spread out. The land seemed to be caving in and collapsing. It was all swallowed up. The Great Emperor started retreating in the other direction. His body glittered with divine light to protect his body. He wanted to escape as a beam of light.


    But the space was collapsing, and the sky was turbid. Under that immense power, it seemed that he would be within that hungry windstorm no matter where he went. The storm grew stronger and stronger. It swallowed up the sky, flooding the Great Emperor��s figure.


    A moment later, the world returned to peace. It was as if nothing had happened, but the continent that had floated in the Original Realm was gone entirely. Not even a speck of dust remained. It was all swallowed up.


    Ji Wudao took a step forward and left this place directly.


    After this, similar things happened in other places.


    News spread through the Outer Realms that the heavenly emperor of the current world was hunting the ancient gods that had returned.


    It was very ironic. Those ancient gods had withstood countless years to wait for the right chance. They finally lasted until today, when they could reach enlightenment and return to the Path of the Emperors.


    However, what awaited them was not their former glory.


    The times had changed; the world had changed too. They became the target that others preyed on. Ji Wudao hunted ancient gods to strengthen his abilities. It seemed that the earlier information was not wrong. Ji Wudao��heavenly emperor of the current world��was like the Evil Emperor. He was extremely dangerous.


    After the news spread, the ancient gods cultivating in the Original Realm all began to leave, returning to the Seven Realms. Ji Wudao��s hunting all occurred in the Original Realm. He still feared the Six Emperors of the other six realms, so he did not step onto their territory for a direct face-off. Instead, he hunted in the Original Realm.


    Ji Wudao was already so frightening right now. What would he be like in the future?


    If he reached enlightenment and fulfilled his Path, possessing the abilities of the ancient heavenly emperors, how big of a threat would he be?


    It was said that the Human Ancestor and other Great Emperors were furious after learning of this. Ji Wudao was wildly provoking them. Some of the Great Emperors he hunted were ancient gods under them.


    However, they couldn��t do anything about Ji Wudao.


    That day, another uninvited guest came to the ninety-nine heavens.


    The dark-robed man who had appeared in the Original Realm previously, riding the Golden Divine Dragon, stood before the ninety-nine heavens. He looked up at the sky, sensing the aura within, and said, ��The heaven has died, but the new ruler has not risen yet.��


    Many top figures in the ninety-nine heavens, including many returned ancient gods. They stared at the man who had come on the Golden Divine Dragon, and their pupils constricted. Some people even recognized the man and said, ��Huatian the Great.��


    The hearts of these ancient gods all jumped. He was still alive!


    Huatian the Great was one of the top figures of ancient times. He had broken the Path to becoming emperor and had gone against the Heavenly Path. However, when the Heavenly Path collapsed, all the gods had fallen. World-slaying tribulations had fallen. The stronger the cultivator, the more difficult it was to survive. Thus, those leading figures had almost all gone extinct.


    Huatian the Great was a supernatural Great Emperor. With his abilities, it would have been difficult to survive the world-slaying tribulations, but he still appeared at this moment. How could the ancient gods not be stunned?


    Huatian the Great seemed not to hear the others�� words. He looked up to the sky and asked, ��Who are you?��


    All of the strong figures had shocked expressions. Huatian the Great had been one to fight against the Path. He was familiar with the Heavenly Path��s aura, yet he claimed that heaven had died, but the new ruler had not risen yet.


    Now, he asked who the Heavenly Path was. What did he mean?


    Could this Heavenly Path not be a remnant of the ancient Heavenly Path?


    Was it a Heavenly Path created by another strong figure?


    No one replied.


    Ji Wudao��s figure appeared in the upper heavens and gazed down at Huatian the Great. ��Senior, greetings from Ji Wudao,�� he said.


    He had devoured many ancient gods, including their memories. He knew many things, so he knew the name of Huatian the Great. He did not expect that such a strong ancient figure could return.


    Huatian the Great glanced at Ji Wudao and said, ��You have the heavenly emperor��s aura, so who are you?��


    ��I am Ji Wudao, the ruler of the Heaven Realm, lord of the Heaven Imperial Palace,�� Ji Wudao answered.


    ��Descendant of the Deva.�� A bit of sharpness flashed past Huatian the Great��s calm eyes. In that instant, every cultivator in the ninety-nine heavens felt an intense pressure. The pressure weighed down on Ji Wudao, but Ji Wudao resonated with the Heavenly Path. Divine light shone down, and the aura of the Heavenly Path enveloped Ji Wudao��s body.


    That scene caused Huatian the Great to furrow his brows, and he said again, ��And who is he? I can sense the aura left by the Heavenly Path, but he is not him!��


    This completely shocked all the strong figures of the ninety-nine heavens. If ��he�� was not ��him,�� then who was he?

 Chapter 2851 - : The Pinnacle Battle

    Ji Wudao looked at Huatian the Great and said, ��Senior, you crossed over to another era and returned. We can share the great cause today.��


    Hearing Ji Wudao��s words, everyone understood immediately. Ji Wudao should know the truth, which made sense. He was the biggest benefactor of the Heavenly Path, so of course, he knew the entire truth.


    Huatian the Great glanced at Ji Wudao and said with an indifferent expression, ��As if you qualify.��


    After he spoke, the Golden Divine Dragon under him let out an angry roar. In an instant, the dragon��s roar filled the air of the ninety-nine heavens. The hearts of the countless cultivators pounded, their divine souls shaking. Some people spat out blood from the reverberations, and some of those who had weaker cultivations died after their souls were shaken apart.


    The cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens were quite strong, but their bodies still shook and became unsteady. It felt like the world was being upended.


    This horrifying dragon roar was directed at Ji Wudao, but Ji Wudao continued to stand upright on the Heavenly Path. Nine Dragons True Qi wrapped around him, protecting his body. Frightening divine light of protection appeared around his body. The Heavenly Path could not be eroded. The dragon��s roar could not break through the defense of the Nine Dragons True Qi.


    Huatian the Great looked at the Nine Dragons True Qi around Ji Wudao. An unbelievable beam of golden light shot from his eyes. In that instant, sharp golden blades cut through the air, slicing the sky and shooting murderously towards Ji Wudao.


    At the same time, supreme Divine Power burst powerfully with Huatian the Great as the center, pouring out and covering the vast space instantly.


    ��Retreat!�� Ji Wudao uttered. As soon as he spoke, countless cultivators�� bodies were snapped. They died in an instant without even having the chance to scream.


    Those who were stronger used the Heavenly Path Power to protect their bodies, but the golden divine light was like a dimensional blade. It sliced the void, tearing everything apart, and ripped the Divine Power, cutting toward their bodies.


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    At that moment, blood rained down from the ninety-nine heavens. Countless people died on the spot.


    Those who moved quickly had already retreated to the distance. Their hearts trembled intensely. That destructive storm finally stopped expanding, but they still felt extreme fear. More than half of the cultivators near Huatian the Great had died in that instant.


    Right now, when they looked over, they discovered that the area had already transformed into a dimensional storm. The space was getting torn apart wildly. How could the cultivators survive?


    Many people got lucky because they were quite far away, but their hearts still shook violently.


    A significant figure returned from ancient times and could kill many top cultivators instantly. It did not even count as an instant. With just one thought, no life could remain around him.


    Huatian the Great gazed toward the Heavenly Path in the sky again. With one thought, countless beams of dimensional divine light transformed into dimensional divine blades. They split the space, cutting toward the heavens to break the sky.


    Ji Wudao��s figure appeared under that Heavenly Path. His body seemed to have become one with the Heavenly Path. A divine wall instantly appeared under the heavens. Countless divine runes flowed down the wall, and the Nine Dragons True Qi wrapped around it. It blocked the sky and stopped the incoming elemental divine blades.


    Huatian the Great��s eyes were frigid. He lifted a hand and grasped in the direction of Ji Wudao. Instantly, the dimensional storm came down on the area that Ji Wudao was in. Huatian the Great clenched his hand, and the dimensional storm immediately tore apart the space, destroying the space that Ji Wudao was in.


    The space distorted wildly. Under the destructive storm, all the cultivators in that space were about to be turned into endless shards.


    The cultivators of the ninety-nine heavens looked toward Ji Wudao. This time, Ji Wudao was facing a true frightening enemy.


    Amidst the shocking dimensional storm, Ji Wudao stood with the Nine Dragons True Qi protecting his body and bathing under the Heavenly Path��s divine light. He went forward, but he discovered that he was still trapped in the dimensional storm, bearing the destructive force.


    Thud! There was a huge sound. Limitless Divine Power gathered, transforming into a giant golden bell.


    Ji Wudao pushed his palms forward. Instantly, that huge bell broke through the air and sped through the dimensional space. It forced the space apart and went for Huatian the Great.


    This was the Universe-Breaking Bell. Divine light dazzled, and it tore apart the space, going murderously toward Huatian the Great in an instant.


    A golden dragon spear appeared in the hand of Huatian the Great. It was immense. He raised his hand and stabbed it toward the void. It clashed against the Universe-Breaking Bell. As a world-shaking sound rang out, the void shook. Countless cracks appeared on the huge Universe-Breaking Bell, and then it shattered.


    Boom! There was another burst of frightening aura. The Heavenly Path resonated with Ji Wudao, making a Haotian Pagoda appear in the sky��s dome. The Haotian Pagoda kept growing, covering the sky and sun. It contained supreme Divine Power and blasted down, killing toward Huatian the Great.


    Divine light flowed across the spear in the hand of Huatian the Great. In an instant, the countless destructive dimensional storms ripped through around the spear. His entire body dazzled, surrounded by divine light, and he was peerlessly aggressive.


    ��Roar!�� The dragon��s roar filled the sky. Huatian the Great did not move, but the Golden Divine Dragon underfoot flew up. It shot toward the Haotian Pagoda with extreme speed.


    Boom�� Immense repressive Divine Power fell. It was like the universe was weighing down, but the instant that Huatian the Great stabbed his spear forward, the world fell apart.


    Paired with a vast sound, divine light swept through. The ninety-nine heavens shook violently. With Huatian the Great as the center, everything was ripped apart. Countless cracks appeared on the boundless Haotian Pagoda, and then it broke into pieces.


    The Golden Divine Dragon continued up, carrying Huatian the Great through the dome of the sky. It was unstoppable.


    Ji Wudao trained his eyes downward. He naturally felt how terrifying the other��s Divine Power was. He could kill countless people with one look. His spear shattered the Universe-Breaking Bell and Haotian Pagoda.


    At that moment, Ji Wudao��s entire being melded into the Heavenly Path. A majestic figure appeared instantly in the dome of the sky. Ji Wudao had transformed into a heavenly emperor. The Nine Dragons True Qi resonated with the Heavenly Path at that time, seeming to transform into the most original Heavenly Rule Power.


    When the cultivators of the ninety-nine heavens saw Ji Wudao, they just felt that he was like the supreme being of the entire world right now.


    While Huatian the Great wanted to challenge this world.


    Boom! The two had not clashed yet, but two bursts of supreme Divine Power exploded. Countless beams of divine light rained down from Ji Wudao��s body. He instantly sealed the world and twisted the heavens. He put his palm down, and a vast divine seal appeared��the Universe Seal.


    Meanwhile, billions of beams of dimensional divine light from the golden dragon spear of Huatian the Great ripped apart the space. They honed in on that Heavenly Path, wanting to cover and destroy it. The two bursts of supreme power clashed, and, that moment, the entire ninety-nine heavens trembled.


    The cultivators in the distance retreated again and again. They saw the two attacks crash into each other, and destructive divine light instantly flooded the sky. Countless beams of dimensional storms pierced the sky like lightning, shooting murderously into the Heavenly Path!

 Chapter 2852 - Destroy the Divine Prefecture First

    Shocking dimensional storms appeared everywhere in the ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm. Many cultivators in the lower world were directly hit by the dimensional lightning and killed instantly.


    There seemed to be a dimensional tribulation in the ninety-nine heavens, transforming into a catastrophe.


    That instant, countless innocent people died tragic deaths.


    Many people also broke their arms, had their legs sliced, or their bodies even cut in half. However, their vital energy was too strong, so many of them were still alive. It was gruesome.


    In the center of the battlefield in the ninety-nine heavens, Huatian the Great��s body was forced back to its original spot. Other than his own horrifying Divine Power, he also had a gust of strong destructive body that surged in his body. It caused the dimensional storm to keep weakening. His Divine Power was shrinking rapidly too.


    He looked up and stared at Ji Wudao, who had become one with the Heavenly Path in the dome of the sky. Massive emperor��s might shrouded over him. At that moment, he seemed to be facing the ancient Heavenly Path. It was the true sovereign of the heavens.


    Under him, the Golden Divine Dragon let out an earsplitting dragon roar that rang throughout the air.


    ��Senior, you were a mighty figure in ancient times. Since you returned today, why don��t we work together for the greater cause?�� Ji Wudao said loudly. His voice shook the air. As a heavenly emperor of the current world, Ji Wudao did not care about the lives of all the cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens. He had a much bigger goal. So what if those people died? These people were only stepping stones for him to accomplish his goal.


    If Huatian the Great were not so strong, he would not try to get him on his side either. If Huatian the Great could work for him, he would help conquer the world in the future, helping him battle the realms.


    ��What kind of being is he?��


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    Huatian the Great was obsessed with his own question. He seemed only to want to know who the Heavenly Path was.


    The Heavenly Path had collapsed; the Tribulation of Doomsday had descended. He had personally experienced this. Why was there a Heavenly Path here? It was not the ancient Heavenly Path��it was only a remnant of aura.


    And this Heavenly Path had its own consciousness. It could help Ji Wudao in battle, and it was very strong.


    He wanted to know who exactly this Heavenly Path was.


    ��Senior, why are you so obsessed with this?�� Ji Wudao replied. He still did not answer. Huatian the Great looked at him. Knowing that he would not get the answer he wanted here, he turned around. Instantly, a space passageway appeared in the sky. The Golden Divine Dragon rushed in. Huatian the Great and the Golden Divine Dragon instantly vanished as if they had never come before.


    In that battle, Huatian the Great knew that he had lost to the Heavenly Path. Since he could not get the answer here, he would look in other places.


    Someone else in the Seven Realms must know.


    Ji Wudao walked out of the Heavenly Path and returned to his original form. He gazed in the direction of the disappeared figure and furrowed his brows slightly. It seemed that he had to hurry up and cultivate to reach enlightenment and become a true heavenly emperor.


    The world��s changes were intensifying. Supreme figures from ancient times had appeared; there were more and more strong figures.


    However, this also excited him. This kind of chaotic world was what he wanted.


    Raising his head, Ji Wudao looked toward the Heavenly Path. A rare respect appeared in his eyes, and he had a strong obsession in his heart. ��This world,�� he whispered, ��will bow before your feet one day.��


    After he reached enlightenment and became a true heavenly emperor, he would conquer this turbid world and make it submit to him. The Heaven Realm and Heavenly Imperial Palace would control the world law once again, being the leader of all gods. This was his obsession. Years ago, he had made a grand wish that he would most definitely accomplish it.


    ��


    The destructive Devil Abyss was in the sky of the Devil World.


    Throughout history, only the Devil Emperor could enter the Devil Abyss. The cultivators of the Devil World would undoubtedly die f they entered. It was even rare for people to withstand the tribulations from the Devil Abyss.


    At the moment, immensely destructive power filled the Devil Abyss. The blood-red tribulation light seemed able to kill anyone who touched it, and the pitch-black hole could swallow everything. There were also beams of devilish light. They were like the most terrifying destructive lasers in the world. Every time they flashed, a horrifying and boundless vortex of darkness would appear somewhere in the world.


    This was the prison of the Heavenly Path in legends. In reality, the Devil Abyss was more terrifying than in legends.


    Back then, when the Demonic Lord cultivated in the Devil Abyss, he had reached enlightenment and broken through the restraints. He had led billions of devil cultivators to fight against the Heavenly Path.


    Right now, a figure stood in the Devil Abyss, withstanding the destructive baptism of the Devil Abyss. That figure was Yu Sheng. He had undergone countless tribulations of life and death here in the Devil Abyss. As a Great Emperor-To-Be, it was also very difficult to survive in the Devil Abyss. He was constantly struggling at the brink of death.


    Countless beams of blood-red tribulation light wandered across Yu Sheng��s body. Then he swallowed them to refine his demonic body. Yu Sheng now had formed the Super Demonic Form already and was extremely frightening.


    There seemed to be a pair of eyes hidden in the Devil Abyss. It was watching Yu Sheng��s every move.


    ��What exactly is the Devil Abyss?�� Yu Sheng seemed to sense something and asked a question to the pair of eyes.


    ��The world calls the Devil Abyss the prison of the Heavenly Path. It imprisons the demonic cultivators and all criminals of the Heavenly Path, but it��s only half right,�� the Devil Emperor��s voice answered. ��The Devil Abyss was created with the Heavenly Path and is at the same level. However, a world law evolved from the Heavenly Path, while the Devil Abyss is a territory of chaos and destruction. It is recorded in ancient literature of the Devil World that even before the Heavenly Path collapsed, an ancient Demonic Lord was created under the Devil Abyss. He once fought with the world ruled by the Heavenly Path and lost. The will of the Devil Abyss was wiped away too, which is why it was reduced to a prison. But even so, the Devil Abyss has always been a forbidden area, feared by the Heavenly Path.


    ��The Demonic Lord awoke and inherited the will of the Devil Abyss,�� the Devil Emperor continued. ��He led the Devil World to declare war against the Heavenly Path. Thus, the Devil World and Heavenly Path World became two absolute polar worlds.��


    ��No wonder the Devil World has its own cultivation techniques,�� Yu Sheng replied. ��The Devil Abyss is equivalent to the Heavenly Path.��


    ��Yes.�� The Devil Emperor nodded. ��However, it��s incomplete. Yu Sheng, you are extremely talented and inherited the will of the Demonic Lord. I hope that you can be the like the past Demonic Lord, and inherit the will of the Devil Abyss too and allow demons to be in every corner of the world.��


    Yu Sheng did not speak further and heard the Devil Emperor continue, ��Cultivate first. In one or two years, there will be a big battle.��


    ��What big battle?�� Yu Sheng asked.


    ��It is almost time that the Buddha of Destiny foretold. Even though we don��t believe in destiny, I still want to see if the bald Buddhist donkey��s prediction is correct. After the time is up, war will erupt again, but this time, it will be started by the Human Realm. At that time, we will destroy the Divine Prefecture first.�� The Devil Emperor��s words made Yu Sheng��s pupils constrict. Would they attack the Divine Prefecture?


    But this was good, too. Ye Futian had constantly been pressured by the various forces of the Divine Prefecture. If the Divine Prefecture were destroyed, Ye Futian��s pressure would disappear.


    In the war 500 years ago, the Human Realm had allied with the Divine Prefecture. Now, the Human Realm��s stance had changed. It would be difficult for the Divine Prefecture to escape from its fate of destruction!

 Chapter 2853 - Great Chaos had Come

    Cultivators of the Seven Realms and Gods�� Ruins Continent could all feel the subtleties of the current world. There were some whispers that when the 500th year of the Donghuang Calendar arrived, the Human Realm and Devil World would team up to attack the Divine Prefecture. They would break up Donghuang the Geat��s 500-year rule of the Divine Prefecture and end Donghuang the Great��s emperor��s fate.


    Would the prediction from the Buddha of Destiny finally come true?


    Other than that, more and more Great Emperor figures appeared in the Gods�� Ruins Continent eve since Huatian the Great. You could also say that they appeared in the Original Realm. They all came by breaking open the space in the same place as Huatian the Great. This created a huge storm in the Gods�� Ruins Continent these days.


    Many people guessed that these were all Great Emperors who had survived the collapse of the ancient Heavenly Path. After the Heavenly Path had collapsed, the many gods had died, but some Great Emperors had used unbelievable methods to survive the disaster. They existed in the world in a different form. For example, Great Emperor Ziwei had sealed himself off, Shenyin the Great hid inside a guqin, and various emperors used special items to preserve themselves wholly.


    Now, it seemed that some Great Emperors had been exiled after the Heavenly Path had collapsed.


    And now, they found the way back and thus began to appear one after another.


    In response to this situation, the Human Ancestor sent strong cultivators of the Human Realm to guard the Gods�� Ruins Continent. When an ancient emperor returned, the Human Ancestor would order someone to negotiate with them and bring them to the Human Realm. Some Great Emperors seemed to want to figure out the world��s current situation, so they were willing to follow. However, there were also solitary figures who left by themselves.


    One day, an extremely strong aura seemed to spread from somewhere in the Gods�� Ruins Continent��it was still where Huatian the Great had appeared. It shook the hearts of the surrounding strong figures.


    ��It��s appeared again.�� Nowadays, people from every realm searched for news here.


    ��Could it be that Huatian the Great found the coordinate for the others to return?�� someone guessed.


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    ��It could be true. Ever since Huatian the Great returned, more people have been returning.��


    The strong cultivators were all guessing quietly. There were also cultivators from the Ye Imperial Palace in the crowd. They were responsible for keeping an eye on the situation and reporting it back at any time.


    Nowadays, the Ye Imperial Palace was considered an emperor-level force. Thud, they naturally needed to know the news of the outside world.


    Boom! Paired with a horrifying beam of divine light, the heavens split apart. Then seven figures appeared at the same time. These seven people had extremely frightening auras. They were all Great Emperors. The strong cultivators were all stunned when they saw this scene, and a storm lifted in their hearts.


    Seven. Seven Great Emperors had appeared at once.


    The changes in the world were a bit too drastic. Before, there had only been six emperors in the world. Now that the space passageway had opened up, seven emperors could return at once.


    This made people wonder just how many Great Emperors had existed during the Age of Gods.


    Perhaps some of the Great Emperors of the Ancient God Clans had been at the top level of that era, but they still weren��t strong enough. Only those who could fight against the Heavenly Path or rule the Eight Legions were the true sovereigns of the world.


    Or perhaps Great Emperors had different sub-levels, but they were still too far away. They still had not reached the Emperor Plane, so how could they discuss the different levels of Great Emperors?


    These seven Great Emperors stood at the dome of the sky. Their auras overtook the world and were incomparable. They even radiated with extremely sharp auras as if they were the rulers of the world. They looked down at the cultivators below. Their divine gazes swept across the cultivators below without holding back.


    The people were used to this because this kind of situation had happened many times now. Why would Great Emperors care about cultivators of lower planes? In their eyes, every being below the Great Emperor Plane was like an ant.


    A group of people walked out. They bowed toward the seven Great Emperors that had appeared in the sky and said, ��Senior, we are from the Human Realm. We are under the Human Ancestor��s orders to invite you all to visit the Human Realm.��


    The seven Great Emperors looked down at the person from the Human Realm who spoke.


    Poof�� Their gaze penetrated the space instantly, and a spear nailed the speaker directly into the air. It stabbed through his body. This abrupt scene shocked all the strong figures, and their expressions dropped.


    They had started killing without any warning.


    This had not happened before. The other Great Emperors who had come were all willing to learn about the situation.


    The seven Great Emperors faced different directions and reached out at the same time. The vast and boundless void was instantly shrouded in a horrifying storm. All the cultivators in nearby regions hovered in the air at the same time. They struggled wildly, but they could not break free.


    ��Go!�� They all wanted to escape, including the few cultivators from the Ye Imperial Palace, but that storm covered them completely. They could not block the Divine Power.


    ��Ah!�� There were pained cries. The eyes of the seven Great Emperors turned white. The pure white orbs looked extremely demonic. In that instant, everyone felt that their consciousness was being peeled away. A horrifying strength invaded their minds directly. Before the Great Emperors, they might not even be ants.


    A moment later, the seven Great Emperors seemed to have received the memories they wanted. Similar divine light flowed between them, connecting the seven of them. They seemed to be one unit with no distinction between them.


    ��Ye Imperial Palace!��


    The seven people murmured as if their thoughts were connected. The strongest force on this continent was the Ye Imperial Palace.


    One cultivator of the Ye Imperial Palace took out a mirror. He used his willpower to put a beam of his consciousness into it. The next moment, there was a poof, and his head was pierced directly. He died on the spot.


    The seven Great Emperors gazed around. The poofs kept sounding as one person was killed after another, and their bodies dropped down powerlessly.


    The people��s lives were like weeds.


    The seven Great Emperors did not even glance at them. They faced the same direction in unison, and then their bodies disappeared. They headed towards the Ye Imperial Palace.


    ��


    In the Ye Imperial Palace, Fang Gai received the news passed back immediately. He headed towards where Ye Futian was cultivating and woke him up, disrupting Ye Futian��s cultivation voluntarily for the first time.


    Ye Futian went before the great pavilion. ��Palace Lord,�� Fang Gai said. ��While you were cultivating in seclusion these days, Great Emperors had gradually started breaking open the heavens and entering. Some guess that these are the Great Emperors who became lost after the Heavenly Path had collapsed. They were exiled in the boundless void and finally the way back now.


    ��Because Great Emperors are returning gradually, all the forces have sent people to investigate. The Ye Imperial Palace did the same. Not too long ago, seven Great Emperors descended from the heavens and killed all cultivators in that region, taking their memories. They��re coming towards the Ye Imperial Palace. I��m afraid they are unfriendly.��


    ��The people of the Ye Imperial Palace were killed too?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��Yes.�� Fang Gai nodded.


    Ye Futian looked into the distance, and murderous intent flashed past his eyes. The unrest of the Seven Realms had not settled yet, but now more Great Emperors were returning from the heavens.


    The great chaos had come. The storm was about to start!

 Chapter 2854 - Gods of Judgement

    Ye Futian��s body appeared outside the Ye Imperial Palace. All the strong figures of the Ye Imperial Palace were behind him. Their auras were all intimidating.


    Countless years had passed on the outside, while only a few decades had passed in the Micro Heavenly Path world. After all these years and having the Divine Power baptism of the Micro Heavenly Path��s world law, the people who had cultivated in there could not be compared to how they had been before.


    1


    It was not just them. Ye Futian had created the innate divine item of the door of time and space back then. All cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace could enjoy more cultivation time, so they improved far more than the outside world.


    Of course, the enemies this time were seven Great Emperors. Even though they were very strong, they still could not help.


    Outside the Ye Imperial Palace, countless cultivators saw the silver-haired figure. They looked at Ye Futian with reverent eyes. They did not know why Palace Lord Ye had arrived. Was there another strong enemy?


    They had not seen Ye Futian in a long while. The news spread from the Ye Imperial Palace was that Ye Futian had been cultivating in seclusion to respond to the changes of the world.


    There was only one year left of Donghuang the Great��s 500-year rule of the Divine Prefecture. It would arrive in the snap. The Seven Realms were changing drastically. People claimed that every realm would send their soldiers to the Divine Prefecture when the year was up to destroy the Donghuang Imperial Palace. If that day came, Ye Futian would probably participate too, right?


    While they were pondering, an immense might suddenly rolled over from a distance. Seven beams of bright light appeared in the sky. The next moment, seven Great Emperors appeared in the heavens. Their auras were a bit similar. The might from each of them was shockingly intense.


    These seven people were all Great Emperors!


    ��This���� The hearts of the strong cultivators all pounded. What was going on?


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    And who were these seven Great Emperors?


    Seven Great Emperors had appeared at once. For all these countless years, there had only been a handful of Great Emperors in the Seven Realms in total. What exactly was happening to the world?


    No wonder Ye Futian was already waiting there. It seemed that he knew of their coming beforehand.


    However, no matter how strong Ye Futian was, he was facing seven Great Emperors now. Countless people were fearful and started worrying. They depended on the Ye Imperial Palace, and Ye Futian was their belief. They shared glory and defeat together.


    Boom! Divine light shone over the vast land, covering the boundless territory. Instantly, with the Ye Imperial Palace as the center, countless people were covered by the curtain of light. Ye Futian would think of their safety before each battle. This made everyone feel more respect for Ye Futian.


    Then shocking divine light shot out of the eyes of the seven Great Emperors at the same time. Their eyes seemed to transform into white orbs as they dove towards Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was not intimidated at all. His body shot into the sky and slowly rose to the upper sky. The light of sun and moon shot out of his eyes. The white orbs invaded his eyes. It was the power of Eye Sorcery. In an instant, it felt like he was brought to a barren land. The seven Great Emperors looked down on him like gods, like they were the gods that controlled the world law, and they were going to interrogate him.


    The light of judgement shot into Ye Futian��s consciousness, but then the world was upended. The divine light of sun and moon shot out. Ye Futian��s domain appeared in the Eye Sorcery Zone, and a voice sounded in the void.


    ��Get out!��


    The seven beams of divine light exploded instantly. All the laws collapsed. His eyes contained his own domain with his own law and order. He would not let others cause chaos there.


    The seven people��s expressions did not change at all. Their long silver robes fluttered in the wind, and their white orbs still carried feelings of despise. In their eyes, it was as if they saw everyone in the world as weeds that could be killed at their wish.


    Ye Futian��s eyes scanned the others. He did not ask who they were. No matter who it was, it was the same if they killed the people of the Ye Imperial Palace. There was only war. He did not need to know who they were.


    Boom! Blinding divine light radiated from the white eyes of the seven Great Emperors. It was like the light of judgement. Everything in its path was about to be annihilated and go through judgement. Even the space was being annihilated.


    The light of judgment crossed the space as if there was no distance between them, instantly dropping from the heavens. However, it did not hit Ye Futian��s body. Instead, it was blocked by the curtain of light that enveloped Ye Futian��s body.


    The curtain of light seemed to be made out of countless particles. Each particle contained the power of the world as if they were a world. One could imagine how frighteningly strong the defense was.


    But even so, the light of judgment started eating it away bit by bit, causing the particles to keep crumbling. The light passed through the light screen and went towards Ye Futian��s divine body.


    Countless people looked up to the sky. The light screen hanging over their heads had been released by Ye Futian. It was probably the same as Ye Futian��s defense. Even so, the seven beams of doomsday light of judgment that dropped from the sky collapsed the space, tearing apart all existences. It actually slowly ripped apart Ye Futian��s defenses and was about to break through.


    Ye Futian was still looking up into the sky, and his eyes were normal��there was no change at all. No wonder these seven Great Emperors dared to be so wanton. They had started killing as soon as they arrived and now killed their way to the Ye Imperial Palace.


    Seeing their attacks, it was clear that they were stronger than Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great, whom he had encountered before. Any one of the seven Great Emperors had a stronger combat ability than Haotian the Great, let alone the seven as one. It was extremely terrifying.


    Very few cultivators would cultivate similar abilities unless they came from the same teacher or had become allies. But once you reached the Great Emperor Plane, everyone studied the path by themselves to create their own Path. Every Great Emperors�� abilities should be different.


    But the seven Great Emperors before them were so similar. What was the force behind them?


    Boom�� Divine Power burst aggressively from Ye Futian��s body. Roars sounded within his divine form. His body transformed into the Path, and countless types of World Divine Power burst forth, surging into the light screen. It mended the broken areas. His body went against the tide, and under the shocked stares of the strong cultivators, he floated toward the heavens while bearing the seven beams of judgment light. This was a direct conversation of Divine Power.


    The white orbs of the seven Great Emperors finally wavered. They looked at Ye Futian with some surprise. He was actually going up the sky. Was this a provocation towards them?


    Even more shocking divine light shone from the white orbs, and a terrifying storm appeared in the heavens. The sky roiled and roared. The white light of judgment covered the vast space and a frightening divine matrix.


    ��What is this?��


    The cultivators below had even more shocked expressions as they looked up at the divine matrix in the sky. Many mysterious and complex images appeared in the divine matrix. The seven Great Emperors resonated with the divine matrix. The next moment, countless beams of judgment light descended from the divine matrix.


    That moment was like doomsday. It was like the ultimate judgment, a judgment for the world. Even though they were covered by the defensive light screen, the cultivators below still had horrified expressions. The scene before their eyes was too frightening.


    Were these seven Great Emperors gods of judgement who presided over the world��s punishments?!

 Chapter 2855 - Shocking the World with One Spear

    Ye Futian saw the divine matrix in the dome of the sky. He lifted his hand and pushed his palm toward the upper sky. In an instant, boundless divine light shone through. A divine seal appeared in the dome of the sky. It was a rectangular divine seal. This divine seal expanded with crazy speed and resonated with Ye Futian��s body.


    Boom! In an instant, divine light pierced the heavens. The rectangular divine seal covered the vast space, transforming into a boundless divine matrix. When the divine print rotated, there were beautiful beams of runes and worlds on the surface.


    Before, when Ye Futian had been cultivating in seclusion, the Micro Heavenly Path had created a divine seal. It was named the Heaven Seal. After that, Ye Futian had comprehended a divine technique from the Heaven Seal, which was the World Divine Seal seen now.


    The runes seemed like they would jump out; they contained the immense might of Divine Power. When the judgment of light from the divine matrix in the sky descended, the entire world roared.


    Countless beams of judgment light fell at once, landing on the World Divine Seal. Many frightening dark cracks appeared in the heavens like space was being ripped apart. It was exceedingly horrifying, like the true doomsday.


    Countless beams of judgement light hit the World Divine Seal and penetrated it bit by bit. However, it could not truly destroy it directly.


    ��Palace Lord Ye has become stronger.��


    All of the cultivators below were stunned. He actually blocked such a terrifying attack. It was apparent how strong Ye Futian was nowadays. This was an alliance of seven Great Emperors, and each of them was stronger than Haotian the Great.


    The cultivators could not even imagine what level their attack was. It was out of their knowledge range.


    Ye Futian lifted a hand and slapped the boundless World Divine Seal forward. Instantly, countless ancient runes peeled off from the boundless World Divine Seal and blasted toward the dome of the heaven.


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    The seven Great Emperors�� white orbs shot down to the lower sky. They reached out at the same time, moving in unison, and the divine matrix in the dome of the sky shot out frightening weapons. Seven long spears appeared in their hands.


    The long spears radiated with peerless light of judgment. They were huge, like the spears of true gods of judgement. Wielding the spears, they headed down the sky, transforming into seven beams of divine light. In that instant, more beautiful light burst from the divine matrix and shot down murderously toward the World Divine Seal below.


    At the same time that they extracted the spears, Ye Futian also extended his arm. Infinite Heaven Slaying Divine Swords were formed around him, and a spear also appeared in his hands.


    White robe fluttering, silver hair dancing, Ye Futian looked like a true god of the world with his long spear. The cultivators below looked at his backside and felt that Ye Futian was indomitable at this moment. So what if there were seven gods of judgment?


    Countless people clenched their fists and felt their hot blood thundering inside. The fear they felt before transformed into anticipation. They were anticipating Ye Futian��s most epic battle.


    Ye Futian��s arm moved slightly. The moment the divine attack from the seven Great Emperors fell, the infinite Heaven Slaying Divine Swords rose against the tide, blazing toward the upper sky. At the same time, his body transformed into a beam of light that streaked upward.


    Bang! The instant that the seven Great Emperors attacked, billions of beams of judgment descended onto the World Divine Seal at the same time. The divine seal was destroyed instantly. The seven judgment gods carried infinite judgment light and continued down, annihilating the sky and judging the masses, slaying all cultivators below them.


    But at almost the same time, infinite Heaven Slaying Divine Swords shot up into the sky, crashing against the judgment light. That moment, it was like the world was about to be destroyed.


    Of course, the true battle was between the seven gods and Ye Futian themselves.


    The seven judgment gods used their spears to seal the void and attack Ye Futian. They wanted to bring him to justice.


    But at this time, Ye Futian also stabbed with the spear in his hand.


    The spear��s blow was shocking.


    Spear techniques buried the sky!


    A muffled sound spread from the void. Countless beams of judgment light shot down, attacking Ye Futian with extreme murderous strength. But the moment that Ye Futian thrust his spear, the time and space seemed to be distorted. It swallowed up the world. The storm of distortion that exploded instantly could pulverize everything, and the billions of beams of judgment light were swallowed by the storm of distortion.


    The spears of the seven judgment gods shattered. The huge spears of judgment were torn into countless pieces and swept into the time and space vortex. Their bodies shone with extreme divine light. They seemed to sense the danger and wanted to escape from the storm of distortion. The force of judgment was combatted by Ye Futian��s spear.


    Boom�� With that huge boom, the world split apart. The seven judgment gods�� bodies were ripped apart. Ye Futian��s long spear was like a black hole, instantly swallowing everything, including the other party��s destructive attack.


    The seven heavenly emperors�� bodies twisted and disappeared the next moment, reduced to nothingness.


    The spear swept past, and Ye Futian��s body appeared in the upper sky. Everything in his path was turned to dust. The doomsday-like light of judgment vanished without a trace, and the divine matrix in the dome of the sky had scattered. It was as if it had never existed before.


    In that vast space, only Ye Futian��s figure was standing in the heavens. His white robes fluttered, and his long silver hair danced in the windstorm. Everyone looked at him, and it seemed that every strand of his hair was clear. He was a god, a true heavenly god. Every strand of hair could be a weapon.


    He killed seven Great Emperors with one spear!


    This kind of action had never been heard of before, but they all witnessed it today. The cultivators outside the Ye Imperial Palace were all lucky to have seen this extremely stunning scene.


    This memory would accompany them forever, unable to be erased. Countless years later, they would still be hotblooded and excited when thinking back to this scene, feeling very proud to have witnessed this battle of Ye Futian��s that shocked the world.


    In the present world, everyone��s attention was attracted by the current heavenly emperor. They had forgotten that in the Original Realm, there was a monstrous figure who topped the generation with his peerless talent and had no match to date.


    In today��s battle, he killed seven emperors with one spear. Who could match him?


    Ye Futian was their religion and their god!


    It was not just the others. Even the core figures of the Ye Imperial Palace were stunned by this spear, too shocked to speak. This spear attack was too beautiful. It killed seven emperors. Under the spear, the seven domineering gods of judgment did not even have the chance to escape and were killed on the spot. They probably never thought that they would die directly here.


    ��I missed the last era, but I am fortunate to witness this era,�� the Supreme Swordlord murmured. A smile appeared in his eyes. He had missed the stunning figures of the previous era, but he witnessed Ye Futian��s path to the top with his own eyes.


    Before, he had said that the heavenly princess had been peerless, and the world was not as colorful without her.


    The Original Realm would be lonely without Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2856 - Human Ancestor

    Ye Futian��s spear attack shocked the Gods�� Ruins Continent. News soon spread to the Seven Realms, and countless people were stunned.


    Had Ye Futian become so powerful already without them realizing?


    While everyone focused on Ji Wudao, Ye Futian had quietly risen and killed seven Great Emperors with one blow. How talented was he?


    Nowadays, the few Great Emperors of the Divine Prefecture��s Ancient God Clans were probably shivering fearfully.


    Haotian the Great, Yuanshi the Great, and those who had become emperor afterward: Wuliang the Great and Heavenly Emperor Jiang.


    In the rebuilt Haotian Clan, the four ancient emperors were gathered together. They had already heard the news from the Original Realm. Ye Futian had killed seven Great Emperors with just one spear attack. They did not know who the seven Great Emperors were. They had come from outside the heavens, but according to rumors, they had been extremely strong. They were the gods of judgment with overpowering brilliance, but they had been killed by Ye Futian before they could display it fully.


    ��There are many voices in the Outer Realms now, saying that our four Ancient God Clans will follow in the steps of the Tianyan City and Vajra Realm,�� Haotian the Great said. ��What do you all think we should do now?��


    As Great Emperors, they actually felt very repressed. After the Heavenly Path had collapsed, they had survived in the world as a different form and waited countless years to finally return. They thought that after returning, they would have utmost glory in the present world and be high and mighty, looking down at the world that lacked Great Emperors.


    But what they did not expect was that they could only be proud once. That day they teamed up to destroy the Ye Imperial Palace; they had been extremely domineering, killing their way there. They had no glorious moments after that.


    Up until now, they were even fearful every day, wondering how they could save themselves. This was so tragic.


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    They were Great Emperors. They had not felt so repressed, even in ancient times.


    ��In the Seven Realms right now, everyone wants to destroy the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture,�� Yuanshi the Great replied. ��Ye Futian was hiding away in the Original Realm and was viewed as non-threatening. If we want to kill him now, we must rely on the Divine Prefecture��s strength.��


    ��Donghuang never wanted to kill Ye Futian and kept this threat alive. Now, he has finally risen to the top, becoming someone who can kill emperors. Donghuang should act now.�� Haotian the Great��s expression was cold. If Donghuang the Great acted, they should deal with Ye Futian.


    ��The Outer Realms say that the various worlds might attack the Divine Prefecture. It should be soon, and Ye Futian might get involved. I don��t know what kind of situation it would be. If he does get involved, Donghuang should kill him.��


    Nowadays, it seemed that they could only put their hopes on Donghuang the Great. If the Divine Prefecture were destroyed, they would still be in danger. If Ye Futian were part of the victorious side, he would not show them mercy.


    ��Order people to spread the news that Ye Futian had broken the Path to cultivate,�� Wuliang the Great spoke up. ��In ancient times, he would be the kind to fight against the Heavenly Path. He killed seven emperors as a Great Emperor-To-Be and is growing extremely fast. If he enters the Great Emperor Plane, he would be completely unparalleled. He will transform into the Heavenly Path, rule over the gods, and preside over the world law.�� The other three Great Emperors listened to his words and then nodded, understanding the other��s intentions.


    Why did the Human Realm, Devil World, and other forces want to destroy the Heaven Realm? It was because the Heaven Realm had a Heavenly Path. Ji Wudao had become a heavenly emperor and showed signs of wanting to unify the Seven Realms. He was very ambitious and was a threat to the other Great Emperors.


    As for his so-called demonic techniques, it was also a reason, but it was not the most important one.


    The critical point was that he posed a tangible threat to the other worlds.


    Spreading exaggerated information about Ye Futian also had this effect.


    The four Great Emperors could not defeat Ye Futian by themselves, so they could only get creative and use lowly and calculative tactics. It seemed a bit pitiful, and they also understood this, but they had no other choice or path to take.


    Otherwise, they could only wait for death.


    ��


    After Ye Futian killed the seven Great Emperors, he returned to cultivate in the Ye Imperial Palace.


    His attack had helped intimidate the other Great Emperors who had come from outside the heavens. Many of the Great Emperors who had previously arrived had blood on their hands. They did not care about the cultivators of the Gods�� Ruins Continent at all. They carelessly stole their memories, finding the information that they wanted directly in the people��s brains.


    Great Emperor figures were too terrifyingly destructive. Their one mindless action could cause many people to die.


    Not long after Ye Futian killed the seven Great Emperors, another uninvited guest came to the Ye Imperial Palace.


    It was cultivators from the Human Realm. In fact, Di Hao had led them here personally.


    Known as the heir of the Human Realm, Di Hao had many conflicts with Ye Futian before. They had even fought directly before.


    The Ye Imperial Palace greeted Di Hao. The world��s current situation was a bit strange. Di Hao had come representing the Human Realm, and Ye Futian wanted to see what the purpose was.


    Ye Futian sat on the majestic throne and looked down in the sky to Di Hao. Di Hao had become very strong too, being in the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane for many years, but he was nothing before Ye Futian.


    ��Palace Lord Ye.�� Di Hao��s personality seemed to have changed. He did not have the arrogance from before at all. He knew that Ye Futian was no longer on the same level as him. At least, there was a big gap between them right now.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and said, ��What advice is the Human Realm hoping to impart in this visit?��


    ��We have had some conflicts with Palace Lord Ye in the past, and I am taking this chance to apologize. I hope you can forgive me,�� Di Hao said, bowing down to apologize to Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s expression faltered. He was quite surprised. ��It��s all in the past,�� he said. ��Let us talk about the matter at hand.��


    He was not in the mood for beating around the bush and small talk.


    ��I am sure Palace Lord Ye has seen the changes of the world. Ji Wudao is threatening the safety of the Seven Realms, and Donghuang the Great is plotting in the back. We don��t know what he has plotted, but the Human Ancestor is calling top figures from all the forces to gather at the Human Realm and discuss this grand matter together. Thus, I came to invite Palace Lord Ye as well.��


    Ye Futian cocked an eyebrow. Something similar had happened before, and they had invited him to fight against the Heaven Realm, but he did not participate.


    Now, the Human Ancestor ordered someone to invite him again.


    ��I have heard of it before,�� Ye Futian said. ��The Ye Imperial Palace is only a force of the Original Realm and unable to reach the heights of the emperor-level forces of the Seven Realms. We are not qualified to participate yet.�� He looked at Di Hao a bit tentatively.


    Di Hao looked at Ye Futian. He closed his eyes, and then an extremely strong aura burst from his body. Then Di Hao��s entire being seemed to change. An illusory figure appeared in the air above him. It was an elder��s figure. He appeared extremely ancient and wise, benevolent and kind. There was even auspicious light surrounding him like a natural phenomenon.


    ��Human Ancestor!��


    Ye Futian��s pupils constricted. He stood up and said, ��Greetings to the Human Ancestor.��


    ��Palace Lord Ye, you are too polite,�� came a wispy voice from the elder��s silhouette. ��I heard that Palace Lord Ye killed seven emperors with one spear, shocking the world. How can you be so humble? In the current world, Palace Lord Ye is destined to stand at the very top. How can you not be qualified? I know that Di Hao had a conflict with you. Thus, I came to invite you personally. I wanted to meet the most outstanding junior of the current world!��

 Chapter 2857 - Human Divine Palace

    The Human Ancestor was a being from ancient times. He had lived countless years and was the most ancient Great Emperor. He was not like those ancient emperors who had fallen and then returned. He had always existed in the world.


    One could say that the Human Ancestor was the most senior being in the world. He was also the most respected of the six emperors.


    With the Human Ancestor��s status, he was really showing respect to Ye Futian by coming personally. Ye Futian was unable to reject him, so he said, ��Since the Human Ancestor has invited me, how can I not agree?��


    Hearing that Ye Futian agreed, the Human Ancestor smiled and nodded, saying, ��In that case, I will wait for Palace Lord Ye to come to the Human Realm.��


    With that, the auspicious light flashed, and the Human Ancestor��s figure vanished.


    Di Hao��s eyes opened. Looking at Ye Futian, he said, ��Since Palace Lord Ye has agreed, I will take my leave.��


    ��Be my guest.�� Ye Futian did not try to stop him. He nodded, and then Di Hao led his men away.


    After the cultivators of the Human Realm left, Ye Futian remained on his throne. The people beside him did not leave either. At this time, Ye Futian��s brows furrowed slightly, and he asked, ��What do you all think?��


    The Human Ancestor had invited him personally to travel to the Human Realm and discuss the grand matter. The so-called grand matter was naturally how to deal with the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture.


    ��The Human Realm has always represented justice in the world. They are also attacking the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture under the name of justice, but the six realms all act for their own benefit. I don��t believe in the so-called human justice,�� the Supreme Swordlord said. ��The Human Ancestor had a good relationship with Donghuang the Great before. Now, he suddenly wants to destroy the Divine Prefecture. I��m afraid there are other secrets. It��s not as simple as it seems. The last time Di Hao proposed to Donghuang Diyuan was the Human Ancestor testing Donghuang the Great��s attitude. Their relationship started worsening after that.��


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    ��Correct,�� Fang Gai said. ��The Human Ancestor is the most ancient being in the world now and is unpredictable. No one can see through him. The temperament he shows is peerless too. There are two possibilities for his temperament. One, he is a true sage who is detached from the world. But judging from his past actions, he might not have reached that state yet. If that is not the case, then it is a guise, which is even more frightening.�� He was analyzing the revered Human Ancestor.


    ��In the Human Realm, the Human Ancestor��s status is extremely revered. Everyone worships him. His title is the Human Ancestor. No ordinary person can enjoy this title. Could it be possible that he wants to attack the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture for the good of the cultivation world?�� Lord Taixuan said doubtfully. However, he was only expressing his own views. He did have some suspicions, but he felt that they could not see clearly and did not want to directly accuse the Human Ancestor of being disingenuous.


    Perhaps they saw things with a bias because of their conflicts with the Human Realm?


    ��At most, he is only thinking for the Human Realm,�� Gu Dongliu said in disagreement. ��No matter what the situation with the Human Ancestor is, we must make the trip.��


    Ye Futian nodded. If the Human Ancestor was a true ��sage�� with unparalleled benevolence, they had to visit out of respect for the senior. There was nothing wrong with that.


    If it was the other possibility, then the Human Ancestor was very calculative. Since he had already come personally with an invitation, Ye Futian would be presumptuous not to go. It would most likely be difficult to counter the Human Ancestor if he attacked directly.


    ��We will naturally know all of this in the future,�� Ye Futian said. He must visit the Human Realm.


    ��


    Year 10,184 of the Divine Prefecture Calendar, the Human Realm invited all the emperor-forces to discuss how to deal with the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture.


    Once news of this spread, countless cultivators traveled to the Human Realm to witness this grandiosity.


    Once, the Human Realm was enemies with the Devil World, Empty Divine realm, and Dark World. Unexpectedly, they would sit down together in an alliance. Changes were unpredictable, and anything could happen in the world.


    If war erupted this time, what kind of consequences would occur?


    Would the Divine Prefecture be destroyed?


    The Divine Prefecture should still exist, but it was hard to say whether the Donghuang Imperial Palace would survive.


    Human Realm, Human Divine Palace.


    It was covered in wispy and spiritual-like clouds. There were many spiritual mountains here with many pavilions on them, wrapped in auspicious clouds. There were even phoenixes and divine birds flying in the mist.


    At this moment, many cultivators were traveling through the sky. They rode the divine birds and looked incredibly magical and handsome.


    There was a grand feast set up on one of the main mountains. Guests came from all directions and landed in the spiritual mountains. They stood there and looked into the distance, anticipation filling their eyes.


    Today, there will be a grand feast of the largest scale in 500 years. Four of the six current emperors might come, and many of the influential figures who had become Great Emperors recently would go too.


    At the moment, there were cultivators in different parts of the mountain. Their auras were all immeasurably deep. The cultivators in the Renhuang Plane could only stand at the bottom. They weren��t even qualified to take a seat.


    After the world��s drastic changes, the Renhuang Plane was nothing anymore.


    Too many strong figures had been created in recent years, whether they had gone through tribulation or were Great Emperors-To-Be.


    It was currently the age of the Great Emperors. The Age of Gods had already begun.


    Di Hao stood beside the divine throne at the peak of the spiritual mountain. There were countless Great Emperors on either side of him. They were all waiting.


    Even the weakest of those figures were in the Great Emperor-To-Be Plane.


    Right then, amidst the cultivators below the spiritual mountain, a group of people passed powerfully through the clouds and came straight towards this side. It was Ye Futian��s group. They were the first to arrive.


    Many goddesses went forward to welcome them. They bowed in greeting and said, ��Palace Lord Ye, welcome.��


    With that, they led the way, bringing Ye Futian and the others to the region of spiritual mountains and led them to sit in one section.


    ��Palace Lord Ye.�� Di Hao nodded slightly at Ye Futian and the others. Ye Futian also nodded in response but did not say anything else. They sat down quietly and started waiting there.


    They were not the stars of the show this time. The Six Emperors were coming, so he was only a junior.


    Boom�� Terrifying devilish might descended from the dome of the sky. Then beams of devilish light appeared. A group of strong figures abruptly appeared atop the spiritual peak. The strong figures of the Devil Realm��s Devil Imperial Palace had arrived. The leader had aggressive might. It was the Devil Emperor who had come personally.


    ��Greetings, Devil Emperor.�� Di Hao and the others bowed in greeting.


    ��Greetings, Devil Emperor,�� countless cultivators atop and below the spiritual mountain greeted at the same time, bowing down. The six current emperors were the topmost existence in the world. Everyone held great respect and reverence for the six emperors.


    The Devil Emperor did not speak. He strode forward directly, leading the strong figures of the Devil Realm toward somewhere. His eyes glanced at Ye Futian.


    ��Senior Devil Emperor.�� Ye Futian rose and bowed from a distance. The Devil Emperor nodded slightly, and then his gaze moved away!

 Chapter 2858 - Benefit Distribution?

    Not long after the Devil Emperor arrived, two strong auras descended at the same time. Dark divine light fell from the top of the sky, transforming it into a passageway. A group of strong cultivators walked out from it.


    And on the other end, there was a golden space passageway. It was like a spatial door had opened. Similarly, a group of strong cultivators walked out from it.


    The Dark Court and Empty Mountain cultivators had arrived.


    ��Greetings, Sovereign and Evil Emperor.��


    The strong cultivators rose and bowed again, greeting the two standing at the peak��the Dark Sovereign, the ruler of the Dark Court, and the Evil Emperor, ruler of the Empty Divine Realm.


    Even for Ye Futian, this was his first time seeing their true forms. He had lived in the Dark Court previously, but he had not seen the Dark Sovereign��s true form either.


    At this time, the Dark Sovereign was wrapped in black fog, giving people a doubtful feeling. He also had a silver mask on his face. His entire being was hidden in the nothingness.


    The Evil Emperor was slender and had defined facial features. He looked to be in his forties. Just by standing there casually, he gave off an extraordinary feeling. There seemed to be an arrogant air about him. He did not even look at the people. He just scanned the Devil Emperor��s side, found his spot, and took a seat.


    ��They��ve all arrived.��


    This feast was mainly for the Devil Emperor, Dark Sovereign, and Evil Emperor. The three supreme figures had all come personally. This was unprecedented in the past 500 years. Only the Human Ancestor made these three Great Emperors come in their true forms.


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    Auspicious light shimmered in the air above the divine throne on the spiritual mountain. The brilliant light shone, enveloping all of the ancient peaks. A figure appeared in the Human Divine Palace, and then he came to the divine throne. It was the Human Ancestor��s true form.


    ��I am very touched that my old friends were willing to come for me,�� the Human Ancestor said, smiling at the figures. ��The last time we gathered like this must be 500 years ago.��


    At that time, when the world was in chaos, they had gathered before it was resolved. Ever since then, the Seven Realms had been at peace for countless years, and war had not appeared again.


    At present, four of the six emperors of the world appeared here.


    There was also Ye Futian of the Original Realm.


    ��The situation of the Seven Realms has changed. Since the Human Ancestor invited us, we also would like to hear your thoughts,�� the Evil Emperor said. His voice was distant, and he sounded very conceited.


    ��You all know of the changes of the Seven Realms. There is no need to speak further about it. The Heavenly Path wants to use Ji Wudao to return and rule over the world again. Donghuang��s stance is unclear, but he may partner with the Heaven Realm. Ji Wudao has shown his feelings for Donghuang Diyuan countless times, wanting to make her the Empress. If Ji Wudao succeeds, the Seven Realms will not exist anymore.��


    The Human Ancestor��s voice was ethereal as he slowly continued, ��This time, the other side has plotted for many years while keeping us in the dark. Thus, I invited you all here. I hope to destroy the Donghuang Imperial Palace first and take care of Ji Wudao after. What do you all think?��


    ��If they become allies, won��t Donghuang go to the Heaven Realm? If the Heavenly Path helps Donghuang, I��m afraid it won��t be straightforward,�� the Devil Emperor stated, seeming to want to test the Human Ancestor with his words.


    ��Donghuang has ruled the Divine Prefecture for 500 years. I am sure you all are clear on how significant the Divine Prefecture is to him. If he is willing to abandon the Divine Prefecture and be with Ji Wudao in the Heaven Realm, then he will be giving up the foundations of the Divine Prefecture,�� the Human Ancestor replied. ��Little friend Ye is the descendant of Emperor Ye Qing and extremely talented. He also has old rivalries with Donghuang the Great. It��s quite suitable for him to inherit Emperor Ye Qing��s foundations. What do you all think about handing the Divine Prefecture to little friend Ye?��


    Ye Futian��s expression was surprised. He did not think that the Human Ancestor would show such friendliness and give him the Divine Prefecture to rule.


    ��I agree,�� the Devil Emperor was the first to nod and agree. He said, ��Emperor Ye Qing was one of the creators of the Divine Prefecture. it is legitimate for Ye Futian to inherit the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��I have no objections to little friend Ye inheriting the Divine Prefecture.�� The Dark Sovereign also agreed. The Evil Emperor did not speak, so everyone looked at him and the Human Ancestor, ��The Evil Emperor doesn��t speak, so I will take it as a yes.��


    The group��s casual conversation seemed to determine that the Divine Prefecture would be under Ye Futian��s rule.


    1


    Ye Futian did not speak, but some ideas grew in his mind. The Buddha of Destiny predicted that Donghuang the Great��s emperor fate would last 500 years. Would this be refuted this time?


    Would he inherit the position of Donghuang the Great?


    If the four realms�� alliance attacked the Divine Prefecture, what would the Buddhist��s stance be?


    Would they be bystanders, or would they get involved to aid Donghuang?


    ��After we conquer the Divine Prefecture, the next target would be the Heaven Realm. The day we conquer it would be the day we decode the mystery of the Heavenly Path and destroy it to prevent any remaining threats. As for the Heavenly Realm, the Human Realm will not touch it. Devil Emperor, Dark Sovereign, if you wish to invade it, you are free to do so,�� the Human Ancestor said as if he was not interested in the Heaven Realm territory.


    The Devil Emperor had always wanted to break out of the Devil Realm so that he would let them.


    ��I want the Original Realm,�� the Dark Sovereign said. Ye Futian glanced at him. The Dark Sovereign��s wish was to have darkness envelope the entire world.


    The Original Realm was the origin of the world. The Dark Sovereign must have ulterior motives if he wanted to control the Original Realm.


    ��Sovereign, you��re clear about the changes in the Original Realm nowadays. I��m afraid it won��t be so easy to control the Original Realm,�� the Human Ancestor said.


    ��It would be fine as long as you all do not interfere,�� the Dark Sovereign continued. ��I will send people to the Original Realm. If there is trouble, we will resolve it ourselves.��


    ��What about the Empty Divine Realm?�� asked the Evil Emperor spoke up at this time. These people were splitting up the territory but seemed to have forgotten him.


    They were not interested in the Divine Prefecture, but the Great Emperors seemed very interested in the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian thought that he was the ruler of the Original Realm and had risen in the Original Realm. The others all agreed to put him into the Divine Prefecture; they probably wanted him to separate from the Original Realm.


    However, if they conquered the Divine Prefecture and destroyed the Heaven Realm, the relationships between these Great Emperor forces probably would not be so amicable anymore. Other conflicts would arise.


    The Human Realm had always been unfriendly with the Devil Realm and the other two worlds.


    ��You all are having fun,�� came a voice came from the distance. The Human Ancestor and others furrowed their brows slightly and looked into the distance.


    The voice traveled from outside the Human Divine Palace��s spiritual mountain. They did not pay attention, but just now, after the voice traveled over, an extremely aggressive aura also spread over. Many figures shot into the sky from the spiritual mountain. The strong figures beside the Human Ancestor also stepped forward. At the same time, shocking auras emanated from various directions.


    However, the Human Ancestor raised his arm, stopping everyone. Then an intense beam of light shot over from a distance. It was extremely blinding.


    The next moment, an extraordinary figure appeared in the heavens before the spiritual mountain.


    Everyone��s eyes were on him, staring icily. Murderous intent swept through.


    The strongest forces of the world were gathered here today. Four of the six emperors were here, and yet someone still dared to stand in the heavens and look down at them. It was such presumptuousness.


    Other than Ji Wudao, there was no other person like this in the current world. However, it was not his true form!

 Chapter 2859 - Attacking the Divine Prefecture

    ��Presumptuous!�� The strong cultivators looked at Ji Wudao, who had appeared in the sky.


    Even if he was a heavenly emperor of the current world, Ji Wudao was still a junior. Four of the current six emperors were at the Human Divine Palace Spiritual Mountain right now, yet Ji Wudao was so presumptuous. He descended directly and looked down from the heavens as if he was the ruler of the masses.


    ��Get down here!��


    A figure walked out. It was a Great Emperor. He raised his hand and grabbed toward the sky. Instantly, booms filled the air, and horrifying Divine Power burst forth. Supreme might shrouded the sky. The group saw a huge hand grab towards Ji Wudao in the sky.


    However, Ji Wudao��s entire body dazzled, and divine light wrapped around him.


    Clang! There was the sound of a loud bell. An ancient bell appeared in his divine form. It broke through the air and hit the handprint, actually penetrating it. It shattered the huge handprint and blasted straight toward the Great Emperor who had attacked.


    The Great Emperor raised his hand to block it. Instantly, countless huge handprints appeared in the air and blasted toward the ancient bell.


    Kaboom�� The huge divine bell seemed to overlook the defensive forces and passed straight through them, instantly going toward the Great Emperor. Paired with a huge boom, the strong Great Emperor was forced back, and he let out a muffled grunt.


    The bell��s ringing echoed in their ears, filling the air.


    ��Universe-Breaking Bell!��


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    The Human Ancestor looked at it. This was the ability of the ancient Heavenly Emperor, and Ji Wudao had inherited it. He was the heir of the Heaven Realm and also received the inheritance of the Old Heaven Court, so it was normal that he was skilled in the old Heavenly Emperor��s abilities.


    It was unexpected that only his incarnation had come, but he could already hurt a Great Emperor instantly.


    Ji Wudao was becoming stronger and stronger.


    Then Ji Wudao��s figure floated down. He looked to the Human Ancestor and said, ��The Human Ancestor is the most ancient Great Emperor in the current world. Many of the things from back then must be related to the Human Ancestor, right?��


    The Human Ancestor gazed at Ji Wudao and replied, ��Ji Wudao, you received the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method and cultivated it into a demonic technique. You swallow and kill cultivators in the dark and will suffer from the backlash.��


    ��As expected of the Human Ancestor. You are indeed very knowledgeable,�� Ji Wudao said with a laugh. ��However, if we are speaking of backlash, it should be the Human Ancestor instead. I heard that everyone is gathered here today to discuss how to destroy the Divine Prefecture and attack the ninety-nine heavens, so I came to take a look. I, Ji Wudao, will remember everyone present. You all must be more careful when traveling from now on.��


    Everyone stared at Ji Wudao. He had come as an incarnate and dared to threaten all the emperors. How arrogant and wild!


    Everyone here was a top figure in the world.


    ��Ji Wudao, I still have a question. Did Donghuang ally with you?�� the Devil Emperor asked, looking at Ji Wudao. He seemed to want to know the answer.


    Before, it had only been a rumor in the Human Realm. No one saw that Ji Wudao was working with Donghuang the Great. Since Ji Wudao came personally, he decided to ask out of curiosity if Donghuang the Great had already become allies with Ji Wudao.


    Ji Wudao laughed when he heard this question, and some mockery actually showed on his face. Looking at the Devil Emperor, he said, ��That coward Donghuang qualifies to be my ally?��


    ��Coward Donghuang?!�� The strong cultivators were all shocked by Ji Wudao��s crazy words. Donghuang the Great was the most renowned figure in the millennium. He had peerless talent, ruled the Divine Prefecture, and his name was known throughout the world.


    And yet, Ji Wudao called Donghuang the Great ��Coward Donghuang�� today.


    This was the first time someone had called Donghuang the Great a coward.


    Ye Futian furrowed his brows. Why did Ji Wudao say this?


    Was it because of the Sovereign Princess?


    Donghuang the Great and the Sovereign Princess were married. Though very few people knew this, Ji Wudao was the heir of the Heaven Realm, so how could he not know?


    Also, what connection did Ji Wudao have with the Sovereign Princess?


    Ji Wudao had been chosen as the heir of the Heaven Realm many years ago. Could he have been chosen by the Sovereign Princess?


    In this case, had Donghuang the Great not allied with Ji Wudao?


    Otherwise, there was no reason for Ji Wudao to humiliate Donghuang the Great like this.


    ��If that is the case, then why are you here?�� the Dark Sovereign said, looking at Ji Wudao. ��Did you come here to purposely mislead us?��


    Many people��s expressions changed. From the Dark Sovereign��s words, it was clear that he would not give up on this mission to attack the Divine Prefecture. Whether the Divine Prefecture had allied with the Heaven Realm was no longer important.


    If they thought something, then it was the truth.


    ��Do you even qualify?�� Ji Wudao looked at the Dark Sovereign and responded with a cold smirk, ��I came here to notify you all that since you decided to team up against the Heaven Realm, then you should be prepared. When I prove my path, there will be true chaos, and the seven realms will bathe in blood.


    ��Everyone present must be prepared!��


    Ji Wudao spoke arrogantly, and then his figure faded gradually. Finally, he vanished as if he had never appeared in the first place.


    Countless gazes on the divine mountains looked toward the vanished figure in silence. No one spoke.


    Ji Wudao had come to threaten everyone here.


    The day he became the Heavenly Emperor, he would bring chaos to the world. Did Ji Wudao have the ability?


    He was not an emperor yet, but he could kill a Great Emperor easily. If he became an emperor, his abilities would probably really be enough to counter the six emperors.


    This kind of person was indeed a huge threat. His goal was not only one realm but seven��the entire world. He did not want to rule the world. Instead, he wanted to kill and dye the world with blood.


    ��In ancient times, there were the Eight Legions under the Heavenly Path, acting as the spokespeople of the Heavenly Path in the world. They ruled the world. Among them, the Deva was the leader of the Eight Legions. The Heavenly Emperor, leader of the Deva, was the top person under the Heavenly Path. He managed the world law for the Heavenly Path. All laws in the world were under his control. He presided over the masses, viewed the people like ants, and thus, in the age after the Heavenly Path, I created the Human Realm to focus on human life. I did not think that after countless years, in current times, the heir of the Heavenly Emperor would be the same. He sees nothing and wants to dye the world with blood, viewing people��s lives as mere weeds.��


    The Human Ancestor spoke slowly. He no longer had the casual feeling from before and was instead extremely solemn, revealing some shades of coldness. He said, ��I became known as the Human Ancestor, so I must do something for the people. It doesn��t matter if Donghuang the Great wants to ally with the Heaven Realm to overthrow the seven realms. After we conquer the Divine Prefecture, we can ask Donghuang what he thinks, if he is willing to ally with us and attack the ninety-nine heavens to destroy the evil Heaven Court of the present day.��


    The Devil Emperor and others were silent. Ye Futian also listened quietly the entire time and never spoke up. It was not time for him to stand up.


    ��I invited you all to visit because I hope that you all can have a unified heart. After you return, send armies to the Divine Prefecture together seven days later. Do not hurt the mortals and take down the Domain Chief��s Manors of the 18 domains. Then we will visit the Donghuang Imperial Palace. How about it?�� the Human Ancestor asked everyone.


    ��Sure,�� the Devil Emperor replied.


    ��No problem.�� Everyone nodded in agreement. They would send soldiers to the Divine Prefecture together and prepare to take down the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2860 - The Trend

    Seeing everyone nod, the Human Ancestor looked toward Ye Futian and said, ��Palace Lord Ye, after the battle, you will lead people to rule over the Divine Prefecture. The cultivation of the people of the Divine Prefecture will depend on you from now on.��


    The gears in Ye Futian��s brain turned, and many ideas appeared in his mind. Still, he could not figure out why the Human Ancestor did this, but he nodded and said, ��I will follow the Human Ancestor��s teachings.��


    ��Palace Lord Ye is the top talent of the seven realms and destined to stand at the very peak. It is the fortune of the Divine Prefecture cultivators to have Palace Lord Ye govern the Divine Prefecture,�� the Human Ancestor continued. ��For this mission, it seems at the moment that Palace Lord Ye��s side is the weakest. I will send some people to aid you. In addition, to prevent Donghuang the Great from leading people in a counterattack, you must be careful with the Ye Imperial Palace and leave people there to guard it.��


    Ye Futian was slightly alarmed inside. The Human Ancestor was thinking carefully for him, but was there an ulterior motive?


    Such as watching his movements.


    But in the current situation, he was already tied to this war chariot. Even if the Human Ancestor had that ulterior motive, he could not reject him. Plus, there were no problems with the Human Ancestor��s words. Everything seemed logical and very well could happen.


    Before he could reply, the Human Ancestor continued, ��The Devil Emperor, Sovereign, and Evil Emperor��s forces have developed some Great Emperors in recent years. Will you all also send some people to aid Palace Lord Ye?��


    By saying that, he seemed even more to be thinking for Ye Futian.


    ��Yes.�� The Devil Emperor nodded in agreement and said, ��I will send Great Emperors to the Ye Imperial Palace to coordinate the equilibrium between the forces and attack the Divine Prefecture together.��


    Ye Futian glanced at the Devil Emperor. Since the Devil Emperor said that, he naturally could not say much else. Nodding, he said, ��Thank you, seniors, Human Ancestor and Devil Emperor.��


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    ��In that case, I will not keep you all here anymore,�� the Human Ancestor said. ��Please return and begin preparing.��


    The set time was very tight. Seven days later, they would attack the Divine Prefecture together.


    If they were regular cultivators, seven days would not even be enough for them to travel back, but they were all Great Emperors here��the top beings of the world. Seven days was enough for them.


    ��In that case, we will start on our way back now,�� the Devil Emperor said and led the strong cultivators away. The other cultivators began to return as well.


    Ye Futian also stood up to bid farewell. This time, everyone was leaving without having stayed for too long.


    But this pertained to the order and war of the seven realms, and they had to meet this time to agree.


    Thus, the significance of this meeting was not in the duration. Instead, it was that the Great Emperors�� true forms had come here together and created the alliance to attack the Divine Prefecture.


    After the strong figures returned, news quickly spread from the Human Realm and dispersed toward the Seven Realms with extremely frightening speed.


    All the cultivators of the Seven Realms felt shaken inside instantly.


    They knew that the world was going to change.


    The order of the Seven Realms would welcome a historical change.


    The Human Realm, Devil Realm, Dark World, and Empty Divine Realm would work together to attack the Divine Prefecture. They would destroy the Divine Prefecture first and then attack the ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm.


    Was the prediction of the Buddha of Destiny about to come true?


    Would the 500-year-long emperor fate of Donghuang the Great come to an end?


    They did not expect that the world would change so quickly. The Seven Realms welcomed an unprecedented war.


    ��


    Ye Futian��s group returned to the Ye Imperial Palace. Then he called the core figures of the Ye Imperial Palace to gather and discuss matters.


    Declaring war against the Divine Prefecture was out of the ordinary. No one could predict what consequences there would be. Ye Futian had no choice but to be careful.


    ��What do you all think?�� Ye Futian asked everyone in the grand pavilion.


    The cultivators in the main pavilion were all core figures who had followed him from the Ziwei Segmentum.


    ��We cannot reverse the trend,�� the West Emperor said. ��The Human Ancestor and others are pushing you forward. This is the general trend. Yu Sheng of the Devil Realm has a special relationship with you, and you have some friendship with the Devil Emperor, but he is also part of the trend. There is no choice.��


    Ye Futian nodded. He also felt that the Devil Emperor wanted him to get involved too.


    The four forces��the Human Ancestor, Devil Emperor, Dark Sovereign, and Evil Emperor��formed the trend. Even now, he still felt insignificant and could only go along with the flow, participating in this battle.


    Of course, he personally had enough reasons to participate.


    In addition, the other side had even given him enough benefits. After conquering the Divine Prefecture, he would rule the Divine Prefecture.


    But if this really happened, no one could predict how the world order would change again.


    Was it the appearance of the Heavenly Path in the ninety-nine heavens and Ji Wudao that disrupted the equilibrium, causing the Human Ancestor and the others to want to declare war?


    ��I am a bit worried,�� Gu Dongliu said.


    ��Third Brother, speak.�� Ye Futian looked at Gu Dongliu.


    ��The Human Ancestor has lived for countless years, and he is unpredictable for us. His current attitude can even make you forget your previous conflicts with the Human Realm,�� Gu Dongliu said. ��He is known as the Human Ancestor, and he is incredibly powerful. He is very benevolent and thinks for all beings in the world, but if he acts differently than how he thinks, then what is he plotting?��


    Everyone fell silent at that. Before, they had discussed how the Human Ancestor was, and they returned to this question now.


    The Human Ancestor was too hard to predict. They could react to enemies on the surface, but it was too dangerous if the Human Ancestor was setting up a ploy for them.


    ��I feel that the Human Ancestor is extremely tricky. He must have another ulterior motive. It��s just that we can��t see it,�� Zhuge Mingyue also said. Her gut instincts told her that the Human Ancestor was definitely not how he acted.


    ��Have you realized that ever since the Human Ancestor appeared in the Ye Imperial Palace, we lost the initiative?�� Gu Dongliu spoke again. ��We are just acting according to the Human Ancestor��s wishes. It seems like he has not done anything, but we��re indeed already wrapped in this flood.��


    Ye Futian nodded. He thought of what the Devil Emperor had said to him years ago. Emperor Ye Qing��s death back then may possibly have the Human Realm��s ideas in it. If this were the case, then the Human Ancestor naturally would not be a benevolent and selfless Great Emperor. He would have his own selfish wishes.


    The Human Ancestor had lived for countless years. What were his pursuits?


    ��The point is that no matter what motive the Human Ancestor has, we are already coerced by the trend,�� the Supreme Swordlord said. ��We must join the war. There is no way out.��


    Everyone fell silent. This was the main issue, just like when the Human Ancestor had come with the invitation.


    ��It might not be a bad thing,�� the West Emperor spoke up. ��Perhaps the Human Ancestor only wants to break the equilibrium between the seven realms and thus wants to support us in managing the Divine Prefecture. At least right now, the Human Ancestor has not expressed any ill intentions yet. As for his motive, it��s unclear at the moment.��


    Ye Futian listened to everyone��s words, and his thoughts became clearer. He nodded slightly and said, ��Then we will fight in the battle. What do you all think?��

 Chapter 2861 - Eve of War

    The strong cultivators all fell silent when they heard Ye Futian��s words. This war was a war that affected the strongest figures in the seven realms. It was a true peak battle. No one could make a complete prediction beforehand.


    No one was clear about the Six Emperors�� abilities or who was weaker and who was stronger.


    ��From the surface, if the Human Ancestor��s four Great Emperor forces ally to attack the Donghuang Imperial Palace, then it��s a crushing defeat. No matter how strong Donghuang the Great is, he can��t be stronger than four emperors,�� the West Emperor said. ��Judging from Ji Wudao��s words, he looks at Donghuang the Great with scorn. Perhaps he won��t participate in the battle due to the wife of Donghuang the Great. Then the only variable would be the Buddhists, whether the Western Heaven Buddhists would get involved or not.��


    Many years ago, the two sides might have reached an equilibrium and thus had 500 years of peace. The Devil Emperor, Dark Sovereign, and Evil Emperor were on one side. The other side was the Human Ancestor, The Buddha, and Donghuang the Great.


    But now, the equilibrium has been broken. The Human Ancestor wanted to attack Donghuang the Great.


    Ye Futian thought back to when he had cultivated in the Buddhist sect. There were some bad people in the Buddhist sect, but overall, they were very friendly to Ye Futian. The Buddha must have taught Donghuang the Great back then, too, so they had a special relationship.


    Plus, the Buddha of Destiny had also appeared to stop the war between the seven realms. It was evident that the Buddhists did not wish for war. Many of the Great Buddhas were compassionate, so it was not clear if the Buddhists would directly participate in the battle. However, many Great Buddhas did not wish for this battle to decimate the beings of the cultivation world.


    ��Whether the Buddhists participate or not, the Divine Prefecture��s strength has still weakened, unless Donghuang the Great decides to go all out and abandon the Divine Prefecture,�� Gu Dongliu said. ��In that case, it would also be a catastrophe for the Human Realm��s four forces unless the four emperors can kill Donghuang the Great directly.��


    ��In terms of overall strength, we are the weakest party. We can��t avoid participating in the battle, but we shouldn��t attract hatred. If Donghuang the Great targets the Ye Imperial Palace and attacks, it��ll be a catastrophe.��


    Ye Futian nodded. He had to consider this point.


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    If the four Great Emperor forces and the Ye Imperial Palace attacked the Divine Prefecture simultaneously, Donghuang the Great could indeed choose to go down with the ship.


    ��Follow the four emperors,�� Zhuge Mingyue said. ��Do whatever they do.��


    ��I wonder if there��ll be a chance to see Master.�� Gu Dongliu gazed into the distance. It had been years since Mr. Du of the Cottage was taken away by Donghuang Diyuan. They had no way of knowing if he was still alive and well.


    They might find the answer if they could step foot in the Donghuang Imperial Palace during this battle.


    ��Palace Lord!�� someone outside the pavilion called at this moment. ��Palace Lord, cultivators from the Human Realm have come.��


    ��They��ve come so fast.�� Ye Futian lifted his head and looked outside. They had just returned, and the Human Realm��s strong figures had already come. It seemed that they had been ordered immediately to come.


    ��Welcome,�� Ye Futian said. Then he rose and walked down from the divine throne, saying, ��Let��s go welcome them.��


    Everyone nodded and headed out. They walked out from the grand pavilion and looked down the steps. They saw a group of people coming over from a distance. They were very fast. They came up along the sky stairwell and stopped below after getting closer. ��We were ordered here by the Human Ancestor to aid Palace Lord Ye,�� they said to Ye Futian.


    ��You all have worked hard.�� Ye Futian��s eyes swept over the people below. There were six people in total, and all of them were Great Emperors. He had not even seen many of them before and was unfamiliar with them.


    This scene shocked Ye Futian too. The richness of the Human Realm intimidated him a little.


    Had he seen the most vital parts of each realm before?


    These past years, ancient emperors came back gradually, but the Human Realm could easily send six Great Emperors here. This was extremely generous.


    ��You all came from afar. I will have people help you rest and notify you when we embark,�� Ye Futian continued saying. The six all nodded, and one person said, ��We will listen to Palace Lord Ye��s arrangements.��


    Fang Gai walked out and led the six Great Emperors to leave this place. Ye Futian watched them leave and had a thoughtful expression.


    These Great Emperors were so cooperative with him. What exactly did the Human Ancestor want?


    After a while, the Devil World also sent two Great Emperors here. Now, eight Great Emperors had come to the Ye Imperial Palace.


    The Dark World and Empty Divine World did not send anyone. Perhaps they thought it was enough for the Human Realm and Devil World to send people.


    Next, he had to arrange the people who would fight in the battle. Ye Futian naturally had to bring the core combat force with him. In addition, there were his friends and family. Should he keep them with him or leave them in the Ye Imperial Palace?


    Six Great Emperors had come from the Human Realm, and two had come from the Devil World. Their opinion was for the Human Realm to leave two Great Emperors, and Devil World leave one to help Ye Futian guard the Ye Imperial Palace. The other Great Emperors would follow him to fight the Divine Prefecture. This way, they could also catch up to the steps of the Human Realm and Devil World.


    However, Ye Futian had no way of knowing if they wanted to monitor him. If they had these thoughts, then if something happened to him on the battlefield, the people here would probably be subject to the outsiders, and he would not be able to act freely on the battlefield.


    ��


    While the various realms were preparing to attack the Divine Prefecture, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture also received this news. The entire Divine Prefecture was shaken, and everyone was anxious.


    Four Great Emperor forces would unite. Would the Divine Prefecture change its ruler this time?


    They heard that the Human Ancestor appointed Ye Futian to govern the Divine Prefecture and inherit the mantle of Emperor Ye Qing.


    Would all of this happen?


    It seemed quite peaceful in the Donghuang Imperial Palace. Everything was normal; it seemed like nothing was out of the ordinary.


    At this time, Donghuang the Great sat cross-legged in his cultivation zone. There was a chessboard before him. He was playing chess by himself, analyzing the game.


    Right then, a cultivator appeared before him. He was soundless as if arising out of nowhere.


    ��Is there no other choice?�� that person looked at Donghuang the Great and asked.


    Donghuang the Great was silent. He continued to play chess and then shook his head, saying, ��No. The result is set. This is the only step to take.��


    ��Okay, I will arrange it.�� The comer nodded slightly.


    Donghuang the Great lifted his head and looked at the person. ��Be careful,�� he said.


    ��Understood,�� the other replied. Then he turned and left, quickly disappearing without a trace.


    Donghuang the Great lowered his head and continued to play chess. After a long while, the board seemed to turn into a dead end. He could not put down the piece in his hand, and then he said in a low voice, ��This is the only step that can be taken.��


    With that, he waved his hand, and the chessboard disappeared. He stood up and turned around, walking in one direction. His backside had a feeling of determination!

 Chapter 2862 - Invasion

    The North Cliff Region had been under the Devil World��s rule since the Devil World invaded it back then. This had caused significant criticism in the Divine Prefecture, and many people even doubted Donghuang the Great.


    At this time, strong figures of the Devil World continuously appeared at the borders between the North Cliff Region and Devil World, arriving at the North Cliff Region. The various Devil World armies and independent cultivators hurried toward the Divine Prefecture, prepared to welcome a mighty battle.


    The Great Emperors�� decisions would determine the victory or defeat of this battle. However, back then, the six emperors had checked and balanced each other, and battles erupted among the cultivators below the Great Emperor Plane and swept in all directions.


    It was different now. The times were different. As the ancient emperors returned gradually and more Great Emperors and Emperors-To-Bes were created, the modern cultivators were already too strong to be compared to the past.


    Even so, how could the cultivators of the Devil World miss this chance? The emperor-level forces determined the battles in the upper level, while they would invade the entire Divine Prefecture. They would scatter the seeds of the Devil World in the land of the Divine Prefecture instead of just the barren soil.


    In addition, strong cultivators of the Human Realm, Empty Divine Realm, and Dark World all gradually came to the bordering regions of the Divine Prefecture. They also had mighty armies. This was a war of aggression. They all believed that after this battle, the Divine Prefecture would no longer be the Divine Prefecture. It would belong to all of them.


    Even though the Human Ancestor had already agreed to hand the Divine Prefecture over to Ye Futian, that would come later. Before that, they would devour up the entire Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian also led a large army and left the Ye Imperial Palace. After considering things, he did not bring everyone with him. This great battle was to invade the Divine Prefecture, but it was not as simple as imagined. What kind of existence was Donghuang the Great? If he targeted Ye Futian, it would also be extremely dangerous.


    Thus, he believed that maybe staying in the Ye Imperial Palace would actually be safer. A few Great Emperors were guarding the Ye Imperial Palace. Even if Donghuang the Great ordered Great Emperors to attack them, they should handle it.


    As for whether the Human Ancestor intended to monitor him, he did not care. Since he was already joining the war, he would naturally go full out when it pertained to his life or death.


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    This battle had been caused by the trend. He had no choice.


    At this time, they were below a passageway in the Gods�� Ruins Continent. It was a passageway that led to the Divine Prefecture. Once they stepped over it, they would enter the land of the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian took out a mirror. A few figures instantly appeared in the reflection��the strong figures who stood at the peak.


    The Human Ancestor, Devil Emperor, Evil Emperor, and Dark Sovereign. Including him, there were five people in total.


    This mirror was a supreme divine item and contained immense spatial Divine Power. It could contact others at any time and use Divine Power to track locations. They were not acting together this time. If Donghuang the Great attacked one party, the others could use this treasure to cross through the void and appear, preventing any accidents.


    ��Let��s set out,�� the Human Ancestor said in the mirror, giving the order. ��After taking down the Domain Chief��s Manors of the 18 domains, leave people there to guard them. Then head to the Donghuang Imperial Palace to convene.�� The others all nodded.


    Ye Futian put the mirror away. Raising his head, he glanced at the space passageway and took a deep breath. How would this battle turn out?


    No one knew.


    Perhaps, this would completely change the world order.


    ��Set out!�� Ye Futian said. After speaking, the group of figures advanced, passing directly through that space passageway, entering the Divine Prefecture.


    ��


    The great armies of the five large camps invaded with one command.


    Simultaneously, the mighty armies of the realms flooded into the Divine Prefecture. Black clouds covered the sky instantly in some places of the Divine Prefecture. It was like doomsday.


    Of course, the Divine Prefecture was too vast and had countless continents. Even though the armies of all the realms passed the borders, it was still insignificant to the Divine Prefecture overall. Thus, their first goal was to take down the Domain Chief��s Manors of the 18 domains.


    At this time within the Divine Prefecture��s Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Powerful and mighty strong cultivators appeared in an extremely vast area. Donghuang the Great sat on the Nine Heaven��s divine throne. Below the divine throne, the top figures of the Divine Prefecture stood in all directions with distinct levels.


    In the air before them, the Sky Screens were like various mirrors, showing the scenes of different places in the Divine Prefecture. The mirrors even seemed able to move.


    They saw the five armies scatter quickly after entering. The armies led by Great Emperors went clearly toward one direction, while the other armies had no goal. They dove straight into the Divine Prefecture. Many cultivators even scattered quickly, going in different directions.


    Right then, brilliant Buddhist light appeared. The Nine Heavens seemed to be filled with Sanskrit chants. Extremely sacred Buddhist light enveloped the vast sky as if auspicious clouds had appeared.


    Donghuang the Great looked before him and then rose from the divine throne. ��Donghuang greets the Buddhas,�� he said.


    After he spoke, a Buddhist door abruptly appeared amidst the Buddhist light. A mighty Buddhist army walked out of the Buddhist door. Thousands upon thousands of Buddhas gradually stepped out of it. It was incredibly stunning. After that, a sacred Great Buddha��s true form materialized. Buddhist light enveloped the boundless sky. The Buddha had come personally.


    ��Greetings to The Buddha.�� Donghuang the Great personally bowed in greeting, showing utmost respect. He had once studied in the Buddhist sect, so the Buddha had the grace of teaching him. He was like a teacher to him, so Donghuang the Great had always been very polite to the Buddhist sect.


    ��The Buddha.�� Even the Great Emperors bowed, so strong cultivators in all directions of the Donghuang Imperial Palace all rose at once and bowed to show their respect.


    The Buddha nodded slightly. All the Buddhas chanted at the same time.


    After that, the Buddha looked toward the Sky Curtain and saw those scenes. Battles had erupted in many places already. Some cultivators of the Divine Prefecture had gotten into conflicts with the invaders spread through the Divine Prefecture.


    However, how could the scattered Divine Prefecture cultivators match the invaders? Those invading armies were all powerful.


    ��Amitabha,�� The Buddha said, putting his hands together. ��This war has still erupted in the end. Chaos has come. I hope it will not spread to the masses of the Lower Worlds.��


    There was kindness in his voice. The battle of the top figures would not affect the cultivators of the Lower Worlds, but this kind of battle often affected the entire world.


    ��I will try my best to minimize the effect of the war,�� Donghuang the Great said.


    ��Virtuous!�� The Buddha nodded. ��I did not think that 500 years would pass so quickly, with the snap of a finger. Donghuang, are you ready?��


    ��Yes.�� Donghuang the Great nodded. ��What shall come will come. 500 years is not short.��


    The top figures of the Divine Prefecture��s Donghuang Imperial Palace looked toward the two. Even they could not understand the conversation between the Buddha and Donghuang the Great.


    The relationship between the Buddha and Donghuang the Great seemed to be even better than they had imagined!

 Chapter 2863 - Revelation Divine Matrix

    After Ye Futian led the strong figures of the Ye Imperial palace into the Divine Prefecture, they headed straight to the Nantian Domain of the 18 domains.


    Clearly, he had not forgotten Haotian the Great and the others. Since they chose to attack the 18 domains, then his first choice would be the Nantian Domain.


    Haotian the Great and the others were in the Haotian Sect of the Nantian Domain. If he attacked the Domain Chief��s Manor, would Haotian the Great��s group participate in the battle?


    The mighty group of strong figures started for the Nantian Domain. There were Great Emperors, so they were extremely fast, passing through the space without stopping.


    Not too long after, they descended into the Nantian Domain. But the moment they arrived in the Nantian Domain, an intense beam of light suddenly lit up from the Chief��s Manor of the Nantian Domain. The pillar of light shot into the clouds, shocking all the cultivators in Nantian City.


    Ye Futian saw the beam of light from afar that reached for the sky, and his brows furrowed slightly.


    After that, strange movements came from the mirror. Ye Futian took it out and heard the Devil Emperor say, ��The Domain Chief��s Manor used a spatial Divine Matrix to leave as soon as we descended. They must have gone to the Donghuang Imperial Palace. They probably destroyed the transmission formation directly and then fled to the Divine Prefecture��s imperial city.��


    ��Yes.�� The others nodded. They all encountered the same situation. The Domain Chief��s Manors of the 18 domains chose to evacuate instead of fighting them in the chief��s manors.


    At this time, inside the Divine Prefecture��s Donghuang Imperial Palace, Donghuang the Great rose from his divine throne. He took a step forward and appeared outside the Donghuang Imperial Palace. He sat cross-legged above the imperial city.


    The mighty group of strong figures behind Donghuang the Great trained their eyes on his figure. Then Donghuang the Great extended a hand and waved it. Instantly, countless beams of divine light converged in the heavens, transforming into instrument strings. They gathered before Donghuang the Great and materialized into a divine guqin.


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    After that, everyone watched Donghuang the Great sit down, extend his ten fingers, and strum the strings.


    ��The Great Emperor has not played a musical piece in so many years,�� someone murmured behind him. They were extremely shocked inside. At this moment, Donghuang the Great��s long black hair fluttered in the wind. He was ineffably elegant.


    The music rang out, instantly drawing people into a miraculous artistic conception.


    It was the divine piece��Ukiyo!


    Donghuang the Great personally performed Ukiyo.


    When Ukiyo rang out, the heavens moved. The countless cultivators in the entire imperial city heard the music. At that moment, they all raised their heads and looked in that direction. They seemed to see an elegant figure; it was Donghuang the Great.


    That day, all the realms united to attack the Divine Prefecture. Donghuang the Great played Ukiyo at the imperial palace.


    The clouds changed in the heavens, and infinite divine light fell. A magical force appeared in the world. When the divine light shone down, all the cultivators in the imperial city felt that the power of their Great Path was restricted.


    ��With Ukiyo, laws no more!�� many cultivators murmured. What was Donghuang the Great doing?


    They looked up at the changes in the heavens, and their hearts trembled violently. Waves of shock went through their hearts.


    The sky above their heads had changed. It was enveloped in divine light, and endless streams of rune light actually flowed through. It transformed into a Super Divine Matrix that covered the sky.


    At present, all the beings were under this sky and this Divine Matrix. They bathed in the light of the Divine Matrix, and their Great Paths were sealed off.


    Many people reached out, wanting to release the power of their Great Paths, but they found that they could not at all. It was completely sealed off. An invisible force appeared in the world, sealing everything.


    ��Why is His Majesty sealing the imperial city?�� someone asked quietly, looking up to the sky. They did not believe that Donghuang the Great would do anything to them, but they did not understand why he was doing this.


    ��His Majesty is not only sealing the imperial city, of course.�� An elder looked up to the sky with fierce shock in his eyes. He said, ��His Majesty wants to seal the entire Divine Prefecture!��


    How big was the Divine Prefecture?


    There were 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture. Each domain had countless cultivation continents. Most continents had billions of cultivators.


    The vastness of the Divine Prefecture was unimaginable.


    But at this moment, the skies above all the continents in the Divine Prefecture were changing. That horrifying divine light spread with frightening speed through the entire Divine Prefecture.


    The strong figures of the Human Realm were currently at the Taichu Domain. The Human Ancestor furrowed his brows now. He heard the music. Then a beam of divine light flashed past the heavens. That instant, the heavens transformed into a Divine Matrix. Countless beams of divine light fell from the sky, suddenly sealing off the Divine Power of the cultivators behind him.


    ��What��s going on?�� someone asked. Despite being a Great Emperor, even he felt that his Divine Power was sealed off and restricted.


    ��What is this?!�� People gradually began to speak out. Their expressions were all extremely shocked. Raising their heads, the guqin music streamed into their ears, causing them to enter Ukiyo��s artistic conception too. That moment, they realized that it was Donghuang the Great playing the music.


    The Human Ancestor looked up at the sky. His eyes were extremely sharp.


    This Divine Matrix was going to envelop the entire Divine Prefecture.


    Or perhaps, the entire world.


    ��Revelation Divine Matrix!�� the Human Ancestor whispered, looking up. As expected, Donghuang the Great had not wasted his 500 years of cultivation.


    At the same time, the same scene happened where the Devil Emperor, Evil Emperor, Dark Sovereign, and Ye Futian were. The Revelation Divine Matrix enveloped the sky, turning the entire sky into a Divine Matrix.


    The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were all shocked. All of them seemed to have been handicapped. When the divine light of the Revelation Divine Matrix fell, no one could be spared.


    The Human Ancestor and others�� eyes penetrated the vast space. They saw Donghuang the Great playing the piece in the Donghuang Imperial Palace. He sat cross-legged and moved his hands. Instantly, the instrument strings flew out from his fingers, abruptly transforming into terrifyingly sharp swords.


    The divine swords broke through the space, crossing the void directly. The Human Ancestor��s group was faraway in the Taichu Domain, but divine swords suddenly appeared above their heads. One became two; two became three�� Infinite Tianxing Divine Swords were formed. They rained down from the sky, shooting toward the Human Ancestor and others.


    The cultivators below the Human Ancestor were all trembling. Under the Revelation Divine Matrix, they were all restricted, and now, the Tianxing Divine Swords were attacking. If no one could block the swords, they would die without a doubt.


    This was the power of a top Great Emperor. They could not counter it at all. Billions of cultivators could die in an instant.


    The Human Ancestor raised his palm. Instantly, a boundlessly massive silhouette of the Human God appeared in the heavens. It covered the sky and wrapped around the strong cultivators. It raised its palm against the endless divine swords and destroyed them.


    Similar scenes were happening simultaneously in other places.


    Where Ye Futian was, divine swords also came murderously at them. The Revelation Divine Matrix had fallen on him, wanting to seal off his Divine Power. But when the divine swords came, he still took a step forward and pushed his hands out. Boundless Divine Power broke through the constraints, and countless fists blasted at the divine swords, pulverizing them.


    However, Ye Futian did not feel any pride. Donghuang the Great was faraway in the Donghuang Imperial Palace, but he could remotely send down the Divine Matrix and make such powerful attacks. Exactly how strong was Donghuang the Great?

 Chapter 2864 - War Begins

    ��Donghuang, you know the rules of war,�� the Human Ancestor transmitted his voice across the distance. His voice filled the vast void, resounding through the Divine Prefecture��s imperial city.


    ��I know. Otherwise, all cultivators below the Great Emperor Plane who entered the Divine Prefecture would already be dead,�� Donghuang the Great replied. His voice was extremely domineering.


    In the war 500 years ago, they had been the only Great Emperors in the world. The war had been started by cultivators of lower realms. Attacks by Great Emperors would be too destructive, and cultivators would go extinct. If the six emperors started killing freely, no one knew how many people would die.


    Thus, Donghuang the Great only used the Revelation Divine Matrix to restrain them instead of killing them. Otherwise, as he said, all invaders below the Great Emperor Plane would already be dead.


    The vast Divine Prefecture of the entire world was all under the range of the Revelation Divine Matrix.


    ��Good that you know,�� the Human Ancestor replied. Then his body expanded crazily, transforming directly into the Divine Human, the supreme figure of the human world.


    As this figure continuously expanded, the cultivators beside the Human Ancestor became incredibly insignificant, just like ants. They looked at that crazily expanding body, and their hearts pounded violently.


    The cultivators on the side already had their line of sight blocked. On the other hand, the hearts of the cultivators of the Taichu Domain trembled horribly. They all saw that huge god grow until he was boundless.


    ��This���� The cultivators of the Taichu Domain had never seen such a terrifying giant before, and the Human Ancestor showed no signs of stopping yet. His head went towards the Revelation Divine Matrix in the heavens.


    The cultivators beside the Human Ancestor had no space anymore. They stood on the Human Ancestor��s body like ants. They were highly insignificant, like a drop of water in the sea or a speck of sand in the desert.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    Finally, the Human Ancestor��s body stopped growing. The people of the Taichu Domain gaped. Was he still a human?


    The Human Ancestor let out a breath, and it transformed into a cloud. The entire Taichu Domain was under his feet.


    Countless cultivators from the Taichu Domain were on his body. They were all trembling fearfully.


    Right then, the Human Ancestor lifted a finger. That finger was like a boundless and sharp sword, containing an extremely horrible and sharp aura. It was a humongous sword of the Divine Human, and he stabbed it toward the Revelation Divine Matrix in the sky.


    Boom�� A dull sound spread. The frightening crash shook the heavens violently. Then a hole was pierced through in the Revelation Divine Matrix. The Human Ancestor��s finger sliced past and ripped the Revelation Divine Matrix. The hole kept enlarging.


    He stepped on the ground, and there was an earthquake in the Taichu Domain. Cracks appeared in the entire continent and countless buildings collapsed. Many cultivators were thrown directly onto the ground. With that one step, the Human Ancestor��s body shot into the sky and advanced with incredible speed. The Revelation Divine Matrix in his path all crumbled and shattered.


    In a blink, the Human Ancestor��s huge body disappeared from the Taichu Domain. The cultivators of the entire continent looked at the huge figure going into the distance, and their hearts pounded. He had transformed into a giant, going shoulder to shoulder with the sky. It was like he could grab the sun and moon from the heavens if he reached out, and this did not affect his frightening speed at all.


    The figure going into the distance created a madness that shook the entire continent. If it hit another continent, then it would collapse directly. Even the Revelation Divine Matrix could not withstand it, let alone the continents of the Divine Prefecture.


    The Human Ancestor raced forward, going upward. His body was like a city. Each time he moved was the length of a city. One could imagine how frightening his speed was. He could crumble a continent or a star with one slap of his hand.


    In the Donghuang Imperial Palace, Donghuang the Great continued to play the guqin more and more anxiously. He mended the Revelation Divine Matrix whenever it broke. Countless beams of divine light enveloped the madly running Human Ancestor, causing his speed to be a bit disrupted. He slowed down a little.


    Soon, an extremely frightening Revelation windstorm enveloped the Human Ancestor��s huge body, but the Human Ancestor continued forward, forcibly withstanding the storm. His steps did not stop.


    Various divine swords suddenly appeared in different directions above the Divine Prefecture. Every divine sword was boundlessly large, like god-slaying swords.


    While Donghuang the Great played the music, those god-slaying swords pointed in one direction.


    As his fingers strummed the strings fiercely, the countless mighty divine swords abruptly attacked one area. As if the distance did not exist, they locked down on the Human Ancestor��s huge frame.


    While racing madly, the Human Ancestor saw the boundless divine swords coming at him from the sky. They tore the space apart and transformed into an extremely frightening beam of sword light. Passing through the sky, they stabbed toward his huge body.


    His steps slowed down. He raised a hand and pushed forward, transforming into a huge divine seal that crashed against the incoming murderous divine sword light. Everything shattered instantly.


    What was frightening was that the divine swords seemed to come down endlessly. The Human Ancestor��s divine seals were also inexhaustible. If there were a continent around the Human Ancestor��s body, it would probably be destroyed directly. Donghuang the Great seemed to have purposely chosen this time to attack.


    While Donghuang the Great and the Human Ancestor were fighting, the Devil Emperor, Evil Emperor, and Dark Sovereign were not sitting still. They led their armies directly toward the Donghuang Imperial Palace. They headed straight for the final destination in the Divine Prefecture since the strong figures of the eighteen domains had all evacuated to the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    They would resolve this huge battle together in the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    After hesitating for a moment, Ye Futian also led his strong cultivators forward. They were on the same side of the battle. Since they were already at this step, he could only keep going forward and take down the Divine Prefecture. He could not retreat anymore.


    All the strong figures were in the Donghuang Imperial Palace. They looked at Donghuang the Great, who was playing the guqin, and they knew that it was not very possible to stop the Human Ancestor and the others from arriving. After all, the other side had four of the pinnacle-level figures��four of the six emperors.


    And Ye Futian.


    ��


    Ye Imperial Palace, Gods�� Ruins Continent, at the same time that the strong figures went to war in the Divine Prefecture.


    The most powerful fighters of the core of the Ye Imperial Palace had left with Ye Futian. Three Great Emperors were left to guard it. The rest were people of the Ye Imperial Palace who did not have very high cultivation levels.


    Right then, a guard outside the Ye Imperial Palace raised his head. He suddenly perceived danger, as if an invisible force was coming down.


    The next moment, they learned the true feeling of this repressive weight. A suffocating might enveloped the Ye Imperial Palace. A space passageway opened up in the heavens, and a line of strong cultivators walked out from it. The group had frightening auras, and the leader was even more shocking. His body radiated with emperor��s might.


    Great Emperors were attacking.


    ��Strong figures from the Donghuang Imperial Palace?�� The people in the Ye Imperial Palace felt their hearts pounding. If they were from the Donghuang Imperial Palace, why did they choose the Ye Imperial Palace?


    They must be the weakest force of this alliance!

 Chapter 2865 - Take Away

    Inside and outside the Ye Imperial Palace, countless cultivators looked up to the sky. They all felt the extremely strong pressure.


    Palace Lord Ye had left to fight in the war in the Divine Prefecture, but people had come to attack. Would they bring about a catastrophe?


    Just then, three Great Emperor-level figures appeared. They were the three Great Emperors from the Human Realm and Devil Emperor who had stayed. They were guarding this place. Divine Power surged on their bodies as they looked into the heavens. One Great Emperor from the Human Realm stated boldly, ��People from the Donghuang Imperial Palace? Why are you hiding?��


    The leader had a silver mask over his face. A subtle current flowed, hiding his face. His long hair was down, and he dressed plainly. However, his body contained a repressive might. Merely standing there, he was like a god arrogantly overlooking the world. He was unparalleled.


    Boom�� An extremely wild aura swept through. A horrible and destructive windstorm instantly swept the heavens, and a dark current appeared in the sky. It was like a destructive tribulation.


    The Great Emperor from the Devil World narrowed his eyes. Staring at the figure in the sky, he asked, ��Who are you?��


    Why did he feel like the Great Emperor who appeared was like someone from the Devil World?


    The comer did not respond. The horrible aura burst from his body and instantly sealed off the Ye Imperial Palace��s territory. At that moment, countless beams of tribulation light appeared in the sky inside and outside the Ye Imperial Palace. Countless tribulation runes radiated from the comer��s body. Every rune was like a tribulation.


    Countless beams of tribulation light fell, shrouding over the three Great Emperors.


    At that moment, all the cultivators inside and outside the Ye Imperial Palace felt despair. The Great Emperor who had descended was powerful. It was possible he could wipe out the three Great Emperors guarding the Ye Imperial Palace. It would be a disaster for the Ye Imperial Palace if that happened.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL(d0t)C0M.


    ��


    At the same time in the Divine Prefecture, Ye Futian suddenly stopped while hurrying toward the Donghuang Imperial Palace. His expression instantly turned ugly and even a bit pale. He had already received news that strong figures had invaded the Ye Imperial Palace.


    But the five large forces were working together to attack the Divine Prefecture right now. How could the Divine Prefecture send someone to attack the Ye Imperial palace?


    If it was not the Divine Prefecture, what other forces could it possibly be?


    These four forces were an alliance, attacking the Divine Prefecture with him. The Human Realm and Devil World had even left Great Emperors to help guard the Ye Imperial Palace. It most likely was not them.


    Then there were only two possibilities��the Divine Prefecture and Heaven Realm.


    If it were the Heaven Realm, then with Ji Wudao��s arrogant personality, he would probably go personally and attack directly. However, it was not Ji Wudao who had come.


    He took out the mirror and transmitted his voice, ��Seniors, the Ye Imperial Palace suffered an attack. I��m afraid I must head back.��


    The Human Ancestor and Devil Emperor had also received the news and knew that Ye Futian was not lying, and the battle had already erupted there.


    ��Return with me,�� Ye Futian said to the strong cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace. Then he led the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace away. As for the Great Emperors from the Human Realm and Devil World, they split up and continued toward the Divine Prefecture Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Divine Power wrapped around everyone from the Ye Imperial Palace, and they hurried with frightening speed, stepping through the void. They were incredibly fast. They wanted to rush back to the Ye Imperial palace as quickly as possible and hoped that they could make it in time.


    Everyone else was also very anxious, but they did not disturb Ye Futian at this time. They could only hope that the Great Emperors could last.


    ��Donghuang, is it your people who made a sneak attack on the Lower World?�� the Human Ancestor said, his voice resounding in the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    ��Sneak attack?�� Donghuang the Great replied. ��You all came to attack the Divine Prefecture, so why can the Divine Prefecture not attack your territory? Does the Human Divine Palace have enough defenses?��


    Donghuang the Great seemed to admit that the people at the Ye Imperial Palace had been sent over by the Divine Prefecture and the Ye Imperial Palace was only the beginning. They would attack the other forces later.


    This made the other Great Emperors furrow their brows. Did the Divine Prefecture have another strong Great Emperor, other than Donghuang the Great?


    They had all left some strong figures for defenses, but it would be hard to say if it were some super-strong Great Emperor.


    They would first see what would happen to the three Great Emperors at the Ye Imperial Palace.


    Not long later, the Human Ancestor��s eyes narrowed, and his expression turned ugly. His Great Emperors had fallen. The two had been killed, one after another.


    ��Devil Emperor, what about your man?�� the Human Ancestor transmitted his voice to ask.


    ��Just got killed,�� the Devil Emperor replied. The two top figures picked up speed and finally arrived at the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    There were frightening booms. The moment that the Human Ancestor��s majestic body appeared, the cultivators in the imperial city all started fleeing madly. They were worried that they would be affected by the great battle. The Human Ancestor��s frightening figure could slap them to death easily.


    ��Donghuang, Buddha.�� The Human Ancestor looked toward the outside of the Donghuang Imperial Palace. The two top figures were there. Donghuang the Great played the guqin with both hands; The Buddha stood to the side.


    With the four emperors appearing, the top six emperors of the world would all be in this imperial city.


    The hearts of countless cultivators trembled. They looked up at the six emperors in the sky. The strongest six people in the world had all arrived.


    ��Human Ancestor, you are a cultivator from the ancient times and had cultivated until now,�� The Buddha said. ��You are known as the ancestor of humans. In this case, why must you create conflict? The world is undergoing great changes, and everyone can cultivate better now. We are entering the Age of Gods, too. Wouldn��t it be better for the six emperors to govern the world order and wait quietly for the coming of the Age of Gods?��


    ��The Buddha cultivates Buddhism and is very benevolent,�� the Human Ancestor said. ��Can��t you see Donghuang��s ambitions? Plus, there is still Ji Wudao of the Heaven Realm. If they aren��t rid of this, the seven realms will face disaster. Since the Buddhists can predict the future, can you see the future world?��


    The Buddha gazed at the other. His eyes seemed to contain light as he nodded. ��I saw it.��


    ��How is the future?�� the Human Ancestor asked.


    ��Order is recovered in the world, and the Age of Gods arrives,�� The Buddha said.


    ��Who rules the world order?�� the Human Ancestor asked.


    ��I do not know,�� The Buddha replied with a smile.


    ��


    On the other side, Ye Futian finally hurried back to the Ye Imperial Palace, but it was all too late.


    By the time he returned to the Ye Imperial Palace, it had already been shattered. The three Great Emperors had been killed, and all the cultivators of the Ye Imperial Palace had disappeared.


    They did not die. They were taken away.


    ��Did Donghuang the Great do this to threaten me?�� Ye Futian asked softly. He did not think it would be so fast. There had been three Great Emperors here, but they could not stop the other and had all gotten killed.


    The people who had returned all had pained expressions. They did not know what they should do now.


    ��Return,�� Ye Futian said. And continued to bring the people back to the Divine Prefecture. Since Donghuang the Great had taken the people away, they could only head to the Donghuang Imperial Palace to find Donghuang the Great.


    But would there still be a chance to make Donghuang the Great hand the people back?

 Chapter 2866 - Battle of the Six Emperors

    In the Donghuang Imperial City, pressure enveloped the entire city. Everyone held their breath, staring at those grand figures in the sky.


    At this time, the repressive aura enveloped the imperial city. The ultimate battle of the emperors could start at any time.


    They saw Donghuang the Great stop playing. He waved his hand, and the guqin disappeared. He stood up, looked at the four emperors, and then his body vanished directly from the spot.


    The Human Ancestor looked in a specific direction, and his huge body also vanished. After that, the Devil Emperor, Evil Emperor, and Dark Sovereign also pursued Donghuang the Great.


    They all knew that in the ultimate battle of this war, it was about the life or death of Donghuang the Great. If Donghuang the Great was killed, then it meant that this battle would be over. If Donghuang the Great could escape, then it was meaningless even if they destroyed the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Amitabha!��


    The Buddha��s figure also vanished.


    Donghuang the Great��s figure appeared in the empty void far away from the imperial city. He was even far from the mainland of human cultivation. How frightening would their battle be? If they started fighting in the imperial city, every burst of power could cause the city to be destroyed.


    The cultivators would not withstand the might of their battle at all.


    The four strong figures on the Human Ancestor��s side locked onto Donghuang the Great��s location. They chased after him with incredibly frightening speed.


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    Boom! With a loud boom, Donghuang the Great penetrated the space and then vanished.


    The Human Ancestor huffed coldly, and then the figures of the four Great Emperors disappeared one by one. The Buddha who pursued them also vanished. It was like they had never appeared before.


    In the Donghuang Imperial City, the strong figures of the Divine Prefecture and World of Buddhism stood outside the imperial palace. Meanwhile, the imperial city also had the top figures of the four major realms. They looked up and saw that the six emperors had disappeared from this place. Instantly, the strong figures of the four emperor-level forces gazed at the Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    This battlefield now belonged to them.


    A horrifying aura radiated out. Great Emperors stepped forward, going toward the Donghuang Imperial Palace. They crushed over, preparing to conquer the Donghuang Imperial Palace. As for the six emperors who had left, it was four against two. It must be a definite victory.


    ��


    Donghuang the Great��s figure appeared in the endless void of the Original Realm. The four emperors were still tight on his tail. This was far from the Gods�� Ruins Continent. It was a true void with very sparse populations. They could barely see any cultivators.


    Donghuang the Great clearly was choosing his battlefield purposefully. He chose the void of the Original Realm. This way, they could go full out in battle.


    However, there were still many stars and lands in the endless void. It was just that there were no traces of human cultivators.


    ��Donghuang, when are you going to flee until?�� The Human Ancestor��s voice rang out, echoing in the void. He raced madly forward, stepping through the void. With such a majestic and huge body, every step was like crossing an entire star.


    When he made a step, his body crashed against a planet. There was an explosive boom and that planet shattered directly.


    ��Stop,�� his voice rang out again. As soon as the Human Ancestor spoke, Divine Power burst out crazily. His huge body was still growing, becoming extremely frightening. The Divine Human��s looming figure appeared in the boundless and vast void.


    The figure of the Divine Human transformed and seemed to become one with the universe. His hand grabbed toward the void, and the terrible booms shocked the worlds. A planet that blocked the hand was destroyed directly. Human cultivators were so miniscule under that palm; even Donghuang the Great��s figure was like an ant.


    That palm print was boundless and still growing. It was like Donghuang the Great would not be able to escape from the hand, no matter how he escaped. He would definitely get snatched up.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Many of the stars left behind in the void collapsed and were shattered.


    At this time, Donghuang the Great turned around. The instant that he turned around, his entire body dazzled. The light shone in the sky, illuminating the boundless void, and fell upon the Human Ancestor��s huge body.


    The strong light was Revelation Divine Power. Even though the Human Ancestor��s majestic body was boundless, he was still covered by the divine light when the Revelation Divine Power illuminated the vast world. The speed of his extended arm seemed to slow down. It was getting slower and slower.


    Before, Donghuang the Great had used the Revelation Divine Matrix to release Divine Power and had covered the entire Divine Prefecture. But at this moment, he was only targeting the Human Ancestor.


    Amidst the Revelation Divine Light, billions of divine swords appeared and fell down in the vast void. Every divine sword was impossibly huge. They attacked the Human Ancestor at the same time that the Revelation Divine Light shone down, flooding this part of the sky.


    Every divine sword had extremely frightening golden runes on the surface that tore apart the space, penetrating it as they went down.


    The Human Ancestor took a powerful step and instantly crushed the space. Countless beams of Divine Power penetrated the void, hitting the infinite divine swords. In an instant, the extremely sharp divine swords suffered the attack by the powerful Divine Power. There was a muffled sound, and then many divine swords exploded and shattered.


    At the same time, a figure rushed over from another direction. He was impossibly fast as he raced straight towards Donghuang the Great.


    This figure was entirely pitch black and had frightening demonic might wrapped around him. Everything in his path was destroyed. The divine swords raining down murderously at him also shattered. They could not stop him at all.


    Donghuang the Great glanced at the Devil Emperor. He saw endless destructive intent around the Devil Emperor.


    However, Donghuang the Great surprisingly did not hide. He urged the Revelation Divine Power to the max. At the same time, seeing the Devil Emperor come at him, he raised a palm and attacked the Devil Emperor directly from across the space.


    The Devil Emperor��s palm was also expanding. The two Great Emperors started close combat, and their palms slammed directly together.


    In that instant, the surrounding worlds collapsed and shattered crazily, and wild currents flowed through the space. Even more frightening was that a terrible beam of destructive light flowed through the wild currents. The void was exploding. Donghuang the Great��s physical body was also attacked by the extremely destructive Divine Power, and it seemed that his body was about to explode and disintegrate.


    But at the same time, the Devil Emperor��s inextinguishable Super Demonic Form also suffered from an extremely horrible attack. Donghuang the Great��s palm made the Devil Emperor feel that his spiritual soul was warping. He saw an awful vortex that wanted to rip his spiritual soul into countless pieces.


    Bang! With a huge sound, the surrounding space shattered and collapsed madly. The two both retreated. Destructive divine light shot out of the Devil Emperor��s pitch-black eyes as he stared at Donghuang the Great in the distance. He had been the junior before, but after 500 years, Donghuang the Great was unexpectedly just as strong as him!

 Chapter 2867 - Pinnacle Battle

    The Devil Emperor stared at Donghuang the Great. His expression became even more serious. His figure grew larger until he became a peerless demon god.


    An extremely destructive storm enveloped the vast space. A demonic sound reverberated in the air. In the sky above, billions of demons appeared. There were tens of thousands of demon gods who stood tall in the sky. They had rallied to the summons of the Devil Emperor and resonated with his figure.


    For a moment, the space was filled with the terrifying demonic sound. It could cause people to have mental breakdowns.


    ��Amitabha!�� a voice called out. Then, the Light of Buddha enveloped the vast space. Opposite the Devil Emperor, within the divine domain of billions of demons, the silhouette of The Buddha appeared. His body became a golden body that was 10,000 Zhang tall. The Light of Buddha on his figure shone across the land and enveloped the vast space.


    The demonic might and the Light of Buddha clashed against each other. The scene was astonishing to behold.


    This was a battle between two of the strongest figures. It was a battle between Buddha and demon.


    Dong! With a loud sound, The Buddha put his palms together. Immediately, various Buddhas appeared in the sky. These Buddhas glowed with the blinding Light of Buddha as they recited the Sound of Buddha. Buddhist Voice circled the space. Countless Buddhist runes radiated from their figures and kept expanding until they covered this part of the sky. They headed straight towards the divine domain of billions of demons and enveloped them.


    The Devil Emperor stepped up into the air. His glabella instantly lit up with frightening demonic light. A demonic rune appeared in the sky.


    At the same time, demonic runes appeared on the billions of demons. The runes rained down. Each and every demonic rune contained extremely destructive power. They clashed with the Buddhist runes that were charging towards them.


    The heavens and earth shook. The space seemed to collapse frenziedly as terrifying cracks appeared.


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    The Devil Emperor and The Buddha were battling amongst the cracks. They were standing a distance across from one another. They seemed very calm. The Devil Emperor was domineering while The Buddha stood erect like a mountain. Both sides were unyielding.


    Buddhist Power and Demonic Power were initially diametrically opposed forces. Both were forces that were powerful and domineering. Now, they were clashing head-on with each other. One could imagine how terrifying that was.


    ��


    At the same time, elsewhere on another battlefield, the Evil Emperor appeared high in the sky. Unparalleled spatial divine light enveloped the vast desolate domain. Instantly, spatial divine power descended and sealed the space off. He wanted to prevent Donghuang the Great from continuing to flee.


    ��Evil Emperor, you handle sealing him off. Sovereign, you and I will work together to kill him off,�� the Human Ancestor instructed the Evil Emperor and Dark Sovereign as his voice filled the space. The Devil Emperor was occupied with The Buddha.


    As such, the three of them would be in charge of hunting down Donghuang the Great. This time, they had the absolute advantage in terms of numbers.


    It was four against two. This was not the time for etiquette. They naturally would not hesitate to all attack at the same time.


    The Evil Emperor controlled the Divine Domain of Space and could seal Donghuang the Great here, preventing him from escaping. The Devil Emperor and The Buddha were battling elsewhere. The Human Ancestor and Dark Sovereign would join forces to kill Donghuang the Great. Such an arrangement should suffice.


    The Evil Emperor and Dark Sovereign accepted the command of the Human Ancestor without any objection. Their main goal today was killing Donghuang the Great. This was something that could not be postponed anymore. Before this, Ye Imperial Palace was attacked. This might be a sign that Donghuang the Great still had hidden troops working in the background for him. This was also a threat to them.


    As long as they killed Donghuang the Great, everything would end.


    Rumble. A dull sound reverberated in the sky. The humongous body of the Human Ancestor stood high above as he looked down on Donghuang the Great. A Thunder Domain appeared above the latter.


    Donghuang the Great raised his head to glance at the sky. His expression turned serious when he sensed the terrifying might flowing within the Thunder Domain.


    The divine power within it was not an ordinary Great Path of Thunder. Instead, the divine thunder of the Heavenly Path was created by the Human Ancestor. It was akin to the thunder that split the space apart while the world was still a void. It was charged with an overwhelming destructive might.


    Rumble. Frightening lightning flashed in the Chaos Thunder Domain. Each streak of lightning was as sharp as a sword and contained unparalleled power.


    The Human Ancestor had been cultivating for eons. His ability was unfathomable. He could crush a star with a single palm strike. While he dashed across the endless space, stars crumbled right away under the shockwaves of his motion. If he attacked, he could destroy many continents with a punch. He could even annihilate a Small World.


    No one had truly experienced the Human Ancestor��s ability before. Donghuang the Great might have the chance to do so today.


    Human Ancestor��s gaze was piercing as he looked down on the space below. He shifted his will, and immediately countless beams of light plummeted down from the Chaos Thunder Domain. These light beams were the Chaos True Thunder Swords that he created. One sword was sufficient to penetrate through a continent and destroy it easily. Now, 9999 Chaos True Thunder Swords descended in tandem. 9999 was the number of perfection, foreshadowing the destructive might the swords contained.


    To the side, Dark Sovereign had yet to attack. When he saw this attack unleashed by the Human Ancestor, he felt his heart tremble violently as well. He became more cautious. He was uncertain of how powerful the Human Ancestor was. However, a single attack from the latter was enough to instill fear in the crowd. When 9999 Chaos True Thunder Swords plummeted simultaneously, they could annihilate an entire segmentum. Yet, all these swords were used to target Donghuang the Great alone. One could imagine how shocking the destructive power was.


    The Chaos True Thunder Swords overcame the vast distance and reached Donghuang the Great in a split second. However, they slowed down when they came close to him.


    A menacing storm of Revelation Divine Power could be seen stirring up around the body of Donghuang the Great. The Revelation Divine Domain expanded outwards with him as its center. Laws and Paths did not exist within this domain as it forbade all divine powers. Therefore, the Chaos True Thunder Swords were on the brink of being destroyed upon entering the domain. Their advancement had been slowed down.


    Human Ancestor swept a glance across the battlefield. The Chaos True Thunder Swords, which were emitting destructive divine power, penetrated the storm of revelation and continued charging towards Donghuang the Great. Their raging powers exploded inside the Revelation Divine Domain.


    Countless divine swords materialized around the body of Donghuang the Great. They fused with the Revelation Divine Power and transformed into the divine swords of revelation.


    ��Go!�� commanded Donghuang the Great as he looked at the sky. The divine swords of revelation pierced through space and collided with the Chaos True Thunder Swords head-on. The divine swords of revelation were specialized in annihilating all Paths. Moreover, their might was maximized while they were in the Revelation Divine Domain. Therefore, they sliced through the Chaos True Thunder Swords and reduced them to dust.


    9999 Chaos True Thunder Swords were obliterated in an instant.


    This caused the Human Ancestor and Dark Sovereign to give Donghuang the Great surprised looks. The Revelation Divine Power was an extremely domineering divine power, which had never been comprehended by others before. Donghuang the Great mastered and optimized it, unleashing its power to its full potential. Over the years, his Revelation Divine Power grew stronger and stronger.


    Cultivating a divine power required a lot of time. The Human Ancestor had been cultivating for many ages; his divine power was profound and had been perfected. In terms of the depth of their divine powers, Donghuang the Great had gotten the short end of the stick!

 Chapter 2868 - Extreme Limit

    Dark Sovereign looked at Donghuang the Great. Then, he attacked as well.


    Majestic Revelation Divine Power enveloped Donghuang the Great. Suddenly, underneath his divine domain, a Dark Lotus materialized. This Dark Lotus was similar to the one that appeared in the ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm. It looked like something that could only be found in the abyss of death. It was the embodiment of darkness.


    The Dark Lotus grew larger and began to blossom. Streaks of dark currents flowed out from its petals.


    Soon, the Dark Lotus grew into a gigantic organism. It wrapped the entire Revelation Divine Domain within it as its petals extended upwards. The Dark Lotus intended to engulf the divine domain as the dark currents seeped into the latter.


    The Revelation Divine Domain was infiltrated by the dark currents. Soon, many dark currents circulated inside the divine domain, and they slowly corroded the Revelation Divine Power. The vast region enveloped within the Dark Lotus turned into hell. The surrounding space was corrupted. The aura in space ceased to exist. Everything was tainted. Only death and destruction remained.


    What was even more frightening was that the Dark Lotus was continuing to grow. It was as though hell had opened its bloody, gaping mouth and was about to consume Donghuang the Great and his divine domain.


    Rumble. A terrifying storm was whipped up in the Revelation Divine Domain. Divine power roared frenziedly as it continued to spread outwards. It broke through the restraints of the Dark Lotus and even suppressed the divine power contained within the latter. The two divine powers affected and suppressed each other. They were both extremely powerful.


    Back in the day, the Six Great Emperors were existences who stood at the pinnacle of the world.


    Just then, the body of Dark Sovereign similarly grew larger continuously. He became a gigantic war god of Asura. He and the Human Ancestor stood in different locations. Donghuang the Great was flanked by them. Up above, the Evil Emperor was also holding the fort. It seemed that it would be difficult for Donghuang the Great to escape this besiegement.


    One person was in charge of sealing while the other two would be going all out. Even the one who was sealing might join in the fight.


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    Three Great Emperors versus one Great Emperor. One could imagine what sort of predicament this was.


    The Human Ancestor raised his hand, and immediately, even more frightening power coalesced in the Chaos Thunder Domain. Countless bolts of lightning rained down and struck within the Revelation Divine Domain. At the same time, an astonishing power was gathering in the center of the Chaos Thunder Domain. The surrounding space collapsed and shattered frenziedly. The powerful destructive force was like the law of destruction controlled by the Heavenly Path.


    Divine light radiated and shot down. The cylindrical beam of intense light immediately penetrated the space. Everywhere it passed, the space collapsed and shattered. It was like a heavenly strike that could eliminate all of existence. It directly charged towards where Donghuang the Great stood.


    Donghuang the Great lifted a finger, and a gigantic divine sword pointed up at the heavens. It clashed with the beam of divine light. Even more dazzling intense light burst forth. It was blinding.


    However, that was not the actual attack from the Human Ancestor. Up above where the intense light was radiating from, a divine sword gradually appeared within the Chaos Thunder Domain. The beam of destructive light that shot down came from within this divine sword.


    The light contained within the divine sword was already powerful to such an extent. How terrifying would the divine sword itself be?


    The Human Ancestor had cultivated for countless eons and was the oldest among the Six Great Emperors in the current world. In his battle with Donghuang the Great today, he unleashed his true divine power as he attempted to kill the latter.


    Down below, Donghuang the Great naturally sensed how terrifying the Chaos True Thunder Sword that was forming was. The beam of intense light alone was already putting him under tremendous pressure.


    Rumble. The storm formed from Revelation Divine Power circled Donghuang the Great��s figure. Around him, a menacing vortex appeared. At that moment, Donghuang the Great��s eyes changed. They contained unparalleled divine power.


    Up above him, the Chaos True Thunder Sword slowly slid out. When it fully emerged from the Chaos Thunder Domain, it finally came crashing down, penetrating the outer shell of the Revelation Divine Domain and charging towards Donghuang the Great.


    Everything around the sword was turned to ashes. All powers ceased to exist, even divine power.


    Just as the Chaos True Thunder Sword was about to slit the throat of Donghuang the Great and end everything, the world suddenly fell silent.


    When the Chaos True Thunder Sword was right in front of Donghuang the Great, it seemed to enter another dimension. Donghuang the Great��s figure was shining brightly. His body had become Way. Just as the divine sword was about to end him, it suddenly stopped. It was not just the divine sword; everything around him had stopped. It was as though a vacuum had appeared around him.


    The Chaos True Thunder Sword lost its power at that moment. In this vacuum, there was no Way. Or rather, all laws of the outside world lost their power in this domain. Even the powerful Chaos True Thunder Sword could only inch forward.


    Time seemed to have slowed down. Donghuang the Great extended a finger and touched the Chaos True Thunder Sword. In an instant, the sword, which contained unparalleled destructive power, was immediately shattered and destroyed. It turned to dust which was scattered to the winds.


    When the Human Ancestor and Dark Sovereign saw this scene, their eyes narrowed. They were both staring at Donghuang the Great. He seemed to have mastered the esotericism of Revelation Divine Power. In that instant, he had unleashed its ultimate form.


    Revelation Divine Power could imprison all laws in this world. It could suppress other divine powers, causing them to cease to exist.


    This would happen when such a divine power was cultivated to its extreme limit. Other techniques and the laws of the world could not exist under Revelation Divine Power. There was only nothingness.


    What did the ultimate form of Revelation Divine Power look like? It might be that its ultimate form was like the Heavenly Path.


    If Donghuang the Great had become the Heavenly Path and he had attained perfection in his cultivation, then, with a mere thought, no other laws would exist in the world.


    Rumble. Just then, a dull thud could be heard coming from around Donghuang the Great��s figure. The miraculous sensation just now disappeared. It seemed that even a person as powerful as Donghuang the Great could only maintain the form for an instant. It could not be sustained for long periods.


    Had Donghuang the Great truly cultivated the ultimate form of Revelation Divine Power? Even if four Great Emperors were to join forces against him, they would most likely not be a match for him.


    When Revelation Divine Power entered its ultimate form, the other cultivators would not use their divine powers. How could they still fight then?


    ��I never imagined that you would actually reach this stage with just five centuries of cultivation,�� said the Human Ancestor as his towering figure gazed down below. This domineering Proud Son of Heaven was even more powerful than he had imagined. From the looks of it, the Human Ancestor had still underestimated Donghuang the Great.


    Donghuang the Great looked up at the Human Ancestor. The former had a cold and indifferent look in his eyes. If the Human Ancestor had not instigated this war, Donghuang the Great would have continued to secretly make preparations.


    The ultimate form of Revelation Divine Power was the void. If he had cultivated such a plane, he would be more confident to use it against the other Great Emperors.


    However, he was already out of options!

 Chapter 2869 - Invading Human Divine Palace

    The Human Divine Palace was located amidst the celestial mountains in the Human Realm. Clouds surrounded the territory where the exquisite palaces stood.


    A figure stood quietly just outside of the foggy region. His temperament was extraordinary as he looked down on everything in the world. He appeared almighty, as though he was the ruler of the heavens and the earth. He stood at the peak of the Heavenly Path.


    This person was none other than Ji Wudao, who was crowned the latest Heavenly Emperor.


    The forces of the Human Realm and the other four realms had gone to attack the Divine Prefecture. This was known to all. Now that the Six Great Emperors were occupied, who else could stop him?


    If the Divine Prefecture was destroyed, would the Great Emperors attack the ninety-nine heavens and destroy the Heaven Realm?


    Ji Wudao strode forward and walked into the celestial mountains.


    Rumble. A formless wave of divine power enveloped the entire celestial mountain range. From the looks of it, there was a matrix protecting the region set up in Human Divine Palace. Intense divine power permeated the space and transformed into a light screen. The matrix was activated after sensing that there was a powerful figure invading the territory of the Human Divine Palace.


    Countless figures looked at Ji Wudao from inside the matrix. Their gazes were cold. All of them had been informed about the intruder.


    Ji Wudao stood in midair. His long hair danced in the wind as Nine Dragons True Qi surrounded his body. He looked like the reincarnation of the Heavenly Emperor.


    A dull sound reverberated. His Nine Dragons True Qi coalesced into a divine sword. The sword glistened with divine light. It was the ultimate Sword of the Heavenly Emperor. The person who wielded this sword could rule over all living creatures.


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    The divine sword absorbed the essence of the heavens and the earth as Nine Dragons True Qi circled it. It emanated a brilliant divine halo. An unparalleled halo similarly burst forth from Ji Wudao��s body as he charged down with his divine sword. Rumbling sounds echoed in the space. The sky was torn apart by the blinding divine light.


    The Sword of the Heavenly Emperor descended upon the gigantic light screen, causing it to shake violently. Cracks appeared on the screen, and the divine sword also managed to stab through it. However, the light screen was not shattered. The defensive power of this mountain protection matrix was apparent from its toughness.


    Ji Wudao plunged and landed on the light screen. He thrust the divine sword downwards. An unparalleled light erupted from the divine sword. The divine power stored in the mountain protection matrix surged into the sword frenziedly. It then flowed into Ji Wudao��s body.


    The cracks on the light screen propagated. Its defensive power was also weakened. The celestial mountains shielded inside the matrix shook. The facial expression of the cultivators inside the matrix changed drastically. They thought, Has Ji Wudao��s power grown to such a frightening extent now? Can he actually destroy the mountain protection matrix?


    When they raised their heads, they could see dazzling divine light radiating from Ji Wudao��s figure.


    The might of the mountain protection matrix was still being weakened. Soon, the entire matrix was consumed by the divine sword. The light screen disappeared, and the celestial mountains were exposed under Ji Wudao��s attack.


    Ji Wudao looked down, and his divine consciousness enveloped the space. All the celestial mountains were covered by his will. Many cultivators emerged from the mountains and stared at Ji Wudao with wary gazes.


    The Human Ancestor had led a team of cultivators to attack the Divine Prefecture. Quite a number of Great Emperors had left with him. Therefore, there should only be a few cultivators who remained here. Ji Wudao��s invasion would be a massive threat to these cultivators.


    ��Ji Wudao.�� Right at this moment, voices came from the celestial mountains. It sounded like a few people had spoken in unison. Their voices caused the space to tremble, and the echoes of their voices could be heard far and wide.


    The cultivators on the celestial mountain narrowed their gazes. Whose voices were these?


    Ji Wudao also revealed a strange look as he glanced towards the vast celestial mountains. In that direction, there were quite a number of terrifying auras.


    The next moment, dazzling lights appeared. Above the ethereal celestial mountains, four figures emerged. Each one of them had a terrifying aura. They were all at the Imperial Realm. When they released their might of the Tianshens, many cultivators in the Human Divine Palace were in awe.


    They had never seen these Great Emperors before. The Human Ancestor seemed to have kept a few hidden trump cards. There were four extraordinary Great Emperors holding down the fort here.


    Even the remaining Great Emperors, who were tasked to guard Human Divine Palace, had not seen these four Great Emperors in the sky.


    Each of the four Great Emperors had powerful items in their hands. These items emanated very powerful divine powers. All the cultivators in the celestial mountains looked attentively at the sky. They could sense that these four Great Emperors were extraordinary.


    ��As expected of the calculating the Human Ancestor,�� said Ji Wudao as he stood below the four Great Emperors. He swept a glance across the four of them. He had a bold look of confidence. He said, ��I wish to see how much the Human Ancestor has up his sleeve today.��


    One of the four Great Emperors wielded a whip. His golden whip contained a powerful aura. The Great Emperor beside him held a pagoda. Unparalleled Divine Force of Space emanated from it. The third Great Emperor wielded a divine hammer. Right now, it contained a menacing destructive might of lightning. The final Great Emperor had a spear that was emanating astonishing destructive power.


    Rumble. The Great Emperor, who was holding a pagoda, waved his hand. The pagoda immediately expanded rapidly. It floated above Ji Wudao��s head. Endless golden divine light descended and instantly enveloped the space below. The space was completely sealed off. Under the effects of the pagoda, everything would be sealed away.


    This was the God-sealing Tower!


    At the same time, the Great Emperor that wielded a golden whip lashed out with his weapon. It struck across the space towards Ji Wudao. The Great Emperor with the divine hammer swung out. Destructive divine lightning struck down from the sky. The thick pillar of lightning was like a destructive wave as it crashed towards Ji Wudao.


    Three Great Emperors attacked simultaneously. Their powerful attacks blasted out towards Ji Wudao��s figure. Ji Wudao did not dodge and remained standing there. Nine Dragons True Qi circled his figure, and a protective divine light appeared around him. It was superior to the five elements, so he was not affected by their attacks.


    The sealing Divine Force of Space, the God-beating Whip, and the pillar of lightning all struck the divine light that protected Ji Wudao��s body in tandem. However, they actually could not harm Ji Wudao.


    ��Are you four all that Human Ancestor has left?�� Ji Wudao asked as he looked up at the four Great Emperors. His robes fluttered in the wind. A peerless emperor��s might emanated from his gaze.


    Rumble. Around Ji Wudao��s figure, a terrifying phantasm of the Heavenly Emperor appeared. When the phantasm extended its palms, a menacing vortex was swept up. It was as though a frightening chaotic divine beast had seemed to consume the sky. The endless divine power charging towards him surged into his body instead.


    Even the countless cultivators in the vast Human Divine Palace sensed this unparalleled consuming power.


    The Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method was a frightening divine technique from ancient times. It could consume the heavens and the earth, the sun, moon and the stars, and even an independent world. If no one here stopped him, Ji Wudao would consume the entire Human Divine Palace.

 Chapter 2870 - The Ancestor of Benevolence

    In the vast sky of the Original Realm.


    Battles were still raging on two separate battlefields. The battle between the Buddha and the Devil Emperor shook the heavens and the earth. The Buddha unleashed All Buddhas Returning to the Source while the Devil Emperor summoned billions of demons to fight alongside him. The surrounding space was collapsing and shattering. Destructive storms swept across the vast space, breaking apart countless stars.


    Right now, both of them had become gigantic gods. One was the demon god who ruled over the Devil World, while the other was the Lord of All Buddhas. If they were battling in the cultivation world, the world would most likely have collapsed. The battle between the six Great Emperors were indeed battles of the highest caliber. It was a pity that no one else was around to witness this.


    ��Devil Emperor!��


    Just then, the Light of Buddha shone in the sky, and Buddhist Voice reverberated in the space. A voice cried out. The Devil Emperor��s jet-black eyes were looking in the direction of the person who had cried out. Around him were destructive storms.


    ��Take a look at this,�� said the Buddha. A Buddhist light screen immediately materialized in the space. It was like an ancient mirror. An image instantly appeared on it.


    The Devil Emperor glanced over the mirror. He frowned and revealed a strange expression.


    To his surprise, the image shown was of the battle occurring in the Human Divine Palace.


    Ji Wudao had slaughtered his way into the Human Divine Palace and had unleashed the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method. It was very frightening. The four Great Emperors could not hold him back, and the entire Human Divine Palace was trembling.


    The Human Ancestor, who was fighting to the side, appeared unaware of this. He was still attempting to kill Donghuang the Great. It was naturally impossible for the Human Ancestor to be completely in the dark about this. Even the Buddha had seen the battle occurring in the Human Divine Palace. How could the Human Ancestor still be in the dark?


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    However, he was still here. He had no intention of leaving.


    ��Buddhists don��t lie. Let me ask you this. Have you truly allied with Ji Wudao?�� asked the Devil Emperor. His voice sounded as cold as ice as it reverberated across the space. When the Six Great Emperors began to fight, Ji Wudao had also swept in and slaughtered his way to the Human Divine Palace in the Human Realm. What was the meaning of this?


    Was he threatening them?


    The Devil Emperor could not help but be suspicious of this. He speculated that Ji Wudao��s insults towards Donghuang the Great before this were intentional. Ji Wudao did so to cover up that they were in cahoots. In reality, the Divine Prefecture and the Heaven Realm had already joined forces.


    ��No need to be anxious. You will see if you keep on watching,�� continued the Buddha. Just as it appeared as though no one could stop Ji Wudao, the sky above the Human Divine Palace changed. Unparalleled divine light appeared.


    In the sky above, divine power churned and roared. Absolute light rained down. Then, pillars of light descended from the heavens. Unparalleled divine light landed in the Human Divine Palace in the Human Realm. This change caused the Devil Emperor to narrow his gaze involuntarily.


    What was this?


    Then, he saw that the golden divine light that descended from the heavens was the silhouette of Great Emperors. They appeared in the sky above the Human Divine Palace and gazed down below. They were clad in dazzling divine armor. Peerless divine might emanated from their figures.


    In the image, even Ji Wudao was looking up in the sky above. He narrowed his gaze, clearly also astonished at the scene before him.


    ��Do you understand now?�� the Buddha asked the Devil Emperor. ��The ability of the Human Divine Palace is far more powerful than all of you have imagined.��


    The Devil Emperor frowned as he glanced at the battlefield in the image. Ji Wudao defeated the previous four Great Emperors, but the Great Emperors who descended from the sky had even more frightening power. They were about to fight him.


    How many Imperial Realm existences did the Human Divine Palace have?


    All this time, had the Human Ancestor been hiding his true power?


    On another battlefield, the Evil Emperor, who was sealing off the space, also saw the image summoned by The Buddha. He could not help but reveal a puzzled expression. When he shifted his attention back to the battlefield, he noticed that ethereal Divine Sounds could be heard reverberating in the sky. A domineering divine might descended along with the sounds.


    Then, a gigantic palm materialized out of nowhere, and it slammed downwards. The palm was covered in runes and possessed the power to annihilate a world. It smacked onto the Revelation Divine Domain, and it could continue pressing downwards despite the resistance of the domain. The Human Ancestor was determined to bury Donghuang the Great underneath this giant palm.


    At the same time, the Dark Lotus controlled by the Dark Sovereign kept consuming the Revelation Divine Power frenziedly. The Dark Sovereign herself transformed into the War God of Asura. She wielded the dark spear of destruction. She stabbed it into the Revelation Divine Domain and thrust it forward, pointing it towards the body of Donghuang the Great.


    Under the joint attacks of the two Great Emperors, the Revelation Divine Domain was suppressed. The giant palm coming from the sky seemed to be merged with the Chaos Thunder Domain. When the palm pressed down, endless destructive attacks continued to rain down on the domain.


    The giant palm and the divine spear of destruction approached Donghuang the Great simultaneously. He had no way to escape.


    Bang! The world-destroying divine spear pierced the body of Donghuang the Great as a destructive storm rampaged. At the same time, the giant palm crashed into his body.


    This scene caused the hearts of the three Great Emperors to tremble violently. Had they succeeded in killing Donghuang the Great?


    The terrifying giant palm did not stop. Instead, it continued plummeting downwards. The Dark Sovereign��s facial expression turned drastically when she noticed that it was heading towards her directly. The palm covered the sun and the sky.


    An unparalleled power burst forth from the body of War God Asura. Tens of thousands of arms grew out from her body, pushing the descending palm upwards. However, the countless arms crumbled immediately after coming in contact with the palm. Destructive attacks kept raining down. Nevertheless, the Dark Sovereign had disappeared from her original spot and reappeared elsewhere.


    Only then did the terrifying giant palm dissipate. The Dark Sovereign raised her head to glare at the Human Ancestor. Her gaze was cold and was full of murderous intent.


    ��As expected of the Great Emperor of Benevolence, who is in charge of upholding justice in the Human Realm. Are you preparing to get rid of darkness while you are at it?�� the Dark Sovereign mocked.


    ��Dark Sovereign, you cultivated the dark power of death and brought disaster upon the world. By right, you should be eliminated,�� the Human Ancestor said in an indifferent tone. He did not hide this at all. He immediately admitted that he indeed wanted to kill the Dark Sovereign.


    Right then, the Dark Sovereign shifted her gaze and looked at the image summoned by The Buddha. She said, ��From the looks of it, the one with the most secrets was you. Is your goal to rule the Seven Realms?��


    ��No, I am doing this for the greater good. I want the people of the world to be able to cultivate even better and rule this land,�� the Human Ancestor replied. The Dark Sovereign laughed. No one knew the intention behind her laughter.


    Just then, in the vast space, dazzling divine light coalesced. Endless light gathered together. This caused the Human Ancestor and the Dark Sovereign to reveal strange looks as they glanced over in the direction of the light.


    Then, they saw the endless divine light gather together and gradually form the silhouette of a person. His face was clearly distinguishable. It was Donghuang the Great!


    The Human Ancestor, as well as the Dark Sovereign, narrowed their gaze. They stared at the silhouette which had appeared. He wasn��t dead?


    How was this possible?


    They had unleashed their strongest attacks to annihilate Donghuang the Great. How could he have survived?


    ��Do you still wish to continue?�� asked Donghuang the Great as he looked at the Dark Sovereign, the Evil Emperor, and the others!

 Chapter 2871 - Blocking the Way

    The Human Ancestor was also astonished when he saw Donghuang the Great. He was well aware of how powerful his attack was. He was confident that he had eradicated Donghuang the Great with that attack. That was why he switched targets to the Dark Sovereign and intended to kill two birds with one stone.


    To his surprise, not only did Donghuang the Great survive, but he also emerged unscathed.


    The Human Ancestor revealed a pondering look. Then, he seemed to have thought of a possibility. He stared intently at Donghuang the Great and stated his speculation, saying, ��I have long heard rumors of Donghuang the Great cultivating one of the six Buddhist superpowers. Now I know exactly which superpower you mastered.��


    As he said this, he turned to the Devil Emperor, the Evil Emperor, and the Dark Sovereign. He warned, ��If we do not kill Donghuang today, we will most likely not get another chance to do so in the future.��


    The Devil Emperor and the Evil Emperor looked at Human Ancestor. They realized that there was more to the Human Ancestor and Donghuang the Great than what met the eye. They both had trump cards that had not been revealed before. Even though the Devil Emperor and the Evil Emperor had expected this, they were still surprised by the things they had experienced during the battle.


    The Devil Emperor thought of a lot of things. He took another glance at the image summoned by The Buddha. In the image, Ji Wudao was still fighting with the Great Emperors in the Human Realm. Before this, the Devil Emperor had joined forces with the other three Great Emperors to fight against Donghuang the Great and The Buddha. However, this four-against-two situation had been overturned. No one dared to act recklessly now.


    ��The sixth Buddhist superpower, Elimination of Outflows, is comparable to Omniscient in terms of how powerful it is. Once cultivated to the highest level, the cultivator can even transcend the cycle of reincarnation,�� said Human Ancestor. ��Currently, Donghuang the Great has yet to reach that stage. We still have a chance to kill him. If we wait until he has completely mastered Elimination of Outflows, we will never have the chance to do so again.��


    Two of the six Buddhist superpowers were extremely difficult to cultivate. They were considered higher-level superpowers among the six. They were Omniscient and Elimination of Outflows. The person who had managed to cultivate Omniscient was the Buddha of Destiny. He had reached the point where he could peer into the destiny of others. However, because the Buddha of Destiny had cultivated Omniscient, he had yet to prove his Way and reach the Imperial Realm. This was because the Great Path of Fate was too difficult to acquire.


    As for Donghuang the Great, he reached the Great Emperor Plane by cultivating other techniques besides Elimination of Outflows. This Buddhist superpower was but one of the many techniques he possessed. After he got the Imperial Realm, he continued cultivating Elimination of Outflows. By then, he could comprehend it deeper and hence had obtained very high attainment.


    The reason why he could survive the fatal blow just now was due to the Elimination of Outflows. The Human Ancestor��s speculation was indeed on point.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    The Human Ancestor had been cultivating for eons. Therefore, he was more knowledgeable.


    Unfortunately, the Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign were very wary of the Human Ancestor. They couldn��t trust the latter whole-heartedly like before, especially not after they had experienced the Human Ancestor attacking the Dark Sovereign after delivering the fatal blow to Donghuang the Great.


    Donghuang the Great said, ��The Human Ancestor has been ruling over the Human Realm in the name of justice. You have been manipulating the situation in the Seven Realms. You have not changed at all. Everyone, think back to past events and what��s happening now. If this world is a chessboard, you should seriously consider who are the chess pieces and who are the chess players.��


    Everyone fell silent after listening to his words. They did not attack him again. Instead, they shifted their attention to look at the battle happening at the Human Divine Palace through the image summoned by the Buddha.


    If the world was a chessboard, who were the players?


    Who maintained the balance of the world back in the day? Who would break the balance of the world today?


    Who exactly was in control of this game of chess?


    The Six Great Emperors were all figures at the pinnacle of the world. They naturally understood some things at a glance. Why was the Human Ancestor attempting to shatter the equilibrium of today?


    ��I do not need to elaborate on the relationship between Donghuang the Great and the Heaven Realm. While invading the Divine Prefecture, Ji Wudao is slaughtering his way into Human Divine Palace. Is this a coincidence?�� asked the Human Ancestor loudly. ��Everyone, you all have to think carefully about many things. Donghuang has been setting this up for many years. If we let him leave alive today, it will most likely be difficult to end things in the future.��


    Donghuang the Great and Human Ancestor both had different perspectives. The six Great Emperors all had their suspicions. However, they all chose silence. The other four Great Emperors did not state their opinions.


    Who could they trust?


    It might be that neither of them were good people, be it the Human Ancestor or Donghuang the Great.


    ��I will take my leave,�� said the Devil Emperor suddenly. A frightening storm then swept up around his figure. He immediately became a beam of red light that disappeared from where he stood and vanished without a trace.


    When Dark Sovereign saw the Devil Emperor retreat, he swept a glance at the Human Ancestor and then similarly retreated.


    He was born in darkness and had never trusted anyone. The Human Ancestor��s ambush made him even more enraged. If that were the case, he would let the Human Ancestor and Donghuang the Great fight against each other.


    Both of them were now mortal enemies. They couldn��t return to the previous status quo.


    Only the Human Ancestor and the Evil Emperor remained here. Even if they wanted to kill Donghuang the Great, it would not be possible. The other party also had two powerful cultivators: Donghuang the Great and the Buddha.


    Nothing would come out of this battle.


    ��


    Outside of Donghuang Imperial Palace, the various cultivators still battling ceased doing so. Many cultivators then began to retreat.


    Various forces received news that the six Great Emperors had stopped fighting. Since the Great Emperors were no longer fighting, their battles were naturally meaningless.


    It was a mess in Imperial City currently. Nevertheless, both Donghuang Imperial Palace and the Buddhist forces had strong foundations. Therefore, even though they had lost several members, the remaining cultivators still managed to keep their enemies from invading the palace.


    The Great Emperors failed to eradicate Donghuang the Great!


    Countless people in the Imperial City were shocked by the news. The members of the Six Realms were dubious about the whole situation. Four Great Emperors collaborated, yet they could not kill Donghuang the Great?


    Even with the aid of The Buddha, it was still four against one. They held an absolute advantage. Shouldn��t they have taken him down?


    What exactly happened during the battle?


    Right now, Ye Futian was still on the way back to Imperial City. He was still too late in returning. Everyone had been taken away. He could only head to Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Just as they were about to arrive at Imperial City, Ye Futian encountered the cultivators of the Devil World. Yu Sheng was also present.


    ��What is the matter?�� Ye Futian asked Yu Sheng.


    ��The fighting has ceased over there. They failed to take down Donghuang the Great. You can��t go to Donghuang Imperial Palace,�� Yu Sheng told Ye Futian. The other cultivators of the Devil World also blocked Ye Futian and the others from entering the city.


    Ye Futian revealed a strange look. He looked at Yu Sheng and said, ��I must go.��


    He met Yu Sheng��s gaze and said, ��Matters have reached this stage; there is no other choice to be made. If Donghuang the Great wanted to kill me, he would have done so long ago. He would not have waited until today. There are some things that I need to ask him.��


    Yu Sheng fell silent for a short while and then made way for Ye Futian. He said, ��I will follow you.��


    However, the cultivators of the Devil World were still in their way.


    ��Everyone, please let me through,�� said Ye Futian.


    Demonic might emanated from the cultivators of Devil Imperial Palace. When they heard Ye Futian say this, they still did not make way for him. They said to Yu Sheng, ��Devil Emperor decreed that Ye Futian cannot enter Donghuang Imperial Palace.��


    Ye Futian frowned. Yu Sheng did the same.


    ��Let us through,�� Yu Sheng ordered. Was the Devil Emperor protecting Ye Futian?


    However, Yu Sheng��s command seemed to be unheard. The cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace still blocked their path and would not budge!

 Chapter 2872 - : Ive Waited Long for You

    ��What is the meaning of this?�� Ye Futian furrowed his brows in annoyance. Yu Sheng had already ordered them to retreat, but the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace still would not let them pass.


    It seemed they must have received orders from the Devil Emperor.


    Even more, it had to be extremely stern orders. Otherwise, they would not be behaving so.


    Just that, why would do the Devil Emperor do so?


    Was it to prevent him from entering Donghuang Imperial Palace to ensure his safety?


    ��Move aside!�� Ye Futian raised his voice as he barged his way forward. Divine power moved around him, and his mood seemed to be souring. This was his matter, not Devil Imperial Palace��s business to meddle in. Even after he and Yu Sheng had clearly expressed their viewpoints, they still would not let him through. He felt they had gone overboard.


    Devilish power flowed from the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace, and they remained where they were. Yu Sheng��s expression darkened. A mighty devilish power surged from his body, and he made a rapid dash forward. The sky shook as he barked, ��Make way!��


    ��The Devil Emperor has made an order that we are not allowed to let Ye Futian enter Donghuang Imperial Palace. Yu Sheng, you have to follow orders and stop him from going to Donghuang Imperial Palace. This is to protect both of you,�� a Great Emperor figure explained to Yu Sheng.


    Boom! A ferocious aura emanated from Ye Futian. He suddenly rushed forward, and with a raise of his fist, countless beams of light came forth and clouded the entire sky. This one casual fist alone contained an immense amount of power. Each attack from his fist contained the divine powers of the world that formed by the accumulation of innumerable particles from the world. It was earth-shattering in its intensity.


    The cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace grew pale. When the attack swept past, their defense formation immediately collapsed as many cultivators were tossed out. They all spat out blood from their mouths. Even those on the Emperor-level could not handle this blow.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    Buzz! Ye Futian moved his will, and divine light surrounded the sky at once. Unlimited divine swords of destruction were formed, and they pointed toward the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace. At the same time, he continued moving forward while coldly stating, ��If anyone blocks my way, don��t blame me for not showing any mercy.��


    Then, he went directly straight through the crowd. The cultivators had a menacing look on their faces, but the divine swords circling them significantly deterred them. Ye Futian was much more powerful than them, and no one could stop him. They could only watch Ye Futian pass through.


    Yu Sheng followed him while he swept his gaze upon the cultivators standing on both sides of them. His eyes were cold. Why would the Devil Emperor hand down such orders?


    But now was not the time to think about that already.


    They continued moving forward at a rapid pace. Before long, they had arrived outside Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    The palace was vast and stood tall and mighty. Lifting one��s eyes, one could see a heavenly door guarded by statues of legendary beasts like the divine dragon, the ancestral phoenix, the qilin, and the black tortoise. There were multitudes of cultivators around the place. Not long ago, they had gone through a huge battle and had been cast out. Although the enemy��s withdrawal was due to the war of the Six Great Emperors having no conclusion, they were still considered to have blocked the enemy��s strong attacks.


    And now, at this very moment, Ye Futian stood outside the Imperial Palace.


    The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture were very acquainted with Ye Futian. Of the 18 domains in the Divine Prefecture, quite a few had previously interacted with Ye Futian. Currently, they were all present.


    When the five great forces, including the Human Realm, had invaded the Divine Prefecture, the chief manors of the eighteen domains had all gathered at Donghuang Imperial Palace. Naturally, they would be here.


    Many were old acquaintances of Ye Futian, who held a deep resentment against him. Seeing Ye Futian standing there now filled them with emotions.


    He was previously a nobody in their eyes and was someone they thought they could use as they pleased. Now, as he stood there, they could only look up at him. He had already surpassed them by miles and miles.


    Even the direct disciple of Donghuang the Great, Du You, suffered the same fate despite having managed to enter the demigod plane after the many changes in the world. This would have been a great achievement in the past, and he would be one of the top contenders. However, he did not even have the qualification to speak with Ye Futian.


    Silver-haired and the pride of heaven, Ye Futian��s white clothes swayed in the wind as he stood there.


    The day had arrived. He was finally at Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    In the Imperial City, many cultivators were gazing at Ye Futian.


    Would the descendent of Emperor Ye Qing return to the Imperial Palace?


    Would the hostility between the two generations be resolved today?


    Just that, how would Ye Futian be able to go up against Donghuang the Great?


    Even the alliance of four Great Emperors was not able to kill him.


    If Ye Futian entered Donghuang Imperial Palace, he probably would suffer the same fate as Emperor Ye Qing. This time, would Donghuang the Great still let him off?


    The Ye Futian of today had become an extreme threat to Donghuang the Great.


    Boom! At that moment, two shocking aura from afar drew near, and numerous people in the imperial city looked up at the sky to see the dazzling lights of the Buddha and the devil.


    ��Devil Emperor and The Buddha!�� The cultivators were shocked. The six Great Emperors had taken their battle back to the imperial city.


    ��Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, depart at once.�� A loud voice rang through the skies. It belonged to the Devil Emperor. He had been the first to leave the field of battle, and it was actually to rush over here to order Ye Futian and Yu Sheng to go.


    As for himself, he was under the thumb of the Buddha and was still at a place very far from here.


    Ye Futian heard what the Devil Emperor said but did not heed his order. Instead, he turned to Yu Sheng and said, ��Yu Sheng, you wait for me outside.��


    Yu Sheng turned around to look at where the Devil Emperor was, then he nodded and said, ��Alright. I��ll wait for you to return.��


    Both of them shared a tacit understanding. If Ye Futian were unable to return in the future, Yu Sheng would avenge him.


    Buzz! Another divine light descended within Donghuang Imperial Palace. A holy and unsurpassable emperor��s might permeated the area.


    ��Your highness.�� Within the Imperial Palace, many voices arose.


    Donghuang the Great had returned.


    He was currently sitting on the divine throne in the palace. His gaze pierced through the area and looked straight to the outside at Ye Futian. Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great looked across and could see each other.


    ��If it were you, you would sent people to take them away?�� Ye Futian asked across the distance.


    Donghuang the Great looked at him and said, ��You��re finally here.��


    Ye Futian frowned, not understanding what Donghuang the Great meant.


    Did Donghuang the Great know that there would be such a day and was waiting for him to come?


    ��I��ve waited for you for a very long time,�� Donghuang the Great continued.


    Ye Futian peered inside. Was it his destiny?


    Was this day foreordained when Emperor Ye Qing��s died during the battle of the two Emperors?


    Today, no matter if he lived or died, he probably would find out the truth.


    ��Let me see if you have what it takes to make it to me.�� Donghuang the Great threw out a challenge. ��Come in!��


    An emperor��s might permeated the area, and Ye Futian��s head of silver hair danced in the wind. Countless eyes were upon his handsome face.


    A silver spear suddenly appeared in Ye Futian��s palms.


    It was the Silver Spear!


    That day, the genius of the Original Realm, the leader of Ye Imperial Palace, Ye Futian, entered Donghuang Imperial Palace!

 Chapter 2873 - Unstoppable

    Ye Futian held the spear in his hand and charged forward, his white robe swaying in the wind as divine light surrounded him. He was unstoppable.


    Within the imperial city, many people had their eyes glued on Ye Futian, watching his every move. Even the top cultivators watched Ye Futian entering the imperial palace.


    This white-haired lad was the genius of the Original Realm and had taken down a Great Emperor, although he was just an Emperor-to-be. He had killed seven Emperors with one spear. There were so many legendary stories about him. The many cultivators standing outside Donghuang Imperial Palace were all people he had to look up to once upon a time.


    But now, it was the opposite.


    They could only hope that Donghuang the Great would kill Ye Futian.


    They were no longer fit to be discussed in the same breath as Ye Futian.


    ��Get in formation!�� a voice cried out, and the statues of the legendary beasts that were in front of the heavenly door to Donghuang Imperial Palace lit up with a brilliant divine light. At once, four enormous and ferocious divine beasts appeared in the sky, guarding the entrance.


    The four beasts obscured the entire sky and were like real incarnations of the actual divine beasts. They emanated the emperor��s might.


    In front of each beast stood a cultivator who was on the Emperor-level. Their auras matched the divine beasts as if they were born just to be part of this formation.


    The six Great Emperors who controlled the Heavenly Law were not simple characters, and they had all kept their real abilities well hidden until now.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    However, they were beginning to show their real prowess and the full range of their abilities to the world.


    The divine dragon had a huge body that covered the entire sky. Its large eyes stared at Ye Futian and shot a terrifying golden divine light at him. At the same time, the ancestral phoenix spat out divine fire, while the qilin and the black tortoise released divine powers that charged at Ye Futian in a bid to kill him.


    Ye Futian lifted his head and took one glance at the four beasts. His eyes turned into the image of a sun and a moon. All of a sudden, an unusual phenomenon occurred. A world appeared with him at the center of it.


    The sun and moon sparkled with divine light, and the divine powers of Taiyang and Taiyin shot out. The divine power of Taiyang was aimed at the dragon, while that of Taiyin was aimed at the phoenix. Revolving stars were hurled at the qilin and the black tortoise.


    A terrifying and phenomenal power filled the area outside Donghuang Imperial Palace for some time.


    The spear in Ye Futian��s hands released a dazzling divine glow as he subsequently marched forward. With a flash, his body transformed into a stream of light that charged toward the door.


    Buzz! A humongous divine matrix appeared in front of the heavenly door, stopping Ye Futian from going in. The divine matrix then generated many images that seemed to form a world in itself. The world strove to devour Ye Futian, but he lifted his hand and thrust his spear forward.


    In an instant, a beam of light pierced through the air and blasted the divine matrix.


    Thump! The divine matrix gave out a dull sound, and moments later, it disintegrated into pieces. The whole area seemed to have been ripped apart, and everything was shattered.


    This one hit petrified the surrounding cultivators, and their faces turned deathly white. Just the aftershocks alone were suffocating.


    The divine matrix collapsed and crumbled, just from a hit from a spear.


    Not too long ago, this formidable divine matrix had blocked all invading cultivators. Although it was not solely due to the matrix��s power, it still played a big part in keeping the cultivators out.


    Yet, when it came to Ye Futian, the divine matrix appeared so vulnerable that it could be broken by one strike.


    Even the four divine beasts seemed to fear going forward now. It was like they had developed intelligence and knew they would not win.


    Of course, as someone who had taken down seven Emperors with one spear, Ye Futian would naturally live up to his name.


    This also meant that the cultivators who had invaded the Divine Prefecture could not hold a candle to him.


    Apart from the six Great Emperors, he was virtually untouchable by anyone. Ji Wudao was probably the only one left who could take him on.


    Ye Futian continued onward, stepping into Donghuang Imperial Palace under the watchful eye of many cultivators in the imperial city.


    The cultivators outside of the palace also followed him in.


    Donghuang Imperial Palace was colossal and vast. Many palaces stood tall and imposing, and there were even mountains and lakes, along with numerous training grounds.


    Ye Futian gazed afar to the ends of Donghuang Imperial Palace. There, a sky stairwell led to the divine palace.


    In the divine palace sat Donghuang the Great on his divine throne, commanding the respect of the people of the Divine Prefecture.


    And there was where Ye Futian was headed. His speed was not fast, but at every spot he passed, a terrifying bolt of divine power crashed down from the heavens. There was an elderly person sitting upright above an ancient palace.


    Suddenly, Ye Futian felt like he had entered a different world. Without knowing, he had entered the Divine Domain of the Great Path of his opponent.


    ��The Illusory God?�� Ye Futian remarked to himself.


    Everything felt like the real deal. In the divine domain he was currently in, the appearance of his own world caught him by surprise. It kept evolving, in a way similar to his Micro Heavenly Path.


    Boom! At that moment, the Micro Heavenly Path seemed to be breaking apart. Everything in it was demolished and then constructed again. A supreme divine power akin to the power of the Heavenly Path descended and destroyed all that was there, turning into an apocalyptic force that completely wiped out his Micro Heavenly Path.


    ��This is not my world.�� Ye Futian looked up at the sky while muttering in his heart. He closed his eyes, and divine power surged about him. His whole body was bathed in a glorious divine glow that made it seem as if he was the master of the world.


    His Micro Heavenly Path was one of its kind.


    Boom! A spectacular divine power exploded onto Ye Futian and burst into the endless space. Was this an illusory spell? It had brought him into an illusory divine domain.


    Ye Futian raised the spear in his hands again and, disregarding everything around him, pierced it forward.


    His one strike broke all the spells!


    The illusory world let out a dull, rumbling sound, and everything in front of him vanished into thin air. Things went back to normal. The elderly man he had seen just now had also disappeared; it was like he had never even existed. Ye Futian did not put much thought into it and carried on moving forward.


    Just then, another bout of tyrannical force pressed upon him. Above the skies, an enormous figure of a god appeared. He held a Heavenly Divine Hammer and released it, letting it drop down upon Ye Futian. For a while, the earth rumbled, and it was as if the sky was going to be blasted to pieces.


    A matchless divine might swept down and wiped everything out.


    Ye Futian lifted his eyes to take a look, and his spear stuck again. The strike this time was mighty, directly going head to head with the divine hammer.


    Bang! The earth seemed to be on the verge of exploding. A crack appeared on the Heavenly Divine Hammer, and subsequently, it shattered into pieces. The terrifying power of the spear continued its upward strike toward the upper skies, where the enormous figure of the god was. It hit the god, blasting him out as blood spurted from his mouth.


    Even cultivators on the Emperor-level in the Imperial Palace of the Divine Prefecture were completely incapable of stopping him.


    No one dared obstruct Ye Futian as he made his way forward, his spear in his hand.


    He walked past many regions, finally reaching the golden sky stairwell that led to the divine throne.


    An extraordinary divine might filled the area as two beings appeared at the foot of the golden sky stairwell. They were extremely beautiful ladies hovering in the air as they stared at Ye Futian.


    An impressive divine might emanated from them and onto Ye Futian.


    ��Great Empresses,�� Ye Futian murmured to himself. He never thought that the guardians of the golden sky stairwell of Donghuang Imperial Palace would be two Great Empresses.


    Ye Futian lifted his eyes upward. Donghuang the Great was waiting up there!

 Chapter 2874 - Like the Back of Ones Hands

    Outside Donghuang Imperial Palace, the Devil Emperor stood in the sky while Yu Sheng stood behind him. The Buddha was in front of him, still on guard.


    He had not foreseen that he would be too late.


    He gazed into the imperial palace. Now even if he wanted to, it had become impossible for him to stop anything that was going to happen. He should have been more decisive and taken action when his suspicions had first been aroused.


    But since things had come to this, he also wanted to see how things would end��


    Inside Donghuang Imperial Palace at the foot of the golden sky stairwell, there were two Great Empresses with remarkable auras. Both were peerless in elegance and talent; they were true goddesses.


    At that moment, the two Great Empresses were looking at Ye Futian below them. A petrifying sword divine matrix used their consciousnesses to immediately appear above the sky.


    Countless runes lit up and glowed within the golden divine matrix. All at once, rays of light from the divine matrix shone down and enclosed the entire area, shrouding Ye Futian.


    Runes and divine swords appeared one after another and caused havoc in the area. It was the Tianxing Divine Sword that could cut through the sky.


    ��Tianxing Divine Sword!�� Ye Futian looked at the two Empresses. They could summon the Tianxing Divine Matrix to bring unlimited Tianxing Divine Swords. It felt as if the whole land was about to be buried.


    A sharp screeching pierced the air, and divine swords emerged one after another from the Tianxing Divine Matrix in the sky. They contained the divine power of the Tianxing matrix, and when they attacked, golden bolts of light appeared in the sky. Everything was going to be annihilated.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    Accompanied by an intense light, the Tianxing divine swords started their downward onslaught. A dazzling divine glow lit the top of the divine matrix, but Ye Futian��s body shimmered at the same time. The light screens that had been formed from innumerable world particles now surrounded him.


    Cackle! The horrifying divine swords attacking him were now on a completely different level from Donghuang Diyuan��s. They contained the true Tianxing divine power and could even penetrate the world particles and the light screens. Cracks appeared on Ye Futian��s defense shield as the swords continuously made holes in it.


    Ye Futian was somewhat astonished when he raised his head and saw what was happening. These two Great Empresses were even more powerful than a usual Great Emperor.


    Even so, compared to the person he was now, there was still a large gap.


    An intimidating divine glow emitted from Ye Futian. He raised his left arm, and insurmountable divine power rushed from his hand.


    Heaven Slaying Divine Power burst forth, and divine light lit up the area.


    ��Tianzhu!�� He raised his hand and blasted the air with his palm. Countless divine swords came forth and clashed with the falling divine swords. At the same time, he stepped into the void. The silver spear in his right hand released an overwhelming divine glow as he thrust it into the Tianxing Divine Matrix.


    The spear broke through the void, and a striking divine light burst through the land onto the divine matrix. It caused the whole matrix to shake violently and the appearance of countless cracks after that. The cracks grew rapidly until the divine matrix disintegrated with a loud bang. Ye Futian��s spear continued to dominate.


    Ye Futian continued his steps upwards. His Silver Spear was unstoppable.


    The two Empresses eyed him intensely and then unexpectedly moved aside to let him through. It was like they knew they would not be able to stop him.


    Ye Futian stepped onto the golden sky stairwell without a hitch. He made his way up, step-by-step, his footsteps seemingly heavy.


    At the end of the sky stairwell was Donghuang the Great.


    He was one of the six Great Emperors of the Seven Realms, and the ruler of the Divine Prefecture. He was the cultivator with the greatest achievements for a thousand years and was known as the most outstanding of all the Great Emperors. The four Emperors who had worked together to kill him went away in defeat.


    Just then, an incredible heavenly might descended onto the golden sky stairwell. Revelation Divine Power radiated out. At once, Ye Futian��s movements felt heavier. Even so, he continued releasing his divine power defiantly, and his whole body glowed in an attempt to withstand the sealing power of the Revelation Divine Power.


    Bang! As he stepped forward, the golden sky stairwell quivered. He paused and glanced up. The frightening golden divine light and the Revelation Divine Power had combined and were wielding their influence onto the area.


    He started climbing the stairwell again. Another loud explosion sounded as the golden sky stairwell let out a roar. Even things in the distance were shaking as if they had felt the impact.


    Bang!


    Bang!


    Bang!


    Ye Futian��s steps slowed, but every step set off a storm. In the beginning, it was just the golden sky stairwell trembling, but afterward, it was the entire Donghuang Imperial Palace. They shook with every step Ye Futian took.


    Presently, it was completely silent within all corners of Donghuang Imperial Palace. Everyone��s gaze was focused on the same direction, where Donghuang the Great was seated.


    Had Ye Futian reached?


    Will Donghuang the Great kill Ye Futian this time?


    Ye Futian had made it onto the golden sky stairwell step by step, and finally, he completed his last step of the stairwell and reached the top. In front of him was a path paved with golden divine shimmers. At the end of the path was another flight of stairs, although there were only nine steps this time.


    At the top of the flight of stairs was an imperial palace, and in front of the imperial palace was the divine throne. And on the divine throne stood Donghuang the Great. It looked as if he had always been there.


    Ye Futian felt as if his heart had been hit by something just then. There was a vague sense of deja vu; it felt as if he had been in this exact same situation before.


    ��Not bad!�� Donghuang the Great looked at Ye Futian, who had reached the top of the sky stairwell.


    ��Where are the people of Ye Imperial Palace?�� Ye Futian demanded to know.


    Donghuang the Great got up from his throne but did not answer Ye Futian��s question. He walked down from the divine throne, down the flight of stairs, and stopped in front of Ye Futian. The terrifying Revelation Divine Power suppressed everything and was impossible to restrain.


    Boom! The divine power within Ye Futian roared and burst forth, surging around him. It was his first time meeting Donghuang the Great, one of the Six Great Emperors. He could genuinely feel that immense suppressing pressure upon him that came from the Revelation Divine Power.


    Buzz! Another terrifying divine power flowed around Ye Futian. His body suddenly moved and broke free from the shackles of the Revelation Divine Power. He turned into a bolt of light, and his spear pierced out. When his spear attacked, time and space seemed to be distorted. It looked like it was somewhere far, yet the next moment, it was right in front of him.


    A petrifying divine light radiated from Donghuang the Great��s eyes. The area around them turned into the Revelation Divine Domain, weakening the power of the spear as it crashed onto the light screen of the divine domain.


    Crackle! The Silver Spear astonishingly distorted time and space and devoured the divine power within the Revelation Divine Domain. This caused Donghuang the Great much astonishment. He then blasted the air with his palm to suppress everything.


    Bang! Another loud bang and the divine power tossed Ye Futian out. He stared at Ye Futian and continued, ��Path Slaying cultivation, creating a Micro Heavenly Path on your own, distorting time and space, and being able to devour the Revelation Divine Power�� It won��t be long until you accomplish something great.��


    Ye Futian frowned. He did not expect Donghuang the Great to be so knowledgeable about his cultivation. It was as if he knew it like the back of his hand.


    Looking at the towering figure in front of him, he reflected that it was the first time he had seen the other at such close quarters. Donghuang the Great had walked down from his divine throne!

 Chapter 2875 - Spears

    They stood there, looking at each other, their eyes locked together. This scene felt like it was predestined. It could only be fate that such an encounter would take place in their lives.


    Just like what Donghuang the Great said, he had been waiting for a very long time for this.


    With a wave of his hand, immediately, the Revelation Divine Power that had been enveloping the endless space removed itself from Ye Futian and spread to the surrounding regions, locking down the area. Yet, it did not touch Ye Futian.


    ��Huh?�� Ye Futian was shocked. He had already experienced the powerfulness of Donghuang the Great��s Revelation Divine Power. What was Donghuang the Great��s intent in removing the power from him?


    Donghuang the Great then took out a silver spear, which he held in his hands. It seemed as if he wanted to fight Ye Futian on equal footing.


    His head full of black hair swayed in the wind as his long robe fluttered. He held the spear in his hands horizontally in the air. Looking at Ye Futian, he shouted, ��Let��s start!��


    Ye Futian stared at Donghuang the Great, and the spear in his hand burst out with divine light. An extremely powerful divine power surged forth and resulted in an overwhelming pressure in the area.


    His body moved like a bolt of lightning, striking out with his spear. He broke through.


    Donghuang the Great��s eyes became extremely abnormal. Divine light swirled within those eyes as if there was divine power in them. His hand shook slightly, and he attacked with his spear too.


    Bang! A dull bang accompanied the crashing of the two spears together. Sharp end met sharp end, causing the surrounding space to tremble violently. However, as the Revelation Divine Power had confined the entire region, the storm was unable to spread outside, and only this region was shaking.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    How quick! Ye Futian uttered in his heart. At such a near distance and with a swift attack in its execution, Donghuang the Great could block his attack. In his eyes, Donghuang the Great��s movement was not fast, but he was accurate to the extent that it hit the sharp point of the spear.


    A terrifying force threw Ye Futian back out to where he had been at the start. The spear that contained the Heaven Slaying Divine Power could not shake his opponent.


    But Ye Futian was not ready to concede defeat. A storm of divine power swept along his body and enveloped the area. The battleground became immensely oppressive. Ye Futian��s body transformed into a ghost, but there was a blurred shadow where he had stood just moments ago, and he left a series of afterimages behind him.


    The second attack broke through.


    This second attack contained an exceptional power that tore the void apart and smashed a section of the sky. One could only imagine the intensity of its power within this constricted domain.


    An exceptionally overpowering emperor��s might enveloped the area. Donghuang the Great��s robe swayed, and he attacked again with the spear in his hand. Furthermore, his spear faced Ye Futian��s head-on. When their spears clashed, a strange sensation arose within Ye Futian. He vaguely felt that the power of his spear technique had not yet reached its maximum potential; it was as if it was being suppressed. It was like its attack power could not be fully released as it inhibited the other��s spear technique.


    Ye Futian was once against thrown back to his starting position. His domineering and unrivaled sword technique seemed like it was attacking cotton, his attacks creating no noticeable effect at all.


    ��What kind of spear technique is this?�� Ye Futian looked closely at Donghuang the Great��s eyes. Within the eyes, which contained golden divine powers, he could somehow make out an extraordinary power of perception that could see through all pretense.


    It was as if from the moment he had released his spear; everything had been predicted by Donghuang the Great.


    ��What��s this���� Ye Futian��s heart started to beat quickly. This ability of Donghuang the Great was very similar to one of his that had been with him since his youth.


    What was all this about?!


    An even more aggressive aura emanated from Ye Futian. Divine power circled the top of his Silver Spear, and the tip of the spear glowed with divine light as the makings of a terrifying vortex appeared.


    He struck once again.


    Time and space seemed to have become distorted after this strike, and an immensely oppressive aura broke out.


    Yet again, Donghuang the Great��s return strike was accurate to the smallest degree, but this time, Ye Futian��s spear suddenly became faster and came down earlier.


    At that moment, Donghuang the Great felt like he was mistaken, but in actuality, his emperor eyes had seen the difference in the speed of time flow.


    Bang! Ye Futian��s spear landed. This time it was finally not repelled by his opponent��s spear technique and could do maximum damage. In an instant, a petrifying vortex storm devoured everything, and the whole area seemed to be on the verge of collapse.


    The spear in Donghuang the Great��s hand amazingly broke and crumbled into pieces. Subsequently, it got devoured into the vortex storm. Ye Futian��s attack continued its onslaught straight ahead. It was about to approach Donghuang the Great��s body when a frightening Revelation Divine Light rushed around his body.


    Boom! A loud bang, Ye Futian��s spear was blocked by an invisible force restraining it. Ye Futian��s arm shook, and he spun his spear while continuing moving forward. He penetrated the Revelation Divine Light and was inching bit by bit toward Donghuang the Great.


    It was the first time the both of them had come this close. Donghuang the Great looked fixedly at him. The terrifying storm seemed to devour and tear everything apart in the vortex but could not affect Donghuang the Great. An absolute defense shot up around his body, and Ye Futian��s spear power was weakened to the point that it could not move forward.


    ��Distortion of Time and Space is the supreme manifestation of the Laws of the Micro Heavenly Path. What is this spear called?�� Donghuang the Great looked at Ye Futian, who was just a short distance away from him. He did not retaliate but instead asked a question.


    In fact, with Donghuang the Great��s terrifying prowess, he could attack Ye Futian right then. Yet he did not so, but instead calmly asked a question like he was having a normal conversation with him.


    ��Entombed!�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Entombed.�� Donghuang the Great nodded in acknowledgment, then said, ��It could break my spear technique. Not bad.��


    ��A pity I came a bit too early. If my Heavenly Path had been perfected and I made it to the Emperor-level, perhaps I could have had a fair battle with you.�� Ye Futian sighed. He ultimately was still not on the same level as Donghuang the Great.


    ��This time, the Human Ancestor invited me to participate in the battle. That��s why I led cultivators to invade the Divine Prefecture. But this whole thing was solely my doing. I do not know if I will die here, but I plead you to let the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace go.��


    Donghuang the Great looked calmly at Ye Futian and nodded. ��Sure!��


    Seeing Donghuang the Great agree, the divine power in Ye Futian roared fiercely and was still maintaining its onslaught. The spear in his hand wanted to break through the defense.


    Upon seeing how determined and persistent, Ye Futian was, a smile suddenly appeared in Donghuang the Great��s bright eyes. The smile was exceptionally gentle and radiant; it did not seem to belong to a person who harbored any resentment.


    Puff! A soft sound floated out, and the area suddenly became completely silent.


    Ye Futian was stunned. Just as he was trying to comprehend the meaning behind Donghuang the Great��s smile, the defense surrounding him suddenly vanished.


    The next thing he knew, his sword had pierced right through Donghuang the Great!

 Chapter 2876 - This World Is a Chessboard

    Complete silence reigned in the area beneath the divine throne in front of the heavenly palace.


    Ye Futian looked at the spear in his hand that had pierced through Donghuang the Great��s body, and an extremely shocked expression surfaced in his eyes. He slowly lifted his head to look at Donghuang the Great. ��Why?�� He asked.


    He just could not understand.


    ��No, don��t!!!�� a voice cried out, and a beautiful figure appeared at the side. It was Donghuang Diyuan.


    Ye Futian looked toward her. He found the look in Donghuang Diyuan��s eyes to be familiar. It was similar to the sorrowful expression on his face when he was playing the Divine Requiem. All this while, Donghuang Diyuan had been an enigma that he could not fully understand.


    At times, she would act haughtily and even go to the extent of purposely humiliating him. Her high and mighty attitude reeked of arrogance. Yet, on a few occasions, he somehow had the feeling that Donghuang Diyuan was harboring a deep secret.


    Behind her, the two Great Empresses hovered in the air. Their gazes also fell on Ye Futian and were gentle.


    Surprisingly, there were even tears in them.


    ��Why?�� Ye Futian looked toward Donghuang Diyuan and asked. He felt that everyone seemed to know something that only he did not.


    Donghuang the Great naturally knew about it, and so did Donghuang Diyuan. Even the Great Empresses at the back knew.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    ��I heard from Diyuan that when you were 16, you could run about freely in the mountainside. Back then, you were just an innocent young lad, free of any care or worry,�� Donghuang the Great suddenly said. His voice was soft, and he was smiling gently at Ye Futian. ��After that, you followed Hua Fengliu to Qingzhou and found a teacher at a cottage. You met Little Du, then went to the Eastern Barren Territory and entered the Palace. You went through near-death experiences and many other things before you made it out of the Nine States and met Emperor Xia. It has been hard on you all these years.��


    Ye Futian��s heart beat wildly. Was it because he was the descendent of Emperor Ye Qing?


    Was Donghuang the Great planning to eradicate all possible future threats to himself just in case?


    This was beyond ridiculous.


    Donghuang the Great knew about everything after all. He was aware of every single thing that had taken place in those years.


    Little Du!? What exactly was Mr. Du��s real identity then?


    ��Please withdraw the spear,�� Donghuang Diyuan pleaded. Her beautiful eyes were also filled with tears as she looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian felt numb, and his mind whirled. Suddenly, many memories surfaced in his mind; they were so numerous that he could not place them correctly.


    But he still withdrew his spear. The destructive power of his spear had done significant damage to Donghuang the Great after all.


    Yet, Donghuang the Great only smiled and turned around to walk back up the flight of stairs. He then merely sat there. At that moment, he did not look like a Great Emperor that oversaw the whole world but more like an ordinary middle-aged man or a benevolent elder.


    ��I know you probably have many questions. For you to fully understand, we need to go back to when it all started, 500 years ago,�� Donghuang the Great said as he gazed at Ye Futian. ��In that period, there was hardly any law or order, and as a result, wars and conflicts were never-ending. Things were terrible where the Original Realm was previously located. Countless people died from the wars that broke out year after year, resulting in the destruction of cultivators in the Original Realm. Emperor Qing and I had long desired to end the chaos but were sadly limited by our abilities. We were unable to achieve the outcome we badly wanted until we met her.��


    When Donghuang the Great mentioned her, his eyes were filled with absolute gentleness and a quiet sense of admiration.


    The ruler of the Divine Prefecture and one of the six Great Emperors was filled with admiration when talking about his wife. One could only imagine how exceptional she must have been.


    ��There will never be anyone like her in this world anymore.��


    Donghuang the Great sighed, and his gentle expression suddenly became solemn. He looked at Ye Futian and continued, ��She was the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor. When he died, the Heaven Realm entered an era of darkness. However, the orphan the Heavenly Emperor left behind was the most remarkable lady in all of history. She was born to be the Sovereign Princess and had no equal.��


    Ye Futian suddenly felt like his heart had been hit by something and was beating furiously. Supreme Swordlord had said the same sentence before.


    She was born to be the Sovereign Princess and had no equal. When she died, the world lost much of its splendor.


    Yet now, Donghuang the Great was saying the same thing.


    Of course, the two of them were not on the same level. Donghuang the Great was someone who was standing at the top of the world.


    ��She was an absolute idealist. Even after achieving Emperor-level, she refused to become the Heavenly Emperor but quietly continued cultivating instead. She discovered that the battle of the Old Heavenly Path that had caused the disintegration of the Heavenly Path and the loss of law and order in the world did not make the world a better place. Conversely, after the Path of the Emperors was severed, cultivators started to madly clamor over the cultivation resources in a bid to enter the Emperor plane. The few Great Emperors left in the world chose to hide to protect their interests. They wanted to rule the world by themselves and become the ruler over all things, making it so that the laws in the world would function according to their wishes.


    ��Thus, she was keen on rebuilding the Heavenly Path and restoring the Path of the Emperors so that all the cultivators in the world would have a chance of becoming an Emperor. She was even willing to help others prove their paths. It was at that time that Emperor Ye Qing and I first met her.��


    Ye Futian was taken aback. The Sovereign Princess had wanted to rebuild the Heavenly Path and restore the Path of the Emperors!


    What was more, the reason Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing could become Emperors was related to her. Going by what Donghuang the Great said, it was only with her help that they could ultimately prove their paths and enter the Emperor plane.


    In addition, all that Donghuang the Great did for the Divine Prefecture afterward, which included reviving martial arts and allowing all the people in the world to practice cultivation, was likely also in accordance with her will.


    Therefore, to Donghuang the Great, she was not merely his wife.


    Donghuang the Great resumed speaking. ��With her help, Emperor Ye Qing and I conquered and united the Divine Prefecture. We also won the Battle of the Original Realm and attained the authority to rule over the Original Realm. She then sealed off the Original Realm so that it would be isolated from the other realms and protected from intrusions.��


    500 years ago, how had Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing won the Battle of the Original Realm when they had just become Great Emperors?


    Now he knew that it was because she was behind them.


    Were the Buddhists willing to help him also because of this?


    Because of this, the Original Realm was peaceful for hundreds of years.


    ��Everything was progressing well. She was on her way to achieving her goals. Yet, it also brought on a calamity.�� Donghuang the Great��s eyes suddenly turned cold. He continued, ��At that time, the Heaven Realm was the strongest out of all the realms in the world, and the Heavenly Emperor was also the most powerful out of all the Great Emperors. Yet, he suddenly passed on. It was only later on, when she continuously tried to rebuild the Heavenly Path that she found out that she wasn��t the only one with the same thought. However, the other party, in reality, had no intention to rebuild it but to replace it instead. He became the ruler of the whole world himself. It was also because of this that the Heavenly Emperor died.


    ��After she foresaw the dangers that were approaching, she understood that there were some things she was no longer able to complete, so she hoped to find someone who could inherit her will and fulfill it. Sadly, neither Emperor Ye Qing nor I possessed the capabilities to do so, and thus, a new plan was created,�� Donghuang the Great said as he looked intently at Ye Futian.


    At that moment, Ye Futian��s heart convulsed sharply. His whole mind was blank, and he felt as if he had stopped, frozen in time.


    Even the spear in his hands was quivering.


    This world was a chessboard, but who were the pawns, and who were the players?


    Now, finally, he knew!

 Chapter 2877 - Eras in Transition

    The spear in Ye Futian��s hand disappeared, and his mind was in complete chaos.


    The Heavenly Path had been remade into the ancient tree of the world!


    No wonder the ancient tree of the world could perceive all the divine items, for it contained the power of the Source.


    So, he was that person in that new plan who remade the Heavenly Path.


    It seemed that everything was indeed predestined.


    A long time seemed to have passed before Ye Futian turned his attention to Donghuang the Great, extremely mixed emotions in his eyes.


    The daughter of the Emperor was the wife of Donghuang the Great.


    Therefore, the truth about his birth that he had been searching for so long turned out to be right in front of him. The enemy of whom he had been so wary of was his biological father!


    The master of the Divine Prefecture was his biological father, but he had been living in the shadow of the Divine Prefecture all this time, which seemed like cruel irony.


    Ye Futian suddenly laughed, and the laughter seemed a little sarcastic. He did not know who or what he was laughing at.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    This kind of ending was something he had never considered possible. Although he had anticipated countless possibilities, he never expected this would be it.


    ��He didn��t have a choice,�� said a voice from his side, which attracted Ye Futian��s attention. He turned and saw Donghuang Diyuan with tears on her face, looking particularly sorrowful. It looked as if she had endured a lot as well.


    ��No one had any choice in this matter; they were all fighting for the same thing. If you were the one being left behind, they would surely have discovered you. For this ideal, many chose to sacrifice themselves, including my father,�� said Donghuang Diyuan, looking at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s heart skipped a beat as he looked at Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Your father,�� he murmured, ��was Emperor Ye Qing!��


    ��Yes!�� Donghuang Diyuan nodded.


    Ye Futian remembered when Emperor Ye Qing cried when he saw him. Finally, he understood that the moment Emperor Ye Qing saw his spiritual soul, he had already known who Ye Futian was.


    His parents, one was the brother of Emperor Ye Qing, and the other was someone whom Emperor Ye Qing admired the most.


    ��No wonder you are unparalleled in strength. You have been bathed in the power of the ancestral phoenix since you were a child. When the relics of the Eight Legions appeared, you chose to inherit the power of the Naga with the ancestral dragon and the ancestral phoenix to protect you.�� Ye Futian seemed to be murmuring to himself. ��So, in the Heaven Realm, the Divine Demon Diagram that appeared under the Heavenly Path was not for me, but you.��


    Donghuang Diyuan did not answer. Of course, she knew it was for her, but she did not fight for it. His action was a silent acknowledgment that it belonged to Ye Futian.


    ��Ever since my father��s death, Donghuang Imperial Palace was under surveillance, therefore everything that the Imperial Palace did seemed to be to get rid of all traces left behind by my father. But in fact, it was to cover up your existence. He had no choice. Over the years, he was enduring all this by himself.��


    Donghuang Diyuan was worried that Ye Futian would resent Donghuang the Great.


    It turned out that it was because of him that Emperor Ye Qing became taboo in the Divine Prefecture and all traces of him had been erased. In the end, even the city of Qingzhou, where he grew up, had disappeared entirely.


    Therefore, his godfather, who was also behind the scenes, was a key player.


    No wonder his godfather always told him that he was born to be an emperor ever since he was young. It turned out that it was indeed destiny. From the moment he was born, he would either die or inherit the throne!


    ��So, the World of Buddhism participated as well,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Back then, when I was not yet an emperor, I had gone to the World of Buddhism to cultivate, and it was your mother who asked me to go. She and the Lord of All Buddhas had discussed Buddhism together; even the Buddha was incredibly respectful and taught me Elimination of Outflows��one of the six superpowers.�� Donghuang the Great said, ��This is the highest Buddhist method in Buddhism, and it is not to be passed on to anyone lightly. Apart from the Buddha, the Buddha of Destiny, the Medicine Buddha Lord, and a very few other highly respected great Buddhas also know the truth.��


    Ye Futian thought of the aggressive attitude of the Medicine Buddha Lord and what the Buddha of Destiny called the 500-year reign. It turned out that all this was done to distract everyone else. After all, at that time, Ye Futian had already begun to reveal his talent and became one of the most enchanting genius talents in the world, catching the attention of several Great Emperors.


    ��Everyone is covering up your existence to buy more time for you,�� Donghuang Diyuan said.


    ��Then why are they not covering it up now?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��There was no way to hide it any longer, especially after you killed the seven emperors with your spear. Both the Human Ancestor and the Devil Emperor have become suspicious. Although they could not confirm it, they started to have doubts about your existence.�� Donghuang Diyuan continued, ��That was why the Human Ancestor invited you to the Human Divine Palace to see if you would go and invited you to participate in the war. Besides, they had arranged for a Great Emperor to get inside the Ye Imperial Palace and could use the people in the palace to threaten you if there was anything out of the ordinary.��


    Ye Futian suddenly put two and two together when he heard Donghuang Diyuan��s words. What he didn��t understand at the time was now crystal clear. It was precisely because he did not know anything that the Human Ancestor didn��t detect anything out of the ordinary. Nonetheless, he was very much guarded as far as Ye Futian was concerned.


    The same held true for the Devil Emperor; no wonder he felt that the Devil Emperor was behaving a little strangely. Not long ago, the Devil Emperor ordered the cultivators from the Devil Imperial Palace to intercept him and prevent him from entering Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Obviously, after the Devil Emperor fought against Donghuang the Great, and after the Great Emperor he dispatched to Ye Imperial Palace was killed, he sensed that something was wrong.


    Donghuang the Great��s order of attack on Ye Imperial Palace was not meant to threaten Ye Futian with the people in Ye Imperial Palace. On the contrary, it was to bring these people to Donghuang Imperial Palace so that Ye Futian had nothing to worry about in the future!


    At this moment, the divine power that sealed this space disappeared, and many people stepped on the stairs to come here. They stood far away behind him, watching Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian turned his head back to look at them and saw they were his elders who had been brought to Donghuang Imperial Palace. At this time, they were strongly impacted by the turn of events and were shocked.


    Especially Hua Fengliu, who felt as if he was in a dream; he was the first person to know Ye Futian��s secret and knew that he was related to Emperor Ye Qing, but what he could never expect was that Ye Futian was the son of the master of the Divine Prefecture.


    In the crowd, Ye Futian saw a familiar figure he hadn��t seen for a long time��Mr. Du from the Cottage. He was also here, looking at him with a smile, but there were tears in that smile.


    He also saw the man he had been calling father��Ye Baichuan��and the family he knew. They were all here.


    Everything that Donghuang the Great and Donghuang Diyuan had been saying was the answer he sought.


    ��Boy, It��s been a long time,�� Ye Baichuan looked at Ye Futian and said with a smile. Ye Futian didn��t know how to respond.


    Was he resentful? Of course there was some of that. But after knowing the truth and seeing those familiar faces in front of him, he couldn��t muster up any hatred.


    Donghuang the Great sat there watching everything and showed a rare smile.


    No matter what, it was a reunion of sorts.


    He slowly got up and walked towards the top of the stairs. At this moment, he no longer resembled an unparalleled Great Emperor but more like an old man who had gone through a lot in life.


    He has endured too much over the years.


    The prophecy predicted by the Buddha of Destiny was about to be fulfilled.


    Donghuang the Great walked to the divine throne, but instead of sitting down, he faced forward and took a deep breath.


    The 500-year reign of Donghuang the Great was coming to an end.


    From today on, it would be the era of the new emperor!

 Chapter 2878 - New Emperor of the Divine Prefecture

    Outside the Donghuang Imperial Palace, many top figures in the Divine Prefecture had gathered. The cultivators of the 18 Domains, and the Great Emperors from the Ancient God Clans, such as several Great Emperors who had grievances with Ye Futian, were all looking inside, wondering if a conclusion had been reached.


    This time, Ye Futian had so boldly stepped into the imperial palace. Perhaps it would be the end for him.


    It was high time for Ye Futian to fall!


    Likewise, the Devil Emperor did not leave, but he was not able to enter Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    He wanted to know the answer badly because this matter involved one of his closest relatives.


    As he gave a glance into the distance, at the highest point of Donghuang Imperial Palace, the Devil Emperor whispered, ��Is the truth about to be revealed?��


    He seemed to be talking to himself, but it was also as if he was asking the Buddha, who was in front of him.


    The Buddha did not respond but stood there, quiet.


    At this moment, someone walked out of Donghuang Imperial Palace. The Devil Emperor was not surprised when he saw this man, as if he was expecting him. On the other hand, Yu Sheng sharpened his eyes, and there was a strong sense of shock.


    What was happening?


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    The man walked with purpose until he approached the Devil Emperor. The two men stared into each other��s eyes, each assessing the other.


    ��You��ve come,�� the Devil Emperor uttered in a low voice. At this moment, his voice sounded extraordinarily calm.


    The man looked at the Devil Emperor briefly, then directed his attention to Yu Sheng behind him.


    ��What��s going on?�� Yu Sheng asked, his voice slightly trembling. His father was the man who walked out of Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    Who would tell him what happened?


    The man who appeared was none other than Yu Sheng��s own father, Ye Futian��s godfather, and the younger brother of the Devil Emperor of the Devil World, also known as a traitor to the Devil World.


    ��Yu Sheng, you have done very well over the years,�� his father said to him. ��As for the reason behind all this, you will know soon enough.��


    The Devil Emperor had a sarcastic look when he heard these words, and it was not clear who he was mocking. He stared at his younger brother, who was in front of him and said, ��So, Donghuang has never betrayed his beliefs, and he did not betray Emperor Ye Qing. Donghuang Diyuan is just a decoy, isn��t that right?��


    What a great conspiracy. Even the likes of him had been kept in the dark.


    Although he had his doubts, he still felt that Ye Futian must be in the role of an avenger.


    It wasn��t until recently that he began to wonder about Ye Futian��s real identity, hence the battle of the six emperors. He thought everything would come to an end and that Ye Futian��s identity would change nothing no matter what it was. But the battle of the six emperors could not end this era.


    And Ye Futian stepped into Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    When he saw no response from the man, the Devil Emperor continued, ��Who are you loyal to? Donghuang, Emperor Ye Qing, or both of them?!��


    ��Neither,�� Yu Sheng��s father replied.


    The Devil Emperor was stunned for a moment; then, he laughed as if he understood something. He remarked, ��I see. I didn��t expect her to have such power over you all, connecting you. The Divine, the Buddha, and the Devil have all participated. She was a remarkable woman indeed.��


    The ��Divine,�� naturally, referred to the Divine Prefecture, Donghuang the Great, and Emperor Ye Qing.


    The ��Buddha,�� of course, referred to the World of Buddhism��the Lord of all Buddhas.


    The ��Devil�� was his own brother.


    They had no connection and may have even been on the opposite sides. But they ended up here together because they had stayed true to the same belief.


    It was all because of her that they were under the command of Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing.


    ��They are loyal to their own beliefs,�� the Buddha added from the side.


    ��Belief?�� The Devil Emperor said sarcastically, ��Look at the state the world is in, and what difference does it make? You care and pity the world, but who will pity you? For the sake of the so-called world, you can abandon your own people, betray your own flesh and blood, and kill your own clan. In his eyes, was your son even ever your own?


    ��Who is Yu Sheng in your eyes?�� The Devil Emperor fixed on his brother and continued pressing, ��Have you ever felt guilty about this��asking the heir of the Devil World, your own child, to be loyal to the others and serve another?!��


    Hearing all this, Yu Sheng naturally understood something.


    So, was this the truth?


    He, who had never been moved by anything, trembled at this moment. He looked at his own father. As strong as he had been, at this moment, his eyes were fragile. This was his father.


    ��Yu Sheng,�� his father looked at him, ��never forget the beliefs you hold dear to you, and don��t forget everything that you two have experienced.��


    The Devil Emperor suddenly laughed sarcastically.


    ��Indeed, in your eyes, Yu Sheng is nothing more than a pawn, born to serve.�� The Devil Emperor continued sarcastically, ��What kind of spell did she put on you to make all of you agree to do this?��


    Images appeared in his mind, and his cold heart felt some warmth at this moment. There was a strong admiration that could be detected in those dark eyes of his. Her magic could only be known by those who had come in contact with her and those who knew her.


    She was a person who was pure to the extreme, someone who thought only of the others, with no pretense whatsoever.


    For her ideas and her beliefs, he could sacrifice everything, even his own life.


    After she fell, Ye Futian became his belief.


    Therefore, he considered himself a slave.


    Ye Futian was the one who would take over her scepter and realize her will.


    ��Devil Emperor.�� At this moment, the Buddha, who was on the other side, said, ��The world needs a change. If someone supreme is to emerge, everything in the Devil World can also be changed, and the Devil��s Abyss will be emptied.��


    ��Are you trying to convince me?�� The Devil Emperor looked at the Buddha and said, ��If people in the world have reached the state of supremacy in cultivation, how do you expect them to remember their original intentions? Power corrupts all. When you have control over the world, everything will naturally operate according to your will. The Heavenly Path in ancient times were as such, and it will be no exception in the future.��


    ��That��s your belief, not mine.��


    ��You don��t understand her, and you understand Donghuang even less,�� the Buddha said.


    ��Buddhism sympathizes with the world and wants to educate all beings. But were there any fewer scumbags in Buddhism than in any other sect? Why can��t Buddhism educate one��s own?�� asked the Devil Emperor most sarcastically.


    ��Nothing you said is wrong, but there are always some people who are different. She was part of the past; let��s put her aside for the time being. However, do you understand Donghuang himself?�� asked the Buddha.


    ��A coward like Ji Wudao alleged, or a determined person who endured humiliation and burdened with doing what��s right?�� the Devil Emperor retorted mockingly.


    ��Among the six superpowers of Buddhism, Omniscient and Elimination of Outflows are the most difficult to cultivate. In terms of the prerequisites for cultivation, Elimination of Outflows has the most stringent requirement,�� The Buddha said slowly. ��Do you know what kind of people may cultivate the Elimination of Outflows?��


    ��The Buddha said that when all karma is cut off, those who are no longer bound by life and death may cultivate the Elimination of Outflows. People in this state of mind have long since ceased to consider their own life and death, no longer coveting anything for themselves. Only by putting all this aside can he accomplish the Elimination of Outflows. Today, everything that Donghuang did was for that belief.��


    ��So, does this mean that The Buddha is selfish inside?�� The Devil Emperor was unmoved.


    ��Amitabha,�� the Buddha clasped his hands together and said. ��I��m ashamed to say that I work for merit!��


    ��Seeing one��s nature by discovering one��s heart. The Buddha is blunt enough,�� the Devil Emperor responded coldly.


    Just as they were speaking, a splendid divine light radiated from Donghuang Imperial Palace, covering the entire boundless void and quickly spreading to the entire imperial city.


    The Devil Emperor looked up over there, just as all the cultivators in the Imperial City looked in the same direction.


    The Domain Chief��s Manors of the 18 Domains in the Divine Prefecture and those ancient emperors focused their attention there.


    There, they seemed to see the figure of Donghuang the Great, who stood in front of the divine throne, bathed in divine glory as he faced the world.


    ��From today onward, Ye Futian will inherit the throne of the Divine Prefecture and will be titled ��Futian the Great.�� He will be the New Emperor who will rule all of the Divine Prefecture!�� said a voice that came from the Donghuang Imperial Palace, ringing throughout the land of the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2879 - Youve Met Her

    Donghuang had abdicated. And now, a new emperor was born!


    The land of the Divine Prefecture and the 18 domains were located on an infinite continent, where many living beings resided. All of them looked up into the sky to hear that voice resounding above the firmament. It sounded as if it came from outside the world. The voice was that of Donghuang the Great.


    This voice was like thunder, and no matter what any cultivator was doing on the mainland of the Divine Prefecture, they stopped at this moment. Their hearts trembled violently.


    At this moment, the entire Divine Prefecture was greeted by a moment of absolute silence.


    No one spoke, no one cultivated, and no one fought.


    But after a brief moment of dead silence, there was an uproar.


    What was happening?


    Donghuang the Great had abdicated his throne and gave it to Ye Futian.


    As far as they knew, not so long ago, the Human Ancestor, along with the Devil Emperor, the Evil Emperor, and the Dark Sovereign, launched an attack on the Divine Prefecture. Ye Futian had also led the forces from Ye Imperial Palace to participate. They didn��t understand why there would be such a huge change.


    Now, Ye Futian was about to inherit the throne of the Divine Prefecture!


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    There were some unknown factors behind Emperor Ye Qing��s death back then. Donghuang the Great had no choice but to do what he did. But what could be the reason for him to pass the throne on to Ye Futian? Or, did Donghuang the Great, out of guilt, return the throne to the rightful heir of Emperor Ye Qing?!


    Numerous people were speculating and talking. This thunderbolt had stunned everyone and turned their world upside down so that they couldn��t react for a while. Everything was happening so fast that no one expected it.


    ��The sky is changing!�� someone marveled as they looked at the sky.


    In the Divine Prefecture, the sky had changed.


    It was just the Divine Prefecture, but perhaps the whole era was about to change.


    The transition of power this time in the Divine Prefecture was more than what met the eye.


    If the cultivators in the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture were shocked to this degree, one could only imagine the reactions from the cultivators inside Donghuang Imperial Palace at the moment.


    The core members inside Donghuang Imperial Palace were shocked by this voice, including even the direct disciples of Donghuang the Great himself.


    Countless people looked up at the highest point of the imperial palace, and they were speechless. However, after a while, a few elders showed a look of sudden realization. It was no wonder Ye Futian was able to survive until now. Some of the doubts in their hearts were cleared up at this moment.


    Nonetheless, some did not look so pleased.


    For example, the four ancient emperors of the four Ancient God Clans.


    Haotian The Great, Yuanshi the Great, Wuliang the Great, and the Heavenly Emperor Jiang all paled. No wonder Donghuang the Great had allowed Ye Futian to roam upon the land in Divine Prefecture doing whatever he wanted. At this moment, the truth dawned upon them, and they realized everything was over for them.


    Everything was over!


    They did not get to see Ye Futian��s death as they wanted. Instead, they were witnessing his inheriting the throne of the Divine Prefecture. This time, they didn��t even have a chance to resist.


    Not only them, but some had made life difficult for Ye Futian in the 18 domains, such as the Domain Chief of the West Sea Domain and the Domain Chief of Shangqing Domain. It was true that they had greatly improved their strengths, but before Ye Futian, they were nothing. More importantly, now that Ye Futian was to inherit the throne, they would be under his command.


    This was some devastating news to them!


    The Devil Emperor raised his head and looked in the direction of Donghuang the Great. Suddenly, he laughed. He remembered the last time he came to Donghuang Imperial Palace to get some information from Donghuang the Great; they had chatted while Ye Futian was fighting Haotian the Great and Yuanshi the Great at the same time. He asked Donghuang the Great about Ye Futian, and Donghuang the Great admitted that he had bested Ye Futian.


    Later, he asked Donghuang if he felt guilty enough to return the throne to Emperor Ye Qing��s heir. Donghuang the Great replied that there was some guilt, but not what he initially thought.


    Indeed, things were more intriguing and interesting than the Devil Emperor had imagined. It could be said that it had not ceased to surprise him!


    ��For this day, you people planned for 200 years, and Emperor Ye Qing was willing to die for it. This is your belief,�� the Devil Emperor said with mockery in his eyes. ��Even Yu Sheng is no more than just a part of your plan, a mere a tool. You mean to tell me that everything was done only to assist Ye Futian?��


    Yu Sheng looked at his father. What the Devil Emperor said was indeed what his father had told all along ever since he was young. He was born for Ye Futian, born to be a general to assist Ye Futian.


    At this moment, he was rather hoping for a different answer.


    ��No.�� His father looked at Yu Sheng and continued, ��Of course not. Yu Sheng will be the creator of history. He will become the controller of the future orders between heaven and earth, ruling over all the demons in the world. Futian has always treated him like a brother.��


    ��Is that so?�� The Devil Emperor��s eyes were full of sarcasm, and those dark eyes seemed to see through everything. He said, ��Someone who was born with a mission, only born to fulfill your beliefs�� If he is not a pawn of yours, then what do you call him?��


    ��As for ruling over the demons in the world, he can do that himself without bowing down and surrendering to anyone else.�� Yu Sheng��s father didn��t argue. He had lied to appease Yu Sheng.


    What the Devil Emperor said was right��Yu Sheng was born with a purpose. But it was not just Yu Sheng, but Donghuang Diyuan, too. They were both born to help Ye Futian.


    This reality would be cruel for Yu Sheng to accept, but some things must be accepted despite the personal sacrifice.


    Even Emperor Ye Qing was willing to die for it!


    ��The blood of demons has always flowed inside of you, and for a cold-blooded and ruthless man like you to fulfill your beliefs no matter the cost, her influence on you must have been extraordinary,�� the Devil Emperor remarked in a low voice. He was truly curious to know what kind of person the Dark Sovereign was that she could make Donghuang the Great, Emperor Ye Qing, and his own younger brother work together to do her bidding.


    Having said that, the Devil Emperor turned around and said, ��Let��s go.��


    Yu Sheng looked at his father and hesitated for a few moments. Then he, too, turned around and followed the Devil Emperor.


    Watching Yu Sheng��s departing figure, his father did not show the slightest sign of worry. He knew that Yu Sheng hated him and had hated him since he was a youth.


    Yu Sheng could hate him, and he was willing to bear all the hatred from Yu Sheng.


    But over the years, he had come to realize one thing��no matter how much Yu Sheng hated him, when Ye Futian appeared in front of Yu Sheng, Yu Sheng would make his own decision.


    Some people were impossible for him to hate.


    He turned around and walked inside Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    At this time, inside Donghuang Imperial Palace, there were already many people heading in that direction.


    They were on their way to greet the New Emperor!


    Beneath the divine throne was Ye Futian. He raised his head to look at Donghuang the Great, who was on the stairs. Even at this moment, he still hadn��t recovered. Everything that happened was too shocking for him. Over the past 200 years, he was living in a gigantic web of lies.


    Donghuang the Great wanted to use that strike to make up for his guilt towards Ye Futian. But he knew that it was not his fault. So whose fault was it?


    Donghuang the Great stood quietly next to the divine throne, not urging him. He looked at him calmly, waiting for Ye Futian to step onto the divine throne that belonged to him.


    ��Is she still around?�� Ye Futian asked as he looked up at Donghuang the Great.


    Naturally, Donghuang the Great knew very well who Ye Futian was referring to.


    ��Yes, she is always around, waiting for you. You have already met her!�� Emperor Donghuang said as he returned Ye Futian��s gaze.

 Chapter 2880 - The Heavenly Path Is Dead; Futian Shall Rule

    They had met!


    Ye Futian appeared thoughtful. Many images flashed across his mind at this very moment.


    More than 200 years ago, the Sovereign Princess��his mother��had a premonition of the dangers ahead, which accounted for the events that took place later. Subsequently, the Sovereign Princess herself had fallen.


    But now, Donghuang the Great claimed that she had always been around; in fact, Ye Futian had already met her.


    Then, there could only be one possibility remaining, and that was she had been existing in the world in another form.


    ��No wonder there is the resonance!�� Ye Futian secretly marveled, looking at Donghuang the Great.


    ��The ninety-ninth heaven in Heaven Realm, that slice of the Heavenly Path!��


    ��Mmm.�� Donghuang the Great nodded. ��In the days of yore, she made her Heavenly Path into an ancient tree that allowed all things to grow. Later, she sent the spirit of the Heavenly Path into your body, which became your spiritual soul, to accompany you in your growth always. She transformed herself into an imperfect Heavenly Path to existing in the world. This was to avoid the suspicions of the others.��


    ��No wonder the six emperors did not enter,�� Ye Futian murmured. Everyone knew that the Heavenly Path possessed a spiritual consciousness, or else it would not have yielded divine items as it did. But Ye Futian never dreamt that the consciousness of the Heavenly Path would be his mother��the most superior woman in the world. Nobody could even come close to her.


    Ye Futian felt a pang of sadness in his chest at this moment. It turned out that they had met already.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    ��So, Ji Wudao is also a pawn!�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Yes,�� Donghuang the Great nodded, ��Ji Wudao has always been part of the plan. Like Diyuan and Yu Sheng, they are the future rulers of the order between heaven and earth. At the same time, they are also used as distractions so that the rest of them may confuse Ji Wudao as the one who covets heaven. In fact, in recent years, this is exactly what everyone thought.


    ��And it��s not just the world��even Ji Wudao himself thinks so as well. His growth has far exceeded anyone��s expectations. Ji Wudao has completed the cultivation of the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method, a terrifying divine method that can devour the abilities of the others, absorbing them as his own. More precisely, Ji Wudao can be described as a pawn that has escaped the chessboard.��


    Donghuang the Great continued, ��If he is under control, then even if he inherited the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, he can still be used by you. If he is no longer under control, he can be replaced instead. Futian, you are the true Heavenly Emperor.��


    Ye Futian did not feel happy when he heard what Donghuang the Great had told him. On the contrary, he felt a sense of sadness.


    Donghuang Diyuan, Yu Sheng, and Ji Wudao were all about the same age as he was.


    So this was the truth��all of them were born for the same goal, and all of them were pawns in this game, played between heaven and earth.


    But Donghuang the Great had changed the game. For his safety, he and Donghuang Diyuan switched their identities, which even Emperor Ye Qing didn��t know. That was the reason why Emperor Ye Qing was so sorrowful after looking into his spiritual soul.


    Everyone was born for his sake.


    How sad was this for Donghuang Diyuan, Yu Sheng and Ji Wudao?


    ��So, Chen Yi was too.�� Ye Futian thought of what happened at the Great Bright Domain in the land of 18 domains, which ended with Blind Chen��s death. Now it seemed that only Donghuang the Great could have staged all this.


    Donghuang the Great nodded and asked, ��Do you have any other questions?��


    ��What about Qingyao?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��She is not part of this,�� Donghuang the Great nodded, ��Ye Qingyao was an accident; the child of darkness was not part of the plan.��


    ��What about the teacher?�� Ye Futian asked again.


    ��The teacher is an unusual man,�� said Donghuang the Great, ��Some things were done because I asked the teacher to do them.��


    Ye Futian nodded. Then, it was not surprising that he was the one in charge of Four Corner Village.


    ��So, with such a massive plan, who is the enemy?�� Ye Futian finally asked, ��Who can make her perish? And why did Emperor Ye Qing have to die? And even Emperor Ye Qing��s whole faction was wiped out?��


    300 years after the unification of the Divine Prefecture, the civil war between the two emperors erupted, resulting in the entire faction of Emperor Ye Qing being obliterated. It was said that there was so much blood they formed into rivers in that battle, and it was not just Emperor Ye Qing who was killed; it was commonly believed that numerous great demons had been immolated in that battle, which created a huge gap in the Demon Realm.


    It might even be that only a few core people knew the truth and died willingly. The majority of them remained ignorant and became collateral damages to the plan.


    For those people, it was unbelievably cruel. Once, they were the founders of the Divine Prefecture, but they were purged ruthlessly.


    Donghuang the Great had a complicated expression on his face when he heard Ye Futian��s questions. This was also the pain he felt in his heart for many years, which he had been unwilling to face. If he had a choice, he rather that it was him who died.


    ��Let me answer for him,�� a voice said. Ye Futian turned around and saw a familiar figure coming towards them.


    When Ye Futian saw the man, his heart trembled slightly, but he couldn��t manage to address the man as he used to.


    At this time, he was no longer a hunched-over old man. An icy aura permeated from him, and his eyes were cold to the core, tinged with cruelty. Those eyes looked at Ye Futian. ��Your mother wanted to remake the order of the world and end the era of chaos. But the best way to change the world is to directly gain control over the world. Many years ago, she had already predicted the outcome, so the plan had been in place even before she fell. The only difference was that the plan was not as extensive at the time, and only some things were being done. It wasn��t until her fall that the plan started to take shape.


    ��As for her death, we still haven��t figured out who the enemy was. But as far as we know, it��s very possibly the Human Ancestor. Of course, it would not be the one that you saw today,�� Ye Futian��s godfather looked at Ye Futian as he continued to explain. ��But in the battle back then, the enemy was gravely injured as well and fell into a deep sleep. The Human Ancestor you see today is most likely just the other��s spokesperson in the world.��


    Ye Futian was extremely shocked inside. The Human Ancestor was known as the ancestor of the Human Realm, in charge of the world order. Could something like this have been hidden so deeply within his background?


    ��After your mother fell, the enemies still refused to give up and forbade the existence of two emperors in the Divine Prefecture. They joined forces with the Dark World, the Devil World, and the Empty Divine Realm to start a war, intending to destroy the Divine Prefecture. Because of that, a civil war between the two emperors erupted, and the Divine Prefecture separated from the Heaven Realm. This was a tragically costly price to paralyze our opponent. At that time, the other also had concerns of their own, so the battle was a lose-lose situation. Our enemies did not dare to fully expose themselves, for they worried about the forces of the Devil World and other principalities, so things eventually calmed down in consideration of everything and all parties. However, they had never relented in keeping tabs on Donghuang Imperial Palace. As a result, Donghuang Imperial Palace cleared the remaining power of Emperor Ye Qing as a way to buy us 200 more years. If we didn��t sacrifice a faction, and if the other party spares no expense, the Divine Prefecture may have ceased to exist a long time ago.��


    ��Now, the world has changed dramatically. The Age of the Gods was upon us, and the Human Ancestor had already begun using his hidden prowess. This was also an indication that the real player may be returning, so we are in a race of time. After you ascend to the throne, the tasks that your mother could not complete will fall upon you.


    Having said that, he knelt on both knees and prostrated under the stairs. He kowtowed to Ye Futian and said, ��Your servant, Yu Tu, beseeches the young master to ascend the throne. The Heavenly Path is dead, and Futian shall rule!��

 Chapter 2881 - Ji Wudaos Confession

    Yu Tu��s voice was not loud but a little low, not revealing any excitement. It was, however, full of expectation for Ye Futian.


    Now, for them, they were still mired in crisis. Yu Tu knew how strong she was, but despite her strength, she had not been able to fulfill her wish.


    Until today, in the dawn of the Age of the Gods, something unusual had been stirred up inside the Human Divine Palace. The great buddhas in the World of Buddhism had detected something also, and everything pointed that ��he�� may be soon returning.


    This was a fight for the heavens, and the price of failure was death.


    ��Godfather, please get up,�� Ye Futian said as Yu Tu got up.


    Ye Futian looked at Yu Tu and then at Donghuang Diyuan and many other faces. The cultivators from Ye Imperial Palace had heard the truth of everything, and they could find no words at the moment. Everything that had just been revealed to them had a meaningful impact on them, and Emperor Xia was filled with emotion.


    Fate had pushed him forward, and he had arrived at this point only to discover that everything was not as he thought. 200 years of understanding was overturned in an instant. The severity of the impact on Ye Futian could only be imagined. Naturally, he found everything challenging to bear at the moment.


    Ye Futian turned around and directed his attention at Donghuang the Great again. He looked at his wound and said, ��If I had known the truth then, I might have jabbed it a little harder.��


    ��You can jab one more time if you want.�� Donghuang the Great didn��t seem to care as he responded.


    He owed this debt, and he was indebted to too many people.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    ��You are so eager to give up your throne because you don��t want to sit on it,�� Ye Futian said. ��Sitting on the divine throne will only make you feel guilty, so you want to give it to me directly.��


    Donghuang the Great was silent. Indeed, he too had endured much over the years.


    ��If that��s the case, why should I spare you?�� Ye Futian said, ��You are not that old, and you are still one of the strongest emperors out of the six in the world. Why do you want to surrender? This position does not belong only to you but also to Emperor Ye Qing. Yes, this throne is yours to suffer.��


    Ye Futian did not want to sit on the throne of the Divine Prefecture.


    ��More importantly, even if the throne is to be passed on in the future, it should be passed on to her,�� Ye Futian looked at Donghuang Diyuan.


    Donghuang Diyuan was stunned, looking at Ye Futian with surprise.


    She knew that Donghuang the Great had been waiting for the day when Ye Futian would step into the imperial palace of the Divine Prefecture. While he wished that Ye Futian could come here as soon as possible, he also hoped that he would not come here too quickly so that his realm could continue to be elevated. The throne of the Divine Prefecture had always been reserved for him.


    Donghuang the Great felt he had a lot to make up to him.


    Donghuang the Great was also a little surprised. As he looked at Ye Futian, Futian continued, ��The name that has been used for 200 years can��t be changed by a few of your words. Don��t you agree?��


    When he heard this, Donghuang the Great understood Ye Futian��s meaning. He took a deep breath, and a feeling of warmth flowed through him.


    ��No, you will still use the name Ye!�� Donghuang the Great said, ��The throne of the Divine Prefecture will be passed on to Diyuan. Donghuang Diyuan!��


    ��Then it��s settled.�� Ye Futian nodded and then said, ��Should I go see her?��


    ��Go. She has been waiting for you for a long time,�� Donghuang the Great said with a smile.


    ��Mmm,�� Ye Futian replied. Then he disappeared directly from where he was and left just like that, leaving everyone behind.


    Under the stairs, everyone from Donghuang Imperial Palace was about to come and meet the New Emperor, but the New Emperor had left.


    Even Yu Tu looked stunned as he froze in place.


    That��s right. They must remember Ye Futian was no longer the boy of yesterday.


    When Yu Tu thought of this, he let out a sigh. At this moment, he seemed to age a lot all of a sudden.


    ��Please go back,�� Donghuang the Great said to those who had come for an audience. Divine glory was shining over him, and before anyone figured out what was going on, they retreated.


    However, they saw the smile in the eyes of Donghuang the Great. The cultivator in Donghuang imperial Palace had never seen such a smile on the Great Emperor, ever.


    This smile seemed to be a kind, calm honesty mixed with relief.


    It was as if he had finally been released of a burden.


    ��


    Heaven Realm��the ninety-ninth heaven, above the Heavenly Palace.


    Ji Wudao opened his eyes as he stood up slowly, looking up into the sky. In his eyes, there was a touch of extremely complicated emotions.


    Previously, he had gone to the Human Divine Palace, intending to take advantage of the battle of the six emperors and hunt down the cultivators from the Human Divine Palace.


    Later, when several Great Emperors emerged from Human Divine Palace, he retreated after being defeated and returned here to cultivate.


    However, not too long ago, he got a message from the Divine Prefecture.


    Donghuang the Great wanted to pass on the throne to Ye Futian.


    He suddenly understood many things at that moment, such as why the Original Realm had produced such a proud son of heaven and why he had always felt that something was lacking in Donghuang Diyuan.


    At this moment, all his doubts were answered.


    Donghuang Diyuan was not her descendant after all.


    Ye Futian was!


    ��Creating his own micro Heavenly Path!�� Ji Wudao exclaimed in a low voice. Above the Heavenly Palace, quite a few people stared at Ji Wudao from behind. They could feel that something was different about Ji Wudao at this time, but exactly what was different about him, they couldn��t say.


    Did something happen?


    ��In the years past, I have traveled to many places, trying to find out what happened back then and finally gotten to know some of it. In my opinion, Donghuang is just a coward. Not only did he abandon you, but also he severed his relationship with the Heaven Realm to protect himself, which caused the war with Emperor Ye.�� Ji Wudao looked at the firmament as if talking to himself.


    ��I also found out that the Human Ancestor was the most likely suspect behind what happened back then. Therefore, I have always regarded the Human Realm as the enemy and aimed to destroy the Human Realm. One day, when I prove the Way and achieve great success, I will destroy the Human Divine Palace, execute the Human Ancestor, and find the person responsible for all that happened in the past.


    ��Originally, I wanted to marry Diyuan, to make your daughter the queen and a maternal model for the world.


    ��Of course, what I want to do the most is to make up for the loss. For the past 200 years, I have always known that you were there, though you have never really said a word to me. Therefore, I think that if one day I can prove the way, I will resurrect you and call you Master!��


    Ji Wudao spoke slowly; his voice was unbelievably gentle and full of reverence.


    This was the fearless and lawless Ji Wudao speaking. He devoured cultivators from all sides to strengthen himself; even Great Emperors were no exception. He ignored everything and everyone, calling Donghuang the Great a coward. When the six emperors gathered, he had disguised himself to stir the pot among them.


    However, at this moment, he appeared so gentle. The people in Heavenly Palace had never seen this side of Ji Wudao, and everyone in the ninety-ninth heaven was stunned when they heard him. They had no idea what had just happened.


    Who was Ji Wudao talking to?


    Was it the Heavenly Path above the ninety-ninth heaven?


    Was this piece of the Heavenly Path the Heavenly Emperor?


    ��But is all of this just wishful thinking?�� Ji Wudao asked the firmament. ��I hope not!��


    Having said that, he quietly looked at the sky without saying another word as he continued staring into the sky.


    He was waiting��waiting for an answer!

 Chapter 2882 - Went Berserk

    The atmosphere in the ninety-ninth heaven was a little out of the ordinary. Many did not realize something was happening and continued cultivating in their own little world. Some had become aware of the changes and looked at Ji Wudao, who was above the Heavenly Palace.


    A breeze blew past him, causing ripples to spread across Ji Wudao��s robe. Nowadays, he possessed the noble temperament that was only possible to find on the Heavenly Emperor. He was one of the existences that stood at the peak of the world. In the future, he might even be the one and only.


    This was what the world thought, and Ji Wudao thought. He was from the main lineage of the Heavenly Realm, the heir of the Heavenly Emperor, and reigned as the current Heavenly Emperor.


    Once upon a time, he thought that after he married Donghuang Diyuan, who was a descendant of the Heavenly Emperor, everything would be perfect and complete. They would be the most enviable couple in the world, a destined pair.


    However, Donghuang Diyuan was not a descendant of the Heavenly Emperor.


    The real descendant of the Heavenly Emperor may already be on his way here!


    Below, clouds and mist tossed and turned as a figure passing through the ninety-ninth heaven and came above it.


    When the cultivators in the ninety-ninth heaven saw the appearance of this figure, they were stunned. They were a little surprised how this man could make it here.


    The man who arrived was clad in white, so meticulous that he appeared to be untouched by any trace of impurity. His long silvery hair moved with the wind as he stood quietly in the void. He raised his head and looked above the firmament as if he had detected something there.


    ��Huh?�� Many people showed an expression of surprise. Ye Futian��s presence had alarmed the cultivators on the ninety-ninth heaven, and they were all looking at him.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    How come he��s here? everyone secretly marveled. They knew that Ye Futian and Ji Wudao were two exceptional individuals in today��s world. Ji Wudao kept a low profile, and he was slow to reveal his full prowess. Once unleashed, however, his ascension was all but unavoidable, and he became the reigning Heavenly Emperor.


    On the other hand, Ye Futian rose to fame in the Original Realm, becoming the Original Realm��s number one genius talent, working hard every step of the way.


    The two men were considered two of the most dazzling young men in the world today. No one��not even Donghuang Diyuan, Di Hao, or any others��could compare to them.


    Now, why would Ye Futian come here?


    However, what was even more uncanny was that Ye Futian in the void and Ji Wudao standing above the Heavenly Palace had the same movements as both men looked up into the sky. This bizarre sight piqued everyone��s curiosity.


    Could it have something to do with this piece of the Heavenly Path in the ninety-ninth heaven?


    The release of these two men��s perceptions allowed them to connect with the Heavenly Path in the ninety-ninth heaven at the same time. Suddenly, a vision appeared above the firmament. The divine light of law fell from the Heavenly Path and descended on both of them.


    At this time, Ye Futian couldn��t care less about Ji Wudao. His entire consciousness was completely immersed in that piece of Heavenly Path as he opened up his heart and mind to resonate with it. Instantly, in that Heavenly Path, a virtual world seemed to have manifested.


    His own elusive shadow was there, floating above that slice of Heavenly Path. It seemed as if he was looking for something.


    At this time, above the Heavenly Path, a curious force was gathering, and a face appeared.


    Ye Futian looked at the face that was slowly coming into view. He clenched his fists. It was a flawless face, gentle as water, tranquil and noble. Just a glance was enough to make him feel comforted.


    Looking at this perfect visage, Ye Futian felt only a tinge of sadness. Was this his mother, the most excellent woman in the world, the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor, who wanted to remake the Heavenly Path?


    However, this was the first time he saw his mother.


    Surrounded by the divine power of this Heavenly Path, Ye Futian felt a very comforting warmth.


    He understood that all of this was true, that he was indeed the son of the Sovereign Princess and Donghuang the Great.


    ��Mother!�� Ye Futian called out in a low voice. He reached out with his hand as if to grab that vague shadow. However, even he was not a real figure in this world. He saw the shadow gradually dissipate, but he could still feel the warmth that flowed through his entire body.


    At this time, Ye Futian��s own body was bathed in divine glory, and infinite divine brilliance poured down from above that slice of Heavenly Path. It resonated with his body, and the glow of light was illuminated the distance visible to the human eye.


    ��This����


    ��What��s going on?�� The cultivators on the ninety-ninth heaven were shocked when they beheld this wondrous sight. Why was Ye Futian bathed in the divine glory of the Heavenly Path?


    They looked at Ji Wudao above the Heavenly Palace and saw that Ji Wudao was also bathed in the divine light of the law, but it was not nearly as brilliant as Ye Futian.


    Ji Wudao, whose attention was still focused upon the sky, had a look of sudden understanding in his eyes as he said, ��So, I��m just a vessel, is that it?��


    Gradually, his eyes were no longer as calm as before but with a bit of cold indifference. He interrogated, ��Why choose me if there is him? Why am I here? If I am here, what was the purpose of having him!��


    Divine glory continued to pour down, surrounding all around Ji Wudao.


    A terrifying aura suddenly erupted from Ji Wudao. At this moment, his aura seemed to have changed. A wild divine power erupted fiercely from him as the devouring power pervaded, swallowing up the divine glory that was sprinkled upon him moments ago.


    ��Even if you didn��t appreciate me, I will still fulfill your will and replace this heaven,�� Ji Wudao proclaimed as an even more frightening aura burst from him. In the next moment, he had disappeared directly from the Heavenly Palace.


    Bang! A loud noise was heard, and before the people in the ninety-ninth heaven had a chance to react, they saw the divine light surrounding Ye Futian. The world particles circled him, turning into a light screen. Within this light curtain, there was a gigantic handprint. This gigantic handprint was from none other than Ji Wudao.


    A terrifying aura emerged from Ji Wudao as his hand seemed to have turned into a terrifying black hole. Suddenly, the light screen around Ye Futian began to disintegrate and collapse. Those world particles were being swallowed up as they surged into the black hole of a vortex. This terrifying devouring power enveloped the boundless space, instantly burying where Ye Futian was. It looked as if Ji Wudao wanted to devour all of it.


    ��Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method!�� The heart of every cultivator was beating wildly. They saw that the space Ye Futian occupied was crumbling and shattering like mad. Everything was about to be engulfed. Even the defense gathered by the World Divine Power could not sustain that devouring power. This was a kind of terrifying divine technique from ancient times��the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method.


    It was still a mystery where Ji Wudao actually cultivated this unusual method. The Heavenly Emperor did not cultivate this ability, so he couldn��t have inherited it from the Heaven Realm. This divine method had been taboo, and it was far too terrifying. It could devour the power of the others for his own use.


    Ji Wudao��s sudden attack towards Ye Futian and those words he had spoken before seemed to suggest that Ye Futian may have something to do with this slice of Heavenly Path?


    They even heard Ji Wudao call himself a disciple and that this slice of the Heavenly Path was not the remnant of the ancient Heavenly Path.


    This slice of the Heavenly Path seemed to have chosen Ye Futian between the two, so Ji Wudao went berserk in disappointment, intending to devour Ye Futian directly!

 Chapter 2883 - Fair Fight

    In the ninety-ninth heaven, all eyes were on the battlefield.


    Ji Wudao, the reigning Heavenly Emperor, was known as the most enchanting existence in his generation of the Seven Realms; he was the one and only.


    His best record was made not too long ago. He had infiltrated the divine palace, slaughtered, and devoured several emperors. He managed to retreat successfully and returned to the ninety-ninth heaven safely. Even though he had leveraged the power of the Heavenly Path, it was still a shocking feat.


    Ye Futian was the former king of the Original Realm. However, after the great changes in the world, the Original Realm was no longer what it was before. Even though cultivators from the Seven Realms have all arrived, Ye Futian was still the number one genius talent in the Original Realm, the founder of Ye Imperial Palace.


    His best war record was the obliteration of seven Great Emperors in one strike.


    The two were said to be the two most powerful genius talents in the world, and at this moment, they were both here for war.


    Was this battle a duel between the Seven Realms�� two most powerful genius talents?


    Whoever won would be the number one genius talent in all of the world.


    Everyone understood that although they had not yet proved their way as the Great Emperor, they were enough to be considered emperors. Ordinary Great Emperors were not enough to contend with the likes of them at all.


    Above them, there were only the six emperors who reigned higher than they did.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    On the battlefield, the terrifying power of the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method erupted, and Ye Futian��s Divine Prefecture defense kept collapsing and shattering. He was about to be swallowed up by Ji Wudao, whose handprint was like a bottomless black hole.


    Boom�� The horrific divine power rushed towards the black hole frantically. Ye Futian��s divine power exploded as his body tossed and roared. The divine power teared out from his body fiercely, dived into that engulfing black hole.


    That divine power contained the Heaven Slaying Divine Power within, and its power of attack was unparalleled. It turned into a storm of destruction and pierced into the black hole, but he only heard the sounds of thunder coming from the black hole. It was a ponderous thud that rendered Ye Futian��s Heaven Slaying Divine Power like a rock that sank into the ocean, falling without a trace.


    The terrifying black hole storm of vortex kept rolling towards Ye Futian, trying to engulf him. Accompanied by the eruption of this terrifying force, the vast and boundless space gathered into currents which were then swept into the black hole. Even this corner of the sky seemed to be on the verge of being swallowed up.


    Further away, some cultivators who were watching the battle on the ninety-ninth heaven were unexpectedly swept by the current of the vortex and were instantly drawn into it, heading deeper inside.


    ��What kind of terrifying power is this?�� The cultivator in another direction looked at the imagery in front of him in total shock. Even the sky above them was about to be swallowed up. When the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method was at full power, a handprint turned into a black hole, and that terrifying dark vortex was capable of swallowing up the heavens.


    ��Heavenly Emperor, have mercy on us!�� Some cultivators caught up in the storm roared, but it was of no use. At this moment, Ji Wudao��s heart was cold as ice, and there was only murderous intent. He only wanted to devour Ye Futian, swallowing his existence.


    Some cultivators were directly sucked inside the storm before they could even let out a scream; it was a terribly scary sight.


    Boom! Ye Futian made those particles suddenly grow, each turning into a starry world of its own, letting out violent roars. They smashed directly at Ji Wudao.


    This starry world was boundless and massive, and all the cultivators had made themselves scarce. There was no expression on Ji Wudao��s face, and his palm seemed to have turned into an infinite black hole. It was as if there was another world inside of it. It was like the Great Path Divine Realm, which instantly sucked the massive starry world into it.


    The starry world collapsed and pulverized at an unimaginable speed and was swallowed up. The outcome still had not changed.


    A terrifying devouring power swallowed Ye Futian into the black hole, causing Ye Futian��s long hair to fly wildly in the wind. His clothes fluttered as they were making a whistling sound.


    Buzz! A boundless and gigantic long spear condensed into being. This long spear was conceived by the terrifying divine power. With a thought, his body was sucked inside the storm along with the long spear in his hand. Together, they slammed into the storm.


    But the spear was rapidly expanding, slamming directly into the storm, and pierced into it. In an instant, a terrifying explosion was heard as the storm was collapsing and shattering. And the black hole formed by the handprint was destroyed.


    But even so, it made everyone tremble with fear. They couldn��t believe just a handprint could contain such terrifying power.


    Ji Wudao was just getting started, and his strength had not fully exploded.


    ��Divine power derived from the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method?�� Ye Futian looked at Ji Wudao and asked, ��What kind of divine power is this?��


    ��Black Hole!�� Ji Wudao stared at Ye Futian and replied, ��You are her descendant. If you are willing to surrender to me, I don��t have to kill you. I will finish her work, and you will assist me.��


    ��You have gone on a crooked path,�� Ye Futian responded. ��Come out and fight.��


    As soon as Ye Futian��s voice faded, he stepped out and left here directly. Fighting here would be disastrous for those who cultivated in the ninety-ninth heaven.


    Ji Wudao was in possession of the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method, which helped him advance rapidly. He was one of the most powerful beings in the world, and his potential was terrifying.


    However, it was also because of this Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method that Ji Wudao��s path was destined to go astray. He could devour the others for his own cultivation. When they were on the Gods�� Ruins Continent, Ji Wudao had a lot of blood on his hands. He killed many cultivators who had plundered and taken the lives of the others, swallowing the inheritances these cultivators had acquired inside the relics.


    More importantly, Ye Futian could feel that Ji Wudao had a stubborn personality and had an unusually high opinion of himself. To achieve his goals, he would do anything. In addition to the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method that he cultivated, he might be a disaster waiting to happen in the cultivation world.


    The two of them were destined not able to coexist.


    When Ji Wudao saw that Ye Futian left voluntarily and gave up his advantage here, he looked up at the sky and said, ��Since he wants a fair fight, I will allow it and spare his life.��


    When he finished, his figure also disappeared, as he was chasing after Ye Futian.


    After Ye Futian left the ninety-ninth heaven in the Heavenly Realm, he went through the passageway in the Heaven Realm to get to the Original Realm and then came to the space of the void amid the boundless starry sky.


    The infinite space of the void was silent. There were no traces of any cultivators here. Some starry continents could be seen in the distance, but they were continents where no one was cultivating.


    Ye Futian then turned around, facing the area below, waiting for Ji Wudao to get there.


    Soon, a figure appeared below, turning into a flash of lightning as it climbed upward. It was Ji Wudao.


    Buzz! The moment Ye Futian��s mind moved, an extremely bright golden light screen appeared above the sky. It covered the sky and the sun, as well as the boundless space. It was as if it had transformed into a terrifying divine matrix of swordsmanship.


    An extremely frightening sharp aura descended from above, and countless rays of light were falling. Every ray of light contained the power to slay heaven, directly attacking Ji Wudao, who was coming in for the kill.


    Divine light circulated around Ji Wudao, and the Nine Dragons True Qi was released. He was bathing in the divine power of destruction, yet he was unmoved.


    ��A lot of these abilities were given to you by your mother. Today, I will use these abilities to defeat you!�� Ji Wudao looked up at Ye Futian and roared, unparalleled confidence within himself!

 Chapter 2884 - The Ultimate Duel

    Ye Futian didn��t respond. A boundless and massive divine matrix above him sheltered an infinite area, and countless divine swords fell from the divine matrix.


    This was the Heaven Slaying Matrix, and every divine sword contained the Heaven Slaying Divine Power.


    The divine swords sailed across the void, slaying down with domineering aggression. It annihilated the infinite space and zoomed in on Ji Wudao for the kill.


    With Nine Dragons True Qi protecting his body, an imperial shadow 10,000 feet high appeared, surrounded by the divine light of the law. Terrifying Heaven Slaying Sword blasted down, all of which were blocked by the protective divine light that surrounded him. Even though it had stabbed into the target, it could not penetrate the defense to get a hit on Ji Wudao.


    Ye Futian raised his hand and stretched it towards the void. Suddenly gigantic divine swords appeared in the Heaven Slaying Divine Matrix in the firmament. The divine light came straight down, turning into a light beam. It penetrated the boundless heaven and earth.


    ��Heaven Slaying!�� Ye Futian spat. As soon as his voice faded, heaven and earth were torn apart, and a terrifying spatial crack appeared. The light beam from the divine sword shuttled down in the horrific dark crack. A deafening booming sound was heard between heaven and earth.


    The divine swords came down in an instant, tearing apart the terrifying crack. With a loud bang, the protective light screen formed by the Nine Dragons True Qi was shattered. However, that terrifying divine swords continued to move downward, slashing at that gigantic imperial shadow.


    Ji Wudao raised his hand and unleashed a blast that turned into the seal of the Heavenly Emperor, colliding with the divine swords. The storm of destruction swept across this corner of the sky, even Ji Wudao was slammed down, while that towering imperial shadow was also repelled.


    He glanced at Ye Futian and thought that for him to be able to rock him with the divine power of the micro Heavenly Path, it seemed that the level of divine power created by Ye Futian was extremely advanced.


    He stretched out his hands, and suddenly, infinite divine swords appeared from all around him; they were the Tianxing Divine Swords. His majestic body turned into Heaven Punishing God of War. When he saw the divine swords raining down from the firmament, TIanxing Divine Swords also exploded simultaneously, going upward against the momentum.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    At this moment, an extremely splendid sight appeared in the void. Divine swords and divine swords clashed and collided as the sword light illuminated the boundless void. The storm of destruction raged in this space, and even some continents in the distance were penetrated and shattered by the sword will. One could imagine just how horrific this sword qi had been.


    But at this moment, the Sound of Buddha was heard lingering, as the Light of Buddha dazzled, shrouding this space. The brilliant and sacred Light of Buddha appeared in the firmament, illuminating endlessly. Boundless and massive ancient Buddhas appeared between heaven and earth, and each one seemed to be a Buddha that had achieved enlightenment. They each occupied a place, like all the Buddhas in the heavens had appeared together.


    Ye Futian stood in the center, raising his hand and slamming it down hard, turning it into a gigantic Symbol of Wan. This Symbol of Wan continued to expand, covering the entire sky and even the sun. An incomparably golden light of Buddha dazzled above the Buddhas Mudra, and it was formed from countless Symbols of Wan, flowing endlessly within the lines of the symbols. Those Symbols of Wan seemed to be alive and moving.


    This handprint was hard and unyielding, invincible and indestructible. It suppressed the world and shattered the ages. Wherever it passed, everything was wiped out. This was no longer the Buddhist offense that Ye Futian comprehended while he cultivated in the World of Buddhism, but something else that he had transformed while he cultivated in his Micro Heavenly Path. Each rune contained the power of the World of Buddhism.


    When this handprint came down, it was like the world of infinity slamming down. Even all the Symbols of Wan were spinning. But none of this could be seen from below because everything was shrouded.


    Ji Wudao looked at that incredibly horrific Buddhist handprint, which covered the sky and the sun. No matter where he went, he was under the coverage of this handprint, which had submerged even the heavens. No wonder Ye Futian came here to fight. Only in the endless void could they fight so recklessly and at will.


    If they were in the ninety-ninth heaven, this Buddhist handprint would shroud all of the ninety-nine heavens. The blast of one handprint would be enough to shatter all ninety-nine heavens.


    Indeed, he deserves to be the true descendant of the master, Ji Wudao secretly marveled in his heart as he beheld the sight. This kind of attack was indeed an attack worth responding to.


    Most of the Great Emperors he met before this could not be acknowledged as Great Emperors in his mind. They were far too weak and could easily be obliterated, especially some of those returning ancient emperors; they could hardly be taken seriously by the likes of him.


    He didn��t expect that the person who could fight him would be the descendant of the only master he ever revered in his life.


    Perhaps this was what they called fate.


    The gigantic figure of the Heavenly Emperor raised his hand, and immediately the Nine Dragons True Qi circulated in the palm of his hand, the surrounding world changed drastically. The space seemed to be twisted into forming a great storm.


    He raised his arm, and his hand blasted towards the Wan Buddhas Mudra above the firmament. It was also a boundless and massive divine seal; it was the Seal of the Universe.


    Bang! A dull thud came out, and the Seal of the Universe was meant to overturn the universe. When the attack landed, the light of Buddha above the Symbol of Wan seemed to stop moving. However, along with the violent roaring that came out, the terrifying divine seal continued to descend until it crushed the Seal of the Universe and slammed into Ji Wudao below.


    Ji Wudao��s mind moved, and countless divine swords shot upward against the momentum, slamming into different parts on the Wan Buddhas Mudra. These countless huge holy swords held up the giant Buddhas mudra of the heavens. Then, Ji Wudao, with hands forward, unleashed Haotian Pagodas to smash down, blasting on the Wan Buddhas Mudra.


    Finally, cracks appeared on the Wan Buddhas Mudra, which continued to expand. Ji Wudao, as the incarnation of the Heavenly Emperor, stepped into the void, with the sword of the Heavenly Emperor in hand, slashing at the Wan Buddhas Mudra, giving it the final blow.


    Boom! A shockingly loud sound was heard as if the sky and earth were falling apart. That boundless and massive Wan Buddhas Mudra finally disintegrated and shattered, turning into countless golden Lights of Buddha that illuminated heaven and earth.


    But at this moment, a divine light came from outside the sky, and the Symbol of Wan shattered. Ye Futian held the long spear as a light sailed across, piercing through heaven and earth. One strike had broken through the heavens; it was unimaginably fast.


    Ji Wudao let out a great shout as the Nine Dragons True Qi protected his person, but the spear penetrated it. He raised his hands and blasted out a terrifying vortex of engulfing storm, which appeared in the handprint. He wanted to take that slaughtering spear and Ye Futian both into the storm.


    Buzz! The long spear flew out of Ye Futian��s hand, slamming down with fatal force.


    With a loud bang, Ji Wudao��s body was blasted back. He took a look at his hand and saw that a bloody mark had appeared. Nonetheless, it was healing rapidly, and the bloody mark disappeared in a blink of an eye.


    Ji Wudao raised his head to glance at Ye Futian; there was a bit of seriousness now in those eyes. It seemed that he had underestimated Ye Futian.


    His body floated in one direction and came not too far away to a starry continent. His palm stretched out towards the other side, and suddenly a terrifying vortex storm appeared in his palm, like a black hole.


    Terrifying sounds of rumbling came out, and that starry continent pulverized directly, its remanent rushed into his palm. Then, in the vortex in front of his palm, a massive spear came into being.


    He had directly devoured a continent to gather it into a spear, which seemed to compete toe-to-toe with Ye Futian��s spear.


    It was a massive black long spear, pitch-black and profound, filled with a highly frightening aura. A black hole loomed at the tip of the spear, converging into a vortex, madly devouring everything around it!

 Chapter 2885 - Silver Spear and Black Spear

    The long spear in Ji Wudao��s hand was unleashed towards Ye Futian, and his eyes turned demonic. Those pitch-black pupils seemed to have turned into dark vortices, terrifying to the extreme.


    ��Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing!�� spat Ji Wudao. In an instant, the surrounding space seemed to collapse; it was completely destroyed in the madness. The space in the Original Realm was inherently unstable and could not withstand the attack of cultivators in the imperial realm.


    At this moment, Ji Wudao��s burst of divine power was the most terrifying out of all the opponents Ye Futian had ever faced.


    The space collapsed and shattered with insanity and was swallowed up by Ji Wudao. A terrifying black hole of vortex appeared in front of the spear, and it wanted to engulf the entire world into the spear.


    The boundless world turned into a divine realm. Within the Great Path Divine Realm, all material matter ceased to exist. Ye Futian stood there and came under a tremendously terrifying oppression. However, the divine power circled him. His body was like a world of his own as he stood there, firm and unshaken.


    But behind him, somewhere in the infinite distant place, the starry continents were collapsing and shattering. Debris rolled over in Ji Wudao��s direction. In the place where Ji Wudao was, the terrifying black hole formed by the giant long spear was getting more and more horrific. The dark and profound spear of the black hole contained a power that was truly terrifying.


    In the area below, somewhere very far away, people rushed over to witness the battle in the void, and the people who came had extremely strong cultivation levels. All of them were at least at the level of Emperors-To-Be; otherwise, they would not be able to reach this area.


    But even the Emperors-To-Be were just at the level of the imperial realm. When they saw what was happening above the firmament and felt Heaven Swallowing power, they quickly retreated. They did not have to get any closer before they knew that even from a great distance away, they would not be safe from the ripples of the battle.


    They retreated somewhere very far away, their eyes fixed on the firmament above. They saw the collapse and destruction of those stars. It was as if they were being swallowed up one by one. The dark black hole formed there. Even if they were separated by infinite space, their hearts still trembled.


    It was simply too terrifying. Was this Ji Wudao��s most powerful state?


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    Could Ye Futian withstand Ji Wudao��s attack in this form?


    If Ji Wudao continues like this, he may surpass the six emperors and become the strongest existence in the world, some people thought. The Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method was a monstrous technique that could defied any and all type of resistance. It could engulf the heavens. Moreover, whatever he swallowed could be used for whatever he wanted.


    Conceivably, Ji Wudao could only become stronger. He would continue to devour others to strengthen himself, eventually devouring the world as a whole. As long as he wanted, he would be a disaster for the rest of the world. But it was impossible to know how much Ji Wudao himself would grow; there was simply no way to tell.


    More importantly, this state was when this technique had not yet reached its peak. What would happen when it was perfected?


    It was something unimaginable.


    ��Nothing can escape that devouring power. In the divine realm, everything can be used for its nourishment.�� All the cultivators were shocked.


    Would Ye Futian be engulfed?


    If Ye Futian were to die here today, he would be swallowed up. If so, Ji Wudao would become truly invincible. Ji Wudao was already a monstrous genius talent. If he devoured another similar being, how horrific would he be?


    Inconceivable!


    But even at this moment, Ye Futian did not move. To remain unmovable even under such terrifying devouring power, Ye Futian��s divine power could only be imagined.


    They were thinking, Just how heavy was Ye Futian in order for him to withstand such terrifying devouring power?


    At this time, Ye Futian stood there. The divine power surged wildly inside his body, erupting violently.


    At this moment, Ye Futian, who was standing in the void, was not occupying just one corner of a world but was in thousands of worlds at once. A micro Heavenly Path was inside of him, and every single particle from it could be transformed into a world.


    At this time, the divine power burst out fiercely, spreading towards the surrounding space. How heavy was Ye Futian?


    His attention was fixed on Ji Wudao. The Black Hole Divine Power and the ultimate derivation of the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method created a peak-level divine power, which could devour all material matter in the space.


    In reality, he sensed that this ability was somewhat similar to the ultimate spear strike that he had created. The spear technique that was unleashed��the Entombed��used the way of time and space as its foundation and was capable of distorting time and space. The space collapsed, and everything else was about to be swallowed up and buried. However, this was not a derivation of the devouring divine power but a divine method evolved from the Time and Space Divine Power.


    Therefore, Ye Futian was curious to see which one of their spear techniques was the most superior.


    Boom! Ye Futian��s body was growing. Like Ji Wudao, his body was being transformed into its imperial form. He stood tall between heaven and earth. The ferocious explosion of divine power gathered into a long spear. The aura that came from the tip of the spear was frightening. Time and space seemed to be significantly distorted by it.


    Since Ji Wudao wanted to determine who the winner was by a duel of spears, then Ye Futian would oblige Ji Wudao��s wish.


    Ji Wudao felt that power, and his expression was grave as well. He reincarnated into the real Heavenly Emperor, holding a giant pitch-black spear. He pointed it in Ye Futian��s direction. The terrifying devouring storm was still wrapped around Ye Futian. He knew that even though Ye Futian had stabilized himself, he must be under tremendous pressure.


    The two men looked at each other across the space, each holding a long spear in his hand. One was a white-haired man with a silver spear, and the other was a black-haired man with a pitch-black spear. Two incomparably terrifying forces erupted from them. As if they had achieved some tacit understanding, both men moved at the same time.


    At this moment, above the firmament, the two deities moved towards each other as they unleashed the spears in their hands.


    Many people looked up at the two giant deities in the firmament in the distant area below them, and their hearts were beating wildly.


    When the two long spears collided, they saw that the space above the firmament was crumbling and collapsing like mad. It seemed as if the apocalypse was upon them. The infinite space was shattered and destroyed. The two had entered the space of the void, but their attacks continued.


    As for those below, even the cultivators who were Great Emperors could not describe the shock they felt at this moment.


    The two men who were clashing were in a terrifying situation themselves. When the spears collided, Ye Futian saw a massive black hole engulfing everything, devouring his spear and his deity-like body. His god-like body was shaking.


    However, his Spear Will erupted as well, distorting time and space. Everything was on the verge of destruction. Everything sunk under the collapse, including that giant black hole.


    This brief moment seemed like a long time. It was accompanied by the roaring, booming sounds of destruction, which resounded through the boundless world. Finally, the two men separated.


    The divine power upon Ye Futian��s body seemed to have been weakened considerably. His body shook as his gigantic eyes stared at the figure standing opposite him. The pitch-black spear in Ji Wudao��s hand disappeared, and his eyes were also fixed on Ye Futian. He remained motionless.


    ��Power of Time and Space,�� Ji Wudao commented. It must have been a kind of ultimate divine power; even the Black Hole Divine Power was suppressed.


    Ye Futian stared at Ji Wudao. Without this powerful strike, he would not have been able to suppress Ji Wudao��s Black Hole Divine Power.


    ��We will meet again.�� Ji Wudao��s voice faded. His body seemed to melt into the space of the void, then he disappeared without a trace!

 Chapter 2886 - Right and Wrong

    In the sky high above, everything returned to its previous state of tranquility. Ji Wudao disappeared. It seemed he had been defeated.


    ��Ye Futian won.��


    Everyone below looked up at that white-haired figure. In this duel between the two strongest men of the current generation, Ye Futian had actually suppressed Ji Wudao.


    The number one enchanting genius in the Original Realm had defeated the most powerful proud son in the seven realm��the reigning Heavenly Emperor, Ji Wudao.


    No wonder he��s the existence who defeated seven emperors with one strike, many people marveled secretly in their hearts.


    After this battle, Ye Futian was not just the number one genius talent in the Original Realm��he was the most powerful genius talent in the world today. There was no one who could even come close to him.


    The spear disappeared. Ye Futian turned into a phantom and vanished as well.


    Although Ji Wudao was defeated, he remained a major threat; his potential was incredibly frightening. Ji Wudao, who had cultivated the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method, would inevitably grow without limits or boundaries. There would surely be yet another fierce battle in the future.


    Coupled with the current turmoil in the Seven Realms, he needed to elevate his strength as soon as possible to reach the level of the six emperors.


    The news of this battle quickly swept across the Seven Realms and the God��s Ruins Continent in the Original Realm, rocking the world. At the same time, another piece of news was making the rounds: not long ago, Donghuang the Great had wanted to pass the throne on to Ye Futian, naming him ��Futian the Great.�� However, Ye Futian rejected his offer, who did not take over the throne in the Divine Prefecture.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    This news instantly caused a shocking storm. Countless voices said that Donghuang the Great wanted to make amends towards Emperor Ye Qing out of guilt, thus returning the throne to Emperor Ye Qing��s descendant. However, gradually, many began to learn that Ye Futian was the master of the Divine Prefecture and the son of Donghuang the Great.


    At the same time, Ye Futian was also the descendant of the Heavenly Emperor, which was why he went to the Heaven Realm to fight Ji Wudao. He was the true heir of the Heaven Realm.


    The Heavenly Path in the ninety-ninth heaven was not the residual consciousness left over from the ancient Heavenly Path, nor was it the Heavenly Emperor. Instead, it was an alternative form of the Sovereign Princess. Most people were unfamiliar with the daughter of the former Heavenly Emperor, especially among the cultivators in the Lower Worlds; very few people even knew of her existence. Only people in the upper level knew something of him and the kind of shocking existence she was or that she wanted to remake the existence of the Heavenly Path.


    Because of this reason, the battle in which she fell seemed non-existent to the world, and little was known about it.


    Only now, with so much information coming to light that some secrets had begun to emerge in all of the realms, made known to more and more people.


    ��


    When Ye Futian returned to the ninety-ninth heaven in the Heaven Realm, most of the cultivators were still there. The cultivators from Heavenly Imperial Palace were in attendance as well.


    When they saw Ye Futian return, they knew the outcome of the battle. For the people of the Heavenly Imperial Palace, it was a complicated emotion, especially those from the older generation. They thought that Ji Wudao was the successor chosen by the Sovereign Princess, but that turned out not to be the truth. It was Ye Futian who had been hiding behind the scenes all along.


    He was the true successor of the lineage of the Heaven Realm. It was in his veins that the blood of the Heavenly Emperor flowed.


    Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, the Four Heavenly Kings, the Nine Star Lords, and all the other cultivators in the Heavenly Imperial Palace were there. In front of them were two more figures. They were the two Great Empresses that Ye Futian had seen in the Donghuang Imperial Palace before, and they were here now.


    At this moment, Ye Futian understood that they used to belong to the Heavenly Imperial Palace and must be followers of his mother. Therefore, they came here in person to take back the Heaven Realm.


    ��Ji Wudao betrayed the Heaven Realm, and from this day forward, he will be expelled from the Heavenly Imperial Palace. He is no longer a part of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. Still, a traitor of the Heavenly Imperial Palace,�� announced a Great Empress to the cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. Although this was the conclusion that everyone had already known, their feelings were inevitable and expected.


    They had watched Ji Wudao grow up until this day and had always regarded Ji Wudao as the future Heavenly Emperor, waiting for him to come into his own.


    But just when Ji Wudao embarked on the Path of the Emperors, and just as he was about to be named the Heavenly Emperor, the true heir apparent appeared. And this meant that Ji Wudao was to assist him instead. How many people could bear such a reversal of fortune and accept it willingly?


    Furthermore, he was Ji Wudao, who was incredibly arrogant and conceited. Ji Wudao, who thought so highly of himself, had dedicated himself to reviving the Heaven Realm and to avenging the master. He had even taken the unification of the Seven Realms and took charge of the universe. How could someone with such wild ambition be willing to serve under another?


    With everything taken into consideration, Ji Wudao��s betrayal was inevitable. His only sin was that he was too excellent. If he had not been so excellent and without such loft ambitions, he might not have committed treason and would have served Ye Futian willingly.


    What had Ji Wudao done wrong?


    He had devoured many cultivators. And because Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method was deemed an evil method, he was also viewed as an evil character by the outsiders.


    But for the Heaven Realm, Ji Wudao had indeed done something wrong. He had always taken the revival of the Heaven Realm as his mission and fought for its cause. He suffered in silence for years, developing himself quietly.


    The problem was that he thought too highly of himself and had too much ambition. He thought of himself as the one chosen by fate and ought to be the one shouldering entirety of this mission.


    In actuality, this was not what the Sovereign Princess wanted him to do. His existence was just that of a trusted disciple. When the truth was revealed, it turned out that he was here to assist Ye Futian.


    ��I have a question.�� At this moment, the Pagoda King, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, came forward. He looked at Ye Futian and asked, ��Donghuang separated himself from the Heaven Realm once. Why should his descendant now be in charge of it again? What is the will of the Princess?


    ��In addition, if the Princess doesn��t want Ji Wudao to inherit the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, why did she teach him the Nine Dragons True Qi? Ji Wudao has dedicated himself to reviving the Heavenly Imperial Palace all these years, and now he has been labeled a traitor. This is a bit too much����


    The Pagoda King had fought against Ye Futian before, but this had been in the land of the Original Realm many years ago before discovering the Gods�� Ruins Continent.


    ��Who else thinks that? Or is there anybody else with another opinion?�� The Great Empress looked around at the crowd.


    ��I, too, was wondering about the same thing,�� the Melody King responded.


    No one else came forward or said anything.


    The Great Empress nodded slightly before she spoke.


    ��The will of the Princess need not be explained to the likes of you. As for the Nine Dragons True Qi, the Princess did not mind that Ji Wudao would inherit the throne of the Heavenly Emperor. The throne of the Heavenly Emperor does not need to be in conflict with assisting the young master. But Ji Wudao made his own choice after knowing the truth, disrespecting the young master, equivalent to betrayal. How could there be any questions about this?


    ��As for Ji Wudao��s way of doing things, it has always run counter to the beliefs held by the Princess. All of you are guilty of letting him do whatever he wished before. But for our sake, I will not look into it. However, if anyone is willing to follow Ji Wudao, then go. Leave now,�� the Great Empress said while surveying everyone.


    Everyone was speechless when they heard the words of the Great Empress. Ji Wudao did nothing wrong. But then again, who else had done something wrong?


    Everything that Ji Wudao had was also bestowed upon him by the grace of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. The only thing was that he couldn��t bear the truth of him not being the chosen one.


    Ye Futian looked at everyone, and he felt a complicated emotion inside. The Divine Prefecture was now left for Donghuang Diyuan to inherit. Then what of the Heaven Realm? Who would inherit that?


    He had no use for power or authority, but fate had placed all of this on his shoulders, pushing him forward. In some matters, when did he ever have a say in any of this?!

 Chapter 2887 - Ascension to the Throne

    ��Greetings to the young master!�� At this moment, a voice was heard, and it was the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty bowing and saluting Ye Futian.


    When the other cultivators saw this, they knew that it was a foregone conclusion. So, they, too, bowed and acknowledged Ye Futian. ��Young master,�� they cheered.


    In the Heavenly Imperial Palace, the salutations came one after one another.


    As far the older generation of the Heavenly Imperial Palace was concerned, all of them were actually quite willing to obey the Princess. However, things were happening too fast for them to react this time. Ye Futian, who was considered an enemy once, was now revealed to be the young master they should serve. Naturally, this was a little uncomfortable for many of them.


    But considering the matter more and more, some realized that Ye Futian was, in fact, the most outstanding person in the world. He was the progeny of Donghuang the Great and the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor. This was the most prestigious lineage in the world. He was not only the descendant of the Heavenly Emperor but also the son of Donghuang the Great. Who else could compare with this combination?


    Moreover, Ye Futian did not take advantage of this slice of the Heavenly Path but had chosen to go outside to fight with Ji Wudao instead. Additionally, he had defeated him! He no longer needed to prove anything to anyone.


    In the ninety-ninth heaven, countless cultivators felt that what was happening above them in the Heavenly Palace was a little too surreal.


    Ye Futian became the master of the Heavenly Imperial Palace and the master of the Heaven Realm.


    When they saw this, the two Great Empresses walked towards Ye Futian and bowed slightly. ��If the young master chooses not to inherit the Divine Prefecture, there will be no other successor to take charge of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. It is our wish that the young master will ascend to the throne as the Heavenly Emperor and rebuild the Heavenly Palace, eventually ruling over the entire Heaven Realm.��


    Everyone in the Heavenly Imperial Palace had their eyes on Ye Futian. In today��s world, apart from the six emperors, Ye Futian almost had no other opponents who were his equals. Additionally, he was still growing. Indeed, he was the ideal candidate to become the Heavenly Emperor. More importantly, it was his birthright because he was the true heir of the Heaven Realm.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    ��Young master, please step onto the throne of the Heavenly Emperor and rebuild the Heavenly Palace,�� the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty also implored.


    ��Young Master, please step onto the throne of the Heavenly Emperor and rebuild the Heavenly Palace.�� Other cultivators responded kindly and implored him to take on his role. For a moment, the sounds of their pleading resounded throughout the ninety-ninth heaven.


    They had asked Ye Futian to ascend to the throne of the Heavenly Emperor.


    Ye Futian looked at everyone, then glanced at the sky above him. Rays of divine light fell on him, and he seemed to feel some warmth from them.


    ��Do you also wish for me to inherit the throne of the emperor?�� Ye Futian conveyed without using his voice. After the fall of the Heavenly Emperor, the Sovereign Princess��his mother��did not take over the throne as the Heavenly Emperor. Even though her strength was already incredible, she did not claim the throne of the emperor herself. This was also why the cultivators today still referred to her as ��Princess.��


    Now, they hoped that he would inherit the throne of the Heavenly Emperor even though it had skipped a generation.


    The decaying Heavenly Imperial Palace and the broken Heaven Realm might need the leadership of a new Heavenly Emperor.


    Ye Futian seemed to sense the answer. A smile appeared on his face. He looked in the direction of the Heavenly Palace and nodded.


    Donghuang the Great of the Divine Prefecture was still around. He was one of the reigning six emperors in the world. He was extremely powerful and was one of the most powerful beings in the world. In the future, Donghuang Diyuan would be able to inherit the throne of Donghuang the Great. Once upon a time, Emperor Ye Qing had sacrificed himself for this plan. Therefore, it was not so unreasonable to return the Divine Prefecture to Donghuang Diyuan.


    But the Heaven Realm was different. The Heaven Realm had been in decline for many years, and it wasn��t until today that there was a glimmer of hope in reviving it. Previously, Ji Wudao was deemed the reigning Heavenly Emperor who would lead the Heaven Realm to reclaim its glory, but now this mission landed on Ye Futian.


    Now then, he was the only candidate to shoulder this heavy burden.


    ��Young master, please.�� The two Great Empresses, one on each side of him, seemed to be guarding him, guiding Ye Futian to the very top of the Heavenly Imperial Palace.


    Ye Futian looked over there before walking towards the Heavenly Palace, passing by many celestial temples. He came to the temple at the very top. There were pillars that reached beyond the sky, holding up a towering palace. There was a divine throne at the very top.


    At this time, Ye Futian walked to the ancient divine throne. He turned around and sat in it.


    The two Great Empresses knelt on one knee and proclaimed loudly, ��Long live the Heavenly Emperor.��


    Following their example, the cultivators in the Heavenly Imperial Palace also got down on one knee and saluted. They also proclaimed loudly, ��Long live the Heavenly Emperor.��


    Although the Heavenly Imperial Palace was defeated, there were many cultivators inside it. At this moment, they all got down on their knees and worshipped the New Emperor.


    The Heavenly Emperor, many years ago, was the most revered Great Emperor in the world. In the era after the collapse of the Heavenly Path, the Heavenly Emperor possessed a status that was almost supreme.


    However, after the fall of the Heavenly Emperor, the Heaven Realm went into rapid decline. After many years, the New Emperor was finally on the throne.


    Above the ninety-ninth heaven, many stood and watched. They were those who entered the Heavenly Imperial Palace implicitly for the sake of this slice of the Heavenly Path. They had no sense of loyalty to the Heavenly Imperial Palace, and they had already been told by Ji Wudao previously that those who dared to go back on their promises would be killed without a second thought.


    However, now that Ji Wudao was out of the picture, some found it difficult to kneel and worship Ye Futian as the Heavenly Emperor, even when he had already ascended the throne. After all, many of them were existences of ancient emperors, and some were Emperors-To-Be with very elevated realms.


    ��Get up,�� Ye Futian said as he looked at the cultivators above the Heavenly Palace. The two Great Empresses got up, then turned to look at the rest of the cultivators in the Nine Heavens and accused loudly, ��All of you have agreed to join Heavenly Imperial Palace. Now that the Heavenly Emperor is on the throne, why do you not salute him?��


    Everyone looked up at the Heavenly Palace above, but at this very moment, Ye Futian spoke and said, ��It��s quite alright.��


    The revival of the Heaven Realm would require superior cultivators, which he would need to train himself.


    ��Everyone has been cultivating for many years. If you have no intention to become part of the Heavenly Imperial Palace, you may leave now,�� Ye Futian declared loudly. His mother was generous and open-minded. She had gifted divine items to the Dark World and the Human Realm to help them comprehend and cultivate.


    Ye Futian didn��t think himself to be as generous. After he took over the Heavenly Imperial Palace, only cultivators of Heavenly Imperial Palace would be allowed to stay under this Heavenly Path. In the future, when he reached the very top, he would share that benefit with the rest of the world.


    After all, the situation in the world was uncertain, and it was not clear who was a friend and who was a foe. There may even be other imperial-level forces working undercover, and Ye Futian did not think it wise to aid the enemies.


    Many people looked at Ye Futian before they turned to walk away. They thought that it was enough. They had returned to the Path of the Emperors, and some had even entered the Imperial Realm, so there was no need to stay any longer.


    There were also those who were hesitating and struggling. Subsequently, many cultivators left, but there were also many who stayed.


    Ye Futian looked at the area below and continued, ��Now that I have ascended the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, I will restructure the Heavenly Imperial Palace. If you are staying just for self-cultivation and self-improvement but have not made any preparations mentally, then I advise you to leave. If you choose to stay and become part of the Heavenly Imperial Palace, know that we may be facing a great war in the future. At that time, there will be no time for hesitation, so you should consider the matter carefully.��


    Sure enough, after Ye Futian finished speaking, more cultivators left; there were less and less people who chose to stay. This was a huge gamble��betting on the future of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. Now that the world was in chaos, war might erupt at any given moment, and the Heavenly Imperial Palace may perish, or it might rise.


    But even if it rose from the ashes, it would be after a tragic battle. When they thought of that, it was difficult for anyone to decide to stay because the odds of winning were just too low!

 Chapter 2888 - True Lineage of the Heaven Realm

    With the departure of these cultivators, fewer and fewer people were left in the ninety-nine heavens. Most of those who remained were top-level cultivators who wanted to make an attempt at the Path to the Emperors.


    On the outside world, there was absolutely no way to get to the Path of the Emperors. Here, there was at least a Micro Heavenly Path that could help them realize the way and breakthrough to the ultimate realm. Therefore, they made a decision to stay even if the risk was great.


    However, the Path of the Emperor was a difficult and dangerous one. In order to achieve the imperial realm, these cultivators did not have any hesitation to pay the price��no matter how high.


    Ye Futian sat on the divine throne as he surveyed the cultivators who remained in the ninety-nine heavens. He said, ��Finally, I wish to remind you: now that I have inherited the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, it is my wish to restructure the Heavenly Imperial Palace. You can still choose your own path by leaving. However, once you decide to stay, you will have agreed to be under the command of the Heavenly Imperial Palace from now on.��


    No one was leaving. Those who stayed had made a decision, one that they could not change.


    After he waited for a while, seeing that no one was stirred, Ye Futian continued, ��Since you have made your decision, from this moment forward, you are cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial Palace. You will share its losses as well as its glory.��


    He stood up and looked at the two Great Empresses below and said to them, ��Next, I have to trouble you two elders to help me clean up the Heavenly Imperial Palace.��


    ��We are delighted to serve Your Majesty, the Heavenly Emperor.�� The two Great Empresses bowed and saluted him. There were once four of them��all sisters, chosen by the Heavenly Emperor himself as companions to the Princess. The four sisters grew up with the Princess and were like the Princess�� own sisters.


    The Princess never treated them as servants. She freely shared cultivation methods with them and helped them in their cultivation. They knew very well that despite how she treated them, they were to guard the Princess with their lives. However, Her Royal Highness never treated them with the slightest bit of arrogance. In fact, she had shared the treasures bestowed upon her by the Heavenly Emperor.


    In their eyes, the Princess was perfection itself; she had no flaws. Moreover, the Princess had a great love for the masses and was a total idealist. Perhaps it was precisely because of Her Royal Highness��s noble background that she was able to hold on to her romantic ideals.


    / please keep reading on MYB0XN0VEL.C0M.


    The four of them may not have fully agreed with the ideals of the Princess, but for someone like Her Royal Highness, they were willing to sacrifice everything for her.


    Back then, after their plan was formulated, everyone made sacrifices. The other two sisters completed an important part of it and sacrificed themselves in the process. In the end, only the two of them were left to wait for the return of the young master.


    Since then, their mission had been to protect the New Emperor and help him continue the unfinished businesses.


    ��Young Master ought to continue the comprehension and cultivation of the Heavenly Path. The Princess had been waiting for the young master for too long, and many things should be inherited by the young master now,�� one of the Great Empresses said. ��As for the restructuring of the Heavenly Imperial Palace, leave it to us.��


    ��You two elders cultivated with my mother?�� Ye Futian asked.


    The two nodded and replied, ��We were summoned by the Heavenly Emperor into the Heavenly Palace to cultivate with the Princess. Additionally, we were her companions when she was growing up.��


    Ye Futian immediately understood that the relationship between these two women and his mother was somewhat similar to that between him and Yu Sheng, except that he and Yu Sheng were brothers. In comparison, these two women were servants by name.


    ��How should I address you two elders?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��The names that we received back then were given by the Heavenly Emperor. Young master may call me ��Qin,�� and she is ��Shu,''�� Qin said while pointing to the other Great Empress.


    ��Lady Qin, Lady Shu,�� Ye Futian acknowledged, sighing in his heart. He continued, ��There were two others, weren��t there?��


    With names like Qin and Shu, naturally, there would be Qi and Hua [1].


    ��The other two followed the Princess back then.�� The two of them had waited for hundreds of years, and their hearts and minds were already hard as steel. However, when they heard Ye Futian��s words, they still felt an unexpected sense of sadness.


    The young master��s talent was unparalleled, yet he was so gentle and humble. He was a true gentleman, which reminded them of the Princess.


    Out of the five of them, only two of them were left now.


    ��Young Master, you should cultivate while we go ahead with the arrangements,�� Lady Qin said. Ye Futian nodded.


    The two of them turned around and left while Ye Futian looked up at the sky. He walked down from the divine throne and came to a place below it. He then sat cross-legged as his perception was directed towards the Heavenly Path in the firmament.


    At this moment, Ye Futian felt the warmth again. At the same time, there was a divine light in the color of the rainbows that fell from the sky and was sprinkled all over Ye Futian.


    Bathed under the divine light, Ye Futian floated up and came high into the sky. His body seemed to have entered the Heavenly Path.


    A mysterious aura enveloped him and kept flowing into his body. Ye Futian let go of the world created by his own Micro Heavenly path, as the two forces of the Heavenly Path resonated with one another. The divine power of law in this Heavenly Path then integrated into Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path.


    The ancient tree of the world was created by his mother and then was given to him for him to use as he grew up. Later, it made the Micro Heavenly Path, but it was from the same source as this Heavenly Path.


    Ye Futian knew that his mother was waiting for him to come to inherit the power of this Heavenly Path.


    At this moment, Ye Futian seemed to have become extremely greedy, madly absorbing the power of this Heavenly Path.


    At the same time, many images were also rushing into Ye Futian��s consciousness.


    In his mind, an astounding figure appeared. This figure stood between heaven and earth. They appeared like the supreme master in this world, in charge of the universe. It was the ruler of heaven and earth.


    ��Heavenly Emperor!��


    An idea took hold of Ye Futian��s mind. Instantly, he knew this figure must be his maternal grandfather��the founder of the Heavenly Path in the later era after the collapse of the original Heavenly Path. He was the master of the Heaven Realm/ he was the Heavenly Emperor himself!


    Later on, Ye Futian saw some radiant images. It was as if he could feel them himself and that he could even perceive the sensations within.


    The Heavenly Emperor was passing on the methods to him!


    This was the real inheritance. He was the true heir of the Heaven Realm. Now, the Heavenly Emperor passed on the divine methods that he had cultivated himself to Ye Futian.


    ��


    Ye Futian defeated Ji Wudao, took over the Heavenly Imperial Palace, and was named the Heavenly Emperor.


    One after another, the shocking news was conveyed to the seven Realms and even the God��s Ruins Continent, astounding the world.


    The one who finally ascended the throne was not Ji Wudao as everyone thought, but Ye Futian, who was the true heir of the Heaven Emperor. He was the main successor, meant to inherit the Heaven Realm.


    Not long ago, it was said that Ye Futian had refused the inheritance of the Divine Prefecture. Otherwise, he would have been the ruler of both the Divine Prefecture and Heaven Realm by now.


    Everyone in the world realized that another peak-level figure had emerged aside from the six emperors. That person was Ye Futian, who had been cultivating in the Original Realm all along and had been suppressed by many forces in the Divine Prefecture.


    Who would have thought that things in the world could be so surreal?


    At the same time, the Great Emperors, who returned to their respective imperial palaces after the unsuccessful battle of the six emperors, also received the news. Even as part of the six emperors and the strongest existences in the world, they were still extremely shocked when they learned of this news.


    Donghuang the Great plotted for 200 years, and it was all for the return of his descendant.


    Furthermore, since Donghuang the Great set everything in motion, it meant that he believed Ye Futian was capable of changing fate despite the odds. Why was he so confident in Ye Futian?


    Was it just because Ye Futian was his descendant and the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor?


    What would happen now that Ye Futian had ascended the throne as the Heavenly Emperor and entered the ninety-ninth heaven to cultivate in that Heavenly Path?


    [1]: Qi, Qin, Shu, Hua��Chess, Strings, Books, and Painting��are the four traditional arts for educated Chinese ladies. By naming these ladies-in-waiting these four arts, Ye Futian extrapolated that there must have been four of them in total.

 Chapter 2889 - The Return

    The changes between heaven and earth began with the Original Realm.


    This was a prophecy from a long time ago, and now it seemed to be coming true.


    The land of the Original Realm ushered in the great changes in the world, and the Gods�� Ruins Continent revealed itself.


    In the land of the Original Realm, an extraordinary character had risen and become the current Heavenly Emperor.


    Now, this prophecy was spreading throughout the land of the seven realms once again, and there was even some more indication as to what might be the ultimate end of this prophecy.


    According to the news and the rumors, Ye Futian of the Original Realm ascended the throne of the Heavenly Emperor. He would soon elevate his cultivation to the utmost level. He would change this sky above them and become a supreme existence in this world.


    This was the prophecy in its entirety.


    The changes of heaven and earth begin in the Original Realm.


    This prophecy circulated widely, and its influence was stronger than any other prophecies in the past. The world was seeing this prophecy being fulfilled little by little.


    Everyone was paying close attention to the reactions of those major Imperial Palaces.


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    However, these major Imperial Palaces were surprisingly quiet and did not do anything. It was as if they were caught in a dilemma.


    Not long ago, in the battle of the six emperors, many thought that it would end the way the world was and reshape the future pattern of the world by putting an end to a previous era. However, what they didn��t expect was that the era did not end but had merely moved in a different direction. This change was quite unexpected.


    Today, the Divine Prefecture and the Buddhist Sect had joined forces. In addition, Ye Futian, who had inherited the throne of the Heavenly Emperor, was unprecedentedly powerful. He was stronger than Emperor Ye Qing during his reign.


    And this time, there was discord between the Human Realm and other forces. On the other hand, the Devil World, the Dark World, and the Empty Divine Realm had seen that the Human Realm had concealed its depth and was no longer trustworthy. They would not be acting rashly, for they knew that the Human Ancestor was not any less of a threat than Donghuang the Great.


    Therefore, no one dared to act recklessly. Hence, a very odd situation emerged. All sides remained surprisingly quiet.


    At the same time, the ninety-ninth heaven at the Heavenly Imperial Palace began to rebuild its order.


    Donghuang the Great arrived with the cultivators of the Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture, opening up the passageway between Donghuang Imperial Palace and Heavenly Imperial Palace. He had also ordered the rebuilding of the ninety-nine heavens, quietly working for Ye Futian behind the scenes so that Ye Futian could concentrate on cultivation with nothing to worry about.


    It was the first time that the Donghuang Imperial Palace cultivators had seen Donghuang the Great personally handling these matters, and they couldn��t help but feel amazed.


    Clearly, the Great Emperor must have had a lot of guilt towards Ye Futian, so this was the way for him to make amends. After all, Ye Futian had been abandoned at birth and experienced many hardships until he got to this point. He suffered Ye Futian��s strike in Donghuang Imperial Palace because he obviously felt extremely guilty about the whole thing.


    At the same time, Donghuang the Great forged a Revelation Divine Matrix in the ninety-ninth heaven. As a result, the ninety-ninth heaven now possessed a certain level of defense.


    In addition, he had sent the cultivators of Ye Imperial Palace here, having them cultivate in the ninety-nine heavens.


    Everyone from Ye Imperial Palace were cultivators who had followed Ye Futian for a very long time. Now that Ye Futian reigned as the Heavenly Emperor in the Heaven Realm, it was only natural for them to follow him here. In addition, he intended to open up the passageway between the Heaven Realm and Ziwei Segmentum so that the cultivators from Ziwei Segmentum may also enter the Heaven Realm to cultivate and continue to follow in Ye Futian��s footsteps.


    Time passed day by day, and it didn��t take long for the ninety-nine heavens to take on a new look. Celestial palaces and pavilions were everywhere, as well as various cultivation courts that were scattered in different places within the ninety-nine heavens.


    In the heyday of the Heaven Realm, when the Heavenly Emperor was in charge of the Heavenly Imperial Palace, the palace was filled with numerous cultivators who were everywhere in the ninety-nine heavens; it was as if they were in a world of their own.


    But after the fall of the Heaven Realm, the number of people in the Heavenly Imperial Palace shrank sharply, and the ninety-nine heavens seemed quite empty. It was not until this piece of the Heavenly Path appeared that countless cultivators were attracted to the ninety-nine heavens. However, these were just people who came here to cultivate, not cultivators who belonged to the Heavenly Imperial Palace, so they did not really count.


    Now, everything had to start over again.


    ��


    Above the ninety-nine heavens, the Heavenly Imperial Palace had been rebuilt, and it was extremely grand and magnificent. Donghuang the Great himself watched over everything.


    At the same time, the core members of Ye Imperial Palace were all here, comprehending the Heavenly Path and cultivating.


    Donghuang the Great raised his head and saw that Ye Futian was still cultivating high above the sky, so he did not disturb him. He came here to do those things so that Ye Futian could cultivate in peace. For Ye Futian, cultivation was more important than anything else right now.


    ��Your Majesty.�� At this moment, a voice was heard behind Donghuang the Great.


    ��Qin!�� Donghuang the Great called out.


    ��What will the young master do with the Heavenly Path that was transformed by the Princess?�� Qin asked.


    ��I don��t know.�� Donghuang the Great shook his head.


    When she heard his answer, Qin frowned slightly and said, ��Your Majesty, the young master is already exposed. Although nothing seems to be happening now, things may be brewing behind the scenes, which is very dangerous for him. The Devil Emperor, the Dark Sovereign, and the Evil Emperor didn��t know some of the things that happened back then. Can what happened be made public now?��


    Back then, they had their concerns and were reluctant to speak up, worried that the others would destroy the Divine Prefecture no matter the cost. However, now that friends and foes couldn��t be more clear, there was no turning back. In the end, only one side could exist in the world. At a time like this, it was best to win over as many allies as possible.


    ��As part of the six emperors in charge of the order of the world, they can��t be that ignorant, but they all had their own concerns. They knew very well who they could provoke and who could not be touched,�� Donghuang the Great responded.


    ��Your Majesty meant that they have always been aware of it?�� Qin said.


    ��Even if they were not fully aware, they were not completely ignorant either,�� Donghuang the Great replied. ��What��s more, they have been working diligently to improve their own strength during the peacefulness these past few hundred years. However, this time, the Human Ancestor was a little too impatient.��


    ��Your Majesty is referring to when the Human Ancestor made his move against the Dark Sovereign?�� Qin asked.


    ��Mmm.�� Donghuang the Great nodded. ��The six emperors in the world created a balance, and all of them are willing to maintain this balance. But if there is anything that will threaten everyone��s existence, they will not hesitate to obliterate it. The reason behind the action this time is not so innocuous. Each of them has their own interests to consider. However, the Human Ancestor��s attack on the Dark Sovereign exposed the Human Ancestor��s intention to slay the Dark Sovereign. Thus, the Human Ancestor made himself the real enemy.��


    Qin nodded slightly. Obviously, each of the six emperors had their own plan, and none of them were the benevolent sort.


    ��However, I should make a visit to the outside,�� said Donghuang the Great. He then sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes. Many phantoms separated from him, turning into three phantasmic Donghuang the Greats. They left the ninety-nine heavens at the same time.


    He meant to visit the Devil World, the Dark World, and the Evil Emperor Realm to meet the three Great Emperors on their own turf.


    Donghuang the Great knew very well that the Human Ancestor was the biggest threat of them all; he was the real mortal enemy.


    At the same time, outside of this world, in the Human Realm in the Human Divine Palace.


    A figure sat cross-legged in the boundless space, and there was only one man there. It was none other than the Human Ancestor himself.


    At this time, above the firmament, the sky seemed to be moving as strands of terrifying aura fell from it. Above that slice of heaven, a pair of eyes seemed to appear, as breathtaking as they were frightening.


    When these eyes opened, beams of light shot out from above the sky, which turned out to be shadows of people, falling from the firmament, standing between this heaven and earth. Their unparalleled auras confirmed that all of them were extraordinary Great Emperors.


    After they came to this world, they looked around at this vast world.


    They had returned!

 Chapter 2890 - Godly Advent

    The Dark Sovereign, who was cultivating, suddenly became alert in the Dark Court. He opened his eyes, looked into the distance, and called out, ��Donghuang!��


    A phantom appeared in the distance, and it was none other than Donghuang the Great. At this moment, all the cultivators above the Dark Court were waiting cautiously, looking at Donghuang the Great. What was he doing here?


    ��Are you unhappy to see me?�� Donghuang the Great queried.


    ��Come on in,�� the Dark Sovereign replied lightly. Immediately, Donghuang the Great moved forward as he entered inside the Dark Court and stepped onto the highest point of the Dark Divine Palace. Out front, the Dark Sovereign was sitting cross-legged and cultivating. A terrifying dark storm loomed in the sky above and enveloped the entire court.


    ��Are you here to ask for peace?�� the Dark Sovereign asked.


    ��Before I came here, I saw a Bright Continent within the bounds of the Dark Court. Who is the woman on the continent?�� Donghuang the Great asked.


    ��It has nothing to do with you,�� the Dark Sovereign responded nonchalantly.


    ��Coexistence of light and darkness. It��s interesting for you to allow such a place to exist in the center of the Dark World.�� Donghuang the Great continued, ��You must know something about what happened back then and that the Human Ancestor is not as he seems on the outside. He has been inciting several of you to destroy the Divine Prefecture��killing Ji Wudao and invading the Heaven Realm��all because the existence of the Divine Prefecture and the Heaven Realm impeded on his plans. In reality, what the Human Ancestor always wanted was to rule over the world. This was also why after he thought he had killed me, he proceeded to attack you. I��m sure you are aware of it already.��


    ��Say whatever you are here to say.�� The Dark Sovereign did not seem to have much patience. Many things were well known to them without beating around the bush too much.


    ��If the Human Ancestor succeeded in his ambition and ruled the world, what he would do to you will need no further description from me.�� Donghuang the Great ignored the other��s response and continued, ��Perhaps, it will be as you wish, that the world will turn into total darkness. However, your idea for the order of the world to be remade will probably be shattered. The Human Ancestor will control everything in the world, and the cultivation world will fall into eternal darkness until the eruption of the next battle of Heavenly Path.��


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    ��Perhaps no matter who rules the world, the result will be the same. Only through destruction can we be reborn again,�� the Dark Sovereign said coldly, wisps of destructive aura pervading from him. It was so terrifying that he appeared like a god of the apocalypse.


    The goal of the Dark Sovereign was to bring darkness and destruction to the world. Only when everything was destroyed would rebirth be possible, and a different world could appear.


    ��If so, destruction is just another cycle of reincarnation. The next world will still follow the same old path. What will be the difference?�� Donghuang the Great remained steady in his aura. ��This world does not need destruction, but a different world with different people in charge of its order.��


    The Dark Sovereign stared at him, only to hear Donghuang the Great��s reply, ��Whatever you choose, choose carefully.��


    Having said that, Donghuang the Great turned around to leave without wasting another minute. They were both intelligent individuals, and at this level, he didn��t need to say too much. Sometimes it was enough to have the key points clarified.


    The Dark Sovereign had never concealed his own will, which was to destroy the world, thus reshaping it; this was something that Donghuang the Great already knew. Therefore, he asked the other to consider carefully the kind of outcome that would be in line with his will.


    If it was an impossibility, what would be the choice of the Dark Sovereign?


    In the Devil World Realm, at the Devil Imperial Palace, Donghuang the Great also arrived to see the Devil Emperor.


    In front of the Demon God Palace, the Devil Emperor looked at Donghuang the Great and said, ��Donghuang, your plan has been realized. What are you doing here?��


    ��Where is Yu Sheng?�� Donghuang the Great asked, but it was about Yu Sheng.


    The Devil Emperor frowned and replied, ��He��s cultivating.��


    ��Futian and Yu Sheng grew up together since childhood. Their fathers were good friends, and their mothers were sisters. Therefore, no matter where they stand in the future, they will be the best of brothers. Yu Sheng��s affairs will naturally be Futian��s affairs.�� Donghuang the Great looked at the Devil Emperor and continued, ��I hope one day I can see the two of them fight side-by-side.��


    When he finished speaking, Donghuang the Great bowed slightly and left. He was here only to deliver a brief message before he was gone.


    He didn��t mention the Divine Prefecture and the Devil World, nor whatever that had transpired between them; it was just about Ye Futian and Yu Sheng.


    But there were already enough hints in what he said.


    If the Devil Emperor intended to have Yu Sheng inherit the Devil World, then in the future, Ye Futian would not do anything detrimental to the Devil World.


    Before, the Devil Emperor also heard something��that if a supreme figure were to appear in the world, the Devil World would not continue to suffer from the Devil Abyss.


    Similarly, Donghuang the Great also went to the Empty Divine Realm to see the Evil Emperor. Three phantoms found three of the six emperors simultaneously, bringing different messages.


    At present, the Divine Prefecture and Heaven Realm were facing the threat of the Human Ancestor. Naturally, they did not want a repeat like the last time, being surrounded and besieged by the other four realms.


    More importantly, he knew that the Human Realm had always hidden its true strengths. Before, the Human Ancestor thought that the battle of the six emperors would be the end of it all, so some forces were not mobilized. But inside the Human Divine Palace, Ji Wudao had witnessed it.


    ��


    In the Heaven Realm, many cultivators were now pouring into the Heavenly Imperial City, wanting to enter the ninety-nine heavens to cultivate.


    In Heavenly Imperial City, top figures from all over the Heaven Realm also gathered. Some hesitated whether to join the Heavenly Imperial Palace and become part of the ninety-nine heavens.


    Among them, there were many near-deity existences.


    At this moment, an astonishing aura suddenly appeared in the sky above Heavenly Imperial City. Many people sensed a coercion, their brows slightly knitted. They looked up at the firmament, and that sense of coercion was getting stronger as if signifying the arrival of some terrifying figure.


    ��Emperor��s might!�� At this time, inside the Heavenly Imperial City, the hearts of some high-level elders were beating wildly. They felt the emperor��s might, and it was more than just one that they felt. Several Great Emperors had arrived and descended on Heavenly Imperial City.


    Everyone��s hearts were palpitating; was there about to be another war?


    Who were they that was coming to the Heavenly Imperial City?


    Above the firmament, an unparalleled figure appeared. He was clad in a dark green robe as his black hair flew wildly in the wind. He was a middle-aged Great Emperor. Standing there, he was like a god who ruled this heaven and earth.


    At the same time, in other different directions, there were also other Great Emperors there, standing above the firmament.


    At this moment, the entire Heavenly Imperial City was suffocated. Even the existences of the near-deity level felt a sense of powerlessness; even individuals who were Great Emperors-to-be trembled in their hearts.


    ��Who are they?��


    Everyone��s heart was trembling.


    At the same time, Donghuang the Great, sitting cross-legged above the Heavenly Palace in the ninety-nine heavens, opened his eyes. His eyes seemed to penetrate directly through the ninety-nine heavens. He looked outside and saw those descending Great Emperors.


    It came sooner than he had expected.


    Had the Human Ancestor finally begun using his hidden power?!

 Chapter 2891 - Divine Emperor of Yore

    ��Your Majesty!��


    Several figures flickered and appeared in front of Donghuang the Great.


    ��You guys stay here; I��ll go out and take a look,�� said Donghuang the Great. As soon as he took a step forward, he disappeared from the Heavenly Palace. Then, he came outside of the ninety-nine heavens.


    Nine Great Emperors had appeared in the sky above Heavenly Imperial City, and they were scattered in various positions.


    When Donghuang the Great appeared, his eyes fell directly on the Great Emperor, who was at the very top in the sky.


    This Great Emperor was brilliant all over, and the silver cloak on his body was like heavenly armor. He had a sharp sensation all about him, and his eyes had an icy metal feel to them.


    He was the head of these nine Great Emperors.


    More importantly, a primordial aura pervaded from them as if they were from ancient times.


    ��Ancient emperors.�� Donghuang the Great realized who they were with an accessing look at the nine figures. ��You are the Great Emperors from before the collapse of the Heavenly Path.��


    No one responded. Above the firmament, an extremely sharp divine light came from the Great Emperor clad in the silver cloak. The sharpness in those rays of divine light was enough to tear apart the void and obliterate those around them.


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    Revelation Divine Power surged around Donghuang the Great. When the sharp divine light descended, it was blocked by the Revelation Divine Power.


    ��I had heard that in the times before the collapse of the Heavenly Path, in the fight against the heavens, many extraordinary Great Emperors were involved. Among them was Shenjia the Great Emperor, who was physically invincible. Yet there was rumored to be one other besides him��extraordinary and unparalleled in the world��known as the Divine Emperor Pojun. In ancient times, he had used his body of flesh and blood to rip apart the gods of the House Karura. His attack prowess was undeniable,�� Donghuang the Great said as he looked at that Great Emperor.


    Once upon a time, there were some ancient volumes kept in the Heavenly Palace, which recorded stories and characters in the times before the collapse of the Heavenly Path.


    Among them, there were tales about Divine Emperor Pojun.


    Any Great Emperor had to be extraordinarily talented to use the title of Divine Emperor. He had to be someone with a remarkable ward record, having killed many other existences who were also Great Emperors.


    ��I didn��t expect that after such a long time that there would be people who still remember me,�� Divine Emperor Pojun said with a sigh, but his eyes were still sharp. He looked at Donghuang the Great and said, ��However, I��m still going to kill you today.��


    ��When the Heavenly Path collapsed, it was known as the End of the Gods. The Heavenly Path brought down apocalyptic catastrophes so that cultivators in the Imperial Realm could not continue to survive in this world. Nonetheless, there were still many Great Emperors who managed to exist in another form and did not disappear entirely,�� Donghuang the Great said in a low voice. The people in the Heavenly Imperial City knew some of what he said, which had also been confirmed over the years. Indeed, there were many extraordinary Great Emperors who remained in the world, existing in other ways without completely disappearing.


    ��The Human Ancestor is the oldest Great Emperor who survived in the era after the collapse of the Heavenly Path. I heard that in the past countless years after the collapse of the Heavenly Path, he has been searching for traces of the existence of the gods. As the only Great Emperor who had survived the catastrophe back then, the Human ancestor has found many ancient emperors.�� Donghuang the Great continued, ��You are all elders from the ancient times; you must be those who the Human Ancestor found in the past countless years, and he has found a way to bring you back.��


    The words of Donghuang the Great shocked everyone, and the hearts of everyone in Heavenly Imperial City were palpitating.


    They had a feeling that Donghuang the Great was correct in what he said, simply because it all made sense.


    The Human Ancestor was the most ancient of the Great Emperors; he was an existence that had survived in the era after the collapse of the Heavenly Path, hence his title as the ��Human Ancestor.�� How could he not have looked for those ancient emperors and any traces of them all these years?


    After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, when the gods of that era fell, how many treasures of heaven and earth were left behind? And how many otherworldly figures existed in other forms?


    It was impossible for the Human Ancestor to let them all go.


    No matter how one looked at it, the Human Ancestor might be the strongest existence in the world right now, but his strength was actually on a par with the other six Great Emperors, which was indeed a bit strange.


    Donghuang the Great did not want to say this just for the world to hear, but more importantly, it was meant for the other Great Emperors among the six Great Emperors. He had reminded them that the Human Ancestor was not a simple character but someone with hidden depth. Whatever everyone saw before was all an illusion; it was whatever the Human Ancestor wanted the world to see.


    The Human Ancestor had great ambition, which meant to plot against the Heavenly Path.


    Now, at the dawn of the Age of the Gods, many Great Emperors had returned, and the Human Ancestor seemed to have completed a very crucial step. He was actively resuscitating those ancient emperors and making their returns possible.


    Hence, the Great Emperor who appeared at Ye Imperial Palace, the Great Emperor who fought against Ji Wudao, and the Great Emperors who appeared here at this moment.


    However, judging the situation at hand, Divine Emperor Pojun had to be the most powerful emperor among those who had returned. There was no way of knowing if the Human Ancestor had other extraordinary Great Emperors who might return one day.


    Of course, the Human Ancestor from before was also not the same Human Ancestor they were seeing now.


    As for what was really going on behind the scenes, Donghuang the Great couldn��t completely figure it out, so he could only speculate.


    This news was definitely an earth-shaking secret to the cultivators in the world��that the Human Ancestor had been collecting the legacy of the gods since the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Also, he had now discovered ways for them to return and fight for him!


    If so, who else in this world could stop the Human Ancestor?


    The unification of the world was all but a foregone conclusion. Who else could stop it?


    If what Donghuang the Great said was true, then the key would be how many Great Emperors did the Human Ancestor have under his control, and whether he could make all of them return eventually!


    Divine Emperor Pojun did not make a response to Donghuang the Great. Nonetheless, Donghuang the Great��s estimation was very accurate.


    ��In today��s world, what is the strength of the Great Emperors who stand at the pinnacle of the cultivation world?�� Divine Emperor Pojun asked. When his voice fell, the sky behind him burst into an unparalleled divine glory that seemed to have turned into a divine matrix, inside of which were infinite divine arms.


    At the same time, the other eight Great Emperors also released their utmost divine power. Above the firmament, they were enveloped by an unparalleled divine power. The hearts of the cultivators in the Heavenly Imperial Palace were beating wildly, and those whose cultivation was weaker dared not approach. They were staying as far away from the battlefield as possible.


    The Divine Power of Revelation exploded from Donghuang the Great, covering the boundless space. He looked up into the heavens, and astounding fighting will surged from his eyes. His robe fluttered and accentuated his undeniable magnificence.


    What if he was facing the ancient divine emperor? Donghuang the Gret himself was the pinnacle existence of the world, ruling all of the Divine Prefecture. Just as Ye Futian said before, this era did not belong to those from the past.


    ��Today, I am looking forward to experience the power of the ancient divine emperor first hand. We may fight,�� Donghuang the Great declared loudly, his voice resounding throughout the heavens. At the same time, when his voice faded, the Revelation Divine Realm was also released to its limit. For a time��except for Divine Emperor Pojun��the other eight Great Emperors felt as if they had been suppressed to the extreme by that divine power. It was difficult for them to move.


    ��What kind of divine power is this?�� He asked Donghuang the Great. Clearly, Divine Emperor Pojun also sensed the extraordinary force behind the Divine Power of Revelation.


    ��Divine power��Revelation!�� replied Donghuang the Great. When he created the Divine Power of Revelation, it was comprehended together. The Divine Power of Revelation could reach the height of cultivation, and it was a supreme kind of divine power!

 Chapter 2892 - Combat Effectiveness of Father and Son

    Donghuang the Great and his wife had cultivated together, exploring the order between heaven and earth, as well as various other kinds of divine powers.


    Divine powers were distinguished by strengths, and there were strong ones as well as weaker ones. By comprehending different divine powers, the gaps between them could also be significant. For example, the Divine Power of the Five Elements was hard-pressed to compete with the Divine Power of the Spatial Rules. Each Great Emperors comprehended and perceived their own divine powers. If their divine power was strong, so was their combat effectiveness.


    The Human Ancestor could summon the Chaotic Divine Thunder, and its power was second to none.


    What Donghuang the Great and his wife had been looking for back then was a divine power that could lead to the height of cultivation.


    The Divine Power of Revelation held such potential.


    At the end of Revelation, there was absolutely nothing��everything in the world would be turned into nothingness. How terrible would that be?


    There would be no time, no space, as time and space would be annihilated and things into a dead silence.


    This was a path that Donghuang the Great carved out based on some extraordinary Buddhist methods��a path that would lead to the epitome of cultivation.


    Naturally, the Divine Power of Time and Space was an extremely powerful divine power and Ji Wudao��s Black Hole Divine Power.


    These were top-level divine powers.


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    When the Revelation Divine Domain erupted, the nine Great Emperors��except Divine Emperor Pojun��were summarily suppressed at the same time. The Divine Power of the Revelation seemed to have invaded their bodies and completely imprisoned their divine powers.


    This caused a change of expression on the faces of the eight Great Emperors, and their hearts were shaking.


    They had perished under the apocalyptic catastrophes that destroyed the world ever since the collapse of the Heavenly Path but managed to continue their existences in another form. It was only countless years later that they had this opportunity to return. However, this era had changed, and it was no longer the same as before.


    In this era, Great Emperors were scarce.


    The six emperors were the strongest in the world.


    The mission they were tasked with was to kill Donghuang the Great��one of the six emperors��and his descendants.


    However, they could never have imagined that today, countless years later, the era had long changed. Even though the Age of the Gods had long since passed, and this was now an era when Great Emperors were rare, there were still extraordinary characters to contend with.


    This Donghuang the Great, in the era before the collapse of the Heavenly Path, would be another top-level Great Emperor existence with dominant and aggressive strength.


    Nine divine swords appeared in front of Donghuang the Great, and each divine sword contained unparalleled divine glory. They pointed toward the nine Great Emperors.


    He stepped into the void, surrounded by the divine radiance that could only belong to a Great Emperor. As one of the most powerful Great Emperors in the world, Donghuang the Great was an extraordinary figure. At the moment when the Revelation Divine Domain exploded, he had incarnated as the ruler of this world.


    ��Since you have already died once, why bother coming back now?�� Donghuang the Great declared loud and clear. His voice shook heaven and earth. As soon as his voice fell, the nine swords traversed through the void, zooming in at all nine Great Emperors for the kill. One sword for each man.


    Every sword was like a punishment from above, flashing with terrifying divine glory that shuttled through the space.


    In an instant, the bodies of four Great Emperors were penetrated. This was not because they were weaklings, but because of the Divine Power of Revelation was far too strong. Under the suppression of the Divine Power of Revelation, their strengths dropped dramatically, and they were obliterated by the divine sword in an instant.


    The four other Great Emperors exerted their utmost powers, but they could still stop the swords unleashed by Donghuang the Great. Accompanied by the strong light beams that shot out, the divine swords broke through everything and penetrated the other four Great Emperors one after another. They, too, were immolated in a blink of an eye.


    In a brief moment, all eight Great Emperors were wiped out. They had turned to dust, obliterated by Donghuang the Great.


    Since they had already died once, why bother to return now!


    They were sent back whence they came.


    This unparalleled shocking blow caused eight brilliant rays of light to erupt from the sky simultaneously, which made the hearts of the cultivators in the Heavenly Imperial City beat wildly; their eyes were filled with shock.


    Previously, Ye Futian had immolated seven emperors with one spear strike, and now Donghuang the Great killed eight emperors with one sword strike.


    Both father and son demonstrated unparalleled terrifying combat effectiveness.


    Countless people in Heavenly Imperial City looked up at the sky. They had not witnessed the Battle of the Six Emperors previously, as they had only heard about it. Today, their hearts trembled as they witnessed the terrifying power of Donghuang the Great with their own eyes.


    This was Donghuang, the Lord of the Divine Prefecture, one of the six emperors. He was the most powerful out of the six strongest beings in the world.


    Of course, the ninth divine sword from Donghuang the Great was blocked by the Divine Emperor Pojun, who then destroyed it. Obviously, Divine Emperor Pojun was not on the same level as the other eight Great Emperors.


    Even so, he still showed a strange look. His attention was fixed on Donghuang.


    It seemed that he had underestimated the ruler of the current world. The strength of Donghuang the Great was indeed powerful.


    The eight Great Emperors who were immolated were pretty powerful and definitely were not weaklings. However, they were killed by Donghuang the Great in one blow. On the same battlefield, the Divine Emperor Pojun could certainly feel this force. He knew that the Revelation Divine Realm had suppressed all eight Great Emperors.


    Under the suppression of the Divine Power of the Revelation, the eight Great Emperors were weakened to the extreme, and none of them could unleash their divine powers freely. The result was demonstrated now. They had no chance to fully extend their powers before they were obliterated by Donghuang.


    ��Kill!�� As soon as the voice of the Divine Emperor Pojun fell, the infinite divine arms behind him shot out in the direction of Donghuang the Great. In an instant, the void collapsed and shattered, and those countless divine arms moved to pulverize the sky.


    The sharp eyes of Donghuang the Great glanced at the sky above as he was surrounded by the light screen forged with the divine power of the Revelation. Those incoming divine arms were condensed by divine power and were greatly hindered when they traversed the Revelation Divine Domain. Later, they were blocked by the light screen. Gradually, they had lost their powers.


    Bang! Donghuang the Great moved his thoughts, and those divine arms disintegrated and pulverized, shattered at almost the same time.


    At the same time, Donghuang the Great floated higher into the sky. As one of the strongest figures in the world, what could the ancient emperor do to him even if they had returned? It was inconceivable for him to be at a disadvantage.


    In this world, no one could look down on Donghuang the Great.


    ��The Age of Gods has come again, and the world will have a place to accommodate the likes of ancient emperors from the past. Although I don��t know what relationship you have with the ancestors or what kind of agreements exist between you two, I hope you do not get involved,�� said Donghuang the Great as he looked at Divine Emperor Pojun.


    The silver robe fluttered on the Divine Emperor Pojun; his eyes fixed on Donghuang the Great with extreme sharpness. In the next moment, his body moved, aiming straight towards Donghuang the Great.


    The speed of someone at this level of cultivation was beyond frightening; even the Revelation Divine Domain could not stop his physical body. It was utterly unable to suppress the divine power of the Divine Emperor Pojun.


    Donghuang the Great raised his hand and stretched it out, and the Divine Power of Revelation directly covered the body of Divine Emperor Pojun. Still, his opponent��s body had already transformed. It was no longer a body of flesh and blood but a Body of Way, incomparably sharp.


    To be mentioned in the same breath as Shenjia the Great Emperor, one could only imagine how terrifying Divine Emperor Pojun��s body was.


    An extremely glorious divine light penetrated through the divine power of the Revelation, piercing into the defensive light screen that surrounded Donghuang the Great. An extremely terrifying divine light illuminated everything as he raised his hand and pointed at Donghuang the Great. This finger was like the sharpest weapon, shattering all existence.


    Just as this finger was about to penetrate the brow chakra of Donghuang the Great, an unparalleled divine light appeared all around Donghuang the Great. When the finger came near him, its divine power seemed to be disarmed and turned into absolutely nothing.

 Chapter 2893 - Confidence

    Even though the divine power crumbled within the void, the same did not happen to the attack from Divine Emperor Pojun. His whole person glowed, and he was shrouded in silver divine light. He no longer had a material body but a body of the Great Path.


    His body grew large, as did his palm. His fingers turned into an imperial arm that pierced the Domain of Void, annihilating and recreating things. There was nothing it could not destroy, and it was attempting to prove it now. Although Donghuang the Great was powerful to the point that he was even capable of forming the Domain of Void around himself, he did not believe that Donghuang the Great could maintain his Revelation Divine Power at its supreme state forever.


    If his Revelation Divine Power had turned into the void, Donghuang the Great would have ruled over the world long ago already.


    Donghuang the Great blasted the air with his left hand, and the hit landed directly onto Divine Emperor Pojun��s body. With a loud sound, the supreme state of the divine power vanished, and both their bodies were thrown back at the same time. They withdrew, widening the distance between themselves.


    Donghuang the Great��s terrifying fist attack did not result in any lasting damage toward Divine Emperor Pojun. It was as if he had put on the armor of Tianshen, making his physical body unsurpassable and unbreakable.


    Bang! A loud sound broke out, and Divine Emperor Pojun stepped forward. All at once, numerous rays of divine light enveloped the boundless area. It was as if the entirety of the vast Heavenly Imperial City was bound within the perimeters of the divine domain.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial City felt as if the world around had turned silver. It was a cold and hard world, and they realized that they were no longer able to move their bodies. They were all under the control of the divine power enveloping the area and were absolutely trapped. Their bodies were wrapped in silver divine light. It seemed like they had also been transformed into the same silver body as Divine Emperor Pojun.


    The difference was that this body was a part of Divine Emperor Pojun��s divine power, so he had full control over it, but when it came to them, they were captives.


    It seemed as if the whole world had come to a standstill and that the Heavenly Imperial City had become a world of ice, formed from numerous statues.


    Donghuang the Great frowned and increased the intensity of his Revelation Divine Power to its maximum level. It enveloped the entire Heavenly Imperial City, reducing the strength of Divine Emperor Pojun��s divine power. He looked toward Divine Emperor Pojun and stated, ��You do realize you are an Ancient Divine Emperor, don��t you? This fight is between us. There is no reason to implicate innocent people.��


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    As he finished speaking, he rose toward the boundless upper regions of the sky.


    Divine Emperor Pojun turned into a beam of silver light and followed him. The two were beams of light, and they moved vertically upward, providing respite to the cultivators in the Heavenly Imperial City.


    They looked at the boundless upper sky and were vaguely able to make out the two legendary figures standing facing each other. Their divine domains of the Great Path were restraining each other and were terrifying divine powers capable of holding the other captive.


    Subsequently, they saw the sky light up with a dazzling divine glow. It looked as if it was a light full of murderous intent. Both emperors rushed at each other, resulting in an earth-shattering effect that left even the Heavenly Imperial City shaking though it was separated by the boundless space.


    In the ninety-nine heavens, Ye Futian, who had been cultivating behind closed doors, felt as if he had been shocked wide awake. He raised his eyebrows like he had sensed something. Shortly after, the scene of a horrendous battle appeared in his mind��s eye. It was that between Divine Emperor Pojun and Donghuang the Great.


    His eyes sprung wide open. A cold divine light filled his black-jet pupils. It was unbelievable that a strange contender had come to take them on again, and this one was powerful enough to go head to head with father. Just who was he?


    Ye Futian flitted down to the lower sky region. Immediately, many cultivators gathered around to see him. This was the first time Ye Futian had woken up ever since he started meditating on the Great Path. How much progress had he made?


    Just going by his appearance, they could not tell, but they somehow knew in their hearts that Ye Futian had surely gotten stronger.


    Ye Futian looked around at the people surrounding him. His Micro Heavenly World was currently able to effect a greater change on the flow of time and was getting better and better, progressing toward becoming a Macro Heavenly Path. If he let the people around him cultivate inside his Micro Heavenly Path world, there would be more time to be made use of.


    ��Young Master.�� Lady Qin came up next to him. Even when Ye Futian had inherited the throne, she was still used to addressing him as ��young master.��


    In her eyes, not only was Ye Futian their hope, but he was even more so the offspring of Her Highness. He was someone special to her. He was the continuation of Her Highness��s life, so she naturally regarded him as a close junior of hers.


    ��What is it, Lady Qin? Is something the matter?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��The Human Ancestor was a Great Emperor during the ancient times. After he fortuitously survived, he has been on the hunt for the other Great Emperors after the Great Tribulation in a desire to bring them back. Now, it seems like he has found a way to do so. Previously, the nine Great Emperors arrived. The one battling with His Highness now is also a Divine Emperor from ancient times,�� Lady Qin explained.


    ��Divine Emperor?�� Ye Futian furrowed his brows, feeling a little anxious. Even though he had uttered some rather unkind words before toward Donghuang the Great, he nevertheless still greatly respected this father of his. Donghuang the Great had given a lot, and from his perspective, he had already done the best he could have.


    ��Yes. He was an extraordinary Great Emperor and had such outstanding achievements to his name that he could receive the title of ��Divine Emperor.�� Divine Emperor Pojun was one of them. But you don��t have to worry. Even though His Highness is from this age and is the youngest out of the six Great Emperors, Buddha has said that he has the strongest enlightenment affinity out of them all. Even a Divine Emperor from the ancient times is no threat to His Highness.�� Lady Qin seemed to be highly confident in Donghuang the Great��s ability.


    ��The only one who could really constitute a threat to His Highness would probably be the Human Ancestor, and only him,�� Lady Qin continued. ��He was able to easily send a Divine Emperor and eight Great Emperors out to battle. What a lineup. Just how many ancient characters has the Human Ancestor been able to get under his control all these years?��


    Ye Futian nodded. During the Battle of the Six Great Emperors, in a four-versus-two situation, his father could still get through without a scratch. He was highly skilled.


    ��Actually, if not for the lack of time, no matter your mother or His Highness, they were capable of proving the path and reigning supreme. But the Human Ancestor did not allow them the opportunity, and so you were needed to carve out a different path.��


    ��I understand.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Let��s go out and take a look.��


    In a flash, they disappeared from where they were standing.


    The next moment, Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the upper sky region of the Heavenly Imperial City. The cultivators there were extremely overwhelmed upon seeing Ye Futian appear, as this was the first time he had made an appearance in the outer parts of society since becoming the Heavenly Emperor.


    This silver-haired young man was the true heir of the Heaven Realm and the present Heavenly Emperor as the descendant of Donghuang the Great and the Sovereign Princess. He was also the King of the Original Realm previously and the successor of Great Emperor Ziwei and Shenjia the Great Emperor.


    After Ye Futian inherited the throne, many started digging into his background. His experiences of making it to the top step by step from the bottom had made him a legend.


    Who knew when was the time when he would reach the summit and stand at the top of the world, creating his own legendary story?


    Would the cultivators of the Heaven Realm have the chance to witness that?

 Chapter 2894 - The Death of a Divine Emperor

    Ye Futian raised his head to look at the battle above the skies. In the high regions of the boundless sky, two superbly powerful characters were having a whirlwind of a battle.


    Currently, on the battlefield, the divine domains released by both of them were intersecting with each other. The dazzling silver world overlapped with the Revelation world, its many silver pillars of light keeping the area in captivity. The whole world was flooded in an icy-cold silver color.


    Divine Emperor Pojun��s physical body transformed into a beam of silver light and traversed within the silver-colored world. He repeatedly attacked Donghuang the Great from a close range, causing Donghuang the Great to be forced out again and again.


    As someone who could be compared with Shenjia the Great Emperor, his physical prowess was next to none.


    Donghuang the Great��s attacking power was not weak, but he could not hurt Shenjia the Great Emperor��s body of the Path.


    A beam of silver light struck across the sky and Divine Emperor Pojun��s body transformed into an enormous silver spear using the powers of the Path. It directly pierced the heavens and the earth, leaving a ray of silver light trailing in its wake in the skies as it charged at Donghuang the Great.


    Donghuang the Great lifted and stretched out his hand. The surrounding defense made of the Revelation Divine Power once again got penetrated. This time it was by the Silver Divine Spear. The Revelation Divine Sword clashed with it but was smashed to pieces. The Silver Divine Spear was like a supreme treasure, and its assault was continuous.


    Donghuang the Great released the Revelation Divine Power within him to its maximum capacity. It enveloped the spear so that it was blocked again when it attacked. However, the silver spear started to vibrate violently, and its divine glow grew brighter and brighter.


    The remarkable silver divine light held Donghuang the Great��s body captive, causing it also to turn silver and become like a statue.


    ��Break!��


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    A command was cried out, and Divine Emperor Pojun��s silver spear pierced straight into Donghuang the Great��s body. The silver light was brightest at that moment, and Donghuang the Great��s body was a cold and stiff silver ice statue.


    Ye Futian, who was at the lower sky region, felt his heart skip a beat when he witnessed this scene. He immediately hovered up, wanting to enter the battlefield, but was stopped by Lady Qin. He looked at Lady Qin, puzzled. Lady Qin nodded at him and said, ��The opponent��s divine power can break practically anything and, of course, supremely powerful, but in this ultimate match up of divine powers, Revelation Divine Power will be the victor. This has been destined from the start.��


    Ye Futian was surprised by Lady Qin��s extraordinary confidence in his father. However, she must have a reason for saying that.


    He continued watching the skies above with his gaze piercing through the boundless space to the scene of battle. Presently, Donghuang the Great was just a statue and did not seem to have any advantage.


    ��The greatest Great Emperor of the present age is nothing much after all.�� Divine Emperor Pojun��s figure appeared, and he was carrying the spear in his hands. His voice betrayed the emotions of someone who had seen much throughout the years. The current world somehow left him feeling disappointed.


    ��Huh?��


    Yet, just as he finished speaking, he frowned and blasted out his divine power, but it did not manage to smash the statue that was Donghuang the Great into pieces. On the contrary, he could sense the divine power within Donghuang the Great��s body exploding fiercely. It was as if Donghuang the Great��s body was hollow, and in there, his divine power could not survive.


    Divine Emperor Pojun heard a sigh just then as if someone was sighing for him.


    Surprisingly, the sigh came in the direction of the statue that Donghuang the Great had turned into.


    Divine Emperor Pojun felt the color drain from his face and was about to retreat when he realized that he had been surrounded by divine power already. The moment he thrust the spear into Donghuang the Great��s body, all had been predestined.


    Bang! Divine Emperor Pojun��s body was suddenly blown to pieces. A piece of his physical body in the middle turned into nothingness and was destroyed. He lowered his head to take a look and saw that his body had broken apart.


    A horrifying divine power seeped frantically into his body, and Divine Emperor Pojun started to tremble.


    At the same time, the statue turned back into the form of Donghuang the Great, as if he had not suffered any harm at all.


    Fear appeared in Divine Emperor Pojun��s eyes. Were the current six Great Emperors that strong?


    ��Divine Emperor Pojun, your attacking prowess is next to none, but your enlightenment needs work. You��ve lost,�� Donghuang the Great remarked to him. Divine light encircled him, and he looked remarkably noble. Although he was a junior to Divine Emperor Pojun, his magnanimity made it seem like he was the one who should command respect instead.


    Divine Emperor Pojun looked at Donghuang the Great. Donghuang the Great naturally understood what the look in his eyes meant. Being a divine Emperor, Divine Emperor Pojun had every reason to be proud, and even at such a time, he would not open his mouth to beg for mercy. His prideful nature just would not allow it.


    But Donghuang the Great merely sighed and said, ��Although you are my senior, I am unable to let you go. Please forgive me.��


    At that, divine power immediately devoured Divine Emperor Pojun��s body, causing him to slowly turn into nothingness bit by bit and disappear from the world as if he had never existed before.


    Donghuang the Great looked at Divine Emperor Pojun��s vanishing form and was filled with emotions. From the beginning, he had made the preparations to finish off Divine Emperor Pojun. Thus, he had lured him into this trap such that he would have no chance of escape.


    He and Ye Futian would have to face the Human Ancestor and his supporters in a fierce battle one day. A Divine Emperor would have dealt a lot of damage, so he definitely could not have let him go alive. He chose the most suitable solution to keep him here forever.


    He hovered down, and the cultivators in Heavenly Imperial City were shocked to see Donghuang the Great return.


    That day, nine Great Emperors had arrived to set up a fight, including a Divine Emperor from the ancient times, and Donghuang the Great had finished all of them off, with not even one remaining.


    Nine Great Emperors, all gone.


    Seeing the return of Donghuang the Great surprised Ye Futian also.


    ��Futian,�� Donghuang the Great shouted. ��Why are you awake?��


    ��I sensed father��s battle taking place and came here to watch,�� Ye Futian replied. Donghuang the Great was momentarily stunned by hearing how Ye Futian addressed him, but a gratified smile soon grew on his face.


    ��The divine power that father used to kill Divine Emperor Pojun seems to have overtaken the Revelation Divine Power. Was that the evolution of the Revelation Divine Power?�� Ye Futian was curious to know.


    ��I��ll explain it when we get back.�� Donghuang the Great stalled on his reply, and the few of them returned to the ninety-nine heavens.


    ��In the past, when I was cultivating and meditating with your mother, we were looking for a way to get to the end of the cultivation journey. The Revelation Divine Power is a divine power that has the capability of helping us to reach that end, so your mother did some tests on me in the hope that I could better draw out the mysteries regarding the evolution of the Revelation Divine Power. And we did, in fact, succeed. The end of Revelation Divine Power is nothingness, but up until now, I have not really mastered nothingness. If not, things won��t be the way they are now.��


    Ye Futian slightly nodded upon hearing Donghuang the Great��s explanation. It seemed that it was very much thanks to his mother that his father could be on the same level as Devil Emperor and the others.


    ��Although the Revelation Divine Power can point the way to the end of cultivation, it is not the right way. Therefore, you need not go down this way. Just fully incorporate all that your mother has left for you, and you will reach the end of the cultivation journey earlier than I,�� Donghuang the Great continued with his explanation. This was what they all hoped for!

 Chapter 2895 - Where To?

    On the Gods�� Ruins Continent, where Huatian the Great had been before, Great Emperors continually land in the Original Realm after coming through the space teleportation grand matrix. All Great Emperors had sent a representative before them to keep an eye on the area.


    The seven Great Emperors that Ye Futian had killed with one spear had also all come from there.


    And even now, the area would still be visited occasionally by various Great Emperors.


    At present, in the lower sky regions of the area, there was a mountain peak. At the top of the mountain peak was a figure quietly sitting cross-legged. He was tall and had a remarkable disposition. Just by sitting there, he did not seem like he belonged in the world.


    That figure was Ji Wudao.


    Ever since the battle he had lost to Ye Futian, Ji Wudao seemed to have gone into anonymity and never made another appearance. He knew that after he had been defeated, Ye Futian would receive his inheritance and fully take over. When that happened, he would have no hope of fighting with Ye Futian anymore.


    Unless he received more than Ye Futian.


    Ji Wudao quietly sat there, as if he had been cut off from the world and no longer cared about the things in it. Even if war were to break out in the Heaven Realm, he would be the last to know and had no interest in finding out either.


    Time passed day by day. In the present day, a strange phenomenon was seen in the heavens. After that, a terrifying aura descended, and the teleportation matrix was torn apart as a figure appeared in the high sky region. He stood there, overbearing as could be.


    The figure looked all around him while the emperor��s might swept across him, and divine consciousness covered the boundless area. Following that, he fixed his gaze on the peak of the mountain where Ji Wudao was.


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    In a flash, he headed toward Ji Wudao, and across the boundless space, a divine power descended upon Ji Wudao.


    Ji Wudao opened his eyes and looked up at the sky. He saw the figure that had just appeared, but his expression remained calm and unperturbed.


    In the past, an extraordinary cultivator had emerged from here. He was Huatian the Great from ancient times, and his abilities were unparalleled. He had previously fought within the ninety-nine heavens and lost when the other party borrowed the power of the Heavenly Path to defeat him.


    As if he had sensed something, the Great Emperor that had appeared suddenly stopped in his tracks and did not continue making his way toward Ji Wudao. Subsequently, he turned around and left as if he knew that Ji Wudao was not one to mess with.


    However, his wanting to leave did not mean he could leave now at this juncture.


    A terrifying divine power enveloped the area he was in, and Ji Wudao reached forward with his palm to grab across the distance. The Great Emperor��s expression changed, and his divine power flared up. Then, a horrifying black hole appeared and devoured the divine power. The divine power flowed furiously into the black hole, and his body was also no longer under his control. His robe was fluttering frantically in the wind.


    The black hole grew bigger and bigger and devoured the area he was in. Next, he too was finished and no more to be seen.


    Almost immediately, the terrifying aura vanished, and everything went back to normal. Ji Wudao shut his eyes and stood there quietly as if nothing had taken place. He calmly continued cultivating.


    Not long had passed before he opened his eyes again and took a look at the heavens. Then, he transported himself toward the higher sky region. Reaching out his palm, he ripped a hole in the teleportation matrix and disappeared into the hole.


    After his departure, the hole revealed itself, and everything was back to normal as if nothing unusual had happened.


    From afar, a cultivator who had witnessed all of this felt his heart beating faster. That was Ji Wudao, who had once been thought to be the next Heavenly Emperor. Where did he go?


    In the Heavenly Palace, in the ninety-nine heavens, Donghuang the Great had also received the news about what had happened in the Gods�� Ruins Continent.


    He had been chatting with Ye Futian and his godfather Yu Tu and Ye Baichuan. They were all fatherly figures in one way or another to Ye Futian.


    The news was brought by Donghuang the Great��s direct disciple, Du You. Donghuang the Great frowned slightly after hearing the news.


    Ye Futian, too, was surprised, and he asked, ��Father, are those cultivators also ancient Emperors? Where did they come from?��


    He had previously killed seven Great Emperors with his spear. The seven of them seemed to have been gods of judgment, but up till now, Ye Futian still had no idea where they were from.


    Donghuang the Great��s expression turned graven after hearing Ye Futian��s question. He answered, ��Back then, your mother already had some inkling that these things would happen. We had also discussed this issue and felt that it could be related to the Battle of the Old Heavenly Path.


    ��The Heavenly Path is a conscious being, and when one reaches the ultimate cultivation level, they would be able to become the Heavenly Path, also the God of the Heavenly Laws, and the God of Origins. Of course, you know about this,�� Donghuang the Great added. ��In other words, the universe we are in is vast and without end. It contains numerous worlds and unlimited space. However, it can be created by cultivators who have reached the ultimate cultivation level.


    ��We must ask ourselves: how long has civilization existed? Probably hundreds of millions of years. In this long period, how much has happened that we don��t know of? During the period before the disintegration of the Heavenly Path, we called it ancient times. But is there an even earlier period than?�� Donghuang the Great asked.


    Ye Futian looked thoughtful after hearing what Donghuang the Great said. He thought he understood what Donghuang the Great had in mind.


    ��The Buddha said that there is a world in every flower and knowledge in every leaf. In Buddhism, there are thousands of big worlds and thousands of little worlds. Who wrote these Buddhist classics?�� Donghuang the Great��s expression also became serious. ��Is the Heavenly Path the only one?


    ��Is the universe we are in the only one?��


    Donghuang the Great��s contemplations caused the cultivators to fall into silence. The area grew acutely quiet.


    Were there any other Heavenly Paths? Were there any other universes?


    Ye Futian had created a Micro Heavenly Path within himself. If the Micro Heavenly Path was completed, in the future, many cultivators could go in there to train. Would they in the myriads of worlds in there know that there was another world outside?


    ��This was also part of the reason your mother wanted to recreate the Heavenly Path back then. If other universes and worlds existed, the recreated Heavenly Path should be the guardian. Thus, she aimed to reach the ultimate cultivation level and also hoped the people of the world would desire to reach a higher plane,�� Donghuang the Great drawled on slowly. ��And now, there are some things that are worth exploring further. But for now, you do not need to bother about these things. I��ll find the answer, and when I find it, I��ll let you know. For you, your present goal is still cultivation. No matter what we face in the future, we are still reliant on great power.��


    Ye Futian nodded. Donghuang the Great��s remarks were thought-provoking. If the seven Great Emperors he had killed were not from ancient times, were they cultivators from other worlds?


    Was it because they could find the path to this universe after the disintegration of the Heavenly Path?


    No one knew. Where too did Ji Wudao go after tearing a hole in the teleportation matrix?

 Chapter 2896 - The Tinder of the Devil World

    More and more cultivators arrived at the ninety-nine heavens. From Ye Imperial Palace in the Gods�� Ruins Continent, from Ziwei Imperial Palace in Ziwei Segmentum, and Heavenly Mandate Academy, many who trusted in Ye Futian were willing to follow him to the Heaven Realm to cultivate and become part of the great army of cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens.


    At present, the entire ninety-nine heavens were enveloped by a peculiar aura. The power of the Heavenly Path was already imbued within the ninety-nine heavens, and the place was isolated from the rest of the outside world, becoming a micro world on its own.


    In fact, all the cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens were able to sense the dense aura of the Great Path. They were able to feel the existence of the Path from this micro world, making it easier for them to meditate and improve at an extremely fast pace.


    In the 81 heavens, a group of people was gathered in front of the Fae Palace to discuss the way of cultivation.


    ��Ten years�� metamorphosis and senior is reaching the demigod level. Congrats,�� someone said, and the person beside him laughed while shaking his head. ��I can��t claim the credit for this. It��s all thanks to this piece of land. I vaguely feel that the environment of the ninety-nine heavens micro world that we are part of now is unlike ancient times; it might exceed it. Perhaps it��s because our Palace Lord had altered the cultivation environment of the Heavenly Path. Do you guys feel the same way?��


    ��Yes, we do. This micro world originated from the power of the Heavenly Path, which is the mother of our Palace Lord. Now that our Palace Lord has integrated them and altered the cultivation environment here, this micro world might possibly be the best cultivation ground in the world. Those who left the ninety-nine heavens are probably regretting it now.�� The person beside nodded.


    ��You guys are still calling him Palace Lord?�� Someone else asked laughingly, and the two who had been speaking realized that they had made a mistake. They replied with good humor, ��We��ve gotten too used to it already. But now that the Palace Lord has become the Heavenly Emperor, we should change how we address him.��


    ��I, on the other hand, don��t feel like it really matters. Considering the magnanimity of our Palace Lord, I doubt he cares what we call him.�� But some felt that calling him ��Palace Lord�� was also a form of respect.


    ��Brothers!�� someone shouted and came over at that moment. The group of people turned around to see a middle-aged man with a purple robe and an exceptional demeanor. He could not help but smile. ��Younger brother Zhuo, you are finally here.��


    ��When I was cultivating at the Gods�� Ruins Continent, I encountered a relic and was not able to make it in time. Afterward, I found out about all that happened and rushed over here. Luckily it didn��t take too long,�� the middle-aged man explained.


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    ��Didn��t take too long?�� Someone laughed. ��Ten years is not long? In that period, has older brother Wang reached demigod level already?!��


    ��Ten years?�� The middle-aged man was momentarily taken aback. ��What do you mean? Is this a joke?��


    ��Don��t tell me you have gone crazy after training outside, younger brother Zhuo?�� The group stared at the middle-aged man.


    ��That��s right. It��s been ten years since we started cultivating here,�� another person piped up.


    ��Impossible,�� the person called Zhuo adamantly stated. ��Merely a few months have passed since our Palace Lord became the Heavenly Emperor. I immediately rushed here after hearing the news, and I took only ten or so days. How could it be that ten years have passed already?!��


    The people sensed something amiss upon hearing this. They looked at one another in confusion and, after a round of discussion, realized that he was not lying.


    ��Currently, the world is in chaos. How could it be that ten years would pass so peacefully in the Heaven Realm without any trouble? You will understand once you think about it,�� the person whose surname was Zhuo continued. It was a great shock to everyone there. How could cultivators like them calculate time incorrectly? And it could not have been a mass hallucination or misunderstanding either.


    ��If both sides are true, there can be only two explanations,�� somebody ventured.


    ��Which are?��


    ��The first is that we are in an illusionary fantasy world,�� that person answered. At once, they all released the essence of the Great Path, and divine light started flowing around them. It did not seem like an illusion.


    ��The second explanation is that the nature of time in this micro world has changed!�� As he said this, his heart skipped a beat, as did the hearts of the others.


    ��When we were first cultivating in Ye Imperial Palace, a time magical item had appeared before. So, the second explanation should be right.�� They had already established quickly that the first was just not possible.


    Every person took a deep breath and looked up at the sky as they reeled from the shock.


    ��The ninety-nine heavens had been transformed into a micro world of its own, and the nature of time in this micro world has been changed too. Who knows, perhaps the laws have been changed as well, making it so that there is no longer a need to rely on the magical item. Our Palace Lord can directly make alterations to the natural laws of this micro world.��


    They fell silent. Was their Palace Lord already able to perform at such a high level in the integration of the Heavenly Path? From their conversation just now, it could be seen that the flow of time within this micro world was at least tens of times faster than the world outside.


    ��I previously heard of the phrase, ��A day in heaven equals a year on earth.�� I never thought that one day I would be able to experience such a remarkable phenomenon for myself. Even though it might not be that extraordinary, it still boggles my mind. This means that, in the future, our cultivation duration will be tens of times longer than that of the outside world. One year of cultivation would be equivalent to tens of years of cultivation for us in the ninety-nine heavens.��


    If ten years had passed in the outside world, that meant that hundreds of years would have passed here. How terrifying was that?


    Ten years was not a long time.


    But hundreds of years would mean a stark advancement in the prowess of the Heaven Realm.


    Meanwhile, in the Devil Abyss of the Devil World, Yu Sheng was cultivating.


    The Devil Emperor was also there. Yu Sheng looked at the figure in front of him. He was tall and burly. He seemed to be one with the Devil Abyss, using his physical flesh to support the whole abyss.


    Gazing at the scene in front of him, Yu Sheng��s eyes turned red, and his body underwent multiple tribulations from the Devil Abyss.


    ��This is the fate of us all from the Devil World.�� A voice came traveling from the Devil Emperor��s mouth, reverberating within the Devil Abyss. ��Every Devil Emperor has to go through the pain of the Devil Abyss; if not, the power of the Devil Abyss will terrorize the Devil World and destroy everything. The cultivators in the Devil World are mostly unable to withstand the tribulation of the Devil Abyss.��


    ��Why not let it be?�� Yu Sheng asked while looking at the Devil Emperor. That tall and burly figure was currently shirtless, and his whole body was blood-red.


    ��After the disintegration of the Heavenly Path, the Devil Lord was suppressed, and no one else was able to fully control the power in the Devil Abyss after that. The Devil Abyss was formed simultaneously��at the same time as the Heavenly Path. And legend has it that if the tribulation of the Devil Abyss were allowed to spill out completely, a catastrophe would befall the entire world. The Devil Lord had once used the power of the Devil Abyss in battle with the Heavenly Path in an attempt to destroy it. Now, it is the responsibility of the Devil Emperor to suppress the Devil Abyss. If we let this happen, the Devil World would be the first to be destroyed, and the other Great Emperors would soon think of ways to seal the Devil Abyss inside the Devil World. Our homeland would forever be wiped out,�� the Devil Emperor explained.


    ��There is no one else other than the Devil Lord who can control the Devil Abyss��s power. Back then, I wanted to work hard with the Devil Lord, but he ended up betraying the Devil World. Later, you came back to the Devil World and inherited the will of the Devil Lord. And now, you are the only promising remnant left in the Devil World. At present, the world is undergoing great changes, and I have a hunch that there will be a huge calamity. I might not be able to make it through the calamity. At that time, you will become the Devil Emperor, and I hope that you will not let me down.��

 Chapter 2897 - Gifts

    While the Devil Emperor was talking to Yu Sheng, in the pitch-black darkness of the Devil Imperial Palace, an old man was sitting cross-legged. He looked somewhat fatigued.


    Just then, a commotion was heard outside the Devil Imperial Palace. The old man opened his eyes, and his gaze seemed a little unfocused, but it lasted for only a short while. When he turned his gaze, his eyes were unexpectedly authoritative.


    Whoosh! An extremely domineering strong wind gushed out, and the doors to the Devil Imperial Palace were blown open. A figure appeared outside.


    The figure stood outside, with his hands behind his back.


    On seeing the figure, the old man stood up, and his expression darkened. He transformed into the unsurpassable Devil Emperor and stepped out of the Devil Imperial Palace, stopping in front of the figure. He gave the figure a hard stare.


    ��You actually have the audacity to return?�� The Devil Emperor glared at the figure, who shared certain similarities in appearance to him. It was his younger brother, Yu Tu.


    ��I came back for the sake of the Devil World,�� Yu Tu replied.


    ��For the Devil World?�� The Devil Emperor��s eyes were cold. A monstrous pressure swept through the area, making the vast Devil Imperial Palace cultivators tremble in fear. They all looked up in one accord at the deep places in the clouds and wondered who had angered the Devil Emperor.


    ��For the Devil World, you betrayed us and left. You went to the Divine Prefecture and followed the orders of Donghuang and Emperor Ye Qing. Don��t forget that you are the younger brother of the Devil Emperor.�� The Devil Emperor��s tone was cold and biting. It seemed like he had hidden his anger for hundreds of years.


    ��Even if you don��t believe me, I did it for the inhabitants of the Devil World. My conscience is clear.�� Yu Tu��s voice was sincere and calm. There was no trace of emotional turbulence.


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    The Devil Emperor sneered. His voice dripped with sarcasm as he said, ��The slaughterer of the Devil World who was so bloodthirsty he carried out a massacre during the War of the Devil World�� When did he become capable of taking pity on the masses?��


    ��People inevitably change,�� Yu Tu answered back.


    ��I��ll believe it if it was another person who said this. But you? I don��t believe a single word.�� The Devil Emperor was condescending in his reply. ��In this world, there is no one who knows you better than me. You are prideful and hate to be like everybody else. But you are also self-deprecating. We were born imprisoned, and us brothers were determined to break out of the jail cage and climb to the top of the Devil World. Back then, you gave up the chance of becoming Emperor to me. Although you did it completely willingly, it still somewhat bothered you. You left to carve a path for yourself, desiring to gain enlightenment elsewhere. Yet, it��s strange that you would be content just being a servant with your personality.


    ��I��m really curious as to what exactly happened back then?��


    At the Devil Emperor��s words, many memories flashed through Yu Tu��s mind. Those memories were his most cherished.


    He looked at the Devil Emperor. He recalled, ��Of course, people will change. The reason they don��t is that they haven��t met someone who can change them.��


    ��So, it was the Sovereign Princess who made you want to turn over a new leaf and be willing to be a servant?�� The Devil Emperor remained indignant. So what if she was the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor? He was the Devil Emperor who ruled over the entire Devil World. How could his brother be a servant to another?


    Memories came flooding back before Yu Tu��s eyes. Some people were like a ray of light, utterly dazzling and mesmerizing. They made you feel humbled and small, even becoming aware of the darkness within yourself.


    ��In this world, there will always be some people who are different from others, different from everyone else,�� Yu Tu said softly.


    ��How different can they be?�� the Devil Emperor asked sarcastically. ��Is there anyone on this earth who is not hungry for power? Who does not wish to reign over life? She isn��t an exception. For her to be able to bend Donghuang, Emperor Ye Qing, and your will to her, it��s obvious she used her charm. As for wanting to rebuild the Heavenly Path and reform the world? That��s just her way of covering her true intentions of ruling the world and having control over its laws. All people in this world are the same!��


    Yu Tu stared at him. A light of calamity glowed within him, and a vague sense of terror accompanied it.


    ��You want to fight?�� Similarly, a terrifying power flared out from the Devil Emperor��s body, and a frightening devil��s might enveloped the Devil Imperial Palace.


    However, Yu Tu��s anger quickly subsided, and he regained his calm composure. He looked at the Devil Emperor and stated, ��You won��t understand.��


    The Devil Emperor grunted. ��You came here just to say this?��


    ��The Heavenly Emperor requested me to bring a gift for Yu Sheng and you,�� Yu Tu revealed.


    ��The Heavenly Emperor?�� The Devil Emperor��s tone was ironic. ��I don��t need something from someone who would crown himself Emperor!��


    Yu Tu waved his hand, and suddenly, a floating pagoda appeared within the Devil Imperial Palace. Divine power flowed about above the pagoda. The Devil Emperor took a look and frowned. He could sense the Power of Time and Space within it.


    ��This is the Time and Space Pagoda. It can alter the speed of time so that it passes faster than the outside world, resulting in a longer cultivation duration in comparison,�� Yu Tu explained, and the Devil Emperor��s eyes grew wide.


    Yu Tu then took out an orb. It glowed with divine light and was evidently an item wrapped in divine power.


    ��The Buddha of Destiny looked into the future and saw a fate concerning all beings. A huge calamity will befall the world. The most powerful cultivators will also be implicated, including you. The Medicine Buddha entreated the Buddhist for the fruit of Bodhi. With this most valuable elixir-making divine item of Buddhism, he worked with the Heavenly Emperor to cultivate the Reincarnation Elixir. Taking it in your last moments will prevent you from dying and give you a second chance at life.��


    Yu Tu held up the elixir to the Devil Emperor. ��The Heavenly Emperor only made a few pills, and he will not be able to make any more in the future as there are no more elixir-making ingredients. This pill is for you. I, myself, have none.��


    Saying, Yu Tu stretched his arm forward to hand the pill over to the Devil Emperor.


    The Devil Emperor stared at the elixir in Yu Tu��s palm. The world would meet with a huge calamity, and he would go as well. This, he too had foreseen.


    For this reason, Ye Futian had cultivated Reincarnation Elixirs and was gifting one to him.


    He then looked at the Time and Space Pagoda. His expression grew perplexed.


    Only just now, he had said he did not need it.


    Should he accept it or not?


    ��Donghuang agreed to this?�� The Devil Emperor inquired.


    ��He was the one who proposed this,�� Yu Tu remarked.


    The Devil Emperor��s expression became even more perplexed.


    The world would change soon. The Human Ancestor and Donghuang the Great harbored deep hostility between themselves and would meet in battle. Should he accept these gifts from Donghuang the Great and Ye Futian?


    ��What are the terms and conditions?�� The Devil Emperor probed further.


    ��There��s none,�� Yu Tu answered again. ��Do you want it or not?��


    The Devil Emperor looked closely at Yu Tu. He had purposely held it in his hand all this while. Obviously, he had intentions for this.


    With a grunt, he swiped the sleeve of his robe, and the elixir disappeared. He had taken it.


    ��If there��s a chance in the future, I will repay him this favor,�� the Devil Emperor remarked emotionlessly.


    Yu Tu glanced at him and turned around to leave. He answered, ��Your obsessions have blinded you. They have never seen the Devil World as their enemy. All these are merely your assumptions. Even if the Devil World Army had left, the Devil Abyss is still here. Nothing has changed. For things to change, the Devil World also needs a person even greater than the one at the top.��


    These words reverberated in the Devil Emperor��s mind, even after Yu Tu had left.


    He stretched his hand and looked at the elixir in his palm. His feelings were complicated.


    Was it really all just his obsessions?


    Not long ago, during the Battle of the Six Great Emperors, he had attacked the Divine Prefecture and teamed up with the Human Ancestor in a bid to kill Donghuang.


    They were supposed to be enemies. The current messy situation made it possible to think of ways of achieving what they wanted. Even so, they did not need to gift divine items to their potential enemy.


    What was in the minds of Donghuang the Great and his son Ye Futian?


    Were there really people who were different from everyone else in this world?

 Chapter 2898 - Dark Sovereign

    At the peak of the Dark Court, it was as though the end of the world had arrived.


    In the heavens above, destructive storms raged unceasingly. They were filled with the will of death and destruction. However, beneath such storms, a silhouette wearing a cold-looking mask sat quietly. The figure was cultivating with her eyes closed.


    This figure was the Dark Sovereign.


    As the ruler of the Dark Court and the Dark World, the Dark Sovereign was of the same mind as the Devil Emperor. They both sensed that the world would soon face a huge calamity. This catastrophe would engulf the entire world. The event would be even more terrifying than the one five centuries ago. It was most likely difficult for anyone to try to survive on their own. It would be the same for her.


    Right now, the Dark Sovereign was completely immersed in cultivation and comprehended her Way.


    ��Disciple!��


    A voice sounded in the Dark Sovereign��s mind right then. Immediately, the Dark Sovereign felt herself enter an illusory realm.


    In this illusory realm, there were destructive storms. The entire world was facing a calamity. She was garbed in a dark robe and wore a cold mask as she stood before the destroyed land. In front of her was the figure of an elder.


    This figure had the aura of a deity. He appeared gentle and had an indescribable casual air to him. His face was always smiling and radiated benevolence, causing other people to feel very comfortable around him. At a glance, he appeared to be a kind, old man.


    Rumble. A terrifying storm enveloped the heavens and the earth and swept towards the elder. In the heavens above, the Light of Destruction surged towards him. However, the figure of the elder seemed to be ethereal. He still stood smiling beneath the storm. He looked towards the Dark Sovereign and said, ��Disciple, aren��t you going to greet your master?��


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    Rumble. The Light of Destruction rained down continuously. The storm in the sky brewed, and a menacing tribulation descended from it. The tribulation intended to consume the world. The elder was destroyed by it the moment he showed up. He appeared again and again, destroyed by the tribulation every single time.


    Every time he revealed himself, he looked at the Dark Sovereign with a smile. He said, ��My dear disciple, you have proven your Way since we last met. You have not let me down. We have not met for a long time; I wish to see you.��


    ��Die!�� The Dark Sovereign narrowed her eyes. Her gaze was filled with endless hatred.


    Soon, the elder disappeared. However, his face lingered in her mind. It was as though his face had been engraved in her consciousness.


    Countless memories surfaced in her mind. There was an image of a maiden running barefoot under the sun. She looked carefree. Her eyes were clean and sparkling; not a speck of negativity could be found in her gaze. Her heart was pure, and she lived a quiet life with her parents.


    Then, the elder came into the picture. He appeared so kind and well-intentioned. He taught her how to read and cultivate. Both she and her parents showed great respect for the elder.


    That was until one day, everything changed��


    She was tormented by her cruelest memories once again. Blood and gore filled the image in her mind. She had committed the most appalling sins in the world. She couldn��t forgive herself; neither would she forgive the elder.


    The memories which flashed past in her mind caused her heart to ache.


    The Dark Sovereign, who had been cultivating at the peak of the Dark Court, opened her eyes. Tears were flowing from her eyes beneath her mask. However, she was emotionless. Cold murderous intent burst forth from her, resolute as iron. It was as though no one could shake her resolve.


    Even the destructive storm in the heavens trembled. She lifted her head slightly and looked up at the storm. Why had he appeared in her dream?


    ��Are you coming back?�� said the Dark Sovereign in a tone as cold as ice. With her level of cultivation, dreams would not come to her. There was definitely something affecting her from the shadows.


    She could sense that he, who had disappeared for a long time, might be returning.


    The Dark Sovereign placed her hand under her mask and took it off. Underneath the mask was an extremely beautiful face. However, the face bore a look as cold as ice. It was also laced with endless hatred.


    She hated this world.


    She did not know why he wanted to teach her to cultivate and pass down the power of Asura to her. She also did not understand why he had made her face the darkest side of humanity and thrown her down a living hell.


    She didn��t even know who he was. However, regardless of who he was, she would do whatever it took to make him experience a living hell too.


    As she stood up, the Dark Sovereign��s figure disappeared without a trace. When she reappeared, she was in a destructive storm. A menacing Dark Lotus was floating in midair. Ye Qingyao was the only person here.


    Ye Qingyao seemed to have sensed her arrival. She opened her eyes and looked at Dark Sovereign, greeting, ��Master.��


    When she saw the Dark Sovereign��s original face, she was not surprised. She was probably the only person among the members of the Dark Court who had seen her master��s face. She also knew about the agony that her master had experienced; she had seen the ugliest side of humanity, just like Ye Qingyao had.


    She understood why her master had chosen her as a successor and why the latter thought highly of her. It was because they were the same.


    ��Qingyao!�� said the Dark Sovereign as she looked towards her. ��You were born into darkness and are a true Dark Maiden. Yet, you have been unable to completely succumb to it because there is still light in your heart. However, that light is but an illusion. Everything is false.��


    Ye Qingyao lowered her head slightly. She naturally knew why she had light in her heart. Her origins were different from the Dark Sovereign. The Dark Sovereign had met a person who brought her from the light into darkness. As for herself, she had met a person who brought her light in the darkness. Their experiences were completely opposite.


    ��This world of false kindness has long lost its light. There is only darkness. Everything he does is not for your sake. It is merely your talent that has caught his eye. There are so many unfortunate souls in the world. Why did he not save them? He only saved you because you are different!�� the Dark Sovereign told Ye Qingyao. ��It is the same for me. I have taught you to cultivate to bring you into darkness. I am not trying to save you.��


    ��He came to the Dark World, and you have also made him feel that agony. However, he was not affected by it,�� Ye Qingyao said somewhat stubbornly. She was naturally referring to Ye Futian.


    He had previously been to the Dark World.


    The Dark Sovereign continued, ��What he experienced here is not his real life, so he naturally is unaffected by it. How could a person with no ambition reach where he is today? He has become the faith of the Original Realm and the god of the Heaven Realm.��


    Ye Qingyao did not answer. Right then, the Dark Sovereign frowned. She put on her mask. Her terrifying aura immediately surged, opening a passageway. She looked towards the passageway and asked, ��What is the matter?��


    ��The members of the Heaven Realm have come to see Ye Qingyao,�� the person on the other side replied. The Dark Sovereign revealed a surprised look. Ye Qingyao also walked over.


    ��Let��s go.�� The two of them immediately passed through the passageway and appeared on the other side. They saw the person who had come. It was Yu Tu.


    ��What business do you have with us?�� asked the Dark Sovereign as she stared at Yu Tu.


    Yu Tu glanced at her and then at Ye Qingyao beside her. He then said, ��The Heavenly Emperor has asked me to deliver a gift to you.��


    As he said this, he retrieved a box and passed it to Ye Qingyao.


    ��Farewell,�� said Yu Tu. He left immediately after he handed the item to Ye Qingyao. The item was a treasure of time and space!

 Chapter 2899 - Outsiders

    The ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm had become a small independent world.


    At the peak of the Heavenly Palace, Ye Futian sat cross-legged as he cultivated with his eyes closed. His figure was bathed in divine halos, and he shone together with the sun and the moon. It was no longer an ordinary body of flesh; his body was Way.


    Ye Futian��s world of the Micro Heavenly Path had evolved and reached perfection. It was an independent cosmos that was functioning orderly. It had countless planets and stars with continents of their own. It was a different space. Everything inside was no different from the real world.


    The only difference was that there were very few people in this universe. Many continents had only one person on them.


    Each person controlled an entire continent. They were the gods of said continents.


    For instance, Fang Cun was on a continent right now. His planet was filled with the Divine Force of Space. It was as though the entire continent was formed from it. Fang Cun cultivated here alone and comprehended the Law of Space.


    Fang Cun was now cultivating very diligently. He knew his place. The heavens and earth were about to change. In the not too distant future, he would be fighting for his master. Now that his master was the current Heavenly Emperor, as his disciple, he could not bring dishonor to his master��s image.


    The four disciples of Ye Futian each controlled a world of their own. Each world had a different divine power. Who among them would cultivate the fastest and become the strongest in the future?


    Fang Cun was clear about one thing��his master had established the Heavenly Path and was the ruler of this universe. That meant that in the future, they would be gods who ruled over the various laws. The continent he was on was the continent of a god. No matter what, he had to cultivate diligently and become a powerful Tianshen of this future universe. That way, he would not tarnish the reputation of being a direct disciple of the creator god.


    It was not just Fang Cun. Gu Dongliu, Ye Wuchen, Hua Jieyu, Blind Tie, Lord Chen, Chen Yi, Emperor Xi, Hua Qingqing, Yaya, and the others all had their own worlds of divine power. Ye Futian directly filled them with the divine power of law, creating the best cultivation conditions for each of them.


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    Right then, Xia Qingyuan was also cultivating on a continent on her own. Here, there was a tribulation of life and death and the divine power of swordsmanship. Xia Qingyuan was bathed in this power and cultivated quietly.


    Their cultivation environments made those who came later, including the many cultivators of the Heaven Realm, envious. Very few people had the chance to personally receive Ye Futian��s divine power of law to aid them in their cultivation.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial Palace of the Heaven Realm knew that the Heavenly Emperor had established a universe. If they emerged victorious in this final battle and Ye Futian ruled the entire world in the future, his descendants would be gods, just like the Eight Legions were beneath the previous Heavenly Path.


    An ethereal figure was fading in and out of existence deep within the universe. The space itself seemed ethereal. Ye Futian��s figure appeared here. He could sense all the changes in this universe and the cultivation status of everyone.


    These past few years, he had done many things and improved the abilities of everyone around him. He had given Yu Sheng and Qingyao treasures of time and space. This was also to prepare them for the upcoming battle. This way, they could scramble for even more time.


    Otherwise, they wouldn��t make it in time.


    Now, the world of the Micro Heavenly Path was reaching stability. The law of time was also stable. A day in the outside world was equivalent to 81 days here.


    Hence, they needed to make the most of this time. A year in the outside world was 81 years here. They had 81 years to cultivate and catch up. With his targeted training, this world of the Micro Heavenly Path would produce another group of Great Emperors.


    Right then, Ye Futian, who was cultivating in the Heavenly Palace, opened his eyes. He looked in front of him.


    ��Father,�� Ye Futian greeted. Donghuang the Great approached him, seemingly looking to discuss some matters.


    Donghuang the Great��s expression was serious as he said to Ye Futian, ��The result of the investigation is out. They are not cultivators from this universe. There are quite a number of Great Emperors in their lineup. All of them are from other universes.��


    ��Other universes really do exist,�� Ye Futian exclaimed. Even though he had vaguely speculated this from his previous conversation with Donghuang the Great, he was still taken aback by this discovery. They were not the only ones in this cosmos.


    Donghuang the Great nodded his head and explained, ��According to my intel, the location of our universe was exposed. Previously, when the Heavenly Path collapsed, most cultivators had perished. A number of them still exist among us in other forms. However, there were also a group of cultivators who left this universe. An example is Huatian the Great. He might have escaped to other universes, and now he found his way back to this universe. Some other ancient Emperors might gradually make their return here too.��


    Ye Futian mumbled, ��If those ancient Emperors went to other universes instead of perishing, they are most likely even stronger now.��


    Donghuang the Great continued, ��Currently, we have no means to figure out how powerful the cultivators from other universes are. We don��t even know how they cultivate. However, the end goal of our cultivation should all be the same. We can only wait and see now.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head in agreement. The most important thing was to improve their abilities. Instead of panicking, they would cross the bridge when they came to it.


    ��What exactly is the end goal of cultivation?�� Ye Futian mumbled. ��Is it to rule over the Heavenly Path?��


    ��You might need to go seek answers. Currently, you are the person who is closest to the Heavenly Path,�� Donghuang the Great said to Ye Futian. Ye Futian established the Micro Heavenly Path after merging the Heavenly Path World she left behind. Therefore, in a sense, Ye Futian was the person closest to it.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded. He then asked, ��Father, how is the situation in the outside world now? Are there any abnormal movements in the Human Realm?��


    ��Nope.�� Donghuang the Great shook his head and said, ��All is quiet. Perhaps this is the calm before the storm. Last time, the Human Ancestor assigned nine Great Emperors to attack us. One of them was even a Divine Great Emperor. The Human Ancestor didn��t even bat an eyelid when sacrificing a cultivator at that level; we can imagine the kind of manpower he possesses based on this. After his failure last time, his next attack will most likely be even more astonishing.��


    Donghuang the Great added, ��Of course, it might be that the Human Ancestor himself is also waiting for something. There might be things that he has yet to accomplish. Otherwise, he would have already attacked.��


    Ye Futian nodded his head. He also agreed with his father��s perspective. The Human Ancestor had extreme power at his fingertips. However, he could not utilize it yet. He was similarly waiting for the right moment. He might have unfinished business.


    ��Father, I wish to venture outside,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Where are you planning to go?�� Donghuang the Great asked.


    ��I do not know,�� replied Ye Futian as he shook his head. ��I wish to wander around and maybe visit Spirit Mountain. The Buddhist scriptures are broad and profound. Back in the day, I couldn��t understand many manuscripts. I might be able to have a different understanding of them if I try again now.��


    ��Go then,�� said Donghuang the Great as he nodded his head. ��I will look over this place on your behalf.��


    With Ye Futian��s current cultivation plane, he did not need to worry about anything. There was probably no one in the world who could kill Ye Futian single-handedly aside from the person who had killed her back then.


    Ye Futian left the ninety-nine heavens. He had reached a bottleneck in his cultivation. He wanted to figure out what the end goal of cultivation was!

 Chapter 2900 - Buddhist Doctrine

    After Ye Futian left the Heaven Realm, he went to the Original Realm. In the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, he came to the lowest level��the Nine States.


    He came to an academy and heard the sound of students reciting. He saw youths cultivating. They were studying their cultivation techniques diligently. All of this was truly important. Now that Ye Futian had reached his current cultivation plane, he finally understood that everything was the Way; all cultivation techniques eventually led to the same end goal.


    Since there existed other universes, were the cultivation techniques between these universes the same?


    In this world, the people here began their cultivation with their Life Spirits. Possessing a Life Spirit was the true symbol of talent. It meant that one had the potential to advance their cultivation further. Otherwise, they would only be able to cultivate simple spells and techniques. Did the other universes have different forms of cultivation?


    For instance, if this world had Life Spirits, did other universes cultivate fighting spirits and use the world around them as their martial arts spirits?


    Or might it be that they used the stars and planets as the foundation of their cultivation and forged Star Spirits?


    Everything was possible. All Paths were connected.


    The starting point of cultivation was not so important. They might all be heading towards the same end goal.


    However, what was the end goal?


    Ye Futian traveled across the continent. As he passed by, he saw smoke coming from a village in the distance.


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    He walked up to a cliff and saw the waves of the sea roaring in the wake of the setting sun.


    The tides ebbed and flowed. The sun and moon rose and set. This was the natural order of things. As for cultivation, once one mastered a natural law of order, they would acquire a Way.


    Now that he had reached this point, he had to go even further and reach even higher peaks. What would the view look like from there?


    Would he control life, death, and reincarnation?


    Or would he master the flow of time?


    Or would he end up like his father, who cultivated Revelation Divine Power? Would the end goal of cultivation be the void?


    Ye Futian stood there for a long time. Then, his body disappeared, and he left the continent instantly. For him, traveling across a vast distance was as simple as shifting his will.


    After Ye Futian left the Original Realm, he went to the Western Heaven. The concepts of benevolence and life and death similarly existed in the World of Buddhism. Various Buddhas passed down the teachings of Buddhist doctrines on Spirit Mountain, yet they were still incapable of enlightening everyone in the world.


    While Ye Futian was traversing across the space, he noticed an old friend. He shifted his will and appeared over there.


    He looked ahead and saw a youth being beaten up by a group of people. Hatred filled the eyes of the youth. His gaze was aggressive and contained murderous intent.


    A monk approached him. He glared at the monk while emanating a savage aura. However, the monk remained indifferent. He put his palms together, and his expression was solemn. He passed a copy of scripture to the youth.


    ��Are you a Buddha?�� asked the youth.


    The monk shook his head.


    ��Do you want me to lay down my hatred and resolve my grudges towards my enemies?�� asked the youth again. He was unperturbed by the appearance of any Buddha. His heart was set on revenge.


    The monk shook his head again.


    ��What do you wish to achieve?�� the youth inquired.


    The monk replied, ��This is a Buddhist scripture. You are free to comprehend anything you want from it. If you desire power, you can get it through this scripture. If you bear grudges towards what happened to you, you can take revenge on your enemies after acquiring power.��


    The youth was stunned. He became less wary of the monk. He looked at the latter with an incredulous look. He commented, ��What you said is not the way of the Buddhists.��


    ��What is the way of the Buddhists?�� the monk probed.


    The youth replied, ��Shouldn��t it be ��lay down the butcher��s knife, and we shall ascend to becoming Buddhas��?��


    ��If people with great sins are absolved of their crimes once they choose to repent, wouldn��t it be unfair to the kind people?�� the monk retorted. The youth scratched his head in confusion and replied, ��What you said sounds right.��


    The monk smiled and explained, ��Actually, the line you heard has been misinterpreted. Laying down the butcher��s knife refers to letting go of your insistence, desires, worries, and pain. Becoming Buddhas refers to abiding by the Buddhist laws.��


    ��I see.�� The youth seemed to have calmed down. He actually listened to the monk��s explanation attentively.


    ��Then, why did you ask me to seek revenge?�� the youth asked.


    The monk answered, ��Buddhists believe in the concept of cause and effect. The cause here is them beating you up. If you succeed in cultivation and seek revenge, that is the effect. However, what you do to them will become another cause for something in the future. You will then reap the effect of that cause.��


    The youth only had a hazy notion of what the monk had said. However, the monk had turned around to leave. He approached Ye Futian, bowed, and greeted, ��Greetings, Benefactor Ye.��


    ��Greetings, Master,�� Ye Futian replied while bowing.


    This monk was Bitter Zen, the caretaker of The Buddha.


    In the past, Ye Futian came to Spirit Mountain in the Western Heaven and battled with various Buddhas using Buddhist doctrine. He defeated various Buddhas, but in the end, he was defeated by Bitter Zen.


    After that, while Ye Futian was cultivating in the Western Heaven, he had many conversations with Bitter Zen. At that time, even though Bitter Zen only had 1,000 years of cultivation, he had the most vital foundation in Buddhist doctrine. From Ye Futian��s point of view, Bitter Zen was the kind of cultivator that would reach the peak of cultivation once he achieved enlightenment.


    ��Benefactor Ye is now the Heavenly Emperor. What brings you here?�� Bitter Zen asked.


    ��You once commented that I am someone who is favored by The Buddha. Hence, I have come to seek Buddhist doctrine,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    Bitter Zen nodded and said, ��I will follow you back to Spirit Mountain.��


    ��Sorry for troubling you,�� Ye Futian said while putting his palms together. Then, they left this place and headed towards Spirit Mountain.


    ��


    Spirit Mountain was the holy land in the World of Buddhism. Everything was peaceful and quiet on the mountain.


    Regardless of the battles occurring in the Outer Realms, this place remained a holy spot and was not tainted in any way.


    After Ye Futian arrived at the mountain, he first visited the various Buddhas. Then, he read the Buddhist scriptures in the library. With his current cultivation, he could remember everything he read with a single glance. He scanned each scripture with his divine consciousness, and the knowledge was stored in his brain. He did not need to flip through every single page like he used to do.


    When he left the library, Bitter Zen was sweeping outside. Seeing that he had emerged, he smiled and asked, ��Benefactor Ye, have you managed to comprehend anything?��


    ��Buddhist doctrine is broad and profound. I was merely glancing through. If I want to comprehend anything, I probably need to spend a lot of time immersed in it,�� replied Ye Futian. ��Master Bitter Zen, what is your view on time?��


    ��Time is the past, the present, and the future,�� answered Bitter Zen. ��One cannot be attached to them. All three are unattainable. All dharmas are empty after all.��


    Ye Futian knew that this saying was from Buddhist scripture.


    It meant that everything was null. What was past was past. The present moment would become the past the instant one tried to grasp it. It was the same for the future.


    ��One night��s dream can last for centuries. What is time?�� Bitter Zen continued saying. The saying meant that the dreams of men could last 100 years or even an entire lifetime. However, in reality, such a dream might only occur over a very short period.


    ��Thoughts,�� said Ye Futian.


    ��Indeed,�� replied Bitter Zen as he nodded his head. ��Without thoughts, time also ceases to exist. In Buddhism, there is the Colorless Realm, which functions on the same principle. Back in the day, Donghuang the Great also comprehended Buddhist doctrine. Merging his divine power, he discovered the Revelation Divine Power. The extreme limits of Revelation are the void. The void is the absence of thoughts.��


    Ye Futian nodded. He bowed towards Bitter Zen and said, ��Thank you, Master, for your advice.��


    ��It is easier said than done. Both of us have read Buddhist doctrine, but it is not easy to comprehend them,�� said Bitter Zen.


    Ye Futian nodded his head knowingly. If one could comprehend something simply by knowing it, then everyone in the world would reach the end goal of cultivation!

 Chapter 2901 - What Is the End?

    After Ye Futian and Bitter Zen had their exchange, the former comprehended and cultivated on Spirit Mountain for a while longer. He also met with other Buddha Lords to discuss Buddhist doctrine.


    Buddhism sought emptiness. Everything was empty. They believed that frustration and suffering did not exist. Time and space also did not exist. Everything was born from thoughts. The goal of cultivating Buddhist doctrine was to sever these thoughts and reach enlightenment.


    Buddhist doctrine trained the heart. The end goal of its cultivation was to be freed from life, death, and reincarnation, to no longer suffer in the Six Paths of Reincarnation and achieve detachment.


    This was where Buddhist doctrine differed from the cultivations of other worlds. Other cultivators sought the Heavenly Path and cultivated to be one with the heavens. Their end goal was to one with the Heavenly Path.


    However, since the Great Paths were all connected, then what was beyond the higher planes of cultivation?


    Ye Futian left Spirit Mountain after cultivating there for several days. He continued to travel the world and went to many places. He returned to the Divine Prefecture and came to the Four Corner Continent in the Shangqing Domain.


    The current Four Corner Continent was no longer what it used to be. It was prosperous, especially Four Corner City, which had multitudes of cultivators. All of this stemmed from Four Corner Village, which had a Master who was a Great Emperor.


    Aside from Master, Ye Futian also emerged from Four Corner Village. In a way, Ye Futian was the village��s spokesperson in the outside world.


    Such a place naturally drew countless cultivators over. In the Shangqing Domain, the status of Four Corner Village had long surpassed that of the Domain Chief��s Manor. It was designated as a holy land.


    Right then, Ye Futian appeared outside of Four Corner Village. He had not been back for a long time.


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    Now that he had returned, Ye Futian vaguely felt that the village was different.


    There were no changes to the village. He was the one who had changed. His cultivation plane was far superior to that back in the day. He naturally could sense more things now. He faintly felt that there was a mysterious power in the village.


    It seemed to be the Power of Time.


    What is going on? thought Ye Futian as he revealed an incredulous look. This was something he could not detect before. Now, he could sense it, but he still could not figure out its secrets.


    Before he started his journey, when he said that he wanted to travel around, his father Donghuang the Great told him to visit Master in Four Corner Village when he had the time. Ye Futian himself had also wanted to pay Master a visit. Given that his father had brought it up, he did just that.


    Ye Futian had always been aware that Master was not an ordinary person.


    The latter did not concern himself with the affairs of the world and stayed in seclusion in the village. He did not participate in worldly struggles. No one in the outside world knew that Master was a Great Emperor before Ye Futian did. Master had also never revealed his abilities. Even the villagers did not know his identity.


    Otherwise, the Muyun family would not have betrayed Four Corner Village, and Muyun Long would not have dreamed of seizing power from Master. In hindsight, their attempts were laughable. Master would not have paid heed to any of this.


    However, Ye Futian was somewhat curious. Back when Master taught his father Donghuang the Great, what sort of person was the former?


    Until now, he had yet to figure this out.


    Ye Futian was overwhelmed with thoughts as his mind was filled with doubt. He stepped into the village once again.


    Upon entering Four Corner Village, Ye Futian sensed that something was different. He could feel the faint presence of the Power of Space in the village even more clearly. This was something that he was unable to detect in the past.


    The cultivators in the village had all left together with Ye Futian. Currently, the members left behind in the village were all ordinary folk. However, they still recognized Ye Futian. Many people smiled and greeted him.


    Ye Futian returned their greetings. Of course, there were many other incredible people in the village.


    This was especially so in the private school where Master was. Master still taught the children of the village. However, he did not teach them cultivation.


    The children of the village revealed curious looks when they saw Ye Futian outside the private school.


    Ye Futian smiled as he watched them. It was as though he was looking at Fang Cun, Little Ling, and the others when they were younger. Back then, they were also just children.


    ��Master,�� greeted Ye Futian from outside as he bowed slightly.


    ��Come on in,�� said Master. Ye Futian entered the private school and saw him sitting there.


    When Ye Futian��s gaze landed on Master, he found it hard to stay calm. Many things that he could not see clearly back in the day were visible now.


    Master waved his hand, and the surrounding space turned exceptionally quiet. Master had an otherworldly temperament as he looked at Ye Futian with a smile. His expression was peaceful.


    ��What��s the matter? Are you surprised?�� Master asked calmly.


    ��Somewhat,�� Ye Futian answered while nodding his head. He would never have guessed that Master was not a living being. Master also existed in this world with another form.


    No wonder Master was restricted in terms of his power and movements. Now Ye Futian finally understood the reason behind it.


    ��Is there any difference?�� Master asked Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian was stunned. He was at a loss for words.


    Master was right. What difference did it make?


    Since both living beings and non-living beings existed in this world, did it matter for them to be either one?


    What was the difference between someone with flesh and someone who did not have any?


    Their bodies were but insignificant shells for cultivators who reached high levels like Ye Futian.


    Master said, ��You are already the Heavenly Emperor. It would help if you were not so polite. Have a seat.��


    Ye Futian sat cross-legged in front of Master. He said, ��I will always be a disciple and a junior in front of you.��


    ��It��s the thought that counts,�� Master replied while nodding.


    ��Master, are you a cultivator from ancient times as well?�� Ye Futian asked curiously. ��I have known you for many years and have always been calling you Master. I still have no idea what your name is.��


    ��I am considered a cultivator from ancient times,�� Master responded. ��My Daoist name is Mufeng.��


    Ye Futian made a mental note of Master��s name. Then, he asked again, ��Master, you have cultivated for eons. You are knowledgeable. What��s your opinion about the end goal of cultivation?��


    ��The end goal of cultivation,�� Master mumbled, seemingly pondering about this question. Then, he said, ��Perhaps the end goal is different for everyone. I also do not know what the true end goal of cultivation is.��


    ��If someone becomes the Heavenly Path, could that person be considered to have reached the end goal of cultivation?�� Ye Futian further inquired.


    ��If the person merely transforms into the Heavenly Path, I think it cannot be considered as having attained the end goal,�� Master answered.


    ��Thank you for the pointers,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Your father Donghuang the Great cultivated Revelation Divine Power. The end goal of Revelation is the void. Can nothingness be considered an end?�� asked Master. ��Everything in the world is material. If someone manages to control everything with shape and form in the world, is that the end? The world still has countless spirits and wills formed from energy. If someone were to control all of the energy in the world, would that be the end?��


    ��No one knows what the end is and whether we can even reach it,�� lamented Master. ��I have also been contemplating this. This world is endlessly vast, and yet there are existences from other universes. Are there people who can traverse the different universes at will? If such people do exist, I wonder whether they can be considered to have reached the end of space.��


    Master continued, ��There is also time. Have you ever considered that if everything in the world can be controlled through cultivation, is it also the same for time? When people say that the past and future are unattainable, is it just because our cultivation planes are insufficient to achieve it? If we are powerful enough, could time be just a line, and we can travel along with it as we please?��


    Ye Futian was somewhat astonished. He had never considered this before. If one could travel along the timeline at will, wouldn��t that be the same as controlling the past and the future?


    If so, what was the end?

 Chapter 2902 - A Peaceful World

    Ye Futian looked at Master. He faintly sensed that Master might be a cultivator who comprehended the Law of Time.


    Even though Master was an ethereal existence, Ye Futian still believed that this did not prevent him from comprehending the Path and cultivating. He merely faced some restrictions. Master might have been comprehending the Path here, awaiting the day he managed to reach enlightenment.


    ��Master, have you reached such a level?�� asked Ye Futian.


    After comprehending the Law of Time, Ye Futian believed that altering the speed of the flow of time was already a powerful application of said law. From the looks of it now, his understanding was still too shallow, and his imagination was not bold enough yet.


    Just as Master said, if one cultivated and reached such a plane that they could see the timeline, they could see the past and the future.


    If one could travel along this timeline, they could change the past and the future as they pleased. What level of power would that be?


    At least for now, Ye Futian could not imagine it.


    ��If there is truly a timeline and we can travel to the past and future, is it possible for two versions of myself to exist at the same time? If not, how would the situation be?�� mumbled Ye Futian to himself. Could the current him travel to the past? If he did so, would there be two versions of himself?


    ��Me?�� Master appeared calm. He said, ��What I have merely scratched the tip of the iceberg.��


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and did not inquire further. When Master said the tip of the iceberg, he wondered exactly how large the tip was.


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    Had Master managed to peer into the secrets of Time?


    However, since Master was a mysterious person, it was futile for Ye Futian to inquire further if he chose not to reveal anything.


    ��Many people claim that the world will soon experience a major tribulation. I hope Master can give me some pointers regarding this issue,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Since what is about to happen is a tribulation, it is inevitable. No one can stay out of it. Especially since you are prone to tribulations, you can��t run away from it. However, you can change yourself and face it with poise,�� Master explained. ��What you have been talking about is all well and good. However, the heavens and the earth are undergoing huge changes now. The Ancient Emperors have been summoned back. They were supposed to have perished during the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Their return implies that someone has mastered the power to bring them back. You need to be careful.��


    After the collapse of the Heavenly Path, there was a world-destroying catastrophe. The more powerful one��s cultivation was, the harder it was to escape that calamity. The various gods perished. Some managed to escape this universe. Many Great Emperors existed in other forms in this world.


    They were no longer living beings but spirits and wills. However, they were now being summoned back. That meant that the Human Ancestor might possess an unparalleled power.


    Hence, Master cautioned him to be wary.


    ��Thank you, Master.�� Ye Futian said while nodding.


    ��Go and cultivate. There is not much time left,�� advised Master.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian nodded. Master��s advice might be a warning as well.


    From the looks of it, the tribulation was just around the corner. There was not much time left.


    However, time passed 81 times faster in Ye Futian��s world. Therefore, he and his team had a little more time than others to make preparations. Ye Futian hoped that the arrival of the tribulation could be delayed as much as possible.


    If the tribulation happened one year from now, it meant that he had 81 years in his world to cultivate. Aside from him, everyone else in his world of the Micro Heavenly Path would benefit from this period of preparation too. They would gradually become Great Emperors. Nevertheless, the arrival of the tribulation would still be determined by the Supreme Beings, the existences who stood at the peak.


    Therefore, there was an urgency for Ye Futian to further improve his abilities.


    Ye Futian bid Master farewell and left Four Corner Village. He then returned to his world in the ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm.


    ��


    After returning to the ninety-nine heavens, Ye Futian went to see Donghuang the Great.


    ��Futian, how was your trip?�� Donghuang the Great asked.


    ��I went to the Lower Worlds. I also visited the World of Buddhism and Master,�� Ye Futian reported. ��Father, please invite the members of the Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture and the cultivators from the World of Buddhism to cultivate in this Small World. Besides that, both parties are welcomed to elect some of their members to cultivate inside my world of the Micro Heavenly Path.��


    On top of improving his abilities, Ye Futian also wished to strengthen the overall ability of his allies.


    ��Hmm.�� Donghuang the Great nodded in agreement. ��You can focus on cultivating for now. I will take care of the rest.��


    Currently, the Heavenly Palace and Ye Imperial Palace, led by the Heaven Realm, the Imperial Palace in the Divine Prefecture, and the forces in Spirit Mountain were all allies. Considering the current situation, they would naturally unite to form a greater power. They would improve together so that they were better prepared for the upcoming tribulation.


    No one knew how things would be when the tribulation befell them. Ye Futian had sent some items to the Devil World and the Dark World. He did not expect these two forces to side with him, but he still sent them treasures anyway because he wanted to help Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao with their cultivation.


    He was confident that, at the very least, Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao would side with him.


    Even though the Devil Emperor had significant influence over Yu Sheng, Ye Futian believed his relationship with the latter was stronger. Regardless of what happened, they could always trust each other.


    After making all these arrangements, Ye Futian entered the ninety-nine heavens and cultivated in seclusion. He was getting ready for the upcoming tribulation.


    ��


    While Ye Futian and the others were cultivating in the ninety-nine heavens, they did not sever their connections with the Outer Realms. Moreover, he had sent some treasures of Time to the Devil World and the Dark World. Therefore, the news of Ye Futian comprehending the Law of Time was no longer a secret. Soon, a rumor was widespread-


    1


    Ye Futian, the current Heavenly Emperor, had attained perfection in his cultivation. He had proven his Way at the Imperial Realm and had inherited the mantle of the Heavenly Emperor. He controlled the Law of Time and could rewrite time itself.


    This news was undoubtedly shocking to many. How terrifying would a cultivator who controlled the Law of Time and could change the speed of time be? It meant that he essentially had an infinite amount of time for cultivation. A year of cultivation for the others might mean 100 years of cultivation for him.


    After catching wind of this news, many cultivators wanted to cultivate in the ninety-nine heavens again. However, the gates of the ninety-nine heavens were already closed. The Heavenly Imperial Palace had stopped recruiting cultivators. The Heaven Realm would focus on increasing the quality instead of quantity of their troops moving forward.


    This news was bad news for the Human Realm. If Ye Futian could change time, it meant that the Heaven Realm was growing stronger by the minute. The need to eradicate the Heaven Realm was even more dire now. The upcoming war was inevitable.


    The Seven Realms enjoyed a period of peace. A gigantic storm was brewing. Everyone could sense the undercurrent. They were well-aware that once the storm erupted, it would turn the entire world upside down.


    At the same time, the passageway located in the Ruins Continent of the Original Realm was often opened up. More and more cultivators arrived in this world. Perhaps, things went just like Ye Futian speculated. The location of their universe had been exposed, so the cultivators from other universes had come seeking opportunities.


    The seven Great Emperors, whom Ye Futian killed before this, might have been the trailblazers for a super force. Otherwise, it would be hard to explain why all seven of them cultivated the same power. All of them used the Power of Judgment.


    As of now, no one could tell how the future would be!

 Chapter 2903 - The Day That Changed History

    The Human Realm was prosperous.


    Because of the Human Ancestor, the Human Realm had the strongest lineup of cultivators in the Seven Realms.


    The Human Ancestor was the God during the Age of the Gods. After the Collapse of the Heavenly Path and catastrophe hit the world, he was revered as the progenitor of human beings. The revival of humankind and the creation of the power of Divine-Human were among the list of his feats. He believed a man could defeat a god, and if one were powerful enough, they would become a god themselves.


    The Human Ancestor had been ruling the order of the Human Realm and teaching them the way of cultivation, causing humanity to thrive. The cultivators of the Human Realm had been revering him as their God. He was the faith of the Human Realm and was extolled by his people.


    Yet, rumors had been circulating everywhere lately, saying that the Human Ancestor was overly ambitious and that he desired to control the entire Seven Realms and topple the Heavenly Path to take its place.


    Nevertheless, cultivators from different realms had distinct opinions. The Human Ancestor was the faith of the cultivators of the Human Realm as they regarded him as their God. If he were to reign over Seven Realms and control the order of the world, they would be glad to see it happen.


    Perhaps that was the right track for them.


    In fact, their people had been waiting for the day when the Human Ancestor would rule the world, control the world order, and restore justice for the Human Realm.


    The Human Realm was filled with countless continents. Each of the continents was home to many cultivators of different cultivation levels. It was a big world.


    At that time, many cultivators from several continents raised their heads after sensing some unusual activity in the sky. The odd feeling of an imminent threat gradually became stronger. Without warning, rays of Divine Light beamed from the sky. It was dazzling and blinding to the eyes of the onlookers.


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    ��What is going on?��


    No matter where they were looking from at that moment, everyone saw the same scene that played out. After lifting their heads to glance at the sky, they were all taken aback.


    What was that? Did something happen to the world?


    Following the glaring light, Divine Sound could be heard echoing across the vast sky with its solemn resonance.


    Right then, the world saw the sky split open. From the other side of the opening, silhouettes of Divine Humans descended from high altitude and came into the sight of the masses.


    Divine Light circulated the figures of the Divine Humans, making them appear majestic and esteemed.


    ��They��re Gods!�� The hearts of the multitude of cultivators across the great continents were pounding like mad. They were rooted to the spot by the visual impact.


    It was not just a God, but multiple Gods who showed up simultaneously.


    Where did these Gods even come from?


    There was an uproar throughout the entire Human Realm. The people there were taken aback upon seeing the Gods that appeared out of nowhere in the sky.


    Rumor had it that the Human Ancestor had many Great Emperor level Tianshen under his command. Yet, they had never expected him to be in charge of an army of the Gods��a terrifying sight to behold.


    Furthermore, these Gods seemed to be dwelling at a different altitude.


    All of a sudden, a humongous countenance appeared in the sky. That face covered every corner of the Human Realm as if it was the sky. So, everyone could see it clearly.


    ��Your Majesty!��


    ��Your Majesty!��


    Similar voices reverberated across the entire Human Realm. The same greeting could be heard from every corner of the boundless continents, causing the atmosphere to tremble.


    Needless to say, that countenance belonged to the Human Ancestor.


    Many cultivators became frenzied after recovering from their shock. Was the Human Ancestor prepared to rule the world with his army of the Gods?


    The crowd instantly turned zealous and delirious at the sight of it as if they had been waiting for this day to come.


    The Human Realm would rule the world and become the supreme of Seven Realms.


    ��All these years, I��ve been ruling the order of the Human Realm and improving the way of cultivation in this realm. Then, I discovered the predecessor gods from the Battle of the Gods and tried to help them make a comeback to revive the glory days of the Age of the Gods. And now, I��ve made it!��


    His voice traveled across the entire realm. Everyone in the Human Realm could hear him vividly.


    These Tianshen were gods from the Age of the Gods during ancient times. They were revived by the Human Ancestor and made their resurgence.


    What a fantastic achievement!


    A new chapter of history was unfolded through the feat of the Human Ancestor. It was unprecedented and would never happen again. Such an incredible accomplishment would surely be magnified and extolled for many generations to come as the holiest commemoration.


    ��I��ve seen the Apocalypse of the Gods and the Tribulation of the Heavens with these eyes. Since then, I��ve been working toward restoring the world order and reviving the golden age of ancient times. As of now, some people are actively destroying the world order. First of all, Ji Wudao wished to seize control of the heavens. Then, Donghuang the Great allied with some other individuals. As it stands, we need to restore peace to the world. Today, I shall exact justice from those who polluted the world with their wickedness. By doing this, we will unite the world and restore order.��


    The voice of the Human Ancestor resounded through the Nine Heavens until every corner of the realm. In his short message, he raised the morale of his people to fight for the cause of the Human Realm.


    The people in that realm were burning with zeal as they looked forward to the day it happened: a united Great Path and the world.


    ��I��ll let bygones be bygones! Now, those who are willing to create a new order may fight by our side! But those who dare to defy us, we will have no choice but to eliminate them!�� The Human Ancestor went on, ��The Human Realm has been raising troops and building up forces for years now! I do not wish to start a war, but someone has to rectify the world! Today I��ll lead the troops of the Human Realm for a crusade! Those who are willing to fight with us should be prepared for war at any time!��


    ��Yes, Your Highness!�� Countless cultivators on the vast continents bowed as they received the decree from the Human Ancestor.


    They were willing to fight for the order of the Human Realm.


    The Human Ancestor would lead them to conquer and rule over Seven Realms.


    The forces of Seven Realms received the news of the commotion of the Human Realm firsthand. Tumults broke out at the Imperial Palaces that received the information the earliest.


    The people in the Divine Prefecture, Western Heaven World of Buddhism, Heavenly Realm, Empty Divine Realm, the Dark World, and the Devil World were shocked upon hearing that. Soon, everyone began their preparation work.


    How would the Human Ancestor start the war?


    Would he lead the mighty cultivators of the Human Realm by himself for his expedition?


    Besides, the Human Ancestor had already revived the ancient gods. Who in the world could stand against the Human Ancestor?


    On the Spirit Mountain of Western Heaven World of Buddhism, the pantheon of Buddhas looked dignified as the Light of Buddha radiated the entire place. After raising their heads to look in a faraway direction, they put their hands together and recited the Buddhist Sutra in unison.


    While Dark Lord stared at the sky in Dark World, a spine-chilling Dark Storm blustered violently, as if the Tribulation of Darkness was about to manifest.


    Devil Emperor peered at Devil Abyss from Devil World. For some reason, Devil Abyss became unrest as though it was a premonition of imminent disaster.


    How terrifying was the ancient Army of Tianshen?


    The Devil World, Dark World, Heavenly Realm, Divine Prefecture, and World of Buddhism. Which of them would rise to the top?


    A worldwide calamity was about to unfold. Yet, no one had expected the Human Ancestor, the wielder of the Sword of Justice and believer of humanity��s righteousness, to be the war instigator.


    The Devil Emperor stared at the Devil Abyss in contemplation. Truthfully, they were not fully prepared yet. But who would��ve thought that the Human Ancestor would be one step ahead of them in completing his mission and starting a war that would get them involved?


    How would this worldwide catastrophe turn out to be?


    This day would become a pivotal moment in history.


    The people of future generations would remember this day as the prologue to a brand new era.

 Chapter 2904 - Deterrence

    The sky above the entrance area of the Dark Court trembled all of a sudden. At the same time, rays of crimson Divine Lights beamed across the firmament.


    The cultivators of Dark Court immediately looked up into the sky with their hearts pounding like mad. What had just happened?


    Everyone inside the court felt a suffocating God��s Might pressurizing them.


    Boom! The sky was split open after a loud bang was heard.


    Countless silhouettes of Tianshen showed up in the sky the next moment. Each of them emanated formidable Emperor��s Might from their physical bodies.


    The governing entity of the Dark World, Dark Court, was quivering. Colors drained from the faces of the cultivators in the court after seeing the lineup in the sky.


    Was that the Tianshen Army?


    Staring at the peak of Dark Court, they saw a destructive Dark Divine Light radiating before a silhouette in a mask appeared, giving off a mysterious vibe. Yet, the aura unleashed by that individual was hair-raising.


    ��Is the Human Ancestor not coming?�� she asked indifferently in an aloof tone.


    Who would��ve thought that the commander of the Tianshen Army was just the direct disciple of the Human Ancestor, Di Hao? Despite that, he was just a successor to Human Realm in name only. What could he expect to inherit from an ambitious man like the Human Ancestor?


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    No matter what, Di Hao would always be beneath the Human Ancestor.


    ��I��m here,�� the Human Ancestor��s voice could be heard saying that. The countenance of the Human Ancestor was seen in the sky, but it was not his main body.


    ��The Dark Sovereign, you��ve brought darkness to the world ever since you ruled the Dark World. By right, I should��ve wiped out the darkness with the Sword of Justice. But I��m willing to grant you a second chance, provided that you lead the army of the Dark World to strike the alliance of the Heavenly Realm and Divine Prefecture,�� the Human Ancestor said with a condescending tone, as if he was the monarch of the world, giving the Dark Sovereign a chance to redeem herself.


    The Dark Sovereign loathed the owner of the face she was starting at. For the longest time, she had detested people who were holier than thou. She was disgusted by hypocrites more than she was by petty people.


    The Human Ancestor was the quintessence of a hypocrite.


    He reminded her of a detestable person. It seemed that there were many similarities between the two of them.


    The Human Ancestor deemed himself the righteousness of humanity. But was he a righteous person?


    ��What if I say no?�� the Dark Sovereign replied.


    ��This world has been filled with darkness. If one were too obstinate to repent from their evil ways, there would be no reason for this realm to exist. The human Realm shall lead its army to invade this sinful world and cleanse it from every ounce of darkness. I��m afraid the future will not look bright for the cultivators of Dark Court, including the Dark Sovereign herself,�� the Human Ancestor declared with the means to threaten them.


    If the Dark Sovereign were to refuse, he would lead his army to massacre all of them.


    ��I know what you��re worried about. But suppose you��re willing to turn over a new leaf, uphold the integrity of humanity, and deploy your troops to the Divine Prefecture and Heavenly Realm. In that case, I will overlook the past and grant you a place in this world,�� Human Ancestor went on. Naturally, he was referring to when he attempted to finish off the Dark Sovereign.


    Right after he spoke, the atmosphere was instantly filled with the Might of all the Tianshen that spanned across the entire Dark Court. It was almost like they would immediately eliminate the forces of Dark Court if the Dark Sovereign were to reject the offer. Should things turn out that way, could the cultivators of the Dark Court fend off the enemies?


    The look of the Dark Sovereign��s eyes behind her mask was gloomy. She knew the Human Ancestor was pulling her leg. If she were to decline, he would probably order his armies to obliterate the Dark Court and send another troop to invade the Dark World.


    If the Human Ancestor were to colonize the Dark World, would it be the world she wanted?


    The answer was obviously no. The Human Ancestor was a man of hypocrisy who boasted about being the righteousness of humanity. The Human Realm was a realm full of pretense and deception, so it was not a world she wanted to see.


    ��Okay, I agree,�� the Dark Sovereign answered. The cultivators of the Dark Court let out a sigh of relief upon hearing that.


    They were afraid that the Dark Sovereign might reject the offer. If she did, they would be the first ones to be eliminated.


    If the Gods were to launch a full-scale invasion, it would spell doom for the Dark Court. None of them would escape certain death even if they reached the Great Emperor Plane.


    There were ancient Great Emperors among the lineup of the Tianshen Army. How could they even hope to survive that?


    ��Good. I��ll update you when it��s time,�� the Human Ancestor uttered. With that, an overwhelming aura flooded the atmosphere before the Tianshen Army disappeared from the Dark Court.


    ��


    When the Tianshen Army showed up in the Dark World, the same thing happened in the Empty Divine Realm and Devil World as well.


    The demon cloud above the sky of Devil Imperial Palace was blasting uncontrollably. The power of Devil Abyss dropped like a weight on everyone��s head.


    When the Tianshen Army arrived there, they raised their heads to look at the Devil Abyss, a primeval prison that remained intact until now, even after the Collapse of the Heavenly Path.


    The face of the Human Ancestor was formed in the sky while unleashing his Might toward the Devil Imperial Palace.


    All the Devil Overlords who resided inside the Devil Imperial Palace glared in the same direction with a sharp and domineering look. The appearance of the Tianshen Army did not scare them even a bit.


    ��Devil Emperor!�� the Human Ancestor piped with a deafening voice.


    ��State your business!�� said an icy and disdainful voice from the inside of Demon God Palace. Even though the Tianshen Army was before him, the Devil Emperor��s tone remained peerlessly condescending.


    ��I wish to ally with you,�� the Human Ancestor said.


    ��I��m not interested!�� the Devil Emperor replied without showing his face at all.


    At that, the Human Ancestor furrowed his brows in displeasure. It was apparent that things played out differently here than in other locations. Nonetheless, it was how the Devil Emperor would typically behave. So, he brushed it off.


    ��After I��ve conquered the Divine Prefecture and the Heavenly Realm, the cultivators of Devil World can leave this prison. By then, the order of the world will be altered radically. And I will surely not mistreat you,�� the Human Ancestor added.


    ��We will take care of our own matters!�� The silhouette of the Evil Emperor could be seen standing in Demon God Palace. ��Who are you working for?��


    ��I am who I am! I do not work for anyone!�� Scowling at Devil Emperor, the Human Ancestor remarked, ��I��m afraid things won��t go your way this time!��


    After he was done talking, the Might of Tianshen filled the entire Devil Imperial Palace.


    Shooting a glance at the army of Great Emperors, the Devil Emperor commented, ��I��ve never thought that I��d see the Gods of ancient times in flesh! If you want to start a war, I can give you that! You��ve seen with your eyes the power of the Heavenly Path! And now, you shall taste the might of Devil Abyss!��


    It went without saying that the Devil Emperor of the Devil World was a fearless man.

 Chapter 2905 - War Is Coming

    The Human Ancestor went silent for a while after hearing that. The power of the Devil Abyss, he said?


    Did he master the Will of Devil Emperor already? Could he command the power of the Devil Abyss?


    The Devil Abyss was the tribulation during the creation of the world. It was brimming with unimaginable world-destroying power. Back then, the Demonic Lord used the Devil Abyss to cause great destruction. Although the Heavenly Path suppressed him, the Devil Abyss had torn up the latter as well, causing irreversible cracks to form. After the Battle of the Gods, the Collapse of the Heavenly Path happened, and it rained down the Great Tribulation of Apocalypse.


    That calamity did not consist of only the Heavenly Path��s power.


    Therefore, the Human Ancestor would have to be cautious of Devil Emperor if the latter could command the power of Devil Abyss.


    The Tianshen Army raised their heads and sensed the might of the Devil Abyss. Suddenly, a powerful cultivator from ancient times declared, ��According to legends, the Devil Abyss had existed with the Heavenly Path, and it can destroy the latter. But I��m not sure if this is true.��


    Regardless of the truth, the Devil Abyss had existed until that day while the Heavenly Path had collapsed a long time ago.


    ��Anyone wants a taste of it?�� the Devil Emperor taunted as he stood there gallantly, staring at the ancient cultivator. Even though the man was facing an army of Tianshen, he remained haughty as if he was above everyone else.


    ��Devil Emperor, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Are you willing to be stuck in the Devil Abyss and let the whole Devil World suffer with you forever?�� the Human Ancestor incited, ��This war will be the biggest one the world has yet to see since the collapse of the Heavenly Path. After that, I will reset the Heavenly Law and reform everything. If you did not participate in this war, all the work you had been doing all these years would be wasted. In the end, the Devil World will remain the same. Nothing will change.��


    ��Thanks for your concern, Human Ancestor,�� the Devil Emperor replied.


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    Peering at the Devil Emperor, the Human Ancestor added, ��When everything is over, I shall carry out the Heavenly Law. Does the Devil World wish to be an independent territory?��


    An immense pressure permeated the place when the Human Ancestor spoke. The Devil Emperor glared at him, knowing that the former was hiding a greater power.


    ��The Devil World will decide for itself whether it will participate in the war or not. We will be the ones to plan for the when and the how as well. We will not be coerced into fighting your war,�� the Devil Emperor declared in a cold tone. ��The Devil World will never submit to anyone!��


    Even if the Human Ancestor were to seize control of the Heavenly Law, the Devil World would never yield to anyone.


    Back then, the people of the Devil World were imprisoned in the Devil Abyss, and they did not bow down to the Heavenly Path. Instead, the Demonic Lord had led a hundred million of his subjects and resisted the Heavenly Path until it became the Batte of Heavenly Laws.


    So, he could not afford to end the legacy of his ancestors by being an embarrassment.


    Previously, he had taken part in the Battle of the Six Great Emperors because the Human Ancestor had invited him. Each of them had their agendas and were only using one another. However, things were different this time.


    The Human Ancestor did not extend an invitation but blackmailed him with Tianshen Army to join the war. If he participated in it, it would be the same as giving in to that man. It was like he had to do the Human Ancestor��s bidding. So, they were two different stories.


    If that were to happen, the Devil World would never be the same anymore.


    So, they would only use their way to fight this war.


    ��Good!�� the Human Ancestor glared at the Devil Emperor and uttered. Although he wanted to lay siege to the Devil World immediately and annihilate the Devil Imperial Palace, he was still cautious about the Devil Abyss. If the Devil Emperor could command the power of the Devil Abyss and summon it, it would be disastrous.


    At this point, he did not take any unnecessary risks.


    Having decided what to do, he would first wipe out the forces of the Divine Prefecture and Heavenly Realm, including the baldies of the World of Buddhism, then he would only return to settle the score with the Devil World. By then, he could order the cultivators of the Dark World and Empty Divine Realm to raid this place.


    Then he could finally conquer the whole world and make every being in this world his subject. The most fulfilling achievement would be ruling over the Heavenly Law.


    With that, the Human Ancestor left the Devil Imperial Palace with his army and did not dare to launch an attack.


    As they went away, the Devil Emperor stood upright while watching their silhouettes disappear slowly.


    A great disaster was about to take place. This time, then Human Ancestor threatened the Seven Realms. Not only did he come here, but he had also gone to the Empty Divine Realm and the Dark World to start this war.


    The scale of this war would be the largest since the Collapse of the Heavenly Path. It would be a fight to take over the Heavenly Path.


    The Human Ancestor must have been fully prepared so that he would start a war so brazenly. This was something that had never happened before.


    Who would be the last one standing in this global catastrophe?


    The Devil World could not escape the Human Ancestor forever. So, what kind of tribulation would he be facing this time?


    ��


    When Human Ancestor headed to the Devil World, Dark World, and Empty Divine Realm, the people in the Heavenly Realm received the news of it relatively fast.


    Right then, Donghuang the Great and Ye Futian announced to the public about the fast-approaching war in Heavenly Realm and Divine Prefecture. They also urged weaker cultivators to look for a place to hide or seek shelter in the Gods�� Ruins Continent through a space passage.


    In the World of Buddhism, Buddha Lord informed the citizens of Western Heaven about the imminent danger as well.


    They did not encourage the common people to enlist in the war because it did not belong to low-level cultivators.


    The entire Seven Realms was shaken by the sudden news. Just like everyone had predicted, the moment of peace earlier was the calm before the storm.


    But the storm had arrived, and it would devastate every corner of the Seven Realms.


    Ye Futian, Donghuang the Great, and the others were gathered in the ninety-nine heavens of the Heavenly Realm.


    ��The Dark World and Empty Divine Realm will be joining Human Realm in the war. However, the Devil Emperor had refused the Human Ancestor��s offer,�� Donghuang the Great announced. Even in different realms, he had his way of gathering information.


    Needless to say, it would not be a secret since the Human Ancestor carried out his operation in a flashy way. It was relatively easy to hear about this since many people had seen it.


    ��Didn��t the Human Ancestor launch attack in Devil World?�� Ye Futian asked as he already knew about Tianshen Army��s revival. A significant number of Great Emperors had made their comeback since the Collapse of the Heavenly Path. And all of them were working under Human Ancestor to fight in his war.


    ��It has to be Devil Abyss,�� Donghuang the Great answered, ��Devil World has Devil Abyss, an ancient tribulation capable of destroying the whole world. If the Devil Emperor were to threaten the Human Ancestor with the Devil Abyss, even the latter would have to be prudent with his actions.��


    At that, Ye Futian nodded. Was the Devil Abyss such a terrifying force? If that were the case, the tribulation that he had gone through back then must be the most common.


    ��The cultivators of the Human Realm, Dark World, and Empty Divine Realm have arrived at the borders of the Divine Prefecture, Heavenly Realm, and the World of Buddhism. Their troops are invading our realms continuously and preparing for the attack at any time now.�� Donghuang the Great carried on, ��Since the revival of the Gods, our forces are pale in comparison to theirs in terms of top-tier cultivators. Futian, what do you think of this situation?��


    They would be at a disadvantage in the battle between Great Emperors. Even though they had already brought a lot of time for themselves through the difference of the speed of the time flow, it was still insufficient because the numbers of Great Emperors they had were far too little in comparison.


    If one were to look at the numbers alone, they would be at an absolute disadvantage.


    Although they had three members among their apex combatants, Ye Futian, Donghuang the Great, and the Buddha, the enemy also had three fighters��the Human Ancestor, Evil Emperor, and Dark Sovereign.


    Furthermore, the opponent had a bunch of extraordinary Ancient Emperor-level beings among their lineup. Those individuals must have been extremely powerful as well.


    On the face of it, they did not have an advantage regardless of the aspects. Once the war started, the outcome would be catastrophic. There would only be hope for them if the Devil World were to fight alongside them.


    ��There is still good news for us. At the very least, we know that the Human Ancestor still hasn��t fully recovered,�� Ye Futian remarked. ��Or else, he would not need to go through the roundabout way like starting a war. He could��ve just executed his enemy!��

 Chapter 2906 - Respond

    Donghuang the Great nodded. It was indeed good news.


    He had a strong hunch that the Human Ancestor��the one who murdered Heavenly Emperor and ended the life of his wife��was not being himself currently. That man must not have been fully recovered yet. Otherwise, he would not have to start a full-scale war. He could have just slaughtered all of them.


    However, the enemy could not wait any longer, for he had known about the existence of the power to change the flow of time. There would be more unknown variables the longer he delayed. Hence, he started the war immediately after the revival of the Gods from ancient times.


    ��We should break up our troops,�� Ye Futian suggested all of a sudden. Donghuang the Great and the others were dumbfounded for a while before getting what he was trying to say.


    The return of the Gods pulled the distance between the number of their forces, especially when it came to the Great Emperors.


    If they were to go head-to-head with their opponents when the difference between the amount of their top-tier fighters was this huge, it would be their certain death.


    ��This is a good idea,�� Yu Tu commented, ��but we do not have much time left now.��


    He did not care about keeping up his appearances. All he wanted was to be the one who had the last laugh.


    ��I am planning to move the entire ninety-nine heavens of the Heavenly Realm into the inner world created by my Micro Heavenly Path. With that, I can always dispatch our troops to different battlefields for reinforcements. Besides, they can also focus on their cultivation while staying inside. If we could buy one year for them, it would be equal to 81 years for them,�� Ye Futian explained. What 81 years could change was almost unimaginable; it could bring about a radical transformation to everyone��s cultivation level.


    ��There won��t be a problem for Heavenly Realm and Donghuang Imperial Palace. However, the Spirit Mountain of the World of Buddhism has always been a holy land for the people of Western Heaven all this time. No matter what, we cannot afford to desecrate it. The imminent war will definitely involve the entire Seven Realms, including the World of Buddhism. While we can break up our forces, what if the enemy were to strike the Spirit Mountain? I am afraid���� Donghuang the Great had several concerns.


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    Heavenly Realm was already in ruins for some time. Things had turned for the worse after the passing of Heavenly Emperor and the transformation of the Sovereign Princess into the Path. It was only recently that the Ninety-Nine Heavens of Heavenly Realm was rebuilt. Hence, if they were to break up their forces, it would not affect Heavenly Realm much. Furthermore, Ye Futian was planning to move the entire Ninety-Nine Heavens away.


    Donghuang Imperial Palace in Divine Prefecture only had 500 years of history. It was built by Donghuang the Great and governed by him all this time. Since it did not have any other history, Donghuang the Great could decide the fate of Donghuang Imperial Palace. There was nothing to regret about history. To sacrifice it for the war was nothing much.


    But what about the holy land of the World of Buddhism? Could the people there give it up?


    Spirit Mountain was the foundation of the faith of the people of Western Heaven. If the forces of Buddhism were to leave the Spirit Mountain, it might cause an uproar in the World of Buddhism. It might cause many cultivators of Buddhism to question their faith.


    ��It��s not a problem for the World of Buddhism.�� The voice of Wutian Buddha Lord could be heard. Many Great Buddhas had shown up back when Ye Futian had requested Donghuang the Great to invite the cultivators of the World of Buddhism and Donghuang Imperial Palace to his inner world for cultivation. Therefore, one of them was here to talk about the plan.


    ��If one��s heart were filled with Buddhism, any place could be the Spirit Mountain,�� Wutian Buddha Lord continued. ��Your Majesty, I am a little disappointed, for you, too, are an erudite Buddhism practitioner. So, you should not make such a silly mistake.��


    Donghuang the Great noticed his carelessness. Then he bowed to Wutian Buddha Lord and said, ��You are right, Great Buddha. It was thoughtless of me.��


    The teaching of Buddhism emphasized emptiness��all is vanity.


    To commoners who were not knowledgeable in the teaching of Buddhism, Spirit Mountain was the holy land of the World of Buddhism. On the other hand, the true enlightened Buddhists would never be fixated on material things.


    ��In that case, it is decided then. However, I think we should inform everyone first,�� Ye Futian said. ��I am still a bit worried whether or not the Human Ancestor will order the Great Emperors to attack the weaker ones.��


    There was an unspoken rule for a war of this scale. Those who had walked on the Path of the Emperors should not lay their fingers on the weaker cultivators. Otherwise, they would bear a great sin that would eventually bring them disaster.


    How could a low-level cultivator stand against a Great Emperor?


    ��No,�� Donghuang the Great answered. ��The Human Ancestor cares about his reputation a lot. Although no one knows the reason, the way he rules the Human Realm is different from the Dark Sovereign. He has always been preaching about being the righteousness of humanity. Even during the upcoming war, he will still propagate justice and represent the righteousness of humanity to bring order to the Human Realm.


    ��Hence, the Human Ancestor will not order a fruitless killing.��


    ��What about the Evil Emperor and the Dark Sovereign?�� Ye Futian questioned because he did not know about the other six Great Emperors as much as his father, Donghuang the Great.


    ��They will probably obey the rules. No matter what, they still have to consider their realm,�� Donghuang the Great replied. Ye Futian nodded. If the Great Emperors were to kill uncontrollably, there would only be very few people left alive.


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian bowed his head. ��So, we shall focus on extermination. I would like to see how many of the Gods are asking to be killed again after having just made their comeback recently.��


    ��I will be going back to the palace to start preparation,�� Donghuang the Great informed.


    ��I��ve already filled the Buddha in on this,�� Wutian Buddha Lord uttered. ��He had no qualms about it. He will make arrangements for the Western Heaven World of Buddhism to defend itself from invasion. When push comes to shove, we will break up our people.��


    ��I��m ashamed,�� Ye Futian noted while bowing to Wutian Buddha Lord.


    ��This is a predestined fate. Since it is inexorable, the only thing we can do is face it together. Heavenly Emperor is a man of destiny. Everything will eventually end,�� Wutian Buddha Lord stated.


    ��Okay.�� Ye Futian nodded. Although he was facing an inevitable doom, he remained optimistic.


    Since everything was bound to happen, everything would be over soon with the help from the World of Buddhism.


    With that, Ye Futian began to move the ninety-nine heavens. Meanwhile, many armies invaded the Heavenly Realm, Divine Prefecture, and the World of Buddhism like a flood.


    Apart from Devil World, the other six realms had turned into a war zone.


    The army of cultivators of the Human Realm were the ones who arrived in the Heavenly Realm.


    As for the Divine Prefecture, the cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm were the ones who showed up there. Besides them, there were also many Human Realm combatants besieging the Divine Prefecture. To the enemies, taking down Heavenly Realm was the easiest because it had long since declined. So, they did not deploy a lot of their forces there.


    Lastly, the troops of the Dark Sovereign were the ones who raided the World of Buddhism. Naturally, there were cultivators of the Human Realm among the lineup as well. Those were the bunch who had wished to strike the World of Buddhism, so they joined forces with the army of the Dark World, hoping to find a chance to plunder the land.


    All cultivators had their motivation and will, so they would not follow things blindly. Some of those who took part in this war idolized the Human Ancestor. But some wished to seize the opportunity to improve themselves through this war since they could train and loot cultivation resources simultaneously.


    While the warring age had always been the quickest time to grow oneself, it was also dangerous.


    Nevertheless, they had confidence that they would win this war. Since it was a battle without unforeseen factors, they would occupy the Realms without breaking a sweat.

 Chapter 2907 - : Descent

    The people in the Heavenly Imperial City were trembling in fear because they knew war had erupted.


    The Human Realm led the forces of the Empty Divine Realm and Dark World to start the war. And their armies had already arrived in Heavenly Realm.


    ��Quick, look at ninety-nine heavens now!�� someone exclaimed. Many people noticed that the ninety-nine heavens had become more perceivable. There were no barriers surrounding it anymore. Countless magnificent temples could be seen on every layer.


    At the top layer, they noticed a heavenly palace situated in the sky.


    That was the Heavenly Imperial Palace.


    ��Ninety-nine heavens had become a small world with a Heavenly Path. What is actually going on now?�� the crowds mumbled.


    There were troops of cultivators at different locations in the ninety-nine heavens. They were all under the direct command of the Heavenly Emperor Palace and belonged to it. Some of them had been there for a long time, while the others had joined recently. They hovered at multiple positions of ninety-nine heavens��a genuine Tianshen Army.


    At the peak of the heavenly palace, everyone caught sight of a silhouette with white hair and surrounded by Nine-Color Divine Light; it was a spectacular sight to behold. Immediately, everyone knew that it was the current Heavenly Emperor, Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian had already merged with the remnants of the Heavenly Path left by his mother. So he would not leave anything behind. Turning to look at the commoners beneath him, he declared, ��The Human Ancestor is leading the Human Realm, Empty Divine Realm, and Dark World to start an invasion war that will turn the Seven Realms into a battlefield. Things are different than before this time. It is a worldwide invasion. So, regardless of your cultivation level, you will be affected by the aftermath. In the worst-case scenario, you might face life and death situation. Heavenly Realm had just recovered from declination in recent years. So, our overall forces will be weaker. When the war comes, I hope everyone can protect themselves and try to avoid the war zone as much as possible. Please find a way to survive this ordeal.


    ��This war should never involve the cultivators of the Heavenly Realm. But the Human Ancestor had insisted on making this happen and starting the War of the Seven Realms. Even though I��ve ascended the throne and became Heavenly Emperor, I still couldn��t prevent this war from happening. I��m ashamed of myself, but I, alongside the cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial Palace, will swear to give our all to end this war. Regardless of victory or defeat, I hope your goal is to survive this tribulation and live.��


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    Ye Futian did not encourage anyone to join the war. Instead, he requested the people to avoid it as much as possible and protect themselves to survive this calamity.


    This should have been the problem between emperor-level forces alone. Since it was only to achieve their personal goals, they should never involve the entire cultivation world. Every cultivator should not be regarded as a citizen of the realm they had chosen to stay here to work on their cultivation.


    The war should be fought by the direct subordinates of the imperial palaces alone.


    The outcome of the war should not be decided by the cultivators in the world but by the Great Emperors.


    ��Your Majesty, what if we are willing to fight for the Heavenly Realm?�� someone asked.


    ��That��s right. We are willing to be part of the Heavenly Imperial Palace and join this war,�� another person chimed in.


    Ye Futian was touched upon hearing that because he had never expected the cultivators of the Heavenly Realm to have a sense of belonging.


    By rights, they should be focused on protecting themselves.


    ��This war is unprecedented. It will affect the entire world. I hope that you will make your decision prudently because the likelihood of you dying in this war is very high,�� Ye Futian reminded.


    ��The Heavenly Palace was once glorious.�� An elderly cultivator raised their head to the sky and sighed, ��Now that we��ve finally waited for the ascension of a new emperor who is compassionate toward his subjects, I am willing to pave the way of the new world alongside Your Majesty.��


    ��I want to enlist in the army as well.�� Many people noted continuously. Although plenty of people wished to join the war, it was still relatively little compared to the total amount in the crowd.


    After all, it was a battle that involved all of the realms. Plus, the enemy had a greater advantage, so they would most likely end up fighting a losing battle. Thus, to join the war would be equal to signing their own death warrant.


    ��Good. Those who are willing to join the war may come over now,�� Ye Futian instructed. Then he looked in a lower direction and said, ��Please lend me a hand, Tianyin Buddha Lord.��


    ��Sure.�� Tianyin Buddha Lord nodded. Just then, he transmitted his voice throughout the entire Heavenly Realm and announced, ��The War of the Seven Realms starts now. Those who are willing to join the war may whisper your request. I will pick up your voice from every corner of this realm. But I still wish to inform all of you that what His Majesty said was true. The mortality rate of this war will be extremely high. So, I advise you to ponder your decision carefully.��


    Tianyin Buddha Lord��s cultivation was pretty rapid since the substantial change occurred in the world and had finally reached the Great Emperor Plane. He had mastered one of the Six Superpowers��Clairaudience. So he could pick up every sound within Heavenly Realm. If he were to perfect it, he could even hear everything in the Seven Realms.


    Soon, Tianyin Buddha Lord heard voices of the people��s requests. Then, he glanced at Wutian Buddha Lord and said, ��I will need Wutian Buddha Lord��s help in this.��


    Wutian Buddha Lord had also reached the pinnacle of cultivation and mastered Celerity. So, he could traverse a great distance at the speed of thought.


    ��Okay.�� Wutian Buddha Lord nodded.


    ��I��m beyond grateful to the both of you.�� Ye Futian bowed to Tianyin Buddha Lord and Wutian Buddha Lord. With the help of the two Buddha Lords, he could recruit the people of Heavenly Realm who were willing to volunteer themselves in the war.


    After putting their hands together, the two Buddha Lords disappeared into thin air with their thoughts.


    Ye Futian was not worried about the safety of the two of them. Tianyin Buddha Lord could pick up all the sounds across vast space and had incredibly acute sensory abilities. Wutian Buddha Lord was the master of Celerity. If the two were to coordinate with one another, hardly anyone could threaten their lives.


    A while later, the two Buddha Lords brought a troop of cultivators back. Even the people of Heavenly Imperial City were brought here as well.


    ��Fang Cun, do your thing,�� Ye Futian ordered.


    ��Yes, Master.�� Fang Cun nodded, turned around, and headed toward the army of cultivators.


    In the blink of an eye, the two Buddha Lords left the scene and headed toward other locations in Heavenly Realm.


    Ye Futian stood on top of the heavenly palace and waited patiently.


    Finally, terrifying storms hit on multiple locations of the sky above the Heavenly Realm. Following that, numerous space passages appeared in many different locations. In a flash, the armies of the Human Realm descended from the sky. Staring downward, they played hysterical smirks on their faces.


    The Human Realm would be occupying the Seven Realms, and they were the witnesses and participants of the historical moment.


    The two Buddha Lords brought more people back to the Heavenly Imperial Palace with them. With a thought, Ye Futian covered all the cultivators in ninety-nine heavens with a mysterious power. Right then, their bodies immediately vanished from sight, and they were brought into his inner world created with his Micro Heavenly Path.


    His troop, the Heavenly Realm Army, would cultivate inside his inner world. It was a portable army that followed him everywhere.


    A suffocating God��s Might pervaded the sky above the Heavenly Imperial City. Following the color change of the firmament, a peerless and dominating Emperor��s Might pressurized every person in the Heavenly Imperial City. All of them felt like it was the end of the world while staring at the sky in terror.


    Had Tianshen Army shown up already?

 Chapter 2908 - Father and Son Alliance

    Many figures appeared in different directions of the sky.


    The color of the sky above the entire Heavenly Imperial City changed. The frightening Divine Power enveloped the Heavenly Imperial City as if there was a Tianshen in every direction.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial City were all terrified. They had heard that the Human Ancestor helped Great Emperors from the ancient times return; they did not think that there would be so many. How did the Human Ancestor revive these ancient emperors?


    No wonder Heavenly Emperor Ye Futian had given up the Heavenly Imperial Palace. The Great Emperors of both sides were not even at the same level. The number was too different.


    ��The Heavenly Emperor didn��t leave.�� Many people looked at the white-haired figure above the Heavenly Imperial City and started feeling worried for Ye Futian.


    The gods had come with murderous intent in their eyes. There were Great Emperors everywhere in the dome of the sky, sealing off this part of the sky.


    ��Where did those people go?�� a voice screamed. The Human Ancestor��s face appeared in the sky. His aura was terrifying. Ye Futian had brought away all the cultivators of the ninety-nine heavens. They had vanished directly.


    Was it the micro world?


    Ye Futian glanced at the Human Ancestor��s face and did not reply. Instead, he looked at the various gods and said, ��I do not know what methods the Human Ancestor used to help you all return, but since you are back, you should treasure it well. Do not get involved in the present conflicts.��


    The gods all had surprised expressions at Ye Futian��s words, and a powerful voice spoke out.


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    ��Are today��s Great Emperors all so arrogant?��


    They had all been Great Emperors from the era before the Heavenly Path had collapsed. Some had even been Super Great Emperors. Ye Futian was only a junior. Even though he had flashy achievements, they still felt that arrogance when he spoke to all the seniors like this.


    ��This is not the old era anymore,�� Ye Futian said. ��You all are only old gods and should get accustomed to today��s cultivation world. If you retreat now, I can act like nothing has happened.��


    ��And if we don��t retreat?�� an ancient emperor asked.


    ��If you do not retreat, then it means we are mortal enemies. If you die again, you might not have the chance to return again,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Ye Futian.�� The Human Ancestor��s terrible might clamped down on Ye Futian as he said, ��You are even more presumptuous than your father, Donghuang.��


    With that, he looked up to the sky and said, ��Donghuang, you come out too.��


    As soon as he spoke, a figure appeared in the sky above Ye Futian. The father and son stood one above another, surrounded by the ancient gods.


    ��Futian, this is the first time we fight together as father and son. I did not think that we would be facing the gods of ancient times. How many do you think we can kill?�� Donghuang the Great asked Ye Futian. In terms of presumptuousness, he was not any lesser than Ye Futian.


    The father and son duo were both Great Emperors of the modern times. On the other side were all ancient emperors, including the Human Ancestor. However, the Human Ancestor had lived too long; he had lived from ancient times to the modern day.


    Just as Donghuang the Great said, this battle was between the present and ancient emperors.


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial City stood in the lower sky and gazed into the heavens. Donghuang the Great��s words made their hearts pound furiously, and hot blood ran through their veins. The father and son would fight the gods.


    Donghuang the Great had asked how many they could kill.


    ��Any that we kill is an advantage for us,�� Ye Futian replied. ��Father, if Mother was here and the three of us worked together, they would have no chance at all.��


    ��If your mother were here, she��d be enough by herself,�� Donghuang the Great responded.


    ��Shameless words!�� The Human Ancestor��s words reverberated in the sky. Horrifying and turbid divine lightning appeared in the heavens, covering the sky and sun. It hung over the sky above Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great.


    Boom! With one thought by Donghuang the Great, the Revelation Divine Power instantly enveloped the vast lands, covering the entire Heavenly Imperial City. All Divine power within the Revelation Divine Domain seemed to be sealed off. Those ancient gods�� Divine Powers were also restricted.


    The instant that the Revelation Divine Domain enveloped the Heavenly Imperial City, Ye Futian��s body moved. He appeared before a Great Emperor in a flash, descending directly despite the distance between them, and he pushed his palm forward.


    Ye Futian��s palm contained extremely dazzling divine light, and emperor runes were carved on it. He was incredibly domineering and could crush everything in the world.


    Seal of the Heavenly Emperor!


    That Great Emperor was not a Super Great Emperor, and his Divine Power was being restricted too. What welcomed him was a super-strong Seal of the Heavenly Emperor. It crushed down directly, and the golden emperor rune enlarged in his eyes. It was like a world. No matter how he ran, he would still be under the attack of this divine seal.


    ��Boom!�� Divine Power transformed into Xuanwu beast protection to protect his body, but when the Seal of the Heavenly Emperor blasted down, it was shattered directly. Plus, he was also being restricted by the Revelation Divine Domain. How could he counter Ye Futian��s palm?


    Bang! With a huge sound, the Xuanwu beast was destroyed. The Seal of the Heavenly Emperor blasted onto his body, shattering his physical body. His spiritual soul wanted to escape, but the emperor rune emitted destructive divine light and directly destroyed it. His soul scattered and died.


    Back then, when the Heavenly Path released the doomsday tribulations, it had targeted the Great Emperors of the entire world rather than just one person. Thus, many gods had died under the tribulations, but quite a few Great Emperors had survived using other methods.


    But Ye Futian did not give them this chance. With his absolute power, he naturally made them die from a scattered soul. Only this counted as a complete death.


    He had said earlier that if they did not treasure this chance at returning, they would probably not get another chance.


    A Great Emperor was killed forcefully by Ye Futian. This made the hearts of the Heavenly Imperial City cultivators skip a beat. However, the instant that Ye Futian had attacked, the other gods in the sky were also able to react. They released their Divine Powers to the max under the constraints of the Revelation Divine Domain. Many of the Super Great Emperors had terrifying Divine Powers and broke through the constraints of the Revelation Divine Domain.


    The Chaos True Thunder Swords in the sky attacked instantly, going for Ye Futian. But Donghuang the Great��s figure appeared in the sky above Ye Futian. He released the Revelation Divine Domain to the max and pointed a finger at the sky, blocking many attacks descending from above.


    But even so, many beams of destructive Divine Power still streaked toward Ye Futian, landing on his body.


    The attacks of strong Great Emperors were incredibly fast. It was all in the span of one thought. Ye Futian had killed a Great Emperor while surrounded by Great Emperors, so he naturally had to face the attacks from the other strong figures of the emperor level.


    But the instant that those attacks fell, nine-colored divine light wrapped around Ye Futian. They transformed into the frightening Divine Power of the Law and annihilated the incoming attacks directly. It was the Nine Dragons True Qi.


    At that moment, Ye Futian was as peerless as an ancient emperor who had returned.


    His mother had left the Heavenly Path of the ninety-nine heavens, and now, he had inherited the power of that Heavenly Path. Naturally, he could inherit the forces that Ji Wudao had inherited in the past. It was even more compatible for him.


    Whether it was the Seal of the Heavenly Emperor of the Nine Dragons True Qi, they had all been left by his mother, and he had inherited them!

 Chapter 2909 - The Eternal Swordlord

    Just then, a streak of sword light lit up in the sky. This streak of sword light seemed to have come from outside the heavens. It passed through time and space, directly cutting apart the constraints that the Revelation Divine Domain put on the Divine Power. It entered the Nine Dragons True Qi and hacked down on Ye Futian��s body.


    Poof, poof�� There were sharp, grating sounds, and then Ye Futian��s body vanished from his spot. He retreated to the distance. The defenses from the Divine Power of the World on his body were sliced apart, and a bloody gash appeared on his body under the beam of sword Qi.


    The bloody gash started healing, but the gash contained extremely frightening sword Qi. It seemed to be not so easy to scatter. The Divine Power of vitality in Ye Futian��s body flooded madly to the injury to heal it.


    Raising his head, Ye Futian looked into the distance. There was a middle-aged man in dark clothing. Merely standing there, he gave off an extremely sharp feeling. Sword Qi flowed all around him as if he was the ruler of that area of the sky.


    As sword will flowed across his body, the swordsmen of the entire Heavenly Imperial City felt the sword will within their bodies go out of control. It was like they wanted to submit to this gust of sword will. They all looked to the sky in horror. That figure in the heavens was like the master of the swords of All Heavens.


    ��Eternal Swordlord!�� Donghuang the Great stared at the figure that had appeared and thought of another super being from the era before the Heavenly Path had collapsed. The Eternal Swordlord had created the Eternal Sword Domain. He was skilled in the Sword Way of All Heavens, and the sword domains that he created could last for eternity. He had been a supreme figure of the ancient Sword Way and stood at the pinnacle. His level was above all of the gods and emperors he had killed before.


    This kind of being had not died under the world tribulations and returned today. He was also being used by the Human Ancestor.


    The Eternal Swordlord��s level was definitely above his back then. He had been one of the strongest figures in the world. One could imagine how threatening he was.


    Even though they knew that the Human Ancestor had helped the various gods return and there would definitely be Super Great Emperors, Donghuang the Great had still underestimated them. He did not think that someone like the Eternal Swordlord could return too.


    What did the Human Ancestor do exactly to let them return?


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    The Eternal Swordlord walked forward. His body was like a sword as if it was not made of flesh. His eyes contained immense sword will that could pierce someone. Being stared at by him made one feel the endless sword will attacking.


    Did anyone in this era still remember him?


    Back then, he had been one of those who fought against the Heavenly Path. At the time of the world tribulations, his cultivation had been one of the top Great Emperors. He had been ��cared for�� by the world tribulations and died on the spot. His physical body had been destroyed, and his spiritual soul had shattered, transforming into an eternal beam of sword will in this world.


    However, he did not think that he would have the chance to return. Using this beam of eternal sword will, someone in this era helped him return. Even though he had not returned to the past and his abilities could not return to their peak, as long as he was back, anything was possible.


    A frightening sword domain appeared. It was the Eternal Sword Domain. In that instant, all of the heavens were enveloped by this sword domain. Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great were both within this sword domain. The Revelation Divine Matrix overlapped with it but could not repress this sword domain.


    The Eternal Sword Domain contained endless sword will. They shot murderously towards Donghuang the Great and Ye Futian, tearing apart the void like countless sword rivers.


    Many of the surrounding Great Emperors saw the Eternal Swordlord attack, so they just stood there to watch. The Eternal Swordlord had been an aggressive and fearless being in their era, so killing two modern Great Emperors was naturally easy for him.


    Since the ancient emperors returned, they would naturally have to take back their era. These two modern Great Emperors dared to dream about swaying the heavens.


    Donghuang the Great walked forward, but he heard Ye Futian say, ��Father, hand it to me.��


    Hearing Ye Futian��s voice, Donghuang the Great turned and glanced at him. Then he nodded slightly. His figure retreated to the back and put up strong defenses around him to fend off the invasion of the Sword Path power.


    Meanwhile, Divine Power seeped out of Ye Futian��s body, filling this vast space. In that moment, all of the Great Emperors felt a different kind of aura. Many things in this divine domain seemed to be the same, but it was also somehow different.


    ��Oh?�� The Eternal Swordlord��s brows furrowed. He sensed a different kind of Law aura. The laws in Ye Futian��s divine domain were different. It was a law order that belonged to himself.


    But he only furrowed his brows. It was the same for him. The Eternal Sword Domain contained his own laws of the Sword Path.


    He waved his palm in the air. Instantly, many sword rivers fell from the dome of the sky. They contained limitless sword will. Those sword rivers were extremely aggressive and made the Great Path roar. They wanted to rip apart the sky as they cut down at Ye Futian.


    The people of the Heavenly Imperial City saw the aggressive divine swords fall down like the Milky Way. They all felt incredibly shocked. This kind of sword could destroy a world, but it was going for Ye Futian at this moment.


    Divine light wrapped around Ye Futian��s body as if he represented the law of the Heavenly Path. A similarly shocking sword materialized. Nine Dragons True Qi wrapped around that divine sword and carved a word��the word was ��emperor.�� This seemed to be the most noble sword in the world.


    Once this sword was out, everyone would bow down. This was the king of the swords.


    ��Sword of the Heavenly Emperor!�� The Eternal Swordlord was surprised when he saw Ye Futian��s sword. This sword was like the Sword of the Heavenly Emperor from the Deva. It was the sword that governed the universe.


    ��Boom!�� Divine light flashed. The Sword of the Heavenly Emperor had been created by Ye Futian��s Power of the Law of the Heavenly Path. Carrying ultimate Divine Power, it crashed against the divine sword of the Eternal Swordlord. Instantly, a gust of destructive force swept through the skies. The horrible sword will ripped through all beings. The divine domain of the Great Path and the surrounding defenses were all ripped apart.


    Strong light pierced their eyes. Before the people of the Heavenly Imperial City could process everything, they saw the various gods transform into beams of light and disappear.


    In the blink of an eye, everyone had disappeared.


    ��Huh?��


    ��What happened?��


    The people of the Heavenly Imperial City felt their hearts pound without stop. The destructive storm of sword Qi was still there, but the various gods had transformed into beams of light and left the Heavenly Imperial City.


    ��That sword was enough to destroy the entire Heavenly Imperial City. If the Heavenly Emperor had not blocked that sword, we all would have died,�� someone said, feeling belated fear. The others all felt chills down their spine after hearing that.


    Earlier, that sword had fallen down like the Milky Way. If it had come down, the sword will landing on the Heavenly Imperial City; then, the entire city would probably be obliterated directly by the sword will. How could they survive with their cultivation planes?


    ��Will anything happen to the Heavenly Emperor?�� someone asked.


    ��Heavenly Emperor Ye has been cultivating in seclusion all this time and combined with a Heavenly Path. His abilities have already evolved and can��t be compared to how he had been. He can directly take the other��s sword, so you can imagine how strong he is. He would not stay to fight if he is not confident,�� someone said. ��The Heavenly Emperor is working with Donghuang the Great. Even if they cannot defeat the gods, surely they can retreat safely.��


    All the strong figures nodded, and they gazed into the heavens. At that moment, they actually felt a sense of belonging.


    In the battle between the old and new gods, who would become the legitimate rulers of the world?

 Chapter 2910 - Comparable to the Six Emperors

    A group of strong cultivators at the Tianshen level passed through the vast void with extreme speed. They even went through the space passageway and entered the Original Realm.


    Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great were at the front. They seemed to have transformed into two spots of light.


    Ye Futian transformed into a beam of light, streaking through the endless starry sky.


    The Eternal Swordlord was tight on his heels. He advanced in the form of a sword and was also extremely fast.


    Just then, the Eternal Swordlord��s entire body dazzled like a heaven-slaying divine sword. He raised his finger and pointed at the sky. The upper heavens instantly started changing and transforming.


    ��Cut!�� The instant he waved his hand, it was like the Milky Way fell from the heavens. The sword was like the sword of time and space. It surpassed time and space, cutting down at Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great. It set out later but arrived first. Even though Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great were streaking through space at a frightening speed, they were still in the range of the Sword Path��s attacks.


    The two both felt a powerful gust of sword will.


    Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great both released Divine Power from their bodies. The Revelation Divine Domain covered the vast void, causing the sword to be obstructed a little, but it still could not stop this sword that surpassed time and space.


    The sword will continued to shoot down murderously. However, at the same time, Ye Futian also released his divine domain of the Great Path. With his body as the center, it transformed into a world. When the sword will cut down, time and space became chaotic, affecting that sword.


    But despite this, that sword still did not change its direction. It cut down directly at them. One could imagine just how terrifying this sword was. It could tear apart the laws of his divine domain. In a certain way, it indeed surpassed the laws of time and space.


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    This sword cut a beautiful sword arc in the vast space, splitting the void into halves. It transformed into a sword river with unparalleled power and might.


    Ye Futian looked up at that sword, and then he waved the sword in his hand. Under the eyes of all the Tianshen, Ye Futian sent out 81 swords instantly. Every sword was an extremely aggressive sword. They were also complete swords.


    ��How can he be so fast���� Those Great Emperors had a misperception as if they were in a different dimension as Ye Futian. The Eternal Swordlord��s sword was so fast. His sword��s speed was definitely one of the fastest swords in the entire world.


    But in that instant, they vaguely sensed that the sword had slowed down.


    Or perhaps it was not the Eternal Swordlord��s sword that had slowed down but that Ye Futian had more time.


    ��The Law of Time!��


    Everyone��s hearts shuddered. Ye Futian had used the advantage of the Law of Time to change the flow of time. This allowed him to have more time and thus sent out the 81 swords instantly.


    81 beams of sword will crashed against the Milky Way sword that surpassed time and space. Sword Qi shot out millions of miles. Even stars in the distance were ripped apart by the sword will. At the same time, Ye Futian��s divine domain of the Great Path expanded, and his Divine Power enveloped all the gods.


    Those Tianshen who had pursued him felt that they were covered by Ye Futian��s divine domain of the Great Path now.


    They all released their own Law��s rule power at the same moment. The vast space was instantly filled with extremely chaotic and aggressive Divine Power.


    Boom�� There was a horrifying boom. An extremely huge figure appeared in the sky like the king of the void. It was the Human Ancestor��s figure. Enveloped by the turbid divine thunder in this area and accompanied by beams of falling divine light, frightening Chaos True Thunder Swords rained down, shooting directly at Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great.


    The Eternal Swordlord was strong enough, but the Human Ancestor did not want to keep waiting. Ye Futian had already developed to an extremely frightening step. After combining with that Heavenly Path, his abilities were even comparable to the present Six Emperors.


    Wham! Ye Futian��s figure streaked through the void directly. The Chaos True Thunder Swords raining down actually could not capture his figure.


    Another Great Emperor attacked, and the space of this boundless world seemed to solidify suddenly. Everything stopped moving. A Super Great Emperor released his own Great Path Divine Domain. Under that restrictive force, Ye Futian��s figure was revealed.


    A Chaos True Thunder Sword shot down, blasting directly at his body. It had locked onto him.


    Ye Futian released the Divine Power around him to the max. The Divine power sealing off the space was ripped apart. He pointed to the sky, and the extremely domineering Heavenly Emperor Sword crashed against the Chaos True Thunder Sword. They were both extremely rigid and powerful��incomparably domineering attacks.


    The Heavenly Emperor Sword that Ye Futian had released was the Heavenly Emperor Sword that contained his Divine Power.


    The Human Ancestor watched as the Heavenly Emperor Sword and Chaos True Thunder Sword shattered. This put a surprised expression on him. His Chaos True Thunder Sword was one of the greatest attacks in the world, but it was only comparable to Ye Futian��s Heavenly Emperor Sword.


    The Divine Power contained in the Heavenly Emperor Sword seemed to destroy everything. Even the Chaos True Thunder was destroyed.


    It seemed that the son of Donghuang had reached a frightening level after these years of growth.


    Clang! The ringing of bells suddenly sounded in the sky. The ringing was very long and stretched far. Its reverberations shattered the space, causing the Divine Power that froze the space to collapse and shatter. The various gods all looked at Ye Futian and saw many ancient bronze bells surrounding his body. These ancient bells all contained peerless Divine Power. The beams of divine light rained down from the ancient bells, causing everything to get destroyed and the space to be pulverized.


    Ye Futian��s power made the gods too scared to separate. When Great Emperors fought, one person could stand their ground. There was actually a great distance between them and Ye Futian, but these Great Emperors did not dare to be too scattered. They were worried that Ye Futian would kill a Great Emperor with one strike like earlier.


    The ancient bronze bells revolved endlessly, and divine light swept around. The Divine Power that froze the space continuously shattered. Every divine bell radiated the force of destruction.


    ��Are his combat abilities really that strong?�� The various Tianshen stared at Ye Futian. This junior Great Emperor of the modern ages was actually this strong. He threatened these ancient emperors even in this situation where they were attacking together.


    If they had come alone to kill Ye Futian, probably very few of them could fight against Ye Futian alone.


    Even Donghuang the Great was a bit surprised. He looked at the white-haired figure before him, and there was a pleased look in his eyes. He seemed to see her shadow.


    Before, he had exchanged simple blows with Ye Futian and knew that the present Ye Futian was no longer below his level. Thus, these two dared to face these gods. It was a powerful kind of confidence.


    But even so, he discovered that he had still underestimated Ye Futian. He was even more extraordinary than he��d imagined.


    Thus, Donghuang the Great did not help Ye Futian right now. He wanted to see what level Ye Futian was at.


    ��Universe-Breaking Bell!��


    The Human Ancestor looked at Ye Futian��s body. The Universe-Breaking Bell was still the ability of the Heavenly Emperor. It could shatter the void, but in the hands of Ye Futian, this Universe-Breaking Bell perfectly fused with the Law Divine Power that Ye Futian was skilled at. Its force was shockingly strong and directly tore apart the Divine Power that froze the space!

 Chapter 2911 - Not True Self

    All the ancient bells spun while revolving around the world. The divine light that dropped down was filled with extremely destructive Divine Power.


    Clang�� The overlapping ringing was endlessly heard. The Universe-Breaking Bells directly broke open the void as it advanced, transforming into beautiful beams of light that shot at the gods. Every bell was boundlessly huge and could shatter a portion of the sky.


    Seeing that Ye Futian could still have the ability to attack the other Great Emperors while under their siege, the Eternal Swordlord furrowed his brows too. He took a step forward and waved his sword. Sword Qi shot out for millions of miles and shattered the void, cutting arcs of endless darkness. It shattered Divine Power, ripped the space, and went to kill Ye Futian despite the difference in time and space.


    This sword stretched millions of miles in all directions. When it cut down, a flash of sword light appeared in the vast starry sky. All the space in its path was broken and cracked apart. In one instant, the world was about to be ripped apart.


    In ancient times, the Eternal Swordlord could split apart a star planet with one sword and defeat all the beings.


    Even though his abilities were not at his peak now, his sword was still frighteningly powerful.


    A silver spear made of Divine Power somehow appeared in Ye Futian��s hands. The instant that the sword fell, the spear attacked the incoming sword like a dragon, fast as the speed of light. The void collapsed instantly, and a world-ending storm swept across the air. However, that sword kept cracking until it scattered in the void.


    But at almost the same time, many Chaos True Thunder Swords attacked simultaneously, stabbing Ye Futian��s body. They arrived right after that sword.


    Ye Futian��s spear swept across and then attacked the Chaos True Thunder Sword in the sky. The destructive windstorm shot down murderously, forcing his body to keep falling down the sky. However, the Chaos True Thunder Swords still could not hurt Ye Futian.


    Bang, bang, bang�� There was a continuous stream of sounds. It was emitted by Ye Futian��s Universe-Breaking Bell when it crashed against the various gods. The dozen Great Emperors had difficulty enduring the might of the Universe-Breaking Bell. They were hurt by the reverberations and retreated. Some of them even suffered heavy injuries. Their physical bodies almost collapsed from the Universe-Breaking Bell��s hits.


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    At the same time, the Eternal Sword Domain enveloped the vast space. With one thought from the Eternal Swordlord, countless divine swords streamed down instantly, going murderously toward Ye Futian. Each sword contained shocking divine might that could kill a Tianshen.


    Ye Futian looked up with a glance. Nine Dragons True Qi wrapped around his body, and the silhouette of the Heavenly Emperor appeared. He was peerless. With his body as the center, rounds of world particle defenses appeared. They transformed into a light screen that blocked the incoming sword��s path.


    But the Eternal Swordlord��s Sword Path was also the Law power of the Sword Path that he controlled. The destructive divine sword penetrated the world particle defense directly and zoomed at Ye Futian��s body.


    The time and space before Ye Futian were distorted, causing some weaker sword will to be buried in the chaotic space. However, some super-strong swords still passed through the layers of obstacles and shattered the chaotic currents of time and space. The Sword Path contained the power to rip apart the space, causing the various divine swords to reach Ye Futian��s body.


    But just then, it was like Ye Futian had created the Heavenly Emperor Divine Body. Many runes wrapped around the emperor��s silhouette. It flashed with golden light like an undying battle form. The divine sword shot over and produced an intense crashing noise, shaking Ye Futian��s body. However, it could not continue advancing. Clearly, it was impossible to sway Ye Futian only by using the sword will of the sword domain.


    Ye Futian��s combat ability was not any weaker than the Eternal Swordlord.


    Kaboom�� Just then, there was a horrifying explosion in the sky. They saw the world collapse and shatter. Everything was about to be destroyed. Ye Futian looked up and saw the Human Ancestor��s huge palm print crush down. It was like there was a world hidden in the palm. The frightening Chaos True Thunder was hidden inside. Carrying the supreme destructive force, it crushed the space. Everything in its path was obliterated.


    This horrifying palm seal blocked off the sky. It was boundlessly huge, covering the vast void. Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great��s bodies were both shrouded by it. It crushed everything and grappled at Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great��s space.


    There was a muffled sound. It was like everything was going to be destroyed under this palm seal. The Human Ancestor had transformed into the ruler of this world or the high and mighty god that controlled the fates of all beings.


    Donghuang the Great also looked toward that horrifyingly destructive palm seal and his brows furrowed. Then he saw that Ye Futian��s entire body dazzled with divine light. The beautiful glow contained supreme crushing force as if he would shatter that supreme palm seal squarely.


    Boom! Ye Futian��s body advanced as the Path. He held the Tianshen spear in his hands, and the Divine Power in his body flooded crazily into the spear. He stabbed into the heavens, and instantly, the destructive Chaotic True Thunder that could shatter everything ended up getting broken instead.


    A huge boom spread. Ye Futian��s spear blasted onto that boundlessly huge Giant Palm of Tianshen. It was like a person striking a small, destructive world. He seemed extremely small in comparison, like a moth trying to sway a tree.


    However, Ye Futian really did sway that boundlessly huge palm.


    The spear ripped everything, passing through the Chaotic True Thunder and distorting the space. The world of Chaotic True Thunder was swallowed into the storm of time and space. Meanwhile, the spear continued up with its supreme destructive force. It stabbed into the palm seal that covered the vast void and penetrated it directly, burying inside murderously.


    That boundless giant palm shook violently, and many cracks appeared.


    Boom! Ye Futian��s body passed through the space above the palm seal. He broke through directly and did not stop. After passing through the destructive palm seal, he went directly for the Human Ancestor with extreme speed. It was like he had arrived before the majestic and huge body of the Human Ancestor in an instant.


    Chaotic True Thunder shot out of the Human Ancestor��s eyes. It tore apart the void directly and blasted toward Ye Futian. But this time, Ye Futian was completely confident. He did not dodge at all. His spear broke through the air. It was unstoppable. He stabbed through the Chaotic True Thunder directly and went for that huge figure.


    The world-slaying Chaotic True Thunder covered Ye Futian��s entire body. The destructive attack destroyed his physical body, but he streaked through it.


    Boom! Just then, Ye Futian felt that he saw an illusory figure. It was majestic and unparalleled. It was like the divine king that ruled the entire universe.


    Bang! The spear hit the huge skull and penetrated it. But at the same time, a burst of horrifyingly destructive Divine Power snaked into Ye Futian��s mind. The silhouette of that divine king became clearer. It terrorized all beings in the world and wanted him to bow down before it.


    In that extremely short instant, the spear already shattered the Divine Human��s skull. Ye Futian��s body passed through it, but he did not feel excited. Instead, he had a strong sense of fear.


    He looked back at the Divine Human��s body and saw that the shattered skull was reforming. It was not affected at all, as if it was an undying body.


    ��A clone!��


    That moment, Ye Futian��s heart tremored violently. This was just an outer clone of the Human Ancestor and not his true self!

 Chapter 2912 - Separate

    Ye Futian finally understood what his father had said to him before��the Human Ancestor was not the real Human Ancestor.


    Now, he could vaguely sense that it was highly possible that the Human Ancestor that he was facing now was only a clone of the Human Ancestor.


    The Human Ancestor that had survived since the era of the Heavenly Path��s collapse had been cultivating every moment of these countless years. He had even collected countless Great Emperor relics from when the Heavenly Path had collapsed and found the traces of the gods in this world.


    How could he not be powerful?


    Was the force that he had felt earlier the force brought on by the Human Ancestor��s true consciousness?


    Then the Human Ancestor turned and looked toward him. Destructive light shot out of his eyes. Using a thought, Ye Futian��s body disappeared from the spot and appeared before Donghuang the Great. ��Father, let��s go,�� he said.


    Since the Human Ancestor was just a clone and had an undying body, it meant that this battle had no meaning anymore. They could not kill the enemy, and in that battle, he had also made risky actions. This was an extremely unbalanced battle.


    The two transformed into two beams of light and shot into the distance, instantly vanishing from the spot. But a Tianshen used their mind, and the vast world was instantly frozen. The space was locked, and everything here seemed to fall into a still state.


    But Ye Futian was in his own divine domain. Divine Power exploded, and he transformed into a spot of light, streaking through the space. The power of the sealed void could not stop his departure. The two instantly streaked into the distance.


    The Eternal Swordlord looked at the escaping figures and cut down with his sword remotely. The sword crossed the space to kill them. It crumbled the vast void. All the stars in its path shattered and collapsed, getting sliced apart directly. The Sword Path Milky Way dropped down, and it was like one could not escape this attack no matter how they ran.


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    But then the two beams of light that were Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great passed directly through the Sword Path Milky Way. They streaked forward, passing through, and then continued to escape until they disappeared.


    The two were figures at the top of the pyramid. Clearly, it was quite unlikely for them to be stopped by this one sword.


    The group of Tianshen did not pursue them. The gods realized that the vast majority of them might not be able to withstand Ye Futian��s attack. They might even get killed instantly, so they definitely could not leave the group to chase after them.


    The Human Ancestor did not pursue them either. He stared at the escaping figures and realized that even this Tianshen army could not make the two stay completely.


    Ye Futian��s abilities were not any weaker than Donghuang the Great now. Similarly, he was not weaker than The Human Ancestor either. In addition, he was skilled in many things and very hard to deal with. Even if they pursued him, there would be no result. Ye Futian��s speed was not any slower than them either.


    Earlier, they had been able to catch him. Ye Futian probably did it purposely to try and exchange blows with them.


    ��Go,�� the Human Ancestor said. He led all the Tianshen to leave this place. They prepared to visit the Divine Prefecture��s Imperial Palace and the Western Heaven Spiritual Mountain.


    Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great traveled through the vast void. They did not know where they��d reached, but they stopped after knowing that the others did not chase after them.


    ��Father��s speculation was correct. The Human Ancestor we faced may have just been a clone of the Human Ancestor. He ruled the world and managed the order of the Human Realm with a clone. The true body of the Human Ancestor might not have recovered his vitality completely,�� Ye Futian said to Donghuang the Great.


    Donghuang the Great understood that Ye Futian discovered some things in the previous exchange of blows.


    ��It must be,�� Donghuang the Great. ��Back then, your mother had died because of this. If the other returns, I��m afraid it will be a disaster. Thus, we still have to hurry up.��


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded, feeling a wave of stress.


    ��The Human Ancestor had the various gods return to be used by him,�� Ye Futian continued to say. ��If it is like how we predicted, then surely the gods fear the Human Ancestor greatly too. They can only be used by him willingly.��


    ��Earlier, many of the Great Emperors did not attack,�� Donghuang the Great replied. ��Even if they did not attack, surely they have some concerns. The Human Ancestor wants to replace the Heavenly Path and take its path. The gods must be fearful of this day too. At that time, the Human Ancestor would be the supreme existence. Even a Great Emperor would not dare to go against him.��


    If the Human Ancestor replaced the Heavenly Path, becoming an existence like the ancient Heavenly Path, the various gods would be the gods under his reign. No matter how strong they were, they could not go against the Heavenly Path like back then.


    Who could do it again?


    The battle from the past had already caused the Heavenly Path to collapse and the gods to fall. If a new Heavenly Path appeared, who would fight with it? Who dared to fight with it?


    ��What will we do next?�� Ye Futian wanted to hear Donghuang the Great��s suggestion.


    ��You will cultivate here, and I��ll go out to take a look. I will notify you of news from the outside world,�� Donghuang the Great replied. He wanted to give Ye Futian more time to cultivate. Giving up the ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm and taking everyone away was also to fight for more time.


    Time in Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path flowed at 81 times the speed. If he could get one year in the outside world, it would be 81 years. All the people in the Micro Heavenly Path would be able to transform.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. He was worried about the situation outside too. Now, the Human Ancestor led the strong figures of the three realms to invade. The beings would all suffer greatly. Even though reached a consensus for the cultivators of the Heaven Realm, Divine Prefecture, and Western Heaven World to try not to participate in the battle directly, they still could not avoid the killing and fighting.


    This was an invasion.


    The invaders would not be kind. It would be accompanied by fresh blood and white bones.


    But even so, he was the only one who could change the situation of this battle, and he had to hurry and cultivate to improve himself right now.


    ��Let us separate here,�� Donghuang the Great said.


    ��Father, be careful,�� Ye Futian said a bit seriously. This time, the enemies that they faced were too strong. Otherwise, with Donghuang the Great��s abilities, he did not need Ye Futian��s worry at all. This time was different.


    The gods of ancient times were all their enemies.


    ��Don��t worry. I will be careful and avoid battles. You cultivate at peace,�� Donghuang the Great said. ��This time, I have no choice but to abandon the Heaven Palace and Donghuang Imperial Palace. It is a humiliation. All of this is waiting for you to take back. I will leave now.��


    With that, he turned and walked forward, leaving with extreme decisiveness. He left Ye Futian alone in the vast void.


    Of course, all the cultivators of the ninety-nine heavens were in his Micro Heavenly Path world.


    He did not need to cultivate himself. He also had to help them become stronger.


    Ye Futian��s body flashed, going toward a specific direction. A moment later, he saw a barren star.


    With a thought, Ye Futian��s body appeared on that barren star. Then he went directly to a barren mountain on that barren star and sat down. He closed his eyes to cultivate, starting his seclusion.


    One day in the outside world was 81 days in his micro world. He had to grasp the advantage of time!

 Chapter 2913 - Bloody Invasion

    Three months later, on the barren star, Ye Futian sat cross-legged while divine light flowed, enveloping the entire star.


    He was like an ancient god, sitting there alone as he cultivated in seclusion.


    Right now, time was flowing at 81 times the speed in Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path World. Three months was essentially 20 years.


    Twenty years was enough for many people to transform.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian controlled the Heavenly Law. He could create strong cultivators directly, helping the people inside to speed up their cultivation. The cultivators in Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path World now were the first batch of cultivators. In a way, they were the direct heirs, other than some specific figures.


    Now, the Micro Heavenly Path World had been split into six camps. They were the six legions of the Micro Heavenly Path World.


    These six legions were: the new Heaven Court, the original forces of the Heaven Realm. It was led by Lady Qin and Lady Shu and the people who had joined the Heavenly Imperial Palace. The two Great Emperors Qin and Shu and the top figures of the original Heavenly Palace marshaled this legion.


    The Revelation Legion led by Donghuang Diyuan was the force of the original Divine Prefecture.


    Four Corners Legion led by the force of Four Corners Village and cultivators who had joined the Heaven Realm. They were trained by Fang Cun��s four-person group and transformed into a complete entity. It was a relatively new legion.


    Arhat Legion was a Buddhist legion led by the various Buddhas. There were not many people in this legion, but there were all strong cultivators of the elite level��high monks of the Buddhist Clan.


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    Ziwei Legion consisted of the old members of the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    Heavenly Mandate Legion was an old force led by the Heavenly Mandate Academy.


    The Ziwei Legion and Heavenly Mandate Legion had split up the original Ziwei Imperial Palace. Back in the day, the Ziwei Imperial Palace had established various palaces, thus creating Ziwei and Heavenly Mandate. But after reorganizing this force now, the West Imperial Palace was put into the Ziwei Legion while the Lost Clan was put into the Heavenly Mandate Legion.


    The six great legions were then split into smaller legions and controlled by different people.


    This kind of reorganization was also in response to the recent changes in the world. It was a war between the Six Realms, and there were many cultivators in the Micro Heavenly Path World now. They had all come from different forces and clans. If they were not reorganized, they would be like scattered sand. Thus, they had to be newly organized to face the war.


    A figure stood in the starry sky. It was Yu Tu. The six legions cultivated in different locations; they all had their territory. He felt like he saw the eight legions under the former Heavenly Path.


    When Ye Futian ruled the world, these forces would be his eight legions in the future. The Devil World would probably come under him too.


    This was the situation that Yu Tu hoped to see one day. However, everything was still unknown right now. He did not know if he could see the day arrive.


    In another direction, Ye Futian saw that everyone was cultivating orderly and his consciousness left this place.


    Ye Futian took out a sorcery item in the outside world and transmitted his consciousness into it. ��Father,�� he said, ��how is the outside world now?��


    He had cultivated for 20 years, but it had only been three months in the outside world. However, even though it had only been three months, dramatic changes could have occurred.


    ��The war has spread everywhere in the Six Realms. Among them, the Heaven Realm��s resistance was the weakest. The Divine Prefecture��s territory is extremely vast, and there are many cultivators. People everywhere are resisting. The Western Heaven Buddhists�� resistance is the most intense. The Buddhist Clan is a pure land. After being invaded by the Dark World, the Buddhists believed their pure land had been tainted, so they started a mighty realm war. They pushed back against the Dark World, and the battle was incredibly intense,�� Donghuang the Great answered. ��In addition, the Human Realm seems to be letting this happen purposely. They did not send any support, causing the cultivators of the Dark World to suffer great losses.��


    The Heaven Realm had fallen for a long while, and they did not have much sense of belonging. Their forces were also relatively weak. Naturally, they would not start large-scale resistance. This was also Ye Futian��s wish. There was no need to make meaningless sacrifices.


    ��The Human Ancestor��s goal is to unify the world. Why would he care about the cultivators of the Dark World? Since the Dark Court decided to participate, then they should pay the cost,�� Ye Futian said. ��Anything with the Devil World?��


    ��No,�� Donghuang the Great replied. ��Nowadays, the Devil World has become the only pure land. They��re cultivating in peace.��


    ��I��m afraid the Devil World can��t stay unaffected either. The Human Realm wants to conquer the seven realms. After taking down the six realms, they will probably take over the Original Realm and then invade the Devil World,�� Ye Futian said. However, Yu Sheng also needed time to cultivate now. He had sent over a sorcery item that could change the flow of time. This way, he could also help Yu Sheng gain more time to cultivate and improve himself.


    Thus, he was quite happy to see the current situation. He would wait for Yu Sheng to become stronger.


    ��The Divine Prefecture must have been damaged greatly, right?�� Ye Futian asked.


    Donghuang the Great was quiet for a bit. Then he said, ��You just focus on cultivating. I��m afraid the day that the Human Ancestor returns is not far away.��


    Ye Futian understood what he meant. The Divine Prefecture must have been significantly damaged. This was an invasive war. Even if they avoided battle, they would still be affected by it. Plus, the initiative was completely in the hands of the other side.


    However, Donghuang the Great did not want Ye Futian to get involved. They were both clear that Ye Futian��s cultivation concerned the entire world. If no one could stop the Human Ancestor when he returned, then the world would be under the rule of the Human Realm.


    ��I understand,�� Ye Futian answered. He did not speak further.


    He looked up at the empty starry sky and then stood up. With a thought, his body vanished from the spot.


    Even though his father Donghuang the Great had told him to cultivate in peace, he still wanted to see the situation in the outside world. His father did not tell him everything, fearing he would get worried about the present situation.


    ��


    In the Divine Prefecture, all of the 18 domains were covered by the fires of war. Strong cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm and Human Realm had invaded everywhere.


    There had not been much resistance in the war of the Heaven Realm. After the Human Realm figures invaded it, they quickly conquered everywhere in the Heaven Realm. Now, they were in the ending stages.


    Thus, after battles died down in the Heaven Realm, most of the vital figures of the Human Realm turned to the Divine Prefecture. They began to attack the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture.


    The Divine Prefecture had countless cultivation continents. Each of the 18 domains were extremely large. Thus, the Human Realm and Empty Divine Realm targeted the main continents of the 18 domains. After they took over the core continent, they could fan out to control the entire territory.


    The Taishang Domain had been one of the strongest of the 18 domains. Now, it was also war-ridden. Many battles had erupted on it.


    Not long ago, there had been an extremely bloody event in the Zixiao Domain of the Divine Prefecture. After that event, the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture had started extremely big resistances. People from all the domains stood up and started hunting down the invaders.


    In the process of the Human Realm and Empty Divine Realm��s invasion, cultivators of many forces started looting madly. They encountered intense resistance from cultivators during the looting and started slaughtering indiscriminately. This caused an entire city to be filled with rivers of blood. This event had shaken the 18 domains of the Divine Prefecture and completely infuriated the independent cultivators of the Divine Prefecture!

 Chapter 2914 - Orthodox Unity

    Ye Futian��s figure descended upon a continent in the Taiyu Domain. Using his consciousness, countless images appeared in his mind instantly. His divine consciousness covered the entire vast continent.


    He saw many battlefields. Battle had erupted everywhere, and fires burned.


    According to the rules established by convention, Great Emperors were not allowed to be involved in the battles. To avoid affecting the innocent people of the Divine Prefecture, Ye Futian naturally would not directly interfere with this battle.


    However, this did not mean that he could use any secret methods.


    Ye Futian could sense that there were many demon beasts with strong cultivations. He used one thought, and a strong demonic cultivator appeared before him. This was the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird. His entire body was golden, but he was in human form. His features were extremely sharp. He was a divine bird, the Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird, from the Empty Divine Realm.


    Whoosh! There was a gale of wind. The Golden-winged Giant Peng Bird transformed into a bolt of lightning, flashing toward Ye Futian. He extended his hand. It changed into extremely sharp claws as he clapped down on Ye Futian.


    This was the other actively attacking him.


    Ye Futian looked at him with his dark eyes. Instantly, that figure felt a horrible divine consciousness penetrate his mind directly. The next moment, his body came to an abrupt stop. He looked at Ye Futian and bowed in greeting. ��Master.��


    Ye Futian extracted his memories directly and quickly learned about some things. His brows furrowed slightly, and murderous intent flashed past his eyes.


    ��Go!�� he uttered. Instantly, that figure shot into the clouds and transformed back into its original form. He streaked through the sky and left this place to collect information from the Divine Prefecture for Ye Futian.


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    Ye Futian took a step and went before another demon beast. After doing this many times, he controlled quite a few demon beasts and sent them towards the main continents of the Divine Prefecture.


    After doing this, Ye Futian��s figure appeared at one of the main peaks of the continent. He had received a lot of information in his mind.


    ��As expected, Father did not tell me this,�� Ye Futian thought inside. Donghuang the Great had hidden a lot of information in the conversation with him earlier. The Divine Prefecture��s situation was much worse than he had imagined.


    Naturally, he understood his father��s actions. The Divine Prefecture was the territory that his father ruled. How would he be willing to see today��s situation? But for the future, he had to hope that Ye Futian could focus entirely on cultivating and thus did not tell him too much.


    The present Divine Prefecture had the fire of war burning in all 18 domains. Countless continents were affected. Even if they purposely tried to avoid conflict, they could not stay untouched, especially in the massacre that had happened recently in Zixiao Domain.


    The forces of the Human Realm had issued a massacre order. Countless people who had not participated in the war had been massacred. Blood flowed through the entire city like a river. Numerous people had been killed, and it had been gruesome.


    Even though he knew this was unavoidable in an invasive war, the Human Realm called themselves justice but were still so cruel and bloody when conquering others. This still made him extremely furious. His eyes contained murderous intent.


    The killing that had occurred in Zixiao Domain started igniting the Divine Prefecture. Strong figures in all the Divine Prefecture domains were furious after hearing the news and worried they would have the same fate. The top figures stood up to organize the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture and started a resistance, hunting down the invaders.


    This was still the home turf of the Divine Prefecture. If one only looked at the numbers, the Divine Prefecture cultivators could drown the invaders. However, the invaders all had very strong cultivations. Otherwise, they would not have come to invade another realm.


    The fire of war expanded through the 18 domains and could possibly ignite on all fronts.


    Not too long after, Ye Futian received news that a huge battle was occurring in the central city of the Taishang Domain.


    ��


    Taishang City was where the Domain Chief��s Manor of the Taishang Domain had been. It had a pretty important status in the entire Divine Prefecture.


    The cultivators of the Taishang Domain were quite strong as a whole, and Taishang City was even more so. The Human Realm and Empty Divine Realm had been attacked many times during their invasion. After the invaders had killed their way to Taishang City, they were often hunted and killed, causing the invading forces to suffer significant losses.


    This attracted the attention of the upper level, who reported it to even higher levels. Thus, on this day, the Human Realm and Empty Divine Realm both transferred strong forces at the same time to overwhelm Taishang City. They prepared to take it down in one go to avoid future problems.


    That day, some strong legions arrived in the sky above Taishang City.


    Among them, the strongest force was, without a doubt, the Orthodox Unity of the Human Realm. This force was the orthodox force of the Human Realm and had a close relationship with the Human Divine Palace. In fact, it could be said that they followed orders directly from the Human Divine Palace.


    The sect leader of the Orthodox Unity was an important figure in the Human Realm too. A few years ago, he began to have the reputation of being one of the strongest figures under the Great Emperor Plane. Now, he had reached the Emperor Plane and followed the Human Ancestor.


    The Orthodox Unity was powerful because of the tight-knit relationship with Human Divine Palace. They had branches everywhere, and their forces were spread throughout the Human Realm. They were the number one cultivation force in the Human Realm, other than the Human Divine Palace. There was no other one. One could imagine how strong they were.


    Now, the sect leader of the Orthodox Unity followed the Human Ancestor, while the vice sect leaders managed the sect. They were all in the Near-Deity Level and had very frightening cultivations. Right now, they stood in the air, leading the Orthodox Unity Legion. They were ready to invade the city of the Taishang Domain.


    The vice sect leaders of the Orthodox Unity all had an air of justice about them. Divine light flowed on their bodies, and they had extraordinary auras. Their gazes scanned the city below.


    Other than the Orthodox Unity, they also led many forces from the Taishang Domain to attack together. They prepared to take down this city in one fell swoop and then take down the Taishang Domain.


    There was a similarly mighty legion in the Taishang City. This was a voluntary resistance army formed by the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture Taishang City. In addition, there were many scattered camps inside the entire city. They were all resistors. Right now, they all looked up at the army that had come to conquer them and felt very formidable pressure. Even so, they were still full of the wish to fight.


    The Human Realm��s invasion had upended the impression of the Human Ancestor that the people of the Divine Prefecture had before. These self-proclaimed cultivators of justice were all shams. Donghuang the Great might have seen through the other��s disguise long ago and thus rejected Di Hao��s marriage proposal so decisively back then.


    They finally understood why the Human Ancestor had told Di Hao to propose to Donghuang Diyuan and why the Great Emperor had become furious and humiliated Di Hao.


    The two had an intense rivalry.


    ��It seems that they don��t plan on giving up. They prepare to continue resisting,�� a cultivator of the Orthodox Unity in the sky said after seeing the scene in Taishang City.


    ��A group of idiots. Mayflies trying to sway a tree,�� someone on the side mocked. He announced, ��Donghuang has already abandoned you all, and you still dare to fight back. You��re looking for death.��


    The cultivators of Taishang City were not swayed at all by these words. Had Donghuang the Great abandoned them? Donghuang the Great told them to save themselves, try their best not to get into the war, and wait for the future. They understood how helpless this was.


    ��The Great Emperor probably did not think that the Human Realm cultivators who are self-proclaimed people of justice will be so bloodthirsty,�� someone said coldly. ��The Great Emperor will not forgive the invaders.��


    ��Really?�� the Orthodox Unity cultivator in the sky sneered. ��Since you��re so stubborn, then you can only be baptized in blood!��

 Chapter 2915 - Kill to Stop Killing

    The vice sect leader of the Orthodox Unity looked down from the sky as if he was looking at a group of ants. ��The strong figures of the Orthodox Unity and Human Realm, listen,�� he announced. ��The cultivators of Taishang City are killing the masters of justice. In that case, we must bathe Taishang City in blood and kill all with no mercy.��


    The strong figures of the Orthodox Unity had icy gazes while the murderous intent burned. That one massacre had not been enough. Instead, it united the people of the Divine Prefecture in resistance. Then they would do another massacre to repress them and clean everyone out. They would kill until the people of the Divine Prefecture gave up on resisting.


    1


    As soon as he spoke, a frightening aura pressed down, shrouding Taishang City. The mighty masses of strong cultivators flooded down to start the bloodshed in the city.


    ��Turning the wrong into right.�� The strong figures of the Divine Prefecture had icy gazes.


    1


    ��They carry fatal weapons, and murder grows in their hearts. The Human Realm and Empty Divine Realm are invading. Even if they had consciences before, this kind of environment will destroy your humanity,�� an elder stated loudly. ��Cultivators of the Divine Prefecture, toss away your fantasies. Kill to stop killing.��


    ��Those from another sect will have different hearts.��


    ��If I surrender and die with injustice, then I��d rather die on the battlefield. Even if I die, I��ll have no regrets.��


    The voices rose in waves. They all had the feeling of tragic heroes and stimulated the resistance spirit of the cultivators in Taishang City. All the cultivators released their powers, and their bodies shot into the air, ready to face the Orthodox Unity��s attack.


    Beams of destructive attacks have already descended from the dome of the sky. The cultivators of Taishang City also attacked. Instantly, there was a frighteningly destructive storm in the sky above the city.


    ��Kill!��


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    The yell of ��kill�� shook the sky on the battlefield. Led by the Orthodox Unity, the strong figures charged into the city like a ferocious tiger coming down the mountain.


    The alliance of independent cultivators of the Divine Prefecture had difficulty resisting quickly. In a short time, many people died.


    This kind of battle was extremely destructive.


    At that time, countless legions suddenly appeared in different directions of the sky above Taishang City. Pressure weighed down. They all looked down at the same time. The aura of each legion was frightening. They were all cultivators with very high cultivations. The leaders were all at the Near-Deity Level, and there were quite a few of them.


    ��Who are you?�� The strong figures of the Orthodox Unity overlooked the battlefield. When they saw the army that had suddenly appeared in the sky, they froze. Their eyes narrowed slightly as they stared at these strong figures.


    As soon as they spoke, a group of strong figures charged directly at them. Countless beams of sword light appeared in the sky. Like a sword matrix, they tore apart the void and covered the area that they were in.


    ��The Imperial Palace Legion.��


    They quickly realized who the newcomers were, and they paled. Even though the Orthodox Unity was strong, they were not the force directly under the Divine Human Palace. The top legion of the seven realms was directly under the Imperial Palace.


    These cultivators that had arrived were the legion directly under the Donghuang Imperial Palace and Heaven Imperial Palace, who had escaped earlier. Now, they had killed their way here.


    ��Boom���� A strong aura was released. The air of justice bloomed from their bodies as they cut down with mighty sword Qi, but they were flooded instantly.


    Destructive sword intent directly ripped apart the void, disappearing in a flash. In that instant, the strong cultivators of the Orthodox Unity transformed instantly into nothingness. They were destroyed in this world, causing the strong figures of the Human Realm and Empty Divine Realm below them to panic. They did not think they would get besieged by the Imperial Palace Legion here.


    ��Retreat!�� The strong figures of the Orthodox Unity were decisive and ordered to retreat. However, the entire Taishang City was covered by all the legions. Every direction was blocked off.


    ��Kill with no mercy!��


    A voice rang through the air above Taishang City. The strong figures had said this of the Orthodox Unity before too.


    ��Die!��


    Instantly, the murderous yells from the entire Taishang City shook the sky. The strong figures from the legion that had arrived and Taishang City sealed the entire city and started killing.


    The people of the Orthodox Unity, Human Realm, and Empty Divine Realm did not want to fight anymore. They only wanted to kill enough to escape while also calling for reinforcement.


    But it was utterly useless. This was a one-sided massacre. The people of the Orthodox Unity wanted to wipe out Taishang City, but instead, they suffered a tragic massacre.


    Not too long after, the number of cultivators on the battlefield had been reduced greatly. Some of the Orthodox Unity wanted to surrender, but the people of Taishang City did not accept it. Faced with these murderers, they only had murderous thoughts.


    Gradually, the battle entered the finishing stage. The strong figures of all the legions went toward the upper sky, starting to take their leave. Ye Futian and the others appeared there and enveloped the strong legions. Then they all vanished.


    ��Heavenly Emperor, take us with too,�� the strong figures of Taishang City who had participated in the battle said at this time.


    ��We��re willing to go with the Heavenly Emperor,�� more strong figures said. They were cultivators of the Divine Prefecture. The relationship between Donghuang the Great and Ye Futian was public knowledge now. It was no longer a secret. There was no difference between following Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great.


    ��Okay. Those who are willing to fight, come with me,�� Ye Futian said. Instantly, most of the people who had fought earlier in Taishang City shot into the sky, joining Ye Futian. They were also collected into Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path World.


    These people could join Donghuang Diyuan��s Revelation Legion and be governed by Donghuang Diyuan. They would still be part of the Divine Prefecture��s force in the future.


    When Ye Futian was leaving, he ran into Donghuang the Great, who had hurried over. He had come to Taishang City after learning about the battle here.


    ��You came after all,�� Donghuang the Great said, sighing inwardly. He was conflicted inside too. He hoped Ye Futian could focus on cultivating, but the situation in the Divine Prefecture now was indeed tragic.


    ��Yes. Father, come cultivate in my Micro World,�� Ye Futian said. ��I��ll take care of the matters in the outside world.��


    ��Okay.�� Donghuang the Great nodded. He prepared to let go and hand everything over to Ye Futian.


    He also entered Ye Futian��s Micro Heavenly Path World to cultivate. This way, he could fight for more time.


    Ye Futian left this place. The people of Taishang City looked at his receding silhouette, and it was like seeing the light in despair. The Heavenly Emperor and Donghuang the Great would win the War of the Seven Realms.


    News about the battle of Taishang City started spreading. The Human Ancestor and other strong figures learned of it immediately, but by the time they hurried over, Ye Futian and the others had already left.


    Ye Futian was able to lead a moving army. This was indeed very troublesome.


    ��No,�� the Human Ancestor said as if sensing something. ��Return to the Human Realm.��


    As soon as he spoke, their bodies transformed into beams of light. They vanished from their spot and hurried toward the Human Realm as if they had sensed something was amiss.


    The sect leader of the Orthodox Unity was by the Human Ancestor��s side. He seemed to understand what the Human Ancestor meant, and his expression turned uncomfortable.


    Did the Human Ancestor think that Ye Futian would lead his army to attack the Human Realm?


    Ye Futian did not have much time. If he attacked the Human Realm, where would he choose to be the target?


    The sect leader of the Orthodox Unity��s face paled instantly. A massacre had occurred in the Divine Prefecture, so if Ye Futian wanted to intimidate the forces of the Human Realm, what would be the best solution?


    Exterminate the Orthodox Unity!

 Chapter 2916 - Exterminate the Clan

    The Orthodox Unity was the number one clan of the Human Realm below the Divine Human Palace.


    Their forces were spread throughout the Human Realm. Before the Gods�� Ruins Continent had appeared in the era of the Six Emperors, the Orthodox Unity already had many Near-Deity figures. There were also descendants of ancient gods and had a great heritage, so it was extremely strong.


    The Orthodox Unity had many branches on all the continents of the Human Realm, while the headquarters of the Orthodox Unity ruled the main city��Orthodox Unity City. It was directly named by the Orthodox Unity, so one could imagine how big the Orthodox Unity��s influence was.


    Within the Orthodox Unity City were practically all from the Orthodox Unity. They controlled all the resources in this city.


    During this war, the Orthodox Unity had sent out a portion of cultivators to fight, but more people remained within the clan. However, the people who left mostly had high cultivation levels.


    Now, the entire city was in a state of chaos. The inner circle of the Orthodox Unity was especially panicked. Not long ago, they received news that the Orthodox Unity figures who went to invade the Divine Prefecture had practically been wiped out and killed.


    It was not just that the Orthodox Unity had been greatly hurt. Instead, the upper-level figures had practically all been killed. One could imagine what kind of shock the Orthodox Unity was in now.


    At this moment, the entire Orthodox Unity was in a mess.


    Strong figures kept coming to and fro under the mighty clan doors. Many cultivators in the city were heading toward the Orthodox Unity too. They wanted to know if the news was accurate. This was like a bolt in the blue for the Orthodox Unity City with great implications. They naturally wanted to know the definite answer.


    Even if they knew that it might be true, they still did not want to accept it.


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    ��Silence.��


    Just then, a voice came from within the doors of the Orthodox Unity and spread throughout the inside and outside of the clan. At the same time, a powerful burst of the emperor��s might radiated out, shaking the hearts of countless cultivators.


    ��Great Emperor!��


    ��Another Great Emperor has been born in the Orthodox Unity.�� At that moment, countless strong cultivators were shocked. They seemingly forgot about the panic from earlier.


    Was there a second Great Emperor in the Orthodox Unity now, other than the leader?


    If both emperors were in the Orthodox Unity, they were still the top clan below the Human Divine Palace. Who could shake them?


    ��Go do your own thing,�� the voice said again. When the emperor��s might emanated, it seemed to calm people down.


    The panicking hearts of all the strong cultivators gradually calmed down. Then they prepared to leave and mind their own business.


    Just then, a terrifying might suddenly came from the dome of the sky.


    The cultivators of the Orthodox Unity looked up to the sky. The sun was a bit blinding, and many people covered their eyes with their hands, but an even more brilliant divine light shone down. Then they saw a mighty heavenly army descend from the sky.


    At that moment, their hearts twitched fiercely.


    This was��


    Within the Orthodox Unity, a strong figure in a dark Taoist robe appeared in the sky. His eyes were like a bolt of lightning penetrating the void as he gazed toward the army in the sky.


    ��Who has come?�� Emperor��s might radiated from his body and enveloped the vast land. The aggressive emperor��s might calmed the cultivators down quite a bit, especially the strong figures of the Orthodox Unity. Their clan had a Great Emperor.


    As soon as he spoke, a white-haired figure appeared. When the Great Emperor of the Orthodox Unity saw the other, his expression changed drastically.


    Ye Futian used a thought to cover the vast space with the Divine Power of the Great Path. Time and space seemed to freeze. An extremely brilliant spear appeared above the Great Emperor��s head. This spear shot down directly, passing through the void.


    Sensing the might of the spear, the Orthodox Unity Great Emperor��s expression dropped, but he felt that time had stopped moving. His Divine Power wanted to break free, but he had just entered the Great Emperor Plane. How could he fight against Ye Futian? Their Divine Power was not at the same level at all.


    The spear shot down and directly penetrated the Great Emperor��s body with a squelch. With a loud boom, it continued down and smashed a grand pavilion of the Orthodox Unity, pulverizing it. The brilliant spear was nailed into the ground, nailing that Great Emperor��s body there in death.


    The shocking scene before their eyes made all the strong figures inside and outside of the Orthodox Unity to freeze. They had not processed it all yet. Right before their eyes, they had seen a Great Emperor that had just been created in the Orthodox Unity to be nailed to death in the Orthodox Unity.


    After that, the strong figures of the Orthodox Unity felt extreme pain in their hearts. They recognized the white-haired youth.


    ��It��s Ye Futian!��


    The Heavenly Emperor Ye Futian killed seven Great Emperors with one spear and was left unscathed from a battle with the Human Ancestor and Eternal Swordlord.


    He had led his great army to attack the Orthodox Unity.


    Had the strong figures who had wiped out the Orthodox Unity in the Divine Prefecture been Ye Futian��s army too?


    Everyone looked up at the mighty army in the sky whose might was weighing down on the Orthodox Unity.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were icy but burned with murderous intent. He waved his hand and ordered, ��Kill!��


    Since the Human Realm��s forces had committed massacres in the Divine Prefecture and Heaven Realm, then they would kill to stop the killing.


    He would like to see if the other invasive forces of the Human Realm still dared to commit bloodshed after he wiped out the Orthodox Unity.


    After Ye Futian spoke, the army attacked, charging towards the Orthodox Unity.


    The strong figures of the Orthodox Unity looked at the Great Emperor nailed to the ground with the spear. Even his divine soul and consciousness had been wiped out. They felt a wave of despair as if even the wind blowing onto their bodies was frigid.


    Outside the Orthodox Unity��s doors, the cultivators of the city watched this scene from afar. Even though the Orthodox Unity was the number one clan of the Human Realm, they still could not hold up before the army of an Imperial Palace. The horrifying army destroyed the Orthodox Unity with unstoppable force.


    The mighty clan was being destroyed without stop. Strong figures kept dying in the sky, and their bodies fell down.


    The hot sun blazed, but the cultivators of the Orthodox Unity City all felt the bone-stabbing coldness. When a breeze blew by, they felt iciness stab into their souls.


    This battle did not actually last very long, but the inside of the Orthodox Unity was covered by corpses. Fresh blood dyed the Orthodox Unity red. Meanwhile, the crushed pavilion at the peak of the Orthodox Unity was where the scene of the Great Emperor nailed by the spear was. It was shocking.


    The number one clan of the Human Realm had gotten wiped out.


    In the distance, extremely strong and domineering emperor��s might seemed to descend. The Human Ancestor��s face appeared in the sky, blocking the sun and covering the entire world.


    Divine might descended. The Human Ancestor stared at Ye Futian and said, ��Ye Futian, you��re too presumptuous.��


    Ye Futian looked up and scanned that face. He collected the grand army into his Micro World and gathered Divine Power around his body into an extremely horrifying spear.


    He raised a hand and slapped it forward. Instantly, the long spear shot directly into the sky, stabbing toward that huge face.


    ��Boom���� The long spear attacked the heavens, and a horrifying crack appeared. It swallowed up the sky, even twisting the face. One portion of the sky had cracked. Ye Futian looked up and scanned the sky, saying, ��If the Human Realm��s forces dare to commit atrocities in the Divine Prefecture again, they will end up like the Orthodox Unity.��


    With that, his body vanished directly.


    After Ye Futian left, dozens of Great Emperors appeared. They did not dare to come forward earlier and just watched it all happen. Clearly, they could not offend Ye Futian.


    A desolate feeling rose in the hearts of the cultivators of the Orthodox Unity. It seemed that the Human Realm could not stay safe from this tribulation either!

 Chapter 2917 - Half a Year

    The Human Ancestor��s group felt it too. His eyes were frigid. Even though he did not care about the lives of Orthodox Unity cultivators, the fact that Ye Futian had wiped out the Orthodox Unity still embarrassed him.


    After all, on the surface, the Orthodox Unity was the number one clan of the Human Realm.


    But Ye Futian led an army to the Human Realm and wiped it out.


    A Great Emperor was nailed to death there. This was Ye Futian��s message to intimidate the invaders from the Human Realm.


    ��Human Ancestor, Ye Futian possesses the Micro World and can move the army with him. This way, he can appear on every battlefield, and it��s incredibly disadvantageous to us. If we don��t kill Ye Futian, then there will be endless threats,�� a Great Emperor said. His voice contained tragic fury.


    This Great Emperor who had stepped out was the leader of the Orthodox Unity. His Orthodox Unity had been wiped out.


    Among the people who had been killed were the descendants of his family. They had been massacred. Before this, his descendants had also died in the battle of Taishang City, falling on the battlefield. Other than him, the rest of the Orthodox Unity had been killed.


    The Human Ancestor glanced at him with indifferent eyes. These were undoubtedly useless words. Could he not realize that himself?


    However, they had not taken down Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great in the previous siege on Ye Futian. If the other purposely avoided a head-on fight, it would be almost impossible to kill Ye Futian. This was also why the other dared to be so fearless and presumptuous. It was the prime example of one being fearless because of his skills. Ye Futian had extremely high confidence in his abilities.


    There was probably no one in the world now who could take down Ye Futian alone. Unless��


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    The Human Ancestor looked at the Super Great Emperors behind him and said, ��In the future, the Law of the Heavenly Path will be reconstructed. Everything will be reorganized, including how to become gods. Since you all returned, you should also contribute some strength. No need to hide or hold back.��


    He knew that these ancient Great Emperors had their statuses and were extremely arrogant and lofty. Last time, only the Eternal Swordlord had attacked seriously. Many Super Great Emperors had not truly displayed their abilities.


    All the gods fell silent when they heard the Human Ancestor��s words. If the Law of the Heavenly Path were reconstructed, it would be like the ancient Heavenly Path era. At that time, there would probably be something like the Eight Legions that helped maintain the law in the world. The Human Ancestor was hinting at them.


    In addition, they feared the ��Human Ancestor.�� It was the ��Human Ancestor�� who had helped them return.


    After speaking, the Human Ancestor then looked below them and said to the cultivators of the Orthodox Unity, ��Ye Futian called himself the Heavenly Emperor and personally came to commit atrocities in the Human Realm. He even massacred many innocent cultivators and wiped out the Orthodox Unity. It is incredibly cruel. This kind of evil person must be killed by the world. I will lead the people of the three realms into an army and sweep across the world under the sword of justice. I hope to reconstruct the law of the world, so the entire world can be a pure land like the Human Realm. However, many of the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture cultivators are stubborn and brainwashed by Ye Futian. We can only kill him. I hope the cultivators of the Human Realm can wield the sword of justice and enter the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture to help convert the world.��


    The Human Ancestor��s words impelled the cultivators of the Orthodox Unity City below, making them feel hatred toward the enemies. They wanted to kill their way into the Divine Prefecture and bring peace to the world.


    All the gods watched this quietly. The Human Ancestor probably did not care about the lives of the people. He wanted the entire world to be under his control and everyone to be his believer. As for what method he took or how many lives were lost, he probably did not care at all.


    ��


    The Orthodox Unity had been the number one clan of the Human Realm. News of Ye Futian wiping it out quickly spread through all the continents of the Human Realm. Then the cultivators of all the forces spread it to the battlefields of the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture, intimidating the invasive forces in the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture greatly.


    After that, Ye Futian led his army to appear in various battlefields of the Divine Prefecture. The eight great legions swept through everything, killing the invaders of the various continents.


    The invasive forces of the Human Realm had run rampant for three months, and now, they encountered strong resistance. They did not dare to be reckless anymore. Instead, they even felt panicked, worrying that the great army would descend before them one day and kill them all.


    The Human Ancestor also led the gods to encircle and suppress Ye Futian, but Ye Futian never went up against them directly. He always had the army attack in a subtle and covert way before leaving quickly.


    However, there had almost been a dangerous incident once. Ye Futian had almost been stopped and could not bring his army away. If it had happened, then the Human Realm would have all of their forces attack Ye Futian��s great army, and that would have been very dangerous.


    Thus, Ye Futian turned to the Heaven Realm and Buddhist Clan, sending the Human Realm��s three forces into a state of panic. They did not even dare to act rashly anymore.


    Finally, the war that had lasted for half a year had calmed quite a bit. It was not like before, where great battles occurred everywhere. Only small scuffles continued without stopping, appearing everywhere. The three invasive forces felt the threat and did not dare to act in a high-profile manner anymore.


    Ye Futian had also sacrificed three months for this.


    In these three months, he could have cultivated in isolation for 20 years, but he had to make this sacrifice for the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture and Heaven Realm.


    Now that the war had been reduced greatly, Ye Futian could finally stop cultivating.


    Ye Futian went to the peak of a black mountain of an empty continent in the Original Realm. He cultivated alone, not wanting to be disturbed, so he chose this remote area.


    Donghuang the Great and the others saw Ye Futian in his Micro Heavenly Path World, but they did not say anything. Ye Futian had only gone through three months outside, but they had gone through 20 years in here. This meant that Ye Futian had missed 20 years of cultivation. However, Ye Futian had saved many cultivators. Whether he had made the right or wrong choice could only be answered with time.


    Donghuang the Great only wished that they would not lose to time.


    However, when Ye Futian had led the army into battle everywhere, he had not let those on the Path of the Emperors participate. Their first priority was cultivation. People like Gu Dongliu and Donghuang Diyuan did not participate. They stayed in his Micro Heavenly Path World to cultivate. For them, improving their abilities was the most important task.


    Nowadays, more and more strong figures in the Great Emperor Plane were on Ye Futian��s side.


    After all, even if they did not count the cultivation time from before, it had been half a year since this war started in the outside world, but 40 years had passed in the Micro Heavenly Path World. Before this, they had also cultivated for many years with Ye Futian��s help.


    That day, the Micro Heavenly Path World was already like an entire world. Like the outside world, it had its own world law and spiritual Qi. If a random person were thrown into here, they would not even distinguish the worlds clearly.


    Ye Futian checked everyone��s cultivation statuses. The core figures had gradually all entered the Path of the Emperors. Gu Dongliu��s cultivation of breaking his path was also becoming progressively complete. If he exited, he would definitely give the world a surprise!

 Chapter 2918 - Wisdom

    There was a divine palace in Ye Futian��s Micro World. It had a mountain, a creek, and a lot of foliage. There were some pavilions scattered aesthetically. They were elegant yet stylish and felt like a paradise outside of the world. It was peaceful and beautiful.


    This was the String Pavilion. At the moment, elegant music was streaming out of the divine palace. It made one feel relaxed and happy.


    This was only one corner of the Micro World. Many years had passed since Ye Futian had created this Micro World. Over these long years, the Micro World was no longer the barren land from before. The cultivators in here had established their own permanent cultivation lands.


    The String Pavilion was where Ye Futian and his teacher Hua Fengliu had lived when he was young.


    Clearly, this was where Hua Fengliu��s family lived.


    His master, mastress, Jieyu, Nianyu, and the others all lived here.


    The graceful music came from Hua Fengliu. Even if he had wanted to help with the war, he was powerless. Plus, this was Ye Futian��s Micro World. There were no conflicts, and Ye Futian would not discuss the conflicts outside with him either.


    It was long past the time for his master to retire. Ye Futian naturally would not let him worry.


    Two maidens were cultivating at the mountaintop of the String Pavilion. The two of them had extraordinary temperaments, as if they had already left the mundane world and were heavenly fairies.


    One of the women��s beauty was out of the world. She looked ethereal and clear, completely untainted. The other woman was like the incarnation of a perfect goddess. There was no flaw on her entire body. She was serene and elegant.


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    Naturally, these two women were Hua Qingqing and Hua Jieyu. They had been cultivating together the entire time.


    Right now, it seemed that the Buddhist Voice echoed throughout the mountain. It was Hua Qingqing reciting ancient scriptures for Hua Jieyu. She was like a Buddhist light. The glow of the Buddhist clan shimmered faintly on her body. She was extraordinarily pure and sacred and could not be desecrated.


    Meanwhile, Hua Jieyu bathed under the Buddhist light and seemed to have entered a miraculous state. She was utterly immersed in cultivation and forgot even herself.


    Without them realizing it, a white-haired figure landed on the ancient mountaintop. He did not disturb their cultivation and just stood to the side quietly.


    Hua Qingqing was still reading the Buddhist scripture; Hua Jieyu was still immersed in her meditation and cultivation, completely focused.


    Ye Futian was like air. No one paid attention to him.


    He had never been treated like this before.


    However, he was not angry at all either. Instead, he looked at Hua Qingqing with appreciation. But when he looked at Hua Jieyu, there was more gentle affection.


    ��Brother-in-law!��


    A voice traveled into Ye Futian��s eardrums. He looked back and saw Nianyu blinking at him in the distance. Even though she was not a little girl anymore, Hua Nianyu still acted like it. After all, judging from her cultivation, her age was still very young.


    ��How long have they cultivated for?�� Ye Futian asked, transmitting his voice to Hua Nianyu.


    ��A few decades have passed like a day,�� Hua Nianyu said. ��I don��t understand what they��re cultivating, but it seems that Sister��s cultivation has reached a critical moment.��


    ��Then why are you here?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��I don��t know either. It seems to be easier to be enlightened when cultivating here,�� Hua Nianyu said strangely. ��My comprehension of cultivation is much clearer too, and I can understand more easily. Is it the effect of the Buddhist Voice?��


    ��Yes!�� Ye Futian nodded without hesitation. ��This is the Light of Enlightenment!��


    Ye Futian��s gaze fell upon Hua Qingqing��s body as he spoke.


    Hua Qingqing had been the Buddhist lamp accompanying The Buddha in cultivation. She had listened to The Buddha teaching the scriptures, attending The Buddha for one thousand years as the Ancient Buddha Qingdeng. Then consciousness was born from the Buddhist lamp.


    In a way, Hua Qingqing��s intelligence had been born because of The Buddha. She had been made from intelligence.


    Nianyu did not understand. She would have to ask Grandpa Xuan when she got a chance.


    Usually, her sister and brother-in-law were very busy and did not have time to pay attention to her, so Hua Nianyu would bother Lord Taixuan and the others.


    At that moment, the Buddhist light faded from Hua Qingqing��s body. Her pretty eyes opened, and she gazed in Ye Futian��s direction.


    Then Hua Jieyu also opened her eyes. Her gaze fell upon Ye Futian��s body, and she smiled brilliantly.


    ��You��re back,�� Hua Jieyu said gently.


    ��When did you break your Path?�� Ye Futian asked.


    ��The years that you left,�� Hua Jieyu replied with a smile as if she was talking about something unimportant. Ye Futian had dealt with matters in the outside world for three months without returning, but in here, 20 years had passed already. That was why Hua Jieyu said the years that he had been gone for.


    ��Jieyu, why did you break the Path?�� Ye Futian��s voice was low but gentle. This was his Heavenly Path World. He was in charge of the world law, while Hua Jieyu was his wife. She did not need to take the risk and break the Path.


    ��Qingqing is here, so there aren��t any dangers,�� Hua Jieyu said, still smiling gently. ��Plus, I have my own comprehension from these years and want to cultivate my own Path. Is that not allowed?��


    Ye Futian looked towards Hua Qingqing. With Hua Qingqing by his side, he also had a miraculous feeling. It felt just like what Nianyu had said as if it could bring him to enlightenment.


    Hua Qingqing was the reincarnation of the Buddhist lamp. Her cultivation was very unique. Ye Futian could feel the Light of Enlightenment from her Buddhist light.


    All these years, Hua Qingqing had also been helping Hua Jieyu cultivate.


    ��I don��t know what you two want.�� Ye Futian shook his head with a wry smile. How could he really blame Hua Jieyu? He was just a bit worried.


    ��Don��t worry. Everything is successful,�� Hua Qingqing replied with a smile. Her voice was gentle and made people believe her fully.


    ��Yes.�� Ye Futian nodded. ��Qingqing, you have to keep an eye on Jieyu. Don��t let her fool around.��


    Hua Qingqing smiled and nodded.


    ��Brother-in-law, are you leaving as soon as you��re back?�� Nianyu muttered. Earlier, they had been transmitting their voices. Was her brother-in-law planning on slipping away without even actually talking to her this time?


    ��Nianyu, your brother-in-law has many things to do,�� Hua Jieyu said to Nianyu. Nianyu hung her head, feeling a bit down.


    ��Hurry and go cultivate. No need to mind me,�� Hua Jieyu said to Ye Futian. Naturally, she knew that the most important thing to Ye Futian now was time.


    ��Okay. I��ll leave after visiting Master and Masteress.�� Ye Futian nodded. He left after strolling around. He indeed had a lot of matters to handle and had no time to waste at all.


    After Ye Futian left, Hua Jieyu asked Hua Qingqing, ��Qingqing, would it be effective if you helped him cultivate?��


    ��It��s limited.�� Hua Qingqing shook her head. ��He has already created his own world and has already reached enlightenment. Even with the blessing of wisdom, it��s hard for him to comprehend more. Everything depends on himself.��


    ��I see.�� Hua Jieyu nodded. ��Let us continue cultivating then.��


    ��Okay,�� Hua Qingqing said. Then they closed their eyes. The Buddhist Voice wrapped around them. It was as if someone was reading the Buddhist scriptures on this divine mountain, making this divine palace seem like an extremely sacred pure land.


    After Ye Futian visited Hua Jieyu, he went to many other places. He checked over the state of their cultivation and gave some help. Then he left to focus on his own cultivation!

 Chapter 2919 - New Emperor Legion

    Ye Futian focused on cultivation. He had demon beasts under his control in the outside world, so he would know if anything major happened.


    After he led the army to fight everywhere for three months, the War of the Six Realms was not as aggressive as before. Even though war still existed in the Six Realms, it was much more peaceful than before. The invaders from the three realms did not dare to kill mindlessly anymore.


    Time passed quickly. A few decades passed in the snap of a finger. Of course, this was the time in Ye Futian��s world.


    That day, Ye Futian sat cross-legged on a divine mountain in his Micro World. His entire body dazzled, and light flowed across him. In the span of a breath, he seemed to produce limitless vitality. If he spat out a hot breath, it would make the sun hotter. When he spat out a cool breath, it made coldness shroud the world. All of his actions, even his inhale and exhale, could affect the operation of this universe.


    The sound of his heartbeat seemed to have transformed into the universe��s pulse. When he was calm, the universe would run smoothly. When he was angered, the entire universe would be upended.


    Ye Futian continued to meditate in this quiet state, immersing in it. He seemed to breathe together with the universe.


    That day, Ye Futian finally opened his eyes and took a deep breath. He did not need to perceive the entire world. Everything had been imprinted in his mind.


    Nowadays, he was the entire world; the entire universe was him.


    ��70 years!�� Ye Futian murmured. This time, he had actually spent 70 years cultivating in seclusion. If he added the time from before, it had already been more than 100 years.


    Of course, 70 years was not even one year in the outside world.


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    But in Ye Futian��s world, dramatic changes had already occurred.


    With the 40 years after the war had erupted and the 70 years now, more than 100 years had passed already. There had been decades of cultivation before the war had erupted too. One could imagine how many great changes had happened.


    Even the cultivators that Ye Futian had collected into his Micro World in the three months of battles and joined the legions, their cultivation states had improved too. They had become a young force in the eight legions.


    As for the core figures who had already entered the Path of the Emperors, their cultivation states had become even stronger. A batch of Great Emperors had appeared in the Micro World.


    Right now, Ye Futian��s body in the outside world was also completely brilliant. He radiated with dazzling divine light as if he was no longer a ��human.�� Instead, he was the incarnation of the Path. Even though he was in the vast void, he still did not seem miniscule. Merely sitting there, he was like the absolute center of that world.


    Boom! At that moment, Ye Futian��s eyes opened, and divine light shot out of his orbs. Even the space here shook because of it with unsteady but intense ripples.


    ��There had not been any commotion in all these years. Has the Human Ancestor returned?�� Ye Futian thought. Even though it had not been long in the outside world, the Human Ancestor��s true form had always been cultivating and preparing to return at any time. He did not know how he was now.


    With a thought, Ye Futian��s figure vanished.


    ��


    The Heavenly Imperial City of the Heaven Realm was now under the rule of the strong figures of the Human Realm. The force from the Human Divine Palace personally took over. The Human Realm had connected a space passageway to travel through the Six Realms and conquer the realms more easily.


    The Human Realm even constructed many majestic palaces in the Heavenly Imperial City.


    Just then, an extremely horrifying divine light suddenly descended from the dome of the sky. The cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial City all saw it. Many layers of the sky fell from the dome of the heavens, carrying many cultivators and various ancient pavilions and palaces. They stood atop the Heavenly Imperial Palace.


    ��The ninety-nine heavens!��


    The cultivators of the Heavenly Imperial Palace felt their hearts pulse. After the Heaven Realm was conquered, the original cultivators of the Heaven Realm became the lowest class. Usually, they kept a low profile, but after seeing the ninety-nine heavens reappear in the sky above the Heavenly Imperial City now, it was like their hearts had been struck.


    Was the Heavenly Emperor back?


    The ninety-nine heavens were not sealed off yet. They saw many cultivator legions appear in the sky above the Heavenly Imperial City. Their auras were all frightening. Like a heavenly army, every single person had extraordinary temperaments.


    There were also the generals of each legion in the sky above the grand armies. The cultivators of the Heaven Realm saw many familiar figures.


    Great Skylords Black and White Almighty were now Great Emperors.


    The Four Heavenly Kings had entered the Great Emperor Plane now too.


    Donghuang Diyuan, princess of the Divine Prefecture��Great Emperor Plane.


    There were many other people whose bodies were covered with the divine Great Emperor glow. It was like a group of gods descending. The blinding divine light fell into the eyes of the Heavenly Imperial City cultivators, shaking their hearts and souls.


    One year after the war had erupted, the Heavenly Emperor came, bringing a group of gods.


    It was no longer one or a few Great Emperors. It was an army of Great Emperors.


    The Age of Gods had finally come.


    The Human Ancestor ruled the old gods; the Heavenly Emperor led the new gods.


    They gazed to the top of the sky, the peak of the ninety-nine heavens. A white-haired figure stood there, like the master of all gods. His gaze overlooked the lower sky and swept toward the Heavenly Imperial City. ��Retake the Heavenly Imperial City,�� he said.


    ��Yes, Heavenly Emperor.��


    The voices rang throughout the void as the many legions accepted the command simultaneously. After cultivating in the Micro World, they were all incredibly reverent of Ye Futian. He was the god of creation who had created a complete world. He could even rule over time and change the law of time.


    The Heavenly Emperor had returned and would rule over the entire world.


    The strong figures of the Human Realm all took out their communication items and asked for reinforcement.


    The six grand legions advanced toward the Heavenly Imperial Palace. This was fated to be a battle with no surprises.


    The gods that Ye Futian led did not attack. They watched the great battle in the Heavenly Imperial City quietly as everything was destroyed utterly. The strong figures of the Human Realm were absolutely crushed.


    What put them in even more despair was that there were no reinforcements.


    The heavenly army that had returned had not destroyed the transmission matrix, as if letting reinforcement come freely. However, no one came to reinforce them. Clearly, they also knew how frightening these six legions were. Coming would probably be suicide.


    The cultivators of the original Heaven Realm all witnessed this scene. This time, Ye Futian did not leave. Instead, he just watched how the heavenly army retook the Heavenly Imperial City.


    ��Is the Heavenly Emperor already able to fight against the gods led by the Human Ancestor?�� the people of the Heavenly Imperial City all thought. Clearly, Heavenly Emperor Ye Futian did not plan on avoiding battle anymore. He had the ninety-nine heavens reappear in the Heaven Realm and retook the Heavenly Imperial Palace. He led the group of Great Emperors in a comeback. He was clearly prepared to declare war.


    At the peak of the Human Divine Palace of the Human Realm, the Human Ancestor was sitting cross-legged while cultivating. That moment, he seemed to sense something and his eyes opened. He looked into the distance.


    ��Has he proved his path?�� the Human Ancestor murmured softly. He did not think that his biggest opponent would be a junior.


    But actually, he had always been fighting with this lineage.


    From the Heavenly Emperor to the Sovereign Princess, and now to Ye Futian, it had never changed.


    Just like how he had had the final victory the last two times, the result would be the same this time too!

 Chapter 2920 - The Final Choice

    The Heavenly Emperor and Heavenly Imperial Palace reconstructed the ninety-nine heavens. The Heavenly Emperor��s army swept through the Heaven Realm. Cultivators all over the Heaven Realm reacted, following the great army of the Heavenly Emperor in resistance. They destructed and drove out the Human Realm cultivators, taking back the territory of the Heaven Realm like wildfire.


    Back then, the soldiers of the Human Realm had conquered almost all of the Heaven Realm in three months without getting blood on their swords.


    But this time, the Heaven Realm fought back fiercely. Each of the six legions were able to sweep through a corner of the world, let alone doing it together. One could imagine how terrifying it was. Even without looking at the others, just the Revelation Legion contained the backbone of the original Donghuang Imperial Palace. Then after a century of practice and training many new members, they were now an extremely frightening force.


    Thus, this time was even faster. In many places, the strong figures of the Human Realm heard the news and began to retreat before they even attacked. They did not dare to loiter.


    If they continued guarding the place, it would probably only mean death. The Heaven Realm��s army were completely merciless towards the invaders.


    Thus, this battle swept through the Heaven Realm as fast as lightning. In a mere half months�� time, they had retaken most of the Heaven Realm.


    After the Heaven Realm was retaken, the strong figures that had invaded the Divine Prefecture and Buddhist World also started retreating. They were extremely scattered because they had taken too much territory. If the Heaven Realm��s army came by now, they would not be able to hold up at all. They had to gather their strength together first before they could fight against the Heaven Realm��s army.


    The majestic Heavenly Palace loomed in the ninety-nine heavens. Heavenly Emperor Ye Futian stood at the peak pavilion of the Heavenly Palace. And as the Heavenly Emperor��s father, Donghuang the Great stood to his side. Empress Hua Jieyu and Donghuang Diyuan sat on the left and right of Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great. Godfather Yu Tu stood in the first spot below the Heavenly Emperor.


    Below that was the String Emperor and Book Deity. They had been followers of Ye Futian��s mother.


    Many strong figures sat below the steps. Some also stood there. Those with seats were the Great Emperors from the Buddhist Clan. The Buddha of the Buddhist Clan was the senior of both Donghuang the Great and Ye Futian, so he naturally had the respect he deserved.


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    The strong figures from the Divine Prefecture, Heaven Realm, and those who followed Ye Futian all stood. After all, Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great were up there.


    However, when dozens of people stood there, the scene was still extremely spectacular.


    These people were all strong figures who had entered the Great Emperor Plane.


    The Heaven Court of the Heavenly Palace were practically all Great Emperors. They were a true Great Emperor Legion.


    Further down was the vast land of the ninety-nine heavens. The six great legions were there. Each legion had their own camps and were further divided into smaller legions. They were scattered but organized and had their own leaders.


    This kind of scene was honestly very breathtaking.


    The highest powers of the three realms were gathered here.


    It was also the Heavenly Emperor��s first time officially gathering everyone here to discuss matters. Everyone had come. No one was missing.


    ��I pay my respects to Your Majesties��Heavenly Emperor and Donghuang.�� Just then, Yu Tu turned toward Ye Futian and took the lead in bowing.


    With Yu Tu leading them, everyone below instantly responded and bowed. ��I pay my respects to Your Majesty the Heavenly Emperor, Your Majesty Donghuang.��


    Instantly, the earth-shaking voices resounded through the ninety-nine heavens, making all the strong figures feel their blood bubbling hotly. After cultivating in the Micro World, their group had already reached this strong state without realizing it.


    Yu Tu had a solemn expression, but he was full of ineffable emotions inside. His young master had finally reached this step. Being bowed to by various gods was such a shocking scene. If she could see today��s scene, she must feel gratified.


    Next, they only had one goal: kill the Human Ancestor, take down the Human Realm, Dark World, and Empty Divine Realm, and unify the seven realms.


    ��Godfather,�� Ye Futian called. Then he looked at everyone and said, ��No need to bow.��


    Ye Futian was still very kind, but when they looked at the strong figure in the throne, everyone realized that this junior was already standing at the pinnacle of the world. Even Donghuang the Great and The Buddha of the Six Emperors were willing to give him this seat.


    Among the crowd, many cultivators had had rivalries with Ye Futian before, such as Great Emperor Di Hao and the others. Ye Futian did not kill them, but they still had restrictions. Imprints had been planted in them with special tactics. They were kept alive because they still had some value and could be used.


    Among the many strong figures from the eighteen domain manors of the Divine Prefecture, there were also many old friends of Ye Futian who felt very emotional.


    As for those from the Ziwei Imperial Palace, they felt genuinely happy and proud for Ye Futian when seeing today��s grandiosity. Their palace lord had now reached the peak of the cultivation world.


    Probably even the Evil Emperor and Dark Sovereign would not fight against Ye Futian anymore.


    His actual opponent was probably only the Human Ancestor.


    Ye Futian did not think what everyone was thinking. For him, he did not feel excited or honored at how glorious this event was. Instead, he only felt the pressure. It was not the pressure of sitting in this divine throne.


    Instead, it was because he now decided everyone��s fates.


    The Human Ancestor was someone who wanted to replace the Heavenly Path. He fought against Ye Futian��s great grandfather and killed his mother. He was not confident when facing such an opponent, but he had no other path to take.


    When he was by himself, he was able to lose. But now, he could no longer lose.


    Too many people��s lives were connected with his. Even now, there were many faces before him.


    ��Many people are clear about the reasons behind the War of the Seven Realms, but some don��t actually know,�� Ye Futian began saying now from his divine throne. ��When the war erupted, I once fought against the Human Ancestor. I discovered that it was only a physical clone and not his true form. The true Human Ancestor had once killed the Heavenly Emperor and my mother. Even though the Six Realms formed a fragile equilibrium, it was always under the Human Ancestor��s control. He has always been plotting secretly, letting the ancient gods return. When his true form returns, I��m afraid he will replace the heavens.


    ��When the gods returned and declared the invasive war, the people who followed him thrived. Those who went against him died. The Human Ancestor says that he oversees justice, but he started bloodshed. If he really controls the heavens, it will be a disaster. No one can predict what will happen at that time. Everyone here are mostly core figures from the Buddhist Clan, Divine Prefecture, and Heaven Realm. Many things can go unsaid. However, I don��t have absolute confidence in this battle. No one knows what level the Human Ancestor��s true form has reached. If you all go to battle with me, you will be taking a huge risk. Thus, even if you wish to step back today, I will give you one last chance. You can choose to leave.��


    Ye Futian spoke while gazing at the crowd. After this, he would declare the ultimate battle against the Human Realm. Many people would die in this ultimate battle. He was giving everyone one last chance.


    Before this, these people had all cultivated in his Micro World and had received many benefits. Thus, this was everyone��s final chance to choose!

 Chapter 2921 - Go or Stay

    No one was born with the duty to save the world, let alone the fact that this battle was still decided by the top figures. All of these cultivators were just cannon fodder, at most. If possible, Ye Futian was not even willing to have them participate in battle. Letting the Great Emperors fight in the ultimate battle was enough.


    However, the Human Ancestor wanted to control the seven realms. He ordered all the realms to go to war, sweeping everyone into the battleground.


    Thus, there had to be a force like this in order to resist the invasion. Otherwise, the three realms would be like a handful of sand. It would be conquered and invaded by the other side.


    The group of strong figures was silent for a moment. Then someone stated loudly, ��I��m willing to go to war with the Heavenly Emperor.��


    ��I��m willing to go to war with the Heavenly Emperor.�� All the voices resounded in the air. Many of the cultivators here were from emperor-level forces. The majority were all willing to do this.


    Ye Futian��s gaze looked around below. The deafening voices sounded in the heavens. However, he realized that many people still did not speak out. The spirited voices seemed to have covered those who were swayed, but they were still under Ye Futian��s stare.


    He extended a hand, signaling for the people to be quiet. Then he continued saying, ��I am not choosing those who are willing this time. Instead, I am giving people a chance to step back. You all can be rest assured. You��ve all contributed in the earlier battles. Those who are willing to step back today will not be questioned.��


    There were still no voices. It seemed that no one dared to take the lead.


    After a moment, someone finally stepped out, but he still did not speak. Instead, he took a few steps toward the back, separating from the great army.


    Gradually, others retreated after him. Their cultivation had improved greatly in the past few years. Many thought that this was already enough, and after calming down, they indeed felt that there was no need to continue fighting.


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    For them, whether it was the Human Ancestor ruling the seven realms or Ye Futian, it had a great influence on the seven realms, but it probably would not be too different for them personally. There was no need to gamble.


    If they lost the battle, they would lose their lives.


    More and more people stepped back. There were quite a few from the six legions. Many of them were the ones who had joined later. They had joined the army passionately when they had been invaded and felt hatred and anger.


    Other than that, many people from the Heaven Realm and Divine Prefecture also withdrew. Some of the Divine Prefecture��s top forces were among them, including strong figures of domain chief��s manors, such as the chief manor of the Shangqing Domain.


    The most loyal were the believers of the Ziwei Imperial Palace who had always followed Ye Futian and the Buddhists. There were also direct forces under the Donghuang Imperial Palace. They all had their own beliefs.


    Ye Futian watched all of this quietly. As more and more people withdrew, this gradually reached a certain scale. It did not stop until sometime later.


    ��As expected, those who benefit but lack faith are more likely to betray,�� Ye Futian thought when he saw this scene. For example, some of the domain chief��s manors and top forces of the Divine Prefecture had been the upper level of the Divine Prefecture, but still, many of them withdrew.


    ��Anyone else?�� Ye Futian continued. Some more scattered people stepped back. Finally, a moment later, no one moved again.


    Ye Futian was a bit disappointed but also glad.


    He was disappointed that many people had withdrawn; he was glad because, compared to the overall group, they were still the minority.


    He was not perfect. Even though he did not wish to see people die in battle and gave them a chance to withdraw, deep down, he was still disappointed in the people who withdrew. This was unavoidable as a human.


    With a thought, countless beams of divine light shone down from the sky, transforming into many imprints. They fell onto the cultivators who had chosen to leave.


    ��Your Majesty!�� someone yelped.


    ��Heavenly Emperor, you promised not to question us.�� They were a little panicked at this scene. Earlier, they had believed in Ye Futian��s words, which was why they dared to step back. But now, Ye Futian left an imprint. This was��


    ��Do not worry,�� Ye Futian said, his voice resounding in the void. This caused everyone to quiet down and let out a breath. In that previous moment, they had thought that Ye Futian would punish them. Even though they believed that Ye Futian was not that kind of person, they were still a bit afraid.


    ��Your Majesty, why did you���� someone opened their mouth to ask.


    ��There will only be two results after this battle��victory or defeat,�� Ye Futian said. ��If this battle ends in defeat, then those who choose to fight may very well die. They will die for their own faith while you all can live and continue cultivating.


    ��If it is the other result and we win this battle, then I will reform the world law, and the divine positions will belong to the cultivators with faith.��


    When he finished speaking, countless beams of light fell again, landing on the cultivators who had chosen to stay.


    Those who chose to stay clearly had their own beliefs. They were willing to gamble their lives and continue to fight.


    If Ye Futian managed the world law in the future, then the people who sat in the divine seats would be chosen from them.


    This meant that those who chose to leave would forever lose the chance at a divine position.


    Their hearts seemed to be struck by lightning at that moment. The Age of Gods was coming, while the Great Emperor Plane was a mutual goal that everyone pursued. Did they lose the right to that?


    ��Go now.�� Ye Futian waved his hand and a spatial door opened in the ninety-nine heavens. Many cultivators felt a little muddled as they stepped into the spatial door and left the Micro World.


    They knew that Ye Futian was not just trying to intimidate them. If Ye Futian won this battle, he would be the ruler of the world law. Of course, he would determine who possessed the divine positions.


    Those who had already reached the top of Ye Futian��s Micro World felt even more complicated emotions inside.


    Not too long after, that group left the Micro World. Other than those who did not dare to leave, all that remained had their own beliefs.


    ��Next, what you all must do is focus on cultivating. It��s best if we don��t need you to participate in battle,�� Ye Futian announced. Everyone felt emotional in their hearts. The Heavenly Emperor really did have a fresh personality.


    ��I was not trying to scare people with my words. If we lose, you all might die. Thus, if we die, then you all should abandon the fighting and live on,�� Ye Futian said. ��Go now.��


    The strong figures all bowed and then retreated gradually.


    Of course, some people were still on the steps because of their close relationship with Ye Futian, even though they were not Great Emperors.


    Ye Futian��s eyes fell upon someone and asked, ��Qingyuan, why did you not step onto the Path of the Emperors?��


    Xia Qingyuan could definitely step onto the Path of the Emperors with his help, but she still had not stepped onto that path.


    ��Heavenly Emperor, I won��t be able to change the battlefield of the Great Emperor Plane even if I do step onto the Path of the Emperors. On the other hand, if I stay below the Great Emperor Plane, I can save many people if war erupts,�� Xia Qingyuan replied. She cultivated the Path of Life and Death.


    Ye Futian nodded slightly and looked at her. It felt a little strange to hear her call him ��Heavenly Emperor!��

 Chapter 2922 - Space Passage Between Universes?

    Most of the people agreed with Xia Qingyuan��s thoughts. The total number of Great Emperors was small. Hence, the situation would be very messy if the cultivators apart from the Great Emperors started an all-out war. Xia Qingyuan could save many lives if she were to join the war as a combat medic and rescue the injured.


    Many of the Great Emperors saw her in a new light as she had stopped herself walking on the Path of the Emperors because of this, especially the Buddhists, who put their hands before her and recited the Buddhist Sutra with the Sound of Buddha.


    ��At the end of the day, this war will be decided by the elites. Thus, I will do all I can to prevent a battle between lower cultivation level combatants from breaking out. I am planning to infiltrate the Human Realm to see if I can sneak a look at the Human Ancestor��s real body��s cultivation level,�� Ye Futian uttered.


    Now that his cultivation had improved to the next level, invading the Human Divine Palace was considered a trial. He would not mind going on a killing spree if the opportunity presented itself.


    ��This operation is a little too risky. Please reconsider the idea, Your Majesty,�� Yu Tu suggested. Although he was Ye Futian��s godfather, he had been greeting the latter as his young master. But he had since changed the form of address of the second-mentioned to Heavenly Emperor or Your Majesty during an oral address at that moment.


    ��I don��t agree with this idea as well,�� the String Emperor chimed in. Did Ye Futian want to infiltrate the Human Divine Palace as an experiment?


    If the actual body of the Human Ancestor at the Human Divine Palace were to awake, it would undoubtedly be hazardous.


    The people who had disagreed first were followers of Ye Futian��s late mother. They were the true loyal retainers of the Sovereign Princess back then. Hence, they immediately freaked out upon hearing his idea since he was the only progeny of his mother.


    ��If the Human Ancestor��s real body had recovered, he would have shown up here by now. Even the likes of Ji Wudao could retreat unscathed after invading the Human Divine Palace back then,�� Ye Futian explained, ��Furthermore, even if the Human Ancestor almost had a full recovery, he might not necessarily be capable of keeping me there.��


    The voice of Ye Futian was filled with absolute confidence. With his current strength, it would be an arduous task to trap him as long as he did not let down his guard.


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    ��I second that,�� Donghuang the Great, who sat beside Ye Futian, stated. ��If the Human Ancestor did not recover, this might very well be a chance for us. Should any unforeseen dangers befall him, he could flee from the scene right away. So, I don��t see a problem here. I think it is worth a shot.��


    Since Donghuang the Great was the father of Ye Futian, he would never allow his son to get into any difficult situation. However, the latter was bearing the responsibility of preserving Seven Realms. Being the one who sat on the divine throne, he should perform his duties as Heavenly Emperor.


    Since the father and son duo, Donghuang the Great and Ye Futian, had spoken, everyone remained taciturn.


    All of them could tell that Ye Futian wished to avoid an all-out war as much as possible. It would be better to solve the issue by himself, while the second-best outcome would be the Great Emperors settling the conflicts among themselves. The last thing he wanted to see was the common people living in the Seven Realms being involved in their war.


    ��You��re right, father. It is definitely worth trying. Don��t worry. I��ll be careful,�� Ye Futian replied. The people at the scene nodded after hearing that. Even Yu Tu did not insist on discouraging him anymore.


    ��Mm?�� Ye Futian knitted his brows together all of a sudden. Then he stretched his hand and waved it. After which, a projection appeared before his eyes.


    A group of cultivators with extraordinary temperament showed up around the Heaven��s Gate outside the ninety-nine heavens. They were all Great Emperor Plane beings who were surrounded by Divine Light as they looked at the ninety-nine heavens.


    ��We would like to have an audience with Heavenly Emperor!�� the voice of the one leading the Great Emperors could be heard announcing that. His deafening voice shook the ninety-nine heavens and traveled to the heavenly palace. Everyone inside could listen to him.


    ��Let��s go and check it out,�� Ye Futian said. With a thought, a door materialized in front of the heavenly palace. Then he stood up and took a step forward to exit the door. The other cultivators followed him behind and walked out of it as well. At once, a similar spatial door appeared around the area of the Heaven��s Gate. Ye Futian and the others could be seen getting out of it.


    After taking a step forward, Ye Futian and his subordinates turned to stare at the Great Emperors outside the ninety-nine heavens, who they had never seen before.


    Furthermore, Ye Futian could sense something unusual about the aura emanated from the Great Emperors.


    Now that he had reached the realm of the Heavenly Path, he could tell know why he had this kind of feeling. It was because this group of Great Emperors was not from around here. They were beings from another universe, also known as extraterrestrial beings.


    ��State your business!�� Ye Futian piped while staring at the Great Emperors.


    The leading figure, who looked in their forties, was clothed in splendor with a dignified appearance. Their body was surrounded by a golden Divine Light, giving off a high-born vibe as if they had an extraordinary background.


    ��I presume that Your Majesty already knew we are from the Outer Realms,�� the leader of the Outer Realms Great Emperors answered, ��It seems like Your Majesty has a conflict with the Gods of the Human Realm. We had come from afar and witnessed this war. But we do not wish to see it continue like this. So, we would like to if Your Majesty wants some help.��


    Ye Futian was confused after hearing that. Then he looked at them and asked, ��Help? Do you want to participate in this war?��


    ��If it is your will, then yes,�� the other party replied.


    Ye Futian was curious why they were so confident that they could be of help to him.


    ��How do you plan to do that? What is your condition?�� Ye Futian questioned. If these people were genuinely trying to help out of goodwill, he would not mind having a few extra hands. But he knew for a fact that nothing would come free in life.


    These individuals were extraterrestrial beings who came from another universe. He still had no way of telling if they were friends or foes. But according to his speculation, they would most likely be his enemies.


    An outsider would never be of like mind with them. How could these people, who had come from afar, claim to have no agendas at all?


    Back then, his mother had reconstructed the Heavenly Path because she came to know the existence of other universes. Her ultimate wish was to prove her path as the apex cultivator to protect this universe.


    ��We will not ask for any unusual term. We want Your Majesty to open a cross-universe space passage so that the cultivators from our world can come over as reinforcements,�� the person noted.


    Yet, Ye Futian furrowed his brows at that person��s words. The other party requested him to open a space passage that would connect two different universes so that their forces could come over here.


    Listening to this term alone was enough to let him imagine multiple possible outcomes.


    What if the other party used this space passage that connected two universes for invasion?


    Most importantly, he had no clue about the strength of the strongest cultivators from other universes yet. Therefore, he had been looking for the answer to several questions��what was the summit of cultivation? Did the finishing line even exist?


    Nevertheless, he could tell it was rather difficult for the other party to open a space passage that could cross between universes. At the very least, they still could not pull it off yet. Hence, they offered to work with him.


    ��I want to know more about your universe,�� Donghuang the Great queried as he took a step forward, ��Also, were the seven Great Emperors who passed away previously one of yours?��


    Donghuang the Great became vigilant right after hearing the words of the other party. If the space passage that could connect both universes were to be opened, the cultivators from their world could cross over to this world. So, this request should never be accepted.


    And that was the reason he wanted to know their overall strength and the extent of the ability of their strongest cultivators.


    After hearing his father��s question, Ye Futian recalled the seven Great Emperors he killed in one hit.

 Chapter 2923 - The Joining Hands of Three Great Emperors

    This group of Great Emperors had traveled together. So, their powers must be from the same source.


    Was there a ruler-class individual in their universe? Were these cultivators the subordinates of a ruling class like the seven Great Emperors Ye Futian had killed previously?


    What was their true purpose of wanting to open a space passage that could connect between universes?


    Were they trying to help him out with no hidden agenda?


    While Ye Futian was looking at them, their leader replied, ��Yes. We had some conflicts previously, but we should let the past be the past. Please pay it no heed, Your Majesty.��


    As expected, all these people were from the same force.


    The seven individuals were wielders of the Power of Judgement. They could be considered the judges of an elite organization. The seven of them were a single entity.


    These people could be from an extremely powerful force.


    ��Futian, our universe had gone through the Collapse of the Heavenly Path, causing the decline of our cultivation world. However, it isn��t the case for other universes. If they were to continue their growth, their overall strength could be higher than expected. If we were to open a space passage that could connect both of our universes, they might be a greater threat than the Human Ancestor,�� Donghuang the Great notified Ye Futian through telepathy in concern.


    ��I got it.�� Ye Futian nodded. He understood this very well, even without Donghuang the Great��s reminder.


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    To open a cross-cosmos portal for cultivators from an unknown universe would be equivalent to bringing disaster upon themselves.


    ��We will settle this problem among ourselves. Thanks for your offer,�� Ye Futian declined. ��All of you have traveled from a distant universe. I will welcome you with open arms if you are here as our guests. But if you try anything funny like what the seven Great Emperors did previously, I will never hesitate to annihilate you immediately.��


    After hearing Ye Futian��s words, the other party furrowed their brows in displeasure. They had been observing the situation in this universe ever since they arrived here, only to find a declined world where the total number of Great Emperors was very little.


    Initially, they had the intention of saving this world.


    After opening the space passage that connected the two universes, the cultivators of this world could finally see the true Divine Relic. With that, this world would have a united law at last.


    Yet, little did they expect that Ye Futian would reject them and even dared to threaten them.


    ��You know very well about the current situation in the Seven Realms, Your Majesty. Why are you so quick to reject us? Are you not afraid that we might look for other people to work together?�� that person remarked. They had approached Ye Futian because the latter was at a disadvantage. So, they had assumed that he might probably agree to receive their help.


    On the other hand, it was nearly impossible that the Human Ancestor would cooperate with them since their goal was the same as his.


    Right after he finished speaking, an overwhelming Divine Light glowed from the eyes of Ye Futian, who emanated a palpable rage all around himself. Immediately, the color of the sky changed while frightening Divine Thunder rumbled violently. Just then, the Divine Light of Sun and Moon shone and covered the group of Great Emperors.


    ��Are you trying to threaten me?�� Ye Futian��s voice was as loud as Divine Thunder traveling across the void, shaking the atmosphere and sky. As the Great Path roared, every motion in this realm seemed to be brimming with the Heavenly Rule Power as if he was the Great Path himself.


    A hint of watchfulness flashed crossed the eyes of the group of Great Emperors after sensing an intimidating threat from Ye Futian. The expression of the leader��s face turned solemn after realizing that they were a little too impatient. They should avoid angering him since they were in his territory at the moment.


    ��No, we wouldn��t dare to think of it. We came here with good intentions, thinking that perhaps we could ally. Since things are not working out for the both of us, we shall take our leave first,�� the leader uttered as they felt the pressure of the God��s Might on them. Instantly, an epiphany moment hit them that they could not afford to provoke Ye Futian in this universe. So, they should retreat at once.


    ��Hold on!�� Ye Futian shrieked. Their blood ran cold, and they stared at him.


    ��You are coming and going as you like. What are you taking me for?�� Ye Futian demanded, ��You did not answer our question yet. I want to know your purpose in requesting a space passage between our universes to be opened.��


    Right after he spoke, the boundless sky and earth were covered by his Divine Power. At that moment, the entire dimension seemed to be frozen. None of them could leave this place without breaking a sweat.


    ��What is the meaning of this, Your Majesty?�� the leader commented.


    Ye Futian set his eyes on them. Donghuang the Great moved forward from behind and unleashed the Divine Power of Revelation. In that instant, the group of Great Emperors had gotten their Divine Powers restricted before they could react. It was even harder to release their Divine Powers on top of the pressure from Ye Futian��s God��s Might.


    ��Jieyu, it��s your turn!�� Ye Futian shouted. Hua Jieyu nodded. She understood his order tacitly because they were husband and wife.


    An invisible Divine Power permeated the atmosphere. It was formless and intangible, somewhat similar to the Divine Power of Revelation. And it could invade the enemy��s Spiritual Will in a flash.


    After having their Divine Powers retrained, their Spiritual Wills were blocked by a powerful barrier. They could feel an invisible and colorless wall covering their Spirit Domains and sealing them.


    ��Divine Power of Colorless Realm!��


    A Divine Light surrounded Hua Jieyu. Her garments were fluttering while her black hair flowed in the wind when she charged her Divine Power with all her might.


    This was the Divine Power that Hua Jieyu and Hua Qingqing gained enlightenment on together. The latter had helped the former with Buddhist doctrines, and she eventually developed the Divine Power of Colorless Realm that could suppress the Spirit Domain of other cultivators.


    Under the suppression of the Divine Power of Revelation and the Divine Power of Colorless Realm, all the Great Emperors lost their combat powers completely. On top of that, Ye Futian pressurized them with his Emperor��s Might, causing them to be deprived of any chance to retaliate.


    The entire dimension seemed to be frozen. The crowds in Heavenly Imperial City who saw the happening there were dumbfounded. Under the restraint of the Great Emperors from Heavenly Imperial Palace, the group of arrogant foreign Great Emperors could not even budge an inch.


    Although the enemies were a group of Great Emperors, they were completely at the mercy of Ye Futian, Donghuang the Great, and Hua Jieyu. To think that the three of them would be so powerful after joining forces.


    At that time, Hua Jieyu unleashed her Spiritual Energy with all her might and invaded the opponents�� Spiritual Will. Ye Futian activated his Eye Spell to destroy their defenses.


    Some time had passed, but the suppression of their Divine Powers had not diminished. However, Hua Jieyu had already gotten the information she was looking for. Her eyes narrowed into crescent shapes when she looked at Ye Futian and informed telepathically, ��They wanted to build a space passage to establish a connection between their universe and ours. Then they plan to let the Divine Power of the Law of their Heavenly Path invade and occupy our universe. With that, they will become the sovereign of this universe.��


    The look of Ye Futian��s eyes turned icy. So these people had evil schemes, after all. To think that they wanted to open a space passage between both universes. If that were to happen, they would become a greater threat than the Human Ancestor since the former was a universe of cultivators.


    ��Finish them off!�� A murderous gleam flashed across Ye Futian��s eyes.

 Chapter 2924 - The Changing Era

    Yu Tu made his move right after Ye Futian gave the command. A pitch-black demonic blade was unsheathed and slashed the figures of those Great Emperors in half.


    Those extraterrestrial cultivators could not even defend themselves after being suppressed by the three of them. The Divine Power of Revelation and Colorless Realm restrained them, causing them to be incapable of doing anything.


    The ominous black demonic blade could cut even the void, creating cracks in the process. Right then, the bodies of the Great Emperors were reduced to nothing before they could even let out a shriek after being slain. To think that the group of foreign Great Emperors would be exterminated on the spot.


    This was not the first time Ye Futian saw his godfather in action. Domineering and ruthlessness were the attributes of a Demonic Cultivator.


    The people in Heavenly Imperial City were trembling in fear after witnessing that. Even though they were Great Emperor Plane cultivators, they were easily slaughtered without delay. The Heavenly Emperor was confident in his decision-making and would never show mercy to his enemies.


    Ye Futian remained composed the entire time. Since they would eventually show their true colors and bring harm to this world, it would be disastrous to leave them be. Naturally, ending their lives would be the best course of action. Plus, it could serve as an intimidation to the cultivators from another universe so that they would behave themselves a little.


    He did not care if doing this would offend the people from the other universe since they had already planned to build a space passage between two universes for their conquest. It was already beyond the matter of offending the other party. If they had the capability, they would have invaded this universe by that time.


    ��Jieyu, what is the cultivation system of their world? What is their overall strength?�� Ye Futian asked Hua Jieyu.


    ��Their cultivation system is a little different from ours, but it will reach the same destination. In the end, they will have to gain enlightenment on the Great Path and the Power of Heavenly Law. Their highest cultivation level is that of Heavenly Immortal, which is equivalent to the Great Emperor Plane,�� Hua Jieyu explained. ��However, their world is more advanced and complete than ours, like the Age of the Gods where Tianshen Army would rule the world. There are different planes to their Heavenly Immortals��Heavenly Immortal, Immortal King, and Supreme Immortal.��


    ��It looks like their Immortal King is a parallel to our Super Great Emperor. Meanwhile, their Supreme Immortal counterpart is our Supreme Being,�� Donghuang the Great murmured.


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    ��That should be the case.�� Hua Jieyu nodded. ��The reason they want to open a space passage to our universe is so that their Supreme Immortal can cross over and terraform our world. According to their memories, the supreme rulers of different worlds and universes would cultivate the Heavenly Laws unique to their home. Therefore, they could not rule over the Heavenly Laws of other worlds. That��s why they want to reprogram the laws of other worlds into theirs first.��


    Ye Futian nodded. Supreme Being should be similar to the nature of his current cultivation level. He was the Master of the Law inside his world. For instance, he could even change the Law of Time in there, but he could not do the same in the Outer Realms or other worlds, except if he devoured that world.


    This might be the actual purpose of those people.


    The expressions of the crowd turned gloomy slightly, as they had never expected that there would be threats other than the Human Ancestor. And to their surprise, those people were from another universe.


    ��Jieyu, what do you want to say?�� Ye Futian questioned after noticing that Hua Jieyu looked a little hesitant to speak.


    ��By right, the worlds between the universes should be isolated from one another. So they would not know the existence of other worlds. Yet it seems like our location has been leaked,�� Hua Jieyu commented in perturbation.


    ��In other words, there might be more than one universe that would find us?�� Ye Futian immediately understood what Hua Jieyu tried to imply. So this would be the one of the results following the Collapse of the Great Path.


    ��Yeah.�� Hua Jieyu nodded.


    Ye Futian went silent for a while. It seemed like the only way out would be his attainment of the Supreme Being Plane. In retrospect, the worry of his mother back then actually had a legitimate reason.


    If he could create a world with his Micro Heavenly Path, it would not be unthinkable to believe in the existence of the multiverse. From analyzing his inner world, he could conclude that every world and universe had its respective rules and laws. In fact, the way time would work in various universes could all be different. Since the locations of each dimension were not the same, it was nearly impossible for any of them to converge.


    But things had changed since the coordinate of their world had been exposed.


    ��Let��s go back,�� Ye Futian commanded.


    ��Futian, are you going to the Human Realm now?�� Donghuang the Great queried.


    ��That��s right.�� Ye Futian nodded.


    ��Okay. I will meet you up at the border outside the Human Realm,�� Donghuang the Great informed. Although he was not against Ye Futian��s invasion into the enemy��s territory, he would still be there as reinforcement. If anything were to befall the latter, the former could rescue him.


    ��I��m following you,�� Hua Jieyu added. Her strength was greatly increased since she had gained enlightenment on the Divine Power of the Colorless Realm.


    The Divine Power of the Colorless Realm was extremely formidable��a class of its own. In the World of Buddhism, the Colorless Realm was above the Desire Realm and Form Realm. Colorless Realm was devoid of any material form, which aligned to the Buddhist saying, ��All is vanity.��


    Hua Jieyu��s Divine Power of Colorless Realm was derived from her understanding of Colorless Realm. At the activation of the Divine Power, there would not be any physical matter in her world; it was absolute nothingness. This was an immensely powerful Divine Power that, when cultivated to its pinnacle, could wield an ability that was fundamentally equal to the peerless power of the void in essence.


    Nevertheless, Hua Jieyu had not reached that tier as of yet. Besides, her current cultivation level was still lower than Donghuang the Great��s.


    ��Okay.�� Ye Futian bowed his head. He could tell how powerful the Divine Power of Revelation and Colorless Realm was after witnessing them earlier. So long as they did not enter the border of the Human Realm, the both of them would not encounter any danger. Hence, he was not worried about their safety.


    ��All right, let��s make our move now,�� Donghuang the Great stated.


    ��Mm.�� Ye Futian turned to look at the others and ordered, ��The rest of you should return to the Heavenly Imperial Palace first. We won��t be gone for long.��


    ��Yes, Your Majesty.�� Everyone at the scene nodded. Ye Futian was slowly holding an absolute authority over time unknowingly. And it should be accredited to all the cultivators who had cultivated inside the world created with his Micro Heavenly Path for years. The feat of creating a world was not something just anyone could pull off. If one were to look at this aspect alone, he had long since surpassed his father, Donghuang the Great.


    That was why everyone agreed with what Donghuang the Great had said��if there were anyone who could reach the Supreme Being Plane, it would be Ye Futian.


    Right then, the three of them transformed into three dots of lights and disappeared into thin air. The people in Heavenly Imperial City who caught sight of it were taken aback and thought. Are His Majesty and Donghuang the Great heading toward Human Divine Palace now?


    Had the power balance of the world that was divided into the Six Realms among the Six Great Emperors been changed? Did the times slowly transition into the era of the rivalry between the Human Ancestor and Heavenly Emperor?


    The people in the world could hardly catch up with the speed of the ever-changing times. The duration was too short for the people of the Outer Realms.


    ��


    A frightening pressure permeated the entire area of the Human Divine Palace in the Human Realm.


    An authority of heaven emanated from the top floor of the Human Divine Palace. The Human Ancestor was cultivating while sitting in a lotus position. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and looked into the distance.


    ��He is coming!�� a voice could be heard from the sky announcing loudly. Following that, three silhouettes could be seen descending from the sky. The three of them had temperaments incomparable to any other. Each of them were emitting overpowering auras as if they were holding the authority of the heavens.


    Simultaneously, the Human Ancestor stood up and covered the whole Human Divine Palace with his divine consciousness to convey a message.

 Chapter 2925 - Hold in High Regard

    The entire Human Divine Palace was heavily guarded, including the parameter of the courtyards and the interior. All the cultivators below the Great Emperor Plane had sought shelter inside the principal throne room of the palace complex, as they had predicted something huge was about to happen.


    However, the Human Ancestor and the Gods were protecting the palace at that moment. Who could possibly make them brace themselves for the approaching enemy?


    Back then, Ji Wudao had invaded the Human Divine Palace when the Human Ancestor was not around. At that time, the Gods did not even show up yet.


    Suddenly, the sky above the Human Divine Palace trembled violently, which was followed by the appearance of a spine-chilling spatial storm. The dimensional vortex blustered against the atmosphere that brimmed with an unparalleled Divine Power of Space.


    A while later, the intimidating spatial storm suddenly turned into a space passage.


    At the other end of the space passage, a white-haired God with Divine Light surrounding him showed up there. The covering of the Nine Dragons True Qi further enhanced his stateliness. And that silhouette was none other than Ye Futian.


    As he stood there silently, the atmosphere around him beamed with Divine Light. Just then, a phantasm manifested like the Guardian of the Sun and Moon. He had an extraordinary temperament, making him look even better than before.


    With a thought, Ye Futian controlled many light dots to cross over from the other side of the space passage to the firmament above the Human Divine Realm. The brilliant light dots appeared in multiple positions that spanned across the boundless sky like the sun, the moon, and the stars. Right after, all the lights turned into humanoid silhouettes.


    All these figures took the form of Ye Futian as if they were his exterior incarnations.


    All these dazzling silhouettes were formed with the Law of the Great Path. One of them radiated a scorching Divine Light of the Sun, while the other emitted a freezing Divine Light of the Moon. They stood next to each other as if they were the representative of the sun and the moon.


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    Every single one of them was the Avatar of the Heavenly Path.


    Shoosh! The two Avatars of the Sun and the Moon fired terrifying Divine Light and permeated the entire Human Divine Palace with their powers. Immediately, they turned themselves into the sun and the moon, effusing the Divine Power of Yin and Yang while slowly covering the whole Human Divine Palace.


    Whoosh! At that point, a light screen appeared in the Human Divine Palace out of the blue. It was a Sword Realm. Eternal Swordlord sat in a lotus position on top of one of the palaces. Raising his head to look at the sky, he unleashed his Sword Realm. The moment the Divine Light of Sun and Moon touched the Sword Realm, the latter was eroded.


    Following that, another Avatar of the Heavenly Path hurled a glaring golden spear while the other one threw a glowing punch at the Sword Realm. Immediately, the atmosphere quivered, and the Sword Realm was torn into pieces.


    Eternal Swordlord furrowed his brows at the sight of it. Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great had fled from the scene during the previous conflict. So he thought that his sword could eliminate that man this time. But who would��ve thought that Ye Futian could crush his Sword Realm with just a mere Avatar of the Heavenly Path when the former��s real body did not even show up yet?


    Lifting his head to stare at the sky, he shot Divine Light out of his eyes. Sword Will pervaded the air when he stretched his hand to the firmament and swung it. In the blink of an eye, a sword river dispersed across the sky and charged toward Ye Futian��s Avatars of the Great Path.


    Then, the Divine Power of Yin contacted the sword river, causing a freezing will to dominate the dimension as if the entire spacetime was frozen. Nevertheless, it could not restrain the domineering sword. Eventually, the sword traversed in-between dimensions as though it surpassed the Power of Time and Space.


    Bangs similar to earth-shattering sounds could be heard when the sword collided with the Avatars of the Great Path. While this was taking place, Ye Futian raised a sword with his hand from the other end of the space passage and thrust forward.


    A slash that traveled across the fabric of spacetime came flying toward Eternal Swordlord.


    After sensing an incoming threat, Eternal Swordlord set up an absolute defense with the Eternal Sword Domain by using his thoughts. Unfortunately, the imminent attack destroyed everything in its path, creating clanging sounds in the process before it nearly smashed the defense into smithereens.


    The overpowering force broke the palace hall underneath Eternal Swordlord into pieces and eventually turned into dust. Although his body was sent flying backward, he exuded the Sword Will from his body. After forming sword mudras on both sides of his hands, he hurled them against the fast-approaching Sword Will.


    In that instant, a destructive Sword Qi tempest was stirred up in their surrounding.


    Boom! After a deafening bang, Eternal Swordlord was hurled backward and crashed into many buildings and mountain peaks of the Human Divine Palace before he was finally stuck in a corner.


    Nonetheless, that was not the end. Immediately, he saw countless Sword Will that crossed the space passage from the other side, aiming at his location as if they intended to demolish the entire Human Divine Palace.


    Crash! Without warning, an ear-piercing bang was heard. The next moment, that space passage slowly disintegrated. Two silhouettes of the Great Emperors could be seen hovering in front of its exit point. The two of them attacked the space passage to shatter it.


    Even though the space passage was destroyed, eerie rumbles could be heard from time to time.


    All the Avatars of the Great Path finally vanished from sight altogether. Although the commotion seemed to have subsided, the hearts of the cultivators of the Human Divine Palace were still trembling in fear. All of them realized that Ye Futian had become even stronger than before. After completing his Great Path, even Eternal Swordlord could not hold a candle to him anymore.


    Fear was written all over the faces of the citizens residing in the central city of the Human Divine Palace when they turned in the direction of the palace. All of them could feel the intense battle that had just taken place a while ago in the palace.


    It was mind-blowing to know that someone dared invade the Human Divine Palace.


    Who would do something as arrogant as that?


    At that moment, they felt an immense pressure pervaded the atmosphere, causing them to feel suffocated and depressed. It must be a God��s Might.


    The hearts of the cultivators in the city palpitated like mad. Under the suppression of God��s Might, they felt like prostrating themselves with their faces and knees on the ground.


    After lifting their heads, they noticed a gigantic countenance that looked incorporeal in the sky. Everyone could see an exceptionally handsome face with long silver hair.


    ��It is Heavenly Emperor, Ye Futian!��


    Their hearts were beating like a drum as they stared at Ye Futian��s stunning profile in the firmament. Back then, the Human Ancestor had started the War of the Six Realms to execute Ye Futian but failed to do so. Moreover, many of their combatants had lost their lives during Ye Futian��s counterattack.


    No one had expected that Ye Futian would become so powerful when the war had only gone on for a little over one year, let alone seeing him invading the Human Realm.


    The countenance in the ether was the embodiment of the Heavenly Path��a Supreme Being.


    He was the current Heavenly Emperor. A man whose predecessor could not even compare.


    Every person in the city could sense that intense authority of heaven that pressurized the atmosphere from the sky, including the cultivators of the Human Divine Palace. Out of the blue, they caught themselves having a false impression that Ye Futian was the bona fide ruler of this world��the one who truly reigned over the Heavenly Law.


    Even the likes of the Great Emperor Plane cultivators felt interior in the face of his authority of heaven. The extraordinarily gifted young prodigy from Original Realm had become an existence that even the Great Emperors had to hold in high regard.

 Chapter 2926 - The Real Body of the Human Ancestor

    The eye of a humongous countenance fired a magnificent Divine Light from the sky and turned into the sun. Then, the scorching Divine Light of the Sun that set the sky ablaze shone on the Human Divine Palace.


    Swash! A powerful Divine Power of Space transformed into a light screen and sealed the void. However, the Divine Light of the Sun penetrated through it upon contact and continued to descend.


    At that time, everyone inside and outside the Human Divine Palace was trapped in Ye Futian��s Divine Domain of the Great Path. He seemed to have become the supreme ruler of this realm after seizing control.


    ��Watch out!�� A silhouette immediately fled from the spot before the Divine Light of the Sun beamed from above, eventually reaching the Human Divine Palace, turning an area of the palace complex into a burning area. The light formed a pit of fire around the parameter of the impact.


    Buzz! A gleam flashed across Ye Futian��s eyes. An intense Divine Light of the Sun instantly swept across a huge part of the Human Divine Palace, cutting everything in its path like a massive sword. The scale of the effect could easily demolish the entire palace grounds.


    Yet, an intimidating destructive aura permeated the sky before the figure of the Human Ancestor could be seen unleashing his Chaotic Divine Domain. After forming the Chaos True Thunder Sword, he hurled it at Ye Futian.


    The entire city was shaking violently as the Heavenly Thunder rumbled. Raising his head, Ye Futian set his eyes on a distant location. The moonlight shone on the Chaos True Thunder Sword, trying to freeze it. Nevertheless, the latter could not be stopped in its track, and it slipped past the constraint of the freezing power.


    A beam of sunlight radiated, combining its Yang energy with its Yin energy counterpart. As the Divine Light of Sun and Moon dazzled in the sky, it destroyed the Chaos True Thunder Sword and headed in the Human Ancestor��s direction with the intention of killing him.


    ��He is way too powerful!�� Everyone was stunned by the sight of Ye Futian, whose Divine Power had a radical change since they last saw him. Was that the completed Divine Power of the Great Path?


    Previously, Ye Futian did not reach the Great Emperor Plane yet. But he had made it to the said tier at that time.


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    How was it possible that he could fight the Human Ancestor equally right after he reached the Great Emperor Plane?


    In fact, he nearly wiped the floor with the Human Ancestor.


    What a scary and incredible Great Emperor he was!


    If one were to compare Ye Futian with the previous Six Great Emperors, he could very well be the strongest one of them all.


    Back in those days, were the former Heavenly Emperor and Sovereign Princess as mighty too?


    Rumble! All the cultivators in the city, including the whole continent, were shivering in fright when another Heavenly Might suffused in the sky. They couldn��t help but feel like falling to their knees.


    The Supreme Heavenly Might that permeated the sky could be compared to the Divine Might of the Creator. Everyone who felt it bowed down in submission unconsciously.


    There was turbulence on the firmament above the Human Divine Palace when the Supreme Heavenly Might encompassed the palace grounds. Every Great Emperor in that place could feel a superior power looming in the area. While the Ancient Emperors could recognize the nature of the power, there were still a significant amount of cultivators who had just experienced it for the first time. Many combatants of the Human Realm were rooted to the spot and shook like a leaf.


    Was there a powerful being of this caliber in the Human Divine Palace?


    Who was it?


    A magnificent Divine Light suddenly beamed on the Human Ancestor from the heavens. At that moment, the body of the Human Ancestor resonated with the entire realm. Meanwhile, an enormous version of his face appeared in the sky.


    The Chaotic Divine Realm grew stronger steadily. It was like the Power of Chaos that had existed at the beginning of the universe. A roaring thunderclap comparable to the Apocalyptic Divine Thunder emitted a blinding light that darkened the entire sky. Both the sunlight and the moonlight could not penetrate it.


    The Chaotic True Thunder Sword accelerated further and collided with the Divine Light of Sun and Moon, emitting a sudden burst of dazzling flash. Shortly after the collision, the entire atmosphere turned dim, while the whole city shuddered from the impact. Even the Great Emperor Plane Cultivators quivered in panic at the sight of it.


    Ye Futian faced the Human Ancestor directly in the darkened sky. Did the latter display the true power of his real body?


    Ye Futian infiltrated this realm to smoke his nemesis out so that he could gauge the extent of the latter��s strength. If the opposition could not stop him, he would not mind wiping the whole Human Divine Palace off the face of the world. In fact, that was his main purpose of being here all along.


    However, he could sense that the real Human Ancestor was exceedingly powerful.


    Now that he had perfected his Micro Heavenly Path, he could even occupy a world by force and change its Heavenly Law into his version forcibly. In a nutshell, he could establish his Heavenly Path outside of his inner world.


    But he also believed the Human Ancestor could pull off a feat that would not be paled in comparison. After all, the latter had been cultivating for ages. At that time, he felt a threatening change in the atmosphere.


    He noticed that he was no longer holding the authority over the Heavenly Law of this realm.


    ��Human Ancestor!�� Ye Futian stared at the face before him and remarked, ��It seems like your real body has been here all the time!��


    An overwhelming Divine Power enclosed the entire boundless realm. At the same time, the insubstantial countenance glared at Ye Futian and retorted, ��After all these years, yet another of his descendant has shown up again. The world has been plunging into chaos for too long after the Collapse of the Heavenly Path. It should be united again now. Naturally, I will lead this world into welcoming the Age of the Gods once more. If the Heavenly Emperor did not exist, I would have made it a reality by now. Your families have been standing in my way. So, tell me. Who is the one making all lives suffer here?��


    From the former Heavenly Emperor to the Sovereign Princess, then to Ye Futian, the three had been the Human Ancestor��s adversaries. The first two had injured him fatally, so he had been recuperating slowly for years. If Ye Futian did not exist, he would have waited for a few years and conquered the whole world in one go.


    Nonetheless, the reality was often disappointing. Things didn��t go as he planned ever since Ye Futian had shown up. After creating a world with the Micro Heavenly Path, the latter changed the Law of Time there and used the difference between the time flow of the two worlds for cultivation. Hence, that man gradually became a threat to him.


    Needless to say, all the efforts and struggles of his enemies would be futile.


    In the end, everything would be annihilated and arrive at the end of the line.


    ��Ye Futian, if you could set aside our differences and submit to me, I could allow you to ruler over the Heavenly Law as my representative. You will be second to me. What do you say?�� he offered in an enticing tone, saying he would raise Ye Futian above all the others and make the latter the first man after him in this world.


    All the Great Emperors in the Human Divine Palace were taken aback after hearing his words. It never crossed their minds that the Human Ancestor would try to subdue Ye Futian.


    Truthfully, the Human Ancestor was unsure whether he could dominate and kill Ye Futian in a fight or not.


    Ye Futian remained his composure after hearing the offer. The Human Ancestor had been calling himself the righteousness of humanity while he was ruling the Human Realm all those times. But was he truly the avatar of righteousness?


    Ye Futian had seen the hypocrisy of the Human Ancestor. If the latter could bring peace to the world, why would he hide in the dark?


    Why did he resurrect the Gods instead of raising potential cultivators to emerge as the Great Emperors?


    Why would he instigate the War of the Six Realms by commanding the cultivators of the Human Realm for a conquest which would cause all lives in the world to suffer?


    Whizz! A Heaven Slaying Spear forged with a formidable Divine Power appeared in the sky in response to the Human Ancestor��s offer. He did that to test if the Human Ancestor was merely a paper tiger. It would not harm for him to try before his return.


    Kaboom! The spear pierced into the firmament, changing its appearance instantly and traversing the void.


    The Chaotic True Thunder Sword crashed into the spear. It was pulverized into specks of dust and devoured by the latter. To think that even a sword of that caliber could not stop the spear.


    The firmament was smashed into smithereens and engulfed by the strike of the spear that was aiming at the humongous face.

 Chapter 2927 - The Voice of Human Ancestor

    A violent storm stirred up right after the spear flew past the area. Suddenly, a colossal silhouette of a God with its head above clouds and its feet rooted to the ground appeared out of nowhere.


    The figure took the form of the Human Ancestor, who became the embodiment of the Heavenly Path.


    The spear hit hard on the Divine Body of the Heavenly Path, tearing it to tatters and intending to devour it. Yet, the spear was halted by a compelling defense.


    Surprisingly, the overpowering spear that could engulf an entire world could not break the Divine Body. It was as if the attack hit on an object with the strongest defense in the world. The body of the Human Ancestor seemed to nullify all forms of physical attacks on the earth.


    Bang! A deafening sound rumble blared. The Body of the Heavenly Immortal might have a supreme defense power, but it could not prevent the spear from quivering its figure, causing cracks to appear and piercing through it. Simultaneously, divine power gathered around the Body of the Heavenly Immortal.


    At that moment, Ye Futian felt that his spear did not hit on mortal flesh but a complete world that could not be shaken. He could sense the energy in the entire Human Realm accumulated in the body of the Human Ancestor upon impact.


    At that, he could not help but draw in a cold breath. His father, Donghuang the Great, had activated the Revelation Divine Matrix during the War of the Six Great Emperors, and it covered the entire continent of the Divine Prefecture. Instantly, Ye Futian knew that his father had become one with the Divine Prefecture at that time.


    Still, the Human Ancestor had somehow gone to the next level by becoming the personification of the world itself. In other words, he was indestructible.


    A supreme power flowed toward the Human Ancestor from every part of the boundless sky. At the same time, he opened both of the eyes of his towering face and glanced at the ground condescendingly, exuding an intimidating aura toward Ye Futian.


    Whizz! He saw a formless and incorporeal Divine Sword that looked like the Sword of the Heavenly Path when an invisible power rushed toward him. Without warning, it infiltrated his Spirit Domain destructively.


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    Ye Futian immediately let out a groan as his spirit was being attacked. The Sword of the Heavenly Path tried to wreak havoc inside the immaterial domain and obliterate his spiritual soul.


    Boom! A tremendous pressure caused Ye Futian��s body to fall back a little. Manifesting his face in the sky, he glared at the enormous countenance opposite him.


    As he had speculated, the Human Ancestor could come into the world already. It would not be long before the latter��s comeback. This realm had become his opponent��s territory.


    ��Ye Futian, even though you can alter the flow of time, your cultivation level still isn��t sufficient to put up a good fight! You would escape the death penalty if you chose submission!�� The Human Ancestor��s voice resounded through the atmosphere. Every cultivator in the Human Realm could hear his words. The people who were dispersed across the vast continent felt a violent tremor, so much so that they somehow saw the happening in the Human Divine Palace.


    Although none of them could comprehend why they were seeing this, it didn��t change the fact that it was happening. At that point, they had an epiphany moment that their monarch, the Human Ancestor, was the bona fide Supreme Being in this world. Even though the Heavenly Emperor invaded their realm, he was still a junior.


    The Human Ancestor was the cultivator who had been around since ancient times.


    Ye Futian shot the opposition a quick glance and turned his eyes on the Gods of the Human Divine Palace. He sighed. ��Greeting, Gods of ancient times. All of you had stood against the Heavenly Path during those days. Yet, you are willing to stoop so low as to be someone else��s lackeys now. I believed none of them had heard about the name of the Human Ancestor back then, right?��


    The pupils of the Gods shrunk upon hearing that. Chills ran down their spines as they stared at Ye Futian.


    Indeed, none of them had heard of the Human Ancestor during the Battle of Heavenly Laws.


    But times had changed, and things were nothing like what they used to be. The Human Ancestor had become the most powerful being in the world. He was also the one responsible for their resurrections and ruled over them.


    Truth be told, the Gods actually had mixed feelings, as they were all individuals who had once distinguished themselves as the pinnacles in this world, all the more so for the Super Great Emperors. When they had become elites, the Human Ancestor was probably still a small fry at that time.


    ��I wish you all the best,�� Ye Futian uttered. Right then, his face gradually dissipated until it vanished from sight completely. Despite that, the Human Ancestor did not make a move at all. Obviously, he could not confine the former there.


    After lowering his head, the Human Ancestor looked at the people and affirmed, ��Listen. Don��t be fooled by his slanderous words. I have joined forces with all of you to establish a new Heavenly Law, and you will be the ones who create the new world that is to come.��


    After the Human Ancestor finished speaking, he enveloped the whole world with his thoughts. Instantly, everyone in the Human Realm could feel a Supreme God��s Might. No matter where they were looking from, all of them could see the countenance of the Human Ancestor in the firmament.


    Peering at all the living beings on the continent, the Human Ancestor declared, ��There are countless cultivators in the Human Realm, and all of them called me as the Human Ancestor. But there are only a handful of you people who truly know me well. During the age of the ancient Heavenly Path, I, too, was once a mortal human, like most of you. The Gods and Immortals would rule over the law of the world while looking at us humans condescendingly. In the eyes of the Gods who controlled the Heavenly Law, mortals are inferior beings. Even if we reached a high tier in cultivation, we would still be lowly to them.


    ��Even so, there were a lot of ambitious people who had set the goal to gain enlightenment on the Great Path and become a God. But since the Age of the Gods, I have always believed that humans could decide their own fate. Every cultivator in this world is the main character of the heavens. We could be comparable to the likes of the Gods even with mortal bodies of flesh and blood.


    ��After the Battle of the Heavenly Laws, the Collapse of the Heavenly Path happened. Many Gods had died in the process, but I somehow managed to survive through the ordeal. Since then, I��ve made it my ultimate goal to revive the glorious age of the distant past. However, it is no longer the Age of the Gods but yours. Each and every one of you can cultivate to become a God. This is also one of the things that I��ve put all my efforts to achieve all these years. The Human Realm thrived.


    ��Nevertheless, some of the conservatives grew resentful. Since the emergence of a new Heavenly Emperor, he has been reigning the Heavenly Realm and desires for the revival of the old Heavenly Law. An age where only the Gods rule the world is not good. Although I��ve wished to see the restoration of the glorious days of the Age of the Gods, I��ve hoped to start a new with new Heavenly Law as well. Yet, the former Heavenly Emperor and his descendants were relentless with their hindrance to our grand plan. And it went on until the latest generation, which is Ye Futian. He, too, is the same with his conduct.


    ��One year ago, I had led our legions into the Heavenly Realm, the Land of the Divine Prefecture. All in the name to unite the order of the Seven Realms with the Sword of Justice. From then, there will be no war in the world where everyone can gain enlightenment to become a Great Emperor. It will be a world where a mortal being can ascend to godhood and become the master of the world. Everyone will be the same��a world with perfect order, equality, and absolute justice.


    ��Nonetheless, our troops who invaded the Heavenly Realm and the Divine Prefecture lost their lives there. The top clan of the Human Realm, Orthodox Unity, was abolished, and its people were annihilated. As you saw earlier, Ye Futian infiltrated the Human Divine Palace and demolished it while attempting to finish off every cultivator there. Ye Futian, Donghuang the Great, and the Buddha had created the Tianshen Army to follow them everywhere. They are the representatives of the conservatives, who care only about their personal benefits and will destroy anything and anyone that goes against their interest. Therefore, I shall bring you with me to stand up and fight. With the Sword of Justice in my hand, I shall conquer the Seven Realms. Now, who is with me to create a new world and establish a new Heavenly Law?��


    The voice of the Human Ancestor was orotund. At that time, everyone in the entire Human Realm was greatly moved by his speech, and it created a resonance within the heavens. Suddenly, all the cultivators in that realm had a powerful urge to immediately charge toward the Heavenly Realm to kill the Heavenly Emperor, Ye Futian.

 Chapter 2928 - Advent

    Divine Light beamed from the sky of a city in the Human Realm while an intangible power rested on the crowd there.


    The voice of the Human Ancestor brimmed with a mysterious power that created a resonance with everyone in the realm. Instantly, a hint of hostility flashed across their eyes. They were overwhelmed with the itch to charge toward the Heavenly Realm and the Divine Prefecture to exterminate the Heavenly Emperor, Ye Futian.


    A voice reverberated in their minds as they raised their heads to stare at the face of the Human Ancestor with anger. ��We shall storm the Heavenly Imperial Palace to slaughter Ye Futian and unite the Seven Realms!��


    ��We will join you in your conquest, Human Ancestor!��


    ��We will join you in your conquest, Human Ancestor!�� Similar voices echoed throughout the vast continent. All of them were willing to fight alongside the Human Ancestor to establish a new Heavenly Law.


    According to the narration of the Human Ancestor, Ye Futian was a villain who had committed crimes against humanity. Meanwhile, the former represented absolute justice.


    ��


    In no time at all, Ye Futian returned to the ninety-nine heavens of the Heavenly Realm.


    Ye Futian arrived above the heavenly palace together with Donghuang the Great and Hua Jieyu. The Great Emperors like Yu Tu, Gu Dongliu, and the others came to the top of the heavenly palace to welcome the three of them back.


    ��How was everything?�� the String Emperor asked. He finally felt a little relieved after seeing his young master��s safe return. After all, the former Heavenly Emperor and the Sovereign Princess had lost their lives to the Human Ancestor. Thus, all of them had intense animosity toward their nemesis, the Human Ancestor.


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    The expressions on Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great��s faces turned solemn. Then the former turned to look at the latter and questioned, ��Father, what do you think of this?��


    ��There is a high likelihood that the Human Ancestor refined the Human Realm,�� Donghuang the Great replied.


    All the cultivators peered at Donghuang the Great in confusion. Shortly after, the latter said, ��The Human Ancestor had created his Law of the Great Path. While I��m only coating the law of my own around the Divine Prefecture, the Human Ancestor had gone beyond that level. He had refined the entire Human Realm and changed the Law of the Great Path in that realm completely. In short, the whole realm will be under the dominion of his will.��


    ��Does that mean the Human Ancestor can exert his manipulation directly onto the cultivators of the Human Realm?�� Ye Futian queried. He had felt a threatening aura there previously. When the Human Ancestor spoke to everyone in the Human Realm, a resonance was created. His words had turned into the power of emotions and affected all the cultivators there.


    ��Yeah.�� Donghuang the Great nodded. ��The Human Ancestor must have cultivated some unique Divine Power of the Law. So, he had been refining and assimilating with that realm all these years. In the end, he became the world itself, and all the cultivators inside will be controlled by him. As you mentioned earlier, the said resonance could allow him to exert his influence directly onto all sentient beings, including the cultivators there.��


    ��In other words, a whole continent of the cultivators in the Human Realm will fight for the Human Ancestor once the war starts.�� The String Emperor frowned and continued, ��Why did he insist on starting this war?��


    ��I guess that has to do with his cultivation.�� Donghuang the Great��s expression turned grim. ��I��m afraid a war on a bigger scale will be unavoidable.��


    There were six legions in the ninety-nine heavens at that moment. Still, Ye Futian hoped to prevent the war from breaking out but not starting one. It would be better if the Great Emperors could settle the conflict among themselves.


    However, things had already gotten out of hand. What he had wished for before would never happen.


    ��When I launched an attack at the Human Ancestor earlier, the impact of the strike did not feel like flesh and blood but a complete world. It looks like the Human Ancestor��s defense in the Human Realm is made up of the entire realm��s force. So, it will be hard to inflict any real damage to him.�� Ye Futian recalled the details of the clash with the Human Ancestor earlier. To his surprise, he could not break through the latter��s defense even with his strongest offense. Following that, he was repelled and left the Human Divine Palace.


    ��Mm.�� Donghuang the Great nodded. ��Since the Human Ancestor refined the Human Realm, that whole domain will become his world where he is the strongest. But once he leaves there, he will be weakened to a certain extent. That must be why he had never left the Human Realm but had been dispatching his exterior incarnation outside.��


    Ye Futian bowed his head. His expedition to the Human Realm this time had helped him gauge the situation of the Human Divine Palace.


    The exterior incarnation of the Human Ancestor had the strength of the Six Great Emperors. Nevertheless, he was even more powerful in the Human Realm. He was already invincible when he did not fully recover yet. Just how mighty would he become after his complete recovery?


    The other Ancient Emperors were at the level of the Six Great Emperors, which could be compared to the Super Great Emperor.


    He had confidence that he could take down the Super Great Emperor cultivators without breaking a sweat already.


    Rumble. Ye Futian and the others felt a violent shaking while they were having a conversation.


    In fact, all the cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens could feel that intense tremor. Then they lifted their heads to look at the sky.


    What just happened?


    Ye Futian looked into a distant location of the ninety-nine heavens. In no time, he noticed a hole torn open in the sky. It was perforated by a matchless Divine Power.


    ��What is going on?�� Everyone immediately looked at Ye Futian.


    ��The Human Ancestor is opening a space passage to the Heavenly Realm,�� Ye Futian stated as he stared into the distance with an expressionless look. After the space passage was built to its completion, a massive Door of Space could be seen appearing in the sky, which connected two different points in space-time.


    At the same time, a similar towering space passage showed up in the Land of the Divine Prefecture from the Human Realm.


    The same space passage appeared even in the Western Heaven World of Buddhism.


    The same thing happened even in the skies of the Empty Divine Realm, the Devil World, and the Dark World.


    There was a great commotion all around the Seven Realms. All the cultivators raised their heads and gazed at the space passages from different locations. In that instant, they knew a great change had already taken place.


    The fact that the Human Ancestor opened the space passages that connected the Seven Realms would mean that he wanted to start the War of the Seven Realms. No matter who they were, no one could escape from it.


    In the Devil World, the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace gaped at a distant location while the Devil Abyss was roaring violently. They saw a spatial portal pierced through the Devil Abyss with an overwhelming Divine Power.


    Meanwhile, the silhouette of the Devil Emperor could be seen at the peak of the Devil Imperial Palace as he looked at that source of the ruckus. He did not let the people of the Devil World join the war because he was secretly helping his people to improve their cultivation level.


    Still, everything happened so quickly to the point that he could not even react to it.


    In just one year, there was a radical change in the world.


    A short while ago, Ye Futian had invaded the Human Divine Palace. The strength that he had displayed was clearly above the likes of the Six Great Emperors. In his battle with the Human Ancestor, the latter had exhibited his almighty abilities as well.


    Nonetheless, the improvement of the Devil Emperor��s cultivation after one year was unremarkable. Yu Sheng was the only person with an impressive breakthrough at his cultivation level. It should be accredited to Ye Futian, who had given Yu Sheng a Spatial Magical Item so that the latter could use it for his cultivation for the past years.


    When Ye Futian first came to the Devil Imperial Palace back then, the Devil Emperor had only seen the former as a junior slowly making history. But he had never once expected to see his juniors not only make histories but also be playing leading roles.


    The changes in the world were too fast for him to catch up.


    ��Devil Emperor!�� the Human Ancestor called from the humungous Door of Space.

 Chapter 2929 - The Human World

    ��What business do you have?�� said the Devil Emperor as he looked towards the Door of Space.


    ��I wish to reset the order of the Seven Realms and revive the Age of the Gods. Would the Devil World be willing to join me?�� asked the Human Ancestor as his voice reverberated in the space. The cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace stared at the face that appeared beyond the Door of Space. Their gazes were filled with demonic will that was as cold as ice.


    The Human Ancestor did not hide his ambition at all. He wanted to reset the order of the Seven Realms and revive the Age of the Gods. However, this age would be controlled by him. Now, there were already various gods under his command.


    ��I am not interested,�� replied the Devil Emperor as he swept a glance at the face of the Human Ancestor.


    A cold snort could be heard. A menacing aura descended from the Door of Space as beams of terrifying destructive light shot out. They became Chaotic Divine Thunder that directly filled the Devil Abyss. For a moment, it trembled violently. Countless light of catastrophe descended, causing the cultivators of the Devil World to reveal astonished expressions as they looked up at the rampaging Devil Abyss.


    For the cultivators of the Devil World, the Devil Abyss was both a holy land and a source of destruction.


    The history of the Devil World was a history of blood and tears as they struggled under the Devil Abyss.


    Menacing jet-black demonic light shot out from the Devil Emperor��s pupils as he stared at the Human Ancestor��s face. The latter continued, ��I know that you can borrow the power of the Devil Abyss. However, do not forget that I can also cause it to rampage.��


    The Devil Emperor fell silent when he heard him say this. Destructive light of catastrophe shot out from his pupils. The Human Ancestor had struck his weakness.


    If the Devil Abyss were to rampage, it would be catastrophic for the Devil World.


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    For many years, the Devil Emperor had dealt with the Devil Abyss and withstood its power. Hence, it had not rampaged.


    ��This is your justice?�� asked the Devil Emperor in a tone as cold as ice.


    So, the Human Ancestor��s justice was to destroy the Devil World?


    ��Do not forget the identity of the Devil World. The lands of the Devil Abyss were originally a prison,�� said the Human Ancestor indifferently. ��Now is the time for the Devil World to correct its name. Only by resetting the world order can the identity of the Devil World be changed.��


    The Human Ancestor was clearly mocking them. The Devil World was but a prison in ancient times. As for the cultivators of the Devil World, they were merely prisoners.


    The only way for them to shed their status as prisoners was to reset the world order. Hence, the Human Ancestor invited them to join the war.


    The cultivators of the Devil World had always considered this to be their humiliation. Now, the Human Ancestor brought it up. The cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace revealed looks of rage. Demonic will roared and churned from their figures. They seemed ready to fight.


    However, the Devil Emperor was unusually calm. The Human Ancestor had found his weakness and wanted to make him compromise. He saw the insufferable arrogance of the Human Ancestor. This existence, which had survived since ancient times, had revealed his true colors.


    Nevertheless, the Devil Emperor remained silent. The Human Ancestor continued, ��Devil Emperor, the Human Realm, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Dark World are already amassing their armies to invade. Rally the armies of the Devil World immediately and join the war. We shall enter the lands of the Heaven Realm as well as the Divine Prefecture and unify the Seven Realms.��


    The face gradually disappeared after he said this. However, his voice could still be heard, saying, ��If you refuse to comply, the Devil World will receive the ��blessing�� of the Devil Abyss.��


    This voice reverberated across the sky. The expressions of the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace were very ugly. The Human Ancestor was directly threatening them.


    ��Your Highness!�� The cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace cried out as they looked up at the Devil Emperor, who was high in the sky.


    He remained standing there silently. His figure was tall and imposing. However, there was an air of melancholy about him.


    He was the domineering ruler of the Devil World, the Devil Emperor. No one in his life had ever threatened him. Yet now, the Human Ancestor was threatening him with the lives of all in the Devil World, forcing him to submit and follow the former into battle.


    The Devil Emperor looked at the spatial passageway that had yet to close. He then ordered, ��Summon the cultivators of the Devil World. Prepare for war.��


    At that moment, the cultivators of the Devil Imperial Palace all fell silent. They knew that His Highness��the Devil Emperor��had yielded.


    When the Human Ancestor came last time, the Devil Emperor was already prepared to fight a war. Even if they were to go to war, it would be because the Devil World wanted to do so of their own accord and not that they were threatened. That was their stance.


    However, this time, the Devil Emperor had compromised.


    It was not for himself but for the Devil World.


    After giving the order, the Devil Emperor��s silhouette disappeared. He came to the Devil Abyss and looked at Yu Sheng.


    Now, the entire Devil World was being held hostage. They could only break the status quo if Yu Sheng controlled the power of the Devil Abyss.


    From the looks of it, Ye Futian had truly foreseen that Yu Sheng would face a huge catastrophe when he sent over the treasure.


    ��


    A frightening and vast army of cultivators, consisting of members from the Human Realm, the Devil World, the Empty Divine Realm, and the Dark World, was gathering.


    The forces, who had been forced back by the six major legions led by Ye Futian before this, were especially eager about the upcoming war. They were all dissatisfied. Now, they had a chance to make a comeback with the power of four Realms. They were no longer scattered forces. They had gathered together and were preparing to attack the Heaven Realm as well as the Divine Prefecture.


    This time, their armies would invade the Heaven Realm, the Divine Prefecture, and then the Western Heaven in one fell swoop.


    The lands of the Seven Realms would finally be unified.


    In the Human Realm, from countless cities across the continents, various cultivators were traversing across the sky towards the continent where the Human Divine Palace was located.


    Above the continents of the Human Realm, the large groups of cultivators were having discussions as they traveled.


    Right then, above a certain continent.


    A cultivator asked, ��Elder Brother Wang, are you also heading over to the Human Divine Palace?��


    Another cultivator replied, ��How could I possibly miss such a grand occasion? This is probably a once-in-a-lifetime event.��


    ��That��s right. Such an opportunity only comes once over hundreds of centuries. What an honor it is to be able to personally take part.��


    ��Everyone, be careful,�� someone down below called up and waved goodbye.


    ��Friend, don��t worry. When we return, the Seven Realms will have been unified, and we will all be the pioneers of the new world order,�� a cultivator in the sky said loudly. ��Farewell.��


    As he said this, the sword beneath his feet shot across the sky, and he disappeared without a trace in an instant.


    Such scenes were occurring all over the Human Realm. They would all be fighting for ��justice�� on behalf of the Human Ancestor. They were going to war to unify the Seven Realms and seize control of the world order.


    The Door of Space of the Human Realm was located outside the Human Divine Palace. Countless cultivators had gathered in this region. They looked towards the palace with stern expressions. Many bowed respectfully as they offered up their worship.


    This was the cultivation court of the Human Ancestor. He was the god of the Human Realm and their faith.

 Chapter 2930 - : Training Legions

    In the ninety-nine heavens of the Heaven Realm, Ye Futian��s Small World was also getting busy as the cultivators of the Human Realm were mobilizing across various continents.


    The Human Ancestor was adamant about initiating the war of the Seven Realms. He also wanted to involve cultivators from all levels. No one could keep out of this war. Even though Ye Futian wanted to avoid the war, he couldn��t do so.


    Now, he could only prepare for war.


    As soon as he could, Ye Futian rallied the forces of the Heaven Realm. Donghuang the Great did the same in the Divine Prefecture. They wanted to gather the Renhuang Plane cultivators to join the war.


    Last time, they wanted to avoid dragging others into the war. However, it was unavoidable for others to stay out of the war this time. They could only face the battle head-on. To do so, they had to first build up their strength.


    Renhuang Plane cultivators would be critical to this war. Ye Futian and Donghuang the Great gathered these cultivators in the ninety-nine heavens to train them rapidly. With the time difference, the cultivators could be trained to become top-level Renhuangs and even near-deities. That way, these cultivators could serve their most crucial function in the upcoming war.


    After the summon had been sent out, Wutian Buddha Lord, Tianyin Buddha Lord, their disciples, and Chen Yi and the others were in charge of receiving those who answered the call. They would bring these people into the ninety-nine heavens and train them in cultivation.


    The Heaven Realm, the Divine Prefecture, and the Buddhist sects were all busy.


    Similar to the cultivators of the Human Realm being admitted to the Human Divine Palace, the Heaven Realm and the Divine Prefecture cultivators also rushed to the Heavenly Imperial City and were allowed to enter the ninety-nine heavens.


    When they came to the ninety-nine heavens, they discovered that the place was like a completely new world that had been remade. It was actually a universe on its own.


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    One of the planets in this universe was like a solar furnace. It was filled with scorching currents of heat. Many Great Emperors and cultivators were on the planet. Their leader was the Alchemy Great Emperor, Daoist Monk Mu. This planet was an alchemy planet. It was filled with the aura of elixirs. Daoist Monk Mu led the cultivators of the Alchemy Palace and concocted elixirs here.


    In another similar continent, Blind Tie was in charge of leading the members of the Armoring Palace in forging weapons. They manufactured large quantities of divine arms for the troops below the Imperial Realm.


    Aside from that, Blind Tie would personally forge divine arms for a group of core members. Even Ye Futian would personally forge divine arms for the top figures below the Imperial Realm.


    As for the other cultivators, they were also busy training the legions. Donghuang the Great was personally in charge of this. Each level handled things in an orderly manner, and things were not chaotic.


    The closer they were to the war, the less chaotic they could be. Donghuang the Great had experienced war firsthand. He grew up and rose to the throne during a war. He naturally knew what to do.


    Donghuang Diyuan, Gu Dongliu, and the other commanders supported Donghuang the Great in training the legions. Every cultivator performed their duties and did what needed to be done. In this Small World, massive changes were occurring every day. A day in the outside world was equivalent to 81 days here.


    They were all aware that they were at an absolute disadvantage in terms of numbers and the initiative this time. In order to stand against the Human Realm, they could only strengthen their core power. The six legions would serve as their main force, while the Renhuang Plane cultivators gathered would support them. This arrangement was their only hope of achieving victory.


    One of the planets was overflowing with a piercing aura. The cold gleam of weapons filled the entire planet. The aura of the Great Path emanating from the planet was also sharp.


    In front of a majestic gate, a silhouette sat cross-legged. Divine arms circled his body. Before him, a group of 1,000 cultivators was cultivating under his instruction. Powerful, sharp auras surged from their figures. Some people even seemed to transform into divine arms.


    ��To walk the Path of The Weapon is to be indestructible. Everything will be destroyed. Every technique will be negated,�� said Wang Yanbing. His gaze was as piercing as divine arms. He looked at the cultivators before him and roared, ��To walk the Path of The Weapon is to not have a body of flesh. There is only the weapon. Our bodies are our divine arms.��


    After Wang Yanbing lost to Gu Dongliu in the Lower Worlds, he worked even harder in his cultivation. He had cultivated the Path of the Weapon in the Celestial Gate of Vast Heaven and had been improving at a rapid pace. Although he wasn��t as powerful as Gu Dongliu, he still clearly knew what he wanted and ceaselessly pursued after his own Path.


    Now, he was teaching the other cultivators how to cultivate like a grandmaster.


    There was a continent of monstrous beasts nearby. This continent was full of monstrous auras. Although various monsters were cultivating, it was very organized. All the monstrous beasts were working hard to improve themselves.


    There were many powerful divine beast bloodlines such as the Dragon clan, the Divine Elephants, and the Peng Bird Clan.


    The elders of the Dragon clan, the Sky Demon Court, and the Divine Elephants were in charge of training the troops of the monstrous beasts. There were a few super-powerful monsters on the Demon God Mountain of this continent.


    Their leader was actually Little Condor. His gaze was sharp as he glanced in all directions. Beside him was a phoenix. They were in charge of the troops of the demon clan.


    Aside from these two continents, there was another planet in their vicinity. They were all under the Heavenly Mandate Legion, one of the six legions under the command of Gu Dongliu. Be it Wang Yanbing or Little Condor; they were all part of this legion.


    This segmentum was called the Heavenly Mandate Segmentum.


    On the main planet of the Heavenly Mandate Segmentum, Gu Dongliu was in the current Heavenly Mandate Academy. Right now, many people were with him. Dou Zhao, Xiao Muyu, Long Chen, Jun, and the others were all here. They now served as Gu Dongliu��s aids, supporting him in managing the Heavenly Mandate Legion.


    ��How are the troops?�� asked Gu Dongliu as he glanced at the others present. He was now a super cultivator. He should not need to inquire on the cultivation of those under him. However, these were desperate times. They needed to amass an army for war. Even Great Emperors took part in the training of the legions.


    Xiao Muyu reported, ��These past few days have been extremely hectic. However, we have now established an order. Everything is beginning to fall into place and can run on its own. That way, even if more and more people come from the outside world, we can still rapidly absorb them into the training regime and make them part of our combat power.��


    ��I am looking forward to the start of the battle,�� said Dou Zhao somewhat excitedly. The Dou tribe had always enjoyed battles. This was in their blood.


    ��Demon God Planet is on track too,�� added Long Chen.


    ��Hmm,�� responded Gu Dongliu as he nodded his head. ��Do not get careless. This time, the enemies we are facing are like none the Heavenly Mandate Realm have encountered before. They are all of the top forces of the Human Realm, the Empty Divine Realm, and the other realms. Any one of these forces could have easily crushed all the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Realm in the past.��


    ��We are not what we once were. How can you compare us to our past selves now?�� said Dou Zhao confidently. He was also one of the core members and had always received the best cultivation resources. His abilities were very powerful now.


    ��In terms of numbers, we are at an absolute disadvantage. The legions we are training need to be able to overwhelm the opponent and strike fear in their hearts,�� replied Gu Dongliu.


    ��Fear not; we will certainly make it happen,�� answered Dou Zhao confidently!

 Chapter 2931 - The Eve of The Final War

    Time trickled past. The cultivators who were training in Ye Futian��s micro world utilized every second to improve their cultivation and to break through to the next plane. However, some of them chose not to break through to the Imperial Realm even though they were qualified to do so. It was because they wished to contribute to the battlefield as those under the Imperial Realm.


    By the time the forces of the Human Realm and their allies had completed their preparations for war in the outside world, a few decades had passed.


    On this day, Ye Futian and a few cultivators gathered at the Heavenly Palace.


    Wutian Buddha Lord said to Ye Futian, ��The Western Heaven has been invaded by the armies of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm. I need to rush back there with my troops.�� The Buddhist sects had been able to seize more time for cultivation in the micro world. As a result, the Arhat Legion had grown stronger. It was time for them to return and join the war now.


    ��Hmm. Buddha Lord, please lead the Arhat Legion to join the war in the Western Heaven. On top of that, I will assign the Four Corners Legion to go with you. You may order them as you see fit,�� Ye Futian replied. It was still rather challenging for the members of the Western Heaven to fight against the invasion of two major worlds, the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm, alone.


    The commanders of the Four Corners Legion were the four disciples of Ye Futian. Among them were Fang Cun and Tie Tou.


    ��Fang Cun,�� Ye Futian called.


    ��Yes, Master.�� Fang Cun appeared even more charming now with his long hair. Nevertheless, his temperament was calm. He was no longer the inexperienced lad like he used to be. Even though not much time had passed in the outside world, he and his friends had been cultivating for more than 100 years in the micro world. Therefore, he had had 100 years of training to hone himself.


    Ye Futian ordered, ��The four of you, lead the Four Corners Legion and the troops under your command to aid the Buddhist sects in war. Obey the commands of the Buddhist sects.��


    ��Yes, Master,�� Fang Cun replied while nodding. Then, he bowed towards Wutian Buddha Lord and said, ��I will surely obey the commands of Buddha Lord.��


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    ��Amitabha.�� Wutian Buddha Lord put his palms together as a gesture of gratitude.


    ��The four of you, leave with Buddha Lord,�� Ye Futian commanded. Immediately, the four of them went to summon their troops for departure. The cultivators from the World of Buddhism also left the micro world one by one. Two legions had been sent off to assist the Western Heaven in war.


    ��Father, let the Revelation Legion led by Diyuan and the Ziwei Legion led by Emperor Chen aid the members of the Divine Prefecture in war,�� Ye Futian said while looking at Donghuang the Great. Not long ago, the troops of the Devil World had entered into the space passage that connected their world and the Divine Prefecture. They were now stationed at the North Cliff Region.


    The Devil World and the Divine Prefecture were next to each other. Hence, the troops of the Devil World were in charge of occupying the Divine Prefecture.


    Ye Futian did not wish to fight against the troops of the Devil World. However, things had not gone as he wanted. The troops of the Devil World chose to participate in the War of the Seven Realms and were about to attack the Divine Prefecture.


    ��Hmm.�� Donghuang the Great nodded in agreement as he said, ��The troops of the Devil World are powerful. It will be a brutal fight. From the looks of it, our fight with them is inevitable.��


    Donghuang the Great did not wish to engage in war with the Devil World either. He had a lot of respect for the Devil Emperor, and the two of them admired each other. Nevertheless, they were destined to be enemies due to their different stances.


    If Donghuang the Great had a choice, he would choose to be friends with the Devil Emperor. How he wished the two of them could chit-chat and play Weiqi together peacefully, just like what they did last time when the Devil Emperor visited Donghuang Imperial Palace.


    The Devil Emperor was the overlord who withstood the tribulations of the Devil Abyss on his own. The entire Devil World rested on his shoulders.


    This time, the Human Ancestor used the welfare of the members of the Devil World to threaten the Devil Emperor. The latter was forced to declare war on the Divine Prefecture to preserve his people��s lives.


    Ye Futian could still strive to get the Devil World to side with him if the Human Ancestor had not done so. The situation might have been different if they could postpone the war until Yu Sheng had seized control of the Devil World. This was also Yu Tu��s intention. He had set up things so that one day, the forces of the Devil World and the Divine Prefecture could both be utilized by Ye Futian.


    ��Diyuan,�� Donghuang the Great called. ��Lead the Revelation Legion and head back to the Divine Prefecture.��


    ��Yes, Father,�� Donghuang Diyuan responded while nodding. Even though she was the descendent of Emperor Ye Qing, she had been raised by Donghuang the Great since birth. The latter had treated her like his own child. Even up until now, her surname was still Donghuang. Hence, she still called Donghuang the Great her father. In her eyes, both Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing were her fathers, with the former being her foster father while the latter being her biological father.


    Donghuang Diyuan left the palace. Ye Futian then assigned Emperor Chen, formerly known as Lord Chen, to lead the Ziwei Legion and join Donghuang Diyuan.


    After four legions had departed to the Western Heaven and the Divine Prefecture, there were only two legions left behind. They were the Heaven Court Legion and the Heavenly Mandate Legion. The former consisted of forces from the original Heaven Realm, while the latter was made up of cultivators following Ye Futian since the beginning.


    Ye Futian had ordered the six major legions to go to separate battlefields because their opponents were no longer fighting alone this time. They had dispersed their armies. All the space passageways were now open. This time, the allied forces of the Human Realm and the other four Realms would most likely strike in tandem.


    This meant that the Heaven Realm, the Divine Prefecture, and the Western Heaven would be thrown into war simultaneously. Hence, Ye Futian had no choice but to distribute the six major legions across the three different worlds.


    ��


    The cultivators of the Heaven Realm could see the troops of the Human Realm gathering at the other end of the space passageway. The latter were all garbed in green clothes. They used this method to distinguish their own members. Once the war erupted, the world would be thrown into chaos. If they did not standardize their outfits, they would not be able to differentiate between their own members.


    In the Heavenly Imperial City, the Heaven Court Legion and the Heavenly Mandate Legion had lined up in formation. Their gazes were fixed on the space passage, and they were all ready for war.


    All the cultivators in the Heavenly Imperial City were looking up at the sky. Now, there were very few people left in the city. Most of them had evacuated.


    Just then, a cultivator took off his green robe and threw it up into the air. A mass of flames incinerated the green robe.


    When they saw this scene, others in different parts of the city took off their green robes and also threw them up in the air, burning them. In an instant, the sky above the city was ablaze with burning robes.


    If they wore green robes, they might have the opportunity to infiltrate the enemy camp and make it out alive. They could even betray the Heaven Realm and join the Human Realm. This was bound to happen, and many people would certainly do so.


    However, many people still burnt their robes in public. This was a wordless oath. They burnt their robes and were prepared to fight.


    ��They are coming,�� someone said.


    Just then, intense tremors came from the space passage in the sky. A vast army appeared on the other side of the passageway. They were prepared to enter the Door of Space and invade the Heaven Realm.


    Below the space passage, two legions were waiting with serious expressions.


    The six legions, including their main forces and the troops they had trained, were a million strong. Each legion had more than 100,000 cultivators.


    This was a terrifying number, but it was miniscule on the current battlefield. Their numbers were still too few. 100,000 cultivators were too pitiful to guard a world. For the Heavenly Imperial City alone, such a number was insignificant.


    In the world today, some larger forces already had such numbers.


    Even so, they had no choice but to fight.


    Beneath the space passage, the troops were in formation. Each troop was separated. Right now, among the crowd, an intense piercing aura emanated from a troop. They were actually carrying bows and arrows. The leader was imposing and handsome. On his back was a divine bow that Ye Futian had personally forged for him!

 Chapter 2932 - The Outbreak of War

    The atmosphere in the Heavenly Imperial City was exceptionally serious and depressing.


    The Human Ancestor set up the space passage above the Heavenly Imperial City. He would invade the place and directly declare war.


    Rumble. A dull and terrifying sound could be heard. The space passage expanded, and the entire sky became a Door of Space. Menacing divine power emanated from within it as it blocked out the sun. Dark clouds loomed over the city.


    ��They are coming!�� someone said.


    Everyone in the Heavenly Imperial City looked up into the sky. At that moment, it was as though the end of the world had come. Everyone��s hearts were beating intensely. Some cultivators had powerful battle intent circling their figures.


    This invasion was different from the last. This time, the Human Ancestor rallied all the cultivators of the Human Realm to invade the Heaven Realm. He wanted to unify the Seven Realms.


    In the heavens above, beams of divine halos descended from the Door of Space like sky stairwells. Then, a vast army surged out from within and appeared in the sky above the crowd.


    The army of the Human Realm had descended.


    In an instant, the vast army immediately appeared above the Heavenly Imperial City, blocking out the sky. Tens of millions of troops had invaded the Heaven Realm.


    ��They are here!�� someone said.


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    The Heaven Court Legion and the Heavenly Mandate Legion had long been in formation. They had divided themselves into many smaller divisions and had been awaiting this moment.


    In the archer phalanx, endless dazzling light lit up right then. The light illuminated the sky.


    An unparalleled divine bow appeared behind Huang Jiuge. At full draw, the bow seemed to shoot out a divine ray of the sun up into the heavens. The divine power of the arrow scorched the space as it became a beam of sunlight that shot up into the sky.


    As one of the first few people who followed Ye Futian, Ye Futian wouldn��t mistreat Huang Jiuge. Ye Futian directly baptized the latter with his Divine Power of the Law, complementing Huang Jiuge��s natural talent. This allowed Huang Jiuge to comprehend the Divine Power of the Sun. Now, Huang Jiuge was already at the Near-Deity Plane and was a top-tier existence below the Great Emperors.


    Ye Futian also personally forged a divine bow called Sun Chaser for him. It was an imperial arm compatible with the Divine Power of the Sun. At that moment, an extremely threatening aura reached the sky. Around Huang Jiuge, other divine archers had also drawn their bows.


    Buzz. The Divine Power of the Sun formed arrows that pierced and lit up the sky. They seemed to penetrate the darkness and brought the light of dawn.


    ��Be careful!�� an astonished voice cried out in the sky.


    The divine arrows of the sun shot over in a flash. The cultivators of the vast army had just arrived. Before they could even react, countless cultivators perished before the divine arrows of the sun and were instantly turned to ashes.


    A sharp aura similarly erupted in the phalanx where Wang Yanbing was. The various cultivators that he led transformed into tens of thousands of divine arms and took to the skies simultaneously. There was nothing they could not destroy nor negate. They charged into the sky and also slaughtered many cultivators.


    The other cultivators also unleashed wave after wave of long-ranged attacks in tandem, killing many enemy forces. They caused the formation of the cultivators who had just arrived to fall into disarray. This caused the mighty army to fall into chaos.


    Huang Jiuge kept launching volleys of arrows. The divine arrows of the sun shot out again and again, killing tens of thousands of cultivators. However, the enemy forces seemed endless as they swarmed out of the Door of Space. As more and more of them poured out, cultivators covered the skies above the Heavenly Imperial City.


    Rumble. With a loud rumble, the divine arrows of the sun encountered a considerable resistance. Then, a shower of meteor swords rained down, along with a menacing meteorite shower as well as bolts of destructive thunder and lightning. The top figures who were swarming out were beginning their counterattack.


    The cultivators in the sky above came charging down, suppressing them. They were all wearing green robes and unleashed the first wave of destructive attacks.


    In the sky above the Heavenly Imperial City, terrifying destructive power clashed. It was like the actual scene of the end of the world where the heavens and earth were collapsing.


    ��Attack!�� one side cried out.


    ��Attack!�� the other side responded.


    The sounds of slaughter reverberated throughout the space. This war was a war to end all wars. The last war paled in comparison, be it in terms of scale or cruelty.


    Outside the micro world, Ye Futian stood there looking towards the battlefield. Beside him were the various Emperors. All of them did not participate in the battle. The Great Emperors of the Human Realm had not arrived yet. The cultivators below the Imperial Realm started the fighting first.


    ��I wonder how many people will survive this war,�� said Zhuge Mingyue in a low voice next to Ye Futian. Her voice contained a melancholic tone. She had always been an optimistic person. However, this time, she still felt pessimistic.


    This was a war that would destroy the world. An army of more than a million troops descended upon the Heavenly Imperial City and charged towards them. This would be the greatest calamity in the history of the Seven Realms up to date. Countless cultivators would become martyrs for the Heaven Realm.


    Those who made it out alive would be very lucky.


    Ye Futian had a heavy heart as he looked over the battlefield. The army of the Human Realm was already clashing with the legions of the Heaven Realm. Inside the destructive storm, many people were killed every second. It was tragic.


    ��Will Big Brother be alright?�� Zhuge Mingyue asked Ye Futian. Their Big Brother had also participated in this battle.


    Big Brother initially had the opportunity to become a Great Emperor, yet he did not push to achieve it. He had been preparing for this war instead.


    ��He will be fine,�� replied Ye Futian as he looked towards a corner of the battlefield. Over there, Sword Saint was wielding a destructive demonic blade. He slashed out again and again. Each slash shook the heavens and the earth, ripping apart the sky. He slaughtered his way through the green-robed army of the Human Realm alone. The demonic blade that slashed out was a saber technique of the Devil World. Yu Tu personally taught him this.


    Bang. Right then, a terrifying Sword of the Divine Human slashed out and clashed with Sword Saint��s demonic blade. This caused the light of his saber to be extinguished. Sword Saint was knocked back a short distance. He looked up at the green-robed cultivator in the sky. The person had extraordinary temperament and appeared extremely young.


    ��The Sword of the Divine Human,�� exclaimed Sword Saint as he looked at the other party. This person should be a direct descendant of the Human Ancestor.


    The cultivator was from the Human Divine Palace. He was one of the Human Ancestor��s disciples. His ability was very powerful. He also came over here when he saw Sword Saint massacring his way through their troops.


    Rumble. Terrifying Demonic Will churned and roared. Powerful Demonic Will surged from Sword Saint��s figure and was extremely domineering. He stepped up into the sky. The demonic blade in his hand cleaved out. The jet-black light of the saber split the sky apart, cleaving a crack in the space.


    In another location, Dou Zhao wielded a gigantic golden staff. He unleashed the strongest form of the Will of the Fighting God. It was as though he had become a war god. The staff in his hand danced and shattered the figures of the cultivators it struck, disintegrating their souls.


    Near Dou Zhao, there was a woman wielding the Divine Sword of Annihilation. Blood splattered like rain everywhere she passed. Everywhere the divine sword went, no one made it out alive. The woman wielding the sword actually had a face that could launch a thousand ships.


    This woman was the daughter of Emperor Nan, Nan Luoshen. She was of the same generation as Dou Zhao and Xiao Muyu. Back in the Heavenly Mandate Realm, she was also a very outstanding figure.


    Now, this group of people had grown to become the core power of the legions!

 Chapter 2933 - Battlefield

    The army of the Devil World began invading the Divine Prefecture from the North Cliff Region.


    On the continent, black clouds covered the sky above a city. The members of the Devil World filled the skies. Tens of millions of troops of the Devil World began their invasion of the Divine Prefecture. In an extremely short amount of time, the fires of war set the vast continent ablaze.


    Due to the entire army of the Devil World beginning their invasion from the North Cliff Region, the Divine Prefecture utilized guerilla tactics and did not face them head-on to block them off. The army of the Devil World had powerful explosive force. If the members of the Divine Prefecture were to take them head-on, the outcome would be tragic.


    Hence, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture kept sending cultivators with powerful cultivation and those proficient in the power of space or speed to harass the enemy��s operations.


    However, in the face of absolute power, all this was futile. Of course, even with millions of troops, the Devil World still had to disperse its forces. The cultivators of the Divine Prefecture watched how their opponents prepared to move and then decided on how to counter them.


    At the same time, the Western Heaven World of Buddhism had a different approach. After the Buddhist sects knew that the forces of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm were invading, they immediately gathered up their forces, including the Arhat Legion and the Four Corners Legion, and joined the battlefield. In the lands where the two major worlds invaded, the most devastating clash erupted.


    The Buddhist sects had many members. They were devoted to their faith. They would not allow the cultivators of the Dark World to desecrate the World of Buddhism. They had paid a terrible price the last time the Dark Army invaded.


    This time, a resistance of a much larger scale erupted. The clashes were even fiercer.


    The World of Buddhism was ablaze with the fires of war. In the sky above the battlefield, there were the Buddha Lords. They had their palms together as they recited Buddhist scripture. They were releasing the souls of the fallen from suffering, allowing them to be reincarnated.


    This time, the Seven Realms were all dragged into this war. No one could stay out of it.


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    ��


    On the battlefield in the Heaven Realm, Nan Luoshen was fighting against a disciple of the Human Ancestor.


    Her Divine Sword of Annihilation was suppressed by the other party. Even though this disciple of the Human Ancestor was not as powerful as Di Hao, he was a top figure. Nan Luoshen received personal guidance from Ye Futian, and she merged his Divine Power of the Law into her techniques to attain her current combat ability. However, she still felt great pressure when facing such a strong opponent.


    An empty space surrounded the two of them. The others stayed away from them for fear of being affected by the aftershock of their attacks. Right now, a menacing and gigantic sword descended from the sky. It contained the power of the Human Realm.


    Dazzling green divine halos burst forth from the sword of Nan Luoshen as it collided head-on with the falling sword. A destructive storm swept out and covered the heavens and the earth. She was forced to take a step back.


    Buzz. A beam of lightning charged towards the disciple of the Human Ancestor. Emperor Nan, father of Nan Luoshen, had joined the fight. His swordsmanship had further transformed, and it was purer now. His sword charged forward boldly as though it was the first sword created since mankind existed.


    Dong. A loud sound could be heard. A massive Divine Seal blocked the path of the sword. The Divine Seal covered the sun and the sky as it radiated golden divine halos. It contained the Divine Force of Space, and it attempted to shatter the sword of Emperor Nan. However, the latter dazzled with brilliant green divine halos, and the Divine Seal was immediately shattered. The sword continued to bulldoze its way through with great momentum.


    Their opponent transformed into a Divine Human. He was imposing and was akin to a real god. He pointed a finger forward and touched the sword of Emperor Nan. The power from his finger caused the sword to him and shake vigorously.


    Swoosh. A shrill sound reverberated in space as cracks propagated on the finger of the Divine Human. Emperor Nan��s body was pushed backward too. The father and daughter duo stood side by side as they looked at the cultivator before them.


    ��Are you alright?�� Emperor Nan asked.


    ��Hmm.�� Nan Luoshen nodded her head slightly. The two of them joined forces on the battlefield.


    In another location, Dou Zhao charged forward fearlessly and slaughtered his way into the opposing armies. Everywhere he passed, no one was spared. He swung his golden staff as he moved, and many cultivators were killed by it.


    Suddenly, terrifying thunder befell him. It was the Chaotic Divine Thunder. When Dou Zhao��s staff came in contact with the thunder, the former was corroded right away. The thunder was not shattered. Instead, it flowed along with the staff and entered Dou Zhao��s body, causing him to go numb. Even his spiritual soul shook violently due to the shock.


    Dou Zhao stopped advancing. He raised his head to look at the figure pouncing towards him. The incoming opponent was a middle-aged man. His pupils were purple, and they glistened with the Divine Power of Thunder. His eyes could directly affect the will of others.


    Swoosh. An ear-piercing sound rang. A thunder invaded the eyes of Dou Zhao. The middle-aged man could affect the minds of others since his power of thunder could target spiritual souls. His mental attack was perfect to counter Dou Zhao��s domineering physical attack.


    The middle-aged man extended his arms, and streaks of lightning descended from the sky. He summoned Jiutian Divine Thunder and turned the vast space into his Thunder domain.


    A brilliant divine light shone on Dou Zhao��s glabella. His spiritual imprint radiated, and his Will of the Fighting God was activated to its maximum limit. His body grew larger, and his mind grew tougher so that he would not be perturbed by the thunder.


    Rumble. He swung his staff, and the entire sky shook. Rumbling sounds could be heard reverberating in space. As he moved the staff back and forth, an overbearing power was generated. It then blasted towards the other party. The space was shattered, and the heavens and the earth hummed.


    Right at the same time, thundering sounds reverberated. Jiutian Divine Thunder rained down and overwhelmed the space. The thunder crashed into Dou Zhao��s staff and body. It further attacked his spiritual soul.


    This time, Dou Zhao was protected by the Will of the Fighting God. The will surrounded his spiritual soul as divine light flowed all around his body. Jiutian Divine Thunder hit his body, but he activated his power to its maximum capacity and overcame the limitation of his flesh. Dou Zhao continued to pounce towards his enemy despite the numbness he felt all over his body. When he struck out, his arm vibrated violently. Power surged from every inch of his body, and all of it was channeled into his attack.


    Even when both he and his staff were bathed in terrifying thunder, Dou Zhao still managed to land a critical hit on his opponent.


    Rumble. The staff whacked the middle-aged man, causing him to be smashed into gory pulp. He was annihilated.


    However, right after Dou Zhao killed the man, a group of cultivators moved towards him simultaneously. Even before they approached him, their Jiutian Divine Thunder flooded the sky. Divine might pressed down from the sky as endless divine thunder gathered around him. The thunder charged towards his figure like chains.


    Rumble. Rumble. Rumble. Countless chains of lightning swept out into the space and circled Dou Zhao��s figure. They ignored everything in their path and struck his body. Dou Zhao��s power was activated to his limits. However, when the terrifying lightning burst forth, it kept eating away at his flesh. In the heavens above, powerful figures descended. They seemed to be from the same force. They all cultivated the Divine Power of Thunder. It was as though they were various gods in charge of Jiutian Divine Thunder. They stood above everyone in the sky above.


    They were all cultivators from the Human Divine Palace.


    Dou Zhao sensed their power. He realized that this war was different from what he had imagined!

 Chapter 2934 - The One Who Must Die

    The Human Divine Palace, under the rule of the Human Ancestor, had numerous cultivators from different temples, and their cultivation abilities differed as well.


    This group of cultivators specialized in the divine power of thunder. When their divine power exploded, chains of thunder and lightning encircled Dou Zhao��s body like dancing snakes. Dou Zhao��s body trembled slightly as his spiritual soul was under attack.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Shocking sounds of thunder came out one after another, and a phantom figure manifested behind each cultivator in that group. These phantoms were transformed by thunder and lightning, and they were akin to gods of thunder. At this moment, men and gods stood shoulder to shoulder.


    What was more terrifying was that these phantoms resonated with one another so that a truly majestic god appeared in the void, standing between heaven and the earth. Countless chains surrounded his body, and dazzling thunder light burst from the torso of this god. Then, this light blasted on Dou Zhao, causing Dou Zhao��s spirit soul to tremble. His spiritual soul seemed to come out of the body, facing a true god, as he was bound by chains.


    ��Loosen!�� As Dou Zhao let out a roar, the Will of the Fighting God was pushed to the limit, striving to surpass the limit. A towering phantom of the fighting god appeared behind him as the divine power roared fiercely, trying to block the corrosion of that divine power. If he didn��t do so, he would be in a dire situation where he would lose his combat effectiveness and be killed in a most miserable fashion.


    Before the battle, Dou Zhao was pretty confident that he would be invincible no matter who he fought. However, at this moment, not long after the battle started, he encountered trouble already. He realized that the power he met in the Human Realm was like nothing he had faced before. This was an invasion of this side of the world, and the invading side also had many top figures.


    Boom! The golden long stick in Dou Zhao��s hand exploded with astonishing divine power, with a blinding imperial glory blooming. The Will of the Fighting God resonated with it, madly urging its power. The divine stick slammed out and swept across an entire corner of the sky.


    But even as the long stick blasted out, those destructive chains of thunder were still locked onto him and his long stick, weakening its power. Beams of thunder slammed down, hitting that golden long stick, blocking its power, and pinning Dou Zhou where he was, completely restricting his ability to fight back.


    At this time, a dull sound came out, faintly accompanied by the sound of dragon chiming, resounding throughout the void. Long Chen was now on the move. He brought the power of the dragon god with him as he unleashed the golden dragon fist. The fist will turned into purple golden dragons that emerged with angry howls. They attacked the cultivators bathed in the thunder, trying to give Dou Zhao a chance to free himself.


    Those cultivators glanced at Long Chen, and immediately, countless lightning bolts slammed down on those purple golden dragons, entangling them, thus weakening the dragons�� power considerably. Their divine power was directly affected, and this even cut the divine power of the others.


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    Buzz! The moment they attacked Long Chen, golden lightning flashed across so fast that they couldn��t be sure what it was. Those chains of thunder that lashed out violently could not catch up with their target. Soon after, a golden divine light struck out, splitting the thunder into two.


    But that golden lightning was wings of feather from the divine wings of the golden-winged Roc. It was Jun who attacked, killing one person with one blow. He had cut off the head of some cultivator.


    His speed was already faster than thunder and lightning, and he had beheaded his opponent under the opponent��s thunderous attack.


    Jun��s body was suspended in the void, and the wings behind him bloomed with imperial glory as if they were cast by divine arms. Every feather was like an extremely sharp divine weapon, and their emergence sobered up the other cultivators immediately.


    Bang! Another dull sound came out, and the figure of the Divine Elephant appeared above them. As soon as it stepped into the void, an incomparably terrifying divine power suddenly came down to suppress this corner of the sky.


    ��Kill!�� Dou Zhao roared as he broke free. The long stick in his hand slammed upward against the momentum. At the same time, Long Chen blasted out the Dragon God Fist, which was domineering and powerful. As Jun��s body sailed across the void and turned into lightning, the Divine Elephant stepped into the void to suppress that corner of the sky and launched its attack as well.


    All of them bloomed with their own incomparably terrifying divine powers, and each one of them was a near-deity existence.


    Ye Futian knew that no matter how powerful these six major legions were, they were too few in number, especially lacking in advanced combat power at the top. Therefore, in the days before the Human Realm was about to launch their official invasion, he had deliberately given special training to these six major legions. Core members, such as the cultivators who had followed him from the Heavenly Mandate Realm, were directly baptized by the divine power of the Micro Heavenly Path.


    Even before that, Ye Futian had helped them reshape their talents, using the divine power to wash their bodies and spiritual souls. The paths they were cultivating now were not the path of the outside world but the path that belonged to Ye Futian alone.


    They were like the Eight Legions under the throne of the Heavenly Path. Ye Futian represented the Heavenly Path of the small world, and they were its direct descendants.


    Therefore, the combat power of this group of people was awesome, and this was their only advantage. The direct baptism of the Divine Power of Law endowed these top cultivators with massive combat effectiveness. To a certain extent, although the number of the army from the Heaven Realm was far less than their opponent, this batch of top figures was not any less excellent compared to the other side.


    On this battlefield, they quickly gained the upper hand, suppressing their opponents. Even though some more cultivators from the other side came as reinforcement, Jun and the others worked in tandem and soon immolated all the cultivators here.


    But even so, looking at the entire battlefield at a glance, they were still being outnumbered by the invading army of the Human Realm.


    There were simply too many people, and there was a huge gap between the numbers of cultivators involved. The Human Ancestor launched the power of the Human Realm to invade, and cultivators continued to emerge wave after wave. Then they pressed onward to Heavenly Imperial City, attacking different locations inside the city. Blood spilled wherever they passed and slaughtered; the sight was extremely horrific to behold.


    There was a sacred figure clad in a white dress on the battlefield. She was like a tree of life as countless branches and leaves spread out from her body. She possessed an extremely powerful life force. Whenever someone was injured, the divine power of life would pour into the wounded and restore their vitality. Thus, lives were revived, and flesh grew over the bones. As long as they were not injured by the same or an even more powerful divine power, they could be rescued and restored to health if they did not die.


    This was the magnificence of the divine power of life.


    This woman in white was Xia Qingyuan. She moved through the battlefield, constantly saving and resuscitating injured cultivators, but it was useless. With just her alone, it seemed that whatever she was doing was only a drop in the bucket. Moreover, in most cases, those cultivators were being killed outright, so there was no chance of rescuing them.


    Blood gradually stained her clothes. Xia Qingyuan, who was traveling through the battlefield, felt the fragility of life, and there was a deep sadness in her heart.


    She was also the Princess of Emperor Xia��s Realm, and she had experienced her share of battles. However, this was the first time she experienced a war of such brutality. It was a battle between millions of cultivators who slaughtered one another in frenzied fights. The scene was simply too terrifying.


    Buzz! The golden spear pierced through the void and attacked Xia Qingyuan. Someone noticed Xia Qingyuan, who kept resuscitating the injured and restoring their combat effectiveness instantly.


    Of course, such a person must be killed!

 Chapter 2935 - One Mans Bloody War of Choice

    Bang! The golden spear came crashing down. But before it hit Xia Qingyuan, it shattered and pulverized. It was smashed by a long rod surrounded by divine flames.


    Not far above Xia Qingyuan, a ferocious and domineering demon was standing there; it was Zhu Yan the Beast, who had once fought against Ye Futian. Behind him stood the principality of the demon ape clan from the Heavenly Mandate Realm. They spread out and formed a line of defense as a ferocious aura erupted from them. They held long rods in their hands. They were standing in battle formation as if they were guarding and ensuring Xia Qingyuan��s safety.


    Above the firmament, a group of cultivators dressed in blue was surrounded by golden radiance as they descended from the sky, looking extremely keen. These were the cultivators from the Human Divine Palace. Like golden gods of war, they carried absolute dominance.


    The golden rays of light sprinkled down as those sharp divine arms came down for the kill, cutting through the void.


    Zhu Yan the Beast and other demonic cultivators resonated with the energy. He held the long rod and launched it high into the sky, which contained a supreme power. It shattered the void and blocked that group of incoming cultivators. Xia Qingyuan glanced at the battlefield, her robe fluttered. She continued with her task, rushing in another direction as the divine power of life enveloped the boundless space, continuing to heal the wounded.


    Buzz! Another spatial divine light pierced through the void; it was aimed at Xia Qingyuan. Although Zhu Yan and other great demons had blocked one group of attackers, many had taken notice of Xia Qingyuan by now and wanted to kill her. Quite a few top figures were trying to get to her themselves.


    The spatial divine light directly penetrated the void and pierced through the bodies of several cultivators; however, it continued moving forward, and its aim never veered from Xia Qingyuan.


    However, almost at the same moment, a terrifying gigantic palm print blasted down and collided with the divine light in the void. Suddenly, a violent sound came from the space, which could be heard clearly in the surrounding areas.


    An extremely tyrannical aura permeated, and another group of cultivators appeared behind Xia Qingyuan. These cultivators turned into a battle matrix and moved forward. Until now, they had not made a move; it seemed that their job was to solely protect Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan was a little surprised by this as well. She turned around to look and recognized the people protecting her from behind; they were the cultivators from the Lost Clan.


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    The cultivators of the Lost Clan had been included in the Great Army of Heavenly Mandate. This force was capable of competing with the forces from all sides in the past, and after Ye Futian��s training, their strength had been further improved. Furthermore, they had gone through the test of battles and had been on the edge of death many times over before they were able to return to the land of the Original Realm. Their resilience was tried and true.


    And such a force was protecting her.


    Xia Qingyuan suddenly found that a complex emotion filled her heart. Of course, she knew who had arranged all this. Who else could have commanded such a mighty force?


    In a major battle like this, everyone was standing in the middle of life and death, and no one had absolute certainty of their survival. On the raging battlefield, there was such a powerful force like this protecting her. Could this be a way of gauging her importance in his heart?


    Or maybe because he felt that he owed her?


    ��Everyone, don��t worry about me; this is a waste of your combat power,�� Xia Qingyuan turned around and said to the cultivators of the Lost Clan. Being a top cultivator herself with strong combat effectiveness, a mighty team such as the Lost Clan should not be wasted guarding her.


    ��Princess Xia has powerful healing ability and plays a great role on the battlefield. Of course, we must ensure the Princess�� safety,�� an elder from the Lost Clan replied. ��Princess, just focus on doing what you do best; don��t pay any attention to us.��


    This kind of explanation somehow seemed to make sense.


    However, the situation on Xia Qingyuan��s side seemed to have attracted the attention of many people. In the sky above the battlefield, a group of cultivators from the divine palace were watching Xia Qingyuan closely. They realized that Xia Qingyuan seemed to be the only one on the battlefield who enjoyed some security while no one else enjoyed the same kind of privilege.


    More importantly, she was an expert at the divine power of life and possessed a very powerful ability to heal.


    ��Kill her!��


    Above the firmament, a dull sound rang out, resounding throughout the battlefield. Suddenly many cultivators looked in Xia Qingyuan��s direction. For a time, mighty cultivators swarmed in Xia Qingyuan��s direction, turning into a fearsome army.


    The Great Army of Heaven Court and the Great Army of Heavenly Mandate also noticed this movement, as they focused their attention on Xia Qingyuan��s direction as well. Many cultivators were turning to Xia Qingyuan as the new target, especially those cultivators from the Heavenly Mandate Army. They all knew that Ye Futian had a special relationship with Xia Qingyuan.


    Once upon a time, Ye Futian had first emerged out of Emperor Xia��s Realm and was cared for by Emperor Xia and Xia Qingyuan. The two of them spent a lot of time together, and many people thought they were a couple.


    Blinding and dazzling divine lights pierced through the battlefield, and they turned out to be a series of arrows. Huang Jiuge had led a group of cultivators to cover the sky with arrows. These divine arrows traversed heaven and earth continuously and took out many cultivators instantaneously.


    Those cultivators above the firmament turned into balls of fire and fell from the sky. The sight was astoundingly tragic.


    However, this turn of events further accentuated the importance of Xia Qingyuan. Cultivators from the Human Divine Palace converged in this direction. They were all determined to take Xia Qingyuan down and kill her.


    In a moment, a vast battlefield quickly formed around Xia Qingyuan, and this battlefield was full of destructive storms.


    Above the sky, some divine swords penetrated heaven and earth, turning into a beam of infinite proportion, piercing the sky from top to bottom. The sound of destruction was heard without ceasing, and the cultivators from the Heaven Realm were directly penetrated by the swords and died instantly.


    These terrifying divine swords dominated the fate of all beings in this world, passing through many obstacles and aiming directly at Xia Qingyuan.


    At this time, a full moon appeared, and the moonlight sprinkled down on those divine swords. These divine swords seemed to be sealed in ice as their speed suddenly slowed down. But more than that, many cultivators above the firmament felt an extreme chill; it was the divine power of Yin that had frozen the world. Time and space seemed to stand still under the power of Yin, and those who did not comprehend this divine power were trapped in its power.


    Buzz! The divine arrows bloomed in the sky, piercing the void. Incomparably radiant divine flames bloomed above the void. The radiant arrows shot by Huang Jiuge directly pierced through many cultivators. It seemed as if they had combined the power of the Solar and the Yin. Although this divine power was not the divine power of Solar, it was not too far behind.


    In a brief instant, more than a thousand cultivators fell from the void; it was a most horrific and petrifying sight.


    Bang! A terrifying divine power erupted as the cultivators from the Human Divine Palace looked down at the area below. They saw a very beautiful woman who was the embodiment of feminine beauty. Like a goddess in the darkest night, the divine power of Yin bloomed from her. In an instant, she had frozen the space, forcing the space to come to a standstill.


    This was the goddess of Youyue Divine Palace from the Shadow Realm who had realized the divine power of Yin with the help of Ye Futian. She now unleashed the brilliance of the moon, which transformed into the power of Yin to assist the fight by freezing the space!

 Chapter 2936 - Darkness and Light

    Fierce battles broke out all around Xia Qingyuan as many top figures from the Human Divine Palace had gone over there to attack. Even the army from the Heavenly Court had headed that way to render their support.


    For a time, people continued to perish in the area around Xia Qingyuan.


    Xia Qingyuan was in the middle of the battlefield, and many people were guarding her. Her most direct guardians were the army of the Lost Clan. They guarded the outer circle and did not allow any attackers to get close to her. However, when she saw that the people protecting her kept on dying without her even having a chance of saving them, Xia Qingyuan just felt a sense of sadness in her heart.


    She chose not to pursue the Imperial Realm because she wanted to save more people, but it did not go as she had imagined. Instead, it was because of her that more deaths had occurred.


    A look of sadness flashed across her eyes, and suddenly the polarities of life and death began revolving around her body, alternating with one another.


    An iciness now bloomed from her beautiful eyes as endless marks surged around her, all of which were the marks transformed by the power of life and death. As soon as she moved, Xia Qingyuan rushed out of the battlefield, no longer amid the crowd that was meant to protect her. She was also a top cultivator who had the opportunity to step onto the Path of the Great Emperors. If not for this battle, she would have continued her pursuit of the Imperial Realm.


    ��Kill!�� When they saw Xia Qingyuan rush out on her own, many cultivators around came from all directions to encircle her.


    But they saw Xia Qingyuan merely cast a glance at the as countless lights of catastrophe seemed to erupt at the same time, turning into marks of death.


    Pah, pah, pah�� Sounds of bloodshed were heard continuously. As soon as the marks of death hit their bodies, they would worm into the bodies, turning all traces of life into death in an instant. Death was all but inevitable, as it turned their bodies into pitch-black masses that fell from the sky.


    In a very brief moment, many cultivators fell from the sky as if the god of death had descended upon them. Those cultivators who were behind fighting forward had to stop involuntarily after witnessing the shocking sight in front of them. There was a deep fear in their eyes as they fixed their gazes on Xia Qingyuan.


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    Previously, Xia Qingyuan was a savior, but now she had become a murderer with completely different prowess.


    But Xia Qingyuan did not care about the thoughts that ran through their little heads. Her body turned into a bolt of lightning as she smashed into the midst of the cultivators from the Human Realm. She was surrounded by endless lights of catastrophe, and those lights were like sword marks that carried a terrifying breath of death, which seemed to inflict immediate death as soon as they touched anyone.


    ��Watch for those marks around her!�� someone in the Human Realm cautioned the others gravely. Xia Qingyuan��s marks were the marks of the god of death. Anyone unlucky enough to be touched by them would be killed right away, as their life force was being swallowed up in an instant. As soon as they were buried by that will of death, they were already dead men. Those cultivators who had not comprehended divine powers had no way of stopping it. As soon as they were touched, they would die without a doubt.


    In the distance, Ye Futian was calmly observing everything that happened on the battlefield. All the battles were imprinted in his mind, including the battle in which Xia Qingyuan was engaged. And that was just the tip of the iceberg.


    From that spatial passageway, the cultivators from the Human Realm poured into this world continuously and without ceasing. They were everywhere in the Heavenly Imperial City and carved a path all the way to the outside of the city.


    The cultivators from the Human Realm seemed to be deeply affected by the Human Ancestor. All of them displayed a strong murderous intent, wanting to destroy the Heaven Realm and unify the Nine States.


    ��Why don��t you go back to cultivate? I��ll keep an eye over here.�� A soft and gentle voice spoke up next to Ye Futian. It was Hua Jieyu, who was standing next to him.


    ��Very well.�� Ye Futian nodded in agreement. And with a thought, an avatar suddenly appeared. His person left and departed to the small world. This avatar of his could spy on the outside world, and if anything happened, he would know right away.


    ��


    The war broke out and swept through the lands of the seven realms. Countless cultivators were sucked into this significant battle involving the seven realms, and no one could escape.


    The Great Army of the Devil World began to engage the Great Army of the Divine Prefecture in an all-out war. The Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm armies were also involved in a full-scale war with the World of Buddhism.


    On the mainland of the Dark World, a barefoot monk was walking on the River Styx, walking forward, step by step.


    At the moment, this Dark World seemed relatively peaceful by comparison. On the contrary, the Seven Realms were now transformed into hell.


    This monk��s appearance was dignified and solemn, incomparably sacred. The Light of Buddha lingered around his body.


    He walked along the River Styx and, moving forward steadily, came to an island. The island was tranquil as if it was unaware of what was happening in the outside world. The monk stepped onto the island with bare feet; this was the island of light in the Dark World.


    There was no strife and no hatred here.


    Ye Futian had come here once. The monk saw the Virgin who resided on the island. She was teaching the children quietly as always as if the disputes on the outside world had nothing to do with her.


    The children were a little curious when they saw a strange monk here and could not help but look at the monk. The monk smiled at them and watched the woman quietly.


    ��What business does the master have here?�� the woman finally asked the monk, unable to hold back any longer.


    ��You should know me.�� The monk saluted, his hands clasped together.


    ��Surely the Master jests. We have never met before. How could I know you?�� the woman responded calmly.


    ��Amitabha.�� The monk put his hands together and said to the woman, ��You desired a Pure Land with absolute light, but where there are people, it is doomed to rife with disputes. Even Buddhist holy lands cannot be spared, so how can there be such a thing as an absolute Pure Land?��


    ��This here is the Pure Land,�� said the woman.


    ��No need to deceive yourself,�� said the monk, as he waved his hands. Suddenly imageries appeared upon the lake. These imageries were of wars on the lands of the seven realms. There was destruction everywhere, countless people perishing.


    ��Destruction will only bring darkness, not light,�� the monk continued. ��Is the current situation really the result that you wanted?��


    ��Master has mistaken me for someone else. �� There was a sign of disturbance in the woman��s eyes when she saw those images.


    ��I can see your fate,�� the monk said suddenly. The woman was stunned by his claim; then, she looked at the monk curiously. ��Tell me.��


    ��Death is salvation,�� the monk replied.


    ��Salvation?�� The woman looked at the monk and continued, ��I don��t need salvation. The Master best go elsewhere.��


    ��Amitabha.�� The monk folded his hands together and said to the woman, ��Even as the master of darkness, there is still light in your heart. There is no absolute darkness nor absolute light in this world. No matter the destructions or how it is reborn, the world is still the same, and only the law can change the world, not destruction and death.��


    The woman��s eyes sharpened as she stared at the monk and said, ��Can Omniscient really see the future?��


    At this moment, her temperament suddenly became majestic; it contained an incomparably mighty solemnity.


    The monk in front of her was none other than the Buddha of Destiny.


    ��The Great Paths are connected, and there is not much difference as they exist in the world,�� said the Buddha of Destiny. ��If you want to find the person who led you into darkness, the answer lies in the Human Realm.��

 Chapter 2937 - The Horror of the Human Ancestor

    In the Dark World was a passageway that connected to the Human Realm.


    The Human Realm was known as the most perfect realm after the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Under the governance of the Human Ancestor, the Human Realm had been peaceful and stable, and its cultivators, likewise, were strong in strength.


    But now, cultivators from the Human Realm had flooded into the Heaven Realm and launched a war of invasion.


    At this time, in a city in the Human Realm, a beautiful woman appeared. This woman was dressed in white and looked pristine from head to toe. It was the woman from the Dark World.


    The words of the Buddha of Destiny had touched upon the answer she had always wanted to know; therefore, she came to the Human Realm.


    As soon as her thoughts moved, countless imageries from the city below came rushing into her mind. The Human Realm instigated the invasion of the Heaven Realm and ignited the fire of war in the Heaven Realm. However, this city inside the Human Realm was peaceful and quiet, forming a stark contrast with the chaos outside.


    Inside a particular clan, a few people were talking. A young woman asked, ��Master, how is the war outside progressing? Have we taken the Heaven Realm and the Divine Prefecture?��


    ��The Human Ancestor led the powers of the entire Human Realm to launch the battle of the seven realms. How could he fail? Victory is the only outcome for this war,�� her master responded with strong conviction in his voice. It sounded like whatever the Human Ancestor intended to do would indeed become a reality.


    ��Mmm.�� The young woman nodded slightly, but then she seemed to have remembered something, as she continued, ��It��s just that in this unprecedented warfare, which the Human Realm started, won��t there be a lot of cultivators who perish because of it? And will there be a lot of innocent lives lost in the Heaven Realm and the Divine Prefecture because of it?��


    ��Silly girl,�� her master laughed in a low voice, ��the Human Ancestor fought for the justice of the world, and naturally, there will be collateral damage. As long as the Heaven Realm and the Divine Prefecture are taken, the seven realms will be united, and the world will thrive under the established order by the Human Ancestor. Then they will all thank the Human Ancestor, who will lead the world to the glory of yore. This is the Great Path.��


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    The woman nodded lightly as if she was suddenly enlightened. She said with a smile, ��The Human Ancestor fought to save all living beings in the seven realms. When the seven realms are unified, everyone in the world will believe in the Human Ancestor. Unfortunately, my cultivation is still not advanced enough, or else I will also join the battle and go to the Heaven Realm to fight.��


    Just as they were talking amongst themselves, suddenly another person appeared next to them. The two of them were startled as they fixed their attention on the woman who appeared out of nowhere.


    They saw the woman frown slightly, a puzzled look on her face as she focused her attention on this teacher and student duo who were talking to each other.


    ��Heaven and the Divine Prefecture each have its own established order already, especially the Divine Prefecture. Under the governance of Donghuang the Great, the Divine Prefecture is peaceful and prosperous, a place where many in the world had gone to seek the way and cultivate. Why do they need to be saved?�� The woman from the Light Path looked at the two. She continued, ��They already have their own orders. The invasion of the Human Realm has devastated the lives of many; how can this constitute justice?��


    ��Who are you?�� The elder did not answer her question right away but stared at the woman with heightened alert as he posed the question.


    ��Answer my question,�� the woman said coldly as invisible coercion enveloped the other two, making them both feel a suffocating feeling. The young woman responded, ��Ye Futian of the Heaven Realm and Donghuang the Great of the Divine Prefecture were weaving a conspiracy, and it will probably put the world in jeopardy. The Human Ancestor took charge to deal out justice and restore the order of the world. Naturally, this is the justice of the world.��


    When she heard this answer, the woman in white felt a little bewildered. The other was not at a tender age of ignorance, and she was no beginner in cultivation. Yet, how could she say such unreasonable things?


    ��So the Human Ancestor must be in the right?�� she asked.


    ��The Human Ancestor is in the right,�� the woman responded.


    ��Are you disrespecting the Human Ancestor?�� The old man��s eyes sharpened. Seeing the reaction of these two, the woman disappeared immediately and left as if she knew that it was useless to talk anymore with them. They were deeply entrenched in their belief, and it was impossible to persuade them otherwise.


    Somewhere else, in a major clan in the city, many cultivators were participating in a ritual.


    Their clan leader had died in the battle of the Heaven Realm.


    The whole clan was grieving.


    ��Our clan leader answered the call of the Human Ancestor to fight for the order of the world, the unification of the seven realms, and for justice. Although he is no more, his spirit will live on forever.�� This solemn pronouncement resounded throughout the crowd. Everyone looked on gravely and knelt to pay their final respect to the dead.


    They were the descendants of the ones who died in battle.


    But they felt honored; it was as if they were proud of those who died fighting for such causes.


    ��I want to go to the Heaven Realm to fight in the war as well,�� someone said, and everyone else looked at the speaker. A man asked, ��Your cultivation is not yet up to par. Don��t you want to cultivate for a while longer before you go?��


    ��I don��t want to miss it, and I��m afraid such an opportunity will not be there in the future,�� the man replied, with a slight fanaticism in his voice.


    All these imageries were deeply imprinted in the woman��s mind. Her divine consciousness covered the entire city, and she found that similar sights were happening everywhere. Some were even more outlandish than this.


    Cultivators of the Human Realm had this deep-rooted belief that this was a fight for the justice of the world and to restore the order of the world. The Human Ancestor was their absolute belief, which could not be shaken. Even if their loved ones died in the battle, their hatred was targeted squarely at the Heaven Realm, and they did not feel much sadness.


    The woman��s face changed, and the calmness and tranquility she had moments ago were gone. At this moment, countless images appeared in her mind, and the past came alive vividly before her eyes.


    She remembered that in her cultivation journey, she, too, had gone astray and sunken into darkness when she was young. She had forsaken everything and was trapped in demonic barriers. In the name of cultivation, she lost her humanity. She would never forget the expressions on the faces of her parents when they perished at her hands.


    However, she seemed to be possessed at that time, continuing her walk deeper on the road of darkness and turning into the devil herself. She had seen all the darkness in the world and experienced hell on earth.


    Until one day, she became the Master of Darkness.


    All those things in the Human Realm now had a familiar feel, but even she knew that these cultivators were not under direct control.


    She disappeared, and she embarked to other places in the Human Realm. She found that it was the same everywhere. She had even seen something more exaggerated, like those cultivators from the Human Realm who believed in justice. They regarded invasion and killing as the right thing to do and as their life��s mission.


    ��Human Ancestor!��


    At this time, the woman stood in the void, and she could only feel a biting iciness all over her body. In those quiet eyes, there was only darkness at this moment and an extremely palpable murderous intent.


    She had never liked the Human Ancestor. She thought that the Human Ancestor was hypocritical and pretended to be virtuous. From the Human Ancestor, she could see the shadow of her own Master.


    At this moment, she had a feeling that she might be right and that it was not the shadow of her Master.


    It was possible that Human Ancestor could be her Master.


    The cultivator who brought him into the darkness was very likely the incarnation of the Human Ancestor.


    And only the Human Ancestor had such abilities.


    Crack! With her fists clenched, a frantic will of destruction was about to burst from her, but it was suppressed by her. It was an unforgettable hatred that she was feeling right now.


    The Human Ancestor was able to influence the thoughts and emotions of all the cultivators in the entire Human Realm. He had already advanced to such a terrifying place that the entire Human Realm completely belonged to him!

 Chapter 2938 - The World of the Gods

    Inside the Human Divine Palace, there was peace at the moment. There were no conflicts or disputes. Everything appeared like a place out of this world that was exceptionally tranquility.


    In front of a palace, the Human Ancestor was chatting with a child. The scene was peaceful, in stark contrast to the war currently taking place in the seven realms.


    At this time, a strong fluctuation came from the sky. The Human Ancestor raised his head to look up before seeing a divine light descended upon the Human Divine Palace, and someone landed directly in front of him.


    Immediately, the Human Ancestor stepped aside and bowed in reverence.


    A handsome and extraordinary young man appeared where the divine light fell. His body gradually solidified, and he emerged from that elusive shadow. It seemed as if he was not made of flesh and blood at all.


    The child looked at the young man curiously and seemed a little puzzled by him. He looked at the Human Ancestor and wondered why he was so respectful to this young man. Wasn��t the Human Ancestor the master of the Human Realm?


    ��Master,�� the Human Ancestor bowed and called out, behaving extremely respectfully. It appeared as if the young man was the true master behind the scenes in the Human Realm.


    ��Sir, who are you?�� the child looked at the young man and asked.


    The young man��s body gradually materialized, and he looked at the child with a gentle smile. He said, ��I am the Human Ancestor.��


    ��Human Ancestor!�� The child looked at him, then at the other Human Ancestor next to him, asking doubtfully, ��Then who is he?��


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    ��He is also the Human Ancestor,�� the young man responded, ��The Human Ancestor is not just one person��there are many Human Ancestors. It is because of this that we are considered the ancestors of mankind.��


    The child scratched his head, still puzzled. He had no idea what the young man was talking about.


    The young man walked up to the child and rubbed his head. He stooped down and said with a smile, ��When I was younger, I was just like you, an ordinary person who suffered my share of bullying. That was the era when divine power ruled, when the gods controlled the order of the world. Mortals were like insects, and they could only look up to the gods.


    ��In the Age of the Gods, the gods held supreme power. When the gods fought, even the heavens were shattered, and many died. My parents, wife, and children were among the unfortunate who died, but even as they died, they did not get so much as a look of sympathy because the gods cared not for the deaths of mortals. In front of the gods, mortals are nothing but ants on the ground. No one would apologize to ants, nor would they have to pay for what they did to the ants. But fortunately, the gods died when the apocalyptic catastrophe destroyed all the gods. It was possible even for the gods who were high above to die.


    ��It was an era full of fear and hatred. It was the worst of eras, but it was also the best. When all the gods fell, everything in the world would be remade. Without the gods, mortals become the focus of the world.��


    The young man spoke calmly as if he was telling a story from the ancient past.


    ��Gods are nothing; they are just mortals who control powerful forces. They can die, and they have emotions just like everyone else. They think like mortals, so mortals are gods, and everyone can become a god.��


    ��Will I be able to do that too?�� the child asked innocently, looking at the young man with some longing in his eyes.


    ��Of course,�� the young man nodded. ��God and man, the divine and the mortals are one and the same.��


    Having said that, he stretched out his hand with a drop of water in his palm and asked, ��What is this?��


    ��A drop of water,�� the child replied.


    The water droplet floated into the air, and in that tiny water droplet, a terrifying force was being born, and the water droplet began to spin. It then flew through the air, and a building in the distance instantly collapsed and shattered, turning into a pile of dust.


    ��Behold, even a drop of water can have incredible power, but its essence is still of water.�� The young man looked at the child and continued, ��It��s the same with people. There is no essential difference between mortals and gods, as they are the same. Do you understand?��


    The child shook his head.


    The young man smiled as he rubbed the child��s head again. He stood up and continued, ��It��s all right if you don��t understand. Everyone in the world is stupid and ignorant because they are controlled by their emotions and desires and can never escape from their grip. This is the reason why this world needs to be remade. ��


    ��But how?�� The child asked curiously while his eyes were still fastened on the young man. His eyes were innocent.


    The young man looked down at him with a smile, ��Create a world of the gods.��


    ��The world of the gods,�� the child murmured; what kind of a world is the world of the gods?


    But in the next moment, he stopped thinking. The young man��s body turned into an intense light and shot directly into his body. The child��s eyes revealed a pained look, and his face twisted. He looked at the elusive figure in front of him and opened his mouth as if shouting something out. There was despair and fear in his eyes as tears flooded out from them. He reached out his trembling hands, trying to grab something, but ultimately, he was unable to.


    Soon, the divine light submerged his body, and the look in the child��s eyes changed. It was freezing, with a sense of contempt that disregarded everything as if there was no emotion.


    Afterward, he flexed his arm a bit, looked at it, and appeared satisfied.


    ��It��s all right,�� he said in a low voice.


    ��Congratulations, Master,�� said the Human Ancestor next to him.


    ��I��m the same as you,�� said the child. Immediately the Human Ancestor understood what he meant and nodded.


    ��


    The Human Divine Palace was peaceful and harmonious at the moment, but the war that raged in the seven realms was becoming more fierce. This war had swept through the seven realms at an incredible speed. At this time, there was still a steady stream of cultivators who traveled across domains to participate in the war.


    In the Western World of Buddhism, the battles were incredibly fierce. The combined forces of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm swept through the Buddhist world. These battles were extremely costly and stained the Buddhist Pure Land with blood. The sound of chanting Buddhist scriptures could be heard everywhere on the land as if they were trying to redeem the dead.


    However, just when the war had reached a crescendo, a shocking turn of events occurred. The army of the Dark World that invaded the Buddhist world suddenly stopped fighting against Buddhist cultivators. They now turned their attention to the cultivators of the Empty Divine Realm, and the sudden slaughter caught these cultivators off guard; they had no chance to react to what was happening to them.


    Even the cultivators from the Buddhist world were completely stunned and did not understand what was happening. Why would the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm suddenly turn on one another and start infighting?


    The Buddhist cultivators couldn��t react for a while. They were content to stand on the sidelines, letting the others fight amongst themselves.


    It didn��t take long for the battlefield in the Western World of Buddhism to undergo earth-shattering changes. Due to the internal war between the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm, Buddhist cultivators began the sweep to cut down the power of these two worlds, so the war now turned into a chaotic three-way battle.


    However, in the main battlefield of Buddhism, the Western World of Buddhism still held the absolute advantage, causing the cultivators of the other two worlds to suffer steady defeats and be forced into retreat. There was no doubt that if things continued this way, the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm would eventually be beaten off of the battlefield entirely.


    Because of this, the Evil Emperor himself went to the Dark Divine Mountain!

 Chapter 2939 - Madness

    The Evil Emperor came to the Dark Court to see the Dark Sovereign.


    ��Why betray me?�� the Evil Emperor asked the Dark Sovereign unceremoniously.


    ��Evil Emperor, do you know the truth about the Human Ancestor?�� asked the Dark Sovereign.


    ��That��s not important.�� The Evil Emperor brushed the question aside nonchalantly.


    ��No, it is essential.�� The Dark Sovereign looked at the Evil Emperor as she took off her mask, revealing an indifferent face. The Evil Emperor did not seem surprised, as his expression remained as it was before.


    ��Do you know how I became the Lord of Darkness?�� The Dark Sovereign looked at the Evil Emperor and continued, ��Once, I was just like so many others��simple-minded and ordinary. Until one person appeared and everything changed. He taught me cultivation and led me on the path of darkness. He let me experience the cruelest and darkest side of this world, so step by step, I came to be the master of the Dark World today.��


    ��Because of this, you think the whole world is dark, and you wanted nothing but destruction,�� said the Evil Emperor.


    ��Yes,�� the Dark Sovereign nodded. ��In this turbid dark world, the dawn will only appear after destruction.��


    ��Understandable,�� the Evil Emperor nodded. ��The dragon slayer will eventually become the evil dragon. Perhaps the teacher who taught you was the same. He has also experienced darkness, tried to change the world, and led you to darkness.��


    ��Very possibly, he is the Human Ancestor,�� the Dark Sovereign said to the Evil Emperor. The Evil Emperor was silent for a moment when he heard those words but then said, ��Everything in the world will eventually settle and cannot be changed. Now, he also seems to have realized your wish, which is to bring darkness to the world.��


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    ��No, that is not what I want.��


    ��What is it that you want, then?�� the Evil Emperor asked her. The Dark Sovereign was stunned by this question. What was it that she wanted?


    Before, her goal was always clear and firm��shroud the earth with darkness.


    But now, why was she unsure?


    ��You want revenge?�� the Evil Emperor looked at her. ��Because you discovered the truth, the belief that you held for so long began to wobble. At this time, even you have no idea what you want to do. If you continue with your previous goal, then, in a way, you have complied with the wishes of your enemy, so you are uncertain now; you are struggling inside.��


    The Dark Sovereign looked at the Evil Emperor in the eyes, and those evil eyes seemed to see through the truth. She nodded and said, ��Yes.��


    Indeed, she was struggling.


    ��Too late,�� the Evil Emperor looked at the Dark Sovereign and said. ��Everything has settled, and everything in the world has been predetermined. Since it can��t be changed, why not go along with it?��


    ��Is this still the evil lord of the Empty Divine Realm?�� the Dark Sovereign looked at the Evil Emperor and asked.


    ��And you? Are you still the lord of darkness who wants to destroy the world?�� the Evil Emperor responded. The two stared at each other as invisible coercion enveloped the world. All the cultivators of the entire Dark Court could feel that suffocating pressure.


    ��In the era when the Heavenly Path collapsed, the gods fell, as well as so many people in the world. Now, the era seems to be repeating itself, and no one can predict what will happen in the future; however, whether it is the cultivator of the Dark World or the Empty Divine Realm. Whether it is you or me, we all have the right to live,�� the Evil Emperor continued while fixing his attention on the Dark Sovereign.


    His idea was simple enough. He wanted to live and continue to carry on in this dangerous era. He also hoped to see more of Empty Divine Realm��s cultivators survive. The balance had been broken, and war was unavoidable, so he must follow the trend of things as they were.


    Only by surviving could he have the chance to get to a higher level until he was strong enough to pose a threat to the Human Ancestor.


    But for now, he had no way of fighting back.


    As one of the six emperors in the world, he was a cultivator standing at the top, but even he had to face reality. When the gods returned and descended, he knew that the era of the six emperors was history.


    ��So?�� the Dark Sovereign asked as she looked at the Evil Emperor.


    ��Your order caused the Empty Divine Realm to lose more cultivators, and I won��t risk anyone else in today��s battle,�� the Evil Emperor said. He disappeared from where he was.


    The Dark Sovereign glanced upward, then stepped out and headed towards the void.


    After a while, heaven and earth roared in the sky above the Dark Court, and the void seemed to be broken. A terrifying divine power made the hell in the Dark World tremble and the sea of the underworld scream.


    ��


    In the Human Realm, on all the continents, countless cultivators raised their heads.


    Above the firmament, they saw a gigantic face, and it was the face of the Human Ancestor.


    ��Your Majesty, the Human Ancestor.�� Countless cultivators bowed and saluted him, displaying a fervent fanaticism.


    The face of the Human Ancestor looked at the people of the world and said, ��I��ve been waiting for this day for a very long time, but others stopped me. Now, I��m finally back. Before this, the people of the Human Realm have already gone to the seven realms, leading the fight for justice, fighting for the unification of the seven realms. Now, it is your turn.��


    When his words fell, divine light descended from the firmament, and countless divine lights fell on the people. At this moment, all the cultivators in the Human Realm were bathed in that divine light, and their eyes became even more frenzied, with an indescribable and utmost reverence.


    More importantly, they also felt the power, which seemed to augment the capabilities they had already possessed. The divine light that descended strengthened them.


    ��This will be a new era, the era of the gods. After the unification of the seven realms, I will bless the world and let my people have the opportunity to become gods. At this moment, even as mortals, you shall stand shoulder to shoulder with the gods,�� the Human Ancestor continued. No one doubted his words at this moment, as they had a deep conviction of their belief. All of them were shouting and cheering.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Heaven and Earth trembled, and an even more terrifying divine power descended and fell on the people. Suddenly, they felt that they were the incarnation of gods. Just as the Human Ancestor told them, as mortals, they were standing shoulder to shoulder with the gods.


    Many spatial passageways appeared, leading to different places.


    ��Go forth! The seven realms and the original realm will be ours; this is the best of times.�� The Human Ancestor��s voice resounded throughout the world, full of fervent fanaticism. Countless cultivators in the Human Realm set off on their missions, traveling through the spatial passageways, and embarked to other worlds.


    In the Devil World, the Devil Emperor stood on the top of the Devil Imperial Palace, and his eyes seemed to have penetrated the void, seeing everything that was happening in the Human Realm.


    What he saw was so powerful and shocking that even the heart of the Devil Emperor trembled.


    ��This is madness!�� the Devil Emperor spat. The Human Ancestor had gained direct control of the people in the world. He was using these people to reshape the world order, let them rule the world so that the whole world would operate only by his will!


    In the land of the Divine Prefecture, in Donghuang Imperial Palace, Donghuang the Great also saw what was happening in the Human Realm, and he was equally shocked. He, too, exclaimed, ��The Human Ancestor has gone mad.��


    In the World of Buddhism, in the endless nothingness, a Sound of Buddha was heard. It was the voice of The Buddha.


    The Human Ancestor was no longer just trying to replace the Heavenly Path!

 Chapter 2940 - : The War Between the Gods Broke Out

    Ye Futian hovered in the void of the Heavenly Realm while watching the projections of the live happenings from all realms that appeared around him.


    The cultivators of the Human Realm unleashed their worldwide conquest and began to slaughter the people from other realms indiscriminately. Mountains of corpses could be seen everywhere��it was a living hell.


    The scariest part of it all would be the cultivators of the Human Realm who looked like they were possessed. None of them were in their right minds. It was as if they were born to kill. Moreover, their strength was greatly enhanced, making them an unstoppable bunch of mindless killing machines.


    ��Amitabha.�� The Buddha of Destiny, who stood beside Ye Futian, started reciting Buddhist Sutra. He put his hands together after witnessing the violent and gory scenes.


    ��Are you able to peer into the fate of our future?�� Ye Futian asked the Buddha of Destiny.


    ��Even I could not peep into your future destiny, Your Highness. There is no way to prevent this predestined fate from taking place. Furthermore, the elite cultivators in this world will have to go through great tribulation. Unfortunately, I cannot perceive what fate has in store for us beyond this point due to the limitation of my cultivation,�� the Buddha of Destiny put his palms together and answered. Although he could not look into Ye Futian��s destiny, he could tell that the latter would have to face an arduous ordeal.


    ��Is there no one that can stop the Human Ancestor?�� Ye Futian murmured. The Human Ancestor had been controlling the cultivators of the Human Realm to conquer the whole world. But, the former still could not figure out what was the ultimate goal of the latter.


    The Buddha of Destiny remained taciturn. The Human Ancestor was the most mysterious and powerful existence since the ancient days. Even though they could alter the flow of time, they still could not catch up to the tier of his cultivation and make up for the difference between their cultivation duration.


    Ye Futian enveloped the entire domain of the Heavenly Realm with his divine consciousness. Following that, he noticed many combatants in danger, and the two legions he had personally trained had lost many of their forces. Even Xia Qingyuan, Dou Zhao, and the rest were in dire situations. Although they were powerful cultivators, they began to show signs of fatigue after continuously fighting for days. There were constant reinforcements from the Human Realm, and none of them acted like themselves.


    This was never a fair battle from the start. The Human Ancestor had manipulated the war by controlling the minds of the cultivators of the Human Realm.


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    After watching the devastative scenes from the projections, Ye Futian knew that he could not allow things to go on like this. If he were to be led by the Human Ancestor��s pace, it would spell doom for the living beings in the world. It was something that they could never afford to see.


    Bang! Ye Futian manifested a terrifying God��s Might that covered the entire atmosphere of the Heavenly Realm with a thought. At once, everyone lifted their heads to look at the sky. The cultivators of the Human Realm furrowed their brows while the combatants of the Heavenly Realm, who looked exhausted and demoralized, felt a huge relief because their ruler��the Heavenly Emperor��began to interfere with the war.


    If the war continued any longer, all of them would be annihilated.


    ��Attention, you who have invaded the Heaven Realm! The Human Ancestor refined the Human Realm and controlled you to occupy the Heavenly Realm and massacre its people! But I hereby announce that there shall be no killing and battling in the Heavenly Realm from this moment onward! Everyone must obey the order for a ceasefire! Offenders will be subject to immediate execution!��


    Ye Futian��s voice resounded through the whole Heavenly Realm. Naturally, the cultivators of the Human Realm would never listen to his words, as they would only obey the will of the Human Ancestor to fight for the cause of their justice and unite the Seven Realms.


    From their point of view, Ye Futian had said that because he was afraid of losing. Now that he was on the losing end of the battle, the only way to turn the tide would be his intervention.


    ��Kill them!�� Some cultivators of the Human Realm in the Heavenly Imperial City paid no heed to Ye Futian��s warning and continued their killing spree. They could not think straight since they were controlled by their emotions. They were trapped in their obstinacy, while some even lost themselves to the Human Ancestor��s mind control.


    Boom! A Tribulation of Destruction rained from the sky while an overpowering God��s Might permeated the air. All those who came into contact with it were completely erased.


    In that instant, countless lights of catastrophe shot down from the sky and killed numerous cultivators of the Human Realm.


    ��Everyone, retreat from the battlefield at once!�� Ye Futian ordered. He was afraid that the cultivators of the Human Realm might take revenge on him since he had broken the unspoken rule of the cultivation world. Hence, he commanded the combatants of the Heavenly Realm to pull back.


    Rumble! An ominous sound could be heard reverberating in the air. The space passage that connected from the Human Realm enlarged even more. The border between the two realms seemed to have vanished. There would no longer be a distinction between the Heaven Realm and the Human Realm.


    A Destructive Divine Thunder��also called the Chaos True Thunder��was fired from the Human Realm to the Heavenly Realm at a scale that could exterminate every cultivator in that realm.


    At the same time, multiple silhouettes of the Gods showed up at the connecting point between the two realms, exuding a spine-chilling aura.


    Nevertheless, many figures of the Great Emperors appeared beside Ye Futian. It was the rivalry between the newly emerged Great Emperors of the Heavenly Realm and the old Gods from ancient times.


    ��Charge!��


    The people of the Human Realm gasped in astonishment. Instantaneously, the silhouettes of the Gods vanished from sight when they crossed over the Heaven Realm, appearing again at different locations in the next instant. Since Ye Futian had broken the unspoken rules, there would be no law and restriction anymore.


    What happened next would be a genocide.


    Figures of ancient Gods headed toward multiple points at high speed, turning into flashes of lightning as they moved.


    The group of the Great Emperors beside Ye Futian made a move the moment the bodies of the ancient Gods glowed up. Aiming at their targets, the former disappeared into thin air right after they accelerated at the same speed.


    The ancient God of Wind had the fastest speed among all. A storm would be stirred up whenever he moved, destroying everything in his path. As a result, every building that he passed by was utterly demolished, killing all the cultivators who were taking shelter inside in the process.


    After accelerating his speed to the limits, he traversed the city in a flash, forming a crevasse in the middle of it.


    Following that, a bolt of lightning was closing in on him from behind at a breakneck speed. It looked like a beam of light that traveled across the space and aimed directly at him.


    ��Hmm?�� The God of Wind knitted his brows together when he noticed someone was hot on his heels. With a thought, he created devastating wind blades with his Divine Power and turned them into a tornado that tore open the void. Immediately, the calamitous cyclone rushed toward that light, turning everything in its path into clouds of dust.


    That light figure headed into the twister since they could not evade it while moving at such speed. Everything happened within a short moment that was faster than the speed of lightning.


    Whizz! That light figure passed through the cyclone and came out from the other side, flying toward the God of Wind. At the sight of it, the expression of the latter turned glum and transformed himself into an intangible wind current, further increasing his moving speed.


    Just then, a glaring light that covered a large extent of the boundless space radiated the atmosphere before it. The light pierced through everything it touched. A groan could be heard after a while, and the light immediately launched itself in the direction of the sound.


    In the direction where the Divine Light beamed, someone let out a shriek of agony. Immediately after, the God of Wind showed himself. However, the silhouette of his gallant form was pierced through by countless rays of light, filling his body with innumerable holes of light.


    The glaring light gleamed across a vast distance, brimming the void with its brightness. Next, his body was crumbled into uncountable pieces and gradually receded from view. While a disembodied phantom attempted to flee from the scene, the light figure shot a light beam at the former to finish it off, giving no chance to any of its remnants to survive.


    After a while, the silhouette of Chen Yi appeared in that place. Turning his eyes in another direction, he dashed forward to another destination.


    Long ago, he had received the inheritance of the Bright Temple, and his perseverance in cultivation finally made him a genuine God of Light.

 Chapter 2941 - The Clash Between the Old and the New

    While Chen Yi was going around exterminating the enemies, the Great Emperors beside Ye Futian sealed up the Heavenly Imperial City. Standing in different locations, they unleashed the Divine Domain of the Great Path to prevent the Gods of the Human Realm from killing indiscriminately.


    In another place, Ye Wuchen, Yaya, and Swordmaster of Lihen moved together in a group to set up a sword matrix. At that time, one of the Gods entered the sword matrix and threw a domineering punch that broke the void, smashing the Sword Will into pieces.


    Fang Cun held a golden Divine Spear in his hand in another scene. It was emanating an overwhelming Divine Power of the Source of the Great Path. The divine artifact held in the hands of the core members of the Great Emperors were treasures born in the Heavenly Path World of Ye Futian.


    In the opposite direction, a God with a burly figure walked toward them with a black Overlord Spear that was brimming with Divine Power in his hand. The void would tremble with every step he took.


    Bang! After he launched an attack, the Overlord Spear tore the fabric of space-time and pierced through the atmosphere, firing at Fang Cun.


    In response, the latter intensified his intent of battle and poured his Divine Power into the golden Divine Spear. Thrusting his weapon forward, it turned into a bolt of magnificent golden lightning that cracked the air in the atmosphere, aiming at the opponent.


    At the collision of the two spears, the entire scenery turned into what seemed like an apocalypse, destroying everything in the atmosphere nearby. Fang Cun was sent flying backward by the impact. Right then, he turned around and headed into the sky, getting further away from the battlefield. After all, this place could not handle having so many Great Emperors clashing with each other at the same time.


    Wasting no time, his opponent tailed him and headed to the sky.


    The father and son duo��Blind Tie and Tie Tou��stood together in another location. They both unleashed their intimidating Divine Powers while holding Hammers of Tianshen that were packed with frightening energies in their hands to watch over that place. After noticing an approaching God, they swung their Divine Hammers and battled their enemy.


    A war between the Gods broke out in different locations simultaneously. The size of their war zone was extremely vast. In the blink of an eye, they expanded it from the scale of the Heavenly Imperial City to the entire continent. Even though it was impossible for the Great Emperors of the Heavenly Realm to lock their enemies within a small space, stalling or luring the latter from the battlefield so that their fights would not affect the common people was manageable. Fortunately, their opponents did not deliberately attack the weaker cultivators.


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    After all, most of them were Ancient Tianshen. So, they were somewhat reluctant to do so.


    The War of the Gods erupted in multiple locations at the same time.


    Rumble! A violent resonant sound caught the attention of many cultivators. After lowering their heads, they noticed that the Heavenly Imperial City was moving. They were taken aback by the sight of it.


    ��No, it��s not just the Heavenly Imperial City, but the whole continent!�� A person was stunned after realizing the fact. Those who witnessed the bizarre sighting remained in the same spot as they watched the Heavenly Imperial City getting further away from them. The cultivators who remained in the city didn��t dare to fly. So, they just let themselves be dragged away alongside the entire city. Shortly after, they noticed that the war zone was gradually moving further from them. It looked like someone was pulling the whole continent.


    Eventually, the Heavenly Imperial City became small in the eyes of the other cultivators. The whole continent was moved away to a far-off distance from the battlefield.


    Soon after, they caught sight of a massive phantasm of a divine dragon that occupied a huge part of the sky, pulling the entire continent away until it became minuscule. After that, the silhouette of the divine dragon moved toward the war zone in the sky steadily. A while later, they spotted a stunning woman at the scene, and she was none other than Donghuang Diyuan. She was the one who summoned the Ancestral Dragon to pull the continent away from the war zone.


    With that, there were only the Gods left on the battleground.


    In short, it had become the Battlefield of the Gods.


    Whoosh! A silhouette took a step forward and turned into a flash of lightning while staring down at Donghuang Diyuan with a sharp look. After waving his hand, a Sky River of Swords manifested in the firmament and split open the atmosphere, slashing at Donghuang Diyuan at lightning speed.


    If this slash were to hit Donghuang Diyuan, she might not get away unscathed, although she had reached the Great Emperor Plan for years already. After all, the one who launched the attack was Eternal Swordlord, a Great Emperor from ancient times.


    Right before the slashes of the swords were about to reach Donghuang Diyuan, a figure suddenly showed up in front of her and stretched his hand to touch the Eternal Swords with his finger. Immediately, the entire Swords Will shattered. It slowly dissipated and reduced to nothingness.


    ��Father,�� Donghuang Diyuan murmured. The person who appeared before her in the nick of time was Donghuang the Great. Turning to look at the Eternal Swordlord, he criticized, ��You were one of those who had stood at the pinnacle of cultivation since ancient times. I couldn��t believe someone of your status would do something as disgraceful as trying to kill a junior!��


    ��Everyone starts their cultivation journey at different timing. There is no such thing as seniority on the battlefield.�� After the Eternal Swordlord finished speaking, the whole atmosphere turned into the Eternal Sword Domain, where countless swords were fired at Donghuang the Great.


    ��Get out of here first,�� Donghuang the Great whispered to Donghuang Diyuan. Wasting no time, she fled from the battleground with the Divine Power of Revelation shielding her so that the Sword Domain could not harm her.


    At that time, Donghuang the Great��s Divine Power of Revelation had grown even more powerful. Within the Revelation Divine Domain, it would not allow any other Divine Powers to exist. Hence, most of the swords were utterly disintegrated.


    After the revelation would be the void. Needless to say, Donghuang the Great had once again improved his cultivation to the next level.


    Clang! Numerous swords hovered around the atmosphere with the control of Donghuang the Great��s thought. The moment the Heaven Punishing Sword Will surged its energy, all of the swords were launched at the Eternal Swordlord, shattering everything in their paths and pulverizing all things to nothingness. It was as if no other power could stand against his Heaven Punishing Sword.


    ��You��ve improved a lot,�� the Eternal Swordlord commented after sensing the Sword Will. Compared to the last time they had clashed with each other, Donghuang the Great��s Divine Power had enhanced even further. That was indeed a phenomenal speed of improvement.


    ��I respect you as one of the Great Emperors whose name was known by many during ancient times. If you were to leave this battlefield at once, I would not lay a hand on you,�� Donghuang the Great notified with a tone brimming with absolute confidence, even though he was talking to an ancient Super Great Emperor. It was only natural since he was one of the strongest beings in the world at that time.


    ��Although the future generations might never know the golden age of the Ancient Emperors, I can finally see it again today,�� the Eternal Swordlord remarked solemnly as his Sword Will gradually intensified.


    ��Quit presuming on your seniority!�� Donghuang the Great rebuked savagely. This was a fight between the Super Great Emperor of ancient times and the apex Great Emperor of the current age.


    Rumble! A Divine Power of Destruction rained down from the sky, causing many to raise their heads and check out the situation above them, only to find an older man hovering there. That man was exploding a powerful aura as if he was a God who had existed since ancient times��the primogenitor of all sentient beings whose very presence would cause everyone to kneel and worship him.


    This aged man was also a Super Great Emperor who was world-renowned during ancient times. He was named as one of the progenitors of the Great Emperors since he had been cultivating for ages. When his name had already been uttered by everyone, the Human Ancestor might not even exist yet.


    He was the Primary Emperor, who had fought countless conquests in his life. The man hardly ever lost during the Age of the Gods and even the Battle of the Gods. Unfortunately, a legend like him had lost his life during the Collapse of the Great Path.


    Now that he had been resurrected in this era, he had to face a whole bunch of opponents who were the junior Gods. These people were the Great Emperors of the younger generation, challenging the deific prerogative of the ancient ones.

 Chapter 2942 - Bigotry

    A loud sound could be heard from the sky. The sound came from a massive maroon ancient bell that revolved ceaselessly. It gradually turned into bolts of maroon lightning that occupied the entire firmament, permeating the boundless void as they were rained down.


    Bell sounds were produced from each flash of the maroon lightning that could destroy everyone��s spiritual soul.


    At that, a Light of Buddha glared brilliantly. A silhouette with a magnificent Golden Frame suddenly appeared beneath the Primary Emperor. That figure was gleaming golden Divine Light��the Light of Buddha. The light covered the whole atmosphere with its brightness. There was a gigantic halo blocking the sky. Runes of Buddhism could be seen above the halo. Each of the runes was brimmed with the great power of Buddhism. Within the runes, an incorporeal phantasm of Buddha was awakened as the Sound of Buddha resounded in the atmosphere, clashing with the bolts of maroon lightning.


    Bam! Bang! Boom! All the apocalyptic attacks were completely nullified. Lifting his head to look at the sky, Ye Futian could see the Buddha leading his legion of Buddhist cultivators as reinforcements.


    ��What are you waiting for?�� Ye Futian asked in a deep voice. There were several Great Emperors who stood behind him. Their blood ran cold upon hearing his question. Those people were Haotian the Great and his men. Truthfully, they did not see eye to eye with Ye Futian since they were once enemies. However, they had no choice but to submit to his authority at that moment.


    Following that, they finally headed toward the Battlefield of the Gods.


    After glancing around the battleground, Haotian the Great caught sight of a figure of a child. Although that child seemed to be not more than ten years old, the aura that he exuded was rather formidable. Nevertheless, picking a kid as an opponent would be better on the battlefield full of Gods.


    Immediately after he moved forward, he unleashed an emperor��s might toward the child who walked out from the Human Ancestor��s side. Activating the Divine Power of Haotian, he launched a colossal Great Palm that was covering a big part of the sky at the kid, intending to take out the latter.


    However, that child raised his head to gaze at Haotian the Great with an indifferent and derisive look. The latter furrowed his brows at the sight of the kid��s disdainful demeanor. Right then, he instinctively sensed a dangerous aura.


    Within a split second, that child made a move and turned into a bolt of lightning. Then, he threw a punch with his tiny fist that seemed feeble at first but penetrated the Haotian Great Palm with little effort and accelerated toward his opponent at an incredible speed.


    Colors drained from the face of Haotian the Great. To think that the Haotian Great Palm that was generated with his Divine Power was effortlessly destroyed. Just how powerful was the force from that punch?


    With that, Haotian the Great hastily withdrew from the scene. Nevertheless, that child turned himself into a flash of lightning and moved at full tilt. It was so fast that the former could not get away from the latter. In the next moment, that child raised his fist and hurled a punch at his enemy. A tremendous amount of power was imbued in such a simple punch from his small fist. The shock wave from the punch even caused the atmosphere to tremble.


    The Divine Silhouette of Haotian manifested behind the figure of Haotian the Great. Stretching his hands forward, he tried to fend off the attack. In the collision with the tiny fist of his opponent, the child��s punch easily crushed his offense and struck his body, including the Divine Silhouette of Haotian. Nothing could halt it in its tracks. Eventually, the body of Haotian the Great was broken into pieces. His face blanched as terror flashed across his eyes.


    His technique was rendered ineffective by a single punch again. The spiritual soul of Haotian the Great was disintegrated as he stared at the atmosphere in despair. Eventually, his figure and Great Path were reduced to nothingness.


    This fight had attracted the attention of many surrounding cultivators. After all, the one who had gone for the kill was a child with terrifying Divine Power.


    After turning his gaze in this direction, Ye Futian caught sight of that child.


    Needless to say, this individual was no ordinary kid. To wield a Divine Power of this caliber, would this person be another exterior incarnation of the Human Ancestor?


    Whoosh! Gu Dongliu turned his body into a flash of light and appeared above that child. A Divine Demon Diagram manifested following that, causing the mood of the atmosphere to change drastically.


    Nonetheless, that child lifted his head and shot Gu Dongliu a mocking and disparaging look. Moreover, the former even shot two rays of the Divine Light of Annihilation from his eyes that traversed the void, firing at the latter.


    Immediately, an ominous sound filled the air as the scenery behind Gu Dongliu began to transform into a massive catalog that appeared to hold a world within it. A blood-curdling aura of the Divine Power permeated from the catalog filled with immortals, monsters, demons, and gods. When the Divine Light of Annihilation was fast-approaching, a spectacular Sword Qi burst out of the catalog, colliding with the former and canceling out each other in the void.


    Ye Futian did not worry much about his Third Senior Brother, Gu Dongliu, after watching the latter��s fight because he had been meditating on the Path Slaying Cultivation. Hence, the man had become an extremely powerful cultivator. He should be able to handle an exterior incarnation that the Human Ancestor had created alone.


    There were destructive storms everywhere on the battlefield. The scale of the battle was so intense that the fabric of space was torn into pieces. Hence, it was the reason this war was called the Battle of the Gods. Their clashes in multiple locations had demolished the atmosphere of the Heavenly Realm, causing dimensional cracks to appear. With that, some of them left that place and headed to a different battleground.


    Fwoosh! Some destructive turbulence swept across the location of Ye Futian. Instantly, he set his eyes in the direction of the Human Ancestor and noticed that the latter was standing still on his spot as he turned his gaze to the former.


    He activated his Divine Power and circulated it within his body right after stepping forward. As expected, he had to be the one taking on the Human Ancestor personally, after all.


    Before he could land his first strike, a bolt of black lightning flashed across the void and came into sight.


    Noticing that, Ye Futian came to a halt and turned to peer at the silhouette. To his surprise, that person was the Dark Sovereign.


    However, this time, the Dark Sovereign had unmasked herself, no longer keeping her identity a secret. The moment Ye Futian paid attention to her, he was stunned by the revelation of her real face.


    Although the Buddha of Destiny did not mention this to Ye Futian, the latter had felt relieved by the fact. In retrospect, it would make sense why she could take control of a continent in the Dark World, which would eventually be called the Island of Miracles. After all, she was the exterior incarnation of the Dark Sovereign.


    In that case, there must still be some light left inside the heart of the Dark Sovereign so that an island of light without any dispute could exist in the Dark World��a place filled with openhearted and genuine people.


    Perhaps, that was the ideal world the Dark Sovereign had ever wanted.


    Unfortunately, such a utopia could only stay as a fairy tale.


    Ye Futian could tell that the Dark Sovereign was utterly disappointed at this world. Therefore, she had built the Kingdom of Darkness in the Dark World to destroy this world, plunging it into darkness so that light could be born in the absolutely wicked and corrupted world.


    She was a bigot.


    But even so, it couldn��t change the fact that she had goodness in her heart.


    In contrast, the Human Ancestor might be deemed the progenitor of humankind and the embodiment of righteousness. But under the mask of his pretense, he was a man of absolute darkness who had shed innocent blood with his hands. He was the person who had started the War of the Seven Realms��one who had regarded the lives of the people as disposables. He, too, had wished to build his ideal world. A world that he had absolute control and sovereignty��a world of the Gods where he was their creator.


    Did all those who had made it to the pinnacle of cultivation have the same extreme conviction?


    He noticed that the Dark Sovereign had been glaring at the Human Ancestor with an aloof look ever since her arrival. She was emanating a deadly and destructive aura constantly. This must probably be the reason behind the insurgence of the army of the Dark World previously. Was there any grudge or hatred between the Dark Sovereign and the Human Ancestor?

 Chapter 2943 - The Ultimate Battle

    After the Dark Sovereign, yet another beam of divine light descended. The Evil Emperor had arrived too. He had fought fiercely against the Dark Sovereign, but neither could defeat the other.


    However, the Dark Sovereign was not looking at the Evil Emperor right now. Instead, she kept staring at the Human Ancestor. ��It��s you, right?�� she asked.


    The Human Ancestor was also looking at the Dark Sovereign. Then he said, ��Chi��er, why do you not greet your master?��


    Boom! Even though the Dark Sovereign already guessed it, her heart still twitched fiercely after receiving the answer. Her destructive aura swept through uncontrollably. Her eyes were filled with endless hatred as she glared at the other.


    The gods in battles surrounding them were also quite shocked inside. The Human Ancestor was the Dark Sovereign��s master?


    ��Why? Why did I have to do all that?�� As the will of the six emperors, the Dark Sovereign��s mindset had always been very determined, but she still lost control of her emotions now, as she demanded at the Human Ancestor loudly. The sealed memories��the memories she had buried��now flooded her mind, taking over her entire brain. It was like a nightmare.


    It seemed now that the ��dreams�� from before were foreshadowing, or perhaps she had felt that this day would come.


    ��Because you have a pure heart, so I chose you. This is your luck to go from a mundane human and transform into a god,�� the Human Ancestor said calmly. The Dark Sovereign seemed to be his experiment or project to create a god.


    ��It is not only you. He is my choice as well. Otherwise, do you think you really would have the chance to prove your path?�� the Human Ancestor said, looking at the Evil Emperor. Even Ye Futian felt shaken inside. Half of the six emperors in the world had been created by him.


    The Human Ancestor had been creating gods since many years ago. He had also been controlling the state of the world these countless years. Everything was under his control.


    Only the Heaven Realm was not under his control.


    The Heaven Realm first had the Heavenly Emperor and then the Sovereign Princess. They had all been very troublesome for him. In the current generation, it had passed on to Ye Futian.


    The World of Buddhism and Devil World had nothing to do with the Human Ancestor.


    ��Chi��er, return to Master��s side,�� the Human Ancestor said. ��I could create you, so I can also destroy you. There is no need to be obsessed with past hatred and conflicts. You are a god now��a god standing at the peak of the world. You will help me manage the world from now on, becoming the leader of the gods. We will create a world of gods together.��


    Boom! As soon as the Human Ancestor finished speaking, a horrifying world-ending tribulation appeared in the dome of the sky. Pitch black divine tribulations dropped down. The entire world transformed into a dark and dead world.


    Seeing this scene, the Human Ancestor��s brows furrowed, but he recovered after a moment and said to the Dark Sovereign, ��Why do this to yourself?��


    He did not attack, but the Evil Emperor already had. Gold spatial divine light flashed and enveloped the vast space. It clashed against the other party��s Divine Power. It was like a world-destroying battle had erupted in the place they were located in right now.


    But everyone on this battlefield seemed to be used to it already and was not shocked. There were divine battles everywhere with different Great Emperor cultivators in different spaces. Every grand battle was earth-shattering, destroying and upending the world.


    Ye Futian glanced at this messy battlefield. Then his gaze moved towards the Human Ancestor. He had paused earlier, but now he started walking out again. The Nine Dragons divine light shimmered around his body and illuminated the sky, creating a natural phenomenon. A long spear appeared in Ye Futian��s hand, blazing with destructive divine light.


    The Human Ancestor looked up and gazed at Ye Futian. His eyes grew a bit graver too. Then the clouds shone in the sky above the Human Realm, and countless beams of divine light fell, descending upon the Human Ancestor��s body. He bathed under these beams of divine light. Then the Human Ancestor��s body enlarged wildly. He crossed the vast space, covering the portion of the sky. His body was now big enough to cross stars as if he could destroy a continent with a finger.


    The ��Human Ancestor�� now was like a god of creation. He scrutinized the people and also examined the insignificant Ye Futian.


    Before him, Ye Futian was just like an ant.


    The Human Ancestor��s eyes scanned Ye Futian. Divine light shot out of his eyes and transformed into chaotic divine thunder. Countless divine swords appeared from this mass of Chaos True Thunder that shot towards Ye Futian��s body. It was like he could kill and destroy someone with just one glance.


    He was no longer borrowing power from the Heavenly Path. Instead, he was an existence comparable to the Heavenly Path. The thunder that his eyes summoned was the Chaos True Thunder; his force was the most original force in the world.


    It seemed that the space Ye Futian was in was about to be flooded. The Chaos True Thunder��s attack was coming, and he was too minuscule in comparison. It was like an average human standing in the heavens, facing the thunder and lightning from the heavens. He could be drowned and buried in an instant.


    If it were any other Great Emperor cultivator, they would not be able to fend off such a terrifying attack at all.


    Ye Futian also understood why the other gods listened to the Human Ancestor��s orders. In reality, the Human Ancestor already possessed supreme Divine Power after returning. Even Great Emperors were not enough to be treated with respect by him, let alone an average person.


    Immense Chaos True Thunder flooded the world, sweeping toward Ye Futian��s body like a raging current. However, Ye Futian��s body was unmoving. He bathed in the light of the Chaos True Thunder. He was actually ignoring the Human Ancestor��s super-strong attack.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were frightening, dazzling with divine light. He stared at the humongous and giant divine figure across from him. He was minuscule, but he had created his own Micro Heavenly Path. He had a Path that was independent from the world. Nowadays, his Great Path was already complete. It would not be so easy to bring him down.


    The Human Ancestor was not surprised either. In a certain way, Ye Futian was the one who was closest to him. He had created the Micro Heavenly Path with his mortal body, establishing his world and creating an independent law of time and space.


    Ye Futian was already like a creator, a god of creation now.


    They were the only two who had made such accomplishments in this world.


    ��Boom!�� The Human Ancestor raised a fist and sent a blow towards Ye Futian. When the blow landed, the space of the Heaven Realm started collapsing like crazy. All the Law of the Great Path turned to dust under his punch. This punch did not seem to have the light of Divine Power, but it also seemed to contain the world��s strongest force.


    The Human Ancestor had already returned to the basics. Every single move or action came from the source of the Path. The divine light that shot out of his eyes was the Power of Chaos, while the intent of his punch could destroy a world.


    The windstorm swept over, shattering the void. The space around Ye Futian��s body started collapsing and crumbling crazily. His robes fluttered, and his white hair flew.


    Moving his feet slightly, Ye Futian stabbed his long spear forward. The moment he stabbed it out, the spear in his hands enlarged rapidly. It blazed with supreme divine light and penetrated the space with one blow, crashing against the incoming punch from the Human Ancestor.


    The instant that the blows crashed, a deep and low sound emitted from the vast world. Everyone felt this horrifying quake!

 Chapter 2944 - The Ultimate Battle (2)

    Ye Futian��s body was forced into a retreat. That frightening fist intent also broke apart. The surrounding space was collapsing and cracking crazily while the frightening spatial currents ravaged wildly.


    But neither Ye Futian nor the Human Ancestor cared at all. With their current cultivation states, they could pass freely within the space windstorm.


    ��Divine Power of the World?�� Ye Futian asked, looking at the Human Ancestor.


    ��Divine Power is just the law and order. At present, I represent the law of the Heavenly Path, so why do I care about Divine Power?�� the Human Ancestor said. His voice reverberated through the vast and boundless world, making many cultivators feel their eardrums quivering.


    He was the heaven; he represented the Heavenly Path. His every casual move was the law. He was the law��s incarnate itself.


    He agreed with what he heard from the other. After he had constructed the Heavenly Path World, his two eyes had transformed into the moon and sun, and he could form thunder and lightning by raising his hands. They were both the incarnates of the laws. Divine Power was no longer important.


    The Human Ancestor��s one punch was like the force of a world slamming down. One could imagine how aggressively powerful he was.


    Holy light enveloped Ye Futian��s body. He bathed under the halo, and natural phenomena occurred. The moon, sun, and stars revolved around him. Countless beams of light flowed around him like time and space were changing. The spear in his hand did not seem realistic, but it blazed with an incredible aura.


    With one thought, Ye Futian��s body vanished.


    Bang! His body carried the long spear and stabbed into the Human Ancestor��s giant body with a loud bang. The Human Ancestor��s magnificent body was penetrated, and Ye Futian killed his way in. But then he discovered that he��d broken into a wintry world that could even solidify space. The Human Ancestor��s physical body was its own world. Forcing in here did not seem meaningful.


    Boom! Ye Futian��s body passed through from the other side, and he saw the Human Ancestor��s broken body heal instantly. It was just like before. It seemed as if it had not been injured at all. Ye Futian��s attack appeared to be futile and completely meaningless.


    ��I have transformed into the Heavenly Path and have an immortal body. Who can kill me?�� The Human Ancestor��s voice was extremely domineering. He was the heaven; he was the Path. He had finally become an undying god from a mere mortal and was now the supreme being.


    Now, he would not die. No one in the world could kill him.


    ��No one is infallible,�� Ye Futian said in reply. Gods were people too. Since they were people, then there were no absolutely immortal beings.


    His body vanished from the spot once again. The frightening long spear attacked somewhere on the Human Ancestor��s huge frame. A hole appeared on the Human Ancestor��s body, but divine spatial light shot out of that hole to imprison him there.


    However, Ye Futian��s body vanished instantly and reappeared somewhere else.


    He transformed into beams of light and streaks of shadows, sending blows onto the Human Ancestor��s body again and again. The Human Ancestor��s star-like body continuously shattered and collapsed. There were cracks everywhere, but just as he had said, he had an immortal body. This was not even his true form. It was just a clone. The Human Realm��s divine light continued to wash over his body. His broken body sent down countless beams of destructive tribulation light shrouded over the vast void. It included Chaos True Thunder, Tribulations of Destruction, and Shredding Swords.


    Ye Futian saw this scene while his body hovered in the air. His eyes swept towards the vast space. In an instant, everything in his vision was enveloped in a domain. The attacks coming at him murderously from all directions suddenly slowed down and then stopped.


    The Human Ancestor looked at Ye Futian. When he met Ye Futian��s eyes, his gaze froze too, seeming to stop there. One could not call Ye Futian��s eyes ��eyes�� anymore. They represented time and space.


    Just as the Human Ancestor had said, they created a world and transformed it into the Heavenly Path. They had surpassed the category of physical bodies. Every part of their body was a Path.


    Ye Futian looked at the still Human Ancestor. His two eyes transformed into Paths and were extremely frightening. He looked towards the Chaos True Thunder, Tribulations of Destruction, and Shredding Swords, and everything was destroyed. They were turned into nothingness and obliterated directly.


    All this time, Ye Futian had been pursuing the extremes of cultivation. What was extreme?


    How could you reach the extremes?


    He had not figured it out yet, but over these past years, he had at least taken a few more steps down that road. After his Heavenly Path World was completed, he could establish a divine domain of time and space. In that divine domain, he could change the flow of time. At the extreme, he could reduce the flow of time by 81 times. The difference of 81 times was close to stopping.


    But merely this was not enough. His father, Donghuang the Great, cultivated the Revelation Divine Power. The extremity of Revelation was nothingness. He believed that nothingness was one of the final points of cultivation.


    The extremity of Buddhist was emptiness��for all to be empty. Were nothingness and emptiness similar?


    Building from that, Ye Futian figured out the ultimate Path of Destruction, an evolution of the Path of Time and Space.


    Time and Space Collapse!


    He gazed into the distance, and all objects in this space collapsed and shattered, getting destroyed and turning into nothingness. The Chaos True Thunder and Tribulations of Destruction were also extinguished like this. Ye Futian looked towards the majestic frame of the Human Ancestor. That frightening divine body was also collapsing and shattering. All physical objects were going to be destroyed and turned into nothingness.


    The long spear in Ye Futian��s hands blazed with supreme Divine Power. His body flashed, and he stabbed the spear forward, hitting the Human Ancestor��s majestic and giant body. In an instant, the entire time and space constricted rapidly and collapsed, turning into a horrifying black hole. Everything was going to be destroyed and buried.


    The Human Ancestor��s boundlessly huge body was quickly shrinking too. It collapsed in an extremely short instant, shattering and turning into nothingness. It was swallowed by the black hole windstorm. This was also an evolution of the spear technique Entombed. It was practically an undefeatable spear attack.


    Soon, the majestic frame that had stood in the vast void was destroyed and disappeared. It seemed to have been buried by this spear, but Ye Futian did not relax. His eyes continued staring forward. This battle was a battle that determined the fates of every soul. He had always wanted to wait until he comprehended the ultimate truth of cultivation. He would never take the initiative to attack if not for the crisis of survival of the seven realms.


    Many people in the surrounding battlefields looked toward where the Human Ancestor had been.


    The Human Ancestor��s magnificent body had been killed. Ye Futian had killed it. The hearts of many Great Emperors jumped in extreme shock.


    Nowadays, the Six Emperors were probably no longer Ye Futian��s match. As for those average Great Emperors, they would be even less of a match for Ye Futian��s spear.


    Was the Human Ancestor dead?


    Some Great Emperor battles even stopped. They stared at Ye Futian��s battlefield. If the Human Ancestor had been killed, then it meant that this battle was over.


    But could the Human Ancestor die so easily?


    That had only been the Human Ancestor��s clone.


    A horrifying aura circulated through the sky over the Human Realm, and limitless divine light shone down. An incredible and peerless divine might radiated out, causing the hearts of many strong figures to pulse. The Human Ancestor was alright, as expected. Ye Futian had only killed the Human Ancestor��s clone��his spokesperson in the Human Realm.


    The true Human Ancestor had not yet appeared!

 Chapter 2945 - : The Ultimate Battle (3)

    ��Not bad!��


    A voice traveled from the Human Realm. Divine light kept flowing in the dome of the sky as if an illusory figure was forming. It gave off a misty and intangible feeling.


    ��The Law of Time and Space. And you��ve touched onto the level of ��substance.�� As expected of the god of creation,�� the voice continued to say. ��Ye Futian, I want to create a world of gods. You can manage the gods in my place. It would be an ideal land in the future, where all the law in the world is under control. Everything would operate according to my thoughts. The world would be so much more perfect than the current world.��


    ��What you want is a puppet world. Only your thoughts exist in that world. And what is the significance of that kind of world?�� Ye Futian responded, looking toward the Human Realm. His voice rang through the void.


    ��What is the significance of this current world? And what was the significance of the ancient Heavenly Path World?�� the voice continued streaming from that Heavenly Path. ��Status, bloodshed�� There will never be peace. It will cycle endlessly. How many people died in the War of the Gods back then? How many would have had any shred of pity for the world? The people need an ideal world, a perfect world of gods.��


    Ye Futian did not reply. Whether it was people or the world, there were always flaws. Perfection itself was a trap. Absolute perfection did not exist in the world. Was the world that the Human Ancestor planned to create genuinely perfect? It was only he who wanted it. He wanted everything to operate under his ideas. And now, the Human Realm was under his control, but the cultivators of the Human Realm had been reduced to murder machines.


    He stepped forward, walking toward the Human Realm, and stood under that sky. At present, all of the seven realms were under the other��s influence. If the Human Ancestor did not die, the conflicts would never be resolved. The tribulations of the seven realms would continue, and people would continuously die.


    Another figure appeared on the battlefield of the gods. The figure wore a simple robe, but there was an aggressive aura about him. His gaze swept towards the sky of the Human Realm and then scanned the entire battlefield. There was a layer of contempt in his eyes.


    This new figure was the Devil Emperor.


    ��You came just in time. Kill him now. I will help you,�� the voice streamed out of the sky above the Human Realm. The Devil Emperor looked toward Ye Futian. Ye Futian was also looking at him and called out, ��Senior.��


    He did not say anything else. This battle was a battle of the gods. The ancient gods and the Great Emperors of this era had all appeared here. Since the Devil Emperor came, he naturally had made his own decision and choice as well.


    He wanted to know if the Devil Emperor��s choice was like the Evil Emperor or if he would choose another path.


    Ye Futian was waiting��waiting for an answer.


    Then monstrous demonic might flared from the Devil Emperor��s body. His aura was extremely horrifying. He was like the body of tribulations. Countless beams of tribulation light flowed across his body, containing immense destructive power.


    He reached a hand out, and a devil sword appeared instantly. Wielding the devil sword, the Devil Emperor cut down in one direction. The sword cut apart the void and hacked down somewhere. There was a battlefield there. On it, Yu Tu was currently fighting against a Great Emperor.


    Just at that time, the frightening devil sword arrived in a flash. The expression of the opponent in front of Yu Tu was shocked. He wanted to block it, but his Divine Power shield was hacked apart. The devil sword came down and killed him directly.


    A Great Emperor had been killed by one strike of a sword.


    Yu Tu turned and looked at the Devil Emperor standing in the sky. There was a rare smile on his face as he said, ��Brother, us two brothers have not fought together in how many years?��


    There was some feeling of closure in his smile right now.


    Even though he had always believed that he had chosen the correct path and did not regret it, he was still the traitor. This was not just an accusation toward him by the Devil Emperor. He had truly betrayed them.


    The Devil World was the prison of the ancient Heavenly Path. It was the absolute opposite of the Heaven Court, Heavenly Emperor, and the later Divine Prefecture. They had always been enemies. All cultivators of the Devil World spent their lives trying to use their own efforts to lead the army of the Devil World out.


    He had abandoned the Devil World without a doubt and stepped onto another path. Thus, he had always carried heavy guilt on his shoulders.


    The Devil Emperor looked at Yu Tu and said, ��I didn��t do this for you.��


    ��I know,�� Yu Tu replied, not minding.


    The Devil Emperor��s gaze swept toward the sky of the Human Realm and said, ��The cultivators of the Devil World will not become slaves.��


    He knew that if the Devil World chose to submit, they would forever be the subordinates of the Human Realm. If they were not obedient, they might be destroyed. What was the difference between that and the Heavenly Path era?


    For countless years, they had carried the status of prisoners. They wanted even less to carry the status of slaves after this.


    Plus, the Human Ancestor had threatened him with the lives of everyone in the Devil World, and this had already crossed his bottom line.


    Thus, he would rather stand on Ye Futian��s side.


    ��Donghuang, Ye Futian,�� the Devil Emperor announced. ��I have already ordered for the Devil World Army to ceasefire against the Divine Prefecture. If we are defeated here today, I hope that the world can view the cultivators of the Devil World without discrimination.��


    Being defeated may mean death. If he died, he hoped that the cultivators of the Devil World could live in this world.


    ��Senior, do not worry,�� Ye Futian stated. ��Furthermore, if we are defeated, I might be like you and not be able to see the future.��


    This battle was all or nothing. If they lost, they might all die. They would not be able to see anything. It would definitely be an age of darkness.


    ��All right!�� The Devil Emperor nodded. The Buddha of Destiny had predicted that he would encounter a tribulation. If today was his tribulation, he hoped that the cultivators of the Devil World would be unscathed and that they would be free of the Devil Abyss��s restrictions. Even if there was no Devil World in the future, even if everyone in the future forgot the will of the Devil World, it was no longer important.


    The Devil Emperor stepped forward, walking toward one direction, and joined the battlefield.


    After the Devil Emperor joined the battle, all Six Emperors were now present. They all participated in the fight. This battle gathered all the top figures.


    If one had to name someone missing, then it was only Ji Wudao who was temporarily locked away by the current Heavenly Emperor.


    In Donghuang the Great��s battlefield, he and the Eternal Swordlord were still in a stalemate. After seeing that the Devil Emperor had come to join the battle, Donghuang the Great felt gratuitous. The Six Emperors had fought for countless years, checking and balancing each other, but he always knew who his opponent was. He had never viewed the Devil World as his enemy and respected the Devil Emperor deep down.


    Now, they finally had the chance to fight side by side. Four of the Six Emperors were on their side. Even the Dark Sovereign was now standing against the Human Ancestor.


    Aggressive sword Qi suddenly appeared, but Donghuang the Great did not avoid it. The Revelation Divine Power seemed to evolve at this moment. The murderous sword intent filling the sky scattered and became formless, turning into nothingness. No sword intent could approach his body. This domain of nothingness was also expanding and shrouding toward the Eternal Swordlord!

 Chapter 2946 - The Ultimate Battle (4)

    ��Donghuang!�� a voice rang out. Then the Eternal Swordlord��s body was already gone. He had transformed into the divine domain of the Sword Path, becoming one with all the heavens. His huge silhouette appeared in the dome of the sky, formed by countless sword intents. These sword intents seemed to be immortal, eternally existing in the world.


    Merely his voice contained an extremely sharp aura.


    Zip, zip�� There were sharp, ear-piercing sounds. The vast void was formed by the Eternal Sword Intent. Every beam of sword intent was extremely strong. This micro world was the world of the sword.


    Donghuang the Great raised his head and looked at the Eternal Swordlord. He sensed an extremely strong threat. This micro world contained billions of sword intent.


    ��I cultivated the Sword Path and ruled the world. I did not think I would meet my match in the later world. You won my respect. This sword is the Eternal Sword. If you can take it, then this battle will be over,�� the Eternal Swordlord said. His voice was extremely domineering.


    The Revelation Divine Power from Donghuang the Great shrouded the vast space. The endless sword intent invaded it without resistance, but they could not hurt him at all.


    Then Divine Power surged on Donghuang the Great. Divine light enveloped his body, and he looked brilliant. Emperor light wrapped around him, filled with an air of mightiness. He looked up at the Eternal Swordlord and said, ��I respect you as an ancient senior. It��s not too late for you to give up now.��


    ��Presumptuous!�� the Eternal Swordlord barked. Then he stated loudly, ��Of the 3000 Great Paths, only the Sword is eternal.��


    As soon as he spoke, all the divine swords seemed to solidify, becoming able to obliterate every single existence. Everything in that sword domain was about to turn into dust and ashes, dying under the sword.


    Billions of divine swords in the dome of the sky converged into an Eternal Sword that could cross over the world. It stabbed down, and it seemed very slow, but it crossed the vast void in every second. The two were fighting at a large distance between each other.


    Donghuang the Great sensed the sword might. The worlds in its path collapsed, and space shattered. Everything was turning to dust under this sword. In the dome of the sky, the Eternal Swordlord��s face was boundlessly huge. Sword light wrapped around him and illuminated the heavens. At that moment, many cultivators on the continents of the Heaven Realm could all see a highly brilliant arc of sword light in the sky.


    The Revelation Divine Power was collapsing and shattering. It could not hold up against the sword intent at all. That divine sword killed its way over, shooting toward Donghuang the Great.


    Right then, Donghuang the Great��s body transformed into illusory light, as if he was not genuinely tangible. But the divine light on his body was even more brilliant than earlier. His two hands formed an imprint, and he pointed his finger forward, uttering from his lips, ��Become nothing!��


    As soon as he spoke, his body moved forward. His finger transformed into a sword that went upward. The frightening Eternal Sword Intent fell from the sky, but it crumbled in an instant, turning into nothingness. That was not all. Everything under the path of Donghuang the Great��s finger was obliterated, turning into nothingness.


    After that, everything surrounding his body also turned into nothingness. No type of Divine Power could survive.


    The world-slaying Eternal Sword shot down from the dome of the sky, killing toward Donghuang the Great with an extremely aggressive force. It was as if Donghuang the Great��s body would be stabbed through instantly and killed right then and there.


    But Donghuang the Great did not retreat at all. He continued forward, his finger clashing against the extremely domineering Eternal Sword. It looked like a moth trying to move a tree.


    There was no intense explosion. There was only annihilation and nothingness.


    The Eternal Sword was actually penetrated by Donghuang the Great��s finger. Then it broke bit by bit, turning into nothingness. The boundlessly huge sword was dissolved as if it had never existed. This scene made the expression of the Eternal Swordlord��who had become one with the sky in the heavens��change drastically.


    Donghuang the Great continued upward. His finger pointed before him and landed on the massive face of the Eternal Swordlord, breaking the sky with a finger.


    At that moment, the sky was shattering and turning into nothingness. The Eternal Swordlord��s face was twisting. Some sword intent wanted to escape and leave, but under that Divine Power of the void, no type of Qi was able to go. Everything turned into the void.


    In that instant, everything was shattering.


    The Eternal Swordlord��s face disappeared. That sword domain also shattered, transforming into nothingness. Donghuang the Great stood atop the void. His body resolidified, but his aura was a bit weaker. He consumed a pill and then sat cross-legged, closing his eyes to cultivate.


    On the other battlefields, the Devil Emperor began sweeping in all directions after joining the battle. The Six Emperors were the top figures of the world. Even the ancient Great Emperors found it difficult to counter them. Only those Super Great Emperors could put up a fight.


    At this time, the Devil Emperor and Yu Tu already had the blood of a dozen ancient Great Emperors on their hands. The Devil Emperor��s goal turned to the Evil Emperor, who was fighting against the Dark Sovereign. If they killed the Evil Emperor, the result of this battle would be set.


    Meanwhile, Yu Tu charged towards another battlefield.


    Of course, the most dangerous one was still the Human Ancestor, who had transformed into the Heavenly Path.


    Ye Futian stood under the Heavenly Path of the Human Ancestor and saw an extremely frightening force shroud the vast space. Then Ye Futian discovered with shock that countless air currents rushed towards that part of the sky.


    At that moment, the entire Human Realm sank into a mass of moans and cries. All of the cultivators in the Human Realm seemed to be out of control, but that was not all. Even the people from all over who were fighting there were the same.


    The Human Ancestor had refined the Human Realm. Was he swallowing the energy of the entire Human Realm?


    Was he going to use all the cultivators of the Human Realm?


    ��What is that?�� Ye Futian stared at the upper sky. He saw countless illusory shadows. They were like various obsessions or emotions and desires. Many shadows were struggling, but it was to no avail. They all converged atop the sky.


    Justice? This was the Human Ancestor��s justice, his Path.


    Were all the cultivators of the Human Realm his puppets?


    ��I must stop him.�� This thought appeared in Ye Futian��s mind. He realized that the most dangerous Human Ancestor was about to come into the world.


    With one thought, divine light appeared around Ye Futian��s body, filling the sky. Strange phenomena and countless divine swords appeared. He pointed at the sky, and the billions of divine swords broke through at once, shooting towards that part of the sky.


    A patch of sword rain appeared in the sky, shooting towards that part of the Heavenly Path. The converged force kept getting extinguished, and yet Ye Futian heard a mocking voice come from the heavens, ��Don��t you call yourself the side of justice? Why are you committing bloodshed now?��


    Ye Futian��s pupils constricted. Were the illusions that he was extinguishing real cultivators?


    ��This is your justice?�� Ye Futian stared at the illusory face in the sky.


    ��After I control the Heavenly Path and create a world of gods, there will be absolute justice,�� the Human Ancestor replied. ��The Heavenly Emperor could not stop me back then. Your mother could not stop me either. Today, you will be the same.��


    The entire heavens turned into an illusory face. All of the gods that were fighting looked up towards there as well. Their hearts pounded. Was the true Human Ancestor coming?!

 Chapter 2947 - The Ultimate Battle (5)

    In many continents of the Human Realm, the trees were withering, and the rivers and lakes were drying up. Everything in the world was being destroyed. The people of the Human Realm all sank into endless despair. They looked up to the heavens. Was that their world savior?


    Why was he now bringing doomsday to the Human Realm instead?


    The Human Ancestor was refining all the energy of the Human Realm. The yin and yang, the five elements, and everything were melded into the Heavenly Path.


    On the battlefield, Ye Futian and the others looked up to the sky. They sensed the might of the doomsday. The energy contained in that Heavenly Path already surpassed a Great Emperor. He was refining an entire world.


    Many people stopped fighting. Even the Evil Emperor stopped his battle and instead looked up at that sky.


    Everyone felt coldness deep in their bones. The Human Ancestor��s humanity was already gone��or rather, he was not a ��human�� anymore. He already viewed himself as a god of creation.


    ��After countless years of cultivation, I have realized the Ultimate Path. Everything in the world follows the law of conservation. This was the reason why the Heavenly Path collapsed back then. If the gods want to rise, then the Heavenly Path must be destroyed,�� the voice streamed from the heavens. ��However, they were still defeated in the end. Success was impossible. Nowadays, the world that has been in chaos for countless years will finally return to order. Everything will return to the correct path.��


    ��The way to return to the correct path is through bloodshed?�� the Evil Emperor asked, looking at the heavens. He was shocked by everything that he saw the Human Ancestor do. All of this was too horrifying. If this continued, he could not imagine what the world would turn into.


    ��Since the world follows the law of conservation, then to create an era of gods, there can��t be too many humans.�� There seemed to be a pair of eyes in the sky that looked at the Evil Emperor. ��What, do you want to betray me too?��


    ��Everything you��re doing is incomprehensible,�� the Evil Emperor said. He had wanted to follow the strong side, which was the Human Ancestor. Everything had been decided already, but at this moment, he started feeling belated fear. If the Human Ancestor achieved his ��ideal�� world, what would it be like?


    ��I spent countless years and ages to comprehend the ultimate ��path.�� It is very typical for you not to be able to comprehend it. I do not need you to understand either,�� the Human Ancestor said. ��I am known as the Human Ancestor. Thus, I will reshape the world order today.��


    The Human Ancestor��the ancestor of humankind. After he reshaped the world order, he would be the first ancestor of the new world��s humans. There would be generation after generation with no end.


    Boom! Beams of divine light dropped down, falling onto everyone��s bodies. At that moment, all the cultivators felt their consciousnesses and minds become muddled. It was like a horrifying intent was trying to invade them and take over their bodies directly.


    Even Ye Futian felt this horrifying strength. In his mind, he saw a boundless and domineering face invading with the might of the Heavenly Path.


    Boom, boom, boom�� Beams of frightening Divine Power burst forth. Divine Power flared crazily from the ancient figures whom the Human Ancestor had revived and brought back. Their eyes became extremely demonic as if they were no longer themselves. They released Divine Power crazily as they attacked the fighters.


    ��Turns out the ancient emperors being revived was all a sham. They��re all puppets controlled by the Human Ancestor.�� Everyone understood now after seeing this scene.


    Ye Futian broke free from the state, and he yelled, ��Careful.��


    This voice reverberated in everyone��s eardrums like a ringing bell. It helped everyone maintain clarity in their minds, but even so, several Great Emperors around them still suffered from the sudden attack.


    At this time, strong Divine Power enveloped the vast space, covering all the cultivators. It was Hua Jieyu��s Divine Power of Colorless Realm. All the strong figures bathed in the Divine Power of Colorless Realm and blocked off the invasion of that intent.


    Poof! Just then, there was a crisp sound. Ye Futian looked back toward a certain direction, and he saw that in that place, shock appeared in the Evil Emperor��s eyes. There was a golden spear in his body. The horrifying spatial Divine Power was distorting the space.


    ��This is the consequence of betraying,�� a voice came from the silhouette. Then the space twisted and shattered wildly. The Evil Emperor��s body exploded directly, turning into nothingness in the distorted space windstorm. He was killed directly.


    ��Human Ancestor!��


    Everyone��s hearts pounded. The Devil Emperor and Dark Sovereign looked at the figure who had killed the Evil Emperor. It was an ancient emperor, but right now, he had become the clone of the Human Ancestor. He was a puppet.


    The Human Ancestor could come to the world by using them.


    This had already been proven. The Human Ancestor that Ye Futian had killed earlier was exactly like this.


    However, coming to this world by using the body of a puppet made the Human Ancestor even more frightening.


    As one of the Six Emperors, the Evil Emperor had been one of the most supreme beings, but he had been killed directly. It was also with the spatial power that he himself had been skilled at. The Human Ancestor had truly touched the source of all. Just as he said, he was a god of creation. Divine Power was no longer necessary because he represented the law.


    Ye Futian trained his eyes on that side. Extremely powerful Divine Power descended instantly, shrouding the other��s body. The Evil Emperor had shown the responsibility as one of the Six Emperors by realizing the end, but he was killed so quickly because of this.


    That figure stared at Ye Futian with disdain and mockery in his eyes.


    Boom! Ye Futian��s body vanished from the spot. He stabbed his spear out unwaveringly. Time came to a stop. The other was unmoving. The spear penetrated the other��s body directly, and he was annihilated instantly, killed instantly.


    However, Ye Futian did not relax at all. This was only a clone, while the Human Ancestor could descend at will, appearing anywhere. Those ancient emperors were all his puppets and could all become his incarnates.


    This even made Ye Futian feel fear. Who could stop the Human Ancestor, other than him?


    If the Human Ancestor��s incarnates killed the others, who would be able to stop him.


    Thinking of this, Ye Futian��s Divine Power instantly shrouded the vast space, covering all the battlefields with his divine thought. He sensed a commotion in one direction, and his expression changed with shock. With a thought, he pushed his Divine Power to the max. Everything seemed to stop, but a frightening figure was still shooting toward Hua Jieyu.


    Hua Jieyu had released the Divine Power of Colorless Realm, attracting the Human Ancestor��s attention, and thus became the target that the Human Ancestor wanted to kill the most.


    Boom! In that space, Ye Futian��s speed reached his maximum limit, moving like a shooting star.


    Poof�� The attack missed. It stabbed into where Hua Jieyu had been standing, but Hua Jieyu��s body had disappeared. She was standing at another point with Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian��s heart pounded, feeling the aftershock. He trained his eyes on the figure in the lower sky. If he had been an instant slower, Hua Jieyu might have died in the hands of the Human Ancestor. Even now, everyone was still in danger!

 Chapter 2948 - The Ultimate Battle (6)

    ��All of you come back,�� Ye Futian announced loudly, calling for all the fighters to return to his side.


    At the same time, his Divine Power enveloped the vast space, raising his guard against the other.


    ��It is meaningless.�� The voice traveled from the dome of the sky, and a face appeared in the Heavenly Path. Then limitless divine light shone down. It converged in one place. There, a humanoid figure gradually appeared. This figure did not seem real. It was an incredibly perfect person. Every part of the body was translucent��it was carved from the Heavenly Path and had no flaws.


    ��I gave you all chances, but since you did not treasure it, you will disappear now. Become a part of the world,�� the Human Ancestor said. He did not believe in gods and did not believe in any person. He only believed in himself.


    It was only absolutely real if everything was grasped in his own hands. Even if he created a world of gods, he still wanted to control all the gods. Everything in the world had to operate under his wishes.


    The perfect figure that had appeared bathed under the divine light of the Heavenly Path. He lowered his head and gazed at Ye Futian. His eyes were extremely frightening. It was like he could enter Ye Futian��s mind with only one glance and rob his control over his body.


    The other��s figure was projected in Ye Futian��s mind. He seemed to see the sky and also all the organisms. It was the entire Human Realm.


    The Human Ancestor was no longer a pure ��human�� cultivator; he was a different species.


    ��Surrender!�� the Human Ancestor said. His voice shook the world. Ye Futian showed signs of lowering his head to bow down to the other. This was a supreme intent��the intent of the Heavenly Path.


    This is my world! A thought appeared in Ye Futian��s mind. He locked the other��s intent in his world and then destroyed it. However, at practically the same time, an extremely dangerous aura descended. The Human Ancestor attacked while holding the Sword of Law. It contained extremely frightening Divine Power; everything in the world was about to be destroyed.


    Ye Futian looked up at the other. Everything in the surrounding world froze. All the Divine Power stopped flowing.


    However, he could not stop the other��s actions. The Human Ancestor��s body was still descending. Even the Divine Power of Law of Time could not block his sword. His Law of Sword surpassed that of time and could shatter the time and space here directly. The Divine Power of Time did not have a form, but even so, Ye Futian could still clearly feel that time was collapsing.


    Ye Futian tightened his grasp on the spear. When one reached the level that he and the Human Ancestor were at, everything returned to the basics. Those brilliant divine techniques all lost their meaning. It was a clash of the most primitive forces.


    Boom! His body transformed into the Path and advanced. His spear broke through the air. This spear seemed to carry the force of a universe gathered on the spear. It could shatter every physical item in the universe. If it hit a world, it could be destroyed directly.


    And at that moment, there was only one figure before them.


    The instant that two streaks of light shot out, everything in the surroundings went still. Even the two streaks seemed like simple attacks; everyone sensed how frightening the one blow was. It was like time was suffering formless restrictions, and they could not move. The Human Ancestor and Ye Futian were all above their levels.


    Finally, the two attacks crashed into each other. It felt like a long time had passed.


    There was no intense explosion. This collision was already above the Law of Time and had also surpassed sound. Everyone felt the absolute stillness. They could hear their own heartbeats.


    After that, the entire world in that area collapsed and shattered. It crumbled into nothingness in that instant. Everything no longer existed.


    The strong figures of the Great Emperor Plane nearby all retreated quickly, releasing their Divine Power wildly to fend off the corrosion from that destructive force. But despite this, some people were still heavily injured.


    Ye Futian was in the center of the battlefield. He felt the world inside his body collapsing and shattering. Many buildings in his Micro Heavenly Path World were collapsing, cracks appeared in the mountains, and the sea was roaring. It was like experiencing a tribulation.


    His body was forced to an extremely faraway place, and he let out a muffled grunt from his lips. The space around him had already crumbled and turned into nothingness.


    The perfect body that the Human Ancestor had formed also shattered, turning illusory. However, as divine light shone down from the heavens, that broken figure reformed and was reborn. It seemed to be eternal and undying.


    Boom! Right then, a beam of extremely aggressive sword light hacked down, cracking the world. It cut down at the Heavenly Path. Billions of devil tribulations were released with the sword light, ripping through every existence. It was about to rip apart and destroy that part of the sky.


    This was done by the Devil Emperor. In ancient times, the Heavenly Path had managed the world law and had a consciousness. The Human Ancestor had cultivated in ancient times, and now, he had become the Heavenly Path. In that case, killing his incarnate was no longer meaningful. They could only kill the Human Ancestor by shattering the heavens, like in ancient times.


    The Human Ancestor turned and looked at the Devil Emperor. Scorn flashed past his eyes. Suddenly, countless beams of tribulation light dropped from the Heavenly Path, shooting murderously toward the Devil Emperor. At the same time, the huge face stared at the Devil Emperor, invading the Devil Emperor��s mind.


    The Devil Emperor��s body was frozen there, but his eyes continued bursting with a really shocking demonic light. His body had turned into a tribulation form, and he uttered devilish sounds that circled up in the sky. Abruptly, light from billions of demonic tribulations swept up the heavens, wanting to cut apart that Heavenly Path. At that moment, the cultivators in the lower sky saw limitless tribulation light pass through the sky and ravage crazily in the sky.


    ��Suicide,�� the perfect incarnation of the Human Ancestor, uttered. The next moment, his body vanished. A Sword of Law stabbed through the Devil Emperor��s body directly. The strength of the tribulation light weakened immediately, and the Devil Emperor��s magnificent body started breaking apart.


    ��Bang!�� The Devil Emperor��s body transformed into nothingness and flew into the distance. The Human Ancestor gazed at the side coldly. However, a moment later, the Devil Emperor��s broken body rematerialized. A beam of divine light wrapped around his body so he would not die.


    ��Go!�� Ye Futian cried out. The Human Ancestor did not plan on letting him go. Another beam of world-slaying light dropped from the sky, transforming into the Spear of Destruction. It was like the Dark Sovereign��s ability. It could penetrate the emperor directly and pierced the Devil Emperor��s body.


    But at the same time, a silhouette escaped and left. There was a huge boom and the Devil Emperor��s physical body shattered, but his divine soul was not extinguished. Instead, it turned and escaped.


    The Human Ancestor wanted to continue killing it, but Ye Futian blocked him. He raised a palm. Golden light wrapped around him and pushed up the sky, blocking that attack.


    Everyone felt a bit of despair. The Human Ancestor had returned as the Path. He was undying, and it was impossible to kill him.


    In the distance, Lady Qin and Lady Shu at Donghuang the Great, but Donghuang the Great shook his head at them!

 Chapter 2949 - Become the Path

    ��It��s effective!��


    Ye Futian looked up at the Heavenly Path. Back when the Heavenly Path had collapsed in the ancient war of gods, it had meant that the Heavenly Path was not undefeatable. The Human Ancestor was not either.


    The Devil Emperor��s previous attack had been effective, and it caused the Human Ancestor to grow furious.


    However, the Devil Emperor had also paid a heavy price. He had used two lives in exchange for having his spirit soul escape.


    ��You are all looking for death,�� a cold voice sounded from the dome of the sky. Then doomsday divine tribulations descended from the sky. Beams of the destructive divine light of law shone down, shooting toward Ye Futian and the other emperors.


    Then Ye Futian��s body flashed, going up to the sky. An extremely frightening beam of divine light shot from his body and crossed the sky, piercing into the heavens. Instantly, it was as if the flow of time in the heavens slowed down. Then the space began distorting and collapsing.


    Ye Futian��s body transformed into a beam of light and went upward. The beam of light crossed over the sky in an extremely brilliant manner. Holding the spear, he stabbed into the heavens. The glow of the spear penetrated it, seeming to spear the heavens. The space inside collapsed and shattered, suffering from extreme destructiveness.


    At that moment, the sky of the Human Realm also collapsed and shattered crazily, but a frightening silhouette appeared. It stared at Ye Futian.


    ��Let us end now,�� that silhouette said. As soon as he spoke, countless beams of the divine light of law fell, hitting Ye Futian��s body. At that moment, Ye Futian could only feel supreme energy going through his body, penetrating his spirit soul. No one could endure the impact of this terrifying energy.


    The world inside Ye Futian��s body was collapsing and breaking crazily. He spat out fresh blood, and his body was forced to an extremely faraway place. His physical body was about to collapse, and his spirit soul was breaking and extinguishing too. It was like his entire being was disintegrating and would soon stop existing.


    Bang! With a loud bang, Ye Futian��s body was shaken apart. This scene shocked Donghuang the Great and the others. Their eyes stared in Ye Futian��s direction, and many people had hopeless expressions.


    Had Ye Futian been by the Human Ancestor?


    ��Hmph!�� A cold huff came from the heavens. That Heavenly Path had been damaged too. He had only returned after waiting for centuries and did not think that someone could pose a threat to him today.


    The destructive force of the law converged. He was going to kill everyone.


    ��Huh?�� At that time, many people gaped and looked towards Ye Futian��s side. They watched as Ye Futian��s broken spirit soul actually started rejoining. His physical body was converging and reforming as if he also had an undying body.


    This made the Human Ancestor let out a surprised noise. Then another gust of extremely frightening energy started gathering. He wanted to kill Ye Futian again.


    Donghuang the Great looked at Ye Futian and his body transformed into a blinding streak of light. He rushed toward the Heavenly Path. After he entered it, his entire person turned illusory. A mighty Divine Power spread out. It was the Power of the Void.


    ��Transform!�� Donghuang the Great uttered. His body became the Path, and everything surrounding him turned into nothingness. That part of the heaven kept dissipating as if it would be eradicated and disappear under the Divine Power of Donghuang the Great until it no longer existed.


    ��Father!�� Ye Futian looked up to the dome of the sky, his heart twisting painfully. His father had always wanted to comprehend the ultimate Divine Power. The Void was indeed one of the top Divine Powers. It could make everything turn into nothingness.


    But Ye Futian felt vaguely that even though his father had comprehended the Path of the Void, it was still not enough. He was not strong enough to destroy that Heavenly Path. The Human Ancestor had transformed the Path for countless years, and there was still a big difference.


    His attack earlier with the Path of Time had also been extreme, and he believed that in terms of force, it was an ultimate force too. It could make time and space collapse, but it still could not kill the Human Ancestor.


    Hua Jieyu also moved toward the dome of the sky. Her dress fluttered as she released the Divine Power of the Colorless Realm to the max. It seeped into that part of the sky, wanting to lock up the Human Ancestor. The Dark Sovereign also attacked. The light of doomsday burst from her body, shooting toward the sky.


    Everyone was unleashing their strongest attacks to destroy the Heavenly Path.


    That part of the heavens collapsed and shattered crazily. Chaotic law and order rained down, and destructive currents went wild in the sky.


    ��You think this will work?�� the cold voice said from the heavens, making everyone feel chills over their body.


    Countless beams of destructive light penetrated the body of Donghuang the Great. Under the blow of the horrifying energy, even the Divine Power of the Void lost effectiveness. Donghuang the Great��s body was destroyed and disappeared. He died in the dome of the sky. The others who had attacked suffered extremely terrifying blows and were sent flying back, even getting heavily hurt.


    ��History will not repeat.�� An extremely cold voice streamed from the heavens. That frightening face was extremely cold, thinking back to the past two experiences. This time, he used the lessons he had learned and did not panic. He was stronger than any previous times, returning in whole and without flaws. He was perfect and had become the true Heavenly Path. He was undying and unkillable. No one could ever defeat him again.


    Even so, he still encountered quite some trouble. This made him feel blasphemed.


    However, everything was about to end. He was the ultimate god.


    ��Father.�� Ye Futian looked at the disappeared figure of Donghuang the Great. After comprehending the Ultimate Path of the Void, his father had transformed into the path to destroy the Human Ancestor, but he had still failed.


    ��Your Majesty.��


    The String Emperor and Book Deity also looked toward the vanished figure. After their master had passed away, had Donghuang the Great passed away too?


    Then, who could stop the Human Ancestor?


    Destructive doomsday might radiated out of the heavens. The Human Ancestor would not give them the chance to lament. He wanted to kill everyone.


    Beams of divine light shot down murderously, going towards Ye Futian and the others, and were about to hit their targets.


    But just then, a formless force swept across, and the entire world seemed to freeze at that moment. Even the Human Ancestor��s attack seemed to stop.


    Ye Futian felt that an invisible force shrouded the entire world at that moment. He could vaguely sense golden light, but that was illusory and not real.


    ��This is time!��


    That idea flashed through Ye Futian��s mind.


    ��Who is it?��


    ��Futian.��


    At that time, a voice spoke, and in Ye Futian��s perceptions, he saw a figure.


    ��Master!��


    The figure in Ye Futian��s perceptions was his teacher.


    ��The Human Ancestor has already become the Path. He is undefeatable by human force. If you wish to defeat him, there is only one path,�� the master said to Ye Futian.


    ��Please advise me,�� Ye Futian said.


    ��Become the Path,�� the master replied.


    ��Become the Path!�� Ye Futian murmured. ��Master, have you become the Path already?��


    ��I have always been imprisoned in Time. Not long ago, I finally had some enlightenment. I can help you trap him for some time, but the specifics of what to do depends on yourself.��

 Chapter 2950 - Destiny

    ��Who are you?�� a cold voice streamed from the dome of the sky. Incredible destructive force exploded, but it had no target. Everything was in a formless state.


    The Human Ancestor smelted the world and turned his body into the Heavenly Path. He controlled all of the material energy and comprehended the force of the original source. He himself represented the Law; he was undying and unable to be killed. But at this moment, he was trapped in the formlessness.


    ��I came from that era, just like you,�� the voice replied.


    ��Time!�� The Human Ancestor had never paid attention to the teacher of the Four Corners Village. To him, he was just an ancient emperor and not even a complete body. He had collected too many ancient emperors like him. It was not surprising that Donghuang the Great could meet one. He had not cared at all.


    As the Human Ancestor, he was already standing at the pinnacle of the world and had become the Path. Indeed, he did not need to care, but he had never expected that the existence he had overlooked was now restraining him.


    ��You are the Time Walker, Mu Feng.�� The Human Ancestor��s voice was filled with shock.


    ��It seems that you are very knowledgeable about the ancient Great Emperors,�� the master replied. ��Back then, the collapse of the Heavenly Path already put the world through tribulations. I am sure that you were a victim too. Since you already reached this cultivation state, why are you repeating it?��


    The Human Ancestor did not answer. Instead, he said, ��Why did you not die?��


    All the gods had died under the Heavenly Path. The Time Walker had also been a Super Great Emperor. How come he had not died and still lived until today��s world?


    ��I was trapped in Time and survived with luck,�� the master said.


    ��Since you could also become the Path and return today, why are you taking the other side?�� The Human Ancestor��s voice was cold and carried a threatening feeling.


    ��After the Heavenly Path collapsed, the world experienced tribulations of doomsday. After countless years, it is time for a new era, and it is not the era you want,�� the master continued to say. Everyone could hear their conversation clearly. They could even feel the destructive windstorm that the Human Ancestor released, but it could not threaten them. That force seemed to be existing in a different dimension than them.


    ��Master has a deeper understanding of time than me,�� Ye Futian thought inside. If he were to defeat the Human Ancestor, he would have to become the Path. His father had become the Path of the Void but still could not kill the Human Ancestor. Master seemed to have become the Path now too.


    Then how should he become the Path?


    ��Young Master,�� a voice said. The String Emperor walked towards Ye Futian.


    ��Lady Qin, Lady Shu.�� Ye Futian looked at the two. The String Emperor seemed to have something to say to him.


    ��Actually, your mother knew back then that if she wanted to kill the Human Ancestor, she could only be like him, but if you become the Path, you will no longer be yourself. You will only be the Path.�� Lady Qin looked at Ye Futian. She seemed to be pained as she spoke.


    Ye Futian understood instantly. Back then, the eight legions under the Heavenly Path controlled the law of the world, but the Heavenly Path was only the law. It did not have a true form. The Human Ancestor was the same. After he became the Path, he no longer truly existed. Only his consciousness existed.


    After his mother became the Heavenly Path, she disappeared and stopped existing.


    So if he became the Path��


    ��Young Master, with your current cultivation, you might be able to reach the supreme level even without becoming the Path and surpass the Human Ancestor,�� the String Emperor continued to say. ��You already created the Heavenly Path World, and you��re practically undying and immortal. You can travel across universes. Leave here and cultivate in another world. You can return and kill the Human Ancestor in the future.��


    Ye Futian seemed to understand something from her words and asked, ��Did Father know this too?��


    The String Emperor��s eyes dulled, and then she nodded.


    ��Your father was like your mother,�� the String Emperor said. ��They both had very resolute beliefs. They wanted to return to the glory of the ancient era and let everyone have an unrestricted cultivation world. They had worked hard for that too, but after losing your mother, you were the only one that your father had. Thus, he always felt that he owed you. As long as there is a shred of hope, he would not want you to sacrifice yourself for this ideal.��


    ��So he chose to use himself as a gambling chip?�� Ye Futian looked up to the dome of the sky and said, ��Because of me, his resolute faith started swaying.��


    ��Perhaps, that is the only time he swayed,�� the String Emperor said. ��He hoped you could live.��


    Naturally, Ye Futian understood. If he lived to leave in defeat from today��s battle, the world would undergo tribulations and suffer world-ending disasters. Even so, Donghuang the Great had chosen to keep it from him, not telling him.


    Perhaps, this was Donghuang the Great��s selfishness as a father.


    Ye Futian lowered his head and looked down. His eyes seemed to penetrate the vast world. He saw the tribulations of the Human Realm and the Heaven Realm. All of the seven realms were going through tribulations.


    And this was only the beginning. If the Human Ancestor ruled over the world, he would destroy everything, upend everything. He wanted to create a world of gods, but they had to be gods that he controlled. He wanted to become the absolute ruler.


    ��I know what to do now,�� Ye Futian said. He raised his head and looked toward the Human Ancestor with extremely resolute eyes. Even if this battle were not for the masses, it would be for his grandfather whom he had never met, his mother who had died to give birth to him, his father Donghuang the Great, the Devil Emperor, and others. He could not let the Human Ancestor remain in this world.


    He could bring the people around him and escape freely, leaving this world, but who would take revenge for all this?


    Countless people from the six legions had died in this battle, including those from the Ziwei Imperial Palace and those under the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Who would take revenge for their lives?


    These people had fought for their faith. Some had also fought for him. He was their faith.


    Countless eyes fell upon Ye Futian��s body. Hua Jieyu, Gu Dongliu, Yu Wuchen�� All of these familiar faces. They had heard the previous conversation and knew what was going to happen, but no one spoke.


    No one was qualified to decide for Ye Futian.


    This was his destiny.


    Turning around, Ye Futian did not meet those pairs of eyes. He was afraid that he would hesitate. With one thought, his body vanished from the spot and left this place.


    Seeing him leave, this part of the heavens was deathly silent.


    ��Even if I become the Path, I will still exist, won��t I?�� a voice sounded, landing in everyone��s ears. It was comforting them all. This voice penetrated their hearts, and tears appeared in many people��s eyes.


    Donghuang Diyuan stood on the side and looked toward the disappeared figure. There were tears in her pretty eyes. Her second father had died in battle too.


    She had learned of Ye Futian from a very young age, and she had met Ye Futian when she was 16 years old. Even though Ye Futian did not know her identity, he had always existed in her life.


    Was everyone in her life going to leave her?


    ��Diyuan!��


    The String Emperor and Book Deity walked to Donghuang Diyuan��s side, comforting her softly. To them, Donghuang Diyuan was also their child, just like Ye Futian!

 Chapter 2951 - Become the Path

    The strong figures in the Devil Imperial Palace of the Devil World saw the figure that had floated over and felt immense pain in their hearts.


    ��Your Majesty,�� they called out, only to hear the Devil Emperor say, ��From today on, Yu Sheng will inherit the position of the Devil World��s Devil Emperor. All strong figures of the Devil World must obey the orders of the new emperor.��


    The solemn voice resonated throughout the dome of the sky. All the devil cultivators of the Devil World knelt onto the ground and cried out loudly, ��Your Majesty the Devil Emperor.��


    The Devil Emperor looked at all those figures. Then he turned around and walked toward the Devil Abyss. His backside was filled with bleakness.


    After entering the Devil Abyss, he went straight to the center of the Devil Abyss. He had been carrying the responsibility of the Devil Abyss for all these years, and today, he could finally be freed.


    His body turned illusory, but it also expanded, becoming larger and larger. The boundlessly huge figure melded into the Devil Abyss, becoming one with the tribulations of the Devil Abyss.


    Yu Sheng, who was currently cultivating in the Devil Abyss, seemed to sense something. His dark eyes opened. Then Yu Sheng saw the entire Devil Abyss seemed to transform into a face��the face of the Devil Emperor.


    ��Yu Sheng,�� the Devil Emperor��s voice traveled into his mind, ��back then, the Devil Abyss had been a force equal to the Heavenly Path. Similarly, it also contains its own consciousness. However, it lost in the right against the Heavenly Path and was reduced to a prison. It nurtured the Demonic Lord and helped the Devil Abyss fight against the Heavenly Path. Countless years have passed, and I am still unable to control the power of the Devil Abyss. You absorbed the intent of the Demonic Lord and can already resonate with the Devil Abyss. Today, I will help you. After melding into the Devil Abyss, I will become a shred of the Devil Abyss��s consciousness. I hope you can control the Devil Abyss, just like the Demonic Lord, and help the people of the Devil World to stop suffering the hardships of the Devil Abyss. Instead, they can use it for their cultivation.��


    Hearing the Devil Emperor��s words, Yu Sheng��s expression suddenly changed. ��I can control the Devil Abyss without you,�� he said.


    ��There is no time,�� the Devil Emperor said. As he spoke, his body became more and more illusory, as if it could disappear at any moment.


    ��Uncle!�� Yu Sheng cried, standing up. ��I do not agree.��


    When he spoke, the entire Devil Abyss trembled, his voice resounding throughout.


    ��This is my destiny. For countless years, I have always been enduring the pain of the Devil Abyss, and it��s time for me to be freed,�� the Devil Emperor said. ��Yu Sheng, I have never pleaded to anyone in my life, but I must ask something of you.��


    Yu Sheng��s heart twisted as he looked at that face.


    ��For countless years, the cultivators of the Devil World have always carried the shameful status of prisoners. However, the masses of the Devil World are all strong and righteous people. Your father had his own beliefs. I do not blame him for his choice, but he made the mistake of bowing down to the others and bending his spine.��


    The Devil Emperor continued, ��Not long ago, the Human Ancestor used the Devil World to threaten me into participating in the battle. I was forced to join in, but the Devil World will never surrender. Thus, I finally chose to fight against the Human Ancestor. I do not regret it. This was not for all the beings in the world because the world has nothing to do with me. Similarly, it��s not for your father and the others. Instead, it is for the Devil World. Next, the Human Ancestor and Ye Futian will have an ultimate duel. If you can manage the Devil Abyss, you should also take part. If you are defeated, then you will die in battle. If you succeed, the Devil World will be equal to them and create a new world together. What I ask of you is to never submit under another person. You are the kind of the Devil World.��


    Yu Sheng��s eyes reddened. He was a true man, but he still grew tearful. The Devil Emperor had never pleaded to anyone in his life, but he was asking him to be the Devil World��s king. He could die in battle, but he should never surrender.


    The Devil World had been known as prisoners for countless years. The Devil Emperor did not wish for the Devil World to continue being the lower caste in the future and be submissive to others. If the king of the Devil World bowed his head, then the cultivators of the Devil World would not be able to raise their heads.


    Thus, the Devil Emperor had fought against the Human Ancestor, and he asked Yu Sheng to fight the Human Ancestor. He wanted the Devil World to stand upright and legitimately in the world. If they were to create a new world, the Devil World should be equal to the others as well.


    Yu Sheng naturally understood that the Devil Emperor was talking about Ye Futian.


    The Devil Emperor asked this of him because he was clear about their relationship.


    ��I promise,�� Yu Sheng said solemnly. The Devil Emperor did not stop him from fighting alongside Ye Futian. He only had one request��for the king of the Devil World to never submit to someone else.


    ��The Devil World is yours now.�� After the Devil Emperor spoke, his body disappeared gradually, melding completely into the Devil Abyss. Horrifying demonic tribulations ravaged inside the Devil Abyss. There was no trace of the Devil Emperor anymore.


    But Yu Sheng could feel that the Devil Emperor was still here, guarding him and the Devil World with the Devil Abyss.


    ��


    Ye Futian��s figure appeared in the void of the Original Realm.


    At present, he could sense clearly that the Original Realm was not a complete world. After the Heavenly Path had collapsed back then, it became known as the Void Realm.


    And now, he had returned to this land.


    To Ye Futian, the Original Realm was his homeland.


    Since he would become the Path, he naturally chose his homeland.


    The space was empty, and the void was endless. He was the only person here. Ye Futian seemed even more lonely in the darkness.


    ��I��m sorry.�� Many figures appeared in Ye Futian��s mind, and then he closed his eyes. The Micro World in his body started collapsing and caving in like crazy, transforming into a chaotic world. Ye Futian��s consciousness entered it, combining with the world of chaos.


    Boom�� With a loud boom, his physical body exploded into pieces. Many beams of light appeared in the endless darkness. These countless beams of light radiated out crazily, covering the darkness. In an instant, the light illuminated the entire mass of darkness and radiated out to the entire universe.


    The cultivators of the various continents and segmentums of the Original Realm all looked up to the sky. They saw a beam of light. In the faraway horizon, that beam of light illuminated the sky, shocking all of the cultivators. What had happened?


    The cultivators on all the continents stopped cultivating and walked out of their rooms. Countless people traveled through the air, gazing toward the dome of the heavens. They seemed to see a tree growing wildly in the universe enveloped in light. The tree seemed to be the tree of the universe, the tree of the world, growing between heaven and earth.


    The cultivators of the various continents suddenly felt something blinding. They raised their arms to cover their eyes. It was as if a formless beam of light swept over their bodies. They sensed the aura of the world, and it seemed that everything had changed, but they could not pinpoint what exactly was different.


    The tree in the universe gradually became illusory, as if it was fusing into the world, transforming into part of the universe.


    The former Gods�� Ruins Continent had become vibrant and full of life. There were many cultivators of the Renhuang Plane here. When they sensed the changes of the world, their hearts started pounding furiously. At that moment, they all looked up to the sky and bowed.


    Was this a miracle?


    Even a god or someone of the Great Emperor Plane would not be able to do this, right?


    Unless it was a supreme figure who completed the Path of the Original Realm today and would now have a complete Law of the Great Path.


    Who was doing all of this?

 Chapter 2952 - To Nothingness

    The people of the Original Realm gradually realized the changes of the world too.


    Meanwhile, Ye Futian perceived all of this. Of course, he no longer had a solid shape.


    After becoming the Path, he had no physical body, no cultivation plane, no life or death.


    He could truly sense the ��Path�� now. He was the Path. Everything in the world was him.


    He breathed with the universe. Every beam of light and every gust of wind were his breaths.


    He perceived all the beings and saw their surprise and joy.


    Quietly feeling all of this, Ye Futian gradually understood why he must become the Path. After becoming the Path, he became one with the heavens and one with the universe. Every strand of Qi flowing through the universe was him and the Path.


    Ye Futian sensed Qingzhou City. The Qingzhou City that had been hidden before reappeared now. A breeze blew by. Ye Futian seemed to have come to Qingzhou City. With a thought, a tree appeared beside Qingzhou Academy. It was full of vitality and had spirituality.


    If he were still defeated, this tree would be the trace he left behind.


    After that, Ye Futian continued to feel for everything in becoming the Path.


    Time passed bit by bit.


    The Human Realm, Human Ancestor, and entire Heaven Realm were trapped. They were still trapped in Time by his master.


    In the Human Realm, the Human Ancestor continued to absorb all the energy in the world, refining the Human Realm more completely. Even the Time Walker could not hold him back for too long. At that time, the Law of the Great Path in the Human Realm seemed to have melded into Time, slowly homogenizing. At the same time, a voice traveled from within, ��Walker, you and I are both ancient Great Emperors. Why must we fight? You cannot hold me back for long. Why don��t you rule this world with me?��


    ��Your fate has long been decided,�� Master said.


    ��What do you mean?�� the Human Ancestor said.


    ��To be annihilated or be swallowed,�� Master replied.


    ��I never believe in destiny or gods. I only believe in myself.�� The Human Ancestor��s voice was frigid.


    ��This is not destiny. It was what Time told me. Do not forget who I am,�� Master said quietly. His voice was calm. He was the Time Walker.


    The Human Ancestor suddenly lost his temper. The aggressive Law of the Great Path hit against the Time.


    ��You cannot stop me,�� the Human Ancestor said coldly. His aura spread toward the outside world.


    Right then, beams of tribulation light seeped into the space passageway between the Devil World and Human Realm, entering the Human Realm.


    The Human Ancestor sensed the situation on that side. Then countless beams of red light surged in from that direction, continuously entering the Human Realm. They were tribulations��tribulation forces of the apocalypse.


    In a concise time, endless blood-red tribulation light appeared in every corner of the Human Realm, rushing toward the Heavenly Path.


    Crack�� The apocalyptic attack rained down, and the Human Realm shook.


    ��The power of the Devil Abyss. Devil Emperor?�� the Human Ancestor said coldly. Even if he had control of the Devil Abyss, this was still suicide.


    The Human Ancestor��s mind twitched, and then countless beams of destructive light also rained down, countering the tribulations of the Devil Abyss. The entire Human Realm instantly transformed into a hellish world. All of the cities on the continents were filled with tribulation light.


    Yu Sheng��s figure appeared in the Human Realm. He was shrouded with limitless tribulation light, hefting the Divine Battleaxe of Creation. The battleaxe was wrapped in tribulation light, and his body was thousands of meters tall. He loomed over the world and hacked down at the Path that the Human Ancestor had become with his battleaxe.


    The battleaxe split apart the sky. The heavens were hacked apart, turning into two halves.


    But at the same time, a beam of destructive light dropped down, landing in the area that Yu Sheng was in. It made Yu Sheng��s spirit soul shake viciously as if it was about to disassemble.


    The battle shockwaves of the Devil World and Human Realm were so horrifying that even Ye Futian, who had become the Original Realm Heavenly Path, could feel them.


    ��Yu Sheng!��


    Ye Futian was still meditating, but he understood that he had to attack now. It would be impossible for Yu Sheng to defeat the Human Ancestor.


    Just as Ye Futian had predicted, Yu Sheng had come to fight in the Human Realm battlefield with the power of the Devil Abyss, but he still could not destroy the Human Ancestor. When Yu Sheng attacked with the Divine Battleaxe of Creation, countless pairs of eyes seemed to appear in the heavens. Each pair of eyes stared at Yu Sheng, locking onto him. Yu Sheng felt time and space become disorderly. He continued to hack down with his Divine Battleaxe of Creation, carrying the Devil Abyss and sweeping up to the heavens.


    However, a huge god appeared in the heavens. He sent out a punch, and the strength of an entire world was gathered on this fist. There were no additional movements, but this one punch could shatter a part of the sky.


    This punch passed through the world and sent Yu Sheng��s body flying back into the passageway and Devil World. Yu Sheng��s body was about to explode, but he had formed the Super Demonic Form, which was known as an undying form, and that was why he did not break apart. Even so, he still spat out a mouthful of blood. He was badly hurt.


    However, how many people in the world could survive a hit from the Human Ancestor?


    The Evil Emperor��one of the former Six Emperors��could not do it. The Devil Emperor could not do it quickly either, and Donghuang the Great had become the Path to fight but still died.


    ��If the Devil World wants to be wiped out, I can help you,�� the Human Ancestor announced. Mr. Time had left when Yu Sheng attacked, so the Human Ancestor was no longer restrained. However, while he was nurturing his strength, a loud explosive noise suddenly appeared. The entire Human Realm seemed to be collapsing and breaking apart continuously.


    A supreme and peerless Path was invading, wanting to destroy the entire Human Realm.


    The heavens of the Human Realm were being destroyed madly. The Human Ancestor knew that Ye Futian had become the Path and had returned to fight again. Ye Futian had become even more dangerous now. He was even stronger and had advanced further than his mother had.


    Countless beams of light from the Path penetrated the Human Realm, destroying all existences, destroying everything in this dimension.


    The Human Ancestor��s face appeared. His cold eyes stared at that side. With a thought, countless beams of destructive light also shot out murderously and clashed against the other lights. The world started cracking apart instantly. The Human Realm shook violently, and many frightening spatial cracks appeared.


    Earthquakes and tsunamis burst forth on countless cultivation continents, and the Tribulations of the Apocalypse rained down.


    Two faces appeared in the heavens��Ye Futian and the Human Ancestor��s faces, respectively.


    The entire Human Realm was collapsing and caving in crazily. That was the force that Ye Futian brought over. The power that could annihilate Time wanted to utterly destroy the Heavenly Path.


    ��Do you think you can destroy me like this?�� The Human Ancestor stared at Ye Futian and said, ��I came from the ancient times and had transformed into the Heavenly Path many years ago. I am an undying god.��


    ��The Human Realm has collapsed, and you will die too,�� Ye Futian replied.


    ��Really? My strength comes from the entire Human Realm.�� The Human Ancestor��s voice was cold. After he spoke, the collapse of space slowed down, and the entire world seemed to coagulate. A frightening world force was blocking everything.


    Kaboom�� Right then, Yu Sheng came again with the power of the Devil Abyss. Carried by the Devil Abyss, he hacked down at the Human Realm. The tribulations of the Devil Abyss instantly swept through the Human Realm, causing cracks to appear in the coagulated world.


    The Human Ancestor��s eyes were icy. He took a deep breath, and abruptly, every being and item in the Human Realm turned into energy that he could use.


    ��Annihilate!�� the Human Ancestor uttered. As soon as he spoke, an immense quaking swept forth, and all forces destroying the Time were extinguished. He carried the energy of the entire Human Realm and unleashed destructive shockwaves. Ye Futian felt that he was undergoing a powerful attack. The Path that he had become was shaken apart and destroyed. This god that had existed since the era of the Heavenly Path��s collapse was frighteningly strong.


    However, Ye Futian was also undying nowadays. He had returned as the Path and was practically an endless and undefeatable existence like the Human Ancestor.


    At this time, a beam of black light suddenly projected out of the Human Realm. It was an extreme black. It seemed as if it came from hell.


    This beam of black light hovered above the Human Realm. On the battlefield, the Human Ancestor seemed to sense the energy contained within and glanced at it. It was a black lotus. Strands of Qi emanated from the black lotus, transforming into a pitch-black figure. It was a young girl.


    When she appeared, she chanted words, and the surrounding world instantly darkened. It kept expanding, extending throughout the vast space until the entire world transformed into darkness. It was like it had been cursed.


    ��Qingyao.�� Ye Futian did not expect that Ye Qingyao would come to the battlefield. Had she already inherited the Power of Darkness?


    Plus, the power of death that Ye Qingyao carried was no longer the simple Divine power of Death. It was absolute darkness and destruction. She had belonged to darkness and destruction since birth, standing opposite of life and creation.


    The Human Ancestor sent down a beam of destructive light towards Ye Qingyao, but when it approached her, the destructive light actually faded and was extinguished.


    With Ye Qingyao��s body as the center, everything in the world fell into silence, returning to stillness. There was no vitality and everything was about to be annihilated.


    She walked forward. Everything in her path sank into absolute deathly stillness.


    She was going to bring death to the entire world.


    The Human Ancestor discovered that, under the patch of death, he was no longer able to borrow energy from the world. Everything returned to stillness. There was no energy that he could borrow.


    Boom�� Countless beams of apocalyptic light shot down murderously at Ye Qingyao, but a similarly frightening intent of the Path swept forth. It shrouded his power. Ye Futian had acted, causing the Human Ancestor��s attack to be shattered and destroyed.


    Soon, Ye Qingyao had walked to every corner of the world, spreading death across the vast world. Every place that had life was now under death and stillness.


    The tribulations of the Devil Abyss pierced into the Heavenly Path, dyeing the entire dome of the sky blood-red. Ye Futian��s mind twitched. The sky continued to collapse and shatter.


    The scene right now was like how the Heavenly Path had collapsed in the War of the Heavenly Path in the ancient times.


    ��How can you surpass death?�� The Human Ancestor��s voice filled the void. He was speaking to Ye Qingyao.


    ��I use darkness as my sacrifice and surpass darkness. Human Ancestor, you bestowed this upon me,�� a voice said. It was not Ye Qingyao��s figure, but the Dark Sovereign. She had sacrificed herself.


    ��Bastard!�� the Human Ancestor bellowed. Clearly, he also sensed the danger.


    ��You planned everything well, but today, it will come to nothing. Today, you will be destroyed,�� the Dark Sovereign��s voice rang out once again. Ye Futian descended madly with the Path, causing the Path created by the Human Ancestor to continue crumbling.


    The Human Ancestor��s face in the heavens twisted. He finally realized that he was not truly undying or undefeatable. He could also die. If the Heavenly Path shattered and everything returned to stillness, then he would also stop existing.


    The ancient Heavenly Path had collapsed in the Battle of the Gods. Naturally, he could as well.


    ��Ye Futian, I will rule the Human Realm and you will rule the Original Realm. We will not interfere with each other,�� the Human Ancestor��s voice streamed out. He seemed to be compromising, wanting to take a step back.


    Ye Futian ignored him. He was still destroying all of this.


    ��I control the most primitive power of the world and I��m extremely familiar with the nature of power. If you continue like this, you will accompany me in death,�� the Human Ancestor continued to say, but Ye Futian��s group was still unmoved.


    The three of them did not stop. They continued to destroy everything crazily. The Human Ancestor felt his power weakening continuously. His face became more twisted; he was seemingly struggling.


    ��Ye Futian, have you thought about the consequences if we all die here today?�� the Human Ancestor continued to threaten them.


    ��You must disappear,�� an unrefusable voice replied. Suddenly, the Human Ancestor started laughing uproariously. ��I plotted for so many years and thought it was just a game. I did not expect to be defeated today. But in this case, let everything be destroyed.��


    ��To Nothingness!��


    The instant the Human Ancestor spoke, Ye Futian suddenly felt extreme danger. All the remaining energy of the Human Realm exploded simultaneously in that instant. He could feel that when that energy exploded, everything would return to nothingness.


    It seemed to be the final state of his father��s ultimate Divine Power.


    The Human Ancestor��s face closed his eyes. Everything in his surroundings also turned to nothingness. That moment, he seemed to return to countless years ago when his mother and father were still there, raising him, and his master was teaching him cultivation.


    All of this had been destroyed in the war of the gods. He had lost everything.


    And now, everything was finally ending.


    Without Ye Futian having to attack again, everything in the world was reduced to nothingness. The Human Ancestor controlled the Heavenly Path. He comprehended creation and also comprehended destruction. Once he unleashed To Nothingness, everything would transform into nothingness, including himself.


    Ye Futian felt that his Path was scattering wildly too, turning into the void. He could not help but feel fear.


    Yu Sheng and Qingyao.


    The Power of Time enveloped the entire world, but it was useless. When everything was transformed into the void, there would be no time.


    Ye Futian used all of the intent from his Path to envelope Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao. In the span of a thought, he made his last-ditch effort. The next moment, his consciousness was also reduced to nothingness.


    The entire Human Realm disappeared. Under the Human Ancestor��s ultimate destructive force, everything was turned into the void. Everything in the Human Realm no longer existed. It was as if this universe and world had never existed.


    A long while later, a group of figures suddenly traveled through the air of this dead world, appearing in the void. Strands of Qi flowed from their bodies and gathered together, forming the Human Ancestor��s figure.


    ��I will return,�� the formed body said coldly. Ye Futian and the others should have gotten destroyed too, right?


    Only a sleeping consciousness should remain from the Heavenly Path of the Original Realm too. Who would be able to stop him in the future?


    ��You will not return again,�� another voice streamed out at this time. The Human Ancestor��s expression changed in shock. Then he saw a handsome and extraordinary figure appear before him.


    ��It��s you?�� the Human Ancestor said coldly, staring at that figure. He watched as the youth extended a hand. Instantly, a horrifying windstorm vortex appeared. The Human Ancestor and those figures were all swallowed into the windstorm.


    Watching the Human Ancestor disappear, the youth raised his head and glanced at the endless void. ��Avenging you has been my long-term obsession,�� he murmured to himself. ��Today, I returned it all to you!��

 Chapter 2953 - The Bragging Teacher

    One year later, the Original Realm was a complete world.


    The Heavenly Path no longer lacked anything. All life was thriving. The Divine Prefecture, Heaven Realm, World of Buddhism, and even the Dark World had combined with the Original Realm. They took up vast territories in the Original Realm, becoming super-forces. They had originally developed in the Original Realm, and when Ye Futian had become the Path, he had enveloped it all. Now, the realms all agreed for them to form a great world together.


    Nowadays, the world had many super-forces.


    The Heaven Realm was ruled by the String Emperor and Book Deity together. There were many gods below them.


    The Donghuang Imperial Palace was ruled by Donghuang Diyuan and had many Great Emperors under her.


    The Spirit Mountain was still managed by The Buddha and had many Buddhists under him.


    The Ziwei Imperial Palace was ruled by the old forces of the Ziwei Segmentum.


    Four Corner Village was a force that had belonged to the Divine Prefecture but now separated from them. They were independent of the Divine Prefecture and ruled by Ye Futian��s four main disciples.


    In the Dark Court, Ye Qingyao inherited the position of the new Dark Sovereign.


    There was another new super-force��the Heavenly Mandate Court. It was governed by Gu Dongliu and also had many strong figures of the Great Emperor Plane under him. The Heavenly Mandate Court was situated in the original Heavenly Mandate Realm, and they ruled the former 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, which was the homeland that Ye Futian had grown up in.


    They were like the eight legions of the former Heavenly Path, known as the seven great forces of the current Heavenly Path.


    The legion members who had participated in battle with Ye Futian back then who had not died all became the core members of the various great forces. They were all being trained as future Great Emperors.


    However, what was regretful was that the Heavenly Path had gone still. It had not appeared again after the battle between Ye Futian and the Human Ancestor.


    Nowadays, news of the battle from a year ago had already spread throughout the world. Ye Futian had become the Path, which was why they now had a new world. In the last moment, the Human Ancestor had returned everything to nothingness, destroying everything, including Ye Futian��s consciousness. In the most critical moment, Ye Futian had sent Yu Sheng and Ye Qingyao out of that dimension. At the same time, he and the Human Realm were destroyed together, ultimately turning into the void.


    However, Ye Futian had already become the Path. He was one with the Heavenly Path. As long as the Heavenly Path was not destroyed, Ye Futian would not die either.


    Some people guessed that only Ye Futian��s consciousness had been wiped, but he was still there within the Heavenly Path.


    Others guessed that Ye Futian was only in slumber and would awaken one day in the future.


    No matter what, everyone in the world was filled with gratitude toward Ye Futian. The battle from one year ago was like an apocalyptic battle. The beings of the world had been turned to ashes, and countless cultivators had died. If Ye Futian had not stopped this, the Human Ancestor might have truly destroyed the world.


    Ye Futian��s sacrifice for this had been to become the Path and protect the present world.


    One could say that Ye Futian had created this new world.


    Thus, the Heaven Court, Donghuang Imperial Palace, and other forces called the present world the ��Futian Era.�� Last year had been the first year of the Futian Calendar.


    The top seven forces of the world all believed in Ye Futian, and the people of the world were also filled with gratitude, so naturally, no one objected. They all accepted it.


    The current era was a new age. The period after the Heavenly Path had collapsed became known as the Age of Forbidden Gods. With Ye Futian as the Heavenly Path, it was a new era, and the Age of Gods had reappeared.


    Within one year, the various realms gradually recovered their liveliness.


    Under Donghuang Diyuan��s rule, order returned to the Divine Prefecture. The eighteen domains of the Divine Prefecture all had new rulers. Many of them were strong figures of the Great Emperor Plane. Of course, those who once had conflicts with Ye Futian had all stepped down from power. The Great Emperors of the Ancient God Clans who had not died in battle had all been dethroned by Donghuang Diyuan.


    Two huge statues stood atop the steps of the Donghuang Imperial Palace, rising into the sky. One was Donghuang the Great. The other was Emperor Ye Qing. The twin emperors were now guarding the Donghuang Imperial Palace as statues.


    Today, a few gods came to visit Donghuang Diyuan, but they were met with a closed door and did not get to see her.


    Donghuang Diyuan was rectifying and revitalizing the Divine Prefecture. She had given the order to make the martial arts of the Divine Prefecture prosper. After working on all of this, she rarely appeared in public.


    At the moment, Donghuang Diyuan was in the Great Emperor courtyard of the imperial palace. She sat quietly and listened while an elder sat on the ground beside her. He was telling her stories from many years ago.


    ��That boy was both smart and mischievous back then. The older disciples all protected their little brother. Thinking back now, that must have been the best times,�� the elder said with a smile. He was Mr. Du, whom Donghuang Diyuan had brought back to the Divine Prefecture that year.


    ��Then what? What else happened?�� Donghuang Diyuan asked.


    ��Your Majesty, would you still like to hear?�� Mr. Du asked. The majesty in question was sitting on the ground, her eyes flashing brightly. She seemed to be curious about these ancient stories, wanting to know everything. She did not seem like the current ruler of the Divine Prefecture at all.


    ��Yes.�� Donghuang Diyuan nodded thoughtfully.


    ��Sure.�� Mr. Du chuckled and continued telling those ancient stories. The main character of the stories was an 18-year-old boy. That era seemed to be long, long ago.


    ��


    Outside the Original Realm, in the void, a cultivator suddenly came to a stop. Divine light flashed on his body, and he had a shocking aura. This was a Super Great Emperor from ancient times.


    ��Should��ve lost her, right?�� he thought inside, cold light flashing past his eyes.


    But right at that moment, a dark figure appeared out of thin air. The void became even darker. A young girl��s face appeared. There were no emotions in her eyes as if she was one of the living dead. Seeing her appearance, the Great Emperor��s expression changed in shock. ��Everything is in the past,�� he said. ��Back then, the Human Ancestor had controlled everyone, and we were forced to participate in the battle. Why must you kill us all?��


    The girl reached out her hand. An illusory black lotus shrouded over the other��s body. In an instant, everything returned to deathly stillness. All the vitality of the Great Emperor from the ancient times evaporated instantly, returning to stillness. He fell quiet and then was swallowed by the black lotus until he turned to nothing.


    After killing him, the girl��s figure disappeared into the darkness.


    In the battle back then, Ye Futian had sent her and Yu Sheng out of the Human Realm. The Human Realm had been destroyed, and after that, Ye Qingyao and Yu Sheng started on the path of revenge. They killed practically all of the ancient Great Emperors who had participated in the battle. But even so, Ye Qingyao was still not satisfied. She wanted everyone to pay.


    Thus, those who had escaped would forever face her pursuit!


    ��


    The Heavenly Mandate Court controlled the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path and was situated in the original Heavenly Mandate Realm. The Heavenly Mandate Academy was under their control. This was where the Heavenly Mandate Court trained their juniors and disciples.


    In addition, the current 3,000 Realms of the Great Path was nothing like before. They would evolve soon.


    There was no reason other than the cultivators who had followed Ye Futian out before had all returned.


    Many of these people were strong figures in the Great Emperor Plane. Now that they returned to their homelands, they did not only return to cultivate. They were also responsible for teaching the Path. Ye Futian becoming the Path had created this new era, so they would also contribute their strength to the current world.


    Lord Taixuan, Emperor Nan, and many others returned to their original places to teach the Path. In addition, Dou Zhao, Xiao Muyu, and the others cultivated in the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms while taking up the position of Elder in the Heavenly Mandate Court.


    It went without saying how powerful the Nine Supreme Imperial Realms were.


    At the same time in the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path, Emperor Xia had also returned to Emperor Xia��s Realm, continuing to sit on the royal throne. He had wanted to pass it on to Xia Qingyuan, but Xia Qingyuan disagreed.


    Thus, a legend began to spread in Emperor Xia��s Realm that the princess of the realm was now a strong figure of the Great Emperor Plane. Over this past year, it was said that Xia Qingyuan had saved many people. She was the god of life and could revive people from death.


    In addition, there was another sword emperor in Lihen Palace��Swordmaster of Lihen.


    One could imagine how strong Emperor Xia��s Realm was.


    Furthermore, Emperor Xia��s Realm also had the Nine State Continent. According to legends, that was the homeland of Ye Futian, the master of the Heavenly Path.


    Dou Zhan and his group also returned to their homeland and rebuilt the Ultimate Holy Palace, continuing to teach the Path in the Nine State Continent.


    Even the Sword Saint returned to the Eastern Barren Territory, returning to the Cottage of Book Mountain. Fourth and fifth brothers returned as well, accompanying the First Brother. Second Sister and Third Brother stayed in the Heavenly Mandate Academy to govern the entire Divine Prefecture, so they were unable to return. They could only visit occasionally.


    ��


    The sounds of book recitations streamed out of a classroom in Qingzhou Academy of Qingzhou City.


    The youths were reading and writing in one of the classrooms. There was an extremely handsome middle-aged man at the lecture podium, though he already had white hair.


    ��The lesson ends here,�� the man said now with a smile.


    ��Yes, Teacher.�� The youths stood up and bowed. Then a mischievous boy asked the middle-aged man, ��Teacher, is the person in the legend you told us real? If I cultivate to the pinnacle, can I really move mountains and fill the seas?��


    ��Not only will you be able to move mountains and fill seas, you can even become the sun and moon,�� the man said with a smile.


    ��Teacher, have you seen it before?�� someone asked.


    ��Of course. One of my former students could do it,�� the man said, chuckling. ��His one eye could turn into the sun and the other could turn into the moon. He could spit out divine thunder from his mouth.��


    Hearing his words, uproarious laughter filled the classroom.


    ��Teacher, you��re so imaginative!�� a youth said while laughing loudly. His voice was innocent.


    ��You��re bragging too much.��


    ��Then Teacher, where is your student now?�� a girl asked innocently.


    ��He is omnipresent,�� the middle-aged man answered. The younglings obviously did not believe them. Even though their teacher was very attractive, his words were too exaggerated.


    ��Sister Nianyu!�� someone called to the figure outside the school. Hua Nianyu smiled and nodded. The children all swarmed over, surrounding Hua Nianyu. Hua Fengliu chuckled and then left the room alone.


    Outside, a white-haired elder looked at Hua Fengliu��s backside with ineffable respect in his eyes. It was even reverence. As the helmsman of the Qingzhou Academy, he had heard some legendary stories, while Hua Fengliu��s student was the creator of these legends.


    Nowadays, the teacher had brought his daughter back to Qingzhou Academy to teach the younger generation of disciples. He naturally understood what kind of honor this was.


    But could he still create another legend in the future?


    It was probably impossible. Perhaps, this was also the sustenance of the soul for the teacher!

 Chapter 2954 - : I am Willing to Become a Tree

    There was a simple residence beside Qingzhou Academy. Rich vegetation grew beside it. One of the trees was more eye-catching than the rest.


    According to the people of the academy, no one had noticed this tree before. It had not been attractive at all, but one day, it suddenly grew into a tree that reached for the sky. It was extremely leafy, and when a breeze blew past, the branches and leaves swayed as if they were alive.


    At the moment, graceful music streamed out from under the tree. It was lovely to the ears and every note pulsed, seeming to be full of emotion. The woman playing the instrument looked perfect and flawless. She seemed to be otherworldly, like one of the nine heavenly maidens, not mundane.


    Right then, another woman came out of the academy and came to this side. It was Hua Nianyu.


    She stopped and sat on a stone, supporting her chin with both hands. She listened to the music quietly. As if entering that beautiful artistic conception, a gorgeous image appeared in her mind. In the image, there was a peaceful little city, a beautiful lake, and a small boat swaying in the lake. A young man and woman were on the boat, hugging one another. Moonlight showered down, illuminating their bodies like a beautiful painting.


    A long while later, the music gradually stopped. The performer��Hua Jieyu��had a faint smile in her eyes. Her smile was extremely brilliant as if she had put herself in the artistic conception.


    One year ago, the String Emperor had wanted her to rule over the Heaven Court, but Hua Jieyu left instead. She returned to her homeland, Qingzhou City. Their most beautiful memories were here. After arriving in Qingzhou City, Hua Jieyu naturally discovered this large tree. She could sense Ye Futian��s aura from this tree.


    She knew that Ye Futian must have come back here too.


    Ever since then, Hua Jieyu built a yard here and would play her qin under the tree every day, living a life of seclusion and peace from the world.


    ��Sister,�� Hua Nianyu called with a smile, ��do you think Brother-in-law can hear your playing?��


    ��Of course he can.�� Hua Jieyu nodded seriously.


    ��Then he must be very happy too, knowing that you think of him so much every day,�� Hua Nianyu said, laughing.


    Hua Jieyu chuckled and said, ��Nianyu, you do not have to visit me every day. I feel peace here, and I am content.��


    She did not feel lonely while playing her instrument here every day because she knew that Ye Futian was here.


    ��Okay, I got it.�� Hua Nianyu nodded with a smile. She visited every day because naturally, she was worried that Hua Jieyu would feel lonely or sad. Even though she also felt sad, she never revealed it before her sister. She hoped that her sister could be happy.


    After Hua Nianyu left, Hua Jieyu continued to play her music. The pulsing music notes were like songs from heaven. They streamed into the tree, and the leaves on the tree rustled, seeming to dance with the music.


    But right then, the music came to an abrupt stop.


    Hua Jieyu looked to the front and saw a figure float over before her. It was also a beautiful woman. She landed softly, her eyes staring at the tree. She walked forward slowly, moving step by step toward that tree.


    When she stood under the tree, there were already translucent teardrops in the corner of her eyes.


    The woman reached out and touched the tree trunk. ��Is it you?�� she asked, voice trembling.


    Hua Jieyu watched this all quietly. Her gaze fell upon the woman who had arrived, and sadness also rose in her heart. ��Qingyuan, it��s him,�� she whispered.


    She naturally knew the feelings Xia Qingyuan had towards Ye Futian. Right now, she could feel that Xia Qingyuan��s emotions were the same as hers.


    Hearing Hua Jieyu��s voice, Xia Qingyuan��s tears started streaming down uncontrollably. Her hands trembled slightly as she seemed to caress Ye Futian��s body. Xia Qingyuan had been hiding her emotions and had never shown her feelings before Ye Futian. She had always loved him wordlessly and hid it in her heart.


    She could accept all of this too. Once, she had thought that when all of this ended, she would return to Emperor Xia��s Realm. She would be satisfied to watch Ye Futian reach the top and for all to be well.


    However, when everything ended, it had not been what she had imagined. Ye Futian had disappeared. Everyone said that he had died.


    Xia Qingyuan could not accept this result. This past year, she returned to Emperor Xia��s Realm and performed acts of kindness, saving people, but it was a way to numb herself. She was like a soulless body, only wanting to spread Ye Futian��s faith in this way.


    Not long ago, she wanted to come to visit Ye Futian��s homeland, see where he had grown up, and follow in his footsteps.


    However, after arriving here, she sensed a familiar aura. Thus, she came and saw the tree before her eyes.


    At this moment, she finally lost control of all the feelings built up in her heart. They burst out violently. She had kept these emotions hidden for years, not only one or two days.


    ��When did he come here?�� Xia Qingyuan asked Hua Jieyu, tears streaming from her eyes.


    ��He was here when I returned,�� Hua Jieyu answered. She walked to Xia Qingyuan��s side and hugged her gently. Xia Qingyuan did not recoil. She leaned into Hua Jieyu��s shoulder and cried. Only they could understand this kind of emotion. At this moment, their feelings were the same.


    ��Has he appeared before?�� Xia Qingyuan asked softly.


    Hua Jieyu shook her head. She worked hard to control her emotions as she smiled and said gently, ��Qingyuan, we can accompany him here together.��


    Xia Qingyuan looked at the big tree and asked, ��Can I?��


    ��Of course.�� Hua Jieyu nodded.


    ��Jieyu,�� Xia Qingyuan gazed at Hua Jieyu and said, ��I am willing to become a tree and accompany him here. I can withstand the wind and rain with him until he returns.��


    ��And if does not return?�� Hua Jieyu asked, voice trembling.


    ��Then I will accompany him forever.�� Xia Qingyuan��s teary eyes were so resolute.


    Unshed tears also appeared in Hua Jieyu��s eyes. She could no longer hold back.


    Looking at Xia Qingyuan��s eyes, tears flowed out, and she nodded, saying, ��Okay.��


    ��Thank you.�� A faint smile appeared on Xia Qingyuan��s lips. Then she walked to the tree��s side. Her body gradually dissolved, transforming into a tree of life to keep Ye Futian company.


    The branches of this tree of life kept swaying without stop, going toward the tree on its side. They intertwined, accompanying one another. Rustles came from the tree of life, seeming to cheer or sing. There was no sadness��only company.


    She was willing to become a tree and stay by his side, accompanying him as they experienced the wind and rain, experiencing the blazing sun and lightning. She felt no regrets at all. She could not stay by his side in life, but now, they could be companions for eternity. Was this not beautiful?


    Seeing all of this, tears flowed from Hua Jieyu��s face endlessly. A moment later, she sat down to play her instrument. The music notes pulsed as she began playing music again. But this time, the music was filled with sadness, throwing one into depression!

 Chapter 2955 - Wind Rises Again

    Ever since Ye Futian became the Path, the seven super forces governed the world��s law. Everything seemed to be at peace, but there were still some storms and waves.


    Especially for the seven great forces, they knew that the world still faced threats.


    Nowadays, as the rulers of the world law, they were responsible for safeguarding it and protecting the current world for Ye Futian.


    The City of the Ruins was a free city. It was one of the wealthiest main cities in the universe, filled with strong figures. The seven super forces established a mutual stronghold here, where they could arrive at any time. It was the former Ye Imperial Palace.


    There was a huge battle happening in the sky outside the Ye Imperial Palace, above the City of the Ruins.


    Two super-strong figures were facing one another in the sky. There were many top figures behind them too. They were all in the Great Emperor Plane.


    One of them had an unrestrained aura. It was Gu Dongliu. On the other hand, across from him was an elder in a beastly robe. He had very thick hair and a burlesque figure. He was short but was filled with an incomparably aggressive aura, like a wild beast. This was a Great Emperor of a beast clan.


    ��Everything is unstoppable now. You should follow the heaven��s orders so that you can be spared. If you continue your stubborn resistance, you will only meet death.�� The elder��s voice was like a grand bell, reverberating through the heavens and shaking the sky. Countless people in the City of the Ruins below looked up at the vast sky, feeling shaken inside.


    This elder was a super-strong figure who had come to the Original Realm. Two ancient emperors from the Ye Imperial Palace had died in his hands. This was why Gu Dongliu, ruler of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, had come personally.


    Gu Dongliu did not speak. Two beams of frightening divine light shot out of his eyes, transforming into battle swords that stabbed toward the elder.


    ��Hmph!�� the elder huffed coldly. Instantly, a huge demonic image appeared before his body. A horrifying demonic dragon walked out of it and ripped the sword apart.


    The elder��s gaze swept towards Gu Dongliu. Many demonic images appeared in the sky. In a moment, demonic Qi shook the heavens. These demonic images contained true dragons, divine phoenixes, Kirin, Xuanwu, Taotie, Chaos, and demons. They shrouded the sky and revolved around the land. Violent Qi shook the heavens. Even the Gods�� Ruins Continent that was extremely far away below could feel that overwhelming might, and the people��s hearts shuddered uncontrollably.


    Who was that elder? He was like the ancestor of the demon beast world. Every demon god image released an aura at the level of a demon monarch. It was exceedingly horrifying.


    Gu Dongliu glanced at him, and, with a thought, a huge grinding disc matrix appeared with him as the center. It covered and blocked out the sun. There were immortal monsters and demon gods on this great matrix. Powerful divine might exploded from the matrix, seeming to have supreme Divine Power from ancient times.


    The elder furrowed his brows and uttered a sound from his lips. Instantly, great demons burst out of the demon god images. They shook the world and ripped apart the void. However, at the same time, immortal monsters and demon gods also burst out of Gu Dongliu��s Divine Prefecture matrix.


    The great aggressive demons clashed violently, tearing apart each other��s bodies. Some demon gods descended from the sky, killing everything. There were also immortal deities holding sharp swords who stabbed into the sky. Everything was getting destroyed and charging toward the elder.


    The elder extended his arms. They were filled with limitless strength. He swung his arms and sent out an attack. The fist intent transformed into the power of ancient demon gods, shaking the heavens. It flattened everything and crushed the immortal demons.


    Gu Dongliu extended his hand, and instantly, countless runes appeared before the elder. There were only nine words in these countless symbols: power, direction, harmony, healing, premonition, knowing, dimension, creation, and enlightenment. These nine words became the Path. Every rune contained immense Divine Power as if Gu Dongliu��s silhouette was there.


    He lifted a finger, and instantly, the limitless ancient words shot towards the elder. The elder��s fist intent shattered the heavens and blasted toward the words, causing them to disintegrate. However, the words kept growing stronger. They were endless and forced the elder to keep retreating.


    Pow! Blood seeped out of the elder��s fist, and his arm trembled. Finally, an ancient word dropped down and ripped apart his fist, passing through his arm. His body wanted to retreat, but countless words fell at the same time, penetrating his body. Every rune contained immense Divine Power.


    Countless beams of light penetrated him at the same time. The elder��s body was annihilated at once, turning into dust. Gu Dongliu scanned the other strong figures and said coldly, ��All invaders will be killed without mercy.��


    As soon as he finished speaking, the words started down again. Many of these comers were top figures, but they were all killed on the spot.


    The battle ended not long after, but Gu Dongliu��s eyes did not seem relaxed. Instead, he seemed graver. He knew that many strong figures from the outside were hiding in this world. In fact, Super Great Emperors had started appearing among these people. The invading universe was very strong. If they invaded from all fronts one day, what would happen?


    It seemed that another horrible war would occur again!


    ��Send someone to watch the entrance and report up at any commotion,�� Gu Dongliu ordered.


    ��Yes, Your Majesty,�� someone said, accepting the order. Gu Dongliu led his group away.


    ��


    Heaven Realm, Heaven Court.


    Two figures stood atop the Heavenly Palace, gazing into the distance. These two were the String Emperor and Book Deity, who were governing the Heaven Realm now.


    But even though they were the rulers of the Heaven Realm, they did not feel happy at all.


    Everyone they were familiar with had died. The princess had left them that year, Donghuang the Great had been killed in battle, and their young master had gone too. It was like they had lost their emotional support. All they could do now was protect the new world that their young master had created.


    Kaboom�� Right then, an extremely horrifying aura suddenly appeared above the Heaven Court.


    ��Who is it?!��


    Many figures traveled through the air and looked toward the sky above the Heaven Court with serious eyes.


    That horrifying aura shrouded the entire Heaven Court. The frightening might weighed down. The String Emperor and Book Deity��s expressions were shocked, too, as they stared to that side.


    Who was coming to invade them?


    Boom! A beam of pitch-black divine light penetrated the Heaven Court directly, opening up an ancient path. Then a figure came out of it, hovering above the Heaven Court.


    This figure was extremely handsome. His eyes scanned the Heaven Court indifferently. Seeing him, many strong figures of the Heaven Court felt their hearts skip a beat. Many cultivators recognized this person.


    He was back!


    Yes, they had actually forgotten about him. He had not participated in that apocalyptic world. They did not know that even though he had not attended, he had appeared when the war ended.


    ��Me!�� He scanned the crowd and said, ��What, you don��t recognize me anymore?��


    Ji Wudao, the former heir of the Heaven Court and known as the modern Heavenly Emperor, had left after losing to Ye Futian. Now, he had returned to the Heaven Court.


    Great Skylords Black and White Almighty, the Four Heavenly Kings, the Nine Star Lords, and many strong figures in the Heaven Court had once viewed Ji Wudao as their master. Now that they saw he had returned, they felt very troubled feelings.


    The expressions of the String Emperor and Book Deity changed as well. Ji Wudao��s aura was now terrifying. He had been the princess��s disciple, but he had not been willing to aid the young master. His talent and abilities were also very frightening. The Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method that he cultivated was especially horrifying.


    ��Ji Wudao, why are you back?�� the String Emperor asked.


    ��Naturally, it is to take back what is mine,�� Ji Wudao answered, glancing at the String Emperor.


    ��What you had were all bestowed upon you by the princess, but you were too ambitious, so the later situation happened. The Heaven Realm was never yours,�� the String Emperor said, but Ji Wudao cut her off. A horrifying aura appeared in the dome of the sky. Looking at the String Emperor and Book Deity, he said, ��Seeing as you were her maids before, I will allow you a respectful death.��


    After he spoke, divine light descended from the sky and landed directly on the bodies of the String Emperor and Book Deity. Their Divine Powers erupted in an attempt to fight it off, but the gold divine light annihilated the space instantly. Their spirit souls scattered directly, and they died without being able to resist at all.


    The ��respectful death�� in Ji Wudao��s terms was that he did not swallow them up.


    The strong figures of the Heaven Court saw Ji Wudao��s aggression, and their expressions dropped. After returning, he had become even more terrifying. He was practically undefeatable.


    Ji Wudao looked down, and everyone in the Heaven Court became fearful. Then the Great Skylords Black and White Almighty bowed, announcing loudly, ��I pay my respects to the Heavenly Emperor.��


    ��I pay my respects to the Heavenly Emperor!�� the strong figures of the Heaven Court all said, one after another. Their voices rang through the void. Many people had initially followed Ji Wudao, after all. The situation had changed, and Ye Futian had died. It was logical that the Heavenly Emperor��s position would be returned to Ji Wudao!

 Chapter 2956 - Ji Wudaos Obsession

    Ji Wudao had returned to the Heaven Court and killed the String Emperor and Book Deity who had been ruling the Heavenly Realm. Afterward, he reorganized the forces of the Heaven Court, aggressively killing the people who were not willing to obey him. They had to choose to either follow him or die.


    In one night, the Heaven Court��s master changed. Ji Wudao became the new master of the Heavenly Realm, snatching back the position of the Heavenly Emperor.


    The other forces naturally received the news too. When they learned that Ji Wudao had returned and taken the Heavenly Realm, all the forces were shaken up.


    Ji Wudao had already been extremely strong back then. He had once attacked the Human Realm and was known as the monstrous figure of the world, equal to Ye Futian. Now that he had returned, he had killed the String Emperor and Book Deity easily, so he had definitely gotten stronger, but it was hard to guess what level he was at.


    ��Your Majesty, all the top figures of the Heavenly Realm have arrived,�� Black Almighty said.


    With his hands behind his back, Ji Wudao gazed into the distance and said, ��Those who died all contributed their strength to this world. They fought for their ideals and did not surrender today either. Their families and friends will not be affected after their deaths.��


    The strong figures behind him were shaken. With extreme fear, they lowered onto one knee and said, ��We all followed Your Majesty into war before. We always believed that the position of the Heavenly Emperor belonged to Your Majesty.��


    Ji Wudao said that those people did not surrender and seemed to vaguely respect them. Meanwhile, they were the traitors who were now obeying Ji Wudao.


    ��I know. I do not intend to blame you all,�� Ji Wudao said in response. However, Black and White Almighty knew why Ji Wudao was unwilling to approach the people who came to visit. Many of those people were not part of Ji Wudao��s old forces. Instead, they had surrendered. Clearly, to Ji Wudao, these people did not have the spirit that cultivators should have.


    ��I did not think that so many things happened after I left this world. The seven realms encountered such tribulations,�� Ji Wudao murmured, looking into the distance. After the defeat in battle that year, he used the passageway to the outside world and left this universe, going towards another world. After he returned, he witnessed the ultimate battle. He also saw that the Human Ancestor still wanted to be reborn and got swallowed by him.


    ��Your ploy was correct, and your choice was correct too. He did well��much better than I had imagined,�� Ji Wudao said, looking up to the sky. Behind him, Black and White Almighty and the others all felt shocked, but they remained in their kneeling posture and did not rise.


    The Ji Wudao that they knew was extremely arrogant and talented. He always saw himself as the future Heavenly Emperor and wanted to inherit the intent of his master. What he never imagined was that none of this was for him. Instead, it was for Ye Futian. Thus, he lost his mind. With Ji Wudao��s arrogance and pride, he was unable to accept this. That was why everything that followed happened.


    But today, Ji Wudao actually admitted with his own words that her choice had been correct. He gave recognition to her choice and to Ye Futian.


    Naturally, Ji Wudao also realized by now that she indeed was not selfish. She chose Ye Futian to be her own descendant because Ye Futian was the most suitable one. In the end, he had to become the Path to do it all. In a way, her choosing him had led to his death.


    After knowing all of this, Ji Wudao did not feel as much hatred anymore.


    His mindset had become calmer and more aloof. He seemed to understand Ye Futian.


    ��However, he didn��t cut everything off cleanly and left behind many problems,�� Ji Wudao continued to say. ��In that case, I will take over and complete everything after this. I will do better than him, and you will see it!��


    Black and White Almighty felt speechless inside. Ji Wudao��s obsession truly ran deep. All this time, he just wanted to complete her dying wish and was incomparably respectful towards her. It had long been carved into his bones, carved into his soul. Until today, when she had already disappeared, he still wanted to receive her recognition.


    Why bother!


    ��Notify the other forces to meet me at the Heavenly Realm in seven days. The Heaven Court of the Heavenly Realm should stand at the peak of the present world, standing above all the gods and rule everything in the world.�� Ji Wudao spoke calmly, but his voice was filled with boundless aggression.


    The people behind him naturally understood which forces he was talking about.


    Nowadays, the seven forces ruled the world law together, and there was no hierarchy. But Ji Wudao had returned, and he wanted the Heaven Realm to stand at the top, becoming the absolute ruler. The other forces all had to come to bow down and submit to him.


    ��Yes, Your Majesty.�� The people behind him left after accepting the order. They knew what they had to do.


    ��


    Seven days later, the Divine Prefecture Donghuang Imperial Palace, Heavenly Mandate Academy, Spirit Mountain, and other places all received news that Ji Wudao ordered them to travel over in seven days. They had to bow down to Ji Wudao and take him as their ruler.


    This news quickly spread through the cultivation world and became a hot topic among the cultivators.


    After Ye Futian fought against the Human Ancestor and died, the seven forces governed the world law together. They did not expect Ji Wudao to appear and take the Heaven Realm back. Now, he even let out the news, demanding the other forces to make obeisance. They had to view the Heaven Realm as the ruler of everything in the world.


    The power of this news was imaginable. It swept through the entire world with frightening force, spreading with the fastest speed. The catastrophe one year ago caused the world��s information channels to be more connected. Now, everyone knew about the current situation of the world.


    But those forces were all helping Ye Futian manage the world law. How could they submit to Ji Wudao?


    If they did not submit to him, what would happen?


    Would there be another large battle in the Heaven Realm seven days later?


    Would another worldly catastrophe happen this time?


    Ji Wudao probably was not like the Human Ancestor. He only wanted to govern the world law.


    Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.


    All of the cultivators in the world were paying attention to the Heaven Realm today.


    Meanwhile, in the Heaven Realm, countless powerful cultivators were gathering toward the continent where the Heavenly Court was located.


    That day, dazzling divine light flashed in the Heaven Realm, outside the Heavenly Court. A group of powerful figures appeared. They were all in the Great Emperor Plane.


    After that, more divine light flashed in different directions. The strong figures of the six great forces had all arrived.


    They had no choice but to come.


    Since Ji Wudao had returned, they were destined to have this battle.


    Frightening divine might enveloped the Heavenly Court. Brilliant divine light descended from the Heavenly Court. Then a mighty group of strong figures arrived and scanned the six great forces. A brilliant figure appeared above the Heavenly Palace, bathing under the light of the world. He was incredible��it was Ji Wudao.


    ��Have you all thought carefully?�� Ji Wudao stood in the sky and looked down at everything. He spoke to the strong figures of the six great forces, not caring at all that there were seniors like The Buddha among them.


    Of the rulers of the six great forces, only Ye Qingyao, ruler of the Dark Court, had not come. Everyone else had arrived.


    ��


    In Qingzhou City, Hua Jieyu did not know anything happening in the world. No one told her either because they could not bear it. No one could bear to disturb her again.


    Graceful music continued to float above the serene Qingzhou Academy, sounding every day without stop.


    Hua Jieyu played the music quietly under the tree. She did not ask about the outside world, nor did anyone disturb her. She even put up a Colorless Realm barrier.


    This place belonged to her and the two trees.


    The two trees behind Hua Jieyu kept swaying extremely joyously as if they understood the music. The two trees were now entangled with each other. The tree that Xia Qingyuan had become was the tree of life. She kept pouring the power of life into the other tree.


    The days passed one by one. The vitality of Ye Futian��s tree had become heavier, too, and it seemed to have a spirit now.


    When Hua Jieyu played, she could even hear the tree swaying. They were like pulsing music notes��a reply to her.


    Of course, this could also be Hua Jieyu��s imagination.

 Chapter 2957 - Empyrean

    The battle of the Heaven Realm shocked the world.


    After Ji Wudao returned, he showed immense strength.


    Donghuang Diyuan of the Divine Prefecture was able to control the Divine Power of the Ancestral Dragon and Ancestral Phoenix. She was not any weaker than the strongest of the former Six Great Emperors. However, she had been forced back and injured by Ji Wudao��s one attack. Ji Wudao��s power crushed Donghuang Diyuan.


    Similarly, The Buddha��s Buddhist techniques could not restrain Ji Wudao either. Gu Dongliu summoned a flood of spiritual demons and monsters, but they had all been defeated. Ye Futian��s four great disciples could not hold up either.


    In that battle, Ji Wudao had defeated the strong figures from all the forces under the name of the Heavenly Emperor. He wanted to make them surrender, submit to the Heaven Realm, and view it as their master.


    He was not forced back until Devil Emperor Yu Sheng arrived with the Devil Abyss and fought against Ji Wudao.


    That battle had shaken the entire Heaven Realm, splitting the ground and sky. It had been like a duel of pinnacle features. Finally, the two called a truce. Neither could get an advantage over the other. Devil Emperor Yu Sheng led the strong figures from the various forces and retreated. Ji Wudao continued to guard the Heaven Realm. Both sides had their concerns.


    Thus, the Heaven Realm��led by Ji Wudao��and the great forces who protected the Heavenly Path formed an equilibrium.


    After the battle, Ji Wudao became the number one figure of the current world.


    Devil Emperor Yu Sheng was second.


    Even though the Devil Realm had not entered this world and was its own world, the Devil Emperor still cared for this world and came to reinforce them at the critical moment. After all, he was brothers with the Heavenly Path and went through life and death together.


    ��


    In the Heavenly Court, Ji Wudao was cultivating with his eyes closed at the Heavenly Palace��s top.


    He had swallowed a lot of strength while visiting the other universes and then swallowed the Human Ancestor. He had not fully digested the strength and combined it into his comprehension yet. Otherwise, he would not only be at this level. This also meant that he would become stronger and stronger. This was also why the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method was so terrifying.


    However, Ji Wudao did not expect Yu Sheng to have control over the Devil Abyss��s power and become the Devil Emperor. Even the Chaotic Heavenly Swallowing Method had trouble swallowing the billions of devil tribulations and would be penetrated and destroyed. Thus, they ended in a truce. Both stops discontinued the battle.


    Yu Sheng��s abilities in this battle were probably close to the previous Devil Emperor now. This also pushed Ji Wudao to continue cultivating. It seemed that he had to wait some time to become stronger.


    ��Your Majesty,�� someone came to report to him at this time. Ji Wudao furrowed his brows and opened his eyes to scan the other. The person who came quickly lowered his head and knelt on one knee, saying, ��Your Majesty, someone came from the outside world, requesting to see you. I told him to leave, but he said that there��s something important related to the possession of this world. I don��t dare to delay this.��


    Ji Wudao nodded slightly after hearing his words and said, ��Bring them here.��


    ��Yes, Your Majesty.�� The person bowed and retreated. A moment later, some strong figures of the Great Emperor Plane with extraordinary temperaments arrived. They bowed slightly after seeing Ji Wudao. ��Greetings, Heavenly Emperor.��


    ��What is the matter?�� Ji Wudao asked.


    ��We come from the Empyrean. The Immortal Emperor of Empyrean will arrive soon and unify this world. The Immortal Emperor��s divine order is that if the Heavenly Emperor wishes to submit to him and help His Majesty uniting this world, you may become an Immortal King of this world,�� the newcomer said. Ji Wudao listened quickly. When he visited the other universes, he learned of the Immortal Emperor of the Empyrean. He ruled over many universes and was known as the Immortal Emperor of Empyrean.


    And now, he wanted to take over this world as well.


    He also wanted Ji Wudao to govern this world and give him the title of Immortal King.


    ��The Heavenly Emperor already wished to unify this world, so the timing is perfect. We can help you,�� the other party continued to say.


    ��That is logical.��


    Ji Wudao nodded, and the few who had come quickly smiled, seeming extremely confident.


    ��However���� Ji Wudao looked at them, and instantly, a horrifying aura shrouded the others directly. Their expressions dropped, and they stared at Ji Wudao.


    ��Heavenly Emperor, what do you mean by this?��


    Ji Wudao extended a hand. The horrifying swallowing of Divine Power shrouded them. Instantly, their expressions turned to shock. They could feel their spirit souls being tugged out to be swallowed. They could not resist this force at all.


    ��It is not your place to worry about our world matters!�� As soon as he spoke, the people let out pained cries. They were swallowed into the horrifying black vortex. They were immediately annihilated and disappeared.


    After Ji Wudao swallowed those people, he frowned and said, ��If you meet cultivators from the outside world again, kill without mercy.��


    His voice spread throughout the Heavenly Court, shocking the cultivators of the Heavenly Court.


    ��


    Countless months later, the City of the Ruins was now the most prosperous main city in the world.


    At the moment, many strong figures were gathered in one part of the city. They were strong figures from various emperor-level forces and were all watching this area. This area had been sealed off because cultivators from the outside world entered this world from here.


    Recently, strong energy waves had come from this area. Strong figures from various forces all came to investigate. Someone suggested tearing the void and exiting, but it was rejected. If there were something outside, it would be too dangerous. It would be no different from suicide.


    However, the energy waves from this area were getting more and more frightening now. The sealed space here seemed to be getting unstable as if an extremely frightening force was about to be unleashed.


    Right then, the sealed space shimmered with scary light. It looked extremely demonic, and all the strong figures of the emperor-level forces were affected. ��What is that?�� someone asked.


    ��I don��t know. It seems that an outside force is going out of control.�� Some people��s expressions were horrified.


    Just as they were speaking, a beam of blinding light descended. Then the horrible divine light destroyed the sealing power of this place directly.


    There were muffled booms, and the sky broke apart. A huge figure descended from the sky, passing through the broken space and coming to this world.


    The strong figures were all forced back. The blinding divine light made it practically impossible to open their eyes, but at this moment, they still withstood the stinging pain to stare at the monstrous figure that had descended. Their hearts pounded incessantly.


    That monstrous figure was like a city that came from the outside world. It was also like a boundless altar that had many super transmission matrices. It landed with the piercing divine light. The transmission matrices opened the world up, and many Heavenly Emperor figures descended from the sky. The gods of another world descended, coming to this world.


    The strong figures immediately sent what they saw back to their emperor-level forces. At that moment, all of the great forces were shaken.


    After Ji Wudao had returned and taken back the Heaven Realm, strong figures from the outside world had invaded them, wanting to conquer this world.


    The City of Ruins was the first to be affected. The incoming strong figures controlled the main city with unstoppable speed, turning this city into their base in this world. It shocked the entire world.


    Since then, the world seemed to return to that chaotic era.


    Of course, they all realized that the strongest threat was from the outside world. The world that was invading them was known as the Empyrean and the god they believed in was the Immortal Sovereign of Empyrean!

 Chapter 2958 - Awaken

    The cultivators from Empyrean occupied the City of the Ruins, resulting in the formation of the Three Great Powers of this universe.


    Unlike before, countless cultivators from Empyrean had traveled into this world and formed a legion of the Great Emperors with an Immortal Emperor level cultivator as their commander this time. They were waiting to summon their Immortal Sovereign into this world and reign over it. Then they would assimilate it as a part of Empyrean.


    Following that, the Heavenly Mandate Court, Donghuang Imperial Palace, and several other forces had many battles with the cultivators of Empyrean. Meanwhile, the people of the Heavenly Palace of the Heavenly Realm did not make a move. Ji Wudao only focused on his cultivation without laying a hand on the forces of the Heavenly Mandate Court.


    Sometime later, the battles among these three forces turned into a prolonged conflict that affected many people. Eventually, every cultivator in the world had caught wind of their clashes and the current situation of the world.


    Five years had passed in the city of Qingzhou.


    Martial arts have thrived since the beginning of the new era. The strength of the cultivators of the city of Qingzhou was nothing like before, as they had already learned a lot.


    At that time, the youths in the Qingzhou Academy were casually chatting with each other.


    ��Ding Chen, what are you planning to cultivate in the future?�� a youngster asked.


    ��Sword.�� Ding Chen was a young man who looked to be around 15. He stared at the sky with a determined look and continued, ��I want to be like the three Sword Gods who could wipe the intruders from another universe out of this world, preventing the foreign cultivators from running amok in the Nine States.


    A while ago, a few powerful cultivators had tried to infiltrate the Nine States, but they were killed before successfully entering the land. Shortly after, more of them attempted to invade the Nine States when the three Sword Gods had suddenly shown up.


    That day, Sword Qi had covered the entire Nine States and had annihilated every invader. From then on, countless people had wanted to cultivate the Way of the Sword all of a sudden.


    On the same day, a peerless Sword Qi could be felt in the sky of the city of Qingzhou.


    ��I��ve heard some rumors saying that the reason the three Sword Gods had protected the Nine States had something to do with our city,�� a youngster commented.


    ��I��ve heard the same thing as well. Gramps said that according to his ancestors, a legendary figure had been in our city a long time ago.��


    ��Who knows? They said it was something that had taken place 200 years ago. It could be folklore or a mere rodomontade of the elders of our city. Didn��t Mr. Hua always love to tell exaggerated stories?��


    The young people were talking about something that had happened 200 years ago. Naturally, it felt like a distant past to them. None of them could believe that a legendary person was hailed from their humble city.


    Existences like gods were totally out of their reach to them.


    ��Mr. might love to boast, but he is a fine man. He must be very handsome during his youth. You should check out Senior Sister Nianyu. It��s like she��s forever young. There are no changes in her at all after so many years. She��s still a stunning beauty.��


    Countless people from the Qingzhou Academy, including the entire city of Qingzhou��s residents, were admirers of Hua Nianyu��s gorgeous countenance.


    ��Stop daydreaming, brats!�� a girl snorted. ��Ding Chen wants to pursue the Way of the Sword. What about you lots?��


    ��I want to head to the Heavenly Realm to join the Heavenly Imperial Palace. It��s my lifelong goal to be accepted into the world��s strongest organization as one of its cultivators. When that happens, I��ll no longer have any regrets,�� someone said.


    The remaining youths at the scene burst into laughter as it was the number one force in this world. According to legends, Ji Wudao slaughtered the cultivators of Empyrean when they invaded the Heavenly Realm. Furthermore, he defeated the Immortal Emperor of Empyrean and killed a few Great Emperors all by himself. Eventually, the invaders retreated to the City of the Ruins. They finally stopped him after summoning the power of their Immortal Sovereign. After that incident, they no longer dared to infiltrate the Heavenly Realm.


    This was the glorious bearing and matchless grandeur of the world��s number one cultivator.


    ��Master!�� someone shouted. Upon hearing that, all the youths stood up, looked in the same direction, and bowed at Hua Fengliu. The latter merely nodded in response and strode away.


    ��When did master come here?��


    ��I��m not sure, but I think he had been here for a while. It seemed like he was eavesdropping on our conversation.�� All the youngsters were panicking because she had mentioned Senior Sister Nianyu earlier.


    Hua Fengliu raised his head to stare at the sky while strolling at the Qingzhou Academy. His heart was filled with a sudden melancholy feeling.


    All the people only remembered who was the strongest in the world. But who would know the one who had created it? Even if they knew, which of them would remember?


    Humans were a bunch of forgetful creatures, after all.


    ��


    There were two big lush trees beside the academy grounds.


    A mellifluous sound of a zither could be heard in the background. Once the music finished playing, Hua Jieyu turned to look at the flickering leaves on the trees and whispered, ��It��s been five years.��


    ��The changes in the Outer Realms during the past five years were rather big. Ji Wudao had returned and had been occupying the Heavenly Realm. Apart from Yu Sheng, I didn��t think anyone could stop him. Previously, the extraterrestrial cultivators from Empyrean had launched a full-scale invasion of our world. Following that, they had started a war that had involved even the Nine States. Third Senior Brother had ordered the Swordmaster of Lihen, Yaya, and Wuchen to return and protect the Nine States. He didn��t want anyone to interrupt us.��


    Although Hua Jieyu seemed to be talking to herself, she believed he could hear her. She had been staying by his side all these years. By doing so, she assumed that he was still around physically.


    A breeze wafted past the leaves, causing them to rustle and jiggle. The two big trees were exuding a powerful aura of vitality.


    The gentle breeze blew on Hua Jieyu��s skin and fluttered her long hair. A gleam flashed across her eyes as she stared at the two trees. As the aura of vitality intensified, she could feel the presence of Ye Futian gradually grow stronger.


    ��I know you��ll be back, right? I��ll be right here waiting for you.�� Her eyes were brimmed with tears as Hua Jieyu felt that presence. The woman had been waiting for five years, and she would continue to stay here and wait.


    She did not shed tears because she could not wait any longer, but being afraid that her expectations would end up as a disappointment and that the things she had been longing for would never come to pass.


    As she sat in a lotus position, Hua Jieyu lowered her head to look at the zither producing a euphonious melody. The sequence of soul-stirring notes added a hint of sorrow to the serene background.


    The trees swayed ceaselessly at the sound of the zither, causing their leaves to fall all over the place while some dropped beside Hua Jieyu.


    Rays of light emitted from the tree behind Hua Jieyu. In the next instant, a silhouette could be seen slowly taking shape. It did not interrupt her zither performance but listened to the music quietly with a tender look in its eyes.


    Sensing something out of place, Hua Jieyu turned her head around to catch a glimpse of the scene. At once, her fingers playing the instrument came to a halt and froze there without moving an inch. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she stood up and stretched her shivering hand to reach the silhouette. However, she could not touch the figure that looked incorporeal.


    ��Is this an illusion?�� Hua Jieyu mumbled in the reflection of her fear of disappointment. Truthfully, it was impossible for an individual of her cultivation level to fall into an illusion. Still, she was afraid that her yearning for him might have caused her to hallucinate.


    ��No,�� a disembodied and angelic voice informed Hua Jieyu. With a shaking voice, she asked, ��Why can��t I touch you?��


    ��I had left a consciousness here back then. Now, it had transformed into my avatar,�� Ye Futian explained. Stretching his hand, he tried to stroke Hua Jieyu��s long hair while looking delighted.


    Now that he had shown up here, it would not be long before his eventual return.


    ��Okay.�� Hua Jieyu nodded. Ye Futian then turned his eyes to look at the other tree beside him, only to find it transformed into a phantom that looked like Xia Qingyuan. She glanced at him with tears rolling down her cheeks without saying a word.


    Although Hua Jieyu was weeping, a smile played on her face uncontrollably. With a thought, she covered the entire city of Qingzhou with the Divine Power of Colorless Realm. As a result, every divine consciousness would be prevented from peering into


    the city of Qingzhou.

 Chapter 2959 - Fireworks

    A year had passed in the city of Qingzhou.


    The night view of Qingzhou Lake was beautiful. The cultivators here loved to gather around this place after nightfall. Some of them would raft the boats on the lake, while the others would enjoy the cooling breeze on the lakeside. Each of them had their way of taking in the city��s serenity.


    A ship was seen hovering on the lake while the sound of the zither could be heard coming from it.


    The beauty who played a piece of melodious music with the zither caught the crowd��s attention. Many of them would nod at the person who played the instrument. Some of the young people even looked at the zither player with infatuation, but most would keep their feelings to themselves.


    Mr. Hua was the chief instructor of Qingzhou Academy, a well-respected individual at the academy. All the citizens knew him well, especially his daughter, Hua Nianyu, who had a stunning countenance and was admired by many. Although she had many admirers, most of them felt ashamed of their plain appearance and knew they would never match her.


    At the same time, some of the bystanders were staring at a man and woman duo behind Hua Nianyu. The man had long silver hair with a handsome face while the woman was gorgeous. She had an even better temperament than Hua Nianyu. Immediately, the people of the city of Qingzhou knew that she was the sister of Hua Nianyu. Staring at the beauties, everyone wondered how did Mr. Hua beget not one but two of such beautiful daughters.


    With an attractive appearance that surpassed even Hua Nianyu��s, it was unavoidable that she would be the center of attention.


    Naturally, Ye Futian received a lot of hateful glares. Their eyes were green with envy at the sight of him having two beauties by his side while Hua Nianyu performed songs with the zither.


    Many of them thought that if they were the ones being treated like that, they could finally die as a happy man.


    According to hearsay, this person was the disciple of Mr. Hua, and he loved to brag as well.


    ��What super VIP treatment he had there,�� someone mumbled while rafting their boat past.


    ��Being born handsome is surely a privilege.�� Some of them looked at Ye Futian and then stared back at themselves. The difference between outward appearance made them feel downbeat. After all, his white hair and temperament had only further enhanced his graceful bearing.


    Ye Futian paid no heed to the stares of the onlookers. Although the people in the city were looking at him with envy and jealousy, most of them were simple-minded. His perspective had long since changed following the achievement of his current cultivation level.


    Leaning against the boat, Ye Futian enjoyed the scenery of Qingzhou Lake during the night. It was reminiscent of those days from him.


    He would come here every day to sit on a boat, living the life of an ordinary person while enjoying the sight of people going about in their lives. It was as if he could see himself as one of them.


    ��We should enjoy this scenery with a good drink, some songs, and recite a poem,�� Ye Futian uttered with a smile.


    ��Be my guest,�� Hua Jieyu replied as she curled the corners of her lips.


    ��It��s a shame that I��m unlearned and have limited literacy,�� Ye Futian sighed. Hua Jieyu rolled her eyes to the back of their sockets while Xia Qingyuan let out a chuckle.


    ��If I were to choose between having beauties in such a breathtaking landscape and the whole world, I would pick the former,�� Ye Futian teased after seeing the smiles of the two of them, only to be glared at by them.


    However, this was when Hua Jieyu was the happiest, as there was no conflict. Plus, Ye Futian did not have to focus on his mission. So, he got to spend all his time with them. She did not mind sharing this serenity with Xia Qingyuan at all.


    A life like this was already considered a dream come true.


    It was the same for Xia Qingyuan as well. What more could she ask for?


    Time had never been so kind to her before.


    Still, she knew this happy moment was only temporary. There was no telling what would happen in the future. Although Hua Jieyu had covered the entire city of Qingzhou with her Divine Power of Colorless Realm, it was impossible that Ye Futian did not realize the things that happened outside. After all, he was the one who created this Heavenly Path.


    But since Ye Futian did not mention it, they did not ask anything unnecessary. They would just stay by his side and enjoy this peaceful time.


    Needless to say, Ye Futian had known about all the things that had been going on outside. Truthfully, his current condition was somewhat similar to the Human Ancestor during the era of the Six Great Emperors. He was just an avatar formed by a piece of his consciousness. He would first materialize a physical existence, then reform it into a human shape. Xia Qingyuan should be credited for this accomplishment as well. If she had not transformed herself into the Tree of Life, he would need a longer time to spawn his consciousness.


    He was waiting for the time of his comeback.


    The boat was hovering on the lake as Hua Nianyu played the zither with a gentle smile. It was a magnificent sight to behold.


    ��Miss Nianyu.��


    A voice was heard from a luxurious-looking ship in the opposite. The word ��Cao�� could be seen engraved in many places on the ship.


    The ship of the Cao Clan caught the attention of many onlookers.


    The Cao Clan was the nouveau riche in the city of Qingzhou. It had increased its fame rapidly and given rise to several prominent figures in recent years. With the powerful tricks and unique leadership of its patriarch, the Cao Clan soon found themselves among the elites of the city of Qingzhou.


    Many of the administrative staff in Qingzhou Academy were hailed from the Cao Clan, for they knew that they had to extend their reins into Qingzhou Academy to grow stronger. Their family clan could only be prosperous and create a legacy this way.


    Mr. Hua from Qingzhou Academy was a man of mystery. The Cao Clan could not dig up his background, nor could they gauge his true strength. He had also rejected several of their advances to curry favor with him. Mr. Hua had been leading a recluse life and cared not about fame or power. So, the Cao Clan showed him respect to a certain extent.


    The young man who spoke earlier was a member of the Cao Clan, Cao Yuan. He was one of the most outstanding individuals among the younger generation. He knew that his clan had been trying to win over Mr. Hua. His daughter, Hua Nianyu, was a woman with stunning features. He attempted to get closer to her but did not get a chance.


    1


    Hua Nianyu could recognize Cao Yuan. So, she nodded at him in response and continued to disregard him.


    ��I��ve heard a lot about Miss Hua Jieyu. It��s my pleasure to finally see you in person today. I��ve always admired Mr. Hua. I hope you two could be so kind as to accept my invitation to my ship to talk about the stories of Mr. Hua,�� Cao Yuan looked at Hua Jieyu and said while ignoring Ye Futian.


    Hua Jieyu furrowed her brows in annoyance as a hint of icy glare flashed across her eyes. However, Cao Yuan did not notice any of that. Grasping her hand, Ye Futian turned to look at Cao Yuan and replied, ��I��m sorry, but they��re busy today.��


    After hearing Ye Futian��s words, Cao Yuan turned to stare at him. According to his intel, the former was the disciple of Mr. Hua, though little was known about him. After a while, he reverted his gaze to Hua Jieyu and Hua Nianyu as if he had not heard Ye Futian��s words earlier.


    Hua Nianyu continued to ignore him as the boat slowly moved forward. Soon, their boat went past the other party��s ship and headed to a different location.


    As Cao Yuan set his eyes on the boat, slowly getting further away from his sight, a glint of gloominess flashed across his eyes. There was nothing the Cao Clan could not do in Qingzhou.


    On the boat, Hua Jieyu glanced at Ye Futian as if she had something to say. Then, he commented, ��Why are you allowing small fries to affect your mood?��


    After saying that, Ye Futian shot a glance at Qingzhou Lakeside as someone was lighting up fireworks that set off in the sky beautifully. He asked, ��Do you still remember when we were 16?��


    ��Of course.�� Hua Jieyu drank in the sight of the spectacular fireworks and quickly pushed the unhappy incident earlier into the back of her mind. Her eyes looked more beautiful than the fireworks as she gazed at them.

 Chapter 2960 - How High Is the Sky

    The cultivators of Empyrean continued to arrive in the City of the Ruins. The mind of the Immortal Sovereign of Empyrean was summoned into this world and covered the entire City of the Ruins. They occupied that location and could soon take over the whole world.


    Wars erupted in many places throughout the whole world. It was at a scale that involved many forces, including those that ruled over the Heavenly Law.


    A terrifying war broke out in a location of the Heavenly Mandate Court.


    Dou Zhao, Xiao Muyu, Long Chen, and the others were at different locations on the battlefield filled up by the enemies who encircled them. Unleashing the Will of the Fighting God to the limits, Dou Zhao��s body gleamed like a war god. Even so, he was still exhausted from all the battle, panting like a dog while blood was dripping from the corners of his lips.


    Xiao Muyu was not any better than him either. Her black apparel had outlined her perfect figure. The bloodstains only added to the overall bittersweet feel.


    ��Will we die here?�� Xiao Muyu murmured. They did not pass away during the Battle of the Heavenly Path back then. Yet, they had never expected the fight to fend off the invasion of Empyrean would be so disastrous. At that time, the sky on top of their battlefield was enveloped by a petrifying dark storm that looked like the Apocalypse.


    The total forces of Empyrean were too great. All these years of fighting had taught them one thing. Empyrean did not consist of just one universe but a superpower of multiple universes. The most significant individual of a universe would be called the Immortal King, who ruled over the law of that world under the command of their Immortal Sovereign.


    Ever since the opening of the space passage, the cultivators from different universes had been infiltrating this world increasingly and ceaselessly. They started wars and plundered goods. The same thing had happened over and over again. If it were to intensify further, they would eventually occupy the whole world.


    ��I haven��t even become a Great Emperor yet! There��s no way I��ll let myself die here! Let��s continue the battle!�� Dou Zhao bellowed as he emanated the Will of the Fighting God to the max, nearly breaking his body. At once, a powerful will exploded like the unleashing of the will of a true god. Nevertheless, his Spiritual Energy had reached its limit.


    After letting out a roar, he flew into the sky and continued fighting.


    Watching the happening in the sky, a hint of sadness flashed across Xiao Muyu��s eyes. As her gaze remained in the same place, she muttered, ��Master, when will you return?��


    Up until that moment, she believed that her master would come back to them one day.


    However, she was not the only one with such sentiment. Everyone in the Heavenly Mandate Court felt the same as well. They were all waiting and believing that he would make his comeback one day.


    Suddenly, a group of cultivators moved around and wreaked havoc, causing the sky to tremble. Xiao Muyu turned to stare in the direction of the commotion. Her eyes immediately widened as she noticed the arrival of the reinforcements from the Devil World.


    Yu Sheng and the Legion of the Devil World under his command were the greatest force to fight against the invasion of Empyrean at that time.


    The Devil Emperor, Yu Sheng, was regarded as the number two after Ji Wudao by the people of the world.


    ��


    The war continued to burst out in different places in the world. Fortunately, the secluded locations of the Nine States were not affected by the war. The Nine States was the homeland of Ye Futian, so many people had returned to this land. In fact, those people were relatively close to Ye Futian himself. Hence, the Three Sword Emperors had been defending the Nine States.


    The Nine States was the forbidden land of the gods and devils.


    Although wars had been ongoing outside, the city of Qingzhou remained peaceful.


    In Qingzhou Academy, a group of people could be seen gathering and chortling as they chattered.


    ��Brother Ye, how do you know Miss Jieyu?�� someone asked out of curiosity. Ye Futian had become well-known in Qingzhou Academy for being the son-in-law of Mr. Hua, Miss Jieyu��s husband, and for having a soulmate. It was something that people could only have in their dreams.


    The youths of Qingzhou Academy were curious about Ye Futian. But they only knew that his surname was Ye and that he was the son-in-law of Mr. Hua.


    Hence, they had been addressing him as Brother Ye. Unbeknownst to them, he was even older than their grandpa��s grandfather.


    ��It was something that happened a long time ago. At that time, Miss Jieyu and I attended Qingzhou Academy together. Then I came across my father-in-law by chance and was accepted as one of his disciples. Following that���� Ye Futian explained in a half-joking tone.


    At once, the young people were looking at him with all sorts of expressions.


    ��A long time ago? Just how old you are, Brother Ye? How are you trying to fool?�� a person remarked.


    ��So Brother Ye had joined the academy as Mr. Hua��s disciple after seeing Miss Jieyu? What a pro move!�� One of the youths was full of admiration.


    ��Previously, Mr. Hua had bragged about one of his disciples being a powerful cultivator who could turn one of their eyes into the sun and the other one into the moon. They could even shoot thunder out of their mouth. Don��t tell that was you, Brother Ye?�� One of the youngsters stared at Ye Futian in doubt because the handsome man before their eyes did not seem to be that capable.


    If he were such a powerful cultivator, wouldn��t he be a towering and almighty giant?


    Otherwise, how could his eyes turn into the sun and the moon?


    ��I didn��t expect Mr. Hua to tell you about my past,�� Ye Futian said with a smile.


    The entire atmosphere went dead silent for a while after he spoke. All the youths were staring at him blankly.


    ��As expected of the son-in-law of Mr. Hua, Brother Ye does behave like Mr. Hua.��


    ��You��re right! To think that they could talk big as naturally as breathing. Not even the gods are that capable.��


    ��Do you think the greatest man in the world, Ji Wudao, has such a demeanor?�� One of the youngsters lifted his head into the sky, looking fascinated.


    ��He should have. Just look at how cool the Three Sword Emperors were when they sealed up the Nine States. Ji Wudao, being the strongest individual, must be even more powerful than them.��


    ��I wish I could meet the Three Sword Emperors in person one day.��


    ��I could die without regrets if I could just stumble upon one of the Great Emperors.��


    ��You��ll meet one eventually,�� Ye Futian noted with a light smile.


    ��Perhaps? Who knows how many years I have to cultivate to see it happen? Maybe it might never happen throughout my entire life?��


    ��Stop daydreaming. That��s the Great Emperor we��re talking about here. Let��s go. Class is about to start,�� someone responded. With that, the youths prepared to leave and said, ��Brother Ye, we��ll take our leave first. Let��s catch up for more big talks later.��


    Ye Futian nodded and saw them off. A smile played on his face as he recounted his past. Thinking back, he had once been a youth like them long ago.


    After getting up, he took a stroll in Qingzhou Academy. Then an elderly janitor sweeping the floor greeted him with a smile.


    ��Little rascal Ye!��


    ��Good for him to be born with such great looks.�� Those young instructors who were jealous of Ye Futian were badmouthing him from a distance without minding if he could hear them or not.


    Ye Futian had beautiful women surrounding him constantly. So, it would be natural for people to be envious of him.


    ��So why weren��t any of you born with good looks?�� the elderly janitor sweeping the floor riposted with a smirk.


    Ye Futian bowed his head at the elderly person and went on his way.


    There were disputes here in this small town, even though it was a quiet place. After all, there would be strife as long as the society was made up of people.


    Cao Yuan of the Cao Clan would be a good example. At that point, he was still obsessed with Hua Nianyu and even begged his family to propose marriage. As one would expect, the Cao Clan had made a move, planning to win over Hua Fengliu for good.


    Sensing everything happening, Ye Futian shook his head and flashed a resigned smile. He could not picture the sight of a member of the Cao Clan together with Hua Nianyu.


    Lifting his head to gaze at the sky, he thought. The Cao Clan surely didn��t know just how big the world was!

 Chapter 2961 - Human Affairs

    There was a lake in the backyard next to the Qingzhou Academy, where Ye Futian lived.


    There was an old tree next to the lake. Ye Futian was sitting under the tree fishing at the moment. When a fish was hooked, Ye Futian would pull the rod, while Xia Qingyuan would take the fishing line and put the caught fish into the bucket.


    She was tremendously happy with living such a normal life. Grinning from ear to ear, she said, ��This one is bigger than the previous one.��


    ��It looks like we will be having a feast later,�� Ye Futian responded with a smile.


    Time slowly passed as Ye Futian continued fishing. Soon, he closed his eyes as if he had fallen asleep.


    Xia Qingyuan was sitting and waiting quietly.


    ��


    On the continent far away from the Nine States, there was a hut in a quiet valley surrounded by a snow-capped and uninhabited mountain range. At that time, a sage-like old man was sitting outside the hut and fishing.


    It was as if everything in the world was silent here. No one would make a sound.


    All of a sudden, the old man frowned a little after sensing something. Following that, another silhouette could be seen fishing in another dimension.


    After catching sight of the silhouette, the old man flashed a smile.


    ��Master.�� The silhouette bowed and smiled at him. By now, one would��ve noticed that he was the Master of Four Corner Village. Staring at the other party, he asked, ��How long has it been since you returned?��


    ��It��s been a while,�� Ye Futian answered. ��My apologies for interrupting you.��


    ��No worries.�� The Master smiled as he peered at Ye Futian.


    At that time, Ye Futian looked like an average person. Although his features were stunning as ever, there was no aura exuded from him at all. There was basically no difference between him and a peasant.


    Ye Futian had reverted to his original nature. It was as if he was only a speck of dust in this world, one of the living beings that were unremarkable.


    ��It looks like you��ve reached yet another level now,�� the Master commented as he glanced at Ye Futian.


    ��My purpose of visiting this time is to ask you about something,�� Ye Futian uttered.


    ��Go ahead,�� the Master replied with a nod.


    ��Master, you said that you were once trapped by time. How did you get away from its grasp in the end?�� Ye Futian questioned. Ever since his return, he seemed to be doing nothing every day. Yet, he had constantly been meditating.


    However, the kind of meditation he was doing at that moment was not the same as before. After all, he had become the Heavenly Path. So, the meditation in the past had no benefit to him at all.


    Instead, the battle with the Human Ancestor back then had taught him many things.


    Everything in the world would eventually return to its original form.


    ��Now that you could disregard the dimensional boundaries and show up here, you��ve reached a greater height. You��re in control of the Heavenly Path, yet you could recreate an avatar of yourself. Back then, I could escape from the grasp of the space-time trap only because I had gained enlightenment on the fact that the past was me; the present is me; the future will be me. All the different versions of me are the real me,�� the Master explained.


    After hearing the Master��s words, Ye Futian was stunned.


    The past was me; the present is me; the future will be me.


    In Buddhism, there was a saying that went, ��it��s impossible to retain a past thought, to seize a future thought, and even to hold on to a present thought.��


    The two might be contradicting, yet they could relate to one another.


    ��Thank you, Master,�� Ye Futian said and bowed.


    ��Go,�� the Master replied and disappeared into thin air as if nothing had happened earlier.


    At that time, Ye Futian continued to fish at the lakeside with his eyes closed. He did not budge an inch since the beginning.


    Ye Futian had been keeping the Master��s words on replay in his mind. At the same time, another voice could be heard saying, ��I am the Heavenly Path; I am who I am.��


    All was vanity, yet everything did truly exist.


    ��


    The war in the world intensified as time passed slowly. The scale of the battle continued to increase. The world that had tasted peace for a while would plunge into an imminent war.


    A blood-curdling presence turned up in the City of the Ruins that day. The gigantic altar summoned an indestructible force that covered the entire atmosphere.


    All the cultivators of Empyrean were blown away when the force showed up in the world, for they knew that their Immortal Sovereign was about to appear.


    The war in this world would end when the Immortal Sovereign made its appearance.


    The cultivators of Empyrean were stationed in the City of the Ruins. The aura they exuded was extremely formidable. At the peak of the altar, a group of Heavenly Immortals could be seen hovering there, staring at the sky. The leading figure was an Immortal Emperor. His sight seemed to pierce through the void as he lifted his head to look at the sky. Soon, many divine consciousnesses manifested here.


    ��It looks like you are all here,�� the Immortal Emperor stared into the distance and remarked.


    Before long, multiple silhouettes presented themselves in the sky all of a sudden. At the greatest height, Ji Wudao��s profile could be seen. Simultaneously, Gu Dongliu and The Buddha appeared in other places, staring in the same direction as they felt a threatening presence.


    ��The Immortal Sovereign will arrive seven days later. When it happens, you should decide whether to obey or die,�� the Immortal Emperor piped. That altar was connected to another universe, summoning an otherworldly force ceaselessly.


    With that, the faces in the sky vanished from sight altogether.


    Ji Wudao was sitting in a lotus position above the Heavenly Palace of the Heavenly Realm. Opening his eyes, he shot a quick look at the lower plane. His sight pierced through the atmosphere and saw the altar.


    Following that, he raised his head, looked into the heavens, and said, ��I will surpass him! You will see it!��


    ��


    At the Cao Clan in the city of Qingzhou, the leader of the Cao Clan, Cao Zheng, was sitting in the first seat in the council hall. The remaining people were important figures of the Cao Clan, including Cao Yuan.


    They were gathered here to talk about Cao Yuan��s marriage. Previously, he had mentioned his intention to be betrothed to Mr. Hua��s daughter, Hua Nianyu, which moved the hearts of the people. Hence, they were here to discuss the details of this plan.


    ��I think this plan works,�� someone noted. ��We��ve got several people in Qingzhou Academy now. I��ve heard that the Chancellor valued Hua Fengliu very much. If we could make this marriage happen, we would finally take control of the entire Qingzhou Academy. Besides, we will have Hua Fengliu as our support. Hua Fengliu has raised many outstanding students in recent years. In the future, they will become pillars and backbones of the city of Qingzhou.��


    ��Yeah. I seconded that. Cao Yuan is pretty excellent himself. I reckoned Hua Nianyu��s cultivation level should be relatively high. The two of them will be a perfect match,�� another person commented.


    This matter would benefit the Cao Clan a lot.


    ��I will not agree to this before finding out Hua Fengliu��s background,�� an elderly individual said.


    ��This is just a proposal. If he were to reject, we could use this opportunity to dig up Hua Fengliu��s background,�� someone answered.


    After listening to the people��s opinions, Cao Zheng made a decision and declared, ��In that case, we shall propose marriage seven days from now!��

 Chapter 2962 - Commoner

    Snow fell over Qingzhou early in the morning, turning the entire landscape into a silver world.


    When Ye Futian arrived at the yard, his sight was filled with white snow, and Hua Nianyu was building a snowman in the middle. She even asked Hua Jieyu to help out while Xia Qingyuan stood on the sidelines and smiled.


    At the sight of the happening, Ye Futian did not feel the cold of winter but a warmth that came from the deepest part of his heart.


    Only those who had gone through the prosperity and vicissitudes of lives and returned to live a common life could understand the beauty in the ordinary.


    ��Brother-in-law, who do you think this looks like?�� Hua Nianyu asked with a grin. She had built three snowmen in total. The one in the middle was a man, and the other two beside were women. Obviously, they were Ye Futian, Hua Jieyu, and Xia Qingyuan.


    ��What are they?�� Ye Futian teased with a smirk on his face.


    Hua Nianyu pouted like a pufferfish as the temperament of her brother-in-law and sister could never be adequately represented by mere snowmen.


    ��Let��s go for a walk to watch the snow in the city.�� Ye Futian strolled forward with a gentle smile, leaving his footprints on the snowy ground.


    Hua Jieyu and Xia Qingyuan went after Ye Futian without hesitation.


    After leaving the courtyard, they came to Qingzhou Academy. Many youngsters could be seen there. When the youths saw the group coming, they gave way for the latter and greeted, ��Brother Ye.��


    Ye Futian nodded happily. A sudden chilly breeze blew on his long hair. Hua Jieyu immediately went behind him and put a white coat over him. After shrugging his shoulders, the coat was firmly wrapped around him. Meanwhile, Xia Qingyuan went before him to fix his collar.


    ��Wow���� the young boys exclaimed from the sidelines. They were staring at Ye Futian with a joyful and innocent look. They were rather envious of him.


    Ye Futian was relatively popular in Qingzhou Academy since he was handsome, humorous, and loved talking big.


    After they had gone further away, someone noted, ��Look. What��s wrong with being common people? Isn��t Brother Ye a normal person? But look at him having beautiful girls surrounding him. What a lucky guy!��


    ��Just look at yourself in the mirror, will you?�� one of the girls said with disgust. At once, the expression of the person who said that earlier immediately turned gloomy. It was only natural since Ye Futian��s had a stunning look.


    ��Judging from Brother Ye��s temperament, he does not come across as someone normal. He may not have the ability to turn his eyes into the sun and the moon or hold the stars in his hand, but as Mr. Hua��s disciple, he will not stay as an ordinary person,�� the girl continued.


    After that, her voice became softer, and she mumbled, ��Who knows, but the thing about him turning his eyes into the sun and the moon might very well turn out to be true.��


    ��Don��t tell me you��ve fallen for Brother Ye?�� a boy questioned. The girl��s face instantly turned red up to her ears.


    ��Well, if you were to compare with Miss Jieyu in terms of looks, ahem���� The boy really loved to run his mouth. Although the girl was young and graceful, she was in no way comparable to Hua Jieyu.


    ��Are you tired of living?�� the girl chided as she glared at him.


    ��Okay, I��ll zip it!�� The boy said, ��Didn��t you see that Brother Ye needed a coat to go out? Since he��s afraid of cold, he must be a normal person. Brother Ye��s handsomeness and extraordinary temperament are indisputable, I��ll give you that, but it doesn��t change the fact that he��s an ordinary person. Y��all can tell, right?��


    ��Perhaps he��s doing this because he��s injured?�� the girl stated.


    ��Oh, snap!�� The boy gaped at the girl and murmured, ��She has completely fallen for him!��


    After he spoke, he turned around and made his escape while the girl manifested a sword will, chasing after him.


    The winter in Qingzhou Academy became more lively because of them.


    After leaving Qingzhou Academy and walking on the streets of the city, Ye Futian caught the attention of many people since a lot of the citizens knew him. They would greet him passionately and show respect to Hua Jieyu and Hua Nianyu.


    The entire city of Qingzhou was covered with a layer of white snow. All the old trees were coated with hoarfrost, turning into silver branches that looked truly magnificent.


    Ye Futian was strolling in the snow randomly. His pace gradually became slower. Each step he moved forward would take a long time. Hua Jieyu and the others did not interrupt him but stayed behind silently.


    At one point, Ye Futian��s body slowly turned incorporeal as if he would disappear into thin air at any time.


    Xia Qingyuan was a little worried about him and afraid that something would befall him.


    She immediately turned to look at Hua Jieyu, who stood beside her. But the latter shook her head, asking the former not to disturb him. As a person with a higher cultivation level, she knew Ye Futian had been in a state of meditation constantly lately.


    Ye Futian��s body turned insubstantial from the tangible state and then slowly solidified.


    ��I am the Heavenly Path; I am who I am.�� A voice resounded in Ye Futian��s mind. At that moment, he would emanate an exceptional temperament like that of a god or immortal, and then he would suddenly turn into a common folk who could not exude any aura.


    In the end, he reverted to the earlier state where he would search for his true self.


    Ye Futian raised a light smile on his face without saying a word and continued moving forward, leaving many footprints on the snowy ground. The passerby would stare at them curiously.


    They wondered what he was doing, as his action was rather peculiar.


    ��


    Things were quite lively in Qingzhou Academy. The youths were excited as the snow continued to fall. They were all playing in the snow with each other.


    Nevertheless, the sound of the youngsters having fun subsided. Many of them went blank for a while before turning in the same direction.


    Following that, the entire atmosphere went dead silent for a moment as everyone��s attention was on the end of the snowy ground. A silhouette in black came into sight all of a sudden.


    The figure was burly and gallant with a remarkable temperament. Anyone could tell that this person was extraordinary at first sight as he gave off a domineering vibe. All the people would lower their heads as their gaze met his. They were all nervous at the sight of him.


    ��Who is this?�� the crowds muttered.


    The burly person shot a quick glance at Qingzhou Academy and stood on the snowy ground silently as if they were waiting for something.


    The snowfall caused his black robe and hair to turn white slowly.


    But he stood rooted to the spot against the snowstorm and gale like a statue without moving an inch.


    ��Who is he waiting for?�� The teenagers became increasingly curious. After a while, there was a person heading toward Qingzhou Academy from outside in the snow. He was a handsome man dressed in white, and he was none other than Ye Futian.


    The moment Ye Futian caught sight of the silhouette, he immediately became high-spirited and headed toward the latter.


    The hearts of the youths of Qingzhou Academy skipped a beat at the sight of it. Did that person come looking for Brother Ye?


    Was Brother Ye not an average person, after all?


    ��You��re finally here,�� Ye Futian said as he stopped before Yu Sheng.


    ��Yeah.�� Yu Sheng nodded and remained taciturn.


    ��Accompany me for a walk,�� Ye Futian requested. Then he turned around and began walking. Yu Sheng followed behind and wandered around Qingzhou Academy with him.


    Hua Fengliu watched the scene before his eyes on the academy grounds, reminiscing.


    It was as if the time had gone back. Many years ago, the two youths would take a walk in Qingzhou Academy just like that.


    They both headed toward the old tree and came to a halt. This place was once their lodging when they were still studying at Qingzhou Academy. At that time, there was a tree where they would lean against and rest.


    Ye Futian halted his steps before the tree and sat on the snowy ground, leaning against the old tree.


    Yu Sheng followed suit and leaned against the tree, sitting next to him.


    Snowflakes fell from the sky consistently. There was no sound in the atmosphere as neither of them spoke. They sat there quietly, allowing the snow to gather on their bodies.


    Who would��ve thought that the two people who were quietly sitting there were the avatar of the Heavenly Path and the Devil Emperor who ruled over the Devil Realm?

 Chapter 2963 - Arrival of the Tianshens

    Beneath the ancient tree, among the snowflakes, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were covered by white snow.


    Ye Futian��s eyes were closed. In his mind, he recalled memories of his past. In his youth, he had grown up here with Yu Sheng. Now, they had returned to this place.


    All the past events flashed in his mind, turning into images that were etched in his memory. At this moment, he felt as though he had returned to the past.


    In the past, he did not have many worries. Life was simple, and he was happy.


    Snowflakes landed on Ye Futian��s face. He revealed a faint smile.


    The past and the present seemed to be overlapping.


    Ye Futian returned to the past. Both his face and his temperament were changing. However, he soon returned to his current state. His body shifted between being an illusory figure and a real body of flesh. All these changes were subtle and were unnoticed by others.


    Ye Futian��s smile turned into a brilliant grin. He finally comprehended everything.


    The past and the present.


    He was both the Heavenly Path and himself.


    He was simultaneously in the past and the present.


    In the Qingzhou Academy, Hua Fengliu was also standing in the snow. He raised his head to admire the falling snowflakes.


    Right then, a figure trekked through the snow, approaching him from a distance. The figure had a humped back and appeared frail. When Hua Fengliu shifted his gaze away from the scenery, he noticed the old man. He was stupefied, seemingly in disbelief at what he was seeing.


    What was happening? Hua Fengliu thought.


    Why would he suddenly be hallucinating?


    The old man paused in his tracks and looked at Hua Fengliu with a smile.


    Everything seemed too real.


    Hua Fengliu pinched himself. The old man was still standing there. With a trembling voice, Hua Fengliu called out, ��Master?��


    ��Hmm,�� the old man responded while nodding his head.


    ��Grandmaster!�� Hua Jieyu walked toward them. She similarly could not believe her eyes as she stared at the old man.


    The old man smiled gently as he looked at Hua Fengliu and Hua Jieyu. Hua Nianyu was somewhat confused. She did not recognize the old man. Since when did her father have a Master?


    ��You���� Hua Fengliu was still incredulous about the appearance of the old man. He turned around and looked in the direction where Ye Futian was. Ye Futian was still sitting quietly underneath the ancient tree. Hua Fengliu and Hua Jieyu also looked there. Suddenly, they understood what was going on. They were astonished. Nevertheless, they grinned from ear to ear. There were even tears flowing down their cheeks.


    Of course, they realized what this meant!


    Everything would soon pass.


    At the same time, a terrifying power enveloped the entire City of the Ruins. A gigantic face appeared in the endless sky.


    Ji Wudao��s gaze pierced through space as he observed the situation in the city from the Heaven Realm.


    Cultivators from everywhere, including the Heavenly Mandate Court, the Dark World, and the World of Buddhism, had gathered in the city.


    As the ruler of the Divine Prefecture, Donghuang Diyuan was present too. She was the commander of the troops of the Divine Prefecture. Today��s battle might be their last. However, they took a blood oath and vowed to protect the world that Ye Futian had created.


    A solemn vibe loomed over the city. The troops of the City of the Ruins had departed. War was about to erupt.


    ��Diyuan,�� a voice called out. Donghuang Diyuan was stunned. When she turned around and saw the figure who had appeared, her heart trembled violently.


    All the Donghuang Imperial Palace cultivators were astonished to see the figure.


    ��Father.�� Donghuang Diyuan��s voice was shaky. How was this possible?


    She could not believe what she saw.


    ��I have come back to join the war,�� Donghuang the Great said with a smile.


    ��


    Underneath the ancient tree in the Qingzhou Academy, Yu Sheng opened his eyes to look at the sky.


    The war had begun.


    Yu Sheng glanced at Ye Futian, who was beside him. He saw that the latter��s aura was still undergoing subtle changes. It was as though it was changing all the time. Yu Sheng did not disturb him. He knew Ye Futian was about to have an epiphany.


    Just then, there was a massive commotion in the academy. Someone was riding over here. In the sky above the academy, monstrous beasts traversed the skies. Their lineup was extremely large. Many cultivators appeared in the academy, and they were all headed in this direction.


    ��Cao Zheng from the Cao clan has come to pay a visit,�� a voice cried out from outside the academy.


    The cultivators in the academy all came out. Outside the academy, the members of the city of Qingzhou also gathered. They sensed that something was different today and something might happen. The members of the Cao clan had probably come here for Cao Yuan��s sake.


    It was no secret in Qingzhou that Cao Yuan fancied Hua Nianyu.


    The cultivators of the Cao clan stepped into the academy. They walked towards Hua Fengliu. A few elders of the Qingzhou Academy also accompanied them, smiling as they walked toward Hua Fengliu.


    This scene caused Hua Fengliu to frown.


    The Cao clan dared to show their faces here.


    The Headmaster of the Qingzhou Academy stood not far away behind Hua Fengliu as he observed everything. He did not stop the Cao clan. It was because he knew that he was not needed.


    After the Cao clan rose to become the top clan in Qingzhou, they had gotten rather arrogant.


    However, they were acting presumptuously because they had not seen much of the world. Today, perhaps they would have a taste of real power.


    ��Master,�� Cao Zheng and Cao Yuan greeted Hua Fengliu as they bowed slightly. Then, Cao Zheng said, ��My son, Cao Yuan, has long admired your second daughter. Today, we have purposely come here to propose to her. It will be an honor to the Cao clan if my son can become your son-in-law.��


    ��Please leave,�� Hua Fengliu calmly replied. It was as though he had cast a cold bucket of water on them. The smile on Cao Zheng��s face instantly froze. Hua Fengliu didn��t even bother to humor him. He immediately replied with these words.


    He did not even look directly at Cao Yuan.


    ��Master, my son has extraordinary talent. In the city of Qingzhou, he is considered one of the top figures,�� Cao Zheng continued.


    ��Master, Cao Yuan is a leader of the young generation. He is indeed suitable for your second daughter,�� the elders of the Qingzhou Academy spoke up to the side.


    ��Get lost.��


    Just then, a voice with a tone as cold as ice could be heard. In the distance, Yu Sheng glanced over at them. Cao Zheng and the others turned to look at him as they frowned. However, Yu Sheng��s gaze was extremely frightening and seemed to contain unparalleled authority. He was domineering to the point that no one dared to look him in the eye.


    This caused Cao Zheng to feel humiliated. He lowered his head to avoid Yu Sheng��s gaze.


    ��Who do you think you are? Since when are you qualified to intervene in the affairs of the Cao clan?�� Just then, Cao Yuan chided coldly. Newborn calves were not afraid of tigers. His heart was full of rage. He had come to propose, but he was being humiliated.


    The surrounding temperature plummeted as Yu Sheng swept a glance at Cao Yuan. Ye Futian, who was leaning against the tree, opened his eyes.


    ��Yu Sheng,�� Ye Futian called out. Yu Sheng then retracted his aura and looked at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian walked towards the crowd. He first stopped in front of Elder Qin and bowed, saying, ��Greetings, Grandmaster.��


    Elder Qin moved towards Ye Futian and pulled him up with his hands, saying, ��Futian, this is not permissible.��


    ��Grandmaster, it��s my honor,�� Ye Futian replied with a smile. Only then did Elder Qin nod in agreement. He felt a great sense of pride.


    The members of the Cao clan frowned since they were being ignored. Cao Yuan was especially irritated. He was here for the marriage proposal, yet the spotlight seemed to be on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian looked at Cao Yuan and commanded, ��Leave.��


    ��Who are you to command me?�� Cao Yuan retorted coldly. The atmosphere turned awkward. All the disciples of the Qingzhou Academy were watching them too. Some of them were worried about Ye Futian. Would Brother Ye be in danger?


    The Cao clan was the most powerful clan in the city of Qingzhou.


    ��Who am I?�� replied Ye Futian with a smile. He looked up at the sky and said, ��I am back!��


    The moment he finished saying this, on the battlefield of the City of Ruins, which was extremely far away, a voice reverberated in the space.


    ��I am back.��


    ��I am back����


    The voice reverberated in the space. Everyone heard it. Immediately, the cultivators of the Heavenly Mandate Court, the Divine Prefecture, and other lands revealed looks of immense joy. They had expressions of astonishment on their faces.


    A terrifying aura appeared in the space. A divine tribulation that could destroy the world descended.


    Countless beams of light of catastrophe descended at the same time. On the battlefield, the invaders who took part in the battle were immediately killed off by the divine tribulation.


    In an instant, countless people perished.


    As for the Qingzhou Academy, the crowd was skeptical about who Ye Futian was speaking to.


    However, the next moment, the sky split apart.


    Rumble. A divine light penetrated through the rift of space and descended, lighting up the entire sky above the city of Qingzhou.


    Rumble. Rumble. Rumble. Countless beams of divine light followed after the initial light. The heavens above the city were illuminated. Dazzling halos shone far and wide. The lights came from outer space, and they surrounded the whole city. A majestic God��s might could be sensed by everyone present.


    Instantly, everyone in the city emerged from the buildings. Their hearts were beating fast.


    ��It��s a divine miracle!�� exclaimed the crowd as they knelt on the ground and worshiped the lights. They sensed God��s might. Were Tianshens descending upon their city?


    One by one, Tianshens materialized after beams of divine light charged into the city. Each and everyone of them were gods that dominated a part of the world. The crowd in the city worshiped them. What were they seeing?


    Tianshens filled the sky!


    The cultivators of the Cao clan felt their hearts racing. They, along with the disciples of the academy, were astonished by the arrival of the Tianshens.


    What surprised them even more was that they could sense that the Tianshens had their gazes fixed on the Qingzhou Academy.


    ��Heavenly Emperor,�� greeted all the Tianshens as they bowed their heads in the direction of the academy.


    At this very moment, the crowd in the city of Qingzhou were worshiping the Tianshens.


    However, the latter��s arrival was not without purpose.


    They too had come to worship!

 Chapter 2964 - The Strongest Cultivator in The World?

    ��Heavenly Emperor!�� greeted the Tianshens.


    The Tianshens had come to pay their respect to the Heavenly Emperor, the crowd thought.


    For a moment, silence enveloped the entire Qingzhou Academy. The youths stared at the Tianshens in the sky in awe. These people were all legendary figures. Now, they had come to pay their respect to the Heavenly Emperor.


    Who was the Heavenly Emperor?


    The Tianshens were all looking in the direction of the Qingzhou Academy, specifically towards Ye Futian.


    Could it be Brother Ye?


    The youths felt their hearts beating fast. Could it be that Brother Ye, who enjoyed boasting, was the Heavenly Emperor?


    Even the cultivators of the Cao clan wore puzzled looks. They stared blankly at what was happening.


    Just now, Ye Futian shouted ��I am back�� at the sky. Then, dazzling divine lights poured down from the heavens above, and the Tianshens came to visit him.


    Divine lights continued to descend upon the city. More and more Tianshens arrived. Among them were some cultivators from the Devil World. When they saw Yu Sheng, they bowed and greeted, ��Greetings, Devil Emperor.��


    ��Greetings, Devil Emperor.�� Many other Great Emperors followed suit and greeted Yu Sheng. He was the guardian of this world. During Ye Futian��s absence the past few years, Yu Sheng was the one who protected the world from the invasion of the Heaven Realm and the Empyrean.


    ��Devil Emperor!�� exclaimed Cao Yuan.


    His face turned pale. Just now, he asked Yu Sheng who he was in a disdainful tone.


    Yu Sheng did not respond to the greetings. He stood behind Ye Futian quietly. Many years ago, the two brothers had always been like this in the Qingzhou Academy.


    ��Master.�� Fang Cun, Tie Tou, and the other two disciples of Ye Futian rushed down from the sky and landed in the academy. They were exhilarated about Ye Futian��s return.


    Great Emperors and Tianshens referred to Ye Futian as Master.


    ��Hmm.�� Ye Futian smiled while nodding his head. He scanned across the lineup of Tianshens and asked, ��Is everyone doing fine?��


    ��We have been awaiting your return,�� Lord Chen said. The Great Emperors from the Ziwei Imperial Palace bowed to Ye Futian. Lord Chen added, ��Finally, the day has come.��


    ��Thank you for your hard work,�� Ye Futian responded. He then looked at The Buddha and greeted, ��The Buddha.��


    ��On behalf of all the buddhas from the World of Buddhism, I welcome the return of the Heavenly Emperor,�� The Buddha said while bowing. Even though he was a senior of Ye Futian, the latter was worthy of his respect because he had transformed into the Heavenly Path during the battle. Ye Futian had sacrificed himself to save the world. Therefore, everyone should bow to him regardless of their status. The Buddha was no exception.


    ��Greetings, Heavenly Emperor.�� Various buddhas paid their respects to Ye Futian. Their greetings were sincere.


    ��Gu Dongliu and the members of the Heavenly Mandate Court welcome the return of the Heavenly Emperor.�� Gu Dongliu��s voice was solemn as he said this. He stood at another spot and was also bowing to Ye Futian.


    ��Donghuang Diyuan and the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture welcome the return of the Heavenly Emperor.��


    One by one, the leaders of each group greeted Ye Futian. Their voices reverberated in the heavens and the earth.


    The citizens of the city of Qingzhou were already numb from the excitement. What were they witnessing?


    The knees of the members of the Cao clan went weak as they slumped to the ground. Cao Yuan could not stop his body from trembling in fear.


    Ye Futian, the Heavenly Emperor, was being worshipped by the Tianshens.


    Master was not boasting, the youths in the city of Qingzhou thought. Master once said that his disciple could transform into the universe and bellow thunder. He was not exaggerating when he said that.


    ��Brother Ye was not boasting either,�� they murmured as they witnessed everything in awe.


    ��Am I dreaming?�� a youth asked.


    ��It doesn��t seem like you are,�� another person replied.


    ��I knew from the start that Brother Ye was not an ordinary person.�� The young lady, who had always trusted Ye Futian��s words, wiped away her tears of joy. Not only was he not ordinary, but he was also the Heavenly Emperor.


    Rumble. A terrifying aura pressed down, and a slit appeared in the sky. A menacing vortex loomed over the space. Through the slit, the Heaven Realm could be seen. The cultivators of the Heaven Realm were present too. Their leader sat on the divine throne of the Heaven Court. He looked high and mighty, as though he was the god who ruled over the entire world.


    Who is this? thought the citizens in the city of Qingzhou as their hearts raced. The person was like the lord of the Nine Heavens as his God��s might overwhelmed the space. He was seated on the divine throne and was worshiped by many cultivators. He was indeed a very powerful existence.


    ��I did not expect you to make it back alive,�� Ji Wudao said to Ye Futian. His gaze pierced through the vast space as he lowered his head to look at Ye Futian. He sounded somewhat surprised.


    Ye Futian raised his head and cast a glance at Ji Wudao. He knew everything that Ji Wudao did all these years. The latter killed Lady Qin and Book Deity and ruled over the Heaven Realm by force. However, he did not go on a killing spree. He also helped protect the world from the invasion of the cultivators from the Empyrean. His sense of justice was still admirable.


    ��Ji Wudao, what��s your goal?�� Ye Futian asked.


    The man seated on the throne was Ji Wudao!


    The citizens, especially the disciples in the Qingzhou Academy, were shocked when they heard Ye Futian addressing the other party. Even though they were not so familiar with the outside world, they had long heard of Ji Wudao��s name.


    It was because he was the strongest cultivator in the world.


    Legend has it that Ji Wudao was the most powerful being globally. The youths in the academy had always joked around and said that they wanted to be the next Ji Wudao or his disciples.


    Now, the legendary figure had shown himself in front of them.


    Moreover, he was an acquaintance of Brother Ye.


    ��What��s my goal?�� Ji Wudao muttered, seemingly asking himself the same question. Then, he smiled and said, ��In terms of seeking the Path and becoming immortal, I have long achieved this goal. I am immortal now. I exist along with the heavens and the earth. I shine as brightly as the sun and the moon. My true goal is perhaps fulfilling my obsession. I want her to know that I can do better than you.��


    ��Why bother?�� Ye Futian sighed.


    Then, he announced, ��I will sever your Path of the Emperor. You will be kicked out of the Imperial Realm. Be an ordinary cultivator from now on.��


    Ye Futian sounded calm when he said this. It was as though he was just informing everyone of a usual occurrence. However, everyone in the Qingzhou Academy felt their hearts tremble violently. Ye Futian was talking about Ji Wudao here, the strongest cultivator in the world.


    Ye Futian wanted to sever his Path of the Emperor?


    Who in this world would dare spurt out such a bold statement?


    Ji Wudao rose from the divine throne. His gaze was terrifying. He cast a glance at Ye Futian. Immediately, Jiutian Divine Swords plummeted down. Countless Swords of the Heavenly Emperor, containing God��s might, traversed across the space and charged towards the city of Qingzhou.


    Ye Futian raised his head and gave the swords a stare. The swords instantaneously crumbled into nothingness. They disappeared without a trace.


    ��From the looks of it, you are now even more powerful than when you transformed into the Heavenly Path,�� Ji Wudao commented. ��However, you did not completely eradicate the Human Ancestor in the past. When he was trying to escape, I swallowed him whole. I refined him to improve myself. Now, I am the strongest in the world.��


    Ji Wudao took a step forward as he declared, ��Therefore, I can still defeat you even if you have transformed into the Heavenly Path.��


    His domineering voice echoed throughout the space.


    As he said this, he extended his palm. A horrifying black hole was formed, and it expanded frenziedly. In an instant, the power of the black hole enveloped the vast space. The entire world was trembling.


    Rumble. Even though the people residing in the Nine States were extremely far away from the black hole, they could still sense the terrifying aura emanated by it. Everything on Earth seemed to be on the verge of collapsing and being sucked into the black hole.


    ��If you have transformed into the Heavenly Path, I shall swallow the entire heaven,�� Ji Wudao declared loudly. Beams of divine light from the black hole shot up into the clouds. The whole world was shaking.


    Countless people were astonished by this. This was the strongest figure in the world, Ji Wudao.


    Black lightning pierced through the space. Even the Heavenly Path trembled in its wake.


    Ye Futian looked up. With a shift of his will, everything in the world seemed to stop, including the destructive black lightning and the terrifying vortex that wanted to consume the Heavenly Path.


    ��Time and space, separate.��


    As Ye Futian uttered these words, Ji Wudao��s attacks seemed to exist in a separate dimension from the rest of the world. Time and space were distorted.


    Then, Ye Futian lifted a finger. A beam of light shot out from his fingertip towards the black hole. An intense light radiated outwards after that. In an instant, everything in the world seemed to return to its initial silence. Time and space collapsed and shattered.


    Ji Wudao watched all of this in astonishment. When time and space returned to normal, the destructive power that he unleashed had already disappeared without a trace. His Path had been destroyed.


    Ptui�� Ji Wudao let out a dull groan as he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. His face was pale as the aura on his body kept dwindling.


    ��Ji Wudao, you are banished from the Imperial Realm for life,�� decreed Ye Futian. His word was the decree of the heavens.


    The members of the city of Qingzhou looked up at the sky. The mighty ruler of the Heaven Realm, the strongest cultivator in the world, had his Path of the Emperor severed with a finger!

 Chapter 2965 - A Single Spear Strike

    In the vast space, countless beams of divine light descended. The various gods of the Heaven Court stood in the sky. The strongest cultivator in the world, Ji Wudao, was in their midst.


    The scene before the eyes of the crowd was extremely impactful. Ji Wudao was the strongest cultivator and the most powerful existence in the world, yet his Path of the Emperor had been severed by a finger.


    Ye Futian was back!


    He had previously defeated the Human Ancestor and was the Heavenly Emperor who became the Heavenly Path. Now that he had returned to fight, he was invincible.


    Who controlled the rise and fall of those in power?


    The Heaven Court was silent. The cultivators who had betrayed Ye Futian and followed Ji Wudao had pale expressions that were extremely ugly. Who would have imagined that Ye Futian would still be able to return and become even more powerful as well? Ji Wudao claimed that he had already consumed the Human Ancestor. With a shift of his will, he wanted to consume the Heavenly Path.


    The current Ji Wudao feared nothing, not even the Human Ancestor reborn.


    Yet, he could not even withstand Ye Futian pointing a finger at him.


    In the Heaven Court, Ji Wudao suddenly laughed. His laugh was somewhat tragic. He looked down at Ye Futian in the city of Qingzhou below. The latter stood in the snow. He merely stood there and severed Ji Wudao��s Path of the Emperor just like that. What mockery was this?


    ��During the age of the Six Great Emperors, although my talent was unparalleled, I still kept a low profile and bided my time. Later on, when I became a Great Emperor myself, I wished to restructure the Heaven Realm. I wanted to make her dream come true and take revenge for her. Yet, you were still around. She chose you,�� said Ji Wudao, seemingly talking to himself. He continued, ��During the battle of the Heavenly Path, you became the Heavenly Path and sacrificed yourself. I respect you for that. Hence, I did not slaughter the others. I believed that the future would be my era. Even if the Human Ancestor were resurrected, I would still not be afraid of him. Even if the various gods and the Immortal Sovereign descended upon the world, I still believed that I could put up a fight and become the savior of the world.��


    He concluded, ��However, I was never needed by the world.��


    Ji Wudao��s tone was full of self-depreciation. She had chosen Ye Futian instead of him. This world similarly did not need him.


    ��Since the world gave birth to you, why bother having me?�� Ji Wudao said with a wry smile. ��Why?��


    Ji Wudao declared, ��Since the world has no use for me, I do not miss it either.�� He looked up at the sky and sighed. Then, he looked at Ye Futian and said, ��I will die on the battlefield. I, Ji Wudao, do not need your mercy.��


    As he said this, he flew down. He traversed across space and time and pounced on Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian raised his head and looked at Ji Wudao. He knew that the latter had set his mind on death.


    ��Alright.�� Ye Futian pointed his finger at the sky again. This time, its power penetrated through the body of Ji Wudao. Instantly, his body turned ethereal and dissipated.


    Many people were emotional as they witnessed Ji Wudao being killed. Ji Wudao had worked hard. From being a nobody, he had become someone famous. He had been crowned the Heavenly Emperor twice. His life was legendary. However, just as he had mentioned, the world did not need him since Ye Futian was around.


    If Ye Futian did not exist, perhaps Ji Wudao would have become the hero of their generation.


    Unfortunately, there was no if.


    The strongest cultivator in the world enjoyed his brief moment of fame and was now forever gone.


    ��May the Heavenly Emperor have mercy on us,�� begged the cultivators of the Heaven Realm as they bowed to Ye Futian. Great Skylords Black and White Almighty got down on one knee as they pleaded for forgiveness. With a shift of his thought, Ye Futian could eradicate all of them.


    Even Ji Wudao was killed. The rest of them stood no chance against Ye Futian.


    ��All of you followed Ji Wudao��s command. After I disappeared, it was understandable for you to obey him. However, the Heaven Realm declared war on various Realms. Your hands are tainted with the blood of the cultivators from various Realms. Those people that you killed were once my followers.�� Ye Futian looked at the cultivators of the Heaven Realm and announced his verdict, saying, ��Moreover, many of you managed to prove your Path because of my guidance. Therefore, I will sever your Path. You will be ordinary folk from now on.��


    As he said this, beams of light charged down from the sky and befell the cultivators of the Heaven Court. As punishment for their sins, they were stripped of their Paths.


    Their faces turned as pale as sheets.


    ��I do not regret my decision,�� said Pagoda King, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, as he looked at Ye Futian. ��In the past, if I chose not to pledge my allegiance to Ji Wudao, I would still be killed by him. Why didn��t we get a chance to choose to live?��


    Ye Futian cast an indifferent glance at him. Then, he closed his eyes and shifted his will. One by one, figures appeared in the Heaven Court. Among them were the String Emperor and Book Deity. The cultivators of the Heaven Realm, who Ji Wudao had killed, were present too. Even those cultivators, marked by Ye Futian but sacrificed in battle, came back to life.


    ��Heavenly Emperor,�� they also greeted Ye Futian while bowing. Their joy and astonishment were ineffable. The String Emperor and Book Deity beamed as they thought, Young Master has finally reached the pinnacle of cultivation.


    Ye Futian had surpassed the Human Ancestor in terms of abilities. He could revive whoever he wanted, regardless of whether his target was a Great Emperor.


    ��Of course, you are free to choose your side, but you also need to be ready to face the consequences of your choice,�� Ye Futian said. The faces of Pagoda King and the others turned ashen. They regretted their choice.


    The deceased cultivators had actually come back to life.


    Ye Futian said, ��During the Battle of the Heavenly Path, I encouraged everyone to go all-out in battle, with the determination of saving the world and delivering the future generations from calamity. I promised that if we won the battle, you will be in charge of maintaining the order of the world. Now, I will fulfill my promise and grant all of you the Path of the Emperors.��


    After he said this, divine light poured down from above and circled the cultivators. They were bestowed with the Fate of the Emperor.


    This�� The crowd was shocked when they witnessed this scene. Auspicious signs filled the sky as divine light rained down. The cultivators were bathed in the divine light as they closed their eyes and meditated. Ye Futian had bestowed them with the Path of the Emperors.


    These cultivators all took part in the war. Now, Ye Futian carried out his promise and crowned them Tianshens.


    The cultivators who chose to leave the Heaven Court all felt their hearts ache as they witnessed this scene. They were very regretful of their past decision. After they left the Heaven Court, they experienced a tribulation. Many of them even perished under it.


    Those people would never have a chance of revival.


    All of this was because of a choice they made.


    Ye Futian gazed towards the City of the Ruins. A terrifying aura appeared amid the invaders from the Empyrean. The will of the Immortal Sovereign of Empyrean had descended.


    ��Since you have proven your Path to this stage, this world should be yours,�� the voice called out, reverberating throughout the space.


    ��Did you think you could just come and go as you please?�� said Ye Futian as he glanced at the other party. With a shift of his will, countless divine lights descended from the heavens above. They immediately enveloped the City of the Ruins and trapped the invaders within it.


    He was the Heavenly Path.


    ��Many years ago, I decreed that all invaders would be killed without mercy,�� said Ye Futian as he swept a glance over at those people. When they sensed his God��s might, everyone revealed terrified expressions. Even existences on the level of the Immortal Kings felt the threat of death.


    The current Ye Futian was invincible. This world belonged to him completely.


    ��Die!�� commanded Ye Futian. In an instant, the Great Tribulations of Apocalypse descended from the Heavenly Path and crushed the invaders.


    Swoosh. Swoosh. Swoosh. The Great Tribulations of Apocalypse plummeted, and many figures were crushed into dust. They perished instantly without a chance to defend themselves. Even the Immortal Kings only managed to struggle briefly before being killed on the spot.


    ��Presumptuous!�� chided the Immortal Sovereign of Empyrean.


    His voice reverberated in the heavens and the earth. He glared at Ye Futian.


    Ye Futian killed all the invaders, who were the subordinates of the Immortal Sovereign.


    ��Am I being presumptuous?�� Ye Futian shifted his will, and immediately, the space where the other party was crumbled. The gigantic face was crushed. Ye Futian appeared directly in the City of the Ruins. The Immortal Sovereign wore an ugly expression. He had not anticipated encountering such a powerful opponent during his invasion this time around.


    The greatest danger about invading another world was that the locals had absolute control over their world. The laws in the world obeyed the rules set by the locals. Therefore, the Immortal Sovereign had sent some cultivators here to scout the place first.


    To his surprise, he encountered Ye Futian.


    ��We will meet again,�� the Immortal Sovereign of Empyrean said coldly. Amidst the crumbled space, a thread of consciousness escaped. It followed the direction of the altar as it broke free from here. It charged towards its own universe.


    Ye Futian stood there and glanced over towards that universe. His will shifted, and it immediately traversed the vast space and locked on to a location.


    ��Huh?�� responded the Immortal Sovereign as he opened his eyes in a palace in the Empyrean. He glanced over towards the world where Ye Futian was in. He had actually been pursued by the latter.


    In the City of the Ruins, Ye Futian gathered the Divine Power of the World. A spear materialized in his hand. He threw it into the passageway that connected the city and that universe. It was used by the other party when they landed in the city.


    On the other end of the passageway was the Empyrean. A shockingly loud sound could be heard. The universe shook vigorously for a moment. Then, space and time were shattered as the universe collapsed. A black hole popped up and consumed everything.


    ��Time and space, annihilate,�� ordered Ye Futian.


    Right then, the Empyrean trembled.


    Ye Futian retracted his gaze. Everything in the City of the Ruins returned to normal. The passageway closed, and Ye Futian��s figure returned to the Qingzhou Academy.


    However, the crowd��s amazement did not cease for a long while after they witnessed the spear that transcended time and space.


    Was this the ultimate realm of cultivation?


    Even the Immortal Sovereign of Empyrean was defeated with a single spear strike!

 Chapter 2966 - Finale

    Countless cultivators stood beneath the Heavenly Path. Their blood churned with excitement as they witnessed the scene.


    The Heavenly Emperor had returned. He was invincible in battle; no one could stand against him.


    ��We welcome the return of the Heavenly Emperor!�� a voice rang in the sky.


    ��We welcome the return of the Heavenly Emperor!�� One by one, the cultivators cheered. Their voices reverberated throughout the space.


    In the Qingzhou Academy, the members of the Cao clan were prostrated on the ground. They were too afraid to raise their heads. Their bodies trembled uncontrollably.


    Everything felt so surreal to them. The person that they had offended was actually the Heavenly Emperor!


    On the other hand, Ye Futian did not bother sparing them a glance.


    ��Congratulations.�� A voice sounded. Master appeared in the sky.


    ��You have finally come to this stage,�� Master said with a smile.


    ��Master,�� Ye Futian bowed to Master while greeting him. He said, ��Thank you, Master, for your guidance. I achieved enlightenment because of it.��


    ��You need not be so humble. You have surpassed me in your cultivation,�� Master replied. ��It��s my turn now to get some pointers from you. What is your state of comprehension toward the past and the present?��


    ��Master once taught me that I am both the past and the present. I did it,�� Ye Futian said. ��I am who I am in every space and time I have ever existed in.��


    Master pressed further, asking, ��However, you did not alter the events in the past. You merely saved some people. Am I right?��


    ��Hmm. If I altered the past and stopped some events from occurring, the future would most likely be different. The present that we have now would become an uncertainty too,�� Ye Futian explained. ��Therefore, I did not do anything that would affect the past. I merely brought some people from the past to the present. Besides that, I started cultivating and comprehending again from the top, at every point in time.��


    ��No wonder.�� Master nodded and implied, ��So it means that once you achieve enlightenment, you can remain in the loop of space and time and have endless time for cultivation. As a result, you can transcend time and space beyond the pinnacle of cultivation.��


    ��Exactly,�� Ye Futian replied while nodding. The moment he achieved enlightenment, that moment turned into eternity. In the snap of a finger, he had cultivated for eons.


    He was cultivating and comprehending at every point in time. Finally, all his comprehension accumulated and amounted to the current him.


    Master advised, ��I am not sure whether the universe is also infinite like you. However, with your current cultivation, you are an extraordinary existence among the rulers of the universes. Furthermore, you will grow even stronger in the future. Return to the throne of the Heavenly Emperor. You transformed into the Heavenly Path, but you also have a physical body now. You can rule over the world completely.��


    The old Heavenly Path collapsed, but it never possessed a real physical body before.


    Nobody had ever achieved Ye Futian��s current cultivation before. Most likely, no one could surpass him in the future either.


    Ye Futian announced, ��I transformed into the Heavenly Path, but I am not the only one who protected the world. This world should be ruled together by various parties.�� He glanced at the sky, and immediately, a golden sky stairwell that extended into the heavens appeared.


    Ye Futian strode forward. He climbed up the sky stairwell while being showered by snowflakes. As he moved up the stairs, all the cultivators from various corners of the world raised their heads to look at him. Everyone could clearly see the stairwell. Regardless of where they were, the sky stairwell appeared as though it was right before their eyes.


    The entire world observed the ceremony simultaneously.


    ��Brother Ye!�� exclaimed the youths in the Qingzhou Academy.


    They witnessed Ye Futian ascending the sky stairwell as he was surrounded by divine halos and auspicious signs. Many youths had tears in their eyes. They were tears of excitement.


    Ye Futian was their Brother Ye, the Heavenly Emperor, the number one cultivator in the world. He was worshiped by Tianshens. Everyone in the world was watching his coronation now.


    The youths had fun playing with Brother Ye.


    They bantered with Brother Ye.


    They listened to Brother Ye ��boasting�� about his past achievements.


    Hua Jieyu and Xia Qingyuan teared up as they watched Ye Futian ascend. Tears of joy rolled down their cheeks. They knew that everything had finally come to an end. Ye Futian would finally be delivered from all his suffering.


    The immense glory that he experienced now was the fruit of the tremendous suffering that he had gone through. He had survived countless tribulations and made it through many life-and-death situations. Him being alive today was a miracle.


    Now, he had finally reached the peak. He was the highest existence; everyone worshiped him.


    No one else would dare to act superior in front of him. No one else would dare to look down on him. No one else would dare to belittle him.


    The humiliation that he once went through would forever remain in the past.


    Glory awaited him now.


    ��What are you two waiting for?�� Ye Futian smiled as he turned around to look at Hua Jieyu and Xia Qingyuan, who remained at the bottom of the stairwell. He extended his hands towards them. The two ladies exchanged looks. Then, they walked up the sky stairwell, hand in hand. They followed closely behind Ye Futian.


    Colorful clouds flew down and weaved into splendid robes that garbed the two of them. They were adorned with phoenix coronets and rosy capes. Their beauty was unparalleled.


    When Hua Fengliu and Emperor Xia saw this scene, they teared up too. Emperor Xia approached Hua Fengliu and patted his shoulder. The latter looked at him, and they broke into a grin.


    ��Everything was worth it,�� Emperor Xia lamented as he stared at the silhouette of his daughter.


    ��From now on, the Heavenly Emperor is my son-in-law,�� Emperor Xia said proudly as he wiped away the tears in the corner of his eyes.


    In another corner, the cultivators of the Divine Prefecture stood together. Many of them were checking Donghuang Diyuan out. She revealed a brilliant smile. Her smile was sincere.


    She knew from a young age that Ye Futian had a lot on his shoulders. She met him for the first time when she was 16. That was their destiny. She was well-aware of everything that Ye Futian had gone through. Now that he had finally reached the pinnacle, she could not help but feel happy for him.


    ��How can you still be smiling?�� Donghuang the Great commented as he looked at Donghuang Diyuan.


    ��Father,�� Donghuang Diyuan greeted him with a smile.


    ��Sigh���� Donghuang the Great sighed when he saw her earnest smile. He lamented, ��You know, you were supposed to be����


    ��Father,�� Donghuang Diyuan stopped him from saying more. She said, ��This is good enough.��


    Donghuang the Great was stunned for a moment. Then, he nodded in agreement and said, ��Yes. This is good enough.��


    Ye Futian continued to move up the sky stairwell. He advanced slowly. With a shift of his will, a figure appeared behind Donghuang the Great. The latter was stunned when he first saw the figure who had appeared. Then, he grinned from ear to ear. He approached the person and gave him a big hug.


    ��Welcome back,�� Donghuang the Great said.


    ��Futian rebuilt a body for me,�� Emperor Ye Qing said. He came from the past. Ye Futian had only met him once at Mount Tianyao in the city of Qingzhou. Ye Futian went back to that exact spot where they met and brought Emperor Ye Qing to the present.


    ��We did it,�� Donghuang the Great said emotionally.


    ��Hmm. We did it.�� Emperor Ye Qing was similarly very emotional. After they stopped hugging, Emperor Ye Qing looked at Donghuang Diyuan. Her eyes were red as she greeted, ��Father.��


    Emperor Ye Qing approached her and gave her a gentle hug. He said, ��Diyuan, I am sorry.��


    ��Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing were not afraid to sacrifice themselves to uphold justice. I crown them the Immortal Emperors of the East. They will rule over all the Tianshens in the East and be in charge of maintaining the order in the Divine Prefecture.�� A voice sounded from the sky stairwell. Divine light poured down on Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. The two of them were assigned the title Immortal Emperors of the East and were tasked to rule over all the Tianshens in the East.


    ��Congratulations to the Immortal Emperors of the East,�� someone bowed and greeted them. One by one, the cultivators bowed and greeted Donghuang the Great and Emperor Ye Qing. The voices of the crowd shook the heavens and the earth.


    ��The Buddha is concerned about the fate of all mankind. He led various buddhas into battle. He will still rule over the West. I crown him the Immortal Emperor of the West. From Spirit Mountain, he will command all the buddhas. I bestow him the Golden Body of Virtues and Merits. He is indestructible from now on.�� As soon as Ye Futian decreed this, endless golden divine light rained down on The Buddha, constructing a golden body for him.


    ��Amitabha.�� When The Buddha was bathed in the divine light, he had a taste of exactly how powerful Ye Futian was currently. He felt emotional. No wonder Ye Futian could strip Ji Wudao from the Path of the Emperor with just a finger. This golden body forged by Ye Futian would most likely be able to withstand a power ten times more powerful than a full blow from The Buddha.


    Ye Futian continued to decree, ��I crown Great Emperor Ziwei the Immortal Emperor of the North. He will rule over the Ziwei Imperial Palace and all the Tianshens in the North.�� As he said this, Great Emperor Ziwei appeared in front of all the cultivators from the Ziwei Imperial Palace.


    ��Gu Dongliu is crowned the Immortal King of Heavenly Mandate. He will rule over the Heavenly Mandate Court and all the Tianshens in the Central.��


    ��Ye Qingyao, the Reaper, is crowned the Immortal Emperor of the South. She will rule over the Dark Court and all the Tianshens in the South.��


    ��The Evil Emperor and the Dark Sovereign repented at the last minute. Therefore, the Evil Emperor can continue to rule over the Empty Divine Realm. I enfeoff the Dark Sovereign with the Bright Continent.��


    ��I crown Chen Yi the God of Light. I will forge him the Bright Temple.��


    ��I crown Xi Chiyao the God of Rain. I will forge her the Rain Temple.��


    ��I crown Fang Cun, Little Ling, Tie Tou and Duo Yu the Great Emperors of Four Corners. I will forge them the Four Corners Temple.��


    Ye Futian��s decrees sounded one by one from the top of the sky stairwell. His commands echoed across space. On this day, Ye Futian, the Heavenly Emperor, bestowed titles to everyone who deserved it.


    Divine halos poured down from the sky and enveloped the vast space. Cultivators from all around the world looked at the newly crowned Immortal Emperors and Gods with eyes of admiration.


    The crowd looked at Ye Futian��s silhouette. He ascended to the very top of the sky stairwell. Then, he turned around and declared, ��Now, the Age of the Gods has come once again. The various Gods will maintain the world order and teach the Way to the future generations. I will not interfere in the world order. This world is collaboratively ruled by various Gods together.��


    The Age of the Gods had come again.


    Ye Futian actually did not plan to control the world order himself. Did he plan to retire after this?


    Countless gazes were fixed on the silhouette on the sky stairwell. He looked so heavenly as the divine light flowed around him.


    This scene was forever etched in the memory of everyone. They would never forget it.


    ��


    In the year 20 of Futian Calendar, an old man and a youth were walking down a street in the city of Qingzhou. The youth was eager to know more after listening to the old man telling him the tales of the Heavenly Emperor.


    A god, the ultimate god to be exact, originated from their city.


    ��Grandfather, where did the Heavenly Emperor go after he ascended to the throne?�� asked the youth. The whereabouts of the Heavenly Emperor were unknown to the world now.


    ��After he ascended, the Heavenly Emperor assigned various Gods to rule over the world order. Then, he disappeared from the eyes of the public. No one knows his whereabouts. Some say that he is living in seclusion with his wives now. Some say that he changed his appearance in order to live an ordinary life. There are even people who claim that the Heavenly Emperor is now on his quest to conquer other universes and he has already conquered many of them.�� The old man spoke while holding his grandson��s hand. He could still vividly recall everything that happened on the day the Heavenly Emperor was crowned God. It was as though the event occurred yesterday.


    The old man continued as he looked at the sky, ��Of course, even if we don��t have any news of the Heavenly Emperor, he is ubiquitous. The sky itself is his transfiguration.��


    ��How about the princess of the Divine Prefecture? Surely she likes the Heavenly Emperor too. Did she get married to him?�� asked the youth.


    ��That��s the thing everyone in the world is dying to find out,�� the old man said with a sigh. ��Of course, Princess Diyuan likes him too. We are talking about THE Heavenly Emperor here.��


    ��Since the Heavenly Emperor assigned various Gods to rule over the world order, does it mean that there will be no disputes in the future?�� the youth asked. ��But why is there still so much discord in the Qingzhou Academy now?��


    The old man replied, ��Disputes exist wherever living beings are. Both humans and gods are no exception to this!��

 Chapter 2967 - Spinoff (1)

    The Divine Domain of the Taichu Realm was bustling. There were a large number of cultivators here. Top cultivators from various worlds, who practiced very different techniques, gathered in this domain. It was because they could get cultivation techniques and treasure items from all corners of the world here.


    Of course, there were countless disputes here too.


    Many exceptional figures visited the Divine Domain of the Taichu Realm. Every one of them were overlords in their respective worlds. However, they had to keep a low profile when they came here to cultivate.


    A group of youngsters was enjoying tea in a tavern.


    This tavern was 33-stories tall and was luxurious. The group of youngsters was on the highest floor, where they could enjoy the scenery of the lively domain.


    ��As expected, the Divine Domain of the Taichu Realm is extraordinary. It is more prosperous than any other city in our world.�� Among the group was a maiden dressed in green robes. She was around 18 years of age. Her eyes sparkled like water, and she had a face that could launch a thousand ships. No one dared to sully her.


    ��The Taichu Realm is one of the worlds under the rule of the Palace of Gods. Uncle said that currently, among the discovered universes, this universe ruled by the Palace of Gods is the most powerful. The Taichu Realm is a major world and can be ranked among the top five worlds. The Divine Domain is the center of the Taichu Realm, so it is naturally prosperous.�� Next to the woman was a youth dressed in white robes with a sword on his back. He spoke in a gentle tone and was very sophisticated.


    ��I say, Miss, have you had your fun? Shouldn��t we be going home?�� said a burly youth sitting across from the maiden. His skin had a bronze sheen, and his figure revealed muscles full of explosive force. His pupils were full of vigor. However, when facing this maiden, he was begging her in a pitiful manner.


    ��Isn��t it nice to see the scenery in other worlds? Why do we need to go back?�� the maiden said with a faint smile.


    ��Brother Shou, how many times have you tried to persuade Little Yin to return home?�� the white-robed youth with a sword said with a smile.


    ��This fellow. Could it be that you do not know how much attention her looks are drawing?�� the burly youth grumbled.


    ��Yu Shou, are you lacking self-confidence?�� said another maiden dressed in white robes sitting beside Little Yin. She was similarly extremely beautiful. She had an extraordinary innate temperament. She appeared elegant and noble.


    ��Elder Sister Jun, it is not that I do not have self-confidence. It is just that the gazes of those fellows were too disgusting. Little Yin also did not allow me to take action against them,�� complained Yu Shou in a depressed tone. He swept a glance around them. As expected, he saw many people looking at them, especially Little Yin and Elder Sister Jun.


    ��What are you looking at?�� yelled Yu Shou as he stood up. His yell was like a roar of thunder, causing the wine cups on the tables of those watching them tremble. The crowd immediately retracted their gazes when they knew that this youth was not to be trifled with.


    There were crouching tigers and hidden dragons in the Divine Domain of the Taichu Realm. There were countless powerful cultivators here. Those who dared to act so presumptuously most likely came from extraordinary backgrounds.


    ��Paper tiger,�� said Elder Sister Jun with a faint smile. In reality, she was just in her twenties. However, she was the oldest, so she was their leader away from home. With Little Yin around, Yu Shou would forever be just a paper tiger. They would not allow him to act out as he pleased. If not, with his temper, they would never enjoy peace.


    ��Sit down,�� chided Ye Zhiyin as she stared at Yu Shou. Yu Shou immediately gave her a pitiful glance and replied, ��Alright.�� As he said this, he sat down. If the members of the Devil World saw their young master acting in such a manner, they would have been stunned.


    Gu Xijun told Yu Shou, ��Yu Shou, the Taichu Realm is a major world ruled by the Palace of Gods. There are cultivators who cultivate different techniques here. This is still a place worth exploring. Please don��t be so anxious to return home.��


    ��Alright, Elder Sister Jun,�� Yu Shou answered Gu Xijun in a very respectful tone. They had all grown up together. Gu Xijun was slightly older, so she played the role of elder sister.


    Their group sat there quietly. The people in the tavern were chatting amongst themselves. Their group heard many people talking about the same topic.


    ��The Proud Son List of the World of the Gods?�� exclaimed Ye Zhiyin in curiosity.


    Ye Zhifan explained, ��Based on what they said, only cultivators below 30 are eligible for the Proud Son List. The Palace of Gods rules over many universes, and they are all interconnected. There are only 81 members on the Proud Son List. New members replace old members. Those on the Proud Son List are all Proud Sons of Heaven. They can be considered prominent figures of the current generation.�� Ye Zhifan was born a few days after Ye Zhiyin. Both of them had similar names.


    ��The abilities of those on the Proud Son List should be at the Renhuang Plane. They can indeed be considered peerless figures,�� added Gu Xijun as she nodded her head. Ordinary people could not reach such a plane at such a young age.


    Hence, almost all those on the Proud Son List came from powerful backgrounds. Many of them were descendants of the various gods of the Palace of Gods.


    ��They are all just showy with no solid worth,�� said Yu Shou in an underestimating tone.


    Ye Zhiyin looked at him and asked, ��Where did you learn such words?��


    ��I learned it while touring the world with you,�� replied Yu Shou.


    ��Gu Feiyang got on the Proud Son List by force, suppressing Mo Wuyou. He was listed on the Proud Son List by the Tianji Palace. The Tianji Palace prophesied that Gu Feiyang would have the chance to reach the top three in the future,�� said someone who was having a discussion to the side right then.


    ��Who is this Gu Feiyang?�� someone asked curiously.


    Another person explained, ��He is a descendant of Emperor Gu. Rumor has it that he began cultivating when he was three years old. He proved his Path when he was ten and began challenging cultivators from all over the world at 15. He has yet to record a loss. He wishes to emulate his predecessor, Emperor Gu, and prove his Path through combat. Rumor has it that he is, as his name suggests. He is domineering and arrogant. He does not consider ordinary people his equals.��


    ��If my predecessor were Emperor Gu, one of the core members of the Palace of Gods, I would be even more arrogant than he is now. However, that is because I have the backing of my ancestors,�� someone said with a smile.


    Just as that person was speaking, the surrounding space suddenly fell silent. Many people were looking in the same direction. A group of people had entered the tavern. Their leader was a person in his twenties. He wore a long robe. His long jet-black hair fluttered in the wind. His handsome face gave off an indescribable suave air. Just by his temperament alone, he could be considered a prominent figure.


    As he walked, a formless boundary field seemed to form around him. He glanced at the speaker and said, ��You know what to do.��


    The expression of the speaker turned pale. He had already been signaled by his companions. He knew that this person was Gu Feiyang.


    The speaker decisively slapped himself in the face a few times. He bowed and pleaded, ��I have been careless with my words. Please forgive me.��


    Gu Feiyang cast a glance at him. Then, he took a seat in a corner. The tavern turned exceptionally quiet all of a sudden.


    Suddenly, Gu Feiyang raised his cup, and the wine in it transformed into a sharp sword that slit the throat of the other party. The person was killed with a single attack as he fell to the ground.


    The silence in the tavern grew more prominent. No one dared to speak a word. The crowd even held their breath.


    Ye Zhiyin frowned, seemingly displeased. This man was too ruthless. He slaughtered a person due to a slight disagreement.


    Yu Shou was a reckless lad too. However, he would never injure anyone unless the other party was an atrocious person.


    ��You, come over and pour me a cup of wine,�� Gui Feiyang ordered Ye Zhiyin coldly, seemingly sensing her dissatisfaction.

 Chapter 2968 - Spinoff (2)

    All the eyes were on Ye Zhiyin in the silent restaurant. At first sight of the woman��s stunning features and extraordinary temperament, anyone would know that she was not an everyday person.


    Even so, how could she hold a candle to Gu Feiyang?


    Within the world reigned by the Palace of Gods, there were only a handful of people who could be comparable to Gu Feiyang. He was listed on the Proud Son List through his abnormal talents and was undefeatable. The Tianji Palace had even put him in the top three of the Proud Son List. Moreover, he was the descendant of an Ancient Emperor.


    Nevertheless, Ye Zhiyin paid no heed to any of that and merely furrowed her brows. Gu Feiyang was being too arrogant. He would murder someone at a whim and even dare to make her pour him a cup of tea.


    Although Ye Zhiyin remained her composure, the people around her had been driven up the wall. Gu Xijun��s expression turned gloomy while Ye Zhifan had already manifested swords will around him.


    Who was Ye Zhiyin?


    She was the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor and the Empress. From the day she was born, no one would dare to disrespect her, let alone humiliate her like that.


    ��Destroy your cultivation, and I��ll let you leave this place alive!�� Yu Shou��s expression turned sullen. Although he remained seated, anyone could tell that he could barely hold back his anger. He would��ve battled that man if it weren��t for Ye Zhiyin��s disrelish of him getting into trouble.


    Suddenly, the entire restaurant turned dead silent. What was Yu Shou talking about?


    Was he asking Gu Feiyang to destroy his cultivation?


    Everyone stopped what they were doing in the ominous silence. It was as if they had forgotten how to breathe.


    The people beside Gu Feiyang were stunned as they gaped at Yu Shou in bemusement. Who was this lunatic that did not know his place? This man might have been burly but was he born without a brain?


    Boom! A sword will suddenly burst out. Then a cultivator in white could be seen sitting there with swords, encircling his entire body, pressuring the restaurant. Turning to look at the others, he asked, ��What should we do if someone were to disrespect Young Master Gu?��


    A cultured-looking middle-aged man commented, ��Kill!��


    ��Indeed!�� The cultivator in white nodded. Turning his gaze at Ye Zhiyin, he bellowed, ��It��s your pleasure to be able to pour a cup for Young Master Gu! Why won��t you come forward and do what you should do?��


    Yu Shou glanced at Ye Zhiyin, brimming with killing intent. Although they had been traveling to different universes together and had met all sorts of people, encountering such a group of arrogant people was new to them.


    Seeing that Ye Zhiyin, Yu Shou, and the others remained unmoved, the cultivator in white got up and walked toward them.


    The sword will hovered around his body while a sword manifested on top of his head. The sight of it sent chills down the spines of the crowds. When the sword on his head pointed at Ye Zhiyin, he questioned, ��Young Master Gu, do you still need her?��


    ��Do whatever you deem fit,�� Gu Feiyang uttered without lifting his head. Although Ye Zhiyin was an exceptionally beautiful woman, he was not very attracted to her. After all, women would only affect his cultivation. So, he was not interested in women in general.


    ��Roger that,�� the cultivator in white turned to Ye Zhiyin and said, ��If you would kneel and beg for forgiveness, you could still live to see another day.��


    ��Zhifan!�� Gu Xijun raised her head and looked at Ye Zhifan. Understanding what she meant, he summoned a sword will from a distance that lit up the heavens. In that instant, the cultivators inside the restaurant felt a powerful killing intention, while some were even temporarily blinded.


    ��What just happened?��


    Their hearts were pounding like crazy as they checked the surroundings. Although they could not notice anything out of place, blood flowed down from the forehead of the snobbish cultivator in white, and he dropped to the ground face-first. His eyes were wide open at the moment of death, and he didn��t even know what had just happened.


    Ye Zhifan, the son of Ye Wuchen and Liu Chenyu, was the disciple of the Three Sword Gods. His father, Ye Wuchen, the Desolation Sword God, and the Lihen Sword God, together with the God of Light, would guide him in practicing the Swordsmanship of Light. Ye Futian was his godfather. Hence, he was given the name Zhifan, which was similar to Ye Zhiyin.


    The atmosphere inside the restaurant was still silent. Stares of disbelief were gaping at the corpse. Then they turned to look at Ye Zhiqian and her group and gasped. Were these people this powerful as well?


    It seemed like they were not ordinary people. Even so, why would they incur the wrath of Gu Feiyang? Who would dare to cross him in the world ruled by the Palace of Gods?


    No matter their might or background, they would only meet their demise in the end.


    Glaring at the corpse on the floor, Gu Feiyang put down the cup in his hand. He unleashed a terrifying aura that instantly permeated the entire restaurant at that moment. When that happened, nearly all the cultivators in the restaurant got up and fled from the scene.


    They knew huge trouble was about to befall.


    There was a gale in the restaurant when Gu Feiyang got up. The entire atmosphere of that place changed as he shot a dark look at Ye Zhiyin and the others. Many cultivators from afar were stunned when they noticed Gu Feiyang unleashed his skills. Who would dare to provoke him?


    It was a good thing since they could witness the might of the person who had entered the Proud Son List.


    Bang! There were cracks everywhere in the restaurant right after Gu Feiyang took a step forward. The atmosphere was pervaded by his aura when a phantasm of an Ancient God appeared behind him. After pointing his finger at Ye Zhiyin and the others, the heavens fell apart. Countless Light of Destruction was fired at them with the intention of annihilating them.


    The thrust of his finger was like the attack of a Heavenly Immortal, unleashing like a Divine Tribulation.


    Many cultivators looked at them in pity. Although the sword behind Ye Zhifan was unsheathed, Yu Shou stood before him. At once, a catastrophic maroon light of the blade lit up the atmosphere and flew toward this location.


    There was a conspicuous line that split the sky. Numerous catastrophic light rays shattered the force of the tribulation while the maroon light of the blade slashed the finger of the Heavenly Immortal in half. It did not stop until it obliterated the phantasm of the Ancient God.


    Bam! Following a loud bang and the flash of the light of the blade, Ye Zhiyin and her group were still alive and kicking. Instead, Gu Feiyang was sent flying out of the restaurant while his finger was shaking. Blood could be seen dripping down from it.


    ��What the���� The hearts of the onlookers skipped a beat as they wondered who that person was.


    They could not believe that a top achiever of the Proud Son List, Gu Feiyang, was sent flying backward with only one attack.


    ��You��re definitely tired of living!�� Yu Shou berated with a death stare. Anyone who would dare to humiliate Ye Zhiyin was getting on his nerves.


    He was named Yu Shou, and his name had the meaning of protection.


    After taking a step forward, the catastrophic light radiated the firmament, turning it into maroon color, intimidating the surrounding cultivators with his Heavenly Might. At that moment, they knew Yu Shou was a powerful individual.


    After a maroon demonic blade descended from the sky, Yu Shou held it in his hand and fired another slash even more powerful than the previous one.


    As the light of the slash filled the sky, Gu Feiyang howled and manifested the phantasm of the Ancient God that hurled a domineering palm out to fight against the maroon demonic blade. Suddenly, deafening clangs were heard before the palm was split open. The slash of the maroon demonic blade fired at the body of the Ancient God.


    Despite Gu Feiyang��s best effort, the haughty man who entered the Proud Son List could not stop the slash of Yu Shou.


    ��This is presumptuous!��


    A loud roar could be heard from the sky as a Divine Light shone on the blade of Yu Shou, breaking it in the process and sending him backward as he let out a groan.


    The hearts of the crowds were beating like a drum when they felt the Might of a Heavenly Immortal.


    Lifting their heads, they immediately caught sight of the silhouette of a Heavenly Immortal.


    ��Feiyang, are you alright?�� the Heavenly Immortal in the sky asked as he stared at Gu Feiyang.


    ��I��m fine.�� Gu Feiyang��s expression turned glum as he was utterly defeated.


    This individual was one of the Heavenly Immortals of the Palace of Gods. A mighty cultivator under the command of the Ancient Emperor.


    ��Hmm.�� The Heavenly Immortal nodded. Right then, he gazed at Yu Shou and the others condescendingly. Turning his eyes into golden color, he fired Divine Lights from them. Then he admonished, ��How dare you behave like a bunch of barbarians here! You shall all die now!��


    The crowds instantly turned their eyes on Yu Shou. This individual was truly overpowering. It was unfortunate that his opponent was Gu Feiyang. Now that a Heavenly Immortal had arrived, no way any of them could survive anymore.


    ��Which lowlife worm dared to disrespect my Young Miss and act like a savage?�� Another voice could be heard bellowing from the sky. Just then, the sky was split open, and a dazzling Divine Light beamed down. Then a Heavenly Immortal dressed in a golden feathered garment could be seen descending from the firmament.

 Chapter 2969 - Spinoff (3)

    ��It��s a Heavenly Immortal!��


    Many cultivators looked up at the sky of the Tianchu Realm, only to realize that it was split open. A Heavenly Immortal clad in a golden feather clothing was covered with a Divine Light. That feather clothing was like sturdy and clear-cut armor.


    Another Heavenly Immortal had shown up in the sky, but they were not from the Palace of Gods.


    Young Miss?


    The eyes of the crowds were on Ye Zhiyin and her group. To think that these people were high-born individuals who had a Heavenly Immortal as their guardian!


    However, which force would dare to cross the Palace of Gods in a world reigned by it? A fellow elder of the Palace of Gods would be an exception. But that would be impossible. Otherwise, Gu Feiyang would��ve known them.


    ��The Demon Monarch!�� The pupils of the Heavenly Immortal of the Palace of Gods shrunk as he stared at the figure dressed in golden feather clothing. Then he mentioned, ��I am one of the Itinerant Cultivators from the Palace of Gods, Taishan. Identify yourself.��


    The Palace of Gods was ruled by a group of elders whose influence extended across the entire world. There were many Itinerant Cultivators under the command of the elders. Each of them was a Heavenly Immortal, and the Itinerant Cultivator Taishan was one of them.


    Divine Light surrounded his body, making him look intimidating. Hovering in the void, he glanced at the masses with a condescending look. In the infinitely vast multiverse, the Palace of Gods was one of the powerful forces that ruled many universes. Tianchu Realm was one of their territories. The Palace of Gods was the most prominent and supreme organization in this world. So, he did not have to care about his opponent��s background.


    His enemy was the Demon Monarch��the transmuted form of Little Condor.


    He turned his eyes to look at Yu Shou and thought. To think that Second Elder��s son was bullied by some random person. If he were here, he would��ve cut the enemy in half. Besides, Young Miss was here as well. These cocky lowlifes were totally out of line, making the Condor Emperor furious.


    ��Uncle Condor!�� Ye Zhiyin and Yu Shou greeted. Little Condor was their playmate. Although he was the mount of Ye Zhiyin��s father, they would always pay him respect. They would often ride on him to travel around, while he would also make jokes to alleviate their mood.


    ��Young Miss, I��ll go and finish off that scoundrel now!�� Little Condor stated. Who did they think the Young Miss was? How could he allow her to be bullied by some strangers? It was too much!


    The Itinerant Cultivator Taishan furrowed his brows. Immediately, a terrifying Divine Power permeated the sky. A storm stirred up by the invisible Divine Power rushed toward Little Condor as an overpowering God��s Might pressurized the atmosphere.


    ��What a ridiculous remark!�� The whole atmosphere rumbled when the Itinerant Cultivator Taishan took a step forward. A matchless God��s Might pervaded the sky as if reality would crumble at any time. Simultaneously, multiple skyscraping stone pillars descended from the sky, aiming at the location of Little Condor, trying to repress the whole area.


    Whoosh! When the gale blew up, Little Condor transformed his body back to its original form, looking colossal. All the golden feathers on his body were like sharpened divine weapons. His form turned into a sparkling radiance when he flapped his wings. They produced flying slashes that tore open the fabric of space, cut off all the skyscraping stone pillars, and flew toward the Itinerant Cultivator Taishan��s towering body of the Heavenly Immortal.


    In that instant, the gigantic figure gleamed and transformed into a bona fide Divine Body that assimilated with the world as if it was a god that ruled the universe. Conjuring incredible force in his arms, he hurled a fist will that shattered the atmosphere, stirring up a violent cyclone. It traversed the void and fired at Little Condor.


    ��Heaven Collapse!�� a resounding voice piped. The sky trembled at his command. Countless cultivators nearby felt like their bodies were about to break into pieces. Yet, Little Condor remained unflinching and flew forward as his wings turned into genuine divine arms.


    ��God-Slayer!��


    Clang! Clang! The ear-piercing sound of the wings cutting through the fist will could be heard. The unstoppable slashes collided with the Heaven Collapsing Fist head-on, causing a deep, resonant bang that disintegrated many surrounding buildings.


    Most people were flattened against the ground when the storm swept through. Almost no one could stand up when the ripple hit.


    ��This is madness!��


    The hearts of the cultivators of the Tianchu Realm skipped a beat at the breakout of the battle of the Heavenly Immortal. No one had expected a foreign cultivator would fight the Heavenly Immortal of the Palace of Gods without hesitation.


    Sounds of clashes could be heard in the sky ceaselessly. The atmosphere would quiver intensely at each collision. The scale of the battle between two Heavenly Immortals must be unimaginably spectacular.


    ��Hey beast, how dare you! Don��t think you get away after defying an Itinerant Cultivator of the Palace of Gods!�� the Itinerant Cultivator Taishan chided angrily in the middle of the fight. He could not believe that the Demon Monarch could wipe the floor with him.


    ��Don��t go around flaunting the name of the Palace of Gods! It means nothing to me! Who are you to bully my Young Miss?�� Little Condor continued in a loud voice, ��As a follower of my great master, I would be ashamed to return to him if I could not even slay you vermin of a cultivator right now! Slash of Sparkling Radiance!��


    Right after he spoke, a dazzling golden Divine Light tore open the sky, creating a fissure in the fabric of space. When the brilliance cut through the heavens, a spurt of blood appeared as the Itinerant Cultivator Taishan groaned in agony.


    The impact of the attack sent both the Itinerant Cultivator Taishan and Little Condor flying backward, canceling out the powerful storm. The crowd raised their heads to stare at the sky and noticed blood oozing out of the gigantic body of the Heavenly Immortal. The sight of the missing limb was a little too eerie to behold.


    The Itinerant Cultivator of the Palace of Gods, the Heavenly Immortal Taishan, had gotten one of his limbs chopped off.


    What a crazy turn of events! To think that one could witness an undaunted individual fight one of the strongest younger generations of the Palace of Gods, Gu Feiyang, while the former��s reinforcement, the Demon Monarch, sever the limb of the Itinerant Cultivator.


    Was there actually someone who would stand against the Palace of Gods?


    What about the master of the Demon Monarch? Could it be that the woman who Gu Feiyang had asked to pour him a cup of drink was actually the progeny of the Demon Monarch��s master?


    Should that be the case, how powerful could the Demon Monarch��s master be?


    Another booming sound was heard when Yu Shou hurled attacks at Gu Feiyang. The former easily defeated the cocky cultivator who entered the Proud Son List. The entire fight was one-sided.


    ��I don��t care who you are, but you��ll be skinned alive for offending the Palace of Gods!�� the voice of the Heavenly Immortal Taishan echoed through the heavens. Thunders rumbled when his voice traveled to the sky. Then it was split open.


    Following that, a peerless God��s Might pervaded the atmosphere. Everyone in the Taichu Realm lifted their heads to gape at the sky. Many of them showed reverence and bowed to worship their deity.


    ��Hmm?�� Little Condor frowned after raising his head to stare at the sky. This world was controlled by the Palace of Gods. In other words, its will would be equivalent to the will of the world. The Itinerant Cultivator Taishan must have informed the heavens earlier.


    An enormous Divine Palace could be seen at the peak of the firmament. A lineup of the Itinerant Cultivators of the Palace of Gods was hovering outside the palace.


    At that time, a silhouette opened his eyes while sitting in a lotus position inside the Divine Palace and peered at the lower realm condescendingly. With just a glance, countless rays of Divine Light beamed toward the Tianchu Realm. Meanwhile, a Heavenly Might filled up the atmosphere, flattening against Little Condor, Yu Shou, Ye Zhiyin, and the others.


    It was especially bad for Yu Shou, Ye Zhiyin, and the likes. Under the suppression of the Heavenly Path, their faces turned ashen, and their bodies turned feeble.


    ��Kneel!�� a voice sounded like the heavens roared from the above,